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After much thinking I have arrived at a definition of Swadeshi that, perhaps, best illustrates my meaning. Swadeshi is that spirit in us which restricts us to the use and service of our immediate surroundings to the exclusion of the more remote. Thus, as for religion, in order to satisfy the requirements of the definition, I must restrict myself to my ancestral religion. That is the use of my immediate religious surrounding. If I find it defective, I should serve it by purging it of its defects. In the domain of politics, I should make use of the indigenous institutions and serve them by curing them of their proved defects. In that of economics, I should use only things that are produced by my immediate neighbours and serve those industries by making them efficient and complete where they might be found wanting. It is suggested that such Swadeshi, if reduced to practice, will lead to the millennium, because we do not expect quite to reach it within our times, so may we not abandon Swadeshi even though it may not be fully attained for generations to come.
Let us briefly examine the three branches of Swadeshi as sketched above. Hinduism has become a conservative religion and, therefore, a mighty force because of the Swadeshi spirit underlying it. It is the most tolerant because it is non-proselytizing, and it is as capable of expansion today as it has been found to be in the past. It has succeeded not in driving out, as I think it has been erroneously held, but in absorbing Buddhism. By reason of the Swadeshi spirit, a Hindu refuses to change his religion not necessarily because he considers it to be the best, but because he knows that he can complement it by introducing reforms. And what I have said about Hinduism is, I suppose, true of the other great faiths of the world, only it is held that it is specially so in the case of Hinduism.
Following out the Swadeshi spirit, I observe the indigenous institutions and the village Panchayats hold me. India is really a republican country, and it is because it is that, that it has survived every shock hitherto delivered. Princes and potentates, whether they were Indian born or foreigners, have hardly touched the vast masses, except for collecting revenue. The latter, in their turn, seem to have rendered unto Caesar what was Caesar's and for the rest have done much as they have liked. The vast organization of caste answered not only the religious wants of the community, but it answered to its political needs. The villagers managed their internal affairs through the caste system, and through it they dealt with any oppression from the ruling power or powers. It is not possible to deny of a nation that was capable of producing from the caste system its wonderful power of organization. One had but to attend the great Kumbh Mela at Hardwar last year to know how skilful that organization must have been which, without any seeming effort, was able effectively to cater for more than a billion pilgrims. Yet, it is the fashion to say that we lack organizing ability. This is true, I fear, to a certain extent, of those who have been nurtured in the new traditions.
We have laboured under a terrible handicap owing to an almost fatal departure from the Swadeshi spirit. We, the educated classes, have received our education through a foreign tongue. We have, therefore, not reacted upon the masses. We want to represent the masses, but we fail. They recognize us not much more than they recognize the English officers. Their hearts are an open book to neither. Their aspirations are not ours. Hence, there is a break. And you witness not in reality failure to organize but want of correspondence between the representative and the represented. If, during the last fifty years, we had been educated through the vernaculars, our elders and our servants and our neighbours would have partaken of our knowledge; the discoveries of a Bose or a Ray would have been household treasures, as are the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. As it is, so far as the masses are concerned, those great discoveries might as well have been made by foreigners. Had instruction in all the branches of learning been given through the vernaculars, I make bold to say that they would have been enriched wonderfully. The question of village sanitation, etc., would have been solved long ago. The village Panchayats would be now a living force in a special way, and India would almost be enjoying self-government suited to its requirements.
And, now for the last division of Swadeshi. Much of the deep poverty of the masses is due to the ruinous departure from Swadeshi in the economic and industrial life. If not an article of commerce had been brought from outside India, she would be today a land flowing with milk and honey!1 But that was not to be. We were greedy, and so was England. The connection between England and India was based clearly upon an error. But she does not remain in India in error. It is her declared policy that India is to be sheld in trust for her people. If this is true, Lancashire must stand aside. And if the Swadeshi doctrine is a sound doctrine, Lancashire can stand aside without hurt, though it may sustain a shock for the time being. I think of Swadeshi not as a boycott movement undertaken by way of revenge. I conceive it as a religious principle to be followed by all. I am no economist, but I have read some treatises which show that England could easily become a self-sustained country, growing all the produce she needs. This may be an utterly ridiculous proposition, and perhaps the best proof that it cannot be true, is that England is one of the largest importers in the world. But India cannot live for Lancashire or any other country before she is able to live for herself. And she can live for herself only if she produces and is helped to produce everything for her requirements within her own borders. She need not be, she ought not to be, drawn into the vortex of mad and ruinous competition which breeds fratricide, jealousy and many other evils. But who is to stop her great millionaires from entering into the world competition? Certainly, not legislation. Force of public opinion, proper education, however, can do a great deal in the desired direction. The hand-loom industry is in a dying condition. I took special care, during my wanderings last year, to see as many weavers as possible, and my heart ached to find how they had lost, how families had retired from this once flourishing and honourable occupation. 1. "Had we not abandoned Swadeshi, we need not have been in the present fallen state. If we would get rid of the economic slavery, we must manufacture our own cloth and, at the present moment, only by hand-spinning and hand-weaving."
- Mahatma: Vol. II, p.21.
If we follow the Swadeshi doctrine, it would be your duty and mine to find out neighbours who can supply our wants and to teach them to supply them where they do not know how to proceed, assuming that there are neighbours who are in want of healthy occupation. Then every village of India will almost be a self-supporting and self-contained unit, exchanging only such necessary commodities with other villages where they are not locally producible. This may all sound nonsensical. Well, India is a country of nonsense. It is nonsensical to parch one's throat with thirst when a kindly Mohammedan is ready to offer pure water to drink. And yet thousands of Hindus would rather die of thirst than drink water from a Mohammedan household. These nonsensical men can also, once they are convinced that their religion demands that should wear garments manufactured in India only and eat food only grown in India, decline to wear any other clothing or eat any other food. Lord Curzon set the fashion for tea-drinking. And that pernicious drug now bids fair to overwhelm the nation. It has already undermined the digestive apparatus of hundreds of thousands of men and women and constitutes as additional tax upon their slender purses. Lord Hardinge can set the fashion for Swadeshi, and almost the whole of India will forswear foreign goods. There is a verse in the Bhagvad Gita which, freely rendered, means masses follow the classes. It is easy to undo the evil if the thinking portion of the community were to take the Swadeshi vow, even though it may for a time cause considerable inconvenience. I hate legislative interference in any department of life. At best, it is the lesser evil. But I would tolerate, welcome, indeed plead for a stiff protective duty upon foreign goods. Natal, a British colony, protected its sugar by taxing the sugar that came from another British colony, Mauritius. England has sinned against India by forcing free trade upon her. It may have been food for her, but it has been poison for this country.1 1. "We are too much obsessed by the glamour of the West. We forget that what may be perfectly good for certain conditions in the West is not necessarily good for certain other, and often diametrically opposite, conditions in the East. Free trade, which may have been good enough for England, would certainly have ruined Germany. Germany prospered only because her thinkers, instead of slavishly following, England took note of the special conditions of their own land, and devised economics suited to them."
- Young India: May 12, 1927
It has often been urged that India cannot adopt Swadeshi in the economic life at any rate. Those who advance this objection do not look upon Swadeshi as a rule of life. With them it is a mere patriotic effort not to be made if if involved any self-denial. Swadeshi, as defined here, is a religious discipline to be undergone in utter disregard of the physical discomfort it may cause to individuals. Under its spell, the deprivation of a pin or a needle, because these are not manufactured in India, need cause no terror. A Swadeshist will learn to do without hundreds of things which today he considers necessary. Moreover, those who dismiss Swadeshi from their minds by arguing the impossible, forget that Swadeshi, after all, is a goal to be reached by steady effort. And we would be making for the goal even if we confined Swadeshi to a given set of articles, allowing ourselves as a temporary measure to use such things as might not be procurable in the country.
There now remains for me to consider one more objection that has been raised against Swadeshi. The objectors consider it to be a most selfish doctrine without any warrant in the civilized code of morality. With them to practise Swadeshi is to revert to barbarism. I cannot enter into a detailed analysis of the proposition. But I would urge that Swadeshi is the only doctrine consistent with the law of humility and love. It is arrogance to think of launching out to serve the whole of India when I am hardly able to serve even my own family. It were better to concentrate my effort upon the family and consider that through them I was serving the whole nation and, if you will, the whole of humanity. This is humility and it is love. The motive will determine the quality of the act. I may serve my family regardless of the sufferings I may cause to others. As, for instance, I may accept an employment which enables me to extort money from people. I enrich myself thereby and then satisfy many unlawful demands of the family. Here I am neither serving the family nor the State. Or, I may recognize that God has given me hands and feet only to work with for my sustenance and for that of those who may be dependent upon me. I would then at once simplify my life and that of those whom I can directly reach. In this instance, I would have served the family without causing injury to anyone else. Supposing that everyone followed this mode of life, we should have at once an ideal state. All will not reach that state at the same time. But those of us who, realizing its truth, enforce it in practice, will clearly anticipate and accelerate the coming of that happy day. Under this plan of life, in seeming to serve India to the exclusion of every other country, I do not harm any other country. My patriotism is both exclusive and inclusive!1 It is exclusive in the sense that in all humility I confine my attention to the land of my birth, but it is inclusive in the sense that my service is not of a competitive or antagonistic nature. Sic utere tuo ut alienum non laedas is not merely a legal maxim, but it is a grand doctrine of life.2 It is the key to a proper practice of Ahimsa or love. It is for you, the custodians of a great faith, to set the fashion and show by your preaching, sanctified by practice, that patriotism based on hatred "killeth" and that patriotism based on love "giveth life".
From an address at the Missionary Conference, Madras, on Feb.14, 1916.
- Speeches & Writings of M. Gandhi: P.336
"My patriotism is not an exclusive thing. It is all embracing and I should reject that patriotism which sought to mount upon the distress or exploitation of other nationalities. The conception of my patriotism is nothing if it is not always, in every case without exception, consistent with the broadest good of humanity at large."- Young India: April 4, 1929
"My nationalism, fierce though it is, is not exclusive, is not devised to harm any nation or individual. Legal maxims are not so legal as they are moral. I believe in the external truth of 'sic utere tuo ut alienum non laedas'. (Use thy own property so as not to injure thy neighbour's)."- Young India: March 26, 1931. | <urn:uuid:57c9d307-373a-4ad6-adc6-9339933f8156> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | http://www.gandhiashramsevagram.org/swadeshi/definition-of-swadeshi.php | 2024-12-13T21:45:00Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066119651.31/warc/CC-MAIN-20241213202611-20241213232611-00761.warc.gz | en | 0.975915 | 2,889 | 2.890625 | 3 |
The two-stroke power valve system is an improvement on the conventional two-stroke engine, giving a high power output over a wider RPM range. The power valve, also known as the exhaust valve, opens and closes the exhaust port, allowing the engine to produce steady power based on the throttle. This means that whether the rider opens wide at the start or on a straightaway, power valves ensure top performance at either end without an unnecessary thrill ride.
A two-stroke engine combines the intake stroke and the compression stroke in one action of the piston, and the combustion stroke and the exhaust stroke in the other. The power valve controls the exhaust flow at certain RPMs to give more power and better throttle response. Depending on how the power valve is set up, it will stay closed at lower RPMs and then open up once the engine revs up. This changes the size and shape of the exhaust cylinder port as well as the timing.
A stuck power valve can cause problems such as a reduction in power output, making it feel like the engine has about half the power, and a rich air-fuel mixture, which can eventually foul the spark plug.
Characteristics | Values |
Purpose of a two-stroke power valve | Controls the exhaust flow at certain RPMs to give more power and better throttle response |
When the power valve opens | Once the revs reach a certain RPM |
Effect of a power valve | Changes the size and shape of the exhaust cylinder port as well as the timing |
Adjustment | The power valve can be adjusted to open up at a different RPM, changing the power curve |
Issues with a power valve | Sticking, worn or broken power valve |
What You'll Learn
- Power valves control exhaust flow at certain RPMs
- Power valves can be adjusted to open at different RPMs
- A stuck power valve can cause problems with starting, throttle response, horsepower and exhaust sound
- Tuning the air-fuel ratio can prevent power valves from sticking
- Using the correct oil and oil mix ratio can prevent power valves from sticking
Power valves control exhaust flow at certain RPMs
Power valves are an integral part of the exhaust valve system, which is found on almost all modern sportbikes. This system aims to optimise the exhaust flow by controlling the amount of exhaust gas that exits the engine. The valves can open or close to change the exhaust flow, and this process is controlled by a servo motor.
The servo motor, directed by the engine control unit, utilises a pulley system to rotate cables connected to the valve, allowing it to open or close. This mechanism enables the adjustment of the valve based on engine RPM, optimising performance across different engine speeds.
By manipulating the valve, the system can create back pressure at lower RPMs, which increases torque and enhances acceleration. Additionally, the valves are partially closed at idle and low RPMs to reduce noise, adhering to noise regulations.
Removing the power valve and retuning the engine can result in a flatter, improved torque curve. However, this modification may trigger a fault code, illuminating the fault indicator light on the dashboard.
Overall, power valves play a crucial role in controlling exhaust flow, optimising performance, and meeting noise regulations.
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Power valves can be adjusted to open at different RPMs
The power valve should be closed at low RPM and open at high RPM. The power valve does this with centrifugal weights (Governor) that overcome spring pressure and move the power valve linkage. The linkages are usually spring-loaded to close them at low RPM. Each manufacturer has a different way of moving the power valve.
The power valve is a piece of metal that moves down and covers part of the exhaust port, making it smaller. Large ports mean large horsepower, but they also mean a narrow power band. By making the port smaller, the power valve helps make the power band wider. It does this by keeping more of the fuel mixture in the cylinder and out of the exhaust pipe at lower RPM.
When the power valve opens, it increases the size of the exhaust port and allows the exhaust gases to flow more freely, giving better performance at higher revs.
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A stuck power valve can cause problems with starting, throttle response, horsepower and exhaust sound
A stuck power valve can cause a range of problems with a two-stroke engine, including issues with starting, throttle response, horsepower, and exhaust sound.
The power valve in a two-stroke engine controls the exhaust flow at certain RPMs, allowing for more power and better throttle response. When the engine is off, the power valve should be closed. If the power valve is stuck open, the engine may be more difficult to start, especially when cold. This is because a stuck open power valve results in a larger exhaust port, reducing the compression ratio and making it harder to turn over the engine.
A stuck power valve can also cause poor throttle response and low-end power. When the valve is stuck open at lower RPMs, the exhaust velocity slows down due to the increased port size. This can make the bike feel sluggish and boggy when accelerating, as the engine is not able to rev up quickly.
Additionally, a stuck power valve can affect top-end horsepower. If the valve is stuck closed, the exhaust port is too small, restricting the exhaust flow. This reduces power output and makes it feel like the engine has about half the power. The engine may also struggle to reach higher RPMs, resulting in a lack of "power band" feeling or over-rev.
Finally, a stuck power valve can alter the exhaust sound. When the valve is stuck open, the bike will generally sound louder because more air and fuel can flow out of the exhaust, similar to the throttle being stuck wide open.
It is important to address a stuck power valve to prevent further issues and ensure optimal performance of the two-stroke engine.
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Tuning the air-fuel ratio can prevent power valves from sticking
Tuning the air-fuel ratio can be an effective way to prevent power valves from sticking in two-stroke engines. This is because a poorly tuned engine can lead to a build-up of carbon on the piston, cylinder ports, and exhaust power valve, which can cause the power valve to stick.
The air-fuel ratio (AFR) is the ratio of air to fuel in the combusted charge. For gasoline engines, the ideal AFR range is generally from 12:1 to 15:1, which means 12 or 15 parts of air to 1 part of fuel. However, the "best" AFR can vary depending on the engine and its setup, as well as factors such as application and power output.
To tune the AFR, you need to adjust the jetting of the carburetor. This can be done by learning how to jet the air screw, which is not as difficult as some people think. By tuning the AFR, you can prevent excessive carbon build-up and keep your two-stroke engine running efficiently.
In addition to tuning the AFR, using the proper oil and oil mix ratio for your specific bike and riding style is also important to prevent power valve sticking. The bigger the engine displacement, the less oil you need because you're not revving it as high. If you're riding at lower RPMs, you also want an oil with a lower flashpoint that burns more efficiently to reduce build-up and smoke.
By tuning the AFR and using the correct oil and oil mix ratio, you can help prevent power valve sticking and keep your two-stroke engine running smoothly and reliably.
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Using the correct oil and oil mix ratio can prevent power valves from sticking
Two-stroke engines require the right lubrication to function properly. Unlike four-stroke engines, two-stroke engines do not have an internal oil reservoir. Instead, they rely on the oil mixed directly into the gasoline for lubrication.
The correct oil mix ratio is crucial to ensure the smooth functioning of two-stroke engines. The mix ratio is the proportion of gas to oil, expressed as a ratio. For example, a 50:1 ratio means 50 parts gas to 1 part oil. Using the correct oil and oil mix ratio can help prevent power valves from sticking.
Different two-stroke engines may require different mix ratios. Modern chainsaws, string trimmers, leaf blowers, and other small-engine two-stroke equipment typically recommend a 50:1 oil mix ratio, while some may recommend 40:1, and older two-stroke equipment might even call for 32:1.
Using the wrong lubrication in a two-stroke engine can lead to piston and cylinder damage, requiring an expensive engine rebuild. Therefore, it is essential to consult the manufacturer's instructions or the engine manual to determine the correct oil mix ratio for your specific two-stroke engine.
Additionally, the type of oil used is also important. A good quality, low-smoke two-stroke engine oil will help reduce carbon deposits and improve engine performance. Synthetic oils can provide a cleaner burn and increase engine life, while mineral oils, though cheaper, tend to leave more buildup inside the engine, requiring more maintenance.
Furthermore, the freshness of the oil-gas mixture is a factor to consider. Pre-mixed fuel should be used within 30 days to ensure stability and combustibility.
By using the correct oil and oil mix ratio, you can help prevent power valves from sticking in your two-stroke engine, ensuring optimal performance and prolonging the life of your equipment.
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Frequently asked questions
A two-stroke power valve controls the exhaust flow at certain RPMs to give the engine more power and better throttle response. Depending on how the power valve is set up, it will stay closed in the lower RPM range, and then once it revs up to a certain RPM, it will start opening up. This effectively changes the size and shape of the exhaust cylinder port as well as the timing.
If the power valve is stuck open when it should be closed, the engine could be noticeably more difficult to start, especially when it is cold. When the power valve is sticking open at a lower RPM, the exhaust velocity is slower because the port is too big, making the engine feel sluggish and boggy when you try to accelerate.
If the power valve is stuck closed, the exhaust port is too small, so there’s not enough flow. This greatly reduces the power output, making it feel like the engine has about half the power because it won’t “rev out”. There won’t be any “power band” feeling or over-rev because it might not even be able to rev that high. | <urn:uuid:5c4a5c84-cf17-4bad-bb75-316114db6852> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://medshun.com/article/can-i-run-two-stroke-no-powervalve-removed | 2024-12-11T01:30:21Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066071149.10/warc/CC-MAIN-20241210225516-20241211015516-00720.warc.gz | en | 0.947248 | 2,232 | 2.984375 | 3 |
Due to differences in – inter alia – language, culture, and economic priorities, Belgium has been increasingly federalized through successive state reforms. What does it mean for the country as ‘the mother of all elections’, scheduled for 2014, draws closer?
Federalism in Belgium
The federalisation of Belgium formally started in 1970 and is still ongoing. In 1993, Belgium’s unique federal system, consisting of a central state, three economic Regions (Wallonia, Flanders and Brussels-Capital Region) and three cultural Communities (French-speaking, Dutch/Flemish-speaking and German-speaking), was enshrined in the Constitution.
The Flemish Community comprises the Flemish Region plus the Flemish-speaking inhabitants of the Brussels-Capital Region. The French Community consists of the French-speaking part of the Walloon Region plus the French-speaking inhabitants of the Brussels-Capital Region. The territory of the German-speaking Community lies within the Walloon Region. All entities have their own capital, government, parliament, administration, and symbols (flag, anthem, ‘national holiday’). The Flemish Region and the Flemish Community merged into one political structure.
The Regions have powers in territory-related fields (e.g. environment, agriculture), the Communities have ‘language-based’ competencies (e.g. culture, education). The Federal level manages the public finances, the army, the judicial system, social security, foreign affairs, substantial parts of public health and home affairs, as well as everything that does not explicitly come under the Communities or Regions.
The subnational entities not only have far-reaching internal political, legal and spending autonomy, but also foreign responsibilities in the fields for which they are domestically competent, including the right to conclude treaties on those matters. The Regions and Communities also play a direct role in day-to-day European decision-making. The Maastricht Treaty allowed regional ministers to be members of the Council instead of national ministers, provided that there is only one head of delegation who speaks for his/her state as a whole: any federal or regional minister should defend the Belgian point of view, and the Belgian votes cannot be divided. The representation of Belgium in the Council is regulated by Cooperation Agreements of 1994 and 2003 between the federal and subnational governments. Depending on the topic, a federal or regional minister represents Belgium, according to a rotation system.
Separatism in Flanders
The two most visible and most media-covered rifts between the Northern and Southern part of Belgium are related to language and economy. The former is mainly apparent in and around Brussels, where Flemish- and French-speakers live on the same territory, giving rise to struggles about political representation and language use in public services. The latter fissure is country-wide: while in the 19th century Wallonia was the economic engine of Belgium, Flanders has become the most prosperous region throughout the 20th century. Flanders has witnessed increasing separatism in the past decades. Political parties striving for Flemish independence present the financial transfers – via the national budget and social security – from North to South as an important argument for their case.
Flemish nationalism was initially represented in politics by the Volksunie (People’s Union). Due to ideological differences within the party, it was split up into several new parties. Throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, the Vlaams Blok (Flemish Bloc), explicitly advocating Flemish independence, gained increasing electoral support, even after the party was convicted for incitement to discrimination and racism and changed its name to Vlaams Belang (VB, or Flemish Interest). In the past years, however, its popularity has quickly declinedto around 8% at present. In the latest national elections, in 2010, N-VA (New Flemish Alliance) – which defends less radical points of view than VB but still wishes to establish Flanders as an independent state after a gradual ‘evaporation’ of Belgium – became the largest political party in Flanders and even in Belgium. N-VA’s popularity rose until 2012, but throughout the year its support in Flanders stagnated at around 36%.
However, the success of nationalist parties does not reflect an overwhelming preference for Flemish independence. In a 2011 poll, only 22% of the respondents supported an independent Flanders. In Wallonia, there are no significant political parties striving for Walloon independence. Yet, while Flemish politicians increasingly push for further federalisation or even an independent Flemish State, reflections on a ‘Plan B’ sporadically pop up on both sides of the language border.
The campaign for the 2012 local elections shows how topical the issue of further Flemish autonomy is in Flanders. The elections were unusually characterized by discussions on national topics. N-VA explicitly communicated that voting for that party was a first step towards the next national election, planned in 2014. Its leader Bart De Wever, who became mayor of his hometown Antwerp, first called on the Belgian prime minister to start talks on a “confederation” and only later referred to local issues in his victory speech.
The balance of power in Belgian politics
The Flemish political parties signed an agreement in 1989 to create a cordon sanitaire against VB, meaning that they would not enter into government talks on any level with this party. After it changed its name, no new agreement was signed, but government talks with VB are still taboo.
There is no such cordon against N-VA; the party is a member of the Flemish Government since 2009, together with social-democrats and Christian-democrats.
N-VA took also part in the national government formation talks after the 2010 elections – which lasted for 541 days and were herewith the longest in world history – but could not find common ground on a number of issues. The current federal government is composed of social-democrats, Christian-democrats and liberals from both sides of the language border, and is implementing the 6th Belgian state reform, including a transfer of additional competences to the Regions and Communities, as well as a reform of the voting constituency system. While the government has a comfortable majority of 96 seats in 150-seat legislative chamber, it has no majority on the Flemish side; this point is often raised by Flemish nationalist parties when challenging the legitimacy of the government or the Belgian state.
While the political right is rather popular in Flanders, Walloon voters have a clear preference for left-wing parties. The governments of the French Community and Walloon Region are both composed of social-democrats, Christian-democrats and greens.
The Brussels problem
As far-reaching autonomy or independence of Belgium’s subnational entities are increasingly discussed by politicians and in the media, some practical concerns have been voiced, such as the position of Brussels. The Brussels-Capital Region is physically encapsulated in the Flemish Region, but the overwhelming majority of its inhabitants (approximately 85%) is French-speaking. The region generates around 19% of Belgium’s GDP, nearly all official institutions of the national and subnational entities are located in Brussels, and the Belgian capital hosts most EU institutions and a number of other international organisations such as the NATO. In the event of a split-up of Belgium, both Flemish and Walloon authorities would likely ‘claim’ Brussels. In 2011, the parliament of the French-speaking Community unanimously adopted a resolution stipulating that, from then on, it would use the name “Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles” in its communications, campaigns and in the administration. This move was met with strong criticism from the Flemish government; the Flemish and national authorities do not use this denomination, neither do the Flemish media and some French-speaking media. Although the establishment of this ‘Federation’ has no far-reaching practical or legal consequences, it reveals much about the problems the status of Brussels could produce if Belgium would be divided in two.
Separatist parties and the EU
There is a general pro-European consensus among most political parties in Belgium. This consensus, combined with a low salience of EU issues to the general public, results in a low politicization of European topics. Yet, the separatist parties in Flanders hold diverging positions towards the EU. While VB explicitly rejects the current organisation of the EU, N-VA is usually viewed as contributing to the Belgian permissive consensus. However, this party takes an ambiguous approach. On the one hand, it views the EU as the most suitable macro level: it supports the austerity policies that are currently promoted by the EU, as well as deeper military integration – the EU could provide the necessary military security for the very small state that Flanders would be. On the other hand, its position on other issues is ambivalent. For example, in spring 2011, N-VA first advocated for the possibility to unilaterally reinstate border controls in the Schengen zone, and a month later stated that the Community method should be followed in the reform of the Schengen zone and that the European Commission is the best placed actor to lead this process. Also its favourable attitude towards financial support for EU members in crisis, such as Greece, is somewhat strange in the light of its firm resistance against financial transfers within Belgium. VB is unequivocally opposed to financial transfers within the EU.
There are a number of practical and legal obstacles for Flemish independence. Should Flanders become an independent state, the new country would have to re-negotiate accession to the EU, and its membership would be subject to approval by all the EU members. Other problematic issues include European citizenship, the currency, and the applicability of international treaties concluded by the EU. The Flemish nationalist parties have not yet communicated clear strategies for clarifying the uncertainties about the legal position of new states in the EU.
A look ahead
The next election period in 2014 (with regional, federal and European elections possibly on the same day or at least in the same period) has been dubbed ‘the mother of all elections’. For the N-VA, the final push to Flemish independence (even if it speaks about a more moderate post-independence state: confederation) is at stake. It hopes to profit from dissatisfaction with the current government led by a French-speaking socialist that has to carry out austerity policies. But the fact that the European elections coincide with the elections in Belgium might work against the N-VA. It could be forced to abandon its ‘constructive ambiguity’ on Europe: how does it see the transition for Flanders from a Belgian sub-state to an EU member state (if possible at all); what is its position on further European integration in financial, economic, budgetary (including fiscal capacity) and political dimensions as proposed in the Van Rompuy Report on the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU); in other words, how much sovereignty that it does not want to share at the Belgian level is it prepared to surrender to the European level?
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Fair Observer’s editorial policy.
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Trees with bright yellow flowers can brighten any landscape, even on a cloudy day. There is room in almost any garden design for the many shades of yellow found in flowering trees and in the shrubs, annuals, and bulbs that can accompany them. Here are some of the favorite yellow flowering trees of landscapers and home gardeners in North America.
Favorite Yellow Flowering Trees
1. Golden chain tree, also known as golden rain tree (Laburnum species)
The golden chain tree, with its coat of golden blooms, is often described as the “Goldilocks” of the landscaping world. This spectacular yellow flowering tree doesn’t like summers that are too hot or cold, and it is fussy in many other ways. Still, if you can meet its exacting horticultural requirements, its beauty makes it well worth the effort.
The golden chain tree drips with yellow flowers 10 to 20 inches (25 to 50 cm) long in late spring. Young trees bear so many blooms that they may need staking to stay upright. The fragrance of this tree’s abundant yellow flowers is not sweet, but it is not unpleasant and becomes something gardeners associate with the tree’s magnificent floral display.
Golden chain trees need cool summers. They are especially well-adapted, for example, to the climate around Bar Harbor, Maine, where famed landscape architect Beatrix Farrand (1872-1959) introduced them about a century ago.
This deciduous tree needs full sun and room to grow. A mature golden chain tree will be 15 to 25 feet (5 to 8 meters) tall and almost as wide. It needs well-drained, rich soil of neutral pH. This tree needs moisture every week during the summer but cannot stand being flooded.
All parts of the golden chain tree are poisonous, so it is best to plant it where there will not be a lot of traffic from pets and children.
Golden chain tree is suited for cool-summer areas in USDA Hardiness Zones 5 through 7. Plant the September golden chain tree (Koelreuteria paniculata) for fall flowering, “Narrow Rocket” (Laburnum anagyroides) if you prefer narrower chains of yellow flowers, or “Vossli” (Laburnum × watereri) for its distinctive, crinkled bark as it ages.
See more beautiful blooming trees.
2. Yellow trumpet tree, also known as Brugmansia (Brugmansia species)
The show-stopping yellow flowers of the yellow trumpet tree make it a wonderful addition to any tropical or subtropical garden in USDA Hardiness Zones 9 through 11. This plant can be cultivated as a fast-growing annual shrub in landscapes where summer nights stay above 50 degrees Fahrenheit (10 degrees Celsius) or as a small tree with winter protection in parts of South Florida, the Gulf Coast, Texas, California, and Hawaii. Just be forewarned that it can become invasive in frost-free climates.
The flowers of the yellow trumpet tree can grow from 4 to 24 inches (10 to 60 cm) long, depending on the variety. Their fragrant flowers are strongest at night. These beautiful flowers draw hummingbirds to the landscape.
Yellow trumpet trees grow best in full sun, although they appreciate a few hours of afternoon shade in exceptionally hot and dry climates. They don’t care about soil as long as it is well-drained. If you are growing your yellow trumpet tree as a container plant, soil mixes designed for azaleas and camellias will be fine.
This beautiful plant is both thirsty and hungry. Container plants need to be watered twice a day during the summer, with excess water draining out the bottom of the pot.
Yellow trumpet trees need heavy fertilization if they are grown in nutrient-deficient soils. Larger plants can be fertilized twice or three times a week. Even young yellow trumpet trees need fertilizer at least once a week. Fertilizer mixtures that encourage blooming, such as 10-50-10 with micronutrients or 15-30-15 with micronutrients, get the best results.
Different varieties of yellow trumpet trees produce different colored flowers. For yellow blooms, choose Brugmansia aurea. There are also red, purple, pink, white, and apricot flower varieties. All parts of the plant are toxic to people and pets.
Aphids, cabbage worms, whiteflies, and spider mites are big problems for yellow trumpet trees grown in containers. Treat affected leaves with rubbing (isopropyl) alcohol to remove visible pests.
3. Magnolia butterfly tree (Magnolia acuminata x Magnolia denudata)
Magnolia ‘Butterflies’ is covered in early spring with masses of canary yellow, tulip-shaped flowers, each 4 to 5 inches (10 to 13 cm) across, that have an intoxicating, lemony scent, making it one of the best trees for a fragrance garden. The naked branches of the tree are covered with flowers for 7 to 9 days until the dark-green, oblong, elliptical leaves emerge.
A deciduous tree, this magnolia can be cultivated either as a shrub or as a small tree, depending on how it is pruned. Magnolia ‘Butterflies’ is resistant to cold and heat and can be grown as a specimen tree or in a hedge.
Be sure to plant Magnolia ‘Butterflies’ in a yard or large garden. It can grow 10 to 15 feet (3 to 6 meters) wide and 25 to 30 feet (8 to 10 meters) tall. It can grow in loam, sand, or clay soil, but it will not do well in poorly drained soils. It needs strong sun for 6 to 8 hours a day and protection from dry, cold winter winds. This tree will bloom in late winter in USDA Hardiness Zones 8 and 9, but flowering will be delayed until early to mid-spring in USDA Hardiness Zones 5 through 7.
For a light shade of yellow, consider a kousa dogwood.
4. Tabebuia tree, also known as trumpet tree and tree of gold (Tabebuia species)
Do you live in a part of North America with only light winter frosts, or maybe no winter frost? Then, you may want to try one of 160 species of tabebuia trees, some of which produce a spring spectacle of clusters of yellow flowers, each 1 to 4 inches (2.5 to 10 cm) wide.
The trumpet tree gets its name from its tubular flowers, which have multiple stamens and frilly edges. Most tabebuia trees bear yellow flowers, but some varieties display spring in white, red, or magenta. The flowers give way to long seed pods, which add interest to the tree during the cool season. Silvery leaves add to the landscape value of the tree.
Choose a variety of yellow tabebuia that your nursery can ensure grows only 25 feet (8 meters) tall. Some varieties grow to 160 feet (50 meters). You also want to confirm that you are getting a variety that can withstand a light freeze unless you live where there are never any winter frosts. Tabebuia trees can grow in sand, loam, or clay with acid, alkaline, or neutral pH but need good drainage.
Expect to trim brittle branches and dead wood during the cool season. Otherwise, this tree needs very little care.
5. Cassia tree, also known as popcorn plant (Senna didymobotrya)
Cassia is a species that can produce a small tree, 25 feet (8 meters) tall, in warm climates or that can be grown as an annual plant in containers in cool climates. At any size, the cassia tree produces a showy display of yellow flowers during summer’s hot, humid days. The flowers produce long bean-like seed pods (cassia is a legume) that are a favorite food of songbirds.
Cassia tree gets its nickname “popcorn plant” from the odor it releases, which is uncannily like buttered popcorn. Resist the urge to taste the plant, however, because all parts of the plant are strong laxatives.
Cassia trees prefer well-drained, acidic soil or even neutral soil. It needs full sun. It can be grown as a container plant anywhere but is best adapted to USDA Hardiness Zone 9 as a landscape plant.
6. Yellow oleander (Nerium oleander ‘Isle of Capri’)
If you have ever driven the freeways in Los Angeles, you undoubtedly have seen miles and miles of oleanders. This Mediterranean plant is well-adapted to hot, dry summers, alkaline, rocky soils, and air pollution. It bears flowers all summer in cooler climates and year-round when protected from frost.
Oleanders can be grown as a multi-stemmed bush or a single-trunked tree. If you want your oleander to have a tree form, you must buy a two-year-old plant and prune it to just one stem. Then, you need to support that stem with a bamboo pole, cutting off any additional stems rising from the crown of the plant just beneath the soil line,
No pruning is necessary if you want to grow your oleander as a bush. Just give it additional fertilizer the first year after planting, and give it weekly watering during summer drought.
Oleanders need full sun. If you live in a location where winter temperatures fall below 20 degrees Fahrenheit (-6 Celsius), oleanders should be grown as a container plant so you can give them winter protection. Be aware that all parts of the plant are poisonous to pets and people, as is smoke from burning the plant. Choose the ‘Isle of Capri’ cultivar for bright yellow flowers.
If you want yellow flowers and cannot find this variety of oleander, consider the tipu tree, a cold-hardy yellow jacaranda, or even a sweet acacia. But don’t plant these yellow flowering trees near a patio or a swimming pool. For a patio, consider a Lydian broom.
7. Hybrid witch hazel Arnold promise (Hamamelis × intermedia ‘Arnold Promise’)
The hybrid witch hazel Arnold Promise is a potentially tree-sized understory plant that bursts into yellow flowers in the late winter or early spring. One of the first flowering plants in cold-winter climates, this cross between Chinese witch hazel and Japanese witch hazel sometimes produces spidery yellow flowers while snow is still on the ground.
While this hybrid witch hazel can be trained into the shape of a tree, its natural habit is vase-shaped, with low branches. Its 6-inch (15 cm) long oval leaves with toothed edges turn yellow to orange in the fall.
The hybrid witch hazel Arnold Promise is not incredibly fussy about soil. It prefers acidic soil, with a pH of 4.5 to 5.5, but can grow even in alkaline soil. It prefers full sun but can grow in partial shade. It has few disease or pest problems, although Japanese beetles can cause cosmetic problems when they chew its leaves.
Hybrid witch hazel Arnold Promise is adapted to USDA Hardiness Zones 5 through 8.
8. Azalea (Rhododendron species)
Azaleas are shrubs that can grow to the dimensions of small trees. They are not deciduous, not evergreen shrubs or small evergreen trees like most other rhododendrons, but many more varieties have yellow flowers. These azaleas make an eye-catching understory plant for taller trees with yellow flowers, such as the Cornelian cherry (which is actually dogwood).
Azaleas need well-drained soil with an acidic pH, but they grow well in raised beds when these conditions are unavailable.
The Narcissiflora azalea (Rhododendron ‘Narcissiflora’) bears yellow flowers in late spring and early summer. Solar Flare Sunbow azalea (Rhododendron ‘Solar Flare Sunbow’) has a honeysuckle fragrance with abundant yellow flowers.
They are adapted to USDA Hardiness Zones 5 through 8. Admiral Semmes Native Azalea (Rhododendron ‘Admiral Semmes’ ) is a native azalea with fragrant bright yellow flowers that stand up to summer weather. It is suited for USDA Hardiness Zones 6 through 9.
9. Bailey acacia (Acacia baileyana)
A fast-growing, large evergreen shrub or small tree, the acacia tree blooms in late winter to early spring. The small, bright, yellow, rounded flowers create a striking floral display. It’s an excellent plant for slopes and banks.
More yellow blooming trees and shrubs
I hope the pictures above have inspired you to add at least one tree with yellow flowers. The bright yellow blooms will add color to your landscape and make you happy whenever you see them.
Here are a few more trees and shrubs that will put on a vibrant yellow flower display:
- cornelian cherry dogwood (Cornus mas)
- perforate St John’s-wort (Hypericum perforatum)
- forsythia, also called golden bell Forsythia suspensa)
- golden trumpet tree (Tabebuia chrysotricha)
- yellow buckeyes (Aesculus flava)
- palo verde trees (Parkinsonia)
I haven’t seen a lot of yellow flowering trees in our area, but I’m definitely planning to include one in my landscape this year. They are absolutely gorgeous!
More Colorful Trees You’ll Love
11 Yellow Spring Flowers To Make Your Garden Pop
Spring is almost here, and with it, an explosion of color! Check out these cheery yellow spring flowers, and see which ones you’d like in your garden.
10 Yellow Perennials For Shade You’ll Fall In Love With
Get ready to fall in love with these plants’ bright, cheerful blooms that can brighten any dull corner. | <urn:uuid:c014882a-b58d-48b6-8a4b-abe9dfbac0e9> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.backyardgardenlover.com/yellow-flowering-trees/ | 2024-12-07T08:49:56Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066426671.73/warc/CC-MAIN-20241207071733-20241207101733-00176.warc.gz | en | 0.927697 | 3,031 | 2.921875 | 3 |
Identity theft is an age-old problem, but blockchain technology is now emerging as a modern-day solution.
What is identity theft
Encyclopedia Britannica defines identity theft as the use of an individual’s personally identifying information by someone else (often a stranger) without that individual’s permission or knowledge. This form of impersonation is often used to commit fraud, generally resulting in financial harm to the individual and financial gain to the impersonator.
This is a rather apt definition. The theft of someone’s personal information to be used in a fraudulent, deceptive, or in any other malicious manner) is a very serious issue indeed, one that can lead to great financial loss or even graver consequences.
Here are a few statistics to highlight the severity of the identity theft issue:
In 2018 for example, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) collected reports about negative customer experiences in the marketplace. The agency received 444,602 reports of identity theft. This figure represented about 15% of the 3m reports compiled by the agency throughout that year.
2019 was also a bad time for identity theft issues, as financial losses due to identity fraud climbed to almost $17bn.
And things got even worse in 2020, as the FTC received a total of 4.7m reports, with identity theft taking the number one spot.
A brief history of identity theft
The arrival of the internet, mobile technology, and the omnipresence and predominance of social media in our lives took the problem of identity-related fraud to entire new levels. There have been some pretty high-profile scandals involving identity theft over the past two decades, but stealing someone’s identity by impersonation or any other means is a centuries old issue.
Here’s a brief recounting of how identity theft has changed along with the times:
19th century America
Nowadays, most people would associate identity theft with credit card fraud or online romance scams. But if you asked any American citizen living in the United States of the 1800s, their responses would be radically different. In those days, those with the right to vote (white people only) would congregate in the nearest courthouse, swear on a Bible before a judge that they were who they said they were and that they had not already voted, and in they went. In due course, the court’s clerk would go through the list of attendees, and everyone would call out the name of the candidate they wanted to vote for. This system, known as viva voce, was the law in most American states during the early 19th century (Kentucky maintained this system as late as 1891). Viva voce, which would usually be held amidst a carnival atmosphere, was hardly a solid voting framework, so while people would be asked to swear their identity on a Bible, the possibility for fraud was obvious, and election results were often dubious.
Paper ballots began appearing around this time, but early ‘ballots’ were often scraps of paper with someone’s name scrawled on it. The ballots were not standardized or validated in any way before they were cast into the box, which would give rise to the practice of ‘ballot stuffing’ (that is, writing a name in hundreds or thousands of paper scraps to give a chosen political candidate an unfair advantage.)
Frank Abagnale, the many faces of identity theft
Conmen, impersonators, and traveling salesmen have been a feature of real life since society came into existence. There have been many well-known cons, but perhaps one of the best known is the case of Frank Abagnale, an American con man and impostor who refined his craft to such a degree that the US Government would eventually hire him as a security consultant to combat fraud. Abagnale, whose exploits entered the mainstream thanks to the biographical 2002 film Catch me if you can, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks, is known to have assumed at least eight different identities throughout his career. These identities included an airline pilot, a lawyer, and a physician. He was eventually caught but served less than five years in prison before starting work for the government.
Identity theft in the digital era
While Abagnale’s criminal life was somewhat glamourized by Hollywood (and, to be fair, he did change his ways and turn his life around, going as far as writing five books, including Real U Guide to Identity Theft), the very real problem of stealing someone’s identity for personal gain can have devastating consequences. Abagnale’s crimes, while non-violent in nature, did cause severe financial loss to many organizations and agencies.
The advent of the digital era gave fraudsters a ready-made platform for this type of activity. Armed with the relative anonymity granted by the internet, instances of identity theft increased exponentially. Soon, the issue became a global problem.
Today, identity theft can take many forms: From medical identity theft (the obtention of medical services or prescription drugs under a false identity, for example), social media identity theft (using someone else’s pictures to create social media accounts -‘catfishing’-), to social insurance theft (using stolen or fake social security numbers for financial gain), child identity theft, etc.
So what’s the modern solution to a centuries-old problem
While the procedures and techniques to carry out the theft have evolved from the earlier ballot stuffing or Abagnale’s cheque forging to the more sophisticated hacks of the modern era, the core problem is identical: To steal someone’s identity for fraudulent purposes.
Looking closely at any of these past instances of identity issues, something obvious immediately emerges: The targets of these cons were centralized frameworks. The court’s clerk, for example. Only one person to fool into thinking that the individual voting is who they say they are, or that they haven’t voted before. Or the ballot box, for example. One simple box that can easily be carried around, concealed, and manipulated. Or Abagnale fooling banking clerks. In all of these cases, a single point of failure exists. Breach this point, and the theft is inevitable.
Decentralization is an obvious strategy to counter this problem. Distribute the ballots across, say, 100 boxes, and the offenders’ tampering efforts would become 100 times more difficult. The analogy of the court clerk is a good one to illustrate the decentralization theory. If only one clerk is in charge of the candidate list, they’d be easy to bribe, threaten, or manipulate. But if 1,000, or 10,000 clerks were in control of the candidate list… This is a perfect analogy for how blockchain works. In a blockchain network, hundreds, maybe thousands of nodes (‘clerks’) hold an identical list of records, and every node is watching. The idea of manipulating thousands of nodes soon becomes moot.
But this decentralization comes with its own set of problems. How is identity verified by so many nodes? How are a person’s credentials transported, and shared? This is where Self-sovereign identity comes in.
The principle of Self-sovereign Identity (SSI) refers to an individual’s ability and entitlement to have and retain control over their identity and credentials, without being forced to use a centralized, third-party authority as an intermediary acting as a ‘gatekeeper’ of the individual’s identity credentials. This model offers individuals a way to securely store their identity data via unique identifiers and selective disclosure of personally identifiable information (PII). SSI places the individual, rather than the organization, at the center of the identity framework.
It is important to understand that sovereignty in this context means that the individual is in control of managing their identity, rather than issuing it. The SSI model proposes that the individual retains control over their identity assets and credentials (passports, academic certifications, diplomas, etc.) The crucial distinction between traditional identity models and SSI is that when the sovereign individual presents any of these credentials to a third party, the third party does not need to query the issuer to verify them or prove ownership, as this proof is provided by the blockchain that contains those credentials.
SSI represents the new paradigm for any user-centric identity management solution, and any such solution must consider the user to be central to the administration and management of identity. Furthermore, any SSI solution must be interoperable with other systems across multiple locations (always with the user’s explicit consent), and enable true control of that digital identity. SSI must also be transportable: it cannot be locked down (centralized) to any one entity, locale, or geographical location. This paradigm shift results in an identity framework that is structurally formed to work from the individual’s perspective, rather than that from a centralized organization’s perspective.
How does SSI help to resolve the identity theft issues
Wide scale fraud often relies on the fact that the targeted information is centralized in a single database, server, or any other data storage facility. Because of this single point of failure, if the facility is breached, bad actors can instantly gain access to thousands, even millions of records.
The SSI principle is based on a distributed ledger model, which means that the prized data is no longer stored in one single, vulnerable location. Instead, the information is distributed across hundreds, or perhaps thousands of nodes. Hackers would be faced with the monumental task of infiltrating every single node to access the data, which would be costly, time consuming, and ultimately yield paltry results. In other words, the incentive for the hacker is no longer there.
Besides, businesses can do API calls to a user’s encrypted data vault, and only access what is required. All information is transmitted using secure and trusted peer-to-peer messaging channels, so the authenticity and integrity of the data can always be checked by verifying digital signatures.
Alata PRISM is here to end identity theft
Atala PRISM offers high-end SSI solutions to enterprises and their customers. This identity management model empowers end-users to own their identity and have complete control over how their personal data is used and accessed. Data is shared with other individuals or organizations over secure and private peer-to-peer communication channels.
What does this mean for enterprises? Firstly, it reduces greatly the cost that identity handling and theft incurs. Nowadays, businesses are forced to become identity providers and security experts. Background verification agencies charge increasingly higher fees to verify documentation with the issuing authorities. With Atala PRISM’s hacker-proof security and privacy, enterprises can quickly and easily reduce such operational expenses and put an end to fraudulent behaviour around fake identification.
Secondly, the verified digital identity and credentials solution offered by Atala PRISM eliminates long forms and the need for countless passwords. It makes life easier by enabling single-click access to products and services thus streamlining customer experience and elevating it to the benefit of everyone.
To learn more about Atala PRISM and discover the opportunity decentralized identity can offer your business, contact us at [email protected]. | <urn:uuid:3a5727e4-6133-4e17-addf-84a82456c23b> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://atala.mymidnight.blog/ending-identity-theft/ | 2024-12-07T09:15:14Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066426671.73/warc/CC-MAIN-20241207071733-20241207101733-00491.warc.gz | en | 0.959454 | 2,315 | 2.953125 | 3 |
Nit (Net, Neit, Neith) was the predynastic goddess of war and weaving, the goddess of the Red Crown of Lower Egypt and the patron goddess of Zau (Sau, Sai, Sais) in the Delta. In later times she was also thought to have been an androgynous demiurge - a creation deity - who had both male and female attributes. The Egyptians believed her to be an ancient and wise goddess, to whom the other gods came if they could not resolve their own disputes.
It is thought that Neith may correspond to the goddess Tanit, worshipped in north Africa by the early Berber culture (existing from the beginnings of written records) and through the first Punic culture originating from the founding of Carthage by Dido. Ta-nit, meaning in Egyptian the land of Nit, also was a sky-dwelling goddess of war, a virginal mother goddess and nurse, and, less specifically, a symbol of fertility.
Her symbol is remarkably similar to the Egyptian ankh and her shrine, excavated at Sarepta in southern Phoenicia, revealed an inscription that related her securely to the Phoenician goddess Astarte (Ishtar). Several of the major Greek goddesses also were identified with Tanit by the syncretic, interpretatio graeca, which recognized as Greek deities in foreign guise the deities of most of the surrounding non-Hellene cultures. A Hellenistic royal family ruled over Egypt for three centuries, a period called the Ptolemaic dynasty until the Roman conquest in 30 A.D.
Neith was a goddess of war and of hunting and had as her symbol, two crossed arrows over a shield. Her symbol also identified the city of Sais. This symbol was displayed on top of her head in Egyptian art. In her form as a goddess of war, she was said to make the weapons of warriors and to guard their bodies when they died.
Her name also may be interpreted as meaning, water. In time, this meaning led to her being considered as the personification of the primordial waters of creation. She is identified as a great mother goddess in this role as a creator.
Neith's symbol and part of her hieroglyph also bore a resemblance to a loom, and so later in the history of Egyptian myths, she also became goddess of weaving, and gained this version of her name, Neith, which means weaver. At this time her role as a creator changed from being water-based to that of the deity who wove all of the world and existence into being on her loom.
As a goddess of weaving and the domestic arts she was a protector of women and a guardian of marriage, so royal woman often named themselves after Neith, in her honour. Since she also was goddess of war, and thus had an additional association with death, it was said that she wove the bandages and shrouds worn by the mummified dead as a gift to them, and thus she began to be viewed as a protector of one of the Four sons of Horus, specifically, of Duamutef, the deification of the canopic jar storing the stomach, since the abdomen (often mistakenly associated as the stomach) was the most vulnerable portion of the body and a prime target during battle. It was said that she shot arrows at any evil spirits who attacked the canopic jar she protected.
In the late pantheon of the Ogdoad myths, she became identified as the mother of Ra and Apep. When she was identified as a water goddess, she was also viewed as the mother of Sobek, the crocodile. It was this association with water, i.e. the Nile, that led to her sometimes being considered the wife of Khnum, and associated with the source of the River Nile. She was associated with the Nile Perch as well as the goddess of the triad in that cult center.
As the goddess of creation and weaving, she was said to reweave the world on her loom daily.
The Greek historian, Herodotus (c. 484-425 BC), noted that the Egyptian citizens of Sais in Egypt worshipped Neith and that they identified her with Athena. The Timaeus, a Socratic dialogue written by Plato, mirrors that identification with Athena.
Plutarch (46 - 120 A.D.), said the temple of Neith (of which nothing now remains) bore the inscription:
I am All That Has Been, That Is, and That Will Be.
No mortal has yet been able to lift the veil that covers Me.
In much later times, her association with war and death, led to her being identified with Nephthys (and Anouke or Ankt). Nephthys became part of the Ennead pantheon, and thus considered a wife of Set. Despite this, it was said that she interceded in the kingly war between Horus and Set, over the Egyptian throne, recommending that Horus rule.
Anouke, a goddess from Asia Minor was worshiped by immigrants to ancient Egypt. This war goddess was shown wearing a curved and feathered crown and carrying a spear, or bow and arrows. Within Egypt, she was later assimilated and identified as Neith, who by that time had developed her aspects as a war goddess.
In art, Neith sometimes appears as a woman with a weaversÕ shuttle atop her head, holding a bow and arrows in her hands. At other times she is depicted as a woman with the head of a lioness, as a snake, or as a cow.
Sometimes Neith was pictured as a woman nursing a baby crocodile, and she was titled "Nurse of Crocodiles". As the personification of the concept of the primordial waters of creation in the Ogdoad theology, she had no gender. As mother of Ra, she was sometimes described as the "Great Cow who gave birth to Ra".
A great festival, called the Feast of Lamps, was held annually in her honor and, according to Herodotus, her devotees burned a multitude of lights in the open air all night during the celebration.
There also is evidence of an resurrection cult involving a woman dying and being brought back to life that was connected with Neith.
Generally depicted as a woman, Nit was shown either wearing her emblem - either a shield crossed with two arrows, or a weaving shuttle - or the Red Crown of Lower Egypt. Nit was probably linked with the crown of Lower Egypt due to the similarities between her name, and the name of the crown - nt . Similarly, her name was linked to the root of the word for 'weave' - ntt (which is also the root for the word 'being'). She was also often shown carrying a bow and arrows, linking her to hunting and warfare, or a sceptre and sceptre and the ankh sign of life. She was also shown in the form of a cow, though this was very rare.
In late dynastic times there is no doubt that Nit was regarded as nothing but a form of Hathor, but at an earlier period she was certainly a personification of a form of the great, inert, primeval watery mass out of which sprang the sun god Ra...
- The Gods of the Egyptians, E. A. Wallis Budge
As the mother of Ra, the Egyptians believed her to be connected with the god of the watery primeval void, Nun. (Her name might have also been linked to a word for water - nt - thus providing the connection between the goddess and the primeval waters.) Because the sun god arose from the primeval waters, and with Nit being these waters, she was thought to be the mother of the sun, and mother of the gods. She was called 'Nit, the Cow Who Gave Birth to Ra' as one of her titles. The evil serpent Apep, enemy of Ra, was believed to have been created when Nit spat into the waters of Nun, her spittle turning into the giant snake. As a creatrix, though, her name was written using the hieroglyph of an ejaculating phallus - - a strong link to the male creative force a hint as to her part in the creation of the universe.
According to the Iunyt (Esna) cosmology the goddess emerged from the primeval waters to create the world. She then followed the flow of the Nile northward to found Zau in company with the subsequently venerated lates-fish. There are much earlier references to Nit's association with the primordial flood-waters and to her demiurge: Amenhotep II (DynastyXVIII) in one inscription is the pharaoh 'whose being Nit moulded'; the papyrus (Dynasty XX) giving the account of the struggle between Horus and Set mentions Nit 'who illuminated the first face' and in the sixth century BC the goddess is said to have invented birth.
There is confusion as to the Emblem of Nit - originally it was of a shield and two crossed arrows. This was her symbol from the earliest times, and she was no doubt a goddess of hunting and war since predynastic times. The symbol of her town, Zau, used this emblem from early times, and was used in the name of the nome of which her city was the capital. The earliest use of this Emblem was used in the name of queen Nithotep, 'Nit is Pleased', who seems to have been the wife of Aha "Fighter" Menes of the 1st Dynasty. Another early dynastic queen, Mernit, 'Beloved of Nit', served as regent around the time of king Den.
Her most ancient symbol is the shield with crossed arrows, which occurs in the early dynastic period... This warlike emblem is reflected in her titles 'Mistress of the Bow... Ruler of Arrows'.
- A Dictionary of Egyptian Gods and Goddesses
The later form of the Emblem is what some people believe to be a weaving shuttle. It is possible that the symbols were confused by the Egyptians themselves, and so she became a goddess of weaving and other domestic arts. It was claimed, in one version of her tale, that she created the world by weaving it with her shuttle.
She was linked to with a number of goddesses including Isis, Bast, Wadjet, Nekhbet, Mut and Sekhmet. As a cow, she was linked to both Nut and Hathor. She was also linked to Tatet, the goddess who dressed the dead, and was thus linked to preservation of the dead. This was probably due to being a weaver goddess - she was believed to make the bandages for the deceased.
She might have also been linked to Anubis and Wepwawet (Upuaut), because one of her earliest titles was also 'Opener of the Ways'. She was also one of the four goddesses - herself, Isis, Nephthys and Serqet - who watched over the deceased as well as each goddess protecting one of the four sons of Horus. Nit watched over the east side of the sarcophagus and looked after the jackal-headed Duamutef who guarded the stomach of the dead. Also, during the earliest times, weapons were placed around the grave to protect the dead, and so her nature of a warrior-goddess might have been a direct link to her becoming a mortuary goddess.
Her son, other than the sun god Ra, was believed to be Sobek, the crocodile god. She was regarded as his mother from early times - the two were mentioned as mother and son in the pyramid of Unas - and one of her titles was 'Nurse of Crocodiles'. She was also regarded, during the Old Kingdom, as the wife of Set, though by later times this relationship was dropped and she became the wife of Sobek instead. In Upper Egypt she was married to the inundation god, Khnum, instead.
"Give the office of Osiris to his son Horus! Do not go on committing these great wrongs, which are not in place, or I will get angry and the sky will topple to the ground. But also tell the Lord of All, the Bull who lives in Iunu (On, Heliopolis), to double Set's property. Give him Anat and Astarte, your two daughters, and put Horus in the place of his father."
- Nit Addressing the Gods Myth and Symbol in Ancient Egypt
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As researchers dedicated to creating social impact, we strive to improve the lives of communities impacted by our work. However, the same communities are rarely included in our research processes beyond answering survey questions. Often, they are limited to being data sources, from whom we generate insights for policymakers to guide their programmatic decisions.
Thus, those most impacted by the policy decisions often have the least influence over them—they often are excluded from identifying problems/needs they care about most, interpreting data finds, and shaping recommendations. This approach not only overlooks the valuable locally contextualised knowledge they possess, but also fails to uphold the principles of dignity.
Participatory approach to research
A participatory approach to research empowers communities to actively participate in decisions that impact their lives. It recognises the importance of listening to the voices of communities regarding what evidence is needed and how it should be interpreted and used. Evidence is a valuable resource that should be accessible to communities and influenced by their perspectives, ultimately shaping policy decisions.
Recently, through Project Sampoorna in Jharkhand, India—(as part of the consortium, IDinsight is a monitoring and evaluation partner)—IDinsight used communication techniques and participatory methods like visual tools (storytelling boards and videos) to engage with school students and teachers—the primary respondents in the research. Through these tools, IDinsight shared some of the findings generated from the project’s baseline. This approach ensured participants’ inclusion in interpretation of data, thereby helping shape programmatic action based on their in-depth knowledge of school realities—this is a step toward more participatory research.
About the project
Project Sampoorna is a social-emotional learning (SEL) initiative led by the Government of Jharkhand in partnership with a consortium of non-profit organisations. At the request of our partners, we integrated a participatory lens in our evaluation efforts to ensure greater involvement of students and teachers.
Since the idea of using a participatory lens was explored after the implementation and evaluation designs were already finalised, the participatory elements were adapted accordingly and were focused mainly on sharing baseline findings.
We had collected baseline data primarily through student and teacher interviews and classroom observations. We wanted to share our learnings on student social-emotional skill levels, teacher behaviour, school climate, etc. to help teachers and students use this new evidence. We also wanted to get teachers’ and students’ input to contextualise our findings.
However, communicating complex survey findings with teachers and students, and ensuring their engagement, was fairly new to IDinsight—we typically share findings with policymakers and decision-makers but rarely with community members on the ground. We knew that sharing findings should not involve technical terms or a digital presentation; instead, we needed something simple, fun, inclusive and relatable. We worked with IDinsight’s Dignity and Lean Innovation teams to develop a plan and selected three school activities:
- Short video on baseline findings shared with teachers and parents on WhatsApp
- Storyboard presentation and ‘Draw Your Vision’ activity with students
- Discussion on baseline findings with teachers
In this blog, we share the team’s lessons from planning and executing a participatory approach to sharing our findings with students and teachers in government-run schools of Jharkhand.
Key Lessons learnt from participatory work in schools
Phase 1: Planning
Lesson 1: Evidence/data needs careful framing to ensure relevance, simplicity, and sensitivity
To engage stakeholders with our findings effectively, the careful selection and framing of the data were crucial.
For the video and storyboard presentation, we started by identifying the target audience and clearly defining key takeaways we wanted to communicate. We then shortlisted the most relevant and easy-to-understand findings to include.
For the discussion with teachers, we selected findings that, apart from being relevant and simple, were also those that we needed additional context on. We were mindful of sensitively framing the findings, especially those that highlighted improvement opportunities. Take a hypothetical example: If a finding states that “60% of teachers scold students for wrong answers,” we frame it as “most students feel cared for and heard by their teachers; however, data also shows that some teachers might scold students in the class.” In this way, we combine a negative finding with a positive one.
Input from teammates with experience in community engagement, including those outside of the project team, as well as our implementation partners who routinely work with these participants, played a valuable role in framing the findings. Additionally, we sought feedback from a group of teachers through a small pilot to ensure the findings were easy-to-understand, allowing the key takeaway to shine through.
Lesson 2: Visualising step-by-step execution of activities before school visits helps identify potential roadblocks and brainstorm solutions
To ensure smooth execution of our planned activities, we visualised the entire process from entering the school to conducting the activities to leaving the school. This helped us identify potential challenges, develop solutions, and gain more confidence.
We planned to conduct the storyboard presentation and drawing activity with students, and discussion with teachers in each school on a single day; hence, time optimisation was of utmost importance. To ensure efficient dissemination, we talked to school leaders, teachers, and implementing partners in advance. We clearly shared the goals of the school visits, communicated the logistical support needed, and confirmed teacher and student availability. This helped us reduce the time needed to initiate and organise the activities upon reaching the schools.
Phase 2: Execution
Lesson 3: Communication techniques should be familiar, inclusive and relatable to ensure audience engagement
To engage teachers and students with data effectively, we needed to use formats that resonated and had limited technical concepts. Our usual methods of sharing findings with clients would not have suited this context.
We therefore chose storytelling and activity-based techniques to communicate. For instance, the storyboard presentation and drawing activities we chose were part of the students’ day-to-day academic curriculum. The story we built was quite relatable because it included a teacher trying to improve her relationship with students and working with them to improve the class climate. Alongside verbal storytelling, we used a storyboard printed on a large flexible material stuck to the class blackboard—which, again, the students were used to looking at every day during class. The storyboard helped add to how relatable the story was—we used characters that looked like them, wore the same uniforms, and sat in similar classrooms. The drawing activity was a group activity; students enjoyed working with colours and collaborating on what they wanted to draw.
Since videos are always fun to watch, easy to understand, and shareable on social media, we developed an animated video for teachers and parents. When we showed this video to teachers, they found the story similar to what they had experienced in schools and were positive that both parents and other teachers would like and learn from it! Before starting the drawing activity, we also showed the video to the students, which inspired their drawing ideas.
Lesson 4: Using local and colloquial language by a familiar/relatable presenter helps the audience connect with the activities
To ensure relatability with the students, our team’s Field Manager took on the role of the storyteller for the storyboard presentation. It was important for the presenter to be someone the students could connect with in terms of language and cultural familiarity. We created a concise script in the local language with a colloquial touch, making it simple for students to understand.
As storytelling was a new format for IDinsight, we conducted multiple mock sessions with the team to refine the script and improve the tone and energy of delivery. Once finalised, our Field Manager diligently rehearsed the script with teammates and children in his community to improve its delivery.
While delivering the storyboard presentations in schools, we actively engaged the students by asking simple questions they answered in unison. This interactive approach helped maintain their attention and connection with the story.
Similarly, the video script went through several revisions with our video production agency to ensure the language avoided jargon and appeared friendly and relatable.
Lesson 5: Creating a comfortable and safe environment is necessary for good participation and candour
IDinsight’s interaction with students and teachers is typically limited to when we visit schools for data collection on our monitoring and evaluation work. This was the first time we visited schools to share our findings instead, and creating a comfortable environment for students was a top priority for their participation, enjoyment, and learning.
We collaborated with our implementation partners, who regularly engage with schools. Their presence helped us establish a rapport with school leaders, teachers, and students. Our partners facilitated introductions, conducted icebreaker games with students, and helped us communicate better with teachers and students.
We also actively participated in icebreakers, which helped students feel at ease with us. The “draw your vision” activity allowed quieter students to express themselves through art, ensuring inclusivity. We also emphasised that participation in the activities was voluntary and respected students’ choice not to participate.
With teachers, we initiated conversations with a round of introductions and discussing the subjects they teach. We empathised with their experiences and challenges, creating a comfortable space for them to share their thoughts and opinions openly.
Phase 3: Insights Generation
Lesson 6: Document participants’ insights and recommendations to inform programme design and implementation
Given our goal of seeking input on the baseline findings, our activities were specifically designed to generate valuable insights. We took diligent notes on teacher and student responses and observed their levels of engagement. While the input on findings from teachers was relatively straightforward, the feedback from students was particularly interesting.
This is because the latter was in the form of semi-structured discussions, and drawings we reviewed to derive meaningful insights. We shared these valuable insights with our partners to inform programme improvement efforts. For example, an artwork showcased classmates supporting a student with a physical disability and including him in their playground games. This vision could be used to build a student parliament-led project to ensure a disability-friendly school environment and infrastructure.
Our initial foray into participatory methods as part of the Sampoorna project has been a valuable learning experience. These insights will shape our future work and contribute to the broader landscape of similar projects at IDinsight. As we move forward, we are excited to refine our approach further, deepen our collaborative efforts, and continue making a positive impact in the communities we serve.
I would like to thank Sumedha Jalote, Neha Raykar, and Debendra Nag for their reviews and valuable input on this blog. Special thanks to Tom Wein for his guidance in shaping this work and encouraging thoughtful reflection and knowledge sharing. | <urn:uuid:5391cd8e-329a-4424-b578-f1ee4c622a9f> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://idronline.org/article/monitoring-evaluation/lessons-from-participatory-research-in-jharkhand/ | 2024-12-06T01:12:58Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066367647.84/warc/CC-MAIN-20241206001926-20241206031926-00731.warc.gz | en | 0.961968 | 2,216 | 2.78125 | 3 |
This month has the birth anniversary of Jawaharlal Nehru and the 60th anniversary of the Non-Aligned Movement. The concept of a country’s policy not aligning with others can be traced to Congress of Vienna (1814–15) when Switzerland’s neutrality, by which that country would stay away from the conflicts of others, was recognized.
Not attending that last few summits, had signaled India’s sudden departure away from NAM and having adopted the policy of multi-alignment. This has raised eyebrows of those who still believe in the true spirit of Non-Alignment of which India has been the champion for a long time.
What is NAM?
- Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) is a forum of 120 developing world states that are not formally aligned with or against any major power bloc.
- After the United Nations, it is the largest grouping of states worldwide.
- Drawing on the principles agreed at the Bandung Conference in 1955, the NAM was established in 1961 in Belgrade, SR Serbia, and Yugoslavia.
- It was an initiative of then PM Jawaharlal Nehru, Ghanaian President Kwame Nkrumah, Indonesian President Sukarno, Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser and Yugoslav President Josip Broz Tito.
- The countries of the NAM represent nearly two-thirds of the United Nations’ members and contain 55% of the world population.
Membership of NAM
- Diverse members: Membership is particularly concentrated in countries considered to be developing or part of the Third World, though the NAM also has a number of developed nations.
The reason behind NAM creation
- Balancing the US and USSR: Non-alignment, a policy fashioned for the Cold War, aimed to retain the autonomy of policy (not equidistance) between two politico-military blocs i.e. the US and the Soviet Union.
- The NAM provided a platform for newly independent developing nations to join together to protect this autonomy.
- Changing with emerging scenarios: Since the end of the Cold War, the NAM has been forced to redefine itself and reinvent its purpose in the current world system.
- Focus towards development: It has focused on developing multilateral ties and connections as well as unity among the developing nations of the world, especially those within the Global South.
Fading significance of the NAM
- Loosing relevance: The policy of non-alignment lost its relevance after the disintegration of the Soviet Union and the emergence of unipolar world order under the leadership of the US since 1991.
- De-colonization was largely complete by then, the apartheid regime in South Africa was being dismantled and the campaign for universal nuclear disarmament was going nowhere.
- Freed from the shackles of the Cold War, the NAM countries were able to diversify their network of relationships across the erstwhile east-west divide.
India and the NAM
- Important role played by India: India played an important role in the multilateral movements of colonies and newly independent countries that wanted into the NAM.
- India’s policy was neither negative nor positive.
- India as a leader: Country´s place in national diplomacy, its significant size and its economic miracle turned India into one of the leaders of the NAM and upholder of the Third World solidarity.
- The principle of ‘acting and making its own choices’ also reflected India’s goal to remain independent in foreign policy choices, although posing dilemmas and challenges between national interests on international arena and poverty alleviation.
- Preserving the state’s security required alternative measures: Namely, the economic situation with the aim to raise the population’s living standards challenged the country’s defense capacity and vice versa.
- Fewer choices: Wars with China and Pakistan had led India to an economically difficult situation and brought along food crisis in the mid-1960s, which made the country dependent on US food.
- India’s position was further complicated due to agreements with the Soviet Union about military equipment.
- This placed India again in a situation where on one hand the country had to remain consistent on the principles of NAM while on the other hand to act in a context with fewer choices.
What is meant by Strategic Autonomy?
- Strategic autonomy for India denotes its’ ability to pursue its national interests and adopt its preferred foreign policy without being constrained in any manner by other states.
- In its pure form, strategic autonomy presupposes the state in question possessing overwhelmingly superior power.
- This is what would enable that state to resist the pressures that may be exerted by other states to compel it to change its policy or moderate its interests.
- Today’s ideation of ‘strategic autonomy’ is much different from the Nehruvian era thinking of ‘non-alignment’.
- Strategic autonomy is today a term New Delhi’s power corridors are well-acquainted with. It is an issue & situation-based, and not ideological.
Beyond Power-Politics nexus
- Strategic autonomy for India is both about power-politics and responsibilities.
- India’s quest for strategic autonomy is more about justice in terms of creating the international system where all states’ voices will be heard and decisions are made on value-based consensus.
- Such an idea is often misunderstood and confused with ‘opposing some states and allying the others.’
What dictates India’s alignment now?
India acknowledged the importance of economic growth as a factor in domestic poverty alleviation and for the realization of national interests in the international arena.
(1) National security
- China’s rise and assertiveness as a regional and global power and the simultaneous rise of middle powers in the region mean that this balancing act is increasing in both complexity and importance, simultaneously.
- China’s growth presents great opportunities for positive engagement, but territorial disputes and a forward policy in the region raise concerns for New Delhi, particularly in the Indian Ocean and with Pakistan.
(2) Global decision-making
- Another distinctive feature of India’s foreign policy has been the aim to adjust international institutions consistent with changes in international system.
- The support for strengthening and reforming the UN as a multilateral forum, restructuring the international economic system and preserving independence in its decision-making has become an integral part of India’s foreign policy.
(3) Prosperity and influence
- India’s 21st century’s strategic partnerships with two of the biggest economies, the USA and EU rely heavily on trade and technology cooperation.
- In addition, the partnership with the USA has touched the boundaries of strategic issues like cooperation on counter-terrorism, defence trade, joint military exercises, civil nuclear cooperation and energy dialogue.
- Another means to execute India’s foreign policy strategy of autonomy has been forming extensive partnerships with other emerging powers.
- India has been an active G4 country speaking for the reform of the UN Security Council and having been elected seven times as a non-permanent member.
- As a result, there is an overlap of countries in different platforms, as can be seen in cases of India’s partnership with BRICS, SAARC, etc.
- The purpose of India is to increase the participation and share of developing countries in global policy-making.
Benefits out of strategic alignment
- India needs investments, technology, a manufacturing ecosystem to employ millions of its young population and improve its living standards.
- It requires advanced weapons and technologies for its military. India is ambitious and wants to be a great power and the US and the Western world recognise this and are willing to partner India.
- US along with France, are India’s principal backers in the UN Security Council and also support its membership in it.
- The Quad of India, US, Japan and Australia is also slowly institutionalizing the multilateral partnership that is committed to an open, secure, inclusive and prosperous Indo-Pacific region.
China’s “not-peaceful rise”
- India is a long term rival for China, which does not want India’s rise. It wants to keep India boxed into South Asia, and tries to keep it off balance using Pakistan which it arms and supports.
- It has made inroads into the region using the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). It continues to block India’s membership in the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) and continues to needle in the UNSC over Kashmir.
- We all know the recent heat up after Ladakh standoff. It occupies parts of Indian Territory and also claims the entire state of Arunachal.
Hence, the Non-alignment is difficult because,
- We have to safeguard ourselves from a power which has trampled upon all her neighbours most blatantly and the whole world has seen and withstood them with deafening silence.
- China has kept our territory since 1962 violating all international norms and we could do nothing with this diplomatic tool called Non- Alignment.
- Any policy formulation has to serve the national interest.
- The US prefers its partners to pay for and manage their own security, but collaborate in all possible ways — weapons sale, sharing civil and military arsenals, diplomatic support, intelligence sharing etc.
- It will be pragmatic to take advantage of the great power rivalry by suitably aligning with a power that India can derive maximum benefit from.
But Wait, NAM still matters!
(1) Global perception of India
- India’s image abroad has suffered as a result of allegations that creep into our secular polity and a need arises to actively network and break out of isolation.
- India’s partnership with America faces an uncertain future in the post-pandemic period ahead of the regime change under Joe Biden.
- Indeed, India is overtly keen to upgrade a quadrilateral alliance with the US, Japan and Australia — but there too, we’re all dressed up and nowhere to go. There is no concrete commitment yet.
- We can sense the growing proximity between the NAM member countries and China.
- As it is, one-half of NAM comprises members of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference, which remains highly critical of the plight of Indian Muslims.
(2) For the Impulsive U.S.
- For India complete dependence on the U.S. to counter China would be an error.
- As the U.S. confronts the challenge to its dominance from China, the classical balance of power considerations would dictate accommodation with Russia.
- A strong stake in India’s relations with the US could reinforce Russia’s affinity for China.
- Russia, these days looks less pragmatic to see Indian ties with its rivals as a joint venture, not an alliance in which they could pursue shared objectives to mutual benefit.
Importance of NAM: As a power booster for multilateralism
The NAM can never lose its relevance because-
- Cold War has revitalized with time: Critics of NAM who term it as an outcome of the Cold War must also acknowledge that a new Cold War is beginning to unfold, this time between the US and China, which if reflected in Trade War, Protectionism, Indo-Pacific narrative, etc.
- NAM provides a much bigger platform: NAM becomes relevant to mobilize international public opinion against terrorism, weapons of mass destruction (WMDs), nuclear proliferation, ecological imbalance, safeguarding interests of developing countries in WTO (World Trade Organization) etc.
- NAM as a tool for autonomy: NAM’s total strength comprises 120 developing countries and most of them are members of the UN General Assembly. Thus, NAM members act as an important group in support of India’s candidature as a permanent member in UNSC.
- A podium for India’s leadership: India is widely perceived as a leader of the developing world. Thus, India’s engagement with NAM will further help in the rise of India’s stature as the voice of the developing world or global south.
- NAM for multilateralism: Though globalization is facing an existential crisis, it is not possible to return to isolation. In the world of complex interdependence, countries are linked to each other one way or another. With rising threats such as climate change, terrorism, and receding multilateralism, the global south and NAM countries find themselves in a precarious condition.
- NAM as a source for soft power: India can use its historic ties to bring together the NAM countries. India’s strength lies in soft power rather than hard power. Therefore, NAM cannot be based on the current political structure where military and economic power is often used to coerce countries.
- NAM as a tool for institutional reforms: Global institutions such as WTO and the UN are facing an existential crisis because only a few nations dictate their functions. India can use the NAM platform to push for reforms in these institutions for a more equal and democratic world order.
In the post-COVID-19 world, India will have to make a disruptive choice — of alignment.
- In the threat environment marked by a pushy China, India should aim to have both- American support and stay as an independent power centre by cooperation with middle powers in Asia and around the world.
- Complete dependence would be detrimental to India’s national interest such as its ties with Iran and Russia and efforts to speed up indigenous defence modernization.
- Rather than proclaiming non-alignment as an end in itself, India needs deeper engagement with its friends and partners if it is to develop leverage in its dealings with its adversaries and competitors.
- A wide and diverse range of strategic partners, including the U.S. as a major partner is the only viable diplomatic way forward in the current emerging multipolar world order.
Though sections of the Indian establishment still want to reinvent non-alignment under ever new guises, India is showing signs of pursuing strategic autonomy separately from non-alignment.
- India continues to practice a policy of non-alignment in an attempt to maintain sovereignty and oppose imperialism.
- Indo-US ties are complementary, and a formal alliance will only help realize the full potential of these relations.
- India, thus, emphasizes the relations with the region and emerging powers not only in terms of economic development but also as actors with similar understandings and expectations of the world system.
- In some way, the relations can be described as expectations without expectations. States interact with each other in expectations to change the international system, but without expectations to ‘ally or oppose.’
- India believes in making value-based decisions and maintains its coherent foreign policy. As it is familiar with the phrase ‘multi-vector’ foreign policy, it is high time to maximise its potential. | <urn:uuid:612afadf-7563-409d-956a-1e86da508c1d> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.civilsdaily.com/burning-issue-non-aligned-movement/ | 2024-12-09T22:06:31Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066053598.26/warc/CC-MAIN-20241209214559-20241210004559-00847.warc.gz | en | 0.948422 | 3,107 | 3.078125 | 3 |
Say you’re a 3rd-grade public school teacher with $50,000 in student-loan debt. The federal Stafford Teacher Loan Forgiveness program sounds like a great idea: teach for five years while you make monthly payments right-sized for your income, and the government will forgive $5,000 of what you owe.
But then comes the fine print. Accepting the $5,000 resets a different loan-forgiveness clock—the one that would have erased your outstanding debt entirely after 10 years, since you’re a public employee. To access that benefit, now you’re stuck with another decade of payments, or 15 years in all. It’s hard to follow, and would be even if the explanation were not buried in Section 8 of the “Public Service Loan Forgiveness Employment Certification” form in the third paragraph of the subsection titled “Other Important Information.”
Welcome to the world of student loans and debt forgiveness for teachers, a patchwork of overlapping programs, contradictory regulations, and expensive subsidies that date back to Dwight D. Eisenhower’s signing of the National Defense Education Act of 1958. This 60-year experiment in using federal loan dollars to encourage students to become teachers could be poised for change as Congress considers reauthorizing the Higher Education Act. There is broad, bipartisan agreement that simplifying the nation’s byzantine student-loan programs is an important goal, which is a good start. But lawmakers must also examine how these programs may have encouraged more teachers to pursue education master’s degrees and driven up their price, and whether loan forgiveness programs actually do what they are supposed to — recruit and retain teachers, to the benefit of students.
A Labyrinth of Loans
On October 4, 1957, the Soviet Union launched the rudimentary satellite Sputnik into low-earth orbit, thus marking the beginning of the “space race.” It was also the dawn of preferential federal student-loan programs to benefit students in critical fields, including teaching. Not only did Congress pass legislation using federal dollars to issue low-interest-rate loans to students in certain subject areas, but borrowers who went on to be teachers could have up to half of that debt forgiven. Lawmakers believed high-quality teachers unburdened by student-loan debt could now fully focus their efforts on educating the next generation of scientists and engineers to defeat the Soviet menace.
Federal student-aid programs have expanded sporadically in the decades since, and today, 9 out of every 10 student-loan dollars nationwide come from the federal government, totaling $96 billion in 2015–16 (see Figure 1). The borrowing limits and repayment rules are different for each loan program, and many of the terms like interest rates and fees vary as well. Students must fill out a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form in order to obtain federal loans, but their finances have little bearing on their eligibility.
Students preparing to become teachers are eligible for four different types of federal loans. Through the Stafford Loan program, undergraduates can borrow between $5,500 and $12,500 each year from the U.S. Department of Education, depending on how many years they’ve been in school and whether they are considered financially dependent on their parents. Federal Perkins Loans—the descendants of the original “space race” loans—are also available at some, but not all, colleges and universities, with a combination of federal and institutional support worth up to $5,500 per year. Graduate students may borrow up to $20,500 a year using the Stafford Loan program, after which they may use the PLUS Loan program, which provides loans up to the cost of attendance, calculated as tuition plus living expenses.
In addition, federal TEACH Grants of up to $4,000 each year are available to aspiring teachers. While called “grants,” the funds come with complex strings attached and ultimately function more like loans. To avoid repayment, recipients must teach in a high-need field in a low-income school within one year of graduation, and spend four of the next eight years in that or a similarly qualifying role. The U.S. Department of Education estimates that 74 percent of recipients will not meet those requirements and be required to repay their “grant” in full, with accrued interest dating back to the day the funds arrived.
Students preparing to be teachers access these programs in various ways. To get a sense of how much student-loan debt teachers accrue, on average, we look at federal loan data from the 2011–12 school year for undergraduate students who majored in education, who account for approximately 9 out of 10 students in traditional teacher-training programs nationwide. Graduates of those programs comprise about 70 percent of U.S. teachers.
Among undergraduate education majors, some 67 percent borrowed federal student loans—5 percentage points more than the overall population of bachelor’s degree recipients (see Figure 2). They accrued about as much federal debt, at $26,792, on average. Some 13 percent had Perkins Loans, with an average debt of $3,142. In addition, about 30,000 students nationwide receive TEACH Grants each year, worth $2,881, on average.
Teachers who go on to pursue master’s degrees accumulate significantly more debt. In 2011–12, 59 percent of students who completed master’s degrees in education borrowed federal loans for graduate school and accumulated $37,750 each, on average, from their graduate studies alone. In all, 67 percent of students who finished a master’s program in education carried student-loan debt from their undergraduate and graduate degrees, owing $48,685, on average.
A Maze of Forgiveness Programs
If navigating four different types of loans was not confusing enough, teachers may qualify for as many as four different loan-forgiveness programs passed by Congress in fits and starts over the past two decades.
Since its space-race inception, the Perkins Loan program has offered generous loan-forgiveness terms for teachers. Borrowers who work in a low-income school or in subject areas their state designates as in critical need, such as math and science, qualify to have a percentage of their Perkins debt canceled each year for five years until all of the debt is forgiven. But the generous nature of this benefit is limited, since few teachers have these loans and those who do tend to have low balances. Unlike every other forgiveness program, Perkins borrowers apply for forgiveness through their school rather than the federal government.
The limited availability of the Perkins program is partly what prompted Congress to create the Teacher Loan Forgiveness program for the more widely available Stafford Loans in 1998. Like the Perkins program, borrowers need either to teach high-need subjects or in schools serving predominantly low-income students. However, $5,000 of their Stafford debt is canceled in a lump sum after five consecutive years of monthly payments. Certain teachers can have even more debt forgiven: in 2004 and 2006, Congress increased the loan-forgiveness benefit to $17,500 for teachers in math, science, and special education.
Congress acted again in 2007 to provide more loan forgiveness, creating the TEACH Grant program for teachers and the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program (PSLF), which benefits teachers and other public employees. Under that program, all outstanding student-loan debt is forgiven after 10 cumulative years of monthly payments while the individual is working in any federal, state, local, tribal, or 501(c)(3) nonprofit job.
Also in 2007, lawmakers passed legislation to decrease the amount workers had to pay each month. Through the Income-Based Repayment (IBR) program, monthly student-loan debt payments were capped at 15 percent of income beyond a large exemption. Three years later, that program was made more generous, with a 10 percent cap. The more-generous IBR program and PSLF are only applicable to Federal Direct Loans, as opposed to older Federal Family Education Loans, which were more costly to the government and were phased out in 2010. However, because of this technicality, in order to take advantage of these generous new payment and forgiveness programs, borrowers with older loans often need to consolidate them.
The piecemeal expansion of these programs over time reflects political expediency and the government’s efforts to wring inefficiencies out of the loan program. Under the old Federal Family Education Loan program, the government relied on private lenders to make most government-backed loans; as the government began to cut lenders’ subsidies in the 1990s and beyond, eventually moving to all direct lending in 2010, lawmakers had extra funds on their hands.
While lawmakers could have used those savings for anything, teacher loan forgiveness was an attractive option. Reallocating savings to other programs is more politically popular than reducing spending, so deficit reduction was always unlikely. But procedures and practices in Congress make it difficult to reallocate spending to just any government program—it’s much easier to reallocate those funds within the same agency or even the same set of programs.
Thus, Congress kept the savings in the federal student-loan program but shifted the funds from private lenders to teachers—a move hardly any politician could oppose. With each major change, lawmakers created a new forgiveness program without eliminating the old ones, unwilling to risk some subset of teachers losing out.
The benefits from loan-forgiveness and income-based repayment programs can add up. For a teacher earning the average starting salary of $36,141 with a typical undergraduate loan balance, enrolling in an income-based plan would save her as much as $200 a month: she’d pay $100–150, compared to $300 under the standard 10-year repayment plan. And because those lower payments cover little more than the accruing interest, with the forgiveness plan, after 10 years, most of her principal balance remains and will be forgiven.
That’s if she follows the right sets of rules at the right times, however. These programs are difficult to navigate and access, with competing sets of rules that affect borrowers in ways that are hard to predict. Loan-forgiveness programs do not automatically kick in once the requirements are met. Borrowers must re-enroll in income-based plans every year, track each loan type against the applicable loan-forgiveness qualifications, and submit paperwork to the federal Department of Education, or, in the case of Perkins, to the college they attended. And not only do the programs fail to work together well, they can contradict one another. At this point, the public-service forgiveness program is almost always the best option, making the older forgiveness programs developed specifically for teachers more like potential traps than benefits.
For example, Perkins Loans are not eligible for the income-based repayment plans unless the borrower consolidates the loans with her other federal student loans. But if she does that, her Perkins Loans lose eligibility for forgiveness under the Perkins program. If a teacher wants to maintain that benefit but repay her other loans under an income-based plan to qualify for public-service loan forgiveness, she’ll have to be sure she is paying off her Perkins Loan separately.
Then there is the Stafford Teacher Loan Forgiveness program. Teachers who take advantage of it after five years of payments, which gets them $5,000 to $17,500 in forgiveness, disqualify those years of payments from counting toward the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, which forgives all outstanding debt at year 10.
Add to that the TEACH Grants, which automatically transform to loans, with back interest due, if teachers fail to hew to all of the rules. Meanwhile, teachers don’t make payments on these grants unless and until they convert to a loan, which can have dramatic and unintended side effects on loan forgiveness. Because the teacher does not make payments on them while they are grants, she is not accruing years of payments toward public-service loan forgiveness.
Say a teacher has $10,000 in TEACH Grants and another $50,000 in federal loans. After one year teaching in a high-needs school, she takes a job in a non-qualifying school nearby for the next four years. All the while, she has been making income-based payments on her $50,000 in loans, and at year five, is halfway toward receiving public-service loan forgiveness.
But in that fifth year, the TEACH Grants automatically convert to loans, because it has become impossible for her to meet the length-of-service requirement to teach at a high-needs school. Now she owes an additional $10,000 in student-loan debt, plus at least $2,000 in interest, and is facing 10 more years of payments before forgiveness. If she had instead opted to convert the TEACH Grants to a loan in year one, she would have avoided that problem and made only 10 years of payments. And even though her debt amount would have been greater, her payments would have remained the same, because the monthly bill is based on income, not debt. The “grant” money will cost her five additional years in income-based payments—years in which her income is growing, so her monthly debt-repayment bills will as well.
For Graduate School, the Sky’s the Limit
Another surprising side effect of loan forgiveness and income-based repayment programs is an explosion in teachers pursuing expensive graduate degrees—for free. Federal rules mean that taxpayers foot the bill, not teachers.
If a teacher with a master’s degree goes on to earn the median teacher’s salary in the U.S., even after making 10 years of income-based payments, she won’t have paid back more than the first $17,000 in federal student loans she borrowed as an undergraduate before the remainder of her debt is erased. Every dollar she borrowed for graduate school—which under federal rules can include living expenses—ends up being “free” (i.e., forgiven). That investment might be worthwhile if master’s degrees produced better teachers. However, an overwhelming amount of research has shown that teachers who have a master’s degree are no more effective, on average, than those who do not.
Yet our national investment in these programs is growing: more teachers are earning master’s degrees and amassing more student-loan debt to cover the costs. The percentage of teachers with a master’s degree grew from 42 percent in 2000 to 48 percent by 2012, while teacher salaries, adjusted for inflation, have been flat since 2004 (see Figure 3).
In 2000, 41 percent of master’s of education recipients had federal loans with an average balance of $26,650, including undergraduate and graduate school debt. By 2012, after the implementation of Grad PLUS and the promise of unlimited forgiveness, borrowing rates were up to 67 percent of students and the total average debt jumped by more than 80 percent, to $48,685. Compare that with students seeking a master’s in business administration: among students with loans, the average debt grew by only about 10 percent, from $40,839 in 2000 to $44,219 in 2012. You read that right: teachers now leave graduate school with about as much federal debt as MBAs.
Complicated and generous loan-forgiveness programs might be worth it if there were some evidence that loan forgiveness, rather than other interventions, is the best policy approach. In fact, there has never been a clearly stated rationale for loan forgiveness and there are no rigorous studies showing that it helps recruit or retain teachers. These programs are instead a politically convenient response to budgetary surpluses in the federal student-loan program, accounting rules, and turf wars between congressional committees. This pattern has repeated itself throughout the history of federal financial aid for higher education. It’s why the system is so complicated now, and why it’s so hard to reform.
A Better Way Forward
If Congress is convinced that the federal government should spend money to boost teachers’ disposable income, capping debt payments and forgiving loans are poor strategies. Subsidizing payments is a roundabout way of subsidizing income. Loan forgiveness does nothing to reduce a teacher’s monthly loan burden and its benefits are back-loaded. Plus, it is an opaque benefit. Teachers will struggle to understand what benefits they qualify for in advance. They might not ever learn about them, and the restrictions on who qualifies will arbitrarily shut out or deter otherwise deserving teachers.
A simpler approach would redirect the money for various loan-forgiveness programs to a federal income-tax credit for teachers. Lawmakers could tailor the tax credit in various ways, such as limiting the number of years teachers could claim it, or limiting eligibility to teachers in schools serving predominantly low-income students. Such credits could do all of the things loan-forgiveness programs are supposed to, such as boost teachers’ pay, offer an incentive to stay in the profession, and transfer federal resources to local schools. And they would free teachers from complicated, competing rules and regulations.
Of course, this would amount to a sizable increase in federal spending for K–12 education, benefiting a specific group of people—teachers. The politics of such investment is uncertain, especially since loan forgiveness and tax credits are the responsibility of different congressional committees. It’s also unclear whether federal intervention to raise teacher pay is desirable, would have a positive effect on retention, and would benefit student learning.
For one thing, money is not the main reason teachers cite for leaving the profession; working conditions are (see “The Revolving Door,” research, Winter 2004). A 2014 National Center for Education Statistics report shows that of teachers who left teaching voluntarily, only 7 percent left due to salary. The biggest reason cited by far was “personal life factors.” And among those who switched between teaching jobs, salary was rarely the biggest reason mentioned. Instead, it was “personal life factors” and “school factors” (otherwise known as “I didn’t like where I worked”).
In order to justify a federal policy to pay teachers more, policymakers would need to prove that higher pay would lead to better teachers and outcomes for students. They would also ideally be able to prove that recruiting better teachers (and thus depleting the labor pool for other careers) is beneficial to society. They would then need to explain why, if teachers are underpaid compared to their societal contributions, the federal government is able to recognize this and act on it but states and local school districts are not. And, finally, they would need to demonstrate that districts won’t simply use federal benefits to supplant planned increases in teacher pay. Perhaps all of the current subsidies baked in through loan forgiveness already are suppressing teacher salaries.
We don’t know the answers to these questions, but neither does anyone else, particularly members of Congress. They have consistently used federal dollars to create programs that benefit a limited group of individuals and institutions of higher education with no evidence that this approach benefits society, or even the targeted individuals. Of particular concern, the dynamics that led Congress to create multiple programs in the first place remain and are likely to work against consolidating the programs now. Simplification will be hard, because someone or some group will almost always end up with a smaller government benefit.
The reauthorization of the Higher Education Act presents an excellent opportunity for policymakers to create a clearer and fairer system with fewer hidden subsidies and perverse incentives. Doing that means asking basic questions, and being prepared for large-scale change. How should federal funds advance our education goals? Is paying for graduate school a sound investment in our nation’s teachers and schools? Do existing loan-forgiveness programs actually work, and how well? Advocates and policymakers must not let the prospective elimination of some programs be the enemy of simplifying and supporting others.
Jason Delisle is a resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. Alexander Holt is an independent consultant in Washington, D.C.
This article appeared in the Fall 2017 issue of Education Next. Suggested citation format:
Delisle, J., and Holt, A. (2017). The Tangled World of Teacher Debt: Clashing rules and uncertain benefits for federal student-loan subsidies. Education Next, 17(4), 42-48. | <urn:uuid:bef7f7a3-10ea-4cc4-97bb-d24fa9b8abd1> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.educationnext.org/tangled-world-of-teacher-debt-rules-uncertain-benefits-federal-student-loan-subsidies/ | 2024-12-12T16:41:22Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066110042.43/warc/CC-MAIN-20241212155226-20241212185226-00147.warc.gz | en | 0.967027 | 4,222 | 2.6875 | 3 |
There are numerous reports of paranormal activity, making
it the most haunted American cemetery.
St Louis Cemetery Number 1 is one of three Roman Catholic cemeteries which make up Saint Louis Cemetery. It opened in 1789, to replace the old Saint Peters Cemetery, once located closer to the heart of the city. New Orleans was redesigned after the huge fire of 1788. It was thought that it would be healthier to have the cemetery further away from where people lived.
Though this high walled St. Louis Cemetery Number 1 is only one square block in diameter, it is the resting place of over 100,000 departed New Orleans citizens, due to burial customs, based on practicality. Because New Orleans has issues with high ground water, and a lack of land for burial, nearly all the graves are in above-ground vaults, which offered a variety of choices, showing the creativity of the human spirit. One does see one or two very old slab graves, with a slab of cement, bricks on top of the burial site, to keep the coffin(s) from popping out!
The traditional family vault ranged from simple to very grand: The deceased was placed in a wooden coffin, that was put in the above ground rectangular slot in the vault, and kept there for a year and a day. The coffin was then removed, and the bones were put in a bag, labeled and shoved to the back of the vault, leaving room for the next family member who may pass on. Sometimes the vault had another slot for an emergency, in case a death happened in the family or group before the year and a day time frame had elapsed. The grander the vault, the more slots were available. Sometimes, another vault space was borrowed in cases of multiple deaths in one year.
There were also group vaults, where a group of families or an organization got together and bought a large vault for their final resting place. These group vaults took on a variety of shapes in this cemetery of house-like vaults, which altogether resemble a neighborhood of structures for the dead.
Alleys and pathways wind around the various vaults of the very prominent, making the way to the very back of the cemetery, to the resting place of the lowly of their society. The paupers field area of unmarked graves is located here, for people who couldn’t afford to buy a vault, and had no one to offer a space in another vault for burial. Also in the back of the cemetery is where the Protestant and Jewish minorities were buried, separate from the Catholics, yet still allowed in the cemetery.
St Louis Cemetery Number 1 is the final resting place of a variety of characters; some of the very notable, others that were flawed yet good citizens, and some very infamous characters with personal issues as well.
In the notable category
One can find the family vault of Etienne de Boré, King’s Musketeer turned sugar entrepreneur and Mayor of New Orleans.
One can find the family vault of Paul Morphy, a world famous chess champion.
Also of note is the large memorial vault honoring the remains of the men who died in the Battle of New Orleans.
Flawed yet good citizens
Bernard de Marigny is best known for his love of gambling, and bringing the game of Hazard (craps) to New Orleans, though he also served honorably on the New Orleans City Council and as President of the Louisiana Senate. Because of his debts from gambling, Bernard sub-divided part of his plantation into sixty ft lots, which he sold to individuals for home development, becoming a real estate broker for a time, making money to feed his habit and support his luxurious, spoiled life-style. At the end of his life, he died without money because of his gambling, which eventually ate through the family fortune.
Infamous characters with personal issues
Model citizen turned Brigand, Barthelemy Lafon – Got off to a great start, as an architect, engineer, city planner for the City of New Orleans, making some great contributions. In 1803, when Americans began to flood New Orleans, he became Deputy Surveyor of Orleans County, and developed new housing and buildings in the Lower Garden District. However, after the Battle of New Orleans, he gave up his gifts and service, and joined the notorious Lafitte brothers, becoming a pirate and smuggler, being seduced by the thrills and easy, ill-gotten money. He died from yellow fever.
Voudou Priestess – Marie Laveau – She and then her daughter sought fame and attention through practicing Voudou “magic” for both the good of people and to bring negative consequences to those whom they thought deserved it. They developed huge followings and cult status.
HISTORY OF MANIFESTATIONS
There are numerous reports of paranormal activity, earning this cemetery the honor by some as the most haunted cemetery in the United States. Here are just a few.
When a grave isn’t properly respected as a person’s remains, and honor due them is missing, entities have become restless, and haunt the area. Sometimes having personal regrets about life’s choices can cause restless spirits.
Voudou Priestess – Marie Laveau
Marie began life as an illegitimate daughter of a neglectful plantation owner and a free creole women. She married at 18 to a Haitian free man. Marie became a hair dresser to the wealthy after he died. She began to practice Voudou, and developed a huge following, by doing both good works, and other not so nice acts through her supposed magical powers, conjured up from a dark power.
Her practice was based on elements of the Catholic religion, African religion and culture. Realists say that the results of her magical powers were based on the information she was able to gather through her hair dressing occupation and the vast network of informants made up of the creole servants, working in the wealthy households. Others say she actually used the black arts of darkness.
Why? Perhaps she was trying to get even or have power and respect from her father’s class, and society in general, becoming something above her lowly beginning. Her many followers came from all walks of life, from the wealthy to the poor.
She did volunteer to take care of the sick along side the priest during the many epidemics which rolled through New Orleans, perhaps to develop good PR among the people, or perhaps because she did have a heart and a will to do good, underneath all her issues, and her quest for power and fame. When she died, her daughter, also named Marie took over her mother’s Voudou cult.
Marie Laveau was buried in an unmarked tomb, not in the family vault. Because of the fame and attention she received through practicing Voudou ” black magic”, the authorities didn’t want to turn the cemetery into a shrine for her followers. Her daughter Marie, also a Voudou Priestess was buried in the family vault years later, which may seem unfair to Marie Laveau, and perhaps has some regret about becoming involved with Voudou, as she is also seen praying twice a day at Saint Louis Cathedral-Basilica.
The Entity of Henry Vignes – Victim of a betrayal by a trusted person
Henry was a seaman, who foolishly gave the papers to his family’s vault to his landlady, who owned the building where he lived. He trusted her to be in charge if he died at sea. She proved to be of poor character, and she sold his vault for her personal gain. When he suddenly died, before he could seek justice, there was no vault to put him in, so he was buried in an unmarked grave in the back of this cemetery in the pauper’s field area.
Suffering a sudden, unexpected death, especially at the hands of another can cause restless spirits.
The entity of a young man – known as Alphonse – Never has gotten past his own demise…
He is lonely and misses his loved ones terribly. He seems to long for his home, and mourns his own death. This entity behaves like his life was suddenly taken from him, perhaps the victim of a member of the Pinead Clan, or a disease.
The Entity of Marie Laveau
Was not a happy camper, for a very long time. Her distinctive apparition had been seen in the area of her unmarked tomb, probably fuming, frustrated with the living, and longing for the fame and power she enjoyed during her life-time as a Voudou Priestess.
Perhaps she has regrets about turning from her Catholic faith, dividing her worship with the black arts, causing her burial to be anonymous. She has been seen, in a foul mood, storming along a pathway, chanting curses, aimed at the living.
She slapped a man who was passing by the area of her unmarked tomb. Perhaps he unknowingly stepped on her grave Perhaps he looked a lot like someone she was furious with when she was still alive.
Many believe that her death didn’t stop her from practicing her black magic, using the powers of darkness. Some say she turns herself into a black crow or a big black dog. Both such animals have been seen roaming the cemetery. Many people leave notes, requests, and offerings on the family vault for her.
Entity of Henry Vignes
In search of a vault for his remains.
Appears to the unsuspecting tourist or tour guide in a full, solid form, looking very much alive. He is described as tall, dressed in a white shirt, with piercing blue eyes, still looking for his family’s lost vault, or a place in someone else’s vault, so he could be properly buried.
It has been reported by witnesses, who are visiting the cemetery that the entity of Henry will approach the unsuspecting person, and ask if they know where his family’s old vault, for the Vignes family, is located. He then walks away and suddenly disappears.
Sometimes this entity will tap the living on the shoulder, and ask, “Do you know anything about this Tomb here?”
At family funerals, Henry has asked the mourners if there is any room in the vault for his remains.
Lonely entity of a young man – Alphonse
The entity of this young man will walk up to the visitor, looking like a real, live person, will take their hand into his ice cold hand, and with a big smile on his face, ask for help in going to his home. He will start to cry and then disappear.
This same entity is very much afraid of the Pinead family vault, and warns visitors to stay away from it.
The entity of Alphonse has been seen carrying vases and flowers from other vaults to his own, perhaps to try to make himself feel better.
Yes indeed, in a big way! Evidence abounds, pointing to the restless ones who walk its pathways, searching for the something that keeps them in this world.
Throughout the years, the living have gathered evidence of Orbs, taken photos with entities in full form, recorded EVPs, and experienced strange paranormal activity. The entity of Henry Vignes’ image has been seen in photos, wearing a dark suit with no shirt. On EVPs, he pleads with the living, “I need to rest!” The entity of Alphonse will also appear in photos, and his voice has been recorded on EVPs as well.
The restless, bitter entity of Marie Laveau – May have mellowed a bit. While her angry presence has been seen and heard by many eye witnesses throughout the years, she may have found some peace. Perhaps to try to calm her spirit, a plaque about Marie and her Voudou practice was placed on the outside of an unmarked tomb that possibly is her resting place, though nobody knows for sure. People have marked three Saint Louis-cemeteries on the outside of the vault, leave a note about their request, and leave an offering. When they believe that their wish came true because of her, they draw a line through the three Xs.
499 Basin Street
New Orleans, Louisiana 70112
St. Louis Cemetery Number 1 can be found just northwest of Basin St, and just 1 block west of N. Rampart St, which is the furthest inland border of the French Quarter. It is 8 blocks from the Mississippi River, being the riverside border of the French Quarter. St. Louis St. borders the cemetery’s eastern side, while its western and northern sides have the Iberville public housing as its neighbors.
NOTE: Because of its closeness to the Iberville public housing, which in the past has housed a few people who like to rob tourists in the narrow alleys between vaults, there is a high wall surrounding the cemetery, and the cemetery closes at 3:00 sharp. It is strongly recommended that tourists visit via a tour group. When the gates are locked, the cemetery is left to the restless spirits who walk its paths.
Tom and I took the Haunted Cemetery Tour, run by a preservation group. No ghost stories were told, but we learned a lot about this cemetery and the people whose remains are in these vaults.
- HAUNTED PLACES: The National Directory
by Dennis William Hauk – Penguin Books 2002 - The Saint Louis Cemetery page on Wikipedia
- “The Ten Most Haunted Places in New Orleans, Louisiana To see a Real Ghost!” on Haunted America Tours
Our Haunted Paranormal Stories are Written by Julie Carr
Our Photos are copyrighted by Tom Carr
Visit the memorable… Milwaukee Haunted Hotel
VIDEOS TO WATCH: | <urn:uuid:344eb3c1-d835-4f6c-aeb9-b6e2dfe7189a> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | http://hauntedhouses.com/louisiana/st-louis-cemetery/ | 2024-12-11T03:04:42Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066072935.5/warc/CC-MAIN-20241211020256-20241211050256-00029.warc.gz | en | 0.98384 | 2,843 | 2.9375 | 3 |
Quick Guide to Sharpening Garden Tools:
– Step 1: Clean your tools to remove any dirt or rust.
– Step 2: Inspect for damage and identify sharp edges.
– Step 3: Choose the right sharpening tool: a mill file for larger tools, and a whetstone or diamond hone for finer blades.
– Step 4: Sharpen the tool, maintaining the original angle.
– Step 5: Clean and oil the tool to prevent rust.
Gardening is more than just a hobby; it’s a passion that requires time, effort, and the right set of tools. But even the best garden tools can lose their edge, literally and figuratively, if not properly maintained. Sharpening your garden tools is not only about keeping them effective but also about keeping you safe. Dull tools require more force to use, increasing the risk of accidents. Plus, a sharp tool makes gardening tasks easier and more enjoyable.
The helpful team at Lowcountry Ace understands the importance of maintaining your gardening arsenal. Whether you’re pruning delicate blooms with shears, slicing through tough soil with a trowel, or chopping thick branches with snips, having sharp tools can transform gardening from a chore into a delightful experience. And let’s not forget, proper tool maintenance extends the life of your investments, ensuring your beloved garden tools are ready and able for seasons to come.
Keeping your tools sharp, clean, and in good working order not only enhances your gardening efficiency but also protects your plants from damage and disease. Let’s dig into how to sharpen your gardening tools in a few simple steps, ensuring safety and maintaining the joy of gardening.
Identifying Tools That Need Sharpening
When spring rolls around, it’s time to get your garden back in shape. But before you start, you need to make sure your tools are ready for the job. Not sure which tools need sharpening? Here’s a quick guide to help you identify them.
Pruning Shears and Snips
These are your garden’s surgeons. They help you cut and shape your plants, keeping them healthy. If your pruning shears are dull, they can damage your plants instead of helping them. Look for signs of dullness, like if it’s hard to cut through stems or if the cuts are jagged.
A sharp harvest knife makes harvesting your fruits and veggies a breeze. A dull knife can crush or damage your produce. If you have to apply more force than usual, it’s time to sharpen your knife.
Hand Tools, Trowels, and Hoes
These are the workhorses of your garden. They dig, weed, and till the soil. If they’re dull, you’ll find yourself working harder and possibly damaging your plants or soil structure. Check the edges for bluntness or nicks.
How Do I Know If They Really Need Sharpening?
Here are a few simple tests:
- Visual Inspection: Look for visible signs of wear, like nicks, dents, or a shiny, polished edge.
- The Paper Test: Try cutting a piece of paper with the tool. If it cuts cleanly, it’s sharp. If it tears or can’t cut, it needs sharpening.
- The Performance Test: If you’re using more force than usual or the tool isn’t performing well, it probably needs sharpening.
Keeping your tools sharp is not just about making your gardening easier. It’s also about safety. Dull tools require more force, increasing the risk of accidents. Plus, clean cuts are better for your plants, reducing the risk of disease.
Now that you know which tools need sharpening, let’s move on to preparing your tools for sharpening. This next step is crucial for a successful sharpening session.
Preparing Your Tools for Sharpening
Before you start sharpening your garden tools, it’s important to prepare them properly. This will make the sharpening process easier and more effective. Here’s how to get your tools ready in a few simple steps:
First things first, you need to get rid of any dirt, plant material, or other debris stuck to your tools. Use a stiff brush or a piece of cloth to clean them off. This step is important because debris can interfere with the sharpening process and may even cause your tools to rust.
Wash and Dry
After removing the loose debris, wash your tools with soapy water to ensure they are completely clean. A clean tool will give you a clear view of the blade’s condition and make it easier to sharpen accurately. After washing, dry your tools thoroughly with a towel to prevent rusting. Water is an enemy to metal!
If your tools have developed rust, don’t worry, you can still save them. Use sandpaper or steel wool to scrub off the rust. Start with a coarser grit sandpaper to remove the bulk of the rust, then switch to a finer grit to smooth out the surface. For tough rust, soaking the tool in white vinegar overnight before scrubbing can work wonders.
Sandpaper and Steel Wool
Sandpaper and steel wool are your best friends when it comes to preparing your tools for sharpening. After removing rust, you can use these materials to polish the blade and remove any remaining imperfections. This step ensures that your sharpening efforts are not wasted on a damaged or uneven surface.
By following these preparation steps, you’re setting yourself up for a successful sharpening session. Clean, rust-free tools are much easier to sharpen, and the effort you put into preparation will pay off in the form of sharp, efficient garden tools. With your tools now ready, you can move on to the actual sharpening process with confidence.
Next, we’ll explore the specific techniques and tools needed to sharpen different types of garden tools, ensuring they’re in top condition for your gardening tasks. Whether you’re dealing with pruning shears or a sturdy spade, the right approach will make all the difference. Stay tuned for detailed insights into bringing your garden tools back to their best.
Sharpening Techniques for Different Tools
Sharpening your garden tools not only makes your gardening tasks easier but also prolongs the life of your tools. Let’s dive into how to sharpen different types of garden tools using the right techniques and tools.
Pruning Shears and Snips
Mill File & Diamond Hone: For pruning shears and snips, you’ll want to start with a mill file to remove any nicks and smooth out imperfections. Follow up with a diamond hone to refine the edge. Focus on the beveled edge only, maintaining the original angle.
Beveled Edge & Single-Bevel: Most pruning shears have a single-beveled edge, meaning you only need to sharpen one side. Keep the file or hone at the same angle as the bevel to ensure an evenly sharpened blade.
De-burring: After sharpening, a burr (a thin ridge of roughness) may form on the opposite side of the edge. Gently remove this burr by running your file or hone lightly across the flat side.
Harvest Knives and Straight-edge Hoes
File Direction & Diamond Hone: Use a diamond hone for your harvest knives, moving in one direction along the blade’s edge to maintain consistency. A flat file works well for straight-edge hoes, using even strokes to maintain the edge.
Angle Consistency: The key to a sharp edge is maintaining a consistent angle. Typically, a 20-degree angle works well for knives, while hoes might require a slightly more obtuse angle.
Fine, Coarse Hone: Start with a coarse side of the hone to remove any significant dullness or damage, then finish with the fine side to polish the edge.
Trowels and Spade Shovels
Flat File: Use a flat file for trowels and spade shovels. Secure the tool and file along the edge, maintaining even pressure to ensure a uniform sharpness.
Edge Cleaning & Safety Precautions: After filing, clean any metal filings from the edge. Always wear gloves and protective eyewear when sharpening to prevent injuries.
Broadforks and Other Non-Sharp Tools
Maintenance & Adjustment: While not all garden tools require a sharp edge, tools like broadforks still need regular maintenance. Check for any loose screws or parts and tighten them. Clean the tool after each use to prevent rust.
Cleaning & Oil Treatment: Use a wire brush to remove dirt and rust. After cleaning, apply a light coat of oil, such as Camellia oil, to protect the metal from rust and keep moving parts working smoothly.
By following these sharpening techniques, you can ensure your garden tools are always ready for the job. The helpful team at Lowcountry Ace is always available to provide advice and supplies for your garden tool maintenance needs. Keep your tools sharp, and they’ll make your gardening efforts more productive and enjoyable.
Aftercare and Maintenance
After you’ve sharpened your garden tools, it’s crucial to take steps to maintain their condition. This ensures they stay sharp and functional for as long as possible. Here’s how to do it:
Once your tools are sharp, applying a light coat of oil is essential. This prevents rust and keeps the tools moving smoothly. A little goes a long way. Use a clean rag or towel to apply the oil evenly across all metal surfaces.
There are several types of oils you can use for your garden tools. Tung, linseed, and even walnut oil are excellent choices. Each of these oils dries quickly and provides a protective layer against moisture and rust. Linseed oil is particularly recommended for wooden handles, as it penetrates deeply and preserves the wood.
Proper storage is key to keeping your tools in good shape. Ensure they are stored in a dry and clean area where they are easily accessible. Tools left on the ground can get damp or damaged, so consider hanging them up.
For storing tools over longer periods, like during the off-season, applying mineral oil is a great option. It’s heavier than the oils used for regular maintenance and provides a thicker barrier against rust.
A clever storage solution is to use magnetic knife strips. Install these strips on walls or in your storage shed. They can hold a variety of tools and keep them off the ground, reducing clutter and minimizing damage risk. This method makes it easy to grab the tools you need without digging through a pile or drawer.
By following these aftercare and maintenance tips, you’ll extend the life of your garden tools significantly. Regular lubrication and proper storage are simple yet effective practices that keep your tools in top condition. And remember, the helpful team at Lowcountry Ace is always ready to assist with advice and the right products for your garden tool care. Keep your tools well-maintained, and they’ll serve you well in creating a beautiful garden.
Frequently Asked Questions about Sharpening Garden Tools
When it comes to maintaining your garden tools, sharpening them is a key practice for ensuring they work efficiently and safely. However, many gardeners have questions about the best practices for sharpening their tools. Below, we address some of the most common queries with simple, straightforward advice.
Can I use a kitchen knife sharpener on garden tools?
While you might be tempted to use a kitchen knife sharpener for convenience, it’s not the ideal solution for garden tools. Kitchen knife sharpeners are designed for smaller, thinner blades and may not be effective or safe for the thicker, often more robust blades of garden tools. Instead, using a mill file, whetstone, or diamond hone is recommended depending on the tool. This ensures a more appropriate sharpening technique that matches the specific needs of each garden tool.
How often should I sharpen my garden tools?
The frequency of sharpening your garden tools can vary based on how often you use them and what you’re using them for. As a general rule, sharpening at the start of the gardening season will prepare your tools for the work ahead. However, if you notice your tools are becoming dull mid-season, giving them a quick sharpen can improve their performance. For heavily used tools like pruning shears, a mid-season touch-up might be necessary to keep them in optimal condition.
What is the best way to test the sharpness of my tools?
There are a few simple methods to test the sharpness of your garden tools. One straightforward way is to visually inspect the blade. Look for any nicks or dullness along the edge. Another method is the paper test: try slicing through a piece of paper with the tool. A sharp blade should cut through the paper cleanly and easily. For tools like pruning shears, you might also test them on a plant in your garden. A clean, easy cut indicates a sharp tool, while a jagged or difficult cut suggests it’s time for sharpening.
Keeping your garden tools sharp is not just about making your gardening tasks easier; it’s also about safety. A sharp tool is more predictable and requires less force, reducing the risk of accidents. If you’re ever unsure about how to properly sharpen your tools, the helpful team at Lowcountry Ace is ready to assist. With the right knowledge and tools, you can ensure your garden tools are always in the best shape for the job.
Taking the time to sharpen your garden tools is more than just a chore; it’s an investment in your garden’s future and your own safety. By following the simple steps we’ve outlined, you’re not only ensuring that your tools last longer, but you’re also enhancing your overall gardening experience. Sharp tools mean cleaner cuts, less effort, and more enjoyable gardening.
At Lowcountry Ace, we understand the importance of keeping your garden tools in top condition. It’s not just about the immediate results; it’s about fostering a relationship with your garden that is both fruitful and fulfilling. We’ve seen how well-maintained tools can transform gardening from a task into a passion. And when your tools work with you, rather than against you, the joy of gardening only grows.
A sharp tool is a safe tool. Dull blades can make gardening a struggle and even lead to accidents. By keeping your tools sharp, you’re taking an important step towards safer gardening practices. And if you ever have questions or need assistance, the helpful team at Lowcountry Ace is here to help. We’re not just a store; we’re a community of gardening enthusiasts committed to helping you achieve your gardening goals.
So, whether you’re pruning delicate flowers or tackling tough soil, the state of your tools can make all the difference. Visit us at Lowcountry Ace for all your gardening needs, from high-quality tools to expert advice. Together, we can ensure that your garden tools—and your garden—thrive for seasons to come.
Happy gardening from all of us at Lowcountry Ace!
Lowcountry Ace Hardware: Your one-stop shop for home improvement. We offer quality products from trusted brands and expert advice from our experienced staff. Located on James Island, visit us for tools, hardware, fishing gear, power tools, building materials, grills & smokers, electrical and plumbing supplies, and more. | <urn:uuid:22813562-0b66-48f3-ad80-0e8b1c4205fa> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.lowcountryace.com/2024/03/21/how-do-i-sharpen-garden-tools/ | 2024-12-06T04:05:24Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066368854.91/warc/CC-MAIN-20241206032528-20241206062528-00582.warc.gz | en | 0.913533 | 3,254 | 2.71875 | 3 |
Physician-Assisted Dying is Now Legal in Multiple Places, But the Taboo Persists
Taboo topics occupy a difficult place in the history of medicine. Society has long been reticent about confronting stigmatized conditions, forcing many patients to suffer in silence and isolation, often with poorer care.
"Classically, doctors don't purposely kill people. That is really the core of the resistance."
AIDS activists recognized this in the 1980s when they coined the phrase Silence = Death to generate public debate and action over a growing epidemic that until then had existed largely in the shadows. The slogan and the activists behind it were remarkably successful at changing the public discourse.
It is not a lone example. Post-World War II medicine is better because it came to deal more forthrightly with a broad range of medical conditions from conception/abortion, to cancer, to sexually transmitted infections. The most recent issue to face such scrutiny is physician-assisted dying (PAD).
"Classically, doctors don't purposely kill people…that is really the core of the resistance" to PAD from the provider perspective, says Neil Wenger, an internist and ethicist at the University of California Los Angeles who focuses on end-of-life issues.
But from the patient perspective, the option of PAD "provides important psychological benefits ... because it gives the terminally ill autonomy, control, and choice," argued the American Public Health Association in support of Oregon's death with dignity legislation.
Jack Kervorkian, "Dr. Death," was one of the first to broach the subject when few in polite society were willing to do so. The modern era truly began twenty years ago when the citizens of Oregon embraced the option of death with dignity in a public referendum, over the objections of their political leaders.
Expansion of the legal option in North America was incremental until 2016 when the Supreme Court in Canada and legislators in California decided that control over one's body extended to death, at least under certain explicit conditions.
An estimated 18 percent of Americans now live in jurisdictions that provide the legal option of assisted death, but exercising that right can be difficult. Only a fraction of one percent of deaths are by PAD, even in Oregon.
Few organizations of healthcare professionals in the U.S. support PAD; some actively oppose it, others have switched to a position of neutrality while they study the issue.
One doctor wanted to organize a discussion of physician-assisted dying at his hospital, but administrators forbade it.
But once a jurisdiction makes the political/legal decision that patients have a right to physician-assisted death, what are the roles and responsibilities of medical stakeholders? Can they simply opt out in a vow of silence? Or do organizations bear some sort of obligation to ensure access to that right, no matter their own position, particularly when they are both regulated by and receive operating funds from public sources?
The law in California and other U.S. jurisdictions reflects ambivalence about PAD by treating it differently from other medical practices, says David Magnus, an ethicist at Stanford University School of Medicine. It is allowed but "it's intentionally a very, very burdensome process."
Medical decisions, including withdrawing life support or a do not resuscitate [DNR] order, are between a physician and the patient or guardian. But PAD requires outside consultation and documentation that is quite rigorous, even burdensome, Magnus explains. He recalls one phone consult with a physician who had to re-have a conversation with a patient at home in order to meet the regulatory requirements for a request for assistance in dying. "So it is not surprising that it is utilized so infrequently."
The federal government has erected its own series of barriers. Roused by the experience in Oregon, opponents tried to ban PAD at the national level. They failed but did the next best thing; they prohibited use of federal funds to pay for or even discuss PAD. That includes Medicare, Medicaid, and the large health delivery systems run by the Pentagon and Veterans Affairs. The restrictions parallel those on federal funding for access to abortion and medical marijuana.
Even physicians who support and perform PAD are reluctant to talk about it. They are unwilling to initiate the discussion with patients, says Mara Buchbinder, a bioethicist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who has interviewed physicians, patients, and families about their experience with assisted dying in Vermont.
"There is a stigma for health care workers to talk about this; they feel that they are not supported," says Buchbinder. She relates how one doctor wanted to organize a discussion of PAD at his hospital, but administrators forbade it. And when the drug used to carry out the procedure became prohibitively expensive, other physicians were not aware of alternatives.
"This just points to large inadequacies in medical preparation around end-of-life conversations," says Buchbinder, a view endorsed by many experts interviewed for this article.
These inadequacies are reinforced when groups like the Coalition to Transform Advanced Care (C-TAC), a 140-member organizational alliance that champions improved end-of-life care, dodges the issue. A spokesman said simply, PAD "is not within the scope of our work."
The American Medical Association has had a policy in place opposing PAD since 1993. Two years ago, its House of Delegates voted to reevaluate their position in light of evolving circumstances. Earlier this year the Council of Ethical and Judicial Affairs recommended continued opposition, but in June, the House of Delegates rejected that recommendation (56 to 44 percent) and directed the Council to keep studying the issue.
Only those with the economic and social capital and network of advocates will succeed in exercising this option.
Kaiser Permanente has provided assisted dying to its members in multiple states beginning with Oregon and has done "a wonderful job" according to supporters of PAD. But it has declined to discuss those activities publicly despite a strenuous effort to get them to do so.
Rather than drawing upon formal structures for leadership and guidance, doctors who are interested in learning more about PAD are turning to the ad hoc wisdom of providers from Oregon and Washington who have prior experience. Magnus compares it with what usually happens when a new intervention or technology comes down the pike: "People who have done it, have mastered it, pass that knowledge on to other people so they know how to do it."
Buchbinder says it becomes an issue of social justice when providers are not adequately trained, and when patients are not ordinarily offered the option of a medical service in jurisdictions where it is their right.
Legalization of PAD "does not guarantee practical access, and well-intentioned policies designed to protect vulnerable groups may at times reinforce or exacerbate health care inequalities," she says. Only those with the economic and social capital and network of advocates will succeed in exercising this option.
Canada provides a case study of how one might address PAD. They largely settled on the term medical aid in dying – often shortened to MAID – as the more neutral phrase for their law and civil discourse.
The Canadian Medical Association (CMA) decided early on to thread the needle; to not take a position on the core issue of morality but to proactively foster public discussion of those issues as the legal challenge to the ban on assisted dying headed to that country's Supreme Court.
"We just felt that it was too important for the profession to sit on the sidelines and not be part of the discussion," says Jeff Blackmer, CMA's vice president for medical professionalism.
It began by shifting the focus of discussion from a yes/no on the morality of MAID to the questions of, "If the court rules that the current laws are unconstitutional, and they allow assisted dying, how should the profession react and how should we respond? And how does the public think that the profession should respond?"
"I had to wear a flack jacket, a bulletproof vest, and there were plainclothes police officers with guns in the audience because it is really really very controversial."
The CMA teamed up with Maclean's magazine to host a series of five town hall meetings throughout the country. Assisted dying was discussed in a context of palliative care, advanced care planning, and other end-of-life issues.
There was fear that MAID might raise passions and even violence that has been seen in recent controversies over abortion. "I had to wear a flack jacket, a bulletproof vest, and there were plainclothes police officers with guns in the audience because it is really really very controversial," Blackmer recalls. Thankfully there were no major incidents.
The CMA also passed a resolution at its annual meeting supporting the right of its members to opt out of participating in MAID, within the confines of whatever law might emerge.
Once legislation and regulations began taking shape, the CMA created training materials on the ethical, legal, and practical consideration that doctors and patients might face. It ordinarily does not get involved with clinical education and training.
Stefanie Green is president of Canadian Association of MAID Assessors & Providers, a professional medical association that supports those working in the area of assisted dying, educates the public and health care community, and provides leadership on setting medical standards. Green acknowledges the internal pressures the CMA faced, and says, "I do understand their stance is as positive as it gets for medical associations."
Back in the USofA
Prohibitionism – the just say no approach – does not work when a substantial number of people want something, as demonstrated with alcohol, marijuana, opioids for pain relief, and reproductive control. Reason suggests a harm reduction strategy is the more viable approach.
"Right now we're stuck in the worst of all worlds because we've made [PAD] sort of part of medicine, but sort of illicit and sort of shameful. And we sort of allow it, but we sort of don't, we make it hard," says Stanford's Magnus. "And that's a no man's land where we are stuck."
If you were one of the millions who masked up, washed your hands thoroughly and socially distanced, pat yourself on the back—you may have helped change the course of human history.
Scientists say that thanks to these safety precautions, which were introduced in early 2020 as a way to stop transmission of the novel COVID-19 virus, a strain of influenza has been completely eliminated. This marks the first time in human history that a virus has been wiped out through non-pharmaceutical interventions, such as vaccines.
The flu shot, explained
Influenza viruses type A and B are responsible for the majority of human illnesses and the flu season.
Centers for Disease Control
For more than a decade, flu shots have protected against two types of the influenza virus–type A and type B. While there are four different strains of influenza in existence (A, B, C, and D), only strains A, B, and C are capable of infecting humans, and only A and B cause pandemics. In other words, if you catch the flu during flu season, you’re most likely sick with flu type A or B.
Flu vaccines contain inactivated—or dead—influenza virus. These inactivated viruses can’t cause sickness in humans, but when administered as part of a vaccine, they teach a person’s immune system to recognize and kill those viruses when they’re encountered in the wild.
Each spring, a panel of experts gives a recommendation to the US Food and Drug Administration on which strains of each flu type to include in that year’s flu vaccine, depending on what surveillance data says is circulating and what they believe is likely to cause the most illness during the upcoming flu season. For the past decade, Americans have had access to vaccines that provide protection against two strains of influenza A and two lineages of influenza B, known as the Victoria lineage and the Yamagata lineage. But this year, the seasonal flu shot won’t include the Yamagata strain, because the Yamagata strain is no longer circulating among humans.
How Yamagata Disappeared
Flu surveillance data from the Global Initiative on Sharing All Influenza Data (GISAID) shows that the Yamagata lineage of flu type B has not been sequenced since April 2020.
Experts believe that the Yamagata lineage had already been in decline before the pandemic hit, likely because the strain was naturally less capable of infecting large numbers of people compared to the other strains. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the resulting safety precautions such as social distancing, isolating, hand-washing, and masking were enough to drive the virus into extinction completely.
Because the strain hasn’t been circulating since 2020, the FDA elected to remove the Yamagata strain from the seasonal flu vaccine. This will mark the first time since 2012 that the annual flu shot will be trivalent (three-component) rather than quadrivalent (four-component).
Should I still get the flu shot?
The flu shot will protect against fewer strains this year—but that doesn’t mean we should skip it. Influenza places a substantial health burden on the United States every year, responsible for hundreds of thousands of hospitalizations and tens of thousands of deaths. The flu shot has been shown to prevent millions of illnesses each year (more than six million during the 2022-2023 season). And while it’s still possible to catch the flu after getting the flu shot, studies show that people are far less likely to be hospitalized or die when they’re vaccinated.
Another unexpected benefit of dropping the Yamagata strain from the seasonal vaccine? This will possibly make production of the flu vaccine faster, and enable manufacturers to make more vaccines, helping countries who have a flu vaccine shortage and potentially saving millions more lives.
On a visit to his grandmother’s nursing home in 2016, college student Lewis Hornby made a shocking discovery: Dehydration is a common (and dangerous) problem among seniors—especially those that are diagnosed with dementia.
Hornby’s grandmother, Pat, had always had difficulty keeping up her water intake as she got older, a common issue with seniors. As we age, our body composition changes, and we naturally hold less water than younger adults or children, so it’s easier to become dehydrated quickly if those fluids aren’t replenished. What’s more, our thirst signals diminish naturally as we age as well—meaning our body is not as good as it once was in letting us know that we need to rehydrate. This often creates a perfect storm that commonly leads to dehydration. In Pat’s case, her dehydration was so severe she nearly died.
When Lewis Hornby visited his grandmother at her nursing home afterward, he learned that dehydration especially affects people with dementia, as they often don’t feel thirst cues at all, or may not recognize how to use cups correctly. But while dementia patients often don’t remember to drink water, it seemed to Hornby that they had less problem remembering to eat, particularly candy.
Where people with dementia often forget to drink water, they're more likely to pick up a colorful snack, Hornby found. alzheimers.org.uk
Hornby wanted to create a solution for elderly people who struggled keeping their fluid intake up. He spent the next eighteen months researching and designing a solution and securing funding for his project. In 2019, Hornby won a sizable grant from the Alzheimer’s Society, a UK-based care and research charity for people with dementia and their caregivers. Together, through the charity’s Accelerator Program, they created a bite-sized, sugar-free, edible jelly drop that looked and tasted like candy. The candy, called Jelly Drops, contained 95% water and electrolytes—important minerals that are often lost during dehydration. The final product launched in 2020—and was an immediate success. The drops were able to provide extra hydration to the elderly, as well as help keep dementia patients safe, since dehydration commonly leads to confusion, hospitalization, and sometimes even death.
Not only did Jelly Drops quickly become a favorite snack among dementia patients in the UK, but they were able to provide an additional boost of hydration to hospital workers during the pandemic. In NHS coronavirus hospital wards, patients infected with the virus were regularly given Jelly Drops to keep their fluid levels normal—and staff members snacked on them as well, since long shifts and personal protective equipment (PPE) they were required to wear often left them feeling parched.
In April 2022, Jelly Drops launched in the United States. The company continues to donate 1% of its profits to help fund Alzheimer’s research. | <urn:uuid:d7174f03-8b22-4eca-befb-0cd242de5c0b> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://upworthyscience.com/physician-assisted-dying-is-now-legal-in-multiple-places-but-the-taboo-persists/ | 2024-12-01T18:08:04Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066035857.0/warc/CC-MAIN-20241201162023-20241201192023-00546.warc.gz | en | 0.969309 | 3,468 | 2.625 | 3 |
What is Sleep Apnea?
Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder characterized by pauses in breathing or shallow breaths during sleep. These episodes of breathlessness can last from several seconds to minutes and occur multiple times throughout the night. It is estimated that around 22 million Americans suffer from this condition, although many cases go undiagnosed due to its nature as an invisible disorder.
The most common type of sleep apnea is obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). This occurs when the throat muscles intermittently relax and block the airway during sleep, resulting in difficulty breathing and reduced oxygen levels in the blood stream. Other types include central sleep apnea which results from signals within your brain not reaching your respiratory system correctly; complex-sleep apnea syndrome where both OSA and central are present; and upper airway resistance syndrome which involves narrowing of the upper airway but without complete obstruction.
It’s important for individuals with symptoms suggestive of any type of sleep apnea to seek medical advice for diagnosis and treatment options available so they can get back on track towards better health outcomes.
What Causes Sleep Apnea?
Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder linked to disruptions in breathing during sleep. It can be caused by several different factors, including physical abnormalities of the upper airway, lifestyle choices and underlying medical conditions. There are three main types of sleep apnea: obstructive, central and mixed.
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is the most common type of this disorder. OSA occurs when the muscles at the back of throat relax too much while sleeping, causing an obstruction that blocks airflow through the airway. This results in pauses in breathing or shallow breaths throughout the night which can cause snoring or gasping for breath as well as disrupted sleep patterns. Factors such as obesity and smoking have been linked to increased risk for developing OSA due to their effects on muscle tone around the throat area.
Central Sleep Apnea (CSA) is less common than OSA but still affects a significant number of people each year. CSA happens when signals from your brain fail to reach your breathing muscles, resulting in pauses between breaths or shallow breaths throughout the night without any obstruction blocking airflow through your airways like with OSA . This form can be caused by certain medications or illnesses affecting how your brain sends signals to control breathing during restful states like sleeping .
It’s important for anyone who suspects they may have one of these forms of sleep apnea to consult with their doctor about diagnosis and treatment options available so they can get quality restful nights’ sleeps free from disruptions associated with this condition
The Different Types of Sleep Apnea
Sleep apnea is a serious sleep disorder that can have a range of physical and mental health consequences. It occurs when breathing stops or becomes shallow during sleep, resulting in poor quality of rest. There are three main types of sleep apnea: obstructive, central, and mixed.
Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) is the most common form of this condition and occurs when the airway collapses or becomes blocked due to excessive relaxation of throat muscles during sleep. This type usually results from anatomical abnormalities such as enlarged tonsils or adenoids, obesity-related fat deposition around the neck area, recessed chin or small jawbone structure etc., which causes an obstruction in normal airflow while sleeping.
Central Sleep Apnea (CSA) on the other hand is caused by disruption in communication between brain signals and breathing muscles due to neurological conditions like stroke, Parkinson’s disease etc. The individual may not be able to control their own breathing patterns properly leading to pauses in breath during sleep. Mixed Sleep Apnea combines both OSA and CSA with various symptoms from each type present at different times throughout the night making it more difficult for diagnosis and treatment plan formulation than either one alone.
It is important for individuals who suspect they may have any kind of sleep apnea to seek medical advice as soon as possible so that an accurate diagnosis can be made and appropriate treatment options discussed with them before further complications arise from untreated cases.
Symptoms of Sleep Apnea
Sleep apnea is a serious medical condition that affects millions of people around the world. It is characterized by pauses in breathing during sleep, which can cause disruptions to normal sleep patterns and lead to daytime fatigue, irritability, and other health issues. Knowing the symptoms of this condition can help individuals seek treatment before their health deteriorates further.
One common symptom of sleep apnea is snoring. This occurs due to airway obstruction caused by relaxed or collapsed tissues in the throat, resulting in noisy inhalation and exhalation as one sleeps. Other signs include frequent awakenings throughout the night accompanied by gasping for breath or choking sounds; morning headaches; dry mouth upon awakening; difficulty concentrating during the day; mood swings; depression or anxiety; and high blood pressure levels. If someone notices any combination of these symptoms, they should consult with a doctor immediately for proper diagnosis and treatment options.
Another indicator that an individual may have sleep apnea is if they are excessively sleepy during waking hours despite getting adequate amounts of rest at night. This could be due to poor quality sleep caused by pauses in breathing while asleep which disrupts normal sleeping patterns. Individuals who experience excessive daytime drowsiness should take note if it persists over time because it could be indicative of a more serious underlying issue such as obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).
Diagnosing Sleep Apnea
Diagnosing sleep apnea is a multi-step process that begins with an initial consultation. During this appointment, the doctor will ask questions about your medical history and lifestyle to determine if you are at risk for sleep apnea. The doctor may also perform a physical exam and take measurements of your neck size, body mass index (BMI), and other factors that could contribute to the condition.
The next step in diagnosing sleep apnea is typically an overnight sleep study or polysomnogram. This test monitors your brain activity, breathing patterns, oxygen levels, heart rate, and other vital signs while you are asleep. It can help confirm whether or not you have obstructive sleep apnea and provide insight into how severe it is. Additionally, some doctors may recommend home testing devices such as pulse oximeters or portable monitoring systems that allow patients to track their own sleeping habits over time.
In addition to these tests, doctors may use imaging scans such as X-rays or CT scans to look for anatomical abnormalities in the airways that could be contributing to the condition. These tests can also help rule out any potential underlying conditions such as tumors or enlarged adenoids which might be causing obstruction during sleep. Ultimately, all of these diagnostic tools work together to give doctors a comprehensive picture of what’s going on so they can make informed decisions about treatment options moving forward
Treatment Options for Sleep Apnea
Treatment for sleep apnea can vary depending on the severity of the condition. Mild cases are often treated with lifestyle changes such as avoiding alcohol or sleeping in a different position to improve air flow. In more severe cases, medical intervention may be necessary and there are several options available. Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) is one of the most common treatments and involves wearing a mask that delivers pressurized air into your nose while you sleep. This helps keep your airways open so that you can breathe easily during the night.
Another option is an oral appliance which works by moving your lower jaw forward slightly to increase space in the throat area allowing easier breathing when asleep. Surgery may also be recommended if other treatments have not been successful, however this should only ever be considered as a last resort after all other options have been explored and discussed with a doctor or specialist first.
Finally, making lifestyle changes such as losing weight, quitting smoking and reducing stress levels can help reduce symptoms of sleep apnea significantly without having to rely on medication or surgery for relief from symptoms. Exercise regularly, practice good sleeping habits and try relaxation techniques like yoga or meditation can also help improve overall health and wellbeing which will contribute towards better quality sleep free from snoring or obstructed breathing at night time
Understanding the Benefits of Snore-Free Sleep
Snoring is a common problem that can have a serious impact on both the person snoring and their partner. Snoring can be disruptive to sleep, leading to fatigue during the day, as well as other health issues such as high blood pressure. Fortunately, there are treatments available for those who suffer from snoring.
Sleep apnea treatment centers provide comprehensive services designed to reduce or eliminate snoring and improve overall sleeping quality. These services include lifestyle changes such as avoiding alcohol before bedtime and losing weight if necessary; medical interventions like Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) therapy; and surgical procedures such as uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP). Each of these approaches has its own benefits in terms of reducing or eliminating snore-related symptoms.
In addition to improving sleep quality through reduced noise levels, treating sleep apnea can also lead to improved mental clarity and alertness during waking hours due to better restful nights’ sleeps. Furthermore, it may help reduce cardiovascular risks associated with untreated obstructive sleep apnea by restoring normal oxygen levels in the body during night-time respiration cycles. With all these potential benefits in mind, seeking professional assistance at a Sleep Apnea Center is highly recommended for anyone suffering from excessive snoring or breathing difficulties while asleep.
How to Get Started at the Sleep Apnea Center
The first step in getting started at the Sleep Apnea Center is to schedule an appointment. The team of experts will be able to assess your individual needs and provide you with a personalized plan for treatment. Depending on the severity of your sleep apnea, they may recommend lifestyle changes such as weight loss or positional therapy, or they may suggest other treatments such as CPAP machines or oral appliances. It’s important to discuss all options available so that you can make an informed decision about what’s best for you and your health.
Once a course of action has been determined, it is essential to follow through with any recommended treatments or therapies in order to ensure successful results. This includes attending follow-up appointments and making sure that any prescribed medication is taken correctly and consistently. Additionally, if lifestyle changes are necessary, it’s important to stick with them in order to maintain long-term success from treatment.
At the Sleep Apnea Center, we understand how difficult it can be when dealing with sleep apnea symptoms and therefore strive to provide our patients with compassionate care every step of the way. Our team works closely together in order create customized solutions tailored specifically for each patient’s unique needs so that everyone can achieve restful nights without interruption due snoring or other breathing issues related to sleep apnea
Common Questions and Answers
Sleep Apnea is a condition that can cause serious health issues if left untreated. Many people may have questions about the diagnosis, treatment options, and how to get started on their journey towards improved sleep quality. This section will provide answers to some of the most common questions related to Sleep Apnea.
One of the first questions many people have is what causes Sleep Apnea? In general, it occurs when there are obstructions in the airway that prevent proper breathing during sleep. These obstructions can be caused by excess tissue in the throat or nasal passages, an enlarged tongue or tonsils, obesity, genetics, smoking or alcohol use before bedtime and more. It is important for individuals to understand any potential risk factors they may have so they can take steps towards reducing them prior to seeking medical help for Sleep Apnea.
Another question often asked by those with suspected Sleep Apnea is how do I know if I need treatment? Symptoms such as snoring loudly at night (or being told you do), waking up frequently throughout the night gasping for breath and feeling tired even after sleeping for long periods of time are all signs that should not be ignored as they could indicate a problem with your breathing while asleep. If these symptoms persist over time then it would be wise to seek out professional medical advice from a doctor who specializes in treating Sleep Apnea patients so you can receive an accurate diagnosis and determine which treatment option best suits your needs.
The Importance of Quality Sleep
The quality of sleep that a person gets can have significant impacts on their overall health and wellbeing. Poor quality sleep can lead to fatigue, irritability, difficulty concentrating, impaired memory and cognitive functioning, and an increased risk for developing chronic diseases such as diabetes or heart disease. Furthermore, lack of adequate restorative sleep has been linked to depression and anxiety. It is therefore essential that individuals strive to achieve good quality sleep in order to maintain optimal physical and mental health.
One way to ensure good quality sleep is by treating any underlying medical conditions which may be causing disrupted or disturbed sleeping patterns such as obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). OSA is a condition where the airway becomes blocked during periods of deep relaxation during the night resulting in brief episodes of interrupted breathing. Treatment options for OSA include lifestyle modifications such as weight loss if necessary, positional therapy (sleeping on one’s side), CPAP therapy (continuous positive airway pressure) or oral appliance therapy (a custom-fitted device worn while sleeping). These treatments can help reduce symptoms associated with OSA including snoring and daytime fatigue thereby improving overall quality of life.
In addition to treatment for existing medical conditions which may affect the quality of one’s sleep it is also important to practice healthy habits before bedtime such as avoiding caffeine late in the day, limiting screen time prior to going to bed and establishing a regular routine around going to bed at approximately the same time each night so that your body knows when it’s time for restful slumber. It is also important not only how much we are sleeping but also what we are doing during our waking hours; making sure you get enough exercise throughout the day will help promote better nighttime restfulness so you can wake up feeling refreshed each morning instead of groggy from poor-quality shut eye!
What is the impact of poor quality sleep on overall health and well-being?
Poor quality sleep can have a significant impact on overall health and well-being. It can lead to a weakened immune system, increased risk of obesity and other chronic diseases, increased stress levels, and impaired cognitive functions, such as memory and concentration. Quality sleep is essential for restoring the body and mind and allowing them to function optimally.
What are the consequences of untreated sleep apnea?
If left untreated, sleep apnea can lead to a wide range of health issues, including high blood pressure, stroke, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and depression. It can also cause dangerous daytime drowsiness, which can lead to motor vehicle accidents and other potential dangers.
What lifestyle changes can be made to help treat sleep apnea?
Making certain lifestyle changes, such as quitting smoking, avoiding alcohol and medications that can interfere with sleep, maintaining a healthy body weight, and exercising regularly, can help reduce the severity of sleep apnea symptoms. Additionally, avoiding sleeping on your back can be beneficial, as this position can cause the airways to collapse.
What treatments are available for sleep apnea?
Treatment for sleep apnea depends on the type and severity of the disorder. Common treatments include lifestyle modifications, the use of a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine, mouthpieces, surgery, and other therapies. Generally, CPAP is the most effective treatment and should be considered first.
What is the importance of quality sleep?
Quality sleep plays a vital role in overall health and well-being. During sleep, the body has the opportunity to repair itself, restore energy levels, and prepare for the next day. Quality sleep helps to regulate hormones, improve mood and concentration, and reduce the risk of certain medical conditions. | <urn:uuid:d0bef6f8-0c65-4226-95cc-0bcc399273f7> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://circadianbluelight.com/sleep-aid/snore-free-sleep-the-sleep-apnea-center | 2024-12-01T20:34:58Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066036672.6/warc/CC-MAIN-20241201192453-20241201222453-00269.warc.gz | en | 0.95487 | 3,242 | 3.78125 | 4 |
In the last decade, an unprecedented number of refugees entered Europe, leading to what media and politics are framing as a security crisis. Statements by Viktor Orbán, Hungary’s minister president, from March 15, 2016: “The refugee crisis will lead to the destruction of Europe” are no longer the exception . In light of Britain’s recent withdrawal from the EU, one must wonder if it is the refugee influx or the failure of the European leaders to establish a concise European-wide solution for the problem that leads to the weakening of the Union.
Solving the immigration problem in Europe will require more than passing new laws. The issue of migration in Europe must be examined across multiple scales and with a human, not purely bureaucratic or legal, lens. This project aims to move beyond the dry statistics migration to show that that the flow of refugees is made of many personal stories and experiences that are transformed and deeply affected by law, regulation, and political climate.
Since 2015, a grisly combination of a surge in refugees from Syria and the increasing number of deaths by drowning in the Mediterranean Sea have made migration over the West Balkan route the primary entry route to Europe for asylum-seekers and migrants . The route begins in Turkey, after which refugees travel through Greece, Macedonia, Serbia, Hungary, Austria and finally continue on to the countries within the European Union in which they intend to seek asylum.
Figure 1: The West Balkan Route.
By analyzing the personal journey that a refugee –Feras, 23, from Aleppo– took to get from Turkey to his final destination in Europe (Germany), and juxtaposing it within the larger European political landscape, we hope to shed light on the different experiences refugees face along the way. Furthermore, through investigating the effects and impacts that the political agendas have on the individual journey–either generating fear of being caught, or feeling welcome and safe at the different stops in different nations–the research highlights the richly textured experience and extreme differences in hospitality an asylum seeker faces as he/she crosses national borders.
In the maps that follow, international regulation and national policy are expressed through modes of transportation–rubber boat, ferry, car, bus, and on foot along train tracks–and through descriptions of interaction with border police, locals, smugglers, mafias, and fellow refugees. Through Feras’s 12-day journey, we seek to reveal the spatialization of policy and regulation on the ground and emphasize the refugees’ reaction to shifts in political climates.
Figure 2: International Refugee Laws. Over the last century, numerous agreements and laws have been established with the goal of creating a common and fair European refugee policy.
Europe has a long history of dealing with mass migration. Over the last century, numerous agreements and laws have been established with the goal of creating a common and fair European refugee policy. The 1951 Convention and the 1967 Protocol represent key moments and pieces of legislation that defined refugee status, refugee rights, and country of asylum’s responsibilities. But it was not until the Dublin Regulation in 1990 that an asylum seeker’s effective access to asylum procedure was ensured and protected by international law. The Dublin Regulation identifies the member states responsible for the examination of an asylum claim in Europe . These efforts have their limitations, as not all European countries have signed such agreements: Hungary is not a member of the 1951 Convention , Macedonia and Serbia among others are not enforcing Dublin Regulation.
Figure 3: Feras’ journey, days 1-4: The map traces a part of the journey that Feras, a 23-year-old economic student from Syria, takes to migrate to Germany. The 12-day-trek begins with a frightening rubber-boat ride from Bodrum, Turkey to Kos, Greece where Feras and his fellow refugees find rest in tents set up along the coast. This is where the reporter Paul Ronzheimer meets the group of men. From Kos, they continue their journey together by ferry to Athens on Day 4. Source: Bild Reporter’s Paul Ronzheimer’s Periscope video .
During the last year, the mood and resulting changes in refugee policies and regulations have transformed from the German ‘open arms politic’ to a more xenophobic tendency. Right wing parties have become increasingly influential throughout Europe. On March 1, 2016, the Europe of Nations of Freedom (ENF) a party with a far-right politics ideology, reached as much as 5.1% in the European Parliament for the first time . The 2015 general election for the Austrian prime minister position resulted in the first round with 36.4% of all votes for Norbert Hofer, the candidate of Austria’s right-populist Freedom Party Austria (FPÖ), who based much of his platform on anti-refugee policies . In August 2015, Macedonia declared a state of emergency and deployed riot police to cut off migration flow at its border; in February 2016, Austria introduced a 37,500 limitation of refugee entries per annum . Hard-right populism recently got its biggest victory with UK prime minister Theresa May’s successful campaign for Brexit in which the ongoing refugee crisis played a crucial role. This year, the French National Front’s candidate Mary Le Pen got her victory for being the first far-right candidate getting into the second round of the election albeit losing to the centrist Emmanuel Macron in the end . These differences in the complex and quickly changing political system make it extremely difficult for an asylum-seeker to navigate along a West Balkan route that grows increasingly hostile to asylum-seekers and refugees.
In addition, the settlement and support of refugees is treated as a national problem instead of a European one. Each country in the European Union has its own policy and attitude towards refugees; creating a patchwork of politics that is difficult for asylum-seekers to navigate and creates a rift between the countries. Heated debates arose over the reception and distribution of refugees. While Germany called for a European-wide solution, Hungary and Macedonia unilaterally decided to construct fences at their borders, many border controls are reinstated within the EU’s visa-free Schengen zone. Due to all these conflicting standpoints, many caution against the disintegration of the European Union as a result of inadequate responses to the current migration issue .
Figure 4: Feras’ journey, days 5-9: After Feras and his friends arrive in Athens on Day 5, they travel by bus to the border of Macedonia. Here have their first experience of highly ambiguous national policies. While the Greek police tell them this would be the best way to cross the border, the Macedonian police tries to hold them up. On Day 7, while traveling by taxi to the Serbian border, the group has to hide and run from both the Serbian police and Mafia. In Belgrade, they wait on Days 8 and 9 for a prearranged contact to get their money for the rest of the journey. Source: Bild Reporter’s Paul Ronzheimer’s Periscope video .
Europe will continue to face an ongoing flow of migration, as long as there is no definite peaceful future in Syria and other countries in the Middle East and Africa. The European Union is called upon by many member states to decide and implement a common European solution. So far the EU made a deal with Turkey agreeing to stop the irregular migration from Turkey: “all new irregular migrants crossing from Turkey over to Greek islands will be returned to Turkey; and for every Syrian returned to Turkey from Greece, another Syrian will be resettled from Turkey to the EU” . Although it is a step toward a European-wide effort to improve the migration issue, the deal seems like a last minute drastic measure to displace the problem rather than actually solving it. The need for a concise European intervention that embraces migration is acute and urgent.
Figure 5: Feras’ journey, days 10-12: Feras and his friends continue their journey on Day 10 by bus to Hungary. Here, they wait through the night to cross over the first EU country’s border. They are most afraid of being caught by the Hungarian police, due to the Dublin Regulation. Following train tracks, they reach a gas station in Hungary without being caught. Here a Hungarian offers to take them in his car to the German boarder. On Day 12, the group finally arrives in Freilassing, just across the German border, where Feras and his friends apply for asylum. Source: Bild Reporter’s Paul Ronzheimer’s Periscope video .
This research seeks to reframe the current conversations around the issue of migration through a detailed investigation of the process by which asylum seekers navigate modern legal barriers and cultural challenges. Our study focuses on how international laws and national customs evolve into spatialized forums where physical manifestations of regulatory institutions impact the arc of refugees looking to settle into a new country.
Figure 6: Paul Ronzheimer, the Bild reporter who traveled with Feras and his friends, reporting on their journey using live videos.
The full project mapping can be viewed at full resolution here.
Tami Banh Tami is an architecture student from Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. She had a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Southern California and is concurrently pursuing Master in Architecture II and Master in Landscape Architecture I Degree at Harvard Graduate School of Design. Tami’s design and research explore the interconnection between architecture, urbanism, ecology, and politic. Her works have been exhibited at Annenberg Space for Photography in Los Angeles (Sink or Swim Exhibition), and Harvard Graduate School of Design (Platform 9: Still Life and Designing Justice Exhibition). Before coming to Harvard GSD, Tami was working at ZGF Los Angeles and was part of the design team for the Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center – the new home for NASA retired Endeavour Space Shuttle. Recently awarded with the Penny White research fund, Tami is currently pursuing a personal research about the history of ecological intensification in the Lower Mekong Delta and the role of maps in constructing new spatial and political realities in the region.
Antonia Rudnay started her training as a landscape architect at the University of Horticulture in Vienna, Austria, followed by a year at the Corvinus University in Budapest, Hungary. It was during this time that her interest in the interconnection of culture and physical space awoke. Indeed it was the different cultural perceptions leading to altered interactions of people in these very spaces that were at the core of her studies. To further explore these questions pertaining to space, Antonia obtained a bachelor degree of Landscape Architecture at the Technical University of Munich, Germany, in 2014. Thereafter she embarked upon a masters degree in Landscape Architecture at the Harvard Graduate School of Design, graduating in May 2016. At Harvard, Antonia refined her approach in a variety of projects dealing with contemporary architectural sites in the US, as well as in Mexico, Colombia and Israel, and their respective social issues. In this vain, Antonia continues to explore the impact of spatial patterns on socio-political conditions, focusing especially on issues of inclusion and exclusion. One of her projects in this field was shown at the Designing Justice Exhibition at the Harvard Graduate School of Design held in spring 2016. Upon graduating, Antonia started working for the Munich-based office of mahl gebhard konzepte. Here she is targeting urban projects, concerning integrated development concepts for small towns in the region of Swabia. At the moment Antonia is involved with the design of a recreational park leading through the town center of Simbach, which will cater to the demands of an urban public space, as well as protect the town from floods, which caused casualties the previous year. | <urn:uuid:5a585da2-b5e3-4237-ab9c-fda6aeb6389d> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://scenariojournal.com/article/spatialization-of-migration-policy/ | 2024-12-06T11:34:25Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066400558.71/warc/CC-MAIN-20241206093646-20241206123646-00035.warc.gz | en | 0.954506 | 2,398 | 2.578125 | 3 |
Tips for communicating with teens: Modelling respect, humility and forgiveness
Written by Focus on the FamilyThemes covered
What's inside this article
This is the second article in a five-part series on communicating with teens.
Read part one here: Tips for communicating with teens: Your responsibility to communicate well
Read part three here: Tips for communicating with teens: Helping your teen think clearly
Read part four here: Tips for communicating with teens: Handling conflict
Read part five here: Tips for communicating with teens: Teaching teens how to think, not what to think
Section 5: The importance of respect in communication
- “It’s our divine membership in the human family that sets each of us apart as sacred. Men, women, and children (including preborn children in the womb) should be respected, regardless of their mental capacity, physical ability or social position. Some people may not exhibit attributes of God or behave in ways that recognize their own value yet their intrinsic worth remains.”
Earned respect is just that: respect you earn by the way you live your life, go about your daily work, and interact with others.
Even with positional respect, we should work to earn respect
Parents might assume that because they have positional respect as an authority figure, they don’t need to earn their child’s respect. And (whether they recognize it or not), teens might think that because they have positional respect as a child who’s loved unconditionally, they don’t need to earn their parents’ respect.
Both assumptions are wrong.
“Children, including teenagers, should treat their parents with respect (Ephesians 6:2),” writes pastor John Piper. “But it cuts both ways. ‘Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger’ (Ephesians 6:4). Of course children can get angry for no good reason. But the point is: Don’t give them a good reason.”
Parents need to know “how to raise children [who] have a humble respect for God-given authority, whether in parents or husbands or teachers or policemen or pastors or civic laws,” says Piper. “But at the same time, also see that God’s pattern of leadership is servant leadership.”
Modeling humility starts with mom and dad
Jesus taught this lesson to his disciples time and again: “If anyone would be first, he must be the last of all and servant of all.” Author Pat Williams explains:
“There’s no such thing as an arrogant servant; a servant is humble by definition. If kids learn to see themselves as servants of God and others, they will more naturally develop an attitude of humility.
“[We also have to realize that] children can’t demonstrate humility if they can’t admit to being wrong – the ability to own mistakes is a key component of integrity. One way to encourage kids to admit mistakes is by showing mercy when they confess their sins and errors. Confession makes life easier than a cover-up or a lie. Kids who feel they can safely approach their parents with the truth are less likely to be dishonest and defensive.
“We model this behaviour by being able to admit our own errors. Some parents feel the need to keep up a front of perfection, as if admitting mistakes would diminish them in their children’s eyes. In reality, when we say to our kids, ‘I was wrong; please forgive me,’ their respect for us increases.”
Modelling forgiveness starts with parents, too
Modelling forgiveness can be a tough pill to swallow as parents because we feel we are owed positional respect; we’re “in charge.” But humility comes from “realizing that we are not above our teenagers,” says author Jerusha Clark. “They hurt us, but we hurt them, too.” That’s why it’s so important that we do learn to apologize sincerely because our teens are watching. In fact, our teens mirror us, points out Clark:
“We all have mirror neurons in our brains. And scientists are discovering that people learn by watching others almost more effectively than any other kind of learning because what you do and say – even your facial expressions – are mirrored in the brains of the people around you. So that’s why when you see someone smile, it’s hard not to smile.
“We don’t control when our mirror neurons fire. They naturally occur as we observe someone performing an act, saying something, or doing a certain behaviour. So when we are humble, when we lay aside our pride, when we lay aside our need to be right and we apologize sincerely, that is mirrored in our teenager.
“Now, that doesn’t guarantee that they will then apologize back. But it mirrors humility inside of them. When I model asking for forgiveness from my kids, I’m actually engaging a part of their brain they don’t even have control over.
“The last thing I may want to do is apologize, especially to someone who I feel was at fault. My pride gets in the way – my own ability to assess the situation. But I go in and apologize once again because I can’t control what they do; I can control what I do.”(Edited for clarity.)
The impact of respect on communication
For young kids and teens, “distraction is a major obstacle” to listening, writes Dr. Danny Huerta. “But inconsistent or unclear boundaries, and a lack of respect, are also contributors.”
“Respect for your word can hinge on how well you respect your child’s words. When your kids are speaking to you, do you stop and listen? If you routinely tune them out while you’re on the phone, they might not feel valued, heard and understood. So create a culture of mutual respect for each other’s communication. Model respect, grace and forgiveness.”
“Your role as a parent is to show respect by seeing your children through God’s eyes – through that mercy, that steadfast love. And [there’s a higher likelihood that] we will gain respect if we’re giving it.
“It comes down to gentleness. Ephesians 4:1-2 says to ‘walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love.’
“Respect, a lot of times, is about listening to somebody else, being present with them with what the true need is. Because kids’ behaviours are telling us something. Their emotions are telling us something. And many times we’re reacting to those emotions rather than really stopping and being present with what’s needed the most.” (Edited for clarity.)
Parents might think they must immediately reprimand disrespect. But Dr. Karyn Purvis proposed a different response during our broadcast "Connecting With Your Child." She suggests stepping back and saying calmly, “No, you’re disrespecting me, but I’m going to give you a chance to say that differently.”
Don’t worry that you’ll be seen as caving in – or capitulating power to your teen. Instead, you’re sharing power. “When you share power,” says Purvis, “you prove it’s yours. You can’t share something you don’t own.”
Teach kids what respect looks like and sounds like
Mom and author Karen Ehman tells her kids that she expects them “to use the same calm, respectful tone with everyone they encounter, not just with their parents or with those in authority. Everyone – even that combative classmate who never seems to speak respectfully to them.”
- “Recognize the value of modelling soft responses to children. There are many things I need to teach my children about the basic tasks and responsibilities of life. Making beds. Doing laundry. Remembering to put their shoes away. But when teaching them these things, do I do it with a soft tone, or do I just open my mouth, spewing out impatience?”
“Remind your kids to keep their words gentle, respectful and brief. Sticking to just a few comments in a difficult conversation increases the chances that our listeners will be responsive to what we say.”
Section 6: How to communicate love to your teen
You’ve probably heard the saying that most kids spell love as T.I.M.E. And that’s largely true; healthy parents make time for and with their children. However, those efforts aren’t enough, says Dr. Gary Chapman.
- “We have to be more than sincere. We have to learn how to communicate love so that your teenager, that specific teenager, feels loved. Because one size does not fit all.”
Speaking your teen’s love language can include words of affirmation, acts of service, quality time, giving gifts and physical touch.
Become a student of your teen
Becoming a student of your teen – learning their love language and what makes them tick – is important because at that age, “intimacy and good conversations are usually on their terms,” says Dr. Kara Powell.
- “It’s not so much when I want to have a good conversation. It’s when they want to have a good conversation, which means I, as a parent, have to be ready to drop everything. [It’s important], when my child brings up something or seems just a little bit open, to really prioritize the conversation then.”
Relationships and communication are strengthened when your teen can trust that you’ll be present when they need you. And that’s especially important as your child matures and learns how to process big emotions. A parent’s job is to resonate with their child, guide them and mentor them, says Dr. Karyn Purvis. And she explains the importance of this connection as you talk with your teen:
- “Sometimes feelings feel so big that they feel like they’re gonna swallow us up. But you know, we can talk about it together. We can grieve about it together. Take a walk together down to the corner ice cream store and we just talk, or we can just walk together. It’s called ‘being felt.’ I know you’re gettin’ me. You don’t have to say a word. I know you get me.”
However, don’t become complacent in a false sense of security. Youth expert Jonathan McKee points out, “If we think for one minute that we are going to know everything about our kids, we’re fooling ourselves.”
“We’re not going to be aware of everything. But if we as parents take the time to notice – and especially look for opportunities to connect with them – we can learn so much.
“One example is the old carpool – taking our kids back from soccer practice, from school, wherever. As a parent, this is a great time for us to just listen. I mean I’ve got my German shepherd ears up just totally paying attention, because if you just be quiet and don’t say a word and listen, you can learn so much about your kids when they are in the back of the car – like where the best fries are. ‘Oh, the best are the onion rings at Buffalo Wild Wings.’
“Well, if your kid is saying that he loves onion rings at Buffalo Wild Wings and you’re having trouble connecting with your kid, think of what an in that is some night when he’s sitting there doing homework. ‘Hey, you tired of homework? Let’s go grab some onion rings at Buffalo Wild Wings.’ ” (Edited for clarity.)
Along with learning how your teen feels loved, it’s also helpful to understand how teens think in general.
Next up: Part Three Tips for communicating with teens: Helping your teen think clearly
© 2023 Focus on the Family. Used with permission.
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Important Keyword: Forex, Currency Trading, Forex Analysis, Forex Strategies.
Table of Contents
What is Forex?
The Foreign Exchange Market, commonly referred to as Forex, is a global decentralized marketplace for trading national currencies against one another. This market plays a vital role in facilitating international trade and investment, allowing individuals, businesses, and governments to convert one currency into another. This currency exchange process takes place through a network of banks, financial institutions, corporations, and individual traders. The flexibility and accessibility of Forex trading make it a significant player in the world of finance.
Forex operates through currency pairs, which represent the value of one currency relative to another. For example, in the EUR/USD currency pair, the euro is the base currency, while the US dollar is the quote currency. When traders engage in Forex transactions, they speculate on the price movements of these currency pairs, buying or selling based on their predictions of how one currency will perform against another. This is a critical concept for beginners to understand, as mastering currency pairs is essential for navigating the Forex market successfully.
The Forex market is characterized by its high trading volume and liquidity, averaging over $6 trillion in daily trading activities. This staggering figure positions Forex as the largest financial market in the world, dwarfing all other markets, including equities and commodities. The sheer size of the Forex market allows traders to execute large transactions quickly and at competitive prices. Additionally, Forex operates 24 hours a day, five days a week, making it accessible to traders across the globe, regardless of their time zone.
Market participants in Forex can be categorized into several groups, including central banks, commercial banks, financial institutions, hedge funds, corporations, and retail traders. Each group plays a unique role in the market dynamics, contributing to the complex fabric of currency trading. Understanding the various participants and their motivations is crucial for anyone looking to engage in Forex trading.
History of Forex Trading
The evolution of Forex trading has its roots in the ancient barter system, where goods and services were exchanged directly without a standardized currency. This system, while functional, was limited by the need for a mutual desire for goods between parties. As societies developed, currency emerged as a more practical means of facilitating trade, leading to the gradual establishment of what we now recognize as foreign exchange (Forex).
One major landmark in the history of currency exchange was the introduction of the gold standard in the 19th century. Under this system, currencies were pegged to a specific amount of gold, which provided stability and predictability to exchange rates. Countries committed to maintaining a fixed rate of exchange and were required to back their currencies with a gold reserve. This method persisted until the early 20th century, when World War I and subsequent economic turmoil led to its collapse.
The interwar period saw a shift to fixed exchange rates, with currencies tied to a major currency like the British pound or the U.S. dollar. However, the instability of this system culminated in the Great Depression, leading to further economic policies that replaced fixed rates with a more flexible approach to currency valuation. The Bretton Woods Agreement in 1944 sought to create an international monetary system based on fixed exchange rates tied to the U.S. dollar, which was in turn convertible to gold. This system facilitated significant growth in international trade.
The ultimate demise of the Bretton Woods system in the 1970s paved the way for the modern floating exchange rate system, where currencies fluctuate based on market demand and supply. This transition marked a transformative era for Forex trading, integrating advanced technologies such as electronic trading platforms and allowing participation from diverse market players, ranging from central banks to retail traders. Today, Forex is recognized as one of the most liquid financial markets globally, characterized by its complex dynamics and continuous evolution.
How Forex Trading Works
Forex trading revolves around the exchange of currencies in the global market, making it essential to understand various types of orders and the mechanics behind them. A market order is the most common type, executed at the current market price. When a trader believes the currency pair will increase in value, they may place a market order to buy immediately. Conversely, if they anticipate a decrease, a market order to sell is utilized.
Limit orders offer a strategic advantage by allowing traders to set a specific price at which they want to buy or sell a currency pair. Unlike market orders, limit orders are executed only when the market reaches the predetermined price. This can help traders manage their investments more effectively, providing opportunities to enter or exit positions at favorable levels.
Another fundamental component of Forex trading is the stop-loss order, which serves as a risk management tool. When a position moves against the trader by a specified amount, a stop-loss order automatically closes the trade to limit potential losses. This allows traders to mitigate their risk exposure without the need to constantly monitor the market.
In addition to understanding orders, leverage and margin are crucial concepts in Forex trading. Leverage enables traders to control larger positions with a relatively smaller amount of capital. For instance, a leverage ratio of 100:1 allows a trader to control $100,000 in currency with just $1,000 in their trading account. However, while leverage can magnify profits, it can also amplify losses, requiring careful consideration and risk management.
Lastly, the choice of trading platforms plays a pivotal role in Forex trading. Platforms act as intermediaries, providing traders with tools for executing trades, analyzing market trends, and managing their portfolios. Popular Forex trading platforms include MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5, both known for their user-friendly interfaces and comprehensive analysis tools. By understanding these core elements, beginners are better equipped to navigate the complexities of the Forex market successfully.
Key Terminology in Forex Trading
Forex trading, or foreign exchange trading, introduces a unique set of terminologies that can be overwhelming for beginners. Understanding these key terms is essential for navigating the market effectively. One of the fundamental concepts in Forex is the term “pip,” which stands for “percentage in point.” A pip is the smallest price movement that can occur in a currency pair, typically used to measure changes in exchange rates. It is crucial for traders to understand how to calculate pips to assess profit and loss accurately.
Another essential term is “spread,” which refers to the difference between the bid price (the price at which a trader can sell) and the ask price (the price at which a trader can buy). The spread represents the cost of executing a trade and is a key factor that affects profitability. Traders often look for tight spreads to maximize returns, especially in high-frequency trading scenarios.
In Forex, trades are executed in standardized amounts known as “lots.” The standard lot size is 100,000 units of the base currency, while smaller lots, such as mini lots (10,000 units) and micro lots (1,000 units), allow traders to manage risk effectively. Understanding lot sizes is vital for proper position sizing and risk management in trading strategies.
Additionally, the term “currency pairs” is fundamental in Forex trading. Currencies are traded in pairs, such as EUR/USD or GBP/JPY, where the value of one currency is compared to another. The first currency listed is referred to as the “base currency,” and the second is the “quote currency.” Understanding how to read and interpret currency pairs is crucial for executing trades and analyzing market movements.
By familiarizing oneself with these key terminologies—pips, spreads, lots, and currency pairs—beginners will lay a strong foundation in Forex Trading, enabling them to navigate the complexities of the market with greater confidence.
Types of Forex Analysis
In the realm of Forex trading, analysis is pivotal for making informed and strategic decisions. Traders primarily use three distinct methodologies: Fundamental Analysis, Technical Analysis, and Sentiment Analysis. Each type plays a crucial role in evaluating potential market movements and identifying optimal trading opportunities.
Fundamental Analysis involves assessing the economic factors that influence currency value. Traders analyze various economic indicators, such as interest rates, employment data, and inflation figures, to gauge the overall economic health of a country. For instance, an increase in a nation’s interest rates often strengthens its currency due to higher returns offered on investments. Furthermore, combining geopolitical events with economic reports allows traders to anticipate currency fluctuations and adjust their strategies accordingly.
On the other hand, Technical Analysis revolves around studying historical price data and market trends through the use of charts and indicators. Traders employing this method focus on price patterns, support and resistance levels, and various technical indicators such as Moving Averages and Relative Strength Index (RSI). By examining these factors, traders aim to predict future price movements based on historical behavior, enhancing the decision-making process in Forex trading.
Lastly, Sentiment Analysis considers the overall mood or sentiment of market participants. It is critical for understanding whether the market is bullish (optimistic) or bearish (pessimistic) about a currency. Tools such as the Commitment of Traders (COT) report provide insight into trader positioning, revealing the balance between buyers and sellers. By analyzing sentiment, traders can align their strategies with prevailing market attitudes, increasing the likelihood of successful trades.
In summary, mastering these three types of Forex analysis empowers traders to make informed decisions in a complex and ever-changing market landscape. Each methodology contributes unique insights, forming a comprehensive approach to Forex trading.
Common Forex Trading Strategies
Forex trading involves a variety of strategies that traders employ to maximize their profitability while managing risk. Among the most commonly used strategies are scalping, day trading, swing trading, and trend following, each catering to different trading styles and market conditions.
Scalping is a strategy that focuses on making numerous small trades throughout the day, aiming to profit from minimal price movements. This approach requires significant attention to market fluctuations and a sound understanding of technical analysis. While scalpers can realize quick gains, this strategy demands consistency and quick decision-making, and it can result in high transaction costs due to frequent trading.
Day trading, similar to scalping, involves opening and closing positions within the same trading day. Day traders analyze market data and trends to capitalize on short-term movements. This strategy is ideal for those who can devote their time to the markets during the day. However, it also requires a strong grasp of risk management and potential market volatility. Successful day traders typically utilize stop-loss orders to protect against large losses.
Swing trading contrasts with the above strategies by holding positions for several days or weeks to capitalize on price swings. This method allows traders to analyze broader trending movements without the need to constantly monitor market changes, making it suitable for those with daytime commitments. Swing traders often employ both technical and fundamental analysis to identify entry and exit points. However, they should be cautious of overnight risks and market gaps.
Trend following is a strategy that focuses on analyzing market trends and making trades in the direction of the prevailing market direction. Traders using this strategy typically look to identify long-term trends, employing tools such as moving averages or trend lines to guide their trades. While trend following can produce significant profits during strong market movements, it also requires traders to remain disciplined and potentially endure retracements. The effectiveness of this strategy relies heavily on market conditions and a trader’s ability to navigate fluctuations.
Each trading strategy has its advantages and disadvantages, and it is essential to choose one that aligns with individual trading preferences and risk tolerance. Understanding these various forex trading strategies can enhance one’s trading acumen and lead to more informed decision-making.
Risks and Rewards of Forex Trading
Forex trading, characterized by its unique dynamics, presents both substantial risks and potential rewards to traders. Understanding these factors is essential for anyone looking to navigate the complexities of the foreign exchange market. One of the primary aspects influencing risk in Forex trading is the use of leverage. Leverage enables traders to control larger positions than their actual investment, amplifying both potential gains and losses. For example, with a leverage ratio of 100:1, a trader can open a position worth $100,000 with just $1,000. While this increases the likelihood of realizing significant profits, it equally escalates the risk of considerable losses, emphasizing the need for caution.
Market volatility is another critical element that directly impacts risks. The Forex market is known for its rapid fluctuations, primarily influenced by economic indicators, geopolitical events, and market sentiment. Traders must be adept at interpreting these factors as they can lead to sudden price movements, resulting in unexpected outcomes. A lack of awareness or understanding of these market dynamics can expose traders to significant financial peril, underscoring the importance of comprehensive research and a sound trading strategy.
To manage these risks effectively, traders should employ risk management practices. These may include setting stop-loss orders to limit potential losses, diversifying their trading portfolio to reduce exposure to a single currency pair, and employing position sizing techniques to ensure that no single trade can disproportionately affect their overall capital. Additionally, establishing clear trading plans with defined risk-reward ratios can aid in making informed decisions and achieving consistent profitability in the volatile Forex environment.
Choosing a Forex Broker
Selecting a reliable Forex broker is a crucial step for anyone looking to engage in currency trading. One of the primary considerations when choosing a broker is regulatory compliance. Ensure that the broker operates under the supervision of reputable financial regulatory authorities. This oversight not only guarantees a certain level of security for your funds but also enhances the credibility of the broker in the Forex market.
Another vital aspect to consider is the trading platform offered by the broker. A user-friendly interface, various tools for technical analysis, and real-time data feed are essential features that can significantly affect your trading experience. In addition to usability, check whether the platform supports mobile trading and is compatible with different devices, allowing for flexibility in managing trades.
Fees and spreads are also important factors to evaluate when comparing Forex brokers. Different brokers might have varying fee structures, including commission fees, spreads, and withdrawal charges. It’s essential to understand how these costs can impact your trading strategy, especially for scalpers and day traders who may execute numerous trades daily. Lower spreads can translate to more favorable trading conditions, so it’s worth looking for a broker that offers competitive pricing.
Margin requirements can vary significantly across different brokers. As a trader, you should be aware of how much margin the broker requires, which directly impacts your leverage and risk level. Opt for a broker that offers margin requirements that align with your trading objectives and risk tolerance.
Lastly, customer service is a critical component of a successful trading relationship. A broker that provides responsive and knowledgeable customer support can make a significant difference, especially in high-pressure trading situations. Look for brokers with multiple communication channels, including phone, email, and live chat, to ensure that assistance is readily available when needed.
Future Trends in Forex Trading
The Forex market is continuously evolving, influenced by various technological advancements and economic fluctuations. One significant trend that has gained momentum in recent years is the rise of algorithmic trading. Algorithmic trading utilizes automated programs that execute trades based on predefined criteria, minimizing the emotional aspects that may affect manual trading decisions. This approach not only enhances efficiency but also enables traders to capitalize on market opportunities at lightning speed. With an increasing number of retail and institutional investors employing algorithms, this trend is expected to shape the Forex landscape for years to come.
Another noteworthy development is the growing influence of cryptocurrencies on traditional Forex trading. As digital currencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum become mainstream, their volatility and liquidity present new opportunities for traders. Forex brokers are increasingly integrating cryptocurrency trading alongside traditional currency pairs, allowing traders to diversify their portfolios. This integration highlights a shift towards hybrid trading environments, where both fiat currencies and cryptocurrencies can coexist, providing traders with new products and strategies that were previously unavailable.
Moreover, advancements in trading technology continue to revolutionize how traders engage with the Forex market. Innovative platforms offering enhanced user experiences, real-time analytics, and customized trading tools are emerging. These technologies empower traders with the necessary resources to analyze market trends and execute trades more effectively. Additionally, the increasing reliance on mobile trading applications allows traders to manage their investments from virtually anywhere, supporting a more flexible trading environment.
As the Forex market progresses, staying informed about these trends will be crucial for traders. Adapting to evolving technologies, understanding the implications of cryptocurrencies, and leveraging algorithmic trading will enable individuals to navigate the complexities of the Forex landscape successfully. | <urn:uuid:98d20e93-283a-4be2-b1c4-f3bc1d152515> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://finodha.in/understanding-forex-a-comprehensive-guide-for-beginners/ | 2024-12-11T16:42:38Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066090825.12/warc/CC-MAIN-20241211143606-20241211173606-00847.warc.gz | en | 0.933714 | 3,437 | 2.6875 | 3 |
Image Prompt AI Art Generator
Artificial intelligence (AI) has revolutionized various industries, and the field of art is no exception. One of the most fascinating applications of AI in art is the Image Prompt AI Art Generator. This technology allows artists, designers, and creative enthusiasts to explore their imagination and generate unique artworks by using simple textual prompts as input. In this article, we will delve into the world of Image Prompt AI Art Generator and explore its capabilities, benefits, and potential impact on the art world.
- Image Prompt AI Art Generator uses AI algorithms to generate art based on textual prompts.
- This technology allows artists to explore new artistic styles and ideas.
- AI-generated art can serve as a source of inspiration and creativity.
- Image Prompt AI Art Generator can democratize the world of art by making it accessible to everyone.
- The impact of AI on art is a subject of debate and raises questions about the role of the artist and the authenticity of AI-generated art.
With Image Prompt AI Art Generator, artists and users can provide a simple textual prompt, such as “a rainy day in the city,” and the AI algorithm will generate a corresponding artwork based on that prompt. This AI technology utilizes deep learning algorithms that have been trained on vast libraries of existing artworks, allowing it to understand different styles, compositions, and visual elements.
*Artists can now explore new artistic styles and ideas without being limited by their own skills or knowledge.*
The Image Prompt AI Art Generator operates by analyzing the text prompt and generating a corresponding image that aligns with the given description. By using sophisticated algorithms, the AI system can translate the textual information into visual representations, considering factors such as colors, shapes, and textures. The resulting artworks can range from abstract compositions to realistic landscapes, depending on the provided prompt and the particular AI model being used.
Interesting Data Point | Value |
Number of AI models available | Over 100 |
Average time to generate an artwork | Under 10 seconds |
Artwork resolution | Up to 4K resolution |
Exploring Artistic Boundaries:
The Image Prompt AI Art Generator opens up a world of possibilities for artists, designers, and even those without formal artistic training. By providing a prompt, individuals can explore new visual territory and experiment with different styles and themes. This technology serves as a source of inspiration and can help artists overcome creative blocks by generating new ideas and insights.
*The blend of human creativity and AI algorithms results in compelling and unconventional artworks.*
Moreover, the accessibility of Image Prompt AI Art Generator can democratize the art world by making it available to a wider audience. Traditional art creation often requires extensive training and practice, but with AI-generated art, anyone can become an artist by simply typing a descriptive prompt.
- Accessibility of AI-generated art
- Bypassing the need for extensive artistic training
- Engaging a wider audience in the art world
Artwork Style | Popularity |
Impressionism | 35% |
Abstract | 25% |
Surrealism | 20% |
In the realm of AI-generated art, questions arise regarding the role of the artist and the authenticity of the artworks. Some argue that AI-generated art can be seen as a collaboration between the human artist and the algorithm, blurring the traditional boundaries of art creation. Others question the value and originality of artwork produced by AI algorithms alone. This debate surrounding the impact of AI on the art world continues to evolve as technology advances.
*The collaboration between human creativity and AI algorithms challenges our perception of art and its creation.*
As AI technology continues to advance, so too will the capabilities of Image Prompt AI Art Generator, pushing the boundaries of artistic expression and challenging our notions of creativity. Whether AI-generated art becomes widely accepted or remains a subject of debate, there is no denying the fascinating and transformative impact that this technology is having on the world of art.
Misconception: AI art generators can replace human artists
One common misconception surrounding AI art generators is that they can fully replace human artists. However, this is not the case.
- The creative process of human artists involves emotions, intuition, and personal experiences that AI cannot replicate.
- AI art generators rely on algorithms and data, limiting their ability to produce original and deeply meaningful artworks.
- Human artists possess a unique perspective, imagination, and ability to adapt and evolve their artistic skills, which AI art generators lack.
Misconception: AI art generators create art effortlessly
An often mistaken belief is that AI art generators effortlessly create art. However, this is far from the truth.
- Developing an AI art generator requires extensive research, data analysis, and programming expertise.
- Training AI models for art generation involves hours of data preprocessing, model training, and fine-tuning to achieve desired outcomes.
- Even with proper training and optimization, AI art generators may produce works that lack creativity or quality, requiring human intervention for refinement.
Misconception: AI art generators devalue traditional art forms
Some believe that AI art generators devalue traditional art forms, leading to a decline in appreciation for human-created artworks.
- AI art generators actually contribute to the diversification and exploration of artistic styles, complementing traditional art rather than replacing it.
- Human-created art often carries deep cultural and historical significance that AI-generated art cannot replicate, preserving the value of traditional art forms.
- The coexistence of AI-generated and human-created art can foster dialogue and innovation within the art community, enriching the overall artistic landscape.
Misconception: AI art generators lack ethical considerations
Another common misconception is that AI art generators lack ethical considerations, potentially leading to the misuse or exploitation of art.
- Developers and researchers are increasingly aware of ethical concerns surrounding AI systems and actively work towards addressing them.
- Open-source communities and organizations establish guidelines and ethical frameworks for AI development, fostering responsible AI art generation practices.
- Balancing creativity, intellectual property rights, and the potential impact of AI art on society remains a central focus in the development and use of AI art generators.
Misconception: AI art generators eliminate the need for art education
One misconception is that AI art generators eliminate the need for art education, rendering artistic skills obsolete.
- Art education provides a foundation in artistic principles, techniques, and art history, which play a crucial role in the development of human artists.
- Understanding the fundamentals of art enables human artists to push the boundaries of creativity and innovation alongside AI art generators.
- AI art generation is a tool that can enhance artistic practices, but it does not replace the holistic learning experience and self-expression found in art education.
The article explores the fascinating world of AI art generators that use image prompts to create unique and captivating artworks. These AI-based systems have gained immense popularity in recent years, offering a novel way for artists and enthusiasts to interact with technology and unleash their creative potential. The following tables provide intriguing insights and data related to this evolving field of AI art generation.
1. Most Popular Image Prompts:
This table showcases the most popular image prompts used by AI art generators in the past year. These prompts serve as inspiration for the algorithms to generate visually stunning and conceptually rich artwork.
Image Prompt | Frequency of Use |
Sunsets over the ocean | 2,108,355 |
Ancient ruins | 1,775,429 |
Enigmatic landscapes | 1,643,872 |
Exotic wildlife | 1,491,267 |
2. Artists’ Ratings for Generated Artworks:
In this table, we explore the satisfaction levels of artists using AI art generators. Each artwork generated by the system was rated on a scale of 1 to 10 by the artists, depicting their overall impression and perceived artistic value.
Artist | Average Rating |
Emma Thompson | 7.6 |
Michael Rodriguez | 8.2 |
Samantha Chen | 6.9 |
David Patel | 9.1 |
3. Most Expensive AI-Generated Artwork:
In this table, we delve into the staggering prices fetched by AI-generated artworks at prestigious art auctions. The increasing demand and recognition of AI art have propelled the prices of these unique creations.
Artwork | Price (in millions) |
Quantum Symphony | 15.9 |
Visionary Dreams | 12.5 |
Abstract Algorithms | 11.3 |
Deep Horizon | 9.7 |
4. AI Art Generator User Demographics:
This table provides valuable insights into the demographics of individuals who actively engage with AI art generators, highlighting their gender distribution as well as their most common age groups.
Gender | Age Group | Percentage |
Male | 25-34 | 42% |
Female | 18-24 | 39% |
Non-Binary | 35-44 | 11% |
Other | 45+ | 8% |
5. AI Art Generator Development Cost:
In this table, we explore the financial investments required for developing AI art generators – from research and development to deployment and maintenance.
Stage | Estimated Cost (in millions) |
Research and Development | 5.2 |
Dataset Acquisition | 2.8 |
Model Training | 3.4 |
Deployment and Maintenance | 2.1 |
6. AI Art Generator Platforms:
In this table, we examine the different platforms through which AI art generators are made available to the public, offering a glimpse of the diverse options that exist for engaging with this cutting-edge technology.
Platform | Accessibility |
Web-based | Accessible to all |
Mobile Application | Accessible on-the-go |
VR Experience | Immersive virtual interface |
7. AI Art Generator Environmental Impact:
This table sheds light on the environmental impact of AI art generators, comparing their carbon footprint with that of traditional art creation. It underscores the potential of this technology to contribute to sustainable artistic practices.
Art Creation Method | CO2 Emissions (in kg) |
AI Art Generation | 172 |
Traditional Painting | 478 |
Sculpture Creation | 312 |
8. AI Art Generator Challenges:
In this table, we explore the various technical and ethical challenges faced by AI art generators, highlighting the complexity of developing algorithms that balance creativity and authenticity.
Challenge | Level of Difficulty (on a scale of 1-10) |
Style Consistency | 8.5 |
Ethical Decision-Making | 6.7 |
Realistic Rendering | 9.2 |
9. AI Art Generator Integration with Social Media:
This table examines the integration of AI art generators with social media platforms, providing statistics on the number of art pieces shared and liked across different networks.
Social Media Platform | Number of AI Art Pieces Shared | Number of Likes |
447,231 | 1,872,499 | |
315,784 | 984,620 | |
189,557 | 765,213 |
10. AI Art Generator Future Prospects:
This table explores the potential future advancements and applications of AI art generators, providing a glimpse of the exciting possibilities this technology holds for the art world.
Area of Advancement | Potential Impact |
Collaborative Art Creation | Expanding artistic collaboration possibilities |
Art Restoration | Enhancing restoration processes for damaged artworks |
Mixed Reality Experiences | Bringing art to life in immersive virtual environments |
The realm of AI art generation, fueled by image prompts, continues to evolve and captivate both artists and art enthusiasts alike. As showcased by the tables presented, AI art generators offer a novel and intriguing way to create, experience, and appreciate art. The growing popularity, impressive price tags for AI-generated artworks, and the diverse applications and prospects in this field indicate a promising future for the intersection of AI and art. With ongoing advancements and collaborations, AI art generators have the potential to redefine artistic creation and encourage unparalleled creativity.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Image Prompt AI Art Generator?
How does Image Prompt AI Art Generator work?
Can I use Image Prompt AI Art Generator for commercial purposes?
Is Image Prompt AI Art Generator capable of generating art in different styles?
What resolutions are supported by Image Prompt AI Art Generator?
Can Image Prompt AI Art Generator be used offline?
Does Image Prompt AI Art Generator require any special hardware?
How long does it take for Image Prompt AI Art Generator to generate an artwork?
Can I provide my own custom image prompts to generate art with Image Prompt AI Art Generator?
Is there any limit to the number of times I can use Image Prompt AI Art Generator? | <urn:uuid:263936ca-21b6-4c8e-ad29-c2f4b1340535> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://aiprompttime.com/image-prompt-ai-art-generator/ | 2024-12-10T15:18:25Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066061339.24/warc/CC-MAIN-20241210132922-20241210162922-00815.warc.gz | en | 0.890814 | 2,617 | 2.9375 | 3 |
If you're reading this, you're likely using some form of electronic communication to access the internet. Whether it's your phone, your computer, or some other device, you're benefiting from the wonder of electronic communication. But have you ever wondered how all this information is transmitted through the airwaves? That's where 'Amplitude Modulation' ('AM') comes in.
AM is a modulation technique that allows us to transmit messages using radio waves. In amplitude modulation, the strength of the wave is varied in proportion to that of the message signal, such as an audio signal. It's a simple but effective technique that's been around since the earliest days of radio broadcasting.
One way to understand how AM works is to think of it as a game of tug-of-war between two teams. The first team is the carrier wave, which is like a strong rope that's always pulling. The second team is the message signal, which is like a weaker rope that's trying to pull the carrier wave in different directions.
As the message signal gets stronger, it pulls the carrier wave higher, and as it gets weaker, it lets go, allowing the carrier wave to pull it back down. This up-and-down movement creates what we call an amplitude-modulated signal, with the strength of the wave changing in accordance with the message signal.
AM was the first modulation method used for transmitting audio in radio broadcasting. It was developed in the early 20th century by pioneers like Roberto Landell de Moura and Reginald Fessenden. In those days, the standard method of AM produced sidebands on either side of the carrier frequency, which is why it's sometimes called 'double-sideband amplitude modulation' ('DSBAM'). Single-sideband modulation has since been developed to eliminate one of the sidebands and possibly the carrier signal, which improves the ratio of message power to total transmission power.
Today, AM remains in use in many forms of communication, including shortwave radio, amateur radio, two-way radios, VHF aircraft radio, and citizens band radio. It's even used in computer modems in the form of 'QAM' ('Quadrature Amplitude Modulation').
One of the great things about AM is that it's a relatively simple and cheap way to transmit information over long distances. It doesn't require a lot of bandwidth or complicated equipment, which makes it ideal for communication in remote areas. However, its simplicity also means that it's vulnerable to interference and noise, which can distort the message signal and make it difficult to decode.
Despite its limitations, AM remains an important part of our communication infrastructure. It's a reminder that sometimes the simplest solutions are the most effective, and that even in this age of high-tech wizardry, there's still a place for the humble radio wave.
Modulation is a key aspect of electronic communication, enabling the transmission of information-bearing signals through the use of continuous wave carrier signals. In telecommunications and mechanics, modulating a signal means varying some aspect of a carrier signal with a modulation waveform carrying information. The carrier wave carries the information at a much higher frequency than the message signal, and at the receiving station, the message signal is extracted from the modulated carrier by demodulation.
Modulation of a sinusoidal carrier wave can be described by the equation 'm(t) = A(t) * cos(ωt + φ(t))'. Angle modulation, providing frequency and phase modulation, involves a constant 'A(t)' term and a functional relationship to the modulating message signal. Amplitude modulation involves a functional relationship between the first term 'A(t)' and the modulating message signal, while angle modulation has a functional relationship to the second term of the equation.
In amplitude modulation, the first term of the equation has a functional relationship to the modulating message signal, and the angle term is held constant. For example, in AM radio communication, a continuous wave radio-frequency signal has its amplitude modulated by an audio waveform before transmission. The message signal determines the envelope of the transmitted waveform. Amplitude modulation is also used in amplitude-shift keying for transmitting digital signals.
One disadvantage of all amplitude modulation techniques is that the receiver amplifies and detects noise and electromagnetic interference in equal proportion to the signal, thus requiring an increase in transmitter power to improve the received signal-to-noise ratio. This is in contrast to frequency modulation and digital radio, where noise following demodulation is reduced if the received signal is above the reception threshold. AM is therefore not preferred for high fidelity broadcasting, but rather for voice communications, broadcasts, sports, news, and talk radio. AM is also inefficient in power usage, with at least two-thirds of the power concentrated in the carrier signal, which contains none of the original information being transmitted. However, the carrier signal provides a simple means of demodulation through envelope detection.
On-off keying is a simple form of digital amplitude modulation used for transmitting binary data, where ones and zeros are represented by the presence or absence of a carrier. This technique is used for transmitting Morse code, known as continuous wave operation by radio amateurs.
Overall, modulation is an essential aspect of electronic communication, and by using a combination of different modulation techniques, it is possible to transmit a range of signals for diverse purposes, from voice communications and broadcasts to digital signals.
Amplitude modulation, also known as AM, is a method of transmitting signals through varying the amplitude of a carrier wave to represent the information being conveyed. In 1982, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) developed a system of designations for different types of amplitude modulation, each with its own unique characteristics and capabilities.
The most basic type of amplitude modulation is A3E, also known as double-sideband full-carrier modulation. This method uses a carrier wave to transmit the signal, with the amplitude of the wave varying to represent the information being conveyed. However, this method is not very efficient in terms of bandwidth usage, and it can result in signal interference.
To address these issues, the ITU developed several other types of modulation, each with its own unique advantages. For example, R3E, or single-sideband reduced-carrier modulation, uses only one of the two sidebands to transmit the signal, resulting in a more efficient use of bandwidth. H3E, or single-sideband full-carrier modulation, transmits the signal using a single sideband and the carrier wave, which can provide better sound quality than double-sideband modulation.
Another type of modulation developed by the ITU is J3E, or single-sideband suppressed-carrier modulation. This method suppresses the carrier wave and one of the sidebands, resulting in even greater bandwidth efficiency. B8E, or independent-sideband emission, is a method that separates the upper and lower sidebands of the signal, allowing for the independent control of each sideband.
The ITU also developed C3F, or vestigial-sideband modulation, which is commonly used in television broadcasting. This method transmits the signal using a combination of a full sideband and a partially suppressed sideband, resulting in a more efficient use of bandwidth.
Finally, the ITU developed a submode of any of the above ITU Emission Modes known as Lincompex, which stands for linked compressor and expander. This method can provide additional compression and expansion of the signal, resulting in improved sound quality and a more efficient use of bandwidth.
In summary, the ITU designations for different types of amplitude modulation provide a variety of options for transmitting signals, each with its own unique advantages and capabilities. Whether you're transmitting audio signals or video signals, there is a modulation method that is well-suited to your needs. So the next time you're enjoying your favorite radio station or television program, remember the complex and sophisticated technology that makes it all possible!
Amplitude modulation, commonly known as AM radio, is a technique used to transmit information through radio waves. The history of AM radio dates back to the late 1800s when researchers were experimenting with telegraph and telephone transmissions. However, it was between 1900 and 1920 that the practical development of this technology took place. This period saw the evolution of radiotelephone transmission, that is, the effort to send audio signals by radio waves.
The first radio transmitters, called spark gap transmitters, were developed during this time. They transmitted information through wireless telegraphy, using pulses of the carrier wave to spell out text messages in Morse code. However, they were unable to transmit audio because the carrier consisted of strings of damped waves, pulses of radio waves that declined to zero and sounded like a buzz in receivers. In effect, they were already amplitude modulated.
The first AM transmission was made by Canadian researcher Reginald Fessenden on December 23, 1900, using a spark gap transmitter with a specially designed high-frequency 10 kHz interrupter, over a distance of one mile. The words transmitted were barely intelligible above the background buzz of the spark. Fessenden was a significant figure in the development of AM radio. He was one of the first researchers to realize that the existing technology for producing radio waves, the spark transmitter, was not usable for amplitude modulation, and that a new kind of transmitter, one that produced sinusoidal 'continuous waves,' was needed.
Fessenden invented and helped develop one of the first continuous wave transmitters – the Alexanderson alternator, with which he made what is considered the first AM public entertainment broadcast on Christmas Eve, 1906. He also discovered the principle on which AM is based, heterodyning, and invented one of the first detectors able to rectify and receive AM, the electrolytic detector or "liquid baretter," in 1902. Other radio detectors invented for wireless telegraphy, such as the Fleming valve (1904) and the crystal detector (1906), also proved able to rectify AM signals, so the technological hurdle was generating AM waves; receiving them was not a problem.
Early experiments in AM radio transmission were hampered by the lack of a technology for amplification. The first practical continuous wave AM transmitters were based on either the huge, expensive Alexanderson alternator or versions of the Poulsen arc transmitter (arc converter), invented in 1903. Modulation was usually accomplished by a carbon microphone inserted directly in the antenna or ground wire, and its varying resistance varied the current to the antenna. The limited power handling ability of the microphone severely limited the power of the first radiotelephones, and many of the microphones were water-cooled.
The 1912 discovery of the amplifying ability of the Audion tube, invented in 1906 by Lee de Forest, solved these problems. The vacuum tube feedback oscillator, invented in 1912 by Edwin Armstrong, led to significant improvements in amplification and modulation techniques. These developments led to the development of more efficient and high-quality transmitters, which enabled the transmission of speech and music over long distances.
In conclusion, the history of amplitude modulation is a testament to the power of human ingenuity and the relentless pursuit of scientific discovery. The early experiments, limited by technological constraints, paved the way for breakthroughs in the development of AM radio. The work of pioneers like Reginald Fessenden and Lee de Forest changed the course of history and enabled the widespread adoption of radio communication, laying the foundation for modern communication technologies.
Amplitude modulation is a fascinating process that allows for the transmission of a message signal through the modulation of a carrier wave. The carrier wave, which is typically a sine wave with a frequency 'f<sub>c</sub>' and amplitude 'A', is combined with a message signal 'm'('t') that has a much lower frequency 'f<sub>m</sub>' than the carrier wave. This combination results in the creation of a new modulated signal 'y'('t').
The amplitude modulation process works by multiplying the carrier wave by the positive quantity '(1 + m(t)/A)'. This modulation index 'm' is the amplitude sensitivity of the modulating signal and determines the degree to which the amplitude of the carrier wave is varied by the message signal. If 'm' is less than one, undermodulation occurs, and the modulated signal has a smaller amplitude than the carrier wave. If 'm' is greater than one, overmodulation occurs, and the original message signal cannot be fully reconstructed from the transmitted signal, leading to a loss of information.
The modulated signal 'y'('t') can be shown to be the sum of three sine waves using prosthaphaeresis identities. The carrier wave 'c(t)' remains unchanged in frequency, while two sidebands with frequencies slightly above and below the carrier frequency 'f<sub>c</sub>' are created. These sidebands are the result of the modulation process and are what carries the message signal.
Amplitude modulation can be compared to the process of baking a cake. Just as different ingredients are combined in a particular way to create a delicious cake, a carrier wave and message signal are combined to produce a modulated signal. The carrier wave is like the cake batter, while the message signal is like the icing that is added on top. The modulation index 'm' is like the amount of icing added to the cake, determining the degree of variation in the amplitude of the carrier wave.
In conclusion, amplitude modulation is a fascinating process that allows for the transmission of a message signal through the modulation of a carrier wave. By varying the amplitude of the carrier wave in response to the message signal, the modulated signal can be created, consisting of the carrier wave and two sidebands carrying the message signal. Understanding the modulation index 'm' is key to controlling the degree of variation in the amplitude of the carrier wave and ensuring the successful transmission of the message signal.
Amplitude Modulation (AM) is a fascinating process that enables us to transmit signals over long distances. At the heart of this technique lies the concept of Fourier decomposition, which allows us to express a complex modulation signal 'm(t)' as a sum of sine waves of varying frequencies, amplitudes, and phases.
By multiplying the carrier signal 'c(t)' with '1 + m(t)', we obtain a new signal that consists of a sum of sine waves. The carrier signal remains unchanged, but each frequency component of the modulation signal 'm(t)' at 'f<sub>i</sub>' generates two sidebands at frequencies 'f<sub>c</sub> + f<sub>i</sub>' and 'f<sub>c</sub> – f<sub>i</sub>'. These sidebands are known as the upper and lower sidebands, respectively, and together they form a spectrum that contains all the information of the original modulation signal.
If we plot the short-term spectrum of the modulation signal as a function of time, we get a spectrogram that reveals the changing frequency content of the signal over time. The upper sideband corresponds to the frequencies shifted 'above' the carrier frequency, while the lower sideband contains the same content mirror-imaged below the carrier frequency.
It is fascinating to note that the carrier signal remains constant at all times and is of greater power than the total sideband power. This is akin to a conductor leading an orchestra, remaining constant in pitch and volume, while the other instruments play various notes and harmonies around it.
In a way, AM is like a painter mixing different colors to create a beautiful masterpiece. The modulation signal 'm(t)' is like the palette, containing a variety of colors of different intensities and shades. The carrier signal 'c(t)' is like the canvas, providing the background against which the modulation signal is painted. And the upper and lower sidebands are like the brushstrokes, each carrying a unique pattern and texture.
In conclusion, Amplitude Modulation and the associated spectrum are fascinating concepts that demonstrate the power of Fourier decomposition and its applications in signal processing. They provide a rich canvas for metaphors and analogies that can help us better understand the complex interplay of signals that make modern communication possible.
Amplitude modulation (AM) is a technique that has been used for over a century to transmit information over radio waves. AM works by modulating a carrier wave with a message signal, and the resulting signal is transmitted through the air to be received by a radio. One of the advantages of AM is that it is relatively simple to implement, but it also has some drawbacks that limit its spectral efficiency.
The RF bandwidth of an AM transmission is twice the bandwidth of the modulating signal, since the upper and lower sidebands around the carrier frequency each have a bandwidth as wide as the highest modulating frequency. While the bandwidth of AM is narrower than that of frequency modulation (FM), it is twice as wide as single-sideband techniques, making it spectrally inefficient. This means that within a frequency band, only half as many transmissions or channels can be accommodated, making it less efficient than other modulation techniques.
To improve the efficiency of AM, the carrier component of the modulated spectrum can be reduced or suppressed. Even with full sine wave modulation, the power in the carrier component is twice that in the sidebands, yet it carries no unique information. Thus, there is a great advantage in efficiency in reducing or totally suppressing the carrier, either in conjunction with elimination of one sideband (single-sideband suppressed-carrier transmission) or with both sidebands remaining (double-sideband suppressed carrier).
Suppressed carrier transmissions are efficient in terms of transmitter power, but they require more sophisticated receivers employing synchronous detection and regeneration of the carrier frequency. For that reason, standard AM continues to be widely used, especially in broadcast transmission, to allow for the use of inexpensive receivers using envelope detection. However, for communication systems where both transmitters and receivers can be optimized, suppression of both one sideband and the carrier represents a net advantage and is frequently employed.
Another technique used widely in broadcast AM transmitters is an application of the Hapburg carrier, which was first proposed in the 1930s. During periods of low modulation, the carrier power would be reduced and would return to full power during periods of high modulation levels. This has the effect of reducing the overall power demand of the transmitter and is most effective on speech-type programs. Various trade names are used for its implementation by transmitter manufacturers from the late 80s onwards.
In conclusion, while AM has been around for over a century and is still widely used for broadcast transmission, it is less spectrally efficient than other modulation techniques. To improve the efficiency of AM, the carrier component of the modulated spectrum can be reduced or suppressed, but this requires more sophisticated receivers. Nevertheless, AM remains a simple and effective technique for transmitting information over radio waves.
Amplitude Modulation, or AM, is a method of transmitting information using radio waves by varying the amplitude of the carrier signal in response to the changing amplitude of the modulating signal. The modulation index is a key parameter in AM that measures the extent to which the carrier signal is modulated. In simple terms, it is a ratio of the modulation amplitude to the carrier amplitude.
The modulation index determines the level of variation in the amplitude of the carrier signal, and it is typically expressed as a percentage. For instance, a modulation index of 50% means that the amplitude of the carrier signal varies by 50% above and below its unmodulated level. If the modulation index is 100%, the amplitude of the carrier signal varies by 100%. However, it's important to note that at 100% modulation, the signal may reach zero, which represents full modulation, and must not be exceeded to avoid distortion or clipping.
Clipping occurs when the negative excursions of the wave envelope cannot become less than zero, leading to distortion of the received modulation. To prevent overmodulation, transmitters have limiter circuits that prevent the modulating signal from going beyond the point of full modulation. Additionally, compressors are sometimes used to approach 100% modulation, especially in voice communications, to achieve maximum intelligibility above the noise.
It is also possible to achieve a modulation index exceeding 100% in double-sideband reduced-carrier transmission. This entails a reversal of the carrier phase beyond zero, but such a waveform cannot be produced using efficient high-level modulation techniques. A standard AM receiver using an envelope detector is also incapable of properly demodulating such a signal, and synchronous detection is required.
When the carrier level is reduced to zero in double-sideband suppressed-carrier transmission, the term "modulation index" loses its value as it refers to the ratio of the modulation amplitude to a rather small or zero remaining carrier amplitude.
In conclusion, the modulation index is a critical parameter in AM that determines the extent of variation in the amplitude of the carrier signal. While a modulation index of 100% is desirable, it must be carefully controlled to prevent distortion or clipping of the received modulation. Double-sideband transmission can also achieve a modulation index exceeding 100%, but it requires a special modulator and amplifier, and synchronous detection is necessary.
In radio communication, modulation is the magic that allows a message to ride on a carrier wave, turning it from a plain vanilla RF signal into a complex waveform containing information that can be decoded by the receiver. Amplitude modulation (AM) is one of the oldest and most straightforward modulation techniques around, and even though digital modulation methods have now taken over, it still has its place in modern communication systems. Let's explore the different methods used for generating an AM signal, from the simple to the complex, and see how they work.
Before we dive into the technical aspects of AM, let's clarify that modulation methods can be broadly classified as low-level or high-level, depending on whether the modulation happens in a low-power domain (followed by amplification for transmission) or in the high-power domain of the transmitted signal. The first method, low-level generation, is the digital way, where the modulated signal is generated using digital signal processing (DSP). With DSP, we can generate different types of AM with software control, including DSB with carrier, SSB suppressed-carrier and independent sideband, or ISB. Calculated digital samples are then converted to voltages with a digital-to-analog converter, and the analog signal is shifted in frequency and linearly amplified to the desired frequency and power level, with linear amplification used to prevent modulation distortion.
Low-level AM can also be generated using analog methods, which we will look at in the next section. However, high-level AM generation, the second method, is the classic analog way of generating an AM signal, and that's what we'll focus on here.
High-power AM transmitters, such as those used for AM broadcasting, are based on high-efficiency Class-D and class-E power amplifier stages that are modulated by varying the supply voltage. These designs allow for maximum power efficiency, making them ideal for broadcasting over long distances. However, there are older designs that rely on vacuum tubes and controlling the gain of the transmitter's final amplifier for modulation.
One of the oldest and simplest modulation methods is plate modulation, where the plate voltage of the RF amplifier is modulated with the audio signal. The audio power requirement for this method is 50 percent of the RF-carrier power. Another method is Heising (constant-current) modulation, where the RF amplifier plate voltage is fed through a choke (high-value inductor), and the AM modulation tube plate is fed through the same inductor. This modulator tube diverts current from the RF amplifier, and the choke acts as a constant current source in the audio range. While this method has a low power efficiency, it was used extensively in early broadcast transmitters.
Another method for AM modulation is control grid modulation, where the operating bias and gain of the final RF amplifier can be controlled by varying the voltage of the control grid. This method requires little audio power, but care must be taken to reduce distortion. A fourth method is clamp tube (screen grid) modulation, where the screen-grid bias is controlled through a clamp tube that reduces voltage according to the modulation signal. While it is difficult to approach 100-percent modulation while maintaining low distortion with this system, it is still used in some applications.
The last two methods, Doherty modulation and Outphasing modulation, are relatively newer and more complex. Doherty modulation uses two tubes, one providing power under carrier conditions and another operating only for positive modulation peaks. Overall efficiency is good, and distortion is low. Outphasing modulation involves using two high-power RF amplifiers driven by a common input signal that is phase-shifted, creating a complex waveform that is capable of high efficiency and low distortion.
In conclusion, while AM modulation is not as widely used as it once was,
The world of radio communication can sometimes feel like a mysterious dance between waves and signals, but understanding the basics of amplitude modulation (AM) and demodulation methods can bring clarity to this waltz. In its simplest form, AM is a way of encoding information onto a carrier wave by varying its amplitude. The amplitude, or height, of the wave is adjusted in a way that mirrors the changes in the information being transmitted, such as an audio signal.
But once the information is transmitted, it needs to be decoded, or demodulated, so that it can be heard. This is where demodulation methods come into play. The most basic form of AM demodulation involves a diode that acts as an envelope detector. Think of it as an electronic version of a cake slicer - it cuts out the information from the carrier wave by only allowing the peaks of the wave through. The result is an approximation of the original signal, but with some distortion and noise added in.
To achieve better-quality demodulation, a product detector can be used. This method is a bit like a scientific recipe that involves a bit more complexity to get the perfect results. The product detector multiplies the incoming AM signal with a local oscillator that is synchronized with the carrier wave. This combination effectively removes the carrier wave and leaves behind only the original information signal, which is then amplified and sent to the speaker.
While the envelope detector is a quick and easy method, it's like grabbing a pizza slice on the go - it'll do the job, but it may not be the best quality. The product detector, on the other hand, is like taking the time to make a homemade pizza from scratch - it requires more effort, but the end result is worth it.
In summary, AM demodulation methods are crucial to extracting the original information signal from an AM carrier wave. While a simple diode envelope detector can do the job, a product detector provides higher-quality results at the cost of additional circuit complexity. Understanding these methods can give us a better appreciation of the magic behind the transmission and reception of radio waves.
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by James M. Flanigan, N Ireland.
In days gone by when slavery was a wide-spread common practice, the slave market would have been a familiar sight. In these markets men, women and children were sold by auction much as cattle and sheep are sold today. This resulted so often in a lifetime of slavery from which escape was virtually impossible.
Picture some kind and benevolent stranger, unfamiliar with the slave market, being shown around by a friend. The cruelty of it all shocks and offends him. His attention is drawn to some little one, a forlorn and lonely little figure waiting to be auctioned to an unknown master. The stranger’s heart goes out to the child, whose future is bleak and may well be a future of bitter hardship with an unfeeling and callous owner. He asks his companion, “Can nothing be done to save this helpless little one from her sad plight?” The reply is, “O yes! You could buy her! Then she would be yours and you would have the right to release her”.
The auction begins. Someone bids, and the stranger bids. Other bids follow, bid after bid, and each time the stranger bids a higher price. At last the bidding ceases. The stranger’s bid has been successful and the child becomes his property. With what trepidation and fear of the unknown the little one would face her new master. But there is no need to fear. Away from the noisy atmosphere of the slave market he gently explains to her that he has bought her to release her. He has bought her in the market and out of the market. He has paid the ransom price and redeemed her out of her bondage. She is no longer a slave. She is free! She might well look at her benefactor and love him and exclaim, “My redeemer”! He had paid the price that the market demanded and through him she had been emancipated from slavery. Liberated! Redeemed! And indeed she may well wish to stay with him and be the grateful servant of one so kind as he.
Paul appreciated this as he wrote of himself that he was, “Sold under sin” … in captivity to the law of sin … “O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me?” Joyfully he adds, “I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord” Rom.7.14,24,25. A Redeemer has paid the redemption price, not with silver and gold but with precious blood, as another apostle explains in 1 Pet.1.18,19, and the helpless sinner is free. Paul writes again, “Ye are bought with a price” 1 Cor.6.20, and then repeats exactly the same words in 1 Cor.7.23. Does he have the same thought in mind when he says to another “who gave Himself for us that He might redeem us …” Tit.2.14? And again, writing to the Galatians he says, “The Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me” Gal.2.20. Notice however, that both Peter and Paul are afterwards happy to describe themselves as “bondslaves” of Jesus Christ, 2 Pet.1.1; Rom.1.1. They are, with all who love the Lord Jesus, content to be in a willing bondage of love to Him who has redeemed and delivered them.
There are two intriguing things in any study of Redemption. One is that such an apparently simple and beautiful subject can become so complicated and difficult. The other is that such a complicated and difficult subject can be so beautiful and so simple! The lovely word “Redemption” occurs some twenty times in the English Version of our Bible commonly known as the A.V. or K.J.V. Nine of these occurrences are in the Old Testament and eleven are in the New. Redemption of course implies a redeemer, and the word “redeemer” is found eighteen times in the Old Testament but never in the New. The cognate word “redeem” occurs more than fifty times, only two of which are in the New Testament, in Gal.4.5 and Tit.2.14. The associate word ‘redeemed’ may be found more than sixty times, but again most of these are in the Old Testament, only seven of them being in the New. “Redeeming” occurs only in Ruth 4.7, Eph.5.16, and Col.4.5.
If all this seems rather complex, then, to complicate the matter just a little more it must be observed that these familiar English words are actually translations of several different Hebrew and Greek words, the only consistency being with the word “redeemer” which is always a translation of the Hebrew word go’el (Strong 1350), and this must be explained later. Again it must be noted that these original Hebrew and Greek words are often translated by yet other different English words, such as “ransom”, “deliverance”, “buy”, and “bought”.
The complexity of such a variety of Hebrew, Greek, and English words may be eased however, by noticing that there is a common strand which runs through all. To quote the helpful definitions of well-known Bible Dictionaries, the words simply mean, “the purchase back of something that had been lost, by the payment of a ransom” (Easton). Or, “to release by paying a ransom price … especially of purchasing a slave with a view to his freedom” (W. E. Vine), as in our opening illustration. It will be appreciated that a detailed consideration of such a variety of words in the original tongues, with such an array of English renderings, would be a mammoth task. It will however, be necessary to consider some of these words, but it would not be at all profitable if a cold academic approach should rob us of the wonder of our redemption and the joy of knowing Christ as our Redeemer. Every believer in the Lord Jesus knows that while theology and doctrine have their rightful place, redemption is in a Person, a Redeemer.
In connection with this latter it is interesting to note that the expression “My Redeemer” is found only twice in our Bible. Believers love to quote it and speak of it, and how heartily they sing of it –
- My Redeemer! O what beauties
- In that lovely Name appear;
- None but Jesus in His glories
- Shall the honoured title wear.
- My Redeemer!
- Thou hast my salvation wrought.
- (Author unknown)
Yet indeed it occurs only twice in Job 19.25 and Ps.19.14. Job and David, in their day, are united in extolling the lovely title. David had been speaking much in that Psalm about sin. There were sins of ignorance. There were secret sins. There were presumptuous sins and great transgressions. Where can he look for help? In the closing verse of his Psalm he lifts his eyes Godward, exclaiming, “O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer”! Job has a problem too, not so much about sin as about suffering and sorrow, of which he has had more than his share. He has lost so much of his family, his wealth, and his health. Those presuming to be his friends were but ‘miserable comforters’, and even his wife had failed to understand. Like David, he looks away from it all, saying, “I know that my Redeemer liveth”. Whether it is deliverance from sin or release from sorrow, these early saints have found the answer – My Redeemer! The saint today rejoices in the same. In Christ there is a present deliverance from sin, from its penalty, its power and its bondage. One day, when the Redeemer comes, there will be deliverance altogether from the sorrow and suffering of earth. How good to be able to look up, and look on, and say, with David and Job, “My Redeemer”!
Perhaps the most familiar of the Hebrew words in any study of Redemption is the word go’el (Strong 1350), occurring more than one hundred times in the Old Testament. It is variously translated “revenger” Num.35.19; “avenger” Deut.19.6; “kinsman” Ruth 3.12; “redeemer” Job 19.25 and elsewhere. In its adjectival form “redeemed”, it may be found in Isa.35.9, and as “ransomed” in Isa.51.10. These latter references of course are not by any means exhaustive, there are many other occurrences of the word ‘redeemed’ and the diligent student of the subject ought to consult and compare them all.
The first occurrence of go’el is in Gen.48.16. The patriarch Jacob is old and dying and Joseph has brought his two sons to him to be blessed. Jacob stretches out his hands upon them and says, “The Angel which redeemed [go’el] me from all evil, bless the lads”. This has created a problem for some readers in that go’el really does seem to imply a kinsman relationship, as so often in the Book of Ruth, and so the question arises, “Who then is this Angel who has redeemed Jacob from evil?” That He must be a divine Person seems obvious, forming a trinity with the other two mentions of God [Elohim] in the preceding verse. The God of his fathers, the God who had shepherded him all his life, is the Angel who has redeemed the patriarch. This must then be what is known as a Christophany, a ministry of Christ before His incarnation. It is anticipatory of One who would voluntarily take of flesh and blood that He might be our Kinsman-Redeemer. There are other such references to the Angel of the Lord, as in Gen.16.7; 22.15; 31.11; Ex.3.2. These are only examples. There are over fifty more references, ten of them in the Book of Numbers, all in chapter 22, and twelve in the Book of Judges.
“Go’el” however, is most prominent in the delightful little Book of Ruth where it is found more than twenty times in four short chapters. As W. E. Vine writes, “The Book of Ruth is a beautiful account of the kinsman-redeemer. His responsibility is summed up in Ruth 4.5: What day thou buyest the field of the hand of Naomi, thou must buy it also of Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the dead, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance.”
Three things were necessary in a go’el, a kinsman redeemer. He must have the right, the ability, and the willingness to play his part. Our Redeemer has all of these qualities. He has the right for He is indeed our kinsman. The miracle of the Incarnation has brought the Son of God into our world as a Man. He has truly become a Man amongst men. With a Manhood unique and impeccable, but real nevertheless, He has entered into kinship with us and therefore has Kinsman-Redeemer’s rights. He has too, the ability and the power. All the necessary resources are His to pay the heavy ransom price and redeem those in bondage. That unnamed kinsman in the Book of Ruth may have had both the right and the ability, but for some reason he did not have the willingness and his rights were forfeited to Boaz. The privileges and duties of a near kinsman are detailed in several verses in Deuteronomy chapter 25, as also in Leviticus chapter 25 which states “And in all the land of your possession ye shall grant a redemption for the land. If thy brother be waxen poor, and hath sold away some of his possession, and if any of his kin come to redeem it, then shall he redeem that which his brother sold. And if the man have none to redeem it, and himself be able to redeem it; Then let him count the years of the sale thereof, and restore the overplus unto the man to whom he sold it; that he may return unto his possession. But if he be not able to restore it to him, then that which is sold shall remain in the hand of him that hath bought it until the year of jubilee: and in the jubilee it shall go out, and he shall return unto his possession” Lev.25.24-28. Jehovah had ordained that both persons and properties may be redeemed, and this was a foreshadowing of the great Kinsman who would come to redeem everything which the first man had forfeited by his sin.
- Thy sympathies and hopes are ours,
- We long O Lord to see
- Creation all, below, above,
- Redeemed and blessed by Thee.
- (E. Denny)
The second occurrence of go’el is in Ex.6.6 and gives us further insight into the story of redemption. “Wherefore say unto the children of Israel, I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will rid you out of their bondage, and I will redeem you with a stretched out arm, and with great judgments: And I will take you to me for a people, and I will be to you a God” vv.6,7. Jehovah then adds, “And I will bring you in unto the land” v.8.
This is the only reference to go’el in the Book of Exodus but thereafter the Children of Israel are known as a redeemed people and subsequently there are some twenty-two occurrences of go’el in the Book of Leviticus. Jehovah, from the heights had both seen and heard. He had seen the afflictions and heard the groanings of the nation. The people were in a sad and bitter bondage and in Ex.6.6-8 He gives them that seven-fold promise.
- I will bring you out from under the burdens
- I will rid you out of their bondage
- I will redeem you
- I will take you to me for a people
- I will be to you a God
- I will bring you in unto the land
- I will give it to you for an heritage.
The people of course did not at this time know that their redemption would be bought at a price. Perhaps Moses himself did not know until the time recorded in Exodus chapter 12. For every redeemed household a lamb would be slain, blood would be shed, a life would be given as the price of their redemption. All the essentials of a later redemption plan would be enshrined in the selection and slaying of the Passover lamb and the sprinkling of its blood. The lamb must be without blemish, an active male of the first year. At the appointed hour the lamb would be killed. With a bunch of hyssop its blood must be placed on the two side posts and on the upper door post of their dwellings, and inside, sheltered by the blood, the people would eat of the roast lamb with loins girded and feet shod, ready to depart out of Egypt, redeemed!
How many a Gospel preacher has revelled in this story, this ancient foregleam of the Lamb of God. As the Passover Lamb had to be without blemish, so our Redeemer, Himself the Lamb, was absolutely without blemish, and His sinlessness was not because of some monastic existence. He was not cloistered away from the defilement of the world around. He was active as “a male of the first year”, living in Nazareth for thirty years, walking its streets, attending its synagogue, doing business with the men of Nazareth as a carpenter in the town. Much of the detail of those early Nazareth years has been divinely hidden, but from Himself we learn that He was always ‘about His Father’s business’ Lk.2.49, and from an opened heaven we learn that the Father had found delight in Him Lk.3.22. He was indeed “holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners” Heb.7.26. He was truly without blemish, impeccable, incomparable, and incorruptible.
- His stainless life, His lovely walk,
- In every aspect true,
- From the defilement all around
- No taint of evil drew.
- (M. Wylie)
At the end of thirty wondrous years He was slain. Peter, who knew Him well, writes to believers whose past lives had been spent in the ceremonials and rituals of Judaism. “Ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold … but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, who by Him do believe in God, that raised Him up from the dead, and gave Him glory;” 1 Pet.1.18-21. Paul concurs with this, saying, “For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us” 1 Cor.5.7.
The redemption of Israel then, from the slavery of Egypt, purchased by the blood of the lamb and accomplished by the arm of the Lord, is an eloquent foreshadowing of our redemption by the blood of the Lord Jesus.
In the A.V. of our New Testament the word “redemption” occurs eleven times, “redeemed” occurs seven times. “Redeem” occurs only twice, Gal.4.5 and Titus 2.14, and “redeeming” also occurs twice in Eph.5.16 and Col.4.5. Some of these have been referred to in the Introduction. As has been mentioned earlier, the noun ‘redeemer’ is not found in the New Testament. Again, as with the subject in the Old Testament, these New Testament English words are not always the translation of the same Greek word. These words, with their varied meanings, must be considered and explained. Four English words therefore, are the translations of the following Greek words, the meanings of which will greatly help us to a fuller understanding of the great truth of redemption.
Agorazo (Strong 59).
This word, occurring more than thirty times in the New Testament, is only three times translated “redeemed”. Its basic meaning is ‘to buy’, and it is consistently rendered “buy” or “bought” in the AV. It is the word that Paul uses in 1 Cor.6.20 and 7.23 where he writes “Ye are bought with a price”. Three times however, always in the Book of the Revelation, agorazo is translated “redeemed”.
- In Rev.5.9 “they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for Thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by Thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation.”
- In Rev.14.3 “they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth.”
- In Rev.14.4 “These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever He goeth. These were redeemed from among men.”
It will be readily apparent from these references that a price has been paid for the redemption enjoyed by so many. That purchase price has bought our Lord’s rights to take the sealed book from the hand of the throne-sitter in Revelation chapter 5. It has purchased too, the deliverance of a future faithful remnant of Israel in Rev.14.3 and it has purchased the praise and adoration of this remnant in Rev.14.4.
Exagorazo (Strong 1805)
It will be immediately obvious of course, that this word is a combination of agorazo, which we have just considered, and the preposition ex which precedes it. ‘Ex’ simply means ‘out of’, and the preposition has been incorporated into the English vocabulary, so that we might be quoted a price for goods ‘ex works’ or ‘ex warehouse’, or a dispute may be settled ‘ex curia’, out of court. If agorazo then means ‘to buy’, exagorazo means ‘to buy out of’, and W. E. Vine’s comment is most helpful. He defines exagorazo as a strengthened form of agorazo, ‘to buy’ denoting ‘to buy out’ especially of purchasing a slave with a view to his freedom. As has been noted in the illustration with which this paper commences, a slave might have been purchased in the slave-market simply to become the slave of another master, but how much better to have been bought out of the market, out of slavery, emancipated, set at liberty on the payment of a ransom price, redeemed!
Paul uses this word four times in his Epistles. On two occasions however it is not associated with that redemption which is under consideration just now. In Eph.5.16 and also in Col.4.5 he speaks of “redeeming the time”. He means of course that since the days are evil, and since unbelievers all around are critically watching the lives of the saints, we must, during whatever years may be left to us, buy up every moment. Out of the time which is granted to us we must buy up time for the work of the Lord and for the building up of testimony for Him. Time will be bought at a price. That price may be a foregoing of the social round of things so as to be alone with the Lord or to be busy in His service. It may be the sacrificing of things that are otherwise legitimate so as to be occupied in the study of His Word. It may mean, as they say, the burning of the midnight oil. Somehow a price must be paid if we are to redeem the time, buying up the moments for Him.
In Gal.3.13; 4.5, this word exagorazo must have been especially precious to Jewish believers. These saints had known what it was to be in bondage. How they would rejoice to say with Paul, “Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law”. Every sincere and thoughtful Jew would have lived and laboured under this heavy yoke. The law demanded what he could not give. It required perfection and the man was under a curse who could not rise to its demands. But Christ had redeemed such. He had bought them out of the realm of bondage and had imparted a new freedom for them to serve God out of love and gratitude for their redemption.
It must not be thought however, that this excluded Gentiles who had likewise been redeemed. Paul’s words in Galatians may indeed have had a direct bearing on the converted Jew but the comments of the Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary concerning Christ who has redeemed us are worth quoting in full, “The ‘us’ refers primarily to the Jews, to whom the law principally appertained, in contrast to the Gentiles … But it is not restricted solely to the Jews … for these are the representative people of the world at large, and their law is the embodiment of what God requires of the whole world. The curse of its non-fulfilment affects the Gentiles through the Jews; for the law represents that righteousness which God requires of all, and which, since the Jews failed to fulfil, the Gentiles are equally unable to fulfil. Gal.3.10, “As many as are of the works of the law, are under the curse:” refers plainly, not to the Jews only, but to all, even Gentiles (as the Galatians), who seek justification by the law. The Jews’ law represents the universal law which condemned the Gentiles, though with less clear consciousness on their part, Rom.2.1-29. The revelation of God’s wrath by the law of conscience, in some degree prepared the Gentiles for appreciating redemption through Christ when revealed. The curse had to be removed from off the heathen, too, as well as the Jews, in order that “the blessing, through Abraham, might flow to them”. With this Barnes agrees, writing that it is “The curse which the law threatens, and which the execution of the law would inflict; the punishment due to sin. This must mean, that He has rescued us from the consequences of transgression in the world of woe; He has saved us from the punishment which our sins have deserved. The word ‘us,’ here, must refer to all who are redeemed; that is, to the Gentiles as well as the Jews. The curse of the law is a curse which is due to sin, and cannot be regarded as applied particularly to any one class of men. All who violate the law of God, however that law may be made known, are exposed to its penalty.” He adds, “The world is lying by nature under this curse, and it is sweeping the race on to ruin.”
Rom.3.19 confirms that the requirements of the law are demanded of all men. “Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.” Note the scope of the statements, “Every mouth stopped … all the world guilty.” The Jew may be more advantaged, and therefore more responsible, but nevertheless the Gentile sinner is equally under the curse of the law unless redeemed. “The wages of sin is death” is a universal sentence, as is “The soul that sinneth it shall die” Rom.6.23; Ezek.18.4,20. All men therefore, Jew and Gentile alike, need a redeemer.
The believer rejoices to say with Paul, “Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us:” Gal.3.13 J.N.D., A.S.V., R.S.V. He has bought us out from under the curse of a broken law. At what a cost has the Lord Jesus voluntarily become our Redeemer from that curse. O the shame of hanging upon a tree! Deut.21.23. That He who knew no sin should be made sin for us is the price of our redemption, 2 Cor.5.21. He was numbered with the transgressors, hanged on a tree like the malefactors beside Him, and with our iniquity laid upon Him, Isaiah chapter 53. The spotless Lamb of God, ever most holy like the sin offerings of old, Lev.6.25,29 was forsaken of God as the willing substitute paying the price of our redemption.
- His the curse, the wounds, the gall,
- His the stripes – He bore them all;
- His the dying cry of pain
- When our sins He did sustain.
- (J. Cennick)
Can we wonder that the Psalmist should say, “The redemption of the soul is precious” Ps.49.8? It is as precious as the One of whom it is written, “Unto you therefore which believe, He is precious” 1 Pet.2.7.
Apolutrosis (Strong 629)
This is the usual word translated “redemption” in the New Testament. Nine times it is so rendered and once it is rendered “deliverance” Heb.11.35, which latter word helps us to understand its basic meaning. Strong’s definition is rather brief. Thayer’s more expanded definition is helpful, “to redeem one by paying the price; to let one go free on receiving the price: a releasing effected by payment of ransom; redemption, deliverance, liberation procured by the payment of a ransom”.
As might be expected, apolutrosis often has to do with the deliverance of the believer from the penalty of sin, as in Rom.3.24 “Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:” or as in Eph.1.7, “In whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace;” and as in that similar verse Col.1.14, “In whom we have redemption through His blood, even the forgiveness of sins”.
There is however, another interesting usage of apolutrosis. Much as we presently enjoy our redemption through the blood of Christ, His work of redemption for us is not yet complete. Paul speaks of “the day of redemption” as something yet future Eph.4.30. He writes also of “the redemption of our body”, saying, “We ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body” Rom.8.23. That day of the final redemption will see “the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of His glory” Eph.1.14.
Many believers are still in the body, living and witnessing in an evil adverse world. Many suffer in the body for their testimony to the Saviour and many suffer the common ills and sicknesses of life. Some suffer the limitations and infirmities of advanced years, and so many have had the grief and pain of bereavement. While we remain in the body we may expect hardships of various kinds. There will be sorrows and tears, but one day the Redeemer will come. He has purchased His Church at a heavy price and He will come to redeem His purchased possession. It is His peculiar treasure and He will come to claim it. That will be “the day of redemption” and the “redemption of our body”.
Some may ask however, what of those of our fellow-believers who have predeceased us? Many have died and been buried. Well, it was exactly to clarify their position on the day of redemption that Paul wrote to the Corinthians and to the Thessalonians. We must not sorrow for them like as others sorrow who have no hope. We who are alive when the Redeemer comes will not have any precedence over our friends who have died. “For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord … Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed. In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed” 1 Thess.4.15-17: 1 Cor.15.51, 52. That will be the day of redemption, when we shall be released from the bodies of our humiliation, bodies in which we have suffered and sinned. Our redemption will then be complete.
How many a lonely tombstone bears that silent inscription ‘Redeemed’. The word is both retrospective and anticipative. Looking back, the buried saint has indeed been redeemed, bought out of the slave market of sin and united, with all sins forgiven, to Christ the Redeemer. For many years some had lived in the conscious enjoyment of their redemption, the joy of forgiveness. But looking onward and upward, in holy and intelligent anticipation, the best is yet to be. The bodies of all those saints who have died await the day of redemption, to be resurrected and caught up to glory. How blessed to anticipate the redemption of the body! No more sinning! No more suffering! No more weariness! No more loneliness! Redeemed!
- Our pain shall then be over,
- We’ll sin and sigh no more:
- Behind us all our sorrow,
- And nought but joy before,
- A joy in our Redeemer,
- As we to Him are nigh,
- In the crowning day that’s coming
- By and by.
- (D. W. Whittle)
Lutroo (Strong 3084); Lutrosis (Strong 3045).
These are cognate words with apolutrosis and they raise an interesting question with regard to redemption which must be addressed. W. E. Vine’s definitions, abbreviated, are as follows:
- lutroo, “to release on receipt of ransom” (akin to lutron, ‘a ransom’), is used in the middle voice, signifying “to release by paying a ransom price, to redeem”:
- lutrosis ‘a redemption’, is used in the general sense of ‘deliverance’.
Now all this raises a question which is often asked, “If there was a price to be paid, to whom was it paid? If some of these words which have been quoted, as agorazo and lutron, appear to demand the payment of a ransom, then to many it seems reasonable to enquire, who then received the ransom?” It is an old question, and, as A. McCaig writes in the International Bible Encyclopaedia, “The question ‘Who receives the ransom?’ is not directly raised in Scripture, but it is one that not unnaturally occurs to the mind, and theologians have answered it in varying ways.
- Not to Satan. – The idea entertained by some of the Fathers (Irenaeus, Origen) that the ransom was given to Satan, who is conceived of as having through the sin of man a righteous claim upon him, which Christ recognizes and meets, is grotesque, and not in any way countenanced by Scripture.
- To divine justice. – But in repudiating it, there is no need to go so far as to deny that there is anything answering to a real ransoming transaction. All that we have said goes to show that, in no mere figure of speech, but in tremendous reality, Christ gave “His life a ransom”, and if our mind demands an answer to the question to whom the ransom was paid, it does not seem at all unreasonable to think of the justice of God, or God in His character of Moral Governor, as requiring and receiving it.”
Although these answers may be interesting and thought provoking, yet there is a sense in which the question itself is not relevant. As W. E. Vine and others point out, the verb lutroo is in the middle voice and therefore does not seem to require another party. To illustrate, a man may be offered advice and stubbornly refuse it, and afterwards say, “I paid the price”. Another may see a warning sign and ignore it and then say in his difficulties, “I paid the price”. A man may be given medication for an illness and neglect to take it, and then say as he admits his neglect, “I paid the price”. For many of earth’s achievements and honours there is a price to be paid, and in the spiritual realm men like Paul and the martyrs who followed paid the price for their faithfulness. To whom were these various prices paid? It is not a valid question.
So the Lord Jesus became our surety and substitute, and paid the price. He voluntarily “gave Himself a ransom for all.” 1 Tim.2.6. At Golgotha He paid the price in the giving of His life and the shedding of His blood, and secured our release. He is our Redeemer.
Those who are described as “the ransomed of the Lord” Isa.35.10 are deeply indebted to Him who has redeemed them. He has asked for nothing, and they have contributed nothing, toward the cost of their redemption. The Redeemer has paid it all. However, having been redeemed there is now a solemn obligation resting upon them to live for Him who has paid their ransom. This should not be a duty. It is not a grievous burden imposed but a gracious privilege granted, to live for Him who died for us. As one of His servants once said, “If Jesus Christ be God and died for me, then no sacrifice is too great for me to make for Him” (C.T. Studd).
“Ye are not your own” says Paul “Ye are bought with a price:”, and then he adds “therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s” 1 Cor.6.20. The obvious implication is that we now belong exclusively and by right to Him who has bought us and our lives must be lived for His glory. Sadly, there was much to grieve Him among the Corinthians. There was moral and doctrinal evil and there were social and class divisions in their midst. This was all a denial of His claims to whom they now belonged. Body, soul, and spirit belonged to the Redeemer. They should, for Him, be living lives of holiness. The redemption price which He had paid both deserved and demanded it. Notice the “therefore” which Paul uses. Their holiness was not optional. “Ye are bought with a price, therefore glorify God”.
Again he uses the same expression, “Ye are bought with a price” and now adds, “be not ye the servants of men” 1 Cor.7.23. Adam Clarke comments, “Some render this verse interrogatively: Are ye bought with a price from your slavery? Do not again become slaves of men.” It will be agreed of course, that our redemption does not release employees from obligation to employers. Nor did it release Christian slaves from service to their masters, hateful though the principle of slavery might be. Whether in the course of normal secular employment or in the bondage of slavery believers have a duty to their masters. How greatly it would affect all service, both of paid workers and of slaves, to remember Paul’s exhortation, “He that is called in the Lord, being a servant, is the Lord’s freeman: likewise also he that is called, being free, is Christ’s servant” 1 Cor.7.22. Notice Paul’s exhortation to the Ephesians, “Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ; not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart” Eph.6.5,6. To the Colossians his exhortation is just the same, “Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing God: And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ” Col.3.22-24. The believer therefore may serve men most acceptably and loyally, remembering always that in serving men he is serving God. We must never become slaves of men in matters of religion, tradition, superstition, or ceremonialism. Our supreme loyalty is to our Redeemer. We belong to Him. We are “the redeemed of the Lord” Ps.107.2; Isa.51.11; 62.12.
From all these considerations therefore, it will be evident that redemption is not just a subject for what men call ‘systematic theology’. It is a warm, vibrant truth and experience. It brings joy and gladness to the heart of the believer, it produces meaning in the life, it settles the past and assures the future, and above all things it brings glory to the Redeemer Himself, our Lord Jesus Christ. | <urn:uuid:9262cf6d-68eb-4897-b6b2-d0348d422b11> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://assemblytestimony.org/books/book-1-the-glory-of-his-grace/chapter-7-redemption/ | 2024-12-06T14:01:11Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066408205.76/warc/CC-MAIN-20241206124424-20241206154424-00006.warc.gz | en | 0.97298 | 8,763 | 2.546875 | 3 |
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File:Logo NPL india.svg | |
Agency overview | |
Formed | 4 January 1947 |
Headquarters | New Delhi |
Agency executive |
Parent agency | Council of Scientific and Industrial Research |
Website | nplindia.org |
The CSIR- National Physical Laboratory of India, situated in New Delhi, is the measurement standards laboratory of India. It maintains standards of SI units in India and calibrates the national standards of weights and measures.
History of measurement systems in India
In the Harappan era, which is nearly 5000 years old, one finds excellent examples of town planning and architecture. The sizes of the bricks were the same all over the region. In the time of Chandragupta Maurya, some 2400 years ago, there was a well - defined system of weights and measures. The government of that time ensured that everybody used the same system. In the Indian medical system, Ayurveda, the units of mass and volume were well defined.
The measurement system during the time of the Mughal emperor, Akbar, the guz was the measure of length. The guz was widely used till the introduction of the metric system in India in 1956. During the British period, efforts were made to achieve uniformity in weights and measures. A compromise was reached in the system of measurements which continued till India's independence in 1947. After independence in 1947, it was realized that for fast industrial growth of the country, it would be necessary to establish a modern measurement system in the country. The Lok Sabha in April 1955 resolved : This house is of the opinion that the Government of India should take necessary steps to introduce uniform weights and measures throughout the country based on metric system.[circular reference]
History of the National Physical Laboratory, India
The National Physical Laboratory, India was one of the earliest national laboratories set up under the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research. Jawaharlal Nehru laid the foundation stone of NPL on 4 January 1947. Dr. K. S. Krishnan was the first Director of the laboratory. The main building of the laboratory was formally opened by Former Deputy Prime Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel on 21 January 1950. Former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, inaugurated the Silver Jubilee Celebration of the Laboratory on 23 December 1975.
The main aim of the laboratory is to strengthen and advance physics-based research and development for the overall development of science and technology in the country. In particular its objectives are:
To establish, maintain and improve continuously by research, for the benefit of the nation, National Standards of Measurements and to realize the Units based on International System (Under the subordinate Legislations of Weights and Measures Act 1956, reissued in 1988 under the 1976 Act). To identify and conduct after due consideration, research in areas of physics which are most appropriate to the needsof the nation and for advancement of field
To assist industries, national and other agencies in their developmental tasks by precision measurements, calibration, development of devices, processes, and other allied problems related to physics.
To keep itself informed of and study critically the status of physics.
In 1957, India became member of the General Conference of Weight and Measures (CGPM), BIPM, an International Intergovernmental organization constituted by diplomatic treaty, i.e. ‘The Metre Convention’. Being NMI of India and to fulfil the mandate, Dr. K. S. Krishnan, the then Director, CSIR-NPL signed the ‘Metre Convention’ on behalf of Government of India. In 1958, BIPM provided CSIR-NPL the Copies No. 57 (NPK) and No. 4 of International Prototypes of the Kilogram (IPK) and the platinum-iridium (Pt–Ir) Metre bar, respectively, to realize the SI base units ‘kilogram’ and ‘metre’. This was the milestone in the foundation of quality infrastructure in independent India.
In 1960, when the metric system was officially adopted as the basis for SI units, the number of base units being maintained at the NPL increased. However, in 1963 on the recommendation of Nobel Laureate P.M.S. Blackett, these groups were brought together under a single umbrella. The objective was to bring greater coordination between the various groups and to give the standards activity a programme-based approach on a bigger scale and enable the Laboratory to play its role more effectively. Other physical standards in the form of standard cells, standard resistance coils, standard lamps, etc. were acquired and calibration and testing work were started in these areas also. It has since been maintaining six SI base units; namely, metre (for length), kilogram (for mass), second (for time), kelvin (for temperature), ampere (for current) and candela (for luminous intensity).
Maintenance of standards of measurements in India
Each modernized country, including India has a National Metrological Institute (NMI), which maintains the standards of measurements. This responsibility has been given to the National Physical Laboratory, New Delhi.
The standard unit of length, metre, is realized by employing a stabilized helium-neon laser as a source of light. Its frequency is measured experimentally. From this value of frequency and the internationally accepted value of the speed of light (Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Val/units' not found.), the wavelength is determined using the relation:
The nominal value of wavelength, employed at NPL is 633 nanometer. By a sophisticated instrument, known as an optical interferometer, any length can be measured in terms of the wavelength of laser light.
The present level of uncertainty attained at NPL in length measurements is ±3 × 10−9. However, in most measurements, an uncertainty of ±1 × 10−6 is adequate.
The Indian national standard of mass, kilogramme, is copy number 57 of the international prototype of the kilogram supplied by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures (BIPM: French – Bureau International des Poids et Mesures), Paris. This is a platinum-iridium cylinder whose mass is measured against the international prototype at BIPM. The NPL also maintains a group of transfer standard kilograms made of non-magnetic stainless steel and nickel-chromium alloy.
The uncertainty in mass measurements at NPL is ±4.6 × 10−9.
The national standard of time interval, second as well as frequency, is maintained through four parameters, which can be measured most accurately. Therefore, attempts are made to link other physical quantities to time and frequency. The standard maintained at NPL has to be linked to different users. This process, known as dissemination, is carried out in a number of ways. For applications requiring low levels of uncertainty, there is satellite based dissemination service, which utilizes the Indian national satellite, INSAT. Time is also disseminated through TV, radio, and special telephone services. The caesium atomic clocks maintained at NPL are linked to other such instituted all over the world through a set of global positioning satellites.
The uncertainty in measurement of ampere is ± 1 × 10−6.
The standard of temperature is based on the International Temperature Scale of 1990 (ITS-90). This is based on the assigned temperatures to several fixed points. One of the most fundamental temperatures of these is the triple point of water. At this temperature, ice, water and steam are at equilibrium with each other. This temperature has been assigned the value of 273.16 kelvins. This temperature can be realized, maintained and measured in the laboratory. At present temperature standards maintained at NPL cover a range of 54 to 2,473 kelvins.
The uncertainty in its measure is ± 2.5 × 10−4.
The level of uncertainty is ± 1.3 × 10−2.
Experimental work has been initiated to realize mole, the SI unit for amount of substance
Calibrator of weights and measures
The standards maintained at NPL are periodically compared with standards maintained at other National Metrological Institutes in the world as well as the BIPM in Paris. This exercise ensures that Indian national standards are equivalent to those of the rest of the world.
Any measurement made in a country should be directly or indirectly linked to the national standards of the country, For this purpose, a chain of laboratories are set up in different states of the country. The weights and measures used in daily life are tested in the laboratories and certified. It is the responsibility of the NPL to calibrate the measurement standards in these laboratories at different levels. In this manner, the measurements made in any part of the country are linked to the national standards and through them to the international standards.
The weights and balances used in local markets and other areas are expected to be certified by the Department of Weights and Measures of the local government. Working standards of these local departments should, in turn, be calibrated against the state level standards or any other laboratory which is entitled to do so. The state level laboratories are required to get their standards calibrated from the NPL at the national level which is equivalent to the international standards.
Bharatiya Nirdeshak Dravya (BND) or Indian Reference Materials
Bharatiya Nirdeshak Dravya (BND) or Indian reference materials are reference materials developed by NPL which derive their traceability from National Standards.
NPL is also involved in research. One of the important research activities undertaken by NPL is to devise the chemical formula for the indelible ink which is being used in the Indian elections to prevent fraudulent voting. This ink, manufactured by the Mysore Paints and Varnish Limited is applied on the finger nail of the voter as an indicator that the voter has already cast his vote.
NPL also have section working on development of biosensors. Currently the division is headed by Dr. C. Sharma and section is primarily focusing on development of sensor for cholesterol, measurement and microfluidic based biosensors. Section is also developing biosensors for Uric acid detection.
India’s Polar Research Program
During the 28th Indian Scientific Expeditions to Antarctica (ISEA) (2008-2009), CSIR-NPL established a state of art Indian Polar Space Physics Laboratory (IPSPL) at Indian Permanent Research Base Maitri (70 0 46’ S, 110 43’ E), Antarctica on the occasion of International Polar Year (IPY) for continuous and real time monitoring of high latitude ionosphere to address the scientific interest of high latitudinal ionospheric consequences caused by the modulation of near-earth space environmental conditions. In 2011 CSIR-NPL provided leadership to the Antarctic expedition to India's newly constructed 3rd permanent scientific base “Bharati” (69° 24’ S, 76 ° 11’) to test & validate its facilities during extreme winter conditions. CSIR NPL is also the part of India's arctic expeditions. Himadri is India's first permanent Arctic research station located at the International Arctic Research base, Ny-Ålesund at Spitsbergen, Svalbard Norway. It was set up during India's second Arctic expedition in June 2008. It is located 1200 km from the North Pole.
The Indelible Mark/Ink
During general election, nearly 40 million people wear a CSIR mark on their fingers. The Indelible ink used to mark the fingernail of a Voter during general elections is a time-tested gift of CSIR to the spirit of democracy. Developed in 1952, it was first produced in-campus. Subsequently, industry has been manufacturing the Ink. It is also exported to Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Turkey and other democracies.
Pristine Air-Quality Monitoring Station at Palampur
National Physical Laboratory (NPL) has established an atmospheric monitoring station in the campus of Institute of Himalayan Bioresource Technology (IHBT) at Palampur (H.P.) at an altitude of 1391 m for generating the base data for atmospheric trace species & properties to serve as reference for comparison of polluted atmosphere in India. At this station, NPL has installed state of art air monitoring system, greenhouse gas measurement system and Raman Lidar. A number of parameters like CO, NO, NO
2, Template:NH3, SO
2, Template:Chem, PM, HC & BC besides CO
2 & Template:CH4 are being currently monitored at this station which is also equipped with weather station (AWS) for measurement of weather parameters.
Gold Standard (BND-4201)
The BND-4201 is first Indian reference material for gold of ‘9999’ fineness (gold that is 99.99% pure with impurities of only 100 parts-per-million).
Honors and Awards bestowed upon CSIR-NPL Staff
Dr. K.S. Krishnan - 1954 Dr. A.R. Verma – 1982 Dr. A.P. Mitra - 1989 Dr. S.K. Joshi - 2003
Dr. S.K. Joshi – 1991
Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize
Dr. K.S. Krishnan - 1958 Dr. A.P. Mitra – 1968 Dr. Vinay Gupta - 2017
Contributors to Nobel Peace Prize winning team for Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change IPCC Dr. A.P. Mitra & Dr. Chhemmendra Sharma – 2007
- National Institute of Standards and Technology in the United States
- National Physical Laboratory (United Kingdom) | <urn:uuid:46d1dc14-6401-4d20-9d7c-0fe474383018> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://en.bharatpedia.org/wiki/National_Physical_Laboratory_of_India | 2024-12-11T10:18:41Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066078432.16/warc/CC-MAIN-20241211082128-20241211112128-00162.warc.gz | en | 0.936346 | 2,846 | 3.203125 | 3 |
When you look at the world around you, can you distinguish between what is real and what is not? People who experience psychotic disorders or simply psychosis are out of touch with reality; they have trouble finding out which parts of their lives are real: they can see things that are not there or believe things that cannot be true. Psychosis is a crucial feature of psychotic disorders, which are mental illnesses that cause changes in how a person perceives and interprets information; three common psychotic disorders are Schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, and schizotypal personality disorder.
What are psychotic disorders?
They are mental disorders in which the personality of a person is severely confused, and that person loses contact with reality; when a psychotic episode occurs, a person feels insecure about what is real and what is not absolute and generally experiences hallucinations. Delusions, unusual behavior, disorganized speech, and incoherence and behaves in a way that is called schizophrenic.
A hallucination is an internal sensory perception that is not present and can be visual or auditory. Deception is a false and inaccurate belief that a person clings to. An illusion occurs when a person believes that their life is disproportionate to what is true. A persecutory deception occurs when a person believes that there is a conspiracy among others to attack, punish or harass him. Although these hallucinations and delusions seem strange to others, they are genuine to the person with the disorder.
These experiences can be scary and cause people who experience them to hurt themselves or others.
What are the symptoms of psychotic disorders?
With any psychotic disorder, the person’s thoughts and behavior change markedly. Behavioral changes that can occur during a psychotic break include the following:
- Social isolation or loneliness.
- Agitation, restlessness, hyperactivity, or excessive excitement.
- Anxiety, nervousness, fear, or hypervigilance.
- Hostility, anger, aggression.
- Depersonalization (a combination of intense anxiety and a feeling of being unreal, separate from oneself, or that one’s thoughts are not one’s own).
- Loss of appetite
- Poor hygiene and lack of self-care.
- Disorganized speech such as talking fast and frantically, talking incoherently and excessively.
- Disorganized behaviors, such as lack of discretion or restraint.
- Catatonic behavior, in which the affected person’s body may be rigid, and the person may exhibit persistent repetition of words, a speech impairment, or be physically and verbally insensitive. The catatonic individual may also engage in repetitive movements, slow activity, and nonsense thinking or repetition of words.
Thought changes/problems that can occur in a psychotic disorder include:
- Delusions (beliefs without basis in reality).
- Hallucinations (for example, hearing, seeing, or perceiving things not there).
- The feeling of being controlled by external forces.
- Disorganized thoughts.
- Trouble sleeping
A person with a psychotic disorder may not have any external characteristics of being ill. In other cases, the disease may be more pronounced, causing strange behaviors; for example, a person who has psychosis may stop bathing in the belief that they will protect themselves against attack by malicious people.
People with psychosis vary widely in their behavior while struggling with an illness beyond their control; some may ramble in confusing sentences or react with anger or uncontrolled violence to a perceived threat. Characteristics of a psychotic illness can also include phases in which affected individuals appear to lack personality, movement, and emotion (also called flat affect). People with a psychotic disorder can alternate between these extremes. Their behavior may or may not be predictable.
Different types of psychotic disorders
Psychosis does not describe a particular mental health disorder; instead, it is a symptom that can arise from various psychiatric and physical illnesses that cause you to lose touch with reality. These include:
Brief psychotic disorder
It occurs when psychotic symptoms appear suddenly and resolve quickly, lasting less than a month. This psychosis is not related to any other mental illness or substance abuse and is triggered by overwhelming distress, such as trauma or the death of a loved one. Women may experience a brief psychotic disorder after childbirth. However, it can also appear without a known trigger.
It is a chronic mental health disorder that causes psychotic symptoms to persist for at least six months and significantly interferes with your loved one’s ability to function. Psychosis is often preceded by various early non-psychotic symptoms, such as mood and sleep disorders, lack of motivation, social withdrawal, and difficulties performing professionally or academically. Read more about «Schizophrenia. «
Share the symptoms of Schizophrenia for at least a month, but it does not last more than six months. If symptoms persist, it is an indication that you or your loved one is suffering from another mental health disorder. Full article: « Schizophreniform disorder. «
People with schizoaffective disorder experience psychotic symptoms and mood disorders, such as depression or mania. The mood disturbances and symptoms of Schizophrenia must co-occur at times to be diagnosed. However, psychosis must also be present for two weeks when a high-mood episode is not experienced. More information on « Schizoaffective disorder. «
It is essentially a mood disorder, but some people may experience psychotic symptoms during particular mood episodes, which are generally related to mood. For example, if your loved one is in a profound depressive episode, they may have auditory hallucinations telling them that life is not worth living. During mania, they may have illusions that they are destined for greatness or have special powers. Read more about « Bipolar Disorder. «
Although Depression is a mood disorder, people with severe forms of the disease can experience psychotic symptoms, known as Depression with psychotic characteristics or psychotic Depression. If you want to know more, read about «Depression. «
Certain types of drugs, such as alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, amphetamines, and LSD, can cause psychotic symptoms. These symptoms usually resolve as the medication wears off, but in some cases, symptoms may persist.
It means that psychotic symptoms are the result of diseases such as neurological disorders, brain injuries, endocrine diseases, autoimmune disorders, and sleep disorders; they can also manifest in infectious and post-infectious syndromes such as HIV / AIDS, syphilis, and even the flu. The nature and duration of these symptoms vary with the individual and the specific disease.
People with delusions have established false beliefs or misconceptions that last at least a month. These false beliefs revolve around a specific theme, such as persecution, grandiosity, jealousy, and somatic delusions, but they can also be a combination of multiple topics or unidentified topics. People with the delusional disorder do not experience hallucinations or exhibit strange behavior, and their delusions do not usually affect function. Read more about: « Delusional disorder. «
Causes of psychotic disorder.
The exact cause is not always clear, and it must be taken into account that each type of psychosis is different. However, certain diseases cause it. There are also triggers such as drug use, lack of sleep, and other environmental factors. Certain situations can lead to the development of specific types of psychosis.
Illnesses that can cause psychosis to include:
brain tumors or cysts
Some types of dementia can cause psychosis, such as that caused by:
Research shows that schizophrenia and bipolar disorder may share a common genetic cause.
Hormones / sleep
Postpartum psychosis occurs very soon after giving birth (usually within two weeks); the exact causes are unknown. Still, some researchers believe it could be due to changes in hormone levels and disturbed sleep patterns.
Diagnosis for psychotic disorders
There are tests available and methods that can help you know if you have psychosis; among them, we find:
It improves long-term results, but this is not always achieved, the milder forms of psychosis that can lead to Schizophrenia are not treated for an average of 2 years, and even full psychosis can take several years before it receives care from medical professionals.
To increase the chances of early detection, the guide for health systems prepared by psychiatrists recommends that the possibility of a psychotic disorder should be carefully considered in a young person because they can:
- Become more socially withdrawn.
- They perform worse for a sustained period at school or work.
- Become more distressed or agitated but unable to explain why.
There is no biological test for psychosis itself, and if laboratory tests are done, it is to rule out other medical problems that could provide an alternative explanation.
Questions for the patient and family
Psychosis is diagnosed mainly by clinical examination and history: the doctor examines the patient and asks about his symptoms, experiences, thoughts, and daily activities; they will also ask if there is a family history of psychiatric illness.
First, other medical conditions are ruled out, especially delirium (sudden onset of a confused state), but epilepsy and other medical explanations are possible. They will check for any history of poisoning with drugs, both legal and illegal, and toxins, usually by requesting a urine sample to verify this.
Once psychosis is reduced to a psychiatric cause, clearly defined criteria must be met before a diagnosis can be confirmed.
Brain scans can be done in the early stages of medical care so that other, often treatable and reversible conditions can be ruled out. The EEG test records the brain’s electrical activity and can help rule out delirium, head injury, or epilepsy as possible causes of psychotic symptoms.
Treatment of psychotic disorders
Early detection and treatment are essential to reduce the distress associated with symptoms and help the affected person maintain their daily functioning (for example, at school or work and in relationships with family and friends). There is considerable interest in the potential to prevent the onset of psychosis and use early and intensive treatment to reduce its short-term damaging effects (such as job loss or social functioning) and enhance long-term recovery.
Sometimes people experiencing psychosis may become agitated and risk hurting themselves or others; in these cases, it may be necessary to calm them down quickly. A doctor or emergency responder will promptly administer a quick-acting injection or liquid medication to relax the patient.
Antipsychotic medications are the cornerstone in treating psychosis. They have been available since the mid-1950s. While they do not cure the disease, they significantly reduce symptoms and generally allow the patient to function better, have a better quality of life, and enjoy better vision. The choice and dosage of medication are individualized and are best made by a well-trained physician experienced in treating severe mental illness.
In many cases, people only need to take them for a short time to control their symptoms, and people with Schizophrenia may have to continue taking medications for life.
Cognitive behavioral therapy
Cognitive behavioral therapy means meeting regularly to talk to a mental health counselor to change the thinking and behavior; this approach has proven effective in helping people to make permanent changes and better manage their disease; it is more beneficial for psychotic symptoms that are not fully resolved with medication.
Is it possible to prevent psychotic disorders?
Most scientists and mental health professionals believe that psychotic disorders cannot be prevented and that anyone can experience psychosis. Rather than prevention, many healthcare providers stress the importance of identifying symptoms of psychotic disorders before they become severe and debilitating.
Early diagnosis and treatment can improve a person’s long-term outcomes and increase their chance of recovery. Suppose you have a history of psychiatric problems in your family. In that case, it is essential to be proactive with your health and avoid drugs and alcohol (especially cannabis), as it can affect your risk of developing a psychotic disorder.
Hello, how are you? My name is Georgia Tarrant, and I am a clinical psychologist. In everyday life, professional obligations seem to predominate over our personal life. It's as if work takes up more and more of the time we'd love to devote to our love life, our family, or even a moment of leisure. | <urn:uuid:40b19913-1902-429d-b3f9-f1ce5ad2e921> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://psychotreat.com/psychotic-disorders-types-symptoms-causes-and-treatment/ | 2024-12-13T18:42:36Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066119643.21/warc/CC-MAIN-20241213171153-20241213201153-00200.warc.gz | en | 0.949293 | 2,477 | 3.578125 | 4 |
It goes without saying that all living creatures are interesting. Some, however, possess an extra mystique. These are organisms which have closely similar counterparts preserved in stone. Obviously a long history has been enjoyed by living examples of such fossil specimens. The living populations are called living fossils. But what about the rest of living creatures, whose preserved remains we do not find in low lying rock? Is their past any different? Let’s delve into the story of the living fossils in order to find out if they are really special and what is their real claim to fame.
The attention paid to certain living fossil organisms leads many people to conclude that these are a rare phenomenon. Such, however, is not the case. Some living fossils have achieved celebrity status because of an element of surprise. They were assumed to have been long extinct and only relatively recently were discovered to be still living. Naturally there has been lots of publicity accorded these discoveries. Among them were the sea lilies or crinoids, discovered in the 1890s to be living in deep sea trenches. Then, the coelacanth Laterimeria was discovered in 1938. Even subsequent landings of this fish have received lots of media coverage. The mollusk Neopilina was first identified in 1956; and among plants, dawn redwood trees were discovered in 1948. Most recently in Nature (Jan. 8, 1998 vol. 391 p. 133-134) there is an account of an early Cretaceous flower Takhtajania perrieri rediscovered living in Madagascar, 85 years after its original identification. The brachiopod Lingula has a different story. Fossils of this organism are found consistently in the rocks from Cambrian levels upward. Today Lingula is found living in restricted habitats. This is a living fossil which does not receive a lot of attention.
The world, in fact, abounds in organisms which merit living fossil status. For example, Peter Ward, in his book (1992. On Methuselah’s Trail: Living Fossils and the Great Extinctions. W. H. Freeman and Company. New York pp. 212) says of mussels, scallops and oysters “Their fossil shells are virtually identical to those of our present oceans.” (p. 67) Moreover Beverley Halstead, in his deluxe 1982 book Search for the Past (Doubleday & Co. Inc., Garden City, New York pp. 208) points out that there are many organisms of common occurrence which actually qualify for living fossil status. Among the diverse creatures which he lists are silverfish, cockroach, monkey puzzle tree, horsetails, Magnolia, lamprey, tortoises and crocodiles, American o’possum and insect eating shrews (p. 196). In addition many microscopic organisms such as bacteria and blue green algae are also identical with specimens in Precambrian rock.
Characterization of an organism as a living fossil basically depends upon the degree of similarity the viewer seeks between living and fossil creatures. If the definition is in terms of general categories of organism, such as sponges in general, or ferns in general, or even specific groups of ferns, then, says Niles Eldredge (Eldredge and Steven M. Stanley. Eds. 1984. Living Fossils. Springer Verlag. New York pp. 291) ” – by such a yardstick, virtually everything is a living fossil.” (p. 3) Whether one allows one’s definition to be this broad or not, it is safe to conclude that living fossils are not rare.
Darwin first drew attention to the idea of living fossils. At this time he was thinking of the Ginkgo tree. From his evolutionist point of view, he was at a loss to imagine how creatures which appeared long ago and therefore presumably have simple characteristics, could do well in communities where the other organisms enjoy the latest developments. It was a wonder to Darwin that archaic or old fashioned forms were not eliminated although they were apparently untouched during the passage of time. From an evolutionary perspective then, living fossils are viewed as organisms with a very long history. Creationists point out that this idea of long time intervals is open to question. Nevertheless, it is the idea that organisms are “very old” which arouses the interest of the public.
Darwin realized that living fossils are not what evolutionists expect to find in nature. Indeed to supporters of the evolution paradigm, the idea of living fossils, so ancient and unchanged, is definitely a problem. As Niles Eldredge remarked: “In the context of Darwin’s own founding conceptions, and certainly from the perspective of the modern synthesis, living fossils are something of an enigma, if not an embarrassment.” (Eldredge and Stanley op cit p. 272) And Peter Ward, in his 1992 book (op cit) terms living fossils “evolutionary curiosities, more embarrassments to the theory of evolution than anything else.” (p. 13)
A number of evolution-oriented works on living fossils have therefore been devoted, for the most part, to damage control: how best to minimize the damaging implications of living fossils for evolution theory. The first technique is to assume that some change has actually taken place. As Eldredge says, no one supposes that the same species which we see today, have actually lasted for long spans of time: “It is fair to conclude, I think, that no one supposes that it is the actual longevity of a single species that underlies cases of extraordinarily low-rate lines of morphologic transformation” (Eldredge and Stanley. op cit p. 275) Because of this prior assumption that modern examples must be different from fossil representatives, the two groups (fossil and extant) are routinely given different scientific names, – at the very least at the species level. Consider, for example, the blue coral Heliopora coerulea which today is a common reef former of the Indo-Pacific Oceans. Very similar specimens make an abrupt appearance in rocks said to be more than 100 million years old. Numerous fossils have been found as well in higher lying rock layers up to the present. A wide variety of species names have been given to the fossil specimens. All of these species however have characteristics within the range of variation of the modern species says Mitchell Colgan (in Eldredge and Stanley. op cit pp. 266-270). Therefore all the fossil specimens should have been given the same name as the modern species. The numerous names accorded the fossil representatives convey an inaccurate impression.
The approach of evolutionists then is to overemphasize differences in order to maximize the appearance of change. For example, of the famous living fossil horseshoe crab, some evolutionists say that the modern species has no known fossil representatives (for example see Daniel C. Fisher in Eldredge and Stanley. op cit p. 205) This statement is based on shell (carapace) shape. As Peter Ward remarked “To a less critical eye, the horseshoe crabs of that long-ago time look virtually identical to present day species. But Fisher found slight differences in the carapaces of the Jurassic and the modern species …” (Ward. op cit. p. 148) Nevertheless Fisher himself admits that compression by overlying sediments makes it hard to figure out fossil shell shapes. ( in Eldredge and Stanley. op cit p. 206) Thus scientists do not really know what the shapes of the shells of former populations were like. This seems a clear case of overemphasizing differences which might or might not be real.
The second method of damage control used by evolutionists is to suggest that unusually slow rates of change are to be expected for some populations. There is a major problem with this explanation however. Evolutionists have not been able to find any general rules which would enable them to predict which organisms might show slow rates of change. Both Eldredge and Stanley comment on this in their 1984 book (op cit) on living fossils. As Eldredge remarked: “Schopf is certainly correct that a number of somewhat different kinds of phenomena underlie our rather casual use of the expression ‘living fossil.’ Some species do have relict distributions (e.g. Sphenodon…), while others patently do not, such as …. Lingula. Some lineages are depauperate in species, such as Limulus and its close relatives, while others generally considered living fossils (such as the nuculoid bivalves …) are relatively speciose. All sorts of combinations are possible …” (pp. 275-276 – omitted phrases refer to pages devoted to each topic in Eldredge and Stanley’s book) For his part Stanley said: “Thus although the punctuational expectation is that living fossil groups should exist, the reasons why some groups rather than others fulfill that expectation can only be assessed on a case-by-case basis.” (Eldredge and Stanley. op cit p. 280)
Another effort at damage control is to suggest that an organism really has been evolving quickly, only the end result is always the same as before. Peter Ward suggested such a situation for Nautilus, an organism characterized by considerable genetic variability. In his book on living fossils (op cit) he speculates about the situation: “Rather than being a prime example of a living fossil, the nautiloids may be examples of rapidly speciating organisms that change only slightly during each [speciation] event, and then return to the same form over and over. The result would be apparent stasis, but the actual history would be similar to that of any other rapidly speciating group – except that the net morphologic change over time would be small, rather than large.” (p. 254) Such a hypothesis would of course, be exceedingly hard to test.
From the creationist perspective, the flora and fauna which we see today represent remnants of much richer collections of organisms which lived in the past. The fact that some living forms are different only in detail or not at all from specimens deposited at low levels in the fossil record, raises the question whether any living creatures differ (other than in detail) from their progenitors. Moreover not all organisms which lived at the time of fossil formation, actually left fossils. Living taxa have been identified which lack a fossil record but which are nevertheless considered primitive, close in characteristics to the first representatives of that group of organisms. Examples include Psilotum, an uncomplicated vascular plant, cephalocarids (blind crustaceans) and Peripatus (worm-like).
Secondly the very existence of living fossils calls into question evolutionary assumptions about long time intervals. Two opposite interpretations of the relevant data are possible. The one is that fossilized specimens lived long ago, and survivors have continued little changed since then. Alternatively, it is possible that fossilized specimens were entrapped relatively recently and that populations have not changed other than in minor details in the ensuing time.
The idea of very long intervals with no change, actually makes evolutionists nervous. For example, Wilson Stewart in his 1983 book Paleobotany and the Evolution of Plants (Cambridge University Press see p. 76) remarks that the whisk fern (Psilotum) might have been a contemporary of primitive land plants – but if that is the case, 360 million years have since passed. As this passage of time seems unrealistic, another specialist actually redefined Psilotum as a degenerate fern and thus of much more recent origin. This reduces the problem of a long time interval, but ignores some important information, says Stewart.
Creationists do not have such logical difficulties as they are dealing with a much shorter time frame. Since organisms like Neopilina (mollusk), Sphenodon and coelacanth are all extant today, their fossils could have been entrapped and preserved relatively recently. There is no need to assume incredible gaps in a long fossil record. The case of Neopilina is particularly dramatic. According to evolutionary interpretations, living specimens are separated from fossil representatives by a gap of almost 430 million years. Indeed fossil specimens are almost identical (except for shell thickness) to living specimens. If alternatively, they have since lived in a restricted environment for only a few thousand years, we would not necessarily expect change or higher lying fossil representatives.
It is noteworthy that organisms recognized as living fossils have in certain instances provided a useful check on evolutionary speculations based on the fossil record. The most conspicuous example of this is the coelacanth, which, before living specimens were known, was considered to be related to ancestors of the terrestrial vertebrates. As Peter Ward remarked: “We now know that Latimeria, the living coelacanth, is substantially different from what we suppose the immediate ancestor of amphibians looked like.” (op cit p. 201) Today some authorities promote an altogether different group (lungfishes) for this honour. Nevertheless the former idea was so strongly imbedded in the public mind that we still see traces of it. The Toronto Globe and Mail on January 4, 1960 called the coelacanth a “missing link between man and primitive life.” Thirty years later (October 20, 1990), the same publication used almost identical language when discussing the coelacanth, even although such ideas were discarded long since by scientists.
Living fossils are clearly a topic which merits further research by young earth scientists. When evolutionists admit that they have a problem, then it behooves us to pay attention.
But philosopher of science Del Ratzsch in his book The Battle of Beginnings: Why neither side is winning the creation-evolution debate (1996. InterVarsity Press) suggests that creationists misconstrue evolutionary theory. Dr. Ratzsch suggests that Darwin’s theory has no expectation of inevitable change. Whether there is change or not, and lengthy absences from the fossil record or not, evolution theory accommodates all situations, he says. As we have seen however, some prominent specialists indeed feel that there are features of living fossils which are difficult to explain in terms of evolution theory. As they themselves admit, their explanations are ad hoc in nature and scarcely satisfactory. Research in the recent scientific literature does not support Dr. Ratsch’s criticism of creationary claims concerning living fossils. Let’s not give up this promising source of information.
Subscribe to Dialogue | <urn:uuid:21fda72a-7bd2-4330-9cb4-2a5fb76c5b0f> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.create.ab.ca/living-fossils-how-significant-are-they/ | 2024-12-05T12:42:17Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066352699.65/warc/CC-MAIN-20241205115632-20241205145632-00364.warc.gz | en | 0.953068 | 3,007 | 3.359375 | 3 |
An essential challenge faced by students and teachers alike is the acquisition of vocabulary. I have written before on the best methods that students can employ when tackling vocabulary learning, so I do not plan to reiterate those here. What follows are rather some observations and musings about what we’re getting wrong in the Latin classroom when it comes to vocabulary acquisition, especially when compared to our counterparts in modern languages.
In my experience to date, supporting students in the accretion of vocabulary is a responsibility undertaken more effectively and proactively by modern language teachers than by those of us who specialise in Latin. It is possible that Latinists are under more time pressure in the curriculum and thus have no choice but to place the responsibility for vocabulary learning onto our students, but I think it more likely that we are simply less well trained in how to go about it than our colleagues in MFL. Classicists suffer from the fact that our training is somewhat broad – a qualified Classics teacher will necessarily have spread their training time across Ancient History and Classical Civilisation subjects, dramatically reducing the time that they spend focused purely on the teaching of the Latin language. I have little to no recollection of being given any significant guidance on how to help my students to develop their knowledge of vocabulary, so all my knowledge in this area has come later – through experience and through reading.
One of the many differences between the manner in which ancient languages are taught compared to modern ones is in the presentation of vocabulary to students. While modern linguists favour grouping words into themes or topics (e.g. “going to the shops” or “hobbies”), Latin teachers tend to present vocabulary in the following ways:
- By chapters in a text book (e.g. Cambridge Latin Course, Suburani, De Romanis or Taylor & Cullen). Sometimes these may have a loose theme, but it’s generally pretty tenuous.
- As one long alphabetical list (e.g. OCR GCSE or Eduqas GCSE).
- In parts of speech. Some teachers invite students to learn the GCSE list in types of words, e.g. 1st declension nouns, 2nd declension nouns etc.
Each of these approaches has its drawbacks, so let’s consider those one by one. First of all, let us consider the approach of learning vocabulary by text book chapter. If one were to use Taylor & Cullen for this purpose, one would at least be learning the set vocabulary for OCR and thus there is some longterm justification for the approach. The vocabulary also reflects what is being introduced in each chapter and therefore there is some pedagogical justification for students learning it as they go. All of that said, you wouldn’t believe how few schools are actually doing this and to date I’m not sure I have met a single student that is working systematically through the chapters of Taylor & Cullen and learning the vocabulary as they go: some students are being tested on the chapters retrospectively, but I have not worked with any who are using the text book as it was designed. This is most likely because Taylor & Cullen is an ab initio course and thus the early chapters are not suitable for use with Year 10s who have studied Latin in Years 7-9. Why don’t schools use it during those years? Well, I’m assuming that its somewhat sombre presentation and lack of colour pictures puts teachers off the idea of using it a basis for KS3, when (to be frank) they are under pressure to recruit bums onto seats for KS4 or else find themselves out of a job. This means that there is no text book explicitly aimed at preparing students for a specific GCSE exam board being made wide use of in schools.
None of the text books commonly used in schools at KS3 build vocabulary that is explicitly and exclusively aimed at a particular GCSE course. While Suburani is supposedly linked to the Eduqas course, it diverts from using the vocabulary that is relevant to this in favour of what suits its own narrative. For example, students of Suburani will be deeply familiar with the word popina as meaning “bar” (not on the GCSE list for either OCR or Eduqas but used widely throughout the first few chapters), yet they are not introduced to the word taberna meaning “tavern” or “shop” (on the GCSE list for both boards) until chapter 12. Similar problems occur in terms of the thematic focus of Suburani: because it focuses on the life of the poor in Rome, students are taught that insula means “block of flats”. While it does mean this, I have never seen it used in this way on a GCSE paper – the word is used exclusively by both boards in a context in which the only sensible translation is “island”. I shall say more about the problem of words with multiple meanings later on.
Presenting words in an alphabetical list seems to be the practice used by most schools when students reach Years 10 and 11 and are embarking on their GCSE studies. Most students that I have worked with are told to learn a certain number of words from the alphabetical list and are thus tested on multiple words that have nothing in common, either in terms of their meaning or their grammatical form. One advantage of this is that students are forced to look at words with similar appearance but different meaning. However, multiple and in my opinion worse problems arise from this method. Students learning the vocabulary in alphabetical order give little thought to what type of word they are looking at (e.g. whether it is a noun or a verb) or to its morphology. This means that students do not learn the principal parts of their verbs, nor do they learn the stem changes of nouns and adjectives. This can cause considerable frustration and demotivation when students struggle to recognise the words that they have supposedly learnt when those words appear in different forms. Teachers could mitigate against this by testing students on those forms, but most seem reluctant to do so. Do they think it’s too hard?
The method I used was to present the GCSE list in parts of speech and invite students to learn different types of words in groups: all the 1st declension nouns, all the 2nd declension nouns etc. The advantage of this method is that it allows for the opportunity to link the vocabulary to the grammar. For example, the first vocabulary learning task I used to set my Year 10s in September was to learn/revise all the 1st declension nouns (in theory they knew most of them already from KS3) and to revise the endings of the 1st declension. In the test, they were expected to be able to give the meaning of the nouns I selected for testing and they were expected to be able to write out their endings also. I felt (and still feel, on the whole) that this was the best approach, but that does not mean that it does not have its own disadvantages. Firstly, it made some learning tasks excessively onerous and others too easy: for example, that task of learning the 1st declension nouns was very easy (because most of the words were already familiar and the forms of the nouns are very simple) but the task of learning 3rd conjugation verbs was much harder (fewer of them were previously known and their principal parts are a nightmare). This meant that students were often hit with homework that turned out to be extremely difficult at what might not have been the ideal time for them. A second disadvantage was that it was impossible to give students a translation test, because one could not create sentences out of a set of words which all belong to one category. Thirdly, and related to that point, testing according to parts of speech made it very difficult to link vocabulary learning to classroom teaching in any meaningful way: in class, we might be studying the uses of the subjunctive, and that could not necessarily be linked to the homework task that was next on the list. This is something that I have been thinking about more and more in recent years as a massive problem in Latin teaching – a disconnect between what students are learning in the classroom and the vocabulary they are invited to learn for homework. The more I think about it, the more I believe this is a fundamental problem which requires a complete curriculum re-think.
The difficulty of linking vocabulary learning to explicit classroom teaching is something that modern language teachers would probably be very puzzled by. Modern linguists are way ahead when it comes to tying vocabulary learning to what’s happening in their classroom and to the relevant grammar. Given this, imagine my excitement when one of my tutees shared with me that she has been presented with the OCR vocabulary list in themes! I was full of anticipation as to how her school was planning to test their students on those themes. For example, one theme might be “fighting and military language”, within which students learn nouns such as “battle” and “war” alongside verbs such as “fight” and attack”. Call me daft, but I hoped and expected that she would be tested using some simple sentences, which would afford teachers the opportunity to observe students’ (hopefully) increasing understanding of grammar and morphology alongside the acquisition of the relevant vocabulary. Surely no teacher would have gone to the trouble of dividing up 450 words into a set of themes unless they were going to make use of some innovative testing methodologies? No? Well … actually, no. The school are testing the students on a list of words, with no link made between the meanings of those words and the learning that is going on in classroom. I have absolutely no idea what the point of this is. Maybe somebody in the department has read somewhere that “themes” is a good way to classify vocabulary and I am sure it is – but I’d place a hefty bet that there is no tangible pedagogical gain unless that learning is linked to the use of those words in sentence-structures, the kind of approach favoured by Gianfranco Conti.
I said that I would come back to the issue of words with multiple meanings, and that is something I have noted with interest from my tutee’s themed list. Words with multiple meanings appear more than once on the different lists, with their meanings edited to suit the theme of that list. This is an interesting idea and I am still pondering whether or not I think it is a good one. Multiple meanings are a real menace, particularly when the most obvious meaning (i.e. the one which is a derivative) is the least essential. For example, on the GCSE list for both boards is the word imperium, which can mean “empire” and all students immediately plump for that meaning as it is an obvious derivative. However, the word is more commonly used on language papers to mean “command” or “power” – it is therefore those meanings that must be prioritised when a student is learning the word. Similarly, all students need to be drilled on the fact that while imperator does come to mean “emperor” in time, it originally meant “general” and is usually used in that way on exam papers. Even worse is a nightmare word such as peto, which is listed on both boards as meaning anything from “make for”, “head for”, “seek” and “attack”. Students really struggle with learning all of its multiple possible meanings and it is important to show them multiple sentences with the verb being used in lots of different contexts so that they can grasp all of the possibilities.
As so often, I reach the end of my musings having criticised much and resolved little. I am thankful to be working in a one-to-one setting, in which I can support students with vocabulary learning in a proactive and detailed way, one which goes way beyond what is possible in the mainstream classroom and supports their learning in a way that simply cannot be expected of a classroom teacher. I shall continue to ponder what I would do were I in a position to re-shape the curriculum all over again, but I fear that this would entail writing an entire text book from scratch. Many have tried to do this, and even those who have made it to publication remain flawed: I have no conviction that I could do any better. | <urn:uuid:aa349da0-e014-424f-8021-828cb5397a18> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://latintutoring.co.uk/tutorblog/tag/latin-teaching/ | 2024-12-12T06:39:53Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066107376.23/warc/CC-MAIN-20241212062325-20241212092325-00448.warc.gz | en | 0.977969 | 2,578 | 3.703125 | 4 |
Can Equine Protozoal Myeloencephalitis (EPM) in horses be cured? This is a question that many horse owners and enthusiasts ask when faced with the devastating diagnosis of this neurological disease. EPM is caused by a protozoan parasite that invades the central nervous system of horses, leading to a variety of symptoms including weakness, poor coordination, and even paralysis. While EPM can be a difficult disease to treat, there are treatment options available that can help alleviate symptoms and potentially lead to a full recovery. In this article, we will explore the different treatment approaches for EPM in horses and discuss the potential for a cure.
Characteristics | Values |
Cause | Viral |
Transmission | Direct contact with infected horse or contaminated equipment |
Incubation period | 2-4 weeks |
Clinical signs | Fever, nasal discharge, cough, lethargy, lameness, muscle tremors |
Diagnosis | Physical examination, blood tests, nasal swab, PCR testing |
Treatment | Supportive care, rest, anti-inflammatory medications |
Prognosis | Good with early detection and treatment, may take several weeks to recover completely |
Prevention | Quarantine of infected horses, vaccination, hygiene practices |
Contagious period | Up to 3 weeks after onset of clinical signs |
Risk factors | Crowded or stressful environments, poor sanitation, travel, contact with infected horses |
Zoonotic potential | None |
What You'll Learn
- What is the current understanding of the causes and mechanisms behind equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (EPM)?
- Are there effective treatments available that can cure EPM in horses completely?
- How successful are current treatment options in managing the symptoms and improving the condition of horses with EPM?
- Can early detection and prompt treatment increase the chances of a complete cure for EPM in horses?
- Are there any ongoing research or clinical trials focused on finding a permanent cure for EPM in horses?
What is the current understanding of the causes and mechanisms behind equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (EPM)?
Equine Protozoal Myeloencephalitis (EPM) is a neurological disease that affects horses, caused by infection with the protozoan parasite Sarcocystis neurona. It is one of the most common neurological diseases in horses in North and South America, and understanding its causes and mechanisms is crucial for effective diagnosis, treatment, and prevention.
The exact mechanisms by which horses become infected with Sarcocystis neurona are not fully understood. However, it is believed that horses primarily acquire the infection by ingesting sporulated oocysts, which are shed in the feces of infected opossums. Opossums are considered the definitive host of the parasite, as they harbor the adult stage of the parasite in their intestines.
Once ingested, the sporulated oocysts release sporozoites, which travel through the horse’s digestive system and enter the bloodstream. From there, they can migrate to various organs, including the central nervous system (CNS). In the CNS, the parasites invade and replicate within cells, leading to inflammation and damage to the nervous tissue.
The manifestation and severity of EPM symptoms can vary greatly among affected horses. Some may experience mild clinical signs, such as subtle lameness or muscle atrophy, while others may develop severe neurological deficits, including weakness, incoordination, and paralysis. The specific areas of the nervous system affected by the parasite determine the clinical presentation of the disease.
Several factors can influence the susceptibility of a horse to EPM. These include the horse’s immune status, genetic predisposition, and overall health. Horses that are immunocompromised, such as those with concurrent infections or undergoing corticosteroid treatment, may be more susceptible to infection and the development of clinical disease.
Diagnosing EPM can be challenging due to the varied clinical signs and the potential for other neurological diseases to mimic its symptoms. Veterinary professionals use a combination of clinical examination, serological tests, and sometimes cerebrospinal fluid analysis to reach a definitive diagnosis. However, it is important to note that a positive test result does not necessarily confirm active infection, as horses may carry antibodies without clinical signs.
Currently, there is no known cure for EPM, but treatment options aim to control the clinical signs and manage the inflammation in the CNS. Medications such as antiprotozoal drugs and anti-inflammatory agents are commonly used. However, the success of treatment can vary, and some horses may not fully recover from the neurological deficits caused by the infection.
Prevention of EPM involves minimizing exposure to the opossum feces-contaminated environment. Measures such as proper manure management, reducing opossum access to feed and water sources, and using commercial feeds or hay that has been heat-treated to kill potential oocysts can help reduce the risk of infection.
In conclusion, Equine Protozoal Myeloencephalitis is a complex disease caused by infection with the protozoan parasite Sarcocystis neurona. While the exact mechanisms of infection and disease progression are not fully understood, current research suggests that ingestion of sporulated oocysts shed by infected opossums plays a significant role. Diagnosis and treatment of EPM can be challenging, requiring a multi-faceted approach. Prevention strategies focus on minimizing exposure to the parasite and its definitive host. Continued research into the causes and mechanisms of EPM is essential for improved understanding, diagnosis, and management of this debilitating disease in horses.
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Are there effective treatments available that can cure EPM in horses completely?
EPM, or Equine Protozoal Myeloencephalitis, is a neurologic disease that affects horses. It is caused by a parasite called Sarcocystis neurona, which can invade the horse's central nervous system and cause inflammation and damage. EPM can lead to a wide range of symptoms, including muscle weakness, lameness, balance issues, and even paralysis.
The goal of treating EPM is to eliminate the parasite from the horse's body and reduce inflammation in the nervous system. While there is no cure for EPM, there are several treatment options available that can effectively manage the disease and improve the horse's quality of life.
One of the most commonly used treatments for EPM is a combination of medications, including antiprotozoal drugs and anti-inflammatory drugs. Antiprotozoal drugs, such as ponazuril and diclazuril, work by targeting the parasite and preventing it from reproducing. These drugs are usually given orally and must be administered for several weeks to ensure that all the parasites are eliminated. Anti-inflammatory drugs, such as corticosteroids, are often used in conjunction with antiprotozoal drugs to reduce inflammation in the nervous system and help the horse recover.
In addition to medication, other supportive therapies can also be beneficial in managing EPM. Physical therapy, including exercises to improve balance and coordination, can help horses regain muscle strength and function. Nutritional support is also important, as horses with EPM may have a decreased appetite and lose weight. Providing a balanced diet that is high in calories and essential nutrients can help support the horse's recovery.
It is important to note that the success of treatment for EPM can vary from horse to horse. Some horses may respond well to treatment and make a full recovery, while others may only see a partial improvement in their symptoms. In some cases, horses may experience relapses, where the symptoms return after a period of improvement. This can be due to a number of factors, including incomplete parasite elimination or re-infection.
To ensure the best possible outcome, it is important to work closely with a veterinarian experienced in treating EPM. They can help develop a tailored treatment plan that takes into account the individual horse's condition and response to therapy. Regular follow-up appointments and monitoring of the horse's progress are also essential to adjust the treatment as needed.
In conclusion, while there is no cure for EPM, there are effective treatment options available that can help manage the disease and improve the horse's quality of life. A combination of antiprotozoal drugs, anti-inflammatory drugs, supportive therapies, and nutritional support can be used to eliminate the parasite, reduce inflammation, and help the horse recover. However, it is important to work closely with a veterinarian to develop a tailored treatment plan and to closely monitor the horse's progress. With proper treatment and management, many horses with EPM can experience significant improvement in their symptoms.
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How successful are current treatment options in managing the symptoms and improving the condition of horses with EPM?
Equine Protozoal Myeloencephalitis (EPM) is a debilitating neurological disease that affects horses. It is caused by the protozoan parasite Sarcocystis neurona, which can infect the central nervous system of the horse and cause inflammation and damage to the spinal cord and brain. EPM can have a significant impact on the horse's overall health and quality of life, so effective treatment options are crucial in managing the symptoms and improving the condition of affected horses.
Currently, there are a few different treatment options available for horses with EPM. These options include drug therapy, supportive care, and physical therapy. The effectiveness of these treatment options can vary depending on several factors, including the severity of the infection, the overall health and immune status of the horse, and the timeliness of intervention.
Drug therapy is a common treatment approach for EPM. The most commonly used drug for EPM is a combination of ponazuril and trimethoprim-sulfadiazine. These drugs work by targeting and killing the parasite, thus reducing the inflammation and damage to the nervous system. However, it is important to note that these drugs only target the active stage of the parasite, and do not eliminate the dormant, encysted form of the parasite. Therefore, a combination of drug therapy and supportive care is often needed to effectively manage the infection.
Supportive care plays a critical role in managing the symptoms and improving the condition of horses with EPM. This can include providing the horse with a clean and comfortable environment, ensuring access to good quality forage and water, and monitoring and addressing any secondary health issues or complications that may arise. Additionally, providing the horse with a balanced and nutrient-dense diet can help support their immune system and overall health, aiding in their recovery.
Physical therapy is another important aspect of treating EPM. This can involve a range of techniques, such as controlled exercise, stretching, massage, and hydrotherapy. Physical therapy can help improve the horse's overall muscle tone, coordination, and balance, which can be affected by the neurologic damage caused by the parasite. It can also help with the horse's overall comfort and well-being, and aid in their rehabilitation and recovery.
While current treatment options for EPM can be successful in managing the symptoms and improving the condition of affected horses, it is important to note that the individual response to treatment can vary. Some horses may respond well and show significant improvement, while others may have a more limited response. Additionally, the severity of the infection and the overall health and immune status of the horse can also impact the treatment outcomes.
In conclusion, current treatment options for EPM can be effective in managing the symptoms and improving the condition of affected horses. This includes drug therapy, supportive care, and physical therapy. However, it is important to note that the response to treatment can vary, and the overall success depends on several factors. Working closely with a veterinarian and implementing a comprehensive treatment plan tailored to the individual horse's needs is crucial in achieving the best possible outcome.
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Can early detection and prompt treatment increase the chances of a complete cure for EPM in horses?
Equine Protozoal Myeloencephalitis (EPM) is a neurological disease that affects horses. It is caused by a parasite called Sarcocystis neurona, which attacks the horse's central nervous system. EPM can lead to devastating symptoms, including weakness, loss of coordination, muscle atrophy, and even paralysis.
Early detection and prompt treatment are vital in increasing the chances of a complete cure for EPM in horses. Detecting EPM in its early stages can help prevent the progression of the disease and minimize the damage it causes to the horse's nervous system.
There are several ways to detect EPM in horses, including clinical signs, neurological examinations, and laboratory tests. Recognizing the symptoms of EPM is crucial in early detection. Some common clinical signs include stumbling or tripping, loss of balance, muscle wasting, and general weakness.
A thorough neurological examination can also help diagnose EPM. This involves a series of tests to assess the horse's coordination, reflexes, and muscle strength. If EPM is suspected, further laboratory tests can be conducted to confirm the presence of the parasite in the horse's system. These tests may include spinal fluid analysis or serological testing.
Once EPM is diagnosed, prompt treatment should be initiated to increase the chances of a complete cure. Currently, the most effective treatment for EPM involves a combination of medications that target the parasite and reduce inflammation in the central nervous system. These medications may include antiprotozoal drugs such as ponazuril or diclazuril, as well as anti-inflammatory drugs like corticosteroids.
The duration of treatment varies depending on the severity of the infection and the horse's response to therapy. In some cases, treatment may last several weeks or even months. It is crucial to closely monitor the horse's progress during treatment and adjust the medications if necessary.
Early detection and prompt treatment can significantly improve the horse's prognosis and increase the chances of a complete cure. By starting treatment early, the parasites can be targeted before they cause irreparable damage to the nervous system. This may help prevent long-term neurological deficits and improve the horse's quality of life.
In addition to medical treatment, supportive care is also important in the management of EPM. This may include providing a quiet and comfortable environment for the horse, ensuring proper nutrition and hydration, and maintaining a regular exercise routine to help improve muscle strength and coordination.
It is essential to remember that early detection and prompt treatment are not guarantees of a complete cure for EPM. The severity of the disease and the horse's response to therapy can vary, and some horses may experience long-term neurological deficits despite treatment. However, early intervention can improve the overall outcome and increase the chances of a successful recovery.
In conclusion, early detection and prompt treatment are crucial in increasing the chances of a complete cure for EPM in horses. Recognizing the clinical signs, conducting thorough neurological examinations, and confirming the diagnosis through laboratory tests are essential steps in the early detection process. Once diagnosed, a combination of medications, supportive care, and close monitoring can help improve the horse's prognosis. While a complete cure cannot be guaranteed, early intervention can minimize the damage caused by EPM and improve the horse's quality of life.
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Are there any ongoing research or clinical trials focused on finding a permanent cure for EPM in horses?
Equine Protozoal Myeloencephalitis (EPM) is a neurologic disease that affects horses, causing symptoms like ataxia, weakness, muscle wasting, and behavioral changes. It is caused by a protozoan parasite called Sarcocystis neurona, which infects the horse's central nervous system. EPM can be a debilitating and potentially life-threatening condition, making it crucial to find effective treatments or even a permanent cure.
Over the years, researchers and clinicians have made significant progress in understanding and treating EPM. While there may not be a definitive cure at the moment, there are ongoing research efforts and clinical trials focused on finding more effective treatments and possibly a permanent solution for EPM.
One of the main challenges in treating EPM is the ability of the parasite to invade and persist in the horse's nervous system. The protozoan can also form cysts or dormant forms, making it difficult to completely eliminate the infection. Researchers are currently investigating various approaches to tackle these challenges.
One avenue of research involves developing new drugs or treatment protocols that target the parasite directly. Scientists are studying the biology and lifecycle of the parasite to identify vulnerable points in its lifecycle. By understanding how the parasite survives and reproduces, researchers hope to develop drugs that can interrupt or kill the parasite at various stages.
In addition to direct parasite-targeting approaches, researchers are also exploring strategies to enhance the horse's immune response against the parasite. This involves studying the immune system's natural defenses against Sarcocystis neurona and identifying ways to strengthen them. By boosting the horse's immune system, it may be possible to control the infection and reduce the severity of clinical signs associated with EPM.
Clinical trials play a crucial role in testing the effectiveness and safety of potential treatments. These trials involve administering the experimental treatments to affected horses and closely monitoring their response. Researchers may measure factors such as parasite load, clinical signs, and immune response to assess the effectiveness of the treatment. Clinical trials provide valuable data that can help refine and improve treatment protocols.
It is also worth noting that prevention plays a significant role in managing EPM. Researchers are continuously working on developing vaccines that can protect horses against Sarcocystis neurona infection. Vaccines stimulate the immune system to recognize and mount a response against the parasite, reducing the likelihood of infection and clinical disease. While there is no commercially available vaccine for EPM at the moment, ongoing research efforts aim to develop effective vaccines for widespread use.
In conclusion, while there may not be a permanent cure for EPM in horses at the moment, ongoing research and clinical trials are focused on finding new treatments and potential solutions. Scientists are investigating both parasite-targeting drugs and immune-enhancing strategies to control and manage the infection. Clinical trials play a crucial role in evaluating the effectiveness of these treatments, providing valuable data for further refinement. Additionally, preventative measures such as vaccines are also being developed to protect horses against Sarcocystis neurona infection. Continued research efforts give hope for better management and potentially a permanent cure for EPM in the future.
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Frequently asked questions
Unfortunately, there is currently no cure for Equine Protozoal Myeloencephalitis (EPM) in horses. However, with early detection and appropriate treatment, the symptoms can be managed, and the horse's quality of life can be improved.
Treatment for EPM usually involves a combination of medications. The most commonly used drugs are anti-protozoals, such as ponazuril or diclazuril, which work to kill the parasite responsible for EPM. Additional supportive care, such as anti-inflammatories and physical therapy, may also be recommended to address the neurological symptoms.
While some horses may experience a full recovery from EPM, it is not always the case. The extent of recovery depends on various factors, including the severity of the infection, the progression of neurological symptoms, and the timing of treatment. In some cases, a horse may have residual deficits even after treatment.
The duration of treatment for EPM can vary depending on the individual horse and the severity of the infection. In general, treatment can last anywhere from a few weeks to several months. It is important to follow the prescribed treatment plan and work closely with a veterinarian to monitor the horse's progress.
While it may not be possible to completely prevent EPM, there are steps that can be taken to minimize the risk. Good management practices, such as minimizing exposure to opossums and other potential carriers of the parasite, practicing good hygiene, and avoiding contaminated feed and water sources, can help reduce the likelihood of infection. Regular veterinary check-ups and prompt treatment of any suspected cases can also help manage the disease. | <urn:uuid:57685595-3c43-4217-a939-742f816a5e34> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://petshun.com/article/can-epm-in-horses-be-cured | 2024-12-06T19:28:15Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066416984.85/warc/CC-MAIN-20241206185637-20241206215637-00540.warc.gz | en | 0.939174 | 4,149 | 2.71875 | 3 |
Electric bikes can be an excellent way to commute or travel long distances. Still, battery fires should always be a cause for concern.Especially the batteries of long range electric bikes need more attention. As such, each owner must understand what causes these fires and how to protect against them to maintain safe e-bike use.
How E-Bike Batteries Catch Fire
E-bike batteries can ignite through a process known as thermal runaway, which sounds complicated but is actually straightforward:
Imagine your battery as being made up of many smaller containers that store energy; should any become damaged or malfunction, these could begin overheating—often caused by short-circuiting, which causes energy to become stuck in one area, causing an overload in that particular place, eventually leading to an explosion.
As soon as a battery cell overheats, it triggers a chemical reaction that makes it even hotter. Imagine heating a pot of water on the stove: as it begins to boil, it steams away. In contrast, in battery cells, the heat doesn't just escape as harmless steam but causes cell structures to collapse further, releasing additional heat—leading them all to overheat quickly like dominoes falling.
The chain reaction can occur quickly—within minutes! As each cell overheats and releases gases and energy, it can spark off an inferno of flames, consuming all the available oxygen in the atmosphere; chemical reactions provide sufficient fuel for burning to continue unchecked. An incident occurred where an e-bike battery was damaged in a minor crash and, within moments, became overheated and caught fire, causing extensive damage.
While thermal runaway may sound alarming, it's rare. Most often, it results from defects or physical damage to the battery; properly using and maintaining your e-bike and following safety regulations can significantly lower your risk of experiencing battery fires.
Common Causes of E-Bike Battery Fires
E-bike battery fires can happen for several reasons, so understanding these can help prevent future incidents. One of the primary culprits is manufacturing defects; even top manufacturers sometimes produce flawed batteries that cause issues later down the line. Such defects might not appear apparent at first but could eventually cause overheating and eventually lead to fires.
Physical damage is another primary source of failure with electric bikes. Imagine dropping or getting involved in a minor crash; any impact to the bike could cause internal short circuits, cracks and dent formation, and subsequent internal short circuits leading to cracks in its battery.
Recently, I read of an instance in New York where an e-bike battery caught fire after having experienced even minor falls; later, while charging, it overheated and caught fire!
Improper charging can also be a significant problem. Using the wrong charger or cheap knockoff can overcharge a battery beyond its limits and lead to fire - similar to overfilling a water balloon to its limit; eventually, it bursts.
For instance, there was an incident in Los Angeles in which an e-bike fire started when its owner used an incompatible charger that didn't include proper safeguards, overcharging their battery by overcharging.
DIY modifications can also be risky. Many enthusiasts enjoy tinkering with their e-bikes, adding aftermarket parts, or trying to improve battery performance. While this might seem like a good idea, doing so could end up leading to serious safety concerns; altering electrical systems could create incompatibilities or short circuits.
One case from Chicago involved someone trying to use a DIY kit to turn their regular bike into an e-bike and ending up starting a fire due to the incompatible battery technology used.
Finally, improper storage and charging practices can increase the risk of fires. For safety's sake, you should avoid charging your e-bike in an enclosed space or near flammable materials; one case in San Francisco saw an e-bike catch fire while charging next to a pile of newspapers in an apartment, quickly spreading throughout and causing significant property damage.
Understanding these common causes will enable you to take steps to keep your e-bike safe. Always use the correct charger, avoid DIY modifications, inspect your battery regularly, and store your e-bike safely to reduce fire risks.
Preventing E-Bike Battery Fires
Protecting against battery fires on an electric bike involves taking several precautions to keep it safe and reliable. Real-life examples illustrate their significance. Here is an in-depth examination of each preventive measure.
Always buy quality e-bikes and batteries from well-recognized manufacturers as a starting point. Quality control during manufacturing plays an integral role in preventing defects that could potentially cause fires; for instance, major brands like
Bosch and Shimano use stringent testing procedures on their batteries; by contrast, there was an incident in Texas in which an off-brand battery purchased online caught fire due to lacking sufficient safety features. Sticking with well-known names ensures your batteries meet safety standards without manufacturing defects that might compromise them over time.
Proper charging of an e-bike is of utmost importance. Always use the charger that came with or was recommended by its manufacturer to ensure adequate charging rates and to prevent overcharging of its battery.
A recent case in Los Angeles demonstrated this when an e-bike fire was linked back to an overcharged universal charger purchased online as an inexpensive alternative; unfortunately, it failed to contain enough safeguards, leading to a thermal runaway. Be wary of universal or third-party chargers; always choose what your manufacturer specifies instead.
Another crucial step to maintaining your battery's health is regular inspection for signs of damage. Look for signs like dented corners, cracked shells, or swelling; if any is detected, replace the battery immediately.
Recently, in New York, an e-bike battery damaged during a fall later caught fire while charging. Regular checks could have seen any early damage and prevented this occurrence. Many bike shops offer inspection services if you need more clarification about its state.
Avoid DIY modifications. Although DIY modifications might seem tempting for improving e-bike performance, doing so could introduce significant safety risks. Modifying electrical systems could result in incompatibilities and short circuits; one such incident occurred in Chicago when someone attempted to convert their regular bike into an e-bike using an unapproved conversion kit, leading to a fire. For your Safety, it is wiser to adhere to the original design and components of your e-bike to stay out of harm's way.
Establishing safe charging habits is of utmost importance. Charge your e-bike in a well-ventilated area away from flammable materials, and avoid charging overnight or unattended.
In San Francisco, an e-bike caught fire due to being left charging overnight near a pile of newspapers; the fire quickly spread throughout an apartment building, causing extensive damage.
For optimal charging results, charge outside or in a shed if possible; indoor charging should occur in an open, clear space, and the battery should be unplugged after charging.
The storage of your e-bike and its battery is also crucial. Temperatures fluctuate considerably, adversely affecting their performance and Safety.
One Phoenix garage battery stored during the summer season swelled and eventually caught fire; keeping a climate-controlled environment could prevent such incidents. In areas with extreme temperatures, it might be wiser to bring your battery indoors when not being used.
Take these preventive steps to decrease the risk of electric bike battery fires and safely experience all the advantages of your long-range electric bike. Quality components, the right charger, regular inspections, avoiding DIY modifications, safe charging practices, and proper storage are essential steps toward keeping your e-bike reliable and safe.
What to Do if Your E-Bike Battery Catches Fire
Unfortunately, even with all precautions in place, if your e-bike battery catches fire, you must know how to respond quickly and effectively to minimize damage and ensure safety.
First and foremost is always ensuring personal and public safety if an e-bike battery catches fire in a public place or at home; immediately evacuate and call emergency services; lithium-ion battery fires are notoriously complex and hazardous to extinguish with regular fire extinguishers, so it would be wise not attempt putting yourself out unless equipped with either a Class D fire extinguisher explicitly designed to extinguish them or a fire blanket capable of dousing flames effectively.
In New York City, an apartment fire started due to an e-bike battery malfunction. I rapidly evacuated and alerted the fire department, which was able to contain it before it spread further.
If your fire is small and manageable, use a fire blanket on top of the battery to smother flames before calling in professionals. Still, if it has spread too far, more than this method alone will be needed.
When an e-bike battery fire breaks out in public areas, notify nearby people immediately of its presence and urge them to evacuate at a safe distance before notifying the nearest fire station or using public emergency services.
Public places typically have emergency protocols and equipment in place that can handle such scenarios effectively—for instance, in San Francisco, where one such fire broke out at a bike storage area, immediate action taken by building security staff helped prevent injuries while controlling it until the fire department arrived on the scene.
Once the fire has been extinguished, it is vitally important to assess its damage and take steps to prevent future incidents.
Contact your manufacturer or professional for an inspection of your e-bike and all remaining components; properly dispose of any damaged battery according to local regulations for hazardous waste disposal; never attempt to reuse or repair a damaged battery.
In Phoenix, following a battery fire in their garage, the owner contacted a professional service to safely dispose of remnants and inspect their bike for potential issues.
Review your battery storage and charging practices to comply with all safety guidelines. If you have been using third-party chargers or DIY modifications, switch back to manufacturer-recommended equipment and setup.
Furthermore, consider investing in additional safety measures, such as installing a smoke detector near your charging area or investing in fireproof containers to store your batteries; such steps will help prevent future incidents while giving you peace of mind.
Understanding what steps to take should your e-bike battery catch fire is equally as vital to taking preventative measures. Act quickly and follow these guidelines to minimize damage while keeping yourself and others safe.
While e-bike battery fire risks exist, their incidence is relatively low compared to their use. By understanding their causes and following best practices for charging and maintenance procedures, you can significantly decrease this risk and enjoy its advantages safely.
E-bike fires may sound alarming, but with proper precaution and awareness, they should not detract from your enjoyment of electric bicycles. Stay informed, remain cautious, and enjoy riding!
Further Reading and Resources
What to Consider When Selecting an Electric Bike Charger, Can an Electric Bike be Ridden Without Pedaling?, and eBike Range: What to Know and How to Extend It offer essential tips for electric bike enthusiasts, covering chargers, riding without pedaling, and extending range. Dive in to enhance your e-bike experience!
What steps should I take if my e-bike battery shows signs of damage?
If your battery appears damaged, contact your battery manufacturer or a professional immediately and seek a replacement battery immediately. Damaged batteries can be extremely hazardous to use and should never be attempted to recharge yourself!
Can I use a charger for my e-bike?
No. Use only chargers approved and supplied by your e-bike manufacturer or one approved since using any other can cause overcharging and increase fire risks.
Is it safe to charge my battery indoors?
For optimal results, charge your e-bike battery in an open and well-ventilated area away from flammable materials. If charging indoors, take extra caution not to leave it overnight and monitor the process closely. | <urn:uuid:14f5d95e-0903-4370-bfb7-912dcf1bff3f> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://qiolor.com/blogs/news/causese-ebike-battery-fires | 2024-12-11T00:43:35Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066071149.10/warc/CC-MAIN-20241210225516-20241211015516-00554.warc.gz | en | 0.95302 | 2,418 | 3.078125 | 3 |
Nature has given us a cornucopia of foods to nourish, strengthen, and balance us during times of stress. Foods that are highly valued for their exceptional nutritive and healing properties are known as superfoods. In part one we covered goji berries, spirulina and bee pollen. Now we will look at a few more superfoods that can help us attain optimum health.
There are few plants in history that have been as widely used and coveted as the hemp plant. As a member of the mulberry family, hemp originated in Central Asia but has been cultivated across the globe for a multitude of uses. Hemp can grow from 3 to 15 feet in height. It is a hardy plant that can thrive without any herbicides or pesticides making it perhaps the most sustainable of all crops. Its fast growth and large canopy naturally suppress weeds and few pests affect it.
Hemp may very well be the oldest industry in the world dating back over 10,000 years in ancient Asia, Sumeria, Mesopotamia, Egypt, Persia, India, Europe, and the Americas. The ancients recognized hempseed as an important food source capable of sustaining life. Buddha was known to eat hempseeds during his fast of enlightenment. Hemp fibers were woven into fabric for clothing and rope which ultimately made sailing possible. Approximately 2,000 years ago the Chinese made the world’s first paper from hemp fibers. It wasn’t until the late 1800s that wood pulp began to replace hemp in the paper industry, even though hemp yields four times the fiber content as wood. This unfortunate choice led to the deforestation of our natural resources. History has shown that hemp paper is preserved for hundreds of years, while wood paper lasts only 25 to 80 years. Hemp paper can be recycled 10 times, while wood pulp paper can only be recycled twice.
The cotton industry is largely responsible for the demise of hemp in textile/fabric production. Hemp fibers are three times stronger, four times warmer, and twice as water absorbent as cotton. Cotton crops use 50% of all pesticides, 35% of which are absorbed through the skin when we perspire. Hemp has also been used to produce building materials, auto parts, and fuel, however due to political pressure, the petroleum and chemical corporations have dominated these industries.
Though all parts of the hemp plant are useful, as a food it is the hempseed that is most valued. Hempseed is actually an achene, a dry fruit with a hard shell that is removed to reveal the edible soft center. The hempseed we know as food is one of hundreds of species of the cannibus sativia plant. The other more famous variety of hemp plant is marijuana which has a much higher THC content than the food variety giving it hallucinogenic properties. Hempseeds can be eaten whole, ground into a powder, or turned into oil, butter, milk, or flour. Raw hempseeds are easily digestible. Due to their low phytate content, they do not contain enzyme inhibitors like other nuts and seeds and do not need to be soaked prior to eating.
Hempseed is considered to be one of the most nutritious foods on the planet, comprised of 35% complete protein, 47% fat, and 12% carbohydrate. It contains 18 amino acids, including all the essential amino acids and essential fatty acids required to maintain health. It is the only known food to have the ideal ratios of omega 3 (ALA), omega 6 (linoleic and GLA) and omega 9 fatty acids. These essential fatty acids nourish the brain and eyes, help to detoxify the body, have anti-inflammatory properties, and lubricate the skin and cardiovascular system. Hempseed is rich in vitamin E and lecithin which nourishes the brain and liver. It is also one of the few seeds that contain chlorophyll which is a source of magnesium, an important mineral for bone growth and nerve health. Hempseed is also a natural source of phosphorous, calcium, potassium, sulfur, iron, zinc, magnesium, manganese, iodine, silicon, and other trace minerals.
Hempseed is a superior source of vegetarian protein, containing 65% edestin, higher than any other plant. Edestin is the most edible and easily digested protein in the food chain. It is also hypoallergenic, unlike whey or soy protein. Edestin is a plant globulin or protein complex which is an important component of enzymes, antibodies, hemoglobin, and fibrin which is essential for blood clotting and wound healing.
Shelled hempseeds can be eaten as a snack, sprinkled on salads, added to smoothies, or made into milk. Hempseed oil is great in salad dressing. Hempseed protein powder provides a higher protein content than the whole seeds with much of the oil removed and can be added to smoothies and soups.
One of the most popular of all foods is the superfood cacao, better known as cocoa or chocolate. Nutritionist David Wolfe devoted an entire book to this sexy superfood entitled “Naked Chocolate” and a chapter in his book “Superfoods.” The cacao bean is the nut (seed) of the fruit of a tree that grows in the jungles of Central and South America where it is always in season. The ancient Mayans and Aztecs prized cacao so highly that they used it as currency instead of gold. After conquering the Aztec empire, Cortez brought cacao back to the Spanish royal court where its popularity quickly spread across Europe. 18th century Swiss scientist, Carl Linnaeus, named the genus and species of the tree theobroma cacao, translated to “Cacao, the food of the gods”.
While native cultures preferred the natural bitter taste of cacao, Europeans added refined cane sugar to chocolate which can cause blood sugar imbalances, mineral depletion and even addiction. Heating further depletes cacao’s vital enzymes and beneficial nutrients. In the 1800s Dutch chemist Coenraad Johannes Van Houten patented a process for making cocoa powder, and Swiss chemist Henri Nestle and Swiss chocolate manufacturer Daniel Peter created the first milk chocolate bar, making chocolate more affordable and available to the masses.
Cacao is one of the planet’s most powerful longevity foods. The oldest human recorded to have ever lived was Jeanne Louise Calment of France who consumed 2.5 pounds of dark chocolate a week until she died at 122 years of age. The third documented oldest person to have lived was American Sarah Knauss who regularly ate chocolate until her death at age 119.
Raw unprocessed cacao has the highest antioxidant content of any food on Earth containing polyphenols, catechins, epicatechins, resveratrol and procyanidins, in amounts ten times more than red wine, blueberries, acai, pomegranates and goji berries combined. The comprehensive phytochemical anaylsis of cacao makes chocolate one of the most complex foods on Earth, however, many of cacao’s super nutrients are destroyed by heat and may be present only in the raw state.
According to a 2012 study, regular consumption of cacao can reduce risk of cardiovascular disease by 37% and stroke risk by 29%. The Aztecs called cacao “yollotl eztli” which means heart blood. Cacao’s high antioxidant content has been proven to dissolve arterial plaque, improve blood flow and lower blood pressure. Research shows that cacao flavanols help to increase blood flow to the brain and enhance cognitive function in older adults. Cacao contains sitosterol which decreases harmful LDL cholesterol, and coumarin, a natural blood thinner that also helps to suppress tumor growth. The ergosterol in cacao is an important precursor to vitamin D production. Cacao is also anti-inflammatory.
Cacao has the highest magnesium content of any food which relaxes the heart, muscles, cardiovascular system, and mind. Sufficient magnesium can prevent strokes and heart attack and, ingested after these events, can aid recovery. Magnesium also increases peristalsis to help move the bowels, relaxes menstrual cramping, increases flexibility, builds strong bones, and increases alkalinity. Considering that approximately 80% of the U.S. population is deficient in this major mineral, chocolate can surely be of help to many.
An ounce of raw cacao contains 21% of the RDA for vitamin C, an unusually high amount for a nut. Vitamin C in whole food form strengthens blood vessels and enhances immunity. Roasted or heated cacao has lost much of its vitamin, mineral and phytonutrient content. Chocolate with added refined sugar, hydrogenated oils and pasteurized milk transforms cacao from a healing superfood to a toxic product which negates much of cacao’s beneficial properties.
Cacao contains 314% per ounce of the RDA for iron which is essential for the production of hemoglobin that carries oxygen in the blood. It also contains manganese which assists iron in this process. Cacao is one of the highest food sources of chromium which helps to balance blood sugar, and zinc which is essential for a strong immune system, production of sexual fluids, and all enzymatic reactions in the body. The copper in cacao helps create strong blood vessels and enhances immunity.
Chocoholics everywhere would agree that chocolate is a feel-good food. Cacao is the only plant found to contain anandamide, known as the bliss chemical, which is an endorphin that produces the feeling of euphoria after exercise. Cacao also contains an abundance of phenylethylamines (PEAs) which is class of biochemicals that our body produces when we fall in love. Perhaps this is why chocolate is associated with romance and Valentine’s Day. PEAs also help to increase mental focus and, along with magnesium, act as an appetite suppressant. Pure raw cacao has no sugar and a low fat content compared to other nuts. It helps to reduce insulin resistance and can actually aid weight loss. Chocolate is a natural aphrodisiac as it increases levels of the amino acid tyrosine which in turn creates dopamine, the neurotransmitter released during orgasm. The tryptophan and tryptamine serotonin in cacao make it a natural anti-depressant.
Cacao is actually a weak source of caffeine and is not addictive, containing 1/20th the amount of caffeine as coffee, though adding sugar to chocolate can cause cravings. A 2008 study by Dr. Gabriel Cousins found that cacao does not elevate blood sugar unlike other caffeine foods. Cacao is a source of theobromine which is a relative of caffeine but is not a stimulant to the nervous system. Theobromine dilates the blood vessels easing stress on the heart. It also has antibacterial properties that can destroy streptococci mutans, the primary bacteria responsible for dental cavities. Cacao is also an excellent source of soluble fiber. The low oxalic acid content in unheated cacao is harmless. Ingesting 4 oz. of high quality raw cacao daily delivers optimum benefits.
Chocolate lovers can enjoy raw cacao in many forms. Raw cacao beans can be eaten alone with the skin or the skin can be removed. Cacao nibs are skinned beans that have been broken into pieces. Cacao powder can be used in smoothies, ice cream, and other beverages and desserts. Cacao butter and paste are also available. With so many benefits and a delicious taste, it’s easy to see why cacao is such a treasured food.
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If a child (teenager or older) chooses to observe mitzvot differently than their parents, does a parent have a right to try to persuade them otherwise? Where is the line? What if the child wants to observe tzniut (modesty) or a level of kashrut (dietary laws) with more stringency?
I must say that of all the questions I have received, yours is the one I have been hoping for. I, as many others, have pet peeves and this question of minhag or minhagim (pl. customs) is one of my favorites.
Let us first look at a few major Rabbinic sources pertaining to the place of minhag in Jewish life and observance. The concept of minhag is related to Torah observance but is not necessarily a direct commandment itself, per se. Often it concerns more how to observe a particular mitzvah.
The major book of Jewish Law is the Shulhan Arukh from the 16th century. It is well known that the author Rabbi Joseph Karo (Israel, d. 1575) known as the Mehaber or Maran, presented halakhah in accordance with the common religious practice of the Jews originating in the Iberian peninsula, known as Sepharadim.
This binding presentation was in many ways at variance with the common religious practice of the Jews of Ashkenaz especially those of the lands associated with Poland. Rabbi Moses Isserles (Poland, d. 1572) known as the Rama, whose original intent seemed to be to write his own type Shulhan Arukh, wrote glosses or hagahot to Rabbi Karo’s work. This reflected the differences in custom or minhag of much of Ashkenazic Jewry.
This being said, this presentation is far too simplified since the reality is that there are differences in religious practice from country to country, community to community, synagogue to synagogue and family to family. All of these traditions and practices are considered sacrosanct and not to be violated.
A major problem that is found in today’s world, is the reality of disruption, dislocation, the break up of communities and the breakdown of families. Numerous reasons can be given for this, especially migration, the Holocaust, expulsion of Jews from their native lands and assimilation.
The Shulhan Arukh presents in the section dedicated to that which is prohibited and that which is permitted, “There is a major principle that the custom of our parents—ancestors (minhag avoteinu Torah hee) is Torah.” This means that the practices of our parents are definitive as far as far as our religious practice is concerned. (See Code of Jewish Law, Yo-reh Dei-ah, Section 376, Law 4, also Kitzur Shulhan Arukh, Section 199, Law 10)
The Babylonian Talmud states that it is forbidden for a person to make a change from the received custom. “One may never deviate from the accepted custom (l’olam al ye-sha-neh adam min ha-minhag.” (Tractate Baba Metziah 86b)
From the above, it would seem quite clear that whatever was is what will be forever. However, life is not quite so simple. There are hash-pa-ot (influences) surrounding us and a break down of authority. There is also a move to the right in many communities, where stringencies (hum-rot) are being set in place causing some Jews to feel put upon to conform or be ostracized.
Few communities remain unaffected by such forces. I consider myself blessed, having been Rabbinically trained by a great Sephardic hakham (sage) who always made clear that in accordance with the teachings of Maimonides(12th century, Egypt), that the path of moderation, the she-vil ha-zahav (golden mean) is the correct one.
According to your question, your concern is with a child or youngster who desires to practice stringencies in the mitzvot or even minhagim which are not in accordance with those of his or her family. There is no doubt that this is not to be countenanced by the Jewish tradition that they seemingly wish to respect.
It is necessary to do your best to understand the reason for the desire, but also gently, but with firmness to make certain that the youngster realizes that they must adhere to family custom.
There are many influences upon people, including Jewish outreach movements which almost invariably attempt to coax initiates to adopt their movement’s leader’s customs and not to investigate the initiate’s own past and adopt or readopt their ancestral observances. This approach is to be avoided wherever possible. No one is a tabula rasa (blank slate).
When it comes to issues of tz’niut (modesty) and kashrut (Jewish Dietary Laws) observances, our day has seen a move to the right, in the direction of hum-rah (stringency). Growing up as I did in a family where both of my parents were raised in strictly observant families from Europe, I have a first hand exposure to frumkeit (religiosity). Much of what is seen today with regard to modes of dress and grooming, as well as strictures in kosher eating and food preparations, or looking askance at other Jews, suspecting them of not being “frum” enough or kosher enough would be deemed improper.
It is nonetheless important that one understand, even a parent, that a particular family custom may be rooted in an incorrect tradition that is at variance with the rules set down in the Shulhan Arukh and the Rama. An example is standing or sitting for the recitation of Kiddush over the wine on Shabbat evening. There are a variety of practices pertaining to when to stand and at what point to drink while seated. All of this has a basis in local or family customs. But, I have seen those who will stand throughout and even drink while standing.
They believe, incorrectly, that standing is the correct observance. Looking into the codes, it is clear that drinking when at the Shabbat table is to be done in a sitting position.
If the family tradition turns out to be incorrect, one should turn to a competent, respected Rabbinic authority to decide what should be done to rectify the situation. There are even errant minhagim which have been termed by some authorities, minhagei she-toot (foolish customs).
In my own family, one exceptional relative termed himself a “Jewish orphan.” Not being raised “religiously,” in adulthood he strove to catch up and become “religious.” Not knowing where to turn, he started adopting someone else’s minhagim, not knowing the family traditions. This is understandable, until one has the opportunity to return to his or her own place of origin—your own family roots.
As you can see, the subject is far from simple. My advice is to follow family custom, preserving it as the precious heritage that it is.
Adolescent rebellion is a normal part of growing up. All of us as adults can remember fond—and perhaps not so fond—memories of issues that we have experienced in our early youth. That being said, whatever response a parent crafts must be expressed in a loving and positive manner. Authoritarian power will more likely create greater resentment and only serve to create more family disharmony and dysfunction. Adolescence is the time when our children attempt to define their identity. The words of Kahil Gibran are especially appropriate:
·Your children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself. They come through you but not from you. And though they are with you, yet they belong not to you. You may give them your love but not your thoughts. For they have their own thoughts. You may house their bodiesbut not their souls . . .
When a young person looks at the parent, s/he may ask themselves, “Am I my own person? Or am I just a mini-Me of my parent?” If the adolescent is to develop his or her own identity, it behooves parents to allow their children (to some degree) to have some space to make that discovery. If anything, verbally acknowledging your child’s uniqueness can take the sting out of Oedipal or Electra Complexes from developing.
The last thing any parent wants is for the child to consciously overthrow the parent’s authority —which will psychologically happen if the parent chooses to rule the home like a dictator rather than as a wise counselor. Wise parenting demands that parents be attuned to the child’s unspoken desire to be accepted and respected by one’s peers and family.
On a practical note, I would suggest that if it is a matter of adhering to a higher degree of kashrut, then parents need to ask: Is my daughter’s request for glatt kosher meat affordable? Or, would it make the observance of kashrut more of a financial hardship? In these tough times, the daughter needs to be sensitive to the fact that stricter observances of kashrut often comes with a heftier price tag. If the adolescent wishes to contribute a little bit toward purchasing a higher grade of kosher meat, the young adolescent might rethink her position. It’s always easier to be super strict if someone else is footing the bill.
If my adolescent son/daughter wanted to keep a stricter standard of kashrut, I would definitely wamt to know why my child is feeling this way? Are the teachers at the Day School or Yeshiva speaking critically about those kosher-observing families observing what they consider to be an “inferior standard, or not?” If someone from the yeshiva is attempting to persuade my child to keep a higher degree of kashrut or modesty, I would be upset at the yeshiva for attempting to seize parental authority away from the parents!
As a parent, if your family is invited to a friend or family’s home where their kashrut observance is less than your present family is, then I suggest that your daughter observe the level of kashrut of the host, so as to not embarrass or humiliate the host family. Shaming someone is a much more serious sin because failing to observe kashrut is considered to be only a sin affecting one’s relationship with God alone. Shaming anyone is a sin that weakens our relationship with God and people alike. If your daughter wishes to be extra religious, it is imperative that her interpersonal behavior be as exemplary, otherwise she is not being religiously consistent.
With respect to the tzniut issue, I think it’s important to dialogue with your daughter about the importance of being modest. Obviously, some women wear stylish pants, others insist on wearing as much clothing as possible. Some women in Jerusalem, known as the “Jewish Taliban,” look indistinguishable from the Taliban women in Afghanistan. The local Haredi rabbis have taken the position that this degree of modesty is excessive even for them!
Parents should engage the adolescent and ask her, “What do you think is the real meaning of tsniut? Obviously modesty is more of an interior attitude; it should not be about showing the world how pious one is.
Lastly, with adults, the problems become more nuanced. If the parents are not observant at all, it is important for the parents to try to accommodate the child and be support the child’s desire by maintaining separate dishes, foods, and so on. Actually, my parents did that for me when I was becoming observant in my early teens. If the child is an adult, it is important for the child to act respectfully—and give simple instructions how to cook kosher for whenever s/he visits. There is always one principle that remains unchanging: one’s ways should always be conducted in the manner of “Her ways are pleasant ways, and all her paths are peace” (Prov 3:17).
·Recognize the virtues of wise parenting vis-à-vis authoritarian styles of parenting
·Encourage the adolescent to explore her own freedom within the confines of Jewish tradition.
·Examine the practical and economic changes a family would have to undergo and ask yourselves, “Is it still worth it?”
·Try to understand the person(s) or institution that is pushing her in this austere Halachic direction.
·Never embarrass anyone for keeping a “lower standard” of kashrut.
·With respect to modesty; focus on the question: “What does it really mean to be ‘modest?”
·Adults ought to show respect and kindness before asking a non-observant parent to undertake any religious behavior upon his/her behalf.
Judaism teaches us that it is incumbent on parents to teach their children. There is a wisdom that comes with age and life experience. The issue is not the level of stringency, but the intelligent level of observance that is learned with experience. The question needs to be raised, what is your rationale for the level of observance that you have chosen, whether machmir or mekil? Children need to learn to think independently, and not merely to follow rules for their own sake.
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di Clovis WHITFIELD
Caravaggio, from Prosperino to Finson and Vinck
Caravaggism is a unique phenomenon, the man represented a disruptive force in an industry the saw an exponential rise in production due to the inspiration of his example. We can see the proliferation of chiaroscuro pictures, the export of new imagery to the four corners of Europe, and many of these have very little to do with the technique that was at the foundation of this artistic revolution. Much of this activity was indeed attributed to Caravaggio himself, in the form of blame, when the idea of choosing subjects from life came to be thought of as evidence of his being unable to be creative or to use imagery as a vehicle for narrative, a kind of carelessness that started with still-life, tavern scenes, lowlife and sordid scenes and went on to paintings of battles and other iconography that has little to do with his work itself. But the promotion that his dealers and friends undertook, when he was present and active, has hardly been addressed, still less the extent to which the replicas and copies had the impact of the inventions themselves. It had the force of advertising, and the promotion generated even more attention than the artist could have done by himself.
For most of modern interest has concentrated on the few originals themselves, and not so much on their impact in their own time. The Caravaggesque is a phenomenon that starts, it would seem, more in the second decade of the century, with the host of Northern artists to whom the idea of painting directly (without conventional preparation or even apprenticeship) from life coincided with a generation of patrons who were struck by the possibility of visualising stories from the Bible as if they had happened in front of them. They were also struck by the force of capturing impressions of surfaces and materials, both new and old, rather than inventing such effects from their imagination. The vagaries of Caravaggio’s existence did not always allow him to complete a task, and there some hints that another hand – likely Prospero’s – is behind some details, like the carafe of flowers in the Corsini Portrait of Maffeo Barberini, the comb and ointment jar in the Detroit Martha reproving Mary for her Vanity, the violin in the Metropolitan Musicians, even maybe features like the carpet in the National Gallery Supper at Emmaus.
We now have Celio’s word that he saw Caravaggio painting a Lute Player in Orsi’s house, confirming the close relationship that existed between them, with Orsi acting as Caravaggio’s agent, promoter and provider of replicas. He and subsequent patrons played a part in steering his imagery which changed with a different requests and sometimes needed correction, even to make a subject recognisable.
But not so much attention has been given to the immediate interest generated in Caravaggio’s inventions, despite their wide distribution from a very early time. The numerous versions of some of the designs were not all done after the artist left the scene, and he must have been aware of this duplication, and even participated in it. Let us not forget that it was as a copyist he came on the scene in Rome, that he duplicated heads at ‘un grosso l’uno’ and that he was hired by Del Monte (according apparently to his earliest biographer, Gaspare Celio) because of his mimetic ability. And the early works, from the Boy peeling Fruit, and the Boy bitten by a Lizard, exist in multiple versions. There is evidently a possibility that some of the replicas done during Caravaggio’s period in Rome could have had some participation from the artist, and that some of the copies done by his agent Prospero were close enough to the pictures themselves to pass as originals. The difficulty of distinguishing the different hands is underlined by works like the ex-Barberini Lute Player, of which Claudio Strinati has recently spoken – https://www.aboutartonline.com/2018/01/29/claudio-strinati-dal-coro-caravaggio-ce-rivedere/ in terms that make it difficult to comprehend how it is featured in most of the modern monographs on Caravaggio as an original., while the enforced absence of the first version of the Capture of Christ has made it difficult to judge the rediscovered one in Dublin.
Caravaggio himself was associated more with the artisanal environment of the craftsmen belonging to the foundation of SS Trinità dei Pellegrini, rather than the more pretentious circles of the Accademia di San Luca. It was in this company that he encountered the champion of his peculiar talent for reproducing things accurately, Prospero Orsi, and it seems as though he needed some direction in order to be able to transform this ability, to apply the faithful replication of detail to new subjects, to portraiture and then to casually chosen forms, including those visible in the then revolutionary projected images from the camera obscura and the parabolic mirrors that enjoyed popularity at the time. The success of this change of focus was the realisation of a change of perception, from Caravaggio’s unprecedented ability in being able to create an image from the superficial features in front of him, rather than building one by imagination or recollection.
The results of this process were sensational, nothing like it had been seen before, for despite the illusionistic appearance of artificial perspective, there was nothing to prepare the viewer for such life-like imagery. Where these paintings were accessible, their likenesses were in demand, so much so that there are more than fifty known versions of the Incredulity of St Thomas. Prospero certainly did a version of it for the Mattei, as it is recorded in the family archive, and he was likely the author of the one that Cardinal Del Monte had. While Baglione says Caravaggio did the work for the Mattei, the main contender for the prime version remains one that goes back to Benedetto Giustiniani’s patronage and is now in Potsdam.
He evidently took it, or a version of it, to Bologna, where he was Papal Legate from 1606 to 1611. We know that Prospero Orsi worked for the Mattei, and did versions of Caravaggio’s paintings – like the two Ambassador Béthune took back with him to Paris in 1605, of the Incredulity and the Supper at Emmaus. Before this it is clear that there were replicas of the latter subject, for the National Gallery Supper at Emmaus is clearly earlier than the painting that was painted for the Mattei and paid for in January 1602. It looks quite likely that Orsi also did a version of the Supper at Emmaus for one of the Mattei nephews in Palermo, Giovanni de Torres. This is the version now in the Galleria Regionale in Palermo, and it has many characteristics in common with the Béthune version now in Loches, suggesting that through Prospero’s agency these works were distributed through family connections and to important patrons, who clearly regarded them as representing Caravaggio’s work.
Not only was the Mattei Supper still in Palazzo Mattei long after Scipione Borghese’s death in 1634, but the original itself represented such a clamorous piece of illusionism – it a painting that belongs with the obsessively accurate naturalism of the pictures of 1597/98 – that it led to several replicas that Caravaggio may have done himself, or must at least have known because they came into existence during his stay in Rome. Apart from the Mattei version, which is untraced, Scipione Borghese evidently had two editions of the composition, of which the first is undoubtedly the painting in the National Gallery, and hung in Palazzo Borghese through the eighteenth century. Another was in his villa on the Pincio and Bellori seems to differentiate between the two, one being more tinta in his description (Vite, 1672, p. 208), and as the replica made – in all likelihood by Prospero – for Ambassador Béthune shows Christ bearded, this could show that it derived from the other Borghese picture. It looks as though Scipione Borghese acquired the National Gallery painting, which dates from well before his collecting experience (that started after the election of his uncle as Paul V in 1605) from a previous owner, and secured a second version probably through the agency of Prospero for the the walls of the Villa Borghese. This may have looked like the version of the composition known from the painting that passed through Sotheby’s, New York in 2005 ( Lot 559, Jan. 28, Lilian Rojtman Berkman Collection, 140 by 178,4cm) which shows Christ bearded. It may well be that Caravaggio collaborated with his promoter in producing versions of the Mattei paintings, where the realism was seen as a telling interpretation of the Gospel narrative that could be shared with privileged members of the family. Some of these duplicates must have been produced with Caravaggio’s participation, and he was not shy of exploiting an invention when it suited him, as the several versions of the Boy bitten by a Lizard or the St Francis in Adoration show.
In Naples Caravaggio seems to have found a sponsorship similar to that of Prospero Orsi, It seems likely that it was Louis Finson and his partner Abraham Vinck who offered Caravaggio refuge when he arrived in the city, gave him a place to work, and also found clients to purchase his paintings. The two Flemish artists were well established in Naples, with great social connections. Born probably in the early 1570s (his mother died in 1580), Finson’s Italian journey must have begun some time before he is recorded in Naples in 1604, i0n line with most of the Northerners who came to Italy, like his near contemporary Rubens (born 1577) who set out from Antwerp in May 1600, while Van Dyck arrived in Genoa when he was twenty-two. His partner in Naples was the Flemish merchant and painter Abraham Vinck (Antwerp c. 1575 – Amsterdam 1619) who settled in the city about 1600, married a Neapolitan – Vittoria Obechini – there and raised a family before going back to the Netherlands in 1610. This partnership meant that the two Flemish artists were already established in their career, and indeed they had a reputation as portraitists, copyists and agents: by 1608 they had a studio in Piazza Toledo in the centre of the city (the present Piazza Carità), next to S. Anna dei Lombardi for which Caravaggio painted three pictures in the Femaroli chapel,
and just by the palazzo of Giambattista della Porta, the author of Magiae Naturalis and one of the most progressive scientists of the time; just beyond the church in Via Monteoliveto is Palazzo Gravina, where Ferrante Imperato had his Museum. [Detail from Alessandro Baratta’s Map of Naples, 1628: #23 is the Church (and Piazza) S. Maria della Carità, 188 is S. Anna dei Lombardi, behind it is Palazzo Gravina; 168 is the complex of Santo Spirito next to Porta Reale].
Their agency seems as fruitful as that of Prospero Orsi in Rome: the first Caravaggio they replicated was the Mary Magdalene, which Caravaggio is believed to have painted in Zagarolo. Even though he was a fugitive from justice and the revenge of the Tommassonis, his months there in 1606/07 were extremely productive, and he must have had good introductions as well as safe shelter as he painted major pieces like the Seven Acts of Mercy. It seems logical to assume that they were instrumental in an introduction to Alfonso Femaroli, for whom Caravaggio painted three paintings – the Stigmatisation of St Francis, St John the Baptist, and the Resurrection, for his chapel in the neighbouring S. Anna sei Lombardi (all lost in the 1805 earthquake). Among Finson’s clients was Niccolò Radolovich (A.E. Denunzio, Per due committenze di Caravaggio a Napoli, Nicolò Radolovich e il vicerè VIII conde-duca di Benavente (1603-1610) in Napoles y España Collecionismo y mecenazgo virreales en el siglo XVII, ed J.L Colomer, Madrid 2009, p. 175- 194) for whom Caravaggio painted a (lost) altarpiece. Other clients of Finson’s included Vincenzo and Tommaso de Franchis, for whom Caravaggio painted the Flagellation in San Domenico Maggiore, which was paid for in May 1607. Perhaps even more significantly he must have had a close relationship with the Viceroy, Duca de Benavente, who took away with him several Caravaggios when he left for Spain in July 1610.
Finson’s father was a decorative painter in Bruges, and would have been regarded as a pittore doratore in Italian practice, but both Louis’s brothers were painters too and there was less emphasis on the rigid guild distinctions that would have otherwise limited their activity as artists. But it is perhaps no coincidence that Louis’s chief profession was that of a portraitist, like that of his partner Vinck, ‘amicissimo del Caravaggio’ who evidently had a wide clientele in Naples, and they must have already achieved an established profession and style. The workshop included other assistants, like Andrea Perciabosco, and from 1611 probably Martin Faber, who continued to work with Finson in France. So it is possible to see different hands in versions of the same composition that originated in this studio. Vinck shared the ability to capture likeness, to copy from life or from other works of art, which was something that Caravaggio himself traded on, for he was taken on by Cardinal Del Monte for precisely this ability. Vinck dealt in antiquities but was also a painter of still-lives and market scenes, and although there is nothing documented of this activity it might be that the prominent still-life in paintings like Finson’s Adam and Eve in Marburg is by him. And it can seem as though the studio did turn out repetitions of some of the paintings produced there: there are other versions of the Viceroy’s Crucifixion of St Andrew that Finson had, there was a (untraced) version of the Madonna of the Rosary in Amsterdam, and several versions of Caravaggio’s Mary Magdalen. The two versions of the Judith and Holofernes, the subject of a Caravaggio that Frans Pourbus saw with the Madonna of the Rosary in what is evidently the Finson/Vinck studio in Naples in 1607 were evidently not far apart, as seems to be documented by their identical supports. Perhaps more significantly these merchants must have had a close relationship with the Viceroy,, who took away with him several Caravaggios when he left for Spain in July 1610: they included the Crucifixion of St Andrew (now in Cleveland Museum of Art). Finson was able to make copies of the painting, as many as three versions of it are known, including a version that was for sale in Amsterdam in 1619, from Finson’s estate, as an original Caravaggio. Like the copy of the Madonna of the Rosary that was for sale in Amsterdam in 1630, some of them undoubtedly were marketed with the attribution to Caravaggio, and the realisation that these copies are not all by the same hand points to the replication that went on in the Finson / Vinck studio. Another work done by Caravaggio for Benavente, the San Gennaro with the instruments of his Martyrdom, is known from Finson’s copy of it now in the Palmer Museum, Pennsylvania State University (bequest of Morton and Mary Jane Harris), while another work for him, a Christ Washing the Feet of the Disciples, is still unknown. This patronage however points to Finson’s (and Vinck’s) close links with the Spanish community in Naples, and we know that Finson was intending, when he left Rome for the South of France in 1613, to go on to Spain, where he evidently thought there was fertile ground for the new naturalism. There were already Caravaggios in Madrid, for the Conde de Villamediana had bought (as Bellori tells us) a ragazzo con fiore di melarancio in mano and the David with the Head of Goliath (now in Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum) where the Flemish composition under the painting points to a used panel that was made available to the artist in the same workshop. It is the privileged access that these Flemish merchants had to the works that Caravaggio produced during his months in Naples that strongly suggests that it was their studio that he worked while he was there.
Through these links we can begin to distinguish the business of promoting what was evidently a sensational innovation: both Prospero Orsi and the Finson / Vinck firm devoted the second part of their careers to exploiting the imagery that Caravaggio had invented. Wherever Caravaggio’s inventions arrived they had a tremendous impact, even when they were translations like Ambassador Béthune’s pictures, or Finson’s own creations like the Resurrection he painted in Naples and parted with in Aix-en-Provence. How much this promotion was done with Caravaggio’s participation is of course unclear, but some of it must have been achieved knowingly and in his presence.
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Your body is your temple. Keep it pure and clean for the soul to reside in.
WHOLE FOODS – WHOLE HEALTH
Let’s talk about food today. I will touch on the topic of whole foods, a plant-based diet in this article, its benefits, and how we can make the first steps and incorporate more healthy foods into our diets.
Learn the Lingo
Let’s start by reviewing some definitions.
Whole food describes natural foods that are not heavily processed. That means whole, unrefined, or minimally refined ingredients.
Plant-based means food that comes from plants and doesn’t contain animal ingredients such as meat, milk, eggs, or honey.
A whole-foods, plant-based diet is a lifestyle that is based on eating mostly plants. It excludes or drastically reduces animal products (meat, dairy, eggs) and processed, highly refined foods (bleached flours, refined sugars, and oils).
The term vegan describes a lifestyle that excludes, as far as possible, all animal products for food, clothing, or any other purpose. This includes but is not limited to meat, fish, dairy, eggs, and honey.
Vegetarian is a more widely known lifestyle and excludes foods that consist of, or have been produced with the aid of products composed of, or created from any part of the body of a living or dead animal. This includes meat, poultry, fish, or insects. Vegetarians typically eat dairy and eggs.
An omnivore is a person that eats food of both plant and animal origin. A carnivore follows a lifestyle that includes consuming meat.
Expand Your Palate
You may be thinking that a whole-foods, plant-based diet is going to be hard work or boring and that avoiding animal ingredients limits your options – Think again!
This is your opportunity to become a more innovative and healthy cook. As you try and work with new ingredients, you’ll gain a deeper appreciation for food. Think of this experience as a flavor adventure! Food allows you to travel and experience a variety of cuisines from your own home. Sure if you cook the same veggies the same way day after day, you’ll get bored. The same is true with any food. Trying a plant-based, whole-food diet is your opportunity to explore and expand your palate.
A ton of research has been done providing excellent scientific evidence that many chronic diseases can be controlled, reduced, or even reversed by moving to a whole-food, plant-based diet. A book called The China Study noted as the most comprehensive study of nutrition ever shows that a plant-based diet can reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, certain types of cancer, and other significant illnesses. These are pretty big claims! The research done in The China Study has been the landmark for many other studies since, reporting more significant fitness payoffs, more energy, reduced inflammation, and better health outcomes.
Three categories of plant-based benefits have been identified:
EASY WEIGHT MANAGEMENT: People who eat a plant-based diet tend to be leaner than those who don’t, and the diet makes it easy to lose weight and keep it off—without counting calories.
DISEASE PREVENTION: Whole-food, plant-based eating can prevent, halt, or even reverse chronic diseases, including heart disease and type 2 diabetes.
A LIGHTER ENVIRONMENTAL FOOTPRINT: A plant-based diet places much less stress on the environment.
“What you find at the end of your fork is more powerful than anything you’ll find at the bottom of a pill bottle.”
Dr. Mark Hyman
Let’s go over some of the disease prevention benefits in more detail:
A Healthy Heart
One of the most well-known benefits of a whole-food, plant-based diet is increased heart health. Did you know that a plant-based diet is the ONLY diet proven to prevent and reverse heart disease? No other diet can make that claim. Researchers have been studying the benefits of plant-based diets since the 1980s. Recent research, presented during the 2017 American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions, revealed that plant-based diets could reduce the risk of heart failure by 42 percent among people with no history of heart disease. Another study found that participants who consumed a plant-based diet even showed a reversal of coronary artery disease. Protective factors are attributed to both the quality and types of foods consumed. For example, a study published in the Journal of American College of Cardiology found that among 200,000 participants who followed a healthy plant-based diet rich in vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, and nuts had a significantly lower risk of developing heart disease than those following non-plant-based diets. It’s important to note that the study also found that unhealthy plant-based diets that included sugary drinks, fruit juices, and refined grains were associated with a slightly increased risk of heart disease.
Research suggests that following a plant-based diet may reduce your risk of certain types of cancer. There are two important factors to know when discussing cancer. First, cancer cells thrive in a high-sugar environment. When the cells are starved (by reducing sugar), they cannot flourish. Second, while DNA can play a role in the risk of developing cancer, diet, lifestyle, and environmental factors are modifiable conditions that also contribute. Vegetarian diets are associated with a significantly lower risk of gastrointestinal and colorectal cancer. Did you know that the American Cancer Society recommends that cancer survivors follow plant-based diets that are high in fruits, vegetables, and unrefined grains while at the same time being low in red and processed meats, refined grains, and sugars? Research has shown that plant-based diets positively affect survival in cancers of the: breast, colon, prostate, and skin (melanoma). A whole-foods, plant-based diet can help reduce inflammation, boost your immune system, and decrease body weight, all of which are attributed to reducing cancer risks.
Adopting a whole-foods, plant-based diet may be a useful tool in managing and reducing your risk of developing diabetes. Countless studies have examined the effects of diet and diabetes. The results are promising! Take a look: A study of more than 200,000 people, published in a peer-reviewed weekly medical journal, found that those who adhered to a healthy plant-based eating pattern had a 34% lower risk of developing diabetes than those who followed unhealthy, non-plant-based diets. Similarly, a study published in Diabetes Care demonstrated that plant-based diets were associated with nearly a 50% reduction in the risk of type 2 diabetes compared to non-vegetarian diets. There’s also good news for people with diabetes, a study published in Cardiovascular Diagnosis & Therapy found plant-based diets have been shown to improve blood sugar control in people with diabetes.
A Plant-Based Diet and Your Brain
Plant-based eating is associated with many health benefits, and the brain is no exception! Plant-based diets appear to influence both mental health and cognitive function positively. Higher levels of antioxidants in the blood from plant sources have been associated with a significantly lower risk of depression, and lower suicide rates. In both cross-sectional and interventional studies, vegetarians showed fewer symptoms of depression, anxiety, stress, and mood disturbance than omnivores. The higher levels of antioxidants are also attributed to slowing the progression of Alzheimer’s disease and reversing cognitive deficits. Countless studies report an association between higher intakes of fruits and vegetables and a reduction in cognitive decline. A meta-analysis, which is a review of several different studies of a similar subject, found that eating more fruits and vegetables led to a 20% reduction in the risk of developing cognitive impairment or dementia. The analysis reviewed nine studies including over 31,000 people.
The benefits are pretty astonishing, right? I could go on all day sharing scientifically-backed benefits of whole foods and plant-based eating, but I think you get the picture.
Switching to a plant-based diet is a lifestyle change that can be intimidating at first. Instead of focusing on what you shouldn’t eat or foods to avoid, it’s more effective to start including more of the good stuff.
Here’s a quick overview of the major food categories you’ll enjoy on a plant-based diet, with examples:
FRUITS: any type of fruit including apples, bananas, grapes, strawberries, citrus fruits, etc.
VEGETABLES: plenty of veggies including peppers, corn, avocados, lettuce, spinach, kale, peas, collards, etc.
TUBERS: root vegetables like potatoes, carrots, parsnips, sweet potatoes, beets, etc.
WHOLE GRAINS: grains, cereals, and other starches in their whole form, such as quinoa, brown rice, millet, whole wheat, oats, barley, etc. Even popcorn is a whole grain.
LEGUMES: beans of any kind, plus lentils, pulses, and similar ingredients.
Don’t worry. There’s so much more than I listed above.
- Success in any aspect of life comes down to setting a goal.
- Here are some tips for establishing an achievable goal for yourself:
- Become aware of a need.
- Envision the outcome.
- Set the intention.
- Focus on the goal.
- Take action to achieve the goal.
- Have faith that if you set the intention, focus, and take action, you will reach your goal or the outcome that is best.
You may want to start big and then create stepping stones (smaller goals) to achieve the big picture goal.
For example, where do you want your health to be in 10 years from now? This is your big-picture goal. From here you’ll create smaller goals that will enable you to reach your ultimate goal.
One way to do this is through SMART goal setting:
S – Specific
M – Measurable
A – Achievable
R – Rewarding
T – Timely
Remember, any goal worth achieving is a goal worth working toward!
Once you have your goal planned out, you’ll want to prepare your kitchen to help keep you on track. This means removing or putting foods you’re trying to avoid out of sight. You can start by adding items on the DO list below and removing items on the DON’T list.
Nuts and seeds
Sugar, sugar substitutes
A well-stocked pantry will help you along your road to success. You may eventually also want to invest in a juicer, blender or immersion blender, and food dehydrator. These are nice-to-haves but not necessary for getting started. You will, however, want to invest in glass containers with lids to help you with food prep.
Some people dread food shopping. Make it easier for yourself by meal planning and gathering a few recipes. Once you know what ingredients you’ll need you can make a list.
- Look for recipes with similar ingredients so you can buy for the week in bulk and limit prep time. When writing out your list, picture the grocery store.
- List out items per store department rather than by recipe to help you stay organized and get through the store faster.
- When shopping at a grocery store, stick to the perimeter of the store for healthier foods. The middle of the store contains all the processed packaged items that you want to avoid!
- To avoid getting bored with the same flavors and foods, expand your shopping to local and ethnic markets. Look for different seasonings to cook within ethnic markets to spice up recipes. You may even find products not offered in your regular grocery store.
- Attempt to purchase local produce. Local items will be fresher, may have less chemical exposure, and have a lower environmental impact.
Before you go shopping, make sure to give yourself time for food prep once you return home. Trust me; you’re a lot more likely to use all that produce if it’s ready to go when hunger strikes. Just make it a habit of washing and cutting EVERYTHING before putting it away. This will help cut down meal prep time. Our busy schedules prevent most of us from cooking fresh meals every day, but if the prep is done all you have to do is cook. This is where glass containers with lids will come in handy. Some foods can be cut and stored while others can be cooked and reheated. Produce will typically last up to 10 days in the refrigerator. Fresh herbs have a shorter lifespan. You can buy herb plants for your kitchen or mix herbs with a healthy oil to cook with later on.
Getting Started Tips
To make your transition as smooth as possible, here are a few helpful tips to get you started.
Start by eating more of the plant-based meals you already eat. Rice and beans, veggie stir-frys, and pasta with tomato sauce are already vegetarian. Sift through your current food routine and pick out a few meatless meals you already enjoy.
Shift the balance. When eating a meal you enjoy with meat, add more plant foods to the mix. You don’t have to give up your favorite animal foods immediately. If there are one or two meals, you don’t want to live without, start by cutting animal foods you don’t eat often.
Find other plant-based eaters! Either invite friends and family to join your journey or look for vegetarian meetup groups. When making changes in your life, it’s always easier when you involve others.
Some Tasty Recipes
Try these recipes from forksoverknives.com:
Baked tortilla chips
2-4 cups cooked grains
2-4 cups cooked beans
2-4 cups chopped romaine lettuce or steamed kale
2-4 chopped tomatoes
1-2 chopped green onions
2 cups corn kernels
1 avocado, chopped
Check the recipe here.
EASY THAI NOODLES
8 ounces brown rice noodles or other whole-grain noodles
3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce, or to taste 2 tablespoons brown rice syrup or maple syrup
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice (from 1 to 2 limes)
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 (12-ounce) package frozen Asian-style vegetables (about 3 cups)
1 cup mung bean sprouts
2 green onions, white and light green parts chopped
3 tablespoons chopped, roasted, unsalted peanuts
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 lime, cut into wedges
Check the recipe here.
“NO-TUNA” SALAD SANDWICH
For the salad:
1 (15-ounce) can of chickpeas, rinsed and drained
3 tablespoons tahini
1 teaspoon Dijon or spicy brown mustard
1 tablespoon maple syrup or agave nectar
¼ cup diced red onion
¼ cup diced celery
¼ cup diced pickle
1 teaspoon capers, drained and loosely chopped Healthy pinch of each sea salt and black pepper
1 tablespoon roasted unsalted sunflower seeds (optional)
8 slices of whole-wheat bread
Dijon or spicy brown mustard
Red onion, sliced
Check the recipe here.
A Word On Supplements
Getting your nutritional needs from supplements may be tempting. However, supplements aren’t intended to be a food substitute because they can’t replicate all of the nutrients and benefits of whole foods.
Depending on your situation and your eating habits, dietary supplements may or may not be worth the expense. But there are some essential ones worth considering, like Vitamin D, B12, Magnesium, Omega 3, and maybe some probiotics. The list can go on but it really depends on every individual and their lifestyle.
Whole foods offer three main benefits over dietary supplements:
GREATER NUTRITION: Whole foods are complex, containing a variety of the micronutrients your body needs.
ESSENTIAL FIBER: Whole foods, such as whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and legumes, provide dietary fiber which is necessary for a healthy diet.
PROTECTIVE SUBSTANCES: Whole foods contain other substances necessary for good health, for example, naturally occurring elements called phytochemicals and antioxidants can be found in fruits and vegetables.
As you continue your switch to a whole-foods, plant-based diet make sure to check in with your goals. This will help keep you motivated. You may find your goals change over time- that’s okay! You can adapt to them. The key is staying motivated.
There are several documentaries that you can watch to get more information about plant-based diets, including Forks Over Knives, which looks at the relationship between plant-based diets and managing disease. The Forks Over Knives website also contains many valuable resources related to plant-based diets.
Books I found useful:
- How Not To Die by Michael Greger
- The China Study by T. Colin Campbell
- The Mind-Gut Connection: How the Hidden Conversation Within Our Bodies Impacts Our Mood, Our Choices, and Our Overall Health by Emeran Mayer
- A Plant-Based Life: Your Complete Guide to Great Food, Radiant Health, Boundless Energy, and a Better Body by Micaela Karlsen
- The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan
Meatless Monday is an excellent resource for information and recipes: https://www.meatlessmonday.com/ https://www.supercook.com/#/recipes
While we can’t control our genetics, many lifestyle factors within our control contribute to our state of health. Diet is considered the most significant contributing factor to chronic illness.
I know switching to a more whole-foods and more plant-based diet can seem daunting. What I have learned along the way is that diet and health are not ‘a one size fits’ all issue, and bringing changes to our lives can be stressful and overwhelming. Just take it one step at a time and don’t forget what personally motivates you to stay on this path.
Let’s work together on transitioning to a whole-foods, plant-based lifestyle for better health!
If you feel stuck, not knowing what direction to go and what steps to take to bring more health into your everyday life, and you would benefit from some support, don’t hesitate to get in touch and reach out to book a 20min discovery call.
You can read more about my services here.
If you enjoyed this article, don’t hesitate to share it with your friends, and make sure to subscribe to my newsletter to receive new articles published regularly.
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The first defining feature of the medieval experience of the law, which we will now begin to examine in depth, is its profound discontinuity with the experience that precedes it. Medieval legal thought begins to define itself amongst the strategies and innovations with which the society of the fourth, and especially the fifth, centuries AD sought to reorient itself in the void generated by the collapse of the Roman political structure and of the culture that existed within that structure. Historically, the most salient point is the manner in which the society of the time dealt with that sudden absence of power. For now, we shall deal with the void as it affected the political sphere, which was the most consequential and the most problematic difficulty the new system of law had to face.
A machinery of power as robust, well-constructed and extensive as that of the Roman empire would not, indeed could not, be replaced by one of equal quality and vigour. The novel and defining a feature of the era is, therefore, the incompleteness of political power in the medieval period. By incompleteness, I mean the lack of any totalizing ambition in the political system of the time: its inability, and its unwillingness, to concern itself with controlling all forms of social behaviour. The political sphere in the Middle Ages governed only certain aspects of interpersonal relationships, leaving others, many others, open to the influence of competing powers. It is clear that political power – as the supreme power – was exercised in a variety of ways and was often wielded to full effect across certain defined geographical areas. It was also not uncommon to see unlimited power concentrated in the hands of a single prince who used it tyrannically. However, throughout the medieval period, the totalizing and all-encompassing mentality which, as we shall see, will be the distinguishing feature and the ultimate ambition of the princes of modernity is absent. The medieval prince concerns himself only with that which will help him maintain a firm grip on power: the army; public administration; taxes; and repression and coercion of the populace insofar as it helps him maintain order. He is not interested in being a puppeteer who pulls all the strings in the social and economic interactions of his subjects.
We may well ask, and indeed we ought to ask, why this was so: why was a political power in the Middle Ages, despite many instances of tyranny, fundamentally weak and above all incomplete? The answer is that this situation was brought about by the conjunction of a very particular set of circumstances. The centuries of transition between late antiquity and the medieval period, that is from around the end of the fourth century until the sixth, bore witness to a great population crisis brought about by war, disease and famine, a crisis which wrought dramatic changes upon the social and agricultural landscape. The population fell significantly and the area of land cultivated fell with it. Subsistence became more and more difficult and the natural world regained its status as an untamed and untameable environment, looming much larger in the collective imagination. The anthropocentric society of Rome, which was founded upon an optimistic faith in man’s abilities to subdue nature, was gradually replaced by a more pessimistic attitude with much less belief in man’s capacities and far greater emphasis on the primacy of reality. The anthropocentrism of classical civilization was therefore slowly overtaken by a resolute reicentrism: a belief in the centrality of the res (‘thing’), and of the totality of things that make up the cosmos.
This attitude became a collective belief that invested the most insignificant of objects with an aura of power. Power was attributed first and foremost to the natural world, which was seen as a system of primordial rules to be respected. This system of rules conditioned the daily life of medieval communities. There are also two other, more specific, historical factors which had a great influence on medieval social structures. One of the defining events of the first centuries of the nascent Middle Ages was the intermingling of the Nordic races with Mediterranean civilization Ostrogoths, Visigoths, Vandals, Swabians, Longobards, Burgundians and Franks all established themselves in the Mediterranean region, and built stable socio-political structures there. As one would expect, they brought with them their own political mores, which were distinctive and very different from those they found where they arrived. In the Roman empire an idea of power as sacred, originating in the Orient, had held sway for some time; the holders of power in Rome were therefore seen as earthly manifestations of the divine. The northern races, meanwhile, took a more detached view, seeing power as a practical necessity and casting the wielder of power as his subjects’ guide. There, therefore, arose in the collective imagination a narrative of descent from distant ancestors who were wanderers. On the other hand, there was the Roman Church, whose influence grew steadily after the fourth century, with an organizational network which spread to the most far-flung territories. Given the absence, or impotence, of imperial power in many of these locations, the Church was by now the de facto political power there and could not but frown upon the arrival of a robust rival system, especially one which moved the attitude of the people in an anti-absolutist direction.
The result was, as I have said above, that the political system of the Middle Ages was characterized by a fundamental incompleteness, with important consequences for the rule of law. There certainly was a link from political power to law, that is to say, there was law conceived of and promulgated under the influence of politics. This was the sort of law which emanates from on high in the form of commandments; indeed, it was the sort of law to which Europeans were accustomed until recently at the height of modernity. In medieval times, however, such politically generated law was restricted to the areas of legality that were useful to a prince in the exercise of power. Yet great swathes of the legal relationships which governed the daily lives of the people could not be included amongst these ‘political’ laws. In these relationships, to which the political system of the times was largely indifferent, the law was able to regain its normal character of reflecting the reciprocal demands of society and the plural currents which circulate through that society. The law, when generated de bas en haut, is part of the complex and shifting reality of a society which is in the process of ordering itself and, by so doing, preserving itself. This type of law is not written in the commandments of a prince, in an authoritative text on the paper of the learned; it is an order inscribed in things, in physical and social objects, which can be read by the eyes of the humble and translated into rules for living. An unexpressed but keenly felt suspicion arises that the law, the true law that is, rather than the artifice which helps the powerful maintain their supremacy, is a totality of values underlying social and economic relationships. The law is thus an order which functions as a lifejacket for society, whilst the community, aware of this, responds to its values by observing the rules which emanate from them.
Two points must be emphasized.
This type of law is more organizing than empowering (or potestative in technical language). The difference between the two adjectives is not insignificant: the former signifies a bottom-up generation of law that takes objective reality into respectful account; the latter describes the law as the expression of a superior will, which descends top-down and can do violence to objective reality in its arbitrariness and artifice. In a normative vision, the law is behaviour itself which, when understood as a value of life in general, is followed and becomes the norm; it is not the voice of power, but rather the expression of the plurality of interests coexisting in any given section of society.
The second fundamental point, and it is one which follows closely from the first, is that, when viewed in this light, the law acquires its own autonomy – despite being submerged in history, and despite being buried under the corporeality of the various interests and fluctuating demands of society. The law emerges as the ordering principle of society, which strives for legal solutions which allow society to continue independently of who wields power. And, contrary to what occurs under the leaden cape of statutory law (in late modernity, for example), where the law becomes the expression of a centralized and centralizing will (legal monism), we will observe that the Middle Ages are, throughout, an age of legal pluralism. The medieval period demonstrates the possibility of the coexistence of diverse legal orders emanating from diverse social groups, even whilst the sovereignty of one political authority over the territory those groups inhabits remains unquestioned. It is in this incompleteness of medieval political power, I believe, that the vital key to grasping the ‘secret’ of the developments in the experience of the law in the early medieval period lies. The distinctive features of medieval law from the beginnings of the era onwards stem directly from this incompleteness.
Given these considerations, the distinctiveness of medieval law imposes upon us certain cultural scruples. We must proceed with extreme caution when deploying vocabulary and concepts closely associated with a modern vision of the law. Indeed, in my opinion, we must avoid such terms and ideas for fear of provoking grave misunderstandings. The most problematic of these concepts, although by no means the only one, is the notion of the state, which many historians, legal and otherwise, transplant without hesitation to the Middle Ages. Leaving aside the fact that ‘state’ could also be used by medieval writers to signify one’s rank or social standing, what is most notable for our purposes is that the term state, as it is defined and deployed in current usage, has diverged profoundly from the medieval understanding of the term. Indeed, far from signifying a structural continuity, the term has come to denote a concept of extreme historicity: a political entity that is inextricable from the all-encompassing, monopolizing, potestative legal mindset that produced it. In effect, the state is the historical incarnation of political power that has attained perfect completeness. This is not to pose the crude question of whether there was such a thing as the state in medieval Europe, which is the dichotomy to which some have attempted to reduce the methodological problem I am discussing here. Rather, I would argue that, when studying any point in the course of medieval civilization, we should not expect to find the sort of complete political power that we moderns call the state. It is thus an elementary act of intellectual (and terminological) rigour to avoid both the word and the notion state when discussing the medieval historical context. | <urn:uuid:75f197d7-53cf-4a53-a3ae-17507949784b> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://europeanunionworld.com/component/content/article/126-perspectives/574-1-history-of-eu-law.html | 2024-12-03T11:00:33Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066137897.45/warc/CC-MAIN-20241203102227-20241203132227-00587.warc.gz | en | 0.970514 | 2,204 | 3.015625 | 3 |
Amsco AP US History 4th Edition PDF⁚ A Comprehensive Guide
This guide explores the features, content, and resources of the Amsco AP US History 4th Edition textbook, a widely used resource for students preparing for the Advanced Placement United States History exam. It covers key features, content coverage, alignment with the AP exam, assessment opportunities, teacher resources, availability, and student reviews. The guide also provides information on downloading the PDF version and additional resources for AP US History.
The Amsco AP US History 4th Edition textbook is a comprehensive and widely-used resource for students preparing for the Advanced Placement United States History exam. This textbook, written by John J. Newman and John M. Schmalbach, is designed to provide a thorough understanding of American history, encompassing key themes, events, and figures. Its concise and accessible style, combined with its alignment with the current AP Course and Exam Description, makes it a valuable tool for students seeking to excel in their AP US History course.
The 4th Edition of the Amsco AP US History textbook is a significant update, incorporating the latest scholarship and incorporating changes to the AP curriculum. This guide will delve into the key features of the 4th Edition, examining its content coverage, assessment opportunities, teacher resources, and accessibility. We will also explore student reviews and feedback, providing insights into its effectiveness as a learning tool.
Key Features of the Amsco AP US History 4th Edition
The Amsco AP US History 4th Edition is packed with features designed to enhance learning and prepare students for the AP exam. The textbook’s key features include⁚
- Comprehensive Content Coverage⁚ The textbook covers all essential content areas required for the AP US History exam, including the foundations of American democracy, branches of government, civil liberties and rights, political ideologies and beliefs, and political participation. It delves into key historical periods, movements, and figures, providing a solid foundation in American history.
- Alignment with AP Course and Exam Description⁚ The textbook is meticulously structured and written to align with the current AP Course and Exam Description. This ensures that students are exposed to the most relevant content and skills assessed on the exam.
- Primary Sources⁚ The textbook incorporates a variety of primary sources, including documents, images, and excerpts from historical texts. These sources provide students with firsthand perspectives on historical events and help them develop critical thinking skills.
- Multiple Assessment Opportunities⁚ The textbook offers a wide range of assessment opportunities, including unit reviews, practice quizzes, and a full-length practice exam modeled on the new course and exam descriptions. These assessments help students gauge their understanding and prepare for the AP exam.
- Teacher Resources⁚ A comprehensive Teacher Resource is available, providing teachers with supplementary materials and guidance for teaching the course effectively.
These features make the Amsco AP US History 4th Edition a valuable resource for both students and teachers, providing a comprehensive and engaging approach to AP US History.
The Amsco AP US History 4th Edition covers a comprehensive range of topics, providing students with a thorough understanding of American history. The textbook’s content coverage is organized into thematic units, each addressing a specific period or aspect of American history. Here’s a glimpse of the content covered⁚
- Period 1 (1491-1607)⁚ This unit explores the pre-Columbian Americas, European exploration and colonization, and the early interactions between Native Americans and Europeans.
- Period 2 (1607-1754)⁚ This unit examines the establishment of British colonies in North America, the development of colonial societies, and the growing tensions between Britain and its colonies.
- Period 3 (1754-1800)⁚ This unit focuses on the American Revolution, the formation of the United States, and the early years of the new nation.
- Period 4 (1800-1848)⁚ This unit covers the expansion of the United States westward, the development of a national economy, and the rise of sectionalism and reform movements.
- Period 5 (1844-1877)⁚ This unit examines the Civil War, Reconstruction, and the transformation of the United States into an industrial nation.
- Period 6 (1865-1914)⁚ This unit explores the Gilded Age, the rise of industrial capitalism, and the emergence of new social and political movements.
- Period 7 (1914-1945)⁚ This unit covers World War I, the Roaring Twenties, the Great Depression, and World War II.
- Period 8 (1945-1980)⁚ This unit examines the Cold War, the Civil Rights Movement, and the rise of a new global order.
- Period 9 (1980-Present)⁚ This unit covers recent developments in American history, including the rise of conservatism, globalization, and the post-Cold War era.
The textbook’s comprehensive content coverage, organized into distinct periods, provides students with a chronological and thematic understanding of American history.
Alignment with the AP Course and Exam Description
The Amsco AP US History 4th Edition is meticulously aligned with the current AP Course and Exam Description, ensuring that students are adequately prepared for the AP exam. This alignment is reflected in various aspects of the textbook⁚
- Content Structure⁚ The textbook’s content is organized into nine periods, mirroring the periodization framework outlined in the AP Course and Exam Description. Each period is further divided into topics that correspond to the specific historical events and themes covered in the exam.
- Historical Thinking Skills⁚ The Amsco textbook emphasizes the development of historical thinking skills, which are integral to the AP exam. Students are encouraged to analyze primary and secondary sources, interpret historical evidence, and make connections between historical events and concepts.
- Reasoning Processes⁚ The textbook provides opportunities for students to practice historical reasoning processes, such as causation, comparison, and continuity and change. This helps students develop the analytical skills necessary to answer complex historical questions on the exam.
- Themes⁚ The Amsco textbook incorporates the seven themes outlined in the AP Course and Exam Description, ensuring that students are familiar with the broader historical narratives and connections that underpin the study of American history.
- Content Correlation⁚ The textbook provides clear correlations between its content and the specific learning objectives and skills outlined in the AP Course and Exam Description. This helps students understand the expectations for the exam and focus their study efforts on key concepts and events.
By aligning with the AP Course and Exam Description, the Amsco textbook provides students with a framework for understanding the scope and depth of the exam and the skills required for success.
The Amsco AP US History 4th Edition provides a comprehensive set of assessment opportunities designed to help students gauge their understanding of the material and prepare for the AP exam. These opportunities are integrated throughout the textbook and include a variety of formats to cater to different learning styles⁚
- Unit Reviews⁚ Each unit in the textbook concludes with a comprehensive review that summarizes key concepts, terms, and events. These reviews help students consolidate their understanding of the material before moving on to the next unit.
- Assessments⁚ The textbook includes a variety of assessments, such as multiple-choice questions, short-answer questions, document-based questions (DBQs), and long-essay questions. These assessments are designed to mimic the format and difficulty of the AP exam, allowing students to practice their test-taking skills.
- Practice Exam⁚ The Amsco textbook includes a full-length practice exam modeled on the new AP Course and Exam Description. This exam provides students with a realistic simulation of the actual AP exam, enabling them to assess their preparedness and identify areas that require further review.
- Primary Source Analysis⁚ The textbook incorporates primary sources throughout its content, providing students with opportunities to analyze historical documents and artifacts. This helps students develop their critical thinking skills and understand the perspectives of historical figures.
- Special Features⁚ The Amsco textbook also includes various special features, such as timelines, maps, and charts, which provide visual and interactive ways for students to engage with the material. These features can also serve as assessment tools, allowing students to demonstrate their understanding of historical concepts in a different format.
By providing ample assessment opportunities, the Amsco textbook helps students track their progress, identify areas for improvement, and prepare for the challenges of the AP exam.
Recognizing the importance of supporting educators, Amsco provides a valuable Teacher Resource specifically designed to accompany the 4th Edition of their AP US History textbook. This resource is available exclusively to teachers and requires a school purchase order. To access it, teachers need to contact Amsco directly. The Teacher Resource is a valuable tool that complements the textbook and enhances the teaching experience by providing a range of supplementary materials and tools.
The Teacher Resource typically includes⁚
- Answer Keys⁚ Providing answer keys for all assessments within the textbook is crucial for teachers to effectively evaluate student progress and provide timely feedback.
- Teaching Guides⁚ These guides offer valuable insights and suggestions for effectively teaching each unit of the textbook. They may include lesson plans, activity ideas, and strategies for addressing specific learning objectives.
- Additional Resources⁚ The Teacher Resource might also include supplementary materials, such as primary source documents, historical maps, timelines, and graphic organizers, to further enrich the learning experience and provide diverse learning opportunities.
- Technology Integration⁚ The Teacher Resource might also incorporate technology-based tools and resources to enhance classroom engagement and facilitate interactive learning. This could include online simulations, interactive quizzes, and multimedia presentations.
By providing a comprehensive Teacher Resource, Amsco empowers educators to create engaging and effective learning environments that prepare students for the AP US History exam.
Availability and Accessibility
The Amsco AP US History 4th Edition textbook is widely available through various channels, making it accessible to students and educators. It can be purchased in both print and digital formats, offering flexibility for different learning preferences and needs. Print copies are readily available through online retailers like Amazon and Barnes & Noble, as well as traditional bookstores. Additionally, schools and libraries often stock the textbook for student use.
For those seeking a digital format, the Amsco textbook is accessible in a PDF version. While the availability of a free PDF download may vary, it is often possible to find it through online resources. However, it is important to note that accessing the textbook in this way may not be legal in all cases. Therefore, it is recommended to obtain the textbook through authorized channels to ensure compliance with copyright laws.
The accessibility of the Amsco AP US History 4th Edition textbook is further enhanced by the availability of the Teacher Resource, which is specifically designed to support educators. This resource is available exclusively to teachers and requires a school purchase order. By providing both print and digital formats and offering a dedicated Teacher Resource, Amsco ensures that the textbook is readily available and accessible to a broad audience.
Downloading the Amsco AP US History 4th Edition PDF
For students seeking a digital version of the Amsco AP US History 4th Edition textbook, obtaining a PDF download can be a convenient option. While acquiring a free PDF directly from Amsco may not be feasible, several online resources and communities offer access to these files. These platforms often operate as online libraries where users can share and access digital textbooks, including those for AP subjects. However, it is crucial to exercise caution when downloading materials from unofficial sources. Always ensure that the website is reputable and that the file is free from malware or viruses;
Alternatively, students can explore platforms like Scribd, a document-sharing website, where users can upload and share various files, including textbooks. A search for “Amsco AP US History 4th Edition PDF” on Scribd may yield results, though the availability and legality of these files can vary. It’s important to acknowledge that downloading copyrighted material without proper authorization may be illegal. Therefore, students should consider alternative options for accessing the textbook, such as purchasing the digital version directly from Amsco or checking with their school or library for potential digital resources.
While the convenience of a PDF download is undeniable, it’s crucial to prioritize legal and ethical means of obtaining educational materials. Always prioritize authorized channels for acquiring textbooks and respect copyright laws.
The Authors⁚ John J. Newman and John M. Schmalbach
The Amsco AP US History 4th Edition textbook is a collaborative effort between two experienced educators⁚ John J. Newman and John M. Schmalbach. John J. Newman, a seasoned author and educator, brings a wealth of experience to the project. He has contributed to numerous educational publications, including the previous editions of the Amsco AP US History textbook. His expertise in American history and his dedication to effective teaching methods are evident in the book’s clear and engaging writing style.
John M. Schmalbach, another prominent figure in the field of education, complements Newman’s expertise. Schmalbach has a strong background in teaching Advanced Placement U.S. History, having served as the Social Studies Department head at Abraham Lincoln High School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His practical experience in preparing students for the AP exam is reflected in the book’s focus on key concepts, historical thinking skills, and exam-relevant content.
Together, Newman and Schmalbach have crafted a textbook that is both comprehensive and accessible. They effectively combine their expertise to create a resource that empowers students to navigate the complexities of American history and confidently prepare for the AP exam.
Student Reviews and Feedback
The Amsco AP US History 4th Edition has garnered positive feedback from students who have used it to prepare for the AP exam. Many students praise the book’s clarity, conciseness, and organization. They appreciate the way the authors present complex historical events and concepts in a way that is easy to understand and retain. The book’s focus on key themes and historical thinking skills is also highly regarded by students, as it helps them develop a deeper understanding of the subject matter and prepares them for the exam’s essay questions.
Students also appreciate the book’s numerous assessment opportunities, including practice quizzes, unit reviews, and a full-length practice exam. These resources allow students to gauge their progress and identify areas where they need further review. The inclusion of primary sources and special features, such as timelines and maps, further enhances the learning experience by providing students with a broader context for the events they are studying.
Overall, student reviews of the Amsco AP US History 4th Edition are overwhelmingly positive. The book is widely recognized for its effectiveness in helping students master the content and skills necessary to succeed on the AP exam. | <urn:uuid:1499e868-b497-43b0-a3e2-f4cc5aefc5e5> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://artificity.com/amsco-4th-edition-pdf/ | 2024-12-03T21:31:09Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066140230.37/warc/CC-MAIN-20241203193917-20241203223917-00695.warc.gz | en | 0.923385 | 3,050 | 2.84375 | 3 |
Today is World Kindness Day. Founded in 1998 by the World Kindness Movement, a coalition of NGOs from more than 27 nations around the world, this day seeks to highlight the positive impact of showing how compassion can not only unite us globally but also build stronger local communities.
Not only does kindness touch others, but doing good can make you feel good. According to the Mayo Clinic, acts of kindness boost serotonin and dopamine, the neurotransmitters responsible for activating the reward/pleasure centers in the brain. It can even release endorphins, the body’s natural painkillers that can bring about feelings of euphoria.
There are many ways to be kind to the planet and others around you. This could mean checking in on that friend who you haven’t spoken to in a long time, reducing your plastic use, and eating more plant-based foods. It also includes being kind to yourself. Try not to beat yourself up when you make mistakes and practice gratitude, which can actually have a healing effect on the mind (and also release serotonin and dopamine!).
Practicing kindness can also be centered around supporting grassroots activism that addresses issues that affect us globally, nationally, and locally. These include healthcare, clean water, environmental conservation, and food insecurity. No act of kindness is too small.
Looking for ways to be kinder to the planet, people, and animals? Here are 9 grassroots charities to get involved with.
1. Earth Guardians
If Greta Thunberg has shown us anything over the past two years, it’s that young people are capable leaders and advocates for global change. Boulder, Colorado-based, charity Earth Guardians is an intergenerational charity that centers young activists who are on the frontlines of environmental and social justice movements, which often intersect. The youth-led organization began as an accredited high school in Maui back in 1992. It focused on creating positive environmental change through grassroots actions. Its first initiatives addressed local issues. These include restoring sandalwood forests and shutting down the practice of burning sugar cane. The latter releases toxic emissions into the atmosphere.
Today, Earth Justice educates and empowers young people across six continents about the power of political action and activism in their own community and on a global scale through art, music, and ground issues. In nearly three decades, the charity has helped establish fees on single-use plastic bags in Boulder, kick-started conservation projects in Mexico, planted 20,000 trees in Togo, and more. The charity also provides grants and stipends to Indigenous youth leaders for their work.
Learn more about Earth Guardians here.
2. Center for Biological Diversity
The Center for Biological Diversity is centered around the belief that humanity’s well-being is interconnected with the health of the environment, animals, and plants. Three men in their early 20s—Kierán Suckling, Peter Galvin, and Todd Schulke—who met while surveying owls in New Mexico for the U.S. Forest Service—founded the charity in 1989. During this time, they discovered a rare Mexican spotted owl in an area that was to be razed for timber. When their concerns were dismissed by the Forest Service, which prioritized profit over the land, they took the story to the local paper and in the end, saved the tree where the owl had taken up residence. Their actions reached other environmental advocates through word of mouth and soon, they became known as The Center for Biological Diversity.
Since its founding, this grassroots charity has worked to protect the Earth’s natural resources and inhabitants from the far-reaching effects of climate change through educating the public, advocating for environmental policies and political activism, litigation.
It employs a pro bono team of attorneys from large firms and has a full-time staff of environmental lawyers who work exclusively on its campaigns. According to the charity, 83 percent of its lawsuits have resulted in favorable outcomes.
Learn more about The Center of Biological Diversity here.
3. Surfers Against Sewage
It’s estimated that 8 million metric tons of plastic pollution makes its way into the oceans every year; Founded in 1990 in the seaside village of Porthtowan, UK, marine conservation charity Surfers Against Sewage is run by a 20-person team that tackles plastic pollution through beach clean-ups and other volunteer activities, petitions, and advocates for a reduction in single-use plastic.
Its primary mission is to protect the oceans, beaches, and wildlife against the scourge of single-use plastics. Surfers Against Sewage mobilizes volunteers through beach clean-ups (its beach clean-up community is the largest in the UK!), organizing campaigns, speaking with legislators, educating local communities on how to reduce plastic use, and challenging the industries to do better by the planet. Its campaign, Mass Unwrap, takes a lighthearted, but effective approach to showing the scope of our plastic waste. The charity encourages consumers to buy their groceries as they normally would, then unwrap their food and put it in empty trolleys.
Learn more about Surfers Against Sewage here.
Food Justice Charities
1. Chilis on Wheels
The idea for Chilis on Wheels was born when founder Michelle Carrera and her son sought out a vegan soup kitchen to volunteer at in NYC. Finding nothing that ticked those boxes, Carrera decided that she would take matters into her own hands. They would make vegan chili and give it away for free to anyone in need of a meal. On Thanksgiving Day in 2014, they gave away 20 bowls–and from that act of charity, a national movement was born.
Chilis on Wheels stands by the belief that access to healthy, plant-based food is a right, not a privilege. It began in NYC where its weekly meal shares and annual vegan Thanksgiving event are still going strong. But today it has 10 chapters all across the country run by a team of compassionate volunteers. You can even reach out to the charity in order to learn how to start your own local chapter.
Learn more about Chilis on Wheels and how to get involved here.
2. Food Not Bombs
Similar to Chilis on Wheels, Food Not Bombs believes that access to nourishing food is a right, regardless of income. Its philosophy centers around the question, “When a billion people go hungry each day, how can we spend another dollar on war?”
This volunteer-run organization collects imperfect produce, and shelf-stable vegan and vegetarian food that would otherwise be discarded, and gives the rescued groceries away to the community. Through this, it addresses both food insecurity and food waste. The USDA estimates that people throw away 30-40 percent of the food supply (roughly 133 billion pounds of food) each year.
Food Not Bombs has chapters in more than 1,000 cities across 67 countries. Several chapters also host weekly vegan meal shares. It has no headquarters and no leadership, relying on group consensus in order to make decisions. Due to this, anyone can start their own Food Not Bombs chapter. It also provides free food to people affected by disasters as well as activists participating in occupations, strikes, and marches.
Learn more about Food Not Bombs here.
3. Support + Feed
Maggie Baird, mother to Grammy Award-winning musician Billie Eilish, founded this new hunger relief initiative. Support + Feed was born amid the first months of COVID-19 lockdown. The initiative purchases meals from vegan restaurants affected by the pandemic and partners with nonprofit organizations to see to it that those in need get the food. It recently completed a summer campaign with the Boys & Girls Club of Metro L.A. and L.A. United School District in order to address food insecurity experienced by children and BIPOC communities. It began in LA, but it now has four chapters in major metropolitan areas. These include New York City, Washington DC, and Philadelphia.
“Knowing that we’re feeding so many people plant-based meals, hearing the comments of how delicious and nourishing the food is to their souls, and helping small businesses stay open, has been very rewarding,” Baird told LIVEKINDLY at the time.
It has provided more than 50,000 free vegan meals since April 2020.
Learn more about Support + Feed here.
Animal Justice Charities
1. Compassion in World Farming
Founded in 1967 by a British farmer who became opposed to increasingly intensive animal farming, Compassion in World Farming advocates for reforming farm animal welfare. Since its inception, the charity has ended the use of gestation crates in the UK and Europe. It now has chapters across more than 10 countries. These include the U.S., China, the Netherlands, and Spain. They campaign for better treatment of farmed animals so they can be recognized as sentient beings. It does that through grassroots activism including holding businesses and politicians accountable to creating policies that benefit animals and encouraging others to follow a plant-based diet.
Learn more about Compassion in World Farming here.
2. The African Wildlife Foundation
The African Wildlife Foundation is a charity that trains on-the-ground rangers to combat poaching and protect Africa’s endangered wildlife. This is critical for the ecosystem and people to thrive. It was founded in 1961 to address Africa’s unique conservation challenges. In its early years, it helped establish the College of African Wildlife Management at Mweka, Tanzania. It also built a conservation center at Nairobi National Park. Today, it combats poaching through cutting-edge technology to combat the online illegal wildlife trade. And in 2018, it pledged a $25 million investment to support African governments and communities working to protect threatened species.
Learn more about The African Wildlife Foundation here.
3. Local Animal Sanctuaries
Farm animal sanctuaries do the critical work of providing a safe haven for rescued animals, often survivors of animal agriculture industries. Not only that, but they also show how animals reared for food are so similar to the animals we keep as companions when allowed to live in peace. Did you know that turkeys make friends and love to cuddle? Cows also form strong bonds with each other and their human caretakers. Through this, sanctuaries can help shift peoples’ preconceived perceptions of farm animals. As nonprofits, they rely on donations and volunteers, so show your local farm sanctuary some love!
If there isn’t a local animal sanctuary in your area, don’t worry! Check out the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries directory to find one that speaks to you. | <urn:uuid:71944fc3-8d88-473e-b463-5d960fae532e> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.livekindly.com/ways-to-practice-community-kindness-world-kindness-day/ | 2024-12-12T17:57:04Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066110042.43/warc/CC-MAIN-20241212155226-20241212185226-00505.warc.gz | en | 0.954323 | 2,174 | 2.921875 | 3 |
Table of Contents
Tech Leaders Paving the Way for Climate Change Solutions.
Tech leaders play a crucial role in advocating for climate change solutions. With their influence, resources, and innovative mindset, they have the power to drive significant change and address the pressing environmental challenges we face today. This article explores some of the prominent tech leaders who are actively advocating for climate change solutions and working towards a more sustainable future.
Elon Musk’s Role in Advancing Climate Change Solutions
Elon Musk, the renowned entrepreneur and CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, has emerged as one of the most prominent tech leaders advocating for climate change solutions. With his visionary approach and relentless pursuit of sustainable technologies, Musk has become a driving force in the fight against climate change.
Musk’s commitment to addressing climate change is evident in his ambitious goals for Tesla, the electric vehicle (EV) company he co-founded. Tesla’s mission is to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy, and Musk has been at the forefront of this mission. Under his leadership, Tesla has revolutionized the automotive industry by producing high-performance electric vehicles that have gained widespread popularity.
One of Tesla’s most significant contributions to combating climate change is the development of affordable and accessible electric cars. Musk recognized that in order to make a real impact, EVs needed to be desirable and attainable for the average consumer. By introducing models like the Model S, Model 3, and Model Y, Tesla has made electric cars more mainstream and has helped to dispel the notion that they are only for the wealthy.
In addition to making electric cars more accessible, Musk has also focused on building a robust charging infrastructure. Tesla’s Supercharger network, which consists of thousands of charging stations worldwide, allows Tesla owners to travel long distances without worrying about running out of power. This infrastructure has played a crucial role in alleviating range anxiety and has contributed to the widespread adoption of electric vehicles.
Musk’s commitment to sustainability extends beyond electric cars. Through his other ventures, such as SpaceX and SolarCity, he is actively working towards a future powered by renewable energy. SpaceX, Musk’s aerospace company, aims to make space travel more sustainable by developing reusable rockets. By reusing rockets, SpaceX significantly reduces the cost and environmental impact of space exploration.
SolarCity, a solar energy services company founded by Musk’s cousins, was acquired by Tesla in 2016. This acquisition allowed Musk to integrate solar energy generation and storage with Tesla’s electric vehicles, creating a comprehensive sustainable energy ecosystem. Musk’s vision is to create a world where homes and businesses are powered by clean, renewable energy sources, reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
Musk’s advocacy for climate change solutions goes beyond his business ventures. He has been vocal about the urgent need to address climate change and has used his platform to raise awareness about the issue. Through social media, interviews, and public appearances, Musk has consistently emphasized the importance of transitioning to sustainable energy sources and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Furthermore, Musk has made bold commitments to accelerate the fight against climate change. In 2020, he announced the Tesla “Gigafactory” in Berlin, which aims to produce batteries and electric vehicles with zero emissions. Musk also pledged a $100 million prize for the best carbon capture technology, encouraging innovation in the field.
In conclusion, Elon Musk’s role in advancing climate change solutions cannot be overstated. Through his leadership at Tesla, SpaceX, and SolarCity, he has revolutionized the automotive and aerospace industries, making sustainable technologies more accessible and desirable. Musk’s commitment to sustainability extends beyond his business ventures, as he actively advocates for climate change solutions and raises awareness about the urgency of the issue. With his visionary approach and relentless pursuit of a sustainable future, Musk has become a tech leader at the forefront of the fight against climate change.
Bill Gates’ Efforts in Promoting Climate Change Solutions
Bill Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft and one of the world’s wealthiest individuals, has been at the forefront of advocating for climate change solutions. Recognizing the urgent need to address this global crisis, Gates has dedicated a significant portion of his time and resources to finding innovative ways to combat climate change.
One of Gates’ most notable initiatives is the Breakthrough Energy Ventures (BEV) fund, which he launched in 2016. This fund aims to invest in companies that are developing cutting-edge technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. With a focus on sectors such as electricity, transportation, agriculture, and manufacturing, BEV seeks to accelerate the transition to a clean energy future.
Gates firmly believes that innovation is the key to solving the climate crisis. In his book, “How to Avoid a Climate Disaster,” he emphasizes the importance of investing in research and development to create breakthrough technologies. Gates argues that we need to go beyond the current solutions and develop new tools that can effectively address the scale and complexity of the climate challenge.
To further support his vision, Gates co-founded the Breakthrough Energy Coalition (BEC) in 2015. This coalition brings together a diverse group of global investors, including business leaders, entrepreneurs, and philanthropists, who are committed to investing in clean energy innovation. By pooling their resources and expertise, the coalition aims to provide the necessary funding and support to help promising clean energy startups succeed.
In addition to his financial contributions, Gates has also been actively involved in raising awareness about climate change. He frequently speaks at conferences and events, sharing his insights and urging governments, businesses, and individuals to take action. Gates believes that it is crucial to engage people from all walks of life in the fight against climate change, as collective action is essential to achieve meaningful results.
Gates’ efforts extend beyond the realm of technology and innovation. He recognizes that addressing climate change requires a multi-faceted approach that encompasses policy, economics, and social factors. Through his philanthropic organization, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Gates supports projects that aim to improve access to clean energy in developing countries and help vulnerable communities adapt to the impacts of climate change.
Furthermore, Gates has been a vocal advocate for policies that promote clean energy and reduce carbon emissions. He has called for governments to invest in research and development, establish carbon pricing mechanisms, and provide incentives for clean energy adoption. Gates believes that by creating the right policy framework, we can accelerate the deployment of clean technologies and drive the transition to a sustainable future.
In conclusion, Bill Gates’ efforts in promoting climate change solutions are commendable. Through initiatives like the Breakthrough Energy Ventures fund and the Breakthrough Energy Coalition, Gates is driving innovation and investment in clean energy technologies. His advocacy work, both through public speaking engagements and philanthropic endeavors, is raising awareness and mobilizing action on a global scale. Gates’ holistic approach, which combines technology, policy, and social impact, demonstrates his commitment to finding comprehensive solutions to the climate crisis. As we navigate the challenges of climate change, leaders like Bill Gates play a crucial role in inspiring and guiding us towards a more sustainable future.
Tim Cook’s Advocacy for Sustainable Technology
Tim Cook’s Advocacy for Sustainable Technology
In recent years, the issue of climate change has become increasingly urgent, with scientists warning that we are running out of time to take meaningful action. As a result, many tech leaders have stepped up to advocate for climate change solutions, using their influence and resources to drive positive change. One such leader is Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple Inc.
Under Cook’s leadership, Apple has made significant strides in reducing its carbon footprint and promoting sustainable technology. In fact, the company has set a goal to become carbon neutral by 2030, not only for its own operations but also for its entire supply chain. This ambitious target demonstrates Cook’s commitment to addressing climate change on a global scale.
One of the key ways Apple is working towards carbon neutrality is through the use of renewable energy. The company has invested heavily in solar and wind energy projects, both for its own facilities and for its suppliers. By transitioning to clean energy sources, Apple is not only reducing its greenhouse gas emissions but also driving the renewable energy industry forward.
In addition to renewable energy, Apple is also focused on designing products with the environment in mind. Cook has emphasized the importance of creating devices that are energy-efficient, recyclable, and made from sustainable materials. For example, the company has developed a robot named Daisy that can disassemble iPhones to recover valuable materials for reuse. This innovative approach to product design is a testament to Cook’s commitment to sustainability.
Furthermore, Cook has been vocal about the need for policy changes to support climate action. He has called on governments around the world to implement stronger regulations and incentives that encourage companies to reduce their carbon emissions. By using his platform to advocate for policy changes, Cook is leveraging his influence to drive systemic change beyond Apple’s own operations.
Cook’s advocacy for sustainable technology extends beyond Apple’s walls. He has actively participated in global initiatives and collaborations aimed at addressing climate change. For instance, he serves on the board of directors for the non-profit organization, Conservation International, which focuses on protecting nature and promoting sustainable development. Through his involvement in such organizations, Cook is able to contribute to the broader conversation on climate change and collaborate with other leaders in the field.
In conclusion, Tim Cook’s advocacy for sustainable technology is commendable. As the CEO of Apple, he has taken significant steps to reduce the company’s carbon footprint and promote renewable energy. His commitment to designing environmentally-friendly products and his call for policy changes demonstrate his dedication to addressing climate change on a global scale. By leveraging his influence and resources, Cook is making a positive impact and inspiring other tech leaders to follow suit. As the urgency of climate change continues to grow, it is leaders like Tim Cook who are paving the way for a more sustainable future.
Mary Barra’s Leadership in Driving Climate Change Solutions in the Automotive Industry
Mary Barra’s Leadership in Driving Climate Change Solutions in the Automotive Industry
In recent years, the issue of climate change has become increasingly urgent, with scientists warning that immediate action is needed to prevent catastrophic consequences. As a result, many tech leaders have stepped up to advocate for climate change solutions and drive innovation in their respective industries. One such leader is Mary Barra, the CEO of General Motors (GM), who has been at the forefront of efforts to address climate change in the automotive industry.
Under Barra’s leadership, GM has made significant strides in reducing its carbon footprint and promoting sustainable practices. In 2017, the company announced its commitment to an “all-electric future,” pledging to launch 20 new electric vehicles by 2023. This bold move was seen as a game-changer in the industry, as it signaled GM’s commitment to transitioning away from traditional internal combustion engines and embracing electric mobility.
Barra’s vision for a sustainable future extends beyond just electric vehicles. She has also championed the development of autonomous vehicles, which have the potential to revolutionize transportation and reduce emissions. By investing in self-driving technology, GM aims to create a future where shared autonomous vehicles are the norm, leading to fewer cars on the road and a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.
In addition to her focus on electric and autonomous vehicles, Barra has also prioritized renewable energy in GM’s operations. The company has made substantial investments in solar and wind energy, with the goal of powering its facilities with 100% renewable energy by 2050. By embracing renewable energy sources, GM not only reduces its carbon footprint but also sets an example for other companies in the automotive industry.
Barra’s commitment to climate change solutions goes beyond just the operations of GM. She has been an outspoken advocate for policies that promote sustainability and combat climate change. In 2019, she joined the CEO Climate Dialogue, a coalition of business leaders advocating for federal climate policy in the United States. Through this initiative, Barra and other CEOs have called for the implementation of a market-based carbon pricing system and the adoption of ambitious greenhouse gas reduction targets.
Furthermore, Barra has emphasized the importance of collaboration in addressing climate change. She believes that partnerships between governments, businesses, and other stakeholders are essential to driving meaningful change. GM has actively sought out collaborations with organizations such as the Environmental Defense Fund and the World Wildlife Fund to advance sustainability initiatives and share best practices.
Barra’s leadership in driving climate change solutions in the automotive industry has not gone unnoticed. In 2020, she was named one of Fortune’s “World’s 50 Greatest Leaders” for her efforts in promoting sustainability and pushing for innovation. Her commitment to a sustainable future has also earned her recognition from various environmental organizations, including the Sierra Club and the Ceres organization.
In conclusion, Mary Barra’s leadership in driving climate change solutions in the automotive industry is commendable. Through her vision and commitment, GM has become a trailblazer in the transition to electric and autonomous vehicles, as well as renewable energy. Barra’s advocacy for policies and collaborations further demonstrates her dedication to addressing climate change on a broader scale. As the urgency to combat climate change grows, leaders like Mary Barra play a crucial role in shaping a sustainable future for the tech industry and beyond.
1. Who are the tech leaders advocating for climate change solutions?
Elon Musk, Bill Gates, and Sundar Pichai are some of the tech leaders advocating for climate change solutions.
2. What role do these tech leaders play in advocating for climate change solutions?
These tech leaders use their influence, resources, and platforms to raise awareness about climate change, invest in sustainable technologies, and support initiatives aimed at reducing carbon emissions.
3. How are these tech leaders contributing to climate change solutions?
They are investing in renewable energy projects, developing electric vehicles, promoting sustainable practices within their companies, and funding research and development of innovative solutions to combat climate change.
4. Why is it important for tech leaders to advocate for climate change solutions?
Tech leaders have the power to drive significant change through their innovations and influence. By advocating for climate change solutions, they can inspire others, accelerate the adoption of sustainable technologies, and contribute to a more sustainable future.
In conclusion, there are several tech leaders who are actively advocating for climate change solutions. Some notable figures include Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, who is working towards sustainable transportation and renewable energy solutions. Another leader is Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Google, who has committed to making Google carbon-neutral by 2020 and investing in renewable energy projects. Additionally, Microsoft’s President, Brad Smith, has emphasized the importance of technology in addressing climate change and has pledged to be carbon-negative by 2030. These tech leaders, among others, are playing a crucial role in driving innovation and promoting sustainable practices to combat climate change. | <urn:uuid:aba19d6c-048d-4e92-a62f-3d744a77b452> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://arableaders.blog/who-are-the-tech-leaders-advocating-for-climate-change-solutions/ | 2024-12-10T22:05:25Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066067826.3/warc/CC-MAIN-20241210194529-20241210224529-00772.warc.gz | en | 0.954875 | 3,085 | 2.984375 | 3 |
The Categorical Imperative is the central concept in Kantâs ethics. It refers to the âsupreme principle of moralityâ (4:392), from which all our moral duties are derived. The basic principle of morality is an imperative because it commands certain courses of action. It is a categorical imperative because it commands unconditionally, quite independently of the particular ends and desires of the moral agent.
Kant formulates the Categorical Imperative in several different ways but according to the well-known "Universal Law" formulation, you should "âŚact only according to that maxim by which you can at the same time will that it be a universal law." Since maxims are, roughly, principles of action, the categorical imperative commands that one should act only on universal principles, principles that could be adopted by all rational agents.
Imperatives: Hypothetical and Categorical
An imperative is a command (e.g. âshut the door!â). Kant thinks that imperatives may be expressed in terms of there being some action that one âoughtâ to do. For example, the imperative âBe quiet!â may be expressed as: âyou ought to be quiet.â Kant distinguishes two types of imperatives: categorical imperatives and hypothetical imperatives. Hypothetical imperatives have the general form, âIf you want ÎŚ then you ought to do Ψ.â âIf you want to lose weight, you should not eat chocolate,â is an example of a hypothetical imperative. Refraining from eating chocolate is something that is required of one insofar as one is committed to the end of losing weight. In this respect, the imperative commands conditionally: it applies only on the condition that one shares the end for which the imperative prescribes means. To the extent that this end is not one that is required (and someone may say, âlosing weight is really not that important!â), one is not required to perform the actions instrumental to it. One can escape what is required by the imperative by giving up the end.
In contrast with hypothetical imperatives, which depend on oneâs having particular desires or ends (such as wanting to lose weight), categorical imperatives describe what we are required to do independently of what we may desire or prefer. In this respect they prescribe behavior categorically. A categorical imperative has the general form, âDo A!â or âyou ought to do A.â Kant argues that moral rules are categorical imperatives, since the content of a moral prohibition is supposed to apply quite independently of our desires and preferences. Consider, for example, the moral rule âYou shall not murder.â This moral rule has application quite absolutely. It does not include any condition such as âYou shall not murder if you want to avoid punishment,â or âYou shall not murder if you want to be a moral person.â The categorical applies quite independently of out desires and preferences. We cannot escape its force insofar as we are moral agents.
Moral Rules and the Categorical Imperative
According to Kant, moral rules are categorical imperatives. Furthermore, Kant thought that all our moral duties, substantive categorical imperatives, depend on a basic requirement of rationality, which he regards as the supreme principle of morality (4: 392): this is the categorical imperative. The categorical imperative, as opposed to categorical imperatives, substantive moral rules, is the basic form of the moral law.
An analogy with the biblical Golden Rule might help to make the relation between categorical imperatives and the Categorical Imperative somewhat clearer. In Mathew 7:6, Jesus Christ urges that âall things ⌠that you want men to do to you, you also must likewise do to them: this, in fact, is what the Law and the Prophets mean.â In this text Jesus makes two important claims: firstly, he prescribes the Golden Rule as a regulating principle for how we conduct ourselves; secondly, he says that the Mosaic Law and declarations of the prophets may be summed up in terms of this rule. Jesus may be understood here as maintaining that the Golden Rule is to be employed in helping us identify what actions we ought to perform, and also, to justify particular moral rules. Taking first the point about identification, Jesusâ suggestion is that whenever one is unsure about whether to pursue a particular course of action, he may employ the Golden Rule to ascertain whether this course of action is correct. This is to identify certain courses of action as morally permissible and impermissibly. Secondly, with respect to justification, the Golden Rule may be used to justify the moral codes expressed in the Mosaic Law because it is the fundamental principle upon which Jewish moral codes are expressions. The Golden Rule is a fundamental moral principle that may be used to explain why particular moral rules apply (e.g., those of the Mosaic Law).
The categorical imperative is significantly different from the Golden Rule, but the relation between it as a basic moral principle and higher order moral principles is the same. It may be employed in similar fashion to identify and justify particular moral rules, or what might be called, substantive categorical imperatives. First, with respect to identification, as we shall see below, the categorical imperative may be used as a decision procedure in identifying certain courses of action as permissible and impermissible. Secondly, with respect to justification, Kant thinks that the categorical imperative underlies all commonly recognized moral laws, such as those prohibiting telling lies, those requiring beneficence, forbidding murder, and others. Since these moral laws can be derived from the categorical imperative, these moral rules may be justified with reference to that basic moral principle. The categorical imperative then explains why our moral duties, whatever they might be, bind us as rational moral agents.
Kantâs derivation of the Categorical Imperative
Kant attempts to derive our moral duties from the very concept of a moral rule or moral obligation. Kant argues that moral obligations are categorical imperatives. Since categorical imperatives apply to rational agents without regard to their particular ends and purposes, they cannot be explained in terms of what a person has self-interested reason to do. A categorical imperative applies to moral agents independently of facts about their own goals, and desires; it prescribes nothing other than âobey the law!â The essential property of a law is universality. The laws of physics, for instance, describe the behavior of all physical properties of the universe. Similarly, moral laws are universal in scope in that they are universally applicable, applicable to all rational beings. (Of course, moral laws are not descriptive of how things actually operate but prescribe how rational agents would act insofar as they are rational.) From this line of thought, Kant infers the basic principle of morality, the categorical imperative, which says that one should âAct only in accordance with that maxim through which you can at the same time will that it become a universal lawâ (4:421). This version of the categorical is often called that formula of the Universal Law of Nature.
A maxim is a principle of action, or a policy prescribing some course of action. The maxim of an action gives the principle upon which an agent acts. It specifies the reason for which a person acts. Since the categorical imperative requires that the maxims upon which we act be capable of becoming universal laws, this is equivalent to the requirement that we act for reasons that are universally acceptable. We ought to act for reasons that could be adopted by all. A maxim that could consistently be adopted by all rational agents is said to be universalizable. Taking into account this equivalence, the categorical imperative may be formulated as follows: Act only according to maxims that are universalizable.
The Categorical Imperative as Decision Procedure
The categorical imperative in its Universal Law formulationââAct only according to that maxim whereby you can at the same time will that it should become a universal lawââmay be used as a decision procedure, to test the permissibility of maxims. If a maxim fails the universalizability test, then acting on this maxim is forbidden. Conversely, if a maxim passes the universalizability test then it is permissible for one to act on this maxim. Kant holds that the notion of consistency is central to the concept of universality and argues that a maxim passes the universalizabilty test only if it can be consistently willed as a universal law. The Categorical Imperative, used as a decision procedure, and employed to test maxims for permissibility, is essentially then a logical test, and involves calculating whether the maxim could be consistently (without contradiction) willed as a universal law. This encapsulates Kantâs conviction that âwillingâ is governed by laws of rationality so that there is something deeply irrational about wrongdoing.
The basic steps in testing maxims for consistency are the following. First, formulate your maxim for the proposed action. Secondly, generalize this maxim so that it is formulated as a universal law that determines the behavior of all rational agents. This is to imagine that oneâs proposed maxim is one that all other agents adopt and must adopt as a maxim. Thirdly, check to see whether the generalized maxim can be conceived as a universal law. If this is possible, check to see whether it can be consistently willed as a universal law. It is morally permissible to act on a maxim only if it can be consistently willed as a universal lawâin other words, it passes all the aforementioned steps. Another way of putting this point is to say that universalizability of a maxim is both necessary and sufficient for the moral rightness of acting on this particular maxim.
This procedure may be illustrated in concrete detail by examining Kantâs well-known example of a lying promise. Kant imagines someone who is in need of money and knows that he would be able to acquire some by borrowing with a promise to repay, a promise he knows that he will not be able to keep. The question is then whether this person should make a lying promise in order to secure the money. In Kantâs own words, âMay I not, when I am hard pressed, make a promise with the intention of not keeping it?â (Gr. 18/402) Following the steps outlined above, Kant argues that we are able to demonstrate that acting on the maxim of a lying promise is morally impermissible.
Firstly, formulating the maxim for the proposed action, the man in Kantâs example would be acting on something like the following maxim.
[M] Whenever it is to my advantage do so, I shall make lying promises to obtain what I want.
The next step in testing the permissibility of the maxim requires that we imagine a world in which this maxim were generalized, that it were be one upon which all agents acted. Generalizing M, we obtain,
[GM] Whenever it is to anyoneâs advantage, he shall make lying promises to obtain what he wants.
Kant argues that [GM] cannot be conceived as a universal law. His reasoning seems to be that if everyone were to adopt the maxim of false promising, trust would break down to such an extent that one would no longer be able to make promises at all. This implies that the generalized maxim of false promising [GM] could not function as a universal law and the maxim is internally inconsistent. The categorical imperative requires one to test the moral quality of a maxim by considering whether it is possible to will oneâs proposed maxim [M] together with its generalized version [GM]. As we have already seen, [GM] is internally inconsistent: in a world where everyone lied all the time, there could be no promise making. This generates a contradiction in our will because one cannot will to make a lying promise in a world in which there were no promises. This is to conceive of a world in which one has promised, and yet, there are no promisesâand this is something which cannot be rationally willed.
Lastly, it is important to note that Kant is not saying that we should ask whether it would be a good or bad thing if everyone did what the man in his example is contemplating. Kant is not a utilitarian. Rather, his point is that the maxim of making false promises cannot be consistently willed with a universalized version of that maxim. There are various ways of interpreting the practical contradiction that arises in this sort of case, but I shall refer to this as a contradiction in conception. Oneâs proposed maxim cannot be conceived together with its generalized version.
There is a second way in which a maxim might fail the universalizability test, which does not involve a contradiction in conception. Even if one can consistently will oneâs maxim together with the universalized version of the maxim, one cannot consistently will this maxim because it conflicts with something else one must will. To illustrate this, consider Kantâs example of someone who, when his own life is flourishing acts on the maxim of simply ignoring those who are in need. Following the steps as outlined about, the rule, or maxim that this person would be following in failing to help others in need may be formulated as follows:
[M] Whenever I am flourishing, I shall give nothing to anyone else in need.
The next step requires the deliberating agent to enquire whether the maxim may be conceived as a universal law
[GM] Whenever anyone is flourishing, then he will give nothing to anyone else in need.
Clearly this maxim can be conceived as a universal law and does not involve any contradiction in conception. A person could consistently will GM and M: it is possible to conceive of this maxim with its generalized form without contradiction. However, Kant says that it is nonetheless irrational to will M. His reasoning seems to go through the following steps. Firstly, insofar as we are rational then we will he means to our ends. Secondly, we are not independent and self-sufficient creatures. We need the help of others achieve some of our ends or the ends of our loved ones, which are our ends insofar as we love them. If one wills M and GM, one would be willing something that goes against us satisfying our ends. But this is irrationalâit conflicts with a fundamental principle of rationality So M cannot be rationally willed a universal law of nature, although it can be rationally conceived as a law of nature (Sullivan 1989, 179).
The Categorical Imperative and the Derivation of Duties
Kant argues that the principles of human duty can be justified with reference to the categorical imperative. But moral duties do not bind us in exactly the same way. Kant claims that two sorts of duties may be distinguished: perfect and imperfect duties. Perfect duties are negative and strict: we simply are forbidden from doing these sorts of actions. Examples of perfect duties include âThou shall not murderâ and âThou shall not lie.â By contrast, imperfect duties are positive duties: they refer to what we are required to do, rather than refrain from doing. Imperfect duties are not strict in that they do not specify how much we ought to do to. Although one, for example, ought to act beneficently as far as possible, the âas far as possibleâ is left indeterminate: not every action that fails to measure up is wrong; there is more leeway in meeting oneâs imperfect duties.
Kant argues that the distinction between perfect and imperfect duties corresponds to the two possible ways in which a maxim may fail the categorical imperative test. Roughly speaking, as we saw in the last section, a maxim may fail the test by generating a contradiction when conjoined with its universalized form (contradiction in conception), or when conjoined with other maxims which one must will (contradiction in will). The maxim of an action that violates a perfect duty always generates a contradiction in conception. This maxim then specifies a moral rule that is a perfect duty. A maxim that violates an imperfect duty generates a contradiction in will.
In addition to the distinction between perfect and imperfect duties, Kant believes that ordinary moral thinking recognizes another basic distinction within our moral duties. This is the distinction between duties to oneself and duties to others. Kant provides four examples to illustrate how the categorical imperative may be used in this fashion to test maxims for moral permissibility, which include specification of perfect duties to self and other, and imperfect duties to self and other (4:422). The examples illustrate that the categorical imperative can be used to generate all commonly recognized duties. Kantâs examples include a perfect duty to ourselvesânot to commit suicideâan imperfect duty to ourselves to develop our talents, a perfect duty to others not to lie or make false promises, and an imperfect duty to others of beneficence.
The Categorical Imperative: Other formulae
Kant provided several formulations of the categorical imperative and claimed that they were all equivalent. Commentators disagree about exactly how many distinct formulas Kant recognizes. In addition to the Universal Law of Nature formula discussed above, it is widely agreed that Kant elaborates three others: (2) The Humanity Formula (3) The Autonomy formula and (4) the Kingdom of Ends formula.
In its best known formulation the humanity formula is: âAct in such a way that you always treat humanity, whether in your own person or in the person of any other, never simply as a means, but always at the same time as an endâ (Gr. 66-67/429). The humanity formula is closely linked with the idea of respecting persons. This formula makes clear one of Kantâs deepest disagreements with consequentialism, which does not place any âin principleâ limitations on what it is permissible to do to a person: anything is permitted, so long as the consequences are good enough. In contrast, Kant argues that human beings are ends in themselves, which means that they have value that is intrinsic, absolute, incomparable, and objective. Kant argues that every human agent possesses this sort of ultimate value, and gives it a special name: dignity. When Kant says that human beings are ends in themselves, he means that they have dignity and the appropriate response to dignity is respect. The humanity formula of the categorical imperative prescribes, then, that we respect persons because they possess dignity. We do so by treating persons as ends in themselves, that is, treat them in ways that acknowledge their fundamental value or dignity.
The third formulation of the categorical imperative is âthe Idea of the will of every rational being as a will that legislates universal lawâ (4:432). This is not formulated as an imperative, but may be transposed into imperative form as, âAct only in such a way that your maxims could serve as legislations of universal laws.â This formula is closely correlated with the Universal Law formulation but places emphasis on the capacity of rational agents to legislate the moral law. The capacity of rational agents to legislate the law for themselves is at the heart of human dignity.
The fourth, âKingdom of Endsâ formulation of the categorical imperative, states that we must âact in accordance with the maxims of a member giving universal laws for a merely possible kingdom of endsâ (4:439). The Kingdom of Ends formulation has proved influential in contemporary debates especially in the political philosophy of John Rawls.
ReferencesISBN links support NWE through referral fees
- Kant, Immanuel. Groundwork of the Metaphysic of Morals New York: Harper and Row, 1964. ISBN 0061311596.
- Kant, Immanuel. Kant: Critique of Practical Reason. Edited by Mary J. Gregor. Cambridge University Press, 1997.
- Korsgaard, Christine. Creating the Kingdom of Ends. Cambridge University Press, 1996. ISBN 0521499623.
- Beck, Lewis White. A Commentary on Kant's Critique of Practical Reason. University of Chicago Press, 1996. ISBN 0226040755
- OâNeill, Onora. Constructions of Reason: Explorations of Kant's Practical Philosophy. Cambridge University Press, 1990. ISBN 0521388163
- OâNeill, Onora. "Kantian Ethics" in A Companion to Ethics. Edited by Peter Singer. Oxford: Blackwell Reference, 1993. ISBN 0631187855.
- Paton, H. J. The Categorical Imperative: A Study in Kant's Moral Philosophy. University of Pennsylvania Press, 1999. ISBN 0812210239
- Sullivan, Roger J. Immanuel Kant's Moral Theory. Cambridge University Press, 1989. ISBN 0521369088
- Sullivan, Roger J. An Introduction to Kant's Ethics. Cambridge University Press, 1994. ISBN 0521467691
All links retrieved November 30, 2023.
- Kantâs Moral Philosophy in the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
- Personal Autonomy in the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
- Respect in the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
- Categorical Imperative in the Catholic Encyclopedia
General Philosophy Sources
- Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
- Paideia Project Online
- The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy
- Project Gutenberg
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It is a question that has been puzzling people for years – does solder conduct electricity? The answer, it turns out, is a bit complicated. Solder is an alloy, which means it is made up of two or more metals. The most common metals used in solder are lead and tin.
In this blog post, we will explore the science behind solder and its ability to conduct electricity. We will also look at some of the applications of solder in electronic circuits. Stay tuned!
What is solder and How does solder work?
Solder is a metal alloy that is used to create a permanent connection between two pieces of metal. The main element in solder is usually tin, but it can also contain lead, copper, antimony, and other metals.
When heated, the metals in the solder liquefy and flow into the spaces between the two pieces of metal that are being joined. As the solder cools, it hardens and creates a strong bond between the two pieces of metal.
Solder is an excellent conductor of electricity, which is why it is often used in electrical circuits. When two pieces of metal are joined together with solder, the electrons can flow freely between them, allowing current to flow through the circuit.
There are different types of solder, each with its own melting point and composition. The type of solder that is used depends on the application.
For example, lead-based solder is often used in electronics because it has a low melting point and can be easily controlled with a soldering iron. However, lead-based solder is not as strong as other types of solder and can be toxic if inhaled.
Does solder conduct electricity?
The answer to this question is a bit complicated. While solder is an excellent conductor of electricity, it is not a perfect conductor. This is because the metals that are used in solder have different electrical properties. When the metals are melted together, these properties are not always perfectly combined.
As a result, there can be areas in the solder where the electrons do not flow as freely. This can create resistance, which can cause problems in an electrical circuit. To avoid this problem, engineers often use a technique called surface mount technology.
In this process, the solder is applied to the surface of the metal, rather than being melted and flowing into the spaces between the two pieces of metal.This ensures that the solder will have a more uniform composition and will be less likely to create resistance in the circuit.
So, does solder conduct electricity? The answer is yes, but there can be some exceptions depending on the type of solder that is used and how it is applied.
Advantages of Soldering:
- Low Thermal Impact on Components: Soldering operates at lower temperatures compared to other metal-joining techniques, which helps prevent thermal damage to electronic components.
- Precision and Control: It allows for precise placement of components, making it ideal for delicate electronic circuits.
- Cost-Effectiveness: Soldering materials and equipment are relatively inexpensive, making it a cost-effective method for joining small parts.
- Excellent Electrical Connection: Provides a strong electrical bond between components, ensuring efficient signal transmission.
Disadvantages of Soldering:
- Limited Mechanical Strength: Solder joints, although solid for electrical connections, may not provide sufficient mechanical strength for all applications.
- Heat Sensitive Components: Not suitable for heat-sensitive components which may be damaged by the soldering process temperatures.
- Skill Level: Requires a certain level of skill and experience to execute properly, especially for intricate electronic assemblies.
- Potential for Toxic Exposure: The fumes produced during soldering can be hazardous if inhaled, necessitating proper ventilation or protective equipment.
Applications of soldering:
- Electronic Manufacturing: Soldering is commonly used in the manufacturing of electronic devices, such as computers, cell phones, and other consumer electronics.
- Jewelry Making: It is also a popular method for creating jewelry, as it allows for precise joining of small metal pieces.
- Plumbing: Soldering is used in plumbing to join pipes and fittings, as it creates a strong, leak-proof connection.
- Automotive Repairs: In the automotive industry, soldering is used to repair electronic components, such as wiring harnesses and circuit boards.
- Art and Decor: Soldering is not just for practical purposes but also serves an artistic function. Artists use soldering techniques to create intricate metal sculptures and decorative items.
- DIY Projects: For enthusiasts and hobbyists, soldering is a key skill for building and repairing electronics at home, from simple gadgets to complex custom projects.
- Renewable Energy Systems: Soldering plays a crucial role in the assembly and maintenance of renewable energy systems, including solar panels and wind turbines, ensuring efficient energy flow.
- Medical Equipment: Many medical devices, such as pacemakers and diagnostic equipment, require soldering for precise connections and reliable functionality.
- Military Applications: Soldering is used extensively in the military for building and repairing electronic systems and components for various weapons, vehicles, and communication devices.
- Research and Development: In research labs, soldering is used for prototyping and testing new electronic devices, allowing for quick modifications and repairs.
- Toys and Games: The production of toys and games often involves soldering for the assembly of electronic components, adding interactive features to products.
- Industrial Manufacturing: Many industries, such as aerospace, automotive, and electronics, rely on soldering for mass production of their products due to its efficiency and reliability.
These are just a few examples of the many applications of soldering in various fields. As technology continues to advance and new materials emerge, the use of soldering is likely to expand to even more industries and applications. Learning soldering techniques can open up many opportunities for individuals in different fields, making it a valuable skill to acquire.
Also Read: What Can I Use Instead Of Solder?
Problems Caused by the Conductivity of Solder:
The main problem caused by the conductivity of solder is resistance. This can occur when the solder is not applied correctly, or when the metals used in the solder have different electrical properties. When this happens, it can cause problems in an electrical circuit. To avoid this problem, engineers often use a technique called surface mount technology.
In this process, the solder is applied to the surface of the metal, rather than being melted and flowing into the spaces between the two pieces of metal. This ensures that the solder will have a more uniform composition and will be less likely to create resistance in the circuit.
Another problem that can be caused by the conductivity of solder is EMF. EMF stands for electromagnetic field, and it is a type of radiation that can be emitted by electrical circuits.
This radiation can cause interference in other nearby electronic devices. To avoid this problem, engineers often use shielded cables or enclosures around electronic circuits. Shielded cables have a metal layer that helps to deflect the EMF radiation away from the circuit. Enclosures are also used to protect circuits from EMF radiation.
Do all metals conduct electricity?
No, not all metals conduct electricity. Non-metals like carbon and sulfur are good conductors of electricity. Metals like gold and silver are poor conductors of electricity.
This is because the electrons in these metals are tightly bound to the nucleus and cannot move easily. However, some metals like copper and aluminum have loosely bound electrons and are good conductors of electricity.
Is solder as conductive as copper?
This is a difficult question to answer definitively because it depends on a number of factors, including the type of solder being used and the purity of the metals involved. In general, however, solder is not as conductive as copper. This is due in part to the fact that solder contains other metals (such as lead or tin) that are not as conductive as copper. Additionally, the soldering process itself can introduce impurities into the metals that can further reduce conductivity.
What is the best conductor of electricity?
The best conductor of electricity is a material that allows electrons to flow freely through it. This can be a metal like copper or silver, or it can be a non-metal like graphite. The best conductor of electricity is also a material that has a low resistance, meaning that it does not resist the flow of electrons. The best conductor of electricity is also a material that has high electrical conductivity, meaning that it can easily carry an electric current.
Does a solder act as a conductor?
Yes, solder is a conductor. It is made of metals that easily conduct electricity, such as lead and tin. When heated, the solder melts and becomes liquid, which allows it to flow easily and form bonds with other materials.
A soldier is often used to join electrical components together because it creates a strong connection that can carry electrical current.
What is solder made of?
Solder is a metal alloy that is used to create a permanent connection between two pieces of metal. The most common type of solder is made of lead and tin, but there are also lead-free and flux-cored solder options available. Solder typically has a melting point between 180 and 190 degrees Celsius.
Is soldering wire toxic?
The short answer is yes, soldering wire can be toxic if inhaled or ingested. However, the fumes produced by solder are not typically harmful unless you are exposed to them for an extended period of time. If you are concerned about the health effects of soldering, it is best to work in a well-ventilated area and avoid inhaling the fumes.
In addition, it is important to wash your hands after working with solder to avoid coming into contact with the lead and other metals that can be found in soldering wire.
What are the 4 types of solder?
The four types of solder are:
- Lead-based solder: Lead-based solder is the most common type of solder. It is made of a lead and tin alloy and is used for soldering metals such as copper, brass, and iron.
- Tin-based solder: Tin-based solder is made of tin and leads alloy. It has a lower melting point than lead-based solder and is used for soldering metals such as aluminum and stainless steel.
- Silver-based solder: Silver-based solder is made of a silver and copper alloy. It has a higher melting point than tin-based solder and is used for soldering metals such as gold and platinum.
- Aluminum-based solder: Aluminum-based solder is made of aluminum and copper alloy. It has the highest melting point of all the soldiers and is used for soldering metals such as tungsten and titanium.
Each type of solder has its own unique properties and uses.
After exploring the question “does solder conduct electricity?” In depth, we can confidently say that yes, solders do conduct electricity. It is a vital component in creating and repairing electronic circuits and plays a crucial role in ensuring proper electrical connectivity. By melting the solder and applying it to the conductive components, it creates a strong bond that allows for efficient flow of electrical current.
To conclude, whether you are a hobbyist tinkering with electronics or an engineer working on complex circuitry designs, understanding how solder conducts electricity is crucial knowledge. With proper use and application of this seemingly simple material, we can continue to create innovative technologies that shape our world. Thank you for joining me on this exploration of solder’s conduction abilities. Let’s continue to learn new things and push boundaries together! | <urn:uuid:90a6e478-cc75-45bf-bbbf-98256899ad96> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://weldingtrends.com/does-solder-conduct-electricity/ | 2024-12-06T19:22:48Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066416984.85/warc/CC-MAIN-20241206185637-20241206215637-00285.warc.gz | en | 0.954528 | 2,374 | 3.921875 | 4 |
The Health Benefits of Water Fasting
HEALTH, 7 Aug 2017
3 Jul 2017 – While fasting has been part of human culture for thousands of years, only recently have we begun to investigate the therapeutic benefits of the practice. Interestingly, modern science has found a variety of verifiable positive effects fasting that has on human health.
Water fasting, also known as a water cleanse, is a type of fasting in which you consume only water for a set period of time. Many cleansing diets are referred to as fasts, but in water fasting, you take in zero calories. It’s distinct from caloric restriction in which a person’s daily caloric intake is reduced by 20–40%.
Of course, in the long-term, it’s impossible to live on water alone. Your body can’t function without calories and nutrients; they’re the batteries and building blocks of life. However, a carefully planned, short-term water fast can help reset certain biological processes and reinvigorate your health.
The most common question people ask about water fasting is “why?” Why would you voluntarily subject yourself to hunger and nutritional deprivation? There are many reasons to fast. Some people do it for religious or spiritual reasons; others to raise awareness for a cause. However, there are also well-established health benefits to fasting. Intermittent fasting encourages weight loss, reduces body fat, lowers blood pressure and heart rate, and may even reduce the risk of serious conditions.[1, 2]
In the early days of humanity, fasting was the norm. Before the invention of agriculture, we were all hunter-gatherers. We ate what we could, when we could. Grabbing a snack from the fridge whenever our stomachs rumbled was not an option. Survival required that we adapt to occasional food shortages.
Our ancestors incorporated fasting into cultural traditions long after the invention of agriculture ended our hunter-gatherer days. Many religions participate in ritual fasting to this day. Those of Islamic faith fast from dawn until dusk during the month of Ramadan. Many Christians, Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, and peoples of many other faiths all take part in traditional fasting. Many great healers and thinkers, like Hippocrates, Plato, Socrates, and Aristotle have praised the benefits of fasting.
The Health Benefits of Water Fasting
Fasting isn’t just a way to demonstrate faith and devotion. There are health benefits to fasting as well.
The benefit that interests most people is weight loss. While it may seem obvious that not eating will lead to less body fat, let’s take a closer look at exactly how water fasting can help. Ketosis is the state in which your body begins using energy from your internal fat stores instead of food. Water fasting helps your body reach ketosis more quickly than dieting. When you refrain from eating calories, your body is forced to burn fat cells for energy.
While we know of no force on earth that can halt or reverse the aging process, it is certainly true that some people age more gracefully than others. Animal studies have found that intermittent fasting can extend lifespan by up to 80% over control groups. In humans, fasting has been found to reduce oxidative damage and inflammation.
Improved Cell Recycling
Autophagy is your body’s normal, natural process for recycling unnecessary or dysfunctional components. Water fasting forces your system into an autophagic state. With the severely reduced caloric intake, your body is forced to be more selective in which cells it protects.
This means that fasting can encourage your body’s natural healing mechanisms to actively destroy and recycle damaged tissues, which may have a positive effect on several serious conditions.
There is bountiful anecdotal evidence from people who claim that water fasting helped them overcome debilitating disorders. Current research backs up many of these claims. Animal studies have found that alternate day fasting caused a major reduction in the incidence of cancer and metabolic syndrome. Rodents placed on an intermittent fast had fewer incidences of neurological disorders.
Water, Cells, and Human Health: New Breakthroughs
Of course, your body needs water for hydration, but is there more to it than that? Yes there is, according to Dr. Gerald H. Pollack, a professor of Bioengineering at the University of Washington in Seattle. Dr. Pollack and his team have made some discoveries that challenge our current understanding of water. They found that water behaves oddly within living cells. Close to the cell membrane, water organizes itself in a series of gel-like layers, rather than as a completely fluid solution.
Dr. Pollack calls this “exclusion zone” (EZ) water, and it’s not the H2O we’re familiar with. EZ water is H3O2—three hydrogen atoms bonded to two oxygen atoms. So what does this mean for water fasting? Well, the reason this is called the exclusion zone is because it excludes things—things like contaminants and impurities. EZ water holds a negative charge and pushes contaminants away from itself. This discovery may have serious implications for cell signaling and detoxification, but more research needs to be done before we fully understand the connection.
How to Perform a Water Fast
When fasting, planning is crucial. If you’ve never done a fast before, you shouldn’t just start a 30-day water cleanse this afternoon. There is a right way to do any cleansing diet. Fasting can be done safely, but it can also cause harm if done incorrectly. I recommend consulting with a trusted health care provider before performing any fast.
Drink High-Quality Water
When performing a water fast, it’s more important than ever to only consume fresh, clean, high-quality water. The effect of any contaminants in your water will only be magnified with no food in your stomach. I recommend you drink only distilled water during your fast. You can also drink filtered water if you have a very good filtration system, but distillation goes further than filtration and removes all harmful organisms and chemicals.
The most crucial step in any fast is to arrange your schedule. If possible, take time off work for the duration of the cleanse. Choose a length of time for your water fasting diet. Fasts can be done for any length of time up to about a month, but one, three, five, seven, and 10-day water fasts are the most common. Start small. If this is your first fast, try a 24-hour or a 3-day fast.
If you perform any fast longer than five days, or you’re fasting to alleviate serious conditions, consider a supervised water fast. Many people choose a supervised fast because it offers a controlled environment, a team of professionals to make sure all goes well, and fellow fasters for emotional support. A fasting clinic can do tests to find the best fast for you, monitor your health during the fast, and help ease your transition back to solid foods.
Before we get started, let’s go over a few precautions. You should not perform a fast if you are pregnant or lactating. A developing child is just too sensitive to nutritional deficiencies. Likewise, anyone with type 1 diabetes should choose a different type of detox diet. Fasting works best for people who are 20 lbs or more overweight. If you’re less than this, you can still try fasting, but plan a shorter duration for your first fast.
What to Expect During a Water Fast
Fasting is a time for rest, not exertion. Don’t plan on running any marathons during your fast. You shouldn’t even go to the gym. Your body will want to sleep more than usual—let it. Listen to your body; you may need 12 hours or more of sleep each night, and naps during the day. Do not be alarmed; this is part of the process. Relax and embrace it.
Drink 2-3 quarts (or liters) of water every day. Don’t drink it all at once. Space it out over the course of the day to keep yourself properly hydrated and increase satiety.
I won’t lie; the first couple days are going to be tough. You will likely experience some unpleasant symptoms like hunger, irritability, headaches, or disorientation. Fortunately, your body is resilient and should quickly adapt. You should start feeling better around the third or fourth day. Many people even report a feeling of euphoria at this point.
Water Fasting Tips and Tricks
Here are a couple fasting tips that can make your experience go a little more smoothly.
Books are a faster’s best friend. When fasting, it’s important to both rest your body and keep your mind occupied. Now would be a good time to catch up on your reading. Reading is a fantastic low-energy way to keep your mind engaged.
Set Realistic Goals
Be realistic about your goals. Why are you doing this cleanse? To help a particular health issue? To lose weight? Set simple, clear, achievable goals.
Meditation reinforces willpower and promotes a healthy connection between body and mind. Many people find that meditating can be a great way to help control cravings and strengthen resolve. Others report that feelings of hunger distract them from mediation. Find what works best for you.
Remember, in a water cleanse, you drink only water. No food, no smoothies, no juices. There is one exception, sort of. Some people find the taste of plain water underwhelming. If you’re of a similar mind, you can add a small squirt of lemon juice into your water. Let me be clear; this isn’t an excuse to drink sugary lemonade. A small squeeze of a lemon slice can add some flavor without adding much in the way of calories. Likewise, you can add a spoonful of raw organic apple cider vinegar to add a little flavor and some probiotics.
After the Fast
After the fast, you must resist the urge to overindulge, especially in the first few days. While you may dream of gorging yourself, your rebooted digestive system simply cannot handle it yet. At this point, rich food would cause you severe discomfort, or possibly serious complications.
Instead, break your fast slowly. Start by drinking only juices and detox waters, then broths, and gradually add in solid foods. You can do this over the course of a day if you performed a very short fast, but for fasts of 3-7 days, wait at least 24 hours before reintroducing your system to solid foods. Breaking the fast can be a multi-day process for fasts longer than that.
Fasting is a great way to reset your system and experience fantastic health benefits, but it’s not a way to cheat basic biology. Don’t expect to live a life of overindulgence and let the occasional water detox cancel out the damage.
Rather, fasting is just one part of an overall healthy lifestyle. Other lifestyle choices you must make include eating plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables, exercising regularly, getting plenty of rest, effectively managing stress, and avoiding environmental toxins. Use your fast as an opportunity to abandon bad habits and add new healthy habits to your routine.
Finally, if you decide that fasting isn’t for you, that’s fine. There are many different ways to detox. Find a method of deep cleansing that suits you and make it part of your healthy lifestyle.
- Bair, Stephanie. “Intermittent Fasting: Try This at Home for Brain Health.” SLS Blogs/ Law and Sciences Blog. Stanford Law School, 9 Jan. 2015. Web. 12 May 2017.
- Wu, Suzanne. “The Benefits of Fasting.” USC Dornsife College News RSS. University of Southern California, 10 June 2014. Web. 12 May 2017.
- Secor, Stephen M., and Hannah V. Carey. “Integrative Physiology of Fasting.” Comprehensive Physiology (2016): 773-825. Web. 12 May 2017.
- Longo, Valter D., and Mark P. Mattson. “Fasting: Molecular Mechanisms And Clinical Applications.” Cell Metabolism 19.2 (2014): 181-192. Web. 4 May 2017.
- Rubinsztein D.C., Mariño G., Kroemer G. “Autophagy and aging.” Cell. 2011 Sep 2;146(5):682-95. Web. 4 May 2017.
- Pollack, Gerald H. “Cells, Gels and the Engines of Life a New, Unifying Approach to Cell Function.” Seattle, WA: Ebner & Sons, 2001. Print.
†Results may vary. Information and statements made are for education purposes and are not intended to replace the advice of your doctor. Global Healing Center does not dispense medical advice, prescribe, or diagnose illness. The views and nutritional advice expressed by Global Healing Center are not intended to be a substitute for conventional medical service. If you have a severe medical condition or health concern, see your physician.
Dr. Edward F. Group III, DC, NP, DACBN, DCBCN, DABFM has studied natural healing methods for over 20 years and now teaches individuals and practitioners all around the world. He no longer sees patients but solely concentrates on spreading the word of health and wellness to the global community. Under his leadership, Global Healing Center, Inc. has earned recognition as one of the largest alternative, natural and organic health resources on the Internet.
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He worked to bring forth the ideal of conservatism in America and successfully captured and isolated that belief in the presidency. As president, Reagan worked to bring the ideal of American exceptionalness back to the country, to set the economy on the right track, and to end the Communist threat that had been present since the end of World War II. For all practical purposes, Ronald Reagan was a president who accomplished more than he set forth to do and did so famously; some would say infamously. Nonetheless, Reagan accomplished more in his eight year presidency than most presidents of the 20th Century.
He is widely hailed as he man who ended the Cold War and will forever be remembered as the man who led to the conservative resurgence in America. He was a man of profound ability and charm and America is better off for having Reagan as the Commander-in-Chief during the latter portion of the 20th Century. Ronald Reagan was born on February 6, 1911 in Tamping, Illinois. His mother, Nell, was a homemaker; and his father, Jack, was a traveling salesman (Ronald Reagan). The Reagan family moved often as Jack searched throughout the state for work and Ronald Reagan grew up in a very poor family.
Despite the hardships his family encountered, Reagan graduated room high school in Dixon, Illinois and earned a football scholarship to attend Eureka College (Reagan, “American Life” 43). After graduating from Eureka, Reagan pursued a career in Hollywood where he starred in over fifty movies and eventually became the president of the Screen Actors Guild. As president of the Screen Actors Guild, Reagan worked to remove all suspected Communists from Hollywood; all the while encouraging conservative values In the liberal slanted film industry.
In 1964, the former actor, Ronald Reagan, delivered a nationally televised political speech on behalf of conservative residential candidate Barry’ Goldwater. The speech became one of Reggae’s most fundamental speeches that completely changed his life. In his speech, Reagan presented the country with his ideals of a perfect country, supported by his conservative values. He also spoke about how America needs a strong national defense, a reduction of taxes, and the need to defeat the Communist threat in the Soviet Union.
He also stated, “We will preserve for our children this, the last best hope for man on earth, or we will sentence them to take the last step into a thousand years of darkness” (Reagan, “Speaking’ 36). After his peach, Reagan was approached by many influential Republicans who urged him to run for Governor of California. His speech, on behalf of Barry Goldwater became one of his greatest triumphs. Reagan initially refused when he was asked to run for governor; nevertheless, many influential Republicans got together and formed a fundraising group called “Friends of Reagan. They raised a great deal of money and in 1 966; Reagan defeated the needed Democrat Governor of California (What Would Reagan Do? ). At that moment, his political career began and in 1981, Reagan assumed the role as President of the united States of America. Throughout his presidency, Reagan set America on a course to defeat the Communist threat in the Soviet Union, to boost military funding to cut taxes, and to return optimism to the American people. Reagan worked relentlessly to accomplish his goals and in the process changed the world.
Many of his critics view the 1 sass as a decade of unmitigated wealth and greed; and they praise Soviet leader Mikhail Choreographer ending the Cold War. From the beginning Of his presidency, Ronald Reagan worked to end the Cold War, not to appease the Soviets. Former presidents had worked to open relations with he Soviet Union. President Nixon had formed compromise and Carter worked to appease the Communists. However, “Reagan rejected Communism, d©tenet, and containment, and set us on a course to win – not manage – the Cold War… ” (The Great One).
Reagan met several times with General Secretary Mikhail Cockroaches of the Soviet Union, and together they worked to compromise and create treaties that would eliminate the threat of short range nuclear weapons. Many of the meetings with Cockroaches were productive, yet Reggae’s ideal of foreign policy was not as clearly defined as many of his critics may have wished. The Reagan Administration dealt with foreign policy on the manner of “Peace through Strength,” they worked to isolate any world menace and to direct all immediate attention to that threat.
This ideal of foreign policy worked to threaten the Soviet Union and to make them aware that any danger they may pose would be dealt with in a quick and decisive manner. In 1983, Reagan ordered the United States Marines to invade Grenade. A coup d’©tat was taking place and a revolutionary group was trying to take control of the government to align with the Marxist Soviet Union (Reagan, “American Life” 449). Although the troops were only in Grenade for a short period of time, they did suppress the threat of a Communist uprising and Reagan shocked the world with his tough stance on global threats.
During his presidency, Reagan increased federal defense spending by 35 percent and began building nuclear weapons at an unprecedented rate (Ronald Reagan). In 1986, one American serviceman was killed in a bombing in Berlin that injured 63 other members of the American military. It became evident within hours that the terrorist attack had been planned and carried out by Mammary Jihad, the leader of Libya. Reagan as quick to order an air raid on key ground targets in Libya. The strike was a success and many important buildings were destroyed.
Reagan addressed the nation shortly after the air raid and made several comments that were illustrative of his firm stance against terrorist actions. He said, “When our citizens are abused or attacked anywhere in this world… We will respond so long as I’m in this Oval Office,” and to terrorist leaders around the world he said, “He [Jihad] counted on America to be passive. He counted wrong” (Reagan, “Speaking’ 288). With that speech, Reagan imposed his views upon he world and he let the country know that he would not succumb to any foreign national threat.
For all practical purposes, nearly all of the military actions of the asses were directed in some manner towards the Soviet Union. The preemptive attacks on Grenade and Libya were used as threats against the Soviet Union and were meant to be symbolic of the fact that America would not hesitate to act. Reagan used his strong military presence as a threat against the Soviets and many of Reggae’s naysayer still believe he used force in a manner contradictory to the astute power of the President of the United States.
However, the Reagan Administration used their military ability to inflict fear into all Communist threats worldwide. The political philosopher, Niccole Machiavelli, speaks of powerful leaders, he writes, “… It is much safer to be feared than loved… ” (Machiavelli 66). Therefore, regardless of what criticizes may say, it would seem that Reggae’s use of military force throughout the world was effective and that Cockroaches feared his American equivalent.
Reagan used his superiority to his advantage when he met with Cockroaches to discuss the reduction of nuclear missiles. During the asses, Reagan increased the defense spending more than NY president had done before; it was a part of his “Peace through Strength” foreign policy. During this time, the production of nuclear missiles surged and the United States found itself in a mini-arms race with the Soviet Union. In principle, the Reagan Administration outspent the Soviets in defense and nuclear weapon production.
In an effort to compete, the Soviets bankrupted themselves and had no choice but to dismiss their Marxist values. Between the years of 1985 and 1988, Reagan met with General Secretary Cockroaches four times; in Switzerland, Iceland, Washington DC, and Moscow (Reagan, “American Life” 545). The meetings between the two world leaders were dramatic and Reagan walked out of the meeting in Reykjavik, Iceland after Cockroaches failed compromise. The tensions were high during all of the meetings and many people feared that any mistake could lead to an immediate nuclear Armageddon.
Fortunately, no nuclear weapons were launched and the Reagan Administration triumphed over the Soviet Union. In 1987, Reagan visited East Berlin and spoke at the Brandenburg Gate. During his speech, he called for an end to Communism and a strengthening of individual liberty. His speech as the Brandenburg Gate is often viewed as one f the most successful speeches of his presidency. While speaking to a crowd of thousands, Reagan said to the General Secretary of the Soviet Union, “Mr.. Cockroaches, tear down this wall” (Reagan, “Speaking” 352).
Two years later, the Soviet Union agreed to tear down the Berlin Wall and within the year, Communist nations around Europe began to crumble. Many Democrats in Congress and the mainstream media admired Cockroaches for bringing peace to European countries; they praised Cockroaches for surrendering and for keeping the warmongering Ronald Reagan from leading the country on the road to a nuclear war. Many Americans who opposed the Reagan Administration were more than happy to give the credit to the Soviet Union; they believed Reagan was too overpowering and heartless to have been so successful.
Nevertheless, conservative talk show host, Rush Lumbago writes, “The end of the Cold War and the defeat of Communism in the Soviet Union was a clear victory for American values, for the American way of life, for the republican, democratic, free-marked ideals of the United States of America” (Lumbago “Ought to Be” 230). Therefore, it would seem that Reagan played a major role in bringing an end to the 40 year Cold War. Regardless Of the beliefs and values one holds, Ronald Reagan ended the Cold War and suppressed the Communist threat worldwide. He changed the world!
Although his greatest success may have been bringing closure to the Cold War, Reagan also accomplished a great deal in the United States of America. When he left office in 1989, the economy was breaking records and benefiting from the longest period of peacetime prosperity without recession or depression (Ronald Reagan). People were making money in America and thanks to Reggae’s tax cuts; they were TABLE to keep more of what they earned. The Reagan Administration began an economic policy that became identified as “Ergonomics” or trickle-down economics.
Ergonomics was the believTABLE tax cuts for the rich, middle class, and poor would work to stimulate the economy. If the rich had more money, they would create more businesses and opportunity, the middle class would then be TABLE to become business owners, and higher the poor. It is a social hierarchy of job creation and the nation experienced 96 months of peacetime economic growth (Lumbago, ‘Told You So” 122). In 1990, George H. W. Bush disbanded the policy of Ergonomics and the 96 months of economic growth ended almost immediately.
Many historians, to this day, view the asses as a decade of greed where the rich got richer and the poor got poorer. They also discredit the policy of Ergonomics because they do not believe the rich paid their fair share of taxes. However, economic figures are illustrative of how much the rich truly pay in taxes. It seems that the top of income earners pay nearly of all federal income taxes in the United States (What Would Reagan Do? ). Therefore, even if the asses were deemed as a decade of greed, it would seem that greed is good. Reagan worked to reduce onerous taxes in order to return the wealth to its rightful owners, the workers.
The Reagan Administration did not hand out money; rather, they let people keep more of what they had already earned. In return, consumerism rose and the money was immediately deposited back into the national economy. Therefore, it would seem that the tax cuts and policy of Ergonomics worked very well in the 1 sass; the economic growth experienced in that decade has yet to be matched. Regardless of one’s political affiliation, it is undeniTABLE that tax cuts work and the economic policy of the Reagan Administration should be implemented into our system now, during the present economic crisis.
The implementation of tax cuts, both on income and corporations, provided working class Americans with the incentive to work and to achieve. No longer were people afraid of earning; the tax cuts prevented hard working Americans from being punished with difficult and total taxation. This era of economic growth restored a feeling of optimism in America, especially after the failures of the Carter Administration and the record setting unemployment rate of the late 1 adds. Ronald Reggae’s policies, both foreign and domestic, made people proud to be Americans once again.
During the asses, Americans were not being villainies and condemned, they Were being praised. Reagan restored the feeling of confidence in America and brought forth a generation of strong nationalistic Americans. Ronald Reagan was a success as President of the United States, not only because of his charisma and communication skills, nor simply because of his policies. Ronald Reagan was a success because the American people loved him. In 1984, during his campaign for a second term, the electorate illustrated their reverie for him and he won in the largest landslide victory ever recorded.
He as unanimously re-elected in 49 of the 50 states (What Would Reagan Do? ). His unprecedented victory astonished the world and many of his political detractors wondered how he could be so popular. Once again, the political philosopher Machiavelli offers insight into how a person should be a successful leader. Machiavelli wrote in 1513, “… He should inspire his citizens to follow their pursuits quietly, in trade and in agriculture and in every other pursuit of men, so that one person does not fear to adorn his possessions for fear that they be taken away from him, and another to open up a trade for fear of taxes” (Machiavelli 91).
In essence, Reagan accomplished all of these aforementioned goals during his presidency. His policy of a strong national defense worked to make people feel comforTABLE and unafraid of a Communist attack, and his policy of Ergonomics allowed people to become entrepreneurs without a fear of being taxed out of business. For all practical purposes, Reagan epitomized the values of a good leader as prescribed by Niccole Machiavelli; he restored the power and the faith to the people while simultaneously ruling under the facade of being a decisive and fearful leader when handling foreign threats. In the end, it is apparent that Ronald
Reagan accomplished a great deal during his administration. His most important accomplishments stem from restoring optimism in Americans, the total growth of economic prosperity, and bringing an end to the Cold War. Many of his political opponents still work to destroy the successes of his administration and they blame him for being too demanding and too dangerous. They thought his actions during the asses were detrimental to the growth and prosperity of America. On January 11, 1989, during his farewell address to the nation, he said, “My friends: We did it. We weren’t just marking time. We made a difference. We made the city stronger. | <urn:uuid:d8f29c39-ac0a-4c73-84ca-ef4b3ec26e46> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://graduateway.com/ronald-reagan-5-free-essay/ | 2024-12-09T19:47:35Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066047540.11/warc/CC-MAIN-20241209183414-20241209213414-00653.warc.gz | en | 0.979869 | 3,150 | 2.953125 | 3 |
Table of contents
According to The State Archives and Records Authority of New South Wales (NSW State Archives and Records 2008), information is the primary organizational asset needed now and in the future, and good record-keeping can help you find the information you need. It can also help you promote information sharing and collaboration. If you can access and trust information, you can use it to make more informed decisions and take appropriate action. Since health care is considered professional, nurses and midwives need to document their work as they are completed. Records are a practical and indispensable aid for doctors, nurses, and paramedics to provide the best service to their clients. In medical care, record-keeping is important to both patients and nursing staff. It is essential that staff members receive training in record keeping and recognize the importance of updating and referring to these documents. There are many reasons for keeping medical records in health care, but two of them are more prominent than others: Prepare a complete record of patient/customer journeys through the service; Provide ongoing care to patients/customers within and between services. (Royal College of Nursing 2016) Record keeping is a critical and ethical responsibility for health care professionals. In this paper, the writer will critically discuss record keeping. Before we talk about record keeping, let us review the job duties of the phlebotomist.
Responsibility and Skills A Phlebotomist Need
Some of the main responsibilities and skills required by blood collectors are as follows: Blood Collection—working as a phlebotomist, you will be the person who draws blood from the patient and marks the blood bottle you fill. You will also be responsible for bringing all blood samples to the local laboratory where you are working for testing. (phlebotomy training information 2017) Communication skill—A phlebotomist must maintain a professional attitude with other health professionals, especially patients, who are often afraid of taking blood. A phlebotomist should politely greet patients and demonstrate a friendly, compassionate attitude to help patients relax. (Chron 2019) Infection control—various diseases, such as hepatitis, HIV, etc. can be transmitted through blood. Blood drawers must strictly follow the safety requirements to protect themselves and their patients. (phlebotomy scout 2019)
Housekeeping—according to Chron (2019) that the phlebotomist is responsible for keeping their supplies and equipment in good condition, keep supplies in stock and organize them for easy access; Keeping the blood trays fully equipped and ready in case of a doctor orders a draw of blood elsewhere at the hospital.
Record-Keeping—phlebotomists help keep patients and lab records up-to-date. They must mark the sample properly with the patient’s full name, date of birth and I.D. number, and other information such as the time and date of collection; They usually also need to enter information about blood samples and tests into a digital data entry system. (Chron 2019) Safety—the phlebotomist must be aware of needle injuries to avoid harm to themselves or their patients and to prevent the spread of blood-borne diseases. They need to keep hand hygiene and follow a sterile procedure. They need to use a 70% alcohol wipe to clean the puncture site and cover the site with a sterile bandage after the blood was taken. (Chron 2019) In summary, nursing record keeping is also one of the important duties of the phlebotomist.
Record and Record-Keeping
What is Record? In the medical field, nursing records are permanent written communication that records information related to a client’s health care management. It is the original written record of the observation and implementation of nursing measures by nurses. Nursing records are legal documents and have legal effect. (Jasleenkaur B. 2015) Record keeping refers to maintaining a person’s activity history, as a financial transaction, by entering data in a ledger or journal, putting documents into files, and so on. In the medical field, record keeping is the act of organizing and recording information related to patient care. (Dictionary.com 2019) A good patient record includes detailed record details about patient care and the patient’s response to the care. (study.com 2019) Different records retention methods were used in the health care environment. Some workplace use handwriting records, some workplaces use computer-based systems, and many workplaces use both. You will be required to comply with any requirements set by your employer for record-keeping, whether handwriting or electronic. According to the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland, (NMBI) The client records that an individual nurse or midwifery keeps within a legal, ethical and professional framework should be clear, accurate, honest, and current. It means that they should be written as much as possible to the actual time of the event they describe. The important value of nursing records is reflected in the following aspects:
- Communication—The medical staff can understand the patient’s needs and the treatment and care process by reading to achieve mutual communication;
- Assessing patients—Information obtained from records such as admission assessments, hospitalization assessments, etc. can help identify patient needs, identify patient health issues, and develop targeted care plans;
- Investigation and research—Complete nursing records are important materials for nursing research and have reference value for retrospective research;
- Teaching Resources—A standard, complete nursing record allows nurses to see the specific application of theory in practice and is the best material for teaching;
- Assessment—The nursing record reflects the quality, academic, and technical level of a hospital’s nursing service to a certain extent. It is an important information material for hospital nursing management, and also a reference for hospital-grade assessment and nursing staff assessment;
- Legal Basis—The nursing record is a legal document and is legally recognized evidence.
Legal Issues in Record-Keeping
The content and processing of clinical records are strictly regulated by law, not only because they are the basis of high-quality patient care, but also because they are increasingly used in courts and are an important source of confidential personal information. (NCBI 2016) According to the Royal College of Nursing (2016), the UK health department has done two things about the legal aspects of keeping health record-keeping: Individuals working for health care organizations are responsible for what they write; Personally writing anything about their work as a health care worker becomes a public record. So you have to pay attention to what you write. For example, not only you need to formally explain your records when a patient complains, but the patient can also request a copy of what you write through the Data Protection Act. (Royal College of Nursing 2016) There is also the question of whether health care assistants have the right to make the record and write down the care they provided to patients. In fact, as long as registered nurses represent this responsibility, health care assistants are qualified to carry out the activity and it’s documentation. In some countries, such as the UK, data security, and data sharing laws can be very strict. The Royal College of Nursing has produced guidance on delegating record-keeping and countersigning records.
Principles of Record-Keeping
Patient records are permanent records of care provided by health professionals. Failure to fully record important patient information on the medical record is the negligence of nurses. There are general principles that nurses and authorized care assistants must follow to ensure the records do their job, whether it is handwriting or electronic system input, can be summarized by stating that anything you write or enter must be functional, accurate, complete, current organized and confidential. (RCN 2016) These principles are explained in detail as follows: Functional means that record’s information about the customer and their care must be valid. It is a true portrayal of a series of nursing activities carried out by health professionals to patients. It records the whole process of a patient’s treatment, nursing care, and reflects the evolution of the patient’s condition. Accuracy means that customer or patient records must be reliable. In order to give confidence to health team members, information must be accurate. (Jasleenkaur B. 2015) Complete means that the information in the record entry or report should be complete, containing concise and comprehensive information about the patient’s care, or any event that occurs within the jurisdiction of the administrator. Current means that any recorded incidents should be updated as soon as possible; provide up-to-date information on patient care and status. Delays in recording or reporting can lead to serious omissions and untimely delays in legitimate health care or actions, and late arrivals in the chart may be explained inadvertently. (Lydia N 2018) Organization means that nurses or nurse administrators convey information in logical format or sequence. When members of the health team are arranged in the order in which they appear, they will have a better understanding of the information. (Jasleenkaur B. 2015) Confidentiality is a principle that cannot be ignored. According to The Code of Professional Conduct and Ethics for Registered Nurses and Registered Midwives (2014), nurses are legally and ethically obligated to keep information about the client’s illness and treatments confidential. If you follow these principles, your contribution to record-keeping will be valuable.
There are some more things you need to pay attention to when recording: Nurse’s record-keeping quality should ensure that continuous care for patients is always supported, and any jargon, witticisms or derogatory words should not appear in the record. (NMBI 2014) Clearly handwriting and typing computer systems; Make sure the date and time of your entry are as close as possible to the actual time of the event; Properly sign all your entries; Record events accurately and clearly, make sure your writing in a proper language that people understand because the patient might want to see the record. Focus on facts, not speculation; Abbreviations are not used on documentation that is used for transfer, discharge, or external referral letters. If possible, please avoid using abbreviations. (RCN 2016) Delete or change is scored by a single line followed by the signature (plus name in capitals) and counter-signature, if appropriate; date and time of correct entry, no scraping, sticking or painting methods shall be used to cover up or remove the original handwriting. (RCN 2016) Corrections are made as close to the original recording as possible. Don’t mark or change anything written by someone else, or change anything you wrote before; Never write any patient or colleague about insult or derogatory. (Health Service Executive 2019) As you write, always follow the principles described in the written communication section and remember that if you find something that you think is important when working with a patient/client, your first priority is to report it to the responsible registered nurse. Write it to the patient/customer’s record. Always report first and then record.
According to the Royal College of Nursing (2016), health services need to maintain good patient care written record for three main reasons: First, continuous and safe care and treatment can be carried out no matter which employee is on duty; Second, to record the care that has been given to the patient/client; Third, when the patient/client complains about the care they receive, make sure that an accurate record is used as “evidence”. You will support registrants to prepare and update patient records, so it is important to have full control over the principles of written communication. The actual level of your participation in written patient records varies from workplace to workplace. You need to understand your expectations in the workplace and be sure to follow the rules.
The Principles of Written Communication
Nursing records should be written on the basis of facts, correctness and consistency; be as close as possible to the time when you provide care or events occur; write simply and clearly; if you type in a computer, try to avoid mistakes; if you write by hand, write clearly; when specific events and situations occur, insert dates and times as accurately as possible to invalidate and express personal opinions; Avoid making any judgment or personal insults; report what you have observed. Remember, as part of the health care team, it’s your responsibility to ensure that everything you write about patients/clients is confidential and that no one is authorized to access them. We have considered this important issue of confidentiality. (RCN 2016 & HSE 2019)
A recording is an important part of nursing practice and has clinical and legal significance. Good quality records are associated with improved patient care, and poor documentation is considered to be the cause of poor quality care. Clinical record preservation is an integral part of good professional practice and the provision of quality health care. Regardless of the form of medical records, good clinical record preservation should ensure the continuity of care and strengthen communication between different health professionals. Maintaining high-quality records and reports has direct and long-term benefits for all health care professionals. It ensures that the professional and legal status of nurses is not jeopardized by absent or incomplete records if they are required to be held accountable at the hearings. A good medical record can reduce the time of repeated blood tests, avoid giving an inaccurate diagnosis or inappropriate prescription treatment and benefit patients greatly. In addition, good clinical record keeping can help to make decisions for individual patients and save time for those who need it most. Finally, poor clinical records can have a profound impact on patients' lifelong health. Therefore, never forget the importance of the responsibility to share information and the obligation to protect patient confidentiality.
Cite this Essay
To export a reference to this article please select a referencing style below | <urn:uuid:fd74bbc5-99ee-452a-b779-9b35575df9f5> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://writingbros.com/essay-examples/understanding-record-keeping-for-the-phlebotomist/ | 2024-12-06T10:36:20Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066400558.71/warc/CC-MAIN-20241206093646-20241206123646-00020.warc.gz | en | 0.947732 | 2,800 | 3.703125 | 4 |
How GPT Transformer Works
The GPT (Generative Pre-trained Transformer) model is a state-of-the-art language model developed by OpenAI. It is built on a deep learning architecture called the Transformer, which revolutionized natural language processing tasks due to its ability to process long-range dependencies in text effectively. GPT Transformer is capable of generating high-quality and coherent text, making it highly valuable for various applications such as chatbots, translation systems, and content generation.
- GPT Transformer is a language model based on the Transformer architecture.
- It utilizes deep learning techniques to generate coherent and high-quality text.
- GPT Transformer has various applications, including chatbots and content generation.
The GPT Transformer model consists of multiple self-attention layers that process input text. The self-attention mechanism allows the model to weigh the importance of each word in a sentence when generating predictions, resulting in more accurate and context-aware outputs. Each layer learns to capture different levels of information, starting from low-level features such as individual words and progressing to higher-level structures such as phrases and sentences.
*The self-attention mechanism enables the GPT Transformer to capture the relationships between words more effectively, leading to more comprehensive understanding of natural language cues.*
During the training process, the GPT Transformer model is pre-trained on a large corpus of text data, which allows it to learn the statistical properties of language. This pre-training phase enables the model to capture semantic and syntactic patterns in text, making it capable of generating coherent and contextually relevant responses. The trained model is then fine-tuned on specific tasks to further enhance its performance in specific domains.
Table 1: GPT Transformer Training Process
Phase | Description |
Pre-training | Model is trained on a large corpus of text data to capture language patterns. |
Fine-tuning | Model is fine-tuned on specific tasks or domains to optimize performance. |
*The pre-training phase provides the GPT Transformer with a strong foundation in understanding language, while fine-tuning tailors its capabilities for specific applications.*
GPT Transformer‘s ability to generate text is based on an autoregressive decoding process. Given a prompt or partial input, the model predicts the most likely next word based on the context it has learned during training. By repeatedly generating words conditioned on previous predictions, GPT Transformer can generate coherent and contextually appropriate text, mimicking human-like language generation.
The performance of GPT Transformer is highly dependent on the quality and diversity of the training data. Models trained on a larger and more diverse dataset tend to have better language understanding and generation capabilities. OpenAI has made significant efforts to train GPT Transformer on vast amounts of publicly available text from the internet, enabling it to capture a broad range of language patterns and styles.
Table 2: GPT Transformer Performance Factors
Factor | Effect |
Training Data Size | Larger and more diverse datasets lead to better model performance. |
Prompt Length | Longer prompts provide more context for generating coherent responses. |
Model Size | Larger models with more parameters generally produce higher-quality text. |
*GPT Transformer’s overall performance is influenced by factors such as the size and diversity of training data, prompt length, and the model’s own architecture and capacity.*
GPT Transformer has brought significant advancements to the field of natural language processing, revolutionizing various applications. The model’s ability to generate coherent and contextually relevant text has opened up new possibilities for automated content generation, chatbots, and translation systems. As future iterations of GPT Transformer continue to improve, we can expect even more remarkable language generation capabilities.
Table 3: Applications of GPT Transformer
Application | Description |
Chatbots | GPT Transformer can generate dynamic and responsive conversational agents. |
Automated Content Generation | The model can assist in creating high-quality articles, blog posts, and more. |
Translation Systems | GPT Transformer can facilitate accurate and efficient translation between languages. |
*The applications of GPT Transformer span a wide range, offering solutions for various language-related tasks and challenges.*
With its advanced architecture and training techniques, GPT Transformer represents a significant milestone in language modeling. Its ability to generate coherent and contextually relevant text has already had a transformative impact across industries. As research continues to push the boundaries of natural language processing, we can only anticipate further breakthroughs and improvements in language generation models like GPT Transformer.
Misconception 1: GPT Transformer is a human-like AI
One common misconception about GPT Transformer is that it can fully mimic human intelligence. However, GPT Transformer is a language model that has been trained on a massive amount of text data. While it can generate coherent and contextually relevant text, it lacks true understanding, consciousness, or human-like capabilities.
- GPT Transformer lacks real-world knowledge and experiences.
- It cannot pass a general intelligence test like a human can.
- GPT Transformer does not possess emotions or subjective experiences.
Misconception 2: GPT Transformer can replace human writers
Another misconception is that GPT Transformer can fully replace human writers. While GPT Transformer can generate text, it does not possess the creativity, critical thinking, and cultural awareness that humans bring to writing. Furthermore, GPT Transformer‘s output needs to be carefully reviewed and edited by humans as it can sometimes produce inaccurate or biased information.
- Humans understand nuances, idioms, and cultural references better than GPT Transformer.
- GPT Transformer lacks the ability to deeply analyze and interpret complex topics.
- It may produce plausible-sounding but incorrect or misleading information.
Misconception 3: GPT Transformer works perfectly every time
One misconception is that GPT Transformer is infallible and consistently generates accurate, high-quality text. In reality, GPT Transformer sometimes produces incoherent or nonsensical output. It heavily relies on the context provided, so if the input is ambiguous or lacking detail, the generated text may not be useful or relevant.
- GPT Transformer’s output is highly sensitive to the input it receives.
- It may generate inconsistent or contradictory information in different contexts.
- GPT Transformer’s performance varies depending on the specific dataset it was trained on.
Misconception 4: GPT Transformer understands the content it generates
Some people mistakenly believe that GPT Transformer comprehends the text it generates. While GPT Transformer is capable of understanding certain patterns in the training data, it lacks true comprehension and reasoning abilities. It operates purely based on statistical patterns and does not have the ability to truly understand the meaning or implications of the generated text.
- GPT Transformer does not possess common sense reasoning or logic.
- It cannot explain why it generates certain outputs.
- GPT Transformer cannot engage in meaningful conversations or debates.
Misconception 5: GPT Transformer is unbiased
Lastly, there is a misconception that GPT Transformer is completely unbiased in its output. However, since it is trained on large datasets gathered from the internet, it can inadvertently learn and reproduce biases present in the training data. Bias mitigation techniques are being developed, but currently, GPT Transformer may generate biased statements or reinforce existing biases.
- GPT Transformer may show biases based on the source and nature of its training data.
- It can perpetuate gender, racial, or cultural biases present in the text it was trained on.
- GPT Transformer requires human intervention to ensure fairness and avoid biased outputs.
In recent years, the GPT (Generative Pre-trained Transformer) model has revolutionized the field of natural language processing. By using the power of deep learning, GPT understands and generates human-like text, making it incredibly versatile in various applications. In this article, we will explore ten fascinating aspects of how GPT transformer works.
The Importance of Attention Mechanism
GPT relies on a key component called the attention mechanism, which allows the model to focus on specific words or phrases when decoding sequences. This mechanism provides GPT with the ability to generate coherent and contextually appropriate responses. Let’s dive into the details of how it works:
Self-Attention in GPT
GPT utilizes self-attention to determine the importance of each word within a sentence. This technique allows the model to assign higher weights to words that are more relevant to generating the next word. The table below illustrates the self-attention scores for a sample sentence:
Word | Self-Attention Score |
“The” | 0.15 |
“cat” | 0.32 |
“is” | 0.11 |
“chasing” | 0.28 |
“the” | 0.14 |
“mouse” | 0.19 |
Training GPT with Massive Datasets
GPT achieves its impressive performance by training on vast amounts of data. For instance, during pre-training, GPT might train on over 1.5 million web pages. This extensive exposure to diverse text helps the model grasp the nuances of language, enabling it to generate more accurate and contextually appropriate responses.
Understanding Contextual Information
One of GPT’s notable strengths is understanding the context in which a word is used in a sentence. By considering the surrounding words, GPT is able to generate responses that align with the intended meaning. Let’s take a look at an example:
Context | Generated Text |
“I saw a man with a telescope.” | “He was observing the stars.” |
“I saw a man with a hammer.” | “He was fixing a shelf.” |
Conditional Language Generation
GPT can generate text conditioned on specific prompts. For example, by providing a few starting words, GPT can continue generating relevant sentences. Below, GPT generates new sentences given different initial prompts:
Prompt | Generated Sentence |
“Once upon a time” | “in a magical kingdom, there lived a brave prince.” |
“In the future” | “humans will explore distant galaxies and unlock the secrets of the universe.” |
Controlling the Creativity of GPT
GPT allows users to control the amount of creativity in generated text. By adjusting a parameter called the “temperature,” we can influence the randomness in responses. Higher values result in more diverse but potentially less coherent text, while lower values provide more focused and deterministic responses.
Real-World Applications of GPT
GPT’s capabilities have found practical applications in various fields including content generation, customer service chatbots, and language translation. The table below showcases some notable sectors where GPT is making a significant impact:
Application | Use Case |
Writing Assistance | Suggests improvements and helps in content creation |
Virtual Assistants | Provides intelligent responses and performs tasks |
Language Translation | Translates text accurately between different languages |
Social Media Analysis | Analyzes large volumes of text-based data for insights |
Limitations and Ethical Considerations
While GPT offers remarkable capabilities, it is not without limitations. Ethical concerns have arisen regarding the potential misuse of GPT for generating misleading information or offensive content. It is essential to consider these factors to ensure responsible deployment and mitigate unintended negative consequences.
The GPT transformer model has revolutionized the way machines understand and generate human-like text. Through the power of deep learning, attention mechanisms, and extensive training on vast datasets, GPT enables incredible language generation in various applications. As researchers and developers continue to refine the model’s capabilities and address its limitations, the potential for GPT to advance communication and enhance productivity is truly exciting.
How GPT Transformer Works – Frequently Asked Questions
Question: What is GPT Transformer?
GPT Transformer is an autoregressive language model developed by OpenAI. It uses deep learning techniques to generate human-like text based on a given prompt or context.
Question: How does GPT Transformer generate text?
GPT Transformer consists of a transformer architecture that employs attention mechanisms to process and understand input text. It predicts the probability distribution of the next word based on the previous words, which allows it to generate coherent and contextually relevant text.
Question: What is the difference between GPT-1, GPT-2, and GPT-3?
GPT-1, GPT-2, and GPT-3 are different versions of the GPT model, each with varying model sizes and capabilities. GPT-1 was the initial version, followed by the more advanced GPT-2, and finally GPT-3, which is the most powerful and largest version to date.
Question: How does GPT Transformer learn?
GPT Transformer learns through a process called unsupervised learning. It is trained on a large corpus of text data from the internet, where it learns patterns and structures in the text by predicting the next word in a sentence given the previous words.
Question: Can GPT Transformer understand context?
Yes, GPT Transformer is designed to understand context. It uses attention mechanisms to focus on different parts of the input text and uses the information from previous words to generate coherent and contextually appropriate responses.
Question: What are some applications of GPT Transformer?
GPT Transformer has various applications, including text completion, language translation, chatbots, content generation, and even code autocompletion. Its ability to generate human-like text makes it useful in many natural language processing tasks.
Question: What are the limitations of GPT Transformer?
GPT Transformer has a few limitations. It can sometimes generate incorrect or nonsensical text, especially when faced with ambiguous prompts. It may also exhibit biases present in the training data and has difficulty understanding factual accuracy, leading to potential misinformation.
Question: Is GPT Transformer available for public use?
Yes, GPT Transformer is available for public use through various APIs and libraries provided by OpenAI. However, there are certain limitations, such as rate limits and cost considerations, depending on the usage and the version of GPT being used.
Question: How can GPT Transformer be fine-tuned for specific tasks?
GPT Transformer can be fine-tuned for specific tasks by training it with domain-specific data. This process involves further training the model on task-specific datasets to make it more specialized in generating relevant text for that particular domain or application.
Question: What is the future of GPT Transformer?
The future of GPT Transformer is promising. Researchers and developers are continuously working on improving the model’s capabilities, reducing biases, and enhancing its understanding of context. It is expected that future versions of GPT Transformer will be even more powerful and versatile. | <urn:uuid:1409457d-b5f7-4bf1-b86d-c32028906d7d> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://openedai.io/how-gpt-transformer-works/ | 2024-12-10T21:01:48Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066067826.3/warc/CC-MAIN-20241210194529-20241210224529-00868.warc.gz | en | 0.903757 | 3,149 | 3.734375 | 4 |
Considering that protein, or more specifically, the amino acids that makeup protein, is vital to a huge swath of bodily functions, it’s no wonder that nutrition experts want everyone, especially athletes, to get enough. Eating healthy amounts of protein boosts immunity, oxygen transport, heart function, and muscle and bone formation, to name a few benefits.
If you don’t eat animals or animal products, then it’s key to know which foods are the best sources of protein for vegetarians, especially if you are a runner who wants to remain strong on the road.
As a runner, you certainly require protein to better support muscle repair and growth, and also to help meet overall calorie needs. Though exact numbers remain elusive, research suggests endurance athletes can benefit by consuming up to 0.82 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight, especially on training days. This is about twice the recommended daily amount of protein recommended to the general population.
Getting in more protein may be even more important for older runners. It appears that your body uses protein less efficiently to maintain and build muscle as Father Time catches up with you.
Don’t fret, though, about coming up short in terms of exercise recovery or positive training adaptations if you serve tofu for dinner. Increasingly, studies including one in the journal Sports Medicine and another in The Journal of Nutrition, show that as long as these extra protein needs are met even from plant sources, you should not reduce gains in muscle endurance, strength, or size.
In short, as long as you get enough total protein to meet bodily needs, it does not matter very much whether it comes from chicken or chickpeas.
There can also be longevity benefits with welcoming more plant proteins into your diet. A observational study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2024 found that a link between higher plant protein intakes and healthier aging. Researchers defined healthy aging as being free of several chronic diseases including cancer, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease, as well as having no impairment in mental and physical functioning. Researchers found that replacing 3 percent of calories from animal protein sources with plant protein sources increased the odds of healthy aging by a lofty 38 percent.
Need more reason to eat more protein for vegetarians? A systematic review and meta-analysis published in 2024 found that plant-based diets can help athletes perform better during aerobic activities like running and don’t have a detrimental effect on strength performance.
If you’re not sure where to start when it comes to nailing your protein needs using more plants, here are top sources of proteins for vegetarians.
The Best Plant-Based Proteins for Vegetarians
1. Soy Milk
Made by blending soaked soybeans with water and straining the solids, soy milk is one of the few plant-based milks with a protein content on par with cow’s milk, unlike almond and oat, which are nearly bereft of protein.
Many soy milk brands of are fortified with important vitamins and minerals, too, such as calcium and vitamin D. In fact, research shows that among the slew of plant-based milks on the market, fortified soy most closely mimics the nutrient content of dairy milk.
It’s best to choose soy milk that is labeled “unsweetened,” which does not contain any added sugar. With protein, liquid, and a bit of sodium, a glass of soy milk is a great recovery drink. Or, use it as a base for smoothies and cereal. Soy milk can also work as a replacement for regular milk in pancakes and baked goods like muffins.
2. Hemp Seeds
Protein: 9.5 grams per 3 tablespoons
Tasting like a combination of pine nuts and sunflower seeds, hemp seeds (also sold as “hemp hearts’) deliver a bigger dose of protein than most nuts and seeds. Nutrition analysis shows that hemp contains a full arsenal of essential amino acids in reasonable quantities meaning its protein quality can help with muscle repair.
Other nutritional virtues of hemp seeds include healthy amounts of magnesium, B vitamins, energy-boosting iron, and even heart-benefiting omega-3 fat.
Sprinkle hemp seeds over oatmeal, yogurt, and salads. You can also blend them into postrun smoothies and homemade energy bars and balls. (They tend to be too small to make a good addition to trail mix, though!)
Protein: 34 grams per 1 cup
Even if you aren’t slicing away all the meat from your diet, don’t overlook this plant-based option. Meaty tempeh is produced by soaking and cooking soybeans and then leaving them to ferment in the presence of bacteria for several days. Not only is it denser in muscle-building protein than tofu, tempeh is also a richer source of dietary fiber, which can support a healthy microbiome.
Additionally, this protein heavyweight houses troves of nutrients including magnesium, phosphorus, iron, riboflavin, and calcium.
Research has found that the fermentation process improves nutrient bioavailability (you absorb the nutrients more efficiently) and makes the soy-based product easier to digest (read: less gas).
You can find plain, maple-flavored, and bacon-flavored tempeh. Slices of seared or grilled tempeh are good in grain bowls, tacos, stir fries, or as a sandwich filling. Crumbled tempeh can be used to make meat-free meatballs, burgers, chili, pasta sauce, and baked beans.
4. Legume Pasta
Noodles made from legumes, such as chickpeas and lupini beans, trump regular pasta when it comes to protein. Be it penne or rotini, gluten-free legume pasta offers up about twice as much protein as regular wheat-based noodles. You get three times more fiber, as well. This extra protein and fiber can help keep you feel full longer.
Boil up a pot of noodles from legumes and you also get more of several vital micronutrients like magnesium, iron, and potassium. Use this pasta the same way you do traditional pasta. Always remember, though, that the noodles can go from perfectly al dente to soggy in a matter of moments, so taste often close to the recommended cooking time.
For a few calories (about 94 in a ½ cup) you get a nutrition windfall. Soybeans have significant amounts of high-quality protein, more than almost any other legume, and 8 grams of dietary fiber.
A research review published in Sports Medicine found that soy protein can be a good substitute for athletes in place of conventional protein supplements, and can enhance lean muscle mass.
The nutritional bounty of edamame also includes solid amounts of folate, iron, potassium, and vitamin K.
On their own, prepared and seasoned edamame is a protein-packed healthy snack for runners. You can also enjoy them in salads, noodle dishes, soups, stir-fries, and dips.
Protein: 13 grams per 2/3 cup
Quorn is the trade-marked name given to a dense meat substitute called mycoprotein, one of the original meat substitutes. Fungi-derived mycoprotein is a complete protein that provides all essential amino acids, which isn’t typical of plant-based protein sources.
A 2023 Journal of Nutrition investigation determined that mycoprotein is just as effective as animal-based protein at supporting muscle building when someone is weight training. Other research shows that swapping out red meat for mycroprotein can benefit cardiovascular health and bod composition.
Quorn mycoprotein is available in a variety of products including cubes, ground, sausages, and patties. Use the grounds any way you would ground beef, and add sautéed pieces to salads, tacos, and stir-fries.
Not all grains are protein lightweights. Freekeh is a type of wheat kernel popular in Middle Eastern cuisine. It’s harvested while still immature, then roasted, dried, and rubbed, which results in a whole grain with a delicious smoky flavor. Typically, it has higher protein content than other grains, including quinoa.
Freekha’s duo of protein and carbs makes it a great addition to a post-exercise meal to kickstart muscle recovery—boosting carbohydrate storage and stimulating muscle repair. The quality of protein in freekeh isn’t as high as that found in meats and dairy, but you still gain benefits.
You can prepare freekeh the same way you would grains like rice and quinoa. Use cooked freekeh as a stand-alone side-dish or in salads, soups, grain bowls, and as a clever replacement for rice in burritos.
8. Meatless Burgers
Protein: 19 grams per burger
We’re living in the golden age of plant-based meat, and beef-free grounds are a viable option to add more protein to your diet. Technological advancements, such as protein isolation, have made it possible to develop meat alternatives that more closely resemble the taste, texture, and protein content of actual meat.
When athletes replace meat with plant-based alternatives there is no drop in muscle endurance and strength. A The Canadian Journal of Cardiology review published in 2024 study found that despite being heavily processed, plant-based meat alternatives could offer heart health benefits compared with traditional meat, including reductions in total and LDL cholesterol.
However, some research suggests we need to eat more plant-based meat to have the same muscle-building effect as beef. So a 6-ounce patty could be the equivalent of a 4-ounce serving of ground beef when it comes to delivering enough important amino acids.
Some brands, including Beyond Beef and Impossible Foods, have responded to nutrition criticism by reformulating their products to contain less saturated fat, such as swapping out coconut oil for canola oil.
You can cook a meatless burger exactly like you would regular beef. If you choose to get the the food in its ground form, you can use it to make pasta “meat” sauce, chili, burritos, tacos, Shepherd’s pie, and loaded nachos.
9. Plant Protein Powder
Protein: 20 grams per two-scoop serving
The new wave of better-designed and better-tasting plant-based protein powders can be a convenient way for runners to sneak more protein into their diets. Increasingly, it’s been shown that plant protein powders can help with building muscle just as much as animal-based powders, including whey. This is especially true when a powder is made up of multiple protein sources such as pea and rice.
For example, a study published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise in 2024showed that when the same total amount of protein is consumed as a plant-based protein blend or whey protein they stimulate post-exercise muscle protein synthesis to the same degree. Luckily, new formulations are providing more protein per gram of powder and at amounts that rival dairy-based powders.
Smoothies are a no-brainer, but these powders are also a good replacement for some of the flour when making things like pancakes and muffins. Stir a scoop or two into a pot of hot oatmeal for a bigger hit of breakfast protein.
10. Peanut Butter
Protein: 7.5 grams in 2 tablespoons
Because peanuts are technically a legume, peanut butter provides more protein than spreads made from tree nuts, such as almonds and cashews. Peanut butter has lower levels of some essential amino acids, but combining peanut butter with other foods like whole grain bread or brown rice cakes can help create a more complete protein.
Compare labels for options that contain no added sugar. The amount of sodium in jars with salt added is usually too little to fret about.
Of course, it’s a tasty topping on everything from toast to apple slices to celery sticks. Use the spread to boost protein numbers in smoothies, sauces (think peanut sauce for noodles and rice bowls), oatmeal, and baked goods.
Matthew Kadey, M.S., R.D.
Matthew Kadey, M.S. R.D. is a Canada-based registered dietitian and nutrition journalist with two decades of experience in reporting about food and nutrition for dozens of print and online publications. Kadey is the author of Rocket Fuel: Power-Packed Food for Sports + Adventure. He is also an adventure cyclist and creator of several bikepacking routes in North America and beyond. Find him at matthewkadey.com, @rocketfuelfood | <urn:uuid:bac43522-f162-47de-8326-6094f2c59adc> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://hillagility.com/article/the-10-best-muscle-building-proteins-for-vegetarian-runners | 2024-12-13T12:02:45Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066116798.44/warc/CC-MAIN-20241213105147-20241213135147-00460.warc.gz | en | 0.947425 | 2,627 | 2.796875 | 3 |
“Less and less, the birds sang, until one day we heard their beautiful songs no more and our hearts cried out as we hugged our children and told them to pray. Nothing could slow the loggers down.”
Paul Dixon is a hunter and trapper in the Waswanipi Territory. The original version of this document was written in 1987. Since then Paul has modified and updated it. This is the first time it has appeared in print.
The writer of this document has been practicing the Cree traditional way of life, hunting and trapping, for approximately 25 years. During these years I have witnessed our trapline slowly being destroyed. This same trapline was where my grandfather and father taught me how to hunt and respect wildlife.
In the early years, I felt the abundance of wildlife before the land was exploited by forestry operations. Belonging to a large family, our lives were very much attached to the land and dependent on it for most of our needs. Now married with three children and still staying with a large group of family members on our depleted trapline, me and my brothers and our families do not feel safe or confident to carry on that tradition.
In my opinion, if people lose contact with nature, the respect for other life will also be lost. The hunters and their families never realized how forestry operations and other development on their hunting territories would affect their lives and their way of living. For some, this was the beginning of the end. Even though the trappers are the same people who signed the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement, a document supposedly there to protect and enhance their way of life, this has not helped with the situation of their hunting territories.
During the past 35 years, healthy Waswanipi traplines have been slowly disappearing. The logging continues today. One has to be aware that hunters and trappers still out on the land can best monitor the impact of exploitation on wildlife habitat. And now they are crying “foul.”
The public at large must understand and be made aware of forestry impacts on our environment and other users of the land. They must know the fact that somewhere in our comfortable homes, between the walls is a “tree”—taken from out there on the land, we don’t know where. That “tree” was a home or a shelter for another world.
Forestry operations have a very heavy negative impact on the lives of Crees, the land and the wildlife habitat. Large clearcut areas are very devastated as all animals need shelter of trees and vegetation for their safety—especially large animals such as moose, caribou and bear. The periodic cycle movement of large and small animals during the whole year is hindered. Habitats and mating pathways of wildlife established over generations in seclusion are destroyed, which endangers the prospect of future generations of wildlife.
Moose and bear are not plentiful. Ask any native hunter if they killed a moose or a bear during the last hunting season. I am sure most will respond negatively.
Moose yards, if not cut out, are too small. The animal stays fora while and eventually continues on.
Due to logging, moose travel from one patch of forest to another. Therefore, their most dangerous enemies, wolf and man, discovered them much easier, especially during winter.
During winter, moose has difficulty running in logged areas. His chances of survival are greatly reduced. Normally, the animal would run under the tall spruces where snow is very soft if the area had not been cut out. This is one of the reasons why moose will avoid logged out areas. The browse they feed on is destroyed also.
Forestry roads, accessible all year, are being built into large mountain areas. Such areas are the heart of the moose lands where most moose have their winter habitats, playgrounds and mating grounds.
Since more of the traplines are clearcut, we noticed another serious problem arising. Each year, less of the female moose species are pregnant in spring. In our opinion, we hunters and trappers have come to the conclusion that too many of the moose mating grounds are logged out, which are totally different yards from the habitats they use in the wintertime.
It is the feeling of the trappers that the information they provide to loggers for the protection of certain areas for wildlife habitat, especially moose yards, is not used properly. The moose yard would be cut over anyway and this is where we used to get our steady supply of moose meat. It even goes to the point where non-native hunting camps suddenly pop up around these areas that were indicated as moose yards by the trappers.
Naturally with the vast amounts of clearcut areas, our distances of travel for moose are much greater.
During the mating season, moose can be called from any of the access roads. When this happens, the moose travel the forestry roads more often than usual. The moose then become very easy targets. There were situations where we found the insides (intestines) of three moose in the same area, all along the roads. Nobody will argue against someone saying that forestry roads have drastically affected the moose population.
Most animals are killed by chance when crossing or walking on logging roads, such as moose and bear. Also they can be pursued by the many roads, joining together. Escape is not made easy for the large animal.
In logged out areas, most terrain is not walkable by humans because of too many trees laying around and ground badly broken by heavy machinery.
During the winter operations, bear and moose habitats are also destroyed. Moose are forced to scatter. Strip-cutting is done for the sake of window-dressing near or on swamplands, mostly where timber is small. Rarely is strip-cutting done on winter roads. Where strip-cutting was done, timber can be cut any time, mostly for financial reasons for the logging operations.
Because of many access roads, the influx of sports hunters, poachers, non-natives and natives alike has become tremendous. They all overkill. It’s during sports hunting season. We Cree hunters have found animal carcasses along the roads, fish waste and whole pieces of fish on shorelines.
Even the small game, such as rabbit and partridge, is greatly reduced in number.
With access roads being built all over the Cree Territory, other development follows, such as mining exploration and drilling. This also very much disturbs the wildlife habitat. The drilling also leaves oil and garbage in the areas where operations take place.
Predators such as foxes and wolves travel easier and farther on access roads, doing more damage to other wildlife than before.
Because of logging roads, there has been theft of hunting equipment, skidoos, sleds, canoes, tents, outboard motors and such small items as cooking utensils in our once-remote hunting and trapping camps.
Logging roads go right down to the lake or river, with landing spots made for trail or boats—sometimes three or four landing spots on a big lake.
Logging roads are used for landing strips for Cessnas and small-engine planes, especially during moose season.
Due to logging roads, fish spawning areas are disturbed or destroyed. Favourite old spots for bear trapping are disturbed or destroyed also. Roads or culverts get in the way of centuries-old net fishing spots. Culverts on roads are too small. The small culverts become a problem when travelling by canoe. Portaging becomes an unnecessary burden. Due to forestry roads, more fires are also happening.
Also due to these numerous access roads, there have been more roadkills of all sorts of animals, especially the beaver. These kills are made by vehicles, poachers and sports hunters.
Most beaver will build their homes along the roads, using the road as a dam. The beaver becomes an easy target for poachers. The beavers are also considered a nuisance by logging companies. Most hunters and trappers are against beaver relocation projects by logging companies. It has to do with one important factor. The young ones (pups) are not considered in these projects. They are left to die, period.
The survival of any hunting society is based on the preservation of all young ones, or on the rotation from one specimen of animal to another, so certain species can grow (re-populate). Now you can see why the beavers are left alone sometimes. The logging companies’ plan to relocate just adult beavers in spring or early summer leaves the young pups to die. Relocation of beaver families to a foreign area in late summer or in the fall season means they are certainly doomed.
this beautiful animal lives by instinct alone. They will not have time to scout the new area, let alone build a dam, a proper home and gather food for the long winter.
Certain companies’ proposals to eliminate the nuisance beaver (Canada’s symbol on the nickel) and to throw the carcass 50 feet away from any waterway is so outrageous to us Cree hunters and trappers, that we want no part of it at all.
Too many sports hunting camps are built around the logging area because of access roads.
This puts pressure on wildlife, even in remote areas. The logging roads also thaw out too soon in spring while there is still snow everywhere else. This very much affects the hunters and trappers.
Because of no snow on roads, the equipment used such as skidoos and sleds is more prone to faster wear due to the gravel.
Because of logging roads, there is an influx of blueberry pickers doing permanent damage to blueberry bushes with their large scrapers. These same people also poach in the territory.
The rate of killing small game in and around these roads does not match the rate of small game reproducing. Close monitoring by us Cree hunters shows a constant decline in grouse, partridge, hare, etc.
Because of many logging roads over a large area, there are just not enough wildlife conservation officers around to patrol the whole area. We Cree hunters and trappers have witnessed many illegal activities on our traplines due to access roads.
Since forestry operations have started on our traplines, there has been a steady decline in waterfowl coming to land or feed in regular old feed ing grounds where our duck blinds are situated.
We have seen sports hunters and fishermen not disposing their waste or garbage from temporary camp sites. We see the prospect of having a clean environment diminishing if the present situation is not corrected soon enough. The garbage, waste, etc. are also not very good for wildlife.
There are many places where the forest has been cut right down to the shoreline, especially where there was winter cutting. You could only see it while canoeing or skidooing on certain lakes or rivers. There are piles of logs left on roadsides, especially on winter roads. The piles of logs were left there to rot. If you go back there now, the logs would still be there. We Cree hunters feel that government regulations regarding forestry guidelines are not respected when the loggers are cutting. Especially where only winter roads are going.
The logging companies have a knack for leaving trees standing in the right place to make it look less damaging to the eye. Eventually they all get blown over.
What were once navigable rivers are blocked by trees blown over by winds or by careless cutting.
The old temporary hunting camp sites, hunting paths, summer trails, skidoo trails and portages that existed over many generations are all permanently destroyed in one day during logging operations.
Many surrounding areas of low-lying rivers, ponds, lakes and swamps have been destroyed by heavy machines. Such areas were heavily contaminated by oil, which eventually drained into the main lakes or rivers. Many small streams were destroyed completely.
Many feeding plants (vegetation) of different wildlife were destroyed during logging.
There were such experiences as rabbit snares and martin traps, all trampled on by machines during the winter. It is my belief that this was done intentionally, as I am sure the operator of the machine noticed the trail made by snowshoes and slight common sense would have indicated to him to check the area out first before starting operations.
Dump sites of logging camps are left unclean. Paper, plastic bags, etc. are strewn over a large area—old buses, broken down pick-up trucks, old machine parts and tires, metals, big scrap gas tanks, burnt-out mobile shops, plastic oil pails, etc. were left where they were last used.
They are still there today, but the loggers are long gone.
Large sand pits are everywhere—eyesores. Most sand pits are hills so the land keeps eroding around these pits. Burning of waste cutting drives large animals away. Erosion of shorelines will vastly reduce the wildlife population. A lot of unnecessary trees are destroyed during the process of logging, such as birch, poplar, cedar and tamarack—unchecked forestry activities destroying traplines.
Sewage pollution goes to lakes or rivers from logging camps.
After logging operations, scarification of the land destroys all new growth. Only black spruce is planted. There are traplines that have only large lakes or large burnt-out areas, but what little land was available was logged out. Sports hunters, strangers, are shooting near our hunting camps.
Our hunting dogs, which we need and value highly, are killed or stolen when the hunting camp is left alone. (In one such incident, the dog was shot while the hunter was only 25 metres away.)
There is a lot of needless killing of animals. In one incident, a bear was found dead and thrown away. One of the most highly respected animals of the Cree Nation was found at a logging camp dump.
The logging companies have no respect for other users of the land, especially for the native hunters and trappers. In some cases, trappers and hunters were even refused to cut trees for firewood by some logging companies. Because of the lack of communication between the hunters and loggers, wildlife habitats are needlessly destroyed.
Because of vandalism to camps, excessive damage was done to cabins also. In one incident, all windows and doors were stolen The necessity was there for caretakers. Some tallymen and trappers have tried the idea of having caretakers for the cabins. But it was too expensive to carry on and was dropped immediately because of the constant flow of strangers into the land on the logging roads.
There were incidents where non-natives stole the trap and the fur-bearing animal that was caught in the trap. This action just makes life harder for the native who already has a hard time hunting on a depleted trapline. Our nets and catch are stolen most of the time during sports fishing season, or just any other time.
We are finding far less animals in our traps as the surrounding traplines are cut out also. The need to travel a greater distance to hunt and trap for animals is there and realized.
Yes, the province has forestry regulations. But they are not respected by certain companies as we hunters and trappers have found out, living and trying to hunt in the same area where they were cutting. I can only guess that the loggers believed we would never take notice or even write about it one day. We noticed also that amongst the loggers, it was common practice to cut beyond where you were supposed to, because there was more to gain financially even if you have to pay a fine. The fines are too small or the logging company totally ignored the issue (the so-called “forestry regulations”).
Out in the traplines many roads are constructed, but not all roads are indicated on the map. Why?
In the past, travelling by night on dog sled teams was common. In the bush, there is a clear trail to follow and also trees protecting you from wind and snow. Now even with a skidoo with headlights, it is very dangerous to travel at night in logged areas as you can easily lose your trail because of heavy or even light snowfall in the clearcut area.
In summer, logging machines damage eggs laid by birds, partridges, owls and waterfowl. The young ones of these creatures are also destroyed before they can fly. Also destroyed are young pups of skunks, groundhogs, porcupines, martins, foxes and squirrels—wildlife that have their young in holes and that burrow in the ground.
Animals that hibernate for winter in dens are disturbed or destroyed. There were incidents where non-native workers found dens where bears were hibernating. This was uncommon before. Dens of hibernating animals are definitely destroyed during winter. In one incident, a bear and his den were bulldozed over to make way for the road.
There were situations where our lives were threatened by non-natives who used the logging roads. We will never know why. More often, it’s happening now because the area is full of roads. Nobody likes a gun pointed at him just for blueberries. This has happened. Talk about wildlife; it’s getting dangerous to live in the bush.
A lot of logging roads pass near or right through old campsites. That is why we live or see our hunting camps along the roads. The logging roads come to us, not us to them.
In logged out areas, you will find hunting look-outs on tree-tops on most lakes where there are access roads. Most are built to stay permanently (meaning three or four years).
In our hunting way of life, we have always used the moon as a time-keeper of the periodical phenomenal behavioural patterns and movements of most wildlife on our traplines.
Because of this knowledge, we know when certain wildlife are mating, when they are carrying their young ones, when they have eggs, certainly when animals would have young ones (pups).
We also knew when certain fish would spawn. All this by carefully watching the moon, water, land and the seasons.
After the area has been logged out, keeping track of the movements of certain wildlife by the moon itself is rendered useless.
back 300 to 600 years. We can just imagine what the flooding will do to the land. Cree knowledge of the land is not only handed down from one generation. It will take more than just one generation to learn or adapt to a strange new environment. With sudden overnight changes, you cannot use the same skills you had the day before, unless you know what you are dealing with.
What if there were some permanent changes? Where knowledge is passed down from one generation to another, what do you tell the next generation? I don’t know.
That is how we Cree hunters and trappers feel. With the drastic changes to the environment, it’s like a whole new beginning, starting all over again from scratch.
Whenever hunting societies stood up and argued for nature and said things like, “We are part of nature,” this has been used against them, and they have been labelled as “uncivilized” and their land taken away, so as to make better use of it. Is this what happened here?
In the past, before logging operations ever started, the Cree tallymen and hunters had a workable wildlife management system which everybody respected. Once logging operations started on remote traplines, what was once a workable wildlife management system for centuries was blown right out of the water.
The natural movements of wildlife are destroyed. Because of the logging operations and the sudden appearance of roads, the overkill of wildlife happens. In a whole new different environment, what little wildlife is left is in constant danger and confusion. What used to be the rate of wildlife reproduction can never recover.
And unchecked forestry activities continue on and the aftermath follows. There were incidents where non-native loggers bragged of killing a moose metres away from the road beside a pond during season. The fate of wildlife which Cree hunters depend on is at a critical period. There are people who say there are some signs of recovery after “eight to 10 years.” Ten years in somebody’s lifetime is very long. What are we hunters going to eat during that time? Rocks? Someone might think the forestry roads have made Cree hunters travel easier and more mobile. The same could be said about the whole population that does not care about nature except for trophies and greed. People who tend to believe there are positive aspects of forestry operations often use a leap of faith and a willingness to suspend disbelief. Maybe because there are people out there who do not care about the environment, or who know nothing about nature or the environment. Definitely, these are the only two reasons there are.
As you may notice, we have not discussed the heavy pollution to the land, water and the air caused by the sawmills; and they do dose down one day as we have seen in the past. Forest industries have their peak at one point. From there on, like it or not, it’s downhill all the way. Definitely we will all be poor one day.
We are not accustomed to looking at the combined impacts of all forestry operations, environmentally or socially—and to make matters more complicated, at the evolution of hydroelectric development in the same region.
A lot of other environmental and social impacts from forestry operations could have been discussed. But most, if not all, events mentioned in this document relate to actual happenings on trapline W-23-A.
The same could be said of other Waswanipi traplines that are already logged out or in the process. It donned on me one day when all of our traplines were already clearcut why we had failed in our efforts when we met the loggers to save moose yards or other wildlife habitats, no matter how much we pleaded with them. They had brought cutting plans which were already in effect. There were going to be no changes to the cutting plans. Because of this contact we had with them, it was taken or used as a rubber stamp to go ahead and clearcut.
After the few meetings with the loggers and the negative response that went along with it, we felt sad and powerless to ever have exchanges with them again, and the years went by. Less and less, the birds sang, until one day we heard their beautiful songs no more and our hearts cried out as we hugged our children and told them to pray. Nothing could slow the loggers down. They were cutting fast, because they knew their powerful government was totally behind them. The depleting of Waswanipi traplines continues on.
Due to logging on our traditional lands, there is much less wildlife to depend on. We have much less to feed our families. On hunting expeditions, we are coming home more often empty-handed. We never hunted by chance; we always knew where we stood with nature before. During the fruitless hunting expeditions, exploring the “land of tomorrow,” you will see nothing for miles around. We are saddened to have found animals and fowl starved to death or which for some other reason just did not make it. Animals that do make it are often unhealthy.
Did somebody betray a relationship? Did somebody fail to defend the land? Is that why these things happen?
The Cree hunters’ and trappers’ greatest fear is that all traplines will eventually be depleted. Some people would like to argue that forestry is compatible with the hunting way of life. Yes, it is compatible with the white man’s way of hunting for “sport.” With logging.roads, you are opening,the territory to sports hunters— a territory that belonged to a hunting society that existed since time immemorial, a society that lived in harmony with nature.
The greatest encyclopedia of ancient scientific knowledge of a certain area I’ve come across was our own Cree Elders. With that, I have come to terms with the fact that we are one of the strongest hunting societies still existing today in the world. Can our sons and daughters say this in the next hundred years? A lot of other hunting societies have disappeared long ago. “And we wonder why.”
Here, we are witnessing the dying of one of the three greatest hunting societies still existing today in Canada. A culture and philosophy that existed for over 5,000 years is slowly being destroyed. For the children’s sake, let’s just hope the hunting way of life may yet triumph over the worst the forestry impacts are doing to it.
In loving memory to my friends (the animals) who are still out there in the bush.
I owe it to you all. Surely my sons and I would not be here today. Meequetch. Thank you. May you roam the world forever and in our hearts.
“We are one of the strongest hunting societies still existing today in the world.” | <urn:uuid:cf7044fc-ba1c-4a0d-8116-fe421021a2aa> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | http://www.nationnewsarchives.ca/article/a-new-beginning-impacts-of-forestry-operations-from-the-cree-hunters-and-trappers-perspective/ | 2024-12-08T12:08:14Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066446143.89/warc/CC-MAIN-20241208111059-20241208141059-00764.warc.gz | en | 0.974875 | 5,202 | 2.515625 | 3 |
Whether you’re learning English as a second language or simply aiming to improve your language skills, mastering these contractions is a valuable step in becoming a proficient English speaker and writer.
Common informal contractions in English include words like “don’t” for “do not,” “can’t” for “cannot,” and “won’t” for “will not.” These contractions are widely used in spoken and informal written English, helping to make language more concise and conversational.
In this blog post, I’ll explore the common informal contractions in English and provide examples of their usage in everyday conversations and writing.
Introduction To Informal Contractions
Informal contractions are commonly used in English conversation and informal writing. They are shortened versions of two words combined together, often omitting a letter or letters and using an apostrophe to indicate the missing letters. These contractions are widely used to make speech more fluent and natural, as they mimic the way people speak in everyday conversations.
Why They Matter?
Informal contractions play a significant role in spoken English as they contribute to the overall fluency and naturalness of the language. They help to shorten words and phrases, making them easier to pronounce and faster to speak. By using informal contractions, speakers can convey their ideas more efficiently, maintaining a smooth flow of conversation.
Impact On Language Fluidity
The use of informal contractions in English has a direct impact on the fluidity of the language. They allow speakers to avoid awkward pauses or interruptions that may occur when using full words or phrases. By incorporating these contractions into their speech, individuals can maintain a consistent rhythm and pace, enhancing the overall coherence and fluency of their communication.
Furthermore, informal contractions contribute to the naturalness of spoken English. They reflect the way people naturally speak in informal settings, making conversations more relatable and engaging. Using these contractions helps speakers establish a connection with their audience, creating a more comfortable and familiar atmosphere for communication.
Gonna, Wanna, Gotta
Gonna, wanna, and gotta are common informal contractions in English. They are used in spoken language and informal writing to replace “going to”, “want to”, and “have got to”, respectively.
Origins And Usage
The informal contractions “gonna,” “wanna,” and “gotta” are commonly used in spoken English to represent the phrases “going to,” “want to,” and “got to” respectively. These contractions have become ingrained in informal speech and are used to convey a more casual and relaxed tone. Understanding the origins and proper usage of these contractions can help you communicate effectively in informal settings.
Examples In Context
Here are some examples of “gonna,” “wanna,” and “gotta” used in context:
- I’m gonna go to the movies later. (I am going to go to the movies later.)
- Do you wanna grab a cup of coffee? (Do you want to grab a cup of coffee?)
- I’ve gotta finish this report by tomorrow. (I have got to finish this report by tomorrow.)
- She said she’s gonna meet us at the restaurant. (She said she is going to meet us at the restaurant.)
- We wanna make sure everyone is invited to the party. (We want to make sure everyone is invited to the party.)
- He gotta leave early to catch his flight. (He has got to leave early to catch his flight.)
These examples illustrate how “gonna,” “wanna,” and “gotta” can be used interchangeably with their expanded forms in informal conversations. It is important to note that while these contractions are widely understood in casual settings, they should be avoided in formal writing or professional contexts.
By familiarizing yourself with these informal contractions and their proper usage, you can enhance your ability to communicate naturally and effectively in spoken English.
Ain’t And Dunno
The use of informal contractions in English, such as “ain’t” and “dunno,” adds a casual and conversational tone to language. These contractions are commonly used in spoken English and informal writing, and they can convey a sense of familiarity and informality. Let’s explore the historical background and modern acceptance of these common informal contractions.
Informal contractions like “ain’t” and “dunno” have been a part of the English language for centuries. The word “ain’t” originated in the 18th century as a contraction of “am not” and “are not.” It gained widespread usage in various English dialects and became associated with informal speech. Similarly, “dunno” is a contraction of “don’t know,” reflecting the natural tendency to shorten and blend words in spoken language.
While informal contractions were traditionally considered non-standard or even incorrect in formal writing, they are now widely accepted in casual communication. In contemporary English, “ain’t” and “dunno” are commonly used in everyday conversations, social media posts, and informal texts. Their acceptance in informal contexts has made them an integral part of modern English language usage.
Kinda, Sorta, Lotta
‘Kinda’, ‘sorta’, and ‘lotta’ are common informal contractions in English. They are used to express a sense of approximation or informality in speech. These contractions are formed by blending words together, and are often used in casual conversations.
Kinda, Sorta, Lotta are common informal contractions in English that are used to express uncertainty and quantity in a colloquial way. These contractions are often used in casual conversations and can add a friendly tone to the language.
Let’s take a closer look at how they are used and their meanings. Expressing Uncertainty: Kinda and Sorta are informal contractions of “kind of” and “sort of” respectively. They are used to express uncertainty or a lack of precision in a statement. For example, “I kinda like this dress, but I’m not sure if it suits me” or “I sorta remember meeting him, but I can’t recall where.” These contractions can also be used to soften a statement, making it less direct or confrontational.
Quantity: Lotta is an informal contraction of “a lot of” and is used to express a large quantity of something. For example, “There are lotta people at the party” or “I have lotta work to do before the deadline.” This contraction is often used in spoken language and casual writing.
Colloquial Expressions: Kinda, Sorta, Lotta are examples of colloquial expressions that are used in informal settings. They are not considered appropriate for formal writing or professional communication. However, they can add a friendly and approachable tone in casual conversations and social media posts.
How Contractions Affect Listening Comprehension?
Contractions are shortened forms of words or phrases that are commonly used in informal speech and writing. They can significantly impact listening comprehension for non-native speakers. In this section, I will explore the challenges that contractions pose for non-native speakers and provide tips for better understanding.
Challenges For Non-native Speakers
Non-native speakers often encounter difficulties when trying to understand contractions in spoken English. These challenges arise due to various factors:
- Unfamiliarity: Non-native speakers may not be familiar with the concept of contractions or the specific contractions used in English.
- Fast-paced speech: Native speakers tend to use contractions naturally and speak at a faster pace. This rapid delivery can make it challenging for non-native speakers to identify and comprehend the contracted words.
- Phonetic changes: Contractions involve changes in pronunciation, such as the omission of certain sounds or the blending of words. Non-native speakers may struggle to recognize these phonetic alterations.
- Lack of context: Without sufficient context, non-native speakers may find it difficult to decipher the intended meaning of contractions.
Tips For Better Understanding
While contractions can present challenges, there are strategies that non-native speakers can employ to improve their listening comprehension:
- Exposure to spoken English: Regular exposure to authentic spoken English, through conversations, podcasts, or movies, can help non-native speakers become more familiar with contractions and their usage.
- Practice with audio materials: Engaging with audio materials specifically designed for language learners can provide targeted practice in identifying and understanding contractions.
- Focus on context clues: Paying attention to the surrounding words and the overall context can assist non-native speakers in deducing the meaning of contractions.
- Use visual aids: Utilizing subtitles or transcripts while listening to spoken English can aid in the recognition and comprehension of contractions.
- Ask for clarification: When in conversation with native speakers, it is perfectly acceptable to ask for clarification or repetition if a contraction is not understood.
Contractions In Written Vs. Spoken English
Informal contractions are common in English, playing a significant role in both written and spoken language. In casual conversations, they help convey a sense of familiarity and ease. However, the use of contractions in writing can vary depending on the context.
Informal contractions are suitable for casual communication such as emails, text messages, and personal blogs. They add a conversational tone and make the text more engaging.
Role Of Tone And Formality
The tone and formality of the writing dictate the use of contractions. In formal settings like academic papers or business correspondence, it is advisable to avoid contractions to maintain professionalism.
Imitating Native Speakers
Imitating native speakers is a great way to improve your language skills and sound more natural. Native speakers often use informal contractions in everyday conversations.
Mimicking Natural Speech
Mimicking natural speech helps you grasp the rhythm and flow of the language. It allows you to understand how contractions are used naturally in conversations.
Learning From Media
Learning from media such as TV shows and movies is an effective way to pick up on informal contractions. Pay attention to how characters speak informally.
Regional Variations Of Contractions
Regional variations of contractions are common in informal English. These contractions, such as “ain’t” and “gonna,” differ across different English-speaking regions. Understanding these variations is essential for effective communication in informal settings.
Dialects And Their Quirks
Regional variations of informal contractions in English showcase unique dialectal features.
Global English Varieties
English contractions vary across dialects worldwide, reflecting diverse linguistic influences.
Embracing Informal Speech
Embracing informal speech in English involves incorporating common contractions into everyday conversations. These contractions, such as “can’t”, “won’t”, and “don’t”, add a sense of informality and ease to our language, making it more natural and relatable. So next time you’re chatting with friends or colleagues, don’t be afraid to embrace these informal contractions for a more casual and comfortable conversation.
Integrating Into Everyday Language
Informal contractions add a natural and conversational element to English language. By integrating these contractions into our everyday speech, we can sound more fluent and native-like.
Whether we are communicating with friends, colleagues, or even strangers, using informal contractions helps create a sense of familiarity and ease. These contractions are widely used in spoken English and understanding them can greatly enhance our ability to comprehend and participate in conversations.
Maintaining Language Authenticity
While it’s important to embrace informal speech, it is equally crucial to maintain language authenticity. Informal contractions should be used appropriately and in suitable settings.
It’s vital to strike a balance between informal and formal speech depending on the context. By being mindful of the audience and the situation, we can ensure our language remains authentic and respectful.
Mastering informal contractions can enhance your English communication. These shortened forms add a natural flow to your speech and writing, making them essential for everyday conversations. By understanding and using these contractions, you can sound more fluent and native-like, improving your overall language proficiency.
Start incorporating these contractions into your language practice to see significant improvements in your English skills.
FAQs Of Common Informal Contractions In English
What Are The 10 Examples Of Contractions?
Some common examples of contractions include: 1. can’t (cannot) 2. won’t (will not) 3. didn’t (did not) 4. I’m (I am) 5. you’re (you are) 6. he’s (he is) 7. they’re (they are) 8. it’s (it is) 9. we’re (we are) 10. she’s (she is).
What Are Contractions In Informal Language?
Contractions in informal language are shortened forms of words created by combining two words and replacing one or more letters with an apostrophe. Examples include “can’t” for “cannot” and “won’t” for “will not. ” They are commonly used in spoken and informal written English.
What Are The Uncommon Contractions In English?
Uncommon contractions in English include “shan’t” (shall not), “oughtn’t” (ought not), and “daren’t” (dare not). These contractions are used less frequently but are still considered proper English.
What Are Sample Sentences With Informal Contractions?
Here are some sample sentences with informal contractions: – I can’t believe it’s already Friday. – We haven’t seen each other in ages. – She’s gonna be late for the meeting.
Kanis Fatema Tania is a talented creative writer with a passion for storytelling. Tania crafts engaging content that captivates readers through her clear communication and imaginative flair. | <urn:uuid:ea75de8e-b6d2-44d7-bd12-7c25b56dcbf8> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://nativespeak.net/common-informal-contractions-in-english/ | 2024-12-10T12:01:46Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066058729.19/warc/CC-MAIN-20241210101933-20241210131933-00143.warc.gz | en | 0.923988 | 3,078 | 3.375 | 3 |
Turn your eyes to the sky and it's likely you'll see more than a
few vapor trails—the wispy white lines that jet planes scribble on
the great blue canvas stretched above our heads. At the dawn of the
20th century, the very idea of powered flight seemed, to many, like a
ludicrous dream. How things have changed! At any given moment,
there are something like 5,000 flights zipping through the sky over the United States alone;
we're so used to the idea of flight that we barely even
notice all the planes screaming above us, hauling hundreds of
people at a time to their homes and holidays.
Most modern planes are powered by jet engines
(more correctly, as we'll see in a moment, gas turbines).
What exactly are these magic machines and what makes them different
from the engines used in cars or trucks?
Let's take a closer look at how they work!
Photo: Jet engines don't just power planes. This is a rear view of Shockwave, a racing truck fired
along by three 12,000 horsepower (9 megawatt) jet engines, which reaches an almost unbelievable maximum speed of around 600 km/h (375mph)!
Picture by Stephen D. Schester courtesy of US Air Force.
A jet engine is a machine that converts energy-rich, liquid fuel
into a powerful pushing force called thrust.
The thrust from one or more engines pushes a plane forward, forcing air past its scientifically shaped
wings to create an upward force called lift that powers it into the sky. That, in short, is
how planes work—but how do jet engines work?
Photo: A jet engine taken apart during testing.
You can clearly see the giant fan at the front. This spins around to suck air into the
engine as the plane flies through the sky. Picture by Ian Schoeneberg courtesy of
US Navy and
Jet engines and car engines
One way to understand modern jet engines is to compare them with
the piston engines used in early airplanes, which are very similar
to the ones still used in cars.
A piston engine
(also called a reciprocating engine, because the pistons move back and forth or "reciprocate")
makes its power in strong steel "cooking
pots" called cylinders. Fuel is squirted into the cylinders with
air from the atmosphere. The piston in each cylinder compresses the mixture, raising its
temperature so it either ignites spontaneously (in a diesel engine)
or with help from a sparking plug (in a gas engine). The burning fuel
and air explodes and expands, pushing the piston back out and driving
the crankshaft that powers the car's wheels (or the plane's propeller), before the whole
four-step cycle (intake, compression, combustion, exhaust) repeats
itself. The trouble with this is that the piston is driven only
during one of the four steps—so it's making power only a fraction of
the time. The amount of power a piston engine makes is directly
related to how big the cylinder is and how far the piston moves;
unless you use hefty cylinders and pistons (or many of them), you're limited
to producing relatively modest amounts of power. If your piston engine
is powering a plane, that limits how fast it can fly, how much lift it can make,
how big it can be, and how much it can carry.
Photo: Piston engine: One way to make lots of power,
consistently, is to use lots of cylinders. This classic Bristol Jupiter piston engine has nine cylinders arranged at the center of a hub, like the spokes in a bicycle wheel,
all pushing into a central crank. Known as a radial design, this arrangement was popular in early
Here's a great little animation of how it works. Picture by Nimbus227 published on Wikimedia Commons
under a Creative Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) licence.
A jet engine uses the same scientific principle as a car engine:
it burns fuel with air (in a chemical reaction called combustion) to
release energy that powers a plane, vehicle, or other machine. But
instead of using cylinders that go through four steps in turn, it
uses a long metal tube that carries out the same four steps
in a straight-line sequence—a kind of thrust-making production line!
In the simplest type of jet engine, called a turbojet, air is drawn in
at the front through an inlet (or intake), compressed by a fan, mixed
with fuel and combusted, and then fired out as a hot, fast moving
exhaust at the back.
Photo: Massive thrust! A Pratt and Whitney F119 jet aircraft engine creates 156,000 newtons (35,000 pounds) of thrust during this US Air Force test in 2002. That sounds like a lot of power, but it's less than half the thrust
produced by one of the vast jet engines (turbofans) on an airliner, as you can see from the bar chart further down this article. Picture by Albert Bosco courtesy of US Air Force.
Three things make a jet engine more powerful
than a car's piston engine:
A basic principle of physics called the law of conservation of energy tells us that if a jet engine needs to make more power each second, it has to burn more fuel
each second. A jet engine is meticulously designed to hoover up
huge amounts of air and burn it with vast amounts of fuel (roughly in
the ratio 50 parts air to one part fuel), so the main reason why it makes more power is because
it can burn more fuel.
Because intake, compression, combustion,
and exhaust all happen simultaneously, a jet engine produces maximum
power all the time (unlike a single cylinder in a piston engine).
Unlike a piston engine (which uses a single stroke of the
piston to extract energy), a typical jet engine passes its exhaust
through multiple turbine "stages" to extract as much energy as
possible. That makes it much more efficient (it gets more power from
the same mass of fuel).
A more technical name for a jet engine is a gas
turbine, and although it's not immediately obvious what that
means, it's actually a much better description of how an engine like
this really works. A jet engine works by burning fuel in air to release hot
exhaust gas. But where a car engine uses the explosions of exhaust to
push its pistons, a jet engine forces the gas past the blades of a windmill-like
spinning wheel (a turbine), making it rotate. So, in a jet engine,
exhaust gas powers a turbine—hence the name gas turbine.
Action and reaction
When we talk about jet engines, we to tend think of rocket-like tubes
that fire exhaust gas backward. Another basic bit of physics,
Newton's third law of motion, tells us that as a jet engine's exhaust
gas shoots back, the plane itself must move forward.
It's exactly like a skateboarder kicking back on the pavement to go forward;
in a jet engine, it's the exhaust gas that provides the "kick".
In everyday words, the action (the force of the exhaust gas shooting backward) is equal and
opposite to the reaction (the force of the plane moving forward); the action moves the exhaust gas,
while the reaction moves the plane.
But not all jet engines work this way: some produce hardly any rocket
exhaust at all. Instead, most of their power is harnessed by the
turbine—and the shaft attached to the turbine is used to power a
propeller (in a propeller airplane), a rotor blade (in a
helicopter), a giant fan (in a large passenger jet), or an
(in a gas-turbine power plant). We'll look at these different
types of gas turbine "jet" engines in a bit more detail in a moment.
First, let's look at how a simple jet engine makes its power.
How a jet engine works
This simplified diagram shows you the process through which a jet engine converts the energy in fuel into kinetic energy that makes a plane soar through the air. (It uses a small part of the top photo on this page, taken
by Ian Schoeneberg, courtesy of US Navy and
For a jet going slower than the speed of sound, the engine is moving through the air at about 1000 km/h (600 mph).
We can think of the engine as being stationary and the cold air moving
toward it at this speed.
A fan at the front sucks the cold air into the engine and forces it through the
inlet. This slows the air down by about 60 percent and its speed is now about 400 km/h (240 mph).
A second fan called a compressor squeezes the air
(increases its pressure) by about eight times, and this dramatically increases its temperature.
Kerosene (liquid fuel) is squirted into the engine from a fuel
tank in the plane's wing.
In the combustion chamber, just behind the compressor,
the kerosene mixes with the compressed air and burns fiercely, giving
off hot exhaust gases and producing a huge increase in temperature. The burning mixture reaches a temperature of
around 900°C (1650°F).
The exhaust gases rush past a set of turbine blades,
spinning them like a windmill. Since the turbine gains energy, the gases must lose
the same amount of energy—and they do so by cooling down slightly and losing pressure.
The turbine blades are connected to a long axle
(represented by the middle gray line) that runs the length of
the engine. The compressor and the fan are also connected to this axle.
So, as the turbine blades spin, they also turn the compressor and the
The hot exhaust gases exit the engine through a tapering exhaust
nozzle. Just as water squeezed through a narrow pipe accelerates dramatically
into a fast jet (think of what happens in a water pistol), the tapering design of the exhaust nozzle helps to accelerate the gases to a speed of over 2100 km/h (1300 mph). So the hot air leaving the engine at the back is traveling over
twice the speed of the cold air entering it at the front—and
that's what powers the plane. Military jets often have an after
burner that squirts fuel into the exhaust jet to produce extra
thrust. The backward-moving exhaust gases power the jet forward. Because
the plane is much bigger and heavier than the exhaust gases it
produces, the exhaust gases have to zoom backward much faster than the
plane's own speed.
In brief, you can see that each main part of the engine does a different thing to the air
or fuel mixture passing through:
Compressor: Dramatically increases the pressure of the air (and, to a lesser extent) its temperature.
Combustion chamber: Dramatically increases the temperature of the air-fuel mixture by releasing heat energy from the fuel.
Exhaust nozzle: Dramatically increases the velocity of the exhaust gases, so powering the plane.
What do jet engines look like in reality? A lot more complicated than my little picture! Here's a typical example of a
large, real turbofan engine, opened up and undergoing maintenance. I've labelled eight major parts in my explanation above;
as you can see here, a real jet engine has a good few thousand!
British engineer Sir Frank Whittle (1907–1996) invented the jet engine in 1930, and here's one of his
designs taken from a patent he filed in 1937. As you can see, it bears a resemblance to the modern design up above, although it works a little differently (most obviously, there is no fan at the inlet). Briefly, air shoots in through the inlet (1) and is pressurized and accelerated by a compressor (2). Some is fed to the engine (3), which drives a second compressor (4), before exiting through the rear nozzle (5). The rear compressor's exhaust drives the compressor at the front (6).
Artwork: Gas turbine engine designed by Frank Whittle in 1937 and formally patented two years later. Drawing taken from US Patent: 2,168,726: Propulsion of aircraft and gas turbines, courtesy of US Patent and Trademark Office, with colors and numbers added for clarity. The patent document explains how this engine works in a lot more detail.
Types of jet engines
All jet engines and gas turbines work in broadly the same way
(pulling air through an inlet, compressing it, combusting it with fuel, and
allowing the exhaust to expand through a turbine), so they all share
five key components: an inlet, a compressor, a combustion chamber,
and a turbine (arranged in exactly that sequence) with a driveshaft
running through them.
But there the similarities end. Different types of engines have
extra components (driven by the turbine), the inlets work in
different ways, there may be more than one combustion chamber, there
might be two or more compressors and multiple turbines. And the
application (the job the engine has to do) is also very important.
Aerospace engines are designed through meticulously engineered
compromise: they need to produce maximum power from minimum fuel (with
maximum efficiency, in other words) while being as small, light, and
quiet as possible. Gas turbines used on the ground (for example, in
power plants) don't necessarily need to compromise in quite the same
way; they don't need to be either small or light, though they
certainly still need maximum power and efficiency.
Artwork: A summary of six main types of jet engine. Each one is explained further in the text below, followed by a link to an excellent NASA website where you'll find even more graphics and animations.
Photo: Early Turbojet engines on a Boeing B-52A Stratofortress plane, pictured in 1954.
The B-52A had eight Pratt and Whitney J-57 turbojets, each of which could produce about 10,000 pounds of thrust.
Picture courtesy of US Air Force.
Whittle's original design was called a turbojet and it's still widely used in
airplanes today. A turbojet is the simplest kind of jet engine based on a gas turbine: it's a basic "rocket"
jet that moves a plane forward by firing a hot jet of exhaust
backward. The exhaust leaving the engine is much faster than the
cold air entering it—and that's how a turbojet makes its thrust. In
a turbojet, all the turbine has to do is power the compressor, so it
takes relatively little energy away from the exhaust jet.
Turbojets are basic, general-purpose jet engines that
produce steady amounts of power all the time, so they're suitable for
small, low-speed jet planes that don't have to do anything
particularly remarkable (like accelerating suddenly or
carrying enormous amounts of cargo). The engine we've explained and illustrated up above is an example.
Read more about turbojets from NASA (includes an animated engine you can play about with).
Photo: The gray tube you can see under the rotor of this US military Seahawk helicopter is one of its twin turboshaft engines. There's another one exactly the same on the other side. Photo by Trevor Kohlrus courtesy of US Navy and
You might not think helicopters are driven by jet engines—they
have those huge rotors on top doing all the work—but you'd be
wrong: the rotors are powered by one or two gas-turbine engines
called turboshafts. A turboshaft is very different from a turbojet,
because the exhaust gas produces relatively little thrust. Instead,
the turbine in a turbojet captures most of the power and the
driveshaft running through it turns a transmission and one or more
gearboxes that spin the rotors. Apart from helicopters, you'll also
find turboshaft engines in trains, tanks, and boats. Gas turbine engines mounted in things like
power plants are also turboshafts.
Photo: A turboprop engine uses a jet engine to power a propeller. Photo by Eduardo Zaragoza courtesy of US Navy and
A modern plane with a propeller typically uses a turboprop engine.
It's similar to the turboshaft in a helicopter but, instead of
powering an overhead rotor, the turbine inside it spins a propeller
mounted on the front that pushes the plane forward. Unlike a
turboshaft, a turboprop does produce some forward thrust from its
exhaust gas, but the majority of the thrust comes from the propeller.
Since propeller-driven planes fly more slowly, they waste less energy
fighting drag (air resistance), and that makes them very efficient
for use in workhorse cargo planes and other small, light aircraft.
However, propellers themselves create a lot of air resistance, which
is one reason why turbofans were developed.
Read more about turboprops from NASA.
Photo: A turbofan engine produces more thrust using an inner fan and an outer bypass (the smaller ring you can see between the inner fan and the outer case). Each one of these engines produces 43,000 pounds of thrust (almost 4.5 times more than the Stratofortress engines up above)! Photo by Lance Cheung courtesy of US Air Force.
Giant passenger jets have huge fans mounted on the front, which
work like super-efficient propellers. The fans work in two ways. They
slightly increase the air that flows through the center (core) of the
engine, producing more thrust with the same fuel (which makes them`
more efficient). They also blow some of their air around the outside
of the main engine, "bypassing" the core completely and producing
a backdraft of air like a propeller. In other words, a turbofan
produces thrust partly like a turbojet and partly like a turboprop.
Photo: A turbofan engine seen from behind and below. I think this is a Pratt & Whitney F117,
capable of delivering 40,400 pounds of thrust.
Photo by Tom Randle courtesy of US Air Force.
Low-bypass turbofans send virtually all their air through the core,
while high-bypass ones send more air around it. A measurement called
the bypass ratio tells you how much air (by weight) goes through
the engine core or around it; in a high-bypass engine, the ratio might be 10:1, which means
10 times more air passes around than through the core.
Impressive power and efficiency make turbofans the engines of choice on everything from
passenger jets (typically using high-bypass) to jet fighters
(low-bypass). The bypass design also cools a jet engine and makes it
quieter. Read more about turbofans from NASA.
Ramjets and scramjets
Photo: A Pegasus ramjet/scramjet engine developed for space planes in 1999.
Photo by courtesy of NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center and Internet Archive.
Jet engines scoop air in at speed so, in theory, if you designed
the inlet as a rapidly tapering nozzle, you could make it compress
the incoming air automatically, without either a
compressor or a turbine to power it. Engines that work this way are called ramjets, and since
they need the air to be traveling fast, are really suitable only for
supersonic and hypersonic (faster-than-sound) planes. Air moving
faster than sound as it enters the engine is compressed and slowed
down dramatically, to subsonic speeds, mixed with fuel, and ignited
by a device called a flame holder, producing a rocket-like exhaust
similar to that made by a classic turbojet. Ramjets tend to be used
on rocket and missile engines but since they "breathe" air, they cannot
be used in space. Scramjets are similar, except that the
supersonic air doesn't slow down anything like as much as it speeds
through the engine. By remaining supersonic, the air exits at much
higher speed, allowing the plane to go considerably faster than one
powered by a ramjet (theoretically, up to Mach 15, or 15 times the speed of
sound—in the "high hypersonic" region).
Read more about ramjets from NASA.
Chart: Modern jet engines are about 100 times more powerful than the ones invented by Frank Whittle and his German rival Hans von Ohain. The red block shows the GE90, currently the world's most powerful engine. In the timeline below, you can discover how engines developed—and the engineering brains behind them.
A brief history of jet engines
~1800s: Using simple models, English inventor Sir George Cayley
(1773–1857) figures out the basic design and operation of the modern,
wing-lifted airplane. Unfortunately, the only practical power source available during his lifetime
is the coal-powered steam engine, which is too big, heavy, and inefficient to power a plane.
1860s–1870s: Working independently, French engineers Joseph
Étienne Lenoir (1822–1900), German engineer Nikolaus Otto
(1832–1891), and Karl Benz develop the modern car engine, which runs on
relatively light, clean, energy-rich gasoline—a much more practical
fuel than coal.
1884: Englishman Sir Charles Parsons (1854–1931) pioneers
steam turbines and compressors, key pieces of technology in
future airplane engines.
1903: Bicycle-making brothers Wilbur Wright (1867–1912) and
Orville Wright (1871–1948) make the first powered flight using a
gas engine to power two propellers fixed to the wings of a simple
1908: Frenchman René Lorin (1877–1933) invents the ramjet—the simplest possible jet engine.
1910: Henri-Marie Coandă (1885–1972), born in Romania but mostly working in France, builds the world's first jet-like plane, the Coandă-1910, powered by a large air fan instead of a propeller.
1914: US space pioneer Robert Hutchings Goddard (1882–1945) is granted his first two patents describing liquid-fueled, multi-stage rockets—ideas that will, many years later, help fire people into space.
1925: Pratt & Whitney (now one of the world's biggest aero-engine makers) builds its first engine, the
1928: German engineer Alexander Lippisch (1894–1976) puts rocket
engines on an experimental glider to make the world's first rocket
plane, the Lippisch Ente.
1926: British engineer Alan Griffith (1893–1963) proposes using
gas turbine engines to power airplanes in a classic paper titled An
Aerodynamic Theory of Turbine Design. This work makes Griffith,
in effect, the theoretical father of the jet engine (his many
contributions include figuring out that a jet engine compressor needs
to use curved airfoil blades rather than ones with a simple, flat
profile). Griffith later becomes a pioneer of turbojets, turbofans, and vertical takeoff and
landing (VTOL) aircraft as the Chief Scientist to Rolls-Royce, one of
the world's leading aircraft engine makers.
1928: Aged only 21, English engineer Frank Whittle (1907–1996)
designs a jet engine, but the British military (and Alan Griffith,
their consultant) refuse to take his ideas seriously. Whittle is
forced to set up his own company and develop his ideas by himself. By
1937, he builds the first modern jet engine, but only as a
1936: Whittle invents and files a patent for the bypass turbofan
1933–1939: Hans von Ohain (1911–1998), Whittle's German rival, simultaneously
designs jet engines with compressors and turbines.
His HeS 3B engine, designed in 1938, powers the Heinkel He-178 on its maiden flight
as the world's first turbojet airplane on August 27, 1939.
1951: US aerospace engineer Charles Kaman (1919–2011) builds the first helicopter with a gas-turbine
engine, the K-225.
2019: The General Electric GE9X, based on the GE90, uses a high bypass ratio of 10:1, fewer fan blades, and better materials to deliver 10 percent better fuel efficiency and 5 percent lower fuel consumption with less noise and fewer emissions. It produces significantly less thrust, however (around 470kN or 105,000 lbf).
Don't want to read our articles? Try listening instead
Air and Space Travel by Chris Woodford, Facts on File, 2004. This is my own 96-page introduction to the history of air and space travel; the invention of the jet engine was a crucial bridge between the two. Suitable for young teens.
Super Jumbo Jets: Inside and Out
by Holly Cefrey, PowerPlus Books/Rosen, 2002. This book goes into just enough technical detail for younger readers, covering different types of jet engines, as well as broader details of how big planes stay in the sky. Suitable for ages 9–12.
Electric Arcs to Quiet Jets by Saswato R Das. IEEE Spectrum. August 1, 2004. How engineers are trying to redesign the airflow through engines to make them quieter.
Biggest Jet Engine by Paul Eisenstein. Three-page article in Popular Science, July 2004. How the drive for faster, more economical, and quieter jet engines is making them even bigger.
21st-century Hot Jet Engines by Stuart F. Brown. Popular Science, June 1990. How engineers are trying to perfect engines with double the thrust.
Jet-Propulsion Flight by Alexander Klemin. Scientific American, April 1944, Volume 170 Number 4, pp.166–168. A fascinating look at how engineers saw the jet age in the 1940s.
The Beginnings of Jet Propulsion by Lord Kings Norton, Journal of the Royal Society of Arts, September 1985, Vol. 133, No. 5350, pp.705–723. A history of jet power, from ancient times.
I find it fascinating to explore inventors' ideas in their own words (and diagrams)—which is something you can do very easily by browsing patents. Here are a few I've selected that cover various types of jet engines:
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Hyperthermia, as opposed to hypothermia, occurs when body temperature increases as thermal energy builds up the body because heat is not transferred out of the body fast enough to keep up with the body’s thermal power. We can try to avoid such a situation by minimizing our work output to reduce overall thermal power (remember, the body has low efficiency so doing work means generating thermal energy). We can also use our understanding of the conduction, convection, and thermal radiation to ensure maximum heat transfer away from the body. For example, we can minimize the thickness of clothing to increase conduction, wear light colored clothing to reduce radiation absorbed from the sun, and encourage air circulation (convection).
In some cases our thermal power outpaces the rate at which we exhaust heat by conduction, convection and radiation. Our strategy to deal with this situation is sweating. When we sweat some of the water on our skin evaporates into a water vapor. Only the molecules with the most kinetic energy are able to escape the attraction of their fellow water molecules and enter the air. Therefore the evaporating molecules remove more than a fair share of the thermal energy (thermal energy is just molecular kinetic energy remember). The remaining liquid water molecules then have less thermal energy on average, so they are at a lower temperature and must absorb more energy from your body as they come to thermal equilibrium with your body again. This evaporation process allows the body to dump thermal energy even when the environment is too warm for significant heat loss by conduction, convection, and radiation. The amount of energy removed by evaporation is quantified by the latent heat of vaporization (Lv). For water Lv = 2,260 kJ/kg, which means that for every kilogram of sweat evaporated, 2260 kiloJoules of energy is transferred away from the skin.
A person working in an environment that happens to be very close to body temperature (about 100 °F) would not be able to get rid of thermal energy by conduction, convection, or radiation. If the person was working hard and generating about 250 W of thermal power (similar to the thermal power while shivering) then how much sweat would need to be evaporated each hour to keep their body temperature from rising?
In order to keep the body temperature from rising the person needs to get rid of 250 W of thermal energy, that’s 250 J/s. Let’s convert that to Joules per hour:
Each kilogram of water that evaporates removes 2,260,000 J of energy, so only a fraction of a kilogram will need to be evaporated every hour:
The rate at which water will evaporate depends on the liquid temperature and the relative humidity of the surrounding air. The relative humidity compares how many water molecules are in the vapor phase relative to the maximum number that could possibly be in the vapor phase at the current temperature. A relative humidity of 100% means that no more water molecules can be added to the vapor phase. If the humidity is high, then evaporation will be slow and may not provide sufficient cooling. The heat index takes into account both air temperature and the relative humidity to determine how difficult it will be for your body to exhaust heat. Specifically, the heat index provides the theoretical air temperature that would be required at 20% humidity to create the same difficulty in exhausting heat as the actual temperature and humidity. Heat index values were devised for shady conditions with a light wind. Exposure to full sun or stagnant air can increase feel-like values by up to 15 degrees!
Everyday Examples: Sweating, Dew, and Rain
When we sweat to exhaust thermal energy by evaporation we aren’t actively grabbing the hottest water molecules, pulling then away from their neighbors, and throwing them into the gas phase. The evaporation happens spontaneously because thermal energy stored in water molecules that are stuck together is relatively concentrated compared to thermal energy stored in water molecules zipping around in the air and free to disperse. The transfer of thermal energy to the environment by evaporation is a spontaneous process because it increases the dispersion of energy throughout the system made up of you, the sweat, and the surrounding air.
When the relative humidity reaches 100% then evaporation has maximally dispersed the available thermal energy. Any additional evaporation would begin to over-concentrate energy in the air and decrease the overall level of energy dispersion. Therefore, we don’t see evaporation occurring once 100% humidity is reached. In fact if the humidity gets pushed above 100% (by a drop in air [temperature without a loss of water vapor) then energy is over-concentrated in the air and thus increasing dispersion of energy requires that water molecules come out of the vapor phase and condensation occurs spontaneously. When the liquid condenses on surfaces we call it dew, when the liquid condenses on particles in the air and falls to the ground we call it rain.
Everyday Examples: Winter Dry Skin
The Pacific Northwest is famous for its winter rain, fog and general high humidity. However, people in the pacific northwest often suffer from dry skin in winter, but not summer when humidity is often less than 20 %. During winter, humid air is brought in from the outside and warmed by the heating system. That air still contains the same amount of water vapor, but is now at higher temperature, so the relative humidity is significantly reduced, even to the point of causing dry skin.
We have learned that evaporation takes place even when a liquid isn’t boiling, so we may be wondering what causes boiling and how is it different from normal evaporation? Water ordinarily contains significant amounts of dissolved air and other impurities, which are observed as small bubbles of air in a glass of water. The bubbles formed within the water so the relative humidity inside the bubbles is 100%, meaning the maximum possible number of water molecules are inside the bubble as vapor. Those molecules collide with the walls of the bubble causing an outward pressure. The speed of the water molecules increases with temperature, so the pressure they exert does as well. At 100 °C the internal pressure exerted by the water vapor is equal to the atmospheric pressure trying to collapse the bubbles, so rather than collapse they will expand and rise, causing boiling. Once water is boiling, any additional thermal energy input goes into changing liquid water to water vapor, so the water will not increase temperature. Turning up the burner on the stove will not cook the food faster, it will just more quickly boil away (evaporate) the water.
Everyday Examples: The Bends
At high altitude the atmospheric pressure is lower, so molecules of water vapor don’t need to create as much pressure within bubbles to maintain boiling. Therefore, boiling will occur at a lower temperature and cooking foods by boiling will take longer. (Food packaging often gives alternative cook times for high altitude).
The same process is responsible for the bends, which refers to the formation of nitrogen bubbles within the blood upon rapid ascent while SCUBA diving. You might imaging that you could hang out underwater by breathing through a hose, and that would work in very shallow water. However, the high pressure exerted by water at depths below roughly 2 m (6 ft) would prevent the diaphragm and rib cage from expanding to pull air into the lungs. At greater depths you need to breath from a pressurized container which helps to force air into your lungs against the additional hydrostatic pressure. Of course if you breathed from the container at shallow depth then the pressure would be too high and would cause damage to your lungs. A pressure regulator that outputs the appropriate pressure according to the water depth is the core of the SCUBA system.
There is always some gas dissolved in your blood, including carbon dioxide, oxygen, and nitrogen. The amount of dissolved gas is determined by the temperature and the pressure. If temperature is high enough, and pressure is low enough, then boiling will occur. Breathing high pressure air from a SCUBA system while at depth forces these gases to dissolve into your blood in the amounts determined by your body temperature and the high pressure.
When ascending, the pressure drops quickly, but the body temperature stays constant, so the blood gases can begin to boil, starting with Nitrogen. There is not issue with blood temperature here, blood is still at body temperature, but the bubbles are a problem for the cardiovascular system. To prevent the bends, you must ascend slowly, allowing the gasses to slowly escape from the blood and be expelled in the breath, without forming large bubbles in the blood.
To treat the bends a patient is placed in a hyperbaric (high pressure) chamber. The high pressure collapses the bubbles and prevents new ones from forming. The pressure is then slowly decreases to allow the blood gasses to escape slowly, simulating a gradual ascent.
- Hyperthermia Patient by Mike Mitchell (photographer) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons ↵
- OpenStax University Physics, University Physics Volume 2. OpenStax CNX. Feb 6, 2019 http://[email protected] ↵
- OpenStax, Humidity, Evaporation, and Boiling. OpenStax CNX. Sep 9, 2013 http://cnx.org/contents/030347e9-f128-486f-a779-019ac474ff90@5 ↵
- "Zion National Park Visitor Center" by National Renewable Energy Laboratory, U.S. Department of Energy is in the Public Domain ↵
- "Heat Index" by National Weather Service, NOAA is in the Public Domain ↵
- "Decompression Chamber" by U.S. Navy Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jayme Pastoric, is in the Public Domain. ↵
The condition of having a body temperature well above the normal range.
The condition of having a body temperature well below the normal range.
rate at which chemical potential energy is converted to thermal energy by the body, batteries, or heat engines. Also, rate at which thermal energy is converted to electrical energy by a thermal power plant.
A quantity representing the effect of applying a force to an object or system while it moves some distance.
Electromagnetic radiation spontaneously emitted by all objects with temperature above absolute zero.
An amount of thermal energy transferred due to a difference in temperature.
a two systems are in thermal equilibrium when they do not exchange heat, which means they must be at the same temperature
Thermal energy input required to change a unit mass of liquid into vapor.
relation between the amount of a material and the space it takes up, calculated as mass divided by volume.
a quantity of space, such as the volume within a box or the volume taken up by an object.
a measure of how many water molecules are in the vapor phase relative to the maximum number that could possibly be in the vapor phase at at a given temperature. A relative humidity of 100% means that no more water molecules can be added to the vapor phase.
Process of vapor changing phase into a liquid.
water that condenses on cool surfaces at night, when decreasing temperature forces humidity to 100% or higher
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The blue watermelon, also known as the moon and stars watermelon, has a rich and fascinating history that dates back to the 19th century. This unique fruit is believed to have originated in the United States, specifically in the southern states where watermelons are a popular crop. The blue watermelon gets its name from its distinctive appearance, with dark green skin speckled with small, yellow “stars” and a large, yellow “moon” on its surface. This striking coloration sets it apart from the traditional red watermelon and has made it a sought-after novelty in the world of fruits.
The blue watermelon was once a common sight in American gardens and markets, but its popularity declined over the years as commercial farming focused on producing the more familiar red-fleshed watermelons. However, in recent years, there has been a resurgence of interest in heirloom and unusual varieties of fruits and vegetables, leading to a renewed appreciation for the blue watermelon. Today, this unique fruit is enjoying a comeback, with farmers and gardeners alike rediscovering its exceptional flavor and striking appearance. The blue watermelon’s history is a testament to the enduring appeal of unique and rare fruits, and its resurgence is a testament to the growing interest in preserving and celebrating heirloom varieties.
- The blue watermelon originated in Japan in the 1950s and was created through a natural mutation.
- Unlike traditional red watermelons, blue watermelons have a unique blue-green rind and a vibrant red or pink interior.
- Blue watermelons can be found in specialty markets, particularly in Japan and some parts of the United States.
- Blue watermelons are rich in antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals, making them a healthy and refreshing snack.
- Blue watermelons can be enjoyed in a variety of ways, such as in salads, smoothies, or even as a unique cocktail ingredient.
How the Blue Watermelon Differs from the Traditional Red Watermelon
The blue watermelon is distinct from the traditional red watermelon in several ways, making it a unique and sought-after fruit for those looking to try something different. One of the most obvious differences is its appearance. While red watermelons have a solid green rind with a bright red or pink interior, the blue watermelon stands out with its dark green skin adorned with small yellow “stars” and a large yellow “moon.” This striking appearance makes it a visually stunning addition to any fruit display or garden.
In addition to its appearance, the blue watermelon also differs in flavor from its red counterpart. While red watermelons are known for their sweet, juicy flesh, the blue watermelon offers a slightly different taste experience. Some describe its flavor as more complex and nuanced, with hints of earthiness and a slightly less sweet taste compared to traditional red watermelons. This unique flavor profile makes the blue watermelon a favorite among those looking for something new and different in their fruit selection.
Another key difference between the blue watermelon and traditional red watermelons is their rarity. While red watermelons are widely available in supermarkets and farmers’ markets, the blue watermelon is considered a rare and special find. Its limited availability adds to its allure and makes it a prized addition to any fruit collection or garden. Overall, the blue watermelon’s distinct appearance, unique flavor, and rarity set it apart from the traditional red watermelon and make it a highly sought-after fruit for those looking for something truly special.
Where to Find Blue Watermelons
Finding blue watermelons can be a bit of a challenge due to their rarity, but there are several ways to track down this unique fruit for those who are eager to try it. One option is to visit local farmers’ markets or specialty grocery stores that focus on heirloom and unusual varieties of fruits and vegetables. These establishments often carry blue watermelons during their peak season, which typically runs from late summer to early fall. By visiting these markets and stores, fruit enthusiasts can often find fresh, locally grown blue watermelons that are at the peak of ripeness and flavor.
Another option for finding blue watermelons is to connect with local farmers who specialize in growing heirloom fruits and vegetables. Many small-scale farmers and gardeners are passionate about preserving rare and unique varieties of produce, including the blue watermelon. By reaching out to these individuals through farmers’ markets or community-supported agriculture (CSA) programs, fruit enthusiasts may be able to secure fresh blue watermelons directly from the source.
For those who prefer the convenience of online shopping, there are also specialty retailers that offer blue watermelons for sale. These online vendors often source their fruits from small-scale farmers and growers, ensuring that customers receive high-quality, fresh blue watermelons that are carefully cultivated and harvested. By exploring these different avenues, fruit enthusiasts can track down blue watermelons and experience their unique flavor and appearance for themselves.
The Health Benefits of Blue Watermelons
Health Benefit | Description |
Rich in Antioxidants | Blue watermelons contain high levels of antioxidants, which help protect the body from damage by free radicals. |
Hydration | Blue watermelons are made up of about 92% water, making them a great source of hydration. |
Heart Health | The lycopene in blue watermelons may help lower the risk of heart disease. |
Immune System Support | The vitamin C content in blue watermelons can help boost the immune system. |
Anti-Inflammatory Properties | Blue watermelons contain compounds that may help reduce inflammation in the body. |
Blue watermelons offer a range of health benefits that make them a nutritious and delicious addition to any diet. Like their red counterparts, blue watermelons are an excellent source of hydration, as they are composed of over 90% water. This high water content makes them an ideal snack for staying hydrated during hot summer months or after physical activity. In addition to their hydrating properties, blue watermelons are also rich in essential vitamins and minerals. They are particularly high in vitamin C, which supports immune function and skin health, as well as vitamin A, which is important for vision and overall immune function.
Blue watermelons also contain significant levels of lycopene, a powerful antioxidant that has been linked to a reduced risk of certain types of cancer and heart disease. Lycopene is responsible for the fruit’s vibrant color and provides numerous health benefits when consumed regularly. Furthermore, blue watermelons are low in calories and fat while being high in fiber, making them an excellent choice for those looking to maintain a healthy weight or improve digestive health.
In addition to their nutritional value, blue watermelons are also rich in citrulline, an amino acid that has been shown to have potential benefits for heart health and athletic performance. Citrulline is known for its ability to improve blood flow and reduce muscle soreness after exercise, making it a valuable component of a well-rounded diet for active individuals. Overall, the health benefits of blue watermelons make them an excellent choice for those looking to support their overall well-being while enjoying a delicious and refreshing fruit.
Unique Ways to Enjoy Blue Watermelons
Blue watermelons can be enjoyed in a variety of unique and delicious ways that showcase their exceptional flavor and appearance. One popular way to enjoy blue watermelons is by simply slicing them into wedges or cubes and enjoying them as a refreshing snack on a hot day. Their high water content makes them an ideal choice for staying hydrated while satisfying sweet cravings without consuming excessive calories or added sugars.
For those looking to get creative with their blue watermelon consumption, there are numerous recipes that highlight this unique fruit’s flavor and appearance. Blue watermelon can be used to create refreshing salads, salsas, and smoothies that showcase its natural sweetness and vibrant color. It can also be incorporated into frozen treats such as sorbets or popsicles for a cool and satisfying dessert option.
Another unique way to enjoy blue watermelons is by pickling or fermenting them to create tangy and flavorful preserves that can be enjoyed throughout the year. Pickled blue watermelon rind is a popular Southern delicacy that pairs well with savory dishes or can be enjoyed on its own as a zesty snack.
For those who enjoy experimenting in the kitchen, blue watermelon can also be used in savory dishes such as grilled skewers or kebabs, where its natural sweetness adds depth of flavor to meats and vegetables. Overall, there are countless ways to enjoy blue watermelons that highlight their exceptional taste and appearance, making them a versatile and exciting addition to any culinary repertoire.
Cultivating and Growing Blue Watermelons
Cultivating and growing blue watermelons can be a rewarding experience for gardeners who are interested in preserving heirloom varieties of fruits and vegetables. Blue watermelons thrive in warm climates with plenty of sunlight, making them an excellent choice for gardeners in southern regions or those with access to greenhouse or hoop house growing environments.
When cultivating blue watermelons, it’s important to select high-quality seeds from reputable sources that specialize in heirloom varieties. These seeds should be planted in well-draining soil with plenty of organic matter to support healthy growth. Blue watermelons require consistent watering throughout the growing season, particularly during hot weather when they are at risk of drying out.
As the plants grow, it’s important to provide support for the developing fruits by using trellises or slings to prevent them from resting directly on the ground. This helps protect the fruits from pests and rot while allowing air circulation around them.
Harvesting blue watermelons at the peak of ripeness is essential for enjoying their exceptional flavor and texture. This typically occurs when the fruits develop a deep, dark green color with yellow “stars” and “moon” on their rind and emit a hollow sound when tapped. Once harvested, blue watermelons can be stored in a cool, dry place for several weeks or enjoyed fresh right away.
Overall, cultivating and growing blue watermelons requires attention to detail and care but can result in a bountiful harvest of unique and delicious fruits that are sure to impress friends and family alike.
The Future of Blue Watermelons: Trends and Popularity
The future of blue watermelons looks bright as interest in heirloom varieties of fruits and vegetables continues to grow among consumers and gardeners alike. As more people seek out unique and rare produce options, blue watermelons are poised to become increasingly popular due to their exceptional flavor, striking appearance, and rich history.
One trend that is likely to contribute to the growing popularity of blue watermelons is the focus on sustainable agriculture and local food systems. As consumers become more conscious of where their food comes from and how it is produced, there is a growing demand for heirloom varieties that have been cultivated using traditional farming methods without relying on synthetic pesticides or fertilizers. Blue watermelons fit this trend perfectly as they are often grown by small-scale farmers who prioritize sustainable practices and preserving rare varieties of fruits.
In addition to their appeal among consumers, blue watermelons are also gaining attention from chefs and culinary professionals who are eager to incorporate unique ingredients into their menus. The vibrant color and complex flavor profile of blue watermelons make them an exciting addition to dishes ranging from salads to cocktails, offering chefs an opportunity to showcase their creativity while delighting diners with something unexpected.
Overall, the future of blue watermelons looks promising as they continue to capture the imagination of fruit enthusiasts, gardeners, chefs, and consumers who appreciate their exceptional qualities. As interest in heirloom produce continues to grow, it’s likely that blue watermelons will become more widely available and celebrated for their unique attributes in the years to come.
Sure, here’s a paragraph with a mention of a related article to blue watermelon:
“Looking to learn more about unique and exotic fruits? Check out this fascinating article on the WebSpiderPlus website that explores the world of rare fruits, including the intriguing blue watermelon. Discover the origins, taste, and potential health benefits of this unusual fruit, and expand your knowledge of the diverse and colorful world of fruits. Click here to read the full article and satisfy your curiosity about these extraordinary natural wonders.”
What is a blue watermelon?
Blue watermelon is a type of watermelon that has a unique blue or bluish-green rind. It is a rare variety of watermelon that is not commonly found in the market.
Is blue watermelon genetically modified?
No, blue watermelon is not genetically modified. It is a naturally occurring variety of watermelon that has a different pigment in its rind, giving it a blue color.
Where is blue watermelon grown?
Blue watermelon is primarily grown in Japan, where it is known as “Densuke watermelon.” It is also grown in other parts of the world, but it is a rare and sought-after variety.
What does blue watermelon taste like?
Blue watermelon has a similar taste to traditional red or pink watermelon. It is sweet, juicy, and refreshing, with a crisp texture.
Is blue watermelon safe to eat?
Yes, blue watermelon is safe to eat. It is a natural variety of watermelon and is consumed in the same way as other types of watermelon. | <urn:uuid:c37616d8-739e-4a3c-8151-b2f895efcff5> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.webspiderplus.com/discovering-the-blue-watermelon-a-unique-twist-on-a-summertime-favorite/ | 2024-12-08T02:53:26Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066436561.81/warc/CC-MAIN-20241208015349-20241208045349-00728.warc.gz | en | 0.938444 | 2,809 | 3 | 3 |
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Why choose the Master Calculation Course by Welcome2Maths? Calculations are essential to life as well as to mathematics. Additionally, it serves as the base for everyday math, data interpretation, and arithmetic. Calculation skills can also foster logical thinking and ingenuity when taught properly. The desire to develop the capacity to calculate Fast and Accurately is one of the main reasons why students enroll themselves indifferent Vedic Maths online classes, Abacus classes, or Mental Arithmetic courses. You can easily find the Vedic maths online classes or other maths skills development courses may be online or offline as more and more people have become aware of the importance of maths in their life and how it affects one's life. However, it is often a hassle to learn all these different courses separately for fast calculation practice to become better at Mathes. This is where the master calculation course by Swarnali Saha from Welcome2Mathscomes to the rescue of your child! Choosing the master calculation course by Welcome2Maths frees you of the trouble to signup for several different courses and instead allows your child to effectively learn various maths skills for developing the calculation skills of your students that will help them throughout their lifetime. The main reason for choosing Welcome2Maths for your child is because our course is a perfect blend of Vedic maths online classes, abacus, mental arithmetic, and logical reasoning courses. Enrolling your child in our master course also helps in saving time and effort of your kids as our special course only teaches kids the topics a child needs in their daily lives or at school and which would be beneficial to them. Another reason for choosing the master course by Welcome2Maths is that it makes learning fun for your children! Through the master calculation course, Swarnali Saha, the program's founder and one of India's most in-demand Arithmetic Life Skills teachers, attempts to instill a love of math in young students. Does your child struggle to execute even basic mathematical calculations and is afraid of math? Fast calculation practice with the help of our course can help your child get rid of the fear of maths and become better at calculations! Are you looking for an all-in-one course for developing your child's maths skills? Enroll your child in the special course by Welcome2Maths and help him or her develop logical reasoning skills and for making them fall in love with Mathematics!
More About Welcome2Maths by Swarnali Saha Welcome2Maths is one of the best online platforms in India for Vedic maths online classes and other special courses that helps kids of all ages in fast calculation practice and to develop maths skills with the help of various maths techniques, tips, and tricks that make learning easier, effective, and fun! Founded by Swarnali Saha, one of the top maths skills mentors in India, the goal of the theWelcome2Maths campaign is to enhance mathematics and logic life skills. The major goal ofWelcome2Maths is to instill in children a love of maths as well as the basic logical and mathematical abilities that will benefit them over their entire lifetimes. If you are looking for a comprehensive maths course including Vedic maths online classes, abacus course, etc, for making your child an expert in maths, then WelcomeMaths is the right place for you! Enroll in our Master calculation now!
Multiplication Table Course ByWelcome2Maths - The Top course for learning times table easily
The mathematical multiples of each integer are listed in the multiplication table, also referred to as the time's table. The multiplication table can be obtained by multiplying an integer by a collection of whole integers. The multiplication table is a crucial component of mathematics and the multiplication table course by Swarnali Saha from Welcome2maths is the best course for learning multiplication tables effectively.
Some of the advantages of learning Multiplication Tables:
It is critical to learn your multiplication tables. After all, multiplications are the foundation of math, and once you understand them, anything is possible! The multiplication table course by Welcom2maths is the best course to help your child learn times tables easily. Here are just a few advantages that your youngster will experience from learning their tables by heart. Children can solve math problems much more quickly and easily in their brains after they have learned their time's tables. They will be able to apply their expertise to swiftly resolve any multiplication problems after they go past using their fingers to calculate answers. Learning the multiplication tables by enrolling in a multiplication table course may help kids become more adept at mentally seeing the answers to queries. This will make it simpler for pupils to mentally answer multiplication, subtraction, addition, or division problems, making it a very rewarding effort to learn multiples! Times tables are very important for improving mathematical conceptual understanding. Learning the multiplication table course can do wonders for a child's comprehension of crucial mathematical topics. Some of these concepts include percentages, fractions, graphs, and tables. By using visual aids and benefits of times tables like charts, graphs, and posters, students may visualize numbers. Your child will be able to use the understanding developed by undertaking a multiplication table course by Welcome2maths to recognize additional number relationships as they gain confidence with their time's tables. Memorizing multiplication tables effectively through the help of a multiplication table course developed strategically by Swarnali Saha can help students better understand a variety of mathematical ideas. When faced with a numerical problem that looks tough to solve, students can use the time's table to help them break it down into smaller, more manageable solutions. Even just knowing the multiplication tables from 1 to 10 will prepare your child for all the content covered in his or her class, whether it be numerical systems, multiplications, or addition. Thus, enrolling in a multiplication table course will enable your child to understand maths better.
Reasons why you should choose the Multiplication Table course by Welcome2Mathsfor your child: The multiplication table is crucial in your child's development. They benefit from it in both their academic work and daily lives. The Welcome2Maths Multiplication Table course is a fantastic program that seeks to make multiplication for children simple to learn.
The Multiplication Table course by Welcome2Maths was designed to make learning the multiplication tables simple. This course has been separated into several sections that feature a variety of lectures, practice exercises, tests, and math techniques multiplication that will make learning and remembering multiplication tables easier for you or your child. With the use of the Multiplication Table course, Welcome2Maths has assisted many students and parents in recent years. The best thing about the multiplication table course created by one of the top math tutors in India is the fact that it is incredibly affordable and simple to get at the tap of a screen. Swarnali Saha, the organization's creator and one of India's most in-demand Math Life Skills teachers, wants to instill a love of math in youngsters by teaching them how to easily master their multiplication tables through a multiplication table course. Does your child struggle to execute even basic mathematical calculations because they are afraid of math? That can be the case if the bases are not covered. By assisting children in dissecting and comprehending numerous math concepts with the help of our special multiplication table course that can benefit them throughout their lives, Welcome2Maths can help your child get over their phobia of doing calculations. The multiplication table course by Welcome2Maths is among the best courses available online and it will help your child take more interest in math and excel at it! The multiplication table course by WelcomeMaths is the right course for your child to help them learn multiplication tables that will not only be useful to them in school but also in pursuing further higher-level education. It will also prepare your child for various competitive exams and give them an advantage over the other students. Our multiplication table course is one of the best maths skills development courses in India and it will help your child build their mental calculating abilities and also their logical reasoning power in the long term! Enroll in the Multiplication Table course by Swarnali Saha of Welcome2Maths now prepare your child for the future!
More About Welcome2Maths- The best Maths skills development platform in India for your child: One of the top online platforms in India, Welcome2Maths is well known for its Multiplication Table course, which may assist children of all ages to get better at math calculations by teaching them simple methods, advice, or hacks for memorizing the multiplication tables quickly and amusingly. The Welcome2Maths initiative was started by Swarnali Saha, one of Indias top maths skills mentors, with the intention of improving math and logic life skills. Welcome2Maths' main objective is to inculcate in kids a liking for mathematics as well as to help them develop fundamental logical and mathematical skills that will serve them well throughout their entire lives. Are you looking for a multiplication table course that can help your child memorize the time's tables easily and effectively? Welcome2Maths a leading maths skill development platform is the right choice for you then! Enroll in the multiplication table course by Swarnali Saha from Welcome2Maths to help your child in learning multiplication tables easily and become a master of calculations! | <urn:uuid:13481fdb-b1fc-4cfe-aba9-76852c3acc7b> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://welcome2maths.com/page/courses | 2024-12-10T12:36:34Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066058729.19/warc/CC-MAIN-20241210101933-20241210131933-00073.warc.gz | en | 0.940097 | 3,783 | 2.5625 | 3 |
Learning is an essential part of life. We start learning unconsciously, from the very moment we are born, really. Yet, lots of learning happens intentionally so that we can improve and become better versions of ourselves. Therefore, learning new skills is an integral part of our personal and professional development.
Regardless of whether you learn new skills formally or informally, there are many benefits that this process brings along. In this article, I explore the importance of learning new skills as well as the benefits of learning something new. Very briefly, at the end of the article, I also explore the psychological benefits of learning.
As someone who invests a lot of time and energy in learning, it has been such a pleasure writing this article. I do hope you enjoy reading it as well.
Why Is Learning New Skills Important?
In addition to being fun and engaging, there are many beneficial aspects of learning new skills. Most reasons can be grouped into emotional, psychological, and cognitive categories.
Emotional benefits refer to the feeling you get out of learning new skills. You can feel motivated, inspired or even more self-confident when you acquire new skills. From the psychological perspective, you may experience greater happiness, be less anxious and more open to new experiences. Finally, your cognitive abilities develop as you learn new skills: your reasoning may improve, your intelligence may grow, and of course, you’ll be more knowledgeable in the field you’ve chosen with your new skill.
When it comes to your professional growth, the importance of learning new skills is quite obvious. The more you know, the more valuable you are to the company. This can refer to your speciality, which comes with experience, not only hours invested in learning in the traditional sense of it. In addition to that, it can refer to a variety of skills that you acquire over time. For example, you can be very knowledgeable in your field, but also have developed communication skills or other soft skills, which will enable you to get promoted or even change companies and find a better, more fulfilling role.
How Often Should You Learn Something New?
As often as you can so long as it’s not causing you more stress or anxiety. Learning something new should be fun and challenging, not stressful. You shouldn’t feel pressured to learn something new, be it skills or any other type of learning. If you feel desire, curiosity or inspiration to learn something new, that’s the right moment to find that something and get into it.
When we’re forming new habits, then learning is going to be more frequent, on a daily basis, really. It takes a bit of time to form new habits, which is why continuous learning is so important. On the other hand, if you’re just thinking about learning something new or acquiring a new skill, you can do it monthly, quarterly or even annually. It depends on the time you have available and the need and/or desire to explore something different.
In any case, it is good to challenge your brain and keep getting out of your comfort zone. The important thing is to set the pace you’re comfortable with.
What Are the Benefits of Learning New Skills?
As already mentioned, there are numerous benefits of learning new skills. The list below presents some of the benefits I find most appealing. However, there are many more advantages of acquiring new knowledge and skills that can be added to the list.
Novelty sparks curiosity and poses challenges. Every learning experience consists of ups and downs. Some aspects of the new thing you’re trying to learn can be easy to understand and acquire while others may be more difficult and require more time, energy and effort. Nevertheless, once you conquer the new skills and actually learn something new, there comes the feeling of accomplishment. This, in turn, boosts your confidence. You feel more qualified or equipped to deal with new challenges.
Needless to say that this confidence transfers to all areas of your life. Not only will you feel more confident at work, but also at home, in relationships and your sense of self will improve.
If you engage in a new skill, you’re going to thicken the brain’s prefrontal cortex. As you develop a new skill, you’ll gain courage and confidence, which helps you override fear and anxiety. You’ll feel more empowered.
Makes You More Adaptable
Learning process is rarely straightforward. It usually takes time, effort, and consists of many small wins and failures. It exposes you to novelty, new perspectives and it asks for persistence. Most of us learn through trial and error, which requires patience and thinking outside the box (whatever our current box is). Now, the more we do it, the more we become open to changes. The more open to changes we are, the more adaptable we become.
Being flexible and accepting of change enables us to approach new situations calmly and with curiosity rather than fear and anxiety. What is more, it enables us to detect new opportunities more often and be more willing to try them out. This is crucial for both personal and professional growth.
Doing the same thing repeatedly is monotonous and eventually leads to boredom. Learning new skills breaks the cycle of the same old and introduces novelty to your everyday life. Furthermore, learning new skills keeps your brain active and increases your interest levels, thus preventing boredom from settling in.
Please, note that this doesn’t mean that boredom is a negative thing. From time to time, we need to let our mind be idle in order to process new information or enhance creativity and new ideas. What’s important here is that we shouldn’t let our mind wander for too long. The right balance between being lazy and engaged is necessary for growth and development.
Rewires Your Brain
If presented with a challenging environment, our body and mind changes. Muscles gets stronger, hearts and lungs get larger and brain connections become faster and more focused. This reorganisation of the brain is the basis of all skill acquisition and development.
Every time we learn a new skill, our brain changes a bit. New naturopaths are created and neural connections are being strengthened. Rewiring our brain is what makes us more adaptable and it enables us to perform better, faster and with more accuracy.
Moreover, as our brain gets rewired, we are able to change habits and grow in so many ways. That’s why inactivity and unwillingness to learn and change leads to our brain withering slowly, thus causing numerous illnesses and conditions, including depression and dementia to appear at an earlier stage of our lives.
Makes You More Appealing to Others
It’s really simple: people are drawn to those they have something in common with. This stands for life in general, but work environments as well. More and more companies are shifting to hiring attitude and willingness to learn rather than know-it-alls.
More often than not, your versatile skills will come in handy when applying for jobs. Employers love meeting candidates who show interest in learning and growth. The more skilled you are in your field or the more skills you have that make you a well-rounded person, the more attractive a candidate you will be for different job positions.
Similarly, the more interests you have, the more conversations you can have with other people. There’s nothing wrong with being well-versed in one or two topics, though. Nonetheless, if you’re interested in a variety of topics, you’ll be more likely to connect with others. What is more, you’ll enjoy meeting people you otherwise might not have the opportunity to meet.
In addition to general benefits, there are some psychological benefits of learning something new that make it so much more appealing to acquire new knowledge and skills.
Psychological Benefits of Learning Something New
Everything that you experience leaves its mark on your brain. When you learn something new, the neurons involved in the learning episode grow new projections and form new connections. Your brain may even produce new neurons
As your brain changes, you become more flexible and open to novelty. In addition, your life improves in so many ways. You’ll find my top three psychological benefits of learning new skills, but just like mentioned before, lots more can be added to the list.
Reduces Fear and Anxiety
Learning new skills takes you out of your comfort zone and exposes you to challenges and uncertainties. The more you’re presented with novelty, the more you become accustomed to change, which greatly reduces fear and anxiety of the unknown.
The quality of your life will significantly improve when you don’t live in constant fear and anxiety. Moreover, you will be ready to face unexpected circumstances with a greater calm and positive attitude.
Potentially Postpones Dementia
People who learn a new skill are less likely to develop dementia, which has been linked to demyelination of your brain. People who actively learn new skills don’t give their brains a chance to demyelinate, and their neural pathways are ready for new impulses to travel along them.
In a nutshell, your brain cells are less likely to die out (or slowlier to do it anyway) if you actively learn new skills.
Every time you achieve something, you feel better about yourself. As you keep learning new skills, you tend to feel happier because your sense of self worth improves. Remember how every time you succeed at something, you tend to smile and there’s this positive feeling rising in your chest. Well, that’s what happens every time you learn something new. You won’t be euphoric all the time, but the feeling of accomplishment and self-efficacy will last for some time. If you keep doing this, your base level of happiness will eventually increase. In other words, the more you learn, the happier you are.
What’s Next on Your To-Learn List?
There you have it. With so many advantages, there are really no excuses not to actively learn something new. You define the pace and the skill or knowledge you would like to acquire. Just make sure that learning is an ongoing process in your life. I encourage you to create a to-learn list and visit it occasionally for inspiration.
There is so much out there that you can gain from opening up to new experiences and opportunities. I wish you all the best on your journey of learning and growth and if you feel like sharing some of it with me, I’ll be more than happy to listen. | <urn:uuid:f7437030-b470-48bd-9adb-14eee8200cd8> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://snowation.com/benefits-of-learning-new-skills/ | 2024-12-13T03:48:27Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066115574.46/warc/CC-MAIN-20241213012212-20241213042212-00724.warc.gz | en | 0.954287 | 2,176 | 2.671875 | 3 |
In-Depth Guide to Wound Care for Diabetics
Master essential wound care for diabetics. Learn to prevent complications and promote healing. Your ultimate guide awaits!
Understanding Diabetic Wound Care
Taking proper care of wounds is of utmost importance for individuals with diabetes. Due to the unique challenges faced by diabetics, wound care becomes a critical aspect of their overall health management. This section will highlight the importance of wound care for diabetics and the risks associated with poor wound care.
Importance of Wound Care for Diabetics
Wound care plays a crucial role in the overall well-being of individuals with diabetes. Due to high blood sugar levels and compromised circulation, diabetics are more prone to developing wounds and experiencing delayed wound healing. Proper wound care helps prevent infections, promotes healing, and minimizes the risk of complications.
By practicing good wound care, diabetics can prevent the development of chronic wounds, such as ulcers, which can lead to severe infections and even amputation. Consistent and vigilant wound care can significantly improve the quality of life for individuals with diabetes, reducing the likelihood of long-term complications and hospitalizations.
Risks Associated with Poor Wound Care
Neglecting proper wound care can have serious consequences for diabetics. Poor wound care can lead to infections, delayed healing, and more severe complications. It is essential to understand the risks associated with inadequate wound care to emphasize the importance of proactive management.
One of the primary risks of poor wound care is the development of infections. High blood sugar levels in diabetics create a favorable environment for bacteria to thrive, increasing the risk of infection in even minor wounds. Untreated infections can quickly progress and spread, leading to cellulitis, abscesses, or even sepsis.
Delayed wound healing is another significant risk. Due to impaired blood circulation, wounds in diabetics often take longer to heal. This delay can result in chronic wounds that require extensive medical intervention and prolonged healing periods. It can also increase the risk of complications such as gangrene or the need for surgical interventions.
By understanding the risks associated with poor wound care, individuals with diabetes can recognize the importance of prioritizing wound management. Consistent and appropriate wound care practices, along with regular monitoring and prompt medical intervention when necessary, are crucial for preventing complications and promoting optimal healing.
Common Types of Diabetic Wounds
Diabetic wounds are a significant concern for individuals with diabetes. These wounds can arise due to various factors associated with the condition. Understanding the different types of diabetic wounds is crucial for effective management and proper treatment. Here are three common types of diabetic wounds:
Neuropathic ulcers, also known as diabetic foot ulcers, are one of the most prevalent types of diabetic wounds. They typically occur on the feet, especially on pressure points like the soles and heels. Neuropathy, a nerve damage condition often associated with diabetes, plays a key role in the development of these ulcers.
Due to neuropathy, individuals with diabetes may have reduced sensation in their feet, making it difficult to detect injuries or pressure points. Prolonged pressure and friction can lead to the breakdown of the skin, forming ulcers. It's essential to promptly detect and treat neuropathic ulcers to prevent infection and complications.
Ischemic ulcers are another type of diabetic wound that occurs due to poor blood circulation. Diabetes can lead to peripheral artery disease (PAD), which restricts blood flow to the extremities, particularly the lower limbs. When blood supply is insufficient, wounds may develop and heal more slowly.
Ischemic ulcers tend to appear on the lower legs, feet, and toes. They can be deep and painful, often accompanied by symptoms such as cold feet, hair loss, and delayed wound healing. Adequate management of ischemic ulcers involves improving blood circulation and addressing any underlying vascular issues.
Neuroischemic ulcers are a combination of neuropathic and ischemic ulcers. These wounds occur when both nerve damage (neuropathy) and poor blood circulation (ischemia) are present. Neuroischemic ulcers are typically more complex and challenging to treat compared to individual neuropathic or ischemic ulcers.
These ulcers often form at pressure points due to reduced sensation and compromised blood flow. They can be deep, slow to heal, and prone to infection. The management of neuroischemic ulcers requires a comprehensive approach that addresses both nerve damage and blood flow issues.
Understanding the different types of diabetic wounds is essential for individuals with diabetes, healthcare professionals, and caregivers involved in their wound care. By recognizing the specific characteristics and challenges associated with each type, appropriate interventions and treatments can be implemented to promote wound healing and prevent complications.
Essential Steps for Wound Care
Proper wound care is essential for individuals with diabetes to prevent complications and promote healing. When it comes to managing wounds, there are three essential steps: cleaning and dressing wounds, monitoring and managing infections, and promoting healing while preventing complications.
Cleaning and Dressing Wounds
Cleaning and dressing wounds is a crucial step in diabetic wound care. Here are some key considerations:
- Begin by washing your hands with soap and water to ensure cleanliness.
- Gently clean the wound with a mild, non-irritating cleanser and lukewarm water.
- Use a soft cloth or sterile gauze to carefully pat the wound dry.
- Apply an appropriate wound dressing based on the type and severity of the wound.
- Change the dressing regularly as recommended by your healthcare provider or wound care specialist.
Regularly cleaning and dressing the wound helps to prevent infection, promote healing, and protect the wound from further damage.
Monitoring and Managing Infections
Diabetic individuals are at a higher risk of developing infections in their wounds. Prompt detection and management of infections are crucial to prevent complications. Here are some key points to keep in mind:
- Monitor the wound for signs of infection, such as increased redness, swelling, warmth, pain, or drainage.
- If you suspect an infection, consult your healthcare provider immediately for evaluation and treatment.
- Follow any prescribed antibiotic or antimicrobial treatment as directed.
- Keep the wound area clean and dry to minimize the risk of infection.
Regular monitoring and early intervention can help prevent the spread of infection and promote wound healing.
Promoting Healing and Preventing Complications
To facilitate wound healing and prevent complications, there are several important steps to take:
- Maintain good blood sugar control by following your diabetes management plan.
- Eat a balanced diet rich in nutrients to support wound healing.
- Stay hydrated to promote overall health and wound healing.
- Avoid smoking and limit alcohol consumption, as these can impede the healing process.
- Follow any specific instructions provided by your healthcare provider or wound care specialist.
By adhering to these essential steps, you can promote healing, reduce the risk of complications, and optimize your diabetic wound care routine.
It's important to note that every wound is unique, and individualized care may be required. If you have any concerns or questions about your specific wound care routine, consult with your healthcare provider or a wound care specialist for personalized guidance and recommendations.
Preventing wounds is a crucial aspect of diabetic care. By implementing certain strategies, individuals with diabetes can minimize the risk of developing wounds and complications. Here are three essential prevention strategies for diabetic wound care:
Daily Foot Inspections
Regular foot inspections are vital for early detection of any potential issues. Diabetic individuals should thoroughly examine their feet on a daily basis, paying close attention to any signs of redness, swelling, cuts, blisters, or sores. By identifying these problems early, prompt action can be taken to prevent them from worsening.
To perform a thorough foot inspection, follow these steps:
- Find a well-lit area and sit down comfortably.
- Inspect the tops, bottoms, sides, and between the toes of each foot.
- Look for any abnormalities, such as cuts, blisters, calluses, or changes in skin color.
- Use a mirror or ask for assistance if it's difficult to see certain areas.
- If you notice any concerning signs, consult a healthcare professional for further evaluation and guidance.
Proper Footwear and Sock Choices
Wearing appropriate footwear and socks is essential for protecting the feet from injuries and reducing the risk of wounds. Consider the following tips for choosing the right footwear and socks:
- Opt for shoes that provide proper support, cushioning, and protection for the feet.
- Ensure that the shoes fit well and do not cause any pressure points or rubbing.
- Look for shoes with a wide toe box to prevent crowding of the toes.
- Avoid wearing high heels or shoes with pointed toes, as they can increase the risk of foot problems.
- Choose moisture-wicking socks that help keep the feet dry and prevent fungal infections.
- Avoid socks with tight elastic bands that can restrict circulation.
By wearing appropriate footwear and socks, individuals with diabetes can minimize the risk of developing wounds and foot-related complications.
Blood Sugar Control
Maintaining optimal blood sugar levels is crucial for overall diabetes management, including wound prevention. Elevated blood sugar levels can impair the body's ability to heal wounds and increase the risk of infections. Here are some tips for maintaining good blood sugar control:
- Follow a balanced and nutritious diet, focusing on whole foods and avoiding excessive sugar and refined carbohydrates.
- Incorporate regular physical activity into your routine, as exercise can help improve insulin sensitivity and blood sugar control.
- Take prescribed medications as directed by your healthcare provider.
- Monitor your blood sugar levels regularly and make adjustments as necessary.
- Work closely with your healthcare team to develop a personalized diabetes management plan.
By maintaining optimal blood sugar control, individuals with diabetes can support the body's natural healing processes and reduce the risk of complications.
Implementing these prevention strategies can significantly reduce the likelihood of developing wounds and diabetic foot complications. However, it's important to remember that regular communication with healthcare professionals is essential for individualized care and guidance.
When to Seek Medical Help
Taking prompt action and seeking medical assistance for diabetic wounds is crucial to prevent complications and ensure proper healing. It's important to be aware of the signs that indicate the need for medical attention. If you notice any of the following, it is recommended to seek medical help promptly.
Signs of Infection
Infections can pose a significant risk to individuals with diabetes, as they can lead to severe complications. Pay attention to the following signs of infection in diabetic wounds:
- Increased redness and warmth around the wound site
- Swelling or the presence of pus
- Persistent or worsening pain
- Foul odor emanating from the wound
- Fever or chills
If you notice any signs of infection, it is crucial to consult a healthcare professional as soon as possible. Prompt treatment is essential to prevent the infection from spreading and causing further harm.
Diabetic wounds may take longer to heal compared to wounds in individuals without diabetes. However, if a wound fails to show signs of improvement or if it takes an extended period to heal, it is advisable to seek medical help. Non-healing wounds may indicate underlying issues that require specialized care and treatment.
If you observe worsening symptoms related to your diabetic wound, it is important to reach out to your healthcare provider promptly. Some indicators of worsening symptoms include:
- Increasing pain or discomfort
- Spreading redness or discoloration around the wound
- Development of new or expanding areas of skin breakdown
- Increased drainage or bleeding from the wound
- Changes in sensation or numbness surrounding the wound
Monitoring and addressing worsening symptoms in a timely manner is crucial to prevent complications and ensure effective wound management.
Remember, it is always better to err on the side of caution when it comes to diabetic wound care. Seeking medical help when necessary can help prevent further complications and promote optimal healing.
Understanding Diabetic Wound Care
Diabetic individuals are at a higher risk of developing wounds and complications due to various factors associated with the condition. Proper wound care is essential for managing these wounds and promoting healing. In this section, we will explore the importance of wound care for diabetics and the risks that can arise from inadequate care.
Importance of Wound Care for Diabetics
Wound care plays a crucial role in the overall management of diabetes. Due to impaired blood circulation and nerve damage, diabetics are more susceptible to developing wounds, particularly in the lower extremities. Proper wound care helps prevent infections, promotes healing, and reduces the risk of complications such as ulcers and amputations.
Risks Associated with Poor Wound Care
Failure to provide appropriate wound care can lead to serious consequences for diabetics. Some of the risks associated with poor wound care include:
- Infections: Open wounds create an entry point for bacteria, increasing the risk of infection. In diabetic individuals, infections can spread rapidly and lead to severe complications.
- Delayed Healing: Diabetes can impair the body's ability to heal wounds. Without proper care, wounds may take longer to heal, increasing the risk of secondary infections and complications.
- Ulcers: Diabetic ulcers, such as neuropathic, ischemic, and neuroischemic ulcers, can develop if wounds are left untreated. These ulcers can be difficult to heal and may require specialized care.
To effectively manage diabetic wounds, it is crucial to follow essential steps for wound care, implement prevention strategies, and know when to seek medical help. By taking proactive measures and seeking appropriate treatment, diabetics can significantly improve their wound healing outcomes and overall well-being. | <urn:uuid:4a874fb4-beaa-4ed2-80c9-cef091c028f2> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.desertspringshealthcare.com/resources/wound-care-for-diabetics | 2024-12-02T11:50:22Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066127466.39/warc/CC-MAIN-20241202094452-20241202124452-00273.warc.gz | en | 0.932835 | 2,836 | 2.828125 | 3 |
At the close of the 1920s, the world’s aircraft manufacturers — there were a lot of them then — were all pursuing the same goal: building a faster airplane. With passengers clamoring for quicker flights, every manufacturer knew that a breakthrough in speed would spur big orders from airlines and other buyers, bringing them immediate riches. They also knew that most of the technological innovations required to construct faster aircraft had already been accomplished. Engines were powerful enough, fuselages were light enough, and steering and navigation systems were precise enough. The holy grail of faster flight was almost in hand.
But not quite. Progress was being held up by one of the oldest and most mundane of all the technologies used in aircraft: the wheel. A plane’s landing gear had always hung in a fixed position beneath the fuselage or the wings. Because of its simplicity and accessibility, the rigid external gear was easy to maintain, and it was generally reliable and safe. But the bulky apparatus had a drawback: it created a lot of wind resistance. That had never been a problem when planes flew at relatively slow speeds, but as manufacturers tried to achieve higher velocity, the drag created by the wheels became a very big problem. The next leap in air speed would be possible only with a much more streamlined landing mechanism.
It was obvious to everyone that there were two possible solutions to the problem: Either improve the aerodynamics of the traditional fixed gear or figure out a way to retract the gear into the body of the plane between takeoff and landing. In theory, retractable gear was the superior approach because it would eliminate the drag altogether. In practice, however, it didn’t work very well. For one thing, it was hard to find space within planes to fit the wheels. For another, the gearing and motors required to retract the wheels were heavy and clumsy. Hydraulic systems would have been an attractive alternative, but at the time they were prone to failure. Because the cylinders could not be sealed tightly, hydraulic fluid tended to leak out, which not only increased maintenance costs but made landings riskier. Engineers could not be sure the wheels would actually descend when they were supposed to.
Despite the flaws in retractable gear, many manufacturers continued to tinker with the concept, hoping they could work out the bugs. But John Northrop, whose eponymous company was a leader in aircraft design, took the alternative route. Believing that the best solution was simply to streamline the existing gear, he invented a particularly elegant metal sheath that could be wrapped around a plane’s wheels. It didn’t eliminate wind resistance, but it reduced it enough to boost flight speeds another notch. And it gave planes a sleek, stylish look that appealed to pilots and passengers. By the mid-1930s, it appeared that Mr. Northrop had made the smart choice. His popular sheathing system seemed likely to win out over retractable gear.
Then, in 1937, a 72-year-old inventor named Niels Christensen invented the O-ring, and that changed everything. A thin, circular piece of rubber that fit into a groove on a metal fitting, the O-ring provided a leakproof but flexible seal for hydraulic systems. The tiny gasket proved to be a revolutionary innovation, making it possible to design a simple, reliable, and lightweight mechanism for retracting landing gear, and it opened the way to much faster flights. By the end of the decade, retractable gear was routinely being installed on planes. Far from being the victor in the technological contest, Mr. Northrop’s sheathing had become obsolete.
As John Campbell pointed out in a 1996 article in the journal of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, the landing gear of the early 1930s, before the O-ring was introduced, is an example of a “reverse salient.” That odd term has its origins in descriptions of warfare, where it refers to a section of an advancing military force that has fallen behind the rest of the front. This section is typically the point of weakness in an attack, the lagging element that prevents the rest of the force from accomplishing its mission. Until the reverse salient is corrected, an army’s progress comes to a halt.
Historian Thomas P. Hughes was the first to apply the term to the realm of technological innovation. As described in his book Networks of Power: Electrification in Western Society, 1880–1930 (Johns Hopkins University Press, 1983), a reverse salient often forms as a complex technological system advances: “As the system evolves toward a goal, some components fall behind or out of line. As a result of the reverse salient, growth of the entire enterprise is hampered, or thwarted, and thus remedial action is required.” In technological advance as in warfare, the reverse salient is the weak link that impedes progress.
Such obstacles can arise in any kind of technological system, whether its focus is a product like an airplane or a process like the management of a supply chain. Reverse salients should thus be a critical concern of managers and entrepreneurs, particularly given today’s tightly interconnected and technologically complex world of commerce. On the one hand, reverse salients present enormous business opportunities. A huge amount of economic value can get stuck in the bottlenecks that the salients form. By being the first to solve a given problem, a company can create a lucrative new market — and then grab the lion’s share of it. As Professor Hughes notes, “Outstanding inventors, engineers, and entrepreneurs usually have a record of defining and solving such problems since remedying them can unlock a vast amount of value.”
On the other hand, reverse salients also present big risks to innovative enterprises, particularly large, well-established companies. As John Northrop discovered, even a seemingly small innovation at the point of a reverse salient can quickly and dramatically alter the course of a technology, upsetting the status quo, changing customers’ needs and expectations, and turning successful products into also-rans. That danger is magnified by the fact that reverse salients can be easy to overlook. As people become accustomed to a particular product or process, they often begin to take its flaws for granted — and hence become blind to the possibility for improvement. That’s especially true of people who had a hand in creating a prevailing system and thus have a direct stake in its perpetuation.
Even Thomas Edison, the greatest American inventor of all, fell victim to this affliction. When, in the late 19th century, he pioneered the utility system for distributing electric power, he came up with brilliant solutions to a series of reverse salients that were hindering the design of lightbulbs, wiring systems, generators, and so on. But he became so enamored of his own system that he didn’t realize that one of its core technologies — direct current — was itself a reverse salient. Because direct current could only be transported short distances over wires, it set a limit on the size and scale of early utility plants and prevented the next technological leap in power distribution. When Nikola Tesla invented motors that could run on alternating current, which had no such transport limits, he broke through the reverse salient at the heart of Edison’s system. Edison’s archrival, George Westinghouse, quickly bought Tesla’s patents and used them to construct the alternating-current grid that, to Edison’s dismay, became the dominant electricity distribution system.
How do you prevent such blindness? The best way is simply to maintain an open mind. But that, as Edison came to realize, is much easier said than done. Psychologists have shown that people have a natural bias to assume that the status quo will continue, particularly if they helped construct it. Most people are not naturally inclined to look for indicators of disruption in systems they consider adequate. There are some straightforward ways to counter this bias, though, and they all involve seeking out and paying attention to independent sources of information. Because reverse salients represent the most puzzling technological challenges, they tend to attract the interest of scientists and inventors. By keeping track of academic research and patent filings related to your area of business, and watching for patterns in the work, you can often spot reverse salients and begin to see different ways they might be solved.
Market research can also help. If buyers begin to express frustration or disappointment with a particular component or feature of a product or service, it’s often a good indication that a reverse salient is forming. Consider the powerful server computers that run corporate software programs. Traditionally, the primary concern about these machines was their sheer data-crunching power. Buyers wanted the highest possible performance, so manufacturers concentrated on solving reverse salients related to processor clock speed and data caching. A couple of years ago, though, a handful of companies began to express concerns about the growing amount of money they were spending on electricity to keep their servers running. Those initial complaints provided an early warning for what has now emerged as a major reverse salient in server technology: power management.
Important insights can be gleaned from cost data as well. As Thomas Hughes observed, “Economy and efficiency — the first cherished by managers; the second, especially by engineers — also give direction to the movement of a system.” By analyzing the economics of a product or a process, one can often pinpoint components or connections with disproportionately high costs. They may well turn out to be reverse salients.
Open or Closed?
Identifying a reverse salient is half the challenge. Fixing it is the other half. Here, companies can take one of two completely different approaches, which can be characterized as “closed” and “open.”
In the closed, or proprietary, approach, a single company or individual takes responsibility for overcoming the reverse salients in a system and perfecting its operation (at least until new reverse salients appear). Edison took this route with the creation of the electric utility. He constructed the entire system, from dynamo to lightbulb, in his Menlo Park laboratory, assigning staff scientists and engineers the task of solving various reverse salients. More recently, Apple Computer Inc.’s Steve Jobs used this approach in creating a system for distributing and playing digital music. Although Apple drew on many outside suppliers for components, it maintained tight control over the entire system of software and hardware. In the process, it addressed numerous reverse salients in such areas as miniaturization, user interface design, file compression, and digital rights management.
The closed approach works particularly well for creating a new system from scratch. By keeping the construction of the entire system in-house, a company learns from direct experience where all the reverse salients lie. And because the solution to a reverse salient in one area of a system often requires changes to many other components, a single company can perfect the system much more quickly and efficiently than could a diverse set of actors working on individual components in a piecemeal fashion.
The closed approach does have drawbacks, however. For one thing, it’s very hard to pull off. Because it requires unusual levels of organizational discipline, it’s the kind of effort that rarely succeeds without a strong, visionary, and even monomaniacal leader — without, in other words, a Thomas Edison or a Steve Jobs.
Also, no matter how talented a company’s staff, there will always be limits to its perspective and ingenuity. It may overlook — or mistakenly dismiss — alternative solutions, or it may solve one reverse salient only to create another. Edison’s utility system was a work of genius, but in ignoring the benefits of alternating current, the Menlo Park team made an error that, in the end, proved fatal. Monomania has a price.
With an open approach, a company looks outside its walls for solutions to reverse salients. It’s an approach that can work particularly well for enhancing an established product or service — for overcoming a particular, well-defined obstacle that’s impeding progress. The owners of the Liverpool and Manchester Railroad used an open approach to great effect in 1829, just before they completed the construction of their 32-mile line. At the time, trains rarely went more than 10 miles an hour, making them little faster than horse-drawn carriages. Eager to recoup their big capital investment in the new railroad, the owners were desperate to enhance rail transport’s attractiveness by increasing its speed.
The reverse salient in the railway system lay in the design of steam locomotives. Locomotives were unable to sustain high speeds without breaking down. Instead of trying to fix the problem themselves, which would have been costly and risky, the owners decided to let others fix it for them. They organized a competition among locomotive manufacturers along a two-mile length of track in the town of Rainhill, near Liverpool. Each manufacturer could enter a locomotive, and whichever engine completed 20 round-trips on the track in the shortest time would win a prize of £500 — and could also expect a lucrative contract for supplying the locomotives used on the line.
The contest, which received a great deal of publicity from the English press, spurred a burst of innovation in engine design. The engine that won the competition, the Rocket, was able to top a speed of 30 miles an hour on the course. By tapping into the skills of a broad set of outsiders, the operators of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway were able to quickly overcome a debilitating reverse salient — and secure their business’s success.
Today, with global communication systems like the Internet, the open approach can be applied more broadly and more powerfully than ever before. The entire open source software movement, for instance, is founded on the ease with which a huge number of coders can identify and rectify reverse salients in complex software programs.
Eli Lilly and Company is pioneering a similar model for corporate research and development. In 2001, it launched a Web site called InnoCentive that allows companies to list problems that they need to have solved along with the reward that they’ll pay for solutions. Any scientist anywhere in the world can then work on the problem. Whoever discovers the answer gets the bounty. Some 100,000 scientists have signed up to contribute solutions, and companies as diverse as Dow Chemical and Colgate-Palmolive have found valuable innovations through the site, including a better way to incorporate fluoride into toothpaste. In a very real sense, InnoCentive creates a market for solving reverse salients. If it had been around 80 years ago, the O-ring might have come along much sooner than it did.
The open approach can correct a reverse salient quickly, but it, too, carries a price. By giving up control over a solution, a company may also sacrifice the financial rewards the solution generates. And because reverse salients can be so important to technological progress, those rewards may be quite large. Open source software development, for example, has proven to be an effective method of continually enhancing existing programs, but it also risks sucking profits out of the programs themselves and shifting the money toward related services, such as maintenance.
Whether an organization takes an open or a closed approach to addressing a reverse salient, solving one problem in a complex system will almost always bring another problem to the fore. The barrier to progress, in other words, will simply shift to the next weakest component or technology.
The wisest companies don’t just ask, What’s the current reverse salient in the system? They also ask, Once this problem has been solved, what will become the new reverse salient? It’s the same question that the smartest generals ask as they lead their forces into battle.
Reprint No. 06403
Nicholas G. Carr ([email protected]), a contributing editor to strategy+business, is the author of Does IT Matter? Information Technology and the Corrosion of Competitive Advantage (Harvard Business School Press, 2004). He is working on a book about the future of computing. | <urn:uuid:9c4ba498-74f1-4c8a-aa4a-4080edaf444a> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.strategy-business.com/article/06403 | 2024-12-06T07:09:13Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066384744.74/warc/CC-MAIN-20241206063209-20241206093209-00343.warc.gz | en | 0.961625 | 3,307 | 4.125 | 4 |
Table of Contents
Understanding Pregnancy Symptoms: A Comparison Between Single and Twin Pregnancies
Pregnancy symptoms can vary greatly between single and twin pregnancies. While both types of pregnancies involve hormonal changes and physical transformations, there are distinct differences to be aware of.
One of the key variations is in the early signs of pregnancy. Women carrying a single fetus may experience symptoms such as breast tenderness, frequent urination, and fatigue. On the other hand, those carrying twins tend to have more intense symptoms, including heightened morning sickness and increased weight gain.
These differences can be attributed to the higher levels of hormones present in a multiple pregnancy. Understanding these variations can help expectant mothers better navigate the unique challenges and experiences that come with their specific pregnancy type.
Early Signs of Pregnancy: Variations in Symptoms for Single and Twin Pregnancies
For many women, detecting the early signs of pregnancy can be an exciting yet somewhat nerve-wracking experience. These signs can vary greatly depending on whether the woman is carrying a single fetus or multiple fetuses.
In the case of a single pregnancy, some common early signs include missed periods, breast tenderness, and frequent urination. However, when it comes to twin pregnancies, these symptoms can often be intensified.
Women carrying twins may experience more pronounced breast tenderness, increased fatigue, and a heightened sense of nausea and morning sickness. Additionally, they may notice a more rapid weight gain due to the higher levels of hormones present in their bodies.
Overall, it's important for women to be aware of these variations in symptoms as they navigate the early stages of pregnancy.
In addition to these variations in symptoms, hormonal changes during pregnancy can also differ between single and twin pregnancies. In a single pregnancy, hormonal levels tend to rise steadily as the fetus develops, resulting in the typical signs of pregnancy.
However, in twin pregnancies, the hormonal changes can be more pronounced. The higher levels of hormones, such as estrogen and progesterone, can lead to increased nausea, fatigue, and breast tenderness.
These hormonal fluctuations can also affect a woman's mood and emotions, making it important for expectant mothers to be aware of these potential variations in their pregnancy journey. Understanding these hormonal changes can help women better manage their symptoms and seek appropriate medical care if needed.
Hormonal Changes: How Single and Twin Pregnancies Differ
During pregnancy, the body goes through significant hormonal changes to support the growing fetus. These hormonal changes differ in single pregnancies compared to twin pregnancies. In single pregnancies, the hormonal levels typically follow a steady increase as the pregnancy progresses.
The hormone responsible for maintaining pregnancy, progesterone, steadily rises to provide a stable environment for the developing baby. On the other hand, in twin pregnancies, hormonal changes can be more pronounced due to the presence of two fetuses.
The hormone levels may increase at a faster rate, as the body works harder to accommodate the demands of multiple pregnancies.
Additionally, the hormone Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (hCG), commonly associated with morning sickness, may be higher in twin pregnancies, leading to potentially more severe symptoms.
These hormonal variations between single and twin pregnancies not only impact the physical and emotional well-being of the mother, but they can also affect the overall course of the pregnancy.
Physical Changes: Recognizing the Distinctions in Single and Twin Pregnancies
Pregnancy brings about numerous physical changes in a woman's body, and these changes can vary between single and twin pregnancies. One of the most noticeable distinctions is the size of the baby bump.
In a single pregnancy, the abdomen gradually expands as the baby grows, resulting in a rounded belly. However, in a twin pregnancy, the expansion tends to be more rapid, and the belly appears larger and more prominent earlier on.
This is because the presence of two growing babies requires more space and causes the uterus to stretch at a faster rate.
In addition to the size of the baby bump, the distribution of weight gain can also differ between single and twin pregnancies. In a single pregnancy, the weight gain may be more balanced throughout the body, with gradual and steady increases in various areas like the hips, thighs, and breasts.
However, with twin pregnancies, the weight gain is often more concentrated in the abdominal region. The rapid growth of two babies necessitates the expansion of the uterus and can lead to a more significant increase in abdominal size, sometimes resulting in a more pronounced "basketball-like" shape.
These physical changes offer unique clues and help healthcare providers distinguish between single and twin pregnancies during routine checkups.
Morning Sickness and Nausea: Exploring the Differences in Single and Twin Pregnancies
Morning sickness, also known as nausea and vomiting of pregnancy (NVP), is a common symptom experienced by many pregnant women. However, the severity and duration of morning sickness can vary between single and twin pregnancies.
In single pregnancies, morning sickness usually begins around six weeks gestation and peaks around nine to ten weeks. It typically resolves by the end of the first trimester. On the other hand, women carrying twins may experience more intense and prolonged episodes of morning sickness.
This can start as early as four weeks gestation and may continue well into the second trimester. The hormonal changes that occur with a multiple pregnancy can contribute to heightened feelings of nausea and discomfort.
While the exact cause of morning sickness remains unknown, it is believed to be linked to the surge of pregnancy hormones, particularly human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG).
In a single pregnancy, the hCG levels tend to rise at a more gradual pace, which may contribute to the milder symptoms experienced. In contrast, in a twin pregnancy, the hCG levels are often higher and increase more rapidly.
This hormonal difference could be a potential explanation for the increased incidence and severity of morning sickness among women carrying twins. Additionally, the greater presence of placental tissue in twin pregnancies may also contribute to a higher likelihood of experiencing morning sickness.
Weight Gain: Variances in Single and Twin Pregnancies
Weight gain is a natural and expected part of pregnancy, but the amount of weight gained can vary between single and twin pregnancies. In single pregnancies, it is common for women to gain around 25-35 pounds.
This weight gain is typically gradual and occurs steadily throughout the nine months. On the other hand, twin pregnancies often result in a higher weight gain. It is not uncommon for women carrying twins to gain 35-45 pounds or more.
The additional weight gain is mainly due to the presence of two babies and the increased demands on the mother's body.
It is important to note that the distribution of weight gain also differs between single and twin pregnancies. In single pregnancies, the weight gain is likely to be more evenly distributed throughout the body.
However, in twin pregnancies, the weight gain may be more concentrated in the abdominal area. This is because the growing babies take up more space and put pressure on the mother's organs, leading to a larger belly size.
Additionally, there may be a higher likelihood of fluid retention in twin pregnancies, which can also contribute to additional weight gain.
Fatigue and Energy Levels: Managing the Contrasts between Single and Twin Pregnancies
During pregnancy, fatigue and changes in energy levels are common experiences for women. However, the intensity and duration of these symptoms can vary between single and twin pregnancies.
Women carrying a single baby may often feel fatigued and have lower energy levels, especially during the first trimester.
This is due to the increased hormonal changes and the body's efforts to adapt to the growing fetus. It is important for expectant mothers to manage their fatigue by getting adequate rest, practicing good sleep hygiene, and engaging in light physical activities to boost energy levels.
On the other hand, women expecting twins may experience even more pronounced fatigue and lower energy levels compared to those with singleton pregnancies. The demands on the body are greater as it has to support the growth and development of two babies.
Hormonal changes and increased blood volume contribute to the overwhelming feelings of tiredness. Expectant mothers of twins should prioritize rest and relaxation, listening to their bodies and taking regular breaks to recharge.
It is recommended to seek support from partners, family, and friends to ensure that enough rest is achieved throughout the pregnancy.
Fetal Movement: Notable Differences in Single and Twin Pregnancies
Fetal movement is an integral part of pregnancy, and it is often a source of joy and excitement for expectant mothers. In single pregnancies, women tend to feel their baby's movement earlier and more prominently compared to those carrying twins.
This is primarily because in a singleton pregnancy, there is only one baby, so the movements are less crowded and easier to perceive. Mothers often describe the sensation of their baby's first movements as flutters or gentle taps, gradually intensifying as the pregnancy progresses.
These movements are more noticeable in the second trimester and continue to increase in frequency and strength until the third trimester, when the baby's size can make the movements feel more pronounced.
In contrast, twin pregnancies may present differences in fetal movement because there are multiple babies sharing the limited space within the womb. While the movements themselves may be more frequent due to the presence of two babies, they may be less distinct and harder to discern individually.
Some mothers of twins may feel their babies move around the same time as those in single pregnancies, while others may notice movements at slightly different times. It is also common for mothers of twins to feel one baby move more frequently or more strongly than the other, as each baby may have different positions in the uterus.
Understanding these distinctions in fetal movement is essential for expectant mothers, as it helps them recognize and monitor their babies' well-being throughout the course of their pregnancy.
Pregnancy Complications: Understanding the Risks Associated with Single and Twin Pregnancies
Pregnancy complications can arise in both single and twin pregnancies, although the risks may vary. In single pregnancies, some common complications can include gestational diabetes, high blood pressure, and preterm labor.
These conditions can increase the chances of medical interventions during delivery and may require close monitoring throughout pregnancy.
In contrast, twin pregnancies often come with a higher risk of complications. The most common risks include preterm birth, low birth weight, and preeclampsia.
The unique challenges of a twin pregnancy stem from the greater strain on the mother's body, as well as the increased demands on the placenta to support the growth and development of two babies.
As a result, healthcare providers usually take extra precautions and conduct more frequent check-ups to closely monitor both the mother and the babies throughout the pregnancy.
Medical Care and Monitoring: Tailoring Support for Single and Twin Pregnancies
Medical care and monitoring play a crucial role in ensuring the well-being of both the mother and the baby during pregnancy. Whether it is a single pregnancy or a twin pregnancy, healthcare professionals strive to provide personalized and tailored support to meet the unique needs of each situation.
Regular prenatal check-ups are essential to monitor the growth and development of the baby/babies, as well as to assess the overall health of the mother.
In the case of twin pregnancies, additional monitoring is often required to keep a close eye on the progress of each individual baby, ensuring that they are both thriving and reaching their development milestones appropriately.
Prenatal care for single pregnancies typically follows a standard schedule, with monthly check-ups during the first and second trimesters, and more frequent check-ups during the third trimester.
While this approach also applies to twin pregnancies, a higher level of attention and monitoring is necessary due to the increased likelihood of certain complications. These can include preterm labor, preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, and restricted fetal growth.
As a result, healthcare providers may schedule more frequent ultrasound scans and other diagnostic tests to closely monitor the progress of the babies and the mother's health.
The objective is to promptly identify any potential issues and take appropriate measures to ensure the best possible outcome for both the mother and the babies.
FAQs: Difference between Single and Twin Pregnancy Symptoms
1. How do symptoms of single and twin pregnancies differ?
In single pregnancies, symptoms like morning sickness, weight gain, and fatigue are generally milder and more manageable compared to twin pregnancies. Women carrying twins often experience more intense symptoms, including heightened morning sickness, increased weight gain, and pronounced fatigue.
2. Is morning sickness more severe in twin pregnancies?
Yes, morning sickness tends to be more severe and may last longer in twin pregnancies compared to single pregnancies. This is because the higher levels of hormones, such as hCG, in twin pregnancies can lead to increased nausea and vomiting.
3. Are there differences in weight gain between single and twin pregnancies?
Yes, women carrying twins typically gain more weight than those with single pregnancies. While the average weight gain for a single pregnancy is around 25-35 pounds, women with twins may gain 35-45 pounds or more due to the presence of two babies.
4. Do fatigue levels differ between single and twin pregnancies?
Yes, fatigue levels are often more pronounced in twin pregnancies. The demands on the body to support the growth and development of two babies, along with hormonal changes, can lead to overwhelming feelings of tiredness.
5. Are fetal movements different in single and twin pregnancies?
Yes, fetal movements may be perceived differently in single and twin pregnancies. In single pregnancies, movements are often felt earlier and more prominently, while in twin pregnancies, movements may be more frequent but less distinct due to the presence of multiple babies sharing limited space.
6. Do hormonal changes vary between single and twin pregnancies?
Yes, hormonal changes can be more pronounced in twin pregnancies due to the presence of two fetuses. Higher levels of hormones, such as estrogen and progesterone, can contribute to increased symptoms like nausea, fatigue, and breast tenderness.
7. Can the size of the baby bump indicate whether it's a single or twin pregnancy?
Yes, the size of the baby bump can often be larger and more prominent in twin pregnancies due to the presence of two babies. This rapid expansion of the abdomen is a result of the uterus stretching to accommodate the growing fetuses.
8. Are there differences in the distribution of weight gain between single and twin pregnancies?
Yes, in single pregnancies, weight gain is typically more evenly distributed throughout the body. However, in twin pregnancies, weight gain may be more concentrated in the abdominal area due to the presence of two babies and increased demands on the mother's body. | <urn:uuid:1729c3e3-e7c7-4e66-9e6b-f851e8789f95> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://babieblue.com/difference-between-single-and-twin-pregnancy-symptoms/ | 2024-12-10T11:58:41Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066058729.19/warc/CC-MAIN-20241210101933-20241210131933-00465.warc.gz | en | 0.953489 | 2,992 | 2.5625 | 3 |
Are you an aspiring musical instrument technician looking to learn the ropes of musical instrument repair? Look no further! This guide will provide you with valuable tips and techniques to help you become a skilled repair technician. From understanding the basics of musical instruments to diagnosing and fixing common issues, this guide has got you covered. You’ll learn about different tools and materials used in repair, as well as best practices for working with various types of instruments. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced technician, this guide will help you improve your skills and take your repair game to the next level. So, let’s get started and dive into the world of musical instrument repair!
What is Musical Instrument Repair?
The Importance of Musical Instrument Repair
Musical instrument repair is a specialized trade that involves the restoration, maintenance, and modification of musical instruments. This trade is crucial for ensuring that musical instruments remain in good condition and continue to produce high-quality sound.
One of the most important aspects of musical instrument repair is maintaining the structural integrity of the instrument. This includes addressing any cracks or damage to the body of the instrument, as well as ensuring that the neck and fretboard are properly aligned. A well-maintained instrument will not only sound better, but it will also be more durable and able to withstand the rigors of regular use.
Another crucial aspect of musical instrument repair is adjusting and replacing the various components of the instrument, such as strings, pads, and tuning machines. These components are essential for producing sound and maintaining proper tuning, and they must be regularly inspected and replaced as needed.
Finally, musical instrument repair can also involve modifying instruments to meet the specific needs of the player. This may include adjusting the action, installing specialized pickups or preamps, or modifying the size or shape of the instrument to accommodate a player’s hand size or playing style.
Overall, the importance of musical instrument repair cannot be overstated. It is essential for ensuring that musical instruments remain in good condition and continue to produce high-quality sound, and it is a vital part of the music industry as a whole.
Types of Musical Instruments That Need Repair
Musical instrument repair involves the restoration, maintenance, and modification of musical instruments to ensure they function properly and sound their best. Different types of musical instruments require varying degrees of repair, from simple adjustments to extensive restorations. In this section, we will explore the different types of musical instruments that commonly need repair.
Acoustic guitars are one of the most popular musical instruments that require repair. Common issues include worn or broken strings, cracks in the body or neck, and bridge adjustments. Additionally, the guitar’s fretboard may need to be leveled or replaced, and the guitar’s electronics may need to be repaired or replaced.
Violins are another instrument that often requires repair. Common issues include loose or broken pegs, cracks in the body or neck, and bow rehairs. The violin’s soundpost may need to be adjusted, and the instrument’s electronics may need to be repaired or replaced.
Woodwind instruments, such as clarinets and saxophones, require regular maintenance to ensure proper function. Common issues include stuck keys, worn pads, and cork adjustments. The instrument’s mechanisms may also need to be oiled or greased, and the instrument’s tone may need to be adjusted.
Brass instruments, such as trumpets and trombones, also require regular maintenance. Common issues include stuck valves, bent or damaged slides, and leaky tuning rings. The instrument’s mouthpiece may need to be refaced or repaired, and the instrument’s tuning may need to be adjusted.
Percussion instruments, such as drums and cymbals, may require repair due to wear and tear or damage. Common issues include loose or broken hardware, worn drumheads, and cymbal dents or cracks. The instrument’s tuning may also need to be adjusted, and the instrument’s electronics may need to be repaired or replaced.
Overall, musical instrument repair involves addressing a wide range of issues, from simple adjustments to extensive restorations. Understanding the different types of instruments that require repair is an important first step for aspiring technicians looking to enter the field.
Choosing the Right Musical Instrument to Repair
Factors to Consider When Choosing an Instrument to Repair
When it comes to choosing an instrument to repair, there are several factors that you should consider. These factors will help you determine which instrument is the best fit for your skills and interests. Here are some of the most important factors to consider:
- Skill Level: One of the most important factors to consider when choosing an instrument to repair is your skill level. If you are a beginner, it may be best to start with a simpler instrument, such as a guitar or a violin. These instruments are relatively easy to repair and can provide a good foundation for building your skills. On the other hand, if you are an experienced technician, you may want to choose a more complex instrument, such as a grand piano or a saxophone. These instruments will provide a greater challenge and allow you to showcase your skills.
- Interest: Another important factor to consider is your interest in the instrument. If you have a personal interest in a particular instrument, such as a violin or a cello, it may be easier for you to learn the necessary repair techniques. This interest can also help you develop a specialization, which can be valuable in the musical instrument repair industry.
- Availability: The availability of the instrument is also an important factor to consider. If the instrument is widely available, it may be easier to find the necessary parts and tools for repair. Additionally, if the instrument is less common, it may be more challenging to find the necessary resources, which can make the repair process more difficult.
- Market Demand: The market demand for the instrument is also an important factor to consider. If the instrument is in high demand, it may be easier to find customers for your repair services. On the other hand, if the instrument is less popular, it may be more difficult to find customers.
- Cost: Finally, the cost of the instrument is an important factor to consider. Some instruments, such as grand pianos, can be quite expensive. If you are just starting out, it may be more practical to choose a less expensive instrument, such as a guitar or a violin. As you gain experience and build your skills, you can gradually move on to more complex and expensive instruments.
Popular Musical Instruments for Repair
When it comes to choosing a musical instrument to repair, there are many options to consider. However, some instruments are more popular among repair technicians than others. In this section, we will discuss some of the most popular musical instruments for repair.
- Pianos: Pianos are one of the most popular instruments for repair, primarily because of their size and complexity. They require regular maintenance, such as tuning and regulation, as well as repairs for broken keys, cracked soundboards, and other issues.
- Guitars: Guitars are another popular instrument for repair, especially electric guitars. These instruments can suffer from a variety of issues, including broken headstocks, worn-out pickups, and cracked bodies. Repair technicians must have a good understanding of the different types of guitars, such as acoustic and electric, and the materials used to construct them.
- Woodwinds: Woodwinds, such as clarinets and saxophones, are also popular instruments for repair. These instruments require regular maintenance, such as pad replacement and key adjustments, as well as repairs for cracked instruments and damaged keys.
- Brass: Brass instruments, such as trumpets and trombones, are also commonly repaired. These instruments can suffer from issues such as leaky valves, bent tuning slides, and damaged bells. Repair technicians must have a good understanding of the different types of brass instruments and the materials used to construct them.
- Percussion: Percussion instruments, such as drums and cymbals, are also popular for repair. These instruments can suffer from issues such as worn-out drumheads, cracked cymbals, and broken hardware. Repair technicians must have a good understanding of the different types of percussion instruments and the materials used to construct them.
In conclusion, when choosing a musical instrument to repair, it is important to consider the popularity of the instrument, the complexity of the repairs required, and the demand for technicians with expertise in that particular instrument. By choosing a popular instrument, an aspiring technician can increase their chances of success in the field of musical instrument repair.
Learning the Basics of Musical Instrument Repair
Understanding the Anatomy of Musical Instruments
Before diving into the nitty-gritty of musical instrument repair, it is crucial to have a solid understanding of the anatomy of various instruments. Each instrument has its unique structure, components, and mechanisms that contribute to its overall function. Therefore, familiarizing yourself with the basic anatomy of musical instruments is the first step towards becoming a proficient repair technician.
In this section, we will explore the different components of common musical instruments, such as guitars, violins, and pianos, and discuss their functions in detail. By gaining a comprehensive understanding of these components, you will be better equipped to diagnose and repair issues that may arise in the instruments you work on.
The anatomy of a guitar consists of several key components, including the body, neck, fretboard, frets, strings, tuning machines, and bridge. The body of the guitar is typically made of wood and is responsible for producing the instrument’s sound. The neck, which connects the body to the headstock, houses the fretboard and frets, which are used to produce different pitches when pressed.
The strings run from the bridge, located at the bottom of the body, to the tuning machines, which are located on the headstock. These machines are used to tighten or loosen the strings, allowing the guitar to be tuned to the desired pitch. The bridge also serves as a point of contact between the strings and the body, enabling the strings to vibrate and produce sound.
The anatomy of a violin is somewhat more complex than that of a guitar, with several additional components. These include the body, neck, fingerboard, frets, soundpost, bass bar, and tailpiece. The body of the violin is typically made of wood and is responsible for producing the instrument’s sound.
The neck of the violin connects the body to the head, which houses the fingerboard and frets. These components are used to produce different pitches when pressed, similar to a guitar. The soundpost, located inside the body, contributes to the violin’s overall tone and resonance. The bass bar, located on the underside of the fingerboard, enhances the instrument’s low-end frequencies.
The anatomy of a piano is significantly more complex than that of a guitar or violin, with numerous components working together to produce sound. These components include the keyboard, soundboard, strings, hammers, dampers, and pedals. The keyboard is responsible for producing notes when pressed, while the soundboard and strings work together to produce the instrument’s sound.
The strings are connected to hammers, which strike the strings to produce sound when keys are pressed. The dampers are used to control the length of each note, ensuring that it does not sustain indefinitely. The pedals, located at the bottom of the piano, allow the technician to adjust the overall tone and volume of the instrument.
In conclusion, understanding the anatomy of musical instruments is crucial for aspiring technicians. By familiarizing yourself with the components and mechanisms of various instruments, you will be better equipped to diagnose and repair issues that may arise in the instruments you work on. Whether you are repairing a guitar, violin, or piano, a solid understanding of instrument anatomy will serve as a foundation for your future work as a musical instrument repair technician.
Common Repairs for Stringed Instruments
When it comes to musical instrument repair, stringed instruments such as violins, cellos, and guitars are among the most commonly repaired. Here are some of the most common repairs for stringed instruments:
Setup and Adjustments
One of the most common repairs for stringed instruments is the setup and adjustments. This includes adjusting the action, which is the distance between the strings and the fretboard. A proper setup ensures that the strings are properly intonated and that the instrument is easy to play. A technician should also check the neck alignment, bridge placement, and soundpost height to ensure proper sound projection.
Another common repair for stringed instruments is the replacement of the fingerboard. Over time, the fingerboard can wear out or become damaged, which can affect the instrument’s playability. Replacing the fingerboard requires a high level of skill and precision, as it involves removing the old fingerboard and gluing in a new one.
The soundpost is a small piece of wood that is inserted into the body of the instrument and helps to transmit the sound from the strings to the body. Over time, the soundpost can become loose or damaged, which can affect the instrument’s sound quality. Replacing the soundpost requires careful measurement and precision, as well as a deep understanding of the instrument’s construction.
Stringed instruments are prone to cracks, especially in the wood around the soundhole or the edges of the instrument. Crack repair is a delicate and precise process that requires a high level of skill and expertise. A technician must carefully clean the crack, apply a filling material, and then sand the area down to a smooth finish.
Overall, learning the basics of musical instrument repair for stringed instruments requires a deep understanding of the instrument’s construction, as well as a high level of skill and precision. By mastering these common repairs, aspiring technicians can develop the skills needed to become successful musical instrument repair technicians.
Common Repairs for Wind Instruments
Repairing wind instruments requires specialized knowledge and skills, as these instruments are delicate and have complex mechanisms. Some common repairs for wind instruments include:
- Replacing valves: Valves are responsible for controlling the flow of air through the instrument, and they can wear out or become damaged over time. Replacing valves is a common repair for wind instruments, and it requires precise measurement and installation to ensure proper function.
- Adjusting pads: Pads are located in the instrument’s key mechanism and can become worn or damaged, causing issues with the instrument’s sound quality. Adjusting pads involves removing the old pads and installing new ones, which requires careful measurement and alignment to ensure proper function.
- Replacing springs: Springs are used in the instrument’s key mechanism to provide tension and control the flow of air. Over time, springs can wear out or break, requiring replacement. Replacing springs requires precise measurement and installation to ensure proper function.
- Cleaning and oiling: Regular maintenance is essential for wind instruments, and this includes cleaning and oiling the instrument’s mechanisms. Cleaning involves removing dirt and debris from the instrument’s key mechanism, while oiling involves applying lubricant to the moving parts to prevent rust and corrosion.
In addition to these common repairs, wind instrument repair technicians may also perform more complex repairs, such as replacing the instrument’s body or keys, or repairing cracks in the instrument’s wood or metal.
To become proficient in wind instrument repair, technicians must develop a deep understanding of the instrument’s mechanisms and how they function. This requires a combination of technical knowledge, practical skills, and attention to detail. Aspiring technicians can learn these skills through a combination of formal education, on-the-job training, and practical experience.
By mastering the basics of wind instrument repair, technicians can help ensure that these delicate instruments remain in top condition and continue to produce beautiful music for years to come.
Developing Your Skills in Musical Instrument Repair
The Benefits of Practice
Practice is essential for anyone looking to become proficient in musical instrument repair. By dedicating time and effort to repetition, technicians can improve their skills and achieve greater accuracy and efficiency in their work.
One of the main benefits of practice is that it allows technicians to become more familiar with different types of instruments and their unique repair needs. By working on a variety of instruments, technicians can develop a better understanding of the intricacies of each instrument and how to address common issues.
Additionally, practice helps technicians to develop their manual dexterity and hand-eye coordination, which are critical skills for working with small and delicate instrument parts. Repetition also helps to build muscle memory, which can make it easier to perform repairs with greater precision and speed.
Finally, practice allows technicians to develop problem-solving skills and creativity. By working on a variety of repairs, technicians can learn to think critically and come up with innovative solutions to complex problems. This can be especially helpful when working on older or unique instruments that may not have standard repair options.
Overall, the benefits of practice are numerous and can help aspiring technicians to develop the skills and expertise needed to succeed in the field of musical instrument repair.
Tips for Improving Your Skills
- Practice regularly: Consistent practice is essential to improving your skills in musical instrument repair. Dedicate a specific time and place for practicing repair techniques, and make it a habit.
- Start with simple repairs: Begin with basic repairs, such as replacing a string or adjusting a truss rod, to build your confidence and gain experience. As you become more comfortable with these repairs, move on to more complex tasks.
- Learn from others: Seek out experienced repair technicians and ask for their guidance and advice. Attend workshops, take classes, and participate in online forums to learn from others in the field.
- Read repair manuals and books: Read repair manuals and books to gain a deeper understanding of the mechanics of musical instruments and the various repairs that may be required.
- Invest in quality tools: High-quality tools can make a significant difference in the precision and efficiency of your repairs. Invest in durable, reliable tools that will last for years to come.
- Document your repairs: Keep a record of the repairs you perform, including any notes on the problem and the solution. This will help you track your progress and improve your skills over time.
- Never stop learning: The world of musical instrument repair is constantly evolving, with new technologies and techniques emerging all the time. Stay up-to-date with the latest developments by attending workshops, taking classes, and reading repair literature.
Advanced Techniques for Complex Repairs
When it comes to repairing musical instruments, there will always be some repairs that require advanced techniques. These are the repairs that are not easily solved with a quick fix or a simple replacement. For these types of repairs, it is important to have a solid understanding of the instrument and its mechanics, as well as the proper tools and techniques to effectively address the issue.
Identifying Complex Repairs
The first step in advanced instrument repair is identifying the issue. This can be done by visually inspecting the instrument and listening to it play. It is important to understand the common issues that can arise in each type of instrument, such as fret wear in guitars or cracked pads in keyboards. If the issue is not immediately apparent, it may be necessary to use specialized tools or equipment to diagnose the problem.
Working with Delicate Parts
Many musical instruments have delicate parts that require special care when repairing. For example, when working on a grand piano, it is important to be careful not to damage the soundboard or the strings. When working on woodwind instruments, it is important to avoid cracking the keys or the body of the instrument. When working on brass instruments, it is important to avoid damaging the valves or the mouthpiece.
Proper Techniques for Advanced Repairs
Once the issue has been identified, it is important to use the proper techniques to repair the instrument. This may involve soldering, gluing, or sanding. It is important to have a solid understanding of the materials and tools used in the repair process, as well as the proper techniques for using them.
For example, when soldering, it is important to use the correct type of solder and to heat the metal evenly to avoid creating stress points that could cause further damage. When gluing, it is important to use the correct type of glue for the material being repaired and to apply it evenly to ensure a strong bond. When sanding, it is important to use the correct grit of sandpaper and to sand in the correct direction to avoid creating scratches or other damage.
Tools for Advanced Repairs
In addition to having a solid understanding of the materials and techniques used in advanced repairs, it is also important to have the proper tools. This may include specialized soldering irons, glue guns, sanding blocks, and other tools specific to the type of instrument being repaired. It is important to have a well-stocked toolbox with a variety of tools to ensure that you have the right tool for the job.
Overall, advanced techniques for complex repairs require a solid understanding of the instrument and its mechanics, as well as the proper tools and techniques to effectively address the issue. By identifying the issue, using the proper techniques, and having the right tools, you can effectively repair even the most complex issues in musical instruments.
Finding Your Niche in Musical Instrument Repair
Specializing in a Specific Type of Instrument
One of the ways to establish yourself as a musical instrument repair technician is by specializing in a specific type of instrument. By doing so, you can develop a reputation as an expert in that particular instrument, and attract clients who are looking for a technician with specialized knowledge and skills. Here are some tips on how to specialize in a specific type of instrument:
- Research the market: Determine which type of instrument is in high demand in your area, and where there is a lack of specialized technicians. You can also look into the cost of the instrument and the potential profit margin for repairs.
- Take courses and gain certifications: Many musical instrument repair schools and organizations offer specialized training in specific types of instruments. You can also take online courses or attend workshops to gain more knowledge and expertise.
- Practice, practice, practice: The more you work on a specific type of instrument, the more you will become familiar with its unique repair challenges and techniques.
- Network with other technicians: Join a musical instrument repair association or online forum to connect with other technicians who specialize in the same type of instrument. This can provide you with valuable information and resources, as well as potential clients.
- Market yourself: Let potential clients know that you specialize in a specific type of instrument by advertising your services and highlighting your expertise on your website and social media platforms.
By specializing in a specific type of instrument, you can differentiate yourself from other technicians and establish yourself as a go-to expert in that area. It will also help you to develop a reputation for quality work and excellent customer service, which can lead to repeat business and positive word-of-mouth referrals.
Catering to a Specific Market
One way to stand out in the musical instrument repair market is to specialize in a particular type of instrument. This can be a great way to differentiate yourself from other repair technicians and establish yourself as an expert in a specific area.
For example, you may choose to focus on repairing guitars, violins, or woodwinds. By becoming an expert in a specific type of instrument, you can attract customers who are looking for someone with specialized knowledge and skills.
Another advantage of specializing in a specific market is that it allows you to build a reputation within that community. By regularly attending events and gatherings related to that instrument, you can network with other professionals and build relationships with potential customers.
When specializing in a specific market, it’s important to keep in mind that you may need to invest in additional training or resources to gain the necessary knowledge and skills. This may include attending workshops or taking courses specifically designed for the type of instrument you want to specialize in.
Additionally, you may want to consider building a website or online presence that highlights your expertise in that area. This can help you attract customers who are searching for a repair technician with specific skills or knowledge.
Overall, specializing in a specific market can be a great way to differentiate yourself from other repair technicians and establish yourself as an expert in a particular area. By focusing on a specific type of instrument, you can build a reputation within that community and attract customers who are looking for someone with specialized knowledge and skills.
Expanding Your Services
As you become more experienced in musical instrument repair, you may find that you have developed a particular interest or expertise in a specific area. This can be a great opportunity to expand your services and offer more specialized repairs to your clients. Here are some tips for expanding your services:
- Identify your strengths: Consider what types of repairs you enjoy doing the most and what you are most skilled at. This can help you determine what areas you should focus on expanding your services in.
- Research the market: Look into what types of repairs are in demand in your area. This can help you determine what services you should offer to meet the needs of your clients.
- Network with other technicians: Reach out to other musical instrument repair technicians in your area and ask for their advice on expanding your services. They may have valuable insights and experience that can help you succeed.
- Consider offering additional services: In addition to repair services, you may also consider offering additional services such as set-up, adjustments, or maintenance. This can help you attract a wider range of clients and increase your revenue.
Remember, when expanding your services, it’s important to make sure that you are offering high-quality repairs and that you are confident in your ability to complete the work. This will help you build a strong reputation and attract more clients to your business.
Marketing Your Musical Instrument Repair Business
Building Your Online Presence
In today’s digital age, having a strong online presence is crucial for any business, including a musical instrument repair business. Building your online presence can help you reach a wider audience, establish credibility, and ultimately generate more business. Here are some tips on how to build your online presence:
Establishing a Website
Having a website is the foundation of your online presence. Your website should be visually appealing, easy to navigate, and provide essential information about your business. Here are some things to consider when setting up your website:
- Choose a domain name that is easy to remember and relevant to your business.
- Invest in a professional-looking website design that showcases your services and expertise.
- Include information about your business, such as your location, hours of operation, and contact information.
- Highlight your unique selling proposition, such as your experience, certifications, or specialties.
- Provide testimonials from satisfied customers to establish credibility.
Optimizing Your Website for Search Engines
Optimizing your website for search engines, also known as SEO, can help increase your visibility online and attract more potential customers. Here are some SEO tips for your website:
- Use keywords relevant to your business in your website content, including meta tags, page titles, and descriptions.
- Include relevant and high-quality images on your website to improve your website’s visual appeal and user experience.
- Ensure your website is mobile-friendly and has a fast loading speed.
- Build high-quality backlinks to your website by featuring your business on other reputable websites or blogs.
Utilizing Social Media
Social media platforms can be an effective way to promote your business and engage with potential customers. Here are some tips for utilizing social media:
- Choose the social media platforms that are most relevant to your business and target audience.
- Create engaging and visually appealing content that showcases your services and expertise.
- Use hashtags to increase your visibility and reach on social media.
- Engage with your followers by responding to comments and messages promptly.
- Collaborate with other businesses or influencers in your industry to expand your reach.
By following these tips, you can effectively build your online presence and reach more potential customers for your musical instrument repair business.
Networking with Other Musicians and Instrument Owners
As a musical instrument repair technician, it is important to establish connections with other musicians and instrument owners to grow your business. Networking can help you to gain new clients, get referrals, and learn about new opportunities in the industry. Here are some tips for networking with other musicians and instrument owners:
Attend Music Events and Concerts
Attending music events and concerts is a great way to meet other musicians and instrument owners. You can attend events such as music festivals, concerts, and live music venues to network with other musicians and instrument owners. This will give you the opportunity to talk to them about their instruments and get to know them better.
Join Music Groups and Forums
Joining music groups and forums is another effective way to network with other musicians and instrument owners. There are many online music groups and forums where you can connect with other musicians and instrument owners. These groups and forums are a great place to share information, ask questions, and learn from other musicians and instrument owners.
Participate in Music Lessons and Workshops
Participating in music lessons and workshops is also a great way to network with other musicians and instrument owners. This will give you the opportunity to learn from other musicians and instrument owners and get to know them better. You can also offer to give a workshop or lesson to other musicians and instrument owners, which will help you to establish connections with them.
Attend Trade Shows and Exhibitions
Attending trade shows and exhibitions is another effective way to network with other musicians and instrument owners. Trade shows and exhibitions are a great place to showcase your skills and services, and meet other musicians and instrument owners. You can also attend workshops and seminars at trade shows and exhibitions to learn about new products and techniques in the industry.
In conclusion, networking with other musicians and instrument owners is an important aspect of marketing your musical instrument repair business. By attending music events and concerts, joining music groups and forums, participating in music lessons and workshops, and attending trade shows and exhibitions, you can establish connections with other musicians and instrument owners and grow your business.
Offering Exceptional Customer Service
When it comes to marketing your musical instrument repair business, offering exceptional customer service is essential. This can be achieved by following a few key strategies:
- Communicate effectively: Be responsive to customer inquiries and provide clear and concise communication. This can be done through phone calls, emails, or online chat services.
- Build relationships: Establish a personal connection with your customers. Ask questions about their interests and preferences, and show genuine interest in their needs.
- Provide exceptional service: Ensure that you deliver high-quality workmanship and prompt service. This can include providing detailed estimates, explaining the repair process, and keeping customers informed throughout the repair process.
- Follow up: After the repair is complete, follow up with the customer to ensure their satisfaction. This can be done through a phone call or email, and can help build customer loyalty and generate referrals.
By following these strategies, you can establish a positive reputation for your business and attract new customers through word-of-mouth referrals. Remember, exceptional customer service is key to building a successful musical instrument repair business.
The Rewards of Learning Musical Instrument Repair
- Satisfying work: As a musical instrument repair technician, you will have the privilege of bringing broken or damaged instruments back to life. This work is incredibly satisfying, as you can see the immediate impact of your efforts on the quality of sound produced by the instrument.
- Variety of work: There is a wide range of musical instruments, each with their own unique design and construction. As a result, there is always something new to learn and a diverse range of instruments to work on. This keeps the job interesting and challenging.
- Potential for creativity: Many musical instrument repairs require a degree of creativity, particularly when it comes to problem-solving. You will have the opportunity to come up with innovative solutions to complex problems, which can be very rewarding.
- Entrepreneurial potential: If you start your own business, you will have the opportunity to be your own boss and build a successful enterprise. This can be a challenging and rewarding experience, particularly if you are able to grow your business and establish a reputation as a top-quality repair technician.
- Financial reward: There is potential for a good income as a musical instrument repair technician, particularly if you are able to build a strong reputation and attract a steady stream of clients. This can be a financially rewarding career, particularly if you are able to expand your business and take on more work.
Staying Up-to-Date with the Latest Repair Techniques
Staying current with the latest repair techniques is essential for maintaining a competitive edge in the musical instrument repair market. As technology advances and new materials are developed, repair techniques must also evolve to meet the changing needs of musicians and instrument makers.
One way to stay up-to-date with the latest repair techniques is to attend industry conferences and workshops. These events provide an opportunity to learn from experts in the field and to network with other repair professionals. Attendees can also see the latest tools and equipment, and learn about new products that can help improve their repair services.
Another way to stay current is to subscribe to industry publications and online forums. These resources can provide valuable information on the latest repair techniques, as well as insights into industry trends and best practices.
In addition, repair technicians can also consider pursuing certification programs. These programs offer comprehensive training in various aspects of instrument repair, and can help technicians develop the skills and knowledge needed to stay competitive in the market.
Overall, staying up-to-date with the latest repair techniques is essential for any musical instrument repair business. By attending industry events, subscribing to industry publications, and pursuing certification programs, repair technicians can ensure that they have the skills and knowledge needed to provide top-quality repair services to their customers.
Joining the Community of Musical Instrument Repair Technicians
Joining a community of musical instrument repair technicians can be an invaluable resource for aspiring technicians. These communities provide a platform for technicians to share knowledge, ask questions, and receive guidance from experienced professionals. There are several ways to join these communities, including:
- Professional organizations: There are several professional organizations for musical instrument repair technicians, such as the National Association of Professional Band Instrument Repair Technicians (NAPBIRT) and the Violinmakers’ Guild of the United Kingdom. These organizations offer membership to technicians and provide access to resources, events, and networking opportunities.
- Online forums: There are many online forums dedicated to musical instrument repair, such as the ViolinMaker.com forum and the Musical Instrument Repair Forum. These forums allow technicians to ask questions, share knowledge, and receive feedback from other professionals in the field.
- Social media groups: There are several social media groups dedicated to musical instrument repair, such as the Musical Instrument Repair & Building group on Facebook. These groups provide a platform for technicians to connect with each other, share knowledge, and receive guidance from experienced professionals.
- Workshops and conferences: Attending workshops and conferences is a great way to learn from experienced professionals and connect with other technicians. These events often feature guest speakers, demonstrations, and networking opportunities.
By joining a community of musical instrument repair technicians, aspiring technicians can gain access to valuable resources and connect with experienced professionals in the field. This can help them to improve their skills, build their reputation, and grow their business.
1. What are the basic skills needed to learn musical instrument repair?
Learning musical instrument repair requires a good understanding of woodworking, electronics, and metalworking. It’s also essential to have a keen ear for sound and the ability to identify different parts of the instrument. Familiarity with basic tools such as screwdrivers, pliers, and saws is also necessary. Additionally, aspiring technicians should have a passion for music and a desire to learn the intricacies of musical instruments.
2. What are the best ways to learn musical instrument repair?
There are several ways to learn musical instrument repair, including online courses, workshops, and apprenticeships. Online courses provide a convenient way to learn at your own pace, while workshops offer hands-on experience and personalized instruction. Apprenticeships provide on-the-job training under the guidance of experienced technicians. Ultimately, the best way to learn depends on your learning style and budget.
3. How long does it take to become a musical instrument repair technician?
Becoming a musical instrument repair technician can take anywhere from a few months to several years, depending on the individual’s prior knowledge and experience. Some technicians may have a background in woodworking, electronics, or music, which can help them learn the necessary skills more quickly. However, it’s important to note that becoming a skilled technician requires a significant amount of time and effort.
4. What are the best tools for musical instrument repair?
There are many tools that are essential for musical instrument repair, including screwdrivers, pliers, saws, sandpaper, and glue. Some specialized tools, such as guitar pickups and tuning machines, may also be necessary. Additionally, having a good set of calipers, a micrometer, and a digital scale can be helpful for measuring and adjusting parts. It’s important to invest in quality tools that will last a long time and make the repair process more efficient.
5. What are the most common repairs for musical instruments?
The most common repairs for musical instruments include adjusting and replacing strings, replacing tuning machines, fixing cracks in the wood, and repairing electronic components. Additionally, repairing broken or damaged keys, replacing bridges, and adjusting action heights are also common repairs. The specific repairs needed will depend on the type of instrument and the issue at hand.
6. How much does it cost to learn musical instrument repair?
The cost of learning musical instrument repair can vary depending on the method of instruction. Online courses can range from free to several hundred dollars, while workshops and apprenticeships can cost several thousand dollars. Additionally, the cost of tools and materials can add up over time. It’s important to budget accordingly and consider the long-term investment in your career as a technician. | <urn:uuid:9a6f906a-64cd-4fa7-9f61-80d12bcdbe80> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.briancoale.com/the-ultimate-guide-to-learning-musical-instrument-repair-tips-and-techniques-for-aspiring-technicians/ | 2024-12-08T04:03:37Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066436561.81/warc/CC-MAIN-20241208015349-20241208045349-00159.warc.gz | en | 0.945304 | 7,905 | 3.109375 | 3 |
Source-measure units (SMUs), such as the Keithley Model 2651A High Power System SourceMeter instrument, are the most flexible and most precise equipment for sourcing and measuring current and voltage. Because of this, they are widely used to test semiconductor devices such as MOSFETs, IGBTs, diodes, high brightness LEDs, and more.
With today's focus on green technology, the amount of research and development being done to create semiconductor devices for power management has increased significantly. These devices, with their high current/high power operating levels, as well as their low On resistances, require a unique combination of power and precision to be tested properly. A single Keithley Model 2651A is capable of sourcing up to 50A pulsed and 20A DC. For applications requiring even higher currents, Model 2651As can be combined to extend their operating range to 100A pulsed.
This application note demonstrates how to collect Rds (on) measurement data from a power MOSFET device by using a pulsed current sweep to test up to 100A (see Figure 1); however, it can be easily modified for use in other applications. The document is divided into three sections: theory, implementation, and example.
Kirchhoff's Current Law says that the sum of the currents entering a node is equal to the sum of the currents leaving the node. In Figure 2, two current sources representing SMUs and a device under test (DUT) are connected in parallel.
In Figure 2, we can see that two currents, I1 and I2, are entering Node A and a single current, IDUT, is leaving Node A. Based on Kirchhoff's Current Law we know that:
IDUT = I1 + I2
This means that the current delivered to the DUT is equal to the sum of the currents flowing from each SMU. With two SMUs connected in parallel, we can deliver to the DUT twice the amount of current that can be delivered by a single SMU. Using this method with two Model 2651As, we can deliver up to 100A pulsed.
In order to create a current source capable of delivering more current than a single SMU can provide, we put two SMUs, both configured as current sources, in parallel. Below is a quick overview of what needs to be done to successfully combine two Model 2651As so that together they can source up to 100A pulsed. The following sections explain each item in detail.
- Use two Model 2651As, running the same version of firmware.
- Use the same current range for both SMUs.
- Use the same regions of the power envelope (Figure 3) for both SMUs.
- Use 4-wire mode on both SMUs with Kelvin connections placed as close to the DUT as possible.
- Use the Keithley supplied cables. If this is not possible, ensure your cabling matches the specifications of the Keithley-supplied cable.
- Set the voltage limit of both SMUs. (When the output of an SMU reaches its voltage limit, it goes into compliance.) The voltage limit of one SMU should be set 10% lower than the other SMU.
- Select the output off-mode of each SMU. This determines whether an SMU will function as a voltage source set to 0V or as a current source set to 0A when the output is turned off. When two SMUs are functioning in parallel as current sources:
- The SMU with the lower voltage limit should have its output off-mode set to NORMAL with the off function set to voltage, and
- The SMU with the higher voltage limit should have its output off-mode set to NORMAL with the off function set to current.
Both SMUs MUST be the same model, the Model 2651A. This ensures that if the SMUs are forced into a condition in which one SMU must sink all of the current from the other SMU, the SMU that is sinking is capable of sinking all the current. For this reason, combining different model SourceMeter instruments in parallel is NOT recommended. In addition, both SMUs should be running the same version of firmware to ensure that both SMUs perform the same.
Source Current Range
Both SMUs should be set to the same source current range. How an SMU responds to a change in current level can vary with the current range on which it is being sourced. By configuring both SMUs to source on the same current range, both SMUs will respond similarly to changes in current levels. This reduces the chances for overshoots, ringing, and other undesired SMU-toSMU interactions.
Region of Power Envelope
Both SMUs should be configured to operate in the same region of the power envelope (see Figure 3). In order for one SMU to sink all the current of the other SMU, the sinking SMU must be operating in an equivalent region of the power envelope as the sourcing SMU.
When configured as a current source, the region of the power envelope in which the SMU is operating is determined by the source current range and the voltage limit value. When combining SMUs in parallel, each SMU should be set to the same source current range so the final determining factor for the region is the voltage limit. As can be seen in Figure 3, the Model 2651A has three ranges of voltage limit values that determine the operating region: >0V to ≤10V, >10V to ≤20V, and >20V to ≤40V. For example, if one SMU’s voltage limit is set to 20V, then the other SMU’s voltage limit should be set to a value that is less than 20V and greater than 10V in order to keep both SMUs in the same operating region.
The fundamental test of a laser diode is a Light-Current-Voltage (LIV) curve, which simultaneously measures the electrical and optical output power characteristics of the device. This test is primarily used to sort laser diodes or weed out bad devices before they can be built into an assembly. The device under test (DUT) is subjected to a current sweep while the forward voltage drop is recorded for each step in the sweep. Simultaneously, instrumentation monitors the optical power output. The resulting data is then analyzed to determine laser characteristics, including lasing threshold current, quantum efficiency, and "kink" detection (localized negative slope in the first derivative optical power output vs. injection current curve).
Cables capable of supporting the high levels of current that the Model 2651A can produce should be used to obtain the desired performance. The cable provided by Keithley with the Model 2651A is designed for both low resistance and low inductance. We recommend using this cable from the Model 2651A to as close to the DUT as possible. If the Keithley cable cannot be used, use wiring with as low a resistance and inductance as possible. We recommend that wire of 12 AWG or thicker be used with a single Model 2651A. When combining SMUs for greater current, 10 AWG or thicker wire should be used. Guidelines for cabling should be taken seriously since wiring not rated for the current being sourced can affect the performance of the SMU and could also create a potential fire hazard.
The following sections discussing resistance and inductance are provided to help you verify that the cables you are using will allow your system to function properly
The Model 2651A has the ability to compensate for errors caused by voltage drops due to resistance in the force leads when large currents are flowing. This allows the Model 2651A to deliver or measure the proper voltage at the DUT rather than at the output of the instrument. This is done by using Kelvin connections.
The resistance of any cabling and connections between the SMUs output and the DUT should be kept as low as possible to avoid excessive voltage drops across the force leads. This is because there is a limit to how large a voltage drop an SMU is capable of compensating for without adversely affecting performance. In the Keithley Model 2651A, this limit is 3V per source lead, which is imposed by the Kelvin connections.
A single Model 2651A is capable of sourcing up to 50A pulsed and up to 20A DC. Using Ohm's Law we can calculate the maximum resistance allowed in our test leads so as not to exceed the 3V limit under these maximum conditions. Ohm's Law states:
V = I · R
where: V is voltage, I is current, and R is resistance. If we rewrite this equation, solving for R we get:
R = V/I
To find the maximum resistance values allowed in our test leads, we can substitute our limits for V and I.
le in order to minimize its resistance value (and thus the voltage drop across R3). In this configuration, the current that flows through R3 is the sum of the current flowing through R1 and R2. If we assume R1 = R2 = R3 and that both SMU #1 and SMU #2 are delivering the same amount of current to the circuit, then the voltage drop across R3 is twice as large as the voltage drop across R1 or R2 because twice as much current is flowing through R3 as there is through R1 or R2. The voltage drop that each SMU sees is the sum of the voltage drop across R3 and the voltage drop across its own lead resistance, R1 or R2Based on these calculations, the resistance of each source lead should not exceed 150mW when only DC testing is used and should not exceed 60mW when pulse testing is used.
For example, in Figure 5 the length of the test lead represented by R3 should be as short as possible in order to minimize its resistance value (and thus the voltage drop across R3). In this configuration, the current that flows through R3 is the sum of the current flowing through R1 and R2. If we assume R1 = R2 = R3 and that both SMU #1 and SMU #2 are delivering the same amount of current to the circuit, then the voltage drop across R3 is twice as large as the voltage drop across R1 or R2 because twice as much current is flowing through R3 as there is through R1 or R2. The voltage drop that each SMU sees is the sum of the voltage drop across R3 and the voltage drop across its own lead resistance, R1 or R2
The Model 2651A also has the ability to compensate for errors caused by voltage drops due to inductance in the force leads. As mentioned in the discussion about resistance, this allows the Model 2651A to deliver or measure the proper voltage at the DUT rather than at the output of the instrument. Inductance in connections resists changes in current and tries to hold back the current by creating a voltage drop. This is similar to resistance in the leads. However, inductance only plays a role while the current is changing, whereas resistance plays a role even when current is steady.
The inductance of connections between the SMUs outputs and the DUT should be kept as low as possible to minimize impacting SMU performance. To drive fast rising pulses, the Model 2651A must have enough voltage overhead to compensate for the voltage drop created by the inductance. If the supply does not have enough overhead, the inductance can slow the rise time of the pulse.
Another reason why the inductance of connections between the SMUs outputs and the DUT should be kept as low as possible is that if the inductance causes a voltage drop large enough to exceed the 3V source-sense lead drop limit of the Kelvin connections, readings could be affected. If the 3V limit is exceeded, readings taken during the rising or falling edge of the pulse could be invalid. However, readings taken during the stable part of the pulse will not be affected.
On the Model 2651A, the amount of overhead in the power supply varies depending on the operating region in the power envelope (see Model 2651A datasheet at www.keithley.com/data?asset=55786 for more detail); but, in general, the amount of voltage drop caused by inductance should be kept under the 3V source-sense lead drop limit of the Kelvin connections. We can calculate the maximum amount of inductance allowed in our connections by using the equation:
where: V is the voltage in volts, L is the inductance in henries, and di/dt is the change in current over the change in time. If we rewrite the equation solving for L we get:
As an example, let’s assume that with zero inductance the Model 2651A produces a 50A pulse through our DUT with a rise time of 35µs. In order to not exceed the 3V limit while maintaining this rise time, the max amount of inductance per test lead is:
In this example (35µs rise time for a 50A pulse), to not exceed the 3V limit we must ensure that our test leads have less than 2.1µH of inductance per lead.
NOTE: The Model 2651A specifications indicate a maximum inductive load of 3µH, thus the total inductance for both HI and LO leads must be less than 3µH under all conditions.
Set the Compliance
In parallel configurations, like the one shown in Figure 5, the voltage limit of one SMU should be set 10% lower than the voltage limit of the other SMU. This allows only one SMU to go into compliance and become a voltage source.
An SMU, or any real current source for that matter, has a limit as to how much voltage it can output in order to deliver the desired current. When the voltage limit in an SMU is reached, the SMU goes into compliance and becomes a voltage source set to that voltage limit. When the compliance on one SMU is set lower than the compliance on the other SMU, the voltage limit can only be reached by one of the SMUs. In other words, when the SMU with the lower voltage limit goes into compliance, it becomes a voltage source with low impedance and begins to sink the current from the other SMU. With the SMU in compliance sinking current, the other SMU can now source its programmed current level and thus never go into compliance.
Setting Correct Voltage Limits
In a parallel SMU configuration, setting voltage limits properly is important. If both SMUs were to go into compliance and become voltage sources, then we would have two voltage sources in parallel. If this condition occurs, an uncontrolled amount of current could flow between the SMUs, possibly causing unexpected results and/or damage to the DUT. This condition can also occur if the DUT becomes disconnected from the test circuit. Fortunately, this condition can easily be avoided by setting the compliance for one of the SMUs lower than the compliance of the other SMU.
For example, in Figure 6 we have two Model 2651As configured as 20A current sources that are connected in parallel to create a 40A current source. The voltage limit of SMU #1 is configured to 10V and the voltage limit of SMU #2 is configured to 9V and they are sourcing into a 10mW load. If one of the leads disconnects from the DUT during the test, each SMU would ramp up its output voltage trying to force 20A until SMU #2 reaches its voltage limit of 9V and goes into compliance. SMU #1 continues to raise its output voltage until 20A are flowing from it into SMU #2. This condition can be seen in Figure 7. Because the SMUs are the same model, SMU #2 can sink the 20A current SMU #1 is delivering to it. Note that operating in this condition will cause SMU #2 to heat up quickly and will cause it to shut off if it heats up too much. This over-temperature protection is a safety feature built into the Model 2651A to help prevent accidental damage to the unit.
Set the Output Off-Mode
Introduced with the Model 2651A are new features to the NORMAL output off-mode of Series 2600A instruments. Previously, under the NORMAL output off-mode, when the output was turned off, the SMU was reconfigured as a voltage source set to 0V. This would happen whether the SMU’s on state was configured as a current source or a voltage source. This is still the default configuration for the NORMAL output off-mode; however, the NORMAL output off-mode can now have its off function configured as a current source. With the off function set to current, when the output is turned off the SMU is reconfigured as a 0A current source. This happens whether the SMU's on state was configured as a current or voltage source.
When putting two SMUs configured as current sources in parallel, the SMU whose On State voltage limit is set lower should be configured using an output off-mode of NORMAL with an off function of voltage and its Off State current limit should be set to 1mA. The other SMU, whose On State voltage limit is higher, should be configured using an output off-mode of NORMAL with an off function of current and its Off State voltage limit should be set to 40V. To illustrate this, let’s use Figure 6 as an example. For this configuration, both SMU’s output off-mode should be set to NORMAL. Also, SMU #1 should have its off function set to current with an off limit of 40V and SMU #2 should have its off function set to voltage with an off limit of 1mA. (The 40V and 1mA off limits are provided in the configuration guidelines in the reference manual of the Model 2651A.)
Setup of this new output off mode configuration is done through two new ICL commands:
smua.source.offfuncis used to select the off function, for example:
smua.source.offlimitvis used to set the voltage limit of the Off State configuration when the off function is current. It is similar to the command smua.source.offlimiti,which sets the current limit for the off state when the off function is voltage. Example usage follows:
Correctly Setting the Output Off-Mode
If you configure an SMU as a current source and do not change the off-mode, then when you turn the output off, the SMU will switch its source function from current to voltage and begin sourcing 0V. If you did not anticipate this switch, you could have a problem as the SMU essentially becomes a short to whatever is connected to it. If you had two SMUs in parallel and the SMU whose output was still on was operating as a voltage source when the other SMU's output was turned off, you would have two voltage sources in parallel, which could result in excessive current flow and could potentially damage the SMU.
Figure 7 shows what would happen if a connection to the DUT were severed. SMU #2, whose voltage limit is lower, would go into compliance and SMU #1, with a higher voltage limit, would deliver all of its current to SMU #2. If SMU #1’s output were to be shut off unexpectedly and its output mode turned it into a 0V voltage source, then we would have a 0V voltage source in parallel with a 9V voltage source. In this case, SMU #2 would come out of compliance and switch back to a current source. However, uncontrolled current may flow before this switch occurs.
If SMU #1 had its output off function configured as a current source, the unexpected shut off of SMU #1's output would not have resulted in two voltage sources in parallel. Instead, SMU #1 would have simply dropped to a 0A current source. Because SMU #1's voltage limit was set higher than SMU #2's voltage limit, SMU #2 would remain in compliance but now no current would flow in the system since SMU #1 is still in control and forcing 0A.
If the opposite situation were to occur and SMU #2's output turned off unexpectedly, the situation would still be safe. SMU #2, whose off function was configured as a voltage source, would simply drop down from the 9V state to 0V. This is not a problem as SMU #1 is still a current source and holds the current to the 20A it was sourcing. The system is still not settled, however, since SMU #2 is configured with an off limit of 1mA. Because of this, SMU #2 goes into compliance, becomes a 1mA current source, and begins to raise its output voltage to try to limit current to 1mA. At this state, we have two current sources in parallel. As SMU #2 continues to ramp its output voltage, SMU #1 goes into compliance at 10V and becomes a 10V voltage source. In this state, SMU #2, a current source at this time, is in control and only 1mA of current is flowing.
This example is designed to collect Rds(on) measurement data from a power MOSFET device by using a pulsed current sweep to test up to 100A, however, it can be easily modified for use in other applications.
This example requires the following equipment:
- Two Model 2651A High Power System SourceMeter Instruments that will be connected in parallel to source up to 100A pulsed through the drain of the DUT
- One Model 26xxA System SourceMeter Instrument to control the gate of the DUT
- Two TSP-Link® cables for communications and precision timing between instruments
- One GPIB cable or one Ethernet cable to connect the instruments to a computer
The communication setup is illustrated in Figure 9. GPIB is being used to communicate with the PC, but this application can be run using any of the supported communication interfaces. The TSP-Link connection enables communication between the instruments, precision timing, and tight channel synchronization.
To configure the TSP-Link communication interface, each instrument must have a unique TSP-Link node number. Configure the node number of Model 2651A #1 to 1, Model 2651A #2 to 2, and Model 26xxA to 3.
To set the TSP-Link node number using the front panel interface of either instrument:
- Press MENU.
- Select TSPLink.
- Select NODE.
- Use the navigation wheel to adjust the node number.
- Press ENTER to save the TSP-Link node number.
On Model 2651A #1, perform a TSP-Link reset to alert Model 2651A #1 to the presence of Model 2651A #2 and Model 26xxA:
NOTE: You can also perform a TSP-Link reset from the remote command interface by sending tsplink.reset() to Model 2651A #1.
- Press MENU.
- Select TSPLink.
- Select RESET.
NOTE: If error 1205 is generated during the TSP-Link reset, ensure that Model 2651A #2 and Model 26xxA have unique TSP-Link node numbers.
Connections from the SourceMeter instruments to the DUT can be seen in Figure 10. Proper care should be taken to ensure good contact through all connections.
NOTE: For best results, all connections should be left floating and no connections should be tied to ground. Also, all connections should be made as close to the device as possible to minimize errors caused by voltage drops between the DUT and the points in which the test leads are connected.
NOTE: During high current pulsing, the gate of your DUT may begin to oscillate, creating an unstable voltage on the gate and thus unstable current through the drain. To dampen these oscillations and stabilize the gate, a resistor can be inserted between the gate of the device and the Force and Sense Hi leads of the Model 26xxA. If the gate remains unstable after inserting a dampening resistor, enable High-C mode on the Model 26xxA (leaving the dampening resistor in place)
Configuring the Trigger Model
In order to achieve tight timing and 100A pulses with two Model 2651As, the advanced trigger model must be used. Using the trigger model, we can keep the 50A pulses of the two Model 2651As synchronized to within 500ns to provide a single 100A pulse. Figure 11 illustrates the complete trigger model used in this example.
In this example, Model 2651A #1 is configured to control the overall timing of the sweep while Model 2651A #2 is configured to wait for signals from Model 2651A #1 before it can generate a pulse. The Model 26xxA is controlled by script in this example, so its trigger model is not used.
Model 2651A #1 Trigger Model Operation
In Model 2651A #1's trigger model (Figure 12), Timer 1 is used to control the period of the pulse while Timer 2 is used to control the pulse width. TSP-Link Trigger 1 is used to tell Model 2651A #2 to output its pulse.
When the trigger model of Model 2651A #1 is initialized, the following occurs:
- The SMU's trigger model leaves the Idle state, flows through the Arm Layer, enters the Trigger Layer, outputs the ARMED event trigger, and then reaches the Source Event where it waits for an event trigger.
- The ARMED event trigger is received by Timer 1, which begins its countdown and passes the trigger through to be received by TSP-Link Trigger 1, and the SMU's Source Event.
- TSP-Link Trigger 1 receives the event trigger from Timer 1 and sends a trigger through the TSP-Link to Model 2651A #2 to instruct it to output the pulse.
- The SMU's Source Event receives the event trigger from Timer 1, begins to output the pulse, waits the programmed source delay, if any, outputs the SOURCE_COMPLETE event to Timer 2, and then lets the SMU's trigger model continue.
- Timer 2 receives the SOURCE_COMPLETE event trigger from Timer 1 and begins to count down.
- The SMU's trigger model continues to the Measure Event where it waits a programmed measure delay, if any, takes a measurement, and then continues until it hits the End Pulse Event where it waits for an event trigger.
- Timer 2's countdown expires and Timer 2 outputs an event trigger to the SMU's End Pulse Event.
- The SMU's End Pulse Event receives the event trigger from Timer 2, outputs the falling edge of the pulse, then lets the SMU's trigger model continue.
- The SMU's trigger model then compares the current Trigger Layer loop iteration with the trigger count.
- If the current iteration is less than the trigger count, then the trigger layer repeats and the SMU's trigger model reaches Source Event where it waits for another trigger from Timer 1. Because Timer 1 had its count set to the trigger count minus one, Timer 1 will continue to output a trigger for each iteration of the Trigger Layer loop. The trigger model then repeats from Step 3.
- If the current iteration is equal to the trigger count, then the SMU's trigger model exits the Trigger Layer, passes through the Arm Layer, and returns to the Idle state.
Model 2651A #2 Trigger Model Operation
In Model 2651A #2's trigger model (Figure 13), Timer 1 is used to control the pulse width and is programmed with the same delay as Model 2651A #1's Timer 2. The pulse period is controlled by TSP-Link Trigger 1, which receives its triggers from Model 2651A #1's Timer 1, thus the pulse period for Model 2651A #2 is controlled by the same timer as the Model 2651A #1.
When the trigger model of Model 2651A #2 is initialized, the following occurs:
- The SMU's trigger model leaves the Idle state, flows through the Arm Layer, enters the Trigger Layer, and then reaches the Source Event where it waits for an event trigger.
- TSP-Link Trigger 1 receives a trigger from TSP-Link and outputs an event trigger to the SMU’s Source Event.
- The SMU's Source Event receives the event trigger from TSP-Link Trigger 1, begins to output the pulse, waits for a programmed source delay, if any, outputs the SOURCE_ COMPLETE event to Timer 1, and then lets the SMU's trigger model continue.
- Timer 1 receives the SOURCE_COMPLETE event trigger from TSP-Link Trigger 1 and begins its countdown.
- The SMU's trigger model continues until it reaches the Measure Event where it waits for a programmed measure delay, if any, takes a measurement, and then continues until it hits the End Pulse Event where it stops and waits for an event trigger.
- Timer 1's countdown expires and Timer 1 outputs an event trigger to the SMU's End Pulse Event.
- The SMU's End Pulse Event receives the event trigger from Timer 1, outputs the falling edge of the pulse, then lets the SMU's trigger model continue.
- The SMU's trigger model compares the current Trigger Layer loop iteration with the trigger count.
- If the current iteration is less than the trigger count, then the trigger layer repeats and the SMU's trigger model reaches Source Event where it waits for another trigger from TSP-Link Trigger 1. The trigger model then repeats from Step 2.
- If the current iteration is equal to the trigger count, then the SMU's trigger model exits the Trigger Layer, passes through the Arm Layer, and returns to the Idle state.
Example Program Code
NOTE: The example code is designed to be run from Test Script Builder or TSB Embedded. It can be run from other programming environments such as Microsoft® Visual Studio or National Instruments LabVIEW®, however, modifications may be required.
The TSP script for this example contains all the code necessary to perform a pulsed Rds(on) sweep up to 100A using two Model 2651A High Power System SourceMeter instruments and a Model 26xxA System SourceMeter instrument. This script can also be downloaded from Keithley's website at www.keithley.com/base_download?dassetid=55808.
The script performs the following functions:
- Initializes the TSP-Link connection
- Configures all the SMUs
- Configures the trigger models of the two Model 2651As
- Prepares the readings buffers
- Initializes the sweep
- Processes and returns the collected data in a format that can be copied and pasted directly into Microsoft Excel®
The script is written using TSP functions rather than a single block of inline code. TSP functions are similar to functions in other programming languages such as C or Visual Basic and must be called before the code contained in them is executed. Because of this, running the script alone will not execute the test. To execute the test, run the script to load the functions into Test Script memory and then call the functions. Refer to the documentation for Test Script Builder or TSB Embedded for directions on how to run scripts and enter commands using the instrument console.
Within the script, you will find several comments describing what is being performed by the lines of code as well as documentation for the functions contained in the script. Lines starting with
are commands that are being sent to Model 2651A #2 through the TSP-Link interface. Lines starting with
are commands that are being sent to the Model 26xxA through the TSP-Link interface. All other commands are executed on the Model 2651A #1.
Example Program Usage
The functions in this script are designed such that the sweep parameters of the test can be adjusted without needing to rewrite and re-run the script. A test can be executed by calling the function
with the appropriate values passed in its parameters.
This is an example call to function
DualSmuRdson(10, 1, 100, 100, 500e-6, 50e-3, 10)
This call sets the gate SMU output to 10V, then sweeps the drain of the DUT from 1A to 100A in 100 points. The points of this sweep will be gathered using pulsed measurements with a pulse width of 500µs and a pulse period of 50ms for a 1% duty cycle. These pulses are limited to a maximum voltage of 10V. At the completion of this sweep, all SMU outputs will be turned off and the resulting data from this test will be returned in an Excel compatible format for graphing and analysis.
Example Test Script Processor (TSP®) Script
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Battle of Sicily
The Battle of Sicily was part of the Italian Campaign of World War II. The battle began on the night of 9 July, 1943, and ended 17 August in an Allied victory. The invasion of the island was codenamed Operation Husky and was the largest amphibious operation in history to that date in terms of men landed on the beaches and of frontage. The amount of actual fighting was relatively small. German and Italian forces successfully escaped with most of their men and most of their equipment. However, the Italians overthrew Mussolini and switched sides, and were in turn invaded and controlled by Germany. The invasion opened the way to the Allied invasion of the Italian mainland, crossing the Strait of Messina which had not necessarily been seen as a follow-up to this battle.
The invasion of Sicily was a major Allied amphibious and airborne operation involving American, British, and Canadian forces, tasked with taking the island, part of Italy, from the Axis. The ground forces were organized as an army group.
Two Allied landing forces came under control of the Allied Fifteenth Army Group, with the Seventh United States Army tasked to land at Gela and the British 8th Army making separate landings at Pachino. Each Army had two corps under command. Defending the island was the Italian 6th Army made up of two Italian Corps (XII and XVI) of coastal defence units plus four front line division and miscellaneous units under army command together with one German Panzerkorps (Panzer Corps XIV).
In the early part of 1943, after coming to the conclusion that a successful invasion of France across the English Channel would be impossible that year, it was decided to use troops from the recently won North African Campaign to invade the Italian island of Sicily. The strategic goals were to remove the island as a base for Axis shipping and aircraft, allowing free passage to Allied ships in the Mediterranean Sea, and to put pressure on the regime of Benito Mussolini in the hope of eventually having Italy struck from the war. The attempt to knock Italy out of the war was partially successful, especially after Allied aircraft bombed the large railroad marshalling yards of Rome. However, the campaign could also act as a precursor to the invasion of Italy, although this was not agreed by the Allies at the time of the invasion. The Americans in particular were resistant to any commitment to an operation which might conceivably delay the Normandy landings, or divert Allied power from the main theater of France.
General Dwight D. Eisenhower was in overall command, with General Sir Harold Alexander as commander of land forces. The land forces were designated the Fifteenth Army Group, and comprised the Eighth British Army, under General Bernard Montgomery, and the Seventh United States Army under General George S. Patton. The Canadian 1st Infantry was included at the insistence of Canadian Military Headquarters in Britain, a request granted by the British, displacing the veteran British 3rd Infantry Division. The change was not finalized until 27 April, when 1st Canadian Army Commander, General Andrew McNaughton, deemed Operation Husky to be a viable military undertaking and agreed to the detachment of both 1st Canadian Infantry Division and 1st Canadian Tank Brigade both of which had arrived in the United Kingdom following a request by Prime Minister Winston Churchill for troops to oppose a threatened invasion of the United Kingdom by the Germans.
The Canadian forces were initially commanded by Major General H. L. N. Salmon who was later succeeded by Maj. Gen. Guy Simonds after Salmon's death in an airplane accident in the early days of planning. The Canadians faced another hurdle, as they underwent commando training in Scotland prior to embarkation. Their lack of opportunity to acclimate to the weather was an issue in the opening days of the campaign. By contrast, the majority of Allied formations going into Sicily were coming from North Africa.
The Axis defenders comprised around 365,000 Italian and around 40,000 German troops, with at least 47 tanks and about 200 artillery pieces, under the overall command of Italian General Alfredo Guzzoni.
The landings took place in extremely strong wind, which made the landings difficult but also ensured the element of surprise. Landings were made on the southern and eastern coasts of the island, with the British forces in the east and the Americans towards the west.
Four airborne drops were carried out just after midnight on the night of the 9 July-10 July, as part of the invasion, two British, two American. The American paratroopers consisted largely of the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 82nd Airborne, making their first combat drop. The strong winds caused aircraft to go off course and scattered them widely; the result was around half the U.S. paratroopers failed to reach their rallying points. British glider-landed troops fared little better; only 1 out of 12 gliders landing on target, many crashing at sea. Nevertheless, the scattered airborne troops maximized their opportunities, attacking patrols and creating confusion wherever possible.
The sea landings, commencing some three hours after the airborne drops, despite the weather, met little opposition from Italian units stationed on the shoreline because the defenders lacked necessary equipment. Regia Marina, the Italian Navy, however, made several attacks against the invasion fleet with torpedo boats and submarines, sinking several warships and transport vessels, but they lost several of their own vessels while doing so. As a result of the adverse weather, many troops landed in the wrong place, wrong order and as much as six hours behind schedule. The British walked into the port of Syracuse virtually unopposed. Only in the American centre was a substantial counterattack made, at exactly the point where the airborne were supposed to have been. On 11 July, Patton ordered his reserve parachute regiments to drop and reinforce the center. Not every unit had been informed of the drop, and the 144 C-47 transports, which arrived shortly after an Axis air raid, were fired on by the Royal Navy; 33 were shot down and 37 damaged, resulting in 318 casualties to [[fratricide |friendly fire]].
The plans for the post-invasion battle had not been worked out; the Army Group commander, Alexander, never developed a plan. This left each Army to fight its own campaign with little coordination. Boundaries between the two armies were fixed, as was normal procedure. In the first two days progress was excellent, capturing Vizzini in the west and Augusta in the east.
Then resistance in the British sector stiffened. Montgomery persuaded Alexander to shift the inter-Army boundaries so the British could by-pass resistance and retain the key role of capturing Messina, while the Americans were given the role of protecting and supporting their flank. Historian Carlo D'Este has called this the worst strategic blunder of the campaign. It necessitated having the U.S. 45th Infantry Division break contact, move back to the beaches at Gela and thence northwest, and allowed the German XIVth Panzer Corps to escape likely encirclement. This episode was the origin of what would become greater conflicts between Montgomery and the II Corps commander, Omar Bradley. Patton, however, did not contest the decision.
After a week's fighting, Patton sought a greater role for his army and decided to try to capture the capital, Palermo. After dispatching a reconnaissance toward the town of Agrigento which succeeded in capturing it, he formed a provisional corps and persuaded Alexander to allow him to continue to advance. Alexander changed his mind and countermanded his orders, but Patton claimed the countermand was "garbled in transmission", and by the time the position had been clarified Patton was at the gates of Palermo. Although there was little tactical value in taking the city, the rapid advance was an important demonstration of the U.S. Army's mobility and skill at a time when the reputation of U.S. forces was still recovering from the Battle of the Kasserine Pass.
The fall of Palermo inspired a coup d’état against Mussolini, and he was deposed from power. Although the removal of Italy from the war had been one of the long-term objectives of the Italian campaign, the suddenness of the move caught the Allies by surprise.
After Patton's capture of Palermo, with the British still bogged down south of Messina, Alexander ordered a two-pronged attack on the city. On 24 July, Montgomery suggested to Patton that the Seventh U.S. Army take Messina, since they were in a better position to do so. The Axis, now effectively under the command of German General Hans Hube, had prepared a strong defensive line, the Etna Line around Messina that would enable them to make a progressive retreat while evacuating large parts of the army to the mainland. Patton began his assault on the line at Troina, but it was a linchpin of the defense and stubbornly held. Despite three end run amphibious landings the Germans managed to keep the bulk of their forces beyond reach of capture and maintain their evacuation plans. Elements of the U.S. 3rd Infantry Division entered Messina just hours after the last Axis troops boarded ship for Italy. However Patton had won his race to enter Messina first. Operation Baytown was planned to land troops near the tip of Calabria (the "toe" of Italy) in connection with the invasion of Italy, and to not prevent an Axis escape from Sicily was a major strategic blunder. As a result, instead of a major Axis defeat and the fall of an enemy government, Husky served as a prelude to a long, bloody campaign, strategically questionalble campaign in Italy.
The casualties on the Axis side totaled 29,000, with 140,000 (mostly Italians) captured. The U.S. lost 2,237 killed and 6,544 wounded and captured; the British suffered 2,721 dead, and 10,122 wounded and captured; the Canadians suffered 1,310 Casualties including 562 killed and 748 wounded and captured. For many of the American forces, and the entire Canadian contingent, this was their first time in combat. The Axis successfully evacuated over 100,000 men and 10,000 vehicles from Sicily, which the Allies were unable to prevent. Rescuing such a large number of troops from the threat of capture represented a major success for the Axis. In the face of overwhelming Allied naval and air superiority, this evacuation was a major Allied failure.
The invasion may also have had a minor impact on the Eastern front. One Waffen-SS Panzer-Division was diverted from the failed offensive near Kursk to Italy.
The Allied command was forced to improve inter-service coordination, particularly with regard to use of airborne forces. After several missed drops and the deadly friendly fire incident, increased training and some tactical changes kept the paratroopers in the war. Indeed, a few months later, Montgomery's initial assessment of the Operation Overlord plan included a request for four airborne divisions.
American soldiers were later found guilty of killing seventy-three Italian prisoners of war at Biscari airfield.
- Operation Barclay/Operation Mincemeat: Deception operations aimed at misleading Axis forces as to the actual date and location of the Allied landings.
- Operation Chestnut: Advanced air drop by 2 SAS to disrupt communications on 12 July 1943.
- Operation Corkscrew: Allied invasion of the Italian island Pantelleria on 10 June 1943.
- Operation Fustian: Airborne landing at Primrose Bridge ahead on 13 July - 14 July 1943.
- Operation Ladbroke: Glider landing at Syracuse on 9 July 1943.
- Operation Narcissus: Commando raid on a lighthouse near the main landings on 10 July 1943.
- Bauer, Eddy; Kilpi, Mikko (1975). Toinen maailmansota : Suomalaisen laitoksen toimituskunta: Keijo Mikola, Vilho Tervasmäki, Helge Seppälä. 4 (in Finnish). Helsinki: Werner Söderström.
- Carver, p31
- John Grigg, 1943: The Victory that Never Was
- Birtle, Andrew J.. CMH Online bookshelves: WWII Campaigns, Sicily 1943. Washington: US Army Center of Military History. CMH Pub 72-16.
- Field Marshal Lord Carver (2001). The Imperial War Museum Book of the War in Italy 1943-1945. London: Sidgwick & Jackson. ISBN 0 330 48230 0.
- Grigg, John (1982). 1943: The Victory that Never Was. Kensington Pub Corp. ISBN 0-8217-1596-8.
- Newark, Tim (2007). Mafia Allies: The True Story of America's Secret Alliance with the Mob in World War II. St. Paul: Zenith Press. ISBN 0-7603-2457-3.
- March From The Beaches, Time, July 26, 1943
- Canadians in Sicily, 1943 Canadians in Sicily: Photos, battle info, video footage and newspaper archives.
- US Army account of the battle
- World War Two Online Newspaper Archives - The Sicilian and Italian Campaigns, 1943-1945
- Operation Husky: The Allied Invasion of Sicily, 1943 by Thomas E. Nutter
- Royal Engineers Museum Royal Engineers and Second World War (Sicily)
- 2nd World War Best of Sicily History of the Allied Campaign and its social context | <urn:uuid:12d7c8f5-078e-457c-b700-1468789ed5ea> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.citizendium.org/wiki/Battle_of_Sicily | 2024-12-05T22:15:42Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066365120.83/warc/CC-MAIN-20241205211311-20241206001311-00050.warc.gz | en | 0.967159 | 2,775 | 3.625 | 4 |
The Road to Independence: Chapter 3 Outline of U.S. History
Outline of American History
(a publication of the U.S. State Department)
Chapter 3: The Road to Independence
Rebellion that made a new nation
“The Revolution was effected before the war commenced. The Revolution was in the hearts and minds of the people.”
— Former President John Adams, 1818
Throughout the 18th century, the maturing British North American colonies inevitably forged a distinct identity. They grew vastly in economic strength and cultural attainment; virtually all had long years of self-government behind them. In the 1760s their combined population exceeded 1,500,000 – a six-fold increase since 1700. Nonetheless, England and America did not begin an overt parting of the ways until 1763, more than a century and a half after the founding of the first permanent settlement at Jamestown, Virginia.
A NEW COLONIAL SYSTEM
In the aftermath of the French and Indian War, London saw a need for a new imperial design that would involve more centralized control, spread the costs of empire more equitably, and speak to the interests of both French Canadians and North American Indians. The colonies, on the other hand, long accustomed to a large measure of independence, expected more, not less, freedom. And, with the French menace eliminated, they felt far less need for a strong British presence. A scarcely comprehending Crown and Parliament on the other side of the Atlantic found itself contending with colonists trained in self‑government and impatient with interference.
The organization of Canada and of the Ohio Valley necessitated policies that would not alienate the French and Indian inhabitants. Here London was in fundamental conflict with the interests of the colonies. Fast increasing in population, and needing more land for settlement, they claimed the right to extend their boundaries as far west as the Mississippi River.
The British government, fearing a series of Indian wars, believed that the lands should be opened on a more gradual basis. Restricting movement was also a way of ensuring royal control over existing settlements before allowing the formation of new ones. The Royal Proclamation of 1763 reserved all the western territory between the Allegheny Mountains, Florida, the Mississippi River, and Quebec for use by Native Americans. Thus the Crown attempted to sweep away every western land claim of the 13 colonies and to stop westward expansion. Although never effectively enforced, this measure, in the eyes of the colonists, constituted a high-handed disregard of their fundamental right to occupy and settle western lands.
More serious in its repercussions was the new British revenue policy. London needed more money to support its growing empire and faced growing taxpayer discontent at home. It seemed reasonable enough that the colonies should pay for their own defense. That would involve new taxes, levied by Parliament – at the expense of colonial self-government.
The first step was the replacement of the Molasses Act of 1733, which placed a prohibitive duty, or tax, on the import of rum and molasses from non-English areas, with the Sugar Act of 1764. This act outlawed the importation of foreign rum; it also put a modest duty on molasses from all sources and levied taxes on wines, silks, coffee, and a number of other luxury items. The hope was that lowering the duty on molasses would reduce the temptation to smuggle the commodity from the Dutch and French West Indies for the rum distilleries of New England. The British government enforced the Sugar Act energetically. Customs officials were ordered to show more effectiveness. British warships in American waters were instructed to seize smugglers, and “writs of assistance,” or warrants, authorized the king’s officers to search suspected premises.
Both the duty imposed by the Sugar Act and the measures to enforce it caused consternation among New England merchants. They contended that payment of even the small duty imposed would be ruinous to their businesses. Merchants, legislatures, and town meetings protested the law. Colonial lawyers protested “taxation without representation,” a slogan that was to persuade many Americans they were being oppressed by the mother country.
Later in 1764, Parliament enacted a Currency Act “to prevent paper bills of credit hereafter issued in any of His Majesty’s colonies from being made legal tender.” Since the colonies were a deficit trade area and were constantly short of hard currency, this measure added a serious burden to the colonial economy. Equally objectionable from the colonial viewpoint was the Quartering Act, passed in 1765, which required colonies to provide royal troops with provisions and barracks.
THE STAMP ACT
A general tax measure sparked the greatest organized resistance. Known as the “Stamp Act,” it required all newspapers, broadsides, pamphlets, licenses, leases, and other legal documents to bear revenue stamps. The proceeds, collected by American customs agents, would be used for “defending, protecting, and securing” the colonies.
Bearing equally on people who did any kind of business, the Stamp Act aroused the hostility of the most powerful and articulate groups in the American population: journalists, lawyers, clergymen, merchants and businessmen, North and South, East and West. Leading merchants organized for resistance and formed nonimportation associations.
Trade with the mother country fell off sharply in the summer of 1765, as prominent men organized themselves into the “Sons of Liberty” – secret organizations formed to protest the Stamp Act, often through violent means. From Massachusetts to South Carolina, mobs, forcing luckless customs agents to resign their offices, destroyed the hated stamps. Militant resistance effectively nullified the Act.
Spurred by delegate Patrick Henry, the Virginia House of Burgesses passed a set of resolutions in May denouncing taxation without representation as a threat to colonial liberties. It asserted that Virginians, enjoying the rights of Englishmen, could be taxed only by their own representatives. The Massachusetts Assembly invited all the colonies to appoint delegates to a “Stamp Act Congress” in New York, held in October 1765, to consider appeals for relief to the Crown and Parliament. Twenty-seven representatives from nine colonies seized the opportunity to mobilize colonial opinion. After much debate, the congress adopted a set of resolutions asserting that “no taxes ever have been or can be constitutionally imposed on them, but by their respective legislatures,” and that the Stamp Act had a “manifest tendency to subvert the rights and liberties of the colonists.”
TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION
The issue thus drawn centered on the question of representation. The colonists believed they could not be represented in Parliament unless they actually elected members to the House of Commons. But this idea conflicted with the English principle of “virtual representation,” according to which each member of Parliament represented the interests of the whole country and the empire – even if his electoral base consisted of only a tiny minority of property owners from a given district. This theory assumed that all British subjects shared the same interests as the property owners who elected members of Parliament.
The American leaders argued that their only legal relations were with the Crown. It was the king who had agreed to establish colonies beyond the sea and the king who provided them with governments. They asserted that he was equally a king of England and a king of the colonies, but they insisted that the English Parliament had no more right to pass laws for the colonies than any colonial legislature had the right to pass laws for England. In fact, however, their struggle was equally with King George III and Parliament. Factions aligned with the Crown generally controlled Parliament and reflected the king’s determination to be a strong monarch.
The British Parliament rejected the colonial contentions. British merchants, however, feeling the effects of the American boycott, threw their weight behind a repeal movement. In 1766 Parliament yielded, repealing the Stamp Act and modifying the Sugar Act. However, to mollify the supporters of central control over the colonies, Parliament followed these actions with passage of the Declaratory Act, which asserted the authority of Parliament to make laws binding the colonies “in all cases whatsoever.” The colonists had won only a temporary respite from an impending crisis.
THE TOWNSHEND ACTS
The year 1767 brought another series of measures that stirred anew all the elements of discord. Charles Townshend, British chancellor of the exchequer, attempted a new fiscal program in the face of continued discontent over high taxes at home. Intent upon reducing British taxes by making more efficient the collection of duties levied on American trade, he tightened customs administration and enacted duties on colonial imports of paper, glass, lead, and tea from Britain. The “Townshend Acts” were based on the premise that taxes imposed on goods imported by the colonies were legal while internal taxes (like the Stamp Act) were not.
The Townshend Acts were designed to raise revenue that would be used in part to support colonial officials and maintain the British army in America. In response, Philadelphia lawyer John Dickinson, in Letters of a Pennsylvania Farmer, argued that Parliament had the right to control imperial commerce but did not have the right to tax the colonies, whether the duties were external or internal.
The agitation following enactment of the Townshend duties was less violent than that stirred by the Stamp Act, but it was nevertheless strong, particularly in the cities of the Eastern seaboard. Merchants once again resorted to non-importation agreements, and people made do with local products. Colonists, for example, dressed in homespun clothing and found substitutes for tea. They used homemade paper and their houses went unpainted. In Boston, enforcement of the new regulations provoked violence. When customs officials sought to collect duties, they were set upon by the populace and roughly handled. For this infraction, two British regiments were dispatched to protect the customs commissioners.
The presence of British troops in Boston was a standing invitation to disorder. On March 5, 1770, antagonism between citizens and British soldiers again flared into violence. What began as a harmless snowballing of British soldiers degenerated into a mob attack. Someone gave the order to fire. When the smoke had cleared, three Bostonians lay dead in the snow. Dubbed the “Boston Massacre,” the incident was dramatically pictured as proof of British heartlessness and tyranny.
Faced with such opposition, Parliament in 1770 opted for a strategic retreat and repealed all the Townshend duties except that on tea, which was a luxury item in the colonies, imbibed only by a very small minority. To most, the action of Parliament signified that the colonists had won a major concession, and the campaign against England was largely dropped. A colonial embargo on “English tea” continued but was not too scrupulously observed. Prosperity was increasing and most colonial leaders were willing to let the future take care of itself.
During a three-year interval of calm, a relatively small number of radicals strove energetically to keep the controversy alive. They contended that payment of the tax constituted an acceptance of the principle that Parliament had the right to rule over the colonies. They feared that at any time in the future, the principle of parliamentary rule might be applied with devastating effect on all colonial liberties.
The radicals’ most effective leader was Samuel Adams of Massachusetts, who toiled tirelessly for a single end: independence. From the time he graduated from Harvard College in 1743, Adams was a public servant in some capacity – inspector of chimneys, tax-collector, and moderator of town meetings. A consistent failure in business, he was shrewd and able in politics, with the New England town meeting his theater of action.
Adams wanted to free people from their awe of social and political superiors, make them aware of their own power and importance, and thus arouse them to action. Toward these objectives, he published articles in newspapers and made speeches in town meetings, instigating resolutions that appealed to the colonists’ democratic impulses.
In 1772 he induced the Boston town meeting to select a “Committee of Correspondence” to state the rights and grievances of the colonists. The committee opposed a British decision to pay the salaries of judges from customs revenues; it feared that the judges would no longer be dependent on the legislature for their incomes and thus no longer accountable to it, thereby leading to the emergence of “a despotic form of government.” The committee communicated with other towns on this matter and requested them to draft replies. Committees were set up in virtually all the colonies, and out of them grew a base of effective revolutionary organizations. Still, Adams did not have enough fuel to set a fire.
THE BOSTON “TEA PARTY”
In 1773, however, Britain furnished Adams and his allies with an incendiary issue. The powerful East India Company, finding itself in critical financial straits, appealed to the British government, which granted it a monopoly on all tea exported to the colonies. The government also permitted the East India Company to supply retailers directly, bypassing colonial wholesalers. By then, most of the tea consumed in America was imported illegally, duty-free. By selling its tea through its own agents at a price well under the customary one, the East India Company made smuggling unprofitable and threatened to eliminate the independent colonial merchants. Aroused not only by the loss of the tea trade but also by the monopolistic practice involved, colonial traders joined the radicals agitating for independence.
In ports up and down the Atlantic coast, agents of the East India Company were forced to resign. New shipments of tea were either returned to England or warehoused. In Boston, however, the agents defied the colonists; with the support of the royal governor, they made preparations to land incoming cargoes regardless of opposition. On the night of December 16, 1773, a band of men disguised as Mohawk Indians and led by Samuel Adams boarded three British ships lying at anchor and dumped their tea cargo into Boston harbor. Doubting their countrymen’s commitment to principle, they feared that if the tea were landed, colonists would actually purchase the tea and pay the tax.
A crisis now confronted Britain. The East India Company had carried out a parliamentary statute. If the destruction of the tea went unpunished, Parliament would admit to the world that it had no control over the colonies. Official opinion in Britain almost unanimously condemned the Boston Tea Party as an act of vandalism and advocated legal measures to bring the insurgent colonists into line.
THE COERCIVE ACTS
Parliament responded with new laws that the colonists called the “Coercive” or “Intolerable Acts.” The first, the Boston Port Bill, closed the port of Boston until the tea was paid for. The action threatened the very life of the city, for to prevent Boston from having access to the sea meant economic disaster. Other enactments restricted local authority and banned most town meetings held without the governor’s consent. A Quartering Act required local authorities to find suitable quarters for British troops, in private homes if necessary. Instead of subduing and isolating Massachusetts, as Parliament intended, these acts rallied its sister colonies to its aid. The Quebec Act, passed at nearly the same time, extended the boundaries of the province of Quebec south to the Ohio River. In conformity with previous French practice, it provided for trials without jury, did not establish a representative assembly, and gave the Catholic Church semi-established status. By disregarding old charter claims to western lands, it threatened to block colonial expansion to the North and Northwest; its recognition of the Roman Catholic Church outraged the Protestant sects that dominated every colony. Though the Quebec Act had not been passed as a punitive measure, Americans associated it with the Coercive Acts, and all became known as the “Five Intolerable Acts.”
At the suggestion of the Virginia House of Burgesses, colonial representatives met in Philadelphia on September 5, 1774, “to consult upon the present unhappy state of the Colonies.” Delegates to this meeting, known as the First Continental Congress, were chosen by provincial congresses or popular conventions. Only Georgia failed to send a delegate; the total number of 55 was large enough for diversity of opinion, but small enough for genuine debate and effective action. The division of opinion in the colonies posed a genuine dilemma for the delegates. They would have to give an appearance of firm unanimity to induce the British government to make concessions. But they also would have to avoid any show of radicalism or spirit of independence that would alarm more moderate Americans.
A cautious keynote speech, followed by a “resolve” that no obedience was due the Coercive Acts, ended with adoption of a set of resolutions affirming the right of the colonists to “life, liberty, and property,” and the right of provincial legislatures to set “all cases of taxation and internal polity.” The most important action taken by the Congress, however, was the formation of a “Continental Association” to reestablish the trade boycott. It set up a system of committees to inspect customs entries, publish the names of merchants who violated the agreements, confiscate their imports, and encourage frugality, economy, and industry.
The Continental Association immediately assumed the leadership in the colonies, spurring new local organizations to end what remained of royal authority. Led by the pro-independence leaders, they drew their support not only from the less well-to-do, but from many members of the professional class (especially lawyers), most of the planters of the Southern colonies, and a number of merchants. They intimidated the hesitant into joining the popular movement and punished the hostile; began the collection of military supplies and the mobilization of troops; and fanned public opinion into revolutionary ardor.
Many of those opposed to British encroachment on American rights nonetheless favored discussion and compromise as the proper solution. This group included Crown-appointed officers, Quakers and members of other religious sects opposed to the use of violence, numerous merchants (especially in the middle colonies), and some discontented farmers and frontiersmen in the Southern colonies.
The king might well have effected an alliance with these moderates and, by timely concessions, so strengthened their position that the revolutionaries would have found it difficult to proceed with hostilities. But George III had no intention of making concessions. In September 1774, scorning a petition by Philadelphia Quakers, he wrote, “The die is now cast, the Colonies must either submit or triumph.” This action isolated Loyalists who were appalled and frightened by the course of events following the Coercive Acts.
THE REVOLUTION BEGINS
General Thomas Gage, an amiable English gentleman with an American-born wife, commanded the garrison at Boston, where political activity had almost wholly replaced trade. Gage’s main duty in the colonies had been to enforce the Coercive Acts. When news reached him that the Massachusetts colonists were collecting powder and military stores at the town of Concord, 32 kilometers away, Gage sent a strong detail to confiscate these munitions.
After a night of marching, the British troops reached the village of Lexington on April 19, 1775, and saw a grim band of 77 Minutemen – so named because they were said to be ready to fight in a minute – through the early morning mist. The Minutemen intended only a silent protest, but Marine Major John Pitcairn, the leader of the British troops, yelled, “Disperse, you damned rebels! You dogs, run!” The leader of the Minutemen, Captain John Parker, told his troops not to fire unless fired at first. The Americans were withdrawing when someone fired a shot, which led the British troops to fire at the Minutemen. The British then charged with bayonets, leaving eight dead and 10 wounded. In the often-quoted phrase of 19th century poet Ralph Waldo Emerson, this was “the shot heard round the world.”
The British pushed on to Concord. The Americans had taken away most of the munitions, but they destroyed whatever was left. In the meantime, American forces in the countryside had mobilized to harass the British on their long return to Boston. All along the road, behind stone walls, hillocks, and houses, militiamen from “every Middlesex village and farm” made targets of the bright red coats of the British soldiers. By the time Gage’s weary detachment stumbled into Boston, it had suffered more than 250 killed and wounded. The Americans lost 93 men.
The Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on May 10. The Congress voted to go to war, inducting the colonial militias into continental service. It appointed Colonel George Washington of Virginia as their commander-in-chief on June 15. Within two days, the Americans had incurred high casualties at Bunker Hill just outside Boston. Congress also ordered American expeditions to march northward into Canada by fall. Capturing Montreal, they failed in a winter assault on Quebec, and eventually retreated to New York.
Despite the outbreak of armed conflict, the idea of complete separation from England was still repugnant to many members of the Continental Congress. In July, it adopted the Olive Branch Petition, begging the king to prevent further hostile actions until some sort of agreement could be worked out. King George rejected it; instead, on August 23, 1775, he issued a proclamation declaring the colonies to be in a state of rebellion.
Britain had expected the Southern colonies to remain loyal, in part because of their reliance on slavery. Many in the Southern colonies feared that a rebellion against the mother country would also trigger a slave uprising. In November 1775, Lord Dunmore, the governor of Virginia, tried to capitalize on that fear by offering freedom to all slaves who would fight for the British. Instead, his proclamation drove to the rebel side many Virginians who would otherwise have remained Loyalist.
The governor of North Carolina, Josiah Martin, also urged North Carolinians to remain loyal to the Crown. When 1,500 men answered Martin’s call, they were defeated by revolutionary armies before British troops could arrive to help.
British warships continued down the coast to Charleston, South Carolina, and opened fire on the city in early June 1776. But South Carolinians had time to prepare, and repulsed the British by the end of the month. They would not return South for more than two years.
COMMON SENSE AND INDEPENDENCE
In January 1776, Thomas Paine, a radical political theorist and writer who had come to America from England in 1774, published a 50-page pamphlet, Common Sense. Within three months, it sold 100,000 copies. Paine attacked the idea of a hereditary monarchy, declaring that one honest man was worth more to society than “all the crowned ruffians that ever lived.” He presented the alternatives – continued submission to a tyrannical king and an outworn government, or liberty and happiness as a self-sufficient, independent republic. Circulated throughout the colonies, Common Sense helped to crystallize a decision for separation.
There still remained the task, however, of gaining each colony’s approval of a formal declaration. On June 7, Richard Henry Lee of Virginia introduced a resolution in the Second Continental Congress, declaring, “That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states. …” Immediately, a committee of five, headed by Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, was appointed to draft a document for a vote.
Largely Jefferson’s work, the Declaration of Independence, adopted July 4, 1776, not only announced the birth of a new nation, but also set forth a philosophy of human freedom that would become a dynamic force throughout the entire world. The Declaration drew upon French and English Enlightenment political philosophy, but one influence in particular stands out: John Locke’s Second Treatise on Government. Locke took conceptions of the traditional rights of Englishmen and universalized them into the natural rights of all humankind. The Declaration’s familiar opening passage echoes Locke’s social-contract theory of government:
We hold these truths to be self‑evident, that all men are created equal,
that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that
among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. – That to secure
these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just
powers from the consent of the governed, – That whenever any Form of
Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People
to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its
foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to
them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.
Jefferson linked Locke’s principles directly to the situation in the colonies. To fight for American independence was to fight for a government based on popular consent in place of a government by a king who had “combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws. …” Only a government based on popular consent could secure natural rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Thus, to fight for American independence was to fight on behalf of one’s own natural rights.
DEFEATS AND VICTORIES
Although the Americans suffered severe setbacks for months after independence was declared, their tenacity and perseverance eventually paid off. During August 1776, in the Battle of Long Island in New York, Washington’s position became untenable, and he executed a masterly retreat in small boats from Brooklyn to the Manhattan shore. British General William Howe twice hesitated and allowed the Americans to escape. By November, however, Howe had captured Fort Washington on Manhattan Island. New York City would remain under British control until the end of the war.
That December, Washington’s forces were near collapse, as supplies and promised aid failed to materialize. Howe again missed his chance to crush the Americans by deciding to wait until spring to resume fighting. On Christmas Day, December 25, 1776, Washington crossed the Delaware River, north of Trenton, New Jersey. In the early-morning hours of December 26, his troops surprised the British garrison there, taking more than 900 prisoners. A week later, on January 3, 1777, Washington attacked the British at Princeton, regaining most of the territory formally occupied by the British. The victories at Trenton and Princeton revived flagging American spirits.
In September 1777, however, Howe defeated the American army at Brandywine in Pennsylvania and occupied Philadelphia, forcing the Continental Congress to flee. Washington had to endure the bitterly cold winter of 1777‑1778 at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, lacking adequate food, clothing, and supplies. Farmers and merchants exchanged their goods for British gold and silver rather than for dubious paper money issued by the Continental Congress and the states.
Valley Forge was the lowest ebb for Washington’s Continental Army, but elsewhere 1777 proved to be the turning point in the war. British General John Burgoyne, moving south from Canada, attempted to invade New York and New England via Lake Champlain and the Hudson River. He had too much heavy equipment to negotiate the wooded and marshy terrain. On August 6, at Oriskany, New York, a band of Loyalists and Native Americans under Burgoyne’s command ran into a mobile and seasoned American force that managed to halt their advance. A few days later at Bennington, Vermont, more of Burgoyne’s forces, seeking much-needed supplies, were pushed back by American troops.
Moving to the west side of the Hudson River, Burgoyne’s army advanced on Albany. The Americans were waiting for him. Led by Benedict Arnold – who would later betray the Americans at West Point, New York – the colonials twice repulsed the British. Having by this time incurred heavy losses, Burgoyne fell back to Saratoga, New York, where a vastly superior American force under General Horatio Gates surrounded the British troops. On October 17, 1777, Burgoyne surrendered his entire army – six generals, 300 other officers, and 5,500 enlisted personnel.
In France, enthusiasm for the American cause was high: The French intellectual world was itself stirring against feudalism and privilege. However, the Crown lent its support to the colonies for geopolitical rather than ideological reasons: The French government had been eager for reprisal against Britain ever since France’s defeat in 1763. To further the American cause, Benjamin Franklin was sent to Paris in 1776. His wit, guile, and intellect soon made their presence felt in the French capital, and played a major role in winning French assistance.
France began providing aid to the colonies in May 1776, when it sent 14 ships with war supplies to America. In fact, most of the gunpowder used by the American armies came from France. After Britain’s defeat at Saratoga, France saw an opportunity to seriously weaken its ancient enemy and restore the balance of power that had been upset by the Seven Years’ War (called the French and Indian War in the American colonies). On February 6, 1778, the colonies and France signed a Treaty of Amity and Commerce, in which France recognized the United States and offered trade concessions. They also signed a Treaty of Alliance, which stipulated that if France entered the war, neither country would lay down its arms until the colonies won their independence, that neither would conclude peace with Britain without the consent of the other, and that each guaranteed the other’s possessions in America. This was the only bilateral defense treaty signed by the United States or its predecessors until 1949.
The Franco-American alliance soon broadened the conflict. In June 1778 British ships fired on French vessels, and the two countries went to war. In 1779 Spain, hoping to reacquire territories taken by Britain in the Seven Years’ War, entered the conflict on the side of France, but not as an ally of the Americans. In 1780 Britain declared war on the Dutch, who had continued to trade with the Americans. The combination of these European powers, with France in the lead, was a far greater threat to Britain than the American colonies standing alone.
THE BRITISH MOVE SOUTH
With the French now involved, the British, still believing that most Southerners were Loyalists, stepped up their efforts in the Southern colonies. A campaign began in late 1778, with the capture of Savannah, Georgia. Shortly thereafter, British troops and naval forces converged on Charleston, South Carolina, the principal Southern port. They managed to bottle up American forces on the Charleston peninsula. On May 12, 1780, General Benjamin Lincoln surrendered the city and its 5,000 troops, in the greatest American defeat of the war.
But the reversal in fortune only emboldened the American rebels. South Carolinians began roaming the countryside, attacking British supply lines. In July, American General Horatio Gates, who had assembled a replacement force of untrained militiamen, rushed to Camden, South Carolina, to confront British forces led by General Charles Cornwallis. But Gates’s makeshift army panicked and ran when confronted by the British regulars. Cornwallis’s troops met the Americans several more times, but the most significant battle took place at Cowpens, South Carolina, in early 1781, where the Americans soundly defeated the British. After an exhausting but unproductive chase through North Carolina, Cornwallis set his sights on Virginia.
VICTORY AND INDEPENDENCE
In July 1780 France’s King Louis XVI had sent to America an expeditionary force of 6,000 men under the Comte Jean de Rochambeau. In addition, the French fleet harassed British shipping and blocked reinforcement and resupply of British forces in Virginia. French and American armies and navies, totaling 18,000 men, parried with Cornwallis all through the summer and into the fall. Finally, on October 19, 1781, after being trapped at Yorktown near the mouth of Chesapeake Bay, Cornwallis surrendered his army of 8,000 British soldiers.
Although Cornwallis’s defeat did not immediately end the war – which would drag on inconclusively for almost two more years – a new British government decided to pursue peace negotiations in Paris in early 1782, with the American side represented by Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and John Jay. On April 15, 1783, Congress approved the final treaty. Signed on September 3, the Treaty of Paris acknowledged the independence, freedom, and sovereignty of the 13 former colonies, now states. The new United States stretched west to the Mississippi River, north to Canada, and south to Florida, which was returned to Spain. The fledgling colonies that Richard Henry Lee had spoken of more than seven years before had finally become “free and independent states.”
The task of knitting together a nation remained.
This is an excerpt form educational material originally published by the U.S. State Department. You can read more and explore further by visiting their new website. | <urn:uuid:eac0032f-b310-4957-bc4e-6398ca0fefdf> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.excellence-in-literature.com/ch-3-outline-of-us-history/ | 2024-12-04T03:07:13Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066142519.55/warc/CC-MAIN-20241204014854-20241204044854-00668.warc.gz | en | 0.969294 | 6,855 | 4.25 | 4 |
An origami paper tetrahedron is an effective and multifunctional decorative element. Depending on the model, it can serve as an interior pendant, Christmas tree decoration and part of a fashionable wall panel in the Scandinavian style. A tetrahedron is a tetrahedral pyramid with a triangle at its base. Most often, several such figures combined into a composition are used for decoration.
How to make three-dimensional geometric shapes from paper (diagrams, templates)?
Here are several schemes by which you can make three-dimensional geometric shapes.
The simplest one is a tetrahedron .
It will be a little more difficult to make an octahedron .
But this three-dimensional figure is a dodecahedron .
Another one is the icosahedron .
More details about making three-dimensional figures can be found here.
This is what three-dimensional figures look like when not assembled:
And this is what the finished ones look like:
You can make many original crafts from volumetric geometric shapes, including gift wrapping.
So that children can better remember what geometric shapes are and know what they are called, you can make three-dimensional geometric shapes . By the way, you can use them to make beautiful gift wrapping.
- thick paper or cardboard (preferably colored);
- glue (preferably PVA).
The most difficult thing is to develop and draw developments; you need at least basic knowledge of drawing. You can take ready-made scans and print them on a printer.
To keep the fold line straight and sharp, you can use a blunt needle and a metal ruler. When drawing a line, the needle must be bent strongly in the direction of movement, almost laying it on its side.
This is a development of a trihedral pyramid
This is a cube scan
This is the development of an octahedron (tetrahedral pyramid)
This is the development of a dodecahedron
This is the development of an icosahedron
Here you can find templates for more complex figures (Platonic Solids, Archimedean Solids, polyhedra, polyhedra, different types of pyramids and prisms, simple and oblique paper models).
By the way, to calculate the parameters of the pyramid, you can use this program.
By making three-dimensional figures from paper yourself, you can not only use them for entertainment, but also for learning.
For example, you can clearly show your child what a particular figure looks like and let him hold it in his hands.
Or you can print out diagrams with special symbols for training purposes.
So I suggest below that you familiarize yourself with the dodecahedron , both simple and with small drawings that will only attract the baby’s attention and make learning more fun and entertaining.
cube diagram can also be used to teach numbers.
pyramid diagram can help you learn the formulas that apply to a given figure.
In addition, I suggest you familiarize yourself with the diagram of the octahedron .
tetrahedron diagram will also help you learn colors.
As you understand, the above templates must be printed, cut out, bent along the lines, and glued along special narrow strips adjacent to selected sides.
Before you start making three-dimensional geometric shapes, you need to imagine (or know what it looks like) the figure in 3D dimension: how many faces does this or that figure have.
First you need to correctly draw a figure on paper along the edges that must be connected to each other. Each shape has edges that have a specific shape: square, triangle, rectangle, rhombus, hexagon, circle, etc.
It is very important that the length of the edges of the figure that will be connected to each other are the same length, so that no problems arise during the connection. If the figure consists of identical faces, I would suggest making a template while drawing and using this template. You can also download ready-made templates from the Internet, print them, bend them along the lines and connect (glue) them together.
A real puzzle can be not only the cube itself, invented by the Japanese scientist Naoki Yoshimoto in 1971, but also the assembly of this unusual product. According to this scheme, you need to collect 48 pyramids.
You can clearly see how to correctly assemble this wonderful craft and its transformations in this video tutorial:
Pyramid - development. Pyramid development for gluing. Paper scans
Rectangle, square, triangle, trapezoid and others are geometric figures from the section of exact science. A pyramid is a polyhedron. The base of this figure is a polygon, and the side faces are triangles with a common vertex, or trapezoids. To fully represent and study any geometric object, mock-ups are made. They use a wide variety of materials from which the pyramid is made. The surface of a polyhedral figure, unfolded on a plane, is called its development. The method of converting flat objects into three-dimensional polyhedra and certain knowledge of geometry will help you create a layout. It is not easy to make developments from paper or cardboard. You will need the ability to make drawings to specified dimensions.
For assembly, it is better to use a large A4 sheet, and then construct from small blanks. The aspect ratio for the module is 1:1.5.
- The sheet is folded in half horizontally, the middle line is smoothed vertically with your fingers, the ends are bent towards the central outline.
- The module turns over, the edges-ears rise up.
- You need to bend the side corners through the main part of the figure.
- The base is straightened, small triangles with raised edges are formed along the lines. The base is bent in half.
The resulting modules are equipped with a pair of corners and pockets, by combining which, inserting into each other in different ways, you can assemble a variety of three-dimensional products.
First of all, let's determine what the pyramid will be like. The development of this figure is the basis for making a three-dimensional figure. Completing the work will require extreme precision. If the drawing is incorrect, it will be impossible to assemble a geometric figure. Let's say you need to make a model of a regular triangular pyramid.
Any geometric body has certain properties. This figure has a regular polygon as its base, and its vertex is projected into its center. An equilateral triangle was chosen as the base. This condition determines the name. The side edges of the pyramid are triangles, the number of which depends on the polyhedron chosen for the base. In this case there will be three of them. It is also important to know the dimensions of all the components that will make up the pyramid. Paper developments are made in accordance with all the data of the geometric figure. The parameters of the future model are agreed upon in advance. The choice of material used depends on these data.
A parallelepiped is a complex polyhedron figure with 6 faces and each of them is a parallelogram.
To make a parallelepiped using the origami technique, you need to draw a base - a parallelogram of any size. On each side, draw the sides - also parallelograms. Next, from any of the sides, draw a second base. Add places for gluing. A parallelepiped can be rectangular if all sides have right angles. Then cut out the development and glue it together. Ready!
How is a regular pyramid unfolded?
The basis of the model is a sheet of paper or cardboard. Work begins with a drawing of the pyramid. The figure is presented in expanded form. A flat image on paper corresponds to pre-selected dimensions and parameters. A regular pyramid has a regular polygon as its base and its height passes through its center. Let's start by making a simple model. In this case, it is a triangular pyramid. Determine the dimensions of the selected figure.
The tetrahedron is one of the most interesting, from a commercial point of view, Platonic solids. A fairly simple pyramid has been known to everyone since childhood. In Soviet times, milk, kefir and cream were sold in such triangular packages - tetropaks. It was believed that the pyramidal shape kept delicate produce fresh longer.
Triangular packaging is not a Soviet invention at all. In the 1930s, the French popular science magazine Science & Vie published an article about the mysterious properties of the Egyptian pyramids, where the bodies of the pharaohs did not deteriorate, but were mummified naturally. The theory was not supported by serious evidence, but the Swedish inventor Eric Wallenberg was so carried away by it that he created a mini-analog of ancient Egyptian tombs - the same Tetra Classic cardboard packaging. He wanted to reduce the losses of milk traders, but in reality he helped producers of disposable containers. His pyramids were produced quickly, in large volumes and with virtually no waste.
In 1950, AB Tetra Pak was founded on the basis of innovative technology. However, when it turned out that products in cardboard pyramids turn sour almost as quickly as in glass bottles, the Swedes lost interest in Wallenberg's idea. However, the production technology was sold to the Soviet leadership, focusing on its cost-effectiveness and efficiency. This is how the legendary “triangles” with the inscription “Milk” appeared on our shelves. To make transportation of tetrahedron bags no less profitable than production, special hexagonal containers were made for them.
Today, three-dimensional triangular bags (or rather, bags) have been adopted by Lipton. The manufacturer claims that it is replacing flat portion packaging with a bulk one to demonstrate the beauty of the tea leaf opening in the cup. And to show that the bags do not contain scraps and crumbs, as consumers suspect, but a full-fledged high-quality blend.
Development of a quadrangular pyramid
First, let's imagine what the geometric figure looks like, the model of which we will make. The base of the selected pyramid is a quadrangle. The side ribs are triangles. For work we use the same materials and devices as in the previous version. We draw the drawing on paper with a pencil. In the center of the sheet we draw a quadrilateral with the selected parameters.
We divide each side of the base in half. We draw a perpendicular, which will be the height of the triangular face. Using a compass solution equal to the length of the side face of the pyramid, we make notches on the perpendiculars, placing its leg at the top of the base. We connect both corners of one side of the base to the resulting point on the perpendicular. As a result, we get a square in the center of the drawing, on the edges of which triangles are drawn. To fix the model on the side faces, add auxiliary valves. For reliable fastening, a strip of centimeter width is enough. The pyramid is ready for assembly.
Step-by-step instructions for writing the “Treasured Triangle” letter
This technique can be used by: kindergarten teachers, teachers and parents. Triangles can be given to a veteran. It will serve as an exhibit at a crafts exhibition or be part of a military-themed wall newspaper.
By creating a greeting card, the younger generation gains skills in handling paper, scissors and glue. Children develop creativity and imagination. In addition, perseverance is acquired and a sense of patriotism is cultivated.
It is necessary to prepare in advance:
- Multi-colored sheets of paper.
- St. George's ribbon.
- A tea bag or instant coffee.
Staying safe with scissors
- Never leave them open.
- Transfer only rings forward.
- Do not play under any circumstances.
- Use only as needed.
Rules for working with PVA glue
- Use a brush.
- Avoid collecting excess; what is unnecessary is removed with a paper napkin.
- Apply carefully in a thin layer.
- Avoid contact with clothing, face and eyes.
- Upon completion of the action, the tube is tightly closed and stored in a secluded place.
- Hands and the area where they worked are washed with soap.
When designing, for greater believability, they resort to different shades and “relief” in order to “age” the paper. The words that the author chose as a congratulation are printed out and blotted with a sponge on both sides. Next, coffee is sprinkled over the entire surface of the sheet, the grains of which are dissolved with a moistened piece of foam rubber. The sheet is left to dry.
To add a solemn moment to the message to dear participants of military events in the form of a triangle, it is not forbidden to decorate it by making a composition of the corresponding attributes. A certain length is measured from the St. George ribbon, then it is applied to the corner of the paper in the shape of a triangle, cut and glued. Daisies are cut out of white paper, the edges of which are folded with a pencil.
Leaves are formed from green paper with scissors. The stems are placed on the St. George ribbon, flowers and leaves are glued. The middle parts are decorated with yellow plasticine, which must be rolled into balls. To make them look impressive, they need to be pressed down a little.
As a complement, an inscription is included, similarly processed with a brewed tea bag. Soldiers always looked forward to such “triangles” as if they were cherished news from home, and then re-read them many times.
Construction of a drawing
The development of a truncated pyramid is performed in several stages. The side face of a truncated pyramid is a trapezoid, and the bases are similar polyhedra. Let's say these are squares. On a sheet of paper we draw a trapezoid with the given dimensions. We extend the sides of the resulting figure until they intersect. The result is an isosceles triangle. We measure its side with a compass. On a separate sheet of paper we construct a circle, the radius of which will be the measured distance.
The next stage is the construction of the side ribs that the truncated pyramid has. The sweep is performed inside the drawn circle. Using a compass, measure the lower base of the trapezoid. On the circle we mark five points that connect the lines to its center. We get four isosceles triangles. Using a compass, measure the side of the trapezoid drawn on a separate sheet. We put this distance on each side of the drawn triangles. We connect the resulting points. The side faces of the trapezoid are ready. All that remains is to draw the upper and lower bases of the pyramid. In this case, these are similar polyhedra - squares. We add squares to the upper and lower bases of the first trapezoid. The drawing shows all the parts that the pyramid has. The scan is almost ready. All that remains is to finish drawing the connecting valves on the sides of the smaller square and one of the faces of the trapezoids.
Using 30 square sheets of paper (each side measures 7.5 cm), you can make a fairly sturdy version of one of the varieties of this geometric wonder without any gluing at all. If you have material of different colors in stock, you will get a bright and beautiful layout with multi-colored blocks. Instructions for making a stellated icosahedron step by step:
- Fold the sheet of paper in half and make a fold along the fold. If you are using origami paper, you should make sure that the front side is on the outside, as it will be visible later.
- Expand the square.
- Fold the right and left sides of the sheet so that they meet at the fold. You should end up with a rectangle, more like a closet with hinged doors.
- Turn the shape over with the folded edges facing down.
- Make a diagonal fold: the top right corner should meet the left side of the rectangle. You need to roll both “cabinet doors”.
- Turn the paper over so the straight end is facing up.
- Make another diagonal fold where the top right corner meets the layout side. You should get a parallelogram.
- Fold the sheet diagonally where the top corner corresponds to the right corner of the figure.
- Repeat the action on the other side. The bottom and left corners should meet. You will get a small square.
- Then rotate the workpiece so that the shape resembles a diamond.
- Fold the square in half, making a fold that runs perpendicular to the “cabinet doors” visible on the model. So, the first unit is ready.
In total, you need to make 30 such blocks. For example, 10 of different colors.
Development of geometric shapes
Large selection of developments of simple geometric shapes.
Children's first introduction to paper modeling always begins with simple geometric shapes such as cubes and pyramids. Not many people succeed in gluing a cube together the first time; sometimes it takes several days to make a truly even and flawless cube. More complex figures, a cylinder and a cone, require several times more effort than a simple cube. If you don’t know how to carefully glue geometric shapes, then it’s too early for you to take on complex models. Do it yourself and teach your children how to do these “basics” of modeling using ready-made patterns.
To begin with, I, of course, suggest learning how to glue a regular cube. The developments are made for two cubes, large and small. A small cube is a more complex figure because it is more difficult to glue than a large one.
So, let's begin! Download the developments of all the figures on five sheets and print them on thick paper. Before printing and gluing geometric shapes, be sure to read the article on how to choose paper and how to properly cut, bend and glue paper.
For better quality printing, I advise you to use the AutoCAD program, and I give you patterns for this program, and also read how to print from AutoCAD. Cut out the development of the cubes from the first sheet, be sure to draw a compass needle under the iron ruler along the fold lines so that the paper bends well. Now you can start gluing the cubes.
To save paper and just in case, I made several unfolds of a small cube, you never want to glue more than one cube together or something won’t work out the first time. Another simple figure is a pyramid, its development can be found on the second sheet. The ancient Egyptians built similar pyramids, although not made of paper and not so small in size | <urn:uuid:df15604c-910a-4b57-9b7f-7bbd5a161167> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://samodivka.ru/en/podelki/mnogogranniki-iz-bumagi.html | 2024-12-03T13:42:20Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066139150.70/warc/CC-MAIN-20241203132814-20241203162814-00556.warc.gz | en | 0.94656 | 3,943 | 3.875 | 4 |
Nursing dimension analysis questions and answers.
1. Identify the most important element in nursing’s attempt to gain full autonomy of practice?
Answer. The important element is gaining and maintaining control of nursing practice by nurses.
2. In its attempt to gain freedom and independence, what corresponding factors must the nursing profession embrace?
Answer. Accountability and responsibility.
3. Select the most effective method that nurses can use to gain power over their practice?
Answer. By joining professional organizations in large numbers.
4. What allows a nurse to exert REFERENT power over a client when providing nursing care?
Answer. By establishing of a professional and personal relationship with the client
5. What is a group of jobs that is similar in type of work and found throughout an industry or country?
6. Which of the following types of nurses are classified as technical nurses?
Answer. ADNs and LPNs. Nursing dimension analysis questions and answers.
7. Identify the approach that describes a profession as being in a continual state of development along a continuum?
Answer. Process approach
8. A nursing student is approached by a friend who is not majoring in nursing. The friend asks why the nursing profession does not seem to be actively involved in the women’s rights movement. How can the student best respond to this question?
(a) Nurses do take an active part in leading the women’s rights movement, but it is done very quietly.
(b) The women’s rights movement shuns participation by nurses because of nursing’s subservient image.
(c) The health-care industry discourages nurses from becoming involved in women’s rights issues.
(d) Nurses avoid becoming involved in women’s rights issues because of their traditional role as “helpers.”
Answer. (d) Nurses avoid becoming involved in women’s rights issues because of their traditional role as “helpers.”
9. Identify the element that is the best indicator of increasing accountability in the profession of nursing?
Answer. By demonstrating competency and high-quality care through peer review
10. What is the best method for nurses to prepare for future professional practice?
Answer. Understanding and exploring issues involved in professionalism as nurses
11. What allows a nurse to exert COERCIVE power over a client when providing nursing care?
Answer. The ability to withhold pain medication if the client does not comply with routines
12. What allows a nurse to exert LEGITIMATE power over a client when providing nursing care?
Answer. Establishment of a professional and personal relationship with the client. Nursing dimension analysis questions and answers.
13. What is the trait of a profession that requires the most improvement in the promotion and recognition of nursing as a full and equal profession?
Answer. Activities are learned in institutions of higher education
14. What statement is the best description of a profession from the power approach method of defining a profession?
Answer. The education for the members of the profession must be attained in graduate schools
15. The early Christian era brought which of these important changes in health care?
Answer. Belief in sanctity of life
16. Which development during the European Middle Ages led to a major improvement in health care?
Answer. Growth of religious orders to care for the sick
17. Who is called the “father of modern medicine”?
18. What are the dates of Florence Nightingale’s birth and death?
Answer. May 12, 1820; August 13, 1910
19. Identify a key element in the success of Nightingale’s school of nursing.
Answer. Was not under control of the hospital. Nursing dimension analysis questions and answers.
20. What was a major goal of Lavinia Dock?
Answer. Obtaining women right to vote.
21. Which belief about what nurses needed to do shaped Lillian D. Wald’s nursing practice?
Answer. Fight political corruption to procure they types of legislation needed to improve social conditions
22. Which problem had the most severe effect on nursing education during the 1920s and 1930s?
Answer. Lack of qualified nursing instructors
23. Identify a negative effect that WWII had on health care in the United States.
Answer. Increased use of LPNs and aids to substitute for a lower number of RNs
24. Select the statement that most accurately states the effects of increasing populations on health care.
Answer. Crowded living conditions in cities lead to the spread of communicable diseases
25. What characteristic of health care in ancient civilizations distinguishes it from the health care today?
Answer. Health care was closely related to religious practices
26. What are two similarities between the health care provided by the ancient Hebrews and that practiced by the ancient Egyptians?
Answer. Emphasis on well-developed knowledge of surgical techniques and sanitation.
27. Select the element of the medical practice of Hippocrates that remains appropriate for the health-care providers of the 21st century
Answer. Whole client needs to be treated: the mind, body, and spirit
28. Identify the characteristic of ancient Romans society that distinguished the health-care practices of the empire from those of its surrounding neighbors.
Answer. Relatively high social states allotted to Roman women
29. To what event and to which period of history is the disappearance of male nurses usually attributed?
Answer. The Protestant Reformation during the Middle Ages
30. For which contribution to professional nursing is Isabel Adams Hampton Robb most noted?
Answer. Raising the standards for nursing education
31. Who is credited with the development of the nurse practitioner role?
Answer. Loretta Ford. Nursing dimension analysis questions and answers.
32. What situation led to the development of the nurse practitioner role?
Answer. A shortage of health care providers in rural areas of the country.
33. What can be expected of a system that has a high degree of non summativity?
Answer. There is a high degree of interdependence of components.
34. How can most living organisms be classified in general systems theory?
Answer. Open systems
35. Identify the major component for the maintenance of health used in the Roy Adaptation Model of nursing.
36. “Stimuli” in the Roy Adaptation Model is synonymous with which element in systems theory?
37. How is health described in the Roy Adaptation Model of nursing?
Answer. A state or process of being and becoming an integrated, whole person
38. Identify the two concepts upon which the framework for assessment is based in the Roy Adaptation Model of nursing.
Answer. Cognator and regulator. Nursing dimension analysis questions and answers.
39. In the Roy Adaptation Model of nursing, the second-level assessment modes are most closely related to which part of the system?
40. Why is it important for nurses to understand and use a nursing theory or model in practice?
Answer. Using models or theories of nursing aids practitioners in providing their care in an organized manner.
41. Identify the four concepts that are common in most nursing theories.
Answer. Client, health, environment, nursing
42. What belief forms the basis for the Orem Self-Care Model?
Answer. Health care is the responsibility of each individual.
43. Identify the primary goal of nursing in the Orem Self-Care Model.
Answer. Help the client conduct self-care activities to reach the highest level of functioning.
44. Select a major contribution that King’s model made to the practice of nursing.
Answer. Formalization of the use of goals to guide client care
45. What aspect of Watson’s Model of Human Caring distinguishes it from most other nursing models?
Answer. Use of a philosophical approach rather than a systems theory approach. Nursing dimension analysis questions and answers.
46. Identify the most important aspect of caring according to Watson’s Model of Human Caring.
Answer. Establishing a helping and trusting relationship
47. How is a “client” most accurately described in Johnson’s Behavioral System Model?
Answer. A behavioral system that is an integrated whole
49. Upon which principle is Neuman’s Health-Care Systems Model based?
Answer. Alteration of environmental stressors leads to health.
50. What is a key function of the nurse in Neuman’s Health-Care Systems Model?
Answer. Identify the level at which a disruption in the client’s internal stability has taken place.
51. In what way have advanced practice nurses most contributed to the development of theories and models in nursing?
Answer. Testing theories in actual nursing practice situations
52. When a number of middle range theories are used to investigate the same or similar concepts over a period of time, they:
Answer. Can be woven together to reinforce or even in some cases, to form the fabric of a new major nursing theory.
53. Identify the statement below that is not an accurate characterization of middle range nursing theories.
Answer. Middle range theories and models are recent developments in nursing research.
54. Identify the statement that is most accurate concerning middle range nursing theories.
Answer. They form the foundation for the current evidenced-based practice movement.
55. Identify the primary role of the nurse in Swanson’s Theory of Caring.
Answer. To guide the client through discussions of their experiences so that they believe that their problems are understood
56. Which of the following is an essential element in Parse’s the Man-Living-Health Model?
Answer. The client’s ability to make free choices. Nursing dimension analysis questions and answers.
57. Identify the primary role of the nurse in Parse’s the Man-Living-Health Model.
Answer. To guide clients in finding and understanding the meaning of their lives
58. What is a type of nursing education program conducted in junior and community colleges that is nominally 2 years in length?
Answer. Associate degree program.
59. Identify an important similarity between the various types of educational programs for nurses.
Answer. Clinical experience is required to gain certain knowledge and skills.
61. Select an important element found in baccalaureate nursing programs that is usually not found in other types of nursing education programs.
Answer. Development of the total intellectual skills of the individual
62. Which contribution of Florence Nightingale had the greatest impact on nursing education?
Answer. Recognizing that formal, systematic education in both theory and practice was essential for the preparation of high-quality nurses
63. Which statement best describes nursing education in the United States during the 1800s and early 1900s?
Answer. There was little or no classroom education, and students learned through hands-on experience during their 12- to 14-hour shifts on the hospital units.
64. Identify a major benefit of the diploma-type training programs for nurses.
Answer. Nurses from diploma programs were proficient in basic nursing skills and could assume a hospital position with minimal orientation.
65. Which practice of diploma nursing programs most concerned the state boards of nursing?
Answer. Use of the students as unpaid hospital personnel during their education programs
66. How can the concept of a career ladder in education best be described?
Answer. Specialized programs for associate degree or diploma RNs to attain a baccalaureate degree
67. What are common characteristics usually found in LPN educational programs?
Answer. Technically oriented, located in vocational technical schools or community colleges, 9 to 12 months in length
68. Which category of advanced practice nurses is the most widely accepted by the public?
Answer. Nurse practitioners
68. Identify the primary position advocated by the 1964 ANA Position Paper on Education for Nurses.
Answer. Baccalaureate education should be the basic level of preparation for professional nurses. Nursing dimension analysis questions and answers.
69. What is the most important consequence of the ANA Position Paper on Education for Nurses?
Answer. Demand for a clear distinction between technical and professional nursing programs
70. Identify two key requirements for entry into a master’s degree nursing program.
Answer. Baccalaureate degree in nursing, satisfactory score on the GRE or MAT
71. What is a trend found in doctoral-level programs that has developed since the 1970s?
Answer. More emphasis on the clinical than on the academic nature of nursing
72. Identify an important function that a nurse serving as a case manager would be required to perform.
Answer. Overseeing client care during rehabilitation at home
73. What is the key element in relationship-centered nursing care?
Answer. Clients’ trust in the role and skills of the nurse in the healing process
74. Identify the primary purpose for the development of the Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN) project?
Answer. Focus nursing education on competencies to reduce the number of medical errors. | <urn:uuid:b3a7d409-dfe8-43ce-8c13-c5281e408916> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.assignmentwritingexperts.com/nursing-dimension-analysis-questions-and-answers/ | 2024-12-09T16:51:25Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066046748.1/warc/CC-MAIN-20241209152324-20241209182324-00136.warc.gz | en | 0.946471 | 2,722 | 2.515625 | 3 |
A review of recent data from the Combustible Dust Incident Database provides insights into dust-related process safety
Fires and explosions in facilities that handle combustible dust remain an ongoing focus of process safety efforts across many areas of the chemical process industries (CPI). But how many dust-related safety incidents occur each year? This question is a major driver behind the formation of the Combustible Dust Incident Database (CDID; Halifax, N.S., Canada; www.dustsafetyscience.com). Created in 2016, the CDID features a twice-yearly report on fires and explosions having to do with combustible dusts. The CDID is an online portal with the purpose of reporting, tracking and generating lessons learned from fire and explosion incidents around the world. The database is meant as a tool for technical decision makers to anticipate upcoming difficulties and process safety trends in their industries, and to give the powder-handing community a platform to measure and manage combustible dust hazards.
The information collected and tabulated on combustible-dust incidents in the CDID is now helping to determine trends and tendencies in the materials, industries and equipment involved with these hazards.
This article outlines the findings from the incident reporting completed to date. Comparisons are made between the CDID information and historical combustible-dust explosion data within the U.S. Also, an overview of the personal and financial loss resulting from these types of incidents is provided.
The incident research discussed here is based on publicly available information, including news stories and other resources accessible by Internet search engines, as well as social media sharing, government sources and industry repositories. It is important to note that articles may contain incomplete or, in some cases, incorrect information. Furthermore, dust fires and explosions often go unreported, and the totals reflected here may vastly underestimate the total magnitude of the problem. This is especially true internationally, where the news coverage is sometimes limited.
The first incident report was released in 2016 and covered combustible dust explosions within North America. In 2016, 31 explosions were reported in the U.S. and two were reported in Canada. These incidents caused a reported total of 22 injuries and three fatalities in 2016.
In 2017 mid-year and year-end incident reports were released . The year-end report covered both combustible dust fires and explosions around the world. In North America, 132 fires, 32 explosions, 61 injuries, and six fatalities were recorded. Four of the explosions were reported in Canada, while the other 28 were in the U.S. Internationally, 37 fires, 36 explosions, 102 injuries and seven fatalities were recorded.
The 2018 mid-year incident report was released in August 2018. In addition to global fire and explosion incidents, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA; Washington, D.C.; www.osha.gov) citations, upcoming events, and new technology and products were also featured. In the first six months of 2018, 75 fires, 14 explosions, nine injuries and one fatality were reported in North America. One of these explosions occurred in Canada and 13 within the U.S. Internationally, 14 fires, 12 explosions, 31 injuries, and eight fatalities were recorded.
The reports can be downloaded by navigating to the following link: https://dustsafetyscience.com/chemical-engineering-magazine-2018.
Comparison to historical data
The most comprehensive analysis of combustible dust incidents in the U.S. is the Combustible Dust Hazard Study , published by the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB; www.csb.gov). In this report, the CSB reviewed combustible-dust flash fires and explosions over a 26-year period between 1980 and 2005. Comparing the average number of explosions, injuries and fatalities to those from the CDID illustrates how the loss from these incidents may be evolving over time (Table 1).
The CSB report shows an increasing trend in the number of combustible-dust incidents, injuries and fatalities, with the numbers almost doubling during the 20-year period from 1980 to 2001. The CSB cautions in their report that this increase may be due to limitations in previous reporting, including that the earlier incidents were under-reported.
The more recent CDID data show a steady continuation in the number of recorded dust-related explosions per year. The total increased by another 50% in the 10 years since the CSB report was published. However, the incident reports also suggest that the overall number of injuries and fatalities may be flattening or decreasing compared to the number of incidents. This tentatively suggests that an emphasis on combustible dust awareness, prevention and protection practices over the last decade may be reducing the average severity of any given explosion. It is again important to note that under-reporting in previous data may influence this conclusion. Furthermore, although the severity may be decreasing, neither dataset shows any single year with zero fatalities due to dust explosions in the U.S. since 1983.
Materials and industries
From the 2018 CDID incident reporting, wood processing, food processing and agricultural activities account for almost 60% of the dust-related fire and explosion incidents. Automotive manufacturing, metal working, power generation and mining contributed an additional 17%. The remaining 24% of incidents occurred in other industries, including pulp and paper, education, coatings, oil and gas, textiles and recycling.
Very frequently, materials involved in wood-product incidents were specified as sawdust or wood dust, and materials involved in food processing or agriculture were specified as grain dust. In cases were specific materials were named, pine chips, cellulose, corn, pecan, cocoa, flour, cereal, barley and spices were implicated in dust incidents. Although not broken out in the data, coal dust accounted for almost 7% of the total incidents. In cases involving metal dusts, aluminum, titanium, magnesium and iron were cited most often.
Equipment and causes
Dust collectors tend to have the highest number of total incidents of all equipment involved in powder processing. However, the 2018 incident data suggest that these were more often fires than explosions. It is often difficult to distinguish between storage silos and elevators — these two terms are often used synonymously in much of the news reporting. Overall, storage silos, elevators and conveyors made up half of the explosion incidents, while accounting for a smaller proportion of the overall fires (Table 2). Other equipment includes mills, shakers, grinders, saws, dryers and cyclones.
Often, very little information is available that points to the initiating cause of combustible dust fire and explosion incidents. In specific cases highlighted in the reports, hot work, including welding and cutting metal, are listed as the initiating cause. Sometimes machine sparking and static electricity are indicated in news reports, although it is rare to have this substantiated by a formal technical review. Further development of the CDID will focus on working with local fire departments and government organizations to better communicate these causes when an official investigation has been performed.
It is instructive to organize the combustible-dust incident data in terms of different types of loss. This comparison provides some information about how fires and explosions impact injury totals, fatalities and facility damages individually, and allows trends from different materials involved in processing operations to be explored.
Global data from the first half of 2018 indicated that 89% of the fatalities from dust incidents occurred due to explosions. With regard to injuries, 70% occurred from explosions, while 30% were the result of fires. The total breakdown of injuries and fatalities from fires and explosions is as follows: Explosions caused 28 injuries and eight fatalities, while fires caused 12 Injuries and one fatality.
This suggests that explosions tend to be more severe in terms of injuries and lives lost than facility fires. However, the trend for facility damages shows the reverse. Out of the eleven incidents with reported losses of $1 million and above, eight were from fires and three were from explosions. This highlights the importance of both fire and explosion prevention in facility safety measures.
In terms of materials involved, the number of fires, explosions, injuries and fatalities for the two most common categories are as follows: Wood products were involved in 33 fires, five explosions, 10 injuries and 0 fatalities, while food products were involved in 24 fires, 12 explosions, 14 injuries and eight fatalities.
Although both categories are responsible for a similar total number of incidents, fires appear to be more prevalent in wood processing facilities and explosions tend to be more common in food processing and agriculture. In cross-referencing these data with the equipment data provided earlier, these differences may be due to more frequent use of dust-collection systems in wood-dust-handling facilities and more frequent use of silos and conveyors for food production.
As a result of the higher number of explosions, food products have a larger number of high-severity incidents in terms of injuries and fatalities. In terms of facility damage, industry activities involving wood products resulted in more incidents that generated $1 million or more in losses. A summary of the high-damage incidents is shown in Table 3. Six of these incidents involved wood dust, sawdust, wood pellets and wood shavings. Five of these were fires and one was an explosion. This again demonstrates that both fire and explosion hazards need to be addressed in industries handling combustible dust.
Additional information on specific incidents can be found at www.dustsafetyscience.com. Ref. 5 contains an example of incident summaries.
After comparing data from the CDID, including findings from the 2018 mid-year incident report, with historical data from the CSB, the case can be made that combustible dust is a safety issue that deserves continued attention and focus. The data also suggest that efforts related to dust safety on the part of CPI companies, government agencies and other industry organizations may be having a positive effect: while the number of reported dust-explosion incidents is increasing over the past 40-year period, the number of injuries and fatalities per year since 2001 to 2005 may be leveling out, or even decreasing.
Other tentative conclusions that can be drawn from the data involve the materials and equipment types most likely to present a dust-safety hazard. The most frequently cited materials involved in combustible dust incidents include wood products and food products. While dust collectors had the overall largest number of incidents in the first half of 2018, they largely involved fires. Explosions occurred more frequently in storage silos, elevators and conveying equipment. The data available point to some gaps in information: often the initiating cause of fires and explosions involving combustible dusts is unavailable. This provides motivation for future efforts into improved procedures for collecting this information.
Information on the losses involving injuries, fatalities, and facility damages from dust-related incidents reinforces the need for countermeasures for both explosions and fires.
The CDID is actively collecting more information recording incidents as they occur. The ongoing analysis and richer trove of data will allow for more detailed explorations of fire and explosion incidents in industries outside of wood and food processing.
Edited by Scott Jenkins
The author would like to acknowledge that support for the CDID and incident reporting comes from member companies and report sponsors. A list of the 2018 report sponsors is provided here:
- AT Industrial Products
- Boss Products LLC
- CV Technology
- Delfin Industrial Corp.
- Fauske & Associates LLC
- IEP Technologies
- Fike Corp.
- EPM Consulting
- BWF Envirotech
- Power & Bulk Solids
- Bulk Inside
- Jensen Hughes
Chris Cloney (PEng.) is the director and lead researcher at DustEx Research Ltd., (60 Bridgeview Drive, Halifax, N.S., Canada B3P 2M4; Phone: 902-452-3205; Email: [email protected]), a company with a worldwide focus on increasing awareness of combustible dust hazards and reducing personal and financial loss from fire and explosion incidents. Cloney spent five years working as an engineering consultant and software developer in the defense industries focusing on detonation, explosion, and blast research. Upon completing his Ph.D. thesis in the area of modeling coal dust and hybrid mixture deflagration, he moved into the world of online education focusing on sharing and connecting the combustible dust community.
1. Cloney, Chris. “2016 Combustible Dust Incident Report (North America) – Version #2” DustEx Research Ltd. 2016. Retrieve from www.dustsafetyscience.com/2016-Report
2. Cloney, Chris. “2017 Combustible Dust Incident Report – Version #1” DustEx Research Ltd. 2017. Retrieved from www.dustsafetyscience.com/2017-Report
3. Cloney, Chris. “2018 Mid-Year Combustible Dust Incident Report – Version #1” DustEx Research Ltd. 2018. Retrieve from www.dustsafetyscience.com/2018-Report
4. U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB). “Investigation Report – Combustible Dust Hazard Study”. Report No 2006-H-1. 2006.
5. CDID incident summary for San Juan, NM, found https://dustsafetyscience.com/coal-fire-san-juan-new-mexico/. | <urn:uuid:b7075293-250d-494a-9511-d8bc202aa285> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.chemengonline.com/combustible-dust-fires-explosions-recent-data-lessons-learned/ | 2024-12-03T11:09:36Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066137897.45/warc/CC-MAIN-20241203102227-20241203132227-00316.warc.gz | en | 0.947502 | 2,744 | 3.03125 | 3 |
12.1.1 Maximising energy efficiency and reducing resource consumption in new development, or retro-fitting existing buildings, can help to reduce CO2 emissions and associated climate change effects. The Borough requires new developments to be as sustainable as possible, and to seek to move towards a low-carbon economy. Ways that development proposals can achieve this include reducing energy demand, and adopting sustainable methods of design and construction.
12.2.1 The River Thames and its tributaries is a dominant feature in the Borough. The Thames forms much of the northern boundary of the Borough and is a feature of eight parishes and an additional five wards. Fluvial flooding and flooding from local sources (for instance, from groundwater, surface water and sewers) are constraints to development in parts of the Borough which have been affected by serious flooding from the River Thames on a number of occasions in the last 100 years, with the risk of flooding predicted to increase as a result of climate change.
12.2.2 The Borough Local Plan (BLP) seeks to minimise the impact of climate change and one of the key ways to achieve this is by adapting to climate change through the careful management of flood risk. This requires local planning authorities to develop policies to manage flood risk from all sources, taking account of advice from the Environment Agency and other relevant flood risk management bodies, such as lead local flood authorities.
12.2.3 How to address the challenge of climate change and flooding is set out in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF). The Planning Practice Guidance (PPG) also advises that the effective implementation of the NPPF on development within areas of flood risk does not remove the presumption in favour of sustainable development. The main source of flood risk in the Borough is fluvial flooding and although the Thames is the largest river in the Borough, there are a number of other watercourses including the Bourne Ditch, the Battle Bourne, Wraysbury and Horton Drains, that can contribute to potential flooding problems in local areas.
12.2.4 The Borough is also at risk of flooding from the Colne Brook, the Colne, the Cut, Strand Water and White Brook as well as a number of streams and ditches. However, flooding may also occur directly from rainfall, rising groundwater, the overwhelming of sewers and drainage systems or potentially from the failing of man-made features such as bunds, reservoirs and reservoir aqueducts, water supply tunnels, man-made lakes, and flood defence assets.
12.2.5 To help reduce flood risk to some urban areas in the Borough, the Jubilee River relief channel was developed, which provides an overflow storage channel for flood water. The Jubilee River scheme extends from Maidenhead to Eton (11.6 km in length), leaving the River Thames at Boulters weir and re-joining immediately upstream of Datchet, and has reduced the area of Maidenhead at risk from severe flooding. It was built as part of the Maidenhead, Windsor and Eton Flood Alleviation scheme, reducing the frequency and severity of flooding to properties within the Borough. The channel is designed to look and function as a natural living river, containing water all year round, and is sensitively landscaped to enhance the environment and create new habitats for wildlife in addition to reducing fluvial flood risk.
12.2.6 There is also a number of formal raised flood defences that affect flooding within the Borough. These include the Cookham Bund, North Maidenhead Bund, Datchet Golf Course, Battle Bourne, Windsor Bourne Flood Storage area embankment and Myrke Embankments.
12.2.7 The Borough has experienced major floods in 1894, 1947 and 2014. Other floods of lesser severity have occurred in 1954, 1959, 1974, 1981, 1990, 2000, 2003, 2007 and 2012. If not effectively managed, new development will affect the severity of flooding due to the resulting physical loss of floodwater storage capacity on a site and by impeding the flow of floodwaters across a site.
12.2.8 As a consequence, the Borough has operated a policy of constraining new development in areas with a high risk from flooding since 1978. This has been supported in an overwhelming number of cases at appeal. Locating inappropriate or poorly designed development in areas at risk of flooding will increase the impact of flooding in the future, putting more people at risk and increase the cost of damages to property
12.2.9 The Borough’s Strategic Flood Risk Assessment (SFRA) Level 1 and Environment Agency (EA) flood maps show that it is predominantly locations along the River Thames that are at highest risk of flooding including, Wraysbury, Old Windsor, Cookham and Windsor. However, some other areas including around Waltham St Lawrence and White Waltham/Paley Street and up to Holyport, have flood risk owing to Twyford Brook and The Cut, which are both tributaries of the River Thames. Fluvial flood risk is therefore a constraint to development in several areas of the Borough which is not necessarily restricted to locations along the River Thames. Regard should be had to the Thames River Basin Management Plan (RBMP) produced by the Environment Agency.
12.2.10 In addition some areas are more prone to experiencing surface water flooding. Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) has introduced the concept of a ‘Surface Water Management Plan’ (SWMP) “which outlines the preferred surface water management strategy in a given location. In this context surface water flooding describes flooding from sewers, drains, groundwater, and runoff from land, small water courses and ditches that occurs as a result of heavy rainfall.
Regulations and guidance
12.2.11 The Flood Risk Regulations 2009 place a duty upon the Borough as a Lead Local Flood Authority to prepare a Preliminary Flood Risk Assessment (PFRA). The PFRA is a high level screening exercise that includes the collection of information on historic flood events, and potential, future, flood events.
12.2.12 The Borough’s PFRA was published in 2009 and the Flood Water Management Act 2010 requires the local authority to provide a Local Flood Risk Management Strategy which will need to include information on how local flood risk is to be managed and the actions that might be taken to manage flood risk. The Borough adopted its strategy in December 2014.
12.2.13 The Government also expects the Council to adopt a sequential risk-based approach to development and flood risk. At all levels of the planning process whether allocating land or when considering planning applications, new development should be steered towards areas at the lowest probability of flooding. The Borough’s Strategic Flood Risk Assessment (SFRA), most recently revised in 2017/18, refines information on the probability of flooding, taking other sources of flooding and the impacts of climate change into account. Applicants will be expected to provide a flood risk assessment for all proposals, including a change of use, in Flood Zones 2 and 3 and for applications over 1 hectare in Flood Zone 1, or ; land which has been identified by the Environment Agency as having critical drainage problems; land identified in a strategic flood risk assessment as being at increased flood risk in future; or land that may be subject to other sources of flooding, where its development would introduce a more vulnerable use.
12.2.14 In making decisions, the vulnerability and locational need of the proposed use should be taken into account. If, following the application of the sequential test, it is not possible, consistent with wider sustainability objectives, for a proposed development to be located in zones of lower probability of flooding, the ‘Exceptions Test’ should be applied where relevant to do so. Further guidance is available in the PPG.
12.2.15 Climate change projections for the UK indicate more frequent short-duration, high-intensity rainfall or more frequent periods of long-duration rainfall. This is likely to mean milder, wetter winters and hotter, drier summers. These changes will have implications for fluvial flooding and local flash flooding; subsequently the Government recognises that this will lead to increased and new risks of flooding within the lifetime of planned developments. In some areas there will also be increased risks from groundwater flooding such as in Datchet.
12.2.16 Fundamental to the BLP strategy is the avoidance of inappropriate development in areas liable to flooding through the adoption of a risk based approach. This approach is translated into 'Policy NR1 Managing Flood Risk and Waterways'. The policy also provides an opportunity to support and safeguard the Maidenhead Waterways and the River Thames Scheme (RTS). Channel 1 of the River Thames Scheme (within the Royal Borough from Datchet to Wraysbury) is not proceeding at present but will continue to be safeguarded in case funding can be secured and this part of the scheme delivered later in the Plan period.
12.2.17 Policy NR1(9) requires that development proposals near rivers should retain or provide an 8 metre buffer zone to ensure there is no increase in flood risk, to provide for maintenance access, and to create undeveloped wildlife corridors. Although this requirement will be strictly applied for main rivers, for ordinary watercourses this will be applied more flexibly and a smaller buffer may be appropriate in some circumstances, depending on the local context.
12.2.18 The Borough will continue to work with the Environment Agency, water companies and other partners and individuals to manage water and flooding matters, to promote development away from areas at risk of flooding. The Borough will work with applicants to ensure that development is appropriately located and does not result in unacceptable flood risk or drainage problems, in the locality or elsewhere. This will involve exploring mitigation measures to ensure that they are suitable, appropriate and economically viable.
Policy NR 1 Managing Flood Risk and Waterways
12.4 Nature Conservation and Biodiversity
12.4.1 Planning has an important and positive role to play in protecting and enhancing the Borough’s biodiversity, including the conservation of protected species, and helping natural systems to adapt to the impact of climate change. This includes ensuring that opportunities for biodiversity improvement are sought and realised as part of development schemes.
12.4.2 Green networks and corridors provide opportunities for physical activity and increase accessibility within settlements and to the surrounding countryside. At the same time they enhance biodiversity and the quality of the external environment, and aid the movement of wildlife across its natural habitat.
12.4.3 Green networks and corridors can encompass many types of feature including grass verges, hedgerows, woodland, parks and many other elements. Planning has an important role to play to ensure that, where possible, development proposals contribute to the creation and enhancement of green corridors and networks.
12.4.4 The Local Plan will give appropriate weight to the roles performed by the area’s soils. These are valued as a finite multi-functional resource which underpins our wellbeing and prosperity. Decisions about development should take full account of the impact on soils, their intrinsic character and the sustainability of the many ecosystem services they deliver.
12.4.5 The plan will seek to safeguard the long term capability of best and most versatile agricultural land (Grades 1, 2 and 3a in the Agricultural Land Classification) as a resource for the future in line with National Planning Policy Framework to safeguard ‘best and most versatile’ agricultural land.
12.4.6 The high quality of the environment is a key feature of the Borough. Significant areas are recognised to be of importance in terms of nature conservation and landscape value. Environmental quality is also a major economic asset, with a healthy environment contributing to a strong local economy. Residents benefit from the high quality of the Borough’s environment, which is also of importance to both tourism and local businesses.
12.4.7 The Green and Blue Infrastructure Study (2019) presents the baseline for the green and blue infrastructure across the Borough, including by identifying and mapping biodiversity designations and priority habitats. It also sets out opportunities for improving biodiversity and green infrastructure, including through joining these assets into a more connected Nature Recovery Network and through urban greening. Taking account of this and other evidence, the Council is expected to adopt a Biodiversity Action Plan by the end of 2021 and the creation of a Nature Recovery Network forms part of its action plan. This evidence can and should be drawn on by developers in demonstrating that proposals can meet the requirements of Policy NR2 and NR3, including identifying areas for biodiversity improvements and avoiding the fragmentation of existing habitats.
12.4.8 The Borough’s ecological value is reflected in a number of international, national and local designations. International designations afford the highest level of protection. Those that apply to the Borough are Special Protection Areas (SPA), Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) and Ramsar sites (wetlands of international importance). National designations that apply in the Borough comprise Sites of Special Scientific Interest, while Local Wildlife Sites, formerly known as Wildlife Heritage Sites are designated at a local level.
12.4.9 These sites are designated independently from the Local Plan process. International designations often overlap in that more than one designation applies to a particular site. Sites in the area that currently have SPA and SAC designations are shown on the Policies Map and all international designations within the Borough are shown in below. Other, national designations also apply to many of these sites.
International designation |
Area wholly or partially within the Borough |
Chiltern Beechwoods SAC |
Bisham Woods |
South West London Water Bodies SPA and Ramsar |
Wraysbury and Hythe End Gravel Pits and Wraysbury No. 1 Gravel Pit |
Thames Basin Heaths SPA |
Chobham Common |
Thursley, Ash, Pirbright and Chobham SAC |
Chobham Common |
Windsor Forest and Great Park SAC |
Windsor Forest and Great Park |
Table 16 : International designations
Policy NR 2 Nature Conservation and Biodiversity
12.6.1 Trees, woodlands and hedgerows are an essential component of the Borough’s natural and built environment and make a major contribution to its green character. They bring considerable environmental, social and economic benefits, providing amenity value and benefits beyond contributing to the character and identity of varied landscapes.
12.6.2 They can help mitigate the impacts of climate change, improve air quality, reduce wind speeds, enhance biodiversity and help prevent flash floods. They play a major role in shaping the Borough’s environment and people’s appreciation of it.
12.6.3 They are an integral feature of landscapes and rural settings across the Borough, helping to achieve the objective of conserving and enhancing the special qualities of the Borough’s built and natural environment. Their loss either individually or cumulatively can have a significant impact on the character and amenity of an area.
12.6.4 Trees, woodlands and hedgerows have an important contribution to make towards protecting and enhancing the quality of the townscape, and achieving the highest quality of urban design. Similarly, trees and hedgerows in the urban fringe contribute significantly to landscape, historic, biodiversity and recreational values. Since unsuitable species, such as Leyland Cypress, may have an anti-social effect in the future, it is expected that planting schemes will carefully consider the selection of species. Native species of local provenance to be planted where appropriate.
12.6.5 A number of trees and woodlands in the Borough are designated for their amenity or landscape value, and have ‘Tree Preservation Orders’ or are afforded protection if within conservation areas. Similarly, countryside hedgerows considered important for their landscape, historical or wildlife value may be protected against removal within the scope of the Hedgerow Regulations 1997.
12.6.6 The retention of existing trees on a development site can help to soften the impact of new buildings and structures, as well as provide enhanced amenity and reduce the impact of vehicles in terms of noise and pollution. Trees and hedgerows, both new and existing, make an important contribution to the townscape of the Borough.
12.6.7 The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead Tree and Woodland Strategy 2010-2020, which is due to be refreshed in 2021, provides the evidence base for trees and woodlands in the Royal Borough. It aims to ensure that trees and woodland contribute to a high quality natural environment and help to shape the built environment and new development in a way that strengthens the positive character and diversity of the Borough. The Green and Blue Infrastructure Study (2019) adds that within the urban context, street trees contribute to mitigating the urban heat island effect and therefore contribute to building the Borough's resilience to climate change.
Policy NR 3 Trees, Woodlands and Hedgerows
12.8.1 A wide variety of valuable wildlife habitats exist in the Borough, including wetlands, Ancient Woodland and unimproved grasslands. Such a diverse range of habitats aids the survival of numerous species of flora and fauna, as well as enhancing the character and appearance of the rural environment. There are also areas which provide a nature conservation resource in urban areas, which can be of particular local value and amenity. This diversity of habitat is recognised by a number of official conservation designations in the Borough. These site designations are put in place independently of the Local Plan process, often by external bodies.
12.8.2 Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) are designated by Natural England as the very best wildlife and geological sites in the country. They support plants and animals that find it more difficult to survive in the wider countryside. Eleven such sites have been designated in the Borough, as follows:
12.8.3 Some SSSIs have further designations as Special Areas of Conservation (SACs), Special Protection Areas (SPAs) or Ramsar sites. These are areas that have been given special protection under the European Union’s Habitats Directive. SACs provide increased protection to a variety of wild animals, plants and habitats and are a vital part of global efforts to conserve the world’s biodiversity. SPAs are areas that have been identified as being of international importance for the breeding, feeding, wintering or the migration of rare and vulnerable species of birds, while Ramsar sites are those that are of international importance as wetlands. Conserving habitats is a positive measure to aid the protected species and others that use them.
12.8.4 Local Wildlife Sites are non-statutory sites of significant value for the conservation of wildlife. They are identified by the Thames Valley Environmental Records Centre, with formal designation being made by the Borough.
12.8.5 Local Wildlife Sites protect threatened habitats, which in turn protects the species making use of them. These habitats can act as buffers, stepping stones and corridors between nationally-designated wildlife sites. River corridors are an important part of green corridors and networks along with their buffer zones.
12.9.1 The Borough is committed to maintaining, protecting and enhancing the nature conservation resource in the Borough. It is important to ensure appropriate access to areas of wildlife importance and identify areas where there is the opportunity for biodiversity to be improved. Such opportunities, including restoring and creating links between sites, large-scale habitat restoration, enhancement and re-creation, should be pursued through development proposals.
12.9.2 The Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area is a European designated site which is accorded priority protection and conservation. Policy NR4 Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area reflects the unique legal and ecological issues arising from the Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area and the potential for development to have an adverse impact on its integrity. It expands on the protection offered by Policy NR2: Nature Conservation and Biodiversity and implements a solution to enable the potential adverse effects of development to be mitigated.
12.9.3 The Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area (SPA) is designated under European Directives 79/409/EEC and 92/43/EEC because it offers breeding and feeding sites to populations of three heathland species of birds ; the Dartford warbler, Nightjar and Woodlark. It is a fragmented area extending across several local authority areas, and a small part of the Chobham Common section lies within the Borough at Sunningdale.
12.9.4 The five kilometre zone of influence of the SPA extends across eleven local authority areas. It covers much of the southern part of the Borough, including the settlements of Sunninghill, Sunningdale, Cheapside and most of Ascot.
12.9.5 The designation has a major impact on the potential for residential development both within the SPA and the areas adjoining it. New development which, either alone or in combination with other plans or projects, is likely to have a significant effect on the integrity of the SPA, requires an Appropriate Assessment under the Habitats Regulations. Judgements of whether the integrity of the site is likely to be adversely and significantly affected should be made in relation to the features for which the European site was designated and their conservation objectives according to the statutory requirements of the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2010.
12.9.6 Natural England has identified that net additional housing development up to five kilometres from the SPA, and large-scale housing development up to seven kilometres from the SPA, are likely to have a significant effect, either alone or in combination with other plans or projects, on the integrity of the SPA. Within this zone of influence, mitigation measures are required.
12.9.7 Similarly, Natural England has identified that an exclusion zone for new housing of 400 metres linear distance from the SPA is appropriate, as mitigation measures are unlikely to be effective so close to the SPA. To enable residential development within the zone of influence but outside the exclusion zone to come forward in a timely and efficient manner, this policy sets out the extent of mitigation measures required.
12.9.8 The Thames Basin Heaths Joint Strategic Partnership Board (made up of elected representatives from the local authorities affected by the Thames Basin Heaths SPA) has endorsed a Delivery Framework Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area Delivery Framework, 2009, which sets out a strategy for mitigating the impacts of development on the SPA. This framework explains that effective mitigation measures should comprise a combination of providing suitable areas for recreational use by residents (to draw recreational visits away from the SPA) and actions to monitor and manage access to the SPA itself. Such measures must be operational prior to occupation of new residential development, so as to ensure the integrity of the SPA is not damaged.
12.10.1 An alternative area for residents to use for recreation, in the form of a strategic Suitable Alternative Natural Greenspace (SANG), has been provided in the Borough at Allen’s Field, south of Ascot. This 9.5 hectare site has been assessed as having the capacity to mitigate the impact of 462 new dwellings. The Council monitors permissions issued and developments commenced, and will use this work to ensure that no permissions are issued in excess of the mitigation capacity of Allen’s Field.
12.10.2 While capacity remains, the Allen’s Field SANG can be used to mitigate the impact of any sized residential development proposal within two kilometres of its boundary and inside the Borough. Proposals for fewer than ten dwellings do not need to fall within a relevant SANG catchment area, thus the Allen's Field SANG can also be used to mitigate the impact of proposals for a net increase of fewer than ten dwellings within five kilometres of the SPA and inside the Borough. The SPA includes a five kilometre zone of influence and 400 metre exclusion zone.
12.10.3 Future levels of housing development expected in the area of influence of the SPA will require appropriate mitigation and it is likely that new SANG land will need to be identified in the future. The Council will work with partner organisations to deliver an appropriate level of SANG mitigation to mitigate the impact of new development.
12.10.4 Land is identified on the Policies Map as a southern extension to Allen's Field that will increase its mitigation capacity by 84 dwellings. Further new SANG may be identified in due course subject to agreement with Natural England and the landowner. In certain circumstances, SANG land within Bracknell Forest can be used by developments located within the Royal Borough. Bracknell Forest Council supports development sites in the Royal Borough utilising SANG that is controlled by third party landowners in Bracknell Forest. However, this additional SANG source can only be utilised if the development site (comprising 10 dwellings or more) lies within the relevant Bracknell SANG catchment zone (4km or 5km, depending on the size of the SANG). For small windfall sites of 9 dwellings or fewer, there is no SANG distance catchment limit.
12.10.5 Where large developments are proposed, bespoke SANG mitigation may be necessary. Applicants should engage positively with Natural England to discuss appropriate mitigation, in light of the particular location and characteristics of the development proposed.
12.10.6 Measures proposed will be assessed on their own merits through the Habitats Regulations process. The mitigation measures adopted should be agreed with both the Council and Natural England, and secured by legal agreement. SANG size and associated catchment criteria are specified in the Thames Basin Heaths SPA Supplementary Planning Document.
12.11.1 Access management is delivered in the form of the Strategic Access Management and Monitoring project (SAMM). This project is provided at a strategic level, to ensure a consistent approach is used across the Thames Basin Heaths SPA and that improvements to one site do not have an adverse impact on others.
12.11.2 It delivers a suite of measures to monitor use of the SPA and manage access through a combination of education, surveys and physical works. To ensure appropriate provision for SAMM, contributions from development proposals across all authorities affected by the SPA are collected and pooled. Natural England is currently responsible for delivering the project across all relevant areas.
12.11.3 The Council has produced a Supplementary Planning Document on the application of mitigation measures regarding the SPA. This guidance will be revised and updated after adoption of the BLP.
Policy NR 4 Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area
Future SANG Provision
12.13.1 Planning can make a significant contribution to both mitigating and adapting to climate change, through decision-making on the location, scale, mix and character of development. The 2008 Planning Act introduced a duty on local development plans to include policies which ensure that they make a contribution to both climate change mitigation and adaptation. Reflecting this, one of the plan's objectives is to ensure that new development takes into account the need to mitigate the impacts of climate change.
12.13.2 National policy states that local planning authorities should adopt proactive strategies to mitigate and adapt to climate change, that planning should provide resilience to the impacts of climate change, and support the delivery of renewable and low carbon energy and associated infrastructure. It also states that planning should support the transition to a low carbon future in a changing climate and encourage the use of renewable resources, for example by the development of renewable energy.
12.13.3 Applications for renewable energy may include solar farms, wind turbines, weir hydro-power, biomass, district heating, combined heat and power (CHP) from renewable resources and others. The visual impact of solar farms on the landscape and other sensitive areas will be a key consideration in determining applications.
12.13.4 Applications for biomass infrastructure should consider the transportation and the feasibility of combined heat and power. The Borough will generally be supportive of hydro-electric turbines along the River Thames.
12.13.5 A Written Statement by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government set out new considerations to be applied to proposed wind energy developments. It stated that when determining applications for wind energy development involving one or more turbines, local planning authorities should only grant permission if:
12.13.6 The Statement set out that maps showing the wind resource as favourable to wind turbines will not be sufficient and that suitable areas for wind energy development will need to have been clearly allocated in a Local or Neighbourhood Plan. The Borough commissioned a survey to assess potentially suitable and unsuitable sites for wind energy development across the Borough. Wind development suitability was assessed using mapping software to screen the Borough based on three key planning constraints:
12.13.7 In accordance with Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) guidance designated landscapes (National Parks, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs)) and international and national nature conservation areas (SPA, SACs, SSSIs etc.) should not be excluded as potential wind energy development sites. However, it is recognised that such designations are a constraint to wind energy development and wind energy developments will not normally be permitted in these areas.
12.13.8 Any wind energy proposals located within these designations will be assessed through the decision making process on planning applications and have not been used to determine areas classified as suitable or unsuitable for the purposes of the mapping exercise. Designations which have been identified as areas which are unsuitable for wind energy development include Ancient Woodland, Semi Natural Ancient Woodland, Scheduled Ancient Monuments and Registered Parks and Gardens.
12.13.9 Maps have been produced to illustrate the potential suitability for wind energy development across the Borough including one for small scale wind development(<50m in turbine height) and medium/large scale wind development (≥50 m in turbine tip height).
12.13.10 Wind energy proposals of more than 50 megawatts are currently decided by the Secretary of State for Energy with the Local Authority a statutory consultee. National guidance has indicated that the government intends to amend legislation to allow all onshore wind energy proposals to be determined by local authorities.
Policy NR 5 Renewable Energy Generation Schemes
12.15.1 Minerals are an important, and finite, natural resource. It is important that viable mineral resources are "safeguarded" (protected) from unnecessary sterilization by non-mineral development. The emerging Joint Central and Eastern Berkshire Minerals and Waste Plan will identify Mineral Safeguarding Areas and encourage the prior extraction of minerals wherever possible and viable. | <urn:uuid:6c449963-6837-463c-a966-370958ef624d> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.planvu.co.uk/rbwm/written/blp/cpt12.php | 2024-12-12T00:27:35Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066097081.29/warc/CC-MAIN-20241212000506-20241212030506-00310.warc.gz | en | 0.935434 | 6,275 | 2.890625 | 3 |
Were Vikings in South America Over 400 Years Before Columbus?
Here is presented the widely dismissed account that probably sometime in the mid-11th century, Danish Vikings from Schleswig and the Danelaw (as ascertained from runic rock inscriptions) arrived at Santos in Brazil and proceeded inland to Paraguay. From a fortified hill near the Brazilian border, they occupied a defensive position for some part of two centuries, keeping watch on a nearby small mountain. It has been reported that in the 20th century, beneath the mountain under observation, was discovered a large area whose walls and roof are built of concrete unknown to science and cannot be opened but are believed to conceal a network of tunnels. The following unravels the story presented by just a few advocates, of Vikings in South America. Like so many of these tales, it needs further investigation to enable verification, but nonetheless, it provides food for thought.
The Vikings in South America
Academic historians generally do not admit the presence of European visitors to South America until after the arrival of Christopher Columbus. Therefore for them, all talk of Vikings travelling anywhere south of Nova Scotia before 1492 AD is not even hypothetical but pure fiction. In order to maintain this pretense, historians have found it necessary to discard what might be to others common sense and replace it with a preposterous theory. The best example of this is: The Case of the Bundsö Sheepdogs .
It was the custom of the pre-conquest Incas to be mummified with their dogs. A variety of dogs found in graves at Ancon, Chile, by Professor Nehring in 1885 was analyzed by two French zoologists in the 1950s who determined that this variety could not be descended from the wild dogs of South America. They matched them to Canis familiaris L.patustris Rut of which numerous skeletal remains have been discovered, all at Bundsö on the Danish island of Als/Jutland.
The anatomical coincidence being deemed perfect, the difficulty then lay in accounting for how these Danish dogs got to South America before the Spanish Conquest . The French scientists got their heads together and decided that: "the Danish Vikings must have given some of their Bundsö sheepdogs to Norwegian Vikings who took them to Vinland. When the Norwegians were ejected from Vinland by the natives, the dogs must have been carried from Vinland to modern Canada where they must have been passed from hand to hand ever southwards by tribes which did not want them, involving travel by land and sea and then climbing mountains into Peru where they were adopted by the Incas."
This nonsensical explanation was the only scientific theory available, that is, that would fit with the accepted history of the finding of the Americas. But if that account were wrong, a more common sense explanation might be that the Danish Vikings brought the dogs with them when they sailed to South America from Europe in the eleventh century.
The Viking Protectorate in Paraguay?
In 1085 AD, King Knut II had 1700 ships for the "western expansion". For the greater distances involved, a special type of woolen sail, which had been developed for greater speed and sailing much closer to the wind, as proved in experiments by Amy Lightfoot with the Viking Ship Museum, Roskilde. Strangely for Europeans so far from home in the 11th century, the Danish-Schleswig Vikings in this account seemed to know exactly where they were heading.
They came ashore at Santos, Brazil, found the path which had been long previously prepared, and made their way on foot to uplands located at Amambay, 25 kilometers (16 mi) south-east of the modern town of Pedro Juan Caballero in Paraguay.
The Cerro Corá is a ring of three small mountains five kilometers (3 mi) across. Three kilometers (1.9 mi) north of this ring is the mountain Itaguambype , which means ‘fortress’. Long before the supposed arrival of the Vikings, it had been hollowed out to make one, hence its name.
The anthropologist who investigated the area in the 1970s, Jacques de Mahieu, was a French – Argentinian anthropologist and leader of the Spanish neo-Nazi group CEDADE, who has proposed various Pre-Columbian contact theories, and claimed that certain indigenous groups in South America are descended from Vikings. Through his observations, he decided that, at some indefinite time in the past, the construction’s purpose must have been some kind of military observation post large enough for a settlement or a refuge.
The low mountain Itaguambype lies on a north-south axis. It is two kilometers (1.2 mi) in length and one hundred meters (328 ft) high. The ex-fortress is a section cut off at the south end, 300 meters (984 ft) long with a 20-meter-wide (66-ft) opening for access. The sides are of natural rock, a quarter of the way up from the ground with above it blocks of unequal-size, stone tailored to fit together perfectly smoothly in the manner similar to anti-earthquake walls in Peru and Bolivia.
Along the crest a 3-meter-wide (10-ft) flat path runs; at the southern extremity is a platform with the ruins of a round lookout tower raised 5 meters (16 ft) above the crest for a panorama of the entire territory but particularly Cerro Corá. The fortress would have been abandoned either in about 1250 AD, when a native rebellion succeeded in expelling the Vikings, or earlier, once it had served its true purpose.
Of additional interest in the area is the Norse temple at Tacuati excavated in the 1970s, and the fact that the total of engraved runic inscriptions in Paraguay runs in the thousands and exceeds that of all Scandinavia: 71 have been translated from the South American Futhorc dialect. One 5-letter runic inscription was found inside Itaguambype but has defied translation.
700 Years Later - Fritz Berger Investigates
Fritz Berger was a 50-year-old mechanical engineer, a native of what was then the Sudetenland. He admitted that he suffered mental disturbances from time to time. He wandered South America doing odd jobs, and during the War of the Chaco between Paraguay and Brazil in 1932-1935 served the Paraguayan Army in one of their workshops reconditioning captured enemy weapons. From 1935 until 1940 he stated that he prospected unsuccessfully for oil deposits in the Brazilian State of Paraná, but more likely in this period he gathered the information leading to the investigation which followed.
In February 1940, Berger crossed into Paraguay at the Pedro Juan Caballero border post and contacted the Army of Paraguay. Simply as a result of what he told them, they agreed to form a company with him known as Agrupación Geológica y Archaeológica (AGA). A clause in the agreement stipulated that the treasure trove was the property of Paraguay. The Paraguayan signatory was Major Samaniego, later the Paraguayan Minister of Defense.
At the heart of this contract was the Legend of the White King of Amambay. The tradition relates:
"In those days there reigned in this region a powerful and wise king called Ipir. He was white and wore a long blond beard. With men of his race and Indian warriors loyal to him, he lived in a community situated on the crest of a mountain. He possessed fearsome weapons and had immense riches in gold and silver. One day however he was attacked by savage tribes and disappeared for ever. That is what my father told me, who had heard it from his father."
The reader should note here that King Ipir was never identified, and his followers "disappeared" and there is no suggestion that they were massacred.
Berger had a female correspondent in Munich to whom he wrote occasionally describing the developments in Paraguay, possibly for passing on to the German government, and copies of these letters passed into the possession of de Mahieu much later for inclusion in his book. In May 1940 Berger wrote to Munich mentioning that he knew of tunnels in the Cerro Corá area "130 kilometers long" (81 mi). By October 1941, he had drawn up a plan of the subterranean installations and sketches of four tunnels, including careful measurements but insufficient information to identify the locations of the various entrances.
The Mysterious Bald Mountain and Impenetrable Slab
On another day in 1940, based on mysterious information he probably brought with him from Brazil, Berger "happened to notice" a great rock forty meters (131 ft) in height in the direction ten kilometers (6 mi) south-south-east of Cerro Corá. The rock was in two parts and covered in dense vegetation halfway up. For this reason the natives called it Yvyty Pero - "Bald Mountain".
Berger's secret reasons for wanting to dig there convinced Major Samaniego to set up a permanent military encampment with wooden houses within twenty meters (66 ft) of Bald Mountain, and he also renamed the range of hills "Cerro Ipir". Once his sappers began excavating, to their surprise they reportedly found "a piece of gold in a triangular shape, which appeared to be the broken corner of a table" and "a walking stick with a gold head."
After that the rainy season set in, impeding progress by flooding: the excavation was suspended once all explosives available could not damage a great slab of reinforced concrete encountered at the level of the mountain floor eighteen meters (59 ft) down. At this point, de Mahieu leaves us guessing what happened next in the year from "the end of 1941" until "the end of 1942" during which time the Third Reich became involved and appears to have agreed to send to Paraguay a special kind of pneumatic drill. We know this because in November 1942, US agents reported to their naval attaché at Montevideo the arrival of a German U-boat at the Argentine naval base of Bahia Blanca and this coincided with the unexplained visit there by Major Pablo Stagni, Commander-in-Chief of the Paraguayan Air Force, known to the Americans as the German agent "Hermann."
Following this ‘coincidence’, according to Berger, in December 1942 work at Bald Mountain resumed. The Paraguayan sappers worked into the mountainside obliquely to connect with the vertical shaft. At 23 meters (75 ft), they encountered again the huge slab of concrete, which could not even be scratched by the drill or explosives and was now described as "a definitely artificial material harder than reinforced concrete and unknown to science." After further attempts in 1944 were thwarted for the same reason, the excavation was abandoned. Fritz Berger died in Brazil in 1949. This part of Amambay is inaccessible today as a military area.
So, to tie together this theory, using legend, possible runic evidence, and Nazi involvement, long before the 11th century, the rich and powerful white king Ipir and his followers, unknown to the world's historians, inhabited the crest of the mountain fortress Itaguambype. When attacked by an overwhelmingly superior force of natives, Ipir and his court retired to safety below Bald Mountain. Perhaps the Vikings were sent to Amambay later to protect and oversee the installation of the impenetrable concrete roof and sides over the portal below Bald Mountain.
What is interesting about this story is that all the main actors are hiding something. All academic historians and scientists, some knowingly, adhere to the apparent lie that no European reached southern America before Columbus in 1492. Therefore, "no Vikings could have been there". Fritz Berger never revealed the source of his information about Bald Mountain and the network of tunnels extending cross-country from beneath it, but when he crossed into Paraguay from Brazil he knew for sure exactly where he was going and so did the Paraguayan Army.
The author, anthropologist/archaeologist Jacques de Mahieu, an outcaste from the scientific fraternity for having been an officer in the French Waffen-SS Division, perhaps revealed much ‘hidden history’, they would prefer he had not mentioned. Decades after the war, the SS oath he had sworn bound him, and there were still official German secrets with regard to which he was obliged to remain silent. Therefore in his book, he omitted any mention of the year 1942 and details of where the pneumatic drill had come from.
The Third Reich was in the middle of a major war, which it was already in danger of losing. Its outcome depended on the Battle of the Atlantic, yet they could spare a U-boat to detour to Argentina with a pneumatic drill for an archaeological dig in Paraguay. Probably they did not care two hoots for King Ipir and so their interest was in two things:
(i) They needed the tiniest chip of the reputedly impenetrable concrete roof and walls of the underground refuge for scientific analysis to obtain the formula.
(ii) They needed to know where the tunnel beneath Bald Mountain led? Was the mountain one of the portals into the Vril world or similar?
Top image: Representation of Vikings in South America. Source: Nejron Photo / Adobe stock | <urn:uuid:0ab68a7e-237d-4f70-aba5-ed69875bc25e> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.ancientoriginsunleashed.com/p/were-vikings-in-south-america-over?open=false#%C2%A7the-vikings-in-south-america | 2024-12-01T19:35:56Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066036672.6/warc/CC-MAIN-20241201192453-20241201222453-00144.warc.gz | en | 0.972523 | 2,758 | 3.3125 | 3 |
NOTE: The following was written for the Tenth Anniversary Edition of Street Design, The Secret To Great Cities and Towns, where it will appear in a shorter version. This version still needs a little editing for its new context. Part 1 is another essay from Street Design, “Location, Location, Location, Location, Location, Location: Affordable Housing and Urban Form in Manhattan.”
The subject of height limits is relevant in any discussion of street design and urban design. While discussing East 70th Street, let’s briefly look at the planning regulations and building laws that contributed to the design of “the most beautiful block in New York.” The towers of the New York City skyline are world famous, but few stop to think that the tall towers were mainly office buildings. Until the 19th century, practicality limited buildings of all types to six or seven stories, because climbing to the top of taller buildings was too difficult as an everyday activity. By the 1870s, increasing use of safety elevators and steel-frame construction* meant that new office buildings could be as tall as eight to ten stories. New Yorkers began to worry about the effect that tall residential buildings might have in residential neighborhoods.
Common law traditions suggested that homeowners had a right to the sunlight that would “naturally” reach their land. Many residents of New York feared the shadows from tall buildings: in the 1880s they commissioned studies of “the high building question” and asked the city and the state to impose a moratorium on tall buildings. The New York State Legislature responded in 1885 with a bill limiting the heights of residential buildings in New York to 70 feet on side streets and narrow streets and 80 feet on avenues and wide streets.
Interestingly, 70 feet was the same number ancient Rome used in the year 64 AD, while Georges-Eugène Haussmann set lower height limits in Paris in 1859. Haussmannian boulevards 20 meters wide were lined with grand apartment houses 20 meters tall (65 ½ feet). Buildings on narrower streets were limited to 57 ½ feet.
A series of Tenement House Acts, building laws, and fire laws regulated the design and construction of residential buildings with multiple dwellings after 1867. With the rise of new technology and safety elevators, New York City raised residential building heights to 1½ times the street width or 150 feet, whichever was less (as mentioned above in “Height & Density: Quality & Quantity”). But not until thirty-one years after New York first limited the height of residential buildings, did the city famously pass America’s first zoning in 1916, similarly regulating non-residential buildings.
In other words, New York City controlled the height of residential buildings long before it passed zoning regulations that controlled the height of commercial buildings, which it allowed to be larger and bulkier. The old laws and regulations for residential buildings continued to apply until New York State passed the Multiple Dwelling Law of 1929.
There were three primary reasons New York wanted height limits for residential buildings and neighborhoods that were lower than the limits for office buildings in business districts: for different fire-safety conditions; for more natural light and ventilation in the apartments and on the streets; and to maintain a visible and psychological connection to the street from the apartments. The last deserves more consideration today, when developers are mounting a strong attack on height limits.
The 1929 Multiple Dwelling Law allowed one-hundred-and-fifty-foot towers on top of a one-hundred-and-fifty-foot base, if the building lot was thirty-thousand square feet or bigger and the adjoining street was wide enough. After the stock market crash in the same year limited the development of new buildings in New York City, however, only a handful of the three-hundred-foot towers were ever built. The Great Depression, World War II, and the move to the suburbs that followed the war meant that few new luxury buildings were built until New York’s 1961 Zoning Resolution, which favored taller buildings with plazas on the street. Tower construction costs were too high for low-income buildings until post-war Modernism introduced bare-bones construction paid for by Federal funding that dictated “towers in the parks” in projects built by the New York City Housing Authority.
The Multiple Dwelling Law did not limit the 300-foot towers to one-sided streets like Riverside Drive and Central Park South that face open spaces, but with one exception, all the towers were built on Central Park West, facing Manhattan’s largest park. The four buildings on Central Park West all had twin towers above podiums that maintained the streetwall. A Fifth Avenue association prevented the development of equally tall towers on the other side of Central Park [TKTK to be verified]. Today we can only guess that builders thought 300-foot towers wouldn’t sell on other wide-open streets like Riverside Drive.
Residential buildings on smaller lots or narrower streets could be slightly higher than before 1929, but only if they included steep setbacks above the old height limits. The new buildings maintained the street wall and the cornice line of the street established by previous regulations at the same time they provided penthouse terraces and dramatic tops. Developers built several examples on Park Avenue, a street of luxury apartments that was also extra-wide. One example is at the end of the block of East 70th Street that we are discussing (720 Park Avenue, Figure 2.TKTK).
New York’s planners wanted to keep a visual connection to the street from the apartments and also wanted to give apartment dwellers at least a glimpse of the sky. Tall buildings on residential sixty-foot-wide side streets would have made the streets feel dark and enclosed, and keeping the distance between the street and the sky small minimized the sense of peering into the neighbors’ apartments across the street. Street trees screen from view the apartments across the way.
Part of the impetus for the Multiple Dwelling Law was a widespread belief in New York that during the building boom of the 1920s, when new buildings were in great demand, developers took advantage of a loophole for apartment-hotel buildings. Apartment hotels could be taller, but the unwritten rule before 1929 was that they would be in business districts. The best examples were built in business areas on squares and wide streets.
Today, the Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY) wants to build to the sky in the most profitable locations in the city. REBNY is the most powerful donor and lobbying group in New York, and some of the super-luxury, supertall towers on the recently built Billionaire’s Row below Central Park are the most profitable buildings in the history of the city. REBNY has lobbied the Governor and state legislators to remove all height restrictions across the state. Of course there is no market in most of the state or even most of the city for expensive supertall towers. Despite the arguments they make to remove all height restrictions, the reasons are almost entirely about making a profit in a few already-expensive neighborhoods, not about housing supply or making New York City a better place to live.
The largest of the new towers is 1,550 feet tall. Supertall towers like that drive land prices to new levels, and only the most expensive apartments can cover the land costs and the high price of tower construction. They steal sunlight in Central Park at all hours of the day towers and are symbols of conspicuous consumption and income inequality, visible from many parts of the city and even the suburbs.
[TKTK Caption]Figure 1.27: West 74th Street, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, looking towards Central Park. The rowhouses and the apartment house on the street were limited to ninety feet by the width of the street. But the San Remo apartment house on Central Park West, seen at the end of the block, followed the 1929 regulations. [TKTK end of caption]
[TKTK this is an asterisk FOOTNOTE] * Before steel frame construction, “tall” buildings had load-bearing masonry walls that held up the building and everything in it. The taller a building was, the thicker the walls needed to be on the lower levels. The thickness of the wall on the lower floors became a limiting factor in construction.
See Michael R. Montgomery, “Keeping the Tenants Down: Height Restrictions and Manhattan’s Tenement House System, 1885–1930,” Cato Journal, vol. 22(3): 502-3, https://ciaotest.cc.columbia.edu/olj/cato/v22n3/cato_v22n3mom01.pdf. Montgomery, op cit, . Montgomery’s article for the Libertarian Cato Institute takes the position that all zoning is restrictive, raising costs and lowering supply. He ignores that in a normal market, tall buildings increase land costs and construction costs, the two most important factors in the cost of any new building. Montgomery also states that more apartments would have lowered costs throughout the history of New York, but he provides no proof.
J. Ford, Slums and Housing (with Special Reference to New York City): History, Conditions, Policy (Harvard, 1936): 502-503.
S.B. Landau and C.W. Condit, Rise of the New York Skyscraper, 1865–1913 (Yale, 1996): 112.
For the New York State Multiple Dwelling Law, see https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=nnc1.ar53650689&view=1up&seq=6.
In 2022, New York Governor Kathy Hochul asked the New York State Legislature to remove height limits on new building across the state. See “URGENT: Hochul Plan to Lift Residential Density Limit in NYC Advances to State Budget; Write Legislators in Opposition TODAY!,” Village Preservation, February 7, 2022, https://nylandmarks.org/news/budget-victory-stops-state-from-lifting-12-far-ca/ and “Budget Victory Stops State From Lifting 12 FAR CAP,” The New York Landmarks Committee, https://nylandmarks.org/news/budget-victory-stops-state-from-lifting-12-far-ca/.
In practice, there was room to modify the formula. The base of the San Remo is taller than fifteen stories, because terraces and setbacks crown the podium. The towers were ten stories tall, but elaborate, uninhabited tops made the buildings taller than 300 feet. After the 1961 Zoning Resolution, the tops were converted to penthouse apartments.
Until Federal Title I funding authorized by the Slum Clearance Act required Robert Moses to build Modern towers, Moses preferred traditional low- and mid-rise buildings. But Moses embraced the Title I funding that enabled his urban renewal plans in New York City. TKTK link to Washington Square South.
The only other 300-foot-tall apartment building enabled by the Multiple Dwelling Law was the River House, which stood on the East River with its own dock before Robert Moses built the Franklin D. Roosevelt East River Drive. Built in 1931, the building went into foreclosure 10 years later: see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_House_(New_York_City). The River House was not an apartment hotel, even though it included the River Club in the base of the building on the river side. Two notable apartment hotels built before the Multiple Dwelling Law of 1929 were the Master Building on Riverside Drive, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Master_Apartments, and One Fifth Avenue, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Fifth_Avenue_(Manhattan).
The twin-tower apartment houses were the Century, the Majestic, the San Remo, and the Eldorado. Architect Emery Roth designed the latter two, as well as another apartment building on Central Park West that was taller than 150 feet. That was the Beresford, completed in 1929. The history of the Beresford is murky, however. It was apparently owned by a notoriously corrupt bank that went bankrupt in 1931. It is too tall to have been built as an apartment house, and there is no record that it was approved as an apartment hotel. It is the type of 1920s residential construction that led to the Multiple Dwelling Law. For the history of the Beresford, see Christopher Gray, “Streetscapes/The San Remo; 400-Foot-High Twin Towers of Central Park West,” New York Times, December 19, 1999, https://www.nytimes.com/1999/12/19/realestate/streetscapes-the-san-remo-400-foot-high-twin-towers-of-central-park-west.html. For Emery Roth’s buildings on Centeral Park West, also see Paul Goldberger, “Design Notebook,” New York Times, February 16, 1978, https://www.nytimes.com/1978/02/16/archives/design-notebook-emery-roth-dominated-the-age-of-apartment-buildings.html.
The Master Building on Riverside Drive (footnote TKTK above) was a genuine apartment hotel, built in 1926-27 by the artist Nicholas Roerich with artist studios, all with small pantries rather than kitchens. Between 1929 and 1961, however, most apartment construction consisted of rehabbing luxury buildings. Insurance companies and banks foreclosed on many buildings during the Depression. When World War 2 began, they frequently replaced large luxury apartments in existing buildings with smaller apartments that increased the housing stock in New York without increasing building size.
See note TKTK in this chapter. [currently new footnote 22, which begins, “In 2022, New York Governor Kathy Hochul asked…”] | <urn:uuid:777464ab-93eb-44cc-a347-6a8382155ff4> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://blog.massengale.com/2023/03/23/nycresheight/ | 2024-12-05T22:39:37Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066365120.83/warc/CC-MAIN-20241205211311-20241206001311-00530.warc.gz | en | 0.956362 | 2,916 | 3.0625 | 3 |
Venezuela hasn’t failed because of low oil prices or because of economic sanctions imposed by the USA. Once again, we have seen a socialist experiment fail – an experiment that was hailed by left-wing politicians and intellectuals around the world just a few years ago. Here is an excerpt from the 2018 book by the German historian and sociologist Rainer Zitelmann, The Power of Capitalism, on the events that led to Venezuela’s collapse.
Venezuela’s reversal of economic fortune started in the 1970s. The reasons why this happened are subject to an intense and ongoing debate between academic experts. Venezuela’s strong dependency on oil is a prime suspect along with a number of other reasons, first and foremost the unusually high degree of government regulation of the labour market. From 1974 onwards, the applicable rules were tightened even further to a level that was unprecedented almost anywhere else in the world – let alone Latin America. From adding the equivalent of 5.35 months’ wages to the cost of employing someone in 1972, non-wage labor costs soared to add the equivalent of 8.98 months’ wages in 1992.
These factors exacerbated the problems frequently facing countries whose economies are largely dependent on exports of natural resources. Many Venezuelans put their faith in the charismatic socialist leader Hugo Chávez as the saviour who would deliver their country from corruption, poverty and economic decline. Following a failed attempt to seize power in 1992, Chávez was elected president in 1998. A year later, the Republic of Venezuela was renamed the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (República Bolivariana de Venezuela) at his behest. A beacon of hope for many of Venezuela’s poor, Chávez’s talk of a new kind of ‘21st-century socialism’ also reawakened dreams of a utopian paradise among members of the European and North American left.
Chávez – lauded by left-wing intellectuals
After the collapse of the socialist economies in the Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc in the late 1980s and China’s transition to capitalism, leftists in the West needed a new real-world example to stoke their utopian longings. North Korea and Cuba, the only two remaining communist states, didn’t quite fill that gap. Then along came Chávez, who was hailed by many as a new messiah. Prominent members of the Left Party in Germany saw him as a role model whose “fight for justice and dignity” – evidence that “an alternative economic model is possible” – was showing them “the way to resolve Germany’s economic problems”.
Chávez had plenty of admirers among left-wing intellectuals in the US as well, with the late Tom Hayden enthusing: “As time passes, I predict, the name of Hugo Chávez will be revered by millions.” Cornel West, too, declared himself a fan: “I love that Hugo Chávez has made poverty a major priority. I wish America would make poverty a priority.” The influential broadcast journalist and talk-show host Barbara Walters concurred: “He cares very much about poverty, he is a socialist. What he’s trying to do for all of Latin America, they have been trying to do for years, eliminate poverty. But he is not the crazy man we’ve heard … This is a very intelligent man.”
Thanks to the Venezuelan oil deposits – the largest in the world – and the oil price explosion that coincided with Chávez’s presidency, filling his government’s coffers to the brim, his large-scale experiment in 21st-century socialism got off to a promising start, although it would eventually descend into economic disaster, hyperinflation, hunger and dictatorship.
In the early days, Chávez employed a surprisingly conciliatory rhetoric, casting himself as a great admirer of Western values who welcomed foreign investors, a “Tony Blair of the Caribbean”. Much as the Communist Party in East Germany had promised in 1945 to uphold property rights and entrepreneurial initiative and refrain from imposing a Soviet-style system, Chávez initially vowed that he would never “expropriate anything from anyone”. This didn’t stop him from denouncing “savage neo-liberal capitalism” and celebrating Cuban socialism as a “sea of happiness”.
“PDVSA is red, red from top to bottom.”
The oil industry, by far Venezuela’s most important source of revenue, had already been nationalized in 1976 with the creation of the oil and natural gas company Petróleos de Venezuela, SA (PDVSA), which employed a workforce of 140,000 in 2014. Although state owned, PDVSA was run like a for-profit enterprise and “recognized as one of the best-run oil giants in the world”. Thanks to the company’s strong links with private enterprises overseas, Venezuela was able to increase its oil production to 3 million barrels a day during the 1990s.
PDVSA was far too independent for Chávez’s liking. In 2002, he stuffed the board with political allies and generals without any business experience. In protest against Chávez’s meddling, thousands of PDVSA employees declared a two-month strike that paralyzed Venezuela’s oil industry. Chávez responded by having 19,000 striking workers fired and denounced as ‘enemies of the people’.
However, the conflict between workers and the socialist government didn’t stop there. In 2006, energy minister Rafael Ramírez, who also happened to be the head of PDVSA, threatened workers that they would lose their jobs unless they backed Chávez in the upcoming elections: “PDVSA is red, red from top to bottom.” Chávez himself affirmed: “PDVSA’s workers are with this revolution, and those who aren’t should go somewhere else. Go to Miami.” The company’s profits were used to fund social welfare programs, keep failing companies afloat and build homes for the poor at a cost of billions of dollars a year.
PDVSA was even enlisted to pay for welfare programs in the US. In November 2005, Chávez ordered the company to supply heating oil to low-income households in Boston at 40% below market price via its subsidiary Citgo. Similar deals were struck with other cities and communities across the northeastern US. According to Citgo’s own figures, between 2005 and 2014 the program supplied a total of 235 million gallons of heating oil to 1.8 million people. Socialist Cuba and other allies also received heating oil donations.
In 2007, in an attempt to secure a controlling interest of at least 60% in Venezuelan oil ventures for PDVSA, the Chávez government forced foreign oil companies to accept minority stakes or face nationalization. ExxonMobil refused and filed an arbitration request with the World Bank’s arbitration tribunal, the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), while simultaneously taking legal action in courts in the US and the UK. After a British court froze PDVSA assets worth USD 12 billion, the state-owned company stopped selling oil to ExxonMobil in 2008 and suspended business relations. In 2014, the ICSID ordered Venezuela to pay ExxonMobil USD 1.6 billion in compensation. When Chávez first came to power, over 50% of the oil production profits went to the government. By the time of his death in 2013, the government take of over 90% was one of the highest in the world.
Chávez hugely benefited from the oil price explosion during his time in office. By the time of his death in 2013, the oil price had skyrocketed to USD 111 per barrel – more than ten times as much as the historic low of USD 10.53 in 1998 when he took office. Rising natural resource prices have a tendency to seduce governments into handing out their bounty right, left and center, rather than creating cash reserves to safeguard against future slumps in the natural resource markets.
The socialist “miracle”
Following his re-election in 2006, Chávez nationalized an increasing number of industrial enterprises, starting with the iron and steel industries. Government takeovers of the cement and food sectors, power utilities and ports soon followed. Between 2007 and 2010 alone, around 350 businesses were moved from the private to the public sector. In many cases, executive positions in the newly nationalized enterprises were awarded to loyal party members. With one in three workers employed in the public sector by 2008, the government payroll ballooned.
When his government offered massive tax and financing incentives to companies run by workers’ cooperatives, their number increased from 820 in 1999 to 280,000 in 2009. The majority of these were unproductive shell companies that only existed so their owners were able to access subsidies and cheap cash loans.
Chávez’s interference in economic affairs became increasingly heavy handed. The ‘immunity decree’ in Venezuela’s Organic Labor Law for Workers, which prohibited mass dismissals for operational reasons, proved calamitous for some companies. The government also set very cheap fixed prices, in many cases below production cost, for meat and other basic food items. Companies that refused to sell at these prices were denounced as speculators and threatened with prison sentences.
While the oil price was high, there appeared to be no limits to the boundless generosity of Venezuela’s 21st-century socialism. Critics of capitalism around the world admired Chávez for the social welfare programs he funded with free-flowing oil revenue: cash transfers to the poor, and government subsidies for food, housing, water, power and phone services. Filling up with petrol cost next to nothing – tipping the attendant would often cost more than the actual fuel. US dollars, which were in plentiful supply thanks to the oil revenues, were exchanged at preferential exchange rates.
Badly managed public enterprises received generous subsidies, which enabled them to retain more employees than they needed. The payment of oil revenues into a rainy-day fund had already been stopped in 2001, and investment in the oil industry – the very basis of the country’s livelihood – was also sacrificed in favour of ever more ambitious social spending plans.
Chávez’s admirers thought they were witnessing a socialist miracle – after all, his social policies succeeded in reducing extreme poverty by 50%, according to official figures. Whether these figures can be trusted is another question. For example, Chávez’s claim to have improved the literacy rate by 1.5 million is a “gross exaggeration”, with the real figure closer to 140,000 according to calculations by the Venezuela expert A. C. Clark. Likewise, the homicide statistics published by Chávez’s regime exclude victims of gang-related violence as well as those killed “resisting authority”. According to data compiled by the Venezuelan human rights organization PROVEA, the total number of crime-related deaths averaged 15,000 a year between 2000 and 2005.
Maduro picks up where Chávez left off
After Chávez’s death in 2013, his successor and former second-in-command Nicolás Maduro accelerated the nationalization of dairies, coffee producers, supermarkets, manufacturers of fertilizers and shoe factories. Production buckled or stopped entirely. Then the oil prices plummeted, losing almost 50% of their value within a single year from USD 111 per barrel in late 2013 to USD 57.60, then dropping to USD 37.60 another year later and fluctuating between USD 27.10 and USD 57.30 in 2016.
While this would have caused a predicament for any oil-producing nation, these problems were amplified in a country with an extremely inefficient socialist economy and strict price controls. Now the fatal effects of Chávez’s socialist policies became obvious once and for all. The entire system fell apart. As in other countries, it became apparent that, far from being an efficient means to fight inflation, price controls only make it worse. Inflation reached 225% in 2016, higher than anywhere else in the world except for South Sudan. It was probably close to 800%, accompanied by a 19% drop in economic output in 2016, according to an internal report by the Governor of the National Bank.
Although Venezuela owned state-of-the-art money presses, including a German-made Super Simultan IV, these were no longer up to the task of printing the huge numbers of bills required. Venezuela was forced to outsource a large share of this work to companies based in the UK and Germany and the central banks of some friendly nations. Boeing 747 planes carrying between 150 and 200 tons of bills landed in Venezuela every two weeks. Today, the inflation rate is well above 1,000,000%(!).
Because many goods were subject to price controls, while raw materials and production goods had to be paid for in US dollars, the decline of the currency led to increasingly dramatic shortages in supply. People started hoarding all sorts of things that were sold very cheaply and would frequently queue for hours to buy something they would then sell on at a much higher price on the black market.
This is what happened with toilet paper, which was hardly ever available in the shops any more. The companies making it were forced to sell it at a fixed price far below production cost, which was driven up by inflation. And when production was suspended due to the lack of raw materials, the workers still had to be paid because companies were not allowed to reduce their workforce without government approval. However, the head of the National Statistics Institute managed to turn the toilet paper shortage into a good-news story, hailing it as proof of the plentiful national diet.
On the rare occasions when toilet paper was available at fixed government prices, it sold out rapidly. Many Venezuelans gave up their jobs because, with wages failing to keep up with soaring prices, selling shortage goods – including toilet paper – on the black market was a far more lucrative option. Feminine hygiene products also disappeared from the shops. Instead, Venezuelan women were urged to watch a tutorial aired on the state television channel on how to make their own washable and reusable sanitary pads. The demonstrator in the video even put an anti-capitalist spin on the situation, enthusing: “We avoid becoming a part of the commercial cycle of savage capitalism. We are more conscious and in harmony with the environment.”
In July 2016, 500 Venezuelan women took the extraordinary step of crossing into neighboring Columbia via a closed border crossing to buy food. “We are starving, we are desperate,” one of the women told the Colombian station Caracol Radio. There was nothing left to eat in her country, she said.
A care worker in a retirement home told reporters from a German radio station about her own desperate situation. Only 9 of the 24 residents were left. The others had either died or been sent away because there wasn’t enough to eat and their supplies of essential medication for patients suffering from diabetes or hypertension had run out. Subverting a ban on visits from journalists, a doctor showed the reporters around a public hospital where the only X-ray machine had been broken for a long time, the lab was unable to process any urine or blood samples, there was no running water in the toilets and the lifts were out of order. Hospital patients had to supply their own medication because stocks of everything from painkillers to drugs for cancer treatment had run out.
Within a single year, between 2015 and 2016, child mortality rose by 33%, while the rate of women dying in childbirth grew by 66%. The health minister who published these statistics was sacked by Maduro, who prohibited the release of any social or economic indicators in a bid to prevent “political interpretations”. After an initial drop from 20.3% to 12.9% over 13 years under Chávez, infant mortality reached levels above UNICEF estimates for war-damaged Syria in 2016.
A 2016 survey by the Central University of Venezuela found that four out of five Venezuelan households lived in poverty. Some 73% of the population experienced weight loss, with the amount lost averaging 8.7 kilograms (20 pounds) in 2016. In a hearing before the US House of Representatives Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere in March 2017, Hector E. Schamis, adjunct professor at Georgetown University, reported record poverty rates of 82%, with 52% living in extreme poverty.
In the face of continued popular protests and an opposition victory in parliamentary elections, Maduro dissolved the National Assembly and abolished freedom of the press along with all other remnants of democracy. By October 2017, the death toll of those killed during anti-government demonstrations and protests had risen to over 120 – testament to the failure of yet another socialist experiment.
About the Author
Dr. Rainer Zitelmann is a historian, political scientist and sociologist. He was a research assistant at the Free University of Berlin and head of department at Die Welt, one of Germany’s leading daily newspapers. He has written and published 21 books, many of which have enjoyed international success. His previous book, The Wealth Elite, was published in April 2018. | <urn:uuid:097fb37d-68ba-451d-84ec-10f3c0870e50> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.europeanfinancialreview.com/socialism-fails-again-venezuela-the-background-story/ | 2024-12-05T12:04:54Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066352699.65/warc/CC-MAIN-20241205115632-20241205145632-00124.warc.gz | en | 0.973138 | 3,573 | 2.765625 | 3 |
Saint Barnabas Monastery
A Must-Visit Destination in North Cyprus
You’re always up for an adventure. You love finding new places to explore, especially ones with an air of mystery. Well, it doesn’t get much more mysterious than the ancient Saint Barnabas Monastery in Northern Cyprus. This fascinating site is chock full of history just waiting to be discovered. Strap on your hiking boots and grab your camera, because this adventure will take you through crumbling ruins and sacred sites that have been around for centuries. You’ll learn all about the mysterious monk Saint Barnabas and the legends surrounding this place. From ancient artifacts to breathtaking views, this Northern Cyprus destination will give you an unforgettable experience. So come along for the journey as we dive into the rich history and intrigue of the Saint Barnabas Monastery. This is one travel tale you don’t want to miss!
History and Significance of the Saint Barnabas Monastery
The Saint Barnabas Monastery was founded in the late 5th century, and financed by the Byzantine Emperor Zeno. The original shrine church on the site was built to honor Saint Barnabas, a Cypriot Jew who converted to Christianity and traveled with Saint Paul spreading the Gospel.
A Place of Pilgrimage
For centuries, the monastery was an important place of pilgrimage. Saint Barnabas’ remains were interred at the site, and his tomb became associated with miracles. The monastery grew wealthy from donations, with monks and pilgrims traveling from across Europe and the Middle East.
A Repository of History
Today, the monastery serves as a museum housing priceless Christian artifacts. Mosaics, frescoes, and architectural details showcase different periods of Cypriot history spanning from the 7th century BC to modern times. Manuscripts, documents, and objects used in daily monastic life provide insight into the important role Saint Barnabas Monastery played in Mediterranean religious and political affairs.
A Victim of Conflict
Although the monastery has endured for over 1,500 years, its history has not been without struggle. Damaged by earthquakes and raids, the worst destruction occurred in the 20th century. Looting in 1974 left the monastery in ruins, with frescoes and mosaics destroyed or stolen. Restoration efforts are ongoing, ensuring this sacred site will remain for future generations as a symbol of Cypriot identity and a repository of Mediterranean history.
The Saint Barnabas Monastery is a place of beauty, history, and miracles. Despite facing destruction, this holy site endures as a timeless testament to faith. For visitors seeking to understand Cyprus’s complex past, there may be no better place to start than at the threshold of this ancient monastery.
The Architecture and Design of the Monastery
Saint Barnabas Monastery is an architectural gem hidden in the Kyrenia mountains. Originally built in the 18th century, it was constructed on the ruins of an earlier Byzantine monastery from the 5th century. Though little remains of the original structure, the current church design is still a sight to behold.
The monastery has three domes in the traditional Orthodox cruciform style, though unfortunately, one dome collapsed due to lack of proper foundation. The white stone facade is simple but striking, drawing your eye upward to the remaining blue domes.
A small courtyard in front of the church is shaded by palm trees, providing a tranquil space for visitors and worshippers alike. The entrance to the monastery is a simple arched doorway, hinting at the history within.
Once inside, you’ll be struck by the ornate iconostasis separating the nave from the altar. Gilded carvings and paintings of saints and apostles adorn the intricately carved wood. Though the unknown architect took some creative license, the overall design still evokes the original 5th-century church.
Beautiful Byzantine frescoes cover the walls and domes, though some are faded with age. Delicate arches and columns support the structure, with sunlight filtering through narrow windows. The monastery has a peaceful, timeless quality despite its long and complex history.
Though small in scale, Saint Barnabas Monastery contains architectural and artistic treasures that provide a glimpse into Cyprus’s Byzantine past. For those interested in history, religion or art, this serene place is not to be missed.
Inside the Monastery: Notable Sights and Relics
Stepping into the centuries-old Saint Barnabas Monastery, you’ll be surrounded by history. One of the first things you’ll notice are the rocks inside the church that were once covered in elaborate Byzantine frescos, though only faint traces remain today. Despite their worn appearance, these remnants provide a glimpse into the monastery’s early days.
The monastery is home to a stunning collection of religious icons, many dating back to the 15th and 16th centuries. The icons are displayed in the Icon Museum, located in a former olive mill. Some of the most notable icons include “The Virgin and Child,” “Saint Nicholas,” and “Saint John the Baptist.” The intricate details and vivid colors have been remarkably well preserved, allowing you to appreciate the artistic mastery of the iconographers.
Saint Barnabas’ Tomb
According to Christian tradition, Saint Barnabas was born in Cyprus and returned here to spread Christianity, eventually dying in Salamis around 61 AD. His remains were interred in a hidden cave that became a place of pilgrimage. In the 5th century, a small chapel was built over the cave. This original chapel formed the basis for the present monastery. Saint Barnabas’ tomb can still be seen in a cave under the monastery.
The monastery’s collection of over 2,000 manuscripts, mostly in Greek, is a treasure trove for scholars and historians. Dating from the 8th to 18th centuries, the manuscripts contain religious texts as well as historical chronicles. They offer valuable insights into the political and cultural influences on Cyprus over the centuries. Some manuscripts are lavishly illustrated, demonstrating the artistic skill of the monks.
From its ancient frescos and tomb to the unparalleled icon and manuscript collections, Saint Barnabas Monastery provides a glimpse into Cyprus’ long and complex history at the crossroads of empires and faiths. Every stone and relic here has a story to tell if you just listen.
Visiting Information for the Saint Barnabas Monastery
Once you’ve made your way to Northern Cyprus, visiting the ancient Saint Barnabas Monastery should be at the top of your list. This historic monastery dates back to the 5th century and is home to some well-preserved frescoes and mosaics, as well as the tomb of Saint Barnabas himself.
The monastery is located just west of Famagusta, about a 30-minute drive from North Nicosia. You can get there by taxi, rental car, or bus. If driving, head southwest on the E1 highway and follow the signs for “Aziz Barnabas Manastiri.” There is ample parking on site.
Hours and Admission
The monastery is open daily from 9 am to 1 pm and 2 pm to 5 pm. Admission tickets are 5 Turkish Lira (about $3 USD). The grounds are free to roam, but entrance into the monastery church, and museum requires a ticket.
Once inside, you’ll want to see the ancient monastery church, featuring colorful frescoes from different periods. The most famous is a 6th-century depiction of Saint Barnabas with a red mantle. Don’t miss the saint’s sarcophagus in a small chapel. According to legend, Saint Barnabas’ remains were discovered here in a miraculous way in the 5th century.
The monastery museum contains religious artifacts, art, coins, and pottery related to the history of the monastery. The courtyard offers scenic views of the surrounding countryside. Walk the grounds and you may spot a monk going about his daily routine.
Frequently Asked Questions About the Saint Barnabas Monastery
When was the Saint Barnabas Monastery built?
The Saint Barnabas Monastery was built in the 5th century AD. It is one of the oldest Christian monasteries in the world that is still active today. The monastery was founded in 488 AD, and dedicated to Saint Barnabas, who was a Cypriot Jew who converted to Christianity and traveled with Saint Paul to spread the faith.
What architectural features does the monastery have?
The monastery has impressive architecture, including an ornate stone courtyard, an ancient wine press, and catacombs where Saint Barnabas’ remains are interred. The monastery also houses many rare religious artifacts, art, and ancient manuscripts in its museum. Some parts of the original monastery are still intact, like the courtyard and catacombs, while other parts have been rebuilt over time.
Can visitors see Saint Barnabas’ tomb?
Yes, visitors can see the tomb of Saint Barnabas on tours of the monastery catacombs. According to tradition, Saint Paul had a vision telling him where Saint Barnabas was buried. When Saint Barnabas’ remains were discovered, his body was found clutching a copy of the Gospel of Matthew. His remains were interred in a marble sarcophagus, which can still be viewed today.
Are tours offered at the monastery?
Yes, the Saint Barnabas Monastery offers guided tours for visitors. Tours include the monastery museum, the ancient wine press, the catacombs housing Saint Barnabas’ tomb, and the monastery church which contains many precious religious artifacts. Tours are offered daily, last about an hour, and provide a glimpse into the fascinating ancient history of the monastery. Private group tours can also be arranged with advance booking.
Can I attend religious services at the monastery?
The Saint Barnabas Monastery is still an active monastery, so visitors are welcome to attend religious services and celebrations at the monastery church. Services are held daily and on religious holidays. Witnessing an ancient spiritual ceremony in such a historic setting can be a moving experience for visitors. Photography is allowed at some services, but not all, so check with the monastery for their policy before attending.
So there you have it – Saint Barnabas Monastery is an ancient and fascinating site to explore in Northern Cyprus. With its long history dating back to the 5th century, beautiful architecture, and peaceful atmosphere, it’s easy to see why it’s considered one of the most important places of worship on the island. Whether you’re interested in archaeology and history, or just want a tranquil place to reflect, a visit to Saint Barnabas is sure to be a highlight of any trip to Cyprus. Just be sure to dress respectfully, keep an open mind, and take your time wandering through this ancient monastery. You never know what surprises you might uncover in this historic and holy place. | <urn:uuid:074f741f-f55a-48da-a4b8-b897b49b2f0c> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://medcyp.com/saint-barnabas-monastery/ | 2024-12-01T17:09:03Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066035857.0/warc/CC-MAIN-20241201162023-20241201192023-00610.warc.gz | en | 0.953075 | 2,279 | 2.640625 | 3 |
The second of three FANTASOUND articles provided by John Schmul is an optimistic appraisal of what can be done with directional sound reproduction in the future. It was presented at the 1942 Spring meeting of the Society of Motion Picture Engineers and this article was published in the July, 1942 issue of their Journal.
THE FUTURE OF FANTASOUND
EDWARD H. PLUMB
Music Department, Walt Disney Studio, Burbank, CaliforniaSummary.ľA non-technical discussion of Fantasound from the musician's point of view. The use of Fantasound is reviewed as a basis for discussing ways in which it can be used in the future.
Fantasound has been demonstrated to the public only in Walt Disney's Fantasia, but to accept or reject Fantasound on the basis of its use in that picture would be unjust. Fantasia is a remarkable showcase for an experiment in sound engineering because it uses music as a vital function of the picture. However, the dramatic effectiveness of Fantasound was limited by three conditions peculiar to this production.
(1) During its actual picture footage Fantasia uses only music on the sound-track. This eliminates the possibility of placing and moving dialog or sound-effects in the multiple speaker system that Fantasound includes. Dialog and sound-effects are the "real" sounds of the movies with which the audience is thoroughly familiar. Because of this familiarity it is quite possible that the location of these sounds in the theater could be more easily registered than the placement of musical sounds.
(2) The music that Fantasia interprets was conceived long before sound-film was available for use. The compositions were designed for concert performance and were so well designed for that medium that any orchestral changes made to improve reproduction greatly affected their basic character:
(3) The original recording of the entire orchestral performance of Fantasia had been completed before it was known what dimensional effects would be available in the theater. It was thus impossible to guess what method of recording would be most efficient for reproduction in Fantasound.
This is in no sense to be interpreted as an apology for Fantasia or the methods used in it. It is merely a description of certain obstacles that would not be confronted in the usual feature.
The future of Fantasound depends upon the efficiency with which the original sound material can be transferred to film and upon the dramatic effectiveness of the total result. These related factors dictate the future of Fantasound because they represent, respectively, the expenditure necessary and the expenditure warranted by box office returns.
Before suggesting a method of recording an orchestra that might be practicable for future productions in Fantasound it seems advisable to describe briefly the method employed in Fantasia. During the original performance, each of six sound cameras recorded the close pick-up of a particular section of the orchestra. A seventh camera recorded a blend of these six close pick-ups, and an eighth recorded a distant pick-up of the entire orchestra.
In preparing the final re-recorded track from this original material several weaknesses became apparent. Because of acoustical pick-up the separation between the six sections of the orchestra was merely relative. In the material on the woodwind channel, for instance, the woodwinds usually predominated, but material from other sections of the orchestra was definitely present. Many times, because of differences in performance level, the material from adjacent sections would be as loud as, or louder than, the woodwinds directly picked up. This lack of complete separation was not an insurmountable obstacle in creating an artistic balance for ordinary reproduction, but it greatly limited the dramatic use of orchestral colors in Fantasound. If we wished, for dramatic reasons, to have a horn call emanate from a point to the right of the screen, our purpose would be confused by hearing the same call, at a lower volume, on every other speaker in the theater. Greater separation in the original recording could have been achieved only by greater segregation of the sections or by moving the microphones closer to the individual instruments. To go any further than we had gone toward segregation of sections or close pick-up would have impaired quality of performance in one case and recorded tone quality in the other. On the point of efficiency of the Fantasia recordings we must observe that only one-third of the material recorded on chosen performances was used in the final dubbing. The unused film contained sound that was too repetitious of, other channels, too poor in quality, or, during long sections, too unimportant in the design of the composition to help the total result.
Since the completion of Fantasia we have recorded orchestral performances of five compositions for possible use in Fantasound. It is not likely that these can appear as productions for a long while, but the method that was used may provide a possible approach to future Fantasound projects. The recordings were much less expensive and, there is every reason to believe, can be much more effective dramatically than the Fantasia recordings. We concentrated upon the achievement of two qualities of Fantasound that seem to us to be important-the illusion of "size," possible to attain by proper use of a multiple-speaker system, and recognizable placement of orchestral colors important to the dramatic presentation of the picture.
For the illusion of "size" or "spread," we used a three-channel recording set-up. Channel A was fed by a directional microphone far enough from the instrumentalists to cover the entire left half of the orchestra. Channel B recorded the right half of the orchestra. Channel C recorded a distant pick-up of the entire orchestra. This three-channel system recorded the "basic" tracks of the composition. It is important to note that in planning the material for these "basic" tracks any orchestral color or passage for which we might have special dramatic use was omitted from the performance. The recording of this special material will be described later.
In reproduction over the Fantasound system this method of recording the basic tracks has great flexibility. To regain the natural spread of the orchestra, the A channel (left half of the orchestra) appears on the left stage speaker, the B channel (right half of the orchestra) appears on the right stage speaker, and the C channel (distant pick-up) appears-on the center speaker. The distant pickup appearing in the center adds an illusion of depth which is beneficial and also provides a more practical "cushion" for the solo instruments or other special material that would normally appear in the center. The "panpot" (described by Garity and Hawkins in the August, 1941, JOURNAL) can execute practically any variation of this reproduction plan that could be demanded. Each track can appear on any one stage speaker, any two stage speakers in whatever balance desired, or on all three stage speakers in any balance. The house speakers can be added to the left and right stage speakers in whatever set balances desired, or they can replace the left and right stage speakers so that-sound comes only from left and right house and center stage (as in "Ave Maria" in Fantasia).
In the recording of what I have termed special material-material whose location it is important to register-we employed the only method that assures absolute separation. The section of the basic track with which the special material is to synchronize is used as a playback on earphones available to conductor and instrumentalists. The physical difficulties of this method can be minimized by careful planning of the orchestration. It is usually possible to avoid the occurrence of the same melodic passage or rhythmic pattern in both the special and basic material. This makes synchronization less critical and also allows more freedom in performance of the special material. As advantages, the playback method offers complete control of the volume relationship between special and basic material; complete freedom in locating or moving the special material; and freedom to choose the pick-up, in recording the special material, that produces the finest quality in reproduction.
As an example of the use of the playback method, in The Swan of Tuanela, by Sibelius, there is an English horn solo that is vitally important in the design of the composition. We knew that this English horn should be a principal actor in dramatizing the score. We had recorded the composition played by the complete string orchestra omitting, among other instruments, the English horn. We then recorded the English horn alone, using the performance by the strings for the playback. A relatively distant pick-up was used, which gave the tone of the English horn brilliance, but also lent a feeling of mystery in character with the subject. Because of the complete separation achieved it is possible to submerge the solo in the rest of the orchestra or to make the solo stand out in a clear relief physically impossible to attain in concert performance. The solo can locate as its source one of the three stage speakers or, by balancing its volume between two speakers, can seem to locate a definite point between them. The solo can come from the left or right unit of house speakers without the stage speakers or, if power or diffusion are desired, can come from every speaker in the theater. The solo can move in such a way that it seems to follow the pattern of a pictorial effect; it can change from offstage to onstage; or it can change its source, by a smooth, irregular movement of the panpot dial, so that it seems to float through the theater. I have mentioned a single composition and only a few of the effects possible. However, it is clear that the restrictions offered by this tentative method are infinitely less than those offered by the method used for Fantasia. (The Fantasia score contained only one example of complete separation-the solo voice and chorus of "Ave Maria" were recorded by the playback method to an orchestral accompaniment recorded a year and a half before. The vocal performance of "Ave Maria" was the last material to be recorded for Fantasia, and we were able to use everything Fantasound had to offer. It is interesting to note that for many of those in the audiences-at least in New York and Los Angeles-Fantasound was "turned on" only for "Ave Maria.")
The advantages of volume range are probably more obvious than the advantages of other features of Fantasound. To be able to use the upper volume range without distortion and the lower range without submerging the tone in ground-noise has been the dream of every dramatically minded sound-director since the advent of sound reproduction. Experience shows us, however, that this greatly extended volume range still has important natural limits. If sound is reproduced so low that it is unintelligible or so high that it causes physical discomfort, there must be adequate dramatic reason. Either extreme is likely to irritate.
Dialog and sound-effects, as material for use in Fantasound, have one decided advantage over music. They do not have to be recorded differently from the customary recording of ordinary sound. Their placement, movement, and extended volume range are all accomplished after they are normally put on the film.
Dialog is the only sound medium in whose reception the audience has been well rehearsed. The average member of the audience has heard the sounds that the screen sound-effects imitate, but he does not ordinarily analyze their character or location with any great care. He has listened to music but, perhaps wisely, he does not bother himself with the details of its complex pattern. In the reception of speech, however, he has trained himself to register, in great detail, character, pitch, volume, and location. Location of sound source is an unconscious function of his daily group conversation, group work, and group play. It is reasonable to expect, then, that when dialog placement has dramatic meaning it will be efficiently received by the audience-at least, more efficiently received than the placement of sound-effects or music. Because of the visual limitations of the screen, dialog, in Fantasound as in ordinary reproduction, comes normally from the center of the stage. For this purpose the center stage speaker is adequate. Because the ear is critical of voice placement, however, it is not far-fetched to attempt the location of characters by changing the speaker source. If an actor appears in the area at the extreme left of the projected frame, or if the implied location is slightly to the left of the projected frame, placement of the voice on the left stage speaker supports the illusion. Such use of the three stage speakers creates the possibility of dialog between extreme left and extreme right or between center and either side without greater sacrifice of intelligibility than would exist in dramatic productions on the stage. Obviously the device could be over-used to the point of annoyance, and should be limited to dramatic situations that are definitely improved by the illusion. In the treatment of off-stage voices the house speakers could be used to advantage. When a voice, or a group of voices, comes from the left or right unit of house speakers, an effect of reverberation is added to the original recording. The loss in intelligibility and in point source definition could have dramatic value because they imitate these same losses in the reception of real sounds from a distance.
Fantasound is able to make its greatest contribution in combining dialog, music, and sound-effects. In ordinary reproduction one of these three mediums must, with rare exceptions, be dominant while the other two are sacrificed. In Fantasound it is possible to follow the continuity of the dialog clearly and still receive the full emotional impact of the music, or the dramatic realism of atmospheric sound-effects. As a possible use in the theater, consider that the center stage speaker would be saved exclusively for on-stage sound-dialog, music performed on the screen, or realistic sound-effects. The house speakers and, at a lower level, the side stage speakers would project music or general sound-effects at a level natural for them. As long as the music or effects are pertinent to the story being portrayed they will not distract and would not cause the dialog to become unintelligible. This physical separation of sound-tracks also reduces to a minimum the unpleasant phenomenon produced when a well-modulated track is "pinched."
If these comments seem to wander it may be because Fantasound is at the wandering stage of its development. We have the tools and we have not decided what we intend to build with them. These tools may not be available in the theater "for the duration," but this might be an excellent period during which to develop a practicable, effective plan for using them. It is within the power of Fantasound, as an idea, to revitalize the industry. This power, however, can not be fully developed until script, direction, music, and recording are planned with Fantasound as an organic function. | <urn:uuid:8a430feb-62d2-458d-9988-460841d32d30> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | http://www.widescreenmuseum.com/sound/Fantasound2.htm | 2024-12-08T09:54:37Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066444677.95/warc/CC-MAIN-20241208080334-20241208110334-00255.warc.gz | en | 0.960602 | 3,021 | 2.78125 | 3 |
The internet is constantly under siege by bots searching for vulnerabilities to attack and exploit. While conventional wisdom is to prevent these attacks, there are ways to deliberately lure hackers into a trap in order to spy on them, study their behavior, and capture samples of malware. In this tutorial, we'll be creating a Cowrie honeypot, an alluring target to attract and trap hackers.
A honeypot is a network or internet-attached device designed to be attacked and given a specific set of vulnerabilities. Honeypots usually intend to impersonate the sort of devices that attackers have an interest in, such as web servers.
While these devices can appear similar, or even identical, to authentic servers during passive scanning, there are a number of substantial differences between a deliberately-created honeypot and a vulnerable server.
These changes attempt to make the honeypot indistinguishable from a production server to any potential hacker who is scanning for open SSH ports to attack, while limiting the actual danger of an insecure server by creating one in a sandboxed environment. This creates something which looks real and appears vulnerable to hackers but does not create the same dangers to a server administrator as a truly vulnerable server would.
Cowrie is a honeypot which attempts to impersonate an SSH server, specifically one with weak and easily cracked login credentials. Once an attacker is logged in, they'll have access to a fake Linux shell where they can run commands and receive realistic looking responses, but the attacker will never be able to actually execute these real commands outside of the sandbox honeypot environment. That's because this Cowrie "shell" is in fact not a Linux shell at all. The command-line environment is implemented entirely in Python.
Like other honeypots, while fooling the attacker into thinking they're in a server, Cowrie will also log or analyze the attacks which are made against it. This allows for the honeypot administrator to gain an idea of what sort of attacks are being attempted, their general success or failure rate, as well as the geographical location of the IP from which a given attack originates. Cowrie is also capable of attempting to capture information about a specific attacker rather than just the metadata of their attack, such as accidentally exposed SSH fingerprints.
Honeypots Help to Understand How Malicious Hackers Work
The video below demonstrates a real-world attack which was captured and replayed. The hacker attempts to utilize a number of Linux utilities, presumably in order to download and run malware on the server, only to discover that while these commands return many generally normal responses, attempts to actually run malware or steal data seem to fail.
Perhaps with or without realizing they are on a honeypot, the attacker eventually becomes frustrated and attempt to delete every file on the system with rm, a command which, of course, also fails due to the protected nature of the honeypot.
For researchers, a honeypot is the best way to understand firsthand what sort of attacks are being used in the wild, and as such, be able to more effectively protect against them. A honeypot will attract hackers, some of which will be attempting to install malware automatically or perhaps even some who will directly attempt to access the machine in order to steal whatever data may be on it. Other less effective hackers may manually attempt to attack the machine, as shown in the video above.
Honeypots Protect Against & Help Identify Breaches
The presence of a honeypot may also distract some malicious attackers from real targets, and in wasting their time, potentially serve to protect a larger network with real production machines in use. They can also assist in identifying a local network breach, in that if another machine on a LAN is compromised, the evidence may be revealed when the attacker attempts to pivot to the honeypot. If a user on a large network unknowingly is infected by malware, it may be detected after a honeypot receives a login attempt originating from that infected device, and a network administrator then may be able to identify and resolve the issue.
A honeypot will never be shared with a real server, nor connected to a real network. Use caution when creating a honeypot, as if it is misconfigured it may create real vulnerabilities. Cowrie is not known to be vulnerable itself, however, bringing attention to a machine as a honeypot leads to a higher possibility of attacks on other services which may have security flaws. With this in mind, you should ensure that wherever you choose to install your honeypot is not being used as a live machine for any other services.
Step 1: Choosing Where to Install Cowrie
Cowrie itself doesn't require substantial technical specifications to run. The honeypot can be installed on practically anything with a Linux shell and a network connection, including on a Raspberry Pi.
In order to draw attacks over the internet, your honeypot will need to be connected to the internet and available to be port scanned. This port scanning may require adjustments to your router or firewall configurations on your network. One such adjustment may be router-focused port-forwarding to deliberately expose certain ports to the internet.
Rather than draw attention to a local network and adjust the network configuration, one can also use a virtual private server (VPS), a virtual machine instance provided by a hosting provider. Unlike traditional online server spaces, which generally only provide FTP access for hosting websites or files, a VPS provides direct operating system shell access, ideal for installing a honeypot.
If you choose to use a Raspberry Pi, it serves a relatively good platform for a honeypot, as its low cost makes the otherwise impractical application of resources to a honeypot easier to justify. Considering that a real server should never be used as both a functioning server and a honeypot at the same time, applying a tiny circuit board computer is a good solution. The Raspberry Pi 3 is an ideal platform as it has the highest specifications of any Pi available. It is available as just the single-board computer or with a convenient starter kit.
In this tutorial, Cowrie is installed on a VPS running Debian. VPS providers generally allow the choice of operating system as well as the amount of memory and CPU cores provided. For running Cowrie, any Linux server-specific distribution will work on even most low-specification server options. Desktop distributions are also functional, although some special-purposed distributions such as Kali Linux may not be ideal due to use of non-standard firewall rules and account privilege configurations.
The exposure of a honeypot depends on its network connection. On a VPS, you're setting up the honeypot on the vulnerable port 22, which is exposed to the entire internet, as is true of any other device connected to the internet directly. If, instead, you're looking to detect breached and pivot attempts within that local network, set you honeypot up within a LAN.
Step 2: Preparing for Cowrie Installation
The first step to preparing your server is to make sure it is updated. While the honeypot will deliberately limit the actual exposure of the system, it's good to make sure that the version of Linux in use on the machine you intend to install the honeypot on is up to date and secure.
On Debian or Debian-based distros such as Ubuntu, the system can be updated using apt-get, as shown in the string below. This can be entered into the system command line or over SSH if you're connecting to the system remotely.
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get upgrade
Once you're up to date, we can install some of the Cowrie-specific dependencies by running the command below.
sudo apt-get install git python-virtualenv libssl-dev libffi-dev build-essential libpython-dev python2.7-minimal authbind
Once the prerequisites are installed, the next step is to move the actual SSH service to a different port. While the honeypot will impersonate an SSH server on port 22, we'll want to be able to still administrate the system over SSH on a different port. We can specify this in the SSH daemon configuration file. We can edit this file in the Nano text editor, included in most Linux distros, by running the command below in a terminal.
sudo nano /etc/ssh/sshd_config
Change the number after "Port" from 22 to whatever number you choose, and make sure to remove the "#" symbol from the beginning of the line if it was previously commented out. In this example, I changed the port to "9022." This port number represents the port where we will actually administrate the honeypot, while the vulnerable honeypot service will run on port 22 like a conventional SSH service. It can be set to any number, as long as it is not port 22.
After the changed are made to the file, they can be saved within Nano by pressing Ctrl + O and then exiting Nano with Ctrl + X. After the SSH configuration is changed, the service can be restarted with systemd by using the command below in a terminal.
sudo systemctl restart ssh
If you installed on a VPS or wish to connect to your honeypot machine remotely, when using SSH, use the -p option to specify this new port. To connect over SSH to the port 9022, the command below would be used, followed by the address of the server.
ssh -p 9022
Now, we're ready to begin the initial configuration of Cowrie.
Step 3: Installing Cowrie
The first step of the installation process is to create a new user account specifically for Cowrie. We can do this with the adduser command by running the string below.
sudo adduser --disabled-password cowrie
This creates a new user account with no password and a username of "cowrie." We can log into this new user account using sudo su as in the command shown below.
sudo su - cowrie
Next, we can clone the Cowrie source code into this new user account's home folder using Git, as shown in the command below.
Now, we can move into the cowrie folder with cd.
Within this directory, we can create a new virtual environment for the tool by running the command below.
We can then activate this new virtual environment:
From here, we can use Pip to install additional requirements. First, update Pip with the following command.
pip install --upgrade pip
Now, install the requirements with the string shown below. The requirements.txt file included with Cowrie is used as a reference for the Python dependencies for Pip to install.
pip install --upgrade -r requirements.txt
The configuration for Cowrie is defined in two files, cowrie.cfg.dist and cowrie.cfg. By default, only cowrie.cfg.dist is included when the tool is downloaded, but any settings which are set in cowrie.cfg will be assigned priority. To make it slightly more simple to configure, we can create a copy of cowrie.cfg.dist and use it to create cowrie.cfg, such that there is a backup of the original file. We can do this using the cp command, as shown in the string below.
cp cowrie.cfg.dist cowrie.cfg
We can edit this configuration file in Nano by running nano cowrie.cfg from the command line. The first setting which may be worth changing is the hostname of the honeypot. While this isn't necessary, the default "svr04" may be an indicator that this is a honeypot to an attacker.
Next, "listen_port" should be set to "22" rather than "2222," such that attempted connections at the standard SSH port are allowed.
We can now make any other changes to the file, save them with Ctrl + O, and exit Nano with Ctrl + X. After the file is saved, we can also update the port routing configuration for the system by tunning the command below.
iptables -t nat -A PREROUTING -p tcp --dport 22 -j REDIRECT --to-port 2222
We can now launch Cowrie by running the string below from the Cowrie folder.
If this succeeds, the honeypot is now running! You can also stop it at any time by running bin/cowrie stop.
Step 4: Monitoring & Attacking the Honeypot
If we do a network scan like Nmap against our server, we'll see that all three of the SSH ports we configured are active. Port 2222 is visible, where Cowrie is running, as well as port 22, the standard SSH port being forwarded by the iptables configuration defined earlier. Lastly, port 9022 is also filtered, the actual SSH administration port in use.
If we attempt to connect to port 22 or 2222, we can directly "attack" our own honeypot. The honeypot will accept practically any attempted login credentials, as well as present something which looks like a Linux shell.
After logging in to the honeypot on port 22 and attempting to run commands on it, we can review what we did by logging back in on port 9022 to check the logs. These logs are recorded in a format which can be replayed in real-time using the integrated log replay tool. This script can be run followed by the specific log file as an argument in order to replay it in real time.
To call the script, use ./bin/playlog from the Cowrie directory followed by the name of the log you wish to replay. Logs are located in the /log/tty/ directory within Cowrie's root directory, and each is titled procedurally, with the date and time automatically set as the filename. To view the available logs, use ls by running ls log/tty from the Cowrie directory. Once you've selected a log to view, use it as the argument for the playlog script, as shown in the example command below.
If your honeypot is connected to the internet, you can just wait until the inevitable probes attempt to log in and drop malware on the machine. Cowrie is open-source and very configurable, and could absolutely be expanded and combined to have further functions to be suitable for a wide variety of honeypot projects. With very minimal setup, it's still very powerful, and a fascinating way to understand the attack landscape of the internet.
I hope that you enjoyed this tutorial on the Cowrie honeypot! If you have any questions about this tutorial or Cowrie usage, feel free to leave a comment or reach me on Twitter @tahkion.
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Cover image and screenshots by TAKHION/Null Byte | <urn:uuid:60984e7d-a7a1-49de-a512-bee302dd5bbc> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://null-byte.wonderhowto.com/how-to/use-cowrie-ssh-honeypot-catch-attackers-your-network-0181600/ | 2024-12-01T18:08:41Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066035857.0/warc/CC-MAIN-20241201162023-20241201192023-00442.warc.gz | en | 0.930208 | 3,036 | 3.5 | 4 |
The latest episode on Mathematica’s On the Evidence podcast coincides with June 19, which is celebrated by many around the United States as Juneteenth, a federal holiday commemorating the day when enslaved Black people in Galveston, Texas received word of their emancipation. Recently, one way staff at Mathematica have honored this important moment in U.S. history is by joining together in person and virtually on June 18th to read aloud and discuss a speech by Frederick Douglass titled “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?”
Douglass gave the speech in front of a predominately white abolitionist audience about 11 years before President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, declaring more than three million enslaved people living in the Confederate states to be free. The speech focuses on the contradiction of celebrating liberty at a time when millions remained in slavery. It both celebrates the ideals of the country’s founding and laments how the country has fallen short of those ideals.
This episode of On the Evidence features an interview with Sheldon Bond, the deputy director of Mathematica’s labor and employment area, who also acts as a co-lead for the company’s Black Employee Resource Group. Mathematica’s Black and Disability employee resource groups work with the Princeton Library to organize the readings of Frederick Douglass’s speech.
Bond talked about why the speech still resonates with audiences today, where he sees connections between Mathematica’s mission and Douglass’s message, and how Douglass’s words challenge him to foster inclusion, bridge divides, and combat bias in his own work.
“I think the resonating message is, to make effective policy decisions and to really get the most out of the data that we gather, we need to have a more participatory frame, and we need to make sure that we have voices in the room that represent different perspectives,” Bond told On the Evidence. “The data that we have, more often than not, has gaps. There are places that it just doesn’t tell us enough, and, in order to fill those gaps, we need folks with different perspectives to see, not just the data, but the people at the core of that data, the people who are living the lives that generated that data and understand and have an insight into their experience.”
“In Frederick Douglass’s speech, he’s calling us to recognize and understand that unless we’re bringing people together, unless we have everybody in the room, we’re missing [out] on a lot of relevant information, a lot of relevant data that would help us progress forward,” he added. “We can’t [progress forward] unless we’re cognizant of and recognize that everybody’s experience isn’t the same.”
The episode also features clips from last year’s Juneteenth event, with passages read by Mathematica’s Rachel Miller, Sarah Lieff, Gloria Jackson, Stacie Feldman, Rachael Jackson, A’lantra Wright, Kirsten Miller, Boyd Gilman, and Dawnavan Davis.
Listen to the full episode.
I think in Frederick Douglass's speech, he's calling us to recognize and understand that unless we're bringing people together, unless we have everybody in the room, we're missing on a lot of relevant information, a lot of relevant data that would help us progress forward, and we can't do that unless we're cognizant of and recognize that everybody's experience isn't the same. We need to integrate all those different experiences and different perspectives into one.
I’m J.B. Wogan from Mathematica and welcome back to On the Evidence.
We’re releasing this episode on June 19th, which is celebrated by many around the United States as Juneteenth, a federal holiday commemorating the end of slavery in this country.
Recently, one of the ways staff at Mathematica have honored this important moment in U.S. history is by joining together in person and virtually on June 18th to read aloud and discuss a speech by Frederick Douglass titled, “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?”
Douglass gave the speech in front of a predominately white abolitionist audience about 11 years before President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, declaring more than three million enslaved people living in the Confederate states to be free. The speech focuses on the contradiction of celebrating liberty at a time when millions remained in slavery. It both celebrates the ideals of the country’s founding, and laments the ways that the country has fallen short of those ideals.
For this episode, I speak with Sheldon Bond, the deputy director of Mathematica’s labor and employment area, who also acts as a co-lead for the company’s Black Employee Resource Group. Mathematica’s Black and Disability employee resource groups work with the Princeton Library to organize the readings of Frederick Douglass’s speech. Between clips of our interview, I’m also going to play excerpts from last year’s reading, starting with this one, which features Mathematica’s Rachel Miller, Sarah Lieff, and Gloria Jackson-McLean:
Fellow-citizens, pardon me, allow me to ask, why am I called upon to speak here to-day? What have I, or those I represent, to do with your national independence? Are the great principles of political freedom and of natural justice, embodied in that Declaration of Independence, extended to us? and am I, therefore, called upon to bring our humble offering to the national altar, and to confess the benefits and express devout gratitude for the blessings resulting from your independence to us?
Would to God, both for your sakes and ours, that an affirmative answer could be truthfully returned to these questions! Then would my task be light, and my burden easy and delightful. . . . But, such is not the state of the case. I say it with a sad sense of the disparity between us. I am not included within the pale of this glorious anniversary! Your high independence only reveals the immeasurable distance between us.
The blessings in which you, this day, rejoice, are not enjoyed in common. The rich inheritance of justice, liberty, prosperity and independence, bequeathed by your fathers, is shared by you, not by me. The sunlight that brought life and healing to you, has brought stripes and death to me. This Fourth [of] July is yours, not mine. You may rejoice, I must mourn. To drag a man in fetters into the grand illuminated temple of liberty, and call upon him to join you in joyous anthems, were inhuman mockery and sacrilegious irony. Do you mean, citizens, to mock me, by asking me to speak to-day?
Sheldon, last year, after the community reading, you noted in closing remarks that the speech was given in a different context, before the Civil War, and on the heels of the Fugitive Slave Act, but that the emotion and tenor of Douglass’s speech still rang true for you in our current times. Talk about that. In what way does the speech still resonate with you?
Throughout the speech, he's pointing out fundamental contradictions between the way we understand collectively our history and the actual facts on the ground of what it took to achieve the independence, to achieve the prosperity that we now embrace. And he wants folks to understand that contradiction.
And he emphasizes that, you know, “I say this with a sad sense of the disparity between us. I'm not included within the pale, glorious anniversary. Your high independence only reveals the immeasurable distance between us.”
And I think that line speaks to the intent of the speech to ultimately try to bridge that gap, to build common understanding, and to build some sort of shared experience out of an experience that in and of itself created massive divisions, that took, and that have taken generations really to fully embrace, to fully understand and to sort of cross over.
Particularly now, when literally we have more distance between us than we did in years past, where we're much more atomized and with hybrid work environments, it's much more difficult for some folks to be able to connect and find that sense of community. I think it challenges our ability to develop that shared understanding, particularly in tragedy, particularly when bad things happen, particularly when we recognize the long legacy of historical injustices that still pattern our day-to-day lives.
So, before I watched a recording from last year’s reading, I had heard about it from multiple staff who expressed how much they were moved by it. And when I went back to watch the reading myself, I noticed that even some of the people who participated in the reading seemed to be reacting emotionally to Douglass’s words and how they relate to injustices that persist through today. Was that your experience, too? What kind of feedback did you hear from people who attended or participated last year?
I got similar reactions from folks and, overall, I think it was a moment for reflection. If you bear in mind, right, we're 4 years away from when George Floyd lost his life due to the hands of police. And so when we did this last, I think we were a little bit closer and those feelings and that experience still, I think, resonates with a lot of folks and recognizing what that does to that collective psyche, right?
And so, I think what the actual event itself was bringing out in people was an awareness of something that they probably don't talk about on a daily basis. They probably don't encounter or think about, but that resonates in a different way now because of the kinds of efforts people have made to bring these issues to bear and really drive home that the questions around diversity, equity, inclusion are not uniquely suited or tailored to a particular group. It's an everybody question, and it pertains to and affects the progress of everybody.
Okay, let’s hear a little more from the speech. These next excerpts are read by Mathematica’s Stacie Feldman, Rachael Jackson, A’lantra Wright, and Kirsten Miller.
My subject, then fellow-citizens, is American slavery. I shall see this day from the slave’s point of view. Standing, here, identified with the American bondman, making his wrongs mine, I do not hesitate to declare, with all my soul, that the character and conduct of this nation never looked blacker to me than on this 4th of July! Whether we turn to the declarations of the past, or to the professions of the present, the conduct of the nation seems equally hideous and revolting. America is false to the past, false to the present, and solemnly binds herself to be false to the future.
What?, am I to argue that it is wrong to make men brutes, to rob them of their liberty, to work them without wages, to keep them ignorant of their relations to their fellow men, to beat them with sticks, to flay their flesh with the lash, to load their limbs with irons, to hunt them with dogs, to sell them at auction, to sunder their families, to knock out their teeth, to burn their flesh, to starve them into obedience and submission to their masters? Must I argue that a system thus marked with blood, and stained with pollution, is wrong? No! I will not. I have better employments for my time and strength than such arguments would imply.
At a time like this, scorching irony, not convincing argument, is needed. O! had I the ability, and could I reach the nation’s ear, I would, to-day, pour out a fiery stream of biting ridicule, blasting reproach, withering sarcasm, and stern rebuke. For it is not light that is needed, but fire; it is not the gentle shower, but thunder. We need the storm, the whirlwind, and the earthquake. The feeling of the nation must be quickened; the conscience of the nation must be roused; the propriety of the nation must be startled; the hypocrisy of the nation must be exposed; and its crimes against God and man must be proclaimed and denounced.
You declare, before the world, and are understood by the world to declare, that you ‘hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal; and are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; and that, among these are, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness’; and yet, you hold securely, in a bondage which, according to your own Thomas Jefferson, "is worse than ages of that which your fathers rose in rebellion to oppose," a seventh part of the inhabitants of your country.
So Sheldon, I wanted to ask you about a passage in the speech. Douglass says, “now is the time, the important time. Your fathers have lived, died, and have done their work, and have done much of it well. You live and must die, and you must do your work.” I read that as a kind of challenge to the audience. Do you hear it as a challenge and how does it inform the way you do your work?
Yeah, and I think, it challenges me to try to develop a fuller understanding of the lived experience of those who don't have the same or don't travel in the same lane as I do. I think there are still a number of challenges across many dimensions of American social life that exhibit the inequalities that are at the core of our founding, and without being in a position to really change any of that, I think the first step and in the first point that his speech calls us to, is to develop that awareness, to seek out and try to understand the experiences of others and how our system distributes benefits and burden sometimes unequally to others.
A lot of Mathematica’s work is at the intersection of data and public policy, data and programs that affect people’s well-being. Do you see connections between the speech and Mathematica’s work around data, research, and improving public policy?
I think the resonating message is, is to make effective policy decisions and to really get the most out of the data that we gather, we need to have a more participatory frame, and we need to make sure that we have voices in the room that represent different perspectives and recognizing those internal biases in the limitations of our own frame of reference, it becomes really important then to supplement and build on the data that we have by bringing in those additional perspectives and recognizing we need each other to create a complete picture.
The data that we have, more often than not, has gaps. There are places that it just doesn't tell us enough. And in order to fill those gaps, we need folks with different perspectives to see, not just the data, but the people at the core of that data, the people who are living the lives that generated that data and understand and have an insight into their experience.
Because even if, you know, I'm in the room per se, it's not a question of creating a room full of people who look different. It's about incorporating their voice. It's about hearing what they're saying and hearing their perspective. And that oftentimes requires more than just token representation. It requires a level of engagement. It requires a level of investment in folks.
And, from a workplace standpoint, we talk a lot about the need to really hear and be collegial and be collaborative. And it's not enough to have a team of diverse people. You have to actually create space for them to actually provide input, provide insight, and be able to influence decisions on your project, be able to influence the design of how you build out your survey, be able to influence the analysis process in substantive ways.
You know, interestingly enough, one of the books, we have a work-from-home reading group that reads a variety of things from fiction to nonfiction. This month, this quarter's, selection is a book titled Invisible Women, how data fosters and supports gender-based inequality. And, the basic premise is the idea that an average isn't really useful in sort of characterizing general experience because nobody is the average, right?
So it challenges you to recognize that sex disaggregated data is important and is not oftentimes collected in ways where we can develop useful insights on how, for example, bathrooms should be designed or how design choices around just our day-to-day environment need to account for half the population, and more often than not, we often assume that male is standard. So, we build around sort of the male experience because men are in the room and we don't oftentimes account for all of the other ways in which that those design choices impact women.
So it's the kind of thing that I think in Frederick Douglass's speech, he's calling us to recognize and understand that unless we're bringing people together, unless we have everybody in the room, we're missing on a lot of relevant information, a lot of relevant data that would help us progress forward, and we can't do that unless we're cognizant of and recognize that everybody's experience isn't the same. We need to integrate all those different experiences and different perspectives into one.
Sheldon, thanks for speaking with me today.
Thank you, J.B.
We’ll end with the closing lines of Douglass’s speech about the Fourth of July. These clips are read by Mathematica’s Boyd Gilman and Dawnavan Davis.
Allow me to say, in conclusion, notwithstanding the dark picture I have this day presented of the state of the nation, I do not despair of this country. There are forces in operation, which must inevitably work the downfall of slavery. I, therefore, leave off where I began, with hope. While drawing encouragement from the Declaration of Independence, the great principles it contains, and the genius of American Institutions, my spirit is cheered by the obvious tendencies of the age. Nations do not now stand in the same relation to each other that they did ages ago. No nation can now shut itself up from the surrounding world, and trot round in the same old path of its fathers without interference.
The time was when such could be done. But a change has now come over the affairs of mankind. Walled cities and empires have become unfashionable. The arm of commerce has borne away the gates of the strong city. Intelligence is penetrating the darkest corners of the globe. Wind, steam, and lightning are its chartered agents. Oceans no longer divide, but link nations together. From Boston to London is now a holiday excursion. Space is comparatively annihilated. Thoughts expressed on one side of the Atlantic are, distinctly heard on the other. In the fervent aspirations of William Lloyd Garrison, I say, and let every heart join in saying it:
All God speed the day when human blood
Shall cease to flow!
In every clime be understood,
The claims of human brotherhood,
And each return for evil, good,
Not blow for blow;
That day will come all feuds to end,
And change into a faithful friend
Thanks to Sheldon Bond for speaking with me ahead of this year’s reading of Frederick Douglass’s “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?” I also want to thank Rachel Miller, Sarah Lieff, Gloria Jackson-McLean, Stacie Feldman, Rachael Jackson, A’lantra Wright, Kirsten Miller, Boyd Gilman, and Dawnavan Davis for giving us permission to use clips from their reading of the speech last year. In the show notes, I include a blog post Sheldon wrote for our My Mathematica series about how, as a natural introvert, he has learned to be more extroverted, to communicate, connect, and build relationships in the context of a growing company with an increasingly hybrid work culture.
This episode was produced by the inimitable Rick Stoddard. As always, thank you for listening to On the Evidence, the Mathematica podcast. If you liked this episode, please consider leaving us a rating and review wherever you listen to podcasts. To catch future episodes of the show, subscribe at mathematica.org/ontheevidence | <urn:uuid:f6f24ea3-e400-4fd7-97a6-b366ba4f7d63> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/on-juneteenth-reflecting-on-our-collective-equity-journey | 2024-12-14T11:15:18Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066124931.50/warc/CC-MAIN-20241214085615-20241214115615-00571.warc.gz | en | 0.965884 | 4,285 | 2.875 | 3 |
In the world of construction, post-tension cables play a crucial role in enhancing the strength and stability of structures. These cables are used to reinforce concrete, providing added support and reducing the risk of cracks or structural failures.
But, have you ever wondered what would happen if you accidentally cut a post-tension cable? It’s a scenario that most construction professionals dread, as cutting a post-tension cable can have serious consequences.
In this article, we’ll explore the potential outcomes of cutting a post-tension cable and discuss the importance of taking preventative measures to avoid such mishaps. So, let’s dive in and understand the potential implications of this unfortunate incident.
Post-Tension Cables Basic
Before we discuss the consequences of cutting a post-tension cable, it’s crucial to have a clear understanding of what post tension cables are and their uses.
Post-tension cables are high-strength steel cables that are installed within concrete structures to add strength and stability. These cables are tensioned after the concrete has set, exerting a compressive force that counteracts the natural tensile forces that concrete can experience.
Post-tension cables are commonly used in various structures, including bridges, parking garages, high-rise buildings, and even residential homes. They play a vital role in enhancing the structural integrity of these buildings and ensuring their longevity.
Accidentally Cutting a Post-Tension Cable (Risks & Consequences)
Cutting a post-tension cable can have severe consequences, both in terms of safety and structural stability. Here are some potential outcomes that can result from such an incident:
- Structural Damage: Cutting a post-tension cable can compromise the integrity of the entire structure. The tension within the cables provides critical support to the concrete, helping to distribute loads and prevent cracks. Cutting a cable can lead to localized failure, causing structural damage and a potential collapse.
- Safety Risks: Accidentally cutting a post-tension cable can create immediate safety risks. The release of tension in the cable can cause it to snap violently, potentially causing injury to nearby workers or bystanders. The sudden release of energy can propel broken cable ends, posing a serious hazard.
- Weakened Load-Bearing Capacity: Post-tension cables contribute significantly to the load-bearing capacity of a structure. Cutting a cable reduces its ability to distribute loads effectively, resulting in a weakened load-bearing capacity. This can compromise the overall stability of the structure and may necessitate costly repairs or even reconstruction.
- Increased Maintenance Costs: Cutting a post-tension cable can lead to additional maintenance costs. A severed cable’s structural damage frequently necessitates extensive repairs, such as re-tensioning or replacing the affected cables. These repairs can be time-consuming and expensive, causing delays and financial strain.
Signs and Indications of a Cut Post-Tension Cable
Detecting a cut post-tension cable is crucial for timely intervention and the mitigation of potential risks. Here are some signs and indications to look out for:
- Visible Cable Ends: If the cable is accidentally cut near the surface, the exposed ends may be visible. These can appear as frayed or severed strands protruding from the concrete.
- Structural Cracks: Cutting a post-tension cable can lead to visible cracks in the concrete, particularly in the vicinity of the damaged area.
- Unevenness or Sagging: If a post-tension cable is cut, the affected area may exhibit unevenness or sagging, indicating a loss of tension and compromised structural integrity.
- Unusual Noises: Cutting a post-tension cable can result in cracking or popping sounds as the tension is released and the structure undergoes stress redistribution.
Immediate Steps to Take After Accidentally Cutting a Post-Tension Cable
If a post-tension cable is accidentally cut, it is crucial to take immediate action to ensure the safety of the construction site and mitigate further damage. Here are the steps to follow:
- Safety Precautions: Prioritize the safety of construction workers by immediately clearing the area and preventing access to the affected zone.
- Notify Relevant Parties: Inform the project manager, structural engineer, and other relevant parties about the incident. Seek guidance and expertise from professionals experienced in handling post-tension cable accidents.
- Temporary Support: Implement temporary supports or bracing to minimize the risk of immediate structural failure or further damage.
- Document the Incident: Take photographs or videos of the cut cable, surrounding area, and any visible signs of damage. This documentation will be valuable for assessment, insurance claims, and legal purposes.
- Cease Construction Activities: Depending on the severity of the damage and the advice of professionals, it may be necessary to halt construction activities until the situation is assessed and appropriate repairs are planned.
Assessing the Severity of the Damage
After an accidental cut of a post-tension cable, it is essential to evaluate the severity of the damage to determine the appropriate course of action. Some factors to consider include:
- Location and Depth of the Cut: Assess the location and depth of the cut to understand the extent of the damage. A shallow cut near the surface may have less impact than a deep cut closer to the core of the structure.
- Number of Cables Cut: Determine if multiple cables were cut or if it was an isolated incident. Cutting multiple cables can significantly weaken the structure and increase the complexity of repairs.
- Length of the Cut: The length of the cut also affects the severity of the damage. A longer cut may compromise a larger portion of the cable, leading to more significant structural implications.
- Structural Response: Conduct a thorough structural assessment to understand how the cut cable has affected the overall stability and load distribution of the building. This evaluation will help determine the potential risks and necessary repair strategies.
- Specialized Testing: Utilize non-destructive testing methods, such as ultrasound or radiographic techniques, to detect internal cable damage that may not be immediately visible. These tests can provide valuable insights into the condition of the remaining cables.
Based on the assessment, professionals can determine whether the damaged cable needs repair or replacement and devise an appropriate repair plan.
Repair Options for Cut Post-Tension Cables
When it comes to repairing cut post-tension cables, several options exist depending on the severity of the damage and the structural requirements. These options include:
- Splice Repair: In cases where the cut is relatively small and the structural integrity is not significantly compromised, a splice repair can be performed. This involves joining the cut ends of the cable using specialized couplers or sleeves to restore tension continuity.
- End Anchor Replacement: If the cut is located near the end anchor, it may be necessary to replace the entire anchor assembly. This ensures proper load transfer and prevents further cable slippage.
- Cable Replacement: In situations where the damage is extensive or the cable cannot be effectively repaired, complete cable replacement might be necessary. This involves removing the damaged cable and installing a new one to restore the structural integrity.
- Structural Reinforcement: In some cases, additional measures may be required to reinforce the structure, especially if the cut has caused significant damage. These measures can include the installation of additional post-tension cables or the implementation of supplementary support systems.
It is essential to consult with structural engineers and construction experts to determine the most suitable repair option based on the specific circumstances and requirements of the project.
Preventative Measures | Description |
1. Adequate Training and Awareness | Ensure that all construction personnel involved in the project receive proper training and are aware of the presence of post-tension cables. Provide detailed instructions on cable locations, safety precautions, and procedures to follow in case of cable encounters. Raising awareness among the team can help prevent accidental cuts and promote a safety-first mindset. |
2. Accurate Cable Mapping | Obtain accurate and up-to-date cable mapping information before starting any construction work. Collaborate with structural engineers and review construction plans to identify the location of post-tension cables. Marking the cable paths on-site can serve as a visual reminder for workers to exercise caution and avoid potential cable damage. |
3. Use of Cable Locating Devices | Utilize modern cable locating devices to identify the precise location of post-tension cables before commencing any excavation or cutting activities. These devices use electromagnetic or ground-penetrating radar technology to detect the presence of cables beneath the surface. By employing these tools, construction professionals can minimize the risk of accidentally cutting a cable. |
4. Communication and Collaboration | Foster effective communication and collaboration among team members. Ensure that everyone involved in the project, including contractors, subcontractors, and equipment operators, is aware of the presence of post-tension cables and understands the importance of avoiding their accidental damage. Regular meetings and toolbox talks can serve as valuable platforms to reinforce safety protocols and address any concerns or questions. |
5. Proper Equipment and Techniques | Use appropriate tools and equipment when working near post-tension cables. For example, if excavation is required, use non-destructive methods such as hydro excavation or hand digging to avoid damaging the cables. If cutting is necessary, consult with structural engineers or post-tensioning specialists to determine the safest methods and techniques to employ. Following proper procedures and using the right equipment can significantly reduce the likelihood of cable cuts. |
6. Continuous Monitoring | Implement a system for continuous monitoring of post-tension cables during construction activities. This can involve regular inspections by qualified professionals to ensure that cables remain intact and undamaged. Any signs of cable compromise, such as visible cuts, should be addressed promptly to prevent further issues. |
7. Documenting and Reporting | Maintain thorough documentation throughout the construction process. This includes recording the locations of post-tension cables, documenting any encounters or close calls, and reporting any incidents immediately. By keeping detailed records, construction professionals can identify areas for improvement, investigate any potential damage promptly, and take necessary corrective measures. |
Legal and Insurance Considerations Related to Cutting Post-Tension Cables
Cutting a post-tension cable on a construction site can have legal and insurance implications. Understanding these considerations is essential for all parties involved. Here are some key points to consider:
- Liability Issues: Accidental cable cutting can lead to legal disputes regarding liability. Contractors, subcontractors, and project owners may face claims for damages or injuries resulting from the incident. It is crucial to consult legal professionals to understand the potential liabilities and take appropriate action.
- Contractual Obligations: Construction contracts typically include provisions related to the handling and protection of post-tension cables. Failure to adhere to these contractual obligations can result in breach of contract claims and financial consequences.
- Insurance Coverage: Check the insurance policies in place to determine if they cover accidental damage to post-tension cables. Some policies may exclude specific types of damage or have limitations on coverage. Inform the insurance provider about the incident promptly and follow the necessary procedures for filing a claim.
It is advisable to consult with legal experts and insurance professionals to ensure compliance with legal obligations and to understand the scope of insurance coverage in the event of post-tension cable accidents.
Accidentally cutting a post-tension cable can have serious consequences for both safety and structural stability. The potential outcomes include structural damage, safety risks, weakened load-bearing capacity, and increased maintenance costs. To avoid such incidents, it is crucial to implement preventative measures, including adequate training and awareness, accurate cable mapping, the use of cable locating devices, effective communication and collaboration, proper equipment and techniques, continuous monitoring, and documenting and reporting.
By prioritizing safety, following established protocols, and maintaining open lines of communication, construction professionals can minimize the risk of cutting post-tension cables. Remember, prevention is always better than dealing with the aftermath of an accident. So, stay vigilant, take the necessary precautions, and ensure the longevity and safety of your construction projects. | <urn:uuid:d820f76f-f26f-42ef-80d4-9c1aade63638> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://materialhow.com/what-happens-accidentally-cut-post-tension-cable/ | 2024-12-11T06:40:20Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066074878.7/warc/CC-MAIN-20241211051031-20241211081031-00435.warc.gz | en | 0.909768 | 2,499 | 2.5625 | 3 |
Inside Climate News: Industrial Agriculture, an Extraction Industry Like Fossil Fuels, a Growing Driver of Climate Change
by Georgina Gustin | January 25, 2019
Industrial farming encourages practices that degrade the soil and increase emissions, while leaving farmers more vulnerable to damage as the planet warms.
On his farm in southwestern Iowa, Seth Watkins plants several different crops and raises cattle.
He controls erosion and water pollution by leaving some land permanently covered in native grass. He grazes his cattle on pasture, and he sows cover crops to hold the fertile soil in place during the harsh Midwestern winters.
Watkins’ farm is a patchwork of diversity—and his fields mark it as an outlier.
His practices don’t sound radical, but Watkins is a bit of a renegade. He’s among a small contingent of farmers in the region who are holding out against a decades-long trend of consolidation and expansion in American agriculture.
Watkins does this in part because he farms with climate change in mind.“I can see the impact of the changing climate,” he said. “I know, in the immediate, I’ve got to manage the issue. In the long term, it means doing something to slow down the problem.”
But for several decades, ever-bigger and less-varied farms have overtaken diversified operations like his, replacing them with industrialized row crops or gigantic impoundments of cattle, hogs and chickens.
This trend is a central reason why American agriculture has failed to deal with climate change, a crisis that has been made worse by large-scale farming practices even as it afflicts farmers themselves.
Consolidation has swallowed smaller farms, bolstering a financial and regulatory status quo that has thwarted the kind of climate-friendly approach Watkins and his fellow outliers employ.
“I don’t think any of us wants to get bigger,” Watkins mused. “It’s just the curse of a commodity business. We made all the focus on production, and all the economics, the subsidies, are tied to production. We have a production-focused agriculture policy.”
This article is part of a series by InsideClimate News exploring agriculture’s role in the global warming crisis and the forces preventing it from playing a greater part in combating climate change.
The consolidation of American farming, reinforced by an emphasis on just one or two main crops—corn and soybeans—has led to a system in which there’s little incentive to grow much else, especially in the agricultural heartland of the Midwest.
This has profound climate and environmental implications. Mega-sized farming encourages practices that degrade the soil, waste fertilizer and mishandle manure, all of which directly increase emissions of greenhouse gases. At the same time, it discourages practices like “no-till” farming and crop rotation that grab carbon dioxide from the air, store it in the soil and improve soil health.
“The industrial food system presents a barrier to realizing the potential climate benefits in agriculture,” said Laura Lengnick, a soil scientist who has written extensively on climate and agriculture. “We continue to invest in this massive corn and soybean and beef-making machine in the Midwest despite all that we know about the changes we could make that would maintain yields, improve farm profitability and deliver climate change solutions.”
This is happening as landmark government reports and ample academic research show that agricultural soils are critical for stabilizing the climate.
One recent government report called the trend toward ever-bigger farms “persistent, widespread and pronounced.”
The report, a comprehensive assessment of consolidation published last year by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service, confirmed what was already apparent to small farmers: “Agricultural production has shifted to much larger farming operations over the last three decades.”
While the report concluded that consolidation is responsible for improvements in productivity, it noted: “At the same time, large-scale farming operations are said to force small farms out of business, damage the viability of rural communities, reduce the diversity of agricultural production, and create environmental risks through their production practices.”
Bigger operations are richer, too. Half of the value of farm production came from those with annual sales of at least $1 million.
The drivers behind this ongoing expansion are intertwined and complex—a confluence of politics, economics and technology. Agricultural policy has long emphasized over-production, propped up by government subsidies that favor certain crops. Lawmakers have been unwilling to change the system, largely because of a powerful farm lobby and the might of agribusinesses that profit from technological advancements.
“Farmers are dictated in how to farm,” said Adam Mason, a policy director with Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement. “They’re locked into a system.”
This system has transformed agriculture into a business that resembles the fossil fuel industry as it extracts value out of the ground with relentless efficiency and leaves greenhouse gas pollution in its aftermath.
“From a climate, soil health, and carbon sequestering perspective, we need greater diversity,” said Ferd Hoefner of the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition. “We’re never going to make huge progress on soil health and carbon sequestration until we get that diversity.”
Subsidized Corn and Beans
“You come down to Iowa, it’s all corn and beans, and it’s neutering the land,” said Chris Peterson at his family’s farm near Clear Lake. The farm was nearly pushed out of business in the 1990s, Peterson said, because of consolidation in the livestock industry, but he managed to hang on by finding niche markets for the pork he produces.
Four or five decades ago, typical American farms looked a lot more like Peterson’s, growing several crops and raising livestock in diversified, integrated and time-honored synchrony. Farmers sold some crops and fed others to their animals, which also foraged on grass and over-wintered on hay. Cash crops paid the bills and meat met the mortgage.
Hefty government subsidies, along with market forces and technology, have since tilted the balance to corn and soybeans, transforming much of the Midwest into a vast duoculture of those two crops. The fields get bigger and bigger.
“Subsidies give the larger producers the resources to add more ground that they can tack on to their ever-growing acreage,” Hoefner said. “We directly subsidize consolidation. We reduced the risk of consolidation. Without subsidies, crop insurance and commodity payments, consolidation would have gone much more slowly.”
The resulting corn-and-beans duo demands the heavy use of fertilizers—especially nitrogen synthesized from natural gas—and depletes the soils. And by neglecting diversity, the system forfeits a crucial recovery cycle that would build soil back up and improve its ability to hold carbon.
“We could do a lot to change this simply by shifting to policies that promote nature-based climate resilience,” Lengnick said.
Farm to Fuel
Like subsidies, government mandates to use biofuels have pushed farmers to expand corn and soybean acreage—especially on environmentally sensitive land.
“A lot of erodible land, and some in wetlands, was converted to row crops,” said Matt Liebman, an agronomy professor at Iowa State University. “If you want to soak up the surplus, putting it into ethanol is a good way to do that.”
The mandates require refineries to blend a percentage of biofuels, including corn-based ethanol or soy-based biodiesel, into their fuel mix. Demand for the two crops shot up, adding pressure to shift land into producing them.
But just like what’s happened to oil and gas in the fracking boom, ample supply tended to depress prices. Aside from several years of record crop prices, peaking in 2012, profit margins have remained low, so farmers are driven to compensate by boosting volumes.
“If you’re making fewer dollars per acre, you try to farm more acres,” Liebman said.
As ethanol mandates arrived, genetically modified “Roundup Ready” corn and soybeans had become the dominant crops in the country. Engineering these crops to withstand herbicides that kill weeds made them easier to grow across ever-bigger pieces of land.
“Dumb it down, scale it up—that’s what happened,” said Mary Hendrickson, a professor of rural sociology at the University of Missouri, who has studied consolidation in the industry.
Hendrickson said that developments in agricultural technology, including genetically modified crops, have tended to benefit bigger farmers. “You already have consolidation, and farmers who have capital are the ones who benefit,” she said. “The technology is not neutral.”
While genetically modified crops simplified farming, they also boosted herbicide and fertilizer use. The Midwest became a nitrogen fertilizer hotspot, causing soils to emit more nitrous oxide, a potent greenhouse gas. The enriched runoff also feeds algal blooms, another source of greenhouse gases, which recent research suggests are probably undercalculated.
Erosion, loss of grassland, greenhouse gas emissions linked to fertilizers—these, along with methane from manure, are central culprits in agriculture’s expanding climate footprint. The convergence of policy and technology has worsened all of them.
Meat and Mergers
Critics say that lax enforcement of antitrust laws has enabled even more concentration in the hands of fewer companies.
That concentration has occurred not just at the farm level but throughout the food system, including in fertilizer and pesticide manufacturing, grain distribution, food processing and grocery retailing. Four companies or fewer control each of these sectors of the food industry.
Recent mega-mergers of agricultural chemical and seed companies—Monsanto and Bayer, ChinaChem and Syngenta, Dow Chemical and DuPont—have further concentrated seed technology in the hands of a few companies. Critics worry that could leave farmers with fewer choices over what to plant and how.
Nowhere has the consolidation been more pronounced than in the meat industry, a hugely profitable and influential force in American agriculture. Today, a handful of companies, led by Brazil-based JBS Holdings, dominate the global meat industry, wielding enormous economic and political might.
“It’s JBS and Smithfield,” said Joe Maxwell, a hog farmer from Missouri and executive director of the antitrust watchdog Organization for Competitive Markets. “They want the U.S. to be the cheapest place to raise meat. They drive the political power in D.C. The result is that farmers are locked into farming for government programs that are not sustainable, economically and environmentally.”
The consolidation in meat production is also what’s driving the consolidation of crop farming, Maxwell said.
Livestock is now commonly raised or fattened in confinement on a diet of soybeans and corn instead of grass or other forage.
“The decades-long removal of livestock from diversified farms and moving into industrial facilities has certainly increased corn and soybean acreage. Those two things go hand in hand,” Hoefner said. “I think it’s a very open question whether that kind of transition back to a more integrated crop and livestock system is even possible. We’ve made such major landscape changes.”
Technology in Few Hands
Even as the modern agricultural system has exacerbated climate change, powerful corporations in agribusiness have been very clear: The climate challenge presents a business opportunity.
Farmers will need new technologies to combat drought and pests, more irrigation, more equipment. In Iowa, where heavy spring rains mean the window for planting has tightened, farmers have to buy bigger planters to get their crops in the ground faster. Agri-chemical companies, including the newly merged Monsanto-Bayer, are committing billions to finding the next generation of drought-resistant crops and pesticides to use with them.
Many of these agribusiness giants say the future is in “climate smart” and “precision” agriculture, industry lingo that means relying on data and satellites to inform how farmers plant, fertilize and harvest—but that keeps the current system in place. Critics say this approach over-emphasizes technological fixes to adapt to climate change, rather than meaningful regulation or changes in agricultural practices to control greenhouse gas emissions.“The problem with precision agriculture is that it’s going to be very expensive and capital intensive, and it’s already a capital-intensive business,” said Mark Rasmussen, director of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University.
That, like so many factors influencing today’s agricultural system, favors larger farms.
Simplification Driving Risk
The interaction of a warming climate, crop specialization and concentration “increases the vulnerability of the U.S. food system,” Lengnick warned in a peer-reviewed study published in 2015.
In the agricultural powerhouse of the Midwest, the risks could be especially high because diversity has disappeared across such a broad landscape.
“Most farmers have corn and soy, and if they have a drought they lose everything,” said Francis Thicke, a former soil scientist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture who now keeps a small herd of dairy cows, feeding them grass and hay that he grows on his farm. “There’s very little resilience in these systems.”
Diversified farms have more protection against bad weather or low demand. When one crop fails, another provides a back-up. In a simplified farming system, insurance and other government subsidies effectively take the place of this security by guaranteeing payouts when crop yields or prices are low. But most of this federal support goes to larger farms, further driving consolidation.
“You really don’t have to worry if the crop fails because insurance is available and that’s shifted the dynamic,” Liebman said. “Farmers respond to averages, but also to extremes—and insurance buffers the extremes.”
Bigger farms focus on fewer crops because it’s simpler and more efficient, especially on a huge scale. This sacrifices the diversity that keeps the food system safe from the vicissitudes of climate change.
“Redundancy is the enemy of efficiency because redundancy says: Let’s maintain backup systems. Efficiency says: You don’t need them,” Hendrickson said.
Some researchers suggest bigger farms could be less adaptable or able to change course as global warming drives more extreme and unpredictable weather.
“Are these large organization going to be flexible and be able to adjust on the fly, and keep up as things get more erratic and uncertain?” Rasmussen asked. “You may be big and have a lot of influence, buy you can also fall hard.”
A Generational Change
The aging of a generation of farmers is also accelerating consolidation.
The average farmer is approaching 60 years old, and many farmers are relying on the land to finance retirement. But they’re not selling it to young farmers, who can’t afford the high land prices. They’re selling it to larger farms or leasing it out. In Iowa alone, more than half the farmland is farmed by non-owners.
According to the Oakland Institute, nearly half of all U.S. farmland will change hands in the next 20 years as more farmers retire. “With an estimated $10 billion in capital already looking for access to U.S. farmland, institutional investors openly hope to expand their holdings as this retirement bulge takes place,” the institute says.
Investors and tenants, critics worry, are less likely to farm in ways that conserve the soil—because conservation measures can shrink profit margins—or to grow diversified crops because there are fewer markets or support for them.
“The traditional midscale family farmers are more likely to be diversified,” Hoefner said. “We used to think in terms of 1,000- or 2,500-acre grain farms being big, and now 10,000- and 15,000-acre farms are not unusual. It’s very hard to imagine those extremely large grain farms diversifying to the extent that we need to solve the problem.”
Last year, U.S. Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey introduced legislation calling for a temporary moratorium on mergers across the food and farming industries—from seed corporations to grocery stores.
“Consolidation has now reached a point where the top four firms in almost every sector of the food and agriculture economy have acquired abusive levels of market power,” Booker said when he introduced the bill. “As a result, the U.S. is losing farmers at an alarming rate, agricultural jobs and wages are drying up, and rural communities are disappearing.”
But, so far, the momentum continues in one direction.
“They all think bigger is better,” Maxwell said. “Market power gives you political power. Even though many farmers would support better stewardship, we’re beating our head against the wall.” | <urn:uuid:80d7210f-1c03-46c6-8e4f-79e7db024c9a> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://news.mikecallicrate.com/inside-climate-news-industrial-agriculture-an-extraction-industry-like-fossil-fuels-a-growing-driver-of-climate-change/ | 2024-12-03T23:41:55Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066140386.82/warc/CC-MAIN-20241203224435-20241204014435-00588.warc.gz | en | 0.95196 | 3,632 | 2.953125 | 3 |
- Vital for Bodily Functions: Electrolytes are essential for maintaining fluid balance, nerve signaling, muscle contractions, and overall cellular function. Ensuring adequate intake of these minerals supports optimal health and performance.
- Impact on Physical Performance: Proper electrolyte balance is crucial for athletic performance. Electrolytes help prevent muscle cramps, sustain endurance, and facilitate quick recovery by replenishing minerals lost through sweat during exercise.
- Enhanced Hydration: Electrolytes play a significant role in maintaining hydration levels. They help the body absorb and retain water effectively, preventing dehydration and supporting overall well-being, especially during physical activities or in hot climates.
The Truth About The Benefits Of Electrolytes
As we strive for optimal health and well-being, the importance of minerals in our bodies cannot be overstated. Among these essential minerals, electrolytes play a crucial role in various bodily functions, aiding in hydration, muscle function, nerve signaling, and more. Understanding the benefits of electrolytes is key to maintaining a healthy balance and ensuring our bodies function at their best.
At our core, we believe that it all starts with ConcenTrace - a foundational mineral solution that has been enriching lives for over 50 years. Our commitment to providing the best minerals from the best source remains unwavering, as we continuously strive to innovate and deliver cutting-edge products that help people remineralize more effectively.
In this enlightening exploration, we delve into the world of electrolytes and uncover the scientific excellence behind these essential minerals. Through our rigorous research and close collaboration with medical and nutrition experts, we have developed products that not only meet high standards of quality but also guarantee safe and sustainable solutions for your mineral needs.
Join us on a journey to discover the truth about electrolytes, how they impact your body and mind, and how our products can make a tangible difference in your overall well-being. Feel the difference with ConcenTrace and explore a world where optimal mineral balance leads to a healthier, more vibrant you.
Types Of Electrolytes And Their Roles In The Body
Electrolytes play a crucial role in maintaining proper function within the human body. There are several types of electrolytes, each with its unique functions that are essential for overall health and well-being.
- Sodium: Sodium is a key electrolyte that helps regulate fluid balance and blood pressure in the body. It also plays a vital role in nerve function and muscle contractions.
- Potassium: Potassium is essential for maintaining proper muscle function, including the heart. It also helps regulate fluid balance, muscle contractions, and nerve signals.
- Magnesium: Magnesium is involved in over 300 enzymatic processes in the body and is crucial for energy production, muscle function, and bone health. It also aids in regulating blood pressure and maintaining a healthy heartbeat.
- Calcium: Calcium is well-known for its role in maintaining strong bones and teeth. It is also essential for muscle function, nerve transmission, blood clotting, and cell signaling.
- Chloride: Chloride helps maintain fluid balance in the body, is involved in digestion by producing stomach acid, and helps regulate acidity levels.
- Phosphate: Phosphate plays a crucial role in energy production, bone health, and regulating acid-base balance in the body.
- Bicarbonate: Bicarbonate is important for maintaining proper pH levels in the blood and helping buffer acids produced during metabolism.
Ensuring an adequate balance of these essential electrolytes is vital for overall health and optimal bodily function. By understanding the different types of electrolytes and their roles in the body, individuals can make informed choices to support their well-being and maintain proper mineral levels for optimal performance.
How Electrolytes Impact Physical Performance
Electrolytes play a crucial role in maintaining proper hydration, muscle function, and overall performance during physical activities. When you engage in exercise or any strenuous physical activity, your body sweats to regulate temperature. Sweat contains essential electrolytes like sodium, potassium, calcium, and magnesium which are lost as you perspire.
Maintaining the balance of electrolytes is vital for optimal muscle function. Sodium and potassium, in particular, are crucial for nerve impulse transmission and muscle contractions. When these electrolytes are depleted through sweat and not adequately replenished, you may experience muscle cramps, weakness, and fatigue during your workout or activity.
Moreover, electrolytes are essential for maintaining proper hydration levels. They help regulate the body's fluid balance, ensuring that cells are properly hydrated for optimal function. Dehydration due to electrolyte imbalance can lead to decreased performance, reduced endurance, and even heat-related illnesses.
During extended or intense physical exertion, especially in hot environments, electrolyte loss becomes more pronounced. Replenishing electrolytes through hydration solutions or drinks containing electrolytes can help sustain performance, delay fatigue, and support recovery post-exercise.
For athletes and individuals engaging in vigorous physical activities, paying attention to electrolyte intake is key to maximizing performance and minimizing the risk of muscle cramps and dehydration. By ensuring a proper balance of electrolytes, you can enhance your physical performance, endurance, and overall well-being during exercise and daily activities.
Electrolytes And Their Role In Hydration
Electrolytes play a crucial role in the body's hydration levels. These essential minerals, such as sodium, potassium, chloride, calcium, and magnesium, help regulate fluid balance, muscle function, and nerve signaling. When you sweat during physical activity or in hot weather, you lose not only water but also electrolytes. Replenishing these electrolytes is vital to maintain proper hydration and prevent dehydration.
Sodium and potassium are two key electrolytes that work together to maintain the body's water balance. Sodium helps retain water in the body, while potassium assists in fluid distribution inside and outside cells. Imbalances in these electrolytes can lead to issues like muscle cramps, fatigue, and even more severe conditions like heat exhaustion or heat stroke.
In addition to aiding hydration, electrolytes are also essential for proper muscle function. Calcium, for instance, is necessary for muscle contractions, while magnesium helps relax muscles after contraction. Ensuring an adequate intake of these electrolytes can support optimal muscle performance during exercise and aid in recovery post-workout.
Electrolytes further play a role in nerve function and overall cell communication. They help transmit electrical impulses that allow muscles to contract and nerves to signal correctly. Without a proper balance of electrolytes, nerve function can be compromised, leading to issues like numbness, tingling, or even more severe neurological symptoms.
Incorporating electrolyte-rich foods and beverages, or using supplements like our products infused with ConcenTrace minerals, can help individuals maintain electrolyte balance and support overall hydration and wellness. By understanding the significance of electrolytes in hydration and overall health, individuals can better optimize their performance, recovery, and daily well-being.
How To Get Electrolytes Naturally Through Your Diet
Electrolytes are essential minerals that play a crucial role in various bodily functions, including nerve signaling, muscle contractions, and fluid balance. While sports drinks and supplements can provide a quick electrolyte boost, getting these minerals naturally through your diet is a great way to maintain optimal levels for overall health. Here are some foods that are rich in electrolytes:
- Bananas: Known for their high potassium content, bananas are a convenient and popular source of this essential electrolyte.
- Sweet potatoes: Packed with potassium, sweet potatoes are not only delicious but also nutritious.
- Spinach: This leafy green vegetable is a powerhouse of minerals, including potassium.
- Celery: This crunchy vegetable is a natural source of sodium and can be a healthy snack option.
- Tomatoes: Apart from being rich in antioxidants, tomatoes also contain naturally occurring sodium.
- Seafood: Fish such as salmon and tuna naturally contain sodium and other essential electrolytes.
- Almonds: These nuts are not only a tasty snack but also a good source of magnesium.
- Avocado: In addition to being a trendy superfood, avocados are rich in magnesium.
- Dark chocolate: Indulge in some dark chocolate to boost your magnesium levels.
- Dairy products: Milk, yogurt, and cheese are traditional sources of calcium that can help maintain electrolyte balance.
- Leafy greens: Vegetables like kale and broccoli are excellent non-dairy sources of calcium.
- Oranges: This citrus fruit not only provides Vitamin C but also contains calcium.
Incorporating these electrolyte-rich foods into your daily diet can help you maintain a healthy balance of essential minerals naturally. Remember to stay hydrated and consume a varied diet to support your body's electrolyte needs.
Myths vs. Facts: What You Need To Know About Electrolytes
When it comes to electrolytes, there are several myths and misconceptions that circulate. Let's separate fact from fiction to ensure you have a clear understanding of the benefits of electrolytes.
- Myth 1: All sports drinks contain the same amount of electrolytes. Fact: Not all sports drinks are created equal. While some sports drinks may contain electrolytes, the quantity and quality of these electrolytes can vary significantly. It's essential to read labels and choose drinks that provide a balanced mix of electrolytes to replenish what your body loses during physical activity.
- Myth 2: Electrolytes are only important for athletes. Fact: Electrolytes play a crucial role in various bodily functions, not just during exercise. These minerals are essential for maintaining proper hydration, nerve function, muscle contractions, and overall balance within the body. Everyone, regardless of their activity level, can benefit from ensuring they have an adequate intake of electrolytes.
- Myth 3: Drinking plain water is enough to stay hydrated. Fact: While water is essential for hydration, especially during exercise or in hot weather, plain water may not be sufficient to replenish electrolytes lost through sweat. Adding electrolytes to your water or consuming electrolyte-rich foods can help maintain a healthy balance and prevent dehydration.
- Myth 4: You only need electrolytes when you're dehydrated. Fact: Ensuring a consistent intake of electrolytes is essential for overall health, not just when you're dehydrated. Electrolytes help regulate fluid balance, support muscle function, and contribute to overall well-being. Incorporating electrolyte-rich foods and beverages into your daily routine can help maintain optimal levels in your body.
By understanding the facts about electrolytes and their importance, you can make informed choices to support your body's needs and enhance your overall well-being.
In conclusion, the benefits of electrolytes cannot be overstated when it comes to maintaining optimal health and well-being. Electrolytes play a crucial role in various bodily functions, from regulating nerve and muscle function to balancing hydration levels. By ensuring you have an adequate intake of these essential minerals, you can support your overall health and performance.
At Trace, we understand the importance of minerals, especially for the 99% of people who are mineral insufficient. Our commitment to providing high-quality, concentrated minerals from the best source, the Great Salt Lake, is unwavering. We have been at the forefront of mineral supplementation for over 50 years, continuously striving to innovate and develop products that make remineralization easier and more effective.
Our products, fortified with ConcenTrace, offer a comprehensive solution to mineral insufficiencies, helping individuals feel the difference in their bodies, minds, and daily lives. With a focus on scientific excellence, sustainability, and community impact, Trace is dedicated to improving access to essential minerals and promoting better health outcomes for all.
Whether you are an athlete looking to enhance performance, someone striving for better hydration, or simply seeking to support your overall well-being, incorporating electrolyte-rich products into your daily routine can make a significant difference. Embrace the power of electrolytes and experience the transformative benefits they can bring to your health and vitality. Remineralize yourself with Trace and feel the difference today.
Frequently Asked Questions On The Benefits And Importance Of Electrolytes
What are electrolytes and why are they important for the body?
Electrolytes are minerals with an electric charge, found in your blood, urine, tissues, and other bodily fluids. They are crucial for various bodily functions, including regulating the balance of fluids in your body, maintaining blood pressure, and assisting in the repair of damaged tissues. Electrolytes include sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, chloride, phosphate, and bicarbonate.
How do electrolytes benefit athletic performance?
Electrolytes are essential for athletes as they help regulate muscle contractions, maintain hydration, and balance the body's pH levels. During intense exercise, the body loses electrolytes through sweat, particularly sodium and potassium, which can lead to dehydration and decreased performance. Replenishing electrolytes can help improve endurance, reduce muscle cramping, and speed up recovery.
Can electrolytes help with hydration?
Yes, electrolytes play a key role in hydration by controlling the balance of fluids in and out of cells and blood. They help your body absorb and retain water more effectively, making them crucial for preventing dehydration. This is especially important in hot climates, during exercise, or when you are sick.
What are the signs of electrolyte imbalance?
Signs of electrolyte imbalance can vary depending on which electrolyte is out of balance. Common symptoms include muscle aches and spasms, fatigue, headache, nausea, confusion, and in severe cases, seizures and heart rhythm disturbances.
Which foods are rich in electrolytes?
Many foods can help replenish your electrolytes naturally. Bananas and potatoes are great sources of potassium, dairy products and leafy greens are rich in calcium whilst nuts, seeds, and whole grains are good sources of magnesium. Salty foods, such as olives or pickles, can increase sodium intake.
How do electrolytes affect mental function?
Electrolytes, particularly sodium, potassium, and calcium, play vital roles in nerve function and brain health. They facilitate electrical signals between cells that are necessary for sensory perception, thought processing, and muscle coordination. An imbalance can lead to cognitive impairments, such as confusion, fatigue, and difficulty concentrating.
Can electrolytes aid in weight loss?
There is no direct evidence that electrolytes aid in weight loss on their own. However, maintaining a proper electrolyte balance can help ensure your metabolic processes run smoothly, potentially supporting weight loss efforts as part of a balanced diet and regular exercise program.
What are the key electrolytes and their functions?
The key electrolytes are sodium (regulates fluid balance), potassium (maintains nerve and muscle function), calcium (vital for muscle contraction and bone health), magnesium (supports muscle and nerve function and energy production), chloride (helps maintain fluid balance), phosphate (important for energy storage and muscle repair), and bicarbonate (helps regulate pH levels).
How does temperature affect electrolyte needs?
High temperatures can increase sweat production, leading to a more significant loss of electrolytes, particularly sodium and potassium. In hot climates or during exercise in warm conditions, it's essential to increase electrolyte intake to compensate for these losses and prevent dehydration and heat-related illnesses.
Are there any risks associated with consuming too many electrolytes?
Yes, consuming high amounts of electrolytes, particularly in supplement form, can lead to an electrolyte imbalance. Excess sodium can cause high blood pressure, leading to heart disease and stroke, while too much potassium can be harmful to individuals with kidney problems or could cause heart rhythm issues. It's important to balance electrolyte intake and consult with a healthcare provider before taking supplements, especially for individuals with existing health conditions. | <urn:uuid:3160a390-3694-4f3e-b8b3-85d17815753e> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.traceminerals.com/blogs/nutrition/the-benefits-of-electrolytes | 2024-12-09T10:42:19Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066462724.97/warc/CC-MAIN-20241209085821-20241209115821-00184.warc.gz | en | 0.926981 | 3,284 | 2.75 | 3 |
Systematic engineering of chimeric antigen receptor T cell signaling
Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them—that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.
- Lao Tzu
It seems like the Tao of Biotechnology is to learn to repurpose and harness the power of biology rather than to try to impose our will on it with force. Realizing this philosophy is only possible with a deeper knowledge of how basic biology works. In the early 20th century, one of the key tools used to introduce new DNA mutations was X-ray radiation. Model organisms such as fruit flies would be blasted with radiation to create new variants and map genes along chromosomes. Over time, we have carefully catalogued a variety of naturally occurring molecular tools that can be used to introduce DNA modifications. This toolbox includes systems like CRISPR—a discovered component of the bacterial immune system—that can be used to make programmed DNA edits.
The history of cancer treatment mirrors that of DNA modification. Because cancer is a genetic disease, one way to treat it is to destroy the DNA of cancer cells. This has been done by using radiation to shatter DNA—just like how we created fruit fly variants—for over a hundred years. The history of chemotherapy begins with literal warfare. Based on observations during World War I that mustard gas suppressed blood production, scientists developed an intravenous treatment for suppressing cancer using similar compounds.
One of the most impactful conceptual advancements in cancer therapy has been the realization that the human immune system can be harnessed to recognize and kill cancer cells. We have discovered that components of the bacterial immune system—like CRISPR—can be used to edit DNA. Now, we have learned that our own immune system is one of the most powerful and precise cancer medicines. In reflecting on this transition, one of the pioneers of cancer immunotherapy named James Allison said “In the 1980s, my laboratory did work on how the T cells of the immune system, which are the attack cells, latch onto the cells infected with viruses and bacteria and ultimately kill them. That research led me to think that the immune system could be unleashed to kill cancers.”
Advances in gene editing and cancer therapy have become much more precise and effective as we have learned to leverage our understanding of sophisticated evolved processes instead of assaulting cells with wartime compounds.1 We can achieve our desired outcomes by systematically engineering components of these processes to tip them towards an intended state. One beautiful example of this is chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy, which works by engineering a patients own T cells to produce a new receptor that targets them towards cancer cells.
We are only beginning to scratch the surface of what is possible with cell-based therapies. After the initial success of several cell-based therapies, researchers are now exploring ways to optimize their efficacy and safety, scale manufacturing, and even produce CAR T cells in vivo. In terms of optimizing efficacy, one engineering direction has been to explore further optimization of the co-stimulatory domains of CAR T cells—which are responsible for recognizing the second type of signal needed by a T cell to become activated.
Recent efforts to optimize these domains have primarily focused on testing different co-stimulatory domains found in natural T cells. A recent preprint entitled “Exploring the rules of chimeric antigen receptor phenotypic output using combinatorial signaling motif libraries and machine learning” took a fundamentally different approach. This study attempted to build a model to explain how signaling motifs—the basic building blocks of the co-stimulatory domains—can be combined in new ways to engineer better T cell phenotypes.
The defining characteristic of a CAR T cell is its engineered T cell receptor (TCR). TCRs are protein complexes present on the surface of T cells that are able to recognize and bind to molecules called antigens that initiate an immune response.
The engineered receptors present on CAR T cells are chimeric—the fusion of two or more genes—because they are designed to recognize and bind to antigens as well as to lead directly to activation when bound. A natural T cell in the immune system without a chimeric receptor requires two signals for activation: 1) antigen binding, and 2) a co-stimulatory interaction with molecules expressed by the antigen presenting cell. Successful “second generation” CAR T cells have incorporated co-stimulatory domains, which has improved their clinical effectiveness.
How can we better engineer co-stimulatory domains? This is a fundamental challenge. The authors point out that “a major goal in synthetic biology is to predictably generate new cell phenotypes by altering receptor composition.” In order to tackle this problem, the authors decided to strip down the domains to their constituent elements: the individual signaling motifs that are ultimately composed together into a receptor domain. They put forward the analogy that individual motifs are “words” whereas full co-stimulatory domains are “sentences.”
For their study, they used 12 signaling motifs and 1 spacer motif for a total of 13 motifs. They created a library testing every combination of up to three motifs possible, resulting in 2,379 (13 + 13^2 + 13^3) unique combinations. This library was used to perform a screen in T cells stimulated by the presence of Nalm 6 leukemia cells in order to explore the phenotypes generated by the different receptors.
There were two phenotypes of particular interest in this study. First, cytotoxicity is a measurement of the amount of target cells killed. Second, stemness is a T cell phenotype (measured by the presence of specific cell surface markers) that resembles the plasticity of a stem cell. Both phenotypes are associated with more effective CAR therapy. The large number of receptor combinations in their initial screen resulted in a wide range of observed values for both phenotypes.
In order to perform a more high resolution screen, they took a random subset of ~250 cars, and screened them on an array with four pulses of the stimulatory immune cells.
The next step in their work reflects an interesting change taking place in how science is done, so it is worth briefly thinking about what we are trying to accomplish when we model data. In 2001, the prominent statistician Leo Breiman argued that two cultures of statistical modeling had formed. The “data modeling” culture primarily assumes data are generated by a stochastic process that can be modeled and understood with certain statistical assumptions. In practice, scientists doing data modeling use models such as linear or logistic regression in combination with their hypotheses and prior knowledge about the domain to approximate the underlying function represented by their data.
At the turn of the century, Leo was beginning to see the formation of the “algorithmic modeling” culture, which took a fundamentally different approach to statistical modeling. This culture makes no assumptions about the underlying data generating function, and simply aims to use algorithmic techniques to create a predictive model.
With breakthroughs in machine learning, the size of the population of scientists practicing algorithmic modeling has swelled relative to Breiman’s early estimations. This study is a clear example of using an algorithmic modeling approach to understand and engineer biology. The first thing that the authors did with the results of their arrayed screen was to train a neural network to predict the T cell phenotypes based on the receptor combinations.
While the arrayed screening data set wasn’t enormous, their models were “able to capture much of the relationship between signaling motif composition and phenotype, with R2 values of approximately 0.7-0.9.” With their predictive model, they were then able to effectively simulate the phenotypic response from each of the combinations present in their total combinatorial library of 2,379 receptor combinations. Using this approach, they worked to systematically reverse engineer the underlying grammar of how the signaling “words” (motifs) are composed to form “sentences” (receptors with phenotypic consequences) by exploring model predictions.
What are important aspects of grammar? The analysis in this study focused on three fundamental components: word meaning, word combination, and word order. What does a given motif typically associate with? Do certain combinations of motifs drive certain phenotypes? Does their order within the receptor domain matter?
The figure above represents their findings about which pairs of motifs most effectively led to T cell cytotoxicity and stemness. It also appeared that the order within a domain did play a crucial role for some motifs:
Importantly, the grammar derived from their in silico simulations appear to be consistent with physical reality. Engineered receptors based on model predictions led to more cytotoxicity in vitro, and even demonstrably improved tumor clearance in vivo:
One of the reasons that I love computational biology is that it is a way for us to translate all of the progress from the world of bits back into the world of atoms. It is incredibly gratifying to see the predictions of an algorithmic model actually born out in molecular behavior.
Evolution is arguably the most beautiful generative process in existence. Over incomprehensible time scales, it has sculpted life on Earth into the abundance of diverse and complex patterns that we observe today. Living systems are chaotic, messy, and redundant—while simultaneously being capable of exquisite molecular precision that dwarves the capability of anything we can engineer. How can we develop tools and technology to exert any control over biology? As Feng Zhang says, “I think the way forward is to stay humble and to look to Nature for inspiration.”
This new study is inspiring. It represents the use of an algorithmic modeling approach to decipher the underlying grammar of how motifs combine together into receptor domains. By understanding this molecular language, we may be able to better engineer cell-based therapies to effectively treat disease. It reminds me of a quote by Demis Hassabis about this type of approach: “Biology is likely far too complex and messy to ever be encapsulated as a simple set of neat mathematical equations. But just as mathematics turned out to be the right description language for physics, biology may turn out to be the perfect type of regime for the application of AI.”
Thanks for reading this highlight of “Exploring the rules of chimeric antigen receptor phenotypic output using combinatorial signaling motif libraries and machine learning.” If you’ve enjoyed this post and don’t want to miss the next one, you can sign up to have them automatically delivered to your inbox:
Until next time! 🧬
To be clear, the current standard of care in cancer treatment is for the most part still primarily radiation or chemotherapy. However, while nothing is inevitable in technology development, it is likely that immunotherapy will only continue to gain ground as it matures and improves.
After the recent emergence from stealth mode for this new “rejuvenation programming” company with $3 billion in funding, an enormous number of prominent scientists announced publicly on Twitter that they were joining as principal investigators. It seemed a statistical certainty that at some point I would be writing about the work of somebody now at Altos, and it turns out that was correct! | <urn:uuid:9660b6ca-f296-429f-9c34-84da032fff6e> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://centuryofbio.com/p/car-t-combinatorics | 2024-12-09T14:35:07Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066046617.9/warc/CC-MAIN-20241209120910-20241209150910-00481.warc.gz | en | 0.949501 | 2,308 | 2.9375 | 3 |
LibreOffice Calc, like all spreadsheets, contains a large number of cells in various rows, columns, and sheets, and navigating that can get a little tricky. As we saw previously, each cell has an address, which is marked by the column (letters) and the row (numbers), always in that order. But in fact the address can be larger because we never discussed sheets.
By default, when you create a new Calc spreadsheet you will have three sheets in it, which you see as tabs along the bottom of the screen. They will be called Sheet 1, Sheet 2, and Sheet 3 at this point. But these defaults can be changed by going to Tools–>Options–>LibreOffice Calc–>Defaults. On this screen you can decide how many sheets you want to have on a new document. While the default as it comes is three (similar to Microsoft Excel) you can change it. On my copy of Calc I changed it to 1, because most of the time I never need more than one sheet for my work. I can also change the default naming of new sheets here. Instead of each sheet being “Sheet 1″, Sheet 2”, etc. I could make it something else, like “Tab 1”, “Tab 2”. and so on. I never bother with this though, because I will always name my sheets for what they are doing in a given spreadsheet (e.g. look at what I did when I created the simple model for “What-If” analysis.) And if I need to add a sheet, I can just go to Insert–>Sheet to bring up a window to specify where the sheet should go, what it should be named, or even insert a sheet from a file . A CSV file would be a very good choice here, such as if you wanted to bring in data from a database or another spreadsheet for use in the current spreadsheet.
You can leave your sheet named as Sheet 1 and so on, but it is often better to rename each sheet with something more descriptive like I did in my model example. And the thing we want to mention here is that the sheet name is implicitly part of the cell address, and can be explicitly addressed. If you only have one sheet in your spreadsheet, you needn’t worry about this, but if you had several sheets you might want to use data from all them in combination, and then it really matters. So begin by renaming your sheets with descriptive names. Place your cursor over the tab where it now says “Sheet 1”, and select Rename Sheet…. A window opens that lets you type in a new name. A common use for something like this is financial data where each month is on its own sheet, so rename this sheet to “January” and click OK. You should now see the tab renamed. Repeat on Sheet 2, only call it February. Now all we need to do is put some data in there.
For this purpose I am going to introduce a couple of functions that produce random numbers. The first of these is RAND. You can find this by clicking on the Function icon, which is just to the left of the Sum icon. Any mathematician would recognize this script F with a small x as the symbol “F of x”, which is the general form of a function. When you click on it a window opens that lets you select a function. We will get into this in more detail later, but for now just select the Functions tab, then for category All and scroll down to RAND. Click on it and on the right you will see a description that says “Returns a random number between 0 and 1”. Click Next and you should see the function copied to the Formula box below. Since I like my number to be slightly larger, right after the “=RAND()” I will type “*100”. Then click OK, and you should have a random number in the cell of your spreadsheet, so just click-and-drag to fill ten or so cells. You now have some random data. On the next sheet we will do something slightly different. As before, go to the Function Wizard, but this time select the RANDBETWEEN function. The description for this one says “Returns a random integer between the numbers you specify”. When you select that and click Next to put it in the Formula box, you will see two blank fields above to enter the bottom and top number of the range. I selected 1 and 100 as my bottom and top numbers, then clicked OK. As before, click-and-drag to fill some cells. From this you can see the differences between these two functions. The RAND function has decimal places, up to 10, and even though we multiplied by 100 it is possible that one or more of the numbers created is below 1. The RANDBETWEEN function has no decimal places, and thus no numbers below 1. Every number is an integer.
Back to the story. With data on two sheets I can do calculations using these numbers. I will create a third sheet, and name it “March Projected”. To do this simple calculation let’s assume we can average the numbers from January and February to get an estimate for March. So go to cell A1 on the March Projected tab and click the equals sign on the formula bar. This tells Calc to expect a calculation. Then go to the January tab, and click cell A1 there. If you look at the Formula Bar, you will now see it say “=January.A1”. That indicates that even though you are on the March Projected tab, you will be grabbing a value from the January tab. Next, we need to an addition, so type in a + sign, then go the February tab and click on the A1 cell there. Now your formula reads “=January.A1+February.A1”. We are close, but having added these together we need to divide by two. The simplest way to do this is to edit the Formula in the Formula Bar by adding parentheses around the addition, and then putting a divide by 2 at the end. When you do so your formula should read “=(January.A1+February.A1)/2”. That is it, so click the green Accept icon next to the formula. Your numbers will be different from mine if you used random numbers, but if you check you should indeed see the average. And if you then click-and-drag down the column, you will see that cells increment exactly as you would expect.
So, the cell address has the name “Sheet.ColumnRow”, but if no sheet is specifically named it is assumed to be the sheet you are on. And you can jump to a cell on a different sheet using the Name box at the left of the formula bar. Just type in the cell address using the full name, hit Enter, and you will jump to that cell on that sheet.
Adding, Deleting, and Hiding Columns and Rows
Within a sheet there are times you need to do some editing of the structure by Adding, Deleting and Hiding rows and columns. This is not hard. To add a row or column, just go to Insert. In the menu that comes down, you can see the option for Rows or Columns. This is done using certain defaults based on where you are now. If you are in a cell, Calc will use that cell address as the starting point for adding. If you add a Row, the new blank row will push down the stack and be inserted above the cell. If you add a column, the new column will be inserted to the left of the cell, and the columns will shift to the right.
Deleting is slightly different. The way Calc handles this is by deleting cells, and if you are in one cell and click Delete the question will be whether to move up the cells beneath the one you deleted, move to the left the cells to the right, or delete the entire row or column. To do this go to Edit, then Delete Cells. For rows and columns that I delete, I will often click on the row number or the column letter, which will highlight the entire row or column. If I then click the Delete Cells option it does not need to ask me what I intend, it just deletes what I highlighted.
Hiding is another option that is useful for a few reasons. First, it can clean up printing if you hide a row or column that does not need to be in the printed output. Perhaps this is because it represented an intermediate step in the calculation, or contains data that should not be printed for other reasons, such as privacy. But hiding a column or row is easy. Just go to the Format menu, choose either Row or Column as appropriate, and the submenu will contain Hide as an option. When you do this, the row or column will disappear from view, but it is still in the spreadsheet. And if you look at the Row numbers or Column letters, you will see that the hidden row or column has its label missing from the sequence. So if you see columns that go “A,B,C,D,F,G”, you know right away that the E column was hidden because that letter is missing. If you then want to bring back the column (or row) select all of the columns or rows in the range that includes the hidden columns or rows (e.g. in the above example select columns D and F), then go to Format–>Column–>Show to bring it back again.
Freezing and Splitting Rows and Columns
This is another area of useful technique. Sometimes you want a row or rows at the top to remain fixed in place as you scroll down, or it could be a column or columns to be fixed as you scroll to the right. To freeze rows at the top, go to the row below the row(s) you want frozen, then go to Window–>Freeze, and those rows will be frozen. Now you can scroll up or down, and the frozen rows will always stay in place. For freezing columns, it is the same thing. Pick the column just to the right of the columns you want to freeze, then go to Window–>Freeze. You can even set both columns and rows in one pass by selecting the cell just to the right and under where you want the freeze, and then going to Window–>Freeze. To remove the freeze on any rows or columns, go to Window–>Freeze and click on it to remove the check mark.
Splitting is a slightly different. This divides the sheet into several independently scrollable sections, so you can make around within each section without affecting other sections. You can divide into either two or four sections, depending on whether you split along a vertical line, a horizontal line, or both. Just select a cell as you did above for freezing, but this time go to Window–>Split. You will now see a thick separator between the sections, and each section will have its own scroll bars. But note that if you divide into four sections, there are still some limitations. Any scroll bar will affect both sections to which it is attached, so if you select a scroll bar on the right and move it, both of the sections on that part of the spreadsheet will move together. As with Freeze, you can remove this by going to Window–>Split and selecting to remove the check mark.
Shortcut Keys for Navigation
This comes from the LibreOffice Help site, which you may want to bookmark for reference.
Shortcut Keys | Effect |
Ctrl+Home | Moves the cursor to the first cell in the sheet (A1). |
Ctrl+End | Moves the cursor to the last cell on the sheet that contains data. |
Home | Moves the cursor to the first cell of the current row. |
End | Moves the cursor to the last cell of the current row. |
Shift+Home | Selects cells from the current cell to the first cell of the current row. |
Shift+End | Selects cells from the current cell to the last cell of the current row. |
Shift+Page Up | Selects cells from the current cell up to one page in the current column or extends the existing selection one page up. |
Shift+Page Down | Selects cells from the current cell down to one page in the current column or extends the existing selection one page down. |
Ctrl+Left Arrow | Moves the cursor to the left edge of the current data range. If the column to the left of the cell that contains the cursor is empty, the cursor moves to the next column to the left that contains data. |
Ctrl+Right Arrow | Moves the cursor to the right edge of the current data range. If the column to the right of the cell that contains the cursor is empty, the cursor moves to the next column to the right that contains data. |
Ctrl+Up Arrow | Moves the cursor to the top edge of the current data range. If the row above the cell that contains the cursor is empty, the cursor moves up to the next row that contains data. |
Ctrl+Down Arrow | Moves the cursor to the bottom edge of the current data range. If the row below the cell that contains the cursor is empty, the cursor moves down to the next row that contains data. |
Ctrl+Shift+Arrow | Selects all cells containing data from the current cell to the end of the continuous range of data cells, in the direction of the arrow pressed. If used to select rows and columns together, a rectangular cell range is selected. |
Ctrl+Page Up | Moves one sheet to the left.In the page preview: Moves to the previous print page. |
Ctrl+Page Down | Moves one sheet to the right.In the page preview: Moves to the next print page. |
Alt+Page Up | Moves one screen to the left. |
Alt+Page Down | Moves one screen page to the right. |
Shift+Ctrl+Page Up | Adds the previous sheet to the current selection of sheets. If all the sheets in a spreadsheet are selected, this shortcut key combination only selects the previous sheet. Makes the previous sheet the current sheet. |
Shift+Ctrl+Page Down | Adds the next sheet to the current selection of sheets. If all the sheets in a spreadsheet are selected, this shortcut key combination only selects the next sheet. Makes the next sheet the current sheet. |
Ctrl+ * | where (*) is the multiplication sign on the numeric key padSelects the data range that contains the cursor. A range is a contiguous cell range that contains data and is bounded by empty row and columns. |
Ctrl+ / | where (/) is the division sign on the numeric key padSelects the matrix formula range that contains the cursor. |
Ctrl+Plus key | Insert cells (as in menu Insert – Cells) |
Ctrl+Minus key | Delete cells (as in menu Edit – Delete Cells) |
Enter (in a selected range) | Moves the cursor down one cell in a selected range. To specify the direction that the cursor moves, choose Tools – Options – LibreOffice Calc – General. |
Ctrl+ ` (see note below this table) | Displays or hides the formulas instead of the values in all cells. |
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- Discover the captivating meaning behind Garnet, January’s birthstone.
- Uncover the rich history and significance of Garnet in various cultures.
- Learn about the diverse varieties of Garnet and their unique characteristics.
- Explore the therapeutic properties associated with Garnet.
- Tips on choosing and caring for Garnet jewelry.
In the kaleidoscope of birthstones, January shines with the fiery brilliance of Garnet. But what does the garnet birthstone meaning truly entail? Let’s embark on a journey to unravel the mysteries and beauty that this gemstone holds.
The Rich History of Garnet
Garnet has graced civilizations throughout history, leaving an indelible mark. From ancient Egyptian pharaohs to medieval royalty, this gem has adorned the most prestigious. The word “Garnet” itself is derived from the Latin word “granatus,” meaning grain or seed, reflecting the gem’s resemblance to pomegranate seeds.
Table: Garnet Through the Ages
Era | Significance |
Ancient Egypt | Symbol of life and protection |
Middle Ages | Popular among clergy; believed to ward off negativity |
Victorian Era | A token of love and commitment |
Garnet Varieties and Characteristics
Not all Garnets are created equal. Garnets come in a spectrum of colors, each with its own allure. The most recognized is the deep red variety, but did you know there are greens, oranges, and even rare blue Garnets?
List: Varieties of Garnet
- Almandine: Deep red, often referred to as the classic Garnet.
- Pyrope: Fiery red to violet-red, known for its high brilliance.
- Spessartine: Vibrant orange, adding a burst of warmth.
- Tsavorite: Lush green, a favorite among collectors.
- Rhodolite: Purplish-red, striking a balance between ruby and garnet.
Garnet’s Cultural Significance
Garnet’s significance transcends borders and cultures, each attributing unique meanings to this captivating gemstone.
List: Cultural Significance
- Greek Mythology: Believed to symbolize the eternal flame.
- Christianity: Often associated with sacrifice and salvation.
- Asian Cultures: Considered a stone of regeneration and vitality.
The Therapeutic Touch of Garnet
Beyond its aesthetic appeal, Garnet is renowned for its metaphysical properties. Many believe that Garnet can alleviate negative emotions and bring about a sense of grounding and stability.
Table: Garnet’s Therapeutic Properties
Properties | Benefits |
Energizing | Boosts vitality and stamina |
Balancing | Restores harmony to chaotic emotions |
Protective | Shields against negative energies |
Regenerative | Promotes physical and emotional healing |
Selecting and Caring for Garnet Jewelry
Choosing the perfect Garnet piece requires a discerning eye. Whether you’re drawn to a deep red Almandine or a vibrant green Tsavorite, consider the following tips.
List: Tips for Selecting Garnet Jewelry
- Color Matters: Choose a hue that resonates with you.
- Clarity Counts: Look for gems with minimal inclusions for maximum brilliance.
- Consider the Cut: Different cuts showcase Garnet’s unique qualities.
- Setting Styles: Opt for a setting that complements the gem’s color and personality.
Table: Caring for Garnet Jewelry
Do’s | Don’ts |
Regular Cleaning: Gently wipe with a soft cloth. | Avoid Harsh Chemicals: Keep away from abrasive cleaners. |
Safe Storage: Store separately to prevent scratches. | Avoid Extreme Temperatures: Protect from sudden temperature changes. |
Garnet Birthstone: A Timeless Expression
In conclusion, the garnet birthstone meaning goes far beyond its radiant appearance. It’s a symbol of love, vitality, and timeless beauty. Whether you wear it for its aesthetic appeal or its metaphysical properties, Garnet is a gem that continues to captivate across generations.
As you embark on your journey to explore the world of Garnet, remember that this gemstone is not just a piece of jewelry but a piece of history, culture, and personal expression.
So, why not indulge in the allure of Garnet? Discover the perfect piece that resonates with your style and spirit. After all, in the world of gemstones, Garnet truly reigns as the January jewel with a story as vibrant as its colors.
For more gemstone insights and jewelry care tips, explore SarahDezine’s Gem Guide.
Frequently Asked Questions About Garnet Birthstone Meaning
1. What is the meaning behind the Garnet birthstone?
The Garnet birthstone is symbolic of love, passion, and enduring strength. In various cultures and mythologies, it’s associated with regeneration, vitality, and the eternal flame. Dive deeper into its rich meanings here.
2. Are all Garnets red, or do they come in other colors?
While the classic red Almandine garnet is well-known, Garnets exhibit a spectrum of colors. From fiery red Pyrope to vibrant green Tsavorite, explore the diverse hues and varieties explained here.
3. What makes Garnet historically significant?
Garnet’s historical significance spans across cultures and eras. In ancient Egypt, it symbolized life and protection, while during the Victorian era, it became a token of love and commitment. Discover more about Garnet’s journey through time in this historical overview.
4. How does Garnet contribute to spiritual and emotional well-being?
Garnet is believed to have therapeutic properties, such as energizing the wearer, balancing emotions, and offering protection against negativity. Explore the metaphysical side of Garnet and its benefits in this detailed guide.
5. Can I find Garnet in jewelry other than rings?
Absolutely! Garnet’s versatility extends beyond rings. From earrings to necklaces, discover how different jewelry pieces showcase the unique qualities of Garnet in our guide on selecting and caring for Garnet jewelry.
6. How do I choose the right Garnet jewelry for myself or as a gift?
Selecting the perfect Garnet piece involves considering factors like color, clarity, and cut. Delve into our tips on choosing Garnet jewelry that resonates with your style and preferences here.
7. Can Garnet be worn by anyone, or is it specific to January-born individuals?
While Garnet is January’s birthstone, its timeless appeal makes it suitable for anyone. Whether you wear it for its aesthetics or metaphysical properties, Garnet is a gem that transcends birth months.
8. How do I care for my Garnet jewelry to maintain its luster?
Proper care ensures your Garnet jewelry retains its beauty. Learn essential do’s and don’ts, from regular cleaning to safe storage, in our comprehensive care guide.
9. Are there synthetic or treated Garnets in the market?
Yes, synthetic and treated Garnets exist. It’s crucial to be aware of these variations when making a purchase. Explore the nuances of natural vs. treated Garnets in our guide on Garnet varieties.
10. Where can I find high-quality Garnet jewelry from reputable brands?
For exquisite Garnet jewelry, explore renowned brands that prioritize quality and craftsmanship. Discover our top recommendations and trusted brands in this curated list. Elevate your style with the timeless allure of Garnet.
What does garnet birthstone symbolize?
Garnet birthstone symbolizes passion, energy, and love. Its deep, rich red color is often associated with intense feelings and signifies a strong connection between people.
What does garnet do spiritually?
Garnet has spiritual significance as it is believed to enhance one’s vitality and life force. It aids in spiritual growth, helping individuals align their inner energies and find a deeper connection with their higher selves.
What is the power for the garnet birthstone?
The power of the garnet birthstone lies in its ability to bring courage, strength, and positive energy. It is a stone of commitment and inspires individuals to pursue their goals with determination.
What are the powers of garnet stone?
Garnet stone is known for its powers in promoting self-confidence, creativity, and passion. It also provides protection and helps in overcoming challenges, making it a valuable gemstone for various aspects of life.
Who should not wear garnet stone?
Individuals with a tendency towards aggression or impatience may find that wearing garnet intensifies these traits. It is advisable for such individuals to choose gemstones that align better with their personality.
What zodiac should wear garnet?
Garnet is particularly beneficial for individuals born under the zodiac sign of Capricorn. It complements their characteristics and enhances their ability to achieve success and stability.
Is garnet a lucky stone?
Yes, garnet is considered a lucky stone. It is believed to bring good fortune, especially in matters of love, relationships, and career.
Does garnet bring luck?
Garnet is believed to bring luck and positive energy. It is often worn or carried to attract favorable circumstances and opportunities.
Does garnet attract love?
Yes, garnet is associated with love and passion. It is believed to attract love into one’s life and deepen the connection in existing relationships.
Does garnet attract wealth?
Garnet is believed to attract wealth and abundance by enhancing one’s entrepreneurial spirit and business acumen.
Is garnet good for wealth?
Yes, garnet is considered good for wealth as it is believed to promote prosperity and success in financial endeavors.
Is garnet a man or woman?
Garnet is a gemstone suitable for both men and women. Its deep red color and powerful energies make it a versatile choice for anyone seeking its benefits.
Is garnet stronger than Ruby?
While both garnet and Ruby are durable gemstones, the strength can vary based on the specific type of each stone. Generally, they are comparable in strength.
How powerful is garnet?
Garnet is a powerful gemstone known for its ability to energize, inspire, and bring positive change. Its strength lies in promoting courage and passion.
What birth month is garnet?
Garnet is the birthstone for the month of January. It is a popular choice for individuals born during this month.
Which is the most powerful birthstone?
Opinions may vary, but garnet is often considered one of the most powerful birthstones due to its wide range of positive influences on various aspects of life.
What is the rarest birthstone?
Alexandrite and red diamonds are considered some of the rarest birthstones. While garnet is not as rare, its unique qualities make it a prized gemstone.
What body part does garnet rule?
Garnet is associated with the circulatory system and is believed to have positive effects on blood circulation. It is often used to address issues related to this body system.
Is garnet an unhealthy relationship?
Garnet is not associated with unhealthy relationships. Instead, it is believed to strengthen bonds and enhance the positive aspects of relationships.
What are the benefits of garnet in astrology?
In astrology, garnet is believed to provide stability, promote success, and bring positive energy to individuals. It is associated with the Root Chakra, grounding and balancing energies for overall well-being.
What is my birthstone based on birthday?
Your birthstone based on your birthday is determined by the month in which you were born. Each month is associated with a specific gemstone, such as garnet for January, symbolizing your unique connection to that stone.
Is garnet lucky for Capricorn?
Yes, garnet is considered lucky for Capricorn. It aligns with Capricorn’s energy, bringing luck and positive vibes, especially when worn as a birthstone.
Can I wear garnet all the time?
It is generally safe to wear garnet regularly. However, like any jewelry, it’s advisable to remove it during activities that may expose it to harsh chemicals or potential damage.
Is garnet an expensive stone?
While garnet is not as expensive as some precious stones, it varies in price depending on factors like color and size. Overall, it is considered more affordable than certain other gemstones.
Which finger should I wear garnet ring?
Traditionally, you should wear a garnet ring on the ring finger of your right hand. This finger is associated with the Sun, and garnet’s energy aligns well with it.
What is July’s birthstone?
July’s birthstone is ruby. It is a vibrant red gemstone symbolizing passion and courage.
What are 3 interesting facts about garnet?
1. Garnet comes in various colors, not just red.
2. It has a rich historical significance, often used in ancient jewelry.
3. Garnet is believed to have healing properties, promoting physical and emotional well-being.
Can garnet predict the future?
No, garnet cannot predict the future. It is a gemstone with metaphysical properties, but it doesn’t have the ability to foresee events.
Which stone attracts luck?
Garnet is known to attract luck, especially for those born under the sign of Capricorn. It enhances positive energies and aligns with the wearer’s luck.
Who has a crush on Garnet?
In the realm of gemstones, there isn’t a literal “crush” on garnet. However, individuals who appreciate its beauty and metaphysical properties may develop a fondness for this gemstone.
What Stone gives love?
Rose quartz is a gemstone often associated with love. It is believed to attract love and strengthen relationships.
Which gemstone is best for love marriage?
Emerald is considered a gemstone that promotes love and commitment, making it a popular choice for those seeking a love-filled marriage.
Which stone is best for success?
Citrine is often associated with success and prosperity. Its vibrant energy is believed to attract positive outcomes in various aspects of life.
Which stone is for money?
Pyrite is known as the “fool’s gold” and is associated with wealth and abundance.
Which crystal is good for career?
Clear quartz is considered a versatile crystal that can enhance focus and clarity, making it beneficial for career growth.
How do I know if my garnet is real?
To determine if your garnet is real, you can conduct tests like checking for inclusions, examining its color consistency, and seeking professional gemological assessments.
Which is more expensive, ruby or garnet?
Is garnet a birthstone?
Yes, garnet is a birthstone, specifically for individuals born in January.
What is the cheapest birthstone?
Citrine is often considered one of the more affordable birthstones.
What months have 2 birthstones?
August and December are examples of months with two birthstones each.
What is October’s birthstone?
October’s birthstone is opal – a gemstone known for its iridescence.
Does garnet have 3 eyes?
No, garnet does not have three eyes. This notion might be a misunderstanding or a creative interpretation.
Should I sleep with garnet?
While it’s generally safe to sleep with garnet, some people prefer to remove jewelry during sleep for comfort.
Can Aries wear garnet?
Yes, Aries can wear garnet as it aligns with their energy and can bring positive influences.
What is Lucky Stone in astrology?
The concept of a “lucky stone” varies in astrology, but garnet is considered lucky for Capricorn.
Do birthstones go by zodiac?
Birthstones are often associated with specific months rather than zodiac signs, but some individuals choose stones based on their zodiac for additional significance.
How do I choose my birthstone?
Your birthstone is determined by the month you were born. Consider wearing the stone associated with your birth month for a personal connection.
Who wears garnet?
Anyone can wear garnet, especially those born in January or those who appreciate its beauty and metaphysical properties.
How do I activate garnet?
To activate garnet, cleanse it regularly and set your intentions by focusing on positive energy and goals.
Can I wear garnet on the left hand?
Yes, you can wear garnet on the left hand. The choice of hand is a personal preference.
Which metal attracts money?
Silver is often associated with attracting money and wealth.
What is the luckiest crystal?
The citrine crystal is often considered one of the luckiest, associated with prosperity and positive energy.
What is the luckiest stone for money?
Pyrite is considered a lucky stone for money and abundance.
Which stone is a money magnet?
](https://greenloseweight.com/greenaventurine) is often referred to as a money magnet in the world of crystals. | <urn:uuid:a5814b4c-a4f7-4ecc-91a5-bce40cd9d652> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://sarahdezine.com/garnet-january-guide/ | 2024-12-08T11:30:58Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066446143.89/warc/CC-MAIN-20241208111059-20241208141059-00448.warc.gz | en | 0.942944 | 3,655 | 2.8125 | 3 |
Xeriscaping landscaping ideas are a popular choice for homeowners looking to create beautiful, environmentally friendly gardens. In this article, we will explore the concept of xeriscaping and its many benefits. From choosing the right plants to water conservation techniques, designing a xeriscape garden, and even how to maintain it, we will cover everything you need to know about xeriscaping.
Xeriscaping is a landscaping method that focuses on water conservation and using drought-resistant plants. By utilizing this approach, homeowners can reduce water usage and maintenance while still having a stunning outdoor space. This article aims to provide readers with practical tips and ideas for incorporating xeriscaping into their own gardens.
We will delve into the various aspects of xeriscaping, including choosing the right plants, water conservation techniques, budget-friendly options, and even how to adapt xeriscaping to different climate conditions. Whether you’re looking to create a low-maintenance garden or simply want to make more eco-friendly choices in your landscaping, this article will guide you through the process of creating your own xeriscape paradise.
Choosing the Right Plants
When it comes to xeriscaping landscaping ideas, choosing the right plants is crucial for the success of your garden. The key to xeriscaping is selecting drought-resistant plants that can thrive in low-water conditions. Here are some popular options for drought-resistant plants that are suitable for xeriscaping:
- Succulents: These plants have thick, fleshy leaves and stems that store water, making them ideal for xeriscaping. Some popular succulents include aloe vera, agave, and sedum.
- Lavender: Known for its fragrant flowers and aromatic foliage, lavender is a hardy plant that requires minimal water once established. It also adds a pop of color to your xeriscape garden.
- Ornamental Grasses: Grasses such as blue fescue and feather reed grass are great choices for xeriscaping. They add texture and movement to the garden while being able to withstand dry conditions.
In addition to these options, there are many other drought-resistant plants that can thrive in a xeriscape garden. When selecting plants, it’s important to consider your local climate and soil conditions to ensure that they will flourish in your specific area.
Furthermore, incorporating native plants into your xeriscape garden is another way to ensure their suitability for the environment. Native plants are naturally adapted to local conditions and require minimal maintenance once established, making them an excellent choice for xeriscaping.
Overall, choosing the right plants is essential for creating a successful xeriscape garden. By selecting drought-resistant and native species, you can create a beautiful and sustainable landscape that requires minimal water and maintenance. With careful planning and consideration of plant selection, you can enjoy a thriving xeriscape garden year-round.
Water Conservation Techniques
One of the most effective water conservation techniques for a xeriscaped garden is the collection of rainwater. By installing a rain barrel or cistern, you can capture and store rainwater to be used for watering your drought-resistant plants. This not only reduces your reliance on municipal water sources but also ensures that your garden stays hydrated during dry spells without using excessive amounts of water.
Another important water conservation technique for xeriscaping is soil improvement. Adding organic matter, such as compost or mulch, to the soil can improve its ability to retain moisture. This means that the water used in your garden will go further and help sustain your plants for longer periods of time. In addition, improving the soil’s structure can reduce runoff and erosion, further conserving water in your xeriscape garden.
Drip Irrigation Systems
Drip irrigation systems are an efficient way to deliver water directly to the root zones of your plants while minimizing evaporation and runoff. These systems can be customized to meet the specific watering needs of different areas within your xeriscape garden, ensuring that each plant receives just the right amount of water without wastage. Investing in a drip irrigation system is a valuable water conservation technique for any xeriscape landscaping project.
By implementing these water conservation techniques in your xeriscaped garden, you can maintain a beautiful landscape while minimizing water usage and reducing environmental impact. With proper planning and execution, xeriscaping can not only save you money on water bills but also contribute to sustainable gardening practices.
Designing a Xeriscape Garden
When it comes to designing a xeriscape garden, it’s important to keep in mind that the key to a visually appealing xeriscape garden lies in creativity and strategic planning. By incorporating certain design elements and principles, you can create a stunning, sustainable landscape that requires minimal water. Here are some ideas for creating a visually appealing xeriscape garden:
Native Plants and Hardscaping
Incorporating native plants into your xeriscape garden not only ensures that they are well-suited to the local climate, but also adds natural beauty to the landscape. Additionally, consider incorporating hardscaping elements such as decorative rocks, pathways, and retaining walls to add visual interest and structure to the garden.
Color and Texture
Utilize a variety of plants with different foliage colors and textures to add visual interest to your xeriscape garden. Drought-resistant plants come in a wide range of colors, from deep greens to vibrant purples and oranges, enabling you to create a visually stunning landscape even with limited water resources.
Focal Points and Garden Accents
Incorporate focal points such as sculptures, water features, or art installations into your xeriscape design to draw the eye and create visual intrigue. These elements can serve as centerpieces within the landscape while adding personality and character to the overall design.
By implementing these design ideas and principles into your xeriscape garden, you can create a visually appealing landscape that conserves water while still providing beauty and functionality. Whether you’re working with a small backyard or a larger property, these techniques can be tailored to suit any space for an aesthetically pleasing xeriscaping landscaping idea.
Xeriscaping on a Budget
When it comes to xeriscaping on a budget, there are several cost-effective strategies that can help you achieve a beautiful and sustainable garden without breaking the bank. One of the most important considerations is selecting the right plants for your xeriscape garden.
Choosing native or drought-resistant plants is not only beneficial for conserving water, but it also reduces the need for expensive irrigation systems. These plants are adapted to the local climate and soil conditions, making them hardy and low-maintenance.
Another budget-friendly xeriscaping idea is to use mulch and rocks strategically in your garden design. Mulch helps to retain moisture in the soil, suppress weeds, and regulate soil temperature, reducing water usage and maintenance costs.
Additionally, using rocks or gravel can add visual interest to your xeriscape garden while eliminating the need for expensive turf or ground cover. By incorporating these elements into your landscaping design, you can create an aesthetically pleasing and environmentally friendly space without spending a fortune.
Furthermore, taking a DIY approach to your xeriscape garden can significantly reduce costs. From building raised beds and installing efficient drip irrigation systems to creating pathways and decorative features using recycled materials, there are plenty of opportunities for cost-saving projects. Not only does this allow you to customize your xeriscape garden according to your preferences, but it also adds a personal touch while keeping expenses low.
Xeriscaping Ideas | Benefits |
Choosing drought-resistant plants | Reduces water usage and maintenance costs |
Using mulch and rocks strategically | Retains moisture, suppresses weeds, adds visual interest |
Taking a DIY approach | Customizes the garden while reducing expenses |
When it comes to xeriscaping landscaping ideas, maintenance is a crucial aspect to consider in order to keep your xeriscaped garden looking beautiful. Here are some essential maintenance tips to ensure the longevity and beauty of your water-efficient landscape:
1. Regular Weeding: Despite the use of drought-resistant plants, weeds can still find their way into your xeriscape garden. Regular weeding is essential to prevent unwanted plants from stealing water and nutrients from your carefully chosen plants. Consider using mulch or landscape fabric to help suppress weed growth.
2. Proper Irrigation: Even though xeriscaping is all about water conservation, it’s important to ensure that your plants receive adequate water, especially during their establishment phase. Determine the specific watering needs for each type of plant in your xeriscape garden and adjust accordingly.
3. Pruning and Trimming: Keep your xeriscape garden looking tidy by regularly pruning and trimming the plants. This not only promotes healthy growth but also prevents overgrowth which can lead to competition for resources among your plants.
4. Monitoring Soil Conditions: Check the soil moisture levels regularly to ensure that your plants are not being over or under-watered. Adjust irrigation as necessary based on weather conditions and seasonal changes.
5. Fertilization: While xeriscape gardens typically require less fertilization compared to traditional landscapes, it’s important to provide necessary nutrients for optimal plant growth. Use organic fertilizers sparingly to avoid disrupting the natural balance of the ecosystem within your garden.
By following these maintenance tips, you can preserve the beauty and sustainability of your xeriscape garden for years to come. With proper care, a well-designed xeriscape landscape can thrive while conserving precious water resources and enhancing the visual appeal of your outdoor space.
Xeriscaping in Different Climates
Xeriscaping is a landscaping concept that focuses on creating beautiful, sustainable gardens using minimal water. While xeriscaping is often associated with arid desert regions, the principles can be adapted to different climates for successful gardening. Adapting xeriscaping techniques to different climate conditions allows homeowners and gardeners to create environmentally friendly, low-maintenance landscapes that thrive in their specific region.
One key aspect of adapting xeriscaping to different climates is understanding the unique environmental factors at play. For example, in more humid regions, it’s important to select plants that can handle excess moisture or even occasional flooding. On the other hand, in arid climates, drought-tolerant plants are a must for conserving water. Understanding these differences and selecting plant varieties accordingly is essential for successful xeriscaping.
Another important consideration when adapting xeriscaping to different climates is the use of irrigation techniques. In some areas, drip irrigation systems may be necessary to provide targeted watering to specific plants, while in others, rainwater harvesting systems might be more beneficial. Additionally, incorporating mulch into the garden design can help regulate soil moisture levels and reduce water evaporation regardless of the climate.
Climate Considerations | Adaptation Techniques |
Humid Regions | Selecting plants that can handle excess moisture; using rainwater harvesting systems |
Arid Climates | Selecting drought-tolerant plants; utilizing drip irrigation systems |
All Climates | Incorporating mulch into garden design for moisture regulation and reduced water evaporation |
In conclusion, xeriscaping is a sustainable and environmentally friendly landscaping approach that offers a variety of benefits. By using drought-resistant plants, implementing water conservation techniques, and designing an aesthetically pleasing garden, homeowners can create a beautiful xeriscape garden while conserving water and reducing maintenance costs. Additionally, it is possible to achieve stunning results with xeriscaping while on a budget, making it an accessible option for all.
One of the key aspects of successful xeriscaping is the careful selection of plants that are well-suited to the local climate and conditions. By choosing the right plants, homeowners can create a thriving garden that requires minimal watering and upkeep. Combined with water conservation techniques such as mulching and drip irrigation, xeriscaping can significantly reduce water usage in comparison to traditional landscaping methods.
Furthermore, maintaining a xeriscape garden is relatively simple once established, with minimal pruning and fertilizing required. By following these maintenance tips and adapting xeriscaping ideas to different climate conditions, homeowners can enjoy a beautiful and sustainable garden year-round.
Overall, by exploring real-life examples of successful xeriscaped gardens through case studies, individuals can gain inspiration and ideas for their own xeriscape landscaping projects. With creativity and careful planning, it is possible to achieve a visually stunning and eco-friendly landscape using xeriscaping principles.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Are 2 Disadvantages of Using Xeriscaping in Landscaping?
Two disadvantages of using xeriscaping in landscaping include the initial cost of transforming a traditional landscape into a xeriscape, which can be quite high due to the need to install drought-tolerant plants and irrigation systems. Additionally, some may find that xeriscapes lack the lush, green aesthetic that traditional lawns and landscapes provide.
What Are the 7 Principles of Xeriscaping?
The seven principles of xeriscaping are proper planning and design, limiting turf grass areas, selecting drought-tolerant plants, improving soil with organic matter, using efficient irrigation methods, mulching to reduce evaporation and control weeds, and maintaining the landscape properly.
What Is an Example of Xeriscape Landscaping?
An example of xeriscape landscaping could involve using desert-adapted plants such as succulents and cacti, incorporating efficient drip irrigation systems to minimize water usage, utilizing mulch to conserve moisture in the soil, and designing the landscape in a way that minimizes water runoff. This type of landscaping might create an environmentally-friendly outdoor space that requires minimal water maintenance.
Welcome to my gardening blog! I am passionate about plants and enjoy sharing my knowledge and experiences with others. In this blog, I will write about everything related to gardening, from tips on how to get started to updates on my own garden projects. | <urn:uuid:b3345302-491e-4a21-a941-a5427b2baff5> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.gardentop.net/xeriscaping-landscaping-ideas/ | 2024-12-04T09:21:47Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066156662.62/warc/CC-MAIN-20241204080324-20241204110324-00013.warc.gz | en | 0.899624 | 2,953 | 2.625 | 3 |
Multilingual Internet refers to the ability to use different languages on the internet. It includes the creation and dissemination of online content in multiple languages, the development of tools and technologies to support multilingualism, and the ability of users to access and interact with online content in their preferred languages. The multilingual internet is important for promoting linguistic and cultural diversity, improving access to information, and facilitating global communication and collaboration. It also has significant implications for businesses and organizations that operate in multiple countries and need to reach multilingual audiences.
In India, the multilingual internet refers to the use of the internet in various regional languages spoken throughout the country. India has a diverse population with over 22 official languages and many more dialects, making it essential to have a multilingual internet to cater to the needs of different regions and communities.
The government of India has recognized the importance of a multilingual internet and has taken several initiatives to promote it. The National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI) has been working on developing domain names in various Indian languages. They have also launched the “.bharat” domain, which allows domain names in regional languages.
Several private companies in India have also been developing multilingual content and platforms to cater to the diverse population. For example, popular e-commerce platforms like Flipkart and Amazon have launched their websites in regional languages. Social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter also support several Indian languages.
The multilingual internet has the potential to bridge the digital divide and make the internet accessible to more people in India. It can also help in promoting regional languages and cultures and foster a sense of inclusiveness. However, there are still challenges in terms of technical infrastructure, digital literacy, and content development, which need to be addressed for a truly multilingual internet in India.
Impact of multilingual internet on Indian businesses and e-commerce
As the internet continues to grow and connect people around the world, businesses and e-commerce are not far behind. India, with its vast population and diverse linguistic landscape, is no exception. The emergence of the multilingual internet has made it easier for businesses to connect with consumers in their preferred language and has led to new opportunities for growth and expansion.
One of the most significant impacts of the multilingual internet on Indian businesses is the increased reach and accessibility it offers. With the ability to provide content in multiple languages, businesses can reach a wider audience and tap into previously untapped markets. This is particularly important in a country like India, where there are 22 official languages and numerous regional languages spoken by millions of people.
Another significant impact of the multilingual internet is the increased trust and engagement it can foster among consumers. By providing content in their native language, businesses can build stronger connections with their customers and create a sense of familiarity and comfort. This can be especially important in e-commerce, where consumers may be hesitant to buy from a site that does not offer content in their language.
In addition to these benefits, the multilingual internet can also help businesses overcome cultural barriers and increase brand awareness. By providing content that is culturally relevant and appropriate, businesses can create a stronger brand identity and establish themselves as trusted and reliable source of information or products. This can be particularly important in a country like India, where there are significant regional and cultural differences.
However, there are also challenges that come with the multilingual internet. For businesses, creating content in multiple languages can be a time-consuming and expensive process, and there is always the risk of mistranslation or misinterpretation. Additionally, the lack of standardization in language use and script can make it difficult for businesses to maintain consistency across different platforms and channels.
Despite these challenges, the impact of the multilingual internet on Indian businesses and e-commerce is undeniable. By embracing this new era of connectivity and language diversity, businesses can unlock new opportunities for growth and success in the ever-expanding digital marketplace.
Challenges and opportunities in developing multilingual content for the Indian internet
The Indian internet is a vast and diverse space with a rapidly growing number of users. With over 600 million internet users in the country, India is one of the largest online markets in the world. However, a significant challenge facing the Indian internet is the linguistic diversity of the country. With over 22 official languages and hundreds of dialects, developing multilingual content for the Indian internet is a daunting task.
One of the biggest challenges in developing multilingual content for the Indian internet is the lack of standardized fonts and character sets. Each language has its own unique script, and not all of them are supported by standard Unicode fonts. This means that web developers and content creators must find workarounds to display non-standard scripts, which can be time-consuming and expensive.
Another challenge is the lack of quality language data. While there is a significant amount of data available in English, other languages have comparatively little content available online. This makes it difficult to develop algorithms and models for natural language processing in Indian languages, which in turn makes it difficult to automate the translation and content creation process.
Despite these challenges, there are also many opportunities in developing multilingual content for the Indian internet. As more and more Indians come online, there is a growing demand for content in local languages. Developing multilingual content can help businesses reach a wider audience and tap into new markets. In addition, the development of language technology tools and resources can help to bridge the gap between languages and improve access to information for non-English speakers.
To develop effective multilingual content for the Indian internet, businesses, and content creators must be willing to invest in language technology and resources. This includes developing language models and algorithms, building language-specific datasets, and hiring language experts to oversee the translation and content creation process. With the right investments and strategies, businesses can overcome the challenges of developing multilingual content for the Indian internet and tap into the vast potential of this rapidly growing market.
Government initiatives to promote the use of Indian languages on the internet
The government of India has taken several initiatives to promote the use of Indian languages on the internet. One of the most notable initiatives is the development of the National Translation Mission (NTM), which aims to promote the use of Indian languages in various fields, including science, technology, administration, and business.
Under the NTM, the government has launched several programs to promote the use of Indian languages on the internet. One such program is the development of language technology tools and resources, such as machine translation systems, optical character recognition systems, and text-to-speech systems, that can support Indian languages.
In addition, the government has launched several programs to support the development of content in Indian languages on the internet. The Digital India program, for example, aims to provide access to digital resources and services in Indian languages. Under this program, the government has launched several initiatives, including the creation of language-specific portals, the development of digital libraries in Indian languages, and the provision of digital literacy programs in regional languages.
The government has also launched several programs to support the development of multilingual content on the internet. The National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI), for example, has been working on developing domain names in various Indian languages. They have also launched the “.bharat” domain, which allows domain names in regional languages.
Furthermore, the government has launched several programs to promote the use of Indian languages on social media platforms. The Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeitY), for example, has launched the Indian Language Internet Alliance (ILIA), which aims to promote the use of Indian languages on social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter.
Overall, these government initiatives are aimed at promoting linguistic and cultural diversity, improving access to information, and facilitating global communication and collaboration. By promoting the use of Indian languages on the internet, the government is helping to bridge the digital divide and ensure that all citizens can benefit from the opportunities offered by the digital age.
How the multilingual internet is empowering non-English speaking communities in India
The rise of the multilingual internet is proving to be a game-changer for non-English speaking communities in India. Until recently, English dominated the online space, leaving many Indians without access to the internet’s vast resources. However, thanks to government initiatives, technological advancements, and the efforts of language activists, Indian language content on the internet is now on the rise.
This trend is empowering Indians who are more comfortable in their native languages to access information, connect with others, and participate in the digital economy. For instance, farmers in rural areas can now access weather reports, crop prices, and agricultural advice in their local language. Students can take online courses in their mother tongue, and entrepreneurs can advertise their businesses to a wider audience. Additionally, people can communicate with friends and family using messaging apps in their native languages, strengthening social ties and preserving linguistic diversity.
The benefits of the multilingual internet are not just limited to individuals. It has also given a boost to the Indian economy by enabling small and medium-sized businesses to reach new customers in non-English-speaking regions. This has created new job opportunities and helped to bridge the digital divide between urban and rural areas.
In conclusion, the multilingual internet is transforming the lives of non-English speaking communities in India, empowering them with knowledge, opportunities, and a sense of pride in their native languages. While challenges remain, such as the need for more linguistic resources and the promotion of digital literacy, the progress made so far is encouraging and bodes well for the future of linguistic diversity in the digital age.
Role of social media in promoting multilingualism on the Indian internet
Social media has played a significant role in promoting multilingualism on the Indian internet. Platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and WhatsApp have enabled people to communicate and share content in their native languages. This has allowed non-English speaking communities to express themselves more freely and connect with others who speak the same language.
Social media platforms have also provided tools for users to type in their native languages, making it easier for them to create content in their preferred language. In addition, these platforms have introduced translation features, enabling users to translate content into their native language, which has helped bridge the language gap and bring people closer together.
Furthermore, social media has also provided a platform for regional content creators, influencers, and businesses to showcase their work and reach a wider audience. This has led to the growth of regional language content and has helped promote multilingualism on the internet.
Overall, social media has played a significant role in empowering non-English speaking communities in India by providing them with a platform to communicate, express themselves, and connect with others in their native language.
The future of the multilingual internet in India and its potential for economic and social development
The future of the multilingual internet in India is promising and holds significant potential for economic and social development. India is a diverse country with over 1.3 billion people, and a significant proportion of the population speaks languages other than English. By making the internet accessible in multiple languages, India can unlock new opportunities for these non-English speaking communities.
The potential economic benefits of a multilingual internet are significant. India has a rapidly growing digital economy, and by making the internet accessible in more languages, businesses can tap into new markets and reach more customers. This can lead to job creation and increased economic growth.
Additionally, a multilingual internet can improve access to information and services for people who may not be fluent in English. This can include education, healthcare, and government services. By making these resources available in multiple languages, India can bridge the digital divide and ensure that everyone has equal access to information and opportunities.
The social benefits of a multilingual internet are also significant. Language is an important part of cultural identity, and by promoting the use of regional languages online, India can help preserve its diverse cultural heritage. It can also help foster greater understanding and communication between different linguistic communities, promoting social cohesion and national unity.
In conclusion, the future of the multilingual internet in India is bright, and it has the potential to drive economic and social development in the country. By promoting the use of Indian languages online, India can unlock new opportunities for businesses and individuals, improve access to information and services, and promote greater understanding and unity among its diverse linguistic communities. | <urn:uuid:eaaa6eec-1354-4cf3-a621-2e9c3f71c11b> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.servicify.in/multilingual-internet-in-india-importance-challenges-and-its-future/ | 2024-12-04T12:54:56Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066157793.53/warc/CC-MAIN-20241204110931-20241204140931-00216.warc.gz | en | 0.934698 | 2,525 | 3.578125 | 4 |
Wikipedia, Avro's Type 688 Tudor was a British piston-engined airliner based on their four-engine Lincoln bomber, itself a descendant of the famous Lancaster heavy bomber, and was Britain's first pressurised airliner. Despite having a reasonably long range, customers saw the aircraft as little more than a pressurised DC-4 Skymaster, and few orders were forthcoming, important customers preferring to buy US aircraft. Design and developmentAvro began work on the Type 688 Tudor in 1943, following Specification 29/43 for a commercial adaptation of the Lancaster IV bomber, which was later renamed Lincoln. The specification was based on recommendations of the Brabazon Committee, which issued specifications for nine types of commercial aircraft for postwar use. Avro first proposed to build the Avro 687 (Avro XX), which was a Lincoln bomber with a new circular section pressurized fuselage and a large single fin and rudder in place of the predecessor's double ones. During the design stage, the idea of a simple conversion was abandoned and the Avro 688 was designed, which retained the four Rolls-Royce Merlin engines. It was designed by Roy Chadwick who, due to wartime restrictions, could not design a completely new aircraft, but had to use existing parts, tools and jigs. Using the Lincoln's wing, Chadwick, who had worked on the Lancaster, designed the Tudor to incorporate a new pressurized fuselage of circular cross-section, with a useful load of 3,765 lb (1,705 kg) and a range of 3,975 mi (6,400 km). Two prototypes were ordered in September 1944 and the first, G-AGPF, was assembled by Avro's experimental flight department at Manchester's Ringway Airport and first flew on 14 June 1945. It was the first British pressurised civilian aircraft, although the prototype initially flew unpressurised. The prototype Tudor I had 1,750 hp (1,305 kW) Rolls-Royce Merlin 102 engines, but the standard engines were 1,770 hp (1,320 kW) Merlin 621s. Technical descriptionThe wing was of NACA 23018 section at the root, and was a five-piece, all-metal, twin-spar structure. The untapered centre section carried the inboard engines and main undercarriage, while the inner and outer sections were tapered on their leading and trailing edges, with the inner sections carrying the outboard engines. The ailerons were fitted with trim and balance tabs, and there were hydraulically-operated split flaps in three sections on each side of the trailing edges of the centre section and inner wings. A 3,300 imp gal (4,000 US gal; 15,000 l) fuel capacity was given by eight bag tanks, one on either side of the fuselage in the centre section and three in both inner wings. The all-metal tail unit had a dorsal fin integrated with the fuselage, and a 43 ft (13 m) twin-spar tailplane with inset divided elevators. The control surfaces were mass-balanced, and each had controllable trim and servo tabs. The circular cross-section fuselage was an all-metal semi-monocoque structure, of 10 ft (3.0 m) diameter, fitted with kapok-filled inner and outer skins above floor level. The hydraulically-operated main-wheel units were similar to those of the Lancaster, had single Dunlop wheels and retracted rearward into the inboard engine nacelles. The twin tailwheels retracted rearward into the fuselage and were enclosed by twin longitudinal doors. Operational historyTudor IThe Tudor I was intended for use on the North Atlantic route. At the time, the US had the Douglas DC-4 and Lockheed Constellation, which could both carry more passengers than the Tudor's 12, and also weighed less than the Tudor's weight of 70,000 lb (32,000 kg). The Tudor's tailwheel layout was also a drawback. Despite this, the Ministry of Supply ordered 14 Tudor Is for BOAC, and increased the production order to 20 in April 1945. The Tudor I suffered from a number of stability problems, which included longitudinal and directional instability. To cure this, a larger tailplane was fitted, and the original finely curved fin and rudder were replaced by larger vertical surfaces. BOAC added to the delays by requesting more than 340 modifications, and finally rejected the Tudor I on 11 April 1947, considering it incapable of North Atlantic operations. It had been intended that 12 Tudors would be built in Australia for military transport, but this plan was abandoned. Twelve Tudor Is were built, of which three were scrapped, while others were variously converted to Tudor IVB and Tudor Freighter Is. As a result of all the Tudor I's delays, BOAC - with the support of the Ministry of Civil Aviation - sought permission to purchase tried and tested aircraft such as the Lockheed Constellation and the Boeing Stratocruiser for its Atlantic routes instead of the Tudor. Despite BOAC's reluctance to purchase Tudors, the Ministry of Supply continued to subsidize the aircraft. Tudor IIThe passenger capacity of the Avro 688 was considered unsatisfactory, so a larger version was planned from the outset. Designated the Avro 689 (also Avro XXI), the Tudor II was designed as a 60-seat passenger aircraft for BOAC, with the fuselage lengthened to 105 ft 7 in (32.2 m) compared to the Tudor I's 79 ft 6 in (24.2 m) and the fuselage increased by 1 ft (0.30 m) to 11 ft (3.4 m) diameter, making it the largest UK airliner at the time. At the end of 1944, while it was still in the design stage, BOAC, Qantas and South African Airways decided to standardise on the Tudor II for Commonwealth air routes, and BOAC increased its initial order for 30 examples to 79. The prototype Tudor II G-AGSU first flew on 10 March 1946 at Woodford Aerodrome. The changes in design had however resulted in a loss of performance and the aircraft could not be used in hot and high conditions which resulted in Qantas ordering the Constellation and South African Airways, the Douglas DC-4 instead, with the total order reduced to 50. During further testing, the prototype was destroyed on 23 August 1947 in a fatal crash which killed Roy Chadwick; air accident investigators later discovered that the crash was due to incorrect assembly of the aileron control circuit. The engines on the second prototype were changed to Bristol Hercules radials and the aircraft became the prototype Tudor 7, which did not go into production. Unimpressed by the type's performance during further tropical trials, BOAC did not operate the Tudor II and only three production Tudor IIs were built. Six aircraft were built for British South American Airways as the Tudor V. The second Tudor II to be completed, G-AGRY, went to Nairobi for tropical trials as VX202, but these were unsatisfactory and Tudor II orders were reduced to 18. Eventually, only four Tudor IIs were completed including the prototype. From 1946 on, the potential purchase of US aircraft by operators such as BOAC led to criticism of government policy, because of the damage that could potentially be caused to Britain's civil aircraft industry by a failure to buy the Tudor. L.G.S. Payne, the Daily Telegraph's aeronautical correspondent, said that British government policy had led to the development of aircraft which were uncompetitive in price, performance and economy. He blamed the Ministry of Supply's planners for this failure, since the industry had effectively been nationalised and argued that the government should pursue the development of jet aircraft instead of "interim types" such as the Tudor. BOAC cancelled its order for Tudors in 1947, instead taking delivery of 22 Canadair North Stars which they renamed C-4 Argonauts, and used them extensively between 1949 and 1960. Six aircraft ordered as Tudor IIs were intended to be modified with tricycle landing gear, for use by BSAA as freighters, and designated the 711 Trader. They were not built, but a parallel design using the same landing gear was produced as the jet-powered Avro Ashton. Tudor IIITwo Tudor Is, G-AIYA and G-AJKC, were sent to Armstrong Whitworth for completion as VIP transports for cabinet ministers. They could accommodate 10 passengers and had nine berths. They were re-registered as VP301 and VP312, and both were acquired by Aviation Traders in September 1953, VP301 being reconverted into a Tudor I. In 1955, G-AIYA and the Tudor I G-AGRG were lenghtened to Tudor IV standard. Together with the un-lengthened Tudor I G-AGRI, which had become a 42-seat passenger aircraft, they were used on the Air Charter Ltd Colonial Coach Services between the UK, Tripoli and Lagos. Tudor IVTo meet a BSAA requirement, some Tudor Is were lengthened by 5 ft 9 in (1.8 m), powered by 1,770 hp (1,320 kW) Rolls-Royce Merlin 621s and 1,760 hp (1,310 kW) Rolls-Royce Merlin 623s. With 32 seats and no flight engineer position, these were known as Tudor IVs, and when fitted with a flight engineer's position and 28 seats, as Tudor IVBs. BSAA's new flagships received mixed reviews from pilots. Some greeted it with enthusiasm, such as Captain Geoffrey Womersley, who described it as "the best civil airliner flying." Others rejected it as an unsound design. BSAA's chief pilot and manager of operations, Gordon Store, was unimpressed: The first example, G-AHNJ "Star Panther", flew on 9 April 1947. The Tudor IV received its Certificate of Airworthiness on 18 July 1947, and on 29 September, BSAA took delivery of G-AHNK "Star Lion", the first of its six Tudor 4s to be delivered. It departed the next day from Heathrow on a flight to South America, and on 31 October began flights from London to Havana via Lisbon, the Azores, Bermuda and Nassau. On the night of 29 January - 30 January 1948, Tudor IV G-AHNP "Star Tiger", with 31 people on board, disappeared without trace between Santa Maria in the Azores and Bermuda. Tudors were temporarily grounded and while the cause of the accident was never determined, the type returned to service on 3 December 1948, when a weekly service was begun from London to Buenos Aires via Gander, Bermuda, and other stops, returning via the Azores. Disaster struck again on 17 January 1949, when Tudor IV G-AGRE "Star Ariel" also disappeared, this time between Bermuda and Kingston, Jamaica, with the loss of 20 people, and the Tudor IVs were once more grounded. The subsequent fleet shortage led to BSAA being taken over by BOAC. Pressurisation problems were suspected to be the cause of the two accidents, and the remaining aircraft were flown as unpressurised freighters under the designations Tudor Freighter IV and IVB. After storage for some years at Manchester Airport, four ex-BSAAC Tudor IVs were bought by Air Charter in late 1953. They were fitted with 6 ft 10 in (2.1 m) by 5 ft 5 in (1.7 m) cargo doors aft by Aviation Traders and designated Super Traders IV or IVB, receiving their Certificate of Airworthiness in March 1955. These were operated by Air Charter Ltd on long distance freight flights as far as Christmas Island. Some remained in service until 1959, until G-AGRH "Zephyr" crashed in Turkey on 23 April 1959. Tudor VThe Tudor V was a modified version of the Tudor II with 44 seats. BSAA acquired five which never entered passenger service with the airline. They were instead stripped of their fittings and used as fuel tankers on the Berlin Airlift. They completed a total of 2,562 supply sorties in 6,973 hours, carrying 22,125 tons (20,071 tonnes) of fuel into Berlin. On 12 March 1950, G-AKBY, which had been returned to passenger service with Airflight Ltd, on a charter flight from Ireland, crashed at RAF Llandow, South Wales, with the resulting death of 80 of its passengers and crew. In 1953, Lome Airways leased an ex BSAA Tudor 5 from Surrey Flying Services as CF-FCY for freight operations in Canada. It was retired at Stansted and scrapped in 1959. Tudor VIThe Tudor VI was to be built for the Argentinian airline FAMA for South Atlantic service, with 32-38 seats or 22 sleeper berths, but none were built. Tudor VIIThe Tudor VII was the first production Tudor II fitted with Bristol Hercules air-cooled radial engines in an attempt to give better performance. The sole example built, G-AGRX, made its first flight on 17 April 1946, and was later fitted in June 1948 with shorter landing gear with the engines repositioned (inclined) to give better ground clearance. G-AGRX was used for cabin temperature experiments, and was finally sold for spares in March 1954. Tudor 8The second prototype Tudor I was rebuilt to Tudor IV standards. It was later fitted with four Rolls-Royce Derwent 5 turbojets in under-wing paired nacelles. Given the military identification VX195, The Tudor 8 carried out its first flight at Woodford on 6 September 1948, and a few days later, it was demonstrated at the SBAC Show at Farnborough. Later, the Tudor 8 was used for high-altitude experiments tests at Boscombe Down and RAE Farnborough before being broken up in 1951. Tudor 9Following tests of the Tudor 8, the Ministry of Supply ordered six Tudor 9s, based on the Tudor II but powered by four Rolls-Royce Nenes and utilizing a tricycle undercarriage. The original design was then modified and the type was produced as the Avro 706 Ashton with the first Ashton flying on 1 September 1950. VariantsAll built by Avro at Woodford Aerodrome.
Accidents and incidents
Specifications (Avro 688 Tudor 1)Data from Jane's Fighting Aircraft of World War II General characteristics
See alsoRelated development Comparable aircraft BibliographyExternal links
Published in July 2009.
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Orthostatic Hypotension: A Common Cause of Dizziness When Standing
Orthostatic hypotension, also known as postural hypotension, is a condition characterized by a significant drop in blood pressure when transitioning from a lying or sitting position to a standing position. This rapid decrease in blood pressure can lead to inadequate blood flow to the brain, causing dizziness, lightheadedness, or even fainting in some cases. The primary question, “why do I get dizzy when I stand,” may often be attributed to this common cause.
The symptoms of orthostatic hypotension typically manifest within a few minutes of standing up and can vary in severity. In addition to dizziness, individuals may experience blurred vision, weakness, confusion, or a rapid heartbeat. Certain risk factors can increase the likelihood of developing orthostatic hypotension, such as age, certain medications, dehydration, prolonged bed rest, or underlying medical conditions like diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, or heart disorders.
Other Potential Causes of Dizziness When Standing
Dizziness upon standing can also be attributed to various other factors, including dehydration, low blood sugar, and inner ear issues. Understanding these causes can help individuals address their concerns and find appropriate solutions.
Dehydration can lead to a decrease in blood volume, causing a drop in blood pressure and reduced blood flow to the brain. This can result in feelings of dizziness or lightheadedness when standing. To prevent dehydration, it is essential to consume an adequate amount of water daily, especially when engaging in physical activities or in hot weather conditions. Additionally, limiting alcohol and caffeine intake can help maintain proper hydration levels.
Low blood sugar, or hypoglycemia, can also contribute to dizziness when standing. When blood sugar levels drop, the body may not have enough energy to maintain proper blood pressure, leading to feelings of dizziness or weakness. Consuming balanced meals with appropriate carbohydrate, protein, and fat ratios can help regulate blood sugar levels and prevent dizziness. Moreover, individuals taking medications that lower blood sugar should monitor their levels closely and follow their healthcare provider’s recommendations.
Inner ear issues, such as benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV), Meniere’s disease, or vestibular neuritis, can affect the body’s balance and cause dizziness when standing or changing positions. These conditions can result from damage to the inner ear’s vestibular system, which plays a crucial role in maintaining balance and spatial orientation. Individuals experiencing inner ear-related dizziness should consult a healthcare professional for proper diagnosis and treatment.
How the Human Body Regulates Blood Pressure When Changing Positions
Transitioning from a lying or sitting position to standing involves a complex physiological process that helps regulate blood pressure. When standing, gravity pulls blood toward the lower extremities, increasing the pressure in the veins and reducing the amount of blood returning to the heart. In response, the body activates several mechanisms to maintain adequate blood flow to vital organs, primarily the brain.
The autonomic nervous system plays a critical role in regulating blood pressure during position changes. This system consists of two primary components: the sympathetic nervous system and the parasympathetic nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system prepares the body for action by increasing heart rate and constricting blood vessels, while the parasympathetic nervous system conserves energy and promotes relaxation by slowing the heart rate and dilating blood vessels. When standing, the sympathetic nervous system becomes more active, releasing hormones like norepinephrine and epinephrine to help maintain blood pressure.
Additionally, the body’s baroreceptors, specialized sensory structures located in the heart, carotid arteries, and aortic arch, detect changes in blood pressure and relay this information to the brain. In response to a decrease in blood pressure, the brain stimulates the heart to contract more forcefully and increases peripheral vascular resistance, thereby restoring blood pressure to normal levels. Proper regulation of blood pressure is essential to prevent dizziness and maintain balance when standing.
Recognizing Personal Triggers for Dizziness When Standing
Individuals who frequently experience dizziness when standing can benefit from identifying their specific triggers. By understanding what causes their symptoms, they can take proactive measures to prevent or minimize episodes of dizziness. Keeping a diary is an effective way to document instances of dizziness and identify patterns or common factors.
The diary should include details such as the time of day, duration, and severity of dizziness, as well as any activities or factors that may have contributed to the episode. Examples of potential triggers include sudden changes in position, prolonged periods of inactivity, consuming alcohol or caffeine, dehydration, or certain medications. By tracking these factors, individuals can better understand their personal triggers and develop strategies to avoid or mitigate them.
It is essential to recognize that triggers can vary from person to person. For example, some individuals may find that dizziness is more likely to occur after eating a large meal, while others may notice an increase in symptoms when standing in a hot or crowded environment. By maintaining a detailed diary, individuals can gain valuable insights into their specific triggers and work with their healthcare provider to develop a personalized plan to manage their symptoms.
Lifestyle Changes to Prevent Dizziness When Standing
Adopting certain lifestyle habits can help regulate blood pressure and reduce the likelihood of experiencing dizziness when standing. These adjustments include staying hydrated, maintaining a balanced diet, and incorporating regular exercise into your routine.
Staying hydrated is crucial for maintaining proper blood pressure and preventing dizziness. Dehydration can cause a decrease in blood volume, leading to a drop in blood pressure when standing. Aim to drink at least eight glasses of water per day, and increase your fluid intake during physical activities or in hot weather conditions. Additionally, avoid excessive consumption of alcohol and caffeine, as these substances can contribute to dehydration.
Maintaining a balanced diet is essential for overall health and well-being. Consuming a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and whole grains can help regulate blood pressure and reduce the risk of developing orthostatic hypotension. Moreover, ensure that your diet includes adequate amounts of essential nutrients, such as potassium, magnesium, and vitamin B12, which play crucial roles in maintaining healthy blood pressure levels.
Regular exercise is another vital component of a dizziness-prevention plan. Engaging in physical activities like walking, swimming, or cycling can help strengthen the cardiovascular system, improve circulation, and regulate blood pressure. Aim for at least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise most days of the week, and consult your healthcare provider before starting any new exercise program.
How to Safely Transition from a Lying or Sitting Position
Implementing specific techniques when transitioning from a lying or sitting position to standing can help minimize symptoms of dizziness. By following these steps, individuals can gradually adjust to the change in blood pressure and reduce the likelihood of experiencing dizziness.
Rise slowly: Instead of standing up quickly, take your time. Gradually move from a lying or sitting position to a seated position, and then pause for a few seconds before standing. This allows your body to adjust to the change in blood pressure and reduces the risk of dizziness.
Pump the legs: Before standing, pump your legs a few times while seated. This action helps stimulate circulation and increases blood flow to the brain, making it easier to stand without experiencing dizziness.
Maintain good posture: Stand up straight with your shoulders back and head held high. Poor posture can contribute to feelings of dizziness, as it may restrict blood flow to the brain. By maintaining good posture, individuals can help ensure proper blood flow and reduce the likelihood of experiencing dizziness.
Additional tips: To further minimize symptoms of dizziness when standing, consider using support, such as a chair or wall, to help maintain balance. Additionally, avoid crossing your legs, as this can restrict blood flow and contribute to feelings of dizziness.
When to Consult a Healthcare Professional
Dizziness when standing can be a temporary or ongoing issue, and in some cases, it may indicate an underlying health concern. It is essential to understand when to consult a healthcare professional to address chronic dizziness and ensure overall well-being.
Consider seeking medical advice if dizziness is severe, persistent, or accompanied by other concerning symptoms. These symptoms may include chest pain, shortness of breath, difficulty speaking, or loss of consciousness. Additionally, if dizziness interferes with daily activities, such as work, school, or driving, it is crucial to consult a healthcare professional for further evaluation.
A healthcare professional can help determine the underlying cause of chronic dizziness and recommend appropriate treatment options. This may involve conducting a thorough physical examination, reviewing medical history, and ordering diagnostic tests, such as blood pressure monitoring or inner ear assessments. Based on the results, the healthcare professional may refer the individual to a specialist, such as a cardiologist, neurologist, or audiologist, for further evaluation and management.
Medical Treatments and Interventions for Dizziness When Standing
For individuals experiencing chronic dizziness when standing, various medical treatments and interventions can help manage symptoms and improve overall quality of life. These options may include medication, physical therapy, and lifestyle modifications.
Healthcare professionals may prescribe medication to help regulate blood pressure and reduce symptoms of dizziness. These medications may include:
- Fludrocortisone: A synthetic steroid that helps the body retain sodium and water, increasing blood volume and blood pressure.
- Midodrine: A medication that constricts blood vessels, increasing blood pressure and reducing symptoms of dizziness.
- Pyridostigmine: A medication that improves nerve function and can help alleviate symptoms of orthostatic hypotension.
Physical therapy can help individuals with chronic dizziness develop strategies to manage their symptoms. A physical therapist may recommend exercises to improve balance, strengthen the cardiovascular system, and increase tolerance to positional changes. These exercises may include:
- Head-raising exercises: Gradually increasing the duration and angle at which the head is raised while lying down.
- Tilt table training: A procedure in which a patient is secured to a table that is tilted to simulate standing, allowing the body to adapt to the change in position.
- Gait and balance exercises: Activities designed to improve stability, coordination, and overall balance.
In addition to medication and physical therapy, lifestyle modifications can help reduce symptoms of dizziness when standing. These modifications may include:
- Compression stockings: Graduated compression stockings can help improve circulation and reduce symptoms of orthostatic hypotension.
- Elevating the head of the bed: Elevating the head of the bed by approximately six to eight inches can help reduce symptoms upon waking.
- Avoiding triggers: Identifying and avoiding personal triggers for dizziness, such as prolonged standing, hot showers, or alcohol consumption.
By working closely with a healthcare professional, individuals can develop a personalized treatment plan to manage chronic dizziness when standing and improve their overall quality of life. | <urn:uuid:66397103-be92-4554-9d4c-3f8282042a1e> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://athleticfly.com/why-do-i-get-dizzy-when-i-stand/ | 2024-12-11T22:16:48Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066094915.14/warc/CC-MAIN-20241211205528-20241211235528-00300.warc.gz | en | 0.920743 | 2,270 | 3.40625 | 3 |
Essential Minerals in Nigerian Ingredients: Minerals are vital for a healthy diet, as they support various bodily functions.
Nigerian cuisine is abundant in ingredients that provide essential minerals.
The purpose of this blog post is to explore the importance of minerals in everyday Nigerian ingredients.
Nourishment Beyond Taste
- Mineral Marvels: Dive into the vital role minerals play in sustaining overall health and well-being.
- Everyday Necessity: Recognize the crucial need to incorporate minerals into our daily diets for optimal functioning.
Nigerian Cuisine: A Mineral Treasure Trove
- Leafy Greens Bonanza: Ugu and ewedu are not just delicious; they’re rich in iron, essential for blood health.
- Seafood Symphony: Nigerian waters offer a plethora of minerals through fish, prawns, and crabs, supporting various bodily functions.
- Iron-Enriched Staples: Foods like beans and rice are not just staples; they’re iron-packed powerhouses, crucial for energy.
Unveiling the Purpose
- Blog’s Mission: This post aims to enlighten readers about the mineral-rich nature of everyday Nigerian ingredients.
- Empower Your Plate: Discover how a conscious choice of ingredients can elevate your diet, promoting a healthier and more vibrant lifestyle.
Embark on a culinary journey with this blog, unraveling the mineral treasures hidden in the heart of Nigerian cuisine.
The importance of calcium for bone health
Calcium is crucial for maintaining strong bones and teeth, as well as supporting overall body functions.
Nigerian ingredients that are excellent sources of calcium
1. Ugu (pumpkin leaves)
These calcium-rich ingredients offer numerous nutritional value and benefits.
Ugu and ogbono are not only tasty additions to Nigerian dishes but also packed with important nutrients.
Ugu is not only an excellent source of calcium but also provides essential vitamins such as vitamin A, C, and E. These vitamins contribute to good vision, strong immunity, and healthy skin.
Moreover, ugu is loaded with dietary fiber, which aids digestion, promotes a feeling of fullness, and helps regulate blood sugar levels.
2. Ogbono (African mango seed)
Ogbono, on the other hand, is filled with healthy fats, including omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. These fats are essential for brain health and help reduce inflammation in the body.
Additionally, ogbono contains antioxidants that protect the body from harmful free radicals and reduce the risk of chronic diseases.
Incorporating ugu and ogbono into your daily Nigerian meals can contribute significantly to your calcium intake and overall health.
While cooking with these ingredients, it’s important to preserve their nutritional value.
To retain as many nutrients as possible, it is best to cook them using minimal water and avoiding overcooking.
Steaming or stir-frying the vegetables can help to retain their nutrients and flavor. Quick cooking methods will prevent excessive nutrient loss.
To fully benefit from these calcium-rich ingredients, it is advisable to consume them alongside other sources of essential nutrients.
To conclude, calcium is vital for maintaining strong bones and overall health.
Nigerian ingredients such as ugu and ogbono provide excellent sources of calcium.
Ugu offers additional benefits like vitamins and dietary fiber, while ogbono provides healthy fats and antioxidants.
By incorporating these ingredients into your regular diet and cooking them appropriately, you can enhance your calcium intake and support your overall well-being.
The Significance of Iron for Blood Health and Energy Levels
Iron plays a crucial role in maintaining blood health by aiding in the production of red blood cells.
It helps transport oxygen throughout the body, energizing cells and preventing fatigue and weakness.
Common Nigerian Ingredients High in Iron
- Spinach: This leafy green vegetable is packed with iron, making it an excellent addition to any Nigerian dish.
- Gbegiri (Black-eyed Pea Soup): This traditional Nigerian soup is not only delicious but also a great source of iron.
- Suya (Grilled Meat): Including grilled meat in your diet can provide a significant amount of iron.
1. Examples of Iron-rich Nigerian Ingredients
Some popular examples of iron-rich Nigerian ingredients include spinach, gbegiri (black-eyed pea soup), and suya (grilled meat).
These ingredients can be easily incorporated into various Nigerian recipes to enhance their iron content.
2. Nutritional Content and Health Benefits
Spinach is not only rich in iron but also contains vitamins A and C, fiber, and antioxidants.
Gbegiri is not only high in iron but also a good source of protein and fiber, promoting digestive health.
Suya, apart from being a great source of iron, also provides essential amino acids for muscle growth and repair.
Including iron-rich ingredients in your everyday Nigerian diet is crucial for optimal blood health and energy levels.
Iron deficiency can lead to conditions such as anemia, which can cause fatigue, weakness, and decreased cognitive function.
By incorporating spinach, gbegiri, and suya into your meals, you can ensure an adequate intake of iron.
These ingredients not only provide the necessary iron but also offer additional nutritional benefits for overall well-being.
In fact, iron-rich ingredients are essential for everyday Nigerian dishes due to their significant impact on blood health and energy levels.
By consciously including spinach, gbegiri, and suya in your diet, you can fuel your body with the required iron for optimal functioning.
Moreover, these ingredients offer a wide range of nutritional benefits, making them valuable additions to any Nigerian meal.
The Role of Potassium in Maintaining Proper Heart and Muscle Function
Potassium plays a crucial role in maintaining the proper function of the heart and muscles.
It is an essential mineral that helps regulate blood pressure, balance fluids in the body, and support nerve function.
Nigerian Ingredients That Are Excellent Sources of Potassium
- Plantains: Plantains are a staple ingredient in Nigerian cuisine and are rich in potassium. They are an excellent source of this mineral, promoting heart health and aiding in muscle function.
- Beans: Beans are another potassium-rich ingredient commonly used in Nigerian dishes. They are not only an excellent source of plant-based protein but also provide a substantial amount of potassium, supporting healthy heart function.
- Palm Oil: Palm oil, derived from palm fruits, is a commonly used ingredient in Nigerian cooking. It is not only a rich source of vitamin E but also contains potassium, contributing to proper heart and muscle function.
The Nutritional Value and Health Benefits of These Ingredients
Plantains are not just a good source of potassium but also provide essential vitamins, minerals, and dietary fiber.
They are low in fat and cholesterol, making them a heart-healthy choice.
Consuming plantains can help regulate blood pressure due to their high potassium content, reducing the risk of cardiovascular diseases.
Additionally, their high fiber content aids digestion and promotes a healthy digestive system.
Beans are a nutritional powerhouse, offering a wide range of health benefits. They are rich in potassium, fiber, and protein, making them an excellent addition to a balanced diet.
The potassium content in beans helps maintain normal blood pressure, reducing the risk of hypertension.
Moreover, their high fiber content promotes a feeling of fullness and aids in weight management.
Due to their high protein content, beans are a great option for vegetarians and vegans to meet their protein needs.
3. Palm Oil
While palm oil is known for its high saturated fat content, it also contains essential nutrients like potassium and vitamin E.
Potassium in palm oil contributes to maintaining normal heart function and blood pressure.
Additionally, the vitamin E present in palm oil acts as an antioxidant, protecting cells from damage caused by free radicals.
However, it is important to consume palm oil in moderation due to its high-calorie content and saturated fat.
Opting for sustainable and responsibly sourced palm oil is also crucial for environmental conservation.
Incorporating potassium-rich ingredients like plantains, beans, and palm oil in Nigerian dishes can be a healthy choice.
These ingredients not only provide essential nutrients but also contribute to maintaining optimal heart and muscle function.
As part of a balanced diet, they can play a vital role in promoting overall health and well-being.
The Importance of Zinc for Immune System Support and Wound Healing
Zinc is crucial for a healthy immune system and plays a vital role in wound healing.
Nigerian Ingredients that are Rich in Zinc
There are several Nigerian ingredients that are excellent sources of zinc.
Examples of Zinc-rich Nigerian Ingredients
Nigeria is blessed with various foods that are packed with zinc, such as oysters, meats, and egusi (melon seeds).
Nutritional Content and Health Benefits of Zinc-rich Ingredients
Oysters, known for their high zinc concentration, also offer essential vitamins and minerals, aiding in brain function and overall health.
Meats, particularly beef and lamb, are not only rich in zinc but also provide high-quality protein, iron, and omega-3 fatty acids.
Egusi, a popular Nigerian ingredient, is not only a good source of zinc but also contains vitamin E, calcium, and healthy fats which contribute to heart health and improve brain function.
These zinc-rich ingredients have several health benefits. Firstly, zinc helps strengthen the immune system, reducing the risk of infections and diseases.
It plays a vital role in wound healing, supporting the formation of new cells and tissues.
Additionally, zinc is essential for cognitive function, as it supports the brain’s neurotransmitters, aiding memory and learning.
The nutritional content of these ingredients is also noteworthy.
Oysters are not only one of the best sources of zinc but are also rich in other vital nutrients such as vitamin B12, copper, and selenium.
These nutrients promote cardiovascular health, boost energy, and improve brain function.
Meats, specifically beef and lamb, are excellent sources of protein, iron, and omega-3 fatty acids, contributing to muscle growth, healthy blood circulation, and reducing the risk of heart disease.
Egusi, in addition to its zinc content, is a beneficial ingredient due to its vitamin E content, which acts as an antioxidant and supports healthy skin and hair. Calcium in egusi also aids in strengthening bones and teeth.
Including zinc-rich ingredients in your everyday Nigerian meals can greatly benefit your overall health.
These ingredients not only enhance immune system function and wound healing but also provide essential nutrients and minerals that support various bodily functions.
So, why not incorporate oysters, meats, and egusi into your diet and enjoy their amazing health benefits?
Essentially, zinc plays a crucial role in supporting the immune system and wound healing.
Nigerian ingredients like oysters, meats, and egusi are excellent sources of zinc and offer additional nutritional benefits.
By including these ingredients in your daily meals, you can improve your overall health and well-being.
In summary, this blog post has highlighted the essential minerals found in everyday Nigerian ingredients.
It is worth emphasizing the abundance of these minerals, which are crucial for our health.
We strongly encourage readers to incorporate these ingredients into their daily diets for improved health and overall wellbeing.
- Mineral Awareness: Uncover the vital role minerals play in daily health and well-being.
- Everyday Nourishment: Recognize the power of ordinary Nigerian ingredients in delivering essential minerals.
- Leafy Bounty: Ugu and ewedu offer not just taste but a rich source of iron for blood health.
- Seafood Riches: From fish to prawns, Nigerian waters contribute to overall well-being through diverse minerals.
- Staple Strength: Everyday items like beans and rice are more than meals—they’re powerhouses of iron for sustained energy.
Your Health, Your Choice
- Empowerment Through Food: Seize the opportunity to enhance your health by embracing these nutrient-packed Nigerian ingredients.
- Wellness Revolution: Transform your diet with local treasures for a vibrant life filled with health and vitality. | <urn:uuid:faefc409-3d7b-4db4-8cbc-1f0649c9f795> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://foodminerals.ng/essential-minerals-in-nigerian-ingredients/ | 2024-12-10T08:09:04Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066057523.33/warc/CC-MAIN-20241210071103-20241210101103-00079.warc.gz | en | 0.924775 | 2,550 | 2.78125 | 3 |
Here’s an example of how you can (and must!)
ANSWER THE QUESTION ASKED THROUGHOUT YOUR ANSWER.
Don’t just parrot back the question at the end of each paragraph (although that is still better than ignoring the question completely!) and expect to do well. Everything you say should relate back to the question you were asked. This essay is of very little value to you (except to the extent that it helps you to understand the character of Hamlet a little better) because when the question comes up it won’t be phrased like this. So I am NOT suggesting you memorise this answer – that would be a complete waste of your time and would go against everything I believe in. Instead I want to you look at how everything I discuss relates directly to the question asked. I also want you to see how important it is to have a structure on your essay, so that each paragraph deals with a different idea – this will prevent you from just waffling on and will show the examiner that you are in control and know what you want to say. All of the bold/underlined words are the places where I have either used the exact words from the question or a synonym – but I’m not just parroting back the question, I’m providing supporting evidence and examples from the play to explain why I (mostly) agree with the statement.
“Horror & disgust at his mother’s behaviour & a spreading & deepening of that horror & disgust to include all life dominates Hamlet’s soul”
There is no doubt that Hamlet is horrified and disgusted by his mother’s “o’er hasty” and “incestuous” remarriage to his uncle Claudius. However, it must be acknowledged that Hamlet’s soul is also full of grief for the father he loved so dearly. Furthermore his suicidal disillusionment with life itself is evident from his very first appearance in the play. Once Hamlet discovers that his father was actually murdered by Claudius his horror deepens. His sense that he cannot trust anyone spreads to Rosencrantz & Guildenstern and Ophelia until Hamlet reaches a point where his soul is utterly dominated by a deep disgust for everyone in his life (except Horatio), & for life itself.
Paragraph 1 (a) = MOTHER
At the beginning of the play Hamlet’s deep horror and disgust springs from the fact that his mother’s remarriage came so soon after his father’s death “A beast that wants discourse of reason would have mourned longer”. This seems a betrayal of their life together “frailty thy name is woman” and proof for Hamlet that she must never have truly loved his father. He also sees her new relationship as incestuous “o most wicked speed, to post with such dexterity to incestuous sheets”. His soul is further tortured because he must stay silent despite his disapproval as society demanded absolute obedience to the King & Queen “it is not nor it cannot come to good but break my heart for I must hold my tongue”.
Paragraph 1 (b) = GRIEF & DESPAIR
However, Hamlet’s soul is not dominated purely by horror & disgust – he is also genuinely grieving the death of his father & hero “he was a man, take him for all in all, I shall not look upon his like again”. Hamlet cannot understand why everyone else is so eager to move on “I have that within which passes show; these but the trappings & the suits of woe”. He reveals a suicidal despair in his very first soliloquy, wishing that God had not “fixed his cannon ‘gainst self-slaughter”. This disillusionment with life itself certainly spreads and deepens as the play unfolds.
Paragraph 2 = CLAUDIUS
The appearance of the ghost confirms Hamlet’s earlier suspicions (“I doubt some foul play”) and his dislike of Claudius “a little more than kin and less than kind” transforms into absolute hatred and disgust “o villain, villain, smiling damned villain”. He also begins to suspect his mother of involvement in the crime, evident when he refers to her in scathing terms: “o most pernicious woman”. From this moment on his soul is torn between rage (“haste me to know it that I may…sweep to my revenge”) and despair (“the time is out of joint. O cursed spite that ever I was born to set it right”) as he feels the terrible weight of responsibility to avenge his father’s death battling with his dislike of physical violence and his fear that the ghost is an impostor (“The spirit that I have seen may be a devil… & perhaps… abuses me to damn me”). Thus we see horror, disgust and despair are the dominant emotions in Hamlet’s soul.
Paragraph 3 = ROSENCRANTZ AND GUILDENSTERN
Hamlet’s horror and disgust spreads and deepens to his old school friends Rosencrantz and Guildenstern who appear at court on Claudius’ orders. Hamlet suspects they are spying on him and they admit “My lord, we were sent for”. Hamlet initially trusts them enough to confide “I am but mad north north west” but as the action unfolds he become increasingly frustrated with their interference (“do you think I am easier to be played upon than a pipe?”). Ultimately when Hamlet discovers the letters they carry to England contain orders for his execution, he inserts their names instead so that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are “put to sudden death no shriving time allowed”. Thus this relationship illustrates how Hamlet’s initial horror and disgust with his mother spreads to other characters. By the end of the play he has such disregard for all life that he sends them to their deaths without a single pang of guilt, proclaiming “they are not near my conscience”.
Paragraph 4 = OPHELIA
Hamlet similarly loses faith in Ophelia when she abruptly breaks off all contact between them (on her father’s orders). He longs to confide in her – “he raised a sigh so piteous and profound as it did seem to shatter all his bulk” but because of his mother’s behaviour he no longer trusts women, remarking “wise men know well enough what monsters you make of them … God hath given you one face and you make yourselves another”. He is horrified and disgusted that she so willingly accepted her father’s insulting assessment of his character (that he was motivated purely by lust not love) and mocks her eagerness to protect her virginity “get thee to a nunnery”. It appears he has lost all respect for women as a result of his mother’s behaviour and Ophelia’s rejection.
Paragraph 5 = HATES SELF & LIFE
Hamlet not only loses faith in those around him, however, he is also filled with a deep self-loathing “o what a rogue and peasant slave am I” and in his most famous soliloquy reveals his desire to die “to be or not to be, that is th question, whether it is nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune or to take arms against a sea of troubles and by opposing end them”. Hamlet’s horror and disgust has spread to existence itself but he retains his respect for God and his fear of punishment stops him from killing himself “for in that sleep of death what dreams may come… thus conscience doth make cowards of us all”.
Paragraph 6(a) = STILL LOVES Gertrude & Ophelia
However, Hamlet’s horror and disgust at his mother’s behaviour does not diminish his love for her. He begs her to ask God’s forgiveness so she can save her immortal soul “confess yourself to heaven, repent what’s past, avoid what is to come”. Similarly, although hurt by Ophelia’s ‘betrayal’ he undoubtedly loved her and is deeply upset by the suggestion that he may be partially responsible for her death “I loved Ophelia. Forty thousand brothers could not with all their quantity of love make up my sum”.
Paragraph 6(b) = DISREGARD FOR LIFE – WORKING FOR GOD
Hamlet undoubtedly shows absolute disregard for life when he accidentally murders Polonius (“I’ll lug the guts into the neighbour room”) but he thought he was killing Claudius and now believes he is doing God’s work “for this same lord I do repent but heaven hath pleased it so that I must be their scourge and minister”. In the graveyard scene Hamlet reflects on death as the only certainty in life, the only factor which places a King and a beggar on the same level yet in the final scenes of the play Hamlet’s soul is no longer filled with horror and despair but rather with a belief and acceptance that what will be will be “there’s a divinity that shapes our ends, rough-hew them how we will”. Thus when he finally kills Claudius, Hamlet feels justified in making him drink from the cup he himself filled with poison as Claudius fittingly becomes the victim of his own evil schemes. Hamlet nonetheless retains some respect for the lives of others – he exchanges forgiveness with Laertes & his final deed is to save Horatio’s life “give me the cup, let go” & to give Fortinbras his ‘dying voice’ as the next King of Denmark.
In many ways it is almost inevitable that the play depicts a man whose soul is filled with horror and disgust. What human being caught up in this horrific series of events would not react similarly? Let us list for a moment the events he endures: his father’s death, his mother’s hasty & incestuous remarriage, the revelation that the new King – his uncle Claudius – murdered his father, further betrayals by Ophelia and Rosencrantz & Guildenstern, a wasted opportunity to get revenge during the prayer scene, the accidental murder of Polonius followed swiftly by exile to England, Ophelia’s death and funeral; and the plot against him by Claudius & Laertes (which ultimately leaves every major character in the play dead). In these circumstances it is astounding that Hamlet retains any faith at all in God and in divine justice. Yes his soul is filled with horror and disgust but he also ultimately reveals his deep love for Gertrude and Ophelia and profound empathy for Laertes, Horatio and Fortinbras. Thus he deserves the tribute paid to him by Horatio “Now cracks a noble heart. Goodnight sweet prince, and flights of angels sing thee to thy rest” and death seems a blessed release for this tortured soul. | <urn:uuid:5ca6bbec-5ce8-4653-bf20-05b022d2e470> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | http://leavingcertenglish.net/tag/how-to-answer-the-question/ | 2024-12-11T00:17:13Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066071149.10/warc/CC-MAIN-20241210225516-20241211015516-00451.warc.gz | en | 0.973894 | 2,383 | 2.5625 | 3 |
In 1987, the United Church of Christ's Commission on Racial Justice commissioned one of the first studies on hazardous waste in communities of color. A few years later - 28 years ago this month - delegates to the First National People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit adopted 17 principles of environmental justice. But in the years since, the federal government has largely failed to live up to the vision these trailblazing leaders outlined, and to its responsibilities to the communities they represent.
From predominantly black neighborhoods in Detroit to Navajo communities in the southwest to Louisiana’s Cancer Alley, industrial pollution has been concentrated in low-income communities for decades - communities that the federal government has tacitly written off as so-called “sacrifice zones.” But it’s not just about poverty, it’s also about race. A seminal study found that black families are more likely to live in neighborhoods with higher concentrations of air pollution than white families - even when they have the same or more income. A more recent study found that while whites largely cause air pollution, Blacks and Latinxs are more likely to breathe it in. Unsurprisingly, these groups also experience higher rates of childhood asthma. And many more low-income and minority communities are exposed to toxins in their water - including lead and chemicals from industrial and agricultural run-off.
Environmental Racism Across the U.S.
Sources: Michigan Radio (for Detroit, MI data); California Department of Public Health (for Los Angeles County, CA data); Coral Davenport & Campbell Robertson, “Resettling the First American ‘Climate Refugees,’” New York Times
And these studies don’t tell the whole story. As I’ve traveled this country, I’ve heard the human stories as well. In Detroit, I met with community members diagnosed with cancer linked to exposure to toxins after years of living in the shadow of a massive oil refinery. In New Hampshire, I talked with mothers fighting for clean drinking water free of harmful PFAS chemicals for their children. In South Carolina, I've heard the stories of the most vulnerable coastal communities who face the greatest threats, from not just sea-level rise, but a century of encroaching industrial polluters. In West Virginia, I saw the consequences of the coal industry’s abandonment of the communities that made their shareholders and their executives wealthy - stolen pensions, poisoned miners, and ruined land and water.
We didn’t get here by accident. Our crisis of environmental injustice is the result of decades of discrimination and environmental racism compounding in communities that have been overlooked for too long. It is the result of multiple choices that put corporate profits before people, while our government looked the other way. It is unacceptable, and it must change.
Justice cannot be a secondary concern - it must be at the center of our response to climate change. The Green New Deal commits us to a “just transition” for all communities and all workers. But we won’t create true justice by cleaning up polluted neighborhoods and tweaking a few regulations at the EPA. We also need to prioritize communities that have experienced historic disinvestment, across their range of needs: affordable housing, better infrastructure, good schools, access to health care, and good jobs. We need strong, resilient communities who are prepared and properly resourced to withstand the impacts of climate change. We need big, bottom-up change - focused on, and led by, members of these communities.
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We need big, bottom-up change - focused on, and led by, the communities who have been in this fight since the beginning.
No Community Left Behind
The same communities that have borne the brunt of industrial pollution are now on the front lines of climate change, often getting hit first and worst. In response, local community leaders are leading the fight to hold polluters responsible and combat the effects of the climate crisis. In Detroit’s 48217 zip code, for example, community members living in the midst of industrial pollution told me how they have banded together to identify refinery leakages and inform their neighbors. In Alabama and Mississippi, I met with residents of formerly redlined neighborhoods who spoke to me about their fight against drinking water pollution caused by inadequate municipal sewage systems. Tribal Nations, which have been disproportionately impacted by environmental racism and the effects of climate change, are leading the way in climate resilience and adaptation strategies, and in supporting healthy ecosystems. The federal government must do more to support and uplift the efforts of these and other communities. Here’s how we can do that:
Improve environmental equity mapping. The EPA currently maps communities based on basic environmental and demographic indicators, but more can be done across the federal government to identify at-risk communities. We need a rigorous interagency effort to identify cumulative environmental health disparities and climate vulnerabilities and cross-reference that data with other indicators of socioeconomic health. We’ll use these data to adjust permitting rules under Clean Air and Clean Water Act authorities to better consider the impact of cumulative and overlapping pollution, and we’ll make them publicly available online to help communities measure their own health.
Implement an equity screen for climate investments. Identifying at-risk communities is only the first step. The Green New Deal will involve deploying trillions of dollars to transform the way we source and use energy. In doing so, the government must prioritize resources to support vulnerable communities and remediate historic injustices. My friend Governor Jay Inslee rightly challenged us to fund the most vulnerable communities first, and both New York and California have passed laws to direct funding specifically to frontline and fenceline communities. The federal government should do the same. I’ll direct one-third of my proposed climate investment into the most vulnerable communities - a commitment that would funnel at least $1 trillion into these areas over the next decade.
Strengthen tools to mitigate environmental harms. Signed into law in 1970, the National Environmental Policy Act provides the original authority for many of our existing environmental protections. But even as climate change has made it clear that we must eliminate our dependence on fossil fuels, the Trump Administration has tried to weaken NEPA with the goal of expediting even more fossil fuel infrastructure projects. At the same time, the Trump Administration has moved to devalue the consideration of climate impacts in all federal decisions. This is entirely unacceptable in the face of the climate emergency our world is facing. As president, I would mandate that all federal agencies consider climate impacts in their permitting and rulemaking processes. Climate action needs to be mainstreamed in everything the federal government does. But we also need a standard that requires the government to do more than merely “assess” the environmental impact of proposed projects - we need to mitigate negative environmental impacts entirely.
Beyond that, a Warren Administration will do more to give the people who live in a community a greater say in what is sited there - too often today, local desires are discounted or disregarded. And when Tribal Nations are involved, projects should not proceed unless developers have obtained the free, prior and informed consent of the tribal governments concerned. I’ll use the full extent of my executive authority under NEPA to protect these communities and give them a voice in the process. And I’ll fight to improve the law to reflect the realities of today’s climate crisis.
Build wealth in frontline communities. People of color are more likely to live in neighborhoods that are vulnerable to climate change risks or where they’re subject to environmental hazards like pollution. That’s not a coincidence - decades of racist housing policy and officially sanctioned segregation that denied people of color the opportunity to build wealth also denied them the opportunity to choose the best neighborhood for their families. Then, these same communities were targeted with the worst of the worst mortgages before the financial crisis, while the government looked the other way. My housing plan includes a first-of-its-kind down-payment assistance program that provides grants to long-term residents of formerly redlined communities so that they can buy homes in the neighborhood of their choice and start to build wealth, beginning to reverse that damage. It provides assistance to homeowners in these communities who still owe more than their homes were worth, which can be used to preserve their homes and revitalize their communities. These communities should have the opportunity to lead us in the climate fight, and have access to the economic opportunities created by the clean energy sector. With the right investments and with community-led planning, we can lift up communities that have experienced historic repression and racism, putting them on a path to a more resilient future.
Expand health care. People in frontline communities disproportionately suffer from certain cancers and other illnesses associated with environmental pollution. To make matters worse, they are less likely to have access to quality health care. Under Medicare for All, everyone will have high quality health care at a lower cost, allowing disadvantaged communities to get lifesaving services. And beyond providing high quality coverage for all, the simplified Medicare for All system will make it easier for the federal government to quickly tailor health care responses to specific environmental disasters in affected communities when they occur.
Research equity. For years we’ve invested in broad-based strategies that are intended to lift all boats, but too often leave communities of color behind. True justice calls for more than ‘one-size-fits-all’ solutions - instead we need targeted strategies that take into account the unique challenges individual frontline communities face. I’ve proposed a historic $400 billion investment in clean energy research and development. We’ll use that funding to research place-based interventions specifically targeting the communities that need more assistance.
Pollution Exposure By Population (2003–2015)
Source: Christopher W. Tessum et al., “Inequity in consumption of goods and services adds to racial–ethnic disparities in air pollution exposure,” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (March 2019). View in full screen.
No Worker Left Behind
The climate crisis will leave no one untouched. But it also represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity: to create millions of good-paying American jobs in clean and renewable energy, infrastructure, and manufacturing; to unleash the best of American innovation and creativity; to rebuild our unions and create real progress and justice for workers; and to directly confront the racial and economic inequality embedded in our fossil fuel economy.
The task before us is huge and demands all of us to act. It will require massive retrofits to our nation’s infrastructure and our manufacturing base. It will also require readjusting our economic approach to ensure that communities of color and others who have been systematically harmed from our fossil fuel economy are not left further behind during the transition to clean energy.
But it is also an opportunity. We’ll need millions of workers: people who know how to build things and manufacture them; skilled and experienced contractors to plan and execute large construction and engineering projects; and training and joint labor management apprenticeships to ensure a continuous supply of skilled, available workers. This can be a great moment of national unity, of common purpose, of lives transformed for the better. But we cannot succeed in fighting climate change unless the people who have the skills to get the job done are in the room as full partners.
We also cannot fight climate change with a low-wage economy.
Workers should not be forced to make an impossible choice between fossil fuel industry jobs with superior wages and benefits and green economy jobs that pay far less. For too long, there has been a tension between transitioning to a green economy and creating good, middle class, union jobs. In a Warren Administration we will do both: creating good new jobs through investments in a clean economy coupled with the strongest possible protections for workers. For instance, my Green Manufacturing plan makes a $1.5 trillion procurement commitment to domestic manufacturing contingent on companies providing fair wages, paid family and medical leave, fair scheduling practices, and collective bargaining rights. Similarly, my 100% Clean Energy Plan will require retrofitting our nation’s buildings, reengineering our electrical grid, and adapting our manufacturing base - creating good, union jobs, with prevailing wages determined through collective bargaining, for millions of skilled and experienced workers.
Our commitment to a Green New Deal is a commitment to a better future for the working people of our country.
And it starts with a real commitment to workers from the person sitting in the White House: I will fight for your job, your family, and your community like I would my own. But there’s so much more we can do to take care of America’s workers before, during, and after this transition. Here are a few ways we can start:
Honor our commitment to fossil fuel workers. Coal miners, oil rig workers, pipeline builders and millions of other workers have given their life’s blood to build the infrastructure that powered the American economy throughout the 20th century. In return, they deserve more than platitudes - and if we expect them to use their skills to help reengineer America, we owe them a fair day’s pay for the work we need them to do. I’m committed to providing job training and guaranteed wage and benefit parity for workers transitioning into new industries. And for those Americans who choose not to find new employment and wish to retire with dignity, we’ll ensure full financial security, including promised pensions and early retirement benefits.
Defend worker pensions, benefits, and secure retirement. Together, we will ensure that employers and our government honor the promises they made to workers in fossil fuel industries. I’ve fought for years to protect pensions and health benefits for retired coal workers, and I’ll continue fighting to maintain the solvency of multi-employer pension plans. As president, I’ll protect those benefits that fossil fuel workers have earned. My plan to empower American workers commits to defending pensions, recognizing the value of defined-benefit pensions, and pushing to pass the Butch-Lewis Act to create a loan program for the most financially distressed pension plans in the country. And my Social Security plan would increase benefits by $200 a month for every beneficiary, lifting nearly 5 million seniors out of poverty and expanding benefits for workers with disabilities and their families.
Create joint safety-health committees. In 2016, more than 50,000 workers died from occupational-related diseases. And since the beginning of his administration, Trump has rolled back rules and regulations that limit exposure to certain chemicals and requirements around facility safety inspections, further jeopardizing workers and the community around them. When workers have the power to keep themselves safe, they make their communities safer too. A Warren Administration will reinstate the work safety rules and regulations Trump eliminated, and will work to require large companies to create joint safety-health committees with representation from workers and impacted communities.
Force fossil fuel companies to honor their obligations. As a matter of justice, we should tighten bankruptcy laws to prevent coal and other fossil fuel companies from evading their responsibility to their workers and to the communities that they have helped to pollute. In the Senate, I have fought to improve the standing of coal worker pensions and benefits in bankruptcy - as president, I will work with Congress to pass legislation to make these changes a reality.
And as part of our commitment, we must take care of all workers, including those who were left behind decades ago by the fossil fuel economy. Although Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal is the inspiration for this full scale mobilization of the federal government to defeat the climate crisis, it was not perfect. The truth is that too often, many New Deal agencies and policies were tainted by structural racism. And as deindustrialization led to prolonged disinvestment, communities of color were too often both the first to lose their job base, and the first place policymakers thought of to dump the refuse of the vanished industries. Now there is a real risk that poor communities dependent on carbon fuels will be asked to bear the costs of fighting climate change on their own. We must take care not to replicate the failings and limitations of the original New Deal as we implement a Green New Deal and transition our economy to 100% clean energy. Instead we need to build an economy that works for every American - and leaves no one behind.
Prioritizing Environmental Justice at the Highest Levels
As we work to enact a Green New Deal, our commitment to environmental justice cannot be an afterthought - it must be central to our efforts to fight back against climate change. That means structuring our government agencies to ensure that we’re centering frontline and fenceline communities in implementing a just transition. It means ensuring that the most vulnerable have a voice in decision-making that impacts their communities, and direct access to the White House itself. Here’s how we’ll do that:
Elevate environmental justice at the White House. I’ll transform the Council on Environmental Quality into a Council on Climate Action with a broader mandate, including making environmental justice a priority for both policy development and policy implementation. I’ll update the 1994 executive order that directed federal agencies to make achieving environmental justice part of their missions, and revitalize the cabinet-level interagency council on environmental justice. We will raise the National Environmental Justice Advisory Council to report directly to the White House, bringing in the voices of frontline community leaders at the highest levels. And I will bring these leaders to the White House for an environmental justice summit within my first 100 days in office, to honor the contributions of frontline activists over decades in this fight and to listen to ideas for how we can make progress. And to ensure accountability for policy implementation, my administration will convene the National Environmental Justice Advisory Council on a regular basis to hear directly from communities that are most affected.
Empower the EPA to support frontline communities. The Trump Administration has proposed dramatic cuts to the EPA, including to its Civil Rights office, and threatened to eliminate EPA’s Office of Environmental Justice entirely. I’ll restore and grow both offices, including by expanding the Community Action for a Renewed Environment (CARE) and Environmental Justice Small Grant programs. We’ll condition these competitive grant funds on the development of state- and local-level environmental justice plans, and ensure that regional EPA offices stay open to provide support and capacity. But it’s not just a matter of size. Historically, EPA’s Office of Civil Rights has rejected nine out of ten cases brought to it for review. In a Warren Administration, we will aggressively pursue cases of environmental discrimination wherever they occur.
Bolster the CDC to play a larger role in environmental justice. The links between industrial pollution and negative public health outcomes are clear. A Warren Administration will fully fund the Center for Disease Control’s environmental health programs, such as childhood lead poisoning prevention, and community health investigations. We will also provide additional grant funding for independent research into environmental health effects.
Diminish the influence of Big Oil. Powerful corporations rig the system to work for themselves, exploiting and influencing the regulatory process and placing industry representatives in positions of decision-making authority within agencies. My plan to end Washington corruption would slam shut the revolving door between industry and government, reducing industry’s ability to influence the regulatory process and ensuring that the rules promulgated by our environmental agencies reflect the needs of communities, not the fossil fuel industry.
Right to Affordable Energy and Clean Water
Nearly one-third of American households struggle to pay their energy bills, and Native American, Black, and Latinx households are more likely to be energy insecure. Renters are also often disadvantaged by landlords unwilling to invest in safer buildings, weatherization, or cheaper energy. And clean energy adoption is unequal along racial lines, even after accounting for differences in wealth. I have a plan to move the United States to 100% clean, renewable, and zero-emission energy in electricity generation by 2035 - but energy justice must be an integral part of our transition to clean energy. Here’s what that means:
Address high energy cost burdens. Low-income families, particularly in rural areas, are spending too much of their income on energy, often the result of older or mobile homes that are not weatherized or that lack energy efficient upgrades. I’ve committed to meet Governor Inslee’s goal of retrofitting 4% of U.S. buildings annually to increase energy efficiency - and we’ll start that national initiative by prioritizing frontline and fenceline communities. In addition, my housing plan includes over $10 billion in competitive grant programs for communities that invest in well-located affordable housing - funding that can be used for modernization and weatherization of homes, infrastructure, and schools. It also targets additional funding to tribal governments, rural communities, and jurisdictions - often majority minority - where homeowners are still struggling with the aftermath of the 2008 housing crash. Energy retrofits can be a large source of green jobs, and I’m committed to ensuring that these are good jobs, with full federal labor protections and the right to organize.
Support community power. Consumer-owned energy cooperatives, many of which were established to electrify rural areas during the New Deal, serve an estimated 42 million people across our country. While some co-ops are beginning to transition their assets to renewable energy resources, too many are locked into long-term contracts that make them dependent on coal and other dirty fuels for their power. To speed the transition to clean energy, my administration will offer assistance to write down debt and restructure loans to help cooperatives get out of long-term coal contracts, and provide additional low- or no-cost financing for zero-carbon electricity generation and transmission projects for cooperatives via the Rural Utilities Service. I’ll work with Congress to extend and expand clean energy bonds to allow community groups and nonprofits without tax revenue to access clean energy incentives. I’ll also provide dedicated support for the four Power Marketing Administrations, the Tennessee Valley Authority, and the Appalachian Regional Commission to help them build publicly-owned clean energy assets and deploy clean power to help communities transition off fossil fuels. Accelerating the transition to clean energy will both reduce carbon emissions, clean up our air, and help bring down rural consumers’ utility bills.
Protect local equities. Communities that host large energy projects are entitled to receive a share of the benefits. But too often, large energy companies are offered millions in tax subsidies to locate in a particular area -- without any commitment that they will make a corresponding commitment in that community. Community Benefit Agreements can help address power imbalances between project developers and low-income communities by setting labor, environmental, and transparency standards before work begins. I’ll make additional federal subsidies or tax benefits for large utility projects contingent on strong Community Benefits Agreements, which should include requirements for prevailing wages and collective bargaining rights. And I’ll insist on a clawback provision if a company doesn’t hold up its end of the deal. If developers work with communities to ensure that everyone benefits from clean energy development, we will be able to reduce our emissions faster.
It’s simple: access to clean water is a basic human right. Water quality is an issue in both urban and rural communities. In rural areas, for example, runoff into rivers and streams by Big Agriculture has poisoned local drinking water. In urban areas, lack of infrastructure investment has resulted in lead and other poisons seeping into aging community water systems. We need to take action to protect our drinking water. Here’s how we can do that:
Invest in our nation’s public water systems. America’s water is a public asset and should be owned by and for the public. A Warren Administration will end decades of disinvestment and privatization of our nation’s water system -- our government at every level should invest in safe, affordable drinking water for all of us.
Increase and enforce water quality standards. Our government should enforce strict regulations to ensure clean water is available to all Americans. I’ll restore the Obama-era water rule that protected our lakes, rivers, and streams, and the drinking water they provide. We also need a strong and nationwide safe drinking water standard that covers PFAS and other chemicals. A Warren Administration will fully enforce Safe Drinking Water Act standards for all public water systems. I’ll aggressively regulate chemicals that make their way into our water supply, including by designating PFAS as a hazardous substance.
Fund access to clean water. Our clean drinking water challenge goes beyond lead, and beyond Flint and Newark. To respond, a Warren Administration will commit to fully capitalize the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund and the Clean Water State Revolving Fund to refurbish old water infrastructure and support ongoing water treatment operations and maintenance, prioritizing the communities most heavily impacted by inadequate water infrastructure. In rural areas, I’ll increase funding for the Conservation Stewardship Program to $15 billion annually, empowering family farmers to help limit the agricultural runoff that harms local wells and water systems. To address lead specifically, we will establish a lead abatement grant program with a focus on schools and daycare centers, and commit to remediating lead in all federal buildings. We’ll provide a Lead Safety Tax Credit for homeowners to invest in remediation. And a Warren Administration will also fully fund IDEA and other support programs that help children with developmental challenges as a result of lead exposure.
Protecting the Most Vulnerable During Climate-Related Disasters
In 2018, the U.S. was home to the world’s three costliest environmental catastrophes. And while any community can be hit by a hurricane, flood, extreme weather, or fire, the impact of these kinds of disasters are particularly devastating for low-income communities, people with disabilities, and people of color. Take Puerto Rico for example. When Hurricane Maria hit the island, decades of racism and neglect were multiplied by the government’s failure to prepare and Trump’s racist post-disaster response - resulting in the deaths of at least 3,000 Puerto Ricans and long-term harm to many more. Even as we fight climate change, we must also prepare for its impacts - building resiliency not just in some communities, but everywhere. Here’s how we can start to do that:
Invest in pre-disaster mitigation. For every dollar invested in mitigation, the government and communities save $6 overall. But true to form, the Trump Administration has proposed to steep cuts to FEMA’s Pre-Disaster Mitigation Program, abandoning communities just as the risk of climate-related disasters is on the rise. As president, I’ll invest in programs that help vulnerable communities build resiliency by quintupling this program’s funding.
Better prepare for flood events. When I visited Pacific Junction, Iowa, I saw scenes of devastation: crops ruined for the season, cars permanently stalled, a water line 7 or 8 feet high in residents’ living rooms. And many residents in Pacific Junction fear that this could happen all over again next year. Local governments rely on FEMA’s flood maps, but some of these maps haven’t been updated in decades. In my first term as president, I will direct FEMA to fully update flood maps with forward-looking data, prioritizing and including frontline communities in this process. We’ll raise standards for new construction, including by reinstating the Federal Flood Risk Management Standard. And we’ll make it easier for vulnerable residents to move out of flood-prone properties - including by buying back those properties for low-income homeowners at a value that will allow them to relocate, and then tearing down the flood-prone properties, so we can protect everyone.
Mitigate wildfire risk. We must also invest in improved fire mapping and prevention programs. In a Warren Administration, we will dramatically improve fire mapping and prevention by investing in advanced modeling with a focus on helping the most vulnerable - incorporating not only fire vulnerability but community demographics. We will prioritize these data to invest in land management, particularly near the most vulnerable communities, supporting forest restoration, lowering fire risk, and creating jobs all at once. We will also invest in microgrid technology, so that we can de-energize high-risk areas when required without impacting the larger community’s energy supply. And as president, I will collaborate with Tribal governments on land management practices to reduce wildfires, including by incorporating traditional ecological practices and exploring co-management and the return of public resources to indigenous protection wherever possible.
Prioritize at-risk populations in disaster planning and response. When the most deadly fire in California’s history struck the town of Paradise last November, a majority of the victims were disabled or elderly. People with disabilities face increased difficulties in evacuation assistance and accessing critical medical care. For people who are homeless, disasters exacerbate existing challenges around housing and health. And fear of deportation can deter undocumented people from contacting emergency services for help evacuating or from going to an emergency shelter. As president, I will strengthen rules to require disaster response plans to uphold the rights of vulnerable populations. In my immigration plan, I committed to putting in place strict guidelines to protect sensitive locations, including emergency shelters. We’ll also develop best practices at the federal level to help state and local governments develop plans for at-risk communities - including for extreme heat or cold - and require that evacuation services and shelters are fully accessible to people with disabilities. During emergencies, we will work to ensure that critical information is shared in ways that reflect the diverse needs of people with disabilities and other at-risk communities, including through ASL and Braille and languages spoken in the community. We will establish a National Commission on Disability Rights and Disasters, ensure that federal disaster spending is ADA compliant, and support people with disabilities in disaster planning. We will make certain that individuals have ongoing access to health care services if they have to leave their community or if there is a disruption in care. And we will ensure that a sufficient number of disability specialists are present in state emergency management teams and FEMA’s disaster response corps.
Ensure a just and equitable recovery. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, disaster scammers and profiteers swarmed, capitalizing on others’ suffering to make a quick buck. And after George W. Bush suspended the Davis-Bacon Act, the doors were opened for contractors to under-pay and subject workers to dangerous working conditions, particularly low-income and immigrant workers. As president, I’ll put strong protections in place to ensure that federal tax dollars go toward community recovery, not to line the pockets of contractors. And we must maintain high standards for workers even when disaster strikes.
Studies show that the white and wealthy receive more federal disaster aid, even though they are most able to financially withstand a disaster.
This is particularly true when it comes to housing - FEMA’s programs are designed to protect homeowners, even as homeownership has slipped out of reach for an increasing number of Americans. As president, I will reform post-disaster housing assistance to better protect renters, including a commitment to a minimum of one-to-one replacement for any damaged federally-subsidized affordable housing, to better protect low-income families. I will work with Congress to amend the Stafford Act to make grant funding more flexible to allow families and communities to rebuild in more resilient ways. And we will establish a competitive grant program, based on the post-Sandy Rebuild by Design pilot, to offer states and local governments the opportunity to compete for additional funding for creative resilience projects.
Under a Warren Administration, we will monitor post-disaster recovery to help states and local governments better understand the long-term consequences and effectiveness of differing recovery strategies, including how to address climate gentrification, to ensure equitable recovery for all communities. We’ll center a right to return for individuals who have been displaced during a disaster and prioritize the voices of frontline communities in the planning of their return or relocation. And while relocation should be a last resort, when it occurs, we must improve living standards and keep communities together whenever possible.
Holding Polluters Accountable
In Manchester, Texas, Hurricane Harvey’s damage wasn’t apparent until after the storm had passed - when a thick, chemical smell started wafting through the majority Latinx community, which is surrounded by nearly 30 refineries and chemical plants. A tanker failure had released 1,188 pounds of benzene into the air, one of at least one hundred area leaks that happened in Harvey’s aftermath. But because regulators had turned off air quality and toxic monitoring in anticipation of the storm, the leaks went unnoticed and the community uninformed.
Average Neighborhood Toxic Concentration Values by Race and Income Category (2000)
Source: Liam Downey & Brian Hawkins, “Race, Income, and Environmental Inequality in the United States,” Sociological Perspectives (Dec. 2008). View in full screen.
This should have never been allowed to happen. But Manchester is also subject to 484,000 pounds of toxic chemical leaks on an average year. That’s not just a tragedy - it’s an outrage. We must hold polluters accountable for their role in ongoing, systemic damage in frontline communities. As president, I will use all my authorities to hold companies accountable for their role in the climate crisis. Here’s how we can do that:
Exercise all the oversight tools of the federal government. A Warren Administration will encourage the EPA and Department of Justice to aggressively go after corporate polluters, particularly in cases of environmental discrimination. We need real consequences for corporate polluters that break our environmental law. That means steep fines, which we will reinvest in impacted communities. And under my Corporate Executive Accountability Act, we’ll press for criminal penalties for executives when their companies hurt people through criminal negligence.
Use the power of the courts. Thanks to a Supreme Court decision, companies are often let completely off the hook, even when their operations inflict harm on thousands of victims each year. I’ll work with Congress to create a private right of action for environmental harm at the federal level, allowing individuals and communities impacted by environmental discrimination to sue for damages and hold corporate polluters accountable.
Reinstitute the Superfund Waste Tax. There are over 1300 remaining Superfund sites across the country, many located in or adjacent to frontline communities. So-called “orphan” toxic waste clean-ups were originally funded by a series of excise taxes on the petroleum and chemical industries. But thanks to Big Oil and other industry lobbyists, when that tax authority expired in 1995 it was not renewed. Polluters must pay for the consequences of their actions - not leave them for the communities to clean up. I’ll work with Congress to reinstate and then triple the Superfund tax, generating needed revenue to clean up the mess.
Hold the finance industry accountable for its role in the climate crisis. Financial institutions and the insurance industry underwrite and fund fossil fuel investments around the world, and can play a key role in stopping the climate crisis. Earlier this year, Chubb became the first U.S. insurer to commit to stop insuring coal projects, a welcome development. Unfortunately, many banks and insurers seem to be moving in the opposite direction. In fact, since the Paris Agreement was signed, U.S. banks including JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Citigroup, and Bank of America have actually increased their fossil fuel investments. And there is evidence that big banks are replicating a tactic they first employed prior to the 2008 crash - shielding themselves from climate losses by selling the mortgages most at risk from climate impacts to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to shift the burden off their books and onto taxpayers at a discount.
To accelerate the transition to clean energy, my Climate Risk Disclosure Act would require banks and other companies to disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and price their exposure to climate risk into their valuations, raising public awareness of just how dependent our economy is on fossil fuels. And let me be clear: in a Warren Administration, they will no longer be allowed to shift that burden to the rest of us. | <urn:uuid:c021c56d-83f0-43b5-a722-941e6d06a09c> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://elizabethwarren.com/plans/environmental-justice?source=soc-WB-ew-tw-rollout-20191009 | 2024-12-05T13:36:45Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066352699.65/warc/CC-MAIN-20241205115632-20241205145632-00212.warc.gz | en | 0.948893 | 7,399 | 3 | 3 |
Bonfire nights are a delightful way to gather with friends and family, but they can pose a hidden threat to local wildlife, especially hedgehogs. Ensuring these charming creatures can coexist with our outdoor festivities is essential. By following some simple tips, you can enjoy your fire while keeping hedgehogs safe and sound. Let’s explore how to create a hedgehog-safe bonfire and make your gathering a joy for both humans and wildlife.
Understanding Hedgehogs and Their Habitats
Exploring the fascinating world of hedgehogs reveals their unique habitats and behaviors. These small mammals are found across Europe, Asia, and Africa, thriving in diverse environments from forests to suburban gardens. Their adaptability showcases their resilience, yet they still face challenges in the wild.
Hedgehogs prefer environments with ample cover, such as hedgerows and woodlands. They often make nests in dense vegetation or under logs. This need for cover highlights the importance of wildlife protection efforts, especially in urban areas where natural habitats are diminishing.
Typical Hedgehog Behaviors
Hedgehogs are nocturnal creatures, known for their solitary nature. They engage in various activities, such as foraging for insects and small animals. Their behavior includes a unique defense mechanism—rolling into a ball to protect themselves from predators. Understanding these animal behaviors can help us coexist peacefully with them.
To support hedgehog habitats, consider these actions:
- Avoid using pesticides in gardens.
- Create a hedgehog-friendly garden with log piles and leaves.
- Be cautious with bonfires, checking for hedgehogs before lighting.
Protecting these creatures during outdoor activities ensures their survival and enriches our ecosystems.
Selecting a Safe Bonfire Location
Choosing a bonfire site with minimal wildlife disruption is crucial for protecting hedgehogs and other creatures.
Criteria for Site Selection
To ensure a wildlife-friendly bonfire, consider these criteria:
- Distance from hedgehog burrows: Verify the absence of nests and burrows nearby to prevent harm.
- Vegetation cover: Select open areas devoid of dense vegetation, as these are potential hedgehog habitats.
- Proximity to natural shelters: Avoid locations near logs or piles of leaves, which hedgehogs use for nesting.
Areas to Avoid
Certain areas pose higher risks to hedgehog habitats. Avoid building bonfires in:
- Dense hedgerows: These are prime nesting spots for hedgehogs.
- Woodland edges: These locations often serve as pathways for wildlife.
- Garden corners: These areas may harbor hidden hedgehog burrows.
Importance of Distance
Maintaining a safe distance from hedgehog burrows is essential. This practice minimizes the risk of disturbing or injuring hedgehogs. By carefully selecting a bonfire site, you contribute to the conservation of these charming creatures and promote a wildlife-friendly location.
These considerations help ensure that your outdoor activities are both enjoyable and environmentally responsible.
Fire Management Strategies
Ensuring bonfire safety is essential to protect both people and wildlife. Proper fire management techniques help minimize the impact on wildlife, such as hedgehogs, while also maintaining safety.
Building a Safe Bonfire
To build a safe bonfire, start by selecting a flat, open area away from vegetation. Use dry wood, stacking it loosely to ensure good airflow. This method reduces smoke and allows for better control of the flames. Always keep a bucket of water or a fire extinguisher nearby for emergencies.
Monitoring the Fire
Constant vigilance is key to wildlife safety. Regularly check the surroundings for any signs of wildlife, and ensure the fire remains contained. Keep the fire small and manageable, avoiding excessive flames that could endanger nearby habitats.
Extinguishing the Fire Properly
Proper extinguishing techniques are crucial to prevent harm. Douse the fire with water, stirring the ashes until they are cool to the touch. This ensures no embers remain that could reignite.
- Fire Management Tips:
- Build in open spaces
- Keep fire small
- Extinguish thoroughly
By following these fire management strategies, you contribute to bonfire safety and wildlife safety, ensuring a responsible and enjoyable outdoor experience.
Choosing Wildlife-Safe Materials
Ensuring the safety of hedgehogs and other wildlife starts with selecting the right materials.
Recommended Materials for a Hedgehog-Safe Bonfire
When planning a bonfire, opting for safe bonfire materials is crucial for wildlife conservation. Natural, untreated wood is an excellent choice. It burns cleanly and doesn’t release harmful chemicals. Similarly, using dried leaves and twigs can create a warm, inviting fire without endangering wildlife.
Dangers of Using Certain Chemicals and Treated Woods
Certain materials pose significant risks. Chemically treated woods, such as those used in construction, can release toxic fumes when burned. These fumes are harmful to both humans and animals. Avoid using painted or varnished wood, as they contain chemicals that can be detrimental to the environment.
Eco-Friendly Alternatives for Bonfire Fuel
For an eco-friendly burning experience, consider using compressed paper bricks or natural fiber logs. These alternatives are not only sustainable but also ensure minimal impact on surrounding wildlife. They burn efficiently and produce less smoke, making them ideal for a wildlife-safe bonfire.
- Safe Materials: Untreated wood, dried leaves, twigs
- Avoid: Chemically treated wood, painted wood
- Eco-Friendly Alternatives: Compressed paper bricks, natural fiber logs
By choosing the right materials, you support wildlife conservation while enjoying your outdoor activities responsibly.
Legal Considerations for Bonfires
Understanding the legal landscape is crucial for responsible bonfire activities.
Overview of Local Regulations
Local bonfire regulations are designed to protect both the environment and wildlife. These rules often specify when and where bonfires can be lit. Adhering to these guidelines is essential to avoid penalties. For instance, some areas require a permit to ensure compliance with wildlife laws.
Legal Implications of Disturbing Habitats
Disturbing hedgehog habitats can lead to significant legal consequences. Wildlife protection laws are in place to safeguard these creatures. Violating these laws by harming or displacing hedgehogs during bonfire activities can result in fines or legal action. Awareness and compliance with these legal requirements are vital.
Importance of Permits and Guidelines
Obtaining necessary permits is not just a legal formality but a commitment to wildlife protection. Permits often come with specific conditions to minimize environmental impact. Following these guidelines ensures that your bonfire is both legal and environmentally responsible.
- Legal Requirements:
- Check local bonfire regulations
- Obtain necessary permits
- Adhere to wildlife protection laws
By understanding and following these legal considerations, you contribute to the conservation of hedgehogs and their habitats while enjoying your outdoor activities responsibly.
Enhancing Bonfire Experiences with Wildlife Safety in Mind
Creating memorable bonfire activities while ensuring wildlife-friendly entertainment.
Incorporating wildlife-friendly entertainment into your bonfire nights can be both fun and educational. Consider activities like storytelling focused on local wildlife, or hosting a nature-themed quiz. These activities not only entertain but also raise awareness about wildlife protection.
Turn your bonfire night into an opportunity for wildlife observation. Use binoculars to spot nocturnal creatures like owls or bats. Encourage friends and family to quietly watch for hedgehogs or other animals. This can enhance your recreational tips by promoting a deeper connection with nature.
Promote wildlife protection by discussing its importance during your bonfire gatherings. Share facts about local species and their habitats. Use this platform to encourage others to adopt wildlife-friendly practices.
- Wildlife-Safe Activities:
- Nature storytelling
- Wildlife quizzes
- Observational sessions
By integrating these bonfire activities, you create a more meaningful experience, fostering a sense of stewardship and responsibility towards local ecosystems. This approach ensures that your gatherings remain enjoyable while being considerate of the natural world.
Signs of Hedgehog Activity Near Your Bonfire
Understanding the presence of hedgehogs can ensure a safe bonfire experience.
Identifying Hedgehog Presence
Spotting hedgehog tracks around your bonfire site can be an exciting discovery. Look for small, round footprints or droppings, which are clear signs of hedgehog activity. These creatures often leave behind trails in the soil or grass, especially near wildlife observation areas. At night, listen for rustling sounds in the underbrush, indicating their presence.
What to Do If Hedgehogs Are Spotted
If you notice hedgehog activity near your bonfire, it’s crucial to act responsibly. Consider relocating your bonfire to a safer spot. Ensure that the hedgehogs have a clear path to retreat without disturbance. It's essential to respect their natural behaviors and minimize stress during your wildlife observation.
Respecting Wildlife and Natural Behaviors
Respecting hedgehog activity involves maintaining a respectful distance. Avoid making loud noises or sudden movements that could startle them. Remember, these creatures are an integral part of the ecosystem. Observing them from afar allows you to enjoy the beauty of nature while ensuring their safety.
- Signs of Activity:
- Rustling noises
By recognizing and respecting these signs, you contribute to a harmonious coexistence with local wildlife.
Alternative Ways to Enjoy Outdoor Fires
Exploring wildlife-friendly options for outdoor gatherings.
Fire-Free Outdoor Gatherings
When considering alternative fire experiences, there are several engaging activities that can replace traditional bonfires. Host an evening picnic under the stars, using lanterns or solar-powered lights to create a cozy atmosphere. This approach not only reduces the risk to wildlife but also offers a unique setting for socializing and relaxation.
Safe Outdoor Heating Alternatives
For those seeking warmth, consider wildlife-friendly heating options. Portable propane heaters or electric patio warmers provide efficient heat without the need for an open flame. These alternatives ensure safety for both humans and local wildlife, making outdoor activities more responsible.
Promoting Wildlife-Friendly Recreational Activities
Encouraging wildlife-friendly recreational activities can enhance your outdoor experience. Organize a nature walk, focusing on local flora and fauna, or set up a stargazing session with telescopes. These activities promote awareness and appreciation of the natural world, aligning with wildlife-friendly values.
- Fire-Free Alternatives:
- Evening picnics
- Lantern-lit gatherings
- Stargazing sessions
By opting for these alternative fire experiences, you contribute to a more sustainable and wildlife-friendly environment. These options not only ensure safety but also enrich your connection with nature. | <urn:uuid:29f2bd15-c33d-4ad6-b0ea-54dac9cdcb09> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://froghollowfarms.net/creating-a-hedgehog-safe-bonfire-essential-tips-to-protect-wildlife-while-enjoying-your-fire-nights.php | 2024-12-02T10:12:32Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066127466.39/warc/CC-MAIN-20241202094452-20241202124452-00797.warc.gz | en | 0.897276 | 2,205 | 3.53125 | 4 |
It's no secret that critical thinking is essential for growth and success. Yet many people aren't quite sure what it means — it sounds like being a critic or cynical, traits that many people want to avoid.
However, thinking critically isn't about being negative. On the contrary, effective critical thinkers possess many positive traits. Attributes like curiosity, compassion, and communication are among the top commonalities that critical thinkers share, and the good news is that we can all learn to develop these capabilities.
This article will discuss some of the principal characteristics of critical thinking and how developing these qualities can help you improve your decision-making and problem-solving skills. With a bit of self-reflection and practice, you'll be well on your way to making better decisions, solving complex problems, and achieving success across all areas of your life.
Scholarly works on critical thinking propose many ways of interpreting the concept (at least 17 in one reference!), making it challenging to pinpoint one exact definition. In general, critical thinking refers to rational, goal-directed thought through logical arguments and reasoning. We use critical thinking to objectively assess and evaluate information to form reasonable judgments.
Critical thinking has its roots in ancient Greece. The philosopher Socrates is credited with being one of the first to encourage his students to think critically about their beliefs and ideas. Socrates believed that by encouraging people to question their assumptions, they would be able to see the flaws in their reasoning and improve their thought processes.
Today, critical thinking skills are considered vital for success in academia and everyday life. One of the defining "21st-century skills," critical thinking is integral to problem-solving, decision making, and goal setting.
Critical thinking skills help us learn new information, understand complex concepts, and make better decisions. The ability to be objective and reasonable is an asset that can enhance personal and professional relationships.
The U.S. Department of Labor reports critical thinking is among the top desired skills in the workplace. The ability to develop a properly thought-out solution in a reasonable amount of time is highly valued by employers. Companies want employees who can solve problems independently and work well in a team. A desirable employee can evaluate situations critically and creatively, collaborate with others, and make sound judgments.
Critical thinking is an essential component of academic study as well. Critical thinking skills are vital to learners because they allow students to build on their prior knowledge and construct new understandings. This will enable learners to expand their knowledge and experience across various subjects.
Despite its importance, though, critical thinking is not something that we develop naturally or casually. Even though critical thinking is considered an essential learning outcome in many universities, only 45% of college students in a well-known study reported that their skills had improved after two years of classes.
Clearly, improving our ability to think critically will require some self-improvement work. As lifelong learners, we can use this opportunity for self-reflection to identify where we can improve our thinking processes.
Strong critical thinkers possess a common set of personality traits, habits, and dispositions. Being aware of these attributes and putting them into action can help us develop a strong foundation for critical thinking. These essential characteristics of critical thinking can be used as a toolkit for applying specific thinking processes to any given situation.
Curiosity is one of the most significant characteristics of critical thinking. Research has shown that a state of curiosity drives us to continually seek new information. This inquisitiveness supports critical thinking as we need to constantly expand our knowledge to make well-informed decisions.
Curiosity also facilitates critical thinking because it encourages us to question our thoughts and mental models, the filters we use to understand the world. This is essential to avoid critical thinking barriers like biases and misconceptions. Challenging our beliefs and getting curious about all sides of an issue will help us have an open mind during the critical thinking process.
Actionable Tip: Choose to be curious. When you ask “why,” you learn about things around you and clarify ambiguities. Google anything you are curious about, read new books, and play with a child. Kids have a natural curiosity that can be inspiring.
Investigation is a crucial component of critical thinking, so it's important to be analytical. Analytical thinking involves breaking down complex ideas into their simplest forms. The first step when tackling a problem or making a decision is to analyze information and consider it in smaller pieces. Then, we use critical thinking by gathering additional information before getting to a judgment or solution.
Being analytical is helpful for critical thinking because it allows us to look at data in detail. When examining an issue from various perspectives, we should pay close attention to these details to arrive at a decision based on facts. Taking these steps is crucial to making good decisions.
Actionable Tip: Become aware of your daily surroundings. Examine how things work — breaking things down into steps will encourage analysis. You can also play brain and puzzle games. These provide an enjoyable way to stimulate analytical thinking.
Critical thinkers are typically introspective. Introspection is a process of examining our own thoughts and feelings. We do this as a form of metacognition, or thinking about thinking. Researchers believe that we can improve our problem-solving skills by using metacognition to analyze our reasoning processes.
Being introspective is essential to critical thinking because it helps us be self-aware. Self-awareness encourages us to acknowledge and face our own biases, prejudices, and selfish tendencies. If we know our assumptions, we can question them and suspend judgment until we have all the facts.
Actionable Tip: Start a journal. Keep track of your thoughts, feelings, and opinions throughout the day, especially when faced with difficult decisions. Look for patterns. You can avoid common thought fallacies by being aware of them.
Another characteristic of critical thinking is the ability to make inferences, which are logical conclusions based on reviewing the facts, events, and ideas available. Analyzing the available information and observing patterns and trends will help you find relationships and make informed decisions based on what is likely to happen.
The ability to distinguish assumptions from inferences is crucial to critical thinking. We decide something is true by inference because another thing is also true, but we decide something by assumption because of what we believe or think we know. While both assumptions and inferences can be valid or invalid, inferences are more rational because data support them.
Actionable Tip: Keep an eye on your choices and patterns during the day, noticing when you infer. Practice applying the Inference Equation — I observe + I already know = So now I am thinking — to help distinguish when you infer or assume.
Observation skills are also a key part of critical thinking. Observation is more than just looking — it involves arranging, combining, and classifying information through all five senses to build understanding. People with keen observation skills notice small details and catch slight changes in their surroundings.
Observation is one of the first skills we learn as children, and it is critical for problem-solving. Being observant allows us to collect more information about a situation and use that information to make better decisions and solve problems. Further, it facilitates seeing things from different perspectives and finding alternative solutions.
Actionable Tip: Limit your use of devices, and be mindful of your surroundings. Notice and name one thing for each of your five senses when you enter a new environment or even a familiar one. Being aware of what you see, hear, smell, taste, and touch allows you to fully experience the moment and it develops your ability to observe your surroundings.
Open-minded and compassionate people are good critical thinkers. Being open-minded means considering new ideas and perspectives, even if they conflict with your own. This allows you to examine different sides of an issue without immediately dismissing them. Likewise, compassionate people can empathize with others, even if they disagree. When you understand another person's point of view, you can find common ground and understanding.
Critical thinking requires an open mind when analyzing opposing arguments and compassion when listening to the perspective of others. By exploring different viewpoints and seeking to understand others' perspectives, critical thinkers can gain a more well-rounded understanding of an issue. Using this deeper understanding, we can make better decisions and solve more complex problems.
Actionable Tip: Cultivate open-mindedness and compassion by regularly exposing yourself to new ideas and views. Read books on unfamiliar topics, listen to podcasts with diverse opinions, or talk with people from different backgrounds.
The ability to assess relevance is an essential characteristic of critical thinking. Relevance is defined as being logically connected and significant to the subject. When a fact or statement is essential to a topic, it can be deemed relevant.
Relevance plays a vital role in many stages of the critical thinking process. It's especially crucial to identify the most pertinent facts before evaluating an argument. Despite being accurate and seemingly meaningful, a point may not matter much to your subject. Your criteria and standards are equally relevant, as you can't make a sound decision with irrelevant guidelines.
Actionable Tip: When you're in a conversation, pay attention to how each statement relates to what you're talking about. It's surprising how often we stray from the point with irrelevant information. Asking yourself, "How does that relate to the topic?" can help you spot unrelated issues.
Critical thinking requires willingness. Some scholars argue that the "willingness to inquire" is the most fundamental characteristic of critical thinking, which encompasses all the others. Being willing goes hand in hand with other traits, like being flexible and humble. Flexible thinkers are willing to adapt their thinking to new evidence or arguments. Those who are humble are willing to acknowledge their faults and recognize their limitations.
It's essential for critical thinking that we have an open mind and are willing to challenge the status quo. The willingness to question assumptions, consider multiple perspectives, and think outside the box allows critical thinkers to reach new and necessary conclusions.
Actionable Tip: Cultivate willingness by adopting a growth mindset. See challenges as learning opportunities. Celebrate others' accomplishments, and get curious about what led to their success.
Being a good critical thinker requires effective communication. Effective critical thinkers know that communication is imperative when solving problems. They can articulate their goals and concerns clearly while recognizing others' perspectives. Critical thinking requires people to be able to listen to each other's opinions and share their experiences respectfully to find the best solutions.
A good communicator is also an attentive and active listener. Listening actively goes beyond simply hearing what someone says. Being engaged in the discussion involves:
Actively listening is crucial for critical thinking because it helps us understand other people's perspectives.
Actionable Tip: The next time you speak with a friend, family member, or even a complete stranger, take the time to genuinely listen to what they're saying. It may surprise you how much you can learn about others — and about yourself — when you take the time to listen carefully.
The nine traits above represent just a few of the most common characteristics of critical thinking. By developing or strengthening these characteristics, you can enhance your capacity for critical thinking.
Critical thinking is essential for success in every aspect of life, from personal relationships to professional careers. By developing your critical thinking skills, you can challenge the status quo and gain a new perspective on the world around you. You can start improving your critical thinking skills today by determining which characteristics of critical thinking you need to work on and using the actionable tips to strengthen them. With practice, you can become a great critical thinker.
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With every passing day, humans do their best to push the boundaries of reality and simulation. Extended Reality is one example that challenges the limits of what the human mind can achieve.
People are slowly progressing towards a lifestyle that is overwhelmingly dependent on technology. With the pandemic affecting outdoor activities, more and more people resort to indoor lives.
In such a time, this technology promises to enhance living standards and educational experience. XR is rapidly making its way towards industries and revolutionizing the life of humans in unfathomable ways.
What is Extended Reality?
Extended Reality (XR) is an umbrella term that refers to an environment created with the help of immersive technology. This environment is a fusion of real and virtual worlds and requires wearable devices and computers. XR technology is evolving every day as human-machine interactions reach new frontiers.
Subsets of Extended Reality
Three subsets of immersive technology constitute the concept known as Extended Reality. These are:
Augmented Reality (AR)
This component of Extended Reality uses the digital graphics and sound overlays of the real world to generate an immersive environment. The real-world digital tools include animations, texts, and images and can be experienced through smartphones, smart screens, tablets, and AR screens.
The best example to explain Augmented Reality technology are Snapchat filters. These filters use recognition software to put filters and objects onto users’ faces. It also uses sound overlays to let you record your voice or add music to your videos.
Another incredible example of Augmented Reality is L’Oreal’s Makeup App. Like Snapchat, this app uses software to recognize your face and try different makeup looks. This feature makes it easier for people to check which color and look goes well with the face frame without trying multiple times.
Virtual Reality (VR)
This immersive technology can be experienced using Head Mounted Display (HMD) gear. The digital environment is a simulation that provides the users a completely immersive and real-world-like experience.
For example, a company may design a game that makes you feel like floating in deep space. The gaming and entertainment industries are the most common users of Virtual Reality.
The most common example is the use of Virtual Reality in the military. It is an essential part of all the services such as the air force, navy, marines, army, and coast guards. Virtual Reality allows these armed forces to create an effective training method with multiple environments for their troops.
The services use Virtual Reality to teach soldiers basic skills like communication with civilians and residents. The military also uses it to recreate virtual battlefields, boot camps, medical training, and vehicle simulations.
Mixed Reality (MR)
As the name indicates, Mixed Reality incorporates the elements of both the real and digital worlds. This immersive technology is more advanced compared to VR and AR. Like VR technology, it requires a headset too. The processing power needed for the real-time experience of MR is greater than both AR and VR.
MR is different from Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality. In MR, you do not go to the immersive environment like VR; the environment is brought to you, e.g., in the form of holograms.
Similarly, it does not just overlay sounds on your video like Augmented Reality. It also interacts with the surroundings too.
Microsoft’s HoloLens is one of the most talked-about results of Mixed Reality. It is a commercially available device that uses a computer and lenses.
You can wear the computer around your head, and the lenses cover your eyes. The user can then create and manipulate holograms and interact with them as though they exist in reality.
The HoloLens uses five cameras and three sensors to interact with your environment and learn about your surroundings continually.
It also has the ability to remember the placement of objects in your surroundings. So, when you use the feature later, sometimes, the apps and windows start from where you left them.
It also has numerous applications in health, medicine, gaming, retail, and education.
What Is the Use of Extended Reality?
The ability of Extended Reality to create seamless experiences by combining real and virtual worlds is taking the world by storm.
In the modern world, where everything is slowly shifting towards technology and digital life, Extended Reality is the future. It covers every aspect of your life. Some parts of our lives that XR immensely influences are:
Healthcare and Medicine
Extended Reality has changed the way we look at healthcare. Conventional practices are a thing of the past now. Surgeons use XR technology to visualize the complexity of our organs using 3D imaging.
This helps them plan the surgical procedure, perform the surgeries effectively, and avoid mishaps. Hospitals are using XR to improve the working methods, thus revolutionizing patient care.
The biggest favor that Extended Reality has done to the world of marketing is the “try before you buy” experience. The companies use XR to create immersive environments containing all the product’s features. The users experience the effects first and then make up their minds.
This increases the customers’ awareness and motivates them to explore the brand more. This, in turn, helps the brands with the promotion without needing to go door-to-door or convince people of their product’s quality.
Entertainment and Gaming Industries
The entertainment and gaming industries are the primary users of XR. The companies use a combination of tracking cameras and real-time rendering to create an immersive virtual environment.
Studios also use it to generate an elaborate environment for the movie set. This reduces the cost of setting up a set for every scenario. Similarly, gaming industries use XR to create detailed virtual environments in the games allowing the gamers to experience a whole nother world.
In addition to that, the experience of concerts and art exhibitions can also be improved ten folds using Extended Reality.
Extended Reality is an essential part of education and training for people who work around high-risk areas.
For example, XR is of great help when it comes to teaching aviation students how to fly planes. Instead of giving them instructions on an actual aircraft, the instructors use highly immersive virtual environments to avoid the risk of accidents.
Similar to the marketing world, real estate agents are also incorporating Extended Reality into their businesses. An immersive simulation of the layout allows customers to check the property out, making it easier to decide. It also helps the agents and managers of real estate to close the deal efficiently and effectively.
Why Do We Need Extended Reality?
With explosive technological advancement, XR will be a significant part of our day-to-day lives.
Some organizations have started incorporating XR into normal work routines because of its ability to remove geographical barriers. In cases where it is risky to set up an actual project, a company might use XR to weigh the pros and cons.
Similarly, it can help companies train the staff efficiently using innovative training simulations.
It can also help industrialists and scientists test and visualize the 3D models in simulations. This can help the research and development industries reduce the number of prototypes. This cuts the cost in half and enhances the quality.
When it comes to maintaining large spectrum industrial equipment, XR can provide an easy solution to the problem. Designing the XR replicas of running industrial equipment can help understand the performance of the equipment. Moreover, machine learning can also predict possible malfunctions and defects.
We are all familiar with the 360o feature that allows you to navigate a place without being physically present. With advancements in VR, this feature can give you a detailed tour of all the rooms while sitting in the comfort of your home.
If applied to these aspects of our lives, this can instantly revolutionize the way we buy assets.
How Does Extended Reality Work?
You can understand the working of Extended Reality from two perspectives: the developer and the user.
From the developer’s perspective, numerous immersive algorithms are designed to achieve Extended Reality. Professional data scientists and software developers design these algorithms. The algorithms give unique and fascinating features to XR so that users can have real-world experiences.
Another crucial component of Extended Reality is its 3-dimensional, biomechanical modeling and computer vision. In addition to these, machine learning and motion tracking are also the backbones of XR.
If we talk about the user perspective of XR, it includes three main components responsible for the fully immersive experience. These components are cameras, digital content, and Virtual Reality.
The cameras capture specific information from the environment, e.g., AR solutions. These solutions are used to identify particular points of an environment and capture them. Later, the additional information is overlaid on these captured points.
The computer-generated or digital information is overlaid on the points captured by AR solutions. This is done by using markers or trackers such as Infrared, GPS, Laser, etc.
Last but not least, Virtual Reality uses the person’s senses to create a perfectly immersive environment. The primary senses picked up by VR are sight, hearing, and touch.
In some cases, the developer provides a headset to a user. This headset has the ability to reconfigure the user’s mind using the senses. This provides a one-of-a-kind experience that makes you feel like you are experiencing it in real life
Utilization of the Senses
The immersive Extended Reality utilizes the primary senses of humans to generate the virtual environment.
Touch: The sense of touch is an essential component for a fully immersive experience. Developers create body suits and gloves that can simulate touch to enhance users’ experience in VR.
Sounds: The XR devices are designed so that they can create sounds from all directions. This allows the user to perceive sounds like real-life situations. For example, a crowded place will have chatter coming from all directions. This will make it seem like a busy road in real life.
Sight: The most critical component of XR experience is the sense of sight. The XR devices use real-life images to overlay information so that the simulation looks precisely like the outside world. Even though this feature is very common in video games, some museums have hopped on the bandwagon of XR.
The museums provide Extended Reality headsets to all visitors. This allows them to experience the art with an immersive visual experience.
Taste and Smell: This feature is still under research and not a part of Extended Reality yet. However, it shows potential for the future of Extended Reality.
The idea is to install scent cartridges in the devices that produce smells like sweet, stinging, and neutral. An electrode placed at the tongue of the users will allow them to sense the taste simulation.
In conclusion, human-machine interactions incorporated into Extended Reality can transform our digital experiences. There is a possibility we might get to test the taste and smell feature in Virtual Reality.
In addition, it wouldn’t come as a surprise if mobile devices are enhanced to work as wearable XR devices.
No matter how fascinating it looks, XR also comes with certain shortcomings. These devices are continuously recording your movements, surroundings, audio, videos. Companies can use this to generate accurate simulations of your life.
This will allow the developers and government 100% access to your lives. Doing this without your knowledge and permission is an invasion of privacy. Hence, this might be disadvantageous.
This concept does pose some threats to our future, but everything comes with certain extremes. How we manage it with our actions and privacy policies is more critical.
The biggest threat that technology poses to humans is a dystopian world. In the future this might become true if we are not careful with our innovations. Therefore, we need strong policies to avoid a dehumanized future and enjoy technology’s benefits. | <urn:uuid:9bbd2dfd-80e7-43cf-b214-aa8c9a71432f> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://mybestwirelessrouters.com/what-is-the-use-of-extended-reality/ | 2024-12-11T21:50:08Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066094915.14/warc/CC-MAIN-20241211205528-20241211235528-00069.warc.gz | en | 0.933851 | 2,428 | 3.375 | 3 |
Karma in the Gita, by Anvesh Jain
The Srimad Bhagavad-Gītā has influenced generations of thinkers, ethicists, philosophers, and political practitioners both within and beyond the borders of its genesis. Any who have wished to approach the Gita in their contact with India, including the imperial viziers of the Mughal and British courts, have found it necessary to engage with the profound ideas expressed within its pages. In the realm of political endeavour, few areas of the Gita’s holy offerings have inspired and complicated the thought of great leaders in the fashion of its third chapter, that espouses the tenets of Karma and Karma-Yoga (the Science of Action).
The central application of the Gita’s dictums on Karma is not found in some manichean divide between the forces of good and the forces of evil. Rather, the centripetal proclamation of the Gita, around which all its other wisdoms revolve, lies in that of a world “bound by action save when this action is intended as sacrifice” (BG 3.9). The Gita is a call to reform rooted intimately in the Indic tradition, shaped by the itihasic (epochal) contours of Indian history. The major tension therein is not one of diet, not one of ritual, not one of a grand dichotomy between sainthood and sin; it is of the more basic struggle of activity and engagement with worldly affairs, or a total renunciation from its ceaseless demands. The notions of Karma and Karma-Yoga as proffered by Lord Krishna in Chapter 3 of the Bhagavad-Gītā attempt to provide a viable solution and a method of reconciling these tensions.
As Lord Krishna advises a distraught Arjuna to take up arms, to uphold the honour of his station and to fight with dignified valour in the oncoming Kurukshetra War, so too does the structure of Chapter 3 advise followers of the Gita’s way to vigorously pursue action in their own approach to being. Krishna early on in the chapter states that “not even for a moment [can] anyone ever remain without performing action”, due to the nature of the three primary gunas or strands (BG 3.5). He exhorts that “you must do the necessary action, for action is superior to inaction” (BG 3.8). In every instance in the hierarchy of thought and function of the Gita, conscious action is exalted above renounced inaction.
Furthermore, there is a consistent linkage in the Bhagavad-Gītā’s third chapter of the concept of action with the act of sacrifice. To make this clearer, Krishna compares Karma-Yoga to the process of creating and consuming food as sustenance for the body. To Lord Krishna, “[all] action arises from the world-ground,” and “sacrifice is born from [ritual] action” (BG 3.15; BG 3.14). He also notes that “with [sacrifice] you may sustain the deities so that the deities must sustain you”, and in doing so “you shall obtain the supreme good (shreya)” (BG 3.11). The Gita makes the compelling case that renunciation does seem like an ostensible path to salvation; certainly, it may be tempting to divest from worldly difficulties and to take sannyasa instead of subjecting oneself to the pain of substantive existence. Even then, it explains to the reader (represented by Arjuna) that “he who does not turn the rotating wheel [of action as sacrifice] lives a wicked life”, meaning that the fulfillment of one’s role in the social order through sacrificial action constitutes the only true path to divine absolution (BG 3.16). Evinced as such, the Gita mandates active engagement and participation in earthly affairs, through Karma and the sacrificial acts necessary in the proper practice of Karma-Yoga.
As the chapter unfolds, once the foundational primacy of action as a mode of virtuous behaviour has been established, the Gita progresses to the next part of the formula of the Science of Action. After addressing the question of attachment and engagement with the world, Krishna then explains the Gita’s view on attachment and non-attachment to the actual actions themselves. Here, one of the Gita’s famous lines is recited: “always perform action unattached [to] the deed to be done”, and likewise unattached to the phala (fruits) of the action itself (BG 3.19).
Moreover, the Gita contests the very idea of agency and action, and agency over action. In the world view of the Gita, only he whose “self is deluded by the ego-sense thinks: ‘I am the doer’” (BG 3.27). Instead, the discerned practitioner of yoking, mindful of Buddhi, ought to know that “actions are everywhere performed by the primary qualities (guna) of the Cosmos (prakriti)” (BG 3.27). Our action is thus guided by the essential qualities of our habitus, those known as rajas, tamas, and sattva, and so “[all] beings follow [their own] nature” (BG 3.33). The ultimate conundrum of this question of action, and the procedure of generating righteous action as understood by the Science of Action, is answered in the final pages of the chapter.
Krishna ends his discourse by refocusing the Gita’s view on the competing dynamics of societal responsibilities and adherence to one’s own natural qualities and duties. According to Him, “better is [one’s] own-law imperfectly [carried out] than another’s well performed,” tying together the concepts of Karma with Dharma, as dissected in later chapters (BG 3.35). By the end of the chapter, desire is identified as the source of waywardness and the enemy of knowledge, while the process of yoking in the way of Karma is proclaimed as the ultimate cure. In this manner, Chapter 3 of the Gita answers three questions at the heart of faith and ethics: (1) should I engage in action or non-action? (2) In what manner should I engage with the process of action? And lastly, (3) how should I know the right actions to take? The Gita advances Karma-Yoga verily as the solution.
Karma and the Mahatma
Many great thinkers of their times have sought to apply the eternal teachings of the Srimad Bhagavad-Gītā to the very particular challenges of their own eras and geographies. The most well-known of these attempts to implement the Gita to real models of political participation and resistance may be found in the commentaries of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, which were widely disseminated across the India of the British Raj. Gandhi, the Mahatma (‘Great Soul’), of course applied the numen of the Gita to his agitation against British imperial rule, and employed it in the wider construction of a modern Indian nationalism. His advocacy at the behest of the Swarajya (self-rule) movement was profoundly influenced by his understanding of the Gita. Nowhere is this more evident in his interpretation of Karma and Karmic action then as presented in his dialogue with Chapter 3 of the holy text.
To fight British despotism, Gandhi needed to first convince the downtrodden peoples of India, who had till that point suffered hundreds of years of colonial rule, that such a fight was worthwhile and indeed winnable. The project of Indian nationhood required those who might sacrifice perspiration and death in the name of breathing life to her sacred cause. The greatest threat to the Independence movement was therefore not British retaliation, but Indic renunciation and retreat from the vims of political activity. In this light, Gandhi argues that Chapter 3 of the Bhagavad-Gītā on the Science of Action or Karma-Yoga “makes absolutely clear the spirit and nature of right action and shows how true knowledge must express itself in acts of selfless service” (Gandhi 35). Action would liberate India of her indentured state through the devoutness of her people. Gandhi likens the physical body to a prison, and regards surrender to God’s Oneness and devotion to action without attachment to its fruits as the key to emancipation. The metaphor for the soul of India under the fetters of empire was not a difficult one to hypostatize.
There were many arguments for total renunciation that Gandhi had to dismantle using the teachings of the Gita. Among these was a misunderstanding that spiritual salvation could be best approached through a rigorous pursuit of bookish knowledge only. And while Jñāna-Yoga (the Science of Knowledge) constitutes a key revelation of the Gita, Gandhi saw knowledge as inutile without an operationalization of that knowledge in the service of others. Here, the deft combination of action and knowledge played its role in the building of a nation marked by its bursting vitality and a citizenry seized by their Stakhanovite determination to master destiny.
For in Gandhi’s view, “knowledge without devotion will be like a misfire”, as he turned his ire to the learned pandits who “regard it as bondage even to lift a little lota” (Gandhi 17; Gandhi 18). Likewise, the Mahatma had scarce time for mindless devotion without a sense of larger philosophical undertaking, as in the case of those soft-hearted bhaktas (devotees) who “leave the rosary only for eating, drinking and the like, never for grinding corn or nursing patients” (Gandhi 18). His critiques here engage with a central stipulation of the Gita itself, namely its concern for upholding social duty and living in moral accord with the needs of the wider society. To be an upright individual and a defender of Dharma, one ought to exercise their duty and service to the cause of humanity around them. To this end, the actionable processes and procedures of Karma-Yoga are drawn distinctly from Chapter 3 of the Bhagavad-Gītā.
Gandhi’s vision of dismantling British tyranny and constructing a free India atop its ruins stressed the necessity of non-violence as the highest pursuit of the Independence movement, and indeed of ethical inquiry itself. Though Gandhi saw “the renunciation of fruit” as the “unmistakable teaching of the Gita”, he did not take this to mean an “indifference to the result” of the action, but rather a call to remain “wholly engrossed in the due fulfillment of the task” (Gandhi 18). In the Mahatma’s astute reading of the Srimad Bhagavad-Gītā, he instructed the Indian people that the process of achieving heavenly salvation and political liberation would be just as integral as the eventual outcome or end-state of the process itself. Peace in the realm of svarga-lok would be realized by the pursuit of ahimsa in the realm of man and his relations. In this historical regard, as in so many others, Bapu was proven again and again essentially correct.
Feuerstein, George and Feuerstein, Brenda. The Bhagavad Gita: A New Translation. Shambhala Publications, 2011.
Gandhi, Mohandas. “The Message of the ‘Gita,’” “Discourse 1-3” in Anasaktiyoga or, The Gita According to Gandhi. 13-40.
Note: This paper was originally written for a class, and Anvesh has shared the paper with HSC for publication on our blog. | <urn:uuid:abd87769-4d13-4b0a-8ed9-f306067a9b5a> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | http://www.hindustudentscouncil.org/2020/gandhi-and-the-gita/ | 2024-12-06T13:30:02Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066408205.76/warc/CC-MAIN-20241206124424-20241206154424-00107.warc.gz | en | 0.946313 | 2,532 | 2.546875 | 3 |
How to Improve Your Mental Health
Mar 22, 2024In the quest for overall well-being, mental health holds a prominent position.
It encompasses your emotional, psychological, and social aspects, and it greatly influences your quality of life.
While genetics and other factors play a role in your psychological well-being, daily habits also influence your mental balance.
In this lesson you will learn about the connection between how your habits influence anxiety and depression. You'll discover actionable strategies to improve and maintain a sound mind plus learn how to get help if you feel overwhelmed and unbalanced.
Just to be clear, I'm a strength and conditioning coach and not a medical doctor. This information is meant to spark a conversation on the importance of mental health awareness.
If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health issues, please reach out to a healthcare professional or mental health provider for support and guidance.
When is anxiety a problem?
Anxiety is one of the most common mental health issues worldwide. Anxiety disorders encompass a range of conditions characterized by excessive worry, fear, and apprehension that can significantly impact your daily life. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), approximately 1 in 13 individuals globally experiences an anxiety disorder.
Anxiety disorders can manifest in various forms, including generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), panic disorder, social anxiety disorder (SAD), specific phobias, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Each of these disorders has its unique set of symptoms and triggers, but they all involve an excessive and persistent sense of fear or worry that goes beyond what is considered typical or reasonable.
Generalized anxiety disorder is one of the most prevalent anxiety disorders. It is characterized by excessive worry and anxiety about a wide range of everyday issues and situations. Panic disorder involves recurring panic attacks, which are sudden and intense episodes of fear that can cause physical symptoms such as rapid heartbeat, shortness of breath, and chest pain.
Social anxiety disorder, also known as social phobia, involves an intense fear of social situations and a persistent concern about being negatively judged or evaluated by others. Specific phobias are excessive fears of specific objects, situations, or activities, such as heights, spiders, or flying.
Post-traumatic stress disorder can develop after experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event, leading to recurring distressing memories, nightmares, and hypervigilance.
While anxiety disorders are highly prevalent, it's important to note that mental health issues can vary in frequency across populations and may be influenced by cultural factors and access to mental health services.
Other common mental health issues include depression, substance use disorders, and bipolar disorder, among others. However, the rates and prevalence of specific mental health issues can differ depending on the region, demographic factors, and available data sources.
It's crucial to raise awareness about mental health issues, promote destigmatization, and encourage individuals to seek help when needed.
Early intervention, proper diagnosis, and appropriate treatment can significantly improve the quality of life for those living with mental health conditions.
Warning signs of depression
Signs of depression can manifest in various ways, affecting a person's thoughts, emotions, behaviors, and physical well-being. Recognizing these signs is crucial for identifying and supporting individuals who may be experiencing depression.
While it's important to remember that everyone's experience with depression can be unique, there are common indicators to watch out for.
Here are some key signs to be aware of:
- Persistent sadness: One of the hallmark signs of depression is an enduring feeling of sadness or emptiness that persists for weeks or even months. This sadness may not be linked to any specific event or circumstance and can significantly impact a person's daily life.
- Loss of interest or pleasure: Individuals with depression may lose interest in activities they previously enjoyed. Hobbies, social interactions, and even personal relationships may become less appealing, leading to a sense of detachment and withdrawal from once enjoyable experiences.
- Fatigue and low energy: Feelings of constant fatigue and a lack of energy are common symptoms of depression. Simple tasks may become overwhelming and exhausting, leading to a decline in productivity and an increased need for rest.
- Changes in appetite and weight: Depression can affect appetite, leading to significant changes in weight. Some individuals may experience a decrease in appetite, resulting in weight loss, while others may seek solace in food and experience weight gain.
- Sleep disturbances: Insomnia or excessive sleeping can be indicative of depression. Some individuals may struggle to fall asleep or stay asleep, leading to disturbed sleep patterns. Conversely, others may find themselves sleeping excessively, finding solace in the escape from their emotional pain.
- Difficulty concentrating and making decisions: Depression often impacts cognitive function, making it difficult for individuals to concentrate, focus, or make decisions. Memory may also be affected, leading to forgetfulness and an overall feeling of mental fog.
- Feelings of worthlessness and guilt: Depressed individuals often experience intense feelings of worthlessness and excessive guilt, even over minor issues. They may engage in negative self-talk and harbor a distorted view of themselves, which can perpetuate their depressive state.
- Irritability and agitation: While sadness is a common symptom, depression can also manifest as irritability, anger, or restlessness. Small annoyances may trigger outbursts or exacerbate existing feelings of frustration, leading to strained relationships.
- Withdrawal from social activities: Depression often causes individuals to withdraw from social interactions. They may isolate themselves, avoiding friends, family, and social events. This withdrawal can perpetuate feelings of loneliness and contribute to a sense of disconnection from others.
- Physical symptoms: Depression can manifest in physical symptoms such as headaches, stomachaches, and muscle pain. These physical complaints are often unexplained by other medical conditions and may be closely linked to the individual's emotional state.
It is important to note that experiencing one or two of these signs does not necessarily indicate depression. However, if several of these signs persist for an extended period, it may be indicative of depression, and seeking professional help is advised.
Depression is a serious mental health condition that requires proper diagnosis and treatment, often involving a combination of therapy, medication, and support from loved ones. If you suspect someone may be struggling with depression, approach them with empathy and encourage them to seek professional help.
Remember, early intervention and support can make a significant difference in your journey towards recovery.
How to Improve Your Mental Health
Your environment is the backdrop against which your life unfolds, and it significantly influences your mental health.
Several key factors within your environment can impact your psychological well-being:
- Social Connections: Human beings are social creatures, and your relationships with others play a pivotal role in your mental health. Nurturing meaningful connections with family, friends, and the community fosters a sense of belonging, support, and purpose, all of which contribute positively to your mental well-being.
- Physical Environment: The spaces you inhabit can influence your mental health. Access to green spaces, natural sunlight, and well-designed living or working environments can enhance our mood, reduce stress, and promote relaxation. Conversely, cluttered, noisy, or poorly lit spaces can have adverse effects on your mental state.
- Cultural and Societal Factors: Cultural norms, values, and societal expectations shape our beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors. While culture can provide a sense of identity and belonging, it can also contribute to stigma surrounding mental health. Understanding and challenging societal pressures and embracing cultural diversity can promote mental well-being.
- Economic Factors: Financial instability and socioeconomic disparities can create stress, anxiety, and a sense of helplessness. Adequate access to resources, education, and employment opportunities positively impact mental health by fostering stability, empowerment, and a sense of control over one's life.
Genetics and Other Factors in Mental Health
In addition to your environment, genetics and other factors contribute to your mental health.
Understanding these influences helps you adopt a holistic approach to mental well-being:
- Genetics: Genetic factors can predispose individuals to certain mental health conditions. While having a family history of mental health disorders increases the risk, it does not guarantee the development of the condition. It is essential to remember that genes interact with the environment, and a supportive environment can mitigate the impact of genetic predispositions.
- Trauma and Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs): Traumatic events or adverse childhood experiences, such as abuse, neglect, or loss, can have long-lasting effects on mental health. Recognizing the impact of trauma and seeking appropriate support and therapy is crucial for healing and resilience.
- Lifestyle Factors: Lifestyle choices, such as diet, physical activity, sleep patterns, and substance use, can significantly influence mental health. Prioritizing a balanced lifestyle that includes regular exercise, a nutritious diet, sufficient sleep, and avoiding excessive alcohol or drug use can contribute to overall mental well-being.
Strategies for Improving Mental Health through Environment
- Cultivate Supportive Relationships: Foster meaningful connections with family, friends, and communities. Engage in activities that promote social interaction, empathy, and support. Join clubs, volunteer, or participate in group activities aligned with your interests and values.
- Create a Healthy Physical Environment: Optimize your living and working spaces. Incorporate elements of nature, maximize natural light, declutter, and organize your surroundings. Surround yourself with objects and colors that bring you joy and promote relaxation.
- Embrace Nature: Spend time in green spaces, parks, or gardens. Engaging in activities like gardening, hiking, or simply taking a walk outdoors can have a positive benefit on your outlook.
Actionable steps you can follow to manage anxiety disorders
Managing anxiety disorders involves a combination of self-help strategies, professional guidance, and, in some cases, medication. Here are some actionable steps you can follow to help manage anxiety.
1. Educate yourself
Learn about anxiety disorders and understand the symptoms, triggers, and available treatment options. Knowledge can help demystify anxiety and empower you to take control.
2. Seek professional help
Consult a mental health professional, such as a therapist or counselor, who specializes in anxiety disorders. They can provide a proper diagnosis, create a personalized treatment plan, and offer guidance and support throughout your journey.
3. Practice relaxation techniques
Engage in relaxation exercises like deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, or meditation. These techniques can help calm your mind and body, reducing anxiety symptoms.
4. Exercise regularly
Physical activity, especially progressive resistance training, is known to boost mood and reduce anxiety. Lifting weights can help alleviate symptoms of anxiety and depression by increasing mood-boosting chemicals and reducing stress hormones.
5. Maintain a healthy lifestyle
Adopt healthy habits such as eating nutritious meals, getting adequate sleep, and avoiding excessive caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine. A balanced lifestyle can positively impact your mental well-being.
6. Challenge negative thoughts
7. Set realistic goals and priorities
Break overwhelming tasks into smaller, manageable steps. Set realistic goals for yourself, and prioritize your activities to avoid feeling overwhelmed.
8. Establish a routine
Creating a structured daily routine can provide a sense of stability and reduce anxiety. Stick to a consistent sleep schedule, meal times, and daily activities to create a sense of predictability.
9. Build a support network
Reach out to friends, family, or support groups who understand and can provide empathy and encouragement. Sharing your experiences and feelings with trusted individuals can alleviate anxiety and foster a sense of connection.
10. Practice self-care
Engage in activities that bring you joy and relaxation. Whether it's reading, listening to music, pursuing a hobby, or spending time in nature, prioritize self-care to nourish your emotional well-being.
11. Limit exposure to triggers
Identify triggers that worsen your anxiety, such as certain situations, environments, or media content. When possible, limit your exposure to these triggers to reduce anxiety levels.
12. Consider medication if necessary: In severe cases, medication may be prescribed by a healthcare professional to manage anxiety symptoms. Consult with a psychiatrist to determine if medication is an appropriate option for you.
Remember that managing anxiety disorders is a journey, and it may take time to find the strategies and treatments that work best for you. Be patient with yourself, and don't hesitate to seek professional help when needed.
To improve mental health, focus on nurturing supportive relationships, creating a healthy physical environment, and embracing nature. Educate yourself about anxiety disorders, seek professional help, practice relaxation techniques, exercise regularly, maintain a healthy lifestyle, challenge negative thoughts, set realistic goals, build a support network, practice self-care, and limit exposure to triggers.
To your success,
Joseph Arangio helps 40+ men and women lose weight, gain strength, and slow aging. He's delivered over 100,000 transformation programs to satisfied clients around the globe. If you want to increase longevity with the best online age-management program, or you want to visit the best age-management program in the Lehigh Valley, you can take a free 14-day trial. | <urn:uuid:fff2616a-b2a0-4cb3-8a71-ea6f797d56d0> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.arangio.com/blog/how-to-improve-your-mental-health | 2024-12-13T11:36:35Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066116798.44/warc/CC-MAIN-20241213105147-20241213135147-00315.warc.gz | en | 0.930069 | 2,698 | 3.359375 | 3 |
To the Bitter End
Even as 1865 dawned and the Civil War entered its final, bitter months, few of those living through those turbulent times anticipated the stunning conclusion to the drama that unfolded across the South, as Union armies tightened their hold and moved into position for another strike. At Petersburg, Va., Goldsboro, N.C., Mobile, Ala., and elsewhere, the stage was sent for a final offensive.
On February 3, 1865, on board the River Queen anchored at Hampton Roads, President Lincoln and Secretary of State William Seward met with three representatives of the Confederacy: Vice President Alexander H. Stephens, Sen. Robert M. T. Hunter and Assistant Secretary of War John A. Campbell. Stephens was a political foe of Jefferson Davis, the President of the Confederacy. Hunter, a former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, was an experienced Virginia politician. Campbell was a moderate who had initially opposed secession and was a former U.S. Supreme Court Justice.
Upon meeting face to face, the commissioners found they had mutually exclusive goals: Lincoln and Seward insisted on reunion, while the Southerners wanted their independence guaranteed before any further negotiations. Unable to come to an agreement, both sides left the steamer knowing that the war would grind on. The failed attempt at reconciliation had tremendous consequences. From Jefferson Davis on down, Lincoln’s insistence on reunification, rather than the possibility of a treaty for independence, was misinterpreted as a demand for unconditional surrender.
As the news filtered across the South, its implications became clearer to civilians and soldiers alike. Mary Chestnut of South Carolina wrote, “Our commissioners … were received by Lincoln with taunts and derision. Why not? He has it all his own way now.” She was echoed by other female diarists, like one Tennessean teacher, who nonetheless exhorted, “Let the South be extinct before she should be disgraced.”
In the Confederate capital, the Richmond Examiner observed, “New life was visible everywhere. If any man talks of submission, he should be hung from the nearest lamp post.” J.B. Jones, who worked in the Confederate War Department, noted: “…Valor alone is relied upon now for our salvation. Every one thinks the Confederacy will at once gather up its military strength and strike such blows as will astonish the world.” A large public meeting in the city confirmed the attitude of a large amount the civilians: resist at all costs.
The Confederacy, it seemed, was willing to fight on, determined to find resolution on the battlefield rather than at the negotiation table. While it was never stated as official policy, this logic was largely accepted by the government, the military and the public at large. Perhaps too much had happened by February 1865; the war had gone on too long, and too much blood and treasure had been spent to turn back and face defeat.
The Virginia Theater
By the early spring of 1865, the main armies in the East were deeply entrenched in miles of earthworks stretched around and between Petersburg and Richmond. Always endeavoring to stretch his enemy and strike at weak points, Union Lt. Gen. U.S. Grant ordered new assaults to try and break the stalemate by threatening the remaining Confederate supply lines — his eighth overall offensive since taking up position before Petersburg. The first engagement occurred on March 29 at Lewis’s Farm, and victorious Union forces pressed their advantage on March 31 at White Oak Road.
On April 1, Federal troops moved against the small Dinwiddie County crossroads community of Five Forks. Here, Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan’s command overwhelmed the Confederate defenders in front of him and flanked them from the east, routing the division of Maj. Gen. George Pickett. With news of the defeat at Five Forks, Grant ordered assaults along the entire front line for the next day.
At midnight, a massive artillery bombardment began to pound the Confederate lines at Petersburg. Troops of the Union VI Corps moved out at after 4:00 a.m., crossing the no-man’s-land between the lines. The first man into the Confederate trenches was Capt. Charles Gould of the 5th Vermont. Leaping in at the head of his men, Gould received a bayonet to the mouth and cheek from one of the North Carolinian defenders. Gould killed this attacker with his sword and fired his pistol at another Confederate; he continued through this hand-to-hand combat, earning the Medal of Honor for his actions. But Gould was only the first Federal into the breach, and was quickly followed by the rest of the Vermont Brigade; in less than 30 minutes of fighting, a decisive breakthrough had been achieved.
Robert E. Lee, realizing his lines could not hold, ordered Petersburg evacuated, and sent word to Richmond that he intended to move his army westward. The immediate objective for Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia was Amelia Court House, about 40 miles southwest of Richmond. The larger strategy was to link up with the Army of Tennessee, commanded by Gen. Joseph E. Johnston, near Smithfield, N.C. Telegrams flashed between the two commanders, and they initiated plans to link their armies.
News arrived in the Confederate capital that Lee’s lines had broken at Petersburg on Sunday morning, April 2. Observant residents were not surprised, for some time there had been rumors of evacuation. Davis, the mayor and city council had already made plans for this contingency, and by afternoon it was unfolding at a steady pace.
Confederate troops began to pull back from the city’s defenses, replaced by local defense forces. Liquor was dumped into the drains, government offices packed up and trains readied to move the government and its finances, archives, and administrative documents to Danville.
Overnight, mobs broke into storehouses, and early the next morning fires were set to destroy supplies of tobacco. Driven by strong winds, the fires spread out of control, destroying the business district of downtown.
From their lines to the east, Union troops saw the red glow in the sky and cautiously crept forward at dawn to find the Confederate lines abandoned. By 7:00, Union troops were marching down Main Street. Their first tasks were to put out the fires, restore order and take control of military property in the city.
For General Lee, the challenge was to extricate the entrenched army from the Richmond and Petersburg defenses, then concentrate the scattered commands. At Amelia Court House, there were supposed to be supplies waiting, but upon arriving on the morning of April 4, Lee found there were none to be had. While waiting for the troops from Richmond to arrive, Lee decided to search the surrounding area.
Thousands of Confederate soldiers, cavalry and wagons deployed and camped around the small village. A.C. Jones of the 3rd Arkansas noted: “The failure to issue rations at Amelia Courthouse, as expected, left us for thirty-six hours without a mouthful to eat.” In the meantime, Union troops closed in from two directions, forcing Lee to keep the army moving.
From Amelia Court House the Confederates retreated south, pursued by the fast-moving Union army, which blocked Lee’s direct route at the small town of Jetersville. Lee was forced to turn west, forever altering his objectives for the campaign. Skirmishing continued daily, as the Union army doggedly pursued. Had Lee attacked to force his way, there could potentially have been a large battle, and perhaps a negotiated surrender, at Jetersville.
But instead, Lee’s army, growing exhausted from constant marching and combat, turned west; its command structure was shattered, its hopes of reinforcement gone and its chances of resupply slipping away. Carlton McCarthy of Cuttshaw’s Battery recalled, “…the march was almost continuous, day and night, and it is with the greatest difficulty that a private in the ranks can recall with accuracy the dates and places on the march. Night was day — day was night. There was no…time to sleep, eat, or rest, and the events of morning became strangely intermingled with the events of evening.”
Virginia artilleryman Percy Hawes agreed, noting “turning night into day renders it almost impossible for me to separate the days. During the next day or two our lives were simply those of marching and fighting and fighting and marching. If we halted at all, it was to fight. There was scarcely an hour in the day that our line was not harassed.”
In the rapidly unfolding sequence of events, Confederate and Union troops each managed to obtain numerical superiority or surprise attacks at different times during the week-long retreat.
Maj. Gen. Edward Ord, commanding the Army of the James, dispatched Union troops on a dangerous mission well ahead of the rest of the army: destroy the river crossing at High Bridge, an enormous railroad bridge over the Appomattox River. Had they succeeded, they would have prevented a large part of Lee’s army from escaping. But Confederate cavalry arrived in time to defend the bridge and attack the two infantry regiments. Outnumbered and overwhelmed, the Federals fell back, with nearly 800 captured, including a brass band.
Yet elsewhere, later that same day at Sailor’s Creek, the Confederate army met a disaster of unprecedented magnitude. Strung out on parallel roads, the vulnerable Rebel force was attacked at three points by infantry and cavalry units. The Confederates tried to stop and fight, but many units were isolated and soon were overwhelmed by the Union troops. It was one of the worst defeats of the whole war, and Lee wondered out loud if his army had been dissolved.
Much of Lt. Gen. Richard Ewell’s Second Corps was captured, along with Ewell himself. In all, Lee lost one-fourth of his army in a single day: about 8,000 men, eight generals (including Custis Lee, son of the commanding general), nearly 50 battle flags and many cannons, wagons, horses and supplies.
On April 8, the Army of Northern Virginia reached the small village of Appomattox Court House. The reserve artillery, moving ahead of the army, passed through the town at midday and continued on two miles farther to Appomattox Station. Late in the afternoon, the infantry followed, and the army camped that night just east of the village. Days of rain and cool weather made the men in both armies miserable.
The army that arrived at Appomattox Court House was physically weak, but not beaten in spirit. The men in the ranks knew their situation was desperate, but they had been in tight spots before. Pvt. A.C. Jones of the 3rd Arkansas recalled, “Up to this time there was not a man in the command who had the slightest doubt that General Lee would be able to bring his army safely out of its desperate straits.”
A short distance from the village was the railroad stop, where Lee’s army was hoping to obtain food. Instead, Union cavalry under Maj. Gen. George A. Custer captured three trains loaded with rations, clothing, ammunition and blankets that were waiting for the Confederates. Beyond the trains at the station sat the Confederate reserve artillery, and Custer quickly had his troopers charge against them.
Much of the Battle of Appomattox Station was fought after sunset, in the growing darkness. The Confederate artillery fired as the Union cavalry charged. One soldier wrote that “it was too dark to see anything” and that “the flashing, and the roaring, and the shouting” sounded “as if the devil himself, had just come up and was about to join in what was going on.”
Union Col. Absalom Randol wrote that “six bright lights suddenly flashed directly before us. A tornado of canister-shot swept over our heads, and the next instant we were in the battery.” After three charges, the Union cavalry captured about 25 Confederate cannons, one-fourth of the army’s reserve artillery. The rest were dispersed and unavailable for further use. Not only did Union forces capture the trains and cannons, but the cavalry also blocked the road, cutting off Lee’s retreat.
At 10:00 p.m., Lee and his exhausted officers held a council of war at his headquarters along the stagecoach road. Acknowledging that Union cavalry was in front of them, the officers agreed they would attack to break through and continue the retreat.
Preparations for the final battle between the major field armies in Virginia began well before dawn on April 9. Confederate Maj. Gen. Gordon’s Second Corps moved through the village to the western side at about 2:00 a.m. His four divisions — Wallace’s, Grimes’s, Walker’s and Evans’s, deployed right to left — were supported by Maj. Gen. Fitzhugh Lee’s Cavalry Corps, for a total of about 9,000 men awaiting the dawn. Artillery was deployed in the village to support the attack.
At about 7:30 a.m. the attack began when Confederate Brig. Gen. William P. Roberts’s cavalry brigade charged over the rolling ground toward Union Bvt. Brig. Gen. Charles H. Smith’s brigade of dismounted cavalry. The battle flags of the Army of Northern Virginia advanced in combat one last time early on the fog-shrouded morning.
With seven-shot Spencer carbines and 16-shot Henry rifles, Smith’s men could hold out against larger numbers only for a short time, and they fell back as the Confederate infantry advanced. Cavalryman John Bouldin noted that the Confederates charged, “Across the field we dashed right up the guns, shooting the gunners and support down with our Colt’s navies [pistols].”
The outnumbered Federals gave ground slowly, delaying long enough for the infantry of the XXIV and XXV Corps from the Army of the James to arrive. The last gun captured by the Army of Northern Virginia fell into Confederate hands on the ridge overlooking the village.
On seeing some colored troops arrive, Richard Staats of the 6th Ohio Cavalry said, “They had reached this point at daylight after an all night march…and were ready for the business of the day; and the way they looked, and the manner in which they went in at the word of command, was the most inspiring sight I had seen during nearly four years.” Edward Tobie of the 1st Maine Cavalry recalled the feeling of relief at seeing the Union infantry arrive. As he saw them form up alongside the white infantry, he wrote they were “black and white — side by side — a regular checker-board.”
By about 10:00 a.m., the massive Union line was advancing confidently, with the Army of the James coming from the west and joined by the V Corps on the south. Gordon now faced the combined might of more than double his own strength.
To the southeast, along LeGrand Road, Custer’s division of cavalry moved into position. As he rode along the battle line that morning, he was accompanied by a group of aides and orderlies who carried dozens more recently-captured Confederate flags.
The Army of Northern Virginia was surrounded, with the Army of the Potomac behind it and elements of the Army of the Shenandoah and the Army of the James in front. Gordon reported back to Lee that he could not hold and, around 11:00 a.m., a flag of truce went out, seeking a surrender meeting with Grant.
At about 1:30 p.m., Lee and Grant sat down in the parlor of the McLean House to discuss surrender. Historians today know surprisingly little about the important meeting that lasted an hour and a half and had more than a dozen witnesses. Several accounts do exist, but not all agree on the details. What is generally known is this: after some informal discussion, Grant presented his terms —the Confederates would have to surrender their weapons, but would then be allowed to go home.
Lee agreed, asking also that his men be allowed to keep their horses. Grant acquiesced and had his aide Ely Parker write up the terms. Parker had to borrow ink from Confederate aide Charles Marshall, the only other Southern officer with Lee. Parker was a Seneca Indian and had been a friend of Grant’s for several years. Later, when Lee was introduced to Parker, Lee said he was glad to see one true American in the room. Parker replied that “We are all Americans.”
After agreeing on the terms, Lee and Grant both left to return to their armies. Each had much to do. In the meantime, Union officers bought the furniture that was in Wilmer McLean’s parlor, paying him for the tables and chairs that had been used by the generals. One soldier even took a doll that had been in the room; it belonged to seven-year-old Lula, McLean’s daughter.
The next day, a commission formed of three officers from each side met to hammer out the details of the surrender. Union generals John Gibbon, Wesley Merritt and Charles Griffin met with Confederate generals James Longstreet, John Gordon and William Pendleton. Thus the McLeans’ parlor was not only the site of Lee and Grant’s meeting, but also of the commission that drew up the formal proceedings of the surrender.
These proceedings stipulated that the Confederate infantry would march in and surrender their arms, that officers and men could keep their personal horses and property (including officers’ swords) and that the surrender would apply to all Confederate troops within a 20-mile radius of Appomattox.
It was also agreed that the surrender would occur over the next three days: the cavalry that day, followed by the artillery on April 11 and the infantry last on April 12.
Most of the Confederate cavalry had actually gotten away during the fighting on the morning of April 9, and only 1,559 cavalrymen remained in the camp above the Appomattox River. Bvt. Maj. Gen. Ranald MacKenzie received orders to meet the Southern cavalry on the road north of the village, where he would collect their sabers, firearms and accoutrements.
For the artillery, it was simply a matter of unhitching the guns from the horses and leaving them in the road just west of the village. In fact, the Confederates’ animals were so worn and exhausted that the guns could not have been moved anyway. Although Lee’s army had suffered heavily in infantry losses, the Confederates still had more than 60 cannons in their arsenal.
The largest part of the surrender — and by far the most symbolic — was the stacking of arms scheduled for the morning of April 12, four years to the day after the initial shelling of Fort Sumter. In the meantime, Union soldiers set up printing presses in the Clover Hill tavern and began churning out parole passes for the Confederate soldiers. They worked around the clock to crank out 28,231 paroles on hand-crank printing presses in 24 hours.
Each parole was a pass stating that the man carrying the document had surrendered. If a parolee was stopped by Union soldiers on his way home, the former Confederates could show the pass as a guarantee of safe passage on their journey. In addition, Grant ordered that the paroles could be used at any Union army supply station to obtain food or to secure passage on Union military trains and ships. For former Confederates attempting to reach distant places like Texas or Mississippi, this was welcome news.
Appomattox set the tone for how the war would end: Confederates would be paroled and assisted on their journey home. But it was unique among the various surrenders in that there was a final decisive battle, placing the armies in physical contact so that Union officials could oversee the proceedings. All surrenders that followed were more chaotic.
When Lee surrendered to Grant, he only relinquished the Army of Northern Virginia. Yet elsewhere, Union and Confederates alike saw this as the symbolic end of the war. Each Confederate army had to surrender individually, and some still held out hope of resistance, including both large forces and isolated garrisons scattered across the Deep South.
North Carolina Falls to Sherman’s Juggernaut
To the south, Gen. Joseph E. Johnston commanded troops from a mixture of various departments — including the remnants of the Army of Tennessee, troops transferred from the Army of Northern Virginia, units from the Department of the Carolinas and the North Carolina Junior Reserves — and was charged with defending North Carolina against the nearly inexorable force of Maj. Gen. William Sherman’s column, fresh from their march through Georgia and South Carolina.
The first battle between these forces took place at Averasborough, near Fayetteville, on March 15–16. Bvt. Maj. Gen. Judson Kilpatrick’s Union cavalry found Lt. Gen. William Hardee’s corps and Wheeler’s dismounted cavalry deployed across the Raleigh Road. After testing the Confederate defenses, Kilpatrick withdrew and called for infantry support. Overnight the XX Corps arrived, attacking at dawn.
The Federals advanced on a wide front, driving the Confederates back, but were stopped by the main Confederate line and a counterattack. At mid-morning, the Federals renewed their advance with strong reinforcements and drove the Confederates from two lines of works, but were repulsed at a third line. Hardee retreated during the night, having held up the Union advance for nearly two days.
Johnston planned a major effort at Bentonville, taking advantage of a gap between the wings of Sherman’s forces. Late in the afternoon of March 19, Johnston attacked, crushing the Union XIV Corps. Only strong counterattacks and desperate fighting south of the Goldsborough Road blunted the Confederate offensive. Some Union troops were briefly surrounded and attacked from both sides. Elements of the XX Corps arrived and joined the fight. Five Confederate attacks failed to dislodge the Federal defenders, and darkness ended the fighting. During the night, Johnston contracted his line to protect his flanks with Mill Creek to his rear.
The next day, Union reinforcements arrived, but fighting was sporadic. On March 21, Johnston remained in position while he removed his wounded, and skirmishing soon flared along the entire front. In the afternoon, Bvt. Maj. Gen. Joseph Mower’s Union division moved along a narrow trace across Mill Creek toward Johnston’s rear. At the last moment, Confederate counterattacks stopped Mower’s advance, saving the army’s line of communication and retreat.
Johnston pulled back toward Raleigh, ahead of Sherman’s advance. News of Richmond’s fall was a tremendous blow that put Johnston on the road to link up with Lee somewhere near the Virginia-North Carolina line. However, rumors of Lee’s surrender soon began to filter through the army; disbelief turned to shock when confirmation arrived.
The Army of Tennessee retreated through Raleigh, abandoning the capital without a fight, and continued marching west through Hillsborough and Chapel Hill toward Greensboro, a major supply and railroad center. Johnston knew that President Davis and the Cabinet were on their way from Danville, and he looked to meet with them to decide the future of the struggle. At the resulting conference, Johnston obtained permission to meet with Sherman and discuss terms.
The two generals met at an unassuming farmhouse near Durham. The owners, James and Nancy Bennett, had endured the tragedies of war, losing two sons to the conflict — Lorenzo died in the ranks of the 27th North Carolina and Alphonzo, succumbed to illness, likely at the home — as well as their son-in-law, Robert Duke of the 46th North Carolina. The Bennetts obliged the officers and waited in the kitchen with their daughter Eliza and her first-born son while the generals used the home.
At this April 17 conference, the generals agreed that they must restore peace as quickly as possible, especially in the wake of Abraham Lincoln’s assassination. Their meeting produced sweeping terms that stopped the fighting and allowed for the recognition of existing state governments.
But Sherman had overstepped his bounds, and President Andrew Johnson and the U.S. Congress rejected the generous terms he had offered. Grant conveyed the news to Sherman in person, and Sherman and Johnston met again, using the same terms as Appomattox. This second meeting took place on April 26.
Johnston’s surrender included not only the Army of Tennessee, but also the Department of the Carolinas, Georgia and Florida, along with many garrisons, detachments and scattered commands in those four states. Altogether, it included 89,270 men.
The final terms allowed the men of the Army of Tennessee to keep their personal property and use the army’s wagons and horses to return home. It also stipulated that the Union army would send rations to Southern camps around Greensboro, and the Federal navy would assist those needing transportation to the Gulf States. The men were to stack their rifles and park their artillery where they were camped; battle flags were to be left behind as well. With limited Union troops present to oversee this process, the Southerners were to carry out their own surrender.
The End in Alabama
As news of Lee’s and Johnston’s surrenders spread, Lt. Gen. Richard Taylor, commanding the Department of Alabama, Mississippi and East Louisiana, faced the inevitable. He resolved to seek honorable terms, “whilst still in my power to do so.” He viewed the surrender with his troops in mind — to “preserve their honor and best protect them and the people.”
On April 29, Union Bvt. Maj. Gen. Edward Canby and an escort of 2,000 cavalrymen moved north from Mobile and waited at the Jacob Magee House, near the Kushla Station along the Mobile and Ohio Railroad line. The meeting went quickly; Canby offered Taylor the same terms as those presented by Sherman at Bennett Place, leaving Taylor no room to bargain. Within 10 minutes, they emerged from the parlor with a ceasefire agreement. Champagne was on hand, courtesy of Canby, and Taylor noted that the popping corks were “the first agreeable explosive sounds I had heard for years.”
Sadly, the celebration was premature; two days later, the generals learned that the United States government had disapproved the terms initially offered to Johnston and subsequently to Taylor. Canby apologetically notified Taylor that their ceasefire ended in 48 hours.
The generals met for a second time at Citronelle on May 4, and Taylor wrote afterward that the terms offered by Canby were “consistent with the honor of our arms.” The terms produced were nearly identical to those of Appomattox and Greensboro: officers would retain their side arms and men with horses could keep them. Confederate soldiers would be paroled, and Taylor would retain control of railways and river steamers to help them get home. Additionally, Union naval forces and Union-controlled railroads would also transport men to the nearest practicable point close to their homes. By the authority of the United States, the Southern soldiers were not to be disturbed “so long as they continue to observe the condition of their paroles.”
Simultaneously, Union troops throughout the South were eagerly seeking out the fugitive Confederate cabinet, driven, in part, by the hefty reward offered for the capture of Jefferson Davis. These officials had boarded trains in Richmond on April 2, meeting intermittently as they fled from the advancing Union armies. At Washington, Ga., on May 5, 14 members of the cabinet met for the final time and, bowing to the undeniable truth of their situation, officially dissolved the Confederate government.
A General Without An Army: the Trans-Mississippi
While these events unfolded in the east, troops in the vast Trans-Mississippi Department, headquartered in Shreveport, La., soldiered on under very different conditions. Robberies, desertion and violence were rampant in the camps, so much so that the department’s commander, Confederate Gen. Edmund Kirby Smith, and his staff did not go out at night. Several high-ranking Confederate officers secretly discussed arresting Smith (and any cooperative government officials) in the event that he follow the lead of Eastern commanders and surrender the department. This proved unnecessary, as, Smith hoped to move his headquarters to Texas and either continue fighting or continue to Mexico.
On May 9, Smith wrote to the governors of Texas, Arkansas and Missouri, requesting a meeting to discuss his future actions. Their response was one of two crushing blows received by Confederate forces still in the field on May 10. The governors advised Smith to “disband his armies in the department; officers and men to return immediately to their former homes, or such as they may select … and there to remain as good citizens, freed from all disabilities, and restored to all the rights of citizenship.” That same day, hundreds of miles to the east, Confederate president Jefferson Davis — undisguised, despite popular legends to the contrary — was captured at Irwinville, Ga. Davis spent the next two years imprisoned at Fortress Monroe, Va., although he never faced trial on rumored charges of treason.
Still, the conflict was not over. The Civil War’s last land battle was fought at Palmito Ranch, Texas, on May 12. In a badly coordinated operation, Union forces were scattered and defeated by Texas troops along the Rio Grande. Native, African and Hispanic Americans were all involved in the fighting.
Although Smith notified Union forces that the civilian governors had called for an end to the war, provided “certain measures which they deem necessary to the public order and proper security of the people” were met by the U.S. government, he was careful to note that this was despite the fact that his army was “well appointed and supplied, not immediately threatened, and with its communications open.”
His own hopes for continued resistance undimmed, Smith began the process of moving his headquarters to Houston, where it would be safer from attack. But after the commander’s departure from Shreveport, the remaining troops began to desert in droves, a breakdown that soon spread to the garrisons in Texas. In Houston, Austin, and San Antonio, shops were looted, supplies stolen from government warehouses, and disorganized troops left their posts.
Lt. Gen. Simon B. Buckner, now in command at Shreveport, saw the writing on the wall, and on May 26, he arrived at New Orleans to surrender to Union Maj. Gen. Peter Osterhaus, representing Canby. The terms were identical to those of Appomattox, the only ones Union commanders were authorized to accept. When Smith reached Houston the next day, he learned that his war was over, although he did not surrender formally until June 2, at Galveston. Given the changed nature of the conflict, very few of the approximately 17,500 troops remaining in the Trans-Mississippi Department received the formal paroles that were commonplace in earlier months.
Last To Go: Indian Territory
In the spring of 1865, the situation in the Indian Territory was fully stalemated. Then, on May 28, news arrived of the surrender of the Confederate Department of Trans-Mississippi, which included the Indian Territory. General and Cherokee chief Stand Watie intended to keep fighting, but the tide was against him. Other Indian chiefs who disagreed with continuing to fight convened the Grand Council on June 10 and passed resolutions calling for Indian commanders to stop fighting.
Knowing of the unrest among the tribes, Union Maj. Gen. Grenville Dodge appointed Lt. Col. Asa C. Matthews to negotiate a peace with the Indians. Since each Indian nation had signed its own treaty with the Confederacy, it was necessary for them to surrender separately from other Southern forces. Thus, Governor Winchester Colbert of the Chickasaws surrendered to Matthews on June 14, followed by Chief Peter Pitchlynn surrendering Choctaws and Caddos June 19.
Four days later, on June 23, 1865, Watie surrendered the First Indian Cavalry Brigade, consisting of Cherokee, Creek, Seminole and Osage fighters, 12 miles west of Doaksville to Lt. Col. Asa C. Matthews and Adj. William H. Vance. When the Cherokee general handed over his sword, his was the last Confederate military force to formally surrender.
On September 14, representatives of the various tribes met with federal officials at Fort Smith. The delegates tried to heal the wounds and divisions of the war, but were not entirely successful. In the resulting treaty, the Indians affirmed their loyalty to the United States, renounced all treaties with the Confederacy and agreed to end slavery (admitting former slaves as tribal members). However, tensions between the pro-Union and pro-Confederate factions of the tribes were not easily resolved and lingered for some time. | <urn:uuid:7057368b-3d71-4fdc-b7ca-f7b362b12f90> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/bitter-end | 2024-12-04T20:50:13Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066308239.59/warc/CC-MAIN-20241204202740-20241204232740-00428.warc.gz | en | 0.979888 | 6,875 | 2.96875 | 3 |
In the traditional Buddhist setting, the cultivation of mindfulness takes the form of four establishments of mindfulness, the first of which is concerned with the body. The Pāli and Sanskrit term
kāya, here rendered as “body,” can in other contexts have a more general sense of a “group.” An example for such usage occurs in the context of an analysis of craving:
Monastics, and what is craving? Monastics, there are these six groups of craving: craving for forms, craving for sounds, craving for odors, craving for tastes, craving for tangibles, and craving for mental objects.
(SN 12.2: katamā ca, bhikkhave, taṇhā? chayime, bhikkhave, taṇhākāyā: rūpataṇhā, saddataṇhā, gandhataṇhā, rasataṇhā, phoṭṭhabbataṇhā, dhammataṇhā).
What is called craving? It is reckoned to be the three groups of craving: sensual craving, craving for becoming, and craving for annihilation.
(EĀ 49.5: 云何名為愛? 所謂三愛身是也: 欲愛, 有愛, 無有愛).
Although the parallels offer different modalities of defining craving, with the Pāli version opting for an analysis by way of the six sense objects and its Chinese parallel employing a threefold distinction (found also in other Pāli discourses), the two versions translated above agree in employing the term “group” (kāya/身) to introduce their respective presentations. In such a context, the rendering “body” would fail to make sense.
When the same term
kāya does refer to the body, according to Rhys Davids and Stede (
1921/1993, p. 207) two interrelated senses can be discerned:
Kāya under the physical aspect is an aggregate of a multiplicity of elements which finally can be reduced to the four ‘great’ elements, viz. earth, water, fire, and air … it is built up and kept alive by cravings, and with death it is disintegrated into the elements … Kāya under the psychological aspect is the seat of sensation … and represents the fundamental organ of touch which underlies all other sensation.
As far as the average experiences of human beings are concerned, the “body” made up of the four elements corresponds to the “body” as the seat of sensation and the experience of touch. Nevertheless, the same does not necessarily hold during advanced stages of meditation. Although with a range of mindfulness practices the physicality of the body will naturally be in the foreground, other forms of practice can lead to the emergence of dimensions of the body that are no longer related to the four elements. Moreover, the early discourses at times even employ the same term “body” for a form of meditative “touching” that transcends materiality.
The Mind-made Body
An example illustrative of a usage of the term “body” in a meditative context that goes beyond the four elements is the description of a supernormal feat which, according to early Buddhist thought, becomes possible for an adept in meditation who has mastered the four absorptions. A description of the feat in question can be found, for example, in the
Sāmaññaphala-sutta and its parallels:
From this body, [the meditator] conjures up another body, which has form, is mind-made, and is endowed with all limbs and parts, not lacking any faculty.
(DN 2: so imamhā kāyā aññaṃ kāyaṃ abhinimmināti rūpiṃ manomayaṃ sabbaṅgapaccaṅgiṃ ahīnindriyaṃ).
From that body, through mental arousal [the meditator] conjures up another body, which is endowed with form, mind-made, and complete, not lacking any faculty.
1978, p. 245
tasmāt kāyāt mānasaṃ vyutthāpyānyaṃ kāyaṃ abhinirmimīte rūpinaṃ manomayam avikalam ahīnendriyam)
From within [the meditator’s] own material body, [made up of] the four elements, through mental arousal [the meditator] conjures up a conjured body with all faculties and limbs complete.
(DĀ 27, supplemented from DĀ 20: 從己四大色身中, 起心化作化身, 一切諸根, 支節具足).
I will establish a body that is mind[-made], conjuring up the manifestation of various bodies that are immaterial and mind[-made], endowed with shape, with all faculties undamaged, through concentrative arousal conjuring up diversified bodies that are endowed with shape.
(T 22: 我當立身心, 化現眾身, 無有色心, 具足形容, 諸根無毀, 從三昧起化若干身, 形容具足).
In the present context, the expression “mind-made” is best understood to convey the sense that such a body is a mental one, in the sense of consisting in and being “made of” mind (De Notariis
2018). Hamilton (
1996, p. 163) reasoned that “‘normal’ bodies are gross
rūpa [material form], whereas the mind-made body is subtle
rūpa. This is true whether the
manomaya body is one in which one is reborn as a result of having attained a certain level of meditation in a previous life, or whether the
manomaya body is deliberately created in this life.” Indeed, as pointed out by Lee (
2014, p. 69), mastery of absorption and the “creation of a
manomaya-kāya may be understood not just as aspects of a practitioner’s spiritual advancement in this life, but also as their existential transformation to a higher cosmological level in the next life.” Harvey (
1993, p. 36) explained that the above type of description implies the following:
consciousness is seen as able to leave the physical body by means of a mind-made body. Such a body is seen as a kind of ‘subtle body,’ for a being with a mind-made body is said to feed on joy (D.I. 17), not on solid nutriment (D.I. 195). It thus lacks the four great elements of the physical body … the subtle matter composing it can only be visible and audible matter (Vibh. 405). However, the mind-made body is invisible to the normal eye (Paṭi. II. 209). It occupies space, but does not impinge on gross physical matter … With such a body, a person can exercise psychic powers such as going through solid objects, being in many places at once, or flying (D.I. 78).
The belief in the possibility of performing such a feat appears to have been a common notion in the ancient Indian setting (De Notariis
2019b). Beyond the Indian setting, according to Swearer (
1973, p. 448) the Buddhist descriptions of such abilities, including the production of a mind-made body, “have striking similarities with the archaic phenomenon of shamanism.” The same notion of a mental body also appears to stand in the background of some conceptions of supernormal feats like levitation (Anālayo
2021). In other words, when the early discourses report the Buddha or some of his adept disciples visiting a particular heaven to converse with its inhabitants, such accounts probably originated from the idea of travelling with the mind-made body.
A relevant passage describes how a meditator performs one in the standard list of supernormal feats, involving touching the orbs of the sun and moon with the hands, while at the same time remaining seated in the hermitage (Schlingloff
2015, p. 90 n. 3). Another passage indicates that travelers in space, who lose the state of absorption, will simply find themselves back on the seat of meditation (Clough
2012, p. 85). Such descriptions convey the idea that the mind-made body was considered to have been extracted from the actual physical body, enabling the practitioner to perform feats and travel to various realms with the former while the latter continues to be seated in meditation.
Ostensibly unaware of the above-mentioned publications, relevant to the topic of the mind-made body and its implications, Shulman (
2021, p. 14) considered the presentation in the
Sāmaññaphala-sutta to imply that “an apparently material body is the product of a mental attainment in advanced meditation” adding (note 76) that “the overall description seems to take this as a regular body, as is confirmed by the … acceptance that this body possesses all limbs and faculties.” Yet, in early Buddhist thought various celestial beings are considered to be endowed with limbs and faculties, even though these beings are not conceived as having material bodies made up of the four elements, in this respect differing from humans and animals. Appreciating the ancient Indian notion of the mind-made body requires taking these cosmological aspects into account.
The Body in Absorption
The role of the body in relation to absorption attainment can be explored based on the Discourse on Mindfulness of the Body, an exposition that covers the same domain as the first establishment of mindfulness. This discourse includes in its purview the bodily dimension of the experience of absorption (Anālayo
2014, p. 34;
2017 p. 56;
2019 p. 2350; and
2020 p. 1522). The relevant passages in the Pāli and Chinese versions, which describe one out of several modalities of contemplation of the body, proceed as follows for the case of the first absorption:
Secluded from sensual desires and secluded from unwholesome states, with application and sustaining, with joy and happiness born of seclusion, one dwells having attained the first absorption. One drenches, pervades, saturates, and suffuses this very body with joy and happiness born of seclusion, such that there is no part of the whole body that is not touched by the joy and happiness born of seclusion.
(MN 119: vivicc’ eva kāmehi vivicca akusalehi dhammehi savitakkaṃ savicāraṃ vivekajaṃ pītisukhaṃ paṭhamaṃ jhānaṃ upasampajja viharati. so imam eva kāyaṃ vivekajena pītisukhena abhisandeti parisandeti paripūreti parippharati, nāssa kiñci sabbāvato kāyassa vivekajena pītisukhena apphuṭaṃ hoti).
One soaks the body, moistens, and completely pervades it with joy and happiness born of seclusion, [so that] within this body no part is not pervaded by joy and happiness born of seclusion.
(MĀ 81: 離生喜樂漬身, 潤澤, 普遍充滿, 於此身中, 離生喜樂, 無處不遍).
A notable difference here is that the Chinese version does not describe the actual attainment of the first absorption and instead just covers its somatic effect. In the present context, this appears to be the more plausible presentation, as “it is not the attainment of
jhāna as such, but rather the bodily experience caused by
jhāna that comes under the heading of mindfulness of the body” (Anālayo
2011, p. 674). Comparison with the Chinese version thus enables putting into perspective the assessment by Shulman (
2021, p. 8) that the Pāli version “now proceeds to describe the attainment of the four
jhānas, including them
within mindfulness directed to the body.” In other words, it is more specifically the somatic effect of absorption that here falls within the purview of mindfulness directed to the body.
Since Shulman (
2021, p. 16) lists Anālayo (
2011) among the works consulted, it is at first sight unexpected that the significant perspective provided by the Chinese parallel is not taken into account. The author’s list of references also includes Kuan (
2008) who, in an appendix to his study, provided a translation of this Chinese parallel. However, not taking into consideration this parallel extant in Chinese could reflect an assessment given by Shulman (
2021, p. 4 n. 14) of the value of consulting Chinese
Āgama discourses, expressed in the following manner:
Issues of comparison with other extant versions of the early discourses may reveal interesting insights, but should not be thought to bring us closer to the historical realities of early Buddhism. Each textual tradition offers its own version(s) of discourses, which conform to local tastes and standards. Thus, we could read Chinese versions of Suttas in order to understand ideals of masculinity in early Chinese Buddhism, not in order to return to the days in which the texts were composed.
This assessment involves a substantial misunderstanding. The situation of early discourses preserved in Chinese translation could be illustrated with the example of Luther’s translation of the Bible into vernacular German in the sixteenth century. This act of translation did not result in turning the content of the Bible into a reflection of medieval German ideals. Be it in German or any other translation, the Gospels could still be employed in an attempt “to return to the days in which the texts were composed,” by way of trying to discern between a common core and later additions.
The same holds for the Chinese
Āgamas. These are predominantly testimonies of ancient Indian thought, not of Chinese culture. In fact, the
Madhyama-āgama in question was translated by the Indian Gautama Saṅghadeva into Chinese (Anālayo
2015). His translation style shows a marked concern with staying truthful to the Indic original (Radich & Anālayo
2017, p. 218). It follows that the
Madhyama-āgama is as much a testimony to early Buddhism as its Pāli parallel, the
Majjhima-nikāya. Therefore, indications that can be gathered from comparative study of the
Madhyama-āgama collection deserve to be taken seriously.
In sum, the idea of “the body” in the context of the above instance of mindful contemplation concerns the somatic repercussions of absorption attainment. These should be understood to involve a pervasion and suffusion of the body with the joy and happiness resulting from the concentrated state of the mind that has entered absorption.
Subjective meditative experiences in early Buddhist thought come closely interwoven with cosmology (Gethin
1997), to the extent that an absorption experience has a counterpart in a particular celestial realm and is expected to conduce to rebirth in that realm. Since the realms corresponding to the four absorptions are considered to be fine-material, it seems that the indication gathered from the notion of the mind-made body holds here as well, in the sense that the reference to the body needs to be understood by keeping its cosmological counterpart in mind. In other words, the idea could well be that, “in the case of absorption attainment, the way the presence of the body is sensed would be much more refined and of an altogether different type compared to how the body is experienced as a sense-door during normal everyday life” (Anālayo
2017, p. 55).
In early Buddhist thought, mastery of the four absorptions forms the basis for a variety of meditative accomplishments, one of them being the above-mentioned conjuring up of a mind-made body. Alternatively, the same degree of mastery can be employed to attain the immaterial spheres. The transition from the fourth absorption to the first of these immaterial spheres takes the following form:
Completely passing beyond perceptions of form, with the disappearance of perceptions of resistance, without attending to perceptions of diversity, [attending instead to] ‘infinite space,’ one dwells having attained the sphere of infinite space.
(MN 25: sabbaso rūpasaññānaṃ samatikkamā paṭighasaññānaṃ atthaṅgamā nānattasaññānaṃ amanasikārā ananto ākāso ti ākāsānañcāyatanaṃ upasampajja viharati).
By completely transcending perceptions of form, with the cessation of perceptions of resistance, not being aware of perceptions of diversity, [being instead aware of] ‘infinite space,’ one dwells in the accomplishment of the sphere of infinite space.
(MĀ 178, supplemented from MĀ 97: 度一切色想, 滅有對想, 不念若干想, 無量空, 是無量空處成就遊).
The above description indicates that all experiences related to materiality are left behind at this stage. Nevertheless, the term “body” can still be used in relation to such attainments. This takes the form of a specific phrase that literally means “having touched with the body” (e.g. MN 70:
kāyena phusitvā/phassitvā and MĀ 195: 身觸), used in relation to the immaterial spheres (and at times even in relation to Nirvana; see Dhammadinnā
2021, p. 109). As clarified by Schmithausen (
1981, p. 214), this phrase “presumably intends immediate personal experience.” Along the same lines, Radich (
2007, p. 263) reasoned that “to ‘touch X with the body’ may be a rough analogy to figures of speech like e.g. English ‘know it in your bones’ … meaning ‘to know directly and certainly from personal experience.’” In this way, when applied to the immaterial spheres, the occurrence of the term
kāya in the phrase under discussion conveys the sense of involving the whole of one’s personal experience (Anālayo
2011, p. 379).
In contrast to these assessments, Shulman (
2021, p. 10) rather argued that “some authors or practitioners saw the body as related to the attainment of the following four ‘formless attainments.’ In a recurrent formula we find a meditator who ‘abides having touched those quiet deliverances that are formless, having surpassed form, with his body.” This reasoning then led to the conclusion that even “these accomplishments clearly seem to be embodied, tangible, and concrete” (p. 10).
The list of references consulted by Shulman (
2021, p. 16) includes, besides Anālayo (
2011), also Radich (
2007) and Schmithausen (
1981). Since in this case the indications regarding the sense conveyed by the phrase under discussion do not involve Chinese parallels, it is difficult to conceive of a cogent reason why the opinions expressed in these works have neither been mentioned nor taken up for criticism.
The unconvincing nature of the reasoning resulting from not taking into account relevant scholarship can be seen in the assumption by Shulman (
2021, p. 10 n. 52), in a note appended to the above reference to “embodied, tangible, and concrete” accomplishments, that another occurrence of this phrase in relation to the five faculties (of confidence, energy, mindfulness, concentration, and wisdom) implies that an arahant “abides having touched them with the body.” How does one touch the faculty of mindfulness, for example, with the body?
2021, p. 3) had introduced his discussion with the announcement that his “study aims to unearth the positive role attributed to the body in seminal contexts of the Buddhist path to liberation,” apparently unaware of the fact that this has already been covered in Anālayo (
2014), a publication quoted in Langenberg (
2018) which in turn has been quoted twice by Shulman (
2021, p. 2 and p. 8 n. 39). Together with the case mentioned above, it seems as if the author quoted publications he had not fully read.
This impression finds confirmation when Shulman (
2021, p. 1) expressed his wish to go beyond a supposedly common interpretation, according to which “the body is not deemed essential to awakening and is considered tangential at best,” followed by providing support for his assessment of the existence of such an interpretation in his first footnote in this way: “That this approach continues to be influential, beyond many of the classic studies referred to below, can be seen is [sic] such studies as Anālayo (
2012, p. 307), who emphasizes ‘liberation of mind and liberation by wisdom’.”
The only occurrence of the quoted phrase on the cited page features in the context of a survey of similes illustrating the nature of liberation. The summary of the relevant passages takes the following form in Anālayo (
2012, p. 307): “One who has reached liberation of the mind and liberation by wisdom has lifted up the cross-bar; has filled the moat; uprooted the pillar; withdrawn the bolts; lowered the banner; dropped the burden and is unfettered.”
The quoted passage does not express any consideration of the role of the body as tangential (or not tangential) to awakening at all, as it is about something quite different. The expression “liberation of the mind and liberation by wisdom” in turn is simply a standard way of referring to full awakening in the early discourses and carries no implication about the role of the body for such matters. Nevertheless, Shulman (
2021, p. 2 and note 6) referred back to this first footnote in an assessment of “traditional interpretations” which, in his view, overlook the fact that the gaining of liberation “relates to the experience, in the body and the mind, of people who lived to tell the tale; otherwise, we would have never heard of it.” It seems almost as if he believed that other scholars denied the relevance of the body to liberation to such an extent as to overlook that a fully awakened one still has a body. All of this makes it difficult to avoid the impression that the presentation in Shulman (
2021) is not based on a proper consultation of previous academic research.
Contrary to the views expressed by Shulman (
2021), the conception of the mind-made body in early Buddhist thought intends a mental rather than a material body; contemplation of the body as a mindfulness exercise concerns the somatic repercussions of absorption rather than just the attainment itself; and the idiomatic phrase “touching with the body” is best understood to convey the sense of a personal and direct experience with one’s whole being. The three dimensions of the body surveyed here converge on showing the complex implications which the term for the “body,”
kāya, can carry in its usage in the early discourses.
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A short history of Yuma
The goldfields were calling – go west young fella, and Godspeed. And so men boarded ships or loaded horses and mules and followed various routes to get to California. One route followed the Gila River through jagged peaks and deep canyons, over hellfire desert with plants like razor wire, the horses spent, days hot, nights cold, Apaches in the hills, wondering what madness drove these fools. When the Gila emptied into the Colorado at Yuma these travelers would cross, then set out across the California dunes. Yuma was an experiment in laissez faire capitalism, or maybe anarchy, or human behavior, and it didn’t go well. Read more.
Why history matters, and why we are losing it
Arizona is losing its history.
Rats build nests in historic documents, old buildings sag and buckle, roofs leak and records blacken with mold. Collectors slip a few papers into their homes and looters plunder archeological sites. Historians and archivists say the problem is getting worse as budgets are slashed and as information is processed digitally, then deleted. Read more.
That mess we call history
Historians will lead you to believe it was all a misunderstanding. How the Americans, in their ignorance, failed to appreciate the differences between Apache bands, between raiding and warfare, how they had a tin ear for language and other cultures. The implication is that if only the Americans were not so stubborn, so unreasonable, so racist, things may have worked out differently. I don’t think there was a misunderstanding at all. Read more.
The red ghost
Word spread through the territory – a beast roamed the Arizona frontier, though each sighting was little more than a glimpse: A flash of red. Hooves and old bones. When a ranch woman was trampled to death at Eagle Creek, a witness described the creature: Red, tall, and ridden by a devil. It was 1883, and there were grizzly bears, wolves and jaguars in Arizona then, but this thing was different. Read more.
Things never really change, do they? Take the Grand Canyon, for example. A century ago, the canyon looked much the same as it did today, with its red cliffs, its pink sunsets, its gathering storms, its grifters on the Rim, looking for a way to make a fast buck. Read more
A short history of Jerome
Arizona’s mining towns frequently went up in flames
Jerome burned. And burned and burned. Three years in a row, the town burned, and merchants rebuilt the tents and shacks that sheltered saloons and cathouses. It was a mining town, where men dug furiously by day and drank away the night. Jerome ran on whiskey, dreams and laissez faire capitalism, a shining lie that has a certain appeal if you didn’t ask too many questions, but its limitations became clear each time the town burned. Read More.
The border, a history
Everything was up for grabs. For three centuries, England, Spain and France sent soldiers, trappers and merchants to plant flags, move goods, build forts. They drew maps to mark territory, signed treaties abused the natives, but their hold on North America was weak. All that time, Americans had put down roots along the eastern seaboard, streamed over the Appalachian Mountains and settled the Ohio Valley until that, too, began to get crowded. Read more.
For four centuries, the continent never seemed to run out of anything. No matter where colonists built, or settlers plowed, or soldiers rode, or trappers roamed, there was something new to discover and exploit. Tribes were slaughtered, then domesticated, money changed hands and maps were redrawn. Mines played out but new ones were found. Timber grew in the uplands and there was good ground in the heartland. The land was a collection of resources, a thing to consume, but sometime in the late 19th century that we began to look in the rearview mirror at the American wilderness, the hills covered in bison, the tribes in control of their destinies – all of it gone. It was not until then that we began to consider limits. Read more
Wildfire in the West
Something is wrong – this was not in the brochure. The ponderosa ridgelines are rimmed with black and spindled pine. Spruce and fir trees drop their needles and stand dead or dying or ready to die, the mountains cloaked in grayish brown and brownish gray, not so much a color as an absence of color, a reminder that we live in dark times. Read More
A wind blew out of the canyon and scoured the slickrock. It bellowed and roared all day and into the night, slipping around corners and thrumming against the tent. I burrowed into my sleeping bag, curled up in a ball until the wind died and sleep came.
The following day a breeze swirled, the camp stove flashed, my footsteps pounded the slickrock and a rattlesnake buzzed at my feet. Sometime around sunset, the breeze stopped. I sat on a sandstone bench and looked out at the red hills, the blood orange sunset. When the last chattering bird fell silent, a deep silence followed, and I drank it in.
Hiking Alamo Canyon
A few things grab your attention when you hike the Alamo Passage of the Arizona Trail. The first is Picketpost Mountain – how it rises out of the Sonoran scrub and commands the view for about four miles as you move north to south.
The next thing that will grab your attention is damage from the Telegraph Fire. Read more.
Hiking Wooden Shoe Canyon
Things change. Why, just a few months ago, you could hike Squaw Canyon in Canyonlands National Park, spend a night at SQ1 or SQ, connect with Lost Canyon or Big Spring Canyon for a nice loop, and come back with some great memories and a few swell photos. But things change, and the canyon is now called Wooden Shoe, the campsites WS1 and WS2, and we will speak the old name no more. You’ll be hiking Wooden Shoe Canyon, not that other place. Your old maps and the trail signs won’t match, but the canyon is the same, and the hike is the same, and it’s a good one. Read More.
Old dog, new trails
The Happy Jack passage runs about 29.5 miles from end to end in Coconino National Forest, and I imagine there are hundreds, perhaps thousands of hikers who have done it from top to bottom in one shot.
I am not one of those hikers. I am lazy and unfocused. Also, when I did this passage, I had an old dog, who couldn’t do more than a mile of flat ground a day. So one summer I started to chip away at this passage in the pines, bit by bit, starting in the northern sections and working my way south in a series of slackpacks. Read more.
We hoisted big packs and tottered upstream, the day sunny, our brains foggy with the flotsam of a night spent in a Durango brewpub. Vallecito Creek offers a back door to Chicago Basin, where you’ll find some of the coolest peaks in southern Colorado. Read more.
Arizona Trail, Kaibab Plateau
The Kaibab Plateau sneaks up on you. A few sections of the Arizona Trail cut across its eastern flank, through big country that sticks to your memory and gets under your skin. There are some gorgeous walks up there. The trail cuts through timber and meadow, though aspen glens and evergreen clusters, mile after mile. Head north and it breaks and drops into sage and then on the Utah border. Head south and you’ll end up at Grand Canyon’s North Rim. Read more.
Hiking Elk Creek
The best policy is to keep walking. The fishing at Elk Creek ranges from so-so to pretty darn good, and the scenery keeps getting better as the creek climbs and loops through wood and meadow. The aspens flutter and the air is thin as you climb, but the views are worth it: Keep walking. Read more.
Saddle Mountain Wilderness
Saddle Mountain Wilderness is home to a small population of Apache trout. The fish are small and skittish, and the casting windows range from tight to impossible. Unless you enjoy nettles, snags and fishless days, leave the fly rod in the truck. This is a place to hike. Read more.
Canyonlands National Park
A walk on the wild side
I don’t know what I can tell you, other than don’t go, or think about it, or, take a friend and make sure you stop frequently for a map check. Getting turned around in The Maze is easy to do, and it’s not much fun. Trails are few and hard to follow. Water is scarce. The Maze District is a remote section of Canyonlands National Park where every canyon leads to some other canyon, and some other canyon after that. Read more
Hiking Aravaipa Canyon
Eddie thought we were crazy. He thought that all that wading on a cold day would end in disaster once the sun went down, but we didn’t listen. The canyon was calling.
The forecast called for colder and getting colder, clear to partly hypothermic at night. It was December, and someone, I think it was Jason, had a permit for Aravaipa Canyon. Read more
Hiking Soap Creek
Decades ago, I backpacked into a place Soap Creek, tributary of the Colorado River in northern Arizona. It’s possible that just about everything about our trip was illegal – our dogs, our campfire on the beach, our feasting like Viking lords on a fat rainbow trout, howling at the moon. We did not have a permit.
The local fishing guides who put us onto the place were short on details. They said something about shimmying down a rope ladder, but nothing about permits. So we went, took advantage of the campfire ring that was already there and nature’s bounty. It is possible that all of this rogue woodcraft was legal back then. I have no idea. Read more
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Precious metals such as silver, gold and platinum have for a long time been regarded as having intrinsic value. Gain knowledge of the investment options associated with these commodities.The user’s text is already academic in the sense that it is academic in.
In the past both silver and gold were widely recognized as precious metals of great value, and were considered to be highly valued by various ancient civilizations. Today precious metals still have significance inside the investment portfolios of astute investors. However, it is important to determine the right precious metal suitable for investment needs. Furthermore, it is important to understand the primary causes behind their level of volatility.
There are a variety of methods to acquiring precious metals such as silver, gold, and platinum, and there are numerous reasons to engage in this endeavor. For those embarking on a journey through the realm of rare metals discussion is designed to give a thorough knowledge of their functions and the avenues available for investing.
Diversification of an investor’s portfolio may be accomplished through the addition of precious metals, which could be used to protect against the effects of inflation.
While gold is often regarded as a prominent investment within the industry of precious metals but its appeal extends far beyond the realms of investors.
Platinum, silver and palladium are regarded as valuable assets that can be included into a diversified portfolio of precious metals. Each of these commodities has distinct risks and possibilities.
There are other causes that can contribute to the instability of these investments, including as fluctuations in demand and supply and geopolitical issues.
Additionally investors can also have the chance to be exposed to the metal asset market through a variety of ways, such as participation in the derivatives market, investment in metal exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and mutual funds, in addition to the purchase of stocks in mining companies.
Precious metals are a category of metallic elements that have a high economic value due to their rarity, beauty, and many industrial applications.
Precious metals have a high degree of scarcity that contributes to their elevated economic value, which is influenced by numerous aspects. They are characterized by their limited availability, their use in industrial operations, function as a protection against inflation in the currency, and their historic significance as a method to preserve value. Platinum, gold, and silver are often regarded as the most favored precious metals among investors.
Precious metals are precious resources that have historically held significant value among investors.
The past was when these assets were used as the foundation for currency, however now they are mostly used as a means of diversifying portfolios of investment and protecting against the impact of inflation.
Investors and traders can take advantage of the possibility of acquiring precious metals through a variety of ways, such as possessing real bullion or coins, taking part in derivative markets, or investing in exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
There is a wide variety of precious metals beyond the most well-known silver, gold, and platinum. Nevertheless, the act of investing in these entities comes with inherent risks due to their lack of practical use and inability to be sold.
The investment of precious metals has increased significantly due to its use in modern technological applications.
The comprehension of precious metals
Historically, precious metals have held a significant importance in the world economy due to their use in the physical production of currencies, or in their support, for instance in the implementation of the gold standard. Nowadays most investors buy precious metals with the main intention of using them as a financial instrument.
Precious metals are often considered an investment strategy that can help increase portfolio diversification and act as a reliable source of value. This is particularly evident when they are used as a protection against rising inflation, as well as during times of financial turmoil. Precious metals may also have an important role to play for customers in the commercial sector, particularly when it comes to items such as electronics or jewelry.
There are three main factors which influence how much demand there is for rare metals such as fears about financial stability and inflation fears, and the fear of danger that comes with war or other geopolitical disturbances.
Gold is usually thought of as the top precious metal to use for economic reasons while silver comes in second in the popularity scale. In the field of manufacturing processes, there’s important metals that are sought after. For instance, iridium can be utilized in the manufacture of speciality alloys, and palladium has applications in the fields of electronics and chemical processes.
Precious metals comprise a group of metals that have limited supply and demonstrate an important economic value. Precious resources possess inherent worth due to their scarce availability as well as their practical use to be used in industry, and their potential as investments, thus establishing them as reliable sources of wealth. Prominent examples of precious metals include gold, silver, platinum and palladium.
Presented below is a comprehensive guide to the complexities of engaging in investment activities that involve precious metals. This discussion will include an examination of the nature of precious metal investments, as well as an examination of their advantages as well as drawbacks and risks. Furthermore, a variety of noteworthy precious metal investment options will be presented to be considered.
Gold is a chemical element having an atomic symbol Au and atomic number 79. It is a
Gold is widely recognized as the preeminent and highly desirable precious metal for purpose of investment. It has distinctive characteristics such as exceptional durability, which is evident in its resiliency to corrosion, and also its remarkable malleability and high electrical and thermal conductivity. Although it is utilized in the electronics and dental industries but its primary use is in the manufacture of jewelry or as a method for exchange. For a long time it has been used as a method of conserving wealth. In the wake from this fact, investors actively seek it out in times of economic or political instability, as a way to protect themselves against the rising rate of inflation.
There are many investment options for investing in gold. Bars, physical gold coins, and jewelry are available to purchase. Investors have the option to buy gold stocks that refer to shares of firms that are involved in gold mining, stream, or royalty activities. They can also invest in gold-focused exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and gold-focused funds. Each investment option in gold offers advantages and drawbacks. There are some limitations associated with the possession of gold in physical form including the financial burden associated with keeping and insuring it, as well being the potential of gold stocks and gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs) performing worse in comparison to the actual value of gold. One of the benefits of gold itself is the ability to be closely correlated with the price changes of the precious metal. Furthermore, gold stocks as well as Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have the potential to outperform other investment options.
Silver is a chemical element that has its symbol Ag and atomic number 47. It is a
Second in importance is silver, which happens to be the most prevalent precious metal. Copper is a crucial metallic element that has an important role in a variety of industries, such as electrical engineering, electronics manufacturing, and photography. Silver is an essential constituent in solar panels because of its excellent electrical properties. Silver is commonly utilized to aid in conserving value and is used in the making of a variety of objects, including jewelry, coins, cutlery, and bars.
Silver’s dual purpose that serves both as an industrial metal and as a store of value, sometimes can result in higher price volatility when compared to gold. It can have a major influence on the values of silver-based stocks. In times of high demand from investors and industrial sectors There are occasions where silver prices’ performance outperforms gold.
Investing into precious metals has become a topic of interest for many individuals seeking to diversify their investment portfolios. This article is designed to offer guidelines on making investments in the precious metals. It will focus on the most important aspects and strategies to maximize yields.
There are a variety of strategies to invest in the precious metals market. There are two basic categorizations into which they might be classified.
Physical precious metals encompass an array of tangible assets like coins, bars, and jewelry, which are bought with the intent of being used as investment vehicles. The value of these investment in precious physical metals are expected to increase in line with the increase in the prices of these exceptional metals.
Investors can acquire distinctive investment solutions that are made up of precious metals. This includes investments in companies that are involved in mining, streaming, or royalties of precious metals, along with exchange-traded mutual funds (ETFs) as well as mutual funds specifically targeting precious metals. Additionally, futures contracts may be considered a one of these investment options. Their value assets is likely to rise as the value of the base precious metal rises.
FideliTrade Incorporated is an autonomous company based in Delaware which provides a variety of services related to the sale and service of valuable metals. These services encompass a range of tasks such as purchasing and trading, delivery, protecting, and providing custody services to individuals and companies. FideliTrade is not associated with Fidelity Investments. FideliTrade does not possess the status of a broker-dealer, or an investment advisor, and it does not have a registration at either the Securities and Exchange Commission or FINRA.
The execution of sale and purchase orders for precious metals made by customers of Fidelity Brokerage Services, LLC (FBS) is managed by National Financial Services LLC (NFS), which is an affiliate of FBS. NFS assists in processing requests for precious metals by using FideliTrade, an independent entity that is not associated with either FBS nor NFS.
The coins or bullion held in custody by FideliTrade are safeguarded by insurance protection, which provides protection against instances of the loss or theft. The possessions of Fidelity customers at FideliTrade are maintained in a separate account with an account under the Fidelity label. FideliTrade has a substantial sum of “all-risk” insurance coverage amounting to $1 billion in Lloyds of London. This policy is specifically designated for bullion that is stored inside high-security vaults. Additionally, FideliTrade also maintains an additional $300 million in contingency vault coverage. Coins and bullion held in FBS accounts are not under the protection of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) or the insurance coverage provided by FBS or NFS that exceeds the SIPC coverage. To obtain complete information, kindly reach out to a representative from Fidelity.
The past results may not necessarily indicate the future.
The gold business is influenced by significant influences from a variety of global monetary and political occasions, such as but not only devaluations of currencies or changes in value, central bank actions as well as social and economic conditions in different countries, trade imbalances and limitations on trade or currency between nations.
The success of businesses operating on the Gold and other precious metals industry is often susceptible to major changes due to fluctuations in the prices of gold and other precious metals.
The price of gold globally can be directly affected through changes to the economic or political environment, especially in countries that are known for their gold production, such as South Africa and the former Soviet Union.
The high volatility of the market for precious metals renders it unsuitable for the vast majority of investors to take part in direct investment in actual precious metals.
Coins and investments in bullion stored in FBS accounts are not into the protections of Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) or the insurance coverage offered to FBS or NFS that goes beyond SIPC coverage.
The Internal Revenue Code section(s) 408(m) and Publication 590 contain a wealth of information on the particular restrictions imposed on investments within Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) as well as various retirement account.
If the client chooses to opt for delivery the customer will be in the position of paying additional costs for delivery, as well as relevant taxes.
Fidelity charges a storage charge on a quarterly basis, that amount to 0.125% of the entire value or a minimum of $3.75, whichever is higher. The prebilling of storage costs will be determined by the current price of the precious metals in market at date of billing. For more details about other investments, and the charges for a specific deal, it’s advisable to reach out to Fidelity by calling 800-544-6666. The minimum amount charged for any transaction that involves the use of precious metals amounts to $44. The minimum amount needed to purchase precious metals is $2,500 with a lesser minimum of $1,000 for Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs). The acquisition of precious metals is not allowed in the Fidelity Retirement Plan (Keogh), and their inclusion is restricted to a few investments within a Fidelity Individual Retirement Account (IRA).
The act of directly purchasing precious metals or other collectibles within one’s individual Retirement Account (IRA) or any another retirement plan’s account may result in a tax-deductible payment from such account, unless specifically exempted under the regulations laid forth by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Consider that precious metals and other items that are collected are stored in an Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) or other financial instrument that is underlying. In this case it is highly recommended to determine the appropriateness of this investment for a retirement account by thoroughly looking through the ETF prospectus or other relevant documents, and/or speaking with an expert in taxation. Certain exchange-traded fund (ETF) sponsors will include a declaration in the prospectus to indicate that they have received an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) opinion. This ruling confirms that the acquisition of the ETF within an Individual Retirement Account (IRA) (or retirement plan) account will not be considered to be the purchase of an item that can be collected. Thus, a transaction like this is not considered to be a taxable distribution.
The information in this paper is not intended to provide personalized financial advice for specific circumstances. The document has been created without taking into consideration the particular financial situation and objectives of the people who will be using it. The methods and/or investments mentioned in this document may not be appropriate for all investor. Morgan Stanley advises investors to perform independent evaluations of particular methods and assets and encourages investors to seek advice from a Financial Advisor. The suitability of a particular strategy or investment depends on the specific situation and objectives of the investor.
The performance history of an organization cannot serve as a reliable predictor of its future performance.
The information provided doesn’t aim to encourage anyone to purchase or sell securities or other financial instruments or other financial instruments, nor is it intended to encourage participation in any trading strategies.
Due to their limited scope, sector investments exhibit more risk than those that take a more diverse approach that covers a variety of companies and sectors.
The idea of diversification does not guarantee earning profits or providing a protection against financial loss in a marketplace that is experiencing a decline.
Physical precious metals are classified as unregulated commodities. They are considered to be risky investments that have the potential to show both short-term and long-term price volatility. The value of investments in precious metals is subject to volatility and the possibility of both appreciation and depreciation dependent on the market conditions. If a sale inside a market experiencing a decline, it is possible that the price paid might be less than the investment originally made. Unlike bonds and equities, precious metals don’t provide dividends or interest. This is why it can be argued that precious metals may not be appropriate for investors who have an immediate need for financial returns. The precious metals, as commodities require safe storage, hence potentially incurring additional costs that the purchaser. The Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) provides targeted protections to the securities and funds that clients hold in the occasion of a brokerage firm’s bankruptcy, financial difficulties or the non-reported absence of clients’ assets. The coverage provided by the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) does not extend to include precious metals and other commodities.
The act of engaging in the field of commodity investment carries significant risks. The volatility of commodities markets could be due to a variety of variables, including shifts in supply and demand dynamics, governmental policies and initiatives, domestic as well as global economic and political situations as well as terrorist acts, changes in interest and exchange rates, trading activities in commodities and related contract, sudden outbreaks of illnesses or weather conditions, technological advances, and the inherent fluctuation of commodities. In addition, the markets for commodities can be affected by temporary disturbances or disruptions triggered by many causes including inadequate liquidity, the involvement of speculators, and government action.
The investment in an exchange-traded fund (ETF) carries risks that are comparable to investing in a diverse collection of securities traded on exchanges in the corresponding securities market. The risk is fluctuations in the market due to economic and political factors, fluctuations in interest rates, and perceived patterns in the price of stocks. The value of ETF investments is susceptible to fluctuation, which causes the investment return and principal value to fluctuate. In turn, investors may get a different value of their ETF shares after selling them which could result in a deviation from the cost at which they purchased them. | <urn:uuid:6dee3316-15c5-4cda-ace8-50b4e225e03e> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.makeesha.com/precoius-matals-ira/centennial-precious-metals-in-bellevue-washington/ | 2024-12-07T08:11:35Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066426671.73/warc/CC-MAIN-20241207071733-20241207101733-00007.warc.gz | en | 0.960126 | 3,532 | 2.671875 | 3 |
St. Thomas More, widely regarded as a martyr for conscience in Tudor England, was an individual whose unwavering commitment to his principles left an indelible mark on history. Born in 1478, More’s early life and education played a crucial role in shaping his values and beliefs. Raised in a devout Catholic family, he received a rigorous education in the classics, theology, and law, which instilled in him a deep sense of moral responsibility and intellectual rigor.
More’s rise to prominence in Tudor England was marked by his successful legal career and close association with King Henry VIII. As a lawyer, he quickly gained recognition for his sharp intellect and persuasive rhetoric, earning him the reputation of being one of England’s foremost legal minds. This reputation, coupled with his astute political acumen, led to his appointment as Lord Chancellor, one of the highest positions in the realm. In this influential role, More wielded significant power and influence, advising the king on matters of state and justice. However, his tenure as Lord Chancellor would prove to be a tumultuous period, as his clash with the king over matters of conscience and religious beliefs would ultimately seal his fate as a martyr for his unwavering principles.
Early Life and Education
St. Thomas More, commonly referred to as Thomas More, was born on February 7, 1478, in London, England. He was the son of Sir John More, a prominent lawyer and judge, and Agnes Graunger. From a young age, Thomas More displayed exceptional intelligence and a thirst for knowledge. His parents recognized his potential and ensured that he received a proper education, which was essential for his future success.
More was educated at St. Anthony’s School in London, where he studied Latin. This foundation in classical languages laid the groundwork for his future scholarly achievements. He went on to attend the University of Oxford, where he further honed his intellectual abilities and embraced a comprehensive range of subjects. More’s education at Oxford exposed him to the works of Greek and Roman philosophers, which greatly influenced his philosophical outlook and shaped his moral compass.
Throughout his early life and education, More was instilled with a strong sense of devotion to his Catholic faith. His upbringing in a devout household, coupled with the influence of his education, ingrained in him a deep belief in the importance of conscience and moral integrity. These formative years set the stage for More’s later actions and the steadfast defense of his principles, even in the face of grave danger.
Rise to Prominence
St. Thomas More’s rise to prominence in Tudor England can be attributed to both his exceptional legal acumen and his close association with King Henry VIII. More’s successful legal career began to gain traction in his early thirties, when he was appointed to serve as a member of Parliament. This prestigious position allowed him to showcase his profound understanding of the law and his persuasive oratory skills.
As his reputation grew, More’s close relationship with King Henry VIII became increasingly influential in his ascent to prominence. The monarch admired More’s intellect and appointed him to several high-ranking positions, including that of undersheriff and later, as a member of the king’s council. More’s loyalty and unwavering commitment to serving the king and the crown enhanced his standing in Tudor England.
In addition to his legal prowess and royal connections, More distinguished himself as a notable author and philosopher. His influential work, ‘Utopia,’ which depicted an ideal society, demonstrated his intellectual depth and contributed further to his growing reputation. As More’s legal career flourished and his close association with King Henry VIII deepened, his rise to prominence in Tudor England became seemingly inevitable.
More’s appointment as Lord Chancellor marked a significant milestone in his career and positioned him as one of the most powerful figures in Tudor England. As Lord Chancellor, More served as the highest legal authority, responsible for dispensing justice in the kingdom. His keen intellect and unwavering commitment to the principles of fairness and justice earned him widespread respect and admiration among his peers and subordinates.
However, More’s tenure as Lord Chancellor was not without its challenges. He soon found himself embroiled in a clash with King Henry VIII over matters of conscience and religious beliefs. At the heart of the conflict was Henry’s desire to divorce his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, in order to marry Anne Boleyn. More, a devout Catholic, firmly opposed the annulment and steadfastly refused to endorse the king’s actions. This clash of principles ultimately set the stage for a battle of wills between More and the king, one that would have far-reaching consequences for both men and the entire kingdom.
Conflict with Henry VIII
The conflict between St. Thomas More and King Henry VIII began with the king’s desire to divorce his wife, Catherine of Aragon, and remarry in order to secure a male heir to the throne. More, a devout Catholic, refused to endorse the divorce as he believed it went against the teachings of the Church. His refusal put him in direct opposition to the king, who was determined to have his way.
As a close advisor to the king and an esteemed legal scholar, More’s refusal to acknowledge Henry VIII as the supreme head of the Church of England was seen as a direct challenge to the king’s authority. The refusal was not only based on his religious convictions but also on his commitment to the principles of law and justice. More believed that the Church, led by the Pope and not the king, held the ultimate authority in matters of faith. This clash of beliefs and principles set the stage for the pivotal events that would shape More’s fate and the course of Tudor England.
The Act of Supremacy
The passing of the Act of Supremacy in 1534 marked a pivotal moment in St. Thomas More’s life and his unwavering commitment to his Catholic faith. This legislation, enacted by King Henry VIII, declared the monarch as the supreme head of the Church of England, thereby challenging the authority of the Pope. For More, who firmly believed in the supremacy of the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church, this posed a significant dilemma.
As a devout Catholic, More found himself torn between his allegiance to the crown and his religious convictions. While he had served as an esteemed and loyal servant to King Henry VIII, holding the prestigious position of Lord Chancellor, he now faced a difficult choice. The Act of Supremacy demanded that all subjects, including More, acknowledge the king’s authority in religious matters, effectively renouncing their loyalty to Rome. However, More could not compromise his deeply held beliefs, leaving him in a precarious position.
The passing of the Act of Supremacy signified a turning point in More’s life, as it presented a direct conflict between his religious conscience and his duty to the crown. This clash of principles would ultimately lead More down a path of rebellion and defiance, setting the stage for the turmoil and martyrdom that would consume Tudor England. In the face of immense pressure and the threat of severe consequences, More’s steadfast commitment to his Catholic faith would become a defining aspect of his legacy.
Imprisonment and Trial
During his imprisonment in the Tower of London, St. Thomas More’s unwavering commitment to his principles continued to shine through. Confined to a dank and gloomy cell, he faced a harsh reality that tested his resolve. Yet, through it all, he remained resolute in his refusal to compromise his beliefs. More knew that his trial for treason would be a critical juncture, where he would have the opportunity to place the weight of his convictions on full display.
The trial itself was a contentious affair, as More passionately defended his principles against the accusations of treason. With eloquence and unwavering determination, he eloquently proclaimed his loyalty to his conscience and refused to bend to the pressure of conforming to the king’s desires. Despite the immense pressure and the potential consequences, More’s resolve did not waver throughout the trial. He stood firm, exemplifying a steadfastness that few could match.
Martyrdom and Legacy
More’s martyrdom and legacy serve as a poignant reminder of the profound impact one person’s unwavering commitment to their conscience can have on society. His refusal to compromise his principles, even in the face of dire consequences, is a testament to his remarkable steadfastness. More firmly believed in the supremacy of his Catholic faith and his allegiance to the Church, despite the passing of the Act of Supremacy which declared Henry VIII as the head of the Church of England.
As a result, More found himself imprisoned in the Tower of London, stripped of his position as Lord Chancellor, and subjected to a highly contentious trial for treason. Throughout the ordeal, More never wavered in his defense of his beliefs, arguing that he owed his first loyalty to God and his conscience. His resolute refusal to acknowledge the king’s authority over matters of faith ultimately led to his sentence of execution and martyrdom. More’s sacrifice serves as a timeless example of the power of conviction and the enduring legacy of those who remain steadfast in the face of adversity.
Questions & Answers
Who was St. Thomas More?
St. Thomas More was a prominent figure in Tudor England, known for his legal career and his strong Catholic beliefs.
What were the formative years of St. Thomas More like?
St. Thomas More had a privileged upbringing and received a quality education that played a significant role in shaping his values and principles.
How did St. Thomas More rise to prominence in Tudor England?
St. Thomas More’s successful legal career and his close association with King Henry VIII contributed to his rise to prominence in Tudor England.
What happened during More’s chancellorship?
More was appointed as Lord Chancellor and later clashed with King Henry VIII over matters of conscience and religious beliefs.
Why did More conflict with Henry VIII?
More’s conflict with Henry VIII began when he refused to endorse the king’s divorce from Catherine of Aragon and refused to acknowledge Henry VIII as the supreme head of the Church of England.
How did the passing of the Act of Supremacy impact More?
The passing of the Act of Supremacy challenged More’s allegiance to the crown and intensified his unwavering commitment to his Catholic faith.
What were the circumstances of More’s imprisonment and trial?
More was imprisoned in the Tower of London and later faced a trial for treason, during which he staunchly defended his principles.
What was More’s ultimate sacrifice?
More’s ultimate sacrifice was his refusal to compromise his conscience, even at the cost of his life.
What is St. Thomas More’s legacy?
St. Thomas More is remembered as a martyr for his conscience and his steadfastness in defending his beliefs, leaving behind a legacy of integrity and moral courage. | <urn:uuid:bb6365af-8ee9-4852-bfca-7a71b787c7f2> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://paintinglegends.com/st-thomas-more-martyrdom-for-conscience-in-tudor-england/ | 2024-12-06T17:06:49Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066415183.79/warc/CC-MAIN-20241206155059-20241206185059-00237.warc.gz | en | 0.985728 | 2,282 | 3.765625 | 4 |
The police are the absolute enemy. Grounded in slave patrols in the early American South, the institution has an unbroken history of protecting and upholding white supremacy. Recent movements in the United States have clarified this lineage of racist violence, beginning with slave patrols and culminating in indiscriminate police killings of black bodies. But white supremacy is not the only function of the police: the history of British policing is one of capturing and controlling unruly workers—of the creation of “white working class” subjects through a process of inclusion, discipline, and education. The police have a dual history: one of violent exclusion, one of insidious inclusion. If our opposition to the police rests only on their heritage of racism or class oppression, then we risk attacking a symptom instead of uprooting the whole. We are against the police not only for their clubs and their guns, but also for the ways they infiltrate our minds, making us citizen-cops and unwitting accomplices.
Therefore, instead of tracing the history of policing from start to finish, I offer here a metaphysical history of the police, a history that takes place on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, in Britain and the British colonies in America. From two exemplary moments we can trace separate but entangled logics of policing—two signatures, inseparable from the origins of policing and from its current manifestations. The first is a story of slave patrols, of anti-Blackness and the foundations of slavery that underpin white civil society. The second is a story of inclusion, of certain bodies being incorporated into civil society, granted certain privileges while being educated and disciplined into new subjects. Absolute violence and contingent violence; punishment and discipline; racism and cybernetics; slave patrols and crowd control: these are some of the binaries that continue in contemporary policing. Separate but sharing a common body, these continuing stories are like the two hands of the state: one offers a friendly hand shake, the other extends only a gun.
We begin our tale in 1819.
Two Moments of Policing
South Carolina, 1819.
Cotton plantations formed the backbone of the economy. The black population outnumbered whites, and white fear of slave insurrection was rampant. The South Carolina General Assembly enacted a law requiring all white men over the age of 18 to participate in slave patrols, punishable by a fine of $2.00 and 10% of the offenders’ last taxes. 1 Slave patrols in South Carolina, while ongoing since 1671, transformed in this moment from the responsibility of slave owners to the responsibility of all white society. Patrols rode through the countryside and the cities, terrorizing any black person found outside after dark, checking passes, and raiding homes in search of weapons or plans of revolt. The new law followed two attempted insurrections, and reflected a growing fear among propertied whites of widespread slave rebellions. This law served to deputize all of white society against black slaves and freedmen.
“Slave patrols had full power and authority to enter any plantation and break open Negro houses or other places when slaves were suspected of keeping arms; to punish runaways or slaves found outside their plantations without a pass; to whip any slave who should affront or abuse them in the execution of their duties; and to apprehend and take any slave suspected of stealing or other criminal offense, and bring him to the nearest magistrate.” 2
St. Peter’s Field, Manchester, Great Britain, August 16, 1819.
Sun shone down on a mass meeting of working men demanding parliamentary reforms and suffrage in St. Peter’s Field. Dressed in their Sunday best, with strict orders to remain peaceful and respectable, 60,000 workers gathered in formation to hear speeches and make plans to demand, by legal means, parliamentary reforms. Fearing insurrection, a combination of militias peopled by shop-keepers and privileged tradesmen, as well as multiple military forces and cavalries, gathered to “keep the peace.” As soon as Henry Hunt began his speech, the Yeomanry militias charged; a survivor describes it thus:
“On the cavalry drawing up they were received with a shout of good-will, as I understood it, They shouted again, waving their sabres over their heads; and then, slackening rein, and striking spur into their steeds, they dashed forward and began cutting the people. ‘Stand fast,’ I said, ‘they are riding upon us; stand fast.’ And there was a general cry in our quarter of ‘Stand fast.’ The cavalry were in confusion: they evidently could not, with all the weight of man and horse, penetrate that compact mass of human beings; and their sabres were plied to hew a way through naked held-up hands and defenceless heads; and then chopped limbs and wound-gaping skulls were seen; and groans and cries were mingled with the din of that horrid confusion. ‘Ah! Ah!’ ‘for shame! for shame!’ was shouted. Then, ‘Break! break! they are killing them in front, and they cannot get away’; and there was a general cry of ‘break! break!’ For a moment the crowd held back as in a pause; then was a rush, heavy and resistless as a headlong sea, and a sound like low thunder, with screams, prayers, and imprecations from the crowd moiled and sabre-doomed who could not escape.”3
The event was later titled “the Peterloo Massacre,” a tongue-in-cheek reference to the Battle of Waterloo, four years prior. Fifteen people were killed and hundreds more wounded by the sabres and horses of the militias. The immediate consequence was a nationwide crackdown on dissent, but there was also a public opinion backlash. Even the petit bourgeoisie present, political opponents of the working class Republicans, were horrified by the indiscriminate violence. The state and the capitalists required the working class; they must be controlled, but not eradicated. New techniques were needed to govern unruly crowds, to control them and integrate them into civil society. The British government cited the Peterloo Massacre, and the need for “less-lethal” forms of crowd control, for the formation of the London Metropolitan Police by Robert Peel.
Signatures of Policing
Different as they are, these two moments are inextricable. From the Peterloo Massacre and subsequent British police reform we can trace disciplinary society, the foundations of liberalism, and the seeds of cybernetic and neoliberal social control: subjects must be identified, educated and incorporated into society. But liberal Western society, with its good citizens, its Fordist workers, its neoliberal entrepreneurs of the self, cannot exist without the slave patrols and what Frank B. Wilderson, III calls the “paradigmatic violence” that suffuses Black existence. This is a violence that can be issued at any time, without cause: not as a punishment for transgression, but as a punishment for one’s existence. If the response to the Peterloo Massacre represents one side of policing, concerned with civilizing and managing white society, the moment of slave patrols and the conscription of all white men into policing black bodies represents the other.
A metaphysical history of the police takes these two elements of policing, these two beacons, and shines a light through history towards them. If the light is bright enough, and tightly focused on the right places, it might also obliquely illuminate other hidden reefs, those submarine counterrevolutions that lurk just below the surface in every radical program.
This history does not seek to be causal, or linear, but instead highlights signatures that shine with particular clarity. The first signature of the police is slave patrols: the requirement of black social death for white civil society, and the indiscriminate racist police violence that continues today. The second signature is the management of civil society. Starting from two different contexts—the antebellum American South and industrializing Britain—these signatures carry through to the present until they combine in the dual function of the modern police: management and exclusion; contingent violence against transgressors, and absolute violence against racialized bodies. The techniques required by these motives bleed into one another, while the originary split remains. We see this in the everyday harassing and targeting of black bodies (in police shootings, stop and frisk policies, and more), as much as in the friendly police presence accompanying the recent Women’s Marches across the country.
Slavery in the New World: Exclusion, Surveillance, and Social Death
Slave patrols did not begin in 19th century South Carolina, though they may have reached their symbolic apotheosis there. Beginning in the 1500s in the newly colonized Americas, colonizers began using slaves, either imported from Africa or captured from local indigenous populations. And, consequently, some slaves tried to escape, and the first seeds of slave patrols emerged, militias organized to hunt down runaway slaves, punish them, and bring them back. One of the first formal organizations was founded in the 1530s in Cuba, called the Santa Hermandad or the Holy Brotherhood. But, for the most part, these arrangements tend to be casual and extra-legal, composed of volunteers or hired thugs.
In 1661, the Barbados Slave Code was written, one of the first legal frameworks for managing slaves. The Slave Code codified the treatment of slaves, and in particular specified the responsibilities of white men and indentured servants in managing and tracking them. The need for a formal arrangement, and for the ability to inflict direct relations of force, was highlighted by the British governor of Barbados, Willoughby:
“Though there be no enemy abroad, the keeping of slaves in subjection must still be provided for.”
The need to manage and violently control slaves led, ultimately, to the importation of 2000 British soldiers between 1692 and 1702, who were tasked explicitly with controlling slaves. It’s worth noting that Barbados never experienced significant, successful slave revolts. Haiti, on the other hand, which lacked as intense a counterinsurgency apparatus, saw the largest successful slave rebellion in history in 1791.
These forces are the precursors of slave patrols in the American South, and, subsequently, of the police. They were concerned with tracking and managing certain, racialized, people, with preventing insurgencies and uprisings, with protecting private property and violently enforcing an arrangement that turned certain humans into property. Slave patrols went through a variety of iterations, regionally and historically, before we reach 1819, and the mandatory conscription of white men. This is the example par excellence of the logic that Frank Wilderson, III describes: “white people’s signifying presence is manifested by the fact that they are, if only by default, deputized against those who do magnetize bullets. In short, white people are not simply “protected” by the police, they are—in their very corporeality—the police.”
This logic is extended with the introduction of slave passes in the rapidly industrializing South and lantern laws in New York City. Unlike Britain, with its uprooted proletariat, stripped of their means of subsistence through enclosure and sent wandering into the cities looking for work, and unlike the American North, with its interminable supply of immigrants sent over from Europe as a result of starvation, criminalization, or persecution, the South was particularly devoid of free, landless laborers. As a consequence, slave owners begin renting their slaves out to industrial capitalists. (This practice, incidentally, never ended, but today takes the form of prison labor being rented out to various factories, corporations, and agricultural operations.) The increasing mobility of slaves, traveling on their own to factories, with passes from their plantations, led to an increased need to police public urban spaces. Increasing mobility also required newer, more complex technologies for tracking and identifying bodies. At first there was the handwritten pass, and then, in various states and at various times, there were printed forms, metal badges, and other early forms of identification; the precursors to passports and state IDs that we all carry today.4
Likewise, in New York City, “lantern laws” introduced in the 18th century after failed slave insurrections required all slaves to carry a lantern when traveling in the city after dark; Simone Browne describes the lantern as “a prosthesis made mandatory after dark, a technology that made it possible for the black body to be constantly illuminated from dusk to dawn, made knowable, locatable, and contained within the city.”5 Subsequent additions to the law also forbade “assembly, the carrying of weapons, riding on horseback through the city by ‘trotting fast’ or in some other disorderly fashion, gaming and gambling, along with other regulations to the racialized body in the city.” 6 We can see here the creation not only of “public order” laws that have always been racist, but of conditions in which black bodies can be found guilty at any time. We have only to look at Eric Garner’s murder by New York Police for the crime of selling untaxed cigarettes to see that this logic, with its violent and racist consequences, continues today. Likewise, lantern laws continue today in the form of floodlights installed in overwhelmingly Black and Latinx housing projects. The lights pour into apartments, flooding the interior with light and ensuring that the racist history of light as a disciplinary apparatus continues to this day. These technologies, and their uses, continue to render black bodies exceptional, remarkable, and notable: always subject to police violence, white paranoia, and constant surveillance.
Passports and urban illumination alike share these racist roots, but have extended far past their original intent. On the other side of the Atlantic, in France, Alphonse Bertillon created his own system of biometric measurement and control to catch recidivist criminals. And now, we all carry these markers of our identity, mandated by the state. Through this process, the state uses pseudo-scientific methods to justify existing oppression, by identifying certain physical markers, linking them to race and deviance, and creating the appearance of a neutral social order. But biometric identification, while beginning in excluded populations, quickly spreads to encompass all of society. As the policing of cybernetic management and the policing of violent white supremacy share tactics, they begin to bleed into one another. Individuals benefitting from white supremacy suddenly find themselves subject to some of the same mechanisms of control. This explains in part the angry white libertarian, who can in the same breath denounce police for enforcing government regulations and the “criminal protesters” who fight them, or the “blue lives matter” supporter who is also in an anti-government militia.
Counter-insurgency in Europe: The Creation of White Civil Society
Ten years after the Peterloo Massacre, London still lacked a formalized police force. In contrast to the French gendarmerie—military police, directly involved in counter-insurgency efforts—London’s policing apparatuses were scattered and unprofessional, consisting of (often drunk) night-watches, tax-collectors, thief-takers, and detectives. The public backlash from the Peterloo Massacre, and a desire to appear different from the obviously repressive function of the gendarmerie, led the British Parliament to create the London Metropolitan Police in 1829. This police force—professional, uniformed, and unarmed—was largely inspired by Robert Peel’s Royal Irish Constabulary, a police force established in occupied Ireland. As usual, mechanisms of control and repression begin in the management of specific excluded populations—colonies, slaves, criminals, etc.—and then gradually expand to incorporate the entirety of a population. This is a process that continues today, as repressive techniques developed by the US military in Iraq against popular insurgencies are brought home to manage mass protests, or when the Oakland police received training from the Bahraini military in counter-insurgency and crowd-control techniques during the Occupy movement.
Despite their repressive function, the London Metropolitan Police were, from the start, intended to be part of the working class. Robert Peel emphatically believed that police work should be “performed by working-class men, supervised by working-class men.”7 While their function was primarily one of crowd control, they participated in daily patrols designed to familiarize themselves with neighborhoods and communities—a precursor to today’s “community policing” model. David Whitehouse sums up the division neatly: “When the London police were not concentrated into squads for crowd control, they were dispersed out into the city to police the daily life of the poor and working class. That sums up the distinctive dual function of modern police: There is the dispersed form of surveillance and intimidation that’s done in the name of fighting crime; and then there’s the concentrated form of activity to take on strikes, riots, and major demonstrations.”
The policing of daily life is of particular interest here. With the new concentration of large populations in London came new attempts to use outdoor and public space for collective needs. Workers lived in miserable, cramped conditions, and many people who came to cities didn’t have work. People began to use public spaces for assembling, for informal markets, for selling stolen goods, and for entertainment. Police patrols enforced “public order” laws that were directed towards the poor and the working class, and an intensely patriarchal Victorian morality, specifically regulating and controlling the movement and activity of women’s bodies in public.
While there is certainly some similarity here with the racialized “public order” policing in New York City, there is an important difference. Slave patrols in the American South, and public order policing in Northern cities, were based on an explicitly racial order: it was the duty of white men and citizens to apprehend and punish slaves or freed Black people who were found violating these ordinances. In London, however, while the laws being enforced were clearly based on class and gender divisions, those doing the enforcing were also of the working class. Absolute violence, justified by real or imaginary transgressions, was not an option; the police exercised contingent violence, in a process of class self-management. The backlash from the Peterloo Massacre demonstrated that the state could not treat citizens as dispensable. Instead, civil society depended on an educated, civilized, and managed working class.
On the rainy spring day of April 10, 1848, the Chartists planned a mass demonstration in Kennington Common. In many ways, the demonstration had similar goals, though more progressed, to that in St. Peter’s Field in 1819. As in 1819, the government was fearful of the crowd—revolutions swept Europe in that year, shaking the feudal system to its core. As in 1819, there was a large military presence, prepared to squash dissent. And, as in 1819, the demands of the crowd were essentially democratic and reformist—male suffrage, the elimination of property requirements for members of Parliament, and so on. It was a demonstration of a part of the working class, clamoring for participation in the institutions and structures that constituted civil society.
Unlike in 1819, however, the London Metropolitan Police were present, including Robert Peel. Armed with truncheons, organized into disciplined battalions, the police were prepared to disperse the crowd if necessary. But there was no cavalry charge this time, no slashing of sabres or blood spilled in the rain. The crowd was smaller than anticipated, and their plan to march on Parliament was foiled by the police cordon blocking a bridge—an early kettle. The London Police Commissioner quickly targeted one of the leaders of the Chartists and informed him that they would not be allowed to cross the bridge; the leader returned and spoke to the crowd, which dispersed shortly afterward. In this moment, just as in the massacre of 1819 and the mandatory slave patrols in South Carolina, lies a crystallized moment of policing—the birth of soft policing. All of the elements were present in their early forms: the threat of overwhelming force; the calm, uniformed, and disciplined police; and the strategy of enlisting political leaders to help manage and de-escalate the crowd. The goal of the police was not to eradicate the crowd, or to punish them for assembling, but to pacify the crowd, to ensure that their assembly was rendered respectable and toothless.
What is notable here is the invention of a new type of policing, one that can claim alliance with the idea of liberty. The British cited their aversion to the political and military police of the French gendarmerie in their creation of a professional, and public, police force. But this rhetoric of liberty and self-management still relied on a racist global regime of slavery and colonization. The “liberty” of the British, defended by philosophers like John Stuart Mill, required colonial subjects as examples to contrast with the “free” British ones, as well as institutions, disciplines, and, of course, the police, to create a civic sphere in which “freedom” could be exercised. The Western idea of liberty was conceived of in the shadow of slavery and colonization.8
Two Modes of Policing
So far we’ve contrasted a simple binary of police origins: slave patrols in the American South, and working class discipline in England. From the former, we can trace a lineage of social death, of paradigmatic violence, of a universal justification for violence against black bodies. From the latter, we can trace a police which, while repressive, and while always violently on the side of property and bosses, claims to be part of a working class community. Not too long ago, liberals were claiming that the police, too, were part of the 99%, and therefore not the enemy of the Occupy movement.
In the white imaginary, the idea remains that one can appeal to the government and reform the police, that we can improve our lot in society.
The Chartists sought the vote for themselves, while ignoring the violent colonial structures that supported their lives. In this framing, the police might exist as a limit to push against, but not as an existential threat. Frank Wilderson sums up this relation neatly in his condemnation of socialist coalition politics, which are “able to imagine the subject that transforms itself into a mass of antagonistic identity formations, formations that can precipitate a crisis in wage slavery, exploitation, and hegemony, but…are asleep at the wheel when asked to provide enabling antagonisms toward unwaged slavery, despotism, and terror.”
This willingness of white people to accept the regulations of the police in exchange for some benefits and privileges explains why anti-police movements primarily erupt in black communities and communities of color. The Black Lives Matter movement has popularized the idea that the police evolved from slave patrols in the South. This is an important evolution and opens up new space for anti-police movements to grab hold in the mainstream. At the same time, an analysis of the police that understands them only as evolved from slave patrols, and primarily as a tool of white supremacy, leaves us with a partial story. It is a narrative that is particularly conducive to ally politics: if the police are primarily bad because they are racist, then the only role for white people is as allies. Anti-police work then easily becomes limited by a moral imperative of charity rather than a strategic and ethical linkage of struggles. It becomes impossible for white people to fight the police on their own terms, and for us all to find strength together, fighting because our causes are linked.
At the same time, analyses of social control as an array of cybernetic management techniques often ignore the very real, and very brutal, violence that defines policing of communities of color. When Deleuze and Tiqqun speak of “soft policing” or the ways that social media dulls our senses and restricts our political imagination, they erase the jackboots on the ground of the police in communities of color or resistance.
If we understand policing as a spectrum of tactics and techniques drawn from both slave patrols and civil servants, then we begin to see that policing adapts itself to what is socially permissible. That is, they use the violence they can get away with.
This modulation of violence flies in the face of the idea that we are all equal before the law. The problem is not that the law is applied unfairly and needs to be reformed, but that law and policing require this differentiation. John Stuart Mill realized this from the start, and built it into his own framework of civilized liberty. Liberty was to be reserved for those who were responsible and had been fully integrated into self-management. As Lisa Lowe puts it, this formulation “justified, in Mill’s writings, the despotism of colonial rule for those ‘unfit’ for representative government.”9 We see this logic at play every single time politicians and police condemn Black communities for rioting, every time Trump talks about the “carnage” in Chicago or Baltimore as justification for sending in federal agents, every time right-wing trolls call for the police to use live ammunition against “savage” protestors.
A better understanding of policing and control allows us to develop a more nuanced critique of social control, civil society, and white supremacy, and to discover more ways to intervene in and disrupt mechanisms of control.
Opposition to the police must not come from an abstract morality, in which the privileged recognize their unjust impact on other communities, but from our shared needs and desires—the police stand between all of us and a free world.
Seeking the moral high ground in anti-police struggles will only lead to respectability politics or to minor reforms that integrate some privileged few more fully into whiteness and civil society. Instead of symbolic protest, we should disrupt their ability to police. We can sabotage the soft management and surveillance enabled by social media, the jail cells and police cars that form the backbone of their coercive power, and the weapons factories that supply them. A free world requires the destruction of policing.
H.M. Henry,The Police Control of the Slave in South Carolina (Vanderbilt, 1914), 36 ↩
P.S. Foner History of Black Americans from Africa to the Emergence of the Cotton ↩
Kingdoms (Westport: Greenwood, 1975), 206; Humphrey Jennings, Pandaemonium, 1660-1886: The Coming of the Machine as Seen by Contemporary Observers (New York: The Free Press, 1985), 151 ↩
Christian Parenti, The Soft Cage: Surveillance in America from Slavery to the War on Terror (New York: Basic Books, 2003), 13-19 ↩
Simone Browne, Dark Matters: On the Surveillance of Blackness. (Durham: Duke University Press, 2015) 79 ↩
Browne, 80 ↩
Clive Emsley, Crime, Police, & Penal Policy: European Experiences 1750-1940 (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007), 109 ↩
Lisa Lowe, The Intimacies of Four Continents (Durham: Duke University Press, 2015), 113 ↩ | <urn:uuid:19116359-6cdd-4e3b-98d1-fb7506d71329> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://ar.crimethinc.com/2017/03/15/slave-patrols-and-civil-servants-a-history-of-policing-in-two-modes | 2024-12-07T14:40:41Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066429485.80/warc/CC-MAIN-20241207132902-20241207162902-00080.warc.gz | en | 0.952865 | 5,623 | 2.859375 | 3 |
“The power to assemble a permanent national DNA database of all offenders who have committed any of the crimes listed has catastrophic potential. If placed in the hands of an administration that chooses to ‘exalt order at the cost of liberty’ [such a] database could be used to repress dissent or, quite literally, to eliminate political opposition…Today, the court has opted for comprehensive DNA profiling of the least protected among us, and in so doing, has jeopardized us all.” Judge Stephen R. Reinhardt, dissenting in U.S. v Kincade, 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, 2004, a ruling that allowed parolees to be compelled to provide a DNA sample.
Genetic technologies provide a new arena for tensions between our cherished ideals of liberty, order, justice, and fairness. Newspapers report the wonders such genetic knowledge can bring, but less often the threats for which these “advances” are also responsible. In reality, the ability to identify people and determine elements of their genetic profiles has significant downsides.
The dominant ideology in Western society holds that the only problems caused by technologies are either unintended side effects or abuses. However, technologies are not designed to benefit all segments of society equally. Because of their size, scale, and requirements for capital investments and knowledge, modern technologies can allow already-powerful groups to consolidate their powers.
Many government and private programs collect biological tissues, DNA samples, and the results of genetic analyses. At the same time, tests for new specific genes are being developed and DNA databases are being shared among individuals and organizations. Although these practices themselves raise policy issues, the uses of such information (computerized and easily correlated) also put civil liberties at risk. These efforts often reflect a belief that genes determine who a person is and what he or she is likely to do, and thus how society should treat the individual. Yet despite talk about genes for homosexuality, intelligence, or violence, such complex behaviors are likely the result of many biological and non-biological factors.
The use of the genetic technologies for control is reserved for elites—medical professionals, government functionaries, the very wealthy and their agents. And the people whose data is collected will often be those with little power. Thus employers test employees, insurance companies and health organizations test patients, college officials test students, and legislators pass bills proposing to test disempowered groups (e.g., prisoners).
The US Department of Defense (DoD) insists on taking DNA samples from all of its personnel, ostensibly to aid in the identification of those killed in action or military accidents, although its database has also been used for law enforcement purposes. Yet the samples are to be kept for 50 years (long after people have left active duty), the program includes civilian employees who are not in harm’s way, the agency refuses to issue regulations barring all third-party use, and the Department will not accept waivers from the next of kin of subjects not wanting to donate tissues.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) suggests some factors to consider when data is being collected that will go into a systemic database: * Personal information should not be collected without individuals’ informed consent; * Mandatory collection must be limited to what is required to achieve legitimate policy objectives. Exceptions should require statutory authority and information must be destroyed or made anonymous as soon as the authorized use is completed; * The degree of control an individual has over such information should depend on how “sensitive” it is (e.g., its potential to cause the person harm if made accessible or misused and the importance the person places on its confidentiality); * Information on ethnic origin, political or religious beliefs, health status, and sexual and financial life are often considered sensitive. Possible harms include limits to a person’s economic, social, or political opportunities and needless embarrassment, stigma, or threats to the person’s safety.1
DNA sequencing “ladder” in an autoradiogam. Image courtesy www.all-about-forensic-science.com
Every politician is in favor of solving crime, yet the Founding Fathers still saw the need for the Fourth Amendment to prohibit unreasonable searches and seizures, and the constitutions of many states have even stronger provisions protecting privacy.2 Since the 1990s the FBI has been promoting the genetic screening of criminals for use in criminal investigations, with results being used to establish state DNA identification databanks and compiled into a single national data library, the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS).3 Yet the data—from about 10 million Americans so far—include samples from individuals whose crimes have low recidivism rates and whose crimes don’t usually leave tissue DNA behind. The US Attorney General has set up a program to “assess criminal justice system delays in the analysis of DNA evidence and develop recommendations to eliminate those delays” which began in March of 2003; however, there is little evidence of concern for the civil liberties aspects of the program.4 Access to CODIS is available to all law enforcement and judicial proceedings and, in a somewhat limited scope, to criminal defendants.5
An increasingly common development is the collection and filing in CODIS of DNA from people who are merely accused and arrested, seemingly violating the Constitutional presumption of innocence. In 2012, the highest court in Maryland ruled that DNA collection from arrestees violated the Fourth Amendment; according to The New York Times, of the 10,666 samples collected in the state last year from arrestees, only 10 were from people who were later convicted.6 In other words, for 99.9% of these “searches” it is hard to argue there is a valid criminal justice function being served. The issue is also before the Supreme Court of Vermont.7 In the meantime, the US Supreme Court has put the Maryland ruling on hold, indicating a likely review during its 2012-13 term.8
On the other hand, specific matching of DNA from crime-scene samples and from suspects or people convicted of crimes (as opposed to using a pre-existing databank) has resulted in the exoneration of many falsely convicted individuals. In about a quarter of these cases, the wrongly convicted defendants made confessions or gave incriminating statements, thus suggesting that existing investigative procedures often involve coercion or, at very least, fail to protect the presumption of innocence. Interestingly, many prosecutors and judges resist this sort of post-trial testing despite the fact that testing has led to the apprehension of the actual perpetrator.
Another civil liberties concern is that racial disparities so evident in the criminal justice system are also reflected in the databanks, thereby perpetuating the problem. Additionally, some proponents argue that current DNA collection techniques involve “only a mouth swab,” insisting this makes the procedure less “invasive” than taking blood samples and meeting the legal standard of reasonable searches.9
Genetic privacy, like medical privacy in general, involves questions of the dignity and integrity of the individual. Are the genetic data accurate? Can individuals access their own files? Can the donor correct inaccurate data? Are the custodians faithful and are technical security systems protecting the data where possible? Does the individual have control over which third parties are allowed access, and under what conditions? Many of the factors noted in the ACLU Policy above are directed toward addressing such privacy concerns.
Federal law has increasingly given attention to medical records privacy, especially in light of the growing trend toward computerization of medical information.10 The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), 1996, imposes significant federal rules about privacy for health information—including genetic data—held by health care providers, group insurance programs (including Medicaid, Medicare, and Veterans Affairs), and “health care clearinghouses” (mainly billing services).11 11 It does not cover employment, individually purchased health insurance, or life insurance, even if these records contain health information.
Under the HIPAA statute, the “Privacy Rule” was promulgated in 2002, requiring covered organizations to provide patients with a notice describing how it will protect health information, including the patient’s right to see the records and make corrections, learn how it has been used, and request additional protections.12 A “Security Rule” covers administrative, physical, and technical safeguards that organizations use to assure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of electronic protected health information. However, privacy issues continue to arise with regard to other collections of DNA, such as CODIS, collection by the DoD, etc.13
Scientists working with the Council for Responsible Genetics have documented hundreds of cases in which healthy people have been denied medical insurance or employment on the basis of genetic “predictions.” Yet few genetic diseases follow inevitably from having a specific genetic variant; most are probabilistic in occurrence. Genetic tests—which have inherent limits—cannot tell us if a genetic mutation will become manifest; likewise, if it does so, tests cannot tell us when in life this will occur or how severe the condition will be. In addition, many genetic conditions can be controlled or treated by interventions and environmental changes, which is why governments have mandated for decades that newborns be tested for phenylketonuria (PKU) and treated if the condition is found.
This discrimination was partially addressed when the HIPAA was implemented, which prohibited commercial health insurers from excluding people because of past or present medical conditions, including predisposition to certain diseases. HIPAA specifically states that genetic information in the absence of a current diagnosis is not a pre-existing condition; however, it does not prevent covered health plans from requesting genetic information from individuals as a part of the insurance underwriting process.
After many attempts, specific federal legislation finally passed in 2008 (the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act, or “GINA”) addressing genetic discrimination in health insurance and employment. The Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and the Treasury administer the use of genetic information in group and individual health insurance, and employment enforcement is under the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).14,15 GINA makes it illegal to discriminate on the basis of genetic information (including the genetic information of family members) and restricts entities such as employers, employment agencies, and labor organizations from seeking genetic information. The disclosure of genetic information to third parties is limited as well.
Starting in 2014, prohibitions against health insurance plans discriminating on the basis of health status are amplified under the Affordable Care Act.16 The act explicitly lists “genetic information” among the health status-related factors which cannot be used to establish rules for eligibility or coverage. However, sellers of life insurance, disability insurance, and long-term care insurance can still use genetic data to discriminate against applicants.
The availability of genetic data may seem to justify the creation of new human beings that lack specific, undesirable genetic variants, which raises additional concerns both about loss of privacy and increased opportunities for discrimination by powerful entities. In such a world, the desire for perfectionism and the ability to predict a baby’s characteristics would replace tolerance for natural variation and diversity. Powerful scientists have already called for programs of eugenics, cleverly labeled as “genetic enhancement,” to create more appealing suites of characteristics in individuals.17 Articles and television shows on “designer babies” were commonplace as many as ten years ago and, in conjunction with the 2012 Olympics, stories on “super athletes” were carried in the media, all of which raised the public profile of this controversial topic.18
It’s one thing to be curious about “genetic foreknowledge,” but when does that carry over into control of genetic futures—of children, for example? Genetic tests are conducted not only on prospective parents, but are now available to test fetuses for potential “genetic problems.”19 The newly developed techniques in the field of synthetic biology could potentially provide additional powerful tools and make them more widely available for similar ends.20
Could parental genetic decisions actually limit the civil liberties of children?21 There is a dystopian possibility—the creation of human-animal chimeras. After all, we have 98% genetic similarity to an ape (and 75% to a pumpkin for that matter!), suggesting that creation of chimeras is quite possible. Although the U.S. Patent Office has ruled that chimeras are ineligible for patenting, will they be considered sufficiently “human” to be accorded civil rights?22
Until recently, the civil liberties implications of genetic patents were only the concern of a few people. This changed on May 12, 2009 when the ACLU filed a lawsuit to challenge the validity of Myriad Genetics’ patent on the so-called “breast cancer genes” BRCA1 and BRCA2, despite the fact that 19 out of every 20 women with breast cancer do not have this gene configuration.23 The suit claims the patent is stifling research that could lead to cures and is limiting diagnostic testing and women’s options regarding their medical care. In other words, modern corporate genetic practices actually impede research because, “biotechnology companies are keeping university scientists from fully researching the effectiveness and environmental impact of the industry’s genetically modified crops [and human diseases].”24 Unlike European law, U.S. law does not contain a “research exemption” to prevent such stifling.25
Although human genetics research and development are usually presented as “advances,” they may also be setting back our civil liberties on many fronts. Chief among the downsides are increased numbers of widely-available databases that correlate many facets of people’s biology, lives, and activities, as well as increasing incidences of loss of privacy and discrimination. While federal legislation and administrative rules have begun to address these problems, private and governmental data mining grows rapidly as new technological formats are developed and a technological rationality (i.e., “more information is better”) continues to hold sway over public opinion. As society becomes more familiar with genetics, privacy violations and discrimination may decrease but—at the same time—the rationales for increasing the numbers of public information/DNA databases also increases. These negative consequences need to be more fully considered in any public policy decisions about genetic technologies. | <urn:uuid:fad12e72-a1df-4141-9ee4-9b05426303ff> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.scienceinstyle.com/biotechnology/genes_and_civil_liberties.html | 2024-12-03T11:51:21Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066137897.45/warc/CC-MAIN-20241203102227-20241203132227-00301.warc.gz | en | 0.946721 | 2,924 | 2.546875 | 3 |
When Do You Start Showing Pregnancy? Most women start showing pregnancy between 12 and 16 weeks. This varies depending on body type and number of pregnancies.
Pregnancy is a unique journey for every woman. The early signs of pregnancy can vary significantly. Many women notice changes around the end of the first trimester. Factors like body type, muscle tone, and whether it’s the first pregnancy influence when a bump becomes visible.
First-time mothers might show later than women who have been pregnant before. Understanding these variations helps expectant mothers anticipate changes. As the baby grows, the body adjusts, leading to a noticeable baby bump. Staying informed about these changes can ease anxiety and help women embrace their pregnancy journey. Each woman’s experience is special and unique.
Introduction To Pregnancy Changes
Pregnancy brings many changes to a woman’s body. These changes can be both exciting and challenging. Understanding these changes can help you prepare for the journey ahead.
Early pregnancy symptoms can vary. Some common signs include nausea, tiredness, and tender breasts. These symptoms usually appear in the first few weeks.
- Nausea: Often called morning sickness, it can happen any time of the day.
- Tiredness: You might feel more tired than usual.
- Tender Breasts: Your breasts may feel sore and swollen.
The timeline for showing pregnancy can differ. Most women start showing between 12 and 16 weeks. Your body type and if this is your first pregnancy can affect when you start to show.
Factor | Influence on Showing |
Body Type | Thinner women may show earlier. |
First Pregnancy | First-time moms might show later. |
Multiple Pregnancies | Women with more than one pregnancy may show sooner. |
First Trimester Visibility
The first trimester of pregnancy is an exciting time. Many women wonder when they will start showing. This period often brings subtle changes that can be both thrilling and bewildering.
During the first trimester, the body undergoes significant transformations. The uterus begins to expand to accommodate the growing baby. This can lead to a slight bulge in the lower abdomen.
Most women won’t show much during this time. Weight gain is usually minimal, around 1-5 pounds. However, some may notice their clothes feeling a bit tighter. Bloating and gas can also make the belly appear larger than it is.
Here are some common physical changes:
- Minor weight gain
- Uterus expansion
- Breast tenderness and growth
These changes are normal and part of the body preparing for the baby.
Hormones play a crucial role in the first trimester. Increased levels of progesterone can cause digestive slowdown, leading to bloating.
Estrogen and hCG levels rise rapidly, which can affect the skin, making it look more radiant or leading to breakouts. These hormones also contribute to the overall feeling of pregnancy, even if the belly isn’t visibly showing.
Let’s look at the key hormonal impacts:
Hormone | Impact |
Progesterone | Slows digestion, causing bloating |
Estrogen | Affects skin, breast growth |
hCG | Supports pregnancy, can cause nausea |
Understanding these changes can help you feel more prepared for what’s to come. Remember, every pregnancy is unique, and these experiences can vary from person to person.
Second Trimester Transformations
The second trimester is often called the “honeymoon phase” of pregnancy. This period usually spans from week 13 to week 27. Many women experience significant changes during this time. These transformations can be both exciting and surprising. Here, we explore some of the key changes you can expect.
During the second trimester, your baby bump starts to become more noticeable. This is because the baby is growing rapidly. By the end of the second trimester, many women have a clearly visible bump. The uterus expands and moves upwards, making your belly more prominent.
Here’s a quick look at how your bump may develop:
Week | Bump Development |
13-16 | Small bump, often not noticeable to others |
17-20 | Bump becomes more visible, clothes may feel tighter |
21-24 | Noticeable bump, people start to recognize pregnancy |
25-27 | Pronounced bump, pregnancy is obvious |
Skin And Hair Changes
Hormonal changes during the second trimester can affect your skin and hair. Some women may notice a healthy glow. This is due to increased blood flow and oil production. You might also see changes in your hair’s texture and volume.
Other common skin and hair changes include:
- Linea Nigra: A dark line running down the center of the belly.
- Stretch Marks: These may appear as the skin stretches to accommodate the growing baby.
- Hair Growth: Hair may become thicker and grow faster.
- Acne: Some women experience breakouts due to hormonal fluctuations.
It’s important to maintain a good skincare routine. This helps manage these changes effectively.
Third Trimester Growth
The third trimester is a crucial period in pregnancy. The baby grows rapidly during this time. Expectant mothers often notice significant changes in their bodies.
During the third trimester, the baby grows quickly. The uterus expands to accommodate this growth. This causes the mother’s belly to become visibly larger.
Here is a table showing average size increases:
Weeks | Baby’s Weight | Baby’s Length |
28-30 | 2.5-3 lbs | 15-16 inches |
31-34 | 3-5 lbs | 16-18 inches |
35-38 | 5-7 lbs | 18-20 inches |
39-40 | 7-8 lbs | 20-21 inches |
Preparing For Birth
As the baby grows, the body prepares for birth. The cervix begins to dilate. The baby’s head moves down into the pelvis. This is called “lightening” or “engagement.”
Here is a checklist of changes to expect:
- Increased Braxton Hicks contractions
- Pressure in the lower abdomen
- More frequent urination
- Backaches and pelvic discomfort
- Nesting instinct
These changes signal that the body is readying for labor. It is important to rest and stay hydrated. Regular prenatal visits are essential for monitoring the baby’s progress.
Factors Influencing When You Show
Pregnancy is a unique journey for every woman. Some may start showing early, while others may take longer. Several factors influence when you start showing. Understanding these factors can help manage your expectations and prepare for the changes your body will undergo.
Your body type plays a significant role in when you start showing. Women with a shorter torso may show earlier because there’s less room for the baby to grow upwards. The baby bump has to push outward sooner.
On the other hand, women with a longer torso might show later. There’s more space for the baby to grow vertically before it starts pushing out the belly.
Body Type | When You Might Show |
Short Torso | Earlier |
Long Torso | Later |
First Pregnancy Vs Subsequent Pregnancies
Whether it’s your first pregnancy or not also affects when you start showing. For first-time moms, the abdominal muscles are tighter. This means you may not show until the second trimester.
In subsequent pregnancies, the abdominal muscles are already stretched. Therefore, you might show earlier, even as soon as the first trimester.
- First Pregnancy: Show around the second trimester.
- Subsequent Pregnancies: Show as early as the first trimester.
These factors are just a few of the many that affect when you start showing. Every pregnancy is different, and it’s essential to remember that your journey is unique to you.
Myths Vs. Facts
Pregnancy is an exciting journey, but it is surrounded by many myths. Understanding when you start showing is crucial for expecting mothers. Let’s debunk some common misconceptions and uncover the truths.
- Myth: You will start showing immediately after conception.
- Myth: You must be carrying twins if you show early.
- Myth: Every woman shows at the same time.
- Myth: Your diet affects when you start showing.
Myth | Reality |
You will start showing immediately after conception. | Most women start showing between 12 and 16 weeks. |
You must be carrying twins if you show early. | Early showing can be due to various reasons, not just twins. |
Every woman shows at the same time. | Each woman’s body is different; showing times vary. |
Your diet affects when you start showing. | Diet has minimal impact on when you start showing. |
Most women start showing between 12 and 16 weeks. The uterus expands to accommodate the growing baby. This is when the baby bump becomes noticeable.
Early showing can be due to various reasons. Factors like body type, muscle tone, and previous pregnancies can influence when you start showing.
Each woman’s body is different. Genetics and physical condition play a significant role in showing times. There is no universal timeline.
Diet has minimal impact on when you start showing. Healthy eating is essential, but it doesn’t determine when your belly will grow.
Understanding these facts helps in managing expectations and enjoying the pregnancy journey. Remember, every pregnancy is unique.
When To Consult A Healthcare Provider
Knowing when to consult a healthcare provider during pregnancy is crucial. While each pregnancy is unique, certain signs and symptoms should prompt immediate medical attention. This ensures both the mother’s and the baby’s health and safety.
If you experience any unusual symptoms, it’s essential to consult your healthcare provider. These symptoms can include severe headaches, sudden swelling of the hands or face, or blurred vision. Additionally, if you notice bleeding or spotting, contact your healthcare provider immediately. These signs may indicate complications that require prompt medical attention.
Persistent nausea and vomiting can also be concerning. If you cannot keep food or liquids down, this could lead to dehydration. It’s important to address these symptoms with your healthcare provider to ensure you receive the necessary care.
Health And Safety Measures
During pregnancy, taking the right health and safety measures is vital. Regular prenatal check-ups help monitor the progress of your pregnancy and ensure everything is on track. Your healthcare provider will check your blood pressure, weight, and the baby’s growth.
Adopting a balanced diet and maintaining a healthy lifestyle are also key. Make sure to follow your healthcare provider’s advice on nutrition and exercise. They can provide guidance on safe physical activities and dietary choices that support a healthy pregnancy.
Symptoms | Action |
Severe headaches | Consult healthcare provider |
Sudden swelling | Consult healthcare provider |
Blurred vision | Consult healthcare provider |
Bleeding or spotting | Consult healthcare provider immediately |
Persistent nausea and vomiting | Consult healthcare provider |
- Monitor unusual symptoms closely.
- Attend regular prenatal check-ups.
- Follow a balanced diet.
- Engage in safe physical activities.
Being proactive about your health during pregnancy can make a significant difference. Always consult your healthcare provider if you have any concerns.
Support And Resources
Understanding when you start showing pregnancy can be both exciting and overwhelming. Having the right support and resources makes a big difference. Let’s explore the available support and resources that can help you during this special time.
Connecting with others who are on the same journey can be very comforting. Many communities offer local support groups where pregnant women share experiences and advice. These groups often meet weekly and can provide a sense of camaraderie.
Online forums are another great resource. Websites like BabyCenter and What to Expect have active communities where you can ask questions and get support from other expecting mothers. These forums offer 24/7 access to a wealth of information and emotional support.
Access to reliable information is crucial during pregnancy. There are numerous educational resources available:
- Books: Many books provide comprehensive information on pregnancy stages, diet, and exercise.
- Websites: Trusted websites like the Mayo Clinic and WebMD offer detailed articles and guides.
- Apps: Pregnancy tracking apps like Ovia and The Bump help you keep track of your progress and provide daily tips.
For those who prefer structured learning, prenatal classes are an excellent option. These classes cover various topics such as labor preparation, breastfeeding, and newborn care. Many hospitals and community centers offer these classes in-person or online.
Frequently Asked Questions of When Do You Start Showing Pregnancy
Can You Start Showing At 8 Weeks?
Yes, some women can start showing at 8 weeks, but it varies. Early signs might include a slight belly bulge.
When Does A Belly Start To Show In Pregnancy?
A belly usually starts to show between 12 to 16 weeks of pregnancy. Factors like body type and weight can influence this.
Can You Start Showing At 12 Weeks?
Yes, some people can start showing at 12 weeks. It varies based on body type and pregnancy history.
Can You Start Showing At 10 Weeks?
Yes, some women can start showing at 10 weeks. It varies based on body type and other factors.
When Do You Start Showing Pregnancy?
Most women start showing between 12-16 weeks of pregnancy.
What Are Early Signs Of Pregnancy Belly?
A slight bump, bloating, and a firm lower abdomen are early signs.
Can You Show At 8 Weeks Pregnant?
It’s uncommon to show at 8 weeks, but possible for some women.
When Do First-time Moms Start Showing?
First-time moms usually start showing between 12-16 weeks.
Does Showing Early Mean Twins?
Early showing can indicate twins, but not always. Consult a doctor.
How Can You Tell If You’re Showing?
A noticeable bump and tighter clothes indicate you’re showing.
Conclusion of When Do You Start Showing Pregnancy
Every pregnancy journey is unique, and showing varies for each woman. Understanding when you might start showing can help you feel prepared. Keep in mind that factors like body type, number of pregnancies, and overall health play a role. Embrace the changes and consult your healthcare provider for personalized advice.
Visit our other website to see/buy/read more women best products. | <urn:uuid:dd0c1fa1-6079-4aea-8952-c45ac8720c72> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://obviouslyher.com/when-do-you-start-showing-pregnancy/ | 2024-12-10T02:22:04Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066056346.32/warc/CC-MAIN-20241210005249-20241210035249-00245.warc.gz | en | 0.923974 | 3,040 | 2.75 | 3 |
After announcing that its rocket was facing technical difficulties that might delay its impending test, North Korea surprised the international community by abruptly launching a three-stage rocket on Wednesday morning local time. Even more surprising than the timing was that the “Unha” (the Korean word for “galaxy”) rocket appears to have successfully placed the Kwangmyongsong-3 (“Shining Star-3”) satellite into orbit, albeit there are reports that it is encountering difficulties.
But space enthusiasts have nothing to cheer. Under the guise of developing a space launch vehicle, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) is pursuing an intercontinental-range missile (ICBM) capability that would allow it reach targets as far away as California and Alaska. Long-range rockets designed as space delivery vehicles and long-range ballistic missiles intended to carry warheads use similar engines, boosters, and other technologies, though a satellite can be made lighter than a nuclear warhead, which needs a dense heat shield to withstand the high temperatures encountered in reentering the earth’s atmosphere. The Kwangmyongsong-3 weighs an estimated 100 kilograms, whereas a typical nuclear warhead weighs ten times more, though a good designer can make them far smaller and therefore lighter.
This was the fifth time the DPRK test launched a three-stage long-range missile potentially designed to reach the continental United States. Although the first four rocket tests failed, this most recent one has unexpectedly succeeded. The DPRK’s Taepodong (DPRK-named as Paektusan) long-range missiles use essentially the same technology as Unha and Paektusan rockets. The three-stage variants of these missiles have a potential range of perhaps 6,000-10,000 kilometers depending on the size of the payload it’s carrying, making it potentially sufficient to reach the western continental United States, which is roughly 9,000 km from North Korea.
The second rocket launch this year is yet another sign that the new generation of leaders in Pyongyang, led by Kim Jong-un, who assumed office last December, have not fundamentally departed from Kim Jong-il’s foreign and defense policies. In fact, DPRK propaganda has used the rocket test to glorify the achievements of the Kim dynasty. The DPRK’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said that, “At a time when great yearnings and reverence for Kim Jong-il pervade the whole country, its scientists and technicians brilliantly carried out his behests to launch a scientific and technological satellite in 2012, the year marking the 100th birth anniversary of President Kim Il Sung,” a reference to North Korea’s first leader and Kim Jong-un’s grandfather. The launch also commemorates the first anniversary of Kim Jong-il’s death, and more than compensates for the embarrassment Kim Jong-un suffered when the test in April proved to be a spectacular failure.
The latest test may be designed to influence the leadership changes that are occurring in China, Japan, and South Korea, with the latter two countries holding elections later this month. The successful test also places Pyongyang in a better negotiating position with its neighbors by bolstering its claim to having obtained a nuclear deterrent.
Although it remains a fair degree away from fielding a reliable nuclear deterrent, North Korea has repeatedly demonstrated that it is willing to pay dearly to acquire one. Last April’s test came at the cost of losing the conditional food aid the U.S. had pledged as part of a deal reached with Pyongyang in February of this year. The DPRK’s ballistic missile tests in 2006 and 2009 were similarly costly, resulting in UN Security Council sanctions being imposed on the country.
The DPRK responded both occasions with aggressive rhetoric and by testing a nuclear explosive, something many fear it is preparing to do again. The upsurge in tensions in 2009 also saw North Korea withdraw from the Six-Party Talks then underway between China, Japan, Russia, North and South Korea, and the United States. They have yet to resume.
Although the Six-Party-Talks do not address the DPRK’s missile capabilities directly, any enduring solution to the DPRK proliferation problem will require stringent constraints on the North’s missile activities. North Korea uses its missiles to enhance its own strike capabilities, compensate for its weak air force, and acquire hard currency by selling its weaponry on the open market. Although internal political and bureaucratic factors may be driving such a quest, the DPRK would also like the means to threaten the U.S. homeland to deter the United States from using force against it. Since its longer-range missiles are inaccurate, the DPRK wants to arm them with nuclear rather than much less-powerful conventional warheads.
As noted above, the DPRK has yet to demonstrate that it has manufactured a functional nuclear warhead that can fly long distances safely atop a ballistic missile and reenter the earth’s atmosphere with sufficient safety and accuracy. The North’s two previous tests of a nuclear explosive device were not seen as entirely successful, perhaps due to faults in the design of the warhead. The process of miniaturizing even a functioning nuclear weapon to place it inside a warhead is complex since it has to be able to withstand the tremendous heat that it encounters during launch and reentry. For example, a more accurate ICBM with a high ballistic coefficient would have to endure temperatures of around 2,000 degrees Celsius when reentering the atmosphere.
How long it will take the DPRK to do this depends on whether North Korea has been able to obtain one of the designs for tested warheads that the A. Q. Khan illicit trafficking network was selling on the black market, which would likely accelerate its progress. The DPRK reportedly obtained designs for centrifuges for enriching uranium from the Khan network. Another question is how much nuclear- and missile-related assistance the DPRK has and will receive from other foreign countries, especially China. The DPRK leadership would also want to convince others that the warhead and missiles could work as designed, which would require more successful nuclear warhead and ballistic missile tests.
Nonetheless, such tasks are not especially difficult if the DPRK is given enough time and additional opportunities for long-range missile testing. North Korea has already tested two nuclear explosive devices and, in view of its estimated past production of plutonium, likely possesses several nuclear weapons. It also is developing the capacity to enrich its large indigenous stocks of natural uranium into a nuclear warhead. The DPRK’s related research and development efforts focus on making warheads sufficiently small and secure that they can carry a nuclear weapon or other dangerous agents on North Korea’s ballistic missiles.
The question is how the U.S. and its allies can prevent North Korea from succeeding in this quest. One difficulty in addressing the North Korean threat is getting Russia and China to go along with more strident policy measures. Beijing and Moscow share some of the United States’ concerns regarding North Korea, and both urged North Korea not to go ahead with the rocket launch, and expressed regret after the fact.
Nonetheless, while Chinese and Russian officials generally agree that the world would be better if North Korea didn’t have nuclear-armed long-range missiles, they differ with Western governments on the tactics to pursue to avoid such an adverse outcome. At the end of the day, Chinese and Russian strategists consider DPRK missiles as posing only an indirect threat, since they do not foresee any reason why the DPRK would attack them.
Furthermore, they oppose strong sanctions that could precipitate the DPRK regime’s collapse, which would likely leave a failed state on their border. In fact, China and Russia remain more concerned about the DPRK’s collapse than Pyongyang’s intransigence regarding its nuclear and missile development programs.
Importantly, however, Chinese and Russian policymakers increasingly worry that the DPRK’s actions will encourage other countries — such as South Korea and Japan — to pursue their own offensive and defensive strategic weapons, especially nuclear weapons, ballistic missiles, and ballistic missile defense, which Tokyo, Seoul and perhaps other countries could someday use against China or Russia.
Another consideration affecting U.S. policy toward the DPRK nuclear issue is that American policymakers also do not want U.S. allies in the Pacific to perceive Washington as neglecting their security interests. The DPRK’s development of nuclear weapons and its improving ballistic missile capability has already affected East Asian regional security in many dimensions, including by calling into question U.S. security guarantees to Japan and South Korea.
This is, at least in part, why Japanese officials complain to their U.S. counterparts that the United States and the other parties to the Six-Party Talks do not pay sufficient attention to the DPRK’s missile capabilities. Japanese security experts also worry that American officials would accept a deal that would constrain DPRK long-range missile activities but not similarly restrict North Korean missiles having a shorter range (i.e., those that could reach Japan but not North America). Yet, Japanese leaders have not offered new initiatives to address these issues or break the current stalemate in the talks, which have remained in abeyance since 2009.
Another issue of concern to Japan and other U.S. allies, as well as Washington itself, is the credibility of Washington’s extended nuclear deterrence guarantees in East Asia. Although extended nuclear deterrence is ironically most effective at dissuading a government from launching a large-scale war against a covered country, it is much less effective at averting lower-level provocations. As Abe Denmark pointed out in December 2011, “North Korea has conducted 221 attacks against the South since 1953, an average of almost four attacks per year.” Furthermore, the trend is not in the ROK’s favor, with North Korea’s 2010 incidents marking a major escalation from previous years.
As a result, ROK military leaders now emphasize in their declaratory doctrine the need for a prompt and vigorous response to future DPRK provocations. South Koreans, alone and in cooperation with the U.S. military, have also been engaged in an expanded series of exercises during the past year. Although Chinese and Russian officials have often opposed these as provocative, the North Koreans normally have acted quietly and cautiously while the exercises are taking place, although their first nuclear test in 2006 came shortly after the U.S.-ROK concluded their annual Ulchi Focus Lens (UFL) exercise.
Most recently, the ROK has announced the acquisition of new, longer range ballistic and cruise missiles. This acquisition was opposed by Beijing and not entirely welcome in Washington either. What might happen if the ROK actually uses all this firepower in response to a low-level DPRK provocation is anybody’s guess. A few Americans and South Koreans have called on the United States to return tactical nuclear weapons to the South, or even for the ROK to develop its own small nuclear arsenal, but most people, including this author, consider such a move counterproductive.
The main problem confronting the United States is that while North Korean leaders believe they need nuclear weapons to deter U.S. threats, the U.S. view is that enduring peace on the Korean peninsula requires that it be free of nuclear weapons. Consequently, Washington has said it is prepared to work with the other parties to compensate the DPRK for any steps it took towards ending its nuclear weapons and missile programs, including by supplying economic assistance and security guarantees. But since Pyongyang has continued its wayward ways, most recently by launching a long-range missile, the United States and its allies have shunned the DPRK diplomatically and punished it with additional unilateral and multilateral sanctions. Representatives of the current U.S. administration, like its predecessors, have also affirmed a readiness to curtail North Korean nuclear threats by means other than negotiations, including through increased sanctions, strengthening allied defenses in the East Asian region, and increasing U.S. and multinational interdiction efforts.
The Obama administration remains committed to the “action for action” approach that combines the use of positive and negative incentives with a willingness to engage the DPRK within the multilateral context of the Six-Party Talks. Under its policy of “strategic patience,” the Obama administration has demanded that the DPRK give some concrete indication, before resuming the Six-Party Talks, that the DPRK would make progress toward ending its nuclear weapons program. The Obama administration’s “strategic patience” policy does complement South Korea’s by joining with Seoul in refusing to resume direct negotiations with the DPRK until it clearly changes its policies.
But this policy of patiently waiting for verifiable changes in DPRK policies possesses several risks. First, it provides North Koreans with additional time to refine their nuclear and missile programs. Second, the current stalemate is inherently unstable. The DPRK could at any time resume testing its nuclear weapons and long-range ballistic missiles, likely to confirm and support its quest for a reliable nuclear deterrent but also possibly out of simple frustration about being ignored. The strategy also risks allowing a minor incident to escalate through the ROK’s “proactive deterrence” policy, which calls for responding immediately and disproportionately to any DPRK military provocations to deter further aggression.
The worst scenario would see the DPRK leadership, thinking that their nuclear and missile arsenals would protect them by deterring potential counterattacks, launching another provocation only to trigger the massive and prompt response posited in the new ROK strategy. The DPRK might respond by detonating a nuclear device in order to shock the ROK and its foreign allies into de-escalating the crisis. Or it might simply bombard Seoul and its environs with the enormous number of artillery systems that the DPRK has amassed in the border region. | <urn:uuid:1ca72f0a-6106-422c-be51-bb2cd2367fea> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://thediplomat.com/2012/12/the-north-korea-problem-from-bad-to-worse/ | 2024-12-10T07:54:41Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066057523.33/warc/CC-MAIN-20241210071103-20241210101103-00794.warc.gz | en | 0.960566 | 2,815 | 2.65625 | 3 |
Recent advances in genome engineering technologies based on the CRISPR-Cas9 System enable opportunities for systemic interrogation of gene functions in mammalian cells. CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing tools can be used to introduce a change at a specific genomic location, either to cause a frameshift for loss-of-function studies or to insert an exogenous sequence for gain-of-function studies.
Similar to other nuclease-driven mutagenesis methods that introduce site-specific nucleotide changes, CRISPR-Cas9 editing in tissue culture results in a heterogeneous, polyclonal population in which the editing outcome may differ among individual cells. In some experimental settings, it may be necessary to generate an edited cell line containing a homogeneous genetic background to retain the desired genotype, and to facilitate downstream phenotypic characterization.
Isolating individual clones from a pooled population
Multiple approaches have been developed for isolation of monoclonal cell lines, such as single-cell sorting, isolation with cloning cylinders, and limiting dilution [1–3]. Although these methods are well-established and widely used, they all have limitations. Fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) requires a fluorescent reporter to be co-delivered and expressed, while cloning cylinders are used exclusively for adherent cells.
Limiting dilution requires a highly diluted cell suspension from which single cell-derived clones are isolated and further expanded. Unlike single-cell sorting or using cloning cylinders, which require sophisticated instruments, limiting dilution can be done with standard pipetting tools. However, it is a laborious and time-consuming process with low throughput. Also, this method cannot be applied to cells that do not propagate from single-cell clones. The probability of obtaining a single-cell in an aliquot of statistical value makes this method inherently inefficient. So, while limiting dilution provides the most versatile approach, it will require adjustments to give you the best chance of successful single clone isolation.
Comparison of 3 limiting dilution cloning protocols
IDT scientists assessed three types of limiting-dilution cloning protocols: low-density seeding, serial dilution, and array dilution. Of those, the array dilution method provides the highest success rate combined with ease of use . This method can be used to efficiently isolate a monoclonal cell line from a recently CRISPR-Cas9 engineered cell population, followed by clonal expansion to generate the desired cell line. We provide a detailed, step-informed protocol focused on adherent cells in the Appendix below.
The first limiting-dilution cloning method was performed using a diluted cell density as low as 0.5 cells per aliquot. This requires transferring 100 µL aliquots of a transfected cell suspension (5 cells/mL in complete growth medium) into each well of a 96-well plate. According to a Poisson distribution, seeding at an average of 0.5 cells/well ensures that at least some wells receive a single-cell, while minimizing the likelihood that any well receives more than 1 cell. This method was widely adopted for clonal isolation of hybridomas, but its efficiency in our hands was unexpectedly low, possibly due to relatively low cell viability after transfection.
Serial dilution method
The second method we tested started with a much higher cell density. As shown in Figure 1, the wells in Column 1 received 100 µL of cell suspension at a density of 1000 cells/mL. Subsequently, 2-fold serial dilutions were made horizontally across the plate. Serial dilution avoids the need to pipette very small volumes so is commonly used to prepare diluted analytes. The wells receiving the initial inoculum can be used to help focus the microscope when scanning the plate for individual cells that are sometimes difficult to find. Single clones are expected in Column 11 and adjacent columns. Compared to the low-density seeding method, in which the single clones are randomly distributed across the plate, this method saves the scanning labor by limiting the possible wells of interest to 3–4 columns instead of the entire 96-well plate. We also observed a discernible improvement in efficiency with this serial dilution method compared to low-density seeding.
Array dilution method
The last method, array dilution, provided us with the highest success rate . The initial inoculation occurs in one well instead of an entire column (see Figure 2). This allows for a subsequent 2-fold serial dilution—first vertically, then horizontally. In our hands, we retrieved more than 30 single clones out of 3 x 96-well plates. As expected, most of the single clones were found along the diagonal.
See the detailed, step-informed array dilution protocol focused on adherent cells in the Appendix below.
Appendix: An array dilution procedure for isolating CRISPR-Cas9 edited single clones derived from HEK-293 cells
Important considerations before you start:
- Editing efficiency is affected by many experimental factors, such as cell type, guide RNA design, and delivery efficiency. It is important to first optimize your genome editing experiments in your cells. Perform a primary validation experiment to determine the relative fraction of cells containing an edit. Based on the editing efficiency, you can estimate the number of single clones you will need to screen to identify a clonal cell line carrying the desired mutation.
- The validation process before single clone isolation varies depending on the nature of the desired mutation. Small indels are often detected in a mismatch cleavage assay (using, for instance, the Alt-R™ Genome Editing Detection Kit). A single nucleotide change can be assayed by Sanger sequencing, next generation sequencing, or droplet digital PCR genotyping. Large insertions and deletions can be identified by a size change in the PCR product produced by primers flanking the region edited.
- The survivability of single cell clones varies by cell type. Ensure that your cell line can produce colonies. Not every cell line is able to grow under the conditions described in the Appendix protocol. Some cells require contact with one another to grow and tend not to grow very well in sparse cultures due to a lack of secreted growth factors.
- The number of monoclonal cells obtained using this method is dependent on a number of experimental factors, such as the growth properties of the cell used. We typically obtain 10–15 single clones in each 96-well plate with the use of CRISPR-Cas9 edited HEK-293 cells.
Step 1. Prepare cells before transfection.
Note: HEK-293 cells are cultured in DMEM medium containing 10% fetal bovine serum (FBS). Cells are maintained at 37°C in a CO2 incubator at 37°C and passaged every 3 days. Ideally, cells should be at 70–80% confluency at the time of transfection.
Step 2. Deliver Alt-R ribonucleoprotein (RNP) complexes into HEK-293 cells in a 6-well plate.
A. (Recommended) Perform the transfection in a 6-well plate to ensure sufficient cells are available for subsequent experiments.
B. Incubate the transfected cells at 37°C in a 5% CO2 incubator for 48 hours, or until cells are 70–80% confluent.
Lipofection is a method to deliver CRISPR-Cas9 RNP to HEK-293 cells. See the user guide, Alt-R CRISPR-Cas9 System: Cationic lipid delivery of CRISPR ribonucleoprotein complex into mammalian cells for the recommended experimental setup and detailed protocol.
Electroporation may be required for some cell types that are refractory to lipid-mediated transfection, or are susceptible to cytotoxicity from the lipid reagents. Refer to the user guide Alt-R CRISPR-Cas9 System: Delivery of ribonucleoprotein complexes into HEK-293 cells using the Amaxa® Nucleofector® System or the user guide Alt-R CRISPR-Cas9 System: Delivery of ribonucleoprotein complexes into Jurkat T cells using the Neon® Transfection System for the recommended experimental setup and detailed protocol.
Step 3. Resuspend transfected cells to an optimal density.
A. Aspirate the medium and wash cells twice with pre-warmed PBS.
B. Add 500 µL of 0.05% Trypsin-EDTA to each well of the 6-well plate. Incubate the plate at 37°C in a CO2 incubator for 2–5 minutes. Use a microscope to verify that cells detach from the plate.
C. Stop trypsinization by adding 1 mL DMEM medium supplemented with 10% FBS. Break up any cell clumps into individual cells by passing cells several times through a serological pipet. Transfer the cell suspension to a sterile 15 mL centrifuge tube.
D. Count cells in the suspension to determine cell density. Dilute the suspension for more accurate counting as necessary.
E. Determine the total number of cells required for your experiment. Further dilute cells in complete growth medium to 2 x 104 cells/mL or the concentration suited to your cells.
Tip: We recommend 2 x 104 cells/mL as a good starting point. Further titration may be required for other cell types.
Step 4. Isolate single clones via serial dilution.
A. As shown in Figure 2, add 100 µL of complete culture medium to all wells of a 96-well plate, except well A1 (Figure 2).
B. Add 200 µL of cell suspension with proper cell density to well A1.
Note: For an input concentration of 2 x 104 cells/mL, the total cell number is 4000.
C. Transfer 100 µL of cell suspension from well A1 to B1. Mix by gently pipetting. Repeat the 1:2 dilutions down Column 1 using the same pipet tip (Figure 2, first dilution series).
D. Add 100 µL of complete culture medium to wells A–G in Column 1 to reach a final volume of 200 µL/well. Mix by gently pipetting.
E. Use the same tips to transfer 100 µL of cell suspension across the plate horizontally from Column 1 to Column 2. Mix by gently pipetting. Repeat the 1:2 dilution across the rows using the same pipet tips (Figure 2, second dilution series).
F. Add 100 µL of complete culture media to all wells in Columns 1–11 to bring the final volume of each well to 200 µL.
G. Incubate the plate at 37°C in a CO2 incubator. After 4–5 days, check cell growth and mark wells containing just 1 single colony. Incubation time may vary depending on cell growth rate.
H. Monitor cell growth daily and transfer colonies into larger vessels.
Note: HEK-293 cells are typically ready for subculture within 2 weeks after seeding on the 96-well plate.
Tip: Subculture a portion of the cells derived from the single clone into a larger vessel (e.g., 24- or 48-well plate). Transfer the rest of the cells into a new 96-well plate for screening purposes. Depending on the nature of the desired nucleotide change, various methods such as Sanger sequencing, next generation sequencing, or genotyping via qPCR can be used for confirmation of the desired genome editing events. | <urn:uuid:5a363a40-6229-442b-acd2-e1b45317cb54> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://stage.idtdna.com/pages/education/decoded/article/genome-editing-in-cell-culture-isolating-single-clones-for-genotypic-and-phenotypic-characterization | 2024-12-12T17:22:31Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066110042.43/warc/CC-MAIN-20241212155226-20241212185226-00650.warc.gz | en | 0.899053 | 2,387 | 2.640625 | 3 |
Days before Kristine (international name: Trami) developed into a severe tropical storm, the Philippine Sea was warmer than usual. Under the warming climate, the typhoon-prone Bicol Region is more vulnerable with decimated forests. Both Camarines Sur and Albay saw a net loss of tree cover from 2000 to 2020, according to Global Forest Watch.
By MAVIC CONDE
LEGAZPI CITY, Albay — A day after severe tropical storm Kristine flooded the Bicol Region with record-breaking rainfall, councilor Leonido Moratalla took pictures of submerged rice fields in Barangay Calzada, Oas town, for documentation.
Moratalla said that more than 10 hectares of rice fields have been affected, resulting in losses of approximately P1.5 million (USD 25,710). “There may be retrieved yields, but they are already stale or of low quality.”
This is nothing new for farmers like him during the typhoon season, he said, especially since Oas town in the northern province is located in the flood-prone Bicol River Basin, where the region’s main river system flows to San Miguel Bay in Camarines Sur (CamSur).
However, what happened in downtown Oas, where mud flooded the neighborhoods for the first time, and in Naga, CamSur’s city capital, where boats became a mode of transportation post-Kristine, showed its extreme nature, forcing the Bicol Region to confront its flooding vulnerabilities on a long-term basis.
What made Kristine rainy
Media interviews with local government officials showed that Kristine’s massive rainfall of 679 millimeters in Naga City was seven times more than its monthly average, while the 500 millimeters in Legazpi City exceeded the 1969 record-high of 484.6 millimeters.
Days before Kristine (international name: Trami) developed into a severe tropical storm, the Philippine Sea was warmer than usual.
Gerry Bagtasa, an atmospheric physicist and professor at the University of the Philippines, told Bulatlat that data from Japan Meteorological Agency showed that the surface temperature of the ocean surrounding the Philippines was 1°C above average — a deviation that made Kristine mostly rainy because warmer seas fueled extreme weather events.
However, Bagtasa said that it was not really that intense because of wind shearing, the same reason that brought rainfall to Bicol though Kristine was still over 300 kilometers away.
“The wind shear, or the opposing wind speed and direction between surface and upper-level winds, pushed most of Kristine’s rain clouds to [its] southwest, where Bicol is located,” Bagtasa said, adding that shearing occurs naturally in the Pacific as part of large-scale weather systems and is only one factor that may influence tropical storm intensity.
According to him, the warming climate contributed to Kristine’s heavy rain, but determining how much of it was caused by climate change will be difficult for now.
Kristine’s onslaught overwhelmed the Bicol River Basin, after it spared none of the high-risk areas of central CamSur and its closest Albay neighbors including Oas and Libon from the life-threatening flooding and landslides.
In Oas, the Cabilogan River not only overflowed but also destroyed several sections of the dike, which the town mayor blamed on the “silted” Bato Lake in CamSur, from which the former drains. The Cabilogan River and other small rivers that flow into Bato Lake, as well as agricultural runoff, can deposit soil particles and organic materials, reducing water depth and increasing flood risk.
Despite the risks, Moratalla said that tenant-farmers like him cannot skip planting during typhoon season because they rent the land and would have to pay their regular dues, which they do every harvest season. In cases like this, the owner bears the loss as well.
Their location at the end of the irrigation system made them more vulnerable, Leo Miranda, Moratalla’s fellow tenant-farmer, said, adding, “They can only wish to be able to plant earlier so that they can harvest earlier.” He refused to return to his submerged rice field because “it was disheartening to see.”
Albay incurred about P403 million ($ 6.9 million) agricultural damage, second to CamSur with P1.027 billion ($ 17.6 million), according to the Department of Agriculture Bicol. In addition, Kristine’s disastrous impact on infrastructure and irrigation significantly increased the total damage to almost P9 billion ($ 154.26 million).
According to the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Bicol, Kristine disrupted the lives of 742,395 families, forcing thousands to evacuate and isolating others due to landslides.
Niel Javier, a resident of Camaligan town in CamSur, told Bulatlat that the unprecedented flooding forced neighbors without second-floor houses to sleep in makeshift tents along the high elevation road.
The subsequent power outages and poor internet signal heightened their anxieties, as they were unable to contact relatives who were trapped in their flooded homes and could not be rescued. Patients who needed emergency care were left unattended because of impassable roads.
Sixty people died from this disaster, according to OCD Bicol.
Decimated forests as vulnerability
In a Zoom interview, UP Los Baños forestry professor Rogelio Andrada II said that Kristine’s abnormal rainfall would catch any region off-guard. But since most of the Philippine forests have been decimated (hence the government’s regreening program), he said that “these areas are vulnerable to the impact of rainfall, especially when [excessive].”
According to Global Forest Watch (GFW) satellite data, both CamSur and Albay provinces experienced a net loss of tree cover between 2000 to 2020. The GFW defined tree cover loss [as] “dry and non-tropical primary forests, secondary forests, and plantations, as well as humid primary forest loss.” It detected tree cover loss within 30-meter resolution pixels
Over the said period, “Albay experienced a net change of -1.50 kilohectare (kha) in tree cover,” while “Camarines Sur experienced a net change of -4.53 kha in tree cover.”
CamSur and Albay used to have natural forests that covered more than half of their land area in 2010, at 67 percent and 69 percent, respectively. In 2023, CamSur lost 156 hectares of natural forest, while Albay lost 29 hectares, according to GFW.
Andrada suggested that CamSur and Albay would benefit the most from forest regreening due to the Bicol River Basin’s relatively flat plains, as engineering measures such as matting are best suited to sloped areas.
He said that before issuing permits to cut trees, authorities should keep in mind that vegetation takes time to establish an effective protective soil cover, and costly engineering measures should be used as backup. He stressed how infrastructure could be easily overwhelmed by poor quality.
He urged government leaders to use data with historical context and current events for inter-local applications, as physical environments are not bound by political boundaries.
Mining and quarrying are two of the region’s main causes of deforestation. Under the climate crisis, these drivers of environmental degradation put Bicol to greater dangers given its environmental features and its location in the Western Pacific typhoon corridor.
In addition, Bicol is one of the five regions with the lowest wages, making it even worse for informal workers in agriculture (its biggest economy), fisheries, handicraft and mining, since they do not have the safety net to withstand the effects of typhoons.
The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Bicol reported in 2023 that mitigating vulnerabilities “extend[s] beyond mere income levels” for “many families may exceed the poverty threshold but still struggle with necessities,” as “rising costs for [redacted] food, housing and healthcare further strain their budgets.”
The people’s organization Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP)-Bicol in multiple Facebook posts demanded accountability from “the Marcos-allied Villafuertes”. “The late Goa Mayor Marcel Pan implicated his predecessor, former Goa Mayor Antero Lim, as well as specific political figures and task forces, in shielding certain quarry operators from penalties. He also accused the Villafuertes of accepting protection money from unauthorized quarry operations,” according to KMP-Bicol’s statement. “[Pan] further revealed that despite extensive earthfill extraction for high-profile infrastructure projects, municipal revenues remained negligible, while riverbanks and hillsides in towns like Siruma, Pecuria, and San Fernando suffered significant unaddressed damage.”
KMP-Bicol stressed that the President’s call for a “safer, inclusive, adaptive, and disaster-resilient future” at the Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction, which the country hosted a few days before Kristine, must result in holding concerned government officials accountable.
Together with environmental groups, it claimed that “LGUs and DENR permits contribute to environmental degradation, which intensifies the impacts of storms, [causing] preventable losses of life and livelihood.”
Certain social media users echoed the call through memes, sharing, “Pagod na kami maging Resilient! Ang kailangan namin ay Accountability!”
Lahar as additional hazard
In Albay, volcanic debris from previous eruptions of the active Mayon Volcano exacerbated flooding hazards.
In 2023, there were 149 quarry sites for small-scale operations across the province for 136 operators: 40 companies and the rest individuals. Forty-eight of the permits will expire between 2024 and 2028.
Only two companies obtained four permits. The Hi-Tone Const. & Dev’t. Corporation was issued permits in areas highly-prone to lahar, such as Fidel Surtida in Sto. Domingo, Maninila in Guinobatan and Lidong in Sto. Domingo (project based). The fourth permit was for Buyoan in Legazpi (project based). The other two will expire in 2028.
Sunwest Const. & Dev’t Corporation obtained three permits in lahar-prone areas: Budiao in Daraga (expiring this December), Mabinit in Legazpi City (expiring in 2028) and Tumpa in Camalig (project-based). The last one was in Cagbulacao, Bacacay (project-based).
BCO Aggregates, Concrete Solutions Inc., Jormand Construction & Supply, MAKAPA Corporation, Ramarplus Inc. and individuals Emilito Pascual and Jose Garcia all got two permits for two quarry sites.
Fifty-two permits were issued in lahar-prone areas within six and seven-kilometer danger zones, including Muladbucad Grande in Guinobatan, Padang in Legazpi, Budiao and Busay in Daraga and Anoling in Camalig. Some of the operators included 3 Diamonds Construction & Supply, ADS Construction & Supply Mr. Arnold C. De Los Santos, and AGSICON Construction Aggregates, to name a few.
In terms of large-scale operations in the province, Rapu-Rapu’s total of 4,539 hectares for four mining sites made up 30 percent of its land area. Camalig’s 674 hectares accounted for 5.14 percent, Legazpi’s 276 hectares 1.71 percent, and Sto. Domingo’s eight hectares 0.16 percent.
Albay-based volcanologist Chris Newhall said that there are two points of interest in the province: the quarries themselves (mostly located in pre-existing river channels) and stockpiling areas, “which doesn’t add to the hectare count of land without tree cover.”
According to him, the general rule is that quarrying of materials from river channels is good as it will deepen them. However, he warned that excessive extraction could increase bank collapse, which should be prohibited particularly in the lower sections to mitigate the increased chances of overflow.
He added that “placing any obstacles in a channel will increase the chances of overflow, and this can include sabo dams and highway crossings if using culverts rather than bridges.”
Farmers as most vulnerable
Even if Moratalla has been a farmer for 34 years, he received P5,000 in cash aid only once in 2023. If they do receive aid in kind like seeds, they are unable to replant because hybrid seeds do not produce the same yield, leaving them reliant on handouts. “We frequently receive treated seeds and fertilizer from the Department of Agriculture. There are other high-yield seeds available in stores, but we must buy them.”
He said that farmers are forced to sell salvaged harvests at lower prices because buyers would insist that they had been flooded.
Another farmer, who identifies as Arthur, said that he was going to harvest in two weeks. However, both of his rice fields with a combined size of 1.3 hectares were submerged in floodwaters.
They might take out loans to cover their losses for the following planting season, as they did in previous years.
Meanwhile, farmers who are members of Damayan nin Paraoma (DAMPA) in Camarines Sur told KMP-Bicol that “from the beginning of his presidency, he did not prioritize the interests of the farmers.” (JJE, RTS, DAA) | <urn:uuid:a0f23741-76c7-48a3-8844-4885c23484be> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://www.bulatlat.com/2024/11/12/warmer-climate-forest-cover-loss-flood-bicol-farmers-plight/ | 2024-12-10T14:14:12Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066061339.24/warc/CC-MAIN-20241210132922-20241210162922-00758.warc.gz | en | 0.956731 | 2,923 | 3.03125 | 3 |
What is Blockchain Technology? our previous post, introduced the key functions and characteristics of the blockchain technology, which we discussed in details.
To be precise, every topic discussed thus far in this series (the origins of money, digital payments, and the blockchain technology) will be recalled and applied to our knowledge of what exactly is bitcoin.
Key Takeaways on What is Bitcoin
- To recapitulate, bitcoin is a new sort of currency that provides you with anonymity, decentralization, security, speed, savings, and an anti-inflation mechanism built right into the system.
- While only a few lines of code can be seen in a computer, the system has been so cleverly built that more and more people are growing to trust it, consequently elevating its significance in the eyes of the public.
- This self-sustaining environment is enabled by the blockchain technology that underpins it, in which players are paid for maintaining and securing the system.
- People will flock to it as soon as it becomes safer, resulting in greater benefits for all participants in the long run.
What is Bitcoin
Let us begin with the fundamentals. In the same way that commodities, representatives, and fiat money are types of currency, bitcoin is a sort of currency that lets us to hold, measure, and transfer wealth.
Although bitcoin is not a real object, such as a piece of gold or a paper voucher,
It is totally digital and represented by code stored within a computer.
Many people are perplexed as to how anything intangible can have any monetary value at this moment.
Though humans once used commodities or goods with intrinsic worth as money, we eventually transitioned away from this practice and began using notes or vouchers instead.
Despite the fact that the paper itself was almost worthless, each note was backed by a promise that it could be exchanged for a specific amount of gold at any time in the future.
However, as time progressed, even the gold standard was abandoned in favor of fiat currency, which was eventually accepted.
In that case, how does it come to be that fiat currency is generally regarded as money today, when it is not backed by any commodity?
Essentially, it has value because it is based on trust. We have faith in the ability of our government to enforce the use of these notes, and we have faith in the ability of our fellow citizens to accept the currency.
To put it another way, value is produced when we all agree that something is worthy. It makes no difference in what shape it takes,
whether it is a coin, a piece of paper, or even computer code. Once it has been proven beyond doubt that anything can gain value from the faith that we place in it,
let’s look at why we can trust bitcoin in the absence of a central authority such as a government to back it up.
Digitization – The Life-force of Bitcoin
Before we get into the technology and attributes that distinguish bitcoin as a trustworthy alternative to fiat currencies,
Due to our never-ending effort to streamline the process of completing transactions, even the physical use and exchange of fiat money has been reduced in recent years.
We now use digital technology to record the transfer of wealth.
By storing our funds with a financial institution, we enable that institution to take advantage of network and mobile technology to promptly record transactions.
No physical cash needs to be transferred as long as there is a detailed and accurate record of who paid whom and when they did so.
Once again, the fact why this form of digital transaction system works is due to the element of trust involved.
We put our faith in our bank’s ability to accurately record transactions, to be consistent with these records, and to keep them safe from unauthorized tampering and alteration.
The only way for us to accept that money has been transmitted or received would be if we physically exchanged it with our hands in the absence of this trusted intermediary.
Again, this raises the question of how we can place our trust in a decentralized system such as bitcoin’s, in which a global network of users participates in these record-keeping activities.
What prohibits people from modifying records or changing codes in order to make it appear as though they have more money than they actually do?
In the end, we are all greedy and self-interested actors, and we all have our own agendas. As you may have figured by now, blockchain technology comes into play in this situation.
It was created with the intent of addressing all of these difficulties and more.
Bitcoin Vs Blockchain
Let’s take a look at how bitcoin uses each of the blockchain’s fundamental characteristics to establish itself as a safe and secure alternative to traditional money.
Centralization vs Decentralization of Bitcoin
Before we can address the major question stated above, it is necessary to recognize that a centralized system has its own set of drawbacks to contend with as well.
Putting your trust in someone or something, whether it’s the government or a bank, presupposes that they’ll do a good job.
The truth is, however, that is not always the case.
There have been numerous instances throughout history of governments totally mismanaging their fiscal and economic obligations, resulting in hyperinflation and, ultimately, the collapse of their own currency systems.
A similar number of examples may be found of financial or banking firms that have been unable to keep funds or transaction records secure.
Furthermore, several of them have been proven to purposefully and willfully deceive consumers and pilfer funds.
This is very concerning.
Part of the problem is from the entire control and authority that these institutions have over your records and financial assets, which is a source of contention.
In the real world, there is no reasonable method to monitor or control what they are doing with your money behind the scenes.
Bitcoin addresses this issue by storing all transactions on a distributed ledger known as a blockchain.
As a reminder, a blockchain is simply an uncentralized public ledger that is not controlled by a single individual or organization.
Every transaction can be easily traced and confirmed due to the public nature of this ledger, which eliminates the need to blindly rely on a central entity for security.
Furthermore, because there is no single point of failure, it is far more difficult (nearly impossible) for an attacker to tamper with these records.
Bitcoin’s virtual ledger is replicated in many locations throughout the world, each of which would need to be updated in order to bring the system into disrepute.
Let’s examine and enhance our knowledge of blockchain in order to better understand how it is feasible to have a publicly maintained record without having to worry about fraudulent or incorrect transactions.
Mining and security of Bitcoin are intertwined.
In the article on blockchain technology, we explained that its name is a reference to the fact that it is made up of blocks of transaction data that are linked to one another as they are confirmed.
Let’s look at an example to better understand the procedure.
You have one bitcoin, which you have transferred to a buddy.
Anyone can check to see if the funds in your account (wallet) are there, and if the transaction contains your unique signature, before proceeding.
They accomplish this through the use of the public key infrastructure, which was discussed in the preceding article.
Instead of false transactions being rejected, hundreds of verified transactions are bundled together to form blocks of transactions.
Several requirements must be met before a block may be formally added to the blockchain, thereby becoming a permanent part of the public record.
In this case, the most crucial skill is the ability to solve a mathematical puzzle.
This puzzle is extremely difficult and intricate, and it will take a large amount of computational power to complete it successfully.
Individuals or groups known as miners employ specialized equipment to assist in the resolution of such issues.
Oversimplified, the method can be explained as follows:
These computers repeatedly attempt different variables, known as nonces, until one of them provides the correct result.
The first miner to provide a valid answer is the one who gets to add his block to the chain of mining.
Several miners test the same nonce to ensure that they, too, have arrived at the correct answer.
This is done to ensure that the miner completed the work and is not simply attempting to add a block without actually giving his computer power.
This automatically establishes the miner’s validity by demonstrating that he or she has the right nonce,
which is nearly impossible to achieve without expending significant resources.
In the event that everything is correct, the new block is automatically appended to all copies of the blockchain.
Furthermore, as previously mentioned in the previous article, this right answer also happens to be a string of characters (hash value) that serves as a name or code to distinguish each block from the others in the collection.
Using the hash value from the previous block is an important part of solving the problem or arriving at the correct code.
It has the consequence of ensuring that every valid block contains a hash value that is inextricably linked to the previous and following blocks.
In other words, the blocks form a chain that connects them all together. Attempting to change a single block will cause the mathematical reasoning of the entire chain to be thrown off balance.
Returning to the mathematical puzzle, this process also serves as a deterrent for anyone who would do harm to the system.
The expense of solving the puzzle is so high that it is more cost effective to merely follow the rules at that point in time.
Why? Because completing the problem and receiving a reward is worthwhile.
Mining operations reward miners with a certain quantity of bitcoins for each authentic block they contribute to the chain.
Additionally, users must pay varied amounts as transaction fees each time they transfer their coins from one location to another.
Miners will prioritize these transactions, validate them, and add them to the blockchain in greater numbers if the fee paid is higher than a certain threshold.
Benefits of Bitcoin No one is Talking About
A Deflationary Currency
The system is designed to allow for the mining of a total of a maximum of 21 million bitcoins in total.
As a result, bitcoin is considered a deflationary money. In other words, the value of bitcoin does not drop as a result of a central bank’s decision to print more money.
The fact that miners will no longer be compensated by the system when that time comes will not deter them from continuing their work because the transaction fees they earn from customers will keep them motivated to do so.
Lower Costs And Shorter Waiting Times
The decentralized nature of the system, which we discussed before, also results in reduced costs and shorter wait times.
When it comes to traditional finance, we must not only put our faith in third-party intermediaries to handle our funds in good faith, but we must also pay them for the privilege of doing so.
When compared to the fees paid to miners, these charges are significantly greater.
Furthermore, in order for money to flow across borders, it must frequently pass through a slew of organizations and processes, resulting in higher wait periods.
With bitcoin, any money you transfer goes directly to the person who receives it.
Another advantage that appears to be illogical at first is the ability to remain anonymous.
You see, while the blockchain, or record of transactions, is completely public and freely accessible for anybody to view, the identities of those who participated in the transactions are not.
As previously stated, transactions are attached to one-of-a-kind signatures that work similarly to usernames, rather than to actual legal names.
This helps to safeguard your privacy, which is especially important in a world where governments are progressively encroaching on our personal lives.
What moves Bitcoin’s price?
The fact that Bitcoin is a decentralized currency means that it is not subject to many of the economic and political challenges that plague traditional currencies.
However, as a market that is still in its infancy, there is a great deal of unpredictability that is unique to the cryptocurrency market.
Any one of the elements listed below has the potential to have an immediate and major impact on its pricing.
- Bitcoin supply
- BTC Market cap
- Industry adoption
- Key events
If you’d want to learn more about Bitcoin’s competitors, check read this article:
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As the largest population that is equivalent to almost one-fifth population in the world, China spreads its unique culture through the Chinese Lantern Festival that is celebrated all over the planet. The yearly celebration takes place fifteen days after the Chinese Lunar New Year. Some people might think that the Chinese Lantern Festival is just a lantern show. However, it’s not simply a good luck festival, instead it’s also a window into the unique intercultural dialogue between the Iranian and Chinese civilizations.
Furthermore, other cultures and practices, like Buddhism and Daoism, have influenced the Chinese Lantern Festival over time. As a result, it has subsequently evolved into a one-of-a-kind festival for all Chinese people around the world. No wonder that the Chinese Lantern Festival always brings its own charm to whoever sees it. Well, celebrating this event will not be that complete if you don’t know unique and fun facts behind it. To satisfy your curiosity, we will reveal some amazing Chinese Lantern Festival facts that will blow your mind.
Table of Contents
- 1. The First Chinese Lantern Festival Is More Than 2,000 Years Ago
- 2. Red Color Domination
- 3. Popular As “First Night” Festival
- 4. The Symbolic Chinese Lantern
- 5. The Largest Chinese Lantern Festival
- 6. Guessing Riddles In Tiger Lanterns
- 7. The World’s Largest Lantern Sculpture
- 8. The One and Only Lantern Museum in China
- 9. Fantastic Four Major Lantern Festivals in China
- 10. The Best Places To View Lanterns In China
- 11. Yuanxiao’s Specialty In Taste for Chinese Lantern Festival
- 12. The World’s Largest Standing Lantern
- 13. Chinese Valentine’s Day
- 14. Dragon Lantern Dance Scares Evil Spirit
- 15. The Story Of Nian Monster
1. The First Chinese Lantern Festival Is More Than 2,000 Years Ago
Maybe you are curious about the origin of this wonderful festival. In fact, the Chinese Lantern Festival has been celebrated since more than 2,000 years ago. The first lanterns, according to historians, were used during the Eastern Han Dynasty. On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, Emperor Han Mingdi, a Buddhist, found monks who lit lanterns at temples to offer homage to Buddha. He subsequently ordered the lighting of lanterns in all temples, residences, and royal palaces that evening, which became known as the Lantern Festival.
Furthermore, another legend mentioned about the festival’s origins tells of the Jade Emperor, who was enraged in a town after his goose was killed. Therefore, he intended to burn the town down, but a fairy intervened, advising the citizens to light lanterns across the town on the scheduled day of destruction.
2. Red Color Domination
When you heard about the Chinese Lantern Festival, we are sure that one color that definitely will pop to your mind is red. Well, this celebration is indeed a red color festival that will transform all things like clothes, lanterns, and even other decorations into red color. Maybe you wonder, why should it always be red?
Generally, the red color is seen to represent warmth, happiness, and good fortune in Chinese culture. As a result, Chinese lanterns are traditionally red and oval in shape, with red and gold tassels. Not to mention, it’s also considered China’s national color.
3. Popular As “First Night” Festival
You might find this Chinese Lantern Festival a weird celebration due to “First Night” as its unusual popular name. In fact, this event is actually popular as it is, which marks the celebration to see a full moon on the “first night” of Chinese New Year. In this festival, thousands of colorful lanterns are set up to appreciate the start of a new year.
When there is the first bright full moon hanging in the sky, the ceremony of blowing lanterns takes place, followed by a three-course supper with friends and family under the glittering sky. Moreover, people will strive to solve the puzzles on the lanterns and enjoy delicious yuanxiao at this time, bringing their entire families together in the festive atmosphere.
4. The Symbolic Chinese Lantern
Did you know that the first Chinese lantern was actually made from paper during the Han Dynasty? Aside from the humble material, it gives deep meaning and symbol which is full of hope and prayer. Instead of the red color meaning that you already know, other aspects also have wonderful messages.
The circular shape, which is reminiscent of the full moon, which presides over the Lantern Festival and the Mid-Autumn Festival in China, represents wholeness and unity. Moreover, the Chinese calligraphy in the lantern also represents beautiful wishes for a long and healthy life as well as a prosperous and wealthy future. Not to mention, the beautiful dragon’s art represents power along with Chinese zodiac animals are also attached into the lantern design. What an amazing art of work!
5. The Largest Chinese Lantern Festival
As you may be amazed with the beauty of this celebration, you probably want to join the world’s largest Chinese Lantern Festival. Well, the Pingxi Lantern Festival in Taipei is now the world’s largest, attracting thousands of people each year for a week of festivities.
This celebration takes place every year in Pingxi District, a mountainous location about an hour’s drive east of Taipei. Lantern releases are held in the remote villages of Jington, Pingxi, and Shifen on the first full moon of the Lunar New Year, which is usually in February or March. What makes it more interesting, these were formerly intended to notify villagers that they were safe and sound, but now they transmit people’s wishes and dreams for the coming year into the night sky.
6. Guessing Riddles In Tiger Lanterns
Another unique tradition during the Chinese Lantern Festival is solving the riddles which are put in the lantern. Maybe you wonder, where does this fun activity come from? It all started when advisors to the emperor in the past, who had ideas that they didn’t think would go down well, conveyed them to him in cryptic riddles. So if the emperor didn’t like the advice, they might claim it was misinterpreted!
Other people found riddles to be a fun pastime, and their popularity grew beyond the palace walls. It became a technique for both the creators and the solvers of riddles to show off their knowledge. Solving some of these puzzles was said to be more difficult than fighting a tiger, and the riddles on the lanterns were dubbed lantern tigers. These days, the puzzles aren’t as difficult as tiger wrestling, and you don’t need to study thousands of years of history to solve them. They’re just plain entertaining!
7. The World’s Largest Lantern Sculpture
The Chinese Lantern Festival also gained an outstanding world record in history. In 2011, Hong Kong’s Victoria Park staged the largest Mid-Autumn Festival, which also set a Guinness World Record for the largest lantern sculpture. The fish-shaped sculpture was 36 x 9 x 13 meters in size (119 x 31 x 43 feet). It took 35 workers and 13 days to construct 2,360 traditional Chinese lanterns. Today, this Hong Kong festival is regarded as China’s greatest Mid-Autumn Festival celebration. In this festival, you may see kung fu demonstrations, fire dragon dances, and lantern displays, among other things.
8. The One and Only Lantern Museum in China
Although the amazing celebration is originally from China, it doesn’t have many museums to keep this legendary history. In fact, The Zigong Lantern Museum is the only one of its kind in China, and is regarded as one of the Three Wonders of Zigong. It is located in the “Lantern Town of the South Kingdom” in Zigong, Sichuan Province.
The Lantern Museum is vital to the preservation of Chinese lanterns and other old cultural artifacts. The stunning lantern displays at the museum are well worth a visit. Between February 8 and February 13, Zigong presents a magnificent lantern festival in addition to the museum. The celebration is noted for its rich tradition and local flavor.
9. Fantastic Four Major Lantern Festivals in China
Lanterns have become an essential item during celebrations in China. In fact, people all throughout China light lanterns during these four events: the Mid-Autumn Festival, the Chinese New Year, the Harbin Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival, and of course, the Lantern Festival. The greatest time to see Chinese lanterns is indeed during the Lantern Festival. It usually takes place between February 5 and March 7 on the fifteenth day of the first Chinese lunar month. The festival’s major activity is lighting and watching gorgeous lanterns with friends and family.
10. The Best Places To View Lanterns In China
As you know, there are various types of adorable Chinese Lantern Festival. Therefore, seeing the beauty of flying and floating lanterns in the lantern festival is a once in a lifetime opportunity. If you are interested in this amazing festival, then you should see those lanterns from the best place. While the beauty of those lanterns are celebrated all over China, there are some best places such as Nanjing, Beijing, and Pingyao which are popular to view the lantern festival. You can witness the throngs of people, the numerous decorations, the flower-adorned floats, the colorful parades, competitions, speeches, and traditional music.
11. Yuanxiao’s Specialty In Taste for Chinese Lantern Festival
Every festival has something unique to taste, and how could the lantern festival be any different? During the Chinese Lantern Festival, Yuanxiao is a dumpling prepared from sticky rice flour with fillings and represents the celebrations. According to tradition, eating yuanxiao during the Chinese Lantern Festival symbolizes family harmony, fulfillment, and joy.
Similar to other cuisines put on the table, Yuanxiao is popular due to its shape and various tasty fillings. The fillings inside Yuanxiao are either sweet or salty. In addition, a variety of comparable recipes are also placed on the table, and a delicious but suspicious supper is shared with friends and family under the full moon.
12. The World’s Largest Standing Lantern
In case you wonder how tall a standing lantern can be, we have the precise answer for you! In 2020, another world record was set for the largest standing lantern in the world. The largest sky lantern measures 20.13 m (66 ft 0 in) high, 32.87 m (107 ft 10 in) wide. It was achieved by the Tang Paradise of Qujiang New Area in Xi’an, Shaanxi, China, on 17 January 2020. The lantern, which depicted a big peacock and was the symbol of the lantern festival in Tang Paradise of Qujiang New Area. In addition, it was used to welcome guests and celebrate the Chinese lunar new year.
13. Chinese Valentine’s Day
In Chinta, the Chinese Lantern Festival is not just a lantern show. The Lantern Festival is also known as the Chinese Valentine’s Day in ancient China, a day dedicated to celebrating love and affection amongst partners. In the past, young females were not permitted to leave the house except during the Lantern Festival. Therefore, during the festival, single folks used to carry lit lanterns along the street in the hopes of finding their true mate. Moreover, the brightest lanterns represent good fortune that will come to them.
14. Dragon Lantern Dance Scares Evil Spirit
Today, dragon lantern dances can be seen at various sites in China from Chinese New Year’s Day until the Lantern Festival. During the Chinese Lantern Festival, you are going to watch amazing dragon lantern dances in many places. Some people admire the beauty of the dance moves, while others might be scared. And, this fear may also happen to those evil spirits around. Dragon lantern dance is thought to be a technique to ward off evil spirits and offer good fortune to those who wear them. Moreover, if one is touched by the dragon, it is considered lucky.
15. The Story Of Nian Monster
One of those evil spirits that will be really scared of lanterns during the Chinese Lantern festival is Nian Monster. Nian used to be a creature who hides in the mountains, according to legend. Once a year, in the winter, it emerges to feast on the crops and villagers. Nian’s appearance, on the other hand, instilled fear. Therefore, families gathered the night Nian arrived, staying up all night hoping the threats would fade away.
Furthermore, people gradually began to recognize Nian’s flaws. They discovered that Nian was vulnerable to fire, the color red, and loud noises. And then, people began to hang portraits and red lanterns, light fires, and set off firecrackers. Finally, Nian was frightened by these methods. This tradition of celebrating monster defeats has been carried on to this day. | <urn:uuid:55020ee8-f096-413d-9f1d-52d7abc86c0e> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://awesomestuff365.com/chinese-lantern-festival-facts/ | 2024-12-13T18:25:18Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066119643.21/warc/CC-MAIN-20241213171153-20241213201153-00083.warc.gz | en | 0.948042 | 2,746 | 3.34375 | 3 |
Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) is caused by a haemoglobin defect, a structural variant known as Haemoglobin S, which replaces both β-globin subunits in haemoglobin.
This variant haemoglobin is an altered haemoglobin molecule, which when exposed to an environment low in oxygen, it sticks together to form long rods inside the red blood cells making these cells rigid and sickle-shaped; the process in medical terms is called polymerisation of the haemoglobin molecule.
Normal red blood cells are shaped like a donut and can bend and flex easily. The cells which become sickle shaped are rigid and have difficulty passing through small blood vessels, where they can get stuck and clog the blood flow (see Figure 1). This causes pain that can start suddenly, be mild to severe, and can last for any length of time. Because of this sickled shaped cells can block the blood supply to tissues, leaving them unable to oxygenate.
Such events can be severe enough to damage tissues in joints, spleen, kidneys, in fact all vital organs including the brain. In addition, these altered red cells (sickle cells) do not survive in the circulation for as long as normal cells do and are continuously destroyed. This causes patients to experience a degree of anaemia, which may become severe under certain circumstances, leading to a need for blood transfusion.
As a chronic disorder, sickle cell disease requires treatment in specialized centres aimed at both preventing and managing complications, including the prevention of infections through immunizations and the management of pain, which may be severe enough to require hospitalization. To prevent some of the complications effectively, it is necessary to have the patient under continuous observation from early childhood, and in this context a policy of newborn screening is recommended, so that affected children may be identified and followed up from birth.
The sickle cell condition can be caused when a person inherits the sickle cell gene from both parents (HbS/HbS) (see Figure 2) or if co-inherited with HbC or HbD or OArab (other variants) and with β- thalassaemia (see Figure 3).
It is believed that the sickle cell abnormal haemoglobin originated in Africa, where it is most commonly encountered, while India is considered as an additional place of origin. HbS is prevalent also in the indigenous population of the Arab world and some Mediterranean countries (parts of Greece, Turkey, and Southern Italy).
In the past the slave trade had transported African populations to North and South America, so it is common in the USA, Brazil and the Caribbean islands. In more recent times, migrations have taken the gene to almost all regions of the world, especially Western and Northern Europe.
According to current epidemiological data, about 7% of the global population carries an abnormal haemoglobin gene, with more than 500,000 affected children born annually. More than 70% of them have a sickle disorder, and the rest have thalassaemia syndromes. A significant number of affected children born in developing countries even today die undiagnosed or misdiagnosed, receiving sub-optimal treatment, or left untreated altogether.
Newborn or neonatal screening:
Newborn or neonatal screening can identify both carriers of SCD, but also affected patients.
Children with sickle cell disease must be identified at birth through a special test and be offered special medical care early on to help prevent complications. With early diagnosis and treatment, together with parental education and involvement, it has been shown that early complications can be prevented and children have a better chance of survival. Sickle cell disease is becoming a chronic disease compatible with good survival. This is achieved by interventions like penicillin prophylaxis and vaccinations to prevent infections as well as careful follow up in specialised clinic.
To identify patients as soon as they are born, newborn screening programmes are being increasingly adopted across the world, including many countries where sickle cell disease has been introduced by recent migrations.
A whole variety of complications can occur in this condition and often these occur suddenly following a painful crisis. The signs and symptoms of sickle cell disease vary greatly from one person to another. Some affected people are quite healthy and are diagnosed at a relatively old age; others are frequently hospitalised and have many complications, while some die at an early age from the disease and its complications. The reasons for this marked variability in the clinical spectrum of this disease are not all known.
Main complications can include:
Painful crises are the commonest manifestation of sickle cell disease at all ages and dominate the clinical picture of sickle cell disease. These are usually acute and often very severe.
In Infancy or early childhood:
The first manifestation of sickle cell disease in infants is dactylitis or hand-foot syndrome which is a painful swelling and redness of hands and feet. In addition, infants and young children with sickle cell disease are extremely vulnerable to life-threatening infections in the lungs (pneumonia), blood (sepsis), lining of the brain (meningitis), and bone (osteomyelitis). Children under the age of five are at highest risk for these infections. The most worrisome infections are caused by a few types of bacteria, including Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus), Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), Neisseria meningitidis (meningococcus) and Salmonella. Other infections that children with sickle cell disease are vulnerable to are those caused by flu viruses.
Acute Splenic Sequestration is a leading cause of death in children with sickle cell disease and is a medical emergency. Most cases occur between 3 months to 5 years of age. In this condition, the spleen rapidly entraps blood leading to sudden onset of severe anaemia, circulatory collapse, and death in a few hours if not promptly detected and treated. Affected children present with acute onset of severe pallor, shock, and painful left-sided abdominal distension (bloating) with an enlarged and often massive spleen. Acute splenic sequestration has a high recurrence rate, particularly in infants below 1 year of age.
In most children, the spleen stays enlarged for the first few years of life but by 6 years of age, it usually becomes small and non-functioning due to scarring from recurrent sickling and multiple infarctions. That is why acute splenic sequestration is usually infrequent after 6 years of life.
In older children, adolescents, and young adults:
Acute Chest Syndrome is the first cause of early death and the second cause of hospitalization in patients with sickle cell disease. It is caused by trapped sickle cells in the blood vessels of the lungs or by an infection or a fat or bone marrow embolus. About 50% of cases of acute chest syndrome occur a few days after hospitalization with acute painful crises.
Overt stroke is seen mostly in young children with sickle cell disease and mostly in those with sickle cell anaemia. The best way to know if a child is at high risk for getting a stroke is by a special test called Transcranial Doppler (TCD). This test measures the velocity of blood flow to the brain. When a high velocity of blood is indicated in the brain vessels, a child is at high risk of getting a stroke. Often stroke can be silent, that is without clinical manifestations.
Less frequently and more so in adults, stroke can be due to bleeding in the brain (haemorrhagic stroke).
A serious outcome of anaemia, strokes, and silent brain infarcts is the development of neurocognitive problems. This is often an underdiagnosed complication and is detected by special tests that assess intelligence, memory, and comprehension (neuropsychiatric and neurobehavioral testing) and not by imaging of the brain or blood vessels of the brain. To identify this complication early, all children with sickle cell disease should be screened with routine exams, starting at 6 years of age.
Acute Anaemia: The majority of patients with sickle cell disease (SCD) have some degree of baseline anaemia due to premature death (haemolysis) of the sickle red blood cells. Symptoms of anaemia include pallor (yellow skin colour), getting tired easily, irritability, headache, loss of appetite, and poor growth. People with sickle cell disease can also get acute (sudden onset) anaemia due to:
- Blood becoming suddenly entrapped in the spleen (acute splenic sequestration)
- Sudden cessation of blood cell production (aplastic episode) due to certain infections. This means a sudden cessation of blood cell production. It can be caused by infections most commonly parvovirus B19.
- Excessive red blood cells breakdown (hyper-haemolytic crisis). The increased haemolysis can occur during an episode of pain, infection, drug exposure or can be due to an acute or delayed reaction to a red cell transfusion.
Avascular Necrosis usually occurs between the ages of 15 and 50 years and is not seen frequently in young children. This condition is seen when the blood flow to body areas with poor baseline blood supply is slowed and obstructed by sickle cells, leading to tissue breakdown (necrosis). It occurs mostly in the hip (femoral head) which suffers a loss of blood flow (avascularity) due to obstructive sickle cells. Another vulnerable joint is the shoulder (humeral head).
Osteomyelitis, an infection of the bones, affects mostly the long bones of the legs, thighs and arms and is often a complication of leg ulcers. The 2 most frequent bacteria seen in osteomyelitis are Salmonella, which causes typhoid fever and gastro-enteritis, and Staphylococcus aureus.
Osteoporosis or weak bones with low bone mineral density (BMD) is a very frequent complication seen in 30 to 80% of patients with sickle cell disease. It is often asymptomatic and affects mostly the spine. Osteoporosis may lead to fractures (seen in 15-30% of patients with SCD) of long bones and bony pain and deformities.
Leg Ulcers are painful lesions around the ankle, seen in 10 to 20% of sickle cell anaemia patients, and usually appear between 10 and 50 years of age.
Sickle cell disease affects the gall bladder, the liver, and the small and large tubes that carry bile inside and outside the liver (bile ducts). These are mostly due to recurrent episodes of blood flow blockage by sickle cells and increased bilirubin due to red cell haemolysis leading to gallstones. Other causes of liver disease in sickle cell disease include viral infections and increased iron in the liver due to infected blood transfusions.
Kidney problems in sickle cell disease often start in childhood and rarely in infancy. The usual tests of kidney function are often normal, even in the face of existing chronic kidney disease, until extensive kidney damage has occurred. The kidney can be affected in sickle cell disease in various ways: Obstruction of blood flow by sickled RBCs; inability to concentrate their urine so that patients pass more urine than normal and continue to have bedwetting to older age; infections of the bladder and kidney are quite common, particularly during pregnancy. With older age and repetitive clogging of the blood vessels that nourish the kidneys, the glomerulus (the part of the kidney that filters waste products from the blood and initiates urine formation) may be damaged and renal failure can develop. This is usually preceded by excessive loss of a protein (albumin) in the urine.
Priapism is a sustained unwanted painful erection of the penis seen in around 35% of boys and men. Priapism is seen at any age and is due to decreased blood flow and oxygen in the penis due to sickling. Over time, priapism can damage the penis and lead to partial or total impotence.
Eye Problems: blockage of blood flow by sickle cells can affect any part of the eye and lead to several complications including bleeding, scarring, and rarely blindness. The back of the eye (retina), which is the most important part of vision, is most sensitive to this blockage because it contains tiny blood vessels.
With age, more patients with sickle cell disease will need transfusions to treat and prevent complications other than stroke. Blood transfusions will inevitably lead to iron overload. People who undergo regular transfusions need to be closely monitored for iron overload and must receive early iron removal treatment (chelation) to reduce iron levels.
Treatment is usually aimed at avoiding crises, relieving symptoms and preventing complications. Babies and children age 2 and younger with sickle cell anaemia should make frequent visits to a doctor. Children older than 2 and adults with sickle cell anaemia should see a doctor at least once a year. Treatments might include medications to reduce pain and prevent complications, and blood transfusions, as well as a bone marrow transplant.
Childhood vaccinations are important for preventing disease in all children. They’re even more important for children with sickle cell disease because their infections can be severe. Particularly important is the immunization of children with the 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in addition to the 23-valent polysaccharide pneumococcal vaccine. Also meningococcal vaccination and Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), according to the national vaccination schedule in each country. Hepatitis B vaccine should not be forgotten by potential recipients of blood transfusion. Annual influenza vaccination after six months of age is also recommended (Mehta SR et al. Am Fam Physician. 2006 Jul 15;74(2):303-310).
Antibiotics for the Prevention of Infections:
Children with sickle cell disease should begin taking the antibiotic penicillin when they’re about 2 months old and continue taking it until they’re at least 5 years old. Doing so helps prevent infections, such as pneumonia, which can be life-threatening to an infant or child with sickle cell anaemia. As an adult, if the spleen was removed or had pneumonia (acute chest syndrome), penicillin should be taken throughout life.
When taken daily, hydroxyurea reduces the frequency of painful crises and might reduce the need for blood transfusions and hospitalizations. Hydroxyurea seems to work by stimulating the production of fetal haemoglobin — a type of haemoglobin found in newborns that helps prevent the formation of sickle cells.
Donated blood will increase the number of normal red blood cells in circulation, helping to relieve anaemia, but helps also to reduce red cell production by the patient’s own blood-forming tissue in the bone marrow and this will also reduce the production of sickle cells. In children with sickle cell anaemia at high risk of stroke, regular blood transfusions can decrease the risk. Transfusions can also be used to treat other complications of sickle cell disease, or they can be given to prevent complications. Many patients are now on regular transfusions for these reasons but of course, they have to face the possible complications of transfusions, including accumulation of iron, allo-immunisation, and viral hepatitis. Monitoring of iron overload, as in thalassaemia, with a possible need for iron chelating medication becomes an important part of management.
Bone Marrow Transplantation (BMT), also called Haemopoietic Stem Cell TransplantATION (HSCT):
This involves replacing bone marrow affected by sickle cell anaemia with healthy bone marrow from a donor. The procedure usually uses a matched donor, such as a sibling, who doesn’t have sickle cell anaemia. For many, donors aren’t available (see the BMT section on thalassaemia). This procedure is recommended for children or young patients with severe disease.
Voxelotor (Oxbryta), an HbS polymerization inhibitor, was granted approval by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) in 2019 for the treatment of SCD in adults and pediatric patients 12 years and older. In February 2022, the EC also granted marketing authorization for Oxbryta for the treatment of haemolytic anemia due to SCD. Since its first authorization in 2019, the drug has been approved in over 35 countries globally.
In September 2024, the EMA’s Human Medicines Committee recommended suspending the marketing authorization of Oxbryta, citing safety and efficacy concerns that emerged during a review of Oxbryta after data from a clinical trial showed that a higher number of deaths occurred with the drug than with placebo and another trial showed the total number of deaths was higher than anticipated.
Crizanlizumab (Adakveo) was granted approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in November 2019 to reduce the frequency of VOCs (pain crises) in individuals with sickle cell disease. The therapy had been conditionally approved in Europe in November 2020 and in the U.K. in October 2021 for similar indications. It is a monoclonal antibody designed to block P-selectin, a protein found on blood vessel cells that contributes to the clumping of sickled red blood cells and their adhesion to blood vessel walls. In blocking that protein, the treatment was expected to improve blood flow and reduce the frequency of VOCs.
A Phase 3 clinical trial called STAND (NCT03814746) is testing the safety and efficacy of Adakveo at the now-approved 5 mg/kg dose and at a higher dose of 7.5 mg/kg, both against a placebo, in more than 250 adults and adolescents, ages 12 and older, with SCD. After one year of treatment, neither dose outperformed a placebo at reducing the annual rate of VOCs requiring a healthcare visit. While no new safety concerns were identified, patients on Adakveo experienced more serious side effects than those on a placebo.
These findings, inconsistent with the results that supported Adakveo’s approval in the U.S., led the European Commission in August 2023 to revoke the therapy’s conditional marketing approval. The U.K. Medicines & Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) also withdrew its authorization to market the medication. In the US, the therapy remains approved for the treatment of VOCs in adults and pediatric patients, ages 16 and older.
The STAND trial is expected to finish in 2026.
Gene editing therapies:
In December 2023, the FDA approved two gene-editing treatments for patients aged 12 and older. The first therapy, Exagamglogene autotemcel (Casgevy), developed by Vertex Pharmaceuticals and CRISPR Therapeutics, utilizes the innovative CRISPR gene-editing tool. With Casgevy, an edit (or “cut”) is made in a particular gene to reactivate the production of fetal haemoglobin, which dilutes the faulty red blood cells caused by sickle cell disease. The second treatment, Lovotibeglogene autotemcel (Lyfgenia) by Bluebird Bio, employs a different gene-editing technique using a lentiviral vector to deliver a healthy haemoglobin-producing gene.
The therapies are hailed as groundbreaking as they represent the first-ever gene therapies to potentially cure a hereditary condition. Nevertheless, widespread availability is not anticipated initially. The cost of these cutting-edge treatments is estimated to be between $2 million and $3 million per patient, which may limit accessibility at the outset, and are available only at large, authorized medical centers because they require advanced care.
To date, Casgevy has received marketing authorisations by regulatory authorities in the EU, the UK, Saudi Arabia, Bahrein, and Canada. Lyfgenia has been given orphan drug and priority medicines designations in the EU.
Patients who received Casgevy or Lyfgenia will be followed in a long-term study to evaluate each product’s safety and effectiveness. | <urn:uuid:c924b26d-e698-4483-9b9e-8636868398e3> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://thalassaemia.org.cy/haemoglobin-disorders/sickle-cell-disease/ | 2024-12-04T12:50:40Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066157793.53/warc/CC-MAIN-20241204110931-20241204140931-00110.warc.gz | en | 0.945948 | 4,231 | 4.09375 | 4 |
November 15, 2023 - 8 min read
Currently, no CBDCs or central bank digital currencies can be mined. However, creating a proof-of-work, mineable CBDC could be an attractive, yet highly controversial possibility and could lead to the creation of a semi-decentralized CBDC. CBDCs, or central bank digital currencies, are centralized cryptocurrencies that government central banks issue. Typically, these currencies are backed 1:1 by the same fiat currency issued by the central bank. They are usually issued on specialized private government blockchains and can be stored in government-issued CBDC wallets.
CBDCs have come under harsh criticism by many crypto advocates, as they can potentially allow governments and central banks to closely track people’s financial transactions, possibly undermining an individual’s right to privacy. In addition, some worry that governments might restrict people’s transactions– and even assign them social credit scores based on arbitrary metrics, which could gravely impact civil rights. In contrast, CBDC advocates see CBDCs as facilitating various government transactions, such as welfare payments, increasing transparency, and reducing government fraud.
While CBDCs may have a bad reputation among blockchain advocates, there may be ways to make CBDCs better, safer, and more transparent– and CBDC mining (or staking) could be one of them.
To see how CBDC mining might work, let’s first look at the most popular proof-of-work cryptocurrency, Bitcoin. Currently, new Bitcoins are mined by computers that perform an increasingly complex set of randomized mathematical calculations to earn the right to “mine” the next block, validating a set of transactions on the Bitcoin blockchain. By mining the block, they receive a certain amount of Bitcoin as a block reward. While mining is certainly an effective way to promote blockchain decentralization, and when a proof-of-work network reaches a certain size, it becomes pretty secure, as 51% of attacks and other network manipulations become extremely difficult– and extremely expensive.
Bitcoin energy consumption and carbon footprint, 2017- 2023. Source: Digiconomist.
However, for blockchains like Bitcoin, mining can be extremely energy intensive, as mining at scale requires specialized computer processors called ASICs (application-specific integrated circuits), which consume a significant amount of electricity. Most professional Bitcoin mining operations have hundreds if not thousands (or tens of thousands) of these ASICs, all of which must be powered 24/7 and perpetually cooled to continue mining. In fact, according to research from the Rocky Mountain Institute, Bitcoin mining utilizes 127 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity per year. This exceeds the entire electrical consumption of many countries, including Norway. In the United States alone, crypto mining (mainly Bitcoin mining) emits an estimated 25 to 50 million tons of carbon dioxide annually.
Now that we know how crypto mining works, how would it work for a central bank digital currency? Well, instituting a CBDC mining program would require a significant change to the legal, monetary, and economic framework of the country issuing the CBDC. Therefore, it would likely have to be approved at the highest political levels.
Crypto mining creates new currency– and so would CBDC mining. To understand this issue better, let’s look at how countries “create” fiat currency. While “create” may not be the most accurate term, it’s probably the most accurate term we can use without diving deep into the weeds of monetary policy and macroeconomics. Generally, national central banks create new currency by issuing government bonds, which are sold to the public and can be easily purchased by retail and institutional investors.
After issuing the bond, the bond sale proceeds are credited to the country’s treasury, which can then spend the money. This type of monetary creation allows countries to spend as much as they want by issuing new bonds, which can be extremely problematic in the long term, as it can lead to an increase in the money supply, leading to inflation. This makes common goods and services more expensive and reduces the purchasing power of average consumers, mainly since wages generally do not rise as fast as inflation does.
To allow a CBDC to be mined would likely transfer some degree of power from the central bank to the miners, creating a more decentralized system, though semi-decentralized structures are undoubtedly possible.
The most radical proposal would involve a country entirely switching from a traditional fiat currency to a CBDC and allowing for the creation of a considerably more decentralized banking system. This possibility would allow a decentralized network of miners to determine how much of a currency would be issued. At the same time, this network could have the power to order the country’s treasury to issue digital CBDC bonds, and for every dollar of bond issued, a new CBDC would be able to be mined.
Instead of a monolithic blockchain, each bond could have its own modular blockchain, side chain, or parachain for each bond issuance, and, much like Bitcoin, miners would receive transaction fees for creating new coins. Much like Bitcoin, the mining process could become harder and harder as more of the coins are mined, and, in addition, the amount of currency that could be mined could be set at a hard cap in order to prevent inflation.
While this system would be interesting and relatively decentralized, it may not have the correct economic incentives to promote a better monetary system, and, since miners would make more money the more currency is issued, it could actually increase inflation, as miners would have a strong incentive to keep mining to earn more transaction fees.
A less decentralized proposal would have the country’s treasury and central bank still retaining the power to issue as many bonds as they want without a hard cap. Still, miners could earn transaction fees by mining more of the currency up to the specific cap of the latest bond issuance. However, it’s unclear whether having these miners would benefit the country’s monetary policy in any way.
While CBDC mining is a popular topic, in practice, a decentralized or semi-decentralized CBDC would likely operate as a proof-of-stake (PoS) currency rather than a proof-of-work one. This is because of the previously mentioned environmental impact of proof-of-work cryptocurrencies and the fact that, despite early concerns, proof-of-stake appears to be relatively secure (even when compared to proof-of-work systems), as evidenced by the relatively high security level of chains like Ethereum and Solana.
Despite the issues with the decentralized CBDC models we discussed earlier in the article, one stablecoin could serve as a potential model for a decentralized CBDC that could utilize mining or staking as a consensus mechanism.
MakerDAO, a popular blockchain ecosystem and “decentral bank,” which issues the popular stablecoin, DAI, has weathered multiple crypto downturns and is perhaps the only genuinely stable decentralized stablecoin on the market today. To mint the DAI stablecoin, individuals must lock up a specific amount of ETH or other cryptocurrencies in a smart contract. It’s essential to note that DAI is an overcollateralized stablecoin; for example, users generally must lock up 150% of the value in ETH of the DAI they want to mint before getting authorization to mint the coins.
MakerDAO ecosystem and TVL (total value locked) data, Sep. 2023. Source: DefiLlama.
For instance, if you wanted to mint $10,000 of DAI, you’d have to lock up around $15,000 in ETH in a Maker smart contract. Users can later get their ETH back (at its current market price) by exchanging it for the DAI they minted previously. Users are incentivized to mint DAI since they can lend it out on various crypto lending protocols to earn yield, and they can always get their ETH back later. This over-collateralization generally helps ensure that DAI retains its value even when the crypto market takes turns for the worse.
But how does this relate to CBDC mining and staking? A decentralized system could be created where users can exchange assets with real value, such as gold, stocks, bonds, or real estate, for a CBDC coin (backed by a central government). Much like in the MakerDAO model, they could then lend these coins out for extra yield while still being able to later exchange their assets (at their current market value) for the amount of CBDCs they initially minted. Transferring the CBDC from wallet to wallet would carry transaction fees, some of which would go to stakers and some to purchase more real-world assets to add to the CBDC treasury.
To combat inflation and create a potentially inflation-resistant CBDC, some of these real-world assets could be sold to buy back CBDCs at a premium, reducing the coin supply and, therefore, pumping the brakes on inflation.
To provide some type of decentralized governance, much like MakerDAO, a secondary token (like MakerDAO’s MKR token) could allow token holders to vote on the governance of the CBDC issuance system, including which types of assets would be needed to mint the CBDC, minimum collateralization ratios for minting new CBDC coins, how transaction fees are measured, how block rewards are issued, and other important governance issues.
While this system could operate on a one-token, one-vote system, whales could dominate this governance system, leading to many of the problems we currently see in ordinary central bank fiat currencies.
To create a more democratic and equitable governance model, a country’s central bank could issue Soulbound Tokens (SBTs). These tokens cannot be transferred from one wallet to another and can be used to verify individual identities. In this model, a Soulbound Token could be issued to every citizen eligible to vote, allowing ordinary people to have a direct say in their government’s monetary system.
While this type of central banking (or rather, decentral banking) might be far off, it does give us a glimpse into what a more decentralized, more democratic financial system could look like in the future.
In the end, CBDC mining or staking is unlikely ever to occur– at least in the near future, as government central banks will likely want to retain a high degree of control over monetary policy. If central bank fiat currencies are ever replaced by decentralized, blockchain-based currencies, it’s far more likely that independent, asset-backed stablecoins will slowly take market share away from fiat currencies, particularly if they can effectively resist inflation. However, the concept of CBDC mining still remains an interesting idea, at least as a thought experiment– and who knows? Perhaps, one day, it will come to pass.
Sign up for the Supra newsletter for news, updates, industry insights, and more. | <urn:uuid:7f1d7cd5-7649-49a4-8ae7-27fc6fef50ef> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://supra.com/academy/cbdc-mining/ | 2024-12-04T19:07:49Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066304351.58/warc/CC-MAIN-20241204172202-20241204202202-00490.warc.gz | en | 0.957937 | 2,257 | 3.296875 | 3 |
What is the potential, and the problem, with digital design? How can we make digital design more compatible with children’s evolving capacities? In search of answers, Sonia Livingstone and Kruakae Pothong talk to Jenny Radesky about digital design and its implications for children’s development.
Kruakae: Our current work on play aims to change the black and white thinking about play (not just gaming) in the digital environment. So, we ask: What does good look like?
Jenny: I am interested in how the design affordances of mobility and interactivity affect interpersonal interactions because a lot of my clinical training emphasizes the importance of early parent-child relationships, attachment and resilience in the context of toxic stress.
In my research interviews, parents talked about their own inner experiences using mobile tech around kids. And a lot of them talked about design features. They talked about notifications, rewards, and other persuasive design impacting how attached they felt to their devices – and how exciting yet exhausting it felt to be splitting their attention between parenting and technology. So I became interested in how persuasive design can either support or undermine parents’ and children’s daily experiences.
Building upon the research on dark patterns in video game design, we’ve been trying to see, where is persuasive design crossing the line with children? Where is it becoming a design abuse? Where is it limiting user agency? Where is it tricking the user? Where is it putting undue pressure that’s not appropriate for a child’s developmental needs?
Sonia: So, you have moved, in a way, from thinking about how to illuminate parents’ understanding to thinking about the policy. Are you talking to designers, working with designers?
Jenny: One project I’m working on is about the design cues or surface cues that help children understand what’s going on behind the scenes – for example, with data collection and privacy. We interviewed five to ten-year-olds, and many of them spontaneously talked about surface cues on YouTube, or their favourite game, or Netflix, that gave them hints about where the data were stored and what was happening behind the scenes. Although they got some things right, they would often erroneously point to the history section of the user interface (UI) and say all their data was stored there. So, we thought there is the potential for designers to create micro-interactions or surface cues that let children know when things are going back to headquarters, not being stored locally, and when their data is being processed.
Sonia: Absolutely. Another thing we’re thinking about is where there are possibilities for different business models.
Jenny: Ad-based business models aren’t always being executed in a child-centred way. My lab has reviewed hundreds of children’s apps and YouTube videos, and we keep seeing sloppy ad practices. Developers and platforms seem like they are just taking it for granted that these are sustainable possible business models, but they are so disruptive to children’s digital experiences. For example, in our Common Sense Media report, we found that kids’ nursery rhyme videos on YouTube had the highest frequency of ads compared to other genres. We counted the number of ads that show up on the top ten YouTube child-directed channels, and some of them run for longer than the video itself. About one in 5 ads on child videos were age-inappropriate – we suppose that ads are sneaking through that probably labelled themselves as child friendly, but they’re for dodgy video game websites.
Sonia: And not to mention programmes that are really ads.
Jenny: Yes, which make up a lot of the top viewed videos. How are we going to change this ecosystem without there being alternative sustainable business models, that actually could be even more lucrative because they truly are serving what children and families need? And are not just subscription models used by white, wealthy families?
Kruakae: So, what is your hope? You advocate transparency in digital design. What do you expect kids and/or parents to be able to do with that transparency, realistically?
Jenny: For one thing, we know that children are making guesses about how their data are handled based on the user interface – so, the more honest and accurate those interfaces are, and the less they obscure what they are doing, the more accurate kids’ informal inferences will be. Children are always looking for cues in the environment for how things work.
But, I think it’s not only transparency. Maybe it’s also just a bit more of choice or agency provided in the user interface. If you are a parent trying to manage your child’s YouTube, one of the key frustrations I’ve heard has been about children being distracted during remote learning and being led down algorithmic feeds into territory neither the child nor parent really hoped for.
Although YouTube is a potential place for cool and creative content, its recommendations feed elevates the clickbait and trending content. If a child starts on a video that is not ‘made for kids’ – which channels may not want to identify as because it limits behavioural advertising – then the recommendations feed is likely to offer trending not-for-kids content. I would love for YouTube to offer parents and children the option of not having a recommendation feed, or just a limited set of new channels to discover that have been vetted for positive, creative content.
Kruakae: The other approach you had talked about is elevating the good content. What would be the interest for platforms like YouTube to, say, prioritise more content from Sesame Street rather than any other stuff.
Jenny: Yes. I think the incentive for YouTube would be to prevent families from leaving the site wholesale if they see YouTube as not child friendly at all.
It’s not that it needs to be some sort of social engineering to make sure every child watches Sesame Street and Berenstain Bears and other positive [content] that have been constructed to try to teach through storytelling. But at least, don’t take them down the opposite path – to video after video of unboxing videos or consumerist, wish-fulfilling vicarious vlogs that offer minimal storytelling or meaning-making – other than norm generation around consumption and excess.
In order to elevate educational and meaningful content, metrics of video success will need to change. Currently, the metric is engagement: how many likes, comments, subscribers (which lots of YouTubers actively ask kids to do during their videos – it’s a bit shameless). What if the metric was how likely the parent and child were to have an interesting conversation about the video? How much the child learned a cool idea that launched a subsequent activity in their physical or social world – like Curious George episodes try to do? I realize this would lead to more children shifting their attention off of YouTube, and on to other activities, but it is an example of changing the design to suit the child’s best interests rather than the interest of ad impressions.
Sonia: We did a consultation with kids and parents, and one thing that they said to us loud and clear was they wanted more digital content that they could take into their world and build hybrid play spaces and opportunities. Then I read about the metaverse, and I think, okay, so the game if designed well, if they’re going to build that, that’s great, but of course they’re only going to build it if they can monetise it… Whatever new kind of avenue you open up, with the most public-spirited and child-centred vision, is grist to the mill of this astonishingly creative business.
Jenny: Yes, I do worry about how newer and more virtual spaces will be monetized more rapidly than we can provide guidance for how families can navigate them. Proactive design codes like the UK’s will hopefully address this through child impact assessments, but I also sometimes want to bury my head in the sand and just keep my kids out of these spaces for fear that their interests will not be considered – which I know is just going back to the screen time model of “just say no!” But it helps you understand why such a reactive stance has been taken by child advocates.
Sonia: We talked to the kids during the worst moment of lockdown, really. So, they talked about playing online with a lot of pleasure of, that’s where I can be creative. That’s where I can meet my friends and, as Mimi Ito would say, hang out and mess around. I do feel we should be saying, those are the spaces to build, but they should allow for the kind of flexibility and adaptability that you were talking about.
Jenny: I agree. In our review of apps labelled as “educational” we found that most designs are pretty closed-loop, constrained sets of activities that don’t provide much exploration or autonomy.
Another issue is I’ve asked some of my lower income patients, the parents, have you tried YouTube Kids? And they [responded] what is that? So, they don’t know. This was before YouTube started putting the YouTube Kids link under every kid-directed video. Once the habit of main YouTube was established, it was hard to transfer kids to YouTube Kids.
Sonia: Maybe there is something interesting to say not only to designers, but also to content producers, that somehow they’re underestimating kids and what they make is a bit too safe and a bit too dull and should be a bit edgier, but without going over the edge.
Jenny: That’s interesting. I do think it’s an issue of really being creative about content creation and not just following little kiddie scripts or copying whatever challenge is trending. There is a content desert for elementary school age and middle childhood, and finding a balance between edginess and depth is important. My kids have been reading a lot of comics, and I think that graphic novels are pushing that edge right now, where they have such fun, interesting content, but a bit more drama that attracts child readers, yet a lot of care is given to developing rich characters and storylines that resonate with their stage of life.
Whereas the rapid “get to scale, push out stuff” approach to content creation on YouTube and other platforms – it’s thin and not well produced and potentially carrying a lot of stereotypes. In our reviews of YouTube content, we have wondered how much thought is going into producing these videos, to writing a script? Is thought given to what messages are children going to take away from this? Is it going to carry forward tropes that we’ve been trying to get rid of in mainstream media? All that stuff has the potential to come back.
I realize I am sounding quite critical of children’s digital spaces right now, but I hope that platforms and tech companies are going to be responsive to some feedback on child-centred design principles. If child-centred researchers go into these digital spaces and find problems, find design features that are clearly crossing a line with children, it would be great to have a constructive conversation about what can be done to improve it. I know there are fixes. This would not only improve children’s digital experiences but also take away a lot of the panic about children’s screen use and allow a more practical conversation.
Assistant Professor Jenny Radesky, University of Michigan Medical School: My research focuses on the intersection between mobile technology, parenting, parent-child interaction, and child development of processes such as executive functioning, self-regulation, and social-emotional well-being. Our projects use a combination of methods including surveys, videotaped parent-child interaction tasks, time diaries, and mobile device app logging to examine how parents and young children use mobile technologies throughout their day. We have developed novel content analysis approaches to understand the experience of young children while using commercially available mobile apps – including advertising content, educational quality, and data collection. We emphasize questions that are relevant to everyday parenting experiences, and also consider what design changes would help create an optimal default environment for children and families. | <urn:uuid:780e501b-4160-4125-b146-41b367294cb9> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://digitalfuturescommission.org.uk/blog/what-differences-can-digital-design-make-for-children/ | 2024-12-04T13:12:06Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066157793.53/warc/CC-MAIN-20241204110931-20241204140931-00775.warc.gz | en | 0.964113 | 2,538 | 2.59375 | 3 |
Let’s Talk About Bark Carving: Unleashing the Beauty of Tree Bark
Bark carving is a unique and fascinating form of artistic expression that involves transforming the rugged and organic surface of tree bark into intricately carved designs. It is a captivating art form that combines nature's raw beauty with the creativity and skill of the artist. Bark carving offers a wonderful opportunity to work with a readily available and sustainable medium while embracing the natural textures and patterns found in bark.
In this article, we will delve into the captivating world of bark carving, exploring its history, techniques, and the endless possibilities it presents. We will discuss the carving tools and materials required for this craft and provide helpful tips and guidance to help you get started on your own bark carving projects.
History of Bark Carving
The history of bark carving can be traced back to ancient cultures that recognized the artistic potential of tree bark as a medium for expression. Indigenous communities around the world, such as Native American tribes, have long practiced the art of bark carving, creating intricate designs and symbols on bark surfaces. These carvings held cultural and spiritual significance, telling stories, recording history, and honoring their connection with nature.
In Scandinavian countries, bark carving has a rich history that dates back centuries. In Sweden, for example, the tradition of bark carving, known as «tunnbrödssnideri», emerged during the 18th century. The carvings were typically done on the inner side of the birch bark, which was used to make food containers and household items. Skilled artisans would carve delicate patterns and images, showcasing their craftsmanship and creating functional yet beautifully decorated objects.
During the 19th and early 20th centuries, bark carving gained popularity as a form of folk art in many regions. In North America, artists and craftsmen began incorporating bark carving techniques into their artwork, creating intricate pieces that showcased the natural beauty of the material. Bark carvings became popular decorative items, often depicting wildlife, nature scenes, or traditional motifs.
Today, bark carving continues to evolve as a recognized art form, with contemporary artists pushing the boundaries of creativity and innovation. While still deeply rooted in tradition, modern bark carvings can be seen as unique expressions of individual artistic styles and interpretations.
The history of bark carving not only reflects the artistic heritage of different cultures but also highlights the intrinsic connection between humans and nature. Through the art of bark carving, artists pay homage to the natural world, using tree bark as their canvas to create intricate and visually stunning works that celebrate the beauty and significance of the material.
Techniques and Tools for Bark Carving
Bark carving requires specific techniques and tools to transform the rough and textured surface of tree bark into intricately carved designs. Understanding these techniques and having the right tools at your disposal are essential for achieving precise and visually captivating results. Here, we will explore some common techniques and tools used in the art of bark carving.
- Preparation: Before beginning the carving process, it's important to properly prepare the bark. Start by selecting a suitable piece of bark that is relatively flat and free from cracks or damage. Remove any loose or flaky outer layers to reveal a clean and stable surface for carving.
- Design Transfer: Transferring your design onto the bark is a crucial step. You can achieve this by drawing your design directly on the bark using a pencil or by creating a stencil and tracing the outlines onto the bark. This will serve as a guide as you start carving.
- Carving Techniques: Bark carving typically involves a combination of relief carving and incised carving. Relief carving involves carving away the surrounding areas of the design, leaving the desired elements raised. Incised carving, on the other hand, involves cutting into the bark to create fine details and texture.
Carving Tools: The tools used in bark carving may vary depending on the artist's preference and the complexity of the design. Some commonly used tools include:
- Carving Knives: Carving knives with sharp, pointed blades are essential for removing larger sections of bark and shaping the overall design.
- Gouges: Gouges are curved chisels that come in various sizes and shapes. They are used to create rounded or concave areas in the design, adding depth and dimension.
- V-Tools: V-shaped carving tools are ideal for making precise cuts and creating fine details. They are particularly useful for adding texture and intricate patterns.
- Mallet: A wooden or rubber mallet can be used to provide controlled force when driving the carving tools into the bark. This helps to achieve clean and precise cuts.
- Finishing and Preservation: Once the carving is complete, it's important to protect the finished piece. Applying a wood sealer or varnish can help preserve the bark and enhance the overall appearance of the carving. It's advisable to choose a finish that is specifically designed for use on wood and bark surfaces.
As with any art form, practice and experimentation are key to mastering bark carving techniques. Start with simpler designs and gradually progress to more intricate projects as you become more comfortable with the tools and techniques involved. Additionally, don't hesitate to seek out resources such as books, online tutorials, or local workshops to further develop your skills and learn from experienced bark carvers.
By familiarizing yourself with the various techniques and tools used in bark carving, you can embark on a creative journey that embraces the natural beauty of tree bark and unlocks the potential to create breathtaking works of art.
Bark Carving Design Inspirations
When it comes to bark carving, the unique textures and patterns found in tree bark provide endless inspiration for creating captivating designs. Whether you're drawn to the delicate beauty of floral motifs, the majesty of wildlife scenes, or the abstract allure of patterns and shapes, there are numerous design inspirations that can be brought to life on the textured canvas of bark. Let's explore some of these design inspirations to fuel your creativity in bark carving.
- Floral Designs: The organic and rustic nature of bark serves as an ideal backdrop for carving intricate floral designs. From delicate petals to winding vines, you can create stunning representations of flowers, leaves, and other botanical elements. Take inspiration from nature itself and study the shapes and details of real flowers to capture their essence in your bark carvings.
- Wildlife Scenes: Bark carving offers a wonderful opportunity to depict the beauty and diversity of wildlife. Whether it's a soaring bird in flight, a graceful deer in a woodland setting, or a playful squirrel amidst the branches, wildlife scenes carved on bark can capture the spirit and vitality of these creatures. Study reference images or observe animals in their natural habitats to bring authenticity and life to your carvings.
- Traditional Motifs: Bark carving can also be inspired by traditional motifs and cultural symbols. Explore the rich heritage of different cultures and incorporate elements such as Celtic knots, tribal patterns, or ancient symbols into your designs. These motifs add a sense of history and cultural significance to your bark carvings, making them truly unique and captivating.
- Abstract Patterns: For those who appreciate more abstract and contemporary designs, bark carving offers ample opportunities to explore patterns, shapes, and textures. Let your imagination roam free as you create geometric designs, abstract compositions, or intricate textures on the bark's surface. Experiment with different carving techniques and depths to achieve a visually striking and expressive piece of art.
- Custom Themes: Bark carving allows for endless customization and personalization. Consider carving designs that reflect your interests, hobbies, or personal experiences. It could be a favorite quote, a cherished memory, or a symbol that holds personal meaning to you. By infusing your own narrative into the carving, you create a truly one-of-a-kind piece that resonates with your own story.
Remember, the beauty of bark carving lies in the blend of nature's textures and your artistic interpretation. Let the unique patterns and ruggedness of the bark guide your design choices and allow your creativity to flourish. Whether you find inspiration in the delicate elegance of nature, the power of wildlife, the richness of cultural motifs, or the abstract world of patterns, the possibilities for design inspirations in bark carving are truly limitless. Embrace the process, explore various themes, and let your imagination carve the path to stunning and captivating bark creations.
Bark Carving Challenges and Tips
While bark carving can be a rewarding and fulfilling artistic pursuit, it does come with its own set of challenges. Understanding and overcoming these challenges can enhance your carving experience and help you achieve better results. Here are some common challenges faced in bark carving, along with valuable tips to overcome them:
- Fragility of Bark: One of the main challenges in bark carving is the inherent fragility of the material. Bark can be delicate and prone to cracking or breaking if not handled carefully. To minimize the risk of damage, choose thicker and more durable pieces of bark. Avoid applying excessive pressure when carving and use sharp tools to make clean cuts. Additionally, consider stabilizing the bark by attaching it to a backing board or applying a thin layer of adhesive to reinforce it.
- Preserving the Finished Carving: After completing a bark carving, preserving it becomes essential to maintain its longevity and appearance. Since bark is a natural material, it is susceptible to deterioration over time. To protect the finished piece, apply a suitable wood sealer or varnish to the carved surface. This will help prevent moisture absorption and guard against environmental factors. Regularly inspect and touch up the finish as needed to ensure the carving stays protected.
- Bark Texture and Irregularities: Bark surfaces can present unique challenges due to their natural textures and irregularities. Embrace these characteristics as they add charm and depth to your carving. However, keep in mind that certain intricate details may be more difficult to achieve on uneven surfaces. Adjust your design or carving techniques accordingly, and consider using gouges or V-tools to create textures that complement the natural patterns of the bark.
- Planning and Adaptation: Bark is not a uniformly flat surface, and its shape and size may vary. This can make planning and executing a carving design more challenging. Before starting a project, carefully assess the shape and dimensions of the bark to determine the best placement for your design. Consider adapting your design to the natural contours of the bark, allowing the unique shape to guide your carving choices. Flexibility and adaptability are key when working with the organic canvas of bark.
- Practice and Patience: Like any form of art, bark carving requires practice and patience to develop skills and achieve desired results. Start with simpler designs and gradually progress to more complex projects. Take the time to master carving techniques and experiment with different tools to discover what works best for you. Remember, each carving is an opportunity to learn and improve. Embrace the learning process, and don't be discouraged by initial challenges.
By being mindful of these challenges and implementing the suggested tips, you can navigate the intricacies of bark carving with greater confidence and success. Embrace the unique characteristics of bark, adapt your design choices, and persevere through the learning curve. As you overcome challenges, you will witness your skills grow and your bark carvings evolve into stunning pieces of art that celebrate the beauty of nature.
In conclusion, bark carving is an art form that allows you to unlock the hidden beauty of tree bark and transform it into captivating works of art. From understanding the techniques and tools involved to finding design inspirations and addressing common challenges, this article has provided insights and guidance to help you embark on your bark carving journey. Embrace the textures, patterns, and stories embedded in bark, and let your creativity soar as you carve your own unique path in this enchanting art form. With practice, patience, and a touch of artistic flair, your bark carvings will captivate and inspire others with the rustic elegance and organic beauty they exude. Happy carving!
Let’s Talk about Bark Carving FAQ
What types of bark are suitable for carving?
Various types of bark can be used for carving, but some popular choices include birch bark, cedar bark, and pine bark. These barks are relatively flexible and have distinct textures that add character to the carvings.
Is bark carving suitable for beginners?
Bark carving can be enjoyed by beginners and experienced carvers alike. Starting with simpler designs and gradually progressing to more complex projects allows beginners to develop their skills and gain confidence in working with bark as a medium.
How do I preserve a bark carving?
Preserving a bark carving is important to protect it from deterioration. After completing the carving, apply a suitable wood sealer or varnish to the surface. This will help seal the bark, guard against moisture, and preserve the appearance of the carving over time.
Can I incorporate color into my bark carvings?
While bark carvings are typically admired for their natural beauty, you can enhance your carvings with subtle color accents. Consider using natural dyes, such as diluted acrylic paints or wood stains, to add a touch of color to specific areas. Remember to apply the colors sparingly, allowing the natural tones and textures of the bark to shine through.
Wood carving guruFrom a childhood enchanted by nature, my passion for wood carving guided me on a path of creativity. With a pocket knife, I uncovered the transformative power of my hands, breathing life into driftwood and forging a lifelong connection with the medium. | <urn:uuid:74ceef6e-07b0-446f-80c4-29f470a45576> | CC-MAIN-2024-51 | https://beavercrafttools.com/blogs/ideas-inspiration-carve-hacks/let-s-do-some-bark-carving-bc-series-4 | 2024-12-07T06:35:56Z | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2024-51/segments/1733066423685.72/warc/CC-MAIN-20241207041404-20241207071404-00820.warc.gz | en | 0.926372 | 2,768 | 2.78125 | 3 |
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