text:
- The Embassy
- The UAE
- Business & Trade
- Travel & Culture
- UAE-US Relations
- UAE Nationals
The UAE is committed to working with the international community to keep the world safe from global proliferation threats and to fully support the goals of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT).
The principles, commitments and strategies outlined in the UAE policy on the evaluation and potential development of peaceful nuclear energy demonstrate the UAE's peaceful and transparent intentions. The policy also is fully consistent with the UAE's longstanding support for the NPT, as well as the UAE's support for a Middle East region completely free of weapons of mass destruction.
The UAE joined the Non-Proliferation Treaty in 1996. The UAE also is a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and cooperates with the Missile Technology Control Regime. The UAE is a partner nation on the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism.
The UAE has expressed a deep concern over Iran's nuclear development and its impact on peace and stability in the entire region. The UAE fully supports and enforces United Nations Security Council resolutions barring shipment of sensitive materials and technologies to Iran.
Other non-proliferation initiatives include:
- The UAE is working with the US Department of Energy to implement the Megaports Initiative, a cooperative effort aimed at deterring terrorists from using the world's seaports to ship illicit materials; detecting nuclear or radioactive materials if shipped via sea cargo; and interdicting harmful materials so they cannot be used by terrorists.
- The UAE is a signatory to the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI), which is aimed at stopping shipments of weapons of mass destruction, their delivery systems and related materials worldwide.
- The UAE participates in the US Container Security Initiative (CSI), a security regime that includes a team of US Customs and Border Protection officers permanently stationed inside Dubai's ports, where they work closely with Dubai Customs to screen containers destined for the United States.
- Ports operated by Dubai Ports World participate in the Secure Freight Initiative, a US Department of Homeland Security pilot program to test the methods used to screen US-bound cargo for radiation.
- Dubai Ports World has been certified as a partner in the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism, a government-business cargo security initiative led by the US Department of Homeland Security's Customs and Border Protection component.
- The US Department of State, through its Export Control and Related Border Security Assistance program, is helping the UAE improve its enforcement and licensing capabilities aimed at curbing the transshipment of elicit materials.
Nuclear Energy and Non-Proliferation
The UAE has formally endorsed a set of guidelines on the potential establishment of a peaceful civilian nuclear energy program in the UAE:
- The UAE is committed to complete operational transparency
- The UAE is committed to pursuing the highest standards of non-proliferation
- The UAE is committed to the highest standards of safety and security
- The UAE will work directly with the IAEA and conform to its standards in evaluating and potentially establishing a peaceful nuclear energy program
- The UAE hopes to develop any peaceful domestic nuclear power capability in partnership with the governments and firms of responsible nations, as well with the assistance of appropriate expert organizations
- The UAE will approach any peaceful domestic nuclear power program in a manner that best ensures long-term sustainability
In an effort to limit the danger of proliferation, the Government of the UAE has also adopted a policy renouncing the development of any domestic enrichment or reprocessing capabilities in favor of long-term arrangements for the external supply of nuclear fuel.
To support the UAE's ability to meet that obligation, the UAE pledged $10 million to support an IAEA-administered international uranium fuel bank initiative, resulting from a proposal by the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI). The fund is designed to provide assurances against supply disruptions, while strengthening the nuclear non-proliferation regime.
Non-proliferation instruments already concluded by the UAE:
- IAEA Treaty on Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (1995)
- IAEA Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement (2003)
- IAEA Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material (2003)
- UN Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (2000)
- UN Security Council Resolution 1540 (2004)
UN International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism (2005)
Non-proliferation instruments to be concluded by the UAE:
- IAEA Additional Protocol to Safeguards Agreement: After the UAE accepted the model Additional Protocol text developed by the IAEA, the latter submitted a request for approval in Feb 2009 to the Agency's Board of Governors. In March, the Board approved the text and authorized the Director General to sign it with the UAE.
- IAEA Amendment to the Convention on the Physical Protection: The UAE Cabinet has approved the text.
- Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) Export Guidelines: These will be concluded only if the UAE chooses to deploy nuclear power plants; however, discussions have begun.
The UAE has already taken into account the obligations that stem from the Additional Protocol and other international instruments in its draft nuclear law and upcoming regulations. The UAE is developing the required physical and legal infrastructure to ensure the obligations under these instruments are met by the time they are brought into force.
Status of UAE Nuclear Safety Commitments
Safety instruments concluded by the UAE:
- IAEA Convention on Early Notification of a Nuclear Accident (1987)
- IAEA Convention on Assistance in the Case of a Nuclear Accident or Radiological Emergency (1987)
Safety instruments to be concluded by the UAE:
- IAEA Convention on Nuclear Safety
- IAEA Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management
Status of UAE Nuclear Liability Commitments
Liability instruments to be concluded by the UAE, only if the UAE chooses to deploy nuclear power plants:
- IAEA Vienna Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage
- IAEA Protocol to Amend the Vienna Convention on Civil Liability
- IAEA Joint Protocol on the Application of the Vienna and Paris Conventions
- IAEA Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage


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Location: Milky WayKrogan DMZNith System First planet
Prerequisite: Priority: Sur'Kesh (Mass Effect 3)
The class-B blue giant Nith was once the most strategically valuable system within krogan territory. Though far too hot for habitation, Nith emits thousands of times the energy of a main sequence star like Earth's Sol. With help from salarian uplift teams, the krogan constructed a chain of solar power collector stations in orbit around Nith. These vast arrays beamed power to particle accelerators on the surface of Mantun, which manufactured antiproton fuel for warship thrusters. In the Krogan Rebellions the Spectre agents managed to get a virus into the computers of the solar power arrays; every fifth array suddenly applied braking thrusters. The arrays behind them "piled up", and all were reduced to wreckage. This has since dispersed into a relatively stable ring system. The krogan never had the resources to rebuild the solar arrays, depriving them of their fleet's main fuel supply for the remainder of the war. The particle accelerators still exist on Mantun but have not been used in thousands of years.
Mineral DepositsEdit
Initial Scanner Result: Rich
Mineral Amount Approximate Value
Palladium Medium 5,800
Platinum Medium 5,600
Iridium High 15,700
Element Zero Low 4,800
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by Teslime Kagar and Cem Kagar
We love hearing from the community members, sharing their inspiring stories. This time we would like to take you to a beautiful small town called Payas, in Hatay (Antioch), Turkey. What makes Payas special is the work of the local council, who have focused on providing educational opportunities to reduce inequality amongst the young people and children within their community. Payas council opened their STEM centre to help children especially those coming from disadvantaged backgrounds to develop 21st century skills. They have highly qualified teachers, helping children develop transferrable skills that are vital for both learning and employability.
The story of PAYAS Stem Centre
The key person who made it possible fort the STEM centre to open is the mayor of the city, Bekir Altan. He attended training sessions at Harvard University in politics and whilst he was completing his training he decided to complete a reserach on STEM education in the US. He concluded that STEM learning would help children develop skills that are vital for learning in both school and life. He also noted that these skills were a must for the jobs of both today and the future. He shared his thoughts with teachers from local schools and suggested that they should look into ways that they could provide children and young people with STEM learning opportunities. The team of teachers from local schools undertook research to find out about the impacts of STEM education on children's learning, challenges and issues around designing STEM learning experiences. They shared their report with the mayor of Payas, and he directly asked them to design the STEM centre. In November 2016 they opened the first STEM centre that was funded directly by the local council to rpovide free STEM workshops for children and young people. Their aim is to provide inclusive education for all and for this they work colloboratively with experts to support children with SEND. They organise workshops in many different areas, using a wide range of tools. For example they run Lego robotics workshops for children and the mayor was very impressed with Berat Mustafa Izgi's work in this area. In February 2017 children from the Payas STEM centre took part in a Turkey wide Lego competition and in April they went to Silicon Valley for an International Robotic competition and received the Judges special prize for their excellent work.
When we look around the World, we see that the importance of STEM learning is mainly understood and valued in developed countries. We need to act quickly and provide our young people with the opportunities to develop STEM skills that will help them with their learning both at school and in life and also with their employability. This would also contrubute to the country's economy. At Payas council, in our STEM centre we aim to help children to develop the knowledge and skills that would inspire them to become future scientists by providing activities in the area of science, engineering, programming, brain games and astronomy.
Students at Payas STEM Lab
One of the aims of Turkey's 2023 development plan is to support high quality education programmes. This is also one of the EU's 2020 strategy. Keeping this in mind, we aim to provide free STEM education, especially to girls and children from disadvantaged backgrounds, as we think that they are the future of Turkey and in order to reach the level of developed countries we need to prepare them for future opportunities and challenges. We believe that there is a relationship between, economy, development, and advancement in innovation and capacity to design & create technology.
Economy is based on information, therefore we need to educate the generation that will produce this information. For this we need to help them to develop transferrable skills that they can use for solving a wide range of problems. STEM education offers such an opportunity. We were inspired by Turkish scientist Prof.Dr.Aziz Sancar, who is the member of a team that won the Nobel prize. In Turkey he has been leading a Project called GIS ( Girls in Stem). His aim is to help girls in Year 6 to develop an understanding of global education, knowledge exchange and cultural interactions.
At our STEM centre we focus on; robotics, mathematical modelling, scientific inquiry, brain and vocabulary games. We use sensors, electronic circuits, 3d printers, Lego Mindstorms EV3 and many other engaging tools for teaching and learning.
In every century people have faced different problems. Scientific inquiry skill helps people to solve these problems not only in the field of science and mathematics but also in social sciences. Through our Project based learning approach we help our students to manage their learning process and design creative solutions collaboratively with their friends.
In robotics lessons students learn about:
- Digital literacy
- System design
- Team working
- Dijital design and animation
- Creating projects that will enable them to apply skills & knowledge from other subjects
- Product design and turning this into reality using programming skills
We cannot say whether we are educating the new Ibn-i Sina or Biruni, but we do know that we are cultivating curiosity and creativity in young learners. They are enthusiastic about learning through cross curricular approach and learning through making. We are delighted that we were able to establish this centre and set an example to other local authorities to take the inititive in education. There are incredible developments in Artificial intellegence and machines are becoming very clever for us. We need to be ready for this new era and this is only possible by educating the new digital makers generation.
Example activities from PAYAS STEM Centre
Developing Scientific Inquiry
In year 7, children focused on the mirror and light absorption and created a periscope. We first provided them with this information:
A periscope is an optical tool for making movement easier. In the past both the sea and land wars, if people couldn't see their target from safe distance, they would use a periscope. Also technicians and nuclear engineers use periscopes when they observe a deangerous area. Periscopes are mostly used in submarines.
We then asked the children to design and create their own persicopes. They used mirrors and cardboard to create their own periscopes. In this activity they learned about scientific concepts but at the same time experimented with different materials in the process of designing and making a periscope. This inter disciplinary approach to learning allowed students to link their understanding of concepts from different subject studies to construct their new knowledge.
Learning to code through robotics
In this session with Year 7 children we created an application to model time, period and frequency. For this project we asked children to form a group of 3. We asked them to explain time, period and frequency. They used their lesson notes and the Internet to complete a research and form their answers. In groups they brain-stormed their ideas.
We asked them to create an Arduino application.
We provided each group with 6 led, arduino, breadboard and cables. We asked them to ensure that their application meets the following conditions:
- Place the 6 LED next to each other
- Each LED light should turn on 1seconds after another.
- After all the LED's are turned on, the program should return to the beginning and repeat the process forever.
- They should share the jobs. One should do reserach, one should calculate, one should create the design and one should write the script.
- When they have completed the application, they should find the time period of the application first LED to last LED.
We gave students 40 minutes to complete the task. Apart from one group they all completed it successfully. We asked the group that had difficulties to find their error and debug it. They found that when they were writing the code, they forget to use ( ; ) and they also connected one of the cables to wrong place.
In this project Year 6 children were learning about decimals numbers. We asked them to complete an online research on the size of coins. We then gave them paper, scissors, and ruler and asked them to create coins (They called these STEM coins) at equal sizes. They then used these coins to shop from the STEM supermarket.
They completed their shopping and calculated the total of how much they spent in Turkish lira. They converted their STEM Money into Turkish lira. This allowed them to develop their understanding of decimal numbers in a daily life context.

source: openbmb/Ultra-FineWeb


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Inconsistent Visitation and Resulting Problems
Once a court order is in place concerning possession and access, parties and their children tend to acclimate to the new schedule without too many problems. However, if the possessory parent (the parent who does not have the exclusive right to designate the primary residence of the children) has an obstacle when regularly exercising possession, problems can arise.
Possessory Parent Is Not Required To Exercise
First, it is important to understand that the possessory parent is not required to exercise each and every period of possession awarded to them in the order. In fact, every order will contain a provision that orders the parties to notify the other parent when they are unable to exercise a period of possession.
Second, just because one parent notifies the other parent that they cannot exercise a period of possession, the other parent is not obligated to arrange their schedule to accommodate whatever portion of the period of possession can be exercised.
Most of the time, an inability to exercise possession and access is not going to be a problem as parents tend to fall into one of two categories:
 1. A parent who exercises nearly every period of possession barring some medical emergency or natural disaster or
 2. A parent who never exercises at all. In these cases, there is a level of predictability for the parents and the children.
However, in the rare cases where a parent's exercise of periods of possession is not as predictable, such as their work schedule is exceedingly difficult to predict, or subject to change, lack of predictability can become a problem for both parents.
Enforcement is likely to be a concern for both parents.
Parents do not want to just sit at home and wait for a parent that may or may not show up. However, not being at home for the designated periods of possession may make them vulnerable to an enforcement action, which can include fines, attorney's fees, and even jail.
Possessory parents who have an everchanging schedule cannot enforce their periods of possession unless they can guarantee that they are where they are supposed to be at when they are supposed to be under the order. If they have a consistent issue with not being able to be there at the ordered time and place, there only solution may be to file a modification of the underlying order.
Open Communication & Best Practices
Having open communication with the other parent can help alleviate these problems. Establishing a consistent method of communication can be helpful. Our clients have used a variety of co-parenting apps, such as ourfamilywizard.com, to have a designated method of communication between them and the other parent. Let the other parent know as soon as an issue arises and what your suggestion would be. Be considerate of the other parent's plans when asking for a change in schedule. Figuring out a method that works for both parents can avoid future litigation.


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Wood is an excellent material for container gardens because it lets the plant roots breathe and it is relatively light weight. You can also make your own containers to whatever size you like. The wood will deteriorate after several years, however, so wooden planters are best used for shorter lived plants rather than trees or shrubs which you will keep planted for many years. Making your planter from redwood or cedar will make it longer lived, as these woods resist insects and wood rot.
Here are instructions for making a 12 x 12 x 12 inch planter. It can be easily modified to make whatever size planter you like: some suggestions for making larger or smaller planters are included at the end of this article.
Wood saw (hand or power)
note some hardware/lumber stores will cut wood for you for a small fee
Drill and 1/2 to 3/4 drill bit
T or L square (for making sure your corners are square and sides straight)
Miter box (for making straight cuts)
Workbench with vise or clamp (to hold wood as you cut or join together)
20 or more nails, 2 to 2 1/2" long (6d to 8d size)
8 or more nails, 1 1/2" long (4d size)
50 or more finishing nails
4 feet of redwood or cedar 2x2 board, cut to about 10.5 long (see Making the Base, below)
(note, these 2x2 will actually be about 1.5 x 1.5, as the wood is cut to 2x2 and then finished so that it is smooth)
8 1/2 feet of redwood or cedar 1x2 board (actually about 1/2 x 1 1/2), four cut into 12 long sections, four cut 13 long
4 feet of redwood or cedar 1x1" board (about 1/2 x 1/2") cut to 12" lengths
10 feet of redwood or cedar fence board, 6 wide, cut into ten 12 long sections
Making the Base
Measure the width of your 2x2 board. Cut four lengths, each 12 minus the width. For example, if your board is 1 1/2 wide, cut four lengths 10 1/2 long.
Lay out your four pieces so they form a 12 square, with one end of each length overlapping the next going around the square.
Nail the square together, using one 2 or 2 1/2" nail at each corner, going through the overlapping section into the board next to it.
Making the Bottom
Cut two 12 long sections of the fence board for the bottom of the planter. If the fence boards have the corners cut off the tops, you can use these pieces for the bottom since they won't show and they'll be supported by the base.
Lay these fence board sections over the base, matching up edges and corners. Use 8 of the 1 ½ inch nails to attach to the base, four for each board (two along the edge and one at each end). Note: you can use more nails if you like for a more secure fit.
Drill five 1/2 to 3/4 holes for drainage, one in the center and one near each corner.
Making the Sides
Place a 12 fence board section on one edge of the base, even with the bottom and corner, to form the start of one of the four sides of your planter. Place one of the 12 1x2 sections on top of it at the base, and nail through both boards to the base board using a 2 nail about 1 from the corner. Now hammer a second 2" nail through both boards to the base about 1 from the other edge of the fence board. Place a second fence board next to the first (and between the base and the 1x2) and hammer through both boards to the base in two places 1 from either edge, just like the first.
Turn over, and on the opposite side nail in two more fence boards to the base with a 12 1x2 section on top, using the 2" nails.
For the remaining two sides in between, hammer together as the first two but using the 13 long 1x2 sections, overlapping with the first two at the corners. Use finishing nails at the corners to secure the 1x2 to each other for a tight fit.
Finishing the Top
Using two of the 12 long 1x2 boards, nail them along the top outside edge of the fence boards using the finishing nails, above where you used the 12 long boards along the base. Nail the remaining 13 long 1x2 boards on the opposite outside edges, overlapping the corners. Use finishing nails at the corners to nail the 1x2 to each other, making a strong corner and a more finished look.
Note: placing a 2x4 or 4x4, a tool box, or something else substantial against the edge inside the container will make hammering the top and corners much easier.
Place one 1x1 section inside each corner for additional strength. Hammer at least two finishing nails per each side of the corners through from the outside into the 1x1, about 3" from the top and bottom.
You can paint or oil your planter box on the outside for a more finished look. Decorate it with rope or macramι cord tied around it, or add wooden cut-outs or flower decals available from craft stores. Experiment and make the container uniquely yours.
To Make a Different Size Planter Box
The same basic design can be used for smaller or larger planters.
For a small planter you can use 1x1 boards for the base and ½ x 1 for the edge boards, using smaller and shorter nails.
For a really large planter use 2x4 or 4x4 for your base boards and 2x4 for your edge boards, with 2x2 reinforcing the inside of your corners. You may want to use boards thicker than fence boards for your sides, or reinforce the sides with additional 2x4 in the middle and at the corners.

source: HuggingFaceFW/fineweb-edu


text:
For older children, research has shown that preparation may reduce crying or resistance of the procedure. Prepared children report less pain and show less distress. Proper preparation for a test or procedure may reduce an older child's anxiety, encourage cooperation, and help develop coping skills.
Given the developmental level of your child (0 - 1 year), pretest preparation will be of little benefit, but some considerations may ease your anxiety.
Before the test, know that your child probably will cry, and restraints may be used. The most important way you can help your child through this procedure is by being there and showing you care.
Crying is a normal response to the strange environment, unfamiliar people, restraints, and separation from you. Your infant will cry more for these reasons than because the test or procedure is uncomfortable.
Knowing this from the onset may help relieve some of your anxiety about what to expect. Having specific information about the test may further reduce your anxiety. For more information, please see the appropriate test.
Infants lack the physical control, coordination, and ability to follow commands that older children and adults usually possess. Restraints may be used during a procedure or other situation to ensure your infant's safety. For example, in order to get clear test results on an x-ray, there can't be any movement. Your infant may be restrained by hand or with physical devices.
If blood needs to be taken or an IV started, restraints are important in preventing injury to your infant. If your child moves while the needle is being inserted, the needle could damage a blood vessel, bone, tissue, or nerves.
Most tests and procedures require extreme accuracy to obtain the desired outcome, whether to place an IV correctly, ensure accurate test results, or to avoid injuring the infant.
Your provider will use every means to ensure the safety and comfort of your baby. Besides restraints, other measures include medications, observation, and monitors.
DURING THE PROCEDURE
Your presence helps your infant during the procedure, especially if the procedure allows you to maintain physical contact. If the procedure is performed at the hospital or your health care provider's office, you will most likely be given the opportunity to be present.
If you are not asked to be by your child's side and would like to be, ask your provider if this is possible. If you think you may become ill or anxious, consider keeping your distance, but remaining in your infant's line of vision. If you are not able to be present, leaving a familiar object with your infant may be comforting.
- Ask your provider to limit the number of strangers entering and leaving the room during the procedure, since this can raise anxiety.
- Ask that the provider who has spent the most time with your child perform the procedure.
- Ask that anesthetics be used where appropriate to reduce the level of discomfort your child will feel.
- Ask that painful procedures not be performed in the hospital crib, so that the infant does not come to associate pain with the crib. Many hospitals have special treatment rooms where procedures are performed.
- Imitate the behavior you or your health care provider need the infant to do, such as opening the mouth.
- Many children's hospitals have child life specialists who are specially trained to educate patients and families and advocate for them during procedures. Ask if one is available.
Neil K. Kaneshiro, MD, MHA, Clinical Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, University of Washington School of Medicine. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.


aim is to develop a model with parameters θ, such that given a context c, its predicted probability P(w,c) approximates the original data distribution Pd(w,c)
Generally, the noise distribution is approximated by sampling. We do that by generating k noise samples {wij}:
Where Zθ(c) is a normalizing term from the softmax, and you recall this is what we are trying to eliminate. The way we can eliminate Zθ(c) is by making it a learnable parameter. Essentially, we transform the softmax function from absolute value, i.e. the value which sums over all the words in vocabulary again and again, to a dynamic value which changes to find a better for itself – it's learnable.
But, as it turns out, Mnih et al. (2013) stated that Zθ(c) can be fixed at 1. Even though it's static again but it normalizes quite well, Zoph et al. (2016) found that Zθ(c)=1 produces a model with low variance.
We can replace Pθ(w | c) with exp(sθ(w | c)) such that the loss function can be written as:
Word embedding loss function
One thing to keep in mind is that as we increase the number of noise samples k, the NCE derivative approaches the likelihood gradient, or the softmax function of the normalised model.
In conclusion, NCE is a way of learning a data distribution by comparing it against a noise distribution, and modifying the learning parameters such that the model Pθ is almost equal to Pd.
Negative sampling
It's important to understand NCE, because negative sampling is the modified version of the same. It's a more simplified version as well.
To begin with, we learned that as we increase the number of noise samples k, the NCE derivative approaches the likelihood gradient, or the softmax function of the normalised model.
The way negative sampling works is, it gets rid of the noise by replacing it with 1. Intuitively,
When y=1
In negative sampling we use a sigmoid function, so we'll transform the above equation to:
We know that Pθ(w | c) is replaced with exp(sθ(w | c)).
This makes the equation shorter. It has to compute 1 instead of noise, so the equation becomes computationally efficient. But why do we care to simplify NCE?
One reason is that we're concerned with the high representation of the word vector, so it can simplify the model as long as the word embeddings produced by the model retain their quality.
If we replace the final NCE equation with the equation above, we get:
Since log(1)=0
Since we're dealing with sigmoid function i.e.
we can modify the equation above to:
(Here are the links to the Notebook and original paper)
Final thoughts and conclusion
We explored the evolution of neural-based modelling for NLP or machine translation. We covered word embedding, a method to find semantic, syntactic and linear relationship in the vocabulary. Although some of the methods mentioned earlier are no longer used, they lay the basic foundation of the subject, and make further learning easier.
We saw how Begio and his team introduced neural language models to find better representation through their word embedding method, followed by how Mikolov and his team modified Begio's method and introduced a computationally less expensive method by removing the hidden layer. Although the word2vec model is a simple model, it became computationally expensive once the vocabulary size increased.
Different methods were introduced to rectify the issue of complexities, and the three models that we saw later in the post addressed the issue with the softmax function
In the end, we saw how negative sampling outranks all the two methods (hierarchical softmax and NCE), and modifies word2vec model with a much more efficient approximation technique that captures better representation like semantic, syntactic, and preserves linear representation as well reduces the computational cost.
Word embedding opened new doors for NLP research and development. These models work well, but they still lack conceptual understanding. It was only in 2018 that Peters et. al. introduced ELMo: Embeddings from Language Model, which linked the missing piece of finding contextual representation through word embeddings.
For better understanding and clarity, check out the notebooks for each topic.
How to Structure and Manage Natural Language Processing (NLP) Projects
Dhruvil Karani | Posted October 12, 2020
If there is one thing I learned working in the ML industry is this: machine learning projects are messy.
It is not that people don't want to have things organized it is just there are many things that are hard to structure and manage over the course of the project.
You may start clean but things come in the way.
Some typical reasons are:
 - quick data explorations in Notebooks,
 - model code taken from the research repo on github,
 - new datasets added when everything was already set,
 - data quality issues are discovered and re-labeling of the data is needed,
 - someone on the team "just tried something quickly" and changed training parameters (passed via argparse) without telling anyone about it,
 - push to turn prototypes into production "just this once" coming from the top.
Over the years working as a machine learning engineer I've learned a bunch of things that can help you stay on top of things and keep your NLP projects in check (as much as you can really have ML projects in check:)).
In this post I will share key pointers, guidelines, tips and tricks that I learned while working on various data science projects. Many things can be valuable in any ML project but some are specific to NLP.
Continue reading ->
BERT and Transformer
10 Things You Need to Know About BERT and the Transformer Architecture That Are Reshaping the AI Landscape
Read more
Word embeddings custom datasets
Training, Visualizing, and Understanding Word Embeddings: Deep Dive Into Custom Datasets
Read more
Hyperband and BOHB
HyperBand and BOHB: Understanding State of the Art Hyperparameter Optimization Algorithms
Read more
Model monitoring tools
Best Tools to Do ML Model Monitoring
Read more


- Kiki de Bruin
From Sensitives to Hedonists: A Nuanced Framework of News Avoidance
News avoidance is a hot topic. Not only did news avoidance receive academic attention in the past decade, but there is also growing interest in the field of journalism. However, a lot is still unclear about news avoidance. Why do people avoid the news, what news do they avoid, and does this mean they are not informed? Before we answer these questions, we seek a more holistic conceptualization of news avoidance, focus on personal motivations for news avoidance, and examine different manifestations of news avoidance from the perspective of journalism experts.
The Delphi-method
Previous research on news avoidance is quite fragmented, so we are venturing beyond the literature. Since we cannot study 'news avoiders' yet (as we don't know who they are), we gather different perspectives on the topic from experts from the journalism field, by applying the Delphi-method. The Delphi method is an iterative group process, where a certain consensus is ought to be reached by structured communication and controlled feedback. Doing so reduces groupthink or power dynamics and makes it a convenient method to gather knowledge and perspectives from all layers of a professional field. We consulted twenty-seven journalism scholars and practitioners, combining both theory and practice.
News avoidance and its many manifestations
One of our findings is that there is no such thing as 'the news avoider', but that news avoidance has many different motivations and manifestations, common in all different populations and unrelated to the amount of news exposure. To uncover these motivations and manifestations, the experts formulated eight (concept) types of news avoiders.
 1. "Sensitives" avoid the news because of its inherent negativity and feel emotionally overloaded and helpless.
 2. "Low-trusters" feel the media are untrustworthy as media do not represent their point of view and do not cover topics they deem important.
 3. "Disinterested ones" are simply not interested in current affairs or politics and prefer to consume entertainment or social media content.
 4. "Niche dudes and gals" have a very specific interest or hobby, for example, sports, gaming, or gastronomy. Consequently, they skip content that does not pertain to their interests.
 5. "Mindful naturalists" are concerned with the bigger issues in life, e.g. self-development and -care and the balance between nature and people. They do not want to be distracted or bothered by current-affairs information.
 6. "Low-key avoiders" are too busy (with their jobs, children, or other matters) to follow the news. They simply do not get around to it.
 7. "Hedonists" are too concerned with their own life and peers to care about societal issues.
 8. Lastly, "media illiterates" are those who never have been socialized into consuming news by their parents or school.
The Delphi study demonstrates everyone can be a news avoider, regardless of their amount of news consumption. We also find that different motivations lead to different manifestations, and that news avoidance does not necessarily mean that news avoiders are not informed. Based on this, we can study news avoidance from an audience perspective. In this, we hope to provide a more informed account of news avoidance and avoiders.
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text:
Most dental materials permit the microleakage of bacteria and bacterial products from oral fluids to reach dentin. Thus, an understanding of the clinical consequences of microleakage demands that we analyze the permeability characteristics of dentin. The more dentin surface that is exposed during tooth preparation, the greater the potential for microleakage. Thicker dentin is less permeable than thin dentin. Dentin over pulp horns is more permeable than central dentin. Similarly, the dentin making up axial walls is more permeable than dentin forming the pulpal floor of cavities. Coronal dentin is much more permeable than root dentin. In addition to the number of tubules per unit area, tubule diameter, and the location of the dentin in a tooth, another extremely important variable is the presence or absence of a smear layer. When smear layers are created, grinding debris are forced into each tubule to form a smear plug. Smear plugs are usually 1- to 2-μm long but may be 10-μm long. They are much longer than the smear layer thickness and they reduce dentin permeability more than the overlying smear layer. Smear layers constitute a natural cavity liner that reduces the permeability of dentin far more than any cavity varnish. However, its presence limits the strength of dentin bonding agents because of the relatively low cohesive forces holding the smear layer together and to dentin. If it is removed, the bond strengths of dentin adhesive resins increases, but removal also increases the potential liability for pulpal inflammation if the bond is not uniformly perfect. There is a balance between the rate of diffusion of bacterial products permeating dentin from microleakage and the rate at which they are removed by the pulpal circulation. Decreases in pulpal blood flow can permit the concentration of these products to increase, thereby triggering pulpal inflammation.
ASJC Scopus subject areas


PVC (Prisoner, Vacationer, Change-maker)
PVC (Prisoner, Vacationer, Change-maker)
Materials Needed:
 - PVC Model (Flipchart or Power point)
 PVC stands for Prisoner, Vacationer, and Change-Maker'
 - These are mindsets you can have in any given experience
Prisoner Mindset:
In this mindset you may feel trapped in a situation and completely unhappy. You are stuck in a situation and your not really trying to find a way out.
Vacationer Mindset:
In this mindset things are great, you feel fine, and you can just kick back and go for the ride. There are many things going on around you but your not really focused on what's happening, your in your own world.
Change-Maker Mindset:
Change-Makers are able to assess their position in any situation, and work to change things so that they are making the most out of their
PVC Activity Suggestions
Facilitator Instructions
1. Create a list of scenarios that your participants may encounter in life and/ or on the program (i.e. "Going on family vacation", "Completing a group project", "Participating in this program")
2. Make three big signs, one each for Prisoner, Vacationer, Leader. Place the signs on three different walls of your program space (or on the floor or ground, depending on space available)
3. Begin the activity by reviewing the PVC model with the participants (using the model displayed on a flipchart or PowerPoint slide). Ask participants to tell you what a mindset is, discuss the meaning of mindset and some common mindsets. Review the PVC model after they understand the meaning of 'mindset'.
4. One at a time, read out your list of prompts and have participants move to the sign that depicts their mindset in each scenario.
5. Once the participants have moved to a sign, you may choose to have them discuss their mindset with the others at that station, or explain their mindset to a group at a different station.
6. You may wish to ask participants what it would take for them to change their mindset in particular situations. Is it possible to change ones mindset in challenging situations? Why or why not?


text:
Public accountability : the perceived usefulness of school annual reports
Tooley, Stuart & Hooks, Jillian (2010) Public accountability : the perceived usefulness of school annual reports. Australasian Accounting Business & Finance Journal, 4(2), pp. 39-59.
Annual reports are an important component of New Zealand schools' public accountability. Through the annual report the governance body informs stakeholders about school aims, objectives, achievements, use of resources, and financial performance. This paper identifies the perceived usefulness of the school annual report to recipients and the extent to which it serves as an instrument of accountability and/or decision-usefulness. The study finds that the annual report is used for a variety of purposes, including: to determine if the school has conducted its activities effectively and achieved stated objectives and goals; to examine student achievements; to assess financial accountability and performance; and to make decisions about the school as a suitable environment for their child/children. Nevertheless, the study also finds that other forms of communication are more important sources of information about the school than the annual report which is seen to fall short of users' required qualities of understandability, reliability and readability. It would appear imperative that policy makers review the functional role of the school annual report which is a costly document to prepare. Further, school managers need to engage in alternative means to communicate sufficient and meaningful information in the discharge of public accountability.
Citation countsare sourced monthly fromand citation databases.
These databases contain citations from different subsets of available publications and different time periods and thus the citation count from each is usually different. Some works are not in either database and no count is displayed. Scopus includes citations from articles published in 1996 onwards, and Web of Science generally from 1980 onwards.
Citations counts from theindexing service can be viewed at the linked Google Scholar™ search.
Full-text downloadsdisplays the total number of times this work's files (e.g., a PDF) have been downloaded from QUT ePrints as well as the number of downloads in the previous 365 days. The count includes downloads for all files if a work has more than one.
|Item Type:||Journal Article|
|Keywords:||School annual reporting, Public accountability, New Zealand|
|Subjects:||Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification > COMMERCE MANAGEMENT TOURISM AND SERVICES (150000) > ACCOUNTING AUDITING AND ACCOUNTABILITY (150100) > Auditing and Accountability (150102)|
|Divisions:||Current > QUT Faculties and Divisions > QUT Business School|
Current > Schools > School of Accountancy
|Copyright Owner:||Copyright 2010 Australasian Accounting Business and Finance Journal and the authors.|
|Deposited On:||16 Sep 2010 10:24|
|Last Modified:||01 Mar 2012 00:29|
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New Wives' Tales
based on 4 ratings
Author: Judee Shipman
Grade Level: 6th - 12th; Type: Medicine
Study ancient remedies.
The goals of this project are:
 1. To determine the effectiveness of ancient remedies.
 2. To compare each remedy to its modern-day counterpart.
Research Questions:
 - What ancient remedies are still in use today?
 - How are medical treatments tested?
Long ago, the opal was considered a predictor of illness. This may sound whimsical until we understand that the opal loses its shine as temperature increases. Thus, an opal tucked under the armpit of a healthy person will be shinier than an opal tucked under the armpit of someone running a fever. In other words, the opal was the world's first thermometer. In this project you will analyze completed scientific studies of ancient treatments and remedies, and explain how they work, or how they don't.
 - Computer with Internet access
 - Color printer
 - Digital camera
 - Typical office/hobby/hardware/craft supplies (paper, poster board, glue, etc.).
Experimental Procedure:
 1. Read overview of relevant topics (see bibliography below)
 2. Address all of the terms and research questions mentioned here.
 3. Search and print out images relevant to your topic.
 4. Take photographs throughout the course of the experiment.
 5. Select a number of ancient medical treatments as the subject of your study.
 6. Create a visual chart that categorizes ancient remedies and illustrates the effectiveness of these treatments.
 7. Explain your reasoning in a detailed report.
 8. Include photos, diagrams, models and artifacts in your science fair display.
Terms/Concepts: Alternative Medicine; Eastern Medicine; Herbalism; Western Medicine
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Documentary explores the history of time travel and its place in pop culture
Would you rather go forward or back?
Lisa Granshaw
Published Sep 21, 2014 Updated May 30, 2021, 1:29 pm CDT
We often wonder about the possibilities of time travel, but why does it inspire us? And how likely is it that we might ever be able to test out theories of time travel ourselves instead of just consuming them in pop culture?
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A Brief History of Time Travel, a new documentary looking for funding on Kickstarter, is hoping to explore all these things. The film was created by a team of women who may not have scientific backgrounds in the subject but share a personal interest in time travel. Director Gisella Bustillos was inspired to explore why people are so obsessed with time travel after watching the movie La Jetée. She later met Dani Creech, the documentary's editor, and Wanda Bertram, the documentary's producer, at some film events where they discovered a common love of sci-fi.
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"The bulk of our theoretical physics education has definitely happened on the film—we interviewed some brilliant scientists, like Ed Farhi and Seth Shostak, but we're filmmakers first," Bertram told the Daily Dot. "Our fan loyalties are all over the place! Gisella is a huge fan of Star Trek: Voyager, Dani's a serious Whovian (we had to have one on crew!), and I go for the noir-ish ones like Looper."
The crew traveled around the country and spent two years interviewing a wide range of people to get their thoughts on time travel, including Bill Nye, cryobiologist Chana Phaedra, and Double Fine Productions founder Tim Schafer. As they traveled the country speaking with various people, the crew found themselves sometimes surprised by what they discovered.
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"It's fascinating to hear about scientific research that seems to be getting us closer to actual time travel, like the theoretical experiment that might solve the grandfather paradox," Bertram said. "But it's also mindblowing to learn how time travel stories are connected to our perception of free will and physicality, which sounds like it should take a back seat to the 'Is it possible?' question, but is actually very connected to that question. Interviewing people on the street challenged our assumptions too. We'd ask silly questions like, 'Would you rather go forward or back?' and the vast majority of people wanted to go to the past, which surprised us. We three all want to go to the future!"
In the documentary, people will learn if time travel to the future or past is more likely possible, when humans first started thinking about time travel, and much more. Now that filming is complete, the crew is turning to Kickstarter for help getting through their post-production phase. The funds will pay for hiring additional crew like an animator and editor, and paying for archival footage and copyright material.
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"Choosing Kickstarter had a lot to do with the supportive fan base we developed during production—an overwhelming number of people we've met have been really excited and offered their help to the point where we can do really gorgeous post-production on an efficient budget," Bertram said. "Community-based fundraising is something we really believe in, and we want the community of time travel fans to grow!"
The crowdfunding campaign ends on Oct. 17.
Photos courtesy of Wanda Bertram
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*First Published: Sep 21, 2014, 11:00 am CDT


text: The ancient name of Basilan Island was Tagime, named after a Datu who once ruled a big part of the island before the Spaniards came to Basilan. In the long past, Basilan had other names. It used to be named Uleyan, derived from a mountain located at the heart of the island. Later, it was changed to Matangal, also named after Mt. Matangal in Tuburan. Other names given were Puh Gulangan (island of forest); Umus Tambun (fertile land); Kumalarang, named after a river; Baunuh Peggesan; and later it was changed to Basih Balan.


Moose Drawings (Sketching + Vector)
Moose drawings are fun to create. This adorable cartoon character often looks either mean, slightly dumb or suspicious. In this case, I decided to draw a moose with large eyes and tiny legs.
The moose is very present in North America, especially in Canada. Easily recognizable with its large Antlers (for the male anyway), it is quite easy to draw this cartoon animal and have a result similar to the real thing.
Step 1
Moose drawings
Let's start this drawing lesson by creating a sketch of the character. If you have a tablet, you can sketch directly to your computer. Like I said earlier, I tried to create a funny moose with large pupils, tiny legs and a cute tail.
Step 2
Moose drawings
When you are done, convert your drawing into a digital file (if you used a pencil and a piece of paper) and import the illustration on your computer. Then, open your vector software and add dark lines just like shown in the image above.
Step 3
Moose drawings
Create a new layer and place it behind the first two. Then, create new shapes and add plain colors for now. The goal is to separate the outlines and the plain shapes since shadows will be added between these two layers later on.
Step 4
Moose drawings
Select the gradient tool from your vector software and add a subtle effect on each element of the cartoon character. Remember that the bottom part of each shape must be darker.
Step 5
Moose drawings
When you are finished, create a new layer between the outlines and the plain shapes (that are now filled with gradient colors!). Add new dark shapes to represent strong shadows. Our goal is to add more depth to the moose.
Step 6
Moose drawings
Select the transparency tool and partially hide the top part of each shape added previously. Shadows are now subtle, but still strong enough to give more volume to the illustration.
Step 7
Moose drawings
Shadows are nice, but adding reflection to our moose drawings can definitely give a better result. To create reflection, simply add a new layer. Then, create new shapes that are colored in white. The pink one was added so that you could see the white shape positioned over another white shape.
Step 8
Moose drawings
Once again, select the transparency tool and partially hide the bottom part of each white shapes created previously. Highlights are subtle since the skin of the moose doesn't reflect light like plastic would (it's just an example).
Step 9
Moose drawings
Finally, you can alter the color of all outlines using a tone of color similar to the one from the shape closer to the line. Black outlines are great, but adding colors to the outlines is a more efficient option. Good job! I think our moose is ready to go! :)
Go back to Animal drawing tutorials
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text:
Florida Garden Health
Florida Garden Health Florida Garden Health is a unique concentrated liquid which utilizes proprietary natural and renewable source linear polymers. Sold as a proprietary formulation n a liquid concentrate wholesale to farms, Golf Courses and distribution in 275 gallon totes and 55 gallon drums. Like all Earth's Fertilizers this product can be sold under a private label
Florida Garden Health is a unique concentrated liquid which utilizes proprietary natural and renewable source linear polymers. Florida Garden Health will facilitate, when used as specified:
- Will prevent fungal problems before they become systemic in the plant.
- Will eradicate existing fungal colonization.
- Promotes a natural and sustainable plant defense reaction to many pathogens.
- Induce improved resistance to fungus and nematodes.
- Melts exoskeletons of insects
- Low-toxicity ingredient technology with low persistence and residence time
- Improves the exchange of nutrients through the plant root system.
- Improves yield by helping to balance and build porosity in the soil.
- A 100% water soluble, anionic liquid that helps encapsulate the root system to prevent fungal and bacterial infections.
- Florida Garden Health has low environmental impact during use and is biodegradable.
Formulated and blended in Tampa Bay Florida USA


text:
Experimental Studies of Turbulent Intensity around a Tidal Turbine Support Structure
AbstractTidal stream energy is a low-carbon energy source. Tidal stream turbines operate in a turbulent environment, and the effect of the structure between the turbine and seabed on this environment is not fully understood. An experimental study using 1:72 scale models based on a commercial turbine design was carried out to study the support structure influence on turbulent intensity around the turbine blades. The study was conducted using the wave-current tank at the Laboratory of Maritime Engineering (LABIMA), University of Florence. A realistic flow environment (ambient turbulent intensity = 11%) was established. Turbulent intensity was measured upstream and downstream of a turbine mounted on two different support structures (one resembling a commercial design, the other the same with an additional vertical element), in order to quantify any variation in turbulence and performance between the support structures. Turbine drive power was used to calculate power generation. Acoustic Doppler velocimetry (ADV) was used to record and calculate upstream and downstream turbulent intensity. In otherwise identical conditions, performance variation of only 4% was observed between two support structures. Turbulent intensity at 1, 3 and 5 blade diameters, both upstream and downstream, showed variation up to 21% between the two cases. The additional turbulent structures generated by the additional element of the second support structure appears to cause this effect, and the upstream propagation of turbulent intensity is believed to be permitted by surface waves. This result is significant for the prediction of turbine array performance. View Full-Text
Share & Cite This Article
Walker, S.; Cappietti, L. Experimental Studies of Turbulent Intensity around a Tidal Turbine Support Structure. Energies 2017, 10, 497.
Walker S, Cappietti L. Experimental Studies of Turbulent Intensity around a Tidal Turbine Support Structure. Energies. 2017; 10(4):_URL_ Style
Walker, Stuart; Cappietti, Lorenzo. 2017. "Experimental Studies of Turbulent Intensity around a Tidal Turbine Support Structure." Energies 10, no. 4: 497.
Note that from the first issue of 2016, MDPI journals use article numbers instead of page numbers. See further details here.


text: This exhibit depicts the anterior anatomy of the glenohumeral joint with a type IV SLAP tear of the labrum. Anatomical structures include: the acromion process, clavicle, coracoid process, glenoid cartilage, glenoid labrum, long head of the biceps brachii, supraspinatus, humeral head, and scapula. The glenoid labrum is a fibrocartilagenous rim of tissue that provides stability to the shoulder socket and serves as the insertion site for the long head of the biceps brachii. There are four classifications of labral injuries known as SLAP tears (SLAP I-IV). SLAP is an acronym representing "Superior Labral tear from Anterior to Posterior." A SLAP IV tear is a bucket-handle tear of the superior labrum, with extension of the tear into the biceps tendon.


Ice Play
Maya Ice
Here are some fun ideas about how to play with ice as we head into warmer weather!
-Use candy molds, muffin tins, baby food holders, or recycled food trays to freeze ice into different shapes
-Add food coloring (we learned it's better to color the water instead of dropping colors directly into cupsthis made the ice super dark)
-Add popsicle sticks to make handles for ice cubes
-Add different types of juices or make popsicles!
-Freeze ice in one solid block in a casserole dish with toys suspended in it. Might work best to freeze in several layers
-Add herbs or dried spicesedible flowers would be fun!
-Add frozen berries, peas, corn, or other fixin's!
-Freeze different colors or juices in layers
-Compare how different liquids freeze (OJ with pulp vs. apple juice, for example)
-Pour water over ice to melt it. Experiment with hot and cold water. Have your child practice pouring with different pitchers/ cups.
-Sprinkle salt on the ice to melt it (may not be great if your kid loves to taste like mine does!)
-Use forks, spoons, and table knives to dig things out that are frozen in the ice
-Watch how colored ice cubes melt and mix to make new colors
-Use the ice cubes to build a world for plastic animals. Try wetting ice blocks and pressing them together to see if you can get them to stick
-Use tongs, eyedroppers, and/or turkey basters to pick up ice cubes, suck up melted ice and squirt it.
-Use a colander or toy net to scoop up ice cubes and plastic toys in the ice
-Play catch with ice and see if you can catch it even though it's slippery!
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text:
by definition. The q-Pochhammer symbol is a major building block in the construction of q-analogs; for instance, in the theory of basic hypergeometric series, it plays the role that the ordinary Pochhammer symbol plays in the theory of generalized hypergeometric series.
Unlike the ordinary Pochhammer symbol, the q-Pochhammer symbol can be extended to an infinite product:
A q-series is a series in which the coefficients are functions of q, typically depending on q via q-Pochhammer symbols.
The finite product can be expressed in terms of the infinite product:
which extends the definition to negative integers n. Thus, for nonnegative n, one has
The q-Pochhammer symbol is the subject of a number of q-series identities, particularly the infinite series expansions
which are both special cases of the q-binomial theorem:
The q-Pochhammer symbol is closely related to the enumerative combinatorics of partitions. The coefficient of in
is the number of partitions of m into at most n parts.
Since, by conjugation of partitions, this is the same as the number of partitions of m into parts of size at most n, by identification of generating series we obtain the identity:
as in the above section.
We also have that the coefficient of in
is the number of partitions of m into n or n-1 distinct parts.
By removing a triangular partition with n − 1 parts from such a partition, we are left with an arbitrary partition with at most n parts. This gives a weight-preserving bijection between the set of partitions into n or n − 1 distinct parts and the set of pairs consisting of a triangular partition having n − 1 parts and a partition with at most n parts. By identifying generating series, this leads to the identity:
also described in the above section.
The q-binomial theorem itself can also be handled by a slightly more involved combinatorial argument of a similar flavour.
Multiple arguments convention
Since identities involving q-Pochhammer symbols so frequently involve products of many symbols, the standard convention is to write a product as a single symbol of multiple arguments:
Relationship to other q-functions
we define the q-analog of n, also known as the q-bracket or q-number of n to be
From this one can define the q-analog of the factorial, the q-factorial, as
Again, one recovers the usual factorial by taking the limit as q approaches 1. This can be interpreted as the number of flags in an n-dimensional vector space over the field with q elements, and taking the limit as q goes to 1 yields the interpretation of an ordering on a set as a flag in a vector space over the field with one element.
A product of negative integer q-brackets can be expressed in terms of the q-factorial as:
From the q-factorials, one can move on to define the q-binomial coefficients, also known as Gaussian coefficients, Gaussian polynomials, or Gaussian binomial coefficients:
One can check that
This converges to the usual Gamma function as q approaches 1 from inside the unit disc.. Note that
for any x and
for non-negative integer values of n. Alternatively, this may be taken as an extension of the q-factorial function to the real number system.
- George Gasper and Mizan Rahman, Basic Hypergeometric Series, 2nd Edition, (2004), Encyclopedia of Mathematics and Its Applications, 96, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. ISBN 0-521-83357-4.
- Roelof Koekoek and Rene F. Swarttouw, The Askey scheme of orthogonal polynomials and its q-analogues, section 0.2.
- Exton, H. (1983), q-Hypergeometric Functions and Applications, New York: Halstead Press, Chichester: Ellis Horwood, 1983, ISBN _PHONE_, ISBN _PHONE_, ISBN 978-_PHONE_


Quick Answer: Do You Need A Vapor Barrier On Concrete?
Should you put plastic under concrete?
A concrete vapor barrier is any material that prevents moisture from entering a concrete slab.
Vapor barriers are used because while fresh concrete is poured wet, it's not supposed to stay that way.
It needs to dry and then stay dry to avoid flooring problems.
This is why a vapor barrier under concrete is essential..
What can I use for vapor barrier under concrete?
The use of a vapor barrier (more accurately termed a vapor retarder), having a water vapor permeance of less than 0.3 perm is frequently used to retard the flow of moisture through the slab. These vapor retarders are typically polyethylene or polyolefin sheeting materials.
Where should vapor barrier be installed?
Vapor barriers are usually best installed on the side of the wall that experiences the hotter temperature and moister conditions: the inner surface in colder climates and the outer surface in hot, humid climates. In existing spaces, oil-based paints or vapor-barrier latex paints offer an effective moisture barrier.
What is code for vapor barrier?
Vapor Retarders in Cold Climate Zones (5, 6, 7 and Marine 4): The International Residential Code (IRC) requires either a Class I or II vapor retarder on the interior side of frame walls in climate zones: 5, 6, 7, 8 and marine 4 (see climate zone map).
What happens if you don't have a vapor barrier?
You may find that vapour barriers are often not required in warmer climates. And, if installed in the wrong climate or on the wrong side of building materials, a vapour barrier can cause more harm than good. This circumstance may prevent water vapour from drying, which in turn can cause rot and mold.
Is vapor barrier required by code?
We need vapor barriers in California Climate Zones 14-16. … A vapor barrier is likely required if the building is cladded with absorptive material and if the structure is in United States climate zones 4C, 5 through 8.
Do you need rebar for 6 inch slab?
Does a concrete slab need rebar?
Can you use spray foam under concrete slab?
Insulating under foundation and basement slabs using SPF (spray polyurethane foam) offers certain advantages over the more common method of using rigid foam board. … Only closed-cell SPF can be used in a subslab installation; the open-cell foam does not have adequate compressive strength.
What type of gravel goes under concrete?
Backfill beneath concrete flat-work along foundation walls should be accomplished with a granular material that is uniform in size. Some fill materials, such as round stones like pea gravel, tend to be self compacting. "I recommend open-graded granular material be used," says Tull.
What is better for concrete patio rebar or mesh?
wire mesh, the short answer is: use both! … Concrete driveways that need to carry a heavy load should have both rebar and wire mesh to reinforce the concrete. For a patio, you might be able to get away with using welded wire mesh. But remember, all concrete will crack and all concrete will shrink.
Can you pour concrete directly on dirt?
Long story short, yes you can pour concrete over dirt.
Why do they put plastic down before concrete?
Do you need rebar for 4 inch slab?
Can you put a vapor barrier over concrete?
Therefore, in high-humidity areas, moisture will move to a relatively low-humidity area, even through concrete. Therefore, because concrete is porous, it's a good idea to install a vapor barrier over your concrete subfloor before installing your flooring.
Do I need a moisture barrier under vinyl plank flooring?
Can I use Tyvek as a vapor barrier?
No, DuPont™ Tyvek® is not a vapor barrier. It is made with unique material science to keep air and bulk water out while allowing moisture vapor inside walls to escape.
Is sand a good base for concrete?
Is wire mesh better than rebar?
How long before it can rain on concrete?
How Long Does Concrete Take to Dry Before Rain? Even if it starts raining after a concrete pour, the potential for damage may not be that serious. If you had time to complete the finishing process and the concrete has stiffened (typically 4 to 8 hours after mixing), rainwater may cause little if any damage.
How do you prepare ground for concrete?
Preparation is the most important aspect of pouring a concrete slab.Dig the ground down to the proper depth. … Smooth out the ground with the flat side of a rake so that you have a level surface. … Tamp the ground with a hand tamper or mechanical tamper. … Pour 2 inches of small, rounded gravel for additional drainage needs.


text:
A collection of examples from the Prosthetic Knowledge Tumblr archive on the subject of Slitscanning, a photographic effect that creates distortions and occasionally insightful images based on time.
The slitscan effect has, of-late, had something of a renaissance over the past year thanks to digital technology. Once a time consuming and expensive technique, coders have created their own solutions (either personally or commercially in the mobile app market). For the uninitiated, it has been defined by Golan Levin thus:
Slitscan imaging techniques are used to create static images of time-based phenomena. In traditional film photography, slit scan images are created by exposing film as it slides past a slit-shaped aperture. In the digital realm, thin slices are extracted from a sequence of video frames, and concatenated into a new image.
Below are some examples of creative coding with the slitscan technique:
Volumetric Slitscan Experiments by Memo Akten
The slitscan technique is a well-explored method in photography and video, but this is the first time I have seen it using a Kinect camera feed, where depth plays an additional factor. Two short videos are embedded above, and they are made more fun by the music (dancing to Nina Simone's "My Baby Just Cares For Me").
Work-in-progress prototype for an upcoming project involving volumetric slitscanning using kinect (should it be called surface-scanning?). Similar to traditional slitscanning... but instead of working with 2D images + time, this technique uses spatial + temporal data stored in a 4D Space-Time Continuum, and 3 dimensional temporal gradients (i.e. not just slitscanning on the depth/rgb images, but surface-scanning on the animated 3D point cloud).
Slitscan 3D Test by Ryan Suits
A slitscan experiment in anaglyph vision, worth digging out those red/blue 3D glasses!
Bookmarklet can turn HTML5 videos on Youtube and Vimeo into slitscan-like images:
… Just hit the bookmarklet on any YouTube or Vimeo video page with an HTML5 player, and it will start drawing onto a canvas in the browser. You can modify the speed with the slider (the default value draws the entire video to the width of the browser). You can also download the code and modify it as you wish.
2001 A Space Odyssey: Unwrapping The Slitscan Sequence
A visual investigation using code to 'unroll' the famous psychedelic sequence from the film, itself a slitscan:
While watching Kubrick's "2001 A Space Odyssey", I thought it would be fun to write some software to unravel the slit scan artwork in the psychedelic sequences of 2001, to see what they were. The results of this experiment are below..
The technique used to unravel the sequences involved using an SGI's real time video hardware, with a hacked version of 'videoin.c' (from the SGI example programs) to accumulate scanlines from the DVD and concatenate them back into the original artwork. So as the film played, the program ran, unrolling the scanlines in realtime; it was really fun to see the first results..!
You can see more here.
An Informal Catalogue of Slit-Scan Video Artworks and Research: An extensive collection of examples of slitscan works.
Vimeo'slitscan 3d' search: Plenty of examples of contemporary experimentation.


text:
The Best HR KPIs Aligned With Company Strategy
This article will summarize a long research that was done for various kinds of HR KPIs. Below you will find the list of KPI for a Human Resource department. It is not just the KPIs, but detailed instruction about how to use specific KPIs and why these are the best choice for your business.
Why do HR managers and executives need KPIs?
The goal of any HR specialist is to help a company achieve its business goals by finding and hiring the right people, and then training and managing them in the right way and ensuring the consistency of the process. While the goal and the strategy of HR might be clear, how could one tell that their HR department is on the right track? Is the HR strategy being executed effectively? Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) will help in this case, but only if applied according to certain rules.
Lagging and Leading KPIs
Before we start with HR KPIs, all KPIs can be divided into lagging and leading.
Lagging KPIs are focused on the past, and they measure the output. For example, the "Turnover rate" is a lagging KPI. Lagging KPIs tell the story about the current state of your HR, but they don't tell you how to change this state.
Leading KPIs are focused on the future. Leading KPIs measure the input that should be introduced to achieve better results. For example, for the lagging KPI "Turnover rate" a leading KPI pair might be "Employee Engagement Rate."
We could say that "Employee Engagement Rate" (leading KPI) is what influences the "Turnover rate" (lagging KPI). Don't draw a conclusion that lagging KPIs are useless and what you need are leading KPIs only. It's just two type of KPIs that tell you different stories about your HR; and you will need both of them. What makes a difference is how you are going to use these KPIs.
Leading and Lagging KPIs in BSC Designer
Users of BSC Designer can specify if the indicator is a leading or lagging one:
- Go to the "Business goals" tab and find some business goal with an aligned KPI (or align some new KPI):
- Select an aligned KPI and in the properties change "Indicator type" to "Leading" or "Lagging."
- Switch to the "Strategy map" tab. Leading indicators will have a light green background, lagging indicators will have a light gray background:
HR KPIs Best Practice
A KPI by itself cannot be good or bad. Let's take a "turnover rate" KPI as an example.
- A bad HR manager only measures it without making any noticeable impact on a business.
- A good HR manager can have the same KPI, but use it exclusively for top-performers and have a step-by-step action plan about how to keep top-performers in the company, thus making a measurable difference to the company's outcomes as a result.
Some best practices for HR KPIs here.
- Define Cause and Effect Links
Before you start thinking about KPIs, define the strategic objectives that you have. The HR department is not a separate business; it works for the company, and it helps the company execute the strategy. Plus, it manages a company's most valuable asset, its employees. Make sure that the HR department in your company understands how its activity is linked to the ultimate objectives of the company.
- Align KPIs With a Specific Objective
KPIs are not a stand-alone measurement product. They are supposed to track your progress in achieving certain business objective. If you have a KPI, then it should be linked to some kind of business objective. If you have a KPI that is not linked to any objective, then probably you don't need this KPI at this very moment as it has nothing to do with the company's business objectives.
- Add an Action Plan
If you have a business objective and a KPI, it means that you know the goal and you know your progress towards this goal. But nothing will happen unless you start doing something. Add an action plan to your HR KPI. For example: if you measure employee engagement index in some way (that's your KPI), what is your action plan to improve it?
There are 20+ HR Hire KPIs that you might have found. The problem is that these KPIs have nothing to do with your strategy:
- HR Turnover (why it is useless and how to replace it)
- Time to fill (why it is useless and how to replace it)
- Actual versus budgeted cost of hire
- Average interviewing costs
- Female to male ratio
I suggest starting with this HR Hire KPIs:
- Time to find required number of qualified candidates.
- Yield Ratio, %.(Number of leads from recruitment method / Number of candidates invited to interview) x 100%.
Most Finance KPIs for HR are lagging KPIs you are free to use any kind of finance KPI that you wish to. But make sure you link it to some specific business objective. In most cases it won't be an easy task, as one number that you don't know is the ROI of certain talent in your company. I suggest you find a way how you can calculate this ROI. By having even an approximate result you will be able to improve any financial KPI for HR:
- Talent's ROI to Improve All HR KPIs.
One of the lagging measures for HR that might make a difference:
- Revenue per FTE employee. Formula: (Total revenue / The number of FTE employees) x 100.
- HR KPIs in the Balanced Scorecard
If you decide to use the "Strategy Map + KPIs" approach then what you might use is a Balanced Scorecard framework. With the Balanced Scorecard you can achieve all the requirements for the winning KPIs:
- You can build a cause-and-effect connection between business objectives;
- You can align KPIs with specific business objectives;
- You can add an action plan to each KPI.
Balanced Scorecard Software
As an automation tool I suggest using BSC Designer. You already have HR KPIs described in this article there.
What is more important is that this software allows creating a strategy map with strategic objectives linked by case-and-effect connection, and aligning KPIs to these objectives and adding an action plan to KPIs. Example from this article explains how to do this for HR.
Execute your HR strategy
When you have all your HR KPIs in the Balanced Scorecard you can start working with your HR strategy. Use an action plan that you have for specific KPIs, and ask your employees to report their progress back to the system.
When your company moves ahead you might need to revise your business objectives and as a result revise your HR KPIs. Do it regularly in order to make sure you are still tracking what matters.
Original article was written by Hussain Kamran


text:
We have nearly 1 million Source pages in the wiki, and most of them pre-date our new source page titling rules. Because of this, we need to rename them. Renaming will be done automatically, but it will require some human help to review the proposed renamings to ensure they are correct. This is a huge project, and we need your help to complete it.
Renaming the existing sources will be a big help for new users. Having so many sources that don't currently follow the titling rules makes learning how to create new source pages correctly very difficult. Renaming the sources will also make finding sources and identifying duplicate sources easier, and helps prepare the way for automatically generating source citations.
New source page title rules
The new rules construct the source page title from various fields in the source depending upon the source type:
| Source type || Source page title
| Books and Articles || Author. Title
| Government / Church records || Place covered. Title
| Newspapers || Title (Place issued)
| Periodicals || Title (Publisher)
| Miscellaneous/Unknown || Author. Title
- If the author, place covered, or place issued is missing for Books/Articles, Government/Church records, or Newspapers respectively, then the Source page title is simply the source title field.
- Author is the first author listed in surname, given name(s) format; e.g., Doe, Jane A.
- Place covered is small-to-large format; e.g., Chicago, Cook, Illinois, United States
- Place issued is also in small-to-large format, but unlike place covered, does not have to include every level; e.g., Chicago, IL is sufficient
- For Books, the title may be followed by the year published (in parentheses) to distinguish multiple editions of the same book.
- Leading articles (A, An, The) in the title are omitted when generating the source page title.
- Government/church records that have been compiled/transcribed by someone into a book use the Book source type.
- A new source type of Website is for unique compilations of material. Web pages that are a copy of an offline book or a specific government/church record set should be of type Book or Government/Church record respectively. In general, you should prefer the "Government/church records" or "Book" source types over "Website", unless the website contains a hodge-podge of material that can't reasonably be thought of as a government/church record set or a copy of an offline book; e.g., the website contains contains a variety of information from different types of records. Only in these cases should you call it a website.
- Source pages for archives, libraries, or historical societies ought to be renamed as Repository pages.
Ultimately source citations will be generated from various fields in the source depending upon the source type. It is important for source pages to have the correct field values so that the generated citation texts will be correct.
During the automated renaming, for sources of type "Miscellaneous" (the majority of the sources) the system will attempt to guess the correct source type by looking at the source author and will rename the source page accordingly.
We would like to start the automated renaming by the end of August, hopefully starting sometime August 24-28. Below are links to lists of page renamings, where you can see the current and renamed source page titles. The lists have been created based upon the last person to modify the source.
If you see your name in the list, would you please
- review the proposed renamings for your list and edit the source pages to change the fields necessary so that the new source page title will be correct, and
- sign your name next to the list so that we know it is being reviewed.
If you do not see your name in the list or if you finish your list and would like to help out, would you please
- Choose one of the "Other" lists to review, and
- sign your name next to it so that we know it is being worked on.
For each source, the lists contain a link to a source page showing the current title, followed by the new title underneath. If the new title is incorrect, please edit the source page and set the source type, title, author, place covered and/or place issued fields so that the new title will be generated correctly according to the rules in the table above. You don't need to (and shouldn't) rename the source. It will be renamed according to the rules in the table above next week.
The lists will be refreshed every morning so you will be able to see the results of your changes from the previous day.
If you have general comments or questions on the process, or if you notice any systemic problems during your review, please leave a message on the talk page.
Renamings to review
- Amelia.Gerlicher Done (!) --Amelia 00:34, 22 August 2009 (EDT)
- Beth Done!Beth 21:00, 19 August 2009 (EDT); non-census items double-check by jillaine 10:58, 1 September 2009 (EDT)
- BobC --
Done! (Sorry, but I renamed the pages themselves. I see now I wasn't suppose to do that.) BobC 16:29, 21 August 2009 (EDT) Second portion done. This time I didn't "rename." -- BobC 12:47, 24 August 2009 (EDT) Next portion under my UserID done --BobC 17:36, 30 August 2009 (EDT) Reviewed new entries --BobC 09:50, 3 September 2009 (EDT) Latest review complete. --BobC 12:59, 23 September 2009 (EDT)
- Ceyockey -- Changed my mind; CEY has some odd ones that appear self-created and um, I hesitate to touch CEY's work. jillaine 14:05, 2 September 2009 (EDT)
- Dallan--Dallan 11:12, 19 August 2009 (EDT)
- DFree completed, some might need to be redone?
- Gewurztraminer --dayna 15:07, 19 August 2009 (EDT) - done
- JBS66 A-Mi done, excepting the foreign language sources --dayna 08:51, 23 September 2009 (EDT)
- Jillaine -- DONE jillaine 15:06, 2 September 2009 (EDT)
- Jlanoux --Judy (jlanoux) 17:27, 19 August 2009 (EDT) - Done
- Jrich --Jrich 08:56, 20 August 2009 (EDT)
- Kennebec1 --kennebec1 16:53, 19 August 2009 (EDT) done except for several pending naming clarity from discussions... --kennebec1 22:21, 21 August 2009 (EDT) Ok, I think its really done now. --Brenda (kennebec1) 16:44, 31 August 2009 (EDT)
- Leo Bijl --sq 16:59, 27 August 2009 (EDT)
- Mksmith --Mike (mksmith) 16:34, 19 August 2009 (EDT) -- Done
- Quolla6--Q 11:05, 21 August 2009 (EDT)
- Skater --Taylor rechecked
- Solveig --Solveig done rechecked
- Taylor --Taylor rechecked
Sources that other people have edited or someone links to:
- these lists used to contain 1000 sources each; they have been split in half so that each list now contains 500 sources to review.
- Other0 --Judy (jlanoux) 20:09, 19 August 2009 (EDT) & Mike (mksmith) 22:48, 20 August 2009 (EDT) -- List completed
- Other1 --Mike (mksmith) 19:43, 21 August 2009 (EDT) & Judy (jlanoux) 19:58, 21 August 2009 (EDT) -- List complete
- Other2 --DFree 04:06, 22 August 2009 (EDT) Done. Will check tomorrow to be sure.
- Other3 -- DONE (finally!) jillaine 10:38, 31 August 2009 (EDT)
- Other4 --Amy (Ajcrow) 07:20, 20 August 2009 (EDT) -- List completed
- Other5 --Brenda (kennebec1) 19:08, 8 September 2009 (EDT) Done --Brenda (kennebec1) 22:54, 11 September 2009 (EDT)
- Other6 --
working on the Ws (from the bottom on up) dayna 09:08, 21 August 2009 (EDT) - Done.
- Other7 --Judy (jlanoux) 19:09, 21 August 2009 (EDT) List completed
Sources that are neither human-edited nor are linked to:
- WeRelate agent -- this list represents a 1% sample of 900,000 sources, mostly from the Family History Library Catalog. It doesn't need to be reviewed.


text:
The FlashShield 42mm Anti-Reflective Device from Carson Optical is an optical accessory that minimizes reflection by the objective lenses of a 42mm binocular. Simply by clipping the reflection shield in front of each objective, the honeycomb-shaped light baffle will reduce light reflecting off the lens. In addition to controlling reflected light that can expose the observer's location to wildlife, each FlashShield acts as a sun shade that blocks glare and also protects the lens surfaces from scratches and dirt.
- Minimizes the reflective signature of a binocular's objective lenses
- Helps maintain covert posture, great for hunting and birding
- Reduces glare and blocks stray light from the entering the field of view
- Helps protect lens surfaces from dust and debris
- Clip-on attachment is compatible with most 42mm binoculars


text: A comparative study of the forelimbs of the semifossorial prairie dog, Cynomys gunnisoni, and the scansorial tree squirrel, Sciurus niger, was focused on the musculoskeletal design for digging in the former and climbing in the latter. Based on lever arm mechanics, it was expected that the forelimb of the prairie dog would show features appropriate to the production of relatively large forces and that of the fox squirrel to relatively great velocity. Force and lever arm measurements were made of select forelimb muscles at the shoulder, elbow, and wrist joints for a series of angles in both species. Contraction time and fatigue indexes were determined for the same forelimb muscles. Contrary to expectation, in the few cases in which significant (P less than.05) differences were found, the forces, lever arms, and torques (force times its lever arm) were greater in the smaller fox squirrel. The observed variation in the torques produced fits the demands on the forelimb during climbing and digging as estimated from films. Several forelimb muscles of the fox squirrel show significantly higher mean contraction times than do the homologous muscles of the prairie dog. There were no significant differences between the two species in the fatigability of the selected forelimb muscles, although the mean fatigue index was always higher (less fatigable muscle) in the prairie dog. Similarities in the forelimbs of these two sciurids suggest that only minor modifications may have been required of the ancestral forelimb in order for descendent forms to operate successfully as climbers and diggers.


text:
Copper peptides are naturally occurring complexes that have been used for a variety of purposes in skin and hair care products since the 1990s. The complexes are a combination of the element copper and three amino acids. In the human body, copper peptides are found in trace amounts in blood plasma, saliva and urine. When used in skin care products, copper peptides can be made in a laboratory setting by combining a solution that contains copper with a substance that is similar to a protein powder.
Investigations into the benefits of copper peptides began in 1973 when biochemist Loren Pickart isolated the complexes from plasma samples. Pickart began searching for copper peptides when he discovered that liver cells obtained from people over the age of 60 could be revitalized by placing them in blood samples sourced from younger people. His goal was to determine precisely what was in the blood that caused this incredible rejuvenation of the cells, and when he identified that substance, copper peptides had been officially discovered.
The research begun by Pickart continued for decades and the results of his work have been reviewed, duplicated and confirmed by numerous independent scientists and physicians. In 1997, the first skin care products that contain copper peptides were released for sale and now, numerous brands offer formulas that are enriched with the complexes.
Copper peptides have been clinically shown to offer a wide variety of benefits for the skin and hair. Often, the complexes are used in skin care lotions, creams and serums designed to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Just as copper peptides had the ability to regenerate liver cells in Pickart's study, the ingredient can also rejuvenate skin cells in aging tissue, boosting the production of collagen and elastin. Levels of these structural proteins naturally decrease with age, and by increasing the amount available in the tissue, the skin can regain elasticity and strength. This makes many signs of aging less noticeable and slows down the aging process.
The anti-aging benefits of copper peptides are also due to their ability to promote the production of glycosaminoglycans like hyaluronic acid. These substances are found in the connective tissue and fluids in the human body and become depleted with age. The glycosaminoglycans are vital for helping the skin tissue remain plump and supple, and by supplementing their levels, the tissue can fill out and fine lines and wrinkles become less noticeable. Hyaluronic acid also helps the skin retain moisture, making copper peptides beneficial ingredients for products intended to treat dry skin.
Clinical research has established that copper peptides are antioxidants, nutrients that counteract the oxidizing effects of environmental particles called free radicals. Your skin is exposed to free radicals on a daily basis, and over time, the oxidation that they cause can result in cellular damage, which leads to the development of signs of aging. Because copper peptides neutralize free radicals, they can help prevent expression lines and wrinkles from developing prematurely.
In addition to their use in anti-aging skin care products, copper peptides are often found in shampoos and treatments designed to combat hair loss. Studies show that copper peptides have a positive effect on the hair follicles and can stimulate regrowth in areas of thinning and baldness. Its effects are similar to that of the medication minoxidil, which has been used for hair loss treatment for decades. Copper peptides are also capable of reducing the amount of hair loss that occurs due to chemotherapy treatments for cancer for some people.
Due to their natural presence in the human body, copper peptides are not known to cause side effects; however, some products that contain copper peptides could cause irritation and redness in people with sensitive skin due to other ingredients in their formulas.
Research into the benefits of copper peptides continues to this day. The ingredient has been shown in some studies to have the potential to absorb ultraviolet rays from the sun, to stimulate fingernail growth and to provide other benefits to the skin, hair and nails. The potential for the inclusion of copper peptides in new types of skin care products is impressive, and more and more top skin care brands are finding ways to incorporate these powerful natural complexes in their formulas each year.


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Jewish Journal
August 14, 2006
Pets left behind in the North are focus of Israeli volunteers
YOKNE'AM, Israel, Aug. 15 (JTA) -- When tens of thousands of Israelis fled their homes as Hezbollah rockets began raining down on northern Israel, they left behind not only hastily locked-up houses but, in many cases, their pets.
After days and weeks of being left to fend for themselves, many of the animals were found starving and dehydrated in the streets of northern towns and cities. Estimates put the number of animals in distress at about 8,000.
Three dogs were killed after a rocket hit the house in Kiryat Shmona where their owner had tied them up and left them. Some dogs were found wounded, their bodies riddled with shrapnel. Many others, terrified by the sound of rocket fire and artillery blasts, fled their homes and began living on the streets.
campaign_puppies.gif Soon after the fighting began, Hakol Chai, an Israeli animal welfare group, began sending volunteers to feed and water animals and rescue those in need of medical attention. Yadin Elam, the organization's director, finds it hard to believe so many pets were left behind.
The owners "probably thought it wouldn't take so long, thinking, 'We'll leave food for our pets.' Some of them called us," Elam said. "I have some issues with those people, but they're not the same as people who didn't do anything. Some even chained their dogs in the yard."
Largely supported by donations from American Jews, Hakol Chai sent 12 tons of pet food, hundreds of water bowls, medicine and other supplies to the North during Israel's monthlong war with Hezbollah.
Risking Katyusha fire, volunteers scattered at night into the streets of cities like Kiryat Shmona, Nahariya and Haifa looking for animals that needed medical help, and putting food and water in the streets for the others.
Noam Vardi, Hakol Chai's volunteer coordinator, started the job two weeks before the war began. He wasn't sure how he would find volunteers, but when the war started he was flooded with calls from people anxious to help.
campaign_food3.gif The first night, instead of finding cats to feed in the town of Ma'alot, volunteers were overwhelmed by the stench of death: Many cats already had died.
Since that night, Vardi and his volunteers rescued countless animals by putting out food and water and finding foster homes for others. Many of the cats were street cats that had lived off residents' handouts and garbage.
With the locals no longer there, their situation turned desperate, Vardi said.
Vardi tells the story of two large, emaciated dogs his team found during one of their night rescue tours.
Their owner had left food and water for a few days, but had chained the dogs on leashes scampaign_dogfood.gifo short that the food was just out of reach.
The dogs were brought to a shelter in the center of the country, as was another dog found with internal injuries after he tried to make his way into a bomb shelter. Instead of being brought to safety, he was attacked by the people in the shelter, Elam said.
Meytal Nuriel, a 23-year-old student from Kiryat Shmona, made sure a neighbor took care of her cat when she left for central Israel. Last week she decided she wanted to collect him, but was too scared to do it herself.
She read about Hakol Chai online, and had volunteers pick up the cat and bring him to her.
"If I weren't so scared, I would have gone myself to help them," she said.
"They're doing something really important -- without them, many animals would starve."
On one of Hakol Chai's patrols, a collection of hungry animals was discovered in a yard -- three dogs, eight puppies, pigeons and rabbits crowded inside small cages alongside 20 chickens, parrots, and numerous cats.
Foster homes are being found for the animals.
Farm animals also were affected by the fighting. Farmers say cows are producing less milk because of the stress. Some 20 cows and calves were killed by rocket fire on Kibbutz Amir, near Kiryat Shmona, Hakol Chai officials said.
On Sunday night, just before the U.N. cease-fire went into effect, volunteers gathered in the town of Yokne'am and debated whether or not to go to Kiryat Shmona, where they had planned to distribute food and water.
Some returned to the center of the country, but two others -- including a volunteer who had traveled from the United States to help with the rescue effort -- headed north. Noa Ginzburg, 25, decided to volunteer.
"It's unthinkable that people would leave their animals behind," she said.
Donations to Hakol Chai relief efforts can be made through _URL_, or can be mailed to Hakol Chai, POB 51858, Tel Aviv 67214, or in the U.S., to CHAI, POB 3341, Alexandria, VA 22302, USA.
Photos courtesy Hakol Chai.
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