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Throughout this festive season, the smallest of gestures can go a long way. However, if you've never shown any interest in building a relationship with employees that goes beyond the call of duty, they might not feel like this is a genuine interest. So be careful that your holiday celebrations reflect your established company culture.
Start in January
Know your employees. Even if you have the best of intentions, it's important that they generate the right reactions. In order to get a positive reaction towards gifts, you need to establish relationships with your employees early on in the year.
To get connected and stay connected, walk around and talk to your team. Work alongside them, ask questions, and be there to help when needed.
Let me share some benefits of Managing by Walking Around (MBWA)
- Approachability – When your employees see you as a person and not just a boss, they'll be more likely to tell you what's going on. You'll get the chance to learn about issues before they become problems.
- Trust – As your team gets to know you better, they'll trust you more. You'll be naturally inclined to share more information, and that will break down barriers to communication.
- Business knowledge – Getting out and learning what's happening on a daily basis can give you a better understanding of the functions and processes around you.
- Accountability – When you interact daily with your team, agreements you make with each other are much more likely to be completed. Everyone is more motivated to follow through, because you're seeing each other on a regular basis.
- Morale – People often feel better about their jobs and their organization when they have opportunities to be heard. MBWA makes those opportunities available.
- Productivity – Many creative ideas come from casual exchanges. MBWA promotes casual discussions, so people will more likely feel free to come to you with their ideas.
In a recent article, the following articles were listed as "don'ts" to be gifted to your employees:
- Self-help books or "How to do your job";
- Toiletries or beauty products;
- "Personalized" letter with the wrong name;
- Pamphlets on "How to lose weight" or "Join another religion";
- A gift certificate that bounces;
- A small box of cookies for the whole team;
- A 10% meal discount at a restaurant for the Sales agent who brought in half the revenues for that year;
- A 24h extra shift;
- A day off but not on Christmas or New Year's Eve.
Skill set is often the challenge to creating a culture of innovation. Leaders must have the skills to listen, draw people out and think about things before they start adding or changing. Most importantly, leaders must own the change themselves; only then can innovation become much more widespread.
The same skills are useful for learning in a multicultural environment. However, they'll be used differently across cultures. For example, a client of mine originally from Thailand will not say, "I need this to be done," but rather, "it would be nice to do this." Therefore, if you don't know this cultural trait, you won't understand the request. In today's world, it's essential to learn about different cultures in order to manage them right and ensure they are engaged in the change, as opposed to being perceived as obstacles.
With a new year upon us, start building relationships with your employees now. Treat them well throughout the year and have a reward program in place. Foster a culture of collaboration and open communication. By doing that, you will spend much less time wondering about what to get them for the holidays and your employees will receive a gift they will cherish forever.


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Aquatic silk proteins in Chironomus: A review
Chironomid midge silk protein
Silk proteins secreted by salivary glands in the dipteran insect, Chironomus play a significant role as proteinaceous adhesives for construction of underwater housing nests by larvae. To date, only three Chironomus species, C. tentans Fabricius, C. pallidivittatus Malloch and C. riparius Meigen have been explored for characterization of their aquatic silk protein. Genes coding for silk proteins are located on specific chromosomal 'puffs' called Balbiani rings as well as non-Balbiani ring regions. Expression of these genes is closely regulated by developmental and hormonal alterations and environmental factors. Furthermore, pilot studies have postulated that silk proteins probably occur in diverse size classes grouped into large (~1000 kDa), intermediate (100-200 kDa) and small (≤100 kDa). Barring few preliminary reports that date back to the 1990s, the physical and bioproperties of silk from chironomid midges remain largely unknown, leading to paucity of updated information. This review was therefore aimed to compile existing literature database and to highlight the wide possibilities for commercialization of midge larval silk as a novel biopolymer.
PlumX Metrics provide insights into the ways people interact with individual pieces of research output (articles, conference proceedings, book chapters, and many more) in the online environment. Examples include, when research is mentioned in the news or is tweeted about. Collectively known as PlumX Metrics, these metrics are divided into five categories to help make sense of the huge amounts of data involved and to enable analysis by comparing like with like.
Copyright (c) 2018 Leena J. Thorat, Bimalendu B. Nath
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

source: openbmb/Ultra-FineWeb


Study Proves Smoking Marijuana Protects Against Cancer
Study Proves Smoking Marijuana Protects Against CancerSmoking marijuana does not cause cancer. It actually protects against it. But, don't take our word for it, however, check out this Cancer Prevention Research Journal which has a study demonstrating that chronic, long term use of cannabis actually reduces the incidence of head and neck cancer. The report states that10 to 20 years of marijuana use was associated with a significantly reduced risk of HNSCC or head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.
But, what's amazing is that this news is not news at all. Back in 1974 researchers at the University of Virginia determined that weed had an unexpected result on cancer, it inhibited the growth of lung cancer cells. Unfortunately, the Carter administration discouraged all follow-up studies, except those that would prove otherwise, and the discovery went virtually unnoticed in the States. But, there was research being conducted outside the US by Dr. Raphael Mechoulam, in Israel, and Dr. Manuel Guzman in Spain. Even more amazing was that the US Government was secretly conducting follow-up studies during the 90's and were able to prove that THC, when administered to mice, protected them against malignancy. Never heard that? Of course you didn't because the Gov decided to burry the information. Luckily, the study was leaked to the journal, AIDS Treatment News, and the media covered the story. An excellent article by Paul Armentano, Deputy Director of NORML, details the bullshit.
Study Proves Smoking Marijuana Protects Against CancerStill, governments fund research to prove that cannabis causes cancer. What a waste of money. One such waste is an extremely flawed study that attempted to link cannabis smoking with testicular cancer. There was also a very flawed recent study conducted by researchers in New Zealand that claimed cannabis led to an increased risk of lung cancer. You'll remember that the leading lung specialist in the world, Dr. Donald Tashkin released a report last year that showed that not only does cannabis not cause lung cancer, but appears to protect against it! Already three highly-respected cannabis research doctors have written letters to the European Respiratory Journal debunking the study.
So put those Reefer Madness fears to rest, finally, because smoking marijuana doesn't cause cancer…in fact it helps fight it!
17 Responses to "Study Proves Smoking Marijuana Protects Against Cancer"
 1. dhjs\gjsgj
 Fuck yeah! Legalize it now, before thousands of people are thrown into jail for not wanting cancer!
 2. Kevin Long
 Lung Cancer runs in my family. So if I chose to use it to PREVENT lung cancer I will go to jail. WTF is wrong with this country anymore? I am starting to really get upset over the laws and stripping of liberty… Am I the only one? LEGALIZE IT!!! Or we'll play your game, DE-CRIMINLIZE IT!!!
 3. Steve Ashwell
 Yes I've heard of a lot of research into this. Cannabis is an excellent anti-cancer medicine. If your unfortunate enough to develop cancer then what happens is that our cb1 and cb2 receptors surround the malignant tumour ready for the medicine….cannabis. They will then shrink the tumour until it's eventually just scar tissue. It is the pharma corporates that don't want us to know this, so it stays under prohibition and we pay for our chemo and radiotherapy which now is big business. Also it is indeed a preventative. It's all greed in this strange world, so I doubt it will ever be legalized. We just have to keep on growing and educating our kids as they are the future and when they are older and told the truth, maybe then common sence will prevail and legalization will happen.
 4. Brinna Nanda
 Glad to see this story getting more coverage.
 5. Samantha
 Not only did Donald Tashkin admit to finding to link between heavy longterm Cannabis use, but he has come out in favor of legalization, a fact which was ignored. If he had found or said anything negative about Cannabis, it would have been in the news nonstop for days…
 6. Samantha
 sorry… I meant NO link between Cannabis and cancer.
 7. BlackLungs
 I'll smoke to that!
 8. Luke B
 If they could only create a strain of weed that has all of the "good" side effects and that doesn't get you stoned (some consider this a good side effect). I would also look at the difference between smoking it and using a vaporizer. I find that one of the negative side effect of smoking it causes my lungs to perform worse when SCUBA diving or any other physical activity so I use the vaporizer more often. And I have never smoked cigarettes in my life.
 9. Smokey Bongman
 My father has a malignant glioblastoma that is inopperable. It is the worst kind of brain cancer that you can get. As a former geneticist, having worked on cancer therapies, I became acutely aware of the studies going on about cancer and cannabis. The physicians, in an effort to mitigate the risk of malpractice, or because they have strong political views about cannabis, will often prescribe 'safe' THC analogs and purified extracts. But, if they actually read the research and acted like a scientist and not a politician, they would recognize that the purified extracts DO NOT have NEARLY the same effect that smoking [crude] marijuana has. But they still oppose it. It just SEEMS wrong… its against their training to prescribe a plant instead of a pill… and to smoke it?! after years of training on the harmful effects of smoking?!… all they can see is 'unhealthy unhealthy unhealthy'.
 But the one thing you learn as a scientist is that, with chemistry, especially biochemistry, is that there is only one constant… everything has an exception.
 So don't get mad at the docs that avoid it. They are trained to think that way. But because of their policies, my father is dying.
 To all physicians: READ THE RESEARCH!! Stop acting by 'gut' and act like a!@#$ scientist! Go to to find more.
 10. admin
 Thanks for the thoughtful post, man. We really appreciate it. And, our condolences about your father. We wish you both peace, love and happiness.
 11. christine
 i always knew it wasnt true…..smh
 12. christine
 i always knew it wasnt true…..smh, im happy now
 13. Dta
 I agree with the lady who made a reference to using the "know side effect analogy"pot.this woul require other canabinoids to be significantly increase.I don't mind feeling a little stoned,just enough to take the edge off.But, the stuff now days is 20to1 in thc's favor.The one cannibinoid to be explores and lifted to even out the nonphsycoactive part would be cannabidiol as it is already being studied as an anti anxiety,depression and a very powerful antioxident that crosses the blood brain barrier in addition I might add that I am a huge believer in legalizing pot as well as other drugs to with limitation on how much you can buy.Actually with pot it should be freely smoked,eaten,drank and other ways as well as often as desired just like booze which kills brain causes cell apoptis for shit sake and that stuff is legal everywhere.WE Want freedom
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Over 100 Reproducible Activities to Sharpen Basic Skills
Provides a collection of units featuring nonfiction passages with accompanying vocabulary, comprehension, reading strategy, and word study exercises. Topics include:
The Power Practice series contains several ready-to-use activity pages to provide students with skill practice. The fun activities can be used to supplement and enhance what you are teaching in your classroom. Give an activity page to students as independent class work or send the pages home as homework to reinforce skills taught in class. An answer key is provided for quick reference.
The activity pages in Nonfiction Reading Comprehension 3-4 provide the perfect practice for enhancing students' nonfiction reading skills. Nonfiction reading is different than reading fiction or reading for pleasure. Students read nonfiction to find information and learn new ideas. Nonfiction reading materials have different text features than fiction and they require different comprehension skills. The practical and creative activities in this book feature nonfiction passages that include exercises intended to improve students':
Recharge skill review with Power Practice and give students the power to succeed!


Torii Tool
Lack of proper SaaS management in your IT department can expose your organization to a number of potential security loopholes and endpoint threats. It becomes difficult for IT departments to take action against these sorts of security gaps in their software ecosystem considering they aren't even aware of their existence.
And understandably so. How can IT cancel an untrustworthy web app's permissions to access sensitive data resources if Francis from accounting never told them that she started using the product? Luckily, a powerful SaaS management tool like Torii can help your IT department better manage and keep track of app usage from a central location.
In this article, we'll take an in-depth look at how you can secure your organization from the threat of shadow IT by taking preemptive action.
Overview of Torii
For those unfamiliar, shadow IT simply refers to any tool, app, or software that's used in an organization without the knowledge (or approval) of the IT department. It's a challenge that just about every organization faces to some extent.
As you can probably guess, some of the most common examples of shadow IT are SaaS apps and services. For example, if an employee signs up for a cloud storage service and decides to store work-related documents in their personal account, IT managers might have no way of knowing that their data has been compromised in case of a breach.
Torii is a standalone SaaS management solution that enables IT managers to view, optimize, and control their organizations' SaaS resources via a user-friendly dashboard. It's designed to increase the visibility of apps in the organization's tech stack, simplify IT management workflows, and help IT managers automate various software management tasks.
Next, we'll explain how Torii can help you improve cybersecurity in your organization's software ecosystem.
Cybersecurity Through Better SaaS Management
There are a number of steps, measures, and strategies that can help IT managers secure their organizations from cybercriminals and hackers in order to effectively minimize the risks involved with shadow IT.
1. Risk Analysis
Torii gives you access to data through an intuitive, user-friendly dashboard that makes it easy to manage and execute changes. This enables you to better understand your organization's app usage and expenditure. There are thousands of SaaS apps available in the market, which can expose your organization to governance, cybersecurity, or compliance issues, or a combination of all three.
But before Torii Tool can reveal the risks associated with each SaaS app in your team's stack, it needs to know what those apps are. Generating an audit is easy, as Torii is capable of gathering SaaS use signals from a number of sources and turning those into a directory. These sources include browser extensions, data from third-party identity management solutions, accounting apps and even manual uploads of expense reports.
With Torii, you'll be able to run effective risk analyses in your organization's software infrastructure and use that information to minimize any security threats.
This is done by assigning risk levels to apps based on the permissions they require from users. Torii maintains an updated database of the SaaS market and is able to automatically assign each app in your organization's tech stack a risk level (high, medium, or low) based on the app permissions it requires, which you can also easily view in the Risk Analysis reports.
2. Instant Alerts and Automated Workflows
Torii comes with powerful alerts and workflow automation features that enable your IT staff to speed up the SaaS sanctioning process and perform onboarding and offboarding tasks efficiently.
What this means is that every time a new web app is introduced in your software ecosystem, it will instantly be discovered by Torii and an alert will automatically be sent to the IT manager.
IT managers will be able to perform all of these tasks by navigating to the Workflows section from the Torii dashboard. From there, they can choose to use an existing workflow or create their own workflow.
Creating a workflow in Torii Tool only takes a few minutes. You start by choosing a trigger: New app discovered or User stopped using app.
Following our example, if you select the New app discovered trigger to make an onboarding workflow, you can send the app owner (i.e. the employee who signed up for the app) a form that will collect important information about the software.
Creating the onboarding form is as simple as editing the introduction of the form and selecting the details you want to collect from the user. It also lets you choose who you want to share these form submissions with. For example, you might need to file them with the accounts department.
By creating these workflows, you can get instant alerts whenever a new app is discovered by Torii thereby effectively minimizing lag times and increasing cybersecurity within the organization. Shadow IT can't be eliminated, but by acting quickly, you can mitigate risks.
3. Accountability
Using Torii, IT managers can easily find out who the owner of each app is by viewing the app icons in the Owner of a section. This makes it easy to have an immediate point of contact in case there's cause for concern.
So, for example, if an employee installs a potentially dangerous app, the IT department knows exactly who to get in touch with and prevent future incidents.
Taking things to the next level, Torii also lets you cancel a user's access to an app, either by requesting them to voluntarily cancel their license or forcefully terminate app ownership using the built-in, one-click offboarding tool.
In addition to this, Torii lets you stay updated about each user who gains access to your IT ecosystem by maintaining a complete record of three different types of user accounts. More specifically: current userspast users, and external users.
4. Single Sign-On Solution
SAML 2.0 is a common standard implemented by most SaaS platforms for access and authentication to multiple web apps that use one set of login credentials. In simple terms, it allows employees to log into multiple SaaS apps and tools using one set of credentials (username and password).
Most SaaS tools let you set up your account access using a Single Sign-On Solution (SSO). You can improve the security and granular control over SaaS app access by connecting more of your SaaS apps to your SSO provider.
Torii lets users connect a number of SSO solutions including JumpCloud, OneLogin, Okta, GSuite, Azure Active Directory, and SailPoint, to better manage user access and audit permissions of third-party tools.
5. SaaS App Permissions
When users in your IT ecosystem sign up for SaaS tools, they're often required by the SaaS provider to grant permission to access certain databases and track certain activity types. For example, they might ask for access to contacts, your calendars, or permission to read and send emails on your behalf.
This is a common feature in tools such as Slack, GSuite, and Office 365, whenever users are signing up or logging in using the OAuth 2.0 protocol.
These permissions can leave your organization at risk of being exposed to potential security and regulatory risks. This is precisely why you need access to an updated list of all granted permissions in order to keep your organization's software ecosystem secure.
Torii's app access management helps you rest assured that only the relevant people have access to the apps they need. This allows you to keep your sensitive data secure and ensure that you're implementing privacy guidelines and meeting compliance regulations.
With the increase in SaaS usage by organizations, you need to be proactive when it comes to shielding your IT ecosystem from security gaps and shadow IT. Shadow IT is the hidden threat that can potentially expose your company's sensitive information and systems to data hacks, while IT managers stay in the dark.
Torii Tool enables IT to run proper audits and risk analyses, get instant alerts, gain visibility into their organization's tech stack, and automate SaaS management related tasks.
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by Stan Tatkin, PsyD, MFT,
Therapy is only useful for changing people who are experiencing sufficient distress. This is not to say that education, consultation, or brief counseling will have no effect. People often benefit from couple counseling for premarital or other short-term work. However, as a matter of therapeutic stance, the PACT therapist assumes the presence of a sufficient level of distress that can only be relieved by pressuring couples to go down the tube of secure functioning. The PACT therapist thus takes a stand for secure-functioning principles. For insecure partners, this requires a big leap of faith.
That leap of faith can be viewed as a metaphor for neuronal action potential (AP) and long-term potentiation (LTP). AP is basically a charge that is sufficient to fire a neuron. LTP is a cellular mechanism related to learning and memory. LTP involves the building up of synaptic strength between neurons, whereby several weak synapses repeatedly fire simultaneously to create a new (or reinforce an old) neuropathway. In therapy, LTP can be associated with the aha experience of "getting it."
Insecure partners do not have any experience in their historical record that can serve as proof that a secure-functioning model would be good for them. Insecures may be attracted to the menu of secure-functioning principles, but should not be expected to know what the food tastes like or if they would like it. Remember that insecure models are fundamentally unjust, unfair, and insensitive and that relationships do not come first. Therefore, insecure partners have no reason to believe in the therapist's belief in secure functioning. In a manner of speaking, insecure individuals, like connecting neurons, must cross a synaptic cleft of unknowing in order to forge a new neuropathway that represents new knowledge. In systems theory, this is first-order change. In Piagetian terms, this is accommodation.
So what builds LTP in the insecure partner or couple?
2. Focused, coherent therapeutic stance
Without pain, the therapist's tools are useless. No pain, no gain. Pain is a huge motivator because it opens the mind to influence. If partners are not in distress, the therapist is without leverage to convert their pain into increased complexity and neuronal growth. This alchemical process of using distress to convert lower social-emotional complexity into higher social-emotional complexity is an essential aspect of LTP, and of the neuroplasticity needed for change to occur.
The PACT therapist must locate each partner's pain and amplify it. If one partner is without distress, both the therapist and the other partner are rendered helpless. Therefore, the therapist must locate the pain of the non-distressed partner, amplify it, and then leverage it for change. Finding and leveraging the pain creates interest, which creates AP in the brain.
Focused, coherent therapeutic stance
The PACT therapist maintains a clear, focused, and coherent narrative (therapeutic stance) that is secure functioning. The therapist maintains a clear image and set of goals that point toward secure functioning and away from insecure models of relating. This clarity is expressed through repetition of the therapeutic narrative, which creates interest and in turn creates AP in the brain. Repetition greatly contributes to LTP. Therapy, in essence, involves repetition, both in the patient's psychobiological response to interand intra-relational stress and in the therapist's focused, coherent therapeutic stance, which points the way forward on a path toward relief.
The PACT therapist applies continuous pressure on partners to perform in a secure-functioning manner. This pressure is like pushing partners down a tube that both focuses and limits behavior and attitude. The combination of pressure, focus, and limitation also forces feelings and emotions to arise. For instance, when the therapist expects partners to demonstrate developmental complexity, they will expose their limitations, along with the pain (e.g., fears of abandonment and engulfment) that underlies their developmental delays. Pressure, support, and expectation promote interest, which creates AP in the brain and contributes to LTP.
The PACT therapist creates neuroplasticity through LTP and AP in the insecure couple (or partner) by locating, amplifying, and leveraging pain and distress toward a secure-functioning model of relating, and maintains persistent pressure on the couple (or partner) to move in this direction. In this way, the therapist pushes insecure partners through the synaptic cleft of unknowing to create a previously unexperienced knowing of secure function. The influence the PACT therapist can exert on partners may result in both neuroplastic and epigenetic first-order changes.
© 2003-2013 – Stan Tatkin – all rights reserved


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Email: Why You Should Use :fail: For Your Default Email Catchall
By default, your account catchall is configured to route all mail to your main account catchall (usually _EMAIL_). This would then route all mail sent to email accounts that do not exist to an account so you can make sure legitimate email was sent to the incorrect address.
Many times, this can create quota issues on an account due to not checking and clearing the catchall email account and thus it fills up with thousands of emails. Due to this, users will generally set their catchall settings to :blackhole: to make the messages stop being sent to the catchall email account. This does stop mail from making it to the inbox, but also misses another option to do the same thing. That is the :fail: option which would be displayed as the two "Discard" options in your SiteAdmin panel or cPanel access.
In general the two different settings both discard email that is not destined for an existing email account, an alias or a catchall alias. However, the way email is discarded differs between these two methods greatly:
- When you use :blackhole:, email is accepted and received into the server in its entirety. It is then processed completely as it is a successful mail delivery and then it is silently ignored which keeps it from making it to your inbox.
- This wastes server resources (CPU, memory and disk I/O) because the email is fully processed by the mail server before being ignored.
- Because the blackholed email is still sent through the whole mail delivery process before it is finally deleted, if any of the usual checks and routing that any email goes through fails, the email can be placed in the exim mail queue for later reprocessing. This can lead to tens of thousands of blackholed emails accumulating in the exim mail queue which in turn can cause a range of serious server performance and resource problems and will affect the normal and timely delivery of email.
- This causes emails that will never be delivered into the mail queue because checks such as sender verification are still carried out when the emails are processed. If the checks cannot complete, the email will stay in the mail queue and repeatedly reprocess until it is finally discarded (usually 4+ days). This can cause very large mail queues full of spam which is repeatedly processed causing severe server performance degradation.
- When you use :fail: the email is never accepted into the server. During the initial SMTP connection when the sender's SMTP server connects to your SMTP server, the sending SMTP server issues a command notifying your server which email address the incoming email is intended for. Your server then checks whether the recipient email account actually exists on your server (a POP3 account, an alias or a catchall alias). If it does not, your server issues a DENY command which terminates the attempt to deliver the email.
- This saves server resources because the email never has to be processed.
- Your server does not send a bounce message (just the DENY command).
- Your server does not send anything to the sender of the email (i.e. the address in the From: line).
- The sending SMTP server is responsible for notifying the original sender.
As you can see, using the :fail: setting helps keep your account from filling up with unwanted mail and also keeps the server performing at expected levels by not processing any mail that you don't want to be accepted. This keeps the mail queue low which in turn makes sure your incoming and outgoing email is being delivered instantly. Ir also makes sure that your sites keep running fast by making sure valuable server resources are not being wasted on incoming spam.


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Digital Resources: Power of Attorney, A Digital Spatial History of Indigenous Legal Culture in Colonial Oaxaca, Mexico
"Power of Attorney in Oaxaca, Mexico: Native People, Legal Culture, and Social Networks" is an ongoing digital research project that constructs a geography of indigenous legal culture through digital maps and visualizations. The
The multiscalar narrative of the Power of Attorney project speaks to multiple audiences, and the digital multimedia format allows visitors to further tailor their interactions with information. The site operates on many levels. It provides maps and visualizations based on original research, data culled from primary sources that can be used as a research tool, historical and geographical background information, information about how to read letters of attorney, and microhistorical narratives of power of attorney relationships. For undergraduates learning about the relationship between Spanish administration and pueblos de indios, the maps and visualizations provide an at-a-glance overview of the spatial and social connections among Indian towns, ecclesiastical and viceregal courts, and the court of the king in Madrid from the perspective of an indigenous region rather than a top-down perspective. Graduate students and scholars interested in the production of notarial records in native jurisdictions, social history and ethnohistorical methodology and the relationship between local and transatlantic processes can explore the maps, visualizations, and data in greater detail. An educated general audience interested in the history of Oaxaca's native peoples can find a general introduction to the region, its history and geography, and the long-standing relationship between Mexico's native people and the law.
Indigenismo is a term that refers to a broad grouping of discourses—in politics, the social sciences, literature, and the arts—concerned with the status of "the Indian" in Latin American societies. The term derives from the word "indígena," often the preferred term over "indio" because of the pejorative connotations that have accrued to the latter in some contexts, and is not to be confused with the English word "indigenism." The origins of modern indigenismo date to the 16th century and to the humanist work of Bartolomé de las Casas, dubbed "Defender of the Indians" for his efforts to expose the violence committed against native populations by Spanish colonizers. Indeed indigenismo generally connotes a stance of defense of Indians against abuse by non-Indians, such as criollos and mestizos, and although this defense can take a variety of often-contradictory forms, it stems from a recognition that indigenous peoples in colonial and modern Latin America have suffered injustice. Another important precursor to modern indigenismo is 19th-century "Indianismo." In the wake of Independence, creole elites made the figure of "the Indian" a recurring feature of Latin American republican and nationalist thought as the region sought to secure an identity distinct from the colonial powers.
The period 1910–1970 marks the heyday of modern indigenismo. Marked by Las Casas's stance of defense toward indigenous people and by creole nationalists' "Indianization" of national identity, the modernizing indigenismo of the 20th century contains three important additional dimensions: it places the so-called "problem of the Indian" at the center of national modernization efforts and of national revolution and renewal; it is, or seeks to become, a matter of state policy; and it draws on contemporary social theories—positivist, eugenicist, relativist, Marxist—to make its claims about how best to solve the "Indian problem." Though its presence can be found in many Latin American countries, indigenismo reached its most substantive and influential forms in Mexico and Peru; Bolivia and Brazil also saw significant indigenista activity. Anthropologists played a central role in the development of modern indigenismo, and indigenismo flourished in literature and the performing and visual arts. In the late 20th century, indigenous social movements as well as scholars from across the disciplines criticized indigenismo for its paternalist attitude toward Indians and for promoting Indians' cultural assimilation; the state-centric integrationist ideology of indigenismo has largely given way to pluri-culturalism.
María L. O. Muñoz
The political history of indigenous peoples in Mexico during the 20th century is complex, particularly because it intersects with changing local, state, and federal government projects aimed at exclusion, inclusion, assimilation, integration, homogenization, and multiculturalism. Focusing only on such government initiatives, however, muddies the analytical waters, as doing so tends to silence forms of resistance, accommodation, reaction, adaptation, and the agency of first peoples and communities. Oftentimes this approach assumes a complacent population at the mercy of a predatory state or a subject people in the care of a paternalistic state. In recognition of the danger of accepting state-driven indigenismo projects as the defining criteria of native people's histories during the 20th century, this article parallels glimpses of state-driven indigenismos with indigenous forms of regional and national organization in defense of individual and collective interests, as expressed in works that have emerged over the last twenty-five years. By no means are the themes covered in this article indicative of the breadth of the concerns, ideas or political, social, and economic interests of native peoples. Rather, its intent is to juxtapose histories of indigenismos and indígena mobilizations and organization after 1940 to illustrate how the government attempted to shape its "revolutionary" vision after 1920 and the ways in which indigenous communities themselves also engaged, or did not, in this process for a number of reasons, collective and individual.
Pulque, the alcoholic beverage of pre-Columbian highland Mesoamerica is the fermented derivative of aguamiel, the juice or sap of the agave known as agave pulquero—principally Agave salmiana. Aguamiel is a sweet, somewhat heavy juice that collects in a scraped out basin in the heart of the agave pulquero and, unless refrigerated, rapidly ferments into the alcoholic pulque. The agents of fermentation are ambient and plant-colonizing bacteria and yeasts. Fresh pulque is a frothy, cloudy brew with a slightly sour taste, usually containing around 2 percent alcohol or somewhat higher, meaning it can be drunk in large quantities without intoxicating the imbiber. Although it is a nutritious drink, consumption was condemned by Spaniards in varying degrees during the Colonial Period. Its popularity in contemporary southern Mexico is increasing after more than a century of persecution and public disparagement. Pulque figures prominently in preand post-Columbian Mesoamerican history.
Production of tequila and mezcal is completely different from production of pulque. The former are distilled from the pressed juice (tepache) of macerated and roasted hearts of certain agaves. The juice is fermented in vats for several days, then heated in a still, evaporated, and condensed. Tequila, by law is made from A. tequilana, and mezcal by custom is made primarily from A. angustifolia. Both these distillates contain about 40 percent alcohol. Pulque is a naturally occurring product consumed by native peoples for at least two millennia. Tequila and mezcal are industrial products derived from processes introduced into the Americas by Europeans.
Both Ecuador and Bolivia have gained a reputation for powerful social movements that have repeatedly challenged entrenched political and economic interests that have controlled the countries since their independence from Spain almost two hundred years ago. A wealthy and powerful minority of European descendant landowners ruled the countries to the exclusion of the majority population of impoverished Indigenous farm workers. Repeated well-organized challenges to exclusionary rule in the late 20th century shifted policies and opened political spaces for previously marginalized people. Social movement organizations also altered their language to meet new realities, including incorporating identities as ethnic groups and Indigenous nationalities to advance their agenda. Their efforts contributed to a significant leftward shift in political discourse that led to the election of presidents Evo Morales and Rafael Correa.


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Western History & Genealogy Blog
GI - General Index
Known by staff and researchers as the GI, it is an index of about 6.5 million entries on 1 million cards to previously un-indexed local and county histories, biographical works, some manuscript material, and western journals and serials. It makes accessible the otherwise inaccessible. Researchers in the know often go slack-jawed or misty-eyed when they realize what they've discovered.
In 1935, the newly created Western History Department acquired an index of local subjects begun by the Reference Department. With this base, new subject headings were added to broaden the scope beyond Denver and the established headings were refined. Then, in the midst of the Depression, the Western History Department benefitted from a federal stimulus: a Colorado Works Progress Administration (WPA) grant to index in detail the Rocky Mountain News, _PHONE_. The result? An every-name index for the premier Colorado newspaper of the day for a more than twenty-year span.
In the years that followed, the Department's staff continued to index contemporary newspapers, journals, and some standards of Colorado history, while also adding retrospective sources such as the Denver Times, _PHONE_. The General Index closed to additional entries in 1995.
Still housed in its original wooden card catalog cabinets and situated across from our reference desk, the GI is available to all visitors to the Department. The entire General Index has been digitized, and librarians are able to search a department-only database at the reference desk. We hope to make the General Index available online to the world in the near future.
An Ode to the General Index
Among the treasures of the Denver Public Library, few rival the massive General Index in the Western History Department. This product of more than a half-century's work, if recreated at current costs, would be worth $2 million or more. An index of an estimated four million entries to articles, books, newspapers, and other material, it is an outstanding contribution to scholarship - a college in itself. Without it scholars would be impaired and devotees of well-researched local history would be impoverished. Without it the Denver Public Library would be a far less splendid institution that it is. All hail to the generations of librarians and Denver taxpayers who have supported, built, and maintained such a superb research tool.
Stephen J. Leonard. Trials and Triumphs: A Colorado Portrait of the Great Depression, with FSA Photographs. Boulder: University Press of Colorado, 1993 page 300.

source: HuggingFaceFW/fineweb-edu


- Kindergarten Show and Tell Flipgrid
 Flipgrid: video discussions for learning. - Technology Enhanced Learning
 Dear Parents,
 As a Kindergarten-Grade, we will use the website Flipgrid for Show & Tell this year. This site allows us to post videos, photos, and communicate with each other. Your child will log in using their provided school google email address to participate. Your child's teacher will share their email with you to start accessing the site.
 How does this site work?
 You will record your child sharing their show and tell. They can tell us about the item by talking about when they got it, who gave it to them, and describe why it is special to them. It will be helpful if the description is kept to three key points. Please keep in mind that there is a time limit on the recording on Flipgrid.
 The day your child is assigned for show and tell, the Kindergarten classes will view in their rooms. We will observe as a class and follow up with three questions about their show and tell. We feel this will allow us to keep our interaction with each other relevant and friendly.
 How do you join Flipgrid?
 1. Go to flipgrid.com
 2. Enter the join code: mbshowandtell
 3. Click "join with google" and sign in using your child's school provided email address and password.
 4. Go to the topic "show & tell" and click on "record a response"
 5. After you record your video, press the green arrow on the right side. Then, it will ask you to take a selfie by pressing the camera in the middle. Your video will be posted, the selfie is your cover photo for the video.
 6. It will guide you through recording and posting your video response.
 Thank you,
 The Kindergarten Team


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Case Study 2
How to determine whether a population has unique characteristics that require measures adaptation?
It can be challenging to know for certain a priori whether a target population has unique characteristics that require measure adaptation. This case study presents an intervention in which researchers are interested in understanding if an intervention that addresses barriers to drinking tap water at home will have an impact on beverage intake of parents and children (6 months to 3 years old).
The study seeks to understand and address the barriers to drinking tap water instead of sugary drinks in a community in the United States that is 80% Hispanic (predominantly from El Salvador and Guatemala), foreign-born (68%), and low-income (1 in 4 children live in poverty), with 15% and 26% of adults self-reporting being diabetic and obese/overweight, respectively. Parents reported that their infants and toddlers (<3 years) drank 79 g of sugary drinks per day.
To develop the intervention, the researchers engaged with the community to document how living in an environment saturated with sugary drink options and limited access to clean, palatable tap water can contribute to increased sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) consumption, and how sociocultural norms reinforce SSB consumption in a Central American immigrant community.
Before determining a measure, the research team carried out formative qualitative work, which described how residents in this community did not drink tap water because they did not like the taste or perceived that it was unsafe. This work described how mothers were knowledgeable of the health benefits of drinking water, but food customs and heavy promotion enticed them to consume SSBs. A community survey documented that before migrating to the United States, 52% of respondents drank tap water because it was convenient, they liked the taste, and perceived that it was safe and economical. Once in the United States, only 9% of these same respondents reported that they drank tap water because of safety concerns, taste, and lack of convenience. To determine whether the intervention is successful, the researchers need a measure of beverage intake.
Challenges and Considerations
What is an appropriate dietary instrument to test sugary drink consumption for low-income, low-literacy parents and their young (6 month–3 year old) children?
The dietary instrument needs to be administered quickly but also be sensitive enough to pick up any preliminary findings for intervention impact. Additionally, the instrument needs to be understood by the colloquial Spanish of the population. While multiple 24-hour dietary recalls are the gold standard to assess dietary intake, the data collected would likely yield too much information, especially on foods consumed when the research team is only interested in beverages. Recalls are also a burden on participants' time and require considerable resources for analysis.
Does a brief measure exist that can be used in both infants and toddlers?
The research team can use NCCOR's Measures Registry to locate screeners. One option is a screener that has been previously developed only for beverages and validated for Hispanic preschoolers (Lora 2016). However, in reviewing this screener, the research team does not know if or how the types or quantities of beverages would be different for the study's age group and Central American Hispanic population.
Does the measure capture all sources of sugar consumed by this population?
Anecdotally and from working with the community advisory board, researchers suspect that a main source of sugary may be traditional sweeteners (honey or panela—raw sugar blocks) added to plain water. The study population does not typically consider this a sugary drink, so it may not be captured using the traditional categories of a screener.
From the formative work, the research team determined that the population appeared to have unique characteristics that would require adaptation of the brief screener found in the Measures Registry, which was developed and validated for Hispanic preschoolers
To address the challenge of different quantities, accuracy of added sugars in recipes, and assessment of other beverages that may not be captured by the brief instrument, the research team conducted repeated 24-hour dietary recalls (using interviewer-administered ASA-24) on a subsample to compare to the responses from the beverage screener.
To assist with the low-literacy and participant burden, the beverage screener was interviewer-administered using aids that included pictures of typical drinks and their quantities, and models of different sippy cups, bottles, and cups to better assess quantities.
To determine if the population understood the survey items, instruments and methods of administering them were cognitively tested with a convenience sample from the same population. This was done to adapt language to more colloquial Spanish.
To address the concern about additional beverages that may contribute to sugary drink intake, local examples obtained from the 24-hour recalls, consultation with mothers, and the community advisory board were added to the brief beverage screener. For example, in fruit-flavored drinks, the following examples were added: homemade lemonade and aguas, horchatas, tamarind juices, and mango nectar. Examples of familiar brands and types of beverages within each beverage category were also added. For example, participants were unable to distinguish 100% fruit juice from a fruit-flavored drink marketed as made with real fruit or with vitamin C, but they would be able to distinguish Tampico (an orange-flavored drink) from a brand of 100% orange fruit juice. In addition, the team added an "Other" category to capture information on other drinks that the data collector could not fit into established categories of the beverage screener for preschoolers. These drinks included toddler milks and prepackaged yogurt beverages. The brands and quantities consumed of these prepackaged toddler milks and yogurt beverages were collected via pictures during the beverage screening to assess later during analysis if the instrument must be adapted and how.
- When studying new target populations or communities, all instruments should be cognitively tested to assess if, the question elicits the same concept that the researchers intended to understand in the target population.
- Even after cognitively testing an instrument, it is challenging to know for certain a priori if the target population will be meaningfully different from the reference population for which the instrument was prepared. At best, there is formative work and anecdotal evidence that suggest that the populations may be significantly different.
- Sometimes it is not until the data are being analyzed that researchers may notice that the original instrument does not capture important data for the new study population. For example, in the current case study, if the research team had administered the short instrument without any adaptations and then compared results against multiple 24-hour recalls (gold standard), they would have noticed that the original shorter instrument missed important information about sources of sugary beverages that the study population consumed. Alternatively, if the team had triangulated with observations in the home or had shared results with a community advisory board or knowledgeable key informants, they might have learned that they were missing important sources of sugary beverages in the study population. Similarly, if the instrument is a psychometric scale, and the study population is meaningfully different from the reference population, then the Cronbach α for the scales may not load in the same way as for the reference population. These are all examples that suggest that the target population is meaningfully different from the reference population and that the instruments will therefore require careful adaptations (beyond cognitive interviews) to improve their "fit" to the new target populations' context.
- Colon-Ramos U, et al., How Latina mothers navigate a 'food swamp' to feed their children: a photovoice approach. Public Health Nutr, 2017;20(11):_PHONE_. doi:10.1017/S1368980017000738
- Fuster M and Colon-Ramos U, Changing Places, Changing Plates? A Binational Comparison of Barriers and Facilitators to Healthful Eating Among Central American Communities. J Immigr Minor Health. [published correction appears in J Immigr Minor Health. 2017 May 11;:]. J Immigr Minor Health. 2018;20(3):705-710. doi:10.1007/s10903-_PHONE_-2


ICC's Business Charter for Sustainable Development
The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) is a non-governmental organization serving world business. Its membership extends to more than 130 countries and includes thousands of business organizations and enterprises with international interests.
ICC has more than 80 years of experience as an international body representing the interests of businesses in all sectors, all over the world. It works to promote world trade and investment based on free and fair competition, and to harmonize trade practices and formulate guidelines and terminology for importers and exporters.
In response to the World Commission on Environment and Development report, ICC developed a 'Business Charter for Sustainable Development' which sets out 16 principles for environmental management.
The Charter covers environmentally relevant aspects of health, safety and product stewardship. Its objective is 'that the widest range of enterprises commit themselves to improving their environmental performance in accordance with the principles, to having in place management practices to effect such improvement, to measuring their progress, and to reporting this progress as appropriate, internally and externally'
The 16 principles set out in the charter are as follows:
1. Corporate priority
To recognise environmental management as among the highest corporate priorities and as a key determinant to sustainable development; to establish policies, programmes and practices for conducting operations in an environmentally sound manner.
2. Integrated management
To integrate these policies, programmes and practices fully into each business as an essential element of management in all its functions.
3. Process of improvement
To continue to improve corporate policies, programmes and environmental performance, taking into account technical developments, scientific understanding, consumer needs and community expectations, with legal regulations as a starting point, and to apply the same environmental criteria internationally.
4. Employee education
To educate, train and motivate employees to conduct their activities in an environmentally responsible manner.
5. Prior assessment
To assess environmental impacts before starting a new activity or project and before decommissioning a facility or leaving a site.
6. Products and services
To develop and provide products or services that have no undue environmental impact and are safe in their intended use, that are efficient in their consumption of energy and natural resources, and that can be recycled, reused, or disposed of safely.
7. Customer advice
To advise and, where relevant, educate customers, distributors and the public in the safe use, transportation, storage and disposal of products provided, and to apply similar considerations to the provision of services.
8. Facilities and operations
To develop, design and operate facilities and conduct activities taking into consideration the efficient use of energy and materials, the sustainable use of renewable resources, the minimization of adverse environmental impacts of waste generation, and the safe and responsible disposal of residual wastes.
9. Research
To conduct or support research on the environmental impacts of raw materials, products, processes, emissions and wastes associated with the enterprise and on the means of minimizing such adverse impacts.
10. Precautionary approach
To modify the manufacture, marketing or use of products or services or the conduct of activities, consistent with scientific and technical understanding, to prevent serious or irreversible environmental degradation.
11. Contractors and suppliers
To promote the adoption of these principles by contractors acting on behalf of the enterprise, encouraging and, where appropriate, requiring improvements in their practices to make them consistent with those of the enterprise; and to encourage the wider adoption of these principles by suppliers.
12. Emergency preparedness
To develop and maintain, where significant hazards exist, emergency preparedness plans in conjunction with emergency services, relevant authorities and the local community, recognizing potential transboundary impacts
13. Transfer of technology
To contribute to the transfer of environmentally sound technology and management methods throughout the industrial and public sectors.
14. Contributing to the common effort
To contribute to the development of public policy and to business, governmental and intergovernmental programmes and educational initiatives that will enhance environmental awareness and protection.
15. Openness to concerns
To foster openness and dialogue with employees and the public, anticipating and responding to their concerns about the potential hazards and impact of operations, products, wastes or services, including those of transboundary or global significance.
16. Compliance and reporting
To measure environmental performance; to conduct regular environmental audits and assessment of compliance with company requirements, legal requirements and these principles; and periodically to provide appropriate information to the board of directors, shareholders, employees, the authorities and the public.
To date, more than 2,300 companies have signed up to it, and the list includes corporations such as Norsk Hydro, Deloitte & Touche, Akzo Nobel, and Xerox. In addition, several industry associations use it as the basis for their sustainability programmes.
Endorsement of the ICC Charter is voluntary. By signing it, companies commit themselves to respecting its 16 principles for environmental management. The ICC is currently assessing how companies that have endorsed the Charter are applying the principles, and what their experiences were with implementation.
Visit the International Chamber of Commerce
Return to Sustainable and Green Businesses
Contact: Hari Srinivas - _EMAIL_


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Most travel guides simply call it the "shovel museum," but it's really the Stonehill Industrial History Center. Much more than shovels, curator Greg Galer tells us the collection reveals interesting facts about what we were building and how we built it over the past 200 years.
By the 1870s Ames was the largest shovel manufacturer in the world, making three-fifths of the world's shovels, although even as early as the 1830s and 1840s they struggled to meet the demand for their highly prized products. Ames shovels were the tool of choice in both the California and Australian gold rushes as well as in most major American building projects including the Erie and Panama Canals and most American railroad construction. Ames shovels literally built America.
Above is the Ames Centennial display of 19 silver-plated shovels as prepared for the 1876 Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia. Amusingly, they're displayed in the original display case. Inside the vault with the rest of the collection, Galer proudly points out not only the typical shovels we're familiar with, but shovels designed for working coffee beans, 10-foot-long shovels used to dig telegraph pole holes, and tiny trenching shovels used by US troops in WWI and WWII.
But shovels are just a piece of the collection. Deeper in the vault are the business records, blueprints, patents and other materials that offer primary source documentation of America's early growth into an industrial superpower.


Memory Alpha
Kang's Summit
38,872pages on
this wiki
Kang's Summit was an area on Qo'noS that was known for its population of saber bear.
In 2371, while hunting saber bear on the Summit, Martok was captured by the Dominion. (DS9: "In Purgatory's Shadow")
It is likely that this location was named for Kang, one of the Klingon Empire's greatest warriors. Alternately, it could be named for legendary title character from the epic poem The Fall of Kang.
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Most marketeers are familiar with the buyer's journey, but may not necessarily embrace the concept in its entirety. However, given the nature of changing buying behaviour due to digital engagement, here's a few home-truths to consider.
In order to take full advantage of the buyer's journey, marketers must understand the reality and align their digital and content strategies accordingly.
Multi-channel, not linear
Gone are the days where buying behaviour could be illustrated as a linear process. The availability of multiple types of marketing channels, sources of information and avenues for publishing content means the decision making process is more of a multi-stop journey involving several modes of transport rather than just a journey from a to b. Increasingly, the stops made on the journey may not even be decided upon before departure as the age of mobile increases flexibility where the only certainty is change.
Information availability and frequency
The information superhighway is certainly not a straight road any more, it's more like a series of roundabouts interlinked with scenic roads going off in different directions, with new roads and new roundabouts being introduced every second of every day. The certainty of change reflects also on the questions to ask and the answers to give. Who is asking the question and giving the answer is also no longer certain as there are an abundance of influencers that have varying degrees of relationship and decision making capability with what is being evaluated.
Inbound vs outbound
The discussion around inbound vs outbound can sometimes feel like the catch phrase; what came first, the chicken or the egg. Inbound is someone coming to you to seek information, outbound is you presenting information for someone to find. Either way, there's information being produced, published, shared and consumed by more than one party. So the overriding questions to ask yourself are, what is being produced, how should it be shared, where, when and how to engage to build trust, involvement and ongoing relationships.
The relationship is the journey
Life is a journey, not a destination. During the journey called work, we will inevitably be required to have relationships in order to function and complete our work. Where the journey starts or ends is not as relevant as that it continues. Ongoing efforts to keep people happy in their decision to be in a relationship with your company becomes a priority and has perhaps historically not always been the top priority. But it does make logical sense. What is the point of topping up the funnel if the bucket is leaking like a sieve with only a trickle coming out of the other end…
Power to the people
People don't have to have a license to have an opinion. Nor to have a blog, to write reviews, to influence others or to give advice to anyone who cares to listen. The digital landscape of today has never presented more options for people to have their say. And people do. So don't underestimate the power digital channels give to the people. People buy from people and individuals take influence from fellow colleagues, bloggers, journalists, friends and any other voices of opinions.


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Unique wildlife, stunning landscapes and
vibrant communities. Explore the challenges, mysteries and beauties
of the top third of the Australian continent.
This website developed from work undertaken by the Tropical
Savannas Cooperative Research Centre, which began writing,
collecting and presenting information about Australia's savannas on
its website in 1998 — one of Australia's least understood and
perhaps most underrated regions.
In the intervening years, the CRC also played its part in
discovering more about the savannas: including its landscape and
ecology, the challenges facing its industries — particularly
those in natural resource management — and its communities,
often far-flung and under-resourced.
In 2006, the CRC, with support from the Natural Heritage Trust,
launched this website to provide an overview of northern
Australia's savannas. We also have specialist websites for NRM and
fire managers and school students. Use the Navigation Wheel above
right to access these sites.


Skip to definition.
Noun: odeum ow'dee-um
 1. A kind of theatre in ancient Greece or Rome, smaller than the dramatic theatre and roofed over, in which poets and musicians submitted their works to the approval of the public, and contended for prizes; - hence, in modern usage, the name of a hall for musical or dramatic performances
 - odeon
Derived forms: odeums
Encyclopedia: Odeum


connections in the graph.
Diffusion Maps
Diffusion Maps (DM) [35, 36] start with building a graph G as well, but differ in weighting the edges by the Gaussian kernel function: W ( i, j ) = exp ( x i x j 2 σ 2 ). With the rows being normalized by W ^ ( i, j ) = W ( i, j ) Σ l = 1 N W ( i, l ), the weights W ^ N × N can be seen as a Markov Matrix that defines the probability to move from one sample to another in one time step. The transition probability for t time steps, denoted W ^ ( t ), is given by W ^ t. It can be used to control the local connections among neighbored samples. Here, we set it to t = 1. Diffusion Maps retain a weighted L2 distance, the 'diffusion distance'
D ( t ) ( x i, x j ) = l = 1 N ( W ^ ( t ) ( i, l ) W ^ ( t ) ( j, l ) ) 2 ψ ( x l )
The term Ψ ( x i ) = Σ j W ^ ( i, j ) Σ j l W ^ ( j, l ) leads to stronger weighting of samples from dense areas in the graph. Since the diffusion distance between two points is computed over all possible paths in the graph, Diffusion Maps are more robust to noise.
Locally Linear Embedding
Unlike Isomap and MVU, Locally Linear Embedding (LLE) [24, 37] attempts to preserve local properties of the data. Each sample x i is represented by a linear combination of its k nearest neighbors:
x i = j = 1 k W ( i, j ) x j
. The weights W N×N are estimated by minimizing the reconstruction error
i = 1 N x i j = 1 k W ( i, j ) x j 2
subject to W (i, j) = 0, if x i is not a neighbor of x j, and j = 1 N W ( i, j ) = 1. The last constraint ensures an invariance to translation next to rotation and rescaling. By minimizing
ϵ ( Y ) = i = 1 N y i j = 1 k W ( i, j ) y j 2
the low-dimensional representation that best preserves the weights in the target space is chosen.
Laplacian Eigenmaps
As well as LLE, Laplacian Eigenmaps (LEM) [38, 39] are a local technique. Similar to Diffusion Maps, this method first constructs a neighborhood graph, weighted with values W (i, j) from the Gaussian kernel function. By minimizing a cost function
ϵ ( Y ) = i j y i y j 2 W ( i, j )
for neighbored y i, y j (W (i, j) = 0 otherwise), the distances between the low-dimensional representations are minimized and nearby samples x i, x j are highly weighted, and thus brought closer together. This way, Laplacian Eigenmaps implicitly enforces natural clusters in the data.
Methods of Assessment
Our benchmark (Figure 1) is divided into three parts. First, the studied dimension reduction methods were applied to the complete dataset. The low-dimensional datasets were then assessed by two different approaches, namely classification and cluster validation. To evaluate and compare the performance of each method, the classification accuracies of Support Vector Machines [40] (with Gaussian kernel) and the compactness and distance of clusters within the low-dimensional representations were used. In the following, each step of our benchmark is described in detail.
Figure 1
Benchmark. Our benchmark, consisting of three independent procedures. (1) Dimension reduction: Every dataset is mapped into a low-dimensional target space. All necessary parameters are determined by a loo-cv with a SVM. (2) Classification: Every dataset is classified by a SVM with Gaussian kernel during 100 randomization steps. A gradient descend procedure estimates all SVM parameters. (3) Cluster validation: The Davis-Bouldin-Index measures the distance between labeled clusters within the low-dimensional data.
The methods were tested on ten published microarray datasets as well as on simulated data. Each published dataset was divided into two classes according to a binary variable corresponding to the samples' disease status, the presence of certain molecular mutations or other sample characteristics as shown in Table 1. Since microarray data is technically provided with a more or less high level of noise, we reran the benchmark on the microarray datasets combined with normally distributed noise with zero mean and an increasing variance between 0 and 0.1. Before adding noise, all data was scaled to values between 0 and 1 to overcome the varying means and standard deviations of the datasets.
Table 1 Microarray datasets
The simulated data is based on a 50 sample dataset whose 10.000 gene expression values are normally distributed with zero mean and standard deviation one. The covariances of all genes are given by a block diagonal matrix with coefficients ρ = 0.2 within and ρ = 0 outside the blocks of size 50 × 50. To separate the data into two classes, between 10 and 500 genes were randomly chosen to be differentially expressed by adding a constant of 0.6 to the expression values of the first 25 samples. We generated 100 datasets for testing.
In the same manner as for the ten microarray datasets before, normally distributed noise with zero mean and an increasing variance between 0 and 0.2 was added to the simulated data. We repeated the benchmark on 50 of these noisy artificial datasets. The number of differential features was fixed to 300.
Dimension reduction
All dimension reduction techniques discussed here have one or two free parameters, that influence the embedding and the target dimension. Their determination was done by minimizing the error rate of a Support Vector Machine (SVM) within a leave-one-out cross-validation (loo-cv) schema: For N samples, the dataset was divided N times into a training and a test set. One sample was excluded for testing while the rest was taken for training. The average over all prediction accuracies gives an estimate of the SVMs' generalization error.
This procedure was repeated for every set of parameters within the following ranges:
Target dimensionality: 2 ≤ d ≤ 15
Neighbors: 4 ≤ k ≤ 16
Gaussian kernel: 1e − 1 ≤ σ ≤ 5e 5
If the same loo-cv accuracies were achieved by using different parameter values for the target dimension, the lowest value was taken for reasons of a most simple representation. The same applies to the neighbor/kernel parameters.
After the loo-cv, the whole dataset was reduced in its dimension in an unsupervised manner, i.e. without consideration of class labels.
The first evidence for the quality of the different dimension reduction methods are the accuracies of a Support Vector Machine with Gaussian kernel.
The data was classified repeatedly during several randomization steps:
We randomly split the dataset a hundred times into a set to train the SVM and a test set for classification, and selected the median accuracy of all runs. Within the training set, a loo-cv was performed to determine the SVM parameters. For reasons of performance, a gradient descent procedure as proposed in [41] was used to minimize the loo-cv error. Every time during randomization, the training set consisted of two thirds of the original data and the test set of the remaining samples. The only constraint was to keep the balance between the number of samples in each class. Since SVMs do not restrict the dimension of the input data, the randomization results of the low-dimensional data can be compared to the high-dimensional original data, to see if more or less significant features got lost after the embedding.
Cluster validation
To measure the distances between the labeled clusters, we used the Davis-Bouldin-Index (DB-Index) [42]: Given M clusters C i (i = 1,..., M ) and their centers μ i = 1 | C i | x C i x,
d i = 1 | C i | x C i x μ i
is the average distance of the samples in cluster C i to its center. While R i j = d i + d j μ i μ j reports the compactness of clusters C i, C j related to their distance, the DB-Index
D B = 1 M i = 1 M max { R i j | 1 j M, i j }
averages the worst cases of the clusters' separations. One might expect well separated clusters to have smaller values close to one. In our case, the DB-Index was computed for fixed target space dimensions 2,3,5, and 10.
Implementation details
The presented benchmark was implemented in Matlab 7.8.0 (R2009a). Furthermore, libsvm (version 2.89) [43] served as Support Vector Machine implementation, in conjunction with Automatic Model Selection for Kernel Methods (Apr 2005) [44]. The Dimensionality Reduction Toolbox (version 0.7 - Nov 2008) [45], Isomap package (Release 1 - Dec 2000) [46], LLE routine [45] and MVU implementation (version 1.3) [47] were used for dimension reduction. Because the Isomap and LLE routines performed best in our benchmark, we converted their Matlab implementations for the statistical programming language R [48]. The R-package 'RDRToolbox', also including


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A Polje is a large flat-bottomed valley feature of limestone regions formed by prolonged dissolution. The Carron Polje is the largest enclosed depression in Ireland, with an area of approximately 4.5 square kilometres. The "disappearing lake" or Turlough is the most noticeable part of the Polje.
The depression began forming several millions of years ago when overlying shale layers were eroded and rainwater began the slow process of dissolving the underlying limestone. As erosion continued and the depression grew, insoluble components of the limestone accumulated and formed an impermeable layer over the limestone, this prevented further downward dissolution and encouraged the lateral widening of the depression giving us the flat-bottomed feature we see today.
The disappearing lake or Turlough is the most obvious part of the Polje. After significant rainfall the bottom of the valley fills with water to form a lake. The only outlet to drain the water is through a small natural karst fissure in the limestone at the southern margin of the lake. This can get blocked by mud or other debris and drains slowly. If there is no significant rainfall the water will drain and the lake will disappear only to fill again after more rain. During dry periods the lake floor is grazed by cattle.
Despite the relatively high amount of rainfall (>1000mm per year) there is only one small surface river in the Burren. This is because soil is very thin or absent and the limestone has been karstified, so deep fissures carry the surface water underground very quickly. These fissures form a complex network and sometimes form conduits that can transport water long distances very quickly. The water that flows underground from the end of the Carron Tulough is known to emerge 6km to the south near Kilnaboy. This makes the Burrren particularly vulnerable to water pollution.


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- focuses on mentoring in ITE in primary and secondary schools in Wales
- examines the role of the mentor and what makes effective practice in mentoring
- explores the relationship between professional learning in school and effective mentoring in ITE
- looks at how student teachers develop the skills and attributes of career-long professional learning, and the role that effective mentoring plays in this process
- considers the roles played by higher education institutions (HEIs) and schools in developing effective mentoring practice
- The most effective mentoring takes place in schools where there is an established culture of learning. In these schools, there is a strong focus on developing effective teaching. These schools see themselves as 'learning schools' and that the practice of developing student teachers is part of the same process as developing practising teachers.
- In the most effective schools, mentoring has a high status. Headteachers identify mentors strategically. They ensure that mentors have the leadership skills to develop others. However, in many schools, even where there is an emphasis on developing and coaching teachers, mentors do not apply the skills they have learnt through whole-school professional development activities to their mentoring of student teachers.
- The mentor training currently provided by the centres of ITE places too much emphasis on completion of documentation rather than developing the skills, knowledge and understanding required to mentor successfully. As a result, ITE centres do not have robust enough processes to identify the strengths and weaknesses in mentoring, nor do they share best practice effectively enough.
- Mentors view their role mainly in terms of supporting students to meet the standards for QTS and assessing their progress towards this goal.
- The few most effective mentors have a good understanding of how to build students' knowledge and experience incrementally, starting with more structured and supported learning activities and developing students' independence, reflection and criticality as they become more experienced.
- These effective mentors are often actively engaged in professional learning activities, research, or higher-level study. In particular, their learning about interpersonal skills, team-building and developing others has helped them to develop the emotional awareness to provide feedback to students that is sensitive, encouraging and stimulating.
- Effective mentors provide accurate written feedback that captures students' progress fairly and holistically.
- Currently, there are too few links between the university-based and school-based aspects of ITE programmes and too few opportunities for students to connect educational theory to teaching practice.
- Very few students are able to identify the skills and behaviours that they need for career-long professional learning.
- A majority of students benefit from undertaking research projects that require them to reflect on teaching and learning and to connect this valuably to educational research.
- In the main, students do not reflect critically enough in the written evaluations of their teaching and progress against their targets. They do not present evidence of deeper thinking, such as making connections between other learning experiences, or draw upon research and wider reading.
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Unified Messaging - the integration of different communication methods - voice fax, email, etc. - such that communications can be received and sent via a single interface
The concept of Unified Messaging, or UM for short, basically revolves around the integration of different communication methods - voice, fax, email, etc. - such that communications can be received and sent via a single interface. All communication types are essentially treated as objects so they can be accessed via a single mailbox from a landline or mobile phone, or from a personal computer. Text-to-speech software, for example, enhances the integration of email and voice messages by converting email messages into the spoken word, which can be heard by a telephone user. Similarly, phone calls can be made by clicking a mouse button, and conference calls can be configured by dragging and dropping.
Unified Messaging Features, Benefits & Considerations
Unified Messaging provides access to common forms of communication from a device, or terminal, determined by the user, regardless of his or her location. Most office workers, for example, have a personal computer running an email client on their desks so by integrating voice and fax communications into a single system all messages can be prioritised and dealt with in the same way as email messages. Of course, there are many people whose work does not involve sitting at a desk all day, and in such situations it becomes more important perhaps, that messages are presented in an organised fashion and accessible from a single point. Most Unified Messaging solutions have a fairly uniform set of features which allow messages to be accessed 24 hours a day 7 days a week, along with message notification and Internet access facilities.
Any business considering the purchase of a Unified Messaging System (UMS) should, of course, examine the functionality that it is attempting to gain, along with the potential impact of such a system on the organisation as a whole. Functionality may vary from vendor to vendor, but it is important that any UMS integrates with existing infrastructure, as well as any other new systems that may be on the horizon. If, for example, a business has invested heavily in voice messaging technology, it makes sense to choose a UMS with a full range of options in support of that technology.
An effective UMS should be based on an "open systems" architecture, and be scalable so that it can be adapted to suit the changing requirements and growth of any business. A business may, for example, be operating a PBX or VoIP ("Voice over Internet Protocol") infrastructure, but in either case the principle aim of a UMS should be to increase the productivity and reach of that business, and ultimately to have a positive effect on its bottom line.
There may of course be technical issues to overcome - a server between a PBX ("Private Branch Exchange") and an email system, for example, may require a memory upgrade - but businesses should also consider additional overheads, such as technical support and maintenance and the training of end users. A simple, intuitive interface, for example, may allow users to pick up a new system easily, without a large, formal investment in training.
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UK 0800 Numbers cost versus benefits
There are several benefits that any business can derive from 0800 numbers. One of the most significant is the likelihood of an increase in the number of callers who are potential customers. From a marketing perspective, these numbers are among the most efficient tools to attract new customers and implement effective advertising and marketing campaigns.
Memorable number? Why UK 0800 Numbers can be top of mind for your customer
Whether you plan a new venture or seek to boost your business, a powerful communication set up that can boost your advertising and marketing potential is essential. One of the most affordable ways to achieve this is by setting up a 0844 numbers. One of the common misconceptions is that these freephone numbers are expensive to run and are more a prerogative of larger organisations. However, that is far from the truth since there are plans from as low as £10 per month, suitable for the small business owner as well. In addition, you don't have to pay an exorbitant rate to pick up the cost of a call from a potential customer. It could cost as little as 2 pence per minute. You aren't bound to any long-term contract either.
Measuring success how UK 0800 Numbers can be used for effective advertising campaigns
One of the best ways to monitor consumer trends, stay in touch with customers and attract new ones is to set up a national number for your business. These numbers are now increasingly being used by businesses across the UK as an effective advertising and marketing tool. If you aren't already using freephone numbers, you are definitely missing out on a lot of opportunities for business growth. In addition, you give your business an edge through competitive advertising while callers enjoy the privilege of getting in touch with you for free.


We raised some issues with the SAP migration tools during a replatforming project including Unicode conversion from SUN/Oracle to Windows SQL Server.
Our migration went well and all the log files from the technical migration reported no error, but during the application testing the customer claimed some missing data in a couple of tables.
What happened:
These tables were splitted in at least four parts from the R3TA tool and exported and imported without any errors. After a detailed investigation, we found that some of the packages a empty:
0 rows exported and 0 rows imported.
A cross check inside the source SAP system with the select patterns out of the WHR files showed the missing entries. The select statement with the select criteria out of the HWR files executed directly on Oracle using sqlplus resulted with 0 rows again.
After tracing the selection of SE16 with ST05, we found the issue:
The WHERE condition inside SE16 was like
 - SELECT COUNT(*) from "/BIC/ADC_CNT200" WHERE "CRM_OHGUID" <= '4909283A9B121CF6E10000000A31EA29' AND "CRM_ITMGUI" ='';
 Result: 238656 rows
The WHERE clause with the conditions of the WHR files was:
 Result: 0 rows
The difference is the blank in the second condition! So the error is caused by the '' in the where condition created by the R3TA tool.
After changing the WHR file and re-export/re-import the table, we got the same row count on both sides.
Now the customer raised the concern about the consistency of the migrated data. Therefore we checked the row count for all tables on the source and the target system and compared these values with the information recorded in the *.toc (export) and *.log files (import) to be sure we didn't lost any data on the way from Oracle to SQL.
Thereby we found two additional strange phenomena:
 1. The cluster table REGUC had app. 18.000 additional rows on the target side, but from the application point of view it was consistent.
 1. The row count information from the *.toc and *.log files was not consistent with the row count in the source and target DB
To 1.: The phenomena with REGUC was raised by the data-growth during the UNICODE conversion. The table is a table cluster resp. A physical cluster table with a VARDATA field containing compressed raw data. The content of the VARDATA field is extracted and converted during the migration/Unicode conversion. The length of the field (3.800 bytes) doesn't change - however after the Unicode conversion some data doesn't fit in one record only so you have more records on the target. So a continuation record is created and the table has more records after the migration. This could be verified with the following select statement, which needs to show the same values on the source and target:
 - Select count(*) from REGUC where PAGENO=0;
 (table records without continuation records)
To 2.: For some transparent tables (e.g. PA0000 in the HCM system) we had the same row count information in the *.toc (export) and *.log (import) files. Both files showed 145.189 rows, but a select count(*) on the source and target DB showed 142.615.
We reported all the issues to SAP. The issue with the R3TA is already corrected in version 7.20 and higher and will be back-ported to earlier versions (7.0x and 7.1x), too. The issue with the inconsistent row count is still under investigation from SAP. I will update the blog, if we get an response from SAP
Lessons learned:
Don't trust the log files of the SAP migration tools, you have to verify the consistency of the databases by additional checks.


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Neonatal calves, lambs and pigs often vitamin E deficient
Using the wrong form of vitamin E risks newborn health, production and producer profits, says Stuart Products. Today's husbandry practices combined with seasonal pasture growth patterns can deprive production animals of adequate vitamin E.
The natural form of vitamin E found in green growing grass, as well as legumes, is an essential nutrient for production animals such as dairy cattle, beef cattle, sheep and swine. This powerful antioxidant is particularly important to neonates. Unless the correct form of vitamin E is provided as a supplement to the neonate's daily diet, this important antioxidant becomes deficient resulting in a host of potential health and performance challenges for newborn calves, lambs and pigs. The list of potential issues includes diarrhoea, weakness, pneumonia, Weak Calf Syndrome and Mulberry Heart Disease in pigs.
Difference between natural and synthetic vitamin E
The difference between a natural and a synthetic vitamin E supplement is significant, says Stuart Products. "Knowing the difference is key to optimising the production animal's vitamin E status and performance, beginning at birth. Whereas stabilised synthetic vitamins provide benefits to mature animals, the same synthetic form of vitamin E may be inappropriate for neonates."
"When using vitamin E supplements to optimise neonate performance, bioavailability is a crucial factor. Simply supplementing neonates with vitamin E acetate ester is not enough; the vitamin E supplement should be the same form found in mother's milk. This non-ester form is readily absorbed and utilised by the neonate. Otherwise, the investment in this essential input is wasted."
Neonates are unable to utilizse the acetate-form of vitamin E
Nursing and newly-weaned animals are naturally deficient in the esterase enzyme, which is necessary to remove the acetate-ester from the stable-form of vitamin E (alpha-tocopheryl-acetate) before the animal can utilise this form. Due to the deficiency of the esterase enzyme, neonates are unable to utilise the acetate-form of vitamin E and depend upon the colostrum in mother's milk to provide adequate biologically-active vitamin E. Regardless of how much vitamin E acetate is provided in feed rations, the anticipated health and performance benefits for neonates are unrealised when using vitamin E acetate (alpha-tocopheryl-acetate), as proven in university studies.
According to Stuart Products, the form of vitamin E used in Stuart Products Vital E injectable and EMCELLE oral products is different than vitamin E sources used in other liquid and powder supplements. The form found in Stuart Products oral and injectable products is the same form of vitamin E found in the neonate's mother's colostrum and milk. This form of vitamin E is the alcohol-form (alpha-tocopherol), which is the most biologically-active source of vitamin E and is readily utilised by neonates.
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You don't have to get your feet wet to see what's happening under the water's surface thanks to a variety of new, lightweight hi-definition cameras that bring everything from crabs to crawfish to your laptop or TV.
The affordable technology shows species behavior like never before and it turns out, it's also serious science.
Oregon Dept of Fish and Wildlife Marine Biologists Bob Hannah and Matt Blume created the new "video lander;" an easy to use and inexpensive tool that's giving scientists a new look into Oregon's silent and secret underwater world.
"We started out by drawing on a piece of paper," noted Hannah with a chuckle. "We knew we had to keep all the sensitive stuff inside the frame so it's all somewhat protected – then we evaluated it in the field.
They couldn't afford to buy an expensive remote operated submersible that can cost more than a hundred thousand dollars, so they built the 65-pound video lander for less than ten thousand dollars. It's become an affordable option that surveys the ocean floor just as well as more expensive technology.
The aluminum lander's design also allows it to be deployed in the rugged, rocky ocean bottom that exists off Oregon's shoreline.
Hannah said that the video lander can be easily dropped from a small boat just like a fisherman might drop a crab pot over the side: "That's one of the neat things about our device: we can go out on very short notice for a survey."
The underwater camera provides clear looks at amazing fish that live at places like Stone Wall Bank, a rocky reel that's located 15 miles west of Newport. "It shows us what kind of fish live there, what sizes they are, what kind of micro-habitats they prefer. Really, it's the basic ocean ecology," said Hannah.
Learning about ocean 'ecology' has been critical since the establishment of Oregon's Marine Reserve Program in 2009.
Oregon has five reserves that reach from Cape Falcon near Cannon Beach south to the Port Orford area. The reserves are akin to fish refuges where no angling is allowed. So, the challenge for scientists has been finding a non-lethal way of getting a first-hand look at the fish that live there.
The lander's digital hi-definition camera does a fine job of showing the fish species – the camera is mounted in a watertight case and powered by a nickel-cadmium battery for up to four hours.
A bag filled with chopped herring hangs off a steel rod four feet in front of the camera and serves as bait to draw in the fish for close ups.
"We can get into the areas that have a whole lot of fish, especially some of the schooling species, like canary rockfish – and they will fill up the scene." said Hannah. "It's also neat to see the big halibut and we were even visited by a sea lion once. He came down, looked at the camera and then turned and left."
Marine managers say more video landers are on the way that will provide spectacular views of Oregon's remarkable ocean life. Up next - stereo cameras for a three-dimensional look to help the scientist determine the fish's size. Hannah said they hope to deploy the new cameras next spring.


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Jr. Analytical Grammar is a program intended to introduce the ideas of English grammar to younger students. It is designed to be taught in an eleven-week grammar "season" in either 4th or 5th grade. Created in response to parent requests for grammar materials for younger students, it covers the same material found in the first ten units of Analytical Grammar, but the exercises are shorter and the reading level is lower. It is also more "interactive" as far as the parent is concerned. Rather than the student reading notes, the "notes" are really a series of questions and activities designed to help the child understand the grammatical concepts.
The program is divided into eleven units; each taxes about a week to go through. Each unit builds on the one before, so students use what they've already learned to master the next concept.
Our junior version is a gentle, easy introduction to the concepts of English grammar. It is straightforward to teach and fun for both teacher and student.
Jr. Analytical Grammar covers:
- All the parts of speech and parts of the sentence
- Classic sentence diagraming
Jr. Analytical Grammar includes:
- Teacher "talking points" for students
- Plenty of exercises to practice skills
- Short writing activities that reinforce concepts
- Tests to evaluate progress
- Complete answer keys and useful (but brief!) teacher notes
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Evaluation of how medications are used at Cedars-Sinai is a way to ensure that usage is appropriate, safe and cost-effective.
Evaluations are done with other healthcare providers using an evidence-based approach. Additionally, the Drug Use Policy pharmacist works with the medical staff to develop guidelines for medication use.
Pharmacists also play an active role in the Medical Center's multidisciplinary Medication Management Safety Committee, which is responsible for designing and implementing strategies to create a safer medication use system. The objectives of the committee are to:
- Improve reporting through a non-punitive culture and evaluate errors and potential errors to ensure safety of systems
- Create interdisciplinary synergies through collaboration on improving medication safety and education of clinicians and patients
- Identify problem prone processes and conduct tests of changes to improve safety
- Conduct and utilize medication safety research and best practices to improve processes
- Make policy recommendations


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 Molecular mimicry hypothesis and autoimmunity
 Molecular mimicry hypothesis and autoimmunity is explained with an example of multiple sclerosis.
 © BrainMass Inc. brainmass.com October 1, 2020, 11:24 pm ad1c9bdddf
 Solution Preview
 The mechanism of molecular mimicry has been postulated to explain the development of autoimmunity. According to molecular mimicry mechanism, the infectious agents or pathogens trigger an immune response against the autoantigens. According to this hypothesis a susceptible host gets infected with a pathogen that has antigens immunologically similar to the host antigens but differ sufficiently to induce an immune response when presented to T cells. Consequently, tolerance to autoantigens breaks down leading to cross-reaction of the pathogen-specific immune response...
 Solution Summary
 Molecular mimicry hypothesis and autoimmunity are assessed.