text:
Are you considering a career as a medical assistant? One of the key factors to consider when pursuing this path is the salary. Understanding the average hourly wage for medical assistants is crucial in making informed decisions about your future. In this article, we will delve into the factors that influence medical assistant salaries and provide you with valuable insights. So, let's explore the question on everyone's mind: how much does a medical assistant make an hour?
Understanding the Role of a Medical Assistant
Before we dive into the salary details, let's first understand the role of a medical assistant. Medical assistants play a vital role in healthcare settings, providing vital support to doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals. They perform both administrative tasks, such as scheduling appointments and managing patient records, and clinical duties, including taking vital signs and preparing patients for examinations. Their versatility and ability to handle various responsibilities make them essential members of any healthcare team.
Factors Influencing Medical Assistant Salaries
Several factors come into play when determining the salary of a medical assistant. Let's explore some of the key influencers:
Education and Certification Requirements
Education and certification play a significant role in determining a medical assistant's salary. While some medical assistants enter the field with just a high school diploma and receive on-the-job training, others pursue formal education programs. Completing a medical assisting program and obtaining certification through organizations like the American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA) or the National Healthcareer Association (NHA) can lead to higher earning potential.
Experience and Expertise Levels
As with any profession, experience and expertise levels have a direct impact on salary. Medical assistants with several years of experience and specialized skills tend to earn more than entry-level counterparts. Continuously expanding your knowledge, staying up-to-date with the latest medical advancements, and pursuing additional certifications can help you advance in your career and command a higher salary.
Geographic location plays a crucial role in salary discrepancies for medical assistants. Wages can vary significantly from state to state or even within different regions of the same state. Urban areas generally offer higher salaries due to higher living costs and demand for healthcare services. Researching the salary trends in your desired location will give you a better understanding of the earning potential in that area.
Type of Healthcare Facility or Setting
The type of healthcare facility or setting you work in can also impact your salary. Medical assistants employed in hospitals or specialized medical centers may earn higher wages compared to those working in small clinics or private practices. The complexity of the medical procedures performed, the patient volume, and the level of specialization required all contribute to salary variations.
Average Hourly Wage for Medical Assistants
Now that we have explored the factors influencing medical assistant salaries, let's delve into the average hourly wage you can expect in this profession.
According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the national average hourly wage for medical assistants is $17.08 as of May 2020[^1^]. However, it's essential to note that this is just an average, and wages can vary significantly depending on the factors mentioned above.
To provide a better understanding, let's compare the hourly wages across different states. As of May 2020, medical assistants in states like Alaska, Washington, and the District of Columbia reported some of the highest average hourly wages, ranging from $20.75 to $23.08[^1^]. On the other hand, states like West Virginia, Mississippi, and Alabama had lower average hourly wages, ranging from $12.73 to $14.94[^1^]. These variations highlight the impact of geographic location on medical assistant salaries.
It's important to remember that these figures are subject to change over time as the healthcare industry evolves. Keeping track of the latest salary trends in your area will help you make informed decisions.
Frequently Asked Questions about Medical Assistant Salaries
To address some common queries regarding medical assistant salaries, let's dive into a few frequently asked questions:
How much does a certified medical assistant make an hour?
Certification as a medical assistant can positively impact your earning potential. On average, certified medical assistants tend to earn slightly higher hourly wages compared to their non-certified counterparts. However, the actual salary will still depend on other factors such as experience, location, and the type of healthcare facility.
What is the starting hourly wage for medical assistants?
Starting wages for medical assistants can vary depending on the factors discussed earlier. On average, entry-level medical assistants can expect to earn around $13 to $15 per hour. However, gaining experience and additional certifications can lead to higher wages as you progress in your career.
Do medical assistants receive benefits?
Many medical assistants receive benefits as part of their employment package. These benefits may include health insurance, retirement plans, paid time off, and other perks. The specific benefits offered will vary depending on the employer, so it's important to consider this aspect when evaluating job opportunities.
Can medical assistants earn more through overtime?
Medical assistants may have the opportunity to earn more through overtime hours. Overtime pay is usually calculated at a rate of 1.5 times the regular hourly wage. However, the availability of overtime hours will depend on the healthcare facility's policies and workload.
In conclusion, understanding how much a medical assistant makes an hour is crucial when considering a career in this field. While the national average hourly wage provides a general idea, it's important to consider the various factors that influence salaries, such as education, experience, location, and the type of healthcare facility. By staying informed and gaining relevant certifications and experience, you can increase your earning potential as a medical assistant. So, if you're passionate about healthcare and helping others, pursuing a career as a medical assistant might be a rewarding choice for you!
[^1^]: Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2020. BLS website


text:
Once again it's time for a historic Quiz Bowl. Okay, maybe historic is a bit much, but I'm trying to make a point here. The point has to do with the subject of this month's AMA Manual of Style quiz—articles. Is it a historic or an historic Quiz Bowl? Did you guess a historic? If so, you're right. The article a is used before the aspirate h (eg, a historic occasion) and nonvocalic y (eg, a ubiquitous organism) (§11.9, Articles, p 412 in print).
Try another example from this month's quiz.
The physician told that patient that he should have a/an ultrasound examination performed.
Here's a hint. Sometimes it helps to read the sentence aloud.
The answer is as follows (use your mouse to highlight the text box):
The physician told that patient that he should have an ultrasound examination performed.
Words beginning with vowels are preceded by a or an according to the sound following (in this case, the u sound) (§11.9, Articles, p 412 in print).
Sound plays an important role in determining whether to use a or an. Test your skills by taking the full Articles Quiz on the AMA Manual of Style online. It will be a (or is that an?) unique experience.—Laura King, MA, ELS

source: HuggingFaceFW/fineweb-edu


text:
Effects of love on health
Aug 09: Love is a feeling, term, a response which immediately draws the attention of human being. Since human being came on earth 'Love' has been defined in hundreds and thousands of ways.
Love occupied its eminent place in almost every literature and has been celebrated and glorified since ages.
But recent research shows that tosses of love deteriorate the health. The fluctuations and ups and downs of love relationship can have direct impact on health of a person and can cause long term damages to the human body.
Research conducted at Imperial College London has revealed that falling in love evokes various physical reactions in body which can harm health.
Prof. Martin Cowie of Imperial College told that when in love body constantly undergoes a roller coaster of emotions which has a direct bearing on our physique. Pupils can dilate, palms start sweating and heart beat also increases. Due to all this adrenaline is secreted in large amounts creating problems to body.
The risk becomes high when we don't accept that emotions are affecting our health.
In their research they monitored the emotions and the effect on newly widowed men which showed 50% higher risk of heart problems.
In spite of its age old glory scientists in last decade has revealed its negative aspects too.
A research by University College in London, published in 'NeuroImage' said that love renders those areas of brain deficient in alertness which control critical thought.
This feeling considered very positive till yet, actually deactivates the neural network associated with critical social assessment of other people. This may be the reason that those in love fail to see the very apparent faults of their beloved ones.
This is the case not just with romantic love but maternal love has the same effect, research said.
Don't get scared and it would be very hasty to form a negative opinion about 'love'. There was another research in 2001 which said that who feel love and get its response they live longer, happier and have better health. People in love have better life expectancy and live a healthy life-style.
Let's wait till next research bringing some good aspect of love to the fore and be a little bit careful when falling in love.
Read More: Lady Harding Medical College | Delhi Engg. College | Medical College | Nehru College Jhajjar | Janta College Charkhi Dadri | Engg College Muthal | Khalsa College | Khalsa College Po | Lyalpur Khalsa College | Dav College | Government College | Engg College | Govt Degree College Hamirpur | Postal Staff College (i) | D S College | Dav College Bulandshahr | College Rd. Kaimganj Edso | Gsvm Medical College | Agriculture College | P G College Attara | Lond
7 ROB ATM MACHINE FILLED WITH CASH
June 18, 2013 at 8:35 PM
SALWA JUDUM SPO BRUTALLY BEATEN UP BY POLICE OFFICER (NNIS SPECIAL)
June 18, 2013 at 8:25 PM
BJP SAYS, IT IS SETTING THE AGENDA FIRST FOR DELHI POLLS
June 18, 2013 at 8:19 PM


Customize Bus Object Import and Export
You can use the Bus Editor to import bus objects to the base workspace and to export bus objects from the base workspace, as described in Save and Import Bus Objects. By default, the Bus Editor can save bus objects to, and import bus objects from, a MATLAB® code file or MAT-file. The files must be in a location that is accessible using an ordinary Open or Save dialog box.
You can write customized MATLAB functions that provide alternative import or export (or both) functionality. For example, you can write a customized function that stores the objects as records in a database, in a format that your organization uses.
After you design and implement a custom bus object import or export function, use the Simulink® Customization Manager to register the function. The registration process establishes custom import and export functions as callbacks for the Bus Editor Import to Base Workspace and Export to File commands. The callbacks replace the default capabilities of the Bus Editor. Customizing the Bus Editor import and export capabilities has no effect on other MATLAB or Simulink functions. Canceling import or export customization restores the default Bus Editor capabilities for that operation without affecting the other.
Required Background Knowledge
Customizing bus object import or export requires that you understand:
 - MATLAB language and programming techniques
 - Simulink bus object syntax
 - The proprietary format into which you translate bus objects, and the techniques necessary to access the facility that stores the objects.
 - Any platform-specific techniques for obtaining data from the user, such as the name of the location in which to store or access bus objects.
Write a Bus Object Export Function
A custom bus object export function requires at least one argument. You can use additional arguments to handle special actions by the function. The value of the first argument is a cell array containing the names of all bus objects that the Bus Editor has selected. You can use functions, global variables, or any other MATLAB technique, to provide values for any additional arguments. The general algorithm of a customized export function is:
 1. Iterate over the list of object names in the first argument.
 2. Obtain the bus object corresponding to each name.
 3. Translate the bus object to the proprietary syntax.
 4. Save the translated bus object in the local repository.
This example shows the syntactic shell of such an export callback function is:
function myExportCallBack(selectedBusObjects)
disp('Custom export was called!');
for idx = 1:length(selectedBusObjects)
 disp([selectedBusObjects{idx}'was selected for export.']);
Although this function does not export any bus objects, it is syntactically valid and can be registered. It accepts a cell array of bus object names, iterates over them, and prints each name. An operational export function:
 - Uses each name to retrieve the corresponding bus object from the base workspace
 - Converts the object to proprietary format
 - Stores the converted object
The additional logic is enterprise-specific.
Write a Bus Object Import Function
A custom bus object import function can take zero or more arguments to perform its task. You can use functions, global variables, or any other MATLAB technique to provide argument values. Also, the function can poll the user for information, such as a designation of where to obtain bus object information. The general algorithm of a custom bus object import function is:
 1. Obtain bus object information from the local repository.
 2. Translate each bus object definition to a Simulink.Bus object.
 3. Save each bus object to the MATLAB base workspace.
This example shows the syntactic shell of an import callback function is:
function myImportCallBack
disp('Custom import was called!');
Although this function does not import any bus objects, it is syntactically valid and can be registered with the Simulink Customization Manager. An operational import function:
 - Gets a designation of where to obtain the bus objects to import
 - Converts each bus object to a Simulink.Bus object
 - Stores the object in the base workspace
The additional logic is enterprise-specific.
Register Customizations
To customize bus object import or export, provide a customization registration function that inputs and configures the Customization Manager whenever you start Simulink software or refresh Simulink customizations. The steps for using a customization registration function are:
 1. Create a file named sl_customization.m to contain the customization registration function. Alternatively, you can use an existing customization file.
 2. At the top of the file, create a function named sl_customization that takes a single argument (or use the customization function in an existing file). When the function is invoked, the value of this argument is the Customization Manager.
 3. Configure the sl_customization function to set importCallbackFcn and exportCallbackFcn to be function handles that specify your customized bus object import and export functions.
 4. If sl_customization.m is a new customization file, put it anywhere on the MATLAB search path. Two frequently used locations are matlabroot and the current working folder. Alternatively, you can extend the search path.
Here is a simple example of a customization registration function:
function sl_customization(cm)
disp('My customization file was loaded.');
cm.BusEditorCustomizer.importCallbackFcn = _USER_;
cm.BusEditorCustomizer.exportCallbackFcn = @(x)myExportCallBack(x);
When Simulink starts up, it traverses the MATLAB search path looking for files named sl_customization.m. Simulink loads each such file that it finds (not just the first file) and executes the sl_customization function at its top, establishing the customizations that the function specifies.
Executing the example customization function displays a message (which an actual function probably would not). The function establishes that the Bus Editor uses a function named myImportCallBack() to import bus objects, and a function named myExportCallBack(x) to export bus objects.
The function corresponding to a handle that appears in a callback registration can be undefined when the registration occurs. However, it must be defined when the Bus Editor calls the function. The same latitude and requirement applies to any functions or global variables used to provide the values of additional arguments.
Other functions can also exist in the sl_customization.m file. However, the Simulink software ignores files named sl_customization.m, except when it starts up or refreshes customizations. Any changes to functions in the customization file are ignored until one of those events occurs. By contrast, changes to other MATLAB code files on the MATLAB path take effect immediately.
For more information, see Registering Customizations.
Change Customizations
You can change the handles established in the sl_customization function by:
 - Changing the function to specify the changed handles
 - Saving the function
 - Refreshing customizations by executing sl_refresh_customizations
Simulink traverses the MATLAB path and reloads all sl_customization.m files that it finds, executing the first function in each one, just as it did on Simulink startup.
You can revert to default import or export behavior by setting in the sl_customization function the appropriate BusEditorCustomizer element to [] and then refreshing customizations. Alternatively, you can eliminate both customizations in one operation by executing:
where cm was previously set to a customization manager object (see Register Customizations).
Changes to the import and export callback functions themselves, as distinct from changes to the handles that register them as customizations, take effect immediately, unless they are in the sl_customization.m file itself. If the callback functions are in the sl_customization.m file, they take effect next time you refresh customizations. Keeping the callback functions in separate files usually provides more flexible and modular results.
See Also
Related Examples
Was this topic helpful?


I was under the impression that work function should be measured in eV or meV but I have read literature stating 'work function resolution of 1-3 eV. Is it right?
In physics, for charged particles (such as electrons) the formula E= eV applies where E is energy, 'e' is the charge on an electron and V is volts (or millivolts).
The work function is the energy required to remove an electron from the surface of a conductor such as a metal. It is an energy and the units are typically 'eV' or alternatively'meV'.
The Kelvin probe actually measures a change in voltage either in volts or millivolts; sometimes this is called a surface potential change. So the difference between work function changes (measured in eV) and surface potential changes (measured in volts) is simply the charge on the electron 'e'. Most scientists and engineers recognise this and use the two terms independently.
You could take the following view: The Kelvin probe reports surface potential changes in mV, calibrating the tip work function and converting the measured voltage value to a sample work function allows you to quote in eV.
In summary, whilst technically correct, the work function resolution should be stated as 1-3 meV.
In addition the work function resolution is a function of the tip size. So for a larger tip (1-2 cm diameter) we will have 0.1 meV resolution. As our new Kelvin probe tip holder (which is an option) allows us to use any tip diameter then in our new literature we are quoting a work function resolution from 0.1 meV, or indeed 100 µeV.
KP Technology
Burn Street, Wick, Caithness, KW1 5EH, Scotland
Telephone: +44 (0)1955 602 777
Fax: +44 (0)1955 602 555
Email: _EMAIL_
(c) 2021 KP Technology Ltd
X Schedule a call
Title *Name
Reason for call
*Institute / organisation
Other information
Skype ID


text:
Erector-like sets have a tremendous educational value. They help to gain spatial understanding and to learn by experimenting about strength and stability of constructions. Many of the people we know with a mechanical mind set, able to design and construct objects and machines have learned this by play with an erector set.
It is obvious that having the chance to play with Meccano in one's youth helps a lot in solving technical problems when older. A drawback of the Meccano or Lego construction parts is the scale. What can be constructed with it is never more then a model of something that is normally larger in scale. If what can be constructed has a size and a sturdiness, in which it can perform a realistic function as a hut or a cart, it may help to develop a childs ability to take initiative. This would also integrate playing with construction materials in other games in which a child is involved with mates.
Thin, straight sticks are interconnected when they are stuck into holes drilled into blocks and fastened with wedges of a special design. These provide a sturdy connection although they can be placed and removed by hand. Disks can turn around the sticks. Cart and cots in any shape can so be made by a kid.
These sticks can be interconnected either flexible, or free to rotate or stiff and sturdy with construction elements that children can easily handle. Such construction elements can be blocks of wood in which sticks can be fastened with wedges or rubber strips for flexible joints. Bushes that can act as bearings for parts that turn can also be attached to such flexible rubber strips or blocks. Fastening of the parts is done in a way it can be done by children without tools. Cart and cots in any shape can so be made by a kid.


Monday, May 05, 2014
Energy Econ 20: On Slashing the Max Power Generation Charge
When there is thin or very small power reserves on peak demand hours of hot months April-May, there are two options. (1) Have rotating brown outs, kill electricity demand for a few hours in some areas; or (2) get expensive power from peak-load plants like diesel barges and avoid brown-outs.
The P32/kwh max rate (usually for 1 or 2 hours, and used to be P62/kwh) allowed in WESM (vs average price of about P5/kwh) looks exorbitant, true. But if it will help avoid a brown out of 1 or 2 hours, it may look less merciless as other people would describe it. So some businessmen are willing to invest in diesel barges that may run only 1 to 3 hours a day (vs. base load plants like coal and nat gas that run 24 hours a day), in exchange for a higher generation charge.
Now there are moves by the ERC and DOE to slash the max rate to only P6.25/kwh.
A power investor will only put his money in base load plants that run 24/7 and selling at P4-7/kwh, not in peak load plants that may run only 1-3 hours a day on hot months, and zero on rainy and cold months, and be allowed by the ERC to charge only P6+/kwh. When there are no or very few peak load plants to address short-term high electricity demand, frequent brown outs on hot months will happen.
When there is frequent brown out, people will resort to (a) buying generator sets, which are costly and running on costly diesel, or (b) have more candles and experience more fires. People forgetting to attend to their candles which accidental fell down, burned a piece of paper, ultimtely burning the entire house and the neighboring houses.
Electricity supply should be big relative to demand. Electricity prices should be low due to competition among many power generating companies. This thing is not happening yet. DOE itself is part of the problem why power supply is limited.
Three friends made the following comments when I posted the above discussion in my fb wall.
(1) Bembette: noy, as part of the energy family, we have a directive to turn off our aircon for 3 hours everyday, during the peak hours. there has been a decrease in our energy consumption. adverse effect: aircons bogging down because of the constant turning on and off, which means additional cost for repair/replacement.
(2) Grace: During times of extreme heat or cold here, and the power grid looks like it may be overwhelmed; our power companies ask the we "help" by unplugging any unnecessary electric & electronic devices (cable boxes, clocks, DVD players, etc - you're not at home using them). That reduces demand some.
(3) Rose: It's a no win solution for consumers Noy! Grrrr!
(4) AndrewWhat about raising prices during peak hours? That would be the Hong Kong solution.
Another adverse result of forced conservation as narrated by Bembette. A government office saves from monthly electricity bill but spends more on appliances maintenance, or replacing them with a new unit.
Grace's observation is correct, it should be done during period of emergencies and unforeseen events. Either the power plants conk out, or there is power but the transmission lines or distribution lines are cut off due to toppled electrical posts. It is different in predictable or foreseen events, like high electricity demand in the hot months of March-April-May, the last two especially.
And this partless addresses the disappointment of Rose. Consumers can bring down their electricity bill by shifting some of their activities to non-peak hours, say doing electric laundry, ironing, electronic work, at non-peak hours.
Andrew's proposal is incorporated in the long term direction of the wholesale electricity spot market (WESM), pricing by the hour. Thus, cheaper monthly electricity bill for those who are using more electricity during non-peak hours. Currently, the distribution utilities like the various electric cooperatives nationwide lump the pricing in one average price for the month. Thus, users of electricity during non-peak hours subsidize those who use more electricity during peak hours.
When investors come in to put up new power plants,
"Petilla said more than 100 signatures are required from various government agencies just so an investor cant push through with a project."
Government is very often, the main cause why there are not enough new power plants in this country. Its bureaucratism, permit-permit-permit, tax-fees-royalties mentality, discourages a number of potential players into power generation.
See also:
No comments:


actually nothing more than a 3-input OR function over CS3Fx*, BIOR* (buffered IOR* from the ISA bus) and the result of a 3-input NAND over A0, A1 and A2. It can be substituted as such in a custom design.
Hints for reading the schematic:
The schematic uses AND and OR gates with inversion circles at the inputs and output at some places. An AND gate with inversion at the input and ouptut just is an OR gate. The symbol is meant to indicate that the signals handled by the gate are acutally active low (both the input and the output), so OR gate actually generates an "active-low and" of the two active-low inputs. It gets a moment to get used to it, but for me it starts making sense.
Furthermore it is helpful to know that the quadruple 2-input 74xx logic chips all have their four gates arranged like input 1/2 -> output 3; input 4/5 -> output 6, input 9/10 -> output 8 and input 12/13 -> output 11. While not every pin number in small print is readable, limiting the possiblities to these 4 sets always gets a unique valid interpretation.
How to build an ATA controller for the AT bus?
You can't, as there isn't any.
You want to connect IDE-Drives, right? IDE stands for Integrated Device Electronics. Which simply means that the full host controller is already part of the drive. It contains everything that is on your MFM controller, except for bus-buffering, address selection and extension ROM. as these parts are considered machine specific.
The connector can be seen as a simplified 16 bit ISA slot, reduced to what the bare drive controller needs. It's called an IDE port or ATA-connector, as in AT-Attachment, where AT stands for the 16 bit ISA bus. With the introduction of SATA (Serial ATA) the term PATA for Parallel ATA came into use.
If an IDE port is not part of the chipset or mainboard, a bus adaptor card was used. This card did three rather simple things:
 - Do address decoding (primary 01F0h, secondary 0170h) so the only access to the port(s) selected is forwarded to the IDE drive
 - Optional buffer all signals to reduce bus load and'sharpen' signals.
 - Optional offer socket and decoding (C800h) for an extension ROM (*1)
Everything else is, as said, already on the drive.
All you need do do for your Schneider laptop is to decode the bus connector (*2) layout to make a little board doing address decoding and forwarding the needed lines to the IDE connector. There is no secret, just match the lines on either connector.
[Yes, it is that simple and I guess by now it's clear why Ross Ridge ad a hard time to write more than he did]
Chances are good that your BIOS will be already able to handle a basic IDE drive, as it's interface is exactly the one of an IBM MFM controller - assuming the controller used at the moment is a compatible design.
This straight relation is BTW the reason why Compact Flash is so common with old hardware, as it is as well a straight AT bus.
Don't tell this to any company building and selling them back in the days. Unlike you may assume, 8 bit IDE isn't a new or retro thing, but was as well a product back then. After all, XT were sold until the 90s as low end machines and thus especially in need of cheap drives. There were 8 bit IDE controllers in form of dedicated or multi function cards.
*1 - Usually only 8 bit adaptor cards featured the socket, as AT class machines made the HD-ROM part of the standard BIOS.
*2 - That's the interesting connector on the lower right side. I pretty sure it's a standard AT bus. Have you checked that?
 - I am aware of everything you wrote in this answer. I wrote the question because I am not sufficiently experienced in electrical engineering to cook up a circuit for that myself. I believe I would likely make some sort of trivial mistake that an experienced engineer would find easily. That's why I specifically asked for a sample circuit. – fuz Jul 15 '20 at 21:43
 - _USER_ You won't find any, as the job is simply too basic for anyone to care. Now, if you think you're not able to connect data line 1 on one connector to the same on the other side, the whole project might be above your league - if not hardware in general, don't you think so? Also, errors while trying is the very base of learning, isn't it? – Raffzahn Jul 15 '20 at 21:54
 - I am able to do that. But I fear I'm going to make some mistakes with the parts that are not obvious, like what parts to choose to meet the timing constraints and so on. I could just experiment with this and spend hours working towards a solution that may or may not work reliably, or I can just ask someone who is experienced to help me. I am surprised you have such a reputation giving your downright condescending attitude. – fuz Jul 15 '20 at 22:04
 - And yes: I acknowledge my lack of skill. I am by no means a hardware person. I am not experienced in designing extension cards for the AT bus and have absolutely no idea what to pay attention to. So even if this looks trivial to you, it is by no means trivial for me. If you don't want to write a useful answer, that's fine. Perhaps someone else will. – fuz Jul 15 '20 at 22:10
 - 2
 _USER_ please understand this is not meant in a negative way. But I see no way to answer in more detail short of doing the job for you. There is no hidden non-trivial issue to look for. It's a simple AT-BUS to reduced AT-BUS connection. You're profile implies you'e not new to basic research, so I assume you already have drawn them up, side by side, to compare. Right? Connecting all similar signals eliminated the easy ones, leaving you with whatever is'special'. Most of them are self explanatory or easy to research. If not, they for sure make fine, detailed question, don't you think so? – Raffzahn Jul 15 '20 at 22:32
Your Answer


text:
Flare is no aberration, but it may impair the image more than the residual aberrations in a photographic lens. Manifestations of flare are diverse and range from colored patches, ghost images, haloes, a haze over the entire image, and any mixture or variation. Flare is due to light that hits the film at the wrong point or that was not supposed to reach the film in the first place. The effect is most obvious in dark areas of the image. The causes of flare are as varied as its manifestations. Reflections at air/glass interfaces, at the lens barrel, at the diaphragm blades, at the film, scattering at impurities within the glass, or even camera light leakage. The advent of (multi)coatings greatly reduced the magnitude of reflections at the air/glass interfaces of lens elements, but the performance of a coating is not constant over the spectrum and depends on the angle of incidence. Residual reflections are of order 0.5 to 1%, compared to ~4% for an uncoated surface.
A common provocation for a photographic system is the presence of the sun within or outside the lens angle of view. Since the sun is so much brighter than the photographed scene, only a small fraction of the direct sunlight needs to be scattered to be noticed on top of the actual image. Part of the responsibility to minimize flare rests with the lens designer. Proper lens coatings reduce the reflections at air/glass interfaces and the various mechanical parts should be efficiently blackened. The photographer, for his part, should use a proper lens hood to eliminate all light that is not required to record the actual scene. He should avoid dirt or fingerprints on optical parts and be careful with filters.
Figure 1 illustrates the occurrence of lens flare and the usefulness of a proper lens
hood. There is a regular light ray that belongs to the photographed scene, this is the
blue ray that arrives within the lens angle of view indicated by the brighter gray. This
ray is normally refracted and contributes to the image formation. (Note however that I did
not attempt genuine ray tracing, the light paths in figure 1 are merely illustrative.)
There is also a slanting ray of sunlight that impinges upon the front element when a lens
hood is absent. A small part of the light is reflected from the rear surface of this
element (red arrow). A fraction of this light is reflected again from the front surface,
directed to the film (dashed red line). This is flare. Figure 1 shows a short lens hood
(the built-in hood of that lens) which does not block the slanting ray. The wider
and longer hood does intercept this ray and does a better job at
flare protection as it simply blocks more undesired light than the shorter hood. A more
detailed discussion on the size and shape of lens hoods is found on the
lens hood page.
To be sure, figure 1 exemplifies just one of many causes of flare. Numerous reflections are possible, at all optical and mechanical boundaries. The regular ray in figure 1 may also introduce flare by reflections off the lens elements, which cannot be prevented with a lens hood.
When reflections occur in the rear group of elements, a flare effect known as aperture ghosting results. A series of images are formed near the film plane. On the film, the consequence is a streak of patches of various sizes and colors, the shape of which resembles the diaphragm opening. Figure 2 exemplifies this kind of flare. The sun struck the lens through a roof window.
A photographer should be alert with veiling glare on the lurk. The veil is not always noticed in the viewfinder, but yet relegates a brilliant photographic lens to an inferior piece of glass. It usually originates from reflections in the front group of elements (cf. figure 1) which, by the time they reach the film, are spread out over a large area. The result is a whitish haze that covers the entire image, or large parts of it. The contrast of the image is reduced in parallel with the color saturation, an effect which is well known with sunlit television or computer screens. Veiling glare appears to various degrees, but even the slightest haze deprives the lens from its brilliance. The left image in figure 3 is seriously affected by veiling glare. It was taken on a blue sky day with the sun freely illuminating the front element of a 2.8/135. The built-in hood was inadequate to block the direct sunlight, so I used my hand as an effective shield (right image). The presence of the right image illustrates to better advantage the damage done to the left one.
Arthur Hood captured a UFO flying in over the pier of Brighton (figure 4). Did he? Well, no. The object in the air is in actual fact a mirror image of the building on the pier. Its windows are so bright that ghosts pop up in the dark sky.
In Arthur's case the flare is due to the protective filter that he used on his Carl Zeiss 4/80–200. The flare is a mirror ghost of the original object, with the image center serving as the point of symmetry. All dimensions are perfectly preserved, which suggests that reflections at planar surfaces are responsible. I worked out an explanation in figure 5. Black arrows indicate the light rays of a distant source that form a regular image point on the film. Values for the reflectance of undeveloped photographic film vary from 15% to 40% [1,2], which makes the film a much stronger reflector than any optical component in the lens. So, a significant percentage of the light is reflected off the film, partly specular and partly diffuse. To follow a few paths of the reflected light, it is convenient to consider the paths which are already drawn for the incident light. Thus, the blue arrows indicate light reflected from the film. This light encounters the filter, which specularly reflects a small fraction (red arrows). The red rays are parallel and consequently focused onto a point on the film. The virtual source of the mirror point is traced by the dashed black lines. Note that the blue rays reflected by the film seem odd from the viewpoint of specular reflection; they merely illustrate the fact that all light rays that orginate from a single point on the film, and which are collected by the lens, emerge parallel at the filter.
I experimentally verified that the
presence of a filter is indeed an invitation for this kind of flare.
Mirror ghosts do not necessarily occur because a filter is optically
inferior, but rather because it is a planar component.
It already appears from figure 5 that not all light reflected off the film makes it back to the mirror point. The presence of an aperture stop further reduces the number of rays allowed to return to the film. People who want to try their luck with UFOs may improve their chances by using a tele lens at a large aperture. I suppose that, instead of a filter, a lens element with a flat face could also give rise to mirror ghosts.
Under normal circumstances a protective filter does no visual harm to the
image, but it has become clear that it falls short under critical circumstances.
The importance of a lens hood cannot be emphasized enough. Zoom lenses are
provided with a lens hood that offers reasonable protection at the wide end, but
which is inadequate at the tele end. Likewise, the built-in hoods of tele
lenses are invariably too short. Wider and longer is
better. Often manufacturers do not even sell proper lens hoods for their tele
lenses, because these would be unwieldy and make the system susceptible to the
wind. In all these cases the furnished hood is better than nothing, but to get
the best out of the lenses it is recommendable to use additional shielding. A
flexible yet Spartan solution is a compendium hood, which allows for precise
adjustments to suit a wide range of focal lengths.
Personally, I consider veiling glare the most detrimental form of flare, whereas a nice streak of colored aperture ghosts could be used to good artistic effect. And wouldn't life be boring without UFOs? Opinions differ however, as other authors find veiling glare the least disturbing manifestation of flare [3, 4].
© Paul van Walree 2001–2013
|||SPSE handbook of photographic science and engineering, edited by Woodlief Thomas Jr., John Whiley & sons, p. 204 (1973).|
|||Sidney F. Ray, Applied photographic optics, 3rd ed., Focal Press, p. 139 (2002).|
|||Arthur Cox, Optics: the technique of definition, 6th ed., Focal Press (1946).|
|||Focus Elsevier fotoen filmencyclopedie, 4e editie, Amsterdam/Brussel (1981).|


Merging Macrobiotics and Living Cuisines
Okay, it seems unrealistic. The two diets have reputations for being at the opposite end of the spectrum, yet in addition to this they both have reputations for healing. Consider it:
Raw food has it's pros and cons. We're all aware of the pros, so let's take a look at some of the cons.
- Generally speaking it is a very yin diet which can lead to imbalance.
- Humans with the physiological capability to eat 100% raw(for an extended or indefinite period of time) while displaying health are an extreme minority.
- Certain foods, like legumes will not properly digest or like pokeleaf can be toxic unless cooked.
- Climatic considerations such as heavy winters do not permit favorable or even natural conditions that would lead to eating raw.
Implementing macrobiotics within the raw diet could address these issues, by encouraging the principals of yin and yang (hopefully in relation to body type) to enter the field of raw food preparation. But not only that. For those of us who are 60-80% raw, what do we eat when we are not eating raw? It varies from person to person. I've seen raw foodists go out for mexican when they aren't eating raw. Yet, why not fallow macrobiotics when eating the alotted 20% or 40% cooked food?
If anybody has experience with macrobiotics their input would be a value.
 - It's a great point.
 You can also make Raw foods have a warming nature by adding certain flavors and spices (for example, ginger, garlic, or hot peppers). Also, including fermented, unpasteurized foods is great as well as miso (living, but not Raw). Using a dehydrator can help with marinating foods and/or warming them.
 I've been all Raw for extended periods (I favor this during the summer) but for a while I've been thriving on High Raw, All Vegan. When I have the cooked vegan, it's typically low fat and always organic if I can help it.
Sign In or Register to comment.


text:
Shape memory alloys (SMA) have a unique ability to alter their mechanical and physical characteristics in response to temperature change, making them immensely popular in military, safety, medical and robotic fields as actuators. In today's article, Matmatch will investigate how SMAs are used in plumbing projects to facilitate safety as water or atmospheric temperatures fluctuate.
Shape Memory Alloys – a brief history
Nickel titanium alloys, composed in equal parts, remain the most widely used SMA today, known collectively as "NiTinol". The discovery of the unique property of NiTinol alloys to remember their original shape happened by accident. In a laboratory management meeting in Maryland in 1961, a strip of nickel titanium alloy that had been bent out of shape repeatedly was lit with a pipe light, and to the surprise of everyone present, it morphed back into its original shape once heat was applied. Other SMAs have also been discovered, such as iron-manganese-silicon, copper-zinc-aluminum and copper-aluminum-nickel. All the same, NiTinol remains one of the most suitable SMAs for commercial use today.
Atomic structural changes make SMAs possible
It was soon determined that nickel titanium alloys experience phase changes in their solid state; particle positioning is restructured at a crystalline level. Exposure to a memory transfer temperature is the key to shifting between two phases, identified as martensite (below a memory transfer temperature) and austenite (above the memory transfer temperature). Fluctuation between these two phases can occur many millions of times. Essentially, even after its shape is deformed, the SMA reverts to its "parent shape" once it enters the austenite phase. An SMA that exhibits memory effect upon heating and cooling has a "two-way shape memory". Its texture is rubbery and malleable in the martensite phase and becomes hard in its austenite phase.
Anti-scalding and SMAs
Since heat is paramount to the reversion of a shape memory alloy to its original shape, this is the characteristic most often used to manipulate the alloy's performance. A good example of this is an SMA in an anti-scalding valve, used in household plumbing and for fire sprinklers. When installed into a faucet or a showerhead, the anti-scalding valve responds to the memory transfer temperature by changing shape and thus shutting off the flow of water or simply introducing more cold water.
Once the temperature reaches a level underneath the memory transfer temperature, the SMA resets itself. This is particularly useful in residential buildings with older plumbing systems, the water temperature of which is suddenly and sometimes dangerously affected by another flow of water in a different part of the building.
Shape memory alloy springs can be applied to thermostatic mixing valves at the beginning of the water flow to control the ratio of cold and hot water accurately and safely before it reaches the showerhead.
SMA valves are the reason that fire sprinklers can respond so quickly to a rising temperature in a building caused by a fire. Exposure to heat causes the SMA component to expand. Once the transitional temperature has been reached, the element expands quickly to the point at which a bolt breaks and activates the sprinkler automatically.
Got any questions?
If you have any questions after reading this article, please contact us at _EMAIL_ so that we can assist you with further information concerning shape memory alloys.

source: openbmb/Ultra-FineWeb


text:
Data is Everywhere
Data is everywhere and is generated in many disparate systems with varying degrees of structure, quality, frequency and semantics.
Our aim is to help our clients discover the value of their data
What is Explainable Machine Reasoning?
Kontexia's Explainable Machine Reasoning combines the power of self-organising Network Graphs with Sparse Associative Memory (SAM) based neural networks.
- Learns continuously from streaming data
- Represents knowledge as 'generalised memories' of the data it has seen
- Provides unsupervised clustering, anomaly detection, supervised classification and temporal sequence learning for prediction
Why use Explainable Machine Reasoning?
We want to give clients the ability to explain how decisions are made
Many machine learning technologies are black boxes obfuscating understanding. Kontexia's Explainable Machine Reasoning technology is transparent. It aids understanding and enhances trust with data generated.


text:
Environmental & Land Use Law
Florida's sensitive, varied and beautiful natural environment makes the University of Florida a natural choice for students who want to focus on the national and global issues of land use and environmental law. Florida provides a perfect setting to study first-hand the efforts to reconcile growth and conservation.
The Environmental and Land Use Law Program educates future lawyers through an innovative approach that combines the study of land use law with environmental law. Many environmental problems result from inappropriate uses of land. Air and water pollution, toxic and hazardous waste, endangered species protection and balancing public health and environmental values against the protection of private property interests are challenges that face every community.


text:
"Hearts of Gold" cantaloupe dates to 1895 when it was developed by Roland Morrill. Under the right conditions, these nearly round cantaloupes can grow up to 2 to 3 pounds and produce a sweet deep-orange/red flesh. Like all cantaloupes, they need to be grown in full sun in well-drained soil with a pH of 6.5 to 7.5. Pollinators such as bees must be present to set the fruit. They also need high temperatures to thrive, so they are better grown in warmer inland areas.
Sow the seeds directly in the garden once soil temperatures reach 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Plant three to four seeds ½-inch deep in a mound of soil that has been amended with compost. Space the mounds 3 feet apart in rows 3 to 5 feet apart. Growing the cantaloupes on mounds will keep the roots warmer and help the soil drain.
Thin the seedlings to the two strongest after they germinate in three to 10 days.
Add mulch to the soil around the cantaloupe to prevent weeds and keep the moisture consistent.
Water evenly and deeply with a soaker hose or drip irrigation so the foliage doesn't get wet. When the melons reach the size of a tennis ball, reduce watering so the fruit doesn't split or become bland.
Feed the cantaloupe vines with fish emulsion when the first leaves emerge. Apply fish emulsion and kelp to the soil when the vines start spreading and again when the fruit appears.
Place a few inches of mulch or a board under the fruit as it reaches full size to avoid rot spots on the melon's bottom.
Harvest the "Heart of Gold" cantaloupe when the fruit has a golden blush to it, emits a sweet fragrance and easily slips from the vine. This is usually 80 to 90 days after planting.
Things You Will Need
- Soaker hose or drip irrigation
- Fish emulsion
- Black plastic (optional)
- Trellis (optional)
- If growing in cooler areas, lay black plastic over the soil to warm it up. Cut an X in the plastic for each cantaloupe plant to grow through.
- Hearts of Gold cantaloupe also can be trained up a trellis to save space.


text:
Translation Quote per Word
In this highly competitive global environment, Trusted Translations understands your need to have projects stay within budget. Thus, we have implemented a quote process that is designed to provide you with the greatest amount of accuracy and precision regarding pricing prior to starting any translation project. One way we accomplish this precision is to quote using a price-per-word methodology. This, in our opinion, is the fairest pricing method and provides our clients with lower costs and more transparency.
Quotes per Source Word Count
Nearly all translation projects start with a set of source documents (i.e., the original documents) that need to be translated into another language (target). As only the source documents are available at the start of a project, we firmly believe the most transparent and fair way to price a document is using a source-based word count. Our sophisticated tools are equipped to determine exact word counts of source documents, providing you with the most accurate quote prior to starting a project.
Using a source word count will avoid the hassle and confusion of having only an estimated word count of final translation (target) and eliminate any unpleasant surprises at the time of invoicing. Furthermore, our experience has shown that clients save money when using our pricing methodology as the source documents tend to have fewer words than the final (target) translated documents. Clients can save between 20-30% under our pricing methodology.
Trusted Translations will provide you with a free quote at the budgeting phase to provide you with clear numbers prior to commencing a project and help you assess whether a certain translation project is right for you at this time.
Advantages of Quote per Source Word Count
The following are some advantages of using a Source Word Count pricing methodology:
- Since pricing is based on the source documents (which are available at the beginning of the project), it is firm and will not change based on the number of words of the translated text.
- You will save money. Given the natural text expansion of translated text, you will save up to 30% depending on the language pair.
- No surprises. As the source word count does not change, you will be sure to stay within budget.
Drawbacks of Quote per Target Word Count
The following are some of the drawbacks of using a target-based quoting methodology:
- Target-based quotes are only estimates as no translation company can accurately predict the word count of a translated document.
- You pay more. Target word counts tend to be 20% higher due to text expansion of translated materials.
- The actual price to be invoiced is not known until the end of the process. You will need to wait until all the work is complete to get a final price for your project. This can lead to unpleasant surprises at the time of invoicing.
Quotes per Target Word Count
There are some notable exceptions to the criteria of using the source word count when pricing a translation. There are some cases where the better choice is to set the prices according to the word count of the target language:
- Translation of an audio file without a word count;
- When the source material is not available in an editable electronic format (paper format);
- Translation from an Asian language;
- Proofreading services.
In these instances, we have found that pricing is more accurate when using the target language word count versus the source word count.
Text Contraction and Expansion for Different Language Pairs
Based on statistical industry-wide evidence and our own experience from translating millions of words annually, translating to and from certain languages will result in either text expansion or text contraction. This can have an impact on costs as well as the formatting of the translated document. Translated documents with text expansion may need to be modified to accommodate more text. In the case of legal documents or documents regulated by a government agency, desktop publishing or recreation services may be necessary to ensure that the final document complies with the legal text size and page number requirement.
The following are industry-wide benchmarks with respect to text expansion or contraction.
- English to Spanish: 20% expansion
- English to Portuguese (Brazil): 20 to 30% expansion
- Portuguese (Brazil) to English (U.S.): 10 to 15% contraction
- Spanish to English: 15% contraction
- English to French: 15 to 20% expansion
- English to German: 5 to 20% contraction
- English to Italian: 15% expansion
- English to Portuguese (Eur.): 20 to 30% expansion
- French to English: 10 to 15% contraction
- German to English: 5 to 40% expansion
- Italian to English: 15% contraction
- Portuguese (Eur.) to English: 10 to 15% contraction
- Spanish to English: 15% contraction
Translation Price per Word
At Trusted Translations, we provide our client with the most competitive pricing and the highest quality in the industry. We are proud of our ability to provide high-quality translations while saving your organization money on every project. To take advantage of our free quote tools, please send us the documents you plan to translate. If the project involves a large amount of words and is format sensitive, we will provide you with a free translation test to determine the impact that any potential contraction or expansion may have on the final output.


text:
Simply begin typing or use the editing tools above to add to this article.
Once you are finished and click submit, your modifications will be sent to our editors for review.
...and consequently are referred to as such or as leucocratic. The mafic minerals include olivine, pyroxenes, amphiboles, and biotites, all of which are dark in colour. Mafic minerals are said to be melanocratic. These terms can be applied to the rocks, depending on the relative proportion of each type of mineral present. In this regard, the term colour index, which refers to the total...
What made you want to look up "melanocratic rock"? Please share what surprised you most...


text:
Bhagwan Swaminarayan believed in responding to the social needs of the then current climate. Developing individuals and families was vital to maintaining the social structure of India in the 18th century. Thus, He concentrated on the spiritual and social development of each individual, while maintaining the primacy of the family as a basic social unit. Those development measures remain relevant today.
Life is a continuous source of change. People mature and develop through different stages in life. It is the direction of this constant change that determines the decline or prosperity of a community and a generation. Developing individuals is the foundation for strengthening our communities. The BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha stays with people through life's changes by helping them develop their academic and professional careers and their social and familial lives. BAPS fosters a community where children are nurtured through academic programs, character building initiatives, and wellness programs. Individuals are given a platform to practice and perfect their talents. With the skills developed through these initiatives, BAPS encourages people to contribute to their community. At the center of these initiatives is the mandir, an epicenter for overall development.


text:
Researchers Use Fungus to Decompose Plastic Containing BPA
Pretreating polycarbonate plastic may be the key to disposing of bisphenol A (BPA) in an eco-friendly way, scientists have found. Their new study is in the American Chemical Society's Biomacromolecules, a monthly journal.
Mukesh Doble and Trishul Artham note that manufacturers produce about 2.7 million tons of plastic containing BPA each year. Some studies have suggested that BPA may have a range of adverse health effects, sparking the search for an environmentally safe way of disposing of waste plastic to avoid release of BPA. Doble, Ph.D., is a professor in the biotechnology department at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras in Chennai, India.
The scientists pretreated polycarbonate with ultraviolet light and heat and exposed it to three kinds of fungi — including the fabled white-rot fungus, used commercially for environmental remediation of the toughest pollutants. The scientists found that fungi grew better on pretreated plastic, using its BPA and other ingredients as a source of energy and breaking down the plastic. After 12 months, there was almost no decomposition of the untreated plastic, compared to substantial decomposition of the pretreated plastic, with no release of BPA.


Researchers identify 14 living descendants of Leonardo da Vinci
It's 14.
The conclusion, published in the journal Human Evolution this month, comes from a new genealogical tree going through 21 generations and four branches.
It's part of the Leonardo Da Vinci DNA Project, which aims to confirm remains thought to be his and to "better understand his extraordinary talents and visual acuity through genetic associations."
The researchers wrote these results are "eagerly awaited from an historical viewpoint" as they will help researchers "scientifically explore the roots of his genius, to find information on his physical prowess and on his possibly precocious ageing, on his being left-handed and his health and possible hereditary sicknesses, and to explain certain peculiar sensory perceptions, like his extraordinary visual quality and synesthesia."
Researchers gathered data from historical documents in public and private archives and direct accounts by descendants.
The study did not provide much information on the living descendants to protect their privacy.
Did Leonardo da Vinci have ADHD? Academics say he did
Born in 1452, da Vinci is known for his paintings of Mona Lisa and The Last Supper. Da Vinci also dedicated his time to science, math, architecture, design, engineering, geology, cartography, sculpting and drawing.
His artwork continues to elicit hefty payments from fans.
Last year, an online bidder paid $98,000 to attend the annual examination of the Mona Lisa, when the Louvre museum in Paris takes the painting out of its case for inspection.
Earlier this month, a new auction record was set when a tiny sketch of a bear sold for more than $12 million.


How To Adjust To Living In Australia As An International Student
How To Adjust To Living In Australia As An International Student
Australia has many great world-ranked universities that welcome international students. Many students are excited to study in Australia. But some may find themselves homesick or dour once they are in Australia. This is natural for everyone who moves to a different country, particularly to one that is considerably different from yours. If you are having trouble adjusting to the Australian life as a student, here are several tips that may improve your situation:
Improve Your Language Skills
Is speaking the main local language giving you a headache? Aussies are known for their unique slang and accents. For some international students, this can create communication issues. If that's the case with you, take up an extra English course in Melbourne if none are available at your uni. Learn the local variant of the language and familiarise yourself with the accent. You might even be able to learn some local slang. It will help you in your studies later as well.
Find Local Friends
Locals may seem strange at first, but once you get to know them, the differences disappear. So get out of your comfort zone and find a local friend or two you can hang out with. It would be a different experience. They can help you navigate the new country and learn local customs and norms. You can also teach them things about your country. International education is largely about meeting new people from other cultures. So, be brave and strike up a conversation with locals to find new friends.
Go Exploring on the Weekends
There's a whole new country out there outside of your campus grounds. So go out there and explore it for yourself. When you go to cool new places, Australia would seem less strange and more exciting. You can ask another student or a local friend to escort you to new places. Or you can just do an online search and travel solo. Spend your less busy weekends travelling to instantly improve your sour mood.
Allow Yourself Time to Adjust
Expect that you won't get used to Australia right away. It will take some time for you to adjust to the new environment. Therefore, don't hesitate to allow yourself time to get used to everything. The time may differ depending on your personality. Generally speaking, take things slow and don't overwhelm yourself. You will soon start to feel better.
Distract or Busy Yourself
If you can't fix your mood, then distract yourself. Take up a new hobby or a sport that will keep your mind occupied. The uni studies could also be a source of stress that making your temperament worse. Learning a new sport or getting a new hobby may relieve all that stress.
Hang Out with Expats from Your Own Country
No one understands your situation better than other students or expats from your own country or culture. So meet up with some of them and ask for help in adjusting. Most will more than willing to help. There are possibly international student organizations inside the campus to ask education help from as well.
Use the above suggestions to learn to navigate Australia better. Taking up uni studies can make the stress of a new country even worse. So pace yourself and learn to relax. Find friends and get a hobby as recommended above to feel better soon.


text:
Sándor BálintArticle Free Pass
Sándor Bálint, Hungarian form Bálint Sándor (born Aug. 1, 1904, Szeged, Hung.—died May 10, 1980, Budapest), Hungarian ethnographer and eminent researcher on sacral ethnology and popular Roman Catholic traditions.
Bálint completed his studies at Szeged University, then taught at the teacher-training institute from 1931 to 1947. He was a professor of ethnography at Szeged University from 1947 to 1951 and again from 1957 to 1966. (For political reasons, he was forbidden to teach between 1951 and 1956.) The leading subjects of his research were the folk culture of the Great Alfold area and the cultural history of the town of Szeged.
His Szegedi szótár (1957; "Szeged Dictionary") is an important document for the study of dialect and ethnography. His other publications include A szegedi paprika (1962; "The Paprika of Szeged"), A szegedi nép (1968; "The People of Szeged"), Szegedi példabeszédek és jeles mondások (1972; "Parables and Sayings from Szeged"), and Szeged reneszánszkori mûveltsége (1975; "Szeged's Renaissance Culture"). His four-volume work Szögedi nemzet: A szegedi nagytáj népélete (1976; "The Szöged Nation: Folk Culture of the Szeged Area") is a comprehensive study.
His ethnographic monographs on church history and ritual include Népünk ünnepei: az egyházi év néprajza (1938; "Our Popular Religious Feasts: The Ethnography of the Church Calendar"), Az esztendõ néprajza (1942; "Ethnography of the Calendar"), Sacra Hungaria (1944; "Sacred Hungary"), Karácsony, húsvét, pünkösd (1974; "Christmas, Easter, Pentecost"), and the two-volume Ünnepi kalendárium (1977; "Calendar of Religious Feasts"). These works focus on the conventions of religious feasts, the role of vocabulary in preserving customs, and traditions regarding surnames. Búcsújáró magyarok ("Hungarian Pilgrims"), written with Barna Gábor, was published posthumously in 1994.
What made you want to look up "Sandor Balint"? Please share what surprised you most...


text:
One of the mysteries of the English language finally explained.
A sedative drug containing methaqualone and diphenhydramine hydrochloride.
- 'Across sites, Mandrax was the second most commonly detected drug, with approximately one in five arrestees testing positive for this substance.'
- 'Dagga and Mandrax remain the biggest problem drugs in South Africa, according to Central Drug Authority chairman Frank Kahn.'
- 'Such a person's body has developed a tolerance to Mandrax and needs to use more to reach the same effects.'
- 'The initial effects of Mandrax may include feelings of euphoria, a brief loss of consciousness, nausea, and stupor.'
- 'Indications are that they were sold by drug addict thieves desperate for Mandrax.'
1960s: of unknown origin.
Top tips for CV writingRead more
In this article we explore how to impress employers with a spot-on CV.


How lawyers obtain the information they want
Sometimes it is hard for lawyers to get an answer out of a witness. The lawyer may hone in on a particular issue, start to dig a little deeper, and suddenly the witness is fidgeting and pausing and hedging. All of a sudden, the witness is not even trying to answer the questions the lawyer is asking. For example:
Q: You were present at the meeting on August 14, 2005, weren't you?
A: "I was traveling a whole lot that month."
It's an answer to a question that wasn't asked. So the lawyer starts again.
Q: Let me try again. Were you present at the meeting on August 14, 2005?
A: "You know, I don't remember what I did that day."
Does the lawyer give up at this point? Of course not. An experienced lawyer might say, "Thanks for that, but you're still not answering my question. I'm going to ask again..."
And so on. Does this sort of hedging by a witness ever work? Every once in awhile, it probably does. A skillful lawyer will keep asking the question he or she wants answered until the witness answers it. They will ask again and again. Usually by the fifth or six time, the witness will start getting the idea: there's nowhere to hide. Sooner or later, the witness is going to have to answer the lawyer's questions.
What if the witness is a particularly good evader? In the above example, the witness's hedging was obvious. Sometimes it isn't. One thing a lawyer can say about deposition witnesses: many of them are basically honest, especially when they're under oath. Maybe that's why when they are employing the tactic of answering while not answering the question, they feel a little guilty at some level about giving an answer that is not completely correct. It is this guilt that leads many witnesses to do something that will tip the lawyer off to their hedging. It's like the "tell" of the poker player. If the lawyer watches for these tells—these unconscious signs and signals—the lawyer will be put be on notice that there is more to the answer than what the witness is giving.
What does the lawyer watch for? Some witnesses might tip off the lawyer non-verbally—there might be a hesitation in their answer, perhaps a glance towards the opposing lawyer or at the table, maybe an inability to look the lawyer questioning him or her in the eye when answering.
The more obvious examples are verbal. Experienced lawyers are on the lookout for answers that seem complete but really are not. Here is an example:
Q: Were you at the meeting?
A: "I don't have a specific recollection of that."
What is the word that clues the attorney in to the fact that the witness's answer is incomplete? It is the word "specific," of course: I don't have a specific recollection of that. It implies that the witness has a recollection of some sort. That is where the attorney will head next.
"What recollection do you have of the meeting?" the attorney will ask.
Sometimes a witness will repeat the question back to the attorney in a way that will put the attorney on notice that he or she is not asking the question the right way.
Q: Were you at the meeting?
A: "No, I wasn't at the meeting."
Did you see the hedging? The answer implies that the attorney is asking the question the wrong way. If the attorney digs a little deeper, he or she will learn that the witness showed up after the meeting had ended, but was there with all the players just the same.
If an attorney's question contains a factual assumption that is not quite right, witnesses can and will take advantage of it. Some of them, however, will not be able to keep themselves from tipping the attorney off as they are doing it.


Cut Tourism VAT
Cut tourism VAT, boost british jobs
Some quick answers to frequently asked questions about the campaign.
What is different about VAT?
Unlike most aspects to do with taxation, VAT is regulated by the EU. Reduced rates can only be applied to a limited range of goods and services specified in the regulations.
So hotels and attractions are included amongst those services that can have a reduced rate?
Yes. The permitted goods and services include:
- Accommodation provided by hotels and similar establishments including the provision of holiday accommodation and the letting of camping sites and caravan parks,
- Restaurant services
Why have most countries applied reduced rates of VAT to tourism?
Most EU governments recognise that:
1. Tourism is highly price-sensitive and subject to intense international competition; reducing VAT leads to lower prices which increases tourism demand, and this can stimulate other parts of the economy
2. Increasing tourism in this way is a highly cost-efficient way of creating jobs, and these jobs span the socio-economic spectrum.
3. Direct revenues foregone because of the reduced VAT rate by government treasury departments can be more than made up by tax income from increased employment and company profits and by reduced social security payments for the unemployed.
So how would you summarise the impact of a VAT reduction?
In short, a reduced rate of VAT would:
1. Generate higher levels of employment, with increased wage levels and training. These benefits would occur throughout the age and socio-economic spectrum and throughout the UK.
2. Increase additional tax receipts as a result of this additional employment with consequential savings on social security payments.
3. Increase profits, corporation tax payments and shareholder dividends.
4. Lead to further investment in the industry, improving overall quality and therefore further improving the UK's competitiveness.
5. Feed through to higher expenditure in other sectors of the economy, which in turn will generate further tax receipts – the 'tourism multiplier'. Every additional £1 of tourism expenditure generates 70p of extra expenditure in other sectors of the economy,
Why should tourism be singled out for preference by the UK government?
On three main counts:
1. The higher rate of VAT in the UK makes the UK uncompetitive with nearly all other European competitor countries.
2. Tourism is the only export which is subject to a domestic tax.
3. The independent study by Deloitte/Tourism Respect forecasts that if VAT were reduced to five per cent for visitor accommodation and attractions, 78,000 full time equivalent jobs will be created in the accommodation and attractions sector.
But what will happen if VAT is not reduced on hotel accommodation and visitor attractions?
If VAT is not reduced, it's likely that:
1. The UK's share of international tourism receipts will continue to fall in comparison with European competitor countries.
2. The decline in domestic tourism expenditure by UK residents will continue (inflation adjusted domestic tourism expenditure fell by four per cent per annum between 2000 and 2008, before recovering slightly in 2009).
3. The decline in the proportion of total UK tourism expenditure spent on holidays at home relative to holidays abroad will continue. This has fallen from 50 per cent of total UK tourism expenditure in 2000 to 36 per cent in 2008.
All three scenarios conflict with the prime minister's stated aims for UK tourism and the aim of the government's tourism strategy.
Doesn't reducing VAT just mean that operators will make more profits?
In a survey of BHA members in January 2012, over 95 per cent of over 200 respondents said that if a five per cent VAT rate was achieved some or all of it would be passed on. 82 per cent said they would invest more in their product/facilities, 67 per cent would employ more people, 57 per cent would invest more in training and just under half (48 per cent) would increase staff wages.
Competition within the sector eventually compels operators to lower prices. The Copenhagen Economics study analysed six case studies where a VAT rate reduction had occurred. The report concluded that: '…there is little doubt that permanently lowering the VAT rate on particular goods (or services) sooner or later will lead to a reduction in the price of the goods more or less corresponding to the monetary equivalent of the lower VAT rate … In economics jargon, there will be a strong tendency towards full pass-through.'
('Pass through' here means that the full impact of the reduction in VAT is reflected in lower prices equivalent to the reduction in VAT.)
Similarly, there is little doubt, according to Copenhagen Economics, that the price cuts that result from a permanent lowering of VAT rate will lead to increased consumption and consequently to increased production and employment. Such increases will occur more rapidly and be more significant in sectors with high price elasticity, strong competition and labour-intensive sectors. Tourism displays all three of these characteristics. It can typically take two to three years for this full effect to be realised.
So, would a guarantee by the hospitality and attractions industry to reduce prices be effective?
Rack rates exist but many hotels operate yield management systems which use flexible pricing strategies which increase or reduce prices according to demand, similar to the airlines but unlike manufactured goods which normally have a standard price. A room selling at £100 at a time of slack demand may well rise to £200 at peak demand; as a result it may appear that the level of VAT has had no impact when, in fact, the benefit will be there but not obvious.
What about bed taxes?
In Europe and North America, bed taxes have been contemplated or initiated mainly at the city rather than at national level, so the impact on overall national or pan-European tourism has been limited. In some cases the experience has been that bed taxes have been counter-productive in that they increase overall price, making destinations uncompetitive – in exactly the way that occurs with high rates of VAT. Examples of where a bed tax has been introduced and subsequently removed include Rotterdam and the Balearic Islands.
How much will it cost the government to reduce VAT on hotels and visitor attractions?
According to the estimates in the Deloitte/Tourism Respect, report, the government will lose up to £1.2bn in foregone VAT per annum. However, as soon as the VAT reduction measure is introduced, it will set off a virtuous growth cycle – prices will come down, stimulating increased demand, leading to recruitment, investment and expansion in the sector. According to our detailed fiscal model, income will be generated for the Treasury that more than compensates for the foregone VAT revenue. HMT begins to recoup its investment within three years and, over a ten year period, this would become a net gain of £2.6bn.
But if London hotels are operating at 80 per cent plus average year-round occupancy, why do they need a reduction in VAT?
It's not just London hotels that will benefit. Provincial hotels, which operate at ten per cent lower occupancy, will also gain. The major factor keeping London hotel occupancy high is the rate of exchange which has greatly encouraged overseas visitors to the UK. This benefit has over-ridden the negative impact of the rise in VAT to 20 per cent but it reinforces how competitive international tourism is.
And it is not only hotels. Visitor attractions and all other forms of visitor accommodation will benefit including self-catering, B&Bs, holiday camps, caravan and chalet parks, camping sites.
In any case, if exchange rates stay as they are and London hotels continue to trade at high occupancy levels, this will stimulate further hotel construction which, in turn, will create jobs in construction as well as jobs in the new hotels – all the time increasing London's capacity to host visitors.
Website Design:


text:
Creating a Platformer With BYOND
BYOND gives you a default movement system. If you open Dream Maker, create a new project, make icons, declare turfs, build a map, and run the game you can walk around. You don't have to program how the movement works, the behavior is built in. My Sidescroller library does the same thing except it provides you with a movement system for sidescrolling action/platform games.
This article explains how the library works and how you can use it to create a game. If you're familiar with Dream Maker and can make a simple game then you can use this library to make a platformer.
Using the Library
The library is very easy to set up. Here are step-by-step instructions for setting up the library. If you're familiar with the Dream Maker program you can have a working sidescroller in just a few minutes. This tutorial assumes you've completed those steps to set up the library and create a basic game. If you want to follow along with this tutorial and try code snippets out you should complete those steps now.
We'll now look at how you can utilize more features of the library and add some new features of your own.
In the world you've created all objects are 32x32 boxes. In a real game your mob's icon will probably be a picture of a person. The mob's icon is 32x32 but the mob only occupies part of that box. To handle this we can modify the mob's pwidth and pheight vars.
Open up mob.dmi and change the icon state. Instead of being a 32x32 blue box make it a 24x24 blue box, like this:
Then add this to the code:
Now run the game. The mob now occupies a smaller space than before.
The library has support for ladders. A ladder is a non-dense tile that a mob can climb. To create a ladder you need to draw an icon state for it, then add this code:
The is_ladder variable tells the library that the turf can be climbed. Place some ladders on the map and run the game:
Use the up and down arrow keys to climb ladders.
With BYOND's default movement system it's often sufficient for a mob to have a single, 4-directional icon state. When the player moves the direction is updated so the proper image is shown. In an action/platform game you can perform different kinds of actions, like running or jumping, so you need different icon states. The library handles this for you.
You set the mob's icon var and the library will automatically update the mob's icon_state based on what the mob is doing. If you're standing still your icon_state will be set to "standing". If you're moving (on the ground) it'll be set to "moving". If you're hanging on a ladder it'll be set to "climbing". And if you're in the air (but not on a ladder) it'll be set to "jumping".
Let's create these icon states (or you can download this icon, you might need to right click the link and pick "Save As..."):
Note: These states are all 4-directional. The library automatically sets your direction to EAST or WEST so you need to make sure those states have images. For reference, here's what the standing state looks like:
You don't need to add any code. When you run the demo your mob will use these new icon states.
Bounding Boxes and Centered Icons
A mob's bounding box is the space that the mob occupies. The size of the box is determined by the pwidth and pheight variables. The position of the box is assumed to be in the lower-left corner of the mob's icon. However, this isn't always the case. Consider this poorly drawn person:
The mob is roughly 16 pixels wide. If we set the mob's pwidth var to 16, here's what happens:
The mob appears to be partially inside the wall. This is because the mob's bounding box is assumed to be in the lower left corner of the icon but we drew the mob in the center of the icon. To compensate for this we need to shift the mob's icon to the left 8 pixels when the game is running so that the part of the icon that represents the mob is inside the bounding box. We can do this with the mob's pixel_x var:
Now here's what you'll see when you run the game:
The icon is shifted to the left so the mob cannot appear to be inside walls anymore.
The library keeps track of the mob's motion as a velocity. A velocity is like a speed but it also has a direction assigned to it. Saying that the mob is moving four pixels per second is a speed, but saying that it's moving upwards at four pixels per second is a velocity. The library uses the vel_x and vel_y vars to keep track of the mob's velocity in the x (horizontal) and y (vertical) directions.
This sounds complicated but it actually makes things easy. When you jump, all that happens is your upwards velocity (vel_y) is increased. To handle jumping the library calls the mob's jump proc, here's the default behavior:
This means that when you jump your mob will move upwards at a rate of 10 pixels per second. Due to gravity it'll slow down and begin to fall. If we wanted to make the mob jump higher we can override the jump proc to create a different behavior. We can add this to our code:
An upwards velocity of 12 is enough to jump two tiles high. Don't get too carried away - the height of the jump increases a lot with each increase to the velocity. Setting vel_y = 14 is enough to jump three tiles high and 16 is enough to jump four tiles high.
You can also create ramps. Open turfs.dmi and make an icon that looks like this:
Call it "ramp". Then add this code:
The pleft and pright vars are used to define ramps. The pleft var tells the library the height of the turf at its left side. The pright var tells the library the height of the turf at its right side. We drew the ramp as being low on the left side and high on the right side so we set its pleft and pright to match. The height at its right side is 32 because the tiles are 32 pixels tall.
Place the ramp on the map and run the game.


text:
OurDocuments.gov. Featuring 100 milestone documents of American history from the National Archives. Includes images of original primary source documents, lesson plans, teacher and student competitions, and educational resources.
In 1866 the Russian government offered to sell the territory of Alaska to the United States. Secretary of State William H. Seward, enthusiastic about the prospects of American Expansion, negotiated the deal for the Americans. Edouard de Stoeckl, Russian minister to the United States, negotiated for the Russians. On March 30, 1867, the two parties agreed that the United States would pay Russia $7.2 million for the territory of Alaska.
For less that 2 cents an acre, the United States acquired nearly 600,000 square miles. Opponents of the Alaska Purchase persisted in calling it "Seward's Folly" or "Seward's Icebox" until 1896, when the great Klondike Gold Strike convinced even the harshest critics that Alaska was a valuable addition to American territory.
The check for $7.2 million was made payable to the Russian Minister to the United States Edouard de Stoeckl, who negotiated the deal for the Russians. Also shown here is the Treaty of Cession, signed by Tzar Alexander II, which formally concluded the agreement for the purchase of Alaska from Russia.


text:
Computer Generated Islamic Star Patterns
Library Home || Full Table of Contents || Suggest a Link || Library Help
|Craig S. Kaplan|
|Islamic star patterns are a beautiful and highly geometric art form whose original design techniques are lost in history. This site describe one procedure for constructing them based on placing radially-symmetric motifs in a formation dictated by a tiling of the plane, and shows some styles in which they can be rendered, as well as some results generated with a software implementation of the technique.|
|Levels:||High School (9-12), College|
|Resource Types:||Topic Tools Miscellaneous|
|Math Topics:||Euclidean Plane Geometry, Symmetry/Tessellations, Art, Religion|
© _PHONE_ Drexel University. All rights reserved.
The Math Forum is a research and educational enterprise of the Drexel University School of Education.


text:
By Doug Johnson and Lee Townsend, University of Kentucky Extension
Some folks have been asking about cutting soybeans to be baled and used for forage. In general, most insects in soybean are not a problem. However, blister beetles can be. Blister beetles are commonly found in soybeans thought not in large numbers. In my plots this year the black margined blister beetle has been the most common, though others will occur.
This insect and its close relatives the ash gray and striped blister beetles are infamous as a contaminant of alfalfa hay for their effect on animals, particularly horses. They are found in soybean for the same reason as alfalfa, they are attracted and feed on blooming weeds.
While blister beetles will feed on soybean they are not considered an important pest in grain production. Nevertheless, because of their potential impact on animals, producers that intend to cut and bale soybeans for forage should be aware of their presence.
The simplest remedy for this problem is to cut the soybeans with a sickle bar, avoid driving over the downed beans and allow the downed beans to dry before bailing. Once the beans begin to dry out the blister beetles will fly away thereby removing any problem. The problem would come, as in alfalfa, with using a mower conditioner and / or running over the soybeans while they are still fresh. These actions could "crimp" the dead beetles onto the plants. This would result in the same problem as is faced when cutting alfalfa hay with a mower-conditioner.


text: unassimilatible writes "The Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics reports 'to impress your favorite lady this Valentine's Day, get her the galaxy's largest diamond.' A newly discovered cosmic diamond is a chunk of crystallized carbon 50 light-years from the Earth in the constellation Centaurus. It is 2,500 miles across and weighs 5 million trillion trillion pounds, which translates to approximately 10 billion trillion trillion carats, or a one followed by 34 zeros. A cheesy, unrealistic simulation is also available. AP has a story as well."


text:
You can add two images either using OpenCV:
cv2.add() or Numpy:
result = img1 + img2
(Both images should be of same depth and type.)There is a major difference between these two.
>>> x = np.uint8()
>>> y = np.uint8()
>>> print cv2.add(x,y) # 250+10 = 260 => 255
>>> print x+y # 250+10 = 260 % 256 = 4
*OpenCV provides better results
Adding images using the previous method is very blunt. Using blending you can get cool transition between two images.
Blending is done by using the OpenCV function
cv2.addWeighted() using the formula:
f(x)=a*img1 + (1-a)img2 + z
where a is the weight.
What we basically do is provide weights to the two images such that they mix with different intensities.
The following code adds two images with weights 0.7 and 0.3.
(Both images should be of same depth and type)
img1 = cv2.imread('img1.png')
img2 = cv2.imread('img2.jpg')
result = cv2.addWeighted(img1,0.7,img2,0.3,0) # z is taken as 0


text:
geometrical and combinatorial, additive
number theory being the latest addition. It is generally expected
that ideas from other, seemingly unrelated, fields of mathematics
will be needed to finally resolve the problem. Anyone looking for
opportunities for interdisciplinary research?
Conjecture. A Besicovitch set in Rn
must have dimension n.
Naturally, one can ask what I mean by "dimension". There
are several, not quite equivalent, definitions - those of interest
to us are the Hausdorff and Minkowski dimension. Most mathematicians
know what the Hausdorff dimension is. The Minkowski dimension (of a
compact set) may be defined as follows. Let Eh
be the h-neighbourhood of E in Rn,
then the (upper) Minkowski dimension of E is the infimum of all
a such that |Eh| < C hd-a
for some constant C. The upper Minkowski dimension of a set is
always greater or equal to its Hausdorff dimension, and there are
examples of sets for which the inequality is strict.
There is also a stronger formulation of the conjecture in terms
of maximal functions. The maximal function statements are
actually quite important, as they are
very closely related to the problems in analysis mentioned above.
This is a bit more technical, though, so we will not go into
it here - at least for now.
The conjecture is known to be true in dimension 2: the Hausdorff (hence
also Minkowski) version was proved by Davies in 1971, and the maximal
function version is due to Cordoba (1977) and Bourgain (1991). In higher
dimensions it is still far from settled. Here is a brief summary of
the best currently known lower bounds.
Since there are no "less-or-equal" and "greater-or-equal" symbols in
HTML, I will use <= and >=.
Here are some of the ideas that went into proving the above results.
The Minkowski dimension of a Besicovitch set in Rn
is at least 5/2 + 10-10 for n=3 (Katz-Laba-Tao 1999),
3 + 10-10 for n=4 (Laba-Tao 2000),
(2 - 21/2)(n-4)+3 for 4 < n < 24 (Katz-Tao 2001),
and (n + t -1)/t for n >= 24, where t=1.67513... is
the root of t3 - 4 t + 2 = 0 that lies between
1 and 2 (Katz-Tao 2001).
The Hausdorff dimension of a Besicovitch set in Rn
is at least (n + 2 ) / 2 for n = 3,4 (Wolff 1994),
and at least (2 - 21/2)(n-4)+3 for n > 4 (Katz-Tao 2001).
- The bush argument, due to Bourgain. Suppose that the set
E contains a unit line segment in each direction. In order
for E to have low dimension, the segments must intersect a lot.
Hence there are many "high multiplicity" points. Let P
be such a point, then there are many line segments through P;
since all of them go through P, they must be disjoint
otherwise. An appropriate quantitative version of this argument
produces a lower bound on the dimension of E.
I was going to include a picture, but then I found
on the Web. It's much better than anything I could come up with.
- Wolff's hairbrush argument is similar in spirit to the
"bush" argument, but one must do the combinatorics a lot more
carefully. Instead of using just one point of high multiplicity,
one finds a line segment L consisting largely of such
points, and computes the volume of the "hairbrush" of all line
segments intersecting L.
Looking at the additive number theory approach (see below), one
might be tempted to regard the hairbrushes as obsolete. But for
the time being, this argument (combined with the additional
geometrical analysis of Laba-Tao) is still the best available
in dimensions 4 to 8.
- Additive number theory arguments, again first used in
this context by Bourgain. (NB: Bourgain's results are not included
in the above list of "world records", as they have been improved upon
by others, but he has contributed more than anyone else towards
understanding Kakeya and its relationship to harmonic analysis.)
Up until now, the philosophy has been to prove that high multiplicity
leads to the occurrence of things like a bush and hairbrush,
consisting of many essentially disjoint line segments and
therefore having relatively large size. In a way, these are
"local" arguments. This is about to change. The new idea is
to prove that if high multiplicity persists throughout our Kakeya
set, it actually forces the set to be very regular
and symmetric - to the extent that many of the line segments
must be parallel. Which of course contradicts the
above definition of Kakeya sets.
To make this kind of reasoning rigorous, one uses something called
inverse additive number theory. Bourgain's argument (improved later
by Katz-Tao) draws on the recent work of Gowers on Szemeredi's
theorem - of particular interest is Gowers's take on the
Balog-Szemeredi theorem, which roughly speaking says that sets with
a small difference set have "structure". For more details,
see the references below.
At first, it didn't seem likely that these techniques could
improve on the hairbrush in low dimensions, in particular in
dimension 3. But Katz-Laba-Tao used geometrical arguments
(including the hairbrush) to "factor out" one dimension
and obtain a setting in which Bourgain's argument is again
Further reading etc.
If you would like to learn more about Kakeya, here are some
additional links and materials.
There are several recent expository articles on Kakeya and
- J. Bourgain: Harmonic Analysis and Combinatorics: How Much
May They Contribute to Each Other?, in Mathematics: Frontiers
and Perspectives, V. Arnold, M. Atiyah, P. Lax, B. Mazur, eds.,
AMS 2000. An overwiev of the problems described above and the
connections between them. Discusses recent work on Kakeya
up to (and including) Bourgain's 1998 paper, but not the developments
- T. Wolff: Recent work connected
with the Kakeya problem,
in Prospects In Mathematics, H. Rossi, ed., AMS 1999. This article
was written just a few months too early to include the additive
number theory stuff. Nonetheless, if you are interested in the
subject, you absolutely have to read it. Also includes a discussion
of other problems in combinatorial geometry (Kakeya for circles,
Falconer, Furstenberg, etc.).
- T. Tao: From Rotating Needles to Stability of Waves: Emerging
Connections between Combinatorics, Analysis, and PDE, Notices of
the AMS, March 2001, 294--303. Tao has since posted a
on his web page, with a link to a second (more technical) statement.
If you're like many of the Notices readers who have only a passing
interest in Kakeya, you may well be wondering what the whole mess
is about. I have therefore posted a few
comments and corrections.
Even the title is somewhat misleading. Connections between combinatorics
etc. are not exactly "emerging" - they have been around for quite
Let's not forget about books.
- E.M. Stein: Harmonic analysis, Princeton University
Press, 1993. Although it obviously does not include the results
obtained after 1993, it is still very much worth reading, just
because its breadth of scope and perspective will not be beaten
any time soon. Don't think of it as an introduction to the subject
- get introduced to it somewhere else. But then do browse through
Stein's book and you will discover plenty of gems that no-one
else seems to remember.
- K. M. Davis and Y.-C. Chang, Lectures on Bochner-Riesz
means, Cambridge University Press, 1987. I'm not sure if
it is still in print. A very nice introduction to restriction,
Bochner-Riesz, and some other related problems in harmonic analysis.
Not as comprehensive as Stein's book, but it does not require
much background and has the advantage of being shorter and
easier to read.
- K.J. Falconer, The Geometry of Fractal Sets, Cambridge
University Press 1985. The general background in geometric measure
theory; includes a detailed discussion of Kakeya sets and some
related problems. Very readable too.
- M. Nathanson, Additive Number Theory: Inverse Problems
and the Geometry of Sumsets, Springer 1996. The background
you might need if you decide to get interested in the additive
number theory approach.
I am also preparing Tom Wolff's Caltech lecture
notes for publication. A revised version should be available
here