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Chapter 8 South Asia Multiple Choice Introduction The country with the second largest population in the world is
1. The country with the second largest population in the world is:
A. Pakistan B. the United States C. Russia
*D. India E. China
2. Which of the following is not a major geographic quality of South Asia?
A. India is located in the heart of one of the world's largest population clusters.
*B. South Asia is marked by strong linguistic homogeneity.
C. The Ganges-Brahmaputra and Indus river systems support hundreds of millions of people.
D. Agriculture in South Asia is generally not as productive as in other parts of Asia.
E. India constitutes the world's largest and most complex federal state.
3. Of India's 1 billion population in 1999, _____ million are Muslims.
A. 6 B. 450 C. 65
*D. 115 E. 200
4. Pakistan has recently received large numbers of refugees from:
A. India B. Kashmir C. Iran
*D. Afghanistan E. Nepal
A Realm of Poverty
5. The physiological density in India is ________ than the arithmetic population density.
*A. greater B. less C. the same
6. India's population, at its current rate of natural increase, will reach _____ billion by 2039.
*A. 2 B. 1 C. 5
D. 10 E. 150
7. The rate of natural increase in South Asia is about _____ percent.
*A. 2.0 B. 3.0 C. 0.5
D. 1.0 E. 10.0
Physiographic Regions of South Asia
8. Which of the following is not one of the 3 primary physiographic regions of South Asia?
A. the northern mountains
*B. the wide western coastal plain
C. the southern peninsular plateau
D. the river lowlands extending from Pakistan's lower Indus Valley to Assam's Brahmaputra Valley
E. all are regions of South Asia
9. The leading river of India is the:
A. Brahmaputra *B. Ganges C. Indus
D. Nile E. Irrawaddy
10. The major river of Pakistan is the:
*A. Indus B. Ganges C. Brahmaputra
D. Tigris E. Irrawaddy
11. The lava covered plateau that extends across most of southern India is known as the:
A. Punjab B. Bengla C. Dravidian
*D. Deccan E. Raj
12. The area known as the "land of the five rivers" is:
*A. Punjab B. Hindustan C. Assam
D. Pakistan E. none of the above
13. The periphery of the Deccan plateau is marked by mountain ranges called:
A. Punjabs *B. Ghats C. Himalayas
D. Karakoram E. Hindu Kush
14. The Arabian Sea coast of India is known as the:
A. Coromandel Coast B. Ghat Coast *C. Malabar-Konkan Coast
D. Deccan Coast E. none of the above
15. The Bay of Bengal coast of India is known as the:
*A. Coromandel-Golconda Coast B. Ghat Coast
C. Malabar-Konkan Coast D. Deccan Coast E. none of the above
16. The flow of warm, moist ocean air unto South Asia is known as:
*A. monsoons B. Ghats C. Bengals
D. sea/land breezes E. none of the above
The Human Sequence
17. Which of the following statements is false?
A. Prince Siddhartha, better known as Buddha, was born in northeastern India.
*B. The oldest civilization to arise in South Asia began in what is presently Bangladesh.
C. The Brahmans are at the head of the complex caste system of social stratification.
D. A_oka was the ruler of the Mauryan Empire who was converted to Buddhism.
E. The Taj Mahal is a remnant of India's Muslim-dominated period.
18. Which of the following had no influence on early India?
A. Harappans B. Aryans C. Persians
*D. Indonesians E. Greeks
19. The peoples and languages of southern India are collectively known as:
A. Sinhalese B. Aryan *C. Dravidian
D. Deccanite E. Buddhist
20. The caste system is most associated with which of the following religious group?
A. Rastafarian B. Muslim C. Buddhist
*D. Hindu E. Christian
21. The first true indigenous empire in India was the:
A. Aryan B. Indus C. Dravidian
D. Buddha *E. Mauryan
22. Telugu, Tamil, Kanarese, and Malayalam are:
A. border provinces of India, facing Southeast Asia
B. four major cities in Pakistan, all with over 250,000 inhabitants
*C. four leading Dravidian languages spoken in southern India
D. the political divisions of Bangladesh, created after independence in 1963
E. the local names for important crops grown in Sri Lanka
A_oka's Mauryan Empire
23. A_oka was a believer in:
*A. Buddhism B. Hinduism C. Islam
D. Judaism E. Confucianism
The Power of Islam
24. The power coming through India in the tenth century was:
A. Roman B. Greek *C. Islam
D. Buddhist E. Aryan
25. The Hindu religion predominates in which country?
A. Pakistan *B. India C.C. Bangladesh
D. Papua New Guinea E. Sri Lanka
26. Which of the following statements about Islam's advance into India is false?
A. Islamic armies vigorously, even violently, spread the faith.
*B. The majority of the people eventually converted to Islam.
C. This area was called the Islamic Mogul empire.
D. Placid Hinduism and aggressive Islam have never coexisted easily.
E. Islam did not spread significantly into Dravidian India.
The European Intrusion
27. The _______Rebellion led to the replacement of the British East India Company by the British government.
*A. Sepoy B. Mauryan C. Sikh
D. Malthusian E. Dravidian
28. The direct administration of India by the British government lasted for:
A. 18 years *B. 90 years C. 124 years
D. 163 years through 1991, and still continues E. 247 years
29. In 1947, British India was partitioned into which of the following states?
A. the Punjab and Assam *B. India and Pakistan C. Kashmir and India
D. Ceylon and Sri Lanka E. Bangladesh and West Pakistan
30. British colonial rule in India brought all of the following except:
*A. attempts to standardize the subcontinent on the use of the Tamil language
B. an economic setback to farmers
C. a system of "Native States"
D. the education of India's elite in England
E. an attempt to end undesirable features of Indian culture
31. The partitioning of Hindu India from Muslim Pakistan occurred in:
A. ca. 460 B.C. B. 1857 *C. 1947
D. 1971 E. the two areas have never been partitioned
32. A minority group within India that has been seeking independence are the:
A. Hindis B. Pakistanis C. Melanesians
*D. Sikhs E. Kurds
33. A city that lost a good part of its hinterland to Pakistan in the partitioning of British India is:
*A. Calcutta B. Bombay (Mumbai) C. Lahore
D. Madras (Chennai) E. Karachi
34. Which of the following acted as a centripetal force in West Pakistan upon independence:
*A. geography B. history C. Islam
D. Nehru E. rice cultivation
Pakistan: The New Challenge
35. Which of the following countries does not share a common border with Pakistan?
A. Iran B. China *C. Bangladesh
D. Afghanistan E. India
36. Which of the following associations is incorrect?
A. Sri Lanka and Colombo B. Bangladesh and Dhaka C. Nepal and Kathmandu
*D. Pakistan and Delhi E. Bhutan and Thimphu
37. Which of the following is not located in Pakistan?
*A. Deccan Plateau B. Sind C. Punjab
D. Islamabad E. Baluchistan
38. Pakistan is:
A. an Islamic Republic
B. a dry-world country
C. different in many ways from its former federal partner East Pakistan
D. poor in known mineral resources
*E. characterized by all of the above
39. In Jammu and Kashmir:
A. the people are Hindu and the rulers are Muslims
*B. the people are Muslims and the rulers are Hindu
C. India supports elections
D. the people are Buddhist and the rulers are Hindu
E. both sides have avoided violence through compromise
40. One concern in Pakistan about India and Kashmir is that:
A. Pakistan uses the area as a base for terrorist activity in India, with guerrillas using the
mountains to hide
B. the Indus River flows through Kashmir
C. Muslims are being ruled by Hindu rulers
D. Indians are persecuting the Hindu majority in Jammu
*E. B and C above
41. Which of the following is false?
A. During the Cold War, India tilted toward the Soviet Union, Pakistan toward the United States.
B. Bangladesh is even less developed than is Pakistan.
C. India is a democracy, while Pakistan has often been ruled by a military dictatorship.
D. India's treatment of its Muslim minority has upset Pakistan.
*E. India and Pakistan have agreed to partition Kashmir.
42. An area whose control is still disputed by India and Pakistan is:
A. Punjab *B. Jammu and Kashmir C. Bangladesh
D. Bengal E. Goa
43. Which of the following is the core area of Pakistan?
*A. Punjab B. Sind C. Assam
44. Which of the following received large groups of refugees from India?
*A. Sind B. Punjab C. Northwest Frontier
45. The forward capital of Pakistan, completed in the 1970s, is:
*A. Islamabad B. Baluchistan C. Rawalpindi
D. Karachi E. Dhaka
46. Which of the following cities is located in Pakistan's Sind region?
*A. Karachi B. Kabul C. Islamabad
D. Lahore E. Rawalpindi
47. About _____ percent of Pakistan is Shiite.
A. 5 *B. 20 C. 90
D. 95 E. 1
48. A city that lost its hinterland to India in 1947 is:
A. Bombay (Mumbai) B. Karachi C. Islamabad
*D. Lahore E. Dhaka
49. India adds nearly _____ million persons per year to its population.
*A. 20 B. 100 C. 2
D. 5 E. 150
50. The Pathans irredentist movement in the Northwest Frontier of Pakistan is based on cultural affiliations with the neighboring country of:
A. Iran *B. Afghanistan C. Jammu and Kashmir
D. Bangladesh E. India
51. After the South Asian realm achieved its modern independence, a number of changes occurred, some quite recent. Among the developments listed below, which one has not occurred?
A. East Pakistan freed itself from its political bonds with West Pakistan and became
independent as Bangladesh.
*B. Pathanistan achieved independence from Pakistan after a long, irredentist-supported struggle.
C. Ceylon was renamed Sri Lanka.
D. India has shifted state boundaries to accommodate regional and local demands.
E. Pakistan moved its capital from Karachi to Islamabad.
A. Though the official language of Bangladesh is Bengali, the official language of Pakistan is Urdu.
B. While the major natural hazard faced by Bangladesh is flooding, the major natural hazard
faced by Pakistan is drought.
C. While rice is the major staple grain in Bangladesh, wheat is the major staple grain in Pakistan.
*D. Bangladesh and Pakistan have no known mineral resources.
E. Bangladesh and Pakistan were once united into a single country.
53. Bangladesh came into existence:
A. following a war of independence against India
B. when British India was partitioned in 1947
C. as a refuge for Hindus
*D. following a war of independence against Pakistan
E. out of the former Indian state of West Bengal
54. Which of the following is not a major contributor to the Pakistani economy?
A. cotton textiles B. rice C. carpets
*D. oil production E. all of the above are major contributors
55. Two countries that test atomic weapons in the late 1990s were:
A. Afghanistan and Pakistan
B. Taliban and Hindu
C. Nepal and Kashmir
*D. Pakistan and India
E. Kashmir and India
India: Fifty Years of Federation
56. India is comprised of:
A. 6 large states
B. 6 large states and 2 Union Territories
C. 5 Hill states, Assam, and Punjab
D. India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh
*E. 25 States, 6 Union Territories, and 1 National Capital Territory
57. Which of the following areas of India is located in the Brahmaputra Valley?
A. Deccan *B. Assam C. Punjab
D. Kashmir E. Tibet
58. Which state contains the city of Calcutta?
A. Tamil Nadu *B. West Bengal C. Punjab
59. Which state is located in southern India?
A. Assam *B. Tamil Nadu C. Punjab
60. The official language of India, one of 14 given national status, is:
*A. Hindi B. English C. Charisma
D. Sikh E. Nehru
61. Centrifugal forces:
A. tend to pull a state together, unifying it and increasing its cohesion
B. determine the effectiveness with which the boundary system functions to control the population
C. affect the binding function of the capital city
*D. have the effect of dividing a state, promoting disunity and internal fragmentation
E. pull a state from representative to authoritarian forms of government
62. In India, a leading centrifugal force is:
A. Hinduism *B. multiple languages C. the personality of Nehru
D. the Sikh population E. none of the above
63. Which of the following statements about the caste system is false?
A. It may have a racial basis.
B. The Brahmans are members of the upper caste.
C. Both Gandhi and Nehru tried to modify the system.
D. The lowest caste is the untouchables.
*E. The caste system is stronger in urban areas than in rural areas.
64. The dominant centripetal force in India has been the:
*A. cultural and religious strength of Hinduism
B. universality of the English Language
C. united opposition to Islam
D. national effort against the colonial power
E. war on hunger and malnutrition
65. The Sikhs desire a separate state to be called:
A. Sikhistan *B. Khalistan C. Jharkand
D. Kashmir E. Seekland
66. The priestly caste in India is known as the:
A. Hindus *B. Brahmans C. Harijans
D. Sikhs E. none of the above
67. The untouchable caste in India is known as the:
A. Hindus *B. Harijans C. Brahmans
68. The untouchables in India are better treated in the:
A. rural areas *B. cities C. west
D. east E. harijans
69. The doubling time for India's population, at present rates of growth, is approximately:
A. 6 months *B. 36 years C. 115 years
D. 3500 years E. 5 years
70. India is in the ______ stage of the demographic transition.
A. first *B. third C. second
D. fourth E. fifth
71. The portion of India where the population today is growing the fastest is:
A. the Kashmir area B. the Bombay (Mumbai) urban region C. the upper Gangetic Plain *D. the states to the northeast of Bangladesh E. Kathiawar Peninsula
72. The city located closest to the Ganges Delta is:
*A. Calcutta B. New Delhi C. Madras (Chennai)
D. Islamabad E. Colombo
73. Calcutta, Bombay (Mumbai), and Madras (Chennai) are:
*A. all cities selected by the British as regional trading centers
B. Hindustan's three largest urban areas
C. positioned at the mouths of India's longest navigable rivers
D. agricultural market centers in Hindustan
E. the capitals of India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh respectively
74. The capital of India is:
A. Calcutta B. Islamabad *C. New Delhi
D. Kashmir E. Bombay (Mumbai)
75. Which of the following statements about Indian agriculture is false?
A. Rice is grown in the east and wheat in the west.
*B. Wheat is grown in the east and rice in the west.
C. The Green Revolution led to significant increases in production.
D. Cotton is produced in west-central India.
E. All of the above are false.
A. Approximately 25 percent of India's population lives in urban areas.
B. The Indian government endorses family planning as part of its official development program.
C. Calcutta, Bombay (Mumbai), and Madras (Chennai) were all British military
outposts in the 17th century.
*D. Near the beginning of the 20th century, the British moved their colonial capital from New
Delhi to the safer interior city of Calcutta.
E. The British raj lasted less than a century.
77. Agriculture in India:
A. is marked by the equal division of land among the country's millions of farming families
B. ranks the country third in the world in terms of acreage under rice
C. remained unaffected by the so-called Green Revolution
D. is rapidly closing the gap between national food needs and grain supplies
*E. remains inefficient and tradition-bound, so that yields per worker and per unit area are low
78. Land reform in India:
A. has resulted in the redistribution of land to the peasant farmers
B. has resulted in significant increases in agricultural production
C. has done away with the problem of land fragmentation
*D. never got off the ground
E. all but D above
79. The ___________ Revolution of the 1960s introduced "miracle" varieties of wheat and rice that significantly increased the productivity of these crops.
A. Communist *B. Green C. Agricultural
D. Malthusian E. Gandhian
80. India has more land devoted to _____ production than any other country in the world.
*A. rice B. wheat C. corn
D. cotton E. none of the above
81. The leading center of India's Bihar-Bengal manufacturing region is:
A. New Delhi B. Bombay (Mumbai) *C. Calcutta
D. Madras (Chennai) E. Amritsar
82. Which of the following is India's least industrialized region?
A. Calcutta B. Bombay (Mumbai) C. Madras (Chennai)
D. Bihar-Bengal *E. Assam
83. Which of the following is India's silicon valley?
D. Bihar-Bengal *E. Bangalore
84. Much of India's coal supply is found in the:
A. Assam region *B. Chota-Nagpur Plateau C. Western Ghats
D. Kathiawar Peninsula E. Kashmir province
85. Industrialization in India:
A. suffered due to under investment by the country's planners
B. reduced unemployment somewhat
C. been accompanied by a decline in per-capita income
*D. is developing more in the west than in the east
E. diverted all formerly exported iron ore to the nation' own steel mills
86. Your textbook indicates that a newly developing regional disparity in India is between:
A. urban and rural areas *B. east and west C. north and south
D. coastal and interior E. none of the above
Bangladesh: Persistent Poverty
87. Which of the following statements about Bangladesh is false?
A. Only about 17 percent live in urban areas.
B. The GNP per capita is only about $260.
C. Dhaka is the centrally located capital.
D. A 1991 cyclone devastated the country.
*E. The inland city of Chittagong is leading the way toward economic redevelopment.
88. The country bordering Bangladesh on its north and east is:
A. Myanmar (Burma) B. Pakistan C. China
*D. India E. East Pakistan
89. 8 of the 10 costliest natural disasters in the world have struck which of the following
countries?
A. India *B. Bangladesh C. Pakistan
D. Sri Lanka E. Nepal
A. By the year 2000, the South Asian realm will be the largest population cluster in the world.
B. Agriculture in South Asia is comparatively inefficient when contrasted with other parts of Asia.
C. India is the world's most populated federal state.
*D. Bangladesh's landlocked status partially explains the poverty of its nearly 210 million inhabitants.
E. Sri Lanka's dominant religion is not the same as India's.
91. Bangladesh was formerly known as:
*A. East Pakistan B. West Pakistan C. Ceylon
D. Nepal E. Burma
92. Which of the following cities suffered severely in the devastating 1991 cyclone that came ashore north of the Bay of Bengal?
A. New Delhi B. Bombay (Mumbai) *C. Dhaka
D. Karachi E. Beijing
93. A leading commercial crop that Bangladesh relies heavily on for export revenues is:
A. rice B. rubber *C. jute
D. wheat E. bananas
The Mountainous North
94. The two countries in the Mountainous North of South Asia are:
*A. Nepal and Bhutan B. Pakistan and Bangladesh C. Sri Lanka and Bhutan
D. Assam and Punjab E. Jammu and Kashmir
95. Which of the following statements about Nepal is false?
A. Deforestation is a problem.
*B. Agriculture is a true success story.
C. The Himalayas are the principal physical feature.
D. About 90 percent of the population are Hindu.
E. Kathmandu is the country's core area.
Which of the following statements about Bhutan is false?
A. It has a significant Nepalese minority.
B. The king rules the country with virtual absolute power.
*C. The country absorbed the neighboring state of Sikkim.
D. Buddhism is the state religion.
E. Bhutan is located in a mountainous area
Sri Lanka: South Asian Tragedy
97. The Hindu population of Sri Lanka is called the:
A. Ceylonese B. Sinhalese *C. Tamils
D. Ghats E. Lankanese
98. Which of the following statements concerning Sri Lanka is false?
A. Tamil was recently granted national language status.
B. Coconuts, rubber, and tea are the country's successful plantation crops.
C. The majority of people are not Dravidian.
*D. Tamils, now a minority, were the early invaders who brought Buddhism and a knowledge of
irrigation techniques.
E. Industrial development is constituted mostly by factories which process agricultural products.
99. Which of the following countries is characterized by a plantation economy?
A. Pakistan B. India C. C. Bangladesh
D. Nepal *E. Sri Lanka
100. The Tamil and Sinhalese groups are currently in dispute over:
A. Kashmir B. Jammu *C. Sri Lanka
D. Dravidia E. Delhi
101. The initial stage in the evolution of an insurgent state is the stage of:
A. equilibrium *B. contention C. counteroffensive
D. subsequence E. disintegration
102. The small group of islands 400 miles south of India are the:
A. Sri Lanka B. Punjabs *C. Maldives
D. Dravidians E. Colombos
True-False
1. The population of Bangladesh is nearly 50 percent larger than that of Pakistan. (F)
2. India today is the world's second most populous state. (T)
3. Pakistan clearly should be included in South Asia. No reasonable argument could be made to include it in the North African/Southwest Asian realm. (F)
4. South Asia contains 20 percent of the world's population, but two-thirds of its poorest inhabitants. (T)
5. The physiologic population density of a country is always lower than the arithmetic density. (F)
6. The doubling time of a population refers to the number of years it will take for a population to receive new immigrants equal in number to its current population. (F)
7. The three major rivers of South Asia are the Ganges, the Indus, and the Nepalese. (F)
8. The word "India" was derived from "indus," which means "river" and was first applied to the area that now forms the heart of Pakistan. (T)
9. The Ghats are the southernmost range of the Himalayas. (F)
10. The Malabar-Konkan Coast of India contains the Eastern Ghats and the city of Madras (Chennai). (F)
11. The ancient Indus civilization was a contemporary of, and interacted with, ancient Mesopotamia. (T)
12. Southern India contains the Deccan plateau. (T)
13. The Ganges and Brahmaputra River valleys converge. (T)
14. India's climate is significantly influenced by wet monsoons. (T)
15. The Dravidian languages are the easternmost and southernmost representatives of the Indo-European language family. (F)
16. The Indo-Europeans were known as Aryans. (T)
17. Dravidians are in the majority on the island formerly called Ceylon. (F)
18. The caste system has completely disappeared from Indian society. (T)
19. The Aryans brought the Sanskrit language with them which eventually developed into many of the languages in South Asia. (T)
20. The Mauryan Empire incorporated the majority of the Indian subcontinent, emerging upon the decline of Greece. (T)
21. Prince A_oka was the founder of the Buddhist religion in the third century B.C. (F)
22. The Mauryan Era was the first Indian empire to include most of the subcontinent in one unit. (T)
23. Lahore, capital of Pakistan, was an Islamic center even during the Mauryan period. (F)
24. Islam from the beginning was a faith alien to India, and the country successfully resisted its penetration throughout history. (F)
25. Historically, the Islamic faith was never able to penetrate the Indian subcontinent. (F)
26. Prince Siddhartha is better known as Muhammad in modern India. (F)
27. Less than 15 percent of the population in southern India became Muslim. (T)
28. The British East India Company administered India from 1728 until the country became independent in 1947. (F)
29. The British East India Company was controlled by a consortium of British, French, Dutch, and Portuguese merchants. (F)
30. The Sepoy Rebellion meant replacing the British East India Company with the British government. (T)
31. More than 600 "Native States" with British advisors existed during colonial times. (T)
32. India was an important Asian industrial center before the arrival of the British. (T)
33. The British managed to unify the entirety of South Asia. (T)
34. One of the positives of British colonialism was the development of such cities as Bombay (Mumbai), Calcutta, and Madras (Chennai). (T)
35. Throughout their history, the Sikhs have been fiercely pro-Muslim, and since partition have desired to have their territory united with Pakistan. (F)
36. The Punjab area extends into Pakistan and India. (T)
37. During the partitioning of the Indian subcontinent in 1947, approximately 15 million people took part in migrations to and from India and Pakistan. (T)
38. India's Muslim population now constitutes less than two percent of the country's population. (F)
39. The majority of Kashmir's population is Hindu. (F)
40. The partition into Pakistan and India occurred soon after World War I. (F)
41. In Jammu and Kashmir, the traditional rulers have been Hindu, but the population is about 75 percent Muslim. (T)
42. Karachi always has been the cultural and emotional focus of the Pakistani nation. (F)
43. Lahore is the cultural heart of Pakistan. (T)
44. Karachi grew at a very fast rate as a result of an influx of refugees after partition. (T)
45. Afghan irredentism has affected Pakistan's mountainous northwest, where Pathan residents within Pakistan are being encouraged to demand the creation of a separate state. (T)
46. The Pathan irredentist movement in northern Pakistan is based on cultural linkages to neighboring India. (F)
47. Pakistan's textile industry has grown rapidly and now is a major export sector. (T)
48. Pakistan has seen much success in its agricultural development and now exports rice. (T)
49. Pakistan generally looked toward the Soviet Union in the cold war. (F)
50. The loss of Bangladesh from Pakistan after 1971 was no disaster to West Pakistan. (T)
51. In India, states in the east are generally smaller than those in the west. (T)
52. New Delhi, the capital of India is located within one of the five Uts. (F)
53. One of the reasons for India's continued unity in the face of great cultural diversity is the government's flexibility on such issues as language. (T)
54. English is the lingua franca of the business world of India. (T)
55. The Sikhs seek a separate state to be called Khalistan. (T)
56. Sikhism developed and is still based in the Punjab region. (T)
57. The caste system may well have a racial foundation since "caste" means color in Sanskrit. (T)
58. The so-called "untouchables" of the Indian caste system are untouchable because it is believed that they are directly descended from a Hindu god. (F)
59. After British rule ended, Indian leaders sought to reestablish the traditional caste system which the British had tried to modify. (F)
60. The lowest-ranking social group in the Hindu caste system are the Brahmans. (F)
61. Gandhi's daughter, Indira, served as India's president in the years between her father's regime and the revolution led by Nehru that overthrew her government in 1966. (F)
62. Compelling personalities of Gandhi and Nehru did much to unite India. (T)
63. India's population of about 1 billion is growing at about 1.9 percent per year. (T)
64. South Asia's doubling time is now approximately 36 years. (T)
65. Demographic transition theory describes changes in birth rates, death rates, and population growth over time. (T)
66. In the first stage of the demographic transition both birth rates and death rates are high. (T)
67. In the second stage of the demographic transition, the population explosion begins. (T)
68. Over 80 percent of Indians live in great, crowded cities like Calcutta, Madras (Chennai), and Bombay (Mumbai). (F)
69. About 260 million Indians live in urban areas, although India is only about 26 percent urban. (T)
70. Animal-drawn carts still outnumber motor vehicles in India. (T)
71. Due to the "Green Revolution" and the introduction of "miracle rice," India has one of the highest average yields per acre of rice in the world. (F)
72. The great majority of India's workers are employed in agriculture. (T)
73. The leading crop grown in the Punjab is wheat. (T)
74. Rice is the dominant crop in monsoon regions of southern India. (T)
75. Physiologic density, the amount of cultivated land per person, is decreasing as India's population continues to grow rapidly. (T)
76. India's most densely populated areas also are the areas where rice is the staple food. (T)
77. In 1947, only 2 percent of India's workers were engaged in manufacturing and mining. (T)
78. Unlike Pakistan and Bangladesh, very little cotton textile production takes place in India. (F)
79. Calcutta anchors the Bihar-Bengal district where jute manufacturing is important. (T)
80. Cotton textile production in the Ghats is helped by the availability of hydroelectric power. (T)
81. Much of India's coal supply is found in the Chota Nagpur region and India is among the world's 10 leading coal producers. (T)
82. The west in India is now developing faster than the east. (T)
83. The Calcutta area is now India's "rustbelt" as its industrial equipment is outdated, uncompetitive, and in decline. (T)
84. The territory of Bangladesh is essentially the deltaic plain of the Ganges-Brahmaputra river system. (T)
85. Bangladesh and Pakistan together contain less than a third of India's population in the 1990s. (T)
86. Much of Bangladesh's land lies close to sea level, leaving the country prone to frequent flooding. (T)
87. Bangladesh faces a nearly constant threat of famine because its soils are generally infertile. (F)
88. Jute and tea are major cash crops in Bangladesh. (T)
89. Bangladesh, with a larger population than Pakistan, is about 85 percent Muslim. (T)
90. Dhaka and Chittagong are the only large urban centers in the rural country of Bangladesh. (T)
91. Bangladesh has suffered from repeated political uprisings and changes in its government. (F)
92. Like India, Bangladesh is blessed with a very good internal transportation system, one of the positive vestiges of British colonialism. (F)
93. Nepal and Bhutan are landlocked. (T)
94. Nepal today, because of deforestation and soil erosion, faces a serious ecological crisis. (T)
95. About 90 percent of the population of Nepal are Hindus, although Buddhist ideals are blended into their religious beliefs. (T)
96. Bhutan now has a representative government, whereas Nepal still has an absolute monarchy. (F)
97. Nepalese form a significant minority in Bhutan. (T)
98. Bhutan is largely mountainous. (T)
99. Ceylon was formerly known as Sikkim. (F)
100. The majority of Sri Lanka's people are Aryans, who trace their history to ancient northern India. (T)
101. Like India, Sri Lanka is a predominantly Hindu country. (F)
102. Sri Lanka's chief exports (tea, rubber, and rubber products) are produced on plantations rather than small farms. (T)
103. Very little industrial development has occurred in Sri Lanka and that which has is mostly clustered around the capital and major port of Colombo. (T)
104. Tea and jute are the most important Sri Lankan crops. (F)
105. Since 1974, Sinhalese extremists have been demanding nothing less than an independent country of Eelam in the area around Colombo. (F)
106. The first stage in the insurgent state model is called contention. (T)
107. The Tamil people in Sri Lanka have established an insurgent state in the north. (T)
108. The three stages of the insurgent state model are contention, equilibrium, and counteroffensive. (T)
109. The Maldives are a group of about 100 small islands about 1,500 miles from India. (T)
110. The name of the proposed Sikh homeland (A)
111 The minority Hindu population of Sri Lanka (B)
112. Forces that tend to hold a state together (D)
113. The mountainous escarpment along the margin of the Deccan Plateau (E)
114. Forces that tend to pull a state apart (C)
A. Khalistan
B. Tamil
C. Centrifugal
D. Centripetal
E. Ghats
115. Aryan Buddhist (B)
116. Bihar-Bengal industrial region (E)
117. Sikh religious capital (D)
118. Forward capital today (C)
119. India's lingua franca (A)
A. English
B. Sinhalese
C. Islamabad
D. Amritsar
E. Calcutta
120. Dravidian language (C)
121. Takeover of India by British government (A)
122. Holy city of Hindustan (D)
123. Disastrous 1971 typhoon (E )
124. Western Ghats (B)
A. Sepoy Rebellion
B. Malabar-Konkan Coast
C. Tamil
D. Varanasi
E. Bangladesh
Fill Ins
125. The lava-covered plateau extending across most of the southern portion of India is the ________. (Deccan)
126. The lowland of far southeastern India that borders the Indian Ocean and contains the city of Madras (Chennai) is called the __________ Coast. (Coromandel)
127. The partitioning of the Indian subcontinent into the modern states of India and Pakistan occurred in the year ___________. (1947)
128. The cultural focus of Islam in Pakistan today is the city of __________. (Lahore)
129. The social stratification that dominates Hindu India is known as the ________ system. (caste)
130. __________ forces bind a state together, unifying and strengthening its foundations. (Centripetal)
131. The amount of cultivated land per person is known as the __________ density. (physiological)
132. The __________ Revolution of the 1960s introduced "miracle" varieties of wheat and rice that significantly increased the productivity of these crops. (Green)
133. The former state of East Pakistan, which separated from West Pakistan after a brief war in 1971, is now called ____________. (Bangladesh)
134. The mountain range containing Mt. Everest, the world's highest peak, is called the _________. (Himalayas)
South Asia Page
Directory: college -> regions2000 -> to down
to down -> Chapter 10 Southeast Asia Multiple Choice Introduction The most populated Southeast Asian nation is
to down -> Physiography a narrow strip of land connecting two larger land bodies is known as a(n)
to down -> Chapter 7 Subsaharan Africa Multiple Choice Africa's Physiography Which of the following is true?
to down -> Chapter 6 North Africa/Southwest Asia Multiple Choice Introduction
to down -> Chapter 5 South America Multiple Choice Introduction
to down -> Chapter 3 North America Multiple Choice Introduction The two major language groups in Canada are
to down -> Chapter 9 East Asia Multiple Choice Introduction
to down -> The chief political and economic architect of the 1917 Russian Revolution that created the Soviet Union was
to down -> Chapter 1 Europe Multiple Choice Defining the European Realm
to down -> Objectives of this chapter
great majority
following areas
southern portion
three stages
initial stage
core area
islamic faith
modern states
buddhist religion
british managed
west than
neighboring state
indo-europeans
major river
hindu population


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Home Baja California News U.S. Citizen Shot Waiting in Line in Mexico to Cross U.S. Border
U.S. Citizen Shot Waiting in Line in Mexico to Cross U.S. Border
During the last hours, 8 murders have been registered in Tijuana, adding a total of 1,757 so far in 2020. The one with the greatest public impact, for having been registered in the middle of the international gatehouse, was that of a U.S. Citizen killed by gunfire at point blank range Tuesday morning.
A construction worker was fatally shot in Tijuana while waiting in line to cross the U.S.-Mexico border to go to work and his wife discovered the tragic news through social media posts.
The victim, a U.S. citizen who lived in Tijuana, was identified as 26-year-old Ignacio Armando Montiel Lopez, a construction worker who was going to work on the other side of the border.
According to authorities, Montiel Lopez's wife, who left her home around 6:30 a.m. to work in the U.S., arrived at the scene after she saw social media posts that her husband's vehicle crashed into walls.
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Police officers arrived at the scene at about 8 a.m. Tuesday to investigate the homicide after they received reports of shots fired in the area.
Access to the regular car booth toward San Ysidro was temporarily closed while authorities removed the victim's body. All previously opened lanes at the border were reopened sometime around 10:45 a.m.
According to police, responding agents found a man who had been injured by a firearm. Authorities then requested an ambulance and rendered first aid to the man. However, he ultimately succumbed to his injuries.
The incident was reported at about 7:40 a.m. among the international lanes near the Federal Employees' vicinity, according to police in Tijuana.
News broadcast below
As of 12:30 p.m., no arrests have been made. The investigation is ongoing.
Source: elimparcial.com, telemundo20.com
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Meet Yareli Salazar from Sinaloa, the first Mexican to participate in the Women's Tour de France
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With Migrants Stalled at U.S. Doorstep, Mexico Offers a Fresh Start
The US closes lanes and strengthens border controls with Mexico to contain Covid-19
In "Baja California News"
american shot in tijuana
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Position tracking system
A position tracking system includes an infrared-sensitive device, such as an infrared camera that generates signals in response to detected infrared light in a field of view of the infrared-sensitive device. A processor is responsive to the signals generated by the infrared-sensitive device for determining a position of the detected infrared light. The processor also generates tilt and pan signals based on the position of the detected infrared light. A tilt and pan mechanism moves a visible-light video camera in response to the tilt and pan signals from the processor. The active infrared light-emitting device includes a loop having at least two infrared light-emitting elements disposed along the loop, on opposite sides of the loop. A control box is disposed in the loop and is in electrical communication with the infrared light-emitting elements. When the loop is disposed around an object that rotates relative to the infrared-sensitive device, a constantly unimpeded viewing channel is provided between the infrared-sensitive device and at least one of the elements due to the positioning of the elements. The position information obtained from the infrared-sensitive device is used to direct a visible-light camera to track the active infrared light-emitting device in a manner similar to that performed by a human camera operator.
Neal, Homer A. (Ann Arbor, MI, US)
Ye, Cang (Little Rock, AR, US)
Herr, Jeremy (Ypsilanti, MI, US)
Irrer, James C. (Ann Arbor, MI, US)
H04N5/225
20040210929 Methods and apparatus forscheduling broadcast commercial videotapes October, 2004 Bollapragada et al.
20070139402 Image display control method June, 2007 Chang
20070019076 Printed board, image pickup apparatus and camera January, 2007 Teramoto et al.
20040135744 Virtual showcases July, 2004 Bimber et al.
20020178454 Broadcast television and satellite signal switching system and method for telephony signal insertion November, 2002 Antoine et al.
20050243210 DISPLAY SYSTEM FOR DISPLAYING SUBTITLES November, 2005 Lee
20040254999 SYSTEM FOR PROVIDING CONTENT TO MULTIPLE USERS December, 2004 Bulleit et al.
20080170135 Image- Recording System July, 2008 Stumber et al.
20060182416 Subtitle scrolling detecting device and method August, 2006 Shyang et al.
20040081426 Broadcasting system with means to label programs being recorded and to display the label information April, 2004 Tsukidate
20090244266 Enhanced Three Dimensional Television October, 2009 Brigham
HSU, AMY R
HOWARD & HOWARD ATTORNEYS PLLC (450 West Fourth Street, Royal Oak, MI, 48067, US)
1. A position tracking system comprising: an infrared-sensitive device that generates signals in response to detected infrared light in a field of view of said infrared-sensitive device; a processor responsive to said signals generated by said infrared-sensitive device for determining a position of the detected infrared light with said processor generating tilt and pan signals based on said position; a visible-light video camera for recording visible light within the same field of view as the infrared-sensitive device; a tilt and pan mechanism that moves said visible-light video camera in response to said tilt and pan signals from said processor; and an active infrared light-emitting device including a loop having at least two infrared light-emitting elements disposed along said loop on opposite sides thereof and a control box disposed in said closed loop in electrical communication with said infrared light-emitting elements for providing a constantly unimpeded viewing channel between said infrared-sensitive device and at least one of said elements when said loop is disposed around an object that rotates relative to said infrared-sensitive device.
2. A position tracking system as set forth in claim 1 wherein said loop is further defined as a closed loop with said control box disposed in said closed loop in electrical communication with said infrared light-emitting elements.
3. A position tracking system as set forth in claim 2 wherein at least one of said infrared light-emitting elements is disposed opposite said control box across said loop.
4. A position tracking system as set forth in claim 3 wherein infrared light-emitting elements are spaced at intervals of less than or equal to two inches along said loop.
5. A position tracking system as set forth in claim 1 wherein said infrared light-emitting elements are further defined as infrared light-emitting diodes having a width of less than 5 mm, a length of less than 5 mm, and a depth of less than 3 mm.
6. A position tracking system as set forth in claim 1 wherein said loop is further defined as an open loop having a first end and a second end adapted for connection to each other with said control box disposed in said open loop adjacent to one of said ends and in electrical communication with said infrared light-emitting elements.
7. A position tracking system as set forth in claim 1 wherein said processor determines said position of the detected infrared light in a two-dimensional coordinate image plane based on said signals and determines a distance of said position from a set point in the two-dimensional coordinate image plane.
8. A position tracking system as set forth in claim 7 wherein said processor generates tilt and pan signals based on the distance of said position from said set point.
9. A position tracking system as set forth in claim 1 further comprising a software package that synchronizes a recording from said visible-light video camera and slides from a presentation.
10. An active infrared light-emitting device for use in a position tracking system, said device comprising: a loop; at least two infrared light-emitting elements disposed along said loop on opposite sides thereof to provide a constantly unimpeded viewing channel between an infrared-sensitive device and at least one of said elements when said loop is disposed around an object that rotates relative to the infrared-sensitive device; and a control box disposed in said loop and in electrical communication with said infrared light-emitting elements.
11. An active infrared light-emitting device as set forth in claim 10 wherein said loop is further defined as a closed loop with said control box disposed in said closed loop in electrical communication with said infrared light-emitting elements.
12. An active infrared light-emitting device as set forth in claim 11 wherein at least one of said infrared light-emitting elements is disposed opposite said control box across said loop.
13. An active infrared light-emitting device as set forth in claim 12 wherein infrared light-emitting elements are spaced at intervals of less than or equal to two inches along said loop.
14. An active infrared light-emitting device as set forth in claim 10 wherein said infrared light-emitting elements are further defined as infrared light-emitting diodes having a width of less than 5 mm, a length of less than 5 mm, and a depth of less than 3 mm.
15. An active infrared light-emitting device as set forth in claim 10 wherein said loop is further defined as an open loop having a first end and a second end adapted for connection to each other with said control box disposed in said open loop adjacent to one of said ends and in electrical communication with said infrared light-emitting elements.
16. A method of tracking with a position tracking system including an infrared-sensitive device, a processor, a visible-light video camera, a tilt and pan mechanism, and an active infrared light-emitting device, said method comprising the steps of: generating signals with the infrared-sensitive device in response to detected infrared light in a field of view of the device; transmitting the signals to the processor; determining a position of the detected infrared light with the processor; generating tilt and pan signals with the processor based on the position; transmitting the tilt and pan signals to the tilt and pan mechanism; moving the visible-light video camera with the tilt and pan mechanism in response to the tilt and pan signals from the processor; placing the active infrared light-emitting device on an object that rotates relative to the infrared-sensitive device; emitting infrared light from the active infrared light-emitting device including a loop having at least two infrared light-emitting elements disposed along the loop on opposite sides thereof; and providing a constantly unimpeded viewing channel between the infrared-sensitive device and at least one of the elements.
17. A method as set forth in claim 16 further comprising the step of simultaneously pulsating the infrared light emitted from each the elements at a predetermined frequency.
18. A method as set forth in claim 16 further comprising the step of synchronizing a recording from the visible-light video camera and slides from a presentation.
19. A method as set forth in claim 16 wherein the step of determining the position of the detected infrared light is further defined as determining the position of the detected infrared light in a two-dimensional coordinate image plane based on the signals and a distance of the position from a set point in the two-dimensional coordinate image plane.
20. A method as set forth in claim 16 wherein the step of generating tilt and pan signals is further defined as generating the tilt and pan signals with the processor based on the distance of the position from the set point.
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/659,139 filed Mar. 7, 2005.
GOVERNMENT LICENSE RIGHTS
The U.S. Government has a paid-up license in this invention and the right in limited circumstances to require the patent owner to license others on reasonable terms as provided for by the terms of grant number 0333580 awarded by the National Science Digital Library division of the National Science Foundation.
The subject invention generally relates to a position tracking system. More specifically, the subject invention relates to a position tracking system that includes an infrared-sensitive device for detecting infrared light, a processor for determining a position of the detected infrared light and for generating tilt and pan signals based on the position, and a tilt and pan mechanism for moving a visible-light video camera in response to the tilt and pan signals from the processor.
Position tracking systems are known in the art and function through a number of different mechanisms in order to track a moving object. More specifically, the position tracking systems typically include a camera that detects either visible or infrared light. The camera may function by detecting visible or infrared light reflected from an object, by detecting disturbances in ambient visible or infrared light resulting from movement of the object within a field of view of the camera, or by detecting visible or infrared light emitted from a light-emitting device attached to the object. One such position tracking system is disclosed in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2005/012291 to Murakami.
The '291 publication discloses a visible light camera and an infrared camera for detecting light depending on the time of day, i.e., whether visible light is available from sunlight or whether only infrared light is available. The cameras generate signals in response to disturbances in detected light in the field of view of the camera, which result from movement of an object such as a person in the field of view. A processor is responsive to the signals generated by the camera. The processor uses an algorithm to determine a position of the object based on the signals from the cameras. The processor generates tilt and pan signals based on the position determined by the processor. The processor communicates the signals to tilt and pan mechanisms attached to the cameras. The tilt and pan mechanisms move the cameras in response to the tilt and pan signals from the processor in order to track the object.
With the tracking system of the '291 publication, other moving objects may be in the field of view of the cameras, thereby skewing the signals generated by the cameras and causing inaccuracies in the tilt and pan signals generated by the processor. Further, if the moving object were to enter an area of direct sunlight or other bright light, the visible light camera may detect a washed image in the area of the direct light, thus causing the tracking system to lose track of the object. The object may move behind other objects within a field of view of the camera, which may obscure the object from view and cause the tracking system to lose track of the object. Different lighting regions may also persist within the field of view of the camera that affect the signals generated by the camera. Each of these factors may affect the performance of the tracking system.
Another position tracking system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,023,709 to Kita et al. The '709 patent discloses an infrared camera that generates signals in response to detected infrared light in a field of view of the infrared camera. The detected infrared light originates from a "marker", which may be a strip of reflective tape that reflects infrared light that is applied to it or an infrared radiant that radiates infrared rays when infrared light is applied to it. The marker is affixed to a moving object, such as a person. The infrared light may originate from an infrared irradiation apparatus mounted adjacent to the infrared camera. A processor is responsive to the signals generated by the camera. The processor uses an algorithm to determine a position of the detected light based on the signals from the camera. The processor generates tilt and pan signals based on the position determined by the processor. The processor communicates the signals to tilt and pan mechanisms attached to the cameras. The tilt and pan mechanisms move the cameras in response to the tilt and pan signals from the processor.
With the tracking system of the '709 patent, the object having the mark affixed thereto may move behind other objects within a field of view of the camera, thus obscuring the mark from view and causing the tracking system to lose track of the mark. Further, the mark may be obscured beneath clothing, thereby causing the tracking system to lose track of the mark. Further obstruction may occur simply by the object rotating relative to the infrared camera, thereby obscuring the mark from view behind the rotating object. The infrared light may also reflect off of shiny surfaces, thereby skewing the signals generated by the infrared camera and causing the tracking system to lose track of the object.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,801,637 to Voronka et al. discloses another tracking system. The tracking system of the '637 patent employs a series of active markers that emit infrared light and that are placed at different points on a person's body. The sensors are pulsed such that only one sensor is emitting infrared light at any point in time. A position sensor includes three cameras that separately detect a position of each sensor, and relative movements of different body parts are tracked by compiling the data relative to each of the sensors. However, the cameras have a fixed field of view and cannot follow the sensors if the sensors move from the fixed field of view of the cameras. Further, the sensors are each attached to a control box through a wire. With the sensors being positioned at different points on the body, installation of the sensors is cumbersome and time consuming. With the sensors placed all over the body, the sensors are discrete and distracting. As such, the tracking system of the '637 patent is not suitable for all manner of position tracking applications.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,179,421 to Parker et al. and assigned to ParkerVision, Inc. also discloses another tracking system. Details of the tracking system disclosed in the '421 patent are further clarified in the cited product information for the "CameraMan" products from ParkerVision, Inc. The tracking system includes an infrared transmitter that transmits infrared light to an infrared receiver that is placed behind a rotating set of signal blocking blinders whose position at any time defines a view angle with a known position. The infrared receiver scans a field of view and detects a peak signal strength from the infrared transmitter. A processor then determines tilt and pan angles and positions a video camera based on the detected position of the peak signal strength. However, as stated in the "CameraMan: 3ccd Presenter Camera System" Installation and Operations Manual, the infrared transmitter requires a direct line-of-sight link with the camera, i.e., the infrared receiver. Further, no hair or clothing can cover the sensors. Such features make the tracking system of the '421 patent cumbersome and may distract a person wearing the infrared transmitter. By scanning for a peak signal strength, the sensor of the '421 patent is susceptible to ambient infrared light reflecting off of shiny objects, as well as other sources of infrared light. Finally, as shown in the Installation and Operations Manuals, although the infrared transmitter may include infrared light-emitting elements disposed along a loop, a control box is not part of the loop and must be separately connected to the loop through a cable, thus making the infrared transmitter bulky and distracting.
Due to the deficiencies of the prior art, there remains an opportunity to provide a position tracking system and a method of tracking with the position tracking system that provides a constantly viewable source of infrared light to an infrared camera such that tracking is unimpeded, regardless of whether or not the source of infrared light is covered by clothing, hair, etc. There is also an opportunity to provide a position tracking system that may be set up quickly and that is not distracting to observers of a person being tracked.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION AND ADVANTAGES
The subject invention provides a position tracking system, a method of tracking with the position tracking system, and an active infrared light-emitting device for use in the position tracking system. The position tracking system includes an infrared-sensitive device, such as an infrared camera, that generates signals in response to detected infrared light in a field of view of the infrared-sensitive device. A processor is responsive to the signals generated by the infrared-sensitive device for determining a position of the detected infrared light. The processor also generates tilt and pan signals based on the position of the detected infrared light. The position tracking system further includes a visible-light video camera for recording visible light within the field of view as the infrared-sensitive device. A tilt and pan mechanism moves the visible-light video camera in response to the tilt and pan signals from the processor. The active infrared light-emitting device includes a loop having at least two infrared light-emitting elements disposed along the loop. The infrared light-emitting elements are disposed on opposite sides of the loop. A control box is disposed in the loop and is in electrical communication with the infrared light-emitting elements.
When the loop is disposed around an object that rotates relative to the infrared-sensitive device, such as a person, a constantly unimpeded viewing channel is provided between the infrared-sensitive device and at least one of the elements due to the positioning of the elements on opposite sides of the loop, which therefore positions the elements on opposite sides of the person's body. As a result, the infrared-sensitive device can constantly track the elements such that tracking with the infrared-sensitive device is unimpeded. Further, in order to use the position tracking system, the loop may be installed quickly by only placing the loop around a person's neck, waist, or other appendage and turned on. The infrared light-emitting elements are also capable of passing light through clothing, hair, paper, etc. so that the loop may be hidden beneath clothing, if desired. Further, the loop appears as an indiscrete accessory and is not distracting to observers of the person being tracked.
Other advantages of the present invention will be readily appreciated, as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein:
FIG. 1 is a top schematic view of a position tracking system of the present invention including an active infrared light-emitting device disposed around a person's neck, an infrared-sensitive device that detects infrared light and follows lateral movement of the person relative thereto, a processor that determines a position of the detected infrared light and that generates tilt and pan signals based on the position of the detected infrared light, visible-light video camera, and a tilt and pan mechanism for moving the visible-light video camera;
FIG. 2 is a side schematic view of the position tracking system of FIG. 1 showing the position tracking system tracking vertical movements of the person;
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an infrared-sensitive device that is used in the tracking system of the present invention with a visible-light video camera mounted on the infrared-sensitive device;
FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an active infrared light-emitting device that is used in the tracking system of the present invention;
FIG. 5 is a photograph of a computer screen including a visual representation of signals generated by the infrared-sensitive device viewing the active infrared light-emitting device;
FIG. 6 is a schematic view of a correlation between actual position of the active infrared light-emitting device relative to the infrared-sensitive device and a position of the active infrared light-emitting device as viewed by the infrared-sensitive device; and
FIG. 4 is a perspective view of another embodiment of an active infrared light-emitting device that is used in the tracking system of the present invention.
Referring to the Figures, wherein like numerals indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views, a position tracking system is shown generally at 10 in FIGS. 1 and 2. One of the contemplated uses for the position tracking system 10 is for tracking the movement of a lecturer 12 during a lecture or a seminar to enable a visible-light video camera 14 to track and record the lecturer 12 as the lecturer 12 moves around. The lecture or seminar may be recorded and stored for future use, used to network in remote attendees, and/or disseminated over the internet. The position tracking system 10 eliminates a need for a human camera operator, which adds expense to recording the lectures or seminars on video. It is contemplated that by using the position tracking system 10 of the present invention, a large volume of lectures may be recorded and archived without the expenses that typically accompany recording lectures. Although the position tracking system 10 of the present invention is useful for tracking the position of the lecturer 12 and recording lectures, other applications are also envisioned, such as military applications, security applications, motion picture applications, or any other application where tracking of a moving object 12 is desired.
The position tracking system 10 is based on active infrared technology. The position tracking system 10 includes an active infrared light-emitting device 40 that emits infrared light and an infrared-sensitive device 16, such as an infrared camera, that detects the infrared light emitted from the active infrared light-emitting device 40.
When the position tracking system 10 is used for tracking the movement of the lecturer 12, the active infrared light-emitting device 40 is typically worn by the lecturer 12. In order to facilitate easy placement of the active infrared light-emitting device 40, the device 40 includes a loop 18. The loop 18 has at least two infrared light-emitting elements 38 disposed along the loop 18 on opposite sides 20, 22 thereof. A control box 24 is typically disposed in the loop 18 in electrical communication with the infrared light-emitting elements 38 in order to provide power to and control the infrared light-emitting elements 38.
The infrared light-emitting elements 38 are positioned such that a constantly unimpeded viewing channel exists between the infrared-sensitive device 16 and at least one of the infrared light-emitting elements 38 when the loop 18 is disposed around an object 12 that rotates relative to the infrared-sensitive device 16, such as the lecturer 12. More specifically, in a broad sense, the loop 18 is a curved strand including electrical wires that connect the infrared light-emitting elements 38. Ultimately, the loop 18 is required to wrap around the object 12, i.e., the lecturer 12, in order to ensure that at least one infrared light-emitting element 38 is disposed on a front side 20 of the lecturer 12 and at least one infrared light-emitting element 38 is disposed on a back side 22 of the lecturer 12. In this way, the constantly unimpeded viewing channel always exists between the infrared-sensitive device 16 and at least one of the infrared light-emitting elements 38 regardless of a state of rotation of the lecturer 12 relative to the infrared-sensitive device 16, i.e., regardless of whether the lecturer 12 is facing toward or away from the camera, such as when writing on a chalk board.
Typically, the loop 18 is flexible in order to drape around objects 12, or lecturers 12, of different shape; however, it is possible that the loop 18 may have sufficient rigidity to maintain a desired shape. Said another way, the loop 18 may be bendable to wrap around and stay on an appendage of the object 12, such as an arm of the lecturer 12. To provide the rigidity to the loop 18, the loop 18 may further include a bendable support wire running parallel to the electrical wires.
The loop 18 may be a closed loop or an open loop. For example, in one embodiment as shown in FIG. 4, the loop 18 may be permanently closed with the control box 24 in the closed loop. The closed loop may be used as a necklace, which promotes quick and easy placement of the active infrared light-emitting device 40. In another embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, the loop 18 may be an open loop having a first end 26 and a second end 28 adapted for connection to each other, with the control box 24 disposed in the open loop adjacent to one of the ends 26, 28. More specifically, the control box 24 may be at one end of the loop 18 and may include a connection site for receiving a prong 30 on the other end of the loop 18. Alternatively, the open loop may include the bendable support wire, thus eliminating the need to connect the ends 26, 28 of the loop 18 while still enabling the loop 18 to be wrapped around the object 12.
At least one of the infrared light-emitting elements 38 is disposed opposite the control box 24 across the loop 18. More specifically, it is contemplated that in most circumstances, the loop 18 will be used as a necklace. The control box 24 may act as a weight on the loop 18, thereby hanging directly beneath the lecturer's head. As a result, with the at least one of the infrared light-emitting elements 38 disposed opposite the control box 24 across the loop 18, the infrared light-emitting element 38 will be disposed adjacent the back of the lecturer's neck to ensure that at least one of the infrared light-emitting elements 38 is on the back side 22 of the lecturer 12. The second of the infrared light-emitting elements 38 is typically disposed adjacent the control box 24 to ensure that at least one of the infrared light-emitting elements 38 is disposed on the front side 20 of the lecturer 12.
Typically, the active infrared light-emitting device 40 includes more than two infrared light-emitting elements 38 in order to ensure that the unimpeded viewing channel always exists between the infrared-sensitive device 16 and at least one of the infrared light-emitting elements 38. More specifically, the infrared light-emitting elements 38 are typically spaced at intervals of less than or equal to 2 inches along the loop 18. The infrared light-emitting elements 38 are typically wired in parallel.
Suitable infrared light-emitting elements 38 may include infrared light-emitting diodes that emit light at a wavelength of about 880 nm. However, it is to be appreciated that any infrared light-emitting element 38 that emits light in the infrared spectrum is suitable for purposes of the present invention. The infrared light-emitting diodes typically have a light emission angle of at least 90°, more typically about 120°. This feature of the infrared light-emitting diodes makes the diodes visible to the infrared-sensitive device 16 at various viewing angles, such as with the lecturer 12 facing directly toward the infrared-sensitive device 16, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, or facing sideways.
The infrared light-emitting diodes typically have a peak forward current of about 1.75 A, and a PWM circuit is typically used to allow the diodes to produce strong illumination. This makes the diodes emit infrared light that is very bright while avoiding heat problems and preserving battery life. Because the infrared light emitted from the diodes is so bright, and due to the wavelength of the infrared light, the infrared light may penetrate various materials such as clothing and paper. Importantly, the infrared light may typically be detected even if folded or worn beneath clothing, which is useful for the application of tracking the lecturer 12. For example, as shown in FIG. 5 wherein a manila folder is held in front of the active infrared light-emitting device 40, the infrared light can still be strongly detected by the infrared-sensitive device 16.
The infrared light-emitting diodes are typically surface mount electrical components and thus are very small in size of less than 5 mm wide, less than 5 mm long, and less than 3 mm deep. For example, preferred infrared light-emitting diodes are 3.0 mm wide, 3.4 mm long, and 2.1 mm deep. Due to the small size, the loop 18 can be put into a cloth tubing while the infrared light-emitting diodes sufficiently emit infrared light for the infrared-sensitive device 16 to detect the infrared light. Alternatively, the loop may be disposed inside a cloth key chain.
The control box 24 may function as both a power source for the infrared light-emitting elements 38 and a controller of the infrared light-emitting elements 38. More specifically, the control box 24 typically includes a battery compartment and terminals for receiving a battery or batteries that power the infrared light-emitting elements 38. Typically, the infrared light-emitting elements 38 are powered by two 1.5 V batteries.
The control box 24 may simultaneously pulsate the infrared light emitted from each of the infrared light-emitting elements 38 at a predetermined frequency. By pulsating the infrared light at the predetermined frequency, a processor 32 may be set to recognize only infrared light at the predetermined frequency, as opposed to ambient infrared light. The processor 32 is described in further detail below. As a result, tracking may be less prone to interference when the infrared light is pulsated. Further, by pulsating the infrared light, overheating of the infrared light-emitting elements 38 and needless power consumption is avoided, thereby extending the life of both the batteries and the infrared light-emitting elements 38. Further, the pulsating allows maximization of instantaneous brightness of the infrared light-emitting elements 38.
It is important that the infrared light-emitting elements 38 be simultaneously pulsed in order for the infrared-sensitive device 16 to be able to detect multiple infrared light-emitting elements 38. As described in further detail below, the simultaneous detection of the multiple infrared light-emitting elements 38 allows a "point to track" to be determined, which is indicative of a position of the active infrared light-emitting device 40. An RF transmitter may be used to synchronize a phase and frequency of the pulses with the infrared-sensitive device 16. When the infrared-sensitive device 16 is the infrared camera 16, a shutter of the infrared camera 16 may be controlled to ensure that the pulses are occurring exactly when the shutter is open. A very short exposure will drastically reduce background light, while the synchronization will ensure that infrared light emitted from the infrared light-emitting elements 38 is always visible.
The point to track is determined between the infrared light-emitting elements 38 and allows a position of the infrared light-emitting elements 38 to be tracked smoothly without interruption even if one or more of the infrared light-emitting elements 38 becomes obscured, such as by the lecturer 12 turning sideways. Typically, the control box 24 may be hard-wired to pulsate the infrared light at the predetermined frequency, and includes an on/off switch to either turn the infrared light-emitting elements 38 on or off. Alternatively, the control box 24 may further include a control switch (not shown) for controlling the pulse frequency.
The infrared-sensitive device 16 generates signals in response to detected infrared light in a field of view of the infrared-sensitive device 16. A suitable infrared camera 16 that may be used for purposes of the present invention is a Canon VC-C50i PTZ camera that sends out an NTSC video stream, i.e., the signals, at a frame-rate of 30 fps with an image resolution of 704×480 pixels. The camera may be controlled by the processor 32, which may be a computer, through a serial RS232 port. The signals may be transferred to the processor 32 using any NTSC S-video or composite video capture card. The infrared PTZ camera is one of several possible infrared-sensitive devices 16 that can be used to determine position of the infrared light-emitting device 40. Others include a stationary wide-angle infrared machine vision camera, and a Position Sensitive Device (PSD) mounted behind a wide-angle lens.
Typically, an infrared-pass filter 34 is used to allow only infrared light, i.e., light with a wavelength of greater than 850 nm, into the infrared camera 16. By using the infrared-pass filter 34, the effect of ambient lighting on the ability of the infrared camera 16 to function properly is greatly reduced, and the infrared camera 16 may operate independent of lighting conditions. For example, the infrared-sensitive device 16 may operate in total darkness, with the only light coming from the infrared light-emitting device 40. Signals generated by the infrared-sensitive device 16 may be visually represented as shown in the photograph of FIG. 5.
The position tracking system 10 further includes a visible-light video camera 14 for recording visible light within the field of view as the infrared-sensitive device 16. A tilt and pan mechanism 36 moves the visible-light video camera 14 based on signals from the processor 32. The tilt and pan mechanism 36 is typically integrated with the infrared-sensitive device 16, with the visible-light video camera 14 mounted to the infrared-sensitive device 16, and the tilt and pan mechanism 36 may be controlled through the same port through which the infrared-sensitive device 16 sends signals to the processor 32. However, it is to be appreciated that the tilt and pan mechanism 36 may control the visible-light video camera 14 independent of the infrared-sensitive device 14. The tilt and pan mechanism 36 may be controlled through the RS323 port of the processor 32, as can IRIS and zoom parameters of the infrared-sensitive device 16 itself.
As alluded to above, the position tracking system 10 further includes the processor 32. The processor 32 is responsive to the signals generated by the infrared-sensitive device 16 for determining a position of the detected infrared light. The processor 32 also generates tilt and pan signals based on the position, which are used to control the tilt and pan mechanism 36 to maintain the active infrared light-emitting device 40 within the field of view of the visible-light video camera 14.
The processor 32 determines the position of the detected infrared light in a two-dimensional coordinate image plane based on the signals from the infrared-sensitive device 16. More specifically, the processor 32 determines the point to track, which is indicative of the position of the active infrared light-emitting device 40, based on the infrared light from the at least two infrared-light emitting elements 38. The processor 32 does this by acquiring a still image of the infrared video stream, i.e., the signals, from the infrared-sensitive device 16, as represented in FIG. 5. The image plane is superimposed on the still image. A center point within a ring of the detected infrared lights, as shown in FIG. 5, is typically used as the point to track. Alternatively, if a ring of the detected infrared lights is not available, the point to track may be a midpoint of a line of detected infrared lights.
The processor 32 determines a distance of the point to track from a set point in the image plane. More specifically, the processor 32 correlates the point to track to a set point representing a desired position of the active infrared light-emitting device 40 within the field of view of the infrared-sensitive device 16 and the visible-light video camera 14. The set point is typically represented by the intersection of the two coordinates.
The point to track may be at the same point in the image plane as the set point. In this situation, the visible-light video camera 14 need not be moved, since the active infrared light-emitting device 40 is in the desired position within the field of view of the visible-light video camera 14, and the processor 32 does not generate tilt and pan signals. The same is true if the point to track exhibits only minor movement relative to the set point over a period of time. Alternatively, when the point to track is different from the set point in the image plane, or when the point to track exhibits more than minor movement from the point to track, the processor 32 may generate tilt and pan signals for the tilt and pan mechanism 36 to move the visible-light video camera 14, and optionally the infrared-sensitive device 16, based on the change in position of the point to track relative to the set point. The tilt and pan signals are generated based on the correlation between the actual position of the active infrared light-emitting device 40 (represented by "A", "XA", and "YA" in FIG. 6), and the position of the active infrared light-emitting device 40 in the image plane (represented by represented by "a", "xa", and "ya" in FIG. 6), with a focal point "p" of the infrared-sensitive device 16 disposed on a "Z" axis relative to the image plane. A deviation between the set point and the position of the active infrared light-emitting device 40 in the two dimensional coordinate image plane is represented by the following equations: θ=tan-1yaf and φ=tan-1xaf
wherein θ is represents a tilt angle and is an angle between the Z axis and a line connecting a focal point p of the infrared-sensitive device 16 and the "ya" coordinate of the point to track on the "y" axis, Φ represents a pan angle and is an angle between the "Z" axis and a line connecting the focal point p of the infrared-sensitive device 16 and the "xa" coordinate of the point to track on the "x" axis, and ƒ is the focal length of the infrared-sensitive device 16, i.e., a distance from the focal point p to the two-dimensional coordinate image plane. Based on the calculation of θ, i.e., the tilt angle, and Φ, i.e., the pan angle, the processor 32 may determine actual tilt and pan signals based on the differences of those angles to the prior position of the point to track. The processor 32 sends those signals to the tilt and pan mechanism 36 to adjust the infrared-sensitive device 16 accordingly.
It is desirable to minimize movement of the infrared-sensitive device 16 when movement of the infrared light-emitting device 40 is only minor, and to restrict the processor 32 to generating tilt and pan signals only when the point to track moves a substantial distance from the set point. Said another way, a shaky image may result if the processor 32 generated tilt and pan signals for every small movement of the active infrared light-emitting device 40. As such, the processor 32 is typically set to include a simple heuristic such as a command to not generate tilt and pan signals if the recommended angle is too small. Typically, such a heuristic would encompass movements of the active infrared light-emitting device 40 of less than 2 feet from 30 feet away, although the corresponding movements in the image plane are more important, as they determine the smoothness of the generated color video, and this movement threshold can be adapted to the way each lecturer moves.
As set forth above, the position tracking system 10 further includes the visible-light video camera 14 for recording within the same field of view as the infrared-sensitive device 16. The visible-light video camera 14 may be any commercially available video camera and is used for recording the lecture, seminar, or other event for which the position tracking system 10 is used to record. The visible-light video camera 14 also moves in response to the tilt and pan signals from the processor 32 for recording the field of view of the infrared-sensitive device 16. Typically, as set forth above, the visible-light video camera 14 is mounted directly to the infrared-sensitive device 16, as shown in FIG. 3. However, it is to be appreciated that the visible-light video camera 14 may be spaced from the infrared-sensitive device 16 and controlled by the tilt and pan mechanism independent of the infrared-sensitive device 16. When the visible-light video camera 14 is mounted directly to the infrared-sensitive device 16, the field of view of the visible-light video camera 14 will be slightly different from the field of view of the infrared-sensitive device 16, resulting in a slight offset of the point to track relative to the set point in the field of view of the visible-light video camera 14. The offset, when the visible-light video camera 14 is mounted directly on top of the infrared-sensitive device 16, is represented by the following equation: Δ Y=ff+R×d
wherein ΔY is the offset, ƒ is the focal length of the camera, d is the distance between the optical axes of the two cameras, and R is the distance between the image plane and the active infrared light-emitting device 40. R is typically much greater than either ƒ or d. As such, ΔY is typically negligible unless the active infrared light-emitting device 40 is within a few feet of the cameras 14, 16.
The position tracking system 10 of the present invention may further include a software package, which may be especially advantageous when the position tracking system 10 is used to record lectures or seminars. The software package synchronizes the recording from the visible-light video camera 14 and slides from a presentation, which is typically an electronic presentation such as a PowerPoint® presentation. In order to synchronize the recording and the slides, information relative to the slides from the presentation may be captured with a VGA splitter in conjunction with a capture card and dedicated software to provide a VGA signal. The VGA signal is detected by the processor 32 and captures exactly what the audience sees and enables automatic detection of screen changes that represent a modification or switching of slides. In this way, date and time of the lecture may be correlated with the view from the audience at any particular point in time during the lecture. The processor 32 may be a single computer that is used to capture the VGA signal, the recording from the visible-light video camera 14 along with audio, and to determine the position of the detected infrared light. Alternatively, separate computers may be used.
Once the VGA signal and the recording from the visible-light video camera 14 are captured, the software package automatically extracts metadata as to date, time, text, and other information that can be harvested from the VGA signal. The software package may detect when each slide change occurs and may tag images of the slides with time stamps in order to synchronize the timing of the slides with the recording of the lecture. The software package may also use Optical Character Recognition (OCR) that recognizes text in the slides while tagging corresponding moments of appearance of the text through the recording of from the visible-light video camera 14.
The synchronized recording and presentation may be compiled into an integrated view on a computer or television screen for observation by a user who is remote in either time or space. Typically, the recording from the visible-light video camera 14, slides from the presentation, audio, screen captures, etc., and an XML representation of information needed to construct a viewable lecture, such as the timing of the slides, the metadata, and the names and locations of media files are stored in a "Lecture Object" format in order to archive the synchronized recording and presentation for future and/or remote use. The text for each slide, which is extracted using OCR, may be stored in a word-searchable format so that when a particular keyword is queried, the recording of the lecture is started at that point in time when the slide was shown.
Obviously, many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. The invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described within the scope of the appended claims. In addition, the reference numerals in the claims are merely for convenience and are not to be read in any way as limiting.
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A series exploring the links between two composers: Claude Debussy, who died a hundred years ago, and Ildebrando Pizzetti, who died 50 years ago and was a great admirer of the elder composer.
'I first heard Pizzetti's music a long time ago, as a child. I remember being charmed by the beauty of the harmonies, the delicacy of its texture,' writes Cédric Tiberghien, who gives three performances in this unique series. Pizzetti's music naturally tends towards drama, with expressive melodies and choral writing born of the lilting rhythms of the Italian language.
Pizzetti's compositions are rarely performed today, but this is the kind of music that leaves a lasting impression. Debussy also has this power – the ability to weave stories from a simple melody, with an innate elegance and lyricism. These are two composers separated by a generation, whose music makes the perfect pairing.


When assessing property, maintaining the integrity of a pipeline, or managing right-of-way encroachments, staying on top of the constant change from building construction, demolitions, and permits can be time-consuming and resource intensive.
ChangeFinder™ helps by providing a consolidated data set that tells you exactly what has changed rather than just overloading your team with more data to sort through. Changes can be validated right from the desktop through the use of Pictometry® imagery.
GIS polygon outlines are created for analysis of changes in size and shape.
These building outlines are compared with imagery and changes are flagged for verification and analysis.
This technology can also compare existing building outlines to new Pictometry imagery to find changes.


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Q: Plotting from a certain threshold in python I have a dataframe that has 3 columns: Date, value1, value 2. I have plotted these on a graph using matplotlib.
Is it possible in python to start plotting from a certain date? For example my dataset starts from 1950 but I want it to start plotting when date = 1990 instead of 1950.
Here is an example of my dataframe
df = pd.DataFrame({
'date': [1950, 1951, 1952, 1953,1954,1955,1956],
'value1': [23, 57, 78, 62, 80, 67, 98],
'value2': [42, 55, 45, 80, 27, 56, 87]
})

Using the above example I would like to plot from 1953 instead of 1950

A: You could filter the dataframe like this according to your criteria -
filt = df[df['date'] >= 1953]

You could them plot filt.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Can North Korea Really Attack The United States?
The rhetoric coming out of North Korea has been belligerent for some time now.
Every time we hear anything about Kim John-un, it seems that he's talking about how tough he is and how he's going to make the United States pay for our actions. If that's all for domestic consumption, that's fine; but he doesn't seem to limit it to his national news services.
Rather, he's spouting off those threats for the whole world to hear.
Just this year, Kim claimed that America's annual military exercises with South Korea were a provocation, threatening the United States with retaliation if anything went wrong. On its face, it looks like he's looking for any excuse to attack the USA, regardless of the outcome.
The very idea of a tiny nation like North Korea even threatening to attack the United States is ridiculous. North Korea has the 25th largest military in the world, compared to the United States, which tops the list as number one. Our standing military is twice their size, and in critical categories such as tanks and attack helicopters, we outnumber them by as much as 48 to 1, even though they have more artillery strength than we do.
Even South Korea has a considerably stronger military than the North does, although the North has more men in uniform. But wars are not ultimately won by bodies in uniforms, but on a country's logistical strength. While the soldier in the field is the one who must fight for his country, his ability to do so will depend on the logistical support he receives.
It's clear that Kim John-un isn't going to invade the American landmass. He doesn't have the navy to support such an attack. Of the 309 in his navy, 211 are small patrol craft. The only sizeable surface ships he has are his 3 frigates. More than anything, North Korea depends on their fleet of 70 submarines to project strength.
But submarines are a very poor platform for projecting power, as their whole idea is to remain unseen by the enemy. The only way that they can project power is either by making themselves visible and therefore vulnerable or by attacking. Of course, any attack by a submarine would be considered an act of war.
While all of North Korea's submarines are diesel-electric powered, making them much easier to detect than nuclear powered submarines, some of them are reported to have the capability of carrying one or two missiles in vertical launch tubes.
Coupled with their missile program and their nuclear program, the missile capability of roughly 40 of North Korea's navy gives them a potentially frightening capability, that of launching a nuclear strike on the United States mainland.
Video first seen on Fox News.
Of course, we don't know if the missiles that North Korea are developing are compatible with their submarines, as they have yet to launch one from a sub. So this might not be much of a threat after all. But that's not to say that there is no way whatsoever that North Korea could attack the United States of America with nuclear missiles. They've stated that as their purpose, and we can be sure that they are working to make it a reality.
Most of North Korea's missiles are mobile, meaning that they are mounted on large, military-grade vehicles. This gives them the strategic advantage of being easy to hide, especially in North Korea's mountainous terrain. But it has another tactical advantage that needs to be considered. Since the launch vehicle is all that's needed to send these missiles skywards, they can be launched off of any ship, such as a typical container ship used for general cargo.
Both the Rodong-1 and Hwasong-10 missiles are vehicle mounted and thought to have nuclear capability. While the Rodong-1 is a bit long to fit into a standard cargo container, the Hwasong-10 would fit with room left over. Building a special container, which looks like a standard shipping container and contains the necessary launch hardware and electronics would actually be easier than building a launch vehicle.
The Devastating Nuclear Threat
The North Koreans currently have the capability, technologically speaking, of attacking the United States with nuclear weapons. While they don't publish their current nuclear inventory on the internet, experts put the total at about 20 weapons. That means that North Korea currently has the ability to gut the hearts out 20 major U.S. cities in a surprise attack.
Such an attack would have a major effect on our country, especially as those 20 cities would probably be many of our biggest ones. Any city within about 600 miles of the coast could be a potential target. Other than Washington, DC, they would probably pick targets with the largest population or strategic value.
Of course, such an attack would motivate our government to retaliate in kind. Considering that we have many more nuclear weapons than they do, we could easily level their country. That would make the attack a suicide mission, and it's anyone's guess if Kim's hatred for us is strong enough for him to risk ordering a suicide mission against us.
Of course, the other, more dangerous, possibility is that Kim could order an EMP attack, rather than a conventional nuclear attack. The missiles mentioned above have a terminal altitude in a lofted trajectory of 160 km, or just shy of 100 miles. At that altitude, a nuclear weapon explosion would cause an EMP whose effects would be felt over 2/3 of the continental United States.
Should such attacks be coordinated to happen from both sides of the country at the same time, pretty much the entire continental US could go dark at once. The only states unaffected would be Alaska and Hawaii.
Since the Pacific Fleet is still headquartered at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, we would still retain some retaliatory ability against Pyongyang. But that would be of little comfort to the 320 million people who would suddenly be without electricity and everything that electricity provides for us.
This is the single biggest threat that we, as a country, face today. Iran isn't as far along in their nuclear problem as North Korea is, nor their missile program. So, while both countries would love to attack the USA, the North Koreans seem to have the advantage in the race to do so.
Not only is an EMP from North Korea the most likely threat we face today, it's also one of the most devastating possible. By comparison, a conventional nuclear attack would be minor. That conventional nuclear attack would only affect one city, killing a few million people at the most. The EMP attack I outlined above has the potential of killing up to 90% of our population.
That isn't my figure; it came from the study created by the EMP Commission. Their conclusion was that a High-altitude EMP, exploding over the central United States, would end up killing 60 to 90 percent of our population, mostly through starvation. That's clearly an unacceptable outcome for us.
Regardless of how likely you or I think such an attack is, the risk is too large to be ignored. The very fact that North Korea, a country whose leader hates us, has that capability, means that it could happen. If it did, it's unlikely that our military could stop it. At best, they could retaliate, but that won't help us here at home.
I've studied the potential effect of an EMP attack extensively. While there are some things which would survive such an attack, it is clear that the nation's power grids would be taken down. The key component here is the massive transformers, of which there are thousands. Without those transformers, which are not protected against EMP, the power can't flow.
As a country, we would be in a race against death. There are only seven manufacturers of these transformers, worldwide. Each of them is custom made and the lead time is about a year. With people dying off from starvation, the question is how many transformers could be replaced, before too many of the skilled technicians necessary to install the new ones died.
Looking at that logically, our chances aren't all that good. There is no reserve supply of transformers available, so we'd have to wait for them to be built. Most likely, the first ones to be built would go to areas that would be considered to be the most crucial to the country; substations serving Washington and a few of our largest cities. If you don't live near one of them, you can forget about getting any electricity for at least a year, if not several years.
Survival of the fittest will become survival of the most prepared. Without electrical power, our entire infrastructure will come to a grinding halt. Municipal water authorities won't be able to provide water to our cities. Trucks wouldn't be able to move merchandise. Since pretty much everything we depend on comes from somewhere else, society would be at a standstill.
Those who survive will either do so because they have a large enough stockpile to survive, they are able to produce their own food and other necessities, or they are strong enough and mean enough to take what they need from others.
Pretty much everyone else will die off. Oh, there will be a few who learn to survive, planting gardens and hunting for meat. But those will be people who live in rural areas, close to forests where game can be found. The hardest hit will be those in the cities, who not only don't have the space necessary to grow their own food, but don't have the skills needed either.
Many will move, seeking a better chance of survival. But more will die while moving, than those that find a place to start over. The mass migration from big cities to rural areas will be met with resistance, as the rural towns won't be able to feed the huge numbers of city dwellers, few of whom will bring useful skills to go with their hungry bellies.
There will be pitched battles, as those rural communities try to defend themselves from what will seem like a zombie invasion.
I'm sure that the rural communities will win the most of those battles, as they will be better armed than the invaders from the city. But their win won't be without cost, especially the cost to their souls.
Killing your fellow man for a crime no greater than to be hungry, is not something to make one feel good about themselves. But other than criminal gangs who will try to attack those rural communities, that's the biggest crime that many of those invaders will commit.
The population will probably stabilize after that first year, as those who remain are the ones who are able to feed themselves without depending on the system to bring them food. I think we can expect the majority of those people to be in rural communities, although there will be some suburbanites who survive as well. Those still alive will then begin the arduous task of rebuilding society.
The question that faces you and I is whether or not we'll be counted amongst those who survive. More than anything, that will depend on our level of preparedness. But there's another important factor that we must take into consideration. That of being able to protect ourselves from others.
The ability to protect ourselves will be a complicated one. Those "others" will consist of anything from beggars who show up at our door, to heavily armed gangs who are willing to kill us in order to get what we have. Solo survival or attempting to survive as a family won't be enough to fend off those attacks. We'll need to be part of a larger survival community, which is prepared and organized to repel those who want what we have.
With this being the potential cost, could it be that a preemptive attack against North Korea's nuclear weapons be better?
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This article has been written by Bill White for Survivopedia.
http://www.foxnews.com/world/2017/04/18/north-korean-official-vows-frequent-missile-tests-as-tensions-escalate.html
http://www.newstarget.com/2017-04-12-emp-commission-chairman-confirms-that-a-nuclear-emp-attack-could-kill-90-of-the-u-s-population.html
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Poet laureat Tracy K. Smith has a new podcast out called The Slowdown, which is due in November. The podcast is meant to be a very brief reading of poetry-only a few minutes long each day!-- intended to help us not only enjoy a poetry reading but to slow down, take a breath and just be still in the mad constant busy-ness which is life.
I can't even begin to say how much I love the idea of this podcast, but I'm also a little wary. In recent years, my mind tends to wander when I listen to poetry readings (unless it's SLAM poetry and it's very good) and it's harder to be still and silent and really contemplate anything. I know how sad that sounds; it makes me so sad to think about it. But my mind is always on, like the minds of many people I know, and it's something I'd love to slow down as this podcast suggests.
Will you be listening to the Slowdown? Do you think poetry can help ease our minds into slow stillness?