Since the turn of the year, paper bus ticket on intercity bus trips are no longer available as a payment method in Dubai. Instead, commuters are required to pay for the trip with a Nol card.
The paper ticket, which was long the only way to get on a bus to any of the other emirates, has gradually been phased out, with the last selling tickets disappearing from the counter yesterday.
"For most of this year a dual system was in place, where the commuter could pay with both the Nol card or with cash in return for a paper ticket. We started implementing this in April on Sharjah routes, and since July this was the case on all routes," Louloua Yousif Al Asmakh, Deputy Director at the Unified Automated Fare Collection Department explained.
In December, tickets were then removed from the counter station by station, the last departure points being Abu Hail and Ibn Batuta. "There are eight bus stations or departure point from where buses come and go to other emirates, and in all these stations the sale of the paper ticket has now been stopped," said Muhammad Faraz, Project Manager at the Automated Fare Collection department of RTA.


Can I create an outcome and not assign points?
Is it possible to create an outcome and not assign points to it? I have the associated rubric, with points assigned to it, but I don't want the points to show as being associated with the outcome, just the rubric. Is that possible?
Hello there, Arlen Wilcock Thank You for posting your question here in the Canvas Community. If I understand your question correctly, you would like to create an Outcome without points but still include it somewhere in your assignment rubric. If this is correct, then the answer is "yes, you can do this". I believe it was Stefanie Sanders who taught me how to do this way back when the Canvas Community site was running on a different platform. But, here are the steps (it's a bit of work...so just keep reading).
In your course, click on Outcomes.
Click on the + Outcome button.
Name your outcome in the Name this outcome textbox, and give it some descriptive text in the RCE (Rich Content Editor). The Friendly name is optional.
Below the RCE, you'll see a small 1x4 table with point values ranging from 5 down to 0. For the sake of this example, we're going to remove the "3" because we'll only need two values in the table. But, if you have more ratings that's fine.
Click on the pencil icon for the cell with 3 points, and then click on Delete.
Set the Mastery at field to the highest value you have...in our example, this will be 1.
Scroll to bottom of the screen and Save.
Next, go into your assignment because we're going to edit your rubric.
When editing your rubric, you will want to choose Find Outcome which is located just above the check-boxes at the bottom left corner of the edit rubric screen.
Find and select the Outcome that you just created. However, before you click on the Import button, make sure to uncheck the option for Use this criterion for scoring.
The end result is that the outcome will be added to the bottom of your assignment rubric, and it will still look like it's going to calculate into the final total...but it won't. When you click on the Update Rubric button, you will see that the right-most column will erase the total points possible for that row and replace it with --. The rubric will keep the rubric row totals just how you wanted them and will not add any additional points that were put in from the outcome. The only reason that we needed to have at least two cells in the outcome row (and one of them being 1 point) is so that you can use the SpeedGrader to grade assignments once students start submitting work to you. If you had two cells each with zero in them, then you'd get something that looks like this (see my illustration with the light green boxes), and that wouldn't be good.
I hope that this helps, Arlen. If I've completely missed the mark on your question, please let me know, and we can try and figure this out some more. Good luck!
Chris, this is very helpful. I appreciate the detailed instructions from you and Stefanie. One note: When I was creating the rubric and adding the outcomes, it still showed the points (even though I selected not to use for grading). That was what was bothering me, because I didn't want the students to see those points. However, when I publish/update the rubric, it does remove the points so that it doesn't appear to be adding up incorrectly.


In this program produced by Sharon Pieczenik, Erik Patel, a PhD Candidate at Cornell University, discusses his efforts to save Silky Sifaka lemurs in Madagascar. Ninety-eight percent of Madagascar's mammals, including the rare Silky Sifaka lemurs, exist nowhere else on Earth. Because of their white fur, and their amazing ability to fly through the forest, Silky Sifaka lemurs are called 'angels of the forest.' But Silkies are one of the world's top 25 most endangered primates. If Silky Sifaka lemurs were to disappear from Madagascar, then they would disappear from our world. International scientists and local Malagasy conservationists are fighting for the survival of this exceptional species and its irreplaceable habitat.
Sharon is a recent graduate of Montana State University's Science and Natural History Filmmaking department, a program which takes scientists and trains them to become wildlife filmmakers. Sharon has produced films on Polar Bears as well as wildlife in Madagascar. She wrote and produced pieces for Montana PBS, as well as shot second camera for Dateline. Sharon was a contestant on Reel Race on Discovery Channel International, where young and upcoming documentary filmmakers compete for a contract with Discovery International.


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Ira Kraus, DPM, Installed as APMA President
Ira Kraus, DPM, installed as APMA President.
Ira Kraus, DPM, was installed as the president of APMA on Sunday, March 19, by APMA Past President Michael J. King, DPM. Dr. Kraus addressed the house, emphasizing that he would like to focus his presidency on building relationships. "In a relationship, I believe you can 'make the ask,'" he said. "I assure you that I will be making the ask as often as I can to better this profession."
Dr. Kraus applauded the Governance and Management Review as demonstrating that APMA is a strong organization. "We have had good, solid leadership and made sound financial decisions," he said.
Dr. Kraus asked APMA members to support ongoing, critical initiatives to recruit students to the profession and members to the association. Dr. Kraus told delegates, "Membership retention is just as important as recruitment," and encouraged attendees to visit www.apma.org/grow to learn more and get involved in building APMA's membership.
Dr. Kraus noted APMA will continue to reinforce the values of podiatric physicians in the health-care system through development of a Qualified Clinical Data Registry.
On the legislative front, Dr. Kraus said APMA will focus on attaining legislative victories that will build momentum toward our ultimate goal: for DPMs to be defined as physicians in every aspect of the law. "I will always speak my mind until parity with our allopathic and osteopathic colleagues has been achieved."
In closing, Dr. Kraus vowed to strengthen relationships with members and give back to the profession he loves. "Remember: Together is the key!" he said. Read the full transcript of Dr. Kraus' speech in the March/April issue of APMA News.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Air pollution+
Policy initiatives+
EU air pollution policy+
The NEC directive
Air quality legislation
Industrial emissions
Legislation on vehicles and fuels
LRTAP Convention
Air pollution from ships
Do your bit!
Climate Change+
Warming is happening now
Expected effects
The greenhouse gases
How much must emissions be reduced?
EU and climate change
ACID NEWS+
Acid News Archive
Subscribe to Acid News
Policy initiatives
EU air pollution policy
ACID NEWS
No. 4 December 2020 | Download this issue
No. 4 December 2020
Ocean acidification is poorly governed
The problems associated with and the solutions needed to address OA are unique and cannot be bundled together with traditional climate change responses and measures.
The clock is ticking to achieve the 1.5°C goal of the Paris Agreement. To be clear right from the start: this goal deserves every effort that mankind can pull off. In the name of realism, this is the goal we must focus on now, given the current level of progress in reducing greenhouse gases. However, damage to marine ecosystems will not be avoided even if we reach this goal1. In fact, damage already occurs at current levels of warming, as evidenced by the bleaching of coral reefs2. This may be an inconvenient truth when our current goal is 1.5°C.
Oil and fossil gas companies Equinor, Shell and Total plan CO₂ storage with Norwegian government
Licensing of Norwegian CO2 storage for current CCS projects is under way – but important barriers remain.
Revision of the Energy Efficiency Directive for stronger climate action
A bold energy efficiency policy is the precondition for successful climate action. For the EU to reach the increased ambitions of the European Green Deal, revising the Energy Efficiency Directive is vital. AirClim supports CAN Europe's call for an increase in the level of ambition of the EU's 2030 energy savings target to at least 45% and for the target to be binding.
EU agriculture policy not in line with the Green Deal
The current reform of the Common Agricultural Policy has been criticised for failing to live up to the Green Deal. The agriculture sector has a vast impact on our ability to achieve climate targets and to limit harmful effects on the environment.
EU's methane strategy fails on agriculture
No reduction targets, no mandatory actions to cut methane emissions from agricultural farms, and no coherence with existing climate and air quality objectives are some of the reasons why the Commission's Methane Strategy is inadequate
Air quality is slowly improving
Better air quality in Europe has led to a reduction in premature deaths over the past decade, but excessive levels of hazardous tiny particles are still causing more than 400,000 premature deaths every year.
Energy solutions for low-carbon cities
Accounting for 55% of the world's population, about 75% of global CO2 emissions and 66% of global energy demand, cities have a crucial role to play in accelerating the sustainable energy transition.
Combustion-engine cars need to be phased out in Europe by 2025
With a view to limiting global warming to 1.5°C, internal-combustion-engine (diesel and petrol) cars need to be phased out in Europe by 2025; hybrid vehicles by 2028.
Global sulphur pollution decreasing
In 2019, emissions of sulphur dioxide from large point sources decreased in all of the top three emitter countries – India, Russia and China. The biggest sulphur emissions hotspot is still the Norilsk smelter in northern Russia.
Europeans call for zero emissions by 2030 in poll
EU needs to adopt ambitious and fair climate targets for 2030 and 2040.
High health costs for air pollution in cities
Air pollution costs the average European city resident €1,276 per year, according to the largest study of its kind.
37 countries say they have reduced GHGs by about 25% since 1990
The UN confirmed in October 2020 that the second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol had been ratified.
EU legislation reveals steep decline in carbon stored in European forests
Europe's worst polluters revealed
Enormous costs for CCS
"Full Chain CCS" in Norway has received finance from the government. It will cost 1.74 billion euros to capture and store CO2 from one cement factory, equivalent to €434/tonne of CO2, or about 17 times the price in European emission trading.
Emissions from ships and planes continue to rise
Air and sea transport must reduce GHG emissions at the same rate as land transport by 2040 at the latest in industrialised countries, and by 2050 global.
In Breif
IMO paves way for rising GHG emissions from shipping
By approving a proposal that will allow the shipping sector's 1 billion tonnes of annual greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to keep rising for the rest of this decade, governments have backtracked on...
Stop the discharge of washwater from scrubbers
Ships should switch to cleaner fuels rather than using scrubbers to reduce their SO₂ emissions, says the international research organisation International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (...
Shipping on its way into ETS
When the European Parliament voted on its position for the revision of the EU's monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) system for ship emissions in September, they agreed that ships must be...
Billion-dollar savings for container lines
It was expected that the new 0.5-per-cent sulphur fuels (also known as VLSFO) that became mandatory as from 1 January 2020 would be significantly more expensive than traditional high-sulphur...
New reports on ships' GHG emissions
Three new briefings relating to greenhouse gas emissions from maritime shipping were recently made available by the European Parliament:
North Sea methane leak caused by oil industry blow-out
The leak was caused by a major blow-out during an oil drilling operation 30 years ago, and is still emitting methane.
#WorldWeWant Campaign on Climate Impacts
The campaign by Climate Action Network drives collective action through the stories of communities affected by the climate crisis and serves as a clarion call for governments to address multiple...
Low Energy Demand (LED) study scenario, without using CCS:
LED is one of four illustrative model pathways in the IPCC Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C, which does not use CCS and which quantifies the impacts of digitalization, a sharing economy...
Court cases bring improved air quality
German cities taken to court for breaching air quality standards saw pollution levels drop twice as much as other cities between 2018 and 2019, according to green group Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH...
EU court rules against Italy
On 10 November, the EU Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled that Italy has failed to tackle illegally high levels of air pollution, by systematically and repeatedly breaching daily and annual limit values...
New EU infringement actions on air pollution
In its October infringements package, the European Commission announced that it will file a case at the European Court of Justice (ECJ) against the French government over its systematic failure to...
Clean air for all is achievable
Achieving clean air across the world is possible, according to a new study by IIASA.
EU consultation on Zero-Pollution Ambition
A new consultation is open from 11 November 2020 to 10 February 2021 to gather views from citizens and stakeholders on an EU action plan "Towards a Zero-Pollution Ambition for air, water and soil...
Improved air quality in Covid-19 lockdown
Improved air quality during lockdown averted tens of thousands of premature deaths, according to a study published in The Lancet Planetary Health.
15% of global Covid deaths linked to air pollution
The Federal Environment Agency (UBA) Long-term exposure to air pollution has been linked to an increased risk of dying from Covid-19 and a new study has estimated the proportion of deaths from the...
Main Report
1.5°C Pathways for Europe: Achieving the highest plausible climate ambition
Authors: Ryan Wilson, Lara Welder, Alexandre Delfosse, Jonas Hörsch, Deborah Ram
1.5°C Pathways for Europe: Country factsheets
Country fact sheets: Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain and Sweden
The science of temperature overshoots
Summary briefing. "1.5°C to survive. Evidence from the IPCC Special Reports"
Overview briefing on the IPCC Special Report on Global Warming of the 1.5°C
Overview briefing on the the IPCC Special Report on Climate Change and Land
Overview briefing on the IPCC Special Report on Ocean and Cryosphere
Nordic Food Transition
Eight case studies of forerunners in climate friendly food production.
Ocean Acidification in the Baltic Sea
Briefing 19
Phasing out fossil gas power stations in Europe by 2030
Analysing marine geoengineering technologies
Air Pollution & Climate Secretariat
Första Långgatan 18
E-mail info@airclim.org
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Symposium brings together best of Engineering, Medicine and Science
Published on the 16 Oct 2018 by Lachlan Gilbert
The work of early career biomedical researchers was showcased at the 2018 Cross-Faculty Biomedical Symposium held at Wallace Wurth late last month.
The event, which was jointly run by the School of Medical Sciences (SoMS), School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Science (BABS) and the Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering (GSBmE), was a cross-faculty multidisciplinary occasion that shone the light on research excellence.
The event threw together engineers, scientists and clinicians and had them working together to solve difficult medical problems.
Early career researchers showcased their research on a wide range of topics in medical research, including tactile sensing, forensics, molecular biology, ageing, biotechnology and decision making processes at the cellular level.
The Symposium is an annual event that has been running since 2016. This year was spearheaded by three early career researchers including Dr Natalia Castaño Rodríguez (BABS), Dr Blake Cochran (SoMS) and Dr Jelena Rnjak-Kovacina (GSBmE). Prof Kerry-Anne Rye from SoMS and heads of each school also supported the event.
The program sessions focused on career development for early career researchers which included talks by Rachel Service from Happiness Concierge discussing how to build your own brand; a talk by Michelle Bonnello from the Research Strategy Office discussing research funding opportunities and strategies for early career researchers; and a talk by Hayley Wilson from Techconnect discussing how to develop industry partnerships through government grants.
The event was attended by 130 people, including PhD students, early career researchers and senior academic and professional staff. Four prizes were awarded for best PhD and ECR posters to participants who impressed judges with the quality of their research and their ability to communicate it.
Dr Castaño Rodríguez said the initiative was very well received by the scientific community at UNSW.
"This highlights the need to continue hosting similar events in which young investigators are well supported, hard work is recognised no matter the career stage, and a collaborative and inclusive environment is fostered," she said.
Prize winners:
Best ECR poster awards – Dr Fengying Tang (GSBmE) and Dr Laurence Luu (BABS).
Best PhD poster awards – Ngee Kiat Chua (BABS) and Amrutha Patkunarajah (SoMS).


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21.1: Nuclear Structure and Stability
[ "article:topic", "showtoc:no", "Author tag:OpenStax", "authorname:openstax", "license:ccby", "Nuclear chemistry", "mass defect", "band of stability", "binding energy per nucleon", "electron volt", "magic number", "mass-energy equivalence equation", "nuclear binding energy", "nucleon", "radioactivity", "radioisotope", "strong nuclear force", "source-chem-113802" ]
Libro: Química General (OpenSTAX)
21: Química Nuclear
Contributed by Paul Flowers, Klaus Theopold & Richard Langley via OpenStax
General Chemistry at OpenStax CNX
Nuclear Binding Energy
Nuclear Stability
Skills to Develop
Describe nuclear structure in terms of protons, neutrons, and electrons
Calculate mass defect and binding energy for nuclei
Explain trends in the relative stability of nuclei
Nuclear chemistry is the study of reactions that involve changes in nuclear structure. The chapter on atoms, molecules, and ions introduced the basic idea of nuclear structure, that the nucleus of an atom is composed of protons and, with the exception of \(\ce{^1_1H}\), neutrons. Recall that the number of protons in the nucleus is called the atomic number (\(Z\)) of the element, and the sum of the number of protons and the number of neutrons is the mass number (\(A\)). Atoms with the same atomic number but different mass numbers are isotopes of the same element. When referring to a single type of nucleus, we often use the term nuclide and identify it by the notation:
\[\ce{^{A}_{Z}X} \label{Eq1}\]
\(X\) is the symbol for the element,
\(A\) is the mass number, and
\(Z\) is the atomic number.
Often a nuclide is referenced by the name of the element followed by a hyphen and the mass number. For example, \(\ce{^{14}_6C}\) is called "carbon-14."
Protons and neutrons, collectively called nucleons, are packed together tightly in a nucleus. With a radius of about 10−15 meters, a nucleus is quite small compared to the radius of the entire atom, which is about 10−10 meters. Nuclei are extremely dense compared to bulk matter, averaging \(1.8 \times 10^{14}\) grams per cubic centimeter. For example, water has a density of 1 gram per cubic centimeter, and iridium, one of the densest elements known, has a density of 22.6 g/cm3. If the earth's density were equal to the average nuclear density, the earth's radius would be only about 200 meters (earth's actual radius is approximately \(6.4 \times 10^6\) meters, 30,000 times larger). Example \(\PageIndex{1}\) demonstrates just how great nuclear densities can be in the natural world.
Example \(\PageIndex{1}\): Neutron Stars
Density of a Neutron Star Neutron stars form when the core of a very massive star undergoes gravitational collapse, causing the star's outer layers to explode in a supernova. Composed almost completely of neutrons, they are the densest-known stars in the universe, with densities comparable to the average density of an atomic nucleus. A neutron star in a faraway galaxy has a mass equal to 2.4 solar masses (1 solar mass = \(M_☉\) = mass of the sun = \(\mathrm{1.99 \times 10^{30}\; kg}\)) and a diameter of 26 km.
What is the density \(\rho\) of this neutron star?
How does this neutron star's density compare to the density of a uranium nucleus, which has a diameter of about 15 fm (1 fm = 10–15 m)?
We can treat both the neutron star and the U-235 nucleus as spheres. Then the density for both is given by:
\[\rho = \dfrac{m}{V}\]
\[V = \dfrac{4}{3} \pi r^3\]
(a) The radius of the neutron star is \(\mathrm{\dfrac{1}{2}\times 26\; km = \dfrac{1}{2} \times 2.6 \times 10^4\; m = 1.3 \times 10^4\; m}\) so the density of the neutron star is:
\[\rho=\dfrac{m}{V}=\dfrac{m}{\frac{4}{3}\pi r^3} =\mathrm{\dfrac{2.4(1.99 \times 10^{30}\;kg)}{\frac{4}{3} \pi (1.3 \times 10^4m)^3}=5.2 \times 10^{17}\;kg/m^3}\]
(b) The radius of the U-235 nucleus is \(\mathrm{\dfrac{1}{2} \times 15 \times 10^{−15}\;m=7.5 \times 10^{−15}\;m}\), so the density of the U-235 nucleus is:
\[\rho=\dfrac{m}{V}=\dfrac{m}{\frac{4}{3}\pi r^3} =\mathrm{\dfrac{235\;amu\left(\frac{1.66 \times 10^{-27}\;kg}{1\;amu}\right)}{\frac{4}{3} \pi (7.5 \times 10^{-15}m)^3}=2.2 \times 10^{17}\;kg/m^3}\]
These values are fairly similar (same order of magnitude), but the nucleus is more than twice as dense as the neutron star.
Exercise \(\PageIndex{1}\)
Find the density of a neutron star with a mass of 1.97 solar masses and a diameter of 13 km, and compare it to the density of a hydrogen nucleus, which has a diameter of 1.75 fm (\(\mathrm{1\; fm = 1 \times 10^{–15}\; m}\)).
The density of the neutron star is \(\mathrm{3.4 \times 10^{18}\; kg/m^3}\). The density of a hydrogen nucleus is \(\mathrm{6.0 \times 10^{17}\; kg/m^3}\). The neutron star is 5.7 times denser than the hydrogen nucleus.
To hold positively charged protons together in the very small volume of a nucleus requires very strong attractive forces because the positively charged protons repel one another strongly at such short distances. The force of attraction that holds the nucleus together is the strong nuclear force. (The strong force is one of the four fundamental forces that are known to exist. The others are the electromagnetic force, the gravitational force, and the nuclear weak force.) This force acts between protons, between neutrons, and between protons and neutrons. It is very different from the electrostatic force that holds negatively charged electrons around a positively charged nucleus (the attraction between opposite charges). Over distances less than 10−15 meters and within the nucleus, the strong nuclear force is much stronger than electrostatic repulsions between protons; over larger distances and outside the nucleus, it is essentially nonexistent.
As a simple example of the energy associated with the strong nuclear force, consider the helium atom composed of two protons, two neutrons, and two electrons. The total mass of these six subatomic particles may be calculated as:
\[ \underset{\Large\text{protons}}{(2 \times 1.0073\; \text{amu})} + \underset{\Large\text{neutrons}}{(2 \times 1.0087\; \text{amu})} + \underset{\Large\text{electrons}}{(2 \times 0.00055\; \text{amu})}= 4.0331\; \text{amu }\label{Eq2}\]
However, mass spectrometric measurements reveal that the mass of an \(\ce{_2^4 He}\) atom is 4.0026 amu, less than the combined masses of its six constituent subatomic particles. This difference between the calculated and experimentally measured masses is known as the mass defect of the atom. In the case of helium, the mass defect indicates a "loss" in mass of 4.0331 amu – 4.0026 amu = 0.0305 amu. The loss in mass accompanying the formation of an atom from protons, neutrons, and electrons is due to the conversion of that mass into energy that is evolved as the atom forms. The nuclear binding energy is the energy produced when the atoms' nucleons are bound together; this is also the energy needed to break a nucleus into its constituent protons and neutrons. In comparison to chemical bond energies, nuclear binding energies are vastly greater, as we will learn in this section. Consequently, the energy changes associated with nuclear reactions are vastly greater than are those for chemical reactions.
The conversion between mass and energy is most identifiably represented by the mass-energy equivalence equation as stated by Albert Einstein:
\[E=mc^2 \label{Eq3}\]
where E is energy, m is mass of the matter being converted, and c is the speed of light in a vacuum. This equation can be used to find the amount of energy that results when matter is converted into energy. Using this mass-energy equivalence equation, the nuclear binding energy of a nucleus may be calculated from its mass defect, as demonstrated in Example \(\PageIndex{2}\). A variety of units are commonly used for nuclear binding energies, including electron volts (eV), with 1 eV equaling the amount of energy necessary to the move the charge of an electron across an electric potential difference of 1 volt, making \(\mathrm{1\; eV = 1.602 \times 10^{-19}\; J}\).
Example \(\PageIndex{2}\): Calculation of Nuclear Binding Energy
Determine the binding energy for the nuclide \(\ce{^4_2 He}\) in:
joules per mole of nuclei
joules per nucleus
MeV per nucleus
The mass defect for a \(\ce{^4_2He}\) nucleus is 0.0305 amu, as shown previously. Determine the binding energy in joules per nuclide using the mass-energy equivalence equation. To accommodate the requested energy units, the mass defect must be expressed in kilograms (recall that 1 J = 1 kg m2/s2).
(a) First, express the mass defect in g/mol. This is easily done considering the numerical equivalence of atomic mass (amu) and molar mass (g/mol) that results from the definitions of the amu and mole units (refer to the previous discussion in the chapter on atoms, molecules, and ions if needed). The mass defect is therefore 0.0305 g/mol. To accommodate the units of the other terms in the mass-energy equation, the mass must be expressed in kg, since 1 J = 1 kg m2/s2. Converting grams into kilograms yields a mass defect of \(\mathrm{3.05 \times 10^{–5}\; kg/mol}\). Substituting this quantity into the mass-energy equivalence equation yields:
\[E=mc^2=\mathrm{\dfrac{3.05 \times 10^{-5}\;kg}{mol} \times \left(\dfrac{2.998 \times 10^8\;m}{s}\right)^2=2.74×10^{12}\:kg\:m^2s^{-2}mol^{-1}}\]
\[\mathrm{=2.74 \times 10^{12}\;J/mol=2.74\: TJ /mol}\]
Note that this tremendous amount of energy is associated with the conversion of a very small amount of matter (about 30 mg, roughly the mass of typical drop of water).
(b) The binding energy for a single nucleus is computed from the molar binding energy using Avogadro's number:
\[ E=\mathrm{2.74×10^{12}\:J\:mol^{-1}×\dfrac{1\: mol}{6.022×10^{23}\:nuclei}=4.55×10^{-12}\:J=4.55\: pJ}\]
(c) Recall that \(\mathrm{1\; eV = 1.602 \times 10^{-19}\; J}\). Using the binding energy computed in part (b):
\[E=\mathrm{4.55×10^{-12}\:J×\dfrac{1\: eV}{1.602×10^{-19}\:J}=2.84×10^7\:eV=28.4\: MeV}\]
What is the binding energy for the nuclide\(\ce{^{19}_9F}\) (atomic mass: 18.9984 amu) in MeV per nucleus?
148.4 MeV
Because the energy changes for breaking and forming bonds are so small compared to the energy changes for breaking or forming nuclei, the changes in mass during all ordinary chemical reactions are virtually undetectable. As described in the chapter on thermochemistry, the most energetic chemical reactions exhibit enthalpies on the order of thousands of kJ/mol, which is equivalent to mass differences in the nanogram range (10–9 g). On the other hand, nuclear binding energies are typically on the order of billions of kJ/mol, corresponding to mass differences in the milligram range (10–3 g).
A nucleus is stable if it cannot be transformed into another configuration without adding energy from the outside. Of the thousands of nuclides that exist, about 250 are stable. A plot of the number of neutrons versus the number of protons for stable nuclei reveals that the stable isotopes fall into a narrow band. This region is known as the band of stability (also called the belt, zone, or valley of stability). The straight line in Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\) represents nuclei that have a 1:1 ratio of protons to neutrons (n:p ratio). Note that the lighter stable nuclei, in general, have equal numbers of protons and neutrons. For example, nitrogen-14 has seven protons and seven neutrons. Heavier stable nuclei, however, have increasingly more neutrons than protons. For example: iron-56 has 30 neutrons and 26 protons, an n:p ratio of 1.15, whereas the stable nuclide lead-207 has 125 neutrons and 82 protons, an n:p ratio equal to 1.52. This is because larger nuclei have more proton-proton repulsions, and require larger numbers of neutrons to provide compensating strong forces to overcome these electrostatic repulsions and hold the nucleus together.
Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\): This plot shows the nuclides that are known to exist and those that are stable. The stable nuclides are indicated in blue, and the unstable nuclides are indicated in green. Note that all isotopes of elements with atomic numbers greater than 83 are unstable. The solid line is the line where n = Z.
The nuclei that are to the left or to the right of the band of stability are unstable and exhibit radioactivity. They change spontaneously (decay) into other nuclei that are either in, or closer to, the band of stability. These nuclear decay reactions convert one unstable isotope (or radioisotope) into another, more stable, isotope. We will discuss the nature and products of this radioactive decay in subsequent sections of this chapter.
Several observations may be made regarding the relationship between the stability of a nucleus and its structure. Nuclei with even numbers of protons, neutrons, or both are more likely to be stable (Table \(\PageIndex{1}\)). Nuclei with certain numbers of nucleons, known as magic numbers, are stable against nuclear decay. These numbers of protons or neutrons (2, 8, 20, 28, 50, 82, and 126) make complete shells in the nucleus. These are similar in concept to the stable electron shells observed for the noble gases. Nuclei that have magic numbers of both protons and neutrons, such as \(\ce{^4_2He}\), \(\ce{^{16}_8O}\), \(\ce{^{40}_{20}Ca}\), and \(\ce{^{208}_{82}Pb}\) and are particularly stable. These trends in nuclear stability may be rationalized by considering a quantum mechanical model of nuclear energy states analogous to that used to describe electronic states earlier in this textbook. The details of this model are beyond the scope of this chapter.
Table \(\PageIndex{1}\): Stable Nuclear Isotopes
Number of Stable Isotopes
Proton Number
Neutron Number
157 even even
53 even odd
50 odd even
5 odd odd
The relative stability of a nucleus is correlated with its binding energy per nucleon, the total binding energy for the nucleus divided by the number or nucleons in the nucleus. For instance, the binding energy for a \(\ce{^4_2He}\) nucleus is therefore:
\[\mathrm{\dfrac{28.4\; MeV}{4\; nucleons}=7.10\; MeV/nucleon} \label{Eq3a}\]
The binding energy per nucleon of a nuclide on the curve shown in Figure \(\PageIndex{2}\)
Figure \(\PageIndex{2}\): The binding energy per nucleon is largest for nuclides with mass number of approximately 56.
Example \(\PageIndex{3}\): Calculation of Binding Energy per Nucleon
The iron nuclide \(\ce{^{56}_{26}Fe}\) lies near the top of the binding energy curve (Figure \(\PageIndex{2}\)) and is one of the most stable nuclides. What is the binding energy per nucleon (in MeV) for the nuclide \(\ce{^{56}_{26}Fe}\) (atomic mass of 55.9349 amu)?
As in Example, we first determine the mass defect of the nuclide, which is the difference between the mass of 26 protons, 30 neutrons, and 26 electrons, and the observed mass of an \(\ce{^{56}_{26}Fe}\) atom:
\[\begin{align*}
\mathrm{Mass\: defect}&=\mathrm{[(26×1.0073\: amu)+(30×1.0087\: amu)+(26×0.00055\: amu)]−55.9349\: amu}\\
&=\mathrm{56.4651\: amu−55.9349\: amu}\\
&=\mathrm{0.5302\: amu}
\end{align*}\]
We next calculate the binding energy for one nucleus from the mass defect using the mass-energy equivalence equation:
E&=mc^2=\mathrm{0.5302\: amu×\dfrac{1.6605×10^{-27}\:kg}{1\: amu}×(2.998×10^8\:m/s)^2}\\
&=\mathrm{7.913×10^{−11}\:\textrm{kg⋅m}/s^2}\\
&=\mathrm{7.913×10^{−11}\:J}
We then convert the binding energy in joules per nucleus into units of MeV per nuclide:
\[\mathrm{7.913×10^{−11}\:J×\dfrac{1\: MeV}{1.602×10^{−13}\:J}=493.9\: MeV}\]
Finally, we determine the binding energy per nucleon by dividing the total nuclear binding energy by the number of nucleons in the atom:
\[\textrm{Binding energy per nucleon}=\mathrm{\dfrac{493.9\: MeV}{56}=8.820\: MeV/nucleon}\]
Note that this is almost 25% larger than the binding energy per nucleon for \(\ce{^4_2He}\).(Note also that this is the same process as in Example, but with the additional step of dividing the total nuclear binding energy by the number of nucleons.)
What is the binding energy per nucleon in \(\ce{^{19}_9F}\) (atomic mass, 18.9984 amu)?
7.810 MeV/nucleon
An atomic nucleus consists of protons and neutrons, collectively called nucleons. Although protons repel each other, the nucleus is held tightly together by a short-range, but very strong, force called the strong nuclear force. A nucleus has less mass than the total mass of its constituent nucleons. This "missing" mass is the mass defect, which has been converted into the binding energy that holds the nucleus together according to Einstein's mass-energy equivalence equation, E = mc2. Of the many nuclides that exist, only a small number are stable. Nuclides with even numbers of protons or neutrons, or those with magic numbers of nucleons, are especially likely to be stable. These stable nuclides occupy a narrow band of stability on a graph of number of protons versus number of neutrons. The binding energy per nucleon is largest for the elements with mass numbers near 56; these are the most stable nuclei.
band of stability
(also, belt of stability, zone of stability, or valley of stability) region of graph of number of protons versus number of neutrons containing stable (nonradioactive) nuclides
binding energy per nucleon
total binding energy for the nucleus divided by the number of nucleons in the nucleus
electron volt (eV)
measurement unit of nuclear binding energies, with 1 eV equaling the amount energy due to the moving an electron across an electric potential difference of 1 volt
nuclei with specific numbers of nucleons that are within the band of stability
mass defect
difference between the mass of an atom and the summed mass of its constituent subatomic particles (or the mass "lost" when nucleons are brought together to form a nucleus)
mass-energy equivalence equation
Albert Einstein's relationship showing that mass and energy are equivalent
energy lost when an atom's nucleons are bound together (or the energy needed to break a nucleus into its constituent protons and neutrons)
study of the structure of atomic nuclei and processes that change nuclear structure
nucleon
collective term for protons and neutrons in a nucleus
nuclide
nucleus of a particular isotope
phenomenon exhibited by an unstable nucleon that spontaneously undergoes change into a nucleon that is more stable; an unstable nucleon is said to be radioactive
radioisotope
isotope that is unstable and undergoes conversion into a different, more stable isotope
strong nuclear force
force of attraction between nucleons that holds a nucleus together
Paul Flowers (University of North Carolina - Pembroke), Klaus Theopold (University of Delaware) and Richard Langley (Stephen F. Austin State University) with contributing authors. Textbook content produced by OpenStax College is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 license. Download for free at http://cnx.org/contents/85abf193-2bd...a7ac8df6@9.110).
21.2: Nuclear Equations
Author tag:OpenStax
electron volt
source-chem-113802


text:
Vincent Goutal, né le  à Rennes, est un photographe français, cofondateur avec Olivia Goutal de la Galerie Goutal.

Il vit à Aix-en-Provence.

Biographie

De 1992 à 1997, il suit un enseignement scientifique et économique à l'École normale supérieure (ENS) de la rue d'Ulm, à Paris. En 1995, il rejoint à l'université Harvard (États-Unis) le département d'Art visuel dirigé par Chris Killip. Sous sa direction, il produit la série de photographies « American TV ».

En 1997, il rentre en France pour passer l'agrégation de sciences physiques et suit les cours de Christian Boltanski à l'École nationale supérieure des beaux-arts de Paris. Entre 2000 et 2009, ses photographies sont exposées au Photographic Ressource Center de Boston (États-Unis), au Musée Russe à Saint-Pétersbourg.

Il fonde la Galerie Goutal à Aix-en-Provence en 2017, avec Olivia Goutal.

En 2020, il rejoint l'Institut Polytechnique des Sciences Avancées à Lyon en tant que professeur de Physique-Chimie.

Œuvre

Toutes les séries photographiques que Vincent Goutal produit, jusqu'à Transitions (2009), utilisent le style de la photographie documentaire sociale.

Pour Impressions cubaines (2003-2005), il frappe à toutes les portes, les unes après les autres, pour photographier l'intérieur des habitations. Il ne parle pas l'espagnol et son matériel - chambre photographique, lumières, pieds - n'est pas discret, mais il parvient toujours à entrer et à photographier, sans qu'aucune parole ne soit parfois échangée.

Pour la série Transitions et Fin de Partie, Vincent Goutal écrit en collaboration avec sa partenaire Olivia Leriche des scénarios très élaborés qui décrivent des situations sociales précises. Les prises de vues sont des mises en scène compliquées où l'éclairage à la façon des films noirs des années 1950 joue un rôle particulier. Le but est d'obtenir des images presque de nature allégorique avec des stéréotypes d'une certaine réussite sociale (homme d'affaires, pilote, femmes cadres supérieurs) où, cependant, la solitude ou l'incommunicabilité avec l'autre sont apparentes.

Prix
 2016 : Photomed Awards
 2012 : Deuxième position aux Emergent Artist Award (avec Olivia Leriche)
 2011 : Nominé dans la Shortlist Sony World Photography Awards dans la catégorie Still Life
 2011 : Lauréats du Prix Militant du concours Femmes au Travail (avec Olivia Leriche)
 2011 : Lauréats de Photo d'hôtel, Photo d'auteur (avec Olivia Leriche)

Liens externes
 Site officiel
 Site d'Olivia et Vincent Goutal
 Site de la Galerie Goutal

Photographe breton
Photographe français du XXe siècle
Photographe français du XXIe siècle
Photographe plasticien
Naissance en février 1971
Naissance à Rennes
Élève de l'École normale supérieure

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Hello guys, how are you all? i am new here and i hope it would be a great fun and experience for me.
I'm good. Have you tried the Bebop line of drones yet? They're nice for beginners. Anyway, Welcome to the forum! Have a great time, and be sure to post whenever you have any sort of question. Everyone is happy to help! I personally don't have a clue about how your Jumping Sumo works, but I am great with any of the Parrot Apps, the Bebop drones, and the hydrofoil(and the rolling spider drone on top).


SIRC: a chat with Jimmi-Woods.
So how did SIRC begin?
Sirc ultimately began when I was messing around with a Korg M1 and Atari for sequencing with a good friend of mine Steve Bertschik in the early 90s. He went on to form Sonic Animation with some others and I needed to get my own gear. Decided on what I knew which was an M1 and an Atari. I then recorded some tapes and started experimenting but nothing serious.
My journey into "serious" music was when I joined the band Angler who was at the time Marcus Bridges (guitar) and Neil Boyack (guitar) then Ben Bridges joined with drums. W started doing the live circuit around Melbourne and ended up recording 3 studio albums and two live albums. We managed to wrangler 4 star reviews in rolling stone magazine and other mags. Eventually the band started to fade between rehearsals but we still manage to record every now and then.
I think one of the biggest influences would have to be the Future Sound of London. Their album Lifeforms opened up my mind to what was possible in electronic music production.
Very hard to choose a favourite track from the EP. I think why your here stands out a bit more than the others because of the half time snare and double time hats. I enjoyed writing that one from a new perspective.
Can you reveal your most prized performance weapon and why?
The Elektron RYTM would have to be the best live performance tool I have ever used. Such great sequencing and sampler power in the studio with the added live performance scenes and modes. Such control and at the same time the ability to go crazy if you want.
25th October at Tago Mago in Thornbury.


text:
La ville de Bison est le siège du comté de Perkins, dans l'État du Dakota du Sud, aux États-Unis. Selon le recensement de 2010, sa population s'élève à , estimée à  .

Histoire
Fondée en 1907, la ville est ainsi nommée par George Carr, qui y découvrit de nombreux ossements de bisons.

Démographie

Source

Notes et références

Liens externes

Town au Dakota du Sud
Siège de comté au Dakota du Sud
Comté de Perkins (Dakota du Sud)


text:
Село Головково — село у складі міського поселення Клин Клинського району Московської області Російської Федерації.

Розташування
Село Головково входить до складу міського поселення Клин, воно розташоване на Ленінградському шосе. Найближчі населені пункти Жуково, Спас-Заулок, Вельмогово, Медведково (Клинський район). Найближча залізнична станція Решетниково.

Населення
Станом на 2010 рік у селі проживало 55 людей

Примітки

Клин
Клинський район
Села Московської області


text:
Bowl-bound Gators hit by drunken driver
KAREN VOYLES Sun staff writer
A near head-on crash with a drunken driver in Texas could not keep four Gator fans — three University of Florida seniors and a recent graduate — from continuing their trek to the national championship in Arizona.
Following a detour through a hospital emergency room near Junction, Texas, Nissa Stuart, her fiance Alexis Otero and their friends Brittany Vitter and Kent Houghtaling hitched a ride with an emergency room nurse to see an eye specialist, then convinced Houghtaling's dad to drive them the rest of the way to Arizona.
"After the wreck there was no need for us to talk it over. We all wanted to keep going and so we did," said Stuart in a phone interview with The Sun from Arizona.
Otero was at the wheel of Stuart's 2005 Honda CRV when the accident happened at about 6 a.m. on Saturday, one day after the group left from Gainesville. Otero said he swerved to avoid another car being driven the wrong way on a one-way road. The other driver apparently swerved too and wound up sideswiping the Honda.
"We spun around about three times but landed on a hill so that kept us from rolling over," Stuart said. In addition to being arrested for driving drunk, the driver of the other vehicle was also arrested on an outstanding DUI warrant.
Stuart, 22, had been sleeping in the back seat of the Honda and wound up with a whiplash. Vitter, 22, was also sleeping in the back seat and doctors told her she had a fractured bone in her face.
Houghtaling, 23, the front seat passenger, was badly bruised. Otero, 24, who recently graduated with a degree in food science and human nutrition, was sent to an eye specialist 45 miles east of the hospital because so many glass fragments had found their way into his face and eyes. A nurse who had been called in to help out in the emergency room when the four arrived offered to drive Otero and his friends to the specialist.
Houghtaling's dad, Stewart Houghtaling, received his chemical engineering degree from UF in 1988 and lived less than six hours away.
The elder Houghtaling set aside his plans for the weekend to drive the four to Arizona, then decided to stay with a friend and try to scrounge up a ticket for himself. He was still ticket hunting late Sunday.
"He understood when we told him we really wanted to get to the game," Stuart said.
Stuart's mom, Inger Stuart, who lives in Inverness and is a 1978 UF graduate with a degree in public relations, said as soon as she heard that her daughter and the others were OK, she knew they would continue on to the game.
"I started going to Gator games when I was 12 and I am 50 now, so she was raised to be that way," Inger Stuart said of her daughter. "Some people may think it's crazy, but we understood it."


Today is a good day, people. I know it's Monday, but all three of my children are in school. It's rainy and gray, which means nobody is making me feel bad about not doing spring yardwork. Most importantly, I can show you the cover of DISSONANCE!
This cover, guys. I fell in love with it the minute I opened the email. And then, when an envelope from the good people at Simon and Schuster arrived with actual cover flats -- printed copies, just like you'd wrap around a hardcover -- I gasped. Because in real life, this cover shimmers. I don't know how they do it. Fairy dust, maybe, or intricate laser something-or-other. But it shimmers, and the colors glow, and everything about it, every single aspect, perfectly captures the story.
I don't think I'm spoiling anything if I tell you that music and sound make up a huge part of Del's world, as does her ability to walk between alternate realities. And Lizzy Bromley, my genius cover designer, has done an incredible job of getting that musicality and movement across in a single image, whereas I needed a whole bunch of words. I love, love, LOVE it, and I hope you do, too.
If you want more hints about the story, check out my tumblr -- there are plenty of pictures I've reblogged and tagged "Dissonance." They're not spoilers, but they've reminded me of the book in some way, so you can start to get a feel for Del's world (or worlds, really). And if you want to add the book to your Goodreads pile, I am told this is a good link for such things.
BOUND is here! Let's have a contest!
Today's the day! BOUND has been released into the wild!
I wanted to celebrate properly this time. A girl doesn't have a book come out every day, you know, much less one that concludes a trilogy. And frankly, my method of marking TANGLED's publication...left a little to be desired.
It's not glamorous, I'll give you that. But I spent all weekend without hot water, which meant no showers, no laundry, and no dishwasher. And while my love of shiny electronics is great, the ability to wash my hair whenever I want is even greater.
In all seriousness, it's an exciting day. The culmination of a lot of work by a lot of people -- my family, my friends and critique partners, my amazing agent and her team, the incredible people at KTeen, and you guys, who have read the book and cheered me on and given me something to strive for. I'm so very grateful to all of you. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: luckiest girl in the world. Thank you.
I've got all sorts of fun book stuff planned for the summer, but today, it seemed fitting to give away the entire series -- all three books and a healthy dose of swag. Of course, giveways involving the last book of a series are tricky, so if you already have a copy of TORN or TANGLED (or both) I'll swap out those books for another title I've read and loved.
All you have to do is leave a comment! Contest is open until noon CST on Thursday, June 28th, and as always, it's international.
And now I'm off to take another shower. Just because I can.


text:
Marijan Trepše (Zagreb, 25. ožujka 1897. – Zagreb, 4. listopada 1964.), hrvatski slikar, grafičar i scenograf

Studirao je u Pragu i Parizu. Sudjelovao je na svim izložbama Proljetnog salona u Zagrebu, na kojem s Uzelcem, Gecanom i Varlajem čini Grupu četvorice. Od 1925. godine je scenograf Hrvatskog državnog kazališta u Zagrebu, a bavio se i vitrajem. Njegova rana grafika i akvareli istaknuti su dio hrvatskoga likovnog ekspresionizma

Trepše, Marijan


text:
Banking Horror Picture Show
"A banking crisis replete with political machinations in a very small and previously obscure country on Europe's periphery…"
Dark music plays with a heavy and ominous drumbeat. Background picture fades to nervous citizens in front of a bank.
"The fate of the global financial system in the hands of a bunch of suspect political hacks that seem to lack any redeeming qualities…"
BANKING CRISIS IN EUROPE!!!
Soundtrack fades the ominous drumbeat and moves to shrieks and panicked cries worthy of a Hitchcock thriller.
You will forgive us for thinking that we've seen this movie before. Like Bill Murray in the movie Groundhog Day, Europe seems doomed to repeat its peripheral credit and banking crises until it gets it right. This time it was the global financial and economic powerhouse of… Cyprus??
The Modern Financial Horror Genre
A funny thing happened on the way to financial doomsday this time around. The modern horror genre of "Financial Contagion" was still dominating the cable news cycle. The financial paparazzi were still out in force, hanging on every utterance of the Troika, th at evil gang of financial apparatchiks who delay rescues for peripheral Euro countries in banking need. Things didn't quite go according to banking bailout pl an for plucky little Cyprus, however. The strategy of holding the world financial system to ransom was tried and tested, but the script changed dramatic ally for the worse when The EU demanded "bail ins" or losses by the senior bank creditors.
An Investment Spin Award?
The Cypriot government plan contemplated a "deposit tax" which would be levied on all deposits, including those that were below the insured limit. This did not go down well with bank depositors worldwide. Let me get this right, they thought, my deposits are fully insured to the €100,000 limit but then you remove 12% of my money through the artifice of a "deposit tax"? This creative plan should have won an award for "best spin" at an investor communications awards ceremony.
The global financial elites did not like it. What? they thought. Does this mean that the whole deposit insurance jig is up? We can't earn huge profits with other people's money in speculative investments and let the governments clean things up if they don't work out? We can't "wink-wink nudge-nudge" impart the horrible truth that our financial institution is de facto government guaranteed which supports our lucrative compensation structure? What's the point of going to Davos and hobnobbing at the World Economic Forum with government and regulatory elites if you can't depend on them to come through for you in your time of need?
Remember the Cypriot Alamo!
The Cypriot legislators gathered for their once in a lifetime chance to matter globally. "We don't accept that you can push us around", they voted at the start of the week. Their brave but futile legislative Alamo ended badly, however. The vote cratered the support package from the Eurozone. The talking heads of the financial media once again spun nightmares of global banking meltdown. By the end of the week, however, the Cypriot political tune had changed in tone from trumpeting defiance to abject capitulation. Risking an unsupported banking meltdown, the Cypriot political leadership threw in the towel and went cap in hand to Brussels where they unilaterally surrendered to the Eurozone Finance Ministers.
A "banking holiday", a suspension of withdrawals by depositors, was implemented. Currency controls were imposed. Financial commentators wrung their hands and pointed out that this meant Cypriot Euros differed from other Euros. They saw grievous import for other peripheral Euro countries. A "bank run" and mayhem was predicted by the talking heads. The hotter talking heads predictably predicted total global financial collapse and the end of financial life on the planet Earth as we know it.
Nothing Much Happened on the Way to Armageddon
Boy, were they wrong. Nothing much happened on the way to Cypriot financial Armageddon. It did not make for riveting cable news television. TV crews outnumbered the Cypriots waiting in front of their dodgy banks. No banking run. Not much in the way of in dividual or global financial panic. The electronic "Financial Contagion" and "Banking Panic" banners seemed a bit over the top with videos of Cypriots placidly strolling the streets.
We are not amusing ourselves at the Cypriots' expense. The citizens of Cyprus have suffered immensely. We have a point to make. An island in the Eastern Mediterranean with a population of 800,000 or so, Cyprus had become a banking haven for crooks and tax evaders. As Forbes explains:
"The size of the banking system in Cyprus was according to Standard & Poors over five times the size of the GDP estimated to be $23 billion for 2012. (Our forever maligned (U.S.) banking system is less than one times GDP) Known as a tax haven, Cyprus attracted tens of billions in foreign deposits. Russians and others set up businesses on Cyprus to take advantage of a corporate tax rate of only 10 percent as well as a perceived climate of lax oversight…. Cyprus has (now) promised to allow independent oversight of, to be implemented, anti-laundering legislation. Also, Cyprus will raise its corporate tax rates and committed to increase withholding taxes… These measures effectively end Cyprus' status as a tax haven and given its place of prominence in the economy will create, in my opinion, not a trickle effect, but a waterfall of pain." (Canso emphasis) Forbes; March 31, 2013; Life On Cyprus After The Bailout; Richard Finger.
Bailed In Rather Than Out
We think something important actually changed for the better in the financial markets in the first quarter of 2013. Yes, the financial media and the self-proclaimed financial experts went on "death watch" for the global banking system over the banking crisis in Cyprus. The results were very grim for Cypriots and their capital flighty friends.
Senior bondholders and depositors above the deposit insurance limit were "bailed in" and will receive less than the amount they invested; and
Junior bondholders and shareholders were wiped out.
The senior bondholders and uninsured depositors above the €100,000 limit at Cyprus Popular Bank are now estimated to have lost 60% of their funds. It is being wound down and merged with the larger Bank of Cyprus. The Bank of Cyprus didn't fare too well either, with a recapitalization that wiped out shareholders, junior bondholders and left senior bondholders and uninsured deposits with losses of 40%.
Positive Contagion is Afoot
"How can this be good news?" you might be asking. No, your friends at Canso have not become financial sadists. The Cypriots are not suffering without purpose. We think the politicians and financial apparatchiks have finally got it right and "positive contagion" is afoot in the global financial system.
If you're thinking that "contagion" is bad for the financial system, you're right. If a bad bank has borrowed money from a good bank, the good bank goes down with the bad: financial dominoes; KreditAnstalt and all that.
Creation from Destruction
Positive contagion in the world financial system is the opposite. What we're saying is the object lesson of letting a bad bank fail is good for the financial soul. This is Josef Schumpeter's "creative destruction".
Our faithful readers know by now that we feel that the rise of mathematical finance destabilized the global financial system and created a credit and derivative mania. The advanced mathematics of theoretical physics was used to justify high salaries for people with very little actual financial acumen. Any idiot with a spreadsheet could claim to be a trading genius. We have taken some heat for calling "financial engineers" th e "idiot savants" of the global banking industry, but as we say in the bond world, "we're still on that trade".
Bad News for the Banking Glitterati
In the 1930s, as we've said before, it took the politicians and regulators the whole decade to finish their investigations and get to the bottom of what actually happened. We think we're about half way through the current equivalent process.
The good news for global taxpayers is that, as the "tough love" Cyprus banking bail out suggests, global regulators now realize that they were set up for failure by their former banker friends. The bad news for the banking glitterati is that they now will have to work harder going forward. The rather mundane business of collecting deposits and lending them out in loans is their humble fate. Jetting about the Globe, spouting quantitative mumbo jumbo and bulking up by acquisition has gone the way of the extinct Dodo Bird.
Cozy Island Tax Havens Are Sinking
And people will be closely watching to see how well the bankers are running their banks. Even artful European tax dodgers, Russian oligarchs and Latin American drug lords now care very much about the quality of their bank. The days of cozy island offshore tax havens are well past. The regulatory crackdown is in full swing, with electronic lists of tax evaders making the rounds of national tax authorities.
In the giddy days of "financial innovation", the flow of international capital was said to be so fast and unstoppable that any attempt to intervene would be futile. The regulatory apparatchiks threw in the towel. If world capital flows are an unstoppable force, why bother? With the Cyprus "bail in" and the crackdown on offshore tax cheats by global tax authorities, the flow of capital has been slowed a trickle.
Suspension of Disbelief and Delusionary Fervor
All episodes of financial folly in history have been accompanied by a willing suspension of disbelief. People normally want to believe especially if they're excited. We're not talking about just the Credit Crisis nor the more recent Euro Debt Crisis. The Dutch tulip bulb mania, the South Seas Bubble, the Stock Market Crash of 1929, the Albanian Ponzi schemes of the 1990s, the dot.com bubble of the 1990s and all other financial speculations that we know of were injected with a delusionary fervor by significant historical change or technological advancement.
David McCullough's, "Path Between the Seas: The Creation of the Panama Canal, 1870-1914" is a wonderful historical read on the creation of the Panama Canal. Most people don't remember that Frenchman Ferdinand de Lesseps, who successfully built the Suez Canal, also tried unsuccessfully to build a canal through Panama.
It was an unmitigated disaster. Indeed, we have a bond and a share of the bankrupt Compagnie Universelle du Canal Interoceanique on the walls of our Canso offices, which are shown on this page. McCullough set the historical context for the failed venture and his words rang with investment resonance:
"The very times themselves seemed so immensely, so historically favourable. If there was one word to characterize the spirit of the moment, it was Confidence. The feeling was that the revealed powers of science, "the vast strides made in engineering and mechanical knowledge," … had brought mankind to a threshold."
Bad Ideas Can Spread Quickly
We have digressed, as we are so capable of, to the Panama Canal to make a point. Human beings are social animals. Some evolutionary anthropologists and psychologists believe that man's evolutionary adaption to social groups helped homo sapiens to outcompete his cousin Neanderthals. Our advanced communication with speech and written language probably created the conditions for technological and social advancement. Ideas could travel freely between people and even between their units of social organization: family clans, tribes, towns, cities and states. The trouble is that bad ideas spread just as fast.
Too Smart to Fail
The Glass-Steagall Act of the U.S. Congress in 1933 prohibited the combination of commercial and investment banking. This act had been a response to the 1929 stock market crash, which at the time had been attributed to excessive margin and leverage in the financial markets. In the 1990s, the Wall Street financial lobby saw Glass-Steagall as antiquated, and lobbied for its removal. They argued that, perhaps affected by the fervor of the dot.com bubble, advances in technology and risk management made them "too smart to fail". In 1999, after 66 years in effect, Congress repealed this sensible legislation.
Alan Greenspan, Robert Rubin, Larry Summers, and Timothy Geithner all argued in favour of giving the U.S. money centre banks the scale they needed to compete globally. Their ill-considered notion was that computers and modern risk management techniques made bankers smarter than their grandfathers. At the time we argued that a spreadsheet model based on modern financial techniques was a poor description of reality and things would end badly.
The Credit Crisis proved us right, as excessive leverage and margin in the banking system imploded the financial system and plunged the global economy into the worst recession since Glass-Steagall was enacted during the Great Depression. Large scale turned into "too big to fail" and governments around the world were forced to bail out their banks.
Excelling In Error
We find it interesting that JP Morgan's faith in spreadsheets was shown to be ill placed in the U.S. Senate investigation into the "London Whale" trading disaster:
"A post mortem analysis of Iksil's trades revealed that he was using Microsoft Excel excessively, making a number of formula errors that caused him to underestimate the risks of his positions." U.S. Senate Report, March 15, 2013; JPMorgan Chase Whale Trades: A Case History of Derivatives Risks and Abuses
It sounds like our constant refrain of many years that giving a banker a spreadsheet does not make him smarter than his grandfather was pretty close to the mark with Mr. Iksil. The enthusiasm for "technology" during the formative years of the internet probably caused regulators and banking executives to be swept up in the fervor of the times. A spreadsheet can be a seductive thing, the delusion of precise calculations masking the leaps of belief necessary to embrace the faulty mathematics of the "models" employed.
Sarah Gordon of the London Financial Times writes in her article "Call in the nerds – finance is no place for extroverts" of April 24, 2013 that studies show extroverts and risk seekers are attracted to the riskier areas of the financial markets. The problem is that their temperament makes them poorly suited for roles in these areas. Perhaps behavioural economics will correct the mistakes of mathematical economics but our expectations are low. The human investment condition seems to be that of a moth to the flame. The flame is so attractive that the moth cannot resist its attraction, which results in injury or even death for the moth.
Peering Around the Financial Corner
Investors have now learned the searing lesson that the bonds of sovereign nation states and financial institutions are not "riskless assets". It's a bit like bond investors from 1981 to 1996 who had so learned the lessons of high inflation that they saw inflation around every cyclical corner and demanded a very high real interest rate to compensate them for this risk. We think the next 15 years or so will have investors peering around every financial corner to identify the coming sovereign or banking crisis. Their preoccupation will make these types of crises very unlikely. This consensus knowledge will see higher real returns for these "suspect" assets.
Gold Bug Out
So where is the investment consensus putting its money? Well they had put it in commodities and gold, that financial tonic for all that ails investors in financial crisis. Gold is now in a panicked sell off, with it down 50% from its peak price. We went over some of our back issues and take some pride that we noted the dangers that awaited the headlong rush into the protection of gold. Gold Bugs we were not! Two years ago we were suspicious of the huge amount of publicity involving the shiny yellow metal. In our April 2011 Market Observer we said:
"Is it Time to Stockpile Gold Bars? Gold bugs are promoting gold as the only financial asset worthy of investment. Television and internet spam are filled with gold hawking advertisements… Although inflation has moved up recently we don't see a clear and present danger of exceeding the monetary sound barrier with a resulting inflation sonic boom."
A year ago, in our April 2012 Market Observer, we were worried about selling from institutional investors and ETFs:
"Rushing the Commodity Exits: We think a surprise could be building in the commodity markets, which have seen prices move only upwards for a number of years. An outlying scenario that is so farfetched that it appeals to us is a collapse in commodity prices… There has been a lemming like rush of institutional investors into "inflation sensitive" commodities which could reverse suddenly with price weakness. The boom in exchange traded commodity ETFs could also reverse, adding to the selling pressure. When a commodity ETF has money withdrawn, it has to sell."
What Worries Us?
We must admit to be rather impressed by our perspicacity. The trouble with being right is that it's a hard act to follow. What worries us now? Not the U.S. economy, which we think is on the mend. Not the Euro Debt Crisis, which we think is all but over. Not the U.S. stock market, which we think is in good shape.
The Canadian economy and the Canadian housing market worry us. We have covered these subjects amply in editions gone by. The other thing we point out is that interest rates could rise without an increase in inflation or economic activity. The current level of interest rates is artificially low. As we've shown in past editions of our Market Observer and Corporate Bond Letter, "normal" interest rates would be 2% higher for T-Bills and 3% higher for long term bonds. This would cause substantial carnage in the bond markets.
It seems to us that Canada, China and Australia are now paying for their sin of using excessive credit support to escape the recession in 2008-2009. This let them fiddle while the U.S. economy burned. Now the tables are turned and the U.S. looks to be exiting its post Credit Crisis slump while China and commodity producers Canada and Australia are all slowing dramatically. If you live by the commodity sword you die by the commodity sword.


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Eternal Security - Some of those 'but what about...' passages!
Home > Full Study List > Eternal Security - Some of those 'but what about...' passages!
Eternal Security - Part 2
Some of those 'but what about...' passages!
The following are questions concerning passages that some like to use to support the view that a true born again can fall away and lose their salvation. Nearly all of these questions have been taken from emails sent in to the 'Jesus Plus Nothing' website. There is no doubt that there are passages in the Bible which are difficult to understand. Quite a few of the questions mentioned below, deal with passages that have been debated for centuries. They are debated because they are difficult! In the end however, there is no middle ground that can be taken as to whether a true born-again believer can lose their salvation. It is either 'yes' or it is 'no'. Jesus is either able to keep us secure, or He isn't. I have put these questions and answers together to form this study because I am sure that others have had these, or similar questions, in their mind. For those that are interested, I would also like to recommend two books by William MacDonald that have been very useful to me - Firstly his commentary on the entire Bible, the 'Believers Bible Commentary'. And secondly a book on eternal security that he wrote called 'Once in Christ, In Christ Forever'. Both of these books are very useful resources and they cover a much wider range of questions than could be expressed in this study.
Question 1: What does 'falling away' or 'turning away' mean to a saved person?
In looking up these verses again, I found it interesting that the term 'fall away' was used by the Lord Jesus of His 11 disciples at the time of His arrest. The disciples deserted Jesus as was predicted and Peter obviously denied Jesus three times. This was said to be a 'falling away'. (see Matt 26:31-35) Obviously, this is not a loss of salvation. For the true believer it may involve a temporary period of backsliding or time of being out of fellowship with God. It is times when for one reason or another, the believer is having difficulty in his Christian walk. The believer would not however deny what they believe in their heart, even though their walk would not match what they believe. But note that even though Jesus said they would 'fall away', in the very same context, he also said to Peter that he had prayed that his faith would not fail and when he returned, to strengthen his brethren. (Luke 22:32) In other words, true believers may fall at times but their faith does not fail because Jesus intercedes for them. Concerning this intercession we are told 'hence, also, He is able to save forever those who draw near to God through Him (true salvation), since He always lives to make intercession for them.' And when do true believers need Jesus' intercession more but when they are struggling? See also John 17:6-12 concerning this intercession by Jesus for His believers. In this 'High Priestly' prayer, Jesus makes it clear that the ones that God has given Him he keeps safe! See also Rom 8:32-34 where Jesus' intercession is used as one of the points to show that we cannot be separated from the love of Christ.
In contrast to this are several other passages which speak of apostasy. The first falling away is temporary and is in regard to their walk. For a true believer however, they will never deny their faith in the Lord Jesus. And, like the true prodigal son, they will return. Apostasy however, as mentioned in Heb 6:6 and 1 Tim 4:1 amongst other verses, speaks of a falling away from the faith - an abandonment of the faith and truth of the gospel. This is prophesied to increase greatly in the end times. As Heb 6:4-7 states this is done by those who very much look like they are genuine saved believers. They have known everything that is needed to be saved; they have felt the conviction and drawing of the Holy Spirit, maybe even seen other signs that enable them to make a genuine decision. They may even go along with Christian teaching for a while... but they become apostates... prodigal pigs who turn away from it all, deny the truth and go back to the mud.
Concerning apostasy (deliberately falling away and turning from the truth of the faith) William MacDonald writes in the Believers Bible Commentary - 'Apostasy is a sin which is only committed by unbelievers, not by those who are deceived, but by those who knowingly, and wilfully and maliciously turn from the truth... Apostasy should not be confused with backsliding. A true believer may wander very far from Christ. Through sin his fellowship with God is shattered. But he can be restored to full fellowship as he confesses and forsakes his sin.'
Titus 1:10-16 also talks of those that 'turn from the truth' calling them 'empty talkers and deceivers'... those who are 'defiled and unbelieving' and it says that they profess to know God but by their deeds they deny Him.' This is no sheep of God we are talking about here. More like a wolf!
Question 2: Are the people spoken of in 2 Peter 2, who had knowledge of Jesus and then left, true believers who have now lost their salvation?
J. Vernon McGee, a well loved Bible teacher, wrote about this passage, saying that that there are prodigal sons (Luke 15) and there are prodigal pigs! (2 Pet 2:22 ) The prodigal son gave up that which his father had for him and wasted it all through sinful living. But because he was a true son, he turned, repented and came back to his father. A prodigal pig on the other hand, is one who comes into church for a season, tries to tidy himself up, yet not being truly saved and still having the nature of a pig, his desire is to return to the mud from which he came and that is exactly what he does! A prodigal son may stupidly go into the world for a season, but in his heart he will never find rest and will long for, and return, home. Where as a prodigal pig may wash all the mud off, come into church, but in his heart he won't find rest either, for the nature of a pig just loves mud and given time will return.
The people mentioned in 2 Peter 2:22 are prodigal pigs who do not have a true saving faith. We should also see the context that this whole passage is talking about. The whole chapter is concerning false teachers and false prophets. They 'forsake the right way and go astray', 'revelling in their deceptions.' Doesn't sound like sheep to me!
Question 3: ...I read the passage Hebrew 6:4-6. This has put a great fear in my heart for fear I will not be able to fully return and receive the Spirit in my life. Can you shed some light on this passage for me?
There are only three ways you can take a passage such as this.
It speaks of true Christians who fall away and lose their salvation. If that is true, then also notice that it is impossible for them to come back. (vs 6) You wrote in your question that this passage put 'great fear in your heart that you would not be able to fully return and receive the Spirit in your life.' Well, this passage goes further than that and says those who have fallen away, whoever they are, CANNOT come back.
It speaks of professing believers who are in fact, prodigal pigs. They are apostates. Those that have heard, seen, and tasted all that they need to be truly saved, but haven't become born again Christians and still having the nature of a pig within them, wilfully turn their backs on it all and return to wallow in the mud!
It is a hypothetical argument that because it is impossible to fall away, the exhortation is given to urge the Christians on to more growth and sin. My bible gives the following comparison for this type of view. It is similar to saying to a class of students 'It is impossible for a student, once enrolled in this course, to turn the clock back (which cannot be done), to start the course over. Therefore let all students go on towards deeper knowledge.
To say that it is true Christians who have lost their salvation (as no 1 does) doesn't line up with the promises in the rest of God's word for God's true sheep that salvation is secure (such as John 6:37-40, John 10:26-30, and Rom 8:33-39 especially in light of Rom 11:29 plus heaps of others). Nor does the fact that these people can't repent (if they were true Christians) line up with other scriptures such as the prodigal son, 1 John 1:9 and the overall teaching of the New Testament. So I don't believe point 1.
Point 3 doesn't really make sense to me (it being a hypothetical argument) as the whole passage seems to be giving a clear warning to someone! Its just who is the warning for?
Point 2 is what I believe, and here is why.
(vs 1-3) Firstly, at the start of the chapter, it talks about going on to maturity. Then in verse 3 it says, 'and this we will do if God permits.' So straight away it is showing the possibility that there may be some that God does not permit to go on. Whoever they are... The next verse speaks about those who God does not permit to go on because it starts with ' for in the case of those who once have been...' Now God will permit anyone to go on who desires to, but these people don't desire to, but have rejected it all! And having hardened their heart and become proud they now openly reject Christ. In other words - apostates! God opposes them because in their pride they wilfully oppose Him. But don't ever think that there are some who truly desire to come close to God whom he won't allow.
(vs 4-8) Now you probably think that they must have been true Christians for it says they were enlightened, tasted the word of God, and had partook of the Holy Spirit. But all these words can still be true the unsaved individual who has come to a knowledge of the truth, seen the power of the Holy Spirit, and felt the convicting and drawing of the Holy Spirit in their life. Judas was an extreme example of this. He knew all there was to know having followed Jesus for three years. He had experienced the Holy Spirit's power having been among the twelve sent out, two by two, to cast out demons and heal the sick. Yet he was never truly saved! Jesus own testimony about him confirms that he was not a true sheep that would be kept safe to the end. (John 17:11-12, John 13:18) None of the key words for truly saved individuals such as 'saving faith', 'eternal life', 'born again', 'redeemed by his blood', 'saved', 'salvation' are used in this passage. In 'Hebrews verse by verse', William Newell quotes R.A Torrey on this passage saying 'there is a quickening short of regeneration'. In other words, this passage speaks of the work of the Holy Spirit within the lives of these people that occurs before and leading up to salvation. But these people do not receive salvation, and openly rejecting it, they go back to the mud even if for a while they looked like the real thing!
(vs 9-10) Greater evidence of the fact that these people were not saved is given in verse 9. Things change in this verse, for now He is speaking to those truly saved (calls them BELOVED). He says that even though he speaks like this concerning THOSE types of people, He is convinced of better things concerning YOU. Things that accompany SALVATION. In other words, the people he was talking about in verses 4-8 didn't have salvation (and their open rejection testifies to this as well). But he has confidence in the beloved because they are saved! And this will show in their life through their perseverance.
In the Believers Bible Commentary, William MacDonald writes
'Some earnest Christians are troubled when they read Hebrews 6 and similar passages. Satan uses these verses especially to unsettle believers who are having physical, mental, or emotional difficulties. They fear that they have fallen away from Christ and that there is no hope of restoration. They worry that they have drifted beyond redemption's point. The fact that they are concerned about it is conclusive evidence that they are not apostates! An apostate would never have any such fears; he would brazenly repudiate Christ . If this sin of apostasy does not apply to believers, to whom then does it apply? It applies, for instance, to a young man who makes a profession of faith in Christ, but then something happens in his life. Perhaps he falls into gross immorality. Or perhaps he goes off to college and is shaken by the anti-Christian arguments of atheistic teachers. With full knowledge of the truth, he deliberately turns away from it, completely renouncing Christ, and viciously tramples on every sacred fundamental doctrine of the Christian faith. The Bible says it is impossible to restore such a one to repentance.'
Question 4: What about Hebrews 10:25-30? What is the 'wilful sin' mentioned and is this a loss of salvation?
Heb 10:25-30 is basically a parallel passage to the Heb 6 passage previously mentioned. We should always remember that Hebrews was written to Hebrews - that is, Jewish believers in the first century. That doesn't make it irrelevant for us, but we should at least read it in its first century context. For a Jew to become a Christian in the first century (and now!) basically meant the death sentence as far as their relationship with their family was concerned. They lost any right to an inheritance and came under extreme pressure (including physical persecution) to leave Christ and go back to Judaism. And that is what many did, even though for a while they looked like true believers. Read Heb 10:25-30 with this in mind. The wilful sin mentioned in verse 26 is linked to the verse before it because it starts with ' for if..'. The verse before it is speaking of leaving the assembly of believers. The wilful sin that this passage talks about is leaving Christ and going back to Judaism, which was happening. Under Judaism, and what they were going back to, there no longer remained a sacrifice for sin (vs 26) (because God didn't accept animal sacrifices anymore after Jesus had died for all sin, for all time.) But only judgement could be expected (vs 27 - it is also interesting that Hebrews was written only a couple of years before the destruction of Jerusalem, the temple, and the whole Jewish sacrificial system in 70AD by the Romans. Some believe the judgements warned about in the book of Hebrews were speaking of this event.) They had trampled the Son of God underfoot because they had said that His death wasn't enough or didn't mean anything and they would carry on with their Jewish sacrifices. This also is how you insult the Spirit of grace. You don't insult the Spirit of grace by seeing your great need of grace. But you do insult the Spirit of grace when you wilfully turn your back on that grace and go ahead with your own laws and works as an effort to have your own righteousness and means of salvation under the old Jewish laws and sacrificial system.
Like I said at the start, this passage is a parallel passage to Hebrews 6, speaking of the apostasy of those who give up their profession of faith in Christ. The warning is given of what will happen to those that do this. But like the passage in chapter 6, the writer of Hebrews doesn't leave true believers with this thought of judgement. In chapter 6, at the end of the warning he wrote: ' But, beloved, we are convinced of better things concerning you (the true believers), things that accompany salvation, though we are speaking in this way. ' After the warning in chapter 10, the writer gives the same encouragement to true believers when he writes: ' But we are not of those who shrink back to destruction (the professing believers who became apostate), but of those who have faith (true believers) to the preserving of the soul.'
Question 5: What does this mean, "Who ever has will be given more and who has not what little he has will be taken away?"
Jesus used this phrase a few times and its meaning should be read in keeping with its context. For instance, in Matt 13:11-12 it is saying that to those who have faith in Jesus (like the disciples He was talking to at the time), more light (in this case the knowledge of the parables) will be given. Where as those who don't believe (like the religious leaders He had previously been speaking to) not only will they not get anymore light, but what they have will be taken away. Hence Jesus spoke in parables so that only His true disciples would understand.
It is also used in Matt 25:29. All of Matt 25 is speaking of the judgement that will occur when Jesus returns to set up His kingdom at the end of the tribulation. All of these illustrations (the virgins, the talents, sheep and goats) are used to express what Jesus had mentioned earlier in his parables. ie that the wheat and the tares will grow together right up until the time of the harvest (the end of the age). The wheat has been planted by the Lord. The tares have been planted by Satan in the same field. There is no real separation of them until the end. So in many cases there are the false and the true within the same field. They may even look similar. See Matt 13:37-43. There will be a separation of the true and the false at the return of Jesus for His bride, and also when He returns to earth to set up His Kingdom. Matt 25, in all its different forms, shows the separation of the true believers from the false, with the false thrown into Hell. In the parable of the talents, there is a false servant. He calls Jesus 'a hard man'. He had been given abilities but had chosen not to use them. The abilities he had, and the freedom to exercise his will, would now be taken from him. He would be thrown into hell and in doing so 'the little that he had (the opportunity to believe and bear fruit in accordance with that salvation) would be taken away'. The true servants however showed the reality of their living faith in using their abilities wisely and were rewarded by entrance into the Kingdom. Whoever has (true faith) will be given more (entrance into the kingdom!)
Question 6: What does it mean that a branch that doesn't bare fruit will be cast into the fire? Does that refer to a saved person that does nothing for Christ like witnessing or being active in serving Christ?
There are at least three common, yet different interpretations that are given of this difficult verse.
1. It speaks of a saved person who has lost their salvation and is thrown into Hell.
2. It speaks of a professing Christian who, while they look like they have saving faith, prove by their life that this is not the case, and are thrown into Hell.
3. It speaks of the works of unfruitful true believers whose works are burned at the judgement seat of Christ. They themselves are saved 'but as by fire'.
My own personal view would be the second point. I don't believe the first point as 1 Cor 3:15 clearly states that for a true believer, even if their work is burned up (ie no fruit) they are still saved, but as one who just escapes through the fire. They are in Heaven, but they have no rewards. And one scripture never contradicts another. For me, the language of the verse makes it hard to believe point 3. I believe that Judas is given to us as an example of those who look very much like they are true followers of Christ, and in the vine, but they show by not abiding in Jesus that that is not the case. Jesus made it clear that Judas was not one of the ones whom He had kept safe and guarded (John 17:12 , 13:18 ), and he wasn't a true believer. He had different motives (as a lot of 'converts' do today) in following Jesus.
The Bible Knowledge Commentary says of this passage -
vs 2 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He cuts off. The phrase 'in Me' does not mean the same thing as Paul's words 'in Christ.' Here it is part of the metaphor of the Vine and seems to mean, 'every person who professes to be My disciple (a branch¥) is not necessarily a true follower.' A branch that bears no fruit is obviously dead. Therefore, like Judas, it is cut off.
Question 7: In the parable of the sower the last seed that is thrown on good soil, is that the only group that is saved?
I don't believe the primary purpose of the parable was to give a definition of who is saved. It was intended to show what leads to fruitfulness. Having said that, we can speculate of course and scripture certainly gives us clues. The first group, who had the word snatched away are said to have not come to salvation at all. (Luke 8:12) Of the second group, who 'believe' for a while, wouldn't be saved. They probably responded out of the wrong motives and when hardship comes they are out of there! I'll say more on this in the 'Hells best kept secret' question. The third group is where it gets trickier. In real life you can't just fit everyone into a nice little box. For instance, this third group believed and started to grow. The thorns, which are the worries of this life, and other worldly things, slowly grew up and choked the fruitfulness of this plant. This is a slow process of choking. Would I say this group was saved? Yes and no. In real life this group would contain real believers I believe. All of us are in a battle to not allow the things of this world to choke our fruitfulness for God. I can definitely say that I battle with this all the time. Sometimes it has very little hold on me, and at others I find myself caring about the worries and pleasures of this world. That is why I said that the purpose of this parable is not really about who is and who isn't saved. It's about what leads to fruitfulness for God's kingdom.
Question 8: What if a person continues to fail the test we are given?
Not quite sure which test you are talking about. Jesus spoke of knowing the wolves in sheep's clothing by their fruit. Other passages, such as some of Paul's letters tell us to discern the true from the false by what a person teaches. 1 John also gives a test of genuine believers (because there were many apostates around at that stage as well!) Obviously there should be outward signs of the new creation which true believers are in Christ. 1 John 3:10 speaks of love and righteousness as signs of true faith. He also shows that deserting the faith (completely) is a sign that they were never of the faith to begin with!
1 John 2:19 'They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us.'
If a 'believer' continued to fail these tests I would agree with John that they hadn't been saved to begin with. But we should be careful not to shoot our own wounded!
Question 9: "Faith with out works is dead..." What is dead faith to someone who is saved?
By its very definition, someone who is saved cannot have 'dead faith'! If their faith has saved them then it is alive! James is speaking about mere belief (as indicated in verse 2:19 ), not a true saving faith. Someone may have a belief, or head knowledge that certain facts are true without giving themselves over to that belief. I may believe that a branch would hold me, but faith is walking out on the branch. In an extreme example, even Satanists may believe that Jesus is God, but they don't have any intention of submitting themselves to Him! A true faith submits itself to that belief and this will result in action down the track as James says. Abraham is the example of this used by both Paul and James. God spoke to Abraham and said that He would make Abraham's descendants like the stars. From a natural point of view this was impossible as Sarah was well past the point of being able to bear a child. But Abraham place his faith in what God had said and this was accredited to him as righteousness. This is the part Paul emphasises the most. Salvation by grace, through faith and definitely not by works! James emphasises the second part of it in that Abraham, some time later, proved the validity of his faith by his willingness to offer his son Isaac up as a sacrifice. Works are the result of a genuine salvation, not the means of obtaining it.
Question 10: In "Hell's Best Kept Secret" by Ray Comfort he gives an illustration of a man on an airplane. The first man is told that if he puts on the parachute his ride would be better. After a while, when others are laughing and he realizes it doesn't make it better at all, he takes it off. Does this mean someone can get saved then decide they don't want to be saved?
Nope. I have enjoyed Ray Comforts books and I know that this is not what he is saying. He used this illustration to show the stupidity of our evangelistic methods. He is saying that we invite people to come to Jesus because it will make your life easy and so they do! Then when they find that it isn't easy they give up their belief! But what did they give up? Not a true faith but a 'belief' in a stupid gospel invitation that makes Jesus not to be Lord or Saviour but some kind of Father Christmas! They have placed their 'faith' in a much distorted truth that doesn't prove true. These 'converts' are the shallow soil converts spoken of in the parable of the sower. They are shallow because they have no conviction of sin, and no real awareness of their need of a saviour. They just 'try' Jesus just as easy as they would 'try' something else. When difficulty comes the shallowness of their root gives them away because they are not seen anymore. The focus of Ray Comforts books is to use the law in evangelism to convict the sinner of their sin. Once they see their sin, is doesn't take long for them to look for a saviour and true faith results! Even in 'Hells Best kept Secret', in a chapter called 'Who are the backsliders?', Ray Comfort writes
'A genuine conversion will stand no matter how great the adversity. "Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down" Psalm 37:24'
And to that quote I would add the rest of that verse, as it tells us why the true believer is never utterly cast down - 'Because the Lord is the one who holds his hand.'
Onesimus and You: From Slavery to Sonship
Eternal Security Bible Study - Why salvation is secure
The Believer's Position in Christ Bible Study
The True Nature of Amazing Grace!
Ephesians - Sitting And Walking
Simple Thoughts on the Love of God