Zoë graduated from Bristol University, UK in 1998, then spent four years in rural practice in Wales and thoroughly enjoyed it. In 2003 Zoë decided to specialise in small animal practice which gave her more time to spend on her love of surgery. She enjoys all aspects of small animal work and has a keen interest in dentistry.
Zoë first visited New Zealand in 2009 and spent six months exploring from windswept mountain tops to beautiful beaches, from Cape Reinga to Stewart Island. She loved NZ and her adventures here so much that she returned the following summer and then decided to make it a permanent move settling in Christchurch in 2012. Zoë is now delighted to be joining the team "At The Vets".
Zoë has two great little energetic terriers called Trigger and Scruffy who are very fit and active for their 15 years and have explored all the highest peaks in the UK with her. Zoë loves tramping and many other outdoor activities including motorcycling and mountain biking.


This year the Rock Springs Chamber of Commerce will start accepting applications for the trees starting November 1, 2018 at 8:00am. Most of the trees that are along Dewar Dr. and Elk St. will be available for adoption. The Adopt-A-Tree program has been a highlight of the holiday season for many years.
The Adopt-A-Tree program is a wonderful Rock Springs tradition that takes place during the Holiday Season. Businesses, families, groups and individuals decorate trees along Dewar Drive and Elk Street to guarantee Rock Springs looks festive! The tree adoption process begins the first business day in November and trees sell out every year. In 2016, 146 trees were adopted & decorated!
The Rock Springs Chamber does NOT accept any reservations in advance or over the phone. Trees are sold on a first come-first serve basis, at $35 each, with a limit of 2 trees per business. Trees can be paid for by cash, check, Visa or Mastercard. Trees will be identified by a numbered stake by November 1st.


Find out how to reach your Clerk of Court and other offices and representatives in Hertford county.
Find out more information about the Hertford County Courthouse.
Find Local Rules and Forms that provide procedures and guidelines for courts in Hertford County.
Find out more about paying court fees, fines and traffic citation in Hertford County.
For birth, death, marriage, and other public records, please reach out to Hertford County's Register of Deeds.


The top 26 Siena Francis House – All of the photos are posted by Kathleen Briggs in Siena Francis House. A selection of additional information and photos are also available in another Siena Francis House group. The creator will update the gallery at the Siena Francis House of our blog. The final words we want to say is the pictures put up in the Siena Francis House is planned to give you far more suggestions.
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How many skirts do you have?
She tore her skirt on the nail.
She smoothed down the skirt of her dress.
She made a neat row of stitches along the edge of her skirt.
You don't want to walk out with your skirt hem tucked or riding up the pannier.
There is a rubber skirt round the bottom of a hovercraft.
The road skirted the woods.
We decided to skirt round the deep jungle.
The speech was most disappointing; it skirted round all the main questions.
I tried to squeeze the water out of my soaking skirt.
I valued the skirt at ten yuan .
She had on a dark skirt and a grey pullover.
This is a going skirt at present.
She wore a blouse and skirt.
The styles of these skirts are all on the go.
The rubber skirts round the bottom of a hovercraft were destroyed.
He lives on the skirts of the city.
There is a spot on the skirts of the tablecloth.
We skirted along one side of the valley.
As he walked through the lobby, he skirted a group of ladies.
We skirted the field and crossed the bridge.
Fishing villages skirt the shore.
Trees skirted the country estate.
The old footpath skirts the village.
We skirted around the enemy forces and entered the mountains.
The ship skirted around submerged obstacles.
You can't skirt round the matter, you'll have to give the workers a satisfactory answer.
The speech was most disappointing, it skirted round all the main questions.
In his speech he seems to skirt around all the main problems.
Let's not skirt round the awkward problem.
误 Mary lives on the skirt of the town.
正 Mary lives on the skirts of the town.


If you are in Canberra and want to hire a bobcat then you definitely need to speak with Jim's Diggers. Operating a bobcat can be relatively easy but operating it effectively and safely is a real skill. All of their operators are fully licensed, trained and insured which leaves you with peace of mind.
Jim's Diggers hires bobcat and dingo diggers in Canberra and its metropolitan area and has an outlet in the area of Queanbeyan.
Our operators are punctual, expert and friendly understanding that it is more than just digging holes, in fact they treat your home as if it were their own. Our operators completely finish all work efficiently and expertly by having all the tools to be sure you receive a complete and extensive service. After the work is finished cleaning up the work site is another thing that sets us apart from the rest.
Being part of Jim's Group of franchisees they are guaranteed a vast support system which permits them to provide the best possible customer support, whilst having the versatility and flexibility to work their own personal bobcat hire Canberra business.
Be sure to look at our bobcat hire page for more information or call us today on 131 546 or book online to arrange a no obligation free quote.


text:
Q: Javascript regex match the last occurance Question:
Using regular expressions in javascript, if I have a string that contains zero or more newlines or carriage returns, what is the best way to tell how many characters are after the last newline or carriage return?
Attempts:
I've tried various regular expressions, but with no luck. Say I have the string:
"_\nHELLO\nWORLD\nSALUTATIONS"
In normal output, it looks like this:
_
HELLO
WORLD
SALUTATIONS
Shouldn't /^(\r|\n){1}/g find a string globally g, with only one occurance {1} of a return or newline (\r|\n), or, in this case, "SALUTATIONS"? Instead no match is found.

A: How about not using a regex
string.split(/\r|\n/).pop().length;

That splits the string on newlines, pops off the last one and get's the number of characters with length

A: No, your regex will find CRs/NLs only at the very beginning of the string, because you have an ^  anchor right there.
To find the last one, you rather will want to anchor your expression at the end of the string:
/[\r\n]([^\r\n]*)$/

By matching that, you will get all the characters after the last linebreak in the first capturing group.

A: Try this:
string.length - string.lastIndexOf('\n') - 1

Or if you really need to also check \r,
string.length - string.search(/[\n\r].*?$/) - 1

A: A short and simple way would be this
console.log(text.match(/.*$/)[0].length);

$ marks the end of the string and by default . does not match line breaks, so the matched result is exactly the last line.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Sociology is the discipline that explores how people live in society, in their families, in groups, and in institutions. This field of study also emphasizes the values and beliefs of a people. SOC 110: Introduction to Sociology is a general education course. Other upper-level courses in sociology deepen and broaden a student's understanding of present day society.


text:
Q: how to understand onOptionItemSeleted() I am fairly new to android.Recently I have been following this tutorial about making a navigation drawer for my app. Most of it seem pretty straightforward(http://blog.teamtreehouse.com/add-navigation-drawer-android). However,I am confused about what role onOptionItemSelected plays in the activity.
if (mDrawerToggle.onOptionsItemSelected(item)) {return true;}
if I remove the code above , the navigation drawer won't show when I click the toggle icon, and I am curious what is happening behind the scene when I include it and click on the drawer toggle icon.
Also what is the difference between returning false and true...I tried it out but nothing changed.

A: onOptionsItemSelected() is a method found to return menu item to perform action on it, if somehow its triggered.
check out the documentation for more info.

now why the drewer is not opening when you remove this method?

because it does open it.

how!

as i mentioned earlier this method returned a menu item that you have selected in this case the drawer icon which is located on the action bar.

what is the difference between returning false and true?

here it does perform the action regardless the returned data, it actually doesn't use the returned value so that won't effect the action that have been taken.
hope this will help.


text:
»Blake Abbe leaving K-State
Submitted by Tara Fronce
Blake Abbe, assistant vice president for university risk and compliance officer, resigned from Kansas State University on Dec. 21 to become the chief compliance and risk officer at Baylor University. Abbe joined K-State in March 2018 as the university's first assistant vice president for university risk and compliance officer.
Abbe was instrumental in coordinating the insurance claim process following the fire in Hale Library. He also developed an enterprise risk and compliance framework and was involved with several task forces to improve university training and international travel.
"We thank Blake for his service to Kansas State University and wish him all the best in his new position," said Cindy Bontrager, vice president for administration and finance. "Blake came to K-State at a critical time with the Hale Library fire and we appreciate his efforts to coordinate the complex insurance process."
A national search for a new assistant vice president for university risk and compliance officer will be initiated in January. Until a replacement is hired, insurance- and travel insurance-related questions should be directed to Jim Bach at jbach@k-state.edu, research-related risk and compliance questions should be directed to Cheryl Doerr at 785-532-3224 and all other risk- and compliance-related questions should be directed to the Office of General Counsel at 785-532-5730. Any other questions or concerns can be directed to the Office of the Vice President for Administration and Finance at 785-532-6226.
Office of the Provost invites nominations for six university awards
Kansas State Polytechnic offers free drone tips webinar and live question-and-answer session
Safe Zone advanced training to focus on stalking in technology
Personnel changes
Hazardous Waste Awareness Training dates for spring 2019
Managing Difficult Conversations session offered Jan. 17

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The development of mobile applications for any device operated by Android or iOS is the central focus of our division, Promwad Mobile.
We are prepared to implement your application's entire development cycle — concept generation, market survey, architecture development, user interface design, program code for Android and iOS and comprehensive testing - everything you need to successfully launch a new product on App Store and Google Play, including support and maintenance, as well as further development.
Promwad Mobile team is uniquely qualified. We have developed applications for smartphones and tablets, as well as software for mobile readers, set-top boxes, vehicle electronics, portable multimedia, and navigation devices. Using our expertise, you can implement the most daring ideas in software development. For example, you can integrate a smartphone with mobile gadgets, as well as home or vehicle electronics. We know how to handle any device operated by Android or iOS.
We have worked successfully with companies like Marvell Technology Group, CR2, LitRes, Content Master, InnovaGears, Tessloff Verlag, ROSMAN Group, and JTGroup.
Our customers can count on NDA compliance, transparent cooperation, and up-to-date information on the project at any stage.
You can find more information on Promwad Mobile services plus a portfolio describing our developed mobile applications at promwadmobile.com.
Looking for a professional team for custom mobile app development? Contact us.


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legal junkies
The Community for Legal Questions, Answers & Solutions
Court FAQs
Home/Home/Uncategorized/A politician proposed a seat-belt law for dogs
A politician proposed a seat-belt law for dogs
January 24, 2017 UncategorizedLeave a commentlegaljunkies
A seat belt, also known as a safety belt, is a vehicle safety device designed to secure the occupant of a vehicle against harmful movement that may result during a collision or a sudden stop. A seat belt functions to reduce the likelihood of death or serious injury in a traffic collision by reducing the force of secondary impacts with interior strike hazards, by keeping occupants positioned correctly for maximum effectiveness of the airbag (if equipped) and by preventing occupants being ejected from the vehicle in a crash or if the vehicle rolls over.
When in motion, the driver and passengers are travelling at the same speed as the car. If the car suddenly stops or crashes, the driver and passengers continue at the same speed the car was going before it stopped. A seatbelt applies an opposing force to the driver and passengers to prevent them from falling out or making contact with the interior of the car. Seatbelts are considered as Primary Restraint Systems (PRS), because of their vital role in occupant safety.
An analysis conducted in the United States in 1984 compared a variety of seat belt types alone and in combination with air bags.
The range of fatality reduction for front seat passengers was broad, from 20% to 55%, as was the range of major injury, from 25% to 60%. More recently, the CDC has summarized this data by stating "seat belts reduce serious crash-related injuries and deaths by about half."Most seatbelt malfunctions are as a result of there being too much slack in the seatbelt at the time of the accident.
Law Takes a Holiday
The Beginnings of Modern Law
Law allows young as 13 to get married
Homelessness Reduction Bill to become law
Legal Solutions Made Easy
Case Wants Law Strengthened
Proposed law could put cancer research at risk
12 Law Schools
A law school (also known as a law centre or college of law) is an institution specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for becoming a lawyer within a given jurisdiction. In Brazil e.g. formal legal …
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Incorrect blog reports claimed this week that two LDS Church-owned companies are part of the leaked Panama Papers scandal. Those reports are false. The two companies have names similar to LDS organizations but are unrelated.
Poll on Formality at Church: Should Church Members Always Call Each Other Brother and Sister?


On Tuesday, 24 November, Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway will be opening the world's first osmotic power plant at Tofte, outside Oslo.
The plant generates power by exploiting the energy available when fresh water and seawater are mixed. Osmotic power is a renewable and emissions-free energy source that Statkraft has been researching into for 10 years and that will be capable of making a substantial global contribution to eco-friendly power production.
"In an era of major climate change and an increasing need for clean energy, we are proud to be presenting a renewable energy source which has never been harnessed until now. We are also most grateful that the Crown Princess wishes to lend her support to this milestone in our development of osmotic power", says Statkraft CEO, Bård Mikkelsen.
The prototype that will be opened at Tofte on 24 November has been in development for more than a year. The plant will have a limited production capacity and is intended primarily for testing and development purposes. The aim is to be capable of constructing a commercial osmotic power plant within a few years' time.
The global potential of osmotic power is estimated to be 1,600-1,700 TWh per annum, equivalent to 50 percent of the EU's total power production. Osmotic power plants can, in principle, be located wherever fresh water runs into the sea; they produce no noise or polluting emissions and they can be integrated into existing industrial zones, for example, in the basements of industrial buildings.
Statkraft has been researching osmotic power since 1997 and has developed this prototype in cooperation with R&D organisations from many countries. The project has attracted a lot of interest both in Norway and abroad and a number of foreign guests are expected to attend the opening.


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Chemical, pharmaceutical and bio-science
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Mining and DGOJP
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Textile, garment, shoes, leather and textile services
Global Framework Agreements
Action on textile and garment industry
Clean up shipbreaking
Ratify ILO C176
STOP Precarious Work
Shell campaign
Union building
White-collar workers
Global Worker No2 2020
Geneva head office
The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS)
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Egypt – Speedy return to democracy is a must
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18 July, 2013Egypt is currently deeply divided and the path forward is profoundly uncertain. IndustriALL Global Union firmly believes that Egypt's military must quickly get out of politics and allow a speedy return to democracy under a constitution that ensures the fundamental rights of all.
Following mass protests which began on 30 June and the biggest demonstrations in Egypt's history with more than 30 million citizens taking to the streets, Egypt's military intervened on 3 July to remove the elected President Mohamed Morsi from office with promises of a new political roadmap and a quick transition back to a civilian government.
While Western news sources largely describe events as a military coup, secular democratic forces within the country, including the independent trade unions, have loudly proclaimed it to be a popular uprising.
Along with the severe economic and financial situation, the new government is faced with an increasingly alarming security situation as they try to steer the country towards a quick return to civilian rule.
Despite this there are some signs which have potential to accelerate a return to democratic rule. The country's newly-appointed Cabinet has been recently sworn in. The global union movement considers encouraging the appointment of Kamal Abu Aita, the former president of the Egyptian Federation of Independent Trade Unions (EFITU) as Labour and Manpower Minister. Another important labour-related Ministry of Solidarity and Social Protection has been given to well-known Ahmad El-Borei. There is a hope in the union movement that these two appointments, amongst 33 ministerial positions announced should be a signal to combat mounting poverty and unemployment.
Meanwhile in violence ridden North Sinai province at least three people were killed and 17 wounded on 14 July when suspected militants used rocket-propelled grenades to attack a bus carrying workers employed at a cement factory. The bus was fired on in the city of El Arish. The attack has been strongly criticized by the independent trade union movement and related organisations.
"Egypt is a critically important country in the region," said IndustriALL Global Union's General Secretary Jyrki Raina:
We are very much looking forward to a peaceful and democratic environment whereby citizens, particularly workers can freely exercise their fundamental rights. Our global union will continue to support democratic, free and independent trade unions in the country as the backbone of the civil society.
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IndustriALL Global Union's affiliates represent over 50 million workers in 140 countries in the mining, energy and manufacturing sectors.
We take up the fight for better working conditions and trade union rights around the world.
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11 Apr 2019 | 10:50 - 11:10 |
What is work and what is human in a superhuman future
Innovation Stage
How does the future work the mechanics of change? What is the future of human work and our interactions with machines and each other? Is industrialization of space and 3D printed organs really a "thing"? What are the methods to innovate desirable futures? And most importantly; Who is acceptable for the future? What it means to be an innovator is transforming faster than before, deeply rooted in a space of challenges and promises between cutting edge tech and humanism. In an exponential and converging digital-fueled future, we design a relationship, a behavior, that the product will follow. How do we derive a strategy, what comes before, what narratives, and who make them it in your enterprise? Technology is the human evolution, the "Humachine", a symbiosis between human creativity and empathy and machine intelligence, this opens new worlds for our imagination "What is human, and what is work in a superhuman future?"
Martin Wezowski
Chief Designer and Futurist, SAP Technology & Innovation, Strategy, SAP


Note / 2015.08.19: Over time I have received any number of comments about the need to be suspect of government, etc. While that may be true, and while the bogus quote attributed to George Washington supports the 'never trust government' mindset: the bogus quote in the meme is not what George Washington said.
This quote implies that A) Washington was talking about individuals being armed, and B) that they were to be wary of their own government.
Washington did not make the above bogus quote.
Supposedly Washington gave this bogus quote in his first address to Congress — Washington's speech is readily available for reading. No such quote or similar quote exists. However, in addressing Congress, Washington asked for the native manufacturing of arms and relevant materials ("manufactories"). See his full quote below.
— First Annual Address, to both House of Congress, January 8th, 1790.
Kudos to my FB friend Bob Morehead for catching the misquote and doing the factcheck.
Alexis de Tocqueville Quotes – How many still apply to 'America 2012'?
Alexis-Charles-Henri Clérel de Tocqueville, or known to most Americans as just Alexis de Tocqueville, wrote Democracy in America (1835) after his travels in the United States.
de Tocqueville saw democracy as an equation that balanced liberty and equality, concern for the individual as well as the community.
How many of the quotes below from de Tocqueville's early 1830's observations about America and Americans still represent our country today?
You can download Alexis de Tocqueville's Democracy in America from Google Books for free.
Each day a variety of Quotes of the Day arrive in my emailbox.
Am not so sure that much thought is given to some of these quotes. Or perhaps what seemed like a great quote once upon a time has now become tarnished with written history.
No, no he didn't and no we didn't.
Yes, we did rebuild our defenses. Yes, 'lower taxes' happened. However it is most unfortunate that the 'cut spending' part never came about.
Yes, we cut social spending. And it was the Reagan Administration that proposed declaring ketchup a vegetable in school lunches long before the Obama Administration tried to declare pizza a vegetable — personally I think pizza as a vegetable is my kind of vegetable.
Defense spending of the 1980s knew no limits. And we did nothing to pay for it. By 1984 and early 1985 so many Republicans were alarmed that they tried to box Reagan in on the 1985 and 1986 budgets. Instead they bought the promise of trust me, it will all work out. (Reagan later said that he regretted all the red ink in his authorized biography by Lou Cannon).
The theory was that if we cut taxes and the economy grew then magic would happen: so much money would come in via taxes on the new economic growth that balance would be achieved. George H. Bush called this voodoo economics back in 1980 when campaigning against Reagan. Yet, Bush, when faced with his own balancing act, chose to raise taxes — and paid for it because in a moment of insanity had declared 'Read my lips: no new taxes' which he was punished for.
Anway, the grand Reagan/Laffer curve didn't work out as predicted and Reagan gave us the basis for our national debt today, leaving office with $2.7 trillion in red ink — even though he blasted Carter for leaving us barely $300 billion in debt, which Reagan claimed he will pay off completely by 1983. Oh, well.
It was not my intent to get off on a tangent about Reagan. I like Reagan. I was a 1980 Reagan campaign staffer and he will always be Saint Ronnie to me. I love the Gipper. It is just that Reagan was human and whomever is editor of these Quotes of the Day should either read them before posting or … anyway, oh, well. Whatever.
BTW – Many conservatives hate Reagan's biography. Seems that having warts and being human is not what we want to know about Reagan. Reagan himself, and his wife Nancy Reagan, however seem to have had no problem with the biography. One of Reagan's strengths was pragmatism and being a realist about most things.
Zen – When is the regulation of truth misplaced?
Thanks to Shane Brooks for bringing this quote to my attention. Shane always finds the goodies.
Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, OM, FRS (18 May 1872 – 2 February 1970), was a British philosopher, logician, mathematician, historian, and social critic.


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Q: Is minimizing squared error equivalent to minimizing absolute error? Why squared error is more popular than the latter? When we conduct linear regression $y=ax+b$ to fit a bunch of data points $(x_1,y_1),(x_2,y_2),...,(x_n,y_n)$, the classic approach minimizes the squared error. I have long been puzzled by a question that will minimizing the squared error yield the same result as minimizing the absolute error? If not, why minimizing squared error is better? Is there any reason other than "the objective function is differentiable"?
Squared error is also widely used to evaluate model performance, but absolute error is less popular. Why squared error is more commonly used than the absolute error? If taking derivatives is not involved, calculating absolute error is as easy as calculating squared error, then why squared error is so prevalent? Is there any unique advantage that can explain its prevalence?
Thank you.

A: Minimizing square errors (MSE) is definitely not the same as minimizing absolute deviations (MAD) of errors. MSE provides the mean response of $y$ conditioned on $x$, while MAD provides the median response of $y$ conditioned on $x$.
Historically, Laplace originally considered the maximum observed error as a measure of the correctness of a model. He soon moved to considering MAD instead. Due to his inability to exact solving both situations, he soon considered the differential MSE. Himself and Gauss (seemingly concurrently) derived the normal equations, a closed-form solution for this problem. Nowadays, solving the MAD is relatively easy by means of linear programming. As it is well known, however, linear programming does not have a closed-form solution.
From an optimization perspective, both correspond to convex functions. However, MSE is differentiable, thus, allowing for gradient-based methods, much efficient than their non-differentiable counterpart. MAD is not differentiable at $x=0$.
A further theoretical reason is that, in a bayesian setting, when assuming uniform priors of the model parameters, MSE yields normal distributed errors, which has been taken as a proof of correctness of the method. Theorists like the normal distribution because they believed it is an empirical fact, while experimentals like it because they believe it a theoretical result.
A final reason of why MSE may have had the wide acceptance it has is that it is based on the euclidean distance (in fact it is a solution of the projection problem on an euclidean banach space) which is extremely intuitive given our geometrical reality.

A: In theory you could use any kind of loss function. The absolute and the squared loss functions just happen to be the most popular and the most intuitive loss functions. According to this wikipedia entry,

A common example involves estimating "location." Under typical statistical assumptions, the mean or average is the statistic for estimating location that minimizes the expected loss experienced under the squared-error loss function, while the median is the estimator that minimizes expected loss experienced under the absolute-difference loss function. Still different estimators would be optimal under other, less common circumstances.

As also explained in the wikipedia entry, the choice of the loss functions depends on how do you value deviations from your targeted object. If all deviations are equally bad  for you no matter their sign, then you could use the absolute loss function. If deviations become worse for you the farther away you are from the optimum and you don't care about whether the deviation is positive or negative, then the squared loss function is your easiest choice. But if none of the above definitions of loss fit your problem at hand, because e.g. small deviations are worse for you than big deviations, then you can choose a different loss function and try to solve the minimizing problem. However the statistical properties of your solution might be hard to assess.

A: As an alternative explanation, consider the following intuition:
When minimizing an error, we must decide how to penalize these errors. Indeed, the most straightforward approach to penalizing errors would be to use a linearly proportional penalty function. With such a function, each deviation from the mean is given a proportional corresponding error. Twice as far from the mean would therefore result in twice the penalty.
The more common approach is to consider a squared proportional relationship between deviations from the mean and the corresponding penalty. This will make sure that the further you are away from the mean, the proportionally more you will be penalized. Using this penalty function, outliers (far away from the mean) are deemed proportionally more informative than observations near the mean.
To give a visualisation of this, you can simply plot the penalty functions:

Now especially when considering the estimation of regressions (e.g. OLS), different penalty functions will yield different results. Using the linearly proportional penalty function, the regression will assign less weight to outliers than when using the squared proportional penalty function. The Median Absolute Deviation (MAD) is therefore known to be a more robust estimator. In general, it is therefore the case that a robust estimator fits most of the data points well but 'ignores' outliers. A least squares fit, in comparison, is pulled more towards the outliers. Here is a visualisation for comparison:

Now even though OLS is pretty much the standard, different penalty functions are most certainly in use as well. As an example, you can take a look at Matlab's robustfit function which allows you to choose a different penalty (also called 'weight') function for your regression. The penalty functions include andrews, bisquare, cauchy, fair, huber, logistic, ols, talwar and welsch. Their corresponding expressions can be found on the website as well.
I hope that helps you in getting a bit more intuition for penalty functions :)
Update
If you have Matlab, I can recommend playing with Matlab's robustdemo, which was built specifically for the comparison of ordinary least squares to robust regression:

The demo allows you to drag individual points and immediately see the impact on both ordinary least squares and robust regression (which is perfect for teaching purposes!).

A: As another answer has explained, minimizing squared error is not the same as minimizing absolute error.
The reason minimizing squared error is preferred is because it prevents large errors better.
Say your empolyer's payroll department accidentally pays each of a total of ten employees \$50 less than required. That's an absolute error of \$500. It's also an absolute error of \$500 if the department pays just one employee \$500 less. But it terms of squared error, it's 25000 versus 250000.
It's not always better to use squared error. If you have a data set with an extreme outlier due to a data acquisition error, minimizing squared error will pull the fit towards the extreme outlier much more than minimizing absolute error. That being said, it's -usually- better to use squared error.

A: Short answers

*

*nope

*the mean has more interesting statistical properties than the median


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September 30 - Aggregata octopiana
This year, a particular octopus named Paul achieved fame and stardom due to some of his famous shenanigans relating to the World Cup. However, even an invertebrate celebrity such as Paul is not without a parasitic nemesis. Aggregata octopiana is a species of single-celled parasite that infects the common octopus, forming cysts in various parts of the body including the gills, digestive tract, and epidermis. The details of the parasite's life-cycle are currently not clear, though it is known to be a two-host life-cycle involving alternating phases of sexual and asexual reproduction. The sexual phase of this parasite occurs within the octopus where it undergoes a series of differentiation and cell divisions to produce produce infective stages that are shed into the environment. The parasite then infects prawns or other crustaceans that act as the intermediate hosts where asexual phase occurs. The life-cycle starts anew when the infected crustacean is eaten by an octopus.
Contributed by Tommy Leung.
Labels: Apicomplexa, mollusc, protozoan
September 29 - Tunga penetrans
Tunga penetrans is a species of flea found in Central and South American and the Caribbean that has a similar life cycle to other fleas, such as Ctenocephalides felis, with one major exception. The females on T. penetrans are not content to hop onto a mammal, drink up some blood and move on - no, instead they move in. Commonly known as chigoe fleas (not to be confused with chiggers, which are larval mites), T. penetrans burrows headfirst into the skin, producing a lesion that is almost always on the foot and is extremely itchy and irritating. The lesion will have a black center, which are the two hindmost legs of the flea and her abdomen. After she feeds on blood from the epidermal capillaries, she will swell up like a little balloon and begin to pump eggs out when her host is walking on sandy soil. In this photo, you can see the familiar head of the flea, but her swollen abdomen has been damaged during the removal from the infected person. A large egg is visible, however.
Image is from the CDC Public Health Image Library.
Labels: arthropod, blood feeder, ectoparasite, insect
September 28 - Aphanomyces invadans
Aphanomyces invadans is a highly pathogenic oomycete fungi which infects the Atlantic menhaden Brevoortia tyrannus and many other species of fish from around the world. This water mould has been implicated in massive fish kills in North Carolina, resulting in hundreds of thousands of dead fish. On average, an infection resulting from less than 10 zoospores (the infective stage of this fungi) is enough to kill a fish, and even infection by just a single zoospore can result in ulcerous lesions that can lead to mortality. Fish infected with the fungi develops ulcerous lesions which ultimately lead to extensive tissue necrosis. This fungus develops extremely quicky, doubling its hyphal mass every ten days, and it is also highly invasive, extending its hyphae into various tissues including the liver, kidneys and spinal cord of the fish host. Interestingly, A. invadans outbreaks are associated with high rainfall. This is likely due to the fact that this water mould has a low salinity tolerance and will not grow in higher salinity waters.
Kiryu et al. (2003) Infectivity and pathogenicity of the oomycete Aphanomyces invadans in Atlantic menhaden Brevoortia tryannus. Diseases of Aquatic Organisms 54: 135-146.
(Photo from this paper.)
Labels: fungus
September 27 - Odhnerium sp.
Digeneans are flatworms famous for their plastic morphology, that is, the flexibility expressed in their body plan; the variations-on-a-theme, if you will. There are few better examples than Odhnerium species, a genus of accacoeliid worms parasitic in the intestine of the ocean sunfish, Mola mola. Most digeneans have either 0, 1 or 2 suckers, with 2 being the overwhelmingly most common body plan: an oral and a ventral sucker. Then along comes Odhnerium, which lines the anterior dorsal surface with muscular pseudosuckers, in this case at least 9 (they show up as blue waves). What's a pseudosucker? Good question! It turns out that suckers have a very specific definition: a capsule-bound muscular attachment organ that works by suction. In this case, the suckers are apparently not capsule-bound (i.e. there's no connective tissue membrane around them) so they only look like suckers – hence "pseudosuckers". Still, it's a pretty crazy departure from the normal body plan for digeneans, and it's hard not to wonder what they're so important for, since tens of thousands of gut dwelling fluke species do just fine without them. And while we're at it, check out the ventral sucker, which is up on a sort of stalk called a pedicel, and is more like a pair of muscular flaps forming a clamp, than a typical round sucker.
The blue appearance of the suckers in this particular photo is a trick of the light. The photo was taken during processing to make the specimen into a permanent wholemount. There's a step in the process when the worm has had all its water replaced by ethanol, and then you gradually replace the ethanol with a clearing agent like eugenol or (in this case) methyl salicylate. As the met-sal penetrated and cleared the tissues, this handsome colour was created for a few seconds, and I snapped the pics because it looked cool.
Contributed by Al Dove.
September 26 - Carnus hemapterus
Carnus hemapterus is a species of fly where the adults (the imagines, plural of imago), feed on the blood of nestling birds, particularly those of large birds such as owls or falcons. Larvae are birthed by females and feed just on the detritus in the nest, but then the development and emergence of the imagines coincides with the hatching of the birds. Both winged and unwinged flies may be present.
Labels: blood feeder, insect
September 25 - Isospora felis
Isospora felis is a coccidian parasite of cats that typically has a direct life cycle, but may also pass through small rodents , which can act as vectors for these parasites. They infect the cells of the small intestine and can produce GI distress in their feline hosts. This genus is quite large, but not much work, particularly molecular work has been done on the group, to tease apart which hosts might be paratenic and which species might be cryptic.
Image by Steve Upton.
Labels: Apicomplexa
September 24 - Acanthochondria cornuta
Acanthochondria cornuta (Müller, 1776) is a chondracanthid copepod that infects the European flounder, Platichthys flesus (Linnaeus, 1758) (Teleostei: Pleuronectidae), in different geographic locations, including, the coast of Portugal. It is a site-specific marine ectoparasite that occurs generally with regularity and in high numbers in the branchial chambers of its flatfish host. As in all other species of chondracanthids, the male is dwarf, being usually found attached to the female in the vicinity of the genital region. In other words, he is not found directly attached to the fish host and is called a "hyperparasite".
See these papers:
1. Cavaleiro, F. I. & Santos, M. J. (2007) Survey of the metazoan ectoparasites of the European flounder Platichthys flesus (Linnaeus, 1758) along the north-central Portuguese coast. Journal of Parasitology 93, 1218-1222.
2. Cavaleiro, F. I. & Santos, M. J. (2009) Seasonality of metazoan ectoparasites in marine European flounder Platichthys flesus (Teleostei: Pleuronectidae). Parasitology 136, 855-865.
Contributed by Francisca I. Cavaleiro & Maria J. Santos.
Labels: copepod, ectoparasite
September 23 - Diphyllobothrium latum
A common item in Jewish cuisine is gefilte fish, small boiled balls of minced fish meat. Unfortunately, though, the preparation of these little treats typically involved testing the gefilte fish as it cooked, meaning early tastes were of undercooked fish. That habit resulted in lots of Jewish grandmothers becoming infected with a tapeworm called Diphyllobothrium latum. Native to Scandanavia and eastern Russia, these parasites were brought to the U.S. with immigrants who settled in Minnesota, Wisconsin and other northern climes all the way to the Pacific Northwest states and the worms easily adapted to the ecosystem there, infecting native fishes. The life cycle is complex and can involve numerous hosts, beginning with copepods that ingest the eggs and then moving up the food chain to larger and larger fish until they are consumed by a person. Many people do not realize that they are infected as the symptoms may, in fact be mild, even though the tapeworms can be more than 10 meters (i.e. more than 30 feet!) long and pump out a million eggs a day. A common one is a severe vitamin B12 deficiency, however. There are two important components to stopping the spread of this parasite: refraining from defecating in lakes and freezing fish before consuming and cooking it properly. These parasites have likely been associated with humans for a very long time - evidence of these worms has been found in settlements along the coast of South America that may be as old as 10,000 years.
Image from the CDC Public Health Image Library.
Read more about this parasite in Robert Desowitz's wonderful book, "New Guinea Tapeworms and Jewish Grandmothers".
Labels: copepod
September 22 - Ambylomma americanum
Yeeee haw! Today's parasite is the Lone Star Tick, Ambylomma americanum, though I must confess that although it is sometimes found in Texas, its name comes from the spot on the back of the females of the species. These ticks primarily feed on cattle or deer as adults. This species of tick is not thought to vector Lyme Disease, but they do transmit other parasites to humans, such as granulocytic ehrlichiosis (Ehrlichia ewingii), tularemia (Francisella tularensis), and a close relative of the Lyme disease bacterium, Borrelia lonestari, which produces Southern tick-associated rash illness (STARI). A. americanum also holds the distinction of being the first species of tick that was described from the United States - back before we were the United States - in 1754.
September 21 - Apodinium floodi
Most dinoflagellates are photosynthetic plankton that form the basis of many aquatic food webs or mutualist symbionts, sharing and sharing alike with their hosts. Apodinium floodi is an exception. Unlike its photosynthetic cousins, it is an ectoparasite, and its host is the pelagic sea squirt Oikopleura labradoriensis. Sea squirts, despite their sac-like appearance, actually belongs to a group of animals call the urochordates, which are more closely related to vertebrate animals than all other invertebrates. Apodinium floodi uses a structure call a peduncle to attach itself to the tail of the sea squirt, and penetrate the host's notochord to absorb nutrients from its blood.
It is an evolutionary marvel - a single-celled algae which has evolved to make a living by sucking blood from a pelagic animal!
Labels: blood feeder, ectoparasite
September 20 - Neospora caninum
Originally confused with Toxoplasma gondii, Neospora caninum is a coccidian parasite that alternates between cattle hosts where it forms cysts in their tissues and canines such as dogs and coyotes, though transplacental transmission has been demonstrated in both intermediate and determinant hosts. Although this parasite does not seem to infect humans, it is of interest because it can cause spontaneous abortions in livestock if they are infected (resulting in economic losses perhaps as much as $24 million in Texas alone) and has also been linked to neurological disorders in dogs. The parasite is found virtually everywhere in the world where there are canines and cattle.
Photo of N. caninum in calf brain by Steve Upton.
Labels: Apicomplexa, livestock
September 19 - Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita
Parasites have to find their hosts and if you're a parasite of gastropods like snails and slugs, that means being attracted to slug slime - i.e. the chemicals found in the mucus secreted by slugs and snails. Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita is a parasitic nematode that infects and kills its molluscan hosts and has, in fact, been shown to be attracted to their mucus. These parasites are commercially sold as slug pest control agents in the U.K. Other studies have shown that the parasites are somehow able to manipulate the behavior of their hosts to crawl into the soil -this allows the nematodes to complete their development before the dead slug or snail or consumed by a scavenger.
Image is from this site.
Labels: behavior, biocontrol, host manipulation, mollusc, nematode
September 18 - Coitocaecum parvum
One of the problems of being a parasite with a complex life-cycle is the need to have all the appropriate hosts in the environment - the absence of any one of these hosts can mean a break in the chain, which spells doom for the continuation of the parasite's lineage. However, some parasites have evolved ways around that particular problem.
Coitocaecum parvum is a trematode found in New Zealand. Like most trematodes, it has a three host life-cycle, with amphipods (a kind of small crustacean) serving as a second intermediate host. Usually, in order for the parasite to complete its life-cycle and reach sexual maturity, the amphipod host needs to be eaten by the parasite's definitive host, a small freshwater fish call the common bully (Gobiomorphus cotidianus). However, in situations where the fish is absent, the parasite has another trick up its sleev...err, ventral sucker... Instead of waiting for a fish to come along (which might not happen before its short-lived crustacean host dies), it switches up its game - it becomes "progenetic" and reach sexual maturity within the amphipod itself. Because it is a hermaphrodite, it can simply fertilise its own eggs, which will be released into the environment when the amphipod dies and decompose.
The photo shows a pair of progenetic C. parvum (one still in its cyst, the other released from its cyst and surrounded by its own eggs) next to a pair of non-progenetic C. parvum.
Lagrue, C., and R. Poulin. 2007. Life cycle abbreviation in the trematode Coitocaecum parvum: can parasites adjust to variable conditions? Journal of Evolutionary Biology 20: 1189-1195.
Labels: trematode
September 17 - Travassostrongylus sp.
New World opossums are infected by a variety of parasites, including intestinal nematodes from the genus Travassostrongylus. Travassostrongylus encompasses 10 known species and is included in the richest superfamily of parasitic nematodes, Trichostrongyloidea. Using pointed ridges that run along their body, these worms constrict around microvilli in the walls of the intestine and feed on blood. The arrangement of the ridges aids in classification, as do the finger-like structures on the male copulatory bursa, which is a lobular tail that embraces the female during copulation. Species in the genus Travassostrongylus are found in Central and South American opossums. From the semi-aquatic marsupial Chironectes minimus, to the arboreal mouse opossum Marmosa, to the generalist Didelphis, this parasite infects a diverse group of mammals.
Contributed by Phil Scheibel.
Labels: marsupial, nematode
September 16 - Balaenophilus manatorum
Balaenophilus manatorum is an ectoparasitic parasite of sea turtles and possibly manatees as well. Recently, specimens of this parasite were obtained from stranded loggerheads on the Spanish coast. Gross morphological and SEM studies could not distinguish these copepods from others that had been found on sea turtles off of Japan and so, for the moment, have been classified as that species. The parasites can be incredibly dense -the authors of this paper note that thousands were found on individual juvenile turtles. Other parasitologists have speculated that this species is the same copepod that has also been found on manatees in the Caribbean. Thus, either this parasite is very much a generalist or there are cryptic species yet to be determined.
Posted by Susan Perkins at 10:40 AM
Labels: copepod, reptile, turtle
September 15 - Entamoeba histolytica
Entamoeba histolytica is one of the most common parasites of humans and apes, with some estimates going as high as 50 million people infected worldwide. These single-celled amoebae are ingested as cysts that are shed in feces of other infected hosts. The protozoa excyst in the intestines and multiply there, usually resulting in symptoms ranging from mild diarrhea to full-on amebic dysentery. Eventually, they can bore through the intestinal wall and begin to infect other tissues such as the liver, spleen and brain. The amoebae will even gobble up red blood cells as seen in the photo (the dark circles in the outer two cells). Interestingly, it is now known that many suspected cases of E. histolytica that are based on microscopic examination are actually those of Entamoeba dispar, a benign species, which is actually up to 10 times more common that it's virulent cousin.
Labels: human, protozoan
September 14 - Cystobranchus virginicus
Today's parasite may be an example of a parasite turned predator over the course of evolution. Cystobranchus virginicus is a fish leech (Family Piscicoloidae), similar to a leech we saw earlier this year. Like other fish leeches, C. virginicus supposedly uses its long proboscis to feed on fish blood. However, this leech also has been documented to feed on fish eggs, an infrequently documented behavior (egg-feeding had only been observed in 5 or 6 other leech species). During a study examining fish mating systems, C. virginicus appeared in the redds (gravel nests where fish eggs are deposited) of at least four different fish species. Although not actually observed feeding on the fish eggs, these leeches were distended in shape and had the same translucent yellow color as the fish eggs when collected. Interestingly, no one has ever observed C. virginicus feeding on fish blood. It's possible that the entire diet of this leech now consists solely of eggs, a potential concern if egg feeding results in high mortality and decreased fitness of the host fish species.
Contributed by Jessica Light.
See this paper for more info.
Labels: leech
September 13 - Paucivitellosus fragilis
Paucivitellosus fragilis belongs to a small family of digenean trematodes call Bivesiculidae. They are parasitic in the gut of marine fishes and unlike most other families of digeneans, they do not have a second intermediate host, but infect the fish host directly when the cercaria larval stage is ingested by the fish. Upon emerging from the snail first intermediate host (where the cercarial stages are produced via cloning), a structure call a caudal vesicle folds itself over the cercaria body like a sock, acting as a kind of protective wetsuit. It then begin swimming actively with vigorous vibration of its tail. After a few hours, it sticks itself either to some floating debris or the surface of rocks, waiting to be eaten by an unwary grazing fish.
Photo came from:
Abdul-Salam, J. and Sreelatha, B.N.S. (1996) Light and scanning electron microscopic observations of the rediae and cercariae of Paucivitellosus fragilis (Digenea, Bivesiculidae). Acta Parasitologica 41:108-114.
September 12 - Clonorchis sinensis
Today's parasite, the human liver fluke, Clonorchis sinensis infects 30 million people in parts of Southeast and East Asia such as Japan, Taiwan, and China. Like other trematodes, this fluke has a complex life cycle that begins when a freshwater snail consumes the egg and it hatches into a miracidium. They asexually divide in the snail and eventually produce redia, which leave the snail and seek out a fish. They bore into the muscles of the fish and form a resistant cyst. If a human consumes this fish, the parasites excyst in the small intestine and make their way to the liver. There, they will mature into adults, consume bile as their main food source, and crank out 1-2 eggs per minute. The worms can cause a variety of health problems in people.
September 11 - Crocodylocapillaria longiovata
A few months ago, you met Capillaria hepatica, a nematode worm that sometimes infects humans, but mostly uses rodents as its host. Today's parasite is Crocodylocapillaria longiovata, which is another Capillariid. This one, however, uses crocodiles, namely Johnston's Crocodile (Crocodylus johnstoni) and the biggest, nastiest crocodile of them all, the Saltwater Croc (Crocodylus porosus), as its hosts. These nematodes live in the stomach of the crocodiles and lay unusually long eggs (hence their specific name), which will eventually become embryonated, as seen in the drawing.
Labels: crocodilian, nematode, reptile
September 10 - Agema silvaepalustris
Pentastomids are a group of parasites that primarily infect the respiratory tracts of reptiles and amphibians, with a few species that infect birds and mammals (see Armillifer agkistrodontis). While they might look like worms, pentastomids are more closely related to arthropods, and they are ubiquitously found in the lungs of crocodiles. In fact, it's quite likely that every single species of living crocodilians is infected with pentastomids, indicating that these two groups have had a long co-evolutionary history which stretches back millions or possibly even hundreds of millions of years.
Today's parasite is Agema silvaepalustris and it is found in the lungs of the dwarf crocodile Osteolaemus tetraspis, which lives in the equatorial rain forest zone of West and Central Africa. The crocodiles become infected when they eat fish that possess the larval instars of A. silvaepalustris. The lungs of an individual crocodile can be infected with a few dozen to over a hundred of these parasites, and it is amazing to think that these weird little banana-shaped critters are more closely related to shrimps and crabs than any actual "worm"!
For further details, see:
Riley, J., Hill G. F., Huchzermeyer, F. W. (1997) A description of Agema, a new monotypic pentastomid genus from the lungs of the African dwarf and slender-snouted crocodiles. Systematic Parasitology 37: 207-217.
Labels: crocodilian, pentastomid, reptile
September 9 - Trichinella zimbabwensis
Parasitic nematodes in the genus Trichinella are commonly found in endothermic (warm-blooded) animals. The most common species, Trichinella spiralis, is found in many species of mammals. The infective larvae live in specialised capsules call "nurse cells" (which are muscle cells which have been heavily modified by the parasite), and they are transmitted into different mammalian host via carnivory or scavenging on carcasses. Trichinella zimbabwensis deviates somewhat from this pattern. While it is still transmitted to a new host via the ingestion of infected muscle tissue, unlike T. spiralis, it does not encapsulate and it is also found in reptilian hosts, specifically crocodiles. However, it does not occur exlusively in reptiles and can also infect mammals. Given that it is able to survive in both ectothermic and endothermic hosts, while other species of Trichinella can only survive in endothermic hosts in the wild, this raises intriguing questions about the evolutionary origin of the genus Trichinella.
Pozio, E. et al. (2002) Trichinella zimbabwensis n.sp. (Nematoda), a new non-encapsulated species from crocodiles (Crocodylus niloticus) in Zimbabwe also infecting mammals. International Journal for Parasitology 32:1787-1799.
September 8 - Eimeria alligator
Eimeria is a genus of apicomplexan parasites, but are coccidia, so unlike their cousins such as Plasmodium and Babesia, which alternate between an insect vector and a vertebrate, these parasites are transmitted via the oral-fecal route. Eimeria alligator was described from American Alligators (Alligator mississippiensis) in 1990, after sampling gators that had been shot in Texas during the alligator hunting season. Seven other species of Eimeria have been reported from crocodilian hosts in both the New and Old Worlds, as have two species of Isospora, another genus of coccidia.
Labels: Apicomplexa, protozoan
September 7 - Acanthostomum americanum
Acanthostomum americanum is a digenean trematode found in the intestine of Morelet's crocodile (Crocodylus moreletii) from Yucatan, Mexico. The crocodiles acquire this parasite when they eat fish that are infected with the parasite's encysted larval stages.The early juveniles of these worm are characterized by the lack of spines on the oral sucker, which is likely to be an adaptation which allows it to make a smooth seal with the intestinal wall before suction, which maintains the developing parasite in position between the intestinal villi. As the parasite grows, so do the spines around its oral sucker, which then take over the role of anchoring it firmly in the intestinal mucosa.
Image adapted from:
Moravec, F. 2001. Some helminth parasites from Morelet's crocodile, Crocodylus moreletii, from Yucatan, Mexico. Folia Parasitologica 48: 47-62.
Labels: crocodilian, reptile, trematode
September 6 -Haemogregarina crocodilinorum
There are five species of hemogregarine apicomplexan blood parasites (distant relatives of malaria parasites) that have been described from alligators and crocodiles. Haemogregarina crocodilinorum is the one that infects the American alligator, Alligator mississippiensis. This parasite is most likely transmitted by the leech, Placobdella multilineata, which is commonly found on alligators throughout the Southeast.
Labels: crocodilian, reptile
September 5 - Griphobilharzia amoena
Today's parasite is a schistosome blood fluke which has been described from the Australian freshwater crocodile (Crocodylus johnstoni). While most schistosomes are known from mammalian and avian hosts, Griphobilharzia amoena is found in a reptilian host. Like other schistosome (as opposed to most digenean flukes), G. amoena is dioecous (they have males [left] and females [right]). This fluke occupies an important position in terms of research into the evolution history of schistosomes; it has been hypothesised that the evolution of dioecy in these blood flukes was accompanied by the evolution of endothermy ("warm-bloodedness") in their hosts. With G. amoena being found infecting a crocodilian, it seems to suggest that the origin of dioecy dates back before the evolution of endothermy. However, in another twist, it has also been suggested that the ancestors of modern crocodiles were originally endotherms which had reevolved ectothermy ("cold-bloodness"). Appropriately, "Gripho" - which forms a part of this parasite's name, actually means "a riddle".
Description for Griphobilharzia amoena:
Platt, T. R., Blair, D., Purdie, J. and Melville, L. (1991) Journal of Parasitology 77:65-68.
The paper which suggest crocodiles reevolved ectothermy:
Seymour, R. S., Bennett-Stamper, C. L., Johnston, S. D., Carrier, D. R. and Grigg, G. C. (2004) Physiological and Biochemical Zoology 77:1051-1067.
September 4 -Corynosoma enhydri
This photo of today's parasite,Corynosoma enhydri, illustrates the origin of the term "thorny-headed worms" for the Acanthocephala. This species, like Profilicollis altmani, that you met last month, uses sea otters as its definitive host. It is fairly obvious that once this proboscis is embedded in the wall of the small intestine of a sea otter, it could not easily be dislodged. In rare cases, the proboscis can perforate the wall of the intestine, leading to peritonitis. The number of rows of hooks on the proboscis and the number of hooks per row are important characters in identifying species.
Contributed by Mike Kinsella.
Labels: acanthocephalan
September 3 - Liriopsis pygmaea
Parasites don't always have things go their own ways. Even in the parasite world, sometimes the hustler gets hustled. There are parasites which specifically infects other parasites, called "hyperparasites" and Liriopsis pygmaea is one such example. The false king crab Paralomis granulosa is host to a rhizocephalan parasite called Briariosaccus callosus which belongs in the same group of parasitic barnacles as Sacculina carcini (which we met back in January 7).
Liriopsis pygmaea attaches itself to the externa of B. callosus and parasitises it (see pale blobs in photo, arrow indicating externa of B. callosus). L. pygmaea belongs to the group of isopods call the cryptoniscid. While most people are familiar with isopods in the form of slaters and pillbugs you see in the garden, adult L. pygmaea bears a closer resemblance to the cherry tomatoes which might be growing in the said garden than their isopod cousins. Just as B. callosus castrate its crab host, L. pygmaea does the same to the rhizocephalan - drawing resources away from the parasitic barnacle and using it for its own reproduction. So in this case, the castrator, becomes the castrated.
The photo and the info for write up came from this paper:
Lovrich, G. A., Roccatagliata, D., Peresan, L. (2004) Hyperparasitism of the cryptoniscid isopod Liriopsis pygmaea on the lithodid Paralomis granulosa from the Beagle Channel, Argentina. Diseases of Aquatic Organisms 58:71-77.
Labels: crab, crustacean, hyperparasite, isopod
September 2 - Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus
When I was teaching microbiology, Bdellovibrio was always one of my favorite things to lecture about. These bacteria are essentially intracellular parasites of other bacteria. Bdellovibrio has a rather unusual mode of entering its hosts - it uses its flagellum to crash into them at amazing speeds - 160 um/second (ok, that doesn't sound very fast, but when you're only about 1 micron long, that's hauling!) Once inside its host cell, the Bdellovibrio consumes the nutrients inside it, growing longer and longer the whole time. Eventually, when the host cell has run out of nutrients, the long filament will separate into about 3 to 6 individual cells, lyse the membrane of their former host and go off and infect new victims.
Labels: bacteria
September 1 - Dactylanthus taylorii
Dactylanthus taylorii is a holoparasitic plant, meaning that it does not possess any chlorophyll of its own and derives all of its nutrients from its host plant, which is commonly the Seven-finger (Schefflera digitata). When infected, the host tree will produce a malformation, or burl, that resembles a wooden rose, hence its common name, the Wood Rose. The flowers are pollinated by the Lesser Short-tailed Bat (Mystacina tuberculata), which are drawn to its odor and abundant nectar. This species, native to New Zealand, is sadly critically endangered there and is the subject of aggressive conservation plans.
Labels: plant


text:
Immigration and the long sweep of history: America hasn't always lived up to its ideals. But we used to try. [Opinion]
Opinion // Outlook
By Richard Parker June 22, 2019
Mission San Francisco de la Espada, established in 1731 on the bank of the San Antonio River.
Photo: E. Joseph Deering / Houston Chronicle
Every spring, before the summer sizzles and drips with the humidity of South Texas, I take a pilgrimage to San Antonio.
The last time, I took in the missions and was reminded how each is different: San Francisco de la Espada with its rugged simplicity; the brilliant whitewashed walls of San Juan Capistrano; and the expansive, graceful grounds of San Jose. I read the placards at that last one, learning that these limestone walls were laid nearly 300 years ago by the hands of both Native Americans and the people who journeyed north from Nuevo Leon, my mother's native land. Most of the names are lost to history, all testimony to the impermanence of individuals but the relentless movement of people.
Of course, Texas and the country are bracing for another long, hot summer with a president in Washington who spends each summer declaring his personal war on immigrants of all kinds, but mostly those still traveling those same roads north. When he ran for president four years ago he belittled Mexicans as rapists. Last year he separated Central American children from families. This summer he is institutionalizing internment camps, with horrific conditions. It remains to be seen if he will actually try to deport "millions," as he has recently promised. Regardless, the sheer cruelty of the threat is perhaps enough to satisfy him.
As someone proud of his Mexican heritage, I no longer find myself outraged. I find myself, instead, despondent at this cycle of my country's — America's — history. I know full well that freedom isn't free and that we haven't always, or even often, lived up to being the nation that we have billed ourselves to be. Yet still we tried. Until now. And it isn't just a president who seems to have no moral compass, let alone a constitutional bearing. There are plenty of Americans, about 40 percent, who join in or sometimes just accept his full-throated cry for cruelty toward migrants even though as policy it is an abject, utter failure.
In the short term, still more people have come from Central America, driven from their homes by violence, corruption and the collapse of coffee prices. But our society's divorce from history and the empathy that is derived from it seems quite complete now. In this regard, Trump has succeeded brilliantly.
My country, America, seems to remember nothing of its past: the racist exclusion of all Asian immigrants; encouraging Mexican labor and military recruits during two world wars, then ejecting them when it was economically convenient.
My great uncle Daniel left Nuevo Leon to join the U.S. Navy during World War II and was never seen again. Of course, had he survived the war, he might have been just as well swept up by Operation Wetback, which ejected more than 1 million Mexicans. Along with them went some estimated 100,000 American citizens. The parallels to today are nearly exact: Children who are U.S. citizens now live in fear of leaving the house only to return to no parents.
Of course, Mexicans and other Latinos have borne this history for the last 100 years — but they were hardly alone. African-Americans endured far worse. Asians did, too. Japanese-Americans were imprisoned during World War II. So were Germans and Italians and their American offspring, for no crime other than seeming foreign. In Texas, only the internment camp names have changed from Seagoville, Kenedy and Crystal City to Dilley, El Paso, Karnes, and 23 other places in Texas, including Houston.
The other day, my 82-year-old mother misplaced her passport, and a panic came over her. She has been a proud naturalized U.S. citizen for decades. But the idea that her Mexican-sounding voice might still quaver if asked for identification didn't outrage me; it saddened me. Like many immigrants she came here for practical reasons but also for principled ones, too, namely the rule of law. The reality that we imprison migrants in filthy conditions, where they knot ropes to hang themselves or spend days in 100-degree desert heat in a place called the "dog pound," sickens me.
Trump has cleverly carved out two Americas: one that really doesn't care about the rule of law, about the ideals of America, or human decency. And the one that cares and, for it, is ignored with, at most, the hand-wringing acquiescence of the Senate. This will be the hallmark of his re-election campaign: war on people who just don't look white enough. Most distressing, it will last long past his reality show presidency. This is Trump's legacy, the poisoned fruit of hate.
I, for one, can no longer muster outrage. Nor can I muster patience for those who offer the tenderest of justifications. We don't hate immigrants, they say, we just don't like illegal immigrants. Well, you can't deport 10.5 million people without killing some large number of them. Without needing to raise the specter of the Holocaust — to which there is no comparison — just ask the 10 million ethnic Germans expelled from Eastern Europe after World War II. At least a half million of them died.
At 55, I am on the backside of life but never thought that I would witness a government of terror in my own country. Bigger than Trump, this is American democracy's flirtation with fascism and strong-man politics. He may not follow through with his wild threats this time, again. Yet his bumbling, failing results matter far less than the fear he instills each time. The fear is a feature, not a bug.
Back at the mission, I tried to draw my consciousness to the cool shade of the live oak tree, the polite park ranger asking me not to sit on the limestone wall, please, the tourists ambling about. I wonder how many of them know of all the walls, churches and homes my mother's people — and those from farther south — have built in the ensuing centuries. Of all the lives that have moved forth and north along these same roads borne ceaselessly by time.
For a moment it gives me a kind of stubborn hope. But only for a moment. For my mother's people and all those who have followed, I mourn. Yet for my country, I weep.
Parker is the author of "Lonestar Nation: How Texas Will Transform America" and is a regular contributor to the Atlantic, the New York Times and other publications. He wrote this for the Houston Chronicle.
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Eva Longoria has split with toyboy Eduardo Cruz for a second time.
Eva Longoria, 37, and the younger brother of Penelope Cruz have split after an on-off relationship which lasted 16 months, a representative has confirmed.
It comes just weeks after the pair enjoyed a romantic holiday in Seville, Spain.
Eva Longoria and Eduardo Cruz, 27, began dating after Eva split with her husband Tony Parker – with who she enjoyed a four year marriage.
They split in March but reunited later on in the spring.
Eva Longoria recently revealed she was going on a "new journey" in her life following the end of the TV show, in which she played Gabrielle Solis.
The actress said: "In the moment of doing the last episode, it was bittersweet, it was very emotional to leave this family I've had for eight years, our crew and our cast. It was really heartbreaking to know I would never play Gabby again.
"I mean, all of that was really sad, but at the same time, I'm so excited to turn the page and embark on this new journey of my career, of my life.


San Jose baby photographer • they grow too fast | gooseandbugsphotography newborn baby and child PhotographyCustom children's photography, specializing in newborn portraiture, on location in San Jose, Ca and the surrounding Bay Area.
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Love all the color of the flowers in these shots!! So pretty!
Awww, she is adorable! Great shots, I love all the expressions you captured! Great work!!
What beautiful images!!! I love the fun colors.
What a beautiful little girl and family…I LOVE all the color!
Such a pretty location and I love your BW. Great job!
What a gorgeous location! Love all the colors! That last shot is priceless…so cute!
Love every single one of these!! She is a gorgeous baby, and your work enhances her beauty to the max!
Love the bokeh and colors in these shots! These are great captures!
what a sweetie!!!! gorgeous images leandra … the color, the smiles! love it.
these are adorable, leandra!!! fantastic colors!


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London fashion week Men's June 2019 Dates and "THIS IS LONDON" campaign
Trishna - 28 May 2019
Submitted by Trishna on 28 May 2019
The British Fashion Council (BFC) announced the launch of its new campaign "This is London"; celebrating community, diversity & culture at London Fashion Week Men's June 2019. The campaign is Shot by London based photographer Mark- a collection of 12 image that includes a diverse selection of people from the worlds of art, music, fashion, film & sport.
The campaign features a mix of globally established names and current tastemakers, all driving forward London's culture and reputation, representing the city in their own unique way. The campaign is a testament of the city's diversity and creativity and highlights the relationship between the creative industries.
BFC- this is London campaign.
Caroline Rush, the BFC Chief Executive puts the statement: "London is a city that is globally recognized for its creative talent and businesses. We're extremely excited to launch this campaign for LFWM June 2019 and to celebrate not only the designers but also the broader creative community who all play a vital role in our industry's culture and reputation."
According to Dylan Jones, BFC Menswear Chair "The 'This is London' campaign shines a light on the incredible pool of talent that makes London the creative capital of the world. From rising stars to established names, the campaign features a diverse mix of individuals, celebrating the eccentricity of our capital while illustrating that LFWM is a global platform for innovation and culture."
The talent taking part in the campaign were asked questions about London; what they love most about the city, what separates it from others and how the capital creatively defines them. In the series of images rolling out to launch London Fashion Week Men's June 2019, Markn captures the energy of the cast through their mix of personalities and styles, showcasing how the melting pot of experiences make London and London Fashion Week Men's so unique. "This is London" will be promoted at the main hub of LFWM, The Truman Brewery, during London Fashion Week Men's June 2019 which runs from 8-10th June.
London fashion Men's week S/S 2020 Date
The London Fashion Week Men's June 2019 scheduled to take place from Friday 7th June- 10th June.
The one week away London Fashion Week Men's June 2019 scheduled to take place from Friday 7th June- 10th June will showcase the best of British design, with catwalk shows, presentations, the Designer Showrooms, and events organised throughout the week.
More than 50 designer will showcase their Spring summer 2020 men's collection. According to f-trend's vision we expect designers to get inspired by how technology is influencing consumers and the role of creative industry to communicate effectively. The men's collection will be very clean and holographic prints and materials will play key role.
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London Fashion Week Men


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FMO Supports Lendable's $100 million Emerging Market Fintech Fund Launch Alongside Leading Impact and DFI Investors
The Hague, 13 October 2021 - Lendable Inc., a leading emerging market fintech credit provider, is targeting a ground-breaking US$100mn closed-ended fund focused on emerging and frontier market fintech investments, with FMO, the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank, backing it as well.
The Lendable MSME Fintech Credit Fund (the 'Fund') is designed to unlock access to financial services for over 150,000 Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME's), providing investors with high impact exposure to important markets and the potential of high uncorrelated returns.
This Fund provides credit to African and Asian fintech companies, who in turn offer fair credit facilities to MSMEs. These same MSMEs are the engines of wealth creation, financial inclusion and economic growth in these regions, yet historically have had limited access to fair credit and financial services.
Backed by leading blue-chip impact and development financial institution (DFI) investors, the Fund today has soft closed a US$49mn investment from DFC, DFAT, Calvert, Ceniarth, BIO, FMO and FSD Africa (FSDAi). Another US$20mn is on track to close in the fourth quarter and the fund is expected to hard close above US$100mn in 2022. This is a five-year blended finance closed-ended Luxembourg Reserved Alternative Investment Fund (RAIF), with FSDA and DFAT providing the first loss capital tranche.
Combining West Coast technology with Emerging Market needs, Lendable's proprietary Risk Engine analyses live borrower data from its investee fintech CRMs, opening-up an unparalleled level of granularity across the entire loan book. It is this level of transparency, both on an individual loan and portfolio basis, that enhances loan underwriting and allows for more effective and efficient risk management. This technology has already proven its predictive power, by accurately forecasting the impact of adverse weather, election unrest, COVID-19 lockdowns and other local events.
The Lendable MSME Fintech Credit Fund is Lendable's fourth fund and with the soft close takes the Firm's overall committed capital to over US$200mn. Since inception (October 2016), the Firm's cumulative return has annualised a net return of 14.32%.
"We have had an amazing response to this Fund and have brought on board an impressive slate of leading impact investors and DFIs who back our approach," commented Daniel Goldfarb, co-Founder of Lendable. "Through our fintech investments, we are providing essential working capital for MSMEs that enables off-grid customers to buy energy products and opens the door to innovative digital banking services to consumers. It is about making a high impact difference."
Chris Wéhbe, CEO of Lendable added, "We are incredibly proud of our track record in delivering genuine impact and consistent high returns. With our additional fund raising we can grow our committed capital to US$500mn, which will allow us to expand our reach into new markets, where we have a targeted pipeline of investment opportunities."
Marnix Monsfort, Director Financial Institutions, FMO, added, "Emerging market fintech investment has a direct and highly important impact on regional development. Sadly, all too often, quality firms struggle to scale due to a lack of adequate, tailored capital. FMO is excited to partner with Lendable as its proposition directly addresses this issue by bringing new capital to the table combined with their strong record of delivering competitive risk-adjusted returns for investors."
Algene Sajery, Vice President of the Office of External Affairs and Head of Global Gender Equity Investments, DFC, concluded, "Our investment in the Fintech Credit Fund will help catalyze the next wave of commercial investment into emerging market fintech companies. Development finance institutions like DFC can play an outsized role in attracting different types of capital with different risk appetites to the sector. By supporting transformative fintech companies, DFC and our partners can achieve greater impact while expanding access to finance for underserved communities – particularly women – in emerging economies."
About FMO
FMO is the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank. As a leading impact investor, FMO supports sustainable private sector growth in developing countries and emerging markets by investing in ambitious projects and entrepreneurs. FMO believes that a strong private sector leads to economic and social development and has a close to 50-year proven track-record of empowering people to employ their skills and improve their quality of life. FMO focuses on three sectors that have high development impact: financial institutions, energy, and agribusiness, food & water. With a committed portfolio of €9.3bn spanning over 85 countries, FMO is one of the larger bilateral private sector developments banks globally. For more information: please visit www.fmo.nl.
About Lendable
Lendable is a leading debt finance provider to fintech companies across frontier and emerging markets that create access to new financial products and services for un- and under-banked populations. Lendable finances fintech companies that facilitate consumer and MSME credit, productive asset finance, payments, remittances, and digital marketplaces. From its offices in Nairobi, London, and Singapore, and using its proprietary technology and data, Lendable directly originates, structures, underwrites, and monitors all transactions. To date, Lendable has disbursed over US$180mn to fintech in over nine countries.
For more information, journalists are welcome to contact:
Josh Asmah, Corporate Communications Officer | J.Asmah@fmo.nl | T +31 6 25 19 07 21
Matt Ward | mward@levanterafrica.com | +44 (0) 758 526 2370
Alastair Crabbe | acrabbe@brodiecg.com | +44 (0) 778 526 8282


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Home›Vatican Finances›Vatican financial crimes indictments a sign of progress
Vatican financial crimes indictments a sign of progress
(RNS) – Catholic worshipers are rightly outraged by the news of financial crimes in the Vatican, especially as the latest alleged crimes involve Peter's Pence, collecting for the Pope's charities. But the announcement last week of the indictments by Vatican prosecutors is not a scandal but a sign of progress.
The Vatican has indicted six former Vatican officials, including the Cardinal who was behind a hundreds of millions of dollars in real estate investment in London. Italian businessmen who worked with the Vatican on the investment are also indicted, along with a woman accused of buying luxury goods with Vatican funds intended to ransom Catholic hostages.
The charges include embezzlement, corruption, extortion, money laundering, fraud, abuse of office and forging public documents.
In recent years, experts from Moneyval, the international agency in charge of money laundering, have complimented the Vatican on improving its laws and procedures, but they have questioned the lack of prosecution for financial crimes. In its most recent report, Moneyval warned the Vatican that it was still exposed to money laundering and that it faced financial risks from "insiders".
Many have speculated that the Vatican preferred to cover up these crimes when they involved cardinals and other clerics. Vatican officials feared the scandal would damage the church's image and cut donations. In addition, the accused were colleagues and friends.
In 2017, when two lay people were accused of embezzling money from the Bambino Gesu hospital to finance renovations to a cardinal's apartment, the cardinal was not charged. He was not even called to testify at the secular trial. The occupant of the apartment was Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, one of the closest collaborators of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI and former Secretary of State.
The Vatican also lacked competent prosecutors or investigators to unearth the truth.
RELATED: Pope Francis decrees that cardinals and bishops can be tried by lay judges
In March, a Vatican presentation to a UK court was so ill-prepared that it was laughed out of court. The judge ruled that the Vatican's demand to seize the bank accounts of Gianluigi Torzi, the broker involved in his disastrous real estate investment in London, was "appalling" and riddled with "non-disclosure and misrepresentation."
First, Pope Francis two months ago changed the rules so that cardinals can now be tried like anyone else in a Vatican tribunal with lay judges. Before that, only the Pope could judge a cardinal. The Pope also demanded more financial transparency and disclosure of conflicts of interest. For the first time in modern history, a cardinal and his secretary are accused of financial crimes by the Vatican.
It is not just any cardinal either; it is Cardinal Angelo Becciu, who dreamed of one day becoming Pope. Before becoming a cardinal, he was sostituto (deputy) in the Vatican Secretariat of State – technically a post just under the Secretary of State, but in reality the sostituto acts as the Pope's chief of staff. It was as a sostituto that Becciu orchestrated the Vatican's disastrous $ 400 million investment in London real estate in 2014.
In this photo taken on January 28, 2014, there is an exterior view of the offices of the Vatican IOR bank in Vatican City. (AP Photo / Domenico Stinellis)
Second, the Pope has strengthened the Vatican legal team dealing with financial crimes. In 2019, he appointed Giuseppe Pignatone, a former Italian prosecutor known for his anti-Mafia efforts, to head the Vatican court. He worked with investigators from other countries to uncover the truth. The indictments announced last week are the result of his investigations.
The other good news in the current round of indictments is that this investigation does not involve the Vatican bank, which has been tarnished by major financial scandals in the past. The Vatican bank was cleaned up thanks to Benedict's insistence that it be subject to Moneyval's review. It cost millions of dollars when forensic accountants combed through the bank's accounts.
In fact, it was the bank that first sounded the alarm on the London property deal when the Secretary of State attempted to secure a loan to cover its losses. For the bank, saying 'no' to the Secretary of State, who is on its board of directors, was an extraordinary act of financial responsibility and shows that banking reforms are working. There are other parts of the Vatican that need to be cleaned up.
RELATED: Vatican charges cardinal, nine others linked to financial scandal
What is the next?
A preliminary hearing will take place on July 27, but don't expect a quick trial. The Vatican, like Italy, is not known for its speedy trials, especially with complex financial issues. Tons of paper will be submitted, and there will be long intervals between actual court sessions as the judges review the documents.
The cardinal will no doubt say that he is innocent and that he was duped by the people with whom he had to deal. Those outside the Vatican who worked with the Cardinal will say he knew and approved of what they were doing, and if he didn't understand the consequences, it was his fault, not theirs.
Will the prosecution be able to prove its thesis? It remains to be seen. Although the appointment of Pignatone is encouraging, remember that the "appalling" case rejected by the British justice was prepared after his appointment. It is not encouraging.
Moreover, the most surprising indictment is that of René Brülhart, the former chairman of the Vatican Financial Reporting Authority, who enjoys an international reputation for integrity and competence. The evidence against him must be overwhelming or his peers will conclude that he was created by enemies who opposed his efforts to investigate Vatican finances. This could undermine the credibility of the judicial process.
Finally, questions remain unanswered about the role of Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State, in the scandal. It was his shop that made the investments and it was he who requested the loan from the Vatican bank. The Vatican says it had not been "effectively informed to be fully aware of the legal effects that the different classes of actions would cause." At a minimum, he should testify at trial, lest it appear those closest to Francis may be immune from prosecution while their subordinates fall.
There are three lessons to be learned from this fiasco.
First, papal leadership is needed to control Vatican finances. Most popes want to be pastors and therefore delegate finances to others. It does not work.
Second, the church must put in place financial controls like those of any well-run nonprofit or business. The Vatican doesn't have to invent something new; there are already policies and procedures the church can use.
Third, cleaning up the Vatican's finances costs money, as the Vatican banking reform has shown. The Vatican is heavily criticized for spending millions on accountants and outside lawyers, but it is cheaper in the long run. The credibility of Vatican financial managers is already diminished because they are not paid as well as their counterparts in the secular world. Some employees see "side deals" as a way to compensate for low wages.
There is more work to be done. Many financial entities in the Vatican, including the city-state, Propaganda Fide (the mission fund) and APSA, the Vatican's office of investments and finance, need to be examined. Real estate holdings in Rome and around the world need to be regularized, as do many contracts and purchases.
The Vatican Bank has shown how to flush out abuses and avoid scandals. Since the Vatican's finances are currently in the red, some major Catholic donors must come to the Pope with a detailed plan and the money to clean up the Vatican's finances. Once the external auditors arrive, the Pope must make it clear that anyone obstructing their work will be fired.
Vatican financial scandals have repeatedly tarnished the image of the church. It is time for the Vatican to pull itself together. Ironically, this will mean more bad news in the future as crimes and incompetence are uncovered. But these should not be seen as scandals but as good news.
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The Turkish Academy of Sciences (TÜBA) is a scholarly institution founded in 1993, attached to the office of the Prime Ministry and later (in 2011) to the Minister of Science, Industry and Technology with scientific, administrative and financial autonomy. Its aims are to establish the criteria of scientific excellence in Turkey, to encourage and foster scientific endeavours, to ensure that scientific principles be applied in all spheres and to create an environment of debate so that basic social strategies may be defined in the light of scientific and technological data. The Academy strives to promote adoption of and strict adherence to scientific ethics both by its own members and by the whole of the Turkish scientific community; freedom of expression; culture of debate and the integration of the Turkish scientists with the international scientific community.
The Science Academy (Bilim Akademisi) was established in Istanbul on 25 November 2011, as an independent non-governmental entity with a mission to promote, to model and to protect scientific merit, excellence, independence, and integrity.
The Science Academy was founded by former members of the Turkish Academy of Sciences, following the decree by the government of Turkey in August 2011, which changed the status and structure of that Academy and allowed the appointment of the majority of new members by government bodies.
The Science Academy gathers the best minds of the scientific community of Turkey with a view to promote and protect excellence, method, tradition and practices, freedom, and honesty in science. It endeavors to maintain and to expand the already considerable potential in Turkey for scientific research and publication.


A really easy recipe, and perfect for a summer's evening or weekend lunch when you want something fresh tasting and easy.
Add the chopped feta to a small bowl with the lemon juice and zest, oil, mint and thyme and cover - this can be left to marinade overnight or used on the day.
Add the hot water to the bulgur wheat in a bowl and cover with a plate or clingfilm.
Add a a small amount of boiling water to a pan, and add the broccoli - simmer until the broccoli has turned bright green (no more than a couple of minutes). Strain off the water and add a tablespoon of olive oil, heat the pan back up (carefully in case any water remains, in which case the oil might splutter) and add the courgette and pine nuts. Cook for a few minutes, stirring occasionally. Once the pine nuts start tinting brown you're done.
Add the bulgur wheat to the pan, and stir through. At the last minute add the feta with the lemon marinade, stir gently to ensure it is distributed but not broken up.