text:
The proton is a subatomic particle with the symbol or and a positive electric charge of 1 elementary charge. One or more protons are present in the nucleus of each atom, along with neutrons. The number of protons in each atom is its atomic number.
In the standard model of particle physics, the proton is a hadron, composed of quarks. Prior to that model becoming a consensus in the physics community, the proton was considered a fundamental particle. A proton is composed of two up quarks and one down quark, with the rest mass of the quarks thought to contribute only about 1% of the proton's mass. The remainder of the proton mass is due to the kinetic energy of the quarks and to the energy of the gluon fields that bind them together.
Because the proton is not a fundamental particle, it possesses a physical size although this is not perfectly well-defined since the surface of a proton is defined by forces that do not come to an abrupt end, and is therefore somewhat fuzzy. The proton is about 1.6 1.7 fm in diameter.[1]
The free proton (a proton not bound to nucleons or electrons) is stable and is found naturally in a number of situations. Free protons exist in plasmas in which temperatures are too high to allow them to combine with electrons. Free protons of high energy and velocity make up 90% of cosmic rays, which propagate in vacuum for interstellar distances. Free protons are emitted directly from atomic nuclei in some rare types of radioactive decay, and also result from the decay of free neutrons, which are unstable.
In all such cases, protons must lose sufficient velocity (and kinetic energy) to allow them to become associated with electrons, since this is a relatively low-energy interaction. However, in such an association, the character of the bound proton is not changed, and it remains a proton. The attraction of low-energy free protons to electrons in normal matter causes such protons to soon stop and to form a new chemical bond. Such a bond happens at any sufficiently "cold" temperature (i.e., comparable to temperatures at the surface of the Sun) and with any type of atom. In interaction with normal (non-plasma) matter, low-velocity free protons are attracted to electrons in any atom or molecule with which they come in contact, causing the proton and molecule to combine. Such molecules are then said to be "protonated," and chemically they often as a result become so-called Bronsted acids.
In vacuum, when free electrons are present, a sufficiently slow proton may pick up a single free electron, becoming a neutral hydrogen atom, which is chemically a free radical. Such "free hydrogen atoms" tends to react chemically with many other types of atoms, if the two come into contact and are moving sufficiently slowly.
Quarks and the mass of the proton
Charge radius
Proton in chemistry
Hydrogen ion
Proton nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)
Antiproton
Protons are spin- fermions and are composed of three quarks,[2] making them baryons (a sub-type of hadrons). The two up quarks and one down quark of the proton are held together by the strong force, mediated by gluons.[1] A modern perspective has the proton composed of the valence quarks (up, up, down), the gluons, and transitory pairs of sea quarks. The proton has an approximately exponentially decaying positive charge distribution with a mean square radius of about 0.8 fm.[3]
Protons and neutrons are both nucleons, which may be bound by the nuclear force into atomic nuclei. The nucleus of the most common isotope of the hydrogen atom (with the chemical symbol "H") is a lone proton. The nuclei of the heavy hydrogen isotopes deuterium and tritium contain one proton bound to one and two neutrons, respectively. All other types of atoms are composed of two or more protons and various numbers of neutrons.
The spontaneous decay of free protons has never been observed, and the proton is therefore considered a stable particle. However, some grand unified theories of particle physics predict that proton decay should take place with lifetimes of the order of , and experimental searches have established lower bounds on the mean lifetime of the proton for various assumed decay products.
Experiments at the Super-Kamiokande detector in Japan gave lower limits for proton mean lifetime of for decay to an antimuon and a neutral pion, and for decay to a positron and a neutral pion.[4] Another experiment at the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory in Canada searched for gamma rays resulting from residual nuclei resulting from the decay of a proton from oxygen-16. This experiment was designed to detect decay to any product, and established a lower limit to the proton lifetime of .[5]
However, protons are known to transform into neutrons through the process of electron capture (also called inverse beta decay). For free protons, this process does not occur spontaneously but only when energy is supplied. The equation is:
The process is reversible; neutrons can convert back to protons through beta decay, a common form of radioactive decay. In fact, a free neutron decays this way, with a mean lifetime of about 15 minutes.
In quantum chromodynamics, the modern theory of the nuclear force, most of the mass of the proton and the neutron is explained by special relativity. The mass of the proton is about eighty times greater than the sum of the rest masses of the quarks that make it up, while the gluons have zero rest mass. The extra energy of the quarks and gluons in a region within a proton, as compared to the rest energy of the quarks alone in the QCD vacuum, accounts for almost 99% of the mass. The rest mass of the proton is, thus, the invariant mass of the system of moving quarks and gluons that make up the particle, and, in such systems, even the energy of massless particles is still measured as part of the rest mass of the system.
Two terms are used in referring to the mass of the quarks that make up protons: Current quark mass refers to the mass of a quark by itself, while constituent quark mass refers to the current quark mass plus the mass of the gluon particle field surrounding the quark.[6] These masses typically have very different values. As noted, most of a proton's mass comes from the gluons that bind the constituent quarks together, rather than from the quarks themselves. While gluons are inherently massless, they possess energy to be more specific, quantum chromodynamics binding energy (QCBE) and it is this that contributes so greatly to the overall mass of the proton (see mass in special relativity). A proton has a mass of approximately 938 MeV/c2, of which the rest mass of its three valence quarks contributes only about 11 MeV/c2; much of the remainder can be attributed to the gluons' QCBE.[7]
The internal dynamics of the proton are complicated, because they are determined by the quarks' exchanging gluons, and interacting with various vacuum condensates. Lattice QCD provides a way of calculating the mass of the proton directly from the theory to any accuracy, in principle. The most recent calculations[8][9] claim that the mass is determined to better than 4% accuracy, even to 1% accuracy (see Figure S5 in D rr et al.[9]). These claims are still controversial, because the calculations cannot yet be done with quarks as light as they are in the real world. This means that the predictions are found by a process of extrapolation, which can introduce systematic errors.[10] It is hard to tell whether these errors are controlled properly, because the quantities that are compared to experiment are the masses of the hadrons, which are known in advance.
These recent calculations are performed by massive supercomputers, and, as noted by Boffi and Pasquini: a detailed description of the nucleon structure is still missing because ... long-distance behavior requires a nonperturbative and/or numerical treatment..."[11] More conceptual approaches to the structure of the proton are: the topological soliton approach originally due to Tony Skyrme and the more accurate AdS/QCD approach that extends it to include a string theory of gluons, various QCD-inspired models like the bag model and the constituent quark model, which were popular in the 1980s, and the SVZ sum rules, which allow for rough approximate mass calculations. These methods do not have the same accuracy as the more brute-force lattice QCD methods, at least not yet.
The internationally-accepted value of the proton's charge radius is (see orders of magnitude for comparison to other sizes). This value is based on measurements involving a proton and an electron.
However, since July 5, 2010, an international research team has been able to make measurements involving a proton and a negatively-charged muon. After a long and careful analysis of those measurements, the team concluded that the root-mean-square charge radius of a proton is ", which differs by 5.0 standard deviations from the CODATA value of ."[12]
The international research team that obtained this result at the Paul-Scherrer-Institut (PSI) in Villigen (Switzerland) includes scientists from the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics (MPQ) in Garching, the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universit t (LMU) Munich and the Institut f r Strahlwerkzeuge (IFWS) of the Universit t Stuttgart (both from Germany), and the University of Coimbra, Portugal.[13][14] They are now attempting to explain the discrepancy, and re-examining the results of both previous high-precision measurements and complicated calculations. If no errors are found in the measurements or calculations, it could be necessary to re-examine the world s most precise and best-tested fundamental theory: quantum electrodynamics.[15]
In chemistry, the number of protons in the nucleus of an atom is known as the atomic number, which determines the chemical element to which the atom belongs. For example, the atomic number of chlorine is 17; this means that each chlorine atom has 17 protons and that all atoms with 17 protons are chlorine atoms. The chemical properties of each atom are determined by the number of (negatively charged) electrons, which for neutral atoms is equal to the number of (positive) protons so that the total charge is zero. For example, a neutral chlorine atom has 17 protons and 17 electrons, whereas a negative Cl ion has 17 protons and 18 electrons for a total charge of 1.
All atoms of a given element are not necessarily identical, however, as the number of neutrons may vary to form different isotopes, and energy levels may differ forming different nuclear isomers. For example, there are two stable isotopes of chlorine: with 35 - 17 = 18 neutrons and with 37 - 17 = 20 neutrons.
In chemistry, the term proton refers to the hydrogen ion, . Since the atomic number of hydrogen is 1, a hydrogen ion has no electrons and corresponds to a bare nucleus, consisting of a proton (and 0 neutrons for the most abundant isotope protium ). The proton is a "bare charge" with only about 1/64,000th of the radius of a hydrogen atom, and so is extremely reactive chemically. The free proton, thus, has an extremely short lifetime in chemical systems such as liquids and it reacts immediately with the electron cloud of any available molecule. In aqueous solution, it forms the hydronium ion, H3O+, which in turn is further solvated by water molecules in clusters such as [H5O2]+ and [H9O4]+.[16]
The transfer of in an acid base reaction is usually referred to as "proton transfer". The acid is referred to as a proton donor and the base as a proton acceptor. Likewise, biochemical terms such as proton pump and proton channel refer to the movement of hydrated ions.
The ion produced by removing the electron from a deuterium atom is known as a deuteron, not a proton. Likewise, removing an electron from a tritium atom produces a triton.
Also in chemistry, the term "proton NMR" refers to the observation of hydrogen-1 nuclei in (mostly organic) molecules by nuclear magnetic resonance. This method uses the spin of the proton, which has the value one-half. The name refers to examination of protons as they occur in protium (hydrogen-1 atoms) in compounds, and does not imply that free protons exist in the compound being studied.
The concept of a hydrogen-like particle as a constituent of other atoms was developed over a long period. As early as 1815, William Prout proposed that all atoms are composed of hydrogen atoms, based on a simplistic interpretation of early values of atomic weights (see Prout's hypothesis), which was disproved when more accurate values were measured. Ernest Rutherford at the first Solvay Conference, 1911 In 1886, Eugen Goldstein discovered canal rays (also known as anode rays) and showed that they were positively charged particles (ions) produced from gases. However, since particles from different gases had different values of charge-to-mass ratio (e/m), they could not be identified with a single particle, unlike the negative electrons discovered by J. J. Thomson.
Following the discovery of the atomic nucleus by Ernest Rutherford in 1911, Antonius van den Broek proposed that the place of each element in the periodic table (its atomic number) is equal to its nuclear charge. This was confirmed experimentally by Henry Moseley in 1913 using X-ray spectra.
In 1917, (in experiments reported in 1919) Rutherford proved that the hydrogen nucleus is present in other nuclei, a result usually described as the discovery of the proton.[17] Rutherford had earlier learned to produce hydrogen nuclei as a type of radiation produced as a product of the impact of alpha particles on hydrogen gas, and recognize them by their unique penetration signature in air and their appearance in scintilation detectors.
Later, Rutherford noticed that, when alpha particles were shot into air (mostly nitrogen), and (after experimentation) when alphas were produced into pure nitrogen gas, his scintillation detectors showed the signatures of typical hydrogen nuclei as a product. Rutherford determined that this hydrogen could have come only from the nitrogen, and therefore nitrogen must contain hydrogen nuclei. One hydrogen nucleus was being knocked off by the impact of the alpha particle, producing oxygen-17 in the process. This was the first reported nuclear reaction, 14N + 17O + p.
Rutherford knew hydrogen to be the simplest and lightest element and was influenced by Prout's Law. Discovery that the hydrogen nucleus is present in all other nuclei as an elementary particle led Rutherford to give it a special name as a particle, since he suspected that hydrogen, the lightest element, contained only one of these particles. He named this new fundamental building block of the nucleus the proton, after the neuter singular of the Greek word for "first", . The first use of the word "proton" in the scientific literature appears in 1920. [18]
The Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Packages (ALSEP) determined that more than 95% of the particles in the solar wind are electrons and protons, in approximately equal numbers.[19][20]
Because the Solar Wind Spectrometer made continuous measurements, it was possible to measure how the Earth's magnetic field affects arriving solar wind particles. For about two-thirds of each orbit, the Moon is outside of the Earth's magnetic field. At these times, a typical proton density was 10 to 20 per cubic centimeter, with most protons having velocities between 400 and 650 kilometers per second. For about five days of each month, the Moon is inside the Earth's geomagnetic tail, and typically no solar wind particles were detectable. For the remainder of each lunar orbit, the Moon is in a transitional region known as the magnetosheath, where the Earth's magnetic field affects the solar wind but does not completely exclude it. In this region, the particle flux is reduced, with typical proton velocities of 250 to 450 kilometers per second. During the lunar night, the spectrometer was shielded from the solar wind by the Moon and no solar wind particles were measured.[19]
Protons also occur in from extrasolar origin in space, from galactic cosmic rays, where they make up about 90% of the total particle flux. These protons often have higher energy than solar wind protons, but their intensity is far more uniform and less variable than protons coming from the sun, the production of which is heavily affected by solar proton events, such as coronal mass ejections.
Research has been performed on the dose-rate effects of protons, as typically found in space travel, on human health.[20][21] To be more specific, there are hopes to identify what specific chromosomes are damaged, and to define the damage, during cancer development from proton exposure.[20] Another study looks into determining "the effects of exposure to proton irradiation on neurochemical and behavioral endpoints, including dopaminergic functioning, amphetamine-induced conditioned taste aversion learning, and spatial learning and memory as measured by the Morris water maze."[21] Electrical charging of a spacecraft due to interplanetary proton bombardment has also been proposed for study.[22] There are many more studies that pertain to space travel, including galactic cosmic rays and their possible health effects, and solar proton event exposure.
The American Biostack and Soviet Biorack space travel experiments have demonstrated the severity of molecular damage induced by heavy ions on micro organisms including Artemia cysts.[23]
CPT-symmetry puts strong constraints on the relative properties of particles and antiparticles and, therefore, is open to stringent tests. For example, the charges of the proton and antiproton must sum to exactly zero. This equality has been tested to one part in . The equality of their masses has also been tested to better than one part in . By holding antiprotons in a Penning trap, the equality of the charge to mass ratio of the proton and the antiproton has been tested to one part in .[24] The magnetic moment of the antiproton has been measured with error of nuclear Bohr magnetons, and is found to be equal and opposite to that of the proton.
Fermion field
Hydron (chemistry)
List of particles
Proton decay
Proton-proton chain reaction
Quark model
Subatomic particle
Particle Data Group
af:Proton ar: ast:Prot n az:Proton (fizika) bn: zh-min-nan:I ng-ch map-bms:Proton be: be-x-old: bs:Proton br:Proton bg: ca:Prot cv: cs:Proton cy:Proton da:Proton de:Proton et:Prooton el: es:Prot n eo:Protono eu:Protoi fa: hif:Proton fr:Proton fy:Proton ga:Pr t n gl:Prot n xal: ko: hy: hi: hr:Proton io:Protono id:Proton ia:Proton is:R teind it:Protone he: jv:Proton kn: ka: kk: sw:Protoni ht:Pwoton ku:Proton la:Proton lv:Protons lt:Protonas ln:Proton lmo:Prutun hu:Proton mk: ml: mr: ms:Proton mn: my: nl:Proton (deeltje) new: ja: no:Proton nn:Proton nov:Protone oc:Proton mhr: pnb: nds:Proton pl:Proton pt:Pr ton ksh:Proton ro:Proton qu:Prutun ru: stq:Proton sq:Protoni scn:Prutuni si: simple:Proton sk:Prot n sl:Proton sr: sh:Proton su:Proton fi:Protoni sv:Proton tl:Proton ta: th: tr:Proton bug:Proton uk: ur: ( ) ug: vec:Proton vi:Proton fiu-vro:Proodon zh-classical: wo:Feppsaal yi: yo:Pr t n zh-yue: bat-smg:Pruotuons zh:
Search for Proton in Tutorials
Search for Proton in Encyclopedia
Search for Proton in Videos
Search for Proton in Books
Search for Proton in Software
Search for Proton in DVDs
Search for Proton in Store
Proton in Encyclopedia


text:
Clockwork & Old Gods
In which things go from bad to worse
March 23, 2014 Uncategorized No comments
Hey all, since I'm not knee deep in prep for my Night's Black Agents campaign, here's a Goyle Country update. In which things go from bad to worse.
"Do tell," Katherine invited. "Because right now it looks like your only advantage just left the building, and it's only by the grace of my good nature that you're still drawing breath."
"Ah, but they left because it is here. Tell her, Cooper. I'm sure you can feel it. That powerful presence, so like a Spirit, but so much more."
Lonesome looked over at her, brow furrowed. He spread his hands wide, struggling to find words to explain. "Something's off, Kat. What it is? I dunno that I could tell you. But it ain't good."
Clayton's footfalls announced his arrival moments before he appeared. He came into the hall at a staggering, uneven run, one arm clenched tightly to his stomach. The expression on his face was one of terror and pain, his skin was white and covered in a sheen of sweat.
"Clayton!" Katherine called out to him. "Clayton, what is it? What happened?"
Hawkins was closest, and reached him just before he collapsed. "Spirits," the Haversham & Black man gasped as he helped Clayton stay upright. "What happened to your hand?" He pulled away slightly, and Katherine would see bloody, skeletal fingers. "It goes all the way to the elbow," Hawkins added, examining the limb with a pained expression.
"All I did was touch it," Clayton groaned. "It told me to touch it."
Lonesome approached the pair, cautiously examining the arm. "What did you touch, Clayton?"
The question answered itself as the scraping, clacking sound of bone on stone issued forth from the door behind the throne. With slow, jerky movements a horrific sight came into view. The bones from the box, assembled into a humanoid form and lashed together with a thin network of sinew and muscle. But that was far from enough to explain how they were moving, and Lonesome could hear the whispers from the thing that animated it.
"Well that ain't right," deputy Walsh decided as the rest looked on in stunned silence. He leveled his rifle at the shambling mass of bone and pulled the trigger. It was a little off target, and hit a collar bone instead of the skull as he'd intended. Not that it would have made much difference. The bone splintered into shards as the bullet tore through, and then those shards rapidly pulled themselves back into place.
"You can't kill it," Dorean told them. "It's beyond death."
"Then send it back," Katherine ordered. "Undo whatever you did or we'll see if you can do the same trick."
"Go ahead," he retorted confidently. "It won't let you kill me. That's part of the deal. I brought it here, freed it from its prison, and in return it will help me ascend as it did so long ago. Clem and I both. I gave you your chance, Cooper. Now-"
Katherine pulled the trigger. The bullet caught the rogue Spirit Talker in the chest, and his eyes widened as it burst from his back in a spray of blood. Despite the wound he remained standing, and his eyes went from wide to narrow. He lowered his head to regard the wound, one eyebrow raised. "Well now," he commented. "That's interesting. Apparently," he smirked at Katherine, "I am invulnerable, after a fashion."
The skeleton had continued to shamble forward behind Dorean as the confrontation played out. It was close to him now, and one ossified hand rose out towards him. Katherine, never one to give up easily, shot Dorean again. The impact of the bullet pushed him back a step.
"Come now, Arbiter," he addressed her smugly. "Surely you can see there's no point in continuing that futile effort."
The piled of walking bones grasped hold of Dorean's arm. Surprised he turned to face it, and found his other arm grasped. He started to speak, to ask what it was doing, but his words turned into a slowly rising scream as flesh began to melt away. In globs and shreds it left his body and began attaching itself to the skeleton.
"Shit," Lonesome grunted. He sprinted for Clementine, stooping to pick up her cavalry saber, and began hacking at the roots that held her. Her eyes looked past him in horror at what was happening to Dorean, and behind him he could hear a cacophony of gunfire. Not that it would do any good. "Damnit you idiots," he called back over his shoulder, "Get the hell out of here!"
"Get yourself out of here," Katherine told him as she and the others began to head for the door.
"Not without Clem," he growled. "I don't care what she's done, I'm not leaving her to that."
"Fair enough," she decided, and began to tear at the roots with her bare hands. Working together, and with Clem struggling free from the inside, it was quick work to free her.
"Coop," she gasped as she tore away from the last root. "I didn't know-"
"Save it," he snapped. "Let's move!"
When they reached the door he spared a look back. Dorean was completely unrecognizable now, and the skeleton was looking more like someone who'd been flayed alive. It was easy to tell that, whatever it was, it wasn't human. The proportions were all wrong, and those bits of skin that were appearing had begun turning an almost golden hue.
"Great," Hawkins growled, still holding Clayton on his feet. "Now what do we do? How do we kill that thing if shooting it doesn't work?"
"I really wish we had some dynamite about now," Katherine told him. "Lonesome? Any ideas? This thing is basically a Spirit, right?"
"How the hell should I know?" He turned to face Clementine. "But you would, wouldn't you? You and Dorean worked to make that thing possible. How do we stop it?"
"It's more than just a Spirit," she told them. "Dorean was right about that. It's a person that transcended mortality. The Spirits won't come near it because they know it can command them. The rules are different."
"What about the goyles?" Walsh asked. He was still sighting his rifle on the door as they backed away from it, not wanting to be in the hall but not yet willing to retreat. The rifle wouldn't do much good if it came out after them, but it would make him feel better.
"I think they wanted this to happen," Clem told him grimly. "They were working with us to get the bones back and summon it. Going to them will make things worse, not better."
"They weren't all working for Dorean," Katherine informed her. "Some of them helped us get here. If we're lucky they might know how to deal with this thing."
"Hey," Carter cut in with a wave of his hand. "You hear that? That's right – nothin. The screaming stopped. I think it's done eating that fella. You all wanna stick around to be next, or are we gonna high tail it outta here?"
"Man's got a point," Hawkins agreed. So did everyone else. They left the city behind as quickly as they could and headed for the massive cliff. Katherine didn't know if the goyles that had brought them here would have waited for them to come back or not, but she hoped they had.
Clem rode with Lonesome, and though it didn't look she had running in mind he kept a close eye on her anyway. After riding along with silence for some time, he finally spoke. "Did you really not know this was going to happen?"
She turned to look at him over her shoulder. "You think I wanted something like that in the world?" she demanded. "You know me better than that, Coop."
"The hell I do," he snapped back. "The Clem I knew wouldn't have done any of this. So out with it. Did you know?"
"Of course I didn't know. I mean… we knew something was going to come back. We knew it would go into the bones, but we never thought it would get up and walk around. Curse me, Coop, I never thought it would… do what it did to Dorean. We thought we were bringing back a person, not a monster."
"And what about after you'd brought it back? Did you just expect it to keep it's part of the deal on it's honor? You had to have thought about the possibility that it was just using you."
"If any of that had worked we wouldn't be running from it."
"Tell me about it anyway," Lonesome prompted. "Anything might help us here."
She sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "Alright. We managed to learn a few things from it. Small things, mostly, but some of it was useful. Like how to bind a Spirit to something. I did that for Clayton. That bauble I gave him to keep him safe after the ambush. Dorean thought he had a way of doing that to the thing we were trying to bring back. Once it was in the bones it was supposed to stay there, bound and forbidden from doing anything that might hurt us. Obviously that didn't pan out like we thought it would."
"Lonesome," Katherine prompted. "If we're far enough away from the city why don't you and Clem see if you can rustle up a Spirit. Clayton could probably use some help with that arm." She nodded to the young man, who was looking pale and sickly. Hawkins had wrapped his arm with bandages, for all the good it would do. It was obvious he needed some otherworldly intervention.
To Lonesome's surprise he found that a number of Spirits were still dwelling in the odds and ends he wore. Whether they'd stayed there throughout the confrontation with Dorean or left and come back he wasn't sure, and now wasn't exactly the time to ask. They stopped at a group of the stunted prairie trees that seemed to grow everywhere in the Badlands, taking refuge in the shade and resting Clayton against one rough barked trunk.
Lonesome looked around nervously. "We sure we want to do this here, Kat? Once it starts you know we can't stop it, and won't want to move him much either. We'll be stuck here for however long it takes."
Katherine nodded. She knew better than to ask how long that was going to be. If Lonesome knew he would have told her, and a wound like Clayton's was probably far worse than anything he'd tried to heal before anyway. Frankly she wasn't sure it was possible, but if he was willing to give it a try the odds were probably good.
"Given a choice, no," she told him. "I'd rather not do it here. But I don't think we can wait much longer. Clayton's been looking worse every minute we ride, and while he might've shot a man he doesn't deserve to die like this. I won't let that thing be the death of him."
Lonesome nodded and went to work. While he knelt beside Clayton, Katherine turned to Clem. "I won't speak to what a stupid, irresponsible thing it is you've done," she started. "That's for another time. Right now I just want to know something. After seeing what you helped bring here, and what it does, are you willing to help put a stop to it?"
"I am, Arbiter. I never wanted-"
"So you've said," Katherine cut her off. "We don't need to hear it again. What I need you to do now is talk to the Spirits and see if you can find us some goyles. Some that'll be friendly to our needs, not the ones you worked with before."
"I can do that."
"Good. And Clem?" She rested her hand on the grip of her holstered revolver in a meaningful sort of way. "If the wrong sort show up I'll assume the worst of you."
Hawkins caught her eye, and she joined the Haversham & Black man at the edge of the trees. "Mr. Hawkins," she invited him to speak. "What's on your mind?"
He was quick to the point. "You think that's a good idea, trusting her?"
"Right now there's no such thing as a good idea," she told him. "Right now we need help and we need it fast. If she can get that for us I'm willing to take the chance. The longer that thing is free the higher the chances we'll never see it again, and I don't want to live the rest of my life knowing I could have stopped it. Besides, we've cheated death so many times lately what's once more?"
"The thing about gambling, Arbiter, is knowing when to quit while you're ahead."
"And the thing about being an Arbiter, Mr. Hawkins, is knowing when to keep going even if the odds aren't in your favor."
"Strikes me as an unhealthy line of work," Hawkins commented dryly.
Katherine scoffed and leaned against a tree trunk. "Wouldn't be nearly as interesting otherwise."
Watching Clayton's arm grow back was a disturbingly fascinating experience. Katherine hadn't known a lot about human anatomy other than which bits you made bleed so somebody would die. Seeing a whole limb grow back one layer at a time atop the bone was educational, in a strange and queasy sort of way. But if the regrowth of Clayton's arm was disturbing, the effects it was having on the surrounding area were more disturbing still. It had started with the grass around him. Though it had begun as a mix of green and yellow, as prairie grass tended to be, it had begun to turn decidedly brown. Not merely dead, but dessicated and dry. The effect started where Clayton sat, and slowly spread outward.
The tree against which they'd propped him wasn't spared, either. Though it had taken longer to show the leaves were doing the same as the grass, drying up and falling from branches that were withering from the tips towards the trunk. When Katherine brushed her hand against them, grass and leaves both, they crumbled into dust and blew away.
"Most times the body has what it needs to fix a wound," Clem explained as Lonesome talked on and off with the Spirits doing the healing. "It just needs help doing it quickly. As bad off as Clayton is it would kill him to take from his body to fix his arm. So the Spirits are taking what they need from elsewhere."
"Just as long as they don't start taking it from us," Walsh shuddered.
Let me know when there are updates or news!
All content © 2012 – 2017 to Mark A. Sargent unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved.
Mark A. Sargent
Clockwork & Old Gods is Available On:
Amazon (For Kindle)
Amazon UK (For Kindle)
Get Your News Here:

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Jane's Blog with her amazing project to my Craftchaos?
of give-aways on her blog.
for the next Technique Junkie Newsletter!!!
you can find in the newsletters.
first newsletter in October 2002.
and dies. The sentiment is by Stampin'Up!
to win a guest designer's spot.
with her fantastic art work!
Such a fun and festive card. You are the queen of Iris Folding- love the fun ghost and the great sky technique you used. Love those Michael Strong dies....!
Very cool iris folding and I like the background.
Wowza! I know you love this technique because you post so many amazing things with it. This is truly a magnificent irisfold. Love how you embellished by creating a scene.
what a great Halloween card, and gorgeous iris folding. I too love the TJ newsletter.
You are the Queen of the iris fold!! Nice work!
Beautiful card and that is a lot of work to do too, looks fab!
Wow Hetty! This is a stunning Halloween card! Love your irisfolding! Have fun!
Wow! What a great card for Halloween! Thanks for sharing your artistry with us!
Love iris-folding! You have a very cute card here.
I haven't done Iris folding in ages, and it's so much fun. Love your card! The clouds are so cool and the inside is fun too!
I love the irs fold image and the wonderful stamps you have picked to go with it. Great Job.
Wow Hetty! How cute is that! You did a fabulous job on your card!
What a great Halloween card Hetty!! I love looking at your iris folding, you do it so well!!!
I just love Iris Folding, but I never seem to do it enough. What a fun Halloween ghost!
Cute card. The Iris folding really makes it special.
What an awesome effect! I love how your iris folded ghost adds so much to this delightful card. Thanks for sharing!
I commented on the wrong entry evidently, so you get 2 Hetty-LOL Iris folding-love to look at it but makes my head hurt trying to do it-good job!
Love the Iris Ghost...great use of it n the card!! Very artistic!!
I love this, Hetty! I have never done irisfolding myself, but it is perfect for this card!!!
I am always so impressed by Iris folding! Love your project.
What an awesome Halloween card.


text:
Q: semantic release random branch as a release branch how should semantic release be configured to produce a unique semantic versioning for each branch (set all branches as release branch).
that is, assume a random branch name - how do semantic release should be configured to make the random branch as a release branch, such that semantic release will produce a unique semantic versioning for that branch. e.g. 1.2.3-<branch name>+<ref>?

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Xiaomi launches the successor to Redmi Note 3 almost on its one-year anniversary. The new Redmi Note 4 is equipped with a 5.5-inch full-HD screen, a powerful Helio X20 processor, and a large battery.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 doesn't offer many large upgrades. Some Xiaomi fans might, therefore, be disappointed that the company hasn't incorporated more new features in this model. For example, the internal RAM memory and storage remain the same as those utilised by the predecessor Xiaomi Redmi Note 3. Furthermore, the resolution of the rear camera has decreased from 16 MP to 13 MP (although the aperture has increased to f/2.0). This is not to say that consumers won't enjoy this smartphone.
The processor has been upgraded to a 10-core Mediatek Helio X20, which is much faster than the 8-core Helio X10 model utilised by Redmi Note 3. Xiaomi itself claims that the new processor is 62% faster than the previous version.
The battery capacity has expanded to 4,100 mAh.
The video can record in full-HD at a rate of 30 frames per second (fps). A whopping 120 fps is available in HD format. It's worthwhile noting that the front camera is also capable of recording in full-HD. This is ideal for video calls!
Runs the latest MIUI 8 user interface.


If you need assistance with your online order, tracking a package, returns or any other information related to an order you placed on Bird.com, we can help.
What delivery area is covered by Bird.com?
You may track an order by accessing your online account and viewing the order status and tracking information in the order history details. Also, once an order has shipped, a Shipping Confirmation e-mail is sent to you with the name of the carrier and the tracking number, which you may use to track your order via the carrier's tracking site. Economy shipping orders ARE NOT trackable.
We recommend you check your state's tax regulations for online purchases, as bird.com is not responsible for individual state sales tax collection except as noted above.
Order arrival timelines are dependent upon product, inventory status and delivery method. Typically, orders will arrive to your home within 5-7 business days. Items shipping via common carrier can take up to 3 weeks to receive. Exceptions are communicated on the product information page of the item and in your shopping cart. In rare instances, when an item in-stock becomes unavailable after you have placed an order, you will be notified of the status of that order via e-mail.
We gladly ship within the 48 contiguous states, APO/FPO addresses, Alaska, Hawaii, the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Guam, and Canada. Delivery option restrictions by location apply.
Registered users can log into their account and view the order history and details of any order that they have placed online.
When a product is labeled as backordered, this means that there is currently none available in stock to ship to the customer immediately. You may still place the order for the item and as soon as the item becomes available, one will be shipped to you. The estimated arrival date to the Bird.com distribution center is communicated on the product's information page and in the shopping cart.
When an order is placed on Bird.com, an order confirmation e-mail is sent within 24 hours of the time you placed your order.
You may make changes to your order anytime after the order is placed as long as your order hasn't been processed. If you need to change an order, call the Customer Care Center at 1-866-411-2473 to check if your order has been processed and change your order.
You may cancel an order as long as it has not been processed. Please call the Customer Care Center at 1-866-411-2473. If your order has not yet been processed, they will be able to assist in canceling your order.
Our goal at bird.com has been and still is to offer the best products at the best prices. With the increase in all service costs we've been receiving, we've found a way to ensure that our customers get the best possible pricing experience at bird.com. (see details below).
Shipments are delivered Monday through Friday. We do offer Saturday delivery where available and at an additional charge. To place an order for Saturday delivery, get rates or location availability, please call customer service at 1-866-411-2473.
Select items marked with "Ships to Canada" messaging and process your order as you normally would. Any additional charges will be calculated in your Billing Summary Page. If you have any questions please email us or call us at 1-866-411-BIRD (2473).
If you have additional questions regarding Canadian Shipping, please contact Customer Service at 1-866-411-BIRD (2473).
Bird.com is happy to accept orders from friends around the globe. Please call our expert sales reps at 1.866.411.2473 to assist you with your order. Please note that at this time we can only accept international orders in excess of $150.00. Also note that select product lines may not be available for sale internationally and shipping rates and fees will vary depending on the delivery address of your order. Our sales rep will be able to provide you with additional information when you call to place your order.
Items from Bird.com can be shipped to several international regions, but cannot be shipped to Africa, Island Nations, Israel, Latin America, or the Middle East.
Some items sold by Bird.com cannot be shipped internationally due to import restrictions or size; for example pet food and products containing animal by-products cannot be shipped internationally.
For products shipped internationally, please note that any manufacturer warranty may not be valid; manufacturer service options may not be available; product manuals, instructions and safety warnings may not be in destination country languages; the products (and accompanying materials) may not be designed in accordance with destination country standards, specifications, and labeling requirements; and the products may not conform to destination country voltage and other electrical standards (requiring use of an adapter or converter if appropriate). You are responsible for ensuring that the product can be lawfully imported to the destination country. When ordering from Bird.com, the recipient is the importer of record and must comply with all laws and regulations of the destination country.
Signature is required for Motor Freight; however, signature is not required for other shipping methods. Thorough inspection must be made upon delivery and all damage noted on the delivery receipt. If an item is damaged, delivery should be refused and ferret.com must be notified immediately. You must save all shipping and merchandise packaging.
If your order is broken or damaged, refuse delivery (if possible) and call Customer Service at 1-866-411-2473. You must save all shipping and merchandise packaging.
A pesticide is any substance intended to control, destroy, repel, or attract a pest. Any living organism that causes damage, economic loss, transmits or produces disease may be the target pest. Pests can be animals, insects, unwanted plants and weeds, or microorganisms such as plant diseases, viruses or bacteria. Before being sold or used in California, all pesticides must be registered with both the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR). Pesticide products typically sold in retail stores include: Algaecides, Fungicides, Herbicides, Insecticides, Rodent Poison, Repellants and Disinfectants & Sanitizers. If a product fails to meet California use requirement, TABcom LLC will restrict product shipment to comply with California state law.
For a complete review of the Bird.com. return policy, view our Return Policy.
Bird.com does not reimburse return shipping for products returned for reasons that are not the fault of Bird.com.
Customers may call our Customer Care Center at 1-866-411-2473 immediately upon discovering any damage or defect with an item ordered online. You must save all shipping and merchandise packaging.
Yes, depending on the availability of the items in the order. Call the Customer Care Center at 1-866-411-2473 to request a replacement order.


text:
Q: Closing wrapped resources in Java Consider the typical code:
try {
    FileReader fr = new FileReader("42.txt");
    BufferedReader br = new BufferedReader(fr);
} finally {
        //??
}

Should close in the finally clause be called for both or them or is it sufficient to close only one reader (if so, then which one?).
I would think that it should be sufficient to close only the most external wrapper, because with the following code that utilises try with resources only br will be closed:
try (BufferedReader br = new BufferedReader(new FileReader("42.txt"))) {
}

A: The outermost one. It will then call close() on the wrapped stream etc. if it's implemented correctly (which is certainly true for JDK classes).


text:
Home Sport Timaru teen refereeing at women's tournament
Timaru teen refereeing at women's tournament
Roncalli College Year 12 pupil Reagan Ashley has a busy few months as he embarks on a promising career as a basketball referee.
by Alexia Johnston
Timaru teenager Reagan Ashley has scored himself a spot on court refereeing one of New Zealand's top basketball leagues.
Ashley (16) has been selected to referee at the New Zealand women's basketball championships next month – an honour he was looking forward to.
"I've got a game in Christchurch on the 26th of June between the two finalists from last year, the Canterbury Wildcats and Taranaki Thunder."
The year 12 Roncalli College pupil has been a ref for longer than he has played the sport.
"I've played for three years and been a referee for about six or seven years," he said.
"I just wanted to do something that was different to playing and got thrown in the deep end."
That "deep end" has already resulted in a range of top tournaments, including a game between the Canterbury Wildcats and Otago Gold Rush in Timaru, on April 22.
Ashley also attended the Mel Young Basketball Classic, an Easter tournament hosted in Tauranga where he was "awarded" the under-17 finals game.
He travelled to Australia in January for the Australian Country Junior Basketball Cup, which was held in both Albury and Wodonga.
He refereed the under-16 grade and was awarded the chance to ref the play-off for fifth and sixth place.
Last year he attended the secondary schools national tournament where he refereed the single A play-off for bronze.
Next month Ashley will referee the under-19 nationals in North Harbour from June 2-5 and has been selected to referee the under-17 nationals in Wellington in July.
The women's championships finals weekend is also on his calendar of referee duties in July.Buy KicksAsics Onitsuka Tiger
Previous articleBell in running for songwriting award
Next articleRecord 82 years with Women's Club marked
Club has 'culture has kids want to stay in'
Bowlers raring to go on club's new green
Shootout day decided at Temuka – GOLF