The Senate is also in charge of agreeing to treaties with other countries. The Senate has the sole responsibility for confirming presidential appointments. These include federal judges, foreign ambassadors and Cabinet members. If the Senate and President do not agree, the President has to pick someone else the Senate will agree to.
Committees of the United States Senate and other important jobs in the Senate are assigned by the majority political party. Right now, the Senate is made up of 48 Democrats with 2 Independents who sides with the Democrats which make them the Senate Majority. The minority of the Senate is made up of 50 Republicans.
Fair use
Fair use is the idea that it should be okay for a person to reuse something that another person has created, in certain amounts and for certain purposes, without breaking the law.
In most countries, art and other made-up things, like stories, books, TV shows, and pictures, are owned by the person that first made them. This person can let someone else own the things they make, sometimes for money. The person that owns these things has a "copyright" for them, which means that person can decide who can copy their work. If someone else copies that work without asking the owner first, that person is breaking the law. The owner can take the person to court and try to get money from them because of what they did.
Since a lot of creative work is popular, people want to talk about them, and they may want to talk about them on TV or in a book. This might mean that they want to use a little bit of it when they talk about it. The idea of "fair use" was added to most copyright laws to make sure that it would be OK do to this, as long as only a little bit of someone's work is used.
Since a lot of creative work is now on computers and on the Internet, it is very easy to copy things and send them to lots of people. To make sure that people cannot always do this, there are computer programs that try to stop people from copying other people's work (known as digital rights management). One problem with these programs is that they also mean that you cannot copy even a small part of someone's work, so you cannot do "fair use" without cheating the program. In some countries, cheating those software programs is also breaking the law.
Duodenum
The duodenum is a short section of the small intestine, and is where most digestion in the small intestine takes place. It receives secretions, including bile and juice, from the pancreas and the liver through the pancreatic and common bile ducts. These secretions limit, or neutralise, the stomach acidity. Also, enzymes help to digest the food.
Soil erosion
Soil erosion is the washing or blowing away (by water or wind) of the top layer of soil (dirt). This is a serious problem for farmers. If the soil has eroded, the crops that make food will not grow very well.
Soil erosion was a big problem in the Midwestern United States in the 1930s dust bowl.
Erosion also leaves large sinkholes in the ground, which can weaken buildings and even cause them to collapse. Urban areas are usually protected from soil erosion, so not many buildings collapse from erosion.
Soil erosion can be conserved in several ways:
Compost
Compost is a type of fertilizer that is made from rotting plants. It is easy and cheap to make, as all it really requires is vegetable waste. The vegetable waste is broken down by bacteria (germs), and made into compost.
To make a compost heap, you need some space fairly far from anyone who might have a problem with the smell. The bottom corner of a garden, or some other place a distance from the house is a good place. Compost heaps should also be placed on soil, or grass: a paved yard or concrete are bad places.
The compost heap should not be in a dark or closed corner.
The best base for a compost heap is a layer of sand, bricks or gravel about 1m long by 1m wide. This is not needed, but it can be a good idea. If using bricks, leave spaces to allow the air to move through. It also allows for the water to run away. The best compost heaps have lots of little spaces inside, to allow air to move around.
Once the first layer is down, one can begin adding the waste.
Some good types of waste are:
Adding meat scraps is a bad idea, as they rot slowly, smell bad and attract rats and other vermin. Human or pet feces is also a very bad idea, as this can transmit disease. Waste from plants that have died of disease is also bad. The disease can spread to the plants that the compost is used with.
When making a compost heap, different types of waste should be layered. A layer of cut grass can be followed by a layer of vegetable waste and table scraps.
Watering the compost heap is a good idea, especially in dry areas. The water helps encourage the waste to rot and turn into compost.
In anywhere from 3 to 6 months, the compost will be ready. The compost is ready when it smells like thick earth, with no smell of decay or rot. Of course, if you have been adding waste all this time, the compost will all be at the bottom of the heap, and will have to be dug out.
The stuff that has not rotted can be used as part of a new compost heap.
Haiti
Haiti (French: "Haïti"; Haitian Creole: "Ayiti"), officially the Republic of Haiti (French: "République d'Haïti"; Haitian Creole: "Repiblik d Ayiti") is a country on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola. The other country on the island is the Dominican Republic. Haiti has two official languages: French and Haitian Creole, or ""Kreyol"", which is a simple version of French mixed with African languages. Its capital city is Port-au-Prince.
Haiti has a tropical climate. In French, the country is called ""La Perle des Antilles"" (The pearl of the Antilles), because of its natural beauty. There are many mountains in Haiti. The country used to be covered with forests. However, it no longer is, because of deforestation. It is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere.
Haiti is divided into ten "departements". The main religion is Roman Catholicism. However, many Haitians also practice Voodoo. This is a religion which came from African folk beliefs in Benin. Haiti has many holidays; the largest and most important is the "Mardi Gras".
Haiti has a total area of 27,750 km². Most of it is in the western third of the Hispaniola island. There are also smaller islands near the Haitian coast, like "Gonâve", "Île de la Tortue", "Les Cayemites", "Île-à-Vache" and "La Navase".
Haiti has many mountains. There are only some coastal plains and few valleys. The largest valley is the "Cul-de-Sac". Port-au-Prince is in the western end of this valley. The country's main river is the Artibonite, which is also the longest in Hispaniola. Haiti's biggest city is Port-au-Prince, with more than 3 million people in its metropolitan area. The second largest city is Cap-Haïtien.
Haiti has a tropical climate. The rainy season lasts from April to June, and from October to November. Hurricanes are common during summer. In the past, hurricanes have caused a lot of damage and killed many people.
The Taino people were a tribe of Arawak Amerindians. They lived on the island of Hispaniola before Christopher Columbus found the island and started a European colony there. Columbus found the island of Hispaniola on his first trip to the Americas. Within twenty-five years after Columbus arrived, all of the Arawaks had been killed by Spanish conquistadors.
In the early 17th century, the French set up a colony on Hispaniola. In 1697, Spain sold the western third of the island - Haiti - to the French. The French colony was based on forestry and making sugar. It became one of the wealthiest in the Caribbean. However, to do this, the colony brought many slaves over from Africa and destroyed much of the environment.