my assurances that this was no big deal and that it would be fun to get out in front of the rest of the blm and showcase the craig district got me a few strange looks. i worked with ade neisius, the rmp team leader in kremmling, to quickly come up with a schedule, intermediate project steps, and a commitment from the team and from management to move forward with the pilot plan. we met periodically with the other pilot rmp teams from throughout the blm, shared ideas and stories, and ultimately completed the plan, albeit with the predictable delays and budget challenges we encounter in all of our work. throughout the process, i was thrilled at the flexibility and support i found from managers throughout the blm in exploring new approaches and trying out new ideas. district manager marv pearson, area manager roger zortman, state director dale andrus, and the state office staff, including planning branch chief fran cherry and environmental branch chief elaine zielinski, provided the support that made the rmp a success. i soon found myself as the team leader for the piceance basin rmp in meeker, colorado. driven by blm director bob burford ’ s interest in developing oil shale in the piceance basin, we began getting support from the washington office, including from minerals chief monte jordan. on one of his many visits to meeker, i asked jordan if we could have the funds for a geographic information system ( gis ) to facilitate development of alternatives for the rmp. before i knew it, he arranged for us to use a mainframe data general computer, and in early 1981, we were embarking on the first gis - supported rmp in blm ’ s history, using what now seems like quite primitive gis tools. as the pilot rmps were completed, rmps / eiss were spreading throughout the blm. the washington office recognized the need to share the experiences of the pilots and to develop common guidance so that each team could avoid plowing new ground. in 1984, planning and environmental coordination chief david williams directed ken harrison and me to develop training programs for the field offices with the help of what was then the phoenix training center. although we were getting better results when several team members could attend the training, travel costs were prohibitive. ken and i began going out to blm offices to train onsite, focusing on local needs, concerns, and resource issues. this proved to be an excellent strategy. by 1986, the blm had gained


mid - book test ( up to part 2 section 1 ( page 79 to 92 ) ) | name : _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ | | period : _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ | this test consists of 15 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions. multiple choice questions directions : circle the correct answer. 1. where do the names in part 2 of the story come from? a ) from shakespeare. b ) from an adaptation that was printed in 1576. c ) from john updike ' s presumptions about the origin of names. d ) from a different publisher ' s edition in 1890. 2. which of the following is a name in part 3? 3. how does rorik attempt to change gerutha ' s opinion of horwendil? a ) he reminds her that she can not have an opinion because she is a woman. b ) he tells her the story of ona and himself. c ) he tells her a fairytale. d ) he explains to... this section contains 642 words | ( approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page )


quiz : book 1 : the creation | book 1 : the ages of mankind | book 1 : the flood | book 1 : deucalion and pyrrha to book 10 : myrrha | book 10 : venus and adonis | book 10 : atalanta | name : _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ | | period : _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ | this quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions. multiple choice questions directions : circle the correct answer. 1. what type of bird does scylla ' s father transform into after his death? a ) a hawk. b ) a penguin. c ) a flamingo. d ) a swan. 2. after minerva begins to beat her, how does arachne commit suicide? a ) she holds her breath until she dies. b ) she stabs herself through the heart. c ) she drinks poison. d ) she hangs herself. 3. how does juno punish the servants living in athamas and ino ' s house? a ) she transforms them into rats. b ) she drowns them in... this section contains 334 words | ( approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page )


quiz : chapter 1 | chapter 2 to chapter 19 | chapter 20 | name : _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ | | period : _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ | this quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions. multiple choice questions directions : circle the correct answer. 1. what does mr. bumble tell mrs. sowerberry was the cause of oliver ' s bad behavior after oliver ' s attack? a ) a fever. b ) too much food. c ) mocking and taunting. d ) sleep deprivation. 2. what is noah proud of even though he is a charity case? a ) he is learning a trade. b ) he has parents. c ) he is intelligent. d ) he owns some land. 3. what is mrs. sowerberry ' s main complaint about children? a ) they are weak. b ) they eat too much. c ) they are unintelligent. d ) they are too small. 4. what does mr. bumble see on a sign when he first arrives in london after oliver is... this section contains 350 words | ( approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page )


study foretold a consequence of oil leak it wasn ’ t until seven weeks after the but an unusual experiment conducted in 2000 off the coast of norway, a trial run of a deep - water oil and gas spill that bp helped pay for, showed that oil could remain underwater for some time. the north atlantic exercise was designed to understand how a spill would behave as the drilling industry plumbed new depths to extract oil and gas. the federal minerals management service and 22 companies took part in the test, at about half the depth of the gulf disaster. oil and gas were released close to the sea floor and only a fraction of it was spotted on the surface after about seven hours, defying conventional wisdom that oil would almost immediately surface because it ’ s lighter than water. “ over time, it will rise, but the rate of rise can be quite slow, ’ ’ said eric adams, senior research engineer at the massachusetts institute of technology, who helped perform several analyses on project deep spill. “ a lot of the oil [ in the experiment ] most likely rose after they went home. ’ ’ a bp spokesman last week acknowledged the company participated in the deep spill experiment but refused to answer why officials flatly denied the possibility there could be significant amounts of oil trapped underwater — even the day after the federal government confirmed the existence of plumes on june 8. “ there is certainly oil in the water ; we believe [ it is ] in low and small concentrations, ’ ’ toby odone, the bp spokesman, said in an interview. tony hayward, bp chief executive, also downplayed the plumes last week during a congressional hearing. under questioning from edward j. markey of massachusetts, he said the concentrations were low, and some of the oil was not from the ongoing spill. tests so far show that most of the underwater plumes are diluted : less than 1 part per million, according to the national oceanic and atmospheric administration. in those concentrations the water would not look polluted to the naked eye. “ but even though they are low concentrations, the biological community is very sensitive that far down, ’ ’ said steve murawski, chief scientist for noaa fisheries service. little is known about the plumes, which are largely separated from the surface slick. it is not clear how much oil they hold, how many and where there are, how quickly the oil will break down, and whether the plumes are harming marine life. noaa officials have confirmed the existence of underwater oil as far down as 3, 300 feet below the


oil they hold, how many and where there are, how quickly the oil will break down, and whether the plumes are harming marine life. noaa officials have confirmed the existence of underwater oil as far down as 3, 300 feet below the surface and several miles from the wellhead. other scientists have found evidence of plumes more than 10 miles long. a research cruise headed by woods hole oceanographic institution researchers and funded by the national science foundation set out thursday to map one of the cloudy mixtures and dissect its components to better understand its toxicity, where it might travel, and how quickly it is being broken down by oil - eating microbes. there are other concerns. scientists say the high pressure of the gushing leak is creating tiny oil droplets, some that can become suspended in water. the use of large amounts of underwater chemical dispersants are making those droplets smaller still. all those droplets, suspended in the water and trapped by dense ocean layers, are probably forming the plumes. scientists are also concerned about how much gas from the gushing well remains trapped underwater. the use of dispersants is continuing, because scientists believe they help natural forces more easily break down the oil into less toxic compounds. oil - eating microbes will do that under water. on the surface, they will be aided by sunlight, waves, and weather. but it ’ s a careful balance. if there are too many oil droplets in the water, the microbes, which need oxygen, could grow out of control and suck up so much oxygen they create a dead zone. samantha joye, a university of georgia scientist who was one of the first to discover the undersea oil, said oxygen levels were down 30 percent or more in some areas she sampled. federal officials say ongoing testing shows oxygen levels in the gulf are normal. “ but there is a tipping point... that ’ s why you need continuous monitoring, ’ ’ and noaa is doing that, said murawski, of the fisheries service. the deep spill experiment, some 200 miles off norway ’ s coast, was celebrated at the time as a forward - looking exercise for the next generation of drilling. in all, four mixtures were released, including a combination of diesel oil and natural gas that, while not a perfect parallel to the crude oil leaking in the gulf, gives some comparison. flow rates were comparable to the gulf spill rate. no dispersants were used. according to a 2005 analysis by mit ’ s adams and scott socolofs


not a perfect parallel to the crude oil leaking in the gulf, gives some comparison. flow rates were comparable to the gulf spill rate. no dispersants were used. according to a 2005 analysis by mit ’ s adams and scott socolofsky, now a professor at texas a & m university, between 2 and 17 cubic meters of the 60 cubic meters of released diesel made it to the surface before overflights looking for oil on the sea surface ended, about seven hours after the oil release stopped. the scientists suggested that a significant portion of the oil rose slowly because it was comprised of very small droplets. another colleague, stephen masutani of the university of hawaii, found that one - third of the oil in deep spill would probably be found in droplets of half a millimeter or smaller, which could have taken a day or more to surface. in the gulf spill, the dispersants probably made droplets much smaller still, adams said, which means they could take much longer to surface. those droplets can get trapped by currents and dense water layers deep in the sea. “ these small droplets have no choice but to follow the water once it leaves the upward - rising oil - and - gas mixture, ’ ’ socolofsky said. after deep spill, there was no effort by the industry — or government — to better understand these submerged oil droplets. beth daley can be reached at firstname. lastname @ example. org. clarification : an earlier version of this story incorrectly said that noaa had confirmed the existence of oil underwater 142 miles from the wellhead. while noaa did find evidence of oil, tests showed it did not come from the leaking bp wellhead.


new virus found in missouri ; ticks suspected with early bow season right around the corner, and even already underway in some states, it ' s important to know you ' re not out of the woods from pesky insects. a new virus has been discovered in missouri, and ticks are the likely culprit. it started with fever, fatigue, diarrhea and loss of appetite. but for two farmers in northwestern missouri, the severe illness that followed a tick bite led epidemiologists on a journey to a new viral discovery. " it ' s brand new to the world, " said william nicholson with the national center for emerging and zoonotic infectious disease at the u. s. centers for disease control and prevention. " it ' s unique in that it ' s never been found elsewhere and it is the first phlebovirus found to cause illness in humans in the western hemisphere. at this point we don ' t know how widespread it may be, or whether it ' s found in other states. we don ' t know how many people in missouri may have had this virus, as the finding of a completely new virus was a surprise to us. " nicholson, one of the authors of the report detailing the two cases published wednesday in the new england journal of medicine, suspects the new virus is a member of the tick - borne phlebovirus and is a distant cousin to severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus ( sftsv ), a virus found in central and northeastern china and known to cause death in 13 to 30 % of patients. there are more than 70 distinct viruses in the phlebovirus family, and they ' re grouped according to whether they are carried and transmitted by sandflies, mosquitoes or ticks. " we ' re not saying at this point that it is tick - borne, " nicholson said. " we suspect ticks. it might be a lone star tick or another tick, but we have not ruled out sandflies or mosquitoes. " according to nicholson, this new virus " clusters genetically " - or is very similar, yet distinct - to other tick - transmitted phleboviruses and more distantly with the sandfly and mosquitoes. researchers identified it by genetically sequencing the entire genome of the virus and comparing it to existing viral genomes. " we ' re casting a wide net so we can really figure out where this virus is located and how it ' s being transmitted, " he said. " we are also going to be doing laboratory studies


and comparing it to existing viral genomes. " we ' re casting a wide net so we can really figure out where this virus is located and how it ' s being transmitted, " he said. " we are also going to be doing laboratory studies to learn more about the biology of the virus and how it might be transmitted. " one farmer was a healthy 57 year - old man ; the other, a 67 - year - old man with type ii diabetes. recovery for both farmers was slow. both were hospitalized for about two weeks in 2009, and took about a month and a half to recovery fully. it ' s unknown whether this new virus can be transmitted from person to person, but no family members or caregivers reported symptoms similar to either patient. at the moment, nicholson said, there is no cause for concern. " i don ' t think anyone should be worried. we are not worried... we are curious of what role the virus plays in human disease. " to that end, an epidemiological study is underway in western missouri, where researchers hope to identify new patients with similar symptoms. for now, researchers will turn their attention to the large number of vertebrae hosts maintaining the virus in nature - mammals both wild and and domestic, as well as birds. in the fall, they will check out the deer and wild turkey population. tick - borne diseases are on the rise in the united states. and while this new disease might not be tick - borne, ticks are the number - one suspect. nicholson says people should use repellent, check themselves for bites or ticks, and avoid certain areas - if possible - that might serve as good habitats for ticks, such as wooded areas and areas with fallen leaves. get notified of new posts


uncovering the past in mississippi for eight weeks last summer, brandeis students were immersed in the legacy of the civil rights struggle for civil rights and racial justice in mississippi, one of the justice brandeis semester ( jbs ) programs, professor david cunningham, 11 brandeis undergraduates, and two teaching assistants spent eight weeks in mississippi combining academic learning with investigative research. teamed with a handful of students from jackson state university ( jsu ) and the university of mississippi, they studied the legacy of the civil rights movement by collecting educational and government records as well as firsthand accounts through interviews. " we ' re doing research that is academically sound and rigorous and often uncovering new findings and new insights, " says cunningham, an associate professor of sociology. working in small groups in four locations across the state, students collaborated with jsu ' s margaret walker center and the university of mississippi ' s william winter institute for racial reconciliation to support the mississippi truth project by conducting an inquiry of the state ' s unjust and segregated past. returning to jackson each week to debrief, they shared insights on how to gain access to county courthouse documents, how best to sift through stacks of arrest logs or school board minutes, and ways to create an open atmosphere for individuals to share their often harrowing personal stories. " this program takes advantage of all the things jbs provides in terms of opportunities for students, " says cunningham. " for one thing, we ' re able to leave campus and do something in a sustained way. we spend some of our time in class but the majority is spent working with community members gathering original and primary data. and there ' s also a social justice component. " at the conclusion of the program, students had created a repository of information that will be organized for and accessible to researchers, historians and communities. learn more about opportunities to gain college credit and real world experience through the justice brandeis semester.


approximately 4 % of the body ' s mass consists of minerals ( mcardle et al. 2000 ). they are classified as trace minerals ( body requires less than 100 mg / day ), and major minerals ( body requires more than 100 mg / day ). the trace minerals are iron, zinc, copper, selenium, iodine, fluorine and chromium. the major minerals are sodium, potassium, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, manganese, sulphur, cobolt and chlorine. minerals serve three roles ( mcardle et al. 2000 ) : - they provide structure in forming bones and teeth - they help maintain normal heart rhythm, muscle contractility, neural conductivity, and acid - base balance - they help regulate cellular metabolism by becoming part of enzymes and hormones that modulate cellular activity minerals cannot be made in the body and must be obtained in our diet. the daily requirements of minerals required by the body can be obtained from a well balanced diet but, like vitamins, excess minerals can produce toxic the recommended daily requirements of minerals for men, women are shown in the table below ( nhs direct online 2007 ). | | milk, cheese and other dairy foods green leafy vegetables, such as broccoli, cabbage and okra, but not spinach, soya beans, tofu, soya drinks with added calcium, nuts, bread and anything made with fortified flour, fish where you eat the bones, such as sardines and pilchards | | sea fish and shellfish, cereals, grains | | liver, meat, beans, nuts, dried fruit, such as dried apricots, wholegrains, such as brown rice, fortified breakfast cereals, soybean flour, most dark - green leafy vegetables, such as watercress and curly kale | | yellow and green ( leafy ) vegetables, such as spinach, carrots and red peppers, yellow fruit such as mango, melon and apricots | | green vegetables, fruit, nuts | | meat, wholegrains, such as wholemeal bread and whole oats, lentils, spices | | fish, nuts, green leafy vegetables, such as broccoli and spinach, cereals, such as oats | | nuts, shellfish, offal | | nuts, spinach, bread, fish, meat, dairy foods | | tea, bread, nuts, cereals, green vegetables such as peas and runner beans | | red meat,


oats | | nuts, shellfish, offal | | nuts, spinach, bread, fish, meat, dairy foods | | tea, bread, nuts, cereals, green vegetables such as peas and runner beans | | red meat, dairy foods, fish, poultry, bread, rice, oats | | fruit such as bananas, vegetables, pulses, nuts and seeds, milk, fish, shellfish, beef, chicken, turkey, bread | | brazil nuts, bread, fish, meat, eggs | sodium chloride ( salt ) | | ready meals, meat products, such as bacon, some breakfast cereals, cheese, some tinned vegetables, some bread, savoury snacks | | meat, shellfish, milk, dairy foods, such as cheese, bread, cereal products, such as wheat germ. vitamin and mineral interactions many vitamins and minerals interact, working alongside each other in groups e. g. a good balance of vitamin d, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, zinc, fluoride, chloride, manganese, copper and sulphur is required for healthy many of them can enhance or impair another vitamin or mineral ' s absorption and functioning e. g. an excessive amount of iron can cause a deficiency in zinc. - nhs direct online ( 2007 ) vitamins and minerals [ www ] available from : http : / / www. nhs. uk / conditions / vitamins - minerals / pages / vitamins - minerals. aspx [ accessed 08 / 08 / 2007 ] - mcardle, w. d. et al. ( 2000 ) micronutrints and water. in : mcardle, w. d. et al., 2nd ed. essentials of exercise physiology, usa : lippincott williams and wilkins, p. 75 the reference for this page is : - mackenzie, b. ( 2001 ) minerals [ www ] available from : http : / / www. brianmac. co. uk / minerals. htm [ accessed the following sports coach pages should be read in conjunction with this page :


calming west nile fears - more advice from the american academy of pediatrics, sept. 2002 studies show insect repellents with a deet concentration of 30 % are more protective than lower concentrations, but that concentrations higher than 30 % do not provide more protection. they simply last longer. in response to these findings, the academy says a 30 % concentration is safe for adults and children, but that 10 % can be used for children if parents are concerned about the potential risks or if the threat of disease - carrying mosquitoes is small. update - june, 2003 insect repellents containing deet ( n, n - diethyl - m - toluamide, also known as n, n - diethyl - 3 - methylbenzamide ) with a concentration of 10 % appear to be as safe as products with a concentration of 30 % when used according to the directions on the product labels. deet is not recommended for use on children under 2 months of age. deet - containing products are the most effective mosquito repellents available. deet also is effective as a repellent against a variety of other insects, including ticks. it should be used when there is a need to prevent insect - borne disease. the concentration of deet in products may range from less than 10 % to over 30 %. the efficacy of deet plateaus at a concentration of 30 %, the maximum concentration currently recommended for infants and children. the major difference in the efficacy of products relates to their duration of action. products with concentrations around 10 % are effective for periods of approximately two hours. as the concentration of deet increases, the duration of activity increases ; for example, a concentration of about 24 % has been shown to provide an average of 5 hours of protection.


can kaposi sarcoma be prevented? kaposi sarcoma ( ks ) is caused by the kaposi sarcoma herpesvirus ( kshv ). there are no vaccines at this time to protect people against kshv. for now, preventing ks depends on reducing the chance of becoming infected with kshv and reducing the chance that people who are infected with kshv will develop ks. most cases of ks in the united states occur in people with aids. taking measures to avoid becoming infected with hiv could prevent most cases of ks in this country. - since hiv can be spread through sex, avoiding unprotected sex with people infected with hiv could help prevent these infections. many people with hiv don ’ t know that they are infected, so many public health workers recommend using a condom during any sexual contact. ( a condom may not be needed if both people are hiv - negative and are in a mutually monogamous relationship ). abstinence is the most effective protection. - hiv can also be spread through the use of contaminated ( dirty ) needles to inject recreational drugs. for people who inject drugs, the safest way to avoid hiv is to quit. however, some people are unable to quit on their own or get help in quitting, and they may not be able to stop using drugs right away. for these people, clean needles and injection supplies can help protect them. in some areas, there are programs to make sure that drug users can get clean needles and syringes. - hiv - infected mothers can pass the virus to their babies during pregnancy, delivery, or breastfeeding. treating the mothers and infants with anti - hiv drugs and avoiding breastfeeding can greatly reduce the risk of these infections. - in the past, blood product transfusions and organ transplants were responsible for some hiv infections. as a result of improved testing for hiv, there is now a very low risk of hiv infection from blood products or organ transplants in the united states. for people who are infected with hiv and kshv, taking the right medicines can reduce the chance of developing ks. - testing for hiv can identify people infected with this virus. people with hiv should get treatment to help strengthen their immune system, which usually includes highly active antiretroviral therapy ( haart ). haart reduces the risk that people with hiv will develop ks ( and aids ). treating infections that commonly occur in people with weakened immunity also reduces the likelihood of developing problems with ks.


all about radiant barriers learn the facts about radiant barriers and reflective insulation products to determine if they are a wise investment for achieving energy and cost savings in your home. what are radiant barriers? radiant barriers and reflective insulation products are installed in buildings to reduce radiant heat transfer, which is one of the ways buildings gain heat in the summer and lose heat in the winter. the idea is that by reducing radiant heat gain into the attic, for instance, you will use less energy to cool the house in the summer. there are three primary types of radiant barrier products on the market : foils and films usually reinforced for strength coatings such as radiant barrier paints or sprays reflective insulation such as foil - faced bubble wrap products sometimes, products combine more than one type, such as foil - faced bubble wrap installed in an open attic. this is both an insulation and a radiant barrier. do they actually reduce radiant heat transfer? in a word, yes. most of the foil and reflective insulation products reduce radiant heat transfer by about 96 percent. the performance of the paints and sprays is much more variable. some reduce radiant heat transfer by about 75 percent, some by much less. some radiant barrier foil and reflective insulation products have qualified for the energy star label, indicating they may save energy when properly installed. none of the paints and coatings has qualified for the energy star label. none of the radiant barrier products qualifies for federal energy tax credits. do they actually save me energy? studies by oak ridge national lab and florida solar energy center documented, on average, a 2 – 10 percent reduction in the air conditioning bills of homes with radiant barriers ( foil ) installed in the attic, but almost no savings on heating costs during the winter. are they worth it? the answer to this question is more complicated and depends on cost. if you spend $ 200 and save $ 45 every year, that may be a worthwhile investment. but if you spend $ 1, 000, it ' s not nearly as clear. are there better ways to invest your money that would reduce your energy bills? what other factors should you consider? the more insulation you have in your attic — if it ' s properly installed without air leaks between the house and the attic — the less you will save with a radiant barrier. in many homes, it would cost less to seal all of the gaps and holes between the house and attic and add additional insulation. studies have shown that dirt and dust accumulation on radiant barriers degrades their performance fairly quickly and results in less savings over time. if the


it would cost less to seal all of the gaps and holes between the house and attic and add additional insulation. studies have shown that dirt and dust accumulation on radiant barriers degrades their performance fairly quickly and results in less savings over time. if the roof is shaded, the savings will be less. some roofing materials — metals, tiles, light colored shingles — give off less heat to the attic. if you have these types of roofing, the savings from radiant barriers will be less. if there is ductwork and / or handling equipment in the attic, the savings will be higher. if you store valuables in the attic that will be harmed by high temperatures, installing a radiant barrier may help preserve them. this won ' t save you money, but it might save your stuff. saving energy has positive impacts on the environment, and many people will put this into the equation as well. what about moisture issues? aluminum foil is one of the best vapor barrier products used in buildings. neither liquid water nor water vapor goes through it. this can be a great product when there is a roof leak above a radiant barrier, and the foil directs the water to the exterior of the building, reducing the damage from the leak. on the other hand, foil installed over the insulation on an attic floor could trap moisture, which then condenses and drips into the insulation. some products are perforated with a lot of small holes to help reduce this potential problem. a word to the wise if they make a claim that you will save 10 percent, ask them 10 percent of what? is it 10 percent of your total utility bill, the heating and cooling portion, or just the cooling portion? a source of confusion some energy saving product might claim that it " eliminates 86 percent of the radiant heat gain in your attic " or " reduces ceiling heat gains by up to 42 percent. " these may be true statements, but that doesn ' t translate into energy savings so high. the radiant barrier will only affect the portion of the bill caused by radiant heat entering from the attic. it has no impact on the heat gained by your house from air leaks, windows and doors, walls or floors.


according to the usage current in the british isles the term regalia is almost always employed to denote the insignia of royalty or " crown jewels ". the objects more immediately included under the collective term as commonly used are the following : the crown, the sceptre with the cross, the sceptre with the dove, the orb, the swords, the ring, the spurs, also the vestments in which the sovereign is arrayed after the unction, to wit the colobium sindonis, the dalmatic, the armill, and the royal robe, or pall, as well as a few other miscellaneous objects connected with the coronation ceremony, such as the ampulla for the oil, with the spoon, " st. edward ' s staff ", etc. all of these descend from pre - reformation days, and many of them are directly religious in origin. indeed there was a tendency not only in england, but also in germany, france, and elsewhere, to connect these insignia with some saintly and sometimes legendary possessor of a former age, and to regard them strictly as relics. in point of fact all the english regalia were broken up and sold after the execution of charles i, and the oldest of those now in existence had to be constructed anew at the restoration in 1661 ; but it had always been the custom of old to regard them or most of them as connected with st. edward the confessor, to whose shrine in westminster abbey, where the coronation takes place, they were regarded as belonging. even now the royal crown which the archbishop places on the king ' s head is still spoken of in a marginal note to the coronation service as " st. edward ' s crown ", while we find in a chronicle of the fourteenth century, the " annales paulini ", a vehement protest made in connection with the coronation of king edward ii that the unworthy favourite piers gaveston should have been suffered to carry the " crown of st. edward " with his " polluted hands " ( inquinatis manibus ). most of the regalia enumerated above call for no special comment, but with regard to some few, the significance of which has been misrepresented by anglican writers with a more or less controversial purpose, a few words are necessary. to begin with, it has been pretended that the vestures in which the king is arrayed are the vestments of a bishop, and indicate an intention to endow the monarch with an ecclesiastical character. this contention forms part


few words are necessary. to begin with, it has been pretended that the vestures in which the king is arrayed are the vestments of a bishop, and indicate an intention to endow the monarch with an ecclesiastical character. this contention forms part of a theory propounded by a prominent anglican liturgist, dr. wickham legg, that the king according to the medieval view was mixta persona ( i. e., both layman and ecclesiastic ) and therefore spiritualis jurisdictionis capax ( a fit subject for spiritual jurisdiction ). the underlying and indeed the avowed purpose was to show that although it cannot be denied that the king is the official head of the church of england, still there is nothing unbecoming in such a relation because the king is a minister of the church and consecrated to this special office by the church herself. but the various arguments by which this contention is supported, and notably that based upon the supposed ecclesiastical character of the coronation vestments, are wholly fallacious. the colobium sindonis ( alleged to be the equivalent of the alb ) and the dalmatic, or supertunica, are simply the ordinary dress of the later roman empire, and they did not acquire their liturgical charcater until after they had become the customary apparel of emperors on state occasions. this form of underclothing can be plainly traced in the consular diptychs upon which the consuls are represented as presiding at the games. in these same diptychs the most prominent feature in the official vesture is an elaborately embroidered scarf which hangs down perpendicularly in front, passes round the body, and falls over the left arm. this scarf is called the lorum. it is almost certainly the ancestor of the archiepiscopal pallium, but it remained for long centuries, as numberless byzantine paintings and sculptures show, the most conspicuous element in the imperial state costume. there is serious reason to believe, though the details cannot be gone into here, that the lorum is represented by the " armill ", though this is now a sort of stole which two or three centuries back was tied at the elbows. the address originally made at the delivery of the armill declared it to be a symbol of the " divine enfolding " ( divinae circumdationis ), which agrees much better with a wrap like the lorum than with a stole or bracelet. again " the robe royal or pall of cloth of gold ", which is embroidered with eagles, cannot


( divinae circumdationis ), which agrees much better with a wrap like the lorum than with a stole or bracelet. again " the robe royal or pall of cloth of gold ", which is embroidered with eagles, cannot with any reason be described as an ecclesiastical cope. it certainly represents the royal mantle which was originally a four - square garment fastened with a clasp over the right shoulder, such as is seen to recur several times in the carvings of the ivory book - cover of queen melisende now in the british museum ; such also as was found vesting the body of edward i when his tomb was opened in 1774. not less misleading is the interpretation recently attached to one of the three swords carried before the king and known as the " sword of the spirituality " or " the sword of the church ". this does not in any way represent, as contended, a claim to exercise jurisdiction over the church, but it only symbolizes the solemn promise of the king to protect the church. there were three such promises originally made by the king : the first to defend and secure peace for the church ; the second to punish wrong - doers ; and the third to show justice and mercy in all his judgments. now the three swords, now and anciently borne before the king at his coronation, were known as the sword of the clergy, the sword of the laity, and the third ( curtana ), which has no point, the sword of mercy. there is every reason to believe that these three swords typify the matter of the king ' s three ancient promises. as for the sword with which the king himself is girded in the coronation ceremony, this was originally in imperial coronations at rome laid upon the tomb of blessed peter and, like the archbishop ' s pallium, presented as de corpore beati petri sumptum and consequently as a kind of relic of the prince of the apostles, in whose name and to defend whose authority the power of the sword is given to rulers by the church. a theory that the orb is only a variant of the sceptre with a cross is now generally rejected, and with reason. more catholic encyclopedia browse encyclopedia by alphabet the catholic encyclopedia is the most comprehensive resource on catholic teaching, history, and information ever gathered in all of human history. this easy - to - search online version was originally printed in fifteen hardcopy volumes. designed to present its readers with the full body of catholic teaching, the encyclopedia contains not only precise statements


history, and information ever gathered in all of human history. this easy - to - search online version was originally printed in fifteen hardcopy volumes. designed to present its readers with the full body of catholic teaching, the encyclopedia contains not only precise statements of what the church has defined, but also an impartial record of different views of acknowledged authority on all disputed questions, national, political or factional. in the determination of the truth the most recent and acknowledged scientific methods are employed, and the results of the latest research in theology, philosophy, history, apologetics, archaeology, and other sciences are given careful consideration. no one who is interested in human history, past and present, can ignore the catholic church, either as an institution which has been the central figure in the civilized world for nearly two thousand years, decisively affecting its destinies, religious, literary, scientific, social and political, or as an existing power whose influence and activity extend to every part of the globe. in the past century the church has grown both extensively and intensively among english - speaking peoples. their living interests demand that they should have the means of informing themselves about this vast institution, which, whether they are catholics or not, affects their fortunes and their destiny. browse the catholic encyclopedia by topic copyright © catholic encyclopedia. robert appleton company new york, ny. volume 1 : 1907 ; volume 2 : 1907 ; volume 3 : 1908 ; volume 4 : 1908 ; volume 5 : 1909 ; volume 6 : 1909 ; volume 7 : 1910 ; volume 8 : 1910 ; volume 9 : 1910 ; volume 10 : 1911 ; volume 11 : - 1911 ; volume 12 : - 1911 ; volume 13 : - 1912 ; volume 14 : 1912 ; volume 15 : 1912 catholic online catholic encyclopedia digital version compiled and copyright © catholic online


explosion, including an 8 - year - old boy who received his first holy communion just 11 months ago. along with these... the poor clares : joy and sacrificest. paul was a man passionate with zeal and consumed by love for god and desire for the salvation of souls. his actions and words were geared toward one purpose : the claiming of souls from the dominion of the devil, and the deceit used by him... brian williams : the honest 411 on vatican iii recently had the opportunity to take a class about the second vatican council offered through a diocesan adult education program. while much was covered within a relatively short span of four classes, one subject occupied much of our time... letters from our readers vatican ii called for post - conciliar liturgical adaptationsthe april 26 catholic news herald commentary entitled " the honest 411 on vatican ii " discussed a participant ' s experience at an adult education series in the diocese. the course, " the 411 on... warrior saints are found throughout historyregarding the april 26 letter criticizing st. nicholas of flue, i am disgusted that an american would insinuate that a soldier who distinguishes himself or herself in combat is not following... who would be worthy? in a letter in the april 26 catholic news herald, st. nicholas of flue was referred to as someone who " did not follow those teachings " of christ because he defended the faith with his sword and... most popular stories from the pastors read and listen to homilies posted regularly by pastors at parishes within the diocese of charlotte : - fr. frank cancro at queen of the apostles - fr. patrick earl at st. peter in charlotte - fr. john eckert at st. john the baptist in tryon - fr. timothy reid at st. ann in charlotte - fr. benjamin roberts at our lady of lourdes in monroe - fr. patrick winslow at st. thomas aquinas in charlotte - watch full masses live and on demand, listen to homilies and reflections from sacred heart church in salisbury - listen to homilies from st. william catholic church in murphy


if the bush administration seems lukewarm to the more radical proposals the world health organization ( who ) is considering for its treaty on tobacco control, that ’ s good news. after all, tobacco use isn ’ t infectious. nor is a wisp of smoke harmful as it crosses national borders. an adult ’ s decision to smoke is voluntary and individual. children are different, of course, as proven by 50 state laws that make the sale of cigarettes to minors illegal. clearly, we don ’ t need world government to deal with that issue. as to specifics : - using the terms “ mild ” and “ light ” in ads? the more information the better, provided the ads are truthful. consumers can distinguish puffery from hard evidence. - raising cigarette taxes? not if you want to deter smuggling, which is now financing terrorist groups. besides, cigarette taxes are regressive — another burden imposed on poor people who are supposedly the who ’ s beneficiaries. - curbing secondhand smoke? the science is questionable, and government regulation, more than cigarette smoke, has poisoned the atmosphere. let private - property owners permit or prohibit smoking — for good reason, bad reason or no reason at all. patrons who object may go elsewhere. if we ’ ve learned anything from nourishing a free society for more than two centuries, it ’ s this : individual decisions are best left to individuals. when occasionally those decisions impose costs on innocent bystanders, state government is sometimes justified in intervening. rarely is there a need — much less constitutional authority — for the federal government to dictate private consumption choices. and never do we relinquish national sovereignty over such matters to a global organization, especially one like the who, which will only be encouraged to expand its social agenda without any sense of restraint or concern for personal liberty. u. s. leadership does not consist of harmonizing international regulatory and tax policy, suppressing commercial advertising or banning cigarettes in private places. real leadership — especially important for developing countries trying to shake off their stifling socialist traditions — promotes respect for private property and free choice. the best lesson the u. s. could teach is to reject the who tobacco treaty. good riddance.


since its adoption, the programme of work was considered for in - depth review at the eighth meeting of the conference of the parties ( cop ). this in - depth review revealed that good progress is being made towards the achievement of adequate coverage of protected areas with the exception of the temperate grasslands biome. the review did reveal that implementation is weak when considering trends in the abundance and distribution of selected species and the status and trends of linguistic diversity, including the numbers of speakers of indigenous languages in dry and sub - humid lands. of cop 8 calls for increased attention to climate change and governance and highlights the need for more detailed assessments to measure progress towards the achievement of the 2010 biodiversity target in dry and sub - humid lands. a joint work programme with the united nations convention to combat desertification on dry and sub - humid lands was also adopted by the cop to both conventions in acknowledgement of the fact that biodiversity loss can be both a cause and a consequence of desertification. the joint work programme seeks to address the multiple and increasing threats to dry and sub - humid lands biodiversity, including climate change. of cop 9 calls for more information on traditional knowledge regarding the management and sustainable use of the biodiversity of dry and sub - humid lands, experiences in the field of climate change mitigation and adaptation, soil management and pastoralism and the impacts of drought on the biodiversity of dry and sub - humid lands. it also requests the executive secretary to enhance cooperation and synergies concerning biodiversity, land degradation / desertification and climate change. of cop 10 urges parties to integrate issues related to dry and sub - humid lands into the revised national biodiversity strategies and action plans ( nbsaps ), national action programmes to combat desertification ( naps ), and national adaptation programmes of action ( napas ). it also requests the executive secretary identify best practices to address conflicts between biodiversity conservation and sustainable use and pastoralism and agriculture in dry and sub - humid lands. rio conventions pavilion : linking biodiversity, climate change and sustainable land management the rio conventions pavilion, a collaborative outreach activity involving the rio convention secretariats, is a partnership platform for raising awareness and sharing information about the latest practices and scientific findings on the co - benefits that can be realized through implementation of the three rio conventions. the pavilion was convened at the cbd cop 10 ( 18 - 29 october 2010 ) in nagoya, japan, the unfccc meetings ( 29 november - 10 december 2010 ) in cancun, mexico, the unccd cop 10 in changwon, republic of korea ( 10 - 21


storms spoil nasa satellite launch attempt the radiation belt storm probes prepped for launch. / cbs news ( ap ) cape canaveral, fla. - thunderstorms have ruined nasa ' s second attempt to launch a pair of science satellites. for the second day in a row, nasa had to halt the countdown for its radiation belt storm probes. lightning and thick storm clouds prevented the unmanned rocket from taking off early saturday from cape canaveral. on friday, a tracking beacon on the rocket held up the flight. nasa says it will try again sunday. the twin satellites are designed to study earth ' s harsh radiation belts. scientists say the two - year mission will improve space forecasting. the goal is to better guard against solar storms. spacecraft can be damaged, and astronauts hurt, from severe solar outbursts. life here on the planet also can be disrupted. popular in scitech - amazon proposes a colossal biospherelike seattle campus - weird pirate ant comes with an " eye patch " - jennifer lopez to open verizon cellphone stores - the 7 weirdest things made by 3d printing - apple ' s next iphone may be coming in june - google to add galapagos islands to street view - " god particle " : why the higgs boson matters - watch : biggest solar storm of the year play video


skip to content skip to navigation menu 15 november 2011 genetic mutations that cause schizophrenia could be linked to systems in the brain responsible for learning and memory, a study suggests. researchers from cardiff university and the university of edinburgh have identified changes to genes – genetic mutations – in patients with schizophrenia who had not inherited the condition. the study, published in the journal molecular psychiatry, showed that these mutations occurred among a set of proteins that play a key role in memory function. the scientists took samples of dna from more than 650 patients with schizophrenia and compared these with dna from their parents – who did not have the condition – to identify the genetic differences. professor michael owen of cardiff university, who led the research with colleague professor michael o ’ donovan, said : " by studying such a large sample we have been able to provide the first clear insights into the sorts of basic biological processes that underlie schizophrenia. " we hope that by identifying these mutations our findings will help us understand more clearly how schizophrenia arises and ultimately identify new targets for treatments. " the task of identifying what causes schizophrenia is difficult because the disorder does not occur as a result of a single genetic mutation, but reflects a large number of different risk genes. professor seth grant, of the university of edinburgh, whose laboratory previously discovered dozens of proteins linked to learning and memory, said : " although it has been known for some time that dna mutations predispose individuals to the development of schizophrenia, it has remained a puzzle as to how these genes cause behavioural problems. " the surprising finding was that dna mutations that cause schizophrenia are interfering with the same proteins in the molecular machinery that controls learning and memory. the findings will help research into new drug therapies and in developing new diagnostic tests. " the genetic mutations disrupt the production of proteins found at synapses, which are the connections between different brain cells. the proteins are normally assembled together and process information that is passed from the environment to the memory systems in the brain. disrupting the fundamental information processing systems in synapses results in behavioural disorders. professor michael o ’ donovan from cardiff university added : " the main importance of the finding is that the new mutations were not randomly occurring in genes, instead they were concentrated in a relatively small number of genes which are crucial to the way nerve cells communicate with each other at junctions called synapses. " the study was funded by the medical research council, the wellcome trust and the european union. professor george kirov also from cardiff university and the study ’ s first author, said : " we already know that


junctions called synapses. " the study was funded by the medical research council, the wellcome trust and the european union. professor george kirov also from cardiff university and the study ’ s first author, said : " we already know that genetic factors increase the risk of schizophrenia, as well as non - genetic factors. however, we assumed that because schizophrenia sufferers are less likely than average to have children, genes with quite large effects on risk will be removed from the population by the process of natural selection. " if this is true, this loss of disease genes must be compensated for by new mutations or the disease would no longer exist. " rare genetic mutations that occurred either prior to or at fertilisation - do novo mutations – were found to occur among patients with schizophrenia. schizophrenia is a severe disorder affecting approximately one per cent of the population. signs can be present from childhood, but usually the disorder is diagnosed in early teens and has an impact on adult life. notes to editor a copy of de novo cnv analysis implicate specific abnormalities of postsynaptic signalling complexes in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia published in molecular psychiatry, published online before print at doi : 10. 1038 / mp. 2011. 154, is available, on request. for further information or media interviews, contact : professor mike owencardiff universitytel : 02920 687065 professor seth grant university of edinburgh tel : 01223 494908 tel : 029 20 874731 press and pr officer university of edinburgh tel : 0131 650 9836 mob : + 44 ( 0 ) 7791 3455804 this is an externally hosted beta service offered by google.


on a quiet cove in southern maryland, a series of orange and white markers declares a stretch of water off limits to fishing. under the surface sits spawning habitat for largemouth bass, a fish that contributes millions of dollars to the region ’ s economy each year and for whom two such sanctuaries have been established in the state. here, the fish are protected from recreational anglers each spring and studied by scientists hoping to learn more about them and their habitat needs. the largemouth bass can be found across the watershed and is considered one of the most popular sport fishes in the united states. while regional populations are strong, a changing chesapeake bay — think rising water temperatures, disappearing grasses and the continued arrival of invasive species — is changing bass habitat and could have an effect on future fish. for decades, scientists with the maryland department of natural resources ( dnr ) have collected data on the distribution of largemouth bass, tracking the species and monitoring the state ’ s two sanctuaries in order to gather the knowledge needed to keep the fishery sustainable. established in 2010 on the chicamuxen and nanjemoy creeks, both of which flow into the potomac river, these sanctuaries have been fortified with plastic pipes meant to serve as spawning structures. and, it seems, these sanctuaries are in high demand during spawning season. on an overcast day in april, three members of the dnr tidal bass survey team — joseph love, tim groves and branson williams — are surveying the sanctuary in chicamuxen creek. groves flips a switch and the vessel starts to send electrical currents into the water, stunning fish for capture by the scientists on board. the previous day, the team caught, tagged and released 20 bass ; this morning, the men catch 19, none of which were tagged the day before. “ this [ lack of recaptures ] indicates that we have quite a few bass out here, ” said love, tidal bass manager. indeed, the state ’ s largemouth bass fishery “ is pretty doggone good, ” love continued. “ that said, we recognize that the ecosystem is changing. and i don ’ t think anybody wants to rest on the laurels of a great fishery. ” as love and his team learn how largemouth bass are using the state ’ s sanctuaries, they can work to improve the sanctuaries ’ function and move to protect them and similar habitats from further development or disturbance. “ we can speculate where the best coves are, but this is the ground truthing that we


sanctuaries, they can work to improve the sanctuaries ’ function and move to protect them and similar habitats from further development or disturbance. “ we can speculate where the best coves are, but this is the ground truthing that we need to do, ” love said. in the fall, the team will return to the cove to count juvenile bass and report on juvenile - to - adult population ratios. while the assessment of the state ’ s sanctuaries is a small - scale project, it is one “ aimed at the bigger picture, ” love said. love ’ s team is “ doing what we can to improve the use of these coves by bass. ” and protecting bass habitat and improving water quality will have a positive effect on the coves overall, creating healthier systems for neighboring plants and animals. “ by protecting these important areas, we are also protecting the larger ecosystem, ” love said. photos by jenna valente. to view more, visit our flickr set. cover crops, streamside trees and nutrient management plans : all are exceptional ways to reduce nutrient pollution in the chesapeake bay. and for father and son duo elwood and hunter williams, restoring the bay begins with conservation practices and a shift in mentality. “ we knew coming down the road that we needed to do a better job with keeping the water clean, ” hunter said. “ we decided that if there was going to be a problem with the streams it wasn ’ t going to be us. ” excess nutrients come from many places, including wastewater treatment plants, agricultural runoff and polluted air. when nitrogen and phosphorus reach waterways, they can fuel the growth of large algae blooms that negatively affect the health of the bay. in order to reduce these impacts, the u. s. environmental protection agency ( epa ) has implemented a bay “ pollution diet, ” known as the total maximum daily load ( tmdl ). since the passing of the tmdl, many farmers in the watershed have felt the added pressure of the cleanup on their shoulders, but for the williams family, having the foresight to implement best management practices ( bmps ) just seemed like the environmentally and fiscally responsible thing to do. ” we don ’ t want to get to a point where regulations are completely out of control, ” hunter explained. “ farmers know what they ’ re putting on the ground so we have the ability to control it. most people who have yards don ’ t have a clue what they ’ re putting on the ground when they use fertilizer


, ” hunter explained. “ farmers know what they ’ re putting on the ground so we have the ability to control it. most people who have yards don ’ t have a clue what they ’ re putting on the ground when they use fertilizer. the difference has to be made up by the farmers because we know exactly what is going on to our soil. ” the williams family began implementing bmps on misty mountain farm in 2006 by teaming up with the potomac valley conservation district ( pvcd ). the government - funded non - profit organization has been providing assistance to farmers and working to preserve west virginia ’ s natural resources since 1943. the pvcd operates the agricultural enhancement program ( agep ), which has steadily gained popularity among chicken farmers and livestock owners located in the west virginia panhandle and potomac valley. while these two districts make up just 14 percent of west virginia ’ s land mass, these regions are where many of the bay ’ s tributaries begin — so it is important for area landowners to be conscious of pollutants entering rivers and streams. agep is designed to provide financial aid and advice to farmers in areas that the farm bill does not cover. pvcd is run in a grassroots fashion, as employees collaborate with local farmers to pinpoint and meet their specific needs. “ it [ agep ] has been very well received, ” said carla hardy, watershed program coordinator with the pvcd. “ it ’ s not [ the u. s. department of agriculture ] dictating how we spend our money, it ’ s the local, state and individuals saying, “ these are our needs and this is how our money should be spent. ” farmers understand that in order to keep agep a voluntary plan they need to pay attention to their conservation practices. ” hunter admits the hardest part of switching to bmps was changing his mindset and getting on board. originally, hunter was looking at the bay ’ s pollution problems as a whole, but with optimistic thinking and assistance from pvcd, he realized that the best way to overcome a large problem was to cross one bridge at a time. it wasn ’ t long before the williams family started to see results : fencing off streams from cattle led to cleaner water ; building barns to overwinter cows allowed them to grow an average of 75 pounds heavier than before, making them more valuable to the farm. by using bmps, the williams family has set a positive example for farmers across the watershed, proving that with hard work and a ‘ sky is the limit ’ mentality, seemingly


75 pounds heavier than before, making them more valuable to the farm. by using bmps, the williams family has set a positive example for farmers across the watershed, proving that with hard work and a ‘ sky is the limit ’ mentality, seemingly impossible goals can be met. hunter points out, “ we are proud to know that if you are traveling to misty mountain farm you can ’ t say, “ hey these guys aren ’ t doing their part. ” video produced by steve droter. an investment in habitat conservation could be a smart one for fisheries and the economies that depend on them, according to a new report. in more habitat means more fish, released this week by restore americas estuaries, the american sportfishing association and the national oceanic and atmospheric administration, the link between healthy habitats and strong fisheries is made clear : without feeding or breeding grounds, fish cannot grow or reproduce, which means fewer fish and a decline in fisheries - dependent jobs, income and recreational opportunities. most of the nation ’ s commercial and recreational fish depend on coastal and estuarine habitats for food and shelter. investments and improvements in these habitats can have immediate and long - lasting effects on fish populations. the construction of an oyster reef, for instance, can provide food and shelter to a number of aquatic species. the conservation of marshes and underwater grass beds can boost the number and diversity of fish and their prey. and the restoration of fish passage to once - blocked rivers can open up new habitat to those species that must migrate upstream to spawn. “ investing in coastal and estuarine habitat restoration is essential … for the long - term future of our fisheries, ” said restore americas estuaries president and ceo jeff benoit in a media release. “ in order to have fish, we have to have healthy habitat. if we want more fish, we need more healthy habitat. ” read more about more habitat means more fish. restoring urban streams can help restore urban communities, according to a new analysis from the u. s. geological survey ( usgs ). in a report released last week, the usgs documents the contributions that the restoration of an anacostia river tributary made to the washington, d. c., metropolitan area, from the creation of jobs to the creation of open space for residents. the yearlong restoration of a 1. 8 mile stretch of watts branch is one in a series of case studies highlighting the economic impacts of restoration projects supported by the department of the interior. image courtesy u. s. fish and wildlife service northeast region completed in 2011


it ' s a gloomy sunday evening and dovid friedman of chicago is reading the very hungry caterpillar to his two children, 22 - month - old donny and 3 - year - old kivi. each time daddy gets to the end, the kids exclaim, " again! " soon, the children decide they also want to eat through four strawberries, so everyone heads to the kitchen. in their rush to be first, the kids trip over each other, and donny ' s cheek smacks into the edge of the door. he screams ; friedman picks him up, kisses him, gets an ice pack and in a few minutes, donny is happily munching strawberries having completely forgotten the mishap. the next morning, i drop by, see the bruise that now extends halfway across my grandson ' s cheek, and exclaim, " what happened to your face? " donny replies, " kivi bite me. " my daughter, shoshana, the kids ' mother, sighs. " actually, he was running and he crashed into the wall ; but kivi has bitten him so many times, that whenever he notices a bruise or a scrape, he just assumes that kivi bit him. " while the situation is troubling to my daughter, it ' s not unusual, experts say. since young children have limited communication skills, they may not be able to easily express strong emotions such as boredom, frustration or happiness. combine this with a toddler ' s natural tendency to put everything in her mouth, and biting can easily result. " for toddlers and young children, biting is a common behavior, " says clinical psychologist michele nealon - woods, assistant professor at the chicago school of professional psychology. " adults tend to see this as an aggressive act, but usually it ' s just a physical response to a burst of emotion. " identify the triggers it ' s not just other kids who are the targets ; a child may bite a parent while putting up a fuss at naptime or bedtime, for example. " some biting incidents can be avoided by identifying what triggers them, " says nealon - woods. just like other negative behaviors, biting is more likely to happen when children are tired, hungry or not feeling well. at these times, offering quiet activities, separating children, providing structure and keeping an extra eye and ear out for developing problems may be helpful. but a bite can occur suddenly, without warning, even when children appear to be playing happily. " that ' s why


times, offering quiet activities, separating children, providing structure and keeping an extra eye and ear out for developing problems may be helpful. but a bite can occur suddenly, without warning, even when children appear to be playing happily. " that ' s why we sometimes have parents report that their children bite even when they don ' t seem angry or upset, " nealon - woods says. some kids even bite themselves on the hand or arm when they ' re excited. " a parent might be playing with her child, and the child gives the mother a big hug and then suddenly bites her on the shoulder. " when she was 2½, rachel zimmerman ' s daughter devorah, now 4, was roughhousing with her father. without warning, she bit him on the leg. he let out a yelp, and devorah immediately burst into tears. " she realized right away what she ' d done, " says zimmerman of chicago. " it was obvious that she wasn ' t trying to hurt him ; she was just excited. " as children mature, gain self - control and develop more language skills, most outgrow their tendency to bite, generally by age 3 or so. if the biting is still occurring at age 3½ or 4, skokie pediatrician dr. cathy divincenzo says, it ' s probably time to seek outside help. your family doctor or pediatrician, or your child ' s school, should be able to offer suggestions appropriate professionals or other resources. controlling the behavior biting may be developmentally normal, but it can ' t be ignored. there ' s the potential for serious injury to the one who ' s been bitten - usually another child - as well as the likelihood that a child who bites may be thought of by others - usually the parents of the bitten children - as a " bad " kid. there are things parents can do to help control the problem. for example, nealon - woods suggests providing a bib or a squishy toy the child can bite on in an emotionally intense moment. if the child bites someone else, she recommends a calm but immediate response. " the child needs to see what he ' s done, but it ' s the child who has been bitten who should get the parent ' s attention at that moment, " she says. generally that means taking the victim and leaving the room, which teaches the biting child that biting doesn ' t automatically mean extra parental attention. any discussion following the biting should be brief, but can still help the biter


that moment, " she says. generally that means taking the victim and leaving the room, which teaches the biting child that biting doesn ' t automatically mean extra parental attention. any discussion following the biting should be brief, but can still help the biter understand the effects of his actions. this is also the time to model more appropriate behavior, says nealon - woods. " you can say to your child things like, ' i know you ' re angry, ' and teach children the vocabulary they can use in order to express themselves with words. " some children may need a further consequence. divincenzo says a time - out after every biting incident is often the best way to curb this behavior. but whatever you do, make sure you do it right away, nealon - woods says. " you can ' t say to a 2 - or 3 - year - old, ' wait till your father gets home, ' for example, " she explains. by that time - or even just an hour after the incident - the child is likely to have, at best, a hazy memory of the episode, and any discussion or punishment at that point isn ' t likely to be effective. some parents opt to respond to a child ' s biting by biting the child - gently, but enough to cause some discomfort. they reason that a child may not understand biting hurts, and this is a very effective way to show her. " if we ' re trying to teach the child that biting is wrong because it hurts, then biting the child sends a confusing message, " says nealon - woods. " it just reinforces the child ' s belief that this [ biting ] is how we solve the problem. " nothing seemed to stop zimmerman ' s son, ezzy, 2½, from biting his 4 - year - old sister. " i talked to him about it each time, but i really think he was just too young to understand any explanations, " rachel says. one day, following yet another biting incident, she took ezzy into the kitchen and put a drop of dish detergent on his tongue. " i only left it there for a second, and then i rinsed his mouth out with water right away, " she says. ezzy ' s biting became much less frequent afterwards. it ' s important to remember that the child who is bitten may need more than just a comforting hug. " with any bite that breaks the skin, there ' s a potential for infection, " divincenzo says, " especially when the bite


it ' s important to remember that the child who is bitten may need more than just a comforting hug. " with any bite that breaks the skin, there ' s a potential for infection, " divincenzo says, " especially when the bite is on the hand. " she advises washing the wound with soap and water and applying an over - the - counter antibiotic cream or ointment. it may take a week or so for the injury to heal ; during that time, as with any cut, parents should contact their child ' s doctor if they notice signs of infection, such as increased redness, swelling or tenderness. and comfort yourself with the knowledge that, most likely, this is just another childhood phase. both friedman and zimmerman report that both their sons have been " bite - free " for several months. bites away from home preschool classrooms are a common setting for biting. at the early childhood education center at concordia university in river forest, director doris knuth says biting rarely is a recurring problem, but when it is, a meeting with the child ' s parents is arranged. " [ u ] sually, if the biting is happening here at school, it ' s happening in other settings as well, and the child needs to have consistent responses everywhere, " she says. carla young, principal of the nursery school and kindergarten at the university of chicago laboratory school, says parents need to be involved if biting becomes serious. " we don ' t necessarily call the parents if there is a single incident. " if the biting continues, the child may be sent home for the day, and the parents will be asked to come in for a discussion. " if it ' s a serious, recurring problem, we may ask a social worker to come in also, " says young. in the intensity of discussions about the child ' s behavior, parents ' feelings often take a back seat. " it ' s very embarrassing to be the parent of a ' biter, ' " says knuth. " there ' s a common perception that children who bite are ' bad ' children. " that ' s not true, she says, but parents don ' t always understand that. " when a child is bitten, we don ' t tell her parents who did it, " she continues, " but the kids certainly talk about it, so by the next day, everyone knows. " to correct misinformation about biting, the school sometimes provides handouts or articles. nealon - woods says the director of her child ' s daycare


a giant squid, captured for the first time in its deep - sea habitat, swimming in july in the pacific ocean off northern japan. / nhk / nep / discovery channel / ap the first images of the human - shy giant squid in its natural habitat, filmed in the black depths of the pacific ocean, have been released. the silvery, 9 - foot - long mollusk - scientists said it could have been up to 26 feet long if its two longest tentacles had not been severed - was filmed in july off japan ' s chichi island by a three - man crew from the national museum of nature and science. the scientists followed the creature in their submersible to a depth of more than 2, 700 feet as it vanished into the ocean darkness, where oxygen is scarce and pressure is enormous. japanese broadcaster nhk showed footage monday. the squid, with black eyes the size of dinner plates, clutched a bait squid in its remaining arms as it swam against the current. " it was shining and so beautiful, " researcher tsunemi kubodera told afp. " i was so thrilled. " the footage will be part of a discovery channel show, monster squid : the giant is real, which will air jan. 27 as the season finale of curiosity. discovery news announced the find last month : with razor - toothed suckers and eyes the size of dinner plates, tales of this creature have been around since ancient times. the norse legend of the sea monster the kraken, and the scylla from greek mythology, might have derived from the elusive giant squid. this massive predator has always been shrouded in secrecy, and every attempt to capture a live giant squid on camera in its natural habitat has failed. until now. in 2006, kubodera said, he filmed what he claimed was the first live video footage of a giant squid as it was hooked and brought aboard his ship. known to scientists as architeuthis, the giants eat other types of squid and grenadier, a deep - sea fish, and can grow to more than 30 feet long and weigh 450 pounds. copyright 2013 usatoday. com read the original story : first images of giant squid in the deep are released


anesthesia is broken down into three main categories : local, regional, and general, all of which affect the nervous system in some way and can be administered using various methods and different medications. here ' s a basic look at each kind : - local anesthesia. an anesthetic drug ( which can be given as a shot, spray, or ointment ) numbs only a small, specific area of the body ( for example, a foot, hand, or patch of skin ). with local anesthesia, a person is awake or sedated, depending on what is needed. local anesthesia lasts for a short period of time and is often used for minor outpatient procedures ( when patients come in for surgery and can go home that same day ). for someone having outpatient surgery in a clinic or doctor ' s office ( such as the dentist or dermatologist ), this is probably the type of anesthetic used. the medicine used can numb the area during the procedure and for a short time afterwards to help control post - surgery discomfort. - regional anesthesia. an anesthetic drug is injected near a cluster of nerves, numbing a larger area of the body ( such as below the waist, like epidurals given to women in labor ). regional anesthesia is generally used to make a person more comfortable during and after the surgical procedure. regional and general anesthesia are often combined. - general anesthesia. the goal is to make and keep a person completely unconscious ( or " asleep " ) during the operation, with no awareness or memory of the surgery. general anesthesia can be given through an iv ( which requires sticking a needle into a vein, usually in the arm ) or by inhaling gases or vapors by breathing into a mask or tube. the anesthesiologist will be there before, during, and after the operation to monitor the anesthetic and ensure you constantly receive the right dose. with general anesthesia, the anesthesiologist uses a combination of various medications to do things like : - relieve anxiety - keep you asleep - minimize pain during surgery and relieve pain afterward ( using drugs called analgesics ) - relax the muscles, which helps to keep you still - block out the memory of the surgery how does anesthesia work? to better understand how the different types of anesthesia work, it may help to learn a little about the nervous system. if you think of the brain as a central computer that controls all the functions of your body, then the nervous


anesthesia work? to better understand how the different types of anesthesia work, it may help to learn a little about the nervous system. if you think of the brain as a central computer that controls all the functions of your body, then the nervous system is like a network that relays messages back and forth from it to different parts of the body. it does this via the spinal cord, which runs from the brain down through the back and contains threadlike nerves that branch out to every organ and body part. the american society of anesthesiologists ( asa ) compares the nervous system to an office ' s telephone system — with the brain as the switchboard, the nerves as the cables, and body parts feeling pain as the phones. here ' s how the asa puts it into perspective : - with local anesthesia, the phone ( the small part of the body being numbed ) is " off the hook " and, therefore, can ' t receive calls ( pain signals ) from the switchboard ( the brain ) or the phone cables ( the nerves ). - with regional anesthesia, the phone cable ( the nerves ) is broken, causing all of the area ' s phones ( entire area of the body being numbed ) to be out of service. - with regional anesthesia, the switchboard operator ( the brain ) is on a break and, therefore, can ' t connect incoming calls ( pain signals ). will i get a needle? often, anesthesiologists may give a person a sedative to help them feel sleepy or relaxed before a procedure. then, people who are getting general anesthesia may be given medication through a special breathing mask or tube first and then given an iv after they ' re asleep. why? because many people are afraid of needles and may have a hard time staying still and calm. what type of anesthesia will i get? the type and amount of anesthesia given to you will be specifically tailored to your needs and will depend on various factors, including : - the type of surgery - the location of the surgery - how long the surgery may take - your current and previous medical condition - allergies you may have - previous reactions to anesthesia ( in you or family members ) - medications you are taking - your age, height, and weight the anesthesiologist can discuss the options available, and he or she will make the decision based on your individual needs and best interests. reviewed by : judith a. jones, md date reviewed : april 2009 |


if you download this publication you may also be interested in these : facing an uncertain future how forest and people can adapt to climate changecenter for international forestry research ( cifor ) bogor, indonesia the most prominent international responses to climate change focus on mitigation ( reducing the accumulation of greenhouse gases ) rather than adaptation ( reducing the vulnerability of society and ecosystems ). however, with climate change now inevitable, adaptation is gaining importance in the policy arena, and is an integral part of ongoing negotiations towards an international framework. this report presents the case for adaptation for tropical forests ( reducing the impacts of climate change on forests and their ecosystem services ) and tropical forests for adaptation ( using forests to help local people and society in general to adapt to inevitable changes ). policies in the forest, climate change and other sectors need to address these issues and be integrated with each other — such a cross - sectoral approach is essential if the benefits derived in one area are not to be lost or counteracted in another. moreover, the institutions involved in policy development and implementation need themselves to be flexible and able to learn in the context of dynamic human and environmental systems. and all this needs to be done at all levels from the local community to the national government and international institutions. the report includes an appendix covering climate scenarios, concepts, and international policies and funds.


profile in courage in the political thriller thirteen days, kevin costner explores the cuban missile crisis and how john and robert kennedy saved the world. from the print edition : kevin costner, nov / dec 00 ( continued from page 1 ) on the evening of october 22, 1962, president kennedy addressed the american people from the oval office : within the past week, unmistakable evidence has established the fact that a series of offensive missile sites is now in preparation on that imprisoned island. the purpose of these bases can be none other than to provide a nuclear strike capability against the western hemisphere.... it shall be the policy of this nation to regard any nuclear missile launched from cuba against any nation in the western hemisphere as an attack by the soviet union on the united states, requiring a full retaliatory response upon the soviet union... while the pentagon went to " defcon 2 " ( defcon 5 is peace ; defcon 1 is war ) and the world anxiously held its breath, salinger remembers walking with kennedy one morning through the rose garden and the president confiding in him : " ' you know, if this [ blockade ] doesn ' t work, if we don ' t succeed in bringing this crisis to an end, ' kennedy said, ' hundreds of millions of people are going to get killed. ' " to assure that didn ' t happen, kennedy took a further step by initiating secret " back - channel " communications with soviet premier nikita khrushchev, using robert kennedy, pierre salinger, american journalists and two kgb officials in washington, thereby being able to bypass both the joint chiefs and the politburo. finally, on sunday, october 28, the soviet government blinked and agreed to remove the missiles from cuba, and in return kennedy agreed to withdraw jupiter ballistic missiles from turkey. but according to salinger, kennedy had already planned to withdraw those missiles four months before the crisis, as they were considered obsolete and were scheduled to be replaced by submarine - launched polaris missiles. " but this way, kennedy allowed khrushchev to save face with his country, " says salinger. negotiating a peaceful settlement that sunday, however, left the joint chiefs irate. they believed a u. s. attack on cuba was still justified. " we ' ve been had! " fumed adm. george anderson. and gen. curtis le may angrily insisted, " why don ' t we just go in and make a strike anyway! " the morning after the resolution to the crisis, kennedy told salinger that "


! " fumed adm. george anderson. and gen. curtis le may angrily insisted, " why don ' t we just go in and make a strike anyway! " the morning after the resolution to the crisis, kennedy told salinger that " the military have gone mad! " jfk ' s diplomacy had left the military and intelligence officers more insistent than ever that he was " soft on communism, " says salinger, adding that shortly before he was assassinated, kennedy had planned on dropping the embargo on cuba and normalizing relations with that nation. otherwise, kennedy told salinger, " the soviet union is going to completely run that place and we don ' t want them dominating that area. " salinger also reveals that kennedy planned on opening relations with china, but couldn ' t do so until his second term, " because people would label him a communist, " says salinger. costner, who was seven years old during the crisis and living with his family in compton, california, remembers those tense days as " stirrings of things. " he sits on the steps outside his movie - set trailer and talks of hearing about bomb shelters and a hoarding of food. " but my parents were very careful to not let on that there was imminent danger. i just remember there was definitely something in the air. and i remember getting under the desk in school and doing the drills. it was great for me, " he says with a laugh, " because it wasn ' t math! i mean, my theory on it was just as good as anybody else ' s, because you knew bomb shelters weren ' t going to work, so for me it was extended recess. " as the crew busily prepares for the next scene, thirteen days director roger donaldson - - who previously worked with costner on the hit 1987 spy thriller no way out - - confers briefly with costner and bruce greenwood on the last shot of the day. greenwood, who researched voluminously for his portrayal of jfk, admits he watched " hundreds of hours of tapes, " read a stack of books " that literally comes up to my belt, " and also had a breakfast meeting with salinger to help prepare for the role. " to be able to sit in the same room and talk with someone who had actually been there made it very personal for me, " greenwood says. " all i knew about what happened was through history books, but it was a profound jump to be placed in this room with a guy who was in the middle of


someone who had actually been there made it very personal for me, " greenwood says. " all i knew about what happened was through history books, but it was a profound jump to be placed in this room with a guy who was in the middle of it all - - it really helped place me there. " greenwood feels that what will surprise audiences most about thirteen days, due out december 22, is how close the world actually came to annihilation. " they ' ll be simply astounded that it was only through the efforts of a few good men that armageddon was sidestepped, " says greenwood, who starred as the villainous husband opposite ashley judd and tommy lee jones in last year ' s surprise hit double jeopardy. " the pressure that was on [ john ] kennedy to respond militarily and politically was incalculable. and that strength of character and courage to avoid making a decision that would have changed the world forever is something people maybe don ' t quite realize. " costner figures that the resolve the kennedy brothers showed in refusing to bow to military pressure stemmed directly from the fiasco of the bay of pigs invasion in 1961, which had been initiated by president eisenhower a year before jfk took office. " when the kennedys came into office, they were really being pushed around by [ long - time cia director ] allen dulles and these military guys saying, ' hey, this plan has been in the works for two years, whereas you just won the election, so don ' t fuck this up for us! ' and kennedy, being new and inexperienced and giving a certain amount of respect to them thought, ' oh, ok. ' yet none of those guys were standing around to accept the blame. and there were the kennedys, like on a beach with a giant tsunami coming to sweep them up. but to their credit, i think the bay of pigs is what saved us all in the end because they didn ' t repeat the weakness, or maybe what people perceived as weakness. " costner, greenwood and culp are summoned back on set for what will be one of the final shots of the film - - a walk back from the rose garden along the portico. the setting sun of a gorgeous autumn afternoon is duplicated on the soundstage and it illuminates the enormous white house set with a brilliant orange hue. as the three actors pass the white neoclassical pillars of the cloister and walk out of the frame, donaldson keeps the camera stationary on the long shadows being cast by these men


alpha - beta pruning is a search algorithm which seeks to reduce the number of nodes that are evaluated in the search tree by the minimax algorithm. in computer science, a search algorithm, broadly speaking is an algorithm that takes a problem as input and returns a solution to the problem usually if you ' re looking for game tree as it ' s used in game theory ( not combinatorial game theory please see extensive form game. minimax ( sometimes minmax ) is a decision rule used in decision theory, game theory, statistics and philosophy for mini mizing it is a search with adversary algorithm used commonly for machine playing of two - player games ( tic - tac - toe, chess, go, etc. chess is a recreational and competitive game played between two players. ). it stops completely evaluating a move when at least one possibility has been found that proves the move to be worse than a previously examined move. such moves need not be evaluated further. alpha - beta pruning is a sound optimization in that it does not change the result of the algorithm it optimizes. allen newell and herbert simon who used what john mccarthy calls an " approximation " in 1958 wrote that alpha - beta " appears to have been reinvented a number of times ". allen newell ( march 19, 1927 - july 19, 1992 ) was a researcher in computer science and cognitive psychology at the herbert alexander simon ( june 15, 1916 february 9, 2001 ) was an american political scientist whose research ranged john mccarthy ( born september 4, 1927, in boston, massachusetts ) is an american computer scientist and cognitive arthur samuel had an early version and richards, hart, levine and / or edwards found alpha - beta independently in the united states. arthur l samuel ( 1901 – july 29, 1990 ) was a pioneer in the field of computer gaming and artificial intelligence the united states of america — commonly referred to as the mccarthy proposed similar ideas during the dartmouth conference in 1956 and suggested it to a group of his students including alan kotok at mit in 1961. the dartmouth summer research conference on artificial intelligence was the name of a conference now considered the seminal event for artificial intelligence as a this article is about alan kotok who was associate chair of w3c. alexander brudno independently discovered the alpha - beta algorithm, publishing his results in 1963. alexander brudno ( aleksandr l ' vovich brudno ) ( александр львович брудно ( born 1918 is a russian computer scientist, best known


publishing his results in 1963. alexander brudno ( aleksandr l ' vovich brudno ) ( александр львович брудно ( born 1918 is a russian computer scientist, best known for donald knuth and ronald w. donald ervin knuth ( kəˈnuːθ ( born 10 january 1938 ) is a renowned computer scientist and professor emeritus of the art of computer moore refined the algorithm in 1975 and it continued to be advanced. the benefit of alpha - beta pruning lies in the fact that branches of the search tree can be eliminated. the search time can in this way be limited to the ' more promising ' subtree, and a deeper search can be performed in the same time. like its predecessor, it belongs to the branch and bound class of algorithms. branch and bound ( bb is a general algorithm for finding optimal solutions of various optimization problems especially in discrete and combinatorial the optimization reduces the effective depth to slightly more than half that of simple minimax if the nodes are evaluated in an optimal or near optimal order ( best choice for side on move ordered first at each node ). with an ( average or constant ) branching factor of b, and a search depth of d ply, the maximum number of leaf node positions evaluated ( when the move ordering is pessimal ) is o ( b * b *. in computing, tree data structures and game theory, the branching factor is the number of children of each node. in two - player sequential games a ply refers to one turn taken by one of the players in mathematics big o notation ( so called because it uses the symbol o ) describes the limiting behavior of a function for very small or very large arguments.. * b ) = o ( bd ) – the same as a simple minimax search. if the move ordering for the search is optimal ( meaning the best moves always searched first ), the number of positions searched is about o ( b * 1 * b * 1 *... * b ) for odd depth and o ( b * 1 * b * 1 *... * 1 ) for even depth, or. in the latter case, the effective branching factor is reduced to its square root, or, equivalently, the search can go twice as deep with the same amount of computation. in mathematics, a square root of a number x is a number r such that r 2 = x, or in words a number r whose the explanation of b * 1 *


, the search can go twice as deep with the same amount of computation. in mathematics, a square root of a number x is a number r such that r 2 = x, or in words a number r whose the explanation of b * 1 * b * 1 *... is that all the first player ' s moves must be studied to find the best one, but for each, only the best second player ' s move is needed to refute all but the first ( and best ) first player move – alpha - beta ensures no other second player moves need be considered. if b = 40 ( as in chess ), and the search depth is 12 ply, the ratio between optimal and pessimal sorting is a factor of nearly 406 or about 4 billion times. normally during alpha - beta, the subtrees are temporarily dominated by either a first player advantage ( when many first player moves are good, and at each search depth the first move checked by the first player is adequate, but all second player responses are required to try and find a refutation ), or vice versa. this advantage can switch sides many times during the search if the move ordering is incorrect, each time leading to inefficiency. as the number of positions searched decreases exponentially each move nearer the current position, it is worth spending considerable effort on sorting early moves. an improved sort at any depth will exponentially reduce the total number of positions searched, but sorting all positions at depths near the root node is relatively cheap as there are so few of them. in practice, the move ordering is often determined by the results of earlier, smaller searches, such as through iterative deepening. iterative deepening depth - first search ( iddfs is a state space search strategy in which a depth - limited search is run repeatedly increasing the depth limit with the algorithm maintains two values, alpha and beta, which represent the minimum score that the maximizing player is assured of and the maximum score that the minimizing player is assured of respectively. initially alpha is negative infinity and beta is positive infinity. as the recursion progresses the " window " becomes smaller. when beta becomes less than alpha, it means that the current position cannot be the result of best play by both players and hence need not be explored further. function alphabeta ( node, depth, α, β ) ( * β represents previous player best choice - doesn ' t want it if α would worsen it * ) if node is a terminal node or depth = 0 return the heuri


further. function alphabeta ( node, depth, α, β ) ( * β represents previous player best choice - doesn ' t want it if α would worsen it * ) if node is a terminal node or depth = 0 return the heuristic value of node foreach child of node α : = max ( α, - alphabeta ( child, depth - 1, - β, - α ) ) ( * use symmetry, - β becomes subsequently pruned α * ) if β≤α break ( * beta cut - off * ) return α further improvement can be achieved without sacrificing accuracy, by using ordering heuristics to search parts of the tree that are likely to force alpha - beta cutoffs early. pseudocode is a compact and informal high - level description of a computer programming algorithm that uses the structural conventions of some programming language heuristic ( hyu - ˈris - tik is a method to help solve a problem commonly an informal method for example, in chess, moves that take pieces may be examined before moves that do not, or moves that have scored highly in earlier passes through the game - tree analysis may be evaluated before others. iterative deepening depth - first search ( iddfs is a state space search strategy in which a depth - limited search is run repeatedly increasing the depth limit with another common, and very cheap, heuristic is the killer heuristic, where the last move that caused a beta - cutoff at the same level in the tree search is always examined first. in competitive two - player games the killer heuristic is a technique for improving the efficiency of alpha - beta pruning, which in turn improves the efficiency of the this idea can be generalized into a set of refutation tables. alpha - beta search can be made even faster by considering only a narrow search window ( generally determined by guesswork based on experience ). this is known as aspiration search. in the extreme case, the search is performed with alpha and beta equal ; a technique known as zero - window search, null - window search, or scout search. this is particularly useful for win / loss searches near the end of a game where the extra depth gained from the narrow window and a simple win / loss evaluation function may lead to a conclusive result. if an aspiration search fails, it is straightforward to detect whether it failed high ( high edge of window was too low ) or low ( lower edge of window was too high ). this gives information about what window values


to a conclusive result. if an aspiration search fails, it is straightforward to detect whether it failed high ( high edge of window was too low ) or low ( lower edge of window was too high ). this gives information about what window values might be useful in a re - search of the position. more advanced algorithms that are even faster while still being able to compute the exact minimax value are known, such as negascout and mtd - f. negascout or principal variation search is a negamax algorithm that can be faster than alpha - beta pruning. mtd ( f, an abbreviation of mtd ( nf ( memory - enhanced test driver with node n and value f is a minimax search algorithm better than the basic alpha - beta pruning algorithm since the minimax algorithm and its variants are inherently depth - first, a strategy such as iterative deepening is usually used in conjunction with alpha - beta so that a reasonably good move can be returned even if the algorithm is interrupted before it has finished execution. depth - first search ( dfs ) is an algorithm for traversing or searching a tree, tree structure, or graph. iterative deepening depth - first search ( iddfs is a state space search strategy in which a depth - limited search is run repeatedly increasing the depth limit with another advantage of using iterative deepening is that searches at shallower depths give move - ordering hints that can help produce cutoffs for higher depth searches much earlier than would otherwise be possible. algorithms like sss *, on the other hand, use the best - first strategy. sss * is a search algorithm, introduced by stockman in 1979 that conducts a state space search traversing a game tree in a best - first fashion best - first search is a search algorithm which explores a graph by expanding the most promising node chosen according to some rule this can potentially make them more time - efficient, but typically at a heavy cost in space - efficiency.