What is mFT FoV?
Started Jan 27, 2013 | Questions thread
Veteran MemberPosts: 5,789
Re: What is mFT FoV?
In reply to Detail Man, Jan 28, 2013
Detail Man wrote:
Detail Man wrote:
gollywop wrote:
If one has, say, a 12mm lens on an mFT camera, it presumably implies some FoV. However, these days a large number of mFT lenses do software correction for lens distortions, and the image as rendered in, say, ACR is significantly different from the uncorrected version of the same image.
My question: is the 12mm FoV relevant to the FoV of the original image or the FoV of the corrected image, which is, typically, significantly smaller than that of the original?
I agree that the diagonal FOV (thus the 35mm equivalent focal length when the crop factor is considered) of the default (rectilinear distortion corrrected) 4608x3456 pixel size is designed to be relatively close to the intended specification.
There do exist additional photo-sites on M43 image-sensors. They are in the horizontal sections. Some of those photo-sites are unusable - because they are masked-off, and used in order to report black-level offset information only. There are only a few extra photo-sites in the vertical dimension (but they are apparently set aside for use in implementing rectilinear distortion corrections).
The image-file meta-data for your E-M5 (4:3 AR) only reports "Image Dimensions" the calculated diagonal FOV of which is only very marginally different from the default value of 4608x3456. Those pixel-dimensions (for the 3.73 Micron pixel-pitch of the E-M5's image-sensor) calculate out to be only very marginally "longer" (in 35mm equivalent focal length), meaning "narrower" (in FOV) than the specification value.
See: _URL_
However, it is clear (from your posted example as well as another poster's example) that the E-M5 image-sensor does have some extra (horizontal) photo-sites that are not reported in the E-M5's image-file meta-data.
GH2 RW2 (4:3 AR) image-file meta-data reports "Sensor Dimensions" of 4760x3472.
See: _URL_
DxO Optics Pro 7.23 (only when automatic distortion corrections are enabled, and "Keep Aspect Ratio" is unchecked) widens the horizontal field (only), and produces output images that are 4668x3457 (as compared to it's default output image pixel-size of 4609x3457). The wider horizontal pixel-dimension yields a diagonal dimension that is 0.821% larger than default diagonal pixel-dimension.
Have been playing around (using RAW Therapee with the same GH2 RW2 image-file used with the DxO Optics Pro experiment (above). It allows a maximum of 4616x3464 pixel-dimensions (with or without rectilinear distortion corrections being changed in value), and with or without "Auto fill" of the frame (so that no sign of blackened areas outside of image-data being used shows).
It appears (I think) that both DxO and RT are (in the course previewing in-process images) are re-sampling the original de-mosaiced image-data in order to cause them to comport with maximum processed image pixel-dimensions that the application developers have chosen for the particular camera model (with or without rectilinear distortion corrections being applied).
Yes, this one has had me baffled for some time. I noticed with my Canon s90, which was the first camera I had that did software lens correction, that although the rectilinear distortion of the lens varies by focal length, and therefore the correction must also vary with focal length, the demosaiced uncorrected raw files are all the same size (3744x2784) and the demosaiced corrected files are all the same size (3648x2736) regardless of focal length.
I can understand how the uncorrected images can all be of the same size, but it seems to me that the corrected images can only be of a same size if some resampling is going on, different amounts for the different corrections at different focal lengths.
While it may well be the case that camera manufacturers are attempting to ensure that their distortion-corrected in-camera JPGs are (typically) providing a diagonally referenced 35mm equivalent focal length (corresponding to a diagonally referenced Angle of View) - at least where it comes to their own manufactured lenses, anyway - that is something close to the rated AOVs of (their) lenses...
... it appears that theses RAW processors (at least those not provided by the manufacturer for use with their own camera models, anyway) are (by re-sampling the original de-mosaiced image-data) taking liberties based on their own independent judgments of how many extra image-sensor photo-sites can (safely) be utilized in the case of image-sensors on any particular camera model without running into "masked" photo-site locations on the horizontal egdes, and without running into photo-site locations needed for rectilinear-distortion corrections on the vertical edges.
DxO Optics Pro does not use the rectilinear-distortion correction data that exists in RAW image-file meta-data. They use their own data derived from characterizing camera/lens combinations.
RAW Therapee appears to utilize the rectilinear-distortion correction data that exists in RAW image-file meta-data (in the case of their experimental "Auto Distortion Correction" button that works in the case of some camera models only, the DMC-GH2 included), but that is an optional control existing outside of their own manual rectilinear-distortion correction tool.
Among my converters, ACR uses the meta-data, but both PN and RPP do not, and they both produce identically sized and shaped uncorrected images. None of them allows for any options: they either correct or they don't.
Due to optical differences that exist between various lenses, as well as the re-sampling of the original de-mosaiced image-sensor (even in cases where rectilinear distortion corrrection is not being applied at all), it seems that one is not able to accurately predict the Angle of View (hence, the 35mm equivalent Focal Length) by performing calculations based upon known pixel-pitch specifications of the camera's image-sensor and the expected to exist active photo-site dimensions.
Further, the lens-systems are multi-element (and in the case of telephoto lenses, asymmetrical with a Pupillary Magnification value less than unity), and exhibit "focus breathing" and effects which make the actual AOV hard to predict for any given Focal Length and Focus Distance (as I vaguely understand such things).
The commonly used formula:
AOV = ( 2 ) x Arctangent ( ( Frame Diagonal ) / ( ( 2 ) x ( Effective Focal Length ) ) )
... descibes a single, symmetrical lens only.
An excellent reference: _URL_
That does indeed complicate matters.
Thus, as Anders has referenced, using the following emprical method seem the only approach:
while also using a specific RAW processor configured to yield the widest (usable) observable AOV.
Well, I'm really interested in what the AoV for a given focal length is after correction, and whether that corresponds to the AoV that should be associated with that focal length.
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DistributionRead full entry
There are six main locations of populations of Anthropoides virgo. A stable/declining population of 70 to 100,000 individuals is located in eastern Asia. In central Asia, there is a stable and increasing population of 100,000 individuals. Kalmykia is the third eastern population, which consists of 30 to 35,000 individuals, and this count is presently stable. Northern Africa holds a declining population of fifty individuals on the Atlas Plateau. The population of about 500 individuals near the Black Sea is declining, and in Turkey, there exists a small breeding population of less than 100 individuals. Demoiselle cranes are a cosmopolitan species found within the wide range of the Ethiopian, Palearctic, and Oriental regions. As demoiselles are migratory birds, their winter habitats include those of Northeastern Africa, Pakistan, and India.
Biogeographic Regions: palearctic ; oriental ; ethiopian
Other Geographic Terms: cosmopolitan

source: HuggingFaceFW/fineweb-edu


other text. Can't I just use a single print statement where your examples show two or more print statements one after the other?
ANSWER: Absolutely! In fact it's a bit more efficient to use a single print statement rather than using multiple print statements one after other. The only reason for using multipple print statements in the book is to help beginners understand the code more clearly by separating things out.
QUESTION: How do I distinguish between singular and plural in my output? For example if someone enters 1 in a form for the number of travelers, I want to display "1 person" in my response, but if they enter 2, I want to display "2 people"
ANSWER: Good question! You can handle these issues using selection statements. We'll cover selection in chapter 7, but here's an example:
if ($numTravelers > 1)
 print ("There are $numTravelers people.");
else
 print ("There is $numTravelers person.");


Section: User Commands (1)
Updated: 28 July 2020
Page Index
preconv - convert encoding of input files to something GNU troff understands
[ -dr ] [ -D default_encoding ] [ -e encoding ] [file...] -h --help -v --version
preconv reads files and converts its encoding(s) to a form GNU troff(1) can process, sending the data to standard output. Currently, this means ASCII characters and '\[uXXXX]' entities, where 'XXXX' is a hexadecimal number with four to six digits, representing a Unicode input code. Normally, preconv should be invoked with the -k and -K options of groff.
Emit debugging messages to standard error (mainly the used encoding).
Specify default encoding if everything fails (see below).
Specify input encoding explicitly, overriding all other methods. This corresponds to groff's -Kencoding option. Without this switch, preconv uses the algorithm described below to select the input encoding.
-h Print a help message and exit.
Do not add.lf requests.
-v Print the version number and exit.
preconv tries to find the input encoding with the following algorithm.
If the input encoding has been explicitly specified with option -e, use it.
Otherwise, check whether the input starts with a Byte Order Mark (BOM, see below). If found, use it.
Otherwise, check whether there is a known coding tag (see below) in either the first or second input line. If found, use it.
Finally, if the uchardet library (an encoding detector library available on most major distributions) is available on the system, use it to try to detect the encoding of the file.
If everything fails, use a default encoding as given with option -D, by the current locale, or 'latin1' if the locale is set to 'C', 'POSIX', or empty (in that order).
Note that the groff program supports a GROFF_ENCODING environment variable which is eventually expanded to option -k.
Byte Order Mark
The Unicode Standard defines character U+FEFF as the Byte Order Mark (BOM). On the other hand, value U+FFFE is guaranteed not be a Unicode character at all. This allows detection of the byte order within the data stream (either big-endian or little-endian), and the MIME encodings 'UTF-16' and 'UTF-32' mandate that the data stream starts with U+FEFF. Similarly, the data stream encoded as 'UTF-8' might start with a BOM (to ease the conversion from and to UTF-16 and UTF-32). In all cases, the byte order mark is not part of the data but part of the encoding protocol; in other words, preconv's output doesn't contain it.
Note that U+FEFF not at the start of the input data actually is emitted; it has then the meaning of a 'zero width no-break space' character - something not needed normally in groff.
Coding Tags
Editors which support more than a single character encoding need tags within the input files to mark the file's encoding. While it is possible to guess the right input encoding with the help of heuristic algorithms for data which represents a greater amount of a natural language, it is still just a guess. Additionally, all algorithms fail easily for input which is either too short or doesn't represent a natural language.
For these reasons, preconv supports the coding tag convention (with some restrictions) as used by GNU Emacs and XEmacs (and probably other programs too).
Coding tags in GNU Emacs and XEmacs are stored in so-called File Variables. preconv recognizes the following syntax form which must be put into a troff comment in the first or second line.
The only relevant tag for preconv is 'coding' which can take the values listed below. Here an example line which tells Emacs to edit a file in troff mode, and to use latin2 as its encoding.
The following list gives all MIME coding tags (either lowercase or uppercase) supported by preconv; this list is hard-coded in the source.
big5, cp1047, euc-jp, euc-kr, gb2312, iso-8859-1, iso-8859-2, iso-8859-5, iso-8859-7, iso-8859-9, iso-8859-13, iso-8859-15, koi8-r, us-ascii, utf-8, utf-16, utf-16be, utf-16le
In addition, the following hard-coded list of other tags is recognized which eventually map to values from the list above.
ascii, chinese-big5, chinese-euc, chinese-iso-8bit, cn-big5, cn-gb, cn-gb-2312, cp878, csascii, csisolatin1, cyrillic-iso-8bit, cyrillic-koi8, euc-china, euc-cn, euc-japan, euc-japan-1990, euc-korea, greek-iso-8bit, iso-10646/utf8, iso-10646/utf-8, iso-latin-1, iso-latin-2, iso-latin-5, iso-latin-7, iso-latin-9, japanese-euc, japanese-iso-8bit, jis8, koi8, korean-euc, korean-iso-8bit, latin-0, latin1, latin-1, latin-2, latin-5, latin-7, latin-9, mule-utf-8, mule-utf-16, mule-utf-16be, mule-utf-16-be, mule-utf-16be-with-signature, mule-utf-16le, mule-utf-16-le, mule-utf-16le-with-signature, utf8, utf-16-be, utf-16-be-with-signature, utf-16be-with-signature, utf-16-le, utf-16-le-with-signature, utf-16le-with-signature
Those tags are taken from GNU Emacs and XEmacs, together with some aliases. Trailing '-dos', '-unix', and '-mac' suffixes of coding tags (which give the end-of-line convention used in the file) are stripped off before the comparison with the above tags happens.
Iconv Issues
preconv by itself only supports three encodings: latin-1, cp1047, and UTF-8; all other encodings are passed to the iconv library functions. At compile time it is searched and checked for a valid iconv implementation; a call to 'preconv --version' shows whether iconv is used.
preconv doesn't support local variable lists yet. This is a different syntax form to specify local variables at the end of a file.
the GNU Emacs and XEmacs info pages
Byte Order Mark
Coding Tags
Iconv Issues


Q&A: Can I Typeset My Book Using Word?
April 30th, 2012 → 8:00 am @
Welcome back to our short series featuring common questions on book publishing and marketing. Today, we learn the best ways for authors to typeset their books:
"I see you a lot on the web talking about typesetting but I also see a lot of other folks who claim to typeset their books using MS Word and say that I can typeset my book using Word. I am confused? Can I do it myself in Word or should I hire a typesetter?
The problem is that MS Word is the direct descendents of typewriters, not typesetting systems. It was originally meant to mimic the "look and feel" of the familiar typewriter. This was partly intended to calm the anxieties of the millions of secretaries and assistants who were being asked to switch to computers.The explosion of interest in self-publishing has led to an unprecedented number of books being produced using typewriting programs such as MS Word. If you want your book to look the best it can, if you want a book that looks like a book and not like the report you did for English Composition, it's good to know the difference. Sure, you can "typeset" your book on a typewriter or rather MS Word, but then again, why would you want to? There is a reason why typesetting programs such as InDesign and Quark were created. If books were meant to look like English papers then that would be the standard, but no matter how many self-published authors do their books using MS Word, the standard will always be typesetting programs. In our professional opinion, you should hire a typesetter, as they know and understand books."
Courtesy of ZLS Publishers; thanks for the tip!
Carol Topp, CPA
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The Medieval Liberal Arts Curriculum: Geometry
Geometry during the Middle Ages, was construed narrowly as the science of measurements.As with the other disciplines, the focus of Medieval geometry was on the relational values or ratios between objects. Just as Arithmetic was thought to quantitatively express the ratio between things, and Music the expressive means of doing the same thing, Geometry was seen as an additional method of determining ratios.It was used primarily as a means of measuring and calculating the then-known world. However, the concern with ratios also extended into the concepts about God's relationship with his creation and ultimately with humans. To the Medieval mind, this relationship was conceived in geometric terms, and the whole design and structure of God's universe was one that was based on geometry.
Medieval and Renaissance Home Page
Medieval Universities
Medieval University Curriculum
God Using Geometry to Create the World
The Medieval Curriculum
The Trivium
The Quadrivium


text:
August 13, 2018
The Honorable Steven Mnuchin
Secretary of the Treasury
U.S. Department of the Treasury
1500 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20220
Dear Secretary Mnuchin:
The American Historical Association vigorously endorses suggestions from our members and others that Harriet Tubman be featured on the $20 Federal Reserve Note. We are aware that such a major change in the currency is not to be taken lightly. As the primary organization representing historians in the United States, and the largest professional organization of historians in the world, we take history itself seriously -- especially the deep influence of everyday portrayals of the nation's past. Tubman's heroic efforts on behalf of enslaved people seeking freedom, and on behalf of the nation's military forces during the Civil War make her an appropriate symbol of freedom and the courageous patriotism required to end a system that former President George W. Bush has referred to as "America's original sin."
Money uniquely occupies national attention, passing from hand to hand, day to day. It symbolizes civic unity, the fellowship of all who participate in our economy and our communities. Half of the people who participate in these transactions are women. As we approach the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment historians are reminded that like women's suffrage in 1920, the inclusion of women in the pantheon of patriotic Americans honored on our currency is long overdue.
The AHA recognizes the complexity of issues relating to currency, including the priority given to security issues. As historians we understand the complexities of historical interpretation when assessing the contributions of specific individuals, along with the inevitable political implications of highly visible changes to elements of civic culture. But we also recognize the imperative of change and its relationship to continuity. The commitment to freedom articulated in our founding documents remains central to American culture and institutions. Harriet Tubman's life and work symbolizes the sacrifices that she and thousands of other Americans have made on behalf of those ideas and the values embodied in them.

source: openbmb/Ultra-FineWeb


text:
Double the PressureScience brain teasers require understanding of the physical or biological world and the laws that govern it.
In general, if you have a gas in a container and you double the amount of gas, the new pressure will be double the old pressure. I say "in general" because this isn't exactly true, but it is close enough for the purposes of this teaser.
So my question is this: If you have a tire filled with the standard 32 psi and you double the amount of air molecules in the tire, what pressure will your tire gauge now read? Assume that the tire does not expand, and that the first sentence of this teaser is exactly true.
The answer is NOT 64 psi.
HintAtmospheric pressure is about 15 psi. How does this affect the answer?
Why? Because pressure gauges are set to read "0 psi" when the pressure being read is the same as atmospheric pressure. This is very convenient because you can easily tell from the gauge if the container is under pressure or vacuum. However, this also means that "0 psi" does not really mean that there is no pressure in the container - true zero psi occurs at full vacuum.
So to solve this problem, you have to recognize the fact that at 32 psi there are enough air molecules in the tire to increase the pressure from full vacuum (no molecules) to 32 psi. Since atmospheric pressure is about 15 psi, then the real pressure is 32 + 15 = 47 psi. Since this is the real pressure in the tire, you can now double it to get 94 psi. If the real pressure is 94 psi, the gauge will read 94 - 15 = 79 psi.
See another brain teaser just like this one...
Or, just get a random brain teaser
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text:
What Are the Benefits of Using Saliva in the Eyes?
One of the primary benefits of using saliva in the eyes is that doing so may help people with dry eyes experience increased moisture. Saliva used in this way may even save a person's sight and prevent further dry eye damage. In some instances, people may also use saliva when a contact lens solution is not available. While there are some benefits to using saliva on the eyes, there are also risks involved with doing so.
Although it isn't a widespread practice, doctors have successfully used saliva in the eyes to heal people suffering from extreme dry eye conditions. It is even possible to regularly use saliva in this way by transplanting a saliva gland to the eye area so that it automatically lubricates the eye. While successful, this type of surgery is not routinely promoted and most doctors attempt to use other eye treatments before recommending this type of surgery.
Chronic dry eyes can cause serious corneal damage and may even result in blindness if allowed to continue or worsen without effective treatment. The constant scraping of the eyelid over a dry eye surface can also cause repeated infections. Saliva in the eyes is a practical solution for some people with extreme dry eye conditions when other eye treatments do not suffice. Considered to be a very delicate operation, previous surgical transplants of a saliva gland to the eye area have been largely successful and can add enough moisture to the eye on a regular basis in order to preserve sight.
Eye care specialists do not generally recommend using saliva in the eyes, but when access to a contact lens cleansing solution is not available, normal saliva can be used to lubricate eyes, as well as to clean a lens. The danger in doing so, however, is that bacteria and germs present in saliva can cause conjunctivitis and other eye infections. Only in emergency circumstances when no other options are available do doctors recommend using saliva in this way.
Despite certain warnings against using saliva in the eyes, studies do reveal that saliva actually has healthy components, such as antibacterial and antiviral properties. Saliva is also comprised mostly of water and, in some cultures, is believed to be a natural disinfectant. These benefits, however, are not present in all types of saliva, as abnormal saliva cultures may reveal the presence of disease or infectious properties. So, while there may be benefits in using saliva in the eyes for some, this may not be true for everyone.
@burcidi-- I've used it to clean my contacts before.
I was hiking, didn't have contact lens solution, ran out of water and dropped my contact on the ground. I cleaned the contact with my saliva and put it in my eye. It was actually fine, it didn't hurt and I didn't get an infection afterward. It's not as bad as it sounds.
I have chronic dry eye. Thankfully, it's not so bad that I need surgery but I use eye drops and ointments regularly.
I can't really imagine what kind of an emergency situation there could be where I would have to use saliva in my eyes to keep it from drying. It sounds terribly unhygienic and I'm not sure how it would be feasible anyway without a dropper.
When it comes to cleaning contact lenses, people with dry eyes are not supposed to wear contact lenses anyway. I guess if I didn't have dry eyes, wore contacts and was in a situation where I couldn't clean my contacts any other way, I might resort to using saliva. But otherwise, I would never use it.
Has anyone here actually used saliva for their eyes or contacts?
I have heard of people using special eye drops made from the serum of their own blood for dry eye problems. In that case, the blood sample goes through a process where it is separated and processed for it to be safe to use in the eyes.
Is there a similar treatment where a person's saliva can be processed and disinfected to use in the eyes?
Post your comments

source: m-a-p/FineFineWeb


listless meaning in hindi
Pronunciation of listless
listless in Images
listless Antonyms
listless Definitions and meaning in English
 1. lacking zest or vivacity
 2. marked by low spirits
 3. showing no enthusiasm
 4. spiritless
 5. without energy
listless Sentences in English
 1. निरुत्साहित
 The illness left her feeling listless and depressed.
Tags: listless meaning in hindi, listless ka matalab hindi me, hindi meaning of listless, listless meaning dictionary. listless in hindi. Translation and meaning of listless in English hindi dictionary. Provided by a free online English hindi picture dictionary.


text:
(c) Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, Deerfield MA. All rights reserved. Contact us for information about using this image.
A network of railroads transported people and goods throughout the United States. Farmers in New England had to compete with western-grown meat and grain. The refrigerated railroad car brought in milk and other perishable farm produce as well. Farmers who wished to keep their farms had to embrace more aggressive land use and exploit new markets in order to survive. Many focused on regional specialties such as ice harvesting, growing cranberries, and maple sugar production. The mission of the Eastern States Exposition when it opened in 1916 was to highlight and reward the best of New England agriculture and industry. The success of the Exposition surpassed even the vision of its founders, attracting over a million visitors a year.


text:
SOFTLab's Nova in New York
NOVA, FLATIRON HOLIDAY INSTALLATION BY SOFTLAB
Nova was commissioned by the Flatiron 23rd Street Partnership through a competition held by the Van Alen Institute. The installation takes its initial inspiration from the traditional gazebo ("I shall gaze") as a pavilion within in a landscape that looks out in all directions. We used the rich historical context of the Flatiron Plaza site to frame the various landmark buildings and pedestrians through a series of scopes. These scopes create a pavilion that is different from all sides at street level, but from views above the pavilion looks like a seven pointed star. The structure is made up of aluminum that gains its strength through a cell-like structure similar to a sponge or soap bubbles. Each cell acts like both a stone and part of a three dimensional truss.
Each cell is unique, exposing a crystalline interior. On the interior the aluminum structure is clad in acrylic laminated with 3M Dichroic Film creating a kaleidoscopic effect. The dichroic film changes color and reflectivity depending on the viewing angle. The dichroic along with the mirrored finished composite aluminum panels cladding the exterior turns each cone into a pedestrian scale kaleidoscope that remixes the surrounding buildings, urban context and pedestrians in fun and unexpected ways.
The overall structure is made of a modular system we developed with the help of ARUP. Each cell is made of two dimensional panels that get attached together to form a three dimensional cell. Each cell acts like a stone. These cells come together to form a structurally stable dome in the center with each scope acting as an arch. The seven arches come together to create a very stable structure that has at its base a larger platonic half sphere, but also exhibits the nuances and idiosyncrasies of the cell-like system. This gives us both a very stable shape and a surface with many different angles to take advantage of the kaleidoscopic effects produced by the 3M Dichroic Film.
Design Team : SOFTLab
Supported by: 3M and ARUP
Location: New York
Photographs: Alan Tansey
> Via SOFTLab


text:
Yes. Sound Boxes can be purchased for $10 and that includes shipping within the continental U.S. Please contact Customer Care for details.
Does Cloud b sell sound boxes separately?
Glad to hear it — Thanks for the feedbackWas this article helpful?
- How should my Cloud b Sound products be used?
- Are Cloud b sound products safe for all ages?
- The pouch on my soothing sound product is too small, what to do?
- How do I change the batteries in the sound box?
- Is a soothing sound product suitable for my newborn/infant?
- Can the sound boxes be set to continuously play?
- What materials are used to make Cloud b Sound Products?
- How does the sound box function?
- My sound box is making a "crackling" or "static" sound when activated, what to do?
- I have changed the batteries but my sound box will not turn on, what to do?
- How long will the sound boxes play?


text:
Website Disclosure for 7-Eleven
The California Transparency in Supply Chain Act (sometimes referred to as SB 657) recently became effective and requires retailers and manufacturers doing business in California to disclose efforts to eradicate slavery and human trafficking in its supply chain.
7-Eleven, consistent with its commitment to conducting business in an ethical, socially responsible and lawful manner, supports the eradication of human trafficking and slavery and fully expects its suppliers to conduct their business in the same manner.
In furtherance of these standards of conduct, 7-Eleven is in the process of taking certain actions and implementing certain procedures to help support the eradication of human trafficking and slavery as described below:
7-Eleven is in the process of developing and implementing an internal verification of our direct supply chain to evaluate and address any potential risks of human trafficking and slavery which includes working with our wholesale distributor and bakery and commissary partners.
7-Eleven has a long standing practice of requiring in its supplier contracts that its suppliers comply with all applicable laws. This requirement includes laws prohibiting human trafficking, slavery and other forms of involuntary labor. Additionally, in many instances, these contracts give 7-Eleven the right to audit the books and inspect the facilities and operations of its suppliers and require our suppliers to correct any deficiencies or non-compliance that may be discovered.
As a further step in helping to prevent and eradicate slavery and human trafficking, 7-Eleven is in the process of obtaining from its distributor and bakery and commissary partners a certificate requiring the supplier to certify that materials incorporated into products delivered to 7-Eleven comply with the laws regarding slavery and human trafficking. Additionally, 7-Eleven plans to incorporate provisions similar to this certificate into 7-Eleven's standard supplier contract terms and other related purchase orders.
7-Eleven has not, as of the date of the posting of this statement, conducted any specific audit of its suppliers to evaluate supplier compliance with company standards for human trafficking and slavery. However, 7-Eleven plans to monitor our suppliers and will implement an appropriate audit should it determine that some products present a risk of being sourced through involuntary labor.
7-Eleven's Code of Business Conduct, which our suppliers are expected to adhere to, will be revised as part of developing company standards to prevent and eradicate human trafficking and slavery in our supply chain and this will include internal accountability standards and procedures for employees failing to meet such standards. 7-Eleven's Code is made available to all appropriate employees and personnel.
7-Eleven will also be providing to employees with direct supply chain responsibility information on human trafficking and slavery particularly with regard to mitigating risks within the product supply chain.


text:
Java/M 3 tier system solution
gives an overview of the work being done to investigate the possibility of using Java and
a 3 tier solution for VISTA's CIRN application. The decision to investigate a
three-tier solution is driven by the need for sharing of patient information between
hospitals and non-VA systems.
The idea of sharing information between systems is not a new idea. Ever since serial communication computers have been sharing information (there could be earlier examples, but this is as far back as I go!). When you think of HL7, it is a standardized stream of characters that enable systems to share information. Basically an agreement between to HL7 systems that specify where to expect certain data in a stream of characters.
With the advent of the Object world and acceptance of Delphi within VISTA, a 3-tier solution allows us to take sharing of information to the next level of communication, specifically objects. This leads into Object Request Brokers (basically software that serves up Objects rather than a stream of characters). This of course lead to Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA) which defines a standard way that ORBs talk. And of course this leads to spin-offs like a group called CORBAMed that defines standard ways that clinical Objects are used in the same way that HL7 standardized a stream of characters.
What does Objects provide over parsing a streams of characters? Think of an HL7 character stream that may be made up of 1000's of characters and you want the patient's last name. In this stream there are multiple names (Doctor's name, Patient Name, maybe next of kin, etc.). This basically forces you to learn a very lengthy standard to figure out just how to get the patient's name and where it is located. This is an over-simplified example, but it gets the point across (especially for those of you who had to carry the HL7 standard documentation around).
Now in the object world, this could be as simple as: MyCORBAMedObject.getPatientLastName(). That's it. Setting data is just as easy as MyCORBAMedObject.setPatientLastName("Smith"). Much easier to use.
When you also realize that objects support more than characters, like images or sound you begin to realize that a lot more potential and value exists in the object world.
The CIRN project is an initiative within the Department of Veteran's Affairs to integrate patient information within the VA. Historically, patient information was not easily or readily available between VA Medical Centers (VAMCs). The CIRN project allows a VAMC to have access to up-to-date clinical information for a patient. This information is a history of the patients care that may span many VAMCs. This is not a project that "combines" databases, but rather allows sharing of patient information between VA Medical Centers.
Current Data Transportation using an Object Request Broker (ORB)
|The technology being
utilized in this discussion is a three tier solution using a CORBA compliant ORB server as
the middle tier. Please view our Java Links section for more
information on CORBA and our Technical Diagram section for
information on how this three-tier solution works.
Basically, a middle tier separates the client system from the database. This means the client does not care whether the data is coming from a M-System database, SQL Database (MS Access, MS-SQL, etc.) or any other platform.
What this provides the Department of Veteran's Affairs is the following:
|What needs to be done to implement this design?||All the pieces
already exist to implement a three-tier solution all the way from the Client end
(Java/Delphi to the VISTA database using the current Kernel RPC). The work can be
accomplished by pulling all the "pieces" together. Here is a general list
of the parts of the system I designed:
For more technical "stuff", visit Technical Ingredients page that describes some of the Java
classes in more detail.
VISTA Demo utilizing a 3 tier solution
|The following demonstration displays a user session. This is a screen-capture of a "Live" demo using the system here at the Altoona VAMC.|
Making M-Database into ORB objects
|The majority of work in implementing this
architecture is transforming VISTA data into objects that can be used with the ORB
server. To create an ORB object is very similar to the current VISTA Delphi/M
architecture. One must first define the object, write the M-RPC calls to support the
object, and then place the data into the object. Eventually this mapping process
A solution to this problem that has been investigated is to write a Java program that will compile an ORB Object based on a VISTA FileMan file. This FileMan file would operate very much like a FileMan print template. But instead of compiling the template for output to a device, the file would compiled to produce the necessary data-extraction routines, Kernel RPC calls, ORB server routine, and ORB skeleton objects necessary to implement the the ORB object.
This may sound complicated, but it isn't and allows M-programmers not familiar with Java, Delphi, Objects, etc. to create objects required by COTS or VISTA GUI's.
M-Legacy System and Business logic
|A major consideration when designing a
client/server or 3-tier system is the location of the business logic. When an
M-System is not separated, this is not an issue as the User Interfaces (UI's) and business
logic is contained within the M-environment.
However, what happens when you develop a GUI (using Java, Delphi, etc.) that becomes the front-end to your M-system? You will notice that business logic tends to become duplicated causing a maintenance headache.
For example, let's say you are to design a patient registration form that has a prompt "Date of Birth" as one of the prompts. Simple enough...right? Well, not really. As any programmer would ask is "what is a valid date?" Should I allow 100 years, 110 years, 120 years in the past to be entered? (hmmm...). The first act is to "peek" at the legacy system to see how they do it...ahh..the limit is 110 years...my answer...so that gets coded into the GUI. Two weeks later, a change is made on the legacy system to make 120 years a valid date, but they don't notify the GUI programmer...now your GUI is inconsistent with your legacy system. Multiply this one prompt by a large system like VISTA and you have a major problem.
Your goal should be to make your GUI as unintelligent as possible...make it sing the song "If I only had a brain". Code your forms to collect information (not process) and have these forms sent to the legacy system to be accepted or rejected. If the form is rejected by legacy, a message describing the problem is given to the user. Obviously minor logic will still need to be contained in the GUI. For example, date prompts should only allow dates and number prompts should only allow numbers.
The additional two alternatives begin to go outside the scope of this discussion, but are worth mentioning if you goal is to eventually replace your M-System:
The second alternative is to place your business logic on the middle-tier (in this case Java). This becomes much more complex to implement when you consider all the legacy business logic that will have to be converted to your ORB server. This may be an appropriate solution if your overall goal is to eventually move your data to another platform. You will need to make sure your newly converted ORB objects don't access data "the old way" (using RPCs) since you will have to convert these when you drop in your new database. A black box should be considered that can be "switched" to the new database access logic.
A better alternative is to research Object Oriented Databases that have ORBs built into the database. This basically combines the 2nd and 3rd tier into one. You client systems will deal with an object environment and this eliminates the need to create objects on-the-fly from a legacy system as mentioned in the previous sections. You would basically design your objects and then move your legacy data into these objects during time of conversion.
|When considering to Implement a 3-tier
solution, you would assume that it means a major investment in another technology outside
the M-system. By keeping your business logic and data on the M-System and
implementing automated ORB wrappers and basic GUI forms, your major investment still
remains with your M-System and M-professionals.
Also, keep in mind that once you setup your ORB server, you can utilize any CORBA compliant front-end GUI (Delphi for example). It does not have to be a total Java solution. Java on the client end is good if you want your GUI to be compatible with many different platforms (not just Windows).
As with any system, technology should not drive the system requirements. You need to determine your business requirements, and then technology should be researched to determine the best approach. There are other alternatives such as Java->M-System (no ORB server) or you could use Java RMI (Remote Method Invocation). Java RMI is "free" unlike commercial ORB Servers, but it isn't as robust.
|The opinions expressed contained in this section is that of a programmer stuck in a corner with the window-shades pulled down for an extreme period of time and not that of the Department of Veteran's Affairs. Read at your own risk.|
About the author
|Bob Yacobucci has been involved with VISTA and M since 198


The Poitou-Charentes region on the west coast of France has a very varied landscape, many different types of biotopes and a rich flora and fauna with insects.
The marshes of the Marais Poitevin regional nature park have their own unique ecosystem with many insects. This area is also sometimes called 'Venice Vert' (green Venice). You can easily explore it by boat.
The fauna represented in the Poitou-Charentes region is sparse in comparison to the plant biomass present.
However, the multiplicity of habitats (marshes, forests, heathlands, coastal zones, etc…) means that there is certainly a wealth of regional wildlife. Insectivores are well represented including birds and bats.


text:
People is part of the Sustrans traffic-free routes and greenways design guide. It covers methods to ensure traffic-free routes can be used by everyone, behaviour-change campaigns and community involvement.
- Ensure traffic-free routes can be used by everyone.
- In most cases, a wide range of users will share a route responsibly and considerately.
- Behaviour-change campaigns can be used to promote responsible sharing of a route.
- Community involvement is key to successful traffic-free routes.
3.1. Traffic-free route users
A traffic-free route must be designed on the assumption that everyone will use it. It is important to understand the challenges faced by different users, as these can affect and impede accessibility in different ways. Without understanding these challenges, a route could become a disabling environment for some users.
Designers should assume that all users will have different requirements. These requirements could change depending on the time of day, week or year. Asking the following questions can help to understand how different user requirements will effect route design:
- What measures are required to assist visually and mobility impaired users?
- What speeds will different users travel at during different times of the day or week?
- What level of confidence do users have?
- How will path surface types affect the comfort of different users?
- Is there enough width to accommodate all users?
Consulting representatives of user groups at an early stage of a project is critical. This will help designers to understand the challenges faced by different users. As an example, some disabled people may be able to ride a conventional bike for some distance. But if they need to dismount, they may become less mobile and encounter difficulties that able-bodied users would not.
Designers should walk and cycle through the locality of a traffic-free route to understand these challenges. Visiting sites with users of mobility scooters and adaptive bikes can also be helpful. Understanding these barriers and challenges means that they can be addressed through the design process.
3.2 Community involvement
Local 'ownership' of a traffic-free route is essential for it to be successful. The involvement of the local community in a route's maintenance and upkeep is of particular importance. This can help to establish positive user interactions.
Without the local community's support and a sense of ownership, the route will become less of an attraction. This will be the case even where routes are maintained to an adequate standard. Installing artwork, painted mileposts and flowerbeds can all help to involve the community and create an enjoyable and rewarding public space.
Unveiling of artwork on the Loanhead Railway Extension Path, Edinburgh
Community involvement should take place throughout the planning, design and delivery of a project. This can help ensure that designers are aware of community needs from the start of a project.
When planning community engagement, it is necessary to be clear about what the purpose is. Is it about providing and collecting information, or is it about involving people in decision making? The timing of community engagement in the development of a project is key. It is critical to manage the community's expectations to avoid misunderstandings.
Community engagement is an important aspect of creating an accessible and attractive route. It is important that community engagement is used to understand the needs of those who face the greatest challenges.
These users might not respond to traditional methods of consultation. As they may feel their contribution will not influence the design process, particularly as they may currently face exclusion from transport infrastructure. Furthermore, these users may not be part of, or associated with, formal advocacy groups.
This makes it even more important to ensure that community engagement is accessible to everyone. On this note, consideration must be given to differences between language, culture and opportunity. Engagement will not be effective where these differences are not considered.
Interesting and creative methods of engagement can help to reach a wider audience. These approaches can be more effective than literature-based methods. An example of an alternative engagement approach is shown below:
Information boards to encourage interest in route used at an open day event for the New Malden Raynes Park Scheme, London.
Key to successful community engagement is to identify all stakeholders. To do this, it is useful to think of who is interested in (or affected by) a project and who can influence it. The use of a matrix like the one shown below can be helpful in understanding this.
In some cases, there will be a need to conduct consultation, such as when a new route requires planning permission. This is also the case where schemes need Traffic Regulation Orders (TRO). In this instance, the Highway Authority will need to consult on the proposals. Although the consultation will relate to the introduction of the TRO and not the scheme itself.
When formal consultation is required, it can be beneficial to contact stakeholders in advance. Taking the views of the stakeholders into account prior to formal consultation can help to reduce the likelihood of objections, particularly when designs could be at an advanced stage.
Local community support for a new traffic-free route can be facilitated by the creation of a steering or planning group. The purpose of these groups is to advise upon and support the delivery of a scheme. Such a group could take a variety of forms and may involve the formation of sub-groups.
The formation of sub-groups could help optimise time and capability by focusing on specific areas such as technical design, community engagement or public relations.
New Malden Raynes Park community engagement event used to encourage local participation and ownership of route.
The creation of a volunteer-based 'friends of' group can be beneficial to new and existing routes. These groups can secure ongoing functionality and use by promoting routes to the local community. Well-resourced volunteers can also undertake minor maintenance such as removing debris, vegetation clearance and cleaning sign faces.
3.4 Responsible use
In the majority of cases, a wide range of users can share traffic-free routes responsibly. But in some cases, inconsiderate behaviour can affect the experience of others. This behaviour may include cycling at inappropriate speeds or uncontrolled dogs. The effect of this behaviour can be exacerbated where the width of the path is less than desirable. Such reductions in width can be a result of poor design, or vegetation encroachment due to a lack of maintenance.
A Code of Practice can be effective in encouraging responsible sharing of a new or existing route. These can be useful where physical constraints cannot be overcome.
The creation of a Code should be developed in conjunction with the local community and can help designers to understand the obstacles to users.
This approach can be used during the planning and design stage for new routes, and also years after the implementation of a route where use has increased and physical improvements are no longer possible.
A Code of Practice should be founded on the principle of access for everyone. It should also ensure that all users share the route responsibly. Previous successful campaigns have included the use of 'share with care' and 'share, respect, enjoy' slogans.
It is important that a Code does not attribute the misuse of a route to a specific user group. Instead, it should focus on promoting responsible behaviour.
For a Code of Practice to be successful, it will need to be communicated to all users of a traffic-free route. This may include engagement events with route users and displaying the Code of Practice on signs or thermoplastic markings as shown below:
Share, Respect, Enjoy thermoplastic marking used on the Comber Greenway, Northern Ireland.
3.5 One Path initiative
The One Path Initiative is aimed at tackling conflict on traffic-free routes. The principles of the initiative are to share, respect and enjoy routes, promoting and enhancing positive sharing behaviours.
This initiative was developed as an alternative to physical signing. It focuses on behaviour change rather than rules and regulations. It also seeks to improve communications and understanding between route users. It achieves this goal by:
- Understanding who uses the traffic-free route and their individual needs.
- Improving relations amongst the users.
- Reducing conflict and thereby complaints.
- Avoiding physical interventions and / or permanent signing and the resulting expense.
- Ensuring route management agencies deliver consistent messages.
The One Path Initiative has been applied to established routes. But its principles can also be applied to routes at the planning and design stage. Applying the principles at this stage can reduce the need for unnecessary signing and control devices.
The One Path Initiative is based on a three-stage delivery programme. The programme focuses on promoting equality and awareness amongst users. This approach was found to result in positive cultural and behavioural change.
The strategy relies upon a community assembled Stewardship Group. This group provides residents and stakeholders with a platform from which to influence project initiatives and balance the needs of all users.
Stage 1: Enable research and surveys to be undertaken. These will help to understand user behaviour, path usage and conflict areas. It is important to understand initial attitudes of users, focusing on three main areas:
- To understand the path usage patterns and identify when potential conflict is more likely to occur.
- Find out the most common use of the traffic-free route, in particular whether it is used for leisure or commuting.
- To understand the issues and attitudes of all users.
The surveys required to complete this monitoring should be included within a Monitoring and Evaluation Plan, produced at the onset of a project.
Stage 2: Following the survey, it is possible to identify the main target audience. Separate focus groups are held for each of the key audiences. This enables an open discussion and exploration of each group's experiences of using the route.
With all the information gathered, seek to organise community engagement events focused at target audiences in carefully selected locations. This aims to give all users the chance to take part in shaping the debate, co-creating the campaign, giving a sense of ownership and inclusion, all aiming to adjust behaviours in a positive


text:
NURSE RESILIENCE AT DIGNITY HEALTH IDENTIFYING SOLUTIONS TO ADDRESS NURSING BURNOUT
How might we increase the resilience and reduce burnout of nurses by changing their work practices?
Nurses work in complex and demanding environments. HopeLab and Dignity Health partnered to identify opportunities to reduce stress and grow providers' engagement and energy. Over the course of six months, HopeLab collaborated with nurses to generate ideas to promote resilience in their work practices.
HopeLab's work commenced by shadowing and interviewing nurses to understand their work environment and their lived experience. We used behavioral science research to understand how the work environment contributes to both resilience and burnout. Floor nurse and nursing leadership developed and prioritized intervention ideas. This human-centered design process put the lived experience of nurses and the interests of stakeholders at the center of the innovation process to identify solutions to address nursing burnout including:
Unit-based Digital Forum: an online, secure communication channel providing a safe space for nurses to discuss topics, raise questions, provide feedback, and develop ideas for solutions.
Debriefing Codes Card: a facilitation guide for hospital staff to lead their colleagues through a debrief after a code aimed at increasing clinical improvements and supporting staff emotional well-being.
Weather Report of the hospital: a quick snapshot of important data about the hospital and hospital floors – from number of patients waiting in the ER to the number of nurses, patients, and sick calls on each floor—to support nurses in prioritizing their time and expand their identity to encompass the whole hospital.
"This was an energizing process for the nurses. We heard that it is difficult to stay positive in their daily work. The storytelling from the nurses was valuable itself. "
"For me understanding what keeps the nurses practicing with passion and heart is so important to our success now and into the future. Our shared vision for how staff stay engaged and energized by their work through a greater sense of purpose and empowerment is critical to the profession of nursing."
"I think one of the biggest things in nursing is that they teach you to have compassion for the patient, tend to the patient's needs, and there's always this focus of doing everything you can for them, but there's a lot that's not recognized for the nurses themselves."


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Search Result for "lambast":
Wordnet 3.0
VERB (2)
1. beat with a cane;
[syn: cane, flog, lambaste, lambast]
2. censure severely or angrily;
- Example: "The mother scolded the child for entering a stranger's car"
- Example: "The deputy ragged the Prime Minister"
- Example: "The customer dressed down the waiter for bringing cold soup"
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
lambast \lam*bast"\, v. t. Same as lambaste. [WordNet 1.5]


text:
A preliminary study on biology of Liriomyza sativae.
Laboratory studies showed that Liriomyza sativae had 13-14 generations each year. In field studies conducted in Wenzhou, Zhejiang, China, larvae overwintered on broad beans [faba beans], and tomatoes and eggplants [aubergines] in sheltered areas. Pupae began diapause in mid-November which lasted for ∼ 110 days. Faba beans, Chinese cabbages, lettuces, aubergines and melons were the main food plants during the summer. The starting temperature for the growth of L. sativae was 7.53°C.


text:
Scribble & Draw is a simple app that allows users to create free hand drawings and shapes simply by touching the screen.
With simplicity in mind we decided to omit all icons from the application and instead have a simple text menu so that learning to use the application takes next to no time at all.
You can easily share the drawings that you make with your friends and family. Saved drawings go straight to the Gallery in your phone and from there you can view your photos, send them or import them into your computer.
** Features ** :
- Free hand drawing
- Draw Lines and Shapes
- Save drawings to Gallery
- Choose color from a Color picker
- Clear page


text:
While Kingsville, Texas, was officially established in 1904, when the railroad came through town, the history of this region goes back long before that time. The King Ranch, still a working cattle ranch, was founded in 1853, when Captain Richard King purchased land that was once part of the Rincon de Santa Gertrudis Mexican Land Grant.
The land was originally called the Wild Horse Desert by early settlers. Captain King and his family, with the help of an entire village of people from Mexico, cleared and fenced the land, fought off the raiding Indians, and made the area safe for settlers. These same villagers became some of Texas' first cowboys (the Kineños), and their descendents are a vital part of the community today.
In 1913, Texas Legislators created the County of Kleberg, with Kingsville as the county seat. Shortly thereafter, various events provided the impetus to further spur the growth of Kingsville: the discovery of gas and oil and the arrivals of South Texas State Teacher's College (now Texas A&M University-Kingsville), the U.S. Navy, and Celanese.
Kingsville still retains much of its early charm in the downtown area, which showcases the 1904 Train Depot, Flato Opera House, Sims Building, Ragland Mercantile Building, and 1930s post office and bandstand. Kingsville is a city where there is a blend of history with a look to the future.


text:
Definition of jury box in English:
A segregated area in which the jury sits in a court of law.
- Yes, that's correct there, on the judge's right hand and on the judge's left is the jury box, and the witness box.
- Using large video screens placed at either end of the jury box, the prosecutors repeatedly showed an animated simulation of a knife slicing into a human chest.
- Beyond the cold numbers generated by historic fact, McKanna puts people in the jury box, on the witness stand, and on the bench in western courtrooms.
Definition of jury box in:
- US English dictionary
What do you find interesting about this word or phrase?
Comments that don't adhere to our Community Guidelines may be moderated or removed.


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I would swear that years back I saw a definition of the word bury and it contained a noun, not only a verb. If my memory serves me well, the noun meaning was associated with church. Today I cannot find even a trace of a noun bury — only verbs. Could anyone definitely confirm or deny such noun exists, please?
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The suffix -burg in Old English signified a habitation like a town or village and would have been pronounced -bury, which is how Cantwaraburg became Canterbury. – Robusto Nov 6 '12 at 20:46
_USER_ In Swedish, a close relative of English, a similar thing happens. The cider called Kopparberg almost sounds like 'Kopparbarry' on a Swede's tongue. I live in a city called Edinburgh, which in Scotland we call 'Edinburra'. – Iain Elder Nov 7 '12 at 2:10
_USER_ without looking up the history, I'd suspect that most English-Scandinavian language cognates are loan words retained from the several generations prior to the Norman Conquest that southern England was dominated by Norse speaking invaders and not due to shared word origins from proto-germanic languages in the much more distant past. – Dan Neely Nov 7 '12 at 13:54
4 Answers 4
up vote 10 down vote accepted
For the noun bury, wiktionary shows "A borough; a manor". The OED shows similar meanings: "A manor-house, or large farm ; a specialization of the OE burh, byrig 'an enclosed or fortified place' which still survives in many local names..."."
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I just leafed through several pages of Google Books results for a bury and the bury, but I never saw a single instance of this usage. I did find a preponderance of rabbit/ferret references though, so I've extended my answer... – FumbleFingers Nov 6 '12 at 22:07
Among other interesting answers, this one corresponds with what I've remembered. Thank you all for your insights! – Artur Nov 6 '12 at 23:04
Dictionary.com lists one noun for bury:
Nautical. housing (def. 8a, b)
So it's listed as a synonym for a nautical term: housing.
Here's the definition for housing :
(8.) Nautical.
a. Also called bury. the portion of a mast below the deck.
c. the doubling of an upper mast.
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I'm reading a book entitled At Home in France by Ann Barry, and there is a reference to a letter by the former owners of the house identifying some of the furniture and items left in the house after it sold to Ms. Barry. One item is an "Eton bury" and it is later defined as an oak cabinet with a top drawer. Perhaps because you can secretly hide things inside, hence "bury" them?
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text:
In this chapter we demonstrate a design for playing pre-recorded samples from a MIDI keyboard. This design implements some of the main features of a basic sampler keyboard: assigning samples to regions of the keyboard, specifying a base (untransposed) key location for each sample, playing samples back with the proper transposition depending on which key is played, and making polyphonic voice assignments. For the sake of simplicity, this patch does not implement control from the pitchbend wheel or mod wheel, but the method for doing so would not be much different from that demonstrated in the previous two chapters.
In this patch we use the groove~
object to play samples back at various speeds, in some cases using looped samples. As was noted in Tutorial 19
, if we want a polyphonic instrument we need as many sound-generating objects as we want separate simultaneous notes. In this tutorial patch, we use four copies of a subpatch called to supply four-voice polyphony. As in Tutorial 19
— we use a poly
object to assign a voice number to each MIDI note, and we use route
to send the note information to the correct subpatch.
poly assigns a voice number to each MIDI note, to send information to the correct subpatch
Before we examine the workings of the
subpatch, it will help to review what information is needed to play a sample correctly.
- 1. The sound samples must be read into memory (in buffer~
objects), and a list of the memory locations (buffer~
names) must be kept.
- 2. Each sample must be assigned to a region of the keyboard, and a list of the key assignments must be kept.
- 3. A list of the base key for each region -- the key at which the sample should play back untransposed -- must be kept.
- 4. A list of the loop points for each sample (and whether looping should be on or off) must be kept.
- 5. When a MIDI note message is received, and is routed to a groove~
object in that subpatch must first be told which buffer~
to read (based on the key region being played), how fast to play the sample (based on the ratio between the frequency being played and the base key frequency for that region), what loop points to use for that sample, whether looping is on or off, and what amplitude scaling factor to use based on the noteon velocity.
In this patch, the samples are all read into memory when the patch is first loaded.
- Double-click on the p
subpatch to open its Patcher window.
You can see that six samples have been loaded into buffer~
objects named,, etc. If, in a performance situation, you need to have access to more samples than you can store at once in RAM, you can use messages with filename arguments to load new samples into buffer~
objects as needed.
- Close the subpatch window. Click on the message
box marked 'keyboard sample assignments'.
This stores a set of numbered key regions in the funbuff
object. (This information could have been embedded in the funbuff
and saved with the patch, but we left it in the message
box here so that you can see the contents of the funbuff
.) MIDI key numbers 0 to 40 are key region 1, keys 41 to 47 are key region 2, etc. When a note-on message is received, the key number goes into funbuff
, and funbuff
reports the key region number for that key. The key region number is used to look up other vital information in the coll
Note-on key number finds region number in funbuff, which looks up sample info in coll
- Double-click on the coll
object to see its contents.
coll contains sample information for each key region
The key region number is used to index the information in coll
. For example, whenever a key from 48 to 52 is pressed, funbuff
sends out the number, and the information for key region 3 is recalled and sent to the appropriate subpatch. The data for each key region is: base key, buffer~
name, loop start time, loop end time, and loop on/off flag.
The voice number from poly
opens the correct outlet of gate
so that the information from coll
goes to the right subpatch.
- Close the coll
window, and double-click on one of the subpatch objects to open its Patcher window.
The samplervoice~ subpatch
You can see that the information from coll
is unpacked in the subpatch and is sent to the proper places to prepare the groove~
object for the note that is about to be played. This tells groove~
to read, what loop times to use, and whether looping should be on or off. Then, when the note information comes in the left inlet, the velocity is used to send an amplitude value to the *~
object, and the note-on key number is used (along with the base key number received from the right inlet) to calculate the proper playback speed for groove~
and to trigger groove~
to begin playback from time.
- Close the subpatch window.
You're almost ready to begin playing samples, but there is one more detail to attend to first. To save storage space, the samples used in this patch are mono AIFF files with a sample rate of 22,050 Hz. To hear them play properly you should set the sample rate of MSP to that rate.
- Double-click on the dac~
object to open the DSP Status window. Set the Sampling Rate to, then close the DSP Status window.
- Note: Resetting the sampling rate may not be possible, depending on your hardware.
The difference between the sample rate of an audio file and the sample rate being used in MSP is a potential problem when playing samples. This method of resolving the difference suffices in this situation because the audio files are all at the same sample rate and because these samples are the only sounds we will be playing in MSP. In other situations, however, you're likely to want to play samples (perhaps with different sampling rates) combined with other sounds in MSP, and you'll want to use the optimum sampling rate.
For such situations, you would be best advised to use the ratio between the audio file sample rate and the MSP sample rate as an additional factor in determining the correct playback speed for groove~
. For example, if the sample rate of the audio file is half the sample rate being used by MSP, then groove~
should play the sample half as fast.
You can use the objects info~
to find out the sampling rate of the sample and of MSP respectively, as demonstrated in the following example.
Calculate playback speed based on the sampling rates of the audio file and of MSP
The note-on key number is used first to recall the information for the sample to be played. The name of a buffer~
is sent to groove~
. Next, a is sent to dspstate~
. Upon receiving a, dspstate~
reports the sampling rate of MSP and info~
reports the sampling rate of the AIFF file stored in the buffer~
. In the lower left part of the example, you can see how this sampling rate information is used as a factor in determining the correct playback speed for groove~
- Turn audio on and set the 'Output Level' number box
to a comfortable listening level. Play a slow chromatic scale on the MIDI keyboard to hear the different samples and their arrangement on the keyboard.
To arrange a unified single instrument sound across the whole keyboard, each key region should contain a sample of a note from the same source. In this case, though, the samples are arranged on the keyboard in such a way as to make available a full 'band' consisting of drums, bass, and keyboard. This sort of multi-timbral keyboard layout is useful for simple keyboard splits (such as bass in the left hand and piano in the right hand) or, as in this case, for accessing several different sounds on a single MIDI channel with a sequencer.
- For an example of how a multi-timbral sample layout can be used by a sequencer, click on the toggle
marked 'Play Sequence'. Click on it again when you want to stop the sequence. Turn audio off. Double-click on the p
object to open the Patcher window of the subpatch.
The p sequence subpatch
object contains a pre-recorded MIDI file. The midiparse
object sends the MIDI key number and velocity to poly
in the main patch. Each time the sequence finishes playing, a is sent out the right outlet of seq
; the is used to restart the seq
immediately, to play the sequence as a continuous loop. When the sequence is stopped by the user, a is sent to midiflush
to turn off any notes currently being played.
- When you have finished with this patch, don't forget to open the DSP Status window and restore the Sampling Rate to its original setting.
To play samples from the MIDI keyboard, load each sample into a buffer~
and play the samples with groove~
. For polyphonic sample playback, you will need one groove~
object per voice of polyphony. You can route MIDI notes to different groove~
objects using voice assignments from the poly
To assign each sample to a region of the MIDI keyboard, you will need to keep a list of key regions, and for each key region you will need to keep information about which buffer~
to use, what transposition to use, what loop points to use, etc. A funbuff
object is good for storing keyboard region assignments. The various items of information about each sample can be best stored together as lists in a coll
, indexed by the key region number. When


raster image of pservers-grad-02-b
Test that the viewer can handle the xlink:href attribute on radial gradients.
There are two rectangles. The top one has a radial gradient (black to orange) that should appear elliptical to fit the aspect ratio of the rectangle. The units are specified in objectBoundingBox space. The gradient on the lower one references the gradient of the top rectangle, but modifies the units to use userSpace instead. So it is only using the stops from the gradient to the left, with a different geometry. The radial gradient appears circular.


text:
Steve Spangler's Flying Toilet Paper
Bernoulli's Principle explains how air pressure differences combine for an awesome demonstration.
It's amazing what you can do with differences in air pressure. A tasty drink flows through a straw from a glass up to your mouth. A vacuum pulls dirt from the floor and drops it into a bag. A kite floats on a gentle breeze. A 900,000 pound (410,000 kg) airplane lifts into the air like a bird. Toilet paper flies off the roll and… wait! Toilet paper?! Do it right and you'll see air pressure differences empty a roll of toilet paper in seconds!
"The Ellen DeGeneres Show," A Very Good Production, E W Scripps Company
Ping-Pong® is a registered trademark of Parker Brothers. All Rights Reserved.
- Handheld hair dryer
- Ping-Pong® ball
- Empty toilet paper tube
- Full roll(s) of toilet paper
- Leaf blower
- Balloon (penny inside it)
- Beach ball
- Stick (broom handle, or piece of PVC pipe work great)
- Safety glasses
- Adult supervision
NOTE: The video is a segment from The "Ellen DeGeneres Show" featuring an appearance by Steve Spangler. The portion that applies directly to this activity starts at 1:42. But heck, just watch it all… it's really fun!
Before you go after launching toilet paper, however, do these activities first so you know the science behind the fun and how to handle the setup.
Hold or support the dryer so it's stable and doesn't wobble with the airstream pointed directly up. If you have the option, use the "cool" setting on the blow dryer.
Place the Ping-Pong ball into the stream of air and let go. Watch the ball until it's very steady in the moving air. It won't take long.
With the ball pretty much in one place, slowly tilt the hair dryer left and right and watch the ball move with it. How close to horizontal can you get?
Make sure the ball slips easily through the toilet paper tube.
Turn on the hair dryer, place the ball in the stream, and hold the empty toilet paper tube in the moving air well above the ball. Slowly lower the tube toward the ball in the air. At a certain point, the ball is pushed into the tube and zips upward through the tube. It leaves the airstream and falls to the ground.
Slip a penny into a balloon, inflate the balloon, and tie it off.
Turn the hair dryer on high again. If you have them, place two Ping-Pong balls into the moving air and watch them dance.
Replace a ball with the inflated, weighted balloon in the air flow. What happens if you move the hairdryer slowly? quickly?
Grab the full roll of toilet paper. Hold the roll so the paper goes over the top of the roll and falls on the side away from you. Unroll a few sections and blow straight across the top of the roll. Surprisingly, the dangling paper lifts upward as you blow. Now, use the hairdryer to blow over the top of the roll. The lifting paper is the reason airplanes fly.
For this Step, the hair dryer probably doesn't have enough oomph. You need a really big "dryer": try a leaf blower.
Grab the stick and slide the full roll of toilet paper over it so the paper unrolls away from you. Turn the blower on high and let the air move over the top of the roll of toilet paper. The roll will be empty in a few seconds! Be sure to clean up the fun when you're finished.
How Does It Work
The floating ball is a wonderful example of Bernoulli's Principle. Bernoulli, an 18th-century Swiss researcher, discovered something quite unusual about moving air. He found that the faster air flows over a surface, the less it pushes on that surface which means it has a lower pressure. The moving air from the hair dryer flows around the outside of the ball. That makes a lot of moving, low pressure air around the ball. Directly above the ball, however, the air is not moving very much so it has a higher pressure. It tends to hold the ball in place. Gravity pulls the ball downward as well while the blowing air from below the ball forces it upward. This means that all the forces acting on the ball are balanced and the ball hovers in midair above the hair dryer.
As you tilt the hair dryer you make the ball follow the stream of air. Bernoulli's principle says that the fast moving air around the sides of the ball is at a lower pressure than the surrounding stationary air. If the ball tries to leave the stream of moving air, the stationary, higher pressure air holds it in. The ball floats in the air as long as you move it slowly.
When you place the empty toilet paper tube into the airstream, the air is pushed into a smaller area inside the tube where it moves even faster (the Venturi Effect). The pressure inside the tube becomes even lower than that of the air surrounding the ball and it gets pushed up and out of the tube.
The penny in the balloon adds mass to the balloon. It's possible you may not need it but odds are that an empty balloon will simply blow away in the airstream.
When you blow across the top of a roll of toilet paper, you lower the air pressure at that point. However, there's higher pressure under the flapping paper. That's why the paper lifts up. The same is true for the leaf blower but on a much more powerful scale. The air pressure drops for a much farther distance out above the paper and the higher pressure stays in place father out, too. That's why the paper from a leaf blower launch curves upward for most of the distance it covers.
Take It Further
The addition of a leaf blower is definitely taking it further. If you can manage this option, you'll have a lot of fun. Using a leaf blower in place of a hair dryer, you can float larger objects like beach balls and maybe volleyballs.
Real World Application
Airplanes fly because of Bernoulli's Principle. Air rushing over the top of a curved airplane wing exerts less pressure than air moving against the flat, underside of the wing. So, the relatively higher air pressure beneath the wings provides the upward force, or lift, that enables airplanes, birds, kites, and sail planes to fly.


6 Tips for Shooting VR180 3D Video
1st May 2019
There are now a few affordable VR180 cameras available to consumers right now including the Insta360 EVO and Vuze XR. These cameras allow you to create 3D 180 videos that are perfect for viewing on a VR headset. The 3D effect can be really immersive by adding depth to the subject of your video. In order to create the best 3D video possible you'll need to keep a few things in mind; follow this guide to ensure your 3D video looks as good as it can.
Tips for Shooting VR180 / 3D Videos
Shooting with a dual lens 180 camera is not the same as shooting with your phone or DSLR and you need to keep the following points in mind to avoid causing VR sickness for the viewer.
1. Keep the Lenses Level
In order to ensure the 3D effect works you need to make sure both lenses are level at all times. Thankfully you won't need to worry about this too much if you are using one of the all-in-one 180 camera where the lenses are fixed in place, but even with these you need to make sure that the camera is perfectly horizontal
2. Choose Your Subject Carefully
Consider when shooting a 3D video if it's worth shooting in 3D. This type of video is most effective when there is a moving subject in front of the camera with a clear background behind it. This makes the subject stand out in 3D. One of the best uses I've found for shooting a 180 3D video is standing behind the camera with my arms out holding an object. The object and my arms appear 3D while the rest of the scene is flat.
3. Keep Your Distance
Keep the subject at least 60cm away from the lenses or the 3D effect will look distorted. If there is any object too close to the lenses they will appear as a double image when viewed back on a VR headset which can be very disorientating and uncomfortable. Also consider whether the viewer would be comfortable with what you are filming being so close to them in the VR space, for example if filming a person make sure they are far enough away so that the viewer doesn't feel like their personal space is being invaded (sounds silly but in the VR space it can feel weird to have people so close).
4. Keep Still
Ideally you shouldn't be moving your 180 camera as movement increases the risk of making the viewer feel uncomfortable. Ideally the subject of the video should be moving while the camera is still. Even though many VR 180 Cameras come with stabilization they are not meant to be used like an action camera. Some small movement done carefully may be acceptable, but will likely reduce the quality of the 3D effect.
5. Consider The Position of Your Camera
When shooting VR 180 video you should treat the two lenses as if they were the viewers eyes. For the most realistic experience you want to consider where your viewers eyes will be when they watch the video. Usually the viewer will be seated so most of the time placing the camera at the approximate height of a seated person will allow for the best experience.
If you need to place your camera higher then you can always instruct the viewer that the video is best viewed while standing before it begins.
6. Keep the Subject Centred
The strength of the 3D effect is highest at the centre of the image and decreases the closer the edges you go. If you have a specific object you want to show in 3D then make sure if remains directly in front of the lenses for as long as possible.
This may seem like a lot to keep in mind but with practise it will become second nature. As the number of VR headset users grow so will the demand for content, so better to get practising now.
See Also: Every VR 180 Camera Compared
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 360 Camera Reviews and Guides


Toxicodryas blandigii
Image Credit : Crystal Palace Reptiles
Blanding's tree snake or Blanding's cat snake, is a species of rear-fanged venomous snake of the family Colubridae. Typical of Toxicodryas is the big oval head with big eyes.
The basic color in the young is light brown to rusty red with darker red to brown large oval spots. In the females eventually the color changes to light gray-brown with darker brown saddle patches, so that they are well camouflaged in the branches. The males turn black.
 - Scientific name : Toxicodryas blandingii
 - Distribution : Sub-Saharan Africa
 - Average Size : 1.8 m (5.9 ft)
 - Life Span : 15 years or more
 - Difficulty : Intermediate
A terrarium with a minimum size of 0.9 x 0.6 x 0.9 meters (3 x 2 x 3 feet) for each individual is recommended but ideally you should house your individual snakes in an enclosure of 1.2 x 0.6 x 0.9 meters (4 x 2 x 3 feet). Keeping Toxicodryas blandingii in pairs always has the risk for cannibalism so it's recommended to keep them only in pairs in case you will breed them during breeding season only, although I am personally keeping them in pairs throughout the year in large enclosures without any issues. They like climbing so some steady branches should be mounted in the enclosure along with either real or fake foliage to give a more naturalistic approach in your enclosure.
Hide box
They usually don't really hide but at least give them the possibility to do it. With a hollow piece of wood or something like that on both ends of the enclosure in order for your Toxicodryas blandingii to thermoregulate and feel safe while doing it.
As bedding, reptibark or other natural looking bedding can be used. I never tried a bio-active system but that would be an option too. You should always provide a substrate of 0.05-0.1 meters (0.15-0.3 feet) depth.
Lighting – Heating
It's a recommended to add in the enclosure full spectrum fluorescent tubes on timers that work on a 12 hours on and off cycle.
It depends on the size of the cage but never put the heat source in the middle, because that means both left and right will be the same temperature. Put the light bulb on the left or the right in order to create a thermoregulating environment. Depending on the height of the cage a 70W heat bulb should be enough. Just one hot spot will be enough to provide the required heat of 35 °C (95 °F). The ambient temperature of the enclosure should be 24-26 °C (75-79 °F). During winter the nights get automatically colder. I don't let it drop under 17-18 °C (63-65 °F).
It is important to give them the availability to drink fresh water, so a water bowl is necessary. You can also give them water via a spray system or a normal plant sprayer.
You should always monitor your humidity. 60-70% humidity would work just fine with Toxicodryas blandingii.
Of course what you feed is depending on their size. Newborn animals have no problem to eat pinkies directly and adults will take rats, mice and chicks once a week. For adult animals I recommend to feed them once every 10 or 14 days depending on the size of food you give them.
Usually this species is quite defensive and not really easy to handle so try to keep handling to minimum (health checks and cage cleaning). They widely open their mouth and then can strike very far. Also don't underestimate their venom, it is known to be quite potent.
You should spot clean any feces as soon as you see any in the enclosure. The bedding can be changed once or twice a year depending how dirty it is and also depending on your animal size. But with two adults together it will soon be quite dirty so make sure to keep it clean.
Their shedding is normal like all other snakes. Newborn baby's will shed after 10 days or so. It's always recommended to raise the humidity level during shedding periods. A good measure to know that your humidity is on the correct level is when your snake has a complete, perfect shed.
Potential Health Problems
No specific potential health problems to mention for this species beyond those affecting reptiles and/or snakes in general. They seem to be a relatively hardy animal when kept properly.


text: To accurately calculate light fluence rate distribution in prostate photodynamic therapy (PDT), optical heterogeneity has to be taken into account. Previous study has shown that a kernel based on analytic solution of the diffusion equation can perform the calculation with accuracy comparable to Finite-element method. An assumption is made that light fluence rate detected at a point in the medium is affected primarily by the optical properties of points (or elements) on the line between the source and the point. The exponential decay term of the light fluence rate is expressed as an integral of effective attenuation coefficient of each point along the line. The kernel method is first developed for a point source and then extended for a linear source. A linear source is considered being composed of multiple point sources and light fluence rate is summation of the fluence rates generated by the point sources. In this study, we have implemented a fast ray-trace algorithm to substantially speed up the calculation. The kernel calculation is compared with FEM calculation and is examined with light fluence rate measurements. The examination with clinical measurement data shows that calculated fluence rates present similar features in distribution as the measurement, with errors of 30%-70% for the peak fluence rates. We concluded that our heterogeneous algorithm is potentially valuable for light fluence rate optimization during interstitial PDT.


Tokyo - Activities | Fill the gap answer
Last modified:
Activities with "Fill the gap answers" allow students to complete texts filling blank fields.
This type of activity is divided in three areas:
B. Answer area. This field is used to write a text including gaps for words that students must insert to complete them.
C. Feedback. It is possible to configure some positive feedback and negative feedback related to questions. Apart from text, feedback can also include an image.
Setup process
 - Step 1. Set up activity properties
 - Step 2. Set up the wording
 - Step 3. Set up the answer area
 - Step 4. Advanced layout design: how to add columns
 - Step 5. Configure feedback
Step 1. Set up activity properties
Activity title.
The following formula is used to calculate scores for Fill the gap activities: number of correct options / total number of options.
For example, if an activity has 5 options or gaps and students choose 3 correct options: 3/5= 0,6 = 60%.
Distinguish upper case/lower case
This property allows us to determine if students should distinguish between upper case and lower case when writing. The options are:
 - No: With this option, it does not matter whether students use upper case or lower case. So, they can write "house", "HOUSE", hOUSE", "House", etc. For example, for proper names these types of spellings are accepted: "New York", "new york", "new York", "NEW YORK"... This makes completing activities easier for students, as they do not need to pay attention to spelling rules.
 - Yes: With this option, students must write words with an exact spelling (the same spelling used when editing). For example, if we want students to write "New York", they should spell it that way; no variations will be admitted ("new york", "new York", etc). This option is useful when spelling accuracy is important for student assessment.
Distinguish accents
This property allows choosing if it is required to write word(s) using correct accent marks.
 - No: With this option, presence or absence of accent marks will not be penalised. So, the word "canción" (which means "song" in Spanish) will also be admitted without its accent mark "cancion".
 - Yes: With this option, students must write words exactly as described in wordings. So, the word "canción" will only be admitted if written with accent mark.
Ignore special characters
This field allows us to indicate the special characters that are not considered when marking an answer as valid. So, we could ignore full stops, commas and similar characters.
If students wrote "I want this, but can't have it.", we could consider that there is no need to include a full stop or a comma. So, the option "I want this but can't have it" would be admitted.
Step 2. Set up the wording
1. Write a text for the wording of the question (see here setup options available for texts).
2. Optionally, you can add more components within the wording. Make sure you select the wording (you will easily find it with the breadcrumb trail) before going to the "Add" tab and include the components you need.
Step 3. Set up the answer area
3. There is a text field below the wording. You should write the phrase or content that we want to include. Then, put the cursor over the text area where you want to add a gap. Go to the text editor, click on the "Components" menu and add an "Option". A gap is automatically added inside the text.
4. We can configure options clicking on each gap and going to the "Properties" tab to adjust the following fields:
We should use this property to indicate the right word that students must use to fill the gap. It is important to say that students must write exactly what is written inside this field; otherwise, their answer will not be marked as correct. However, this rule will not be applied if we have decided the lack of accent marks is not penalised.
If we want to offer more than one correct option, we should write options separated by two characters || (key combination for this is Ctrl+Alt+1). For example:
By default, all blank spaces appear with a "Normal" view, that is, each gap has the same size of the word replaced by it. If we want to edit this size, we select the "Editable width" view.
So, if we leave gaps as they are shown by default ("Normal" view), we will be giving hints about the size of word(s) that students need to use. However, we could avoid this using the "Editable width" view to leave the same blank space for every gap.
Size (number of letters)
This property is enabled if we choose the "Editable width" "View". We will adjust the gap size. This is measured according to the number of letters. So, for the word "team", its minimum width would be 4.
Step 4. Advanced layout design: how to add columns
Normally wordings and texts are enough to configure activities correctly, but sometimes we want to add especial elements (images, audios, etc.) and create more complex layout designs. We can add "Columns" to create these layouts.Columns can be inserted anywhere: after wordings, after answer options, etc.
Within a column, we can add different elements: images audios, videos, texts, etc. From the "Properties" tab, we can configure properties like "Size", "Offset" and "It's the last column".
It's the last column
Use of columns allows creating complex layouts. For example, we could add various audios and texts to complete. The example below shows two columns. Each column occupies 5 spaces and includes an audio file and a text where students need to fill the blanks. Furthermore, offset for the second column is "1", which allows leaving some space between both columns.
Step 5. Configure feedback
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Converting a afghan pattern
Tallguy's picture
Sometimes you can't simply
Sometimes you can't simply double all the numbers in a pattern for it doesn't work that way. The border stitches are separate, and you can do any border you like. That is up to you, but choose a "balanced" pattern -- that is, with an equal number of knits and purls so that your edges don't curl.
Your pattern repeat is 16. You can make anything with just the one repeat, but it looks nicer when you have several repeats of a design. You can make 10 repeats, 20, and upwards, or any number you like. It usually looks best to have an odd number (for balancing the design, but not always). Once you have determined your gauge, you will be able to calculate the size of your project.
After you have the repeats, you need to add that one stitch. That one is used to finish off the repeat at the very end. I can tell that with the addition of that one stitch, your total will always be an odd number. 274 won't work out evenly.
So add up the body number of stitches, plus the border stitches (two sides) and you have your total to cast on. It's just that easy! :-)
ronhuber's picture
16 x 16 = 256 + 1 = 257 + 16
16 x 16 = 256 + 1 = 257 + 16 (border stitches) = 273
Joe-in Wyoming's picture
Okay...math isn't my strong
Okay...math isn't my strong point but here goes:
Take the 274 and subtract the seed stitch border of 8 stitches. Then check to see if the 266 sts is divisible by 16 with 1 left over. If so, then you should be okay. If not, you may have to adjust your cast on numbers to have everything balance out. Lots of luck and I hope I steered you in the right direction.
Thanks, guys.
Thanks, guys.


text:
Context: An optimal therapeutic strategy has not yet been identified for the pharmacological treatment of intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP). The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) and S-adenosylmethionine (SAMe) in the treatment of ICP, both individually and in combination.
Evidence acquisition: A meta-analysis of all randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing UDCA, SAMe, and combination therapy was performed. We carried out a literature search using pubmed, embase, the cochrane register of controlled trials, and the science citation index of web of science. The maternal clinical and biochemical responses, including pruritus scores, total bilirubin, total bile acids, alanine aminotransferase, and aspartate transaminase, were evaluated. Safety assessments, including preterm delivery, cesarean section, and meconium-stained amniotic fluid, were also analyzed.
Results: Five RCTs including 311 patients were evaluated. In comparison to SAMe, UDCA significantly reduced the pruritus score (OR = -0.45, 95% confidence interval [CI]: -0.66 to -0.25, P < 0.0001) and improved the levels of total bile acids (TBAs; OR = -0.59, 95% CI: -0.99 to -0.30, P < 0.0001) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT; OR = -0.38, 95% CI: -0.66 to -0.09, P = 0.01). UDCA was associated with significantly lower preterm delivery rates than SAMe (RR = 0.48, 95% CI: 0.32-0.72, P = 0.0004). Interestingly, combination therapy significantly reduced total bilirubin (TB; vs. SAMe, OR = -0.41, 95% CI, -0.74 to -0.08, P = 0.02), aspartate transaminase (AST; vs. UDCA, OR = -0.40, 95% CI, -0.74 to -0.06, P = 0.02), and the rate of preterm delivery (vs. SAMe, OR = 0.62, 95% CI, 0.42 - 0.91, P = 0.02), in comparison with either drug administered alone.
Conclusions: UDCA decreased the pruritus score, TBA, and ALT levels more effectively than SAMe, reducing the rate of preterm delivery for ICP.
Keywords: Intrahepatic Cholestasis of Pregnancy; S-Adenosylmethionine; Ursodeoxycholic Acid.