text:
Very efficient algorithms exist to draw cubic Bezier curves. In fact, these algorithms are so efficient that other types of curves are often converted to Bezier curves. For example, it is possible to approximate a 90 degree circular arc with a Bezier curve.
Recall that a cubic Bezier curve has four control points. Derive the coordinates of the four control points of a Bezier curve that approximates this circular arc. This approximation should touch and be tangent to the arc at both endpoints as well as the midpoint. Hint: Find control points such that the midpoint of the Bezier curve (t=1/2) lies on the midpoint of the circular arc.
Let P0, P1, P2 and P3 be the four control points of the Bezier curve.
P0 and P3 must be coincident with the endpoints. Thus, P0 = (0,1) and P3 = (1,0).
P1 and P2 must be chosen so that the curve is tangent to the arc. The tangent to the arc at (0,1) is (1,0); thus, P1 must have the same y coordinate as P0. Similarly, the tangent at (1,0) is (0,1), and thus P2 must have the same x coordinate as P3. Since the arc is symmetric, the best approximating Bezier curve should also be symmetric. Thus, P1 = (a,1) and P2 = (1,a).
The final unknown a can be found by requiring the midpoint of the Bezier curve to like at the midpoint of the arc, (sqrt(2)/2,sqrt(2)/2). Using the midpoint subdivision rule, we arrive at the following:
P0 P1 P2 P3 (0,1) (a,1) (1,a) (1,0) 1/2(a,2) 1/2(1+a,1+a) 1/2(2,a) 1/4(1+2a,3+a) 1/4(3+a,1+2a) 1/8(4+3a,4+3a)
Seting 1/4(4+3a)=sqrt(2)/2 and solving for a we get a = 4(sqrt(2)-1)/3 =.552.
+6 points for getting the endpoints right.
+6 points for getting the tangent contraints right.
+4 points for noticing the symmetric and reducing the problem to a single unknown.
+4 points for knowing the correct subdivision rules, for being able to evaulate the Bezier curve at the midpoint.
Certain errors resulted in the following deductions:
-2 for formulating the problem correctly but making a math error in the final answer.
There were lots of answers that we almost right. Most of these received 14 points. They were wrong in that they did not satisfy the constraints that the curve should go through the endpoints and touch the midpoint.
One common solution was to compute the intersection of a 45 degree downward sloping line with the y=1 and x=1 lines and setting P1 and P2 to the points of intersections.
Several bisected the 45 degree angle and computed the intersection of a line through the origin at 22.5 with the x=1 and y=1 lines, and used those intersection points as the control points.
Another common error was to use a quadratic Bezier curve; or to use subdivision rules that reduced to the quadratic case.
Another approach was to reduce the problem to Hermite interpolation by setting the endpoint and tangent conditions. This can be made to work, but you must find a way to constrain the curve to go through the midpoint.
A clever approach was to try to set the tangent of the Bezier curve at the midpoint to have a slope of -1 and try to find separate Bezier curves for top and bottom part of the arc.


text:
The Common World of Tea
|There are many distinctive ways that cultures connect to other cultures, through different languages and various traditions. There are also other ways in which cultures share similarities.|
One of those is the teapot. For each culture represented in this work of art, the teapot has a different shape. In the different countries, there are unusual styles and diverse arrangements of the parts of a teapot. The simple display of a spout, handle, body, and top are altered to make them either complex or simple yet noticeably unique.
The teapots sit together on a shelf to represent the unity among the countries. The teapot is a form of art that has united companies in computer graphics, and in this piece, it unites nations.
This digital image was created with Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop.
idonnosomething (at) aol.com

source: HuggingFaceFW/fineweb-edu


text:
Changing Combinations - The Passback
The challenge lies in the potential for teams to quickly convert a losing combination to a winning one by a simple Passback, slowing an opponent so that a teammate moves ahead. Slowing techniques may be accomplished by luffing or Ragging on an opponent or Pinning her beyond the layline and forcing her to sail a longer distance, helping a team mate to move ahead. Simply described, a passback is a technique used by a competitor to cause an opponent to lose one or more positions and effectively bring a teammate ahead one or more positions.
An upwind passback or is performed by a competitor to weather of an opponent luffing her jib on the leeward opponent so that they both slow down. Meanwhile, a teammate to leeward of both boats goes fast and moves ahead of the opponent to weather. The passback becomes more challenging when the opponent in the middle effectively luffs and slows the third boat to leeward. With all this luffing going on, two team mates are going slowly while only one of the other team is going slowly. This means that the two other opponents may be going fast elsewhere on the race course. Obviously, a passback quickly accomplished is desirable for the team dedicating two boats. This is demonstrated in Figure 1.
At times, with the three boat set up described above, it is more advantageous to execute a Speed Passback. This would be the case when the opponent in the middle has a poor position on your teammate to leeward. With a speed passback, just the bad air from the weather teammate would be enough to slow the opponent in the middle, pass her back, and bring the leeward teammate ahead. A speed passback does not require luffing and would be best utilized when speed is vital and the weather teammate does not want to lose her position in the race by luffing and slowing.
Another form of passback is accomplished when a teammate forces an opponent beyond a layline, making both of them travel a further distance while a teammate who was behind goes the shorter distance and passes a mark ahead of both. A mark passing passback is demonstrated in Figure 11 and Figure 14.


text:
Colleen Jackson is currently a post-doctoral fellow investigating electrocatalysts for hydrogen electrochemical compression, namely for the hydrogen oxidation and hydrogen evolution reactions.
Colleen obtained her PhD as part of a Newton Advanced Fellowship partnership between the University of Cape Town (RSA) and the University of Southampton (UK). She also holds a BSc and MSc in Chemical Engineering from the University of Cape Town.
Her PhD thesis explored the use of silicon carbide and boron carbide as alternative electrocatalyst support materials for platinum nanoparticles, with the aim to develop more active and durable catalysts for PEM fuel cells through the oxygen reduction reaction. The use of advanced catalyst characterisation methods based on high energy X-rays (X-ray absorption spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy) allowed for a better understanding of catalytic performance testing, theoretical modelling and fundamental kinetic studies.

source: openbmb/Ultra-FineWeb


text:
SACRAMENTO - Approximately 2,400 California farmers and ranchers will be part of a national sample of producers who will be contacted for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's December Agricultural Survey.
The survey will be conducted during the first half of December by USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service. The information collected will be used to make state estimates of field crop production, grain and hay stocks, small grain seedings and livestock, which will then be combined into regional and National estimates.
"This survey is important in making accurate crop and livestock estimates, which provide a basis for an orderly marketing system," said Vic Tolomeo, Director of the California Agricultural Statistics Service (CASS). "An orderly marketing system is essential to all involved in agriculture. Farmers selected for the survey will soon be notified by letter and contacted by a CASS representative."
In addition to general release to the public and press, the survey findings will go to government policy makers and farm organizations, which use the survey results to help develop farm policy positions. Other users include universities, extension agents, farm management consultants, agricultural lenders, and businesses that provide input to farmers.
Facts about an individual's farm or ranch are strictly confidential and used only in combination with reports from other producers to set California and U.S. estimates. Once results of the survey are compiled and analyzed, the information will be released in a series of reports. A copy of the results may be requested at the time of the interview.
California Department of Food and Agriculture Office of Public Affairs
1220 N St., Ste. 214, Sacramento, CA 95814

source: m-a-p/FineFineWeb


text:
- Senior-level experience 7-10 years as a Doors and Mechanical Systems Engineer
- Perform tasks related to the development and support of Doors and Mechanical Systems for the Dash 8
- Participate in or lead conceptual definition, launch preparation, preliminary definition, detail definition, release, product certification and entry into service within the Engineering System (BES).
- Prepare or review technical requirements documents, system/ground/flight test procedures and reports, certification reports.
- Integrate the development activity of mechanical systems with internal and external groups as well as participating in meetings and reviews with certification authorities.
- Support of flight testing including witnessing of tests may be required.
- Support production, procurement and airline customers as necessary
- Familiar-with, and understand, pertinent TC, FAA and EASA rules and requirements
- Proficiency in the use of Microsoft Office software tools to produce presentations and reports utilizing your strong analytical and communication skills.


DNI Advice
The Spanish NIE has provided quite a lot of unpleasant last minute surprises, since is compulsory to show it on any important act made in Spain.
You will find here the most frequently asked questions, so you save yourself a few problems:
What is a NIE?
An NIE Number is a tax identification number to be used in Spain. Prior to purchasing a property, selling a property, obtaining a mortgage, starting up a business or working in Spain, it is a requirement by law that every individual possess an NIE Number. The application process is laborious and time consuming, and without the use of a service such as ours, would require normally two trips to Spain, and over 10 hours of waiting in queues, along with the filling out of complex application forms.
The actual NIE Number, when produced from a National Police Station in Spain is printed out on a piece of paper, and this sheet of paper is often used as a form of identity. Once you have been issued an NIE number, it is yours for life.
Everywhere on the internet it says that you have to apply in person for your NIE Number? Is this true?
Yes, this is certainly the case. Without question the Spanish law states very clearly that the person must apply for the documents in person. However, the Spanish law also clearly states that a legalised, Spanish power-of-attorney document enables any individual to be represented by another for all legal purposes in Spain (as long as it is declared as such within the power-of-attorney). Therefore through virtue of these combined laws, we are able to apply for a NIE number on your behalf without the need for you to be in Spain.
You should also note that, regardless of the clearly stated laws, many local branches of the national police throughout Spain choose not to allow this, which is why some lawyers are unable to act on your behalf for this purpose.
How long does the procedure take?
Once we have received your documents (POA and copies of passports – both legalised) the NIE number is obtained within 10 business days (which equates to normally 2 weeks, exceptions made for public and bank holidays).
Prior to sending the documents to us, they must be notarised (by a Notary Public in your area) and then stamped with the Hague Apostille.
Do I need to send photos for my NIE number card?
No you do not need to send photos to apply for the NIE number.
The NIE number is in fact not a card at all. Rather it is a sheet of A4 paper bearing your details (as outlined on your passport) as well as an official stamp from the National Police of Spain. This original document is an extremely important item of identification in Spain, even though it does not include any photo. Your passport and/or eventually your residence card used in conjunction with your NIE number is generally sufficient for most functions to do with government & taxation in Spain(such as purchasing a property in Spain, paying taxes, selling a property in Spain, etc.).
What happens if I have lost my NIE Number?
Applying for a duplicate NIE number is the same process as applying for the first time. One thing to watch out for however, albeit most of the time this goes without saying, is that the same details are put on the second application form as the first because if not, they police will have problems in issuing the same number if they cannot prove 100% that it is the same person.
I am an EU Citizen, what documentation do you need from me?
As an EU citizen, in order to obtain an NIE Number on your behalf, we will require only a notarised, legalised power of attorney document and a notarised, legalised copy of your passport. There is nothing further required.
I am an NON-EU Citizen, what documentation do you need from me?
As a non-EU citizen, in order to obtain an NIE Number on your behalf, we will require a notarised, legalised power of attorney document, a notarised, legalised copy of your full passport, a full copy of your passport (all pages – email or fax is fine for this purpose), documented evidence (or proof of) why you require an NIE Number. In the case of a property purchase, a private purchase contract, a letter from a mortgage company, or similar type of document will suffice.
I've been told I can apply for my NIE card through the Spanish consulate. Is this true? If yes, what benefits does your service offer over applying through a Spanish consulate?
Yes, this is entirely true. The primary benefit of using our service as opposed to applying through a Spanish consulate is speed. The average time required for an individual to obtain their NIE number via applying through a Spanish consulate is 16 weeks. This varies from one country to the next, we encourage people to contact their closest Spanish consulate first and enquire about their turnaround time.
Can I get a temporary NIE number at the consulate to sign the deeds of my property?
This is not possible. The NIE that you are issued initially is the same NIE for the rest of your life. Even if you lose the document and apply for a new one, the same number will be issued to you again. Therefore there is no such thing as a temporary NIE.
If you need the NIE for signing title deeds in Spain, as soon as we have submitted the application, we can send a stamped copy to the sellers, mortgage broker, lawyer or whomever is demanding the NIE as proof that the NIE is on the way. This usually pacifies the situation until the document is issued.


How to Clear the App World Cache on Your BlackBerry
See your app updates quicker on BlackBerry 10
What to Know
 - If you have a SureType or QWERTY keyboard, launch App World and type rst while holding Alt. Your applications will be refreshed.
 - For BlackBerry Storm (touchscreen) devices: Launch App World, hold the device in landscape mode, and activate the on-screen keyboard.
 - Then, press and hold the ?!123 buttons until it locks. Type the following characters in sequence: 34( to clear the cache.
This article explains how to clear the App World application's cache on your BlackBerry, which often solves update-downloading problems. Instructions apply to devices running BlackBerry OS. If you're using a newer, Android-based BlackBerry device, then you shouldn't have these issues.
How to Clear the App World Cache on a BlackBerry With a Keyboard
If your device has a SureType or a QWERTY keyboard, launch App World, then type rst while holding the alt key.
Once you perform the reset, App World will close. The next time you launch it and select My World, you will be prompted to re-enter your BlackBerry ID (which was previously cached), and your list of applications will be refreshed.
Person using a Blackberry device
Lifewire / Elise Degarmo
How to Clear the App World Cache on BlackBerry Storm Devices
The process is different for BlackBerry devices with a touchscreen:
 1. Launch App World.
 2. Hold the device in landscape mode, and then activate the on-screen keyboard.
 3. Press and hold the ?!123 buttons until it locks.
 4. Type the following characters in sequence: 34(
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TIP #229: Scripted Control of Name Resolution in Namespaces
Title:Scripted Control of Name Resolution in Namespaces
Version:$Revision: 1.10 $
Created:Wednesday, 03 November 2004
This TIP proposes extensions to the namespace command to allow scripts to control how individual namespaces map names to commands.
Tcl has, for historic reasons, attracted many different styles of object system, and a favoured mechanism for implementing objects is on top of namespaces (which were introduced in Tcl 8.0 based on work done previously in [incr Tcl]). However, a common problem that these OO systems face is the inability to make namespaces efficiently map names of entities within classes etc. into the object instances. This TIP provides a simple mechanism for doing this.
No mechanism is provided for affecting the resolving of variable names. Best practice is to ensure that variables not present in the current namespace are imported explicitly through the upvar or variable commands (depending on context) and the fact that there is any possibility of non-local variable name resolution has been behind a number of bugs in the core (e.g. Bug #981733).
Proposed Change
Namespace Path Subcommand
The namespace command will gain a new subcommand, path, with the following syntax:
namespace path?list?
This command sets and queries the current namespace's command name resolution path. If list is present, namespace path sets the path to the list of namespaces named in the list and returns the empty string; all the namespaces must exist or an error is thrown. If no list argument is provided, namespace path doesn't change anything and returns the current path.
Updates to Other Commands
The info commands command shall be updated so that, when no namespace is present in its pattern part, it shall return all (matching) commands that are visible without namespace qualifiers at this point. The info procs command will not be so modified.
Name Path Behaviour
Only names without a leading namespace separator in them are resolved using the namespace's path. When resolving command names, resolving relative to the current namespace is always preferred (unless a resolver is installed, of course), and resolution relative to the global namespace is always done after resolving relative to everything in the path (unless the global namespace is explicitly in the path, when it happens earlier). This means that the old behaviour is exactly what you get when the path is empty, and also ensures that virtually all scripts continue to work when a path is set; if it was possible to remove the global namespace from the actual path (as opposed to the settable part), virtually all scripts would break. If an extension installs a custom name resolver, that completely overrides the command name resolution path mechanism (to maximize backward-compatability; it is not anticipated that much code will try to mix the two mechanisms in a namespace).
Note that each namespace's path is isolated from the path of every other namespace, including the parent namespace. Systems using the namespace path mechanism as part of an implementation of inheritance will want to set up the path for each object namespace explicitly (this value can be statically precomputed on a per-class basis); indeed, where multiple inheritance is involved it will probably be more efficient to compute the path than let Tcl guess.
The path is parsed completely at the time the namespace path command is run, and the resulting list of namespaces is used directly. If a namespace on some namespaces' path is deleted, it is immediately excised from the path of every namespace that refers to it.
The following script returns "::foo":
namespace eval ::foo {
 proc boo {} {namespace current}
 namespace eval bar {
 namespace path ::foo
The following script return "::foo::bar":
namespace eval ::foo {
 proc boo {} {namespace current}
 namespace eval bar {
 proc boo {} {namespace current}
 namesspace eval spong {
 namespace path ::foo
A patch is available[1].
This document has been placed in the public domain.
TIP AutoGenerator - written by Donal K. Fellows


>

Comult in SSymF is by flattened deconcatenations (of permutations), and in QSymM is by deconcatenations (of compositions). If we split a permutation at a descent, the descents on either side are preserved. So we could try sending a permutation in SSymF to its descent composition in QSymM. For example, ssymF [2,3,4,1] -> qsymM [3,1], which deconcatenates to [2,3,4]⊗[1] -> [3]⊗[1].

However, a deconcatenation in SSymF might split a permutation partway through an ascending segment. For example, [2,3,4,1] -> [2,3]⊗[4,1] (which flattens to [1,2]⊗[2,1]). Taking this to descent compositions would give [2]⊗[1,1]. This is not a deconcatenation of qsymM [3,1] - it is however a deconcatenation of [2,1,1], which is a one-step refinement of [3,1].

So we could try sending a permutation in SSymF to its descent composition in QSymM, and its one-step refinements. For example, ssymF [2,3,4,1] -> qsymM [3,1] + qsymM [2,1,1] + qsymM [1,2,1].

But now that means that [2,3]⊗[4,1] (flattening omitted for clarity) -> [2]⊗[1,1] + [1,1]⊗[1,1]. The second term is a deconcatenation of [1,1,1,1], a two-step refinement of [3,1].

It's pretty obvious that the way to make it all work out is to send a permutation in SSymF to its descent composition in QSymM, and all its proper refinements.

But this sum, of a composition and all its refinements (in QSymM) is just exactly how we defined the QSymF basis.

Exercise: Explain why descentMap commutes with mult.

Exercise: Last time we looked at a descendingTreeMap : SSym -> YSym. Show that the descentMap : SSym -> QSym factors through the descendingTreeMap, and describe the other factor f : YSym -> QSym.

_URL_ (DavidA)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195188167565410449.post-227535792476055653Mon, 30 Apr 2012 20:31:00 +00002012-04-30T21:35:08.993+01:00CHAs IV: Hopf Algebra Morphisms
In the last few posts, we've been looking at combinatorial Hopf algebras, specifically:
- <a href="_URL_ a Hopf algebra with a basis of (indexed by) permutations
- <a href="_URL_ with a basis of binary trees
- <a href="_URL_ with a basis of compositions

It turns out that these three Hopf algebras are quite closely related (and indeed, there are a few others in the same "family"). Let's start with SSym and YSym.

Given a permutation p of [1..n], we can construct a binary tree called the descending tree as follows:
- Split the permutation as p = ls ++ [n] ++ rs
- Place n at the root of the tree, and recursively place the descending trees of ls and rs as the left and right children of the root
- To bottom out the recursion, the descending tree of the empty permutation is of course the empty tree

For example, the following diagram shows the descending tree of [3,5,1,4,2].

Here's the Haskell code:

descendingTree [] = E
descendingTree [x] = T E x E
descendingTree xs = T l x r
    where x = maximum xs
          (ls,_:rs) = L.break (== x) xs
          l = descendingTree ls
          r = descendingTree rs

> :m Math.Algebras.Structures Math.Combinatorics.CombinatorialHopfAlgebra
> descendingTree [3,5,1,4,2]
T (T E 3 E) 5 (T (T E 1 E) 4 (T E 2 E))

Now you'll recall that for the Hopf algebra YSym, although we sometimes carry around the node labels to help us see what is going on, we're really only interested in the shapes of the trees. So here's a function to erase the labels:

shape :: PBT a -> PBT ()
shape t = fmap (\_ -> ()) t

> shape $ T (T E 3 E) 5 (T (T E 1 E) 4 (T E 2 E))
T (T E () E) () (T (T E () E) () (T E () E))

Thus (shape . descendingTree) is a function from permutations to unlabelled trees. We can consider this as a map between the fundamental bases of SSym and YSym, which therefore induces a linear map between the corresponding Hopf algebras:

descendingTreeMap :: (Eq k, Num k) => Vect k SSymF -> Vect k (YSymF ())
descendingTreeMap = nf . fmap (\(SSymF xs) -> (YSymF . shape .  descendingTree) xs)

Now it turns out that this map is in fact a Hopf algebra morphism. What does that mean? Basically it means that descendingTreeMap plays nicely ("commutes") with the unit, mult, counit, comult, and antipode maps in the two Hopf algebras.

For example, for an algebra morphism, we require:
f (x1*x2) = f x1 * f x2
f . unit = unit

</di


text:
The intergovernmental convention aims to combat the "increasing loss and degradation of wetland habitat for migratory waterbirds," and "wise use" of wetlands for the "benefit of humankind."
But Bundala is now losing a war against invasive plant species and the very nature of its water, which made it a haven for migrating water fowl, has changed.
"You cannot just declare a site as Ramsar and go to sleep," says Sarath Kotagama, a academic from Sri Lanka's Colombo University who is president of the Field Ornithological Group of Sri Lanka, a bird conservation group.
"A unique site has certain characteristics. If you want to preserve them you have prevent successional change.
"If you do not do something, a wetland will fill up and be reduced to a narrow area where water will drain."
Kotagama says wetlands are under constant'seral' stage change. In a wetland, putrefying vegetation will settle at the bottom, create peat and eventually fill up.Bundala is in Sri Lanka's lowland dry zone, and is subject to flooding in the wet season. As the water dries up gradually, salinity increases, allowing a unique eco-system to grow around it.
Unlike forests, which also change, but much more slowly, a seasonal flooding and drying up cycle makes quick and visible changes in a wetland like Bundala.
But other forces are also at work in Bundala.
Drainage water from a large irrigation project in Lunugamvehera, which started in the 1980s, has flowed across the Bundala's Ambilikala lagoon into the sea, gradually taking the salt with it over the years.
Now in the rainy season, the already water-logged wetland gets flooded very quickly. New bird species that do not inhabit brackish water are now found in Bundala.
These include Purple coot and Moorhens. But the number of other waterfowl, including migrant ducks, terns and gulls may be falling.
"There are very little birds, more marshy-ness," says Kotagama. "Bundala was declared a Ramsar site with flamingoes. There were about 3,000 flamingoes visiting each year."
"We have made its water fresh and we have lost flamingoes," he says.
Only a handful of flamingoes are sighted or just heard in the night now.
Kotagama, a former head of Sri Lanka's wildlife agency, says when the site comes up for renewal under the Ramsar convention at the expiry of 20 years next year, the diminishing bird life will be a challenge for authorities.
Brackish water allows crustaceans that various waders consume - including flamingoes - to flourish.
"Years ago, kirri isso (a white hued shrimp) used to grow in the lagoon in the season when the lagoon opens to the sea," recalls Tissakuttiarachchige Ariyadasa, a villager who still herds buffaloes in the wetland.
"People from Malala village used to collect the shrimp and earn a good income. Now the price of a kilo of kiri isso (white shrimp) is about 500 rupees. But people can now catch only fish."
Ariyadasa cannot accurately recall when villagers last collected shrimp.
"By the time President Chandrika Kumaratunga came (in 1994) there were no shrimp," he says thoughtfully, as his buffaloes go splashing into the wetland leaving the tarred road.
"It was probably during president Premadasa's time that we last saw shrimp."
Kotagama says an attempt was made several years ago to dam the incoming fresh water and divert it for cultivation and then run off direct to the sea under a project supervised by the University of Colombo.
But the project fell through when an environmental organization went to court against the move.
Kotagama says Sri Lanka's authorities and conservationists have a heavily 'protection' oriented or 'hands off' approach, where an area is left undisturbed and without human intervention rather than active management.
Bundala was a'sanctuary' when it was originally declared a Ramsar site. At the time Kotagama headed Sri Lanka's wildlife agency.
It is now a 'national park' and under tight protection. Parts of the original sanctuary which included inhabited areas, were dropped when the Ramsar designated area of the wetland was made into a national park, subject to stricter 'do not touch' laws.
But authorities have so far not tried to prevent villages like Ariyadasa herding buffaloes in the park.
The nation park is half of the original Ramsar declared area of the sanctuary.
"Conservation does not mean no human activity," says Kotagama. "Many Ramsar wetlands are teeming with human activity."
These include Lake Geneva in Switzerland which has ship traffic, and a salt pan in the middle of Tokyo which attracts an estimated 200,000 thousand birds.
Bundala village dates back to the time of Sri Lanka's ancient kings and the wetlands have survived with villagers' interaction until the ambitious irrigation works started up under then Sri Lanka president J R Jayewardene.
A key thrust of the programs at the time was to grow rice, a water intensive crop that grows under full inundation, which has irrigation run-off saturated in fertilizer and is close to the heart of Sri Lanka's politicians.
Other threats to the wetland are also literally growing each day.
All over Bundala national park as well as the Hambantota district in general, a species of mesquite (Prosepis juliflora), a native from the American continent is thriving and taking over arid land.
"Mesquite takes salinity from the soil," says Kotagama. "It was an introduced plant."
A species of cactus, Opuntia dillenii is taking over the rest of the terrestrial area of the park.
An attempt to destroy invasive plants in a section of Bundala's terrestrial area, with has not worked, with the plants coming back again as there has been no follow up work, says Kotagama. But physically destroying the plants is an expensive business.
There have no concerted efforts to commercialize the use of mequite which has found to be useful as a source of fuelwood and charcoal in other countries, including India.
"For years we had a protection regime," says Kotagama. "Now we have to re-think."
Unless active management comes, with invasive species on one side and fresh water contamination on the other, the Bundala national park, and its birds as well as its status as a Ramsar site, is facing an uncertain future.


text:
Since 2001, thousands of military children have had parents killed in combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Many other children have had siblings, cousins, and other relatives die in war. Like other grieving children, military children who experience the death of someone special under traumatic circumstances can develop traumatic grief, which can interfere with their ability to grieve and to call up comforting memories of the person who died. Traumatic grief may also interfere with everyday activities such as being with friends and doing schoolwork. There are, however, unique aspects of military family loss that those who care for or work with grieving military children should be aware of. To find out more about military children and families click here.
Traumatic Grief in Military Children Information Series
This series provides culturally competent materials for educating families, medical professionals, and school personnel about how to better serve military children who are experiencing traumatic grief.
Traumatic Grief in Military Children: Information for Educators (2008) (PDF)
Traumatic Grief in Military Children: Information for Families (2008) (PDF)
Traumatic Grief in Military Children: Information for Medical Providers (2008) (PDF)
Mental Health America, Helping Children Cope With Loss Resulting from War or Terrorism
Overview of how to assist children who are coping with loss as a result of war or terrorist acts. Includes toll free number for accessing additional resources _PHONE_).
Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS)
800-959-TAPS (8277) (24-hour hotline)
Comprehensive resource for all who are grieving the death of a loved one serving our country.


text:
On the Trade-Off Between Environmental and Economic Objectives in Community Energy Storage Operational Optimization
The need to limit climate change has led to policies that aim for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Often, a trade-off exists between reducing emissions and associated costs. In this article, a multi-objective optimization framework is proposed to determine this trade-off when operating a Community Energy Storage (CES) system in a neighborhood with high shares of photovoltaic (PV) electricity generation capacity.
Read More >


text:
Dr. Theresa Mundita Lim, executive director of the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (ACB), said enterprises should start mainstreaming biodiversity into their operations rather than just making it a part of their corporate social responsibility.
Mainstreaming biodiversity is the process of embedding biodiversity considerations into the policies, strategies and practices of businesses so that biodiversity is conserved and sustainably used, explained Lim, who spoke at a recent environment forum organized by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
She said practicing environmental conservation and biodiversity mainstreaming makes good business sense because "nature provides business with the fundamental components for long-term profit and survival."
Lim said many industries are directly reliant on biological diversity for sustenance. The global multibillion-dollar tourism industry, including ecotourism, is among them, and in the Philippines the development of this sector is assured only if biodiversity is sustained and preserved.
Lim noted how the Philippines is part of the Coral Triangle, often referred to as the Amazon of the Ocean, which contains 75% of the world's reef-building corals.
She added that a large percentage of all species in the world can only be found in the Philippines. For instance, 45% of birds are found only in the country, 59% of mammals, 60% of flora, 77% of reptiles, and 81% of amphibians.
But other sectors are also connected to biodiversity because nature provides the "ecosystem services" they need. These include provisioning services, such as how forests provide bignay, a wild fruit used to make wine; raw materials for clothing like the bakong fibers; and water. As an example, Lim said wild fruits abound in the Philippines and "it would be good to see how these could be sustainably utilized so that you preserve the forest and at the same time you earn livelihood from it."
Other services provided by the ecosystem include regulating services, such as the way mangroves and wetlands regulate the rise and fall of the sea level and forests regulate temperature, helping mitigate climate change that can be disastrous for industries. The ecosystem also provides support services such as through bats and bees that act as pollinators to propagate the seeds of fruits and the pollen from flowers and trees. Lim mentioned durian as an example of local fruits that rely on the help of these pollinators.
"Biodiversity is good for business," Lim reiterated. By integrating biodiversity considerations into company policy, operations, and management systems, a company can limit project delays and enhance relationships with stakeholders, and improve its reputation as a responsible operator. More importantly, it can become the company of choice for governments, investors, and business partners while enjoying continued access to key business resources.
Lim thus urges businesses to analyze the impact of their decisions and operations on the biodiversity and ecosystem functions and services, and to prepare action plans for integrating biodiversity into their operations.
The goal should be to maximize the benefits to biodiversity of their business and vice versa, while minimizing the impacts on biodiversity of their business, concluded Lim.
The ACB, established in 2005, is an ASEAN intergovernmental organization that responds to the challenge of biodiversity loss by facilitating cooperation and coordination among ASEAN member states and their partners on the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity.


text:
- addle (v.)
- 1712, from addle (n.) "urine, liquid filth," from Old English adela "mud, mire, liquid manure" (cognate with Old Swedish adel "urine," Middle Low German adel, Dutch aal "puddle").
Used in noun phrase addle egg (mid-13c.) "egg that does not hatch, rotten egg," literally "urine egg," a loan-translation of Latin ovum urinum, which is itself an erroneous loan-translation of Greek ourion oon "putrid egg," literally "wind egg," from ourios "of the wind" (confused by Roman writers with ourios "of urine," from ouron "urine"). Because of this usage, from c.1600 the noun in English was taken as an adjective meaning "putrid," and thence given a figurative extension to "empty, vain, idle," also "confused, muddled, unsound" (1706). The verb followed a like course. Related: Addled; addling.


Why it is required to have self signed Root CA for HTTPS Decryption?
I have a wildcard certificate *.example.com from well known certification authority. Why cannot I use it to perform HTTPS decryption?
The certificate you have is only valid for *.example.com domain. It is indeed wildcard but the wildcard applies only to subdomains of example.com. When HTTPS decryption is enabled the sites being decrypted-and-then-encrypted again are completely different, for example _URL_. So this certificate cannot be used.
Thus if HTTPS decryption is used your clients must trust the Root CA of your proxy. You establish the trust by adding the Root CA certificate of the proxy to the list of trusted root certificates. This can be done in various ways:
 1. Manually as explained in the article Install Trusted Certificates .
 2. Using GPO or subordinate CA if you have Active Directory, see Using Subordinate CA for HTTPS Decryption in Active Directory Integrated Squid
 3. Using some BYOD management solution.
The UI itself checks the Root CA you try to upload is in PEM format and that it is self signed.


text:
In this work, the reaction between phenylboronic acid and the diol-containing, fluorescent dye Alizarin Red S (ARS) was probed. Fluorescence titrations, 11B NMR measurements, and both pre- and steady-state kinetic experiments were used for the characterization of this reaction over a large pH range (4-10.5). It was shown that ARS preferentially reacted with the boronic (neutral, trigonal) form of phenylboronic acid; however, the boronate (anionic, tetrahedral) form was also reactive. All in all, four reactant species were implicated in the formation of four different adduct species. The rate of a given adduct formation depended on the combination of the solution pH and the pK a's of both ARS and the arylboronic acid. The reaction was found to proceed in two distinct kinetic steps with the products and starting materials in facile exchange. In addition, the elucidation of the mechanism indicated the presence of two fluorescent products with the structure of the major contributor differing from what had been cited in the literature.
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Organic Chemistry


text:
|begging the question|
| Definition -
The fallacy of proving something by using a premiss that is itself in as much need of proof as the conclusion.
1. The term is often used to mean "evading the question" — i.e. not giving the required answer. Many prescriptivists think that using the term to meani this is a solecism.
Democracy is the best form of government because the majority is always right.
Oxford English Dictionary - The term's first citation is from 1887:
"The argument in a circle is the most important case of the fallacy called Petitio Principii (or, as it is more properly called, Petitio Quæsiti, begging the question)."
(Fowler Deduct. Logic (ed. 9) viii. 145 )


Tolkien Gateway
Revision as of 10:27, 20 May 2007 by Elemmakil (Talk | contribs)
Bifur was a companion to Bilbo Baggins and Thorin Oakenshield on the Quest of Erebor. He arrived at Bag End in the company of his brother Bombur, and cousin Bofur. He fought and survived the Battle of Five Armies. Bifur was a descendent of Dwarves of Khazad-dum, but was not of Durin's line, which means that he was of either the house of the Firebeards or Broadbeams. Which most of the population of these two houses dwelt for all of the Second Age and the through the mid Third Age. It is possible that Bifur fought in the Battle of Dale during the War of the Ring.
The name of Bifur originates in a medieval poet collection Eddaand the list of dwarves in Völuspá, where it is written as Bívurr.
Members of Thorin and Company


text:
Empower to Innovate. Innovate to Empower
LAS is a mission-oriented translational research lab focused on the development of new analytic technology and analysis tradecraft. The new technologies will help us understand the underlying scientific principles and analytics required to meet the complex and dynamic challenges presented by "Big Data." The new tradecraft will help us discover, understand, and enhance critical aspects of intelligence analysis. These new technologies and tradecraft will be brought together through the development of user experiences that allow engagement with the data, tools, and techniques to achieve mission outcomes.


text:
Casa Alma is transforming three once-neglected city lots into a thriving and shared urban homestead. Our .6 acres includes three houses: a community house and two houses of hospitality where we host homeless families. Surrounding the homes are extensive gardens, a mini-orchard, berry patch, a flock of laying chickens, miniature dairy goats, and honeybees.
Our gardening practices include replacing lawns with edible landscaping, incorporating permaculture principles into garden design, water catchment and conservation, and organic food production. We garden and care for backyard animals not only to provide healthy foods for guests in our houses of hospitality, but also to inspire people to connect to the land – it's abundance, fruitfulness, cycles and seasons.
We welcome volunteers and collaborators to help us plant and harvest, build garden beds and maintain paths, and to help us deepen and share our practice of sustainability. Previous collaborations include:
* Hosting workshops on solar cooking and sustainable living with Transition Charlottesville Albemarle.
* Co-sponsoring a Lenten Carbon Fast with our neighbors Sojourners United Church of Christ.
* Collaborating with Friends of Rives Park to establish a community garden in the 4-acre park adjacent to Casa Alma.
Wisdom from Wendell Berry: "The care of the Earth is our most ancient and most worthy, and after all, our most pleasing responsibility." "We learn from our gardens how to answer the most urgent question of our time, 'How much is enough?'"


Home Page
The complete history of the Universe -- from the Big Bang to 200 my into the future
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Dicotyledons
The largest group of fruiting plants is the dicotyledons. Most common garden plants, shrubs and trees, and broad-leafed flowering plants -- such as magnolias, roses, geraniums, and hollyhocks -- are dicotyledons, so called because they have two seed leaves, or cotyledons, in the embryo contained in the seed. Contrast this with the other group of fruiting plants - the monocotyledons.
They typically have broad leaves containing a network of veins. Their roots usually have a tap root. They are generally woody plants.
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text:
Swainson's Thrush, Catharus ustulatus
Nesting habitats used by the Swainson's Thrush
The Swainson's Thrush generally nests in willows or other riparian habitats.
Migration of the Swainson's Thrush
The Swainson's Thrush is a nocturnal migrant. At night this bird migrates up from Mexico and Central America in the summer. They just come to visit us in the summer.
Range of the Swainson's Thrush
The Swainson's Thrush is a summer visitor along the coast of California.
Habitat/plant communities used by the Swainson's Thrush
The Swainson's Thrush uses dense brushy areas along the coast of California. In the inland valleys it frequents oak woodlands as well as riparian pant communities.
Niche filled by the Swainson's Thrush
The Swainson's Thrush utilizes the organism rich leaf litter. This leaf litter is filled with all kinds of organisms that break down plant material. This includes spiders, worms, fungi, insects and many other creatures.
The Swainson's Thrush forages in the leaf litter for insects and spiders. They also glean them from shrubs. So make sure you have lots of mulch in your garden. It also helps retain moisture, and nutrients for your plants.
How to attract the Swainson's Thrush to your garden
They Swainson's Thrush enjoys Toyon berries as well as the cover it provides. Toyon is a large evergreen shrub with clusters of red berries. The Swainson's Thrush likes large and small shrubs for nesting and foraging as well as leaf litter for foraging. So don't rake up your leaf litter. It is a treasure trove of nutrition and organic matter.
Last edited on 2012-06-17 06:47:29.


Kamus Online
suggested words
Hasil cari dari kata atau frase: loud (0.01262 detik)
Found 4 items, similar to loud.
English → Indonesian (Kamus Landak) Definition: loud keras
English → Indonesian (quick) Definition: loud banter, gempita, keras, menggempita
English → English (WordNet) Definition: loud loud adv : with relatively high volume; "the band played loudly"; "she spoke loudly and angrily"; "he spoke loud enough for those at the back of the room to hear him"; "cried aloud for help" [syn: loudly, aloud] [ant: softly] loud adj 1: characterized by or producing sound of great volume or intensity; "a group of loud children"; "loud thunder"; "her voice was too loud"; "loud trombones" [ant: soft] 2: tastelessly showy; "a flash car"; "a flashy ring"; "garish colors"; "a gaudy costume"; "loud sport shirts"; "a meretricious yet stylish book"; "tawdry ornaments" [syn: brassy, cheap, flash, flashy, garish, gaudy, gimcrack, meretricious, tacky, tatty, tawdry, trashy] 3: used chiefly as a direction or description in music; "the forte passages in the composition" [syn: forte] [ant: piano]
English → English (gcide) Definition: Loud Loud \Loud\, adv. [AS. hl[=u]de.] With loudness; loudly. [1913 Webster] To speak loud in public assemblies. --Addison. [1913 Webster] Loud \Loud\ (loud), a. [Compar. Louder (loud"[~e]r); superl. Loudest.] [OE. loud, lud, AS. hl[=u]d; akin to OS. hl[=u]d, D. luid, OHG. l[=u]t, G. laut, L. -clutus, in inclutus, inclitus, celebrated, renowned, cluere to be called, Gr. klyto's heard, loud, famous, kly'ein to hear, Skr. [,c]ru. [root]41. Cf. Client, Listen, Slave a serf.] 1. Having, making, or being a strong or great sound; noisy; striking the ear with great force; as, a loud cry; loud thunder. [1913 Webster] They were instant with loud voices, requiring that he might be crucified. --Luke xxiii. 23. [1913 Webster] 2. Clamorous; boisterous. [1913 Webster] She is loud and stubborn. --Prov. vii. 11. [1913 Webster] 3. Emphatic; impressive; urgent; as, a loud call for united effort. [Colloq.] [1913 Webster] 4. Ostentatious; likely to attract attention; gaudy; as, a loud style of dress; loud colors. [Slang] Syn: Noisy; boisterous; vociferous; clamorous; obstreperous; turbulent; blustering; vehement. [1913 Webster]
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stay consistent within the lifetime of the parallel_for; the calling $object will see none of them.
As more sophisticated body object types are implemented, they will have functions made for them, depending on what state the support etc.
It's a good idea not to assume that the concurrent containers are deep copying values passed through them unless you do it yourself; the only safe access is to assign an item from the container, and to assign an item back to the container. These operations will do deep copies where required, and pass references where the values came from the same interpreter. There is more discussion of this on threads::tbb::concurrent
This planned API wraps the for_int_array_func body object for a map-like API. The function must be static.
 use threads::tbb;
 my $tbb = threads::tbb->new;
 sub Some::Static::Func {
 my $val = shift;
 return $val;
 my _USER_ = $tbb->map_list_func('Some::Static::Func', _USER_);
The grain size for this operation defaults to 1. See threads::tbb::blocked_int for a discussion on what that refers to. It can be overridden by defining a scalar with the same name as the function, eg in the above example:
 $Some::Static::Func = 3; # process 3 items at a time
It does not affect the calling convention; each call to the function named is passed a single item only.
Parallel_reduce is just parallel_for, but with another function to combine results from the array at the end.
To use parallel_reduce via this API, you first create a body function which has two methods.
 # map/reduce
 use threads::tbb;
 tie my _USER_, "threads::tbb::concurrent::array";
 push _USER_, _USER_;
 # get a range for that array. up to 5 at a time.
 my $array_range = threads::tbb::blocked_int->new(0, $_TAG_+1, 5);
 my $tbb = threads::tbb->new;
 # make a body object
 my $body = $tbb->reduce_int_array_func(
 sub map_func {
 my $array = shift;
 my $range = shift;
 # code may be executed in another thread.
 # we now have exclusive use of
 # $array->[$range->begin.. $range->end-1]
 my $price = 0;
 for my $i ($range->begin.. $range->end-1) {
 my $val = $array[$i]; # another lazy deep copy
 $price += $val->compute_cost();
 return $price;
 sub reduce_func {
 my ($a, $b) = _USER_;
 return defined $b? $a + $b : $a;
 $tbb->parallel_reduce($array_range, $body);
 say "total is ", $body->result;
Just like map_list_func, this is a convenience wrapper for reduce_int_array_func.
 use threads::tbb;
 my $tbb = threads::tbb->new;
 sub Some::Static::Func {
 my $val = shift;
 return $val;
 sub Some::Static::reduction {
 my ($a, $b) = _USER_;
 my $result = $tbb->map_reduce_list_func(
 'Some::Static::Func', 'Some::Static::reduction',
pipeline / filter _TAG_
This extremely useful API allows you to structure code that performs multiple discrete steps on a continuous stream of data, with worker threads picking up whatever needs doing.
This one could potentially be used to implement a generic multi-processor event loop.
 my $i = 20;
 my $iterator = sub {
 $i-- || undef;
 # deep copied to the sub in this block
 parallel_while($iterator, sub {
 # you can add another iterator to the while block
Each of the iterators added run in the thread context of the interpreter that added them.
Sorting with some scalability. No plan for this yet; it probably also would not scale beyond one processor without naughty cross-thread peeking (see threads::tbb::concurrent)
parallel_scan _TAG_ _TAG_
... an obscure one; see...
Not implemented.
threads::tbb::blocked_int, threads::tbb::concurrent, threads::tbb::concurrent:item, threads::tbb::concurrent::array, threads::tbb::concurrent::hash
threads, threads::lite
Intel Threading Building Blocks: Outfitting C++ for Multi-core Processor Parallelism, By James Reinders. Publisher: O'Reilly Media. Released: July 2007. isbn://978-0-596-51480-8 (print) isbn://978-0-596-15959-7 (ebook).
threads::tbb was written by Sam Vilain
Copyright (c) 2011, OpenParallel. threads::tbb is Free Software; you may use it and/or modify it under the same terms as Perl itself.
The TBB library itself is GPL-2, with a special exception that you may use it as a part of a free software library without restriction. Whether that implies that use of this library imparts the freedoms granted by the GPL on users receiving copies of software built using this library, or whether using with, say, a GPL-3 library revokes the right to copy the software is left as an exercise for the OSS licensing geek reader.
version 0.04, July 8 2011
 - Fix a dire installation/make bug in Makefile.PL
version 0.03, July 7 2011
 - New convenience wrapper for marking foreign XS object types as safely sharable between threads; see threads::tbb::refcounter.
 - New map_list_func convenience API (wrapper for for_int_array_func); see "map_list_func" in threads::tbb
 - Documentation enhancements
 - Memory leak fixes with containers: they now free their contents when they are freed.
version 0.02, May 10 2011
This version principally adds the corresponding white paper and a couple of minor documentation changes. Hopefully the next version will actually implement some more of the TBB API!
syntax highlighting:


text: Tromso, town in northern Norway, capital of Troms County. Tromsø is located on the island of Tromsoy off the northwestern coast of mainland Norway, in the Norwegian Sea. It is the largest Norwegian town north of the Arctic Circle. Troms County includes the adjacent mainland; Tromsoy Island is linked to the mainland by a bridge. As the county seat, Tromsø is the administrative, communications, cultural, and educational center of northern Norway. It is also a fishing port with fish-processing industries. Other industries include shipbuilding, brewing, prefabricated houses, high technology, and tourism. The town is served by an airport and is a starting point and support base for arctic expeditions. A meteorological station, an institute studying the aurora borealis, or northern lights, and the University of Tromsø (founded in 1968) are all located in Tromso. Tromso was founded in the mid-13th century, and granted a town charter in 1794. The Norwegian government was based in Tromsø for a short period during World War II (_PHONE_). The modern Tromsdal Church, built in 1965, is known as the "Cathedral of the Arctic;» there is also a wooden cathedral (1861) in the center of the town. Tromso Museum contains an aquarium, and is devoted to natural history and to the history and culture of the Saami (Lapp).


Store Cucumbers at Room Temperature So They'll Last Longer
If you want more time to enjoy all the cucumbers you bring back from the market, don't stuff them in the fridge. Cucumbers, according to UC Davis, via Root Simple, should be stored at room temperature.
The reason, Root Simple explains, is that when cucumbers are stored for over 3 days at temperatures below 50 degrees Fahrenheit (10 Celsius), they'll get cold injury: wateriness, pitting, and faster decay. (See how unattractive they look after being stored in the cold in the photo from UC Davis?)
The university also offers lots of other advice for fruit and vegetable storage. While we've covered what and how to store foods in the fridge or counter before, room temperature cucumbers are something we didn't notice before. (You're also supposed to keep tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants out too, but keep the cucumbers away from the ethylene-producing tomatoes!)
Don't store your cucumbers in the fridge | Root Simple


text:
This session will include the following subject(s):
OpenStack in OpenStack:
In this presentation, we discuss how to deploy a multi-node OpenStack environment inside a typical openstack environment, where you usually get a VM with an internal IP and optionally a public floating IP via NAT. Such a virtual deployment option is desirable for developing and testing new features that require multiple node setup, such as networking, high availability, live upgrade, etc.
We demonstrate a few key enabling technologies:
* nested server virtualization; * software-defined networking and policy routing for virtual private and public layer-2 networks; * chef for automatic configuration and deployment.
(Session proposed by Yun Mao)
multi-node openstack testing:
Discuss how the CI system and the Gate can deploy and test multi-node setuips.
Specifically, the TripleO team has been working on a heat-based installation of OpenStack that is also hopefully going to be referenced/used as part of the refstack work. This work allows us to do multi-node deploys without needing to pull in non-OpenStack deployment technology that may be contentious such as puppet, chef, juju or maas. Additionally, work has already started on integrating this work with OpenStack CI.
Talk about the approach in general, and what the status of CI integration is.


text:
Dunlap Reservoir - 2009 Survey Report
For assistance with accessibility on any TPWD documents, please contact _EMAIL_
Prepared by John Findeisen and Greg Binion
Inland Fisheries Division
District 1-E, Mathis, Texas
This is the authors' summary from a 25-page report. For a copy of the complete report, use the download link in the sidebar.
During the 2006-2010 survey period, fish populations in Lake Dunlap were surveyed in fall 2005, 2007, and 2009 using electrofishing and trap nets and spring 2006 and 2010 using gill nets. This report summarizes the results of the surveys and contains a management plan for the reservoir based on those findings.
Lake Dunlap is a 410-acre impoundment located on the Guadalupe River in Guadalupe County and is regulated by the Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority (GBRA). The reservoir, impounded in 1928, is used for water supply, hydroelectric generation, and recreation. Lake Dunlap is classified as a mainstream reservoir and has a fairly constant water level. Substrate in the upper section is composed primarily of rock and gravel, while the middle and lower sections of the reservoir are composed of clay, sand, and silt. Habitat features include boat docks, rocks, and native floating and emergent vegetation.
Important sport fish include channel catfish, largemouth bass, and crappie species. The management plan from the 2006 survey report focused on fish habitat improvement, largemouth bass genetics, nuisance aquatic vegetation, and implementing a creel survey. The proposed habitat improvement plan was to construct brushpiles under boat docks and piers of cooperating lake-front property owners, however, the plan was not implemented due to concerns of the brushpiles breaking loose and damaging structures downstream and a decline in interest. Largemouth bass were not stocked. Nuisance aquatic vegetation presence/absence was noted on all fisheries and habitat surveys. The proposed creel survey was to be completed by a university; however, funding for this survey was not available.
- Prey species: Electrofishing catch rates of shad and sunfish species increased substantially since the 2006 report. Prey species populations were comprised primarily of small size classes; benefitting most predatory fish species. Redear and redbreast sunfish provided anglers with excellent angling opportunities.
- Catfishes: Blue, channel, and flathead catfish were present in the reservoir, with blue catfish being the predominant species. The relative abundance of flathead catfish appears to be increasing. Proportion of harvestable-sized catfish in the populations was good as the majority of fish sampled were greater than legal length limits.
- Black basses: Smallmouth, spotted, largemouth, and Guadalupe bass were present in the reservoir, with largemouth being the predominant species. Largemouth bass relative abundance increased substantially and they exhibited good body condition and growth to legal size. Several largemouth bass over 20" were collected during the electrofishing survey.
- Crappie: White and black crappie were present in the reservoir, with white crappie being the predominant species. Trap net catches of crappie were again low but, 33 adult crappie were collected in the spring 2010 gill net survey.
Continue to manage the fisheries under current regulations, refine crappie sampling, continue to monitor the reservoir for nuisance aquatic vegetation, and publicize the sunfish, catfish, and largemouth bass fisheries through media sources local to the reservoir and through the district Facebook page.
Performance Report as required by Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration Act Texas Federal Aid Project F-30-R-35 Statewide Freshwater Fisheries Monitoring and Management Program


ramsey/uuid
Formerly rhumsaa/uuid. A PHP 5.4+ library for generating RFC 4122 version 1, 3, 4, and 5 universally unique identifiers (UUID).
3.7.1 2017-09-22 20:46 UTC
README
NOTICE: Formerly known as rhumsaa/uuid, The package and namespace names have changed to ramsey/uuid and Ramsey\Uuid, respectively.
Source Code Latest Version Software License Build Status Coverage Status Total Downloads
ramsey/uuid is a PHP 5.4+ library for generating and working with RFC 4122 version 1, 3, 4, and 5 universally unique identifiers (UUID).
This project adheres to a Contributor Code of Conduct. By participating in this project and its community, you are expected to uphold this code.
About
From Wikipedia:
The intent of UUIDs is to enable distributed systems to uniquely identify information without significant central coordination. In this context the word unique should be taken to mean "practically unique" rather than "guaranteed unique". Since the identifiers have a finite size, it is possible for two differing items to share the same identifier. The identifier size and generation process need to be selected so as to make this sufficiently improbable in practice. Anyone can create a UUID and use it to identify something with reasonable confidence that the same identifier will never be unintentionally created by anyone to identify something else. Information labeled with UUIDs can therefore be later combined into a single database without needing to resolve identifier (ID) conflicts.
Much inspiration for this library came from the Java and Python UUID libraries.
Installation
The preferred method of installation is via Packagist and Composer. Run the following command to install the package and add it as a requirement to your project's composer.json:
composer require ramsey/uuid
Upgrading from 2.x to 3.x
While we have made significant internal changes to the library, we have made every effort to ensure a seamless upgrade path from the 2.x series of this library to 3.x.
One major breaking change is the transition from the Rhumsaa root namespace to Ramsey. In most cases, all you will need is to change the namespace to Ramsey in your code, and everything will "just work."
Here are full details on the breaking changes to the public API of this library:
 1. All namespace references of Rhumsaa have changed to Ramsey. Simply change the namespace to Ramsey in your code and everything should work.
 2. The console application has moved to ramsey/uuid-console. If using the console functionality, use Composer to require ramsey/uuid-console.
 3. The Doctrine field type mapping has moved to ramsey/uuid-doctrine. If using the Doctrine functionality, use Composer to require ramsey/uuid-doctrine.
What to do if you see a "rhumsaa/uuid is abandoned" message
When installing your project's dependencies using Composer, you might see the following message:
Package rhumsaa/uuid is abandoned, you should avoid using it. Use ramsey/uuid instead.
Don't panic. Simply execute the following commands with Composer:
composer remove rhumsaa/uuid
composer require ramsey/uuid=^2.9
After doing so, you will have the latest ramsey/uuid package in the 2.x series, and there will be no need to modify any code; the namespace in the 2.x series is still Rhumsaa.
Requirements
Some methods in this library have requirements due to integer size restrictions on 32-bit and 64-bit builds of PHP. A 64-bit build of PHP and the Moontoast\Math library are recommended. However, this library is designed to work on 32-bit builds of PHP without Moontoast\Math, with some degraded functionality. Please check the API documentation for more information.
If a particular requirement is not present, then an UnsatisfiedDependencyException is thrown, allowing one to catch a bad call in an environment where the call is not supported and gracefully degrade.
API documentation
The latest class API documentation is available online.
This project uses ApiGen to generate this documentation. To generate the documentation on your own, install dev dependencies and run the following command from the root of the project:
composer build-docs
This will generate documentation in the build/apidocs/ folder.
Examples
See the cookbook on the wiki for more examples and approaches to specific use-cases.
<?php
require 'vendor/autoload.php';
use Ramsey\Uuid\Uuid;
use Ramsey\Uuid\Exception\UnsatisfiedDependencyException;
try {
 // Generate a version 1 (time-based) UUID object
 $uuid1 = Uuid::uuid1();
 echo $uuid1->toString() . "\n"; // i.e. e4eaaaf2-d142-11e1-b3e4-080027620cdd
 // Generate a version 3 (name-based and hashed with MD5) UUID object
 $uuid3 = Uuid::uuid3(Uuid::NAMESPACE_DNS, 'php.net');
 echo $uuid3->toString() . "\n"; // i.e. 11a38b9a-b3da-360f-9353-a5a725514269
 // Generate a version 4 (random) UUID object
 $uuid4 = Uuid::uuid4();
 echo $uuid4->toString() . "\n"; // i.e. 25769c6c-d34d-4bfe-ba98-e0ee856f3e7a
 // Generate a version 5 (name-based and hashed with SHA1) UUID object
 $uuid5 = Uuid::uuid5(Uuid::NAMESPACE_DNS, 'php.net');
 echo $uuid5->toString() . "\n"; // i.e. c4a760a8-dbcf-5254-a0d9-6a4474bd1b62
} catch (UnsatisfiedDependencyException $e) {
 // Some dependency was not met. Either the method cannot be called on a
 // 32-bit system, or it can, but it relies on Moontoast\Math to be present.
 echo 'Caught exception: ' . $e->getMessage() . "\n";
}
Contributing
Contributions are welcome! Please read CONTRIBUTING for details.
Copyright and license
The ramsey/uuid library is copyright © Ben Ramsey and licensed for use under the MIT License (MIT). Please see LICENSE for more information.


FICO
FICO Xpress Optimization Examples Repository
FICO Optimization Community FICO Xpress Optimization Home
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Contract - Semi-continuous variables, predefined constraint functions, combine BCL with Xpress Optimizer
Description
A small MIP-problem example demonstrating how to define semi-continuous variables, use predefined constraint functions and retrieve the problem status.
Two modified versions (documented in the 'BCL Reference Manual') show how to (1) combine BCL problem input with problem solving in Xpress Optimizer and (2) use an Xpress Optimizer solution callback with a BCL model.
Further explanation of this example: 'BCL Reference Manual', Appendix B Using BCL with the Optimizer library
Source Files
xbcontr.c
/********************************************************
 BCL Example Problems
 ====================
 file xbcontr.c
 ''''''''''''''
 Contract allocation example.
 (c) 2008 Fair Isaac Corporation
 author: S.Heipcke, Jan. 2000, rev. Mar. 2011
********************************************************/
#include <stdio.h>
#include "xprb.h"
#define District 6 /* Number of districts */
#define Contract 10 /* Number of contracts */
/**** DATA ****/
int OUTPUT[] = {50, 40, 10, 20, 70, 50}; /* Max. output per district */
int COST[] = {50, 20, 25, 30, 45, 40}; /* Cost per district */
int VOLUME[] = {20, 10, 30, 15, 20, 30, 10, 50, 10, 20};
 /* Volume of contracts */
/***********************************************************************/
int main(int argc, char **argv)
{
 int d,c;
 XPRBctr c1,c2,cobj;
 XPRBvar x[District][Contract]; /* Variables indicating whether a project
 is chosen */
 XPRBvar y[District][Contract]; /* Quantities allocated to contractors */
 XPRBprob prob;
 prob=XPRBnewprob("Contract"); /* Initialize a new problem in BCL */
/**** VARIABLES ****/
 for(d=0;d<District;d++)
 for(c=0;c<Contract;c++)
 {
 x[d][c] = XPRBnewvar(prob,XPRB_BV,XPRBnewname("x_d%dc%d",d+1,c+1),0,1);
 y[d][c] =
 XPRBnewvar(prob,XPRB_SC,XPRBnewname("q_d%dc%d",d+1,c+1),0,OUTPUT[d]);
 XPRBsetlim(y[d][c],5);
 }
/****OBJECTIVE****/
 cobj = XPRBnewctr(prob,"OBJ",XPRB_N); /* Define objective: total cost */
 for(d=0;d<District;d++)
 for(c=0;c<Contract;c++)
 XPRBaddterm(cobj,y[d][c],COST[d]);
 XPRBsetobj(prob,cobj); /* Set objective function */
/**** CONSTRAINTS ****/
 for(c=0;c<Contract;c++)
 {
 c1=XPRBnewctr(prob,"Size",XPRB_G); /* Cover the required contract volume */
 c2=XPRBnewctr(prob,"Min",XPRB_G); /* At least 2 districts per contract */
 for(d=0;d<District;d++)
 {
 XPRBaddterm(c1,y[d][c],1);
 XPRBaddterm(c2,x[d][c],1);
 }
 XPRBaddterm(c1,NULL,VOLUME[c]);
 XPRBaddterm(c2,NULL,2);
 }
 for(d=0;d<District;d++) /* Do not exceed max. output of any district */
 {
 c1=XPRBnewctr(prob,"Output",XPRB_L);
 for(c=0;c<Contract;c++)
 XPRBaddterm(c1,y[d][c],1);
 XPRBaddterm(c1,NULL,OUTPUT[d]);
 }
 for(d=0;d<District;d++) /* If a contract is allocated to a district,
 then at least 1 unit is allocated to it */
 for(c=0;c<Contract;c++)
 XPRBnewprec(prob,"XY",x[d][c],0,y[d][c]);
/****SOLVING + OUTPUT****/
 XPRBexportprob(prob,XPRB_MPS,"Contract"); /* Output matrix in MPS format */
 XPRBsetsense(prob,XPRB_MINIM); /* Choose the sense of the optimization */
 XPRBmipoptimize(prob,""); /* Solve the MIP-problem */
 if((XPRBgetmipstat(prob)==XPRB_MIP_SOLUTION) ||
 (XPRBgetmipstat(prob)==XPRB_MIP_OPTIMAL))
 /* Test whether an integer solution was found */
 {
 printf("Objective: %g\n",XPRBgetobjval(prob)); /* Get objective value */
 for(d=0;d<District;d++) /* Print the solution values */
 {
 for(c=0;c<Contract;c++)
 if(XPRBgetsol(x[d][c])>0)
 printf("%s:%g, ", XPRBgetvarname(y[d][c]), XPRBgetsol(y[d][c]));
 printf("\n");
 }
 }
 return 0;
}
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text:
Microwave assisted vacuum drying and endpoint determination using mass spectrometry, part II, on-line moisture content profiling
Date of Original Version
Quantitative methods were developed to compute on-line conventional loss-on-drying (LOD) profiles from mass spectrometry (MS) measurements. Good agreement between calculated LOD values and actual LOD measurements were obtained for single and multiple solvent wet cakes. Characteristic drying curve profiles were determined for calcium carbonate, sand, cellulose, starch, and silica gel solids, and the corresponding critical moisture contents were estimated. Although this work was developed for microwave drying, the methods apply to conventional dryer monitoring as well.
Publication Title, e.g., Journal
Organic Process Research and Development
Hettenbach, Kevin, David J. Am Ende, Eric Dias, Steven J. Brenek, Catherine Laforte, and Stanley M. Barnett. "Microwave assisted vacuum drying and endpoint determination using mass spectrometry, part II, on-line moisture content profiling." Organic Process Research and Development 8, 6 (2004): 867-872. doi: 10.1021/op049853s.


text:
You can have a beautiful yard even in Denver
Flowers are the beauty of life. They are the ones which can brighten up a gloomy mood. So having a beautiful garden full of flowers can make one have a breath of life in their own home itself. If you happen to reside in the Denver region, then you should know the type of plants which can survive based on the climate of that region. For example, if you happen to like Hibiscuses, Viburnums, Weigela or even the butterfly fish but since they are not able to survive in the Denver weather, it is no use planting them.
So to have a beautiful garden full of flowers, you need to know the kind of flowers that can survive the Denver climate. These could be Achillea, Agastache, the butterfly weed, the Penstemon, the Daylillies, the Salvia May night are some of the flowers which can survive and bloom in the Denver climate. The Salvia Blue Hill is one that blooms for all summer.
Apart from planting the right flowers, it is also important to know the different gardening tips. It is more important in the Denver region sue to the dry climate which spans most of the area. There is intense sun on most of the days, the drying winds and low humidity. Thus the shade loving plants should be planted behind the tall ones, organic compost is required to neutralize the clay effect and also to plant the plants which are suitable for this kind of climate.
The easiest way to have a beautiful garden is to consult Browne & Associates for their expert gardening services. Browne & Associates are expert Denver landscape contractors, the ones which can help you to design your garden in such a beautiful and landscaped manner that you would not find the need to spend on going for holidays- right outside your house it the perfect refreshment from the rush of everyday life.


text:
What Does ASTM B117 Mean?
The ASTM B117 is a standard test carried out to determine the corrosive effect of salt on metallic objects. It is done by spraying salt on a specimen housed in a closed chamber. This is an accelerated form for atmospheric corrosion testing. In this test, the corrosive atmosphere is introduced, allowing the test to be completed in less time than these corrosive processes would naturally occur. This is because conditions in this test are normally harsher than the ones present in the natural environment.
ASTBM B117 is also known as salt spray testing or fog testing.
Corrosionpedia Explains ASTM B117
In an ASTM B117 test, a metallic specimen is housed in a controlled chamber, and is sprayed at different angles and locations with a salt solution. The salt (NACl) concentration is usually higher than in the atmosphere and ranges from 3.5-20 percent. The chambers come in different sizes, and designs range from small sizes to walk-in rooms capable of handling large specimens.
A humidifying tower with hot, de-ionized water is used to create hot, humid air. This is achieved by bubbling compressed air through the tower. The salt solution mixes with the hot, humid air at the nozzle and atomizes to form a corrosive fog. The relative humidity created by this fog is 100 percent. When lower humidity conditions are desired, air is blown into the chamber's exposure zone.
This test might not provide the exact same results as would be produced by similar conditions in the natural environment because of the high concentrations of the corrosive element and the high temperatures, neither of which generally occur in the atmosphere. The ASTM B117 is, however, a valuable test that impacts all industries in terms of quality control. It helps in determining suitable materials for a specific environment and gives useful information that can be used when developing coatings and new materials. The main sectors that benefit from these tests are the aircraft, automotive, transport, infrastructure and paint industries.


text:
Mistletoe Matters - Talks, Walks & Workshops
Mistletoe is a fascinating subject - an odd-looking plant with an unusual biology, peculiar and popular(!) winter customs, ancient traditions stretching way back into prehistory, and emerging modern usage in medicine. Plus, of course, all the agricultural and horticultural aspects, and linkages to traditional orchards and gardens.
And not forgetting its important role in wildlife conservation and biodiversity. There's also its peculiar role in 20th century imagery, particularly in the art nouveau period. It even inspired some wartime German aircraft concepts.
So it should be no surprise that it is a very popular subject for talks, with a very wide range of audiences.
Mistletoe walks are also popular, largely with outdoor and wildlife groups, and largely (though not wholly) confined to the mistletoe country around Herefordshire, Worcestershire, Gloucestershire and Somerset.
Workshops, combining talks and walks with practical advice in management and planting are also available.
Scroll down for more information on all this:


text:
Space Foundation Delivers STEM Education Training for Early Childhood Teachers
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Jun. 22, 2010) -- The Space Foundation is helping early childhood teachers develop activities to interest very young children in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The 25 teachers enrolled in this week's Space Foundation class "PreK-2 Early Childhood Space Exploration," are learning age-appropriate, hands-on activities they can immediately use with their students.
The class resulted from a new partnership between the Space Foundation and Colorado State University (CSU) - Pueblo, and is held on the CSU - Pueblo campus. Focusing on space and science education for young learners, the PreK-2 course provides early childhood educators the necessary tools to inspire very young children through inquiry-based learning. Young children are naturally curious about the world around them, and teachers can use that curiosity to encourage a lasting interest in STEM subjects.
For more about Space Foundation education programs, click here.
Pictured: Teachers enrolled in the Space Foundation class "PreK-2 Early Childhood Space Exploration," at CSU - Pueblo are learning science lessons to take back to their classrooms. In this lesson, the teachers position objects on special paper then place the paper in sunlight. Shadows emerge where the objects are placed, illustrating how the Sun's light can travel through some objects, and not through others.


text:
This paper deals with the activity of a group of cells in the cat's spinal cord and with some sensory phenomena in man. These cells in the cat's cord receive afferents from the skin and respond to all stimuli to which the cat's skin is sensitive. The discovery of a system of cells on which many types of peripheral fibers converge should be interpreted with great caution. The behavior of a cat shows that it is capable of differentiating between various types of skin stimuli, including various degrees of pressure, temperature, and "itch-producing" stimuli. In addition to these differentiated responses, the animal shows reactions such as the flexor reflex and the startle response, in which the modality of the stimulus seems largely irrelevant and only the intensity and rate of increase of the stimulus are important. Therefore, one expects to find convergent central pathways in which cells respond to several
WALL PD, CRONLY-DILLON JR. Pain, Itch, and Vibration. AMA Arch Neurol. 1960;2(4):365–375. doi:10.1001/archneur.1960.03840100003002
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text:
Skills for Health has today launched a comprehensive social media toolkit for the UK healthcare sector, providing healthcare organisations and professionals with sector-specific insight, advice and best practice on using social media effectively.
The free toolkit, created with support from Public Health Wales, key industry experts and employers, has been written with healthcare organisations of all sizes and social media capabilities in mind. Whether organisations are new to social media and unsure where to start or want to make sure their existing social presence is fit for purpose.
The toolkit covers everything from strategy to content creation, including guides to the key platforms and leading influencers to follow, examples of best practice, downloadable templates and additional resources, as well as advice on how to encourage organisations to embrace a digital culture.
Dawn Bratcher, Senior Marketing Manager for Skills for Health said, '30% of adults said they would share information about their health on social media and more than 40% said information found via social media affects how they deal with their health.
'Social media plays an ever-growing role in our daily lives, including the way we access and share information. Starting conversations online enables healthcare organisations to raise awareness, share information, engage with existing audiences and reach out to new ones.'
Last year, Skills for Health launched the #OurHealthHeroes campaign on social media to raise awareness of the vital role of the healthcare support workforce. The campaign launched with a YouTube video, filmed using real staff members at Southmead Hospital in Bristol and the hashtag encouraged the public to thank support staff online.
The video was viewed more than 100,000 times and supported by more than 30 trusts and healthcare organisations across the UK, with a social reach of over five million. This social success led to the creation of the inaugural Our Health Heroes Awards, which received more than 500 nominations from across the UK.
Dawn Bratcher continued, 'The success of the #OurHealthHeroes campaign shows what a powerful tool social media is for building connections with patients, stakeholders and communities both inside and outside the healthcare sector. It is important to be present in these conversations online, but knowing how to do this effectively is not always straightforward.
'As the Sector Skills Council for the UK healthcare sector, we hope this comprehensive guide will give organisations the knowledge and understanding to use social platforms with confidence. We are proud to be helping the healthcare sector to embrace this important shift in the way we communicate and take steps towards a more digital future.'


text:
Noun (futsuumeishi) May take the particle 'no' government and peopleRegierung und Volk
官ON: カン bureaucrat, the government 民ON: ミンKUN: たみ people, nation, subjects
Takoboto is a Japanese/English dictionary and Japanese language learning tool. It searches words written in Japanese or English using kanji, kana, romaji or latin alphabets. Example sentences and kanji information are provided for each word.


text:
Lesson Plans and Worksheets
Browse by Subject
Pinckneys Treaty Teacher Resources
Find teacher approved Pinckneys Treaty educational resource ideas and activities
Twelfth graders complete readings from the packet to explore themes in American history from the seventeenth century until the Civil War. In this American history instructional activity, 12th graders read and discuss their assigned document sets and prepare a presentation to give a synopsis of the documents. Students construct a document based question patterned after the Advancement Placement questions and devise a rubric for scoring their question.


text:
The script runs again when you release and press the scroll button again. This time the "if" argument can't be evaluated to a null, since we have a definite value (5000) stored in the up_last_click variable. Lets assume you pressed the button exactly one quarter (1/4) second after the first press, and lets step through this script again:
up_first_click = getTimer( );
Now the up_first_click variable is updated to a new value by the "getTImer" action. Since one quarter second translates to 250 ms, up_first_click's new value will be 5250 (5000 + 250 = 5250). With that done, we move to the "if" condition, and fill in our numeric values for the up_first_click and up_last_click variables. 5250 - 5000 = 250 ms. Using this inequality expression, Mick has set the double-click threshold to 350 ms. As long as the pause between button presses is equal to or less than 350 ms, as it is in our example, the "if" argument returns "true" and its embedded action is executed. If the pause between cicks is longer than 350 ms, the continuous feedback buttons are triggered instead.
The embedded action, "scroll_shape._y = scroll_shape.logic.top;" immediately sets the _y position of scroll_shape to its uppermost limit, top. This is what creates the jump effect. Since our example "if" argument returns "true," the continuous feedback action embedded within the "else" clause is skipped. (A "true" value for the "if" statement voids the "else" clause below it.) Either way though, the action loop in logic is always triggered on (press) because the "gotoAndPlay("scroll_logic")" action isn't embedded within either the "if" or the "else." Conversely, logic is always stopped on (release).
The script for the bottom button is again structured very similarly to the
top, however the double click variables are named down_first_click and
down_last_click. Also the jump action embedded within the "if"
statement sets scroll_shape._y
to bottom, not top. The code in the source FLA is extensively
commented, but feel free to remove the comments ("//blah
blah blah") if it makes the code easier to understand for you :^)
|» Level Intermediate|
Rating: 8 Votes: 94
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text:
Christian prayer is a vital component of the Christian faith. It is a way for believers to communicate with God, express their gratitude, and seek guidance and support. Prayer can take many forms, but they all have one thing in common – a beginning and an end. The way a prayer is closed can have a significant impact on its effectiveness and the believer's spiritual experience.
Closing a prayer may seem like a simple task, but it can be challenging to know the right words to say or the appropriate way to end a prayer. In this article, we will share some expert tips on how to close a Christian prayer gracefully, the importance of prayer closure, common mistakes to avoid, and ways to make your prayer closing more personal.
Whether you are a new believer or a seasoned prayer warrior, you will find something valuable in this guide. With these tips, you can add a new level of depth and meaning to your prayer life and experience the power of prayer like never before.
Keep reading to discover how to close a Christian prayer with these expert tips and unlock the full potential of your spiritual journey.
Understanding the Importance of Prayer Closure
Prayer is a critical aspect of the Christian faith, and it's essential to understand the importance of prayer closure. A well-crafted closing to your prayer can have a powerful impact on your spiritual experience. It can help you feel more connected to God and bring you a sense of peace and clarity. On the other hand, a poorly executed closure can leave you feeling unsettled or disconnected.
When we pray, we're not just speaking to ourselves. We're speaking to God, and the way we end our prayer is crucial. In the following sections, we will explore the significance of prayer closure and provide some expert tips to help you make the most of this vital aspect of prayer.
Why is Prayer Closure Important?
The way you close your prayer can help you reflect on your spiritual journey, reinforce your faith, and bring a sense of closure to your thoughts and emotions. It's an opportunity to thank God for his blessings, seek guidance for the future, and offer yourself up to His divine will. By taking the time to close your prayer mindfully, you can deepen your relationship with God and enrich your spiritual journey.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Closing a Prayer
- One of the most common mistakes when closing a prayer is rushing the ending. Take your time and allow yourself to connect with God on a deeper level.
- Avoid ending your prayer with an "Amen" if it doesn't feel right or if you're not quite finished. Don't be afraid to take a few moments to collect your thoughts and wrap up your prayer.
- Another mistake is using the same closing every time. While there's nothing wrong with having a standard closing, it's essential to switch things up and make your prayers feel personal and unique.
Expert Tips for Closing a Prayer
If you're struggling with prayer closure, here are some expert tips to help you make the most of this essential aspect of prayer:
- Express gratitude: Take a moment to express gratitude for God's blessings in your life, even if things aren't perfect.
- Reflect on your thoughts: Use your closing to reflect on your thoughts and emotions and ask for guidance from God.
- End with a personal touch: Consider ending your prayer with a personal touch, such as a meaningful quote or phrase that resonates with you.
Closing a prayer can be a powerful way to deepen your connection with God and enrich your spiritual journey. By following these expert tips, you can make the most of this essential aspect of prayer and experience the full power of this spiritual practice.
Steps to Close a Christian Prayer Gracefully
Closing a prayer is just as important as beginning one, and it's essential to do it gracefully. Here are some steps you can follow to help you close a Christian prayer:
Step 1: Acknowledge God's Character
Begin your closing by acknowledging God's character. You can use words like "Holy," "Righteous," and "Loving" to describe Him. This will help you and your fellow believers remember who you are praying to.
Step 2: Give Thanks
Next, express your gratitude to God for hearing your prayer. Thank Him for His grace, mercy, and forgiveness. Be specific about what you're grateful for, and don't forget to include any answered prayers or blessings you've received.
Ways to Give Thanks:
- Express appreciation for specific things God has done for you.
- Thank Him for His love, mercy, and grace.
- Include others in your prayer by thanking Him for them.
Step 3: Ask for Help
Finally, ask for God's help as you go about your day. Pray for guidance, protection, and strength. You can also ask for forgiveness for any sins you've committed, and for God's help in overcoming them in the future.
Ways to Ask for Help:
- Ask for God's guidance and direction.
- Pray for protection and safety for yourself and others.
- Ask for strength to overcome challenges you may face.
Remember that closing a prayer is not just a formality but an opportunity to acknowledge God, thank Him, and ask for His help. Follow these steps, and you will be sure to close your Christian prayers gracefully.
Common Mistakes to Avoid While Closing a Christian Prayer
Prayer is an integral part of Christian worship, and it's important to close a prayer properly to ensure it is respectful and effective. However, there are some common mistakes people make when closing a Christian prayer that can detract from the power and meaning of the prayer. Here are some of the most common mistakes to avoid:
First, don't rush the closing of the prayer. It's important to take your time and give proper consideration to the words you use to close the prayer. Rushing the ending can make the prayer seem insincere or disrespectful. Secondly, don't forget to thank God for his blessings and ask for his continued guidance and protection. These elements are essential to any Christian prayer and should not be overlooked. Finally, avoid using cliched phrases or language that might detract from the meaning and power of the prayer. Instead, focus on using genuine, heartfelt language that reflects your true feelings and beliefs.
Common Mistake #1: Rushing the Closing
- Take your time to choose the right words to close the prayer
- A rushed ending can make the prayer seem insincere or disrespectful
- Consider pausing for a moment of silence before closing the prayer
Common Mistake #2: Forgetting to Thank God and Ask for Guidance
- Thank God for his blessings and guidance throughout the prayer
- Ask for his continued guidance and protection in your daily life
- These elements are essential to any Christian prayer
Common Mistake #3: Using Cliched Language
- Avoid using phrases or language that might detract from the power of the prayer
- Use genuine, heartfelt language that reflects your true feelings and beliefs
- Focus on the meaning and intention behind the prayer
Ways to Make Your Christian Prayer Closing More Personal
When it comes to closing a Christian prayer, it's important to make it a meaningful experience for everyone involved. Here are some ways to make your prayer closing more personal:
Use Personalized Language
One way to make your prayer closing more personal is to use language that speaks directly to the individuals in your group. You can do this by using specific names or referring to specific situations that are relevant to your group. This will help everyone feel more connected and engaged in the prayer.
Encourage Group Participation
- Ask for volunteers to lead specific parts of the prayer.
- Encourage everyone to add their own personal intentions or thanksgivings to the prayer.
Adding symbolism to your prayer can make it a more memorable and meaningful experience for everyone. For example, you can incorporate elements such as candles, holy water, or a cross into the prayer closing. This can help to reinforce the message of the prayer and create a more spiritual atmosphere.
Practical Examples of Powerful Prayer Closures
When it comes to closing a Christian prayer, it's important to remember that it's not just a simple ritual. Your closing words can be powerful and impactful, leaving a lasting impression on yourself and those around you. Here are some practical examples of powerful prayer closures that you can use to make your prayers more meaningful.
- Thank God for specific blessings in your life, such as your health, family, friends, and home.
- Express gratitude for the opportunity to pray and connect with God.
- End with a simple phrase such as "Thank you for listening to my prayers, Amen."
Pray for Others
- Ask God to bless and guide your loved ones, friends, and those in need.
- Pray for peace, healing, and protection for your community and the world.
- End with a phrase such as "We pray this in Jesus' name, Amen."
Surrender and Trust in God
- Surrender your worries and fears to God, and trust in His plan for your life.
- Ask for His guidance and strength to face any challenges that come your way.
- End with a phrase such as "I trust in your love and grace, Amen."
Remember, the most important thing is to speak from your heart and connect with God in a meaningful way. Use these practical examples as a guide, but don't be afraid to make the prayer closure your own.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best way to close a Christian prayer?
The best way to close a Christian prayer is to end it with an "Amen" to indicate agreement or affirmation. Amen means "so be it" or "let it be done" and is a powerful way to acknowledge that the prayer has been heard and accepted. It also shows gratitude and trust in God's plan.
Should I always end my Christian prayer with


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African vineyard's duck parade doubles as pest control
Stellenbosch, South Africa — The quacking is soft at first amid the vineyards that roll for miles in this South African wine-making town.
But then the duck handlers whistle and wave their white flags, and the noise reaches a crescendo. All 1,071 ducks huddle at the gate that separates them from the vineyards.
It's time to go to work, and the daily duck parade is about to start.
This wine farm is winning praise from environmentalists for using Indian runner ducks instead of chemicals to eradicate pests like snails and bugs from its vineyards.
The duck parade is also a colorful affair that attracts tourists.
John Faure, whose family had owned the Vergenoegd wine estate since 1820, imported six Indian runner ducks in 1984 to control pests in his garden. He then started breeding them and, as the workforce grew, so did their job description.
The estate, which was recently sold to a German owner, continues to use the ducks for pest control although it is much more expensive than pesticides, said the vineyard's social media manager David Badenhorst. The ducks cost an average of $2,300, while more conventional methods would cost that amount per year, he said. Using the ducks is more sustainable, Badenhorst said.
"If you use conventional pest control, those chemicals are absorbed into the soil, which affects the growth of the vines and kills insects," he said. "Our ducks go into the vineyards and they eat the snails and snail eggs while fertilizing the soil."
Duck handler Denzil Matthys has worked with the ducks for the past three years and says he has grown to love the creatures.
"When I started here, I used to eat ducks," he said, "But since I have started working with them, duck is not my favorite thing to eat anymore."


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Spy Physics: Using a Laser to 'hear' a conversation
American Association of Physics Teachers Winter Meeting 2014
We will present a simply constructed laser experiment for students beyond their first year in physics. The goal of this particular experiment is to not only give students experience with laser interferometry, but to allow students to have greater excitement than they would normally get counting fringes or making precision measurements. Our experiment started when a student asked "Is it true that you could use a laser beam to detect a conversation in an office by its reflection off of a window." To accomplish this task we used a simple Michelson interferometer in which one mirror vibrated in response to a sound source. A speaker connected to a radio inside a small box with a tinted glass window served as a mirror for the laser beam and also represented the office that we were "spying upon." At present time, we have tried the experiment in two different ways. One in which the sound source is directly connected to the mirror (the easy version) and one in which the sound must propagate through air to vibrate the mirror (the harder version). We will demonstrate our results if the audio equipment is willing.
Timothy Grove and Trunghieu T. Nguyen (2014).
Spy Physics: Using a Laser to 'hear' a conversation. Presented at American Association of Physics Teachers Winter Meeting 2014, Orlando, FL.