Hold the salt: UCLA engineers develop revolutionary new desalination membrane
Process uses atmospheric pressure plasma to create filtering 'brush layer'
Desalination can become more economical and used as a viable alternate water resource.
By Wileen Wong Kromhout
Originally published in UCLA Newsroom
Researchers from the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science have unveiled a new class of reverse-osmosis membranes for desalination that resist the clogging which typically occurs when seawater, brackish water and waste water are purified.
The highly permeable, surface-structured membrane can easily be incorporated into today's commercial production system, the researchers say, and could help to significantly reduce desalination operating costs. Their findings appear in the current issue of the Journal of Materials Chemistry.
Reverse-osmosis (RO) desalination uses high pressure to force polluted water through the pores of a membrane. While water molecules pass through the pores, mineral salt ions, bacteria and other impurities cannot. Over time, these particles build up on the membrane's surface, leading to clogging and membrane damage. This scaling and fouling places higher energy demands on the pumping system and necessitates costly cleanup and membrane replacement.
The new UCLA membrane's novel surface topography and chemistry allow it to avoid such drawbacks.
"Besides possessing high water permeability, the new membrane also shows high rejection characteristics and long-term stability," said Nancy H. Lin, a UCLA Engineering senior researcher and the study's lead author. "Structuring the membrane surface does not require a long reaction time, high reaction temperature or the use of a vacuum chamber. The anti-scaling property, which can increase membrane life and decrease operational costs, is superior to existing commercial membranes."
The new membrane was synthesized through a three-step process. First, researchers synthesized a polyamide thin-film composite membrane using conventional interfacial polymerization. Next, they activated the polyamide surface with atmospheric pressure plasma to create active sites on the surface. Finally, these active sites were used to initiate a graft polymerization reaction with a monomer solution to create a polymer "brush layer" on the polyamide surface. This graft polymerization is carried out for a specific period of time at a specific temperature in order to control the brush layer thickness and topography.
"In the early years, surface plasma treatment could only be accomplished in a vacuum chamber," said Yoram Cohen, UCLA professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering and a corresponding author of the study. "It wasn't practical for large-scale commercialization because thousands of meters of membranes could not be synthesized in a vacuum chamber. It's too costly. But now, with the advent of atmospheric pressure plasma, we don't even need to initiate the reaction chemically. It's as simple as brushing the surface with plasma, and it can be done for almost any surface."
In this new membrane, the polymer chains of the tethered brush layer are in constant motion. The chains are chemically anchored to the surface and are thus more thermally stable, relative to physically coated polymer films. Water flow also adds to the brush layer's movement, making it extremely difficult for bacteria and other colloidal matter to anchor to the surface of the membrane.
"If you've ever snorkeled, you'll know that sea kelp move back and forth with the current or water flow," Cohen said. "So imagine that you have this varied structure with continuous movement. Protein or bacteria need to be able to anchor to multiple spots on the membrane to attach themselves to the surface — a task which is extremely difficult to attain due to the constant motion of the brush layer. The polymer chains protect and screen the membrane surface underneath."
Another factor in preventing adhesion is the surface charge of the membrane. Cohen's team is able to choose the chemistry of the brush layer to impart the desired surface charge, enabling the membrane to repel molecules of an opposite charge.
The team's next step is to expand the membrane synthesis into a much larger, continuous process and to optimize the new membrane's performance for different water sources.
"We want to be able to narrow down and create a membrane selection system for different water sources that have different fouling tendencies," Lin said. "With such knowledge, one can optimize the membrane surface properties with different polymer brush layers to delay or prevent the onset of membrane fouling and scaling.
"The cost of desalination will therefore decrease when we reduce the cost of chemicals [used for membrane cleaning], as well as process operation [for membrane replacement]. Desalination can become more economical and used as a viable alternate water resource."
Cohen's team, in collaboration with the UCLA Water Technology Research (WaTeR) Center, is currently carrying out specific studies to test the performance of the new membrane's fouling properties under field conditions.
"We work directly with industry and water agencies on everything that we're doing here in water technology," Cohen said. "The reason for this is simple: If we are to accelerate the transfer of knowledge technology from the university to the real world, where those solutions are needed, we have to make sure we address the real issues. This also provides our students with a tremendous opportunity to work with industry, government and local agencies."
A paper providing a preliminary introduction to the new membrane also appeared in the Journal of Membrane Science last month.
Published: Thursday, April 08, 2010


Traffic barricades can be used to redirect or restrict traffic in areas of highway construction or repair. They are typically made from wood, steel, plastic, fiberglass, or a combination of these materials. Many manufacturers have switched to the use of recycled materials in both the supporting frame and rails of the barricades. EPA's designation covers only Types I and II traffic barricades.
EPA's Recovered Materials Advisory Notice (RMAN) recommends recycled-content levels for purchasing traffic barricades as shown in the table below.
EPA's Recommended Recovered Materials Content Levels
for Traffic Barricades (Types I and II) ¹
|Material||Postconsumer Content (%)||Total Recovered Materials Content (%)|
(HDPE, LDPE, PET)
1The recommended materials content levels for steel in this table reflect the fact that the designated items can be made from steel manufactured in either a Basic Oxygen Furnace (BOF) or an Electric Arc Furnace (EAF). Steel from the BDF process contains 25-30% total recovered materials, of which 16% is postconsumer steel. Steel from the EAF process contains a total of 100% recovered steel, of which 67% is postconsumer.
of Manufacturers and Suppliers
This database identifies manufacturers and suppliers of traffic barricades containing recovered materials.
Buy-Recycled Series: Transportation Products (PDF) (7 pp, 89K, About PDF)
This fact sheet highlights the transportation products designated in the CPG, including traffic barricades, and includes case studies, recommended recovered-content levels, and a list of resources.
Technical Background Documents
These background documents include EPA's product research on recovered-content traffic barricades as well as a more detailed overview of the history and regulatory requirements of the CPG process.


SAN ANGELO, Texas — MOSCOW (AP) The head of Russia's space agency said Tuesday that cosmic radiation was the most likely cause of the failure of a Mars moon probe that crashed to Earth this month, and suggested that a low-quality imported component may have been vulnerable to the radiation. Vladimir Popovkin also said a manned launch to the International Space Station is being postponed from March 30 because of faults found in the Soyuz capsule.
The statements underline an array of trouble that has afflicted the country's vaunted space program in recent months, including the August crash of a supply ship for the space station and last month's crash of a communications satellite.
Since the end of the U.S. space shuttle program last year, Russian craft are the only means to send crew to and from the ISS.
The unmanned Phobos-Ground probe was to have gone to the Mars moon of Phobos, taken soil samples and brought them back. But it became stuck in Earth orbit soon after its launch on Nov. 9. It fell out of orbit on Jan. 15, reportedly off the coast of Chile, but no fragments have been found.
The failure was a severe embarrassment to Russia, and Popovkin initially suggested it could have been due to foreign sabotage.
But on Tuesday he said in televised remarks that an investigation showed the probable cause was "localized influence of heavily radiated space particles."
Popovkin, speaking in the city of Voronezh where the report was presented to Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, said two units of the Phobos-Ground probe's onboard computer system went into an energy-saving "restart" mode, apparently due to the radiation, while the craft was in its second orbital circuit.
It was not immediately clear why the units could not be brought out of that mode.
Popovkin said that some microchips used on the craft were imported and possibly of inadequate quality to resist radiation. He did not specify where the chips were manufactured.
Yuri Koptev, a former space agency head who led the Phobos-Ground investigation, said 62 percent of the microchips used in the probe were "industrial" class, a less-sophisticated level than should be used in space flight.
Popovkin said the craft's builder, Moscow-based NPO Lavochkin, should have taken into account the possibility of radiation interfering with the operation and said Lavochkin officials would face punishment for the oversight.
Popovkin later announced that a March 30 planned launch of three astronauts to the space station will be postponed "likely until the end of April" because of problems with the capsule. He did not specify, but the state news agency RIA Novosti cited the director of Russia's cosmonaut-training program as saying leaks had been found in the capsule's seals.
It would be the second significant postponement of a manned Russian launch in the past year. The August crash of the supply ship pushed back a manned launch to the ISS because the booster rocket that failed in the crash was similar to the ones used in manned missions.


Gay and Lesbian Issues
The adolescent years are full of challenges, many related to sex and sexual identity. These issues can be especially difficult for teens who are (or think they may be) homosexual. Homosexual teens deserve the same understanding and respect as heterosexual teens, and it is important for everyone to know the facts about homosexuality. Here are the basics.
Each of us has a biological sex (we have a male or female body), a gender identity (we feel like a male or female), and a sexual orientation (we are attracted to males or females). Homosexuality refers to a person's sexual orientation; homosexual teen-agers have strong romantic or sexual feelings for a person of the same sex. Heterosexual teen-agers are attracted to people of the opposite sex, and bisexual teens are attracted to people of both sexes.
The word "gay" is used to describe both men and women who are homosexual, with the word "lesbian" specifically referring to a homosexual woman. It is estimated that 10 percent of the population in the United States and throughout the world is lesbian or gay.
Although scientists don't know why some people are homosexual and others are not, most believe that homosexuality is a normal variation of sexual orientation. It may be genetic, result from natural substances (hormones) in the body, be influenced by the environment before or after birth, or, most likely, several of these things working in combination. Homosexual teens are found in all types of families. Homosexuality is not caused by "bad parenting." If your teen is gay, it is not because of anything you or anyone else did.
Homosexuality also is not something a person chooses, nor is it an illness that can be cured. According to the American Psychiatric Association, so-called therapies such as "reparative therapy" and "transformational ministry" don't work and actually can be harmful, causing guilt and anxiety in homosexual teens.
Not all teen-agers who are attracted to members of the same sex are homosexual. Many teens experiment with their sexuality during adolescence, in much the same way that they experiment with clothing, body art or music. This brief sexual experimentation is thought to be a normal part of sexual development. For homosexual teens, the attraction to people of the same sex is stronger and longer lasting.
Back to top
Every family is different. While one parent may find out by chance that a teen is homosexual, others may hear directly from their teen in person, in a letter or by a phone call. When a teen tells other people that he is homosexual, it's called "coming out." Although this process sometimes can be difficult or painful for families, it also can be a time of tremendous growth. It is important to remember that all teens need their family's support and acceptance, especially when they are dealing with sensitive issues.
Back to top
"Coming out" can be scary and painful, and parents need to reassure their children that they will not be loved any less for sharing the truth about themselves. If your teen tells you he is gay, let him know that you love him unconditionally, and accept him no matter what.
Show your teen that you care by learning more about homosexuality. Read books on the subject or check out reputable Web sites (such as www.pflag.org). Talk to some adults you know who are gay. Look for organizations or support groups in your community that can give you information on homosexuality. It will be easier for you to support your teen when you know more and are comfortable with the subject.
Parents may worry about how friends, neighbors and family will react to their teen's homosexuality. It is usually best not to share any information without your teen-ager's permission. Unfortunately, prejudice against homosexuals is widespread, mostly due to ignorance and fear. When your teen is ready for you to let others know, you should talk with them about your teen's sexual orientation and help them to understand, by using what you have learned.
Back to top
Growing up as a homosexual in a mostly heterosexual society often is not easy. Gay and lesbian adolescents sometimes must cope with unfair, prejudiced, and even violent behavior at school, at home and in the community. They may feel fear or be alone and unsupported. This can push some teens to use drugs and alcohol, engage in risky sexual behavior, or even attempt suicide. It is important that homosexual teens feel supported by their parents and always able to talk openly with them about these issues.
Overall, most gay and lesbian youth grow up to be well-adjusted and happy adults, with successful careers and family lives.
Books for parents of the newly out:
"Is it A Choice? Answers to 300 Most Asked Questions About Gay and Lesbian People" by Eric Marcus
"Loving Someone Gay" by Don Clark, Ph.D.
"My Child is Gay" by Bryce McDougall, editor
Last updated May 29, 2011


In addition, health issues, such as pain, asthma, restless legs syndrome, and back problems, also can contribute to lack of sleep. So can some medications, such as decongestants, steroids and some medicines for high blood pressure, asthma or depression.
Secrets of good sleep
You can take steps to shift your body and mind into more beneficial sleep habits:
- Keep your bedroom dark, quiet, comfortable and cool. “Making your bedroom a sanctuary conducive for sleep can make a significant difference in the quality of sleep you get,” says Dr. Wolfson.
- Go to sleep and wake up at the same time, even on weekends. Doing so helps keep your internal “circadian clock” in balance, which signals your body to sleep and wake in a regular pattern.
- Establish a regular, relaxing bedtime routine that might include reading a book, listening to soothing music or doing something else you find relaxing. “A relaxing, routine activity right before bedtime helps separate your sleep time from activities that can make it more difficult to fall asleep or remain asleep,” says Dr. Wolfson. “Parents know that a bedtime routine can help children get a good night’s sleep. Doing the same for themselves can have the same results.”
- Make sure your mattress is comfortable and supportive. Good-quality mattresses generally last about 10 years. Have comfortable pillows and make the room attractive and inviting.
- Avoid caffeine close to bedtime. Caffeine products, such as coffee, tea and colas, remain in the body, on average, from three to five hours, but they can affect some people up to 12 hours later.
- Avoid alcohol close to bedtime. Many people think of alcohol as a sedative, but it actually disrupts sleep, causing nighttime awakenings.
- Quit smoking. Nicotine is a stimulant that can make it more difficult for smokers to fall asleep, stay asleep and wake in the morning. Smokers should never smoke in bed or when they’re sleepy.
- Finish eating at least two or three hours before your regular bedtime. Be aware that large, high-fat or spicy meals may cause heartburn, which leads to difficulty falling asleep and discomfort during the night.
- Exercise regularly but complete your workout at least a few hours before bedtime. Exercising regularly makes it easier to fall asleep and contributes to sounder sleep. However, working out right before going to bed will make falling asleep more difficult.
- Find ways to manage stress and anxiety. Relaxation exercises, meditation or deep breathing work for many people.
“If there are problems or issues keeping you awake, try writing them in a notebook and putting it away,” suggests Dr. Wolfson. “That way, you’ve registered your concerns but become free to put them aside until morning.”
When to seek help
If your sleep problems persist for longer than a week and are bothersome, or if sleepiness interferes with the way you feel or function during the day, don’t self-medicate with sleeping pills; make an appointment with your doctor.
“The key to better sleep is recognizing you’re not getting enough deep, restorative sleep, and then doing something about it,” says Dr. Wolfson. “Failure to do so puts you and others at risk.”


Most Active Stories
Sun September 25, 2011
Launch Logistics: Speedy Rocket, Slow Electronics
Weird things jump out at me in press releases.
Take the press kit NASA prepared for the GRAIL mission. GRAIL consists of two nearly identical spacecraft that are on their way to the moon. Once there, they will make a precise map of the moon's gravitational field. Such a map will help scientists refine their theories about how the moon formed and what the interior is made of.
So I'm reading through the GRAIL press kit, learning about the size of the spacecraft (washing machine-sized), how long it will take to make the map (approximately three months), and where the mission control room is (at a Lockheed Martin facility just outside of Denver).
I also learn that GRAIL can launch any day between Sept. 9 and Oct. 19. And then I get to this sentence:
"On each day, there are two separate, instantaneous launch opportunities separated in time by approximately 39 minutes."
That's weird. Now, I wasn't surprised that this mission had an extremely precise launch opportunity — "instantaneous" means the launch window is essentially a second long. I know you have to wait until the moon's orbit around the Earth, and Earth's orbit around the sun, and the Earth's rotation around its axis are all in exactly the right position before you can launch your rocket.
But what's up with two instantaneous launch opportunities. Why 39 minutes apart?
I called the NASA press office. They were stumped and promised they'd find someone who could give me the answer. In the meantime, I called several universities with large aerospace programs, and asked if anyone there had the answer.
Nope. Nada. Nothing.
So now this is beginning to bug me. I'm also beginning to worry. If an aerospace engineer can't figure this out, how am I ever going to understand it?
While I'm pondering this, GRAIL deputy project manager Tom Hoffman called. I asked him about the two instantaneous launch opportunities.
"It's a pretty simple answer not driven by the mission at all," Hoffman told me. "It's driven by the launch vehicle."
The launch vehicle? Not orbital mechanics or a complex trajectory? The problem, Hoffman said, is some slow electronics.
There is actually a launch window of 40 minutes or so each day. Modern computers in modern rockets can calculate the precise direction the rocket needs to launch on a second-by-second basis. But GRAIL was launching on a Delta II rocket, and Hoffman told me the Delta II rocket is a rather old design. It's been around for more than 20 years, "and so the rocket just can't, it can't do that internally, in its own computer system. It basically has to be fed all the information," he said.
Hoffman said it takes about 39 minutes to load in the new information, and then check to make sure that it was loaded correctly.
Not the answer I was expecting, but there's something oddly pleasing about a brand-new space mission launching with some rather old electronics.
Whatever works ... as the saying goes.


Ulva spp. on freshwater-influenced or unstable upper eulittoral rock
Ecological and functional relationships
The community predominantly consists of algae which cover the rock surface and creates a patchy canopy. In doing so, the algae provides an amenable habitat in an otherwise hostile environment, exploitable on a temporary basis by other species. For instance, Ulva intestinalis provides shelter for the orange harpacticoid copepod, Tigriopus brevicornis, and the chironomid larva of Halocladius fucicola (McAllen, 1999). The copepod and chironomid species utilize the hollow thalli of Ulva intestinalis as a moist refuge from desiccation when rockpools completely dry. Several hundred individuals of Tigriopus brevicornis have been observed in a single thallus of Ulva intestinalis (McAllen, 1999). The occasional grazing gastropods that survive in this biotope no doubt graze Ulva.
Seasonal and longer term change
- During the winter, elevated levels of freshwater runoff would be expected owing to seasonal rainfall. Also, winter storm action may disturb the relatively soft substratum of chalk and firm mud, or boulders may be overturned.
- Seasonal fluctuation in the abundance of Ulva spp. Would therefore be expected with the biotope thriving in winter months. Porphyra also tends to be regarded as a winter seaweed, abundant from late autumn to the succeeding spring, owing to the fact that the blade shaped fronds of the gametophyte develop in early autumn, whilst the microscopic filamentous stages of the spring and summer are less apparent (see recruitment process, below).
Habitat structure and complexity
Habitat complexity in this biotope is relatively limited in comparison to other biotopes. The upper shore substrata, consisting of chalk, firm mud, bedrock or boulders, will probably offer a variety of surfaces for colonization, whilst the patchy covering of ephemeral algae provides a refuge for faunal species and an additional substratum for colonization. However, species diversity in this biotope is poor owing to disturbance and changes in the prevailing environmental factors, e.g. desiccation, salinity and temperature. Only species able to tolerate changes/disturbance or those able to seek refuge will thrive.
The biotope is characterized by primary producers. Rocky shore communities are highly productive and are an important source of food and nutrients for neighbouring terrestrial and marine ecosystems (Hill et al., 1998). Macroalgae exude considerable amounts of dissolved organic carbon which is taken up readily by bacteria and may even be taken up directly by some larger invertebrates. Dissolved organic carbon, algal fragments and microbial film organisms are continually removed by the sea. This may enter the food chain of local, subtidal ecosystems, or be exported further offshore. Rocky shores make a contribution to the food of many marine species through the production of planktonic larvae and propagules which contribute to pelagic food chains.
The life histories of common algae on the shore are generally complex and varied, but follow a basic pattern, whereby there is an alternation of a haploid, gamete-producing phase (gametophyte-producing eggs and sperm) and a diploid spore-producing (sporophyte) phase. All have dispersive phases which are circulated around in the water column before settling on the rock and growing into a germling (Hawkins & Jones, 1992).
Ulva intestinalis is generally considered to be an opportunistic species, with an 'r-type' strategy for survival. The r-strategists have a high growth rate and high reproductive rate. For instance, the thalli of Ulva intestinalis, which arise from spores and zygotes, grow within a few weeks into thalli that reproduce again, and the majority of the cell contents are converted into reproductive cells. The species is also capable of dispersal over a considerable distance. For instance, Amsler & Searles (1980) showed that 'swarmers' of a coastal population of Ulva reached exposed artificial substrata on a submarine plateau 35 km away.
The life cycle of Porphyra involves a heteromorphic (of different form) alternation of generations, that are either blade shaped or filamentous. Two kinds of reproductive bodies (male and female (carpogonium)) are found on the blade shaped frond of Porphyra that is abundant during winter. On release these fuse and thereafter, division of the fertilized carpogonium is mitotic, and packets of diploid carpospores are formed. The released carpospores develop into the 'conchocelis' phase (the diploid sporophyte consisting of microscopic filaments), which bore into shells (and probably the chalk rock) and grow vegetatively. The conchocelis filaments reproduce asexually. In the presence of decreasing day length and falling temperatures, terminal cells of the conchocelis phase produce conchospores inside conchosporangia. Meiosis occurs during the germination of the conchospore and produces the macroscopic gametophyte (blade shaped phase) and the cycle is repeated (Cole & Conway, 1980).
Time for community to reach maturity
Disturbance is an important factor structuring the biotope, consequently the biotope is characterized by ephemeral algae able to rapidly exploit newly available substrata and that are tolerant of changes in the prevailing conditions, e.g. temperature, salinity and desiccation. For instance, following the Torrey Canyon tanker oil spill in mid March 1967, which bleached filamentous algae such as Ulva and adhered to the thin fronds of Porphyra, which after a few weeks became brittle and were washed away, regeneration of Porphyra and Ulva was noted by the end of April at Marazion, Cornwall. Similarly, at Sennen Cove where rocks had completely lost their cover of Porphyra and Ulva during April, by mid-May had occasional blade-shaped fronds of Porphyra sp. up to 15 cm long. These had either regenerated from basal parts of the 'Porphyra' phase or from the 'conchocelis' phase on the rocks (see recruitment processes). By mid-August these regenerated specimens were common and well grown but darkly pigmented and reproductively immature. Besides the Porphyra, a very thick coating of Ulva (as Enteromorpha) was recorded in mid-August (Smith 1968). Such evidence suggests that the community would reach maturity relatively rapidly and probably be considered mature in terms of the species present and ability to reproduce well within six months.
No text entered.
This review can be cited as follows:
Ulva spp. on freshwater-influenced or unstable upper eulittoral rock.
Marine Life Information Network: Biology and Sensitivity Key Information Sub-programme [on-line].
Plymouth: Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom.
Available from: <http://www.marlin.ac.uk/habitatecology.php?habitatid=104&code=2004>


History of the Indians of the United States
by Angie Debo
The political, social, and military conflicts and foul-ups between the Indians and whites from the colonial era to the 1970s.
6 x 9 450 pages, index, maps, illustrated, paperbound
#300 Indians in the US $24.95
by Barry C. Kent
Culturally and linguistically, the Susquehannocks closely resembled the Iroquois of New York state. Actually, they were a fiercely independent nation that lived along the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania and Maryland. They often invaded the tribes of lower Maryland. This is a detailed narrative of the Susquehannocks' lifestyle, villages,
and artifacts. Also describes their relationship with the Conestogas, Conoy, Shawnee, Delaware, and other tribes that lived along the river.
6" x 9" 440 pages, index, illustrated, maps, paperbound
#372 Susquehanna's Indians $16.95
Indians and World War II
by Alison R. Bernstein
The impact of World War II on Indian affairs was more provound and lasting than that of any other event or policy, including FDR's Indian New Deal and eforts to terminate federal responsibility for tribes under Eisenhower. Focusing on the period from 1941 to 1947, Bernstein explains why termination and tribal self-determination wer logical results of the Indians' World War II experiences in battle and on the home front. Includes a brief story of the Navajo Marine Codetalkers and Ira Hayes, a Pima Indian who helped raise the flag at Iwo Jima.
5½" x 8½" 247 pages, index, some photos, paperbound
#373 Indians & WWII $19.95
FAX: 717 464-3250


LABDIEN [Hello]! My name is Hannah Rosenthal, and I am the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism at the U.S. Department of State. In Latvian, envoy means “Īpašā sūtne”. Thank you for inviting me here today to speak to you about the importance of diversity and respect for others. I am always eager to speak to young students because so much of my work depends on your help.
As the Special Envoy, it is my job to monitor anti-Semitic incidents and combat such intolerance. “Anti-Semitism” simply means hatred for Jewish people. I monitor anti-Semitic incidents such as vandalism of religious places, anti-Semitic speech, and even violence against Jews.
But the truth is, I am in the relationship-building business. I am here today to tell you that young people and students can have an impact and do what I do. We must all share and strive for the same mission: to combat hate and intolerance to create a more peaceful and just world.
In order to fight hatred, we must begin with respecting the dignity of every individual, regardless of his or her beliefs. In fact, our differences make us human. You may have heard about the concept of the “Other,” or in Latvian, “svešinieks”. There are individuals in this world who would like us to view some people as outside the larger human family.
The desire to stamp out or suppress or ostracize certain individuals because of who they are, how they worship, or who they love is an obstacle for all members of society. Intolerance prevents us from creating a just and peaceful society. Meanwhile, we, as society, must not stand by idly. When we stand by passively, we also pay a price.
Terrible things can happen when intolerance and racism take hold in a society, across a continent. Hitler’s Nazi ideology called for racial purity and targeted the Jews as an Other that needed to be exterminated. Some of you may know that yesterday communities around the world observed Yom HaShoah, or Holocaust Remembrance Day. Yom HaShoah is a day to remember the victims of the Holocaust and to commemorate the individuals – including some Latvians -- who risked their lives to save the Jews. I understand Latvia has its own official Holocaust Remembrance Day on July 4. While we officially commemorate the Holocaust on these days, we must carry their lessons with us every day. We must stand against attitudes that value some individuals below others. We must expand the circle of rights and opportunities to all people – advancing their freedoms and possibilities.
Intolerance is a moral, a political, and a social problem. But it is also a solvable one. It is not unchangeable. We are not born hating. Somewhere we learn to hate. We can, in fact, make hatred and intolerance something of the past. But this demands our attention. It’s not easy work, but it is urgent work.
At the U.S. Department of State (which is like the Foreign Ministry in Latvia) I work within the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor. The primary and overarching goal of the Bureau is to promote freedom and democracy and protect human rights around the world. We are constantly strengthening our policies and pushing ourselves and others to break down former walls of intolerance. Over the past three years, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has made the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people – “LGBT” in shorthand -- a priority of our human rights policy. As Secretary Clinton emphatically stated, “Gay rights are human rights and human rights are gay rights.”
In the United States, we are inspired by the idea that all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. The United States has a strong multi-ethnic heritage. Over the course of centuries, many people have immigrated to the United States in hopes of a better life with more opportunities. We embrace this diversity and continue to uphold these values in our everyday lives, actions and laws.
I am learning that Latvia too has a diverse and multicultural history. Various tribes -- the Livs, the Letts, and the Cours -- lived here for many centuries. People from Belarus, Germany, Russia, Sweden, Ukraine, and many other places have played an important part in Latvia’s history. Jews have also contributed to Latvia’s heritage since the sixteenth century. In the eighteenth century, a Jewish man named Abraham Kuntze invented the famous Rigas Balzam (Latvia’s signature liquor). Latvia’s Jews backed the independence movement in the early twentieth century, with hundreds volunteering for service in the Latvian Army and fighting heroically during the war for independence. Latvia’s Jews thrived during the independence period of the 1920s and 30s, serving in parliament and helping write Latvia’s constitution. Zigfrids Meierovics, the first Foreign Minister of Latvia, and twice Prime Minister, had a Jewish father.
Sadly, when the Soviets arrived in Latvia in 1940, they shut down Jewish institutions and seized Jews’ property. When the Soviets deported tens of thousands of Latvians to Siberia, hundreds of Latvian Jews were deported as well. And then, just over one year later, the Holocaust followed and approximately 70,000 of Latvia’s Jews – almost 90 percent – were murdered by the Nazis and their accomplices.
And yet, the Jewish people survived in Latvia. In the 1980s and 90s, Latvia’s Jews once again supported Latvian independence from the Soviet Union, lending their efforts to those of the Popular Front of Latvia. Jews stood on the barricades in 1991. Today, Jews – along with all other Latvians -- are free to practice their faith and to celebrate their culture in a free Latvia. Latvian society is richer, and more diverse, because of the contributions of all these people.
Of course, neither Latvia, nor the United States, is perfect. There are people in both of our countries who do not believe in diversity and respect in every society. However, if we condemn their words of hate, we can spread the message of dignity and respect.
Anti-Semitism and other forms of hatred attack the very idea that every individual is born free and equal in dignity and rights. But Jews, Christians, Muslims and all religious communities are all part of the same family we call humanity. As a child of a Holocaust survivor, anti-Semitism is something very personal to me. My father was arrested – on Kristallnacht, the unofficial pogrom that many think started the Holocaust – and sent with many fellow Jews to prison and then to the Buchenwald concentration camp in Germany. And he was the lucky one – every other person in his family was murdered at Auschwitz. I have dedicated my life to eradicating anti-Semitism and intolerance with a sense of urgency and passion that only my father could give me.
At the State Department, we are trying to make human rights a human reality. As the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism, I have recognized that this will not be possible without the help of you, our youth and future leaders.
Last year my colleague Farah Pandith, the Special Representative to Muslims Communities, and I launched a virtual campaign called “2011 Hours Against Hate,” using Facebook. Perhaps you have heard of it? We are asking you, young people around the world, to pledge a number of hours to volunteer to help or serve a population different than their own. We ask that you work with people who may look different, or pray differently or live differently. For example, a young Jew might volunteer time to read books at a Muslim pre-school, or a Russian Orthodox at a Jewish clinic, or a Muslim at a Baha’i food pantry, or a straight woman at an LGBT center. We want to encourage YOU to walk a mile in another person’s shoes. And while our goal was to get 2011 hours pledged, at the end of last year youth all over the world had pledged tens of thousands of hours.
The campaign was, in fact, so successful that we continued it into 2012. Thanks to a group of British non-governmental organizations, we are now also partnering with the London Olympic and Paralympic Games! In January, the London Olympic and Paralympics approved our application to have 2012 Hours Against Hate branded with the Olympics logo. We can now leverage the energy surrounding the 2012 Olympics to encourage athletes and fans alike to participate in combating hate and pledging their time to help or serve someone who is different from them.
Farah and I have met hundreds of young people – students and young professionals – in Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia. They want to DO something. And I have a feeling that YOU want to DO something too. Last summer, Farah and I met with youth and interfaith leaders in Jordan, Lebanon, and Saudi Arabia, and discussed reaching out to others, increasing tolerance and understanding among different religious groups, and addressed intolerance in their textbooks and lessons. Last month we traveled to Albania to encourage students from Tirana University and the local Madrasah to participate in 2012 Hours Against Hate. We held a panel discussion on the importance of religious diversity, and encouraged Albanian youth to live up to their country’s important legacy of acceptance and courage: Albania was the only country that saved all of its Jews during the Holocaust. Really, we have just begun.
So while I fight anti-Semitism, I am also aware that hate is hate. Nothing justifies it – not economic instability, not international events, not isolated incidents of hate.
Since the beginning of humankind, hate has been around, but since then too, good people of all faiths and backgrounds have worked to combat it. The Jewish tradition tells us that “you are not required to complete the task, but neither are you free to desist from it.”
Together, we must confront and combat the many forms of hatred in our world today. Where there is hatred born of ignorance, we must teach and inspire. Where there is hatred born of blindness, we must expose people to a larger world of ideas and reach out, especially to youth, so they can see beyond their immediate circumstances. Where there is hatred whipped up by irresponsible leaders, we must call them out and answer as strongly as we can – and make their message totally unacceptable to all people of conscience.
Thank you again for inviting me here to speak to you today. I am now happy and excited to answer your questions.


Giant Water Scavenger Beetle
|Geographical Range||North America|
|Scientific Name||Hydrophilus triangularis|
|Conservation Status||Not listed by IUCN|
The name says it all. This large beetle lives in water, where it scavenges vegetation and insect parts. The insect can store a supply of air within its silvery belly, much like a deep-sea diver stores air in a tank.


January 23, 2007:
The paper by researchers at Yale, the University of Winnipeg, Stony Brook University, and led by University of Florida paleontologist Jonathan Bloch reconstructs the base of the primate family tree by comparing skeletal and fossil specimens representing more than 85 modern and extinct species. The team also discovered two 56-million-year-old fossils, including the most primitive primate skeleton ever described.
In the two-part study, an extensive evaluation of skeletal structures provides evidence that plesiadapiforms, a group of archaic mammals once thought to be more closely related to flying lemurs, are the most primitive primates. The team analyzed 173 characteristics of modern primates, tree shrews, flying lemurs with plesiadapiform skeletons to determine their evolutionary relationships. High-resolution CT scanning made fine resolution of inaccessible structures inside the skulls possible.
"This is the first study to bring it all together," said co-author Eric Sargis, associate professor of anthropology at Yale University and Assistant Curator of Vertebrate Zoology at Yale's Peabody Museum of Natural History. "The extensive dataset, the number and type of characteristics we were able to compare, and the availability of full skeletons, let us test far more than any previous study."
At least five major features characterize modern primates: relatively large brains, enhanced vision and eyes that face forward, a specialized ability to leap, nails instead of claws on at least the first toes, and specialized grasping hands and feet. Plesiadapiforms have some but not all of these traits. The article argues that these early primates may have acquired the traits over 10 million years in incremental changes to exploit their environment.
While the study did not include a molecular evaluation of the samples, according to Sargis, these results are consistent with molecular studies on related living groups. Compatibility with the independent molecular data increases the researchers' confidence in their own results.
Bloch discovered the new plesiadapiform species, Ignacius clarkforkensis and Dryomomys szalayi, just outside Yellowstone National Park in the Bighorn Basin with co-author Doug Boyer, a graduate student in anatomical sciences at Stony Brook. Previously, based only on skulls and isolated bones, scientists proposed that Ignacius was not an archaic primate, but instead a gliding mammal related to flying lemurs. However, analysis of a more complete and well-preserved skeleton by Bloch and his team altered this idea.
"These fossil finds from Wyoming show that our earliest primate ancestors were the size of a mouse, ate fruit and lived in the trees," said study leader Jonathan Bloch, a vertebrate paleontology curator at the Florida Museum of Natural History. "It is remarkable to think we are still discovering new fossil species in an area studied by paleontologists for over 100 years."
Researchers previously hypothesized plesiadapiforms as the ancestors of modern primates, but the idea generated strong debate within the primatology community. This study places the origins of Plesiadapiforms in the Paleocene, about 65 (million) to 55 million years ago in the period between the extinction of the dinosaurs and the first appearance of a number of undisputed members of the modern orders of mammals.
"Plesiadapiforms have long been one of the most controversial groups in mammalian phylogeny," said Michael J. Novacek, curator of paleontology at the American Museum of Natural History. "First, they are somewhere near primates and us. Second, historically they have offered tantalizing, but very often incomplete, fossil evidence. But the specimens in their study are beautifully and spectacularly preserved."
"The results of this study suggest that plesiadapiforms are the critical taxa to study in understanding the earliest phases of human evolution. As such, they should be of very broad interest to biologists, paleontologists, and anthropologists," said co-author Mary Silcox, professor of anthropology at the University of Winnipeg.
"This collaboration is the first to bring together evidence from all regions of the skeleton, and offers a well-supported perspective on the structure of the earliest part of the primate family tree," Bloch said.
The research was supported by grants from the National Science Foundation, Field Museum of Natural History, Yale University, Sigma Xi Scientific Research Society, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (Canada), University of Winnipeg, the Paleobiological Fund, and The Wenner--Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research.


THL Toolbox > Audio-Video > Overview
Contributor(s): David Germano, James Graves, Chelsea Hall, Eric Woelfel.
New developments in digital technology and the Web offer exciting new possibilities for the incorporation of audio-video into new areas of research, publication and teaching. They also allow us for the first time to use and explore audio-video creatively in ways previously only possible with texts, such as providing for powerful ways to search media files and giving users tools to creatively alter audio-video files to incorporate into their own work. However, working with audio-video can also be very frustrating, and thus THL has expended considerable energies in developing tools and documentation to provide a systematic framework for the creation, delivery and use of audio-video in research, publication and teaching.
For a beginner's lesson on how to use the AV Database website, please see: Using the THL AV Database.
The overall process from start to finish can be divided into five distinct phases:
- Create the audio-video through recording sessions
- Technically process the media into edited segments in formats usable on a computer
- Catalog the resultant media titles with metadata
- Linguistically process the media titles with transcription, translation, annotation and timecoding
- Package the media title into research publications, or into instructional units, including integration with reference databases, for delivery to end users
Given the demands of such a process, it is vital that an integrated set of tools with proper manuals and broader documentation are available which are free, open source, and suited for educational purposes. We are creating comprehensive documentation for each phase, which themselves involve a series of internal steps and processes often requiring separate documentation. As a whole, these materials form the basis for our training and reference with regard to audio-video materials.
1. Determine a title to be produced.
- Review/screen recorded material (i.e., video tapes) and decide how they might be broken down into discrete titles. Each title will be its own video. Consult standardized guidelines for generating titles, including standardized phraseology, etc.
- Generating Titles & Credits for Recordings
2. Propose a title (and corresponding credits for each title) and have them checked by Germano.
- (Typically, it's best to prepare a batch of titles and their corresponding credits, and submit that to Germano, rather than submitting titles to him one-by-one.)
3. Send the approved titles and credits to Penam in Lhasa, or a local Tibetan assigned to the task like Tsering Wangchuk and Tsering Perlo to be rendered into Tibetan and Chinese.
4. Meanwhile digitize and edit your titles in Final Cut Pro, inserting blank title and credit slates whose trilingual information can be added later, once translations are ready.
5. Complete catalog entries in BOTH the physical media (i.e., tapes) database AND Audio-Video database.
- Physical Media Database: Make sure the content of the tape is properly described in the physical media database. Also include the recording date, the tape format (i.e., NTSC, PAL, HD, etc.), and other useful data about the tape itself and its recording.
- AV Database: Give a short description of the title’s content, fill out the relevant metadata (like language, etc.), propose collection classifications if not obvious, & record as much information as you can about participants involved in your title, under the "Credits" tab of each AVDB entry
- Consult with a native Tibetan speaker to help process participant information on handwritten forms as necessary. (Often such forms are filled out in the cursive script, not dbu can, and may therefore be harder to understand.)
6. Compress each title in Final Cut Pro, making sure you've included ending credits. Upload the files to the server after compression and after converting the audio files to MPEG-3 and generating thumbnails.
7. Alert a Transcription Center that the compression is ready for transcription, and eventual translation.
8. If relevant, once transcribed, it can be further processed for use in an instructional unit or other presentational context (see making language instructional units).
NOTE: If possible, use the fields under the workflow tab in order to mark processes as completed. In addition, you should keep track of the workflow in a more comprehensive fashion using the status reports for av, ie: titles waiting to be approved, completed titles, etc. In the future, we hope the new AV database will allow for tracking of workflow so that everyone involved can easily fnd what titles need to be translated, etc. by using the database itself.


Who Was Martin Luther King, Jr.?
ISBN 9780448478050 | 112 pages | 27 Dec 2007 | Grosset & Dunlap | 5.59 x 7.67in | 8 - 12 years
Summary of Who Was Martin Luther King, Jr.? Summary of Who Was Martin Luther King, Jr.? Reviews for Who Was Martin Luther King, Jr.? An Excerpt from Who Was Martin Luther King, Jr.?
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was only 25 when he helped organize the Montgomery Bus Boycott and was soon organizing black people across the country in support of the right to vote, desegregation, and other basic civil rights. Maintaining nonviolent and peaceful tactics even when his life was threatened, King was also an advocate for the poor and spoke out against racial and economic injustice until his death—from an assassin’s bullet—in 1968. With clearly written text that explains this tumultuous time in history and 80 black-and-white illustrations, this Who Was…? celebrates the vision and the legacy of a remarkable man.
To keep up-to-date, input your email address, and we will contact you on publication
Please alert me via email when:


What is Rainwater Harvesting?
Rainwater harvesting is an ancient practice of catching and holding rain for later use. In a rainwater harvesting system, rain is gathered from a building rooftop or other source and is held in large containers for future use, such as watering gardens or washing cars. This practice reduces the demand on water resources and is excellent during times of drought.
Why is it Important?
In addition to reducing the demand on our water sources (especially important during drought), rainwater harvesting also helps prevent water pollution. Surprised?
Here’s why: the success of the 1972 Clean Water Act has meant that the greatest threat to New York’s waterbodies comes not from industrial sources, but rather through the small actions we all make in our daily lives. For example, in a rain storm, the oil, pesticides, animal waste, and litter from our lawns, sidewalks, driveways, and streets are washed down into our sewers. This is called non-point source (NPS) pollution because the pollutants come from too many sources to be identified. Rainwater harvesting diverts water from becoming polluted stormwater; instead, this captured rainwater may be used to irrigate gardens near where it falls.
In New York City, keeping rainwater out of the sewer system is very important. That’s because the city has an old combined sewer system that uses the same pipes to transport both household waste and stormwater to sewage treatment plants. During heavy rains, the system overloads; then untreated sewage and contaminated stormwater overflow into our rivers and estuary, with serious consequences:
Who is Harvesting Rainwater in New York City?
Back in 2002, a drought emergency pushed many community gardens to the brink of extinction. For the first time in twenty years, community gardeners were denied permission to use fire hydrants, the primary source of water for most community gardens. This crisis led to the formation of the Water Resources Group (WRG), an open collaboration of community gardening and environmental organizations. With help from the WRG, rainwater harvesting systems have now been built as demonstration sites in twenty NYC community gardens.
At community gardens that harvest rainwater, rain is diverted from the gutters of adjacent buildings and is stored in tanks in the gardens. A 1-inch rainfall on a 1,000-square-foot roof produces 600 gallons of water. The tanks are mosquito proof, so the standing water does not encourage West Nile virus. Because rainwater is chlorine free, it is better than tap water for plant growth, meaning healthier plants. And it’s free!
What are Other Cities Doing?
Many cities have adopted creative, low-cost ways to stop wasting rainwater by diverting it from their sewage systems and putting it to use where it falls. Here are some examples:
What Can I Do?
Spread the word! Educate those around you on the importance of lifestyle decisions.
Tell people not to litter, dump oil down storm drains, or overfertilize their lawns.
Install a rainwater harvesting system at your home, school, business, or local community center.
Contact your local elected officials, and let them know you support rainwater harvesting!
Supporting rainwater harvesting Jade Boat Loans


Henry Evans is a mute quadriplegic, having suffered a stroke when he was just 40 years old. Following extensive therapy, Henry regained the ability to move his head and use a finger, which allows him to operate computers. Last year, Henry caught a TV interview of Georgia Tech Professor Charlie Kemp showing research with the Willow Garage PR2 robot. Willow Garage and Professor Kemp were contacted by Henry shortly afterwards, and we have been collaborating since then.
We are currently exploring ways for Henry to use a PR2 robot as his surrogate. Every day, people take for granted the simple act of scratching an itch. In Henry's case, 2-3 times every hour of every day he gets an itch he can't scratch. With the aid of a PR2, Henry was able to scratch an itch for himself for the first time in 10 years.
While this is only a first step, it demonstrates how people with severe physical disabilities could use personal robots to gain independence. In another example, Henry recently used the PR2 to shave his cheek. We are actively researching ways for Henry and others to perform tasks like these on a daily basis.
Currently, Henry uses a head tracker to operate a variety of experimental user interfaces. These interfaces allow him to directly move the robot's body, including its arms and head. They also let him invoke autonomous actions, such as navigating in a room and reaching out to a location.
Robots that complement human abilities are extremely valuable, especially when they help us do things that we can't do by ourselves. Our goal is to get robots in homes to help people like Henry and Jane Evans. This is just the beginning.
Leila Takayama Recognized by MIT Technology Review's TR35 Listing of the World's Top Young Innovators for 2012


On behalf of Gov. Mark Schweiker, Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Secretary David E. Hess announced that this month's episode of the Emmy-award-winning television series GreenWorks for Pennsylvania features stories about people working to protect Pennsylvania's watersheds.
"Raising awareness of the role watersheds play in our environment is one of the cornerstones of Pennsylvania's `Growing Greener' program," Hess said. "The current episode of GreenWorks features people of all ages learning about, protecting and restoring Pennsylvania's watersheds.
GreenWorks, produced in a video-magazine format, takes viewers across the Commonwealth to spotlight people doing positive things for the environment. GreenWorks is supported by DEP and the Environmental Fund for Pennsylvania (EFP). The current episode runs through October. This month's episode includes these features.
* The Radnor Middle School Watershed Program in Delaware County, which takes students out of the classroom and into the field to learn about watersheds first hand.
* Members of the Delaware RiverKeepers, who worked on mitigating stream bank erosion by clearing, regrading and covering a stream bank with a biodegradable mesh of coconut fibers allowing native plants to regain a healthy foothold.
* The Pottstown Watershed Alliance, which removed an old dam in the Manatawny Creek in Pottstown, Montgomery County, to improve water quality.
* Members of the Swatara Creek Watershed Association and DEP staff, which cleaned up 33 acres of abandoned mine drainage in Schuylkill County.
* The River Sojourn 2001, where people from all walks of life canoed and kayaked on Pennsylvania rivers to connect with and appreciate the beauty and power of the state's natural water resources.
"We all depend on rivers and watersheds for drinking water and more," EFP Executive Director Timothy J. Schlitzer said. "I hope this program will deepen viewers' understanding and respect for what it takes to protect our precious waterways."
EFP funds environmental education and improvement projects from contributions made through employee payroll-deduction programs established by businesses and the Commonwealth and other donations.
The series reaches more than five million households in Pennsylvania through 83 cable television stations as well as the Public Broadcasting Service.
For a listing of stations carrying GreenWorks and information on particular broadcasts, visit the GreenWorks website through the PA PowerPort at www.state.pa.us, directly at www.GreenWorks.tv, or call EFP at 1-800-PAGREEN ext. 1.


"Caring, Effective, Middle/High School Math Tutor"
...Sometimes it is just more practice that is needed, but in any case it is very important that students know math facts, operations, decimals, fractions, ratios, percents, and proportions extremely well. They must also have general "number sense." I bring a lot of experience helping students learn these basics, which are the key building blocks of...
10 subjects, including algebra 1


Why is my paper pink?
The color of today’s paper is probably quite a shock to many of our readers, and that is just the effect we are hoping for.
Today marks the beginning of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and this edition of The Yazoo Herald is dedicated to raising awareness about the importance of early detection and encouraging support for efforts to help find a cure.
Most of us know someone who has been affected by breast cancer. Besides some forms of skin cancer, it is the most common cancer in women.
It doesn’t discriminate. Breast cancer rates are equally high among women of all races. The Center of Disease Control reports that it is the highest cause of death by cancer among Hispanic women and the second-leading cancer cause of death among white and black women. One in eight women in the United States will suffer from invasive breast cancer at some point in their lives.
Fortunately, breast cancer deaths have been decreasing since 1990 as detection and treatment improve, reducing the mortality rate to 3 in 100. If you’re reading this and you haven’t had an examination, it’s time to make an appointment.
Last Updated (Friday, 30 September 2011 18:19)


Not Just for Kids
The Hunt for Falling Leaves...
Nature's Color on the Ground
by Mary Catherine Ball
Being a reporter, I am always looking for an adventure. Last week, I found one.
I left work to go on a simple journey, but it turned out to be much more.
First, I crossed a mud-ridden stream. Then, I came face to face with flying creatures, fighting to get near me. I even endured webmakers spinning my hair into a shiny maze.
Where did I go? Into the woods, of course. Why? I wanted to gather some fallen leaves.
My luck was good that day. I was able to spy lots of different kinds of leaves lying on the ground. Some were leaves I had never seen. Some were still green, while others were changing to their autumn colors.
Have you ever hunted for leaves? I wonder if you know the names of five of the trees that live in your neighborhood? I bet the answer is no.
Well, me neither. So I had five of the leaves analyzed. I had found the leaves from an oak, a beech, a sweet gum tree and more.
Now, I invite you to make this journey.
Narrow body with pointy edges
Narrow body with pointy edges
May grow berries
Good for sap & color
3 distinct leafs
May grow nuts
This is your task...
Travel to the deep, dark woods (in the daylight) to find these 5 leaves. Cut out the page and take it with you. Make sure you can match your discovery with mine. Happy leaf-hunting!
Stone Soup October 9 (11:30am)-Enjoy lunch and a show. After you eat peanut butter & jelly, watch Stone Soup, performed by the Lost Caravan. Lunch is at noon; show starts at 12:30. Chesapeake Music Hall, Off Rt. 50 approaching the Bay Bridge: 410/406-0306.
All Aboard October 9 & 10 (2pm)-Chug a chug to Zany Brainy for train fun. Listen to stories and sing railroad songs. Build your own trains. Ages 3+. Zany Brainy, Annap. Harb. Ctr.: 410/266-1447.
Tiny Tots Fall for Nature Tues. Oct 12 (10:30am-noon) Three- to five-year-olds (and their adult) hike into the woods to hear autumn stories, gather leaves and make a craft. Bring a bag lunch to enjoy w/apple cider @ King's Landing Park, Huntingtown. $3 rsvp: 800/735-2258.
Spooky Stories in the Woods Tues. Oct. 12 (10:30-noon)-Hike with a ranger to a clearing in the woods. Listen to autumn stories and drink warm apple cider. Gather leaves to make a craft. Bring a bag lunch. Kings Landing Park, Huntingtown: 410/535-5327.
Musical Minds Wed. Oct. 13 (4-4:45pm)-Music makes the world go round. So sing, listen to stories and play musical instruments. Ages 2-4. Chesapeake Children's Museum, Festival at Riva. $8.50; rsvp: 410/266-0677.
Nature Designs Deadline Oct. 15-Create your favorite nature scene out of clay or on paper to win prizes. Age categories are 3-5, 6-8 and 9-12 years. Place winners win nature books or statues. All art forms accepted. Take your masterpiece to Wild Bird Center, Annapolis Harbour Center: 410/573-0345.
Tiny Tots get in Touch with Mother Nature Sat. Oct 16 (10-10:30am)
Tiny tots (2-3 w/adult) learn nature by touch, feeling the many different
textures rough and soft in the world around us. @ Battle Creek Cypress Swamp,
Prince Frederick: 800/735-2258.
| Issue 40 |
Volume VII Number 40
October 7-13, 1999
New Bay Times
| Homepage |
| Back to Archives |


Intellectual disability begins in childhood. People with intellectual disability have limits in their mental functioning seen in below-average intelligence (IQ) tests and in their ability to communicate, socialize, and take care of their everyday needs. The degree of disability can vary from person to person. It can be categorized as mild, moderate, severe, or profound.
Some causes of intellectual disability can be prevented with proper medical care. Children diagnosed with an intellectual disability are most successful when they get help early in life. If you suspect that your child may have an intellectual disability, contact your doctor.
Several hundred causes of intellectual disability have been discovered, but many are still unknown. The most common ones are:
Biomedical causes resulting from:
- Abnormal genes inherited from parents
- Errors when genes combine, such as Down syndrome and Fragile X syndrome
- Nutritional deficiencies
- Metabolic conditions, such as phenylketonuria (PKU), galactosemia , and congenital hypothyroidism
- Developmental brain abnormality, such as hydrocephalus and brain malformation
- Infections during pregnancy, such as:
- Behavioral issues during pregnancy, such as:
Problems at birth, such as:
- Premature delivery or low birth weight
- Baby doesn’t get enough oxygen during birth
- Baby is injured during birth
Factors during childhood, such as:
- Nutritional deficiencies
- Illnesses or infections that affect the brain, including meningitis , encephalitis , chickenpox , whooping cough , and measles
- Exposure to lead , mercury , and other toxins
- Head injury or near drowning
- Social factors, such as child stimulation and adult responsiveness
- Educational deficiencies
A child could be at higher risk for intellectual disability due to any of the causes listed above, or due to intellectual disability in other family members. If you are concerned that your child is at risk, tell your child's doctor.
Symptoms appear before a child reaches age 18. Symptoms vary depending on the degree of the intellectual disability. If you think your child has any of these symptoms, do not assume it is due to intellectual disability. These symptoms may be caused by other, less serious health conditions.
- Learning and developing more slowly than other children of the same age
- Difficulty communicating or socializing with others
- Lower than average scores on IQ tests
- Trouble learning in school
- Inability to do everyday things like getting dressed or using the bathroom without help
- Difficulty hearing, seeing, walking, or talking
- Inability to think logically
The following categories are often used to describe the level of intellectual disability:
- IQ 50-70
- Slower than normal in all areas
- No unusual physical signs
- Can learn practical skills
- Reading and math skills up to grades 3-6
- Can conform socially
- Can learn daily task skills
- Functions in society
- IQ 35-49
- Noticeable delays, particularly speech
- May have unusual physical signs
- Can learn simple communication
- Can learn elementary health and safety skills
- Can participate in simple activities and self-care
- Can perform supervised tasks
- Can travel alone to familiar places
- IQ 20-34
- Significant delays in some areas; may walk late
- Little or no communication skills, but some understanding of speech with some response
- Can be taught daily routines and repetitive activities
- May be trained in simple self-care
- Needs direction and supervision socially
- IQ <20
- Significant delays in all areas
- Congenital abnormalities present
- Needs close supervision
- Requires attendant care
- May respond to regular physical and social activity
- Not capable of self-care
If you suspect your child is not developing skills on time, tell the doctor as soon as possible. Your doctor will ask about your child’s symptoms and medical history. A physical exam will be done. Standardized tests may be given that measure:
- Intelligence—IQ tests measure a person’s ability to do things such as think abstractly, learn, and solve problems. A child may have intellectual disability if IQ test results are 70 or below.
Adaptive behavior—These are skills needed to function in everyday life, including:
- Conceptual skills like reading and writing
- Social skills like responsibility and self-esteem
- Practical skills like the ability to eat, use the bathroom, and get dressed
Children with intellectual disability have a higher risk for other disabilities such as hearing impairment , visual problems, seizures , attention deficit hyperactivity disorder , or orthopaedic conditions. Additional testing may be needed to check for other conditions.
Talk with your doctor about the best treatment plan for your child. Treatment is most helpful if it begins as early as possible. Treatment includes:
- Early intervention programming for infants and toddlers up to age three
- Family counseling
- Human development training, including emotional skills and hand-eye coordination
- Special education programs
- Life skills training, such as preparing food, bathing
- Job coaching
- Social opportunities
- Housing services
To help reduce your child’s chance of becoming intellectually disabled, take the following steps:
- During pregnancy:
- Have your newborn screened for conditions that may produce intellectual disability.
- Have your child properly immunized .
- Schedule regular visits to the pediatrician.
- Use child safety seats and bicycle helmets.
- Remove lead-based paint from your home.
- Keep poisonous household products out of reach .
- Aspirin is not recommended for children or teens with a current or recent viral infection. This is because of the risk of Reye's syndrome , which can cause neurological problems. Ask your doctor which medicines are safe for your child.
- Reviewer: Rimas Lukas, MD
- Review Date: 03/2013 -
- Update Date: 00/31/2013 -


Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)
Passed in 1996, The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) denies federal recognition of gay marriages and gives each state the right to refuse recognition of same-sex marriage licenses issued by other states. The act does not prohibit states from allowing gay marriages, but neither does it obligate states to recognize the gay marriages from other states. For the first time in history, the federal government defines marriage in the Act as a "legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife," and spouse is defined as "a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or a wife." Marriages that do not fit this description are not eligible for any benefits offered by the federal government.
For More Information on DOMA, see Senate Subcommittee Hearing on the Proposed Federal Defense of Marriage Act.


12. June 2012 10:55
Retinal hemorrhage occurs when the blood vessels in the retina get damaged or ruptured, leading to abnormal bleeding. The retina, which is composed of rods and cones is the region of the eye responsible for sensitivity to light, and vision. The retinal vein and artery, along with a dense network of capillaries, are responsible for transmitting the blood supply to the retina. When these blood vessels are damaged, due to any reason, this affects the blood supply to the retina, which in turn leads to a decrease in visual acuity. Diabetic retinopathy is the leading cause of blindness in people aged between 20 and 65.
The dense network of cells in the retina is extremely sensitive, and can be damaged with even a slight trauma.
The causes due to which this damage might occur include:
- High blood pressure
- Forceful blows in the head region
- Child abuse in infants
- Improper development of blood vessels in infants born prematurely
- Blurred vision
- Spotted vision
- Lines in the field of vision
- Blind spots
- Distorted vision
- Progressive vision loss
- The disease is diagnosed by an ophthalmologist, who uses an opthalmoscope to examine the internal structure of the eye.
- Another method that is commonly used to detect the abnormalities in the blood vessels is a fluorescein angiography test, in which a fluorescent dye is injected into the patient’s bloodstream, after which photographs are clicked to view the blood vessels.
- In some cases, the physician might also order for a blood test to be performed.
- The disorder is self-limiting in most patients, with more than 85% cases healing on their own.
- The most common treatment for retinal hemorrhages is laser treatment, in which a laser beam is used to remove the affected blood vessels.
- If the disease is caused by some underlying medical condition like diabetes or hypertension, the treatment focuses on eliminating that disorder.
- Injection of anti-VEGF drugs like Avestin has been found to be effective in the treatment of hemorrhages associated with the growth of new vessels.
- The administration of various nutritional and herbal supplements like antioxidants, omega-3-rich foods, antioxidant vitamins, zinc, lutein, pine bark extract, grape seed extract, etc. has also been found to be effective in improving the symptoms of the disease.
We at Killeen Eyecare center are renowned throughout Killeen for providing the highest quality eye care to all our patients. We help them maintain healthy eyes and treat various eye diseases using most sophisticated instruments. For more details, you can visit us at 416 North Gray Street, Killeen, TX 76541, Downtown Killeen or call at 254-634-7805.
Eye Doctor Killeen - Eye Doctor Fort Hood


Types of literature
PRIMARY SOURCES are publications that report the results of original research. They may be in the form of conference papers, monographic series, technical reports, theses and dissertations, or journal articles. Because they present information in its original form (that is, it has not been interpreted or condensed or otherwise “repackaged” by other writers), these are considered primary sources. The works present new thinking/discoveries/results and unite them with the existing knowledge base. Journal articles that report original research are one of the more common and important steps in the information sharing cycle. They often go through a process in which they are “peer reviewed” by other experts who evaluate the work and findings before publication.
SECONDARY SOURCES are those which are published about the primary literature, that generalize, analyze, interpret, evaluate or otherwise “add value” to the original information, OR which simplify the process of finding and evaluating the primary literature. Some examples of secondary sources are “review” articles and indexes or bibliographies, such as PubMed or the ScienceDirect.
TERTIARY SOURCES compile or digest information from primary or secondary sources that has become widely accepted. They aim to provide a broad overview of a topic, or data, already proven facts, and definitions, often presented in a convenient form. They provide no new information. These include “reference” types of works such as textbooks, encyclopedias, fact books, guides and handbooks, and computer databases such as The Handbook of the Microbiological Media and SciFinder.
GRAY LITERATURE are source materials not available through the usual systems of publication (e.g., books or periodicals) and distribution. Gray literature includes conference proceedings, dissertations, technical reports, and working papers. Locating this type of literature is a little more difficult, but there are finding tools such as Dissertations Abstracts and PapersFirst.
What is a literature review?
A literature review discusses published information in a particular subject area, and sometimes information in a particular subject area within a certain time period.
A literature review can be just a simple summary of the sources, but it usually has an organizational pattern and combines both summary and synthesis. A summary is a recap of the important information of the source, but a synthesis is a re-organization, or a reshuffling, of that information. It might give a new interpretation of old material or combine new with old interpretations. Or it might trace the intellectual progression of the field, including major debates. And depending on the situation, the literature review may evaluate the sources and advise the reader on the most pertinent or relevant.
But how is a literature review different from an academic research paper?
While the main focus of an academic research paper is to support your own argument, the focus of a literature review is to summarize and synthesize the arguments and ideas of others. The academic research paper also covers a range of sources, but it is usually a select number of sources, because the emphasis is on the argument. Likewise, a literature review can also have an "argument," but it is not as important as covering a number of sources. In short, an academic research paper and a literature review contain some of the same elements. In fact, many academic research papers will contain a literature review section. But it is the aspect of the study (the argument or the sources) that is emphasized that determines what type of document it is.
Why do we write literature reviews?
Literature reviews provide you with a handy guide to a particular topic. If you have limited time to conduct research, literature reviews can give you an overview or act as a stepping stone. For professionals, they are useful reports that keep them up to date with what is current in the field. For scholars, the depth and breadth of the literature review emphasizes the credibility of the writer in his or her field. Literature reviews also provide a solid background for a research paper's investigation. Comprehensive knowledge of the literature of the field is essential to most research papers.
Who writes these things, anyway?
Literature reviews are written occasionally in the humanities, but mostly in the sciences and social sciences; in experiment and lab reports, they constitute a section of the paper. Sometimes a literature review is written as a paper in itself.
Excerpt from “Literature Reviews” from The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (http://writingcenter.unc.edu/resources/handouts-demos/specific-writing-assignments/literature-reviews), 2007.
Collection Development Librarian
1014 Boswell Ave.
Crete NE 68333


knowledge is from the heart as well as the mind. It is not a mere
mental perception of the forms of things or a knowledge of their
material nature; it must include the soul of things, the divine ideas
that they enshrine.
Everything is dependent on the small things: relaxation - you
always relax more; acceptance, oneself and others - can always try;
house-cleaning - will always be just as difficult, but at least you
have done it before. It is important to do all these little things
Question: - How can we discern
whether it is the divine conscience animating us and directing us in a
certain direction, or the
animal soul seeking release from seemingly unfavorable environments:
Answer: - The divine conscience acts in all struggles for betterment, but clouded more or less in each by reason of education and habit of thought; hence it varies in brightness. It is not possible to make a hard-and-fast fixed rule for finding out what is the animating motive. If we are trying to get into a better state, it is for us to decide if that be simply and wholly selfish. All actions are surrounded by desire as the rust is round the polished metal or the smoke round the fire, but we must try. So if we fix for ourselves the rule that we will try to do the best we can for others, we will generally be led right. If we rely on the higher self and aspire to be guided by it, we will be led to the right even if the road goes through pain, for sorrow and pain are necessary for purification of the soul. But if we wish to run away from an environment because we do not like it and without trying to live in it while not of it, we are not altering ourselves but simply altering the circumstances, and may not always gain anything.
Questioner: What is your attitude to the early teachings of Theosophy, the Blavatsky type? Do you consider we have deteriorated or advanced?
KRISHNAMURTI: I am afraid I do not know, because I do not know what Madame Blavatsky's teachings are. Why should I? Why should you know of someone else's teachings? You know, there is only one truth, and therefore there is only one way, which is not distant from the truth; there is only one method to that truth, because the means are not distinct from the end.
Now you who have studied Madame Blavatsky's and the latest Theosophy, or whatever it is, why do you want to be students of books instead of students of life? Why do you set up leaders and ask whose teachings are better? Don't you see? Please, I am not being harsh, or anything of that kind. Don't you see? You are Christians; find out what is true and false in Christianity—and you will then find out what is true. Find out what is true and false in your environment with all its oppressions and cruelties, and then you will find out what is true. Why do you want philosophies? Because life is an ugly thing, and you hope to run away from it through philosophy. Life is so empty, dull, stupid, ignominious, and you want something to bring romanticism into your world, some hope, some lingering, haunting feeling; whereas, if you really faced the world as it is, and tackled it, you would find it something much more, infinitely greater than any philosophy, greater than any book in the world, greater than any teaching or greater than any teacher.
We have really lost all sense of feeling, feeling for the oppressed, and feeling for the oppressor. You only feel when you are oppressed. So gradually we have intellectually explained away all our feelings, our sensitiveness, our delicate perceptions, until we are absolutely shallow; and to fill that shallowness, to enrich ourselves, we study books.
The Theosophical Society has had three objects for more than a century. They are:
Of these three objects the first has been considered the most important, at least since the time H.P. Blavatsky and H.S. Olcott arrived in India in 1879. Strangely enough the 'mission-statement' of the Theosophical Society in Wheaton (Adyar) rephrases the above, but leaves brotherhood out. It is as follows:
To encourage open-minded enquiry into world religions, philosophy, science, and the arts in order to understand the wisdom of the ages, respect the unity of all life, and help people explore spiritual self-transformation.
A mission statement is merely another word for aim or object. So one would expect the three objects of the Theosophical Society to agree precisely with the mission-statement. One would also expect the wording of the mission-statement to be more modern. In that vein it would have been a nice challenge if the board of directors of the US-section of the TS had found a new sex-neutral way of saying that people should treat each other well. What else does a 'nucleus of the Universal Brotherhood of Humanity (etc)' mean? But to leave it all out is really going too far for me, and for several of the people I met in Wheaton this summer. This mission-statement sounds selfish to me. Great: I find an organisation where people will help me with my self-transformation en where my open enquiry into religions, spirituality and science will be supported. Wonderful. And there is no suggestion that I personally need to do anything at all. I don't need to practice loving kindness. I don't need to find tolerance in my heart for those I've learned to despise or ignore. I will perhaps learn to respect the unity of all life in abstract, but there is no need for me to do anything practical at all...
I'm obviously being cynical. In actual fact the attempt to form a nucleus of the Universal Brotherhood of Humanity, without distinction of race, creed, sex, caste or color is work. It means a constant attempt to overcome my conditioning. It means reaching out to people. It means practicing kindness. It means learning to deal with people I may not like. I find it very disappointing that the TS in America has edited this very important attempt out of its 'mission statement' and hope they will change things soon.
Each summer the American Section of the Theosophical Society (TS) has a gathering that is both business meeting and summer school. Non-members of the TS are not explicitly invited, but in practice nothing is done to discourage them from coming either. The atmosphere of the gathering was both very familiar to me, as strange and new. Familiar, as it was as comfortable talking to these overseas theosophists, as it has always been talking to theosophists here in the Netherlands. Strange as well, as inevitably things are done differently, when there is a different host-country.
The opening was a lot former than I'm used to seeing it. 'evening dress optional' says it all, I think. For those who have not been to Olcott for this: evening dress means suits and ties and dresses and in the case of theosophists: saris and Indian dresses in general. First Betty Bland, the national president of the TS in the USA, welcomed us. Then there were prayers from 'all the world's religions', though this is obviously practically impossible there were a lot. The atmosphere of that ceremony was more informal than I saw it in India. It looked like people could just come up and give whatever prayer they wanted. Among the many prayers more than one Christian denomination was represented, as well as Islam, the gayatri mantra and a humanist prayer. The opening ended with greetings from all over the world. I gave greetings from the Netherlands and the International Theosophical Centre at Naarden also in the Netherlands.
The business meeting consisted of reports from the various departments. I was surprised to see the work that went into making it literally entertaining. The Quest Bookshop even got a (fake) sťance on the way in which Annie Besant appeared. This is certainly different from how I'm used to seeing it, but I enjoyed myself anyhow.
The theme of the school was 'Theosophy in action'. Radha Burnier, international president, gave most of the lectures. Room had been made for Diana Chapotin's coverage of the Order of Service, John Algeo and Joy Mills. After the main lecture, each morning, there were group discussion that were - as usual - very interesting. In the afternoon there were usually lectures, workshops and meditation classes. To be honest I wasn't impressed with what I saw of the meditation classes. Theosophists don't have a reputation of being very good at meditation and this didn't help any in my book. The morning meditation even reminded me of group hypnosis. A bad sign that confirmed this impression was that several people told me that they had a tendency to fall asleep during the morning-meditation.
The lectures were very good. Radha Burnier's opening lecture was about finding balance. She meant finding a balance between the development of buddhi (roughly intuition), thought, emotion and action. If there is insight, don't act on it immediately. Let it germinate, it will express itself naturally in action or words at some point. Spiritual aspiration as well needs to be in harmony. Too much of it leads to ambition, too much tension or waste of energy. Mental balance includes overcoming the duality of thought. This means that likes and dislikes will disappear and we will neither accept nor reject what IS.
Diana Chapotin, in her lecture about the Theosophical Order of Service (TOS), stressed that theosophists are active in social service in various ways. One of the main ways is individual action. She meant that theosophists all over the world are active in social work through organisations that have nothing to do with theosophy. The second way in which theosophists are active practically in the world is through the activities of local theosophical lodges and sections. The TOS complements all that with very specific projects in area's like education, animal welfare, vegetarianism and help in case of natural disasters like recently Katrina. On an organisational level TOS-groups are led by theosophists, but the volunteers don't have to be members. Though any kind of social work can be taken on, it is necessary that central theosophical values behind the work are communicated regularly to keep the work theosophical. Diana explained that the work of the TOS has grown dramatically recently under her leadership. She can't cope on her own anymore and a reorganisation is necessary.
Joy Mills gave a public lecture on the vitality of living truth. She stressed the difference between living wisdom and book wisdom. Theosophists always risk not going beyond book wisdom. If we really see the truth, our heart and our whole being will change. That's the power of living truth. In order for that to happen, we need to actually practice truth as we know it (not as we want it to be) in our daily lives. Every experience that broadens our sensitivity, mirrors living truth for us. In modern thought the interconnectedness of everything is becoming quite clear. H.P. Blavatsky actually went one step further: she saw everything as one living being, One Life. The theory of Gaia shows this on the level of the earth, but for Blavatsky it's true of the whole universe. Breath is used as an image of that Oneness.
Radha's second lecture dealt with a very central theme: growing in wisdom. In this lecture she repeated a theme that threads through her Watchtower pieces in The Theosophist as well: Humanity grows in knowledge, but not in wisdom. The knowledge that has been developed over the past two centuries leads to destruction because there is no knowledge on what is right in the long run. It is relatively easy to develop knowledge. It is very hard to find out what right action is. We don't realise enough that in hurting someone else, we hurt ourselves. Wisdom leads to a peaceful, sensitive world. Knowledge leads to pride and this can only be challenged by becoming aware of the limitations of knowledge. Otherwise knowledge leads to a feeling of separateness. On the other hand it is necessary to learn to think independently and become aware to what extent we are all influenced by others. An example she gave is that the simple life is no longer seen as ideal. Everybody wants to live as is portrayed on television. In all her lectures this week Radha reminded us that our personal problems need to come second. Growth in wisdom means growth in altruism and that means forgetting self. Our personal problems and our joys are both temporary. We make them bigger than they are. Why is suffering such a large problem? The TS was founded to fight prejudice. Prejudice hinders an insight into real problems and can only be dissolved by a feeling of connectedness with all human beings. Our altruism needs to become universal. The Buddha said: it's better to give a little lovingly, than to give a lot without love.
It was very impressive to hear the report of theosophists living near the area where Katrina hit. There were slides as accompanying there very personal report. The most important insight I got from that was that storms are normal for the people in this region. Normally people do not leave in case of a storm. Despite that fact, and this has not been stressed enough, this was the most successful evacuation in history. Around 90-95% of the people in the New Orleans region were evacuated. We were told that criminals always stay behind so they can loot. This is part of the pattern. Because this storm did so much more damage than most other storms, everything got bigger than usual.
John Algeo spoke about the most holy mission of theosophy. He started by saying that Blavatsky in her final five years on earth, had left a legacy of five:
These three letters were the backbone to Johns two lectures. They give direction to Theosophical work in the world. Blavatsky's last years were tough, but John stressed that out of disaster, blessings often come. Disasters mix things up. Tibetan Buddhism would never have spread to the West as it has, if China hadn't invaded Tibet. In her 1891 letter, Blavatsky mainly spoke of living theosophy, not the teachings. In her first letter she stressed the aim of the Theosophical Society to unite people of all nations and altruism. Organisations are important, but they can't created holiness, health or wholeness. We have to become fully human, that is what the word master signifies: to master ourselves. There can only be harmony in organisations, if opposites are balanced, not through wiping out differences. In his second lecture he returned to the theme of unifying people of all nations. He also pointed out that every wise administration knows that things can't be forced. No rule can open the heart-mind of people. No group is safe from fundamentalism. Theosophists too run this risk, though in real theosophy there can be no dogmas, because it is based on real insight and rational thinking. Real theosophy reflects divine reason, the reason of Buddhi. John closed with Blavatsky's words in the last letter to the American Conventions: to be theosophists, live theosophy.
In her next lecture Radha talked about growing in Love. Love is our true being, that aspect of ourselves which is one with every other. Love is beyond words, it's part of Universal Life. It is necessary to feel affection for kids and animals. Continually looking for security, that wish masks a desire for Love. Our world is dark, there is little friendship, little Love. How do we remove the barriers that separate us from our essential nature: Love? To this practical question, Radha's answer is to be more sensitive. We have to feel as others feel, without identifying with their pain. You can't help others by going along with their pain, but you have to know what it is. Right action requires going beyond social custom and convention and being really sensitive. This sensitivity doesn't hinder our happiness. Our real nature isn't just Love, it's also Bliss. But we need to become conscious of other people. Unkind thoughts hurt others, and ultimately ourselves. They are like a hungry wolf that eats up our best tendencies. Annie Besant said that if we can't see God in others, we must be the worst possible atheists. The problem with gossip is that it is superficial. We have to learn to look under the surface, without judgment of any kind. The habit to criticize strengthens the ego. Be a missionary of Love and generosity. Be prepared to give of yourself. Don't just do what is necessary, but actively contribute to the welfare of people in conversation. Every tendency of personality has to disappear. That way of looking teaches us to overcome pettiness. The first step is the last step, because the direction in which we move is of primary importance.
Radha's final lecture was called 'purification through action'. Real wisdom is in seeing action in non-action and non-action in action. The central question she asked: what is right action? Each of us has to decide that for ourselves. Keep in mind that our energy impacts the world, not just our actions. Everything is interconnected. That's why abstaining from action isn't the same thing as freedom from action. When actions create problems, it's not right action. Right action is necessary, but we have to avoid identifying with it. In everything you do, ask yourself if there is egoism involved. The tricky part is that even that thought is in a way selfish. We need an inner balance that is independent of success or failure. Success and failure are part of the ups and downs of life, but we don't have to inwardly get involved in that. The risk of accomplishment is that one starts thinking: I can do this. That feeling can get in the way of right action. The problem with selfish action is that even if the short-term result seems good, it's never permanent. Radha closed with one of Krishnamurti's insights: actions that are a product of the past, don't work. Action only works if it's the consequence of right insight. This lecture was very insightful, but I missed one aspect that the title does suggest: that sometimes insight follows unselfish action. Right action can help clean the personality. One has to start somewhere.
The final session was a question and answer round with Radha Burnier, Joy Mills and John Algeo. The questions had come in through the internet and from the discussion groups. What follows is a selection. Can Muslims become members of the Theosophical Society? Yes, we have Muslim members in Indonesia, India and Pakistan. Radha stressed that Muslim women aren't forced to stay at home in all countries. In many countries they are free. Why do people ignore the Middle Path? The middle path is hard, said Radha, people prefer it easy. It's hard to overcome the tendency to overdo things. A question was asked about loving yourself. Joy Mills answered that it is important to look at yourself objectively. Observe yourself, it is unnecessary to become emotional or judgmental about yourself. Loving yourself means accepting what is, and resolving to change. Radha asks what it means to love yourself. Can you love your shadow? Reality IS, it doesn't need to be loved.
As this summary shows, the lectures were very interesting and deep. I really enjoyed myself and met some very good people.


- Position your mouse pointer over the image.
- Click the right mouse button.
- Select the "Save Picture As" or the "Save Image As" menu item.
- Enter the directory and name of the file to create.
Need a World file?
Click the "World File" link located above the
image on the right to obtain the geographic reference
coordinates of the above image. Use your browser's File.SaveAs
menu option to save the World File to the same directory where
you saved the image. Make sure World File extension is
It takes a few
moments to construct a single image from the image tiles you
were viewing. The repeating "Your image is being constructed..."
message will be replaced with your image. Please be patient.
Once the image is
displayed, use your web browser's save picture or save image
function to copy your image to a location on your computer
system. On Microsoft Internet Explorer, you can save the image
by clicking on the image with the right mouse button.
A pop-up menu will
be displayed. Click the "Save Picture
As" menu item. On FireFox, right-click on the
image and select the "Save Image
As" menu item.
The web browser
will display a "Save Picture As" window. There will be "File name:" field
on the bottom of
the Save As window. Change the name of the file to your liking
and click the Save button. Windows
users, you should make sure you end your filename with the .jpg . All
images downloaded from
Microsoft MSR Maps are in the Jpeg image