An enormous collaborative effort between a multitude of academic and research centers has characterized numerous physical and mechanical properties on one identical human cancer cell line. Their two-year cooperative study, published online in the April 26, 2013 journal Science Reports, reveals the persistent and agile nature of human cancer cells as compared to noncancerous cells. It also represents a major shift in the way scientific research can be accomplished.
The research, which was conducted by 12 federally funded Physical Sciences-Oncology Centers (PS-OC) sponsored by the National Cancer Institute, is a systematic comparison of metastatic human breast-cancer cells to non-metastatic breast cells that reveals dramatic differences between the two cell lines in their mechanics, migration, oxygen response, protein production and ability to stick to surfaces. They have also discovered new insights into how human cells make the transition from nonmalignant to metastatic, a process that is not well understood.
Denis Wirtz, a Johns Hopkins professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering with joint appointments in pathology and oncology who is the corresponding author on the study, remarked that the work adds a tremendous amount of information about the physical nature of cancer cells. “For the first time ever, scientists got together and have created THE phenotypic signature of cancer” Wirtz said. “Yes, it was just one metastatic cell line, and it will require validation with many other cell lines. But we now have an extremely rich signature containing many parameters that are distinct when looking at metastatic and nonmetastatic cells.”
Wirtz, who directs the Johns Hopkins Physical Sciences-Oncology Center, also noted the unique way in which this work was conducted: all centers used the same human cell line for their studies, which makes the quality of the results unparalleled. And, since human and not animal cells were used, the findings are immediately relevant to the development of drugs for the treatment of human disease.
“Cancer cells may nominally be derived from the same patient, but in actuality they will be quite different because cells drift genetically over just a few passages,” Wirtz said. “This makes any measurement on them from different labs like comparing apples and oranges.” In this study, however, the genetic integrity of the cell lines were safeguarded by limiting the number times the original cell cultures could be regrown before they were discarded.
The nationwide PS-OC brings together researchers from physics, engineering, computer science, cancer biology and chemistry to solve problems in cancer, said Nastaran Zahir Kuhn, PS-OC program manager at the National Cancer Institute.
“The PS-OC program aims to bring physical sciences tools and perspectives into cancer research,” Kuhn said. “The results of this study demonstrate the utility of such an approach, particularly when studies are conducted in a standardized manner from the beginning.”
For the nationwide project, nearly 100 investigators from 20 institutions and laboratories conducted their experiments using the same two cell lines, reagents and protocols to assure that results could be compared. The experimental methods ranged from physical measurements of how the cells push on surrounding cells to measurements of gene and protein expression.
“Roughly 20 techniques were used to study the cell lines, enabling identification of a number of unique relationships between observations,” Kuhn said.
Wirtz added that it would have been logistically impossible for a single institution to employ all of these different techniques and to measure all of these different parameters on just one identical cell line. That means that this work accomplished in just two years what might have otherwise taken ten, he said.
The Johns Hopkins PS-OC made specific contributions to this work. Using particle-tracking microrheology, in which nanospheres are embedded in the cell’s cytoplasm and random cell movement is visually monitored, they measured the mechanical properties of cancerous versus noncancerous cells. They found that highly metastatic breast cancer cells were mechanically softer and more compliant than cells of less metastatic potential.
Using 3D cell culturing techniques, they analyzed the spontaneous migratory potential (that is, migration without the stimulus of any chemical signal) of cancerous versus noncancerous cells. They also analyzed the extracellular matrix molecules that were deposited by the two cell lines and found that cancerous cells deposited more hyaluronic acid (HA). The HA, in turn, affects motility, polarization and differentiation of cells. Finally, the Hopkins team measured the level of expression of CD44, a cell surface receptor that recognizes HA, and found that metastatic cells express more CD44.
The next steps, Wirtz said, would be to validate these results using other metastatic cell lines. To read the paper, which is published in an open access journal, follow this link: http://www.nature.com/srep/2013/130422/srep01449/full/srep01449.html
Excerpts from original press release by Princeton science writer Morgan Kelly were used.


It may sound like a plot straight out of a science fiction novel, but a U.S. mission to blow up the moon with a nuke was very real in the 1950s. At the height of the space race, the U.S. considered detonating an atom bomb on the moon as a display of America's Cold War muscle. The secret project, innocuously titled 'A Study of Lunar Research Flights' and nicknamed 'Project A119,' was never carried out.
Plot: The U.S. was planning to launch an atomic bomb, like Fat Man, pictured above, that would be launched into space in a scrapped plan to blow up the moon
However, its planning included calculations by astronomer Carl Sagan, then a young graduate student, of the behavior of dust and gas generated by the blast. Viewing the nuclear flash from Earth might have intimidated the Soviet Union and boosted U.S. confidence after the launch of Sputnik, physicist Leonard Reiffel told the AP in a 2000 interview.
Reiffel, now 85, directed the inquiry at the former Armour Research Foundation, now part of the Illinois Institute of Technology. He later served as a deputy director at NASA. Sagan, who later became renowned for popularizing science on television, died in 1996. The author of one of Sagan's biographies suggested that he may have committed a security breach in 1959 after revealing the classified project in an academic fellowship application. Reiffel concurred. Under the scenario, a missile carrying a small nuclear device was to be launched from an undisclosed location and travel 238,000 miles to the moon, where it would be detonated upon impact. The planners decided it would have to be an atom bomb because a hydrogen bomb would have been too heavy for the missile.
Brains of the operation: Astronomer Carl Sagan, left, was involved in the planning of the mission and physicist Leonard Reiffel, right, was the man in charge
Would you miss it? American scientists were looking to blow up the moon to get an edge of the Soviet Union in the space race
Reiffel said the nation’s young space program probably could have carried out the mission by 1959, when the Air Force deployed inter-continental ballistic missiles. Military officials apparently abandoned the idea because of the danger to people on Earth in case the mission failed. The scientists also registered concerns about contaminating the moon with radioactive material, Reiffel said. When contacted by the AP, the U.S. Air Force declined to comment on the project.
Source: Daily Mail UK


A clean installation will clean the partition, and provide a fresh installation on the system.
Installation (or setup) of a computer program (including device drivers and plugins), is the act of making the program ready for execution. Installation refers to the particular configuration of a software or hardware with a view to making it usable with the computer. A soft or digital copy of the piece of software (program) is needed to install it. There are different processes of installing a piece of software (program). Because the process varies for each program and each computer, programs (including operating systems) often come with an installer, a specialised program responsible for doing whatever is needed (see below) for the installation. Installation may be part of a larger software deployment process.Installation typically involves code (program) being copied/generated from the installation files to new files on the local computer for easier access by the operating system, creating necessary directories, registering environment variables, providing separate program for un-installation etc. Because code is generally copied/generated in multiple locations, uninstallation usually involves more than just erasing the program folder. For example, registry files and other system code may need to be modified or deleted for a complete uninstallation.


July 3, 2012 – An interesting provision of the new Map-21 transportation bill provides for a performance-based approach in metropolitan and statewide planning processes. It makes seven goals in the “national interest":
- Safety: To achieve a significant reduction in traffic fatalities and serious injuries on all public roads.
- Infrastructure Condition: To maintain the highway infrastructure asset system in a state of good repair.
- Congestion Reduction: To achieve a significant reduction in congestion on the National Highway System.
- System Reliability: To improve the efficiency of the surface transportation system.
- Freight Movement and Economic Vitality: To improve the national freight network, strengthen the ability of rural communities to access national and international trade markets, and supportregional economic development.
- Environmental Sustainability: To enhance the performance of the transportation system while protecting and enhancing thenatural environment.
- Reduced Project Delivery Delays: To reduce project costs, promote jobs and the economy, and expedite the movement of people and goods by accelerating project completion through eliminating delays in the project development and delivery process, including reducing regulatory burdens and improving agencies’ work practices.


In the days following the fiery April 20 blowout of BP’s Macondo well off the coast of Louisiana, TV viewers across the world watched dismayed at the images of crude oil spewing unabated into the Gulf of Mexico. Their widespread reaction: feelings of utter helplessness.
Mines alumni Bill McElduff ’82 and Donal Fitterer MS ’88 reacted differently. “I told my 10-year-old daughter ‘I have to go out there and help fix the problem,’” recalls McElduff, who watched the underwater footage with his family from his home in Houston, Texas.
As one of a half-dozen engineers in the world who specializes in drilling relief wells, McElduff soon received a one-sentence email, “Do you want to help with Macondo?” Meanwhile, Fitterer—one of three in the world who specializes in using electromagnetic ranging tools to locate wells—was summoned to the Houston offices of BP from his home in Ithaca, N.Y.
The two were old friends, having worked together on numerous occasions before, but the stakes had never been so high. The next four months spent on a football field-sized drilling rig called Development Driller III was a career-defining collaboration for both. To kill the rogue well, they had to hit a target the size of a dinner plate from their floating platform three miles away. And with the world scrutinizing every development, they couldn’t afford to make mistakes.
“We could watch our progress on the Fox News Channel ticker tape,” laughs McElduff, an affable Southerner with a warm Texas drawl. “We all understood the implications of what we were doing.” But they were also confident they could accomplish the goal: “We never had any doubts,” said the more reserved Fitterer.
The evolution of relief wells
As far back as the early 1900s, relief wells have been drilled as a last-resort cure for taming blowouts caused by fires, natural disasters or other oil-field mishaps. Initially, drillers would simply bore another vertical well adjacent to the problem well, relieving pressure from and ultimately depleting the reservoir. But that approach could take months, with oil continuing to spill.
In 1934, after a massive blowout created a lake of burning oil near Conroe, Texas, engineers took a different approach to tame the gusher. They developed survey techniques and directional drilling tools to intersect the problem well from an angle. They then pumped water in to kill the flow of crude. The new tack was a success, and the directional drilling industry was born. In the late 1980s, electromagnetic ranging tools and processes were developed and incorporated into the modern relief well drilling techniques.
Since then, advances in both surveying and directional drilling technologies have enabled an elite squadron of specialized troubleshooters to kill rogue wells around the world from a safer distance and far faster than they once could.
As a relief well engineer for Boots and Coots—considered the go-to company for out-of-control oil and gas wells—McElduff has made his office everywhere from the blazing-hot Syrian desert to the windripped Mauritanian Sea, spending roughly 10 months a year away from home.
As a wireline engineer, computer programmer and ranging specialist with technology pioneer Vector Magnetics, Fitterer has helped tame more than 20 problem wells, from a blazing blowout in the oil fields of Bangladesh to a hurricane-damaged underwater gusher off the coast of Egypt.
He’s quick to point out that the president of Vector Magnetics, Rahn Pitzer ’87, is also a Mines grad, and says it’s no coincidence that the school churned out three leaders in such a specialized, pressurecooker field.
“The number-one thing I learned at Mines was the ability to focus on exactly what needs to happen to get the job done,” says Fitterer. “They are very big on giving you too much to do, so you have to make a decision as to what is most important. That prepares you for the type of work we do.”
A national emergency
Graduating six years apart at Mines, McElduff and Fitterer never knew each other at Mines, but their interdependent skills have brought them together on jobs repeatedly. The two were just wrapping up a routine drill on a rig 30 miles off the coast of New Orleans when the tragedy on the Deepwater Horizon began to unfold.
“We could see the glow from the fire and we knew there was an emergency,” says McElduff. “We figured we’d be on it sooner or later.”
The April 20 fire that killed 11 men and triggered the largest off-shore oil spill in U.S. history prompted a relief response that many have likened to the D-Day armada. More than 8,044 vessels carried 47,848 responders into the gulf, shadowed by a phalanx of media who commenced tracking every move of those the world was counting on to plug the leak.
While officials from BP and the federal government worked around the clock to stem the blowout as quickly as possible, the crew of the Development Drill III rig began drilling a relief well on May 2. The bad news: It would take months to move methodically at an angle through roughly 13,000-feet of rock buried beneath 5,000 feet of water. The good news: It would provide a final and permanent solution, TV viewers were assured.
But many remained skeptical. “That’s the typical response to relief wells,” says Fitterer. “People don’t believe you can do it until it happens.”
For roughly six weeks, the Development Driller III bored downward in the direction of the blown out Macondo well. Then, as the drill bit drew near its target—about 300 horizontal feet—and a perfect aim became imperative, the 10-person specialized relief well team moved into place.
At its helm was John Wright, senior vice president of technology at Boots and Coots, a somewhat legendary character considered to be the godfather of modern relief well drilling. McElduff, Wright’s second in command, served as the lead directional drilling engineer. His job was to guide the bit for the final stretch. Fitterer’s job was to tell McElduff where the bit was and where it needed to go—information he provided using state-of-the-art ranging tools.
“It’s a bit like driving blind with somebody next to you using instruments to tell you where the road is,” Wright told NPR in a September interview.
Positioning is achieved using a 300-foot-long assembly, which includes a 30-foot-long cylindrical beryllium copper tool equipped with a transmitter and receiver on opposite ends. Invented by Vector Magnetics, the device emits a current that sets up an electromagnetic field when conducted by the well casing. By interpreting data on the electromagnetic field picked up by the receiver, Fitterer can calculate the precise distance and direction to the blown-out well.
It only takes him two or three hours to collect these measurements, but they must be taken every 30 to 60 feet, and getting the equipment into place at the extreme depths at which they were operating was a very time-consuming process: 24 hours to withdraw the drill bit; 12 hours to lower the ranging tools, take measurements, and retrieve the equipment; and another 24 hours to lower the drill bit back into place. As a result, in the final approach, progress moved at a rate of 30 feet every 2 ½ days.
But precision is everything in this business. Equipped with distance and bearing to the well, as well as the drill’s current orientation (determined from instruments mounted on the drill string) McElduff finetuned the drilling plan. Then, standing next to the driller who was seated in a futuristic control-chair complete with joystick and a complex panel of instrumentation, McElduff directed the bit’s progress as it bored through rock three miles away.
Movement in the drill rig further complicated their work. “This is a floating rig, so it is moving,” McElduff says. “If the rig is moving, the bit is moving, and the rougher the seas get, the harder it is to control the bit.” At one point, tropical storm Bonnie shut down relief well operations for two weeks.
Slaying the dragon
On August 4, BP officials announced that their “top kill” was holding and the flow of oil from the blown-out well had stopped—for now. Their mission on board the Development Driller III didn’t change. No one could predict if, or how long, it would hold. A “bottom kill” via the relief well remained the only way to permanently fix the problem.
Their work continued until, on Sept. 17, the nation heaved a true sigh of relief as workers finished pumping mud and cement down the relief well and into the base of the Macondo well.
“Psychologically, it’s important for people in the gulf to understand that there is a stake in the heart of this beast,” said retired Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen to reporters that day.
How does it feel to be a dragonslayer? Fitterer and McElduff modestly shrug off the title. They just feel lucky they could do something to help, they say.
If you enjoyed the feature story “Plugging Macondo,” then you may find these two videos interesting. One is an overview of relief well drilling operations; the other is a more detailed look at how Fitterer pinpointed the exact location of the end of the relief well using ranging tools.


The Thun Panorama by Marquard Wocher can be seen in Schadau Park on the shores of the Thunersee Lake in Switzerland.
The Thun Panorama is a huge 360° painting of central Thun painted in the early nineteenth century by the Swiss artist Marquard Wocher. It is hung in a ring in a circular building so visitors can view it from the center, as if standing in the heart of town as well. The Thun Panorama is in a dedicated building in Schadau Park in the southern suburbs of Thun on the lakeshore. Schadau Park has several further sights worth seeing including the Swiss Gastronomic Museum, the millennium-old Scherzligen Church, and of course magnificent views of the lake and Alps from the pleasant park.
The Thun-Panorama by Marquard Wocher
The Thun Panorama is a huge 38 by 7.5 m painting painted on paper between 1809 and 1814 by the Swiss artist Marquard Wocher. Panorama paintings, which were especially popular in Britain and Germany during the nineteenth century, were painted to hang in a circular building with the viewer enjoying the work from the center of the ring. The viewer placed in the heart of the 360° panorama thus should feel part of the action. These paintings were hugely popular in an age when foreign travel was still very difficult and rare for most Europeans.
The Thun Panorama shows the center of Thun as it was in the early nineteenth century when Wocher passed through the town. (He actually painted the 285 m2 work in Basel from sketches.) Visitors can see the painting from various levels from the pavilion in the center of the round exhibition hall – many structures survived to the present while the Alpine peaks are of course unchanged too.
In addition to the buildings, Aare River, Lake Thun, and Alpine peaks, Wocher also painted daily life in Thun, as seen from a chimneystack in the heart of the old town. Visitors thus peak through windows into bourgeois homes, see market activities, traffic, and people going about their daily tasks.
The Thun Panorama was the first 360° painting in Switzerland and the oldest of this type to have survived. The Bourbaki painting in Lucerne is probably the most famous in Switzerland – mostly due to it favorable location in the heart of Luzern rather than the subject matter.
Visiting the Thun Panorama in the Berner Oberland
The Thun Panorama is in a dedicated round building in Schadau Park. It is open mid-May to late November – Tuesday to Sunday from 11 am to 5 pm. Admission is CHF9, free for children under 16. A combination ticket with the Thun Kunstmuseum (Art Museum) is CHF15. The Swiss Museum Pass is valid.
Useful information sheets showing a modern photo of the same view and pointing out interesting features are available in several languages including English. A questionnaire keeps children busy (Tip: Count anything that could possible be a horse or dog!)
For more detailed views of the painting see Thun Panorama.
Getting to Schadau Park, where the Wocher Panorama is exhibited, is easy from Thun’s old town, station, or lake boat landing. Simply stroll along Seestraße towards the lake and Alpine peaks. See Sights in Schadau Park in Thun for more details.
More Attractions in the Lake Thun Region:
- Pleasure Boat Cruises on the Thuner- and Brienzersee
- Pleasure Boat Cruises on Lake Thun
- Tips on Saving on Fares when Cruising on Lakes Thun and Brienz
- Sights in Schadau Park in Thun
- Visit Schloss Thun Castle
- Visit Schloss Spiez Castle
- Visit the Sherlock Holmes Museum in Meiringen
- Visit the Reichenbach Waterfalls near Meiringen
- The Ballenberg Open-Air Museum of Swiss Rural Architecture
- Hike through the Aareschlucht Gorge


After several months of hard work, the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center staff and volunteers have successfully released all of the orphaned Raccoons that we raised this year!
Raccoons are orphaned for a variety of reasons: Some lost their mom to a car crash, others, when she was live-trapped and taken far away. Lost and alone, these poor babies wouldn’t have stood a chance on their own, but thanks to your support of our Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, we saved 72 orphaned Raccoons this summer!
Babies at the Wisconsin Humane Society
During their stay in our Wildlife Nursery, orphaned Raccoons are initially bottle-fed several times a day and their habitats are cleaned multiple times a day.
They are vaccinated and given veterinary care as-needed. Gradually they are weaned and moved to outdoor habitats. Outdoors, they get plenty of exercise, get used to outdoor conditions and they are given daily enrichment exercises. Wildlife staff and volunteers are careful not to over-handle the Raccoons so that they are wild and have a healthy fear of humans when they are released.
Releasing the Babies!
On release day, the Raccoons are transported to the country where they are released on private land with prime Raccoon habitat.
They spend their first several minutes in the wild climbing trees, playing in streams and sniffing out their new environment. After months under the compassionate care of humans, the Raccoons strike out on their own; healthy, well-fed and armed with the instincts that they need to survive in the wild.


A Macaw Shows Off It's Wings
We recommend that you visit your local Avian Veterinarian for your first wing and nail clipping! Your Veterinarian can demonstrate the proper techniques and provide you with everything you need to safely perform this routine maintenance on your own.
- Larger parrots typically require fewer feathers to be clipped.
- Smaller birds have greater lift and need more feathers clipped.
- Clip primary feathers on BOTH wings.
- Primary coverts, secondary feathers and secondary coverts are not clipped.
- Clip both wings to give bird proper balance.
- Restrain head, both feet and the opposite wing.
- Be careful NOT to restrict chest.
- Hold wing at base of humerus.
- Clip first four or five primaries at the base of the shaft, below feathered area.
- Can leave the first two primaries for aesthetics and clip an additional primary.
- Do not clip feathers with blood shaft.
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The South African Minister of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries published notice of her intention to repeal three sets of regulations regarding air quality.
These were previously gazetted under the Atmospheric Pollution Prevention Act, 1965 (APPA).
The APPA was repealed by the National Environmental Management:
Air Quality Act 39 of 2004, with effect from 1 April 2010.
The draft repeal notices were published under GNR113, 114, and 115 of 30 August 2019, respectively.
The APPA regulations which the Minister intends to repeal are as follows:
- Regulations regarding Fuel Burning Appliances in Dwelling Houses, made in terms of section 44(1)(dA) of the APPA (in their entirety) (GNR 1083 of 30 May 1984);
- Smoke Control Regulations made in terms of section 18 of the APPA in numerous Municipalities throughout the country (published under various notices in their entirety); and
- Regulations relating to the Inspection of Premises in a Dust Control Area (published in GNR1922 of 30 August 1985) (in their entirety).
The Minister also intends to repeal numerous Dust Control Area Declarations and Smoke Control Zone Orders made under the APPA which are applicable to various specified municipalities.
Despite the repeal of the APPA, certain regulations, declarations and orders made under this Act remain enforceable in terms of section 60 of the Air Quality Act which provides that anything done or deemed to have been done under the APPA and which can be done in terms of a provision of the Air Quality Act, must be regarded as having been done under that provision of the Air Quality Act.
In addition anything done or deemed to have been done under the APPA and which can be done in terms of the constitutional or statutory powers of a municipality, remains in force in the jurisdiction of that local authority, until repealed by the relevant municipality.
The Minister's intention to repeal these APPA regulations, indicates that a significant clean-up of the air quality management framework is on the horizon and it is anticipated that new draft regulations will be published shortly to replace the APPA regulations.
It is also likely that these 'replacement' regulations will come into force at the same time that the repeal of the APPA regulations is finalised.


National Counter Terrorism Security Office
Security experts from CTP have commissioned the creation of an animated core film designed to teach young people how to react if caught up in an a gun or knife terror attack. The film, aimed at 11 to 16 year olds, will also show them what to do if they see suspicious behaviour or a suspicious item.
Versions of the new film for Key Stage 3 and 4 pupils, (ages 11-14 and 15-16), will be the cornerstone of teaching material, specially-designed by the PSHE Association and available to Schools and Youth organisations from today.
Once young people understand the RUN HIDE TELL advice they can progress to TREAT, which has been created in conjunction with St John Ambulance. This age-appropriate First Aid guidance has been specifically designed to allow a teacher or youth leader to show young people how to deliver trauma first aid to an injured person or themselves whilst HIDING and waiting to be rescued by the police.
All materials needed to deliver these sessions can be found here.


Return to the Guide to Passover for Interfaith Families
During Passover, the Haggadah is the guide book everyone follows during the seder. Haggadah is Hebrew for “the telling,” which makes sense because the Haggadah tells the Exodus story. The plural of the Hebrew word, Haggadah, is Haggadot, with a long “o” in the last syllable.
The Passover seder can be long, and that’s why you typically have a handy guidebook, called a Haggadah, to keep the celebration on track. Depending on which version you choose, it provides instructions for the seder and walks participants through each step.
Haggadah means “the telling” in Hebrew, and it comes from the same root word as Maggid, the storytelling section of the seder. Traditionally, the Haggadah says that in every generation, each person must regard themselves as if they personally had come out of Egypt. By hearing the story while we see and eat the various symbols, each participant hopefully experiences the journey from slavery to liberation.
If you’re at a seder where people take turns reading from the Haggadah, no one will mind if you stumble over the names, Hebrew words or need to ask for pronunciation help. It’s also more than OK to pass if you’d rather not read.
There are many versions of the Haggadah for every Jewish denomination and for people with all interests (see some of our suggestions here). One of the most common versions was produced by Maxwell House to advertise that their coffee was kosher for Passover. Sometimes free Haggadot (plural of Haggadah) are included with the purchase of large boxes of matzah or sent in the mail to families who receive PJ Library books. Whether you’re a vegetarian, member of the LGBTQ community, Harry Potter fan or looking to finish your seder in 30 minutes or less, you’ll find a guidebook that suits you!
There are many downloadable versions online and fully customizable options at haggadot.com. And even if you already have one, you can add in additional songs and readings of your own to personalize the experience. Many organizations focused on particular issues such as the environment, refugees, hunger, poverty and inclusion put out their own Haggadah supplements every year with additional readings, ideas and conversation starters.


More About Our Puzzles
What is the key to computational fluency? Practice. Lots and lots of practice. What about reasoning skills? Practice. What about number sense? Practice. What about every important skill I can think of? Lots and lots of practice! I am a strong believer that none of us have destinies or skills or abilities that are fixed. Our country was built on the belief that if you work hard and do what’s right, you will get ahead. I think this is particularly true when it comes to school and math. My Tangy Tuesday and Wordy Wednesday worksheets give students the opportunity to practice and improve their skills in a thoughtful and systematic way. By the end of the year, kids who solve all 5 of my puzzles every week will have done thousands of problems designed to help them become better in math.But that’s not all. My ultimate goal is for kids to enjoy solving problems – especially challenging ones. Students who solve my puzzles will struggle, learn to persevere, and ultimately become better, more creative thinkers. Through their own hard work, they will become smarter more successful students. In conclusion, to be good at anything, kids need to practice. In math, this means doing thousands of problems to develop conceptual understanding and fact and procedural fluency. My goal is to make practicing so enjoyable that kids look forward to solving my weekly puzzles and problems. I hope you will give them a try!
Puzzle Time Answer Key
Education world Â® lesson planning: it all adds up — a year of puzzles. 21 puzzle time worksheet answers. Algebra showme
Puzzles and Answer Keys | Puzzles and answers, Answer keys, Puzzles. 9 Pictures about Puzzles and Answer Keys | Puzzles and answers, Answer keys, Puzzles : 1.1 puzzle time, 21 Puzzle Time Worksheet Answers – Worksheet List and also Puzzle page 1 week 9.
Text Of 81 Puzzle Time
Big Ideas Math Green Copyright Big Ideas Learning, LLC Resourcesby Chapter All rights reserved. 278
Name _________________________________________________________Date _________
What Do You Get When You Cross An Elephant With A Fish? Writethe letter of each answer in the box containing the exercisenumber.
Identify the solid that is described.
1. One pentagonal base and five lateral faces that aretriangles.
2. One rectangular base and four lateral faces that aretriangles
3. Two parallel, triangular bases and three lateral faces thatare rectangles
4. Two parallel, pentagonal bases and five lateral faces thatare rectangles
5. Two parallel, square bases and four lateral faces that aresquares
6. Two parallel, rectangular bases and four lateral faces thatare rectangles
7. One triangular base and three lateral faces that aretriangles
Determine the correct number.
Don’t Miss: Why Geography Matters More Than Ever Chapter 1
Fantastic But One Thing
I really liked using this app, it helped me a lot on hard questions I first did not understand but now I do! But only one problem which isnt that big of a deal for someone like me but for others it probably would! If you ask a simple question like a multiplication it would just tell you the answer and not how to do it and the only way to know how to easily do the question is to pay for a 7 day trial and then you pay monthly. Other than that this is a very interesting and smart app and will be using it a lot now! Thank you for marking this app creators!


“Koh Ker site and the reign of Jayavarman IV, art history and archaeology” by Dr. C. Chanratana, gives the history of Cambodia’s King Jayavarman IV.
For exploring the temples of Cambodia the best Angkor guidebook is Michel Petrotchenko’s “Focusing on the Angkor Temples – The Guidebook.” In addition to detailed descriptions and historical information, it’s packed with full color images, maps, diagrams and temple site plans that puts a tremendous amount of information at your fingertips, whether you’re an expert or a first time visitor.
The multi-million dollar Sotheby’s auction of a mythic warrior statue from Koh Ker, Cambodia is stopped by archaeological insight.
This article is based on research presented by Trudy Jacobsen in her book “Lost Goddesses: The Denial of Female Power in the History of Cambodia”.
Like most Khmer temples, Ta Som is filled with standing female images called devata (or tevoda, tevada), and flying or dancing female divinities called apsara (or apsarases, apsaras). Ta Som temple devata goddesses depict Sacred Khmer women in Cambodia
French artist Maurice Fievet created extraordinarily accurate paintings of 12th century Angkor with Khmer scholars Bernard Groslier and George Cœdes.
Researcher Kent Davis theorizes that the many carved images of women found throughout the temple complex hold the key to the origins and purpose of the ancient monuments. Mysterious Khmer Devata Goddesses-Who were the Women of Angkor Wat?
French colonial period scholars and adventurers created hundreds of profound studies of the Khmer Empire and their rich cultural legacy that still resonates throughout Southeast Asia. They also passionately wrote about sublime and painful relationships and romances that blossomed between Easterners and Westerners.
Most of these French books, novels and articles are long out-of-print and forgotten. But almost none have ever been translated into the English language. This is why we are seeking interested translators to bring select French works of Indochina literature into English.
To Cambodia With Love is a great guidebook with expert authors sharing travel tips and ideas for travelers to Angkor, Siem Reap, Phnom Penh and beyond.
In 1924, Khmerophile author and explorer George Groslier took the first automobile trip to Cambodia’s remote Khmer temple Banteay Chhmar.


The Center for Hydrate Research received funding through two NSF RAPID grants to produce the Deepwater Oil and Gas Well Blowout Simulator. A laboratory-scale apparatus with visual and electronic monitoring capabilities, the DOGWB simulator will offer improved risk-assessment of hydrate formation in deepwater gas/oil blowout scenarios, enabling engineers to design better containment systems and more effective crisis-response protocols.
“The simulator was designed in direct response to what happened in the Gulf of Mexico,” says Amadeu Sum, a co-director of the Center for Hydrate Research. “It’s going to provide information that’s not currently available to help us understand what happened and how we can prevent it from happening again.”
The device will yield new insight about the formation of hydrates’ crystalline structures consisting of water and natural gas molecules that readily form under low temperature and high pressure, the conditions found in deepwater blowouts, and elsewhere. In fact, hydrate formation is a menace in many oil and gas operations, where cold, pressurized pipelines are often used to transport both oil and gas.
Hydrate formation foiled BP’s initial effort to contain the Deepwater Horizon blowout. “The first containment device BP deployed was a 100-ton dome structure,” explains Carolyn Koh, co-director of the Hydrate Center. “But the dome trapped a mixture of water, gas and oil, all the ingredients you need for the formation of gas hydrates. Gas hydrate crystals did form, and they caused a blockage in the containment structure, leading to the failure of the dome.”
Offshore operations sometimes keep pipelines clear of hydrates by injecting methanol, which inhibits their formation. A more targeted approach became possible after the Hydrate Center developed a computer-modeling tool, CSMGem, which enables pipeline operators to locate points in a pipeline where temperature and pressure conditions exist that make hydrate formation likely. Injecting inhibitors for those locations can be an economical solution. However, such an approach isn’t always effective or economical in deepwater conditions, where hydrates can occur very readily.
To find one, more research into the basic physics and chemistry of hydrate formation in open deepwater environments is required, which will be facilitated by the DOGWB simulator. It will mix water, gas and oil under high pressure in a vertical tunnel with a downward flow of seawater.
By matching the downward flow to the upward buoyancy of the gas bubble or oil droplet, the gas bubble (or oil droplet) will remain stationary, giving researchers the opportunity to closely observe hydrate formation around it and experiment with various interventions.
“We need to examine not only how you prevent hydrates from forming, but also how you manage the ones that do form in a blowout scenario,” Koh explains. “We need to be better equipped to respond.”
In addition to providing valuable information on hydrate formation, DOGWB will also be used to better understand the impact of hydrates on the dispersion of oil emitted in a deepwater blowout, helping response crews better anticipate the movement of oil in the event of a future spill. It may also yield useful insights into the management of natural hydrate deposits, found in permafrost, the ocean floor and other extreme, low-temperature environments. If all goes according to plan, the DOGWB prototype will be operational by the spring of 2011.


Ever wanted to get a more even tone when playing finger-style acoustic guitar? How about enhancing your percussive rhythm strumming when playing styles such as funk, reggae or ska? Compression for Guitars might be the answer. In simple terms, this effect produces a smoother, more evenly consistent sound by elevating the level of soft notes, whilst the louder signals are reduced. This has the effect of averaging out the overall audio signal. Think of it as an automatic control for adjusting the volume that is far more effective than what a human could do manually by manipulating a knob or fader.
When using compression for guitars, it is normal to place it first in an effects chain, as it gives any effects following it a smoother signal. Compression is very useful for lead guitar playing as it enhances sustain by boosting the signal when it would normally fade. There are many options for the guitarist, ranging from foot pedals through to digital rack-mounted units and in-built compression in some mixing desks. Depending on what unit you have access to, there are different levels of control available, but the basic settings are as follows.
The threshold is basically the benchmark level above which the signal is not allowed to exceed – until it hits a pre-determined amount beyond. When the pre-determined level is reached, the compressor kicks in and reduces the signal by a second pre-determined amount. This is explained more in the paragraph about ratio. The Threshold is commonly calibrated in dBs.
The Ratio determines the amount of gain reduction that will be applied to the signal and is the crux of the whole idea behind compression. It’s usually expressed as:
infinity:1 and similar.
If you have a compression ratio of 3:1, this will mean that a signal must exceed the pre-set Threshold by 3dB to allow for a level 1dB above the Threshold. So, it is reduced by 2 dB from 3dB above, to 1dB above, hence the ratio 3:1. If you have a setting of infinity:1, this is more accurately described as a ‘Limiter’. This is because the output level is never permitted to rise beyond the pre-set threshold.
Usually measured between 1 and 20 milliseconds, the attack determines how long it takes for the compressor to kick in. How you use the attack parameter is dependent on the nature of the signal being effected. For example, a slow attack allows the percussive qualities of instruments to come through at the very start. The remainder of the signal is then gradually evened out. This is very handy for drums and rhythm guitars. A fast attack on the other hand will result in a consistently smooth sound and as a result, is ideally suited to vocals.
The release determines how long it takes for the compressors gain to come back up to normal once the input signal has dropped back below the level of the threshold. You need to be careful with this setting as if it is set too fast, the result can be a pumping effect to the signal.
Hard Knee and Soft Knee
This setting will determine how aggressive the compression will be. A Soft Knee compressor allows the gain reduction to be brought in progressively, usually when the audio signal comes within 10 dB of the Threshold. This produces in a gentler, more natural sounding effect.With a hard Knee compressor, the full gain reduction will kick in when the signal hits the Threshold. So it’s a more abrupt compression.
Useful Compression Settings:
Attack: 2 -5 ms
Attack: 5 -10 ms
Ratio: 5 – 10:1
Source by Tony J McManus


A transnational corporation (tnc) is any enterprise that undertakes foreign direct investment, owns or controls income-gathering assets in more than one country, produces goods or services outside its country of origin, or engages in international production (biersteker 1978, p xii) variously. A brief history of transnational corporations by jed greer and kavaljit singh the transnational corporation as it is known today, however, did not really appear until the 19th century, with the advent of industrial capitalism and its consequences: the development of the factory system. 4 the multinational corporation and global governance a multinational corporation (mnc)1 is an enterprise that engages in foreign direct investment (fdi) and that owns or controls value-added. I recently had to introduce the topic of transnational corporations (tncs) to a group of year 9 students i decided to use starbucks as the main example (all the lesson introduces a wealth of other examples) starbucks is the largest coffee shop company in the world it has over 17,000 stores in over 55 countries. Transnational corporations & world trade we are witnessing an unprecedented transfer of power from people and their governments to global institutions whose allegiance is to abstract free-market principle [the] standard of service to the transnational corporation. Start studying transnational corporations learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools.
Understand and test your knowledge of how a transnational corporation operates using this interactive quiz and printable worksheet these. Transnational corporation and human rights: because the transnational corporations are more powerful than the government, they tell government to allow sweatshop labour and child labour and change laws or policies that favours them. The 25 best multinational companies to work for abby rogers oct 28, 2011, 2:21 pm 3,843,304 facebook linkedin twitter email copy link robert scoble via flickr last night there was a huge. Multinational corporation (mnc), also called transnational corporation, any corporation that is registered and operates in more than one country at a time generally the corporation has its headquarters in one country and operates wholly or partially owned subsidiaries in other countries. Top 100 non-financial transnational corporations list for the college of business at mississippi state university. Find transnational corporation in alexandria with address, phone number from yahoo us local includes transnational corporation reviews, maps & directions to transnational corporation in alexandria and more from yahoo us local.
Definition of transnational company: a commercial enterprise that operates substantial facilities, does business in more than one country and does not consider any particular country its national home what is a non-profit corporation. Definition of transnational corporation - our online dictionary has transnational corporation information from west's encyclopedia of american law dictionary encyclopediacom: english, psychology and medical dictionaries. Introduction: a transnational corporation is a corporation that exercises economic power across national borders and throughout the world from its home country a transnational corporation is a more specific term used to describe a certain type of multinational corporation a multinational corporation is a broader term commonly describing. Best answer: a transnational corporation is the same as a multinational corporation it has its headquarters in one country and has offices or production units in several other countries transnationals locate in foreign countries to take advantage of tax incentives, cheap labour, favourable.
48) the _____ strategy involves maximizing opportunities for both efficiency and local responsiveness by adopting a structure that uses alliances, networks, and horizontal design formats a) multidomestic structure b) transnational corporation c) international division structure d) bureaucratic structure answer: b diff: 1 chapter: 8 skill. Globalisation and transnational corporations globalisation and culture globalisation assessment: transnational corporations are powerful: they manufacture instead they serve as the place in which the software is designed as a transnational corporation. Transnational can be understood as the global forces that link people or institutions across nations key to transnationalism is the recognition of the decline of national sovereignty as a regulatory force in global coexistence (ezra & rowden, 2006, p 1. The global top 100 non-financial trans-national corporations (tncs) ranked by foreign assets as of 2013 are listed in the table below: source: unctad download lists: the global top 100 non-financial trans-national corporations (tncs) (in excel format) the global top 100 tncs from emerging an.
Start studying ap human geography unit 5 learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards transnational corporation a company that conducts research conglomerate corporation a large firm comprised of many smaller firms. Multiple-choice questions this activity contains 16 questions who has compiled the transnationality index which company was the first multinational corporation in the world and the first company to issue stock the world's largest. See reviews for transnational corp in alexandria, va at 6094 d franconia rd from angie's list members or join today to leave your own review.
Editorial statement transnational corporations (formerly the ctc reporter) is a refereed journal published three times a year by unctad in the past, the programme on transnational corporations was carried out by the united nations centre on. Transnational corporation of nigeria plc, lagos, nigeria 625 likes transnational corporation of nigeria plc (transcorp) is a diversified conglomerate. Transnational corporation (tnc) definition a multinational corporation is an organization that owns or controls production of goods or services in one or more countries other than their home country. Multinational corporations are very often known as transnational corporations many people do not see any major difference between the two terms.
what is a transnational corporation the mega corporations known as transnationals were previously known as multi national companies (due to their operation in either several, or a multitude of countries. A transnational corporation (tnc) is any enterprise that undertakes foreign direct investment, owns or controls income-gathering assets in more than one country, produces goods or services outside its country of origin, or engages in international production (biersteker 1978, p xii. Joe bonazelli jvb5618 final project: part 2 due: 4 december 2012 sony corporation: globalization meets localization topic: what is a transnational corporation. Transnational corporation of nigeria plc company research & investing information find executives and the latest company news. What is the difference between multinational and transnational multinational enterprises have a centralized management system transnational enterprises.


Perennial or Atopic Conjunctivitis
Printable Version (PDF) 615k
A common conjunctivitis, perennial conjunctivitis is a chronic, year round allergic reaction that affects millions of people. It is often related to substances that we come in contact with at anytime of the year such as animal dander, chemicals and dust. Someone can develop new perennial allergies at any age.
Perennial conjunctivitis is similar to seasonal allergies in that it often exists with nasal (runny nose) and throat symptoms as well. The eye symptoms may include one or more of the following:
- excessive watering or tearing
- scratchy sensation as if sand was stuck in the eye
- pain or burning
Perennial allergies cannot be cured. Some sufferers will receive allergy shots over a period of many months to try to build up immunities to the problem pollens and molds. The allergy shots will make the allergic reactions less severe but will not completely cure the patient.
Some of the most common treatments for perennial conjunctivitis are as follows:
- Antihistamine drops (dropped directly into the eyes)
- Vasoconstrictors (reduces swelling and redness)
- Steroid drops (reduces swelling and redness)
- Cold compresses on the eye to relieve redness and swelling
- Staying away from the allergens if possible and washing your hands and face often to remove allergens
- Oral antihistamines (taken by mouth)
Antihistamine drops usually relieve symptoms within a few minutes of instillation whereas oral medication may take up to an hour to work. Take oral antihistamines ahead of time if you know you will be coming in contact with something you are allergic to. Oral antihistamines can cause unwanted side effects such as sleepiness, dryness in the mouth, nose and eyes and mood swings. Long-term steroid use in the eye can cause lesions on the cornea.
Lack of treatment for allergic conjunctivitis can sometimes lead to a bacterial infection in the eyes or the sinuses. The doctor will prescribe an antibiotic that will be dropped directly into the eye or taken by mouth to clear up the infection.
Note: Do not wear contact lenses during a flare up of allergic conjunctivitis and follow doctor's advice if using antihistamine drugs.
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People come to therapy because they’re in emotional pain. They’re generally looking for a way out of that pain, or at least to be able to manage it better. However, popular depictions of therapy and mental health tend to focus on mental illness – the idea that people go to therapy because there is something “wrong” with them mentally or emotionally.
The word pathology is used in medicine to refer to disease or things that are “abnormal.” When we view therapy as something people do when there’s something “wrong” with them, we’re looking at mental health from the point of view of pathology. We’re thinking in terms of what is “normal” and seeing anything that is not “normal” as a symptom of a disease. In this framework, to pathologize something means to see it as abnormal or a function of disease.
This has its uses. For some people, it’s helpful to think of the depression or anxiety they experience, for example, as a disease they struggle with rather than a part of who they are. Thinking in terms of pathology in this way can reduce stigma and help people to reclaim a sense of themselves even through chronic mental health struggles.
For other people, though, the pathology model of mental health isn’t a terribly helpful way to look at things. For these people, thinking in terms of pathology makes them feel worse, contributing to feelings of helplessness or worthlessness.
The most common way we pathologize in therapy is when we talk about symptoms, like anxiety, insomnia, or hyperactivity. The biggest reason for this is that when we categorize someone’s symptoms, we can start to see patterns that help us to find the best treatments. If a client describes feeling empty and worthless, lacking energy, sleeping a lot, and not feeling motivated, we can see that those symptoms line up well with what we call depression – something millions of people have experienced. This allows us to quickly zero in on treatment options that have helped others in similar situations. Pathologizing symptoms in this case allows us to provide more effective help more efficiently.
When we pathologize symptoms and behaviors, though, we then naturally tend to start seeing people through the lens of disease or mental illness. If we think this way too often, we run the risk of losing sight of how each person is a unique, complex whole. A person who experiences even chronic, deep depression is so much more than their lack of energy and motivation or feelings of worthlessness. They are a whole human being with a self and a story and dignity. In our rush to be effective therapists, we always have to be sure we’re not missing this forest when we focus on the handful of “pathological” trees
Self-harm is an example of a behavior that’s easy to pathologize and see as abnormal or a symptom of a mental illness. For those who have never experienced the urge to self-harm, it can be baffling why someone would resort to that action. For loved ones, it can be very distressing to think about a family member or friend purposefully hurting themselves. Our first reaction may be based on our lack of understanding or the discomfort we experience when thinking about self-harm, so we may start to see it as “wrong” or “bad,” a pathological behavior in need of fixing. If we do this, though, we miss out on so many ways of actually helping and supporting the person who is self-harming.
People don’t typically self-harm because they see it as a great solution to the problems they’re experiencing. They do so because, at least in the heat of the moment, it seems like the best available option for managing their current situation. Someone experiencing overwhelming emotional pain who doesn’t know how to tolerate that pain and feels like they have no one who understands what they’re going through might find that self-harm provides temporary relief from that emotional pain. In moments of profound distress, self-harm could seem like the best out of a set of inadequate options. The problem is that the effects of using self-harm as a coping mechanism make things worse over time, putting a person’s health and safety at risk and affecting their sense of self and ability to live a full, healthy life.
Lots of the things that bring people to counseling can be similarly seen as coping mechanisms that were the best someone could do in the moment, but which have far-reaching, unintended negative consequences: drinking, substance use, bingeing and purging or other disordered eating, risky sexual choices, or self-sabotaging in relationships.
People who lean heavily on these coping mechanisms often experience intense shame as a result. They often know that what they’re doing isn’t actually helping in the long run and is instead hurting them and even the people around them. At the same time, they don’t know how to stop or how to handle the pain that got them there in the first place. The shame they feel often becomes just another painful emotion that they aren’t sure how to handle and end up managing with the same imperfect coping skills, continuing the cycle.
“When we depathologize self-harm or other seemingly self-destructive behaviors, we allow room for empathy and understanding. We allow ourselves to be someone who has felt a lot of pain and who is growing and learning new ways to handle it."
The power of this shame cycle then combines with the natural tendency of the human brain to form deep-seated habits and at times addictions as well as the immense difficulty of tolerating painful emotions. Because of this, someone who has routinely used self-harm to manage their emotional pain won’t typically be able to stop cold turkey. Rather, therapy might begin by helping them to build up other ways of tolerating emotional pain while gradually decreasing self-harming behaviors.
Other times, self-harm might have progressed to the point where more intensive treatment is needed at first to help someone stabilize. This might include attending an intensive outpatient program or joining a DBT group that teaches crucial emotional skills.
Either way, depathologizing the original behavior – understanding the self-harm as an imperfect coping mechanism rather than a character flaw or something that is “wrong” with the person – is an effective way to combat the shame surrounding it. When we depathologize self-harm or other seemingly self-destructive behaviors, we allow room for empathy and understanding. We allow ourselves to be someone who has felt a lot of pain and who is growing and learning new ways to handle it. This makes it a whole lot easier to build up some stronger, healthier coping skills to replace the initial unhealthy ones. Then it becomes possible to go even deeper to uncover the roots of the emotional pain and begin healing it in a lasting way.
Depathologizing in therapy means leaning away from seeing the things that bring people to counseling as symptoms of mental illness and leaning toward seeing them as imperfect coping skills that were the best a person could manage in a difficult situation. When therapists depathologize the way we see our clients, we invite our clients to do this in the way they see themselves, too. This is a powerful way to break through the shame holding so many people back, opening up new possibilities for building resilience and happier, healthier lives.


What is TTRS?
A touch-typing course that also builds literacy skills and confidence at the computer.
Who is it for?
Employees with diverse learning needs – including those who struggle with dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyspraxia, and attention difficulties.
Who else can it help?
- English as a second or additional language speakers who struggle with spelling
- Any employee who finds handwriting difficult and has been unsuccessful learning typing in the past
Touch-type Read and Spell…
Structured and sequential
Whole word approach from the start
Incremental and self-paced
Easy to review progress
Accessible at home and in the workplace
How is this program different from other solutions?
Touch-type Read and Spell uses the TTRS Method of learning, which is Orton-Gillingham-based and combines age-appropriate phonics instruction with diverse sensory input.
This approach has demonstrated results. Research shows Orton-Gillingham can lead to an improvement in spelling and reading skills for individuals with dyslexia and other language-based learning difficulties.
Users see, hear and type words to build procedural knowledge of English sounds and improve spelling. Typing speed improves gradually, and employees feel more confident and make fewer errors on the computer.
Support your employees
Are you looking for a way to support your employees who struggle with dyslexia and other language-based learning difficulties? Offer them a self-study spelling and typing resource, and watch their confidence soar.
TTRS has packages for individuals and teams and can also produce custom content to suit your business’s needs.


Barriers to chemical recycling
If managed correctly increased chemical recycling of waste could become an important component of the circular economy. In our opinion, chemical recycling should be used as a mean to detoxify waste into sustainable raw materials or final products thereby preventing extraction and processing of virgin resources. However, there are several fundamental, non-technical, problems that needs to be addressed in order for society to achieve an effective sustainable chemical recycling serving the circular economy.
The Global Resources Outlook 2019 conclude that about half of the global emission of GHG:s (greenhouse gas) and about 90% of the challenges related to water stress and loss of biological diversity is related to the extraction and processing of virgin materials1. The GHG from global waste management is estimated to 3-5% of total GHG emissions2. Currently about 100 billion tons of material is entering the global economy today out of these 100 billion tons only 8,6 billion tons is recycled materials3.
Recycling of materials in such a way that less virgin material is extracted and processed presents an attractive way to reduce GHG emissions. The current 8,6% of recycled global material supply is not very efficient – quality is lost in the processes and hence used for low quality purposes. For a more fresh, detailed description of the EU situation for steel, plastics and aluminium read Material economics report Preserving value in EU industrial4.
If managed correctly increased chemical recycling of waste could become an important component of the circular economy. In our opinion, chemical recycling should be used as a mean to detoxify waste into sustainable raw materials (feedstock for production) or final products thereby preventing extraction and processing of virgin resources. In the long run society need to design products so that they are designed for recovery from the start – the cleaner the products the less need for advanced processing to ensure good recovery.
Though several steps in this direction have been taken during the recent years within policy, we think it still will take decades until we see the results in the waste stream. Thus, for decades to come we will need more advanced processing of waste to convert existing waste streams for our societal needs of detoxification and housekeeping of resources.
As we see it incineration of waste will play a key role by destroying organic toxic elements and at the same time achieve more concentrated streams in terms of ashes and air pollution control residues. These concentrated streams can then be undertaken chemical recycling (such as recovery of Phosphor from incinerated sewage sludge or recovery of Potassium from Air Pollution Control residues from incineration of MSW). In our view chemical recycling and incineration should not be regarded as competing technologies rather as different tools serving different purposes in the circular economy.
In our opinion there are several fundamental, non-technical, problems that needs to be addressed in order for society to achieve an effective sustainable chemical recycling serving the circular economy. Below is a short description of each of these barriers.
1. Pricing of virgin materials does not reflect the external costs nor and their
scarcity or substation potential. As a rule of thumb, chemically recycled materials is competitive only in times when commodity prices are high or extremely high, otherwise not. A chemical process with efficient detoxification that handles a complex feedstock such as waste is often more expensive than linear processing of a less complex virgin feedstock in the linear economy. Without legal requirements there’s a lack of incentive for producers to use more expensive secondary feedstock.
2. An effective detoxification in chemical recycling leads to a waste that need
disposal. A company starting with a feedstock holding 1% of a valuable substance and 99% non-valuable substances will produce a lot of waste when extracting the 1% of valuable substances Today, landfilling comes with a cost that virgin production (mining) don´t have, i.e. effective detoxification in sustainable chemical recycling comes with paying a tax. If the feedstock is a virgin source – there will be no landfill taxes applied whereas if the feedstock is a waste stream landfill tax will apply if the recovery process is undertaken in a country with landfill tax. Without a fair level of playing field compared to virgin extraction it will be hard for new innovative chemical recycling processes to reach the market.
3. Costs for quality control of waste flows is much more expensive compared to virgin sources. This reality in turn depends on lack of detailed information of composition combined with a time delay from when a product was put on the market and when it´s wasted. Production standards changes faster than lifetime of many products - meaning current waste flow often consists of the wrong quality compared to production standards used. One example is softening compounds used in vinyl flooring. Vinyl flooring produced twenty years ago may contain components now forbidden in EU. The cost to find out if a specific vinyl flooring waste, by sampling and testing for this component is likely much higher than the potential material value in the vinyl flooring should it be recovered (at least with current pricing of virgin materials and emissions).
4. It’s very complicated to reach industrial economical scale for chemical recycling of waste. In general, virgin materials are operated on site levels of millions of tons per year. The feedstock is sourced on the world market or controlled by a few stakeholders with whom agreements can be done. CAPEX can be distributed over large volumes. Due to the scattered ownership and many stakeholders involved when it comes to waste it’s difficult to source and secure the volumes needed for advanced processing of secondary materials. As with other chemical processes economical scale is a crucial factor.
5. Legal barriers such as lack of standardization The journey from waste to a marketable product in EU is very complicated and sometimes even forbidden. One example is feed phosphates cannot currently be produced from a waste based feedstock regardless the quality of the final product. Lack of EU wide EoW-criteria for many waste categories is lacking thereby prohibiting use of waste based feedstock in existing production plants in EU. Example: A typical chemical production plants in EU lack permits to use waste as a feedstock – therefore waste based feedstock cannot be used unless the permit for the plant is changed regardless if it’s possible from a technical standpoint. Typically the change of a permit is a very expensive and risky venture– so it’s not undertaken in many cases.
6. Volatile pricing: In a well-functioning circular economy, secondary resources is used in the supply chains regardless the price for virgin materials. This is not the case today. Typically, waste management is procured with fixed prices contracts for several years, blocking profitable recycling when commodity prices goes down. The crises in EU plastic recycling industry during the COVID came as a result of a low oil price in combination with difficulties to increase the charges of producers of plastic waste due to fixed prices in contracts. This means the gate fee for plastic waste recycling cannot be raised to compensate for lower price for recycled plastic when oil prices go down. Hence, the cheapest disposal option will be incineration rather than recycling.
The missing link to increase chemical recycling is foremost the missing demand and pricesetting in the market for reused materials vs virgin. For many substances technical solutions already exists, or could be developed, but as long as there is market failures in the pricing these solutions will not be able to compete to existing solutions. That is also why it can be misleading to focus on certain waste streams based on todays waste statistics. The starting point should be total resource consumption rather than waste production which then leads to today's limping recycling. The total material consumption was 92 billion tons pers year and the total MSW generation was 2 billion tons in 2016. Used correctly chemical recycling can be used as an effective tool to address the combined resource and climate challenge.
1 Global Resources Outlook | Resource Panel
2 Global Waste Management Outlook | UNEP - UN Environment Programme (ISBN: 978-92-807-3479-9)
3 The world is now only 8.6% circular - CGR 2020 - Circularity Gap Reporting Initiative (circularity-gap.world)
4 Preserving value in EU industrial materials - Material Economics


An interactive financial evaluation tool, including: single payment compound amount; uniform series compound amount; single payment present value; uniform series present value; uniform series sinking fund; uniform series capital recovery.
Notes on Financial Analysis - Interest Formulas
- Select the required formula to begin (see examples top right).
- i = effective interest per period (0.1 < i < 31)
- n = number of periods (1 < n < 26)
- P = present value (0 < P < 1 000 001)
- A = payment per period (0 < A < 100 001)
- F = future value (0 < F < 1 000 001)
- Each formula employs only two of the $ amount variables ... the redundant variable is always set to zero.
Values displayed with a may be changed ... click on a value to display an entry form ... or use the arrows right of a value to select from a list.
This tool exhibits spreadsheet-like behaviour ... change a value and related values are re-calculated automatically.


June 17, 2014
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed a rule that defines what waters are protected under the Clean Water Act. This new rule is likely to affect most operations throughout the U.S.
A new definition
According to the EPA, the new rule — formally known as the “Definition of ‘Waters of the United States’ Under the Clean Water Act” or 40 CFR 230.3 — aims to clarify which waters are protected.
The proposed rule expands the scope of protected waters to include streams and wetlands, according to the agency’s website.
The rule states that protected waters include “all waters which are currently used, were used in the past, or may be susceptible to use in interstate or foreign commerce, including all waters which are subject to the ebb and flow of the tide; all interstate water, including interstate wetlands; the territorial seas; all impoundments of waters identified in [the previously-stated waters and those in the next statement]; all tributaries of waters identified in [the previously-stated waters]; and on a case-specific basis, other waters, including wetlands, provided that those waters alone, or in combination with other similarly situated waters, including wetlands, located in the same region, have a significant nexus to a water identified [previously in this section].”
To read more of the proposed rule, click here.
Expanding federal waters
Emily Coyner, director of Environmental Services for the National Stone, Sand and Gravel Association (NSSGA), says the EPA’s proposed rule would expand the scope of federal waters. She notes that areas such as ditches and floods plains are included in the new definition.
“It used to be just navigable or next to a navigable or leading directly to a navigable,” Coyner says. “Now it can be all sorts of things.”
She adds that the expansion would likely require more sites to obtain water permits. She notes that producers often try avoid areas that will require a water permit, but the proposed rule would make doing so nearly impossible.
“EPA’s proposed rule is so broad that its going to be hard to find an area that you won’t need a permit for,” she says. “So even though our industry’s already subject to these permits, we’re going to have to get a lot more of them.”
She notes that she is especially concerned about operations in the western portion of the U.S.
“They’ve taken that flow part out of the equation. So if you think about out west and how many dry streambeds there are, where you may only get rainfall once every few years, that’s difficult,” she says. “A lot of the resources that are available out west are sand and gravel deposits. And a lot of those are within floodplains, and floodplains are now included in this.”
The cost of a new rule
A major concern regarding the proposed rule is the costs that sites are likely to incur.
In a testimony before the EPA last month, Memphis Stone and Gravel Co. Vice President Alan Parks pointed out that without the appropriate permits, small companies could be fined up to $37,500 per day.
But, as Coyner notes, the permits are expensive and can take years to obtain.
The cost of a permit and fines aren’t all that sites could have to pay. According to Parks’ testimony, mitigation costs — or expenses dedicated to fixing the water that is being disturbed — add to the concerns.
“One NSSGA member calculated that to do the additional mitigation of a stream required under this rule would be more than $100,000; this is just for one site in our industry,” Parks said during his testimony. “This is more than EPA has estimated the stream mitigation costs are for entire states in its economic analysis.”
Coyner says, though the estimate is for only one site, it serves as an example of what the industry could be facing.
“This type of work is really expensive. It’s really complicated. They usually have to have consultants and attorneys help them,” Coyner says. “So that is just a cost for one site, but it’s not atypical. Most of my members tell me that’s the kind of project that they’d have to do as a part of getting this permit.”
In addition to actual expenses, the rule would cost time to many sites. The permitting process takes several years already, and Coyner says more time would be added by increasing the number of sites that need a permit in the aggregates industry, as well as adding sites from other industries. She says the EPA is not likely to add workers who handle water permits, further increasing permitting times.
And, as Parks said in his testimony, “For our business, time is money.”
Coyner adds that some NSSGA members are also concerned about delays and supply interruptions.
“Obviously theres a limit to what they can charge,” she says.
Beyond the aggregates industry
The proposed rule would impact not only the aggregates industry, but also the people it serves, including the transportation industry.
Pat Jacomet, president of the Ohio Aggregates and Industrial Minerals Association (OAIMA) says a major talking point for the association at the Transportation Construction Coalition (TCC) Fly-In in Washington, D.C., June 9-11 was the proposed rule. He says the rule would affect the industry’s ability to work with transportation agencies.
“If the rules go, then all the funding in the world would not give us the resources we need to build roadways,” Jacomet says.
Jacomet says the rule will likely have a “far-reaching impact” on multiple industries. He says he and several other industry professionals have drafted a letter and have asked many different types of workers, including miners, contractors, farmers, homebuilders, and more, to sign a copy of the letter to be sent to the EPA. The letter outlines concerns such as costs, jurisdiction, and permitting.
“Anyone who would move earth should be very concerned about this rule,” Jacomet says. “I feel we’ll have a large array of interested parties.”
What you can do
Coyner says preparing for the rule is difficult because of the broad language included and because it is hard to predict how the people visiting the sites will interpret the rule.
She says the best thing to do right now is to become educated about the rule — read it, read articles about it, talk to others in the industry and to associations like NSSGA.
EPA is also accepting comments on the proposed rule until Oct. 20. (The deadline was originally slated for July, but the agency announced last week that it is extending the deadline.) To learn more about submitting a comment, click here, then click the “How To Comment” button.
To learn more about the EPA’s proposed water rule, visit epa.gov/uswaters.


The Curious Case of the Agua Fria River gravels
As it is subjected to weathering, certain gravels break down and drift away, thus rejuvenating the deposit.
By Bill Langer
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a 2008 American film very loosely based on the 1922 short story of the same name by F. Scott Fitzgerald. (I enjoyed the movie much more than the short story.) On the evening of Nov. 11, 1918, Benjamin was born with the appearance and physical maladies of a very elderly man. As Benjamin said, he “was born under unusual circumstances. While, everyone else was agin’, I was gettin’ younger…all alone.”
Let’s get on to the geologic part of this article. Rocks or gravels that are exposed at the land surface are subject to weathering through contact with the Earth’s atmosphere, water, plants, and animals. Physical weathering involves the breakdown of rocks and soils through direct contact with atmospheric conditions such as heat, freeze/thaw cycles, water, and ice. Chemical weathering is caused by atmospheric or biologically produced chemicals. Consequently, earth materials near the land surface commonly are more weathered than those at depth. (For example, see “W is for Weathering,” Aggregates Manager, November 2011).
But like Benjamin Button, the gravels along the Agua Fria River (located west of Phoenix, Ariz.) suffer from a reversal of normal processes. While other gravels get stronger with depth, the gravels of the Agua Fria River keep gettin’ weaker.
Curious. What can possibly explain this “Benjamin Button” reverse-weathering phenomenon?
The gravels were laid down as three separate deposits called the upper, middle, and lower alluvial deposits. The lower alluvium was deposited about 100,000 years ago (Figure 1) and originally filled the entire Agua Fria valley. The gravels were subjected to intensive physical and chemical weathering for many tens of thousands of years, and that weathering took its toll on the gravels.
About 10,000 years ago (Figure 2), the Agua Fria River became rejuvenated and eroded and transported the older gravels (geologists call this reworking). As the gravels were being jostled around by the river, some of the weathered clasts were broken down into small particles and were washed away. This improved the overall quality of the middle alluvial deposit.
About 1,000 years ago the Agua Fria River once again became rejuvenated and eroded into the middle alluvial deposit (Figure 3). In doing so, it removed most of the remaining weathered gravels.
All of this is borne out by the results of a geological study of the state of weathering of the gravels. As it turns out, the gravels made of one particular rock type — tuffaceous (volcanic ash fall) rocks — are most susceptible to weathering (Figure 4). In the lower alluvial deposit, 14 percent of the tuffaceous clasts are decomposed. Seven percent of the tuffaceous clasts are decomposed in the middle alluvial deposit. The upper alluvial deposit was least weathered where less than 1 percent of the tuffaceous clasts are decomposed.
Maybe the reverse-weathered Agua Fria River gravels are not so curious after all.
Bill Langer is a research geologist who spent 41 years with the U.S. Geological Survey.
He can be reached at Bill_Langer@hotmail.com.
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In the kitchen where I grew up, oil was oil.
Not flax seed, safflower, truffle or rice bran.
Not virgin, and certainly not extra virgin.
Oil was vegetable oil, a healthier alternative to the traditional chicken fat, and a pareve (neither milk nor meat) staple, in my grandmother's kosher kitchen.
And canola oil?
Hadn't even been invented yet.
Canola -- an abbreviation of "Canadian Oil Low Acid" -- is a product of traditional plant breeding technology, genetic engineering, and clever marketing.
In the late 1960s, plant biologists crossed four varieties of rapeseed to create a seed with less erucic acid (which makes oils go rancid quickly) and glucosinolate (which tastes bitter). The oil pressed from this new seed had a lower level of saturated fat, and a higher level of "good" fat, than other similar neutral-tasting oils.
Marketed first to physicians as a heart-healthy alternative oil, canola raced to the top of the charts. However, scientists and growers in Canada (which produces the majority of canola worldwide, though the US, Australia and Europe also contribute) felt that a slight alteration would create a more viable crop.
One protein gene was modified to make it tolerant to some herbicides, the use of which reduced the amount of chemical needed for weed control in the fields. As all proteins are removed from canola during processing, the oil made from genetically modified plants is the same as conventional canola oil; however, some countries have banned the sale of oil made from genetically modified seed.
There's been a lot of misinformation published about canola oil, but for cooks watching their fat and calorie intake, canola oil offers many benefits. In addition to being the lowest in saturated fat, canola oil is high in monounsaturated ("good") fat, as well as omega-3 and linoleic acids. Spectrum sells an organic canola oil, available in my local supermarket.
With a smoke point of 435°F, canola oil is in the same range as olive oil, good for sauteing but not as good for high-heat frying as rice bran or safflower oils, which smoke at an impressive 510°F.
Canola is a great all-purpose flavor-neutral oil for dishes that don't need the pronounced, fruity overtones of olive oil -- dishes like vegetarian refried beans, Asian chicken salad, Mexican meatball soup, Asian pancakes, chicken stir-fry in peanut sauce, and low-fat lemon poppyseed muffins.
Potatoes with aioli dressing
Garlic mashed potatoes, without the mashing. Aioli is a garlicky mayonnaise that makes a rich dip for all sorts of vegetables, a flavorful sandwich slather, or a topping for grilled or poached fish. Serves 6.
1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
1 Tbsp white wine vinegar or lemon juice
2 large garlic cloves, peeled
5 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
5 Tbsp canola or vegetable oil
Kosher salt and fresh black pepper
1 lb red-skinned potatoes
1 Tbsp roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley
Make the aioli: Add the egg yolk, vinegar and garlic to a food processor fitted with the metal blade. With the motor running, add olive oil drop by drop, and then the canola oil drop by drop. When the mixture starts to thicken, add the remaining oil in a steady stream, until it looks like a yellow-ish mayonnaise. Season with salt and pepper to taste. (Can be made ahead and refrigerated for several hours. Bring to room temperature before using; cold mayonnaise will not absorb easily into warm potatoes.)
Cut the potatoes into bite-size pieces, and place in a sauce pan with cold water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat, then lower the heat to simmer and cook for 7 minutes, or until just tender. Drain well, then add to a large bowl. Stir in the aioli dressing, and mix gently to combine. Let sit for 15-20 minutes, to allow the potatoes to absorb some of the sauce. Garnish with parsley, season with salt if needed, and serve warm or at room temperature.
Disclosure: The Perfect Pantry earns a few pennies on purchases made through the Amazon.com links in this post. Thank you for supporting this site when you start your shopping here.


Article Summary Report by Karen Wilkie
Despite being a relatively water-rich country, Canada’s water resources are not infinite and are not evenly distributed. Karen Wilkie points out that some regions, like southern Alberta, are reaching the limits of local water supply. She focuses on Alberta, where periods of recent drought, rapid population growth, and an expanding economy thirsty for water are adding to the Province’s water shortages.
Barring putting a cap on new users or directing development and industry to where there is sufficient water to support them, Wilkie suggests the challenge is to change how water is perceived and used. She asserts failing to do so will create significant economic and environmental costs. In this paper, Wilkie discusses a variety of water conservation policy options that could reduce demand on Alberta’s water resources. The author also identifies barriers to advancing water conservation initiatives and advances future directions to overcome the barriers.
Wilkie recommends developing a vision that identifies future economic development goals and the role of water conservation in achieving those goals. She also suggests that investments should be made in education about and promotion of water conservation, and that all users should have access to up-to-date, accurate information on Alberta’s water supplies. She concludes that Alberta needs to rethink its current, unsustainable use of water, and create a proactive water policy that balances water conservation and economic growth.
|Publisher:||Canada West Foundation [ Visit Website ]|
|Year Published:||2005;||Publisher Type:||Research Institute|
|Publicly Available:||Yes||Research Focus:||Provincial;|
|Payment Required:||No||Publication Format:||Adobe PDF|