OVERVIEW: What every practitioner needs to know
Heat illness is caused by the inability to maintain normal body temperature because of excessive heat production or exposure, an inability to dissipate the heat, or a combination of both. Heat exhaustion and heat stroke will be addressed in this chapter.
Are you sure your patient has heat-related illness? What are the typical findings for this disease?
Heat exhaustion and heat stroke are on the same spectrum of disease, with heat stroke being the more severe form of heat-related illness.Table I lists the common symptoms of each and at what body temperature the diagnosis can be made.
|Heat Exhaustion||Heat Stroke|
|Core Body Temperature||38-40°C||>40°C|
|Primary Symptoms||Mild to moderate dehydration, profuse sweating||Anhidrosis, lack of sweating are common in classic heat stroke; in exertional heat stroke, the patient may be sweating, have altered mental status|
|Secondary Symptoms||Nausea and general malaise||Nausea, malaise, tachycardia with hypotension, mild to moderate dehyration|
What other disease/condition shares some of these symptoms?
There are some diseases that can mimic heat exhaustion or heat stroke. Most of these can be ruled out with an accurate history. The following lists some of these diseases.
Sepsis with high fever and altered mental status can mimic heat stroke. A focus of infection is often discovered but may not be immediately obvious.
Pathologic states of the central nervous system (CNS), such as status epilepticus or acute or chronic injury to the hypothalamus from infection, hemorrhage, or trauma, can cause neurogenic fever. In all of these cases there is a preceding neurologic injury.
Hemorrhagic shock and encephalopathy syndrome is a rare condition that includes fever, altered mental status, shock, disseminated intravascular coagulopathy, diarrhea, renal insufficiency, and liver failure. It occurs in infants less than 1 year of age and may be related to heat stroke.
Toxic overdose from drugs including cocaine, methamphetamine, amphetamine, MDMA (Ecstasy), salicylates, and anticholinergic agents (pesticides) can mimic heat-related illness.
Thyroid storm can present with hyperpyrexia, tachycardia, agitation, and delirium.
Malignant hyperthermia can mimic heat stroke but usually follows general anesthesia.
Serotonin syndrome is associated with increased serotonin activity in the brain causing mental status changes, autonomic hyperactivity, and neuromuscular abnormalities. There must be a history of exposure to a serotonergic drug.
Neuroleptic malignant syndrome is a severe reaction to antipsychotic medications leading to hyperthermia, muscle rigidity, altered mental status, choreoathetosis, trmeors, arrhythmias, sweating, and labile blood pressure.
What caused this disease to develop at this time?
Simple environmental conditions in which there is high temperature and high humidity impair the body’s ability to dissipate heat because the sweat cannot evaporate. This puts any patient at increased risk for a heat-related illness. Children, however, have certain attributes that increase their risk for heat exhaustion and heat stroke. First, they have a greater surface area to body mass ratio. They also produce more metabolic heat/kilogram body weight than adults, yet they have a slower rate of sweating than adults. They also do not begin sweating until the temperature is higher than that which typically triggers sweating in adults.
Children have a lower cardiac output at a given metabolic rate than do adults, which means they are not moving metabolites through their system at the same rate. Children have a slower acclimatization rate than do adults. Finally, because children have a blunted thirst response compared with adults, they often exist in a state of hypohydration. They do not cognitively recognize their signs of thirst as readily or as early as adults and, further, they may not know how or where to find hydration.
There are other predisposing conditions that may increase the risk of a child experiencing heat exhaustion or heat stroke. Any condition that causes excessive fluid loss or impaired sweating puts the child at increased risk for the development of heat exhaustion or heat stroke.
Examples of conditions in which there can be excessive fluid loss include diabetes insipidus, diabetes mellitus, gastroenteritis, and fever, as well as hyperthyroidism or congenital heart defects in which there is increased sweating. Conditions of impaired sweating include obesity, cystic fibrosis, and spina bifida. Finally, young children or developmentally delayed children may have a decreased thirst drive or may be unable to communicate their thirst effectively.
Obtaining an accurate history is imperative to understanding the cause of the problem. Important questions should include the following:
– Exposure history—what was the heat index at the time of injury and how long was the patient exposed to those conditions?
– What type of clothing was the patient wearing?
– Is the patient on any medications?
– Does the patient have any predisposing clinical conditions?
– Does the patient feel fatigued or confused?
– Did the patient take any illicit drugs?
The physical examination will be very helpful in determining whether the patient has heat exhaustion, heat stroke, or a disease that mimics it. Some findings that are useful, but not specific, include the following:
– Normal blood pressure or hypotension
– Dry mucous membranes
– Sweating or anhidrosis
– Mental status that ranges from normal to that seen in encephalopathy
– Purpura, hemoptysis, hematemesis, melena, or hematochezia (can be seen in heat stroke)
What laboratory studies should you request to help confirm the diagnosis? How should you interpret the results?
For patients with suspected heat exhaustion, routine laboratory studies are not necessary. A basic metabolic panel may reveal slight abnormalities in serum sodium levels. Hyponatremia might result from the loss of hypotonic fluids or hypernatremia may result from excessive salt loss in sweat.
For patients with suspected heat stroke, there will be certain abnormal laboratory findings that would be consistent with the systemic inflammatory response and end organ damage that result from the heat stress. The following laboratory tests are indicated in any patient with heat stroke: – Blood glucose determination to assess for hypoglycemia
– Blood gas determination to evaluate the presence and severity of metabolic acidosis
– Complete blood count, prothrombin time, partial thromboplastin time, and international normalized ratio to detect anemia and disseminated intravascular coagulopathy
– Serum electrolyte determinations to look for hyperkalemia, hyponatremia or hypernatremia
– Liver enzyme determinations to assess for liver injury
– Blood urea nitrogen and creatinine determinations to assess for prerenal azotemia and kidney function relative to myoglobinuria
– Serum creatine kinase, ionized or total calcium, and phosphate determinations to look for rhabdomyolysis and associated hypocalcemia and hyperphosphatemia
– Drug screen to look for drugs with adverse effects that are similar to heat stroke
– Urinalysis to evaluate for hemoglobinuria and specific gravity
Certainly, as with any patient, the diagnostic evaluations are directed by the patient and how they are or are not responding to therapy. These initial laboratory data should help determine the degree to which the patient has been injured by their exposure to heat.
Would imaging studies be helpful? If so, which ones?
A patient diagnosed with heat exhaustion does not require any routine imaging studies.
In patients with suspected or known heat stroke, a chest radiograph may be useful if the patient is exhibiting signs of high-output cardiac failure. A 12-lead electrocardiogram may also be indicated if there are any electrolyte abnormalities. Finally, a computed tomographic scan of the brain should be considered if the patient’s mental status does not improve despite optimal therapy.
If you are able to confirm that the patient has heat-related illness, what treatment should be initiated?
Therapies to Institute Immediately
Prompt recognition and treatment of heat exhaustion is critical to prevent progression to heat stroke. If the patient already has heat stroke, the initial therapy or intervention is the same as it is for heat exhaustion.
The patient should immediately stop participating in the current activity and be moved to a cooler environment. Excess clothing should be removed to help with evaporative heat loss. In heat exhaustion, the patient should be given a chilled, salt containing liquid like Gatorade or Powerade.
For heat exhaustion, treatment beyond this is often unnecessary. Only patients who do not respond to this initial therapy need further management. If these patients arrive at the hospital, rectal temperature should be obtained and an intravenous line should be placed to give a normal saline bolus of 20 mL/kg of body weight. Children with heat exhaustion should begin to improve within 30 minutes of therapy.
In a patient with heat stroke, assessment of the airway, breathing, and circulation is also important because of the risk of seizures and hypotension. Rapid cooling should begin immediately and, in the field or before insertion of an intravenous line, ice packs can be applied to the axillae, the neck, and the groin. Again, removing excess clothing to increase evaporative heat loss is important.
Once the patient with heat stroke arrives at the hospital, or hopefully before, resuscitation with intravenous normal saline has begun. There are electrolyte abnormalities that can be common in heat stroke, such as hyponatremia and hypo- or hyperkalemia. Taking these abnormalities into consideration during fluid resuscitation is important. Cardiac function can also be decreased during heat stroke, so the patient should be observed for signs of congestive heart failure during fluid resuscitation.
Despite fluid resuscitation, some patients may require vasopressor therapy because of depressed cardiac function or decreased systemic resistance. Typically this is necessary for only 24-48 hours.
Treatment of the multisystem organ involvement in severe heat stroke is critical to the survival of the patient. The hematologic and coagulation studies should be followed daily in moderate heat stroke and more often in severe heat stroke. In rare cases, a transfusion with packed red blood cells may be needed to treat progressive anemia. Additionally, although active hemorrhage is rarely a common problem, occasionally bleeding occurs and may require fresh frozen plasma and platelets to control.
The neurologic sequelae of heat stroke are one of the hallmarks of this disease. Confusion, ataxia, coma, obtundation, and seizures may be the presenting signs. Seizures can typically be controlled with a single anticonvulsant. Phenytoin is the drug of choice because it can control seizures without depressing the CNS. Cerebral edema is thought to be common after heat stroke. The pathologic features of the edema are unclear but are thought to be due to thermal injury of the neurons.
The lungs are typically relatively unaffected by heat stroke. In the event of aggressive fluid resuscitation in the presence of depressed cardiac function, pulmonary edema may result. If there is respiratory failure, it is typically secondary to CNS dysfunction rather than pulmonary disease.
Renal insufficiency or failure is secondary to the increased load of myoglobin to the kidneys in the face of hypotension. The treatment is aggressive hydration; however occasionally short-term, and less often long-term, dialysis may be needed in a patient who had preexisting kidney disease. Routine use of mannitol or bicarbonate to alkalinize the urine is controversial. There are no prospective, randomized controlled studies that have been able to prove that either mannitol or alkalinization are superior to vigorous hydration alone.
Generally, the insult to the kidneys is transient and the kidneys typically recover from this insult well.
Liver involvement in heat stroke is common. Hepatic enzyme elevation is so common that it is often used to help make the diagnosis of heat stroke. In severe heat stroke, transient liver failure with hepatic necrosis may occur. Management of coagulopathy and maintenance of blood pressure and hydration generally is sufficient for the liver to recover completely.
Rapid cooling and management of the consequences of heat stroke is the mainstay of treatment.
What are the adverse effects associated with each treatment option?
Adverse effects related to the treatment of heat exhaustion are most commonly associated with aggressive fluid resuscitation. Careful observation for signs of congestive heart failure is very important in both heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Additionally, electrolyte abnormalities are common and if not attended to, severe hyperkalemia, hypokalemia, hypernatremia, or hyponatremia can be exacerbated by fluid resuscitation that does not consider these electrolytes.
In heat stroke, there may be occasion to use blood products. Any time a patient receives blood products he/she is at risk for the development of an adverse reaction such as hives, hypotension, or anaphylaxis. Blood products must be carefully typed and screened to ensure the safest delivery of care.
What are the possible outcomes of heat-related illness?
Most children with heat exhaustion will not have any long-term sequelae. Rarely they will require hospitalization to correct an electrolyte disturbance, but otherwise the prognosis for these children is excellent, with return to normal activity in nearly all cases.
Patients with mild to moderate heat stroke typically recover completely. The renal and hepatic insufficiency that is seen during heat stroke is usually transient and there are generally no short- or long-term sequelae.
Those who survive moderate to severe heat stroke also have a significant chance of making a complete recovery, but the risk of long-term sequelae is higher. If the core temperature was greater than 107.6°F (42°C), patients have a poorer prognosis. Often the neurologic deficits persist in these patients. These neurologic changes may include behavioral changes, dysarthria, impaired memory, decreased visual acuity, poor coordination and ataxic gait.
In patients with severe heat stroke, up to one third have moderate to severe neurologic impairment. The mortality rate for severe heat stroke may be as high as 10%.
The family should recognize the risk of heat exhaustion porgressing to heat stroke if not caught and treated early. The only inherent risk to the treatment is development of hyper- or hyponatremia if the wrong type of fluid is used for rehydration.
For patients with heat stroke, the family should know that the risk of not treating heat stroke far outweighs the risks associated with the available treatments. Certainly aggressive fluid resuscitation carries the risk of causing pulmonary edema and worsening an electrolyte abnormality. Close monitoring of electrolytes and physical examination would decrease any real risk of this occurring.
In patients with progressive anemia and/or coagulopathy, treatment with blood products carries the inherent risk of infection, immunologic reaction, or anaphylaxis to the blood or blood product. Again, not treating progressive anemia or severe coagulopathy carries a greater risk to the patient than does the use of the blood products to treat it. Further, treatment of seizure activity or renal failure are well established treatments with inherent risks that should be discussed should the need arise. However, again, the risk of not treating these sequelae of heat stroke far outweighs the risk of using available treatments.
What causes this disease and how frequent is it?
Between 1997 and 2006, 26,171 children less than age 19 years were treated in North American emergency departments for heat-related injuries. There is clearly a peak during the summer months in all states. In southern states, heat-related illnesses are a possibility at any time of the year.
Most often, heat-related illnesses occur in male patients. The most commonly implicated activities are football, exercise, and mowing the lawn. Certainly a state of hypohydration, as is common in the pediatric population, can predispose a child to experience the signs and symptoms of heat stroke more quickly. There are other reasons that children are more susceptible to heat-related illnesses as well. They have a bigger body surface to body mass ratio, which results in a greater rate of heat absorption in a hot environment. Children also have a lower rate of sweating than do adults and slower acclimatization, leading to a slower rate of evaporation of heat from the body.
Aside from any predisposing medical conditions, there are no known genetic factors that contribute to heat exhaustion.
How do these exposures cause the disease?
Exposure to a high heat index predisposes children to heat-related illnesses. Evaporation is the principal mechanism of heat loss in a hot environment, but if the humidity is greater than 75%, it becomes ineffective. Children sustain a heat-related illness such as heat stroke when the critical thermal maximum (CTM) is exceeded. The CTM is defined as the degree of elevated body temperature and duration of heat exposure that can be tolerated before cell damage occurs. This generally occurs at a temperature of 42°C.
Heat stress can cause cell injury through a variety of proposed mechanisms. First, through the production of acute-phase reactants, such as cytokines, which initiate an inflammatory cascade. These acute-phase reactants are countered to some degree by heat shock proteins, which attempt to protect the cells by preventing the unfolding of denatured proteins and by stopping cytokine production. Second, cell injury can occur through a direct route because of denaturation of the cell proteins. Third, heat stress can cause direct injury to the vascular endothelium, resulting in impaired microcirculation and disseminated intravascular coagulation. Finally, it can cause intestinal ischemia, which leads to increased permeability of the gut followed by endotoxemia. All of these physiologic changes lead to a systemic inflammatory response that causes multisystem organ failure.
What complications might you expect from the disease or treatment of the disease?
As has already been discussed, multisystem organ failure, neurologic complications, and death may result from heat stroke. Long-term complications of this disease could include kidney and liver failure, as well as neurologic complications such as pancerebellar syndrome, spasticity, speech impairment, memory loss, gait abnormalities, and discoordination. In most cases of mild to moderate heat stroke, the patient makes a complete recovery. The complications that you might expect are typically only seen if the patient experienced severe heat stroke.
How can heat-related illness be prevented?
Heat exhaustion can develop into heat stroke, which is a potentially devastating disease for which there is no cure, only supportive care. Therefore, prevention is critically important. Reducing the known and modifiable risks for heat stroke is the key for prevention.
Environmental conditions are an important consideration when planning outside activities. Avoiding strenuous or outside activities during the hottest part of the day is very important. Allowing for frequent breaks in a cooler area, increased player substitutions, and improved and recurrent hydration breaks, even if the child is not thirsty, is important.
Reducing modifiable risks is the key for prevention. On average, a 40-kg child should drink 150 mL every 20 minutes and a 60-kg child should drink 250 mL every 20 minutes during outside activities. Additionally, allowing for a gradual progression of intensity during hotter months can help children avoid heat-related illnesses. Children generally acclimatize more slowly than do adults and that should be considered when participating in outside activities. Wearing appropriate clothing when playing or participating in outdoor activities can help with the evaporation of heat. Lightweight, light-colored clothing with only one layer of absorbent material can help with the evaporation of sweat.
What is the evidence?
Bytomski, JR, Squire, DL. “Heat illness in children”. Curr Sports Med Rep. vol. 2. 2003. pp. 320-4.
Jardine, DS. “Heat illness and heat stroke”. Pediatr Rev. vol. 28. 2007. pp. 249-58.
Nelson, NG, Collins, CL, Comstock, RD. “Exertional heat-related injuries treated in emergency departments in the U.S., 1997-2006”. Am J Prev Med. vol. 40. 2011. pp. 54-60.
Wexler, RK. “Evaluation and treatment of heat-related illnesses”. Am Fam Physician. vol. 65. 2002. pp. 2307-14.
Ongoing controversies regarding etiology, diagnosis, treatment
There is some ongoing controversy regarding the most appropriate method for rapid cooling during the treatment of heat stroke. Please refer to the following article for further information about this controversy.
Bouchama, A, Dehbi, M, Chaves-Carballo, E. “Cooling and hemodynamic management in heatstroke: practical recommendations”. Crit Care. vol. 11. 2007. pp. R54
Huerta-Alardin, AL, Varon, J, Marik, PE. “Bench-to-bedside review: rhabdomyolysis—an overview for clinicians”. Crit Care. vol. 9. 2005. pp. 158-69.
Copyright © 2017, 2013 Decision Support in Medicine, LLC. All rights reserved.
No sponsor or advertiser has participated in, approved or paid for the content provided by Decision Support in Medicine LLC. The Licensed Content is the property of and copyrighted by DSM.
- OVERVIEW: What every practitioner needs to know
- Are you sure your patient has heat-related illness? What are the typical findings for this disease?
- What other disease/condition shares some of these symptoms?
- What caused this disease to develop at this time?
- What laboratory studies should you request to help confirm the diagnosis? How should you interpret the results?
- Would imaging studies be helpful? If so, which ones?
- If you are able to confirm that the patient has heat-related illness, what treatment should be initiated?
- What are the adverse effects associated with each treatment option?
- What are the possible outcomes of heat-related illness?
- What causes this disease and how frequent is it?
- How do these exposures cause the disease?
- What complications might you expect from the disease or treatment of the disease?
- How can heat-related illness be prevented?
- What is the evidence?
- Ongoing controversies regarding etiology, diagnosis, treatment


In this blog I am trying to explain the concept of Delegate Class in C#.
It is represents a delegate (representative), which is a data structure that refers to a static method or to a class instance and an instance method of that class.
The Delegate class is the base class for delegate types. However, only the system and compilers can derive explicitly from the Delegate class or from the MulticastDelegate class. It is also not permissible to derive a new type from a delegate type. The Delegate class is not considered a delegate type; it is a class used to derive delegate types.
Code Description: -
1. Using System (include the System namespace).
2. Create MindstickSamplesDelegate class.
4. Declares a delegate for a method that takes in an int and returns a String.
5. Defines some methods to which the delegate can point.
7. Defines an instance method.
15. Defines a static method.
24. Create main method.
26. to 28. Creates one delegate for each method. For the instance method, an instance (mySC) must be supplied. For the static method, use the class name.
29. to 31. Invokes the delegates.


Which is it, sleep, physical activity, or diet, that improve mental health more? A new study dives into which of the three make the biggest impact toward mental health and well-being in young adults
The study found that physical activity and diet are secondary and that sleep quality is the “strongest predictor of depressive symptoms and well-being.”
Shay-Ruby Wickham, the lead author of the study published in Frontiers in Psychology, says that too little and too much sleep can cause depressive symptoms.
Renae Vania Tomczak, MBA President and Chief Executive Officer at Mental Health America of Greater Houston says sleep, exercise, and getting the appropriate nutrients through diet are the cornerstone of health and benefit nearly every system in the body—including our mental health.
Vania Tomczak said that mental disorders are often caused by a combination of factors making them complex, and it makes sense that taking more than a single action or intervention can be a stronger deterrent to reducing the risk of developing depression, anxiety, or other mental disorders.
Sleep offers the body and brain time for renewal and recovery from the happenings of the day, Vania Tomczak says.
The CDC has reported that about 1/3 of Americans are not getting enough sleep on a regular basis. Vania Tomczak said that while the relationship may not be completely understood, sleep helps foster both mental and emotional resilience. Sleep deprivation, however, sets the stage for negative thinking, including impacting self-esteem, and making one emotionally vulnerable during interaction with others.
Physical activity releases endorphins within the body, which help to promote well-being and feelings of euphoria, and increase mood and energy, the study states.
When it comes to low levels of physical activity and mental health, think of the statement “runner’s high,” says Vania Tomczak. “Those who take part in more vigorous activities such as jogging or running generally have a more positive and energized outlook on life,” she added
Then there’s diet, according to the study it’s the third modifiable lifestyle behavior that can influence mental health and well-being.
Eating a diet of refined grains, processed and fried foods and consuming a high sugar intake, has been associated with increased perceived stress among female college students, and increased depressive symptoms among both male and female students.
The food you eat can be fuel for exercise or can leave you feeling groggy or unmotivated to engage in physical activity, explained Vania Tomczak. “When people don’t get enough sleep, they tend to overeat or eat unhealthy foods when too tired to make a healthy meal,” she added.
“Vitamin C has been shown in studies to protect the body against certain types of stress that impact some forms of depression. Studies also show that vitamin C and B contain minerals that are important for optimal cognitive and emotional functioning,” Vania Tomczak said.
If you are a parent and struggling with kids who are not sleeping well during the pandemic or worried about your child’s mental health, here’s a 5-minute, anonymous, free parent survey screening which will help determine if a child’s emotions, attention, or behavior might be a sign of a problem.
Experts have been concerned about adults and kids being depressed throughout the pandemic. Back in November 2020, while Texas reported a record of infected coronavirus cases, 26.9%of Texans felt anxiety and 20.4% were depressed according to The Census Bureau.
More coverage on improving mental health, working out at home, quick meals:
Here are easy healthy meals to make this week if you are food prepping.
These are tips for working out while at-home, even without equipment.
Mental health experts provide insight on reinvesting energy to becoming better versions of ourselves.


HUNTSVILLE, Alabama - A theory developed by a professor at the University of Alabama in Huntsville about factors contributing to the strength of tornadoes in the Deep South has been approved for publication.
Topography, surface roughness and gravity waves provided fuel for the historic outbreak of tornadoes on April 27, 2011, according to a study led by Kevin Knupp, a professor of atmospheric science at UAH. The study has been accepted for publication in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, the school announced today.
Knupp has theorized about the influence of topography on tornadoes since the 1989 tornado that hit Airport Road. He saw further evidence in the 2011 outbreak, Knupp told AL.com two years ago.
"The indications are that gravity waves, topography and surface roughness each played at least some role that day in creating tornadoes or making them more powerful," Knupp said in the UAH press release today.
Surface roughness is a characteristic of the Deep South that leads to stronger tornadoes, Knupp said. That trait is absent in the Great Plains.
The research was supported by a $150,000 grant from the National Science Foundation's Rapid Response Research program.
In their analysis of the storm, Knupp and his team used data from the National Weather Service NEXRAD radar at Hytop, between Huntsville and Scottsboro, a dual-polarimetric Doppler radar jointly operated at Huntsville International Airport by WHNT-TV and UAH, and UAH's mobile dual-polarimetric Doppler, which on April 27 was stationed near New Market, between the two stationary radars.


Information is a strategic resource that underpins the key functions and decision making processes of a local government.
The way information is managed, including the technology used to support it, is therefore central to local government business practices. Alongside its physical, human and financial resources, a local government must manage its information in a way that enables services to be delivered that best meet community needs and the priorities set by council.
The Integrated Planning and Reporting (IPR) Framework and Guidelines sets out how local governments should plan for their future through the development of Strategic Community Plans and Corporate Business Plans. The resources needed to implement these plans are identified and managed through asset management plans, workforce plans and long-term financial plans.
In a similar way, information and information technology resources can be planned for and managed so that they support the strategic objectives and priorities of the local government, as well as ensuring the business continuity of its day-to-day operations. ICT is also an important foundation for the other resourcing plans.
The ICT Strategic Framework sets out the key components that need to be considered in managing a local government's information resources. It represents the key elements, and their relationships, that might be expected in an 'ideal' environment. In reality, the extent to which it is applicable will obviously depend on the size and complexity of the local government. It recognises that there will be differing capacity with the local government sector to implement ICT and to manage it in line with the IPR Framework.
The ICT Framework is not a compliance requirement. It is a resource that local governments can use to plan for, manage and review their information and technology assets.
Information is a strategic resource that underpins the key functions and decision making processes of a local government. The way information is managed, including the technology used to support it, is therefore central to local government's business
practices. Alongside its physical, human and financial resources, a local government must manage its information resource in a way that enables services to be delivered that best meet community needs and the priorities set by Council.
The Integrated Planning and Reporting Framework (IPR) sets out how local governments should plan for their future through the development of Strategic Community Plans and Corporate Business Plans.
The resources needed to implement these plans are identified and managed through asset management plans, workforce plans and long-term financial plans. In a similar way, information and information technology resources can be planned for and managed so
that they support the strategic objectives and priorities of the organisation, as well as ensuring the business continuity of its day-to-day operations.
Information and Communications Technology is also an important foundation for the other resourcing plans.
The ICT Strategic Framework sets out the key components that need to be considered in managing an organisation's information resources. It represents the key elements, and their relationships, that might be expected in an "ideal" environment. In reality,
the extent to which it is applicable will obviously depend on the size and complexity of the individual local government. It recognises that there will be differing capacity within the local government sector to implement ICT and to manage it in line
with the IPR Framework.
The Framework is not a compliance requirement. It is a resource that local governments can use to plan for, manage and review their information and technology assets. It will be accompanied by a number of templates, guides and supporting documents that
are designed to assist these processes.
Information and Communications Technology or ICT refers to technology that will store, retrieve, manipulate, transmit or receive information electronically or in a digital form. It includes hardware, communications devices or applications, including computer
hardware, software, network infrastructure, video conferencing, telephone and mobile phones.
Adequate and appropriate ICT underpins all aspects of a local government's work. It is integral to the delivery of local government services: from the provision of information and advice, to providing better analysis of environmental, demographic and social
change for better land use management and planning. ICT also supports local government back office operations, providing data storage, information management, email and mobile communications. The rapid adoption of mobile, on-demand, and social media
technologies has changed expectations of service delivery. These developments offer an opportunity for local government to provide services in new ways, and to interact through new modes. Mobile, internet and cloud technologies provide further opportunities
for innovation and efficiencies in service delivery.
The ICT Strategic Framework provides a high level framework for the effective management of information and technology to ensure ICT systems are controlled and maintained in line with corporate objectives and emerging trends.
The ICT Strategic Framework will be accompanied by supporting documents and tools such as the ICT Maturity Model, templates and example documents, policies and strategic plans, which are key resources for effective implementation of the framework.
The ICT Strategic Framework has been developed as a tool to:
Implementation of the ICT Strategic Framework is integral to achieving the outcomes of the Integrated Planning and Reporting Framework. The ICT Strategic Framework establishes an ICT Baseline which identifies the minimum requirements for the effective
provision of information management and information technology services to effectively support local government operations. Understanding the complexity of information and technology management within local government is the first step in applying
the necessary measures to ensure that the baseline ICT standards are being met.
The ICT Strategic Framework is targeted at local government staff responsible for managing Information Technology and Information Services (Records), and/or delivering ICT services. The ICT Strategic Framework has also been designed as a tool for local
government Chief Executive Officers, executive teams and elected members to understand the complexity of managing information and technology within local government.
The ICT Strategic Framework is made up of eight elements:
These elements should all be considered in managing information, systems, networks and infrastructure to ensure that ICT systems are secure, protected from risk, adequately tested and controlled, and developed and maintained in line with corporate objectives.
The first seven elements and their relationships comprise an Information Technology Framework. The eighth element consists of important subsets and has been developed as a separate but related Information Management Framework. Both frameworks are underpinned
by Supporting Documentation (see section 4.5 onwards 'Information Technology Framework Supporting Documentation'). This includes the policies, plans, strategies and registers required as baseline to enable effective implementation of the framework.
The frameworks should be used in conjunction with the ICT Maturity Model to assess the capability of the local government in relation to its size and functions, and to develop appropriate action plans in response.
The Information Technology Framework provides a high level framework for the effective management of IT within local government. The framework identifies the elements of IT that should be considered as a minimum baseline, in managing systems, networks,
devices and data, to ensure that they are secure, protected from risk, adequately tested and controlled, and developed and maintained in line with corporate objectives.
The IT Framework represents the discipline of IT management as comprising seven key elements. The framework has been designed with four pillars reflecting the four main IT disciplines, with Governance overarching all aspects of IT at the top of the framework,
and robust project management underpinning the framework. The positioning of Emerging Technologies and Trends over the four pillars of IT recognises the role that disruptive technologies has on the delivery of IT services.
The key elements of the IT Framework are:
The key elements are each made up of a number of lower level elements. Together, these elements describe the discipline of managing each of the key elements identified within the framework. It is important to note that all elements of the framework are
interrelated and consideration should be given to how the elements interrelate when using and implementing the framework.
A definition of the terms used to describe the key elements of the IT Framework is provided in the following schedule.
Governance describes the guiding strategies, principles and practices that guide the correct and effective delivery of ICT, and provides a framework for ICT decision making.
ICT Strategy and Planning involves:
Conducting ICT strategic planning
Developing systems and delivering ICT services in line with an approved ICT Strategic Plan
Alignment of the ICT Strategic Plan with the Local Government Strategic and Community Plans
Involving IT in corporate planning.
1. 'Risk Management', Hubbard, Douglas (2009). The Failure of Risk Management: Why It's Broken and How to Fix It. John Wiley & Sons. p. 46.2.'Performance Management', Wikipedia,
taken at 14/9/2012
Emerging Trends and Technologies provide challenges and opportunities for local government in managing ICT systems and resources, and the delivery of future ICT services.
Business Systems and Applications refers to all the software systems and applications used by a local government.
Requirements Definition is the process of identifying and documenting what the business needs are when acquiring or developing new software systems or modifications to existing systems.
The requirements should be documented, actionable, measurable and testable, and related to identified business needs and defined to a level of detail sufficient for system design.
3 'Implementation', TechTarget, accessed 21/9/2012
Infrastructure and Technology refers to the hardware and network infrastructure used to deliver local government ICT services.
4.'Virtualisation', Wikipedia, accessed 21/09/125.'Capacity Management', Wikipedia, accessed 21/9/126.'IT Asset Management',
adapted from Software Asset Management definition, Wikipedia Management, accessed 21/9/2012
IT business continuity describes the activities undertaken to enable a local government to perform its key functions and deliver its ICT services.
Security means protecting information and systems from unauthorised access, use, modification, disclosure or destruction.
7.'Audit', adapted from 'Information Technology Audit', Wikipedia, available at, taken 19/9/2012
Project management is the discipline of planning, organising, controlling, and managing resources to achieve specific goals.
8.'Project Management', Project Management Institute, taken 24/9/2012.
The ICT Strategic Framework identifies the key elements for the effective management of information and technology, to ensure that corporate information and ICT systems are secure, protected, tested, controlled, developed and maintained in line with corporate
objectives and respond to emerging trends. The information required, processes and outputs of the ICT Strategic Framework are detailed below:
The following information should be gathered before the ICT Strategic Framework is implemented. It is important that initial planning occurs to ensure that your local government is able to fully implement the framework and gain a clear understanding of
ICT Supporting Documentation – Identify what strategies, plans, policies, and procedures outlined in the ICT Strategic Framework your local government already has in place.
Local Government Strategic Community Plan – In implementing the ICT Strategic Framework it will be beneficial to understand the long term vision of your local government and the role that ICT contributes to that. This will assist you to develop
action plans that are appropriate to your local government in terms of your present position on the ICT Maturity Model, and where your local government aspires to be.
Challenges and Opportunities – Identify what challenges and opportunities the ICT Strategic Framework presents your local government.
Internal and External Trends/Issues – What are the internal and external issues and trends that may influence implementation of the framework?
ICT Resourcing Capability – Understand the capacity and capability of your local government to implement the ICT Strategic Framework, with the ICT resources that you have available. The framework provides templates, example policies, strategies,
plans and other key documents that your local government may adopt or adapt to suit your requirements.
During implementation of the ICT Strategic Framework, the following steps may be useful:
The Information Technology Framework Supporting Documentation supports the Information Technology Framework by identifying the types of documents (strategies, policies, schedules and plans) that should be in place to effectively manage information, communications
and technology. The supporting documentation schedule identifies the baseline IT standard for local government, which is the proposed minimum standard for managing local government information technology.
ICT Strategic Plan*
ICT Annual Business plans*
Risk Management Strategy and Plan*
Internal KPIs and Service Level Agreements
Social Media Policy**
Online Services Plan**
Cloud Computing Policy
Open Data Policy
Systems Test and Implementation Plans**
Website and Intranet Business Plan
Website Accessibility Policy
Systems Upgrade Policy
Software Asset Management Policy
Change Management/Version Control Policy
ICT Acceptable Usage Policy*
IT Asset Register**
IT Asset Management Plan**
IT Asset Replacement Policy
Infrastructure Capacity Plan
IT Disaster Recovery Plan*
IT Risk Assessment Matrix**
IT Risk Mitigation Plan**
IT Security Policy*
Security Audit Policy
Incident Response Policy
Incident Management Plan**
Project Risk Register**
Project Communication Plan
Project Statement (defines scope and deliverables)*
Project Status Report**
Project Issues Register**
Project Quality Plan
Post implementation Review**
Asterisks represents suggested minimum requirements to meet the standards below. Those without an asterisk are the advanced (ideal standard). The actual level of uptake needs to be determined by each local government based on its size and specific business
* ICT Baseline standard** Intermediate (Recommended) standard
Information management is the term used to describe all activities concerned with the use of information in all its forms. More formally, information management is defined as the means by which an organisation plans, identifies, creates, receives, collects,
organises, governs, secures, uses, controls, disseminates, exchanges, maintains, preserves and disposes of its information; as well as any means through which the organisation ensures that the value of that information is identified and exploited
to its fullest extent.
The Information Management Framework provides a high level framework for the effective management of information within a local government. The framework identifies the aspects of information management that should be considered to ensure that information
is captured, stored, accessed maintained and disposed of securely and effectively.
The Information Management Framework has been adapted for Western Australian local governments from the Queensland Government Information Management Policy Framework, developed by the Queensland Government Information Office. The Framework represents
the discipline of Information Management as comprising seven key elements:
The framework has been designed with Knowledge Management as the highest level and Data Management as the lowest level activity with Record Keeping in the middle representing that it is central to all information management activities. Governance and
Security apply to all aspects of the framework. The key elements are each made up of a number of lower level elements. Together, these elements describe the discipline of managing each of the key elements identified within the framework. It
is important to consider how the elements interrelate when using and implementing the framework.
Information Management Strategy
Information Management Policy, Principles and Architecture
Information Risk Management
Information Quality Management
Information Governance processes
Monitoring and compliance
Incident Detection, Management, Reporting and Response
Physical and Environmental Security
Change Management / Version Control
Information Asset Classification
Access and Accessibility
Licensing and Rights Management
Privacy and Confidentiality
Sharing and Exchange
Search and Discovery
Freedom of Information (FOI)
Capture and Creation
Retention and Disposal
Conservation and Preservation
Retrieval and Access
Data Conversion and Transformation
Data Quality and Integrity
A definition of the terms used to describe the key elements of the Information Management Framework is provided in the following schedule. The definitions of the Information Management Framework have been taken from (and in some cases adapted from) the
Queensland Government Information Management Policy Framework Definitions, 2009.
Information governance is the system by which the current and future use of information and its management is directed and controlled.9
Information management strategy defines the future strategic direction for the utilisation and management of information as a valued core strategic asset.
Information management planning is concerned with ensuring that information and its management aligns with strategy and conforms to legislative and policy requirements.
9. 'Information Governance', Standards Australia, ISO/IEC 38500:2008 Corporate Governance of Information Technology, 2008, p. 6.10. 'Risk Management',
adapted from Queensland Government Chief Information Office, Best Practice Guide: Information Risk Management, 2002, p. 4-5.11. Information Quality Management', Standards Australia, AS/NZS ISO 9000: 2006 Quality management systems –
Fundamentals and vocabulary, 2006, p. 9.
Knowledge management is concerned with improving organisational outcomes and learning, through maximising the use of knowledge and capturing and applying learnings.
Information asset management is concerned with valuing and managing information assets with the same rigour as that applied to other strategic assets.
12.'Knowledge Transfer', Wikipedia, accessed 26/9/2012.13.'Information Asset Classification',
Queensland Government Enterprise Architecture, Information Assets and their Classification Fact sheet, Feb 2011, accessed 26/9/2012.
Information asset access and use management is concerned with how information is to be accessed, exchanged and used, by whom and on what terms.
Access and accessibility is concerned with both:
how access to government information is maximised for use and reuse.
ensuring that all reasonable steps are taken to minimise social, economic and geographic disadvantage to accessing information.
Freedom of Information relates to providing access to documents and information under the Freedom of Information Act (1992).
Under the FOI Act, local governments are required to assist the public to obtain access to documents at the lowest reasonable cost and to ensure that personal information held is accurate, complete, up to date and not misleading.17
14.'Intellectual Property', Queensland Government, Queensland Public Sector Intellectual Property Guidelines, 2007, p. 4,15. 'Confidentiality', International Standards
Organisation, Information Security Standard ISO-1779916.'Copyright', Creative Commons, accessed 26/9/2012.17. 'Freedom of Information' –
Office of the Information Commissioner, Western Australia, accessed 26/9/2012.
Recordkeeping is the process of making and maintaining complete, accurate and reliable evidence of business transactions in the form of recorded information.18
In the context of this framework, collection management is concerned with managing a collection of information throughout its lifecycle. Examples of collections include:
18. 'Recordkeeping' –Standards Australia, Australian Standard 4390 Part 1 Clause 4.19..19. 'Archiving', Queensland
State Archives, Recordkeeping Terms, accessed on 26/9/2012.
Data Management is concerned with valuing and managing data as a strategic asset of local government with the same rigour as that applied to other strategic assets.
Data type is the classification identifying the type of data (e.g. real-valued, integer or Boolean), the possible values for that type; the operations that can be done on values of that type; the meaning of the data; and the way values
of that type can be stored.26
Data formats define the standard way that information is encoded in a computer file, such as .doc, .xls, .jpg.27
Data conversion is the process of converting data from one format to another.28
Data Transformation converts data from a source data format into destination data.29
20. 'Data modelling', Wikipedia, available at, accessed 26/9/2012.21.'Data integration', Wikipedia, accessed 26/9/2012.22.'Data Quality', Wikipedia, accessed 26/9/2012.23.'Data Integrity', Wikipedia, accessed 26/9/2012.24.'Data cleansing',
Wikipedia, accessed 26/9/2012.25.'Data deduplication', Wikipedia, accessed 26/9/2012.26.'Data migration', Wikipedia,
accessed 26/9/2012.27. 'Data Type', Wikipedia, accessed 26/9/2012.28.'File format', Wikipedia, accessed 26/9/2012.29.
'Data Conversion', Wikipedia, accessed 26-9/2012.30. 'Data transformation', Wikipedia, accessed 26/9/2012.
The Information Management supporting documentation supports the Information Management Framework by identifying the types of documents (strategies, policies, schedules and plans) that should in place as a baseline, to effectively manage information.
Information Governance Policy
Information Management Policy
Information Management Standards
Information Management Strategy**
Succession Planning/Workforce Plan**
Information Security Policy*
Information Security Audit and Review Schedule**
Information Asset Register
Information Asset Custodian Policy
FOI Information Statement*
Data Confidentiality Agreement**
Data Sharing Agreements
Record Keeping Plan*
Retention and Disposal Schedule*
Digitisation Policy*Digital Record
Keeping (of source records) Policy**
Recordkeeping for Social Media Policy**
Data Entry Standards
Document Naming Convention
Asterisks represent the suggested minimum requirements to meet the standards below. Those without an asterisk are the advanced (ideal standard). The actual level of uptake needs to be determined by each local government based on its size
and specific business requirements.
Do not submit enquiries with this form.


A Man's World
About the Play
1909, Garrick Theater, New York
First Publication: 1915
3F, 4M, 1 Boy (seven years old)
n the public domain.
Reprinted by Forgotten Books; Kessinger Publishing; Leopold Classic Library. Also in Plays by American Women: 1900-1930, ed. Judith E. Barlow, Applause Books, Hal Leonard Co.
Set in a New York house occupied by a number of artists – both successful and unsuccessful – A Man’s World centers on Frank Ware, a writer raising an adopted son. Frank’s books center on the social wrongs endured by women, a commitment intensified by the suffering of her son’s birth mother. Her editor, Malcolm Gaskell, is in love with Frank and she returns his affection, despite his condescending attitude toward her work. Eventually, however, she must confront the radical differences between his acceptance of the double standard and her insistence that men and women be treated equally.
A Man’s World is one of Crothers’ earliest and most daring dramas. Crothers once said in an interview: “With few exceptions, every one of my plays has been a social attitude toward women at the moment I wrote it.” A Man’s World received mixed but generally positive reviews. One critic praised it as “in many vital respects … the best dramatic work ever produced by an American author.” A year later, however, playwright Augustus Thomas responded with As a Man Thinks, in which a main character argues that “there is a double standard of morality because upon the golden basis of woman’s virtue rests the welfare of the world.” Crothers’ drama clearly touched a sensitive nerve in the American male. When A Man’s World was adapted into a film in 1918, the screenwriter added another suitor for Frank’s hand to create a conventional Hollywood ending.
Scenes from the Play
A Man's World, Act I, Fritz and Frank
(1 W, 1 M) In a rooming house of artists, Dutch violinist Fritz Bahn shares his concerns with female writer Frank Ware about her independent lifestyle,… View Scene
A Man's World, Act I, Gaskell and Frank on the independence of women
(1 W, 1 M) Malcolm Gaskell, a newspaper editor in love with Frank Ware, a female writer, challenges Frank’s belief in the independence of women. View Scene
A Man's World, Act II, Clara and Lione prepare for the show
(2 W) Clara Oakes, a painter of miniatures and her roommate singer Lione Brune, prepare their room for a show of Clara’s work & gossip about Frank. View Scene
A Man's World, Act II, Gaskell and Frank on women in love
(1 W, 1 M) Frank, a female writer, and Gaskell, a newspaper editor who is in love with her, express their differing views on the inequalities between… View Scene
A Man's World, Act III, Frank and Gaskell reach the end
(1 W, 1 M) Frank comes to terms with the truth about Gaskell, the man she loves. View Scene
About the Playwright
Rachel Crothers (1878-1958) had nearly 30 plays produced on Broadway between 1906 and 1937; and she directed most of them herself. “In the last 200 years, a respectable number of women have left their mark on American theater, but few of them have had as impressive a career as Rachel Crothers,” wrote the New York Times in 1980, adding “Although it is rare now to find anyone who has heard of her, Miss Crothers at the apex of her career was the symbol of success in the commercial theater.” Born i…
One Play at a Time Participating Universities
Washington & Jefferson University


The Florida Stage flag is: State Flag
The current design of Florida’s state flag was adopted in 1900. In that year, Florida voters ratified a constitutional amendment based on an 1899 joint resolution of the state legislature to add diagonal red bars, in the form of a St. Andrew’s cross, to the flag.
Between 1868 and 1900, Florida’s state flag consisted of a white field with the state seal in the center. During the late 1890s, Governor Francis P. Fleming suggested that a red cross be added, so that the banner did not appear to be a white flag of truce or surrender when hanging still on a flagpole.
In the rewriting of the Constitution in 1968, the dimensions were dropped and became statutory language. The flag is described in these words: “The seal of the state, of diameter one half the hoist, in the center of a white ground. Red bars in width one fifth the hoist extending from each corner toward the center, to the outer rim of the seal.”


Today is the United Nations Day to Eliminate Violence Against Women, the one day designated by the UN to address the pandemic of violence against women.
One day for a global pandemic.
Pandemic is not a word used casually by the UN, or the World Health Organization, and is the term they use to describe one of the most pervasive human rights transgressions on the planet. According to the World Health Organization, one in three women on the planet will experience intimate partner violence, or some form of sexual violence in their lifetime1. Violence against women is an issue that affects all of us.
White Ribbon is the world’s largest effort of men and boys working to end violence against women and girls. Since our inception in 1991, we have been engaging men and boys in the effort to prevent gender-based violence by promoting gender equality and working to promote positive masculinity. Our roots are in the tragedy of the Montreal Massacre, where 14 female engineering students were killed on December 6, 1989, at École Polytechnique.
To our knowledge, Barrick is the only mining company in the world to explicitly dedicate specific resources and commitments to addressing this pandemic as part of its social licence to operate.
Here in Canada, we are not immune to the pandemic of violence against women. Half of all Canadian women will experience an act of violence in their lifetime. There have been over 1,400 murdered or missing indigenous women in our country, rates that are shockingly disproportionate to their demographic profile. Each year it costs our economy over $7 billion to address the multiple and devastating costs of intimate partner violence2. When I work around the world, people are quite surprised to hear the extent of the problem in Canada.
Since 2012, White Ribbon has partnered with Barrick to deliver gender-based violence prevention projects at mine communities in three of their host jurisdictions: Nevada, Zambia and Papua New Guinea. We have developed unique strategies to engage the community and the workplace to make a meaningful difference in each of those places. To our knowledge, Barrick is the only mining company in the world to explicitly dedicate specific resources and commitments to addressing this pandemic as part of its social licence to operate.
We know this is not a uniquely Barrick problem. The prevalence of violence against women can be greatly increased in places where there is rapid economic development, migration for employment, little rule of law, increased alcohol and drug use, and predominantly male-dominated cultures. In other words, most places where extractive development or major infrastructure projects are taking place around the world. With this in mind, it is quite remarkable that Barrick is out front and alone in addressing this issue.
The only way to defeat a pandemic is to harness all of society’s stakeholders towards a common goal. Government, civil society, the private sector and the general public all need to be aligned and engaged. Sadly, we are still a long way from completing the job of November 25, ending violence against women. However, it is innovative partnerships and approaches like the one between Barrick and White Ribbon that give me hope that we are on the right track.
Todd Minerson is the Executive Director of White Ribbon, a member of the UN Secretary General’s Network of Male Leaders to End Violence Against Women, and Co-Chair of the Global MenEngage Alliance.


The University of Nevada’s Reno Earthquake Engineering Laboratory has carried out accelerated bridge construction methods which it says are safe and ready for real-world application following tests on massive shake tables. According to a report by Nevada Today: “The tests on Tuesday, 24 April subjected a 70-ton, two-span, 70-foot-long bridge to multiple earthquake simulations of approximately 7.5 magnitude. The hydraulically driven tables, programmed to mimic the forces of an earthquake, tested six different kinds of bridge connections integrated into a single bridge.”
Saiid Saiidi, principal investigator of the project, professor in civil and environmental engineering at the University and director of the Center for Advanced Technology in Bridges and Infrastructure says: “The individual connection tests had given us very good results for each connection. And for the first time, our study combined these connections in a single bridge which endured realistically strong earthquakes. We knew that going into this that our individual positive tests did not inherently mean that all of the connections would work together, making this a necessary test.”
Saiidi and his team team College of Engineering doctoral fellows, doctoral candidates, graduate and undergraduate assistants looked for two outcomes. Results showed that of the six connections, four were designed to be undamaged, even during strong earthquakes, and two were designed to undertake a controlled amount of damage to serve as a fuse and absorb the forces of the earthquake by breaking.
“Along with avoiding collapse, the outcome of our study showed that all of the six connections performed as expected. It will be a few months before we can evaluate data from the 280 sensors that we had in the bridge to get more insight about the connections – including transducers, accelerometers, potentiometers, string potentiometers and strain gauges all to record the forces the connections experienced – but we are now confident to recommend these connections for application in real bridges,” Saiidi adds.
The report says that shake-tables started with movements at 150 percent of the simulated earthquake magnitude and each subsequent test ramped-up the movement by 25%. The simulated earthquake mimicked the large ground motions of the deadly and damaging 1994 Northridge, California earthquake. Ultimately, the goal was to prove the connections were ready to be a part of the expedited bridge construction techniques and help provide earthquake safeguards.
Saiidi explains: “Not only do we have a better understanding of how the connections work together, but we have the data now to see how they react under extreme, off-the-charts conditions meaning we can prepare for more than what is expected.”
The report emphasises that study was part University of Transportation Center on Accelerated Bridge Construction project (ABC-UTC), which is funded by the United States Department of Transportation. The Transportation Center is led by Florida International University in collaboration with the University of Nevada, Reno and Iowa State University.
According to Saiidi: “There are many aspects of bridge construction and safety that ABC-UTC is researching, such as ease of construction and durability of joints. The University of Nevada, Reno is part of the seismic performance portion of ABC-UTC-Seismic, which is the most critical aspect when it comes to bridge connections.”
Also, the specific mission of ABC-UTC-Seismic, being led by the University of Nevada, Reno, is to develop earthquake resistant precast bridge components and systems and transform research data into seismic design guidelines to help expand the utilisation of accelerated bridge construction methods in moderate and high seismic zones.
“These are the roots for what ACB-UTC itself and its seismic studies will use in the future of bridge construction and development, and it’s very important that it’s being done at the University because we have the ability to test beyond regular constraints,” Saiidi explains.
In addition, Saiidi and the University are also a part of transitioning the collective knowledge of overall project and its seismic studies into an educational environment. The Seismic project includes the involvement of University of Nevada, Reno post-doctoral fellows, doctoral students, MS students and undergraduate student working to develop course modules on earthquake engineering techniques.
ABC-UTC also sponsors technical sessions at national and international conferences, presents research results at these meetings and disseminates the most recent findings to relevant Transportation Research Board and American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials committees.
The report provides links for readers to learn more about the Accelerated Bridge Construction-University Transportation Center project by visiting their website. More information about the University of Nevada Reno’s Earthquake Engineering Laboratory and Large Scale Structures Laboratory can also be found at their own website.


Structure and Functions of Bone Tissue
1.0 Where in the body is bone tissue ?
The bones themselves are formed from several different connective tissues, including:
- Bone (called osseous) tissue,
- Red bone marrow,
- Yellow bone marrow, and
This page is specifically about bone tissue (first item on the above list).
Bone tissue is classified as either compact bone, or spongy bone depending on how the bone matrix and cells are organized.
2.0 The Structure (Physical Description) of bone tissue
There are two main types of bone tissue, compact bone and spongy bone. Individual bones in the body can be formed from both of these types of bone tissue. The diagram on the right shows the physical structure of a typical "long bone".
(If need be read about different types of bone - then come back to this page to continue.)
2.1 The structure of Compact Bone
Compact bone forms the outer layer of all bones and most of the structure of "long bones" - see diagram (right). It contains few spaces and provides protection and support to the bone/s around which it is the outer-layer, as well as helping to enable the long bones to bear the stress placed on them by the weight of the body and the use to which the limbs are put, e.g. due any heavy physical work.
The basic unit of Compact Bone is an osteon, which is also known as a Haversian System.
Each Haversian System (unit) has a cylindrical structure that consists of four parts:
- A central tube called a Haversian Canal, which contains blood vessels and nerves.
The Haversian Canal is surrounded by alternate layers of:
- Lamellae (the word lamellae literally means "little plates") are concentric rings of a strong matrix formed from mineral salts including calcium and phosphates and collagen fibres. The mineral salts result in the hardness of the bone structure, while the collagen fibres contribute its strength.>
- Lacunae are the small spaces between the lamellae in which contain the bone cells (called osteocytes) are located.
- The lacunae are linked together by minute channels called canaliculi.
The canaliculi provide routes by which nutrients can reach the osteocytes and waste products can leave them.
2.2 The Structure of Spongy Bone
Spongy Bone does not include osteons (the basic unit/s of Compact Bone - see above).
Instead, spongy bone consists of an irregular lattice of thin columns of bone called trabeculae (literally "little beams"), which contain lamellae, osteocytes, lacunae and canaliculi. The spaces between the trabeculae of some spongy bones are filled with red bone marrow.
Blood vessels from the periosteum (see diagram above-right), penetrate into the trabeculae lattice allowing the osteocytes in the trabeculae to receive nourishment from the blood passing through the marrow cavities.
3.0 The Functions of bone tissue
The information below also appears on the page about the structure and functions of bones.
(This overlap is included in consideration of the different structures of course that require this knowledge but teach it in various orders / sequences.)
The skeleton is the framework of the body, it supports the softer tissues and provides points of attachment for most skeletal muscles.
The skeleton provides mechanical protection for many of the body's internal organs, reducing risk of injury to them. For example, cranial bones protect the brain, vertebrae protect the spinal cord, and the ribcage protects the heart and lungs.
- Assisting Movement
Skeletal muscles are attached to bones, therefore when the associated muscles contract they cause bones to move.
- Storage of Minerals
Bone tissues store several minerals, including calcium (Ca) and phosphorus (P). When required, bone releases minerals into the blood - facilitating the balance of minerals in the body.
- Production of Blood Cells
This process takes place in the red bone marrow inside some larger bones. Red blood cells, white blood cells and blood platelets are described on the page: Structure and functions of blood.
- Storage of Chemical Energy
With increasing age some bone marrow changes from 'red bone marrow' to 'yellow bone marrow'. Yellow bone marrow consists mainly of adipose cells, and a few blood cells. It is an important chemical energy reserve.
For further details see also the related page about the structure and functions of bone.


One of the greatest challenges of our time is to tackle inequity in education that has resulted in women and girls across the world being excluded and marginalised in society. An estimated half a billion women are illiterate, and tens of millions of girls around the world are unable to access education and unlikely to enrol in school.
And yet evidence shows that educated women create a ripple effect. Educated women are key to reducing poverty, improving economic growth and enhancing social development. When women meaningfully participate in the workforce, they spend majority of their wages on family and in the community, and their children are more likely to go to school and receive an education.
That’s why education equity is vital to unlocking prosperity for marginalised and underrepresented people and the most disadvantaged communities around the world. This in turn is critical to meeting long-term sustainable development challenges globally – a key mission of the BHP Foundation, supported by its sole donor, BHP.
To date, the approach has been to provide more schools and teachers. But the evidence shows this alone is not enough.
Three elements to advancing education equity
To achieve greater education equity, we must do three things.
First, make sure women and girls have access to quality education. This comes from evidence-based decisions on the most effective practices that accelerate learning outcomes.
Second, instil the belief that education is a fundamental right and critical to empowerment and prosperity for girls and women - especially those in the most disadvantaged communities. Empowering women and girls requires a focused effort to address harmful social barriers, such as early marriage, geographic isolation and extreme poverty.
And third, provide the tools and infrastructure that enable and accelerate learning.
While the BHP Foundation is relatively new to this area, our analysis showed we would have to do things differently to make a meaningful contribution to change.
BHP Foundation’s Education Equity Global Program
The strategy for the Foundation’s Education Equity Global Program comprises four pillars: providing education leaders with evidence to better inform decision-making; supporting innovation; empowering leaders to strengthen education systems; and advancing education performance and impact through applying principles like ‘return on investment’ and cost benefit analysis.
We want to contribute to systemic change through collectively working with others to trial promising approaches, share lessons, scale up what works and advocate for change. Alongside world-class organisations who share our passion – including UN Women, Teach For All, Brookings Institution and the Education Endowment Foundation – we have established a portfolio of projects across the world.
For instance, our partnership with UN Women helps women at risk of being left behind through the Second Chance Education and Vocational Learning program. UN Women project will aim to provide women with access to quality learning programs and builds their entrepreneurship skills to improve their employment prospects and help break the cycle of poverty and unemployment.
At a national level, our Country Programs aim to improve long-term economic, social and environmental sustainability within communities. In Australia, our focus on Science, Technology, Education and Maths (STEM) addresses the under-representation of women, and Indigenous women particularly, in this field. This program equips girls with the technological, leadership and job-ready skills they need to thrive in the workforce and set them up for success in the future.
We are currently exploring opportunities for collaborations to amplify the impact of these projects.
Achieving greater equality in education is a complex, multi-faceted challenge that can only be tackled by joining forces with others across the global education system.
There are no easy solutions.
However, the private sector and private foundations have an important role to play in supporting government and non-government organisations that perform much of the frontline work.
At the Foundation, we are passionate advocates for change. For society to prosper and communities to thrive, women must have equal access to education and job opportunities.
Together with partners across the public and private sectors, we can use our voice, reach and influence to invest in the future and support the vital and transformative work being undertaken to redress education inequalities.


The waste water produced by rubber promoter belongs to high concentration and refractory organic waste water. It is characterized by low chromaticity and turbidity, but high concentration of salt and COD. Meanwhile, benzene, naphthalene and heterocyclic compounds containing nitrogen or sulfur are contained in waste water. Biochemical treatment is difficult. At present, studies on the treatment of such waste water are mostly about distillation, extraction, activated carbon adsorption, Fenton oxidation, compound dominant wormwood and other treatment processes. This experiment USES modified diatomaceous earth compound coagulant to pretreat this kind of waste water.
Diatomaceous earth has a unique micropore structure with a larger surface area. The surface is covered by a large amount of hydroxyl silicate.Usually the particle surface with a negative charge. To add the right amount of essence of diatom earth other cationic flocculant (such as aluminium or iron series coagulant, made from modified diatomaceous earth coagulant. Can be realized at the same time, the stability of colloid particles and negative charge. Thus, the effect of sewage treatment is greatly improved. Moreover, the addition of aluminum or iron flocculants can transform orthophosphate and some heavy gold ions from dissolved to granular, and then effectively remove them by flocculation and precipitation.
In addition, diatomite granule can be used as the framework for forming flocculum, improving the structure of alum flowers, that is, helping to coagulate, making the formed flocculum dense and have better sedimentation. There are also many studies on the treatment of wastewater by diatomite.


Where can you find an African prince, a veteran of the Charge of the Light Brigade, Salford's first MP, the founder of the Hallé orchestra or a victim of the Munich air disaster? Answer: in Salford's cemeteries of course!
Just one-and-a-half miles from Salford Quays, Weaste Cemetery is a peaceful place for visitors, schoolchildren and their teachers to learn about Salford's history and some of the fascinating individuals who lived in Salford in the past.
It is primarily a place to respect and commemorate the loved ones we have lost. People also visit cemeteries for exercise and relaxation, and to study nature and local history. It is our aim to offer a fitting environment for the bereaved and also to enhance the life of the community.
Weaste Cemetery was Salford's first municipal cemetery. Before the cemetery opened in 1857 most burials took place in churchyards. Salford Corporation was one of the first municipal authorities to recognise that churchyards could no longer provide sufficient burial space and so the plans for Weaste were made.
In the Victorian age cemeteries were considered to be amenities like parks and gardens and were usually designed in a similar way. Weaste Cemetery was no exception and its beautiful design made it the most desirable resting-place for well to do Salfordians and Mancunians.
Since 1857 over 300,000 interments have taken place at the cemetery, including:
Joseph Brotherton - became MP for Salford in 1832. In 1849 he was instrumental in making Salford the first municipal authority in Britain to establish a library, a museum and an art gallery, and later with William Ewart persuaded Parliament to pass the Public Libraries Act. Joseph Brotherton's belief in clean living and a clean environment for working people made him a prime motivator in the establishment of Peel Park in Salford. He also helped set up the vegetarian movement.
Sir Charles Hallé - Britain's longest-established professional symphony orchestra, the The Hallé, was founded in Manchester by the pianist and conductor Charles Hallé, and gave its first concert in the city's Free Trade Hall in 1858.
Mark Addy - a renowned local figure who worked in a factory near the river Irwell, and during his life saved around 53 people from drowning after leaping in to save them. There is a memorial in the cemetery dedicated to him, and paid for by grateful local people.
Eddie Colman - one of the Busby Babes who tragically died in the Munich air disaster in 1958.
Ferdinand Stanley - was immortalised in Alfred Lord Tennyson's epic poem Charge of the Light Brigade, after surviving the battle in 1854.
At Agecroft Cemetery you can also find the final resting place of Prince Lobengula who came to Salford from Africa at the end of the 19th century with a travelling circus type show, sent here because his father wanted him to see the world. Prince Lobengula met a Salford girl called Catherine, who died young, and he then settled with an Irish woman called Kitty. He ended up in a public grave in the cemetery.
You can find out more about these extraordinary individuals on the heritage trail opened by the Salford City Council & Friends of the Cemeteries.


Canada treats mining companies like the goose that laid the golden egg. What we get in return looks more like a goose egg.
This article was originally published in the November/December 2019 edition of the CCPA Monitor – a special edition on taxes.
Mining enjoys massive government support in Canada. Politically, it’s treated as a preferred development option for remote communities and Indigenous peoples. Former Saskatchewan premier Brad Wall once said, “The best program for First Nations and Métis people in Saskatchewan is not a program at all—it's [uranium mining company] Cameco.” The law backs this up. Mining companies still have rights to “free entry” in much of Canada, since mining is legally considered the “highest and best” use of land. Though these laws are being challenged by First Nations, today prospectors can stake claims and even drill or trench without any consideration for other land users, or in some cases, even private landowners.
There are also financial incentives to mine. The federal and provincial governments and territories spend hundreds of millions on road and power corridors to support mining projects, while supporting training for mining skills that are often not highly transferrable. Already low corporate tax rates are further reduced by accelerated capital cost allowances and deductions for exploration and development costs. “Flow-through” shares allow mining companies to pass exploration costs onto investors as tax deductions. And while they’ve been slowly getting better, Canadian jurisdictions still dramatically undercharge mining companies when it comes to setting aside money to clean up spills or for long-term environmental monitoring and rehabilitation.
All of this is justified publicly by the creation of jobs, contribution to GDP and exports—and taxes paid. Mining does create “good pay” jobs, though more of these are displaced from other sectors than the industry will admit. Mining does generate export earnings and boost GDP, though economists will argue about whether these really represent development, especially when what is being exported is raw materials with little value added. So, what of the taxes?
On paper, mining operations pay corporate tax and sales tax, among others, along with royalties (sometimes called “mining tax”) intended to compensate the state for the permanent loss of whatever resource is being extracted. Depending on the audience, mining companies will either brag or complain about the amount of tax they pay. They rarely explain how those amounts are calculated, much less compare them to what they might have had to pay if it weren’t for the lowered tax rates, tax holidays and exemptions. More egregiously, they also like to take credit for the taxes that their workers pay.
James Wilt, writing in The Narwhal in July last year, found that Canadian governments collect a smaller percentage of mineral value than almost any other jurisdiction in the world. There are a number of explanations for this, ranging from low tax rates to grace periods and tax holidays, as mentioned, to using a variable base for calculating royalties. Canada is unusual internationally, for example, in the extent to which it charges royalties based on profits rather than on the amount of mineral extracted, allowing for deductions and “profit-shifting” to diminish the amount owed.
In an extreme example, the CBC’s Rita Celli reported in May 2015 that in 2013-14, De Beers Canada paid the Ontario government $226 in royalties from its Victor Mine in Attawapiskat, the only diamond mine in the province. “The diamond royalty stirred a huge debate when the Ontario government suddenly introduced it in 2007,” wrote Celli. “Then-premier Dalton McGuinty promised it would enrich all Ontarians. He promised the money would be used to hire more nurses and keep class sizes small in schools.”
The low figure was due to De Beers having been allowed to write down its capital investment against the royalties. Tom Ormsby, De Beers’ vice-president of external and corporate affairs, told Celli the company started to pay millions in 2014. Its reports under Canada’s Extractive Sector Transparency Measures Act (ESTMA), in force since 2015, show it paid US$15.8 million in royalties in 2016 (on earnings of US$79 million) and US$11.3 million in 2017 (on earnings of US$205 million). The mine closed in early 2019. In other words, the mine probably generated almost nothing for the province for the entire first half of its production, and probably less than $100 million over its 11-year life.
Any assessment of the millions in taxes and royalties from mining operations has to include the overall value of the resource, as they remove many times more millions of dollars’ worth of metals. Any honest calculation also has to include not only the overall flow of money to governments, but also the subsidies, costs and liabilities, including social disruption and damage to local economies and the environment.
Internationally, the Canadian government takes the promotion of Canadian mining companies very seriously indeed. This is demonstrated by the fact that while Canadian and international civil society has been pushing for almost two decades for restrictions on the international activities of Canadian companies, the federal government has refused to recognize that illegal activity and human rights and environmental abuses are even happening, much less restrict them—or enforce the sole piece of legislation we do have, the anti-bribery Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act.
At the same time, Canada provides massive support for transnational mining investment, both politically and economically. It helps explain why so many mining companies are domiciled in Canada, even if they have no Canadian operations, or even no Canadian directors, and regardless of who actually owns the majority of their shares.
Our embassies contribute “economic diplomacy,” which includes pressuring foreign governments to support favourable legislation and policies and helping build relationships between mining executives and foreign officials, such as mining ministers and state presidents. Canadian diplomats also provide support directly to companies, going so far as to help them comply with regulations and apply for permits. Even our development aid is skewed toward rewarding countries and regions that are willing to host Canadian mining projects, and assisting governments in administering mining laws so as to smooth the way for Canadian investment.
Economic support is both direct (investment from the Canada Pension Plan and Canadian Investment Fund for Africa, for example, or loans and political risk insurance from Export Development Canada) and indirect. Canada has built a massive network of tax treaties, bilateral investment treaties and free trade agreements that all serve to facilitate and protect Canadian investment, as well as allowing profits to be shifted through subsidiary companies to avoid taxation. It’s all perfectly legal, if you do it right.
The result is a ballooning offshore pool of wealth sitting in tax havens and secrecy jurisdictions in the Caribbean, Channel Islands, and even some U.S. states—wealth that is not taxed to benefit the countries it was extracted from, or even the country that worked so hard to facilitate it (in this case, Canada). Governments that try to protect their own people and ecosystems from mining destruction face the threat of multimillion-dollar lawsuits through arbitration provisions in those investment agreements.
To pick just one example, Eldorado Gold has been struggling for years to overcome committed local opposition to its planned Skouries open-pit gold mine in Halkidiki, northern Greece. Local people opposed to the massive project have raised objections over the destruction of a forest that is of immense cultural and historic significance—it is where local partisans gathered to strategize and mobilize against the fascists, and now serves as a focus for tourism, beekeeping, etc.—and the contamination of freshwater supplies (the ore is loaded with arsenic, among other things).
They have also questioned the promised benefits for the Greek state—with good reason. A study led by the Dutch organisation SOMO (the Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations) found the company has structured its investment with tax avoidance in mind. Subsidiaries in the Netherlands will allow Eldorado to shift profits from Greece to the Netherlands and Barbados, minimizing exposure to taxes and leaving Greeks with little to show for the mine’s ecological, social and economic disruption. SOMO calculated this arrangement had cost Greece 1.7 million euros in lost tax in 2013-14 alone (nearly $2.5 million based on the exchange rate at the time).
A look at Eldorado Gold’s payments to governments, as disclosed under ESTMA, shows that as of 2018, the company made significant payments in Turkey, where most of its gold production is, but nowhere else. Not even Canada, where it is supposedly headquartered, but also where it now operates the Lamaque Mine outside of Val-d’Or, Quebec.
What we don’t know is how much the company should have paid in the absence of what the accountants call “aggressive tax planning,” or what the rest of us call tax dodging. Nor does this accounting show how much has been set aside as security bond for closure, cleanup, and possible spills and accidents.
It makes sense that Turkey, as the primary host of Eldorado Gold’s operations, should benefit most. It’s an open question whether the country benefits enough to compensate for the loss of its gold-bearing ore, not to mention the various forms of damage occasioned by mining or the liabilities it leaves behind. And it’s more than likely that the company has minimized its exposure to Turkish taxes.
But at the same time, there is clearly no direct return for Canada from all of the support we provide. If share value increases or the company pays dividends we can benefit as shareholders—through our pensions, RRSPs or the Canada Pension Plan. But clearly the loot is mostly being scooped up by others: well-paid company executives, the banks that finance all of this, and the legal, accounting and investment houses.
At the end of the day, the notion that mining is good for Canada is pretty dubious. The reality within Canada is much more complex than our governments and most of the media are willing to admit. In other parts of the world, the reality is that Canadian mining primarily benefits the mining companies, their local backers, and their financiers. Its contributions to “host” countries are variable and on balance generally negative. Despite all the effort from public officials, Canada hardly benefits at all. It’s past time we started to dismantle the legal, regulatory, financial and political support that feeds and sustains this false narrative.


In the first 2 parts of this blog series we went over the importance of magnesium to the metabolic syndrome and lifestyle factors that contribute to magnesium wasting. If you haven't read those two blogs they can be found here and here. If you remember from part 1, one of the important functions of magnesium is to help create the histamine metabolizing enzyme Diamine Oxidase (DAO). In magnesium deficient rats, DAO activity is decreased to 50% after 8 days of magnesium deficiency and it returns to baseline once magnesium is reintroduced back in to the diet(1). In addition, histidine decarboxylase (HDC) activity is increased in some of the tissues of the magnesium deficient rats, particularly the spleen and peritoneum but not the skin(2). HDC is an enzyme that makes histamine from histidine, an amino acid. It is this conversion as well as certain foods that contain and/or liberate histamine that can be potentially problematic for someone with an existing magnesium deficiency.
Histamine intolerance is a condition where histamine accumulates in the body as a result of defective histamine metabolism(3). This occurs as a result of reduced DAO activity, something that is made worse by a magnesium deficiency as referenced in the above study. In addition, HDC activity increases which increases the conversion of histidine to histamine in the gut and circulation. Histidine can be found in most high protein foods and is an essential amino acid. As histamine accumulates in the body, numerous symptoms related to allergic reactions can occur including rash, GI symptoms, headache, hypotension, heart arrythmia, and a host of other symptoms. Below is a flow chart of symptoms taken from reference #(3).
It becomes important for a person experiencing these symptoms to do a good job of managing histamine levels. To do this, one should avoid foods that contain histamine, foods that liberate histamine from mast cells, and foods that block DAO activity. Foods that contain histamine include alcohol, any food that has undergone microbial fermentation including cheeses, meats, pickled foods/sauerkraut, beans, pulses, nuts, chocolate, wheat based products, shellfish, canned foods, and smoked meats(4). Leftovers should be strictly avoided as bacteria act on the histidine in foods quickly, converting it in to histamine even in the refrigerator. Foods that are known to liberate histamine from mast cells include citrus fruits, chocolate, nuts, papaya, beans/pulses, tomatoes, strawberries, pork, spinach,wheat germ, undercooked egg whites, and food additives(3,4). Finally, foods that are known to block DAO activity include alcohol, green/black/mate teas, and energy drinks(4).
In addition to minimizing foods that can increase histamine levels in the body, it is a good idea to increase magnesium levels to help support DAO levels and reduce HDC levels. Another nutrient that appears to be important in supporting DAO levels is Vitamin B6(5,6). There is also evidence that vitamin B6 may help transport magnesium in to cells, possibly by forming a complex between the two(7). As far as foods to support DAO activity, one interesting finding is that fat is the only macronutrient that increases DAO levels in the lymphatic system, protein appears to only increase DAO levels in the intestinal lumen while carbohydrate seems to have no effect on DAO levels(8). Therefore, DAO only enters the circulation in the presence of fat. If you are experiencing systemic symptoms of histamine intolerance, increasing fat intake may be something you want to look at. Just make sure you take any oral magnesium supplement away from high fat meals as there is evidence that fat negatively impacts magnesium absorption(9). However, if the reduction of magnesium absorption is due to utilizing more magnesium for DAO production, this may be a positive effect.
Most of you who have been "enjoying" the paleo autoimmune protocol are probably jumping for joy that you get to eliminate a bunch of other foods. Ironically enough, some of the foods that are known to negatively impact histamine levels are also FODMAPS. The point here is that if you are experiencing autoimmune symptoms you should be keeping a strict food journal to identify foods that are triggering responses so that you can compare those foods to foods that are known to cause negative reactions in the body to establish mechanism. If these foods seem to match up to foods known to negatively impact histamine levels, try that route. If it's FODMAPS that tend to be causing the problems, remove those foods. If there doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to the reactions and you eat a lot of leftovers, something people who eat a paleo diet do often, try eating only fresh food. If you want to find out if histamine is a problem, try antihistamines for a couple of days to find out if that ameliorates some of the symptoms. I wouldn't use that as your solution since it's not a solution, it's a band-aid, but improvement from antihistamines infers that histamine may be a problem.
If you do identify histamine as being the culprit, it is probably a dose/response issue. What I mean by that is you should find your tolerable dose of histamine and attempt to limit exposure to foods that increase histamine to below that dose. The absolute fastest way to remedy the situation would be to eliminate those foods altogether, but that doesn't really leave much left if you are already on a paleo diet. In any case, you may also want to increase magnesium and Vitamin B6 intake to both increase DAO production and reduce HDC production. It seems fairly apparent that one of the underlying issues in the whole situation is a magnesium deficiency. My best guess is that correcting the magnesium deficiency corrects the histamine intolerance. In this situation I would recommend both oral and topical magnesium supplementation to make sure both the gut and your cells are getting their fair share of magnesium.