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Polar Loop 2 is the stylish and waterproof activity tracker that makes you move. This elegant wristband tracks your daily activity and even sleep, motivating and guiding you towards better fitness and health.
Years of research have led Polar to create a method that sets you an individual daily activity goal - based on more than just steps. The Activity Goal on the Polar Loop 2 is customised to your personal details and choice of activity level, and it fills up during the day based on the amount and intensity of your activity.
Get motivating guidance on how to reach your goal. The activity goal on the Loop 2 fills up during the day based on the intensity of your activity.
Unique Polar technology allows the Polar Loop 2 to track your daily activity at five intensity levels: resting, sitting, low, medium and high. Low to high intensity movement fill up your activity bar so you can easily see how much progress you're making.
The soft and flexible Loop 2 fits every wrist perfectly. The 85 individually placed LED lights and stainless steel buckle make it a high-quality bracelet for 24/7 use. And don't fret about it getting wet – it's waterproof.
You can even wear the Loop 2 to bed and let it automatically track your sleep. Check Polar Flow app on your smartphone to see how long and well you slept. If you need a wake-up, the Loop 2 will gently vibrate when it's time to rise and shine.
Finding time to take care of yourself can be challenging, but the Loop 2 is here to help with motivating feedback and individual guidance. There are so many ways to be active, so find yours and reach your activity goal every day.
When you wear the Loop 2 you can receive vibrating smart notifications (iOS only) of incoming calls, messages and calendar appointments on your wrist.
Shows how active you've been during the day and gives practical guidance for reaching your daily activity goal.
Gives feedback on your daily, weekly and monthly activity, showing how your active choices help you stay healthy.
Lets you know exactly how many calories you've burned.
Gives clear guidance on how to get into shape faster. Polar H7 heart rate sensor required.
Motivating feedback straight after exercise. Polar H7 heart rate sensor required.
Shows your current heart rate with the touch of a button during training. Polar H7 heart rate sensor required.
Tracks your steps and distance from steps.
Reminds you with vibration to get up after 55 minutes of sitting and add active breaks to your daily routines.
Lets you know exactly how many calories you've burned. The individual algorithm is based on your data: weight, height, age, gender and the intensity of physical activity.
Shows how active you've been during the day and gives practical guidance for reaching your daily activity goal. Breaks up your activities into five intensity levels: resting, sitting, low, medium and high.
Automatically tracks your sleep time and quality. See and learn from your sleeping patterns in Polar Flow web service and app.
Vibrates and notifies you about incoming calls, messages and calendar reminders (iOS only).
With soft silicon wristband
|10,8 mm
|20,0 mm
|145-240mm (5.7-9.4")
With TPU wristband
|10,5 mm
|20,0 mm
Rechargeable 38 mAh Li-pol battery
Battery duration up to 8 days with 24/7 activity tracking and 1h/day training
Easy wireless sync via Polar Flow app with Bluetooth® Smart
Custom USB connector for charging and data sync with PC or Mac via Polar FlowSync
Bluetooth® Smart
Polar Flow web service compatibility with Mac OS X 10.6 or later and PC Windows XP, 7, 8
Updatable software
UI languages English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Danish, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, German, Italian, Finnish, Polish, Russian, Chinese, Japanese
Your heart rate is the most accurate fitness indicator. The best way to improve your fitness and see results is to exercise at the right intensity. Hook up the Loop 2 with Polar H7 heart rate sensor and make sure you don't skip a beat. The H7 will show your live, accurate heart rate on your wrist while you work out.
Follow your daily progress and get guidance that helps you meet your goals. Learn how your daily habits can improve your wellbeing.
Free online tool for your coach or personal trainer to easily follow your progress.
Add a Polar H7 Bluetooth® Smart heart rate sensor for live, accurate heart rate on your wrist.
Keep tabs on your nutrition by connecting with the world's largest food, nutrition and calorie database.
Tracks your daily activity at five intensity levels for 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and provides a complete picture of all of your activity. It counts your active time, daily burnt calories, steps, distance from steps and sleep.
It's based on the analyses of the frequency, intensity and regularity of your movements together with your physical information.
Intensity levels are:
You can also see how different activity intensities accumulate daily activity: the higher the intensity, the faster you'll reach your activity goal. Find more examples for low, medium and high intensity activities in Polar Flow app and web service.
We need physical activity to stay healthy. The Activity Goal helps and motivates you to stay active all day long. Your device tells you your daily Activity Goal and guides you on how to reach it. It's based on your personal details chosen level of activity and general health recommendations. The activity bar on your device fills up during the day based on the duration and intensity of your activity.
You can stay active at a moderate pace throughout the day or meet your goal faster with more intense activities. Your device helps you to reach your daily activity goal by giving practical guidance like ´walk for 50 minutes or jog for 20 minutes´. You can find more tips on how to reach your Activity Goal in the Polar Flow app and web service.
The foundation of Polar Activity Goal is in evidence-based physical activity guidelines which establish the minimal amount of physical activity needed to achieve important health benefits. The health benefits include healthy body weight, healthy bones, muscles and joints, psychological well-being, and reduced risk of certain diseases.
Includes the cumulative time you spend on your feet and on the move. In other words, low, medium and high intensity activities are considered Active Time. To get more active time, avoid sitting or break it up regularly with short walks.
Research has shown that both the reduced time spent inactive and breaks in inactivity have health associations. Replacing two hours of sitting per day by low intensity activity consumes calories equivalent to brisk walking for 30 minutes.
You can see the time spent on different intensity levels in the Polar Flow app and web service.
Your device counts your steps and the distance you walk during the day. Your steps are estimated based on the frequency, intensity and regularity of your wrist movements.
Stores all your daily physical activity. You can easily follow your daily and long-term physical activity in Polar Flow app and web service. The total active time is the cumulative time of body movements that are good for your body and health.
You will find detailed information in the Polar Flow app and web service, like time spent at different activity intensity levels, average of daily goal completion, calories burned and steps taken, amount of inactivity alerts and sleep time and quality.
Tracks all your active choices during the day and shows how they help you stay healthy. Strong scientific evidence exists on the numerous benefits of physical activity. Activity benefits include, e.g. heart health, muscle and bone health, stress reduction and sleep quality.
The Activity Benefit rewards you by giving you daily, weekly and monthly feedback, because the more regularly you move, the greater the health benefits. You can check up on how you're doing either from the Polar Flow app or web service.
Reminds you to get up and avoid sitting and standing still for too long – even on those days when you gain enough daily activity. Being inactive has a negative impact on your blood circulation, metabolism and energy expenditure.
After 55 minutes of being inactive your device gives you an Inactivity Alert which reminds you to add active breaks to your daily routines. If you continue being inactive for more than one hour, you will see an inactivity stamp in your daily activity data.
You won't get any Inactivity alerts during night time.
Your training computer automatically tracks the duration of your sleep and shows in the Polar Flow app and web service how restful your sleep has been.
Most adults do very well with eight hours of sleep, but sleep needs may vary from about six to nine hours. Your sleep needs are affected by several factors like individual characteristics, training load, mental stress, body's condition and possible sleep debt.
By following your sleeping patterns you can see if they're affected by any changes in your daily life and find the right balance of rest, daily activity and training.
An assessment of sleep quality relies on your wrist movements. The periods when you sleep peacefully and don't move a lot are calculated as restful sleep. The periods when you move and change your position are calculated as restless sleep.
Train for a running event with a personalised and adaptive running plan in Polar Flow. Choose one of four events, 5K, 10K, half marathon and marathon, and get a comprehensive training plan that fits you and your goals.
Depending on your choices and activity levels, you will receive a personal running program that can range from 9 to 15 weeks in length. Running Program also offers a base-building phase that can work for months before the start of the actual running plan.
Running Program gives you easy-to-follow instructions, motivational guidance and supportive exercises with video instructions that take the guesswork out of training.
During individual training sessions, compatible Polar products guide you in real-time. You can see your target heart rate zone and target duration and adjust your training for optimal results.
Heart rate (HR) is an excellent measure of exercise and your training intensity. In the human body heart rate is regulated to match the demands of the body and the environment. When exercise intensity increases, heart rate also increases to match the increased rate of energy expenditure and oxygen uptake.
Heart rate can be expressed as the absolute number of beats per minute (bpm) or as a percentage of your maximum heart rate (% HRmax) or heart rate reserve (% HRR). Absolute heart rate during training is not very informative on its own, but when it's expressed and interpreted in relation to HRmax or HRR it determines individual exercise intensity.
Your heart rate value in beats per minute (e.g. 125 bpm) is individual and cannot be compared to another person's value. A percentage of your maximum heart rate value on the other hand is comparable. For instance your friend may have a higher heart rate value in bpm, but the percentage of your individual HRmax can be the same. This means that you have the same relative training intensity.
Maximum heart rate (HRmax) is the highest number of heart beats per minute (bpm) during physical exertion. HRmax is individual and may somewhat decrease as you age. It sets the individual reference value for your training intensity and is used in the calculation of the default heart rate zones and many Polar Smart Coaching features.
An age-based HRmax is a rough estimate of your maximum heart rate, and it is used as default in most Polar training computers. The most reliable and safest way to determine your HRmax is to have it measured in a maximal laboratory test.
Tells you in an easy way if the main effect of your training is fat burning or fitness improvement. EnergyPointer visually indicates the turning point between these two training effects.
Low intensity training has several health and performance benefits through increasing fat burning. Training in higher intensity improves cardiorespiratory fitness more effectively by, for example, strengthening your heart and increasing blood flow to muscles and lungs.
To calculate the EnergyPointer your training computer uses your heart rate and heart rate variability as well as your personal information including age, gender, height, weight, maximum heart rate and fitness level.
Calculates the number of calories burned based on your individual data: your weight, height, age, gender, HRmax, HRrest, VO2max, and the intensity of your training/activity.
Heart rate-based calorie calculation is used when heart rate is measured, and it measures burned calories the most accurately also in conditions like cycling or lifting weights. Activity-based calorie calculation is used in training computers and activity trackers, when heart rate is not available.
You can see the cumulative energy expenditure (in kilocalories, kcal) during exercise and total kilocalories of the session after exercise. You can also follow your total daily calories.
Helps you to understand how each training session benefits your fitness. It also gives you motivating feedback immediately after exercise. With the Training Benefit feature, you can make your training more varied by altering your training intensity and duration.
The Training Benefit feedback is based on exercise intensity and duration. It reads into how much time you spend and how many calories you burn in each intensity zone. You get a quick overview after each session and for more detailed feedback, you can either check your training file from your training computer or later in the Polar Flow app or web service.
Weight: 38g
Resolution: 85 LEDs
Connects your Polar device and possible sensors to each other and enables you to sync your data via mobile. It is a standardized, wireless communication technology that is optimized for low power consumption and based on an open platform.
Once paired, the Bluetooth Smart sensor is automatically locked to transmit data to your training computer. The training computer picks up your data from your transmitter only.
Allows you to stay up to date when wearing your training computer in your everyday life. You will receive alerts from incoming calls, messages and push notifications from social media apps and see them on the display of your training computer.
During training you can see who's calling and decide if you want to pick up or keep on enjoying your workout.
You can define which notifications you wish to receive in your phone's settings or turn off notifications altogether from your training computer.
Allows you to update the software to the latest version with a USB.
Offers an easy way to follow your training, activity and progress in the Polar Flow web service. You can see your data in a daily, monthly or weekly view.
The Diary data includes e.g. completed training sessions and plans, test results and your daily activity.
Be a part of the Polar training community and meet other Polar trainers there. You can share your own achieves, like training sessions or activity summaries or you can follow and comment other trainers´ training session or activity summary.
Gives you an instant, visual summary of one training session or your activity in the Polar Flow app. You can follow your activity in daily, weekly or monthly view.
Allows you to easily analyze every detail of your training and long-term physical activity in the Flow web service. You can also get a deeper insight into your training analyses, for example compare your heart rate against speed, view detailed lap information or analyze your performance related to the route.
Besides the many details you get about your physical activity and all the health benefits that come with it, you can also get practical guidance how to reach your Activity Goal and see your inactive periods.
Offers you a practical tool to follow your development with reports and graphs over longer periods. In Week, Month and Year reports you can choose the sport you want to include to the report. In Custom period you can choose both the period and the sport.
Compatible with PC Windows XP, Windows 7, Windows 8, and later
Compatible with Mac OS X 10.6, OS X 10.7, OS X 10.8, and later
Compatible with Polar Flow web service
Compatible with Polar Flow mobile app via Bluetooth Smart
Allows you to manually export data of your training session to third party apps and services as TCX, GPX or CSV files. You can also zip the files for faster download.
E.g. you can export a specific route in GPX format or a training session including key training data like route, heart rate, calories and cadence in TCX format.
You can transfer the training results and fitness test results from polarpersonaltrainer.com to Polar Flow with the following Polar products: RCX3, RCX5, RC3 GPS, CS500, CS500+, RS300X, RS800CX, CS600X, FT80, FT60, FT40 and FT7. It's possible to transfer either a single training or fitness test result or up to 25 results at a time.
Log into Polar Flow with your polarpersonaltrainer.com username and password. The training and fitness test results are transferred from your polarpersonaltrainer.com account to the corresponding account in Polar Flow (the account with the same username and password). Note that you can't choose the account you transfer the results to.
Offers an easy way to connect your Polar training device with 3rd party services.
Your training and daily activity details are automatically sent and available to be used in the services where you allow it. Now you can be connected for example with Strava, TrainingPeaks, Apple Health Kit, Google Fit, MyFitnessPal and MapMyFitness,
Polar is actively developing new 3rd party compatible services and will update the information constantly.


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Subscribe To Angelina Jolie Casts Domhnall Gleeson And Finn Wittrock In Lou Zamperini Biopic Unbroken Updates
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Angelina Jolie has been developing her sophomore directorial effort, the war drama Unbroken, since December of last year, and today she's taken some more steps towards getting the film into production. The Wrap is reporting that both Harry Potter's Domhnall Gleeson and All My Children's Finn Wittrock have both signed on for roles in the movie, joining up-and-comer Jack O'Donnell.
Based on a true story, Unbroken tells the incredible tale of Lou Zamperini, an Olympic track and field star who served with the Air Force back during World War II. In 1943, Zamperini's plane experienced a mechanical malfunction and went down over the Pacific Ocean, leaving him to spend a total of 47 days in the water, surviving on rain water and raw fish. Even though he didn't have any supplies and regularly endured shark attacks, the hero managed to survive - but when he finally made it to shore in Japan he was captured and held as a prisoner of war for two years. While O'Connell will be taking on the role of Zamperini, Gleeson and Wittrock will play Russel Allen "Phil" Phillips and Francis "Mac" McNamara, who were also in the plane that got shot down and worked to survive with the main character.
The film is being adapted from the best-selling book "Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption" by author Laura Hillenbrand, and while early drafts of the screenplay were written by William Nicholson (Tom Hooper's Les Miserables) and Richard LaGravenese (Beautiful Creatures), the most recent version was scripted by Joel and Ethan Coen. Last month it was announced that Universal Pictures is planning to release the film on December 25, 2014, and production is gearing up to start this fall.
Gleeson, who is the son of Brendan Gleeson, is perhaps best known for his performance as Bill Weasley in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Parts 1 and 2, but has since put on solid supporting performances in films like James Marsh's Shadow Dancer, Pete Travis' Dredd, and Joe Wright's Anna Karenina. He will next be seen playing the lead opposite Rachel McAdams and Bill Nighy in Richard Curtis' About Time, and you can watch the most recent trailer for that film below:
Unlike Gleeson, Wittrock has spent most of his career on television, not only starring in the soap opera All My Children, but also appearing in episodes of shows like Torchwood, CSI: Miami, and Criminal Minds. While he has yet to have his big screen debut, that will change in a big way next year when he stars in both Akiva Goldman's adaptation of Winter's Tale and Darren Aronofsky's biblical epic Noah.

subset: commoncrawl


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A simulation-based learning module on a vacuum pump system is demonstrated. The learning historian allows users to record their actions and replay them to review what they did. A visual...
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|ACM CHI+GI 1987 + CHI 1991 Issue 65 - A Hypersimulation-Based Learning Environment
One of he promises of interactive computer technology is that it will provide its own learning environment. Training will be an intergral part of any computer application. Systems could...
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The collaboratory is the result of a future-oriented project in learning, in which the proces of human-centered design was applied to the observed problems and opportunities in learning in high...
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We have developed an application framework for creating simulation-based learning environments. We call it SimPLE. These environments use dynamic simulations and visualizations to represent realistic, time-dependent behavior; and are coupled...
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If you can't make it to Solid Edge University 2015, there are still some ways you can participate and almost get the feeling like you are there. The most immediate way is to follow Twitter #SEU15, and Facebook. You'll get an almost-immediate stream-of-consciousness experience, but maybe not much depth. For more depth, follow this blog and the user forum. Whatever your favored social media, we'll have something there.
I always encourage people at events to be at the event rather than yacking about it on social media. One of my favorite pictures that I took at one of these events was a group of people who hang out online, but they were all hanging out in a lounge area with their heads bent down over their phones and tablets, kind of unaware of each other. Sometimes we forget to be where we are, but each of us has our own way of communicating. Some people prefer to communicate in short form. I personally prefer to think it out a little more, and write more conversationally. So you will get different styles from different people by connecting to different outlets. That way no one person is burdened with writing about everything.
And then obviously, don't forget the CAD press. They have a different perspective, and are looking for things different from what employees or customers might look for.
So even if you can't make it to Cincinnati this year, you can be here virtually, and maybe next year you make it in person, and you'll be adding to the Twitter stream or forum threads. Of course there are benefits to being here in person, or we'd all stay home. Meeting folks and talking face to face can't be overrated. Plus, the technical sessions are really a highlight that aren't broadcast. There's the off-site event, and the reception, and lunches, and all that. Personal connections are an important part of the actual event.
Plus you can all have a chuckle at my New Zealand [KIWI] accent, as we both decipher what I may/may not, have said.
I probably need to spend some time in Solid Edge [luckily I bought it with me] ahead of getting to Cincinnati, re-schooling required more than ever, as I've been on full tourist mode for just over a week now. What amazing country this is. [or, what I've seen so far...]
glad you're liking your visit. Yes, there's a lot of amazing stuff here. And when you think you've seen it all, there's something local that just blows your mind. Of course a lot of folks here want to see NZ too, including me.
Anyway, looking forward to seeing you in a couple of days!
Sean, It'll be great to finally meet you.
Glad you're getting some other sites in, and I think I speak for many here when I say that finally putting a voice (especially a NZ one) to all your posts, will make them even more enjoyable... just don't be insulted if we ask you to post them on the SEU15 App, so we can follow along, instead of just nodding.
See tomorrow evening! Bob
OK, hahaha, that, I think I can do @BobMileti.
....had a quick pre-event meeting with these fine peeps....
>> @JohnsonBigMatt @Imics @Tushar <<
[there was even some of the SE team there, but, I rudely forgot to get a photo of them all. So probably didn't really happen]
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Friday, February 24, 2006
Orthodoxy and Creationism
Designed for Life
In the last ten years or more an ancient supposed conflict between Christianity and Science has re-emerged in the west and more especially in America. After years of public ridicule occasioned by so called Young Earth Creationists mounting exhibitions of Adam and Eve walking with dinosaurs on a 5000 year old earth, the creationist movement has changed its tactic. Now the name of the game is "Intelligent Design," an attempt to show that science on its own cannot account for the complexity of life without the intervention of a Cosmic Designer, which some might wish to call God although, publicly, the Intelligent Design movement has not gone that far.
What all of these creationist movements do is to try and impose on science a theological agenda that by the terms of its own method of enquiry, it cannot and must not accommodate, for it is no business of science to "prove" God one way or another. Arguably, creationism only encourages extreme reactions from such people as Richard Dawkins who trespass in turn in the realm of theology with an ignorance and dogmatism matched only by their own mortal enemies, the meddling fundamentalists of the American Deep South and Midwest.
Let us not be deceived by this conflict which is serious. The implications for those who subscribe to both God as creator and evolution as his method are dire. Christianity as a whole is being associated with narrow-minded irrational bigotry and, in turn, a widespread ignorance of science and its claims threatens, even in this technological age, to throw us back into an era of superstition and ignorance. Those Christians with other voices must stand up and be heard before it is too late. They too must join this debate.
It is my contention that in all of this sabre rattling and jockeying for position we have a phoney war, a tragic and unnecessary conflict that does great harm both to science and Christianity. Moreover I also assert that these problems are themselves caused on the Christian side by the inerrantist, literalist, 'sola scriptura' assumptions of conservative Protestantism. In offering alternatives to these problematic beliefs I shall suggest that there are resources for Christian thinking and theological reflection on the nature of creation in Orthodox Christianity which, happily, are also shared in part at least by other Christian traditions.
So, in the midst of this conflict we must ask: "what is wrong with Creationism?" What are the faulty assumptions in this debate that lead to each side anathematising the other? Is there a better way that could see science and faith in harmony once more?
First we need to clear up the language, for words especially have been used in this war as weapons without much clarity as to their former and present meanings. In present usage 'creationism' can mean two radically different things:-
(1) In the use of atheism or religions and philosophies that do not believe that there is a god who creates, creationism means the doctrine of any manner of Creator God or gods. This not only rules out biblical cosmologies but also modern theistic evolutionary variants based on a critical use of biblical texts. As Richard Dawkins has said of those defending both God and evolution, the notion of a Creator God is gratuitous once evolution and natural selection is accepted. In this of course, he agrees with his creationist antagonists. As Laplace once declared:- "God? I have no need of that hypothesis."
(2) In the use of certain fundamentalist Christians creationism means the doctrine that God created the heavens and the earth precisely and literally as the book of Genesis describes it. This use includes different schools of interpretation since Genesis itself is obscure on a number of points even from a literalist point of view. Thus we have Young Earth Creationists who believe that humans walked with dinosaurs on a 5000 year old earth and others who share the same aversion to evolution but see Genesis as applying over a much longer timescale. The Young Earth Creationists have a lot of explaining to do as they confront the fossil record. The usual tactic is to suppose that God for some bizarre reason deliberately fooled humanity by planting fossils that were much younger than they now appear to be. The Old Earth Creationists at least don't try and falsify history but they still fall into the same trap of supposing that the Bible is an ageless science textbook.
Note that in both usages of "creationism", both sides of the debate resolutely resist the idea that evolution is not only compatible with belief in a Creator God but also might enhance that belief. Those holding to this excluded view of theistic evolution might be tempted to declare "a plague on both your houses!" and withdraw from the arena. That would be a tragedy, however, for both science and Christianity for the simple reason that the world is watching with bewildered amusement. Many are concluding that either Christianity really is bankrupt in that it cannot absorb new insights about the world or on the other hand that science cannot be trusted to unearth the truths of the Cosmos. The battle lines have been drawn and both sides stand to be mortally wounded as the conflict escalates. We desperately need to move the debate onto new ground where this unnecessary and damaging clash may cease.
Some suppose that Intelligent Design might provide this new ground. Here is an approach that declares itself to be only scientific in its method; challenging some if not all of the tenets of evolution on Darwin's own territory. In the main Intelligent Design is justified by the theory of "irreducible complexity" and the alleged irrationality of chaotically generated order.
On "irreducible complexity" such protagonists as Michael Behe have argued that the flagellum of a certain species of swimming bacterium, acting like a miniature biological outboard motor, cannot possibly have assembled itself entire and complete by evolution because no component part can work at a simpler level on its own, a prerequisite of the evolutionary account of such adaptive features. This has proven to be a classic example of the discredited God-of-the-gaps "we can't explain this" approach. However, It wasn't difficult to prove the independent viability of certain individual components of the flagellum and with these discoveries, Behe's argument failed spectacularly. It has been the same with every other "we can't explain this" example presented by proponents of Intelligent Design. Every gap in our knowledge has been subsequently filled by science. This has happened many, many times before in the history of the relations between theology and science. You would have thought that Christian apologists would have learned the lesson by now. This can be a difficult message to hear but a necessary one … an Intelligent Designer isn't required to explain anything at all. God is not the solution to a difficult equation. He is something else entirely.
This, of course, has not stopped creationists, both crude and sophisticated, attempting to get textbooks changed in American public schools so as to allow for Intelligent Design. In this they pursue a relentless onslaught on what they see as Godless science in the classroom. They hope to convince a whole generation by stealth that Darwin got it wrong! Under the guise of intellectual humility and the provisionality of all human truth seeking, they try to show that evolution is "only a theory." On this basis the inverse square law of gravitational attraction is "only a theory" but those who deny it would do well to watch their step anytime they walk along the edge of a cliff!
The other target of Intelligent Design has been the alleged inability of chaos and randomness to generate order from within itself and without exterior agency. This is perhaps the most ignorant argument of all, since even in the most chaotic of systems, such as the weather and quantum indeterminacy, there is order at a different level of scale through the operation of natural laws and probabilistic effects. Even when such laws are based on probability they make testable predictions concerning natural phenomena. The pervasiveness of order and the emergence of complexity through physical reactivity do not require any direct supernatural intervention for their accomplishment. God does not need to keep tweaking Creation for it to work. Even life itself can emerge from within wholly natural processes given enough time for the cosmic shake out of randomness to generate the primal building blocks of life. "Surely," it might be objected, "there must be a Designer to animate these blocks into life!" Well, aside from the biblical respectability of such a view taken at face value, (Genesis 2:7), this animation is not necessary given that life is at its most basic level is simply a reproducible system of embodied data transmission driven by energetic chemical reactions. It is self-sustaining once the connections are made and these connections are built into molecular reactivity that in turn is sustained by the behaviour of particles and forces condensing out of the Big Bang through its initial conditions and subsequent unfolding history. Of course, animal life in general and human life in particular is much more than this but the complexity that evolves "mind" is truly built into the system from the beginning. That's the beauty and real power of God's creative activity, so much from so little. Truly there is no "God-in-the-machine," no "God-of-the-gaps" needed to explain how natural processes work. God has ordered each part of creation so that it has power to evolve "under its own steam" as it were.
Some might still object at this stage of the argument that a scientific world view leaves no room at all for a God who intervenes in his creation. If he is not needed to explain either for the motions of the planets or the tremulous vibrations of life and thought then what USE is he? The answer of course is "no use at all." The wrong question has been asked, itself based on a faulty premise. As I hope I have shown thus far, God is not a term for that which we do not as yet know. God is not a substitute for understanding the fibres of created reality. Faith searches deeper than this. It reaches beyond all phenomena accessible to rationality to a level of meaning embedded in the every aspect of a Cosmos that God himself has made creative according to his purpose. No room needs to be made for God. He is the Word, the Logos behind all things that create.
In pre-Christian Greek philosophy the logos (pl. logoi) was the divine reason embedded in the Cosmos giving it form and meaning. There was no place where this fecundity was absent, no time when it was not operational. St. John, writing for a very early Gentile Greek congregation, in his gospel prologue (John 1:1-18), felt very comfortable in taking the extremely radical step of equating this logos (word but more than word) with the Hellenised recension of the Hebraic "Word" of God and then making this Greek / Hebraic logos embodied as Christ.
This fusion can be read in two different directions although it is sadly only too often read in one. The first is that Christ is the apex of that divine fecundity for humans in the flesh. The second neglected direction is that this Christ henceforth is the cosmic Logos ... God in other words becomes for monotheism not only the transcendent God of Judaism who may not be named but also now the rational immanent fecund principle of the Cosmos' own generative power. This also is Christ. Not for nothing then does St. John therefore speak of the Logos in these terms in the first verse, (I have changed "Word" back to "Logos" as in the Greek original):-
"In the beginning was the Logos, and the Logos was with God, and the Logos was God. He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made." (John 1:1-3)
Now the interesting thing is that this passage is read in the Orthodox Church not at Christmas as in the west but at Easter. In other words, the Logos is to be understood in the Orthodox East as the Christ Pantocrator, astoundingly, something human embedded in the Cosmos itself which is the principle of its liberation from corruption and decay, the resurrection. We are a very long way here from the sickly sentimental piety of Jesus meek and mild, just as limited and bound on earth as in his own psyche. The New Creation of the Christian Gospel is literally just that … a new creation.
What bearing does this have on an Orthodox understanding of creation? Simply this, God is not in the gaps. There are no gaps for the Logos lies behind All and the Whole. The Whole is where Christ is, and in him the Whole is where we are also called to ascend. Therefore since Christ as Logos is the Whole (St. Paul talks of the "pleroma" the fullness, Ephesians 1:23) anything at all that human wisdom discovers about the Cosmos is a facet of his glory and presence. This of course is a hermeneutic for Christians. No one is expecting those of other religions and none to accept this vision short of faith. However, it does mean, for Christians at least, that all science, no matter what it discovers, is Christomorphic, Christ-shaped. Our understanding of Christ is growing therefore in step with human knowledge. There is no conflict, no antagonism between science and Orthodox Christianity. How could there be? One is a reflection of the other ... in the Logos.
The difference then this faith makes to the story of the Cosmos concerns a certain way of looking at life and venerating it as a vehicle of the Holy Spirit's creativity; of the Word's power, of the Love of God. This religious truth is not subject to verification, nor can it be falsified. Only those with an impoverished notion of truth limited to the realm of provable assertions will exclude this beauty embedded in the Cosmos, this divine imprint of the Creator who has so arranged His world as to make it not only the object of wonder but also the subject of rational enquiry.
What then are the theological resources for such a view of Creator and creation or is this just a convenient modernist readjustment to inconvenient facts? If an Orthodox priest is to dignify such an exposition with the title "Orthodox" he had better be able to show that such an understanding is both compatible with and indicated by Scripture and Tradition. We have already referred to St. John's prologue but we need more evidence than this to make a persuasive case.
First, however, we must deal with two little problems entitled "biblical literalism" and "biblical sufficiency." These are precepts of the conservative Protestant world and as I indicated earlier, they could easily account for the impasse that such traditions encounter when matching biblical truth against truth claims seen as antithetical to the scriptures. If the scriptures bear literal and unchanging truth for all time then there will always be a problem with accommodating advancing knowledge in any sphere of human activity. If the scriptures are sufficient for faith then one must ask why are there so many biblical interpretations and idiosyncratic sectarian doctrines generated by groups who uniformly hold to this view. Creationism constitutes a perfect example of this hermeneutical dilemma in fundamentalist Christianity. The Bible says that God made the earth in 6 days about 7000 years ago yet astronomy tells us that the Universe has evolved over the last 13 billion years and it is still changing, still creating.
There are only two possible responses for biblical literalism and biblical sufficiency. Either science is wrong or Genesis must be tweaked to make it appear to accommodate a longer timescale. There can be no such choice with the theory of evolution though. This is something that no creationist can stomach. Not only is it not in the Bible but it would have us believe that humans are not special, not made from scratch in the image and likeness of God … or so they think! Orthodox Christianity, and indeed other Christian traditions refute both biblical literalism and biblical sufficiency. From the New Testament writers to the Fathers and beyond there have existed several ways of interpreting the biblical text, historically if that is appropriate, typologically or allegorically if that is where the spiritual sense lies. No patristic biblical commentator felt constrained by the Scriptures thus interpreted to deny any aspect of truth discovered in other spheres of human activity. This attitude is characterised by St. Augustine in a commentary on Genesis from which I shall quote at length. This will connect what I am claiming about Orthodox biblical interpretation to the more positive aspects of Orthodoxy's contribution to this debate. St. Augustine said this:-
"Even a non-Christian knows something about the earth, the heavens, and the other elements of this world, about the motion and orbit of the stars and even their size and relative positions, about the predictable eclipses of the sun and moon, the cycles of the years and the seasons, about the kinds of animals, shrubs, stones, and so forth, and this knowledge he holds as being certain from reason and experience.
Now, it is a disgraceful and dangerous thing for an infidel to hear a Christian, presumably giving the meaning of Holy Scripture, talking nonsense on these topics; and we should take all means to prevent such an embarrassing situation, in which people show up vast ignorance in a Christian and laugh it to scorn.
The shame is not so much that an ignorant individual is derided, but that people outside the household of faith think our sacred writers held such opinions, and, to the great loss of those for whose salvation we toil, the writers of our Scripture are criticized and rejected as unlearned men.
If they find a Christian mistaken in a field which they themselves know well and hear him maintaining his foolish opinions about our books, how are they going to believe those books in matters concerning the resurrection of the dead, the hope of eternal life, and the kingdom of heaven, when they think their pages are full of falsehoods and on facts which they themselves have learnt from experience and the light of reason?"
[Saint Augustine, On the Literal Meaning of Genesis, Book 1, Chapter 19]
Without knowledge you might be excused for thinking that St. Augustine was alive today and writing for today. Sadly, maybe little changes. What is presented here is an approach taken by the Fathers more generally to the relationship between revealed truth and the natural sciences and humanities. This attitude is found even in the first 300 years when the Church was persecuted by the world. St. Justin the Philosopher, (165), a martyr no less, saw Christ as the fulfilment of classical Greek religious impulses with Plato as a type of Greek "Moses." Clement of Alexandria in this same period (215) wrote the following:-
"Scripture gives the common name of wisdom to all the earthly sciences and arts generally, everything that the human mind can achieve… for every art and every knowledge comes from God."
[Clement of Alexandria]
It is true that some Fathers were less accommodating. Tertullian (who was later to go AWOL with the Montanists) declaimed: "What has Jerusalem to do with Athens?" Nonetheless, Christians rarely despised secular learning as such and after the legalisation of Christianity a much stronger position emerged. The Cappadocian Fathers in the fourth century welcomed the sciences and arts as handsmaids to theology. St. Gregory Theologian, my patron was a notable poet theologian. Here are some of his insights:-
"Just as in subtle musical harmony every string produces a different sound, one high, another low, so also the Artist and Creator-Word, having installed different inventors for various occupations and arts, has given everything in the possession of all those who wish in order to tie us by the bonds of fellowship and love of man and make our life more civilised." [St. Gregory the Theologian]
"every one who has an intellect recognises scholarship as a primary blessing for us. And not only this noble scholarship of our own, which… has as its subject only salvation and the beauty of what is contemplated by the mind, but also the external scholarship which many Christians abhor out of ignorance as unreliable, dangerous and diverting from God".
[St. Gregory the Theologian, 389]
and from St. Basil the Great,
"external sciences are not without use" [St. Basil the Great, 379]
For two millennia Orthodox theologising has proceeded on this basis. We cannot survey this whole period but to complete the witness let us consider two more recent Russian thinkers, the first a saint of the 19th century, St. Philaret of Moscow, (1867).
"The faith in Christ is not in conflict with the true knowledge, because it is not in union with ignorance".
The second reflects the work of a contemporary Russian Orthodox deacon, Andrey Kuraev, who has done much to remind the Russian Church of the harmony between science and faith. In a lecture arguing for a more positive evaluation of evolution he based this on Genesis itself but in a quite unforced manner. He refers both to St. Philaret and St. Basil:
"In the Book of Genesis God names every creature and by this naming calls every creature from the abyss of non-being. In the lovely expression of St. Philaret of Moscow, the creative "Word articulates all creatures into being." What we see here in Genesis is a dialogue. The call produces a response to God's life-giving action. "The earth germinates, but it does not sprout that which it has but transforms that which it does not have, as much as God gives the strength to act," wrote St. Basil the Great. The seeds of life are not found in the earth; rather, "God's word creates beings" and plants these in earth, which, in turn, germinates them. Earth is unable to be fertile by itself, yet there is no reason to downplay its role: "Let the earth bring forth by itself without having any need of help from without." While life proceeds from earth, the very life-giving ability of matter is a gift of the Creator." ….
"On the other hand, unprejudiced reading of Scripture makes one notice a certain degree of activity that created matter has. It is not written that "God created grass," but, "Let the earth bring forth grass." Later on, God is depicted not as simply creating life out of nothing but as calling on waters so that they may "bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life." ….
"The emergence of life in the Book of Genesis is both evolutionary (as earth is producing plants and simple organisms), and also a "leap towards life," occurring by the order of God."
"God calls the Earth to a synergy, to a creativity that is indicative of the God-given internal creative abilities of the Earth. Different stages in the history of Creation open with God's call upon "earth." The world, being called to growth and development, acts in cooperation with God. This theme of cooperation of God and His creation appears in the Bible long before the creation of man. The fact that the earth in response to the Word is producing life indicates that it is not merely a lifeless substance, out of which an external action is "moulding life," overcoming inert matter. The Bible is unlike the Vedanta, and matter in it is not a synonym of death and non-being.
This is how St. Basil is describing this creative response in his Homily V: "See how, at this short word, at this brief command, the cold and sterile earth travailed and hastened to bring forth its fruit, as it casts away its sad and dismal covering to clothe itself in a more brilliant robe, proud of its proper adornment and displaying the infinite variety of plants."
Could there be a clearer indication of the compatibility of a truly Christian understanding of creation and the task of science? Yet how can it be that some Christians, in this case the Orthodox, can speak in such positive terms about evolution and others, self-styled creationists, find this so difficult? A possible answer to this question lies in the manner of theologising, even the faith itself. Speaking personally I do often wonder if we have more to celebrate and share as Orthodox Christians with agnostic scientists than with the militant fundamentalists who now as so often before bring our faith into disrepute … as they also once did in the time St. Augustine! Perhaps we may also hope that in this dialogue Orthodox theological reflection on the wonders of creation will be deepened and refined by the insights of contemporary science. We have all got some catching up to do!
(c) Fr. Gregory Hallam
15 comments:
In my opinion science, especially evolution, makes all gods/creators/designers completely unnecessary. I think this is why most Christians and Muslims refuse to try to understand evolution. They prefer to believe almost all scientists are wrong.
- 11:09 pm
- Father Gregory said...
Well that doesn't include me or the majority who don't shout as loud as the Creationists. Your comment holds true ONLY if God is merely an explanation for that which we don't yet understand. I do not believe in such a false god. That's my "atheism" then.
- 11:59 pm
- Gnome Knot said...
Father Gregory,
I think you hit the nail right on the head with this one. There are some points in here that I'll have to consider further before deciding whether or not I agree with them, but as far as the spirit of the post, well done!Before becoming a catechumen I was at a protestant church that tried to sell me "young earth" creationism as an indisputable fact (I wasn't having any of it). The quote you provided from St Augustine gave me a good chuckle. I can't help but scratch my head when I encounter Christians who hope that ignorance will lead them to truth, and who never fail at an opportunity to demonstrate that ignorance. Of course, I ought to be doing more than scratching my head--their reputation is following me around!
- 4:39 am
As another anonymous poster, is there not an element of pantheism in saying that the Logos, the Word, the Christ etc are within everything, or is that a relation to omnipresence in that God is everywhere without being everything?
- 1:39 pm
- Father Gregory said...
Indeed it is in Orthodoxy as you have latterly described ... God omnipresent by his energies without being everything. God in his essence being utterly transcendent to that. This is sometimes characterised as panentheism (not pantheism).
- 4:44 pm
Hi Father. Bless!
Well this is something I've especially took a deep interest in over the past year (creationism vs. evolution.) I've just read a rather good book by Lee Strobel "A Case For a Creator" and it dispelled for me many of my ignorant misguided interpretations of evolution, or to be more specific: Darwinism.
I've took great interest in this article. I haven't read it properly (due to being in an internet café!) but I'm printing it out to take home.
I'd just like to ask one thing before I do though; you mentioned about the creation according to Genesis and were working with the notion that it is figurative. Is that an Orthodox belief? That the Genesis was figurative? Personally, having researched these matters, such as evolution and Darwinism I see no fit reason why evolution or darwinism poses a threat at all to creationism. In my mind, creationism holds the higher ground, although even still, if elements of darwinism such as natural selection were true, I can't see how this harms any of the Christian beliefs we hold so dearly to. I'd just like to list two of my own observations:
1) Before the time of Adam and Eve, we are not informed of the length of time that Adam and Eve were in the garden (in their innocence.) At this time, although the Earth was in its full creation, there is a chance that Adam and Eve dwelt for a lengthy period in the garden, thus giving the time expected for certain scientific processes to occur according to God's Universal Laws.
2) We see a picture of Adam and Eve walking with dinosaurs as you mentioned. I know I must sound ridiculous although I really and truely have no problem with this. After all, in Genesis does it not say that "giants were on the Earth in those days"? I doubt that this is a figurative or literary remark propogating scriptural myth, but rather a realistic observation. You can't time Noah's flood of the whole Earth etc and correlate it with modern man's knowledge and methods, because if my aforementioned point (1) holds any water at all, the flood of Noah could have been decades, even centuries before it is calculated to be.
Thanks for a truely awe inspiring article Father!
In Christ,
Deiniol (-:
- 9:37 am
Darwin's special theory of evolution is proven, but the general theory is ridiculous. Science is not there to either prove for or against the existance of the Divine. However, should you accept the general theory, you'd pretty much have to believe in the Divine.
- 2:23 pm
"What all of these creationist movements do is to try and impose on science a theological agenda that by the terms of its own method of enquiry, it cannot and must not accommodate, for it is no business of science to "prove" God one way or another."
This is a totally prejudiced and inaccurate view of what microbiology has been finding. The leading proponents of ID assert that they have found irreducible complexity all over the place on the molecular level - and in fact they have. As a result, Darwinian evolution going to origin is abolished by serious scientists.
It is not the young Earthers who came up with this, but credible scientists including one of the authors of an acclaimed evolutionary biochemistry textbook, who upon examining facts over decades trying to prove his theories, has disavowed his own theories! The facts are loud and clear, Darwinian evolution is dead.
These people are not young earthers, nor do they hold to specific dogmatic protestant beliefs, nor are they frauds. In fact, even the evolutionists have been rushing to redefine evolution more and more in the direction of adaptive genetics to accomodate the true findings, and as they do so, Darwinian mechanisms of origin fall by the wayside as insufficient and unnecessary (formally disproved).
The "G" word is hardly if ever used, except by those who are maliciously attacking those who have pointed out the myraid problems with evolutionary theory going to origin (first cause). I suggest getting the DVD "Where does the Evidence Lead" to find out what has been going on.
As regards to science and God, I find it disturbing that someone can sing, "For by it those who worshipped the stars, were taught by a star to adore Thee, the Sun of Righteousness, and to know Thee, the Orient from on high" can subscribe to the view that scientists should not seek Christ in their science. According to St. John Chrysostom the Magi were scientists - good ones who actually probed; they were not like the idiots that Herod employed who could not be bothered to make a diligent search for Christ!
Furthermore, James Clerk Maxwell and Isaac Newton, two of the three greatest scientists who ever lived were stauchly Christian in outlook. However, while Maxwell was a very good practicing Christian, helping the poor and visiting the sick, Newton had heretical beliefs. Reimann who beat Einstein by 50 years in formulating time/space noneuclidean geometry and invented tensor mathematics that Einstein later used, practiced praying the Psalms.
Dr. George Washington Carver, the greatest biological inventor who ever lived, had a scientific method that began every morning at 4:30 AM with PRAYER to find out his operational instructions for the day - FROM GOD. The man claimed from his youth to be able to speak and hear the Almighty Father, the Creator, from whom he discovered the Son - again in prayer! Now that is Orthodox!
andy holland
nuclear engineer
- 8:04 pm
- Father Gregory said...
Why does complexity have to be IRREDUCIBLE for design to be in evidence? (Not that I accept that there is a case for such irreducibility, in respect of any known creaturely faculty). Why does evolution as a PROCESS of creation rule out divine agency? I just don't see it.
- 8:49 pm
- Fr. John Whiteford said...
Father, if science cannot possibly lead one to have to acknowledge God, why do you suppose St. Paul said that He is evident in Creation, and how do you explain the turn around of Anthony Flew, who was a notable atheist who is now a theist, precisely because of the kind of arguments made by the advocates of ID?
- 10:55 am
- Father Gregory said...
Dear Father
Christ is Risen!
I have never said "cannot possibly." It is a matter of plain observation though that our curiosity about creation does not NECESSARILY lead to faith. It can do, often does ... but always.
It is possible of course to suppose that Richard Dawkins is merely angry against God (for some reason) and that his atheism is not real but reactive ... but on those grounds we risk bending reality to our satisfaction and further alienating and enflaming the people we are trying to reach. Such atheism often is fundamentalist in character ... but it has to be taken seriously for all that.
Steve Weinberg is an interesting case in point. He is an atheist Jewish cosmologist who is not as strident as Dawkins but who is wistful for the passing of God. I remember reading "The First Three Minutes" many years ago and was saddened by his final chapter in which he concluded that there was no purpose to human existence in a Cosmos that was brutal, violent, cold and unfeeling. He did not find God in the stars .... as others (including notably myself) have.
I think you have misunderstood what I have been trying to say. I am sorry for any opaqueness.
- 11:30 am
- Father Gregory said...
typo omission: end of first para: "... NOT always" of course!
- 1:09 pm
Hi Father Gregory! I have arrived at your post very late, but if you see this, I was wondering if you could recommend some books to read about this topic - from a scientific point of view. From the staunch support and criticism that the books of both sides receive, it is hard to figure out where to just be able to view the simple facts. Each side claims the other is being deceptive, and you don't want to waste your time reading something that is deceptive...I'm in the same boat as you - I simply don't see why this would affect my faith. Meaning, I see the arguments that some Christians make about it, but I simply don't agree that these strike at faith, at least not mine - it just makes me even more awed by God. For example, we know exactly all the steps of how an infant develops from a zygote - we can explain it all. But the fact that it is known and can be explained in no way makes it less miraculous and divine, imho - it just reveals God's glory all the more!
- 8:26 am
- Father Gregory said...
Dear Angelina, since biology seems to be the main happy hunting ground in the stand off between fundamentalists of both Christian and atheist persuasion I have found Francis Collins writing to be extremely helpful, albeit that he is not Orthodox. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Collins
- 8:01 pm
- Canadian said...
This post is excellent, Father. I have been saddened to see some of the dismissive and pseudoscientific assertions while skimming Fr Rose's book on evolution.
- 8:19 pm
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Featured Resident Reflection
Ashley Talbott, MD – Reflections from CA-1 Year
Why did you choose anesthesia as a career path?
Anesthesiology is a unique and rewarding specialty that transcends all other fields of medicine. For me, it is the perfect balance of medical procedures and patient interactions. The specialty not only demands superior interpersonal skills but also requires leadership, attention to detail, a thorough understanding of the human body, and the dexterity to perform various procedures. I enjoy collaborating with others to solve medical problems, and working as a team toward a common goal. I embrace the challenges that come with earning the trust of patients, becoming their advocate, maintaining their stability and alleviating both their physical and emotional pain.
What was your deciding factor for choosing Wake Forest School of Medicine for your residency?
That's easy: the people! I learned pretty quickly on the interview trail that most any residency program in good standing with the ACGME would provide adequate training, but very few are able to offer an exceptional experience in such a positive and friendly environment. Everyone I met during my interview at Wake Forest was warm, welcoming, enthusiastic and committed to resident education (and work-life balance). I felt like Wake Forest would be the perfect fit for me, both personally and professionally. Thankfully, my impressions from my interview experience have proved true during my residency. The atmosphere at Wake Forest is full of energy, compassion, and kindness. I'm happy to be part of a program that's impressive by the numbers, but even more amazing because of its people.
List two aspects that make Anesthesiology at Wake a unique educational experience.
The breadth and depth of experience that Wake Forest provides as a major academic medical center, while situated in a quaint, friendly Southern city is something that's hard to find elsewhere. Often the most desirable places to live require sacrifices in training because of the lack of diversity in patients and cases. At Wake Forest, you get more than enough experience in all ACGME requirements, with the benefit of living in a great community. Winston-Salem is without the hustle bustle of a big city, and instead offers a perfect dose of Southern charm. Also, the department is uniformly strong in all sub-specialities, ensuring a well-balanced residency program that more than prepares graduates for either fellowship or private practice Anesthesia. Perhaps most important, the supportive, positive environment at Wake Forest is truly unparalleled. From the Department Chair to the Program Director, the other residents and all of the staff, everyone is friendly, enthusiastic, genuine and dedicated to ensuring work-life balance despite the rigors of residency.
What has been the biggest surprise about your residency?
I'm surprised how much I honestly enjoyed my clinical base year! Though incredibly arduous at times, I learned so much about so many different aspects of patient care. I am more confident in my ability to be a clinician based on my experiences from my intern year of training, and I am certain that this year has laid a solid foundation for the rest of my residency. When I reflect back on the past year, I realize just how intentional our Program Director was in selecting each of the CBY rotations and how our curriculum really sets us apart from other residency programs.
What is unique about living in Winston-Salem?
Winston-Salem is a beautiful Southern city with so much character and charm. I love that I can sit on my porch in our sweet little neighborhood and enjoy a beautiful, relaxing weekend, yet be within 5 minutes walking distance to the hospital, so close, yet so far away. The city is loaded with amazing restaurants, arts and entertainment, live music, festivals, farmers markets, nearby wineries, hiking trails and rivers to kayak, and even minor league baseball games. It's definitely a city with a smaller town feel, family- and pet-friendly, filled with some of the nicest people who embrace Wake Forest residents with open arms (and an ice cold glass of sweet tea).
What are your career goals?
I ultimately hope to join a private practice in a small community, perhaps in North Carolina or my home state of Virginia. I'm still undecided about the possibility of a fellowship, but if I had to choose today, I'd probably consider Pediatric Anesthesia or Regional Anesthesia as frontrunners. I'm excited to begin my first year of clinical anesthesiology where I can learn more about all of the different sub-specialties of the field and determine the next step in my professional journey.
Resident Perspectives
Anesthesiology residents discuss their experiences on various rotations and share what life is like as a resident in the program at Wake Forest School of Medicine.


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Fishing can be a phenomenal and fun activity for children and youngsters. Fishing can be a very fulfilling sport; you and your family can fish rather than dealing with the hectic routines of day to day life in Baldwin Park, and enjoy the outdoors. Families regularly enjoy the outside air, find out about the earth, and even create great memories. Best of all, fishing is quality time spent together talking, laughing and sitting next to each other. It can be a perfect game for little children, on the off chance that you present it emphatically. For some families, the experience of fishing with live bait, and catching fish that later become dinner, can be a memory making experience that lasts a lifetime.
Here are some of the thought to make your fishing trip successful in Baldwin Park with your kids.
Baldwin Park Live Bait Well
6 Easy Steps To Make A Nuc Box
Spinnerbaits are not just a tool for the spring and fall. Spinnerbaits can be deadly, if the right ones are fished in a variety of situations whether it be the East Coast or the West. The trick is to be able to distinguish which is the right one for the right situation? Spinnerbaits can fished in so many different ways, all of which, produce BIG BASS from north to south, east to west. They can be fished through the water column top to bottom. They are really a versatile bait if you know the little tricks it takes to fish them effectively. They can be fished many ways by varying the retrieve, weight of the bait, blade size, the trailer and colors. You have a bait here that can work a water column and catch fish from one to twenty-five feet, and because it is so versatile, you can fish it fast, slow, and in all seasons of the year.
The first time I discovered this, I was amazed at how many fish I had must have missed in my youth, by not knowing how to fish a spinnerbait here in the Northeast.
When it was October here in Delaware, I went hunting until the end of Quail season. Soon after 1976, I read my first issue of Basssmaster magazine, and saw that people were using this bait year round and catching bass. Soon after, in late December in Delaware, I caught my first bass on a "Stan Sloan" single nickel colorado blade,(with a purple skirt, with rattles on the arm,) by letting it flutter into a sunken tree, in ten foot deep, thirty-six degree water. I soon felt that sluggish pull on the line, "like a pile of leaves or grass", not until then, did I realize that I could catch bass year round on the right lures, with the right presentation, sound and color. It was well over six pounds, and was a different fight when she got close to the boat and saw the trolling motor. Since that time I have fished all over the United States, from New York to California, and found the right spinnerbait and the right technique produces big bass from all sorts of waters all year long. They key is to keep it in the strike zone, and most lures are made so that you can work them as slowly as you want to, while still keeping them in the zone.
I like to use the spinnerbait as a search tool, and kind of a depth finder, and bottom contour device also. What I do is check out the structure of the lake by bumping objects, and increasing my chance for a reaction strike right then. The spinnerbait will make a different sound bumping off different objects such as stumps, rocks, sand, and pea gravel.I also vary the speed often, and even shake the rod if necessary, trying to give the bass a different look, which is important in highly pressured waters. I work buzzbaits in a different manner also, which I believe is what accounts for some real lunkers that I might have otherwise missed. There are times when a spinnerbait is the most effective tool to use. When fishing the bait in heavy cover such as pads, I employ a technique that I now know is called fluttering by some anglers.
Basically what you do is to cast the spinnerbait out into the pads, and by moving your rod tip, and other parts of your body positioning, you maneuver the bait through the pads, and when it comes to an opening, stop it, and let it flutter down. Many strikes comes as a lure sinks.You should make a lot of casts to the areas where you really believe the bass are, or have seen them, as they can be irritated into striking if the bait is presented in enough variations and positions. Slow rolling can be extremely effective in deep water as it designed to imitate a crawfish on the bottom, or another type of bass forage. The trick to it is rolling it down the side of a sloping bank, a rock bar, a hump, or any underwater structure, and then slowly pumping it back to the boat. I employ the almost identical technique with a lipless crankbait with great success. There are also better types of spinnerbaits for different types of cover. C shaped baits tend to work better through heavy pads and grass, while a V shaped bait gets hung up more easily.
Riprap is another good area to slow roll spinnnerbaits. Sometimes there is debris mixed in with the rocks, and many times large bass are waiting to attack prey that come along, and are primes areas to slow-roll spinnerbaits. The spinnerbaits should be slow rolled over the rocks and such, and extra action is not really necessary. It should crawl over the bottom, and sometimes I give it a little twitch. All you have to do is raise the rod a slightly, lightly shake it, and then continue slowrolling it back to the boat.
When the bass are really deep I employ a technique I call deep pulling; its like a yo-yo method but a little different. I let the bait flutter all the way down, and then let it sit, then I pull it hard and way up near the surface and do it again. I use real heavy baits with Colorado blades for this, usually in a chartreuse, or a chartreuse and white skirt when I fish in places that have dying shad in the winter, but anywhere else, I use black, or black/purple combinations. I always add a little Megastrike to the baits.
I like to use a 6 1/2 foot rod for this but sometimes I use a 7 foot rod, on different occasions. Many times situations come up when a 7 foot rod suits the situation better that a 6 or 6 1/2 foot rod for distance and control. Most of my rods I use for this technique are in a medium heavy action. I really like a Fiberglass rod for these baits, but there are many new rods that are very good for spinnerbaits and crankbaits, made by G.Loomis, St.Croix, Kistler,and Shimano. Sometimes on the smaller baits I use a spinning rod with Stren Super Braid,or Power Pro, but the rest of the time I use a baitcasting rod with a Shimano Chronarch, with fourteen to twenty pound P-Line or Bass Pro Shops line.
When I choose a color for a spinnerbait, a lot of factors come in to play. The first thing I do is pick a shad pattern, or whatever is the dominate species in the lake. I usually double up the skirts, to give them more bulk. I use blue and white, black and white, and chartreuse and white. Sometimes I use red, depending on the location. All of these colors give a good range of visibility under water.
In muddy water, I have always used the same colors, black and blue and red. The same goes for the nighttime. I like to use the forage in the lake if I can, such as rainbow trout or shad, and to make it appear injured to trigger that genetic response, but only if the water isn't muddy. In muddy water I stick to black almost exclusively.
I like to use big spinnerbaits in the spring, when I'm in big fish waters, some right here in Delaware or Maryland, or others such as Florida, Arizona, Texas, and Mexico. When fishing strictly for big bass with spinnerbaits I add on a double or triple skirt for bulk and lift, and use really big blades. Terminator makes some big blades that I really like on our spinnerbaits. This year here in Delaware, I landed three bass in one day on big spinnerbaits, that went seven and eight pounds. Sometimes we even break off the tails of worms for trailers, and many times in the spring, I have caught some huge bass from ten inches of muddy water with a big spinnerbait with a trailer. The new Skeet Reese Redemption is another great spinnerbait and I use that with a Colorado blade in cold and/or muddy water.
I have had a great response from bass in the Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania areas, using a double golden shiner skirt. The bluegill and shad patterns top the list overall though. Sometimes reversing the skirts on the baits presents a different profile, and will also trigger hard to get strikes. The spinnerbait isn't just a bait for beginners, although it is a great bait to break in a novice or child to the sport of bass fishing. But in the hands of an expert, it is a versatile year round bait, that can catch "HUGE" bass.


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Event details
- Saturday | October 8, 2016
- 8:00 am
Men's Prayer Breakfast is a weekly gathering of men from Wayside and the Christian community who gather for a time of fellowship, Bible study led by Pastor Joe Nery, and prayer. A hearty breakfast is cooked and served each week. The group meets in room W-109 . Park and enter through the Kidz Ministry Entrance.


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It may not look like much on the surface but that's Hugh Jackman helping people stay above water during a dangerous rip tide. The video description describes the scene:
AUSTRALIAN actor Hugh Jackman was hoping for a leisurely swim at Sydney's most famous beach but soon found himself in the middle of the action.
Nine News television crews captured footage of Jackman and several other swimmers struggling in a rip at Bondi Beach on Saturday afternoon. Jackman, in a black rashie, is seen helping pull a man to safety before gesturing for other swimmers to move clear of the dangerous currents.Hugh Jackman played a real-life action hero Saturday, reportedly rescuing his son and other swimmers from dangerous surf at Bondi Beach.
In this dramatic footage obtained by Nine News, the rashie-clad Jackman is seen pulling a man by the arm, leading him and his companion away from a rip. He also helps a boy, reported to be his 15-year-old son Oscar, from dangerous surf.


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{ Trick or Treat }/
Happy Halloween! I'll never forget one of my favorite memories as a kid was getting dressed up and heading to my Grandma's house on Beggar's Night and going trick or treating with my cousins, sometimes I wish I could still do that!
Whether you're dressing up, going trick or treating, handing out candy, attending the Witches Ball, or watching Charlie Brown's - It's the Great Pumpkin enjoy your day! ; )
Trick or Treat times {around town courtesy of WGRZ.com}
Akron- 6pm - 8pm Fire whistle will sound at beginning and end times.
Alden- 6pm - 8pm
Amherst- No Specific Times Trick-or-Treat at the Amherst Museum's historic buildings on Oct. 29-30. For more information, www.amherstmuseum.org.
Angola- 6pm - 8pm Halloween Parade on Main St. into the village on Saturday Oct. 30 at 2pm.
Aurora- No Specific Times
Blasdell- 5:30pm - 8:30pm
Brant- 6pm - 8pm
Cheektowaga- 6pm - 8pm
Clarence- 5pm - 8pm Halloween in the Park Oct. 23 at 5-8pm at the Main St. Town Park
Colden- No Specific Times
Depew- 6pm - 8:30pm
East Aurora- No Specific Times
Eden- 5pm - 8pm
Elma- 5pm - 8pm
Evans- 6pm - 8pm Halloween Party in the Evans Town Park on Oct. 23, noon -3pm.
Grand Island- 5pm - 8pm
Hamburg- 6pm - 8pm Children's Halloween Party at Hilbert College's Campus Center on Oct. 24, 2-4pm.
Holland- Curfew is at 8:30pm, trick-or-treaters can begin anytime prior.
Lackawanna- 5pm - 8pm
Lancaster- 6pm - 8:30pm
Marilla- No Specific Times
Newstead- 6pm - 8pm
North Collins 6pm-8pm
Orchard Park- 6pm - 9pm Halloween Party and Parade at Green Lake Yates Park on Oct. 30 at 6pm. Chesnut Ridge Casino Halloween Fundraiser "Howl at the Ridge" on Oct 29, 8pm-11pm.
Sardinia- No Specific Times Kiwanis Halloween Party at Town Hall on Oct. 31 at 7pm.
Sloan- 6pm - 8pm on October 30 Village Halloween Party and Parade at Sloan Fire Hall, at 6:15pm-9pm.
Springville- No Specific Times
Town of Tonawanda- No Specific Times
Wales- dusk - 9pm
West Seneca- 6pm - 8pm
Williamsville- No Specific Times Children's Halloween Costume Contest and Parade at Island Park on Oct. 30 at 5:30pm.
Barker- 5pm - 7pm
Hartland- No Specific Times
Lewiston- 4pm - 8pm
Lockport- 4pm - 8pm
Middleport- 4pm - 6pm Halloween Party at Middleport Fire Hall on Oct. 31 at 6-8pm.
Newfane- 4pm - 7pm
Niagara Falls- 3pm - 7pm Little Monster Parade and Monster Mash Breakfast on Oct. 30 starting at 9am on Old Falls St. For more information, www.FallsStreet.com.
North Tonawanda- 5pm - 8pm
Pendleton- No Specific Times
Porter- 5pm - 7:30pm
Royalton- 3pm -7pm
Wheatfield- 4pm - 7pm
Wilson- 4pm - 7pm Costume Party and Parade at the Wilson Fire Hall on Oct.31 after 7pm.
Youngstown- 5pm - 7:30pm Halloween Party at the Youngstown Recreation Center on Oct. 31 at 1pm-3pm.


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The hospital that serves the area where police conducted one of the largest drug sweeps in state history is seeing more patients seeking treatment for drug withdrawal symptoms.
Southwestern Vermont Medical Center Emergency Director Dr. Adam Cohen says patients began seeking treatment Wednesday afternoon while the long-planned drug operation in Bennington County was still under way.
Cohen wouldn't provide numbers, but he tells the Bennington Banner "you can definitely connect" the increase in patients seeking treatment for drug withdrawal with the police operation.
He says he expects the trend to continue for at least a week.
On Wednesday more than 100 police officers carried out "Operation County Strike." It resulted in the arrest of 48 people, most on illegal drug charges. Arrests are continuing.


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Wx is a specialized weather app for Mac OS X that downloads and processes weather information for the United States. Wx displays current conditions, forecasts, warnings, and radar for U.S. locations using high fidelity XML data from the National Weather Service. The app is designed for two specific types of customers: serious weather watchers who want detailed information and facts with no fuss, and casual users who want a fast, clean, and functional weather app.
Wx is crafted with attention to detail by an award-winning software developer with over 20 years of experience. Wx has been reinvented from the ground up. Under the hood, Wx has all new download and processing engines, and is faster than ever. It's more reliable than ever too, offering multiple levels of redundancy to handle severe weather events that can strain NWS servers.
Wx sets up locations on an embedded map, letting you choose nearby NWS observation sites (over 1700 available), nearby NEXRAD radar sites, and nearby city- and county-based alert zones. The app creates a regional text forecast bulletin, a 7-day summary forecast, and a pro forecast, all customized for the specific latitude and longitude of the location. The pro forecast graphs temperature, dew point, relative humidity, cloud cover, wind speed/direction, gust speed, 12-hour probability of precipitation, 6-hour liquid precipitation amount, and 6-hour snow amount. With their high spatial resolution, the point and pro forecasts are especially useful in coastal and mountainous regions, where typical zone forecasts can be inaccurate.
Wx also lets you bookmark and setup weather maps for quick reference. Choose from over 40 default NWS maps and images, or provide the URL for any map of your choice and load it right in the app! If you have preferred weather providers, you can load your favorite maps and images right in Wx and keep them handy. Other features of Wx include a display of weather conditions in the dock icon, seven day sun and moon phase information, and a high performance multi-threaded radar display with seven types of radar.
Wx displays extra information when mousing over certain interface elements. In the current conditions pane, mousing over the "i" symbol shows information about the NWS observation site, and gives access to METAR and 3-day history. Mousing over period names in the graphical point forecast brings up sunrise/sunset and moon phase information for the forecast period. Finally, mousing over data points in pro forecast graphs will bring up a popup listing the raw data for each point.
When switching to a different location in the sidebar, clicking inside an alert symbol (if present) will automatically switch that location's display to show active warnings.
If you see errors when looking at radar frames, click the small "i" symbol in the upper right of the frame to view the current operational status of the radar site. You can disable frames within a radar animation by clicking the green dot above the radar slider.
Click the reload button to reload all locations and maps. Option-click the reload button to reload only the active location or map.
Wx runs on Mac OS X 10.6 - 10.9.
To download and install Wx, you must be able to access the Mac App Store.
For service and data issues with Wx, please check the Status Blog to see if there is a known issue.
If you have an issue or question, please contact: email@example.com
Feedback, comments, and suggestions are welcome.


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Green cars have been around for longer than most people realize. Frenchman Nicholas Cugnot built what is probably the first steam-powered motor carriage in 1769. It maxed out at six miles per hour.
Brit inventor Goldsworthy Gurney built a steam car – steamers dominated the landscape through the late 1800s – that successfully completed an 85-mile trip. In 10 hours.
Green technology has come a long way since then. Today's hybrid cars are serious contenders in the automotive landscape, and they've recently gotten a boost from just about everyone – from Copenhagen climate conference attendees to President Obama to Jack Bauer.
Kelley Blue Book recently announced its picks for the top 10 green cars of 2010. It considered fuel economy, carbon-dioxide emissions, safety, comfort, and the "fun" factor, in making its decisions.
Its number one choice? The Toyota Prius. Despite its recent recall woes, the 50-mile-per-gallon Prius won points for its fuel efficiency, solar-powered ventilation system, and high-tech navigation.
Other picks include the 2009 Mini Cooper, the Honda Fit, and the BMW 335d.
Here are Kelley Blue Book's Top 10 Green Cars of 2010, in order of fuel efficiency:
1. 2010 Toyota Prius Hybrid, 50 m.p.g. combined
2. 2010 Honda Insight Hybrid, 41 m.p.g. combined
3. 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid, 39 m.p.g. combined
4. 2009 VW Jetta SportWagen TDI, 34 m.p.g. combined
5. 2009 Mini Cooper, 32 m.p.g. combined
6. 2009 Ford Escape Hybrid, 32 m.p.g. combined
7. 2009 Honda Fit, 31 m.p.g. combined
8. 2009 BMW 335d, 27 m.p.g. combined
9. 2009 Toyota Highlander Hybrid, 22 m.p.g. combined
10. 2009 Chevrolet Silverado Hybrid, 21 m.p.g. combined


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LONG BEACH >> Simon Pagenaud of France is one of those drivers in the Verizon IndyCar series you expect to win a series championship at some point. He had two victories last season and finished third in series points, so he's already kind of knocking on the door.
Pagenaud, 29, had the quickest practice time on Friday in the first day of racing at the 40th Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, in which he finished second in 2012. Practice times were not particularly quick — his top time was 1:09.1488 — but he nevertheless was happy with the car and what the rest of the weekend might bring. Qualifying is today and the main event is set for Sunday.
"The track, as usual, is one of the funnest to drive on," Pagenaud said. "Everything is fine, the sun is shining and it's pretty nice so far."
Pagenaud then turned serious when talking about his car and crew.
"I think the team's done a great job over the winter at helping the car on the curbs and on the bumps," he said. "I feel pretty confident this weekend, we've got a pretty good package. Fifth at St. Pete (in the season opener) is a good start and if we want to win the championship, we're going to have to win a few (races) this year."
Sebastien Bourdais, also of France, had the second fastest practice time of 1:09.1608. Rookie Jack Hawksworth of England was third (1:09.4409), defending Long Beach champion Takuma Sato of Japan was fourth (1:09.4524) and Will Power of Australia was fifth (1:09.4980).
Bourdais won in Long Beach in 2005, 2006 and 2007 in Champ Car. But he's really struggled here since he moved to IndyCar following a stint in Formula One. He's finished 27th, 17th and 15th.
"Well, I guess it's no different than anywhere else. You need the balance," Bourdais said in breaking down the Long Beach circuit. "You need the car to do whatever you want it to and make one with it, so it's a pretty challenging place."
Things figure to pick up quite a bit in qualifying. That's where drivers like Power and Ryan Hunter-Reay, both of whom have won this race, figure to be among the biggest forces to be reckoned with.
Power won in 2008 and 2012. He also won the season opener at St. Petersburg, Fla.
"Obviously, very tight field these days," Power said of the parity in the series, "and any time you get a win, it's great. Especially starting the season that way is the right way to go because the previous year we started kind of on the wrong foot and that can kill you all the way through the year, right to the end."
Hunter-Reay, who echoed Power's sentiment about the strength of competition in the series, was second to Power in Florida. Hunter-Reay, winner of the series title in 2012, won in Long Beach four years ago.
"It's a good way to start," he said of his showing in Florida. "It's not good enough, but it is a pretty decent amount of points to take into Long Beach and this is the place where we've been strong in the past. But it's tough to really put a good weekend together in IndyCar because it's so competitive. You can have any one of 14 cars that are going to win the race."
Hunter-Reay was 10th Friday in 1:09.7242.
There will be four rookies gracing the track. Aside from Hawksworth, the others are Carlos Munoz and Carlos Huertas of Colombia and Mikhail Aleshin of Russia.
Hawksworth and Munoz had successful seasons in Indy Lights, the main support series for IndyCar, in 2013. Hawksworth was eighth in Long Beach last year in Indy Lights and Munoz won that race. He believes that experience could help him this weekend.
"Yeah, of course it helps me knowing that I could compete here in the past," said Munoz, just 22. "It's totally different from Indy Lights, this car. The car has different brakings and how the car reacts compared to Indy Lights … but Indy Lights helped me a lot.
"Especially, I know the track, so it gives me a little more confidence."
Other notable drivers and their top practice times include Ryan Briscoe (1:09.6173), Justin Wilson (1:09.6537), Juan Pablo Montoya (1:09.6987), Scott Dixon (1:09.7976), James Hinchcliffe (1:09.8086), Marco Andretti (1:09.8761), Tony Kanaan (1:09.9799), Helio Castroneves (1:09.9905) and Graham Rahal (1:10.2469).


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I have been a terrible blogger lately! I haven't had the time for my own blog let alone to look at anyone else's blog. Sigh.
Oh well, I did have a fun weekend though! Unfortunately I completely forgot to take any pictures. Bad Kami. (Slap the hand.) We started out our night Friday with a dip in my mother in law's hot tub.
Can you say ahhhhhhhh. So relaxing. It was absolutely FREEZING outside but who cares when you're in bubbling hot water?
Of course we did facials and nails. You have to do that on girls night right??
Our night fell on Friday the 13th so we had to stay up really late watching scary movies. By really late I mean 4:00 a.m. You can say that I was tired the next day!
We got up the next morning to put highlights in my cousins hair. It's something that I have always been too chicken to do. One of these days I will have to try it! Now we were ready for a day of shopping, eating Mexican, and watching a movie!
Collin was the only boy allowed to come. He was so excited to watch the new Christmas Carol movie in 3D. He kept saying, "Whoa!" and reaching out in front of him. It was so cute! Carlee fell asleep in my lap. I just about nodded off too since I was so beat! It really was a cute movie. I loved the animation and how they kept the story more true to the book.


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Barack Obama won the presidency yesterday. And today stocks got crushed.
First the scoreboard:
Dow: 12,932, -312.9, -2.3 percent S&P 500: 1,394, -33.1, -2.3 percent NASDAQ: 2,937, -74.2, -2.4 percent
And now the top stories:
- It's not completely accurate to say the markets fell after Obama won the election. In fact, last night when it became apparent that Obama would defeat Mitt Romney, the U.S. futures market actually rallied. And the rally continued into the morning.
- However, markets appeared to get hit by a one-two punch from Europe. First, we learned that German industrial production plunged 1.8 in September, which was much worse than the 0.5 percent decline expected. This comes on the tail of yesteday's horrific factory orders report and last week's bad PMI manufacturing number.
- The second bad European headline also involved Germany. In a speech today, European Central Bank president Mario Draghi warned "Data suggest economic slowdown has reached Germany." Markets really tanked after this statement. European markets got destroyed.
- At 3:00 PM, the Federal Reserve released its September consumer credit report, and it was good. Credit expanded by $11.36 billion, which was more than the $10.17 billion expected by economists. Last month's figure was revised up to $18.391 billion from $18.123 billion.
- It's no surprise that the biggest losers today included the " Republican-favored industries." The sell-off in defense stocks suggest people are worried about the fiscal cliff. Here Are 9 'Cliffs' That Have Everyone Freaked Out >
- A post-election sell-off is actually quite normal. According to Bespoke Investment Group, five out of the last seven post election day trading sessions saw sell-offs. Chalk that number up to six. UBS: Here Are 14 Stocks That Could Surge With Obama In The White House >
- It's worth noting that Apple's sell-off put the stock 20 percent below its recent high. Some pundits were quick to call it a "bear market." DoubleLine's Jeff Gundlach was on CNBC this morning saying that the stock could fall another 25 percent. "The product innovator, as I've said over and over again, isn't there anymore," he said.
- Don't Miss: 26 Epic Propaganda Posters From Chinese Communists >


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Birds eye view of Suffolk, Nansemond Co., Va. 1907. Drawn by T. M. Fowler. Fowler, T. M. 1842-1922. (Thaddeus Mortimer),
About Our Antique MapsVintage maps, including panoramic (bird's eye view) and traditional projection maps, such as our world maps, are elegant and historic pieces of art found in many of the countrys best museum collections. These vintage art prints are high-quality digital scans of the actual antique maps. Please check the image carefully to make sure it serves your needs.
The early days of mapmaking highlighted the pioneering spirit of a bygone era. Capturing the romance and wonder of the newly explored world, these classic maps represent the unbridled ambition, optimism and excitement of the time.
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