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Eleanor Perfetto watched her husband shrivel, and she watched him die. Near the end, Ralph Wenzel was a husk: a once strapping and energetic 225-pound former National Football League lineman, down to 145 pounds, eating mashed-up doughnuts, unable to walk or bathe himself, his mind unraveled by dementia. He was posthumously diagnosed with both Alzheimer's and chronic traumatic encephalopathy, the latter neurodegenerative disease linked to repeated blows to the head; a scientist who examined his 69-year-old brain said it had shrunk to the approximate size of an infant's. Wenzel's dissolution was slow. Horrific. So Perfetto understands. Understands the pain. Understands the relief over the proposed $765 million settlement of the NFL concussion lawsuits, the eagerness to assist the former players in the most dire need -- and their families, too -- while calling off a long, draining legal fight.
Still, Perfetto can't help but feel torn. Torn that the league is just walking away, cash left on the nightstand. Admitting nothing.
"This is a positive step, good for the players and families that need help now," says Perfetto, a senior director at Pfizer and one of the over 4,600 former players and their family members who have sued the NFL. "But I'm very disappointed that the league gets to continue to deny the relationship between head injury and the illnesses that we see. They're not taking on any culpability. And we will never know the timeline of just how long they have known this and the extent of them blocking it as much as they could. That will be kept secret unless some whistleblower comes forward in the future."
When it comes to mixed feelings, Perfetto is hardly alone. Former All-Pro defensive back Bruce Laird worries that the settlement won't be large enough to cover the brain trauma-related medical needs of all current and future players. Retired linebacker Scott Fujita believes that full NFL disclosure -- what, exactly, did the league's executives and denialist doctors know, and when did they first know it? -- is a public health matter. Retired lineman Kevin Mawae likens the pending deal to "taking it 99 yards, but not getting that last yard" and taking "a little bit of our milk money back" from a schoolyard bully while getting a "promise that he won't touch us again." On the other hand, all three former players -- Laird is a plaintiff in the lawsuits; Mawae and Fujita are not -- are pleased that peers like former NFL fullback and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis sufferer Kevin Turner will receive concrete financial assistance sooner rather than later. For that matter, so is Turner: in a recent USA Today editorial, he wrote that many of us also feared that a resolution would take years. That this agreement happened so quickly lifts an enormous burden off of our shoulders. We will get the care and security we need now, without being forced to wait for years of litigation to work its course. Indeed, NFL executives, plaintiff's lawyers and mediator Layn Phillips all have framed the pending settlement as a choice between competing goals: plaintiffs can push for more money and evidence of league wrongdoing via a bruising court battle that could last years, or they can help men like Turner as quickly as possible. They cannot do both.
Or can they?
To borrow Mawae's metaphor, the concussion plaintiffs don't have to take a knee at the goal line. Nor do they have to abandon their brothers in need. They can help men such as Turner and continue to fight. They don't need to take a crummy deal. They can demand something better. They should demand something better. They have more potential resources -- more potential leverage -- than commonly believed.
Now is not the time to settle.
* * *
Start with the money. Suppose retired players had as much as $493.7 million available to them over the next eight years, earmarked for medical care and financial assistance. Would that change the settlement equation? Guess what: this money isn't hypothetical. It's real. Available now. Available since last year. A pot of cash hiding in plain sight, roughly equivalent to the $495 million NFL is scheduled to dole out over the first eight years of the proposed deal.
Pull up the league's current collective bargaining agreement. Go to page 78. Look for Section 5: Joint Contribution Amount. You'll find an annual fiscal carve-out from the players' share of football revenues, starting at $55 million in 2012 and increasing at compounded rate of five percent annually through 2020. Who controls this money? Where is it going? That's where things get interesting. And frankly, a bit curious. According to the CBA:
• $22 million "shall be dedicated to healthcare or other benefits, funds, or programs for retired players as determined by the NFLPA";
• $11 million "shall be dedicated to medical research, as agreed to by the parties";
• $22 million "shall be dedicated to charities as determined by the NFL, including NFL Charities and/or Youth Football or successor organizations."
At the time this article was published, the NFLPA had not responded in any detail to repeated Sports on Earth requests to explain what the $22 million for retired players is being spent on. The $11 million appears to be funding a 10-year, $100 million Harvard University study of player injuries, including brain trauma. The other $22 million -- again, player money, yet oddly controlled by the league -- presumably goes to the NFL Foundation to fund things like youth football camps and USA Football's mom-reassuring "safe" tackling clinics.
Better idea: why not put most -- or all -- of that money toward taking care of the lawsuit's most heartbreaking plaintiffs, and any other former players who need immediate medical and neurological care?
The Harvard study reportedly will screen 1,000 retired players, then study the 100 healthiest and 100 sickest players over a decade's time. Researchers will test experimental treatments for everything from torn knee ligaments to concussions. All of which is all well and good. But perhaps not the most pressing priority, given that 233 former players already have qualified for the league's 88 Plan, which awards up to $100,000 a year to cover medical expenses for individuals with a diagnosis of dementia, ALS or Parkinson's. These are men (and families) who need tangible intervention and financial support right away, not the results of a longitudinal study published in the final days of Hillary Clinton's second presidential term. As for the $22 million of charity funding controlled by the NFL? League executive vice president Jeff Pash says the top concern of commissioner Roger Goodell and the team owners who employ him is to "do the right thing for the game and for the men who played it. We thought it was critical to get more help to players and families who deserve it rather than spend many years and millions of dollars on litigation." Goodell himself says that the "right thing" is to "move forward and to try to do what we can to help our players and their families."
Gentlemen: instead of being compelled to help dementia patients like Hall of Famer Willie Wood at legal gunpoint, how about Doing the Right Thing TM by putting your money -- excuse me, player money you inexplicably get to play with -- where your mouths are? How about focusing your charitable efforts on charity cases your violent industry has created?
This is not an outlandish request. Nor is it a complete reshuffling of financial commitments. To the contrary, redirecting some or all of the Joint Contribution Amount toward neurologically-impaired NFL retirees would be fulfilling the reason the annual $55 million-plus set-aside was taken out of active player salaries in the first place. The NFLPA has made a number of mistakes over the years -- chief among them stumbling into an underfunded pension hole that gives team owners powerful bargaining leverage -- but in this case, its heart was in the right place. Union leaders like Mawae and Fujita wanted to care for past, present and future players' brain health. In fact, at least $22 million of the JCA appears to have been originally earmarked for a comprehensive clinical research program integrating care for symptomatic former players, spearheaded by former NFLPA executive committee member and Mackey-White Traumatic Brain Injury committee co-chair Sean Morey.
A longtime special teams standout who retired in 2010 due to debilitating post-concussion symptoms, Morey proposed creating a Players Health Trust, tasked with indentifying and treating players suffering from neurological damage and disease. Run by players and directed by independent scientists and clinicians, the Trust would have partnered with world-class medical institutions including the Mayo Clinic and Cleveland Clinic, setting up an open science platform with teams of specialists covering 35 different areas of brain and nerve injury. Thousands of former players would have been screened, with those in need receiving immediate care. The general idea? Learn by treating. Publish research findings as you go.
"Basically, I was trying to structure a solution so that symptomatic players could access adequate medical care while helping clinicians learn how to treat these issues more effectively," Morey says. "[Neurological] disabilities affect not just who you are, but also your ability to work at a high level. [The Trust] would have offset that diminished ability to earn a living and provided care to delay the onset of problems and improve the quality of life of players and their families. The reality is a lot of people leave this game damaged, and whether you recover from that depends on the medical care you get."
Although the NFLPA's board of player representatives approved a resolution authorizing Morey to pursue his plan with the $22 million in JCA funding designated for "healthcare or other benefits, funds, or programs for retired players," the Trust ultimately was scuttled. It could be revived. Something similar could be created. Needy players could be getting aid, without waiting for the concussion suit settlement. Again: the blueprint already is there. So is the money. Today. According to mediator and former federal judge Phillips, there's "no question" that the settlement will "provide benefits much sooner, and at much less cost, for many more retirees, than would have been achieved through extended litigation." Sooner than litigation? For sure. Sooner than putting JCA funds to their intended use? Probably not. Assuming the settlement is finalized and approved by all parties and Judge Anita Brody, complex litigation experts predict it could take between five months and two and a half years for former players like Turner to receive their first checks.
"The NFL is motivated to put this behind them," says Jordan Kobritz, a sports management professor at the State University of New York at Cortland , who is a former attorney and minor league baseball owner. "They have the financial wherewithal to put money in a trust virtually immediately. Some of the plaintiffs have serious medical conditions. In theory, it can certainly happen in a few months. But that's theory. In this particular case, I think it's a lot closer to reality to compare it to similar situations.
"For example, when you set up a commission to try to figure out how to distribute money, like in the [1995] Oklahoma City bombing case, there are still millions of undistributed dollars. The people in charge can't agree on how to distribute it. I think you'll see [the NFL concussion] distribution start to flow sooner rather than later. But could it take years? Yes. Has it taken years in past class actions? Absolutely."
While plaintiffs' lawyers have yet to file a finalized proposal with Judge Brody, Philadelphia attorney Sol Weiss told Nathan Fenno of the Washington Times that the proposed settlement won't require players already diagnosed with neurodegenerative diseases to undergo baseline examinations before becoming eligible for compensation. (Basically, a doctor's note will suffice.) Moreover, Weiss says that economists and actuaries have evaluated the $675 million compensation fund and believe that the money will last for 65 years. This seems unlikely. Remember the 233 former living and deceased players who have qualified for the 88 Plan? According to the settlement's reported award structure, individual payouts will be capped at $5 million for Alzheimer's, $3 million for dementia and $4 million for CTE deaths.
Suppose the awards for each condition average $2 million. Take those 233 players. Add 34 diagnosed NFL CTE cases. Now do the napkin math: 267 times $2 million is $534 million -- more than the $382.5 million the NFL will make available during the first three years of the settlement. And that's without adding a single new or undiagnosed case of degenerative brain disease. Football players are a proud, stubborn bunch. They are conditioned from a young age to endure, overcome and show neither pain nor weakness. How many NFL retirees are hiding problems? Also remember: there are roughly 4,600 concussion suit plaintiffs, but an estimated 15,000 to 18,000 living retired players. Does anyone think we've seen the final case of Alzheimer's or ALS among the entire cohort? The last suicide victim posthumously diagnosed with CTE? Does anyone think that some of today's retirees managing relatively mild cognitive problems won't become tomorrow's hard cases? Does anyone think the problem has already peaked, even though: (a) former players in their 20s, 30s and 40s generally have played more football than their predecessors; (b) bigger, faster, stronger athletes are generating greater impact force in a game where the helmet has evolved into a weapon; (c) an entire generation of NFL players was routinely shot up with Toradol, a pain-deadening, prescription-only anticoagulant that could make concussions more damaging and is considered dangerous enough that some European countries have banned it outright?
"We are going to see more cases in worse condition in [the] next 20 years than we have seen in the entire history of football," says a researcher studying brain trauma in former NFL players. "And these guys won't see a dime. No recourse."
That may be a worst-case scenario. Still, consider a recent Los Angeles Times report that examined California workers' compensation data and found that almost 80 percent of 4,400 athlete claims filed since 2006 alleging serious brain or head injuries come from former football players. According to the Times, worker's comp claims could cost the NFL as much as $1 billion to resolve. Which is larger than the proposed settlement. Of course, not every claim against the league involves brain damage. Comparing the concussion suits to worker's comp is something of an apples-to-oranges -- or maybe Fuji-to-Red Delicious -- comparison. But given the expenses involved, can plaintiffs afford to settle for anything less?
As Fenno notes, former Oakland and Seattle fullback Steve Smith's ALS forces him to use a ventilator to breathe. Former All-Pro Otis Taylor's dementia and Parkinson's have left him dependent on a feeding tube. The aforementioned Wood resides in an assisted-living facility. None of this is cheap. Frank Neuhauser, the executive director of the Center for the Study of Social Insurance at the University of California, Berkeley, told the Los Angeles Times that dementia and Alzheimer's patients can cost "millions of dollars and can involve 10, 20, 30 years of medical care and income support." Forbes reports that the average cost for a single year of nursing home care is about $80,000 -- and that for specialized care, costs are typically higher. University of Toronto neurosurgeon Charles Tator told Medscape Medical News that the total costs related to repetitive traumatic brain injury -- including lost productivity and medical and custodial care -- are in the ballpark of $10 million per case.
"Right now, I don't know what they are basing their calculations on," Perfetto says. "What do they think the rate of disease will be in the population over time? You have to remember, of all the players who have ever played in the NFL, we're not aware of how many have diagnoses right now. We have the numbers for the 88 Plan. That's a small fraction of the number who have low-level disease and haven't been diagnosed yet. That doesn't include people who died with disease and were never counted because the 88 Plan didn't exist yet.
"Players who have a diagnosis now are largely concerned with making sure their families are taken care of. If there's a guy out there who is 30 [years old] and has been playing in the league for 7-8 years, and then he gets diagnosed at the age of 56 as my husband did, I can't see that there will be a dime left for him and his family."
* * *
In July, Cincinnati Bengals owner Mike Brown told reporters at a promotional luncheon that any link between football-induced brain damage and long-term cognitive harm was "merely speculation." His evidence? The fact that he suffered concussions in high school and college, and can "still count to 10."
Oh, and also this: Brown claimed that the NFL had "statistics" substantiating his claim.
That's right: statistics. Cold, hard numbers. Was Brown telling the truth? Probably not. If the league had solid data disproving a connection between football and dementia, Goodell would dress up like Paul Revere, hop on a
horse Budweiser-sponsored Clydesdale and trumpet the news from coast-to-coast. Still, suppose Brown is right. If so, it would be grossly irresponsible not to share that information with worried current and former players. Similarly, if the NFL's research actually shows that players have plenty to worry about, it would be grossly irresponsible not to disseminate it.
Of course, disclosure is not exactly the league's strong suit.
Four years ago, University of Michigan researchers completed a study showing that former players appeared to suffer high rates of dementia, Alzheimer's and memory-related diseases -- between five and 19 times the national average. After the study was leaked to the New York Times, NFL doctors dismissed its findings, while a league spokesman questioned the study's methodology and told reporter Alan Schwarz that "memory disorders affect many people who never played football or other sports." Fun fact: the study was commissioned by the league. Not that the NFL's risk-downplaying spin was out of character. In 1994, former commissioner Paul Tagliabue formed the league's Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Committee. Headed by resume-padding former New York Jets team doctor and Tagliabue personal physician Elliot Pellman -- a rheumatologist, not a neurologist -- the committee spent the next decade and a half producing since-discredited research papers proclaiming that concussions in professional football "are not serious injuries" and that concussed players, even those knocked unconscious, could be "safely returned to play" on the same day of their brain injuries, two findings that contradicted both independent science and common sense.
In 2007, Bernard Goldberg of HBO's "Real Sports" interviewed then-NFL concussion committee co-chair Ira Casson about football-induced brain damage:
Goldberg: Is there any evidence, as far as you're concerned, that links multiple head injuries among pro football players with depression?
Casson: No.
Goldberg: With dementia?
Casson: No.
Goldberg: With early onset of Alzheimer's?
Casson: No.
Goldberg: Is there any evidence as of today that links multiple head injuries with any long-term problems like that?
Casson: In NFL players?
Goldberg: Yeah.
Casson: No.
What did the NFL know? What should it have known? When did it know it? These aren't simply scandal-mongering, backward-looking questions. They're vital. Vital because the answers directly impact player health and safety. At the same time Pellman's committee was downplaying and denying brain trauma risk, Pellman and other league doctors were allowing and encouraging concussed players like Wayne Chrebet and Ted Johnson to remain on the field, essentially manufacturing cases of post-concussion syndrome. Continuing the concussion lawsuits would mean depositions of top executives and disclosure of committee records, revealing the full extent of the NFL's knowledge of football's risks; settling will permit Pellman -- still employed by the league, by the way -- to stiff-arm plaintiffs and the public alike with a final, resounding no.
"You know what we hear all the time from so many people?" says Laird, a plaintiff in the concussion suit. "You knew what you were doing. Everybody told you that playing football was really tough. All these things could happen. You could have all these injuries. And you're just a bunch of greedy bastards trying to get money.
"That is so far from the truth. I'm not here to make a score. I hope I never receive a dime of the $675 million, because I don't want any part of the worst illnesses. What I want is to peel the onion and figure out what they knew. Why were we not told what could possibly happen after that second or third concussion? Why were we treated by unqualified people on the sidelines? Why weren't we told, so our loved ones could understand the risks?"
There's another reason the league should be pressured to open its vault. Trust. Past, present and future players deserve to know who at the league values their health and safety, and who values those things only to the point where they conflict with the bottom line-driven desire to disassociate football and brain damage. Call this The Pellman Problem. Who, exactly, at the league office decided to retain Pellman as a medical advisor? Who, if anyone, disagreed with that move? Who sounded alarms about Toradol and junk science? Who looked the other way? Who is behind the NFL's Big Tobbacco-esque nothing to see here propaganda, like a ridiculous recent article on the official league website citing 18 Major League Baseball concussions this season and claiming that "MLB is dealing with the same concussion culture that the NFL has been trying to change?" Who is sanctioning the league's ongoing use of ImPACT, a concussion evaluation system built on conflict of interest-ridden research by NFL-affiliated doctors and deemed unreliable by many experts, largely because it produces high rates of false positives and inconsistent results when administered repeatedly to the same person?
"I live on a lake in South Louisiana," Mawae says. "If I hire someone to come work on my yard, I should warm them that, 'Hey, there are two alligators and some snakes out there.' They can still take the job, but there's a moral obligation for me as a property owner to let them know that there's an inherent risk.
"The NFL was doing concussion studies as early as the mid-1990s. That's information that the players could have used to make more intelligent decisions on their career and possibly to change the rules of the game 15 years to make the sport safer, instead of reactionary policy changes the last few years. Information is knowledge. Knowledge is power. Power gets you what you need. Without that knowledge and information, we're stuck. Players have to go play the game hoping, hoping that the NFL will do the right thing for the players -- when historically they help the shield. So there's a huge part of me that wishes the players would have taken this to the end."
* * *
Finishing the fight won't be easy. The case could drag on for years, an emotionally-draining slog. "It's a tough road to do something like this," Perfetto says. "People want to have it behind them." It could go all the way to the Supreme Court, a conservative, corporate-friendly group of justices that Santa Clara law professor Brad Joondeph describes as "immensely hostile to class actions." The NFL could mount a robust defense rooted in the concept of causation -- in other words, questioning the origins of plaintiff brain damage. Did it come from hits absorbed in professional football? College? High school? Pee Wee? Did it come from -- as Goodell infamously once put it -- banging one's head while "swimming?"
According to a report by ESPN's Steve Fainaru and Mark Fainaru-Wada, Judge Brody may have signaled to the plaintiffs' lawyers that she was prepared to accept at least part of the league's argument that the NFL's collective bargaining agreement precludes players from suing:
… that would have gutted the lawsuit in two ways. First, it would have removed many of the nearly 6,000 former players and/or their families suing, including, lawyers for the players believed, players who appeared in the league from 1994-2010, the controversial period at the heart of the lawsuit. Second, those who remained would have faced a major hurdle proving fraud allegations, given that the NFL's controversial concussion committee wasn't formed until 1994 …
"You have a lot of built in headwinds against the plaintiffs," Joondeph says.
Headwinds can be overcome. Causation is a potentially powerful argument -- but for the NFL's purposes, it's also pyrrhic. Does the league really want to argue, over and over in a prominent public forum, that youth football causes lasting brain damage? Wouldn't that be more detrimental to the NFL's long-term business interests than paying an additional billion to settle?
Legal observers believe Brody's supposed threat to throw out some or most of the players' suits might have been a bluff designed to encourage a mediated settlement, or perhaps a purposeful leak intended to encourage plaintiffs to accept the proposed deal. Either way, the NFL's contention that the concussion suits fall under the CBA can be challenged. Lawyer and NFLconcussionlitigation.com proprietor Paul Anderson argues that by creating a concussion committee in 1994, the league voluntarily assumed a duty to inform players about and protect them from brain trauma -- a duty that exists independently of the CBA. He also argues that case law precedents in the Third Circuit -- where any decision by Brody would be appealed -- support this position.
"The idea that you have a committee peddling misinformation over a 15-year period of time that is borderline fraudulent, that is sufficient in and of itself that it belongs outside the CBA," Anderson says. "Judge Brody is super bright, fair and practical. But I think if you talk to the plaintiffs' lawyers that were part of the negotiations, they all would have been very shocked if she had gutted those claims."
The proposed settlement isn't simply a potentially bad deal for players. It's a potentially bad deal for the public. Going forward, perhaps additional high-powered lawyers or state attorney generals could be persuaded to join the case. After all, the NFL already suckles from the public teat. Taxpayer-funded stadiums and giveaways. Non-profit status for the league office. A lucrative antitrust exemption under the 1961 Sports Broadcasting Act. A settlement insufficient to cover the full cost of player brain injuries over time ultimately will result in an industrial cost shift, with Medicare and other public health money covering the shortfall.
"You, the NFL, caused this problem," says David Cay Johnson, author of "Free Lunch: How the Wealthiest Americans Enrich Themselves at Government Expense and Stick You With The Bill" and a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter. "You profited from this problem. You should pay 100 percent of the costs. Imagine somebody was running a company that was knowingly dumping pollution. We would say, 'you have to pay to clean that up.' I think it's unconscionable that taxpayers should be looking at picking up any of this. It will be interesting to see if the judge gets a complaint from anyone about this."
As for the Pellman Problem? It applies to youth football, too. If the NFL is hiding relevant concussion information, then pee wee, high school and college players may be taking unnecessary risks. Conversely, the league's high-profile, self-congratulatory efforts to foster and promote youth safety make full disclosure a must. Earlier this year, Goodell appeared on "Face the Nation" and refused to explicitly acknowledge a link between football, concussions and long-term cognitive damage. Can he really be trusted with the brains of young football players? There's only one way to find out. What did the NFL know, and when did it know it? New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman recently issued a consumer alert attacking marketing boasts about "concussion-proof" or "anti-concussive" football helmets. Perhaps he'd like to examine league-funded USA Football and its "Heads Up" tackling technique program, which has led executive director Scott Hallenbeck to boast "there is no question that the game can be played safely and is safe, as long as it is taught properly and the players execute it properly."
In May, 17-year-old Louisiana high school football player Jaleel Gipson was taken off life support after fracturing a vertebrae during a tackle in practice. Gipson's school principal said the boy was "head up in the exact position he needs to be. The tackler lead [sic] with his shoulder, as textbook, as taught."
"I don't know at what point or to what degree the NFL has admitted the link between concussions and [long-term] cognitive injuries," says former player Shawn Stuckey, now a Minneapolis-based attorney. "If they come out and admit a direct link between concussions and brain injuries, parents are then going to stop allowing their kids to play. So [the league] is going to slow play this as much as they can. It's going to be incumbent on the media, doctors and attorneys to put the pressure on."
Pressure still can be applied. The proposed settlement is not a done deal. Not yet. Final documentation needs to be filed. Judge Brody must grant preliminary approval. Retired players will have an opportunity to file objections -- and also to opt out entirely. From there, final approval requires Brody to determine that the settlement meets three criteria.
Is it fair?
Is it reasonable?
Is it adequate?
"In my mind," Morey says, "it couldn't be anything further from those things."
The fight should go on. For a bigger, perpetual player care fund that doesn't function as a one-time payoff. For an end to the NFL's brain damage dissembling and omertà. For not only what's expedient, but also what's right. Over the course of his pro football career, Morey played through countless sprains and strains. Two broken ribs that left him unable to breathe. Multiple concussions that made every hit to the head feel like his skull was getting zapped by a Taser. Even now, the game continues to take a toll. Morey presses forward. In NFL Europe, he once played for a coach named Sam Rutigliano. Brilliant man, Morey recalls. Empathetic and courageous. Truly cared about the well-being of his players, enough to found an anonymous support group for those struggling with substance abuse. Time and again, the coach would ask Morey a question: What is the measure of a man?
The answer?
"What it takes to discourage him," Morey says.


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|This week, Google released version 5.0 of its 'Google Earth' mapping and geo-visualization program. The new version, however, adds features that take the program beyond just mapping Earth's land -- including data that allow users of the program to explore the world's oceans. We'll talk with oceanographer Sylvia Earle about why the new features are significant.

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Arguably the most significant archaeological manuscript discovery of modern times, the Dead Sea Scrolls have amazed Christians, Jews, and others for 65 years.
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The Android content provider framework allows a much more elegant design. As datasets are identified by unique URIs, it is possible to ask for notifications if a certain URI is changed. The framework is the following.
- Well-behaving content providers are expected to notify the content resolver if they do something that may potentially change their dataset. This includes insert and update operations but registering database cursors returned by query operations is also necessary because cursors may be used to update data.
- Components interested in dataset changes register at the content resolver. If any URI is manipulated that they registrated for, they get notification.
Click here to access the example program adapted to Android SDK 2.3.3.
The content observer framework depends on the cooperation of content providers and content observers. Content providers are expected to notify content resolver that they have updated the dataset. You can observe this in our well-known simple provider, SimpleStringDataProvider.java.
In insert method:
getContext().getContentResolver().notifyChange(uri, null);
This notifies all the observers registered for that particular URI that change happened.
In query method:
c.setNotificationUri(getContext().getContentResolver(), url);
where c is reference to a Cursor object. If the data behind the cursor's position is updated (Cursor.update*(), Cursor.commitUpdates()), the given URI will be notified.
The other side of the picture is the observer. In this simple example, the observer is located in the DPObserver activity. As the observer is unregistered using the observer object reference, the observer is registered at onStart() and unregistered at onStop() because after onStop() the state of the activity may be lost.
In registerContentObservers:
ContentResolver cr = getContentResolver();
stringsObserver = new StringsContentObserver( handler );
cr.registerContentObserver( SimpleString.Strings.CONTENT_URI, true, stringsObserver );
We requested notification for the content URI allocated to the Strings provider plus all its descendants. This is important because e.g. the Strings provider generates URIs for newly allocated items like the following: content://aexp.dpobserver.SimpleString/strings/[id]
The observer object is a child of the android.database.ContentObserver class. Its onChange() method is called by the content resolver if there is a change of the data behind the URI the observer was registered for. Unfortunately the URI that triggered the invocation is not passed to the method. The onChange() method is called in the context of a Handler. In our case, this Handler uses the UI thread of the activity.
You can try the application by launching the DPObserver activity and monitoring the log (adb logcat from the command prompt). Whenever you add a new data item (by clicking a menu item), the onChange() will generate a log message.
Now comes the interesting bit. We actually registered another observer, that one for the URI of content://contacts/people and descendants which belongs to the Contacts application. Launch now the Contacts application and add a new user. You will see in the log that our activity got called (except if it was stopped by the application manager because it went into the background). At this point, we could access the Contacts content provider and find out, what entry was added. It would be much more easier if we had the URI of the added entry but finding the new entry is possible by looking for the entry with the highest ID. We could hook onto Contacts database manipulations with our own functionality. Isn't that interesting? ;-)


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Glenbard South and Glenbard West - You love them, you discuss them. Right here.
Use this control to limit the display of threads to those newer than the specified time frame.
Allows you to choose the data by which the thread list will be sorted.
Order threads in...
Note: when sorting by date, 'descending order' will show the newest results first.
Forum Rules


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I've recently bought a new laptop and installed Win7 Home Premium x64 on it. I'd love to get a working nncron install going on it, and will start experimenting as soon as I finish this post
But I'm wondering if anyone else has already been using nncron in W7... successfully or unsuccessfully? I gather from Google translating the Russian forum that several people are using nncron in W7 but it's no exactly easy to decipher the translations at all times so any input in English would be preferable!
Btw, for those who haven't discovered it yet, there's a fairly recent beta to be found here: http://www.nncron.ru/download/nncron193b10.exe


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Invasion of the Data Snatchers: Big Data and the Internet of Things Means the Surveillance of Everything
March 25, 2014
Jump to navigation Skip navigation
Catherine Crump (@CatherineNCrump) clerked for the Hon. M. Margaret McKeown, a judge on U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, prior to joining the ACLU. Crump graduated from Stanford University and Stanford Law School. She is a non-residential fellow with the Stanford Center for Internet and Society.


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This is a surgery to replace a diseased or damaged liver with a liver from a donor who has died. In some cases, a portion of the liver of a living, related donor may be used.
A liver transplant is done to treat a liver that is not working and cannot be fixed. This may be caused by:
After the transplant, most patients are able to return to normal activities in 6-12 months.
If you are planning to have liver transplant, your doctor will review a list of possible complications, which may include:
Some factors that may increase the risk of complications include:
Be sure to discuss these risks with your doctor before the surgery.
There is a shortage of donors. You may be on a transplant list for some time. You may need to carry a cell phone with you at all times. This is to allow the transplant team to reach you if a liver becomes available.
Your doctor will likely do the following:
Leading up to your surgery:
]]>General anesthesia]]> will be used. It will block any pain and keep you asleep through the surgery. It is given through an IV in your hand or arm.
The doctor will make an incision shaped like a boomerang on the upper part of the abdomen. The old liver will be removed. The doctor will leave portions of major blood vessels in place. The new liver will be inserted and attached to the blood vessels and bile ducts. To help with bile drainage, a tube will also be inserted into the bile duct during surgery. The doctor will then close the area with stitches.
You will be closely monitored in the intensive care unit (ICU) and will have the following devices:
Several hours
Anesthesia will prevent pain during the surgery. You will have pain while recovering. Your doctor will give you pain medicine.
This surgery is done in a hospital setting. The usual length of stay is several weeks. Your doctor may choose to keep you longer if you shows signs of rejecting the new liver or have other problems.
While you are recovering at the hospital, you will:
When you return home, do the following to help ensure a smooth recovery:
Recovery time varies. It depends, in part, on your health before the transplant.
After you leave the hospital, contact your doctor if any of the following occurs:
In case of an emergency, CALL 911.
American Liver Foundation
United Network for Organ Sharing
Canadian Liver Foundation
Health Canada
Gee I, Alexander G. Liver transplantation for hepatitis C virus related liver disease. Postgrad Med J. 2005;81:765-771.
Liu CL, Fan ST. Adult-to-adult live-donor liver transplantation: the current status. J Hepatobiliary Pancreat Surg. 2006;13:110-116.
Liver transplant. American Liver Foundation website. Available at: http://www.liverfoundation.org/education/info/transplant/. Updated September 2007. Accessed July 21, 2009.
Liver Transplant Program and Center for Liver Disease, University of Southern California website. Available at: http://www.surgery.usc.edu/divisions/hep/index.html.
Neuberger J. Developments in liver transplantation. Gut. 2004;53:759-768.
O'Grady JG. Liver tansplantation alcohol related liver disease: (deliberately) stirring a hornet's nest! Gut. 2006;55:1529-1531.
What I need to know about liver transplantation. National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse website. Available at: http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/livertransplant_ez/. Updated March 2003. Accessed July 21, 2009.
Last reviewed November 2009 by ]]>Rosalyn Carson-DeWitt, MD]]>
Please be aware that this information is provided to supplement the care provided by your physician. It is neither intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. CALL YOUR HEALTHCARE PROVIDER IMMEDIATELY IF YOU THINK YOU MAY HAVE A MEDICAL EMERGENCY. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider prior to starting any new treatment or with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.
Copyright © 2007 EBSCO Publishing All rights reserved.


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Serviços Personalizados
Links relacionados
- Citado por Google
- Similares em Google
SAMJ: South African Medical Journal
versão On-line ISSN 2078-5135
versão impressa ISSN 0256-9574
SAMJ, S. Afr. med. j. vol.101 no.10 Cape Town Out. 2011
Family-witnessed resuscitation in emergency departments: doctors' attitudes and practices
E D GordonI; E KramerII; Ian CouperIII; P BrysiewiczIV
IMSc Med (Emergency Medicine). A&E Unit, Life Bedford Gardens Hospital; and Department of Emergency Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
IIMB BCh, BSc Hons, DipPEC (SA), FCEM (SA). Department of Emergency Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand
IIIBA, MB BCh, MFamMed, FCFP (SA). Department of Rural Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand
IVPhD. School of Nursing, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban
BACKGROUND: Resuscitation of patients occurs daily in emergency departments. Traditional practice entails family members remaining outside the resuscitation room.
OBJECTIVE: We explored the introduction of family-witnessed resuscitation (FWR) as it has been shown to allow closure for the family when resuscitation is unsuccessful and helps them to better understand the last moments of life.
RESULTS: Attending medical doctors have concerns about this practice, such as traumatisation of family members, increased pressure on the medical team, interference by the family, and potential medico-legal consequences. There was not complete acceptance of the practice of FWR among the sample group.
CONCLUSION: Short-course training such as postgraduate advanced life support and other continued professional development activities should have a positive effect on this practice. The more experienced doctors are and the longer they work in emergency medicine, the more comfortable they appear to be with the concept of FWR and therefore the more likely they are to allow it. Further study and course attendance by doctors has a positive influence on the practice of FWR.
Resuscitation of critically ill or injured patients occurs daily in emergency departments (EDs). Resuscitation involves the simultaneous integration of multiple tasks to save a critical patient's life, and may seem to be a frantic procedure for those not actively involved. Consequently, the medical team may request family members to wait outside the resuscitation room to isolate them from such events. The practice of family-witnessed resuscitation (FWR) has been explored since the late 1980s.1 FWR entails inviting a family member of the critical patient into the resuscitation room to witness the resuscitative process.2
The literature indicates that FWR assists final closure by family members in the event of unsuccessful resuscitation. Family members have an opportunity to witness the extent to which the medical team pursues the resuscitative attempt, to build up rapport with the medical team and to have questions answered immediately.
However, the opinions of medical and nursing staff regarding FWR vary.3-6 Common concerns include possible litigation, harassment by a family member during resuscitation, unnecessary prolonging of resuscitation owing to family presence, and psychological effects on family members.7
Work experience in the ED, the doctor's gender, and participation in emergency medicine continuing medical education courses were found to influence doctors' attitudes towards FWR.8-11 With more experience, doctors felt more comfortable about including family members during resuscitation of paediatric patients.11
The American Heart Association (AHA) published the need for family to be invited to witness cardiac pulmonary resuscitation of patients in their 2000 and 2005 Guidelines for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and Emergency Cardiac Care.12 The AHA encourages family presence at the resuscitation, and recommends this in all AHA adult and paediatric life support courses.
We studied the attitudes of emergency doctors working in Gauteng hospital EDs towards FWR and whether they would consider implementing the practice. This was a cross-sectional descriptive study using a questionnaire based on themes from the literature review. Questions were both open- and closed-ended and included basic demographics, awareness of the practice of FWR, actual practice of FWR, consequences of allowing family to witness resuscitation, and the attitudes of doctors working in EDs towards FWR. Questions also ascertained whether participation in emergency medicine courses influenced the doctor's practice.
Ethical clearance was obtained from the Human Research Ethics Committee of the Faculty of Health Sciences of the University of the Witwatersrand, and permission was obtained from the participating hospitals. The total study group canvassed comprised 101 doctors in 2 groups: those undertaking regular ED duties in various private EDs in Gauteng; and postgraduate candidates sitting for the part-time Master of Science in Medicine in Emergency Medicine (MScMed) degree in the Division of Emergency Medicine at the University of the Witwatersrand.
Anonymous questionnaires with a sealable envelope in which to return the completed form were distributed to the respondents. Collection boxes for the sealed envelopes were placed at each ED and outside lecture theatres. A total of 177 questionnaires were distributed, of which 101 were completed (57% response rate). Qualitative and quantitative data were analysed. Responses were tabulated and compared.
Of the 101 respondents, 40 were female and 61 male; ages ranged from 26 to 59 years (mean 36.6 years). The average age of the women was 33.4 years and the men 38.1 years. Their ED experience varied from a few months to 30 years, with an average of 5 years; most had <10 years' experience.
Of the respondents, 80% were aware of FWR and 57% had previously allowed FWR; 72.5% of the women doctors and 47.5% of the males indicated that they would allow FWR. Older male doctors seemed more resistant to FWR as the average age of males not allowing FWR was 38.9 years compared with 37.4 years for those allowing it. Among female doctors, the relationship was reversed, with those not allowing FWR being younger; females allowing FWR were on average 34.3 years old, compared with 32.6 years for those not allowing FWR (Fig. 1).
The Wilcoxon rank-sum (Mann-Whitney) test shows that the probability of FWR increases with the experience of the doctor. Doctors indicating that they would consider FWR had worked in EDs for up to 30 years, while those who would not consider it fell within the category of 20 years of experience (Fig. 2).
Postgraduate emergency medicine courses influenced respondents' attitudes and practices of FWR (Tables I - III).
Questioned as to which family members they would allow to witness resuscitation, doctors indicated that the parents and spouse or partner would preferentially be permitted. Asked whether they had received feedback from family members who had witnessed FWR, 86% of the replies were positive.
Doctors had several concerns regarding FWR: 72% expressed concern about possible traumatisation of a family member; 71% documented that FWR caused difficulty in terminating the resuscitation procedure; 60% felt that the cohesiveness of the medical team was affected by a family presence; 52% were afraid of personal intimidation; and 58% were concerned about patient privacy and of medico-legal complaints against themselves.
Comments to the open-ended questions include: The doctor's personality would affect the manner in which the resuscitation was conducted; The nature of the resuscitation, be it medical or trauma, would influence a doctor's decision to allow family to witness the resuscitation; To assist the family in understanding the resuscitation process, adequate staff were needed in the resuscitation room; and Sufficient space is important to allow the family to view proceedings without hindering the medical team in performing their duties.
Since Doyle at the Foote Hospital allowed family to witness the resuscitation of family members in the 1980s,1 the positive feedback from those who had participated in such an experience spurred further enquiry into FWR.13 Of doctors who completed the questionnaire, 42.6% had never considered FWR. However, 65% of them indicated that, having been made aware of FWR, they would positively consider it in future. Consequently, once doctors and nursing staff were introduced to the concept of FWR during the interviews, they were more willing to consider allowing it.
Experienced doctors with a thorough understanding of the process of resuscitation are more comfortable with FWR. However, experience in an ED is not synonymous with a doctor's age, as some graduate and start practising in EDs immediately, while others do so at a later stage.
Arguments against FWR are based on several universal concerns and are repeatedly quoted in the literature.2,3,14,15,16 We found the concerns to be cohesiveness of the medical team and performance anxiety of the doctors, particularly if sensing that their performance were being critically assessed by an attending family member who might have medical knowledge and experience. Additional concerns included: feeling compelled to prolong resuscitation when family present, and not to be seen to be making decisions too rapidly; traumatisation of family members; potential medico-legal action;3,15,16 and space and staffing limitations. Litigation was uncommon in EDs in the UK, where the practice of FWR is common.16 The lack of adequate space in the resuscitation room is a concern.8 Additional staff should be available for the family to explain procedures, answer their questions, ensure that they do not interfere or become inappropriately affected by the resuscitation process and procedures that may require their removal from the resuscitation room.
Doctors' training appears to influence their acceptance of FWR. We found that 91.3% of doctors who had completed an American Heart Association's Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (AHA ACLS®) course, and 79% of doctors who had completed an AHA Pediatric Advanced Life Support (AHA PALS®) course, would allow FWR. These courses promote FWR and include FWR in practice scenarios, and doctors participating in them become aware of FWR and experience-simulated scenarios. Familiarity with FWR seems to encourage its practice (Tables I and II). Even having attended an Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS®) course influenced the practice of FWR as 84% of doctors who had attended an ATLS course practise FWR (Table III). Although FWR is not taught in ATLS courses, doctors presumably gain confidence in resuscitation skills during this course that conduces them to FWR. Educational programmes and training facilitate the practice of FWR.17 We did not investigate the influence of other courses on the practice of FWR, which could be the basis of another research report.
Successful implementation of FWR in EDs in South Africa would encourage organisations such as the Emergency Medicine Society of South Africa, Emergency Nursing Society of South Africa and the Resuscitation Council of South Africa to produce protocols for the introduction and implementation of FWR. Training programmes must be developed for undergraduate and postgraduate medical training, and policies and procedures developed to allow the regular practice of FWR in all EDs.
1. Guzzetta CE, Clark AP, Wright JL. Family presence in emergency medical services for children. Clin Paed Emerg Med 2006;1(2):15-23. [ Links ]
2. Goodenough TJ, Brysiewicz P. Witnessed resuscitation - exploring the attitudes and practices of emergency staff working in level 1 Emergency Departments in the province of KwaZulu-Natal. Curationis 2003;26:56-63. [ Links ]
3. Kissoon N. Family presence during cardiopulmonary resuscitation: Our anxiety versus their needs. Paed Crit Care Med 2006;7(5):488-489. [ Links ]
4. McClenathan BM, Torrington KG, Uyehara CFT. Family member presence during cardiopulmonary resuscitation: A survey of US and International Critical Care Professionals. Chest 2002; 22:2204-2211. [ Links ]
5. Gold KJ, Gorenflo DW. Physician experience with the family presence during CPR in children. Paed Crit Care Med 2006;7(5):428-433. [ Links ]
6. Macy C, Lampe E, O' Neil B, Swor R, Zalenski R, Compton S. The relationship between the hospital setting and perceptions of family-witnessed resuscitation in the emergency department. Resuscitation 2006;70:74-79. [ Links ]
7. Davidson JE. Family presence at resuscitation: What if? Critical Care Medicine 2006;34(12):3041-3042. [ Links ]
8. Walker W. Accident and emergency staff opinion on the effects of family presence during adult resuscitation: critical literature review. Journal of Advanced Nursing 2008;61(4):348-362. [ Links ]
9. Engel K, Barnosky AR, Berry-Bovia M, Desmond JS, Ubel PA. Provider experience and attitudes toward Family Presence during Resuscitation Procedures. J Palliat Med 2007;10(5):1007-1009. [ Links ]
10. Mazar MA, Cox LA, Capon JA. The public's attitude and perception concerning witnessed cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Crit Care Med 2006;34(12): 2925-2928. [ Links ]
11. Barata I, LaMantia J, Riccardi D, et al. A prospective study of emergency medicine residents' attitudes towards family presence during paediatric procedures. The Internet Journal of Emergency Medicine 2007;3(2). http://www.ispub.com/ostia/index.php?xmlFilePath (accessed 17 August 2008). [ Links ]®
12. American Heart Association. AHA 2005 guidelines for cardiopulmonary resuscitation and emergency care. Circulation 2005;112(suppl): IVI-203. [ Links ]
13. Salmond SW, Palpanus LM. A comprehensive systematic review of Family Witnessed Resuscitation and Family Witnessed invasive procedures in adults in hospital settings internationally. http://www.joannabriggs.edu.au/pubs/systematic_reviews_prot.php (accessed 19 January 2010). [ Links ]
14. Isaacs A, Mash RJ. An unsuccessful resuscitation: The families' and doctors' experiences of an unexpected death of a patient. SA Fam Pract 2004;46(8):20-25. [ Links ]
15. Maurice H. Family presence in Emergency Department resuscitation: A proposed guideline for an Australian hospital. Australian Emergency Nursing Journal 2002;5(3): 21-27. [ Links ]
16. Booth MG, Woolrich L, Kinsella J. Family witnessed resuscitation in UK emergency departments: a survey of practice. Eur J Anaesthesiol 2004;21:725-728. [ Links ]
17. Critchell CD, Marik PE. Should family members be present during cardiopulmonary resuscitation? A review of the literature. American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine 2007;24(4):311-317. [ Links ]
Accepted 16 May 2011.
Corresponding author: E Gordon (firstname.lastname@example.com)


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Torta di Nada
I'm leaving tomorrow for a wonderful week in the Pacific Northwest, one of our favorite places. We've been going out there every summer for three years now and we really love it. Going to Seattle's Pike Place Market is a cook's dream. It's so frustrating, though, when you're just visiting and don't have access to a kitchen. The local fresh fish and the incredible produce are really something to see. Of course, I've already made reservations at a number of restaurants I want us to try. One of these that I'm so looking forward to is the highly acclaimed "Tilth" in Seattle. The restaurant is in a little house and is run by chef Maria Hines, who is totally committed to using organic, regional food. I always know a place has to be good if they have a "forager" on staff! She is already doing some of her cooking using the "sous vide" method, which I'm anxious to sample. Charlie Trotter, who is always on the cutting edge in the cooking world, has been cooking with this method for a while now. He estimates that 50% of the ingredients used in his dishes are cooked sous vide. Thomas Keller is coming out in the fall with a book about it called "Under Pressure". He's been using this method for years, also. I will post about it when I come back.
I wanted to post this recipe before I left, though, because Susan over at Food Blogga is hosting the July's Sugar High Friday blogging event, run by Jennifer of The Domestic Goddess. The theme is "Berries".
This is based on a classic Tuscan grape cake, which traditionally is made during the grape harvest (duh) when grapes are plentiful. This cake is Jamie Oliver's version in his cookbook "Jamie's Italy", which is really just a fantastic cookbook. He really went all over Italy from the north down to Sicily to research this cookbook. The recipes are great and the photography is wonderful. He substitutes blueberries in this cake for the grapes and I have, too. My local farmer's market will have grapes later in the summer and I can't wait. But until then blueberries will do. I love this cake because it is not overly sweet - it's light and moist and just right.
And if you don't know, Jamie Oliver has a new show on the Food Network called "Jamie at Home". It's much better than the older Naked Chef series, I think. This one takes place basically right in his vegetable garden, where he picks things and then retreats into a garden shed to cook things up on a hot plate. It shows what you can do with great, fresh produce right out of the garden. He'll have a show just on onions, for instance, and show you several different ways to cook them. It's a fresh, simple way to cook.
Torta di Nada
- butter and wax paper, for preparing the cake pan
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 1/4 cups sugar
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 3/4 cup milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- a good pinch of kosher or sea salt
- zest of 2 lemons
- zest of 2 oranges
- 1 lb. 6 0z. fresh blueberries
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch cake pan, line the base with waxed paper and set aside. Beat the eggs and sugar in a mixer for about 3 minutes, until thick and pale yellow, then add the butter, oil, milk and vanilla. Mix well, then sift in the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the lemon and orange zests and stir with a wooden spoon until thoroughly blended. Set aside for 10 minutes to allow the flour to absorb the liquid.
Stir about a quarter of your blueberries or grapes into the batter, spoon it into your cake pan and smooth out the top. Place the cake pan in the center of your oven and bake for 15 minutes then remove it from the oven and scatter the remaining blueberries over the top. Gently push them down into the cake then return it to the oven for another 30-40 minutes, until the top is a deep golden brown and the cake feels quite firm. Put the pan on a rack to cool. After 10 minutes run a knife along the sides of the pan and turn out your cake.


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English is one of the oldest and most prestigious majors at Mount Saint Mary College. The English major seeks to enhance the student's understanding of language and literature. It is designed to expose students to the range of literature across the ages.
The Mount offers English majors a collaboration program in Publishing with Pace University. This is a 3+2 year format program that leads to a Bachelor of Arts in English after three years at the Mount, and a Master of Science in Publishing in the fifth year from Pace University.
During the first three years, students take all their coursework at the Mount. In their senior year, students take two to three undergraduate courses per term at the Mount, and two graduate courses per term at Pace University. The fifth year of study is exclusively at Pace.
For further information, contact the Mount's Division of Arts and Letters.
English majors may:
The English major requires 39 credits (24 required credits, 15 elective credits). Prerequisites to the major include the successful completion of ENG 1010 and ENG 1020, as well as a GPA of 2.0 or better in ENG 2040, Introduction to Literary Studies. A GPA of 2.0 in the major is required.
Magazines, newspapers, publishing houses in New York and New Jersey.
The English major is a gateway to graduate school, careers in publishing, library science, elementary teaching, high school teaching, journalism, etc.
Graduates have pursued degrees at Columbia University, New York University, State University at New Paltz, University of Virginia, CUNY, etc.
Other graduates have pursued law degrees, careers in publishing, teaching and school administration, public relations, advertising, editing, library science, etc.


text:
Quote from: ChlorasepticRelief on March 14, 2006, 12:18:56 PMIndiana Bloomington... WTF is a Hoosier?I am probibly going to Indiana- Indianapolis only like 20min away from your school I hear. Do I even have a mascot?? I think IUPUI takes the Purdue mascot but i'm not sure do you know?? lol IUPUI is like a combination of INdiana U and Purdue or something. I don't know what to say when people ask me where i'll probibly be going.
Indiana Bloomington... WTF is a Hoosier?


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Sun Tzu said: 'Know Your Enemy'
In Iraq, the enemy is elusive. For the past two years, the U.S. military has chased so-called insurgents through the vast deserts of western Iraq and up and down the Euphrates River valley. But to little avail. According to military leaders, we still know very little about the "enemy"-- Who are they? Where are they? What will they do next?
"Sunni Muslim insurgents -- some angry about the downfall of Saddam Hussein, others fighting for a Sunni theocracy -- have joined with Muslim extremists coming across a porous desert border looking for the glory of international jihad. The guerrilla fighters often leave a rearguard to fight advancing U.S. forces, while moving the majority of their men to other towns where the Marines have no presence and the police forces have disbanded." Detroit Free Press, August 8, 2005So when the President says that he doesn't want to send a bad message to the "enemy", who is he referring to?
Yeah, I've heard that the enemy is a "terrorist". But can you please tell me what a terrorist looks like in Iraq? Yeah, I've also heard that the enemy is an "insurgent"? But could you please tell me what an insurgent looks like?
The truth is, our enemy has no head, takes no definitive shape, and does not manifest any locus of power. In essence, the enemy is everywhere and nowhere at the same time. The enemy in Iraq is, for all intents and purposes, unknowable.
"We cannot recognize the enemy because he dresses like a civilian and he drives in a civilian car. He looks like everyone else." Detroit Free Press, August 8, 2005Can the President tell us how this non-existent enemy will be found or how it will be defeated? Does he think we will simply wear out this elusive enemy on its home turf?
In Sun Tzu's The Art of War, the oldest military treatise in the world, the great Chinese warrior stated:
"When you engage in actual fighting, if victory is long in coming, then men's weapons will grow dull and their ardor will be damped. If you lay siege to a town, you will exhaust your strength." Art of War, at II:2.But more importantly, Sun Tzu stated:
"If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle." Art of War, at III:18. (Emphasis Added.)Unfortunately, our President does not know his enemy. Yet, like a child, he is stubbornly trying to outlast and defeat the unknowable ghost in the closet. And similar to Vietnam, without ever losing a battle, for every victory gained, we are bound to suffer a defeat. Moreover, unlike Bush, our elusive "enemy" does follow the Art of War game plan.
"You can be sure of succeeding in your attacks if you only attack places which are undefended. You can ensure the safety of your defense if you only hold positions that cannot be attacked." Art of War, at VI:7.Is this not the definition of guerilla warfare?
Oh, the folly and arrogance of George W. Bush. He speaks like a child and wages war like a neophyte. How will we know when the last enemy is gone, when he can't be sure where the first enemy is hiding?
The war in Iraq is doomed to fail. I take no pleasure in this inevitable fact. I only wish it would end sooner rather than later. So when the President says it 'makes no sense to leave Iraq now,' he fails to realize that it makes less sense to stay in Iraq. How many more must die?
Something tells me, these right-wingers will not realize the futility of this campaign until many, many more have died. And certainly, when that happens, rather than realize that this campaign was doomed from the outset pursuant to longstanding war principles, they will simply blame the loss on, you guessed it, the Left. Once again, like children, they will avoid responsibility and choose rather to blame others. Until twenty or thirty years from now....when they do it all over again in some other far off land....


text:
As a department, we are here to help you navigate all of the exciting topics and advances in Chemistry and Biology. We offer a diverse array of courses, including majors and non-majors courses ranging from Cell and Molecular Biology, Microbiology and Genetics, to Anatomy and Physiology, Ecology and Environmental Biology. Most courses are complemented by laboratory sections to allow you the time for hands-on experience with the organisms or concepts studied in lecture.
Throughout all of our courses, instructors emphasize the use of critical thinking and application of knowledge to assist you in your future academic and life goals. Our courses are transferable to many four-year institutions as general education or majors' classes, and professional degree programs such as nursing, pharmacy and radiology.
Valerie Lantz Chair of Chemical and Biological Sciences Science North, Room 211 7600 Takoma Avenue, Takoma Park, MD 20912 Phone: 240-567-1422 Fax: 240-567-1410
Page created by: Rose JohnsonUpdated: June 26, 2014
© 2019 Montgomery College. All Rights Reserved.
©2019, Montgomery College


text:
There's an excellent article in today's New York Times (here) about bloggers and others taking pictures of the food that they eat. I do it sometimes, when the food is especially nicely presented, but many others document every single thing they eat.Do you do that?
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Shooting Your Dinner
4 comments:
- Michael Lantz said...
That food looks very delicious.I would like to take a picture of a nice Seafood dish at Phillips at Harborplace.All that talk about food is making me hungry.
- August 05, 2010 8:55 PM
- Moveable Feast said...
Absolutely. When I was in Paris for two weeks in 2009, I went more camera-crazy over the food than I did over Notre Dame.
-Moveable Feast
Moveable Feast is a nonprofit organization located in Baltimore, MD. We deliver nutritious foods at no cost to people living with HIV/AIDS, breast cancer, and other conditions. Our annual events include Dining Out For Life, Ride for the Feast, and B'More Aware of HIV: The Living Red Ribbon.
- August 16, 2010 9:22 AM
Hi There,
I represent an organic berry brand and wanted to send you more information about our client.
Can I please be provided with an email address?
- March 14, 2011 10:39 AM
Sorry firstname.lastname@example.com
- March 14, 2011 10:40 AM


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3290 South Service Rd., Burlington, ON, Canada, L7N 3M6
Phone: (905) 639-1700 Fax:
Supports Green Practices
"Supports Green Initiatives" designates a hotel's participation in an optional environmental program that includes the use of energy-efficient lighting, guestroom towel/linen re-use, and on-premise recycling. "Supports Green Initiatives" does not represent an official certification of any kind.
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The Comfort Inn in Burlington, ON has recently-renovated all aspects of the hotel including all bedrooms (featuring new bedding and pillow-top mattresses), bathrooms, furniture, vinyl and carpeting.The hotel is 100 percent smoke free, and features ground floor drive up rooms with a patio door and brand new guest laundry facilities. Keep up with your fitness regimen in our fitness center.
This Comfort Inn® hotel is in the heart of beautiful Burlington near local attractions including Ikea, the Royal Botanical Gardens, African Lion Safari, The Waterfront at Downtown Burlington and Spencer Smith Park.
Pets are welcome in selected rooms at a fee of $25 per night (limit two pets per room).
In addition to standard amenities, all rooms feature refrigerators, microwaves, a 37 inch flat screen LCD TV, a coffee maker, hair dryer, iron and ironing board.
A variety of shopping experiences, restaurants and lounges are located within walking distance.
This Burlington hotel features many amenities, including:
Your Morning Breakfast is full of hot and delicious options, making breakfast at the Comfort Inn Airport the perfect way to start your day. Enjoy our free hot breakfast featuring eggs, meat, yogurt, fresh fruit, cereal and more, including your choice of hot waffle flavors!
Check-In Time: 15:00 Check-Out Time: 11:00 Guest Rooms: 89


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Sublime hues and graceful lines accentuate the traditional pattern motifs in mythos, an elegant and value-driven range of durable, hand-tufted area rugs. this sophisticated collection is for the discriminating consumer with a passion for traditional design, at prices that answer every budget. the mythos collection is tradition, redefined.
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LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - City Councilman Eric Garcetti leads City Controller Wendy Greuel by 7 percentage points in a tightening race for mayor of Los Angeles, according to the latest opinion poll, but the survey's director said Greuel could still stage an upset in Tuesday's election.
The poll released late on Friday by the University of Southern California's Price School of Public Policy and the Los Angeles Times showed Garcetti favored by 48 percent of likely voters, compared with 41 percent for Greuel. Eleven percent of respondents said they were undecided.
The survey, conducted from Tuesday through Thursday, showed a narrowing of the race since a survey a month earlier by the same researchers gave Garcetti a 10-point lead over Greuel.
Garcetti was also the favored candidate among the 48 percent of poll respondents who had already voted by mail, versus 42 percent for Greuel.
Tuesday's vote is a runoff between the two veteran Democrats, who in March were the top vote-getters in a primary election in which Garcetti got 33 percent and Greuel 29 percent. One of them would have had to have won more than 50 percent of the ballots cast to have been elected outright.
They are vying to replace Democratic Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who is stepping down after eight years because of term limits.
The non-partisan campaign has centered on what Greuel and Garcetti agree is a dire financial outlook facing America's second most populous metropolis, and the political clout commanded by the city's public employee unions.
The city's chief accountant has projected a $1.1 billion cumulative deficit over the next four years.
Garcetti, 42, is a former president of the Los Angeles City Council, where he has held office since 2001. He is also the son of former Los Angeles District Attorney Gil Garcetti, who was the city's top prosecutor during the murder trial of O.J. Simpson in the mid-1990s.
Greuel, 51, was a councilwoman before she became controller in 2009. She also served in former Mayor Tom Bradley's administration.
Surveys released earlier this month by the Edmund G. Pat Brown Institute of Public Affairs and Survey USA found the two candidates in a statistical tie.
The latest USC Price/LA Times poll indicated Garcetti had built a lead by forging an unusual coalition of liberal and conservative supporters and by winning over voters in the suburban and largely middle-class San Fernando Valley, which had been expected to be Greuel's stronghold.
Dan Schnur, director of the USC Price/LA Times poll, said in a statement that "this race is certainly not over," given expectations for low voter turnout on Tuesday and the high number of voters who remain undecided.
"This campaign has turned into a referendum on Wendy Greuel, and more specifically her support from public employee unions," Schnur said.
Greuel has the backing of the union for workers at the city Department of Water and Power, which has contributed about $2 million to her campaign, while the police officers' union has given over $1.4 million to groups supporting her candidacy.
Garcetti leads Greuel in campaign spending overall, with $9.4 million, compared with her expenditures of $8.9 million, according to figures from the City Ethics Commission. Much of that money has gone to a slew of negative television ads from both sides.
The USC Price/LA Times poll sampled 500 likely voters and had a margin of error of 4.4 percentage points.
Reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis; Editing by Steve Gorman and Peter Cooney


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Antonio Mazzoli was able to return to live in Bologna. There he carried on his trade as a wool merchant and married Diamante Scudieri, a tailor's daughter. Rafael Bombelli was their eldest son, and he was one of a family of six children. Rafael received no university education. He was taught by an engineer- architect Pier Francesco Clementi so it is perhaps not too surprising that Bombelli himself should turn to that occupation. Bombelli found himself a patron in Alessandro Rufini who was a Roman noble, later to become the Bishop of Melfi.
It is unclear exactly how Bombelli learnt of the leading mathematical works of the day, but of course he lived in the right part of Italy to be involved in the major events surrounding the solution of cubic and quartic equations. Scipione del Ferro, the first to solve the cubic equation was the professor at Bologna, Bombelli's home town, but del Ferro died the year that Bombelli was born. The contest between Fior and Tartaglia (see Tartaglia's biography) took place in 1535 when Bombelli was nine years old, and Cardan's major work on the topic Ars Magna was published in 1545. Clearly Bombelli had studied Cardan's work and he also followed closely the very public arguments between Cardan, Ferrari and Tartaglia which culminated in the contest between Ferrari and Tartaglia in Milan in 1548 (see Ferrari's biography for details).
From about 1548 Pier Francesco Clementi, Bombelli's teacher, worked for the Apostolic Camera, a specialised department of the papacy in Rome set up to deal with legal and financial matters. The Apostolic Camera employed Clementi to reclaim marshes near Foligno on the Topino River, southeast of Perugia in central Italy. This region had became part of the Papal States in 1439. It is probable that Bombelli assisted his teacher Clementi with this project, but we have no direct evidence that this was the case. We certainly know that around 1549 Bombelli became interested in another reclamation project in a neighbouring region.
It was in 1549 that Alessandro Rufini, Bombelli's patron, acquired the rights to reclaim that part of the marshes of the Val di Chiana which belonged to the Papal States. The Val di Chiana is a fairly central region in the Tuscan Apennines which was not well drained either by the Arno river which runs north west going through Florence and Pisa to the sea, or by the Tiber which runs south through Rome. By 1551 Bombelli was in the Val di Chiana recording the boundaries to the land that was to be reclaimed. He worked on this project until 1555 when there was an interruption to the reclamation work.
While Bombelli was waiting for the Val di Chiana project to recommence, he decided to write an algebra book. He had felt that the reason for the many arguments between leading mathematicians was the lack of a careful exposition of the subject. Only Cardan had, in Bombelli's opinion, explored the topic in depth and his great masterpiece was not accessible to people without a thorough grasp of mathematics. Bombelli felt that a self-contained text which could be read by those without a high level of mathematical training would be beneficial. He wrote in the preface of his book [2] (see also [3]):-
I began by reviewing the majority of those authors who have written on [algebra] up to the present, in order to be able to serve instead of them on the matter, since there are a great many of them.By 1557, the work at Val di Chiana still being suspended, Bombelli had begun writing his algebra text. We will study in detail the contents of the work below. Suffice to say for the moment that, in 1560 when work at Val di Chiana recommenced, Bombelli had not completed his algebra book.
Work at the Val di Chiana marshes could not have been far from completion when it had been suspended, for it was completed before the end of 1560. The scheme was a great success and through the project Bombelli gained a high reputation as an hydraulic engineer. In 1561 Bombelli went to Rome but failed in an attempt to repair the Santa Maria bridge over the Tiber. However, with reputation still high, Bombelli was taken on as a consultant for a project to drain the Pontine Marshes. These marshes in the Lazio region of south-central Italy had been an area where malaria had been a health hazard since the period of the Roman Republic. Several emperors and popes made unsuccessful attempts to reclaim the area but all, including the one which Bombelli acted as consultant on for Pope Pius IV, came to nothing. [It was not until 1928 that the Pontine Marshes were finally drained.]
On one of Bombelli's visits to Rome he made an exciting mathematical discovery. Antonio Maria Pazzi, who taught mathematics at the University of Rome, showed Bombelli a manuscript of Diophantus's Arithmetica and, after Bombelli had examined it, the two men decided to make a translation. Bombelli wrote in [2] (see also [3]):-
... [we], in order to enrich the world with a work so finely made, decided to translate it and we have translated five of the books (there being seven in all); the remainder we were not able to finish because of pressure of work on one or other.Despite never completing the task, Bombelli began to revise his algebra text in the light of what he had discovered in Diophantus. In particular, 143 of the 272 problems which Bombelli gives in Book III are taken from Diophantus. Bombelli does not identify which problems are his own and which are due to Diophantus, but he does give full credit to Diophantus acknowledging that he has borrowed many of the problems given in his text from the Arithmetica.
Bombelli's Algebra was intended to be in five books. The first three were published in 1572 and at the end of the third book he wrote that [1]:-
... the geometrical part, Books IV and V, is not yet ready for the publisher, but its publication will follow shortly.Unfortunately Bombelli was never able to complete these last two volumes for he died shortly after the publication of the first three volumes. In 1923, however, Bombelli's manuscript was discovered in a library in Bologna by Bortolotti. As well as a manuscript version of the three published books, there was the unfinished manuscript of the other two books. Bortolotti published the incomplete geometrical part of Bombelli's work in 1929. Some results from Bombelli's incomplete Book IV are also described in [17] where author remarks that Bombelli's methods are related to the geometrical procedures of Omar Khayyam.
Bombelli's Algebra gives a thorough account of the algebra then known and includes Bombelli's important contribution to complex numbers. Before looking at his remarkable contribution to complex numbers we should remark that Bombelli first wrote down how to calculate with negative numbers. He wrote (see [2] or [3]):-
Plus times plus makes plusAs Crossley notes in [3]:-
Minus times minus makes plus
Plus times minus makes minus
Minus times plus makes minus
Plus 8 times plus 8 makes plus 64
Minus 5 times minus 6 makes plus 30
Minus 4 times plus 5 makes minus 20
Plus 5 times minus 4 makes minus 20
Bombelli is explicitly working with signed numbers. He has no reservations about doing this, even though in the problems he subsequently treats he neglects possible negative solutions.In Bombelli's Algebra there is even a geometric proof that minus time minus makes plus; something which causes many people difficulty even today despite our mathematical sophistication.
Bombelli, himself, did not find working with complex numbers easy at first, writing in [2] (see also [3]):-
And although to many this will appear an extravagant thing, because even I held this opinion some time ago, since it appeared to me more sophistic than true, nevertheless I searched hard and found the demonstration, which will be noted below. ... But let the reader apply all his strength of mind, for [otherwise] even he will find himself deceived.Bombelli was the first person to write down the rules for addition, subtraction and multiplication of complex numbers. He writes √-n as "plus of minus", -√-n as "minus of minus", and gives rules such as (see [2] or [3]):-
Plus of minus times plus of minus makes minus [+√-n × +√-n = -n]After giving this description of multiplication of complex numbers, Bombelli went on to give rules for adding and subtracting them.
Plus of minus times minus of minus makes plus [+√-n × -√-n = +n]
Minus of minus times plus of minus makes plus [-√-n × +√-n = +n]
Minus of minus times minus of minus makes minus [-√-n × -√-n = -n]
He then showed that, using his calculus of complex numbers, correct real solutions could be obtained from the Cardan-Tartaglia formula for the solution to a cubic even when the formula gave an expression involving the square roots of negative numbers.
Finally we should make some comments on Bombelli's notation. Although authors such as Pacioli had made limited use of notation, others such as Cardan had used no symbols at all. Bombelli, however, used quite sophisticated notation. It is worth remarking that the printed version of his book uses a slightly different notation from his manuscript, and this is not really surprising for there were problems printing mathematical notation which to some extent limited the type of notation which could be used in print.
Here are some examples of Bombelli's notation.
Despite the delay in publication, Bombelli's Algebra was a very influential work and led to Leibniz praising Bombelli saying he was an:-
... outstanding master of the analytical art.Jayawardene writes in [1] that in his treatment of complex numbers Bombelli:-
... showed himself to be far ahead of his time, for his treatment was almost that followed today.Crossley writes in [3]:-
Thus we have an engineer, Bombelli, making practical use of complex numbers perhaps because they gave him useful results, while Cardan found the square roots of negative numbers useless. Bombelli is the first to give a treatment of any complex numbers... It is remarkable how thorough he is in his presentation of the laws of calculation of complex numbers...It seems to be quite fair to describe Bombelli as the inventor of complex numbers. Nobody before him had given rules for working with such numbers, nor had they suggested that working with such numbers might prove useful. Dieudonné does not appear to agree with this assessment, however, for in his review of [5] and [6], he writes:-
... imaginaries had been used long before Bombelli's book, and it is therefore not quite justified to call him the "first discoverer" of complex numbers.I [EFR] feel that Dieudonné is wrong here as I believe he is when he writes that Bombelli's Algebra
... did not sell very well, nor apparently did it have much influence on later developments.I think that Bombelli's Algebra is one of the most remarkable achievements of 16th century mathematics, and he must be credited with understanding the importance of complex numbers at a time when clearly nobody else did.
Article by: J J O'Connor and E F Robertson


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Leucadia National, a holding company with investments in a broad array of businesses, is buying the investment banking firm Jefferies Group in an all stock transaction worth roughly $3.7 billion, according to people familiar with the transaction.
The deal is expected to be announced before the open of trading this morning.
Jefferies shareholders will receive 0.81 of a share of Leucadia for each share they own. While Jefferies is selling out for a roughly 23 percent premium to its current stock price, its management team is taking over Leucadia.
As part of the deal, Jefferies management team, led by its long time Chairman and CEO Richard Handler, will run the combined company, said sources close to the deal. Handler will be CEO of the combined company, while Joseph Steinberg, currently Leucadia's president, will become its chairman.
Ian Cumming, who along with Steinberg, has led Leucadia to achieve a 9.4 percent annualized gain in its share price over the last 12 years, will retire as the company's CEO at the close of the deal. Handler is also expected to remain as CEO of Jefferies.
Given the overlap in the shareholder base of both companies and what is already a 28.6 percent ownership stake by Leucadia in Jefferies, the deal is not expected to face any significant shareholder opposition. While Jefferies is selling control at a price below its 52-week high and barely above its book value, it is doing so for stock, giving current shareholders the opportunity to profit from the combination should they choose to remain shareholders (roughly 35 percent of the new company's shares will be held by current Jefferies holders).
Jefferies is expected to be run as a subsidiary of Leucadia, in the same way the company's control of a beef processor, mining company and mortgage servicer, amongst others, are currently treated. One treat for Jefferies may be Leucadia's current deferred tax asset worth $1.4 billion, which will shield future earnings at the investment bank from taxes.
—By CNBC's David Faber


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HAVELOCK � City and county officials are saying a dispute over funding for computers at the Havelock library is in the past, with a solution on the horizon.
HAVELOCK � City and county officials are saying a dispute over funding for computers at the Havelock library is in the past, with a solution on the horizon.
�I don�t want this to end up being a problem between us when we�re about to have a solution to it in September,� said Will Lewis, a Havelock commissioner who serves as a liaison for the Havelock library.
That solution involves purchase of a new Linux-based system for all libraries in the Craven-Pamlico-Carteret library system.
The Havelock library had put in a special request for $10,000 on top of its budget for the purchase of new computers. While Havelock commissioners agreed to fund $4,000, the county did not supply any money in its budget, believing the city would fund the entire cost based on a comment Lewis made during a meeting.
The lack of funding from the county angered some in Havelock, who felt the county needed to do more to support a library used by both county and city residents.
Lewis said his comment was misinterpreted and blamed the dispute on miscommunication. He said all involved were working together toward the new system, which could mean new computers for the Havelock library by October.
Susan W. Simpson, interim director of the CPC Regional Library, said Havelock is not alone in its need for new computers.
�All the public-use computers need replacing,� she said. �It�s the computer industry. We can�t keep up with it.�
Only seven of the 12 public-use computers at the Havelock library are working, and patrons say those are slow and in some cases freeze up during online sessions, making it difficult for students to take tests and for residents to apply for jobs.
�That�s pretty much the way it is throughout our regional libraries,� Simpson said.
The Havelock library computers have come from different sources throughout the years and have different software. Simpson said getting new computers with the latest Windows 8 software for the entire library system was too expensive.
The Linux system, which uses a main server to which computers would connect, would be less expensive.
�We�ve been talking to a company who is willing to give us a really good price on computers that do not have the Windows environment,� Simpson said. �We�ve been trying to get our ducks in a row. If we can get all 10 libraries to be able to join in this, we can get computers with the software at an incredible price.
�We�ve talked to the county IT guy. We�ve talked to the Havelock IT guys and a couple of other really smart IT persons, and they all say that this is a good deal and that this is a good product.�
Simpson said the estimated cost of the system for the Havelock library is $7,000 to $8,000. An initial down payment on the system is about $3,700, said Lewis, who is proposing the city�s $4,000 be put toward that amount.
Lewis said he has talked with Craven County Board of Commissioners Chairman Scott Dacey about the county paying the remainder of the balance through its budget next fiscal year. An informal meeting among county and city officials is scheduled for Aug. 19 when the issue is expected to be discussed.
The solution sits well with Havelock head librarian Margie Garrison.
�I�m very pleased. I think it�s a great solution,� she said. �The price is going to be wonderful. Because of the way it works, we�ll be able to get more computers for the public rather than if we did single PCs. It�s a win-win.�
Meanwhile, upon hearing of the computer situation at the Havelock library, Craven Community College decided to donate four more computers.
�It�s wonderful news,� Garrison said.
Lewis said that the purchase of the new system could happen as early as September, when it is hoped that a permanent regional library director will have been hired.


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VA Earthship Project
I had the wonderful opportunity to stay overnight in the Suffolk, VA Earthship with Melina Winterton, her husband Larry Peck, and their children. I wanted to document this 'green home' project in hopes of spreading the word about viable eco-home options many believe to still be unobtainable. Below are links to their progress, giving a realistic overview of the project, and what it takes to 'do it yourself'. Many thanks to Melina and Larry, and big kudos to them for taking on this challenge and prospering in the green lifestyle. - Alan Howell Earthship.comRead More