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Thinking about girls other than my GF while pleasuring myself
Does anyone else do this? I feel like I'm a bit odd. I have been with my girlfriend for about a year and a half. She is tiny, petite, with great curves, a perfect ass, and the best rack I have ever seen. I love having sex with her, she gives me everything I could ever want in bed.
But I find that when I jerk off, I never think about her. I need to think about other girls to get me off. I typically think about women I have dated in the past. One girl I hooked up with in summer 2010. We met online, hung out for a week or so, made out on her couch and she gave me a hand job. She moved away but we hooked up again the following summer when she visited for a month. It wasn't anything big. We made out on her couch and then on her bed and she gave me a handjob again. I sucked on her nipples a bit, but that was it. She was a sweet girl, but a bit chunky and wasn't in town long. She hasn't been back since.
The other girl I met online in November 2011. We actually went to high school together for a year. We started chatting online and eventually texting. We chatted on MSN messenger one night and it got pretty risqué. She sent me a picture of her ass in a thong, and then a video of her rubbing her tits together. We talked about what we would do to each other when we met up. She asked if I would suck her nipples and finger her hard. She also told me she would suck my cock better than anyone ever would. I remember her telling me that if she was wearing leggings when I picked her up, it meant that she wasn't wearing panties. Although I hoped it would, nothing happened the night we went out. I just wasn't feeling it. But we kept texting each other off. and on. We always made plans to meet up but never would. When we finally did again, we went for a drive and sat in a parking lot. She had been mentioning a new bra and I asked about it. She put my hand up on her chest so I could feel it. It felt great. We ended up back at my place but she didn't want to do anything. I tried to kiss her and put my hands on her waist but she said she wouldn't kiss me until I dropped her off. When I did drop her off we kissed for a long time, she had fantastic lips. I wished they were wrapped around my cock instead of pressed against my lips. Nothing else ever happened with her. She got pregnant right around the time we met up (thankfully I didn't sleep with her). I still talk to her every once in a while. I imagine what it would have been like if I had been able to fuck her that night. But she too is a little chunky. But not ugly, just overweight.
So when I masturbate, I usually think of these other girls, not my very attractive girlfriend. Does anyone else not think about their girlfriend when jerking off? Maybe I'm weird, just doesn't get me going. Interested to know.
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The Heart Wants What It Wants
Have you ever heard of Occam's Razor? It's this principle that says the male human mind has no need to fantasize about reality. I only fantasize about my girlfriend while I'm fucking her. That about gets it.
This is a 100% normal. My GF is fantastic in the sack but when I need to crank one out, the porn comes out, and she knows it. It's just how we're built.
I'm the King of Wishful Thinking.....
65/m/furry looking for 12/m/top
I find it a bit strange if you DO clean your pipes to your s/o. Porn, or other chicks you know irl. Just don't act upon those urges. Cheating is cheating, but not when you keep that shit up in your head. And FFS, dont confess that shit to her and make her feel self-conscious, or that you're no longer attracted to her.
"Hate to say it but uh... I'd do Frg. :eek:" - PeaceKeeper
"I'm done here fuck all of you faggots." -GhEttOrAiD 07-16-2014, 05:10 PM.
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Nick Olla connected with Caleb Voss for four touchdowns during UW-Oshkosh's 42-14 triumph at UW-Eau Claire on Saturday (Nov. 9).
The Titans (8-1/5-1 WIAC), ranked eighth by D3football.com, wrap up the regular season next Saturday (Nov. 16) at home against #11 UW-Platteville.
UW-Oshkosh bolted to a 35-0 lead by halftime and never looked back. Voss totaled five catches for 101 yards while reaching the end zone four times. He upped his career receiving total to 2,583 yards, which ranks second in school history.
On the game's opening kickoff, Luke Guenther set up the Titans with a 35-yard return. UW-Oshkosh then faced a 4th-and-10, and Nick Olla found Voss down the left sideline for 26 yards. Two plays later, Voss grabbed an eight-yard score over the middle to go ahead, 7-0.
The Blugolds (1-8/1-5 WIAC) fumbled on their first possession, giving the Titans the ball 35 yards from the end zone. Voss ran a seam route and hauled in the 28-yard touchdown to put UW-Oshkosh up, 14-0, after just 4:31 of play.
The Titans' next series covered 90 yards over 13 plays. Cole Myhra rushed seven times for 60 yards on the drive, including a 23-yard touchdown up the middle. Myhra totaled 156 yards on the day, going over 3,000 rushing yards for his career.
Early in the second quarter, Myhra made it 28-0 with a one-yard touchdown run. That drive was set up by Guenther's interception at the UW-Eau Claire 31-yard line.
The Titans struck once more before halftime. Myhra started things with a 13-yard run before Joe Sommers caught a pass for 18. Facing third down, Olla fired a 25-yard touchdown to Voss down the sideline for a 35-0 advantage.
UW-Oshkosh allowed just one first down and 28 total yards during the first half. The Blugolds punted five times and committed turnovers on their other two possessions.
The Titan defense forced three straight punts during the third quarter. With UW-Oshkosh starting at the Blugolds' 44, Zach Kasuboski ran around the outside for 15 yards. Olla then tossed a 14-yard pass just over a defender and into the hands of Voss for his career-high fourth touchdown.
During the fourth quarter, Joel Sweeney rushed five times for 108 yards. His 42-yard run set up a seven-yard touchdown catch by Drew Davis that put the Blugolds on the scoreboard.
Sweeney went the distance on a 50-yard score midway through the final quarter. He finished with 17 carries for 123 yards, while Nick Hirsch led the UW-Eau Claire receivers with five catches for 28 yards. Joel Newman obtained just 94 yards on 17-of-31 passing.
UW-Oshkosh outgained the Blugolds, 410-210. The Titans amassed 264 yards on the ground, including 43 from Ethan Steinhoff and 26 by Olla. In the passing game, Olla completed 10-of-13 attempts for 130 yards.
Cody Taubman topped all players with 14 tackles. Austin Blashka paced the Titans with seven stops, including five solo.
This is the fifth time in program history that UW-Oshkosh reached eight victories. The Titans have won 11 straight WIAC road games dating back to 2010.
By Jon Feyen, UW-Oshkosh Sports Information

subset: commoncrawl


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|Success is the indescribable feeling you get when you see something you worked so hard on in front of thousands of people. - SlamminSammy [more]
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East Coast, West Coast, and Midwest FIRST
Hi All,
I haven't really started a good thread in a while so here goes.
While at IRI in the OMNI hotel lobby, Ashlee Snodgrass, JVN, myself and a few engineers from team 308 became engaged in a conversation about how East coast FIRST, West Coast FIRST and Midwest FIRST, are different from each other, this also includes stuff I talked about with DJ Fluck later the next night. Here are something things I picked up about the conversation.
West Coast FIRST teams are practically family, often for them it does not matter who wins the regional, it just matters that they had fun doing what they love doing, with organizations like the WRRF, SCRRF, and competition such as the OCCRA the entire west coast seems to be one giant family with all teams helping out other teams in need
Midwest FIRST teams are piratically the same way as the West coast teams, but the problem with the mid west is the amount of teams spread over such a large area, its hard to keep close with some of the teams, however this is not the case with the entire Midwest, Organizations like Indiana FIRST are beginning to bring Midwest teams together to a place where they can all talk about things that they need to make there team successful, </Shameless plug> and plus they have got IRI </Shameless Plug>
From what I have heard and seen it seems Midwest teams are very in to trying to invent new ways to do certain tasks and different ways to do things that everybody does all ready i.e Mighty Mouse.
East coast FIRST seems to differ greatly from both West coast and Midwest FIRST. Teams from the East coast seem to have more of a desire to win, they like taking something that they know works and use it every year (the MAJORITY of the teams) a good example is team 173 R.A.G.E they have used the same drive for the past 4-5 years I believe. This is why from what I have witnessed at East coast regionals, the East coast Powerhouse teams try so hard to win.
So... anybody have anything to comment on? This is not meant to single certain teams out or to bash them, this is simply things that I have noticed taking with others and being on a FIRST team for three years.
Post Away.
Last edited by Aaron Lussier : 07-21-2003 at 09:17 PM.
Wow, Ken L and I were just talking about this last night. Well I guess I can only comment about what I'm pretty familiar with and that's the West Coast teams. I'd say the assessment is pretty right on. There's no denying the fact that there's competitiveness but I don't think it's as aggressive from what I've heard of at other parts of the country. There's something about it over here but we usually seem really "kick-back" about everything in life, and it holds true with robotics.
California being a pretty large state with lots of teams and organizations like WRRF and SCRRF to me seems really disconnected from everyone else, which can be good and bad at times. Less drama, but sometimes boring. There's always lots of camraderie and helping other teams but that seems aparant nation wide. And of course in California you have the mini North and South rivalry which is always fun.
Sidenote: practically, not piratically. Sorry, 6 weeks of being an English major and you develop little pet peeves.
Getting back to the main topic of this thread... Aaron, that description is pretty much in line with my conclusions. Although, another characteristic that I think belongs to Midwest teams moreso than East or West coast teams is the "flashy robot." There seems to be, on average, more anodizing, powder coating, and other decorative features on their robots (and carts for that matter [i.e. Truck Town Thunder ]).
Last edited by Bill Gold : 07-21-2003 at 08:48 PM.
east coast or west coast.. I'm kinda confused on which one you meant I know our team sometimes cocentrates on making the bot look good than how it performs ( however all we have to show for it are a couple of voted by peers best looking robot awards )
I actually wish there was more comradery down here in florida.. except for a few friends we are all just kinda spread apart and go our merry ways.. there are attempts such as the robot rodeo and the failed seaside squabble to bring together many of the local teams but there just doesn't seem to be enough.. we are on our own little penninsula ( goodness I hope I spelled that right with kristina up on this thread lol ) and there doesn't seem much to go on.
However I heard that a few members of some teams in our area were trying to convince the school board to make it manditory for all broward ( and mayb dade ) schools to have a FIRST team.. that would mean like 8 new teams in the area and would be great florida.
The more the marrier since its hard for many of us to get anywhere except for regionals in orlando or mayb the occasional peach tree ( crosses fingures for next year )
::edit :: also we have a new drive train every year we have competed, never used the same one, sometimes a good and sometimes a bad thing :: edit ::
Last edited by Dan Richardson : 07-21-2003 at 10:33 PM.
This seems right on as how I have perceived FIRST over the past 4 years. The West Coast has always seemed to be together... and almos on their own with their sub-organizations. As you migrate east to the midwest, some follows, however... you start to pick up traits of teams who have been around for a while, and are international powerhouses. As for the east coast, right on the head with your statement - many teams have been established for a long time, and using the same drive system for 5+ teams.
I agree with all the statements made so far. It feels sort of lonely out here in California since were all so spread out. we have to drive at least 4 hours in any direction to see a significant number of teams that arent in our area, whereas in the midwest you can drive four hours and be in another state, or close to it. even though California has the most FIRST teams of any state, it seems as if midwest and east teams have more contact between other teams. Dont get me wrong, we have plenty of contact between our local teams, but we just dont get to see many more teams than the ones right where we live. When you talk about the west coast, you generally think of the newer teams, which isnt really true, some of us will be going into our 8th, 9th, or even 10th seasons. When you think of the midwest, you think of the older teams, as with the east. I agree that most of the "powerhouse teams" can be found in the midwest/east. Overall, I just have the opinion that the west coast is more isolated from the midwest/east.
On a sidenote: where does Canada fall into the west/midwest/east classification?
note: numbers found using the interactive map on usfirst.org
There is a definite increase in concentration of teams in the Midwest. Just look at the metro Detroit area. There are over 30 teams all in a very small area. While California has the most teams, Michigan has more per-capita than any other state. The difference is obvious, when you have 3 teams in one school district, and there can easily be 5 teams within 10 miles of your home.
I would also agree with the tendency of Midwest teams to be more concerned about robot appearance. We don't focus on that to the point of hurting performance, but we like our robots to look as good as they play.
Finally, the Midwest teams seem to form an informal association, too. When you see the same teams at two or three different regionals, you get to know the names well. There's so many teams and events in the Midwest that the teams here tend to stick together, often picking alliance partners from within their ranks. There's no formal organization (yet), but there is a definite grouping of the Midwest teams.
If you have ever seen our machine or ever talked to most of our team members you know we don't fit the typical east coast mold. Those of you who saw us or talked to me at IRI know winning didn't mean much too us and that next year we will have a totally revamped drive system. I do have to agree with the overall synopsis of this thread though.
Well, for the most part, wouldn't you all agree that this West/Midwest/East distinction mirrors what exists in practically every other facet of our culture?
The West is a center of liberal thinking, is laid back, and is otherwise a bit more utopian than most other places. The frontier spirit lives on in people, even today.
The Midwest hasn't ever had time for a free spirit. They're farmers and industrialists at heart. The work hard for their keep, they do things "the right way," and they take immense pride in themselves and their work.
The East, finally, has always been the business center of the country. Business and capitalism thrive on competition. FIRST is a corporate-driven organization that manages to maintain lofty ideals. Still, in the East, I think we see that the fierce competition among corporations trickles down to our teams.
I was thinking that same thing as M. Agreeing with most everything said above, there isn't much left for me to post without repeating what has already been said.
When we travelled all the way out west to the Seattle regional this year, I was able to notice a lot of these differences. I also think that a lot of the teams there noticed our difference being from the East. I think they were able to notice our increased competitiveness and such. We always had people crowding in our pit checking us out -- at the Manchester regional it almost seems as if teams try to check out from a distance -- almost trying not to show TOO much interest. All the western teams were very welcoming and most would love to have us back, whereas there were a few teams I think that did not like our competitiveness and more or less made comments that we should tone it down, or take it easy.
Hmm, this is quite an interesting discussion indeed.
To add to this idea, I present my team. The most brethren feelings our team has are toward the two teams in which the original mentors came from, one team we helped mentor, and one team in our general region of Virginia. This is similar to the relations of businesses and their relationship to their parent corporations.
At the same time that there is the stated overall feeling from the different regions of the country (and Canada), I do know there is a small voice from many of the East Coast teams that wishes to fraternize with more teams and for more bonds similar to the West Coast teams.
The problem in creating this atmosphere begins when looking at basic geography and concentration of teams. If you look at the Northeastern US, there is a high concentration of teams. Within this region, I get the feeling there is much more fraternizing between teams (even if competitive fraternizing) when compared to further down the Eastern Sea Board.
My team is from an area where the closest team is 45 minutes drive, the next being 3 hours away. While I know this is a bad excuse with the levels of technology in communication, it is much easier to fraternize and work with teams if you can easily drive part of your team to another team's meeting place. I believe there are many similar situations all along the mid to southern Eastern Sea Board with exceptions to urban and metropolis areas.
The ideal thing would be to of course spawn more teams, and be closer to teams. This, unfortunately, is not readily implemented because of sponsorship situations in the area. For example, the area of Southwest Virginia that 401 is from is basically at maximum capacity when it comes to finding money to fund teams. The teams in the area have no corporate sponsors and fundraise using other methods. At the same time, 5 hours drive southeast and the Robodawgs sponsored by IBM have had funding to spawn several teams, plus mentor and sponsor Lego League teams.
So the question is, how do you replicate the West Coast "utopian" ideal in a region that is far from similar in a geographic and socio-economic standpoint?
Re: East Coast, West Coast, and Midwest FIRST
Wow- I don't know how to take that. And we even gave you dinner!!
Boy have you got that backwards. At least in our regional. True, the teams play to win but who doesn't? I don't know if my guys are one of the "powerhouse teams" you mention but speaking for them I can state that winning is nice but not everything. I know of a few teams that are "win at all cost" oriented and a bit rude about it but isn't that the same in all competitive events?
I do recall seeing drivers of Midwest teams in the past crying at the control station when they lost if that counts for something.
I see no difference in how innovative the regions are. There is nothing wrong with reusing a design that works and improving on it. Teams also learn from each other because many east coast teams actually help one another. The nature of the game tends to have a "convergent evolution" of sorts after a few years. If there is a reuse issue it might also be the artifact of many poorly supported teams with limited resources trying to stay in the program by doing that they know.
What I do see in the east coast teams I didn't see as much of recently in the midwest is an abundance of spirit and enthusiasm. This includes crazy mascots, bands, cheerleaders, Moesticks and noisemakers- glitzy stuff that makes the event raucous and fun. In our regional we cheer for EVERYBODY and try to make outsiders welcome.
Another big difference seen in the Northeast as opposed to other regions is a greater diversity of sponsors. I could only dream of having a Kleiner Perkins, NASA or similar major sponsor core group to help us build teams in the Northeast. So as the result there are a number of smaller groups thrown together and that may lead to a "business pride" and more competitive atmosphere.
More decorative robots in the Midwest- possibly. If the number of racing trailers I saw on the way back from IRI is an indication I think I can see where it is coming from. Looks like the automotive industry influence to me.
To be honest, recently at IRI, I too noticed a difference in the "FIRST culture" comparing home (East) and the Midwest. I was rather uncomfortable about some of the experiences I had. It definitely changed MY view of FIRST for the future. And some of MY observations are diametrically opposite yours. Come out to our regional next March and maybe we can change your mind.
Re: Re: East Coast, West Coast, and Midwest FIRST
Re: East Coast, West Coast, and Midwest FIRST
Now being serious, I think this division isnt surprising at all. It reflects a lot of differences between the different regions of the county in all other matters. Add to this the fact that as FIRST originated in the North-East, most of the oldest teams are on the East coast. Older teams, imo, are more competitive. When you have been around since the start, there is more pressure to win. Just from my personal experience I can attest to this. As a freshmen, the experience in itself was satisfying. As a senior, with responsibilities to the whole team, I found myself really wanting to win. I think this is natural. As a team develops and establishes a system and routine, more attention is paid to the sport aspect.
Speaking as a member of an East Coast team I'd also like to say that a lot of cooperation goes on away from competition, that you might not have seen. I think in most cases we have struck a balance between the competitive spirit that drives us to improve and cooperation and friendship.
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Topolsky made the remark in his review of the Nokia Lumia 900, the Finnish company's big re-entry into the American smartphone market. Of course, it's not only Nokia's big re-entry, but almost Microsoft's big one as well. So, while Topolsky praised the beautiful industrial design of the Lumia 900 and its build quality, the software was lacking.
"Let me just put this bluntly: I think it's time to stop giving Windows Phone a pass," Topolsky stated, "I think it's time to stop talking about how beautifully designed it is, and what a departure it's been for Microsoft, and how hard the company is working to add features. I am very aware of the hard work and dedication Microsoft has put into this platform, but at the end of the day, Windows Phone is just not as competitive with iOS and Android as it should be right now."
One of my biggest gripes with the platform when I got my HTC HD7 almost 18 months ago was scrolling in third party applications. It was slow, jittery, skipped frames; it was terrible compared to what I was used to at the time (iOS on a 3GS). The stock applications from Microsoft were mostly fine, but third party applications were horrible.
So, when I turned on my HD7 a few weeks ago after months and months of being turned off, I saw a load of application updates waiting to be installed, assuming these updates would fix the issue. Sadly, I was mistaken - the same problem persists to this very day, almost two years after the platform's début. You can't blame this on developers - this goes deeper.
Then there's Internet Explorer - it still sucks, with wonky rendering and speed issues. Windows Phone 7's variant of My First Multitasking™ is even clunkier than what you get on iOS, with applications regularly loading up fresh instead of reloading state. There's still a serious lack of not just applications, but of quality applications, probably a result of the rather strange design language which underlies the operating system. My personal pet peeve with Windows Phone is how network traffic seems to bring applications - Microsoft's or third parties' - down to a grinding stutter.
Of course, iOS and Android have their strengths and weaknesses too (where their strengths usually follow from their weaknesses, and vice versa), but at least these two get the basic stuff right. Quality applications, good performance and responsiveness, good emailing experience, and top-notch browsers. Even after almost two years, Windows Phone still fails at these basic things.
This is a major problem, because other than a fascinating design, Windows Phone in and of itself has little going for it compared to its competition. When you're small, like Windows Phone, you have to have some sort of stand-out feature or characteristic that sets you apart, to carve out a niche for yourself and attract the right crowd to work from. Windows Phone fails to do so.
Linux on the desktop (worn-out phrase is worn-out) is a perfect example of this. Despite its relative small userbase, it's become as good and capable as it is because it has one thing no other contender really has - namely that, unlike Windows or Mac OS X, Linux is actually yours. This is Linux' defining characteristic, and ensures a steady rate of improvement and influx of fresh blood into both the userbase and the developer base.
"I think it's time to stop giving Windows Phone a pass." This phrase sums up exactly what's wrong with Windows Phone 7. I've been clear in the past: I love Windows Phone 7. I love its uniqueness, its design, its underlying ideas and paradigms. However, while I'm more than willing to give new platforms a free pass on certain things, the honeymoon has to end. At some point, a platform is no longer new, and has to stand on its own two legs - especially when that platform comes from one of the world's largest and most powerful companies.
We've reached this point, it would seem. The Lumia represents the best of the best of the Windows Phone world, and it simply doesn't stack up to the competition. The combined financial and human resources of Microsoft and Nokia have been unable to deliver a platform that can measure up to the competition when the training wheels are off.
Topolsky got a lot of flak for it both on The Verge's comments and on Twitter, but he has it exactly right.


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In his 1993 classic, "Listening to Prozac," Peter D. Kramer discusses how psychotropic drugs affect the art and science of psychiatric diagnosis. The successful use of lithium to treat manic depression, for example, helped substantiate the diagnosis and define the disease's boundaries.
This piece first ran in Printers Row Journal, delivered to Printers Row members with the Sunday Chicago Tribune and by digital edition via email. Click here to learn about joining Printers Row.
Then Kramer, with his customary agility, complicates the picture: Because of lithium's efficacy, he writes, "American psychiatrists became such enthusiastic diagnosers of manic depression [now called bipolar disorder] that today only half of the patients who receive that diagnosis respond to lithium," severing the formerly reliable link between drug and disease.
That single example only begins to hint at the fluid nature of psychiatric diagnosis, which today seems more contested than ever. It is dependent not just on drug response, which can vary from person to person, but on the subjective observation of fluctuating symptoms that may denote different diseases or syndromes — or, some might argue, mere eccentricities of personality.
The promise of neurology — that it would someday find physiological correlates for mental disorders — has yet to be fulfilled. Without biological certainty, psychiatrists and other mental health professionals are left with theory, conjecture, experiment and the choice of disentangling or aggregating ("splitting" or "lumping") the outward manifestations of apparent illnesses.
The latest guidebook to this potholed and ill-lit territory is the 5th edition of the American Psychiatric Association's "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders," popularly known as DSM-5. The last major revision of the manual, DSM-IV, appeared in 1994. So the publication in May of this version of the so-called bible of psychiatry is a generational event, with cultural, scientific and practical significance for everyone from insurance companies to potential patients.
To many critics, this veritable doorstop of a book, 947 pages long, has been a massive disappointment. In recent weeks, even the National Institute of Mental Health has rejected its use as a research paradigm. The DSM-5 has taken hits for the alleged lack of transparency involved in its assembly, the profusion of new diseases it creates (including "hoarding disorder" and, for temper-tantrum-prone children, "disruptive mood dysregulation disorder") and its inability (not unlike DSMs past) to constitute anything beyond a series of guesses to be hazarded until something better comes along.
Two necessary new books sum up the complaints. The more engaging, radical and generally delectable of the two is Gary Greenberg's "The Book of Woe: The DSM and the Unmaking of Psychiatry." The author of "Manufacturing Depression" (2010), Greenberg is a practicing psychotherapist who writes with the insight of a professional and the panache of a literary journalist.
By contrast, Allen Frances' "Saving Normal: An Insider's Revolt Against Out-of-Control Psychiatric Diagnosis, DSM-5, Big Pharma, and the Medicalization of Ordinary Life" can seem plodding and repetitive. But its importance lies in the fact that Frances himself is a former pillar of the psychiatric establishment, the chairman of the task force that developed DSM-IV, and now a staunch critic of many of his former colleagues.
Greenberg's perspective is that specific mental diseases are for the most part social constructs, devoid of scientific validity — and that to presume otherwise is farcical and misleading. In Greenberg's view, various missteps in the development of the DSM-5 are merely more nails in the coffin of psychiatric diagnosis.
In his brilliant take-down of the psychiatric profession, Greenberg begins with an inflammatory example: the 19th-century positing of a malady dubbed "drapetomania," whose main symptom was running away from slavery. A more recent and better-known case is psychiatry's struggle with homosexuality, considered a psychiatric condition until 1973. Immediately before then, Greenberg writes, the listing of homosexuality in the DSM "meant that doctors could get paid to treat it, scientists could search for its causes and cures, employers could shun its victims, and families could urge them to seek help, even as gay people conducted their intimacies in furtive encounters, lived in fear and shame, lost jobs, forwent careers, and chained themselves to marriages they didn't want."
From there, Greenberg homes in on the present-day consequences of the DSM, including what he sees as the overly widespread use of antidepressants, often with crippling side effects, and the medication of children allegedly suffering from bipolar disorder, resulting in yet more side effects.
He, too, has been implicated, he says, as "a mental health professional who has been faithfully filling out insurance forms for thirty years, jotting down those five-digit codes from the DSM that open the money taps, rendering diagnoses even though you're pretty sure you're not treating medical conditions."
Greenberg's larger critique, about the squishiness of diagnostic categories and the fallibility of diagnosis in general, is the chief strength of his book. But he also is angry about the monopoly that psychiatrists (as opposed to other mental health professionals) exert on diagnosis through the DSM, and the fact that its publication is a profit center for the American Psychiatric Association.
"The Book of Woe" offers a lucid and useful history of classification attempts in psychiatry — what is known as nosology. Greenberg argues that as psychoanalysis, which dominated American psychiatry in the mid-20th-century, came to seem more metaphysics than science, the profession shifted to the description of symptoms. That was the underlying ideology of the DSM-III, the book that "restored both internal and external confidence in psychiatry," Greenberg writes.
Yet while "descriptive psychiatry was no small achievement," the continual revision of the DSM showed that "the categories, the boundaries between them, and the criteria within them" were "not discoveries of nature at work" but rather "approximations" based on both observation and opinion.
Greenberg himself is not simply a philosopher of mental illness. He has interviewed, with surprising sympathy, many of the prime movers behind the DSM, including the psychiatrists Robert Spitzer (who helmed DSM-III); his successor, Allen Frances (DSM-IV); Michael First (DSM-IV-TR); and David Kupfer and Darrel Regier (DSM-5).
He details — possibly more than we require — DSM-5 struggles over a variety of issues: whether grief due to bereavement should be diagnosed as depression; what sort of labels should apply to oppositional, moody kids; whether to collapse autism variants (including Asperger syndrome) into a single disorder, and more. He describes with relish political infighting, including Frances' key role as a critic.
Frances' "Saving Normal" further delineates his critique. As his title indicates, he believes that psychiatric diagnosis has been running amok. He views unverifiable new diseases, paired with direct consumer advertising, as a bounty for drug manufacturers, or "Big Pharma." He worries about the dominance of biological psychiatry and the proliferation of drug side effects.
Frances begins his book with a mea culpa. Even his own, more conservative DSM-IV, he says, with its "temporarily useful diagnostic constructs," failed to predict or prevent "three new false epidemics of mental disorder in children — autism, attention deficit, and childhood bipolar disorder." It also failed, more generally, "to contain the rampant diagnostic inflation that was already expanding the boundary of psychiatry far beyond its competence."
Today, he is concerned that "loose diagnosis is causing a national drug overdose of medication" — with an astonishing 80 percent of prescriptions being written by primary-care physicians, rather than psychiatrists, who presumably would know better.
Equally troubling, Frances argues, psychiatric resources are badly misallocated, with the "worried well" receiving too much treatment, and the severely mentally ill too little. At a single party chatting with colleagues, he says, he found himself "qualified for many of the new disorders," including "binge-eating disorder" for his attacks on the buffet and "major depressive disorder" for his grief over his wife's death. (Instead of collapsing grief into depression, a controversial change under discussion, the final version of the DSM-5 includes a footnote seeking to distinguish the two.)
Unlike Greenberg, Frances doesn't want to blow up psychiatric diagnosis, but rather to restrain it — and in the process preserve both psychiatry and the realm of the normal. Yet he is humble enough to confess that "normal" can't be clearly defined, not without biological markers that don't yet exist. That, he says, "means that all of our diagnoses are now based on subjective judgments that are inherently fallible and prey to capricious change" — a conclusion that places him uncomfortably close to Greenberg on the philosophical spectrum.
Julia M. Klein is a cultural reporter and critic in Philadelphia and a contributing editor at Columbia Journalism Review.
"Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders"
By the American Psychiatric Association, American Psychiatric Publishing, 947 pages, $149 paperback
"The Book of Woe"
By Gary Greenberg, Blue Rider Press, 403 pages, $28.95
"Saving Normal"
By Allen Frances M.D., William Morrow, 314 pages, $27.99


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What is Tenori-On?
What is Tenori-On
Media artist Toshio Iwai and Yamaha have collaborated to design a new digital musical instrument for the 21st century, Tenori-On. A 16x16 matrix of LED switches allows everyone to play music intuitively, creating a "visible music" interface.
Tenori-On "Modes"
The Tenori-On 16 x 16 LED button matrix is simultaneously a performance input controller and display. By operating and interacting with the LED buttons and the light they produce you gain access to the Tenori-On's numerous performance capabilities.
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WikipediaRead full entry
Coral snake
Coral snakes are a large group of elapid snakes that can be subdivided into two distinct groups, Old World coral snakes and New World coral snakes. There are 16 species of Old World coral snake in three genera (Calliophis, Hemibungarus and Sinomicrurus), and over 65 recognized species of New World coral snakes in three genera (Leptomicrurus, Micruroides, and Micrurus). Genetic studies have found that the most basal lineages are Asian, indicating that the group originated in the Old World.[1][2]
North American coloration patterns[edit]
Coral snakes are most notable for their red, yellow/white, and black colored banding. (However, several nonvenomous species have similar coloration, including the scarlet snake, genus Cemophora, some of the kingsnakes and milk snakes, genus Lampropeltis, and the shovelnose snakes, genus Chionactis.) In some regions, the order of the bands distinguishes between the non-venomous mimics and the venomous coral snakes, quite a few mnemonics:
- "Red and yellow, kill a fellow. Red and black, friend of Jack."
- "Red on yellow will kill a fellow, but red on black is a friend of Jack."
- "Red on yellow, deadly fellow; Red on black, venom lack."
- "Red and yellow will kill you fellow; Red and black is friend Jack."
- "Red on yellow, kill a fellow. Red on black, you're all right Jack."
- "Red next to black is a friend of Jack; red next to yellow will kill a fellow."
- "Red to yellow, kill a fellow. Red to black, venom lack."
- "If red touches black, you're okay Jack; if red touches yellow, you're a dead fellow."
- "Red next to black, you can pat him on the back; red next to yellow, he can kill a fellow."
- "Red next to black, venom I lack; red next to yellow, run away fellow."
- "Red and black, friend of Jack; red and yellow kill a fellow."
- "Red touches yellow, not a nice fellow; if red touches black, good friend of Jack."
- "Red touch yellow, you're a dead fellow; red touch black, you're okay Jack."
- "Red touch black, good for Jack; red touch yellow, kill a fellow."
- "Yellow and red, you are dead; black and white you're all right."
- "Red and black, death you lack; yellow and red, you are dead; black and white, say good night;"
- "Red touch yellow, kill a fellow; red touch black, venom lack."
- "Red and yellow, deadly fellow; red and black, friendly Jack."
- "Red next to yellow, a dangerous fellow."
- "Red and yellow = Stop and use caution. Just like a stop light."
Instead of poetry, remembering that yellow touches both other colors can indicate a cause for caution. However, this reliably applies only to coral snakes native to North America: Micrurus fulvius (Eastern or common coral snake), Micrurus tener (Texas coral snake), and Micruroides euryxanthus (Arizona coral snake), found in the southern and western United States. Coral snakes found in other parts of the world can have distinctly different patterns, have red bands touching black bands, have only pink and blue banding, or have no banding at all.
Most species of coral snake are small in size. North American species average around 3 feet (91 cm) in length, but specimens of up to 5 feet (150 cm) or slightly larger have been reported. Aquatic species have flattened tails acting as a fin, aiding in swimming.
Coral snakes vary widely in their behavior, but most are very elusive, fossorial snakes which spend the vast majority of their time buried beneath the ground or in the leaf litter of a rainforest floor, coming to the surface only when it rains or during breeding season. Some species, like Micrurus surinamensis, are almost entirely aquatic and spend most of their lives in slow-moving bodies of water that have dense vegetation.
Like all elapid snakes, coral snakes possess a pair of small fangs to deliver their venom. These fangs, which are enlarged and hollow, deliver their venom to their prey species, feeding mostly on smaller snakes, lizards, frogs, nestling birds, and rodents, etc. The venom takes time to take full effect.[3]
Coral snakes have a tendency to hold on to a victim when biting, unlike vipers, which have retractable fangs and tend to prefer to strike, letting go immediately. Coral snakes are not aggressive or prone to biting and account for less than one percent of the number of snake bites each year in the United States.
New World coral snakes exist in the southern range of many temperate U.S. states. Coral snakes are found in scattered localities in the southern coastal plain from North Carolina to Louisiana, including all of Florida. They can be found in pine and scrub oak sandhill habitats in parts of this range but sometimes inhabit hardwood areas and pine flatwoods that undergo seasonal flooding.[4]
There is controversy about the classification of the very similar Texas coral snake as a separate species. Its habitat, in Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, and sometimes in Oklahoma due to floods in the Red River, is separated from the eastern habitat by the Mississippi River. The coral snake population is most dense in the southeast United States, but coral snakes have been spotted as far north as Kentucky.[5]
The Arizona coral snake, clearly a separate species and genus, is found in central and southern Arizona, extreme southwestern New Mexico and southward to Sinaloa in western Mexico. It occupies arid and semiarid regions in many different habitat types including thornscrub, desert-scrub, woodland, grassland and farmland. It is found in the plains and lower mountain slopes from sea level to 5800 feet (1768 m); often found in rocky areas.[6]
Danger to humans[edit]
New World coral snakes possess one of the most potent venoms of any North American snake. However, relatively few bites are recorded due to their reclusive nature and the fact they generally inhabit sparsely populated areas. According to the American National Institutes of Health, there are an average of 15–25 coral snake bites in the United States each year.[7]
When confronted by humans, coral snakes will almost always attempt to flee, and bite only as a last resort. In addition, coral snakes have short fangs (proteroglyph dentition) that cannot penetrate thick leather clothing. Any skin penetration however, is a medical emergency that requires immediate attention. Coral snakes have a powerful neurotoxin that paralyzes the breathing muscles; mechanical or artificial respiration, along with large doses of antivenom, are often required to save a victim's life. There is usually only mild pain associated with a bite, but respiratory failure can occur within hours.
Antivenom shortage[edit]
The bite of a coral snake may soon be more dangerous, in part because bites are so uncommon. Production of coral snake antivenom in the United States ceased because it is not profitable. According to Pfizer, the owner of the company that used to make Coralmyn, it would take over $5–$10 million to put toward researching a new synthetic antivenom.[citation needed][clarification needed] The cost was too large for the small number of cases presented each year. The American antivenom stock expired in 2008, but the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has extended the expiration date every year through at least 2013.[8] Foreign pharmaceutical manufacturers have produced other coral snake antivenoms, but the costs of licensing them in the United States have stalled availability (see above).[9] Instituto Bioclon is developing a coral snake antivenom.[10] In 2013, Pfizer was reportedly working on a new batch of antivenom but had not announced when it would become available.[8]
Old World[edit]
Genus Calliophis[edit]
|Wikispecies has information related to: Calliophis
Species in this genus are:
- Calliophis beddomei M.A. Smith, 1943 – Beddome's coral snake (India)
- Calliophis bibroni (Jan, 1858) – Bibron's coral snake (India)
- Calliophis bivirgatus (F. Boie, 1827) – blue Malaysian coral snake (Indonesia, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand)
- Calliophis castoe E.N. Smith, Ogale, Deepak & Giri, 2012 – Castoe's coral snake (India)
- Calliophis gracilis Gray, 1835 – spotted coral snake (Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore)
- Calliophis haematoetron E.N. Smith, Manamendra-Arachchi & Somweera, 2008 – blood-bellied coral snake (Sri Lanka)
- Calliophis intestinalis (Laurenti, 1768) – banded Malaysian coral snake (Indonesia, Malaysia)
- Calliophis maculiceps (Günther, 1858) – speckled coral snake (Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos)
- Calliophis melanurus (Shaw, 1802) – Indian coral snake (India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka)
- Calliophis nigrescens (Günther, 1862) – black coral snake (India)
Nota bene: A binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a different genus.
Genus Hemibungarus[edit]
|Wikispecies has information related to: Hemibungarus
Species in this genus are:
Genus Sinomicrurus[edit]
Species in this genus are:
- Sinomicrurus hatori (Takahashi, 1930) (Taiwan)
- Sinomicrurus japonicus (Günther, 1868) – Japanese coral snake (Ryukyu Islands)
- Sinomicrurus kelloggi (Pope, 1928) – Kellogg's coral snake (Vietnam, Laos, China)
- Sinomicrurus macclellandi (J.T. Reinhardt, 1844) – Macclelland's coral snake (India, Nepal, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, China, Ryukyu Islands, Taiwan)
- Sinomicrurus sauteri (Steindachner, 1913) (Taiwan)
New World[edit]
Genus Leptomicrurus[edit]
- Leptomicrurus collaris (Schlegel, 1837) – Guyana blackback coral snake (northern South America)
- Leptomicrurus collaris collaris (Schlegel, 1837)
- Leptomicrurus collaris breviventris (Roze & Bernal-Carlo, 1987)
- Leptomicrurus narduccii (Jan, 1863) - Andean blackback coral snake
- Leptomicrurus narduccii narduccii (Jan, 1863)
- Leptomicrurus narduccii melanotus (W. Peters, 1881)
Genus Micruroides[edit]
|Wikispecies has information related to: Micruroides
- Micruroides euryxanthus (Kennicott, 1860) – Arizona coral snake (lowland regions from Arizona to Sinaloa, Mexico)
Genus Micrurus[edit]
|Wikispecies has information related to: Micrurus
- Micrurus alleni K.P. Schmidt, 1936 – Allen's coral snake (eastern Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama)
- Micrurus alleni alleni K.P. Schmidt, 1936
- Micrurus alleni richardi Taylor, 1951
- Micrurus alleni yatesi Taylor, 1954
- Micrurus altirostris (Cope, 1860) (Brazil, Uruguay, and northeastern Argentina)
- Micrurus ancoralis (Jan, 1872) - regal coral snake (southeastern Panama, western Colombia, and western Ecuador)
- Micrurus ancoralis ancoralis (Jan, 1872)
- Micrurus ancoralis jani K.P. Schmidt, 1936
- Micrurus annellatus (W. Peters, 1871) – annellated coral snake (southeastern Ecuador, eastern Peru, Bolivia, and western Brazil)
- Micrurus annellatus annellatus (W. Peters, 1871)
- Micrurus annellatus balzanii (Boulenger, 1898)
- Micrurus annellatus bolivianus Roze, 1967
- Micrurus averyi K.P. Schmidt, 1939 - black-headed coral snake
- Micrurus bernadi (Cope, 1887) (Mexico)
- Micrurus bocourti (Jan, 1872) – Ecuadorian coral snake (western Ecuador to northern Colombia)
- Micrurus bogerti Roze, 1967 – Bogert's coral snake (Oaxaca)
- Micrurus browni K.P. Schmidt & H.M. Smith, 1943 – Brown's coral snake (Quintana Roo to Honduras)
- Micrurus browni browni K.P. Schmidt & H.M. Smith, 1943
- Micrurus browni importunus Roze, 1967
- Micrurus browni taylori K.P. Schmidt & H.M. Smith, 1943
- Micrurus camilae Renjifo & Lundberg, 2003 (Colombia)
- Micrurus catamayensis Roze, 1989 – Catamayo coral snake (Catamayo Valley of Ecuador)
- Micrurus clarki K.P. Schmidt, 1936 – Clark's coral snake (southeastern Costa Rica to western Colombia)
- Micrurus corallinus (Merrem, 1820) - painted coral snake
- Micrurus decoratus (Jan, 1858) - Brazilian coral snake
- Micrurus diana Roze, 1983
- Micrurus diastema (A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854) - variable coral snake
- Micrurus diastema aglaeope (Cope, 1859)
- Micrurus diastema alienus (F. Werner, 1903)
- Micrurus diastema affinis (Jan, 1858)
- Micrurus diastema apiatus (Jan, 1858)
- Micrurus diastema diastema (A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854)
- Micrurus diastema macdougalli Roze, 1967
- Micrurus diastema sapperi (F. Werner, 1903)
- Micrurus dissoleucus (Cope, 1860) - pygmy coral snake
- Micrurus dissoleucus dissoleucus (Cope, 1860)
- Micrurus dissoleucus dunni Barbour, 1923
- Micrurus dissoleucus melanogenys (Cope, 1860)
- Micrurus dissoleucus meridensis Roze, 1989
- Micrurus dissoleucus nigrirostris K.P. Schmidt, 1955
- Micrurus distans (Kennicott, 1860) - West Mexican coral snake
- Micrurus distans distans (Kennicott, 1860)
- Micrurus distans michoacanensis (Dugės, 1891)
- Micrurus distans oliveri Roze, 1967
- Micrurus distans zweifeli Roze, 1967
- Micrurus dumerilii (Jan, 1858)
- Micrurus dumerilii antioquiensis K.P. Schmidt, 1936
- Micrurus dumerilii carinicaudus K.P. Schmidt, 1936
- Micrurus dumerilii colombianus (Griffin, 1916)
- Micrurus dumerilii dumerilii (Jan, 1858)
- Micrurus dumerilii transandinus K.P. Schmidt, 1936
- Micrurus dumerilii venezuelensis Roze, 1989
- Micrurus elegans (Jan, 1858) - elegant coral snake
- Micrurus elegans elegans (Jan, 1858)
- Micrurus elegans veraepacis K.P. Schmidt, 1933
- Micrurus ephippifer (Cope, 1886) - Oaxacan coral snake
- Micrurus ephippifer ephippifer (Cope, 1886)
- Micrurus ephippifer zapotecus Roze, 1989
- Micrurus filiformis (Günther, 1859) - slender coral snake
- Micrurus filiformis filiformis (Günther, 1859)
- Micrurus filiformis subtilis Roze, 1967
- Micrurus frontalis (A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854) – southern coral snake (Brazil to northeastern Argentina)
- Micrurus frontalis brasiliensis Roze, 1967
- Micrurus frontalis frontalis (A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854)
- Micrurus frontalis mesopotamicus Barrio & Miranda 1967
- Micrurus frontifasciatus (F. Werner, 1927) - Bolivian coral snake
- Micrurus fulvius (Linnaeus, 1766) – eastern coral snake (U.S. coastal plains of North Carolina to Louisiana)
- Micrurus hemprichii (Jan, 1858) - Hemprich's coral snake
- Micrurus hemprichii hemprichii (Jan, 1858)
- Micrurus hemprichii ortoni K.P. Schmidt, 1953
- Micrurus hemprichii rondonianus Roze & da Silva, 1990
- Micrurus hippocrepis (W. Peters, 1862) - Mayan coral snake
- Micrurus ibiboboca (Merrem, 1820) - Caatinga coral snake
- Micrurus isozonus (Cope, 1860) - Venezuela coral snake
- Micrurus langsdorffi (Wagler, 1824) - Langsdorff's coral snake
- Micrurus langsdorffi langsdorffi (Wagler, 1824)
- Micrurus langsdorffi ornatissimus (Jan, 1858)
- Micrurus laticollaris (W. Peters, 1870) - Balsan coral snake
- Micrurus laticollaris laticollaris (W. Peters, 1870)
- Micrurus laticollaris maculirostris Roze, 1967
- Micrurus latifasciatus K.P. Schmidt, 1933 - broad-ringed coral snake
- Micrurus lemniscatus (Linnaeus, 1758) - South American coral snake (most of low lying areas of South America)
- Micrurus lemniscatus carvalhoi Roze, 1967
- Micrurus lemniscatus diutius Burger, 1955
- Micrurus lemniscatus frontifasciatus (F. Werner, 1927)
- Micrurus lemniscatus helleri K.P. Schmidt & F.J.W. Schmidt, 1925
- Micrurus lemniscatus lemniscatus (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Micrurus limbatus Fraser, 1964 - Tuxtlan coral snake
- Micrurus limbatus limbatus Fraser, 1964
- Micrurus limbatus spilosomus Pérez-Higaredo & H.M. Smith, 1990
- Micrurus margaritiferus Roze, 1967 - speckled coral snake
- Micrurus medemi Roze, 1967
- Micrurus mertensi K.P. Schmidt, 1936 - Merten's coral snake
- Micrurus mipartitus (A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854) - redtail coral snake
- Micrurus mipartitus anomalus (Boulenger, 1896)
- Micrurus mipartitus decussatus (A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron, & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854)
- Micrurus mipartitus mipartitus (A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854)
- Micrurus mipartitus semipartitus (Jan, 1858)
- Micrurus multifasciatus (Jan, 1858) - many-banded coral snake
- Micrurus multifasciatus multifasciatus (Jan, 1858)
- Micrurus multifasciatus hertwigi (F. Werner, 1897)
- Micrurus multiscutatus Rendahl & Vestergren, 1940 - Cauca coral snake
- Micrurus nebularis Roze, 1989 - cloud forest coral snake
- Micrurus nigrocinctus (Girard, 1854) – Central American coral snake (Yucatan and Chiapas to Colombia as well as western Caribbean islands)
- Micrurus nigrocinctus babaspul Roze, 1967
- Micrurus nigrocinctus coibensis K.P. Schmidt, 1936
- Micrurus nigrocinctus divaricatus (Hallowell, 1855)
- Micrurus nigrocinctus mosquitensis K.P. Schmidt, 1933
- Micrurus nigrocinctus nigrocinctus (Girard, 1854)
- Micrurus nigrocinctus ovandoensis K.P. Schmidt & H.M. Smith, 1943
- Micrurus nigrocinctus wagneri Mertens, 1941
- Micrurus nigrocinctus yatesi Dunn, 1942
- Micrurus nigrocinctus zunilensis K.P. Schmidt, 1932
- Micrurus pacaraimae Morato de Carvalho, 2002
- Micrurus pachecogili Campbell, 2000
- Micrurus paraensis da Cunha & Nascimento, 1973
- Micrurus peruvianus K.P. Schmidt, 1936 - Peruvian coral snake
- Micrurus petersi Roze, 1967 - Peters' coral snake
- Micrurus proximans H.M. Smith & Chrapliwy, 1958 - Nayarit coral snake
- Micrurus psyches (Daudin, 1803) - Carib coral snake
- Micrurus psyches circinalis (A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854)
- Micrurus psyches donosoi Hoge, Cordeiro & Romano, 1976
- Micrurus psyches psyches (Daudin, 1803)
- Micrurus putumayensis Lancini, 1962 - Putumayo coral snake
- Micrurus pyrrhocryptus (Cope, 1862)
- Micrurus remotus Roze, 1987
- Micrurus renjifoi Lamar, 2003
- Micrurus ruatanus (Günther, 1895) - Roatán coral snake
- Micrurus sangilensis Nicéforo-María, 1942 - Santander coral snake
- Micrurus scutiventris (Cope, 1869)
- Micrurus silviae Di-Bernardo et al., 2007
- Micrurus spixii (Wagler, 1824) - Amazon coral snake
- Micrurus spixiii martiusi K.P. Schmidt, 1953
- Micrurus spixii obscurus (Jan, 1872)
- Micrurus spixii princeps (Boulenger, 1905)
- Micrurus spixii spixii (Wagler, 1824)
- Micrurus spurelli (Boulenger, 1914)
- Micrurus steindachneri (F. Werner, 1901) - Steindachner's coral snake
- Micrurus steindachneri orcesi Roze, 1967
- Micrurus steindachneri steindachneri (F. Werner, 1901)
- Panamanian coral snake, Micrurus stewarti Barbour & Amaral, 1928
- Micrurus stuarti Roze, 1967 - Stuart's coral snake
- Aquatic coral snake, Micrurus surinamensis (Cuvier, 1817)
- Micrurus surinamensis nattereri K.P. Schmidt, 1952
- Micrurus surinamensis surinamensis (Cuvier, 1817)
- Micrurus tamaulipensis Lavin-Murcio & Dixon, 2004 (Sierra Madre Oriental in Tamaulipas)
- Micrurus tener (Baird & Girard, 1853) – Texas coral snake (Texas and Louisiana south to Morelos and Guanajuato)
- Micrurus tener fitzingeri (Jan, 1858)
- Micrurus tener maculatus Roze, 1967
- Micrurus tener microgalbineus Brown, & H.M. Smith, 1942
- Micrurus tener tener (Baird & Girard, 1853)
- Micrurus tricolor Hoge, 1956
- Micrurus tschudii (Jan, 1858) - desert coral snake
- Micrurus tschudii olssoni K.P. Schmidt & F.J.W. Schmidt, 1925
- Micrurus tschudii tschudii (Jan, 1858)
New World coral snakes serve as models for their Batesian mimics, false coral snakes, snake species whose venom is less toxic, as well as for many nonvenomous snake species that bear superficial resemblances to them. The role of coral snakes as models for Batesian mimics is supported by research showing that coral snake color patterns deter predators from attacking snake-shaped prey,[11][12] and that in the absence of coral snakes, species hypothesized to mimic them are indeed attacked more frequently.[13] Species that appear similar to coral snakes include:
- Cemophora coccinea
- Chionactis palarostris
- Erythrolamprus aesculapii
- Erythrolamprus bizona
- Erythrolamprus ocellatus, Tobago false coral
- Lampropeltis pyromelana
- Lampropeltis triangulum, milk snake, including the following subspecies and others:
- Lampropeltis zonata
- Oxyrhopus petola
- Pliocercus elapoides, variegated false coral snake
- Rhinocheilus lecontei tessellatus
- ^ Slowinski, J. B. and Keogh J. S. (April 2000). "Phylogenetic Relationships of Elapid Snakes Based on Cytochrome b mtDNA Sequences". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 15 (1): 157–164. doi:10.1006/mpev.1999.0725. PMID 10764543.
- ^ Slowinski, J. B., Boundy, J. and Lawson, R. (June 2001). "The Phylogenetic Relationships of Asian Coral Snakes (Elapidae: Calliophis and Maticora) Based on Morphological and Molecular Characters". Herpetologica 57 (2): 233–245. JSTOR 3893186.
- ^ "Coral Snakes, coral snake, pictures". Retrieved 24 November 2009.
- ^ University of Georgia, Savannah River Ecology, Snakes of Georgia and South Carolina
- ^ Western Connecticut State University
- ^ Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum
- ^ "Snake bites: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia". Nlm.nih.gov. 2010-01-13. Retrieved 2010-11-16.
- ^ a b Breen, David (12 October 2013). "Risk from coral-snake bites grows as antivenin dwindles". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved 25 May 2014.
- ^ "Antivenom Shortages – Cost of Antivenom Production Creates Shortages". Popular Mechanics. 2010-05-10. Retrieved 2010-11-16.
- ^ "Our Products – Coralmyn". Bioclon.com.mx. Retrieved 2010-11-16.
- ^ Brodie III, Edmund D. (1993). "Differential avoidance of coral snake banded patterns by free-ranging avian predators in Costa Rica". Evolution 47 (1): 227–235. doi:10.2307/2410131.
- ^ Brodie III, Edmund D., Moore, Allen J. (1995). "Experimental studies of coral snake mimicry: do snakes mimic millipedes?". Animal Behavior 49 (2): 534–6. doi:10.1006/anbe.1995.0072.
- ^ Pfennig, David W., Harcombe, William R., Pfennig, Karin S. (2001). "Frequncy-dependent Batesian mimicry". Nature 410 (6826): 323. doi:10.1038/35066628. PMID 11268195.
Further reading[edit]
- Boulenger, G.A. 1896. Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume III., Containing the Colubridæ (Opisthoglyphæ and Proteroglyphæ)... Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, Printers.) London. xiv + 727 pp. + Plates I.- XXV. (Elaps, 28 species, pp. 411–433 + Plate XX.)
- Roze, J.A. 1996. Coral Snakes of the Americas: Biology, Identification, and Venoms. Krieger. Malabar, Florida. 340 pp. ISBN 978-0894648472.
- Tanaka G. D., Furtado Md. F. D., Portaro F. C. V., Sant'Anna O. A. & Tambourgi D. V. (2010). "Diversity of Micrurus Snake Species Related to Their Venom Toxic Effects and the Prospective of Antivenom Neutralization". PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases 4(3): e622. doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0000622


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The California Department of Pesticide Regulation has proposed cancellation of nearly 100 pesticide products because registrants failed to provide data to protect the state's air quality.
DPR took action based on a re-evaluation notice sent to registrants -- manufacturers and sellers -- on February 16, 2005. The notice required registrants to submit data on volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in their products by the end of last year.
VOCs contribute to ground-level ozone, an air pollutant harmful to humans and plant life. DPR is working to reduce VOCs in pesticides to meet state air quality goals.
DPR received acceptable responses for 579 products. But 53 of the 218 registrants failed to submit data for a total of 97 different agricultural and structural-use chemicals.
"DPR made every effort to work with registrants -- and a large majority cooperated -- but the response from these remaining registrants was unacceptable," said Director Mary-Ann Warmerdam. "We have repeatedly emphasized the importance of this data toward improving air quality, so cancellations are both necessary and appropriate."
DPR has scheduled hearings June 28-30 on the cancellations. Once ordered, cancellations may take effect 30 days after hearings.
Second review
Meanwhile, the Department is reviewing responses to a second VOC notice issued in May 2005 and due March 1. Those notices required 177 registrants to tell DPR how they would reformulate 748 products to reduce VOCs, or explain why reformulation was impractical. DPR expects to act on those notices later this year.
California law requires that any pesticide product sold or used in the state must be registered with DPR as well as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Sale of unregistered pesticides is punishable by fines of up to $5,000 per individual sale.
California has about 11,000 registered pesticide products.
One of six departments and boards within the California Environmental Protection Agency, DPR regulates the sale and use of pesticides to protect people and the environment.


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text:
RETURNING MEMBERSPlease log into the Member's Area and then click the Member Registration link under the Member Menu to begin the sign-up process.
NEW MEMBERSPlease register as a new user on the website. When your access is approved, please log into the Member's Area and begin the sign-up process.
Are you interested in becoming a member of the Thessalon Community Curling Club? New to curling? Check out Curling Basics to learn the basics about our favorite sport. View our League Description page for more information or email us with your questions.


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CHICAGO, Nov. 13, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- OM Securities LLC is pleased to announce that MLN Brokerage Services has joined the firm.
MLN Brokerage Services (tradeMLN.com) – formerly named bxChicago, recently became an independent branch office of OM Securities LLC. As a result, MLN clients have access to the tradeMONSTER platform that was named Barron's "Top-rated Web-only Broker" in 2012, earning 4.5 stars in addition to being named "Best of Options Traders".*
"We are pleased to be able to offer our cutting edge trading platform to Independent Brokers and allowing for the best of both worlds for their clients," stated Jim Swartwout, President of OM Securities LLC. "The team at MLN has a long history of providing clients with top level service and we look forward to supporting that effort going forward."
MLN serves both self-directed investors and those needing guidance with a wide array of experience and knowledge. From novice investors to those who are well-seasoned, the MLN team—Michael Lavelle, Edward Nesbitt and Roger Mankus—offer financial experience and expertise, especially in options.
Besides understanding how options work, they recognize the importance of having a connection with the clients they serve. They designed a boutique service because they believe that there is a level of personal service that's missing from many shops.
"It's an exciting challenge. Being able to provide our clients with a top-rated trading platform and partnering with a firm that understands options was paramount. We evaluated many brokerage firms that offer the independent model and we are confident we made the right choice for our clients and MLN in choosing to partner with OM Securities, LLC," said Founding Partner Michael Lavelle. "Although our name has changed, our philosophy remains the same. We are committed to treating our clients the way we want to be treated—with integrity, professionalism and quality service."
About OM Securities LLC
Launched in 2008, tradeMONSTER, www.trademonster.com, is setting a new standard of excellence and innovation in the online brokerage industry. tradeMONSTER is the first online broker to deploy a streaming desktop-like trading experience in a web-browser. tradeMONSTER features a dynamic and customizable interface, integrated investor education, transparent commissions and an extremely knowledgeable and dedicated customer service team. tradeMONSTER's technology team prides itself on constant customer driven innovation and currently has 4 patents pending for one-of-kind investment tools embedded on the tradeMONSTER platform. The company's management team comprises former executives at Schwab, Fidelity, optionsXpress, ThinkorSwim and E*Trade, with an average 20 years of brokerage experience.
*Four Star 1/2 star Overall Rating and Four 1/2 star rating for "Best for Options Traders" from "Cut the Cord" in Barron's 3/12/2012. 4 out of possible 5 stars in: Trading Experience and Tech, Usability, Portfolio Analysis & Reports, Customer Service and Education and Research Amenities, Mobile. Barron's is a registered trademark of Dow Jones & Co. © 2012.
CONTACT: Media Contact Nancy Robles 312-253-4191 firstname.lastname@example.com:OM Securities LLC


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From OLPC
|Please copy/paste "{{Translationlist | xx | origlang=en | translated={{{translated}}}}}" (where xx is ISO 639 language code for your translation) to Developers/FAQ/translations
|HowTo [ID# 256299] +/-
This page collects questions that should eventually find their way into the main body of the Developer's handbook (i.e. these Developers/* pages), once we have a good place for them.
How do I do networking in Sugar?
Recommended pattern for networking applications on the OLPC laptops is to use the Tubes/Telepathy system. This is basically DBUS remote procedure calls over telepathy networking. The Telepathy framework allows for session establishment and routing across strange network topologies. See Activity sharing for an overview, and Collaboration Tutorial.
Sample Code:
The laptops will have IPv6 and IPv4 connectivity, they can use "normal" internet networking primitives as available in Python, Scheme and C.
- Standard Python supports synchronous and asynchronous networking including basic web-servers and the like.
- Twisted will not be available by default on the laptops but partial installs of the framework could be included in your activities if you want to do lots of multi-protocol networking operations
- PyRO (Python remote objects) is another common Python networking RPC approach.
- XMLRPC/SOAP can be used to produce web services
Can I use sockets over Tubes?
...to get the NAT traversal features and the like, but use old socket-based code?
Yes, use Stream Tubes, available in gabble and salut (but not salut before Update.1).
How do I create a persistent server/service?
- How do I register for start-time loading?
- Is there any dbus event service for loading only on response to messages? That is, not loading until there is an event of a given type, such as a presence event?
- Yes, of a sort, services are defined in .service files, these match a named service to an executable which is to provide that service. Thus one can register to handle requests for a given named service, but you still need to arrange to have that service called by something.
How do I access the special hardware?
While Sugar will run on many machines, the OLPC-XO has some special hardware which can be exploited by software.
Camera / Camera-as-video-camera (v4l2)
See GStreamer for general instructions and OLPCGames for Pygame-specific instructions.
Directional pad/buttons
- Have their own X key names
- See OLPCGames for Pygame-specific instructions, key layouts and discussion of using the directional pad for gaming situations
- Game pad maps to Home, End, Page-up, Page-down
- Directional pad maps to arrow keys (on the numeric keypad)
Touchpad / Glide Sensor
- Shows up as a normal mouse under X.
- This is not a multi-touch capable glide sensor.
Drawing pad (stylus pad)
- How to switch in/out of stylus mode?
- How to set interpretation parameters?
Audio-port probe
Best sample code currently available is in the Measure Activity.
- How to get access?
- You configure the ALSA mixer (using os.system in the example code) and then use gstreamer events to process the incoming audio-buffer "handoff" using a fake data sink. You unpack the data from the string values and get integer values. (Or just use the utility class (AudioGrab) in the Measure Activity).
- What's going to come out when I get access (keeping in mind I (the developer) likely won't have the actual hardware available)?
- You are processing a stream of audio data. In the sample code you are configuring gstreamer to produce a stream of integers at 48000 Hz. You should be able to produce the same effect using gstreamer on any linux box using your normal microphone port.
Mode-switching code for the screen
Much of this is controlled via the HardwareManager service on DBUS. There is sample code for getting a reference to the hardware manager in the Read Activity, from there, simply call the dbus-exposed methods to set the values you want. HardwareManager controlled operations:
- Display Controller (DCON) data-source (CPU or DCON)
- DCON freeze/unfreeze
- backlight brightness
- keyboard light brightness
- color/black and white mode
How do we:
- set all 8 (4 distinct) settings for MODE_MONO_LUMA, MODE_CSWIZZLE, MODE_COL_AA (as distinct from just colour/black and white)
- query, change, and restrict screen orientation
- drop to a lower resolution for performance or ease of porting, such as 600x450 or 400x300
See also Display.
How do I create my activity GUI?
- Can I just use Cairo, Pygame or GTK directly?
- How can a non-GTK (or Qt) app fully interact with Sugar?
- At the moment the Low-level Activity API is quite involved
- Can be "fixed" by creating a wrapper in Python (e.g. the ClassicGnome activity with a performance and memory penalty)
- Can write various DBUS services using a GTK event loop to provide the required introspection services (implies that GTK must be loaded by every process, regardless of whether it is needed)
- Can alter your core event loop to cooperate with an embedded GObject event loop (PyGame allows this, for instance), with the small concern that this requires loading GObject into your process' memory space
- How flexible does the GUI need to be?
- Should be able to handle a resize-and-rotate event from the X server
- Should be able to handle internationalisation/localisation, including to right-to-left-written scripts
- What's the best development approach:
- Write outside Sugar, finish and debug, then port?
- For older PowerPC-based Macs, this is likely the best approach
- Write to Sugar, test and debug within the system?
- Usable if you can set up a reasonably-performing emulated system or upgrade your system to support Sugar directly
- Write directly on the XO
- Usable if you are comfortable with command-line Linux editing tools, or want to use Etoys. As Develop becomes available this should become more approachable.
- Write outside Sugar, finish and debug, then port?
How do I package my activity?
- How do I work from an in-process activity (develop registration)?
- setup.py develop
- You can use sugar-activity to start the activity, but you have to manually close it (note that by default there is no way to easily kill a mis-behaving activity in Sugar)
- How do I produce a binary extension?
- On a workstation with Qemu, you can create a compilation workspace. (Using a Qemu qcow overlay lets you do this without corrupting your base OS image). Within that work-space, compile the packages you want using gcc, yum, and all the traditional tools. Package and upload the results.
- How do I share code between activities?
- How do I use (large, common) Python packages?
- The system will "unify" common files across packages, so if you have a large package and another activity also uses that package then the system will only store one copy of the package (using a file-by-file comparison).
- Numpy
- Matplotlib
- MySQL or PostgreSQL client code
- Twisted
- Zope Interfaces
- Pygsear, PGU or other PyGame extensions
- How do I provide my own base packages on top of which I have written dozens of applications?
- As with the common activities, the current plan is to have the system unify the packages on the laptop. There is a cost in that the packages must contain complete copies of their supporting framework for each activity.
- How do I use (large, common) Python packages?
How do I publish for others to download?
- The Activities page is where most users will go to find new Activities
- Any http (web) server can be used to distribute packages
- Users can download a .xo package, when the package completes downloading, they use the Journal activity to "resume" the downloaded package
- How do I tell users about updates to the packages?
How do I share files between applications?
Plan at the moment is to have file-sharing handled by the underlying system. That is, the system will simply notice that you have duplicate files with the same properties and hash and will share them between the two activities.
How do I test a Sugar activity?
- Use the standard logging module in Python where possible
- Start your activity normally, its logs will be sent to the ~/.sugar/default/logs/ directory named after your Activity's DBUS service
- You can use the built-in Log Viewer activity on production XO versions (build 649 and up), alternately you can just view the logs in a developer's console using less or vi
- If you like you can also use:
sugar-jhbuild shell sugar-activity YourActivityName
to run your activity from a shell and be able to drop into pdb or similar command-line debuggers.
How do I debug a Sugar activity?
If you start your Sugar activity from the command line (see above), you can insert a standard Python:
import pdb pdb.set_trace()
command into your activity and then use the Python debugger to step through your activity's behaviour. Note that this will "freeze" your application while you are working, so you may have display issues.
How do I edit with Emacs on the laptop?
- See Emacs or TextEditor for alternatives
How do I mount a USB drive?
Normally this is done automatically by the HAL when you plug the USB flash drive into the laptop. It will show up at the bottom of the Journal and as a directory in the /media folder. If, however, you had the USB key in when you started the machine, or the HAL doesn't recognize the key, you may not get the mount completed. In that case you can try manually mounting the key:
- Start Terminal Activity
- Become root: $ su
- Then make a place to mount it: $ mkdir /mnt/usb
- Then mount the drive: $ mount /dev/sda1 /mnt/usb
- Don't forget to unmount it before removal: $ umount /mnt/usb
- If anything fails you should edit your /etc/fstab file to include the mount point, device, and filesystem for the device to mount.


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Nepal souvenirs: what to bring back from the Himalayas
Nepal ranks high on most adventurers' bucket lists, and with good reason. Home to the magnificent Himalayas, Nepal reigns supreme when it comes to landscapes…
Treks in remote far eastern and far western Nepal are mostly restricted to two kinds of traveller, both adventurous in their own way. The majority come on organized camping treks with agencies – in fact, this is obligatory for those areas that require a permit. The minority are independent trekkers prepared either to carry tents and food and negotiate with porters, or to seek food and lodging in local homes and basic lodges. Independent travel is difficult in the west, where food shortages, relatively low population and cultural barriers can be problematic. Access is a problem on both sides of the country. In the east, Basantapur, the principal trailhead, is some 24 hours by bus from Kathmandu. Journey times to the far west by road – where there are roads – don't even bear calculating. Flights, therefore, are worth looking into. Few cost little more than $100 one-way, though some remote areas require two flights to reach.
Ethnically, EASTERN NEPAL is even more diverse than the Annapurna region: Rais and Limbus are dominant in the hills, while Sherpas, Tamangs and other highlanders inhabit the high country, and Hindu castes the valleys. Makalu, Kanchenjunga and other big peaks provide stunning views from most high points. Flora and fauna are also of great interest to specialists, especially the butterflies and other insects of the upper Arun Valley, and the rhododendrons of the Milke Daada. The east is relatively well-off, so in the settled areas, especially in the region around the Newari bazaar towns of Bhojpur, Chainpur and Khandbari, food and lodging is easy to come by – making fine country for adventurous trekkers who like exploring places that aren't written up in guidebooks. The serious mountain treks to Makalu and Kanchenjunga, however, require expedition-scale planning, official permits and agency support.
The Milke Daada
A long north–south ridge famed for its spectacular views and rhododendrons, the MILKE DAADA can be linked up with a visit to the bazaar town of Chainpur for a fine trek of seven or so days, going no higher than 3500m. From Basantapur the route heads north, initially following a rough road then continuing north on paths through the lush cloud forest of the Milke Daada, past the lakes at Gupha Pokhari (2890m). Various trails to Chainpur branch off to the west; from there you can hitch a jeep ride to the airstrip at Tumlingtar or return to Hile. Alternatively, you could head east from Gupha Pokhari to Taplejung airstrip. Both Tumlingtar and Taplejung airstrips have more frequent and reliable connections to Biratnagar, in the Eastern Terai, than to Kathmandu.
Basic food and lodging can be found along most of this route, but the absence of lodges north of Gupha Pokhari limits an independent trekker's ability to explore higher up the Milke Daada.
Makalu Base Camp
Much of the MAKALU BASE CAMP trek passes through the wild and remote Makalu-Barun National Park and the contiguous Makalu-Barun Conservation Area. Established in 1992, the park is intended to stem the growing human pressure around the base-camp area and preserve one of the most botanically diverse and wildlife-rich areas in the Himalayas. The usual starting point is the airstrip at Tumlingtar, though a marathon road trip could get you there (and even beyond, up to Khandbari) via Dharan, Hile and Basantapur. There are alternative routes on either side of the Arun for the first three or four days, but only one route above there for the next seven days or so (for which a tent and food are required) to the base camp, so you're obliged to retrace your steps most of the way back. The highest days take you over the Barun also known as the Shipton La (4127m), and into the remote Upper Barun valley, whose lofty beauty is often compared to the Annapurna Sanctuary.
The most incredible trek in this part of Nepal is to the foot of KANCHENJUNGA, the third-highest peak in the world at 8586m, and arguably the most romantic. Kanchenjunga is an expensive trek because it's officially restricted to agency-organized groups and, given its remote location in the extreme northeastern corner of the country, it involves up to three weeks' walking, or more if you plan to visit both south and north sides. Unofficially, it may be possible to do this trek independently, with an agency organizing your permit, and porters carrying your supplies for the upper elevations – there are basic bhattis to stay and eat in lower down. There's a Rs1000 fee to enter the Kanchenjunga Conservation Area.
The starting points are either the roadhead at Basantapur, initially following the trail up the Milke Daada, or, saving three days, the airstrip at Taplejung – which has occasional direct flights from Kathmandu but is more efficiently served via Biratnagar, in the Eastern Terai.
The trek passes deep into Limbu country, forking a few days northeast of Taplejung, one trail going to the snowy and fabulously scenic North Base Camp at glacier-strewn Pangpema, the other rollicking up and down on the way to the South Base Camp and the Yalung Glacier. (The high passes connecting the two are distinctly tricky propositions, and not to be considered without experienced guides.) Both routes offer terraced hills, wildlife-rich forests and a serious taste of unspoiled Nepali hill culture, along with fabulous views. The northern trail takes you deeper into the high mountains for longer – up to a week longer, with all the problems and risks that entails.
West of Dhaulagiri, the Himalayas retreat north into Tibet, while the foothill zone broadens, the climate becomes drier and the people poorer. The northern third of the region, left in the rain shadow of the Himalayas, receives little monsoon moisture – in every way but politically, this highland strip is part of Tibet. Jagged Himalayan grandeur isn't so much in evidence, but there's a wildness and a vastness here, and the feeling of isolation is thrilling. Treks in the FAR WEST are well off the beaten track: they're a chore to get to, they require a lot of preparation and, with the exception of Rara Lake, you'll find that very few Westerners have gone before you. All that might appeal if you're an experienced trekker looking for new challenges, but if you're a first-timer without agency support, forget it. That said, as roads gradually penetrate into the far west, trekking is becoming easier.
Logistics make or break a trek in the far west. Given the distances involved, you'll probably want to fly to the starting point, but the usual problems of confirming bookings are generally worse in this area. Food and lodging are in uncomfortably short supply, so you'll need to bring a tent, cooking utensils and at least some provisions. You should be prepared to carry it all yourself, because porters here are a fickle lot and often can't be spared from their farmwork. Guides familiar with the area are also scarce, so don't venture out without a reasonable command of Nepali. If you go on an organized trek you may not be entirely insulated from these inconveniences, and for this reason agencies may try to steer you towards more easterly destinations.
The treks described below are the most realistic possibilities.
Rara National Park
RARA NATIONAL PARK is the best known of the far western trekking areas. The usual itinerary is a loop that starts and ends at Jumla airstrip, three to four days' walk from the lake; most tours take about eight days for the trip. The country is a sea of choppy, mostly forested mountains, offering only glimpses of Himalayan peaks, but the highlight is Nepal's largest lake, a lofty blue jewel surrounded by a wilderness area of meadows and forests of blue pine and rhododendron.
To get to the trailhead you first have to fly to Nepalgunj and then from there to Jumla; flights are supposed to be daily in season, but are often cancelled. There is also an airstrip at Talcha, less than three hours from the lake beside Gumgarhi, the remote capital of Mugu district, but flights up from Nepalgunj are irregular and most people choose to walk from Jumla. The overland alternative is to head up from Birendra Nagar (Surkhet) towards Jumla, which is either a week to ten days' walk each way or a horrendously, unpredictably long bus journey – 48 hours isn't unrealistic – on the grandiously named Karnali Highway, via Dailekh, Kalikot and Sinja, where the ruins of the capital of the twelfth- to fourteenth-century Khasa dynasty can be viewed across the river. There are lodges in Jumla and a bunkhouse at the lake; in between, there are a few teahouses where you might be able to stay, but camping is more pleasant and certainly more reliable – especially as food can be in short supply.
Technical difficulties aside, Rara makes a fair compromise between the popular treks and the really obscure ones, and in a way combines the best of both worlds: like the popular treks, Rara is given detailed route descriptions in the trekking books, so you can do it without an organized group or even a guide, yet it's remote enough to ensure that you'll see few – if any – other foreigners. Starting at the airstrip at Jumla (2400m), the route crosses two 3500m ridges before reaching pristine Rara Lake at 3000m. The park is one of the best places in Nepal to see wildlife, including Himalayan black bear, tahr, goral, musk deer and the rare red (lesser) panda; the lake itself is home to many species of waterfowl. Autumn and spring are the best seasons, and Rara is particularly worth considering in May and June, when the weather elsewhere is getting too hot or unpredictable.
Dolpo and She-Phoksundo National Park
DOLPO (sometimes written Dolpa) is an enormous, isolated district northwest of Dhaulagiri and bordering Tibet, the western half of which has been set aside as SHE-PHOKSUNDO NATIONAL PARK, Nepal's biggest. The park protects an awe-inspiring region of deep valleys, unclimbed peaks, remote monasteries and rare fauna. The best time to go is September, with May, June, October and November close behind.
Dolpo was the setting of Peter Matthiessen's The Snow Leopard, and for many years the book was as close as most foreigners were allowed to get to it. It's now open to trekking, but only by organized groups. Unofficially, it might be possible to arrange a trekking permit for Southern (Lower) Dolpo through an agency and do everything else independently. The permit costs $10 per week, and a trek there will take a week to ten days. There are some lodges in Lower Dolpo, but it's a food-deficit area so you'll need to bring several days' worth of provisions. Guides and porters can be hired near the airstrip. The agency-trekking requirement for Northern (Upper) Dolpo is strictly enforced, and the permit is much more expensive.
Most people fly into Juphal, the airstrip for Dolpo District, from Nepalgunj. Flying into or out of Jumla, about five days' walk further west, is also possible. From Juphal the route heads east to Dunai and then north, entering the park after about a day (Rs1000 entry fee) and reaching the village of Ringmo and the stunningly blue Phoksundo Tal after another two days. There are plenty of day-hiking opportunities around the lake. Beyond lies Northern Dolpo.
Humla and Mount Kailash
Tucked away in the extreme northwestern corner of Nepal, HUMLA is high, dry and strongly Tibetan. Snowcapped peaks hem the district in on three sides and shut out most outside influences, including the monsoon. It's open only to organized groups. This area often experiences serious spring and early-summer famines, so it's essential to bring all the food you'll need – and then some. Most people do Mount Kailash as part of a Tibet package: you might pay $4000 per person for a 22-day itinerary which takes you on to Lhasa, with a flight back to Kathmandu; or around $3400 for an 18-day trip returning on a jeep via Kodari.
Nepal Airlines flies from Nepalgunj to Simikot (Humla's district headquarters) most days of the week in season. The most popular trek from here heads west up the valley of the Humla Karnali Nadi, struggling over the 4580m Nara La before descending to the river again and the Tibet border at Hilsa; it's about six or seven days' walk. From Sher, on the Tibetan side, a jeep will take you to (and, if need be, right around) Lake Manasarowar and the starting point for the three-day-plus circumambulation on foot of sacred MOUNT KAILASH. (The Humla Karnali trail is in the long process of being turned into a road, which will one day make it possible to drive the entire way from Simikot; those who prefer to walk will still be able to take a high, northerly route via Talung Lake to the border.) In May and June, which is the best time to go, the wildflowers are out of this world.
Upper Mustang
UPPER MUSTANG, the high-desert headwaters of the Thak Khola, was closed to foreigners until 1992, and still retains much of its medieval Tibetan culture – even if its raja has now officially been deposed and Chinese goods are now pouring across the border via a new road (the border is closed to foreigners). Permits to trek in Upper Mustang are expensive, but are no longer issued only to agency-organized groups, though you will need to take a guide. It is now possible to stay in lodges – often gloriously traditional family homes – rather than have to camp.
The restricted area officially begins at Kagbeni, and most visitors fly in and out of Jomosom, just a half-day's walk to the south. From there up the high, desertified valley of the Thak Khola to Lo Manthang (3840m), the lofty, walled capital, it's about five days' walk, past wind-eroded cliffs in astonishing shades of sand, rust and grey. There's little traffic on the road, but it's bound to increase, so consider alternative routes avoiding the road, such as hiking southwest out of Lo Manthang, for instance, via the Chogo La and Ghar Gompa to rejoin the main trail at Ghemi.
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