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More than 200 professional fish and wildlife scientists, including 12 former state fish and game agency directors and several former high-ranking federal agency officials, urged the U.S. Department of the Interior and Bureau of Land Management today to "act promptly and meaningfully to conserve intact and unfragmented BLM-administered public lands across the West."
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Scientists agree that BLM 'Planning 2.0' process is key opportunity to improve fish and wildlife management
|WASHINGTON – More than 200 professional fish and wildlife scientists, including 12 former state fish and game agency directors and several former high-ranking federal agency officials, urged the U.S. Department of the Interior and Bureau of Land Management today to "act promptly and meaningfully to conserve intact and unfragmented BLM-administered public lands across the West.""We recognize the critical importance of habitat provided by 245 million acres of Bureau of Land Management-administered public lands," stated the scientists in a strongly worded letter, "and we are concerned about mounting pressures that could result in the development and fragmentation of these lands. Barring responsive action by the BLM, many large landscapes could cease to support abundant fish and wildlife populations that have been restored and maintained over the past century."
The BLM is currently engaged in "Planning 2.0," a process that will result in revision of the agency's national land use planning handbook. Citing energy development – both traditional and renewable – and poorly managed off-road vehicle use as activities that can fragment key fish and wildlife habitat, the management professionals reiterated the need for careful, conscientious administration of valuable public lands and waters.
"America's fish and wildlife resources are under more pressure today than they have been in a hundred years," stated Dr. Rollin Sparrow, a Wyomingite with more than 50 years' experience in state and federal wildlife and natural resource management. "Today's greatest pressures include fragmentation of key habitats and declining habitat function. Now is the time for the BLM to take meaningful actions to conserve and restore intact and unfragmented public land habitats. Any actions must have durable results."
BLM resource management plans, or RMPs, form the basis of every action and approved use of public lands overseen by the agency, and they determine if and how fish and wildlife habitat conservation and management will be executed in specific places. Strategies implemented via Planning 2.0 could have substantial, lasting impacts.
"The BLM's Planning 2.0 process represents an ideal opportunity for the agency to make changes to its land use planning process that better account for the long-term habitat needs of fish and wildlife," said Ken Mayer, former director of the Nevada Department of Wildlife. "If thoughtfully designed, a revised planning process could balance energy development with other resources at the landscape level while guiding conservation and restoration of priority habitats, migration corridors and intact backcountry lands."
"I've seen firsthand the impacts of development, such as road building, on big game behavior and habitat quality," said Jim Akenson, an Oregonian with more than 33 years of experience in wildlife research. "As a sportsman in addition to a scientist, I also know the importance of relatively pristine areas for providing high-quality hunting and fishing experiences. By making a concerted effort to conserve intact and unfragmented BLM lands and habitats through Planning 2.0, the agency has the opportunity to renew its commitment to the future of America's fish and wildlife resources and hunting and fishing traditions."
Read the scientists letter on Planning 2.0.


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How to Sneak Backstage at a Fashion Week Show
Not many people want to go to fashion shows, but even fewer end up getting invited. Thus, the art of sneaking into shows at New York Fashion Week is perennially well-documented, to the point that one suspects bloggers are paid to sneak into fashion shows to give a fashionable air of danger to the whole enterprise. So let's go further, shall we? Let's go backstage.
This step-by-step guide is based on my experience ending up backstage at the Venexiana show last Saturday evening, day three of New York Fashion Week. It should be enough to get even the world's least enterprising snoop backstage at the fashion event of the season.
1) Show up at fashion week HQ at Lincoln Center at 6 p.m. with no invites and no clue, but armed with knowledge culled from a half-dozen blog posts about how to sneak into a fashion show uninvited.
2) Pay $100 (!) for your press pass in the small wood-paneled press credentials trailer across the street that smells like poop. There is an obscure color-and-letter-coded ID card system that determines your level of access. Yours will have the letter Q, which I believe stands for Quite Little. "NOT VALID FOR SHOW ENTRY" is emblazoned across the bottom, just to reiterate quite how little you are.
2) Enter the Official Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Tent of Obscene Luxury, or whatever it's called. The place looks like the international terminal at an airport in some oil-rich Arab kingdom; the two huge monitors in the center display times of fashion shows instead of flights. But this is a socialist emirate: Mini fridges with free bottled water and cans of diet Pepsi line the walls for parched fashion week-goers.
3) Drink two Diet Pepsis while awkwardly circling the pavilion. Take in the Mercedes convertible where a couple of attendees in fur and pumps are having their picture taken—there's more fur at Fashion Week than in an episode of Game of Thrones—and gaze at the display for recycled Circa diamonds, which boasts that "every diamond we buy from you is one less that has to be mined."
4) Sheepishly approach one of the black-clad Fashion Week employees under the big board and attempt to wheedle your way into the show for Gwen Stefani's L.A.M.B. label, which starts in a few minutes. Take some comfort in the woman's pitying look as she utterly shoots you down. She has done this often and has cultivated the soothing demeanor of a vet telling an owner his beloved dog must be put to sleep.
5) Drink another Diet Pepsi; circle some more.
6) Eye the entrances to theater, manned by beefy black-suited security guards. This is the soft spot, where most sneakers-in attempt to penetrate, though it requires nerves, brains or a fancy outfit you might not have.
7) Drink another Diet Pepsi, for courage. Continue circling. Circle while the line to get into the L.A.M.B. show grows, then is sucked into the theater. Circle until you hear the pounding bass that signals the start of every show at Fashion Week. Whoops, you just missed your chance. Pretend to yourself you didn't do it on purpose.
8) Leave the tent, despondent at having wasted $100 of your employer's money and two hours hanging out in a boring fancy mall where nothing is even for sale with people who you're not even sure were very fashionable because a lot of them looked like shit, to be honest.
9) In a fit of desperation, follow signs around the block that lead down a closed street to the backstage area.
10) Walk down the empty street, then up a ramp leading to the back of the first tent. There's an empty chair where the security guard should be. Open the door, with elation filling your chest.
11) Prepare for bright chaos. Dodge a woman with a headset and a clipboard as she sprints out the door. Freeze: There's actually a second layer of security inside the tent. To the right, a couple guards block the way to a bustling makeup room for the Venexiana show that starts in half an hour, checking ID cards for the clearance you don't have. To the left, though, is the makeup room for the L.A.M.B. show, which is unguarded and nearly empty, since the show just started a few minutes ago.
12) Take a left, into the empty makeup room. Write down the three signs above the makeup stations: "No drinking under 21," "No drinking while pregnant," "No smoking." Evidence of the fashion industry's bold attempts to get models healthier.
13) Notice the odd stares of the handful of makeup artists who are still lounging in the makeup room.
14) Duck into the narrow hallway next door, which contains a row of green plastic Porta-Potties; hide in one of the Porta-Potties. These are the cleanest, best-smelling Porta-Potties you will ever be inside. Do models poop beauty products?
15) As hard as it may be, stop thinking about models pooping and collect yourself in the pleasant green hue. Devise a plan for sneaking past the security guards into the Vexeiana backstage area.
16) Remember the color-coded ID card system. Flip the pass hanging around your neck backward, blank-side out, hiding your laughable "Q." There could be anything on the other side, even the sacred Red Badge of Backstage Access.
17) Take a deep breath and get one last whiff of the really astonishingly good-smelling Porta-Potty atmosphere. Lavender?
18) Barge out of the Porta-Potty. Hold your notepad in front of you like a shield, scribbling crazily past the guards; make sure you channel your wide-eyed, frantic terror into a more concentrated panic so you'll be mistaken for some poor assistant or stylist.
19) Congratulations, you're backstage at a fashion show.
20) Snap a picture of a model taking a desultory bite from a slice of cantaloupe on a fork, lifted from a decimated lunch spread. (Decimated by whom? Not the model.) Snap a picture of the blonde model in the studded leather jacket having her hair teased into a dramatic updo. You'll have to jostle for position with about a half-dozen professional photographers and a camera crew interviewing some dude about the sustainable hair products there, because backstage is just as much a media shitshow as the runway. The models seem just as beautifully emotionless.
21) Try to peek over the shoulder of one Asian model as she sits and texts and giggles. But she's got that privacy film on her iPhone screen that limits the angle from which the screen is legible; this must be a requirement for discrete backstage texting.
20) Feel an increasingly uncomfortable sensation of being someplace that is simultaneously forbidden, new, and boring.
21) Leave.

subset: commoncrawl


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Find Me a Gift
- Published in Sponsors
At Find Me a Gift, we're dedicated to providing you with great gift ideas. From the unusual to the traditional, the unique to the classic, our aim is to inspire you with cool presents. With literally thousands of the best gifts to choose from, you can truly wow your friends and excel in the subtle art of gift-giving. Be it a birthday, a wedding to even a colleague's retirement gift, we've always got a cool new gift idea up our sleeve to inspire you.
Whether you're looking for a little token to say thank you, good luck or congratulations, our gifts really tailor to their interests whatever your budget. Leave the generic gifts in the shop window and flock to our online emporium. Our fun and quirky gift ideas will leave you enthused and excited to see the look on your loved one's face when they open up a present they truly love and appreciate.
We all have that one tricky to buy for person who seemingly has it all, so why not take a gander through our virtual aisles? We guarantee you'll find the perfect present in no time! We not only categorize our gifts by occasion, we also provide you with present ideas for each recipient. So whether you're looking buy for your doting boyfriend, a troublesome teenager, your darling mum, or even your child's long suffering teacher, you can easily find exactly what you're looking for.
With so much to choose from, why limit yourself to present buying? We've a fantastic selection of bespoke homewares, exhilarating experience days, and even saucy surprises that'll get you and your partner's hearts racing. So take the hassle out of high street shopping! Simply put your feet up and let us do the hard work. With next day delivery available for the majority of our wares, international shipping, and on-hand customer service at every click, we're confident you'll be able to find just what you're after. In fact, we'll even wrap your presents for you if you fancy, so there's no excuse for anything less than a picture-perfect pressie. Don't say we aren't good to you!


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Haystack Rock - Sunset into Dusk
The end of another perfect day on the beautiful Oregon Coast at Cannon Beach. Cotton candy clouds give way to cool breezes and signal our move from sunset into dusk and approaching blue hour. The crowds have waned and now I am treated to a front row seat for one at this beautiful show.
Haystack Rock at Sunset
The setting sun washes the skies in Cannon Beach,Oregon with a warm, tangerine glow on a peaceful spring weekend
Sunset of Peter Iredale
The wreck of the Peter Iredale is silhouetted against the setting sun, appearing to set sail into the night sky. - Ft. Stevens, Astoria, Oregon.
Ship in a Bubble
A weekend at the Oregon coastline, enjoying the afternoon sun and gazing upon the infamous wreck of the Peter Iredale in Fort Stevens, OR.
Trillium Lake
What shall I do today....skip a rock? Dip my toes in the cool, refreshing waters? The gentle ripples invite further inspection on this beautiful, peaceful day.
Look to the Sun
Beachgoers take in the golden sunset at Haystack Rock - Cannon Beach, OR
Mystic Waters
Haystack after sunset - Cannon Beach, OR
I Heard the Sunset Calling
It's a easy-going Sunday in late June, and suddenly I hear the ocean and sunset calling to me. It's only a two hour drive, I think...grab my gear and jump in the truck. It was worth the drive: Sun-rays light up the landscape in Oceanside, OR on this beautiful June evening.
CA Dreamin'
Sunset at San Simeon
Yaquina Head - Coastal Serenity
A peaceful scene on the Oregon coast. Clouds seem to stretch out to the edge of time itself as the waters gently roll into shore. Worries....erased.
Moody Blues
Enjoying the moody blues and calm breezes as the sun sets on the beautiful Oregon coastline. Ecola State Park, Cannon Beach, Oregon.
Cannon Beach Coastal Nightscape
Haystack Rock silhouette's against a moody cloud-filled sky during blue hour. The warm lights pouring out of a local seafood restaurant complete this peaceful coastal scene...a perfect spring evening.
Cherry Blossoms on the Waterfront
Waterfront Park, Oregon
Twilight Reflections
Mt Hood reflected in Trillium Lake
Lower Lewis Falls
Lower Lewis Falls, Washington
After the storm
After the storm - Lake McDonald, MT
Lake McDonald at Twilight
Lake McDonald at Twilight
'Seafaring Echoes'
The Wreck of the Peter Iredale took on a surreal quality this evening, as visitors were silhouetted against the warm glow of the setting sun. At the shore by Fort Stevens, Astoria, Oregon.
Liquid Gold
Sunset washes over the horizon at Cannon Beach, OR like molten gold. Another beautiful spring weekend in the Pacific Northwest.
Shoshone Falls - Niagara West
Waterfalls; Idaho; water; landscapes; Snake river; Niagara of the west; Shoshone Falls
Shoshone Falls - Natures Symphony
Shoshone Falls, Twin Falls, ID
Yellowstone Lake at dusk
Enjoying the setting sun at Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming - Grand Tetons in the distance.
Yellowstone Lake at sundown
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
Grand Tetons, Wyoming


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ALLEGAN, Mich., Jan. 7, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Perrigo Company (Nasdaq: PRGO; TASE) today announced that it has made initial shipments distributing Cumberland Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s ("Cumberland") Authorized Generic form of Acetadote® (acetylcysteine) injection. The Authorized Generic is free of EDTA and any other chelating, stabilization or preservative agents.
(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120301/DE62255LOGO)
On November 13, 2012, Perrigo announced that it and Cumberland had successfully settled their patent litigation. In addition, Perrigo secured the right to be a distributor should Cumberland elect to launch an Authorized Generic acetylcysteine injection product.
Acetadote® (acetylcysteine) injection, administered intravenously within 8 to 10 hours after ingestion of a potentially hepatotoxic quantity of acetaminophen, is indicated to prevent or lessen hepatic injury and has annual sales of approximately $41 million, as measured by Symphony Health Solutions.
Perrigo's Chairman, President and CEO Joseph C. Papa stated, "This is another example of Perrigo's commitment to bring new products to market. Perrigo continues to deliver on its mission to provide quality, affordable healthcare to consumers."
From its beginnings as a packager of generic home remedies in 1887, Perrigo Company, based in Allegan, Michigan, has grown to become a leading global provider of quality, affordable healthcare products. The Company develops, manufactures and distributes over-the-counter ("OTC") and generic prescription ("Rx") pharmaceuticals, nutritional products and active pharmaceutical ingredients ("API") and is the world's largest manufacturer of OTC pharmaceutical products for the store brand market. Perrigo's mission is to offer uncompromised "quality, affordable healthcare products", and it does so across a wide variety of product categories primarily in the United States, United Kingdom, Mexico, Israel and Australia, as well as certain other markets throughout the world, including Canada, China and Latin America. Visit Perrigo on the Internet (http://www.perrigo.com).
Note: Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and are subject to the safe harbor created thereby. These statements relate to future events or the Company's future financial performance and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements of the Company or its industry to be materially different from those expressed or implied by any forward-looking statements. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "may," "will," "could," "would," "should," "expect," "plan," "anticipate," "intend," "believe," "estimate," "predict," "potential" or other comparable terminology. The Company has based these forward-looking statements on its current expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections. While the Company believes these expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections are reasonable, such forward-looking statements are only predictions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Company's control. These and other important factors, including those discussed under "Risk Factors" in the Company's Form 10-K for the year ended June 30, 2012, as well as the Company's subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, may cause actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this press release are made only as of the date hereof, and unless otherwise required by applicable securities laws, the Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
SOURCE Perrigo Company


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Maroon 5 dropped its new single "Girls Like You" featuring Cardi B on Thursday, and the song's music video features quite a few leading ladies.
Throughout the video, the band's lead singer Adam Levine dances alongside many of the top women in the music industry, including Jennifer Lopez, Camila Cabello, Mary J. Blige and Rita Ora. He also rocks out with several famous actresses, models and TV stars, including Millie Bobby Brown, Gal Gadot, Tiffany Haddish, Sarah Silverman, Ashley Graham and Ellen DeGeneres. He even sings alongside a few athletes, including Aly Raisman, Chloe Kim and Danica Patrick, and politicians like Ilhan Omar. Of course, the "Bodak Yellow" artist also makes an appearance.
However, the end of the video stars the leading ladies in Levine's personal life. The singer spends the last few seconds hugging his wife Behati Prinsloo and daughter Dusty Rose.
Watch the video to hear the music and see all of the celebrity cameos.


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Lawmakers Reconvene For Budget Talks
A legislative panel finalizing Ohio's budget is expected to discuss a tax package that includes a statewide income-tax cut of 10 percent. The six-member committee planned Monday to hash out the budget differences between the House and Senate, which passed separate tax proposals that must be reconciled. Republican leaders released details last week of the tax package that is meant to be included in the budget. It calls for a gradual income tax reduction over three years, beginning with an 8.5-percent cut in the first year. The income tax cut would be paid for in part by an increase in the state sales tax, which would go from 5.5 percent to 5.75 percent. State lawmakers face a June 30 deadline to pass the two-year, state spending plan.


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When looking at it from the outside, the For Sale By Owner option, or FSBO, may seem great. With a standard Realtor commission of 5-6%, wouldn't it make sense to save yourself that money? Think again. In most cases, people choosing to take the FSBO route end up losing more than that when they try to sell on their own. Here are a few reasons to consider forgoing FSBO and hiring an agent.
1. Keeping emotions out can be difficult
Your home typically means something to you. It is where you've created memories. Because of that, it can be difficult to remove your emotions from a sale. Agents are there to be a mediator for rejections or negative feedback. It can be emotionally tolling to have your home rejected multiple times. Having an agent there to negotiate terms, repairs, and everything in between will offer peace of mind instead of stress and heartbreak.
2. Selling a home can be a full-time job
Even if you don't already have another job, selling your home can consume all of your time. Are you available to meet for a viewing or answer potential buyer calls at any time during the work day? Do you have the experience to market your home and ensure it is being seen by potential buyers? Even if you have some free time, selling a home can be a daunting task. It is the job of an agent to do all of this for you, so that you can sell your home without taking on the workload of another full-time job!
3. You could be sued
There is a reason agents need training. Legal paperwork is a core part of home selling and buying, and unless you are a lawyer, there is chance you may miss something in your paperwork. If you forget to disclose something you are aware of, even accidentally, you could be held liable for fraud. Why risk the cost of a major lawsuit when you can hire a knowledgable agent instead?
4. You aren't actually saving money
When you have minimal knowledge on how to negotiate the price of your home or how to market properly, the fact of the matter is that you are probably going to have to sell your home for much less than you planned. That loss is usually much more than the price of an agent's commission. You wouldn't want someone who isn't a doctor performing your surgery, so why try to sell your home on your own when you aren't a real estate agent? Let a Realtor save you time and money.
Buying or selling a home is probably the largest transaction you'll encounter during your life. You can try to do it alone, but why not hire someone who wants to help you? If you are ready to sell your home and hire an agent to get you the best deal and peace of mind, call me!


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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Iran's supreme leader is urging Iranians to avoid all dealings with members of the banned Baha'i sect in a possible prelude to further crackdowns on the minority.
Iran already bans the Baha'i, which considers a 19th century Persian nobleman as the final prophet. The fatwa, or religious edict, by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is his latest against the group. It supports similar fatwas in the past by other clerics.
An Iranian news website, Tasnim, reported Wednesday that Khamenei called the Baha'i "deviant and misleading."
Baha'i followers are frequently under pressures from Iranian authorities, which has prompted outcry among international human rights groups.
Iran allows non-Muslims such as Christians and Jews to worship, but has strict laws against seeking converts. It also has waged crackdowns on other religious minorities.


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Out@UCL: invitation to Out to Lunch event on 26 June
21 June 2013
Out@UCL would like to invite all LGBT+ staff to Out to Lunch on Wednesday, 26 June from 12:30-1:30pm in the Conference Room, Level 2, Bloomsbury Theatre Building.
month, Dr Matthew Jones, UCL Department of History, will be speaking about his
research on people's memories of 1960s cinema to shed light on the ways in
which the decade is remembered. He has explored people's notions of identity,
including LGBT identities and how they have linked up with cinema.
This event is open to all LGBT+ staff at UCL. No need to RSVP, just turn up with your lunch and be ready enjoy an hour of meeting other members of the network and hearing about some interesting research happening at UCL. For more information about the UCL LGBT+ network please contact the Co-Chairs, Max Hill (firstname.lastname@example.com) or Fiona Addison (firstname.lastname@example.com).


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Acid reflux keeps Markakis out of intrasquad games
SARASOTA, Fla. -- Noticeably absent from Wednesday's pair of intrasquad games was right fielder Nick Markakis, who had the same additional procedure performed that third baseman Manny Machado and pitcher Zach Braddock did earlier this week involving acid reflux.
"When they say that [they have acid reflux in their physical], they follow up on that and find out what they are testing for, if it's acid reflux or an ulcer," manager Buck Showalter explained. "This test tells you what it would be before you medicate it. ... They are trying to eliminate which one it is with all three of those guys. Instead of it being a problem in May or June, let's find out right now what we are dealing with."
Markakis will fly back to Baltimore later Wednesday to attend a funeral, and Showalter said Markakis is expected back on Friday. Both Machado and Braddock missed Tuesday's workout, but they were back with the team on Wednesday and allowed to participate.


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Everything is awesome.
… and it looks like everything will be awesome again as Warner Bros. just posted the first trailer for the sequel to the surprise hit The Lego Movie, titled The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part. Five years have passed since Taco Tuesday, when mild-mannered Lego man Emmet Brickowski and his friend Lucy saved the day for Bricksburg using the Piece of Resistance, partnering with the Master Builders to defeat the evil Lord Business–and stopping the dreaded Kragle. Now Emmet and his friends must face a new threat: Lego Duplo invaders from outer space.
They come in pieces.
Strange new musical worlds are in store for our friends (courtesy of one of filmdom's great composers, Mark Mothersbaugh). The lead voice actors are back: Chris Pratt–the star of every other blockbuster this year (Emmet), Elizabeth Banks (Lucy), Will Arnett (Lego Batman), Alison Brie (UniKitty), Channing Tatum (Superman), Jonah Hill (Green Lantern), Nick Offerman (MetalBeard), and of course Charlie Day as Benny, the space-obsessed cracked-helmet hero. They will be joined by new characters Sweet Mayhem (played by Brooklyn Nine-Nine's Stephanie Beatriz), Ice Cream Cone (Broad City's Arturo Castro), and Queen Whatevra (The Secret Life of Pets 2's Tiffany Haddish).
With a film full of franchise tie-in characters and plenty of heart, The Lego Movie was a fabulous family movie, which led to The Lego Batman Movie and The Lego Ninjago Movie, plus at least 80 episodes of the current Cartoon Network animated series, UniKitty! Warner Bros. also released the first poster for the film in advance of the trailer (above).
Check out this awesome trailer for The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part:
Sky High director Mike Mitchell will direct the movie, with the creators of the original film assembling the sequel: Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, Dan Lin, and Roy Lee.
It's going to be a bit of a wait. The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part doesn't arrive in theaters until February 8, 2019.
C.J. Bunce


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When people are asked their number one fear, what do you think they say? Fear of performing in public. This is even higher on their lists than fear of death or cancer or snakes. Some people get physical symptoms like shaky knees, trembling, diarrhea, butterflies in their stomach. shortness of breath, or clammy palms before a performance. Others get so paralyzed with fear that they forget what they were about to say and their minds go blank. Some try to make up for their anticipatory anxiety by overstudying or overpreparing, sometimes weeks or months in advance. The fear of appearing in public or passing an examination or surviving an interview can be terribly detrimental to one's life and career. A graduate student in music called us the other day in tears because she was about to be expelled from the music school because of her performance terror. She was very relieved to hear that we could very likely help her over- come her fear. If you are anxious in front of crowds, like her, you undoubtedly would like to find a way to speak or perform confidently and effectively, without being limited by fear or nervous- ness. Here are some suggestions which will hopefully help you increase your confidence.
Homeopathy- Homeopathic remedies can often provide the quickest route to relieving per-formance anxiety. Gelsemium (Yellow Jasmine) can be very helpful for people who experience an intense fear at the thought of performing or speaking, often to the point of trembling and even paralysis. They may even decide to give up and cancel their performance rather than risk failure. Lycopodium (Club Moss) is particularly useful for those are extremely self-conscious and who fear terribly making a mistake in front of others and looking stupid. They may get shaky and have gas or abdominal rumbling prior to speaking. The worst scenario for them is being asked to ad lib a talk for which they have not prepared or know little about the subject. Anacardium (Marking Nut) Is beneficial when a person is overcome by a sudden, profound loss of confidence. Their mind may go blank and the person cannot remember what they've prepared. Silica (sand) is for shy , quiet, reserved people who are very bashful and timid in public settings. They do not want to be the center of attention and worry that they have nothing worth-while to say. A final remedy, Picric acid, is useful for poeple who have overprepared to the point of mental exhaustion and don't have enough energy left to perform.
A woman came to us for her arthritis, but in the course of the interview she lamented that her career as a pianist had been cut short prematurely by her terror at playing in front of people. As soon as she saw the crowd, she was filled with terror, became shaky, and her stomach was filled with butterflies. We recommended that she take Gelsemium prior to her perfor- mances. It worked like a charm. Another one of our patients came to us for help with his self-consciousness in public. Anytime he had to attend large social engagements with his co-workers, he became very uncomfortable and tongue-tied. Lycopodium brought him great relief.
Bach Flower Essences- We generally find the type of homeopathic remedies listed above to be deeper and longer-acting than the Bach remedies. However, in the case of fear of speaking or performing, you may want to try a few drops of Rescue Remedy before your performance.
Hypnosis- It is often helpful to use hypnotherapy to explore the roots of the performance anxiety. We may regress a person back to the first incident of such fear in their life, and help them release the fear and and integrate the experience into their life. It is also useful to find out the inner purpose for the fear and to learn whatever lessons are associated with it. Hypnosis is also very helpful to create a positive, confident, and successful future for the person.
NLP- We often use Neurolinguistic Programming in conjunction with some of the other mo-dalities in this article in such cases of fear. Through NLP techniques, we ask the person to recall one or more times in the past when they were able to access strength and confidence, either in a performance situation or another context. Then we teach the person to generalize that confidence to the situation which evokes performance anxiety. This is very effective and is based on the idea that if we can access a particular resource once, we can potentially do so all the time.
Visualization- Sit in a comfortable, quiet place. Close your eyes. Take a few minutes to relax your breathing. Now imagine yourself in a beautiful, serene place in nature. Or imagine yourself floating on a cloud above this lovely, tranquil scene. Take as much time as you need to allow that peacefulness to fill your being. Now imagine carrying that feeling of deep inner peace into the situation where you will be speaking or performing. Feel the fear replaced by calmness and confidence. Now imagine yourself carring out the performance just the way you would like and able to feel comfortable and natural with yourself in the process. Be sure to end by congratu- lating yourself and reminding yourself you can perform confidently whenever you wish.
Hazrat Inayat Khan, the great Sufi master, offered another practical technique. When in a situation where you must appear in public, he advised, look around the room to find the most beautiful object. Then charge that particular object with your magnetism and energy. Through-out the performance or event, look at that object whenever your confidence begins to falter. Judyth used this technique once with great success. She had been caught in a traffic jam during a terrible storm. It was dark and there was practically no visibility. Unable to see the arm movements of the policeman, she followed the car in front of her. She was then pulled to the side of the road and given a $120 ticket for disobeying the officer, who insisted that he was motion- ing for her to stop. She had just come from teaching a stress management class and when she questioned the officer, he admitted to being under great stress, but was adamant about the ticket. When called to court, she followed Hazrat Inayat Khan's instructions and focused her gaze continually on the eagle on top of the American flag, which was indeed the most beautiful object in the courtroom. She was able to remain relaxed and defend herself calmly, and the charges were dropped, to her great relief. The magnetized eagle saved the day.
Drs. Judyth Reichenberg-Ullman and Robert Ullman are naturopathic and homeopathic physicians and cofounders of the Northwest Center for Homeopathic Medicine in Edmonds, WA. They are coauthors of The Patient's Guide to Homeopathic Medicine and Beyond Ritalin: Homeopathic Treatment of ADD and Other Behavioral and Learning Problems. They can be reached at (206) 774-5599.


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Use caution when turning on a red light
By Steve Wallace, Times Colonist, January 20, 2012
Most drivers will make a right turn on a red traffic light when they have an opportunity to do so, except in Quebec, where it's illegal.
Drivers who wish to turn right on a solid red traffic light must first come to a complete stop before making such a turn. They must be aware of any vehicular, cycle, or pedestrian traffic approaching from the left or right side of the street. All such traffic has the right of way to proceed prior to any driver being able to make a right turn on the red light.
When considering a right turn on a red light, drivers must also be aware of any cyclists or other vehicles that may creep into their blind spot.
Whenever there is a crash involving a driver who executes a right turn on a red light, the driver turning right will very likely be assessed total blame or at least partial blame. The law states that such a turn may only be made if it is safe to do so.
Every time a driver makes a right turn on a red light, the driver is susceptible to increased liability exposure. It is best to avoid the right on red move unless the visibility is clear, pedestrians are few and far between and the red light is in its initial phase. A red traffic light, which is well into the cycle, is bound to change at a most inopportune time, often leaving the driver red-faced and stranded, as pedestrians gain the right of way.
Drivers who make a right turn on red must always be conscious of the approaching drivers who have a left turn advance arrow. Many of these oncoming drivers making a left turn on the green advance arrow will turn wide into the lane, which a driver making a right turn must use to do a proper and legal turn. The hazards are numerous when any driver considers doing a legal right turn on a solid red traffic light.
In a recent survey of a relatively busy signalized intersection, not a single driver, when unobstructed by traffic, made the complete stop required by law, before proceeding to make the right turn on a solid red traffic light.
This behaviour is common in all jurisdictions that permit the right turn on a solid red. Sadly, pedestrians are the ones who are most at risk when drivers do not stop for a proper look for hazards before making the right turn.
The legal stop is one in which the driver stops completely.
The complete stop must be made before the natural path of the pedestrians across the driver's path, if no road markings are present.
Where road markings exist, whether painted crosswalks or otherwise indicated, the driver must completely stop before the crosswalk when turning right on a solid red traffic light. Where no road crosswalk markings are in evidence, the imaginary extension of a sidewalk across the road is a legal crosswalk.
Most drivers think they must stop even with the stop sign.
This is a popular misconception. The stop sign tells a driver what to do, not necessarily where to do it.
It is advisable to make two stops before making a right turn on a red traffic light.
The first stop will satisfy the legal responsibility and the second will allow the driver to get a better look at all traffic, before proceeding safely around the turn.
Red is a colour often associated with emergency situations. We should all try our best to observe the meaning and intent of the red traffic lights, for our own good and that of others.
Steve Wallace is a member of the College of Teachers and the owner of Joan Wallace Driving School on Vancouver Island and the Interior of B.C.
© Copyright (c) The Victoria Times Colonist


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|Table of G-Violone Gauges
|g-1 Lyon
This is a single-length (80", 200cm) string available with either a natural or varnish finish.
Plain gut strings are available with a natural or varnish finish. Natural strings are hand-rubbed with a light oil. Varnished strings have three coats of finish before being hand polished with the oil. There is an additional charge for varnished strings. The string comes with plain, unknotted ends. Knots may be tied for you, and leather washers added for an additional charge.
Instructions on how to tie a string knot are on the back of each package.
This type of gut is named after the town in France which was famous for a particular type of flexible gut string. From the 16th century these strings were recommended as being some of the best strings for basses. Our reproduction of this string is made from gut specially processed in our workshop to be soft and responsive. The gut is twisted in one direction to a high twist for the optimum combination of durability and flexibility. The Lyon should be preferred when a little extra stiffness is required under the bow or finger. This type of string is characterized by a tight and visible twist. The color tends toward opaque light to medium yellow. The Lyon-style of gut string is a high twist, single spin construction that offers a tone that is full and warm with a powerful fundamental and complex, pleasing upper partials.
Academie strings are manufactured in the USA by Gamut Music, Inc., a leader in the revival of early music strings and instruments. Gut strings are not intended to be used with fine tuners or string adjusters and those devices should be removed before installing the gut string on the instrument.
More information about Gamut gut strings, string types, gauges, and string tensions can be found on our articles page. Not finding an answer to your question? Please contact us directly: firstname.lastname@example.com.


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It's bad enough that Pakistan couldn't have developed a nuclear-weapons program without the help of the nuclear black market and that its program exists outside the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which it never signed. It may now possess even more nuclear weapons than the supposed raison d'être for its nuclear-weapons program — India. But, in an article for Zurich's ISN (International Relations and Security Network), Yogesh Joshi explains that deterring India from attacking it with nuclear weapons isn't the only reason for Pakistan's build-up.
[It's] clear that nuclear weapons have become Pakistan's chief currency of recognition in a world where international prestige is increasingly being measured in terms of . . . development. After national security via deterrence, prestige is generally accepted as one of the secondary rationales states use to justify developing nuclear weapons.
More to the point, though, Joshi writes
Increasing Pakistan's nuclear capabilities would allow it to make economic . . . gains. In the future, if the agenda for disarmament gains momentum, the larger a state's nuclear inventory, the better its bargaining position.
North Korea is an example of a state that uses the components of its nuclear-weapons program as chips to be bargained for economic aid. As for Pakistan, at the Diplomat, Manpreet Sethi wrote in March that its
. . . ability to use its nuclear weapons as a bargaining chip — for conventional weaponry, for financial support from other Muslim nations, for evading sanctions over nuclear proliferation . . . has been proven time and again. No wonder nuclear weapons are seen as the most important strategic asset of the Pakistani military establishment.
But another reason exists to provide economic aid to a state with an illegal nuclear-weapons program and Pakistan is an all-too-perfect example. Joshi again.
The threat of economic collapse in a state that holds substantial nuclear weapons capabilities could make the international community more likely to come to the [financial] rescue. One of the reasons behind the US' continued financial aid to Pakistan is the necessity of keeping a nuclear armed state functioning as a viable political entity.
In other words, the United States apparently needs to continue providing Pakistan with economic aid, not, at this point, to bargain away its nuclear programs, but just to keep Pakistan politically solvent. When the Soviet Union dissolved and much of its enriched uranium went unprotected, Russia and the other former Soviet states lucked out. Not only were terrorists such as Chechnyan or Islamist extremists, for the most part, asleep at the switch, but the United States, via the Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Program, jumped into the void to help secure the former Soviet Union's nuclear weapons and material. Should another country with a nuclear-weapons program become a failed state, don't count on fortune to smile on us again.
You would think that for a state technologically sophisticated enough to develop nuclear weapons, the wherewithal to secure them would be a fait accompli. In fact, the threat to Pakistan's nuclear-weapons program is less about physical security than it's about infiltration of its nuclear security forces by Islamist extremists, despite efforts by the Pakistan military to exclude them from nuclear security.
Faith in the Pakistan military took a serious hit with its lack of awareness and resistance to the U.S. attack on bin Laden's compound. A sample headline read: "Pakistan humiliated by Bin Laden revenge attack." It was further undermined by the May 22 attack on the Mehran naval base in Karachi by Pakistan's Taliban (Tehrik-i-Taliban — the TTP) that lasted for 17 hours and killed 10 security personnel. According to Pakistan's Dawn, the TTP
. . . knew the location of their targets, both men and material, and displayed utter contempt for the naval personnel through their astonishing speed and firepower. No disrespect is meant for the navy, some of whose men paid the ultimate price in the line of duty, but the incident raises quite a few questions about the state of preparedness of our defence forces in general and the navy in particular.
Humiliation would be the least of Pakistan's worries if the TTP or al Qaeda got ahold of any of its nuclear weapons. Ostensibly because "Pakistan is the only Muslim nuclear-power state," a spokesman for the TTP spokesman claimed that the organization has no plans to attack Pakistan's nuclear-weapons arsenal. Inspiring even less confidence was another spokesman, this one for the U.S. State Department, who said to journalists of Pakistan's nuclear weapons, "I would just say that our understanding is that they're — they are safeguarded." Our "understanding"? Whatever happened to knowledge gained via intelligence?
While North Korea — ever the tease — dangles its nuclear-weapons program before the West, it's arguably less savvy than Pakistan, which leverages funds from the United States without, at the moment anyway, drawing down its nuclear-weapons program as a condition. But when even the most sober of observers, such as NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, entertains doubts about the security of its nuclear program, it's obvious that Pakistan is enjoying fewer of the perks of possessing nuclear weapons than North Korea.
Of course, the United States must also guard against domestic threats to its nuclear-weapons program. What — from white-power militias? Of course not: obviously, the physical security of the U.S. nuclear-weapons program isn't at risk. Like Pakistan's, however, turns out it might be vulnerable to infiltration by extremists. As George Will remarked to Christiane Amanpour on ABC News's This Week
The threshold question, not usually asked, but it's in everyone's mind in a presidential election. 'Should we give this person nuclear weapons?' And the answer [in Palin's case], answers itself.


text: In the coming years, the flexibility and cost alternatives provided by new technologies such as virtualization, internal and external cloud computing, \n\nand different types of cloud-based solutions will offer IT infrastructure and operations (I&O) professionals a choice of platforms for running an \n\napplication or business service. This changes the scope of capacity planning and consequently the process of planning capacities. Capacity planning \n\nis no longer just a process aimed at forecasting hardware needs; it's the key to understanding and optimizing the cost of running business services \n\nthrough platform selection. The traditional capacity planning process was a four-phased affair. Step 1: Create a baseline to understand how your server, storage, or network \n\ninfrastructure are used by capturing secondary indicators such as CPU load or global network traffic. Steps 2 and 3: Evaluate changes from new \n\napplications that are going to run on the infrastructure and the "drift" or workload due to increased activity in a given business services. And step 4: \n\nAnalyze the data from the previous steps to forecast future infrastructure requirements and decide how to satisfy these requirements. The \n\ntraditional approach is no longer acceptable because it is component and not business service-oriented, it doesn't take costs and value into \n\nconsideration, and it doesn't place enough emphasis on emerging data center costs and constraints. The simple fact that a choice of placements \n\nexists for a given business service implies that we must consider all the elements that support the decision, especially from a cost and value \n\nstandpoint, before making an informed decision on where a specific service should run. Cloud Makes Capacity Planning Harder: 3 Fight-Back TipsThe capacity planning of tomorrow supports internal as well as external choices, virtual as well as physical alternatives. Furthermore, the new \n\ncapacity planning organization is no longer part of the I&O department \u2014 it has to be part of an overall management group reporting to the \n\nCIO. To offer competitive IT services into the future, Forrester recommends that I&O professionals update today's capacity planning process with \n\nthree new steps to account for cost-value analysis, governance, and global planning. 1. A Cost-Value Analysis is Added to Evaluate Where the Service Should be LocatedThis is a decision support step with a foundation in activity-based costing (ABC), which takes all the real costs into consideration in its analysis. \n\nFor example, a business process may have a critical value yet have a total capital and operating cost that is far superior to what it should, \n\nconsidering the number of users or the frequency at which it is used. Such a service is a clear candidate for an alternative placement with a lower \n\ncost overhead. Going forward, it's critical for I&O professionals to understand the cost-value of business services, especially as facilities and energy \n\ncosts consume a more significant portion of total IT capital and operating costs. 2. A Governance Step Keeps Recommendations in Line with Overarching Enterprise PoliciesThis is a modifier that could override the cost-value analysis. Governance is needed to keep any decision in line with the enterprise policies \n\nregarding security, outsourcing, or audit and confidentiality. Thus, while a lower-cost solution such as public cloud computing may be more profitable \n\nfor some low-volume applications such as personnel files, I&O professionals have to include security and data privacy requirements in their platform \n\nselection, clouds or internal. 3. A Global, ITIL-defined Capacity Plan Becomes the End ResultUnlike the old method, the new capacity planning process concerns all technologies across the data center and is cross-referenced with critical \n\nbusiness service and technology type. The new capacity planning process still has a network plan, a storage plan, a compute plan, and so on, but it \n\nalso shows the relationship between these technology silos, facilities, and critical business services on a global scale. As a result, it is now aligned \n\nwith the notion of business capacity management, service capacity management, and technology capacity management found in ITIL. IT leaders place a lot of emphasis on the capital-saving benefits of cloud computing \u2014 but they're missing the point. What's important in \n\ncloud technologies is that it gives IT a choice of delivery platforms that didn't exist before. Software-as-a-service, infrastructure-as-a-service, internal \n\nclouds, and virtualized infrastructures offer a variety of capabilities and costs. As with all choices, we need a rationale to exercise it \u2014 and this \n\nis what capacity planning is all about. Capacity planning will let IT leaders make the most of their cloud investments by understanding how much or \n\nhow little they need to source to deliver the quality-of-service expected by the business users.Jean-Pierre Garbani is a vice president and principal analyst at Forrester Research, where he serves Infrastructure & Operation Professionals \n\nin predicting and quantifying IT disruptions.


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Paul Ryan through the years
Photos from Paul Ryan's career.
Ryan greets Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney after introducing him during a campaign stop in Appleton, Wis., in March.(Photo: AP Photo | Date: Mar. 30, 2012)
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text: Email Story Print Story New Tool Helps Children Get Asthma Under Control APRIL 13, 2007 DENVER — Patients often don't realize they can feel better, do more A simple, new questionnaire can identify children with poorly controlled asthma who needlessly suffer asthma symptoms that limit their daily activities. Associate Professor of Pediatrics Andy Liu, MD, and his colleagues describe the development of the test and research demonstrating its validity and clinical utility in the April issue of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. "Many patients needlessly limit their exercise, awaken at night and miss school or work because of poorly controlled asthma," said Dr. Liu. "The seven questions in the Childhood Asthma Control Test can help identify these patients so that their parents and doctors can work to improve their asthma management." Recent studies have shown that many asthma patients mistakenly believe they have their asthma under control. In a poll by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, almost 90 percent of parents thought their children's asthma symptoms were under control, but half the children missed school or work, half were unable to complete exercise programs, and 45 percent were awakened at night by asthma symptoms. "We have the tools to control asthma and normalize the lives of most patients," said Dr. Liu. "We need patients, parents and doctors to recognize uncontrolled asthma so that they will better use the tools available." An Asthma Control Test for patients 12 and older was developed first to address this problem. More recently, a panel of pediatric asthma experts convened to develop a simple, valid test for children 4 to 11 years old. After interviews with 20 children with asthma and their parents, the experts compiled a 21-item questionnaire that was given to 344 patients with asthma and their caregivers. Pediatric asthma specialists also rated those patients' asthma control, using detailed medical histories and breathing tests. Statistical analysis then helped whittle the 21 questions down to seven whose combined answers most closely correlated with the experts' evaluations. Children are asked to answer the first four questions, with help from their parents. They include questions about the child's asthma on the day the test is taken, and whether asthma causes the child to cough or wake up at night, and whether it is a problem when they run or play sports. "Parents often underestimate the effect asthma has on a child, especially during the day and with exercise," said Dr. Liu. "In addition to their primary goal of evaluating asthma control, these questions can open a valuable dialogue between parent and child about asthma." Caregivers answer the final three questions, which address daytime symptoms, nighttime awakening and wheezing during the previous month. Each question offers several answers, which are scored on a scale of 0 to 5. Patients whose combined score is 19 or less, in a range of 0 – 27, are deemed to have asthma that is not well controlled, and are advised to talk to their physician about their asthma. "A patient and caregiver can fill out this simple questionnaire while waiting to see a doctor," said Dr. Liu. "They can then give the doctor the completed test, which quickly and reliably tells the doctor if the patient's asthma is under control or needs attention." Statistical analysis of the validity of the Childhood Asthma Control Test indicated that it correlated well with experts ratings of asthma control and the need for change in therapy. It correctly identifies 74 percent of children whose asthma is considered well controlled by experts and 68 percent of those whose asthma is considered poorly controlled by experts. The development of the test was funded by the pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline, which makes the asthma medication Advair®. Online versions of both the adult and childhood Asthma Control Test are available at www.asthmacontrol.com. Media Resources We have many faculty members, from bench scientists to clinicians, who can speak on almost any aspect of respiratory, immune, cardiac and gastrointestinal disease as well as lung cancer and basic immunology. Accomplishments & Awards Annual Report Financials Media Contacts Our team is available to arrange interviews, discuss events and story ideas. Adam Dormuth 303.398.1002 office 970.222.5034 mobile firstname.lastname@example.com Jessica Berry 303.398.1082 office 303.807.9491 mobile firstname.lastname@example.com


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If you cannot find the document you were looking for, it may have been replaced by a newer document or withdrawn from circulation. To ensure that clinical content is up to date and relevant, ACOG clinical documents are routinely reviewed every 24-36 months to determine if the content is current and accurate and is therefore reaffirmed or should be withdrawn or replaced.
Frequently Asked Questions
Some common questions about the disposition of documents no longer in circulation:
- Why is an ACOG document withdrawn or replaced?
Documents are replaced with newer documents if the clinical issues are still relevant to ob-gyn practice, but there are newer data that change the recommendations.
A document is withdrawn from circulation if its content is inaccurate or outdated, the content is no longer relevant or urgent, or the subject is adequately addressed in other ACOG documents or by another organization.
- Where can current content be found?
Current clinical guidance from ACOG can be found on acog.org/clinical.
- Is it possible to obtain a copy of withdrawn content?
Please contact [email protected] for inquiries related to withdrawn content.


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This is just a little side comic I did for fun. Chronologically, it falls before the comic storyline, but it seemed like it was about time I paid a little attention to Viktor and Mordecai. If it strikes you as weird, petty and disturbing, well...it probably ought to.
Sniffles! We hardly knew ye.


text:
Tallahassee, FL
Phone: Call Us 24/7 850-877-3156
Address: 4750 Woodville Highway Tallahassee, FL 32305
Timing: Office HoursMon: 8:00AM - 5:00PM
Tue: 8:00AM - 5:00PM
Wed: 8:00AM - 5:00PM
Thu: 8:00AM - 5:00PM
Fri: 8:00AM - 5:00PM
Sat: Closed
Sun: Closed
Fuels: Propane
Big Time Resources. Small Town Service in Tallahassee, FL
Superior Plus Propane, your local propane provider, can assist you online, by phone or in-person. For immediate or after-hours service, please log into your account on our customer portal, mySuperior, at Log in - Superior Plus Propane. For general inquiries, please visit us at Propane FAQ » Superior Plus Propane. We appreciate your loyalty, and look forward to taking care of your fuel needs.
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There is something about warm, delectable dishes and the aroma of a freshly prepared meal that really bring loved ones closer. This season, when planning your holiday menu, consider adding some scrumptious dishes made with quality ingredients that are sure to become fast favorites with your family.
Try the recipes below to help take your holiday dishes to a new level, perfect for the season. Find more holiday recipes at www.JohnsonvilleKitchens.com.
Risotto with Italian Sausage, Mushrooms, Peas and Asparagus
Yield: 6 to 8 servings
5 1/4 cups (42 ounces) chicken stock
3 sprigs fresh herbs; basil, oregano or thyme, (optional)
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
1 package (19 ounces, casings removed) Johnsonville Mild Italian Sausage
2 cups white button mushrooms, wiped clean and sliced about 1/4 inch thick
2 cups Arborio rice or medium grain risotto rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 pound asparagus, stemmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup peas; fresh, shelled or frozen
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1/3 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
Shaved or shredded Parmesan for garnish
Pour stock into sauce pan. If using fresh herbs, add to stock and bring to gentle simmer. Cover until ready to use.
In large sauce pan, heat oil over medium heat, add onion. Sauté until tender and translucent, about 5 minutes.
Add sausages. Using wooden spoon, break up sausage as it cooks into bite size pieces until browned, about 5 minutes.
Add mushrooms; cook, stirring until just wilted, about 2 minutes. Mix in rice; cook, stirring until kernels are hot and coated with oil; about another 2 minutes. Add wine; stir continuously until liquid is absorbed.
Using a ladle, add hot stock about 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly and making sure stock has been absorbed before adding more to rice. Continue adding 1/2 cup of stock and stirring rice constantly and gently. When rice is about half cooked or only 1 1/2 cups of stock remains, add asparagus pieces into rice and continue stirring.
When you have about 1 cup of liquid left, stir peas into rice and season with salt and pepper to taste. Continue stirring. Risotto is done when rice kernels are creamy on the outside and firm yet tender to the bite, about 20 to 25 minutes total.
When risotto is just right, remove from the heat; stir in shredded Parmesan cheese. Spoon into large soup bowls. Top with shaved Parmesan; serve immediately.
Spicy Sausage Queso
Yield: 6 cups
1 package (16 ounces) Johnsonville Hot
All Natural Ground Italian Sausage
2 pounds Velveeta process cheese, cubed
1 jar (16 ounces) chunky salsa
2 teaspoons fennel seed, crushed
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon dried basil Garlic toast
In skillet, cook and crumble sausage until no longer pink; drain. Place cheese in large microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high for 6 minutes or until melted, stirring every 2 minutes. Stir in salsa, seasonings and sausage. Microwave 2 minutes longer, or until heated through. Serve with garlic toast.
Italian Sausage Stuffing
Yield: 12 servings
1 package (16-ounces) Johnsonville Italian All Natural Ground Sausage
1/4 cup olive oil, separated
2 loaves (12 ounces each) focaccia bread
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 cup shredded Parmesan
1 small green pepper, diced
1/2 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
5 large fresh basil leaves, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups white wine, or chicken stock
2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces
In skillet, cook and crumble sausage in 1 tablespoon olive oil until no longer pink; set aside.
In large bowl, combine bread cubes and remaining oil. Sprinkle with pepper; toss to coat. Transfer to lightly oiled 15 x 10-inch baking pan. Bake at 350˚F for 10 minutes or until crisp and lightly browned, stirring once. Remove pan to wire rack to cool slightly.
In very large bowl, combine bread cubes, reserved sausage, Parmesan cheese, green pepper, sun-dried tomatoes, basil and garlic. Combine eggs and wine or stock; pour over bread mixture and toss to coat. Transfer to buttered 13 x 9-inch baking dish. Dot with butter, bake, uncovered, at 350˚F for 35 to 40 minutes or until heated through and top is starting to appear slightly toasted.
Italian Sausage Appetizer Bread
Yield: 16 appetizer servings
1 package (16 ounces) Johnsonville Italian
All Natural Mild Ground Sausage
1 loaf (1 pound) frozen white bread dough, thawed
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 jar (7 ounces) roasted red peppers, well drained and sliced
1/3 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and sliced
2 cups (8 ounces) Swiss cheese, shredded
1 teaspoon poppy seeds
In skillet, brown sausage until no longer pink; drain.
On lightly floured surface, roll bread dough to 16 x 12-inch rectangle.
Transfer dough to greased baking sheet. Combine cream cheese and garlic, spread lengthwise over center third of dough. Top with sausage, peppers, olives and cheese.
Fold dough over filling, pinching seam to seal. Make slits across top of dough every 2 inches. Brush lightly with water and sprinkle with poppy seeds.
Bake at 400°F for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand 10 minutes before slicing.


text:
Global Android POS Market Size, Share, Trends and Forecast Analysis of Top Countries 2017-2022
Market.Biz Leading Research Firm has added latest report on "Global Android POS Market by Manufacturers, Regions, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022".
Pune, Mahrashtra -- (SBWire) -- 04/27/2017 --The motive of this strategic research report entitled "Global Android POS Market 2017-2022" is to provide company officials, industry investors, and Android POS industry members with consequential insights to enable them make reliable strategic decisions regarding the opportunities in the global Android POS market.
The Scope of the Android POS research report:
The Global Android POS Market primarily includes a basic overview of the Android POS industry. It also includes Android POS definitions, classifications and applications. It segments the market by applications, types, regions, competitive players and also analyzes Android POS market size, business share and Android POS revenue, price and sales. The report mainly covers the Android POS market in North America, the Android POS market in Europe, the Android POS market in Asia-Pacific, the Android POS market in Latin America, Middle as well as Africa.
Enquire Here Before Purchasing The Global Android POS Market Report with TOC: https://market.biz/report/global-android-pos-market-gir/81238/#inquiry
Global Android POS Market Segment By Key Players/Manufacturers
Clover Network
PAX Technology
SZZT Electronics
Newland Payment
Global Android POS Market Segment By Type
Global Android POS Market Segment By Applications
Hospitality Industry
Market Segment by Regions, regional analysis cover up
North America Android POS Market (Canada, Mexico and USA).
Latin America Android POS Market (Middle and Africa).
Android POS Market in Europe (Germany, France, Italy, UK and Russia).
Asia-Pacific Android POS Market (South-east Asia, China, India, Korea, and Japan).
Request Sample Android POS market Research Report at https://market.biz/report/global-android-pos-market-gir/81238/#requestforsample
The report (Android POS market) focuses on worldwide major leading Android POS industry players, which further includes information like company profiles, Android POS price, Company's Android POS market revenue etc. Growth prospects of the overall Android POS industry have been presented in the report. However, to give a detailed view of the readers, detailed geographical segmentation within the globe Android POS market has been covered in this study. The key regions along with their revenue forecasts are included in the report.
Report on (Android POS Market Report) mainly covers 15 Topics acutely display the global Android POS market.
Topic 1, to describe Android POS market Introduction, Scope of the product, Android POS market overview and market opportunities, Android POS market risk, market driving force;
Topic 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6, to analyze the key regions, with sales, revenue and Android POS market share by key countries in these regions;
Topic 7, to show the global market by regions, with sales, revenue and market share of Android POS, for each region, from 2012 to 2017;
Topic 8, analyzes the top manufacturers of Android POS, with sales, revenue, and price of Android POS, in 2016 and 2017;
Topic 9 and 10, shows the Android POS market by type and application, Android POS market share, with sales and growth rate by type, application, from 2012 to 2017;
Topic 11, Android POS market forecast, by regions, application and type, with revenue and sales, from 2017 to 2022;
Topic 12, to display the competitive situation among the top leading manufacturers, with sales, revenue and Android POS market share in 2016 and 2017;
Topic 13, 14 and 15, to describe Android POS sales channel, distributors, dealers, traders, Conclusion and Research Findings, data source and appendix;
About Market.Biz
Market.Biz is designed to provide the best and most penetrating research required to all commercial, industrial and profit-making ventures in any sector of online business. We take pride in our ability to satisfy the market research needs of both domestic and international businesses.
Market.Biz has access to the world's most comprehensive and up-to-date databases in your business sector, including countless market reports that can provide you with valuable data relating to your business. We understand the needs of our clients, and keep our reports updated as market requirement changes.
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Office No. 4, Vishwa Arcade,
Near Navale Lawns, Pune.
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Media Relations Contact
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Research Analyst
View this press release online at: http://rwire.com/800158


text:
Most of the world can watch the World Cup for free. Not so much in the US.
The tournament, which begins today, will largely air on cable; streaming matches online also requires a television subscription. But there are a few options for so-called cord cutters who don't pay for TV but still want to watch the World Cup.
Why the US is different
Disney paid about $100 million to broadcast the 2010 and 2014 tournaments in the US. It will show this year's World Cup on three of its popular channels: 43 matches on ESPN, 11 on ESPN2, and 10 on ABC. (Here is the schedule.)
Related: Add all World Cup matches to your calendar in 15 seconds
Only the matches on ABC can be seen for free, and that has to be done the old-fashioned way: with an antenna. They can't be streamed online without paying for access. Disney is increasingly protective of its channels, including the once-free broadcast network ABC, as it charges cable companies more and more to carry them. Cable companies don't want that programming to be freely available online.
The situation is quite different in other countries. Many require that the home nation's matches are aired on free TV. (All three of the US team's group matches, by contrast, are on ESPN.) And in Europe, the rights to broadcast the World Cup were purchased by a continent-wide coalition of networks that are generally available for free on television and the internet. Britons, for instance, can watch the entire tournament on the BBC and ITV. Germans will get the whole thing on ARD and ZDF.
The Univision strategy
But all is not lost for American cord cutters, as long as they don't insist on watching the games in English. Univision owns the Spanish-language broadcasting rights, and will stream all of the matches—until the quarterfinals—without requiring a pay-TV subscription. The network is also available for free over-the-air in most parts of the country, which would cover the later rounds.
Those taking the Univision approach will be in good company: During the last World Cup, the Spanish-language network had twice as many viewers as ESPN for the first match of the tournament.
The VPN tactic
Most restrictions on watching TV over the internet depend on knowing where you are located, and that is easily spoofed. Virtual private networks (VPNs), which are used for many legitimate purposes, will inevitably help people pretend they are in Canada, the United Kingdom, or any other country where the World Cup can be streamed online for free.
VPNs were once considered an advanced web tool, but free and easy-to-use services like Hola have made them mainstream. Some are hoping to capitalize on the inevitable interest in getting around World Cup viewing restrictions: UnoTelly, which usually charges for its VPN service, is offering a 40-day free trial during the tournament and pointing people to streams in other countries.
The Aereo free kick
The 10 games airing on ABC include the title match on July 13. To watch that without a TV subscription, you could put an antenna in the air—or make a bet on Aereo, a service that essentially does that for you. Aereo delivers broadcast TV signals over the internet in 11 US cities for $8 a month. Taking advantage of Aereo's 30-day free trial is a way to watch the title match without paying.
However, ABC and the other major broadcast networks have sued Aereo, calling it an obvious copyright violation. Its legality is the subject of a case before the US Supreme Court, which is likely to be decided this month. The whole service may very well be shut down before the World Cup is over, at which point it would be back to antennas not connected to the internet.
Or, perhaps most simply, just head to a bar.


text:
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text:
Dictionary of the History of Ideas
Studies of Selected Pivotal Ideas
| Dictionary of the History of Ideas
The making of models, so much a part of all the
sciences, and increasingly of the social sciences, has
been a central feature of the development of biology.
Indeed, modern biology springs from that ur-model,
the bête-machine, described in 1637 by René Descartes:
If there were a machine that had the organs and the external
features of a monkey, or some other dumb animal, we would
have no way at all of knowing that it was not, in every
aspect, of the very same nature as those animals
de la méthode, Part V).
For Descartes, even man would be indistinguishable
from such an automaton if it were not for his power
of communicating and apprehending complex thoughts
by means of speech. Even this exception to the machine
model of living organisms was challenged early in the
history of biology with the publication of La Mettrie's
L'Homme machine (ca. 1750).
The machine-animal, and its extension the machine-
man, are more than simply examples of model and
metaphor in biology; they are at the basis of all model-
making, for they are a statement of an underlying
relation between effects and causes in living organisms.
It was precisely the element of will and the infinite
variety of personal and idiosyncratic response to exter-
nal conditions that led Descartes to exempt man from
the constraints of such a model. Animal behavior
seemed to him stereotyped, without variety, and totally
predictable from external conditions, so that for beasts
the relation between cause and effect was unbroken.
Not so for man, whose essential nature lay in his free
will. It seems reasonable, on the other hand, that it
was La Mettrie's Jansenist training, with its heretical
denial of free will, that made possible his inclusion of
man in the realm of automata. As we shall see, the
Cartesian view of cause and effect, while an integral
aspect of model-making for a large part of modern
biology, has been replaced, for some problems, by a
weaker form of relationship among events. These are
the so-called "stochastic" theories in which the rela-
tionships between events are described by probability
statements rather than by exact one-for-one corre-
spondence. The influence of Cartesianism is very
strong, however, and stochastic theories are admitted
only slowly, grudgingly, and with a certain condescen-
sion toward those "inexact" fields of biology that seem
to require them. As in nineteenth-century physics, some
feel that uncertainty in a system is a reflection of
epistemological rather than ontological properties so
that with the aid of a "Laplace's demon" it would be
possible to reformulate stochastic theories in com-
Descartes' original metaphor maintains its powerful
influence on model-making in biology.
Biologists, like other scientists, use the notion of
model in a host of ways. At one extreme they may
mean a scaled-up, three-dimensional wire and plastic
representation of a cell. At the other, they may mean
an abstract structure such as a "mathematical model"
of evolution which may consist only of a set of differ-
ential equations. In what sense can the wire and plastic
cell be said to be the same kind of structure as a set
of differential equations? And in what sense are they
like a mouse, which is said to be a "model organism"
for the study of certain physiological or genetical
The similarities of these models can best be under-
stood by beginning with the most abstract. The basic
theory of evolutionary genetics is well worked out,
based on a detailed knowledge of the mechanics of
inheritance and certain empirical information about
the biology of reproduction and survival of a variety
of organisms. This theoretical superstructure is suffi-
ciently complex that quantitative predictions of the
outcome of evolutionary changes cannot be made by
inspection. In order to find out what is entailed by the
theory in any particular case, a model is built. First,
the theory is abstracted and is framed in terms of a
logical flow diagram involving dummy variables and
logical relations among these variables. Then this logi-
cal structure is realized by a program for a computer,
or a set of matrices and matrix operators, or a system
of difference or differential equations. All these real-
izations are isomorphic with each other and with the
original logical structure.
A second possibility is that a series of resistors, ca-
pacitors, and other electric and electronic devices is
used to make a physical model such that these electri-
cal elements produce a set of electrical quantities
(current, voltages) that behave isomorphically with the
dummy variables of the abstract system. Alternatively,
a "model organism" may be employed, like the fruit
fly, Drosophila, which is thought to be a specific real-
ization of the same general principles as are expressed
in the abstract representation of the original theory.
In fact, with a physical analogue as complex as a
"model organism," the explicit construction of the
abstract system that served as the pattern for the
mathematical realizations may never be made. Rather,
the model organism is assumed to embody the general
properties of the system being modelled and, in fact,
the general theory of evolutionary genetics supposes
that all organisms embody certain general relations
which are the subject of investigation. A model orga-
nism can then be used, and often is, in the absence
of a well worked-out theory of a biological process
on the assumption that general biological similarities
between the systems will guarantee isomorphism with
respect to the specific aspects under investigation.
The differences between the mathematical model,
the electronic model, and the model organism as real-
izations of the underlying abstractions, are of great
importance. The physical entities in the latter two
kinds of models carry with them certain intrinsic prop-
erties that are different from those in the original being
modelled. That is, these physical realizations are meta-
phorical and their iconic elements can be a source of
serious difficulty. The physical realizations were chosen
because some set of their properties was isomorphic
with some set of properties of the original system or
theory. In the case of the electronic analogue, the
theory of capacitors, resistors, and vacuum tubes is so
well understood and the empirical properties of these
objects are so different from the system being modelled
that there is no danger of confusion from the meta-
phorical elements. That vacuum tubes glow, get hot,
break when jarred, make a tinkling sound when
knocked together, will in no way confound the biolo-
gist since he is unlikely to confuse these properties with
the properties of evolving organisms. In the case of
model organisms, however, the danger is very great,
because the metaphorical elements introduced by these
organisms are in some cases so subtly different from
the properties being modelled, that they cannot be
distinguished, yet they produce great distortions.
Moreover, since such metaphors are often introduced
without an explicit laying out of the abstract system
of which the model should be a realization, there is
no clear way of differentiating relevant from irrelevant
from obfuscating properties of the model. For example,
Drosophila was used for a long time as the model for
the genetic mechanism of sex determination in man,
because of a general similarity of genetic mechanisms
between flies and man. But this has turned out to be
completely wrong, and the conclusions that arose from
this model were erroneous. This danger does not arise
only from using complex organisms as realizations. The
"digital computer" model of the central nervous system
has been one of the most misleading and possibly
harmful examples of allowing metaphorical properties
to intrude. In this case such properties as redundancy
checks, topological relationship between physical ele-
ments and conceptual elements, and the bit structure
of information characteristic of electronic digital com-
puters, although all metaphorical, were taken to be
system, whereas they certainly are not. It is for this
reason that an explicit abstraction of the original sys-
tem, followed by a realization of that abstraction in
either an abstract or physical form is much preferable
to modelling by generalized and "felt" analogy.
There is some confusion in biology between "models
of" and "models for." The isomorphisms with particu-
lar biological systems are "models of." But models in
the sense of ideals or patterns, like the "model of a
modern major general," are also found in the biological
literature. The essential difference is in their epistemo-
logical status. "Models of" are not intended, especially
when they are abstract, as contingent. They are ana-
lytic isomorphs of some phenomenon or system. They
may be good or bad models as they are perfect or
imperfectly isomorphic, but they cannot be said to be
true or false. On the other hand, "models for" like the
logistic model of population growth or the Lotka-
Volterra model of species competition, or the gradient
model of development, are taken as statements about
the real world, as contingent, and are in fact assertions
about the way organisms really behave. Sometimes
such models (patterns) are introduced as examples of
how nature might be, but they very soon become reified
by biologists. Such "models" are most common in those
branches of biology where there is little or no theoret-
ical basis. In these cases it is quite proper to speak
of "testing the model" since it is not really a model
but a hypothesis. Unfortunately, confusion between
these two senses of "model" sometimes results in an
attempt to test a "model of" which always results in
a vacuous "confirmation" of the model. Since the
model is analytic, it must be, and always is, confirmed.
Some such "tests" of analytic models go on in popula-
tion biology, where a model organism is placed under
extremely well controlled experimental conditions so
that it realizes a mathematical structure that has been
solved. If the mathematics has been done competently,
the model, which is a living computer, confirms it. But,
of course, no "test" (except of the competence of the
investigator) has been performed.
Model-making in biology serves much the same set
of functions as in any science. The special complexity
of many biological systems and the apparent diversity
of biological phenomena place a rather different
weight on various functions of modelling in biology
than in the physical or social sciences.
Models have an experimental convenience. Fruit
flies are easier to breed than man, and the giant axon
of the squid is easy to manipulate in neurophysiological
experiments. The very great delicacy of many biologi
cal materials and especially the idiosyncrasies of each
species, make the search for "model organisms" in
which particular features are convenient for investi-
gation one of the outstanding features of research
strategy. Most important advances in biology depend
upon finding just the right "model organism" or "model
system" for investigation. The best known example is
the dependence on the use of bacteriophage for the
development of molecular genetics (Cairns, Stent, and
Watson, 1966). This case also shows how unique aspects
of the model system itself, its metaphorical content,
can distract attention from the central features of the
realization. A great deal of the research on bacte-
riophage is now concerned with the peculiar properties
of this parasite interacting with its host, properties that
are irrelevant or even misleading for general genetical
problems. At the present time a determined search is
under way for a model organism for the study of the
molecular and micro-anatomical basis of central nerv-
ous system function, based on an explicit list of desira-
ble model properties.
Second in importance for models in biology is
the function of computation. An increasing number of
biological theories are framed in terms of numerically
quantified variables. Even when the variables are
themselves qualitative ("on" vs. "off" in nerve firings,
"male" vs. "female," "gene A" vs. "gene a"), many
theories are probabilistic and provide only probability
distributions for the states, even for fixed inputs. The
computation of such probability distributions cannot
be carried out by observing nature since only single
realizations of particular input sets exist. It is not pos-
sible, for example, to build and check a quantitative
theory of population extinction by observing actual
populations becoming extinct. Extinction is reasonably
rare in nature and no two populations have the same
starting conditions or environments. A theory of extinc-
tion is expressed in terms of a very large number of
variables including certain stochastic inputs from the
physical environment. Such theories are modelled by
analogue or digital computer programs in which there
is no metaphorical element and the model is isomor-
phic, with stochastic variables introduced to provide
an empirical probability distribution of results. An
alternative has been to create large numbers of con-
trolled populations in the laboratory or on islands.
Of lesser importance to biology is the function
of reification. In physics, inferred entities like electrons
and constructs like the photon are reified in macro-
scopic models, presumably because one cannot "un-
derstand" or "comprehend" them otherwise. Most of
the entities of biology are either macroscopic or can
be visualized with optical devices. As molecular biol-
ogy has grown, however, with its concept of gene as
ical interactions between molecules, there has been an
increase in macroscopic modelling. Molecular models
of metal or rubber in which atoms and chemical bonds
are represented by three-dimensional objects with ex-
actly cut angles and shapes are now common in biol-
ogy. Most of these models are built in order to "have
a look at" a complex biological molecule because it
is felt that somehow its three-dimensional structure will
provide some intuition about its function. Closely re-
lated to this kind of comprehension is a form of weak
hypotheses testing that accompanies reification. When
J. D. Watson and F. H. C. Crick were investigating
the molecular structure of DNA, they built metal real-
izations of their hypothetical structures, based on nu-
merical information from X-ray crystallography. A
number of those did not fit together too well (one is
described as a "particularly repulsive back-bone
model") while the final, correct solution looked right
("Maurice [Wilkins] needed but a minute's look at the
model to like it"). The fact that many of the structures
seemed strained and tortured while the one model had
an elegant and easy-fitting look was important in
reaching the final conclusion about the correct molec-
ular configuration (Watson, 1968).
Slowly, biological model-making is coming to
serve as a function of unification. Biology has been
marked in the past by particularism, by the notion that
most generalizations are only trivially true, and that
what is truly interesting and unique about biological
systems is their variety and uniqueness, arising from
their complexity. Even a great generalization like
Darwinism allows for such a vast variety of forms of
natural selection and variation, that evolutionists for
many years concentrated on individual patterns of
evolutionary change. This has been even truer of ecol-
ogy, which has remained anecdotal and particularist
in the extreme. Abstract models usually framed in
logical and mathematical terms with little or no iconic
element, have come into use in an attempt to unify
large areas of biological investigation. Computer simu-
lations especially have shown that a model involving
only a few genes and a fairly simple set of assumptions
about the environment will predict a great variety of
possible evolutionary outcomes depending upon the
initial state of the population that is evolving. Models
of coupled harmonic oscillators appear to be predictive
of events in the central nervous system, embryonic
development, and physiological rhythms, and may in-
dicate an underlying general mechanism for all these
diverse phenomena.
Unification of diverse phenomena can be accom-
plished by increasing complications of models. A suffi-
ciently complex model will be homomorphic with
(structurally similar to) a vast variety of phenomena,
but trivially so. But models in biology are increasingly
being used for simplification as well. A new technique
in the investigation of problems in community ecology
is to make a series of models with fewer and fewer
entities, variables, and syntactical rules in an attempt
to find the "simplest" model that will give a satisfactory
account of the observations. While this seems a com-
monplace description of how science in general is done,
it has not been true of community ecology in the past.
The explicit program of R. MacArthur and R. Levins
(1967) to express the ecological niche in terms of a
very small number of abstract dimensions sufficient to
explain the numbers of organisms of different species
coexisting, is a radical departure in ecology and one
not universally approved. The opposite approach, that
of "systems analysis" (Watt, 1968) is to build a model
so complex that it approaches as closely as possible
an isomorphism (one to one correspondence) with the
natural systems. In part, this difference in approach
reflects a difference in intent. The systems analytic
model is designed for the control of particular pest
organisms, or the management of wildlife. As such it
is concerned with a particular organism in a particular
circumstance. The minimal model is esteemed chiefly
for its elegance and is viewed as a part of the general
program of natural science—to explain as much as
possible by as little as possible.
Descartes' machine has been the meta-model on
which most biological models have been patterned. It
is a clockwork machine designed so that a fixed input
will result in a fixed output. The input-output relation
is one-one or many-one, but never one-many. A per-
turbation at any point in the structure results in an
exactly predictable response (including no response) at
every other part of the structure. This meta-model is
widely accepted in biology and molecular biology. The
program of molecular biology is identical with the
program described by Descartes in Part V of the Dis-
course on Method. The present description of the action
of genes in controlling protein synthesis, which is the
core of molecular biology, is isomorphic with the de-
scription of an automobile factory including quality
control, inventory control, assembly lines, and the like.
There is even a conscious exclusion of ambiguities
when they appear in experimental data, because of the
a priori certainty that the correct model is a Cartesian
one. For example, the present picture of the action
of genes is that each triplet of bases in the DNA mole-
cule specifies a particular amino acid to be added to
the protein. The experimental results that established
the correspondence between triplet and amino acid
poration of several amino acids in vitro, but one more
than others. It was assumed that this ambiguity was
an experimental artifact and that genes are more exact
than chemists. In general, molecular biologists deal
with all-or-none concepts, with switchings-on and
switchings-off of genes, with repression and de-repres-
sion. While the methods and data of this kind of biology
are quantitative and continuous, the interpretations are
qualitative and discrete. It is not accidental that statis-
tics and probability, the fitting of curves, and the
estimation of parameters, is not part of the apparatus
of modern molecular biology.
A quite different world view is reflected in the
models constructed for the analysis of population phe-
nomena like evolution and ecology. The models are
Laplacean rather than Cartesian. Chance elements are
built into the models, although this does not imply that
the phenomena being modelled are themselves really
uncertain. That is, most biologists adhere to a deter-
ministic view of phenomena but assume that a large
number of small deterministic effects that cannot and
need not be analyzed, give an apparent indeterminacy
to phenomena at a higher level.
In stochastic or probabilistic models the correlative
statements connecting variables are of the form "If X
takes the value x then Y takes the value y with proba-
bility f(y|x)." That is, each rule becomes a table of
probabilities. of y given x, or a function for generating
those probabilities. Realizations of such models then
require generations of "random" sequences, or, more
usually, pseudo-random sequences, which are indistin-
guishable from randomness by nearly any criterion, yet
are produced by an analytic rule.
Such stochastic models can then be set in motion
over and over again to produce empirically an array
of outcomes for any given input, since the random
sequence generator never repeats itself. For example,
in primitive populations, marriages are contracted
according to certain age, clan, and relationship prefer-
ences. These rules are not rigid, however, but can be
expressed as probabilities. If a village has a small pop-
ulation size, the subsequent history of marriages, births,
and deaths cannot be exactly given but various histories
may occur with different probabilities. It is relatively
simple to simulate the history of such a village in a
computer program and then to run hypothetical village
histories over and over again from which an array of
growth rates, pedigrees, total birth and death rates will
be produced. This array is a picture of the probability
distribution of outcomes predicted by the theory.
While this kind of stochastic modelling is very com-
mon in population biology and ecology, it raises a
serious problem. Since a range of outputs will occur
for a given input, only the weakest kind of comparison
with nature is possible. There is only one primitive
tribe with a unique history. Is this history "explained"
by the theory that has been modelled, when that model
produces an array of results among which the observed
history may very well lie? What kind of observed
history would be at variance with a model that pro-
duces an array of results? About the best that can be
done in those areas of biology is to say that a given
observation in nature is reasonable under the theory,
that it is not surprising given the hypothetical struc-
ture. The method of making such judgments is the
method of statistical testing. The model is used to
construct a calculating engine which produces a prob-
ability distribution of outcomes, given the hypothesis.
The actual case is compared with this probability
distribution, and if it is very improbable, the hypothesis
is rejected as an explanation of the natural event. The
difficulty is that many theories, especially in evolu-
tionary genetics, when modelled, turn out to give such
a broad array of results that almost any observation
is compatible with them.
Modelling serves a function that becomes apparent
in biology, but not in the physical sciences. If theories
contain a stochastic element and if only unique real-
izations of particular cases occur, model building may
be used to show that no choice among theories can be
made at some levels of theory making. These conditions,
which apply in much of population and evolutionary
biology, may also turn out to have the same effect in
social science.
For a detailed categorization and bibliography of models
in biology, see W. R. Stahl, "The Role of Models in Theo-
retical Biology," Progress in Theoretical Biology, 1 (1967),
165-218. See also M. W. Beckner, The Biological Way of
Thought (Berkeley, 1968), Ch. III; R. B. Braithewaite, Sci-
entific Explanation (Cambridge, 1953), Chs. III, V; J. Cairns,
G. S. Stent, and J. D. Watson, Phage and the Origins of
Molecular Biology (Cold Spring Harbor, 1966); H. Freuden-
thal, ed., The Concept and the Role of the Model in Mathe-
matics and Natural and Social Sciences (Dordrecht, 1961),
1-37, 163-94; R. MacArthur and R. Levins, "The Limiting
Similarity, Convergence and Divergence of Coexisting Spe-
cies," The American Naturalist, 101 (1967), 377-85; A.
Rosenblueth and N. Wiener, "The Role of Models in Sci-
ence," Philosophy of Science, 12 (1943), 317-20; J. D.
Watson, The Double Helix (New York, 1968); K. E. F. Watt,
Ecology and Resource Management (New York, 1968).
R. C. LEWONTIN[See also Biological Homologies; Evolutionism; Genetic Continuity; Man-Machine; Recapitulation.]
| Dictionary of the History of Ideas