Description.

The tallest tower in the complex is the tallest building in Saudi Arabia, with a height of. Currently it is the fifth-tallest freestanding structure in the world, surpassing the Ping An Finance Centre in Shenzhen, China but shorter than the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, UAE, the Tokyo Skytree in Tokyo, Japan, the Shanghai Tower in Shanghai, China, and the Canton Tower in Guangzhou, China.  The site of the complex is located across the piazza to the south from the main entrance (King Abdul-Aziz Gate) to the Masjid al Haram mosque, which houses the Kaaba. To accommodate worshippers visiting the Kaaba, the Abraj Al-Bait Towers has two large prayer rooms (one for men, one for women) capable of holding more than 10,000 people. The tallest tower in the complex also contains a five-star hotel, operated by Fairmont Hotels and Resorts, to help provide lodging for the millions of pilgrims that travel to Mecca annually to participate in the Hajj. In addition, the Abraj Al-Bait Towers has a five-story shopping mall (the Abraj Al Bait Mall) and a parking garage capable of holding over a thousand vehicles.  The building was planned to be tall in 2006. In 2009, it was published that the final height would be. The complex was built by the Saudi Binladin Group, Saudi Arabia's largest construction company. The tallest building in the complex (from a height of up until the tip) was designed by the German architect Mahmoud Bodo Rasch and his firm SL Rasch GmbH. The façade was constructed by "Premiere Composite Technologies", the clock by German tower clock manufacturer "PERROT GmbH & Co. KG Turmuhren und Läuteanlagen". According to the Saudi Ministry of Religious Endowments, the project cost US$15 billion.

Clock.

The project uses clock faces for each side of the main hotel tower. The highest residential floor stands at, just below the media displays under the clock faces. At, these are the largest in the world. The roof of the clocks is above the ground, making them the world's most elevated architectural clocks. A spire has been added on top of the clock giving it a total height of. Behind the clock faces there is an astronomy exhibition. In the spire base and the glass-covered floors (The Jewel) there is a scientific center which is used to sight the moon in the beginnings of the Islamic months, and to operate an atomic clock which controls the tower clocks.

Features.

The building is topped by a four-faced clock, visible from away. The clock is the highest in the world at over above the ground. The clock faces are the largest in the world, surpassing the Cevahir Mall clock in Istanbul.  Each of the clock's four faces measures in diameter and are illuminated by 2 million LED lights, with four oriented edges, just above the clock alongside huge Arabic script reading: "God is [the] greatest" on the north and south faces and on the west and east "There is no god but Allah. Muhammad is the messenger of God.". Four golden domes on pillars on all the corners are also present. Another 21,000 white and green coloured lights, the same as the Saudi Flag, fitted at the top of the clock, flash to signal Islam's five-time daily prayers, and are visible as far as away. On special occasions such as new year, 16 bands of vertical lights shoot up into the sky. The clock's four faces are covered with 98 million pieces of glass mosaics. The Saudi coat of arms is displayed at the centre of each clock behind the dials. The minute hand is long, while the hour hand is long.  A private viewing deck is located above the ground, right under the crescent. There is also a public viewing deck at the base of the clocks at 393 metres' height.  There were reports that the clock would be set to local Mecca Time, in an attempt to replace the IERS Reference Meridian as the prime meridian for global time keeping, but the clock is set to Arabia Standard Time ().

Spire.

The clocks are topped by a spire with a golden crescent at the top. The spire has an eight-story glass-covered base (The Jewel) which belongs to a scientific center having its own small exhibition, another observation deck at and a prayer floor in. The highest floor in The Jewel is the Control Tower Floor, which was planned to be used for controlling air traffic in the sky above Mecca (mainly helicopters as airplanes are not allowed near Mecca). However, this was skipped for technical reasons and the future usage is not clear yet. Above from The Jewel the spire has only technical installations for sound, light and other infrastructure and eventually the last viewing deck and the crescent above it. The crescent has two regular floors with living areas and a few service floors and rooms.  The crescent was constructed in Dubai by Premier Composite Technologies in April 2011. The crescent is made of fibreglass-backed mosaic gold, and it weighs up to 35 tonnes. Peugeot Joseph, the company official, said a team of five engineers and a hundred workers carried out the project, which cost 90 million United Arab Emirates dirhams and took three months to build.  The company has also constructed the Mecca Clock. The crescent was divided into 10 parts to move it to Mecca. The crescent was partly assembled on the base of the clock face to reduce it to 5 parts. Those five parts were then lifted and installed above the spire from 20 June to 6 July 2011.  The minaret and its base have loudspeakers which broadcast prayer calls to a distance of 7 km while nearly 21,000 lamps illuminate the surrounding area to a distance of. During occasions like Muslim Eids and new Hijri years, a 16-beam light illuminates an area of a diameter of around while 21,000 lamps beam white and green lights to a distance of. The light beams are intended to allow the deaf, and Muslims in more distant parts of Mecca and nearby cities, to know prayer timings.

Incidents.

Construction fires.

The Abraj-Al-Bait complex had two fire incidents during construction. The first fire accident was at Hajar Tower on 28 October 2008. It took 400 firefighters to put out the fire, which burned for 10 hours, consuming nine floors of the tower. According to eyewitness reports, the blaze erupted shortly after midnight, and spread rapidly because of wood used for construction stored in the premises. Soon, the entire building was engulfed in smoke. Hospitals were put on high alert, but no injuries were reported. A civil defence spokesman said the fire started on the 32nd floor of the Hajar Tower.  The second fire struck the Safa Tower on 1 May 2009. No deaths or injuries were reported in the blaze which was quickly contained by Civil Defence. Eyewitnesses said the fire broke out soon after Asr prayer while some workers in the building were welding iron rods on wooden scaffoldings. The fire damaged a large part of the under-construction tower. According to Major General Adel Zamzami, director general of Civil Defence in the Mecca province, the fire broke out at the 14th floor and reached up to the 20th floor.

Controversy.

The construction engendered some controversy as the location chosen for the towers was the historic 18th-century Ottoman Ajyad Fortress, which was demolished to make way for them. The development has been criticised by "The Guardian" for having "transformed a type of architecture that evolved from a dense urban grain of low-rise courtyards and narrow streets into... an endlessly repeatable pattern for the decoration of standardised [concrete] slab(s)".

The Abraj Al-Bait ( "Towers of the House") is a government-owned complex of seven skyscraper hotels in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. These towers are a part of the King Abdulaziz Endowment Project that aims to modernize the city in catering to its pilgrims. The central hotel tower, the Makkah Royal Clock Tower, has the world's largest clock face and is the third-tallest building and fifth-tallest freestanding structure in the world. The clock tower contains the Clock Tower Museum that occupies the top four floors of the tower.

Abrádž Al-Bajt () také známý jako Mecca Royal Hotel Clock Tower je komplex několika mrakodrapů vlastněných státem, které se nacházejí v saúdskoarabské Mekce.


Implementation.

The mechanisms for modular or object-oriented programming that are provided by a programming language are mechanisms that allow developers to provide SoC. For example, object-oriented programming languages such as C#, C++, Delphi, and Java can separate concerns into objects, and architectural design patterns like MVC or MVP can separate content from presentation and the data-processing (model) from content. Service-oriented design can separate concerns into services. Procedural programming languages such as C and Pascal can separate concerns into procedures or functions. Aspect-oriented programming languages can separate concerns into aspects and objects.  Separation of concerns is an important design principle in many other areas as well, such as urban planning, architecture and information design. The goal is to more effectively understand, design, and manage complex interdependent systems, so that functions can be reused, optimized independently of other functions, and insulated from the potential failure of other functions.  Common examples include separating a space into rooms, so that activity in one room does not affect people in other rooms, and keeping the stove on one circuit and the lights on another, so that overload by the stove does not turn the lights off. The example with rooms shows encapsulation, where information inside one room, such as how messy it is, is not available to the other rooms, except through the interface, which is the door. The example with circuits demonstrates that activity inside one module, which is a circuit with consumers of electricity attached, does not affect activity in a different module, so each module is not concerned with what happens in the other.

Origin.

The term "separation of concerns" was probably coined by Edsger W. Dijkstra in his 1974 paper "On the role of scientific thought". Fifteen years later, it was evident the term Separation of Concerns was becoming an accepted idea. In 1989, Chris Reade wrote a book titled "Elements of Functional Programming" that describes separation of concerns:  Reade continues to say,

Examples.

Internet protocol stack.

Separation of concerns is crucial to the design of the Internet. In the Internet Protocol Suite, great efforts have been made to separate concerns into well-defined layers. This allows protocol designers to focus on the concerns in one layer, and ignore the other layers. The Application Layer protocol SMTP, for example, is concerned about all the details of conducting an email session over a reliable transport service (usually TCP), but not in the least concerned about how the transport service makes that service reliable. Similarly, TCP is not concerned about the routing of data packets, which is handled at the Internet Layer.

HTML, CSS, JavaScript.

HyperText Markup Language (HTML), Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), and JavaScript (JS) are complementary languages used in the development of web pages and websites. HTML is mainly used for organization of webpage content, CSS is used for definition of content presentation style, and JS defines how the content interacts and behaves with the user. Historically, this was not the case: prior to the introduction of CSS, HTML performed both duties of defining semantics and style.

Subject-oriented programming.

Subject-oriented programming allows separate concerns to be addressed as separate software constructs, each on an equal footing with the others. Each concern provides its own class-structure into which the objects in common are organized, and contributes state and methods to the composite result where they cut across one another. Correspondence rules describe how the classes and methods in the various concerns are related to each other at points where they interact, allowing composite behavior for a method to be derived from several concerns. Multi-dimensional Separation of Concerns allows the analysis and composition of concerns to be manipulated as a multi-dimensional "matrix" in which each concern provides a dimension in which different points of choice are enumerated, with the cells of the matrix occupied by the appropriate software artifacts.

Aspect-oriented programming.

Aspect-oriented programming allows cross-cutting concerns to be addressed as primary concerns. For example, most programs require some form of security and logging. Security and logging are often secondary concerns, whereas the primary concern is often on accomplishing business goals. However, when designing a program, its security must be built into the design from the beginning instead of being treated as a secondary concern. Applying security afterwards often results in an insufficient security model that leaves too many gaps for future attacks. This may be solved with aspect-oriented programming. For example, an aspect may be written to enforce that calls to a certain API are always logged, or that errors are always logged when an exception is thrown, regardless of whether the program's procedural code handles the exception or propagates it.

Software build automation.

Most project organization tasks are seen as secondary tasks. For example, build automation is an approach to automating the process of compiling source code into binary code. The primary goals in build automation are reducing the risk of human error and saving time.

Levels of analysis in artificial intelligence.

In cognitive science and artificial intelligence, it is common to refer to David Marr's levels of analysis. At any given time, a researcher may be focusing on (1) what some aspect of intelligence needs to compute, (2) what algorithm it employs, or (3) how that algorithm is implemented in hardware. This separation of concerns is similar to the interface/implementation distinction in software and hardware engineering.

Normalized Systems.

In Normalized Systems separation of concerns is one of the four guiding principles. Adhering to this principle is one of the tools that helps reduce the combinatorial effects that, over time, get introduced in software that is being maintained. In Normalized Systems separation of concerns is actively supported by the tools.

SoC via partial classes.

Separation of concerns can be implemented and enforced via partial classes.

SoC via partial classes in Ruby.

class Bear end  class Bear end  class Bear end

In computer science, separation of concerns (SoC) is a design principle for separating a computer program into distinct sections such that each section addresses a separate concern. A concern is a set of information that affects the code of a computer program. A concern can be as general as "the details of the hardware for an application", or as specific as "the name of which class to instantiate". A program that embodies SoC well is called a modular program. Modularity, and hence separation of concerns, is achieved by encapsulating information inside a section of code that has a well-defined interface. Encapsulation is a means of information hiding. Layered designs in information systems are another embodiment of separation of concerns (e.g., presentation layer, business logic layer, data access layer, persistence layer).

V programování se proces oddělení zodpovědností (Separation of Concerns - SoC) rozumí rozdělení počítačového programu na různé části tak, aby se z hlediska funkcionality tyto části co možná nejméně překrývaly. To znamená, aby určitou funkcionalitu vykonávala pouze část programu k tomu určená. Další část programu by pak neměla kopírovat v sobě stejnou funkcionalitu.


History.

The evolution of mobile communication began in three different geographic regions: North America, Europe and Japan. The standards used in these regions were quite independent of each other.  The earliest mobile or wireless technologies implemented were wholly analogue, and are collectively known as 1st Generation (1G) technologies. In Japan, the 1G standards were: Nippon Telegraph and Telephone (NTT) and the high capacity version of it (Hicap). The early systems used throughout Europe were not compatible to each other, meaning the later idea of a common 'European Union' viewpoint/technological standard was absent at this time.  The various 1G standards in use in Europe included C-Netz (in Germany and Austria), Comviq (in Sweden), Nordic Mobile Telephones/450 (NMT450) and NMT900 (both in Nordic countries), NMT-F (French version of NMT900), Radiocom 2000 (RC2000) (in France), and TACS (Total Access Communication System) (in the United Kingdom, Italy and Ireland). North American standards were Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS) and Narrow-band AMPS (N-AMPS).  Out of the 1G standards, the most successful was the AMPS system. Despite the Nordic countries' cooperation, European engineering efforts were divided among the various standards, and the Japanese standards did not get much attention. Developed by Bell Labs in the 1970s and first used commercially in the United States in 1983, AMPS operates in the 800 MHz band in the United States and is the most widely distributed analog cellular standard. (The 1900 MHz PCS band, established in 1994, is for digital operation only.) The success of AMPS kick-started the mobile age in the North America.  The market showed an increasing demand because it had higher capacity and mobility than the then-existing mobile communication standards were capable of handling. For example, the Bell Labs system in the 1970s could carry only 12 calls at a time throughout all of New York City. AMPS used Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) which enabled each cell site to transmit on different frequencies, allowing many cell sites to be built near each other.  AMPS also had many disadvantages, as well. Primarily, it did not have the ability to support the ever-increasing demand for mobile communication usage. Each cell site did not have much capacity for carrying higher numbers of calls. AMPS also had a poor security system which allowed people to steal a phone's serial code to use for making illegal calls. All of these triggered the search for a more capable system.  The quest resulted in IS-54, the first American 2G standard. In March 1990, the North American cellular network incorporated the IS-54B standard, the first North American dual mode digital cellular standard. This standard won over Motorola's Narrowband AMPS or N-AMPS, an analog scheme which increased capacity, by cutting down voice channels from 30 kHz to 10 kHz. IS-54, on the other hand, increased capacity by digital means using TDMA protocols. This method separates calls by time, placing parts of individual conversations on the same frequency, one after the next. TDMA tripled call capacity.  Using IS-54, a cellular carrier could convert any of its system's analog voice channels to digital. A dual mode phone uses digital channels where available, and defaults to regular AMPS where they are not. IS-54 was backward compatible with analogue cellular and indeed co-existed on the same radio channels as AMPS. No analogue customers were left behind; they simply could not access IS-54's new features. IS-54 also supported authentication, a help in preventing fraud.

Technology specifications.

IS-54 employs the same 30 kHz channel spacing and frequency bands (824-849 and 869-894 MHz) as AMPS. Capacity was increased over the preceding analog design by dividing each 30 kHz channel pair into three time slots and digitally compressing the voice data, yielding three times the call capacity in a single cell. A digital system also made calls more secure because analog scanners could not access digital signals.  The IS-54 standard specifies 84 control channels, 42 of which are shared with AMPS. To maintain compatibility with the existing AMPS cellular telephone system, the primary forward and reverse control channels in IS-54 cellular systems use the same signaling techniques and modulation scheme (binary FSK) as AMPS. An AMPS/IS-54 infrastructure can support use of either analog AMPS phones or D-AMPS phones.  The access method used for IS-54 is Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), which was the first U.S. digital standard to be developed. It was adopted by the TIA in 1992. TDMA subdivides each of the 30 kHz AMPS channels into three full-rate TDMA channels, each of which is capable of supporting a single voice call. Later, each of these full-rate channels was further sub-divided into two half-rate channels, each of which, with the necessary coding and compression, could also support a voice call. Thus, TDMA could provide three to six times the capacity of AMPS traffic channels. TDMA was initially defined by the IS-54 standard and is now specified in the IS-13x series of specifications of the EIA/TIA.  The channel transmission bit rate for digitally modulating the carrier is 48.6 kbit/s. Each frame has six time slots of 6.67-ms duration. Each time slot carries 324 bits of information, of which 260 bits are for the 13-kbit/s full-rate traffic data. The other 64 bits are overhead; 28 of these are for synchronization, and they contain a specific bit sequence known by all receivers to establish frame alignment. Also, as with GSM, the known sequence acts as a training pattern to initialize an adaptive equalizer.  The IS-54 system has different synchronization sequences for each of the six time slots making up the frame, thereby allowing each receiver to synchronize to its own preassigned time slots. An additional 12 bits in every time slot are for the SACCH (i.e. system control information). The digital verification color code (DVCC) is the equivalent of the supervisory audio tone used in the AMPS system. There are 256 different 8-bit color codes, which are protected by a (12, 8, 3) Hamming code. Each base station has its own preassigned color code, so any incoming interfering signals from distant cells can be ignored.  The modulation scheme for IS-54 is 7C/4 differential quaternary phase shift keying (DQPSK), otherwise known as differential 7t/4 4-PSK or π/4 DQPSK. This technique allows a bit rate of 48.6 kbit/s with 30 kHz channel spacing, to give a bandwidth efficiency of 1.62 bit/s/Hz. This value is 20% better than GSM. The major disadvantage with this type of linear modulation method is the power inefficiency, which translates into a heavier hand-held portable and, even more inconvenient, a shorter time between battery recharges.

Call processing.

A conversation's data bits makes up the DATA field. Six slots make up a complete IS-54 frame. DATA in slots 1 and 4, 2 and 5, and 3 and 6 make up a voice circuit. DVCC stands for digital verification color code, arcane terminology for a unique 8-bit code value assigned to each cell. G means guard time, the period between each time slot. RSVD stands for reserved. SYNC represents synchronization, a critical TDMA data field. Each slot in every frame must be synchronized against all others and a master clock for everything to work.  Time slots for the mobile-to-base direction are constructed differently from the base-to-mobile direction. They essentially carry the same information but are arranged differently. Notice that the mobile-to-base direction has a 6-bit ramp time to enable its transmitter time to get up to full power, and a 6-bit guard band during which nothing is transmitted. These 12 extra bits in the base-to-mobile direction are reserved for future use.  Once a call comes in the mobile switches to a different pair of frequencies; a voice radio channel which the system carrier has made analog or digital. This pair carries the call. If an IS-54 signal is detected it gets assigned a digital traffic channel if one is available. The fast associated channel or FACCH performs handoffs during the call, with no need for the mobile to go back to the control channel. In case of high noise FACCH, embedded within the digital traffic channel overrides the voice payload, degrading speech quality to convey control information. The purpose is to maintain connectivity. The slow associated control channel or SACCH does not perform handoffs but conveys things like signal strength information to the base station.  The IS-54 speech coder uses the technique called vector sum excited linear prediction (VSELP) coding. This is a special type of speech coder within a large class known as code-excited linear prediction (CELP) coders. The speech coding rate of 7.95 kbit/s achieves a reconstructed speech quality similar to that of the analog AMPS system using frequency modulation. The 7.95-kbit/s signal is then passed through a channel coder that loads the bit rate up to 13 kbit/s. The new half-rate coding standard reduces the overall bit rate for each call to 6.5 kbit/s, and should provide comparable quality to the 13-kbit/s rate. This half-rate gives a channel capacity six times that of analog AMPS.

System example.

The discussion of a communication system will not be complete without the explanation of a system example. A dual-mode cellular phone as specified by the IS-54 standard is explained. A dual-mode phone is capable of operating in an analog-only cell or a dual-mode cell. Both the transmitter and the receiver support both analog FM and digital time division multiple access (TDMA) schemes. Digital transmission is preferred, so when a cellular system has digital capability, the mobile unit is assigned a digital channel first. If no digital channels are available, the cellular system will assign an analog channel. The transmitter converts the audio signal to a radio frequency (RF), and the receiver converts an RF signal to an audio signal. The antenna focuses and converts RF energy for reception and transmission into free space. The control panel serves as an input/output mechanism for the end user; it supports a keypad, a display, a microphone, and a speaker. The coordinator synchronizes the transmission and receives functions of the mobile unit. A dual-mode cellular phone consists of the following:

Successor technologies.

By 1993 American cellular was again running out of capacity, despite a wide movement to IS-54. The American cellular business continued booming. Subscribers grew from one and a half million customers in 1988 to more than thirteen million subscribers in 1993. Room existed for other technologies to cater to the growing market. The technologies that followed IS-54 stuck to the digital backbone laid down by it.

IS-136.

A pragmatic effort was launched to improve IS-54 that eventually added an extra channel to the IS-54 hybrid design. Unlike IS-54, IS-136 utilizes time division multiplexing for both voice and control channel transmissions. Digital control channel allows residential and in-building coverage, dramatically increased battery standby time, several messaging applications, over the air activation and expanded data applications. IS-136 systems needed to support millions of AMPS phones, most of which were designed and manufactured before IS-54 and IS-136 were considered. IS-136 added a number of features to the original IS-54 specification, including text messaging, circuit switched data (CSD), and an improved compression protocol. IS-136 TDMA traffic channels use π/4-DQPSK modulation at a 24.3-kilobaud channel rate and gives an effective 48.6 kbit/s data rate across the six time slots comprising one frame in the 30 kHz channel.

Sunset for D-AMPS in the US and Canada.

AT&T Mobility, the largest US carrier to support D-AMPS (which it refers to as "TDMA"), had turned down its existing network in order to release the spectrum to its GSM and UMTS platforms in 19 wireless markets, which started on May 30, 2007, with other areas that followed in June and July. The TDMA network in these markets operated on the 1900 MHz frequency and did not coexist with an AMPS network. Service on the remaining 850 MHz TDMA markets was discontinued along with AMPS service on February 18, 2008, except for in areas where service was provided by Dobson Communications. The Dobson TDMA and AMPS network was shut down March 1, 2008.  On May 31, 2007 Rogers Wireless decommissioned its D-AMPS and AMPS networks and moved the remaining customers on these older networks onto its GSM network.  Alltel completed their shutdown of their D-AMPS and AMPS networks in September 2008. The last carrier in the United States to operate a D-AMPS network was U.S. Cellular, who shut down its D-AMPS network in February 2009.

IS-54 and IS-136 are second-generation (2G) mobile phone systems, known as Digital AMPS (D-AMPS), and a further development of the North American 1G mobile system Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS). It was once prevalent throughout the Americas, particularly in the United States and Canada since the first commercial network was deployed in 1993. D-AMPS is considered end-of-life, and existing networks have mostly been replaced by GSM/GPRS or CDMA2000 technologies.

Digital AMPS, D-AMPS, přesněji IS-54 nebo IS-136, je (dnes už historický) systém mobilních telefonů druhé generace používaný v letech 1990-2007 na obou amerických kontinentech, především v USA a Kanadě.


History.

The origins of Modekngei are unknown, but one theory is that Modekngei began as a form of cultural resistance to the Japanese occupation of Palau. By amalgamating native animistic and Christian beliefs in an oral tradition of chants called "keskes," the islanders may have been better able to preserve and transmit their traditions.  A common story in Ngatpang is that the religion developed from the efforts of Christian missionaries in Palau who hoped to convert the islanders. After visiting Ibobang, a village of about 100 people in Ngatpang state, where most of the 100 inhabitants follow Modekngei today, the missionaries were so impressed by the villagers' commitment their customs that they allowed the Palauans to keep their goddess while still practicing Christianity.

Practices.

The goal of Modekngei is to preserve ancient Palauan traditions in a way that aligns with Christianity.  Adherents in Ibobang practice a traditional lifestyle centered on ancient ideas of family, community, and purity. The religion prohibits followers from all alcohol and drug use, and children in the village are required to be home by dark and abstain from making loud noises in sacred places.  Citizens of Ibobang attend daily church services. The church building is located in the center of the village and is likewise the center of activity. One Modekngei custom requires members of the community to walk silently to church each morning. To speak, especially loudly, before a church service is disrespectful and borderline blasphemous.  Women in Ibobang usually dress in western apparel, but at church they are required to always wear a skirt or dress when either entering or passing the building. As a result, it’s not uncommon to see a woman in Ibobang dressed in pants to take a longer route to her destination to keep from crossing the church grounds without the proper attire. Daily Modekngei church services are short, consisting mostly of individual and group prayers. However, services celebrating both traditional and religious holidays are more elaborate and can last several days, with weeks of communal preparation.  One custom that most Palauans observe—regardless of religious affiliation—is the prohibition of alcohol or tobacco within the Ibobang city limits. According to tradition, violating this religious ban will bring terrible rainstorms upon the village that won’t go away until the sin has been forgiven by the Modekngei goddess.  Even Palauans who may normally drink or smoke will abstain from bringing the banned substances within the city limits. The belief that rains will plague the village is so strong that Modekngei elders will hang fruit and other treats on tree branches throughout the village in hopes of bribing the goddess to be forgiving of outsiders' misconduct.  Another customary activity that takes place in Ibobang is the blessing of the roads. This particular custom coincides with the moon’s cycle. A few days before each full moon, the community works together to clean the entire village. Lawns are cut, trash is cleaned and houses are scrubbed. Then, the evening before the full moon dawns, everyone who lives in Ibobang waits inside their houses while a village elder walks up and down the streets chanting prayers and blessings over the village. This is a necessary practice in Modekngei because it’s believed that during a full moon, the Modekngei goddess is better able to see the malpractices of her people.

Belau Modekngei School.

Ibobang is the home of Belau Modekngei School (BMS), a boarding school for high school students situated at the far end of the village. In 1974, a handful of Modekngei elders realized their desire to pass on the ancient traditions of the Modekngei religion to future generations.  Today, between 25 and 30 students from the 9th to 12th grade are enrolled at BMS. Students and faculty have the option of living on campus in traditional dormatory-style housing with no electricity or running water, or in the surrounding villages of Ngatpang. Slightly more than half the students live on campus.  The student body at BMS is diverse. Some of the students attend because they come from families who value a traditional education. Other students enroll at BMS as a last resort. As one of very few private high schools on Palau, BMS has the option of accepting students who have been expelled from the island's only public high school.  Students at BMS study core academic subjects such as English, Math and Palauan, but they also take Modekngei religious classes, have the opportunity to farm ancient medicinal crops, and practice traditional customs with the wider village.  Belau Modekngei's primary goal is to preserve Modekngei religion for future generations of Palauans.

Modekngei, or "Ngara Modekngei" (United Sect), is a monotheistic religious movement founded around 1915 by Temedad, a native of the island of Babeldaob, that spread throughout Palau. It rose to political significance between the First and Second World Wars and is currently professed by 8.8% of Palau's population. Modekngei is a hybrid of ancient Palauan customs and Christianity. Followers of the religion believe in the Christian God and recognize Jesus Christ as their savior and simultaneously make appeasements to the traditional Palauan deities.

Modekngei či Ngara Modekngei (dosl. Spojená sekta) je monoteistické náboženství, které založil v r. 1915 Temedad, muž narozený na palauském ostrově Babeldaob (ps. též Babelthuap). Rozšířilo se následně po dalších ostrovech souostroví Palau. V současnosti se počet praktikujících věřících odhaduje asi na 1700 osob, což činí necelých 9 % palauské populace. Původně šlo o nenásilné hnutí, které vzniklo v reakci na japonskou okupaci v období mezi dvěma světovými válkami a jež spojilo domorodé animistické kulty s křesťanstvím v osobité orální tradici, jejímž typickým projevem jsou zpěvy zvané keskes. Mělo za cíl posílit palauské kulturní dědictví.


Education.

Mukai graduated from Keio Girls Senior High School in Tokyo, in 1971. She received her doctorate in medicine, Keio University School of Medicine, 1977; a doctorate in physiology, Keio University School of Medicine, 1988; board certified as a cardiovascular surgeon, Japan Surgical Society, 1989.  Mukai is a member of the American Aerospace Medical Association; the Japan Society of Microgravity Applications; Japan Society of Aerospace and Environmental Medicine; Japanese Society for Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery; and the Japan Surgical Society.

Medical career.

Mukai has held positions at several hospitals and institutions.  Mukai has been credited with approximately sixty peer-reviewed scientific publications since 1979.

Astronaut career.

In 1985, Mukai was selected as one of three Japanese Payload Specialist candidates for the First Material Processing Test (Spacelab-J) which flew aboard STS-47. She also served as a back-up payload specialist for the Neurolab (STS-90) mission. Mukai has logged over 566 hours in space. She flew aboard STS-65 in 1994 and STS-95 in 1998. She is the first Japanese woman to fly in space, and the first Japanese citizen to fly twice.  As a NASDA astronaut, she was a visiting scientist at the Division of Cardiovascular Physiology, Space Biomedical Research Institute, NASA Johnson Space Center, from 1987 to 1988. Mukai has remained a Research Instructor of the Department of Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, since 1992. From 1992 to 1998 she was a visiting associate professor of the Department of Surgery, Keio University School of Medicine, Tokyo, and in 1999 was promoted to a visiting professor of the university.  On October 1, 2003, NASDA merged with ISAS (Institute of Space and Astronautical Science) and NAL (National Aerospace Laboratory of Japan) and was renamed Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).  Mukai was assigned the deputy mission scientist for STS-107. In that capacity she coordinated science operations for this science mission. In 2009 Mukai was a visiting lecturer at the International Space University.

STS-65.

STS-65 Columbia (July 8–23, 1994) was the second International Microgravity Laboratory (IML-2) flight. The mission consisted of 82 investigations of Space Life Science (Human Physiology, Space Biology, Radiation Biology, and Bioprocessing) and Microgravity Science (Material Science, Fluid Science and Research on the Microgravity Environment and Countermeasures). IML-2 was also designated as an extended duration orbit mission focusing on medical experiments related to the cardiovascular system, autonomic nerve system, and bone and muscle metabolism. The mission was accomplished in 236 orbits of the Earth, traveling over 6.1 million miles in 353 hours and 55 minutes.

STS-95.

STS-95 Discovery (October 29 to November 7, 1998) was a nine-day mission during which the crew supported a variety of research payloads including deployment of the Spartan solar-observing spacecraft, the Hubble Space Telescope Orbital Systems Test Platform, and investigations on space flight and the aging process. The mission was accomplished in 134 Earth orbits, traveling 3.6 million miles in 213 hours and 44 minutes.

After her return from space.

Mukai was a visiting professor at the International Space University (ISU) from September 2004 to September 2007. Between 2007 and 2012, she worked for JAXA, serving as Director of the Space Biomedical Research Office, Human Space Technology and Astronaut Department, Human Space System and Utilization Mission Directorate.  From April 2011 until 2015, Mukai was a senior Advisor to the JAXA Executive Director. In addition, she became the director of the JAXA Center for Applied Space Medicine and Human Research (J-CASMHR) in July 2012.  On March 2015, Mukai became vice president of the Tokyo University of Science, and is a technical counselor for JAXA. Since June 2015, she has been Director of Fujitsu Limited and is a corporate executive fellow of Kao Corporation since January 2016.

Awards and honors.

Mukai has received the following awards:

Personal life.

Chiaki Mukai, née, was born in Tatebayashi, Gunma Prefecture, Japan. She is married to Makio Mukai, M.D., Ph.D. Her recreational interests include snow skiing, Alpine competitive skiing, bass fishing, scuba diving, tennis, golf, photography, American Literature, and traveling.

In popular culture.

In 2007, Fuji Television released a special episode of its program "A Woman's Biography". The episode is based on the biography of Mukai Chiaki and stars Miho Kanno.

Mukai was selected to be an astronaut by Japanese national space agency NASDA (now called JAXA) in 1985. Prior to this, she was an assistant professor in the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery at Keio University, the oldest university in Japan. In 2015, she became Vice President of the Tokyo University of Science. In addition, she became JAXA Technical Counselor.

Čiaki Mukaiová (, Mukai Čiaki, * 6. května 1952 Tatebajaši, prefektura Gunma, Japonsko), původně lékařka, je od roku 1985 kosmonautka japonské kosmické agentury JAXA. Uskutečnila dva krátkodobé kosmické lety, STS-65 roku 1994 a STS-95 roku 1998. Od roku 2012 je v JAXA ředitelkou Centra pro aplikované kosmické lékařství a výzkum člověka.


Population, demographics, and government.

East Texas comprises 41 counties, 38 of which collaborate in sub-regional Ark-Tex Council of Governments, the East Texas Council of Governments, the Deep East Texas Council of Governments and the South East Texas Regional Planning Commission.  Counties included are Anderson, Angelina, Bowie, Camp, Cass, Cherokee, Delta, Franklin, Gregg, Hardin, Harrison, Henderson, Hopkins, Houston, Jasper, Jefferson, Lamar, Marion, Morris, Nacogdoches, Newton, Orange, Panola, Polk, Rains, Red River, Rusk, Sabine, San Augustine, San Jacinto, Shelby, Smith, Titus, Trinity, Tyler, Upshur, Van Zandt, and Wood County, Texas.  The three additional East Texas counties that join with other regional government councils are Chambers County (Anahuac), Liberty County (Liberty), and Walker County (Huntsville), all three in geographic proximity to the Houston metropolitan areas.  Outside of the Greater Houston area, the average population density is around 18–45 per mi (7–12 per km), with the population density near the Big Thicket dropping below 18 people per mi. East Texas's population is very large and is centered around the Golden Triangle (Texas), which is Beaumont/Port Arthur/Orange in Southeast Texas. Moving north from the coast, Lufkin and Nacogdoches anchor the population center of Deep East Texas. Continuing north from Deep East Texas, Tyler, Longview, and Marshall, in Northeast Texas, along with Texarkana, on the far northeastern border with Arkansas, represent the major population centers in the northern section of East Texas. Only 8 mi from the Texas border, Shreveport, Louisiana, is considered the economic and cultural center for the Ark-La-Tex, the area where Arkansas, Louisiana, and East Texas meet.  The 2010 U.S. Census shows these 41 East Texas counties with a population of 2,057,518 residents, which represents 8% of the total state population of Texas.  Per the 2010 US Census records, the five most populous counties are:  Per the 2010 US census records, the ten most populous East Texas cities are:  According to US Census records from 2010, the population of East Texas counties is 65.93% White non-Hispanic, 17.44% African American, 14.29% Hispanic or Latino origin, and 2.34% Other (including Native American and Asian). East Texas' most ethnically and racially diverse county is Jefferson County, its largest county, which includes the city of Beaumont, with 44.1% White non-Hispanic, 34.1% African American, 17.7% Hispanic or Latino origin and 4.1% other (including Native American and Asian). East Texas is within the Black Belt region. Unlike Texas' total state racial demographics, only two counties in East Texas have a majority minority, Jefferson County in the Golden Triangle and Titus County having a 40.6% Hispanic or Latino origin population. East Texas and Southeast Texas have a significant African-American population, ranging to nearly 20% in some counties.

Geography and climate.

Climate is the unifying factor in the region's geography; all of East Texas has the humid subtropical climate typical of the Southeast, occasionally interrupted by intrusions of cold air from the north. East Texas receives more rainfall,, than the rest of Texas. In Houston, the average January temperature is and the average July temperature is, but Houston has slightly warmer winters than most of East Texas due to its lower latitude and proximity to the coast.  All of East Texas also lies within the Gulf Coastal Plain, but with less uniformity than the climate with rolling hills in the north and flat coastal plains in the south. Local vegetation also varies from north to south with the lower third consisting of the temperate grassland extending from South Texas to South Louisiana. The northern two-thirds of the region is dominated by temperate forest known as the Piney Woods, which extends over. The Piney Woods are part of a much larger region of pine-hardwood forest that extends into Louisiana, Arkansas, and Oklahoma. The Piney Woods area thins out as it nears the Gulf of Mexico. West of the Piney Woods are the ranchlands and remnant oak forests of the East Central Texas forests ecoregion.  The Sabine, Trinity, Neches, Angelina and Sulphur Rivers are the major rivers in East Texas, but the Brazos River and Red River also flow through the region. The Brazos cuts through the southwest portion of the region, while the Red River forms its northern border with Oklahoma and a portion of Arkansas. In East Texas and the rest of the South, small rivers and creeks collect into swamps called "bayous" and merge with the surrounding forest. Bald cypress and Spanish moss are the dominant plants in bayous. The most famous of these bayous are Cypress Bayou and Buffalo Bayou. Cypress Bayou surrounds the Big, Little, and Black Cypress Rivers around Jefferson. They flow east into Caddo Lake, and the adjoining wetlands cover the rim and islands of the lake.

Culture.

East Texas is often considered the westernmost extension of the Deep South. The predominant cultural influence comes from customs and traditions passed down from European-American and African-American Southerners who settled the region during the mid- and late 19th century. African Americans were first brought to the area as slaves to work on plantations. These influences are noticeable in the subdialect of Texan English that is spoken throughout the region. According to the most recent linguistic studies, East Texans tend to pronounce Southern English with the drawl typical of the Lower South, whereas other parts of Texas are more prone to the "twang" of the Upper South, or—depending upon demographic influences of the particular area—with some Hispanic and Midwestern traits.  East Texas lacks the strong influence of late 19th- and early 20th-century European immigrants from Germany and central Europe. Similarly, the new waves of immigrants since the late 20th century, primarily from India, other Asian nations, and Latin America, and their influences, have been less prevalent in East Texas.  East Texans are predominantly Protestant Christians, expressing their faith as members of many denominations: Baptist (particularly Southern Baptist), Methodist, Presbyterian, Lutheran, Pentecostal, and others. Catholicism continues to have influence, particularly with an increased Hispanic population in recent decades. Other religions with smaller numbers, but with adherents in East Texas, include Mormonism and Judaism.  Significant numbers of people of Cajun and Creole descent have come from Louisiana, although most are assimilated partially or completely into East Texas culture (adopting the local culture and losing, to varying degrees, their original culture). This assimilation pattern has often historically included conversion from Catholicism to Protestant faiths. United States settlers from the Protestant Southeast practiced some discrimination against Cajun and Creole migrants, a cultural attitude that persisted until quite recently. Despite the tendency towards assimilation, Cajun and Creole cuisine (for example, jambalaya and catfish gumbo), are popular in the region. Many East Texans, including those without Louisiana roots, are known to be expert at preparing at least some well-known Louisiana dishes.  While some East Texans associate with cowboy culture, most identify more with plantation traditions of the South than with the expansive cattle ranching of the plains regions of Texas. However, East Texans commonly own and trade cattle. Several "sale barns" exist across East Texas, with weekly and monthly trades, as is common in other parts of the lower South.  In the northern part of East Texas, awareness of the native and historical Caddo Mississippian culture remains significant. Cherokee County is home to the Caddo Mounds State Historic Site. Patrons can also view the "Caddo Indian Collection" at the Gregg County Historical Museum in Longview. In the mid-19th century, East Texas cities such as Marshall and Jefferson constituted a sphere of influence that led the entire state into the Confederacy, and during the Mexican and Republic periods, Nacogdoches and San Augustine were the most developed and influential cities in East Texas.  Many East Texans have a mixture of European and Native American ancestry, notably country artists Miranda Lambert and Kacey Musgraves.  The Museum of East Texas opened in Lufkin in 1976 under the name Lufkin Historical and Creative Arts Center.

Music.

East Texas is home to the Texas Country Music Hall of Fame, located in Carthage. East Texans enjoy a range of music that is influenced by gospel, bluegrass, blues, rock, country, soul, rhythm and blues, Cajun, etc. Texas blues originated in East Texas, with many legends having been born in the region, including Lightnin' Hopkins and T-Bone Walker. East Texans enjoy live music at many of the region's fairs and festivals, including the Texas Rose Festival in Tyler, the East Texas Yamboree in Gilmer, and Longview's Great Texas Balloon Race. East Texas also has many venues included in what is commonly referred to as the Texas country music circuit, although the majority of such venues are located in Central/South/West Texas and the metropolitan areas of the state. Many notable music artists have East Texas roots, including: George Jones (Saratoga), Miranda Lambert (Lindale), Kacey Musgraves (Mineola), Jamie Foxx, (Terrell), Neal McCoy (Longview and Jacksonville), Lee Ann Womack (Jacksonville), Janis Joplin (Port Arthur), Don Henley (Linden), Ray Price (Perryville), Johnny Horton (Rusk), Johnny Mathis (Gilmer), Tex Ritter (Panola County), Jim Reeves (Panola County), Mark Chesnutt (Beaumont), Tracy Byrd (Vidor), Clay Walker (Beaumont), T-Bone Walker (Linden), Chris Tomlin (Grand Saline), and Michelle Shocked (Gilmer), among many others.  Worldwide-acclaimed pianist Van Cliburn, a native of nearby Shreveport, Louisiana, was raised in Kilgore. Kilgore College houses the Van Cliburn Auditorium on its home campus.  Many high-school bands in East Texas continue the tradition of military-style marching, unlike other parts of the state. These bands compete in the National Association Of Military Marching Bands.

Sports and outdoors.

As with other parts of Texas, high school football is the most popular sport in East Texas. Residents of East Texas towns and rural communities fill high-school stadiums in support of their local teams, cheerleaders, bands, etc. Many East Texas high-school teams have won Texas state championships and have produced collegiate and professional football players.  Earl Campbell, the "Tyler Rose", played football for John Tyler High in Tyler before playing for the Texas Longhorns and the Houston Oilers. Don Meredith, who famously played for the Dallas Cowboys, played at Mt. Vernon. Dez Bryant, a football player from Lufkin, formerly played wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys before signing with the New Orleans Saints (then getting injured three days afterwards). Adrian Peterson, a star running back for the Minnesota Vikings, played high-school football in Palestine. Other high-school sports are popular in East Texas, including basketball, baseball, volleyball, softball and track.  A significant number of East Texas youth participate in Little League Baseball, soccer, and softball. Church leagues are quite common in providing opportunities for basketball and softball for youth and adults alike. In recent years, cowboy churches have grown in number and offer rodeo events for their youth.  East Texans also enjoy collegiate athletic competition. Most residents support collegiate teams located in other regions of the state; the Texas A&M Aggies, Texas Longhorns, Texas Tech Red Raiders, Baylor Bears, TCU Horned Frogs, etc. Due to proximity to neighboring states, East Texas has a substantial number of fans of the LSU Tigers, Arkansas Razorbacks, Oklahoma State Cowboys, and Oklahoma Sooners. The Battle of the Piney Woods is a fiercely contested sports rivalry between the Bearkats of Sam Houston State University in Huntsville and the Lumberjacks of Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches. Both compete in the FCS level of NCAA athletic competition as members of the Southland Conference. The Cardinals of Lamar University in Beaumont also compete with Stephen F. Austin and Sam Houston State in the Southland Conference.  Other universities and colleges that field athletic teams in East Texas include East Texas Baptist University Tigers in Marshall; University of Texas at Tyler Patriots in Tyler; LeTourneau University Yellowjackets in Longview; Texas A&M–Commerce Lions; and several junior colleges throughout the region, which participate in the Southwest Junior College Conference in Region XIV of the NJCAA. East Texas is also home to the Kilgore College Rangerettes, a world-famous dance team that debuted in 1939.  A few professional sports teams are located in East Texas. The East Texas Pump Jacks, located in Kilgore, play baseball in the Texas Collegiate League. Additionally, the East Texas Storm, a semiprofessional football team located in Tyler, competes in the Lone Star Minor League. Typically, northern parts of East Texas tend to support the professional teams from the Dallas/Fort Worth area (Dallas Cowboys, Dallas Mavericks, Texas Rangers, Dallas Stars), while southern parts of East Texas tend to support professional teams from the Houston area (Houston Texans, Houston Rockets, Houston Astros).  As with other parts of Texas and/or the South, other popular sporting activities in East Texas include rodeo (including PRCA), hunting, and fishing. Prominent rodeos in East Texas are held in Beaumont, Nacogdoches, Paris, Longview, Gladewater, Huntsville, Lufkin, Athens, Palestine, Lindale, etc. East Texas contains several award-winning lakes for sport fishing including Toledo Bend Reservoir, Lake Sam Rayburn, Lake Livingston, Lake Fork Reservoir, Lake Tawakoni, etc. East Texans have a long tradition in outdoors sporting and observe the opening day of deer season as a near religious holiday.  East Texas also contains numerous golf courses and avid golfers, as well as NASCAR fans. However, the region does not host professional events in either of those sports. The nearest NASCAR track to East Texas is Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth.  East Texans enjoy many Texas state parks, including Caddo Lake, Atlanta, Daingerfield, Lake Bob Sandlin, Tyler, Mission Tejas in Grapeland, Cooper Lake, Lake Tawakoni, Martin Creek, Huntsville, Lake Sam Rayburn, Lake Livingston and Sea Rim among others. East Texas is also home to the Angelina National Forest, Sam Houston National Forest, Sabine National Forest, Big Thicket National Preserve, Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge, Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge, and McFaddin National Wildlife Refuge.

Deep East Texas.

Deep East Texas is a sub-region of East Texas. According to the Deep East Texas Council of Governments the region consists of the following twelve counties: Angelina, Houston, Jasper, Nacogdoches, Newton, Polk, Sabine, San Augustine, San Jacinto, Shelby, Trinity, and Tyler.  The "Deep" designation comes from the similarity to East Texas (it is similar in culture and topography, being highly forested), but with a location "deeper" (i.e., farther south and towards the Gulf Coast) than the rest of East Texas.  "Deep" also refers to the cultural and social characteristics of the area and is considered synonymous to the "Big Thicket", an allusion to the dense growth of underbrush in the Piney Woods. It was the earliest area of Texas to be settled by Anglo-Americans (and one of the last areas to submit to law enforcement—by the governments of New Spain, Mexico, the Republic of Texas, the state of Texas, or the United States). Renegade clans controlled local governments, especially in Shelby County, well into the first quarter of the 20th century.  The area contains two of the oldest towns in Texas; Nacogdoches, the oldest town in Texas, dating from 18th century, and San Augustine, the oldest "Anglo" settlement in Texas, dating from the 1820s. People of English, Scottish, Scots-Irish, and to a lesser extent Welsh ancestry predominate in the region, which is in contrast to South Central Texas and West Texas, where people of German and Hispanic heritage predominate, respectively. Prior to the Texas War of Independence, settlement was generally prohibited by the Spanish and later Mexican governments, but neither government was able to exert control or law enforcement in the area. As a consequence, the "Big Thicket" became a refuge for criminals fleeing the United States and hiding out in a "no man's land" in the pine tree thickets.

The Pine Curtain.

The early isolation of the region and its links to the Deep South have resulted in its well-known pine woods being described as a 'curtain' that demarcates a certain cultural enclave or bubble that distinguishes East Texas from the rest of the state. Former residents describe leaving behind the 'Pine Curtain' as a form of escape.  The phrase is often used to describe the area, appearing in a newspaper column in the "Palestine Herald-Press", and in tourist guide by Mike Dougan.

Economy.

Historically, the East Texas economy has been led by lumber, cotton, cattle, and oil. Prior to the discovery of the East Texas Oil Field, cotton, lumber and cattle were the predominant source of economic gains and stability. Needs of local farmers contributed greatly to the establishment of local towns and trading posts. As with many parts of the nation, the chosen paths of railroads often determined the continuation of many towns. At the beginning of the 20th century, the oil fields were discovered and oil became accessible, which changed the future of the region.  In the decades leading to the new millennium, crude oil production in the East Texas Oil Field, the largest oil field in the United States, somewhat decreased. In turn, the number of high-paying jobs for uneducated workers also decreased. During the 20th century, local groceries, general stores, and cafes were replaced with franchise department stores, retail chains, and fast-food restaurants. Due to the decline of oil production, many small towns closed cafés and gas stations, some of which were replaced with cash loan shops and pawn shops.  Paul Knight of the "Houston Press" in a 2009 article said, "some say natural gas has surpassed crude as king in East Texas."  Tourism has not been a highly significant source of economic activity in East Texas, although several high-traffic corridors pass through East Texas, which have aided economic development along those routes. These include: Interstate 30 (from Dallas through Texarkana), Interstate 20 (through Dallas and on through Shreveport), Interstate 10 (through Houston and Beaumont into Louisiana), Interstate 45 (through Houston up to Dallas), and U.S. Highway 59 (through Houston and north past Texarkana; in process of being upgraded along most of the route to Interstate 69).  In recent years, the region has become home to many patent-holding companies, due to its legal system being particularly friendly to patent holders and hostile to out-of-state tech defendants.  The region also contains Sam Houston State University in Huntsville and Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, which help contribute millions of dollars into the Deep East Texas economy. Texas A&M University-Texarkana, University of Texas at Tyler, LeTourneau University, and East Texas Baptist University are a few of the smaller universities in East Texas. Texas A&M University-Commerce is right outside East Texas and is formerly known as East Texas State University, while A&M-Texarkana was a branch campus of ETSU.

East Texas is a distinct cultural, geographic, and ecological area in the U.S. state of Texas. According to the "Handbook of Texas", the East Texas area "may be separated from the rest of Texas roughly by a line extending from the Red River in north-central Lamar County southwestward to east-central Limestone County and then southeastward towards eastern Galveston Bay", though most sources separate the Gulf Coast area into a separate region.

Východní Texas ( "East Texas") je osobitý geografický a ekologický region v americkém státě Texas. Toto území zahrnuje téměř 49 okresů s rozlohou přibližně 100 000 km a populací kolem šesti milionů obyvatel. Většina území regionu se skládá z ekoregionu Piney Woods (borovicové lesy) a východní Texas je někdy zaměňován s regionem Piney Woods. Houston se jenom zřídka považuje za součást východního Texasu, je spíš součástí pobřežního regionu Coastal Bend. Na východní hranici regionu v blízkosti centrálního Texasu se povrch mění z lesnatého na prérii.


Structure.

As it is defined as a monounsaturated fatty acid, it has one double bond in the fatty acid chain and all the remaining carbon atoms are single-bonded.  It is classified in the sub-group of very long chain fatty acids (VLCFA), which includes molecules containing more than 20 carbon atoms. It has specifically 24-carbon backbone and the sole C=C double bond originating from the methyl end is in n-9 or omega-9 (ω-9).

Functions.

Nervonic acid is an essential nutrient for the growth and maintenance of the brain.  This acid has been found in breast-milk: it is said it can speed the development in infants. It is the reason why it is recommended to pregnant and nursing women.  This acid is a regulator of the Ca ion channel in the cell membrane of nerve tissues, so nervonic acid plays an important role in the control of the levels of calcium of the cytosol.  Nervonic acid can regulate the function of brain cell membranes and have a neuroprotective effect which is important to high-level training adults or athletes: it is an energy supplement.  Moreover, due to its function as an intermediate in myelin biosynthesis, dietary therapy with nervonic acid-containing fats has been studied: nervonic acid appears to be beneficial for the treatment of genetic disorders of the lipid metabolism, such as Zellweger syndrome or adrenoleukodistrophy. Nervonic acid beta-oxidation takes place in peroxisomes, and this oxidation is impaired in X-ALD patients. Due to different mutations, people having these disorders have ineffective peroxisomes. It causes an important accumulation of very long chain fatty acids, that can be treated with oils enriched with 24:1 (Lorenzo's oil, Lunaria's oil).  It is also used as a biomarker to predict who will suffer some psychoses. For instance, there is evidence of abnormal levels of fatty acids in individuals with schizophrenia. In particular, decreased levels of 24:1 are related with prodromal psychosis symptoms so it can be beneficial in the prevention and treatment of this kind of disorders.  Nervonic acid can be an indicator of future neurodevelopmental disorders in male babies whose mother has preeclampsia. Recent studies show that cord nervonic acid levels were lower in women with preeclampsia delivering male babies as compared to normotensive control group. But this does not happen with girl babies. These results suggest that male babies born to mothers with preeclampsia may be at an increased risk of developing neurodevelopmental disorders as compared to female babies.  This acid is present in the composition of aged eye lens, but it does not appear in normal eye lens. This data shows that we can use the presence of nervonic acid (together with heneicosylic acid and docosahexaenoic acid) as biomarkers of aging lens, which is the most vulnerable stage for cataract development.

Sources.

Nervonic acid occurs in seed oil of plants, where significant amounts are contained. Indeed, more than 10% of the lipids contain nervonic acid, usually in the form of triglycerides. The seed oils of "Lunaria" species ("Lunaria biennis" or "Lunaria annua", for example) are a quite important source of this long chain fatty acid, since they contain over 20% of it in the triglyceride lipid. Nervonic acid is also found in "Cardamine gracea", "Heliophila longifola", and "Malania oleifera". In all these species, 24:1 usually is esterified at the sn-1 and sn-3 positions on the glycerol backbone. Other sources can be the molds "Neocallimastix frontalis", the bacterium "Pseudomonas atlantica", the yeast "Saccharomyces cerevisiae", and the marine diatom "Nitzschia cylindrus".

Nervonic acid (24:1, n−9) is a fatty acid. It is a monounsaturated analog of lignoceric acid (24:0). It is also known as selacholeic acid and "cis"-15-tetracosenoic acid.

Kyselina nervonová je karboxylová kyselina patřící do skupiny omega 9 mononenasycených mastných kyselin. Funkční vzorec je CHCOOH, sumární vzorec CHO.


Design and construction.

The original 2008 design envisaged flying F-35B Lightning II Short Take-Off and Vertical Landing (STOVL) jets from a ski-jump ramp. However, in May 2010, the government decided it would acquire the Catapult Assisted Take-Off But Arrested Recovery (CATOBAR) variant, the F-35C, and convert "Prince of Wales" to a CATOBAR configuration.  In May 2012, following a rise in costs associated with the CATOBAR conversion, the government announced that it would revert to its original plans of acquiring the F-35B variant and building "Prince of Wales" to its original STOVL configuration.

Entry into service.

In May 2010, the Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR) declared that the UK required only one aircraft carrier, but penalty clauses in the contract meant that cancelling the second aircraft carrier, "Prince of Wales", would be more expensive than building it. The SDSR therefore directed that "Prince of Wales" would be built and then either mothballed or sold.  In 2012, contrary to the decisions made in the SDSR, the Royal Navy published its yearbook, "A Global Force 2012/13", which stated that: "both carriers are likely to be commissioned and may even be capable of operating together".  "Prince of Wales" final assembly began on 9 September 2014, when hull blocks LB02 and LB03 were floated into 1 Dock of Rosyth dockyard, Scotland.  During the 2014 NATO Summit in Wales, Prime Minister David Cameron announced that "Prince of Wales" would be brought into active service, rather than sold off or mothballed. This was later confirmed in the government's 2015 Strategic Defence and Security Review.  "Prince of Wales" was assembled at Rosyth from 52 blocks built by six shipyards around the UK. Construction began on 26 May 2011, with the first steel being cut at Govan shipyard by Liam Fox. In April 2016, the ship was said to be around 80% structurally complete.  On 1 September 2017 HMS "Prince of Wales" most senior officer, Captain Ian Groom, confirmed that the carrier was now essential to fulfilling the Royal Navy's 'full carrier strike capability.'  "Prince of Wales" was formally named on 8 September 2017 at Rosyth dockyard by The Duchess of Rothesay, the wife of the current Prince of Wales. On 21 December 2017, "Prince Of Wales" was floated out of Rosyth drydock #1 for the first time and manoeuvred to a nearby jetty for fitting-out and further systems integration. A Merlin Mk2 helicopter landed and took off six times on her flight deck on 23 September 2019. Under current plans, "Prince of Wales" will start sea trials in 2019 and be commissioned in late 2019 The ship left the fitting out basin at Rosyth for the first time on 20 September 2019; initially she remained anchored in the Firth of Forth, undertaking initial engine and system tests, and waiting for the tide to allow her to pass under the bridges crossing the firth. HMS Prince of Wales sailed under the Firth of Forth bridges on 22 September 2019 and began sea trials.  On 16 November 2019, "Prince of Wales" arrived at her home base of Portsmouth for the first time, berthing at Princess Royal Jetty.  On 28 February 2020, "Prince of Wales" arrived in her affiliated city of Liverpool for the first time on a week-long visit.

Aircraft.

The two ships of the "Queen Elizabeth" class are each expected to be capable of carrying forty aircraft, a maximum of thirty-six F-35s and four helicopters. The 2010 SDSR anticipated the routine deployment of twelve F-35Bs, but a typical warload will be 24 F-35Bs and some helicopters. These could be a Maritime Force Protection package of nine anti-submarine Merlin HM2 and five Merlin Crowsnest for airborne early warning; alternatively a Littoral Manoeuvre package could include a mix of Royal Navy Commando Helicopter Force Merlin HC4, Wildcat AH1, RAF Chinooks, and Army Air Corps Apaches. six landing spots are planned, but the deck could be marked out for the operation of ten medium helicopters at once, allowing the lift of a company of 250 troops. The hangars are designed for CH-47 Chinook operations without blade folding and for the V-22 Osprey tiltrotor, whilst the aircraft lifts can accommodate two Chinooks with unfolded blades.

Passenger/crew transfer boats.

The two ships of the "Queen Elizabeth" class will each carry four PTBs made by Blyth-based company Alnmaritec. Each long PTB carries 36 passengers and two crew to operate the vessel and is davit-launched. To enable the craft to fit into the docking area the navigation and radar masts are fitted with Linak actuators so that they can be lowered automatically from the command console. The enclosed cabin is heated and there is a set of heads forward.

Weapons systems.

Defensive weapons include the Phalanx Close-In Weapons System for anti-aircraft and anti-missile defence, and 30mm Automated Small Calibre Guns and Miniguns for use against fast attack craft.

Name.

The "Queen Elizabeth"-class carrier will be the eighth HMS "Prince of Wales", named after the title traditionally granted to the heir apparent of the British monarch. The name was announced at the same time as that of her sister ship "Queen Elizabeth".  The decommissioning of HMS "Ark Royal" under the SDSR in 2010 and led to a campaign for one of the new aircraft carriers to receive that name. In May 2011 it was reported that The Prince of Wales had been approached by a senior Royal Navy officer on the subject of changing the name of "Prince of Wales", a matter that the Prince of Wales was reportedly "pretty relaxed" about.  "Prince of Wales" was formally named on 8 September 2017 at Rosyth dockyard by the Duchess of Rothesay.

Battle Honours.

"Prince of Wales" carries the battle honours of her predecessors

HMS "Prince of Wales" (R09) is the second. Unlike most large aircraft carriers, "Prince of Wales" is not fitted with catapults and arrestor wires, and is instead designed to operate V/STOL aircraft; the ship is currently planned to carry up to 40 F-35B Lightning II stealth multirole fighters and Merlin helicopters for airborne early warning and anti-submarine warfare, although in surge conditions the class is capable of supporting 70+ F-35B. The design emphasises flexibility, with accommodation for 250 Royal Marines and the ability to support them with attack helicopters and troop transports up to and larger than Chinook size.

HMS Prince of Wales (R09) letadlová loď britského královského námořnictva, která je druhou a poslední jednotkou třídy "Queen Elizabeth". Postavena byla královskou loděnicí v Rosythu. Výstavba lodi začala 26. května 2011. Do služby byla přijata 10. prosince 2019.


Language.

Articles and article titles.

A peculiarity of the Alemannic Wikipedia is the wide range of dialects permitted; all varieties of Alemannic, including Swiss German, Swabian, Alsatian, and all others are accepted. Authors may not normally alter the dialect used by another contributor, though exceptions are made for local topics, in which modifying the text to reflect the local variety is encouraged. Articles may thus be written in a mix of different varieties. Since there is no standardized orthography for Alemannic, spelling rules are quite relaxed. However, contributors are encouraged to adhere to spelling conventions found in the Alemannic-language literature, and introducing new symbols is not tolerated.  Article titles are in Standard German, but display is frequently manipulated to show Alemannic text.

Language codes.

The code <nowiki>"als"</nowiki> was used because in 2003 there had been no language code for Alsatian. ISO 639-3 gives four codes for several Alemannic dialects: As all of these four dialects are accepted on the Alemannic Wikipedia, it was decided not to move the Alemannic Wikipedia to gsw.wikipedia.org, even though the code <nowiki>als</nowiki> stands for Tosk Albanian in ISO 639-3. To solve this problem a request for a superior code for all Alemannic dialects has been submitted to SIL International by Alemannic Wikipedians.  Despite the existence of dedicated ISO 639-3 codes and the possibility of more specific marking with country code subtags, all pages use 'gsw' in the HTML language tag.

List of dialects that are used on single-dialect pages.

Below is a list of dialects that have a category in and where that category contains at least one article.

Other Wikipedias in German dialect.

Alemannic Wikipedia was the first Wikipedia in a German dialect, followed by the Bavarian Wikipedia and the Ripuarian Wikipedia.

Alemannic in other Wikimedia projects.

Other Wikimedia projects in Alemanic have also been created, such as an Alemannic Wiktionary, an Alemannic Wikiquote, and an Alemannic Wikibooks. As activity in these projects was low even after years, the community of the Alemannic Wikipedia decided to merge all Alemannic projects and import all contents of the other projects into the Alemannic Wikipedia. Since April 2008 these projects are separate namespaces within the Alemannic Wikipedia. Also an Alemannic Wikisource and an Alemannic Wikinews have been created as separate namespaces within als:wp.  Wikidata supports one language with code 'gsw' and name 'Swiss German'. A proposal to remove it has not been adopted..

The Alemannic Wikipedia (Alemannic: "Alemannischi Wikipedia") is the Alemannic language edition of the Web-based free-content encyclopedia Wikipedia. The project was started on November 13, 2003 as an Alsatian language edition. A year later it was expanded to encompass all Alemannic dialects because of low activity in the first year. Since 2004 all Alemannic dialects are accepted on als:wp.

Alemanská Wikipedie je jazyková verze Wikipedie v alemanštině. Původně byla spuštěna 13. listopadu 2003 v alsaštině. Z důvodu nízkého počtu přispěvatelů byla o rok později rozšířena o všechny alemanské dialekty. Alemanská wikipedie je tedy psána mnoha různými dialekty alemanštiny, jakými jsou např. švábština, alsaština či různé dialekty švýcarské němčiny.


Naming.

The Spanish name is often interpreted in English as "Staked Plains", but is more accurately rendered as "stockaded" or "palisaded plains". The name probably derives from the steep escarpments on the eastern, northern, and western periphery of the plains. Francisco Coronado and other European explorers described the Mescalero Ridge on the western boundary as resembling "palisades, ramparts, or stockades" of a fort.  Other sources refer vaguely to "stakes" used to mark routes on the featureless plain, often meaning piles of stone, bone, and cow dung. Art Leatherwood comments in the "Handbook of Texas" that such way markers could plausibly explain the origin of the name, but that the "comparison of cliff formations and palisades made repeatedly by explorers argues more convincingly for the geological origin". Darwin Spearing writes in "Roadside Geology of Texas:

Geography and climate.

The Llano Estacado lies at the southern end of the Western High Plains ecoregion of the Great Plains of North America; it is part of what was once called the Great American Desert. The Canadian River forms the Llano's northern boundary, separating it from the rest of the High Plains. To the east, the Caprock Escarpment, a precipitous cliff about high, lies between the Llano and the red Permian plains of Texas; while to the west, the Mescalero Escarpment demarcates the eastern edge of the Pecos River valley. The Llano has no natural southern boundary, instead blending into the Edwards Plateau near Big Spring, Texas. This geographic area stretches about north to south, and east to west, a total area of some, larger than Indiana and 12 other states. It covers all or part of 33 Texas counties and four New Mexico counties. Some years, a National Weather Service dust storm warning is issued in parts of Texas due to a dust storm originating from the area or from the adjacent lower part of the Southwestern Tablelands ecological region. The landscape is dotted by numerous small playa lakes, depressions that seasonally fill with water and provide habitat for waterfowl.  The Llano Estacado has a "cold semiarid" climate (Köppen "BSk"), characterized by long, hot summers and cold winters. Rainfall is relatively low; the entire region receives fewer than of rainfall annually, and the western part receives as little as. High summer temperatures (average July temperature above 90 °F or 32 °C) mean most of the small amount of precipitation is lost to evaporation, making dryland farming difficult.  The Texas State Historical Society states it covers all or part of 33 Texas counties, six fewer than as depicted by a US Geological Survey map, and four New Mexico counties.  As depicted by a US Geological Survey map, the Llano Estacado includes all or part of these Texas counties: It also includes all or part of the following New Mexico counties:  Several interstate highways serve the Llano Estacado. Interstate 40 crosses the northern portion from east of Amarillo to Tucumcari, New Mexico. Interstate 27 runs north-south between Amarillo and Lubbock, while Interstate 20 passes through the southern portion of the Llano Estacado west of Midland and Odessa.

History.

Spanish conquistador Francisco Coronado, the first European to traverse this "sea of grass" in 1541, described it as follows:  I reached some plains so vast, that I did not find their limit anywhere I went, although I traveled over them for more than 300 leagues... with no more land marks than if we had been swallowed up by the sea... there was not a stone, nor bit of rising ground, nor a tree, nor a shrub, nor anything to go by.  In the early 18th century, the Comanches expanded their territory into the Llano Estacado, displacing the Apaches who had previously lived there. The region became part of the Comancheria, a Comanche stronghold until the final defeat of the tribe in the late 19th century. The Comanche war trail extended from Llano Estacado to the Rio Grande into Chihuahua, "the trail ran southwesterly through Big Spring to the Horsehead Crossing of the Pecos River, then forked southward to the Comanche Springs where it divided, one part of the trail crossing the great river near Boquillas and the other at Presidio."  Rachel Plummer, while a captive of the Comanche in 1836, mentioned the "table lands between Austin and Santa Fe".  Robert Neighbors and Rip Ford, guided by Buffalo Hump, blazed the "upper route" trail from San Antonio to El Paso in 1849 for emigrants during the California Gold Rush, "... travelling across an elevated plateau almost covered by rock..."  After his 1852 expedition to explore the headwaters of the Red and Colorado Rivers, General Randolph Marcy wrote: "[not] a tree, shrub, or any other herbage to intercept the vision... the almost total absence of water causes all animals to shun it: even the Indians do not venture to cross it except at two or three places." In his report for the United States Army:  When we were upon the high table-land, a view presented itself as boundless as the ocean. Not a tree, shrub, or any other object, either animate or inanimate, relieved the dreary monotony of the prospect; it was a vast-illimitable expanse of desert prairie.... the great Sahara of North America. it is a region almost as vast and trackless as the ocean—a land where no man, either savage or civilized permanently abides... a treeless, desolate waste of uninhabitable solitude, which always has been, and must continue uninhabited forever. During the 1854 Marcy-Neighbors expedition, Dr. George Getz Shumard noted, "Beyond the mountain appeared a line of high bluffs (the Llano Estacado) which in the distance looked like clouds floating upon the horizon."  Herman Lehmann was captured by the Apache in 1870 and described the Llano Estacado as "open, but not exactly a desert".  Robert G. Carter described it in 1871 while pursuing Quanah Parker with Ranald S. Mackenzie, "... all were over and out of the canyon upon what appeared to be a vast, almost illimitable expanse of prairie. As far as the eye could reach, not a bush or tree, a twig or stone, not an object of any kind or a living thing, was in sight. It stretched out before us-one uninterrupted plain, only to be compared to the ocean in its vastness."  In August 1872, Mackenzie was the first to successfully lead troops across the Staked Plains preparatory to the Battle of the North Fork of the Red River.  Billy Dixon described the area while hunting buffalo in June 1874: "All of us hunters acquainted with the habits of the buffalo knew that the herds would soon be coming north from the Staked Plains region where they had spent the winter... moved by that strange impulse that... caused them to change their home and blacken the Plains with their countless, moving forms."  Zane Grey, in his novel "The Thundering Herd" (1925), offered the following explanation for the name Llano Estacado: "Thet name Llano Estacado means Staked Plain," said the Texan. "It comes from the early days when the Spanish Trail from Sante Fe to San Antone was marked by 'palos,' or stakes. There was only two trails across in them days an' I reckon no more now. Only the Indians know this plain well an' they only run in heah to hide awhile. Water an' grass are plentiful in some parts, an' then there's stretches of seventy miles dry an' bare as a bone."  In the latter part of the 19th century, the Llano was a refuge for the bands of Kiowas and Comanches who did not wish to be confined to reservations in Indian Territory, in present-day Oklahoma. One of their last battles against the US Army was fought on 28 September 1874 in the Battle of Palo Duro Canyon.  Charles Goodnight described what it takes to be a scout: "... the trained ear should be able to tell the sound, whether it was made by man or beast or bird... as a human voice echoes more than all others... of course, on the Staked Plains we have not this advantage as there is nothing to create an echo."  Today, most of the area's population is localized in the principal cities of Amarillo, Lubbock, Midland and Odessa, Texas. The vast majority of the area is rural, covered by large ranches and irrigated farms. Several small- to medium-sized towns do exist, however, including Andrews, Hereford, Plainview, Levelland, and Lamesa, Texas, and Clovis, Portales, and Hobbs, New Mexico.  The Llano Estacado is slightly larger in area than the state of Indiana. The southern extension of the High Plains, the region is some 250 miles north to south and 200 miles east to west. The roads are straight and meet mostly at right angles. Cotton is an essential crop with irrigation, but faces declining prices at times on the world market. The Llano Estacado is sometimes humorously described as "85 percent sky and 15 percent grassland."  Notable lawmakers include George H. Mahon, Kent Hance, and Robert L. Duncan. The area has a large number of churches per capita. Lubbock, known for a wide variety of denominations, also holds the distinction of being the most populous city on the High Plains from the Dakotas through Texas. Prohibition did not end on the Texas Plains in 1933 with repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, but continued for years at the county level. Even in 2010, some forty Texas counties, most in the Llano Estacado, remain officially "dry" to the sale of alcoholic beverages.

Geology.

The Ogallala formation is a wedge of sediments built up eastward of the Rocky Mountains as they were uplifted in the Miocene, with the consequent alluvial fans referred to as the "Gangplank". The Ogallala Aquifer is the main freshwater source for the region and consists of braided stream deposits filling in valleys during humid climatic conditions, followed by a sub-humid to arid climate and thick eolian (wind-blown) sand and silt. Caliche layers cap the Ogallala, which reflect today's arid conditions. Pleistocene rainfall over the flat terrain caused water to pond at the surface, resulting in a High Plains characteristic, innumerable round ponds called playa lakes. Spearing goes on to say,  When the weather is dry, they are dusty, round, gray, usually unvegetated flats, as observed from the highway. But after a High Plains thunderstorm, water quickly fills the ponds, only later soaking into the underlying porous sandstones just below the surface to add to the groundwater in the Ogallala aquifer. Early pioneers depended dearly on water from these surface ponds for themselves and their livestock, considering how few streams are on the High Plains. But rains didn't always come, and the ponds dried up frequently. The 20th century has witnessed a concerted effort to tap the more reliable Ogallala water sands. Predictably, the consequent high dependency on groundwater has removed more water than is naturally replaced, raising concern for Panhandle citizens and planners as to future water supplies.  The Pecos and Canadian rivers have eroded the Llano Estacado region down to the Triassic and Permian redbeds resulting is a distinctive color contrast besides separating it from source rocks in the Rocky Mountains.

Economy.

The economy of the Llano Estacado is predominantly agricultural, with farming of various crops prevalent, as is cattle ranching. Oil and gas production is also prevalent on the Llano Estacado.  Overuse of the aquifer in the past has persuaded some farmers to return to dryland crops, leading to less rainwater reaching the playas.  "Cotton, grain sorghum, corn, wheat, peanuts, sunflowers, grapes, vegetables, and cattle produced in the region literally go around the world. Their economic impact on our area is in the billions of dollars... and the availability of water is a key factor influencing the region's agribusiness economy."  One of the largest economic drivers on the Llano Estacado is in energy production, with the region experiencing significant activity for producing oil and natural gas associated with the Permian Basin. Additionally, wind farms have proliferated on the Llano Estacado due to the region's windy climate making it a favorable location for the production of wind energy.

The Llano Estacado (), commonly known as the Staked Plains, is a region in the Southwestern United States that encompasses parts of eastern New Mexico and northwestern Texas. One of the largest mesas or tablelands on the North American continent, the elevation rises from in the southeast to over in the northwest, sloping almost uniformly at about.

Llano Estacado (výslovnost [ˈʝano estaˈkaðo], terasovité roviny), v angličtině také nazývané "Staked Plains", je tabulová plošina a region na východě Nového Mexika a severozápadě Texasu, ve Spojených státech amerických. Oblast zaujímá plochu 97 000 km a leží v nadmořské výšce 1 500 (severozápad) až 900 m (jihovýchod). Llano Estacado je součástí Velkých planin. Jedná se o suchou, bezlesou krajinu. Ekonomicky je významný chov hovězího dobytka a těžba ropy a zemního plynu.


Uses.

Laboratory uses.

Iontophoresis is useful in laboratory experiments, especially in neuropharmacology. Transmitter molecules naturally pass signals between neurons. By microelectrophoretic techniques, including microiontophoresis, neurotransmitters and other chemical agents can be artificially administered very near living and naturally functioning neurons, the activity of which can be simultaneously recorded. This is used to elucidate their pharmacological properties and natural roles.

Therapeutic uses.

Therapeutically, electromotive drug administration (EMDA) delivers a medicine or other chemical through the skin. In a manner of speaking, it is an injection without a needle, and may be described as non-invasive. It is different from dermal patches, which do not rely on an electric field. It drives a charged substance, usually a medication or bioactive agent, transdermally by repulsive electromotive force, through the skin. A small electric current is applied to an iontophoretic chamber placed on the skin, containing a charged active agent and its solvent vehicle. Another chamber or a skin electrode carries the return current. One or two chambers are filled with a solution containing an active ingredient and its solvent vehicle. The positively charged chamber, called the anode, will repel a positively charged chemical species, whereas the negatively charged chamber, called the cathode, will repel a negatively charged species into the skin.  It is used to treat some types of palmar-plantar hyperhidrosis. In the treatment of hyperhidrosis, tap water is often the chosen solution for mild and medium forms. In very serious cases of hyperhidrosis, a solution containing glycopyrronium bromide or glycopyrrolate, a cholinergic inhibitor, can be used.

Diagnostic uses.

Iontophoresis of acetylcholine is used in research as a way to test the health of the endothelium by stimulating endothelium-dependent generation of nitric oxide and subsequent microvascular vasodilation. Acetylcholine is positively charged and is therefore placed in the anode chamber.  Pilocarpine iontophoresis is often used to stimulate sweat secretion, as part of cystic fibrosis diagnosis.  "Reverse iontophoresis" is a technique by which molecules are removed from within the body for detection. The negative charge of the skin at buffered pH causes it to be permselective to cations such as sodium and potassium ions, allowing iontophoresis which causes electroosmosis, solvent flow towards the anode. Electroosmosis then causes electrophoresis, by which neutral molecules, including glucose, are transported across the skin. This is currently being used in such devices as the GlucoWatch, which allows for blood glucose detection across skin layers.

Iontophoresis is a process of transdermal drug delivery by use of a voltage gradient on the skin. Molecules are transported across the stratum corneum by electrophoresis and electroosmosis and the electric field can also increase the permeability of the skin. These phenomena, directly and indirectly, constitute active transport of matter due to an applied electric current. The transport is measured in units of chemical flux, commonly μmol/(cm*hour). Iontophoresis has experimental, therapeutic and diagnostic applications.

Iontoforéza je fyzikální metoda používaná v lékařství pro dopravu elektricky nabitých částic (iontů) do tkání (iontophoresis z řečtiny ionto=iont phorē= nést). Tato metoda se využívá pro dopravu léčiv, při diagnostice nebo při terapii hyperhidrózy (nadměrného pocení).


Plot.

Part I.

While visiting an alien mining colony on Paraagan II, a shuttle accidentally sets fire to the large amounts of tetrazine in the atmosphere, instantly incinerating the 3,600 colonists on the surface. Despite Lieutenant Reed's precautions, Captain Archer personally puts full blame on himself for all the deaths caused. He doesn't argue with Starfleet's Admiral Forrest when "Enterprise"s mission is officially cancelled, and the ship is ordered to return home (on the advice of Vulcan Ambassador Soval).  Later, Archer is suddenly transported back 10 months in the past. He then encounters Crewman Daniels who warns him that the Suliban are trying to sabotage "Enterprise"s mission. He wants to help Archer discover the truth, because events must go on to preserve the timeline. Using information from Daniels, Reed finds a cloaked Suliban device on the shuttlepod's engine manifold, and Archer directs Commander Tucker to build advanced quantum beacon detectors. "Enterprise" then travels back to an asteroid field near Paraagan II where a Suliban ship is hiding. They quickly cripple and board the ship, finding computer memory chips with proof of the Suliban's plan.  As "Enterprise" makes its escape, they are able to prove that the explosion wasn't their fault. Sub-Commander T'Pol is, however, still sceptical about the time travel explanation, as Vulcan scientists have proved it is impossible. Later the ship starts experiencing warp field problems, and soon detects 20 or 30 Suliban cell ships in pursuit. The ships decloak, and Silik orders Archer to surrender himself. Archer puts T'Pol in command, but he never makes it to the Suliban shuttle, as he is time transported again, this time to a derelict 31st century building overlooking a devastated cityscape. Daniels appears behind him telling him that bringing him into the future to protect him caused this dramatic change in the timeline. Archer asks to be sent back to repair the damage, but since all the time travel equipment is gone, they are both trapped.

Part II.

With Archer gone, T'Pol chooses to surrender the ship to the Suliban to let them verify his disappearance. They do not find any trace of Archer, but they retrieve their data disks and detect a temporal signature in the turbolift. Meanwhile, in the 31st century, Daniels realizes that there is no available technology to send Archer back and, because of this, the timeline has been disrupted. Archer however gives Daniels his communicator and scanner, allowing Daniels to make a device able to contact "Enterprise".  The Suliban take "Enterprise" to a nearby helix, and Silik interrogates T'Pol to learn where Archer has gone, but she knows little. When T'Pol is returned to her quarters, Archer contacts her and gives her instructions on how to bring him back. Meanwhile, Tucker is able to set up a communication link between the senior staff, and they plan an escape. The plan begins when two Suliban find T'Pol acting strangely, and are knocked out by Reed and Ensign Mayweather. Reed then goes to Daniels's quarters to retrieve a futuristic device, but is caught by the Suliban. During interrogation, he tells Silik that Archer gave him orders to destroy the device, to prevent him from using it to get in touch with the Suliban's contact from the future.  Silik then tries to contact his master but he only succeeds in bringing Archer back, Daniels and Archer having managed to set up a device that allows them to return Archer to his time using the communication device as a 'target'. Meanwhile, on "Enterprise", a faked warp core breach is initiated, forcing the Suliban to evacuate the ship. As soon as they are freed, "Enterprise" goes to warp, pursued by Suliban ships. Archer destroys Daniels's device and, having taken Silik hostage, secures their escape. The reunited crew finally present their proof to Starfleet Command and the Vulcans. Soval still recommends cancellation of the mission, but Archer promises that humanity will learn from their mistakes. T'Pol supports him, adding that the Vulcans should learn from their mistakes as well. Soval exits, and it is decided that "Enterprise"s mission will continue for now.

Reception.

Jammer's Review's rated Shockwave, Part I with four out four stars, and Part II, two out of four stars. TV.com had Part I rated 9.1 out of 10 on 185 votes as of 2019, and for Part II, 8.7/10 on 176 votes at that time.

Connections.

This one of the "Enterprise" episodes that features the temporal agent Daniels, played by Matt Winston.

"Shockwave" is a two-part episode of the television series "". Part one is the first-season finale, the twenty-sixth episode (production #126), and part two is the second season opener, the twenty-seventh episode (production #128). Because of this, common to the "Star Trek" franchise in this period, part one aired on UPN on May 22, 2002 but it was nearly five months before the second part aired on September 18, 2002.

Rázová vlna (v originále Shockwave) je dvojdílná cliffhangerová epizoda na přelomu první a druhé sezóny seriálu "". Jde o dvacátý šestý díl první řady a první díl druhé řady pátého seriálu ze světa Star Treku.