frequency photos on Flickr

Memorial and graves of resistance heroes and martyrs - brave Jews, brave Christians, dissidents, anti-fascists, socialists, rebels, samizdat journalists and organisers - those who dared to question and fight oppression, and the evil Powers That Be.

Here you see the faces of my brothers, my own dear family, my partners in fighting sheer political evil - resting in their graves here, in perhaps the most poignant place in all of Brussels, Belgium. Here lie those in Belgium who were shot fighting the Nazis of the 1940s - as I myself have nearly been killed fighting the more recent fascists, some of the 'new Nazis' of the 21st century.

Shortly after I arrived in Brussels as a political refugee from the US, under threat of murder by far-right political figures, this is one of the first places I visited. I came here to weep some tears amid the companionship of my anti-fascist comrades, who also looked death in the eye as they tried to speak and act for what is right.

The camera used here, and the chance to make these photos, are gifts of the brave dissident US Jewish physician, Dr Moshe 'Moss' David Posner, who risked and gambled his own life, to support me and help keep me alive in the face of threats by neo-Nazi assassins.

These are photos from the daily life of writer and political refugee from the US, Dr Les (Leslie) Sachs - photos documenting my new beloved home city of Brussels, Belgium, my life among the people and Kingdom who have given me safety in the face of the threats to destroy me. Brussels has a noble history of providing a safe haven to other dissident refugee writers, such as Victor Hugo, Karl Marx, Charles Baudelaire, and Alexandre Dumas, and I shall forever be grateful that Brussels and Belgium have helped to protect my own life as well.

(To read about the efforts to silence me and my journalism, the attacks on me, the smears and the threats, see the website by European journalists "About Les Sachs" linked in my Flickr profile, and press articles such as "Two EU Writers Under Threat of Murder: Roberto Saviano and Dr Les Sachs".)

This extremely moving memorial and gravesite, is known locally as the Enclos des Fusillés - Ereperk der Gefusillerden (Brussels is bi-lingual French- and Dutch-speaking, so place names are given in both languages here.) - In English, the name is perhaps best rendered as the "Park of Honour of Those Who Were Shot".

The Enclos des Fusillés - Ereperk der Gefusilleerden includes many martyrs of the Belgian resistance of World War II, being both their gravesite and also the place where many of them were shot to death by a Nazi firing squad. - And it is also a memorial and the place of death, of other heroic figures who were shot to death in the previous German occupation of Belgium during World War I. One heroine from the First World War who was shot by the Germans and is now commemorated here, is the famous British nurse Edith Cavell.

The reason that this was a convenient place of execution by firing squad, is that it was originally part of a Belgian military training area and rifle range that existed here once upon a time, and you still see here the tall hillside that served as an earthen 'backstop' to safely absorb high-powered rifle bullets. The hillside was thus ready-made for the German commandants who occupied Brussels in both wars, to carry out their firing-squad executions.

Nowadays, the Enclos des Fusillés - Ereperk der Gefusilleerden appears quite 'central' in urban Brussels, as it lies in the Schaerbeek - Schaarbeek commune, directly in the path from the EU institution area toward the roads that lead to the airport, and very near to the 90-metre high VRT-RTBF communications tower that has long been a major Brussels landmark.

The Enclos des Fusillés - Ereperk der Gefusilleerden is walking distance from the eastern Brussels 'prémétro', which is a grouping of tram lines that run underground for several stops on both the eastern and western sides of the Brussels city centre, supplementing the regular métro underground system with a similarly high frequency of service and also underground. If you continue along the prémétro lines south from the Diamant stop which is near the Enclos des Fusillés - Ereperk der Gefusilleerden, you shortly arrive at the elaborate 19th-century military barracks buildings which once housed the soldiers who used the rifle range and parade grounds, which later become the place of martyrdom for members of the anti-Nazi resistance.

This is a place of great emotion for me personally, because the resistance martyrs who lie in these graves - a number of them socialists, journalists and with Jewish-heritage, critics of corruption just like myself - are my comrades in my own ordeal. I barely escaped alive out of the USA, nearly murdered by neo-Nazi-linked thugs, who themselves spoke favourably of Hitler as they moved toward killing me, as well as trying to ban my ability to write and speak.

It is sad that this place, Enclos des Fusillés - Ereperk der Gefusilleerden, is very little visited nowadays. Most of the time when I come here to contemplate and shed a few tears amid my comrades, and also to gain strength from their brave spirits, I am alone. Many of the family members and children of those who died or are buried here, have now themselves often passed away.

But on occasion there are people visiting, and on one day I was privileged to meet the daughter of one of the resistance martyrs who is buried here. She spoke to me of being a little girl, and seeing the Nazis arrest her father inside their home. She spoke about how they tied his hands behind his back, and yet how bravely he looked at her one last time. - She never saw her father alive again, and she is now in her seventies. - But when she spoke of her father, her voice grew energised and strong. She said she remembered the day of her father's arrest like if it was yesterday. And as she spoke, I could feel it and almost see it, as if I had been there myself.

The heroes in these graves are quite alive for me still. I am a religious man, a person of faith, and I believe in the life hereafter. - Many people have been afraid to help me, abandoning me to be murdered by the powerful forces of the American government - people too frightened to dare oppose the deadly US power of global assassination, the vicious US global media slandering of a dissident's reputation - Yet when I walk here at the Enclos des Fusillés - Ereperk der Gefusilleerden, I feel myself amid a powerful throng of comrades, among brave people who understand me, people who know what it is like to be menaced with murder and to look death straight in the eye. - I feel the spirits in these graves support me and sustain me, that they welcome me as one among themselves.

It is my privilege now to honour these brave companions of mine, giving their memory some further renown and support. And I have wanted very much to do so, as the Enclos des Fusillés - Ereperk der Gefusilleerden still is in need of expanded documentation on the Web, before some of what can be seen here fades away much further.

One of the most powerful aspects of visiting this tree-lined and grassy cemetery and memorial, is that you see on a number of the grave markers, not only names and comments from loved ones, but in some cases actual pictures of these brave people, pictures rendered into sepia-type photos on porcelain. Though efforts were made to make these photographs permanent, the elements and the years and decades have taken their toll. Many of the pictures are now faded, or cracked, or broken, or fallen on the ground from their mountings. In one case I held a cracked porcelain image together with one hand, while taking the photo with the other hand. The years are passing, and I have wanted to document the faces of these brave heroes before they disappear, before time takes a greater toll on this place of sacred honour.

You look into the eyes of these brave people, and you see and feel the spirit of true bravery, of genuine resistance of oppression, resistance to the point of death, their hope that sacrificing one's own life in the fight, will yet do some good for others in the world. Look into their eyes, and you see their faces, faces of real people, quite like anyone in some ways, but in other ways very special, with a light in them that carries far beyond their own death - people who yet had the fire of faith in that Greater than mere earthly existence.

In this hillside that you see in the photos - the hillside in front of which many of these heroes stood in the moment as they were shot to death - in that hillside is a large memorial marker to the heroes of World War I who died here. On that marker it says:

Ici tomberent

sous les balles allemandes

35 héros victimes de leur

attachement à la patrie

Hier vielen

onder de duitse kogels

35 helden ten offer

aan hun liefde voor het vaderland

Here fell 35 heroes

who offered their lives

for their country

shot by the Germans

You'll notice that the 4th name down on the marker is that of Edith Louisa Cavell (1865-1915), with just her initial and last name and the date of her death here, on 12 October 1915:

Cavell E. 12-10-1915

The banners that you see here, in the colours of red, yellow, and black, are in the three colours of the national flag of Belgium

There are 17 rows of graves here at the Enclos des Fusillés - Ereperk der Gefusilleerden, 12 on the upper level closer to the hillside, and then five on the lower level below. Between the upper and lower levels is an obelisk serving as a kind of centre for the memorial as a whole. On the obelisk it says, on one side in Dutch, on the other side in French:

Opgericht door de Verbroedering van de Vriendenkringen der Nazikampenen Gevangenissen

XXVe Verjaring

April 1970

Erigé par le Fraternelle des Amicales de Camps et Prisons Nazis

XXVe Anniversaire

April 1970

In English this would be:

Constructed by the Association of Friends of Those in the Nazi Camps and Prisons

25th Anniversary

April 1970

Around this obelisk lay some faded but still visibly grand wreaths, placed here by the highest figures of Belgian public life. One great wreath at the centre, placed here by the King of the Belgians, Albert II, and his wife Paola, whose royal household has very quietly but effectively supplied some of the protection for me in Belgium, that has so far prevented me from being murdered here by foreign powers. - You see the ribbon say simply 'Albert - Paola'.

And another large wreath has a ribbon saying 'la Gouvernement - de Regering', from the government of Belgium.

Though many of the resistance martyrs buried here, were shot by firing squad right on this spot, a number of these martyrs died in other places, most especially in the Belgian concentration camp at Breendonk (Breendonck), which due to its stone structure is one of the best-preserved Nazi concentration camps. Breendonk can be visited today, about 40 kilometres north of Brussels in the direction of Antwerp, very near the Willebroek train station.

Among the graves here, a number are of heroes of the anti-Nazi resistance whose names are unknown: 'Inconnu - Onbekend' say the grave markers in French and in Dutch. In one row, there are six unknowns side-by-side; and then the entire final last row of the Enclos des Fusillés - Ereperk der Gefusilleerden, is all the resting place of unknown heroes, 21 altogether.

In any struggle against oppressive government, there are often unknown heroes. - And as I myself am a victim of brutal deceptive media smear campaigns, as well as the US regime ordering search engines to suppress my own websites, I can testify as to how hard the evil powers work, to try to see that those who fight the system, remain unknown, or else smeared and slandered with propaganda and lies.

There are perhaps yet other heroes of the World War II resistance, whose anonymous graves somewhere, may yet one day be found. One of the photos here is of a maintenance area by the side, where fresh grave markers are ready, some with crosses, some with a star of David, awaiting use for some other hero whose remains are yet to be discovered.

In addition to the photographs on the grave markers, which speak for themselves, a number of the graves are also marked with heartfelt statements by those who loved and honoured them. Most are in French, and with photos where there are such engraved statements, there are transcriptions of what you find, along with a translation.

Many of these resistance martyrs to the Nazis who lie here, are of course Jewish. The majority are Christians of Belgium, but a significant proportion of the heroes who lie here, are Jewish resistance martyrs of the Holocaust. And even more than one from the same family - the Livchitz brothers who lie here. Moreover, some of the Christians who are buried here, are of Jewish heritage as well - as I am myself, a unitarian Christian.

My own heritage on my mother's side is Jewish, and it was my commitment to honour the memory of relatives and other Jews who died in the Holocaust, that led to my being forced to become a political refugee from the United States. - Back when living in the US, I received a letter threatening the book-burning of the books of this Jewish-heritage writer, and I responded strongly. A few weeks later my freedom to speak and write was banned, and threats to extort and murder me were put in motion. This story has been told in other places (see link to press articles in my profile), but suffice it to say here, that it was my honouring the memory of murdered Jews, which led me to be a Jewish-heritage political refugee today in Brussels.

Though I am unitarian Christian by faith, the old Jewish sites of Brussels and Belgium strike deep chords within me, as I very much feel the spirit of the Jews who suffered and died under the kind of racist threats I have also suffered.

One of the things I am often-asked, as a Jewish-heritage political refugee, is why the Jewish groups and Jewish leaders, do not say or do more to defend me, against the threats to have me murdered, against the lies and hoaxes spread about me, against the blocking of my own journalism sites from the internet search engines. - For example, in my efforts to stay alive these last few years, I have received much more comfort and assistance and support from brave Muslims, than from the Jewish people who share my own heritage.

There are two main reasons for this kind of neglect of someone like myself by Jewish leaders. One is that I am not a political Zionist - I favour peace and justice for all the residents of the ancient holy lands of Palestine. - A second reason, is that there is a sad heritage among Jewish people, to stand by and do nothing while other Jews are attacked by the dominant power of the day. - It was that way in the old pogroms of Eastern Europe, it was that way under the Nazi-era exterminations, and it is that way today regarding the case of the United States. - Since it is the US regime which has been attacking me and forcing me to be a refugee here, Jewish 'leadership' simply does not want to confront the USA. Given that I am a non-Zionist, and a unitarian Christian in faith, well, that settles it as far as Jewish leaders are concerned, and they turn away and say nothing.

There are still some brave Jews, however, like one brave Orthodox Jewish physician in America, a friend who has helped me to be able to be here now, supplying these photographs of the Jewish and other martyrs of anti-Nazi resistance.

And the Jewish heritage is there in me, and I am glad I honoured the memory of the Holocaust dead, even though it led me into terrible sufferings at the hands of US political figures and the US regime.

There is a sense of profound spiritual achievement that I have, as I place on-line this historical record of the martyrs of the Enclos des Fusillés - Ereperk der Gefusilleerden. It is perhaps only by the grace of God that I was able to escape the US alive, from the clutches of the people menacing to illegally jail me and murder me in a US jail cell. - My now being able to honour the memory of my fellow anti-fascist figures in Belgium, who were shot dead by the Nazis of an earlier era, feels to me to be one of the important purposes, for which I was kept alive by divine hands.

To visit the Enclos des Fusillés - Ereperk der Gefusilleerden, you can walk about 600 metres from the Diamant 'prémétro' or underground tram stop which includes tram lines 23, 24, and 25. If you wish to get even closer by bus, you can take buses number 12, 21, or 79 the two stops from Diamant to the Colonel Bourg - Kolonel Bourg bus shelter sign. Alternatively, if you are in the EU area, you can take these same buses 12, 21 or 79 directly from the Schuman métro station by the EU's main Berlaymont building. Another route is that bus 80 from the Mérode metro station will also take you directly to the Colonel Bourg - Kolonel Bourg stop. A few tens of metres west of where the bus halts, along the rue Colonel Bourg - Kolonel Bourgstraat, you see the sign directing to the entrance of the Enclos des Fusillés - Ereperk der Gefusilleerden.

Chip could let smartphones see through walls... and clothes by SouthernBreeze

2 3

X-ray vision like Superman's could soon be available in your pocket.

By Deborah Netburn

April 19, 2012, 1:39 p.m.

In the not-too-distant future, your smartphone may be able to help you see through walls, cardboard boxes, paper and even clothing.

Scientists from the University of Texas at Dallas have designed an imaging chip that measures invisible terahertz light waves that is small enough to fit on a smartphone and inexpensive enough that normal people could actually afford to buy one.

Terahertz waves can be detected through opaque surfaces such as paper, walls and clothing -- enabling a person with an accurate terahertz measuring device to see beyond what our visible eye can see.

Some applications of this technology, which is still in development, include early detecting of skin cancer, finding studs hidden in walls, finding hidden cracks in vases and authenticating documents.

As for the creepy applications (such as seeing through clothes), rest assured that Kenneth O, professor of electrical engineering at UT Texas and director of the Texas Analog Center for Excellence, who led this research, has considered them.

"The major concern for this technology is privacy, so we've made it that you need to place the imaging device very close to the object you are looking at," he said. "We are talking about a distance of 10 centimeters, so it would be very difficult for someone to sneak up on you and...you know."

Scientists have known about terahertz waves for a long time, but the devices that measured them were prohibitively expensive for most people, and also large and bulky.

O and his team's imaging chip, which was made with CMOS technology, is small and cheap.

"This is literally small enough that it can be placed on the back of the cellphone," he said.

Modified X-ray vision, here we come!
---
Story from The Los Angeles Times

Image courtesy of (Warner Home Video / April 19, 2012)

---

New Research Could Mean Cellphones That Can See Through Walls

Team Finds New Possibilities in Untapped Terahertz Range With Implications For a Host of Devices

Apr. 18, 2012

TxACE director Kenneth O (left), professor of electrical engineering, with member Dae Yeon Kim

Dr. Kenneth O, director of the Texas Analog Center of Excellence and a professor of electrical engineering, left, worked with a team including Dae Yeon Kim, who was among the authors of the research report.

Comic book hero superpowers may be one step closer to reality after the latest technological feats made by researchers at UT Dallas. They have designed an imager chip that could turn mobile phones into devices that can see through walls, wood, plastics, paper and other objects.

The team’s research linked two scientific advances. One involves tapping into an unused range in the electromagnetic spectrum. The other is a new microchip technology.

The electromagnetic spectrum characterizes wavelengths of energy. For example, radio waves for AM and FM signals, or microwaves used for cell phones or the infrared wavelength that makes night vision devices possible.

But the terahertz band of the electromagnetic spectrum, one of the wavelength ranges that falls between microwave and infrared, has not been accessible for most consumer devices.

“We’ve created approaches that open a previously untapped portion of the electromagnetic spectrum for consumer use and life-saving medical applications,” said Dr. Kenneth O, professor of electrical engineering at UT Dallas and director of the Texas Analog Center of Excellence (TxACE). “The terahertz range is full of unlimited potential that could benefit us all.”

Tapping the Terahertz Gap

Shown is the electromagnet spectrum, from radio waves used for FM and AM signals, to infrared waves used for remote controls, to gamma rays that kill cancer cells. A team at UT Dallas is focusing on the "terahertz band," which has not been accessible for most consumer devices.

Tapping the Terahertz Gap

Using the new approach, images can be created with signals operating in the terahertz (THz) range without having to use several lenses inside a device. This could reduce overall size and cost.

The second advance that makes the findings applicable for consumer devices is the technology used to create the microchip. Chips manufactured using CMOS (Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor) technology form the basis of many consumer electronic devices used in daily life such as personal computers, smart phones, high definition TV and game consoles.

“CMOS is affordable and can be used to make lots of chips,” Dr. O said. “The combination of CMOS and terahertz means you could put this chip and a transmitter on the back of a cellphone, turning it into a device carried in your pocket that can see through objects.” Due to privacy concerns, Dr. O and his team are focused on uses in the distance range of less than four inches.

Consumer applications of such technology could range from finding studs in walls to authentication of important documents. Businesses could use it to detect counterfeit money. Manufacturing companies could apply it to process control. There are also more communication channels available in terahertz than the range currently used for wireless communication, so information could be more rapidly shared at this frequency.

“The combination of CMOS and terahertz means you could put this chip and receiver on the back of a cellphone, turning it into a device carried in your pocket that can see through objects.”

Dr. Kenneth O,

Texas Instruments Distinguished Chair, TxACE director

Terahertz can also be used for imaging to detect cancer tumors, diagnosing disease through breath analysis, and monitoring air toxicity.

“There are all kinds of things you could be able to do that we just haven’t yet thought about,” said Dr. O, holder of the Texas Instruments Distinguished Chair.

The research was presented at the most recent International Solid-State Circuits Conference (ISSCC). The team will work next to build an entire working imaging system based on the CMOS terahertz system.

Other authors of the paper include Ruonan Han and Yaming Zhang, former students of Professor O, Youngwan Kim and Dae Yeon Kim, TxACE members, and Hisashi Sam Shichijio, research professor at TxACE.

The work was supported by the Center for Circuit & System Solutions (C2S2 Center) and conducted in the TxACE laboratory at UT Dallas, which is funded by the Semiconductor Research Corporation (SRC), the state through its Texas Emerging Technology Fund, Texas Instruments Inc., The UT System and UT Dallas.

Media Contact: LaKisha Ladson, UT Dallas, (972) 883-4183, lnl120030@utdallas.edu

or the Office of Media Relations, UT Dallas, (972) 883-2155, newscenter@utdallas.edu.

frequency by Jerome Olivier

10 4

“If you want to find the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency and vibration.”

Nikola Tesla

up: 2016/01/10

frequency by Crystal Elf

EFF2019_by_spygel_0565 by spygel

EFF2020_by_spygel_0384 by spygel

My Frequency by Roscoe Robson

11 4

Before I feel in love with photography music played a big part in my life, it still does now but only in the background when I'm working on photos :) so this self portrait was special for me in the sense of combining the two.

by Jeromy Shepherd

16 3

two strobe/umbrella setup (high left key and low right fill) with a 3rd strobe blowing out the background. A KISS setup.

EFF2020_by_spygel_0285 by spygel

frequency ratio by Monique van der Lint

4 3

Evil Frequency by Suki San

Wavelengths and Frequencies by Rednaxela13

5 5

*letter distribution frequency by Bruners

*Reference* FONT letter distribution frequency

Frequency Switcher Building by Purple Wyrm

Detail of the frequency switcher building and 'B' station.

Martin said look at the Links + Text by Duckwailk 2017

Thalidomide Nerve Damage

Thalidomide, the drug which caused an epidemic of deformed babies in the 1960s has a second important side-effect in causing damage to the peripheral nerves which can be permanent. Although the drug was withdrawn in 1961, it was re-introduced in 1965 for the management of a complication of leprosy. Thalidomide is not a cure for this disease, but suppresses an allergy which arises during the course of treatment. While the the effect on the fetus can be avoided by not using the drug in women in the reproductive age group, all patients who take the drug are at risk of developing nerve damage. The frequency of this side-effect was originally in dispute, but according to a recently published book, it is estimated that about 40,000 people suffered from peripheral nerve damage when the drug was used as a sedative in Germany. It would be expected that leprosy patients given the drug would also develop nerve damage. However, despite its use in this disease for over 30 years, not a single case of nerve damage attributable to the drug has been reported. Because of its effectiveness in treating patients with leprosy, Thalidomide was tried out in a number of other diseases. Here the frequency of nerve damage has been at least 21%. It therefore remains a mystery why there are no reports of nerve damage in leprosy patients given the drug. Of course leprosy also affects the peripheral nerves, but there are means of distinguishing nerve damage due to the disease from the neurotoxic effects of thalidomide. The background to this 'mystery' is discussed at www.thalidomide.org

Last September, a research letter was published in the Lancet, the prestigious medical journal. A group of leprosy patients from Bangladesh were described suffering from severe pain in the lower limbs despite finishing their treatment. Although no valid explanation was given for these symptoms and signs, it appeared to me that the patients could have received thalidomide. Accordingly, I wrote to the Lancet, suggesting this might be the case. The Lancet rejected my letter, so I added another paragraph and sent it to the British Medical Journal. the title 'Is thalidomide to blame? is the same as the letter to the British Medical Journal published in 1960. This was the first publication in a medical journal mentioning thalidomide nerve damage, so it seemed appropriate to repeat the title. The letter is reproduced as follows

Is thalidomide to blame?

On December 31, 1960, Dr Leslie Florence, a Scottish General Practitioner wrote a letter to the British Medical Journal(1) entitled 'Is thalodomide to blame?'. Four of his patients had complained of paraesthesia of the hands and feet, coldness of the extremities and nocturnal cramps in leg muscles. He questioned whether these symptoms could be due to thalidomide as all four had recieved the drug. This was the first report of thalidomide neuropathy in the medical literature. Although thalidomide was withdrawn because of its teratogenic effects, it was subsequently re-introduced for the management of erythema nodosum leprosum (ENL), a complication of lepromatous or multibacillary leprosy. Thalidomide has now been used in the management of a variety of non-leprosy disorders where the frequency of neuropathy is at least 21%(2). In leprosy, thalidomide neuropathy has not been reported despite the use of the drug in high doses and for prolonged periods.

On September 23, 2000, Hietaharju and colleagues(3) described the features of chronic pain in leprosy patients after completion of anti-bacterial treatment. No explanation is given for the persistence of these symptoms. As all patients had multibacillary leprosy, it is possible they had episodes of ENL during the course of therapy, in which case they may have been treated with thalidomide. The distribution of sensory loss and in particular, the severe burning pain which Hietaharju et al describe are very characteristic of thalidomide neuropathy(4). The intractable nature of the sensory disturbances are also a feature of this neuropathy(5). Have these patients recieved thalidomide?

References

Florence AL. Is thalidomide to blame? Br Med J 1960; 2: 1954.

Ochonisky S, Verroust J, Bastuji-Garin S Gheradi R, Revuz J. Thalidomide neuropathy incidence and clinicoelectrophysiologic findings in 42 patients. Arch Dermatol 1994; 130: 66-9.

Hietaharju A, Croft R, Alam R, Birch P, Mong A, Haanpaa M. Chronic neuropathic pain in treated leprosy. Lancet 2000; 356: 1080-1.

Thalidomide neuropathy Lancet 1969: 1: 713-4

Fullerton PM, O'Sullivan DJ. Thalidomide neuropathy: a clinicalelectrophysiological and histological follow-up study. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 1968: 31: 543-51

Once again the letter was rejected. The British Medical Journal also has a web-site but refused to post the letter, so a great opportunity has been lost to warn leprosy workers in developing countries about the dangers of nerve damage following the use of the drug. There is no indication from either journal that attempts have been made to find out whether the patients have been given thalidomide. If the severe disability has been caused by thalidomide, then the patients should be compensated. Moreover, if one in five patients given the drug for non-leprosy disorders develop peripheral nerve damage, thousands of leprosy patients, who over 30 years have received high doses of thalidomide, should also have sustained damage to the peripheral nerves. Even today, new patients who are still being given thalidomide are at great risk of suffering severe pain for the rest of their lives.

By Dr Colin Crawford July 2001

e-mail:clcraw13@hotmail.com

www.dw.de/programas/áfrica/s-13918

www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/jan/16/thalidomide-apolo...

www.avite.org/

www.thalidomide.ca/

www.avite.org/film.htm

www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,3043006,00.html

www.avite.org/ultimahora.php

FreQuency on PS2 by PlayStation.Blog

EFF2018_by_spygel_0061 by spygel

Hewlett Packard HP 58503A GPS Time & Frequency Reference Receiver by nesnet

Hewlett Packard 58503A GPS Time & Frequency Reference Receiver with the optional (and expensive) factory installed display.

* 6 Channel GPS Receiver, Parallel Tracking.

* C/A Code, L1 Carrier.

* HP Smart Clock/HP Enhanched GPS.

* 10MHz and 1pps Outputs.

* 1 Vrms Amplitude.

* 1.5e-010/yr Time Base Stability.

* -85 dBc/Hz Band Noise.

* 50 ohms Impeadance.

* RS-232 Interface.

Frequency Festival 2014 by Radio Soundportal

Frequency Festival 2014

Frequency Festival 2014 by Radio Soundportal

Frequency Festival 2014

121130_EFL_0004 by spygel

Colfax, Iowa, Victoria Sanitarium by photolibrarian

From the website...

iagenweb.org/jasper/history/1912/history/victoria.htm

Past and Present of Jasper County Iowa

B.F. Bowden & Company, Indianapolis, IN, 1912

Transcribed by Ernie Braida in July 2003

The mineral springs of Colfax have greatly influenced the character of the life and growth of the city in recent years. Of the several establishments of different varieties which have grown up in order to bring to the people the wonderful advantages of the curative waters of these springs, special mention must be made of the Victoria Sanatorium, which has been in existence since 1904, when Florence Brown Sherbon, A. M., M. D., her husband, John Bayard Sherban, M. D., and her father James Brown, incorporated the Victoria Sanatorium and Mineral Spring. The Doctors Sherban are in charge of the sanatorium. Doctor Florence B. Sherbon is a native of Washington County, Iowa, graduated from the Keokuk High School, the Independence Training School for Nurses at the Iowa State Hospital, and in 1902 received the degree of Bachelor of Philosophy from Iowa State University. In 1904 she completed her medical education at the same institution, receiving the degree of Doctor of Medicine and the same year the degree of Master of Arts.

Doctor John Bayard Sherbon is a native of Iowa, and graduated in medicine from Iowa State University in 1904. Both he and his wife are members of the American, State and County Medical societies. Since 1904, when both Doctors Sherban located at Colfax, their history has been that of the Victoria Sanatorium.

The present home of the Victoria Sanatorium is a picturesque, red brick colonial building, with spacious white porches, situated on one of the beautiful wooded hillsides of Colfax. The corporation of physicians who own and control it have spared neither trouble nor expense to make it not only a credit to themselves and a boon to suffering humanity, but a credit to the state and to the Middle West. It began its career modestly in a little thirty-room brick hotel building; but was crowded out the first year. The building was then completely remodeled and enlarged, doubling its capacity and making it up to date and entirely modern in every respect. The new building proved as inadequate to meet the demand as the old, and the following year a thirty-room brick building was erected as an annex, and has been in daily use since the completion.

The sanatorium building is brick, with its long exposure north and south, making it warm in winter and cool in summer. It is steam heated, with electric lights, call bells and telephones, has an elevator and is well protected against fire, and is artistically finished and furnished, with all outside rooms and a pleasant outlook from every side. Although but five blocks from Main street and depots, the sanatorium building is located at the end of its street in a park of native trees, and as no traffic passes its doors there is an absence of noise and dirt.

The water from the Victoria spring is classified as a carbonated calcicsaline chalybeate, holds an unusual amount of sodium and magnesium sulphate in solution, and has strong aperient properties. Its use is greatly beneficial in many diseases of the stomach and bowels, in cases of diseased kidneys and bladder, and various blood diseases, and especially in cases of rheumatism.

The sanatorium is fitted for the care of many different classes of patients, such as those who are overworked and are in search of rest and relaxation; those suffering from nervous derangement, who are benefited by the rest cure and the baths and exercises; cases of chronic disorder of the organs of assimilation and elimination; rheumatic patients, in the curing of whom the sanatorium has had wonderful results; cases of valvular heart trouble, which are benefited by Nauheim baths, and appropriate exercises for certain cases, for the care of which the sanatorium is especially equipped; and many cases of acute, non-contagious diseases, which are given careful nursing and medical care. Tuberculosis and contagious diseases, as well as troublesome mental cases, are not admitted.

The institution has a staff of competent resident physicians who take all proper care of the patients, and who are not extremists, but use all legitimate therapeutic measures. The equipment consists of the newest and most approved apparatus, static machine, X-ray, high frequency coil, vibrator, hot air machine, galvanic and faradic batteries, leucodescent lamp, etc. A well-equipped clinical laboratory is in constant use for diagnostic purposes, and there is a well-arranged operating room and a small perfectly appointed hospital for the care of the more ill or helpless patients. The bathrooms are well equipped for giving all kinds of hydriatric treatment, and are in charge of a corps of skillful operators, who are thoroughly trained in both American and Swedish methods in massage, orthopedic exercises, medical gymnastics, etc.

It is not the purpose of the sanatorium to compete with local practitioners, but rather to co-operate with them in caring for such cases as need the advantage of sanatorium treatment in addition to regular medical aid.

The doctors in charge of this sanatorium are engaged in a much needed work for the benefit of suffering humanity, in providing for them the best of treatment which modern medical science can provide, and ideally sanitary surroundings, and their success has greatly encouraged their labors. And there can be no nobler and no higher work than to minister to the ills and sickness of mankind, to relieve them from pain and misery, and to prolong their days on this earth. The physician who follows his profession in its true spirit is the best friend of mankind, and the proprietors of the Victoria Sanatorium have during its existence been responsible for the return of hope to many lives from which it had been long shut out.

Frequency Festival 2014 by Radio Soundportal

Frequency Festival 2014

Radio Frequency Group # 53, MIT Radiation Laboratory by JWA Commons

Group picture of the Radiation Laboratory Radio Frequency Group # 53. Sylvia (Meltzer) Simes is in the 2nd row, 8th from the right.

We're happy for you to share this digital image within the spirit of The Commons. Certain restrictions on high quality reproductions of the original physical version of apply though; if you're unsure please visit the Jewish Women's Archive website.

EFF2020_by_spygel_0077 by spygel

*SOMA* double cross by BLUE LUG

Frame :*SOMA* double cross frame set

Wheels :*WTB* frequency i19 × *SHIMANO* xt

Tires :*WTB* exposure tire

Headset :*PHILWOOD*

Stem :*NITTO* UI-75 stem

Handle :*FAIRWEATHER* M174AA all road bar

Brake lever:*SHIMANO* 105

Brake :*TRP* spyre

FD&RD :*SHIMANO* 105

Crank:*SUGINO* mighty comp × *WOLFTOOTH*

BB:*PHILWOOD*

Seatpost :*NITTO* 65

Saddle :*WTB* volt

Bar tape:*MASH* binary bar tape + end plug set

Seat clamp:*SALSA CYCLES* lip-lock clamp

Frequency Festival 2014 by Radio Soundportal

Frequency Festival 2014

Frequencies by Luca Tomaiuolo

FREQUENCY by EL TUERTO

2 1

Frequency by Vanerum Stelter

Frequency T Leg

frequency by etoraznal

P1040853_LRweb by Morton Cornelius

UHF antenna, Cassel, France

Ryigyik (Ginger) Prospect Truda, Voronezh, Voronezh Oblast, Russian Federation. by PHOTOGRAPHY by DM & DBM.

The cat (Felis catus), commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat, is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae. Recent advances in archaeology and genetics have shown that the domestication of the cat occurred in the Near East around 7500 BC. It is commonly kept as a house pet and farm cat, but also ranges freely as a feral cat avoiding human contact. It is valued by humans for companionship and its ability to kill vermin. Because of its retractable claws it is adapted to killing small prey like mice and rats. It has a strong flexible body, quick reflexes, sharp teeth, and its night vision and sense of smell are well developed. It is a social species, but a solitary hunter and a crepuscular predator. Cat communication includes vocalizations like meowing, purring, trilling, hissing, growling, and grunting as well as cat body language. It can hear sounds too faint or too high in frequency for human ears, such as those made by small mammals. It also secretes and perceives pheromones.

Female domestic cats can have kittens from spring to late autumn in temperate zones and throughout the year in equatorial regions, with litter sizes often ranging from two to five kittens. Domestic cats are bred and shown at events as registered pedigreed cats, a hobby known as cat fancy. Animal population control of cats may be achieved by spaying and neutering, but their proliferation and the abandonment of pets has resulted in large numbers of feral cats worldwide, contributing to the extinction of bird, mammal and reptile species.

As of 2017, the domestic cat was the second most popular pet in the United States, with 95.6 million cats owned and around 42 million households owning at least one cat. In the United Kingdom, 26% of adults have a cat, with an estimated population of 10.9 million pet cats as of 2020. As of 2021, there were an estimated 220 million owned and 480 million stray cats in the world.

Etymology and naming

The origin of the English word cat, Old English catt, is thought to be the Late Latin word cattus, which was first used at the beginning of the 6th century. The Late Latin word may be derived from an unidentified African language. The Nubian word kaddîska 'wildcat' and Nobiin kadīs are possible sources or cognates. The Nubian word may be a loan from Arabic قَطّ‎ qaṭṭ ~ قِطّ qiṭṭ.

The forms might also have derived from an ancient Germanic word that was imported into Latin and then into Greek, Syriac, and Arabic. The word may be derived from Germanic and Northern European languages, and ultimately be borrowed from Uralic, cf. Northern Sámi gáđfi, 'female stoat', and Hungarian hölgy, 'lady, female stoat'; from Proto-Uralic *käďwä, 'female (of a furred animal)'.

The English puss, extended as pussy and pussycat, is attested from the 16th century and may have been introduced from Dutch poes or from Low German puuskatte, related to Swedish kattepus, or Norwegian pus, pusekatt. Similar forms exist in Lithuanian puižė and Irish puisín or puiscín. The etymology of this word is unknown, but it may have arisen from a sound used to attract a cat.

A male cat is called a tom or tomcat (or a gib, if neutered). A female is called a queen or a molly, if spayed, especially in a cat-breeding context. A juvenile cat is referred to as a kitten. In Early Modern English, the word kitten was interchangeable with the now-obsolete word catling.

A group of cats can be referred to as a clowder or a glaring.

Taxonomy

The scientific name Felis catus was proposed by Carl Linnaeus in 1758 for a domestic cat. Felis catus domesticus was proposed by Johann Christian Polycarp Erxleben in 1777. Felis daemon proposed by Konstantin Satunin in 1904 was a black cat from the Transcaucasus, later identified as a domestic cat.

In 2003, the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature ruled that the domestic cat is a distinct species, namely Felis catus. In 2007, it was considered a subspecies, F. silvestris catus, of the European wildcat (F. silvestris) following results of phylogenetic research. In 2017, the IUCN Cat Classification Taskforce followed the recommendation of the ICZN in regarding the domestic cat as a distinct species, Felis catus.

Evolution

Main article: Cat evolution

The domestic cat is a member of the Felidae, a family that had a common ancestor about 10 to 15 million years ago. The evolutionary radiation of the Felidae began in Asia during the Miocene around 8.38 to 14.45 million years ago. Analysis of mitochondrial DNA of all Felidae species indicates a radiation at 6.46 to 16.76 million years ago. The genus Felis genetically diverged from other Felidae around 6 to 7 million years ago. Results of phylogenetic research shows that the wild members of this genus evolved through sympatric or parapatric speciation, whereas the domestic cat evolved through artificial selection. The domestic cat and its closest wild ancestor are diploid and both possess 38 chromosomes and roughly 20,000 genes.

Domestication

See also: Domestication of the cat and Cats in ancient Egypt

It was long thought that the domestication of the cat began in ancient Egypt, where cats were venerated from around 3100 BC, However, the earliest known indication for the taming of an African wildcat was excavated close by a human Neolithic grave in Shillourokambos, southern Cyprus, dating to about 7500–7200 BC. Since there is no evidence of native mammalian fauna on Cyprus, the inhabitants of this Neolithic village most likely brought the cat and other wild mammals to the island from the Middle Eastern mainland. Scientists therefore assume that African wildcats were attracted to early human settlements in the Fertile Crescent by rodents, in particular the house mouse (Mus musculus), and were tamed by Neolithic farmers. This mutual relationship between early farmers and tamed cats lasted thousands of years. As agricultural practices spread, so did tame and domesticated cats. Wildcats of Egypt contributed to the maternal gene pool of the domestic cat at a later time.

The earliest known evidence for the occurrence of the domestic cat in Greece dates to around 1200 BC. Greek, Phoenician, Carthaginian and Etruscan traders introduced domestic cats to southern Europe. During the Roman Empire they were introduced to Corsica and Sardinia before the beginning of the 1st millennium. By the 5th century BC, they were familiar animals around settlements in Magna Graecia and Etruria. By the end of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century, the Egyptian domestic cat lineage had arrived in a Baltic Sea port in northern Germany.

The leopard cat (Prionailurus bengalensis) was tamed independently in China around 5500 BC. This line of partially domesticated cats leaves no trace in the domestic cat populations of today.

During domestication, cats have undergone only minor changes in anatomy and behavior, and they are still capable of surviving in the wild. Several natural behaviors and characteristics of wildcats may have pre-adapted them for domestication as pets. These traits include their small size, social nature, obvious body language, love of play, and high intelligence. Captive Leopardus cats may also display affectionate behavior toward humans but were not domesticated. House cats often mate with feral cats. Hybridisation between domestic and other Felinae species is also possible, producing hybrids such as the Kellas cat in Scotland.

Development of cat breeds started in the mid 19th century. An analysis of the domestic cat genome revealed that the ancestral wildcat genome was significantly altered in the process of domestication, as specific mutations were selected to develop cat breeds. Most breeds are founded on random-bred domestic cats. Genetic diversity of these breeds varies between regions, and is lowest in purebred populations, which show more than 20 deleterious genetic disorders.

Characteristics

Main article: Cat anatomy

Size

The domestic cat has a smaller skull and shorter bones than the European wildcat. It averages about 46 cm (18 in) in head-to-body length and 23–25 cm (9.1–9.8 in) in height, with about 30 cm (12 in) long tails. Males are larger than females. Adult domestic cats typically weigh 4–5 kg (8.8–11.0 lb).

Skeleton

Cats have seven cervical vertebrae (as do most mammals); 13 thoracic vertebrae (humans have 12); seven lumbar vertebrae (humans have five); three sacral vertebrae (as do most mammals, but humans have five); and a variable number of caudal vertebrae in the tail (humans have only three to five vestigial caudal vertebrae, fused into an internal coccyx). The extra lumbar and thoracic vertebrae account for the cat's spinal mobility and flexibility. Attached to the spine are 13 ribs, the shoulder, and the pelvis. Unlike human arms, cat forelimbs are attached to the shoulder by free-floating clavicle bones which allow them to pass their body through any space into which they can fit their head.

Skull

The cat skull is unusual among mammals in having very large eye sockets and a powerful specialized jaw. Within the jaw, cats have teeth adapted for killing prey and tearing meat. When it overpowers its prey, a cat delivers a lethal neck bite with its two long canine teeth, inserting them between two of the prey's vertebrae and severing its spinal cord, causing irreversible paralysis and death. Compared to other felines, domestic cats have narrowly spaced canine teeth relative to the size of their jaw, which is an adaptation to their preferred prey of small rodents, which have small vertebrae.

The premolar and first molar together compose the carnassial pair on each side of the mouth, which efficiently shears meat into small pieces, like a pair of scissors. These are vital in feeding, since cats' small molars cannot chew food effectively, and cats are largely incapable of mastication.: Cats tend to have better teeth than most humans, with decay generally less likely because of a thicker protective layer of enamel, a less damaging saliva, less retention of food particles between teeth, and a diet mostly devoid of sugar. Nonetheless, they are subject to occasional tooth loss and infection.

Claws

Cats have protractible and retractable claws. In their normal, relaxed position, the claws are sheathed with the skin and fur around the paw's toe pads. This keeps the claws sharp by preventing wear from contact with the ground and allows for the silent stalking of prey. The claws on the forefeet are typically sharper than those on the hindfeet. Cats can voluntarily extend their claws on one or more paws. They may extend their claws in hunting or self-defense, climbing, kneading, or for extra traction on soft surfaces. Cats shed the outside layer of their claw sheaths when scratching rough surfaces.

Most cats have five claws on their front paws and four on their rear paws. The dewclaw is proximal to the other claws. More proximally is a protrusion which appears to be a sixth "finger". This special feature of the front paws on the inside of the wrists has no function in normal walking but is thought to be an antiskidding device used while jumping. Some cat breeds are prone to having extra digits ("polydactyly"). Polydactylous cats occur along North America's northeast coast and in Great Britain.

Ambulation

The cat is digitigrade. It walks on the toes, with the bones of the feet making up the lower part of the visible leg. Unlike most mammals, it uses a "pacing" gait and moves both legs on one side of the body before the legs on the other side. It registers directly by placing each hind paw close to the track of the corresponding fore paw, minimizing noise and visible tracks. This also provides sure footing for hind paws when navigating rough terrain. As it speeds up from walking to trotting, its gait changes to a "diagonal" gait: The diagonally opposite hind and fore legs move simultaneously.

Balance

Cats are generally fond of sitting in high places or perching. A higher place may serve as a concealed site from which to hunt; domestic cats strike prey by pouncing from a perch such as a tree branch. Another possible explanation is that height gives the cat a better observation point, allowing it to survey its territory. A cat falling from heights of up to 3 m (9.8 ft) can right itself and land on its paws.

During a fall from a high place, a cat reflexively twists its body and rights itself to land on its feet using its acute sense of balance and flexibility. This reflex is known as the cat righting reflex. A cat always rights itself in the same way during a fall, if it has enough time to do so, which is the case in falls of 90 cm (3.0 ft) or more. How cats are able to right themselves when falling has been investigated as the "falling cat problem".

Coats

Main article: Cat coat genetics

The cat family (Felidae) can pass down many colors and patterns to their offspring. The domestic cat genes MC1R and ASIP allow for the variety of color in coats. The feline ASIP gene consists of three coding exons. Three novel microsatellite markers linked to ASIP were isolated from a domestic cat BAC clone containing this gene and were used to perform linkage analysis in a pedigree of 89 domestic cats that segregated for melanism.[citation needed]

Senses

Main article: Cat senses

Vision

A cat's nictitating membrane shown as it blinks

Cats have excellent night vision and can see at only one-sixth the light level required for human vision. This is partly the result of cat eyes having a tapetum lucidum, which reflects any light that passes through the retina back into the eye, thereby increasing the eye's sensitivity to dim light. Large pupils are an adaptation to dim light. The domestic cat has slit pupils, which allow it to focus bright light without chromatic aberration. At low light, a cat's pupils expand to cover most of the exposed surface of its eyes. The domestic cat has rather poor color vision and only two types of cone cells, optimized for sensitivity to blue and yellowish green; its ability to distinguish between red and green is limited. A response to middle wavelengths from a system other than the rod cells might be due to a third type of cone. This appears to be an adaptation to low light levels rather than representing true trichromatic vision. Cats also have a nictitating membrane, allowing them to blink without hindering their vision.

Hearing

The domestic cat's hearing is most acute in the range of 500 Hz to 32 kHz. It can detect an extremely broad range of frequencies ranging from 55 Hz to 79 kHz, whereas humans can only detect frequencies between 20 Hz and 20 kHz. It can hear a range of 10.5 octaves, while humans and dogs can hear ranges of about 9 octaves. Its hearing sensitivity is enhanced by its large movable outer ears, the pinnae, which amplify sounds and help detect the location of a noise. It can detect ultrasound, which enables it to detect ultrasonic calls made by rodent prey. Recent research has shown that cats have socio-spatial cognitive abilities to create mental maps of owners' locations based on hearing owners' voices.

Smell

Cats have an acute sense of smell, due in part to their well-developed olfactory bulb and a large surface of olfactory mucosa, about 5.8 cm2 (0.90 in2) in area, which is about twice that of humans. Cats and many other animals have a Jacobson's organ in their mouths that is used in the behavioral process of flehmening. It allows them to sense certain aromas in a way that humans cannot. Cats are sensitive to pheromones such as 3-mercapto-3-methylbutan-1-ol, which they use to communicate through urine spraying and marking with scent glands. Many cats also respond strongly to plants that contain nepetalactone, especially catnip, as they can detect that substance at less than one part per billion. About 70–80% of cats are affected by nepetalactone. This response is also produced by other plants, such as silver vine (Actinidia polygama) and the herb valerian; it may be caused by the smell of these plants mimicking a pheromone and stimulating cats' social or sexual behaviors.

Taste

Cats have relatively few taste buds compared to humans (470 or so versus more than 9,000 on the human tongue). Domestic and wild cats share a taste receptor gene mutation that keeps their sweet taste buds from binding to sugary molecules, leaving them with no ability to taste sweetness. They, however, possess taste bud receptors specialized for acids, amino acids like protein, and bitter tastes. Their taste buds possess the receptors needed to detect umami. However, these receptors contain molecular changes that make the cat taste of umami different from that of humans. In humans, they detect the amino acids of glutamic acid and aspartic acid, but in cats they instead detect nucleotides, in this case inosine monophosphate and l-Histidine. These nucleotides are particularly enriched in tuna. This has been argued is why cats find tuna so palatable: as put by researchers into cat taste, "the specific combination of the high IMP and free l-Histidine contents of tuna" .. "produces a strong umami taste synergy that is highly preferred by cats". One of the researchers involved in this research has further claimed, "I think umami is as important for cats as sweet is for humans".[87]

Cats also have a distinct temperature preference for their food, preferring food with a temperature around 38 °C (100 °F) which is similar to that of a fresh kill; some cats reject cold food (which would signal to the cat that the "prey" item is long dead and therefore possibly toxic or decomposing).

Whiskers

To aid with navigation and sensation, cats have dozens of movable whiskers (vibrissae) over their body, especially their faces. These provide information on the width of gaps and on the location of objects in the dark, both by touching objects directly and by sensing air currents; they also trigger protective blink reflexes to protect the eyes from damage.: 47

Behavior

See also: Kitten

The cat secretes and perceives pheromones. Female cats, called queens, are polyestrous with several estrus cycles during a year, lasting usually 21 days. They are usually ready to mate between early February and August in northern temperate zones and throughout the year in equatorial regions.

Several males, called tomcats, are attracted to a female in heat. They fight over her, and the victor wins the right to mate. At first, the female rejects the male, but eventually, the female allows the male to mate. The female utters a loud yowl as the male pulls out of her because a male cat's penis has a band of about 120–150 backward-pointing penile spines, which are about 1 mm (0.039 in) long; upon withdrawal of the penis, the spines may provide the female with increased sexual stimulation, which acts to induce ovulation.

After mating, the female cleans her vulva thoroughly. If a male attempts to mate with her at this point, the female attacks him. After about 20 to 30 minutes, once the female is finished grooming, the cycle will repeat. Because ovulation is not always triggered by a single mating, females may not be impregnated by the first male with which they mate. Furthermore, cats are superfecund; that is, a female may mate with more than one male when she is in heat, with the result that different kittens in a litter may have different fathers.

The morula forms 124 hours after conception. At 148 hours, early blastocysts form. At 10–12 days, implantation occurs. The gestation of queens lasts between 64 and 67 days, with an average of 65 days.

Data on the reproductive capacity of more than 2,300 free-ranging queens were collected during a study between May 1998 and October 2000. They had one to six kittens per litter, with an average of three kittens. They produced a mean of 1.4 litters per year, but a maximum of three litters in a year. Of 169 kittens, 127 died before they were six months old due to a trauma caused in most cases by dog attacks and road accidents. The first litter is usually smaller than subsequent litters. Kittens are weaned between six and seven weeks of age. Queens normally reach sexual maturity at 5–10 months, and males at 5–7 months. This varies depending on breed. Kittens reach puberty at the age of 9–10 months.

Cats are ready to go to new homes at about 12 weeks of age, when they are ready to leave their mother. They can be surgically sterilized (spayed or castrated) as early as seven weeks to limit unwanted reproduction. This surgery also prevents undesirable sex-related behavior, such as aggression, territory marking (spraying urine) in males and yowling (calling) in females. Traditionally, this surgery was performed at around six to nine months of age, but it is increasingly being performed before puberty, at about three to six months. In the United States, about 80% of household cats are neutered.

Lifespan and health

Main articles: Cat health and Aging in cats

The average lifespan of pet cats has risen in recent decades. In the early 1980s, it was about seven years,: 33 rising to 9.4 years in 1995: 33 and an average of about 13 years as of 2014 and 2023. Some cats have been reported as surviving into their 30s, with the oldest known cat dying at a verified age of 38.

Neutering increases life expectancy: one study found castrated male cats live twice as long as intact males, while spayed female cats live 62% longer than intact females.: 35 Having a cat neutered confers health benefits, because castrated males cannot develop testicular cancer, spayed females cannot develop uterine or ovarian cancer, and both have a reduced risk of mammary cancer.

Disease

Main article: List of feline diseases

About 250 heritable genetic disorders have been identified in cats, many similar to human inborn errors of metabolism. The high level of similarity among the metabolism of mammals allows many of these feline diseases to be diagnosed using genetic tests that were originally developed for use in humans, as well as the use of cats as animal models in the study of the human diseases. Diseases affecting domestic cats include acute infections, parasitic infestations, injuries, and chronic diseases such as kidney disease, thyroid disease, and arthritis. Vaccinations are available for many infectious diseases, as are treatments to eliminate parasites such as worms, ticks, and fleas.

Ecology

Habitats

The domestic cat is a cosmopolitan species and occurs across much of the world. It is adaptable and now present on all continents except Antarctica, and on 118 of the 131 main groups of islands, even on the isolated Kerguelen Islands. Due to its ability to thrive in almost any terrestrial habitat, it is among the world's most invasive species. It lives on small islands with no human inhabitants. Feral cats can live in forests, grasslands, tundra, coastal areas, agricultural land, scrublands, urban areas, and wetlands.

The unwantedness that leads to the domestic cat being treated as an invasive species is twofold. On one hand, as it is little altered from the wildcat, it can readily interbreed with the wildcat. This hybridization poses a danger to the genetic distinctiveness of some wildcat populations, particularly in Scotland and Hungary, possibly also the Iberian Peninsula, and where protected natural areas are close to human-dominated landscapes, such as Kruger National Park in South Africa. However, its introduction to places where no native felines are present also contributes to the decline of native species.

Ferality

Main article: Feral cat

Feral cats are domestic cats that were born in or have reverted to a wild state. They are unfamiliar with and wary of humans and roam freely in urban and rural areas. The numbers of feral cats is not known, but estimates of the United States feral population range from 25 to 60 million. Feral cats may live alone, but most are found in large colonies, which occupy a specific territory and are usually associated with a source of food. Famous feral cat colonies are found in Rome around the Colosseum and Forum Romanum, with cats at some of these sites being fed and given medical attention by volunteers.

Public attitudes toward feral cats vary widely, from seeing them as free-ranging pets to regarding them as vermin.

Some feral cats can be successfully socialized and 're-tamed' for adoption; young cats, especially kittens and cats that have had prior experience and contact with humans are the most receptive to these efforts.

Impact on wildlife

Main article: Cat predation on wildlife

On islands, birds can contribute as much as 60% of a cat's diet. In nearly all cases, the cat cannot be identified as the sole cause for reducing the numbers of island birds, and in some instances, eradication of cats has caused a "mesopredator release" effect; where the suppression of top carnivores creates an abundance of smaller predators that cause a severe decline in their shared prey. Domestic cats are a contributing factor to the decline of many species, a factor that has ultimately led, in some cases, to extinction. The South Island piopio, Chatham rail, and the New Zealand merganser are a few from a long list, with the most extreme case being the flightless Lyall's wren, which was driven to extinction only a few years after its discovery. One feral cat in New Zealand killed 102 New Zealand lesser short-tailed bats in seven days. In the US, feral and free-ranging domestic cats kill an estimated 6.3 – 22.3 billion mammals annually.

In Australia, the impact of cats on mammal populations is even greater than the impact of habitat loss. More than one million reptiles are killed by feral cats each day, representing 258 species. Cats have contributed to the extinction of the Navassa curly-tailed lizard and Chioninia coctei.

Interaction with humans

Main article: Human interaction with cats

Cats are common pets throughout the world, and their worldwide population as of 2007 exceeded 500 million. As of 2017, the domestic cat was the second most popular pet in the United States, with 95.6 million cats owned and around 42 million households owning at least one cat. In the United Kingdom, 26% of adults have a cat, with an estimated population of 10.9 million pet cats as of 2020. As of 2021, there were an estimated 220 million owned and 480 million stray cats in the world.

Cats have been used for millennia to control rodents, notably around grain stores and aboard ships, and both uses extend to the present day.

As well as being kept as pets, cats are also used in the international fur trade and leather industries for making coats, hats, blankets, stuffed toys, shoes, gloves, and musical instruments. About 24 cats are needed to make a cat-fur coat. This use has been outlawed in the United States since 2000 and in the European Union (as well as the United Kingdom) since 2007.

Cat pelts have been used for superstitious purposes as part of the practice of witchcraft, and are still made into blankets in Switzerland as traditional medicine thought to cure rheumatism.

A few attempts to build a cat census have been made over the years, both through associations or national and international organizations (such as that of the Canadian Federation of Humane Societies) and over the Internet, but such a task does not seem simple to achieve. General estimates for the global population of domestic cats range widely from anywhere between 200 million to 600 million. Walter Chandoha made his career photographing cats after his 1949 images of Loco, an especially charming stray taken in, were published around the world. He is reported to have photographed 90,000 cats during his career and maintained an archive of 225,000 images that he drew from for publications during his lifetime.

Shows

Main article: Cat show

A cat show is a judged event in which the owners of cats compete to win titles in various cat-registering organizations by entering their cats to be judged after a breed standard. It is often required that a cat must be healthy and vaccinated in order to participate in a cat show. Both pedigreed and non-purebred companion ("moggy") cats are admissible, although the rules differ depending on the organization. Competing cats are compared to the applicable breed standard, and assessed for temperament.

Infection

Main article: Feline zoonosis

Cats can be infected or infested with viruses, bacteria, fungus, protozoans, arthropods or worms that can transmit diseases to humans. In some cases, the cat exhibits no symptoms of the disease. The same disease can then become evident in a human. The likelihood that a person will become diseased depends on the age and immune status of the person. Humans who have cats living in their home or in close association are more likely to become infected. Others might also acquire infections from cat feces and parasites exiting the cat's body. Some of the infections of most concern include salmonella, cat-scratch disease and toxoplasmosis.

History and mythology

Main articles: Cultural depictions of cats and Cats in ancient Egypt

In ancient Egypt, cats were worshipped, and the goddess Bastet often depicted in cat form, sometimes taking on the war-like aspect of a lioness. The Greek historian Herodotus reported that killing a cat was forbidden, and when a household cat died, the entire family mourned and shaved their eyebrows. Families took their dead cats to the sacred city of Bubastis, where they were embalmed and buried in sacred repositories. Herodotus expressed astonishment at the domestic cats in Egypt, because he had only ever seen wildcats.

Ancient Greeks and Romans kept weasels as pets, which were seen as the ideal rodent-killers. The earliest unmistakable evidence of the Greeks having domestic cats comes from two coins from Magna Graecia dating to the mid-fifth century BC showing Iokastos and Phalanthos, the legendary founders of Rhegion and Taras respectively, playing with their pet cats. The usual ancient Greek word for 'cat' was ailouros, meaning 'thing with the waving tail'. Cats are rarely mentioned in ancient Greek literature. Aristotle remarked in his History of Animals that "female cats are naturally lecherous." The Greeks later syncretized their own goddess Artemis with the Egyptian goddess Bastet, adopting Bastet's associations with cats and ascribing them to Artemis. In Ovid's Metamorphoses, when the deities flee to Egypt and take animal forms, the goddess Diana turns into a cat.

Cats eventually displaced weasels as the pest control of choice because they were more pleasant to have around the house and were more enthusiastic hunters of mice. During the Middle Ages, many of Artemis's associations with cats were grafted onto the Virgin Mary. Cats are often shown in icons of Annunciation and of the Holy Family and, according to Italian folklore, on the same night that Mary gave birth to Jesus, a cat in Bethlehem gave birth to a kitten. Domestic cats were spread throughout much of the rest of the world during the Age of Discovery, as ships' cats were carried on sailing ships to control shipboard rodents and as good-luck charms.

Several ancient religions believed cats are exalted souls, companions or guides for humans, that are all-knowing but mute so they cannot influence decisions made by humans. In Japan, the maneki neko cat is a symbol of good fortune. In Norse mythology, Freyja, the goddess of love, beauty, and fertility, is depicted as riding a chariot drawn by cats. In Jewish legend, the first cat was living in the house of the first man Adam as a pet that got rid of mice. The cat was once partnering with the first dog before the latter broke an oath they had made which resulted in enmity between the descendants of these two animals. It is also written that neither cats nor foxes are represented in the water, while every other animal has an incarnation species in the water. Although no species are sacred in Islam, cats are revered by Muslims. Some Western writers have stated Muhammad had a favorite cat, Muezza. He is reported to have loved cats so much, "he would do without his cloak rather than disturb one that was sleeping on it". The story has no origin in early Muslim writers, and seems to confuse a story of a later Sufi saint, Ahmed ar-Rifa'i, centuries after Muhammad. One of the companions of Muhammad was known as Abu Hurayrah ("father of the kitten"), in reference to his documented affection to cats.

Superstitions and rituals

Many cultures have negative superstitions about cats. An example would be the belief that encountering a black cat ("crossing one's path") leads to bad luck, or that cats are witches' familiars used to augment a witch's powers and skills. The killing of cats in Medieval Ypres, Belgium, is commemorated in the innocuous present-day Kattenstoet (cat parade). In mid-16th century France, cats would be burnt alive as a form of entertainment, particularly during midsummer festivals. According to Norman Davies, the assembled people "shrieked with laughter as the animals, howling with pain, were singed, roasted, and finally carbonized". The remaining ashes were sometimes taken back home by the people for good luck.

According to a myth in many cultures, cats have multiple lives. In many countries, they are believed to have nine lives, but in Italy, Germany, Greece, Brazil and some Spanish-speaking regions, they are said to have seven lives, while in Arabic traditions, the number of lives is six. An early mention of the myth can be found in John Heywood's The Proverbs of John Heywood (1546)

Husband, (quoth she), ye studie, be merrie now,

And even as ye thinke now, so come to yow.

Nay not so, (quoth he), for my thought to tell right,

I thinke how you lay groning, wife, all last night.

Husband, a groning horse and a groning wife

Never faile their master, (quoth she), for my life.

No wife, a woman hath nine lives like a cat.

The myth is attributed to the natural suppleness and swiftness cats exhibit to escape life-threatening situations. Also lending credence to this myth is the fact that falling cats often land on their feet, using an instinctive righting reflex to twist their bodies around. Nonetheless, cats can still be injured or killed by a high fall.

Radio Frequency Quadrupole by Argonne National Laboratory

Radio Frequency Quadrupole at Argonne's ATLAS Facility. Read more »

Frequency Spectrum by albularider

IMG_0930 by Dave Jones

Absopulse VFC-500 Variable Frequency Converter

Frequency by Timo Frey

11 46

Best View On Black

20Hz by Semiconductor_MG_7446 by Love Bytes

Lovebytes - Digital Spring.

Part of UNQUIET : Art and music events at Sheffield's Central Library

Sat 24 March 11am-4pm

Sheffield Central Library, Surrey Street, Sheffield.

Sheffield Central Library provided the venue and inspiration for a spree of artistic interventions, impromptu performances and creative workshops:

Sheffield Library's documentation from Unquiet (requires Flash):

Reactable

The Reactable is a revolutionary new electronic musical instrument, designed to create and perform the music of today and tomorrow. It combines state of the art technologies with a simple and intuitive design, which enables musicians to experiment with sound, change its structure, control its parameters and be creative in a direct and refreshing way - unlike anything you have ever known before.

Juxtavoices

Juxtavoices is a large 'antichoir' under the direction of composer Martin Archer and writer Alan Halsey. The group includes many familiar faces from Sheffield's leftfield music, poetry and visual arts scenes. Although the group performs structured scores, no fixed pitches are ever notated, and the group uses improvisation to shape the detail of the scores as the music progresses. Both trained and untrained voices are included. As well as playing "normal" concerts, the group is to be found in various unexpected public places, and at poetry / text events. For this event, Juxtavoices have created 2 special pieces for performance: one in suitably hushed tones inside the main library, and one utilising the rich acoustic of the adjacent stairwell.

20Hz by Semiconductor

05.00 minutes / HD video installation / 2011

20 Hz observes a geo-magnetic storm occurring in the Earth's upper atmosphere. Working with data collected from the CARISMA radio array and interpreted as audio, we hear tweeting and rumbles caused by incoming solar wind, captured at the frequency of 20 Hertz. Generated directly by the sound, tangible and sculptural forms emerge suggestive of scientific visualisations. As different frequencies interact both visually and aurally, complex patterns emerge to create interference phenomena that probe the limits of our perception.

20Hz is a Semiconductor work by Ruth Jarman and Joe Gerhardt.

Audio Data courtesy of CARISMA, operated by the University of Alberta, funded by the Canadian Space Agency.

Co-commissioned by Arts Santa Monica + Lighthouse for the Invisible Fields Exhibition at Arts Santa Monica, Barcelona. 2011-2012. Supported by the British Council.

Catalyst

This sound installation in the Lending Library presents a series of collaborative works by a number of Sheffield based writers and sound artists.

In 2011 composers from the University of Sheffield Sound Studios (USSS) were asked to produce a work drawing on Brian Eno's concept of 'ambient music' - music that could be subtly diffused into the atrium space at Bank Street. These compositions were played throughout the day and the writers spent an hour free-writing in response to them. These initial responses were then developed into poems by the writers and then were recorded reading their poems. These sound recordings formed the source material for a new series of compositions - in some cases settings of the poems themselves, in others more abstract manipulations of the source material.

Catalyst is a collaboration involving Bank Street Arts' Poet in Residence Angelina Ayers; writers on the MA Writing at Sheffield Hallam University; Bank Street Arts Resident sound artist Ian Baxter and fellow composers working from the USSS.

Animation/Pixilation Workshop

Children's Library session beginning 11am, 12pm, 2pm and 3pm (4 x 45min workshops)

Age 6+ Free. Book in advance / places are limited.

To book a place email - kidsandteens.library@sheffield.gov.uk

or tel. - 0114 273 4734

Come and have a go at animating...Yourself! Pixilation is an exciting form of animation where everyday objects and humans are the made to do extraordinary things such as disappear into walls, change into other people, fly, get eaten by black holes and ice skate on carpets!

In this workshop you'll learn how to make use pixillation to create animated films. You and your parents or carers will also find out how to film animation at home using your home computer, a webcam and free software. No experience or equipment necessary - just bring yourself! The workshop is led by Melvyn Turnan - you can see his films at www.melmation.com

Places are very limited, so please book in advance to avoid disappointment.

Sssh! There's going to be a FREE secret film show for kids at 1PM, somewhere in the Library...

Are spy pigeons and lost mechanical aliens your kind of thing? Do you know a cat who belongs to Simon? (or is it a Simon who belongs to a cat?)...

You can only find out the secret location for this screening when you collect a free golden ticket from our information desk in the Winter Garden. Make sure you get there early, it's first come first served and there are only a few places available for this extra special, hush hush event for those in the know. The films are suitable for any age but children must be accompanied by an adult.

These films are 100% guaranteed to totally amaze you... here's a sneak preview of what you will see...

The Lost Thing by Andrew Ruhemann & Shaun Tan (Passion Pictures, Australia 2011). This film won an Oscar for best short animated film in 2011. A boy finds a strange creature on a beach, and decides to find a home for it in a world where everyone believes there are far more important things to pay attention to.

Pigeon Impossible by Lucas Martell. This amazing bagel bite-sized adventure was 5 years in the making. It's the tale of Walter, a rookie secret agent faced with a problem seldom covered in basic training: what to do when a curious pigeon gets trapped inside your multi-million dollar, government-issued nuclear briefcase?

Love Over Goldfish by Janet Jennings and Jon Harrison. Have you ever seen a movie that is upside-down from beginning to end? Well the star of this film has, he's lived it! He's a goldfish and this is his life story. Love Over Goldfish was filmed in Sheffield, see if you can spot any familiar locations (but don't get a crick in your neck;)

Thanks to all the staff at Sheffield Libraries for hosting this event.

Special thanks to:

Emma Croft, Sarah Hogan, Martin Dutch and Andrew Milroy at Sheffield Libraries, Martin Archer and Juxtavoices, Ian Baxter (Catalyst), Sergi Jordà (reactable), Sheffield University Sound Studios, Passion Pictures, Lucas Martell, Flatpack Festival, Amber and Joab Harrison

Technical wizards: Darren Chouings (Prism), Melvyn Turnan (Melmation), Richard Bolam (RB Digimedia).

Lovebytes 2012 - Digital Spring

A Festival of Art, Science and Technology

22-24 March

Sheffield UK

www.lovebytes.org.uk

HIGH FREQUENCY KUMI by Rod_Dolls