[["To curb climate change, we need to protect waterAn international rescue plan for fresh waterIt is widely acknowledged that greenhouse gas emission-fueled climate change is having a profound and negative impact on fresh water systems around the world. Warmer weather causes more rapid evaporation of lakes and rivers, reduced snow and ice cover on open water systems, and melting glaciers.What is less understood is that our collective abuse and displacement of fresh water is also a serious cause of climate change and global warming. If we are to successfully address climate change, it is time to include an analysis of how our abuse of water is an additional factor in the creation of global warming as well as solutions that protect water and watersheds.There are two major factors. The first is the actual displacement of water from where it is sustaining a healthy ecosystem as well as healthy hydrologic cycles. Because humanity has polluted so much surface water on the planet, we are now mining the groundwater far faster than it can be replaced by nature. New Scientist reports of a \"little-heralded crisis\" all over Asia as a result of the exponential drilling of groundwater. Water is moved from where nature has put it in watershed and aquifers (where we can access it) to other place where it is used for flood irrigation and food production - where much of it lost to evaporation - or to supply the voracious thirst of mega cities, where it is usually dumped as waste into the ocean.Water is also lost to ecosystems through global trade - water used in the in the production of crops or manufactured goods that are then exported (known as virtual trade in water). Over 20% of daily water used for human purpose is exported out of watersheds in this way. Water is also piped across long distances for industry leaving behind parched landscapes.The second factor is the removal of the vegetation needed for a healthy hydrologic cycle. Urbanization, deforestation and wetland destruction greatly destroy water-retentive landscapes and lead to the loss of precipitation over the affected area.Slovakian scientist Michal Kravcik and his colleagues explain that the living world influences the climate mainly by regulating the water cycle and the huge energy flows linked to it. Transpiring plants, especially forests, work as a kind of biotic pump, causing humid air to be sucked out of the ocean and transferred to dry land. If the vegetation is removed from the land, this natural system of biosphere regulation is interrupted. Soil erodes, reducing the content of organic material in the ground, thus reducing its ability to hold water. Dry soil from lost vegetation traps solar heat, sharply increasing the local temperature and causing a reduction in precipitation over the affected area. This process also destroys the natural sequestration of carbon in the soil, leading to carbon loss.Of course, these two factors are deeply related. Just as removing vegetation from an ecosystem will dry up the soil, so too will removing water from an ecosystem mean reduced or non-existent vegetation.Taken together, these two factors are hastening the desertification of the planet, and intensifying global warming. Even if we successfully address and reverse greenhouse gas emissions and our dependence on fossil fuels, Kravcik says, we will not be able to stop climate change if we do not deal with the impact of our abuse of water on the planet.Unless we collectively address the crisis of fresh water and our cavalier treatment of the world's water systems, we will not restore the climate to health.Restoration of WatershedsThe solution to the water half of this crisis is the massive restoration of watersheds. Bring water back into parched landscapes. Return water that has disappeared by retaining as much rainwater as possible within the ecosystem so that water can permeate the soil, replenish groundwater systems, and return to the atmosphere to regulate temperatures and renew the hydrologic cycle. All human, industrial and agricultural activity must become part of this project, which could employ millions and alleviate poverty in the global South. Our cities must be ringed with green conservation zones and we must restore forests and wetlands - the lungs and kidneys of fresh water. For this to be successful, three basic laws of nature must be addressed.1. It is necessary to create the conditions that allow rainwater to remain in local watersheds. This means restoring the natural spaces where rainwater can fall and where water can flow. Water retention can be carried out at all levels: roof gardens in family homes and office buildings; urban planning that allows rain and storm water to be captured and returned to the earth; water harvesting in food production; capturing daily water discharge and returning it clean to the land, not to the rising oceans.2. We cannot continue to mine groundwater supplies at a rate greater than natural recharge. If we do, there will not be enough water for the next generation. Governments everywhere must undertake intensive research into their groundwater supplies and regulate groundwater takings before these underground reservoirs are gone. This may mean a shift in policy from export to domestic and local production.3. We must stop polluting our surface and groundwater sources - and we must back up this intention with strict legislation. Water abuse in oil and methane gas production and in mining must stop. We must wean ourselves of industrial and chemical-based agricultural practices and listen to the many voices sounding the alarm about the rush toward water-guzzling bio fuel farming. We need to promote \"subsidiarity,\" whereby national policies and international trade rules support local food production in order to protect the environment and promote local sustainable agriculture. Such policies also discourage the virtual trade in water. Countries should also limit or ban the mass movement of water by pipeline. Government investment in water and wastewater infrastructure would save huge volumes of water lost every day. Local laws could enforce water-harvesting practices at every level.Toward a Water Secure WorldClearly, for this rescue plan to be successful, governments around the world must acknowledge the water crisis and the part the role water abuse plays in the warming (and drying) of the planet. This in turn means that a nation's water resources must be considered in every government policy at all levels. Nations must undertake intensive studies to ascertain the health of watersheds and groundwater reserves. All activities that will impact water must conform to a new ethic - backed by law - that protects water sources from pollution and over-pumping. This will likely mean a strong challenge to government policies that favour unlimited global economic growth.Nearly two billion people live in water-stressed regions of the earth. Until now, the UN has addressed this terrible reality with a program to give them access to groundwater sources. But current levels of groundwater takings are unsustainable. To truly realize the universal right to water, and to protect water for nature's own uses, means a revolution in the way we treat the world's finite water resources. There is no time to lose.\nQuestion: What human activity contributes to climate change?\nAnswer:", " the indiscriminate cutting of trees"], ["To curb climate change, we need to protect waterAn international rescue plan for fresh waterIt is widely acknowledged that greenhouse gas emission-fueled climate change is having a profound and negative impact on fresh water systems around the world. Warmer weather causes more rapid evaporation of lakes and rivers, reduced snow and ice cover on open water systems, and melting glaciers.What is less understood is that our collective abuse and displacement of fresh water is also a serious cause of climate change and global warming. If we are to successfully address climate change, it is time to include an analysis of how our abuse of water is an additional factor in the creation of global warming as well as solutions that protect water and watersheds.There are two major factors. The first is the actual displacement of water from where it is sustaining a healthy ecosystem as well as healthy hydrologic cycles. Because humanity has polluted so much surface water on the planet, we are now mining the groundwater far faster than it can be replaced by nature. New Scientist reports of a \"little-heralded crisis\" all over Asia as a result of the exponential drilling of groundwater. Water is moved from where nature has put it in watershed and aquifers (where we can access it) to other place where it is used for flood irrigation and food production - where much of it lost to evaporation - or to supply the voracious thirst of mega cities, where it is usually dumped as waste into the ocean.Water is also lost to ecosystems through global trade - water used in the in the production of crops or manufactured goods that are then exported (known as virtual trade in water). Over 20% of daily water used for human purpose is exported out of watersheds in this way. Water is also piped across long distances for industry leaving behind parched landscapes.The second factor is the removal of the vegetation needed for a healthy hydrologic cycle. Urbanization, deforestation and wetland destruction greatly destroy water-retentive landscapes and lead to the loss of precipitation over the affected area.Slovakian scientist Michal Kravcik and his colleagues explain that the living world influences the climate mainly by regulating the water cycle and the huge energy flows linked to it. Transpiring plants, especially forests, work as a kind of biotic pump, causing humid air to be sucked out of the ocean and transferred to dry land. If the vegetation is removed from the land, this natural system of biosphere regulation is interrupted. Soil erodes, reducing the content of organic material in the ground, thus reducing its ability to hold water. Dry soil from lost vegetation traps solar heat, sharply increasing the local temperature and causing a reduction in precipitation over the affected area. This process also destroys the natural sequestration of carbon in the soil, leading to carbon loss.Of course, these two factors are deeply related. Just as removing vegetation from an ecosystem will dry up the soil, so too will removing water from an ecosystem mean reduced or non-existent vegetation.Taken together, these two factors are hastening the desertification of the planet, and intensifying global warming. Even if we successfully address and reverse greenhouse gas emissions and our dependence on fossil fuels, Kravcik says, we will not be able to stop climate change if we do not deal with the impact of our abuse of water on the planet.Unless we collectively address the crisis of fresh water and our cavalier treatment of the world's water systems, we will not restore the climate to health.Restoration of WatershedsThe solution to the water half of this crisis is the massive restoration of watersheds. Bring water back into parched landscapes. Return water that has disappeared by retaining as much rainwater as possible within the ecosystem so that water can permeate the soil, replenish groundwater systems, and return to the atmosphere to regulate temperatures and renew the hydrologic cycle. All human, industrial and agricultural activity must become part of this project, which could employ millions and alleviate poverty in the global South. Our cities must be ringed with green conservation zones and we must restore forests and wetlands - the lungs and kidneys of fresh water. For this to be successful, three basic laws of nature must be addressed.1. It is necessary to create the conditions that allow rainwater to remain in local watersheds. This means restoring the natural spaces where rainwater can fall and where water can flow. Water retention can be carried out at all levels: roof gardens in family homes and office buildings; urban planning that allows rain and storm water to be captured and returned to the earth; water harvesting in food production; capturing daily water discharge and returning it clean to the land, not to the rising oceans.2. We cannot continue to mine groundwater supplies at a rate greater than natural recharge. If we do, there will not be enough water for the next generation. Governments everywhere must undertake intensive research into their groundwater supplies and regulate groundwater takings before these underground reservoirs are gone. This may mean a shift in policy from export to domestic and local production.3. We must stop polluting our surface and groundwater sources - and we must back up this intention with strict legislation. Water abuse in oil and methane gas production and in mining must stop. We must wean ourselves of industrial and chemical-based agricultural practices and listen to the many voices sounding the alarm about the rush toward water-guzzling bio fuel farming. We need to promote \"subsidiarity,\" whereby national policies and international trade rules support local food production in order to protect the environment and promote local sustainable agriculture. Such policies also discourage the virtual trade in water. Countries should also limit or ban the mass movement of water by pipeline. Government investment in water and wastewater infrastructure would save huge volumes of water lost every day. Local laws could enforce water-harvesting practices at every level.Toward a Water Secure WorldClearly, for this rescue plan to be successful, governments around the world must acknowledge the water crisis and the part the role water abuse plays in the warming (and drying) of the planet. This in turn means that a nation's water resources must be considered in every government policy at all levels. Nations must undertake intensive studies to ascertain the health of watersheds and groundwater reserves. All activities that will impact water must conform to a new ethic - backed by law - that protects water sources from pollution and over-pumping. This will likely mean a strong challenge to government policies that favour unlimited global economic growth.Nearly two billion people live in water-stressed regions of the earth. Until now, the UN has addressed this terrible reality with a program to give them access to groundwater sources. But current levels of groundwater takings are unsustainable. To truly realize the universal right to water, and to protect water for nature's own uses, means a revolution in the way we treat the world's finite water resources. There is no time to lose.\nQuestion: What human activity contributes to climate change?\nAnswer:", " excessive use of water"], ["To curb climate change, we need to protect waterAn international rescue plan for fresh waterIt is widely acknowledged that greenhouse gas emission-fueled climate change is having a profound and negative impact on fresh water systems around the world. Warmer weather causes more rapid evaporation of lakes and rivers, reduced snow and ice cover on open water systems, and melting glaciers.What is less understood is that our collective abuse and displacement of fresh water is also a serious cause of climate change and global warming. If we are to successfully address climate change, it is time to include an analysis of how our abuse of water is an additional factor in the creation of global warming as well as solutions that protect water and watersheds.There are two major factors. The first is the actual displacement of water from where it is sustaining a healthy ecosystem as well as healthy hydrologic cycles. Because humanity has polluted so much surface water on the planet, we are now mining the groundwater far faster than it can be replaced by nature. New Scientist reports of a \"little-heralded crisis\" all over Asia as a result of the exponential drilling of groundwater. Water is moved from where nature has put it in watershed and aquifers (where we can access it) to other place where it is used for flood irrigation and food production - where much of it lost to evaporation - or to supply the voracious thirst of mega cities, where it is usually dumped as waste into the ocean.Water is also lost to ecosystems through global trade - water used in the in the production of crops or manufactured goods that are then exported (known as virtual trade in water). Over 20% of daily water used for human purpose is exported out of watersheds in this way. Water is also piped across long distances for industry leaving behind parched landscapes.The second factor is the removal of the vegetation needed for a healthy hydrologic cycle. Urbanization, deforestation and wetland destruction greatly destroy water-retentive landscapes and lead to the loss of precipitation over the affected area.Slovakian scientist Michal Kravcik and his colleagues explain that the living world influences the climate mainly by regulating the water cycle and the huge energy flows linked to it. Transpiring plants, especially forests, work as a kind of biotic pump, causing humid air to be sucked out of the ocean and transferred to dry land. If the vegetation is removed from the land, this natural system of biosphere regulation is interrupted. Soil erodes, reducing the content of organic material in the ground, thus reducing its ability to hold water. Dry soil from lost vegetation traps solar heat, sharply increasing the local temperature and causing a reduction in precipitation over the affected area. This process also destroys the natural sequestration of carbon in the soil, leading to carbon loss.Of course, these two factors are deeply related. Just as removing vegetation from an ecosystem will dry up the soil, so too will removing water from an ecosystem mean reduced or non-existent vegetation.Taken together, these two factors are hastening the desertification of the planet, and intensifying global warming. Even if we successfully address and reverse greenhouse gas emissions and our dependence on fossil fuels, Kravcik says, we will not be able to stop climate change if we do not deal with the impact of our abuse of water on the planet.Unless we collectively address the crisis of fresh water and our cavalier treatment of the world's water systems, we will not restore the climate to health.Restoration of WatershedsThe solution to the water half of this crisis is the massive restoration of watersheds. Bring water back into parched landscapes. Return water that has disappeared by retaining as much rainwater as possible within the ecosystem so that water can permeate the soil, replenish groundwater systems, and return to the atmosphere to regulate temperatures and renew the hydrologic cycle. All human, industrial and agricultural activity must become part of this project, which could employ millions and alleviate poverty in the global South. Our cities must be ringed with green conservation zones and we must restore forests and wetlands - the lungs and kidneys of fresh water. For this to be successful, three basic laws of nature must be addressed.1. It is necessary to create the conditions that allow rainwater to remain in local watersheds. This means restoring the natural spaces where rainwater can fall and where water can flow. Water retention can be carried out at all levels: roof gardens in family homes and office buildings; urban planning that allows rain and storm water to be captured and returned to the earth; water harvesting in food production; capturing daily water discharge and returning it clean to the land, not to the rising oceans.2. We cannot continue to mine groundwater supplies at a rate greater than natural recharge. If we do, there will not be enough water for the next generation. Governments everywhere must undertake intensive research into their groundwater supplies and regulate groundwater takings before these underground reservoirs are gone. This may mean a shift in policy from export to domestic and local production.3. We must stop polluting our surface and groundwater sources - and we must back up this intention with strict legislation. Water abuse in oil and methane gas production and in mining must stop. We must wean ourselves of industrial and chemical-based agricultural practices and listen to the many voices sounding the alarm about the rush toward water-guzzling bio fuel farming. We need to promote \"subsidiarity,\" whereby national policies and international trade rules support local food production in order to protect the environment and promote local sustainable agriculture. Such policies also discourage the virtual trade in water. Countries should also limit or ban the mass movement of water by pipeline. Government investment in water and wastewater infrastructure would save huge volumes of water lost every day. Local laws could enforce water-harvesting practices at every level.Toward a Water Secure WorldClearly, for this rescue plan to be successful, governments around the world must acknowledge the water crisis and the part the role water abuse plays in the warming (and drying) of the planet. This in turn means that a nation's water resources must be considered in every government policy at all levels. Nations must undertake intensive studies to ascertain the health of watersheds and groundwater reserves. All activities that will impact water must conform to a new ethic - backed by law - that protects water sources from pollution and over-pumping. This will likely mean a strong challenge to government policies that favour unlimited global economic growth.Nearly two billion people live in water-stressed regions of the earth. Until now, the UN has addressed this terrible reality with a program to give them access to groundwater sources. But current levels of groundwater takings are unsustainable. To truly realize the universal right to water, and to protect water for nature's own uses, means a revolution in the way we treat the world's finite water resources. There is no time to lose.\nQuestion: What human activity contributes to climate change?\nAnswer:", " restoration of groundwater"], ["To curb climate change, we need to protect waterAn international rescue plan for fresh waterIt is widely acknowledged that greenhouse gas emission-fueled climate change is having a profound and negative impact on fresh water systems around the world. Warmer weather causes more rapid evaporation of lakes and rivers, reduced snow and ice cover on open water systems, and melting glaciers.What is less understood is that our collective abuse and displacement of fresh water is also a serious cause of climate change and global warming. If we are to successfully address climate change, it is time to include an analysis of how our abuse of water is an additional factor in the creation of global warming as well as solutions that protect water and watersheds.There are two major factors. The first is the actual displacement of water from where it is sustaining a healthy ecosystem as well as healthy hydrologic cycles. Because humanity has polluted so much surface water on the planet, we are now mining the groundwater far faster than it can be replaced by nature. New Scientist reports of a \"little-heralded crisis\" all over Asia as a result of the exponential drilling of groundwater. Water is moved from where nature has put it in watershed and aquifers (where we can access it) to other place where it is used for flood irrigation and food production - where much of it lost to evaporation - or to supply the voracious thirst of mega cities, where it is usually dumped as waste into the ocean.Water is also lost to ecosystems through global trade - water used in the in the production of crops or manufactured goods that are then exported (known as virtual trade in water). Over 20% of daily water used for human purpose is exported out of watersheds in this way. Water is also piped across long distances for industry leaving behind parched landscapes.The second factor is the removal of the vegetation needed for a healthy hydrologic cycle. Urbanization, deforestation and wetland destruction greatly destroy water-retentive landscapes and lead to the loss of precipitation over the affected area.Slovakian scientist Michal Kravcik and his colleagues explain that the living world influences the climate mainly by regulating the water cycle and the huge energy flows linked to it. Transpiring plants, especially forests, work as a kind of biotic pump, causing humid air to be sucked out of the ocean and transferred to dry land. If the vegetation is removed from the land, this natural system of biosphere regulation is interrupted. Soil erodes, reducing the content of organic material in the ground, thus reducing its ability to hold water. Dry soil from lost vegetation traps solar heat, sharply increasing the local temperature and causing a reduction in precipitation over the affected area. This process also destroys the natural sequestration of carbon in the soil, leading to carbon loss.Of course, these two factors are deeply related. Just as removing vegetation from an ecosystem will dry up the soil, so too will removing water from an ecosystem mean reduced or non-existent vegetation.Taken together, these two factors are hastening the desertification of the planet, and intensifying global warming. Even if we successfully address and reverse greenhouse gas emissions and our dependence on fossil fuels, Kravcik says, we will not be able to stop climate change if we do not deal with the impact of our abuse of water on the planet.Unless we collectively address the crisis of fresh water and our cavalier treatment of the world's water systems, we will not restore the climate to health.Restoration of WatershedsThe solution to the water half of this crisis is the massive restoration of watersheds. Bring water back into parched landscapes. Return water that has disappeared by retaining as much rainwater as possible within the ecosystem so that water can permeate the soil, replenish groundwater systems, and return to the atmosphere to regulate temperatures and renew the hydrologic cycle. All human, industrial and agricultural activity must become part of this project, which could employ millions and alleviate poverty in the global South. Our cities must be ringed with green conservation zones and we must restore forests and wetlands - the lungs and kidneys of fresh water. For this to be successful, three basic laws of nature must be addressed.1. It is necessary to create the conditions that allow rainwater to remain in local watersheds. This means restoring the natural spaces where rainwater can fall and where water can flow. Water retention can be carried out at all levels: roof gardens in family homes and office buildings; urban planning that allows rain and storm water to be captured and returned to the earth; water harvesting in food production; capturing daily water discharge and returning it clean to the land, not to the rising oceans.2. We cannot continue to mine groundwater supplies at a rate greater than natural recharge. If we do, there will not be enough water for the next generation. Governments everywhere must undertake intensive research into their groundwater supplies and regulate groundwater takings before these underground reservoirs are gone. This may mean a shift in policy from export to domestic and local production.3. We must stop polluting our surface and groundwater sources - and we must back up this intention with strict legislation. Water abuse in oil and methane gas production and in mining must stop. We must wean ourselves of industrial and chemical-based agricultural practices and listen to the many voices sounding the alarm about the rush toward water-guzzling bio fuel farming. We need to promote \"subsidiarity,\" whereby national policies and international trade rules support local food production in order to protect the environment and promote local sustainable agriculture. Such policies also discourage the virtual trade in water. Countries should also limit or ban the mass movement of water by pipeline. Government investment in water and wastewater infrastructure would save huge volumes of water lost every day. Local laws could enforce water-harvesting practices at every level.Toward a Water Secure WorldClearly, for this rescue plan to be successful, governments around the world must acknowledge the water crisis and the part the role water abuse plays in the warming (and drying) of the planet. This in turn means that a nation's water resources must be considered in every government policy at all levels. Nations must undertake intensive studies to ascertain the health of watersheds and groundwater reserves. All activities that will impact water must conform to a new ethic - backed by law - that protects water sources from pollution and over-pumping. This will likely mean a strong challenge to government policies that favour unlimited global economic growth.Nearly two billion people live in water-stressed regions of the earth. Until now, the UN has addressed this terrible reality with a program to give them access to groundwater sources. But current levels of groundwater takings are unsustainable. To truly realize the universal right to water, and to protect water for nature's own uses, means a revolution in the way we treat the world's finite water resources. There is no time to lose.\nQuestion: What human activity contributes to climate change?\nAnswer:", " food trading"], ["To curb climate change, we need to protect waterAn international rescue plan for fresh waterIt is widely acknowledged that greenhouse gas emission-fueled climate change is having a profound and negative impact on fresh water systems around the world. Warmer weather causes more rapid evaporation of lakes and rivers, reduced snow and ice cover on open water systems, and melting glaciers.What is less understood is that our collective abuse and displacement of fresh water is also a serious cause of climate change and global warming. If we are to successfully address climate change, it is time to include an analysis of how our abuse of water is an additional factor in the creation of global warming as well as solutions that protect water and watersheds.There are two major factors. The first is the actual displacement of water from where it is sustaining a healthy ecosystem as well as healthy hydrologic cycles. Because humanity has polluted so much surface water on the planet, we are now mining the groundwater far faster than it can be replaced by nature. New Scientist reports of a \"little-heralded crisis\" all over Asia as a result of the exponential drilling of groundwater. Water is moved from where nature has put it in watershed and aquifers (where we can access it) to other place where it is used for flood irrigation and food production - where much of it lost to evaporation - or to supply the voracious thirst of mega cities, where it is usually dumped as waste into the ocean.Water is also lost to ecosystems through global trade - water used in the in the production of crops or manufactured goods that are then exported (known as virtual trade in water). Over 20% of daily water used for human purpose is exported out of watersheds in this way. Water is also piped across long distances for industry leaving behind parched landscapes.The second factor is the removal of the vegetation needed for a healthy hydrologic cycle. Urbanization, deforestation and wetland destruction greatly destroy water-retentive landscapes and lead to the loss of precipitation over the affected area.Slovakian scientist Michal Kravcik and his colleagues explain that the living world influences the climate mainly by regulating the water cycle and the huge energy flows linked to it. Transpiring plants, especially forests, work as a kind of biotic pump, causing humid air to be sucked out of the ocean and transferred to dry land. If the vegetation is removed from the land, this natural system of biosphere regulation is interrupted. Soil erodes, reducing the content of organic material in the ground, thus reducing its ability to hold water. Dry soil from lost vegetation traps solar heat, sharply increasing the local temperature and causing a reduction in precipitation over the affected area. This process also destroys the natural sequestration of carbon in the soil, leading to carbon loss.Of course, these two factors are deeply related. Just as removing vegetation from an ecosystem will dry up the soil, so too will removing water from an ecosystem mean reduced or non-existent vegetation.Taken together, these two factors are hastening the desertification of the planet, and intensifying global warming. Even if we successfully address and reverse greenhouse gas emissions and our dependence on fossil fuels, Kravcik says, we will not be able to stop climate change if we do not deal with the impact of our abuse of water on the planet.Unless we collectively address the crisis of fresh water and our cavalier treatment of the world's water systems, we will not restore the climate to health.Restoration of WatershedsThe solution to the water half of this crisis is the massive restoration of watersheds. Bring water back into parched landscapes. Return water that has disappeared by retaining as much rainwater as possible within the ecosystem so that water can permeate the soil, replenish groundwater systems, and return to the atmosphere to regulate temperatures and renew the hydrologic cycle. All human, industrial and agricultural activity must become part of this project, which could employ millions and alleviate poverty in the global South. Our cities must be ringed with green conservation zones and we must restore forests and wetlands - the lungs and kidneys of fresh water. For this to be successful, three basic laws of nature must be addressed.1. It is necessary to create the conditions that allow rainwater to remain in local watersheds. This means restoring the natural spaces where rainwater can fall and where water can flow. Water retention can be carried out at all levels: roof gardens in family homes and office buildings; urban planning that allows rain and storm water to be captured and returned to the earth; water harvesting in food production; capturing daily water discharge and returning it clean to the land, not to the rising oceans.2. We cannot continue to mine groundwater supplies at a rate greater than natural recharge. If we do, there will not be enough water for the next generation. Governments everywhere must undertake intensive research into their groundwater supplies and regulate groundwater takings before these underground reservoirs are gone. This may mean a shift in policy from export to domestic and local production.3. We must stop polluting our surface and groundwater sources - and we must back up this intention with strict legislation. Water abuse in oil and methane gas production and in mining must stop. We must wean ourselves of industrial and chemical-based agricultural practices and listen to the many voices sounding the alarm about the rush toward water-guzzling bio fuel farming. We need to promote \"subsidiarity,\" whereby national policies and international trade rules support local food production in order to protect the environment and promote local sustainable agriculture. Such policies also discourage the virtual trade in water. Countries should also limit or ban the mass movement of water by pipeline. Government investment in water and wastewater infrastructure would save huge volumes of water lost every day. Local laws could enforce water-harvesting practices at every level.Toward a Water Secure WorldClearly, for this rescue plan to be successful, governments around the world must acknowledge the water crisis and the part the role water abuse plays in the warming (and drying) of the planet. This in turn means that a nation's water resources must be considered in every government policy at all levels. Nations must undertake intensive studies to ascertain the health of watersheds and groundwater reserves. All activities that will impact water must conform to a new ethic - backed by law - that protects water sources from pollution and over-pumping. This will likely mean a strong challenge to government policies that favour unlimited global economic growth.Nearly two billion people live in water-stressed regions of the earth. Until now, the UN has addressed this terrible reality with a program to give them access to groundwater sources. But current levels of groundwater takings are unsustainable. To truly realize the universal right to water, and to protect water for nature's own uses, means a revolution in the way we treat the world's finite water resources. There is no time to lose.\nQuestion: What human activity contributes to climate change?\nAnswer:", " the regulation of the water cycle"], ["Charles BurneyCharles Burney (1726-1814), an English musical historian, was born at Shrewsbury on the 12th of April 1726. He received his earlier education at the free school of that city, and was afterwards sent to the public school at Chester. His first music master was Edmund Baker, organist of Chester cathedral, and a pupil of Dr John Blow. Returning to Shrewsbury when about fifteen years old, he continued his musical studies for three years under his half-brother, James Burney, organist of St Mary's church, and was then sent to London as a pupil of the celebrated Dr Arne, with whom he remained three years. Burney wrote some music for Thomson's Alfred, which was produced at Drury Lane theatre on the 30th of March 1745. In 1749 he was appointed organist of St Dionis-Backchurch, Fenchurch Street, with a salary of \u00a330 a year; and he was also engaged to take the harpsichord in the \"New Concerts\" then recently established at the King's Arms, Cornhill. In that year he married Miss Esther Sleepe, who died in 1761; in 1769 he married Mrs Stephen Allen of Lynn. Being threatened with a pulmonary affection he went in 1751 to Lynn in Norfolk, where he was elected organist, with an annual salary of \u00a3loo, and there he resided for the next nine years. During that time he began to entertain the idea of writing a general history of music. His Ode for St Cecilia's Day was performed at Ranelagh Gardens in 1759; and in 1760 he returned to London in good health and with a young family; the eldest child, a girl of eight years of age, surprised the public by her attainments as a harpsichord player. The concertos for the harpsichord which Burney published soon after his return to London were regarded with much admiration. In 1766 he produced, at Drury Lane, a free English version and adaptation of J. J. Rousseau's operetta Le Devin du village, under the title of The Cunning Man. The university of Oxford conferred upon him, on the 23rd of June 1769, the degrees of Bachelor and Doctor of Music, on which occasion he presided at the performance of his exercise for these degrees. This consisted of an anthem, with an overture, solos, recitatives and choruses, accompanied by instruments, besides a vocal anthem in eight parts, which was not performed. In 1769 he published An Essay towards a History of Comets. Amidst his various professional avocations, Burney never lost sight of his favourite object - his History of Music - and therefore resolved to travel abroad for the purpose of collecting materials that could not be found in Great Britain. Accordingly, he left London in June 1770, furnished with numerous letters of introduction, and proceeded to Paris, and thence to Geneva, Turin, Milan, Padua, Venice, Bologna, Florence, Rome and Naples. The results of his observations he published in The Present State of Music in France and Italy (1771). Dr Johnson thought so well of this work that, alluding to his own Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland, he said, \"I had that clever dog Burney's Musical Tour in my eye.\" In July 1772 Burney again visited the continent, to collect further materials, and, after his return to London, published his tour under the title of The Present State of Music in Germany, the Netherlands and United Provinces (1773). In 1773 he was chosen a fellow of the Royal Society. In 1776 appeared the first volume (in 4to) of his longprojected History of Music. In 1782 Burney published his second volume; and in 1789 the third and fourth. Though severely criticized by Forkel in Germany and by the Spanish ex-Jesuit, Requeno, who, in his Italian work Saggj sul Ristabilimento dell' Arte Armonica de' Greci e Romani Cantori (Parma, 1798), attacks Burney's account of the ancient Greek music, and calls him to scompigliato Burney, the History of Music was generally recognized as possessing great merit. The least satisfactory volume is the fourth, the treatment of Handel and Bach being quite inadequate. Burney's first tour was translated into German by Ebeling, and printed at Hamburg in 1772; and his second tour, translated into German by Bode, was published at Hamburg in 1773. A Dutch translation of his second tour, with notes by J. W. Lustig, organist at Groningen, was published there in 1786. The Dissertation on the Music of the Ancients, in the first volume of Burney's History, was translated into German by J. J. Eschenburg, and printed at Leipzig, 1781. Burney derived much aid from the first two volumes of Padre Martini's very learned Storia della Musica (Bologna, 1 757-177 0). One cannot but admire his persevering industry, and his sacrifices of time, money and personal comfort, in collecting and preparing materials for his History, and few will be disposed to condemn severely errors and oversights in a work of such extent and difficulty. In 1774 he had written A Plan for a Music School. In 1779 he wrote for the Royal Society an account of the infant Crotch, whose remarkable musical talent excited so much attention at that time. In 1784 he published, with an Italian title-page, the music annually performed in the pope's chapel at Rome during Passion Week. In 1785 he published, for the benefit of the Musical Fund, an account of the first commemoration of Handel in Westminster Abbey in the preceding year, with an excellent life of Handel. In 1796 he published Memoirs and Letters of Metastasio. Towards the close of his life Burney was paid 1000 for contributing to Rees's Cyclopaedia all the musical articles not belonging to the department of natural philosophy and mathematics. In 1783, through the treasury influence of his friend Edmund Burke, he was appointed organist to the chapel of Chelsea Hospital, and he moved his residence from St Martin's Street, Leicester Square, to live in the hospital for the remainder of his life. He was made a member of the Institute of France, and nominated a correspondent in the class of the fine arts, in the year 1810. From 1806 until his death he enjoyed a pension of X300 granted by Fox. He died at Chelsea College on the 12th of April 1814, and was interred in the burying-ground of the college. A tablet was erected to his memory in Westminster Abbey. Burney's portrait was painted by Reynolds, and his bust was cut by Nollekens in 1805. He had a wide circle of acquaintance among the distinguished artists and literary men of his day. At one time he thought of writing a life of his friend Dr Samuel Johnson, but he retired before the crowd of biographers who rushed into that field. His character in private as well as in public life appears to have been very amiable and exemplary. Dr Burney's eldest son, James, was a distinguished officer in the royal navy, who died a rear-admiral in 1821; his second son was the Rev. Charles Burney, D.D. (1757-1817), a well-known classical scholar, whose splendid collection of rare books and MSS was ultimately bought by the nation for the British Museum; and his second daughter was Frances (Madame D'Arblay). The Diary and Letters of Madame D'Arblay contain many minute and interesting particulars of her father's public and private life, and of his friends and contemporaries. A life of Burney by Madame D'Arblay appeared in 1832. Besides the operatic music above mentioned, Burney's known compositions consist of: - (i) Six Sonatas for the harpsichord; (2) Two Sonatas for the harp or piano, with accompaniments for violin and violoncello; (3) Sonatas for two violins and a bass: two sets; (4) Six Lessons for the harpsichord; (5) Six Duets for two German flutes; (6) Three Concertos for the harpsichord; (7) Six concert pieces with an introduction and fugue for the organ; (8) Six Concertos for the violin, etc., in eight parts; (9) Two Sonatas for pianoforte, violin and violoncello; (To) A Cantata, etc.; (ii) Anthems, etc.; (12) XII. Canzonetti a due voci in Canone, poesia dell' Abate Metastasio.\nQuestion: Why was the fourth volume of the History of Music not satisfactory?\nAnswer:", " German music was not covered at all"], ["Charles BurneyCharles Burney (1726-1814), an English musical historian, was born at Shrewsbury on the 12th of April 1726. He received his earlier education at the free school of that city, and was afterwards sent to the public school at Chester. His first music master was Edmund Baker, organist of Chester cathedral, and a pupil of Dr John Blow. Returning to Shrewsbury when about fifteen years old, he continued his musical studies for three years under his half-brother, James Burney, organist of St Mary's church, and was then sent to London as a pupil of the celebrated Dr Arne, with whom he remained three years. Burney wrote some music for Thomson's Alfred, which was produced at Drury Lane theatre on the 30th of March 1745. In 1749 he was appointed organist of St Dionis-Backchurch, Fenchurch Street, with a salary of \u00a330 a year; and he was also engaged to take the harpsichord in the \"New Concerts\" then recently established at the King's Arms, Cornhill. In that year he married Miss Esther Sleepe, who died in 1761; in 1769 he married Mrs Stephen Allen of Lynn. Being threatened with a pulmonary affection he went in 1751 to Lynn in Norfolk, where he was elected organist, with an annual salary of \u00a3loo, and there he resided for the next nine years. During that time he began to entertain the idea of writing a general history of music. His Ode for St Cecilia's Day was performed at Ranelagh Gardens in 1759; and in 1760 he returned to London in good health and with a young family; the eldest child, a girl of eight years of age, surprised the public by her attainments as a harpsichord player. The concertos for the harpsichord which Burney published soon after his return to London were regarded with much admiration. In 1766 he produced, at Drury Lane, a free English version and adaptation of J. J. Rousseau's operetta Le Devin du village, under the title of The Cunning Man. The university of Oxford conferred upon him, on the 23rd of June 1769, the degrees of Bachelor and Doctor of Music, on which occasion he presided at the performance of his exercise for these degrees. This consisted of an anthem, with an overture, solos, recitatives and choruses, accompanied by instruments, besides a vocal anthem in eight parts, which was not performed. In 1769 he published An Essay towards a History of Comets. Amidst his various professional avocations, Burney never lost sight of his favourite object - his History of Music - and therefore resolved to travel abroad for the purpose of collecting materials that could not be found in Great Britain. Accordingly, he left London in June 1770, furnished with numerous letters of introduction, and proceeded to Paris, and thence to Geneva, Turin, Milan, Padua, Venice, Bologna, Florence, Rome and Naples. The results of his observations he published in The Present State of Music in France and Italy (1771). Dr Johnson thought so well of this work that, alluding to his own Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland, he said, \"I had that clever dog Burney's Musical Tour in my eye.\" In July 1772 Burney again visited the continent, to collect further materials, and, after his return to London, published his tour under the title of The Present State of Music in Germany, the Netherlands and United Provinces (1773). In 1773 he was chosen a fellow of the Royal Society. In 1776 appeared the first volume (in 4to) of his longprojected History of Music. In 1782 Burney published his second volume; and in 1789 the third and fourth. Though severely criticized by Forkel in Germany and by the Spanish ex-Jesuit, Requeno, who, in his Italian work Saggj sul Ristabilimento dell' Arte Armonica de' Greci e Romani Cantori (Parma, 1798), attacks Burney's account of the ancient Greek music, and calls him to scompigliato Burney, the History of Music was generally recognized as possessing great merit. The least satisfactory volume is the fourth, the treatment of Handel and Bach being quite inadequate. Burney's first tour was translated into German by Ebeling, and printed at Hamburg in 1772; and his second tour, translated into German by Bode, was published at Hamburg in 1773. A Dutch translation of his second tour, with notes by J. W. Lustig, organist at Groningen, was published there in 1786. The Dissertation on the Music of the Ancients, in the first volume of Burney's History, was translated into German by J. J. Eschenburg, and printed at Leipzig, 1781. Burney derived much aid from the first two volumes of Padre Martini's very learned Storia della Musica (Bologna, 1 757-177 0). One cannot but admire his persevering industry, and his sacrifices of time, money and personal comfort, in collecting and preparing materials for his History, and few will be disposed to condemn severely errors and oversights in a work of such extent and difficulty. In 1774 he had written A Plan for a Music School. In 1779 he wrote for the Royal Society an account of the infant Crotch, whose remarkable musical talent excited so much attention at that time. In 1784 he published, with an Italian title-page, the music annually performed in the pope's chapel at Rome during Passion Week. In 1785 he published, for the benefit of the Musical Fund, an account of the first commemoration of Handel in Westminster Abbey in the preceding year, with an excellent life of Handel. In 1796 he published Memoirs and Letters of Metastasio. Towards the close of his life Burney was paid 1000 for contributing to Rees's Cyclopaedia all the musical articles not belonging to the department of natural philosophy and mathematics. In 1783, through the treasury influence of his friend Edmund Burke, he was appointed organist to the chapel of Chelsea Hospital, and he moved his residence from St Martin's Street, Leicester Square, to live in the hospital for the remainder of his life. He was made a member of the Institute of France, and nominated a correspondent in the class of the fine arts, in the year 1810. From 1806 until his death he enjoyed a pension of X300 granted by Fox. He died at Chelsea College on the 12th of April 1814, and was interred in the burying-ground of the college. A tablet was erected to his memory in Westminster Abbey. Burney's portrait was painted by Reynolds, and his bust was cut by Nollekens in 1805. He had a wide circle of acquaintance among the distinguished artists and literary men of his day. At one time he thought of writing a life of his friend Dr Samuel Johnson, but he retired before the crowd of biographers who rushed into that field. His character in private as well as in public life appears to have been very amiable and exemplary. Dr Burney's eldest son, James, was a distinguished officer in the royal navy, who died a rear-admiral in 1821; his second son was the Rev. Charles Burney, D.D. (1757-1817), a well-known classical scholar, whose splendid collection of rare books and MSS was ultimately bought by the nation for the British Museum; and his second daughter was Frances (Madame D'Arblay). The Diary and Letters of Madame D'Arblay contain many minute and interesting particulars of her father's public and private life, and of his friends and contemporaries. A life of Burney by Madame D'Arblay appeared in 1832. Besides the operatic music above mentioned, Burney's known compositions consist of: - (i) Six Sonatas for the harpsichord; (2) Two Sonatas for the harp or piano, with accompaniments for violin and violoncello; (3) Sonatas for two violins and a bass: two sets; (4) Six Lessons for the harpsichord; (5) Six Duets for two German flutes; (6) Three Concertos for the harpsichord; (7) Six concert pieces with an introduction and fugue for the organ; (8) Six Concertos for the violin, etc., in eight parts; (9) Two Sonatas for pianoforte, violin and violoncello; (To) A Cantata, etc.; (ii) Anthems, etc.; (12) XII. Canzonetti a due voci in Canone, poesia dell' Abate Metastasio.\nQuestion: Why was the fourth volume of the History of Music not satisfactory?\nAnswer:", " There was too much material on Handel and Bach"], ["Charles BurneyCharles Burney (1726-1814), an English musical historian, was born at Shrewsbury on the 12th of April 1726. He received his earlier education at the free school of that city, and was afterwards sent to the public school at Chester. His first music master was Edmund Baker, organist of Chester cathedral, and a pupil of Dr John Blow. Returning to Shrewsbury when about fifteen years old, he continued his musical studies for three years under his half-brother, James Burney, organist of St Mary's church, and was then sent to London as a pupil of the celebrated Dr Arne, with whom he remained three years. Burney wrote some music for Thomson's Alfred, which was produced at Drury Lane theatre on the 30th of March 1745. In 1749 he was appointed organist of St Dionis-Backchurch, Fenchurch Street, with a salary of \u00a330 a year; and he was also engaged to take the harpsichord in the \"New Concerts\" then recently established at the King's Arms, Cornhill. In that year he married Miss Esther Sleepe, who died in 1761; in 1769 he married Mrs Stephen Allen of Lynn. Being threatened with a pulmonary affection he went in 1751 to Lynn in Norfolk, where he was elected organist, with an annual salary of \u00a3loo, and there he resided for the next nine years. During that time he began to entertain the idea of writing a general history of music. His Ode for St Cecilia's Day was performed at Ranelagh Gardens in 1759; and in 1760 he returned to London in good health and with a young family; the eldest child, a girl of eight years of age, surprised the public by her attainments as a harpsichord player. The concertos for the harpsichord which Burney published soon after his return to London were regarded with much admiration. In 1766 he produced, at Drury Lane, a free English version and adaptation of J. J. Rousseau's operetta Le Devin du village, under the title of The Cunning Man. The university of Oxford conferred upon him, on the 23rd of June 1769, the degrees of Bachelor and Doctor of Music, on which occasion he presided at the performance of his exercise for these degrees. This consisted of an anthem, with an overture, solos, recitatives and choruses, accompanied by instruments, besides a vocal anthem in eight parts, which was not performed. In 1769 he published An Essay towards a History of Comets. Amidst his various professional avocations, Burney never lost sight of his favourite object - his History of Music - and therefore resolved to travel abroad for the purpose of collecting materials that could not be found in Great Britain. Accordingly, he left London in June 1770, furnished with numerous letters of introduction, and proceeded to Paris, and thence to Geneva, Turin, Milan, Padua, Venice, Bologna, Florence, Rome and Naples. The results of his observations he published in The Present State of Music in France and Italy (1771). Dr Johnson thought so well of this work that, alluding to his own Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland, he said, \"I had that clever dog Burney's Musical Tour in my eye.\" In July 1772 Burney again visited the continent, to collect further materials, and, after his return to London, published his tour under the title of The Present State of Music in Germany, the Netherlands and United Provinces (1773). In 1773 he was chosen a fellow of the Royal Society. In 1776 appeared the first volume (in 4to) of his longprojected History of Music. In 1782 Burney published his second volume; and in 1789 the third and fourth. Though severely criticized by Forkel in Germany and by the Spanish ex-Jesuit, Requeno, who, in his Italian work Saggj sul Ristabilimento dell' Arte Armonica de' Greci e Romani Cantori (Parma, 1798), attacks Burney's account of the ancient Greek music, and calls him to scompigliato Burney, the History of Music was generally recognized as possessing great merit. The least satisfactory volume is the fourth, the treatment of Handel and Bach being quite inadequate. Burney's first tour was translated into German by Ebeling, and printed at Hamburg in 1772; and his second tour, translated into German by Bode, was published at Hamburg in 1773. A Dutch translation of his second tour, with notes by J. W. Lustig, organist at Groningen, was published there in 1786. The Dissertation on the Music of the Ancients, in the first volume of Burney's History, was translated into German by J. J. Eschenburg, and printed at Leipzig, 1781. Burney derived much aid from the first two volumes of Padre Martini's very learned Storia della Musica (Bologna, 1 757-177 0). One cannot but admire his persevering industry, and his sacrifices of time, money and personal comfort, in collecting and preparing materials for his History, and few will be disposed to condemn severely errors and oversights in a work of such extent and difficulty. In 1774 he had written A Plan for a Music School. In 1779 he wrote for the Royal Society an account of the infant Crotch, whose remarkable musical talent excited so much attention at that time. In 1784 he published, with an Italian title-page, the music annually performed in the pope's chapel at Rome during Passion Week. In 1785 he published, for the benefit of the Musical Fund, an account of the first commemoration of Handel in Westminster Abbey in the preceding year, with an excellent life of Handel. In 1796 he published Memoirs and Letters of Metastasio. Towards the close of his life Burney was paid 1000 for contributing to Rees's Cyclopaedia all the musical articles not belonging to the department of natural philosophy and mathematics. In 1783, through the treasury influence of his friend Edmund Burke, he was appointed organist to the chapel of Chelsea Hospital, and he moved his residence from St Martin's Street, Leicester Square, to live in the hospital for the remainder of his life. He was made a member of the Institute of France, and nominated a correspondent in the class of the fine arts, in the year 1810. From 1806 until his death he enjoyed a pension of X300 granted by Fox. He died at Chelsea College on the 12th of April 1814, and was interred in the burying-ground of the college. A tablet was erected to his memory in Westminster Abbey. Burney's portrait was painted by Reynolds, and his bust was cut by Nollekens in 1805. He had a wide circle of acquaintance among the distinguished artists and literary men of his day. At one time he thought of writing a life of his friend Dr Samuel Johnson, but he retired before the crowd of biographers who rushed into that field. His character in private as well as in public life appears to have been very amiable and exemplary. Dr Burney's eldest son, James, was a distinguished officer in the royal navy, who died a rear-admiral in 1821; his second son was the Rev. Charles Burney, D.D. (1757-1817), a well-known classical scholar, whose splendid collection of rare books and MSS was ultimately bought by the nation for the British Museum; and his second daughter was Frances (Madame D'Arblay). The Diary and Letters of Madame D'Arblay contain many minute and interesting particulars of her father's public and private life, and of his friends and contemporaries. A life of Burney by Madame D'Arblay appeared in 1832. Besides the operatic music above mentioned, Burney's known compositions consist of: - (i) Six Sonatas for the harpsichord; (2) Two Sonatas for the harp or piano, with accompaniments for violin and violoncello; (3) Sonatas for two violins and a bass: two sets; (4) Six Lessons for the harpsichord; (5) Six Duets for two German flutes; (6) Three Concertos for the harpsichord; (7) Six concert pieces with an introduction and fugue for the organ; (8) Six Concertos for the violin, etc., in eight parts; (9) Two Sonatas for pianoforte, violin and violoncello; (To) A Cantata, etc.; (ii) Anthems, etc.; (12) XII. Canzonetti a due voci in Canone, poesia dell' Abate Metastasio.\nQuestion: Why was the fourth volume of the History of Music not satisfactory?\nAnswer:", " The material on Handel and Bach was not adequate"], ["Charles BurneyCharles Burney (1726-1814), an English musical historian, was born at Shrewsbury on the 12th of April 1726. He received his earlier education at the free school of that city, and was afterwards sent to the public school at Chester. His first music master was Edmund Baker, organist of Chester cathedral, and a pupil of Dr John Blow. Returning to Shrewsbury when about fifteen years old, he continued his musical studies for three years under his half-brother, James Burney, organist of St Mary's church, and was then sent to London as a pupil of the celebrated Dr Arne, with whom he remained three years. Burney wrote some music for Thomson's Alfred, which was produced at Drury Lane theatre on the 30th of March 1745. In 1749 he was appointed organist of St Dionis-Backchurch, Fenchurch Street, with a salary of \u00a330 a year; and he was also engaged to take the harpsichord in the \"New Concerts\" then recently established at the King's Arms, Cornhill. In that year he married Miss Esther Sleepe, who died in 1761; in 1769 he married Mrs Stephen Allen of Lynn. Being threatened with a pulmonary affection he went in 1751 to Lynn in Norfolk, where he was elected organist, with an annual salary of \u00a3loo, and there he resided for the next nine years. During that time he began to entertain the idea of writing a general history of music. His Ode for St Cecilia's Day was performed at Ranelagh Gardens in 1759; and in 1760 he returned to London in good health and with a young family; the eldest child, a girl of eight years of age, surprised the public by her attainments as a harpsichord player. The concertos for the harpsichord which Burney published soon after his return to London were regarded with much admiration. In 1766 he produced, at Drury Lane, a free English version and adaptation of J. J. Rousseau's operetta Le Devin du village, under the title of The Cunning Man. The university of Oxford conferred upon him, on the 23rd of June 1769, the degrees of Bachelor and Doctor of Music, on which occasion he presided at the performance of his exercise for these degrees. This consisted of an anthem, with an overture, solos, recitatives and choruses, accompanied by instruments, besides a vocal anthem in eight parts, which was not performed. In 1769 he published An Essay towards a History of Comets. Amidst his various professional avocations, Burney never lost sight of his favourite object - his History of Music - and therefore resolved to travel abroad for the purpose of collecting materials that could not be found in Great Britain. Accordingly, he left London in June 1770, furnished with numerous letters of introduction, and proceeded to Paris, and thence to Geneva, Turin, Milan, Padua, Venice, Bologna, Florence, Rome and Naples. The results of his observations he published in The Present State of Music in France and Italy (1771). Dr Johnson thought so well of this work that, alluding to his own Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland, he said, \"I had that clever dog Burney's Musical Tour in my eye.\" In July 1772 Burney again visited the continent, to collect further materials, and, after his return to London, published his tour under the title of The Present State of Music in Germany, the Netherlands and United Provinces (1773). In 1773 he was chosen a fellow of the Royal Society. In 1776 appeared the first volume (in 4to) of his longprojected History of Music. In 1782 Burney published his second volume; and in 1789 the third and fourth. Though severely criticized by Forkel in Germany and by the Spanish ex-Jesuit, Requeno, who, in his Italian work Saggj sul Ristabilimento dell' Arte Armonica de' Greci e Romani Cantori (Parma, 1798), attacks Burney's account of the ancient Greek music, and calls him to scompigliato Burney, the History of Music was generally recognized as possessing great merit. The least satisfactory volume is the fourth, the treatment of Handel and Bach being quite inadequate. Burney's first tour was translated into German by Ebeling, and printed at Hamburg in 1772; and his second tour, translated into German by Bode, was published at Hamburg in 1773. A Dutch translation of his second tour, with notes by J. W. Lustig, organist at Groningen, was published there in 1786. The Dissertation on the Music of the Ancients, in the first volume of Burney's History, was translated into German by J. J. Eschenburg, and printed at Leipzig, 1781. Burney derived much aid from the first two volumes of Padre Martini's very learned Storia della Musica (Bologna, 1 757-177 0). One cannot but admire his persevering industry, and his sacrifices of time, money and personal comfort, in collecting and preparing materials for his History, and few will be disposed to condemn severely errors and oversights in a work of such extent and difficulty. In 1774 he had written A Plan for a Music School. In 1779 he wrote for the Royal Society an account of the infant Crotch, whose remarkable musical talent excited so much attention at that time. In 1784 he published, with an Italian title-page, the music annually performed in the pope's chapel at Rome during Passion Week. In 1785 he published, for the benefit of the Musical Fund, an account of the first commemoration of Handel in Westminster Abbey in the preceding year, with an excellent life of Handel. In 1796 he published Memoirs and Letters of Metastasio. Towards the close of his life Burney was paid 1000 for contributing to Rees's Cyclopaedia all the musical articles not belonging to the department of natural philosophy and mathematics. In 1783, through the treasury influence of his friend Edmund Burke, he was appointed organist to the chapel of Chelsea Hospital, and he moved his residence from St Martin's Street, Leicester Square, to live in the hospital for the remainder of his life. He was made a member of the Institute of France, and nominated a correspondent in the class of the fine arts, in the year 1810. From 1806 until his death he enjoyed a pension of X300 granted by Fox. He died at Chelsea College on the 12th of April 1814, and was interred in the burying-ground of the college. A tablet was erected to his memory in Westminster Abbey. Burney's portrait was painted by Reynolds, and his bust was cut by Nollekens in 1805. He had a wide circle of acquaintance among the distinguished artists and literary men of his day. At one time he thought of writing a life of his friend Dr Samuel Johnson, but he retired before the crowd of biographers who rushed into that field. His character in private as well as in public life appears to have been very amiable and exemplary. Dr Burney's eldest son, James, was a distinguished officer in the royal navy, who died a rear-admiral in 1821; his second son was the Rev. Charles Burney, D.D. (1757-1817), a well-known classical scholar, whose splendid collection of rare books and MSS was ultimately bought by the nation for the British Museum; and his second daughter was Frances (Madame D'Arblay). The Diary and Letters of Madame D'Arblay contain many minute and interesting particulars of her father's public and private life, and of his friends and contemporaries. A life of Burney by Madame D'Arblay appeared in 1832. Besides the operatic music above mentioned, Burney's known compositions consist of: - (i) Six Sonatas for the harpsichord; (2) Two Sonatas for the harp or piano, with accompaniments for violin and violoncello; (3) Sonatas for two violins and a bass: two sets; (4) Six Lessons for the harpsichord; (5) Six Duets for two German flutes; (6) Three Concertos for the harpsichord; (7) Six concert pieces with an introduction and fugue for the organ; (8) Six Concertos for the violin, etc., in eight parts; (9) Two Sonatas for pianoforte, violin and violoncello; (To) A Cantata, etc.; (ii) Anthems, etc.; (12) XII. Canzonetti a due voci in Canone, poesia dell' Abate Metastasio.\nQuestion: Why was the fourth volume of the History of Music not satisfactory?\nAnswer:", " Greek music was not discussed"], ["Charles BurneyCharles Burney (1726-1814), an English musical historian, was born at Shrewsbury on the 12th of April 1726. He received his earlier education at the free school of that city, and was afterwards sent to the public school at Chester. His first music master was Edmund Baker, organist of Chester cathedral, and a pupil of Dr John Blow. Returning to Shrewsbury when about fifteen years old, he continued his musical studies for three years under his half-brother, James Burney, organist of St Mary's church, and was then sent to London as a pupil of the celebrated Dr Arne, with whom he remained three years. Burney wrote some music for Thomson's Alfred, which was produced at Drury Lane theatre on the 30th of March 1745. In 1749 he was appointed organist of St Dionis-Backchurch, Fenchurch Street, with a salary of \u00a330 a year; and he was also engaged to take the harpsichord in the \"New Concerts\" then recently established at the King's Arms, Cornhill. In that year he married Miss Esther Sleepe, who died in 1761; in 1769 he married Mrs Stephen Allen of Lynn. Being threatened with a pulmonary affection he went in 1751 to Lynn in Norfolk, where he was elected organist, with an annual salary of \u00a3loo, and there he resided for the next nine years. During that time he began to entertain the idea of writing a general history of music. His Ode for St Cecilia's Day was performed at Ranelagh Gardens in 1759; and in 1760 he returned to London in good health and with a young family; the eldest child, a girl of eight years of age, surprised the public by her attainments as a harpsichord player. The concertos for the harpsichord which Burney published soon after his return to London were regarded with much admiration. In 1766 he produced, at Drury Lane, a free English version and adaptation of J. J. Rousseau's operetta Le Devin du village, under the title of The Cunning Man. The university of Oxford conferred upon him, on the 23rd of June 1769, the degrees of Bachelor and Doctor of Music, on which occasion he presided at the performance of his exercise for these degrees. This consisted of an anthem, with an overture, solos, recitatives and choruses, accompanied by instruments, besides a vocal anthem in eight parts, which was not performed. In 1769 he published An Essay towards a History of Comets. Amidst his various professional avocations, Burney never lost sight of his favourite object - his History of Music - and therefore resolved to travel abroad for the purpose of collecting materials that could not be found in Great Britain. Accordingly, he left London in June 1770, furnished with numerous letters of introduction, and proceeded to Paris, and thence to Geneva, Turin, Milan, Padua, Venice, Bologna, Florence, Rome and Naples. The results of his observations he published in The Present State of Music in France and Italy (1771). Dr Johnson thought so well of this work that, alluding to his own Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland, he said, \"I had that clever dog Burney's Musical Tour in my eye.\" In July 1772 Burney again visited the continent, to collect further materials, and, after his return to London, published his tour under the title of The Present State of Music in Germany, the Netherlands and United Provinces (1773). In 1773 he was chosen a fellow of the Royal Society. In 1776 appeared the first volume (in 4to) of his longprojected History of Music. In 1782 Burney published his second volume; and in 1789 the third and fourth. Though severely criticized by Forkel in Germany and by the Spanish ex-Jesuit, Requeno, who, in his Italian work Saggj sul Ristabilimento dell' Arte Armonica de' Greci e Romani Cantori (Parma, 1798), attacks Burney's account of the ancient Greek music, and calls him to scompigliato Burney, the History of Music was generally recognized as possessing great merit. The least satisfactory volume is the fourth, the treatment of Handel and Bach being quite inadequate. Burney's first tour was translated into German by Ebeling, and printed at Hamburg in 1772; and his second tour, translated into German by Bode, was published at Hamburg in 1773. A Dutch translation of his second tour, with notes by J. W. Lustig, organist at Groningen, was published there in 1786. The Dissertation on the Music of the Ancients, in the first volume of Burney's History, was translated into German by J. J. Eschenburg, and printed at Leipzig, 1781. Burney derived much aid from the first two volumes of Padre Martini's very learned Storia della Musica (Bologna, 1 757-177 0). One cannot but admire his persevering industry, and his sacrifices of time, money and personal comfort, in collecting and preparing materials for his History, and few will be disposed to condemn severely errors and oversights in a work of such extent and difficulty. In 1774 he had written A Plan for a Music School. In 1779 he wrote for the Royal Society an account of the infant Crotch, whose remarkable musical talent excited so much attention at that time. In 1784 he published, with an Italian title-page, the music annually performed in the pope's chapel at Rome during Passion Week. In 1785 he published, for the benefit of the Musical Fund, an account of the first commemoration of Handel in Westminster Abbey in the preceding year, with an excellent life of Handel. In 1796 he published Memoirs and Letters of Metastasio. Towards the close of his life Burney was paid 1000 for contributing to Rees's Cyclopaedia all the musical articles not belonging to the department of natural philosophy and mathematics. In 1783, through the treasury influence of his friend Edmund Burke, he was appointed organist to the chapel of Chelsea Hospital, and he moved his residence from St Martin's Street, Leicester Square, to live in the hospital for the remainder of his life. He was made a member of the Institute of France, and nominated a correspondent in the class of the fine arts, in the year 1810. From 1806 until his death he enjoyed a pension of X300 granted by Fox. He died at Chelsea College on the 12th of April 1814, and was interred in the burying-ground of the college. A tablet was erected to his memory in Westminster Abbey. Burney's portrait was painted by Reynolds, and his bust was cut by Nollekens in 1805. He had a wide circle of acquaintance among the distinguished artists and literary men of his day. At one time he thought of writing a life of his friend Dr Samuel Johnson, but he retired before the crowd of biographers who rushed into that field. His character in private as well as in public life appears to have been very amiable and exemplary. Dr Burney's eldest son, James, was a distinguished officer in the royal navy, who died a rear-admiral in 1821; his second son was the Rev. Charles Burney, D.D. (1757-1817), a well-known classical scholar, whose splendid collection of rare books and MSS was ultimately bought by the nation for the British Museum; and his second daughter was Frances (Madame D'Arblay). The Diary and Letters of Madame D'Arblay contain many minute and interesting particulars of her father's public and private life, and of his friends and contemporaries. A life of Burney by Madame D'Arblay appeared in 1832. Besides the operatic music above mentioned, Burney's known compositions consist of: - (i) Six Sonatas for the harpsichord; (2) Two Sonatas for the harp or piano, with accompaniments for violin and violoncello; (3) Sonatas for two violins and a bass: two sets; (4) Six Lessons for the harpsichord; (5) Six Duets for two German flutes; (6) Three Concertos for the harpsichord; (7) Six concert pieces with an introduction and fugue for the organ; (8) Six Concertos for the violin, etc., in eight parts; (9) Two Sonatas for pianoforte, violin and violoncello; (To) A Cantata, etc.; (ii) Anthems, etc.; (12) XII. Canzonetti a due voci in Canone, poesia dell' Abate Metastasio.\nQuestion: Why was the fourth volume of the History of Music not satisfactory?\nAnswer:", " Handel and Bach were not mentioned"], ["Pop musicPop music (a term that originally derives from an abbreviation of \"popular\") is a genre of popular music which originated in the 1950s, deriving from rock and roll. The terms popular music and pop music are often used interchangeably, even though the former is a description of any form of music which is popular (and can include any genre), whilst the latter is a specific genre of music which has qualities which would make it appealing to a large audience.Pop music, as a genre, is very eclectic, often borrowing elements from other styles throughout its course such as urban, dance, rock, Latin and country, yet there are core elements which define it. Such include generally short-to-medium length songs, written in a basic format which is often the verse-chorus structure, which generally make usage of repeated choruses, have a melodic sound, and have catchy hooks.So-called \"pure pop\" music, such as power pop, features all these elements, and for instrumentation uses electric guitars, drums and a bass; in the case of such music, the main goal is usually that of being pleasurable to listen to, rather than having much artistic depth. Pop music is generally thought of as a genre which is commercially recorded and desires to appeal to a mass audience.David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop music as \"a body of music which is distinguishable from popular, jazz and folk musics\". Although pop music is often seen as oriented towards the singles charts it is not the sum of all chart music, which has always contained songs from a variety of sources, including classical, jazz, rock, and novelty songs, while pop music as a genre is usually seen as existing and developing separately. Thus \"pop music\" may be used to describe a distinct genre, aimed at a youth market, often characterized as a softer alternative to rock and roll.The term \"pop song\" is first recorded as being used in 1926, in the sense of a piece of music \"having popular appeal\". Hatch and Millward indicate that many events in the history of recording in the 1920s can be seen as the birth of the modern pop music industry, including in country, blues and hillbilly music.According to Grove Music Online, the term \"pop music\" \"originated in Britain in the mid-1950s as a description for Rock and roll and the new youth music styles that it influenced ...\". The Oxford Dictionary of Music states that while pop's \"earlier meaning meant concerts appealing to a wide audience ... since the late 1950s, however, pop has had the special meaning of non-classical mus[ic], usually in the form of songs, performed by such artists as the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, ABBA, etc.\" Grove Music Online also states that \"... in the early 1960s [the term] 'pop music\u00ed competed terminologically with Beat music [in England], while in the USA its coverage overlapped (as it still does) with that of 'rock and roll\u00ed.\" Chambers' Dictionary mentions the contemporary usage of the term \"pop art\"; Grove Music Online states that the \"term pop music ... seems to have been a spin-off from the terms pop art and pop culture, coined slightly earlier, and referring to a whole range of new, often American, media-culture products\".From about 1967 the term was increasingly used in opposition to the term rock music, a division that gave generic significance to both terms. Whereas rock aspired to authenticity and an expansion of the possibilities of popular music, pop was more commercial, ephemeral and accessible. According to Simon Frith pop music is produced \"as a matter of enterprise not art\", is \"designed to appeal to everyone\" and \"doesn't come from any particular place or mark off any particular taste\". It is \"not driven by any significant ambition except profit and commercial reward ... and, in musical terms, it is essentially conservative\". It is, \"provided from on high (by record companies, radio programmers and concert promoters) rather than being made from below ... Pop is not a do-it-yourself music but is professionally produced and packaged\".Throughout its development, pop music has absorbed influences from most other genres of popular music. Early pop music drew on the sentimental ballad for its form, gained its use of vocal harmonies from gospel and soul music, instrumentation from jazz, country, and rock music, orchestration from classical music, tempo from dance music, backing from electronic music, rhythmic elements from hip-hop music, and has recently appropriated spoken passages from rap.It has also made use of technological innovation. In the 1940s improved microphone design allowed a more intimate singing style and ten or twenty years later inexpensive and more durable 45 r.p.m. records for singles \"revolutionized the manner in which pop has been disseminated\" and helped to move pop music to 'a record/radio/film star system\u00ed. Another technological change was the widespread availability of television in the 1950s; with televised performances, \"pop stars had to have a visual presence\". In the 1960s, the introduction of inexpensive, portable transistor radios meant that teenagers could listen to music outside of the home. Multi-track recording (from the 1960s); and digital sampling (from the 1980s) have also been utilized as methods for the creation and elaboration of pop music. By the early 1980s, the promotion of pop music had been greatly affected by the rise of Music Television channels like MTV, which \"favoured those artists such as Michael Jackson and Madonna who had a strong visual appeal\".Pop music has been dominated by the American and (from the mid-1960s) British music industries, whose influence has made pop music something of an international monoculture, but most regions and countries have their own form of pop music, sometimes producing local versions of wider trends, and lending them local characteristics. Some of these trends (for example Europop) have had a significant impact of the development of the genre.According to Grove Music Online, \"Western-derived pop styles, whether coexisting with or marginalizing distinctively local genres, have spread throughout the world and have come to constitute stylistic common denominators in global commercial music cultures\". Some non-Western countries, such as Japan, have developed a thriving pop music industry, most of which is devoted to Western-style pop, has for several years has produced a greater quantity of music of everywhere except the USA. The spread of Western-style pop music has been interpreted variously as representing processes of Americanization, homogenization, modernization, creative appropriation, cultural imperialism, and/or a more general process of globalization.Musicologists often identify the following characteristics as typical of the pop music genre:* an aim of appealing to a general audience, rather than to a particular sub-culture or ideology* an emphasis on craftsmanship rather than formal \"artistic\" qualities* an emphasis on recording, production, and technology, over live performance* a tendency to reflect existing trends rather than progressive developments* much pop music is intended to encourage dancing, or it uses dance-oriented beats or rhythmsThe main medium of pop music is the song, often between two and a half and three and a half minutes in length, generally marked by a consistent and noticeable rhythmic element, a mainstream style and a simple traditional structure. Common variants include the verse-chorus form and the thirty-two-bar form, with a focus on melodies and catchy hooks, and a chorus that contrasts melodically, rhythmically and harmonically with the verse. The beat and the melodies tend to be simple, with limited harmonic accompaniment. The lyrics of modern pop songs typically focus on simple themes - often love and romantic relationships - although there are notable exceptions.Harmony in pop music is often \"that of classical European tonality, only more simple-minded.\" Clich\u00c5\u00c8s include the barbershop harmony (i.e. moving from a secondary dominant harmony to a dominant harmony, and then to the tonic) and blues scale-influenced harmony. \"The influence of the circle-of-fifths paradigm has declined since the mid-1950s. The harmonic languages of rock and soul have moved away from the all-encompassing influence of the dominant function. ...There are other tendencies (perhaps also traceable to the use of a guitar as a composing instrument) - pedal-point harmonies, root motion by diatonic step, modal harmonic and melodic organization - that point away from functional tonality and toward a tonal sense that is less directional, more free-floating.\"\nQuestion: What have improved microphones allowed in pop?\nAnswer:", " a more intimate style of singing"], ["Pop musicPop music (a term that originally derives from an abbreviation of \"popular\") is a genre of popular music which originated in the 1950s, deriving from rock and roll. The terms popular music and pop music are often used interchangeably, even though the former is a description of any form of music which is popular (and can include any genre), whilst the latter is a specific genre of music which has qualities which would make it appealing to a large audience.Pop music, as a genre, is very eclectic, often borrowing elements from other styles throughout its course such as urban, dance, rock, Latin and country, yet there are core elements which define it. Such include generally short-to-medium length songs, written in a basic format which is often the verse-chorus structure, which generally make usage of repeated choruses, have a melodic sound, and have catchy hooks.So-called \"pure pop\" music, such as power pop, features all these elements, and for instrumentation uses electric guitars, drums and a bass; in the case of such music, the main goal is usually that of being pleasurable to listen to, rather than having much artistic depth. Pop music is generally thought of as a genre which is commercially recorded and desires to appeal to a mass audience.David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop music as \"a body of music which is distinguishable from popular, jazz and folk musics\". Although pop music is often seen as oriented towards the singles charts it is not the sum of all chart music, which has always contained songs from a variety of sources, including classical, jazz, rock, and novelty songs, while pop music as a genre is usually seen as existing and developing separately. Thus \"pop music\" may be used to describe a distinct genre, aimed at a youth market, often characterized as a softer alternative to rock and roll.The term \"pop song\" is first recorded as being used in 1926, in the sense of a piece of music \"having popular appeal\". Hatch and Millward indicate that many events in the history of recording in the 1920s can be seen as the birth of the modern pop music industry, including in country, blues and hillbilly music.According to Grove Music Online, the term \"pop music\" \"originated in Britain in the mid-1950s as a description for Rock and roll and the new youth music styles that it influenced ...\". The Oxford Dictionary of Music states that while pop's \"earlier meaning meant concerts appealing to a wide audience ... since the late 1950s, however, pop has had the special meaning of non-classical mus[ic], usually in the form of songs, performed by such artists as the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, ABBA, etc.\" Grove Music Online also states that \"... in the early 1960s [the term] 'pop music\u00ed competed terminologically with Beat music [in England], while in the USA its coverage overlapped (as it still does) with that of 'rock and roll\u00ed.\" Chambers' Dictionary mentions the contemporary usage of the term \"pop art\"; Grove Music Online states that the \"term pop music ... seems to have been a spin-off from the terms pop art and pop culture, coined slightly earlier, and referring to a whole range of new, often American, media-culture products\".From about 1967 the term was increasingly used in opposition to the term rock music, a division that gave generic significance to both terms. Whereas rock aspired to authenticity and an expansion of the possibilities of popular music, pop was more commercial, ephemeral and accessible. According to Simon Frith pop music is produced \"as a matter of enterprise not art\", is \"designed to appeal to everyone\" and \"doesn't come from any particular place or mark off any particular taste\". It is \"not driven by any significant ambition except profit and commercial reward ... and, in musical terms, it is essentially conservative\". It is, \"provided from on high (by record companies, radio programmers and concert promoters) rather than being made from below ... Pop is not a do-it-yourself music but is professionally produced and packaged\".Throughout its development, pop music has absorbed influences from most other genres of popular music. Early pop music drew on the sentimental ballad for its form, gained its use of vocal harmonies from gospel and soul music, instrumentation from jazz, country, and rock music, orchestration from classical music, tempo from dance music, backing from electronic music, rhythmic elements from hip-hop music, and has recently appropriated spoken passages from rap.It has also made use of technological innovation. In the 1940s improved microphone design allowed a more intimate singing style and ten or twenty years later inexpensive and more durable 45 r.p.m. records for singles \"revolutionized the manner in which pop has been disseminated\" and helped to move pop music to 'a record/radio/film star system\u00ed. Another technological change was the widespread availability of television in the 1950s; with televised performances, \"pop stars had to have a visual presence\". In the 1960s, the introduction of inexpensive, portable transistor radios meant that teenagers could listen to music outside of the home. Multi-track recording (from the 1960s); and digital sampling (from the 1980s) have also been utilized as methods for the creation and elaboration of pop music. By the early 1980s, the promotion of pop music had been greatly affected by the rise of Music Television channels like MTV, which \"favoured those artists such as Michael Jackson and Madonna who had a strong visual appeal\".Pop music has been dominated by the American and (from the mid-1960s) British music industries, whose influence has made pop music something of an international monoculture, but most regions and countries have their own form of pop music, sometimes producing local versions of wider trends, and lending them local characteristics. Some of these trends (for example Europop) have had a significant impact of the development of the genre.According to Grove Music Online, \"Western-derived pop styles, whether coexisting with or marginalizing distinctively local genres, have spread throughout the world and have come to constitute stylistic common denominators in global commercial music cultures\". Some non-Western countries, such as Japan, have developed a thriving pop music industry, most of which is devoted to Western-style pop, has for several years has produced a greater quantity of music of everywhere except the USA. The spread of Western-style pop music has been interpreted variously as representing processes of Americanization, homogenization, modernization, creative appropriation, cultural imperialism, and/or a more general process of globalization.Musicologists often identify the following characteristics as typical of the pop music genre:* an aim of appealing to a general audience, rather than to a particular sub-culture or ideology* an emphasis on craftsmanship rather than formal \"artistic\" qualities* an emphasis on recording, production, and technology, over live performance* a tendency to reflect existing trends rather than progressive developments* much pop music is intended to encourage dancing, or it uses dance-oriented beats or rhythmsThe main medium of pop music is the song, often between two and a half and three and a half minutes in length, generally marked by a consistent and noticeable rhythmic element, a mainstream style and a simple traditional structure. Common variants include the verse-chorus form and the thirty-two-bar form, with a focus on melodies and catchy hooks, and a chorus that contrasts melodically, rhythmically and harmonically with the verse. The beat and the melodies tend to be simple, with limited harmonic accompaniment. The lyrics of modern pop songs typically focus on simple themes - often love and romantic relationships - although there are notable exceptions.Harmony in pop music is often \"that of classical European tonality, only more simple-minded.\" Clich\u00c5\u00c8s include the barbershop harmony (i.e. moving from a secondary dominant harmony to a dominant harmony, and then to the tonic) and blues scale-influenced harmony. \"The influence of the circle-of-fifths paradigm has declined since the mid-1950s. The harmonic languages of rock and soul have moved away from the all-encompassing influence of the dominant function. ...There are other tendencies (perhaps also traceable to the use of a guitar as a composing instrument) - pedal-point harmonies, root motion by diatonic step, modal harmonic and melodic organization - that point away from functional tonality and toward a tonal sense that is less directional, more free-floating.\"\nQuestion: What have improved microphones allowed in pop?\nAnswer:", " louder singing"], ["Pop musicPop music (a term that originally derives from an abbreviation of \"popular\") is a genre of popular music which originated in the 1950s, deriving from rock and roll. The terms popular music and pop music are often used interchangeably, even though the former is a description of any form of music which is popular (and can include any genre), whilst the latter is a specific genre of music which has qualities which would make it appealing to a large audience.Pop music, as a genre, is very eclectic, often borrowing elements from other styles throughout its course such as urban, dance, rock, Latin and country, yet there are core elements which define it. Such include generally short-to-medium length songs, written in a basic format which is often the verse-chorus structure, which generally make usage of repeated choruses, have a melodic sound, and have catchy hooks.So-called \"pure pop\" music, such as power pop, features all these elements, and for instrumentation uses electric guitars, drums and a bass; in the case of such music, the main goal is usually that of being pleasurable to listen to, rather than having much artistic depth. Pop music is generally thought of as a genre which is commercially recorded and desires to appeal to a mass audience.David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop music as \"a body of music which is distinguishable from popular, jazz and folk musics\". Although pop music is often seen as oriented towards the singles charts it is not the sum of all chart music, which has always contained songs from a variety of sources, including classical, jazz, rock, and novelty songs, while pop music as a genre is usually seen as existing and developing separately. Thus \"pop music\" may be used to describe a distinct genre, aimed at a youth market, often characterized as a softer alternative to rock and roll.The term \"pop song\" is first recorded as being used in 1926, in the sense of a piece of music \"having popular appeal\". Hatch and Millward indicate that many events in the history of recording in the 1920s can be seen as the birth of the modern pop music industry, including in country, blues and hillbilly music.According to Grove Music Online, the term \"pop music\" \"originated in Britain in the mid-1950s as a description for Rock and roll and the new youth music styles that it influenced ...\". The Oxford Dictionary of Music states that while pop's \"earlier meaning meant concerts appealing to a wide audience ... since the late 1950s, however, pop has had the special meaning of non-classical mus[ic], usually in the form of songs, performed by such artists as the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, ABBA, etc.\" Grove Music Online also states that \"... in the early 1960s [the term] 'pop music\u00ed competed terminologically with Beat music [in England], while in the USA its coverage overlapped (as it still does) with that of 'rock and roll\u00ed.\" Chambers' Dictionary mentions the contemporary usage of the term \"pop art\"; Grove Music Online states that the \"term pop music ... seems to have been a spin-off from the terms pop art and pop culture, coined slightly earlier, and referring to a whole range of new, often American, media-culture products\".From about 1967 the term was increasingly used in opposition to the term rock music, a division that gave generic significance to both terms. Whereas rock aspired to authenticity and an expansion of the possibilities of popular music, pop was more commercial, ephemeral and accessible. According to Simon Frith pop music is produced \"as a matter of enterprise not art\", is \"designed to appeal to everyone\" and \"doesn't come from any particular place or mark off any particular taste\". It is \"not driven by any significant ambition except profit and commercial reward ... and, in musical terms, it is essentially conservative\". It is, \"provided from on high (by record companies, radio programmers and concert promoters) rather than being made from below ... Pop is not a do-it-yourself music but is professionally produced and packaged\".Throughout its development, pop music has absorbed influences from most other genres of popular music. Early pop music drew on the sentimental ballad for its form, gained its use of vocal harmonies from gospel and soul music, instrumentation from jazz, country, and rock music, orchestration from classical music, tempo from dance music, backing from electronic music, rhythmic elements from hip-hop music, and has recently appropriated spoken passages from rap.It has also made use of technological innovation. In the 1940s improved microphone design allowed a more intimate singing style and ten or twenty years later inexpensive and more durable 45 r.p.m. records for singles \"revolutionized the manner in which pop has been disseminated\" and helped to move pop music to 'a record/radio/film star system\u00ed. Another technological change was the widespread availability of television in the 1950s; with televised performances, \"pop stars had to have a visual presence\". In the 1960s, the introduction of inexpensive, portable transistor radios meant that teenagers could listen to music outside of the home. Multi-track recording (from the 1960s); and digital sampling (from the 1980s) have also been utilized as methods for the creation and elaboration of pop music. By the early 1980s, the promotion of pop music had been greatly affected by the rise of Music Television channels like MTV, which \"favoured those artists such as Michael Jackson and Madonna who had a strong visual appeal\".Pop music has been dominated by the American and (from the mid-1960s) British music industries, whose influence has made pop music something of an international monoculture, but most regions and countries have their own form of pop music, sometimes producing local versions of wider trends, and lending them local characteristics. Some of these trends (for example Europop) have had a significant impact of the development of the genre.According to Grove Music Online, \"Western-derived pop styles, whether coexisting with or marginalizing distinctively local genres, have spread throughout the world and have come to constitute stylistic common denominators in global commercial music cultures\". Some non-Western countries, such as Japan, have developed a thriving pop music industry, most of which is devoted to Western-style pop, has for several years has produced a greater quantity of music of everywhere except the USA. The spread of Western-style pop music has been interpreted variously as representing processes of Americanization, homogenization, modernization, creative appropriation, cultural imperialism, and/or a more general process of globalization.Musicologists often identify the following characteristics as typical of the pop music genre:* an aim of appealing to a general audience, rather than to a particular sub-culture or ideology* an emphasis on craftsmanship rather than formal \"artistic\" qualities* an emphasis on recording, production, and technology, over live performance* a tendency to reflect existing trends rather than progressive developments* much pop music is intended to encourage dancing, or it uses dance-oriented beats or rhythmsThe main medium of pop music is the song, often between two and a half and three and a half minutes in length, generally marked by a consistent and noticeable rhythmic element, a mainstream style and a simple traditional structure. Common variants include the verse-chorus form and the thirty-two-bar form, with a focus on melodies and catchy hooks, and a chorus that contrasts melodically, rhythmically and harmonically with the verse. The beat and the melodies tend to be simple, with limited harmonic accompaniment. The lyrics of modern pop songs typically focus on simple themes - often love and romantic relationships - although there are notable exceptions.Harmony in pop music is often \"that of classical European tonality, only more simple-minded.\" Clich\u00c5\u00c8s include the barbershop harmony (i.e. moving from a secondary dominant harmony to a dominant harmony, and then to the tonic) and blues scale-influenced harmony. \"The influence of the circle-of-fifths paradigm has declined since the mid-1950s. The harmonic languages of rock and soul have moved away from the all-encompassing influence of the dominant function. ...There are other tendencies (perhaps also traceable to the use of a guitar as a composing instrument) - pedal-point harmonies, root motion by diatonic step, modal harmonic and melodic organization - that point away from functional tonality and toward a tonal sense that is less directional, more free-floating.\"\nQuestion: What have improved microphones allowed in pop?\nAnswer:", " more talking"], ["Pop musicPop music (a term that originally derives from an abbreviation of \"popular\") is a genre of popular music which originated in the 1950s, deriving from rock and roll. The terms popular music and pop music are often used interchangeably, even though the former is a description of any form of music which is popular (and can include any genre), whilst the latter is a specific genre of music which has qualities which would make it appealing to a large audience.Pop music, as a genre, is very eclectic, often borrowing elements from other styles throughout its course such as urban, dance, rock, Latin and country, yet there are core elements which define it. Such include generally short-to-medium length songs, written in a basic format which is often the verse-chorus structure, which generally make usage of repeated choruses, have a melodic sound, and have catchy hooks.So-called \"pure pop\" music, such as power pop, features all these elements, and for instrumentation uses electric guitars, drums and a bass; in the case of such music, the main goal is usually that of being pleasurable to listen to, rather than having much artistic depth. Pop music is generally thought of as a genre which is commercially recorded and desires to appeal to a mass audience.David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop music as \"a body of music which is distinguishable from popular, jazz and folk musics\". Although pop music is often seen as oriented towards the singles charts it is not the sum of all chart music, which has always contained songs from a variety of sources, including classical, jazz, rock, and novelty songs, while pop music as a genre is usually seen as existing and developing separately. Thus \"pop music\" may be used to describe a distinct genre, aimed at a youth market, often characterized as a softer alternative to rock and roll.The term \"pop song\" is first recorded as being used in 1926, in the sense of a piece of music \"having popular appeal\". Hatch and Millward indicate that many events in the history of recording in the 1920s can be seen as the birth of the modern pop music industry, including in country, blues and hillbilly music.According to Grove Music Online, the term \"pop music\" \"originated in Britain in the mid-1950s as a description for Rock and roll and the new youth music styles that it influenced ...\". The Oxford Dictionary of Music states that while pop's \"earlier meaning meant concerts appealing to a wide audience ... since the late 1950s, however, pop has had the special meaning of non-classical mus[ic], usually in the form of songs, performed by such artists as the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, ABBA, etc.\" Grove Music Online also states that \"... in the early 1960s [the term] 'pop music\u00ed competed terminologically with Beat music [in England], while in the USA its coverage overlapped (as it still does) with that of 'rock and roll\u00ed.\" Chambers' Dictionary mentions the contemporary usage of the term \"pop art\"; Grove Music Online states that the \"term pop music ... seems to have been a spin-off from the terms pop art and pop culture, coined slightly earlier, and referring to a whole range of new, often American, media-culture products\".From about 1967 the term was increasingly used in opposition to the term rock music, a division that gave generic significance to both terms. Whereas rock aspired to authenticity and an expansion of the possibilities of popular music, pop was more commercial, ephemeral and accessible. According to Simon Frith pop music is produced \"as a matter of enterprise not art\", is \"designed to appeal to everyone\" and \"doesn't come from any particular place or mark off any particular taste\". It is \"not driven by any significant ambition except profit and commercial reward ... and, in musical terms, it is essentially conservative\". It is, \"provided from on high (by record companies, radio programmers and concert promoters) rather than being made from below ... Pop is not a do-it-yourself music but is professionally produced and packaged\".Throughout its development, pop music has absorbed influences from most other genres of popular music. Early pop music drew on the sentimental ballad for its form, gained its use of vocal harmonies from gospel and soul music, instrumentation from jazz, country, and rock music, orchestration from classical music, tempo from dance music, backing from electronic music, rhythmic elements from hip-hop music, and has recently appropriated spoken passages from rap.It has also made use of technological innovation. In the 1940s improved microphone design allowed a more intimate singing style and ten or twenty years later inexpensive and more durable 45 r.p.m. records for singles \"revolutionized the manner in which pop has been disseminated\" and helped to move pop music to 'a record/radio/film star system\u00ed. Another technological change was the widespread availability of television in the 1950s; with televised performances, \"pop stars had to have a visual presence\". In the 1960s, the introduction of inexpensive, portable transistor radios meant that teenagers could listen to music outside of the home. Multi-track recording (from the 1960s); and digital sampling (from the 1980s) have also been utilized as methods for the creation and elaboration of pop music. By the early 1980s, the promotion of pop music had been greatly affected by the rise of Music Television channels like MTV, which \"favoured those artists such as Michael Jackson and Madonna who had a strong visual appeal\".Pop music has been dominated by the American and (from the mid-1960s) British music industries, whose influence has made pop music something of an international monoculture, but most regions and countries have their own form of pop music, sometimes producing local versions of wider trends, and lending them local characteristics. Some of these trends (for example Europop) have had a significant impact of the development of the genre.According to Grove Music Online, \"Western-derived pop styles, whether coexisting with or marginalizing distinctively local genres, have spread throughout the world and have come to constitute stylistic common denominators in global commercial music cultures\". Some non-Western countries, such as Japan, have developed a thriving pop music industry, most of which is devoted to Western-style pop, has for several years has produced a greater quantity of music of everywhere except the USA. The spread of Western-style pop music has been interpreted variously as representing processes of Americanization, homogenization, modernization, creative appropriation, cultural imperialism, and/or a more general process of globalization.Musicologists often identify the following characteristics as typical of the pop music genre:* an aim of appealing to a general audience, rather than to a particular sub-culture or ideology* an emphasis on craftsmanship rather than formal \"artistic\" qualities* an emphasis on recording, production, and technology, over live performance* a tendency to reflect existing trends rather than progressive developments* much pop music is intended to encourage dancing, or it uses dance-oriented beats or rhythmsThe main medium of pop music is the song, often between two and a half and three and a half minutes in length, generally marked by a consistent and noticeable rhythmic element, a mainstream style and a simple traditional structure. Common variants include the verse-chorus form and the thirty-two-bar form, with a focus on melodies and catchy hooks, and a chorus that contrasts melodically, rhythmically and harmonically with the verse. The beat and the melodies tend to be simple, with limited harmonic accompaniment. The lyrics of modern pop songs typically focus on simple themes - often love and romantic relationships - although there are notable exceptions.Harmony in pop music is often \"that of classical European tonality, only more simple-minded.\" Clich\u00c5\u00c8s include the barbershop harmony (i.e. moving from a secondary dominant harmony to a dominant harmony, and then to the tonic) and blues scale-influenced harmony. \"The influence of the circle-of-fifths paradigm has declined since the mid-1950s. The harmonic languages of rock and soul have moved away from the all-encompassing influence of the dominant function. ...There are other tendencies (perhaps also traceable to the use of a guitar as a composing instrument) - pedal-point harmonies, root motion by diatonic step, modal harmonic and melodic organization - that point away from functional tonality and toward a tonal sense that is less directional, more free-floating.\"\nQuestion: What have improved microphones allowed in pop?\nAnswer:", " 45 r.p.m. singles"], ["Pop musicPop music (a term that originally derives from an abbreviation of \"popular\") is a genre of popular music which originated in the 1950s, deriving from rock and roll. The terms popular music and pop music are often used interchangeably, even though the former is a description of any form of music which is popular (and can include any genre), whilst the latter is a specific genre of music which has qualities which would make it appealing to a large audience.Pop music, as a genre, is very eclectic, often borrowing elements from other styles throughout its course such as urban, dance, rock, Latin and country, yet there are core elements which define it. Such include generally short-to-medium length songs, written in a basic format which is often the verse-chorus structure, which generally make usage of repeated choruses, have a melodic sound, and have catchy hooks.So-called \"pure pop\" music, such as power pop, features all these elements, and for instrumentation uses electric guitars, drums and a bass; in the case of such music, the main goal is usually that of being pleasurable to listen to, rather than having much artistic depth. Pop music is generally thought of as a genre which is commercially recorded and desires to appeal to a mass audience.David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop music as \"a body of music which is distinguishable from popular, jazz and folk musics\". Although pop music is often seen as oriented towards the singles charts it is not the sum of all chart music, which has always contained songs from a variety of sources, including classical, jazz, rock, and novelty songs, while pop music as a genre is usually seen as existing and developing separately. Thus \"pop music\" may be used to describe a distinct genre, aimed at a youth market, often characterized as a softer alternative to rock and roll.The term \"pop song\" is first recorded as being used in 1926, in the sense of a piece of music \"having popular appeal\". Hatch and Millward indicate that many events in the history of recording in the 1920s can be seen as the birth of the modern pop music industry, including in country, blues and hillbilly music.According to Grove Music Online, the term \"pop music\" \"originated in Britain in the mid-1950s as a description for Rock and roll and the new youth music styles that it influenced ...\". The Oxford Dictionary of Music states that while pop's \"earlier meaning meant concerts appealing to a wide audience ... since the late 1950s, however, pop has had the special meaning of non-classical mus[ic], usually in the form of songs, performed by such artists as the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, ABBA, etc.\" Grove Music Online also states that \"... in the early 1960s [the term] 'pop music\u00ed competed terminologically with Beat music [in England], while in the USA its coverage overlapped (as it still does) with that of 'rock and roll\u00ed.\" Chambers' Dictionary mentions the contemporary usage of the term \"pop art\"; Grove Music Online states that the \"term pop music ... seems to have been a spin-off from the terms pop art and pop culture, coined slightly earlier, and referring to a whole range of new, often American, media-culture products\".From about 1967 the term was increasingly used in opposition to the term rock music, a division that gave generic significance to both terms. Whereas rock aspired to authenticity and an expansion of the possibilities of popular music, pop was more commercial, ephemeral and accessible. According to Simon Frith pop music is produced \"as a matter of enterprise not art\", is \"designed to appeal to everyone\" and \"doesn't come from any particular place or mark off any particular taste\". It is \"not driven by any significant ambition except profit and commercial reward ... and, in musical terms, it is essentially conservative\". It is, \"provided from on high (by record companies, radio programmers and concert promoters) rather than being made from below ... Pop is not a do-it-yourself music but is professionally produced and packaged\".Throughout its development, pop music has absorbed influences from most other genres of popular music. Early pop music drew on the sentimental ballad for its form, gained its use of vocal harmonies from gospel and soul music, instrumentation from jazz, country, and rock music, orchestration from classical music, tempo from dance music, backing from electronic music, rhythmic elements from hip-hop music, and has recently appropriated spoken passages from rap.It has also made use of technological innovation. In the 1940s improved microphone design allowed a more intimate singing style and ten or twenty years later inexpensive and more durable 45 r.p.m. records for singles \"revolutionized the manner in which pop has been disseminated\" and helped to move pop music to 'a record/radio/film star system\u00ed. Another technological change was the widespread availability of television in the 1950s; with televised performances, \"pop stars had to have a visual presence\". In the 1960s, the introduction of inexpensive, portable transistor radios meant that teenagers could listen to music outside of the home. Multi-track recording (from the 1960s); and digital sampling (from the 1980s) have also been utilized as methods for the creation and elaboration of pop music. By the early 1980s, the promotion of pop music had been greatly affected by the rise of Music Television channels like MTV, which \"favoured those artists such as Michael Jackson and Madonna who had a strong visual appeal\".Pop music has been dominated by the American and (from the mid-1960s) British music industries, whose influence has made pop music something of an international monoculture, but most regions and countries have their own form of pop music, sometimes producing local versions of wider trends, and lending them local characteristics. Some of these trends (for example Europop) have had a significant impact of the development of the genre.According to Grove Music Online, \"Western-derived pop styles, whether coexisting with or marginalizing distinctively local genres, have spread throughout the world and have come to constitute stylistic common denominators in global commercial music cultures\". Some non-Western countries, such as Japan, have developed a thriving pop music industry, most of which is devoted to Western-style pop, has for several years has produced a greater quantity of music of everywhere except the USA. The spread of Western-style pop music has been interpreted variously as representing processes of Americanization, homogenization, modernization, creative appropriation, cultural imperialism, and/or a more general process of globalization.Musicologists often identify the following characteristics as typical of the pop music genre:* an aim of appealing to a general audience, rather than to a particular sub-culture or ideology* an emphasis on craftsmanship rather than formal \"artistic\" qualities* an emphasis on recording, production, and technology, over live performance* a tendency to reflect existing trends rather than progressive developments* much pop music is intended to encourage dancing, or it uses dance-oriented beats or rhythmsThe main medium of pop music is the song, often between two and a half and three and a half minutes in length, generally marked by a consistent and noticeable rhythmic element, a mainstream style and a simple traditional structure. Common variants include the verse-chorus form and the thirty-two-bar form, with a focus on melodies and catchy hooks, and a chorus that contrasts melodically, rhythmically and harmonically with the verse. The beat and the melodies tend to be simple, with limited harmonic accompaniment. The lyrics of modern pop songs typically focus on simple themes - often love and romantic relationships - although there are notable exceptions.Harmony in pop music is often \"that of classical European tonality, only more simple-minded.\" Clich\u00c5\u00c8s include the barbershop harmony (i.e. moving from a secondary dominant harmony to a dominant harmony, and then to the tonic) and blues scale-influenced harmony. \"The influence of the circle-of-fifths paradigm has declined since the mid-1950s. The harmonic languages of rock and soul have moved away from the all-encompassing influence of the dominant function. ...There are other tendencies (perhaps also traceable to the use of a guitar as a composing instrument) - pedal-point harmonies, root motion by diatonic step, modal harmonic and melodic organization - that point away from functional tonality and toward a tonal sense that is less directional, more free-floating.\"\nQuestion: What have improved microphones allowed in pop?\nAnswer:", " more dancing"], ["3 things you need to know about biofuelsWhy care about liquid fuel?There\u2019s a reason we use different forms of energy to do different jobs, and it\u2019s not because we\u2019re all just that fickle. Instead, we\u2019ve made these decisions based on some combination of what has (historically, anyway) given us the best results, what is safest, what is most efficient, and what costs us the least money.In a nutshell, that\u2019s why liquid fuel is so valuable. So far, it\u2019s the clear winner when we need energy for transportation\u2014especially air transportation and heavy, long-distance shipping\u2014because it allows you to stuff a lot of energy into relatively small amount of storage space, and easily refill on the go. There are other options, of course, like electricity. And that can work quite well, depending on what you\u2019re trying to do. Eventually, we may find ourselves in a world where liquid fuel is no longer the best option. But we aren\u2019t there yet. And for those forms of transport that take us into the air or move our belongings very long distances, we aren't likely to get there for a good long time.That's why I care about liquid fuel, and why I'm interested in the future of biofuels. Yes, biofuels do have a future. But what that future will be depends on whether we can control for some very messy variables. Here, in three points, are the big things you need to know about biofuel.1. Corn ethanol really is flawed. But maybe not as much as you think.Biofuel is a nice, round word encompassing a lot of tricky, little, oddly shaped dots. You can make biofuel from lots of different things, in lots of different ways. Corn ethanol, cellulosic ethanol, bio-oil, bio-diesel, algae oil\u2014they all have some benefits and some detriments, which means they all have some big backers and some big haters. Right now, any biofuel produced at a big, commercially useful scale is bound to be ethanol, and in the United Sates, that means corn ethanol. But, from what I see, the evidence favors using options that aren\u2019t dependent on a dedicated corn crop. That\u2019s not to say that corn ethanol is the devil\u2014its bad reputation comes, at least in part, from backlash against some pretty heinous overselling\u2014but it does have some big drawbacks and we might have an easier time making truly Green biofuels another way.Part of this stems from corn\u2019s big appetite for inputs, like fertilizer. Those inputs represent energy spent, and energy spent is (in today\u2019s world) greenhouse gas emissions produced. The more energy you have to spend on producing a biofuel\u2014from making fertilizer and running the tractor for annual replanting, to powering the fuel production process and shipping fuel to the gas station\u2014the less benefit you actually end up with at the end. There are lots of different ways to tally those numbers up, but Argonne National Laboratory has one of the best calculators around. Called GREET\u2014a perky, welcoming acronym for The Greenhouse Gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy Use in Transportation Model\u2014it\u2019s a software program that adds up all the different ways energy is used and greenhouse gases are emitted over the life of a fuel, and runs simulations based on variables like geographic location, types of farming methods, and types of fuel production methods.GREET figures that corn ethanol really can be better than gasoline. You can get more energy out of a gallon of corn ethanol than you used to make it. And a gallon of corn ethanol can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by somewhere between 18% and 28%, compared to a gallon of gasoline.But here comes our friend, the yesbut. Yes, you can get an emissions benefit from corn ethanol. But, this only works if the ethanol plant is powered by natural gas. If it runs on coal, you\u2019re not reducing emissions at all.Also: The picture only looks this rosy when you compare corn ethanol to gasoline, but not to any of the other competing biofuels. A 28% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions sounds fabulous, until you look at cellulosic biofuels\u2014made from things like grass, stems, wood chips, and trash paper. There\u2019s lots of different ways to make cellulosic biofuels, including a cellulosic version of ethanol, and they reduce emissions by a whopping 82%-to-87%. Nobody is producing them at scale yet, but in a world of limited time and resources, cellulosic biofuels look like a better bang for our buck. Plus, you get some ancillary benefits from the plants that make cellulosics that corn can't match, including improvements to soil quality, and reduction of erosion.2. We can screw up cellulosic biofuel, too.It\u2019s important that I don\u2019t give cellulosic biofuels the used-car lot megaphone treatment that corn ethanol received. They\u2019re better, not perfect, and a lot of the research being done on cellulosic biofuels is focused on figuring out how to not screw them up. They could still backfire spectacularly\u2014driving up food prices, dumping more fertilizer into the Mississippi, or even increasing the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. To keep that from happening, scientists say we have to pay a lot of attention to what\u2019s being grown, and where.For instance, in the Midwest, it\u2019s likely the best biofuel crop won\u2019t be a single crop at all. David Tilman, an ecologist at the University of Minnesota and winner of the 2008 International Prize for Biology, has been studying prairie plant biofuels for more than a decade.Out on the prairie, Tilman and his team found significant problems with growing a field of nothing but switch grass. By its lonesome, the grass grows in the sickly, patchy style of a 15-year-old\u2019s goatee\u2014creating a temptation to douse it in fertilizer. After seven years, Tilman said, it usually needs to be plowed under and planted again. But when the team planted a mix of four native grasses and four native legumes\u2014think alfalfa or clover\u2014the results were very different. Together, the plants grew in a thick mass and didn\u2019t need to be re-seeded or fertilized. After 10 years, Tilman found these mixtures were producing 238 percent more energy, every year, than any one plant grown alone. They also made the soil more fertile, naturally increasing levels of nitrogen and phosphorous. \u201cIt makes sense,\u201d Tilman said. \u201cIt\u2019s a mixture of prairie plants that made that soil to begin with.\u201dBut even the most well-meaning, soil-enriching mix of plants has to deal with the problem of land-use change.3. Land use matters. But there's still a lot we don't know about that.Direct land-use change is easy to wrap one\u2019s head around. Say you own an acre of timber and you decide to clear it, because you can get a good price for growing biofuel crops there, instead. That timber was locking in a lot of carbon in the form of trees, and plants, and virgin soil. Depending on what happens to the trees, and how you treat that soil, you can end up inadvertently releasing a lot of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Enough to affect the net emissions of the biofuel crop you grow there later.Indirect land-use change is a little more thorny. The world, as they say, is flat. An acre of corn or wheat grown in the United States isn\u2019t merely used to fatten American cattle or bake American bread. We participate in a global food market and what we do here has consequences abroad. So, if a farmer in the Midwest decides that she\u2019s going to take an acre of corn and replant it with a prairie grass and legume mix for biofuel, what happens?Some experts are worried it would lead to an decrease in availability of corn, which would lead to a rise in the price of corn, and a farmer in some other part of the world, or even just another part of the U.S., deciding that he\u2019s going to capture that cash benefit by taking an acre of timber and turning it into an acre of corn. Or, just as bad, that the price increase would lead someone, somewhere, to go hungry.At first glance, that logic sounds foolproof. And most researchers agree that it has to be taken into account and studied as we plan the future of energy. But, when you ask how big an impact land\u2014use change might have\u2014that\u2019s when the experts start to disagree.There are some researchers who think land-use change basically negates the usefulness of all but a tiny portion of biofuels that come from certain farm, industrial, and municipal wastes. There are others who think that it won\u2019t really be a problem. Based on the majority of scientists I've spoken with and the research I've read, I think the reality lies somewhere in between, and that there\u2019s a good chance cellulosic fuels can skirt the issue if they\u2019re done the way people like David Tilman have proposed.At the heart of this debate: How well the computer models used to predict land-use change reflect reality. A model is only as accurate as the assumptions that go into it, and critics say that the worst-case-scenarios are based on some pretty faulty assumptions. First, there\u2019s the assumption that increased demand for a crop like corn will inevitably lead to deforestation, or plowing under previously wild land. But in the United States, as well as overseas, there\u2019s a surprising amount of previously cleared land that isn\u2019t being used to grow much of anything, either because farmers have been paid a subsidy to leave it fallow, or because the land turned out to be no good for annual row crops, or, as is common in developing countries like Brazil, because cleared land is owned land\u2014even if you\u2019re just keeping one cow on it.\u201cWe\u2019re only using between half and a fourth of all previously cleared forest land on Earth for crop production in any given year,\u201d says Keith Kline, a global change and developing countries analyst with the Oak Ridge National Laboratory.Kline, who worked in developing countries for 22 years studying and promoting biodiversity, is one of several scientists I spoke with who said that\u2014contrary to some land-use change models\u2014deforestation is not about crop prices. At least, not solely. Social and cultural factors\u2014like the desire to own land you can get for free just by clearing it\u2014are equally important. You can\u2019t assume that a rise in global crop prices will naturally lead to an increase in deforestation, or that deforestation would stop if crop prices stayed the same or went down. In fact, according to Kline, the highest rates of deforestation worldwide happened in the 1990s, before the ethanol boom in the U.S. and at a time when food commodity prices were consistently low. And deforestation rates have been falling ever since.The second bad assumption the worst-case models make is that the same amount of land can\u2019t grow more crops. Perennial mixes for cellulosic biofuels could actually be grown alongside row crops, or on the same land, between the harvest and next planting, Tilman told me. At the same time, crop yields\u2014the amount of useable stuff you can grow without increasing the square footage\u2014have consistently gone up, every year, in the United States. That happens in small increments today, but there\u2019s plenty of room for yields to improve dramatically overseas. The productivity of what you do with the crops can also increase. For instance, most corn is actually used for feeding livestock, not people. But less corn being available doesn\u2019t necessarily mean people eat less meat. Instead, they might just switch the kind of meat they eat. It takes about 10x as much corn to grow a pound of beef as it takes to grow a pound of chicken.Finally, some predictions in the worst-case models don\u2019t match up with what we\u2019ve seen in the real-world. They assume corn exports will go down, as U.S. ethanol production rises, leading to those higher global prices that theoretically inspire deforestation to begin with. But that\u2019s not what happened. Instead, in 2007, as corn ethanol production in America hit 6 billion gallons, corn exports rose by 14 percent, compared to the previous year. In fact, they\u2019ve been, generally, trending on the rise since 2003.\nQuestion: How can the amount of crops grown at the same time on a piece of land be increased?\nAnswer:", " taking care of where the crops are placed"], ["3 things you need to know about biofuelsWhy care about liquid fuel?There\u2019s a reason we use different forms of energy to do different jobs, and it\u2019s not because we\u2019re all just that fickle. Instead, we\u2019ve made these decisions based on some combination of what has (historically, anyway) given us the best results, what is safest, what is most efficient, and what costs us the least money.In a nutshell, that\u2019s why liquid fuel is so valuable. So far, it\u2019s the clear winner when we need energy for transportation\u2014especially air transportation and heavy, long-distance shipping\u2014because it allows you to stuff a lot of energy into relatively small amount of storage space, and easily refill on the go. There are other options, of course, like electricity. And that can work quite well, depending on what you\u2019re trying to do. Eventually, we may find ourselves in a world where liquid fuel is no longer the best option. But we aren\u2019t there yet. And for those forms of transport that take us into the air or move our belongings very long distances, we aren't likely to get there for a good long time.That's why I care about liquid fuel, and why I'm interested in the future of biofuels. Yes, biofuels do have a future. But what that future will be depends on whether we can control for some very messy variables. Here, in three points, are the big things you need to know about biofuel.1. Corn ethanol really is flawed. But maybe not as much as you think.Biofuel is a nice, round word encompassing a lot of tricky, little, oddly shaped dots. You can make biofuel from lots of different things, in lots of different ways. Corn ethanol, cellulosic ethanol, bio-oil, bio-diesel, algae oil\u2014they all have some benefits and some detriments, which means they all have some big backers and some big haters. Right now, any biofuel produced at a big, commercially useful scale is bound to be ethanol, and in the United Sates, that means corn ethanol. But, from what I see, the evidence favors using options that aren\u2019t dependent on a dedicated corn crop. That\u2019s not to say that corn ethanol is the devil\u2014its bad reputation comes, at least in part, from backlash against some pretty heinous overselling\u2014but it does have some big drawbacks and we might have an easier time making truly Green biofuels another way.Part of this stems from corn\u2019s big appetite for inputs, like fertilizer. Those inputs represent energy spent, and energy spent is (in today\u2019s world) greenhouse gas emissions produced. The more energy you have to spend on producing a biofuel\u2014from making fertilizer and running the tractor for annual replanting, to powering the fuel production process and shipping fuel to the gas station\u2014the less benefit you actually end up with at the end. There are lots of different ways to tally those numbers up, but Argonne National Laboratory has one of the best calculators around. Called GREET\u2014a perky, welcoming acronym for The Greenhouse Gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy Use in Transportation Model\u2014it\u2019s a software program that adds up all the different ways energy is used and greenhouse gases are emitted over the life of a fuel, and runs simulations based on variables like geographic location, types of farming methods, and types of fuel production methods.GREET figures that corn ethanol really can be better than gasoline. You can get more energy out of a gallon of corn ethanol than you used to make it. And a gallon of corn ethanol can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by somewhere between 18% and 28%, compared to a gallon of gasoline.But here comes our friend, the yesbut. Yes, you can get an emissions benefit from corn ethanol. But, this only works if the ethanol plant is powered by natural gas. If it runs on coal, you\u2019re not reducing emissions at all.Also: The picture only looks this rosy when you compare corn ethanol to gasoline, but not to any of the other competing biofuels. A 28% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions sounds fabulous, until you look at cellulosic biofuels\u2014made from things like grass, stems, wood chips, and trash paper. There\u2019s lots of different ways to make cellulosic biofuels, including a cellulosic version of ethanol, and they reduce emissions by a whopping 82%-to-87%. Nobody is producing them at scale yet, but in a world of limited time and resources, cellulosic biofuels look like a better bang for our buck. Plus, you get some ancillary benefits from the plants that make cellulosics that corn can't match, including improvements to soil quality, and reduction of erosion.2. We can screw up cellulosic biofuel, too.It\u2019s important that I don\u2019t give cellulosic biofuels the used-car lot megaphone treatment that corn ethanol received. They\u2019re better, not perfect, and a lot of the research being done on cellulosic biofuels is focused on figuring out how to not screw them up. They could still backfire spectacularly\u2014driving up food prices, dumping more fertilizer into the Mississippi, or even increasing the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. To keep that from happening, scientists say we have to pay a lot of attention to what\u2019s being grown, and where.For instance, in the Midwest, it\u2019s likely the best biofuel crop won\u2019t be a single crop at all. David Tilman, an ecologist at the University of Minnesota and winner of the 2008 International Prize for Biology, has been studying prairie plant biofuels for more than a decade.Out on the prairie, Tilman and his team found significant problems with growing a field of nothing but switch grass. By its lonesome, the grass grows in the sickly, patchy style of a 15-year-old\u2019s goatee\u2014creating a temptation to douse it in fertilizer. After seven years, Tilman said, it usually needs to be plowed under and planted again. But when the team planted a mix of four native grasses and four native legumes\u2014think alfalfa or clover\u2014the results were very different. Together, the plants grew in a thick mass and didn\u2019t need to be re-seeded or fertilized. After 10 years, Tilman found these mixtures were producing 238 percent more energy, every year, than any one plant grown alone. They also made the soil more fertile, naturally increasing levels of nitrogen and phosphorous. \u201cIt makes sense,\u201d Tilman said. \u201cIt\u2019s a mixture of prairie plants that made that soil to begin with.\u201dBut even the most well-meaning, soil-enriching mix of plants has to deal with the problem of land-use change.3. Land use matters. But there's still a lot we don't know about that.Direct land-use change is easy to wrap one\u2019s head around. Say you own an acre of timber and you decide to clear it, because you can get a good price for growing biofuel crops there, instead. That timber was locking in a lot of carbon in the form of trees, and plants, and virgin soil. Depending on what happens to the trees, and how you treat that soil, you can end up inadvertently releasing a lot of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Enough to affect the net emissions of the biofuel crop you grow there later.Indirect land-use change is a little more thorny. The world, as they say, is flat. An acre of corn or wheat grown in the United States isn\u2019t merely used to fatten American cattle or bake American bread. We participate in a global food market and what we do here has consequences abroad. So, if a farmer in the Midwest decides that she\u2019s going to take an acre of corn and replant it with a prairie grass and legume mix for biofuel, what happens?Some experts are worried it would lead to an decrease in availability of corn, which would lead to a rise in the price of corn, and a farmer in some other part of the world, or even just another part of the U.S., deciding that he\u2019s going to capture that cash benefit by taking an acre of timber and turning it into an acre of corn. Or, just as bad, that the price increase would lead someone, somewhere, to go hungry.At first glance, that logic sounds foolproof. And most researchers agree that it has to be taken into account and studied as we plan the future of energy. But, when you ask how big an impact land\u2014use change might have\u2014that\u2019s when the experts start to disagree.There are some researchers who think land-use change basically negates the usefulness of all but a tiny portion of biofuels that come from certain farm, industrial, and municipal wastes. There are others who think that it won\u2019t really be a problem. Based on the majority of scientists I've spoken with and the research I've read, I think the reality lies somewhere in between, and that there\u2019s a good chance cellulosic fuels can skirt the issue if they\u2019re done the way people like David Tilman have proposed.At the heart of this debate: How well the computer models used to predict land-use change reflect reality. A model is only as accurate as the assumptions that go into it, and critics say that the worst-case-scenarios are based on some pretty faulty assumptions. First, there\u2019s the assumption that increased demand for a crop like corn will inevitably lead to deforestation, or plowing under previously wild land. But in the United States, as well as overseas, there\u2019s a surprising amount of previously cleared land that isn\u2019t being used to grow much of anything, either because farmers have been paid a subsidy to leave it fallow, or because the land turned out to be no good for annual row crops, or, as is common in developing countries like Brazil, because cleared land is owned land\u2014even if you\u2019re just keeping one cow on it.\u201cWe\u2019re only using between half and a fourth of all previously cleared forest land on Earth for crop production in any given year,\u201d says Keith Kline, a global change and developing countries analyst with the Oak Ridge National Laboratory.Kline, who worked in developing countries for 22 years studying and promoting biodiversity, is one of several scientists I spoke with who said that\u2014contrary to some land-use change models\u2014deforestation is not about crop prices. At least, not solely. Social and cultural factors\u2014like the desire to own land you can get for free just by clearing it\u2014are equally important. You can\u2019t assume that a rise in global crop prices will naturally lead to an increase in deforestation, or that deforestation would stop if crop prices stayed the same or went down. In fact, according to Kline, the highest rates of deforestation worldwide happened in the 1990s, before the ethanol boom in the U.S. and at a time when food commodity prices were consistently low. And deforestation rates have been falling ever since.The second bad assumption the worst-case models make is that the same amount of land can\u2019t grow more crops. Perennial mixes for cellulosic biofuels could actually be grown alongside row crops, or on the same land, between the harvest and next planting, Tilman told me. At the same time, crop yields\u2014the amount of useable stuff you can grow without increasing the square footage\u2014have consistently gone up, every year, in the United States. That happens in small increments today, but there\u2019s plenty of room for yields to improve dramatically overseas. The productivity of what you do with the crops can also increase. For instance, most corn is actually used for feeding livestock, not people. But less corn being available doesn\u2019t necessarily mean people eat less meat. Instead, they might just switch the kind of meat they eat. It takes about 10x as much corn to grow a pound of beef as it takes to grow a pound of chicken.Finally, some predictions in the worst-case models don\u2019t match up with what we\u2019ve seen in the real-world. They assume corn exports will go down, as U.S. ethanol production rises, leading to those higher global prices that theoretically inspire deforestation to begin with. But that\u2019s not what happened. Instead, in 2007, as corn ethanol production in America hit 6 billion gallons, corn exports rose by 14 percent, compared to the previous year. In fact, they\u2019ve been, generally, trending on the rise since 2003.\nQuestion: How can the amount of crops grown at the same time on a piece of land be increased?\nAnswer:", " decreasing nitrogen levels"], ["3 things you need to know about biofuelsWhy care about liquid fuel?There\u2019s a reason we use different forms of energy to do different jobs, and it\u2019s not because we\u2019re all just that fickle. Instead, we\u2019ve made these decisions based on some combination of what has (historically, anyway) given us the best results, what is safest, what is most efficient, and what costs us the least money.In a nutshell, that\u2019s why liquid fuel is so valuable. So far, it\u2019s the clear winner when we need energy for transportation\u2014especially air transportation and heavy, long-distance shipping\u2014because it allows you to stuff a lot of energy into relatively small amount of storage space, and easily refill on the go. There are other options, of course, like electricity. And that can work quite well, depending on what you\u2019re trying to do. Eventually, we may find ourselves in a world where liquid fuel is no longer the best option. But we aren\u2019t there yet. And for those forms of transport that take us into the air or move our belongings very long distances, we aren't likely to get there for a good long time.That's why I care about liquid fuel, and why I'm interested in the future of biofuels. Yes, biofuels do have a future. But what that future will be depends on whether we can control for some very messy variables. Here, in three points, are the big things you need to know about biofuel.1. Corn ethanol really is flawed. But maybe not as much as you think.Biofuel is a nice, round word encompassing a lot of tricky, little, oddly shaped dots. You can make biofuel from lots of different things, in lots of different ways. Corn ethanol, cellulosic ethanol, bio-oil, bio-diesel, algae oil\u2014they all have some benefits and some detriments, which means they all have some big backers and some big haters. Right now, any biofuel produced at a big, commercially useful scale is bound to be ethanol, and in the United Sates, that means corn ethanol. But, from what I see, the evidence favors using options that aren\u2019t dependent on a dedicated corn crop. That\u2019s not to say that corn ethanol is the devil\u2014its bad reputation comes, at least in part, from backlash against some pretty heinous overselling\u2014but it does have some big drawbacks and we might have an easier time making truly Green biofuels another way.Part of this stems from corn\u2019s big appetite for inputs, like fertilizer. Those inputs represent energy spent, and energy spent is (in today\u2019s world) greenhouse gas emissions produced. The more energy you have to spend on producing a biofuel\u2014from making fertilizer and running the tractor for annual replanting, to powering the fuel production process and shipping fuel to the gas station\u2014the less benefit you actually end up with at the end. There are lots of different ways to tally those numbers up, but Argonne National Laboratory has one of the best calculators around. Called GREET\u2014a perky, welcoming acronym for The Greenhouse Gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy Use in Transportation Model\u2014it\u2019s a software program that adds up all the different ways energy is used and greenhouse gases are emitted over the life of a fuel, and runs simulations based on variables like geographic location, types of farming methods, and types of fuel production methods.GREET figures that corn ethanol really can be better than gasoline. You can get more energy out of a gallon of corn ethanol than you used to make it. And a gallon of corn ethanol can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by somewhere between 18% and 28%, compared to a gallon of gasoline.But here comes our friend, the yesbut. Yes, you can get an emissions benefit from corn ethanol. But, this only works if the ethanol plant is powered by natural gas. If it runs on coal, you\u2019re not reducing emissions at all.Also: The picture only looks this rosy when you compare corn ethanol to gasoline, but not to any of the other competing biofuels. A 28% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions sounds fabulous, until you look at cellulosic biofuels\u2014made from things like grass, stems, wood chips, and trash paper. There\u2019s lots of different ways to make cellulosic biofuels, including a cellulosic version of ethanol, and they reduce emissions by a whopping 82%-to-87%. Nobody is producing them at scale yet, but in a world of limited time and resources, cellulosic biofuels look like a better bang for our buck. Plus, you get some ancillary benefits from the plants that make cellulosics that corn can't match, including improvements to soil quality, and reduction of erosion.2. We can screw up cellulosic biofuel, too.It\u2019s important that I don\u2019t give cellulosic biofuels the used-car lot megaphone treatment that corn ethanol received. They\u2019re better, not perfect, and a lot of the research being done on cellulosic biofuels is focused on figuring out how to not screw them up. They could still backfire spectacularly\u2014driving up food prices, dumping more fertilizer into the Mississippi, or even increasing the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. To keep that from happening, scientists say we have to pay a lot of attention to what\u2019s being grown, and where.For instance, in the Midwest, it\u2019s likely the best biofuel crop won\u2019t be a single crop at all. David Tilman, an ecologist at the University of Minnesota and winner of the 2008 International Prize for Biology, has been studying prairie plant biofuels for more than a decade.Out on the prairie, Tilman and his team found significant problems with growing a field of nothing but switch grass. By its lonesome, the grass grows in the sickly, patchy style of a 15-year-old\u2019s goatee\u2014creating a temptation to douse it in fertilizer. After seven years, Tilman said, it usually needs to be plowed under and planted again. But when the team planted a mix of four native grasses and four native legumes\u2014think alfalfa or clover\u2014the results were very different. Together, the plants grew in a thick mass and didn\u2019t need to be re-seeded or fertilized. After 10 years, Tilman found these mixtures were producing 238 percent more energy, every year, than any one plant grown alone. They also made the soil more fertile, naturally increasing levels of nitrogen and phosphorous. \u201cIt makes sense,\u201d Tilman said. \u201cIt\u2019s a mixture of prairie plants that made that soil to begin with.\u201dBut even the most well-meaning, soil-enriching mix of plants has to deal with the problem of land-use change.3. Land use matters. But there's still a lot we don't know about that.Direct land-use change is easy to wrap one\u2019s head around. Say you own an acre of timber and you decide to clear it, because you can get a good price for growing biofuel crops there, instead. That timber was locking in a lot of carbon in the form of trees, and plants, and virgin soil. Depending on what happens to the trees, and how you treat that soil, you can end up inadvertently releasing a lot of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Enough to affect the net emissions of the biofuel crop you grow there later.Indirect land-use change is a little more thorny. The world, as they say, is flat. An acre of corn or wheat grown in the United States isn\u2019t merely used to fatten American cattle or bake American bread. We participate in a global food market and what we do here has consequences abroad. So, if a farmer in the Midwest decides that she\u2019s going to take an acre of corn and replant it with a prairie grass and legume mix for biofuel, what happens?Some experts are worried it would lead to an decrease in availability of corn, which would lead to a rise in the price of corn, and a farmer in some other part of the world, or even just another part of the U.S., deciding that he\u2019s going to capture that cash benefit by taking an acre of timber and turning it into an acre of corn. Or, just as bad, that the price increase would lead someone, somewhere, to go hungry.At first glance, that logic sounds foolproof. And most researchers agree that it has to be taken into account and studied as we plan the future of energy. But, when you ask how big an impact land\u2014use change might have\u2014that\u2019s when the experts start to disagree.There are some researchers who think land-use change basically negates the usefulness of all but a tiny portion of biofuels that come from certain farm, industrial, and municipal wastes. There are others who think that it won\u2019t really be a problem. Based on the majority of scientists I've spoken with and the research I've read, I think the reality lies somewhere in between, and that there\u2019s a good chance cellulosic fuels can skirt the issue if they\u2019re done the way people like David Tilman have proposed.At the heart of this debate: How well the computer models used to predict land-use change reflect reality. A model is only as accurate as the assumptions that go into it, and critics say that the worst-case-scenarios are based on some pretty faulty assumptions. First, there\u2019s the assumption that increased demand for a crop like corn will inevitably lead to deforestation, or plowing under previously wild land. But in the United States, as well as overseas, there\u2019s a surprising amount of previously cleared land that isn\u2019t being used to grow much of anything, either because farmers have been paid a subsidy to leave it fallow, or because the land turned out to be no good for annual row crops, or, as is common in developing countries like Brazil, because cleared land is owned land\u2014even if you\u2019re just keeping one cow on it.\u201cWe\u2019re only using between half and a fourth of all previously cleared forest land on Earth for crop production in any given year,\u201d says Keith Kline, a global change and developing countries analyst with the Oak Ridge National Laboratory.Kline, who worked in developing countries for 22 years studying and promoting biodiversity, is one of several scientists I spoke with who said that\u2014contrary to some land-use change models\u2014deforestation is not about crop prices. At least, not solely. Social and cultural factors\u2014like the desire to own land you can get for free just by clearing it\u2014are equally important. You can\u2019t assume that a rise in global crop prices will naturally lead to an increase in deforestation, or that deforestation would stop if crop prices stayed the same or went down. In fact, according to Kline, the highest rates of deforestation worldwide happened in the 1990s, before the ethanol boom in the U.S. and at a time when food commodity prices were consistently low. And deforestation rates have been falling ever since.The second bad assumption the worst-case models make is that the same amount of land can\u2019t grow more crops. Perennial mixes for cellulosic biofuels could actually be grown alongside row crops, or on the same land, between the harvest and next planting, Tilman told me. At the same time, crop yields\u2014the amount of useable stuff you can grow without increasing the square footage\u2014have consistently gone up, every year, in the United States. That happens in small increments today, but there\u2019s plenty of room for yields to improve dramatically overseas. The productivity of what you do with the crops can also increase. For instance, most corn is actually used for feeding livestock, not people. But less corn being available doesn\u2019t necessarily mean people eat less meat. Instead, they might just switch the kind of meat they eat. It takes about 10x as much corn to grow a pound of beef as it takes to grow a pound of chicken.Finally, some predictions in the worst-case models don\u2019t match up with what we\u2019ve seen in the real-world. They assume corn exports will go down, as U.S. ethanol production rises, leading to those higher global prices that theoretically inspire deforestation to begin with. But that\u2019s not what happened. Instead, in 2007, as corn ethanol production in America hit 6 billion gallons, corn exports rose by 14 percent, compared to the previous year. In fact, they\u2019ve been, generally, trending on the rise since 2003.\nQuestion: How can the amount of crops grown at the same time on a piece of land be increased?\nAnswer:", " growing the crops in adjacent rows"], ["3 things you need to know about biofuelsWhy care about liquid fuel?There\u2019s a reason we use different forms of energy to do different jobs, and it\u2019s not because we\u2019re all just that fickle. Instead, we\u2019ve made these decisions based on some combination of what has (historically, anyway) given us the best results, what is safest, what is most efficient, and what costs us the least money.In a nutshell, that\u2019s why liquid fuel is so valuable. So far, it\u2019s the clear winner when we need energy for transportation\u2014especially air transportation and heavy, long-distance shipping\u2014because it allows you to stuff a lot of energy into relatively small amount of storage space, and easily refill on the go. There are other options, of course, like electricity. And that can work quite well, depending on what you\u2019re trying to do. Eventually, we may find ourselves in a world where liquid fuel is no longer the best option. But we aren\u2019t there yet. And for those forms of transport that take us into the air or move our belongings very long distances, we aren't likely to get there for a good long time.That's why I care about liquid fuel, and why I'm interested in the future of biofuels. Yes, biofuels do have a future. But what that future will be depends on whether we can control for some very messy variables. Here, in three points, are the big things you need to know about biofuel.1. Corn ethanol really is flawed. But maybe not as much as you think.Biofuel is a nice, round word encompassing a lot of tricky, little, oddly shaped dots. You can make biofuel from lots of different things, in lots of different ways. Corn ethanol, cellulosic ethanol, bio-oil, bio-diesel, algae oil\u2014they all have some benefits and some detriments, which means they all have some big backers and some big haters. Right now, any biofuel produced at a big, commercially useful scale is bound to be ethanol, and in the United Sates, that means corn ethanol. But, from what I see, the evidence favors using options that aren\u2019t dependent on a dedicated corn crop. That\u2019s not to say that corn ethanol is the devil\u2014its bad reputation comes, at least in part, from backlash against some pretty heinous overselling\u2014but it does have some big drawbacks and we might have an easier time making truly Green biofuels another way.Part of this stems from corn\u2019s big appetite for inputs, like fertilizer. Those inputs represent energy spent, and energy spent is (in today\u2019s world) greenhouse gas emissions produced. The more energy you have to spend on producing a biofuel\u2014from making fertilizer and running the tractor for annual replanting, to powering the fuel production process and shipping fuel to the gas station\u2014the less benefit you actually end up with at the end. There are lots of different ways to tally those numbers up, but Argonne National Laboratory has one of the best calculators around. Called GREET\u2014a perky, welcoming acronym for The Greenhouse Gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy Use in Transportation Model\u2014it\u2019s a software program that adds up all the different ways energy is used and greenhouse gases are emitted over the life of a fuel, and runs simulations based on variables like geographic location, types of farming methods, and types of fuel production methods.GREET figures that corn ethanol really can be better than gasoline. You can get more energy out of a gallon of corn ethanol than you used to make it. And a gallon of corn ethanol can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by somewhere between 18% and 28%, compared to a gallon of gasoline.But here comes our friend, the yesbut. Yes, you can get an emissions benefit from corn ethanol. But, this only works if the ethanol plant is powered by natural gas. If it runs on coal, you\u2019re not reducing emissions at all.Also: The picture only looks this rosy when you compare corn ethanol to gasoline, but not to any of the other competing biofuels. A 28% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions sounds fabulous, until you look at cellulosic biofuels\u2014made from things like grass, stems, wood chips, and trash paper. There\u2019s lots of different ways to make cellulosic biofuels, including a cellulosic version of ethanol, and they reduce emissions by a whopping 82%-to-87%. Nobody is producing them at scale yet, but in a world of limited time and resources, cellulosic biofuels look like a better bang for our buck. Plus, you get some ancillary benefits from the plants that make cellulosics that corn can't match, including improvements to soil quality, and reduction of erosion.2. We can screw up cellulosic biofuel, too.It\u2019s important that I don\u2019t give cellulosic biofuels the used-car lot megaphone treatment that corn ethanol received. They\u2019re better, not perfect, and a lot of the research being done on cellulosic biofuels is focused on figuring out how to not screw them up. They could still backfire spectacularly\u2014driving up food prices, dumping more fertilizer into the Mississippi, or even increasing the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. To keep that from happening, scientists say we have to pay a lot of attention to what\u2019s being grown, and where.For instance, in the Midwest, it\u2019s likely the best biofuel crop won\u2019t be a single crop at all. David Tilman, an ecologist at the University of Minnesota and winner of the 2008 International Prize for Biology, has been studying prairie plant biofuels for more than a decade.Out on the prairie, Tilman and his team found significant problems with growing a field of nothing but switch grass. By its lonesome, the grass grows in the sickly, patchy style of a 15-year-old\u2019s goatee\u2014creating a temptation to douse it in fertilizer. After seven years, Tilman said, it usually needs to be plowed under and planted again. But when the team planted a mix of four native grasses and four native legumes\u2014think alfalfa or clover\u2014the results were very different. Together, the plants grew in a thick mass and didn\u2019t need to be re-seeded or fertilized. After 10 years, Tilman found these mixtures were producing 238 percent more energy, every year, than any one plant grown alone. They also made the soil more fertile, naturally increasing levels of nitrogen and phosphorous. \u201cIt makes sense,\u201d Tilman said. \u201cIt\u2019s a mixture of prairie plants that made that soil to begin with.\u201dBut even the most well-meaning, soil-enriching mix of plants has to deal with the problem of land-use change.3. Land use matters. But there's still a lot we don't know about that.Direct land-use change is easy to wrap one\u2019s head around. Say you own an acre of timber and you decide to clear it, because you can get a good price for growing biofuel crops there, instead. That timber was locking in a lot of carbon in the form of trees, and plants, and virgin soil. Depending on what happens to the trees, and how you treat that soil, you can end up inadvertently releasing a lot of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Enough to affect the net emissions of the biofuel crop you grow there later.Indirect land-use change is a little more thorny. The world, as they say, is flat. An acre of corn or wheat grown in the United States isn\u2019t merely used to fatten American cattle or bake American bread. We participate in a global food market and what we do here has consequences abroad. So, if a farmer in the Midwest decides that she\u2019s going to take an acre of corn and replant it with a prairie grass and legume mix for biofuel, what happens?Some experts are worried it would lead to an decrease in availability of corn, which would lead to a rise in the price of corn, and a farmer in some other part of the world, or even just another part of the U.S., deciding that he\u2019s going to capture that cash benefit by taking an acre of timber and turning it into an acre of corn. Or, just as bad, that the price increase would lead someone, somewhere, to go hungry.At first glance, that logic sounds foolproof. And most researchers agree that it has to be taken into account and studied as we plan the future of energy. But, when you ask how big an impact land\u2014use change might have\u2014that\u2019s when the experts start to disagree.There are some researchers who think land-use change basically negates the usefulness of all but a tiny portion of biofuels that come from certain farm, industrial, and municipal wastes. There are others who think that it won\u2019t really be a problem. Based on the majority of scientists I've spoken with and the research I've read, I think the reality lies somewhere in between, and that there\u2019s a good chance cellulosic fuels can skirt the issue if they\u2019re done the way people like David Tilman have proposed.At the heart of this debate: How well the computer models used to predict land-use change reflect reality. A model is only as accurate as the assumptions that go into it, and critics say that the worst-case-scenarios are based on some pretty faulty assumptions. First, there\u2019s the assumption that increased demand for a crop like corn will inevitably lead to deforestation, or plowing under previously wild land. But in the United States, as well as overseas, there\u2019s a surprising amount of previously cleared land that isn\u2019t being used to grow much of anything, either because farmers have been paid a subsidy to leave it fallow, or because the land turned out to be no good for annual row crops, or, as is common in developing countries like Brazil, because cleared land is owned land\u2014even if you\u2019re just keeping one cow on it.\u201cWe\u2019re only using between half and a fourth of all previously cleared forest land on Earth for crop production in any given year,\u201d says Keith Kline, a global change and developing countries analyst with the Oak Ridge National Laboratory.Kline, who worked in developing countries for 22 years studying and promoting biodiversity, is one of several scientists I spoke with who said that\u2014contrary to some land-use change models\u2014deforestation is not about crop prices. At least, not solely. Social and cultural factors\u2014like the desire to own land you can get for free just by clearing it\u2014are equally important. You can\u2019t assume that a rise in global crop prices will naturally lead to an increase in deforestation, or that deforestation would stop if crop prices stayed the same or went down. In fact, according to Kline, the highest rates of deforestation worldwide happened in the 1990s, before the ethanol boom in the U.S. and at a time when food commodity prices were consistently low. And deforestation rates have been falling ever since.The second bad assumption the worst-case models make is that the same amount of land can\u2019t grow more crops. Perennial mixes for cellulosic biofuels could actually be grown alongside row crops, or on the same land, between the harvest and next planting, Tilman told me. At the same time, crop yields\u2014the amount of useable stuff you can grow without increasing the square footage\u2014have consistently gone up, every year, in the United States. That happens in small increments today, but there\u2019s plenty of room for yields to improve dramatically overseas. The productivity of what you do with the crops can also increase. For instance, most corn is actually used for feeding livestock, not people. But less corn being available doesn\u2019t necessarily mean people eat less meat. Instead, they might just switch the kind of meat they eat. It takes about 10x as much corn to grow a pound of beef as it takes to grow a pound of chicken.Finally, some predictions in the worst-case models don\u2019t match up with what we\u2019ve seen in the real-world. They assume corn exports will go down, as U.S. ethanol production rises, leading to those higher global prices that theoretically inspire deforestation to begin with. But that\u2019s not what happened. Instead, in 2007, as corn ethanol production in America hit 6 billion gallons, corn exports rose by 14 percent, compared to the previous year. In fact, they\u2019ve been, generally, trending on the rise since 2003.\nQuestion: How can the amount of crops grown at the same time on a piece of land be increased?\nAnswer:", " increasing the amount of carbon released"], ["3 things you need to know about biofuelsWhy care about liquid fuel?There\u2019s a reason we use different forms of energy to do different jobs, and it\u2019s not because we\u2019re all just that fickle. Instead, we\u2019ve made these decisions based on some combination of what has (historically, anyway) given us the best results, what is safest, what is most efficient, and what costs us the least money.In a nutshell, that\u2019s why liquid fuel is so valuable. So far, it\u2019s the clear winner when we need energy for transportation\u2014especially air transportation and heavy, long-distance shipping\u2014because it allows you to stuff a lot of energy into relatively small amount of storage space, and easily refill on the go. There are other options, of course, like electricity. And that can work quite well, depending on what you\u2019re trying to do. Eventually, we may find ourselves in a world where liquid fuel is no longer the best option. But we aren\u2019t there yet. And for those forms of transport that take us into the air or move our belongings very long distances, we aren't likely to get there for a good long time.That's why I care about liquid fuel, and why I'm interested in the future of biofuels. Yes, biofuels do have a future. But what that future will be depends on whether we can control for some very messy variables. Here, in three points, are the big things you need to know about biofuel.1. Corn ethanol really is flawed. But maybe not as much as you think.Biofuel is a nice, round word encompassing a lot of tricky, little, oddly shaped dots. You can make biofuel from lots of different things, in lots of different ways. Corn ethanol, cellulosic ethanol, bio-oil, bio-diesel, algae oil\u2014they all have some benefits and some detriments, which means they all have some big backers and some big haters. Right now, any biofuel produced at a big, commercially useful scale is bound to be ethanol, and in the United Sates, that means corn ethanol. But, from what I see, the evidence favors using options that aren\u2019t dependent on a dedicated corn crop. That\u2019s not to say that corn ethanol is the devil\u2014its bad reputation comes, at least in part, from backlash against some pretty heinous overselling\u2014but it does have some big drawbacks and we might have an easier time making truly Green biofuels another way.Part of this stems from corn\u2019s big appetite for inputs, like fertilizer. Those inputs represent energy spent, and energy spent is (in today\u2019s world) greenhouse gas emissions produced. The more energy you have to spend on producing a biofuel\u2014from making fertilizer and running the tractor for annual replanting, to powering the fuel production process and shipping fuel to the gas station\u2014the less benefit you actually end up with at the end. There are lots of different ways to tally those numbers up, but Argonne National Laboratory has one of the best calculators around. Called GREET\u2014a perky, welcoming acronym for The Greenhouse Gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy Use in Transportation Model\u2014it\u2019s a software program that adds up all the different ways energy is used and greenhouse gases are emitted over the life of a fuel, and runs simulations based on variables like geographic location, types of farming methods, and types of fuel production methods.GREET figures that corn ethanol really can be better than gasoline. You can get more energy out of a gallon of corn ethanol than you used to make it. And a gallon of corn ethanol can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by somewhere between 18% and 28%, compared to a gallon of gasoline.But here comes our friend, the yesbut. Yes, you can get an emissions benefit from corn ethanol. But, this only works if the ethanol plant is powered by natural gas. If it runs on coal, you\u2019re not reducing emissions at all.Also: The picture only looks this rosy when you compare corn ethanol to gasoline, but not to any of the other competing biofuels. A 28% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions sounds fabulous, until you look at cellulosic biofuels\u2014made from things like grass, stems, wood chips, and trash paper. There\u2019s lots of different ways to make cellulosic biofuels, including a cellulosic version of ethanol, and they reduce emissions by a whopping 82%-to-87%. Nobody is producing them at scale yet, but in a world of limited time and resources, cellulosic biofuels look like a better bang for our buck. Plus, you get some ancillary benefits from the plants that make cellulosics that corn can't match, including improvements to soil quality, and reduction of erosion.2. We can screw up cellulosic biofuel, too.It\u2019s important that I don\u2019t give cellulosic biofuels the used-car lot megaphone treatment that corn ethanol received. They\u2019re better, not perfect, and a lot of the research being done on cellulosic biofuels is focused on figuring out how to not screw them up. They could still backfire spectacularly\u2014driving up food prices, dumping more fertilizer into the Mississippi, or even increasing the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. To keep that from happening, scientists say we have to pay a lot of attention to what\u2019s being grown, and where.For instance, in the Midwest, it\u2019s likely the best biofuel crop won\u2019t be a single crop at all. David Tilman, an ecologist at the University of Minnesota and winner of the 2008 International Prize for Biology, has been studying prairie plant biofuels for more than a decade.Out on the prairie, Tilman and his team found significant problems with growing a field of nothing but switch grass. By its lonesome, the grass grows in the sickly, patchy style of a 15-year-old\u2019s goatee\u2014creating a temptation to douse it in fertilizer. After seven years, Tilman said, it usually needs to be plowed under and planted again. But when the team planted a mix of four native grasses and four native legumes\u2014think alfalfa or clover\u2014the results were very different. Together, the plants grew in a thick mass and didn\u2019t need to be re-seeded or fertilized. After 10 years, Tilman found these mixtures were producing 238 percent more energy, every year, than any one plant grown alone. They also made the soil more fertile, naturally increasing levels of nitrogen and phosphorous. \u201cIt makes sense,\u201d Tilman said. \u201cIt\u2019s a mixture of prairie plants that made that soil to begin with.\u201dBut even the most well-meaning, soil-enriching mix of plants has to deal with the problem of land-use change.3. Land use matters. But there's still a lot we don't know about that.Direct land-use change is easy to wrap one\u2019s head around. Say you own an acre of timber and you decide to clear it, because you can get a good price for growing biofuel crops there, instead. That timber was locking in a lot of carbon in the form of trees, and plants, and virgin soil. Depending on what happens to the trees, and how you treat that soil, you can end up inadvertently releasing a lot of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Enough to affect the net emissions of the biofuel crop you grow there later.Indirect land-use change is a little more thorny. The world, as they say, is flat. An acre of corn or wheat grown in the United States isn\u2019t merely used to fatten American cattle or bake American bread. We participate in a global food market and what we do here has consequences abroad. So, if a farmer in the Midwest decides that she\u2019s going to take an acre of corn and replant it with a prairie grass and legume mix for biofuel, what happens?Some experts are worried it would lead to an decrease in availability of corn, which would lead to a rise in the price of corn, and a farmer in some other part of the world, or even just another part of the U.S., deciding that he\u2019s going to capture that cash benefit by taking an acre of timber and turning it into an acre of corn. Or, just as bad, that the price increase would lead someone, somewhere, to go hungry.At first glance, that logic sounds foolproof. And most researchers agree that it has to be taken into account and studied as we plan the future of energy. But, when you ask how big an impact land\u2014use change might have\u2014that\u2019s when the experts start to disagree.There are some researchers who think land-use change basically negates the usefulness of all but a tiny portion of biofuels that come from certain farm, industrial, and municipal wastes. There are others who think that it won\u2019t really be a problem. Based on the majority of scientists I've spoken with and the research I've read, I think the reality lies somewhere in between, and that there\u2019s a good chance cellulosic fuels can skirt the issue if they\u2019re done the way people like David Tilman have proposed.At the heart of this debate: How well the computer models used to predict land-use change reflect reality. A model is only as accurate as the assumptions that go into it, and critics say that the worst-case-scenarios are based on some pretty faulty assumptions. First, there\u2019s the assumption that increased demand for a crop like corn will inevitably lead to deforestation, or plowing under previously wild land. But in the United States, as well as overseas, there\u2019s a surprising amount of previously cleared land that isn\u2019t being used to grow much of anything, either because farmers have been paid a subsidy to leave it fallow, or because the land turned out to be no good for annual row crops, or, as is common in developing countries like Brazil, because cleared land is owned land\u2014even if you\u2019re just keeping one cow on it.\u201cWe\u2019re only using between half and a fourth of all previously cleared forest land on Earth for crop production in any given year,\u201d says Keith Kline, a global change and developing countries analyst with the Oak Ridge National Laboratory.Kline, who worked in developing countries for 22 years studying and promoting biodiversity, is one of several scientists I spoke with who said that\u2014contrary to some land-use change models\u2014deforestation is not about crop prices. At least, not solely. Social and cultural factors\u2014like the desire to own land you can get for free just by clearing it\u2014are equally important. You can\u2019t assume that a rise in global crop prices will naturally lead to an increase in deforestation, or that deforestation would stop if crop prices stayed the same or went down. In fact, according to Kline, the highest rates of deforestation worldwide happened in the 1990s, before the ethanol boom in the U.S. and at a time when food commodity prices were consistently low. And deforestation rates have been falling ever since.The second bad assumption the worst-case models make is that the same amount of land can\u2019t grow more crops. Perennial mixes for cellulosic biofuels could actually be grown alongside row crops, or on the same land, between the harvest and next planting, Tilman told me. At the same time, crop yields\u2014the amount of useable stuff you can grow without increasing the square footage\u2014have consistently gone up, every year, in the United States. That happens in small increments today, but there\u2019s plenty of room for yields to improve dramatically overseas. The productivity of what you do with the crops can also increase. For instance, most corn is actually used for feeding livestock, not people. But less corn being available doesn\u2019t necessarily mean people eat less meat. Instead, they might just switch the kind of meat they eat. It takes about 10x as much corn to grow a pound of beef as it takes to grow a pound of chicken.Finally, some predictions in the worst-case models don\u2019t match up with what we\u2019ve seen in the real-world. They assume corn exports will go down, as U.S. ethanol production rises, leading to those higher global prices that theoretically inspire deforestation to begin with. But that\u2019s not what happened. Instead, in 2007, as corn ethanol production in America hit 6 billion gallons, corn exports rose by 14 percent, compared to the previous year. In fact, they\u2019ve been, generally, trending on the rise since 2003.\nQuestion: How can the amount of crops grown at the same time on a piece of land be increased?\nAnswer:", " ploughing several times the land"], ["It's Only Alzheimer's, Not the Bloody Plague!A friend recently said to me, \u201cWhen my friends learned I had Alzheimer\u2019s, many looked at me as if I had some kind of contagious disease. Then, they just stopped calling or coming around. Don\u2019t they know it isn\u2019t the bloody plague?\u201dWhat It's NotI\u2019ve spent eight years with people who were in various  stages of Alzheimer\u2019s and other forms of dementia. Although my hospice patients in San Francisco were all in the later stages, I heard painful stories from their families of how people reacted to them when they still could function with some help.From others who are in the earlier stages, I heard identical stories involving relatives, long-time friends, and close colleagues who drifted away or interacted with them as if they :-Stepped back into their childhood-Possessed the mind of a developmentally delayed child.-Or became psychoticNone of these are true, yet as a society, we treat those with dementia as if at least one of these misconceptions was the gospel.The Harm We CauseWhen we act out of ignorance, we may unintentionally cause immense harm to those who are struggling with the disease. One person with dementia, who held a Ph.D. in chemistry, no longer would order a meal from a fast-food chain because, according to him, \"The server made me feel like a moron\u201d when he couldn\u2019t quickly decide what to order from a board menu containing more than 50 items, with a multitude of combinations.Changing IdentitiesAs memories are lost and the ability to manage those that remain becomes a struggle, the identities of people with dementia change. We all view ourselves\u2014our identity\u2014by the roles we play, the activities we enjoy, the affiliations we have, the values that structure our lives, our abilities, and relationships. Imagine how your life would be transformed if significant parts of your identify disappeared--sometimes quickly, at other times slowly, and maybe the worse, stealthily.And It\u2019s not only self-perceptions that create identities, but also how others perceive us. Imagine what it must have been like for that chemist who spent 8 years in graduate school and was involved in the development of life-saving drugs to be afraid of ordering a hamburger from someone who possibly never graduated high school.Pulling the Sharp Points CloseLife is full of choices. We can run away from those with the disease, either out of ignorance or fear of what we might eventually become, or we can choose to put ourselves in the place of someone with dementia. Tibetans have a saying that if you want to get over the fears in your life--the sharp points--bring them closer, rather than running away.But, eventually, you won't be able to run away from Alzheimer\u2019s or other forms of dementia. Statistics say that many of you reading this article will develop dementia. If you\u2019re 60, you have a 1% chance of developing some form of dementia and your risk increases every year until you reach 85 when it levels off to 35%. If you have a parent with early onset Alzheimer\u2019s your chances of developing the disease dramatically increase. And if you don\u2019t know someone who is close to you with Alzheimer\u2019s or other forms of dementia, trust me, you will.How to HelpIn many ways, having dementia it\u2019s like being dropped into a strange country with customs and a language you don\u2019t understand. And just as you\u2019re learning how to maneuver your way, something changes and you have to start all over again. And nobody is there to provide you with a GPS for getting out.So how would you react if was your spouse, your parent or a friend who had dementia? Instead of providing lists of \u201cshouldisms\u201d and going into the specifics of Alzheimer\u2019s and dementia (see the links above), I thought I\u2019d just suggest some things to consider the next time you interact with a person who has or you suspect has dementia.Be Patient. It may take longer to process informationMemories are not willingly lost. There will be things someone with dementia won\u2019t remember, both recent and distant. Not remembering has nothing to do with not trying.Accept changes. Dementia is progressive. The person\u2019s abilities today may be different tomorrow.Offer help to the person. There are few things more frightening then being disorientated, such as being a few blocks away from your house and not knowing how to get home. When you see someone who is obviously confused, don\u2019t be afraid to offer help. The worse that happens is they say \u201cNo thank you.\u201d The best that happens is you'll provide unimaginable comfort to another human being.Offer Help to the Caregiver. Unless someone has been a long-term caregiver, they have no idea of the effort it takes. Offer to help. Anything will be appreciated. Knowing that people care is a blessing to the person receiving the offer, and as my mother would say a \"mitzvah\" to the person making the offer.You live in different worlds. As with any chronic or terminal disease, almost everything is seen through the perceptual filters of the disease, from noises to the frustrated looks of fast food cashiers.Be Compassionate. Imagine the person with dementia is your parent who you love dearly. How would you want other people to interact with him or her and even more importantly, what would you want them to feel after the interaction?Leave Them With the Best You Have to OfferYes, the person you once knew as gregarious will eventually withdraw inward to the point where you may not be able to connect with them. But that may be years away. Enjoy their presence while you still can and offer them the support and compassion you would want if it was you who were slowly moving on a one-way road to a strange, structureless place.We don\u2019t know what the person with dementia takes with them to that place we\u2019re not allowed to enter. But doesn\u2019t it make sense to give them memories that are pleasant rather than ones that aren\u2019t?Stan Goldberg is author of Lessons for the Living: Stories of Forgiveness, Gratitude, and Courage at the End of Life. It has received six major national and international awards. His new book, Leaning Into Sharp Points: Practical Guidance and Nurturing Support for Caregivers will be published by New World Library in March, 2012.\nQuestion: According to an Asian saying, what should you do to get over your fears?\nAnswer:", " step back into childhood"], ["It's Only Alzheimer's, Not the Bloody Plague!A friend recently said to me, \u201cWhen my friends learned I had Alzheimer\u2019s, many looked at me as if I had some kind of contagious disease. Then, they just stopped calling or coming around. Don\u2019t they know it isn\u2019t the bloody plague?\u201dWhat It's NotI\u2019ve spent eight years with people who were in various  stages of Alzheimer\u2019s and other forms of dementia. Although my hospice patients in San Francisco were all in the later stages, I heard painful stories from their families of how people reacted to them when they still could function with some help.From others who are in the earlier stages, I heard identical stories involving relatives, long-time friends, and close colleagues who drifted away or interacted with them as if they :-Stepped back into their childhood-Possessed the mind of a developmentally delayed child.-Or became psychoticNone of these are true, yet as a society, we treat those with dementia as if at least one of these misconceptions was the gospel.The Harm We CauseWhen we act out of ignorance, we may unintentionally cause immense harm to those who are struggling with the disease. One person with dementia, who held a Ph.D. in chemistry, no longer would order a meal from a fast-food chain because, according to him, \"The server made me feel like a moron\u201d when he couldn\u2019t quickly decide what to order from a board menu containing more than 50 items, with a multitude of combinations.Changing IdentitiesAs memories are lost and the ability to manage those that remain becomes a struggle, the identities of people with dementia change. We all view ourselves\u2014our identity\u2014by the roles we play, the activities we enjoy, the affiliations we have, the values that structure our lives, our abilities, and relationships. Imagine how your life would be transformed if significant parts of your identify disappeared--sometimes quickly, at other times slowly, and maybe the worse, stealthily.And It\u2019s not only self-perceptions that create identities, but also how others perceive us. Imagine what it must have been like for that chemist who spent 8 years in graduate school and was involved in the development of life-saving drugs to be afraid of ordering a hamburger from someone who possibly never graduated high school.Pulling the Sharp Points CloseLife is full of choices. We can run away from those with the disease, either out of ignorance or fear of what we might eventually become, or we can choose to put ourselves in the place of someone with dementia. Tibetans have a saying that if you want to get over the fears in your life--the sharp points--bring them closer, rather than running away.But, eventually, you won't be able to run away from Alzheimer\u2019s or other forms of dementia. Statistics say that many of you reading this article will develop dementia. If you\u2019re 60, you have a 1% chance of developing some form of dementia and your risk increases every year until you reach 85 when it levels off to 35%. If you have a parent with early onset Alzheimer\u2019s your chances of developing the disease dramatically increase. And if you don\u2019t know someone who is close to you with Alzheimer\u2019s or other forms of dementia, trust me, you will.How to HelpIn many ways, having dementia it\u2019s like being dropped into a strange country with customs and a language you don\u2019t understand. And just as you\u2019re learning how to maneuver your way, something changes and you have to start all over again. And nobody is there to provide you with a GPS for getting out.So how would you react if was your spouse, your parent or a friend who had dementia? Instead of providing lists of \u201cshouldisms\u201d and going into the specifics of Alzheimer\u2019s and dementia (see the links above), I thought I\u2019d just suggest some things to consider the next time you interact with a person who has or you suspect has dementia.Be Patient. It may take longer to process informationMemories are not willingly lost. There will be things someone with dementia won\u2019t remember, both recent and distant. Not remembering has nothing to do with not trying.Accept changes. Dementia is progressive. The person\u2019s abilities today may be different tomorrow.Offer help to the person. There are few things more frightening then being disorientated, such as being a few blocks away from your house and not knowing how to get home. When you see someone who is obviously confused, don\u2019t be afraid to offer help. The worse that happens is they say \u201cNo thank you.\u201d The best that happens is you'll provide unimaginable comfort to another human being.Offer Help to the Caregiver. Unless someone has been a long-term caregiver, they have no idea of the effort it takes. Offer to help. Anything will be appreciated. Knowing that people care is a blessing to the person receiving the offer, and as my mother would say a \"mitzvah\" to the person making the offer.You live in different worlds. As with any chronic or terminal disease, almost everything is seen through the perceptual filters of the disease, from noises to the frustrated looks of fast food cashiers.Be Compassionate. Imagine the person with dementia is your parent who you love dearly. How would you want other people to interact with him or her and even more importantly, what would you want them to feel after the interaction?Leave Them With the Best You Have to OfferYes, the person you once knew as gregarious will eventually withdraw inward to the point where you may not be able to connect with them. But that may be years away. Enjoy their presence while you still can and offer them the support and compassion you would want if it was you who were slowly moving on a one-way road to a strange, structureless place.We don\u2019t know what the person with dementia takes with them to that place we\u2019re not allowed to enter. But doesn\u2019t it make sense to give them memories that are pleasant rather than ones that aren\u2019t?Stan Goldberg is author of Lessons for the Living: Stories of Forgiveness, Gratitude, and Courage at the End of Life. It has received six major national and international awards. His new book, Leaning Into Sharp Points: Practical Guidance and Nurturing Support for Caregivers will be published by New World Library in March, 2012.\nQuestion: According to an Asian saying, what should you do to get over your fears?\nAnswer:", " be compassionate"], ["It's Only Alzheimer's, Not the Bloody Plague!A friend recently said to me, \u201cWhen my friends learned I had Alzheimer\u2019s, many looked at me as if I had some kind of contagious disease. Then, they just stopped calling or coming around. Don\u2019t they know it isn\u2019t the bloody plague?\u201dWhat It's NotI\u2019ve spent eight years with people who were in various  stages of Alzheimer\u2019s and other forms of dementia. Although my hospice patients in San Francisco were all in the later stages, I heard painful stories from their families of how people reacted to them when they still could function with some help.From others who are in the earlier stages, I heard identical stories involving relatives, long-time friends, and close colleagues who drifted away or interacted with them as if they :-Stepped back into their childhood-Possessed the mind of a developmentally delayed child.-Or became psychoticNone of these are true, yet as a society, we treat those with dementia as if at least one of these misconceptions was the gospel.The Harm We CauseWhen we act out of ignorance, we may unintentionally cause immense harm to those who are struggling with the disease. One person with dementia, who held a Ph.D. in chemistry, no longer would order a meal from a fast-food chain because, according to him, \"The server made me feel like a moron\u201d when he couldn\u2019t quickly decide what to order from a board menu containing more than 50 items, with a multitude of combinations.Changing IdentitiesAs memories are lost and the ability to manage those that remain becomes a struggle, the identities of people with dementia change. We all view ourselves\u2014our identity\u2014by the roles we play, the activities we enjoy, the affiliations we have, the values that structure our lives, our abilities, and relationships. Imagine how your life would be transformed if significant parts of your identify disappeared--sometimes quickly, at other times slowly, and maybe the worse, stealthily.And It\u2019s not only self-perceptions that create identities, but also how others perceive us. Imagine what it must have been like for that chemist who spent 8 years in graduate school and was involved in the development of life-saving drugs to be afraid of ordering a hamburger from someone who possibly never graduated high school.Pulling the Sharp Points CloseLife is full of choices. We can run away from those with the disease, either out of ignorance or fear of what we might eventually become, or we can choose to put ourselves in the place of someone with dementia. Tibetans have a saying that if you want to get over the fears in your life--the sharp points--bring them closer, rather than running away.But, eventually, you won't be able to run away from Alzheimer\u2019s or other forms of dementia. Statistics say that many of you reading this article will develop dementia. If you\u2019re 60, you have a 1% chance of developing some form of dementia and your risk increases every year until you reach 85 when it levels off to 35%. If you have a parent with early onset Alzheimer\u2019s your chances of developing the disease dramatically increase. And if you don\u2019t know someone who is close to you with Alzheimer\u2019s or other forms of dementia, trust me, you will.How to HelpIn many ways, having dementia it\u2019s like being dropped into a strange country with customs and a language you don\u2019t understand. And just as you\u2019re learning how to maneuver your way, something changes and you have to start all over again. And nobody is there to provide you with a GPS for getting out.So how would you react if was your spouse, your parent or a friend who had dementia? Instead of providing lists of \u201cshouldisms\u201d and going into the specifics of Alzheimer\u2019s and dementia (see the links above), I thought I\u2019d just suggest some things to consider the next time you interact with a person who has or you suspect has dementia.Be Patient. It may take longer to process informationMemories are not willingly lost. There will be things someone with dementia won\u2019t remember, both recent and distant. Not remembering has nothing to do with not trying.Accept changes. Dementia is progressive. The person\u2019s abilities today may be different tomorrow.Offer help to the person. There are few things more frightening then being disorientated, such as being a few blocks away from your house and not knowing how to get home. When you see someone who is obviously confused, don\u2019t be afraid to offer help. The worse that happens is they say \u201cNo thank you.\u201d The best that happens is you'll provide unimaginable comfort to another human being.Offer Help to the Caregiver. Unless someone has been a long-term caregiver, they have no idea of the effort it takes. Offer to help. Anything will be appreciated. Knowing that people care is a blessing to the person receiving the offer, and as my mother would say a \"mitzvah\" to the person making the offer.You live in different worlds. As with any chronic or terminal disease, almost everything is seen through the perceptual filters of the disease, from noises to the frustrated looks of fast food cashiers.Be Compassionate. Imagine the person with dementia is your parent who you love dearly. How would you want other people to interact with him or her and even more importantly, what would you want them to feel after the interaction?Leave Them With the Best You Have to OfferYes, the person you once knew as gregarious will eventually withdraw inward to the point where you may not be able to connect with them. But that may be years away. Enjoy their presence while you still can and offer them the support and compassion you would want if it was you who were slowly moving on a one-way road to a strange, structureless place.We don\u2019t know what the person with dementia takes with them to that place we\u2019re not allowed to enter. But doesn\u2019t it make sense to give them memories that are pleasant rather than ones that aren\u2019t?Stan Goldberg is author of Lessons for the Living: Stories of Forgiveness, Gratitude, and Courage at the End of Life. It has received six major national and international awards. His new book, Leaning Into Sharp Points: Practical Guidance and Nurturing Support for Caregivers will be published by New World Library in March, 2012.\nQuestion: According to an Asian saying, what should you do to get over your fears?\nAnswer:", " change your identity"], ["It's Only Alzheimer's, Not the Bloody Plague!A friend recently said to me, \u201cWhen my friends learned I had Alzheimer\u2019s, many looked at me as if I had some kind of contagious disease. Then, they just stopped calling or coming around. Don\u2019t they know it isn\u2019t the bloody plague?\u201dWhat It's NotI\u2019ve spent eight years with people who were in various  stages of Alzheimer\u2019s and other forms of dementia. Although my hospice patients in San Francisco were all in the later stages, I heard painful stories from their families of how people reacted to them when they still could function with some help.From others who are in the earlier stages, I heard identical stories involving relatives, long-time friends, and close colleagues who drifted away or interacted with them as if they :-Stepped back into their childhood-Possessed the mind of a developmentally delayed child.-Or became psychoticNone of these are true, yet as a society, we treat those with dementia as if at least one of these misconceptions was the gospel.The Harm We CauseWhen we act out of ignorance, we may unintentionally cause immense harm to those who are struggling with the disease. One person with dementia, who held a Ph.D. in chemistry, no longer would order a meal from a fast-food chain because, according to him, \"The server made me feel like a moron\u201d when he couldn\u2019t quickly decide what to order from a board menu containing more than 50 items, with a multitude of combinations.Changing IdentitiesAs memories are lost and the ability to manage those that remain becomes a struggle, the identities of people with dementia change. We all view ourselves\u2014our identity\u2014by the roles we play, the activities we enjoy, the affiliations we have, the values that structure our lives, our abilities, and relationships. Imagine how your life would be transformed if significant parts of your identify disappeared--sometimes quickly, at other times slowly, and maybe the worse, stealthily.And It\u2019s not only self-perceptions that create identities, but also how others perceive us. Imagine what it must have been like for that chemist who spent 8 years in graduate school and was involved in the development of life-saving drugs to be afraid of ordering a hamburger from someone who possibly never graduated high school.Pulling the Sharp Points CloseLife is full of choices. We can run away from those with the disease, either out of ignorance or fear of what we might eventually become, or we can choose to put ourselves in the place of someone with dementia. Tibetans have a saying that if you want to get over the fears in your life--the sharp points--bring them closer, rather than running away.But, eventually, you won't be able to run away from Alzheimer\u2019s or other forms of dementia. Statistics say that many of you reading this article will develop dementia. If you\u2019re 60, you have a 1% chance of developing some form of dementia and your risk increases every year until you reach 85 when it levels off to 35%. If you have a parent with early onset Alzheimer\u2019s your chances of developing the disease dramatically increase. And if you don\u2019t know someone who is close to you with Alzheimer\u2019s or other forms of dementia, trust me, you will.How to HelpIn many ways, having dementia it\u2019s like being dropped into a strange country with customs and a language you don\u2019t understand. And just as you\u2019re learning how to maneuver your way, something changes and you have to start all over again. And nobody is there to provide you with a GPS for getting out.So how would you react if was your spouse, your parent or a friend who had dementia? Instead of providing lists of \u201cshouldisms\u201d and going into the specifics of Alzheimer\u2019s and dementia (see the links above), I thought I\u2019d just suggest some things to consider the next time you interact with a person who has or you suspect has dementia.Be Patient. It may take longer to process informationMemories are not willingly lost. There will be things someone with dementia won\u2019t remember, both recent and distant. Not remembering has nothing to do with not trying.Accept changes. Dementia is progressive. The person\u2019s abilities today may be different tomorrow.Offer help to the person. There are few things more frightening then being disorientated, such as being a few blocks away from your house and not knowing how to get home. When you see someone who is obviously confused, don\u2019t be afraid to offer help. The worse that happens is they say \u201cNo thank you.\u201d The best that happens is you'll provide unimaginable comfort to another human being.Offer Help to the Caregiver. Unless someone has been a long-term caregiver, they have no idea of the effort it takes. Offer to help. Anything will be appreciated. Knowing that people care is a blessing to the person receiving the offer, and as my mother would say a \"mitzvah\" to the person making the offer.You live in different worlds. As with any chronic or terminal disease, almost everything is seen through the perceptual filters of the disease, from noises to the frustrated looks of fast food cashiers.Be Compassionate. Imagine the person with dementia is your parent who you love dearly. How would you want other people to interact with him or her and even more importantly, what would you want them to feel after the interaction?Leave Them With the Best You Have to OfferYes, the person you once knew as gregarious will eventually withdraw inward to the point where you may not be able to connect with them. But that may be years away. Enjoy their presence while you still can and offer them the support and compassion you would want if it was you who were slowly moving on a one-way road to a strange, structureless place.We don\u2019t know what the person with dementia takes with them to that place we\u2019re not allowed to enter. But doesn\u2019t it make sense to give them memories that are pleasant rather than ones that aren\u2019t?Stan Goldberg is author of Lessons for the Living: Stories of Forgiveness, Gratitude, and Courage at the End of Life. It has received six major national and international awards. His new book, Leaning Into Sharp Points: Practical Guidance and Nurturing Support for Caregivers will be published by New World Library in March, 2012.\nQuestion: According to an Asian saying, what should you do to get over your fears?\nAnswer:", " confront one's fears"], ["It's Only Alzheimer's, Not the Bloody Plague!A friend recently said to me, \u201cWhen my friends learned I had Alzheimer\u2019s, many looked at me as if I had some kind of contagious disease. Then, they just stopped calling or coming around. Don\u2019t they know it isn\u2019t the bloody plague?\u201dWhat It's NotI\u2019ve spent eight years with people who were in various  stages of Alzheimer\u2019s and other forms of dementia. Although my hospice patients in San Francisco were all in the later stages, I heard painful stories from their families of how people reacted to them when they still could function with some help.From others who are in the earlier stages, I heard identical stories involving relatives, long-time friends, and close colleagues who drifted away or interacted with them as if they :-Stepped back into their childhood-Possessed the mind of a developmentally delayed child.-Or became psychoticNone of these are true, yet as a society, we treat those with dementia as if at least one of these misconceptions was the gospel.The Harm We CauseWhen we act out of ignorance, we may unintentionally cause immense harm to those who are struggling with the disease. One person with dementia, who held a Ph.D. in chemistry, no longer would order a meal from a fast-food chain because, according to him, \"The server made me feel like a moron\u201d when he couldn\u2019t quickly decide what to order from a board menu containing more than 50 items, with a multitude of combinations.Changing IdentitiesAs memories are lost and the ability to manage those that remain becomes a struggle, the identities of people with dementia change. We all view ourselves\u2014our identity\u2014by the roles we play, the activities we enjoy, the affiliations we have, the values that structure our lives, our abilities, and relationships. Imagine how your life would be transformed if significant parts of your identify disappeared--sometimes quickly, at other times slowly, and maybe the worse, stealthily.And It\u2019s not only self-perceptions that create identities, but also how others perceive us. Imagine what it must have been like for that chemist who spent 8 years in graduate school and was involved in the development of life-saving drugs to be afraid of ordering a hamburger from someone who possibly never graduated high school.Pulling the Sharp Points CloseLife is full of choices. We can run away from those with the disease, either out of ignorance or fear of what we might eventually become, or we can choose to put ourselves in the place of someone with dementia. Tibetans have a saying that if you want to get over the fears in your life--the sharp points--bring them closer, rather than running away.But, eventually, you won't be able to run away from Alzheimer\u2019s or other forms of dementia. Statistics say that many of you reading this article will develop dementia. If you\u2019re 60, you have a 1% chance of developing some form of dementia and your risk increases every year until you reach 85 when it levels off to 35%. If you have a parent with early onset Alzheimer\u2019s your chances of developing the disease dramatically increase. And if you don\u2019t know someone who is close to you with Alzheimer\u2019s or other forms of dementia, trust me, you will.How to HelpIn many ways, having dementia it\u2019s like being dropped into a strange country with customs and a language you don\u2019t understand. And just as you\u2019re learning how to maneuver your way, something changes and you have to start all over again. And nobody is there to provide you with a GPS for getting out.So how would you react if was your spouse, your parent or a friend who had dementia? Instead of providing lists of \u201cshouldisms\u201d and going into the specifics of Alzheimer\u2019s and dementia (see the links above), I thought I\u2019d just suggest some things to consider the next time you interact with a person who has or you suspect has dementia.Be Patient. It may take longer to process informationMemories are not willingly lost. There will be things someone with dementia won\u2019t remember, both recent and distant. Not remembering has nothing to do with not trying.Accept changes. Dementia is progressive. The person\u2019s abilities today may be different tomorrow.Offer help to the person. There are few things more frightening then being disorientated, such as being a few blocks away from your house and not knowing how to get home. When you see someone who is obviously confused, don\u2019t be afraid to offer help. The worse that happens is they say \u201cNo thank you.\u201d The best that happens is you'll provide unimaginable comfort to another human being.Offer Help to the Caregiver. Unless someone has been a long-term caregiver, they have no idea of the effort it takes. Offer to help. Anything will be appreciated. Knowing that people care is a blessing to the person receiving the offer, and as my mother would say a \"mitzvah\" to the person making the offer.You live in different worlds. As with any chronic or terminal disease, almost everything is seen through the perceptual filters of the disease, from noises to the frustrated looks of fast food cashiers.Be Compassionate. Imagine the person with dementia is your parent who you love dearly. How would you want other people to interact with him or her and even more importantly, what would you want them to feel after the interaction?Leave Them With the Best You Have to OfferYes, the person you once knew as gregarious will eventually withdraw inward to the point where you may not be able to connect with them. But that may be years away. Enjoy their presence while you still can and offer them the support and compassion you would want if it was you who were slowly moving on a one-way road to a strange, structureless place.We don\u2019t know what the person with dementia takes with them to that place we\u2019re not allowed to enter. But doesn\u2019t it make sense to give them memories that are pleasant rather than ones that aren\u2019t?Stan Goldberg is author of Lessons for the Living: Stories of Forgiveness, Gratitude, and Courage at the End of Life. It has received six major national and international awards. His new book, Leaning Into Sharp Points: Practical Guidance and Nurturing Support for Caregivers will be published by New World Library in March, 2012.\nQuestion: According to an Asian saying, what should you do to get over your fears?\nAnswer:", " run away"], ["Charles BurneyCharles Burney (1726-1814), an English musical historian, was born at Shrewsbury on the 12th of April 1726. He received his earlier education at the free school of that city, and was afterwards sent to the public school at Chester. His first music master was Edmund Baker, organist of Chester cathedral, and a pupil of Dr John Blow. Returning to Shrewsbury when about fifteen years old, he continued his musical studies for three years under his half-brother, James Burney, organist of St Mary's church, and was then sent to London as a pupil of the celebrated Dr Arne, with whom he remained three years. Burney wrote some music for Thomson's Alfred, which was produced at Drury Lane theatre on the 30th of March 1745. In 1749 he was appointed organist of St Dionis-Backchurch, Fenchurch Street, with a salary of \u00a330 a year; and he was also engaged to take the harpsichord in the \"New Concerts\" then recently established at the King's Arms, Cornhill. In that year he married Miss Esther Sleepe, who died in 1761; in 1769 he married Mrs Stephen Allen of Lynn. Being threatened with a pulmonary affection he went in 1751 to Lynn in Norfolk, where he was elected organist, with an annual salary of \u00a3loo, and there he resided for the next nine years. During that time he began to entertain the idea of writing a general history of music. His Ode for St Cecilia's Day was performed at Ranelagh Gardens in 1759; and in 1760 he returned to London in good health and with a young family; the eldest child, a girl of eight years of age, surprised the public by her attainments as a harpsichord player. The concertos for the harpsichord which Burney published soon after his return to London were regarded with much admiration. In 1766 he produced, at Drury Lane, a free English version and adaptation of J. J. Rousseau's operetta Le Devin du village, under the title of The Cunning Man. The university of Oxford conferred upon him, on the 23rd of June 1769, the degrees of Bachelor and Doctor of Music, on which occasion he presided at the performance of his exercise for these degrees. This consisted of an anthem, with an overture, solos, recitatives and choruses, accompanied by instruments, besides a vocal anthem in eight parts, which was not performed. In 1769 he published An Essay towards a History of Comets. Amidst his various professional avocations, Burney never lost sight of his favourite object - his History of Music - and therefore resolved to travel abroad for the purpose of collecting materials that could not be found in Great Britain. Accordingly, he left London in June 1770, furnished with numerous letters of introduction, and proceeded to Paris, and thence to Geneva, Turin, Milan, Padua, Venice, Bologna, Florence, Rome and Naples. The results of his observations he published in The Present State of Music in France and Italy (1771). Dr Johnson thought so well of this work that, alluding to his own Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland, he said, \"I had that clever dog Burney's Musical Tour in my eye.\" In July 1772 Burney again visited the continent, to collect further materials, and, after his return to London, published his tour under the title of The Present State of Music in Germany, the Netherlands and United Provinces (1773). In 1773 he was chosen a fellow of the Royal Society. In 1776 appeared the first volume (in 4to) of his longprojected History of Music. In 1782 Burney published his second volume; and in 1789 the third and fourth. Though severely criticized by Forkel in Germany and by the Spanish ex-Jesuit, Requeno, who, in his Italian work Saggj sul Ristabilimento dell' Arte Armonica de' Greci e Romani Cantori (Parma, 1798), attacks Burney's account of the ancient Greek music, and calls him to scompigliato Burney, the History of Music was generally recognized as possessing great merit. The least satisfactory volume is the fourth, the treatment of Handel and Bach being quite inadequate. Burney's first tour was translated into German by Ebeling, and printed at Hamburg in 1772; and his second tour, translated into German by Bode, was published at Hamburg in 1773. A Dutch translation of his second tour, with notes by J. W. Lustig, organist at Groningen, was published there in 1786. The Dissertation on the Music of the Ancients, in the first volume of Burney's History, was translated into German by J. J. Eschenburg, and printed at Leipzig, 1781. Burney derived much aid from the first two volumes of Padre Martini's very learned Storia della Musica (Bologna, 1 757-177 0). One cannot but admire his persevering industry, and his sacrifices of time, money and personal comfort, in collecting and preparing materials for his History, and few will be disposed to condemn severely errors and oversights in a work of such extent and difficulty. In 1774 he had written A Plan for a Music School. In 1779 he wrote for the Royal Society an account of the infant Crotch, whose remarkable musical talent excited so much attention at that time. In 1784 he published, with an Italian title-page, the music annually performed in the pope's chapel at Rome during Passion Week. In 1785 he published, for the benefit of the Musical Fund, an account of the first commemoration of Handel in Westminster Abbey in the preceding year, with an excellent life of Handel. In 1796 he published Memoirs and Letters of Metastasio. Towards the close of his life Burney was paid 1000 for contributing to Rees's Cyclopaedia all the musical articles not belonging to the department of natural philosophy and mathematics. In 1783, through the treasury influence of his friend Edmund Burke, he was appointed organist to the chapel of Chelsea Hospital, and he moved his residence from St Martin's Street, Leicester Square, to live in the hospital for the remainder of his life. He was made a member of the Institute of France, and nominated a correspondent in the class of the fine arts, in the year 1810. From 1806 until his death he enjoyed a pension of X300 granted by Fox. He died at Chelsea College on the 12th of April 1814, and was interred in the burying-ground of the college. A tablet was erected to his memory in Westminster Abbey. Burney's portrait was painted by Reynolds, and his bust was cut by Nollekens in 1805. He had a wide circle of acquaintance among the distinguished artists and literary men of his day. At one time he thought of writing a life of his friend Dr Samuel Johnson, but he retired before the crowd of biographers who rushed into that field. His character in private as well as in public life appears to have been very amiable and exemplary. Dr Burney's eldest son, James, was a distinguished officer in the royal navy, who died a rear-admiral in 1821; his second son was the Rev. Charles Burney, D.D. (1757-1817), a well-known classical scholar, whose splendid collection of rare books and MSS was ultimately bought by the nation for the British Museum; and his second daughter was Frances (Madame D'Arblay). The Diary and Letters of Madame D'Arblay contain many minute and interesting particulars of her father's public and private life, and of his friends and contemporaries. A life of Burney by Madame D'Arblay appeared in 1832. Besides the operatic music above mentioned, Burney's known compositions consist of: - (i) Six Sonatas for the harpsichord; (2) Two Sonatas for the harp or piano, with accompaniments for violin and violoncello; (3) Sonatas for two violins and a bass: two sets; (4) Six Lessons for the harpsichord; (5) Six Duets for two German flutes; (6) Three Concertos for the harpsichord; (7) Six concert pieces with an introduction and fugue for the organ; (8) Six Concertos for the violin, etc., in eight parts; (9) Two Sonatas for pianoforte, violin and violoncello; (To) A Cantata, etc.; (ii) Anthems, etc.; (12) XII. Canzonetti a due voci in Canone, poesia dell' Abate Metastasio.\nQuestion: How many degrees did Burney receive from Oxford?\nAnswer:", " 1"], ["Charles BurneyCharles Burney (1726-1814), an English musical historian, was born at Shrewsbury on the 12th of April 1726. He received his earlier education at the free school of that city, and was afterwards sent to the public school at Chester. His first music master was Edmund Baker, organist of Chester cathedral, and a pupil of Dr John Blow. Returning to Shrewsbury when about fifteen years old, he continued his musical studies for three years under his half-brother, James Burney, organist of St Mary's church, and was then sent to London as a pupil of the celebrated Dr Arne, with whom he remained three years. Burney wrote some music for Thomson's Alfred, which was produced at Drury Lane theatre on the 30th of March 1745. In 1749 he was appointed organist of St Dionis-Backchurch, Fenchurch Street, with a salary of \u00a330 a year; and he was also engaged to take the harpsichord in the \"New Concerts\" then recently established at the King's Arms, Cornhill. In that year he married Miss Esther Sleepe, who died in 1761; in 1769 he married Mrs Stephen Allen of Lynn. Being threatened with a pulmonary affection he went in 1751 to Lynn in Norfolk, where he was elected organist, with an annual salary of \u00a3loo, and there he resided for the next nine years. During that time he began to entertain the idea of writing a general history of music. His Ode for St Cecilia's Day was performed at Ranelagh Gardens in 1759; and in 1760 he returned to London in good health and with a young family; the eldest child, a girl of eight years of age, surprised the public by her attainments as a harpsichord player. The concertos for the harpsichord which Burney published soon after his return to London were regarded with much admiration. In 1766 he produced, at Drury Lane, a free English version and adaptation of J. J. Rousseau's operetta Le Devin du village, under the title of The Cunning Man. The university of Oxford conferred upon him, on the 23rd of June 1769, the degrees of Bachelor and Doctor of Music, on which occasion he presided at the performance of his exercise for these degrees. This consisted of an anthem, with an overture, solos, recitatives and choruses, accompanied by instruments, besides a vocal anthem in eight parts, which was not performed. In 1769 he published An Essay towards a History of Comets. Amidst his various professional avocations, Burney never lost sight of his favourite object - his History of Music - and therefore resolved to travel abroad for the purpose of collecting materials that could not be found in Great Britain. Accordingly, he left London in June 1770, furnished with numerous letters of introduction, and proceeded to Paris, and thence to Geneva, Turin, Milan, Padua, Venice, Bologna, Florence, Rome and Naples. The results of his observations he published in The Present State of Music in France and Italy (1771). Dr Johnson thought so well of this work that, alluding to his own Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland, he said, \"I had that clever dog Burney's Musical Tour in my eye.\" In July 1772 Burney again visited the continent, to collect further materials, and, after his return to London, published his tour under the title of The Present State of Music in Germany, the Netherlands and United Provinces (1773). In 1773 he was chosen a fellow of the Royal Society. In 1776 appeared the first volume (in 4to) of his longprojected History of Music. In 1782 Burney published his second volume; and in 1789 the third and fourth. Though severely criticized by Forkel in Germany and by the Spanish ex-Jesuit, Requeno, who, in his Italian work Saggj sul Ristabilimento dell' Arte Armonica de' Greci e Romani Cantori (Parma, 1798), attacks Burney's account of the ancient Greek music, and calls him to scompigliato Burney, the History of Music was generally recognized as possessing great merit. The least satisfactory volume is the fourth, the treatment of Handel and Bach being quite inadequate. Burney's first tour was translated into German by Ebeling, and printed at Hamburg in 1772; and his second tour, translated into German by Bode, was published at Hamburg in 1773. A Dutch translation of his second tour, with notes by J. W. Lustig, organist at Groningen, was published there in 1786. The Dissertation on the Music of the Ancients, in the first volume of Burney's History, was translated into German by J. J. Eschenburg, and printed at Leipzig, 1781. Burney derived much aid from the first two volumes of Padre Martini's very learned Storia della Musica (Bologna, 1 757-177 0). One cannot but admire his persevering industry, and his sacrifices of time, money and personal comfort, in collecting and preparing materials for his History, and few will be disposed to condemn severely errors and oversights in a work of such extent and difficulty. In 1774 he had written A Plan for a Music School. In 1779 he wrote for the Royal Society an account of the infant Crotch, whose remarkable musical talent excited so much attention at that time. In 1784 he published, with an Italian title-page, the music annually performed in the pope's chapel at Rome during Passion Week. In 1785 he published, for the benefit of the Musical Fund, an account of the first commemoration of Handel in Westminster Abbey in the preceding year, with an excellent life of Handel. In 1796 he published Memoirs and Letters of Metastasio. Towards the close of his life Burney was paid 1000 for contributing to Rees's Cyclopaedia all the musical articles not belonging to the department of natural philosophy and mathematics. In 1783, through the treasury influence of his friend Edmund Burke, he was appointed organist to the chapel of Chelsea Hospital, and he moved his residence from St Martin's Street, Leicester Square, to live in the hospital for the remainder of his life. He was made a member of the Institute of France, and nominated a correspondent in the class of the fine arts, in the year 1810. From 1806 until his death he enjoyed a pension of X300 granted by Fox. He died at Chelsea College on the 12th of April 1814, and was interred in the burying-ground of the college. A tablet was erected to his memory in Westminster Abbey. Burney's portrait was painted by Reynolds, and his bust was cut by Nollekens in 1805. He had a wide circle of acquaintance among the distinguished artists and literary men of his day. At one time he thought of writing a life of his friend Dr Samuel Johnson, but he retired before the crowd of biographers who rushed into that field. His character in private as well as in public life appears to have been very amiable and exemplary. Dr Burney's eldest son, James, was a distinguished officer in the royal navy, who died a rear-admiral in 1821; his second son was the Rev. Charles Burney, D.D. (1757-1817), a well-known classical scholar, whose splendid collection of rare books and MSS was ultimately bought by the nation for the British Museum; and his second daughter was Frances (Madame D'Arblay). The Diary and Letters of Madame D'Arblay contain many minute and interesting particulars of her father's public and private life, and of his friends and contemporaries. A life of Burney by Madame D'Arblay appeared in 1832. Besides the operatic music above mentioned, Burney's known compositions consist of: - (i) Six Sonatas for the harpsichord; (2) Two Sonatas for the harp or piano, with accompaniments for violin and violoncello; (3) Sonatas for two violins and a bass: two sets; (4) Six Lessons for the harpsichord; (5) Six Duets for two German flutes; (6) Three Concertos for the harpsichord; (7) Six concert pieces with an introduction and fugue for the organ; (8) Six Concertos for the violin, etc., in eight parts; (9) Two Sonatas for pianoforte, violin and violoncello; (To) A Cantata, etc.; (ii) Anthems, etc.; (12) XII. Canzonetti a due voci in Canone, poesia dell' Abate Metastasio.\nQuestion: How many degrees did Burney receive from Oxford?\nAnswer:", " 2"], ["Charles BurneyCharles Burney (1726-1814), an English musical historian, was born at Shrewsbury on the 12th of April 1726. He received his earlier education at the free school of that city, and was afterwards sent to the public school at Chester. His first music master was Edmund Baker, organist of Chester cathedral, and a pupil of Dr John Blow. Returning to Shrewsbury when about fifteen years old, he continued his musical studies for three years under his half-brother, James Burney, organist of St Mary's church, and was then sent to London as a pupil of the celebrated Dr Arne, with whom he remained three years. Burney wrote some music for Thomson's Alfred, which was produced at Drury Lane theatre on the 30th of March 1745. In 1749 he was appointed organist of St Dionis-Backchurch, Fenchurch Street, with a salary of \u00a330 a year; and he was also engaged to take the harpsichord in the \"New Concerts\" then recently established at the King's Arms, Cornhill. In that year he married Miss Esther Sleepe, who died in 1761; in 1769 he married Mrs Stephen Allen of Lynn. Being threatened with a pulmonary affection he went in 1751 to Lynn in Norfolk, where he was elected organist, with an annual salary of \u00a3loo, and there he resided for the next nine years. During that time he began to entertain the idea of writing a general history of music. His Ode for St Cecilia's Day was performed at Ranelagh Gardens in 1759; and in 1760 he returned to London in good health and with a young family; the eldest child, a girl of eight years of age, surprised the public by her attainments as a harpsichord player. The concertos for the harpsichord which Burney published soon after his return to London were regarded with much admiration. In 1766 he produced, at Drury Lane, a free English version and adaptation of J. J. Rousseau's operetta Le Devin du village, under the title of The Cunning Man. The university of Oxford conferred upon him, on the 23rd of June 1769, the degrees of Bachelor and Doctor of Music, on which occasion he presided at the performance of his exercise for these degrees. This consisted of an anthem, with an overture, solos, recitatives and choruses, accompanied by instruments, besides a vocal anthem in eight parts, which was not performed. In 1769 he published An Essay towards a History of Comets. Amidst his various professional avocations, Burney never lost sight of his favourite object - his History of Music - and therefore resolved to travel abroad for the purpose of collecting materials that could not be found in Great Britain. Accordingly, he left London in June 1770, furnished with numerous letters of introduction, and proceeded to Paris, and thence to Geneva, Turin, Milan, Padua, Venice, Bologna, Florence, Rome and Naples. The results of his observations he published in The Present State of Music in France and Italy (1771). Dr Johnson thought so well of this work that, alluding to his own Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland, he said, \"I had that clever dog Burney's Musical Tour in my eye.\" In July 1772 Burney again visited the continent, to collect further materials, and, after his return to London, published his tour under the title of The Present State of Music in Germany, the Netherlands and United Provinces (1773). In 1773 he was chosen a fellow of the Royal Society. In 1776 appeared the first volume (in 4to) of his longprojected History of Music. In 1782 Burney published his second volume; and in 1789 the third and fourth. Though severely criticized by Forkel in Germany and by the Spanish ex-Jesuit, Requeno, who, in his Italian work Saggj sul Ristabilimento dell' Arte Armonica de' Greci e Romani Cantori (Parma, 1798), attacks Burney's account of the ancient Greek music, and calls him to scompigliato Burney, the History of Music was generally recognized as possessing great merit. The least satisfactory volume is the fourth, the treatment of Handel and Bach being quite inadequate. Burney's first tour was translated into German by Ebeling, and printed at Hamburg in 1772; and his second tour, translated into German by Bode, was published at Hamburg in 1773. A Dutch translation of his second tour, with notes by J. W. Lustig, organist at Groningen, was published there in 1786. The Dissertation on the Music of the Ancients, in the first volume of Burney's History, was translated into German by J. J. Eschenburg, and printed at Leipzig, 1781. Burney derived much aid from the first two volumes of Padre Martini's very learned Storia della Musica (Bologna, 1 757-177 0). One cannot but admire his persevering industry, and his sacrifices of time, money and personal comfort, in collecting and preparing materials for his History, and few will be disposed to condemn severely errors and oversights in a work of such extent and difficulty. In 1774 he had written A Plan for a Music School. In 1779 he wrote for the Royal Society an account of the infant Crotch, whose remarkable musical talent excited so much attention at that time. In 1784 he published, with an Italian title-page, the music annually performed in the pope's chapel at Rome during Passion Week. In 1785 he published, for the benefit of the Musical Fund, an account of the first commemoration of Handel in Westminster Abbey in the preceding year, with an excellent life of Handel. In 1796 he published Memoirs and Letters of Metastasio. Towards the close of his life Burney was paid 1000 for contributing to Rees's Cyclopaedia all the musical articles not belonging to the department of natural philosophy and mathematics. In 1783, through the treasury influence of his friend Edmund Burke, he was appointed organist to the chapel of Chelsea Hospital, and he moved his residence from St Martin's Street, Leicester Square, to live in the hospital for the remainder of his life. He was made a member of the Institute of France, and nominated a correspondent in the class of the fine arts, in the year 1810. From 1806 until his death he enjoyed a pension of X300 granted by Fox. He died at Chelsea College on the 12th of April 1814, and was interred in the burying-ground of the college. A tablet was erected to his memory in Westminster Abbey. Burney's portrait was painted by Reynolds, and his bust was cut by Nollekens in 1805. He had a wide circle of acquaintance among the distinguished artists and literary men of his day. At one time he thought of writing a life of his friend Dr Samuel Johnson, but he retired before the crowd of biographers who rushed into that field. His character in private as well as in public life appears to have been very amiable and exemplary. Dr Burney's eldest son, James, was a distinguished officer in the royal navy, who died a rear-admiral in 1821; his second son was the Rev. Charles Burney, D.D. (1757-1817), a well-known classical scholar, whose splendid collection of rare books and MSS was ultimately bought by the nation for the British Museum; and his second daughter was Frances (Madame D'Arblay). The Diary and Letters of Madame D'Arblay contain many minute and interesting particulars of her father's public and private life, and of his friends and contemporaries. A life of Burney by Madame D'Arblay appeared in 1832. Besides the operatic music above mentioned, Burney's known compositions consist of: - (i) Six Sonatas for the harpsichord; (2) Two Sonatas for the harp or piano, with accompaniments for violin and violoncello; (3) Sonatas for two violins and a bass: two sets; (4) Six Lessons for the harpsichord; (5) Six Duets for two German flutes; (6) Three Concertos for the harpsichord; (7) Six concert pieces with an introduction and fugue for the organ; (8) Six Concertos for the violin, etc., in eight parts; (9) Two Sonatas for pianoforte, violin and violoncello; (To) A Cantata, etc.; (ii) Anthems, etc.; (12) XII. Canzonetti a due voci in Canone, poesia dell' Abate Metastasio.\nQuestion: How many degrees did Burney receive from Oxford?\nAnswer:", " 3"], ["Charles BurneyCharles Burney (1726-1814), an English musical historian, was born at Shrewsbury on the 12th of April 1726. He received his earlier education at the free school of that city, and was afterwards sent to the public school at Chester. His first music master was Edmund Baker, organist of Chester cathedral, and a pupil of Dr John Blow. Returning to Shrewsbury when about fifteen years old, he continued his musical studies for three years under his half-brother, James Burney, organist of St Mary's church, and was then sent to London as a pupil of the celebrated Dr Arne, with whom he remained three years. Burney wrote some music for Thomson's Alfred, which was produced at Drury Lane theatre on the 30th of March 1745. In 1749 he was appointed organist of St Dionis-Backchurch, Fenchurch Street, with a salary of \u00a330 a year; and he was also engaged to take the harpsichord in the \"New Concerts\" then recently established at the King's Arms, Cornhill. In that year he married Miss Esther Sleepe, who died in 1761; in 1769 he married Mrs Stephen Allen of Lynn. Being threatened with a pulmonary affection he went in 1751 to Lynn in Norfolk, where he was elected organist, with an annual salary of \u00a3loo, and there he resided for the next nine years. During that time he began to entertain the idea of writing a general history of music. His Ode for St Cecilia's Day was performed at Ranelagh Gardens in 1759; and in 1760 he returned to London in good health and with a young family; the eldest child, a girl of eight years of age, surprised the public by her attainments as a harpsichord player. The concertos for the harpsichord which Burney published soon after his return to London were regarded with much admiration. In 1766 he produced, at Drury Lane, a free English version and adaptation of J. J. Rousseau's operetta Le Devin du village, under the title of The Cunning Man. The university of Oxford conferred upon him, on the 23rd of June 1769, the degrees of Bachelor and Doctor of Music, on which occasion he presided at the performance of his exercise for these degrees. This consisted of an anthem, with an overture, solos, recitatives and choruses, accompanied by instruments, besides a vocal anthem in eight parts, which was not performed. In 1769 he published An Essay towards a History of Comets. Amidst his various professional avocations, Burney never lost sight of his favourite object - his History of Music - and therefore resolved to travel abroad for the purpose of collecting materials that could not be found in Great Britain. Accordingly, he left London in June 1770, furnished with numerous letters of introduction, and proceeded to Paris, and thence to Geneva, Turin, Milan, Padua, Venice, Bologna, Florence, Rome and Naples. The results of his observations he published in The Present State of Music in France and Italy (1771). Dr Johnson thought so well of this work that, alluding to his own Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland, he said, \"I had that clever dog Burney's Musical Tour in my eye.\" In July 1772 Burney again visited the continent, to collect further materials, and, after his return to London, published his tour under the title of The Present State of Music in Germany, the Netherlands and United Provinces (1773). In 1773 he was chosen a fellow of the Royal Society. In 1776 appeared the first volume (in 4to) of his longprojected History of Music. In 1782 Burney published his second volume; and in 1789 the third and fourth. Though severely criticized by Forkel in Germany and by the Spanish ex-Jesuit, Requeno, who, in his Italian work Saggj sul Ristabilimento dell' Arte Armonica de' Greci e Romani Cantori (Parma, 1798), attacks Burney's account of the ancient Greek music, and calls him to scompigliato Burney, the History of Music was generally recognized as possessing great merit. The least satisfactory volume is the fourth, the treatment of Handel and Bach being quite inadequate. Burney's first tour was translated into German by Ebeling, and printed at Hamburg in 1772; and his second tour, translated into German by Bode, was published at Hamburg in 1773. A Dutch translation of his second tour, with notes by J. W. Lustig, organist at Groningen, was published there in 1786. The Dissertation on the Music of the Ancients, in the first volume of Burney's History, was translated into German by J. J. Eschenburg, and printed at Leipzig, 1781. Burney derived much aid from the first two volumes of Padre Martini's very learned Storia della Musica (Bologna, 1 757-177 0). One cannot but admire his persevering industry, and his sacrifices of time, money and personal comfort, in collecting and preparing materials for his History, and few will be disposed to condemn severely errors and oversights in a work of such extent and difficulty. In 1774 he had written A Plan for a Music School. In 1779 he wrote for the Royal Society an account of the infant Crotch, whose remarkable musical talent excited so much attention at that time. In 1784 he published, with an Italian title-page, the music annually performed in the pope's chapel at Rome during Passion Week. In 1785 he published, for the benefit of the Musical Fund, an account of the first commemoration of Handel in Westminster Abbey in the preceding year, with an excellent life of Handel. In 1796 he published Memoirs and Letters of Metastasio. Towards the close of his life Burney was paid 1000 for contributing to Rees's Cyclopaedia all the musical articles not belonging to the department of natural philosophy and mathematics. In 1783, through the treasury influence of his friend Edmund Burke, he was appointed organist to the chapel of Chelsea Hospital, and he moved his residence from St Martin's Street, Leicester Square, to live in the hospital for the remainder of his life. He was made a member of the Institute of France, and nominated a correspondent in the class of the fine arts, in the year 1810. From 1806 until his death he enjoyed a pension of X300 granted by Fox. He died at Chelsea College on the 12th of April 1814, and was interred in the burying-ground of the college. A tablet was erected to his memory in Westminster Abbey. Burney's portrait was painted by Reynolds, and his bust was cut by Nollekens in 1805. He had a wide circle of acquaintance among the distinguished artists and literary men of his day. At one time he thought of writing a life of his friend Dr Samuel Johnson, but he retired before the crowd of biographers who rushed into that field. His character in private as well as in public life appears to have been very amiable and exemplary. Dr Burney's eldest son, James, was a distinguished officer in the royal navy, who died a rear-admiral in 1821; his second son was the Rev. Charles Burney, D.D. (1757-1817), a well-known classical scholar, whose splendid collection of rare books and MSS was ultimately bought by the nation for the British Museum; and his second daughter was Frances (Madame D'Arblay). The Diary and Letters of Madame D'Arblay contain many minute and interesting particulars of her father's public and private life, and of his friends and contemporaries. A life of Burney by Madame D'Arblay appeared in 1832. Besides the operatic music above mentioned, Burney's known compositions consist of: - (i) Six Sonatas for the harpsichord; (2) Two Sonatas for the harp or piano, with accompaniments for violin and violoncello; (3) Sonatas for two violins and a bass: two sets; (4) Six Lessons for the harpsichord; (5) Six Duets for two German flutes; (6) Three Concertos for the harpsichord; (7) Six concert pieces with an introduction and fugue for the organ; (8) Six Concertos for the violin, etc., in eight parts; (9) Two Sonatas for pianoforte, violin and violoncello; (To) A Cantata, etc.; (ii) Anthems, etc.; (12) XII. Canzonetti a due voci in Canone, poesia dell' Abate Metastasio.\nQuestion: How many degrees did Burney receive from Oxford?\nAnswer:", " 4"], ["Charles BurneyCharles Burney (1726-1814), an English musical historian, was born at Shrewsbury on the 12th of April 1726. He received his earlier education at the free school of that city, and was afterwards sent to the public school at Chester. His first music master was Edmund Baker, organist of Chester cathedral, and a pupil of Dr John Blow. Returning to Shrewsbury when about fifteen years old, he continued his musical studies for three years under his half-brother, James Burney, organist of St Mary's church, and was then sent to London as a pupil of the celebrated Dr Arne, with whom he remained three years. Burney wrote some music for Thomson's Alfred, which was produced at Drury Lane theatre on the 30th of March 1745. In 1749 he was appointed organist of St Dionis-Backchurch, Fenchurch Street, with a salary of \u00a330 a year; and he was also engaged to take the harpsichord in the \"New Concerts\" then recently established at the King's Arms, Cornhill. In that year he married Miss Esther Sleepe, who died in 1761; in 1769 he married Mrs Stephen Allen of Lynn. Being threatened with a pulmonary affection he went in 1751 to Lynn in Norfolk, where he was elected organist, with an annual salary of \u00a3loo, and there he resided for the next nine years. During that time he began to entertain the idea of writing a general history of music. His Ode for St Cecilia's Day was performed at Ranelagh Gardens in 1759; and in 1760 he returned to London in good health and with a young family; the eldest child, a girl of eight years of age, surprised the public by her attainments as a harpsichord player. The concertos for the harpsichord which Burney published soon after his return to London were regarded with much admiration. In 1766 he produced, at Drury Lane, a free English version and adaptation of J. J. Rousseau's operetta Le Devin du village, under the title of The Cunning Man. The university of Oxford conferred upon him, on the 23rd of June 1769, the degrees of Bachelor and Doctor of Music, on which occasion he presided at the performance of his exercise for these degrees. This consisted of an anthem, with an overture, solos, recitatives and choruses, accompanied by instruments, besides a vocal anthem in eight parts, which was not performed. In 1769 he published An Essay towards a History of Comets. Amidst his various professional avocations, Burney never lost sight of his favourite object - his History of Music - and therefore resolved to travel abroad for the purpose of collecting materials that could not be found in Great Britain. Accordingly, he left London in June 1770, furnished with numerous letters of introduction, and proceeded to Paris, and thence to Geneva, Turin, Milan, Padua, Venice, Bologna, Florence, Rome and Naples. The results of his observations he published in The Present State of Music in France and Italy (1771). Dr Johnson thought so well of this work that, alluding to his own Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland, he said, \"I had that clever dog Burney's Musical Tour in my eye.\" In July 1772 Burney again visited the continent, to collect further materials, and, after his return to London, published his tour under the title of The Present State of Music in Germany, the Netherlands and United Provinces (1773). In 1773 he was chosen a fellow of the Royal Society. In 1776 appeared the first volume (in 4to) of his longprojected History of Music. In 1782 Burney published his second volume; and in 1789 the third and fourth. Though severely criticized by Forkel in Germany and by the Spanish ex-Jesuit, Requeno, who, in his Italian work Saggj sul Ristabilimento dell' Arte Armonica de' Greci e Romani Cantori (Parma, 1798), attacks Burney's account of the ancient Greek music, and calls him to scompigliato Burney, the History of Music was generally recognized as possessing great merit. The least satisfactory volume is the fourth, the treatment of Handel and Bach being quite inadequate. Burney's first tour was translated into German by Ebeling, and printed at Hamburg in 1772; and his second tour, translated into German by Bode, was published at Hamburg in 1773. A Dutch translation of his second tour, with notes by J. W. Lustig, organist at Groningen, was published there in 1786. The Dissertation on the Music of the Ancients, in the first volume of Burney's History, was translated into German by J. J. Eschenburg, and printed at Leipzig, 1781. Burney derived much aid from the first two volumes of Padre Martini's very learned Storia della Musica (Bologna, 1 757-177 0). One cannot but admire his persevering industry, and his sacrifices of time, money and personal comfort, in collecting and preparing materials for his History, and few will be disposed to condemn severely errors and oversights in a work of such extent and difficulty. In 1774 he had written A Plan for a Music School. In 1779 he wrote for the Royal Society an account of the infant Crotch, whose remarkable musical talent excited so much attention at that time. In 1784 he published, with an Italian title-page, the music annually performed in the pope's chapel at Rome during Passion Week. In 1785 he published, for the benefit of the Musical Fund, an account of the first commemoration of Handel in Westminster Abbey in the preceding year, with an excellent life of Handel. In 1796 he published Memoirs and Letters of Metastasio. Towards the close of his life Burney was paid 1000 for contributing to Rees's Cyclopaedia all the musical articles not belonging to the department of natural philosophy and mathematics. In 1783, through the treasury influence of his friend Edmund Burke, he was appointed organist to the chapel of Chelsea Hospital, and he moved his residence from St Martin's Street, Leicester Square, to live in the hospital for the remainder of his life. He was made a member of the Institute of France, and nominated a correspondent in the class of the fine arts, in the year 1810. From 1806 until his death he enjoyed a pension of X300 granted by Fox. He died at Chelsea College on the 12th of April 1814, and was interred in the burying-ground of the college. A tablet was erected to his memory in Westminster Abbey. Burney's portrait was painted by Reynolds, and his bust was cut by Nollekens in 1805. He had a wide circle of acquaintance among the distinguished artists and literary men of his day. At one time he thought of writing a life of his friend Dr Samuel Johnson, but he retired before the crowd of biographers who rushed into that field. His character in private as well as in public life appears to have been very amiable and exemplary. Dr Burney's eldest son, James, was a distinguished officer in the royal navy, who died a rear-admiral in 1821; his second son was the Rev. Charles Burney, D.D. (1757-1817), a well-known classical scholar, whose splendid collection of rare books and MSS was ultimately bought by the nation for the British Museum; and his second daughter was Frances (Madame D'Arblay). The Diary and Letters of Madame D'Arblay contain many minute and interesting particulars of her father's public and private life, and of his friends and contemporaries. A life of Burney by Madame D'Arblay appeared in 1832. Besides the operatic music above mentioned, Burney's known compositions consist of: - (i) Six Sonatas for the harpsichord; (2) Two Sonatas for the harp or piano, with accompaniments for violin and violoncello; (3) Sonatas for two violins and a bass: two sets; (4) Six Lessons for the harpsichord; (5) Six Duets for two German flutes; (6) Three Concertos for the harpsichord; (7) Six concert pieces with an introduction and fugue for the organ; (8) Six Concertos for the violin, etc., in eight parts; (9) Two Sonatas for pianoforte, violin and violoncello; (To) A Cantata, etc.; (ii) Anthems, etc.; (12) XII. Canzonetti a due voci in Canone, poesia dell' Abate Metastasio.\nQuestion: How many degrees did Burney receive from Oxford?\nAnswer:", " 5"], ["Caring for Aging Parents & Elder Rage: Know The Warning Signs of Alzheimer's!For eleven years I pleaded with my obstinate elderly father to allow acaregiver to help him with my ailing mother, but after 55 years of lovingeach other he adamantly insisted on taking care of her himself. Everycaregiver I hired to help him soon called in exasperation, \"Jacqueline, Ijust can't work with your father-his temper is impossible to handle. I don'tthink he'll accept help until he's on his knees himself.\"My father had always been 90% great, but boy-oh-boy that temper was a doozy.He'd never turned it on me before, but then again I'd never gone against hiswishes either. When my mother nearly died from an infection caused by hisinability to continue to care for her, I flew from southern California toSan Francisco to try to save her life-having no idea that in the process itwould nearly cost me my own. EARLY SIGNS OF DEMENTIA?I spent three months in the hospital nursing my 82-pound mother back torelative health, while my father went from being my loving dad one minute tocalling me horrible nasty names and throwing me out of the house the next. Iwalked on egg shells trying not to upset him, even running the washingmachine could cause a tizzy, and there was no way to reason with him. It wasso heart wrenching to have my once-adoring father turn against me.I immediately took my father to his doctor, only to be flabbergasted hecould act normal when he needed to. I could not believe it when the doctorlooked at me as if I was lying to her. She didn't even take me seriouslywhen I reported that my father had nearly electrocuted my mother, butfortunately I walked into the bathroom just three seconds before he pluggedin a huge orange power strip that was soaking in a white tub of saltwater-along with my mother's feet! Much later, I was furious to find out myfather had instructed his doctor (and everyone he came into contact with)not to listen to a thing I said because I was just a (bleep-bleep) liar-andall I wanted was his money! (I wish he had some.)Then things got serious. My father had never laid a hand on me my wholelife, but one day nearly choked me to death for adding HBO to histelevision, even though he had eagerly consented to it just a few daysbefore. Terrified, I dialed 911 for the first time in my life and when thepolice finally arrived they took him to a psychiatric hospital forevaluation. I could not believe it when they released him right away, sayingthey couldn't find anything wrong with him. What is even more astonishing isthat similar incidents occurred three more times. CAREGIVER CATCH 22After three months I was happy to finally bring my frail mother home fromthe hospital, but furious to find myself trapped. I couldn't fly home andleave my mother alone with my father-she'd surely die from his inability tocare for her. I couldn't get my father to accept a caregiver, and even whenI did-no one would put up with his raging very long. I couldn't gethealthcare professionals to help-my father was always so darling and sane infront of them. I couldn't get medication to calm him, and even when Ifinally did-he refused to take it, threw it in my face and flushed it downthe toilet. I couldn't place my mother in a nursing home-he'd just take herout. I couldn't put him in a home-he didn't qualify. They both refusedAssisted Living-and legally I couldn't force them. I became a prisoner in myparents' home for nearly a year trying to solve crisis after crisis, crying,begging for professional help-and infuriated with an unsympathetic medicalsystem that wasn't helping me appropriately. GERIATRIC DEMENTIA SPECIALIST MAKES DIAGNOSIS You don't need a medical doctorate degree to know something is wrong, butyou do need the right doctor who can diagnose and treat dementia properly.Finally, a friend suggested I call the Alzheimer's Association who directedme to the best neurologist in the area who specialized in dementia. Heperformed a battery of blood, neurological, memory tests and CT & P.E.T.scans. After reviewing my parents' many medications and ruling out numerousreversible dementias such as a B-12 and thyroid deficiency, you should haveseen my face drop when he diagnosed Stage One Alzheimer's in both of myparents-something all their other healthcare professionals missed entirely. TRAPPED IN OLD HABITSWhat I'd been coping with was the beginning of Alzheimer's (just one type ofdementia), which begins very intermittently and appears to come and go. Ididn't understand that my father was addicted and trapped in his own badbehavior of a lifetime and his habit of yelling to get his way was comingout over things that were over-the-top illogical... at times. I also didn'tunderstand that demented does not mean dumb (a concept not widelyappreciated) and that he was still socially adjusted never to show his'Hyde' side to anyone outside the family. Even with the onset of dementia,it was astonishing he could still be so manipulative and crafty. On theother hand, my mother was as sweet and lovely as she'd always been. KEY: BALANCE BRAIN CHEMISTRY!I learned that Alzheimer's makes up 60-80% of all dementias and there's nostopping the progression nor is there yet a cure. However, if identifiedEARLY there are four FDA approved medications that can mask the symptoms,keeping a person in the early independent stage longer, delaying the needfor part to full-time supervision and care. The medications are Aricept,Exelon, Razadyne and Namenda, with many more in clinical trials. Incombination with optimal lifestyle changes (proper nutrition, weight,exercise, socialization), a one month delay in nursing home placement ofAlzheimer's patients could save the U.S. $1 BILLION annually. A five yeardelay in the onset could save $50 BILLION in annual healthcare costs. Publicawareness, education, and more research dollars are needed!After the neurologist masked the symptoms of Alzheimer's in my parents, andalso treated their depression (often present in AD patients), he prescribeda small dose of anti-aggression medication for my father, which helpedsmooth out is his volatile temper without making him sleep all day. (Ohhh,if we'd only had that fifty years ago!) It wasn't easy to get the dosagesright and took a lot of time and patience (no, he wasn't suddenly turnedinto a perfect angel), but at least we didn't need police intervention anylonger! CREATIVE BEHAVIORAL TECHNIQUESOnce my parents' brain chemistries were better balanced, I was able tooptimize nutrition, fluids, medication, treatments, and exercise with muchless resistance. I was also able to implement techniques to cope with theintermittent bizarre behaviors. Instead of logic and reason-I useddistraction and redirection to something they were interested in. I learnedto use reminiscence and talk about the old days, capitalizing on theirlong-term memories which were still quite good. Instead of arguing thefacts-I agreed, validated frustrated feelings, and lived in their realitiesof the moment. Instead of crying, I learned to just 'go with the flow' andlet any nasty comments roll off. And if none of that worked, a bribe of ice cream worked the best to cajolemy father into the shower, even as he swore a blue streak at me that he'djust taken one yesterday (over a week ago). I was also finally able to getmy father to accept two caregivers (he'd only alienated 40 that year-mostonly there for about ten minutes), and then with the tremendous benefit ofAdult Day Health Care five days a week for my parents and a support groupfor me, everything finally started to fall into place.IF ONLY WE HAD LONG TERM CARE INSURANCE!Before long my parents' life savings was gone and we were well into mine. Iwas advised to apply for Medicaid for them and after months of paperwork,aggravation, and evaluation they were approved for financial help from thegovernment. I was so relieved, until I learned that it would only pay to putmy parents in a nursing home, not keep them at home with 24/7 care. And,since my mother needed so much more skilled care than my father, they'd beseparated, something they would never consent to-nor did I want to do afterall this work to keep them together.I could not believe it-I finally had everything figured out medically,behaviorally, socially, legally, emotionally, two wonderful caregivers inplace, the house elder-proofed, and all I needed was some financial help tokeep them at home. If I'd just made sure my parents bought Long Term CareInsurance (or I bought it for them) years ago while they were still healthyand before any diagnosis of dementia, it would have covered the cost oftheir care at home. Instead, I paid for it, which nearly wiped me out inevery way. After five years of managing 24/7 care for my parents, I thensurvived invasive Brst. Cancer. ALZHEIMER'S / DEMENTIA OFTEN OVERLOOKEDWhat is so unsettling is that not one healthcare professional discussed thepossibility of the beginning of Alzheimer's Disease (or any type ofdementia) in my parents with me that first year, which happens far too oftento families. Alzheimer's afflicts more than 5.4 million Americans, butmillions go undiagnosed for 5-10 years because intermittent subtle warningsigns are chalked up to stress and just a 'normal' part of aging. Since oneout of eight by age 65, and nearly half by age 85 get AD, healthcareprofessionals of every specialty should know the 'Ten Warning Signs ofAlzheimer's' and educate their patients and families early on so everyonesaves time, money-and a fortune in Kleenex!TEN WARNING SIGNS OF ALZHEIMER'S(Reprinted with permission of the Alzheimer's Association)1.   Memory loss2.   Difficulty performing familiar tasks3.   Problems with language4.   Disorientation of time and place5.   Poor or decreased judgment6.   Problems with abstract thinking7.   Misplacing things8.   Changes in mood or behavior9.   Changes in personality10. Loss of initiativewww.ElderRage.com/Alzheimers.asp\nQuestion: Because of which television provider with headquarters in New York did the author quarrel with her father?\nAnswer:", " HBO"], ["Caring for Aging Parents & Elder Rage: Know The Warning Signs of Alzheimer's!For eleven years I pleaded with my obstinate elderly father to allow acaregiver to help him with my ailing mother, but after 55 years of lovingeach other he adamantly insisted on taking care of her himself. Everycaregiver I hired to help him soon called in exasperation, \"Jacqueline, Ijust can't work with your father-his temper is impossible to handle. I don'tthink he'll accept help until he's on his knees himself.\"My father had always been 90% great, but boy-oh-boy that temper was a doozy.He'd never turned it on me before, but then again I'd never gone against hiswishes either. When my mother nearly died from an infection caused by hisinability to continue to care for her, I flew from southern California toSan Francisco to try to save her life-having no idea that in the process itwould nearly cost me my own. EARLY SIGNS OF DEMENTIA?I spent three months in the hospital nursing my 82-pound mother back torelative health, while my father went from being my loving dad one minute tocalling me horrible nasty names and throwing me out of the house the next. Iwalked on egg shells trying not to upset him, even running the washingmachine could cause a tizzy, and there was no way to reason with him. It wasso heart wrenching to have my once-adoring father turn against me.I immediately took my father to his doctor, only to be flabbergasted hecould act normal when he needed to. I could not believe it when the doctorlooked at me as if I was lying to her. She didn't even take me seriouslywhen I reported that my father had nearly electrocuted my mother, butfortunately I walked into the bathroom just three seconds before he pluggedin a huge orange power strip that was soaking in a white tub of saltwater-along with my mother's feet! Much later, I was furious to find out myfather had instructed his doctor (and everyone he came into contact with)not to listen to a thing I said because I was just a (bleep-bleep) liar-andall I wanted was his money! (I wish he had some.)Then things got serious. My father had never laid a hand on me my wholelife, but one day nearly choked me to death for adding HBO to histelevision, even though he had eagerly consented to it just a few daysbefore. Terrified, I dialed 911 for the first time in my life and when thepolice finally arrived they took him to a psychiatric hospital forevaluation. I could not believe it when they released him right away, sayingthey couldn't find anything wrong with him. What is even more astonishing isthat similar incidents occurred three more times. CAREGIVER CATCH 22After three months I was happy to finally bring my frail mother home fromthe hospital, but furious to find myself trapped. I couldn't fly home andleave my mother alone with my father-she'd surely die from his inability tocare for her. I couldn't get my father to accept a caregiver, and even whenI did-no one would put up with his raging very long. I couldn't gethealthcare professionals to help-my father was always so darling and sane infront of them. I couldn't get medication to calm him, and even when Ifinally did-he refused to take it, threw it in my face and flushed it downthe toilet. I couldn't place my mother in a nursing home-he'd just take herout. I couldn't put him in a home-he didn't qualify. They both refusedAssisted Living-and legally I couldn't force them. I became a prisoner in myparents' home for nearly a year trying to solve crisis after crisis, crying,begging for professional help-and infuriated with an unsympathetic medicalsystem that wasn't helping me appropriately. GERIATRIC DEMENTIA SPECIALIST MAKES DIAGNOSIS You don't need a medical doctorate degree to know something is wrong, butyou do need the right doctor who can diagnose and treat dementia properly.Finally, a friend suggested I call the Alzheimer's Association who directedme to the best neurologist in the area who specialized in dementia. Heperformed a battery of blood, neurological, memory tests and CT & P.E.T.scans. After reviewing my parents' many medications and ruling out numerousreversible dementias such as a B-12 and thyroid deficiency, you should haveseen my face drop when he diagnosed Stage One Alzheimer's in both of myparents-something all their other healthcare professionals missed entirely. TRAPPED IN OLD HABITSWhat I'd been coping with was the beginning of Alzheimer's (just one type ofdementia), which begins very intermittently and appears to come and go. Ididn't understand that my father was addicted and trapped in his own badbehavior of a lifetime and his habit of yelling to get his way was comingout over things that were over-the-top illogical... at times. I also didn'tunderstand that demented does not mean dumb (a concept not widelyappreciated) and that he was still socially adjusted never to show his'Hyde' side to anyone outside the family. Even with the onset of dementia,it was astonishing he could still be so manipulative and crafty. On theother hand, my mother was as sweet and lovely as she'd always been. KEY: BALANCE BRAIN CHEMISTRY!I learned that Alzheimer's makes up 60-80% of all dementias and there's nostopping the progression nor is there yet a cure. However, if identifiedEARLY there are four FDA approved medications that can mask the symptoms,keeping a person in the early independent stage longer, delaying the needfor part to full-time supervision and care. The medications are Aricept,Exelon, Razadyne and Namenda, with many more in clinical trials. Incombination with optimal lifestyle changes (proper nutrition, weight,exercise, socialization), a one month delay in nursing home placement ofAlzheimer's patients could save the U.S. $1 BILLION annually. A five yeardelay in the onset could save $50 BILLION in annual healthcare costs. Publicawareness, education, and more research dollars are needed!After the neurologist masked the symptoms of Alzheimer's in my parents, andalso treated their depression (often present in AD patients), he prescribeda small dose of anti-aggression medication for my father, which helpedsmooth out is his volatile temper without making him sleep all day. (Ohhh,if we'd only had that fifty years ago!) It wasn't easy to get the dosagesright and took a lot of time and patience (no, he wasn't suddenly turnedinto a perfect angel), but at least we didn't need police intervention anylonger! CREATIVE BEHAVIORAL TECHNIQUESOnce my parents' brain chemistries were better balanced, I was able tooptimize nutrition, fluids, medication, treatments, and exercise with muchless resistance. I was also able to implement techniques to cope with theintermittent bizarre behaviors. Instead of logic and reason-I useddistraction and redirection to something they were interested in. I learnedto use reminiscence and talk about the old days, capitalizing on theirlong-term memories which were still quite good. Instead of arguing thefacts-I agreed, validated frustrated feelings, and lived in their realitiesof the moment. Instead of crying, I learned to just 'go with the flow' andlet any nasty comments roll off. And if none of that worked, a bribe of ice cream worked the best to cajolemy father into the shower, even as he swore a blue streak at me that he'djust taken one yesterday (over a week ago). I was also finally able to getmy father to accept two caregivers (he'd only alienated 40 that year-mostonly there for about ten minutes), and then with the tremendous benefit ofAdult Day Health Care five days a week for my parents and a support groupfor me, everything finally started to fall into place.IF ONLY WE HAD LONG TERM CARE INSURANCE!Before long my parents' life savings was gone and we were well into mine. Iwas advised to apply for Medicaid for them and after months of paperwork,aggravation, and evaluation they were approved for financial help from thegovernment. I was so relieved, until I learned that it would only pay to putmy parents in a nursing home, not keep them at home with 24/7 care. And,since my mother needed so much more skilled care than my father, they'd beseparated, something they would never consent to-nor did I want to do afterall this work to keep them together.I could not believe it-I finally had everything figured out medically,behaviorally, socially, legally, emotionally, two wonderful caregivers inplace, the house elder-proofed, and all I needed was some financial help tokeep them at home. If I'd just made sure my parents bought Long Term CareInsurance (or I bought it for them) years ago while they were still healthyand before any diagnosis of dementia, it would have covered the cost oftheir care at home. Instead, I paid for it, which nearly wiped me out inevery way. After five years of managing 24/7 care for my parents, I thensurvived invasive Brst. Cancer. ALZHEIMER'S / DEMENTIA OFTEN OVERLOOKEDWhat is so unsettling is that not one healthcare professional discussed thepossibility of the beginning of Alzheimer's Disease (or any type ofdementia) in my parents with me that first year, which happens far too oftento families. Alzheimer's afflicts more than 5.4 million Americans, butmillions go undiagnosed for 5-10 years because intermittent subtle warningsigns are chalked up to stress and just a 'normal' part of aging. Since oneout of eight by age 65, and nearly half by age 85 get AD, healthcareprofessionals of every specialty should know the 'Ten Warning Signs ofAlzheimer's' and educate their patients and families early on so everyonesaves time, money-and a fortune in Kleenex!TEN WARNING SIGNS OF ALZHEIMER'S(Reprinted with permission of the Alzheimer's Association)1.   Memory loss2.   Difficulty performing familiar tasks3.   Problems with language4.   Disorientation of time and place5.   Poor or decreased judgment6.   Problems with abstract thinking7.   Misplacing things8.   Changes in mood or behavior9.   Changes in personality10. Loss of initiativewww.ElderRage.com/Alzheimers.asp\nQuestion: Because of which television provider with headquarters in New York did the author quarrel with her father?\nAnswer:", " FDA"], ["Caring for Aging Parents & Elder Rage: Know The Warning Signs of Alzheimer's!For eleven years I pleaded with my obstinate elderly father to allow acaregiver to help him with my ailing mother, but after 55 years of lovingeach other he adamantly insisted on taking care of her himself. Everycaregiver I hired to help him soon called in exasperation, \"Jacqueline, Ijust can't work with your father-his temper is impossible to handle. I don'tthink he'll accept help until he's on his knees himself.\"My father had always been 90% great, but boy-oh-boy that temper was a doozy.He'd never turned it on me before, but then again I'd never gone against hiswishes either. When my mother nearly died from an infection caused by hisinability to continue to care for her, I flew from southern California toSan Francisco to try to save her life-having no idea that in the process itwould nearly cost me my own. EARLY SIGNS OF DEMENTIA?I spent three months in the hospital nursing my 82-pound mother back torelative health, while my father went from being my loving dad one minute tocalling me horrible nasty names and throwing me out of the house the next. Iwalked on egg shells trying not to upset him, even running the washingmachine could cause a tizzy, and there was no way to reason with him. It wasso heart wrenching to have my once-adoring father turn against me.I immediately took my father to his doctor, only to be flabbergasted hecould act normal when he needed to. I could not believe it when the doctorlooked at me as if I was lying to her. She didn't even take me seriouslywhen I reported that my father had nearly electrocuted my mother, butfortunately I walked into the bathroom just three seconds before he pluggedin a huge orange power strip that was soaking in a white tub of saltwater-along with my mother's feet! Much later, I was furious to find out myfather had instructed his doctor (and everyone he came into contact with)not to listen to a thing I said because I was just a (bleep-bleep) liar-andall I wanted was his money! (I wish he had some.)Then things got serious. My father had never laid a hand on me my wholelife, but one day nearly choked me to death for adding HBO to histelevision, even though he had eagerly consented to it just a few daysbefore. Terrified, I dialed 911 for the first time in my life and when thepolice finally arrived they took him to a psychiatric hospital forevaluation. I could not believe it when they released him right away, sayingthey couldn't find anything wrong with him. What is even more astonishing isthat similar incidents occurred three more times. CAREGIVER CATCH 22After three months I was happy to finally bring my frail mother home fromthe hospital, but furious to find myself trapped. I couldn't fly home andleave my mother alone with my father-she'd surely die from his inability tocare for her. I couldn't get my father to accept a caregiver, and even whenI did-no one would put up with his raging very long. I couldn't gethealthcare professionals to help-my father was always so darling and sane infront of them. I couldn't get medication to calm him, and even when Ifinally did-he refused to take it, threw it in my face and flushed it downthe toilet. I couldn't place my mother in a nursing home-he'd just take herout. I couldn't put him in a home-he didn't qualify. They both refusedAssisted Living-and legally I couldn't force them. I became a prisoner in myparents' home for nearly a year trying to solve crisis after crisis, crying,begging for professional help-and infuriated with an unsympathetic medicalsystem that wasn't helping me appropriately. GERIATRIC DEMENTIA SPECIALIST MAKES DIAGNOSIS You don't need a medical doctorate degree to know something is wrong, butyou do need the right doctor who can diagnose and treat dementia properly.Finally, a friend suggested I call the Alzheimer's Association who directedme to the best neurologist in the area who specialized in dementia. Heperformed a battery of blood, neurological, memory tests and CT & P.E.T.scans. After reviewing my parents' many medications and ruling out numerousreversible dementias such as a B-12 and thyroid deficiency, you should haveseen my face drop when he diagnosed Stage One Alzheimer's in both of myparents-something all their other healthcare professionals missed entirely. TRAPPED IN OLD HABITSWhat I'd been coping with was the beginning of Alzheimer's (just one type ofdementia), which begins very intermittently and appears to come and go. Ididn't understand that my father was addicted and trapped in his own badbehavior of a lifetime and his habit of yelling to get his way was comingout over things that were over-the-top illogical... at times. I also didn'tunderstand that demented does not mean dumb (a concept not widelyappreciated) and that he was still socially adjusted never to show his'Hyde' side to anyone outside the family. Even with the onset of dementia,it was astonishing he could still be so manipulative and crafty. On theother hand, my mother was as sweet and lovely as she'd always been. KEY: BALANCE BRAIN CHEMISTRY!I learned that Alzheimer's makes up 60-80% of all dementias and there's nostopping the progression nor is there yet a cure. However, if identifiedEARLY there are four FDA approved medications that can mask the symptoms,keeping a person in the early independent stage longer, delaying the needfor part to full-time supervision and care. The medications are Aricept,Exelon, Razadyne and Namenda, with many more in clinical trials. Incombination with optimal lifestyle changes (proper nutrition, weight,exercise, socialization), a one month delay in nursing home placement ofAlzheimer's patients could save the U.S. $1 BILLION annually. A five yeardelay in the onset could save $50 BILLION in annual healthcare costs. Publicawareness, education, and more research dollars are needed!After the neurologist masked the symptoms of Alzheimer's in my parents, andalso treated their depression (often present in AD patients), he prescribeda small dose of anti-aggression medication for my father, which helpedsmooth out is his volatile temper without making him sleep all day. (Ohhh,if we'd only had that fifty years ago!) It wasn't easy to get the dosagesright and took a lot of time and patience (no, he wasn't suddenly turnedinto a perfect angel), but at least we didn't need police intervention anylonger! CREATIVE BEHAVIORAL TECHNIQUESOnce my parents' brain chemistries were better balanced, I was able tooptimize nutrition, fluids, medication, treatments, and exercise with muchless resistance. I was also able to implement techniques to cope with theintermittent bizarre behaviors. Instead of logic and reason-I useddistraction and redirection to something they were interested in. I learnedto use reminiscence and talk about the old days, capitalizing on theirlong-term memories which were still quite good. Instead of arguing thefacts-I agreed, validated frustrated feelings, and lived in their realitiesof the moment. Instead of crying, I learned to just 'go with the flow' andlet any nasty comments roll off. And if none of that worked, a bribe of ice cream worked the best to cajolemy father into the shower, even as he swore a blue streak at me that he'djust taken one yesterday (over a week ago). I was also finally able to getmy father to accept two caregivers (he'd only alienated 40 that year-mostonly there for about ten minutes), and then with the tremendous benefit ofAdult Day Health Care five days a week for my parents and a support groupfor me, everything finally started to fall into place.IF ONLY WE HAD LONG TERM CARE INSURANCE!Before long my parents' life savings was gone and we were well into mine. Iwas advised to apply for Medicaid for them and after months of paperwork,aggravation, and evaluation they were approved for financial help from thegovernment. I was so relieved, until I learned that it would only pay to putmy parents in a nursing home, not keep them at home with 24/7 care. And,since my mother needed so much more skilled care than my father, they'd beseparated, something they would never consent to-nor did I want to do afterall this work to keep them together.I could not believe it-I finally had everything figured out medically,behaviorally, socially, legally, emotionally, two wonderful caregivers inplace, the house elder-proofed, and all I needed was some financial help tokeep them at home. If I'd just made sure my parents bought Long Term CareInsurance (or I bought it for them) years ago while they were still healthyand before any diagnosis of dementia, it would have covered the cost oftheir care at home. Instead, I paid for it, which nearly wiped me out inevery way. After five years of managing 24/7 care for my parents, I thensurvived invasive Brst. Cancer. ALZHEIMER'S / DEMENTIA OFTEN OVERLOOKEDWhat is so unsettling is that not one healthcare professional discussed thepossibility of the beginning of Alzheimer's Disease (or any type ofdementia) in my parents with me that first year, which happens far too oftento families. Alzheimer's afflicts more than 5.4 million Americans, butmillions go undiagnosed for 5-10 years because intermittent subtle warningsigns are chalked up to stress and just a 'normal' part of aging. Since oneout of eight by age 65, and nearly half by age 85 get AD, healthcareprofessionals of every specialty should know the 'Ten Warning Signs ofAlzheimer's' and educate their patients and families early on so everyonesaves time, money-and a fortune in Kleenex!TEN WARNING SIGNS OF ALZHEIMER'S(Reprinted with permission of the Alzheimer's Association)1.   Memory loss2.   Difficulty performing familiar tasks3.   Problems with language4.   Disorientation of time and place5.   Poor or decreased judgment6.   Problems with abstract thinking7.   Misplacing things8.   Changes in mood or behavior9.   Changes in personality10. Loss of initiativewww.ElderRage.com/Alzheimers.asp\nQuestion: Because of which television provider with headquarters in New York did the author quarrel with her father?\nAnswer:", " Aricept"], ["Caring for Aging Parents & Elder Rage: Know The Warning Signs of Alzheimer's!For eleven years I pleaded with my obstinate elderly father to allow acaregiver to help him with my ailing mother, but after 55 years of lovingeach other he adamantly insisted on taking care of her himself. Everycaregiver I hired to help him soon called in exasperation, \"Jacqueline, Ijust can't work with your father-his temper is impossible to handle. I don'tthink he'll accept help until he's on his knees himself.\"My father had always been 90% great, but boy-oh-boy that temper was a doozy.He'd never turned it on me before, but then again I'd never gone against hiswishes either. When my mother nearly died from an infection caused by hisinability to continue to care for her, I flew from southern California toSan Francisco to try to save her life-having no idea that in the process itwould nearly cost me my own. EARLY SIGNS OF DEMENTIA?I spent three months in the hospital nursing my 82-pound mother back torelative health, while my father went from being my loving dad one minute tocalling me horrible nasty names and throwing me out of the house the next. Iwalked on egg shells trying not to upset him, even running the washingmachine could cause a tizzy, and there was no way to reason with him. It wasso heart wrenching to have my once-adoring father turn against me.I immediately took my father to his doctor, only to be flabbergasted hecould act normal when he needed to. I could not believe it when the doctorlooked at me as if I was lying to her. She didn't even take me seriouslywhen I reported that my father had nearly electrocuted my mother, butfortunately I walked into the bathroom just three seconds before he pluggedin a huge orange power strip that was soaking in a white tub of saltwater-along with my mother's feet! Much later, I was furious to find out myfather had instructed his doctor (and everyone he came into contact with)not to listen to a thing I said because I was just a (bleep-bleep) liar-andall I wanted was his money! (I wish he had some.)Then things got serious. My father had never laid a hand on me my wholelife, but one day nearly choked me to death for adding HBO to histelevision, even though he had eagerly consented to it just a few daysbefore. Terrified, I dialed 911 for the first time in my life and when thepolice finally arrived they took him to a psychiatric hospital forevaluation. I could not believe it when they released him right away, sayingthey couldn't find anything wrong with him. What is even more astonishing isthat similar incidents occurred three more times. CAREGIVER CATCH 22After three months I was happy to finally bring my frail mother home fromthe hospital, but furious to find myself trapped. I couldn't fly home andleave my mother alone with my father-she'd surely die from his inability tocare for her. I couldn't get my father to accept a caregiver, and even whenI did-no one would put up with his raging very long. I couldn't gethealthcare professionals to help-my father was always so darling and sane infront of them. I couldn't get medication to calm him, and even when Ifinally did-he refused to take it, threw it in my face and flushed it downthe toilet. I couldn't place my mother in a nursing home-he'd just take herout. I couldn't put him in a home-he didn't qualify. They both refusedAssisted Living-and legally I couldn't force them. I became a prisoner in myparents' home for nearly a year trying to solve crisis after crisis, crying,begging for professional help-and infuriated with an unsympathetic medicalsystem that wasn't helping me appropriately. GERIATRIC DEMENTIA SPECIALIST MAKES DIAGNOSIS You don't need a medical doctorate degree to know something is wrong, butyou do need the right doctor who can diagnose and treat dementia properly.Finally, a friend suggested I call the Alzheimer's Association who directedme to the best neurologist in the area who specialized in dementia. Heperformed a battery of blood, neurological, memory tests and CT & P.E.T.scans. After reviewing my parents' many medications and ruling out numerousreversible dementias such as a B-12 and thyroid deficiency, you should haveseen my face drop when he diagnosed Stage One Alzheimer's in both of myparents-something all their other healthcare professionals missed entirely. TRAPPED IN OLD HABITSWhat I'd been coping with was the beginning of Alzheimer's (just one type ofdementia), which begins very intermittently and appears to come and go. Ididn't understand that my father was addicted and trapped in his own badbehavior of a lifetime and his habit of yelling to get his way was comingout over things that were over-the-top illogical... at times. I also didn'tunderstand that demented does not mean dumb (a concept not widelyappreciated) and that he was still socially adjusted never to show his'Hyde' side to anyone outside the family. Even with the onset of dementia,it was astonishing he could still be so manipulative and crafty. On theother hand, my mother was as sweet and lovely as she'd always been. KEY: BALANCE BRAIN CHEMISTRY!I learned that Alzheimer's makes up 60-80% of all dementias and there's nostopping the progression nor is there yet a cure. However, if identifiedEARLY there are four FDA approved medications that can mask the symptoms,keeping a person in the early independent stage longer, delaying the needfor part to full-time supervision and care. The medications are Aricept,Exelon, Razadyne and Namenda, with many more in clinical trials. Incombination with optimal lifestyle changes (proper nutrition, weight,exercise, socialization), a one month delay in nursing home placement ofAlzheimer's patients could save the U.S. $1 BILLION annually. A five yeardelay in the onset could save $50 BILLION in annual healthcare costs. Publicawareness, education, and more research dollars are needed!After the neurologist masked the symptoms of Alzheimer's in my parents, andalso treated their depression (often present in AD patients), he prescribeda small dose of anti-aggression medication for my father, which helpedsmooth out is his volatile temper without making him sleep all day. (Ohhh,if we'd only had that fifty years ago!) It wasn't easy to get the dosagesright and took a lot of time and patience (no, he wasn't suddenly turnedinto a perfect angel), but at least we didn't need police intervention anylonger! CREATIVE BEHAVIORAL TECHNIQUESOnce my parents' brain chemistries were better balanced, I was able tooptimize nutrition, fluids, medication, treatments, and exercise with muchless resistance. I was also able to implement techniques to cope with theintermittent bizarre behaviors. Instead of logic and reason-I useddistraction and redirection to something they were interested in. I learnedto use reminiscence and talk about the old days, capitalizing on theirlong-term memories which were still quite good. Instead of arguing thefacts-I agreed, validated frustrated feelings, and lived in their realitiesof the moment. Instead of crying, I learned to just 'go with the flow' andlet any nasty comments roll off. And if none of that worked, a bribe of ice cream worked the best to cajolemy father into the shower, even as he swore a blue streak at me that he'djust taken one yesterday (over a week ago). I was also finally able to getmy father to accept two caregivers (he'd only alienated 40 that year-mostonly there for about ten minutes), and then with the tremendous benefit ofAdult Day Health Care five days a week for my parents and a support groupfor me, everything finally started to fall into place.IF ONLY WE HAD LONG TERM CARE INSURANCE!Before long my parents' life savings was gone and we were well into mine. Iwas advised to apply for Medicaid for them and after months of paperwork,aggravation, and evaluation they were approved for financial help from thegovernment. I was so relieved, until I learned that it would only pay to putmy parents in a nursing home, not keep them at home with 24/7 care. And,since my mother needed so much more skilled care than my father, they'd beseparated, something they would never consent to-nor did I want to do afterall this work to keep them together.I could not believe it-I finally had everything figured out medically,behaviorally, socially, legally, emotionally, two wonderful caregivers inplace, the house elder-proofed, and all I needed was some financial help tokeep them at home. If I'd just made sure my parents bought Long Term CareInsurance (or I bought it for them) years ago while they were still healthyand before any diagnosis of dementia, it would have covered the cost oftheir care at home. Instead, I paid for it, which nearly wiped me out inevery way. After five years of managing 24/7 care for my parents, I thensurvived invasive Brst. Cancer. ALZHEIMER'S / DEMENTIA OFTEN OVERLOOKEDWhat is so unsettling is that not one healthcare professional discussed thepossibility of the beginning of Alzheimer's Disease (or any type ofdementia) in my parents with me that first year, which happens far too oftento families. Alzheimer's afflicts more than 5.4 million Americans, butmillions go undiagnosed for 5-10 years because intermittent subtle warningsigns are chalked up to stress and just a 'normal' part of aging. Since oneout of eight by age 65, and nearly half by age 85 get AD, healthcareprofessionals of every specialty should know the 'Ten Warning Signs ofAlzheimer's' and educate their patients and families early on so everyonesaves time, money-and a fortune in Kleenex!TEN WARNING SIGNS OF ALZHEIMER'S(Reprinted with permission of the Alzheimer's Association)1.   Memory loss2.   Difficulty performing familiar tasks3.   Problems with language4.   Disorientation of time and place5.   Poor or decreased judgment6.   Problems with abstract thinking7.   Misplacing things8.   Changes in mood or behavior9.   Changes in personality10. Loss of initiativewww.ElderRage.com/Alzheimers.asp\nQuestion: Because of which television provider with headquarters in New York did the author quarrel with her father?\nAnswer:", " Namenda"], ["Caring for Aging Parents & Elder Rage: Know The Warning Signs of Alzheimer's!For eleven years I pleaded with my obstinate elderly father to allow acaregiver to help him with my ailing mother, but after 55 years of lovingeach other he adamantly insisted on taking care of her himself. Everycaregiver I hired to help him soon called in exasperation, \"Jacqueline, Ijust can't work with your father-his temper is impossible to handle. I don'tthink he'll accept help until he's on his knees himself.\"My father had always been 90% great, but boy-oh-boy that temper was a doozy.He'd never turned it on me before, but then again I'd never gone against hiswishes either. When my mother nearly died from an infection caused by hisinability to continue to care for her, I flew from southern California toSan Francisco to try to save her life-having no idea that in the process itwould nearly cost me my own. EARLY SIGNS OF DEMENTIA?I spent three months in the hospital nursing my 82-pound mother back torelative health, while my father went from being my loving dad one minute tocalling me horrible nasty names and throwing me out of the house the next. Iwalked on egg shells trying not to upset him, even running the washingmachine could cause a tizzy, and there was no way to reason with him. It wasso heart wrenching to have my once-adoring father turn against me.I immediately took my father to his doctor, only to be flabbergasted hecould act normal when he needed to. I could not believe it when the doctorlooked at me as if I was lying to her. She didn't even take me seriouslywhen I reported that my father had nearly electrocuted my mother, butfortunately I walked into the bathroom just three seconds before he pluggedin a huge orange power strip that was soaking in a white tub of saltwater-along with my mother's feet! Much later, I was furious to find out myfather had instructed his doctor (and everyone he came into contact with)not to listen to a thing I said because I was just a (bleep-bleep) liar-andall I wanted was his money! (I wish he had some.)Then things got serious. My father had never laid a hand on me my wholelife, but one day nearly choked me to death for adding HBO to histelevision, even though he had eagerly consented to it just a few daysbefore. Terrified, I dialed 911 for the first time in my life and when thepolice finally arrived they took him to a psychiatric hospital forevaluation. I could not believe it when they released him right away, sayingthey couldn't find anything wrong with him. What is even more astonishing isthat similar incidents occurred three more times. CAREGIVER CATCH 22After three months I was happy to finally bring my frail mother home fromthe hospital, but furious to find myself trapped. I couldn't fly home andleave my mother alone with my father-she'd surely die from his inability tocare for her. I couldn't get my father to accept a caregiver, and even whenI did-no one would put up with his raging very long. I couldn't gethealthcare professionals to help-my father was always so darling and sane infront of them. I couldn't get medication to calm him, and even when Ifinally did-he refused to take it, threw it in my face and flushed it downthe toilet. I couldn't place my mother in a nursing home-he'd just take herout. I couldn't put him in a home-he didn't qualify. They both refusedAssisted Living-and legally I couldn't force them. I became a prisoner in myparents' home for nearly a year trying to solve crisis after crisis, crying,begging for professional help-and infuriated with an unsympathetic medicalsystem that wasn't helping me appropriately. GERIATRIC DEMENTIA SPECIALIST MAKES DIAGNOSIS You don't need a medical doctorate degree to know something is wrong, butyou do need the right doctor who can diagnose and treat dementia properly.Finally, a friend suggested I call the Alzheimer's Association who directedme to the best neurologist in the area who specialized in dementia. Heperformed a battery of blood, neurological, memory tests and CT & P.E.T.scans. After reviewing my parents' many medications and ruling out numerousreversible dementias such as a B-12 and thyroid deficiency, you should haveseen my face drop when he diagnosed Stage One Alzheimer's in both of myparents-something all their other healthcare professionals missed entirely. TRAPPED IN OLD HABITSWhat I'd been coping with was the beginning of Alzheimer's (just one type ofdementia), which begins very intermittently and appears to come and go. Ididn't understand that my father was addicted and trapped in his own badbehavior of a lifetime and his habit of yelling to get his way was comingout over things that were over-the-top illogical... at times. I also didn'tunderstand that demented does not mean dumb (a concept not widelyappreciated) and that he was still socially adjusted never to show his'Hyde' side to anyone outside the family. Even with the onset of dementia,it was astonishing he could still be so manipulative and crafty. On theother hand, my mother was as sweet and lovely as she'd always been. KEY: BALANCE BRAIN CHEMISTRY!I learned that Alzheimer's makes up 60-80% of all dementias and there's nostopping the progression nor is there yet a cure. However, if identifiedEARLY there are four FDA approved medications that can mask the symptoms,keeping a person in the early independent stage longer, delaying the needfor part to full-time supervision and care. The medications are Aricept,Exelon, Razadyne and Namenda, with many more in clinical trials. Incombination with optimal lifestyle changes (proper nutrition, weight,exercise, socialization), a one month delay in nursing home placement ofAlzheimer's patients could save the U.S. $1 BILLION annually. A five yeardelay in the onset could save $50 BILLION in annual healthcare costs. Publicawareness, education, and more research dollars are needed!After the neurologist masked the symptoms of Alzheimer's in my parents, andalso treated their depression (often present in AD patients), he prescribeda small dose of anti-aggression medication for my father, which helpedsmooth out is his volatile temper without making him sleep all day. (Ohhh,if we'd only had that fifty years ago!) It wasn't easy to get the dosagesright and took a lot of time and patience (no, he wasn't suddenly turnedinto a perfect angel), but at least we didn't need police intervention anylonger! CREATIVE BEHAVIORAL TECHNIQUESOnce my parents' brain chemistries were better balanced, I was able tooptimize nutrition, fluids, medication, treatments, and exercise with muchless resistance. I was also able to implement techniques to cope with theintermittent bizarre behaviors. Instead of logic and reason-I useddistraction and redirection to something they were interested in. I learnedto use reminiscence and talk about the old days, capitalizing on theirlong-term memories which were still quite good. Instead of arguing thefacts-I agreed, validated frustrated feelings, and lived in their realitiesof the moment. Instead of crying, I learned to just 'go with the flow' andlet any nasty comments roll off. And if none of that worked, a bribe of ice cream worked the best to cajolemy father into the shower, even as he swore a blue streak at me that he'djust taken one yesterday (over a week ago). I was also finally able to getmy father to accept two caregivers (he'd only alienated 40 that year-mostonly there for about ten minutes), and then with the tremendous benefit ofAdult Day Health Care five days a week for my parents and a support groupfor me, everything finally started to fall into place.IF ONLY WE HAD LONG TERM CARE INSURANCE!Before long my parents' life savings was gone and we were well into mine. Iwas advised to apply for Medicaid for them and after months of paperwork,aggravation, and evaluation they were approved for financial help from thegovernment. I was so relieved, until I learned that it would only pay to putmy parents in a nursing home, not keep them at home with 24/7 care. And,since my mother needed so much more skilled care than my father, they'd beseparated, something they would never consent to-nor did I want to do afterall this work to keep them together.I could not believe it-I finally had everything figured out medically,behaviorally, socially, legally, emotionally, two wonderful caregivers inplace, the house elder-proofed, and all I needed was some financial help tokeep them at home. If I'd just made sure my parents bought Long Term CareInsurance (or I bought it for them) years ago while they were still healthyand before any diagnosis of dementia, it would have covered the cost oftheir care at home. Instead, I paid for it, which nearly wiped me out inevery way. After five years of managing 24/7 care for my parents, I thensurvived invasive Brst. Cancer. ALZHEIMER'S / DEMENTIA OFTEN OVERLOOKEDWhat is so unsettling is that not one healthcare professional discussed thepossibility of the beginning of Alzheimer's Disease (or any type ofdementia) in my parents with me that first year, which happens far too oftento families. Alzheimer's afflicts more than 5.4 million Americans, butmillions go undiagnosed for 5-10 years because intermittent subtle warningsigns are chalked up to stress and just a 'normal' part of aging. Since oneout of eight by age 65, and nearly half by age 85 get AD, healthcareprofessionals of every specialty should know the 'Ten Warning Signs ofAlzheimer's' and educate their patients and families early on so everyonesaves time, money-and a fortune in Kleenex!TEN WARNING SIGNS OF ALZHEIMER'S(Reprinted with permission of the Alzheimer's Association)1.   Memory loss2.   Difficulty performing familiar tasks3.   Problems with language4.   Disorientation of time and place5.   Poor or decreased judgment6.   Problems with abstract thinking7.   Misplacing things8.   Changes in mood or behavior9.   Changes in personality10. Loss of initiativewww.ElderRage.com/Alzheimers.asp\nQuestion: Because of which television provider with headquarters in New York did the author quarrel with her father?\nAnswer:", " Medicaid"], ["HIV/AIDS in Africa: Time to Stop the Killing FieldsKey PointsAfrica accounts for 70% of all HIV/AIDS cases in the world although it represents only 10% of the global population. More than 25 million Africans live with HIV/AIDS, and 17 million have already died.The response of the international community has been slow and largely ineffective.The UN estimates that Africa will need $3 billion just for basic treatment and prevention programs, yet the U.S. and other Western countries donated only $300 million in assistance in 2000.According to the UN Agency for HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), 25.3 million Africans live with the virus or are dying of AIDS. Barring a miracle or a major change in international attention to the scourge, these Africans will die within the next decade.Despite the horrors of the pandemic, the international response has been limited and only recently have most African governments begun to publicly address the problem. African governments are hobbled by poverty, cultural taboos about sex, and misperceptions about the cause and seriousness of AIDS. They also fear disruption of precious tourism and investment dollars from the West and have failed to warn their citizens about the dangers of AIDS. Western nations, including the U.S., have largely ignored the dangers and international repercussions of widespread infection in Africa. The United States in 2000 spent only $300 million for basic AIDS care and prevention programs in Africa\u2014far short of the $3 billion regarded as necessary to slow down the pandemic.The HIV/AIDS crisis in Africa is of the gravest magnitude. Every day, 6,700 families lose a loved one to the disease; the construction and sale of coffins is one of the fastest growing occupations in southern Africa. Sixteen African countries have one-tenth or more of their population infected with HIV, and Africa is home to 95% of all mother-to-child transmissions of HIV. In these countries, almost 80% of all deaths of young adults aged 25-45 will be directly linked to AIDS.In six countries of southern Africa, by the year 2005, AIDS will claim the lives of between 8 and 25% of today\u2019s active physicians. Women are affected more by this dreaded disease; in Africa, 12 women have HIV/AIDS for every 10 men. African women account for 85% of all global female infections. In southern Africa, one in four women aged 15-49 live with HIV/AIDS. In some countries, between 10 and 20% of teen-age girls are already infected. Infected girls are more likely than boys to drop out of school, reversing decades of slow but steady progress in female education. The much-vaunted African extended family system is faltering, as the number of orphans living without the care of extended families rises. By the year 2010, the projected number of orphans may exceed 40 million in Africa.Africa\u2019s hard-won health and education gains in the 1960s and 1970s were undermined by debt and by externally dictated structural adjustment policies in the 1980s and 1990s. Today, however, social services and economies are imploding from the deadly consequences of AIDS. In the coming decades, the continent will record significantly sharper declines in life expectancy rates and shrinkage of national economies from the effects of the epidemic.Africans living with HIV/AIDS have limited or no access to lifesaving anti-retroviral medicines that have changed the course and management of AIDS in Western countries. Less than one-tenth of one percent of Africans living with AIDS have access to AIDS drugs. The World Bank estimates that half of all Africans live on $0.65 cents per day. The economic resources of African governments are equally meager, and they are burdened by $20 billion in annual foreign debt payments. With the rudimentary healthcare infrastructure of African countries, the strain of long-term hospitalization of AIDS patients is taking a heavy toll.Economic underdevelopment and Africa\u2019s impoverished conditions have created a wide-open gateway for HIV infection, tuberculosis (TB), and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). According to the World Health Organization, an estimated 30-50% of all TB patients in Africa are also infected with HIV/AIDS. Africa has the highest rates of STDs in the world. STDs facilitate the spread of HIV infection, especially among women.Political instability and violent conflicts keep many African governments from focusing on the AIDS crisis. Twenty of the continent\u2019s 53 countries are involved in intrastate or interstate conflicts, which lead to having the world\u2019s largest regional concentration of refugees. Another important factor in the deepening crisis is the high rate of AIDS within Africa\u2019s armed forces\u201415-20% of the members of the military in some countries have AIDS. Mobility of the African male populations\u2014through military operations, migrant labor such as mine workers, and shifts from rural to urban centers\u2014exacerbates the spread of HIV/AIDS. As the HIV/AIDS pandemic continues, political and social instability will likely intensify as AIDS gobbles up scarce human and economic resources. Problems with Current U.S. PolicyKey ProblemsThe U.S. has not provided global leadership on access to AIDS drugs for Africa and has not supported Africa?s demand to purchase or produce generic drugs.The U.S. 2001 budget for fighting AIDS in Africa is about $460 million, but much more is needed.The U.S. has yet to assert its influence at the World Bank and the IMF to put more resources in Africa and to cancel external debts.Whether someone lives or dies of AIDS depends largely on where she or he lives. Despite the availability of drugs to treat AIDS, millions of Africans will die because they do not have access to AIDS drugs. In the U.S. and other Western nations, such drugs have helped AIDS to become a disease that can be managed and for which effective care is available.Confronting the AIDS emergency, African governments are demanding that pharmaceutical companies directly provide AIDS drugs at deep discounts, or at the very least not oppose compulsory licensing and parallel import arrangements. Compulsory licensing is an international trade mechanism by which countries can instruct a patent holder to license the right to use this patent to any national company or government agency. Parallel importing describes a practice whereby a country imports goods for resale without authorization from the original seller. (See Robert Weissman, \u201cFacilitating Access to Essential Medicines,\u201d FPIF, February 2001.) This struggle became heated with the court battle between the government of South Africa and 39 drug companies. The companies contended that a new law would allow the South African government to ignore international patent law.Under mounting international pressure, the pharmaceutical industry dropped its suit, and has promised to facilitate the flow of low-priced AIDS-treatment pharmaceuticals. But this issue will not go away, because even lower priced drugs will still be out of reach for most Africans, and the pharmaceutical industry remains committed to strong international patent protection and to staving off the production of generic medicines for the treatment of AIDS and other illnesses.The U.S and its Western allies have failed to provide significant funds to fight AIDS in Africa. In 2001, the wealthiest nation on earth is spending only $460 million dollars to fight the biggest medical and humanitarian emergency of our time. The United Nations estimates that at least $10 billion will be needed to fight AIDS in Africa. A group of Harvard researchers, economists, and scientists recommended that, at bare minimum, the U.S. should spend $1.5 billion a year to fight AIDS in Africa.Fortunately, U.S. policymakers are responding to such public pressure with increased allocations. The U.S. Senate, for example, recently approved a $700 million increase in proposed spending over the next two years to fight AIDS in poor countries. However, much more needs to be done.In another major issue confronting Africa, U.S policymakers have not squared up to their responsibility. Africa owes foreign banks and governments about $350 billion. These debts are controversial and a major hindrance to an adequate African response to AIDS. Every year, Africa spends roughly $20 billion on debt repayment\u2014more than the combined continental outlay for healthcare and education. At least 23 African countries spend more money on debt repayment than they spend for healthcare. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank have yet to effect significant debt cancellation for African nations despite widespread pressure from international citizen movements and from the G8, the forum of the world\u2019s wealthiest nations. The U.S., which is the largest shareholder in these two international financial institutions, has yet to demand debt cancellation for Africa.The policy problems that contribute to the AIDS crisis in Africa extend beyond Washington and other international donors. Until recently, African leaders have largely ignored the pandemic. Even today, very few African nations match their AIDS rhetoric with commensurate budget allocations. Uganda and Senegal are prominent exceptions.Senegal, through a combination of political will, prudent budget allocations, and massive mobilization has kept its rate of infection to less than one percent. Ugandan President Yoweri Musuveni, recognizing the gravity of the AIDS pandemic, mobilized his people to modify risky behaviors and to come forward for testing and counseling. The rate of AIDS in Uganda is down to about 8%, from a high of 16% in the early 1990s.Despite the laudable efforts of Uganda and Senegal, corruption and the squandering of scarce national resources continue. Government spending on wars, white elephant projects, and persecution of political and economic opponents is still rife across the continent. Toward a New Foreign PolicyKey RecommendationsThe U.S should lead other rich nations in supplying essential medicines to Africans living with AIDS, and devote significantly more resources to fighting AIDS in Africa.The U.S should lead the fight for debt relief for African nations and ensure that the savings go into AIDS relief and other healthcare programs.The U.S and other rich nations should work with African governments to create an environment conducive to AIDS relief on the continent.The immediate goal of a reinvigorated U.S policy should be the dismantling of all legal and logistic obstacles to the provision of affordable drugs to all Africans living with AIDS. The developed nations, led by the U.S., should rise in unison and make a simple pledge: No African Man, Woman, Child, or Infant Should Be Denied Access to Lifesaving AIDS Drugs, by December 2002.As the leading global democracy, the U.S. should democratize access to essential AIDS medicines for poor nations. We commend the Bush administration for maintaining President Clinton\u2019s executive order on flexible access to AIDS drugs for poor nations. However, the U.S. needs to do more. The U.S. should ensure that the World Trade Organization (WTO) implements a flexible interpretation of the Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights Agreement (TRIPS), thereby allowing poor nations facing the AIDS emergency to provide cheap AIDS drugs to their citizens. The U.S. and its allies should also ensure that all WTO rulings reflect a sound public health framework to ensure that the goal of unencumbered trade does not create adverse health consequences in poor nations.The U.S. government should work more closely with the pharmaceutical companies to ensure that all obstacles to speedy and effective delivery of AIDS medicines to poor nations are eliminated. These obstacles include: (1) the concerns of pharmaceutical companies about possible parallel imports of cheap AIDS drugs into the lucrative Western markets by poor nations; (2) the concerns of citizen advocates and AIDS activists that access to AIDS drugs should not come under the purview of market forces and restrictive patent laws; and, (3) the concerns of African governments that they should have the exclusive prerogative to determine national emergencies and possible remedial actions. Washington should also work to persuade U.S. multinational companies doing business in Africa to provide AIDS prevention and treatment programs for their workers and family members.The U.S. should devote more resources to fighting AIDS in Africa. America has always responded to major humanitarian needs, whether in Europe, Asia, or Latin America. It is time to spend readily available resources to stop AIDS in Africa. Harvard researchers estimated that a scaled-up U.S. response of $1.5 billion would cost about $5 a year per American. Doubling such a commitment would cost each American about $10 a year\u2014a commitment well worth making, considering the magnitude of the crisis and its long-term implications for global peace and development.It is not likely that other rich nations will spend significantly more money on AIDS without a serious commitment from the United States. The Constituency for Africa (CFA), under the leadership of former Congressman Ron Dellums, proposed a HIV/AIDS Marshall Plan for Africa with significant public- and private-sector funds to fight the disease. As a result, Congress, in August 2000, passed Public Law 106-264, the Global AIDS and Tuberculosis Relief Act of 2000, sponsored by Jim Leach, R-Iowa and Barbara Lee, D-California, that earmarked $150 million dollars for each of the fiscal years 2001 and 2002, for a Trust Fund. The Trust Fund will be used to leverage funds from multilateral development banks like the World Bank and to encourage similar commitments from other Western donors. The Trust Fund will also fund the implementation of specific HIV/AIDS programs in Africa. President Clinton signed the bill into law, as a modest start to what promises to be a long journey.The U.S. should use its significant leverage in the G8, the IMF, and the World Bank to provide debt relief for African nations. The U.S. has the excellent opportunity at the G8 summit, in July 2001, to persuade its allies to forgive the debt of African nations, on the condition that African governments plow back such savings into verifiable investments in AIDS prevention and treatment programs and other healthcare services. The U.S. government is not the major holder of African debt\u2014it is owed about $360 million out of the estimated $350 billion in controversial debts\u2014but the U.S. has the moral, economic, and political leverage to advance a genuine debt relief agenda among its allies. Washington should also work with African leaders and their peoples to ensure a concerted and consistent focus on the AIDS epidemic. Without dictating their actions, the U.S should work with African governments to ensure movement in the following areas: (1) allocation of more money by African nations to fight AIDS; (2) sustained political reforms to encourage pluralistic political and multi-sector campaigns against AIDS; (3) end corrupt practices that siphon foreign aid and investments; and, (4) encourage the emergence of more civil society involvement in politics and non-government programs at community levels.The international community led by the U.S. should not turn its back on 25 million Africans living under a death sentence. The international cooperation that has fought against oppression and tyranny since World War II should not permit the AIDS killing fields to continue in Africa. A strong case can be made that the AIDS pandemic in Africa represents a direct threat to U.S. national interests and national security because of associated political instability, economic downturn, and the intercontinental spread of infectious diseases. In the end, however, U.S. citizens and U.S. policymakers face a moral imperative and should ask: Have we done all we can to save 25 million fellow human beings from an avoidable death?\nQuestion: Why are funeral services increasingly required in southern Africa?\nAnswer:", " even some Americans live with the virus or are dying of AIDS"], ["HIV/AIDS in Africa: Time to Stop the Killing FieldsKey PointsAfrica accounts for 70% of all HIV/AIDS cases in the world although it represents only 10% of the global population. More than 25 million Africans live with HIV/AIDS, and 17 million have already died.The response of the international community has been slow and largely ineffective.The UN estimates that Africa will need $3 billion just for basic treatment and prevention programs, yet the U.S. and other Western countries donated only $300 million in assistance in 2000.According to the UN Agency for HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), 25.3 million Africans live with the virus or are dying of AIDS. Barring a miracle or a major change in international attention to the scourge, these Africans will die within the next decade.Despite the horrors of the pandemic, the international response has been limited and only recently have most African governments begun to publicly address the problem. African governments are hobbled by poverty, cultural taboos about sex, and misperceptions about the cause and seriousness of AIDS. They also fear disruption of precious tourism and investment dollars from the West and have failed to warn their citizens about the dangers of AIDS. Western nations, including the U.S., have largely ignored the dangers and international repercussions of widespread infection in Africa. The United States in 2000 spent only $300 million for basic AIDS care and prevention programs in Africa\u2014far short of the $3 billion regarded as necessary to slow down the pandemic.The HIV/AIDS crisis in Africa is of the gravest magnitude. Every day, 6,700 families lose a loved one to the disease; the construction and sale of coffins is one of the fastest growing occupations in southern Africa. Sixteen African countries have one-tenth or more of their population infected with HIV, and Africa is home to 95% of all mother-to-child transmissions of HIV. In these countries, almost 80% of all deaths of young adults aged 25-45 will be directly linked to AIDS.In six countries of southern Africa, by the year 2005, AIDS will claim the lives of between 8 and 25% of today\u2019s active physicians. Women are affected more by this dreaded disease; in Africa, 12 women have HIV/AIDS for every 10 men. African women account for 85% of all global female infections. In southern Africa, one in four women aged 15-49 live with HIV/AIDS. In some countries, between 10 and 20% of teen-age girls are already infected. Infected girls are more likely than boys to drop out of school, reversing decades of slow but steady progress in female education. The much-vaunted African extended family system is faltering, as the number of orphans living without the care of extended families rises. By the year 2010, the projected number of orphans may exceed 40 million in Africa.Africa\u2019s hard-won health and education gains in the 1960s and 1970s were undermined by debt and by externally dictated structural adjustment policies in the 1980s and 1990s. Today, however, social services and economies are imploding from the deadly consequences of AIDS. In the coming decades, the continent will record significantly sharper declines in life expectancy rates and shrinkage of national economies from the effects of the epidemic.Africans living with HIV/AIDS have limited or no access to lifesaving anti-retroviral medicines that have changed the course and management of AIDS in Western countries. Less than one-tenth of one percent of Africans living with AIDS have access to AIDS drugs. The World Bank estimates that half of all Africans live on $0.65 cents per day. The economic resources of African governments are equally meager, and they are burdened by $20 billion in annual foreign debt payments. With the rudimentary healthcare infrastructure of African countries, the strain of long-term hospitalization of AIDS patients is taking a heavy toll.Economic underdevelopment and Africa\u2019s impoverished conditions have created a wide-open gateway for HIV infection, tuberculosis (TB), and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). According to the World Health Organization, an estimated 30-50% of all TB patients in Africa are also infected with HIV/AIDS. Africa has the highest rates of STDs in the world. STDs facilitate the spread of HIV infection, especially among women.Political instability and violent conflicts keep many African governments from focusing on the AIDS crisis. Twenty of the continent\u2019s 53 countries are involved in intrastate or interstate conflicts, which lead to having the world\u2019s largest regional concentration of refugees. Another important factor in the deepening crisis is the high rate of AIDS within Africa\u2019s armed forces\u201415-20% of the members of the military in some countries have AIDS. Mobility of the African male populations\u2014through military operations, migrant labor such as mine workers, and shifts from rural to urban centers\u2014exacerbates the spread of HIV/AIDS. As the HIV/AIDS pandemic continues, political and social instability will likely intensify as AIDS gobbles up scarce human and economic resources. Problems with Current U.S. PolicyKey ProblemsThe U.S. has not provided global leadership on access to AIDS drugs for Africa and has not supported Africa?s demand to purchase or produce generic drugs.The U.S. 2001 budget for fighting AIDS in Africa is about $460 million, but much more is needed.The U.S. has yet to assert its influence at the World Bank and the IMF to put more resources in Africa and to cancel external debts.Whether someone lives or dies of AIDS depends largely on where she or he lives. Despite the availability of drugs to treat AIDS, millions of Africans will die because they do not have access to AIDS drugs. In the U.S. and other Western nations, such drugs have helped AIDS to become a disease that can be managed and for which effective care is available.Confronting the AIDS emergency, African governments are demanding that pharmaceutical companies directly provide AIDS drugs at deep discounts, or at the very least not oppose compulsory licensing and parallel import arrangements. Compulsory licensing is an international trade mechanism by which countries can instruct a patent holder to license the right to use this patent to any national company or government agency. Parallel importing describes a practice whereby a country imports goods for resale without authorization from the original seller. (See Robert Weissman, \u201cFacilitating Access to Essential Medicines,\u201d FPIF, February 2001.) This struggle became heated with the court battle between the government of South Africa and 39 drug companies. The companies contended that a new law would allow the South African government to ignore international patent law.Under mounting international pressure, the pharmaceutical industry dropped its suit, and has promised to facilitate the flow of low-priced AIDS-treatment pharmaceuticals. But this issue will not go away, because even lower priced drugs will still be out of reach for most Africans, and the pharmaceutical industry remains committed to strong international patent protection and to staving off the production of generic medicines for the treatment of AIDS and other illnesses.The U.S and its Western allies have failed to provide significant funds to fight AIDS in Africa. In 2001, the wealthiest nation on earth is spending only $460 million dollars to fight the biggest medical and humanitarian emergency of our time. The United Nations estimates that at least $10 billion will be needed to fight AIDS in Africa. A group of Harvard researchers, economists, and scientists recommended that, at bare minimum, the U.S. should spend $1.5 billion a year to fight AIDS in Africa.Fortunately, U.S. policymakers are responding to such public pressure with increased allocations. The U.S. Senate, for example, recently approved a $700 million increase in proposed spending over the next two years to fight AIDS in poor countries. However, much more needs to be done.In another major issue confronting Africa, U.S policymakers have not squared up to their responsibility. Africa owes foreign banks and governments about $350 billion. These debts are controversial and a major hindrance to an adequate African response to AIDS. Every year, Africa spends roughly $20 billion on debt repayment\u2014more than the combined continental outlay for healthcare and education. At least 23 African countries spend more money on debt repayment than they spend for healthcare. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank have yet to effect significant debt cancellation for African nations despite widespread pressure from international citizen movements and from the G8, the forum of the world\u2019s wealthiest nations. The U.S., which is the largest shareholder in these two international financial institutions, has yet to demand debt cancellation for Africa.The policy problems that contribute to the AIDS crisis in Africa extend beyond Washington and other international donors. Until recently, African leaders have largely ignored the pandemic. Even today, very few African nations match their AIDS rhetoric with commensurate budget allocations. Uganda and Senegal are prominent exceptions.Senegal, through a combination of political will, prudent budget allocations, and massive mobilization has kept its rate of infection to less than one percent. Ugandan President Yoweri Musuveni, recognizing the gravity of the AIDS pandemic, mobilized his people to modify risky behaviors and to come forward for testing and counseling. The rate of AIDS in Uganda is down to about 8%, from a high of 16% in the early 1990s.Despite the laudable efforts of Uganda and Senegal, corruption and the squandering of scarce national resources continue. Government spending on wars, white elephant projects, and persecution of political and economic opponents is still rife across the continent. Toward a New Foreign PolicyKey RecommendationsThe U.S should lead other rich nations in supplying essential medicines to Africans living with AIDS, and devote significantly more resources to fighting AIDS in Africa.The U.S should lead the fight for debt relief for African nations and ensure that the savings go into AIDS relief and other healthcare programs.The U.S and other rich nations should work with African governments to create an environment conducive to AIDS relief on the continent.The immediate goal of a reinvigorated U.S policy should be the dismantling of all legal and logistic obstacles to the provision of affordable drugs to all Africans living with AIDS. The developed nations, led by the U.S., should rise in unison and make a simple pledge: No African Man, Woman, Child, or Infant Should Be Denied Access to Lifesaving AIDS Drugs, by December 2002.As the leading global democracy, the U.S. should democratize access to essential AIDS medicines for poor nations. We commend the Bush administration for maintaining President Clinton\u2019s executive order on flexible access to AIDS drugs for poor nations. However, the U.S. needs to do more. The U.S. should ensure that the World Trade Organization (WTO) implements a flexible interpretation of the Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights Agreement (TRIPS), thereby allowing poor nations facing the AIDS emergency to provide cheap AIDS drugs to their citizens. The U.S. and its allies should also ensure that all WTO rulings reflect a sound public health framework to ensure that the goal of unencumbered trade does not create adverse health consequences in poor nations.The U.S. government should work more closely with the pharmaceutical companies to ensure that all obstacles to speedy and effective delivery of AIDS medicines to poor nations are eliminated. These obstacles include: (1) the concerns of pharmaceutical companies about possible parallel imports of cheap AIDS drugs into the lucrative Western markets by poor nations; (2) the concerns of citizen advocates and AIDS activists that access to AIDS drugs should not come under the purview of market forces and restrictive patent laws; and, (3) the concerns of African governments that they should have the exclusive prerogative to determine national emergencies and possible remedial actions. Washington should also work to persuade U.S. multinational companies doing business in Africa to provide AIDS prevention and treatment programs for their workers and family members.The U.S. should devote more resources to fighting AIDS in Africa. America has always responded to major humanitarian needs, whether in Europe, Asia, or Latin America. It is time to spend readily available resources to stop AIDS in Africa. Harvard researchers estimated that a scaled-up U.S. response of $1.5 billion would cost about $5 a year per American. Doubling such a commitment would cost each American about $10 a year\u2014a commitment well worth making, considering the magnitude of the crisis and its long-term implications for global peace and development.It is not likely that other rich nations will spend significantly more money on AIDS without a serious commitment from the United States. The Constituency for Africa (CFA), under the leadership of former Congressman Ron Dellums, proposed a HIV/AIDS Marshall Plan for Africa with significant public- and private-sector funds to fight the disease. As a result, Congress, in August 2000, passed Public Law 106-264, the Global AIDS and Tuberculosis Relief Act of 2000, sponsored by Jim Leach, R-Iowa and Barbara Lee, D-California, that earmarked $150 million dollars for each of the fiscal years 2001 and 2002, for a Trust Fund. The Trust Fund will be used to leverage funds from multilateral development banks like the World Bank and to encourage similar commitments from other Western donors. The Trust Fund will also fund the implementation of specific HIV/AIDS programs in Africa. President Clinton signed the bill into law, as a modest start to what promises to be a long journey.The U.S. should use its significant leverage in the G8, the IMF, and the World Bank to provide debt relief for African nations. The U.S. has the excellent opportunity at the G8 summit, in July 2001, to persuade its allies to forgive the debt of African nations, on the condition that African governments plow back such savings into verifiable investments in AIDS prevention and treatment programs and other healthcare services. The U.S. government is not the major holder of African debt\u2014it is owed about $360 million out of the estimated $350 billion in controversial debts\u2014but the U.S. has the moral, economic, and political leverage to advance a genuine debt relief agenda among its allies. Washington should also work with African leaders and their peoples to ensure a concerted and consistent focus on the AIDS epidemic. Without dictating their actions, the U.S should work with African governments to ensure movement in the following areas: (1) allocation of more money by African nations to fight AIDS; (2) sustained political reforms to encourage pluralistic political and multi-sector campaigns against AIDS; (3) end corrupt practices that siphon foreign aid and investments; and, (4) encourage the emergence of more civil society involvement in politics and non-government programs at community levels.The international community led by the U.S. should not turn its back on 25 million Africans living under a death sentence. The international cooperation that has fought against oppression and tyranny since World War II should not permit the AIDS killing fields to continue in Africa. A strong case can be made that the AIDS pandemic in Africa represents a direct threat to U.S. national interests and national security because of associated political instability, economic downturn, and the intercontinental spread of infectious diseases. In the end, however, U.S. citizens and U.S. policymakers face a moral imperative and should ask: Have we done all we can to save 25 million fellow human beings from an avoidable death?\nQuestion: Why are funeral services increasingly required in southern Africa?\nAnswer:", " Africa\u2019s impoverished conditions have created a wide-open gateway for intrastate conflicts"], ["HIV/AIDS in Africa: Time to Stop the Killing FieldsKey PointsAfrica accounts for 70% of all HIV/AIDS cases in the world although it represents only 10% of the global population. More than 25 million Africans live with HIV/AIDS, and 17 million have already died.The response of the international community has been slow and largely ineffective.The UN estimates that Africa will need $3 billion just for basic treatment and prevention programs, yet the U.S. and other Western countries donated only $300 million in assistance in 2000.According to the UN Agency for HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), 25.3 million Africans live with the virus or are dying of AIDS. Barring a miracle or a major change in international attention to the scourge, these Africans will die within the next decade.Despite the horrors of the pandemic, the international response has been limited and only recently have most African governments begun to publicly address the problem. African governments are hobbled by poverty, cultural taboos about sex, and misperceptions about the cause and seriousness of AIDS. They also fear disruption of precious tourism and investment dollars from the West and have failed to warn their citizens about the dangers of AIDS. Western nations, including the U.S., have largely ignored the dangers and international repercussions of widespread infection in Africa. The United States in 2000 spent only $300 million for basic AIDS care and prevention programs in Africa\u2014far short of the $3 billion regarded as necessary to slow down the pandemic.The HIV/AIDS crisis in Africa is of the gravest magnitude. Every day, 6,700 families lose a loved one to the disease; the construction and sale of coffins is one of the fastest growing occupations in southern Africa. Sixteen African countries have one-tenth or more of their population infected with HIV, and Africa is home to 95% of all mother-to-child transmissions of HIV. In these countries, almost 80% of all deaths of young adults aged 25-45 will be directly linked to AIDS.In six countries of southern Africa, by the year 2005, AIDS will claim the lives of between 8 and 25% of today\u2019s active physicians. Women are affected more by this dreaded disease; in Africa, 12 women have HIV/AIDS for every 10 men. African women account for 85% of all global female infections. In southern Africa, one in four women aged 15-49 live with HIV/AIDS. In some countries, between 10 and 20% of teen-age girls are already infected. Infected girls are more likely than boys to drop out of school, reversing decades of slow but steady progress in female education. The much-vaunted African extended family system is faltering, as the number of orphans living without the care of extended families rises. By the year 2010, the projected number of orphans may exceed 40 million in Africa.Africa\u2019s hard-won health and education gains in the 1960s and 1970s were undermined by debt and by externally dictated structural adjustment policies in the 1980s and 1990s. Today, however, social services and economies are imploding from the deadly consequences of AIDS. In the coming decades, the continent will record significantly sharper declines in life expectancy rates and shrinkage of national economies from the effects of the epidemic.Africans living with HIV/AIDS have limited or no access to lifesaving anti-retroviral medicines that have changed the course and management of AIDS in Western countries. Less than one-tenth of one percent of Africans living with AIDS have access to AIDS drugs. The World Bank estimates that half of all Africans live on $0.65 cents per day. The economic resources of African governments are equally meager, and they are burdened by $20 billion in annual foreign debt payments. With the rudimentary healthcare infrastructure of African countries, the strain of long-term hospitalization of AIDS patients is taking a heavy toll.Economic underdevelopment and Africa\u2019s impoverished conditions have created a wide-open gateway for HIV infection, tuberculosis (TB), and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). According to the World Health Organization, an estimated 30-50% of all TB patients in Africa are also infected with HIV/AIDS. Africa has the highest rates of STDs in the world. STDs facilitate the spread of HIV infection, especially among women.Political instability and violent conflicts keep many African governments from focusing on the AIDS crisis. Twenty of the continent\u2019s 53 countries are involved in intrastate or interstate conflicts, which lead to having the world\u2019s largest regional concentration of refugees. Another important factor in the deepening crisis is the high rate of AIDS within Africa\u2019s armed forces\u201415-20% of the members of the military in some countries have AIDS. Mobility of the African male populations\u2014through military operations, migrant labor such as mine workers, and shifts from rural to urban centers\u2014exacerbates the spread of HIV/AIDS. As the HIV/AIDS pandemic continues, political and social instability will likely intensify as AIDS gobbles up scarce human and economic resources. Problems with Current U.S. PolicyKey ProblemsThe U.S. has not provided global leadership on access to AIDS drugs for Africa and has not supported Africa?s demand to purchase or produce generic drugs.The U.S. 2001 budget for fighting AIDS in Africa is about $460 million, but much more is needed.The U.S. has yet to assert its influence at the World Bank and the IMF to put more resources in Africa and to cancel external debts.Whether someone lives or dies of AIDS depends largely on where she or he lives. Despite the availability of drugs to treat AIDS, millions of Africans will die because they do not have access to AIDS drugs. In the U.S. and other Western nations, such drugs have helped AIDS to become a disease that can be managed and for which effective care is available.Confronting the AIDS emergency, African governments are demanding that pharmaceutical companies directly provide AIDS drugs at deep discounts, or at the very least not oppose compulsory licensing and parallel import arrangements. Compulsory licensing is an international trade mechanism by which countries can instruct a patent holder to license the right to use this patent to any national company or government agency. Parallel importing describes a practice whereby a country imports goods for resale without authorization from the original seller. (See Robert Weissman, \u201cFacilitating Access to Essential Medicines,\u201d FPIF, February 2001.) This struggle became heated with the court battle between the government of South Africa and 39 drug companies. The companies contended that a new law would allow the South African government to ignore international patent law.Under mounting international pressure, the pharmaceutical industry dropped its suit, and has promised to facilitate the flow of low-priced AIDS-treatment pharmaceuticals. But this issue will not go away, because even lower priced drugs will still be out of reach for most Africans, and the pharmaceutical industry remains committed to strong international patent protection and to staving off the production of generic medicines for the treatment of AIDS and other illnesses.The U.S and its Western allies have failed to provide significant funds to fight AIDS in Africa. In 2001, the wealthiest nation on earth is spending only $460 million dollars to fight the biggest medical and humanitarian emergency of our time. The United Nations estimates that at least $10 billion will be needed to fight AIDS in Africa. A group of Harvard researchers, economists, and scientists recommended that, at bare minimum, the U.S. should spend $1.5 billion a year to fight AIDS in Africa.Fortunately, U.S. policymakers are responding to such public pressure with increased allocations. The U.S. Senate, for example, recently approved a $700 million increase in proposed spending over the next two years to fight AIDS in poor countries. However, much more needs to be done.In another major issue confronting Africa, U.S policymakers have not squared up to their responsibility. Africa owes foreign banks and governments about $350 billion. These debts are controversial and a major hindrance to an adequate African response to AIDS. Every year, Africa spends roughly $20 billion on debt repayment\u2014more than the combined continental outlay for healthcare and education. At least 23 African countries spend more money on debt repayment than they spend for healthcare. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank have yet to effect significant debt cancellation for African nations despite widespread pressure from international citizen movements and from the G8, the forum of the world\u2019s wealthiest nations. The U.S., which is the largest shareholder in these two international financial institutions, has yet to demand debt cancellation for Africa.The policy problems that contribute to the AIDS crisis in Africa extend beyond Washington and other international donors. Until recently, African leaders have largely ignored the pandemic. Even today, very few African nations match their AIDS rhetoric with commensurate budget allocations. Uganda and Senegal are prominent exceptions.Senegal, through a combination of political will, prudent budget allocations, and massive mobilization has kept its rate of infection to less than one percent. Ugandan President Yoweri Musuveni, recognizing the gravity of the AIDS pandemic, mobilized his people to modify risky behaviors and to come forward for testing and counseling. The rate of AIDS in Uganda is down to about 8%, from a high of 16% in the early 1990s.Despite the laudable efforts of Uganda and Senegal, corruption and the squandering of scarce national resources continue. Government spending on wars, white elephant projects, and persecution of political and economic opponents is still rife across the continent. Toward a New Foreign PolicyKey RecommendationsThe U.S should lead other rich nations in supplying essential medicines to Africans living with AIDS, and devote significantly more resources to fighting AIDS in Africa.The U.S should lead the fight for debt relief for African nations and ensure that the savings go into AIDS relief and other healthcare programs.The U.S and other rich nations should work with African governments to create an environment conducive to AIDS relief on the continent.The immediate goal of a reinvigorated U.S policy should be the dismantling of all legal and logistic obstacles to the provision of affordable drugs to all Africans living with AIDS. The developed nations, led by the U.S., should rise in unison and make a simple pledge: No African Man, Woman, Child, or Infant Should Be Denied Access to Lifesaving AIDS Drugs, by December 2002.As the leading global democracy, the U.S. should democratize access to essential AIDS medicines for poor nations. We commend the Bush administration for maintaining President Clinton\u2019s executive order on flexible access to AIDS drugs for poor nations. However, the U.S. needs to do more. The U.S. should ensure that the World Trade Organization (WTO) implements a flexible interpretation of the Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights Agreement (TRIPS), thereby allowing poor nations facing the AIDS emergency to provide cheap AIDS drugs to their citizens. The U.S. and its allies should also ensure that all WTO rulings reflect a sound public health framework to ensure that the goal of unencumbered trade does not create adverse health consequences in poor nations.The U.S. government should work more closely with the pharmaceutical companies to ensure that all obstacles to speedy and effective delivery of AIDS medicines to poor nations are eliminated. These obstacles include: (1) the concerns of pharmaceutical companies about possible parallel imports of cheap AIDS drugs into the lucrative Western markets by poor nations; (2) the concerns of citizen advocates and AIDS activists that access to AIDS drugs should not come under the purview of market forces and restrictive patent laws; and, (3) the concerns of African governments that they should have the exclusive prerogative to determine national emergencies and possible remedial actions. Washington should also work to persuade U.S. multinational companies doing business in Africa to provide AIDS prevention and treatment programs for their workers and family members.The U.S. should devote more resources to fighting AIDS in Africa. America has always responded to major humanitarian needs, whether in Europe, Asia, or Latin America. It is time to spend readily available resources to stop AIDS in Africa. Harvard researchers estimated that a scaled-up U.S. response of $1.5 billion would cost about $5 a year per American. Doubling such a commitment would cost each American about $10 a year\u2014a commitment well worth making, considering the magnitude of the crisis and its long-term implications for global peace and development.It is not likely that other rich nations will spend significantly more money on AIDS without a serious commitment from the United States. The Constituency for Africa (CFA), under the leadership of former Congressman Ron Dellums, proposed a HIV/AIDS Marshall Plan for Africa with significant public- and private-sector funds to fight the disease. As a result, Congress, in August 2000, passed Public Law 106-264, the Global AIDS and Tuberculosis Relief Act of 2000, sponsored by Jim Leach, R-Iowa and Barbara Lee, D-California, that earmarked $150 million dollars for each of the fiscal years 2001 and 2002, for a Trust Fund. The Trust Fund will be used to leverage funds from multilateral development banks like the World Bank and to encourage similar commitments from other Western donors. The Trust Fund will also fund the implementation of specific HIV/AIDS programs in Africa. President Clinton signed the bill into law, as a modest start to what promises to be a long journey.The U.S. should use its significant leverage in the G8, the IMF, and the World Bank to provide debt relief for African nations. The U.S. has the excellent opportunity at the G8 summit, in July 2001, to persuade its allies to forgive the debt of African nations, on the condition that African governments plow back such savings into verifiable investments in AIDS prevention and treatment programs and other healthcare services. The U.S. government is not the major holder of African debt\u2014it is owed about $360 million out of the estimated $350 billion in controversial debts\u2014but the U.S. has the moral, economic, and political leverage to advance a genuine debt relief agenda among its allies. Washington should also work with African leaders and their peoples to ensure a concerted and consistent focus on the AIDS epidemic. Without dictating their actions, the U.S should work with African governments to ensure movement in the following areas: (1) allocation of more money by African nations to fight AIDS; (2) sustained political reforms to encourage pluralistic political and multi-sector campaigns against AIDS; (3) end corrupt practices that siphon foreign aid and investments; and, (4) encourage the emergence of more civil society involvement in politics and non-government programs at community levels.The international community led by the U.S. should not turn its back on 25 million Africans living under a death sentence. The international cooperation that has fought against oppression and tyranny since World War II should not permit the AIDS killing fields to continue in Africa. A strong case can be made that the AIDS pandemic in Africa represents a direct threat to U.S. national interests and national security because of associated political instability, economic downturn, and the intercontinental spread of infectious diseases. In the end, however, U.S. citizens and U.S. policymakers face a moral imperative and should ask: Have we done all we can to save 25 million fellow human beings from an avoidable death?\nQuestion: Why are funeral services increasingly required in southern Africa?\nAnswer:", " political and social instability are intensifying"], ["HIV/AIDS in Africa: Time to Stop the Killing FieldsKey PointsAfrica accounts for 70% of all HIV/AIDS cases in the world although it represents only 10% of the global population. More than 25 million Africans live with HIV/AIDS, and 17 million have already died.The response of the international community has been slow and largely ineffective.The UN estimates that Africa will need $3 billion just for basic treatment and prevention programs, yet the U.S. and other Western countries donated only $300 million in assistance in 2000.According to the UN Agency for HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), 25.3 million Africans live with the virus or are dying of AIDS. Barring a miracle or a major change in international attention to the scourge, these Africans will die within the next decade.Despite the horrors of the pandemic, the international response has been limited and only recently have most African governments begun to publicly address the problem. African governments are hobbled by poverty, cultural taboos about sex, and misperceptions about the cause and seriousness of AIDS. They also fear disruption of precious tourism and investment dollars from the West and have failed to warn their citizens about the dangers of AIDS. Western nations, including the U.S., have largely ignored the dangers and international repercussions of widespread infection in Africa. The United States in 2000 spent only $300 million for basic AIDS care and prevention programs in Africa\u2014far short of the $3 billion regarded as necessary to slow down the pandemic.The HIV/AIDS crisis in Africa is of the gravest magnitude. Every day, 6,700 families lose a loved one to the disease; the construction and sale of coffins is one of the fastest growing occupations in southern Africa. Sixteen African countries have one-tenth or more of their population infected with HIV, and Africa is home to 95% of all mother-to-child transmissions of HIV. In these countries, almost 80% of all deaths of young adults aged 25-45 will be directly linked to AIDS.In six countries of southern Africa, by the year 2005, AIDS will claim the lives of between 8 and 25% of today\u2019s active physicians. Women are affected more by this dreaded disease; in Africa, 12 women have HIV/AIDS for every 10 men. African women account for 85% of all global female infections. In southern Africa, one in four women aged 15-49 live with HIV/AIDS. In some countries, between 10 and 20% of teen-age girls are already infected. Infected girls are more likely than boys to drop out of school, reversing decades of slow but steady progress in female education. The much-vaunted African extended family system is faltering, as the number of orphans living without the care of extended families rises. By the year 2010, the projected number of orphans may exceed 40 million in Africa.Africa\u2019s hard-won health and education gains in the 1960s and 1970s were undermined by debt and by externally dictated structural adjustment policies in the 1980s and 1990s. Today, however, social services and economies are imploding from the deadly consequences of AIDS. In the coming decades, the continent will record significantly sharper declines in life expectancy rates and shrinkage of national economies from the effects of the epidemic.Africans living with HIV/AIDS have limited or no access to lifesaving anti-retroviral medicines that have changed the course and management of AIDS in Western countries. Less than one-tenth of one percent of Africans living with AIDS have access to AIDS drugs. The World Bank estimates that half of all Africans live on $0.65 cents per day. The economic resources of African governments are equally meager, and they are burdened by $20 billion in annual foreign debt payments. With the rudimentary healthcare infrastructure of African countries, the strain of long-term hospitalization of AIDS patients is taking a heavy toll.Economic underdevelopment and Africa\u2019s impoverished conditions have created a wide-open gateway for HIV infection, tuberculosis (TB), and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). According to the World Health Organization, an estimated 30-50% of all TB patients in Africa are also infected with HIV/AIDS. Africa has the highest rates of STDs in the world. STDs facilitate the spread of HIV infection, especially among women.Political instability and violent conflicts keep many African governments from focusing on the AIDS crisis. Twenty of the continent\u2019s 53 countries are involved in intrastate or interstate conflicts, which lead to having the world\u2019s largest regional concentration of refugees. Another important factor in the deepening crisis is the high rate of AIDS within Africa\u2019s armed forces\u201415-20% of the members of the military in some countries have AIDS. Mobility of the African male populations\u2014through military operations, migrant labor such as mine workers, and shifts from rural to urban centers\u2014exacerbates the spread of HIV/AIDS. As the HIV/AIDS pandemic continues, political and social instability will likely intensify as AIDS gobbles up scarce human and economic resources. Problems with Current U.S. PolicyKey ProblemsThe U.S. has not provided global leadership on access to AIDS drugs for Africa and has not supported Africa?s demand to purchase or produce generic drugs.The U.S. 2001 budget for fighting AIDS in Africa is about $460 million, but much more is needed.The U.S. has yet to assert its influence at the World Bank and the IMF to put more resources in Africa and to cancel external debts.Whether someone lives or dies of AIDS depends largely on where she or he lives. Despite the availability of drugs to treat AIDS, millions of Africans will die because they do not have access to AIDS drugs. In the U.S. and other Western nations, such drugs have helped AIDS to become a disease that can be managed and for which effective care is available.Confronting the AIDS emergency, African governments are demanding that pharmaceutical companies directly provide AIDS drugs at deep discounts, or at the very least not oppose compulsory licensing and parallel import arrangements. Compulsory licensing is an international trade mechanism by which countries can instruct a patent holder to license the right to use this patent to any national company or government agency. Parallel importing describes a practice whereby a country imports goods for resale without authorization from the original seller. (See Robert Weissman, \u201cFacilitating Access to Essential Medicines,\u201d FPIF, February 2001.) This struggle became heated with the court battle between the government of South Africa and 39 drug companies. The companies contended that a new law would allow the South African government to ignore international patent law.Under mounting international pressure, the pharmaceutical industry dropped its suit, and has promised to facilitate the flow of low-priced AIDS-treatment pharmaceuticals. But this issue will not go away, because even lower priced drugs will still be out of reach for most Africans, and the pharmaceutical industry remains committed to strong international patent protection and to staving off the production of generic medicines for the treatment of AIDS and other illnesses.The U.S and its Western allies have failed to provide significant funds to fight AIDS in Africa. In 2001, the wealthiest nation on earth is spending only $460 million dollars to fight the biggest medical and humanitarian emergency of our time. The United Nations estimates that at least $10 billion will be needed to fight AIDS in Africa. A group of Harvard researchers, economists, and scientists recommended that, at bare minimum, the U.S. should spend $1.5 billion a year to fight AIDS in Africa.Fortunately, U.S. policymakers are responding to such public pressure with increased allocations. The U.S. Senate, for example, recently approved a $700 million increase in proposed spending over the next two years to fight AIDS in poor countries. However, much more needs to be done.In another major issue confronting Africa, U.S policymakers have not squared up to their responsibility. Africa owes foreign banks and governments about $350 billion. These debts are controversial and a major hindrance to an adequate African response to AIDS. Every year, Africa spends roughly $20 billion on debt repayment\u2014more than the combined continental outlay for healthcare and education. At least 23 African countries spend more money on debt repayment than they spend for healthcare. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank have yet to effect significant debt cancellation for African nations despite widespread pressure from international citizen movements and from the G8, the forum of the world\u2019s wealthiest nations. The U.S., which is the largest shareholder in these two international financial institutions, has yet to demand debt cancellation for Africa.The policy problems that contribute to the AIDS crisis in Africa extend beyond Washington and other international donors. Until recently, African leaders have largely ignored the pandemic. Even today, very few African nations match their AIDS rhetoric with commensurate budget allocations. Uganda and Senegal are prominent exceptions.Senegal, through a combination of political will, prudent budget allocations, and massive mobilization has kept its rate of infection to less than one percent. Ugandan President Yoweri Musuveni, recognizing the gravity of the AIDS pandemic, mobilized his people to modify risky behaviors and to come forward for testing and counseling. The rate of AIDS in Uganda is down to about 8%, from a high of 16% in the early 1990s.Despite the laudable efforts of Uganda and Senegal, corruption and the squandering of scarce national resources continue. Government spending on wars, white elephant projects, and persecution of political and economic opponents is still rife across the continent. Toward a New Foreign PolicyKey RecommendationsThe U.S should lead other rich nations in supplying essential medicines to Africans living with AIDS, and devote significantly more resources to fighting AIDS in Africa.The U.S should lead the fight for debt relief for African nations and ensure that the savings go into AIDS relief and other healthcare programs.The U.S and other rich nations should work with African governments to create an environment conducive to AIDS relief on the continent.The immediate goal of a reinvigorated U.S policy should be the dismantling of all legal and logistic obstacles to the provision of affordable drugs to all Africans living with AIDS. The developed nations, led by the U.S., should rise in unison and make a simple pledge: No African Man, Woman, Child, or Infant Should Be Denied Access to Lifesaving AIDS Drugs, by December 2002.As the leading global democracy, the U.S. should democratize access to essential AIDS medicines for poor nations. We commend the Bush administration for maintaining President Clinton\u2019s executive order on flexible access to AIDS drugs for poor nations. However, the U.S. needs to do more. The U.S. should ensure that the World Trade Organization (WTO) implements a flexible interpretation of the Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights Agreement (TRIPS), thereby allowing poor nations facing the AIDS emergency to provide cheap AIDS drugs to their citizens. The U.S. and its allies should also ensure that all WTO rulings reflect a sound public health framework to ensure that the goal of unencumbered trade does not create adverse health consequences in poor nations.The U.S. government should work more closely with the pharmaceutical companies to ensure that all obstacles to speedy and effective delivery of AIDS medicines to poor nations are eliminated. These obstacles include: (1) the concerns of pharmaceutical companies about possible parallel imports of cheap AIDS drugs into the lucrative Western markets by poor nations; (2) the concerns of citizen advocates and AIDS activists that access to AIDS drugs should not come under the purview of market forces and restrictive patent laws; and, (3) the concerns of African governments that they should have the exclusive prerogative to determine national emergencies and possible remedial actions. Washington should also work to persuade U.S. multinational companies doing business in Africa to provide AIDS prevention and treatment programs for their workers and family members.The U.S. should devote more resources to fighting AIDS in Africa. America has always responded to major humanitarian needs, whether in Europe, Asia, or Latin America. It is time to spend readily available resources to stop AIDS in Africa. Harvard researchers estimated that a scaled-up U.S. response of $1.5 billion would cost about $5 a year per American. Doubling such a commitment would cost each American about $10 a year\u2014a commitment well worth making, considering the magnitude of the crisis and its long-term implications for global peace and development.It is not likely that other rich nations will spend significantly more money on AIDS without a serious commitment from the United States. The Constituency for Africa (CFA), under the leadership of former Congressman Ron Dellums, proposed a HIV/AIDS Marshall Plan for Africa with significant public- and private-sector funds to fight the disease. As a result, Congress, in August 2000, passed Public Law 106-264, the Global AIDS and Tuberculosis Relief Act of 2000, sponsored by Jim Leach, R-Iowa and Barbara Lee, D-California, that earmarked $150 million dollars for each of the fiscal years 2001 and 2002, for a Trust Fund. The Trust Fund will be used to leverage funds from multilateral development banks like the World Bank and to encourage similar commitments from other Western donors. The Trust Fund will also fund the implementation of specific HIV/AIDS programs in Africa. President Clinton signed the bill into law, as a modest start to what promises to be a long journey.The U.S. should use its significant leverage in the G8, the IMF, and the World Bank to provide debt relief for African nations. The U.S. has the excellent opportunity at the G8 summit, in July 2001, to persuade its allies to forgive the debt of African nations, on the condition that African governments plow back such savings into verifiable investments in AIDS prevention and treatment programs and other healthcare services. The U.S. government is not the major holder of African debt\u2014it is owed about $360 million out of the estimated $350 billion in controversial debts\u2014but the U.S. has the moral, economic, and political leverage to advance a genuine debt relief agenda among its allies. Washington should also work with African leaders and their peoples to ensure a concerted and consistent focus on the AIDS epidemic. Without dictating their actions, the U.S should work with African governments to ensure movement in the following areas: (1) allocation of more money by African nations to fight AIDS; (2) sustained political reforms to encourage pluralistic political and multi-sector campaigns against AIDS; (3) end corrupt practices that siphon foreign aid and investments; and, (4) encourage the emergence of more civil society involvement in politics and non-government programs at community levels.The international community led by the U.S. should not turn its back on 25 million Africans living under a death sentence. The international cooperation that has fought against oppression and tyranny since World War II should not permit the AIDS killing fields to continue in Africa. A strong case can be made that the AIDS pandemic in Africa represents a direct threat to U.S. national interests and national security because of associated political instability, economic downturn, and the intercontinental spread of infectious diseases. In the end, however, U.S. citizens and U.S. policymakers face a moral imperative and should ask: Have we done all we can to save 25 million fellow human beings from an avoidable death?\nQuestion: Why are funeral services increasingly required in southern Africa?\nAnswer:", " every day a big number of families lose a loved one"], ["HIV/AIDS in Africa: Time to Stop the Killing FieldsKey PointsAfrica accounts for 70% of all HIV/AIDS cases in the world although it represents only 10% of the global population. More than 25 million Africans live with HIV/AIDS, and 17 million have already died.The response of the international community has been slow and largely ineffective.The UN estimates that Africa will need $3 billion just for basic treatment and prevention programs, yet the U.S. and other Western countries donated only $300 million in assistance in 2000.According to the UN Agency for HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), 25.3 million Africans live with the virus or are dying of AIDS. Barring a miracle or a major change in international attention to the scourge, these Africans will die within the next decade.Despite the horrors of the pandemic, the international response has been limited and only recently have most African governments begun to publicly address the problem. African governments are hobbled by poverty, cultural taboos about sex, and misperceptions about the cause and seriousness of AIDS. They also fear disruption of precious tourism and investment dollars from the West and have failed to warn their citizens about the dangers of AIDS. Western nations, including the U.S., have largely ignored the dangers and international repercussions of widespread infection in Africa. The United States in 2000 spent only $300 million for basic AIDS care and prevention programs in Africa\u2014far short of the $3 billion regarded as necessary to slow down the pandemic.The HIV/AIDS crisis in Africa is of the gravest magnitude. Every day, 6,700 families lose a loved one to the disease; the construction and sale of coffins is one of the fastest growing occupations in southern Africa. Sixteen African countries have one-tenth or more of their population infected with HIV, and Africa is home to 95% of all mother-to-child transmissions of HIV. In these countries, almost 80% of all deaths of young adults aged 25-45 will be directly linked to AIDS.In six countries of southern Africa, by the year 2005, AIDS will claim the lives of between 8 and 25% of today\u2019s active physicians. Women are affected more by this dreaded disease; in Africa, 12 women have HIV/AIDS for every 10 men. African women account for 85% of all global female infections. In southern Africa, one in four women aged 15-49 live with HIV/AIDS. In some countries, between 10 and 20% of teen-age girls are already infected. Infected girls are more likely than boys to drop out of school, reversing decades of slow but steady progress in female education. The much-vaunted African extended family system is faltering, as the number of orphans living without the care of extended families rises. By the year 2010, the projected number of orphans may exceed 40 million in Africa.Africa\u2019s hard-won health and education gains in the 1960s and 1970s were undermined by debt and by externally dictated structural adjustment policies in the 1980s and 1990s. Today, however, social services and economies are imploding from the deadly consequences of AIDS. In the coming decades, the continent will record significantly sharper declines in life expectancy rates and shrinkage of national economies from the effects of the epidemic.Africans living with HIV/AIDS have limited or no access to lifesaving anti-retroviral medicines that have changed the course and management of AIDS in Western countries. Less than one-tenth of one percent of Africans living with AIDS have access to AIDS drugs. The World Bank estimates that half of all Africans live on $0.65 cents per day. The economic resources of African governments are equally meager, and they are burdened by $20 billion in annual foreign debt payments. With the rudimentary healthcare infrastructure of African countries, the strain of long-term hospitalization of AIDS patients is taking a heavy toll.Economic underdevelopment and Africa\u2019s impoverished conditions have created a wide-open gateway for HIV infection, tuberculosis (TB), and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). According to the World Health Organization, an estimated 30-50% of all TB patients in Africa are also infected with HIV/AIDS. Africa has the highest rates of STDs in the world. STDs facilitate the spread of HIV infection, especially among women.Political instability and violent conflicts keep many African governments from focusing on the AIDS crisis. Twenty of the continent\u2019s 53 countries are involved in intrastate or interstate conflicts, which lead to having the world\u2019s largest regional concentration of refugees. Another important factor in the deepening crisis is the high rate of AIDS within Africa\u2019s armed forces\u201415-20% of the members of the military in some countries have AIDS. Mobility of the African male populations\u2014through military operations, migrant labor such as mine workers, and shifts from rural to urban centers\u2014exacerbates the spread of HIV/AIDS. As the HIV/AIDS pandemic continues, political and social instability will likely intensify as AIDS gobbles up scarce human and economic resources. Problems with Current U.S. PolicyKey ProblemsThe U.S. has not provided global leadership on access to AIDS drugs for Africa and has not supported Africa?s demand to purchase or produce generic drugs.The U.S. 2001 budget for fighting AIDS in Africa is about $460 million, but much more is needed.The U.S. has yet to assert its influence at the World Bank and the IMF to put more resources in Africa and to cancel external debts.Whether someone lives or dies of AIDS depends largely on where she or he lives. Despite the availability of drugs to treat AIDS, millions of Africans will die because they do not have access to AIDS drugs. In the U.S. and other Western nations, such drugs have helped AIDS to become a disease that can be managed and for which effective care is available.Confronting the AIDS emergency, African governments are demanding that pharmaceutical companies directly provide AIDS drugs at deep discounts, or at the very least not oppose compulsory licensing and parallel import arrangements. Compulsory licensing is an international trade mechanism by which countries can instruct a patent holder to license the right to use this patent to any national company or government agency. Parallel importing describes a practice whereby a country imports goods for resale without authorization from the original seller. (See Robert Weissman, \u201cFacilitating Access to Essential Medicines,\u201d FPIF, February 2001.) This struggle became heated with the court battle between the government of South Africa and 39 drug companies. The companies contended that a new law would allow the South African government to ignore international patent law.Under mounting international pressure, the pharmaceutical industry dropped its suit, and has promised to facilitate the flow of low-priced AIDS-treatment pharmaceuticals. But this issue will not go away, because even lower priced drugs will still be out of reach for most Africans, and the pharmaceutical industry remains committed to strong international patent protection and to staving off the production of generic medicines for the treatment of AIDS and other illnesses.The U.S and its Western allies have failed to provide significant funds to fight AIDS in Africa. In 2001, the wealthiest nation on earth is spending only $460 million dollars to fight the biggest medical and humanitarian emergency of our time. The United Nations estimates that at least $10 billion will be needed to fight AIDS in Africa. A group of Harvard researchers, economists, and scientists recommended that, at bare minimum, the U.S. should spend $1.5 billion a year to fight AIDS in Africa.Fortunately, U.S. policymakers are responding to such public pressure with increased allocations. The U.S. Senate, for example, recently approved a $700 million increase in proposed spending over the next two years to fight AIDS in poor countries. However, much more needs to be done.In another major issue confronting Africa, U.S policymakers have not squared up to their responsibility. Africa owes foreign banks and governments about $350 billion. These debts are controversial and a major hindrance to an adequate African response to AIDS. Every year, Africa spends roughly $20 billion on debt repayment\u2014more than the combined continental outlay for healthcare and education. At least 23 African countries spend more money on debt repayment than they spend for healthcare. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank have yet to effect significant debt cancellation for African nations despite widespread pressure from international citizen movements and from the G8, the forum of the world\u2019s wealthiest nations. The U.S., which is the largest shareholder in these two international financial institutions, has yet to demand debt cancellation for Africa.The policy problems that contribute to the AIDS crisis in Africa extend beyond Washington and other international donors. Until recently, African leaders have largely ignored the pandemic. Even today, very few African nations match their AIDS rhetoric with commensurate budget allocations. Uganda and Senegal are prominent exceptions.Senegal, through a combination of political will, prudent budget allocations, and massive mobilization has kept its rate of infection to less than one percent. Ugandan President Yoweri Musuveni, recognizing the gravity of the AIDS pandemic, mobilized his people to modify risky behaviors and to come forward for testing and counseling. The rate of AIDS in Uganda is down to about 8%, from a high of 16% in the early 1990s.Despite the laudable efforts of Uganda and Senegal, corruption and the squandering of scarce national resources continue. Government spending on wars, white elephant projects, and persecution of political and economic opponents is still rife across the continent. Toward a New Foreign PolicyKey RecommendationsThe U.S should lead other rich nations in supplying essential medicines to Africans living with AIDS, and devote significantly more resources to fighting AIDS in Africa.The U.S should lead the fight for debt relief for African nations and ensure that the savings go into AIDS relief and other healthcare programs.The U.S and other rich nations should work with African governments to create an environment conducive to AIDS relief on the continent.The immediate goal of a reinvigorated U.S policy should be the dismantling of all legal and logistic obstacles to the provision of affordable drugs to all Africans living with AIDS. The developed nations, led by the U.S., should rise in unison and make a simple pledge: No African Man, Woman, Child, or Infant Should Be Denied Access to Lifesaving AIDS Drugs, by December 2002.As the leading global democracy, the U.S. should democratize access to essential AIDS medicines for poor nations. We commend the Bush administration for maintaining President Clinton\u2019s executive order on flexible access to AIDS drugs for poor nations. However, the U.S. needs to do more. The U.S. should ensure that the World Trade Organization (WTO) implements a flexible interpretation of the Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights Agreement (TRIPS), thereby allowing poor nations facing the AIDS emergency to provide cheap AIDS drugs to their citizens. The U.S. and its allies should also ensure that all WTO rulings reflect a sound public health framework to ensure that the goal of unencumbered trade does not create adverse health consequences in poor nations.The U.S. government should work more closely with the pharmaceutical companies to ensure that all obstacles to speedy and effective delivery of AIDS medicines to poor nations are eliminated. These obstacles include: (1) the concerns of pharmaceutical companies about possible parallel imports of cheap AIDS drugs into the lucrative Western markets by poor nations; (2) the concerns of citizen advocates and AIDS activists that access to AIDS drugs should not come under the purview of market forces and restrictive patent laws; and, (3) the concerns of African governments that they should have the exclusive prerogative to determine national emergencies and possible remedial actions. Washington should also work to persuade U.S. multinational companies doing business in Africa to provide AIDS prevention and treatment programs for their workers and family members.The U.S. should devote more resources to fighting AIDS in Africa. America has always responded to major humanitarian needs, whether in Europe, Asia, or Latin America. It is time to spend readily available resources to stop AIDS in Africa. Harvard researchers estimated that a scaled-up U.S. response of $1.5 billion would cost about $5 a year per American. Doubling such a commitment would cost each American about $10 a year\u2014a commitment well worth making, considering the magnitude of the crisis and its long-term implications for global peace and development.It is not likely that other rich nations will spend significantly more money on AIDS without a serious commitment from the United States. The Constituency for Africa (CFA), under the leadership of former Congressman Ron Dellums, proposed a HIV/AIDS Marshall Plan for Africa with significant public- and private-sector funds to fight the disease. As a result, Congress, in August 2000, passed Public Law 106-264, the Global AIDS and Tuberculosis Relief Act of 2000, sponsored by Jim Leach, R-Iowa and Barbara Lee, D-California, that earmarked $150 million dollars for each of the fiscal years 2001 and 2002, for a Trust Fund. The Trust Fund will be used to leverage funds from multilateral development banks like the World Bank and to encourage similar commitments from other Western donors. The Trust Fund will also fund the implementation of specific HIV/AIDS programs in Africa. President Clinton signed the bill into law, as a modest start to what promises to be a long journey.The U.S. should use its significant leverage in the G8, the IMF, and the World Bank to provide debt relief for African nations. The U.S. has the excellent opportunity at the G8 summit, in July 2001, to persuade its allies to forgive the debt of African nations, on the condition that African governments plow back such savings into verifiable investments in AIDS prevention and treatment programs and other healthcare services. The U.S. government is not the major holder of African debt\u2014it is owed about $360 million out of the estimated $350 billion in controversial debts\u2014but the U.S. has the moral, economic, and political leverage to advance a genuine debt relief agenda among its allies. Washington should also work with African leaders and their peoples to ensure a concerted and consistent focus on the AIDS epidemic. Without dictating their actions, the U.S should work with African governments to ensure movement in the following areas: (1) allocation of more money by African nations to fight AIDS; (2) sustained political reforms to encourage pluralistic political and multi-sector campaigns against AIDS; (3) end corrupt practices that siphon foreign aid and investments; and, (4) encourage the emergence of more civil society involvement in politics and non-government programs at community levels.The international community led by the U.S. should not turn its back on 25 million Africans living under a death sentence. The international cooperation that has fought against oppression and tyranny since World War II should not permit the AIDS killing fields to continue in Africa. A strong case can be made that the AIDS pandemic in Africa represents a direct threat to U.S. national interests and national security because of associated political instability, economic downturn, and the intercontinental spread of infectious diseases. In the end, however, U.S. citizens and U.S. policymakers face a moral imperative and should ask: Have we done all we can to save 25 million fellow human beings from an avoidable death?\nQuestion: Why are funeral services increasingly required in southern Africa?\nAnswer:", " the pharmaceutical industry facilitates the flow of low-priced anti-retroviral medicines"], ["Caring for Aging Parents & Elder Rage: Know The Warning Signs of Alzheimer's!For eleven years I pleaded with my obstinate elderly father to allow acaregiver to help him with my ailing mother, but after 55 years of lovingeach other he adamantly insisted on taking care of her himself. Everycaregiver I hired to help him soon called in exasperation, \"Jacqueline, Ijust can't work with your father-his temper is impossible to handle. I don'tthink he'll accept help until he's on his knees himself.\"My father had always been 90% great, but boy-oh-boy that temper was a doozy.He'd never turned it on me before, but then again I'd never gone against hiswishes either. When my mother nearly died from an infection caused by hisinability to continue to care for her, I flew from southern California toSan Francisco to try to save her life-having no idea that in the process itwould nearly cost me my own. EARLY SIGNS OF DEMENTIA?I spent three months in the hospital nursing my 82-pound mother back torelative health, while my father went from being my loving dad one minute tocalling me horrible nasty names and throwing me out of the house the next. Iwalked on egg shells trying not to upset him, even running the washingmachine could cause a tizzy, and there was no way to reason with him. It wasso heart wrenching to have my once-adoring father turn against me.I immediately took my father to his doctor, only to be flabbergasted hecould act normal when he needed to. I could not believe it when the doctorlooked at me as if I was lying to her. She didn't even take me seriouslywhen I reported that my father had nearly electrocuted my mother, butfortunately I walked into the bathroom just three seconds before he pluggedin a huge orange power strip that was soaking in a white tub of saltwater-along with my mother's feet! Much later, I was furious to find out myfather had instructed his doctor (and everyone he came into contact with)not to listen to a thing I said because I was just a (bleep-bleep) liar-andall I wanted was his money! (I wish he had some.)Then things got serious. My father had never laid a hand on me my wholelife, but one day nearly choked me to death for adding HBO to histelevision, even though he had eagerly consented to it just a few daysbefore. Terrified, I dialed 911 for the first time in my life and when thepolice finally arrived they took him to a psychiatric hospital forevaluation. I could not believe it when they released him right away, sayingthey couldn't find anything wrong with him. What is even more astonishing isthat similar incidents occurred three more times. CAREGIVER CATCH 22After three months I was happy to finally bring my frail mother home fromthe hospital, but furious to find myself trapped. I couldn't fly home andleave my mother alone with my father-she'd surely die from his inability tocare for her. I couldn't get my father to accept a caregiver, and even whenI did-no one would put up with his raging very long. I couldn't gethealthcare professionals to help-my father was always so darling and sane infront of them. I couldn't get medication to calm him, and even when Ifinally did-he refused to take it, threw it in my face and flushed it downthe toilet. I couldn't place my mother in a nursing home-he'd just take herout. I couldn't put him in a home-he didn't qualify. They both refusedAssisted Living-and legally I couldn't force them. I became a prisoner in myparents' home for nearly a year trying to solve crisis after crisis, crying,begging for professional help-and infuriated with an unsympathetic medicalsystem that wasn't helping me appropriately. GERIATRIC DEMENTIA SPECIALIST MAKES DIAGNOSIS You don't need a medical doctorate degree to know something is wrong, butyou do need the right doctor who can diagnose and treat dementia properly.Finally, a friend suggested I call the Alzheimer's Association who directedme to the best neurologist in the area who specialized in dementia. Heperformed a battery of blood, neurological, memory tests and CT & P.E.T.scans. After reviewing my parents' many medications and ruling out numerousreversible dementias such as a B-12 and thyroid deficiency, you should haveseen my face drop when he diagnosed Stage One Alzheimer's in both of myparents-something all their other healthcare professionals missed entirely. TRAPPED IN OLD HABITSWhat I'd been coping with was the beginning of Alzheimer's (just one type ofdementia), which begins very intermittently and appears to come and go. Ididn't understand that my father was addicted and trapped in his own badbehavior of a lifetime and his habit of yelling to get his way was comingout over things that were over-the-top illogical... at times. I also didn'tunderstand that demented does not mean dumb (a concept not widelyappreciated) and that he was still socially adjusted never to show his'Hyde' side to anyone outside the family. Even with the onset of dementia,it was astonishing he could still be so manipulative and crafty. On theother hand, my mother was as sweet and lovely as she'd always been. KEY: BALANCE BRAIN CHEMISTRY!I learned that Alzheimer's makes up 60-80% of all dementias and there's nostopping the progression nor is there yet a cure. However, if identifiedEARLY there are four FDA approved medications that can mask the symptoms,keeping a person in the early independent stage longer, delaying the needfor part to full-time supervision and care. The medications are Aricept,Exelon, Razadyne and Namenda, with many more in clinical trials. Incombination with optimal lifestyle changes (proper nutrition, weight,exercise, socialization), a one month delay in nursing home placement ofAlzheimer's patients could save the U.S. $1 BILLION annually. A five yeardelay in the onset could save $50 BILLION in annual healthcare costs. Publicawareness, education, and more research dollars are needed!After the neurologist masked the symptoms of Alzheimer's in my parents, andalso treated their depression (often present in AD patients), he prescribeda small dose of anti-aggression medication for my father, which helpedsmooth out is his volatile temper without making him sleep all day. (Ohhh,if we'd only had that fifty years ago!) It wasn't easy to get the dosagesright and took a lot of time and patience (no, he wasn't suddenly turnedinto a perfect angel), but at least we didn't need police intervention anylonger! CREATIVE BEHAVIORAL TECHNIQUESOnce my parents' brain chemistries were better balanced, I was able tooptimize nutrition, fluids, medication, treatments, and exercise with muchless resistance. I was also able to implement techniques to cope with theintermittent bizarre behaviors. Instead of logic and reason-I useddistraction and redirection to something they were interested in. I learnedto use reminiscence and talk about the old days, capitalizing on theirlong-term memories which were still quite good. Instead of arguing thefacts-I agreed, validated frustrated feelings, and lived in their realitiesof the moment. Instead of crying, I learned to just 'go with the flow' andlet any nasty comments roll off. And if none of that worked, a bribe of ice cream worked the best to cajolemy father into the shower, even as he swore a blue streak at me that he'djust taken one yesterday (over a week ago). I was also finally able to getmy father to accept two caregivers (he'd only alienated 40 that year-mostonly there for about ten minutes), and then with the tremendous benefit ofAdult Day Health Care five days a week for my parents and a support groupfor me, everything finally started to fall into place.IF ONLY WE HAD LONG TERM CARE INSURANCE!Before long my parents' life savings was gone and we were well into mine. Iwas advised to apply for Medicaid for them and after months of paperwork,aggravation, and evaluation they were approved for financial help from thegovernment. I was so relieved, until I learned that it would only pay to putmy parents in a nursing home, not keep them at home with 24/7 care. And,since my mother needed so much more skilled care than my father, they'd beseparated, something they would never consent to-nor did I want to do afterall this work to keep them together.I could not believe it-I finally had everything figured out medically,behaviorally, socially, legally, emotionally, two wonderful caregivers inplace, the house elder-proofed, and all I needed was some financial help tokeep them at home. If I'd just made sure my parents bought Long Term CareInsurance (or I bought it for them) years ago while they were still healthyand before any diagnosis of dementia, it would have covered the cost oftheir care at home. Instead, I paid for it, which nearly wiped me out inevery way. After five years of managing 24/7 care for my parents, I thensurvived invasive Brst. Cancer. ALZHEIMER'S / DEMENTIA OFTEN OVERLOOKEDWhat is so unsettling is that not one healthcare professional discussed thepossibility of the beginning of Alzheimer's Disease (or any type ofdementia) in my parents with me that first year, which happens far too oftento families. Alzheimer's afflicts more than 5.4 million Americans, butmillions go undiagnosed for 5-10 years because intermittent subtle warningsigns are chalked up to stress and just a 'normal' part of aging. Since oneout of eight by age 65, and nearly half by age 85 get AD, healthcareprofessionals of every specialty should know the 'Ten Warning Signs ofAlzheimer's' and educate their patients and families early on so everyonesaves time, money-and a fortune in Kleenex!TEN WARNING SIGNS OF ALZHEIMER'S(Reprinted with permission of the Alzheimer's Association)1.   Memory loss2.   Difficulty performing familiar tasks3.   Problems with language4.   Disorientation of time and place5.   Poor or decreased judgment6.   Problems with abstract thinking7.   Misplacing things8.   Changes in mood or behavior9.   Changes in personality10. Loss of initiativewww.ElderRage.com/Alzheimers.asp\nQuestion: Which health program offered to pay for a nursing home for the parents?\nAnswer:", " their Long Term Care Insurance"], ["Caring for Aging Parents & Elder Rage: Know The Warning Signs of Alzheimer's!For eleven years I pleaded with my obstinate elderly father to allow acaregiver to help him with my ailing mother, but after 55 years of lovingeach other he adamantly insisted on taking care of her himself. Everycaregiver I hired to help him soon called in exasperation, \"Jacqueline, Ijust can't work with your father-his temper is impossible to handle. I don'tthink he'll accept help until he's on his knees himself.\"My father had always been 90% great, but boy-oh-boy that temper was a doozy.He'd never turned it on me before, but then again I'd never gone against hiswishes either. When my mother nearly died from an infection caused by hisinability to continue to care for her, I flew from southern California toSan Francisco to try to save her life-having no idea that in the process itwould nearly cost me my own. EARLY SIGNS OF DEMENTIA?I spent three months in the hospital nursing my 82-pound mother back torelative health, while my father went from being my loving dad one minute tocalling me horrible nasty names and throwing me out of the house the next. Iwalked on egg shells trying not to upset him, even running the washingmachine could cause a tizzy, and there was no way to reason with him. It wasso heart wrenching to have my once-adoring father turn against me.I immediately took my father to his doctor, only to be flabbergasted hecould act normal when he needed to. I could not believe it when the doctorlooked at me as if I was lying to her. She didn't even take me seriouslywhen I reported that my father had nearly electrocuted my mother, butfortunately I walked into the bathroom just three seconds before he pluggedin a huge orange power strip that was soaking in a white tub of saltwater-along with my mother's feet! Much later, I was furious to find out myfather had instructed his doctor (and everyone he came into contact with)not to listen to a thing I said because I was just a (bleep-bleep) liar-andall I wanted was his money! (I wish he had some.)Then things got serious. My father had never laid a hand on me my wholelife, but one day nearly choked me to death for adding HBO to histelevision, even though he had eagerly consented to it just a few daysbefore. Terrified, I dialed 911 for the first time in my life and when thepolice finally arrived they took him to a psychiatric hospital forevaluation. I could not believe it when they released him right away, sayingthey couldn't find anything wrong with him. What is even more astonishing isthat similar incidents occurred three more times. CAREGIVER CATCH 22After three months I was happy to finally bring my frail mother home fromthe hospital, but furious to find myself trapped. I couldn't fly home andleave my mother alone with my father-she'd surely die from his inability tocare for her. I couldn't get my father to accept a caregiver, and even whenI did-no one would put up with his raging very long. I couldn't gethealthcare professionals to help-my father was always so darling and sane infront of them. I couldn't get medication to calm him, and even when Ifinally did-he refused to take it, threw it in my face and flushed it downthe toilet. I couldn't place my mother in a nursing home-he'd just take herout. I couldn't put him in a home-he didn't qualify. They both refusedAssisted Living-and legally I couldn't force them. I became a prisoner in myparents' home for nearly a year trying to solve crisis after crisis, crying,begging for professional help-and infuriated with an unsympathetic medicalsystem that wasn't helping me appropriately. GERIATRIC DEMENTIA SPECIALIST MAKES DIAGNOSIS You don't need a medical doctorate degree to know something is wrong, butyou do need the right doctor who can diagnose and treat dementia properly.Finally, a friend suggested I call the Alzheimer's Association who directedme to the best neurologist in the area who specialized in dementia. Heperformed a battery of blood, neurological, memory tests and CT & P.E.T.scans. After reviewing my parents' many medications and ruling out numerousreversible dementias such as a B-12 and thyroid deficiency, you should haveseen my face drop when he diagnosed Stage One Alzheimer's in both of myparents-something all their other healthcare professionals missed entirely. TRAPPED IN OLD HABITSWhat I'd been coping with was the beginning of Alzheimer's (just one type ofdementia), which begins very intermittently and appears to come and go. Ididn't understand that my father was addicted and trapped in his own badbehavior of a lifetime and his habit of yelling to get his way was comingout over things that were over-the-top illogical... at times. I also didn'tunderstand that demented does not mean dumb (a concept not widelyappreciated) and that he was still socially adjusted never to show his'Hyde' side to anyone outside the family. Even with the onset of dementia,it was astonishing he could still be so manipulative and crafty. On theother hand, my mother was as sweet and lovely as she'd always been. KEY: BALANCE BRAIN CHEMISTRY!I learned that Alzheimer's makes up 60-80% of all dementias and there's nostopping the progression nor is there yet a cure. However, if identifiedEARLY there are four FDA approved medications that can mask the symptoms,keeping a person in the early independent stage longer, delaying the needfor part to full-time supervision and care. The medications are Aricept,Exelon, Razadyne and Namenda, with many more in clinical trials. Incombination with optimal lifestyle changes (proper nutrition, weight,exercise, socialization), a one month delay in nursing home placement ofAlzheimer's patients could save the U.S. $1 BILLION annually. A five yeardelay in the onset could save $50 BILLION in annual healthcare costs. Publicawareness, education, and more research dollars are needed!After the neurologist masked the symptoms of Alzheimer's in my parents, andalso treated their depression (often present in AD patients), he prescribeda small dose of anti-aggression medication for my father, which helpedsmooth out is his volatile temper without making him sleep all day. (Ohhh,if we'd only had that fifty years ago!) It wasn't easy to get the dosagesright and took a lot of time and patience (no, he wasn't suddenly turnedinto a perfect angel), but at least we didn't need police intervention anylonger! CREATIVE BEHAVIORAL TECHNIQUESOnce my parents' brain chemistries were better balanced, I was able tooptimize nutrition, fluids, medication, treatments, and exercise with muchless resistance. I was also able to implement techniques to cope with theintermittent bizarre behaviors. Instead of logic and reason-I useddistraction and redirection to something they were interested in. I learnedto use reminiscence and talk about the old days, capitalizing on theirlong-term memories which were still quite good. Instead of arguing thefacts-I agreed, validated frustrated feelings, and lived in their realitiesof the moment. Instead of crying, I learned to just 'go with the flow' andlet any nasty comments roll off. And if none of that worked, a bribe of ice cream worked the best to cajolemy father into the shower, even as he swore a blue streak at me that he'djust taken one yesterday (over a week ago). I was also finally able to getmy father to accept two caregivers (he'd only alienated 40 that year-mostonly there for about ten minutes), and then with the tremendous benefit ofAdult Day Health Care five days a week for my parents and a support groupfor me, everything finally started to fall into place.IF ONLY WE HAD LONG TERM CARE INSURANCE!Before long my parents' life savings was gone and we were well into mine. Iwas advised to apply for Medicaid for them and after months of paperwork,aggravation, and evaluation they were approved for financial help from thegovernment. I was so relieved, until I learned that it would only pay to putmy parents in a nursing home, not keep them at home with 24/7 care. And,since my mother needed so much more skilled care than my father, they'd beseparated, something they would never consent to-nor did I want to do afterall this work to keep them together.I could not believe it-I finally had everything figured out medically,behaviorally, socially, legally, emotionally, two wonderful caregivers inplace, the house elder-proofed, and all I needed was some financial help tokeep them at home. If I'd just made sure my parents bought Long Term CareInsurance (or I bought it for them) years ago while they were still healthyand before any diagnosis of dementia, it would have covered the cost oftheir care at home. Instead, I paid for it, which nearly wiped me out inevery way. After five years of managing 24/7 care for my parents, I thensurvived invasive Brst. Cancer. ALZHEIMER'S / DEMENTIA OFTEN OVERLOOKEDWhat is so unsettling is that not one healthcare professional discussed thepossibility of the beginning of Alzheimer's Disease (or any type ofdementia) in my parents with me that first year, which happens far too oftento families. Alzheimer's afflicts more than 5.4 million Americans, butmillions go undiagnosed for 5-10 years because intermittent subtle warningsigns are chalked up to stress and just a 'normal' part of aging. Since oneout of eight by age 65, and nearly half by age 85 get AD, healthcareprofessionals of every specialty should know the 'Ten Warning Signs ofAlzheimer's' and educate their patients and families early on so everyonesaves time, money-and a fortune in Kleenex!TEN WARNING SIGNS OF ALZHEIMER'S(Reprinted with permission of the Alzheimer's Association)1.   Memory loss2.   Difficulty performing familiar tasks3.   Problems with language4.   Disorientation of time and place5.   Poor or decreased judgment6.   Problems with abstract thinking7.   Misplacing things8.   Changes in mood or behavior9.   Changes in personality10. Loss of initiativewww.ElderRage.com/Alzheimers.asp\nQuestion: Which health program offered to pay for a nursing home for the parents?\nAnswer:", " the Alzheimer's Association"], ["Caring for Aging Parents & Elder Rage: Know The Warning Signs of Alzheimer's!For eleven years I pleaded with my obstinate elderly father to allow acaregiver to help him with my ailing mother, but after 55 years of lovingeach other he adamantly insisted on taking care of her himself. Everycaregiver I hired to help him soon called in exasperation, \"Jacqueline, Ijust can't work with your father-his temper is impossible to handle. I don'tthink he'll accept help until he's on his knees himself.\"My father had always been 90% great, but boy-oh-boy that temper was a doozy.He'd never turned it on me before, but then again I'd never gone against hiswishes either. When my mother nearly died from an infection caused by hisinability to continue to care for her, I flew from southern California toSan Francisco to try to save her life-having no idea that in the process itwould nearly cost me my own. EARLY SIGNS OF DEMENTIA?I spent three months in the hospital nursing my 82-pound mother back torelative health, while my father went from being my loving dad one minute tocalling me horrible nasty names and throwing me out of the house the next. Iwalked on egg shells trying not to upset him, even running the washingmachine could cause a tizzy, and there was no way to reason with him. It wasso heart wrenching to have my once-adoring father turn against me.I immediately took my father to his doctor, only to be flabbergasted hecould act normal when he needed to. I could not believe it when the doctorlooked at me as if I was lying to her. She didn't even take me seriouslywhen I reported that my father had nearly electrocuted my mother, butfortunately I walked into the bathroom just three seconds before he pluggedin a huge orange power strip that was soaking in a white tub of saltwater-along with my mother's feet! Much later, I was furious to find out myfather had instructed his doctor (and everyone he came into contact with)not to listen to a thing I said because I was just a (bleep-bleep) liar-andall I wanted was his money! (I wish he had some.)Then things got serious. My father had never laid a hand on me my wholelife, but one day nearly choked me to death for adding HBO to histelevision, even though he had eagerly consented to it just a few daysbefore. Terrified, I dialed 911 for the first time in my life and when thepolice finally arrived they took him to a psychiatric hospital forevaluation. I could not believe it when they released him right away, sayingthey couldn't find anything wrong with him. What is even more astonishing isthat similar incidents occurred three more times. CAREGIVER CATCH 22After three months I was happy to finally bring my frail mother home fromthe hospital, but furious to find myself trapped. I couldn't fly home andleave my mother alone with my father-she'd surely die from his inability tocare for her. I couldn't get my father to accept a caregiver, and even whenI did-no one would put up with his raging very long. I couldn't gethealthcare professionals to help-my father was always so darling and sane infront of them. I couldn't get medication to calm him, and even when Ifinally did-he refused to take it, threw it in my face and flushed it downthe toilet. I couldn't place my mother in a nursing home-he'd just take herout. I couldn't put him in a home-he didn't qualify. They both refusedAssisted Living-and legally I couldn't force them. I became a prisoner in myparents' home for nearly a year trying to solve crisis after crisis, crying,begging for professional help-and infuriated with an unsympathetic medicalsystem that wasn't helping me appropriately. GERIATRIC DEMENTIA SPECIALIST MAKES DIAGNOSIS You don't need a medical doctorate degree to know something is wrong, butyou do need the right doctor who can diagnose and treat dementia properly.Finally, a friend suggested I call the Alzheimer's Association who directedme to the best neurologist in the area who specialized in dementia. Heperformed a battery of blood, neurological, memory tests and CT & P.E.T.scans. After reviewing my parents' many medications and ruling out numerousreversible dementias such as a B-12 and thyroid deficiency, you should haveseen my face drop when he diagnosed Stage One Alzheimer's in both of myparents-something all their other healthcare professionals missed entirely. TRAPPED IN OLD HABITSWhat I'd been coping with was the beginning of Alzheimer's (just one type ofdementia), which begins very intermittently and appears to come and go. Ididn't understand that my father was addicted and trapped in his own badbehavior of a lifetime and his habit of yelling to get his way was comingout over things that were over-the-top illogical... at times. I also didn'tunderstand that demented does not mean dumb (a concept not widelyappreciated) and that he was still socially adjusted never to show his'Hyde' side to anyone outside the family. Even with the onset of dementia,it was astonishing he could still be so manipulative and crafty. On theother hand, my mother was as sweet and lovely as she'd always been. KEY: BALANCE BRAIN CHEMISTRY!I learned that Alzheimer's makes up 60-80% of all dementias and there's nostopping the progression nor is there yet a cure. However, if identifiedEARLY there are four FDA approved medications that can mask the symptoms,keeping a person in the early independent stage longer, delaying the needfor part to full-time supervision and care. The medications are Aricept,Exelon, Razadyne and Namenda, with many more in clinical trials. Incombination with optimal lifestyle changes (proper nutrition, weight,exercise, socialization), a one month delay in nursing home placement ofAlzheimer's patients could save the U.S. $1 BILLION annually. A five yeardelay in the onset could save $50 BILLION in annual healthcare costs. Publicawareness, education, and more research dollars are needed!After the neurologist masked the symptoms of Alzheimer's in my parents, andalso treated their depression (often present in AD patients), he prescribeda small dose of anti-aggression medication for my father, which helpedsmooth out is his volatile temper without making him sleep all day. (Ohhh,if we'd only had that fifty years ago!) It wasn't easy to get the dosagesright and took a lot of time and patience (no, he wasn't suddenly turnedinto a perfect angel), but at least we didn't need police intervention anylonger! CREATIVE BEHAVIORAL TECHNIQUESOnce my parents' brain chemistries were better balanced, I was able tooptimize nutrition, fluids, medication, treatments, and exercise with muchless resistance. I was also able to implement techniques to cope with theintermittent bizarre behaviors. Instead of logic and reason-I useddistraction and redirection to something they were interested in. I learnedto use reminiscence and talk about the old days, capitalizing on theirlong-term memories which were still quite good. Instead of arguing thefacts-I agreed, validated frustrated feelings, and lived in their realitiesof the moment. Instead of crying, I learned to just 'go with the flow' andlet any nasty comments roll off. And if none of that worked, a bribe of ice cream worked the best to cajolemy father into the shower, even as he swore a blue streak at me that he'djust taken one yesterday (over a week ago). I was also finally able to getmy father to accept two caregivers (he'd only alienated 40 that year-mostonly there for about ten minutes), and then with the tremendous benefit ofAdult Day Health Care five days a week for my parents and a support groupfor me, everything finally started to fall into place.IF ONLY WE HAD LONG TERM CARE INSURANCE!Before long my parents' life savings was gone and we were well into mine. Iwas advised to apply for Medicaid for them and after months of paperwork,aggravation, and evaluation they were approved for financial help from thegovernment. I was so relieved, until I learned that it would only pay to putmy parents in a nursing home, not keep them at home with 24/7 care. And,since my mother needed so much more skilled care than my father, they'd beseparated, something they would never consent to-nor did I want to do afterall this work to keep them together.I could not believe it-I finally had everything figured out medically,behaviorally, socially, legally, emotionally, two wonderful caregivers inplace, the house elder-proofed, and all I needed was some financial help tokeep them at home. If I'd just made sure my parents bought Long Term CareInsurance (or I bought it for them) years ago while they were still healthyand before any diagnosis of dementia, it would have covered the cost oftheir care at home. Instead, I paid for it, which nearly wiped me out inevery way. After five years of managing 24/7 care for my parents, I thensurvived invasive Brst. Cancer. ALZHEIMER'S / DEMENTIA OFTEN OVERLOOKEDWhat is so unsettling is that not one healthcare professional discussed thepossibility of the beginning of Alzheimer's Disease (or any type ofdementia) in my parents with me that first year, which happens far too oftento families. Alzheimer's afflicts more than 5.4 million Americans, butmillions go undiagnosed for 5-10 years because intermittent subtle warningsigns are chalked up to stress and just a 'normal' part of aging. Since oneout of eight by age 65, and nearly half by age 85 get AD, healthcareprofessionals of every specialty should know the 'Ten Warning Signs ofAlzheimer's' and educate their patients and families early on so everyonesaves time, money-and a fortune in Kleenex!TEN WARNING SIGNS OF ALZHEIMER'S(Reprinted with permission of the Alzheimer's Association)1.   Memory loss2.   Difficulty performing familiar tasks3.   Problems with language4.   Disorientation of time and place5.   Poor or decreased judgment6.   Problems with abstract thinking7.   Misplacing things8.   Changes in mood or behavior9.   Changes in personality10. Loss of initiativewww.ElderRage.com/Alzheimers.asp\nQuestion: Which health program offered to pay for a nursing home for the parents?\nAnswer:", " Medicaid"], ["Caring for Aging Parents & Elder Rage: Know The Warning Signs of Alzheimer's!For eleven years I pleaded with my obstinate elderly father to allow acaregiver to help him with my ailing mother, but after 55 years of lovingeach other he adamantly insisted on taking care of her himself. Everycaregiver I hired to help him soon called in exasperation, \"Jacqueline, Ijust can't work with your father-his temper is impossible to handle. I don'tthink he'll accept help until he's on his knees himself.\"My father had always been 90% great, but boy-oh-boy that temper was a doozy.He'd never turned it on me before, but then again I'd never gone against hiswishes either. When my mother nearly died from an infection caused by hisinability to continue to care for her, I flew from southern California toSan Francisco to try to save her life-having no idea that in the process itwould nearly cost me my own. EARLY SIGNS OF DEMENTIA?I spent three months in the hospital nursing my 82-pound mother back torelative health, while my father went from being my loving dad one minute tocalling me horrible nasty names and throwing me out of the house the next. Iwalked on egg shells trying not to upset him, even running the washingmachine could cause a tizzy, and there was no way to reason with him. It wasso heart wrenching to have my once-adoring father turn against me.I immediately took my father to his doctor, only to be flabbergasted hecould act normal when he needed to. I could not believe it when the doctorlooked at me as if I was lying to her. She didn't even take me seriouslywhen I reported that my father had nearly electrocuted my mother, butfortunately I walked into the bathroom just three seconds before he pluggedin a huge orange power strip that was soaking in a white tub of saltwater-along with my mother's feet! Much later, I was furious to find out myfather had instructed his doctor (and everyone he came into contact with)not to listen to a thing I said because I was just a (bleep-bleep) liar-andall I wanted was his money! (I wish he had some.)Then things got serious. My father had never laid a hand on me my wholelife, but one day nearly choked me to death for adding HBO to histelevision, even though he had eagerly consented to it just a few daysbefore. Terrified, I dialed 911 for the first time in my life and when thepolice finally arrived they took him to a psychiatric hospital forevaluation. I could not believe it when they released him right away, sayingthey couldn't find anything wrong with him. What is even more astonishing isthat similar incidents occurred three more times. CAREGIVER CATCH 22After three months I was happy to finally bring my frail mother home fromthe hospital, but furious to find myself trapped. I couldn't fly home andleave my mother alone with my father-she'd surely die from his inability tocare for her. I couldn't get my father to accept a caregiver, and even whenI did-no one would put up with his raging very long. I couldn't gethealthcare professionals to help-my father was always so darling and sane infront of them. I couldn't get medication to calm him, and even when Ifinally did-he refused to take it, threw it in my face and flushed it downthe toilet. I couldn't place my mother in a nursing home-he'd just take herout. I couldn't put him in a home-he didn't qualify. They both refusedAssisted Living-and legally I couldn't force them. I became a prisoner in myparents' home for nearly a year trying to solve crisis after crisis, crying,begging for professional help-and infuriated with an unsympathetic medicalsystem that wasn't helping me appropriately. GERIATRIC DEMENTIA SPECIALIST MAKES DIAGNOSIS You don't need a medical doctorate degree to know something is wrong, butyou do need the right doctor who can diagnose and treat dementia properly.Finally, a friend suggested I call the Alzheimer's Association who directedme to the best neurologist in the area who specialized in dementia. Heperformed a battery of blood, neurological, memory tests and CT & P.E.T.scans. After reviewing my parents' many medications and ruling out numerousreversible dementias such as a B-12 and thyroid deficiency, you should haveseen my face drop when he diagnosed Stage One Alzheimer's in both of myparents-something all their other healthcare professionals missed entirely. TRAPPED IN OLD HABITSWhat I'd been coping with was the beginning of Alzheimer's (just one type ofdementia), which begins very intermittently and appears to come and go. Ididn't understand that my father was addicted and trapped in his own badbehavior of a lifetime and his habit of yelling to get his way was comingout over things that were over-the-top illogical... at times. I also didn'tunderstand that demented does not mean dumb (a concept not widelyappreciated) and that he was still socially adjusted never to show his'Hyde' side to anyone outside the family. Even with the onset of dementia,it was astonishing he could still be so manipulative and crafty. On theother hand, my mother was as sweet and lovely as she'd always been. KEY: BALANCE BRAIN CHEMISTRY!I learned that Alzheimer's makes up 60-80% of all dementias and there's nostopping the progression nor is there yet a cure. However, if identifiedEARLY there are four FDA approved medications that can mask the symptoms,keeping a person in the early independent stage longer, delaying the needfor part to full-time supervision and care. The medications are Aricept,Exelon, Razadyne and Namenda, with many more in clinical trials. Incombination with optimal lifestyle changes (proper nutrition, weight,exercise, socialization), a one month delay in nursing home placement ofAlzheimer's patients could save the U.S. $1 BILLION annually. A five yeardelay in the onset could save $50 BILLION in annual healthcare costs. Publicawareness, education, and more research dollars are needed!After the neurologist masked the symptoms of Alzheimer's in my parents, andalso treated their depression (often present in AD patients), he prescribeda small dose of anti-aggression medication for my father, which helpedsmooth out is his volatile temper without making him sleep all day. (Ohhh,if we'd only had that fifty years ago!) It wasn't easy to get the dosagesright and took a lot of time and patience (no, he wasn't suddenly turnedinto a perfect angel), but at least we didn't need police intervention anylonger! CREATIVE BEHAVIORAL TECHNIQUESOnce my parents' brain chemistries were better balanced, I was able tooptimize nutrition, fluids, medication, treatments, and exercise with muchless resistance. I was also able to implement techniques to cope with theintermittent bizarre behaviors. Instead of logic and reason-I useddistraction and redirection to something they were interested in. I learnedto use reminiscence and talk about the old days, capitalizing on theirlong-term memories which were still quite good. Instead of arguing thefacts-I agreed, validated frustrated feelings, and lived in their realitiesof the moment. Instead of crying, I learned to just 'go with the flow' andlet any nasty comments roll off. And if none of that worked, a bribe of ice cream worked the best to cajolemy father into the shower, even as he swore a blue streak at me that he'djust taken one yesterday (over a week ago). I was also finally able to getmy father to accept two caregivers (he'd only alienated 40 that year-mostonly there for about ten minutes), and then with the tremendous benefit ofAdult Day Health Care five days a week for my parents and a support groupfor me, everything finally started to fall into place.IF ONLY WE HAD LONG TERM CARE INSURANCE!Before long my parents' life savings was gone and we were well into mine. Iwas advised to apply for Medicaid for them and after months of paperwork,aggravation, and evaluation they were approved for financial help from thegovernment. I was so relieved, until I learned that it would only pay to putmy parents in a nursing home, not keep them at home with 24/7 care. And,since my mother needed so much more skilled care than my father, they'd beseparated, something they would never consent to-nor did I want to do afterall this work to keep them together.I could not believe it-I finally had everything figured out medically,behaviorally, socially, legally, emotionally, two wonderful caregivers inplace, the house elder-proofed, and all I needed was some financial help tokeep them at home. If I'd just made sure my parents bought Long Term CareInsurance (or I bought it for them) years ago while they were still healthyand before any diagnosis of dementia, it would have covered the cost oftheir care at home. Instead, I paid for it, which nearly wiped me out inevery way. After five years of managing 24/7 care for my parents, I thensurvived invasive Brst. Cancer. ALZHEIMER'S / DEMENTIA OFTEN OVERLOOKEDWhat is so unsettling is that not one healthcare professional discussed thepossibility of the beginning of Alzheimer's Disease (or any type ofdementia) in my parents with me that first year, which happens far too oftento families. Alzheimer's afflicts more than 5.4 million Americans, butmillions go undiagnosed for 5-10 years because intermittent subtle warningsigns are chalked up to stress and just a 'normal' part of aging. Since oneout of eight by age 65, and nearly half by age 85 get AD, healthcareprofessionals of every specialty should know the 'Ten Warning Signs ofAlzheimer's' and educate their patients and families early on so everyonesaves time, money-and a fortune in Kleenex!TEN WARNING SIGNS OF ALZHEIMER'S(Reprinted with permission of the Alzheimer's Association)1.   Memory loss2.   Difficulty performing familiar tasks3.   Problems with language4.   Disorientation of time and place5.   Poor or decreased judgment6.   Problems with abstract thinking7.   Misplacing things8.   Changes in mood or behavior9.   Changes in personality10. Loss of initiativewww.ElderRage.com/Alzheimers.asp\nQuestion: Which health program offered to pay for a nursing home for the parents?\nAnswer:", " the FDA"], ["Caring for Aging Parents & Elder Rage: Know The Warning Signs of Alzheimer's!For eleven years I pleaded with my obstinate elderly father to allow acaregiver to help him with my ailing mother, but after 55 years of lovingeach other he adamantly insisted on taking care of her himself. Everycaregiver I hired to help him soon called in exasperation, \"Jacqueline, Ijust can't work with your father-his temper is impossible to handle. I don'tthink he'll accept help until he's on his knees himself.\"My father had always been 90% great, but boy-oh-boy that temper was a doozy.He'd never turned it on me before, but then again I'd never gone against hiswishes either. When my mother nearly died from an infection caused by hisinability to continue to care for her, I flew from southern California toSan Francisco to try to save her life-having no idea that in the process itwould nearly cost me my own. EARLY SIGNS OF DEMENTIA?I spent three months in the hospital nursing my 82-pound mother back torelative health, while my father went from being my loving dad one minute tocalling me horrible nasty names and throwing me out of the house the next. Iwalked on egg shells trying not to upset him, even running the washingmachine could cause a tizzy, and there was no way to reason with him. It wasso heart wrenching to have my once-adoring father turn against me.I immediately took my father to his doctor, only to be flabbergasted hecould act normal when he needed to. I could not believe it when the doctorlooked at me as if I was lying to her. She didn't even take me seriouslywhen I reported that my father had nearly electrocuted my mother, butfortunately I walked into the bathroom just three seconds before he pluggedin a huge orange power strip that was soaking in a white tub of saltwater-along with my mother's feet! Much later, I was furious to find out myfather had instructed his doctor (and everyone he came into contact with)not to listen to a thing I said because I was just a (bleep-bleep) liar-andall I wanted was his money! (I wish he had some.)Then things got serious. My father had never laid a hand on me my wholelife, but one day nearly choked me to death for adding HBO to histelevision, even though he had eagerly consented to it just a few daysbefore. Terrified, I dialed 911 for the first time in my life and when thepolice finally arrived they took him to a psychiatric hospital forevaluation. I could not believe it when they released him right away, sayingthey couldn't find anything wrong with him. What is even more astonishing isthat similar incidents occurred three more times. CAREGIVER CATCH 22After three months I was happy to finally bring my frail mother home fromthe hospital, but furious to find myself trapped. I couldn't fly home andleave my mother alone with my father-she'd surely die from his inability tocare for her. I couldn't get my father to accept a caregiver, and even whenI did-no one would put up with his raging very long. I couldn't gethealthcare professionals to help-my father was always so darling and sane infront of them. I couldn't get medication to calm him, and even when Ifinally did-he refused to take it, threw it in my face and flushed it downthe toilet. I couldn't place my mother in a nursing home-he'd just take herout. I couldn't put him in a home-he didn't qualify. They both refusedAssisted Living-and legally I couldn't force them. I became a prisoner in myparents' home for nearly a year trying to solve crisis after crisis, crying,begging for professional help-and infuriated with an unsympathetic medicalsystem that wasn't helping me appropriately. GERIATRIC DEMENTIA SPECIALIST MAKES DIAGNOSIS You don't need a medical doctorate degree to know something is wrong, butyou do need the right doctor who can diagnose and treat dementia properly.Finally, a friend suggested I call the Alzheimer's Association who directedme to the best neurologist in the area who specialized in dementia. Heperformed a battery of blood, neurological, memory tests and CT & P.E.T.scans. After reviewing my parents' many medications and ruling out numerousreversible dementias such as a B-12 and thyroid deficiency, you should haveseen my face drop when he diagnosed Stage One Alzheimer's in both of myparents-something all their other healthcare professionals missed entirely. TRAPPED IN OLD HABITSWhat I'd been coping with was the beginning of Alzheimer's (just one type ofdementia), which begins very intermittently and appears to come and go. Ididn't understand that my father was addicted and trapped in his own badbehavior of a lifetime and his habit of yelling to get his way was comingout over things that were over-the-top illogical... at times. I also didn'tunderstand that demented does not mean dumb (a concept not widelyappreciated) and that he was still socially adjusted never to show his'Hyde' side to anyone outside the family. Even with the onset of dementia,it was astonishing he could still be so manipulative and crafty. On theother hand, my mother was as sweet and lovely as she'd always been. KEY: BALANCE BRAIN CHEMISTRY!I learned that Alzheimer's makes up 60-80% of all dementias and there's nostopping the progression nor is there yet a cure. However, if identifiedEARLY there are four FDA approved medications that can mask the symptoms,keeping a person in the early independent stage longer, delaying the needfor part to full-time supervision and care. The medications are Aricept,Exelon, Razadyne and Namenda, with many more in clinical trials. Incombination with optimal lifestyle changes (proper nutrition, weight,exercise, socialization), a one month delay in nursing home placement ofAlzheimer's patients could save the U.S. $1 BILLION annually. A five yeardelay in the onset could save $50 BILLION in annual healthcare costs. Publicawareness, education, and more research dollars are needed!After the neurologist masked the symptoms of Alzheimer's in my parents, andalso treated their depression (often present in AD patients), he prescribeda small dose of anti-aggression medication for my father, which helpedsmooth out is his volatile temper without making him sleep all day. (Ohhh,if we'd only had that fifty years ago!) It wasn't easy to get the dosagesright and took a lot of time and patience (no, he wasn't suddenly turnedinto a perfect angel), but at least we didn't need police intervention anylonger! CREATIVE BEHAVIORAL TECHNIQUESOnce my parents' brain chemistries were better balanced, I was able tooptimize nutrition, fluids, medication, treatments, and exercise with muchless resistance. I was also able to implement techniques to cope with theintermittent bizarre behaviors. Instead of logic and reason-I useddistraction and redirection to something they were interested in. I learnedto use reminiscence and talk about the old days, capitalizing on theirlong-term memories which were still quite good. Instead of arguing thefacts-I agreed, validated frustrated feelings, and lived in their realitiesof the moment. Instead of crying, I learned to just 'go with the flow' andlet any nasty comments roll off. And if none of that worked, a bribe of ice cream worked the best to cajolemy father into the shower, even as he swore a blue streak at me that he'djust taken one yesterday (over a week ago). I was also finally able to getmy father to accept two caregivers (he'd only alienated 40 that year-mostonly there for about ten minutes), and then with the tremendous benefit ofAdult Day Health Care five days a week for my parents and a support groupfor me, everything finally started to fall into place.IF ONLY WE HAD LONG TERM CARE INSURANCE!Before long my parents' life savings was gone and we were well into mine. Iwas advised to apply for Medicaid for them and after months of paperwork,aggravation, and evaluation they were approved for financial help from thegovernment. I was so relieved, until I learned that it would only pay to putmy parents in a nursing home, not keep them at home with 24/7 care. And,since my mother needed so much more skilled care than my father, they'd beseparated, something they would never consent to-nor did I want to do afterall this work to keep them together.I could not believe it-I finally had everything figured out medically,behaviorally, socially, legally, emotionally, two wonderful caregivers inplace, the house elder-proofed, and all I needed was some financial help tokeep them at home. If I'd just made sure my parents bought Long Term CareInsurance (or I bought it for them) years ago while they were still healthyand before any diagnosis of dementia, it would have covered the cost oftheir care at home. Instead, I paid for it, which nearly wiped me out inevery way. After five years of managing 24/7 care for my parents, I thensurvived invasive Brst. Cancer. ALZHEIMER'S / DEMENTIA OFTEN OVERLOOKEDWhat is so unsettling is that not one healthcare professional discussed thepossibility of the beginning of Alzheimer's Disease (or any type ofdementia) in my parents with me that first year, which happens far too oftento families. Alzheimer's afflicts more than 5.4 million Americans, butmillions go undiagnosed for 5-10 years because intermittent subtle warningsigns are chalked up to stress and just a 'normal' part of aging. Since oneout of eight by age 65, and nearly half by age 85 get AD, healthcareprofessionals of every specialty should know the 'Ten Warning Signs ofAlzheimer's' and educate their patients and families early on so everyonesaves time, money-and a fortune in Kleenex!TEN WARNING SIGNS OF ALZHEIMER'S(Reprinted with permission of the Alzheimer's Association)1.   Memory loss2.   Difficulty performing familiar tasks3.   Problems with language4.   Disorientation of time and place5.   Poor or decreased judgment6.   Problems with abstract thinking7.   Misplacing things8.   Changes in mood or behavior9.   Changes in personality10. Loss of initiativewww.ElderRage.com/Alzheimers.asp\nQuestion: Which health program offered to pay for a nursing home for the parents?\nAnswer:", " the HBO"], ["To curb climate change, we need to protect waterAn international rescue plan for fresh waterIt is widely acknowledged that greenhouse gas emission-fueled climate change is having a profound and negative impact on fresh water systems around the world. Warmer weather causes more rapid evaporation of lakes and rivers, reduced snow and ice cover on open water systems, and melting glaciers.What is less understood is that our collective abuse and displacement of fresh water is also a serious cause of climate change and global warming. If we are to successfully address climate change, it is time to include an analysis of how our abuse of water is an additional factor in the creation of global warming as well as solutions that protect water and watersheds.There are two major factors. The first is the actual displacement of water from where it is sustaining a healthy ecosystem as well as healthy hydrologic cycles. Because humanity has polluted so much surface water on the planet, we are now mining the groundwater far faster than it can be replaced by nature. New Scientist reports of a \"little-heralded crisis\" all over Asia as a result of the exponential drilling of groundwater. Water is moved from where nature has put it in watershed and aquifers (where we can access it) to other place where it is used for flood irrigation and food production - where much of it lost to evaporation - or to supply the voracious thirst of mega cities, where it is usually dumped as waste into the ocean.Water is also lost to ecosystems through global trade - water used in the in the production of crops or manufactured goods that are then exported (known as virtual trade in water). Over 20% of daily water used for human purpose is exported out of watersheds in this way. Water is also piped across long distances for industry leaving behind parched landscapes.The second factor is the removal of the vegetation needed for a healthy hydrologic cycle. Urbanization, deforestation and wetland destruction greatly destroy water-retentive landscapes and lead to the loss of precipitation over the affected area.Slovakian scientist Michal Kravcik and his colleagues explain that the living world influences the climate mainly by regulating the water cycle and the huge energy flows linked to it. Transpiring plants, especially forests, work as a kind of biotic pump, causing humid air to be sucked out of the ocean and transferred to dry land. If the vegetation is removed from the land, this natural system of biosphere regulation is interrupted. Soil erodes, reducing the content of organic material in the ground, thus reducing its ability to hold water. Dry soil from lost vegetation traps solar heat, sharply increasing the local temperature and causing a reduction in precipitation over the affected area. This process also destroys the natural sequestration of carbon in the soil, leading to carbon loss.Of course, these two factors are deeply related. Just as removing vegetation from an ecosystem will dry up the soil, so too will removing water from an ecosystem mean reduced or non-existent vegetation.Taken together, these two factors are hastening the desertification of the planet, and intensifying global warming. Even if we successfully address and reverse greenhouse gas emissions and our dependence on fossil fuels, Kravcik says, we will not be able to stop climate change if we do not deal with the impact of our abuse of water on the planet.Unless we collectively address the crisis of fresh water and our cavalier treatment of the world's water systems, we will not restore the climate to health.Restoration of WatershedsThe solution to the water half of this crisis is the massive restoration of watersheds. Bring water back into parched landscapes. Return water that has disappeared by retaining as much rainwater as possible within the ecosystem so that water can permeate the soil, replenish groundwater systems, and return to the atmosphere to regulate temperatures and renew the hydrologic cycle. All human, industrial and agricultural activity must become part of this project, which could employ millions and alleviate poverty in the global South. Our cities must be ringed with green conservation zones and we must restore forests and wetlands - the lungs and kidneys of fresh water. For this to be successful, three basic laws of nature must be addressed.1. It is necessary to create the conditions that allow rainwater to remain in local watersheds. This means restoring the natural spaces where rainwater can fall and where water can flow. Water retention can be carried out at all levels: roof gardens in family homes and office buildings; urban planning that allows rain and storm water to be captured and returned to the earth; water harvesting in food production; capturing daily water discharge and returning it clean to the land, not to the rising oceans.2. We cannot continue to mine groundwater supplies at a rate greater than natural recharge. If we do, there will not be enough water for the next generation. Governments everywhere must undertake intensive research into their groundwater supplies and regulate groundwater takings before these underground reservoirs are gone. This may mean a shift in policy from export to domestic and local production.3. We must stop polluting our surface and groundwater sources - and we must back up this intention with strict legislation. Water abuse in oil and methane gas production and in mining must stop. We must wean ourselves of industrial and chemical-based agricultural practices and listen to the many voices sounding the alarm about the rush toward water-guzzling bio fuel farming. We need to promote \"subsidiarity,\" whereby national policies and international trade rules support local food production in order to protect the environment and promote local sustainable agriculture. Such policies also discourage the virtual trade in water. Countries should also limit or ban the mass movement of water by pipeline. Government investment in water and wastewater infrastructure would save huge volumes of water lost every day. Local laws could enforce water-harvesting practices at every level.Toward a Water Secure WorldClearly, for this rescue plan to be successful, governments around the world must acknowledge the water crisis and the part the role water abuse plays in the warming (and drying) of the planet. This in turn means that a nation's water resources must be considered in every government policy at all levels. Nations must undertake intensive studies to ascertain the health of watersheds and groundwater reserves. All activities that will impact water must conform to a new ethic - backed by law - that protects water sources from pollution and over-pumping. This will likely mean a strong challenge to government policies that favour unlimited global economic growth.Nearly two billion people live in water-stressed regions of the earth. Until now, the UN has addressed this terrible reality with a program to give them access to groundwater sources. But current levels of groundwater takings are unsustainable. To truly realize the universal right to water, and to protect water for nature's own uses, means a revolution in the way we treat the world's finite water resources. There is no time to lose.\nQuestion: How can problems generated by displacement of water be solved?\nAnswer:", " restoring the water to dry land"], ["To curb climate change, we need to protect waterAn international rescue plan for fresh waterIt is widely acknowledged that greenhouse gas emission-fueled climate change is having a profound and negative impact on fresh water systems around the world. Warmer weather causes more rapid evaporation of lakes and rivers, reduced snow and ice cover on open water systems, and melting glaciers.What is less understood is that our collective abuse and displacement of fresh water is also a serious cause of climate change and global warming. If we are to successfully address climate change, it is time to include an analysis of how our abuse of water is an additional factor in the creation of global warming as well as solutions that protect water and watersheds.There are two major factors. The first is the actual displacement of water from where it is sustaining a healthy ecosystem as well as healthy hydrologic cycles. Because humanity has polluted so much surface water on the planet, we are now mining the groundwater far faster than it can be replaced by nature. New Scientist reports of a \"little-heralded crisis\" all over Asia as a result of the exponential drilling of groundwater. Water is moved from where nature has put it in watershed and aquifers (where we can access it) to other place where it is used for flood irrigation and food production - where much of it lost to evaporation - or to supply the voracious thirst of mega cities, where it is usually dumped as waste into the ocean.Water is also lost to ecosystems through global trade - water used in the in the production of crops or manufactured goods that are then exported (known as virtual trade in water). Over 20% of daily water used for human purpose is exported out of watersheds in this way. Water is also piped across long distances for industry leaving behind parched landscapes.The second factor is the removal of the vegetation needed for a healthy hydrologic cycle. Urbanization, deforestation and wetland destruction greatly destroy water-retentive landscapes and lead to the loss of precipitation over the affected area.Slovakian scientist Michal Kravcik and his colleagues explain that the living world influences the climate mainly by regulating the water cycle and the huge energy flows linked to it. Transpiring plants, especially forests, work as a kind of biotic pump, causing humid air to be sucked out of the ocean and transferred to dry land. If the vegetation is removed from the land, this natural system of biosphere regulation is interrupted. Soil erodes, reducing the content of organic material in the ground, thus reducing its ability to hold water. Dry soil from lost vegetation traps solar heat, sharply increasing the local temperature and causing a reduction in precipitation over the affected area. This process also destroys the natural sequestration of carbon in the soil, leading to carbon loss.Of course, these two factors are deeply related. Just as removing vegetation from an ecosystem will dry up the soil, so too will removing water from an ecosystem mean reduced or non-existent vegetation.Taken together, these two factors are hastening the desertification of the planet, and intensifying global warming. Even if we successfully address and reverse greenhouse gas emissions and our dependence on fossil fuels, Kravcik says, we will not be able to stop climate change if we do not deal with the impact of our abuse of water on the planet.Unless we collectively address the crisis of fresh water and our cavalier treatment of the world's water systems, we will not restore the climate to health.Restoration of WatershedsThe solution to the water half of this crisis is the massive restoration of watersheds. Bring water back into parched landscapes. Return water that has disappeared by retaining as much rainwater as possible within the ecosystem so that water can permeate the soil, replenish groundwater systems, and return to the atmosphere to regulate temperatures and renew the hydrologic cycle. All human, industrial and agricultural activity must become part of this project, which could employ millions and alleviate poverty in the global South. Our cities must be ringed with green conservation zones and we must restore forests and wetlands - the lungs and kidneys of fresh water. For this to be successful, three basic laws of nature must be addressed.1. It is necessary to create the conditions that allow rainwater to remain in local watersheds. This means restoring the natural spaces where rainwater can fall and where water can flow. Water retention can be carried out at all levels: roof gardens in family homes and office buildings; urban planning that allows rain and storm water to be captured and returned to the earth; water harvesting in food production; capturing daily water discharge and returning it clean to the land, not to the rising oceans.2. We cannot continue to mine groundwater supplies at a rate greater than natural recharge. If we do, there will not be enough water for the next generation. Governments everywhere must undertake intensive research into their groundwater supplies and regulate groundwater takings before these underground reservoirs are gone. This may mean a shift in policy from export to domestic and local production.3. We must stop polluting our surface and groundwater sources - and we must back up this intention with strict legislation. Water abuse in oil and methane gas production and in mining must stop. We must wean ourselves of industrial and chemical-based agricultural practices and listen to the many voices sounding the alarm about the rush toward water-guzzling bio fuel farming. We need to promote \"subsidiarity,\" whereby national policies and international trade rules support local food production in order to protect the environment and promote local sustainable agriculture. Such policies also discourage the virtual trade in water. Countries should also limit or ban the mass movement of water by pipeline. Government investment in water and wastewater infrastructure would save huge volumes of water lost every day. Local laws could enforce water-harvesting practices at every level.Toward a Water Secure WorldClearly, for this rescue plan to be successful, governments around the world must acknowledge the water crisis and the part the role water abuse plays in the warming (and drying) of the planet. This in turn means that a nation's water resources must be considered in every government policy at all levels. Nations must undertake intensive studies to ascertain the health of watersheds and groundwater reserves. All activities that will impact water must conform to a new ethic - backed by law - that protects water sources from pollution and over-pumping. This will likely mean a strong challenge to government policies that favour unlimited global economic growth.Nearly two billion people live in water-stressed regions of the earth. Until now, the UN has addressed this terrible reality with a program to give them access to groundwater sources. But current levels of groundwater takings are unsustainable. To truly realize the universal right to water, and to protect water for nature's own uses, means a revolution in the way we treat the world's finite water resources. There is no time to lose.\nQuestion: How can problems generated by displacement of water be solved?\nAnswer:", " extracting more groundwater"], ["To curb climate change, we need to protect waterAn international rescue plan for fresh waterIt is widely acknowledged that greenhouse gas emission-fueled climate change is having a profound and negative impact on fresh water systems around the world. Warmer weather causes more rapid evaporation of lakes and rivers, reduced snow and ice cover on open water systems, and melting glaciers.What is less understood is that our collective abuse and displacement of fresh water is also a serious cause of climate change and global warming. If we are to successfully address climate change, it is time to include an analysis of how our abuse of water is an additional factor in the creation of global warming as well as solutions that protect water and watersheds.There are two major factors. The first is the actual displacement of water from where it is sustaining a healthy ecosystem as well as healthy hydrologic cycles. Because humanity has polluted so much surface water on the planet, we are now mining the groundwater far faster than it can be replaced by nature. New Scientist reports of a \"little-heralded crisis\" all over Asia as a result of the exponential drilling of groundwater. Water is moved from where nature has put it in watershed and aquifers (where we can access it) to other place where it is used for flood irrigation and food production - where much of it lost to evaporation - or to supply the voracious thirst of mega cities, where it is usually dumped as waste into the ocean.Water is also lost to ecosystems through global trade - water used in the in the production of crops or manufactured goods that are then exported (known as virtual trade in water). Over 20% of daily water used for human purpose is exported out of watersheds in this way. Water is also piped across long distances for industry leaving behind parched landscapes.The second factor is the removal of the vegetation needed for a healthy hydrologic cycle. Urbanization, deforestation and wetland destruction greatly destroy water-retentive landscapes and lead to the loss of precipitation over the affected area.Slovakian scientist Michal Kravcik and his colleagues explain that the living world influences the climate mainly by regulating the water cycle and the huge energy flows linked to it. Transpiring plants, especially forests, work as a kind of biotic pump, causing humid air to be sucked out of the ocean and transferred to dry land. If the vegetation is removed from the land, this natural system of biosphere regulation is interrupted. Soil erodes, reducing the content of organic material in the ground, thus reducing its ability to hold water. Dry soil from lost vegetation traps solar heat, sharply increasing the local temperature and causing a reduction in precipitation over the affected area. This process also destroys the natural sequestration of carbon in the soil, leading to carbon loss.Of course, these two factors are deeply related. Just as removing vegetation from an ecosystem will dry up the soil, so too will removing water from an ecosystem mean reduced or non-existent vegetation.Taken together, these two factors are hastening the desertification of the planet, and intensifying global warming. Even if we successfully address and reverse greenhouse gas emissions and our dependence on fossil fuels, Kravcik says, we will not be able to stop climate change if we do not deal with the impact of our abuse of water on the planet.Unless we collectively address the crisis of fresh water and our cavalier treatment of the world's water systems, we will not restore the climate to health.Restoration of WatershedsThe solution to the water half of this crisis is the massive restoration of watersheds. Bring water back into parched landscapes. Return water that has disappeared by retaining as much rainwater as possible within the ecosystem so that water can permeate the soil, replenish groundwater systems, and return to the atmosphere to regulate temperatures and renew the hydrologic cycle. All human, industrial and agricultural activity must become part of this project, which could employ millions and alleviate poverty in the global South. Our cities must be ringed with green conservation zones and we must restore forests and wetlands - the lungs and kidneys of fresh water. For this to be successful, three basic laws of nature must be addressed.1. It is necessary to create the conditions that allow rainwater to remain in local watersheds. This means restoring the natural spaces where rainwater can fall and where water can flow. Water retention can be carried out at all levels: roof gardens in family homes and office buildings; urban planning that allows rain and storm water to be captured and returned to the earth; water harvesting in food production; capturing daily water discharge and returning it clean to the land, not to the rising oceans.2. We cannot continue to mine groundwater supplies at a rate greater than natural recharge. If we do, there will not be enough water for the next generation. Governments everywhere must undertake intensive research into their groundwater supplies and regulate groundwater takings before these underground reservoirs are gone. This may mean a shift in policy from export to domestic and local production.3. We must stop polluting our surface and groundwater sources - and we must back up this intention with strict legislation. Water abuse in oil and methane gas production and in mining must stop. We must wean ourselves of industrial and chemical-based agricultural practices and listen to the many voices sounding the alarm about the rush toward water-guzzling bio fuel farming. We need to promote \"subsidiarity,\" whereby national policies and international trade rules support local food production in order to protect the environment and promote local sustainable agriculture. Such policies also discourage the virtual trade in water. Countries should also limit or ban the mass movement of water by pipeline. Government investment in water and wastewater infrastructure would save huge volumes of water lost every day. Local laws could enforce water-harvesting practices at every level.Toward a Water Secure WorldClearly, for this rescue plan to be successful, governments around the world must acknowledge the water crisis and the part the role water abuse plays in the warming (and drying) of the planet. This in turn means that a nation's water resources must be considered in every government policy at all levels. Nations must undertake intensive studies to ascertain the health of watersheds and groundwater reserves. All activities that will impact water must conform to a new ethic - backed by law - that protects water sources from pollution and over-pumping. This will likely mean a strong challenge to government policies that favour unlimited global economic growth.Nearly two billion people live in water-stressed regions of the earth. Until now, the UN has addressed this terrible reality with a program to give them access to groundwater sources. But current levels of groundwater takings are unsustainable. To truly realize the universal right to water, and to protect water for nature's own uses, means a revolution in the way we treat the world's finite water resources. There is no time to lose.\nQuestion: How can problems generated by displacement of water be solved?\nAnswer:", " increasing farming activity"], ["To curb climate change, we need to protect waterAn international rescue plan for fresh waterIt is widely acknowledged that greenhouse gas emission-fueled climate change is having a profound and negative impact on fresh water systems around the world. Warmer weather causes more rapid evaporation of lakes and rivers, reduced snow and ice cover on open water systems, and melting glaciers.What is less understood is that our collective abuse and displacement of fresh water is also a serious cause of climate change and global warming. If we are to successfully address climate change, it is time to include an analysis of how our abuse of water is an additional factor in the creation of global warming as well as solutions that protect water and watersheds.There are two major factors. The first is the actual displacement of water from where it is sustaining a healthy ecosystem as well as healthy hydrologic cycles. Because humanity has polluted so much surface water on the planet, we are now mining the groundwater far faster than it can be replaced by nature. New Scientist reports of a \"little-heralded crisis\" all over Asia as a result of the exponential drilling of groundwater. Water is moved from where nature has put it in watershed and aquifers (where we can access it) to other place where it is used for flood irrigation and food production - where much of it lost to evaporation - or to supply the voracious thirst of mega cities, where it is usually dumped as waste into the ocean.Water is also lost to ecosystems through global trade - water used in the in the production of crops or manufactured goods that are then exported (known as virtual trade in water). Over 20% of daily water used for human purpose is exported out of watersheds in this way. Water is also piped across long distances for industry leaving behind parched landscapes.The second factor is the removal of the vegetation needed for a healthy hydrologic cycle. Urbanization, deforestation and wetland destruction greatly destroy water-retentive landscapes and lead to the loss of precipitation over the affected area.Slovakian scientist Michal Kravcik and his colleagues explain that the living world influences the climate mainly by regulating the water cycle and the huge energy flows linked to it. Transpiring plants, especially forests, work as a kind of biotic pump, causing humid air to be sucked out of the ocean and transferred to dry land. If the vegetation is removed from the land, this natural system of biosphere regulation is interrupted. Soil erodes, reducing the content of organic material in the ground, thus reducing its ability to hold water. Dry soil from lost vegetation traps solar heat, sharply increasing the local temperature and causing a reduction in precipitation over the affected area. This process also destroys the natural sequestration of carbon in the soil, leading to carbon loss.Of course, these two factors are deeply related. Just as removing vegetation from an ecosystem will dry up the soil, so too will removing water from an ecosystem mean reduced or non-existent vegetation.Taken together, these two factors are hastening the desertification of the planet, and intensifying global warming. Even if we successfully address and reverse greenhouse gas emissions and our dependence on fossil fuels, Kravcik says, we will not be able to stop climate change if we do not deal with the impact of our abuse of water on the planet.Unless we collectively address the crisis of fresh water and our cavalier treatment of the world's water systems, we will not restore the climate to health.Restoration of WatershedsThe solution to the water half of this crisis is the massive restoration of watersheds. Bring water back into parched landscapes. Return water that has disappeared by retaining as much rainwater as possible within the ecosystem so that water can permeate the soil, replenish groundwater systems, and return to the atmosphere to regulate temperatures and renew the hydrologic cycle. All human, industrial and agricultural activity must become part of this project, which could employ millions and alleviate poverty in the global South. Our cities must be ringed with green conservation zones and we must restore forests and wetlands - the lungs and kidneys of fresh water. For this to be successful, three basic laws of nature must be addressed.1. It is necessary to create the conditions that allow rainwater to remain in local watersheds. This means restoring the natural spaces where rainwater can fall and where water can flow. Water retention can be carried out at all levels: roof gardens in family homes and office buildings; urban planning that allows rain and storm water to be captured and returned to the earth; water harvesting in food production; capturing daily water discharge and returning it clean to the land, not to the rising oceans.2. We cannot continue to mine groundwater supplies at a rate greater than natural recharge. If we do, there will not be enough water for the next generation. Governments everywhere must undertake intensive research into their groundwater supplies and regulate groundwater takings before these underground reservoirs are gone. This may mean a shift in policy from export to domestic and local production.3. We must stop polluting our surface and groundwater sources - and we must back up this intention with strict legislation. Water abuse in oil and methane gas production and in mining must stop. We must wean ourselves of industrial and chemical-based agricultural practices and listen to the many voices sounding the alarm about the rush toward water-guzzling bio fuel farming. We need to promote \"subsidiarity,\" whereby national policies and international trade rules support local food production in order to protect the environment and promote local sustainable agriculture. Such policies also discourage the virtual trade in water. Countries should also limit or ban the mass movement of water by pipeline. Government investment in water and wastewater infrastructure would save huge volumes of water lost every day. Local laws could enforce water-harvesting practices at every level.Toward a Water Secure WorldClearly, for this rescue plan to be successful, governments around the world must acknowledge the water crisis and the part the role water abuse plays in the warming (and drying) of the planet. This in turn means that a nation's water resources must be considered in every government policy at all levels. Nations must undertake intensive studies to ascertain the health of watersheds and groundwater reserves. All activities that will impact water must conform to a new ethic - backed by law - that protects water sources from pollution and over-pumping. This will likely mean a strong challenge to government policies that favour unlimited global economic growth.Nearly two billion people live in water-stressed regions of the earth. Until now, the UN has addressed this terrible reality with a program to give them access to groundwater sources. But current levels of groundwater takings are unsustainable. To truly realize the universal right to water, and to protect water for nature's own uses, means a revolution in the way we treat the world's finite water resources. There is no time to lose.\nQuestion: How can problems generated by displacement of water be solved?\nAnswer:", " hastening desertification"], ["To curb climate change, we need to protect waterAn international rescue plan for fresh waterIt is widely acknowledged that greenhouse gas emission-fueled climate change is having a profound and negative impact on fresh water systems around the world. Warmer weather causes more rapid evaporation of lakes and rivers, reduced snow and ice cover on open water systems, and melting glaciers.What is less understood is that our collective abuse and displacement of fresh water is also a serious cause of climate change and global warming. If we are to successfully address climate change, it is time to include an analysis of how our abuse of water is an additional factor in the creation of global warming as well as solutions that protect water and watersheds.There are two major factors. The first is the actual displacement of water from where it is sustaining a healthy ecosystem as well as healthy hydrologic cycles. Because humanity has polluted so much surface water on the planet, we are now mining the groundwater far faster than it can be replaced by nature. New Scientist reports of a \"little-heralded crisis\" all over Asia as a result of the exponential drilling of groundwater. Water is moved from where nature has put it in watershed and aquifers (where we can access it) to other place where it is used for flood irrigation and food production - where much of it lost to evaporation - or to supply the voracious thirst of mega cities, where it is usually dumped as waste into the ocean.Water is also lost to ecosystems through global trade - water used in the in the production of crops or manufactured goods that are then exported (known as virtual trade in water). Over 20% of daily water used for human purpose is exported out of watersheds in this way. Water is also piped across long distances for industry leaving behind parched landscapes.The second factor is the removal of the vegetation needed for a healthy hydrologic cycle. Urbanization, deforestation and wetland destruction greatly destroy water-retentive landscapes and lead to the loss of precipitation over the affected area.Slovakian scientist Michal Kravcik and his colleagues explain that the living world influences the climate mainly by regulating the water cycle and the huge energy flows linked to it. Transpiring plants, especially forests, work as a kind of biotic pump, causing humid air to be sucked out of the ocean and transferred to dry land. If the vegetation is removed from the land, this natural system of biosphere regulation is interrupted. Soil erodes, reducing the content of organic material in the ground, thus reducing its ability to hold water. Dry soil from lost vegetation traps solar heat, sharply increasing the local temperature and causing a reduction in precipitation over the affected area. This process also destroys the natural sequestration of carbon in the soil, leading to carbon loss.Of course, these two factors are deeply related. Just as removing vegetation from an ecosystem will dry up the soil, so too will removing water from an ecosystem mean reduced or non-existent vegetation.Taken together, these two factors are hastening the desertification of the planet, and intensifying global warming. Even if we successfully address and reverse greenhouse gas emissions and our dependence on fossil fuels, Kravcik says, we will not be able to stop climate change if we do not deal with the impact of our abuse of water on the planet.Unless we collectively address the crisis of fresh water and our cavalier treatment of the world's water systems, we will not restore the climate to health.Restoration of WatershedsThe solution to the water half of this crisis is the massive restoration of watersheds. Bring water back into parched landscapes. Return water that has disappeared by retaining as much rainwater as possible within the ecosystem so that water can permeate the soil, replenish groundwater systems, and return to the atmosphere to regulate temperatures and renew the hydrologic cycle. All human, industrial and agricultural activity must become part of this project, which could employ millions and alleviate poverty in the global South. Our cities must be ringed with green conservation zones and we must restore forests and wetlands - the lungs and kidneys of fresh water. For this to be successful, three basic laws of nature must be addressed.1. It is necessary to create the conditions that allow rainwater to remain in local watersheds. This means restoring the natural spaces where rainwater can fall and where water can flow. Water retention can be carried out at all levels: roof gardens in family homes and office buildings; urban planning that allows rain and storm water to be captured and returned to the earth; water harvesting in food production; capturing daily water discharge and returning it clean to the land, not to the rising oceans.2. We cannot continue to mine groundwater supplies at a rate greater than natural recharge. If we do, there will not be enough water for the next generation. Governments everywhere must undertake intensive research into their groundwater supplies and regulate groundwater takings before these underground reservoirs are gone. This may mean a shift in policy from export to domestic and local production.3. We must stop polluting our surface and groundwater sources - and we must back up this intention with strict legislation. Water abuse in oil and methane gas production and in mining must stop. We must wean ourselves of industrial and chemical-based agricultural practices and listen to the many voices sounding the alarm about the rush toward water-guzzling bio fuel farming. We need to promote \"subsidiarity,\" whereby national policies and international trade rules support local food production in order to protect the environment and promote local sustainable agriculture. Such policies also discourage the virtual trade in water. Countries should also limit or ban the mass movement of water by pipeline. Government investment in water and wastewater infrastructure would save huge volumes of water lost every day. Local laws could enforce water-harvesting practices at every level.Toward a Water Secure WorldClearly, for this rescue plan to be successful, governments around the world must acknowledge the water crisis and the part the role water abuse plays in the warming (and drying) of the planet. This in turn means that a nation's water resources must be considered in every government policy at all levels. Nations must undertake intensive studies to ascertain the health of watersheds and groundwater reserves. All activities that will impact water must conform to a new ethic - backed by law - that protects water sources from pollution and over-pumping. This will likely mean a strong challenge to government policies that favour unlimited global economic growth.Nearly two billion people live in water-stressed regions of the earth. Until now, the UN has addressed this terrible reality with a program to give them access to groundwater sources. But current levels of groundwater takings are unsustainable. To truly realize the universal right to water, and to protect water for nature's own uses, means a revolution in the way we treat the world's finite water resources. There is no time to lose.\nQuestion: How can problems generated by displacement of water be solved?\nAnswer:", " increasing industrial activity"]]