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Northwest News: Paul Allen to gift billions, mainly for scientific research; Bad Luck (but not barefoot) Bandit arrested

Northwest News: Paul Allen to gift billions, mainly for scientific research; Bad Luck (but not barefoot) Bandit arrested
Two headline stories you’ll want to read. Enjoy!

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Trombiculidae

History

Trombiculidae, from Greek (“to tremble”) and Latin culex, gen. culicis (“gnat” or “midge”), was first described as an independent family by H.E. Ewing in 1944. But references to chiggers go as far back as sixth century China, and by 1733, the first recognization of trombiculid mites in North America were made. In 1758, Linnaeus described a single species Acarus batatas (Now Trombicula batatas). However, most information about chiggers came from the problems arose during and after World War II.

Then, when the family was first described, it included two subfamilies, Hemitrombiculinae and Trombiculinae. Womersley added another, Leeuwenhoekiinae, which at the time only contained Leeuwenhoekia (Oudemans, 1911). Later he erected the family Leeuwenhoekiidae for the genus and subfamily, having six genera; they have a pair of submedian setae present on the dorsal plate.

Distribution

Trombiculid mites are found throughout the world. In Europe and North America, they tend to be more prevalent in the hot and humid parts. In the more temperate regions, they are found only in the summer (in French, harvest mites are called aotat, or “August” flies). In the United States, they are found mostly in the southeast, the south, and the Midwest. They are not present, or barely found, in far northern areas, in high mountains and in deserts. In the British Isles, the species Trombicula autumnalis are called harvest mites, in North America the species Trombicula alfreddugesi, and the species Trombicula (eutrombicula) hirsti which are found in Australia and are commonly called the scrub-itch mite.

Life cycle

The life cycle of a harvest mite

The length of the mite’s cycle depends on species and environment, but normally last 2 to 12 months (but may be longer). The number of cycles in a year depends on the region. For example, in a temperate region, there might only be 3 a year, but in tropical regions, the cycle might be continuous all year long. Adult harvest mites overwinter in protected places such as slightly below the soil. Females become active in the spring, and once the ground temperature is regularly above 60  (15.6 ), she lays eggs, up to 15 eggs per day in vegetation when soil temperatures are 60  (15.6 ). Therefore, from April through early autumn up until the first frost, humans are susceptible to chigger bites. The larvae congregate in groups on small clods of earth, in matted vegetation and even on low bushes and plants, where they have more access to a prospective host. The eggs are dormant for about six days, after which the non-feeding pre-larvae emerge, with only three pairs of legs. After about six days, the pre-larva grows into its larval stage.

Larva

The larvae, commonly called chigger, are about 0.170.21 mm (0.0070.008 in) in diameter, normally light red, covered in hairs, and move quickly relative to size. There is a marked constriction in the front part of the body in the nymph and adult stage. The eggs are round in shape.Chigger is also an alternate term for the chigoe flea (Tunga penetrans), a sand flea found in tropical and subtropical climates in the Americas and Africa.

The name chigger originated as a corruption of chigoe. Also called scrub mite, red mite and several other names, they are found throughout temperate and tropical zones. Chiggers come in 3 stages: the deutovum, unfed larva, and engorged larva. Once in the egg developing, the larvae enclosed in a membrane in addition to the eggshell, are called deutovum. After hatching, the unfed larvae migrate to the highest area and wait for a host.

The larval stage is the only parasitic stage of the mite’s life cycle. They are parasites to many animals. About 30 of the many species in this family, in their larval stage, attach to various animals, including amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals, and feed on skin. This often causes an intensely itchy red bump in humans (who are accidental hosts).

Chiggers attach to the host, pierce the skin, inject enzymes into the bite wound that digest cellular contents, and then suck up the digested tissue through a tube formed by hardened skin cells called a stylostome. They do not burrow into the skin or suck blood, as is commonly assumed. Itching from a chigger bite may not develop until 2448 hours after the bite, so the victim may not associate the specific exposure with the bite itself. The red welt/bump on the skin is not where a chigger laid eggs, as is sometimes believed. The larva remains attached to a suitable host for 3 to 5 days before dropping off to begin its nymph stage.

Chiggers do not like sunlight or humidity. During the wet season, chiggers are usually found in tall grass and other vegetation. During dry seasons, chiggers are mostly found underneath brush and shady areas.

Chiggers as disease vectors

For more details on this topic, see Scrub typhus.

Although the harvest mite chigger usually does not carry diseases in North American temperate climates, the Leptotrombidium deliense are considered a dangerous pest in East Asia and the South Pacific because they often carry Orientia tsutsugamushi, the tiny bacterium that causes scrub typhus, which is known alternatively as the Japanese river disease, scrub disease, or tsutsugamushi. The mites are infected by the Rickettsia passed down from parent to offspring before eggs are laid in a process called transovarial transmission. Symptoms of scrub typhus in humans include fever, headache, muscle pain, cough, and gastrointestinal symptoms.

Nymph

Once the larva has engorged itself on skin and has fallen off its host, the larva develops to its nymph stage. Like the larva, the nymphs are also sexually immature, but more closely resemble the adult.

This stage consists of three phases; the protonymph, deutonymph, and tritonymph, respectively. The protonymph and tritonymph morphology are unusual in species of Trombiculidae. The protonymph phase combines larval and protonymph characteristics with deutonymph and tritonymph morphology. The protonymph is an inactive transitional stage. The active deutonymph develops an additional pair of legs (for a total of eight). Lastly, it re-enters inactivity during its transitional tritonymph phase before growing to adulthood.

Adult

As a deutonymph and adult, trombiculid mites are independent predators that feed on small arthropods and their eggs, also found to eat plant material. They live in soil, often found when digging in yards and gardens. Adults can be beneficial to human beings, since they often eat the eggs of other pests, such as mosquitoes.

Trombiculiasis

Trombiculiasis, also called Trombiculidiasis, is the term coined for the rash caused by trombiculid mites.

Prevention

Chigger bites on the foot and ankle

Chiggers are commonly found on the tip of blades of grasses to catch a host, so keeping grass short, and removing brush and wood debris where potential mite hosts may live, can limit their impact on an area. Sunlight that penetrates the grass will make the lawn drier and make it less favorable for chigger survival.

Chiggers seem to affect warm covered areas of the body more than drier areas. Thus, the bites are often clustered behind the knees, or beneath tight undergarments such as socks, underwear, or brassieres. Areas higher in the body (chest, back, waist-band, and under-arms) are affected more easily in small children than in adults, since children are shorter and are more likely than adults come in contact with low-lying vegetation and dry grass where chiggers thrive.

Chigger bites can be minimized by the use of tightly woven protective clothing, including long pants, which make it hard for them to reach such spots. Application of repellent to the shoes, lower trousers and skin is also useful. Because they are found in grass, staying on trails, roads, or paths can prevent contact. Dusting sulfur is used commercially for mite control and can be used to control chiggers in yards. The dusting of shoes, socks and trouser legs with sulfur can be highly effective in repelling chiggers.

Another good strategy is to recognize the chigger habitat to avoid exposure in the first place. Chiggers in North America thrive late in summer, in dry tall grasses and other thick, unshaded vegetation. Insect repellents containing one of the following active ingredients are recommended: DEET, catnip oil extract – nepetalactone, citronella oil or eucalyptus oil extract. However, in 1993 issue a study reported on tests of two commercial repellants: DEET and citrus oil: “All chiggers exposed on the filter papers treated with DEET died and did not move off the treated papers. None of the chiggers that were placed on papers treated with citrus oil were killed.” It was concluded that DEET was more effective than citrus oil.

Chiggers can also be treated using common household vinegar (5% acetic acid). For personal protection, apply insect repellent to feet, legs, and mid-section.

Treatment

This section may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia’s quality standards. The specific problem is: date-June 2009. Please improve this section if you can. (June 2009)

Chigger rash 36 hours after exposure

To reduce the itching, an application of anti-itch cream containing hydrocortisone, calamine, or benzyl benzoate is often used (though calamine has been shown not to be effective). Hydrogen peroxide and capsaicin cream has also been effective. Another good way to relieve itching is to apply heat either by using a hand held shower with water hot as one can stand, or by heating the bite with a hair dryer. The heat method will relieve itching for about four hours and will require repeating. Applying fingernail polish to the affected area does not kill the chigger; the chigger is actually no longer present by the time a rash is noticed.

The most effective way of removing chiggers is by washing the affected areas with warm water and soap. This must be done as soon as possible after exposure or possible exposure. Carefully wash the ankles, feet, behind the knees, and under the arms and chest. An Epsom salt bath may help alleviate itching. If one is near the seashore, wading for a few minutes in salt water will both get rid of the mites on one’s skin and clothing and also alleviate the itching from their bites. Clothing, especially pants and socks, should be immediately discarded after returning from areas where exposure may have occurred. However, once symptoms appear, it may be too late to prevent further bites. Taking a hot bath when already covered with chigger bites may in fact be very uncomfortable and increase itching symptoms. Do not rub and scratch the skin aggressively, as this can break the skin and leave it vulnerable to a more serious infection.

Some claim that the chigger is still in the bite, perhaps mistaking the tiny red center of the bite for the chigger itself. In some cases, the chigger is still present when the bite appears. A 10X magnifier can be used to see the chigger and it may be removed with fine-tipped tweezers. Once it is gone, covering the bite with nail polish, calamine lotion, vaseline or other petroleum jelly, baby oil, or anything else may help the pain and itching, but will neither suffocate the chigger nor help the bites heal any faster. Medication such as antihistamines or corticosteroid creams may be prescribed by doctors, and might help in some instances.

References

^ “Trombiculidae Ewing, 1929 (Family)”. SysTax – database query. Universitt Ulm. http://www.biologie.uni-ulm.de/cgi-bin/system/zoosys.pl?id=97056&stufe=5&typ=ZOO&lang=e&sid=T&pr=nix&only=no&B4=ok&syno=y&valid=y. Retrieved 2009-03-06. 

^ Shatrov, A. B.; Kudryashova, N. I. (2008). “”Taxonomic ranking of major trombiculid subtaxa with remarks on the evolution of host-parasite relationships (Acariformes: Parasitengona: Trombiculidae)”". Annales zoologici (Warsaw) 58: 279287. 

^ Smith, GA; V Sharma, JF Knapp, BJ Shields (1998). Pediatric emergency care. ed. The summer penile syndrome: seasonal acute hypersensitivity reaction caused by chigger bites on the. 14 (2 ed.). U.S.: Pediatric emergency care. pp. 116118. http://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&lr=&q=info:49gX7aDTc_oJ:scholar.google.com/&output=viewport&pg=1. Retrieved May 22, 2009. 

^ Ballantine, Todd (1991). Tideland treasure: the naturalist’s guide to the beaches and salt marshes of Hilton Head Island and the southeastern coast. Columbia, South Carolina: University of South Carolina Press. pp. 14. ISBN 0-87249-795-X. 

^ Mandell, Gerald L.; Bennett JE, Dolin R, (2005). “294″. in 6th. Principles and Practice of Infectious Diseases.. Philadelphia: Elsevier Churchill Livingstone. ISBN 0443086869, 9780443086861. 

^ Goldman, Lee; Dennis Arthur Ausiello (2007). Cecil Medicine (23, illustrated, revised ed.). Elsevier Health Sciences. pp. 1032. 

^ a b c d e f g Durden, Lance A. (2002). Medical and veterinary entomology (3rd ed.). Academic Press. pp. 458. ISBN 9780125104517. http://books.google.com/books?id=u4RGXGkRq5YC&pg=PA458&lpg=PA458&dq=trombiculidae+”life+cycle”&source=bl&ots=InFLxmvnBe&sig=tk8VWaihOEllvoiuzM9E49K32Cw&hl=en&ei=WFS8SYO6JJHAM92U0aoI&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=9&ct=result. 

^ a b c d Potter, M. F.; P. G. Koehler (March 1995. Revised February 2000. Reviewed January 2006.). “Invisible Itches: Insect and Non-Insect Causes”. University of Florida, Depart. pp. 14. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdffiles/MG/MG34300.pdf. Retrieved 2009-05-22. 

^ Scarborough, John (1998). Medical and Biological Terminologies. Oklahoma: University of Oklahoma Press. pp. 122. ISBN 0806130296. 

^ Bowman, Dwight D.; Hendrix, Charles M.; Lindsay, David S.; Barr, Stephen C. (2002). Feline clinical parasitology. Wiley-Blackwell. pp. 38586. ISBN 0813803330. 

^ E.W. Ewing (Oct. 1946). The Journal of Parasitology. 32. pp. 435440. http://www.jstor.org/pss/3272913. 

^ “Aotat : Definition” (in French). Vulgaris – medical. http://www.vulgaris-medical.com/encyclopedie/aoutat-522.html. Retrieved 2009-05-19. 

^ Vater, G. (2006). “The geographical distribution of the harvest mite Neotrombicula autumnalis (Acari: Trombiculidae).” (in German). CABI (Bezirks-Hygieneinspektion und -Institut Leipzig, Abteilung Medizinische Parasitologie, 7010 Leipzig, German Democratic Republic.: CABI): 12. http://www.cababstractsplus.org/abstracts/Abstract.aspx?AcNo=19830598840. Retrieved May 18, 2009. 

^ Hirst, A. (1929). “”On the crub itch mite of North Queensland (Trombicula hirsti Sambon)” A possible carrier of tropical pseudotyphus”. Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene 22 (5): 451452. http://download.journals.elsevierhealth.com/pdfs/journals/0035-9203/PIIS0035920329900675.pdf. 

^ a b c “ArmaXX Pest Control”. http://www.armaxx.com/chigger.html. Retrieved 2008-06-24. 

^ Gosling, Peter J. (2005). Dictionary of parasitology. Boca Raton: CRC Taylor & Francis. ISBN 0-415-30855-0. 

^ “ACES Publications : CHIGGERS : ANR-1109″. http://www.aces.edu/pubs/docs/A/ANR-1109/. Retrieved 2008-06-24. 

^ Finke, D.L. (1998-10-01). “University of MD Chigger Fact sheet” (PDF). http://www.hgic.umd.edu/_media/documents/hg66.pdf. Retrieved 2007-05/25. 

^ About.com: Chiggers Pediatric Dermatology Basics

^ University of Florida: IFAS Extension

^ About.com: Chiggers Pediatric Dermatology Basics

^ Service, Mike. Medical Entomology for Students (4, illustrated, revised ed.). Published by Cambridge University Press, 2008. pp. 250252 of 289 pages. ISBN ISBN 0521709288, 9780521709286. http://books.google.com/books?id=wRrof4RLDuwC&pg=PA251&dq=harvest+mites+scrub+typhus. 

^ “CDC – Scrub Typhus Reemergence in the Maldives”. http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/eid/vol9no12/03-0212.htm. Retrieved 2008-06-24. 

^ Takahashi, M; Misumi, H; Urakami, H; Misumi, M; Matsumoto, I (2003). “Life cycle of Leptotrombidium pallidum (Acari: Trombiculidae), one of the vector mites of scrub typhus in Japan (Author abstract)”. Ohara Sogo Byoin Nenpo (Japan) 45: 1930. ISSN 0285-3671. http://sciencelinks.jp/j-east/article/200401/000020040103A0828660.php. 

^ Baumann T (March 2001). “New treatment for harvest mite infestation”. Archives of Internal Medicine 161 (5): 769. doi:10.1001/archinte.161.5.769. PMID 11231715. http://archinte.ama-assn.org/cgi/pmidlookup?view=long&pmid=11231715. 

^ Ogg, Barb. “Itchy Chiggers”. http://lancaster.unl.edu/pest/resources/chiggers(008).shtml. Retrieved 2009-05-19. 

^ a b c M Bennett, Stuart (2003). “Mites”. Self published by author. http://www.the-piedpiper.co.uk/th5i.htm. Retrieved 2009-05-19. 

^ Ho TM, Fauziah MK (March 1993). “Laboratory evaluation of two commercial repellants against Leptotrombidium fletcheri (Acari: Trombiculidae)”. Southeast Asian Journal of Tropical Medicine and Public Health 24 (1): 1659. PMID 8362291. 

^ Baumann T (March 2001). “New treatment for harvest mite infestation”. Archives of Internal Medicine 161 (5): 769. doi:10.1001/archinte.161.5.769. PMID 11231715. http://archinte.ama-assn.org/cgi/pmidlookup?view=long&pmid=11231715. 

^ a b “Harvest mite infestation in cats”. Feline Advisory Bureau. November, 2008. http://www.fabcats.org/owners/skin/harvest_mite.html. Retrieved 2009-05-19. 

^ Schalock, Peter C. (Last full review/revision December 2006). “Itching: itching and Noninfectious rashes”. The Merk Manuals Medical Library. http://www.merck.com/mmhe/sec18/ch203/ch203b.html. Retrieved 2009-05-19. 

External links

“Chiggers!” at Missouri Department of Conservation

Chiggers at Pestproducts.com

Iowa State University Department of Entomology Insect Information Note

NIH Medline Plus

Ohio State University Extension Fact Sheet, Entomology, Chiggers, HYG-2100-98

Trombicula autmunalis

Taxonomic information at UniProt Consortium and NCBI

Categories: AcariHidden categories: Articles needing cleanup from June 2009 | All pages needing cleanup

Long and Hard Fall of Higher Education

Recently published Shangai list of the world’s best universities has again turned the attention of the public to rank-list of colleges which has very accurately and promptly recorded objective of improving and declining higher education institutions in the world. The criteria are very clear and measurable – number of graduated students and professors winner of Nobel prizes or Fields medals, the number of researchers whose scientific articles are regularly quoted in other scientific publications, the number of most esteemed published in scientific journals such as Nature and Science, the number of articles that are indexed in the most important scientific bases and academic success in relation to the number of permanently employed teachers.

Among the top 100 world universities, 37 are from the United States, 17 from the UK, 7 from Australia, 5 from Canada, 4 from the Netherlands and Japan, 3 from Switzerland, Hong Kong and Germany, 2 from Denmark, Korea, France, Singapore and Sweden, and 1 from Finland, Ireland, Israel and New Zealand. Top-10 American universities are Harvard University, which is already the second best year, and Yale University, which is already the second year in a row on the second place. Followed by the British Cambridge and Oxford University, is the fifth California Institute of Technology, that was last year on the 7th place, the sixth Imperial College London who has in relation to the previous year fell by one place (he was fifth), the seventh University College London (last year was the ninth), the eighth is the University of Chicago who was compared to the previous year dropped to one place (he was seventh), the ninth Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which last year was the tenth, while the tenth place Columbia University who last year was the 11th place.

If you take into account the population of each country in relation to the number of top universities, it is shown that, although the U.S. has the highest among the 500, one comes to every 1,900,000 Americans, in Sweden with 11 universities among the 500 best one comes to every 822 thousand inhabitants. And is similar to New Zealand, Finland and Switzerland, and Norway are close and Denmark (1,160,000 and 1,370,000 inhabitants).

The only university from the area of former Yugoslavia that has reached this level, the list of 500 best is the University of Ljubljana, which took 446th place in the world. Not a single other universities from these regions is not. Ambitious students from the countries of former Yugoslavia, if You want to study at one of prestigious Universities ‘in the vicinity’, you’ll choose from 5 Austrian, 2 Czech, 1 Hungarian, 4 Greek, 14 Italian, or 5 Turkish universities, which were found on the list of 500 best .

Although almost all the Balkan countries, except Montenegro, speaking strictly statistically, have quite enough residents for at least one prestigious university, this has still not happened. Higher education without which, all agree in principle, there is no development nor a step forward in the contemporary world, activity that was systematically suppressed in whole region for the past 20 years to another plan that would be found at the bottom of a food chain, together with textile industry, culture and the a tanners. Regions with the lowest percentage of highly educated residents in Europe won’t change that sadly status for a long, long time. Namely, between the proclamations and strident promises on the one hand, and the gray reality on the other, there’s enormous sink hole. The average resident in the Balkans, noted accurate statistics, there are approximately 8 and a half years of education. Oh, if only international scientific status of Balkans universities would depend on amount of national flame…. In high education there’s no stagnation: you either grow or fall. Under that criterion, Balkan universities definitely fall. Long and hard.

The Paranormal Goes Mainstream

The PARANORMAL GOES MAINSTREAM:

The BBC, NPR, the New York Times, and other reputable media now cover subjects that, only a few years ago, were considered off-limits in polite company. Now we can talk about extraterrestrials, spirit beings, God, and angels, and not be made to feel odd. What has happened? This articles addresses the very fact of the paranormal becoming normal and some of the reasons for this relatively new development.

Did you know that over eighty percent of Americans have long believed in the paranormal? Perhaps each of us was waiting for the other person to step forward. Eight out of ten of us believe that an extraterrestrial visited earth some 2,000 years ago, mated with one of our women and had a son. In 2007, the PEW Forum on Religion and Public Life found that 78.4% of us are Christian, 4.7% believe in other familiar faiths, and only 16.1% of us would be considered non-religious. A Gallup poll of 2006 found that 45% of us believe that God created us just the way we are, exactly the way the Book of Genesis says he did, and that we were never monkeys. Most of religion is based on belief in something for which there is no proof.  But religion had always been a special case of the paranormal. Humans have always believed that they were not their ultimate bosses.  Even trees, snakes, fire, the sun, and rivers too have been the ultimate bosses in some societies. Aliens in our midst or extraterrestrials or ET could be classified as one of the first cases of the paranormal that has been widely accepted.

A major factor in the increasing acceptance of the paranormal as part of civilized discourse has been the movie industry. ET, which came out in 1982, may have been one of the most influential of this movie genre.  Who can forget the lovable ET trying to call HOME! Aside from the movies, the year 1984 may qualify as the date when the subject of the paranormal began its climb from obscurity. In that year, a private, nonprofit organization known as the SETI Institute was established in the United States.  SETI stands for Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence. SETI’s mission is “to explore, understand and explain the origin, nature and prevalence of life in the universe.”  One of SETI’s techniques, according to its literature, is to use radio telescopes “to listen for narrow-bandwidth radio signals from space. Such signals are not known to occur naturally, so a detection would provide evidence of extraterrestrial technology.” In July 1991 in the City of Buenos Aires, Argentina, some very highly placed organizations and individuals put their names to a “Declaration of Principles Concerning Activities Following the Detection of Extraterrestrial Intelligence.”  This august body turned the work of SETI into a truly global endeavor.   Sponsors of SETI have included the International Institute for Space Law, International Telecommunication Union, International Academy of Astronautics, NASA Ames Research Center, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and the US Department of Energy. 

Actually your taxes and mine have paid for a voyage of discovery, much as Queen Isabella paid for Columbus’s expedition to found a way to the Spice Lands. We have paid for Pioneer 10 and 11, spacecrafts that are, among other things, looking for other civilizations in outer space. Our messengers have crossed our Solar System and, probably, the Milky Way Galaxy and are now far beyond our imagination.  Pioneers 10 and 11 are carrying messages about us here on earth, to give our alien brothers and sisters some sense of who we are, what we look like, and what we consider important in our collective culture. Although this was, most probably, not with any malice, our Pioneers are carrying a skewed idea of who we are. Both have male and female figures that have Caucasian features and no illustration of a black or Asian person, even though these two are human’s most prevalent renditions.

While Pioneer 10 continues its search in the outer limits of our galaxy, some scientists believe that we may be searching in the wrong places. In a British documentary on SETI that aired on April 26, 2010, the famous astrophysicist, Stephen Hawkins, went so far as to say that “intelligent aliens almost certainly exist” and to warn against trying to communicate with them.  Hawkins was also quoted in the Wall Street Journal of April 17, 2010.  An even more comprehensive discussion of Extraterrestrials was hosted by NPR’s On Point program with Tom Ashbrook on April 28, 2010. The program was entitled: “SETI, Hawkins and Alien Contact” and featured scientific luminaries such as Paul Davis, a theoretical physicist, cosmologist and astrobiologist at Arizona State University; Astronomer Jill Tarter; and theoretical physicist Sean Carroll of Cal Tech. I would not be surprised if this program had one of the highest audiences of On Point in a while.

Another stone on the edifice of the paranormal was erected by theoretical physicist Ronald Mallett of the University of Connecticut who, in 2006, published his trail-blazing book: “Time Traveler.” I had the honor of attending a lecture by Dr. Mallett at MIT in 2006 after his book was published.  Having lost his father when he was only 10 years old, young Mallett turned his grief into an unquenchable search for the science of time travel in hopes of, one day, being able to travel back in time and be with his father again. Dr. Mallett spent all his professional life as a physicist, pushing the frontiers of mathematics and physics and culminating with the discovery of a working theory of time travel.  His mind-bending work can be found on his web site at UConn. Dr. Mallett credits his desire to see his father again for giving him the motivation that kept him off the streets and “the state penn and led him to Penn State instead.” What his work shows is that the paranormal may simply be the subject matter for which the science is not yet known. 

While scientists like Hawkins believe that aliens may already be among us, many ordinary folks believe that their own deceased relatives live on in a spirit dimension and are not aliens.  A growing number of Americans believe that they can communicate with their deceased loved ones through channeling. Reincarnation and contact with the dead have recently been given more credibility by reports of Brian Weiss and John Edward.

Brian L. Weiss graduated magna cum laude from Columbia University and went on to complete a medical degree from Yale University.  His interests have included the study and treatment of depression and anxiety, sleep disorders, and brain chemistry.  He is Chairman Emeritus of Psychiatry at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami. In his book, Many Lives, Many Masters, Weiss details his experiences with a woman named Catherine who was one of his patients.  Catherine had come to him for treatment of anxiety, panic attacks, and phobia. Under hypnosis, Catherine uncapped the mysteries of birth, the dying process, in-between states, re-incarnation, and the wider world of the spirit.

John Edward, author of After Life, Answers from the Other Site, is an internationally known Psychic Medium whose work is documented in his book that was published in 2003 with a foreword by Larry King of the television program “Larry King Live.” One of the startling reports of Mr. Edward in his book has to do with the work he did, connecting families with their loved ones who had perished on 9/11 when the Twin Towers fell. Because most of the deaths had been so sudden, it appears, many loved ones really needed to connect with family members to tie loose ends before moving on.  Apparently, Mr. Edward does not need any special music and dance, or the dimly lit room with an overpowering smell of incense that many of us associate with the occult. He seems to be a walking window to other dimensions and to life beyond the grave.

To these reports I can add my own experience of visiting and conversing with the deceased relatives on many occasions when I was growing up in rural Zimbabwe and again in the last few years when I visited my siblings.  On one occasion I wanted to fill in some gaps in our genealogy, so what better way than to get it from the people who had been alive at the time. Each time the family would sing the songs of the ancestors; monotonous music intended to quiet the mind sufficiently to open it to the dimension of the spirit. In my family only one of my siblings was able to reach this state, and the ancestors would come through and carry on extended conversations. Because of this personal experience, I do believe that there is some kind of existence beyond death or that there are intelligent entities in this or other dimension that are not readily visible or accessible to us.  But I am not convinced that all the spirit visitors who were channeled by my sibling were my deceased relatives. I had always doubted this.  Once when I was a teenager, I asked a visiting spirit: “Are you my real great grandfather of flesh and blood who ———-.”  Before I could complete my question, I was stopped dead on my tracks by family members who had fear on their faces.  I was told never, ever to ask such questions again.  It was clear that there was danger in questioning the authenticity of the ancestors.  I complied, but my curiosity never abated. It was curious to me that we never had a visitor that we had known in the physical life. There were always relatives who lived years before our time. We could not question them on obscure facts that they would have known, if they were who they claimed to be.

I do not believe that the ancestors were multiple personalities that psychologists and psychiatrists can now explain. I actually believe that they were intelligent life forms from another dimension who were able to cross over when my sister was properly tuned, but I doubt that all of them were related to us or that they had once been biological.  I think we were sometimes duped.  I think some of my visitors were spirit imposters. On the other hand, Edward seems to have had convincing evidence that the deceased were who they said they were.

I have never lost the capacity to be amazed about what humans can do. But I have also been keenly aware that the real hero is nature itself, including us. Some of our most impressive achievements have been in emulating or augmenting nature.  From our natural ability to see and hear, we have learned to make movies and to share news of distant lands as they happen.  We watched humans land on the moon and heard them describe what they saw.  From the birds we have learned to make airplanes that tear through the sky, taking us across oceans as if we were migratory birds. From the workings of our brains, we have created computers that are dramatically expanding our capacity to map the genetic code, to fight diseases, and manage our cities, towns, and countries.  It may turn out that our future technologies will tap into our souls and augment our capacity to travel through time, to communicate with our dead, and to see God. Equally plausible is that we may not need any technology at all.  Our own brains may already be wired to peer behind the veil of this physical universe we know.  What we call paranormal today may, some day, be ordinary aspects of nature.

________________________________________________________________________

Dr. Sondlo Leonard Mhlaba is the author of: WITH OR WITHOUT GOD, LIFE’S MYSTERIES CONTINUE, subtitled: Ruminations on God, Life, Spirits, Reincarnation and the Future of Humankind.

Effect Of Religion On Political Participation By Latino Citizens In Us Politics

1.0 Introduction

1.1 Definition of political participation

Political participation has taken on a series of definitions depending on the author or the context. However, for purposes of this paper, political participation will refer to lobbying, convincing others to vote, protesting, voting and related activities. Usually, one of the most prominently used measures of political participation is the amount of people who turn out to vote; in other words, voter turnout. (Tippet, 2007)

There have been a number of reasons available to justify why voter turnout is low among certain groups and much higher in others. For instance, when a country opts to use personalized contact to inform people about the need to vote, then chances are that that country will register high voter turnout. The latter method usually entails visiting potential voters from door to door. Less effective methods include pre-recorded phone messages usually known as robo-calls. (Lilla, 2007)

In certain instances, political participation may be impeded by a citizen’s lack of  awareness on the details surrounding voting. For example, some may not know how to use voting machines or the location of voting centers. Consequently, this impedes their participation. Additionally, people may record low political participation because of certain cultural factors. For instance, it is likely that immigrant communities and ethnic communities may lack the basic language skills required to understand messages from political interest groups. Such persons may require translators and this makes them less effective in achieving their goal.

However, perhaps another more valid cultural factor is a group’s beliefs and values. When these beliefs do not fall in line with politically related ones, then it is likely that these groups may record lower voter turnout. In this case, the most outstanding factor is religion because it forms the basis for most belief systems. (Austin, 2008)

Lastly, low political participation may be caused by missing elements in the political system of a certain country. It is possible to find that certain countries may encourage only certain members of their community to take part in politics while others may be prevented from pursuing this because no one has bothered with them. These groups normally lack models from which they can borrow from thus making them isolated. However, for purposes of this paper, greater emphasis will be placed on the influence of religion on political participation.

1.2 Research question

The research question is: Does religion effect political participation by Latino citizens in the US?

2.0 Frame

This question can be further divided into three major segments as follows

What role does religion play in politics in the US?
How does the importance of religion in politics relate to Latino immigrants?
Do Latinos have poor political participation?
How do religion, Latino immigrants and political participation intertwine in US politics?

2.1 Project outline

There are a series of issues that need to be analyzed critically in order to answer the research question. For example, studies have shown that religion has an important role to play in society. However, there is a need to look at how this importance can be related to the United States. The latter issue shall be covered in the literature review. Secondly, there is a need to look into the extent of political participation by the Latinos in US politics. This means that an in depth coverage of the facts and figures surrounding the civil engagements will also be done. (Mathewes, 2007)Lastly, there is a need to examine some of the factors that could be causing these low voter turnouts. Additionally, the paper will look at how the role of religion is related to the Latinos. In the end, the paper will summarize what the link between political participation, religion and Latino immigrants.

3.0 Theory

3.1 The role of religion in US politics

Avowed secularists, agnostics and atheists belong to the minority group according to research conducted by almost all authors researching this topic. However, one cannot ignore the fact that their numbers in the United States are rising day by day. According to reports made by certain scholars, atheistic ideas are becoming important aspects of US political life. This means that the numbers of people listening to atheists have increased dramatically and also, the numbers of writings on atheist principles and beliefs have become bestseller lists. This could be the reason why the US instated the freedom from religion Act. (Keith, 2007)

In the latter Act, the country’s constitution is recognized as the most important aspect of political life and that it had been established in order to ensure that all US citizens were protected by it. Consequently, it should not be linked to any particular religious establishment because this will sideline the efforts of other parties involved in the political process. While the latter stance may make the US appear very secular, this does not undermine the influence of religion over the lives of Americans.

Religion within the United States is one of the most important social economic factors. Atheists may be trying to bring in other factors to this equation but one cannot ignore the important role that religion has played in American public/ political life. (Rogger, 2007)

For example, almost all presidential candidates affirm that they have a religious inclination. For instance, one of the current presidential aspirants; Democrat Barrack Obama asserted that religion should not be thrown to the periphery when dealing with political issues. Instead, it should be treated with the respect and grace it deserves. He also claimed that public policy should be related to religious principles that can be applied to all religious groups regardless of their affiliation. He believes that individuals who enter publish service should not abandon their religious beliefs at the door. These comments were not the first of their kind. Many other political candidates in past regimes have taken similar stances. (Sorensen, 2006)

It can be argued that the US is a highly religious society compared to their counterparts in developed countries. For example, a visitor from the European continent once asserted that religion was very important in US public life because religious messages could be found almost everywhere. (Miller, 2004)For example, this visitor saw a sign of a bumper sticker found on a milk delivery van informing passers-by about Jesus. Shortly after, the same visitor saw a certain notice pinned on a lawn requesting people to call a free number if they required prayers.

The latter visitor realized that even if the US law required separation of church from state, one could find that religion was part of Americans daily lives. For instance, a poll conducted by The Public Life Group and the Pew Forum found that a whooping seventy percent of Americans would like their president to poses strong religious beliefs. This is the reason why many presidential candidates tend to mention religion in just the right quantities.

However, the particular choice that individuals settled on was also highly different. For instance, when some people were asked about who they would vote for in the previous election where George Bush and John Kerry stood against one another, it had been found that some voters would vote for any individual as long as the depicted some signs of religious beliefs. On the contrary, others claimed that they would vote for President Bush because he was a Pentecostal and not Candidate Kerry because the latter was Catholic. (Cladis, 2007)On the other hand, some people claimed that they were not sure about their preferred candidate but that they would vote for whoever was more religiously inclined. However, other individuals claimed that they did not despise religion but that they did not want public policy to be enacted on the basis of religion.

Certain US citizens feel that religion has intruded into the stance and policy issues surrounding certain controversial topics such as

Stem cell research
Abortion
The Iraq war
Educational policies

All the latter features have brought about a lot of controversy because of differing religious opinions. Eventually, this has affected the rate at which people support certain candidates running for political or public office. (Espinosa, Elizondo & Miranda, 2005)

Some research has also been conducted on the link between religion and political participation. One such example is a journal article written by Driskel, R., Embry, E. and Lyon, L. the article is entitled Faith and politics; The influence of religious beliefs on political participation; published by the Southwestern Social science association. The objective for conducting the latter research was to establish whether there was a link between political participation and religion. The Driskel, Embry & Lyon (2008) used denomination and church attendance as measures or indicators of religion. Besides these, they also employed the use of certain behaviors related to religious beliefs, traditions and principles to find out just how related these two aspects were.

The latter authors did not restrict themselves to the two former mentioned factors i.e. religious attendance and denomination alone as indicators of religion. This is because restricting oneself to these factors alone was likely to camouflage the real influence that religion had upon the lives of other people. Consequently, this was the reason why they included other aspects in the study.

Driskel, Embry & Lyon (2008) found that there was a high significance of religious beliefs on political participation. It was found that when individuals identified themselves with a certain religion, then chances were that they would not participate in national politics. However, when one examined the degree of participation in religious activities alone, it was found that this actually increased participation. The latter researchers asserted that types of religious beliefs influence political participation in different ways. Consequently, it is necessary for one to study exactly how this related to a particular group or type of person. For instance, macro religious factors affected politics in that they changed macro political factors. However, micro factors or individually based religious factors had a small effect on political participation. Those who were deeply taken up by their religion were likely to be less enthusiastic about other aspects of their social lives such as politics. Consequently, this latter aspect was likely to participate less in politics. (Thomson, 2006)

Given the latter assertions, it is necessary for one to examine whether the same reasoning can be applied to Latinos. In other words, based in the findings of this former research, one should examine what kind of religion Latinos practice in order to place their political behavior in context.

3.2 Do Latinos record poor political participation?

Research conducted by Leal (2004) found that the overall rate of political participation among Latino citizens was much lower than for other minority groups or immigrant population. This research was done quantitatively among a series of locations within the United States. In this article, the author makes reference to other researches that had been conducted within the US. In previous quantitative work, done by Sclozman, Brady and Verba, it had been found that there was no significant difference between political participation among Latinos and other minority groups. However, Leal (2004) opposes these previous findings by asserting that there were indeed discrepancies between Latino participation rates and political participation among non citizens within the US.

Additionally, the latter author also found that the rate of political participation among Latino citizens depended on the nature of the political activity too. This research found that a large percentage of Latino citizens preferred participating political electoral activities than in political civic groups. Also, the latter author affirmed that political participation in all the latter mentioned categories was likely to be much lower among Latino citizens than among non Latino citizens in ethnic minorities.

In this research, some factors were identified as causative in relation to low political participation. For example, it was found that many ethnic groups including Latinos opt not to take part in political activities because they did not understand politics especially in relation to the United States. It was also found that a substantial number had plans to go back to their home country, consequently, they did not feel the need to engage fully in US politics. On the contrary, Latino immigrants who planned on naturalizing their citizenship were more engaged in the country’s political systems than the former mentioned group.

Ethnic identity among Latino citizens had a large role to play in explaining why Latino citizens recorded lower political participation rates than other immigrant populations. According to this author, if an individual had a strong ethnic identity, then they were more likely to be involved in politics than their counterparts. Consequently, because many Latino immigrants lacked this characteristic, then chances were that their rates of political participation would be low. Additionally, it was found that age was key in explaining why Latino citizens had lower political participation rates than other groups. When individuals were young, they had higher chances of understanding English. Additionally, they were open-minded about the idea of staying in the US and embracing its social, political or cultural aspects. In close relation to this factor was language. Other immigrant populations who spoke English were more likely to participate in politics than those who did not. Since Latinos speak different languages from English, then this could be causing the gap in their participation rates. (Strauss, 2004)

Leal (2004) also affirmed that the latter mentioned factors were more important than previously mentioned ones. For example, it had been asserted that most Latinos failed to participate in political activities owing to some traditional factors such as;

Education
Length of stay in US
Income
Other socio-economic factors

The latter author claimed that these were not important predictors of political participation; instead, more emphasis ought to be given to the former mentioned factors such as age, language, naturalization status among others. (Cahill, 2005)

As it can be seen in Leal (2004)’s research, very little attention was given to the role of religion as a determinant factor in explaining political participation. Therefore, there is a need to examine whether this elimination was a deliberate one i.e. whether religion has no part to play in Latino participation in US politics or not. Additionally, there is a need to assert whether this was a miscalculation on the part of the author.

3.3 How the importance of religion relates to Latinos

Verba, Scholzman and Brady found that social economic activities have minimal roles to play in determining political participation. They claimed that one should look at churches as forms of civic associations. In other words, one was able to gain civil skills from church attendance. Consequently, it is possible for these particular church attendants to create their own forms of memberships and experiences depending on these churches. Consequently, one can affirm that the nature of particular church can affect the type of civil skill acquired.

Protestant churches differ from Catholic churches because in Catholic churches, few instances occur when people are taught about civil engagements. Consequently, one ought to look for mechanisms that could assist them in the process of understanding just how a certain system of governance works or how politics is conducted within a certain nation. Accordingly, this could have led to the high cases of poor political participation among members of the Catholic faith. One can apply this argument to Latino citizens owing to the fact that they adhere to the Catholic faith.

However, Marquez, Frances & Wainer (2002) assert that there is a different way of looking at this matter. These authors explain that churches (regardless of their denominations) play an important role in promoting civil engagements. By the very fact that someone is going to church, gives an indication that they should be highly active in their civil engagements. This explanation solves the dilemma created by the latter mentioned assertion about denominational differences. In this regard, if denominations play a large role, then one should be able to see a pattern of varying political participation by denomination across the entire country yet such is not the case.

4.0 Hypotheses

Religion has a large role to play in Latino immigrant lives

Religion causes Latino citizens to participate less in US politics

5.0 Data

5.1 Demographic details

The latter can be used as influential depictions of the importance of religion among Latinos in relation to political participation. In this part of the research, more emphasis will be given to secondary research. This is because the factors under consideration are micro factors thus making it increasingly difficult to collect them through personal research. Examples of useful research here include Patterson, E. (2005) entitled Religious Activity and political participation; The Latin American politics journal. In this article, the author affirms that close to seventy percent of Latin Americans is Catholic, although the Protestant movement is growing by the day. This author believes that most Latin American churches do not encourage participants to take part in political activities. This is the reason why the issue of democracy in Latin American countries is under question. According to the author, Protestant doctrines are highly related to civil engagements and political participation.

If there is a significantly low number of Latin American from other types of religions that are perceived as more open towards political engagement, then one can assert that religion plays a crucial role in determining whether or not people will take part in the country’s political systems. (Dombrowski, 2001)

Demographic analysis will also be important in analyzing civic participation among the Latino owing to the fact that it will give information about previous electoral data on the Latinos. Certain aspects such as the numbers of people who voted in a certain election from the Latin community will be instrumental in understanding this issue well. Additionally, care should be taken to analyze whether these groups are actually passive by comparing the overall Latin population and those who chose to vote. These can then be linked to the religious inclinations.

5.2 Individual level analysis

Marquez, Frances & Wainer (2002) sought to find out whether they could link civil engagements, religion and political participation to the Latino population. In order to establish a relationship, they decided to conduct two hundred and sixty interviews of Latinos from various parts of the country.

Consequently, a similar approach can be used in this particular research. For instance, one can look for representation from a series of faiths in order to affirm that the views collected represent those of the majority. Denominations that can be chosen here include;

Pentecostals
Catholics
Historical protestants
Evangelical protestants
New Religious Tradition

In these individual types of interviews, participants can be asked about what their church leaders tell them about participation in politics. Additionally, respondents need to be asked about the nature of their political participation. In other words, they should give information about the last time that they had taken part in an election or a political activity. (Rienhart, 2006)

In depth interviews will also be instrumental in determining whether church attendance has a role to play in pushing Latinos to engage in protests, demonstrations or even political rallies. It has been found that a substantial portion of persons who have been engaging in these kinds of activities are usually propelled to do so by some external force such as a  civil association which in this case happens to be the church. (Correa, 2001)

Consequently, respondents will be asked about what they think about the church’s influence. Besides all the above, participants will be asked about what they religious leaders normally encourage them to do beside political participation. For instance, if these citizens are not guided to participate in politics, then their leaders may be telling them to take part on community related activities or other social activities. (George, 2001)

In other words, the research will determine whether the lack of enthusiasm for political activities is related to the process of departing from partisan political activities or whether it can be related to other factors.

6.0 Discussion and Conclusion

The paper has looked at political participation among Latin Americans. It has been found that this group has one of the lowest rates of political participation among minority groups within the United States.

The paper also examined the link between religion and political participation. It was found that the effect of religion largely depends on the nature of the religious activity and that macro factors were more important than individual ones. However, when one relates political participation among the Latin American immigrants and the role that their religion plays, it was found that most Latin Americans are predominantly Catholic. Their leaders spend less time encouraging them to engage in partisan politics and instead focus their energies on the issue of community engagement. Their concern is mostly in communal work and this has a large role in influencing political participation patterns among Latin American citizens in US politics.

Reference

Austin, D. (2008): The secular conscience and why belief belongs to public life; Prometheus Publishers, p304-356

Lilla, M. (2007): Politics, religion and the modern world, Knopf Publishers, p 45

Mathewes, C. (2007): A theology of public life; Cambridge University Press, p 167-188

Rogger, T. (2007): Must faith be privatized – religion in pub;lic life; Oxford University Press, p 23

Cladis, M. (2007): Rousseau, Religion and democracy in the 21st C; Columbia University Press, p 78

Tippet, K. (2007) Speaking of faith, Viking Publishers 203-260

Keith, W. (2007) is religion dangerous; Eerdmans Publishing company, p 80-89

Rienhart, J. (2006): Apocalyptic faith and political violence; Palgrave Mc Millan, p 78

Sorensen, K. (2006): Discourses on Strauss; Notre Dame University Press, p 13

Thomson, G. (2006): Opposing views of democracy; Greenhaven Press; p 48

Cahill, L. (2005): Participation, ethics and change; University of Georgetown Press, p 201-270

Strauss, L. (2004): Faith and political philosophy; University of Missouri Press, p 65

Miller, P. (2004): Politics and the first commandment; Fortress press, p 90

George, R. (2001): Law religion and morality in crisis; ISI Books, p 49

Dombrowski, D. (2001): Rawl and religion; New York University Press, p 45

Leal, D. (2002): Political participation by Latino citizens in the United States; British Journal of Political Science, 32, 12, 353-370

Marquez, T., Frances, K. and Wainer, A. (2002): Latino Religion and Civic Engagement: How and Where Do Congregations Encourage Participation; Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Political Science Association; Aug 28th

Correa, J. (2001): Political participation: Does religion matter, Political research Quarterly; 54, 4, 751-770

Patterson, E. (2005): Religious Activity and political participation; Latin American Politics and Society; 47, 1, 36-79

Gershon, S. & Pantoja, A. (2008): Political Orientations and Latino Immigrant Incorporation; Arizona University Department of Political science

Driskell, R., Embry, E. & Lyon, L. (2008): The influence of religious beliefs on political participation; Baylor University Press, p 54

Espinosa, G. Elizondo, V. & Miranda, J. (2005): Latino Religions and civic activism in the US; ISBN 9788195056