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Assistive Technology Journal - Volume 36
September 21, 2001

The AT Network and California Foundation for Independent Living
Centers staff would like to send our prayers and deepest sympathies to
the victims and the families of the September 11 tragedies.

1.  Two Men Help Woman in Wheelchair Down 68  Floors
2. Ask Amy
3. Making Your Computer Work for you
4. Digital Frog International Leaps into Adaptive  Technology
World with New Educational Adventure
5. Assistive Technology - Psyched About Stem Cells
6. Health Care Strategies - Minding Your Health
7. Disabled Athlete Swims 12 Miles Across Lake Erie
8. "When I Turn 6, Will I Have Real Arms?"
_______________________________________________


1.  Two Men Help Woman in Wheelchair
 Down 68 Floors
 By Bruce Horovitz
 USA TODAY
 September 13, 2001

Michael Benfante finished reading a novel on the train into work
Tuesday, John Cerqueira, late as usual, arrived at his Network Plus
office on the 81st floor of the World Trade Center with his usual
plateful of scrambled eggs and hash browns.

Neither expected that together they were about to be tested to their
emotional and physical limits -- and emerge as heroes. Not heroes in a
comic book sense.  But the kind of heroes who quietly work day-in and
day-out within the glass and steel confines of Corporate America, then
rise
to another level when fate calls.

It came calling loudly when the building in which they both work was
hit by an enemy that they did not know or see. And which, even now,
they do not understand.  What they do know is this:  Amid the terror
of the day they carried a woman with a disability -- strapped in a
special chair -- down 68 floors in a World Trade Center stairwell to
apparent safety.  Even as the building around them was melting.  Even
as acid black smoke choked the stairwell. And even as others were
stumbling, struggling and fainting on the stairway.

The morning began with 26 of the 46 employees at the New York branch
of Network Plus, a Boston-based telecommunications firm, gathering to
discuss the day's sales strategy in Suite 8121. Then the first plane
hit the building, just four floors above them, but on the other side.

No one knew what had happened, but branch manager Benfante, 36,
ordered everyone out of the office and down the stairs. He hoofed it
down along with Cerqueira, 22, a sales representative.

"I saw flames flickering to the side of the building and could feel
the whole thing swaying," Benfante says.  He recalls briefly looking
out the window toward the Statue of Liberty and wondering, why?

Neither Benfante nor Cerqueira had any idea what had happened. Maybe
an earthquake, they thought.  Or an errant commuter plane had hit the
building.

On the 68th floor, they came upon a distraught woman in a wheelchair.
 They did not know her name, but the woman, who was blond and in her
40s, told them she had been in the building during the terrorist
bombing there in
1993.

The two men helped her out of the wheelchair into a special chair in
the stairwell designed for such emergencies.  They strapped her in and
began an hour-long journey down as the building blazed.  Others
pitched in to help carry from
time to time, but it was Benfante (5-feet-11, 175 pounds) and
Cerqueira (5-feet-11, 200 pounds) who never let go.

"In the back of my head, I could hear my mother telling me to get the
heck out of there," Cerqueira says.  "But I had to help."

Benfante even stopped briefly on the 55th floor to desperately phone
his father and tell him he was OK.  Along the way, they passed dozens
of firemen running up the stairway. And they passed a number of aged
or overweight people who could not keep up the pace.  When they
finally reached the lobby, Cerqueira was incredulous at the
destruction.  "The lobby that I walk into every day looked like Iwo
Jima," he says.

They stumbled outside and placed the woman in an emergency van. She
asked Bennett for his business card, but broke down crying.  And could
not stop.  Then, Benfante looked up. He'd only been on the ground for
a minute or two.  But he saw the inevitable: the building was going to
collapse.

The former college football player from Brown University started to
run.  He can't remember ever running so fast.  Alongside him was
Cerqueira, who had an ankle injury and was struggling to keep up.  A
TV cameraman tried to interview them and started to run with them.

They had made it just a few blocks when the entire building exploded.
 They watched in utter horror as people began to jump off the
building.  "They were falling like stick figures," Cerqueira says.

Benfante dived under a truck.  Cerqueira jumped under a van.  Neither
man knows what happened to the cameraman.

"Everything went black," Benfante says.  "The smoke and debris were
everywhere.  I was breathing in blackness."

At this moment, Cerqueira thought he was going to die.  "I took a
breath and it stuck in my throat and would not go down," he recalls.
"It was like eating the burning cinders from a fireplace."

They waited for the worst to pass. After five minutes, the men found
each other and struggled out.  They ran until they got to 14th Street,
where they found a church and stumbled inside.

Benfante was an altar boy for seven years, but says, "I haven't gone
to church much since then."

The two lit a candle, fell to their knees and both broke down.

"I told God that I didn't know what I'd done to be in his grace,"
Benfante says.  "I just didn't know."

Of course, heroes don't always know the answers.  Even when they're
altar boys -- in three-piece suits.



2. Ask Amy - 711 for Local Relay, Coming to California October 1,
2001

Dear Amy:

My friend is deaf, and we use California Relay Service to communicate
via the telephone.  I heard there is a new number that you can dial
anywhere in the United States to reach a local relay service.  Can you
tell me more about it?

-Too many relay numbers

Dear Too Many: 

Many people are familiar with dialing 411 on the phone for information
and 911 for emergency calls.  These are indispensable services within
local communities.  However, did you know there are five other numbers
available for a one-stop source for services?  Currently, 311 is being
used for non-emergency calls, and 211 is being implemented so people
can obtain information and referral information for local human
services.  The new 711 number will be used for all relay calls for
persons who are hearing or speech impaired.

Coming this October, you and many people in your situation can start
using a three digit dialing code - 711 - to reach persons with hearing
and speech impairments via any state relay system.  This system is not
set up in all states, but is rolling out one-by-one.  California will
be implemented October 1, 2001.

So what does 711 really mean?  Well, it means that those with hearing
and speech disabilities will have equal access to communication by
means of a variety of telephone devices, including California Relay
Services.  If you use 711, it will be a toll-free call until you
connect with another party, therefore no extra or hidden charges will
exist. 

By streamlining all the available 800 numbers in each state,
difficulties in remembering numbers will be eliminated. Currently,
California has roughly four different relay numbers in existence.  By
dialing 711, anyone can reach the relay service.  Both voice and
Telephone Relay Service (TRS) users will be able to initiate a call
from any telephone, anywhere in the United States.



3. Making Your Computer Work for You
 We Media Magazine
 By: Argelio Dumenigo
 May 2001

Computers are a big part of many people's daily routines now days.
Whether used for e-mail, getting news or writing old - fashioned
letters, computers are a useful tool.

But what if you find that you can't access all of the options sitting
at your fingertips?  Well, that's where accessibility features come
into play.

"....makes life easier."

Myma Gorchoff, of Dallas, said she turns to several of the
accessibility features contained within Microsoft Windows 2000
Professional software to smooth her daily computer use at home.
Gorchoff said she utilized many of the same features while working
with Microsoft Windows 95 software until a year ago, when she upgraded
to Windows 2000.

"It definitely makes life easier," said Gorchoff, who does volunteer
work at REACH of Dallas.  This one-time New Yorker said she most often
uses the StickyKeys and MouseKeys feature contained in Windows 2000
Professional since she has difficulty using her mouse.

With MouseKeys, you can use the numeric Keypad for data entry as well
as for navigation.  StickyKeys helps people who have difficulty
holding down two or more keys at a time.

When a shortcut requires a key combination, such as CTRL+P to print,
StkckyKeys enables you to press one key at a time instead of
simultaneously.  The StickyKeys feature allows Gorchoff to move around
her computer screen and within different programs without depending on
her mouse.

She also uses Magnifier, which makes it easier for her to find her
cursor on the screen.

Gorchoff's main complaint was getting information on how to utilize
all of the accessibility features contained in Windows 2000
Professional.  But she has discovered Microsoft's Accessibility Web
site, which offers tips and information on the features available
within all Microsoft products which provides her with the information
she needs to make the most of the accessibility features in her
Microsoft products.

Stepping Up

Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional is also compatible with
Henter-Joyce Inc.'s JAWS 3.7, a screen - reader.  William Bauer, the
independent living director for the Minnesota Department of Economic
Security, said she uses the software on a daily basis with JAWS.

While he would sometimes have problems with Microsoft Windows 98
locking up on him when he used it with the screen-reader, Bauer said
that is not the case with Windows 2000.  According to Henter-Joyce's
web site, the company has been developing enhanced functionality for
the most popular Windows applications, including Windows 2000.

Know What's There

Microsoft continues to work with assistive technology companies and to
incorporate accessible features into the company's products.  If you
use Windows 2000 Professional at home or at work and maybe were not
aware of all the accessibility features, here are a few of them:

* On Screen Keyboard
On-screen keyboard displays a virtual keyboard on the computer screen
that enables people with mobility impairments to type data by using a
pointing device or joystick.



· Magnifier
Magnifier is a display utility that makes the computer screen more
readable for people who have low vision.  Magnifier creates a separate
window that displays a magnifier portion of the screen.

· Narrator
Narrator is a text-to-speech utility for people who are blind or have
low vision.  Narrator reads what is displayed on the screen - the
contents of the active window, menu options or text that has been
typed.

· SerialKeys
Allows the use of alternative input devices instead of a keyboard and
mouse.


· ShowSounds
Instructs programs to display captions for the speech and sounds they
make.



4. Digital Frog International Leaps into Adaptive
Technology World with New Educational Adventure
Hearing Exchange
September 10, 2001

PUSLINCH, ON - Digital Frog International (DFI) is proud to announce
the release of its first fully accessible virtual adventure, The
Digital Field Trip to the Rainforest AT.  With help from the Adaptive
Technology Resource Center at the University of Toronto (ATRC), DFI
has adapted its original award-winning Rainforest CD-ROM to create one
of the most advanced and accessible educational programs available.

"Our goal in designing The Digital Field Trip to the Rainforest AT was
to offer a multimedia program that can be experienced by everyone,
including those with disabilities," says Jeff Warner, Rainforest AT
Project Manager.  "As a result, we believe we have created the most
media-rich and accessible program available today."

Whether operating in standard or accessible mode, students can
experience the sights and sounds of the rainforest in Belize and
Central America, without leaving the classroom.  Hundreds of photos,
videos and engaging activities teach about the rainforest's
mechanisms, plant and animal diversity, and the importance of this
vital ecosystem.

"Even with modern technologies, very few educational computer programs
are completely accessible to students with disabilities.  It's
difficult to find high quality, engaging learning materials that do
not require outside assistance for the students," says Jim Allan,
Texas School for the Blind.  "I've reviewed many multimedia titles and
they just don't compare to The Digital Field Trip to the Rainforest
AT.  DFI is head and shoulders above the competition."

A single keystroke changes the program from standard to AT mode,
enabling blind and physically challenged students to access the
program.  Full text-to-speech, audio instructions and photo
descriptions guide blind students through the rainforest.  Captioned
video ensures that the deaf do not miss any information.  Full
keyboard access opens up the program to the blind and the physically
challenged.

"DFI is leading the way with their use of adaptive technology and
truly opening new horizons for those with disabilities," says Wendy
Porch, ATRC.  "That's why the Digital Field Trip to the Rainforest AT
won the International Coalition of Access Engineers and Specialists'
Award for Innovative Access before it was even released."

The Digital Field Trip to the Rainforest AT accommodates different
learning styles and speeds, multiple intelligence's, learning
disabilities, as well as visual and motor skill problems.  No special
equipment is required-everything is included on the CD.

Digital Frog International is an innovative, enthusiastic software
company, dedicated to creating high-quality educational, multimedia
CD-ROMs with the focus on natural sciences, biology and ecology.  The
Digital Frog, The Digital Field Trips to the Wetlands, The Rainforest
and The Desert have all won multiple awards.  Corporate headquarters
is a converted barn surrounded by frogs, dogs and bogs in rural
Ontario, Canada.  DFI resides on the Web at
http://www.digitalfrog.com.



5. Assistive Technology -- Psyched About
Stem Cells
BusinessWeek Online
By John M. Williams
August 29, 2001 

Can you imagine a utopian world free of disabilities and disabling
conditions?  I can, and I believe one of the paths to this utopian
world of able-bodied, healthy humans is stem-cell research, even
though it's still very much in its infancy, and practical applications
are probably decades away.

Stem-cell research tends to evoke deep emotions among people in the
disability community.  For many, it represents the key to a future
free of impairments.  If the research continues to show promise, "I'm
praying every day that I will walk again someday and have a guitar in
my hands, rocking and rolling, instead of wearing these arm guards and
having a computer on my tray," says quadriplegic Alison Thomas, 36, of
New York City.  Thomas is unemployed and has written to President Bush
asking him to release the restrictions on stem cell research.

STRONG FEELINGS. Jerry Larrow, 38, of Sacramento, agrees. "From what
I've read, stem-cell research holds great promise for curing diabetes.
 I am tired of taking insulin, and I am gradually losing my sight,"
says Larrow, who uses low-vision software in his work as a researcher
for the city of Sacramento.  He's considering offering himself as an
experimental subject to test stem-cell research for diabetes, and he
has contacted research labs and hospitals.  In test procedures,
scientists are working with turning stem cells into healthy pancreatic
islet cells and possibly introducing them into the pancreases of
diabetic patients. 

Richard Kidwai, 32, of Savannah, Ga., sees great promise in stem-cell
research for people with hearing impairments.  A deaf computer
programmer for a defense contractor, he says, " If stem cell research
is successful, it may eliminate cochlear implants.  It can eliminate
Telecommunications Devices for the Deaf (TDDs).  Hearing aids, too."
He's waiting for a reply from the National Institutes of Health and
Johns Hopkins University on their opinions on stem-cell research's
benefits to deaf people.  Given such strong feelings, it's surprising
to me that some manufacturers of assistive-tech products aren't more
interested, too.  One maker of augmentative-communications product I
spoke with doesn't see the results immediately available.  "It will be
many decades before the miracles of stem cell research are available
to the public," he says.  "And so why should I worry?"

Wide-ranging Benefits. True, but the medical opportunities for
stem-cell research are boundless.  These cells may be able to control
or eradicate not just diabetes but also replace neuronal tissue
damaged by strokes, spinal-cord injuries, ALS, Alzheimer's, and
Parkinson's diseases.  They may also provide a ready supply of skin
tissue for burn victims and strengthen damaged arteries and hearts
with lab-grown cardiac tissue.  We know biologists have found stem
cells in umbilical-cord blood, and these cells have proven useful in
combating blood disorders including leukemia.

And we know that stem cells from embryos are virtual miracle cells
that can be grown into any type of tissue.  Researchers have reported
progress in turning them into heart, blood, muscle, nerve, cartilage,
skin, and bone cells.  Some doctors believe the results from stem-cell
research can reduce the medicines we all consume and prolong human
life. 

Nevertheless, some issues surrounding stem-cell research raise alarms
among many in the disability community.  Don't forget that the value
of life -- all human life -- is an especially compelling principle for
the disabled.  The idea of euthanasia for severely impaired infants in
pursuit of some allegedly higher good -- whether it be to spare the
child and the parents from a life of intensive care, to obtain stem
cells, or for some other reason -- is especially repugnant to those in
the disability community.  None of the people with disabilities I
spoke to favors abortion or euthanasia to obtain stem cells.  "I can't
see destroying a life to enhance life," says lawyer Maria C.
Rodriquez, 27, a paraplegic who lives in Princeton, N.J.

BEYOND BUSH. However, if a fetus dies prematurely or a person dies
from natural causes, many believe that their stem cells should be used
for research. In this regard, most people with disabilities that I
spoke to for this article would go farther than President George Bush.
 "Stem cells taken from embryos developed in a laboratory don't
constitute a person," says Olga M. Falls, 25, of Charlotte, N.C.  A
consultant on family care and disability issues, Falls uses a
wheelchair. 

If stem-cell research can assist in eradicating or lessening the
physical and mental restrictions resulting from a disability, we must
proceed with the research.  Worldwide, people with disabilities are
still often considered to be less than whole people.  Stem - cell
research may be a key to eliminating physical disabilities entirely.
As such, we should not shrink from doing what will advance our
knowledge and therefore add to our quality of life today, tomorrow,
and for centuries. 

One subject of special interest to me is that no one I spoke to
working in stem-cell research sees it as a cure for stuttering.  I'd
volunteer for stem-cell implantation's for a stuttering cure in a
heartbeat. 


6. Health Care Strategies
 Mainstream Magazine
 Special Report - Minding your Health

How to protect yourself when you go to the doctor: Provide good
information, maximize your 15 minutes and keep your own records.

According to the American Society of Internal Medicine, 70 percent of
a correct diagnosis depends solely on what the patient tells the
provider.  Giving providers as much information as possible about your
health can help them make faster, more accurate decisions about your
condition and treatment.

If providers don't ask, tell them things about your disability they
should know.  Give them relevant information about how your disability
affects your health care.  (If you prefer that certain information not
go beyond your provider, request that it not be written down.  Once
information becomes a part of your medical records, it may become
available to insurance companies and others.)

A provider has limited time. Become an effective self-reporter. For
example: 

Poor report: "I have a pain that bothers me sometimes, what do you
think it is?" 

Better report: "I get a stabbing pain on the left side of my right
knee when I walk fast. What do you think that means?"

Connecting your providers with each other is also important so they
can easily contact each other, if or when necessary. This may help you
get the best possible advice and treatment.

Maximize your 15 minutes

Richard Frankel found that on average physicians gave patients only 18
seconds to describe their medical complaint before interrupting.  As a
result, doctors heard only some of the symptoms and may have missed
vital clues. 

Seventy-five percent of all office visits occur in under 15 minutes.
Here are some strategies to consider in making the best use of very
limited time: 

-- ask for an appointment when the provider is less likely to be
rushed. 

-- be clear about your priorities and what you want to discuss by
creating a questions and concerns list, placing the most important
items first. 

-- mail, fax or e-mail, a copy of the questions and concerns list to
the provider before the visit or give a copy to the receptionist when
you arrive. 

Obtain Copies of Your Medical Records

Obtaining and reading your medical records will help you become a more
involved and informed health care consumer, more attentive to your
health and more in control of your own care.

Providers and facilities are permitted to and often do charge you for
copies of your records.  The cost to you is well worth it.  If you
have had long hospitalizations or are aware that copies of your
medical records could fill volumes, then consider asking only for
summaries. 

Keep complete and thorough records of your health history, the onset
of conditions and/or disability, surgeries, etc. in your medical
records file.  Give copies to a new or potentially uniformed or
under-informed provider or present summaries of this information when
visiting new providers.

Organize Information by Condition.

Gather information on medications, including nutritional supplements,
vitamins, herbs and minerals.  If you take medication that cannot be
interrupted without serious consequences, make sure this is stated
clearly and include, prescriptions; dosage; times taken when first
prescribed and how long you have been on the drug.

Surgeries: Include Dates.

Allergies and Sensitivities: Indicate any allergies and sensitivities.
 Record of Tests and Shots: include dates.

Be aware of your personal baseline for existing conditions such as
headaches, abdominal pain, patterns for bowel and bladder function and
the like.  Track changes.

Once you have organized your information, consider storing a copy with
a trusted friend or in a safe deposit box.


Health Care Resources

Memory Minder Personal Health Journal, PO Box 23108, Eugene, OR
97402-0425, telephone: (541) 342-2300, fax: (541) 342-6000 Take
control of your health.  Discover patterns, give your doctor better
feedback.  Memory Minder is a spiral-bound journal for people who want
to track daily health information such as diet, mood, weight, sugar
level, medication and physical conditioning.  HealthMinder, 8000 E.
Prentice, Suite B-13, Englewood, CO 80111, telephone & fax: (303)
220-7449 

HealthMinder is a loose-leaf notebook for sections and forms for
recording personal health information.  Separate HealthMinder
available for children.

"Be a Savvy Health Care Consumer, Your Life May Depend on It!"  By
June Isaacson Kailes, 6201 Ocean Front Walk, Suite 2, Playa del Rey,
California 90293-7556, telephone: (310) 821-7080, fax: (310) 827-0269,
email: [log in to unmask]



7. Disabled Athlete Swims 12 Miles Across Lake Erie
Around the World
Chicago Tribune
September 9, 2001

Toronto, Canada -- A 15-year-old amputee completed a 12-mile swim
across Lake Erie late Friday, making her the youngest woman and first
disabled person to accomplish the feat.

Ashley Cowan of Toronto took a little more than 15 hours to complete
the journey, fighting a strong current and a fear of swimming in
darkness.  "She toughed it out, and we're very proud of her," said
friend John Munro, who watched the swim from a rescue boat on the
lake.

"Everyone's so thrilled about it."

Cowan headed straight for waiting paramedics after emerging from the
70-degree water on the shores of Crystal Beach, Ontario, as hundreds
of spectators cheered.

The teenager began the journey just before 9 a.m. at Sturgeon Point,
N.Y., about 12 miles south of Buffalo.

Cowan suffered from meningitis at age 2, and her limbs had to be
amputated below the knees and elbows.  She uses prosthetics on land
but not in the water, powering herself without hands or feet.
 


8. 'When I Turn 6, Will I Have Real Arms?'
  By JACK Sullivan, Associated Press
 Los Angeles Times
 September 9, 2001

Milnor, N.D. -- Parker Sebens plays as if he always played this way,
as if he always lived a life without arms.

The four-year-old moves his feet among the Legos, toy cars and plastic
dinosaurs littering the family room floor around him.  He squeezes
Chewbacca and Darth Maul between his feet, then maneuvers the Star
Wars figures in a midair wrestling match.

A space-jeep gets a push.  A horned dinosaur is grasped and dropped.
Later, sitting on the kitchen floor, he picks up a tipped monster with
his feet and stands it up.

"I know how to set this guy there now. Let me show you,"  he says,
positioning the creature again.  "Is that cool, Mom?"

Rene Sebens laughs at the question.  Parker's face spreads into a
wide, dimpled smile.

A thin white sleeve covers what's left of Parker's left arm, which
ends inches below the elbow.  His bare right arm--only a stump--hides
inside the sleeve of his blue T-shirt.

His mother says Parker doesn't remember the accident last harvest,
when a grain auger ripped his arms from his body, tearing the right
into two pieces and mangling the left.

His easy play belies the life ahead of him.  His independence will
depend on the elbow his surgeon saved from the rampant infection that
forced her to amputate the rest of his once-reattached arms.

How far he has to go is clear from what Mitch Sebens says are his
son's goals for the next year:  "To feed himself and go to the
bathroom by himself by kindergarten."

Parker's surgeon, Dr. Jennifer Harrington, says she has heard people
who suffered terrible injuries say that they were better off--not
because of what happened, but because of what they were forced to
learn about who they are, and what's important in their lives.

She struggles to find similar meaning in what happened to the young
patient she calls an inspiration.

"With Parker . . . it's so hard," she says.  "I do know that Parker
has touched a lot of people, and I do know that Parker will help a lot
of people."

"And maybe that's what he's supposed to do."

Like boys who grow up on a farm, Parker wanted to be with his father
while he worked. On Sept. 18, he was playing with toy trucks in the
bed of his father's pickup as Mitch Sebens ran an auger, loading wheat
from bins onto a grain truck.

Sebens had warned Parker to stay away from the auger. He thought his
son was safe in the pickup bed:  The back gate was closed, and Parker
had never climbed out on his own.

Sebens was moving away from the machine when a "funny noise" turned
him around.

Parker was trapped in the auger.  Mitch bolted to his shop and called
for help. He grabbed clean rags, sprinted back, killed the machine and
ran for his son.

"He was lying on his back, 10 to 12 feet from the auger, screaming for
me," he says.  Parker's arms were gone, pulled through the machine's
pipe by its rotating, spiraled blade.

Sebens used his shirt and the rags to staunch his son's wounds.  He
wrapped his arms around his boy, squeezing hard across his shoulders.

"Right away I noticed he had a bunch of wheat in his mouth, and he
spit that out for me," Sebens says.  "And he knew it was his arms
because he said, 'Daddy, my arms.' "

The surgeon waited in the emergency room of North Memorial Medical
Center. She had reattached limbs before and was confident she could
handle this case.

What Dr. Jennifer Harrington didn't know was what a grain auger was.
She thought of the little boy who would soon be under her care and
pictured two arms cleaved cleanly from a body.

The doors opened and a dark-haired 3-year-old was rushed in on an
ambulance gurney.

"Parker, I'm Dr. Harrington, and you're going to be OK," she said.
Parker looked at her, aware.

Rene Sebens, who accompanied her son on the flight to Minneapolis,
approached Harrington.

"Treat him like he was your own little boy," she told the surgeon.
"You don't know how special he is."

One team prepared Parker for surgery.  Harrington took the Playmate
cooler with the boy's arms to the operating room to ready them.

The arms were mangled, ripped.  "They were so contaminated with grain,
you 



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