14 July 2014

Real Estate in Boulder County, Colorado


This place just came on the market. I do not know if the fracking well across the street from this facility had anything to do with it being listed for sale. It's a nice place. 

Paragon Equestrian Centre

21 June 2014

Operant Conditioning


One of my student/friends is now part of the elite Vet Start program at Colorado State University. She reported that defining  the elements of operant conditioning flummoxed most of her fellow students in her freshman course on basic psychology. The names for the four simple concepts lack intuitive connections for most people since Skinner used "positive" and "negative" in a mathematical sense--added to, subtracted from--not to mean good and bad as most people use the words. Consequently, most of the students in the class failed to identify what happens in the two types of reinforcement and the two types of punishment.

The blog Equinox Horse provides a delightfully clear set of definitions:

  • Positive reinforcement:
    • A pleasant stimulus is added to the animal's environment when a behavior occurs, resulting in an increased chance of the animal repeating the behavior.
  • Negative reinforcement:
    • An unpleasant stimulus is removed from the animal's environment when a behavior occurs, resulting in an increased chance of the animal repeating the behavior.
  • Positive punishment:
    • An unpleasant stimulus is added to the animal's environment when a behavior occurs, resulting in a decreased chance of the animal repeating the behavior.
  • Negative punishment:
    • A pleasant stimulus is removed from the animal's environment when a behavior occurs, resulting in a decreased chance of the animal repeating the behavior.
  • 23 May 2014

    21 May 2014

    11 May 2014

    More Bad Press for Andreas Helgstrand


    As if being accused of cruelty to horses were not enough, now others are accusing Helgstrand of some of the lower practices of horse-trading. He's been accused of shady selling practices before, but this article just came out today:  "Nye anklager mod toprytter: Ville snyde for millioner"

    In case you don't know Danish, here is the translation provided by the Chrome browser:
    Top rider Helgstrand, who last week was accused and the police for having abused his top horse, is now once again accused of allegedly defrauded in connection with horse-trading.
    The well-known dressage rider Helgstrand accused again of a million scams by horse-trading
    According to the 64-year-old bicycling horse dealer Jens Erik Markussen tried Helgstrand to cheat him of 1.2 million. kroner in connection with the sale of dressage horse Casio in summer 2012.
    Jens Erik Markussen owned horse with Helgstrand and a third person. At the conclusion of the partnership made the three owners, according to Jens Erik Markussen, a written agreement, which stated that all parties should agree on the selling price before the gelding was sold.
    But that did not happen. According to Jens Erik Markussen, who has 50 years experience as a horse dealer, sold Helgstrand and the third partner the horse, but that he was informed of it in advance.
    - I'll just message the day after the horse is sold, and I have to accept a given price. I did not believe the price because of my experience with horses commerce. I got it checked and found out that they tried to cheat me for 1.2 million. lion, says Jens Erik Markussen.

    Wrong selling price

    He said he was informed that the horse had been sold for 3.6 million. kr, but that the actual sales price was 4.8 million. £ Wrong selling price he was familiar, as the horse be handed over to the new owner.
    - At the time of submission, I found out that the price was not correct. Whereby the selling price is distributed differently than what I first was informed that says Jens Erik Markussen, adding that he therefore ended up getting his third of the 1.2 million. lion, as he usually stood to be cheated on.
    The accusation of fraud comes only a year after that Helgstrand was accused of fraud million in another horse trading. As BT described in February 2013 accused breeder Joan Andreasen top rider for having cheated her of 3.3 million. lion at the sale of the precious horse Uno Donna Unique. The horse was bred by Joan Andreasen, who had sold half of the horse Helgstrand. For sale should she therefore have half the price. But that did not happen, according to the Jutland breed.
    When the horse in 2012 was sold, was Joan Andreasen told that the sale price was 13.4 million. £ But when she later got hold of the contract, which was written only in Helgstrand name, it turned alleged that the sale price was 6.7 million. £ higher - ie the entire 20.1 million. £ Joan Andreasen was given by a lawyer later the 3.3 million. £

    As a king

    Joan Andreassen am appalled that a top rider Andreas Helgstrand caliber can find on the kind:
    - I did not in my wildest dreams imagined that he would do it. But Andreas (Helgstrand. Ed.) Feel like a king who is raised above the other, says Joan Andreasen.
    Jens Erik Markussen is furious Helgstrand trading methods.
    - I do not like the way that Andreas do it. He has no morals, and if he has any morals, so it stands at a very low point. He is greedy of his horse trader, says Jens Erik Markussen.
    Helgstrand do not have many comments on the allegations of fraud.
    About Joan Andrea's case, he says:
    - I have no comment on the case. If people feel that I have not done the right thing, then they are welcome to approach me, but I have no comment on the matter through the press, he says.
    For Jens Erik Markus's case, the top rider no comments:
    - If he (Jens Erik Markussen, ed.) Has a problem, he is welcome to come to me.
    Jens Erik Markussen accusing you of deliberately trying to cheat him in the horse-trading. How would you explain it?
    - I can say that we were three who had the horse, and we were all three agree, as we sold the horse. And I have no further comments on the matter, says the Helgstrand.
    Read more about Helgstrand and the Danish dressage environment in BT Sunday