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An oasis in the Negev Desert of Israel created by trees planted by the Jewish National Fund.

In geography, an oasis (plural: oases or oasi) or cienega (Southwestern United States) is an isolated area of vegetation in a desert, typically surrounding a spring or similar water source. Oases also provide habitat for animals and even humans if the area is big enough. The location of oases has been of critical importance for trade and transportation routes in desert areas. Caravans must travel via oases so that supplies of water and food can be replenished. Thus, political or military control of an oasis has in many cases meant control of trade on a particular route. For example, the oases of Awjila, Ghadames and Kufra, situated in modern-day Libya, have at various times been vital to both North-South and East-West trade in the Sahara.

The Huacachina oasis in Ica, Peru

Oases are formed from underground rivers or aquifers such as an artesian aquifer, where water can reach the surface naturally by pressure or by man made wells. Occasional brief thunderstorms provide subterranean water to sustain natural oases, such as the Tuat. Substrata of impermeable rock and stone can trap water and retain it in pockets; or on long faulting subsurface ridges or volcanic dikes water can collect and percolate to the surface. Any incidence of water is then used by migrating birds who also pass seeds with their droppings which will grow at the water's edge forming an oasis.

The lush Middle Springs, with the barren desert around Fish Springs NWR in Utah

Etymology[link]

The word oasis comes into English via Latin: oasis from Ancient Greek: ὄασις oasis, which in turn is a direct borrowing from Demotic Egyptian. The word for oasis in the later attested Coptic language (the descendant of Demotic Egyptian) is wahe or ouahe which means a 'dwelling place'.^[1]

Growing plants[link]

People who live in an oasis must manage land and water use carefully; fields must be irrigated to grow plants like dates, figs, olives, and apricots. The most important plant in an oasis is the date palm which forms the upper layer. These palm trees provide shade for smaller trees like peach trees, which form the middle layer. By growing plants in different layers, the farmers make best use of the soil and water. Many vegetables are also grown and some cereals, such as wheat, barley and millet are grown where there is more moisture.^[2]

Notable oases[link]

Africa[link]

• Nile River valley and delta, Egypt, is claimed as the world's biggest oasis by the 2007 edition of The Guinness Book of World Records with a stated area of 22,000 square kilometres.
• Bahariya Oasis, Egypt
• Farafra Oasis, Egypt
• Gaberoun, Libya
• Jalu, Libya
• Kufra Oasis, Libya
• M'Zab Valley, Algeria
• Ouargla, Algeria
• Siwa Oasis, Egypt
• Tafilalt, Morocco
• Timimoun, Algeria
• Tozeur, Tunisia
• Tuat, Algeria

North America and South America[link]

Fish Springs National Wildlife Refuge, Utah.

Bosque de Fray Jorge National Park, Chile.

• Bosque de Fray Jorge National Park Chile
• Fish Springs National Wildlife Refuge, United States
• Huacachina, Peru
• La Cienega, New Mexico, a paraje on El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, United States
• Las Vegas Valley, Nevada, United States, what was once an oasis in the vast Mojave desert has over the years grown into a metropolitan area.^[3]
• Mulege, Baja California Sur, Mexico
• San Ignacio, Baja California Sur, Mexico
• San Pedro de Atacama, Chile
• Twentynine Palms, California, United States
• Warm Springs Natural Area, United States

Asia[link]

Ein Gedi, Israel

• Al-Hasa,The largest in Asia,^{[citation needed]} Saudi Arabia.
• Al-Qatif, Saudi Arabia, large oasis on the coast of the Persian Gulf.
• Azraq, Jordan
• Ein Gedi, Israel
• Liwa Oasis, United Arab Emirates
• Loulan, China
• Miran, China
• Niya, China
• Tabas, Iran
• Turpan, China
• Yarkand, China

Australia[link]

• Palm Valley, Northern Territory, Australia

See also[link]

• Oasification
• Qanat
• Guelta
• Mirage
• Great Manmade River – World's largest irrigation project developed in Libya connecting cities with fossil water

References[link]

Bibliography[link]

• (French) référence: Jardins au désert (Vincent Battesti)|Battesti (Vincent), Jardins au désert, Evolution des pratiques et savoirs oasiens, Jérid tunisien, Paris, Éditions IRD, coll. À travers champs, 2005, 440 p. ISBN 2-7099-1564-2 Open Archives: book in free access / in French

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Oases

• The Wiktionary entry for oasis

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J. Scott Yaruss is an Associate Professor at University of Pittsburgh School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, and Co-director of Stuttering Center of Western Pennsylvania.

Yaruss's research focuses on identifying linguistic and motoric factors that influence the development of fluency and stuttering in children. It is aimed at improving the diagnosis and treatment of people who stutter through assessment of current clinical practices and documentation of treatment outcomes.

In December 2005, Yaruss was named a fellow by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA). ASHA awards fellow status to members who have made significant contributions of a national or international nature to their professions. The status of fellow is retained for life and is one of the highest honors awarded by ASHA.

Selected publications since 2006[link]

Yaruss, J.S., & Quesal, R.W. (2006). Overall Assessment of the Speaker’s Experience of Stuttering (OASES): Documenting multiple outcomes in stuttering treatment. Journal of Fluency Disorders, 31, 90-115. (Note: Also published in 2008 in the Lithuanian Journal Special Education.)

Howell, P., Au-Yeung, J., Yaruss, J.S., & Eldridge, K. (2006). Phonetic difficulty and stuttering. Clinical Linguistics and Phonetics, 20, 703-716.

Yaruss, J.S., Coleman, C., & Hammer, D. (2006). Treating preschool children who stutter: Description and preliminary evaluation of a family-focused treatment approach. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 37, 118-136.

Yaruss, J.S., & Reardon-Reeves, N. (2006). Young children who stutter (ages 2-6): Infor¬mation and support for parents (4th Ed.). New York: National Stuttering Association.

Yaruss, J.S., & Reardon-Reeves, N. (2007). Niños que tartamudean (Eduades 2-6): Infor¬mación y apoyo para los padres. Spanish Translation of Young children who stutter: Information and support for parents (4th Ed.). New York: National Stuttering Association.

Coleman, C., Yaruss, J.S., & Hammer, D. (2007). Clinical research involving preschoolers who stutter: Real-world applications of Evidence Based Practice. [Letter to the Editor] Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 38, 286-289.

Murphy, W., Yaruss, J.S., & Quesal, R.W. (2007). Enhancing treatment for school-age children who stutter I: Reducing negative reactions through desensitization and cognitive restructur-ing. Journal of Fluency Disorders, 32, 121-138.

Murphy, W., Yaruss, J.S., & Quesal, R.W. (2007). Enhancing treatment for school-age children who stutter II: Reducing bullying through role-playing and self-disclosure. Journal of Fluency Disorders, 32, 139-162.

Yaruss, J.S., & Pelczarski, K.M. (2007). Evidence-Based Practice for school-age stuttering: Balancing existing research with clinical practice. EBP Briefs, 2(4).

Yaruss, J.S., Quesal, R.W., & Reeves, P.L. (2007). Self-Help and Mutual Aid Groups as an Adjunct to Stuttering Therapy. In E.G. Conture & R.F. Curlee (Eds.). Stuttering and related disorders of fluency (3rd ed.) (pp. 256-276). New York: Thieme Medical Publishers.

Yaruss, J.S. (2007). Application of the ICF in fluency disorders. Seminars in Speech and Language, 28, 312-322.

Onslow, M., & Yaruss, J.S. (2007). Differing perspectives on what to do with a stuttering preschooler and why. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 16, 65-68.

Yaruss, J.S., & Quesal, R.W. (2008). OASES: Overall Assessment of the Speaker’s Experience of Stuttering. Bloomington, MN: Pearson Assessments.

Pelczarski, K.M., & Yaruss, J.S. (2008). Accompanying the client on his therapy journey. Perspectives on Fluency Disorders, 18(2), 64.

St. Louis, K., Reichel, I., Yaruss, J.S., & Lubker, B.B. (2009). Construct and concurrent validity of a prototype questionnaire to survey public attitudes toward stuttering. Journal of Fluency Disorders, 34, 11-28.

Maguire, G., Franklin, D., Vatakis, N., Morgenshtern, E., Denko, T., Yaruss, J. S., Spotts, C., Davis, L., Davis, A., Fox, P., Soni, P., Blomgren, M., Silverman, A, & Riley, G. (2010). Exploratory randomized clinical study of pagoclone in Persistent Developmental Stuttering: The EXPRESS Trial. Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, 30, 48-56.

Yaruss, J.S., Pelczarski, K.M., & Quesal, R.W. (2010). Comprehensive treatment for school-age children who stutter: Treat¬ing the entire disorder. In B. Guitar & R. McCauley, Treatment of stuttering: Con¬vention¬al and controversial interventions (pp. 215-244). Baltimore, MD: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

St. Louis, K. O., Lubker, B. B., Yaruss, J. S., & Aliveto, E.F. (in press). Development of a prototype questionnaire to survey public attitudes toward stuttering: Reliability of the second prototype. Contemporary Issues in Communication Science and Disorders. (Recipient of the 2009 CICSD Editor’s Award.)

Tellis, C.M., Rosen, C., Close, J., Horton, M., Yaruss, J.S., Verdolini-Abbott, K., & Sciote, J. (in press). Cytochrome c Oxidase Deficiency in Human Posterior Cricoarytenoid Muscle. Journal of Voice.

Yaruss, J.S. & Bernstein Ratner, N. (in press). Becoming an Effective Clinician for People Who Stutter: You Can Do It!. Seminars in Speech and Language.

Yaruss, J.S. (Ed.) (in press). Stuttering Treatment: Becoming an Effective Clinician. Special issue of Seminars in Speech and Language.

Yaruss, J.S. (in press). Assessing quality of life in stuttering treatment outcomes research. Journal of Fluency Disorders (Special issue on Quality of Life).

Yaruss, J.S. (in press). Becoming an Effective Clinician for People Who Stutter: What Do You Need to Know? Seminars in Speech and Language.

Yaruss, J.S. (in press). Evaluating and Treating School-Age Children Who Stutter. Seminars in Speech and Language. Manuscript in preparation.

Yaruss, J.S., & Pelczarski, K.M. (in press). A preschool child who stutters. In S. Chabon & E. Cohn (Eds.), The communication disorders casebook: Learning by example. Needham Heights, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

External links[link]

As of 30 August 2010, this article is derived in whole or in part from pitt.edu. The copyright holder has licensed the content utilized under CC-By-SA and GFDL. All relevant terms must be followed. The original text was at "J. Scott Yaruss PhD, CCC-SLP".

• Webpage at University of Pittsburgh School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences
• Stuttering Center of Western Pennsylvania
• Yaruss Named Fellow Of Speech-Language-Hearing Association, Pitt Chronicle, December 5, 2005 Issue