text stringlengths 213 24.6k | id stringlengths 47 47 | dump stringclasses 1 value | url stringlengths 14 499 | file_path stringlengths 138 138 | language stringclasses 1 value | language_score float64 0.9 1 | token_count int64 51 4.1k | score float64 1.5 5.06 | int_score int64 2 5 |
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Survive | Sucked Under
ASK THE EXPERT
Dr. Gus Benner is Sierra Club Outings' medical adviser.
"Jim did the right thing by staying still. Rattlesnakes aren't aggressive and don't want to waste their venom on nonfood items; when they do strike, many bites are dry. If there isn't significant swelling and discoloration within 15 minutes, you probably haven't been envenomated and can hike out. If there is, you need to get to an emergency room. Walking would only circulate the venom, so taking an emergency locator beacon is a great idea if you're alone. Otherwise, all you can do is lie quietly and hope for that search effort. Note: Do not use a suction device or a tourniquet! It will just make a bad situation worse."
TELL US YOUR TALE
Have you had a near-miss outdoor experience that you learned from? Send your survival stories to Sierra senior editor Paul Rauber at firstname.lastname@example.org for possible inclusion in a future column.
Illustration by Koren Shadmi | <urn:uuid:c443f6ad-f384-4923-80d3-1476fcda47dd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/201007/survive.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.934643 | 237 | 2.125 | 2 |
More Arc Flash Rules? Navigating the Changes in NFPA 70E-2009 - Keeping people safe has always been a priority.
Shorts, Grounds, and Faults - Most industrial plants have experienced an electrical failure at some point.
Reducing Arc Flash Hazards - According to OSHA, one person in the U.S. us electrocuted at the workplace every day.
Hazardous Areas Require Special Attention and Stringent Grounding - Many of the projects we on have areas in the plant that are considered ...
Behavior-Based Safety Programs: Improving The Company Culture - Behavior-Based Safety (BBS) is all about changing a company's safety culture.
Electrical Safety Needs Vigilance - Understanding the risks involved with electricity and electrical equipment using the resources available ...
Electrical Safety in the Workplace - Electricity is all around us.
Preventing Dust Explosions-Means having proper equipment | <urn:uuid:f2e305cb-f74a-424a-bc95-4419f844e073> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.interstatesconstruction.com/resources/resources-list/9/Safety | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00074-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.909163 | 191 | 2.6875 | 3 |
The ENGLISH ELECTRIC Co. Ltd.
DEUCE CONTROL PANEL MANUAL
NELSON RESEARCH LABORATORIES Report: NS y 81
STAFFORD Date: 25/11/57
MATHEMATICS DEPARTMENT Order No. NS f 6338
PRINCIPLES OF PROGRAMMING
Miss A. Birchmore
This report briefly describes an approach to the job of writing a computer
program which might lead to more efficient working both on and off the
computer. Reference is made to various programmed and engineered facilities
which are available to those writing programs for DEUCE.
A good program will be able to satisfy criteria beyond that of "working".
The four most important are that it is
a) simple to write,
b) simple to test,
c) simple to use,
d) simple to understand and alter.
Beginners often underestimate the importance of simplicity and method in
program writing; these two are as important as optimal coding and "tricks"
which frequently have more attention than they deserve. This note frames
some questions which will help to achieve a good style, if they are answered
at a sufficiently early stage in planning and writing the program, and gives
advice on finding the answers. Answers will often need to be found before any
actual programming is attempted and in all cases before the program reaches
the computer for its first test. Complexities in programming usually arise
because a problem has been tackled too late, or in the wrong way.
1) Is the program methodically organised?
2) Have checks been programmed for computations wherever possible?
3) Does the program start by establishing uniform conditions in the computer?
4) Has the programming been reduced to a minimum by using library subroutines?
5) Can the program be restarted without reading in the cards again?
6) Have you the following written information?
a) Logical flow diagrams?
b) Flow diagrams?
c) Coding sheets?
d) List of subroutines used with their requirements, results
and failure indications?
e) List of all the cards going into the computer?
f) Information on data, and results expected?
7) Has the data been prepared for test cases?
8) Have you the two types of practical knowledge for testing your program:
a) Use of keys and switches?
b) Use of programmed aids, notably POST MORTEM ZP29?
2. PROGRAM ASSEMBLY.
A program is usually stored on the drum as it is read into the computer,
and is brought down into the high-speed store in manageable chunks called
2.2. Storing Programs on Drum
Programs exist which will read triads continuously and store them on tracks
of the drum.
a) Read to Drum ZP14 - is a two card program which is placed in front of the
triads; each triad must have P15 + T x P17 on the Y-row of its first card,
except that if the triad is to go to the next track (T+l), the Y-row may be
left blank. The last triad also has a P31 on this row.
b) Track Assembly ZP04 - is a 3 card program which needs a parameter card
for each group of triads going to consecutive tracks. The parameter card has
T0 x P5 on the Y-row where T0 is the first track of the block to be filled, and
N x P5 on X-row where N is the number of tracks in this block. 0-row is non
zero if the block is not the last.
c) Advantages of ZP14 and ZP04 - both these programs make it possible to put
normal headings for NIS DLs on triads; which is useful for identification when
making alterations, etc.
The Humby Card (described on page 58 of the Programming Manual cannot be
recommended for this reason.
d) Misuse of ZP14 and ZP04 - these programs are not intended to be used for
storing data on the drum. Data is usually in an unsuitable form for them, e.g.
in decimal or in standard matrix form, or in the wrong order. It will be
necessary to write a section of your program to read the data and store it on
2.3. Bringing Down the Sections
Control Routines have been made that can be entered with a parameter to indi
cate which section of program is next required; they bring down this section and
enter it. Two are described in DEUCE News 12, paras 9-11. Each is part of an
Assembly Scheme which lays down rules for using its routine to bring down the
program most simply and powerfully. It will therefore usually be best to adopt
one of these schemes; a brief comparison may show which is the more suitable
for your program.
a) The R.A.E. Scheme - is the more general: The sections it controls need
not specify their successors; so any section can be used as a closed subroutine
with entry and exit specified by a master routine compiled by the programmer.
This means that a section can be used in several contexts, and so existing
sections may be able to be incorporated unaltered into the program.
b) The English Electric Scheme - is simpler to use; each section specifies
its successor. This means, however, that a section cannot be used unaltered
in another context.
c) Restrictions - both schemes impose a few restrictions on the layout of
instructions and data in the high-speed store, etc., and should therefore be
studied before the program is written.
The General Interpretive Program (G.I.P. 5) is another control routine which
incorporates several useful features at the expense of speed, and this sets it
apart from the two routines mentioned above. It is used mainly for compiling
programs from ready-made programs called "bricks" of which there are already a
large number in the DEUCE library. This is fully described in DEUCE News 10.
An advantage of using an assembly scheme is that, should the program
inexplicably go wrong, it will often be possible to go back and repeat more
cautiously that part of the program which is troublesome. The procedure is
to restore control to the organising routine, and then to bring down from the
drum and enter the appropriate section of the program. Restoring control is
achieved by reading in the Scheme's own small Restore Control program (there
is also a rather slow manual method of restoring control to G.I.P.)
3. PROGRAM DESIGN
3.1. Block Diagram
An overall diagram should be written in which the "units" are blocks which
each contain sufficient action for one section of the final program. This
action will usually employ most of the high-speed store. Experience will show
how much ground a block can cover, and at first it is better to make blocks too
small rather than too large. Block divisions should not cut across iterative
loops unless the size of the loop makes this unavoidable.
3.2. Logical Flow Diagram
The action of each section must be broken down into small and simple steps,
and a diagram made in which each step is represented by a phrase or a question.
This is the logical flow diagram. The construction of the logical flow diagram
is the "meat" of program writing, and if it is done with care and imagination
its translation into computer language and the subsequent testing and operation
of the program will be achieved without any great mental effort.
3.3. Use of Store.
a) Use of Drum within Section - it should not be necessary to fetch instruct
ions from the drum within a section. However, data and results will often need
to be fetched or stored, and some of the subroutines classified under B (in
particular B06) can be recommended for fetching and storing continuously words
in consecutive mcs of the drum (where track T, mc 31 is followed by track T+1,
b) Use of H.S. Store Within Section - a general layout of the high-speed store
within each section, taking into account volume of data to be processed and
subroutines to be used, should be made.
Do not mix data with instructions; keep instructions in lower DLs and
data in higher DLs.
DLs 9 and 10 are often useful as a consecutive store for working data, and
DLll is used by magnetic operations, so it is best to arrange that parameters,
counters and markers, especially those which have to be preserved from section
to section, are altered in DL12.
3.4. Instruction Flow Diagram.
The instruction flow diagram can be attempted when the block diagram, layout
of store and logical diagram have all been written.
3.5. Coding and Punching
Coding and punching should be thoroughly checked before the program is put
on the computer for its first test; the program ZP06/1 is often used for
checking. Alternatively, coding sheets can be checked by calculating and
writing on the sheets the mc of transfer and of next instruction from the Wait
and Timing numbers, and hence reconstructing the flow diagram.
3.6. Program Testing
A manual on program testing is being prepared.
4. UNIFORM CONDITIONS
Before a new program is read into it, the computer will have scraps of
data and instructions left by the last user's program, and will have drum heads
and possibly external keys and switches in undefined positions. The program
being read in may not be independent of the state of the machine, and while
this may be intentional, e.g. a program may use data left on the drum by the
last program, it is sometimes unintentional, so that the machine appears to
behave inconsistently; this is sometimes wrongly attributed to a machine fault.
Therefore, when the program is the first of a self-contained sequence, the
computer should be in a standard state.
4.1. A Standard State
A. ID lamps cleared
All keys level, except stop key
Stop key at NORMAL
Punch run out, cleared and Ready.
Reader run out and any cards removed from stacker before pack is put in
B TS COUNT cleared
High-speed store cleared.
C TCB off and parity established.
D Drum cleared.
Drum heads at zero.
E TCA off
4.2. How to Achieve a Standard State
A Everything under heading A should be checked first, although it is
considered good manners for the person handing over the machine to
B is achieved by using Initial Input key.
C is achieved by making first card an Initial Card.
D is achieved by using Clear Drum program - ZP13/1.
E is achieved by never assuming that TCA is off!
It is often useful to be able to put the computer into a state for reading
in more program in phase with that already there. This is most conveniently
achieved by using one track of the drum as a "Clock Track". A "Synchronise
Clock Track" program can examine the clock track and thus put the computer
into this state. The three card program "Set or Synchronise Clock Track"
(ZP34) will, if placed after the Clear Drum program, put on Track 15/15 a
clock track which is characterised by a P31 in mc 16. If ZP34 is subsequently
put at the beginning of another program this will be read in in phase with
the one already there, provided, of course, that the clock track has not been
overwritten. Incidentally, ZP34 clears TCA. Also the program Post Mortem
(ZP29) will synchronise with this clock track.
To sum up, a program pack normally starts with:
1) Initial Card;
2) Clear Drum - ZP13/l.
3) Set Clock Track - ZP34;
and is run in on Initial Input key after keys and switches on Control Panel
and Hollerith equipment have been checked.
5. DATA FOR TESTING THE PROGRAM
It is wise to test the program first with data that is slight in volume
and complexity so that results can be checked with the minimum of effort.
Usually not merely final results but also partial results are recovered from
the computer, the latter at frequent intervals throughout the program. These
are compared with hand calculations. The object of this is to localise
programming errors where they exist.
The output of the intermediate results can be programmed (punched card
output is more valuable than OS lamps output) and this part of the program
short-circuited when the results are correct. Alternatively, where the tester
is prepared to sacrifice the facility of continuing without restarting the
program, the Post Mortem program (ZP29) can be used to punch out relevant
parts of the computer store. Usually only trivial verifications, such as
the state of a counter, can economically be made from the monitor display.
Data for later tests should strain the program by its volume or complexity.
When a program has been altered to cope with an extreme case, it is important
to check that it still works for the normal case. | <urn:uuid:06fecb66-3bfd-476a-a986-b0bf2cf8a1de> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://members.iinet.net.au/~dgreen/deuce/mud22.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.916092 | 2,855 | 3.109375 | 3 |
Linux definitely is. Linux as an operating system is now in widespread use. It started in universities and then it proliferated into the scientific and engineering space to support clustering. And now you can buy Oracle on Linux, you can buy SAP on Linux. You can buy all kinds of commercial software on Linux. People are migrating off Windows and Unix and all variants of those to get to the lower cost hardware that you can run Linux on. So there is no question about Linux. What about open source applications?
Are they ready for prime time? There is no one answer to that question. [You have to ask] what kind of expertise do you have in your company, and what is the fit between those characteristics and what is out there. And at that point it becomes a sourcing question. Do you want to build it? Do you want to outsource it? Do you want to source it from an open source provider or do you want to source it from a proprietary provider? You have to look for those fits between your needs and your skills as an organization. With open source you need some special skills to deal with some of the intellectual property and licensing characteristics of software that's out there.
There is a lot of terminology and confusion around open source. People talk about commercial open source and non-commercial open source. I use a different terminology. An open source project comes from a dot org and an open source product comes from a dot com. Keep it simple. If you're getting open source and it's coming from a dot com like a Novell or a JBoss or MySQL, you're buying an open source product. There are tens of thousands of projects, and there are a growing number of products that enterprises can buy and implement essentially as a package. [The buy the packages so they can] have some additional choices, less single vendor dependency, and lower cost hardware and license fees. Can you elaborate a little on exactly how open source vendors make money?
If you're selling something and you're providing it under an open source license - which is one of the approved licenses under the OSI definition - you can't charge for the license. But you can charge for the distribution which is packaged with support, with updates and with services. And that's what Red Hat does. They technically don't charge you for software. There is a set of terms and conditions that vary buy vendor. But doesn't MySQL charge for its software?
There are some examples, such as with MySQL, where they actually distribute their software under two different approaches. One is under an open source license, where you have all the obligations of an open source license. If you change it you have to distribute your changes and so fourth. The other way you can get the MySQL database is under a commercial license where you pay for the software and you are relieved of the open source requirements. This is not a static situation. In the case of MySQL, they've developed their own technology so they're not incorporating source code from other people. They can dictate how they do it. They are distributing that as open source and as proprietary source for a fee. There are a lot of interesting things out there in terms of the ways that you get this stuff and what sorts of obligations you have to the vendor or to the community.
Be sure to read part 2 of the Dolberg interview, where the consultant delves deeper into the science of how companies decide if open source is right for them. | <urn:uuid:aaf7c641-8b5e-4e78-a71c-19807cb19114> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://searchenterpriselinux.techtarget.com/news/1063794/Opening-up-to-open-source-part-1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963219 | 702 | 2.1875 | 2 |
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Rabbis Still Awaiting Pay Equity in Israel
Rabbi Miri Gold’s paycheck looks the same today as it did six months ago, despite the Israeli attorney general’s decision in May stipulating that Gold and other Reform and Conservative rabbis in certain parts of the country must receive the same wages as Orthodox rabbis.
The government agreed to fund the rabbis after negotiations in response to a petition Gold filed in 2005 asking the state to grant her the same status as Orthodox rabbis, who are officially recognized and paid by the state. To date, the salary change only exists in principle — Gold said she has yet to see any additional money from the Israeli government.
The agreement only applies to rabbis in regional councils — large rural communities — not cities — and Conservative and Reform rabbis still do not have authority over ceremonies, such as marriage, divorce or funerals.
Gold, the rabbi at Kibbutz Gezer in central Israel, was in town recently to tell her story, at the start of a cross country fundraising tour and to speak at the Association of Reform Zionists of America’s annual meeting in Newark, N.J.
The Detroit native made aliyah to Gezer with a group of North Americans in 1977. The first few years were dedicated to making the kibbutz operational, but as residents’ children started to reach Bar and Bat Mitzvah age, the community needed a religious leader. A young rabbi from the Jewish Theological Seminary led services and ceremonies. When he left, Gold began performing some of the religious functions as a lay person. In 1999, after attending rabbinical school at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Jerusalem, she became the third Reform rabbi ordained in Israel.
In 2005, Gold and the Israel Religious Action Center petitioned the state to fund the Reform community in Gezer just as it funds Orthodox communities. In May, the government agreed to fund 15 non-Orthodox rabbis in the regional council areas.
The decision stated that Reform and Conservative rabbis would receive their salaries from the Ministry of Culture and Sport rather than the Religious Services Ministry, which funds Orthodox rabbis.
Gold said she receives 75 percent of her salary from the Reform movement in Israel and the remainder from international donations.
Gold said she thinks Culture and Sports Minister Limor Livnat, a member of the Likud Party, has balked at implementing the decision because she is sensitive to maintaining a coalition with the Orthodox, who strongly oppose the recognition of rabbis of other movements. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, also a member of Likud, recently called for early elections, and some analysts have speculated that the leader could move away from right -wing and religious parties closer to the political center.
Gold said it’s too early to tell whether the elections could have any impact on the liberal movements. “I would be pleasantly surprised if any government formed a coalition without the ultra-Orthodox,” Gold said.
The Orthodox are a powerful force in Israel and in the Knesset, where Netanyahu’s coalition includes groups such as the Shas Party. In September, Sephardi Chief Rabbi Shlomo Amar told the Israeli newspaper Makor Rishon that for Jews, “it’s preferable not to pray at all than to pray” with a Reform congregation.
Gold said she does not work to convince the Orthodox of the validity of the Reform movement, but tries instead to reach out to the rest of the population. There are only a small number of Reform congregations in Israel. Gold leads Kehilat Birkat Shalom in Gezer, which draws its some 300 members from the kibbutz and other areas.
Gold also is involved with a petition filed in 2007 that seeks the same state funding for Reform and Conservative rabbis in cities. “Israel is strengthened when people have a meaningful choice,” of where to worship, she said.
Gold’s visit here coincided with an incident in Jerusalem that further reflects the challenge for non-Orthodox women in Israel.
On the evening of Oct. 16, Anat Hoffman, the director of the Reform movement’s Israel Religious Action Center, was arrested at the Kotel after she put on a tallit and started to lead a women’s prayer service for Rosh Chodesh.
Calling the incident “outrageous,” Gold said: “I think it’s intolerable that in a democracy there is no freedom of religion,” especially surrounding a national monument such as the Western Wall.
When Gold made aliyah, she said, she thought “mistakenly that it would be much easier to be Jewish in Israel but obviously it faces its own challenges.” | <urn:uuid:a259717c-5995-4acc-8177-816de5a6bd74> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.jewishexponent.com/rabbis-still-awaiting-pay-equity-israel | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00056-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96625 | 993 | 1.601563 | 2 |
Spam levels are rising even though the percentage of junk mail spewed out from compromised PCs directly is on the slide. Tests by email security firm MessageLabs on 90,000 inbound connections to its honeypot servers on 1 October 2004 revealed that 79 per cent of the connections came from "open proxy" computers or zombies (computers typically compromised by a virus or Trojan infection). The same tests on 1 February 2005 showed this number had dropped to 59 per cent.
Messagelabs stats showed spam levels had risen from 72 per cent of inbound email traffic in September 04 to 83 per cent of inbound email by January 2005. Put together the findings provide evidence that spammers are changing tactics in order to get around the defences established by ISPs.
"Some ISPs now routinely block TCP port 25 (SMTP) traffic, or even force email traffic to be sent via the ISPs own email servers, which in turn is forcing the spammers to become more innovative with their techniques," said Paul Wood, chief information security analyst at MessageLabs. "Software such as Send-Safe with its recent "proxy lock" feature now enables the spammers to instruct the bots to relay the spam through each bot's ISP email server, rather than to attempt delivery itself, and the benefits to the spammer can be clearly seen in these results." SOURCE | <urn:uuid:cf9144e6-142e-4e90-88a2-ae0a08712e22> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.undergroundnews.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/34794/Spammers%20adopt%20slippery%20tactic.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00074-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958233 | 272 | 2.40625 | 2 |
The first and biggest problems we all have in meditative practice are those constant bothers that the Buddha termed “hindrances”, clouding the clear water of awareness. He counted five, usually translated: sensual desire, ill-will, restlessness, sloth-and-torpor, and doubt. When I first heard these, I wondered, why these five? They sound like a miscellaneous grab-bag of problems. Actually they are technical terms with broad application, that can be split into three basic groups. The first group we could call “attachment”, the second “energy”, the third stands alone as “doubt”.
Attachments that Hinder
When feelings of attachment carry us away, we lose the path. If the attachment feels positive, that’s “sensual desire”: desire for a person, for something to buy, for a good dinner, for some fun experience. Thinking sweet nothings can pull our attention away from practice. It isn’t helpful to fostering the wise clarity we’re after, since it pulls us into a different place or time, spinning fantasies.
Negative attachment is repulsion, otherwise known as “ill-will”. It covers a multitude of attitudes. Obviously, if annoyance, anger, hatred, jealousy, or contempt arises, that’s ill-will. But so too is worry and fear: this is ill-will directed towards the future. So too is regret or remorse: that’s a form of ill-will towards the past. (Remorse is also considered a form of restlessness, depending on how it manifests). Again, this pulls us out of the present into past or future narratives that cloud our mind.
Note that these responses might be useful in other contexts: we might be legitimately concerned about something that needs dealing with, like an upcoming test. We might be legitimately regretful about something wrong we did in the past. We might have positive feelings towards a meal we will enjoy, or a partner we love. The point is that these hinder us in the context of meditation, not that they are necessarily wrong in other contexts. They may or may not be.
Also, of course, we can fall into ill-will for ourselves or our practice: getting angry, frustrated, or annoyed at ourselves for failing to ‘practice properly’. This is also a hindrance. Which isn’t to say it’s not natural! If frustration arises, the way to escape the hindrance is to be mindful of the frustration, to see it for what it is; even to depersonalize it. See it as “Frustration is arising,” rather than “I’m frustrated.” Then deal with it as just another phenomenon among many, not one that is about you, at all.
Between the two of them, sensual desire and ill-will should be seen as covering the gamut of feelings of attachment, from very negative to very positive.
Energy that Hinders
When we meditate, sometimes it seems like the engine of our effort isn’t tuned properly. That’s the purview of restlessness and sloth-and-torpor.
The biggest problem for introducing sloth-and-torpor is that it’s annoyingly awkward in English. Neither “sloth” nor “torpor” are everyday words, which leads us to assume the concepts they describe must be odd or obscure. I prefer the translation “dullness and drowsiness”. It’s a state of low energy, completely ordinary and one we all know well. The mind is foggy or stuck, without momentum, or tired and sleepy.
Its opposite is the so-called “monkey mind” of restlessness, where the mind seems to fly from one thing to another distractedly, remembering this, planning for that, cycling through narratives of likes and dislikes without awareness. This kind of thinking resembles our ordinary thinking when we daydream, say while waiting in line or unable to sleep. That is, it’s undirected, uncoordinated; bubbling with too much agitated energy. Boredom often comes across as restlessness, but it can also appear as dullness and drowsiness, or even as ill-will or doubt, depending on how it manifests.
Anyhow, restlessness and dullness/drowsiness cover the blighted waterfront of bad energy.
Doubt that Hinders
The last hindrance is doubt, all on its own. This is a state of mind very dear to a skeptic like myself. “Doubt everything”, says the bumper sticker. And of course, in a sense we should. But eventually, and in certain circumstances, doubt can become a hindrance. Eventually we have to choose and move forward with our lives. Doubt in the context of practice is something that can bring it to a halt.
Approaching the Hindrances
The five hindrances can derail practice: feelings so strong that they carry us away, energy so unbalanced that it makes practice difficult, questions that throw on the brakes. The Buddha famously recommended that proper practice be like that of the lute player. To play a tune, the lute’s strings cannot be tuned too tight, nor too loose. They have to be in balance, in pitch. Finding that pitch is essential, and for that we have to overcome the hindrances, at least for a time. (Whether they can ever be overcome completely is another matter).
But how do we overcome them? The essential first step, often overlooked I think, is that we have to train ourselves to notice when they are present. In the first section on Contemplation of Phenomena in the Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta (Majjhima Nikaya 10, para. 36), the Buddha emphasizes this point. It’s essential to the practice of mindfulness to know when each hindrance is present, and to know when it’s not. This is a basic form of mindfulness practice: we’re not completely lost if at least we know what the problem is, and we’re more aware if we know that the problem has been overcome.
Countering the Hindrances
Often when hindrances arise they aren’t of sufficient strength to bother us. If we can practice adequately with them in the background, or push them aside with a focus of effort, then no further strategy is necessary. But sometimes all that fails, and we need something a bit stronger.
Each hindrance has techniques associated with countering it. This is something I had been completely unaware of. As I remarked in my previous post, I practiced meditation for many years without any extensive formal training. When I ran into problems in my practice, my approach was simply to sit through them, returning to the breath as best I could. This is, of course, a technique that can work, particularly for increasing focus or samādhi. But it can also prove frustrating. It’s worth knowing other techniques that can be helpful.
Sensual desire: this is often counteracted by meditations in the Satipaṭṭhāna like that on the unattractive nature of the body (P10-11). Since the suttas were written for a celibate audience, the main focus of this practice is in visualizing the organs of the body, in order to break any kind of sexual attraction. This approach is perhaps less apt for laypeople, except in rare circumstances. The elements meditation (P12-13), which I discussed in an earlier post, can also be useful for countering forms of physical attachment: if we can see the new coat, car or house as just a mass of ordinary atoms that will decay into their elemental forms, suddenly it doesn’t seem quite so attractive and necessary.
Ill-will: the classic counter to ill-will is the meditation on mettā, usually translated “loving kindness”. This, and the other “Brahmavihara” meditations on compassion, empathetic joy (a counter to jealousy), and equanimity are all methods to overcome negative feelings towards other people. These practices aren’t particularly complex but they do involve some work, so if ill-will is a problem for you in meditation, it will likely be helpful to look into the Brahmaviharas. Indeed, I find it useful to begin every meditation sitting with a short mettā practice.
Ill will towards inanimate objects or situations can be overcome by doing meditations on the elements, or simply on causal conditioning: the lemon of a car that’s on my mind is, after all, only a dumb lump of metal and plastic, arisen from conditions, passing from conditions. One strategy I have found useful for dealing with worry is to see how it arises from the imagination. Worry is ill-will directed at a phantom of the future, conjured by imagination. Sometimes seeing how the conjuror creates the phantom can help the worry to diminish.
Dullness and drowsiness: I think the number one antidote to this, particularly among contemporary lay practitioners, should be to get enough sleep! There are a number of techniques to waking ourselves up ‘on the cushion’, such as taking deep breaths or visualizing the sun’s light. Or we can do walking or standing meditation instead of sitting. But really, none of these will be particularly successful without adequate sleep, which is a physical necessity.
Restlessness: from all I’ve seen and heard, this is the most difficult hindrance to overcome. The only antidote to restlessness is … wait for it … mindfulness of breathing. If you’re too restless to focus on the breath, what that says is that you need more practice! Regular sitting brings deeper calm, which over time makes restlessness less of an issue.
Doubt: the classic counter to doubt is critical investigation. That said, there are two kinds of doubt, and each should be dealt with differently. There is little-’d'-doubt and big-’D'-Doubt. Little-’d'-doubt is the sort of annoyance that springs up from time to time in a good practice, that can be dealt with as a form of dullness or restlessness, or even boredom, depending on its character. Basically, try your best to ignore it, to wait it out, and return to the breath. Big-’D'-Doubt is a different matter, and has to be taken seriously off the cushion. If you don’t feel the practice is right for you, or is working at all, that’s a sign you need to do further reading or talking, or hey, even consider another practice. Meditation isn’t for everyone, after all.
So that covers some basic approaches to all the hindrances. There are other ones besides, such as ‘guarding the sense doors’, or the essential one of finding good friends with whom one can have fruitful discussions, but these should serve as a start. Note that the process is essentially cognitive, not simply one of bare experience: it’s a conceptual process leading towards insight. We first recognize, then strategically counteract, each hindrance as it arises.
I hope this quick review of the hindrances is useful to your ongoing meditation practice. I know that it has made a difference in my own to begin to recognize and deal with each of them as they arise and pass away.
PS: If you have some favorite techniques of your own for overcoming the hindrances, please let us know in the comments! | <urn:uuid:1742a77d-cd2e-4426-be41-91e8be4d6816> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://secularbuddhism.org/2013/01/15/practice-working-with-the-hindrances/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00032-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953091 | 2,460 | 1.890625 | 2 |
RL33705 - Oil Spills in U.S. Coastal Waters: Background, Governance, and Issues for Congress
2-Sep-2010; Jonathan L. Ramseur; 28 p.
Update: Previous releases:
April 30, 2010
September 2, 2008
February 5, 2008
August 23, 2007
April 24, 2007
October 25, 2006 (/NLE/CRSreports/06Nov/RL33705.pdf)
Abstract: The impacts of an oil spill depend on the size of the spill, the rate of the spill, the type of oil spilled, and the location of the spill. Depending on timing and location, even a relatively minor spill can cause significant harm to individual organisms and entire populations. Oil spills can cause impacts over a range of time scales, from days to years, or even decades for certain spills.
On April 20, 2010, an explosion occurred at the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform in the Gulf of Mexico, resulting in 11 fatalities. The incident led to a significant release of oil: according to the federal government’s estimate, the well released approximately 206 million gallons of oil before it was contained on July 15. The 2010 Gulf oil spill has generated considerable interest in oil spill governance issues.
This report provides background information regarding oil spills in U.S. coastal waters and identifies the legal authorities governing oil spill prevention, response, and cleanup. Based on data between 1973 and 2007, the annual number and volume of oil spills have shown declines— in some cases, dramatic declines. The 1989 Exxon Valdez spill in Alaskan waters played a large role in stimulating actions that contributed to this trend, particularly the decrease in the annual spill volumes.
The Exxon Valdez spill highlighted the need for stronger legislation, inflamed public sentiment, and spurred Congress to enact comprehensive oil spill legislation, resulting in the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-380). This law expanded and clarified the authority of the federal government and created new oil spill prevention and preparedness requirements. Moreover, the 1990 legislation strengthened existing liability provisions, providing a greater deterrent against spills.
The governing framework for oil spills in the United States remains a combination of federal, state, and international authorities. Within this framework, several federal agencies have the authority to implement oil spill regulations. Agency responsibilities can be divided into two categories: (1) oil spill response and cleanup and (2) oil spill prevention/preparedness.
Oil spill response authority is determined by the location of the spill: the U.S. Coast Guard has response authority in the U.S. coastal zone, and the Environmental Protection Agency covers the inland zone. Jurisdiction over oil spill prevention and preparedness duties is determined by the potential sources (e.g., vessels, facilities, pipelines) of oil spills. | <urn:uuid:79a23267-6b27-4fb0-97a6-3cc3ab2fa5b4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cnie.org/NLE/CRS/abstract.cfm?NLEid=1761 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.913624 | 575 | 3.03125 | 3 |
Everything is old.
It has always been here. Physics tells us that a closed system, like our universe, will always have the exact same amount of energy. Further, we know it has been expanding for somewhere in the neighborhood of 14 billion years…containing the same amount of stuff. That means, in the first millisecond (about 1/40 of the time it takes you to blink) after creation everything that ever was, is or will be inhabited a tiny–yet rapidly expanding–cosmos.
Everything is arranged.
Matter is simply an organized form of energy, a bunch of atoms that slowed down enough to appear solid…to appear solid. This “everything” is paradoxically made up of “something” and a remarkable amount of “nothing.” Accelerated to the speed of light squared, you’d be millions upon millions of times more powerful than a bolt of lightning.
Everything is connected.
Occasionally, we are reminded of our opus and the scope of our wonderful lives. All is inextricably tied together, molded from an eternal image. What makes you “you” and me “me” is a sliver of the Creator given boundaries. What was timeless is made to play by rules of hours and days it struggles to comprehend. What was boundless is now limited by the reach of clumsy extremities to inches and feet. We fight impatience, feeling somewhere deep down all is within reach yet knowing everything must be put in order.
Everything moves with you.
Toss aside the belief that anything is against you. You are a part of everything! It shifts to accommodate you–what matters is the direction you face. Like an airliner cutting across the sky, the space will be filled behind you. Whether you take off heading east or west, uphill or down, everything will support you. It parts before you and gathers behind you so that you might push forward.
This is the power of everything. | <urn:uuid:07c1ac6e-6ace-43af-a830-c0154e8c7882> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://mebuilding.wordpress.com/2010/02/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00031-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954043 | 408 | 1.789063 | 2 |
Oklahoma 2012 Civic Health Index Released
Together with our partners at the University of Central Oklahoma, NCoC released the 2012 Oklahoma Civic Health Index at the Oklahoma State Capitol on December 4. Secretary of State Glenn Coffee accepted the report on behalf of the state.
The report finds that the state thrives in areas such as volunteerism and families sharing meals, but has room for growth in other areas including voting and political participation. The report focuses on the critical importance of civic skills and voter education, and the research team now plans to use an infographic on the findings as an educational tool for schools and libraries across the state.
The Oklahoma Civic Health Index is produced in partnership with the University of Central Oklahoma, Oklahoma Campus Compact, the Kerr Foundation, Inc., and the Walton Family Foundation.
Read the Press Release
See the Report | <urn:uuid:4e16b8ab-8967-4374-85d8-85deb1a64894> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.uco.edu/academic-affairs/adp/2012-naturalization-ceremony-pictures.asp | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951143 | 167 | 1.6875 | 2 |
Why do people find it difficult to work from home? People fail to understand that working is not just about earning money or spending time in the office. It is also about job satisfaction. When you work at home, and when you take care of kids, cook meals, and also do household chores, you may end up feeling unsatisfied and like you are not keeping up with your professional responsibilities.
What is more, your family members may not value your work and may not treat you as if you have indeed done anything substantial. These are small things, but can lead to a lot of heartache and irritation if not tackled properly.
One thing you can do is log onto the internet to get free software applications that will help schedule your day properly. Make it a point to plan your day well in advance. You will find it difficult to establish your own office space immediately. However, you certainly can develop the habit of working undisturbed for many hours despite staying at home by adopting gradual practices.
Whether you like it or not, you will be working at home and distractions and disturbances cannot be avoided. Rather than trying to avoid them, why don’t you try to control them? You can set timers that will remind you to take a break from your work and have conservations with your spouse or kids on a regular basis.
In the same way, you should have a timer that will instruct you to shut down the computer and spend time with your family members. One disadvantage of working at home is that you may not stop working at all. In the long run, such an approach can be very harmful for your family life. Make it a point to switch off once office hours have ended. | <urn:uuid:dfa2b0eb-a280-4448-ae0a-629fdd66e174> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.globalcn.org/use-free-software-to-make-working-at-home-easier.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972911 | 344 | 2.078125 | 2 |
Narrative: An Embraer 120ER Brasilia turboprop plane, registered VH-ANB, was destroyed in a takeoff accident at Darwin Airport, NT (DRW), Australia. Both pilots were killed. The EMB-120 prepared to take off from the taxiway E2 intersection of runway 29. The flight was a training flight to revalidate the captain's command instrument rating. The supervisory pilot/training captain advised the aerodrome controller that the departure would incorporate asymmetric flight (a simulated engine failure), and was approved by the controller to perform the manoeuvre. Witnesses reported that the takeoff appeared 'normal' until a few moments after becoming airborne, when the aircraft rolled and diverged left from its take-off path. They watched as the aircraft continued rolling left, and entered a steep nose-down attitude. The airplane impacted the ground in a right wing-low, nose-down attitude of about 65 degrees. A high intensity, fuel-fed fire that followed the collision with the ground destroyed most of the fuselage and cabin and right wing.
CONTRIBUTING SAFETY FACTORS: - The pilot in command initiated a simulated left engine failure just after becoming airborne and at a speed that did not allow adequate margin for error. - The pilot in command simulated a failure of the left engine by selecting flight idle instead of zero thrust, thereby simulating a simultaneous failure of the left engine and its propeller autofeather system, instead of a failure of the engine alone. - The pilot under check operated the aircraft at a speed and attitude (bank angle) that when uncorrected, resulted in a loss of control. - The pilot under check increased his workload by increasing torque on the right engine and selecting the yaw damper. - The pilot in command probably became preoccupied and did not abandon the simulated engine failure after the heading and speed tolerance for the manoeuvre were exceeded and before control of the aircraft was lost.
This map shows the airport of departure and the intended destination of the flight. The line between the airports does not display the exact flight path. Distance from Darwin Airport, NT to Darwin Airport, NT as the crow flies is 0 km (0 miles). | <urn:uuid:d2635d26-3867-4a5f-91b6-15a5a2eec99d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=20100322-0 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00038-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955723 | 452 | 2.625 | 3 |
Many organizations are to some extent dependent on using information technology to deliver products or services to its customers. This applies to organizations within the private as well within the public sector.
There is some form of hierarchy among strategies that relates to the enterprise information technology strategy (IT strategy) and there might be some need to divide the strategies in order to specialize them e.g. through different persons who have the responsibility for the strategies or ensuring that the relevant information is screened to the relevant stakeholders. I hereby assume that the chief executive officer wouldn’t be that interested in particular technological products e.g. which edition of JAVA should the company’s IT-department be using or which particular server platform would be preferable in order to keep track of smartphones and tablets?
The technology strategy deals with the “hard side” of the technology. Which products, programming languages, databases, hardware, operating systems, back end platforms, ERP systems should the organization make use of.
What is the Technology Strategy?
The technology strategy deals with articulation of plans, roadmaps and principles for which information technologies that the enterprise should make use of.
The technology strategy is all about giving the decision makers some guidance on how to ensure to get rid of systems that only adds risks to how the organization does its business.
Systems that potentially will not add any kind of value to the business and instead seems like a liability own and be a part of the application portfolio.
Relations to IT-strategy
The technology strategy is delimited to deal with information technology (abbreviated IT) and as such the technology strategy can be related to the usage of IT strategy.
The difference between the technology strategy and the IT strategy; is that the IT strategy usually makes use of a long term description of goals that ensures that the IT department will enable the “business” with achieving its goals and adding bits to the a platform that could be turned into competitive advantage if used correctly.
Who formulates the Technology Strategy?
In many medium and large sized organizations have usually two types of technically related chief executives. The first one is the Chief Information Officer. The second one is the Chief Technology Officer (abbreviated CTO) who is more focused on the application portfolio, platforms and hardware.
The two of them are responsible for different perspectives of the enterprise’s usage of information technology; however it is more likely that the CTO reports to the CIO than the other way around.
The two would have to collaborate on delivering plans that can improve the organization and its usage of information technology.
How do You Formulate a Technology Strategy?
There are many ways to formulate a technology strategy and the way I see it the most important thing is to deliver results through changes investments behavior. In this regard I assume that a technology strategy would have to be dealt with through the articulation of principles.
Greefhorst & Proper (2011) have written a rather interesting book named “Architecture Principles” and as such their approach to formulating principles can be made use of in order to formulate proper principles that can be incorporated in the technology strategy.
A technology strategy is usually used for ensuring the organization’s ability to gain a return of value of the investments it has committed to the applications, systems, platforms and development can be gained and turned into an advantage.
In order to do so the CTO has to collaborate with other profiles like the CIO in order to develop coherent strategies for the organization’s it-architecture. In order to make a sustainable and resilient strategy it has to be build upon principles.
The next blog post that I plan to publish will deal with principles and how a good principle is formulated. | <urn:uuid:e176dc02-5f53-46b2-adad-9c619702e0d2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://eavoices.com/2012/04/21/the-technology-strategy/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00050-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947404 | 768 | 2.3125 | 2 |
Have you heard? There's a black man on the cover of the April 2008 Vogue. (Richard Gere and George Clooney are the only other men ever to be on the cover, reports Time magazine.) Vogue does not have a history of embracing African-Americans on its covers. Back in November, Portfolio's Jeff Bercovici pointed out that while 4 out of 12 covers of Men's Vogue had black men; when Jennifer Hudson hit the cover of Vogue last March, she was only the third African-American celebrity to do so, though the magazine was founded in 1914. But on the cover of new issue, Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James seems to be embodying ugly stereotypes about black men: The wild, savage, white-woman-obsessed beast.
Over on the blog Feministe, Jill Filipovic writes, "I see a scary animalistic black man, a primal scream, and a beautiful white woman. Google image King Kong for a comparison." What's interesting is that the editors had another, more "civilized" photograph of LeBron and Gisele they could have chosen.
Upon seeing this more "civilized" image, blogger Angel from Concrete Loop asks, "Why wasn't this the cover instead of that other HORRID one?" Commenters on that site agree: "Lebron is straight up perpetuating a stereotype (that of the brutal, wild savage) that helped enslave, lynch, and murder hundreds of THOUSANDS of our black men for centuries... and I'm just supposed to be content because he made it onto "massa's" magazine?! Take that weak shit somewhere else," "MJ" writes. Adds "cococola72284": "This 'King Kong capturing the damsel in distress'... is offensive. Not only does this man look like an ape, but he's got this good ole prize, a white woman on his arm. There are a number of black high fashion models they could've paired him with and other shots they could've used of him. At least put him in a suit. He carries a suit VERY well." On this site, a shot of the cover prompted similar comments.
Why didn't the editors chose the more "civilized" image for the cover? Were they looking for something more dynamic and animated? Did they want something with action, with impact? Why not put LeBron James in a suit? (FYI, other athletes in the issue — skater Apolo Anton Ohno, snowboarder Shaun White and swimmer Michael Phelps — also appear in sport "uniforms" while the models wear high fashion.) Was it easy — maybe even on a subconscious level — to choose a photo that casts the black man as "big and scary" and therefore comfortable and familiar?
"Nobody says more about fashion size and shape than Gisele and LeBron," Vogue spokesman Patrick O'Connell tells Time. Really? Nobody??
LeBron James To Grace Vogue's Cover [Time]
I Know Vogue Isn't Exactly Racially Conscious, But... [Feministe]
Comment Spotlight: LeBron & The Vogue Cover [Concrete Loop]
Preview of US Vogue April 2008: The Shape Issue [ONTD]
Earlier: Holy Itshay, What Is That Big Black Man Doing On The Cover Of Vogue?!
Men's Vogue: Not Afraid Of Black People
What's The Message Behind A Black Man In Heels On The Cover Of Vogue? | <urn:uuid:a693dd9c-409f-46d6-85ff-867c0cd9840c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://jezebel.com/368655/is-vogues-lebron-kong-cover-offensive | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.939756 | 721 | 1.585938 | 2 |
Yesterday (6/19/2012), the National Academies Federal Facility Council hosted a timely, and potentially watermark event “Predicting Outcomes of Investments in Maintenance and Repair of Federal Facilities“.
It is my hope that this event and those similar to it be expanded as much as possible to assist all real property owners, architects, contractors, subcontractors, building product manufactures, oversight groups, and the community truly practice facility life-cycle management, referred to more recently as BIM (building information modeling / management).
Key Topics / Take Aways:
Identify and advance technologies, processes, and management practices that improve the performance of federal facilities over their entire life-cycle, from planning to disposal.
Predicting Outcomes of Investments in Maintenance and Repair for Federal Facilities
-Facility risks to Organizational Mission
-Potential to quantify
-Ability to predict outcomes vs. investment
-The “how” of measuring investment successes
1. You can’t manage what you don’t measure.
2. Requirements for facility life-cycle management, efficient repair/maintenance/sustainability, BIM
3. Inventory of Built Environment
4. Physical and Functional Condition of Assets (Portfolio, Site, Building/Area, System, Sub-system, Component Levels)
5. Expected Life-cycle and Deterioration Rates for Physical Assets
6. Ranking of Facilities/Built Environment relative to Organizational Mission
7. Associated Capital Reinvestment Requirements and Ability to run multi-year “What-if ” scenario analyses
8. Collaborative, Efficient Project Delivery Methods ( IPD – Integrated Project Delivery, JOC – Job Order Contracting)
Strategic approaches for investing in facilities maintenance and repair to achieve beneficial outcomes and to mitigate risks. Such approaches should do the following:
• Identify and prioritize the outcomes to be achieved through maintenance and repair investments and link those outcomes to achievement of agencies’ missions and other public policy objectives.
• Provide a systematic approach to performance measurement, analysis, and feedback.
• Provide for greater transparency and credibility in budget development, decision making, and budget execution.
• Identify and prioritize the beneficial outcomes that are to be achieved through maintenance and repair investments, preferably in the form of a 5- to 10-year plan agreed on by all levels of the organization.
• Establish a risk-based process for prioritizing annual maintenance and repair activities in the field and at the headquarters level.
• Establish standard methods for gathering and updating data to provide credible, empirical information for decision support, to measure outcomes from investments in maintenance and repair, and to track and improve the results.
Vehicles for Change—
• Portfolio-based facilities management (aka asset management)
•Technology (tools, knowledge, risk)
• Recognition of impacts of facilities on people, environment, mission (i.e., prioritizing)
• Changing of the Guard
Best Practices … Partial Listing
• Identification of better performing contractors or service providers
• GIS mapping tools
• Facility condition assessments – surveys, vendors, frequencies, costs
• Maintenance management systems
• Predictive maintenance tools
• Organizational structures
• Budget call process
• Master Planning processes
• Improve relationships with the facility end users and foster a “One Community”
• Energy management
Component-section (a.k.a. section): The basic “management unit.” Buildings are a collection of components grouped into systems. Sections define the component by material or equipment type and age.
Condition Survey Inspection (a.k.a. Condition Survey; Inspection): The gathering of data for a given component-section for the primary purpose of condition assessment.
Condition Assessment: The analysis of condition survey inspection data.
Component Section Condition Index (CSCI): An engineering – based condition assessment outcome metric (0 – 100 scale) and part of the Building Condition Index (BCI) series.
Condition Survey Inspection Objectives
1. Determine Condition (i.e. CSCI) of Component-Section
2. Determine Roll-Up Condition of System, Building, etc.
3. Provide a Condition History
4. Compute Deterioration Rates
5. Calibrate/Re-calibrate Condition Prediction Model Curves
6. Compute/Re-compute Remaining Maintenance Life
7. Determine Broad Scope of Work for Planning Purposes
8. Quantify/refine Work Needs (incl root cause analysis, if needed)
9. Establish when Cost Effective to Replace (vs. Repair)
10. Compute/Re-compute Remaining Service Life
11. QC/QA (Post-work Assessment)
Condition Survey Inspection Types
Deficiency: The “traditional” inspection discussed previously.
Distress Survey: The identification of distress types (i.e. crack, damage, etc.), severity (low, medium, high) and density (percentage) present. Data directly used in the calculation of the CSCI. No estimate of cost or priority.
Distress Survey with Quantities: Same as distress survey except that distress quantities are measured or counted. The resulting density is more accurate than a distress survey, thus the CSCI is more precise.
Direct Rating: A one-step process that combines inspection and condition assessment. An alphanumeric rating (three categories, three subcategories each) is assigned to the component-section by the inspector. Rating is directly correlated to a CSCI value, but is less accurate than a CSCI derived from a distress survey. Quick, but no record of what’s wrong.
About The Federal Facilities Council
The Federal Facilities Council (FFC) was established at the National Academies in 1953 as the Federal Construction Council. The mission of the FFC is to identify and advance technologies, processes, and management practices that improve the performance of federal facilities over their life-cycles, from programming to disposal. The FFC is sponsored and funded by more than 20 federal agencies with responsibilities for and mutual issues related to all aspects of facilities design, construction, operations, renewal, and management.
The FFC fulfills its mission by networking and by sharing information among its sponsoring federal agencies and by leveraging its resources to conduct policy and technical studies, conferences, forums, and workshops on topics of mutual interest. The activities to be undertaken in any given calendar year are approved by a committee composed of senior representatives from each of the sponsor agencies.
Much of the work of the FFC is carried out by its 5 standing committees, each of which meets quarterly. The majority of meetings include presentations by guest speakers from the federal community, academia, and the private sector and these presentations are open to the public. The presentation slides are posted on the Events page of this website. If you would like to automatically receive notices of new reports or upcoming events, please subscribe to the FFC listserv.
Within the National Academies, the FFC operates under the auspices of the Board on Infrastructure and the Constructed Environment (BICE) of the National Research Council. The BICE provides oversight and guidance for FFC activities and serves as a link between the sponsoring federal agencies and other elements of the building community, both national and international.
via http://www.4Clicks.com – Premier software for efficient construction project delivery – renovation, repair, sustainability – JOC, SABER, IDIQ, SATOC, IPD, MATOC, MACC, POCA, BOA … | <urn:uuid:a499157f-03f9-4f94-a996-72e8649f13f8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://buildinginformationmanagement.wordpress.com/tag/evidence-based-facility-life-cycle-management/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00054-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.901033 | 1,568 | 1.929688 | 2 |
Two small earthquakes shook the area near Concrete on Saturday night.
The Pacific Northwest Seismology Network reported that a magnitude 1.5 quake occurred at 8:36 p.m. about 6.1 miles from Concrete. The depth was 2.1 miles.
A magnitude 2.0 quake occurred in the same area three minutes later. The depth was 0.0 miles.
Several people reported that they felt the quake.
Elaine M Loto'aniu, who lives on South Skagit Highway in the Cape Horn Community, said her bed started shaking and the walls moved slightly.
"It only lasted long enough for me to realize it was an earthquake," she said.
Julie Vogt, who lives in Concrete, also reported hearing a rumble and feeling her home shaking for a second or two. | <urn:uuid:3dfd9139-7fa9-4f2c-91a8-808269bb367f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.king5.com/news/Two-small-earthquakes-near-Concrete-on-Saturday-night-180757551.html?ref=prev | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968669 | 172 | 1.65625 | 2 |
While writing this column over the years, I've covered a lot of ground on defensive perimeters and setting up Defense in Depth tools to protect your local resources, and I've discussed the importance of mitigating physical risks. But what should you do to protect your systems once they've fallen into the wrong hands?
First, let's define who we're talking about when we say wrong hands. We'd all like to think of the enemy as a James Bond wannabe trying to steal data for queen and country (or money). But let's face it: The enemy is most likely the person two cubicles over who thinks he or she needs more permissions than you've granted.
These rogue users just want to test your organization's security for vulnerabilities or load a software program to make their workday more enjoyable. They're not really malicious, but they can cause plenty of disruption when their freeware program turns out to be a bot loader and enlists your company network to join the bot nation.
And that's what you need to remember: A lot of times, your biggest threats are already working for you -- and they often don't even have evil intentions. So how do you counteract the fact that they already have physical access to your machines and keep them from wreaking havoc?
The goal is to prevent users from booting from anything other than the hard drive. There are several tools that are bootable from CD-ROM and USB device that allow a user to change the administrator password or install files. And that's why you need to remove users' ability to use these tools.
To do so, you need to access the BIOS and lock it down. Keep in mind that there are a lot of different computer companies and several different major BIOS manufacturers.
What if you don't know how to access the BIOS for a machine? Search the Internet for "yourcomputertype BIOS setup key" (e.g., Dell 6000 BIOS setup key). You can also check out this Web site by Michael Stevens.
Because there are so many different variables, let's walk through the steps on the machine that I'm currently using: Dell Inspiron E1705. To lock down the BIOS, follow these steps:
- On boot, press [F2] to access the BIOS setup.
- Under System, select Boot Sequence.
- Make sure the Internal HDD is the only device with a number beside it.
- Press [Esc], and select Save.
- Under Security, elect Admin Password.
- Set an admin password. (This will prevent someone from changing boot options or changing the BIOS setup, but it won't interfere with normal operation.)
And that's it! Unless an authorized user has the BIOS admin password, he or she will be stuck booting up what your company provides -- and nothing else.
Some manufacturers bundle enterprise tools with their servers to manage BIOS options remotely, so you won't necessarily have to visit every machine in your company to roll out this internal security fix.
Bootable admin password utilities and rootkits are out there, so it's vital that you make sure they can't operate on your network. You can prevent users from inadvertently putting your network at risk -- it just takes an extra step in your security strategy.
Miss a column?
Check out the Security Solutions Archive, and catch up on the most recent editions of Mike Mullins' column.
Worried about security issues? Who isn't? Automatically sign up for our free Security Solutions newsletter, delivered each Friday, and get hands-on advice for locking down your systems.
Mike Mullins has served as an assistant network administrator and a network security administrator for the U.S. Secret Service and the Defense Information Systems Agency. He is currently the director of operations for the Southern Theater Network Operations and Security Center. | <urn:uuid:1c8870f7-3680-425e-bb0a-c6cf95a45f6f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.techrepublic.com/article/lock-down-the-bios-to-defend-against-rogue-users/6186436 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937243 | 777 | 2.390625 | 2 |
The beautiful New York Times confirms something everybody notices: spam is doing very well. "In the last six months, the problem has gotten measurably worse. Worldwide spam volumes have doubled from last year, according to Ironport, a spam filtering firm, and unsolicited junk mail now accounts for more than 9 of every 10 e-mail messages sent over the Internet."
The techniques responsible for this growth are image spam and the use of "vast networks of computers belonging to users who unknowingly downloaded viruses and other rogue programs".
Spammers try to fool message filters by using excerpts from books or articles. OCR software is not very effective because image spams use special effects, background images and weird fonts.
Traditional spam is still effective, as many mail services don't have powerful spam filters.
Mario Testino to "The Scream" via Mark Rothko
2 hours ago | <urn:uuid:486f8dfb-c002-4981-9588-91dc7407128a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://googlesystem.blogspot.com.au/2006/12/email-spam-skyrocketing.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00057-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.927419 | 179 | 1.820313 | 2 |
Today is World Water Day. It’s a day when we can be thankful for the clean water coming out of our taps and turn the world’s attention to the 800 million people still living without access to clea... read more.
For our September campaign last year, 13,782 people helped us raise money for Rwanda. We set a goal to raise $1.7 million, and thanks to all of you, we raised more than $2 million.
Together, we funded seven systems, which will feed 106 tap stands and serve almost 26,000 people when complete. That will bring clean, safe water to everyone in Shyorongi and Ngoma sectors.
But we also made a promise — that once every last person in Shyorongi and Ngoma had clean water, we’d move on to the next sector. And the next. Until everyone in Rulindo District had access to life’s most basic need. And we’re following through on that.
Meet Bagina’s family:
This is one of many families who still trek for hours every day to collect water from rivers that are brimming with contaminants — pollutants from villages upstream and bacteria that can cause diarrhea, a leading killer of children.
The time it takes to collect this water and the toll it takes on health mean so much missed work, missed school and missed opportunity. For many Rwandans, it means an unbreakable cycle of poverty.
But we can help change that.
We’re raising another $2 million for Rwanda. We want to provide more piped systems. More tap stands. More people with clean water. And you can help too. Join us in fundraising.
In honor of Mother’s Day this Sunday, we wanted to share some of the wonderful, hard-working and inspiring moms we’ve met in the field.
One of the best parts of our job is getting to meet people that we’re helping. We get to see and experience the difference that clean water makes in people’s lives, and nothing beats that. For mothers, in particular.
These are usually women who were walking for hours to collect dirty water. Giving up their free time. Forgoing income opportunities. Putting themselves last. And working really, really hard.
Getting to be there when that moment changes for someone is special. We see a lot of very happy moms. Which is exactly what wanted to share with you.
Here are some of the happy mothers your donations have helped around the world.
Water Cooler Talks are a new thing we’re doing at charity: water — where we bring in smart, talented and inspiring people to share their story with our staff. It’s a chance to unplug for an hour, gain some new perspective and hopefully continue to get better at what we do.
Today, we were honored to have Theron Humphrey and his incredible dog, Maddie, in the house.
And although you surely recognize the extremely Internet-famous Maddie (who can stand on anything!), the really great story belongs to Theron.
Last year, Theron created a 365-day long documentary project called This Wild Idea — which took him all over the United States in search of stories. He literally spent each day meeting and connecting with a single new person, documenting their story with photos and audio and then sharing it with the world on his site.
The project was ultimately named National Geographic’s Travel project of the year.
It was an inspiring story for all us, and a great reminder that there’s so much value in the everyday moments of our lives — and the lives of people we meet around the world.
Thanks for the dose of inspiration, Theron.
Last Friday was such an unbelievable day. We’re still in awe. We saw so much support from sponsors, partners, volunteers, and donors… lots of great news stories and enthusiastic comments. It was just a really fun day– which we appreciate. And as a result, we have 7,408 new birthday pledges!
Just to put that into perspective: if every one of those people follow through and raise $770 (what the average birthday campaign raises), we’d raise $5.7 million for clean water projects. Amazing.
On behalf of everyone at charity: water, thank you for a very memorable World Water Day!
A few more highlights we wanted to share…
Our Waterwalk in Times Square:
Awesome Volunteers & Jerry Cans Around the World:
Roundup of cool news stories that came out of World Water Day:
• World Water Day highlights life-threatening shortages (USA Today)
• charity: water rules social media on World Water Day (PRNewser)
• 9 World Water Day Campaigns Making a Splash on the Web (Mashable)
• Raising Awareness on World Water Day (Instagram)
As you may or may not know, there is currently major unrest in Central African Republic (CAR). This story is dear to us, because it’s a place where we have been heavily involved since 2007 — investing nearly $3.5 million (most of which came from the 2010 September Campaign) and funding 414 water points to serve nearly 300,000 people. That’s almost 6% of the total population.
We have local partners at Integrated Community Development International (ICDI) who we’ve worked with for several years — so we’re following the situation very closely.
Here’s what we know about the current situation:
• There’s been a rebel uprising since December, with multiple rebel groups joining under an umbrella group called Seleka (meaning ‘alliance’ in Sango, a local language)
• A ceasefire was agreed in January. It fell apart, and fighting resumed, with Seleka taking over a few key towns
• Yesterday, Seleka took over the capital city of Bangui. President Bozizé left the country and is believed to be in Cameroon
• There was looting and gunfire in Bangui during the coup. 13 South African peacekeepers were also killed
• Michael Djotodia of Seleka has declared himself the new President, but the rebels appear to be divided over his rule
How this affects our work:
We currently have one grant in process with ICDI for 195 water projects. Due to the security situation, ICDI has stalled all operations in CAR. Most of their drilling, rehabilitation, and maintenance teams have returned either to their homes or to ICDI’s base in the less-affected city of Berbérati to the west. We do not yet know when it will be safe enough for the teams to resume work, but we will keep you posted.
CNN: What’s behind the turmoil in the Central African Republic
Centrafrique Presse: Seleka press release in French (use Google Chrome to translate)
Twitter: #Centrafrique, #CAR, #RCA | <urn:uuid:a79c8b79-6d63-4a3b-8af9-8a03f2bf471b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.charitywater.org/blog/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952065 | 1,461 | 1.742188 | 2 |
What Can the UN Do?
A pile of new books on the United Nations is usually enough to drive even the most public-spirited man to his Ian Fleming. After all, what can be said about the UN that hasn’t been said a thousand times before? And if anything new could be said, what difference would it make? The UN seems here to stay, its longevity assured by the fact that it knows its place. It has not been allowed to interfere with the vital interests of the super-powers, nor to intervene in areas where world peace is really threatened. Except for the lunatic fringe of Maoists and Birchites, the UN has no real enemies. Liberals sing its praises, conservatives accept it as a minor inconvenience, and virtually everyone agrees with U Thant’s recent assurance of “how much sorrier a state the world would now be in if the United Nations had not existed.”
It is, of course, easy to take the name of the UN in vain, but few people would be tempted to dispense with it altogether. It is too useful, too sacrosanct, and, when it comes to the really crucial issues, too irrelevant. Therein lies the secret of its success. It has won the world’s heart because it has not stepped on any powerful nation’s toes—or at least not hard enough to do any damage. Having settled for weakness as the price of survival, the UN has been absorbed into the world power structure. Why attack it for not being more than it is, when what it is serves most people’s interests so well? If the UN did not exist, we would have to invent it, and what we would invent would probably be very much like what we have today. This is the tragedy of the UN, and also the reason for its endurance.
About the Author | <urn:uuid:97496f34-8849-4b7a-ad2f-9ee02725d7ff> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.commentarymagazine.com/article/what-can-the-un-do/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97736 | 384 | 2.296875 | 2 |
Historical information on Australia
After captivated by British Empire Australia took part in both the World Wars. At the end of World War II the immigration rate in Australia increased significantly. In 1901 the commonwealth of Australia was founded with six states that include New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia and Tasmania.
The most populous and vital Australian cities include:
Visa details for Australia can be obtained from the Australia embassy of any country, before visiting the place. Visa for Australia is available from the embassy, depending on the nature of individual travel plans.
The climate of Australia remains best between spring and autumn.
Language in-use at Australia
Australia aborigines speak in English but not in a typical traditional way, they twist and shorten the language according to their convenience. The colloquial Australian-English uses abbreviations like Aussie for Australian, Brolly for umbrella, Chook for chicken, Damper for bread, Ta for thank you and so on.
In Australian currency the Dollar is called AUD. To travel in Australia tourists may withdraw needed amounts from any Australia ATMs using all kind of Visa card, master card, and Maestro card.
Australia, A great tourist destination to visit and enjoy your vacation, enriched with varied cultural and social significances. So pack your bag now to get-set and go.
Get More Information about Australia here..
More About Australia | <urn:uuid:a8860456-971b-469d-bffa-e54d9a65c871> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mapsofworld.com/australia/information/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00066-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.910698 | 288 | 2.859375 | 3 |
Residents will breathe easier after the GenOn power plant closes next week, ending a years-long battle between the company and city officials, neighbors and activists.
City officials reached an agreement with GenOn to shut the plant down — effective Monday — last year, with Alexandria agreeing to release $32 million to the company held in escrow for projects improving environmental controls. They heralded the deal at the time as a landmark decision.
With the closing date looming, GenOn officials have given every indication the plant will power down for good, said William Skrabak, deputy director of the city’s office of environmental quality. And residents like Elizabeth Chimento have waited years for the moment.
“We are overjoyed that this project we had worked on for so long and had experienced so many difficulties with has finally come to a close,” said Chimento, a volunteer teacher who with her neighbor Poul Hertel has fought to close the plant since 2001.
But her work isn’t quite finished. Although the plant will power down, the company remains responsible for an outstanding violation notice issued by the state’s Environmental Quality Department, Chimento said. In August 2012, GenOn was fined for exeeding emmision rates twice.
“I’ll continue to work on that until it’s resolved. At that point, I will consider my work on the power plant concluded,” Chimento said. “This means much better air for the city and less pollutants … especially for the 4,000 people who are around the immediate vicinity of the plant.”
Situated on the Potomac River, the plant opened in 1949 and produces just 5 percent of the city’s electricity. Many residents criticized the plant for failing to meet emissions regulations and producing greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxide.
After GenOn’s doors officially close, the company will begin a deactivation plan, which includes an electrical disconnect from the switchyard on the property, removing all excess coal and selling it back into the marketplace, said company spokeswoman Misty Allen.
The Alexandria skyline will remain unchanged for the time being. Pepco owns the land — valued at about $54.7 million, according to the Virginia State Corporation Commission — and GenOn has no plans to demolish the structure.
“We are overjoyed that this project we had worked on for so long and had experienced so many difficulties would finally come to a close,” Chimento said. | <urn:uuid:6224ffde-19af-4fa8-bf18-d476b5ea7f47> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://alextimes.com/2012/09/end-near-for-genon-power-plant/2/?sort=id&dir=DESC&pagenum=42 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00025-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.965387 | 521 | 1.914063 | 2 |
The Clarence Hollow Farmers' Market is located between Salt and Ransom Roads, in Clarence NY - just 5.8 miles east of Transit Road.
If you have questions about the Market, or are interested in becoming a Market Vendor or Volunteer:
Clarence Hollow Farmers' Market
P.O. Box 278
Clarence, NY 14031
Founded in 2002, the Clarence Hollow Farmers’ Market is New York State’s only “Rails to Trails” Farmers’ Market. Our market is run through a 100% volunteer effort and is both well regarded in the community and a popular destination in Western New York. The market season runs from June through October, and at the height of the season, supports over 30 weekly vendors - including both produce and speciality vendors. Visit our Market History page to see how far we've come!
The Market’s mission is four-fold: To provide our community with access to healthy, fresh and locally produced foods and other specialty products; to raise awareness of local food production and distribution; to support our local farmers and the “100 Mile Diet;” and to build our community by bringing people together in an open and engaging atmosphere.
To support the events and activities presented each year, the Market does fundraising - through both direct fundraising events and personal and corporate sponsorships. The Market also offers a unique fundraising opportunity for non-profit organizations through our Market Bucks Program. Each book of 5 "Market Bucks" sold earns your group $1 and make great gifts for family and friends. Contact us for more information on how this program can benefit your organization. And visit our Events and Acknowledgements pages for more information on the Market's fundraising efforts.
Lil Sprouts Program
The Clarence Hollow Farmers’ Market launched our Lil Sprouts program in June 2010 to introduce children to the Market, our local farmers and specialty vendors. Our primary goal is to offer activities that provide some level of education about farming, nature and nutrition or that tie into one of the special events we have going on at the Market for that week. Some examples of last year’s activities include story-telling, spring flower seed pots, learning to make homemade fertilizer for house plants, and fun-based activities like face-painting, chalk art, hooping, and other craft projects. Visit our Lil Sprouts page or our Events page for weekly activity listings.
Animal Rescue Groups
Each week the market features a local non-profit group that is working to help rescue, rehabilitate and/or place cats, dogs or other animals. Through their participation at the Market, they are able to educate the public on their agency, run a fundraising activity, and find visitors who may be interested in adoption or volunteer opportunities. Watch our Events page for a weekly listing of visiting groups.
Business of the Week
In an effort to help promote our local businesses, the Market features one business a week - to setup and share information on their products and services, sell products or offer demonstrations. If you are a local business and would be interested in this option, please contact us for more information.
Community Service Tables
Provides an opportunity for local groups to run fundraising activities and share information about their organization - including participation and volunteer opportunities. If you have a group that would be interested in setting up on a Saturday, please contact us with details about your organization and your display plans.
New York State's only "Rails-to-Trails" Farmers' Market!
In addition to the our participating vendors, we also feature our Market Row:
- The Country Store - where we sell a variety of New York State products, including eggs, cheese, jams/jellies, sauces, spices and maple syrup, bread mixes, dresssings, chocolates and more.
- Vivian's Wine Haus - featuring a different New York State winery each week, offering both wine sampling and sales. Visit our Events page to view the Winery Schedule, for a full list of participating wineries.
- Kornerstone Coffee Hut - grab a cup of freshly brewed coffee to enjoy while you stroll through the market, or purchase coffee by the pound, to take home and enjoy!
- The Snack Shack by the Clarence Center Coffee Co. & Cafe - offering an assortment of breakfast and lunch sandwiches, as well as soups, snacks and beverages. | <urn:uuid:a5ddcc8d-12fd-4b4b-81bf-3a864a6d780f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.clarencefarmersmarket.com/about.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00057-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943323 | 899 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Energy supplier EDF has awarded funding to a school in the north-east to help it generate cheap electricity from solar power.
The government has launched a new call for evidence to determine what can be done to improve the UK's gas strategy to make sure consumers can get secure, cheap energy in the coming years.
The revelation that senior executives of Ofgem received large bonuses last year has been criticised by the Labour party
People in rented accommodation may find it difficult to get cheap energy bills due to a lack of efficiency measures.
Individuals should not worry that plans to help people get cheap electricity from renewable sources will damage the British countryside, an industry body has stated.
The government has denied a report that suggested planned reforms to the electricity market intended to encourage the generation of green cheap energy will be delayed.
An MP in the north-west has welcomed government plans to roll out smart meters to homes across the UK, saying it will enable his constituents to get cheap electricity.
Individuals living in Cornwall who are looking to get cheap energy may be able to take advantage of a new advice pack being distributed in the county.
Collective switching schemes such as energyhelpline.com's Huge Switch campaign may help greater numbers of people get cheap electricity and improve the way the market works.
Far fewer people may be looking to get cheap energy by installing solar panels since the government reduced the subsidies available to individuals fitting such measures.
Thousands of people have signed up to a new tariff from energy supplier Scottish Power that sees the company donate money to a charity looking to fight cancer.
Many people may look to switch gas and electricity provides to reduce the impact rising prices are having on their household bills, which are having an impact on many families.
SSE has dismissed a recent report that alleged all of the Big Six energy suppliers are engaged in 'predatory pricing' tactics.
Vulnerable users looking to improve their home to get cheap energy could take advantage of a new offer from EDF.
A group of activists from Greenpeace have staged a protest at the headquarters of energy supplier Centrica against what it claims are "rip-off" gas and electricity bills.
Energy supplier British Gas has demonstrated a new tool to help people get cheap energy by reducing unnecessary usage.
People looking to go green may find they are just as able to obtain a cheap electricity tariff as those using fossil fuels, one energy supplier has stated.
The number of onshore wind turbine in England has grown significantly over the past few years.
SSE is set to help customers in Scotland obtain cheap energy supplies from green sources though a new renewable heat scheme. | <urn:uuid:746c3e9e-6f53-457a-a066-ccff2cdf83c9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.energyhelpline.com/rspb/fri/domesticenergy/news/2012/5/1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962833 | 532 | 2.328125 | 2 |
Higher crude prices, speculation and refinery shut downs are being seen as the culprits for the recent high gas prices. Unlike like 2011 with Libya, or 2012 with Iran, geopolitical unrest in not been a major contributing factor.
According to Triple-A Oregon, the average for a gallon of unleaded regular in Oregon is $3.57, just below the national average of $3.60.
Today’s price is a record high for this day on the calendar. In the Medford/Ashland area, the average of $3.63 a gallon is the highest in the state. The lowest in the state may be found in Bend, where the average is $3.545, just a shade below the Portland area. | <urn:uuid:b9c84eec-a012-4c15-97a1-48f8ff283b31> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.thedove.us/news/2013/02/12/aaa-gas-prices-driven-speculation-crude-prices-refinery-shutdowns?page=4 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.926091 | 150 | 1.695313 | 2 |
To do this, photographs had to first be converted to line
art drawings by an artist. In this role, there was little room for artistic
interpretation . . . the task was simply to as accurately as possible
capture the details of a photograph in a drawing. As such, this work was
often published without attribution to Homer. There are several examples of
illustrations published which were photographs by Mathew Brady, and then
converted to line art by Winslow Homer. As time progressed, Harper's began
to expand Homer's role, and he was sent to events to directly create
drawings. A notable example was that Homer attended Abraham Lincoln's
inauguration, and created several drawings which were published by
Harper's. Much of this early work could be described as accurate drawings
He was simply capturing the image in front of him as carefully as possible.
Harper's often did not cite Winslow Homer as the artist
for pictures that they published. He was sometimes referred to as their
"Special Artist". However, this designation was also used for other
artists as well. As such, it can be difficult to know which Harper's
illustrations were done by Homer, particularly in his early years with the
Some illustrations in Harper's include his
signature in the corner of the illustration, some were attributed to him by
name in the caption, and others are believed to be his because of the
distinct style of the drawing.
Winslow Homer Civil War Drawing
Thanksgiving-Day In The Army. After Dinner : The
As the war continued, Homer's work evolved, and you can
see his distinct drawing style emerge. He began to draw pictures which were
much more artistic in nature, and less like the work of a lithographer. He
drew pictures which were high contrast, bold, and with less attention to
After the war, Homer began a career as a painter. He
painted several pictures based on drawings he had done during the war,
including the Sharpshooter and Prisoners from the front.
Homer went to France in 1867 and began painting
landscapes, as he continued to do drawings for Harper's. By 1875 he stopped
his work as a commercial lithographer, and focused on his painting. His 1872
painting Snap the Whip was very well received, and was displayed at the 1876
Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia.
In the 1880's he moved to Prout's Neck, Maine and began
painting scenes of the sea and coast. It is interesting to note the contrast
in the subject matter of his work. His early work captured the horror of the
Civil War, and towards the end of his life, his work captured the peace and
serenity of the Maine Coast. Winslow Homer died on September 29, 1910. | <urn:uuid:f02b3fd3-0f58-47a7-ba6c-0b3636a7b6f4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.sonofthesouth.net/Winslow_Homer.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.989141 | 596 | 3.015625 | 3 |
The Accounting Historians Journal Vol. 17, No. 2 December 1990
PATTI A. MILLS, EDITOR Indiana State University
REVIEWS OF BOOKS AND OTHER PUBLICATIONS
Philip D. Bougen, Accounting and Industrial Relations: Some His-torical Evidence on Their Interaction (New York: Garland Publish-ing, Inc., 1988, 342 pp., $40)
Reviewed by Roxanne T. Johnson University of Baltimore
Philip Bougen has successfully described the complex interac-tion between an accounting system and the organizational compo-nents dependent on the information resulting from such a system. Bougen evaluates in exhaustive detail the interaction between an accounting system and the management and labor constituencies within the Hans Renold Company of Manchester, England, as re-flected in a profit sharing plan. In the process, Bougen has con-structed a complex picture of the interaction between company management, employee populations and the accounting numbers that were used to tie the two constituent groups together.
In the course of his research, Bougen wanted to consider:
(i) some of the factors which led to the emergence of ac-counting in the structure and practices of industrial relations in one particular company over a substan-tial period of time.
(ii) the roles accounting numbers and systems were called upon to play in the conduct of industrial reac-tions.
(iii) the consequences of the interweaving of accounting and industrial relations [p. 1].
Bougen's study explores these three themes by analyzing the complex environmental and institutional circumstances within which the Hans Renold Company attempted to introduce the profit sharing plan. Thus, he evaluates events internal to the firm within the context of the economic and societal conditions affect-ing the country as a whole. In the process, he accomplishes his goals and objectives quite effectively. | <urn:uuid:ead58c3d-e2f2-445b-9e6f-3fe9597edb8e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://clio.lib.olemiss.edu/cdm/compoundobject/collection/aah/id/10331/rec/2983 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.940997 | 381 | 1.90625 | 2 |
XIMENEZ, MANUEL JESUS
XIMENEZ, MANUEL JESUS (1857–1911). Manuel Jesus Ximenez, Wilson County sheriff, son of Esteban Ximenez and Theresa Haby G'sell de la Garza, was born in Graytown, Texas, on December 25, 1857. At an early age he moved to Lodi, one of the oldest settlements in Wilson County. His early formal education was limited, and he was mostly self-educated. His public career began around 1880. Ximenez served as tax assessor and collector, county clerk, deputy sheriff, and United States marshal in Wilson County. In 1890, 1892, and 1898 he was elected sheriff of Wilson County. Ximenez was a sheriff cut in the traditional pattern of most country lawmen, but he was ahead of his time when it came to moral and social issues. Before being elected sheriff he had labored for a more humane jail for the prisoners, and by the end of 1887 the new jail was completed. He brought reform to the area when he abolished the practice of lynching in Wilson County, and he ensured continuity of his philosophy in the department by surrounding himself with competent people whom he trained and advised. At the turn of the century Ximenez joined in the capture of Gregorio Cortez Lira for the murder of sheriffs from Karnes and Gonzales counties. In 1898 he assisted Theodore Roosevelt in recruiting and training the First United States Volunteer Cavalry (the Rough Riders) in the San Antonio area prior to Roosevelt's departure to Cuba during the Spanish-American War. Years later Ximenez was a guest of President Roosevelt at the White House. As a civic leader, Ximenez contributed to the Floresville Academy and also succeeded in having the San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railway pass through Floresville. Ximenez's first marriage was to Serafina Jacoba Olivares; they had six children. After Serafina's death, he married Josefina O. Lopez on November 3, 1893; they had two sons and four daughters. Ximenez died on January 11, 1911, and was buried at the Sacred Heart Catholic Cemetery in Floresville.
Arnoldo De León, The Tejano Community, 1836–1900 (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1982). San Antonio Light, January 15, 1911. Louise Stadler, ed., Wilson County History (Dallas: Taylor, 1990).
The following, adapted from the Chicago Manual of Style, 15th edition, is the preferred citation for this article.Gloria X. Gregory, "XIMENEZ, MANUEL JESUS," Handbook of Texas Online (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fxijh), accessed May 19, 2013. Published by the Texas State Historical Association. | <urn:uuid:a963926b-98c1-4441-be12-57acd8cbcf56> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fxijh | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.965408 | 598 | 2.25 | 2 |
German research vessels and stations
The most powerful polar research vessel in the world will contribute to many expeditions during the IPY. She can take up to 50 scientists and technicians to their study sites who are then supported by 44 crew members during sampling. She is operated and coordinated by the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI).
The youngest member of the German research vessel fleet will also take part in the International Polar Year. Most of Merian's expeditions will carry scientists into the northern polar regions around Spitsbergen and the Labrador Sea in the north-west Atlantic. The vessel is operated by the Baltic Sea Research Institute (IOW) and co-ordinated from the Meteor control station. Beyond its 21 person crew the vessel provides space for 22 scientists. It is designed to operate along the ice margin.
How and when certain research vessels will be in operation during IPY can be found on the ASCI site (Arctic Ship Coordination during IPY).
The aircrafts are used first and foremost to carry scientific measuring systems. They are also available for transporting people and materials, and are on call at all times for SAR (Search and Rescue) operations.
The research station of the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) provides accomodation and office space in the Blue House. The excellent lab facilities can be utilised by Arctic polar researchers from all around the world. Fundamental research is facilitated by highly sophisticated technology available at the station. Primary research projects at Koldeway include investigations of the ozone layer, 'Arctic haze', as well as the effects of elevated UVB-radiation on Arctic ocean ecosystems.
Named after the patron of German Antarctic research, Georg von Neumayer (1826 - 1909), the station is one of the few facilities on the continent that are operated year around. The station is located within the Norwegian sector of Antarctica, approximately 10 kilometers off the edge of the ice shalf, 200 m thick. Atmospheric and climate research provide the scientific focus.
The Dallmann Laboratory on King George Island is operated by the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) in collaboration with the Argentine Antarctic Institute and its Jubany Station close by. The laboratories, repair shops, aquariums and SCUBA diving facilities provide excellent research conditions, especially for biologists. Just as at Kohnen Station, the laboratories can only be operated during the austral summer, with some extensions into October and March.
Kohnen Station is located 700 kilometres south of Neumayer Station. Its main purpose is the reconstruction of past climates through retrieval of ice cores. In contrast to Neumayer Station, and similiar to the Dallmann Laboratory, it is operated only during summer, i.e. from December to mid February.
The future of German polar research
The European research vessel Aurora Borealis, currently still under design, will be equipped with state-of-the-art technology, such as an integrated drilling system. The specialised hull construction will enable Aurora Borealis to travel the polar oceans even during winter, whilst providing top quality working conditions and safety.
Construction of a new Antarctic station became crucial, because the current Neumayer Station, under operation since 1991, has been gradually disappearing into the ice through continual snowfall. The innovative construction design on hydraulic stilts, patented by the Alfred Wegener Institute, will enable the new station to remain permanently above the ice surface. | <urn:uuid:bd10ec5e-55d7-43c1-9a38-ffe38be2b4be> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.polarjahr.de/Schiffe-Stationen.145+M52087573ab0.0.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954848 | 694 | 3.203125 | 3 |
Hurricane Center watching powerful ‘gale center’ near Bahamasby John Nelander
Invest 98, about 700 miles east of Palm Beach, could become a subtropical storm, forecasters from the National Hurricane say. (Credit: NOAA)
The National Weather Service calls it a gale center. More colorful forecasters at AccuWeather refer to it as “a hybrid howler.”
Either way, the low pressure system that drifted down from the Carolinas over the weekend and stirred up the seas and winds around Palm Beach has earned some respect from the National Hurricane Center.
The storm, now labeled Invest 98L has been classified as an extra-tropical gale system. But the low has been slowly acquiring subtropical characteristics.
Over the weekend it produced gusty winds and occasional quick-moving showers in Palm Beach, and it hasn’t budged much from its location just northeast of the Bahamas.
The highest wind gust at Palm Beach International Airport was 30 mph on Saturday afternoon. A little more than a tenth of an inch of rain fell Saturday and Sunday.
Winds have been clocked in the waters of the western Atlantic at up to 45 mph. Waves are up to 16 feet.
On Monday morning, 98L was plotted at 27.6N 68.8W, 696 miles due east of Palm Beach, with winds of 46 mph. It had a central pressure of 1005 mb, which is low enough to support a subtropical storm.
It was moving west, but forecasters predicted it would begin taking a more northwesterly track by Tuesday. Forecasters at the National Hurricane Center said there was a medium chance of the system becoming a subtropical depression, or Subtropical Storm Sean.
It won’t make it into Florida. Assuming the system does hold together, it should take a north-northeast path over the next few days toward the Canadian Maritimes. It could end up being another big rainmaker for New England.
While 98L has been meandering, a cold front approaching Florida and the East Coast should pick it up and turn it to the north. The front sweeps through Palm Beach on Thursday, pushing lows back into the mid-60s with highs in the upper 70s.
So far, the long-term forecasts, right up to Thanksgiving week, are predicting very seasonal Palm Beach weather with highs near 80 and lows in the low- to mid-60s. | <urn:uuid:2ff7c32f-c005-42ae-9bc9-beb4abe82b04> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blogs.palmbeachpost.com/weathermatters/2011/11/07/hurricane-center-watching-powerful-gale-center-near-bahamas/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961552 | 512 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Lots Wife - Remember Lots Wife— In Luke 17:32 Jesus warns, "Remember Lots Wife." What Did Jesus want us to Remember about Lot's Wife? (Gen 19:26) Lot's Wife disobeyed God's Command: "Do Not Look Back" (Gen 19:17). She did Not believe the Words of The Lord, and it Cost her, her Life— God turned her into a Pillar of Salt! (Gen 19:26) Many people now a days do not believe what God's Word says either. It will costs them their Eternal Soul too.
KEY SCRIPTURES ON LOT'S WIFE:
Luke 17:32-33 Jesus says, "Remember Lot’s Wife. If you Cling to your Life, you will Lose it, & if you let your Life go, you will Save it."
Gen 19:24-26 "Then the Lord rained down Fire & Burning Sulfur from the sky on Sodom & Gomorrah. He utterly destroyed them, along with the other Cities & villages of the plain, wiping out all the people and every bit of vegetation. (26) But Lot’s Wife looked back as she was following behind him, and she turned into a Pillar of Salt."
By Amazing Bible
ON THIS PAGE
Note the words, "lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city. And while he lingered."
We may note that Lot was not obeying the Lord as he ought, because he lingered. Even though the people of the city were wicked, something there still seemed to be an attraction to Lot. He was having difficulty leaving. Pulling away from sin, even from our sinful environment or surroundings, may be difficult sometimes. Sin has an alluring attraction for the flesh. Sin may offer pleasure but produces death. Christians are not to have fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness-ref Eph 5:11. Yet, it can be difficult to cut those ties. People often refuse to obey God and leave their dead churches. They do not want to leave the blind leaders of the blind. They refuse to obey God and continue to fellowship with those that hate God. They linger.
One of the angels said unto Lot, "Escape for thy life; look not behind thee."
Note, Two Direct Commands are given.
1 - ESCAPE - Gen 19:17
2 - LOOK NOT BEHIND THEE - Gen 19:17
We need to escape from the ways of the world. We need to be set free from the works of darkness. We need to overcome all things. Once we begin to follow Jesus, we should not look back but forward to Jesus. We should not look back and desire our old sinful ways. Our past is to be put behind us as we put off the old and put on the new. As it is written,
The Lord continued,
Again, Lot hesitates in obeying the Lord.
Lot is listening to another voice: a voice of compromise, a voice of fearfulness, a voice prompted by his emotions.
Lot was fearful. He was not trusting in the Lord as he ought. He did not understand that what he feared might come upon him in the mountain, indeed, might come upon him in Zoar.
Note the words, "I cannot do any thing till thou be come thither."
Lot had to escape to safety before the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities of the plain would take place.
Some may say this is a type of Rapture, wherein the saints have to be removed before the Tribulation can begin.
The people in Sodom were probably laughing and joking about the possibility of their city being destroyed by the Lord. But then it happened, and their mocking was undoubtedly turned into screams of terror and death.
Lot's Wife Looks Back
She did not believe the words of the Lord. It cost her, her life. Many today will not believe that God means what He says. It costs them their life. She did not believe the words of the Lord. It cost her, her life. Many today will not believe that God means what He says. It costs them their life.
One might wonder if Lot's arguing with the Lord about not going to the mountain, but rather to Zoar and succeeding, could have caused his wife to think that she could disobey God and look back, and nothing would happen. Was her looking back simply to see what had happened, or was it a longing for the city she had left? Was it a desire to return to the old, rather than proceed to the new to which God in His mercy had called her? It appears her heart will still in Sodom. She had left her house behind, her friends, and the sons-in-law that were engaged to her two daughters.
We are reminded in the Scriptures,
Once God has called you out of the darkness into His marvelous light, do not look back.
Remember, Lot was afraid to escape to the mountain lest some evil would overtake him. It is written,
How much better it is to obey God the first time and not argue with Him. We need to learn to be childlike, humble, and submissive before God's Word without arguing.
Lot had gone toward Sodom with great riches. He came out hesitantly and having nearly nothing. He had become a compromiser. He came out with a carnal or lukewarm attitude. He had become fearful. He had lost nearly all worldly possessions even his house. He lost his sons-in-law. He lost his friends. He lost his wife, and his daughters had become perverted. Lot went toward Sodom rich. He came out poor.
Did Lot succeed in causing Sodom to repent? No. Did they cause him to become carnal? Yes. Did his wife and daughters turn from the ways of God? Yes. Were the sons-in-law that were engaged to his daughters men of faith? No.
Lot’s own daughters had become perverted with Sodom’s standards.
Copyright © 2000 Amazing Bible and Gospel Truth Publishing | <urn:uuid:8c6ea15f-e92d-45a6-91fc-afd384a95585> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.so4j.com/remember-lots-wife.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.98419 | 1,271 | 2.25 | 2 |
November 29, 2012
LYNCHBURG, Virginia — Police have defused a bomb that a student brought to a private school for special-needs children in Lynchburg.
Lynchburg Police Capt. Ryan Zuidema tells The News and Advance (http://bit.ly/TtrGIw ) that the Rivermont School and neighboring homes and businesses were evacuated Thursday while state police took the chemical bomb to a secure location away from the school and defused it. About 56 students were at the school. Nobody was injured.
Police said the 14-year-old student brought the foot-tall bomb to school in his backpack. Staff became aware of the threat and took the bomb outside.
The student was taken into custody.
The school is run by Centra. Its website says the school is designed for students who have psychological, emotional or learning problems but do not require inpatient treatment.
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Designed by Gray Digital Media | <urn:uuid:c14b615c-9d3b-4dce-9399-f54b83529e40> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.newsplex.com/news/headlines/Police-Defuse-Bomb-Brought-to-Lynchburg-School--181412491.html?site=mobile | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97309 | 341 | 1.6875 | 2 |
Google on Tuesday launched a long-anticipated "Drive" service that lets
people store, share and collaborate on digital files in the Internet
Google Drive accounts with five gigabytes of storage were
available free at drive.google.com and upgrades to more space on servers
in the California company's data centers were available at rates set by
size and country.
"The model is really designed at the core to
help people live their lives in the cloud," Google vice president for
Chrome and Apps Sundar Pichai said on a conference call with reporters.
"Google Drive is something we see as central to the online experience at Google."
Drive software has been tailored for Windows and Macintosh computers as
well as smartphones or tablets powered by Google-backed Android
A version tailored for Apple mobile gadgets will be released soon, according to Pichai.
"We want to make sure that all our users' data are available where ever they are," Pichai said.
Drive data can be reached from various devices, and deleting it from
one deletes it from all. Scanned letters can be saved. Fax messages can
be sent or received at Drive. | <urn:uuid:6391d1ed-687e-42ff-ba1f-a2d75ce10cf9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://gadgets.ndtv.com/internet/news/google-unveils-new-google-drive-cloud-storage-service-223687 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.948838 | 242 | 1.671875 | 2 |
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
17 CFR Part 201
[Release Nos. 33-8530; 34-51136; IA-2348; IC-26748]
Adjustments to Civil Monetary Penalty Amounts
AGENCY: Securities and Exchange Commission.
ACTION: Final rule.
SUMMARY: This rule implements the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990, as amended by the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996. The Commission is adopting a rule adjusting for inflation the maximum amount of civil monetary penalties under the Securities Act of 1933, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Investment Company Act of 1940, the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, and certain penalties under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.
EFFECTIVE DATE: February 14, 2005
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Richard A. Levine, Assistant General Counsel, Office of the General Counsel, at (202) 942-0890, or M. Owen Donley III, Senior Counsel, Office of the General Counsel, at (202) 942-0998.
This rule implements the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996 (“DCIA”).1 The DCIA amended the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990 (“FCPIAA”)2 to require that each federal agency adopt regulations at least once every four years, adjusting for inflation the maximum amount of the civil monetary penalties (“CMPs”) under the statutes administered by the agency.3
A civil monetary penalty (“CMP”) is defined in relevant part as any penalty, fine, or other sanction that: (1) is for a specific amount, or has a maximum amount, as provided by federal law; and (2) is assessed or enforced by an agency in an administrative proceeding or by a federal court pursuant to federal law.4 This definition covers the monetary penalty provisions contained in the statutes administered by the Commission. In addition, this definition encompasses the civil monetary penalties that may be imposed by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (the “PCAOB”) in its disciplinary proceedings pursuant to 15 U.S.C. 7215(c)(4)(D).5
The DCIA requires that the penalties be adjusted by the cost-of-living adjustment set forth in Section 5 of the FCPIAA.6 The cost-of-living adjustment is defined in the FCPIAA as the percentage by which the U.S. Department of Labor's Consumer Price Index for all-urban consumers (“CPI-U”)7 for the month of June for the year preceding the adjustment exceeds the CPI-U for the month of June for the year in which the amount of the penalty was last set or adjusted pursuant to law.8 The statute contains specific rules for rounding each increase based on the size of the penalty.9 Agencies do not have discretion whether to adjust a maximum CMP, or the methods used to determine the adjustment. Although the DCIA imposes a 10 percent maximum increase for each penalty for the first adjustment pursuant thereto, that limitation does not apply to the adjustments subsequently made.
The Commission administers four statutes that provide for civil monetary penalties: the Securities Act of 1933; the Securities Exchange Act of 1934; the Investment Company Act of 1940; and the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. In addition, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 provides the PCAOB (over which the Commission has jurisdiction) authority to levy civil monetary penalties in its disciplinary proceedings.10 Penalties administered by the Commission were last adjusted by rules effective February 2, 2001.11 The DCIA requires the civil monetary penalties to be adjusted for inflation at least once every four years. Therefore, the Commission is directed by statute to increase the maximum amount of each penalty by the appropriate formulated amount.
Accordingly, the Commission is adopting an amendment to 17 CFR 201 to add section 201.1003 and Table III to Subpart E, increasing the amount of each civil monetary penalty authorized by the Securities Act of 1933, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Investment Company Act of 1940, the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, and certain penalties under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. The adjustments set forth in the amendment apply to violations occurring after the effective date of the amendment.
II. Summary of the Calculation
To explain the inflation adjustment calculation for CMP amounts that were last adjusted in 2001, we will use the following example. Under the current provisions, the Commission may impose a maximum CMP of $1,200,000 for certain insider trading violations by a controlling person. To determine the new CMP amounts under the amendment, first we determine the appropriate CPI-U for June of the calendar year preceding the year of adjustment. Because we are adjusting CMPs in 2005, we use the CPI-U for June of 2004, which was 189.7. We must also determine the CPI-U for June of the year the CMP was last adjusted for inflation. Because the Commission last adjusted this CMP in 2001, we use the CPI-U for June of 2001, which was 178.0.
Second, we calculate the cost-of-living adjustment or inflation factor. To do this we divide the CPI for June of 2004 (189.7) by the CPI for June of 2001 (178.0). Our result is 1.0657.
Third, we calculate the raw inflation adjustment. To do this, we multiply the maximum penalty amounts by the inflation factor. In our example, $1,200,000 multiplied by the inflation factor of 1.0657 equals $1,278,840.
Fourth, we round the raw inflation amounts according to the rounding rules in Section 5(a) of the FCPIAA. Since we round only the increased amount, we calculate the increased amount by subtracting the current maximum penalty amounts from the raw maximum inflation adjustments. Accordingly, the increased amount for the maximum penalty in our example is $78,840 (i.e., $1,278,840 less $1,200,000). Under the rounding rules, if the penalty is greater than $200,000, we round the increase to the nearest multiple of $25,000. Therefore, the maximum penalty increase in our example is $75,000.
Fifth, we add the rounded increase to the maximum penalty amount last set or adjusted. In our example, $1,200,000 plus $75,000 yields a maximum inflation adjustment penalty amount of $1,275,000.12
III. Related Matters
A. Administrative Procedure Act - Immediate Effectiveness of Final Rule
Under the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”), to issue a final rule without public notice and comment, an agency must find good cause that notice and comment are impractical, unnecessary, or contrary to public interest.13 Because the Commission is required by statute to adjust the civil monetary penalties within its jurisdiction by the cost-of-living adjustment formula set forth in Section 5 of the FCPIAA, the Commission finds that good cause exists to dispense with public notice and comment pursuant to the notice and comment provisions of the APA.14 Specifically, the Commission finds that because the adjustment is mandated by Congress and does not involve the exercise of Commission discretion or any policy judgments, public notice and comment is unnecessary.15
Under the DCIA, agencies must make the required inflation adjustment to civil monetary penalties: (1) according to a very specific formula in the statute; and (2) within four years of the last inflation adjustment. Agencies have no discretion as to the amount of the adjustment and have limited discretion as to the timing of the adjustment, in that agencies are required to make the adjustment at least once every four years. The regulation discussed herein is ministerial, technical, and noncontroversial. Furthermore, because the regulation concerns penalties for conduct that is already illegal under existing law, there is no need for affected parties to have thirty days prior to the effectiveness of the regulation and amendments during which to adjust their conduct. Accordingly, the Commission believes that there is good cause to make this regulation effective immediately upon publication.
B. Cost-Benefit Analysis
The Commission is sensitive to the costs and benefits that result from its rules. This regulation merely adjusts civil monetary penalties in accordance with inflation as required by the DCIA, and has no impact on disclosure or compliance costs. Furthermore, Congress, in mandating the inflationary adjustments, has already determined that any possible increase in costs is justified by the overall benefits of such adjustments.
The regulation is in the interest of the public and in furtherance of investor protection. The benefit provided by the inflationary adjustment to the maximum civil monetary penalties is that of maintaining the level of deterrence effectuated by the civil monetary penalties, and not allowing such deterrent effect to be diminished by inflation.
C. Paperwork Reduction Act
This rule does not contain any collection of information requirements as defined by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 as amended.16
List of Subjects in 17 CFR Part 201
Administrative practice and procedure, Claims, Confidential business information, Lawyers, Securities
Text of Amendment
For the reasons set forth in the preamble, part 201, title 17, chapter II of the Code of Federal Regulations is amended as follows:
PART 201 - RULES OF PRACTICE
SUBPART E - ADJUSTMENT OF CIVIL MONETARY PENALTIES
1. The authority citation for Part 201, Subpart E continues to read as follows:
Authority: Pub. L. No. 104-134, 110 Stat. 1321.
2. Section 201.1003 and Table III to Subpart E are added following Table II to Subpart E to read as follows:
§ 201.1003 Adjustment of civil monetary penalties - 2005.
As required by the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996, the maximum amounts of all civil monetary penalties under the Securities Act of 1933, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Investment Company Act of 1940, the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, and certain penalties under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 are adjusted for inflation in accordance with Table III to this subpart. The adjustments set forth in Table III apply to violations occurring after February 14, 2005.
By the Commission.
February 4, 2005
1 Pub. L. No. 104-134, 110 Stat. 1321-373 (codified at 28 U.S.C. § 2461 note).
2 28 U.S.C. § 2461 note.
3 Increased CMPs apply only to violations that occur after the increase takes effect.
4 28 U.S.C. § 2461 note (3)(2).
5 The Commission may by order affirm, modify, remand, or set aside sanctions, including civil monetary penalties, imposed by the PCAOB. See § 107(c) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, 15 U.S.C. § 7217. The Commission may enforce such orders in federal district court pursuant to Section 21(e) of the Exchange Act. As a result, penalties assessed by the PCAOB in its disciplinary proceedings should be considered penalties "enforced" by the Commission for purposes of the Act.
6 28 U.S.C. § 2461 note (5).
7 28 U.S.C. § 2461 note (3)(3).
8 28 U.S.C. § 2461 note (5)(b).
9 28 U.S.C. § 2461 note (5)(a)(1) - (6).
10 15 U.S.C. § 7215(c)(4)(D).
11 See 17 CFR 201.1002.
12 The adjustments in Table III to Subpart E of Part 201 reflect that the operation of the statutorily mandated computation, together with rounding rules, does not result in any adjustment to certain penalties. These particular penalties will be subject to slightly different treatment when calculating the next adjustment. Under the statute, when we next adjust these particular penalties, we will be required to use the CPI-U for June of the year when these particular penalties were "last adjusted," rather than the CPI-U for 2005.
13 5 U.S.C. § 553(b).
14 5 U.S.C. § 553(b)(3)(B).
15 A regulatory flexibility analysis under the Regulatory Flexibility Act ("RFA") is required only when an agency must publish a general notice of proposed rulemaking for notice and comment. See 5 U.S.C. § 603. As noted above, notice and comment are not required for this final rule. Therefore, the RFA does not apply.
16 44 U.S.C. § 3501 et. seq. | <urn:uuid:1ae3f892-0d0f-4769-b9a2-8b60f237d1bf> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.sec.gov/rules/final/33-8530.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00067-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.922765 | 2,670 | 1.523438 | 2 |
S.C. 1993, c. 28
Assented to 1993-06-10
An Act to establish a territory to be known as Nunavut and provide for its government and to amend certain Acts in consequence thereof
Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:
Marginal note:Short title
2. In this Act,
« ministre »
“Minister” means the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development;
« terres domaniales »
“public land” means any land, and any interest in any land, in Nunavut that belongs to Her Majesty in right of Canada or of which the Government of Canada has power to dispose;
« Tunngavik »
“Tunngavik” means Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated, a corporation without share capital incorporated under Part II of the Canada Corporations Act, R.S.C. 1970, c. C-32, and any successor to that corporation.
- 1993, c. 28, s. 2;
- 1998, c. 15, s. 1.
ESTABLISHMENT AND GOVERNMENT
Establishment of Nunavut
Marginal note:Establishment of Nunavut
3. There is hereby established a territory of Canada, to be known as Nunavut, consisting of
(a) all that part of Canada north of the sixtieth parallel of north latitude and east of the boundary described in Schedule I that is not within Quebec or Newfoundland; and
(b) the islands in Hudson Bay, James Bay and Ungava Bay that are not within Manitoba, Ontario or Quebec.
Seat of Government
4. The seat of government of Nunavut shall initially be at such place in Nunavut as the Governor in Council may designate, but the Legislature for Nunavut may thereafter designate another place as the seat of government.
Commissioner of Nunavut
5. (1) There shall be a chief executive officer for Nunavut, called the Commissioner of Nunavut, who shall be appointed by the Governor in Council.
Marginal note:Publication of order
(2) The order in council appointing the Commissioner shall be published in the Canada Gazette.
Marginal note:Action of Commissioner
6. (1) The Commissioner shall act in accordance with any written instructions given to the Commissioner by the Governor in Council or the Minister.
(2) The Commissioner shall, as soon as possible after receiving written instructions, make them available to the Executive Council of Nunavut and cause them to be laid before the Legislative Assembly of Nunavut, but they are effective when they are made.
- Date modified: | <urn:uuid:3a4fa12a-e3ee-4d56-a670-a058d2a90a3d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/N-28.6/page-1.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.923931 | 576 | 2.9375 | 3 |
The strength of acrobats allows them to contort through space, seeming to defy gravity and a comprehensible level of grace that all other humanoids can only dream of. A performance is only as good as the years of practice put in and a single movement might be practiced a thousand times to resemble a contradictory act of effortlessness.
Looking at the practice and environment this training takes place in, Jonathan Frantini photographed a story called Shanghai Acrobats for Another magazine. These images are so calm and have so much information in them that they appear as if in slow motion with the time spent looking animating each part of the image. These photos play informal witness to the little-seen space and fitness and flexibility exercises of these artists, as well as offering candid portraits of the performers. His perspective often mirrors the unusual reality of their acts; moving between that of the acrobat and that of the audience, all with a quietly composed choreography. | <urn:uuid:975b7aff-d874-41bb-bf00-8ea2321eb8a6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.itsnicethat.com/articles/jonathan-frantini-shanghai-acrobats | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00033-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960643 | 191 | 1.65625 | 2 |
Very well written. But the biggest nutritional problem is not finding cheap brown rice but obesity, too many calories from all sources, resulting in many disastrous consequences, like Type 2 diabetes. If the population cut calorie intake by an average of 20% we could save $billions in food, waste disposal and medical costs. And the best way to do that is to ditch the junk food. However, I note that Becel margarine is a “founding sponsor” of the HSF. If there is any food junkier than margarine I would like to know. So the HSF can’t risk condemning junk food and losing it’s main sponsor.
The wrong food fight
11 Feb 2009
We feel awkward questioningthe judgment of the Heart and Stroke Foundation (HSF) when it comes to cardiac health issues, but their new and much-trumpeted report about the supposed costs of healthy eating seems deranged. The foundation blasts grocers…read more… | <urn:uuid:61698efe-58d3-4640-8cde-28d826aa39d0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://medicalmyths.wordpress.com/tag/heart-and-stroke-foundation/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00031-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94662 | 202 | 1.796875 | 2 |
often splash and chirp as they bathe. Are they enjoying themselves?
Only the robins know for sure!
Robins need water to drink and to stay clean. It looks
like this robin is bathing. Robins
bathe as often as possible. They'll use any kind of water they can
find: ponds, mud puddles, melted snow, bird baths, and lawn sprinklers.
Sometimes many robins will line up to wait for a bath!
See the robin's head feathers sticking up. A robin can make some areas of feathers rise up to allow water to reach their skin.
Lots of splashing is part of the program! Robins have hollow bones, so the are too light to
submerge themselves. Instead, they bathe in shallow water and splash
it up to wet their backs and heads.
Why do robins bathe so much?
robin's feathers have crevices where dirt can get stuck. So
it uses its beak to "preen," pecking off dirt and
"zipping" the feathers back together. It does this
by applying oil from a small preen gland near its tail. The oil keep
the bird's feathers soft and pliable. But too much oil makes the
feathers clump, so the bird must wash them off.
- If the
feathers got sopping wet, the robin would have trouble flying. So it
takes many short baths rather than one long soak.
helps keep skin parasites off robins. (The parasites are tiny animals
that live on and harm a robin's skin.)
helps keep robins warm in winter! Clean feathers are warmer feathers. It they aren't clean and in good shape, the feathers don't insulate the bird as well. That means the robin must burn more energy to stay warm at a time when it is a matter of survival. Baths are important all year round.
about your robins?
robins flock together at a bird bath.
Does your schoolyard or backyard have places where robins can drink
and bathe? If not, you can help them out by filling a bowl or bird bath
with one or two inches of water. Then keep your eyes peeled! (In warm
weather, you'll need to replace the water every few days.) | <urn:uuid:b88b2bb6-292c-45a3-ad1b-f1a4836cce73> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.learner.org/jnorth/images/graphics/robin/html/Hab_Bathing_TomGreyAns.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00072-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.945705 | 496 | 2.9375 | 3 |
This article was originally distributed via PRWeb. PRWeb, WorldNow and this Site make no warranties or representations in connection therewith.
SOURCE: Progressive Dental Marketing
The Nashville Periodontal Group works to reduce and eliminate gum disease with the new Laser Assisted New Attachment Procedure. This FDA cleared periodontal disease treatment can stop gum or periodontal disease by removing the diseased tissue with a selective laser.
Nashville, TN (PRWEB) March 02, 2013
The Nashville Periodontal Group can now treat patients suffering from gum disease with the new FDA cleared laser procedure. Studies are showing that this disease is more prevalent among adults in the United States than many people realize, and unfortunately many who are affected by the disease do not seek appropriate periodontal disease treatment. The new LANAP procedure allows treatment to occur with a minimum amount of invasion, which leads to minimal pain or discomfort as well as a shortened down time.
The PerioLase MVP-7 is a laser that has been designed for dental procedures and is extremely selective in what it affects. It will kill the bacteria that cause gum disease as well as dissolving or eliminating diseased gum tissue while not harming the healthy gum tissue that is in the affected area. At the same time, it does not harm the bone or teeth but instead stimulates the regeneration process in the gums.
With traditional gum surgery, a scalpel is used to cut away diseased tissue, which can lead to more gums being removed than with the laser. This means that the LANAP treatment helps reduce the incidence of receding gums in most patients. One of the problems with receding gums is that if they recede far enough, there isn't anything left to hold the teeth in place and teeth can be lost. Because the LANAP periodontal disease treatment reduces gum recession, it also helps to save teeth that might otherwise be lost.
The entire procedure is done in the office and most people find that there is a minimal downtime associated with it. Pain and discomfort are minimized with the use of the laser, and healing time is short. Find more information on gum disease and the LANAP procedure at http://www.nashvillleperio.com.
Nashville Periodontal Group is a periodontal practice offering patients’ personalized dental care for Nashville, TN. Drs. Bill Akin and Brian West are part of one percent of dental professionals providing the most recent FDA cleared laser procedure for gum disease and periodontal treatment. Along with laser dentistry they have a strong focus on patient education on gums. To learn more about Nashville Periodontal Group and their dental services visit their website at http://www.nashvilleperio.com and call (615) 800-3686.
For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prweb2013/3/prweb10489829.htm | <urn:uuid:9cecfb4d-2e70-4dff-9119-e7899694671b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wtrf.com/story/21442455/nashville-periodontal-group-is-working-to-reduce-periodontal-disease-with-the-new-laser-treatment-for-patients-suffering-from-moderate-to-severe-gum | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.931324 | 608 | 1.648438 | 2 |
This article first appeared in the From the Editor column of the Christian Research Journal, volume29, number3 (2006). For further information or to subscribe to the Christian Research Journal go to: http://www.equip.org
“The Christian faith has done more harm than good to the human race.” When critics of Christianity make such a claim, they typically will cite the Crusades,1 along with the Inquisition, as supporting evidence. Muslims, atheists, and New Age believers alike, among others, make full use of the Crusades in their efforts to dismiss Christian truth claims.
In this column I will briefly consider (in concurrence with this issue’s cover article by Daniel Hoffman, p.12) the claims Muslims make about the Crusades. In next issue’s column I will look in greater depth at the way holy wars in general are used by social and religious liberals to discredit all “fundamentalist” approaches to religion, including evangelical Christianity.
Many Muslims and Muslim sympathizers view Islamic jihad or “holy war”2 against the West as justifiable self-defense. They believe that Western Christians launched holy war against Muslims first (in the form of the Crusades), and that they continue to wage war against Muslims to the present day.3
The 2005 movie Kingdom of Heaven, currently available on DVD and premiering on the premium movie channel Cinemax as I write, promotes such a view of the Crusades. On PBS’s Religion and Ethics Newsweekly, film reviewer Mary Alice Williams observed that “in it, the Muslims are the good guys—noble and proud. The Christians are the bad guys—irredeemably avaricious and blood-thirsty but for three whom history has recorded.”4
As Daniel Hoffman acknowledges, the Crusades ultimately fell seriously short of accepted Christian standards for a just war, despite the fact that they were undertaken for largely noble reasons. These dark annals of church history are fair game should Hollywood choose to shine a light on them. It is not fair game, however, to distort the facts, capitalizing on the public’s ignorance of history, all for the purpose of striking a low blow at Christianity. Hofmann convincingly demonstrates that this is exactly what Kingdom of Heaven does.
Andrew G. Bostom, author of The Legacy of Jihad (Prometheus, 2005), puts the matter into historical perspective:
From its earliest inception, through the present,jihad has been central to the thought and writings of prominent Muslim theologians and jurists. The precepts and regulations elucidated in the 7th through 9th centuries are immutable in the Muslim theological-juridical system, and they have remained essentially unchallenged by the majority of contemporary Muslims. The jihad is intrinsic to the sacred Muslim texts, including the divine Qur’anic revelation itself, whereas the Crusades were circumscribed historical events subjected to (ongoing and meaningful) criticism by Christians themselves. Unlike the espousal of jihad in the Qur’an, the constituent texts of Christianity, the Old and New Testaments of the Bible, do not contain a form fruste [sic] institutionalization of the Crusades. The Bible sanctions the Israelites’ conquest of Canaan, a limited domain; it does not sanction a permanent war to submit all the nations of humanity to a uniform code of religious law….The Crusades as an historical phenomenon were a reaction to events resulting from over 450 years of previous jihad campaigns.5
The fact that the New Testament in particular never enjoins a holy war needs to be considered much more carefully than it often is. This we shall do in the next From the Editor.
— Elliot Miller
1. The Crusades were military expeditions that were undertaken by European Christians in the eleventh through thirteenth centuries to recover the Holy Land from the Muslims.
2. This definition of jihad is disputed by some Muslims (see, e.g., http://www.submission.org/muhammed/ jihad.html), and it is true that the term can also refer to a nonphysical struggle against evil, but the use of jihad to mean literal warfare is firmly established in both historic and contemporary Islam. (See Douglas E. Streusand, “What Does Jihad Mean?” Middle East Quarterly, September 1997, http://www.ict.org.il/ articles/jihad.htm.)
3. See, e.g., A. Aly, “Holy War (Jihad),” http:// home.att.net/~a.f.aly/jihad.htm.
4. Mary Alice Williams, “Film Review: Kingdom of Heaven,” Religion and Ethics Newsweekly, episode no. 836, PBS, May 6, 2005, http://www.pbs.org/wnet/ religionandethics/week836/review.html.
5. Andrew G. Bostom, “Jihad Begot the Crusades (part 1),” The American Thinker, May 4, 2005, http://www.americanthinker.com/articles.php?article_id=4467. | <urn:uuid:ad245fac-1ebe-445b-9167-c39643fa8aeb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.equip.org/articles/muslim-jihad-christian-crusades/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00069-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.928112 | 1,075 | 1.765625 | 2 |
A backyard vegetable garden can be a hit-or-miss game. You’re really not sure if your crops are getting enough sun, shade, or water until it’s time for harvest and you see the results of a season of hard work. Growerbot, a hardware project by [Luke] that’s up on Kickstarter now, hopes to change that. This box will pull down how much sun and water your crops should get, and is smart enough to correct any deficiencies.
On board the Growerbot is a soil moisture sensor, light, temperature, and humidity sensors, as well as WiFi connectivity and a few relays to run pumps and turn on grow lights. The idea is to learn from mistakes and achieve optimal growth for everything connected to the Growerbot. If you’re trying to grow some heirloom tomatoes in the midwest, you can go online and get the growth profile for your area and precisely control environmental variables for the perfect crop.
As of now, there are settings for in-ground gardens, raised beds, and hydroponic setups. There’s not much in the way of ideal growing conditions aside from what is available from the USDA, but once Growerbot is released we expect the data to start flowing in. | <urn:uuid:4eb8c439-914e-4d8e-85df-84af464e4d81> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://hackaday.com/2012/07/23/growerbot-turns-gardening-into-a-science/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00060-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938277 | 263 | 2.390625 | 2 |
And these [natural] rights are the foundation of limited government – government defined by the limited goal of securing those rights so that individuals may flourish in their free and responsible exercise of those rights.
A government thus limited is not in the business of imposing its opinions about what happiness or excellence the citizens should choose to pursue. Having such opinions is the business of other institutions – private and voluntary ones, especially religious ones – that supply the conditions for liberty.
Will went on to postulate this:
A nation such as ours, steeped in and shaped by Biblical religion, cannot comfortably accommodate a politics that takes its bearings from the proposition that human nature is a malleable product of social forces, and that improving human nature, perhaps unto perfection, is a proper purpose of politics… Biblical religion should be wary of the consequences of government untethered from the limiting purpose of securing natural rights.
A conservative, equally elegant and erudite, offered quite a different understanding of things:
A purpose of politics is to facilitate, as much as is prudent, the existence of worthy passions and the achievement of worthy aims. It is to help persons want what they ought to want. Politics should share one purpose with religion: the steady emancipation of the individual through the education of his passion.
This conservative went on to say this:
we need a public philosophy that can rectify the current imbalance between the political order’s meticulous concern for material well-being and its fastidious withdrawal from concern for the inner lives and moral character of citizens… we must rethink today’s constricted notion of the legitimate uses of law.
The institutions that once were most directly responsible for tempering individualism – family, church, voluntary associations, town governments – with collective concerns have come to seem more peripheral. Using government discriminatingly but energetically to strengthen these institutions is part of the natural program of conservatives… If conservatives do not want to use government power in behalf of their values, why do they waste their time running for office? Have they no value other than hostility to government? … National character is a real thing, molded in part by law and politics, and it is not made of marble.
The conservative who said these words was also George Will. He wrote them in 1983, in a book titled Statecraft As Soulcraft: What Government Does.
My point in juxtaposing George Will then v. George Will now is not to be critical of him. In fact, I admire Will. His writings, especially Statecraft As Soulcraft, had a significant shaping influence on me and on several of my closest friends and colleagues. And the fact that Will’s views have changed over the years may reflect well, not poorly, on him, demonstrating a mind that is open to a new interpretation of things.
What I do hope is that before too long, Mr. Will does what I don’t think he has done, which is to help us understand his journey from what he called “strong government conservatism” to a much more libertarian view of things.
I will admit that my own intellectual sympathies are more with the early Will than the current one. Over the years our laws–on civil rights, drug use, smoking, crime and incarceration, welfare, marriage, abortion, religious liberty, genocide, apartheid, the size of government, and much else–have helped shape the dispositions and habits of the polity. “Much legislation is moral legislation because it conditions the action and the thought of the nation in broad and important spheres in life,” Will wrote 30 years ago. He argued that desegregation explicitly and successfully changed individuals’ moral beliefs by compelling them to change their behavior. “The theory was that if government compelled people to eat and work and study and play together, government would improve the inner lives of those people.” Perhaps a new book or speech by Will, on why statecraft should not be soulcraft, will cause me to reexamine things.
But whether it would or not, I hope Will–one of modern conservatism’s most significant and exceptional conservative writers and thinkers–directly addresses his intellectual evolution. I for one would be fascinated to know why Will today holds views philosophically at odds with Will circa 1983. And I imagine others would as well. | <urn:uuid:0beb3c33-8c2d-4305-9de6-034b8ff73802> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.commentarymagazine.com/2013/01/07/the-intellectual-evolution-of-george-will/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00072-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964072 | 879 | 2.296875 | 2 |
Recently in the 2010 Photo Challenge, we were challenged to take a photo of a natural landscape – a landscape with no human intervention. Unfortunately living in Singapore and working, I found this really difficult to achieve.
Further reading, however, lead me to urban landscapes, which is differentiated from cityscape, architectural and candid street photography by Darren Rowse at DPS. He states in his article Photographing Urban Landscapes:
Urban Landscape photography is often gritty, it’s not always pretty and it can be quite abstract.
I’ve found that my attempts at “urban” tend to look cluttered and don’t really seem to have a focus or appear composed. I’ve included some photos below that seem to reflect that abstract, gritty look and seem to have a clear composition or “purpose” to the photo.
In addition, I’m currently dissecting the following articles to see if I can achieve this. If you have any to share, please include them in the comments.
- Urban Landscape Photography Tips – summary of key points by Mark Bury in from an article in Digital Photographer Magazine.
- Amateur Snapper’s Urban Landscape Photography Tips has some ideas for trying to put meaning into the photo, as well as incorporating some of the the tips from the other two articles linked to above.
- Light Stalking’s 21 Shots of Urban Decay serve as inspiration for composition and focus for future photographs.
Examples of urban photography are below. | <urn:uuid:4ca1c604-555b-4e43-8dab-4e120dbedb71> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://ozlady.com/interesting/category/landscapes/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00035-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968255 | 313 | 1.890625 | 2 |
Three one-acts depict a working world that's more talk than action
There's nothing about the new CenterStage show, Working It Out, to challenge the belief that the one-act play is a lost art form. Unlike fiction, where the short story continues to thrive despite its commercial futility, the theater has allowed one-act plays to wither away to little more than short exercises for actors.
The three one-acts roped together at CenterStage--Aaron Sorkin's Hidden in This Picture, Rick Cleveland's Jerry and Tom, and Lynn Rosen's Washed Up on the Potomac--don't offer much in the way of dramatic structure or even incident; they mostly consist of clumps of people talking in their respective workplaces. The Sorkin and Cleveland pieces, however, contain some very pleasurable talk, and it would have been a shame to keep all that good writing off the stage forever.
Director Jason Loewith has a strategy for coping with this dilemma. Instead of presenting the three one-acts intact, one after the other, he chops them up into pieces and scrambles extended excerpts from each into a 100-minute, intermission-less show. Thus, he begins with Cleveland's Jerry and Tom, two mob hitmen waiting for phone instructions as they banter with a roped and hooded hostage in one of the CenterStage aisles. The phone still hasn't rung when Loewith shifts our attention to the main stage where Rosen's three main characters are bemoaning their life as temp proofreaders beneath the long fluorescent lights of a D.C. ad agency.
It takes a lot of whining first, but eventually one of the three finds the courage to walk off the job. Her stunned co-workers find their desks taken over by Jerry and Tom, who are now at Kovachy Motors, the mob-run used-car lot that's a front for the duo's true business. The older, stouter Tom teaches the tricks of the trade to the younger, leaner Jerry during murders at a Chicago bus stop and an Orlando motel and during the hours of waiting in between.
Then, a pastoral landscape of wooded mountains and a sunset-tinted lake descends behind the stage, and Sorkin's protagonist, an artsy director, is setting up the last shot of a movie that is already $6.5 million over budget, three weeks over schedule, and badly compromised. By the time the shot is finished, the film is even more compromised, but not without some very witty give-and-take between the director, the producer, the assistant director, and the screenwriter. Then, the focus shifts back to the aisle where Jerry, Tom, and the hostage finally hear the phone ring.
This approach camouflages the narrative weakness of the three pieces by substituting story shifts for story development. It underlines the thematic unity of the three plays by juxtaposing one work place with another. Mostly, however, it neutralizes the worst flaws so we can appreciate the virtues of Sorkin's and Cleveland's dialogue.
Sorkin, the writer behind the TV series The West Wing, Sports Night and Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, certainly has an ear for the way people talk, and he skewers the pompous film director (Joseph Wycoff) and his geeky sidekick the writer (Garrett Neergaard) with merciless hilarity. It's not really a one-act play so much as an extended TV comedy sketch, but it's a good one.
Cleveland turned his 1994 one-act play into a full-length feature film, directed by actor Saul Rubinek, in 1998. Borrowing liberally from Pulp Fiction and The Sopranos, both versions of Jerry and Tom were constructed from self-contained vignettes that featured long stretches of talk and short bursts of action. It was a case of the whole being less than the sum of the parts, but some of the parts were quite entertaining, and by breaking them up with the two other plays, Loewith dampens our impatience that Jerry and Tom doesn't seem to be going anywhere original.
Joe Mantegna played Tom in the movie, and at CenterStage, Vasili Bogazianos not only looks quite a bit like Mantegna, but also has the same air of imperturbable, world-weary confidence. By contrast, the wiry Luke Robertson gives the younger Jerry a jittery edge that neither Tom nor the audience can ever quite trust. Because Cleveland is more of an actor's playwright than a writer's playwright, the main concern here is the interaction between the title characters, and these two performers make the most of it.
As for the Rosen piece, well, she certainly captures the mindless tedium of office work.
Love, True Love (7/28/2010)
A satire pokes fun at romantic notions
The Old College Try (7/21/2010)
A dramedy about the end of college pits child against parents
In the Shadow of Lushan (7/16/2010)
A play about manufacturing has hard edges
Drinking Songs (7/14/2010)
Patuxent Records keeps barroom bluegrass alive in Maryland
A Foolish Wit (7/7/2010)
The Bard's screwball comedy face plants
Keeping it Together (6/30/2010)
Marah and the Hold Steady add a harder, not as hopeful edge to Bruce Springsteen's working-class angst
812 Park Ave.
Baltimore, MD 21201 | <urn:uuid:2eb727c7-8010-4d43-94dc-39780c3a12cd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www2.citypaper.com/arts/story.asp?id=19903 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00030-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958667 | 1,158 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Burma Study Abroad Website
CAE (Certificate in Advanced English)
Description of the Test
The CAE is an examination at an advanced level which was introduced in 1991 and is suitable for people who require English for professional or study purposes. There is an emphasis on real-world tasks. It is also recognised by the majority of British universities as fulfilling English Language entrance requirements. Test dates are in June and December.
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The CAE has five components: reading, writing, English in use, listening and speaking.
Reading: Candidates are assessed as to their ability to read and understand texts taken from magazines, newspapers, leaflets, etc. They should demonstrate a variety of reading skills including skimming, scanning, deduction of meaning from context and selection of relevant information to complete the given task.
There are four texts and forty to fifty questions. The three main task types are: multiple matching, multiple choice and gap filling (at paragraph level).
Writing: Candidates are expected to complete non-specialist writing tasks in response to the stimuli provided (input text and task descriptions). The input texts are taken from articles, leaflets, notices, formal and informal letters, etc. Both audience and purpose are made clear in the task descriptions.
The first part is compulsory and candidates must complete one or more tasks in response to a reading input which is usually made up of several short texts. The second part involves choosing one of four tasks from a range of writing activities (letters, articles, instructions, messages, etc.). Responses should be about 250 words in length.
English in Use: Candidates are expected to demonstrate the ability to apply their knowledge of the language system by completing tasks based on authentic passages. They must complete six tasks with a total of approximately seventy items. The tasks are of the following types: gap filling, proof-reading exercises, text completion, text expansion (of notes etc.).
Listening: Candidates are expected to understand each text as a whole, gain detailed understanding and appreciate gist and the attitude of the speaker. They must also be able to identify and interpret the context. Texts take the form of announcements, speeches, radio broadcasts, etc.
There are four sections lasting approximately 45 minutes in all, with a total of thirty to forty questions. The first two sections consist of two short monologues, the third of a longer dialogue/interview and the fourth of conversational extracts. The tasks candidates are asked to perform include the following: information transfer, various types of matching, note completion and multiple choice. Sections A, C and D are repeated; Section B is played once only.
Speaking: The Speaking Test is conducted by two examiners with a pair of candidates. They must be able to demonstrate a range of speaking skills: interactional, social, transactional, negotiation and collaboration. The test lasts for fifteen minutes.
The candidates first introduce themselves and respond to questions about their interests, careers, etc. Each candidate is then given a set of visual stimuli which serve to encourage a long turn from each candidate. The final two parts are linked. The candidates first complete a collaborative task. This is followed by further discussion between the candidates and both examiners on points which have arisen from the collaborative task.
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Each component is equally weighted and carries 20% of the total marks. There are 3 pass grades (A, B and C). Candidates who achieve a great D, E or U are judged not to have reached the required standards of the CAE.
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Back to Required Tests Page | <urn:uuid:b2a7f203-5cb0-4f4d-81a6-ebf5284b7be1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ibiblio.org/BurmaEducation/cae.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00043-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951946 | 729 | 2.71875 | 3 |
Do dairy products contribute to increased mucus (phlegm) production?
Is Milk and Mucus a Myth?, 4.8 out of 5 based on 4 ratings
The Dairy Council denies there’s an association between milk and increased mucus production, and they blame it on the jews. The original myth, they claim, stems from a 12th century Jewish physician. Not just any 12th century Jewish physician though, but none other than Maimonides himself.
What have we learned in the last 800 years? The latest review on the subject was published last year. Does Milk increase mucus production? Fact… or fiction?
It appears to be , fact.
The milk protein casein breaks down in the stomach to produce a substance called casomorphin, which as it’s name implies, has opioid effects, which makes sense from an evolutionary standpoint, as species survival may depend on a close maternal bond between infant and mother.
The guess is that opioid receptors on the mucus glands in the respiratory tract may respond to the casomorphin from milk, which could potentially "Stimulate the production and secretion of mucus from these respiratory glands." This may explain why "a subgroup of the population who have increased respiratory tract mucus production, find that many of their symptoms, including asthma, improve on a dairy elimination diet.”
Maybe Maimonides was right.
To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring watch the above video. This is just an approximation of the audio contributed by Dianne Moore.
To help out on the site please email email@example.com | <urn:uuid:f6533209-78ec-4d3f-8035-39e89dea8645> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://nutritionfacts.org/video/is-milk-and-mucus-a-myth/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00041-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944515 | 344 | 2.359375 | 2 |
Following are criteria for one who seeks to become a member of the Republican Party.
1. One must take the hypocritical oath.
2. One must be against something that one was previously for.
3. One must promise never to allow a millionaire to pay higher taxes. Middle class, that is OK.
4. One must be for raising debt under Republican presidents, but oppose it under Democratic ones.
5. One must be for protecting sanctity of life of the unborn, but once born, fella, you’re on your own!
6. One must believe firing people creates jobs.
7. One must believe the nation needs leaders who have absolutely no economic or strategic sense.
8. One must believe there is a constitutional right to bring guns into schools, hospitals, churches, police stations and even halls of Congress.
9. One must believe Wall Street people are underpaid when ONLY receiving $150 Billion bonus payments.
10. One must believe the 17,000,000 unemployed are living a life of luxury if they can collect unemployment money. | <urn:uuid:d3103f99-75d8-4e49-a601-8c60163b79d7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://theimpudentobserver.com/world-news/on-being-a-republican/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00069-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947303 | 220 | 1.578125 | 2 |
Wine is considered to be one of the oldest and tastiest drinks and it used to have no rivals till centuries ago its derivative product - brandy - was produced. There are different suggestions as to where brandy drinks originated from. Some historians say it was the Chinese, who first worked out the technique of distilling water from wine; the others claim that the Egyptians were the inventors. However, there is no doubt that in Europe the recipes of the production of brandy were brought by the Moors, who occupied Spain in the 8th-15th centuries. Thus, the Spaniards started to make brandy drinks from fermented grapes, using the pot stills that the Moors had left.
The process of distillation is based on different temperatures of boiling the water (100°C) and alcohol (78.3°C). Therefore, while heating a fermented liquid, the steam containing alcohol evaporates first. It can be collected, cooled and condensed to turn into an alcoholic liquid of another quality.
The Arabs at first used the process of distillation for producing medicine and, only then, the drinkable qualities of the alcoholic liquid were discovered. However, the technique of its production was very imperfect at that time and the taste of the result drink left much to be desired. Improvements came in the 16th century, when an appropriate raw material - sharp white wine, made in the town of Cognac in western France, was found. After it was twice passed through the still, savory brandy was produced. It became even tastier, when held in oak casks for a couple of years. Although, this wood was chosen accidentally, it really has some qualities, making it valuable for the brandy drinks. The porosity of the oak provides a constant and limited contact of the drink with the oxygen, necessary for its maturity.
There are some other secrets of the brandy drinks production used nowadays. Wine should be distilled as slow as possible for its aromatic elements to be detached effectively. Moreover, during the process of distillation, a few phases should be observed: the first, "head" vapors, containing some harmful chemical elements, are removed, and then, after almost all the wine has been distilled, the "tails" are also removed.
The most famous brandy drinks are cognac brandy and Armagnac brandy. Cognac is produced only in the Cognac region of France. It is fine smooth brandy with a strong scent. There are various kinds of them: Three Star or VS (Very Strong) cognac is made of brandy, aged from two years; VSOP (Very Special Old Pale) cognac is produced from the blends of not less then four year mature; and XO cognac is Extra Old. The Armagnac is produced in the Armagnac region of France. This brandy drink has a richer taste than that of cognac.
Of course, France is not the only producer of brandy. American brandy drinks, mostly made in California, are light and smooth. Unlike in France, in the USA brandy is produced by individual firms, having their own brand names. Germany also brandies both in pot and continuous stills, even though the country is located at the northernmost limit of the wine production.
Fruit brandies are made from fruit: blackberries, raspberries, peaches, apricots, cherries and the others.
Brandy should be drunk after a meal - either on their own or with nut or apple desserts. They are served in snifters, bowl-shaped glasses, which you hold by the stem. Brandy does not need to be heated, otherwise, its fine aromas will evaporate. | <urn:uuid:52e74a2c-03df-479a-b5aa-6aaf3cd65986> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.syl.com/travel/whatmakesbrandydrinkssospecial.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975743 | 760 | 2.921875 | 3 |
The Tao of Pooh
New Edition. By Benjamin Hoff, 5" x 7.25", 158 pg. paperback. Mr. Hoff explains Taoism through the much-loved character of Winnie-the-Pooh, and, at the same time, he explains Pooh through the principles of Taoism. This wonderful (and classic) little book takes us on a whimsical journey to China with our favorite Pooh character. Chapter one begins with, "You see, Pooh," I said, "a lot of people don't seem to know what Taoism is..." "Yes?", said Pooh, blinking his eyes. | <urn:uuid:65e3f5cf-6413-4a5e-a795-4175232b4550> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.qi-journal.com/store.asp?-token.K=Daoism&-token.S=Philosophy&-KeyValue=1410 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.965366 | 130 | 1.570313 | 2 |
UNALAKLEET -- Cancer survivor Lance Mackey started the 2013 Iditarod with three of his original teeth. Now he's down to two.
"I was drinking tea, eating fudge, listening to music, just cruising along," the four-time champion said. As his dogs pulled him along the overflow-soaked Yukon River to Kaltag, Mackey bit something hard.
"Wow, that's a weird-looking nut," he thought.
Then he realized what had happened.
Mackey has been falling apart for some time. Radiation treatment for throat cancer discovered in 2001 led doctors to remove his top and bottom molars, he said. He must drink water constantly while on the runners of his sled because he can't produce saliva. And he is down to nine fingers: A symptom of the nerve damage suffered from the treatment.
He lost the tooth was sometime Saturday night or Sunday morning, days before the finish of the race.
"That sucks," he thought.
He put the tooth in his pocket. The pain came when he took a swig of Powerade.
Mackey mushed at least another 85 miles over 25 hours, including rest, to Unalakleet. Here, he visited a dental clinic and learned there was nothing to be done for him along the Iditarod trail.
The tooth had snapped off. The root must be removed, he said.
"They just gave me some antibiotics, which was the main concern. Penicillin and Tylenol 3," Mackey said. "She said it was enough to get to Nome, but I already ate half of them."
Only Mackey's two front teeth remain, he said. The Two Rivers musher, who was in 14th place in the race Monday night, plans to have a gold tooth made to fill the latest gap.
"I don't know if I have the heart to tell my mom," he said. "It was her fudge." | <urn:uuid:13145cd9-f52b-4063-8416-f12808764600> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.adn.com/2013/03/11/2821546/mackey-down-to-two-teeth.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.989886 | 410 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Our Clear Mission:
St Paul's Lutheran School celebrates God's gift of eternal life
by providing children and their families with a
Christ-centered, quality education
in a caring and nurturing environment.
St. Paul's Lutheran School is dedicated to a belief in the value of each individual as a child of God. We provide Christ centered, quality educational opportunities to help students achieve their potential to be life-long learners and to make positive contributions to their families, their communities and their churches.
Summer Day Care
Every day during the summer except July 4th. Program ends on August 16th.
$2.50 per hour or - $15.00 per day or - $60.00 per week
Lunches will be $2.50 (children are welcome to bring their own sack lunch)
Snack will be served at 2:30 daily
Nap time -rest time daily at 1-2:30
Review time daily of school work
Crafts/ Art times
Possible field trips to area locations (parks)
For more information or to sign your child up for the program go to our form at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1jwcu_Ns-Qk2qZHg5KHm6EcUC5T_AwhpejAomOcvfigk/viewform
The Lutheran Schools in the area recently participated in a Lutheran Schools Spelling Bee in Stover, Mo. Participating schools were St. Paul’s of Sedalia, St. Paul’s of Stover and LSA in Cole Camp.
1st Grade Oral - 1st Samantha Hagedorn (Sedalia) 2nd Grady Strathman (LSA) 3rd Kalysa Cochran (Stover)
1st Grade Written - 1st Grady Strathman (LSA) 2nd Ashton Matheis (Sedalia), Emily Sprinkle (Sedalia), Samantha Hagedorn (Sedalia), 3rd Allie Palmer (Stover)
2nd Grade Oral - First Isabella Cowan (Sedalia) 2nd Kyla Harms (LSA) 3rd Brayden Holt (Sedalia)
2nd Grade Written - 1st Jeremy Weber (Sedalia) Isabella Cowan (Sedalia) Reyna Kammeyer (LSA) 2nd Brayden Holt (Sedalia) Dylana Stoppel (LSA) Kyla Harms (LSA) 3rd Lakota Barker (Stover)
3rd Grade Oral - 1st Angelica Pfremmer (Sedalia) 2nd Adam Corpening (Stover) 3rd Ethan Siegel (Stover)
3rd Grade Written 1st Angelica Pfremmer (Sedalia) 2nd Desiree Heimsoth (LSA) 3rd Peter Adermann (Sedalia) Megan White (Sedalia) Adam Corpening (Stover) Daniel Vosmith (LSA)
4th grade Oral 1st Willy Murphy (LSA) 2nd Keegan Vosmith (LSA) 3rd Natalie Adermann (Sedalia)
4th grade Written 1st Keegan Vosmith (LSA) 2nd Savannah Ward (Sedalia) Garrett Strathman (LSA) Willie Murphy (LSA) 3rd Aaron Anderson (Sedalia) Natalie Adermann (Sedalia)
5th grade Oral - 1st place Zachary Zimm (LSA) 2nd Brooklyn Cross (Sedalia) 3rd Jenna Harms (LSA)
5th grade Written - 1st place Brooklyn Cross (Sedalia) 2nd place Bridget Gile (LSA) 3rd place Denise Sprinkle (Sedalia) Zachary Zimmer (LSA)
6th grade Oral - 1st place Camden Baker (Sedalia) 2nd place Caleb DeFord (Sedalia) Lena Hinck (Stover)
6th grade Written - 1st place Welton Vosmith (LSA) 2nd Place Clayton Hesse (LSA) Lena Hinck (Stover) 3rd Trenny Hering (Sedalia)
7th Grade Oral - 1st place Sidney Johnson (LSA) 2nd place Jeremiah Brandt (Sedalia) 3rd Place Taylor Viebrock (LSA)
7th Grade Written - 1st place Sidney Johnson (LSA) 2nd place Taylor West (Sedalia) 3rd place Anden Murphey (LSA) Taylor Viebrock (LSA)
8th Grade Oral - 1st place Vance Hesse (LSA) 2nd place Hannah May (Sedalia) 3rd place Skylar Balke (LSA)
8th grade Written - 1st place Hannah Schlesselman (LSA) 2nd place Vance Hesse (LSA) Skylar Balke (LSA) Adara Brotherton (Stover)
Winners of the Senior Division (grades 4-8) of our Chess Tournament.
First - Jeremiah Brandt (grade 7)
Second- Caleb DeFord (grade 6)
Third - Andrew Poteet (grade 7)
Fourth - Kobey Hill (grade 4)
Winners of Junior Division (grades K-3)
1st - Zachary Poteet (grade 3)
2nd - Brayden Holt (grade 2)
3rd- Gage Cross (Grade3)
4th - Peter Adermann ( Grade 3)
5th - Jeremy Weber (Grade 2)
6th - Nathaniel DeFord (Grade 3)
7th - Dominic Torok (Grade 2)
8th - Bethany Holt (Grade 3)
9th - Alexi Rayho (Grade 3)
Tournament was on May 4th at St. Paul's
Sedalia St. Paul's Lutheran School has implemented a new electronic payment system to make it easier on our parents and our faculty. Click here for the link.
St. Paul's has so much to offer!
- Weekly Chapel Services
- Small class size: current average is 14 students per classroom
- A growing school library
- Climate controlled classrooms
- An enclosed and secure playground attached to the gymnasium
- A ten computer lab with high-speed internet, supervised by staff.
Click here to view a wonderful Youtube video about Christian Education
Study Finds Advantages for Students in Faith-Based Schools
Religious schools have higher academic performance, narrower achievement gaps, and better behavioral outcomes than traditional public schools and public charter schools, according to findings from a meta-analysis of 90 studies on the effects of schools conducted by William Jeynes, senior fellow at the Witherspoon Institute in Princeton, NJ, and a professor at California State University, Long Beach.
Jeynes calls religious schools "the best hope for American education" and says the nation should "rethink its strategy of espousing charter schools and overlooking the benefits of faith-based education."
You can read more at : http://www.capenet.org/pdf/Outlook385.pdf | <urn:uuid:5183d79b-93a8-411f-90f7-72be8d3910a8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://sedaliastpauls.org/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00047-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.900831 | 1,497 | 1.554688 | 2 |
As the AMSC-Sinovel wind espionage dispute continues to simmer, there is also growing tension in the solar industry as an American company prepares to file an unfair trading practices suit against China. Have China and the United States embarked on a full-fledged renewable energy race, as some American officials have suggested recently? Is there still hope for an alliance that would unite American innovation and Chinese manufacturing? And how will this impact investment as American companies look to China for capital?
Possible Trade Complaint: Weeks after an American senator sent President Obama a letter complaining about unfair trade practices in the solar industry, a unit of SolarWorld, which has its American headquarters in the senator’s home state, may be preparing to file a trade complaint against China, according to Bloomberg.
Where the Money Is: Cleantech expert Dallas Kachan takes a look at the growing China market from the vantage point of those looking for investors. If a picture tells 1,000 words, two pictures write the chapter for China’s amazing boom years. Check out the before and after photos of Shanghai’s skyline to truly appreciate the level of change that has happened since 1990.
The Way Forward: Analyst Lou Schwartz of China Strategies says it’s time for America and China to redefine the rules of engagement in light of the recent AMSC-Sinovel dispute.
IN THE NEWS
The Cost of Business?: Companies that supply turbines for large-scale wind farms in India may be required to set up domestic manufacturing facilities, according to a new government policy under consideration. If it gets the go-ahead, the requirement could impact Chinese manufacturers like Shanghai Electric and Dongfang, which have already agreed to long-term supply deals.
Hydro Growth: According to an international report, hydropower is expected to be the predominant source of renewable energy growth in Asia over the next few decades. This is due to mid- to large-scale hydroelectric plants to be completed in China, India, and a number of nations in Southeast Asia, including Malaysia and Vietnam.
Shifting Winds: Growing Chinese wind turbine manufacturers are increasingly looking beyond the strong domestic market in search of new prospects in the United States and across Europe.
Make Mine a Triple: Tokohu Electric says it plans to triple its grid-connection wind capacity by 2020 in its coverage area, which includes some of the best wind resources in Japan. Tohoku Electric said it is starting to accept applications from wind farm developers for the joint study to increase wind capacity by 200 megawatts (MW) a year over the next two years.
Power in Numbers: The 10-member Association of Southeastern Asian Nations said last week that it is working toward an integrated regional market that is able to compete with Asian giants like China, Japan and India. The Philippines could lead the effort to help integrate the region’s geothermal potential.
Hands Off My Market: Richard Braille takes a look at protectionism in the renewable industry and how in some cases it applies to growing companies in places like China, Japan and India.
What Lies Beneath: The Financial Times takes a look at why China, with 1.3 billion people, is looking at tiny Iceland, with a population of 320,000, for answers to its renewable energy goals. The answer is geothermal energy, a resource that provides a vast amount of Iceland’s energy.
Worth A Deeper Look: Vast yet untapped, Japan has a surprising long history of geothermal energy use, and the nation is starting to take another look at a domestic resource that could play prominently in its energy future.
CHINA’S SOLAR SUPPORT
China’s Solar Investment: A recent report by Mercom Capital Group details loan amounts to individual Chinese solar manufacturers. In 2010, more than $32 billion in loans were awarded, while just over $8 billion in loans have been closed so far in 2011. The chart below shows the biggest recipients.
HAVE YOUR SAY
If you are an industry expert and would like to be a contributor for RenewableEnergyWorld.com, please contact us at email@example.com so we can show you how to get started.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
September 19-26, 2011 Asia Report: Subtle Signs of Energy Shift
September 12-19, 2011 Asia Report: Wind Espionage and Solar Riot
September 5-12, 2011 Asia Report: Will Region Maintain Its Edge? | <urn:uuid:50de7f35-1665-4352-8e47-35880d25b733> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2011/10/asia-report-the-race-for-innovation-dominance-and-capital?cmpid=rss | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00026-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.931339 | 917 | 1.859375 | 2 |
Thu November 29, 2012
The Car-Sized Bow And Other Gift-Giving Lies Pop Culture Told Me
'Tis the season when the ubiquity of gift-themed commercials and entertainment makes the ubiquity of American Idol in May feel like the subtle nudge of a kitten.
People are giving each other gifts, promising each other gifts, buying gifts, receiving gifts, and wrapping gifts all over your television, and they know they have you as a captive audience, because what are you going to do, go outside? Read a book?
The least you can do for yourself is be aware of the biggest gift-giving lies in popular culture, and fortunately, we have a list.
It is a good idea to give someone a surprise car with a big bow on it. The car bow is a cliche now, and Lexus is routinely slammed for their bizarre holiday ads, which suggest that you should not only buy a person a car as a present (and hope they don't, you know, LOOK OUTSIDE), but you should also invest in a giant red bow and perhaps a custom music box that plays the Lexus Love Theme, which you have helpfully had your custom music box maker orchestrate.
Or maybe you shouldn't buy the car as a gift. Maybe you should just buy the car and assume it will cause a hot person to appear in your life. You know, stranger things have happened.
But before you buy your giant car bow, keep in mind that unless you share no financial burdens whatsoever with the person you're giving the car to, and unless you will not be driving it, what you are really saying with a surprise Lexus is, "Merry Christmas! We bought something expensive you didn't know about!" Oh, and also, if your neighbors see a car in your driveway with a bow on it, you are never getting invited to a neighborhood party again.
It is a good idea to surprise someone with a pet. If Saturday Night Live really wanted to mock a true holiday trope, they'd have made a song called "Dog In A Box." Despite the fact that dogs don't like being in boxes, cats don't like being in boxes, and you're very likely to open a box full of distressed animal to find plenty of evidence of animal distress, the myth of opening a cardboard box to find an imprisoned puppy retains some charm for some people.
In addition to the fact that a pet is not the kind of thing you surprise someone with ("Surprise! This will be going to the bathroom somewhere in your house for the next 15 years!"), the match between pet and owner is such that nobody should be denied the opportunity to fall plainly and majestically in love with a pet and choose it on that basis. Otherwise, it has the potential to be like going on a bad blind date and finding out that you have to take the person home, feed him, wash him, clean his parts, and walk him on a leash till death do you part.
All women love jewelry. Don't get me wrong. Jewelry can be a great gift. If a woman likes jewelry, or if it's a lovely piece of jewelry, or if it's been carefully chosen with love, it can be a great gift. But don't think that women aren't aware that it can, in the wrong hands, be the soap-on-a-rope of gifts for women, the "here is a thing I am giving you because it's the day for thing-giving!" of discouraged shoppers. Please resist the urge to be the guy who expects that if he gives the gift of jewelry, then without fail, there will suddenly be classical music and people leaning out of windows calling out their congratulations in Italian or whatever it is that happens in diamond commercials. Witness this sadistic, mean lady who acts embarrassed and horrified and withholds her affection when her fella yells that he loves her, but declares her love when he gives her stuff. She is not to be trusted.
Snow globes are the most sentimental gift that can be passed from one person to another. I am convinced that the best PR professionals in the entertainment field work for the snow globe industry, which I imagine has secret kickback deals in which the International Snow Globe Manufacturing Association is giving checks under the table to everyone who overstates the significance of the snow globe in gift-giving culture. Because any time there is a script that contains a moment when a gift should be given, and it should be clear that the gift is a gift with all kinds of feeeeeeeelings involved, there is an excellent chance that the gift will be a snow globe. Now, tell the truth: If you are not a snow globe collector and you do not do your Christmas shopping at the airport, how many snow globes have you bought and sold, relative to how much love you have given and received? I REST MY CASE.
You should write in a book that you give to a person who loves books. I'm certainly not saying you should never write in a book that you give to a person who loves books. But there are different kinds of book people. One kind of book person doesn't mind dog-eared pages, broken spines, and other signs that books have been handled by humans. The other kind of book person sees an old ten-cent paperback being thrown in the recycling and calls the How Could You Police. If you have the first kind of book person, you should feel free to write in the front of the book, "I thought you might like to read this! Merry Christmas!" If you have the second kind of book person, it might be safer to insert a card in the front of the book so that the person can throw it in the recycling and retain a pristine book that still appears untouched by human hands. I'm just saying, it could be a safer choice than writing a lovely inscription that, whatever it says, will be read as "I got you some offensive and unfeeling vandalism! I hope you like it." | <urn:uuid:b5a3501d-2672-45fa-be3a-f98f418d9290> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://ktep.org/post/car-sized-bow-and-other-gift-giving-lies-pop-culture-told-me | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966986 | 1,232 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Fair Trade Products, Led By Ice Cream, See 75 Percent Sales Growth
These days, companies that sell fair trade-certified food might be doing much better than "fair." Sales of products with Fair Trade USA's seal of approval for ethics and sustainability rose 75 percent in the fourth quarter of last year over the first quarter of 2011, according to a recent report by retail research company SPINS.
The spike in sales took place even though fair trade-certified products, about 95 percent of which are edible goods, almost always cost more than alternative items.
"[Recent growth] reflects consumers' interest in being able to vote with their dollars to make every purchase matter," Mary Jo Cook, chief impact officer of Fair Trade USA, told The Huffington Post.
Cook's employer, a nonprofit organization, is best known for certifying products like chocolate and coffee, which are predominantly made from one agricultural commodity. But Fair Trade USA also certifies products composed of multiple ingredients; this is the category that experienced the most vigorous sales growth. Sales of fair trade-certified frozen desserts rose 394 percent and purchases of fair trade-certified snack bars climbed almost tenfold during the 12 weeks ending March 19, 2011, as contrasted with the 12 weeks ending Dec. 24, 2011.
A major reason for the tremendous growth in sales is the recent embrace of fair trade by a few major brands, Cook said. Ben & Jerry's, for example, committed to using fair trade ingredients in February 2010 and has slowly been moving toward universal adoption for all its products. That means that some consumers may have started to buy fair trade-certified products without realizing.
Commodity products, like bananas and coffee, must be 100 percent sourced from fair trade producers to bear the vaunted label, according to Fair Trade USA. Foods that carry the "made with fair trade ingredients" label must meet a lower threshold: Just 20 percent of the dry weight of the product has to be sourced from certified suppliers.
Many customers are more concerned about ethics than they used to be, according to surveys and market studies cited by Cook. "If price and quality are similar, over half of consumers now say they will switch brands in favor of a company with more ethical practices," she said.
It's not a given that the price will be similar, however. For a product to become certified by Fair Trade USA, the ingredients must be produced according to certain ecological standards -- which Cook said are somewhat less stringent that those for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's organic certification. Also, a certain amount of money from the product's sale goes toward improvement of the communities where ingredients are sourced (the surcharge varies from product to product).
Many customers seem willing to pay up. A 2011 study by MIT researchers found that consumers were willing to pay about 8 percent more for fair trade coffee than for equivalent coffee without such certification.
"Customers are beginning to recognize that there's a great story behind the label," said Carol Madeiros, a global grocery coordinator for Whole Foods Market, one of the biggest vendors of fair trade products. "It's definitely a plus when our customers see that. It's a great attribute, like organic or local."
Not everyone's convinced, however.
"If you're ceasing to buy coffee from a rich place and starting to buy it from a poor place, that's great," said Tyler Cowen, author of "An Economist Gets Lunch," which will be published next month.
"But in general, that's not what happens. Instead, you're creating a slightly privileged class of very impoverished workers," Cowen said. "I don't think, on net, fair trade hurts people. It hurts some people and helps others. But when people feel very magnanimous about buying fair trade, that's when it starts to be a problem."
Fair Trade USA has been dogged by accusations of mismanagement and naivete. Some have argued that the extra money spent by consumers on fair trade-certified products ends up in the hands of the wrong people -- or even in the wrong country.
Cook said Fair Trade USA goes to great lengths to be transparent about the distribution and use of funds allocated to grower communities and points to its impact reports on its website.
Related on HuffPost: | <urn:uuid:1f3e2bcd-47b3-43d9-85a5-5653c811863f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/14/fair-trade_n_1339288.html?ref=mostpopular | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00075-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969932 | 872 | 2.046875 | 2 |
|Sorbus aria is a medium sized deciduous tree, reaching 35 to 45 feet tall. Leaves are not typical of mountain ash. Foliage is leathery, dark green, leaf undersides are white and downy, in fall leaves turn pale green to golden brown or redddish. 'Chrysophylla' has golden yellow leaves when young. Small white flowers are produced on 2 to 3 inch corymbs in late spring. The orange-red to scarlet fruit is a berry-like pome, ripening in early fall. Native to Europe. | <urn:uuid:52e52405-3dee-4d6f-befe-dfa9fe16c66a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.backyardgardener.com/plantname/pda_db71-2.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00020-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.928094 | 121 | 2.296875 | 2 |
Hi there, my name is Nelson Almeida, I live in Portugal and my first contribution to this forum will be a question. I hope I choose the right sub-forum to make it and I'm sorry if this question seems to basic. I've done some navigation on the forum and I'm a little lost, that's why I decided to post this.
I do model railroading as a hobby and I scratchbuild most of my structures, I have plenty of electronics knowledge some mechanics and some 3d software knowledge, I'm a diy kind of guy and for me part of the challenge is in building something, so while I need a cnc machine for my railroading projects I also like the challenge of building it myself, I've seen lot's of plans and kits around but since I belong to some RR forums I learned a long time ago the best way to get somewhere is talk with the pros.
So, I'm looking for a small cnc design, something around 8" x 8" and around 1" deep capable. Usually I make my parts and cast them in resin later so I don't need something fast or metal capable, what I need is precision and something that has the lowest kerf(?) possible, I mean something that can work with the smallest bits available and "eats" as low as possible. Something that could carve wood, wax and possibly styrene.
I'm looking at two main possibilities, scratch build or kit build so I would like to ear your opinions.
Thanks in advance guys | <urn:uuid:0ccf82b9-c9e5-40db-a378-e798561e2bfa> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cnczone.com/forums/diy_cnc_router_table_machines/50427-help_choice.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968231 | 315 | 1.523438 | 2 |
Probably all during your life span you have heard the term...Mama's Boy. We have wondered what does it take to be a Mama's Boy, and how these Mama's Boys fit in with our society. Most are timid individuals, some remove themselves from their traits, and some cannot cope being with their gender. Being raised my their mother with no father around to give the child the fatherhood guidance, they try to gain respect from men they never had the opportunity to pickup mens actions, traits, and most of all respect from men.
We have such an individual today, and most of you have heard of him....Mr. Barack Obama.
This person made his best in a fatherless childhood growing up in the whelms of his mother, doing a lot what most children do without a man of the home being around. He did well in school, sports, normal activities, but, there was that one thing he didn't have...a reason to say no, and not to give in to others. Some would say, he didn't want to argue, or show some actions to stand up for his ideas and lead. For the past three years we have witness just what most would say...no backbone.
During the campaign trail back in 2007 and 2008, he made every effort to show the people in the USA he had the knowledge, the spirit, the ideas, but he didn't know how to apply the mechanism for all those to work as President of the United States. When it became time to get in a discussion...important matters to the people of the United States...he let his opponents take advantage of him and like I have used this phrase..."If you think you are beaten, your are. If you think you dare not, you won't. If you like to win, but you think you can't, it is most certain you won't."
If you think you are beaten, your are. If you think you dare not, you won't. If you like to win, but you think you can't, it is most certain you won't. | <urn:uuid:c0112a5c-a4b0-4f12-b974-e1bdc7950553> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://tvnewslies.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=17941&view=previous | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00067-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.988905 | 424 | 2.0625 | 2 |
by Gleaves Whitney
John Adams has finally gotten the fame he craved, but it was a long time coming over a rough road. Already as a young man he tortured himself thinking about a future without fame. Historians don’t need to speculate on this point because he and his wife Abigail seemed to write down everything. Because of the thousands of letters they left us, we know John Adams’s inner life better than the inner life of any other founding father. We know, apropos of this talk, that he thought he should be famous, once declaring that the “Times alone have destined me to Fame” [Ferling 170].
Yet the quest for fame was a thorn in his side. As David McCullough put it, as a young man “John Adams was not a man of the world. He enjoyed no social standing. He was an awkward dancer and poor at cards. He never learned to flatter…. There was no money in his background” . Everything he earned — from respect in the courtroom, to readership in the newspapers, to leadership in Philadelphia — he had to work hard at. He knew that fame can be fickle and fleeting. For that reason, he feared posterity would not pay him sufficient homage.
Moreover, he was eaten up with envy when he thought of the more illustrious founders of his own day. Given his Puritan New England heritage, Adams knew envy was one of the seven deadlies, but he seemed helpless before the green-eyed monster. Even when Adams was the runner-up to George Washington in our first national election, he still felt green with envy. One year after that election, in a letter to Benjamin Rush, Adams railed: “The history of our revolution will be one continued lie from one end to the other. The essence of the whole will be that Dr. Franklin’s electrical rod smote the earth and out sprang General Washington. That Franklin electrified him with his rod — and henceforward these two conducted all the policy, negotiations, legislatures, and war.”
Adams’s hunger for fame stands in stark contrast to the easy-going attitude of a later president, Ronald Reagan, who quipped: “There is no limit to what you can accomplish if you don’t care who gets the credit.” Lacking Reagan’s insouciance, Adams yearned for the credit. But here’s the good news. If Adams didn’t get enough of it in his own time, he perhaps is finally satisfied with the credit he receives today. Looking down on us (for he believed in eternal life), this stubborn man would likely be happy to concede how wrong he was about posterity. Americans have been lionizing him since the Second World War.
* * *
His Rotundity — His Own Worst Enemy
Like any public figure who lives into his nineties, Adams experienced his share of setbacks — more than a few of his own making. Isn’t one of the most difficult things any of us learns is how to deal with our own personality and its liabilities? Adams fessed up that he had a difficult personality. He could be his own worst enemy – ironic given that he once wrote Abigail a letter cataloging all her faults!
Examining the numerous liabilities of his personality, biographer John Ferling observes, “Adams struck many people as vain, irritable, irascible, supercilious, and tactless. He maintained a stiffly formal and aloof demeanor, what one acquaintance called a habitually ‘ceremonious’ manner…. Abigail once scolded him for his tendency to indulge in ‘intolerable forbidding expecting Silence’ while in the midst of a conversation; ’tis impossible for a Stranger to be tranquil in your presence’” [Ferling 170].
Moreover, he nursed a tendency toward brooding pessimism. As he revealed to his diary on the eve of the Second Continental Congress — the Congress that would declare independence — “I wander alone, and ponder. I muse, I mope, I ruminate. We have not men fit for the times. We are deficient in genius, education, in travel, fortune — in everything. I feel unutterable anxiety” [McCullough 23].
Adams also had a hot temper. He managed to keep his outbursts confined to private conversations, but there was widespread conjecture that he might be emotionally unstable. One of the most egregious outbursts occurred the only known time Adams demeaned a subordinate to his face. In the presidential mansion one day he dressed down an aide, James McHenry, unjustly accusing him of scheming with Hamilton to bring Adams down. Then came the volley of insults. He frothed that that “foreigner,” Hamilton, was ”the most restless, impatient, artful, indefatigable, and unprincipled intriguer in the United States, if not the world.” ”The bastard brat of a Scotch peddler” had a “superabundance of secretions which he could not find whores enough to draw off.” Finally Adams decried “the profligacy of his life; his fornications, adulteries and his incests.” Such a surprising outburst, this, that McHenry later wrote down what happened in letters to friends and family. He ventured that the second president of the United States was “actually insane” [McCullough 538-39].
Besides a penchant for being his own worst enemy, there were situations that arose which Adams thought might do harm to his reputation.
- At great risk to his young law career, Adams defended the Redcoats who were involved in the Boston Massacre because he believed that the law rather than popular passions should rule Massachusetts.
- Adams’s two terms as Vice President were frustrating for a man of his restlessness, vigor, brilliance, and vanity. Complaining to Abigail, he opined, “My country has in its wisdom contrived for me the most insignificant office that ever the invention of man contrived or his imagination conceived.” After eight years of biding his time, a lesser man might have given up and gone home.
- The four Alien and Sedition Acts as well as the so-called Midnight appointments to the judiciary — on the eve of Jefferson taking office — made Adams look thin-skinned, unprincipled, and unpresidential.
- Perhaps his most bitter setback was losing the White House to Jefferson in the Election of 1800. Adams despaired that his reputation could ever recover from such an ugly campaign. We think politicking is a dirty business today, but we forget that it was even dirtier in the early republic. In 1800, Jefferson and his allies roused an unprincipled journalist, James Callender, to attack Adams’s character in the Richmond Examiner. The sitting president was accused of being a monarchist, a warmonger, and even a hermaphrodite who had ”neither the force and firmness of a man, nor the gentleness and sensibility of a woman.” Callender especially wanted to drive home the impression that Adams was insane with rage. He spread the unfounded rumor that Adams once became so enraged he ripped off his wig, threw it on the floor, and stomped on it [McCullough 536-37].
It gets worse. Callender, with Jefferson’s blessings, accused Adams of importing two mistresses shortly after being elected president in 1796. Ridiculous rumor, of course, but in the battleground state of Pennsylvania, this was a serious allegation. One of the mistresses supposedly was from France, the other from Germany. As Alf Mapp humorously puts it, “While retaining the French charmer … Adams supposedly had returned her rival to her native Germany. The Pennsylvania Germans were incensed, not so much by reports of sexual immorality as by the thought that the president would reject a fräulein while holding fast to a mademoiselle [Mapp 55]. Because Adams couldn’t carry Pennsylvania, he wasn’t reelected, and to Adams, this further robbed him of respect.
* * *
This essay is the second in a series on John Adams. The Thorn of Fame (Part 1 is available here.) The Adams series served as the basis for my talk accompanying the exhibition, John Adams Unbound, organized by the Boston Public Library and the American Library Association. The talk was given at the Loutit District Library, Grand Haven, Michigan, on June 30, 2011. This Adams series was posted on July 2 because he thought that was the day our country’s independence should be pondered and celebrated. For more on presidents and leadership, see AllPresidents.org.
Gleaves Whitney is a Senior Contributor to The Imaginative Conservative and the director of Grand Valley State University’s Hauenstein Center for Presidential Studies, and has authored or edited 14 books. | <urn:uuid:1df305f7-512f-4040-92cb-9362eb75f9a3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.theimaginativeconservative.org/american-founding-john-adams-part-2/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976239 | 1,894 | 2.390625 | 2 |
Access to clean drinking water, sustainable energy sources and changes in the environment are some of the challenges faced by many around the world. Designers, from the Australia to Bangladesh, are responding with innovative design solutions.
The Smithsonian Center for Education and Museum Studies organizes a free online conference series on pressing environmental issues. This year the focus was water. As curator of socially responsible design, I joined with the museum’s education director, Caroline Payson, to discuss why Water Matters. Along with scientists, geographers and others from across the Smithsonian, we were part of Shout, an education initiative that invites students and educators to take an active role through online events, virtual classrooms and student challenges.
In Bangladesh, architect Mohammed Rezwan responded to constant flooding along the country’s rivers in the north, creating Floating Community Lifeboats. Working with local boat builders traditional boats were transformed into floating solar-powered schools and health clinics. In Australia, another designer uses a readily available untapped local resource, ocean waves. Lying on the ocean’s floor, the bioWAVE ocean-wave energy system mimics ocean plants and their constant movement caused by the surrounding water to generate renewable energy. Click here, Sink or Float: Water and Design Solutions, to learn more about these and other designs. | <urn:uuid:99da2236-0a17-4e3e-b55c-ebf0d87a55ee> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cooperhewitt.org/es/conversations/2012/07/30/shout-about-design | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00028-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950204 | 265 | 3.046875 | 3 |
Create, edit, and print your own tests for any level of Ventures with this easy-to-use software. You can also upload the test onto the Internet for students to take on their own computers. Ventures TestCrafter comes with a bank of about 2,000 questions covering listening, grammar, reading, vocabulary, and communicative skills. An Audio CD containing the listening sections from the tests is also included in the package.
View Instructions for Mac users (using artwork with Export to Word) | <urn:uuid:3a79f61d-26ac-4829-bc29-e33ce5141f8f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cambridge.org/us/esl/catalog/subject/project/custom/item2401754/Ventures-TestCrafter/?site_locale=en_US¤tSubjectID=2489422¤tProject=405055 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00072-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.929523 | 100 | 1.625 | 2 |
U.S. emissions of the gases blamed for global warming fell 1.5 percent in 2006 on mild weather and high fossil fuel prices, the statistics arm of the Department of Energy estimated on Wednesday.
President George W. Bush said in a release that the drop kept the country "well ahead" of his greenhouse gas intensity goal, as measured by the amount of such gases emitted per unit of economic activity.
But U.S. emissions remained much higher than they were in 1990, a key year in international efforts to fight climate change because it is the baseline year for the U.N.'s Kyoto Protocol. Rich countries that signed the pact have to cut their emissions at least 5 percent under their 1990 levels by 2008 to 2012.
...Unseasonably cool weather in the summer and warm weather in the winter kept power demand flat last year which reduced emissions of CO2 from power plants, while higher prices for energy cut emissions from industry and cars, the report said...
Wednesday, November 28, 2007 | <urn:uuid:2b5c291d-22d9-46b6-b1d6-3e8f6f787ac4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://climateerinvest.blogspot.com/2007/11/us-says-greenhouse-emissions-fell-15.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96061 | 203 | 2.921875 | 3 |
When members of the West Virginia Public Energy Authority meet this week in Charleston, a variety of potential breakthroughs will be on the agenda. Not listed on the conference's program is the most critical concern, however: President Barack Obama's determination to throw away billions of dollars on irrational, pie-in-the-sky visions while cutting practical research funding to the bone.
Presentations to the authority will include topics such as enhanced oil recovery, gas and oil drilling in the Utica Shale formation, geothermal energy and use of natural gas to fuel vehicles.
Gas is an example of the president's failure to be serious about energy. Just a few weeks ago the White House announced new federal funding for research into natural gas vehicles. A pitiful $30 million - less than 6 percent of what the government threw away on Solyndra, the California solar company, is being provided.
At the same time the president announced $14 million in funding to study use of algae to fuel vehicles. Yes, algae.
Clearly, state officials have their energy priorities in order. It's a shame Obama does not. | <urn:uuid:85a03fdc-6097-420b-a921-70dcc5c108f2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://journal-news.net/page/content.detail/id/579453/Out-Of-Order.html?nav=5003 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943804 | 224 | 1.859375 | 2 |
Sudan's Bashir demands AU summit moves from Malawi
Sudan has asked the African Union (AU) to shift its July summit from Malawi after Malawian President Joyce Banda said Sudan's leader Omar al-Bashir was not welcome to attend.
Sudan's foreign ministry said the meeting was of the "upmost importance" and Mr Bashir's presence was required.
Sudan wants the meeting to take place at AU headquarters in Addis Ababa.
Mr Bashir has been indicted for war crimes in Darfur by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
He denies the allegations.
Sudan says its leader must take part in the summit, due on 9-16 July, because the agenda includes the ongoing tension between Khartoum and South Sudan.
South Sudan seceded in July last year after decades of civil war.
In recent weeks, the two countries have been close to all-out war over oil and undemarcated borders.Rebuilding donor ties
Mrs Banda said in May that she wanted Mr Bashir to stay away from the meeting in the Malawian capital, Lilongwe, fearing the "economic implications" of his presence in the country.
She is trying to rebuild relations with donors, on which the impoverished country relies. They cut aid to her predecessor Bingu wa Mutharika's government, accusing him of political repression and economic mismanagement.
Mr Mutharika, who died suddenly in April, also defied calls to apprehend Mr Bashir who visited Malawi in October 2011.
After that visit, the ICC, which has issued an arrest warrant for Mr Bashir, referred the country to the UN Security Council.
Sudan says Malawi's current position on Mr Bashir violates AU rules including an obligation to provide "the required propitious frameworks and environment for the summit".
Malawi's information minister, Moses Kumkuyu, told the BBC: "The statutes of the African Union gives freedom to member states to make their grievances known."
"We were only making our position known and that is not infringing on any statute of the AU."
Under the ICC statute, member states - of which Malawi is one - have a duty to arrest indictees. | <urn:uuid:aab182dc-e10f-4f03-bf42-2e86ccfc59b3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-18359924 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00073-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969975 | 471 | 1.515625 | 2 |
French Presidency of the UN Security Council (August 1, 2012)
Starting August first, France is presiding over the UN Security Council for one month.
On August 2, the under-secretary-general for peacekeeping operations, Hervé Ladsous, will give a report on the UN Supervision Mission in Syria, whose mandate was renewed for 30 days by Resolution 2059 of July 20.
The minister will continue his consultations on Syria with France’s major partners, including the Arab League. The modalities for a Security Council action under the French presidency will be spelled out in the near future.
There will be a debate on the Sahel on August 8. It will offer an opportunity to review the political transition in Mali and the status of joint efforts undertaken by the Malian authorities, other nations in the region, ECOWAS and the African Union with respect to the deployment of a force in that country.
Under the French presidency, the Security Council will also reach a decision on renewing the mandate of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and will continue to monitor the implementation of its decisions by Sudan and South Sudan, with a view to easing relations between those two nations. The situations in Kosovo, Somalia and the Middle East will also be examined.
The main events during the French presidency of the Security Council will be posted on the Web site of France’s permanent delegation to the United Nations (www.franceonu.org) and on that of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs .
France’s Security Council presidency will follow that of Colombia. It thanks that country for the work accomplished under its presidency in July, particularly for its commitment to progress on the Syrian crisis. | <urn:uuid:b3b8e970-51e8-420f-859e-2012646c77cc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/en/spip.php?page=article_imprim&id_article=17479 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00023-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.940853 | 355 | 1.882813 | 2 |
Dietitian Ariane Grumbach’s 10 rules for eating the French way and staying skinny
translated and adapted by Jonell Galloway
10 rules that could be called Slow Food rules?
- Eat only when you’re hungry.
- Stop eating as soon as you are no longer hungry.
- Use all 5 senses to taste and experience your food.
- Eat slowly, thoroughly chewing everything you eat.
- Do something relaxing before eating.
- Do not do anything else — like watch television, play on the computer, read, etc. — while eating.
- Do not deprive yourself of foods.
- Make an effort to discover new tastes; get curious about new foods.
- Listen to your urges.
- When serving food, make an effort to present it in an aesthetic manner. | <urn:uuid:f4a10554-4e12-4051-b38b-cda44a61a506> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.theramblingepicure.com/archives/6266 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00034-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.939397 | 174 | 2.78125 | 3 |
March 23, 2009
The CBOs budget projections released last Friday are based in part on our economic forecast. In this blog entry, I want to discuss how our projection of real (that is, inflation-adjusted) GDP, one of the most important economic factors in the budget projections, compares with two other forecaststhe Blue Chip forecast (an average of about 50 private-sector forecasters), and the Administration's forecast.
Often, it is useful to focus on growth rates, as we did in our report here. However, the effect of GDP projections on the budgetand especially on tax revenuecan be seen more clearly by comparing levels of projected GDP. As the figure below shows:
- CBOs projection of real GDP is lower than that of the Administration throughout the next 10 years, and,
- CBOs projection is stronger than the Blue Chip consensus of private forecasters in 2010 and beyond (although slightly weaker in 2009). A difference remains even though CBOs projection of growth slows a bit after 2015 (the slope of the line flattens slightly), while the Blue Chips projection does not.
Comparison of CBO, Administration, and Blue Chip Medium-Term Projections: Levels of Real GDP, 2005 to 2019
(Billions of 2000 dollars)
Sources: Congressional Budget Office; Office of Management and Budget; Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis; and Aspen Publishers, Inc., Blue Chip Economic Indicators (March 10, 2009).
For the differences in 2009, much of the story is behind us: real GDP fell at an annual rate of 6.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008 and now seems likely to be falling at a similar rate in the first quarter of this year. CBOs forecast was completed a month and a half after the Administrations forecast and a few weeks after the March Blue Chip survey. Economic news during that timeweaker employment, exports, and orders for manufacturers, and downward revisions to GDP growth in the fourth quarter of 2008 and to employment growth in December and Januarycaused many economists to sharply reduce their estimates for the level of economic activity in the first part of this year.
But, like the Blue Chip consensus, CBO projects the beginning of an upturn late this year (as shown in the figure below), reflecting in part the effects of the recent economic stimulus legislation (the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act) and very aggressive actions by the Fed and the Treasury.
The Gap Between Actual and Potential Output (Percentage of potential GDP)
Note: The gap is the difference between real (inflation-adjusted) gross domestic product and its estimated potential level (which corresponds to a high level of resourcelabor and capitaluse).
Sources: Congressional Budget Office; Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis.
For the next few years, CBO projects faster growth than the Blue Chip, as the economy grows back toward CBOs estimate of potential GDP (which corresponds to a high level of use of labor and capital resources). Still, the CBO forecast assumes that the gap between actual and potential output closes more slowly than in previous recoveries because of a persistent drag from financial markets, households loss of wealth, the overhang of vacant houses, and weak economic growth overseas. Therefore, CBO projects that the economy does not return to its potential level until 2014.
In the 2015-2019 period, the projected rate of real GDP growth averages 2.4 percent. That rate is lower than during the period from 2010 to 2014, largely because there is no longer any gap to close between actual and potential GDP.
Projected growth from 2015 to 2019 is also below historical average growth rates, a difference that is more than accounted for by slower growth in the labor force because of the retirement of the baby boom generation. Over the postwar period, the labor force grew at an average annual rate of 1.6 percent; by contrast, we project it to grow only 0.4 percent per year in the period from 2015 through 2019. As a result, potential GDP grew 3.4 percent per year on average in the postwar period, but CBO expects that it will grow by only 2.4 percent annually (allowing for a tad more productivity growth) in the 2015-2019 period. That demographic trend is reflected also in the Social Security Administrations projections of the labor force, available here. CBO published its own analysis of demographic trends; while the numbers have changed a little with new information since then, the general story remains the same.
To be sure, all economic forecasts are subject to considerable uncertainty, as we emphasized in our report. But I hope that this discussion of the logic behind the latest CBO forecast is helpful to readers of that report. | <urn:uuid:f8d544b3-e1ed-44cd-9aa5-ff38f66ec796> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://cbo.gov/publication/24879 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00069-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.945179 | 950 | 2.0625 | 2 |
Not exactly. South Dakota does have some of the nation’s most restrictive abortion laws–including, in violation of the Hyde Amendment, a ban on using state Medicaid funding to cover abortions when the pregnancy is a result of rape or incest. But a proposal to expand the definition of “justifiable homicide” to include resisting attempts to harm an unborn child would not actually make it legal to kill doctors who perform abortions. Not yet, anyway.
Greg Sargent and Dave Weigel looked into the story this morning, and determined that because the relevant South Dakota code deals with homicide to prevent harm from an illegal act, abortion wouldn’t be covered. Abortion is still legal, after all, even in South Dakota.
Of course, that’s an awfully thin semantic line preventing a pro-life extremist from legally going after one of South Dakota’s two abortion providers. Especially given the increasing array of restrictions that surround abortion in the state. South Dakota has a parental notification law. Does that mean if a doctor performs an abortion on a teenager who has not obtained her parent’s consent, that abortion is illegal and the doc is fair game? It’s unclear. And that’s a problem–even if the bill isn’t quite as inflammatory as it first appeared. | <urn:uuid:4d39bf4b-3527-4cdb-bf2a-b946a83c0acf> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://swampland.time.com/2011/02/15/re-so-much-for-thou-shalt-not-kill/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00060-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942365 | 268 | 1.570313 | 2 |
NEW YORK CITY – August 10, 2005 – The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) today asked City restaurateurs and food suppliers to voluntarily make an oil change by eliminating partially hydrogenated vegetable oils from the kitchen. Partially hydrogenated vegetable oils have been chemically modified and contain relatively high levels of trans fat, which significantly increases risk of heart disease, the City’s top cause of death. Commercial vegetable oils used by restaurants for cooking, frying, and baking often contain trans fat, as do many margarines, shortening, and pre-fried foods, baked goods and snack foods.
DOHMH is announcing this new educational initiative following recently released federal dietary guidelines, which recommend that consumers keep their trans fat intake as low as possible. While many nutrition labels already indicate trans fat content, the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is requiring that trans fat content be listed on all nutrition labels starting January 1, 2006.
DOHMH Commissioner Dr. Thomas R. Frieden said, “New York City’s restaurants are the best in the world but they can be even healthier. Trans fat is artificially added to the foods we eat and is easily removed. To help combat heart disease, the number one killer in New York City, we are asking restaurants to voluntarily make an oil change and remove artificial trans fat from their kitchens. We are also urging food suppliers to provide products that are trans fat free.”
Robert Eckel, MD, President of the American Heart Association, said, “Heart disease is the leading cause of death and disability in the nation. Trans fat increases the risk of heart disease risk because it raises total cholesterol and bad cholesterol (LDL), and lowers good (HDL) cholesterol. Similar to saturated fat which we get from meat and dairy fat, eating high levels of trans fats can increase the risk of developing heart disease, and this initiative, combined with efforts to reduce saturated fat, are essential ingredients for good heart health.”
E. Charles Hunt, Executive Vice President of the New York State Restaurant Association, said, “New York City is world renowned for our culinary diversity. Working together to reduce trans fat from our kitchens will be one more way to ensure an enjoyable and healthy experience for the City’s 8 million residents and the millions more who visit every year.”
Preliminary results from a sample of New York City restaurants found that 30% of restaurants used oils or fats known to contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oil for cooking or frying, or in spreads, such as margarine. As part of its educational push beginning this month, the Health Department is sending out letters and an information bulletin to more than 20,000 restaurants and 14,000 supermarkets and food suppliers to alert them to the dangers of trans fat, how to identify it, and how to replace trans fat with healthier options in the kitchen.
Sonia Angell, MD, MPH, Director of DOHMH’s Cardiovascular Disease Prevention and Control program said, “Because many commercial products are not required to indicate trans fat content on the label, many restaurateurs and food suppliers may not know they are using oils with trans fat. Restaurant owners should look for the words ‘partially hydrogenated’ in the ingredients list to know what ingredients are going into their food.”
Quotes from Restaurant Owners and Chefs
Junior’s owner Alan Rosen, who uses trans fat free oil in his kitchen, said “We use trans fat free oil in our kitchen and are moving toward increasing the low trans fat options on our menu. We think New Yorkers deserve to have healthy options, which is why we have more than 300 items to choose from on our menu.”
Arthur Gregory, owner of A & M Roadhouse in lower Manhattan said, “We’ve been cooking with trans fat free oils in our kitchen for many years. Food prepared with trans fat-free oil tastes just as good, has a cleaner fresher taste and doesn't cost any more.”
Executive Chef Joseph Barbosa, consultant to Bronx Healthy Hearts – a community organization that works with schools and restaurants to promote heart health – said, “You don’t have to cook with a lot of extra oils and fats to get flavor out of food..”
Information for Restaurateurs
Commercial vegetable oils, sold in bulk, are often partially hydrogenated and contain trans fat. To find out if a product has trans fat, check the ingredients. Consumers want healthier choices when eating out and will be asking for trans fat free options. To clear your kitchen of trans fat:
- Check the label on all your cooking, frying and baking oils and shortenings. If partially hydrogenated oils are listed, choose non-hydrogenated oil instead.
- Choose healthy spreads with no trans fat.
- Order prepared foods made without partially hydrogenated vegetable oils
Information for Food Suppliers
Restaurants and consumers will be asking for trans fat-free products. To meet this new increased demand:
- Know the trans fat content of your products
- Increase and promote your stock of trans fat-free products
- Phase out products containing trans fat
- Ensure your inventory can meet this new demand.
Information about Trans Fat for Consumers
Many store-bought and restaurant foods may contain trans fats unless they are labeled trans fat free or unless they have no partially hydrogenated vegetable oils on their ingredients label:
- Baked goods (cookies, crackers, cakes, pies, muffins, some breads such as hamburger buns).
- Margarine (especially stick margarine), vegetable shortening, and commercial fry oils.
- Pre-mixed products (cake, pancake, and chocolate drink mix; pizza dough).
- Deep-fried and pre-fried foods (doughnuts; french fries; fried chicken, fish sticks, and chicken nuggets; taco shells).
- Snack foods (potato, corn, and tortilla chips; candy; packaged or microwave popcorn).
Some brands of these foods do not contain trans fats. Always read food labels and choose foods without trans fats. Or – if partially hydrogenated vegetable oil or shortening is on the label – choose foods that have them near the end of the ingredient list (labels list ingredients from most to least). Starting in 2006, FDA has required that all “Nutrition Facts” labels on food list trans fat content. If partially hydrogenated oil is on the label, the food is not trans fat free.
Avoiding trans fat today is part of heart healthy diet, which also includes decreasing saturated fat, selecting foods rich in fruit and vegetables, whole grains, low and nonfat dairy products, fish and lean meat. For more information about trans fat, logon to http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/cardio/cardio-transfat.shtml. More information is also available from the FDA’s website (www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2003/503_fats.html), and the AHA’s website (www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4662).
Other Health Department bulletins on good heart health, managing cholesterol and blood pressure – and on a variety of other health issues of pressing interest to all New Yorkers – are available online at http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/alerts/alert1.shtml. | <urn:uuid:29a895b4-9228-44c8-bee8-e568b58f3bde> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/pr/pr083-05.shtml | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.926323 | 1,554 | 2.40625 | 2 |
So why should you recycle your mobile phone? How do you benefit? Is it really good for the environment? Here are the facts…
There are a number of reasons why should recycle your mobile (or other gadget). You may receive cash, vouchers, points on a loyalty card, or some other benefit which is always a good thing. The money it generates could also help a charity if you choose to donate to one of their schemes.
On average we upgrade our phones once every 2 years and with 70 million Pay as you go and contract mobiles registered in the UK (some of us have two phones on the go for work and personal use) there’s clearly a huge amount of phones being thrown away or stuffed in cupboards each year. Why not make some money from your old mobile?
And what about the Environment? Mobile phones are very durable and with a quick service or simple refurbishment can either be used again in the UK or in less developed countries. If a mobile phone is beyond repair they can be taken apart to be used for spare parts and any harmful chemicals and materials are safely disposed of or recycled.
So recycling your mobile can make you cash and make you feel good about doing your bit for the environment!
And how much cash can I make from mobile phone recycling?
The amount of cash you get for your mobile varies according to the make & model of you phone and it’s age so you need to do your homework to get the best price. For example, at time of writing an iPhone 3G S 32GB can earn around £256 in good working condition, a Sony Ericsson W995 could make £94, a Nokia N97 could fetch around £170, and a Blackberry Storm 9520 could be as much as £120. On the flipside, a Nokia 3310 (didn’t we all have one!) is only worth £1 – but you should still do your bit for the environment rather than sling it in the bit!
Instead of cash, you could also receive vouchers from companies such as Argos. The amount wont be the same as the cash amount.
Check how much you cash you can earn from recycling your mobile by using the tool on the left of this page.
So how does mobile phone recycling work?
Mobile phone recycling is really simple. The most difficult part will probably be which option to take – money for you or money for charity? Once you’ve decided this, each company or charity will give instructions of how to get your gadget to them. This could be by sending in the post, dropping the phone off in a shop or, with larger collections, a courier can come to you to collect for free. There’s further details of the process on the charity mobile phone page.
How do I make sure I get the best price for recycling my Mobile Phone?
To compare mobile phone recycling prices from the UK’s major recycling companies simply use our free and impartial mobile recycling price comparison tool below:
- Select the brand of your phone
- Choose the model of your mobile phone including the memory size and version – e.g. iPhone 4 16GB
- Click on the ‘Compare Recycling Prices’ button and a price comparison table will appear, showing you the best mobile phone recycling prices on offer. Easy!
(Tip: if you don’t know the exact model of your mobile try selecting a couple of different models and you’ll see a photo of the phone to compare against)
What happens to recycled mobile phones?
There are a number of things that can happen to your old mobile. The first option is whether the phone can be reused as it is. If so, it will be refurbished and then either used as a replacement phone in the UK or forwarded to another country – in Eastern Europe or Africa for example - and distributed.
If a mobile phone is beyond repair it can be taken apart to be used for spare parts and any harmful chemicals and materials are safely disposed of or recycled. Metal components will be melted, batteries will be sent to companies specialising in breaking them down and metal is removed from the chargers. This minimizes the impact on the environment.Phone Recycling, | <urn:uuid:818bbe4b-0968-48ff-a8b2-030046388191> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.recycleyourgadget.co.uk/mobile-phone-recycling/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00054-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938504 | 866 | 2.328125 | 2 |
An interesting point that Dr. Schuchat brought up during her keynote speech is how the early detection of H1N1 resulted from an investigatory medical device. The availability of this screening device was limited and delayed the response to H1N1. How can we balance the intellectual property rights of a medical discovery (e.g. industry or academic) and the societal need for medically beneficial discoveries to the public?
So, how do you feel scientific discoveries such as the diagnostic test for H1N1 or a vaccine for H1N1 should be disseminated to those who need it? Who should pay for it?
Is there a way to make these discoveries widely available and affordable for the high need populations (i.e. generic drugs)?
Or do the rights of intellectual property (patent) holders, such as pharmaceutical or biotechnology companies, give those companies the right to restrict availability of the technology and set prices?
Does your answer change if the capital that funded the research & development came entirely from the company? What if the majority of the funding that lead to the discovery came from public funding (e.g. National Institute of Health (NIH), Center of Disease Control (CDC), or among other governmental bodies that are funded by our tax dollars)? | <urn:uuid:9c87c304-6bf4-4a46-8b09-2d5ce2cb689e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://sites.duke.edu/dukewinterforum2011/tag/generic/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00070-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.935745 | 259 | 2.15625 | 2 |
b.23 Oct 1915 d.12 Apr 2004
MBE MB BCh BAO Belfast(1939) MD(1947) MRCP(1948) FRCP(1971) MRCPI(1977) FRCPI(1979)
Andrew Ramsey or 'Drew Ramsey', as he was known throughout his life, was the first consultant physician to be appointed to the Lagan Valley Hospital, Lisburn. Throughout his time there he was instrumental in changing the management and practice of medicine in the hospital and the surrounding area. Like so many Ulster doctors, he came from the farming community and in particular from the lowland Scottish settlement in Ulster in the 17th century. His father was Andrew Ramsey of Ballyclaverty near Doagh, Antrim, and his mother was Margaretta Shannon of Killead, Antrim. His kinship included, in an earlier generation, A McConnel, the Dublin neurosurgeon, and J E Simpson, the ship's surgeon of the Titanic.
Born in Belfast, Ramsey grew up on the northern outskirts of the city, where in his young days he played cricket for Woodvale. He was educated at the Royal Belfast Academical Institution and went on to study medicine at the Queen's University, Belfast, and the Royal Victoria Hospital. He graduated with honours in 1939. He always said he only started to apply himself to his studies when he went to university as it was only then he became interested in what he was doing and found he had a flair for medicine. At Queen's he had several years good service in the infantry unit of the Officer Training Corps. Whilst at Queen's he won the All-Ireland University Boxing Championship - he was a powerful boxer who always displayed a true sporting spirit, having taken up the sport, he claimed, because it was one of the few that did not need expensive equipment, which he could not have afforded.
He volunteered for service in the Royal Army Medical Corps in 1940 after a brief time as a house surgeon at the Royal Victoria Hospital. He was immediately appointed an instructor at the RAMC training depot in Leeds. He was then posted to No. 1 Field Ambulance, which formed the medical services for the 1st Guards Brigade attached to the 6th Armoured Division. He remained with the 6th Armoured Division throughout the rest of the war, seeing service in North Africa, Italy and Austria. He had a most distinguished army career and was appointed to the rank of lieutenant colonel. He was mentioned in despatches and awarded the MBE for his work. He won five campaign medals.
Returning to civilian life at the end of the war, he took up his studies again and received his MD and gained his membership of the College. At the beginning of 1951 he was appointed the first consultant physician to the South Antrim Hospital group where for the next 30 years he was to devote his skills in building up a medical service which became well known and highly respected throughout Northern Ireland. The work was challenging. What was to become the main medical block was a derelict building. Originally it had been an old Poor Law infirmary and the wards consisted of two Nissan huts left behind by the army. For some time he had no assistance, but eventually a house physician was supplied and after 12 years he was joined by another physician as a colleague. During his time in Lisburn Ramsey also worked in the old Lisburn Hospital, which became the main geriatric hospital for the Lisburn area until it closed in 1972.
All the difficulties were faced with his obvious organisational and medical skills, energy, zeal and a determination to serve the community. He raised large sums of money to build the first coronary care unit in the area and he set up a large diabetic clinic.
He was keen on what he called 'country medicine', particularly the infectious diseases to be found in the farming community. He served on the council of the British Medical Association (Northern Ireland branch) and was a fellow of the Ulster Medical Society. For several years he was honorary secretary to the consultants and specialists group and was a lecturer and examiner to the Royal College of Nursing. Dedicated to his work, he gave unstintingly of his time and energy, becoming a well known personality in the area, respected by his patients and by the general practitioners with whom he enjoyed working. Throughout his 30 years at the hospital he worked every Christmas and Boxing Day except one.
A man who did not tolerate fools gladly, he set himself the highest of standards and expected others to do the same. He hated timewasters and those with pretensions. A man of many talents, he excelled at whatever took his interest. A keen and successful gardener, sportsman, sailor and traveller, he was a past captain of Lisburn Golf Club, commodore of Down Cruising Club and president of the Queen's Services Club.
He was fortunate and happy in his marriage to Maude Magill, a nurse from Ballyclare, Antrim, whom he met when she was a sister in the Royal Maternity Hospital in Belfast. She predeceased him in 1988, a blow from which he never fully recovered. He was a devoted and greatly loved father and grandfather. He is survived by his daughter, Elizabeth, and by his son, Andrew, and two grandchildren.
E M Ramsey
(Volume XII, page web)
<< Back to List | <urn:uuid:e7e6c6e1-57e3-414d-af4d-b0b4b3ada2ba> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://munksroll.rcplondon.ac.uk/Biography/Details/5370 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00076-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.992128 | 1,102 | 2.015625 | 2 |
Type of Document Master's Thesis Author Gronning, Erik Kyle URN etd-01312009-063357 Title Mating disruption in apple orchards :dispenser release rates, generic blends and community impact Degree Master of Science Department Entomology Advisory Committee
Advisor Name Title Pfeiffer, Douglas G. Committee Chair Brown, Mark W. Committee Member Killian, Joella C. Committee Member Pienkowski, Robert L. Committee Member Keywords
Date of Defense 1994-12-20 Availability unrestricted Abstract
The release rates of two Pacific Biocontrol codling moth, one AgriSense grape berry moth and two Pacific Biocontrol grape berry moth dispensers were studied using gravimetric measurements. It was found that the addition of titanium dioxide to the polyethylene mixture significantly reduced the release rate of the dispenser when compared with a transparent design. The AgriSense dispenser's release rate could not be determined gravimetrically, possibly due to water absorption. The Pacific Biocontrollong life grape berry moth dispenser was more effective than the normal type.
The effect of other species' sex pheromone blends and generic blends upon the mating behavior of Platynota flavedana Clemens, Platynota idaeusalis (Walker), Argyrotaenia velutinana (Walker) and Choristoneura rosaceana (Harris) was studied using small plots. It was determined that the sex pheromone blend for P. flavedanamay control populations of P. idaeusalis and that the two generic blends developed may control P. flavedana, P. idaeusalis and A. velutinana.
The impact of a low spray mating disruption program upon the ground dwelling arthropods was investigated. It was determined that a low spray mating disruption program may be more compatible with populations of natural enemies. More taxa, species and individuals were present because of the absence of damaging prays. Orchard management of ground cover also seemed to play an important role in determining taxa and species present in orchards.
Filename Size Approximate Download Time (Hours:Minutes:Seconds)
28.8 Modem 56K Modem ISDN (64 Kb) ISDN (128 Kb) Higher-speed Access LD5655.V855_1994.G766.pdf 3.84 Mb 00:17:47 00:09:09 00:08:00 00:04:00 00:00:20next to an author's name indicates that all files or directories associated with their ETD are accessible from the Virginia Tech campus network only.
If you have questions or technical problems, please Contact DLA. | <urn:uuid:fb89916f-da56-49ea-8209-1064684287fd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/theses/available/etd-01312009-063357/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00022-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.91093 | 574 | 2.015625 | 2 |
Army Announces New Policies on Energy Efficiencies
From a U.S. Army News Release
WASHINGTON, Oct. 27, 2010 Assistant Secretary of the Army for Installations, Energy and the Environment Katherine Hammack issued today a new policy memorandum to improve high-performance green buildings standards for the Army.
"Energy security, sustainability and efficiency are national security imperatives," said Hammack. "This policy supports the Army's global missions in a cost-effective, safe and sustainable manner that will benefit Army soldiers, families and the entire nation."
The Memorandum for Sustainable Design and Development Policy Update (Environmental and Energy Performance) (Revision), changes the way the Army will approach efficient design of Army facilities. Requirements throughout the planning, programming, budgeting, design and building stages will strengthen the Army's sustainability, energy security and energy independence through more responsible consumption and planning.
Incorporation of sustainable design and development principles, following guidance as detailed in American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, and Air-Conditioning Engineers Standard 189.1, will reduce water and energy consumption, optimize energy efficiencies and performance, and reduce negative impacts on the natural environment. Through strategies such as siting, cool roofs, solar water heating, storm water management and water efficiency, the Army will reduce its impact on the environment. Options will be investigated and documented for each project to evaluate the Army's ability to utilize renewable and alternative power sources on its installations in a fashion that is compatible with training missions.
Commissioning, measurement and third-party verification also are required to track progress and identify opportunities for further improvement. Lifecycle-cost analyses will be mandatory to promote best business practices.
The Army's commitment to sustainable design and development extends beyond construction or renovation savings, Hammack said. "High-performance buildings are critical to cost effective life cycle management of our infrastructure and national energy security,” she continued. “Maintaining access to vital resources, including energy, water and the environment is vital for accomplishing the Army's global missions."
While the overall benefits gained through efficiencies and reduced consumption will vary based on location, buildings in compliance with the new policy are expected to yield significant energy savings for the Army over current construction standards. Preliminary analysis by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers indicates energy savings over current design of 45 percent or greater.
Hammack also issued today a Memorandum on the Utilization of Efficient Lighting to reduce energy consumption and reduce adverse impacts to the environment. The memo establishes policy and guidance to use only efficient light bulbs that meet standards outlined in the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. EISA requires the manufacture of energy efficient light bulbs, with efficiency standards phasing in between 2012 and 2014. It also requires the use of energy efficient lighting fixtures and bulbs in buildings constructed by the General Services Administration.
The Army also announced that all light bulbs acquired for use in facilities and structures owned, leased or controlled by the Army must meet higher energy efficiency standards. The goal is a complete replacement of all incandescent lighting on Army installations within five years. New efficient lighting will use 3-5 times less electricity than an incandescent bulb over the same period.
"Lighting efficiency improvements present a clear opportunity to decrease energy consumption, which is a priority for the U.S. Army, the Department of Defense and for the entire federal government," said Hammack. "It's been over 130 years since Thomas Edison gave birth to the world's first practical incandescent light bulb, and we're undeniably overdue for a jump forward."
In order for the Army to capture energy efficiency savings consistent with these provisions, the new policy requires the use of the light bulbs as soon as possible. When installed bulbs fail and existing inventory is depleted, only efficient light bulbs may be purchased. Compact fluorescent lights require significantly less energy to produce the same amount of light, and need replacement six times less often. This means a profound reduction in electricity, maintenance and labor costs. | <urn:uuid:fb2ff574-0651-4d31-8f54-5f726bf3ef66> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.defense.gov/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=61442 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00034-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.935846 | 815 | 1.90625 | 2 |
Dementia is a chronic disease of aging that robs people of cognitive function, leaving them unable to tend to even the most basic activities of living. But demented persons can live for many years, incurring long-term care bills that can leave surviving spouses impoverished and estates depleted.
In a study published recently in the New England Journal of Medicine, my colleagues and I reported that the total costs of paying for care for seniors with dementia in the United States are expected to more than double by 2040. Medicaid pays these costs for the poor, and some people have private insurance. But for large numbers of elderly Americans, dementia brings not only human suffering but financial ruin as well.
Designing and building a program to protect Americans from the cost of dementia care is a daunting and expensive task, one that probably cannot be accomplished without the help of the federal government. The federal government has broad experience in creating health safety nets and has been expressing concern over the state of the nation’s long-term care systems for some time now. If Congress and the administration need a reason to act, our numbers on costs can provide it.
Currently, some 15 percent of Americans 71 or older have dementia. That is about 3.8 million people; a large number to be sure, but one that will pale by comparison to the 9.1 million expected to be suffering from the disease by 2040.
Our report, The Monetary Costs of Dementia in the United States, estimated that in 2010 Americans spent $109 billion for dementia care purchased in the market place, like nursing home stays. Factoring in the costs of informal care—provided by family members or others outside of institutional settings—the total cost of caring for dementia patients grew to between $159 billion and $215 billion.
Continue reading “The Cost of Dementia: Who Will Pay?”
Filed Under: THCB, The Business of Health Care
Tagged: Caregiving, Costs, Dementia, Long Term Care, Michael D. Hurd
Apr 30, 2013
Do they need a PET scan to confirm the presence or absence of amyloid plaque?
More importantly, would doing such PET scans make meaningful impacts on patients’ health?
Those are the questions that a Medicare expert panel recently considered, and their impression, after carefully reviewing lots of high-quality research, is that we don’t yet have evidence supporting the benefit of using the PET scans. Unsurprisingly, some experts disagree, including a working group convened by the Alzheimer’s Association. This group of experts reviewed the evidence and common clinical scenarios, and concluded that in certain select situations, use of the PET scan would be appropriate. (See their guidelines here.)
As someone who evaluates many memory complaints, I’m certainly interested in Medicare’s inquiry, and in whether they’ll decide to cover the scan. (The NYT’s New Old Age Blog has a nice summary of the debate; a good read if you haven’t seen it yet, esp the comments.)
Also, I blogged last fall about how I thought the new scan could and wouldn’t help clinicians like myself evaluating cognitive complaints, especially in those who likely have early dementia. In particular, I commented on the difficult period of uncertainty that we often go through, as we wait to see if subtle problems progress or not.
Would the PET scan meaningfully help with that period of uncertainty? Hard to say, and it hasn’t yet been tested. I myself think that this period of uncertainty can be pretty hard on families, but measuring this burden is tricky. (Much easier to measure hospitalizations and utilization!)
I also suspect that it’ll be hard to prove benefit from “knowing earlier,” in large part because our healthcare system is currently so poorly equipped to meaningfully help people with a new dementia diagnosis.
Which brings me to the part of this story that has me annoyed.
Continue reading “The Four Things You Should Absolutely, Positively Do For Somebody at Risk of Developing Alzheimer’s”
Filed Under: The Insider's Guide To Health Care
Tagged: Alzheimer’s, Alzheimer’s Association, Caregiving, Dementia, Geriatrics, Leslie Kernisan, Medicare, PET scan
Feb 19, 2013
There are 900,000 people in the United States who reside in assisted living settings, at an average age of nearly 87. On average, these individuals pay privately between $3,000-$6,000 per month for services that often include room and board, medication delivery and pill box set-up, supervision, and assistance with activities of daily living. Assisted living facilities are an integral part of the health care delivery system for many of our nation’s frailest older adults. Despite the high quality care that is often provided, the assisted living environment can often leave healthcare providers scratching their heads about what they can and cannot order for their patients. My recent experience with such a facility involving a patient with possible influenza illustrates the complex middle ground these facilities occupy.
A phone call from an assisted living facility in town interrupted me from my afternoon schedule. The facility’s nurse introduced herself and began to give me a report about my 85-year-old patient with dementia.
“Mr. Smith has a fever to 102 and is coughing up some ugly looking sputum. I’d like to order some labs and perhaps a chest X-ray. We might also want to consider an antibiotic.”
I asked the nurse a series of questions. Was my patient’s blood pressure unstable? Was he short of breath? Was he confused or disoriented?”
In each case, she told me, “no.”
“He is sitting quite comfortably watching a talk show on television. His only complaint is the occasional cough.”
I asked a few more questions and was reassured that he was otherwise fine. I told her that her initial request for blood work and a chest X-ray sounded like a good idea. We would wait on the antibiotic until the results came back.
“I’ll call you later today with the results,” she said.
Continue reading “When is a Health Care Facility not a Health Care Facility?”
Filed Under: THCB, The Business of Health Care
Tagged: assisted living, Dementia, ER, health care facilities, influenza outbreak
Feb 14, 2013
I found out this past weekend that the VA will be making clinician progress notes available for patients to view on the MyHealtheVet portal. In other words, the VA is going OpenNotes. (Note: I was a primary care provider in geriatrics clinic at the San Francisco VA from 2006-2010.)
My first reaction was to be impressed by this bold progressive move.
My next reaction was to feel mildly relieved that I’m no longer a PCP there.
Now, it’s not because I’m against transparency in healthcare, or am suspicious of patient engagement, or feel that patients shouldn’t see their health information without the assistance/gatekeeping/interference of a clinician. Far from it.
It’s because in my own VA practice caring for WWII vets, I used to frequently document certain concerns that would’ve been a bit, shall we say, awkward for the patient to see. Reading about these concerns would’ve quite possibly infuriated the patient, or the caregivers, or both.
So whew, I find myself relieved that I don’t have to figure out how to document (or not document?) these concerns.
Instead, I’ll get to see how my friends at the VA handle these issues.
Wondering what they are? Ok, I will tell you but shh … don’t tell my elderly patients that I may be considering these topics as I care for them.
Six awkward concerns in geriatric primary care practice
· Possible dementia. As a geriatrician, I focus on an age group that has a high incidence of dementia. Which means that when someone starts to tell me odd stories (concerns related to poison are a popular theme, as well as reports that someone is stealing things repeatedly), I start wondering about possible dementia. Ditto if he or she starts floundering with the medications, or starts having other difficulties with IADLs.
Why it’s awkward: Patients and families really hate it when I bring up the possibility that there might be dementia. Many find the possibility of a disease such as Alzheimer’s truly terrifying, both because it’s perceived as a terrible disease, and because they worry about having to leave their homes or otherwise losing their independence. Note that if I’m considering the possibility of dementia, I usually let the patient know during the visit.
Continue reading “Six Awkward Concerns in My OpenNotes”
Filed Under: Physicians, THCB
Tagged: Caregiving, Dementia, Leslie Kernisan, MyHealtheVet, OpenNotes, VA
Jan 23, 2013
Few diseases invoke more fear in patients and families than dementia (e.g., Alzheimer’s Disease (AD), progressive multiple sclerosis, Pick’s Disease). Surveys have shown the fear of dementia—especially AD—far outweighs concerns of a diagnosis of cancer, stroke, or cardiovascular disease.
Perhaps this fear arises from two concerns: (1) dementia robs us of what makes us human—memory, reasoning, emotions, language—and (2) in most cases there are no effective treatments to cure or palliate the disease. While diagnostics for certain forms of dementia are progressing—allowing us to sort out the reversible causes of dementia, such as hydrocephalus, electrolyte or blood sugar imbalances, brain tumors, and brain injuries—once the diagnosis of AD or Pick’s disease is made, there is little we can do aside from manage the comfort and safety of the patient and family.
What if we could prevent or delay dementia?
In the mid-1960s, the incidence of heart attacks and stroke were increasing at an alarming rate. Great strides were made in treating existing cardiovascular disease, followed by programs at preventing the disease in the first place. These prevention methods included exercise, diet, and the tracking of key incidence indicators such as blood pressure, body mass index, and cholesterol levels to maintain a quantifiable physical health.
Could we use similar prevention methods for preventing or delaying dementia?
Continue reading “Can We Stop Dementia Before It Starts?”
Filed Under: OP-ED, THCB
Tagged: Alzheimer’s Disease, cardiovascular disease, Dementia, mental resilience, prevention
Dec 19, 2012
“Would I let my son play football?”
It’s a question that more and more parents are asking themselves these days. There are some people out there who say, “No way!”
Football is way too violent and should be abolished as a sport. Even some NFL players admit that they would not let their own sons play football. Then there are others, fierce advocates who think football is a wonderful game with tremendous benefits to its participants and think all of the media hype about injuries are just overrated scare tactics and headline grabbers.
But the majority of us are probably somewhere in the middle and aren’t quite sure what to think. So why don’t we spend a little time sifting through all the facts and emotions and see if we can make some logical decisions about the subject. I have an interesting perspective in that I am a sports medicine physician who is a true fan of the game, has played the game, has sustained injuries and has a son of my own.
Thus I can see the argument from all sides. Let’s start with the physician side. My job is taking care of injured athletes. I see patients with fractures, sprains, strains, overuse injuries, head injuries, concussions, trauma, you name it. During the months of August, September, October and November, I probably see more patients than I do for the entire remainder of the year. Why? Football season.
Continue reading “Would I Let My Son Play Football?”
Filed Under: THCB, The Insider's Guide To Health Care
Tagged: adolescents, Andrew Blecher, athletes, concussions, Dementia, depression, football, NFL, parenting
Jul 10, 2012 | <urn:uuid:abf6dd1c-623e-4b41-a2ef-7b77f13f625d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://thehealthcareblog.com/blog/tag/dementia/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00071-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947663 | 2,610 | 2.421875 | 2 |
The revolving door between military and civilian technologies has spanned a range of advancements, from microprocessor development to GPS receivers. But how will NASAs Earth Observation System aid the U.S. military in the next decade?
In cooperation with French and Canada, a series of satellites dubbed The A-Train (short for Afternoon Express) will make a series of detailed measurements of atmospheric and weather conditions with a variety of different sensors. The satellites are designed to pass over the same portions of the earth within a 15 minute time period, allowing for data from the observations to be combine together. Aqua and Aura are in orbit now, CloudSAT, CALIPSO and PARABOL to be launched later this year. A final satellite, OCO, will be put into orbit next year.
All of the satellites are designed to help researchers better understand the earths atmosphere and climatic changes, so one net result should be better modeling for weather predictions always a nice tool for war planners. Several of the satellites are designed to measure cloud formations and aerosols things like natural fog and pollution-driven smog -- in the atmosphere, important data not only for weather forecasts, but for the optics used by electro-optical reconnaissance sensors and lasers. The most near-term unclassified program that should benefit from NASA-gathered data is the Airborne Laser (ABL) project designed to shoot down ballistic missiles in the boost phase. Lower-powered solid-state diode lasers are used for range-finding and sensing the atmosphere to adjust the optics before a main high-powered chemical laser is fired to kill inbound missiles. Collected data can also be applied to such projects as communications lasers for high-speed data communications between geo-stationary satellites and objects much closer to the planets surface, such as ships, troops, and aircraft Doug Mohney | <urn:uuid:216934c1-9b89-42e3-a7cd-742dfe2d48d5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htspace/articles/20040711.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00053-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.92717 | 373 | 3.4375 | 3 |
The Pictorial Key to the Tarot, by A.E. Waite, ill. by Pamela Colman Smith , at sacred-texts.com
Click to enlarge
A laurelled horseman bears one staff adorned with a laurel crown; footmen with staves are at his side. Divinatory Meanings: The card has been so designed that it can cover several significations; on the surface, it is a victor triumphing, but it is also great news, such as might be carried in state by the King's courier; it is expectation crowned with its own desire, the crown of hope, and so forth. Reversed: Apprehension, fear, as of a victorious enemy at the gate; treachery, disloyalty, as of gates being opened to the enemy; also indefinite delay. | <urn:uuid:ec3a5f67-5281-4e2b-9f92-102837e1fa5c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.sacred-texts.com/tarot/pkt/pktwa06.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706890813/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516122130-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973011 | 171 | 1.8125 | 2 |
Top Tropical Spas
(The Nusa Dua Spa)
Water has historically been the key element in the traditional spa mix. This dates back to Roman times when over-indulgent sybarites travelled the land to take its curative powers by mouth or day-long soaking. Likewise, water is key to the Balinese way of life, ritualized in the form of holy water or trtho.This, according to Hindu legend, is borne from the sea by a beautiful goddess and drunk by the gods for immortality.Water features strongly in most Balinese ceremonies when the people give thanks to the rains for making theirs an undisputed land of plenty, and to the sea as bountiful provider.
This is the largest spa in Bali with 26 therapists performing 80 treatments per day between them, yet it manages to retain an aura of calm thanks to the mesmerizing sound of pouring water and the heavy scent of tropical flowering plants.
With these thoughts in mind, the spa at the Nusa Dua Beach Hotel & Spa was designed around water, literally as a series of pavilions encircling a lap pool. Banish visions of the sterile field of water found at fitness centres in favour of a skinny, turquoise tube overhung with flowering branches and underwired with a subaqueous sound system.Above water level, the sound of falling water that abounds adds to the languid mood.
One of the delights of a tropical spa is the outdoor treatment experience.This large and lavish outdoor pavilion is a secluded spot under a shady grass roof in its own walled compound.
The Nusa Dua Spa is a puzzle of vivid Mediterranean colour: It is built as four pavilions linked by cloisters and shaded by the waxy blooms of the lampergia creeper
Treatments focus strongly on Bali's natural medicine chest. Massages, rubs, baths, head, face and foot manipulation, and several indulgent combination programmes, have been devised by spa consultant Kim Collier. Collier has spent three years combing Indonesia in her effort to preserve the country's bottomless box of beauty traditions by offering them in a spa context. She has, in order to cater to global spa goers, blended some of her traditional findings with western techniques for some of the massages and facials offered here.
The Nusa Dua was Bali's pioneering Tropical Spa. It was opened in 1994, and has since been refurbished into a colourful complex where health and relaxation fuse under the palm trees.
See also :
|The Source at Begawan Giri Estate|
The Nusa Dua Spa | <urn:uuid:80ffd602-a24a-47e9-b7f8-4c68ccc91e38> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.99bali.com/spa/thestory/toptropical_spas/nusadua_spa.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00031-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944811 | 546 | 1.742188 | 2 |
Hilchos Choshen Mishpat
Volume I : Number 31
Reuven brought his car into a body shop to be repaired, after it was in
a minor accident. Once it was there, the owner of the body shop decided
on his own to do some other repair work that was not related to this
accident, and was not covered under Reuven's insurance policy, and filed
one claim for the entire job.
Is Reuven obligated to reimburse the insurance company for the excess
money that they paid to repair the damage that was not covered under his
In the event that the owner refuses to repay the insurance company,
Reuven would be obligated to pay, but only the amount that he actually
benefitted from the additional repair work.
- It is absolutely forbidden for a car owner or body shop to file a
claim for repair of damages that are not included under the owner's
Similarly, it is absolutely forbidden to file a claim for damage or theft
to a car that was not actually covered at the time that it happened. For
example, if a person driving the car at the time of the accident had
rented it from the owner, and this is against the terms of his insurance
policy, or if someone who did not have a valid drivers license was
driving it, or the driver had a learners permit but was not accompanied
properly, a claim may not be filed. Additionally, if a policy states that
the car must have a working alarm and it doesn't, or that the owner must
lock the car to be covered for theft and he does not, no claim may be
Anyone who collects on a claim in any of the above situations is a thief,
and is obligated to return any money collected to the insurance company.
- In any of the above situations, it makes no difference if the
insurance company is owned (wholly or partially) by Jew or non-Jew. It is
also forbidden to collect even if the insurance agent cooperates in
filing the false claim, and if collected the payment must be returned.
- Regarding our question, the owner of the body shop is obligated to
return the money received illegally to repair the extra damage not
covered in the policy.
For example, if it was an older car, and with or without the additional
repair Reuven would receive the same amount if he would want to sell the
car, he would not be obligated to pay the insurance company at all.
However, if the resale value of the car went up $500 because of the
additional repair, even if the body shop was paid an additional $2000 for
the repair, Reuven must only pay $500.
Similarly, if the insurance company paid the body shop $2000 for this
repair, even if this is the actual amount that the resale value went up
because of this, but Reuven could have found another body shop that would
have done the same repair for him for $500, he is only obligated to
reimburse the insurance company $500.
The Halachos of theft are stated clearly in the Torah and are elaborated
on in the Rambam, and in the Shulchan Oruch (Choshen Mishpat 348 etc.) It
is also stated clearly in Choshen Mishpat 348:1 and 359:1 that the
prohibition to steal according to the Torah applies equally to Jew and
non-Jew. The Shach there (3) states that our situation is considered
theft according to all opinions.
Regarding our question, the following issues must be addressed. On the
one hand, Reuven did not request that the body shop do the additional
repairs. On the other hand, because of the body shop owner's actions, a
false claim was filed on Reuven's behalf, and Reuven did receive from the
insurance company the benefit of an increase in the value of his car. In
this situation, Reuven is only obligated to pay the amount that he would
have had to pay to receive this additional benefit. This is the Halacha
that we find in Bava Metzia 101a regarding a gardener who enters someone
else's field without permission and plants and otherwise improves the
field, that the owner is only obligated to pay the actual amount that he
has benefitted, and not the gardener's total fee.
Feedback is appreciated! It can be sent firstname.lastname@example.org.
This week's class is based on a column by Rabbi Tzvi Shpitz, who is an Av
Bais Din and Rosh Kollel in the Ramot neighborhood of Jerusalem. His
Column originally appears in Hebrew in Toda'ah, a weekly publication in
Jerusalem. It has been translated and reprinted here with his permission
We hope you find this class informative and stimulating! If you do not see a subscription form to the left
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Please Note: The purpose of this column is to make people aware of Choshen Mishpat
situations that can arise at any time, and the Halachic concepts that may be used to resolve them. Each
individual situation must be resolved by an objective, competent Bais Din (or Rabbinic Arbitrator) in the
presence of all parties involved!
Peek Behind the Curtain of Life
Rabbi Pinchas Winston - 5772
Rabbi Pinchas Avruch - 5765
Rabbi Aron Tendler - 5763
Let Your Light Shine Through
Rabbi Yisroel Ciner - 5760
Crowned With Humility
Rabbi Yaakov Menken - 5760
What He Wants Will Be
Rabbi Raymond Beyda - 5763
A Selfless Self-Esteem
Rabbi Label Lam - 5764
Don't Be Naive!
Rabbi Dovid Green - 5758
Rabbi Mordechai Kamenetzky - 5762
Let's Step Up To The Plate
Rabbi Naftali Reich - 5772
The Ever New in the Never Old
Rabbi Label Lam - 5772
Setting the Example
Rabbi Aron Tendler - 5761
Rabbi Pinchas Avruch - 5763
To Be "Fired"
Rabbi Pinchas Winston - 5766
Ascending Three Steps
Rabbi Yissocher Frand - 5757
Moshe Vs. Yisro
Rabbi Aron Tendler - 5759 | <urn:uuid:93791d75-159f-4594-97fd-a6c31039b0b4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.torah.org/advanced/business-halacha/5757/vol1no31.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.946456 | 1,457 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Posted by Ward Fredericks on April 09, 2004
As the 9-11 hearings continue here in the States, we are again hearing the phrase -- 'connecting the dots'. This phrase seems to utilize the metaphor of the old kids puzzles where there would be a bunch of numbered dots on a page. The child would draw a line from one number to the next in number sequence and a picture would emerge from the previous chaos.
Are these puzzles and the use of them common elsewhere in the English speaking world? | <urn:uuid:d75c47db-5314-40b7-85cf-78693fa14b82> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/30/messages/1560.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.949282 | 103 | 1.984375 | 2 |
I have been on birth control pills for three years now and I finally got off of them two weeks ago. Now I am scared that I may be sterile. It really scares me because I don't want to be infertile. Is there a way for me to find out if I will be able to become pregnant?
There has been no reliable data to indicate that the hormonal birth control available today causes infertility (contrary to what certain groups of individuals who wish to limit women's reproductive choices may say), no matter how long one is on it. So there is really no science to support the idea that birth control would make you sterile.
In fact, some women do become pregnant the cycle after stopping hormonal contraceptives. On average though, it'll takes around three months for your body to adjust to being off the contraceptives, so it would be even more likely after that point. (Please note though, this does NOT mean that you should assume you're protected from pregnancy during that early time after stopping birth control. It just means that chances of pregnancy will be increased once you're three months or so out. You should still consider yourself fertile as soon as you stop using the hormonal contraceptives.) Some doctors will suggest waiting at least three months before trying to become pregnant to allow your body to normalize. There is no data to indicate that there is any danger to a woman or a pregnancy if conception occurs prior to that three month period, but it may be easier and less stressful if you're having regular cycles again before you begin trying to conceive. Some women may find that it takes longer for their cycles to normalize (6 months to a year, in some cases, and rarely longer than that). This does not mean that the contraceptives are causing infertility, just that the body needs some time to adjust.
So if you're hearing things about "birth control causing infertility," it's often being said by people who are interested in scaring women out of using contraception.
There are also some people who may have told you that they had problems becoming pregnant that were caused by birth control. Of course, we do not want to discount anyone's experience, but there can certainly be some misunderstanding associated with these instances. Unless a woman has actively tried to become pregnant with a given partner prior to going on birth control, how are we to know that there was not an underlying fertility issue that was there before they ever began using the hormonal contraceptives? We don't know about that. So in many cases, there may have been another issue there beforehand.
Also, it's important to understand that while we do know a lot about reproduction, we don't know everything. In fact, we're light years from knowing exactly how everything works. Things have to be exactly right and coincide precisely for a pregnancy to occur. It's both as simple, and as complicated, as a sperm and an egg meeting. And sometimes other things (like aspects in our environment or diet or other medications) may change what's going on in the body in ways that we can't even measure. Fertility issues are also not always related to a woman, they can just as easily have to do with a male partner. Or, if you're trying to conceive without doing something like charting so that you make sure that attempts to conceive occur at the right time in your cycle, you may find that it takes longer because intercourse may not be timed with your ovulation. Any (or many) of these thing can coincide and cause it to take longer to become pregnant. Somewhere around 85% of women using no contraceptives during a given year will become pregnant, on average. It may only take a short time, it may take a longer time...it's impossible to guess exactly how long the process may be.
If you're concerned about your fertility, the best thing to do is talk with your health care provider. Every menstruating woman should be getting reproductive health care on a regular basis. Your care provider will be able to look at your overall health, reproductive health, and health/family history and help you know whether fertility may be an issue for you or what you can do to increase your chances of conception if you wish to become pregnant. If you have any underlying issues, they will be able to help you figure out how to treat those.
However, worrying about fertility just because you're been on hormonal birth control isn't really necessary. Consider the number of women in the world who have used hormonal contraceptives...that number is pretty darn high. If it caused sterility, lots of people would have noticed by now and it's something we would have heard a lot about.
You may want to check out the following for more information: | <urn:uuid:6bf2db8e-678e-44c4-b49c-4f97f0b69427> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.scarleteen.com/article/advice/birth_control_and_infertility?theme=scarleteen_textonly | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00026-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97803 | 948 | 2.015625 | 2 |
Minimum wage workers are screwed.
While Republicans in Congress want to drop or throw away the federal minimum wage -- new data shows that the minimum wage in America is woefully inadequate. The current minimum wage is pegged at $7.25 -- but given the price increase of pretty much everything over the last few decades (from health care to housing to education) that $7.25 doesn't get you very far.
In fact, today's minimum wage needs to be nearly ten dollars to have the same buying power as it had in 1968. The Center for Economic and Policy Research found that somebody earning the minimum wage would wipe out an entire year's income JUST to pay for a family health insurance plan.
During the heyday of the middle class, from the 1940s to the 1970s, one good union job could support a family of four and provide all the basic essentials.
That doesn't exist anymore -- and now we're a nation made up of the working poor who are collecting wages that give them no chance of chasing down the American Dream.
Economies grow when working people have money in their pockets -- not when the super-rich are given trillions of dollars in tax cuts and are expected to trickle that money down to the rest of us.
It's time to put in place a real living wage that a family can actually live on.
Follow Thom Hartmann on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Thom_Hartmann | <urn:uuid:fac1d798-11a4-4caf-907c-0fb6374568a9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.huffingtonpost.com/thom-hartmann/the-minimum-wage-is-not-a_b_1403452.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00071-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966047 | 291 | 1.960938 | 2 |
USS San Jacinto
No sailors were injured in a collision between a U.S. Navy nuclear submarine and an Aegis cruiser, which collided during routine training off the East Coast Saturday afternoon.
The submarine, the USS Montpelier and the cruiser, the USS San Jacinto, were able to continue operating under their own power, and the incident remains under investigation - and there will probably be some sailors who will have a lot of explaining to do.
The Montpelier, a nuclear-powered Los Angeles-class fast attack sub, first launched in 1991 and recently underwent millions of dollars in restorations. The San Jacinto, an Aegis-class missile cruiser, was commissioned in 1988.
The San Jacinto (CG-56) was named for the Battle of San Jacinto, the decisive battle of the Texas Revolution. Its major claim to fame is that it fired the opening shots for Operation Desert Storm with the launch of two BGM-109 Tomahawk cruise missiles.
Meanwhile, the Montpelier was the third U.S. Navy ship to be named for Montpelier, Vt. It was the first submarine to launch Tomahawk cruise missiles in Operation Iraqi Freedom. | <urn:uuid:6a0da2ce-a4ed-4248-bf68-e22ee966de66> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.heavy.com/news/2012/10/u-s-navy-ship-submarine-collide-during-training-exercise/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00047-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953315 | 246 | 2.421875 | 2 |
ADA Press Release
American Dental Association Launches Podcast Program for Public
Oral health information presented in entertaining Webisodes
CHICAGO, Sept. 28, 2009—The American Dental Association (ADA) is launching "Straight from the Mouth," a new video podcast series for the public, to provide oral health information in amusing three to five-minute Webisodes.
Posted monthly, the podcasts are a new resource for people seeking health information online and will be available on iTunes and the ADA Web site ADA.org. The podcasts feature such dental health topics as tooth whitening, overcoming dental anxiety, dental care for children and dental care while traveling to other countries.
"We're having a lot of fun with these, but at the heart of each episode is sound clinical and scientific information to help people maintain their oral health," said Ruchi Nijjar Sahota, D.D.S., a practicing dentist in Freemont, Calif., who co-hosts the show with Eric Grove, D.D.S, who graduated from Loma Linda University School of Dentistry just this year.
The first episode of "Straight from the Mouth" focuses on overcoming dental anxiety.
"Movies and TV shows make fun of dental anxiety," said Dr. Grove. "But people who suffer from it also can suffer the consequences of neglecting their teeth and gums, and that's no joke. In our podcast, we joke around a little, but we also offer practical tips to help people overcome anxiety. Regular dental care is important, and dentists want to make their patients' visits as comfortable as possible."
About the American Dental Association
The not-for-profit ADA is the nation's largest dental association, representing 157,000 dentist members. The premier source of oral health information, the ADA has advocated for the public's health and promoted the art and science of dentistry since 1859. The ADA's state-of-the-art research facilities develop and test dental products and materials that have advanced the practice of dentistry and made the patient experience more positive. The ADA Seal of Acceptance long has been a valuable and respected guide to consumer dental care products. The monthly The Journal of the American Dental Association (JADA) is the ADA's flagship publication and the best-read scientific journal in dentistry. For more information about the ADA, visit www.ada.org. For more information on oral health, including prevention, care and treatment of dental disease, visit the ADA’s consumer website www.MouthHealthy.org. | <urn:uuid:3779ec83-6999-4b6a-9072-a8043c7c2f04> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://ada.org/3241.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.932756 | 526 | 2.21875 | 2 |
An Independent Weekly Newspaper
Supported Through Advertisers Salem Community Salem Community Patriot Patriot Women’s
Heart Week February 1-7
Heart Disease is the number one killer
of American women over 34. Recognizing symptoms and risks, making lifestyle changes and getting timely care can save a woman’s life. Women’s Heart Week is a national outreach campaign aimed at improving women’s outcomes from this deadly disease. Most women are not aware of this fact and fail to recognize their own risk factors for heart disease. Women’s symptoms, especially those that are milder, often go ignored. Women often miss out on critical opportunities to save their own lives. The Women’s Heart Foundation (WHF) recognizes that women are busier than ever as they juggle career, family and care- giving responsibilities. For many, each day resembles a jig–saw puzzle in which a woman is required to piece together her time and obligations. Now, more than ever, women need to take time out for themselves and be given a reminder: Take Care of Your Heart. Raising awareness, the National Women’s Heart Week has designated February 1-7 for women to recognize their heart and to take care of their heart. The outreach program, that combines fun, free activities with heart health screenings. has partnered with local organizations, to help women come together and encourage fitness, promote stress reduction activities and learn about heart-healthy eating and gender- specifics on women’s heart disease. Women are encouraged to check with their personal physicians for more information as to how they can learn more about the risk factors, as well as research the local organizations which support Women’s Heart Week.
by S. Aaron Shamshoyan Emergency alert information will soon
be available to drivers passing by the Salem Fire Department on Main Street as a new dynamic messaging sign was approved by Selectmen Monday to replace the existing deteriorating one. Assistant Fire Chief Paul Parisi requested Selectmen accept a grant for $12,500 from the State of New Hampshire Emergency Management Performance Grant Program to cover half the sign’s cost. Parisi said the sign would help communicate information during emergencies and allow the department to display other important information year round.
Current zoning regulations prohibit businesses from installing electronic messaging signs in town, a regulation in which the town itself is exempt. “We do not intend to display video on this board,” said Parisi, noting the sign wouldn’t distract drivers. “We certainly don’t want to cause any accidents,” he said adding the department didn’t feel it would be a safety hazard.
Selectman Stephen Campbell opposed the project saying the government should follow ordinances businesses have to follow. “Government has to be seen playing by the rules,” he said, also adding the sign would be placed on a busy road and be distracting to drivers. Chairwoman Elizabeth Roth also opposed
the request saying she agreed with Campbell. “They’re vivid, bright, flashy signs,” she said, worrying it would distract drivers. Parisi responded saying the sign wouldn’t strobe or flash, but display messages. Selectman Michael Lyons favored the request saying the ordnance was put in place as a result of aesthetics and not safety. “This is extremely import,” he said regarding
the information the sign would display.
Te Salem Fire Department sign will be replaced with an electronic dynamic messaging sign. “I
support this from a public safety, public access point of view.” Selectwoman Susan Covey also favored the sign. Town resident Howie Glynn spoke on the
matter, saying he felt the sign should be the size of the current one. He said he favored the sign if it didn’t flash. Selectman Patrick Hargreaves fumbled with the decision. He questioned why tax- paying businesses couldn’t install this type of sign but why the department could. He also feared other businesses would use the sign as leverage to get one of their own approved.
Two votes were taken as Selectman Hargreaves did neither vote nor abstain from the first. Ultimately the request passed three- two with Selectmen Campbell and Roth in opposition. Parisi said the department is trying to increase channels of communication and recently joined social media sites Facebook and Twitter. The recent installation of an LED messaging sign at Salem High School along with dynamic messaging signs on interstate 93 were also mentioned.
Winter Carnival Ball Phase Two Will Renovate
Soule, Fisk, Haigh Schools
by S. Aaron Shamshoyan Phase two of renovations to Salem Schools would focus on Soule, Fisk, and Haigh Elementary Schools, adding gymnasiums, kindergarten space and other specialized areas. “What phase two of the elementary schools will do is provide kindergarten, special services, ad support services,” said School Board Chair Peter Morgan at a public forum last week. The meeting included a presentation by the project’s architect Chris Drobat. “It’s good to see a district thinking about taking a plan all the way through,” he said, about the facilities master plan, “We did phase one quite successfully.”
Highlighting parts of the
renovations, Drobat said schools lacked security. “The school’s don’t meet safety codes.” He said the schools needed more video surveillance, along with a reconfigured front office, as the current one isn’t visible from the front door. “By no means do they meet New Hampshire or any kind of national standards,” he said. Drobat added the schools would benefit from art and music classrooms along with the need for one on one, two on one, and three on one specialized spaces. He also said the multipurpose rooms, acting as a gymnasium, cafeteria, and auditorium, were insufficient. He showed a small group space at the bottom of a stairwell. The infrastructure could
use work as well, “You’ve got a boiler that looks like a freight train,” he said while he showed a picture of one school’s current
boiler along with one from a recently renovated school at a fraction of the size. He also said the electrical panels were maxed out. The renovation calls for the three schools to receive a gymnasium and kindergarten classrooms, along with specialized learning space. Administrative spaces would also be redesigned to be visible from the front entrances. The schools would also receive necessary mechanical, electrical, and security upgrades.
Superintendent of Salem
Schools Michael Delahanty spoke on past and projected enrollments. “Back in 1980 and 1981, the school district had a readiness program,” he said adding the program aided six-year-old students with development issues. During 1980-81 school year, the district had 1,627 elementary students in readiness through fifth grade. Since then, the district dropped readiness, but has gained a kindergarten program leaving elementary school totals at 1,735 for the 2011-12 school year. “We’re at more then 150 students more than when we were in 1980-81 with the same facilities,” said Delahanty, stressing the urgency of the renovations. “You don’t learn on a storage closet,” he said.
Despite a second story addition previously discussed to Haigh School, only a one-story addition would be added. The project will be bonded at a total cost of $21.5 million. The plans will have to be approved in March in order for construction to begin this summer.
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View past issues and our other papers online.
Volume 5 Number 29 February 3, 2012 16 Pages Fire Department to Get Message Sign
Student Council members by Robyn Hatch On a beautiful Saturday night, Salem High School held their
famous Winter Carnival Ball for close to 390 upper class students. The kids were very excited, and the night was perfect. Dresses and suits were incredibly stylish, hair was done to kill for. This was the first event like this for many of the students - more like a prom than
an ordinary dance. The decorations were many tiny white lights everywhere, the food was set up on stations around the dance floor. Star Entertainment provided the music. Attendees danced from 7 to 10 p.m. With no trouble at all, the kids left with memories dancing through their heads.
Jess Hanlon, Elisha Farris, Jackie Cone and Danielle Ferraro
Samantha Johnston, Cariey Reiss, Alexandra Philippon
Piano Bar Tues. & Weds. Evenings
Winner Best of NH 2008, 2009, 2010! Gift Certificates Available
From Napoli, Italy to Salem, NH How Italian Food Should Be!!
Breckenridge Plaza 264 NO. Broadway, Salem, NH 603-898-1190
Staff photos by Robyn Hatch
Staff photo by S. Aaron Shamshoyan
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As modern management styles develop, many managers are shying away from the traditional military-style "command and control" ethos once held by business leaders, but the business world can still learn much from the core principles and beliefs upheld by those in the military. Perhaps that's why veterans are at least 45 percent more likely than those with no active-duty military experience to be self-employed, according to a recent study by the Small Business Association's Office of Advocacy. Here are five lessons your business can learn from the military:
In the military, the success or failure of a mission often hinges on effective communication between all members of a team.
According to Chuck Gumbert, former Navy fighter pilot and founder of interim management and consulting firm, The Tomcat Group, the same rings true for business. "The core lessons start with a clear understanding and communication of the overall objective or what in business we call the 'company vision,'" he explains. "Everyone needs to know and understand where the organization is going."
Just as each military mission is planned around a set of core objectives, setting out a clear vision for the future of your company will leave you and your team better equipped to deal with setbacks and shortfalls as they arise.
Develop a strategy
In order to achieve these objectives, it's crucial to develop a clear and sound strategy. Like an effective military plan, a good business strategy should consist of an overall proposal for how the business will achieve its primary objective, and secondary sub-elements that feed and support the overall strategy.
"In business," Gumbert says, "we might call this the business plan." He says this would include a sales and marketing plan, operations plan, inventory plan, human resources plan and the financial plan. Each of the lower objectives flow upward and support the high level strategies.
Once the strategy has been devised, it's imperative that it is communicated clearly, so that each member understands the part they play in its success. This can be done through coaching, feedback, business metrics, evaluations and incentive plans.
Assessment and accountability
While newer management practices tend to dismiss the strict "control and discipline" style associated with military command, businesses can still take a lead from the military's focus on accountability.
"In order to execute the strategy, everything needs to be where it needs to be, when it is supposed to be there and it needs to work correctly right out of the box. ... In both the military and business, if this doesn't happen, then the strategy fails," Gumbert explains.
By setting clear goals, consistently evaluating and assessing the performance of your staff, and holding them accountable for their actions, you can you can retain greater control over your business and effectively lead your team toward its overall objective. | <urn:uuid:c5ae762d-3fe2-4157-a199-2edfa6c88f6c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://smallbusiness.foxbusiness.com/sbc/2012/04/18/what-businesses-can-learn-from-military/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00060-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962603 | 564 | 1.710938 | 2 |
In Venezuela, humor not stymied by Chavez's crisis
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) -- The monthlong absence of ailing President Hugo Chavez has elicited prayers, an emotional street rally and heated political debate. Amid the tense wait for news from Chavez's hospital in Cuba, Venezuelans are also turning to one of their most prized national attributes: a biting, irreverent sense of humor.
A flurry of jokes and political cartoons have taken aim at the government's postponement of Chavez's inauguration. When the president's followers took to the streets to symbolically take the oath in Chavez's place, some critics said the outlandishness hit a new, surreal high.
"What's happening is so absurd that people don't know whether to laugh or cry," said Claudio Nazoa, a Venezuelan comedian.
One cartoon by Rayma Suprani in the newspaper El Universal turned its gallows humor to the Supreme Court, which approved putting off Chavez's swearing-in. It showed a woman who appeared to be a judge using a guillotine to slice up the constitution.
The popular satirical website "El Chiguire Bipolar," named after a giant rodent that is common on the plains of Venezuela, took aim at the government's slogan "We're all Chavez," with a particularly caustic spoof article.
The site alluded to Venezuela's high murder rate, saying in the headline: "21,000 Chavezes who died at the hands of criminals can't attend the inauguration."
"Jokes play a role of social catharsis, and that's why there is acid wit and irony," said Tulio Hernandez, a sociology professor at Central University of Venezuela. "It's a way of letting off steam."
Dark humor about Chavez's condition and Venezuela's unsettled situation has popped up in various parts of Latin America.
One cartoon by Brazilian political cartoonist Sinfronio de Sousa Lima Neto circulated widely online. It depicted the grim reaper entering a hospital room where Fidel Castro was with Chavez. The grim reaper asks "Who is Fidel?" and Fidel points to Chavez saying: "He's the one right here."
Another Brazilian humorist, Jose Simao, cracked jokes on Twitter and in his newspaper column.
"I think Chavez isn't on the island of Cuba. He's on the island of Lost," Simao said on Twitter, referring to the popular television series.
While political cartoons in some other countries toyed with the concept of Chavez possibly being at death's door, in Venezuela the cartoonists mainly seemed to steer clear of Chavez's condition.
Hernandez said Venezuelans may be avoiding jokes that directly focus on Chavez or his cancer due to fears of retribution from the government or Chavez's supporters. He noted that the government has slapped fines and other penalties on some critical broadcasters.
Last weekend, intelligence agents also raided a home in Carabobo state in a case that Venezuelan media reported was part of an investigation into messages on Twitter about Chavez's health.
In the past, many Venezuelan humorists have targeted the socialist president. The Venezuelan cartoonist Pedro Leon Zapata has depicted the president previously as a toad or at times a military boot, in reference to his years as an army paratroop commander.
Cartoonist Roberto Weil focused a recent cartoon on what critics call a blatant violation of the constitution in putting off the inauguration, depicting a hyena tearing up the charter in its teeth.
Nazoa said in a telephone interview that he found the alternative street inauguration for Chavez especially bizarre.
"It's a sort of Roman circus in which the spectators who applaud are going to soon be eaten by the lions and they don't know it," he said. He said the oddities don't stop there, and he compared the situation to Lewis Carroll's "Alice In Wonderland."
"Look at the absurdity: Those of us against Chavez, who were desperate to get rid of him, now we're desperate for him to appear," Nazoa added.
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From Uncyclopedia, the content-free encyclopedia
“Oh, I love a bit of tongue in cheek humour”Until the 1960s it was assumed that ancient gnostic texts describing the Clitoris as 'The goddess of fun' were correct, and that the clitoris itself was just a thing of myth and legend. Stories would be told at bedtime to little girls to give them hope, and to adolescent boys to keep them awake at night.
Then in a freak accident involving a contraceptive pill, someone's belly button and a Jack Russell, scientists accidentally discovered the Clitoris for the very first time. Suddenly girls everywhere had one, and boys spent the rest of their lives looking for one.
The clitoris has no known practical use or application apart from generating intense pleasure in its owner, who is without exception female. This fact has been a source of intense irritation to males down the ages, who have thought it extremely unfair, as they possess no equivalent organ. Except for the penis. Out of envy and spite, female circumcision (clitoridectomy: surgical removal of the clitoris) has been widely practised across the western world. However, the ensuing clitoral transplants (into males) have not so far been successful, possibly for neurological reasons, or even because men don't like scalpels cutting up their dicks.
Clitoral transplantation is a subject of continuing research, and clitoris donors are in much demand.
The British Clit
Despite popular thought on the issue, it is now widely accepted by experts that British women do not have a clitoris. This fantastic and likely false interpretation of biology has freed up many a man hour otherwise spent blindly chasing female fulfilment.
British men can now be found engaged in infinitely more enjoyable activities such as competing in mortal combat via console games such as FIFA and COD4. As a result pregnancy rates in areas with quality broadband are dropping dramatically.
Generally girls or women should never touch or rub their clitorises. This is a sin against god and will send you straight to hell.
- Albany New York have a museum devoted to clitoris. It was the first to display celebrity clits donated by late actresses such as Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield and Nancy Reagan. There are currently 25 clits on display at the museum.
- The clitoris is often used in female masturbation.
|The author of this article doesn't care at all if you edit it, heck, your stuff is probably funnier than mine.| | <urn:uuid:74c73deb-5564-483f-89c5-d95eedc36ece> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://uncyclopedia.wikia.com/wiki/Clitoris?direction=next&oldid=5596389 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00030-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955511 | 513 | 1.765625 | 2 |
There was substantive discussion among Ministers attending today’s Environment Council on three key areas: The recast of the Directive on Environmental Impact Assessment, the ‘ILUC’ (Impacts of Indirect Land Use Change) proposal and the Proposal for a Regulation on Access to Genetic Resources and Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits.
Speaking in Brussels today, the Irish Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Mr Phil Hogan, who chaired the Council said of the orientation debate on the EIA Directive that “it had provided a very useful opportunity for Ministers to set out their views and positions on key aspects of the new proposals. The discussion today gives us a clear mandate for the second half of our Presidency by very clearly identifying the areas which will require specific focus in our work over the coming months before returning to Council in June with a progress report”.
An orientation debate was also held on the Commission’s proposal for a Directive amending both the Renewable Energy Directive and the Fuel Quality Directive so as to encourage the transition to biofuels that deliver additional greenhouse gas emissions savings and address biofuels emissions from indirect land use change.
Minister Hogan - “Today’s debate was informed and varied and spanned both energy and environmental considerations".
Minister Hogan said: “ILUC is a challenging but important environmental dossier that seeks to limit the emissions due to indirect land-use change associated with the use of conventional biofuels. It is imperative to address this issue and options in that regard including steps to promote more advanced and sustainable feedstocks that do not create an additional demand for land.”
The Minister added “today’s debate was informed and varied and spanned both energy and environmental considerations. This will facilitate the further development of the negotiations on the proposed Directive and we will come back to the Environment Council with a progress report at the next scheduled meeting in June.”
The Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Mr Jimmy Deenihan also chaired an orientation debate on an item under his responsibility - the Proposal for a Regulation on Access to Genetic Resources and Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits arising from their Utilisation in the Union. Speaking after the Council discussions, Minister Deenihan said: ‘I welcome the outcome of today’s debate. Previous meetings of this Council have called for early ratification and implementation of the Nagoya Protocol under the Convention on Biological Diversity. The Protocol seeks to ensure that there is a reward to countries, particularly developing countries, that are the source of biological materials which could be used for new and profitable products such as foods and medicines. I believe the debate we have had today will have a strong influence on the future implementation measures we adopt.”
The Council also held a debate on the Commission’s report on the REACH Review as well as on the Second Regulatory Review of Nanomaterials. The Roadmap on Substances of Very High Concern was also discussed together with these items. Discussion was based on a question put by the Irish Presidency, which elicited the Member States’ perspectives on the conclusions of these reports. Minister Hogan said that this will assist the Presidency in developing further its work on the environment and health element of the 7th Environment Action Programme.
During lunch, Environment Commissioner Janez Potocnik and Development Commissioner Andris Piebalgs presented the joint Communication “A Decent Life for All: Ending Poverty and giving the world a sustainable future”. Ministers broadly welcomed the Communication on which the Presidency will be developing Council Conclusions by June. The Ministers discussed progress on Sustainable Development Goals and the Post 2015 development agenda. | <urn:uuid:3c9b3c98-b485-4e4e-832a-7c78fed42998> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.eu2013.ie/news/news-items/20130321postenvipr/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00073-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955011 | 751 | 1.859375 | 2 |
Most Active Stories
Native America Calling
Mon March 19, 2012
Native in the Spotlight: Jessica Danforth
Tue. 3/20 11a. In honor of National Native American HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, and we're talking with one of the warriors on the frontline. Jessica Danforth (Mohawk) is the Founder and Executive Director of the Native Youth Sexual Health Network.
She is also connected to the very first National Native American HIV/AIDS Youth Council. She advocates on the importance of our Native youth understanding the dangers of STDs and the realities of sex. | <urn:uuid:776c90c3-d0ab-4735-b4a8-db2656a5e0a7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.kunm.org/post/native-spotlight-jessica-danforth | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00057-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.916669 | 116 | 1.804688 | 2 |
Nebula (30 Do-
radus) in the
ic Cloud as seen
by SOFI, ESO\u2019s
its first test on
the NTT tele-
scope in De-
(see article on
p. 9). The image
is a colour com-
posite of three
band filters cen-
tred on the
and 2.12\u00b5m H2
1-0 S(1) lines
blue, green and red respectively to reflect the ionisation state of the gas. Predominantly
blue regions show where hydrogen is being photo-ionised by hot, massive, stars while red
traces the sites of more recent and on-going star formation.
The scale is 0.26\ue000/pix. and the field is\ue004 4.5n \ue006 4.5n with N at the top and E to the left.
The evolution of ESO is briefly traced through its technical and managerial de- velopments to today. Highlights of ESO activities in support of astronomical re- search by the member state community are given to emphasise the unique role of the Organisation in European astron- omy, and the effectiveness with which it has carried out its mission, including the development of VLT/VLTI. This develop- ment is shown to be of crucial signifi- cance to permit forefront research in the global context. The need for continued support of this programme to permit full scientific exploitation is discussed. A continued role of ESO to support the study and the development of future fa- cilities is advocated.
The purpose of this paper is to clarify the context in which we are discussing the scope of ESO activities over the next several years. This appears both appropriate and necessary since by its recent accomplishments ESO\u2019s role has evolved significantly.
I do not wish to discuss ESO history in detail but I would like to distinguish (for the purpose of this paper) some dif- ferent stages of its development.
and of its structure with the goal of es- tablishing an observatory in the south- ern hemisphere. Particularly attractive was the possibility to study a region of
servatories in the north and containing the centre of our own galaxy and the Magellanic Clouds. The observatory did not compete directly with any member state facilities. The major technical ac- complishment of this period was the construction of the 3.6-metre telescope, comparable in size to any of the gener- ally available telescopes in the north and which achieved a performance equal to that of several telescopes in the world. More important in a sense was the development of an organisa- tion with an identical structure to that of CERN for physics, which proved capa- ble of constructing and operating sub- stantial facilities.
A second phase (1980\u20131990) oc- curred with the design and construction of the New Technology Telescope (NTT). In this phase of its life ESO de- veloped the technical capability which led to a new approach for telescope de- sign. The actively controlled thin menis- cus mirror was the prototype for the next generations of 8-metre telescopes such as the Very Large Telescope of ESO (VLT) and the American and Japa- nese 8-metre projects (GEMINI and SUBARU). Upon its completion, the NTT was the 4-metre telescope with the best optical performance in the world. It was fully competitive with any of the then existing telescopes, includ- ing Cerro Tololo, Kitt Peak, Palomar, AAT, CFHT, Calar Alto and WHT. Its ob- serving capabilities when added to those of the 3.6-metre telescope made La Silla one of the major observatories in the world.
It should be noted that this major step was made possible, in part, by the strengthening of ESO resulting from the entrance of two new member states, It- aly and Switzerland, in 1982.
ESO began in this period to carry out new functions in support of Europe- an astronomy. The development of MI- DAS (a command language for scientif- ic data analysis) was the only widely adopted European development of its kind. The creation of ECF (European Co-ordinating Facility) for the Hubble Space Telescope also gave ESO an additional responsibility for European astronomy. The major accomplishment of this period was, in addition to the completion of the NTT, the beginning of the VLT/VLTI project.
A third phase is the current one (1990\u20132000). With the successful com- pletion of VLT/VLTI, ESO\u2019s stature in the world scene changes from that of being one of the several European ob- serving facilities of more or less compa-
just a Southern supplement to ob- servatories by the member states in the north, but by far the most power- ful observational capability available to European astronomers and the only one which permits them to compete in the world scene on a ba- sis of parity in ground-based optical/ IR astronomy.
During this same period, ESO has undergone a major qualitative transfor- mation. Its management structure, methodology and capabilities have greatly developed. Its engineering and contracting capabilities have been greatly strengthened. It has become an important focus of instrumentation and detector development for Europe. It has provided the European astronomical community with an institution capable of studying and elaborating future large-scale projects and to insure the participation of European astronomers in world-wide projects on a basis of parity with the USA and/or other coun- tries.
The emergence of ESO as a Euro- pean organisation capable to carry out in astronomy the role of leadership car- ried out by CERN in physics or by ESA in space science is a new development which is already widely recognised in the world.
The question which is implicit in many of the discussions about the fu- ture of ESO is whether this leading role in European astronomy should be con- tinued in the future or whether the VLT/ VLTI development should be consid- ered a one-shot affair.
The Visiting Committee of ESO and its Science and Technology Committee have clearly taken the view that ESO should think about new missions well into the 2010\u20132020 time frame and have reaffirmed the ESO mission within the overall astronomical research pro- gramme of the member states. The mission of ESO is to \u201cProvide facilities which will enable European astrono- mers to carry out outstanding science that can better be done in a global Eu- ropean context than nationally\u201d (Report of the Visiting Committee and the Re- sponse of the Director General ESO/ Cou-532 Conf.).
This view has been endorsed by Council and is in accordance with the Convention which assigns to ESO \u201cprojects that can only be accomplished through international co-operation\u201d.
In the last few years the VLT and VLTI projects and the development of the Paranal Observatory have been the clearest examples of what ESO as a
unified force in European astronomy can do. These programmes are recog- nised to be beyond the capabilities of the individual national programmes in the member states.
It is clear that the need for large- ground based facilities in astronomy will continue to be present in the foreseea- ble future. Examples are the Large Mil- limetre Wave Array (LSA) and the new generation of Extremely Large Tele- scopes (single dishes\u008c 50 m diameter or extended arrays with comparable or larger collecting areas). Access to such facilities in the future will be essential to maintain competitiveness of European astronomy in the global context and thus we foresee a continued role for ESO in providing this.
The issue therefore is not whether there is a need for ESO in the future but rather what is the proper balance in the community of member states be- tween programmes carried out at the national level and programmes which require international co-operation. Of course each nation will make its own decisions in this matter.
yet exist. Rather than adopting either consciously or by default the planning for astronomy carried out periodically in the United States by the National Acad- emy of Sciences, the scientific commit- tees of ESO (VC, STC, OPC and UC) in co-operation with the Executive have developed mid-term and long-range plans which take into account scientific developments world-wide and establish priorities for the Organisation.
I would like in this essay to under- line the importance of ESO\u2019s major current projects for European astrono- my and the unique role played by ESO in this context. Further I would like to highlight less obvious but equally im- portant contributions which ESO has given and should continue to give to the development of astronomy in Eu- rope. Finally, I would like to make clear the high effectiveness with which ESO is carrying out its tasks and the impor- tance of its European character as an intergovernmental organisation in ac- complishing them.
Although most European astrono- mers realise the great importance of the VLT/VLTI development to permit the study of the most interesting astrophys- ical problems of today on a competitive international basis, the true significance of the advent of the Paranal Observato- ry is often not fully appreciated.
The flourishing of astronomy in the last century has been mainly due to the development of physics which has ena- bled us to understand the physical processes occurring in the universe and of observational capabilities capa- ble of studying fainter sources and finer details of their spectra. To a considera- ble extent only those astronomers who had access to the largest telescopes could carry out frontier science. Since the 19th century, the United States has
had this advantage, with the Mt. Wilson and then the Mt. Palomar telescopes dominating cosmological research in the first part of the 20th century, and the 10-metre Keck telescope and the Hubble Space Telescope in the last decade.
The situation has remained largely the same until now. In the document \u201cA strategy for ground-based optical and infrared astronomy\u201d of the Commission on Physical Sciences, Mathematics and
Applications of the NAS of the USA published in 1997, a Table is promi- nently shown which summarises the telescope areas available to US astron- omers (Table 1). Upon completion of current plans (including GEMINI, LBT, Magellan, Keck 2 and the MMT up- grade) there will be available to US as- tronomers 110.3 m2 in public observa- tories and 400.7 m2 in private observa- tories. (The computation excludes tele- scopes of less than 2 metre aperture
*The actual telescope apertures or areas are listed, but these values are multiplied by the fractions of time allocated to US astronomers to calculate the
subtotals and totals. The sums in the independent observatories column do not include the University of Hawaii shares of international telescopes on Mauna Kea,
such as Gemini North, the CFHT, the United Kingdom Infrared Telescope, and the Subaru Telescope. The MMT upgrade replaces the MMT, whose contribution has
been subtracted from the total.
Quoted from: http://www.nap.edu/readingroom/books/gboi/chap2.html
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The following came into my inbox this am and I am sharing it with you:
Out of this World Record!
Perth Group breaks world record with Near Space Launch
This past weekend the Perth group known as the Lanark Amateur Space Agency set a new world record altitude for near space flight. LASA’s eighth launch .commenced at the Perth Fair Grounds just before 09am EST. The gusty weather made the launch of the 7ft diameter gas filled balloon a hair raising experience. Chase team Driver Rick Szijarto said “I knew we’d be in for a good long drive when we saw the balloon traveling in the jet stream at 250km/h..The chase teams were following the balloon’s on board GPS. The Position, Height, Speed and direction of the balloon were sent to the team over amateur radio frequencies. When the teams reached Were East pf Montreal it was clear that the group had achieved their mission goal of setting the Amateur Radio High Altitude Ballooning (ARHAB) world record for altitude. Supporters Bob Sharp VA3QV and Tim Richards in Ottawa, contacted the chase teams to confirm the new record had been achieved. Long time LASA member Marc Baillon currently traveling with his family in Europe followed the flight on the internet and called the Chase team en route to congratulate them on :”smashing the record”:
After the balloon – then nearly 30 feet in diameter- burst at peak altitude the payload parachuted to the Earth still being blown rapidly to the East. The Chase teams would be paralleling the fight of LASA 1 back in November 2007 which landed in Highland Plantation Northern Maine.. Heading towards the Quebec New Hampshire international boarder navigator Peter McCracken led the chase team through the North East Appalachian mountains to Jay Maine.
The balloon was easily recovered from a forested area not far from the Verso Paper-Androscoggin mill . The payload just missed a watery landing, hanging up in a small oak tree only a few yards from the Androscoggin River. When recovered the payload was still broadcasting its position over radio frequencies. Using local amateur “digipeaters” the position of the balloon payload was relayed to the internet.
Late Sunday morning the Recovery team headed back to Canada with both the payload and world record in hand. The group is in contact with ARHAB to officially register the World Record of 39 899m or 130 902 ft
The mission was also a spiritual journey of sorts. LASA communications expert Barry Crampton (VE3BSB) paid tribute to John W. Soderberg, W1AKV of Vermont. John was integrally involved in locating and retrieving LASAs 7th mission- balloon payload one year ago. On November 7 of this year John passed away at the age of 90. In his memory LASA members attached a photo of John and a copy of his obituary to the Record breaking LASA8 payload. The photo will be forwarded to John’s family. Crampton stated “John’s family and friends were deeply touched by the heavenly gesture”
The next mission for LASA will be in partnership with St John Elementary and St John High School in late April. Students will have an opportunity to learn about the atmosphere, geography, telemetry and even launch their own experiments into near space. In 2008 St John Elementary grade 7/8 class launched a near space balloon. Teacher Jen Havaeks remembered that “students were very excited to have a hands on opportunity to explore science and were very motivated to participate.”. LASA has received generous donations from Amateur Radio Clubs, Businesses, and individuals, which it will be putting towards costs of the students’ spring launch
For more information including a 3D google earth view of the flight and photos or to get involved please visit www.lanarkspaceagency.org
Peter McCracken (VA3ZKS)
613 264-1458 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 613 264-1458 | <urn:uuid:e4e6452a-7a4d-4f22-a1ff-2e50b338cc27> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://va3qv.wordpress.com/tag/amateur-balloon/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00072-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.946609 | 849 | 1.828125 | 2 |
||"A historical political resource."
WWP: Long live the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea
|Last Edited||6921 Aug 09, 2010 08:31am|
|Author||Workers World Party|
|News Date||Friday, September 5, 2008 04:00:00 PM UTC0:0|
|Description||Workers World congratulates the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea on the 60th anniversary of its founding. In 1948, when it defied the imperialist world by refusing to bow down before the U.S. occupation of southern Korea and declared its existence as an independent republic committed to socialist development in the north, few of the capitalist pundits thought it would survive one year, let alone 60. |
The Korean people and their revolutionary leaders have shown extraordinary ability and willpower in keeping their commitment. They have faced ferocious aggression from U.S. imperialism that never ended, even after the heroic Korean People’s Army forced the Pentagon to accept a ceasefire in 1953 after three years of invasion and devastating war.
They have skillfully defended the country and deterred more threats of aggression by building up their armed strength, while at the same time relying on the consciousness of the people as the ultimate safeguard of their revolutionary gains.
What all Koreans want, and what the U.S. has done everything to prevent, is the reunification of their divided people. First Kim Il Sung, and now Kim Jong Il, both great leaders of the struggling people of Korea, have pursued that goal vigorously. The slogan “Korea is one!” today expresses that desire. We are sure it will become a reality as U.S. imperialism’s hold over the world is weakened by the struggling masses everywhere.
U.S. out of Korea!
Long live the DPRK! | <urn:uuid:a0857ff0-9063-4d99-a1c4-60f5783c5e81> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ourcampaigns.com/NewsDetail.html?NewsID=69353&ShowAllNews=Y | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00023-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.928247 | 373 | 2.171875 | 2 |
In times of economic strife, most people shy away from evolutionary business concepts, instead preferring to hunker down and ride out the storm with older, more comfortable ideas. But a lack of dynamism in business leads to stagnation—and stagnation to death. The business of boatbuilding is no exception. But thankfully, Tilli Antonelli is not “most people.”
Antonelli, the founder and former president of Pershing Yachts, is certainly no stranger to progressive nautical designs, but with his new company Wider Yachts, which he founded in March 2010, he has truly outdone himself. Wider is dedicated to producing innovative concepts expressly designed to stand out and make bold visual and design-oriented statements. Nowhere is this philosophy more evident than in Wider’s first launch, the 42, an open day boat that’s unlike any you’ve seen. First, the Wider 42 has an eponymous “cockpit.” Yes, you read that correctly: The area forward of the helm literally widens, almost like one of those high-end trailers movie stars use on set, increasing the beam from 11'6" to 21'6" while creating an expansive cockpit with 49 square feet of space.
This impressive engineering feat is complemented by vacuum-infusion molding using carbon fiber and vinylester resin, which means the boat is very light. When coupled with twin 370-hp Yanmar diesels and Arneson surfacing drives, that lightness converts to one thing—performance. Antonelli says the 42 can reach a top speed of 53 mph while boasting a range of 350 miles at a 46-mph cruise speed.
Furthermore, the Wider 42 has room to haul a RIB or jet ski on its stern. It also has replaced the standard heavy fiberglass seating found on most boats with inflatable cushions and seats that can double as watertoys if the mood strikes the owner. Clearly, this is not a boat for the faint of heart—but then again, these are not times for the faint of heart either.
This article originally appeared in the January 2011 issue of Power & Motoryacht magazine. | <urn:uuid:dd3b31ed-828b-4ade-8c27-cde97c8ff4fd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.powerandmotoryacht.com/boats/wider-42 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00020-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947836 | 454 | 1.601563 | 2 |
How Do We Do It?
- Simple In-house Innovations: Using non toxic paints, buying local seasonal produce, buying Oceanwise seafood, recycling, using green cleaning products, using biodegradable containers, using low flush taps and toilets, using reclaimed wood furnishings, following an integrated menu with zero waste. We are constantly on the search for simple innovations to reduce our daily footprint.
- Buy green electricity for all of our restaurants from www.bullfrogpower.com. The green electricity comes from wind farms in the Elk Valley and Alberta. The biogas comes from a sewage plant in B.C.
- Offset the remainder of our carbon with www.offsetters.ca. Offsetters is a BC based
company that allows you to sponsor local projects. For example, in 2009 we supported a green house in Delta fuel switch from natural gas boiler to a bio-mass boiler with heat trapping curtains. To read more visit www.offsetters.ca
- Pay it forward. We go into local schools and have a dialogue with students about climate
change and challenge them to reduce their personal footprint at home. We then do fun
projects teaching them how to build their own eco-business, grow their own food or create
their own delicious and healthy snacks.
This is all made possible by the generous donation of our diners. Diners are given the option to contribute an extra 1% to sale of their bill - and 99.9% of diners do - a thousand milllion thanks to you all! | <urn:uuid:e316e949-2c6c-4adb-9791-f81413f3c8ad> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.rockymountainflatbread.ca/goinggreen/carbonneutral.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00076-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.905479 | 316 | 2.171875 | 2 |
Almost half of the Europeans surveyed think that combining public spending cuts with measures to boost economic growth is the best way to end the current economic crisis, says the latest European Parliament Eurobarometer poll. Over half (55%), say these measures should be coordinated among Member States. Most Europeans also say that financial help for Member States in difficulty must be conditional on compliance with common rules (80%).
The EU must take action to reduce public spending and boost economic growth at the same time, say 47 % of respondents. As to preferences, 25% say priority must go to measures to stimulate the economy, while 23% say it must go to those that reduce public spending.
Over half (55%) would feel better protected by measures coordinated with other EU Member States, but 38% (up three percentage points compared to the previous Eurobarometer in September 2011) would prefer their countries to go it alone. Within the euro zone, 61% favoured coordination, compared to only 43% outside it.
Although they favour solidarity, most Europeans say financial help for Member States in economic or financial difficulty must be made conditional upon compliance with common rules (80%), such as jointly-defined rules on deficits. They also say that penalties should be imposed when these rules are broken (72%).
Most Europeans (66%) feel that pooling part of the public debt would benefit only those Member States that are in dire straits, but 64% (up 3 percentage points), feel that it should nevertheless be done in the name of solidarity.
Most (66% - up five points), now also favour a financial transaction tax. However, there is a 20 point difference between those within the euro zone (73% in favour) and those outside it (53%). The strongest support for such a tax is found in Greece, Cyprus, Italy, Portugal and Spain.
"The results show that the European Parliament has been acting in the same spirit as that of the majority of the population in the laws and resolutions it has adopted since the beginning of the economic crisis. This proves we are on the right track and should be involved in all such decisions taken at EU level" said EP Vice-President co-Othmar Karas (EPP, AT), who shares responsibility for communication.
Vice-president and rapporteur on the financial transaction tax Anni Podimata (S&D, EL), was delighted to see "that an EU levy on financial transactions to put a brake on excessive practices is gaining real traction among all Europeans." The European Parliament will vote Wednesday to give its opinion on the introduction of such a tax.
The "Crisis and the economic governance in Europe" is the fifth such survey, done by TNS opinion between 10 and 25 March 2012. It included face-to-face interviews with 26,593 Europeans aged 15 and over.
The full Eurobarometer survey can be consulted via the link on the right of this page. | <urn:uuid:f4f01254-eb73-45c6-b60a-d9e78dbe1e2c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/pressroom/content/20120521IPR45530/html/Combine-austerity-with-measures-to-boost-growth-say-Eurobarometer-respondents | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96055 | 591 | 1.929688 | 2 |
ANCHOR LEAD: DETECTION OF PROSTATE CANCER MAY NOW GET BETTER WITH USE OF A NEW TEST, ELIZABETH TRACEY REPORTS
Finding prostate cancer has been hampered by lack of a reliable test to pinpoint the disease, but now Robert Getzenberg and colleagues at Johns Hopkins may have developed one.
GETZENBERG: So we developed this new test for prostate cancer, that picks up this marker EPCA2, and we’ve done a study now which we’ve just published in 385 patients. We’re quite confident that if the test is positive it’s almost a certainty that there’s prostate cancer there. :14
Getzenberg says prostate specific antigen or PSA testing has never been able to isolate cancer from other prostate conditions.
GETZENBERG: We’ve been looking for a more specific marker for prostate cancer and what that means is we don’t want to pick up a lot of things that happen in men as they age which are, for example, BPH, a benign growth of your prostate, or prostatitis, which is an inflammation of your prostate. :13
Getzenberg predicts that an EPCA based test should be available clinically shortly. I’m Elizabeth Tracey reporting. | <urn:uuid:b6b42813-8de5-4d41-870c-52bda1a09566> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/hnf/hnf_6596.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00048-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.926135 | 276 | 2.328125 | 2 |
Lebanon was a booming place in the Valley
S. H. Phlegar of Dolores wrote this story in February of 1934 about events in the Montezuma Valley in 1909. This is from the "Anna Florence Robison interviews in 1934."
Lively Times in the Montezuma Valley in 1909
Twenty-five years ago at Lebanon in the Montezuma Valley - well, those were the best days ever seen in the Montezuma Valley.
Everybody was a booster. Everybody had a pocket full of money. The country was full of new people all of the time. There were about 10 licensed real estate firms in the Valley, and they were all doing business. Six to eight real estate hacks were backed up to the depot in Dolores seven days a week. Two passenger trains arrived every day, and the Southern Hotel fed from 75 to 100 people off those trains at noon each day. Cortez was live; Mancos was live; Dolores was live. Cortez had two newspapers. The Dolores Star was also a live paper.
About that time the Colorado Land and Improvement Company with 300 stockholders was organized at Pueblo and came over and purchased more than a thousand acres of land and started the town of Lebanon and put the entire valley on the boom. (Around the Turn of the Century and prior to 1909, the Town of Lebanon was known as "Hard Scrapple, Colorado.")
Arriola was also started at the same time. H. F. Morgan opened a general store, and the village still has a store. A canning factory was built, however, never operated. Lebanon erected a new hotel building, at that time the best hotel in the valley, and never large enough at any time to take care of the trade. A new bank building was erected but a bank was never organized. Allen Hammond, Ben Porter, Sandy Garlinghouse, and S. H. Phlegar erected a three-story store building to be used also for offices and a public hall. A new Methodist Church was erected which was dedicated by ex-Governor Buchtell.
In 1909, the old log schoolhouse stood where the Greenwood store now stands, with 16 children of school age going to school. A few years later, the new building now standing was erected, with over 75 children attending school, showing the increase in population in about five years.
S. H. Phelgar organized the Lebanon Telephone Company, with the exchange at Lebanon that later was moved to Dolores. At that time Dolores was handled from Lebanon, and there were more than 200 subscribers in the Valley, Dolores, and Lebanon. A solid copper metallic circuit was constructed from there to Monticello, Moab and Bluff, Utah. Cortez at that time had its own phone system in town and was covering the lower valley, which was afterward connected with the present system. The Mountain States Telephone System did not take over the system here until in the late 1920s when the local management, in an attempt to make more money, had put on so many extra charges that whole neighborhoods had all phones taken out. At the present, in July 1934, the Dolores and Cortez exchange combined having between 250 subscribers in contract to the 200 which the Lebanon-Dolores district alone had 25 years ago. It is not all depression by any means. No phones remain that are not strictly necessary for business or to summon aid for the reason that the people in general have felt for years that the phone company was unfair when it cut the customary service they had to one-half in order to increase toll calls.
Lebanon in 1909 put on the biggest Fourth of July Celebration ever held in the Valley in that time, with over three thousand people in attendance. Special trains were run from Telluride and Durango, with special rates for the celebration, the trains remaining in Dolores all day and night. Sterl Thomas was sent to the reservation and brought up 50 Navajos and 50 Ute Indians for the occasion, who put on war dances with all their robes, paint and feathers. Rube Smith of Denver and Roy Como put on the first public prizefight ever held in the Valley, and there was not breathing room, much less standing room, in the big hall just completed. A dance followed, both up and down stairs. Seventeen hundred dollars was paid out for horse races, bands, and other amusements, and over $100 was left in the treasury when it was all over. Thus it was easy to see that conditions were some different then that now. (1934).
But, the good old days are coming back if all of the people of this section will come to life as they were in those days. The people of this section spent thousands of dollars for advertising. Everyone, young and old, was boosting and not knocking. The farmers were boosters. They subscribed money for the Chambers of Commerce for advertising. They helped to furnish and arrange displays and exhibits of farm produce to go to the State Fair, and to the apple shows held in Denver, and on to Chicago and Milwaukee, sending men with the exhibits and paying their expenses - all of which paid dividends ten fold.
Uncle George Clucas of Cortez, George
Longenbaugh, W. T. Bozman, Sandy Garlinghouse, and A. W. Dillon, all of whom have gone to their rewards in years past, were among the leaders to gather and arrange for many of the exhibits sent out in those days. H. F. Morgan, Jack Bozman and Harry Pyle, who are still living, were among the live ones, and they could be found almost any time during the growing season with their wagons or buggies going from ranch to ranch and selecting grains and other samples for exhibits. In those days we sent two or three cars of apples to the Denver Apple Shows, which lasted for one week in the Auditorium, where they were in competition with apples from every section of America including Canada, and we always got our share of the ribbons.
Thousands of people attended those shows from all over America and foreign countries. Montezuma County had piles of attractive and well-written advertising matter piled on the tables at the exhibit for those attending to carry away.
Cortez in those days had a 30-piece band, who were all artists. Uncle George Clucas and the Kermodes composed a quartet that were also artists. They were known as the Manx Quartet (from their native land). The band attended the apple show and played in the Auditorium and on the streets each day and night. On Wednesday night when there were 25,000 people in the auditorium and there was a public wedding on the stage, the lucky couple receiving more than $2,000 in cash and presents, the Cortez Band was awarded the pleasure of playing the wedding march, which they did with honor to themselves, their home town, and the Montezuma Valley. The quartet sang each night in the large dining room of the Adams Hotel, of which they were guests for the week. They also sang at the Auditorium and at several of the cabarets of the city. The band were also guests of the Adams Hotel during the week, and when the show was over, they left many new friends and admirers in Denver, all having had a splendid week in Denver and also having done an inestimable amount of advertising for our Montezuma Valley.
June Head is the historian for the Montezuma County Historical Society, and can be contacted for comments, questions or corrections at 565-3880. | <urn:uuid:48986a97-67a4-48f9-85e9-085402136b0a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cortezjournal.com/article/20130301/Columnists25/130309969/0/20120904 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.988563 | 1,566 | 2.25 | 2 |
Annmarie Fertoli, Associate Producer, WNYC News
Annmarie Fertoli is an Associate Producer at WNYC, working with the afternoon news team to produce All Things Considered.
More than 930,000 customers on Long Island are without power following the massive storm, as officials assess the damage caused by flooding, downed trees and power lines.
Several areas along Long Island’s shore were part of mandatory evacuation zones, and several shelters are open in Nassau and Suffolk counties for residents who need them.
One of those shelters, Nassau Community College in Uniondale, was quickly filling up on Tuesday, following the worst of the storm. A Red Cross volunteer said the shelter housed 575 people on Monday night, and expected to double that number by Tuesday night as evacuees filed in after the storm hit.
Red Cross spokesman Steve Bayer came in from Florida to help out with relief efforts. He said evacuees are registered, given a cot and a blanket and are set up in the large gymnasium.
Several people at the center on Tuesday said they’d tried to wait out the storm, having experienced Tropical Storm Irene, but they woke up to damage worse than they’d imagined. Some were asked to evacuate by the county, and others by the National Guard.
“It’s just unbelievable devastation,” said Pat Constantino, a Lido Beach resident who was evacuated after the storm. “This was the storm of the century.”
“It looks like the world ended,” she said. “We had dunes, most of our dunes are gone. Our whole back of our building is covered in sand. Our parking lots are covered in sand…every car in the parking lot floated.”
Crystal Lynch, in nearby Long Beach, also experienced flooding in her apartment complex. She said she lives close to the bay, which met the ocean during the storm. “We got, like, both ends coming in,” she said.
There will certainly be substantial cleanup needed in those areas, and for many at the shelter, it’ll be a day-to-day wait to find out when they can return to their homes.
Linda Minerva, also from Lido Beach, put things into perspective, after being evacuated on Tuesday.
“It was a terrible thing, but we’re all safe and people are alive,” she said. “It’s things and buildings…we can replace those things but we can’t replace lives.” | <urn:uuid:885a72e3-b236-4d22-a101-24e5d04482f0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wnyc.org/articles/wnyc-news/2012/oct/31/long-island-struggles-sandys-aftermath/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00028-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975043 | 542 | 1.796875 | 2 |
Note: the Capital Campaign to build the Ruffulo Carhouse successfully concluded in 2008. This page has been left on the website to tell the story of this successful campaign and to chronicle the construction of this major new facility.
The Orange Empire Railway Museum has assembled a nationally recognized collection of historic railway equipment from throughout the Western United States, with special emphasis on the railroads that helped build Los Angeles and Southern California: the Los Angeles Railway, Pacific Electric,Santa Fe, Southern Pacific and Union Pacific. The Museum’s Permanent Collection is comprised of 170 cars and locomotives, and another 60 railcars are on the property as part of our Support Collection.
Although we already have five carhouses and other major facilities, only 40% of the collection has an indoor home. With almost fifty years gone by since the Museum’s founding in 1956, the deterioration caused by outdoor storage is now reaching a critical point for many of our irreplaceable railcars and locomotives. There are simply not enough resources available to continually work on tarps, roof repairs and conservation paint jobs for over 100 pieces of equipment stored outdoors.
Your help is essential so that we can “Cover the Cars”. Imagine having only pictures instead of the real thing when reminiscing about wooden railcars from the early 1900s or Los Angeles ’ “Big Red Cars”. Each year the Museum hosts hundred of visiting school children and gives them an opportunity to learn about the history of Southern California through the vantage point of our historic railway collection. Our efforts now will ensure that their children and grandchildren will in turn be able to experience this same educational opportunity.
We are constructing a 64,000 square foot building that will double the amount of indoor space we now have for our collection. By early 2004, $600,000 had been set aside for the project, and the goal of raising an additional $400,000 within two years was set. As of February 2008, the building is complete along with the track inside, and two of the six tracks are now sheltering our historic cars and locomotives. Work is underway to construct the remaining yard and lead tracks that will connect the rest of the building to the Museum railway and allow more cars to move inside. Our $400,000 target has been met through donations and the sale of a surplus piece of rolling stock. Thanks to your help, another substantial portion of our historic collection will soon move into a protected environment.
Please join with our museum membership and friends from throughout the rail preservation community by giving to the “Cover the Cars” capital campaign. Orange Empire Railway Museum is recognized by the IRS as a 501 (c) 3 non-profit corporation, and all donations are tax deductible.
The Ron Ruffulo Carhouse: Facts and Figures in Brief
Campaign Goals: Construction of the building, track and related infrastructure is budgeted at $1,000,000.
Building Specs: All metal, 104 feet by 600 feet, 6 tracks inside, each with a roll-up door at the front of the building (and two at the rear of the building), skylights and an automatic fire sprinkler system.
Capacity: 3,600 track feet, room for about 65 railcars and locomotives
Strategic Importance: The Ruffulo Carhouse will double our current indoor storage capacity, add much greater flexibility in presenting our collection to the public, and anchor our planned Railcar Preservation Complex.
Additional Project Improvements: Railcar storage yard on the east side of the building, additional trackage to accommodate future elements of the Railcar Preservation Complex, expansion of our water line and fire hydrant system, improved fire access roadways and parking improvements.
You can mail a donation to the
Cover the Cars campaign to OERM at:
Orange Empire Railway Museum
PO Box 548
Perris CA 92572
You can also charge a donation to your credit card by contacting our Museum office during regular business hours at (951) 943-3020
Thank You for Your Support
More Project Details
Construction of the building, along with the track and related roadway, drainage and utility improvements is budgeted at one million dollars. The building itself, complete with doors, gutters, roof ventilators and sprinkler system, makes up about $630,000 of that cost. This cost does not include any type of floor inside the building. Costs to extend the Museum’s underground waterline to the building site and provide the requisite number of hydrants add another $132,000 to the budget ($92,000 already expended, $40,000 budgeted for the remaining work), while permits and fees related to obtaining the building permit tallied up to $71,000. The cost of the concrete slabs that the rails will be bolted to inside the building is budgeted at $122,000. Costs for civil engineering, building electrical, construction of the required trackage for the yard are anticipated to bring the costs up to the one million dollar mark by the time the cars are resting inside.
The six tracks that run the length of the building will be on 15 foot centers, excepting the middle pair of tracks, which are on 18 foot centers to provide extra clearance around the center column line. (For comparison purposes, Carhouse Four has 17 foot track centers, while Carhouse Two has 12 foot centers). The resulting aisle width inside Carhouse Seven will be between 5 and 6 feet depending on the width of the railcars or locomotives which are parked on the tracks. The center and side aisles are a bit wider.
Carhouse Seven will give the Museum the ability to rotate exhibits into and out of the various display areas; it's located in a non-public area of the Museum site, and will serve as the Museum's "attic", storing artifacts in a protected environment, while the other carhouses and various outdoor exhibit areas provide a place for the public to view and interact with the collections.
Prior to the commencement of the project in April of 2004, $600,000 had been set aside by the Board of Directors from a combination of sources. Several bequests were earmarked for the project, including over $200,000 from the estate of Mercedes Glenn. Several significant “seed money” donations had also been received, including one from longtime Museum benefactors Ward and Betty Kimball. Augmenting these gracious gifts was the sale of several pieces of railway rolling stock that were either duplicates or outside of the Museum’s mission statement (three San Francisco streetcars returned there in 2003, and in 2005 British Columbia Electric Railway interurban car 1225 returned to Canada and New Orleans streetcar 913 was sold to the San Francisco Muni. The rolling stock sales provided $489,000 towards the project.
In March of 2008, the building was named the Ron Ruffulo Carhouse in honor of the Museum's long-serving Buildings Superintendent. Ron has worked as an OERM volunteer since 1958, and has had a hand in constructing all of the buildings on the grounds. His decades of hard work have helped preserve OERM's collection and have helped the organization to grow through the addition of many key facilities. | <urn:uuid:eb95c713-7bcd-4723-942c-3b767e8ec2ad> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.oerm.org/carhouse-seven/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00071-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951439 | 1,477 | 1.859375 | 2 |
In North Star classes, there is no dead air. Fifth grade math was rhythmic recitation of multiplication tables punctuated by questions from the teacher, Julie Jackson. Hands shot into the air. The correct answer was rewarded with a ticket to be added to the pot for a drawing at the end of the week. Then the next table began. "Twelve, twenty-four, thirty-six, forty-eight . . . "
The pace of the class was relentless. Jackson, charged with bringing lagging students up to grade level, had the peripheral vision of a hawk--not to spot transgressions but to ensure that nobody is left behind. "She holds them in the very highest esteem," Verrilli said in the doorway.
A tour of classes in the upper grades showed less recitation but equally intense interaction between teachers and students. There was no fidgeting, much less misbehavior. Earlier, Verrilli had explained the stages of discipline at the school, but it seemed these students would never step out of line. That, Verrilli said, was the result of weeks and months of very hard work. "It's a little bit like a boot camp experience when they first come," he said. "They've had a lot of experience with adults who say things they don't mean. And we mean what we say."
They say there is no fighting. No disrespect toward teachers or peers. And no place to hide. "We know everything they do, we watch everything they do," Verrilli said. "The standards of behavior here, it's a much higher bar than it is in the schools they come from. In the schools they come from there's a lot of chaos, a lot of violence. It varies from teacher to teacher. You might have a good teacher, there might be a lot of order in the room. You don't have a good teacher, it's chaotic."
Because of its small size, North Star's teachers are observed frequently. Because of the longer school day and school year (September to late July), they tend to be dedicated by nature. They gauge their effectiveness not only by assessment tests but by students' aspirations. "They told me I can do anything I want to," said ninth grader Marron Pickett, "so I want to go to Harvard. None of my family members went to college so that's something I definitely want to do."
Verrilli said the job won't be done until North Star places its first class of students in colleges three years from now. And though he's pleased with the school's performance, he is the first to admit that the North Star model isn't the solution to all of the problems facing the nation's schools.
"I think we have one of many answers," he said, "a piece of the puzzle here. The problem is people are looking for simple answers. There's no simple answer. The problem is poverty. And until we solve that, we're not going to solve the educational problems of this country."
HOW SHOULD WE TEACH?
Small Triumphs: Alex Quigley '99 finds reason for both hope and despair in the Mississippi Delta
A Ray of Hope: Brittany Ray '93 inspires where she found her inspiration
An Education CEO: Robert Furek '65 brings accountability to Hartford public schools
Charting Success: James Verrilli '83 directs charter school turn-around in Newark
Perspectives on Reform: Colby experts discuss reform and the purpose of education
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