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Mute Swan Photos Gallery
The Mute Swan (Cygnus olor) is one of the world’s heaviest flying birds. Males are larger than females, having a larger knob on their bill. Mute Swans are strongly territorial. The familiar pose with neck curved back and wings half raised, known as busking, is a male threat display. | <urn:uuid:a3db65fc-7417-4643-b0ba-c5ca39fe715b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://4eyesphoto.co.uk/category/bird-photos/mute-swan-photos/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937899 | 74 | 1.882813 | 2 |
The purpose of this assembly is to show that God is an incredibly creative God. As Christians, we believe that God created the world. Who or what else could have created something so incredibly varied, creative and colourful?
Just take a look at the people next to you. It's an interesting sight I'm sure, it may even be a horrible sight. But enough about having to look at me.. When you look at people, buildings, the weather, plants, animals - it's incredible how different we all are.
If you want to, get 5 people up on stage, who all look different. Then, say only positive things about each of them. I cannot stress this strongly enough. Only make fun of yourself (and that's if you have to, and do so lightly). With young people up front, always affirm, encourage and praise. Please note this. Talk about how they look different, wear different clothes etc. Be careful and uplifting! Give them a mars bar each as they walk away (or something equally appropriate).
Some Random Facts
1. Today, 6.3 billion people live on the earth.
2. The world's population grows by 100 million each year.
3. There are 194 countries in the world.
4. There are 5 major religions in the world today. Christianity is the largest. Christians count themselves by conversions (people becoming Christians), Islam counts its numbers by births alone.
5. In 2004, the US had 73.9 million pets. 63% are dogs, 34% are cats.
6. The British love to have pets more than any other nation in the world, mainly cats, dogs, birds and fish.
7. Makeup was first invented in Egypt and Rome around 1000BC.
8. Lipstick was first manufactured in the U.S. in 1915. Kiss-proof lipstick came out in 1925.
9. There were 7 ancient wonders of the world. There are 7 modern day wonders of the world (click here for them).
10. Tigers have striped skin, not just striped fur.
11. It is likely that 10 to 15% of the Earth's flowering plants have not yet been described.
12. There are 250,000 species of flowering plants in the world.
For this, you need to visit the photography page on the website and assemble a few of these, or of your own photos (to show the creative world) - or you can click here for a Powerpoint show (538KB. This is a zip file which you download, then double-click to 'extract' the .pps file). Alternatively, if you are artistic, do a few drawings, put them up on a sketch board, or scan them in and put them into a powerpoint (or similar) file.
So let's look at a quick visual show of the kind of creative world we live in.. (play the powerpoint show file or put the images up on an OHP, flipchart etc). Then you may want to leave the last slide on the screen (of a rose).
Point - What an incredibly creative world this is that we live in. Think about the places, plants, animals, people, colours.
What does the Bible say?
The Bible says that God has revealed himself in creation. A book called Romans says this:
But the basic reality of God is plain enough. Open your eyes and there it is! By taking a long and thoughtful look at what God has created, people have always been able to see what their eyes as such can't see: eternal power, for instance, and the mystery of his divine being. So nobody has a good excuse. (The Message)
The evidence of God smacks you in the face, from the smallest microcosm to the biggest star system - all trademarked 'God'. And it doesn't take a genius to work out what God's like from what he's made. No excuses. You can't miss it. Unless you're not looking! (Rob Lacey, The Street Bible, Zondervan, 2003, thewordonthestreet.co.uk)
As Christians we believe God is a creative God and that he put creative abilities into each of us to reflect him. God has revealed himself to all of us through this creativity. Our choice is how we respond to what God has shown us and given us. | <urn:uuid:7cce3692-04f5-4df0-828e-3a82419868af> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://myfishbites.com/assemblies-creative.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00064-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962132 | 900 | 2.1875 | 2 |
Iceland Volcano Snarls Air Travel
Update: European air traffic controllers said airspace will return to normal on Thursday, after the Grimsvotn volcano eruption in Iceland last weekend. More than a 1,000 flights were canceled due to the plume of ash and soot.
Iceland’s main airport remains closed and roads covered in gray soot, after the Grimsvotn volcano erupted on Sunday, May 22, 2011. It was the volcano’s largest eruption in 100 years. The volcano has already forced the Keflavik airport to close and forced the cancellation of 40 international flights.
More airport closures and flight cancellations are possible as the plums of ash continue to move toward the UK. Officials at the National Air Traffic Service Ltd. say air services from 12 Scottish airports, including Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen may be interrupted. U.S. President Barak Obama had to curtail his trip to Ireland due to the moving ash cloud.
Scientists don’t believe this volcano’s ash will wreak more havoc on Europe’s airports than last year’s Eyjafjallajokull volcano eruption — that incident stranded 10 million people and was several billions of dollars in losses. | <urn:uuid:ee5b279e-36c3-48e2-b07f-3824a9772995> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.travelchannel.com/the-traveling-type/2011/05/23/iceland-volcano-snarls-air-travel/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.948314 | 256 | 2.375 | 2 |
his unique linear park located along the Harpeth River in Middle Tennessee offers natural, cultural, and recreational day use areas rich in historic significance and natural beauty. Canoe access areas are located at all sites (excluding archeological areas) providing beginner and advanced paddlers opportunities to float this beautiful class II river. Bring your own canoe or kayak or call local commercial outfitters for trip information and boat rentals.
The Harpeth River is a wonderful place to take a family canoe trip. It is usually a gentle river that provides class II rapids, meaning it is suitable for canoeing with young children. My children started canoeing the Harpeth River at 2 years of age and they still enjoy it. We have taken no less than 15 canoe trips down this beloved river. We usually canoe around the Narrows of the Harpeth, but there are many areas of access and you can take trips of varied lengths. To canoe the Narrows, it is usually a 3-4 hour trip, non-stop. We have our own canoe now, but before we did, we would rent one from Tip-a-Canoe, a local canoe company. There are several other outfitters on the Harpeth from which you can rent a canoe if you do not own one.
What makes this an ideal canoe destination is that there are many places where you can stop along side the river to take a break or enjoy a picnic. Also, the water is shallow enough in portions to allow access to swimming, making this an ideal summer activity. There are also several easy hiking trails centered around the park. For a fun, free day outdoors, you can't go wrong with canoeing the Harpeth River.
I've only been there once, and it was 30 or more years ago, but I assume the river hasn't changed. It's a long river, and there are many places to get in and out, but the best is at the "Narrows of the Harpeth," 20-30 mi or so west of Nashville off I-40. There is a 5-mile loop in the river (called "Bell's Bend") allowing you to float for a couple of hours through the countryside and then get back out about a hundred yards from where you got in. This part of the river is flat and placid, ideal for a family outing. I suspect it gets a bit crowded on summer weekends. You can bring your own craft or rent one. The park itself is free, as far as I know. | <urn:uuid:66fa9667-d07d-4ab5-89b2-8f2f8ab537ec> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.trekaroo.com/activities/harpeth-state-scenic-river-kingston-springs-tennessee | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00028-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97303 | 517 | 1.554688 | 2 |
Md Salleh, Madihah (2002) Direct Fermentation of Gelatinised Sago Starch to Solvent (Acetone Butanol-Ethanol) by Clostridium Acetobutylicum P262. PhD thesis, Universiti Putra Malaysia.
Several approaches have been applied for the improvement of direct fermentation of sago starch to solvent by C. acetobutylicum. Optimization of medium based on gelatinised sago starch as a carbon source and kinetics of solvent-yielding batch fermentation of individual sugars and their mixture derived from enzymatic hydrolysis of sago starch were carried out using batch fermentation in Scoth bottle. Development of pH control strategy for improvement of solvent production was carried out in batch fermentation using 2 L stirred tank fermenter. The data gathered from batch fermentation were used for development of models to describe direct fermentation of sago starch to solvent. The 2 L and 0.5 L stirred tank fermenter were used to investigate the feasibility of using continuous culture (single stage and two stage) on the improvement of direct fermentation of sago starch to solvent. In all modes of fermentation investigated, the activities of enzymes relevant to solvent fermentation (crotonase, thiolase, phosphate butyryltransferase and β-hydroxybutyryl-CoA dehydrogenase) were determined in order to find their relationship with acid and solvent production. The use of 30 g/L gelatinised sago starch as the sole carbon source produced 11.2 gIL total solvent i.e. 1.5-2 times higher than fermentation using pure maltose or glucose. Enzymatic pretreatment of gelatinised sago starch yielding maltose and glucose hydrolysate prior to the fermentation did not improve solvent production as compared to direct fermentation of gelatinised sago starch. The inefficiency of the amylolytic enzymes secreted during the fermentation in hydrolyzing starch to maltose and glucose is the main problem in direct fermentation of sago starch to solvent. The a-amylase and glucoamylase of C. acetobutylicum have different pH and temperature optima. The pH optima for a-amylase and glucoamylase were found to be at 5.3 and 4.0-4.4, respectively. a-amylase showed a broad pH stability profile, retaining more than 80% of its maximum activity at pH 3.0-8.0 after 24 h incubation at 37°C. However, glucoamylase was only stable at pH 4.0-5.0, maintaining more than 90% of its maximum activity after 24b incubation at 37°C. Production of solvent (11.0 g/L) in fermentation using 30 g/L sago starch was comparable to fermentation using corn starch and about two times higher than fermentation using potato and cassava starches. At the range of sago starch concentration investigated (10 to 80 g/L), the highest solvent production (18.8 g/L) was obtained at 50 g/L. A mixture of yeast extract and ammoniwn nitrate produced total solvent (18.8 g/L) of about 6 times higher than that produced by fermentation using yeast extract alone. The individual concentration of nitrogen and carbon influenced solvent production to a greater extent than carbon to nitrogen (C/N) ratio. Simple unstructured models employing Logistic and Leudeking-Piret equations were found sufficient to describe the growth of C. acetobutybcum and the production of acid and solvent. In fermentation without pH controL initial culture pH 6 gave the highest solvent production (14.13 g/L) with the overall productivity of 0.5 g/L/h. Growth of C. acetoburylicum, rate of starch hydrolysis and solvent production were greatly reduced in fermentation where pH was controlled at 4.5 during acidogenic phase. Excessive acid production (32 g/L) was obtained in fermentation where pH was controlled at 6.0 during the acidogenic phase which reduced solvent production significantly (7.1 g/L). In order to reduce acid accumulation, the fermentation where pH was allowed to decrease naturally by self-acidification during acidogenic phase was suggested. Solvent production was also reduced when pH during the solventogenic phase was controlled at 6.5. Substantial improvement of solvent production was achieved in fermentation where pH was not controlled during acidogenic phase (initial culture pH was 6) and then the pH was controlled at 5.5 during solventogenic phase. Using this pH control strategy, the overall productivity (0.79 g/L.h) was improved by 1.6 times as compared to fermentation without pH control, though the final solvent concentration (16.82 g/L) was about the same. The highest crotonase and phosphate butyryltransferase activity was observed in fermentation where pH was controlled at 5 during acidogenic phase, which was corresponded to fairly high acid production but low solvent production. On the other hand, specific activity of β-hydroxybutyryl-CoA was the highest at pH 5.5, which was corresponded to high acid and solvent production. In fermentation with controlled pH during solventogenic phase, the highest thiolase specific activity was obtained at pH 5.25, which was corresponded to the highest production of acetone. On the other hand, the highest specific activity of crotonase, β-hydroxybutyryl-CoA dehydrogenase and phosphate butyryltransferase was observed at pH 5.5, and this was corresponded to the highest production of ethanol and butanol.
|Item Type:||Thesis (PhD)|
|Subject:||Food - Microbiology|
|Chairman Supervisor:||Professor Madya Dr. Arbakariya Ariff|
|Call Number:||FSMB 2002 9|
|Faculty or Institute:||Faculty of Food Science and Technology|
|Deposited By:||Nurul Hayatie Hashim|
|Deposited On:||25 Nov 2010 19:11|
|Last Modified:||12 Sep 2011 10:07|
Repository Staff Only: item control page | <urn:uuid:ae0dd567-815a-4ab6-b4e8-dbac28810d0e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://psasir.upm.edu.my/8471/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.936983 | 1,299 | 1.609375 | 2 |
A little eco car has to tick a few boxes; it should emit less CO2 than a trumpeting mouse, be as cheap as a Primark suit and, if it's really on its game, still be fun to fizz about town in. With the Corsa Ecoflex, Vauxhall has failed.
Its main problem? The Fiesta Econetic, which trounces it on CO2 and claimed mpg, while managing to stamp a grin on your face as you drive it. The Corsa is slow and ponderous in comparison.
It comes down to this: 119g/km CO2 in the Corsa versus 98g/km in the Fiesta. Similar story on claimed fuel economy - 62.8mpg plays 76.3.
Taken in isolation, the Corsa isn't bad - it falls into the lowest tax threshold and won't cost you a fortune to run. But don't forget, you pay no tax at all in the Fiesta, which has a CO2 of well under 100g/km. Even the non-eco Fiesta 1.6 diesel chucks out less CO2 than this Corsa.
And that's because the only thing Vauxhall has done to make this thing ‘eco' is to adjust the ECU. So there's no special aerodynamics, no low resistance tyres and the gearing remains the same as the standard car.
Instead, Vauxhall promises to recycle your old car and give you up to a grand towards your new one. Not massively eco, but it's a redeeming feature of sorts. But on a car that fails in almost every other department, it's really not enough to save it. | <urn:uuid:aa574a16-3a68-481c-96ce-2e1b75100015> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.topgear.com/uk/vauxhall/corsa/road-test/1.3-cdti-ecoflex-club | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00031-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959957 | 344 | 1.734375 | 2 |
posted 17 Dec 2009 in Volume 13 Issue 4
A fresh look at knowledge capture
Cora Newell and Mark Gould explain law firm Addleshaw Goddard's individual approach to creating a client-centred knowledge culture, rather than implementing a firmwide knowledge infrastructure
The current recession has highlighted the importance of good knowledge practices and a corporate culture that actively supports those practices. It would be too much to argue that an absence of those things would threaten the viability of businesses as risk of failure is more likely to be a function of business model and trading activities. However, a sound approach to knowledge should mark out those businesses that emerge strongly from the current economic situation.
For many organisations, especially those that are more process-driven, good knowledge practice focuses on distilling and improving upon condoned working practices with the aim of creating a lasting knowledge culture and, ultimately, a more effective knowledge system. Historically, the sector of legal private practice has seen substantial investment by many law firms in knowledge capture systems. It is probably fair to say that there are many who would argue that these investments have not always paid off and that this approach has created further difficult problems: the variable quality of documentation included; topicality and the need to weed; duplication; the creation of silo databases; and other issues.
Addleshaw Goddard (AG) is one firm which chose to buck this trend by relying on team approaches to knowledge capture rather than a firm-wide infrastructure. And, on the whole, it has not regretted its decision, believing that it has managed to maintain competitive advantage while successfully avoiding some of the troublesome issues alluded to above. But AG has realised that a knowledge system can bring more subtle benefits of greater value, above and beyond the creation of a store of working documents, with commentary and guidance. The fact of having a knowledge system raises the profile of knowledge sharing and clarifies to staff that the firm considers knowledge sharing a priority. This, in itself, can result in changed behaviours even through the knowledge system may not be as heavily used as intended. The existence of a knowledge system can therefore make a significant cultural difference by influencing changes in behaviour. These behavioural changes are capable of influencing activities that are wider than the formal knowledge system and are of greater value to the firm as a result.
Knowledge is what law firms do – knowledge in this context being the work practice itself, rather than any particular documentation or abstract. By not investing in firm-wide knowledge systems, AG considers that, although it may not have suffered in missing out on an effective body of knowledge, it may have missed out on a much more important prospect – the opportunity to create and develop a knowledge culture – a set of expectations among its staff that, as knowledge is what we do, we all have a part to play in its contribution.
The creation of a knowledge culture is no small thing to achieve and of real benefit in a recession. Determined to act, but mindful that heavy investment in a centralised know-how system was not possible, AG decided to approach the cultural issue directly – it would drive the development of a client-centred knowledge culture by defining good knowledge behaviours in the context of transactional activity. But how does one go about distilling generic behaviours, which lead to good working practices around knowledge, so as to create a useful product rather than a safety net? How does one identify actual examples rooted in particular transactions that everyone can understand and, more to the point, so that the processes can be applied to different work areas?
AG believes it has an answer and is currently piloting knowledge behaviour models that cross practice area boundaries, attempting to develop processes capable of being tested, reported on and achieving consistent client satisfaction. This two-year project is currently half-completed.
Amongst AG’s existing know-how resources, a couple stood out. The private equity group had developed a particularly effective set of materials (which they termed a ‘toolkit’) to support their transactions. The real estate team managed support for repetitive leasehold transactions for key retail clients by matching clients’ commercial needs with a low-cost legal process. Close examination of these two valuable strands of work led to the view that they would be suitable examples from which to develop a better understanding of the application of good knowledge management principles across the firm.
Working with consultants, Mark Gould, AG’s head of knowledge management, took the raw materials provided by the private equity and real estate teams to produce two fundamental resources. One was a generic transaction map and the other a table of key knowledge-related behaviours supporting effective work with clients and others within the firm. Although the content of these would not surprise most experienced lawyers or knowledge managers, they are surprisingly uncommon documents. An excerpt from one of the transaction maps, together with a draft of the related knowledge behaviours are provided in Figures 1 and 2.
The transaction maps break into four major stages. These comprise certain processes that are generic across a range of work types, such as the beginning and end of each matter (matter opening and matter closing), a project management stage (consisting of key actions that might be repeated a number of times, especially during a larger matter) and a transaction-specific set of activities. The illustrative material refers to the closing stages of a matter, typically a problematic area for many law firms. Many of the tasks performed at this stage are considered by lawyers (and even by clients) as peripheral work, especially as the key elements of the transaction or case will have been resolved. The natural inclination of most lawyers is to throw themselves into the next piece of work, rather than ‘mopping up’ the remaining pieces of the last one. However, the benefit that can accrue from an effective review of work done, and of the client’s reaction to the work – lessons learned – is potentially huge. There is at this stage a real tension between what individuals want to do and what the organisation needs from them.
It is hoped that the process map will help to resolve this tension by providing a useful checklist to remind lawyers of these key tasks and an explanation of why performing those tasks makes a difference. A similar checklist approach has proved highly successful in emergency medical care (see, for example, Atul Gawande’s new book, The Checklist Manifesto).
Of course, when resources like these are created, they are often seen as written in stone and promoted to legal staff who are exhorted to comply with them at all stages of their work. This approach often falls foul of lawyers’ natural propensity for risk-aversion. By way of example, an expectation which underpins the process map and knowledge behaviours is that the client’s needs should be the key driver when there is a clash between the client’s commercial needs and the perfect legal process. So, where a client has good commercial reasons to occupy a shop within four weeks of deciding to take the lease, but a full-blown assessment of the relative obligations of the landlord and tenant would take six weeks, a way has to be found of shortening (or avoiding) the process.
A number of things flow from this scenario. Most importantly, the lawyer needs to know exactly what the client’s needs are for this transaction and more generally. There needs to be effective communication between the client and lawyer and within the legal team more generally. To be effective, this communication must draw out the right knowledge from the client. It is also essential for lawyers to know which aspects of the legal process are most critical to achieving the client’s commercial goals. They therefore need to understand those goals and be able to communicate them effectively to others (as well as know when to communicate them). Sadly, all these things are harder to do than to explain. AG employs two mechanisms to help lawyers to become better at this communication.
Typically, work in law firms depends on a pair of key tools: e-mail and documents. Both tend to be used in a formal fashion, unlike knowledge sharing which tends to be informal. Thus, knowledge sharing that does take place can often be lost or at least restricted to those who are directly involved. It is unfortunate that some of this informal knowledge sharing includes information that could improve client service if made more widely available.
In an attempt to try and capture this informal knowledge sharing that can add real value to the client relationship, AG is moving away from historic, dead tree approaches and using dynamic wiki and blog, people-focused systems, consistent with the firm’s wish to link knowledge culture and client service. These systems aim to provide a snapshot of what’s in AG’s people’s heads at any given time – an approach better suited to the nature of a professional services firm. But the focus of these wikis and blogs is not on legal expertise and know-how, but on a set of key clients. This enables everyone in the firm to contribute insights into these clients, the markets they operate in, and their relationship with the firm.
As its knowledge behaviours project is designed to link client experience with knowledge and give clients a better experience, AG’s developed models of good knowledge behaviours will be incorporated into the firm’s performance management system, replacing existing generic statements favouring undefined ‘knowledge sharing’. Staff will be shown what good knowledge sharing behaviour looks like rather than just being told what it is – enabling greater depth of practice area coverage.
In common with many organisations, AG employs an annual performance review for each employee. These reviews depend on feedback from others and are based on a competency framework for each role in the firm. These competency frameworks reflect the range of behaviours, skills and attributes that the firm expects of its people, but are typically presented in a simple descriptive form. Where the behaviour or attribute described for a role is widely understood, this is a sensible approach. But often the term ‘knowledge sharing’ is not clear enough for people to give meaningful feedback. In order to achieve a wider acceptance in the firm of the new models of knowledge sharing, the key behaviours identified during this project are being presented in narrative form so people will more easily be able to understand what is required of them in sharing knowledge. More importantly, these examples will enable better informed, more nuanced, feedback on performance.
The firm has just started the process of reviewing its competency frameworks to take account of the knowledge behaviours. This work is progressing iteratively, with the first draft of the behaviours being tested with a wider range of lawyers and support staff. Their comments, observations and additional examples will be used to improve the final version. In addition, it is expected that further examples of good (and not so good) knowledge use will be incorporated into the performance management system each year. As a result, good knowledge practices will be embodied in the performance review process as well as in other working processes throughout the firm.
Addleshaw Goddard’s approach to knowledge sharing is an experimental one, but it has been developed in a way that allows for graceful failure. The changed performance management process will be constantly monitored by people throughout the firm (not just HR professionals). This monitoring, together with the availability of process maps for working practices, will enable the firm to judge at the earliest opportunity if the changes are making a difference to knowledge sharing. If the experiment succeeds, the firm will reap the rewards. If it fails, any changes made in the process can easily be rolled back. The firm’s downside is limited as its investment has been relatively minimal, especially in contrast with the creation of a firm-wide knowledge system. As such, this is a real example of the kind of safe-fail experimentation that Dave Snowden considers to be a significant strategy in dealing with complex systems1.
Mark Gould is head of knowledge management at Addleshaw Goddard LLP. He joined the firm in 2001 as a professional support lawyer after a 13-year career as a legal academic. He blogs on KM and related matters at http://blog.tarn.org/ and can be contacted at Mark.Gould@addleshawgoddard.com
Cora Newell is a senior KM adviser and solicitor with wide experience of city firm practice. She is founder of KM Insight Consulting, a consultancy that offers advisory and change management services to firms wishing to develop their knowledge capabilities, information management and business efficiency. A regular speaker at major KM and legal conferences, she can be contacted at firstname.lastname@example.org | <urn:uuid:6232e53b-b5db-4ea3-9d6e-6e5ee3eb0fe3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ikmagazine.com/xq/asp/sid.E642FD34-1BCB-4980-9FC5-0708116C24BA/articleid.7C15482A-57F9-4B72-9110-C8AADE2B033C/eTitle.Cover_feature_Challenging_preconceptions/qx/display.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00053-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.95883 | 2,539 | 1.609375 | 2 |
Although it is right in the middle of the influenza season for Arizona residents, there is still a benefit to having that preventative flu shot if you have not yet had one.
According to the Arizona Department of Health and Services, the flu season peaks much later in the year here than other states around the country and can last up until May.
A local pediatrician said the single best way for everyone to protect themselves against the flu is to have a shot before the beginning of the season, typically in October, but this goes especially for children and people with weakened immune systems.
However, even if you have not had one yet this year, Dr. Mary Jo Kutler, D.O. of Ahwatukee Pediatrics, said that by getting one now you could avoid risk of infection during the peak of the season, which could be approaching.
If you do become infected, however, the best thing to do is to rest and drink lots of fluids, Kutler said.
Symptoms are similar to that of a normal head cold but can be much more severe. A fever over 100.5 degrees, vomiting, diarrhea, coughing, a sore throat and fatigue are all things to look for to determine whether or not you have the flu or just a cold. If you have questions about your diagnosis, ask your doctor.
Kutler said the biggest misconception that people have about the flu is that it can be confused with the common cold when it comes to treatment of the symptoms. The fundamental difference being that influenza is a viral infection and the common cold is usually caused by bacteria.
Thus, antibiotics cannot help someone who has influenza. In some cases, they can actually do more harm than good. WedMD states, "Taking antibiotics when they are not needed increases your risk of getting an infection later that resists antibiotic treatment."
Antiviral medications are an option for someone who has already contracted influenza, but the timeframe to use them is small. A person can shave one to two days off their infection period by taking antiviral medication within 48 hours after the onset of illness.
As for preventatives measures beside the shot itself, Kutler recommends utilizing sanitary measures, especially around children.
"Good hand washing techniques are best as well as instituting infection control practices in everyday life," she said. "Pay attention to your child's body cues. If they are tired then they need rest. Do not send them to school if they have a fever (over 100.5) and really the best thing to do is to let them rest and drink fluids."
The peak of the symptoms typically last for up to 72 hours, but, as the virus is extremely contagious, someone should stay at home until all symptoms have subsided.
To find out more information about influenza, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web site, www.CDC.gov/Flu.
Editor's note: The term "common cold" is incorrectly used in an above paragraph. The point Kutler wanted to make was that people are sometimes not aware that antibiotics cannot help with symptoms caused by a virus. The term "common cold" is associated with other viral infections and not bacterial infections as it is stated. The AFN sincerely regrets the error. | <urn:uuid:630ebe3c-7887-401c-88c4-cfaf2cfb9cd4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://eastvalleytribune.com/local/the_valley/ahwatukee/article_f4a921ae-032f-5a51-bad2-1712f681e8fe.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00057-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971408 | 657 | 2.953125 | 3 |
After years of absence, grassland creatures such as the bobwhite quail, red-headed woodpecker, and fox squirrel have returned to their native habitat on a 600-acre parcel of land at the headwaters of the Ashepoo River.
The Conservancy first acquired the land, called Bonnie Doone, in 2007 with a plan to restore its native forests and wetlands, which had been the site of a timber operation that had supplanted its native longleaf pine trees with fast-growing, row-planted loblolly pine. The row-plantings subsequently shaded out the native grasses in the property’s wetland ponds – grasses that were essential to pond-breeding amphibians, including the federally threatened flatwoods salamander. Since then, The Nature Conservancy has cleared or thinned 250 acres of plantation pine forest and replaced it with longleaf pine and native wiregrass plantings. Regular water and vegetation monitoring indicate that the restored areas are absolutely thriving.
In November, TNC completed the purchase of nearly 100 acres abutting Peachtree Rock Heritage Preserve in Lexington County. TNC co-owns the preserve with the state Department of Natural Resources (DNR). DNR also manages the unique property that features prehistoric sandstone formations, the state’s easternmost waterfall, great trails, and the rare Rayner’s blueberry, which grows only in South Carolina. The new addition features a high bluff and remarkable mature longleaf pine community, which immediately will expand the longleaf footprint at the preserve.
Sewee to Santee
A two-year U.S. Forest Service (USFS) grant awarded early in 2010 enabled TNC to recruit and train an additional fire crew for prescribed fire work in partnership with USFS, doubling the Conservancy’s prescribed fire capacity in South Carolina. Despite heavy rains in January and February, reinforced TNC fire crews conducted a record 64 controlled fires in 2010, treating 37,587 acres, primarily in the Francis Marion National Forest.
Sadly, the summer of 2010 marked the departure of Sewee to Santee Project Director Michael Prevost, who retired from TNC. An 18-year veteran of the Conservancy, Mike has an undying passion for the land and waters of South Carolina. He was named Conservator of the Year by the Historical Ricefield Association, a highly deserved recognition.
On the marine front, staff and volunteers on October 25 helped build an oyster reef in TNC’s managed wetland on Dewees Island. Funding from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Coastal Program enabled the installation of 25 tons of fossilized oyster shell to construct a 40’x10’x2’ reef. The site will be monitored for a year to help determine whether managed wetlands are viable locations for creating sustainable oyster reefs in South Carolina.
South Lowcountry and the Savannah River
The Nature Conservancy of South Carolina’s largest land protection success during 2010 was the completion of a 5,068-acre conservation agreement in Jasper County. The land features seven miles of floodplain forest fronting the Savannah River. In addition to providing wildlife habitat to many rare birds, it also supports dozens of species of reptiles and amphibians, along with deer and wild turkey.
The property, called Recess Plantation, expands the Savannah River Preserve and connects to the Savannah River National Wildlife Refuge. Surveys conducted on the protected river frontage found it supports 14 varieties of mussels, including seven rare species. The river provides drinking water for people across Beaufort and Jasper counties, and this agreement, or conservation easement, will help protect water quality downstream.
On a related note, TNC has signed onto a national Memorandum of Understanding with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (COE) to work on restoring natural flow regimes to major rivers on which the Corps operates dams or diversion facilities, including the Savannah River. TNC and several partners are developing a study agreement to explore critical flow relationships in the river, such as how much flow is needed to support both spawning areas for federally endangered shortnose sturgeon and downstream habitats for freshwater mussels.
Southern Blue Ridge Escarpment
Early in 2010, TNC established two new information kiosks at the trailheads of Nine Times Preserve and dedicated a memorial plaque to Eleanor and John Keilen along the Spring Ephemeral Trail to recognize the Keilens’ generous bequest, which supports stewardship of the preserve. To better facilitate visitor access, TNC is building a mile-long trail to connect existing logging roads at Nine Times. The trail should be completed by late spring 2011.
In September, TNC completed the purchase of Phase II of its Jones Gap State Park Expansion Project, acquiring more than 116 acres of important mountain habitat. As with the Phase I parcel purchased in 2009, this land will be transferred to S.C. State Parks for management.
Winyah Bay and Pee Dee River Basin
In the fall of 2010, TNC staff and 40 volunteers from Horry-Georgetown Technical College used 1,000 oyster castle blocks to construct 52 castle structures on South Island in Winyah Bay, officially launching the Living Shorelines Pilot Project at the Tom Yawkey Wildlife Center. Funded through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Coastal Program and Bunnelle Foundation, the structures, submerged during high tide, attract newborn oysters to take up residence and naturally begin building new oyster reef. Workers followed up by planting more than 5,000 salt marsh grass shoots behind the castle structures. In addition to helping grow oyster reefs, the castles and marsh grass together may prove effective in curbing beach erosion. The site will be monitored for 12 months and results reported soon after.
An exciting land protection milestone in the Winyah Bay project area was TNC’s purchase of 440 acres of mature bottomland hardwood forest with nearly a mile of frontage along the scenic narrows of the Black River. A fisherman’s and paddler’s paradise, the newly acquired land expands the existing 1,296-acre Black River Swamp Preserve, which also protects more than five miles of river frontage between Pine Tree and Pump House landings in Georgetown County.
Also Worthy of Note
The Nature Conservancy’s primary state legislative priorities for 2010 were to secure funding for the SC Conservation Bank, to pass legislation providing some liability protections for private landowners who apply controlled fire to sustainably manage their forest lands, and to advance a bill enabling a permitting system for withdrawals of surface water, particularly when water resources are shared across state borders. By session’s end, TNC had achieved two out of three goals. Lawmakers approved about $1.5 million to keep the Conservation Bank operating for one more year at a minimal level. They also passed the water withdrawal bill, which was signed into law on June 24, marking a major step forward in protecting South Carolina’s water resources. The prescribed fire bill was stalled in the Senate and did not advance. It will be reintroduced for the 2011 session.
On October 22, The Nature Conservancy co-sponsored a first-of-its-kind Clean Energy and Jobs Forum at the University of South Carolina. TNC-SC Executive Director Mark Robertson enjoyed the privilege of serving on a discussion panel with Duke Energy CEO Jim Rogers, USC President Harris Pastides, and General Electric CEO Jeff Immelt. What ensued was a compelling dialogue about the country’s energy future, the jobs that will be created, and the need to manage the environmental footprints of both renewable and conventional energy sources. Organizers are considering making the event an annual forum.March 03, 2011 | <urn:uuid:833f4aa2-585c-4626-8bb4-c5e8403259a8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nature.org/ourinitiatives/regions/northamerica/unitedstates/southcarolina/explore/the-nature-conservancy-in-south-carolina-sc-2010-year-in-review.xml | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.934693 | 1,593 | 2.359375 | 2 |
Not the usual environmental offering - a green solution that works on all levels, according to the article on CNET:
“Excess heat from hundreds of computer servers to be located in the bedrock beneath Uspenski Cathedral, one of Helsinki's most popular tourist sites, will be captured and channeled into the district heating network, a system of water-heated pipes used to warm homes in the Finnish capital.”
In addition to heating homes, the data center will use 50% less energy than a standard data center.
Lower energy bills sweeten the pot as well.
Yet another benefit is the security the cathedral will be getting as a result of having people in the basement.
Watch this space – it will be great to see this project in action. | <urn:uuid:07840c84-ad3f-4f5f-8551-d6f1a5dfd236> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://kvm-minicom.blogspot.com/2009/12/helsinkis-unusual-data-center-heating.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00043-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.922688 | 158 | 2.546875 | 3 |
Originally Posted by Bizzlebin
Ok, you got me there, jcx; even soundstage can be adjusted on a given set of cans using hardware or software, even free software. So that potentially narrows the list down even further: are there any things that can't be changed on headphones other than THD? What are the implications of this?
I may be mistaken, but there are some limits when it comes to external processing/filtering (of whatever type) and changing radiation patterns. For example, you can never make the KSC75 present a planar wave to your ears (like you'd get from an electrostat or ortho). Just like you can't create the S-LOGIC effect without manipulating the enclosure design of the headphones (but afaik, you *could* create the effect if you spent the time fabricating the enclosure (or just frankenstein'd an Ultrasone)).
That, coupled with the inability to solve very large resonance problems, are probably the biggest issues you have along with the individual characteristics of the driver (like THD and phase).
Everything else you should be able to affect with precise/clever enough filtering/processing, and enough time. If you allow physical modification to the headphone as well, then yes you can probably change everything (in the sense that, you could easily place whatever chosen driver into whatever enclosure you like, following whatever orientation you like (even exotics, like S-LOGIC and Auranomic)) except for the wave front presentation (in that, again, you can't make the KSC75 radiate in the same pattern as an O2 or HE-6, even if you get the FR to look identical or very close).
I'm just basing all of this on speakers - you can get "flat and clean" from all manner of speaker designs assuming you deal with acoustic issues and make use of equalization, but you can't fundamentally change their radiation patterns or alter the limitations of their chosen design paradigms - unless you can dramatically modify the enclosures or change transducers (at which point you're talking about different speakers imho). For example, the Sansui SF speakers will always radiate in a 360* pattern, and without changing their enclosures fairly dramatically, you can't do away with that. However, you could place them in a room with treatments designed to complement that radiation, and EQ designed to address both their own FR problems and the FR problems resulting in the room, and likely end up with a "flat and clean" image at the seated position. I think you can do the same thing with headphones, but I think there's still going to be some fundamental differences due to radiation/dispersion due to driver arrangement.
This all assumes power handling is a non-issue, and that your amplification and output equipment can survive the results of dramatic EQ curves that may see huge increases in overall demand without resulting in tons of distortion or damage. This probably isn't too dramatic of an assumption methinks.
It would be neat to try the SVS out with a few different pairs of headphones. | <urn:uuid:077ff015-c5af-4553-bd40-ff5c84531c3f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.head-fi.org/t/612665/how-far-can-eq-really-go-towards-truly-equalizing-headphones | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953759 | 635 | 1.726563 | 2 |
tagged w/ money shouldn't buy elections
Last week, the State of California became the sixth state in the country to call for a constitutional amendment overturning the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2010 ruling in Citizens United v. FEC, and restoring democracy to the people.
With the passage of a resolution through its state legislature, California is the latest to join this growing grassroots movement across the nation. Hawaii, New Mexico, Vermont, and Rhode Island have passed similar resolutions through their state legislatures, and a majority of state legislators in Maryland have signed a letter to Congress supporting an amendment. And, just this past Wednesday, the Montana Secretary of State certified for the November ballot a voter initiative calling for a constitutional amendment, the first such statewide ballot measure in the country.
All of this comes on the heels of another controversial Supreme Court decision, in a Montana case, that makes it clearer than ever that we the people must use our amendment power under the Constitution to defend our democracy.
In January 2010, just five Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court decided, in Citizens United, to sweep away a century of precedent barring corporate money in elections. They asserted that independent corporate expenditures would not corrupt the electoral process nor create the appearance of corruption. They made that assertion without any facts to back it up. This is because the petitioners in Citizens United never presented such facts in the first place and did not seek, in their original complaint, to overturn prior Supreme Court rulings prohibiting corporate political expenditures. These five Justices, on their own, transformed the Citizens United case into a vehicle for unleashing unlimited corporate money in our elections.
We've Done It Before—With Slavery, Suffrage, and More: 7 Amendments That Overruled the Court
1.The Eleventh Amendment—overturned, in 1795, a Supreme Court decision from 1793 allowing federal courts to hear cases in which a citizen of one state sues the government of another.
2.The Thirteenth Amendment—abolished slavery, after Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857) held that slaves could not sue for freedom because they and their children were not citizens.
3.The Fourteenth Amendment—grants citizenship to anyone born or naturalized in the United States. This also overrules Dred Scott's ruling that slaves were not eligible for citizenship.
4.The Sixteenth Amendment—gives Congress the power to levy a direct national income tax, 18 years after 1895's Pollock v. Farmers' Loan & Trust Co. held that individual income taxes were unconstitutional.
5.The Nineteenth Amendment—guarantees women the right to vote, even though Minor v. Happersett (1875) had found that the Fourteenth Amendment did not include women.
6.The Twenty-fourth Amendment—bans poll taxes in federal elections. Two Supreme Court rulings,Breedlove v. Suttles in 1937 andButler v. Thompsonin1951, had allowed both state and federal governments to put financial conditions on the right to vote (designed to especially discourage African-American voters). The Court later decided, in Harper v. Virginia Board of Elections (1966), to ban poll taxes in states.
7.The Twenty-sixth Amendment—allows 18-year-olds to vote in federal, state, and local elections. Oregon v. Mitchell (1970) had ruled that states could set their own minimum voting age. But with many 18-year-olds dying in the Vietnam war, the 26th amendment was adopted in 1971.
Two weeks ago, they had a chance to reconsider the decision—and the facts showing that independent corporate expenditures do lead to corruption and the appearance of corruption—by accepting for review the case of American Tradition Partnership v. Bullock: a case that addressed Montana’s century-old law barring corporate money in elections.
In 1912, the voters of Montana passed the Corrupt Practices Act in response to the dominance and control of their elections and government by the “Copper Kings,” the barons of the copper mining industry during the Gilded Age.
On December 30 of last year, the Montana Supreme Court issued a major ruling upholding the law after a corporate entity, American Tradition Partnership, had challenged it, seeking to spend its money in Montana elections. The state supreme court recounted the extensive evidence of corruption that led to its passage and asked: “When in the last 99 years did Montana lose the power or interest sufficient to support the statute, if it ever did?”
The court cited in this history how W.A. Clark, a Copper King, had purchased a U.S. Senate seat by paying members of the Montana state legislature for their votes. (Prior to the enactment of the 17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution establishing direct elections of U.S. Senators by popular vote, state legislatures had appointed them.)
When the Senate refused to seat Clark because of the 1899 bribery scheme, he engaged in further corruption to obtain a second appointment, serving in the Senate from 1901 to 1907. Clark’s bribery was so notorious that, as the Montana Supreme Court noted, in 1907 Mark Twain wrote that Clark “is said to have bought legislatures and judges as other men buy food and raiment. By his example he has so excused and so sweetened corruption that in Montana it no longer has an offensive smell.”
When American Tradition Partnership appealed, taking the Montana law to the U.S. Supreme Court, rather than reviewing this history and the factual evidence that justified the law, the Court, by a 5-4 vote, took the extraordinary step of issuing a summary reversal of a state supreme court ruling, denying any merits-based review of that decision. In other words, without even hearing the case or reviewing the factual record before them, the nation’s highest court reversed the Montana Supreme Court and struck down the state’s century-old law. This is a radical action by the same five Justices—just as radical as the Citizens United ruling.
It is time to overrule the U.S. Supreme Court—and we the people have the power to do this.
We have used the Constitution’s Article V amendment power many times before. Seven of our 27 amendments have overturned egregious Supreme Court rulings, and since the Citizens United ruling, people across this country have been mobilizing in support of a new amendment to reclaim our democracy.
More at the linkLast week, the State of California became the sixth state in the country to call for a... more | <urn:uuid:7dfb09f7-902f-4efb-8509-7f56de70423b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://current.com/tags/90193677_money-shouldnt-buy-elections/popular/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962422 | 1,348 | 2.703125 | 3 |
City of L'Acide Remediation Case
Author(s): Daniel A. Vallero, Ph.D.
This case is included in the book Environmental Biotechnology: A Biosystems Approach by Dan Vallero, Academic Press, edition 1, 2010.
An annotated presentation entitled "The Environmental Implications of Biotechnology" serves as a companion presentation to this case. The presentation can be downloaded in either PDF or Power Point format.
The City of L’Acide is located on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. with a population of 20,000. The main industry is the assembly of semiconductors (employment = 1523). The second largest industry, a battery manufacturer, closed last year, with an attendant layoff of 800 people. The City has two elementary schools and one middle school. Most high school students attend Bezique High School, which is 8 miles away.
The City has contracted with the engineering firm, Benebaction, Inc., to remediate a 3 hectare hazardous waste site from an old firing range that was deeded to the City by the military shortly after the Korean War. Part of the deed transfer included the stipulation that the transfer was “as is.” Bezique Creek runs through town and is about 200 m downstream from the site. The average water table depth is 3 m. In the 1990’s, a local college conducted soil and water sampling and found “traces” of trinitrotoluene (TNT).
The site is a brownfield, i.e. the City has already retained an architectural firm to design a combined residential and commercial center, including an elementary school, on the site. Benebaction has been asked to study the hazardous compounds found in the soil and ground water at the site and find the best way to render them nontoxic.
Instructions for Facilitator
This case is intended for use in a class discussion with a total of 4 teams. One of each of the following four scenarios should be given to each team, who will not know the others’ hidden agendas. Ideally each handout should be printed on a separate color paper. Students can then divide into teams based on the color of their handout. Each team should also be given a copy of the L’Acide Cleanup Recommendation Report. Do not share the Follow Up Questions until after each group reveals their hidden agendas.
Follow Up Questions
- How can the engineer make the right decision in light of the various agendas in this case?
- Is this a realistic case in terms of persistence in pushing for a single solution to a problem? If not, why not?
- What can be done to be more open-minded while adhering to the most scientifically sound remediation approach?
- Extra Credit (Environmental Engineering): Sometimes engineers and scientists are accused of looking for solutions to problems in a manner analogous to the person who loses his keys in the dark and only looks for them under the street light. Could that be going on here? For example, is there a linkage between the battery plant closing and potential pollution? If so, the pollutants would be very different from those being remediated here (e.g. heavy metals, low pH, etc.)? What is the responsibility of the engineer to consider possible problems other than those circumscribed by the client (e.g. asking about lead, sulfuric acid and other contaminants commonly found at abandoned battery facilities?
- If Question 4 is true, how can an engineer balance specialization and a systematic viewpoint, i.e. being sufficiently competent in one’s field and taking a comprehensive view?
L’Acide Cleanup Recommendation Report
This page includes the Cleanup Recommendation Attachment to accompany handouts for the L'Acide case discussion. It includes necessary background information for the case.
L'Acide Case Scenario 1: Consulting Firm Engineer
This case includes the point of view of Team 1, the consulting firm engineers, for the L'Acide cleanup case. This case includes handouts for 4 teams, each with hidden agendas, to be used in class discussion.
L'Acide Case Scenario 2: Concerned Citizen
This case includes the point of view of Team 2, the concerned citizens, for the L'Acide cleanup case. This case includes handouts for 4 teams, each with hidden agendas, to be used in class discussion.
L'Acide Case Scenario 3: Environmental Advocate
This case includes the point of view of Team 3, the environmental advocacy group , for the L'Acide cleanup case. This case includes handouts for 4 teams, each with hidden agendas, to be used in class discussion.
L'Acide Case Scenario 4: Elected Official
This case includes the point of view of Team 4, the city council, for the L'Acide cleanup case. This case includes handouts for 4 teams, each with hidden agendas, to be used in class discussion.
Cite this page:
"City of L'Acide Remediation Case"
Online Ethics Center for Engineering
National Academy of Engineering
Accessed: Saturday, May 18, 2013 | <urn:uuid:87b23337-e0c2-4ae0-a221-a1a3a181652b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://onlineethics.org/Resources/Cases/LAcide.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.92862 | 1,073 | 2.625 | 3 |
National news release
Story about Okie's
peach breeding research
In addition to peaches, Okie also bred Spring Satin, the
first plumcot (cross between plum and apricot) cultivar that is well adapted to
medium-high chill areas of the South. More
Peach Breeder Wins Technology Transfer
Award By Jim
February 13, 2002
BELTSVILLE, Md., Feb. 13William R. Okie, a research
horticulturist with the Agricultural
Research Service in Byron, Ga., has won a technology transfer award from
the agency for the development of peach varieties and rootstocks that have been
vital to the survival of the peach industry in the Southeast. ARS is the chief
scientific research agency of the U.S.
Department of Agriculture.
Peach growers in southeastern states have struggled in recent
years with problems of obsolete varieties and reduced orchard life due to Peach
Tree Short Life (PTSL) disease. Producers must grow many different varieties to
maintain a supply of peaches from May to September and to adapt to the
different climate zones, from the coastal plains to the mountains.
Guardian rootstock, developed
by Okie and other ARS scientists in cooperation with
Clemson University in Clemson, S.C., has
resistance to root-knot nematode and greatly enhanced survival against PTSL.
Okie, based at the ARS
Fruit and Tree Nut Research Laboratory at Byron, will be honored today
during a 1 p.m. ceremony at the agencys
Henry A. Wallace Beltsville (Md.)
Agricultural Research Center.
Since 1980, Dr. Okie has released 11 yellow-fleshed peach
varieties for commercial production in the Southeast. Most of the older
varieties are now the predominant varieties in their respective season, and the
newer varieties are being planted in higher numbers, said Edward B.
Knipling, ARS acting administrator. In 1982, Dr. Okie started a rootstock
breeding and development program and selected the material that was later
released as Guardian peach rootstock. It has since become the primary peach
rootstock for the Southeast, with more than six million seeds sold.
The extended orchard life conferred by Guardian rootstock
results in savings of an estimated $4-5 million a year for peach tree growers.
Okie produced the USDA Handbook of Peach and Nectarine
Varieties in 1998. The agricultural handbook describes more than
6,000 varieties and has been distributed all over the United States and to most
peach-growing countries worldwide.
Okie grew up in Hendersonville, N.C. He received his B.S. in
horticulture from Oregon State University,
his M.S. in plant protection from Virginia
Polytechnic Institute and State University and his Ph.D. in horticulture
and genetics from North Carolina State | <urn:uuid:fd4c2f68-b4c9-48d5-b1bd-fdb7f49a2480> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2002/020213.tt.okie.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00024-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.927579 | 624 | 2.4375 | 2 |
TVA shut down the Raccoon Mountain facility near Chattanooga in March after inspections found significant cracks in the rotors.
The generators pull water from the Tennessee River and pump it to fill a reservoir atop the mountain.
Then the water flows back down through those generators to make power during peak demand times. Hydropower is extremely cheap to produce and the plant was being used nearly every day.
The Chattanooga Times Free Press reported the federal utility expects repairs to cost $55 million. Completion could take more than a year. | <urn:uuid:f6a850af-4f70-402d-91d5-016069b41167> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.rockmartjrl.com/view/full_story/20902432/article-TVA-could-delay-closing-coal-fired-units?instance=lead_story_bullets_left_column | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00027-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960323 | 107 | 2 | 2 |
Stephen Francis Jones, an architect who specializes in designing restaurants,… (Bob Chamberlin, Los Angeles…)
The gig: Founder and lead designer of SFJones Architects in Marina del Rey, which specializes in designing fashionable restaurants, hotels and spas. Among Stephen Francis Jones' creations are Spago Beverly Hills, multiple Daily Grill restaurants and the renovated public spaces and penthouse suites of the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza in Century City.
The path: Raised in Orlando, Fla., Jones signed up for a drafting class in high school because he thought it would be an easy A. Jones got the grade he hoped for — and a bug for architecture. As an undergraduate at the University of Florida, he visited Boston and made a vow to move to a vibrant big city. "I wanted to be someplace with real architecture," Jones said.
Early days: After graduation, Jones landed a spot with a Boston architecture firm where he was part of a team designing a high-rise office building. It was a long process, and Jones grew disillusioned with the scale of the project.
"Everything was so grand, so big," he said "I was young and wanted instant gratification."
Many states require an advanced degree to practice architecture, so Jones enrolled at UCLA to earn a master's degree in the field. While there, he took time out to observe the architecture of small hill towns in Italy and work with master architect Ricardo Bofill in Barcelona, Spain.
Coming into focus: During grad school, Jones worked at an architecture firm that specialized in restaurants and found his calling working on such eateries as Chaya Venice and Typhoon at the Santa Monica Airport. "In restaurants, you have a lot more leeway to do things fancifully," he said.
The breakthrough: Jones eventually found a restaurant-design job in chef Wolfgang Puck's casual dining company. When Puck planned to move his flagship Spago from West Hollywood to Beverly Hills in the mid-1990s, Jones quit the company in the hope of getting the contract to design Puck's new fine-dining establishment. About a month later, his new firm got the job. "Spago was my big break," he said.
Speed bump: "Early in my career I thought I was limiting myself by doing restaurants," he said. "I tried residential [architecture] when I should have been continuing in my niche."
High-end residential design commissions were hard to come by, and the competition was so fierce that Jones' business slipped dangerously close to the red.
The offer to be executive architect of the makeover of the Century Plaza and St. Regis hotels in 2000 saved the day. "It was a good year and a half's worth of solid work that got me upright again."
Kitchen as theater: Restaurant kitchens, traditionally hidden from sight, emerged in public view after building code changes in the 1980s, and Jones was quick to exploit their visual attractions for diners. "The kitchen is like a big engine that has to perform at top speed and kind of look sexy," he said.
Design philosophy: "I try to simplify things to their essentials," he said, using natural materials, textures and colors. "I like having strong axial defining elements, with a foreground, middle ground and background so you anticipate what will happen at the next stage of the process."
Among the defining elements at Spago is a sloped roof held up by purple hardwood beams.
"I also love drama. I like that great first impression so that you walk in and bam, you know you are in for a good experience. You are there because you want to be entertained, and you want all your senses filled."
Eyeing the competition: When Jones visits a restaurant he didn't design, "I can't help but be observant and other times critical. There are a lot of beautiful restaurants out there, and I make mental notes of what works and doesn't work."
Personal life: Jones, 49, lives in Manhattan Beach with his wife, urban planner Stephanie Eyestone-Jones, and their two children. He designed the house; at night, the living room exterior of wood, stone and glass shines like a big lantern. For fun, Jones bicycles, plays volleyball and sculls in Marina del Rey. "I have a really strong feeling that living a good lifestyle transforms into doing good work." | <urn:uuid:afda8458-9fa3-47cd-936d-c4fb5b51337c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://articles.latimes.com/2011/sep/11/business/la-fi-himi-jones-20110911 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972831 | 899 | 1.679688 | 2 |
Because 2 in 5 adults (42%) with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are inactive, public health initiatives need to address the lack of motivation to exercise and promote the benefits of physical activity in this population, say authors of an article published online in Arthritis Care & Research.
The researchers analyzed data on 176 patients with RA, 18 years of age or older, enrolled in a randomized controlled trial to assess the effectiveness of an intervention promoting physical activity. The team evaluated pre-intervention data for inactivity that was defined as no sustained 10-minute periods of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity during a week. They also assessed the relationships between inactivity and modifiable risk factors, such as motivation for physical activity, obesity, and pain.
Results show that 42% of RA patients were inactive—participating in no moderate-to-vigorous physical activity periods of at least 10 minutes during a 7-day period of objective activity monitoring. Researchers found that 53% of study participants lacked strong motivation for physical activity and 49% lacked strong beliefs in the benefits of physical activity. These 2 modifiable risk factors account for 65% of excess inactivity in this study group.
While previous research relied on self-reported physical activity measures, the strength of the current study lies in the use of accelerometers—a device used to measure acceleration and movement—to objectively assess physical activity in participants, say the authors.
The National Institute for Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases funded this study. | <urn:uuid:8c1cacf6-b8fb-4871-9e95-f6e795a9b984> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.apta.org/PTinMotion/NewsNow/2012/1/30/RAExercise/?blogmonth=8&blogday=2&blogyear=2012&blogid=10737418615 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.927104 | 309 | 2.421875 | 2 |
Sometimes, we see projects go from start to finish in a day, mostly we see our shop projects take longer than we’d like, and other times, we get to see just a slice of something that can change the world.
I’ve mentioned before that in our first week, someone came in and made a “DNA cloning machine”. I still don’t really understand what PCR really means, I’m not a wetware guy. I do understand the massive changes that happen in the world when you take a technology that costs several thousand dollars and bring it down to near-zero. I also understand how awesome it is when people get together and build things. It totally helps when there is a video to explain it all.
LavaAmp is the result of the collaboration of Rob Carlson and his engineering partner, Rik Wehbring, founders of Biodesic, a Bioengineering firm, Jim Hardy, bioentrepreneur founder of Gahaga Biosciences, Joseph Jackson, a philosopher interested in Open Science and DIY Biology and Guido David Nunez-Mujica, a Computational Biologist.
They all met at Science Foo Camp, and decided to develop, manufacture and market a simple, inexpensive device to perform PCR, which is the backbone of molecular biology.
They are at the prototype stage, and gathering funds to go to production. If you want to help change the world, please sponsor their project!
I knew they were on to something when they wanted me to cut those polycarbonate donuts… | <urn:uuid:4222f307-6f90-42e1-a132-d57dc8fdea2e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://metrixcreatespace.com/tagged/diybio | 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 | 0.95481 | 324 | 2.296875 | 2 |
"Hypocrisy in anything whatever may deceive the cleverest and most penetrating man, but the least wide-awake of children recognizes it, and is revolted by it, however ingeniously it may be disguised."
This quotation can be viewed in the context of a book
"Freedom and love go together. Love is not a reaction. If I love you because you love me, that is mere trade, a thing to be bought in the market; it is not love. To love is not to ask anything in return, not even to feel that you are giving something- and it is only such love that can know freedom."
"Don't listen to those who say, you taking too big a chance. Michelangelo would have painted the Sistine floor, and it would surely be rubbed out by today. Most important, don't listen when the little voice of fear inside you rears its ugly head and says. they all smarter than you out there. They're more talented, they're taller, blonder, prettier, luckier, and they have connections. I firmly believe that if you follow a path that interests you, not to the exclusion of love, sensitivity, and cooperation with others, but with the strength of conviction that you can move others by your own efforts, and do not make success or failure the criteria by which you live, the chances are you'll be a person worthy of your own respects." | <urn:uuid:a261dc9f-e5a6-461b-b73e-b9d262b1f41a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://quotationsbook.com/book/Richmatore/page=7/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973352 | 291 | 1.554688 | 2 |
If I could invent anything...
The AR-13 is capable of both standard and vertical take-off. It can also be adapted to operate off of carriers.
About this creation
An entry to the mob rules also meant as an air superiority fighter for the Luftwaffe (Baltic Air Force) in C&C
Tom: "Good morning, afternoon, or evening Gentlemen and or ladies(yeah right). My name is Tom, and I'm the head engineer of a big fancy aerospace manufacturing company, and I am here to show you all my latest and greatest invention, the next generation of Fighter plane, the F-40 Serpent."
"Behind me is my assistant Dylan, who will be holding the ladder."
Tom: "As you can see, this thing is huge. It's quite, how would the kids say it..? Beastly."
Tom: "these air intakes are what gives the jet its incredible power. A lot of engineering went into them. They also give the jet the ability to travel at mach 3.
Tom: "It also comes with an array of weapons. under this wing we have three air-air missiles, one air-ship missile, and a high-powered areal combat machine gun."
Tom: "Under this wing we have three more air-air missiles, a box of air-ground missiles, and another areal combat machine gun.
Tom: "Hey Dylan, get over here!"
Dylan: "alright here I am, and I'll hold the ladder."
Tom: "Thank you."
Tom: "Now, I'll just climb into thew cockpit and..."
Dylan: "Haha, you said cock."
Tom: "Shut it Dylan!"
Tom: "Sorry about that folks, now, lets get in here, and squeeze in within this whole computer array."
Tom: "And close the windsheild."
"Now I can show you some of the planes features in the air."
Tom: "Such as the landing gear that folds into the fuselage.
Tom: "Well I guess that's all from me. I'm off to go blow something up. Seeya.
Hey, great job on this one! I really like those huge intakes. The technique you used for them is great and I might go for it in future fighter jet models as well. There is one lateral shot from the back, showing the curve of the right intake and nose in a really awesome way which reminds me of a snake´s big head - and of the name "Serpent"... I am guessing this is no coincidence? Cause the intakes do make the front part ("snake head") look quite large - like a snake´s head:)...
Great job overall! P.S.: Thank you for your nice comment on my Sojourner! Best regards, Steffen | <urn:uuid:0b50b493-227e-499a-ac18-1ace88ba415c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mocpages.com/moc.php/211722 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.949531 | 594 | 1.609375 | 2 |
The earliest known photo of Quarry Bank House and Garden, 1869. © National Trust
A secret garden locked away from public view and dating back to the 18th century has been opened up to the public for the very first time.
The 3.2 hectare (eight acres) Quarry Bank Garden in Cheshire has been the subject of a major restoration project by the National Trust, who brought it back to its original state for the enjoyment of the public.
The Trust has owned Quarry Bank Mill, an 18th century working cotton mill and wider estate, since 1939, but the purchase in 2006 of the garden and Quarry Bank House has enabled the mill complex to be returned close to the original vision of its founder, Samuel Greg.
Greg built the garden and house next to his cotton mill in the 1790s. Shaped around the River Bollin, the garden was designed in a picturesque style with a series of meandering paths, terraces and riverside walks to provide beautiful and dramatic views across the valley.
Looking down into Quarry Bank Mill's 'secret' valley garden. The mill chimney can be seen in the distance. © National Trust
Together with his wife Hannah, who played a key role in the garden’s design, he enhanced existing features such as the sandstone cliffs and the prerequisite hermit’s cave to add a little drama and mystery to the garden.
The house and garden remained in the Greg family for almost 200 years, until they were sold privately in 1963. For the next four decades, both were lovingly cared for by Eric and Liz Lowcock, whose dedication to Quarry Bank gave the National Trust the opportunity to begin work returning the garden to its original 18th century layout.
"The garden restoration is part of a five-year project which has involved careful archaeological surveying, patience and a lot of hard work,” said Alan Knapper, Head Gardener at Quarry Bank Mill.
“None of this would have been possible without the help of over 60 volunteers, including local children, staff from various companies and inmates from Styal prison. They have all played an integral part in bringing the spirit and design of the original garden back to life.”
Quarry Bank House and Garden prior to the start of its restoration. © National Trust
Visitors to Quarry Bank Garden will be able to enjoy the flowering of spring bulbs, followed by azaleas, a unique collection of rhododendrons and swathes of bluebells during May.
In the summer, colourful and more formal schemes will appear in the ‘Ladies' Garden' as they would have been seen in the early 1900s. Greg family photographs taken at the time reveal that the garden design is virtually unchanged and only the planting has altered.
Later this year, research will be carried out to identify some rare plants at Quarry Bank. Over 200 species including hybrid rhododendrons were introduced to the garden in the 19th century by Samuel Greg’s son, Robert, who commissioned well-known local nurseries to hybridise rhododendrons, giving them names associated with the Greg family and the locality. It is estimated that around twenty of these still survive and some could prove unique to Quarry Bank Garden.
Quarry Bank Garden is at Styal, Wilmslow, Cheshire and is open daily between 11am and 5pm from March 11 – October 31. For further information about the garden and opening times for the mill and estate, call 01625 527468 or visit www.nationaltrust.org.uk. | <urn:uuid:4a040484-a423-472b-9e3b-665469add8fb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.culture24.org.uk/science%20%26%20nature/environment/art55060 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966583 | 741 | 2.5 | 2 |
Politics & Prejudices
The problems that remain
From Detroit to across the nation, there is much to be done
Published: November 7, 2012
Maxing out the credit card: If you saw any Republican campaign commercials, you probably got the idea that our national debt is out of control.
That's because our national debt is out of control. Americans now collectively owe $16 trillion, and the figure is skyrocketing. We are adding to the debt by more than $1 trillion a year, and have been since the Great Recession hit.
Does anyone think the loser or the winner of this presidential election will do anything about this?
Does anyone have any plan for this? We owe more than $1 trillion to China alone. China! Does anyone really think today's corporate journalism is going to be sufficiently tough on this nation, or its human-rights violations, when we already owe them that much money, and will need to borrow more?
More, that is, so that we can keep on buying more gadgets, conspicuously consuming our little wallets out.
Borrowing most of all, so nobody who is really well off has to pay anything like their fair share of taxes. Meanwhile, your roads and bridges and schools are still falling apart.
The election is over. We know who our next leaders will be. So when — and how — are we going to demand they do something about any or all of this?
Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk: Remember Michael Brown, the bumbling incompetent who President Dubya put in charge of FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency?
He was the guy who totally blew the federal response to Hurricane Katrina, and who had to be fired weeks later, despite the Shrub's famous clueless comment "You're doing a heckuva job, Brownie," uttered while victims were still dying.
Well, Brownie's back. Last week he dared to criticize President Obama for moving to be prepared for Hurricane Sandy even before it hit.
"Why did he jump on this so quickly ... why was this so quick?" he asked in an interview with Denver's Westword. Then, thinking hard, the former Arabian horse judge furrowed his brow. "My guess is, he wants to get ahead of it. He doesn't want anybody to accuse him of not being on top of it or not paying attention..." Bingo. Brownie knows all about that.
Yessiree, it's a yuck-a-minute with the boys from Bush. And if the Mittster is now president-elect, why, there's no telling what job Brownie might be appointed to next!
Jack Lessenberry opines weekly for Metro Times. Send comments to email@example.com.
> Email Jack Lessenberry | <urn:uuid:bb6691be-2d25-4ca2-b66f-0cf19994fdd2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://metrotimes.com/columns/the-problems-that-remain-1.1399422?pgno=1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970565 | 573 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Before there was radar, airplane hurricane searches and satellite, shore observations was all we had for hurricane numbers. In the January, 1878, pages 365-367, Issue of Popular Science, when sunspot activity was considered a Natural Law of Science, the following was put forth:
More sunspots, more hurricanes
More sunspots, more shipping disasters, up 17%
More sunspots, more rain, up 26%
More sunspots, higher temperatures
Less sunspots, the opposite was true.
Presently, we are between Ice Ages. We should slip off into another ice age in about 10,000 years. We may have had up to five to seven ice ages in the last million years.
We know of two sunspot cycles. One is the typical 11-year cycle that varies from about 10 to 12 years.
The second cycle is the 100-year cycle the last one was measured within 5% accuracy, per the SIDC. Part of that 100-year cycle is a solar minimum.
We are presently in a sunspot minimum that will bring on more drought; possibly more wet weather in England; eventually longer winters and winters without summers (Corrected). The minimum will last through at least two sunspot cycles before we see the climate lag drop off about 2035.
There may be a third sunspot cycle and that one may last ??? a 1,000+ years at a glance. The Earth was in a Medieval Global Warming Period a 1000+ years ago.
The last one dropped into the Mini-Ice Age about 400 to 450 years ago. We came out of that solar minimum 300 years ago based on sunspot number activity.
Maybe, we are now in another global warming period that has yet to be measured. We won't be around to know. That will take a few centuries yet.
Editied 15 April 2013 | <urn:uuid:1bb3965b-8cd6-4787-8fa7-0d94b32937f6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://sunspotshurricanesandglaciers.com/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00065-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967486 | 387 | 3.4375 | 3 |
Perth Tourist Attractions
Top Tourist Attractions in Perth
Capital of Western AustraliaPerhaps none of the other Australian capitals has changed so much in recent decades as Perth, capital of Western Australia.
With a population of 1.5 million, it is now the fourth largest city in Australia, coming after Brisbane and just ahead of Adelaide. Bounded on the west by the Indian Ocean and on the east by the foothills of the Darling Range, the Perth conurbation, with an area at present of over 5400 sq.km, is steadily expanding farther north and south. Its unique situation on the water is no doubt one reason why outdoor activities play such an important part in the city's way of life and why one in four households has either a sailing boat or a motorboat.Fremantle DoctorThe heat of summer is mitigated by the Fremantle doctor, a wind which blows in from the sea regularly every afternoon. With the constant movement of air, fog and smog are unknown in Perth.TransportPerth has excellent communications by air, rail, road and water and is easily reached from any part of Australia.Perth's international airport lies 20km northeast of the city; the domestic terminal (flights within the state and interstate flights) is on the west side of the large site, only about 10km from the city.The Indian Pacific service to Sydney (three times a week) and the Trans Australian to Adelaide (twice a week) depart from the Railway Terminal in East Perth (1.5km from the city center). The popular tourist train to Kalgoorlie, the Prospector, and the Westrail overland buses also start from there.The Esplanade Bus Station is the terminus for all the suburban lines and the tourist train to Bunbury, the Australind.Transperth, the city transport authority, provides the local transport system with its railroads, buses and ferries. The two most important terminals are the City Railway Station together with the nearby City Bus Station, and the ferry wharf on Barrack Street.Within the Free Transit Zone in the city center travel on public transport is free, which has considerably reduced the use of private cars in the inner city. There are three bus routes in the Central Area Transit System, which makes it easier for tourists in particular to find their way around. The Blue CAT buses follow a north-south shuttle route from the Barrack Street ferry terminal to Northbridge, while the Red CAT buses are on an east-west axis from Outram Street to Horatio Street near the WACA cricket ground in East Perth. Detailed information (incl. timetables) can be obtained from Transperth offices (e.g. City Arcade in Hay Street Mall and Central Bus Station). Most sightseeing and excursion buses also start from the Central Bus Station.Transperth ferries sail from Barrack Street jetty to South Perth and the zoo, Rottnest Island and Fremantle.SportAmong the city's principal sports venues are the Ascot and Belmont racecourses on the south bank of the Swan River, to the east of the city center, the WACA cricket ground near the Causeway and Queens Park and the Australian Football Oval in the Subiaco district. There are golf courses in many parts of the city. The Western Australian Tennis Open is staged annually in Kings Park. The race for the Perth Cup is run on Ascot racecourse on New Year's Day. There are numerous sailing clubs in inlets on the Swan River and the coast of the Indian Ocean.EntertainmentsPerth offers a wide choice of theaters, concert halls and other places of entertainment, in particular the Perth Concert Hall at the east end of St George's Terrace (1900 seats), His Majesty's Theatre at the corner of King and Hay Streets with its late 19th C splendor and the Playhouse Theatre at the corner of Hay and Pier Streets. The center of the city's night life is the Northbridge district, in which - in addition to the Art Gallery of Western Australia, the Western Australian Museum and the State Library - there are many restaurants, night spots and discos.AccommodationIn spite of its isolation from the rest of Australia Perth, thanks to its economic boom, has numerous luxury hotels: indeed it claims to have more top-class hotels than Sydney. In the city center the leading establishments are the Hyatt Regency and the Sheraton, both in Adelaide Terrace; and the Burs wood Resort Hotel. Among the more reasonably priced hotels in the city center is Miss Maud Swedish, which has the advantage of a central situation (and a generous buffet breakfast).InformationThe best listings of events, entertainments and restaurants are in the Entertainment pages of the Western Australian, the Perth newspaper with the largest circulation. Also useful is the free brochure This Week in Perth and Fremantle. For information of all kinds there is the Perth tourist bureau.
Like most Australian cities, Perth is well endowed with parks and gardens. The largest of these, immediately west of the city center, is Kings Park, one of Australia's most beautiful parks. Laid out in 1872 and finely situated on a hill above the broad river and the city, it has an area of 404 ha, consisting partly of natural bush country, with a brilliant display of wild flowers in spring, and partly of a botanic garden containing more than 1200 species of Western Australian plants.There are particularly fine views of the city from the War Memorial and the Pioneer Women's Memorial.On the parking lot on the city side of Mount Eliza a Visitor Centre provides detailed information about Kings Park.
Address: Kings Park, Fraser Avenue, West Perth, WA 6005, Australia
Opening hours: 9:30am-4pm
Useful tips: Hours listed for Visitor Centre.
Guides: Guided tour available as optional extra.
Mount Eliza is well equipped with roads, cycle tracks and footpaths, ponds, play areas and viewpoints. At the foot of Mount Eliza the city traffic can be seen filtering into the freeway.
Kennedy's Fountain was constructed in the time of Governor Kennedy. It is fed by a spring which was an important source of water in the early days of the colony.
The Old Observatory is a Victorian building, and is now the headquarters of the National Trust, the authority responsible for the protection of national monuments. The astronomical equipment has been removed.
In Perth water sports, swimming and surfing are not merely holiday activities but part of everyday life. The beaches on the Indian Ocean, in particular Cottesloe, Swanbourne (nude bathing beach), Port, City, Scarborough and Trigg Island beaches, and the sheltered inlets on the winding Swan River (Crawley, Nedlands, Peppermint Grove, Mosman Bay, Como, Canning Bridge, Applecross, Point Walter) are all within easy reach. 20km northwest of the city center in Sorrento is Hillary's Boat Harbor, a large and well equipped marina with picnic facilities and a new attraction in the form of the Underwater World, with acrylic glass tunnels and moving walkways under the water where visitors can watch divers hand feeding sharks, and also swim alongside dolphins. Between September and November there are boat trips to observe whales off Rottnest Island.
Perth Zoo and Wildlife Parks
The zoo in South Perth can be reached by ferry from Barrack Street jetty. It houses a collection of native animals (koalas and kangaroos) which live in the wildlife park, as well as imported fauna. The fast-disappearing numbat is kept separately. An African Savannah has been created with a special ecosystem, and the zoo has also installed a Harmony Farm.There are wildlife parks at Caversham (19km northeast of city center), Gosnells (Cohunu Wildlife Park, 20km southeast) and Two Rocks, in Atlantis Marine Park, near Yanchep National Park (60km north).
Address: 20 Labouchere Road, Perth, WA 6151, Australia
Opening hours: 9am-5pm
Always opened on: Christmas - Christian (Dec 25), Good Friday - Christian
Entrance fee in AUD: Family $50.00, Adult $19.00, Concession or reduced rate $16.00, Senior $15.00, Child 15 & under $9.50, Child 3 & under FREE
Disability Access: Full facilities for persons with disabilities.
Guides: Guided tour available as optional extra.
Facilities: Gift shop
Old Mill Reserve
The old flour mill on the Old Mill Reserve goes back to the earliest days of the settlement. This picturesque old windmill was built in 1835 by a miller named Shenton, but it was too far from the wheat fields and had to close down in 1859. A plan to demolish it to make way for road development aroused so much opposition from the people of Perth that this relic of pioneering days was preserved and now houses a museum.
Perth International Arts Festival
The Perth Festival, which lasts three weeks in February/March, has a full program of music, drama and other events.
More Perth Pictures
Map of Perth Attractions | <urn:uuid:687c5bd1-6253-4609-b935-42b6d7911f96> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.planetware.com/tourist-attractions-/perth-aus-wa-p.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00030-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.9389 | 1,896 | 1.953125 | 2 |
SWEENEY, JAMES SHIRLEY
SWEENEY, JAMES SHIRLEY (1896–1976). James Shirley Sweeney, physician, son of James Benjamin and Lena May (Williams) Sweeney, was born in Waco, Texas, on July 30, 1896. He received his bachelor of arts and master of arts at Texas Christian University, where he played football. While attending TCU he was an instructor of biology from 1916 to 1918. He married Ruth Young McFadin on September 15, 1920. They had twin sons. In 1921 he graduated magna cum laude from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, where he also served as instructor of biology. He received both master of health and doctor of science degrees at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, where he served as a Rockefeller Fellow from 1921 to 1924. Before going on to complete his residency he acted as an epidemiologist with the Louisiana State Board of Health. He served both his internship and residency at Baylor University Hospital in Dallas. In 1925 Dr. Sweeney began an internal medicine practice in Dallas, which he continued until 1942. During this time he was also professor of clinical medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, beginning as instructor of medicine immediately after his residency was completed and becoming an associate professor in 1934. Sweeney was the chairman of the Dallas Health Advisory Board from 1931 to 1935. In 1939 he received an honorary doctor of laws from Texas Christian University. He enlisted in the Army medical corps in 1942 and served there during World War II, earning the rank of colonel. After the war ended Sweeney was asked to set up a veterans hospital in Logan, Colorado, in conjunction with the Colorado School of Medicine, where he was made an associate professor of medicine. At the Veterans Administration Hospital in Fort Logan he served as medical manager from 1946 to 1947. Before opening a private practice in Gainesville, Texas, he returned briefly to Dallas. While operating his practice in Gainesville from 1947 to 1953, he set up Camp Sweeney for Diabetic Youth, before returning to Dallas. During his career he was a member of various boards and societies, but his most important contribution was the formation of the Texas Diabetes Association, the Southwestern Diabetic Foundation, the Sweeney Foundation, and Camp Sweeney for Diabetic Youth. He served on a variety of boards, including acting as the director of the Child Guidance Clinic, Dallas Birth Control Clinic, and the Texas Society for Mental Hygiene. He was a member of the Dallas County Medical Society, Southern Medical Association, Texas Medical Association, American Association for the Advancement of Science, Texas Academy of Internal Medicine, American Diabetes Association, American Association for the Study of Internal Secretions, and the American College of Physicians. In addition to his membership in medical societies he belonged to fraternal organizations, such as Sigma Chi, Phi Chi, Alpha Omega Alpha, and Delta Omega. He was a Mason, a Shriner, and a member of the Christian Church. He also belonged to the Dallas Country Club, the Town and Gown Club, and the Thirteen Club. He wrote one book, The Natural Increase of Mankind (n.d.), and contributed articles to a variety of scientific journals. James Sweeney was married a second time to Jane Aronson around 1942. Dr. Sweeney died in Dallas on June 25, 1976.
Sam Hanna Acheson, Herbert P. Gambrell, Mary Carter Toomey, and Alex M. Acheson, Jr., Texian Who's Who, Vol. 1 (Dallas: Texian, 1937). Dallas Morning News, June 26, 1976. Texas Medicine, February 1977.
The following, adapted from the Chicago Manual of Style, 15th edition, is the preferred citation for this article.Lisa C. Maxwell, "SWEENEY, JAMES SHIRLEY," Handbook of Texas Online (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fsw31), accessed May 18, 2013. Published by the Texas State Historical Association. | <urn:uuid:2c57c251-9ddb-47bd-b37c-dc7bc3c14f8b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fsw31 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00041-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971652 | 807 | 2 | 2 |
There are more than 5,200 bus stops in Singapore, where the majority of them have been upgraded to newly-designed bus stops since 2005. The newly-designed bus stops, accompanied by new sign poles, have better lightings, more stylish seats and organised information panels.
But old orange-top bus stops can still be found in certain parts of Singapore. Lim Chu Kang Road, Kranji Way, Old Tampines Road, Stadium Boulevard, Upper Bukit Timah Road, Zion Road, Margaret Drive, Anchorvale Street and Jalan Kayu (outside Seletar Camp) still house some of these familiar bus stops with their unmistakable orange plastic seats.
Another makeshift orange-top bus stop is located at the end of Punggol Road, near the Punggol Jetty.
There are two even older bus stops along Tanjong Pagar Road. Shaped like small houses, the bus stops are believed to be built in the sixties. The bus stops, as well as the colourful shophouses along Tanjong Pagar Road, have been preserved well.
A concrete-and-metal bus stop of the seventies, believed to be the only remaining of its kind in Singapore, is located along Old Choa Chu Kang Road. It is currently serving bus 172 and 975. In 2008, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) decided to preserve the nostalgic structure after an online survey on the Straits Times.
Several old-styled bus sign poles can be found along Lim Chu Kang Lane 3. These poles are left behind at their original positions after the bus services on this road were discontinued years ago.
In early 2000s, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) carried out a major revamp on the majority of Singapore street name signs. The new design of the street name signs that we see nowadays is using the format of green background with white letters in Rotis font format (developed by German typographer Otl Aicher in 1988).
The old and simple street name sign, which has been used in Singapore for decades, has a white background with back letters. One of the few remaining ones can be found along Neo Tiew Road (off Lim Chu Kang Road), Pasir Ris Farmway, Seletar West Farmway and Fernvale Road.
Some old street name signs with interesting names can still be found in the Seletar Camp. With its rapid development in recent years, it is likely these old signs will be phased out soon.
In the early days, the major roads in Singapore were named simply roads, such as Thomson Road and River Valley Road. After new towns were established in the sixties, major roads in the neighbourhoods are called avenues. There are also streets and drives within the estates. Avenues usually refer to three-lane major roads while streets and drives are one- or two-lane minor roads. Some roads in older towns, such as Toa Payoh, adopted Malay names such as lorong (major roads) and jalan (minor roads).
A practice since late nineties, the streets in many new towns are distinguished by double digits suffix, such as Woodlands Street 83, Ang Mo Kio Street 22 and Bishan street 11.
When the new towns of Sengkang and Punggol were developed in the new millennium, the authority abandoned the idea of using numbers to differentiate various roads within the town, and used walk, lane, cresent, loop, way, place, square, etc instead. This creates some confusion for motorists when they visit the area, eg there are Rivervale Drive, Rivervale Street, Rivervale Crescent and Rivervale Lane in Sengkang.
Published: 02 November 2010
Updated: 12 May 2013 | <urn:uuid:b4de6b30-b34c-44bf-8f40-8a02f0a22c13> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://remembersingapore.wordpress.com/old-bus-stops-street-name-signs/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00043-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962647 | 768 | 1.84375 | 2 |
A selected group of the Human Race was sent to live on Venus. It seemed like a miserable place because it literally rains all year long with about 20 minutes of sunshine each year. The story was set in a elementary school classroom where most of the children didn’t even know what it was like to see the sun, for most it was just a yearly abnormal phenomenon when the sun would peak out. One girl however, knew of the sun quite well because she had lived on Earth only a few years prior. It was very clear that she was depressed because of the unrelenting rain and darkness on venus. She was especially happy this day because the scientists said the sun would come out. The other school children bullied her for a while and then stuffed her in a closet. Lo and behold the sun did indeed come out. The children went out and played, even getting a little sunburned. 20 minutes later the clouds came back and the rain started again. No more sun for 364 days, 23 hours, and 40 minutes. While they were out playing they had forgotten about the girl in the closet. Sheepishly they went to let her out, all feeling bad that she had missed the sun she was so looking forward to.
This is how the story ended. It didn’t leave time for the reader to see the reaction of the little girl. It didn’t have to, the expressions and emotions of the other children told the story quite well enough. It was a very a very sad and shameful feeling. My heart ached for the little girl. Not only had she been correct and smarter than the other students, she was the most excited about seeing the sunlight. After having been bullied and stuffed in a closet by her peers, she missed the only thing she looked forward to each year. I would definitely recommend reading this short story. As with The Tell Tale Heart, I found it as a free pdf online instead of going to the Boston Public Library.
About the Author Ray Bradbury:
Ray Bradbury has published some 500 short stories, novels, plays and poems since his first story appeared in Weird Tales when he was twenty years old. Among his many famous works are ‘Fahrenheit 451′, ‘The Illustrated Man’ and ‘The Martian Chronicles’. (Courtesy of Amazon.com)
To see more of the books I’ve read and reviewed, check out my virtual bookshelf from Shelfari.com: | <urn:uuid:cb1cabf3-89d5-4719-bc62-910f0f3af6ad> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://theyoungurbanunprofessional.com/all-summer-in-a-day-by-ray-bradbury-a-short-story-review/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.988168 | 504 | 2.609375 | 3 |
What do you get for $193 million? A dead battery.
Consumer Reports tried to test the Karma, a $100,000 electric car creation of Fisker Automotive, but it died and wouldn’t restart on the test track. Fisker engineers couldn’t even come up with a reason to explain why the car failed to run.
Fisker has drawn $193 million on a $529 million loan from the Obama Administration to develop the plug-in car, but according to tech industry reports, the company finds itself “in turbulent times.” Having your invention die on the test track isn’t likely to help turn that around.
Last month, Fisker changed its CEO and announced it was forced to renegotiate the terms of the DOE loan because the company “missed milestones in getting its first vehicle, the Karma sports car, to market.” The first car was three months late coming out of the manufacturing plant, and buyers haven’t warmed to a $103,000 electric experiment.
In a pattern that has become all too familiar with DOE loan recipients, Fisker was forced to start laying off workers in their California manufacturing plant in February.
A few weeks ago, GM announced it was “halting production” of the Chevy Volt, another electric experiment, because it wasn’t selling. According to published reports only 1,626 Volts have been sold through February. GM had planned to manufacture 60,000 of them and sell 45,000 in the U.S. this year. Energy Secretary Stephen Chu brags that the government has dumped $5 billion into developing electric cars like the Volt. In addition, there is a $7500 direct subsidy for each car sold. Obama’s solution for the anemic sales? Increase the subsidy by 33% to $10,000.
If that doesn’t work, we understand the President is in negotiations with Santa Clause to put a Volt under Christmas trees. | <urn:uuid:7cc13b5f-2dc1-4fb4-91f6-6b6139529cc7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/bobbeauprez/2012/03/13/obamas_bad_karma_193_million_and_the_car_wont_run_on_the_test_track | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00061-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973647 | 412 | 1.59375 | 2 |
"The final outcome cannot be known, either to the originator of a new theory, or to his colleagues and critics, who are bent on falsifying it. Thus, the scientific innovator may feel all the more lonely and uncertain."; "Reason can be used only when looking critically back."; "Moreover, in the experimental sciences, the scientific fraternity must test a new theory to destruction, if possible."; "Meanwhile, the originator of a theory may have a very lonely time, especially if his colleagues find his views of nature unfamiliar, and difficult to appreciate."
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Tell me what you know about Peter Dennis Mitchell (29 September 1920 - 10 April 1992), the British biochemist who was awarded the 1978 Nobel Prize for Chemistry for his discovery of the chemiosmotic mechanism of ATP synthesis. | <urn:uuid:9703a7c3-da32-47ff-9558-d0915d367491> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.evi.com/q/facts_about__peter_d_mitchell | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00025-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.9348 | 177 | 2.140625 | 2 |
|The Assessment And Management of Suicidality (Practitioner's Resource)
Lowest new price: $7.93
Lowest used price: $7.93
List price: $14.95
Author: M. David Rudd
Written by one of the preeminent leaders of contemporary clinical suicidology, this remarkable book succinctly provides state-of-the-art assessment and management procedures for effective clinical care of suicidal patients. Guided by years of scholarship, empirical research, clinical and professional training experiences, Dr. David Rudd skillfully distills the essential elements of working effectively with suicidal patients. This compact book deftly walks the reader through an empirically-grounded approach to suicide risk assessment and the subsequent process of making key clinical management decisions with these most challenging of cases. If ever there was an example of 'less is more' this book is it - an essential guide to what every mental health practitioner needs to know to successfully work with suicidal patients.
|Developing Clinical Skills in Suicide Assessment, Prevention, and Treatment
Lowest new price: $49.32
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Author: Jason M.
Although most counselors work throughout their careers with depressed and suicidal clients, many do not have the formal training required to effectively assess and treat these at-risk clients. This text bridges this training gap by helping professionals master the skills and develop the knowledge base necessary to counsel suicidal clients in all age groups.
McGlothlin explains how to conduct assessment interviews and use suicide assessment tools, identify levels of lethality using his SIMPLE STEPS model, create a comprehensive suicide prevention and treatment plan, and work with family members. In addition, he offers guidance on what to do when clients kill themselves and examines the legal and ethical issues surrounding suicide. Case examples, discussion questions, measurable individual and group activities, and additional skill building resources throughout the book link theory to practice in a concrete way. A final chapter presents stories from the field that inspire counselor reflection and growth.
This is not only an essential resource for practitioners who lack formal training in this area, it is an ideal text for graduate or undergraduate courses in practica, basic or advanced skill building, assessment, and crisis counseling. Developing Clinical Skills in Suicide Assessment, Prevention, and Treatment is quite simply one of the most useful and informative books available on this topic because it offers proven and easy to follow techniques for working with suicidal clients.
|The Best Way to Say Goodbye: A Legal Peaceful Choice At the End of Life
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Author: Stanley A. Terman
What are our two greatest end-of-life fears? To endure unnecessary prolonged pain and suffering, and merely to exist in a state of total indignity and dependency such as in Alzheimer's dementia. Uninformed, some people add layers of tragedy to their destiny. Some choose to die prematurely; others, violently; a few risk imprisonment by mercy killing. Often their lament is, If only Physician-Assisted Suicide were legal. Yet there is an alternative that is already legal: Voluntary Refusal of Food & Fluid. While sometimes intentionally maligned as barbaric starvation, ceasing all Food & Fluid is a truly peaceful way to hasten dying by dehydration. While taking an average of 14 days, it allows for the exchange of healing goodbyes with loved ones who can forever be sure it was these patients' intent since they could have changed their mind.
What makes the process peaceful? Knowing how to control thirst. (The author went on two fasts himself to learn what works.) In addition, good discussions with family members before beginning. Consistent with the principles of some religions, this method is available even for patients who are physically too sick to put a lethal dose of medication in their mouths and swallow.
By creating strategically effective documents for a trusted agent or proxy to withhold Food & Fluid on the patient's behalf, this way to Permit Natural Dying can actually extend the quality of life of those with early dementia. They can enjoy living until they reach a point they have previously described in behavioral terms (perhaps with help from using one of the book's forms).
Beyond serving as an authoritative source of information to strive for an ironclad strategy for dementia, the book endorses life's most ironic fact: When people know they can control when they die--they can, and often do--choose to live longer.
Poignant memoirs illustrate its practical guidelines and useful forms; for example, why Proxy Directives are more effective than Living Wills, and how to make Living Wills work better if they are the only available choice.
The book-within-a-book format of this book is as unique as its content is comprehensive. Over 300 citations, an index, a glossary, and further resources... yet its core reading is user-friendly for all. The subject matter is lightened by 22 cartoons and humorous stories; deepened by provocative discussions of the secular meaning of Sanctity of Life ; and broadened by considering the emotional, practical, clinical, legal, moral, ethical, religious, spiritual, and political aspects of a subject that will affect absolutely everyone.
|A Mother's Story
Lowest new price: $189.68
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Author: Gloria Vanderbilt
Born to a railroad baron who died when she was still a toddler, Gloria Vanderbilt knew the comforts of family fortune but never maternal or paternal affection. In A Mother's Story, Gloria reflects on her own childhood tragedies while trying to make sense of--and learn to cope with--her son's suicide. Beautifully written and inspiring, this account of a mother's coping with a son's death will touch and sadden all those who read it.
In 1988, Gloria Vanderbilt's 23-year-old son Carter committed suicide. As Vanderbilt looked on, Carter swung away from the terrace wall of her 14th-floor New York apartment and, in Vanderbilt's words, "He let go." In this poignant memoir, Vanderbilt reflects on her own painful history and what she describes as "the final loss, the fatal loss that stripped me bare." She thought, she says, that she could not survive the death of her son. This memoir is a testimony to her courage and her own return to life.
|Suicide and Its Aftermath: Understanding and Counseling the Survivors (A Norton professional book)
Lowest new price: $31.99
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Author: Edward J. Dunne
book in excellent condition , dust jacket and book itself. fine collector's item.
|Suicide: Understanding and Intervening (Resources for Changing Lives)
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Author: Jeffrey S. Black
Suicide is profoundly tragic. What depth of unbearable pain and hopelessness suicidal people experience. And when a Christian commits or contemplates suicide, it is both tragic and confusing.
Jeffrey Black tells us that the intention to commit suicide is a crisis--a sinful act born out of pain and sorrow. Though promised new life in Christ and a living hope, some believers don't keep their eyes focused on these truths. God has the power to help.
Here we learn the signs of suicide and guidelines for intervening when someone appears suicidal.
There are 26 other helpful booklets in the Resources for Changing Lives series.
|Conversations with the Spirit World : Souls who have ended their lives speak from above
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Author: Lysa Mateu
CONVERSATIONS WITH THE SPIRIT WORLD
When was the last time you read a book that literally changed your life?
A book that made you see things you had long forgotten - about who you are - about the dreams you once had.
Through the eyes of 17 souls who chose to end their lives, you will be reawakened to the possibility of what your life can be - not at some future date, but Right Now.
Conversations with the Spirit World is a book that transforms lives.
Is yours going to be one of them?
By now you realize the value of reading Conversations with the Spirit World. If you love yourself, you will read this book. If you have ever loved another, you will read this book. Conversations with the Spirit World comforts, intrigues, inspires, and captivates the places in you that longs to remember... who you are... why you are here...
Conversations with the Spirit World will forever change the way you feel about life... and death.
|Police Suicide: Epidemic in Blue
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Author: John M. Violanti
|Suicide Survivors: A Guide for Those Left Behind
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Author: Adina Wrobleski
|A Reason to Live
Lowest new price: $7.00
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List price: $8.99
When all else fails when you need somthing to hold on to here is a Reason to Live | <urn:uuid:be09611d-352c-4a14-a21d-accc84c443c2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.linuxcoding.com/skedoodle/Books/11227 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00067-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.924595 | 2,004 | 1.546875 | 2 |
December 10, 2012
If you’re a business owner, I strongly urge you to budget for a reasonable profit target as a percent of sales, and then make your expenses fit in. The idea is to put profit front and center as a necessary outcome … to make it happen on purpose, rather than let it happen by accident.
Now, let’s build on that idea.
First, what is a reasonable target for profit before tax? It varies by industry but I suggest that most of us should be able to shoot for 10% of sales, pretax.
I can already hear howls of protest …
Those who already earn more than 10% will of course say that it’s too low. My response: Keep up the good work!
Others may think 10% is an unreachable goal, and the accepted wisdom in their industry backs this up. Fine, but don’t stop trying to improve.
For now, I’ll use 10% as a nice, round, healthy target. Let’s say you have a business with $1 million in sales and pretax profit of 10%, or $100,000.
Well, for starters you’ll be spending roughly a third on income taxes. Some of you may be higher and some lower, but that’s an average. It’s not pleasant, but it’s like complaining about the weather. Let’s get over it and talk about the other two thirds.
If your business carries debt, part of your profit will be used to service the principal, since unlike interest, it doesn’t show up on your income statement. If it’s at a high interest rate (like credit cards) you should either refinance at a lower rate or pay it down at an accelerated rate. Many of us borrow to buy vehicles or commercial real estate. In any event, in our example let’s assume that no more than one third of our $100K profit is needed to make principal payments..
The final third.
This is the fun part, because you have options. You can …
- leave it in the company to fund growth
- leave it in the company to create a rainy day fund
- use it to buy fixed assets
- take all or part of the final third as an owner distribution (Remember that pass-through entities will pay income tax on the profit whether you distribute it or leave it in the company.)
By the way, if you don’t have debt these options are expanded to include the entire two thirds not needed for taxes.
Since profit and cash are not the same, you may have a profit on paper but little cash. Your cash may be tied up in inventory, fixed assets, principal payments or receivables. This reduces both your enthusiasm and your options, but it’s an incentive to balance future efforts between driving profits and generating cash.
The lesson? Don’t just plan to make a profit … plan what to do with it. Do this planning well before year end with input from your tax accountant.
This is the technical, geeky side of business ownership. Make this a core competency so you can have a healthy and sustainable company.
Bill Collier is the St. Louis area coach for The Great Game of Business. He helps businesses increase accountability and results with open-book management. He is the author of “How to Succeed as a Small Business Owner … and Still Have a Life” Bill can be reached at 314-221-8558 or firstname.lastname@example.org. His blog is http://ggobstl.wordpress.com. | <urn:uuid:b279b853-cb8d-43ab-8054-f6e026e2bd59> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://greatgame.com/ok-i-made-a-profit-now-what-by-bill-collier/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00039-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.939259 | 761 | 1.84375 | 2 |
A Northern Venture
|A Northern Venture: Verses by Members of the Leeds University English School Association|
|Author||Edited by Sydney Matthewman(?)|
|Publisher||Leeds: The Swan Press|
|Format||Booklet (green card wrappers)|
A Northern Venture: Verses by Members of the Leeds University English School Association is collection of twenty-three poems by ten different authors. The booklet contains three poems by J.R.R. Tolkien:
- "Tha Eadigan Saelidan: The Happy Mariner"
- "Why the Man in the Moon Came Down Too Soon"
- "Enigmata Saxonica Nuper Inventa Duo"
A 2nd impression of the booklet, dated July 1923, was also issued. It is essentially identical to the 1st impression.
"The pictures, brightly tinted, of Mr. W.R. Childe's fancy, the dialect verses of Mr. A.H. Smith, who knows his Yorkshire, and a couple of riddles in Saxon by Mr. J.R.R. Tolkien are perhaps the outstanding things in this unpretentious anthology" (Times Literary Supplement of July 12, 1923).
- ↑ Presumably, according to Douglas A. Anderson (see J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment, p.459
- ↑ An Illustrated Tolkien Bibliography at Tolkienbooks.net | <urn:uuid:5c391eaf-b94c-4caa-b798-5763deba47d3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://tolkiengateway.net/w/index.php?title=A_Northern_Venture&oldid=108539 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00030-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.913263 | 293 | 2.03125 | 2 |
Through Mike's great blog that is always filled with useful links I found the following map that shows how many people own a passport in each state of this country:
The article that accompanies this map explains that
States with more passport holders are also happier. There is a significant correlation (.55) between happiness (measured via Gallup surveys) and a state’s percentage of passport holders. Yet again, that correlation holds when we control for income.I wonder if we can use this data in the promotion of our university's Study Abroad program.
It makes absolute sense that people who have traveled to other countries would be happier. After interacting with people from other cultures, seeing how they live and becoming friendly with them, travelers are less likely to buy into anxiety-producing mythology of besieged Americans who are envied and hated by everybody else on the planet. | <urn:uuid:fe974638-229b-4dc9-809b-491a85b75f6d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://clarissasbox.blogspot.com/2011/03/passport-ownership-by-state.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00065-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958811 | 173 | 1.632813 | 2 |
A Poem in the Manner of Karacaoglan
Melih Cevdet Anday
No one celebrates the Elbistan meadow.
It opens its arms to the wind like dawn, a refined gazelle.
Summer brings the balmy weather of the time I knew,
Like a nightingale singing in fresh, hanging grapes.
Hesitant morning sets the purple hyacinth free.
Delight I've never known extracts lies from my heart
And it enjoys, for a time, the quince in the branches.
A crane flaps its wings, sapling of dawn.
I know well Ismail Bey's high plateau with its cold running waters,
The rose's branch, as tall as four men, that winds around the cypress,
High up and coiled in the fog, with an aroma like wine.
There you can see the heavy-headed pool quake
Like purple clouds that deceive the birds.
It's time for the ant that never knew childhood to grow up,
The sun droning like a cicada, an idol like a man,
The shouting flower of my freedom, respected.
The weeds whisper into the ear of the stream,
The heart's flower comes down to earth from the heights.
One can see a falcon's nest in the Koja Binboğa,
Its morning flowers dazzle the eye,
They pulse in the heart of wind like the chiming of a bell.
In the moonlight dragons descend with their eyes full of stars
To the valley where thousands of flowers play . . .
Tonight, tonight let's sleep in the Binboğa, my horse.
My horse's saddle blanket was woven in Ogrek,
His shoes were poured of solid silver.
I see my beloved, her red apron, her veiled face,
Now is her time to be kissed and savored.
The bud not picked in time becomes a rose leaf.
Sorrow has ploughed our garden all these years,
Despair remains within us
Like a branch of the unknown without a future.
We fill in what we don't understand with respect for emptiness.
In Ogrek, torrents pouring down cover the level plains
And birds seem even more abundant,
More crowded than the gloom of endless night.
I carry a heavy portion of the lake of melancholy.
Before evening ends, the mystery of night begins.
Before night ends, day is always on its way.
They walk away to their expected places.
I wandered like bees that can't find their own doors,
A perversion of death that doesn't wait for the future.
I was like a reed that didn't know what it was.
How often I studied the green winter of my heart.
Where was my youth?
I wore the dervish coat of crimson green,
I threw silver coins to the gypsy tambourines.
Tonight, my horse, we'll sleep in Ogrek.
I have three sorrows that can't be distinguished,
One is separation, one poverty, one death.
I don't even have a wretched shack to live in,
I pass my evening batting away wasps.
The dirt pile in my heart is lightened by birds,
Grief looks for its hot soup in my stewpot.
It's a window for me to weep through,
Rain wiped by the window's own handkerchief.
But this balmy summer rain makes the heart leaf out.
A girl touches her breasts in front of the leaves.
We wash our faces in the night breeze
As the dejected vehicle of wind distracts us
And the setting sun extinguishes the window's lamp.
As in a flood, the day dries up, a branch walks into the night.
We will arrive, my horse, we will rap the door-knocker,
The door to moonlit lambs, side by side in the fog.
The cypress will ever so slowly roll among the stars,
The moon's hennaed hands will brush my beloved's face,
We'll see birds talking with transparent beaks,
Unheard-of delicacies, combs from Fizan,
Silken shawls, double-sided ivory mirrors . . .
My horse, if tonight you are too hot-blooded,
I will sleep in the embrace of my beloved, O my horse.
translated from the Turkish by Sidney Wade and Efe Murad | <urn:uuid:db4bd449-a4fa-4322-880a-a091153448aa> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.asymptotejournal.com/article.php?cat=Poetry&id=10&curr_index=84&curPage=Poetry | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00074-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.926799 | 945 | 1.640625 | 2 |
The Fairer Sex
What do we mean when we say we need more female justices?
It's almost an article of faith among Supreme Court watchers that President Obama will fill the bench's next vacancy—and perhaps the one after that, too— with a woman. The current court's sole female member, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, has said she is "lonely" there, and even if she's not the next to step aside and another women joins her, that's still just two out of nine. Americans seem quite certain that isn't enough. Former Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, on learning in 2005 that John Roberts would take her place, declared him"good in every way, except he's not a woman." Americans concur. In a CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll taken just before Roberts was appointed, 80 percent of respondents said it was a good idea to replace O'Connor with a woman, and 13 percent said it was "essential." And with women claiming a large share of responsibility for Obama's victory over John McCain, the demand for a more gender-balanced court is stronger than ever.
But why does Obama owe us another woman justice? Is it simply a matter of appearance? Is gender balance necessary for the court to have what political scientists like to call "social legitimacy"? Or is there something more fundamental that women bring to the bench—something about the way they decide cases—that makes the need for more of them so urgent?
Debate has raged for decades now about whether there is something unique about women's jurisprudence. A 1986 study of O'Connor's opinions published by professor Suzanna Sherry, now at Vanderbilt University, saw evidence there of a "feminine jurisprudence … quite unlike any other contemporary jurisprudence." Defenders of the notion of a woman's legal reasoning often build their case on the groundbreaking work of psychologist Carol Gilligan, whose 1982 book, In a Different Voice, claimed that female moral reasoning is fundamentally different. Men, the theory goes, prefer their law with rigid rules, clear lines, and neutral principles; women, meanwhile, want to look at the totality of the circumstances and apply broad discretion, preferring what Gilligan calls an "ethic of care" to an "ethic of rights."
So, for example, some of the different voice theorists would argue that O'Connor's preferences for flexible case-by-case standards in the context of abortion, or her concern for the uneasy nonbelievers in cases about public displays of religion, reflect a softer, more "relational" approach to the law, while Justice Antonin Scalia's emphasis on unchanging rules and crisp legal principles is, fundamentally, a guy thing. This is, of course, a rather broad-brush approach to both gender and judging, and some feminists object that it ultimately hurts women to talk of them in such gauzy generalities. Why perpetuate the idea that woman are all about tenderness and feelings while men are all about muscular rights?
Whichever side of the debate you espouse, the empirical studies on gender and judging have been almost completely equivocal so far. But in an award-winning 2008 paper titled "Untangling the Causal Effects of Sex on Judging," Washington University's Christina L. Boyd and Andrew D. Martin and Northwestern School of Law's Lee Epstein suggest that women judges really are different. Surveying sex discrimination suits resolved by panels of judges in federal circuit courts between 1995 and 2002, the researchers examined whether male and female judges decide cases differently, and went on to look at whether the presence of a female on a panel of judges affects the behavior of her male colleagues.
Here's what they found: The male judges were 10 percent more likely to rule against alleged sex-discrimination victims. And male judges were "significantly more likely" to rule in their favor if a woman judge served on their panel. Because Epstein, Boyd, and Martin were studying only sex-discrimination cases—situations in which gender is front and center—it's unclear whether their data would hold true in cases in which gender were beside the point. Still, an intriguing implication of this study is that male judges rule differently when they're sharing the bench with a woman. It may suggest female moral reasoning—if such a thing exists—might be contagious.
O'Connor, for her part, has been one of the most vocal detractors of the "different voice" theory of judging. She has been clear that "there is simply no empirical evidence that gender differences lead to discernible differences in rendering judgment." Somewhat paradoxically, however, O'Connor does believe that the personal experiences of diverse jurists influence the views of their colleagues. She has written, for instance, of the influence that Justice Thurgood Marshall had on her worldview. In her 2003 book, The Majesty of the Law, O'Connor described how Marshall, through his tremendous gifts as a "raconteur," pushed his fellow justices to re-evaluate their own moral truths; how his experiences with racial discrimination offered a window into that world for his white colleagues. It wasn't necessarily that Marshall wrote in a different voice. It was that he was able—as Linda Greenhouse, my former colleague at the Supreme Court, has argued—to show his colleagues that they did not always know what they thought they knew about race.
History proves that you can be the most empathetic, open-minded, and sensitive jurist in all the world—and still be a complete dolt about gender. It's why liberal lion William Brennan could write so expansively about equality and fairness and justice while still refusing to hire female law clerks. It's why Ginsburg was denied a clerkship with the legendary judge Learned Hand. (He refused to hire her because he liked to use salty language.) A wonderful new book by Fred Strebeigh called Equal: Women Reshape American Law, is full of stories about well-meaning men who thought they knew what women needed and the women who showed them they were wrong.
When it comes time for Obama to appoint a new justice, he'll have an embarrassment of female talent to choose from: To name just a very few, potential candidates include appeals court judges like Diane Wood, Sonia Sotomayor, Kim McLane Wardlaw; his new solicitor general, Elena Kagan; gifted academics such as Stanford Law School's Kathleen Sullivan and Pamela Karlan; Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm; and private attorneys like Teresa Wynn Roseborough. Each of these women has a different story and a different voice, and nobody believes for a moment that they all think alike. It took a few years of Ginsburg and O'Connor to show us that if there is any such thing as a women's jurisprudence, it differs radically from woman to woman.
Still, beneath all the formal legal reasoning at the Supreme Court, there are the countless stories of casual influence: the female law clerks, the secretaries, and the family members whose experiences, like Marshall's, slowly taught insulated justices how much they needed to learn. It's long past time for women to influence the high court in more direct ways. Women who want Obama to push for gender balance at the Supreme Court need to remind him that fighting for gender diversity at the high court isn't just for show. The real point may be to tell.
A version of this article appears in this week's issue of Newsweek.
Dahlia Lithwick writes about the courts and the law for Slate.
Photograph of Sandra Day O'Connor by Mark Wilson/Getty Images. | <urn:uuid:056ec721-b7ad-4b0e-bfd8-34902c48c8b3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2009/04/the_fairer_sex.single.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00055-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970654 | 1,548 | 1.9375 | 2 |
Recent reports show health-conscience eaters who happen to love chocolate have a reason to become Anglophiles, as well.
Scientific "blokes" across the pond in the United Kingdom apparently have developed a kind of chocolate that is made using half the fat of the traditional kind, replacing it with, of all things, fruit juice.
I'm all over this one, because as a chocoholic who happens to watch my waistline, I've had an epic battle on my hands (or thighs) through the years. With a chocolate-loving devil on one shoulder and a vegetable-grubbing angel on the other, it was always hard for me to maintain my chocolate cravings and try to stay healthy.
I've advocated dark chocolate as a healthier alternative, but it still has a lot of fat, meaning perhaps having to cut calories somewhere else in your meal plan.
If these Brit scientists get the food industry to come along on a magical mystery culinary tour, though, I may not have to worry so much after all.
According to a news release from the University of Warwick, using a chemical process called "Pickering emulsion," chemists at the university were able to replace half the cocoa butter and milk fat in chocolate with fruit juice.
They claim it has the same "mouth-feel" as traditional chocolate and can be used to make dark, milk and white chocolate (which isn't really chocolate, but that's another column).
It also isn't susceptible to the "bloom" regular chocolate can get when left in the cabinet too long, as if anyone has a problem with that.
I'm all for science and progress, but I do get concerned when edible products start coming out of the lab — images of meat "grown" in a Petri dish come to mind, which are none too appetizing.
But if they are using simple ingredients like fruit juice and not some crazy hard-to-pronounce chemicals, I'm up for a go-round.
Unfortunately, whoever grabs the technology and runs with it will have to be very careful how they label and package this "fruity" chocolate.
As I've written about before, as soon as you slap the label "healthy" or "lower fat" on a product or recipe, I believe most people automatically condemn that food to tastelessness or "cardboard" status.
Having been a "healthy food hater" myself, I know that it takes actually trying the food or recipe to believe that it could be a viable stand-in for less healthy choices.
My advice to the would-be "fruity" chocolate purveyors?
Be sure to send out lots of free samples, especially to healthy living columnists in Wichita Falls. | <urn:uuid:58fff1c3-bbed-4974-8457-7712427516fd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.timesrecordnews.com/news/2012/sep/25/food-scientists-try-to-improve-chocolate/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00020-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970847 | 567 | 2.375 | 2 |
Umbrella AccessoriesUmbrella accessories generally mean sand anchors and umbrella stand. They are designed to secure your beach umbrella in the loose beach sand.
Are you constantly worried that your beach umbrellas will be blown away during windy days? What you need are umbrella accessories to secure them in the loose beach sand.
Umbrella Accessories: Types
There are two types of umbrella accessories, the usage of which is determined by location and circumstance:
Itâs a anchoring device with large spiral threads at one end which secures the beach umbrella during strong winds. Alternatively, sand anchors are also known as sand augers can be used to secure fishing rods and tent poles.
Umbrella base It is a disc-like structure that has a rod emerging from the middle. The umbrella can be fixed on to the rod with the help of a knob. They are also used to support umbrellas with patio table.Umbrella base are available in a variety of materials such as:
- cast iron
Plastic or fibreglass bases can be conveniently used for patio umbrellas placed on open-air patios and balconies. Without damaging the flooring, they will shelter you and your guests from the sun and even the occasional rain. Cement, steel or iron can be used for permanent fixing spots. However, anchors or aluminium umbrella stands for umbrellas are requisites of windy beaches.
Umbrella Accessories: Availability on Our Website
On our website, you will find high-quality, multi-purposes umbrella accessories at extremely reasonable rates. The sand anchors and umbrella stands are generally chosen according to their:
- Purpose of usage
Complement your patio or beach experience with umbrella accessories from the wide range of products available at our website | <urn:uuid:0644e4cd-e033-4723-b9b5-10ecb4dd268f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.beachmall.com/category/beach-umbrellas-shelter.umbrella-stand-stands-base/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00021-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937225 | 362 | 1.507813 | 2 |
- Preventing fires: Responsibility rests on Utahns - Salt Lake Tribune Editorial
There are things we have a right to do that we simply should not do when the time isn’t right. Cyclists have a right to take up an entire lane of an uphill road. Obese people have a right to wear tube tops.
And Utahns have a right to shoot their guns at targets in the middle of a tinder-dry field of grass on a 100-degree, windy day, or launch fireworks in a neighborhood regardless of the fire danger. But smart Utahns won’t. ...
... A state law, passed by a gun-loving Legislature, prevents any state agency from limiting the use of firearms, which have already caused at least 20 wildfires so far, including one that threatened homes in Saratoga Springs and Eagle Mountain and forced thousands to evacuate. Gov. Gary Herbert has no plan to limit target shooting to approved, supervised, ideally indoor ranges. [Or maybe he does.]
So everyone who legally owns a gun has the right to endanger the lives and property of their neighbors. We hope they will act responsibly, but the evidence of human carelessness is growing. ...
- City governments should sear fire restrictions into the public conscience - Deseret News Editorial
... this nerve-jangling summer of combustibility is far from over, and the sad reality is, barring any miraculous change of course, there will be more fires accidentally triggered by people who should know better. ...
- A Call for Caution and Common Sense in Dry Fire Season - Gov. Gary Herbert
- Fireworks Restrictions by Local Communities - Utah State Fire Marshall
- Utah firefighters, resources stretched, battle new blazes - Salt Lake Tribune
- Tough questions as Colorado homes burn - Denver Post Editorial
- Past fires offer hope, lessons - Fort Collins Coloradoan Editorial
- Forest firefighters need protection -Loveland (Colo.) Reporter-Herald Editorial (via Colorado Springs Gazette)
As firefighters enter their third week fighting the High Park fire and the Waldo Canyon fire continues to burn in our own front yard, it may come as a surprise that many federal wildland firefighters do not qualify for federal health insurance. ...
- Bonding for schools: Voters made right choice - Salt Lake Tribune Editorial
Utahns don’t just pay lip service to the value of public education. They consistently show their commitment to their local neighborhood schools. They volunteer. Parents get involved in PTA and other organizations. And they go even further, most often approving district borrowing to maintain education quality.
Voters in the Murray and Weber school districts are the latest to support going into debt to improve their children’s schools. The two bond issues approved Tuesday are needed to meet the demands of growth and improve safety at schools in the two districts. ...
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|4.||Planes, trains and orangutans: 12 distinctly Utah things to do this summer|
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|8.||Agents approach Shurtleff ally; investigations heat up|
|9.||California singer-songwriter still connected to Utah|
|10.||University of Utah graduate wins sports-trivia contest on ESPNU| | <urn:uuid:50e7029c-17a8-46e2-9050-825d285874b9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/blogsdebate/54395695-176/editorial-fire-schools-firefighters.html.csp | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00046-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.913355 | 771 | 2.046875 | 2 |
NAEP mathematics scores, by curriculum level and graduate-reported highest level of education of either parent
*Significantly different from graduates with at least one parent who graduated from college.
‡Reporting standards not met. Sample size is insufficient to permit a reliable estimate.
NOTE: View data with standard errors for parental education. | <urn:uuid:62074b32-6ed7-4f65-bf47-2a0e5fd050ab> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://nationsreportcard.gov/hsts_2005/hs_naep_4a_3.asp?tab_id=tab4&subtab_id=Tab_1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00038-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.929076 | 66 | 1.523438 | 2 |
This form of insurance provides mechanical breakdown coverage generally not available under any other insurance policy. A Boiler and Machinery policy can protect an insured against the effects of catastrophic property loss, such as steam boiler explosion or an expensive breakdown of machinery and equipment.
A type of health insurance designed to cover catastrophic medical expenses. A major medical policy can be your only health policy or supplemental to another health insurance policy with low payout limits.
A property used for the processing or manufacturing of goods.
An insurance policy specifically designed for an individual insured (handwritten inference).
A formal estimate of the the maximum dollar amount at risk by the company or companies providing an insurance policy.
A general liability coverage in which the insurer reimburses without regard to the insured's liability, the insured and others (as specifically provided in the policy) for medical and funeral expenses incurred by such persons as a result of bodily injury or death sustained by accident under the conditions specified in the policy.
A property used in the business of selling merchandise.
An insurance policy which provides more than one coverage in a single policy. Also known as a Package Policy.
An insurance policy that insures more than one peril or cause of loss. An All-Risk policy is an example of a multi-peril policy. This is not the same as a Multi-Line policy which includes more than one type of coverage.
An insurance carrier or provider which is owned exclusively by its insureds. A mutual insurance company has no stock. Any operating profit is paid to their insureds in the form of a premium rebate. | <urn:uuid:dae66af4-57cb-41ac-8ec2-28dca867d3d6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.poulosinsurance.com/site/1914069375/glossary.asp?a=M | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00058-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937976 | 319 | 1.617188 | 2 |
BRUSSELS — The debt crisis will drag the eurozone into a long-warned double-dip recession this year, pulling down most neighbouring non-euro economies in its wake, the EU said Thursday.
Fresh after a decision to mount a new 237-billion-euro ($310 billion) bailout of Greece, there was more bad news for the currency area when updated EU data predicted a 0.3-percent contraction in GDP throughout 2012, compared with a forecast in November of 0.5-percent growth for this year.
"The unexpected stalling of the recovery in late 2011 is set to extend into the first two quarters of 2012," the European Commission said Thursday although it stressed it saw a "mild recession with signs of stabilisation."
Three years after the collapse of US mortgage markets plunged the world into a brutal downturn, the Commission said negative loops "between weak sovereign debtors, fragile financial markets and a slowing real economy do not yet appear to have been broken."
A 0.8-percent downward revision in the space of just over three months underlined the importance of forecasting for the likes of Greece, where wide variations were presented to finance ministers this week as they took decisions on long-term debt sustainability in that country.
Comments from close watchers of EU economic policy were swift and harsh.
"The banking system, at least in the euro area, remains on life support; the politics in the euro area remain as fraught as ever and the social fabric is being stretched to its limit," said Sony Kapoor of Brussels-based economic consultancy Re-Define.
Announcing the numbers, European Union Economy Commissioner Olli Rehn put the figures into context by comparing the eurozone prospects to overall global growth which he expected to be 4.3 percent this year.
Rehn also admitted that the turnaround anticipated later in the year "remains to be confirmed in coming months and will depend on policy decisions taken" by governments.
Unusually, the EU executive fed in data from all 27 EU states -- not just the seven biggest -- in a bid to make its forecasts more robust.
The European Commission said "modest growth is predicted to return in the second half of the year," with inflation revised "slightly upwards" to 2.1 percent across the 17-state euro currency area, mainly due to energy costs and "increases in indirect taxes."
A fifth year of recession in Greece is expected by Brussels to result in a 4.4-percent contraction of gross domestic product in 2012, much worse than the 2.8 percent downturn previously estimated.
In Athens, lawmakers focused Thursday on a crucial debate to approve bills to restructure the country's massive debt of 350 billion euros.
On financial markets European stocks wavered Thursday, with traders welcoming strong German confidence data but cautious about the prospects of Greece overcoming its debt problems.
The euro firmed against the dollar and yen.
Meanwhile, the EU Commission warned that Italy, which carries the eurozone's biggest debt burden of about 1.3 trillion euros, faces a recession that will cut its output by 1.3 percent in 2012.
The last official forecast from the government in Rome was for a 0.4-percent fall, although the Bank of Italy last month tipped between 1.2 percent and 1.5 percent, while the IMF predicted an even worse result, a 2.2-percent drop.
There will be a 1.0-percent recession in Spain, according to the data, but Germany's economy would grow 0.6 percent and that of France 0.4 percent.
Outside the eurozone, Poland maintains its position as a powerhouse economy, with 2.5-percent growth now predicted -- dimmed compared to stellar performance prior to the debt crisis, but still way out in front.
"One essential reason is Poland has been benefitting from the engine of the German economy, it has had a positive spillover," Rehn said, also crediting a large influx of EU funding for Warsaw.
The economy across the United Kingdom, which has its own lopsided patterns, was meanwhile tipped to grow by 0.6 percent.
"Although growth has stalled, we are seeing signs of stabilisation," Rehn said highlighting "easing" stress in financial markets.
The Commission cited a "less supportive" global economy "weighing on net exports" as well as low business and consumer confidence, although the forecast maintained that "a credit crunch has been avoided."
In a clear sign of structural divergences, the Commission noted that "Greece, Portugal and Spain account for 95 percent of the rise in unemployment in the EU since late 2010."
Copyright © 2013 AFP. All rights reserved. More » | <urn:uuid:676e7cc2-9d91-4b03-ac51-7516da07b2c1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hNP0OAk8-mQwKwTLxWyhnBJsb2wA?docId=CNG.c76f4c1c2c6085b688da0758c40aed34.4e1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00069-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957428 | 961 | 1.976563 | 2 |
Faith and religion have been dancing for millenniums, quite often stepping on one another's toes until they bleed.
Blame for the bleeding usually gets placed on religion, so much so, that the last few decades have been chalked up as the post-religious era. But, the decrease in people who express no religious preference does not mean an increase in atheism, faithlessness or unbelief. It seems every thinking person has faith, whether they have faith in God, goddesses, the sciences, or the air they breathe.
Although the concepts of faith and religion can be separated -- we can have eyes but no eyesight -- a percentage of the population sees faith and religion as inextricable -- like eyesight and eyes. Even spirituality and religion are interpreted as one and same to many people who don't buy into the trendy "spiritual but not religious" philosophy.
Faith is a springboard, used to advance to that which we understand. So we ask: Do I want to advance to an understanding of hate or love, of superstition or truth, of sickness or wellness?
Religion has been stereotyped with other social groups, e.g. political parties, fraternities, AA groups, online spirituality forums and so on. People join social groups because of the perks, whether the perk is a sense of connection the understanding of a higher cause, a better standing in the community, or friendship. Because of the plethora of social groups available to us, we're learning we don't have to go to a church to religiously devote our self to an ideal or agenda.
Faith and religion have to a debatable degree brought reform and improved moral and physical standards over the centuries. Faithful members of religious organizations offer guidance. They feed and clothe the needy and visit the sick. But then the problems they create -- polarity, stringent social norms, terror -- are global in nature and very much in our face.
The collective damage done by faith and religion seems to have reached a tipping point where harms cancel out benefits. This conclusion is compelling but hard to quantify. Our accounting systems do not allow us to calculate the true costs of faith and religion, which have a way of rippling out through society in myriad ways, while profits are concentrated at the source.
There are no panaceas for the predicament faith and religion present, two steps forward, one step back, however wishing or assuming they are going away is one step forward and two steps back. Faithlessness or spite toward religion will not allow for an easy transition to living within our means. To lose faith or religion is not workable. But we can lose blind faith and false religions.
The solutions are local. If we want to meet the faith/religion challenge, we'll have to do it in our own communities and be open to new methods. The faith and religion of today is dramatically different from yesteryears. I certainly don't sacrifice thousands of animals to God like King David did eons ago. I will not be hanging on a cross like Christ Jesus did. I don't attend a ritualistic church service dead to the world today. But, the dance continues. Faith in the understanding of constructive purposes and wellbeing flows with the religion of truth and love. Within my own consciousness I develop that which is promising and realistic. We have a chance to create a workable faith and religion compatible to support ourselves and our descendants with dignity.
Cheryl Petersen's book is "21st Century Science and Health." She freelance writes on spirituality from Delhi. She can be reached at 4CherylWrites@gmail.com. | <urn:uuid:8ffb1dff-36eb-4930-a458-29d94acac7a7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://thedailystar.com/religioncolumn/x1914777138/Learning-the-dance-between-faith-and-religion/print | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00038-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944026 | 737 | 2.1875 | 2 |
In 2007, plans began for the new YMCA of the BrandywineValley, located in West Chester, Penn. One of the goals for the new property development was to create an iconic water play structure that would attract the public. Since it would be visible from surrounding roads, it needed to make a big impression on the community and hopefully drive membership.
“We wanted a unique experience for our members, an experience that wasn’t available anywhere else in the community,” says Chris Wiseman, associate executive director of the West Chester Area YMCA. “We began with a drawing of the water play area to show our members what the sprayground would look like, and after a few meetings we had a final design in place.”
“The very first theme was a realistic pirate fort and a ‘swash-buckling’ captain brandishing a realistic sword,” says Eric Zelman, representative for Rain Drop Products. “The YMCA board requested we develop a design incorporating its mascot, Brandy the dog, and to create a more animated feel to the sprayground design.”
In The Theme Of Things
The design soon morphed into one that successfully combined the pirate and family-friendly themes with Brandy the mascot, all located in a zero-depth entry outdoor pool. Designers and fabricators developed a lighter pirate theme with Brandy decked out in a pirate hat and wielding a child-like wooden sword. Brandy can’t be missed either; the 5-foot-tall mascot is perched on top of the colorful pirate structure. Behind Brandy, a dog bowl bubbles over with water.
The pirate structure consists of three platforms–one 5 feet tall and two platforms at 7 feet. Children can access the platforms via cargo-net climbs or stairs. “The platforms are connected by suspension bridges, and can be exited by way of a wide gang-plank slide or an enclosed tube slide,” says Zelman. “The three roofs feature Brandy and a sail, a dumping barrel that splashes water on anyone within range and a cannon spilling water.” Other features include water cannons that allow some directional movement, as well as plenty of places to get splashed.
In designing the sprayground layout, the flow of people was addressed as well as the area of influence (i.e., how far the water splashes off the structure). “With any water features, you need to keep the water within 5 feet from the edge so that it is recaptured by the circulation system to minimize water loss,” says Zelman. “You also have to have enough space for the guests to circulate through the features, and that is best done by having plenty of entry and exit points throughout the area.”
Polar Bear Plunge
The new YMCA building opened in October 2008. The sprayground installations soon followed with the grand opening–dubbed the Polar Bear Plunge–in late May 2009. The event was open to the public, and brought in over 400 brave souls to play in the frigid waters. Interest in the water play areas only increased, and over the first full weekend over 1,000 people came through the gates.
To gain access to the pools, a membership to the YMCA as well as a membership to the pool is required. “We pre-sold nearly 400 memberships because of the sprayground,” says Wiseman. “It has been and continues to be a huge draw. In fact, we sold over 900 family memberships over the course of the 2009 summer.”
“We have a diversity of ages enjoying the pool complex, with daily attendance reaching 400 to 500 during the week and 1,000 on the weekends,” says Wiseman. “When we have busy days, the pool and sprayground area never seem crowded because there is plenty of room for people to move about.”
The benefits of having a sprayground have included summer camps and swim lessons. “We’ve had record numbers at our day camps,” says Wiseman. “Last year, we averaged nearly 100, and now we are averaging 250 kids.” Summer camps are held weekly, and the campers can go swimming in the morning and again in the afternoon.
“We have aquatic camps at the indoor pool, which also has water spray features,” says Wiseman. “The zero-depth entry area has several spray features, and the deeper end has three lap lanes.” The indoor recreational pool is kept slightly warm to make it more comfortable for members.
The Brandywine Valley YMCA hosts four pools–a diving well that is 14 feet deep; a competitive 12-lane pool that is 7 feet deep; an indoor recreational pool that ranges from zero-depth entry to 5 feet; and an outdoor pool which ranges from zero-depth entry to 7 feet. With experience managing four pools and two spraygrounds, the YMCA has learned a few things along the way.
“A lot of YMCAs are going with the zero-depth entry pools because of the ease of access for people in wheelchairs,” says Wiseman. “It’s also a different element for families–you don’t have to have a baby pool for little ones to have access to the pool.”
“You have to take the time to investigate the history of the companies you are thinking about working with. Have they been in business for a long time? What is their reputation? How well do they follow through on what they say they are going to do?” advises Tim Ryan, facility manager for West Chester Area YMCA. “You need to work with companies that are good at communicating and can work well with other companies to achieve your goals.”
“What kind of warranty is offered on the products and what is the return policy if a feature fails?” Ryan asks. “A good warranty will cover the structural components for 25 years.”
“When designing a sprayground, select features that have a broad appeal, not only for toddlers, but also for young teens and families,” says Zelman. “Every facility needs a wow factor to bring in people. For the YMCA of the BrandywineValley, it is Brandy the mascot and the customized pirate theme.”
Plan Ahead Now
“Don’t let the budget constrain you at the beginning of a project,” says Zelman. “You want to plan for the future, not what you can afford right at the moment.” Design the dream sprayground project, and then begin incorporating it little by little. One easy way to do this is with a universal connection system that, once installed, the features can be added or moved.
Another benefit of using a universal connection system is that the features you currently have can be rearranged, allowing you the freedom to generate a “new” sprayground each year. “Look at maintenance down the road, and don’t lock yourself into a set configuration,” says Zelman. “By taking the time to plan ahead, you can save yourself a lot of headaches.”
Tammy York is the owner of LandShark Communications LLC, which specializes in media and public relations for outdoor recreation businesses. Her book, 60 Hikes Within 60 Miles: Cincinnati, is available online and in bookstores. She can be reached via e-mail at firstname.lastname@example.org. | <urn:uuid:6cc2bfb9-2397-4c42-9825-0e79791a7884> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.northstarpubs.com/articles/prb/appealing-to-the-masses | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00044-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964828 | 1,584 | 1.554688 | 2 |
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Jeff Warschauer of Nexus Corp. (a greenhouse manufacturer) is worried about the future of the plant industry: "The green side of our industry isn't growing. We can blame the economy -- and that's part of the problem -- but there are bigger issues we need to address, too."
Warschauer is part of a plant industry panel that's taking a hard look at where the industry is headed. He points out that the customer base is changing.
"The 80 million people in the Baby Boomer generation have fueled the greenhouse industry over the past couple of decades. But now they're moving into retirement. They're not gardening like they used to. Generation X is barely half the size, so even if we can interest them in gardening like the Boomers -- which is debatable -- we're going to have to get twice as many of them buying our plants just to break even. Generation Y is bigger, but they're years away from being a market driver," Warschauer said in an interview in Greenhouse Grower magazine.
The greenhouse executive said many of today's homeowners have run out of time for a beautiful landscaped garden -- they just want to get a couple of $50 containers and put them on the front stoop. Add a couple of hanging baskets, do the same for the back patio, and voilà! They call it finished.
Hiring Gen X and Gen Y into the plant industry work force is one way to help with this issue. They can advise the "old-timers" about what their generation is looking to do in the yard.
Kristine Lonergan of Garden State Growers said in Greenhouse Grower magazine she attends trade shows that revolve around fashion, design and gifts. Why? For inspiration and ideas. She sees convenience as an important attribute for many of the products promoted at many of these shows.
In the gardening industry, Lonergan said there are many ways to apply the idea of convenience. First, most gardeners today don't have time to research what will work. Giving new (and old, for that matter) gardeners all of the information about the plants and how to plant them makes for an easy trip to the garden center.
Last week, I wrote about the hot new color of the year, Pantone's "Tangerine Tango." Lonergan said the garden industry must connect consumers with the colors they see in fashion and home décor to make the plant offerings more relevant to the buyer.
She adds that recycled is in with the new generation of homeowners/gardeners, so using recycled products hits a note with these consumers. Add the promotion of locally grown, made in the USA and other concepts that are near and dear to the new gardeners, and the industry hits a home run.
I found it interesting that one member of the panel suggested partnering with new groups to promote the gardening industry. Isn't that called networking in every other industry? Why should this be new to the plant folks? The panelist said they should meet with garden clubs, Master Gardeners and so on. That doesn't seem like rocket science to me -- it just seems obvious.
I think, in the past, greenhouse growers didn't have to do much marketing, but now that the tide has turned, they will start visiting with the local and state chapters of the landscape architects, home builders, real estate agents and nursery folks, as well as with homeowner associations and beautification groups.
Here's an interesting new packaging idea from Burpee Home Gardens. They are marketing the BOOST Antioxidant Collection. Ads in gardening magazines recently promote these vegetable plants as "meeting consumers' craving for higher nutrition ... has built-in marketing ... and will build the biggest buzz in vegetable gardening in years!"
Smartphone users can "snap the tag" to check out how these vegetables will improve their lives if they plant them in their gardens. What does that mean?
It's using the QR Code that is on the plant's tag. A QR Code is that little square of black squiggles that's on many products in the stores today. Scan it with your smartphone and you'll be rewarded with a plethora of information about the product. The industry is rewarded because they can track how many customers are engaging with their product.
Wenke Greenhouses is using the new technology to help gardeners become more confident. Natasha Marback, of the John Henry Co. (leading manufacturer of inventory and custom-made tags, signs and other marketing materials for plant growers and garden centers) said that based on its early success, Wenke is now leveraging its partnership with John Henry to combine AllRecipes.com and an entirely new section on BloomIQ.com to edibles. | <urn:uuid:1c51e2a9-4f37-4eac-8c2e-76374481314f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wvgazette.com/Life/201201270223 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00040-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966147 | 980 | 1.789063 | 2 |
A critical part of improving educational results for children with disabilities is using effective practices in the classroom and across the school.
Special educators have built an impressive knowledge base across 30 years of experience individualizing instruction for children and administering special education and related services in our schools. NICHCY is pleased to make that knowledge base available to you, in the following areas:
Basics of Learning and Teaching
Understanding How The Brain Learns
Research on the human brain has brought an explosion of excitement and promise to our understanding of ourselves—how we think, how we learn, how the brain regulates activities and reacts to stimulation. Emerging findings speak directly to effective educational practice.
Understanding Universal Design
Universal design is “an approach to designing environments and products so they can be used by the widest range of users without adaptation.”
What Schools Teach and Helping Students Learn It
Connecting with the Expertise of Special Education
Special educators have a tremendous amount of expertise to share, especially about individualizing instruction for students with specific kinds of disabilities. Here are half a dozen “starter” links that will take you into the heart of more, more, more.
Using What Works
This resource page is a companion to NICHCY’s Structured Abstract 80, which summarized the findings of a fascinating meta-analysis of special education research about “what works.” And what did work? Learning strategy instruction, peer tutoring and cooperative learning, explicit instruction, mnemonic instruction, graphic organizers, study aids and guides…very exciting for teachers and students alike.
Addressing the General Education Curriculum
IDEA requires that students with disabilities be involved in, and make progress in, the general education curriculum–the same subject matter and skills that children without disabilities are expected to learn: math, science, history, and so on. Need resources to help them succeed?
C0-Teaching: General and Special Educators Working Together
This resource page is a companion to NICHCY’s Structured Abstract 81, which focused on the findings of a metasynthesis of 32 qualitative research studies of co-teaching. Building on those findings, this page will connect you with more information about the fundamental requirements for effective co-teaching. | <urn:uuid:5b57cc13-73fc-4b36-bdfd-28c0746cc08e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://nichcy.org/schoolage/effective-practices | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00048-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.918524 | 462 | 3.984375 | 4 |
This new "billboard" installation at the US-Candadian border advertises... nothing. Well, nothing but clean air, that is. Making a strong statement through an obvious absence, the sculpture is meant to pay homage to, and promote the value of, something very hard to capture: the beauty of fresh, clean air.
As one of its designers explained:
"Borrowing the effectiveness of billboards to redirect attention away from the landscape... this permanently open aperture between nations works to frame nothing more than a clear view of the changing atmospheric conditions beyond."
Made of a tangle of steel rods, the piece was designed by Lead Pencil Studio, a firm that blends art and architecture, and you'll absolutely NEVER guess who it was commissioned by. The federal government. More info after the jump...
Click through for more images and information...
From Fast Co.:
How the installation came about: Lead Pencil Studio was shortlisted for a project to design public art at a new northern-border control station through the GSA's Design Excellence program. The concept had to go through two rounds of approval, and Mihalyo insists the jury was "excited about the proposal from the start and the second round involved only small refinements and pragmatic issues."
Article on Fast Co. here. | <urn:uuid:f6d65849-016f-451c-8588-9e501fa99fe1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://elizacoleman.blogspot.com/2010/11/arts-visuels-art-for-cause-non-sign-ii.html | 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 | 0.953316 | 266 | 1.539063 | 2 |
Don’t take it too seriously if the postmaster general resumes his warning that he wants to cut out mail service on Saturday. It could be a replay of what’s known as the “Washington Monument syndrome.”
Back in the presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt, whenever his secretary of the interior, Harold Ickes, found his annual appropriation in trouble, he would threaten to close the Washington Monument, always a favorite of visitors throughout the country. That would cause a huge outcry, Congress would increase the appropriation, and the monument would remain open.
The U.S. Postal Service is one of the few federal agencies explicitly authorized by the Constitution. In 1971, it was reorganized as an independent government-owned agency intended to be self-sufficient, like private businesses. It has been mostly paying its way by selling stamps and other services.
But, like other businesses, it has been hit hard by the current recession. It also faces reduced mail volume from the turn to cell phones, e-mail, Twitter and text messaging, and parcel-delivery competition from FedEx and UPS.
Postmaster General John E. Potter has been closing postal stations and branches, shortening hours, and reducing the work force. He has repeatedly mentioned eliminating deliveries on Saturday, while leaving post offices and post office boxes open as on other days. That would require a change in federal law, removing an annual appropriation bill rider first added in 1983 that requires the Postal Service to deliver mail six days each week.
In August, Mr. Potter told a congressional subcommittee, “I think that we’ve reached a breaking point with the recession, and that’s why we’re seeking to go from six- to five-day delivery.” Several members said their constituents wouldn’t like that, and Sen. Susan Collins told him, “The Postal Service cannot expect to gain more business, which it desperately needs, if it is reducing service.”
She was right and could have gone further. Of course the Postal Service is a business, a $65 billion business, as Mr. Potter calls it, the largest retail presence in America, “with more outlets than McDonald’s Wal-Mart, and Starbucks combined.”
Beyond that, the small post offices in Maine’s rural areas and offshore islands, some facing elimination, are valued meeting places and anchors of community life. Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. once said that “the use of the mails is almost as much a part of free speech as the right to use their tongues.”
Mr. Potter should take a look at the motto engraved on his Washington headquarters building: “Neither rain, nor sleet, nor snow, nor gloom of night can stay these swift couriers from the completion of their appointed rounds.” And add to that: nor difficult economic times. | <urn:uuid:ffe9a4dc-7539-4321-8ea6-1ed6675d2294> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://bangordailynews.com/2010/01/05/opinion/keep-mail-first-class/print/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00059-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971347 | 594 | 2.125 | 2 |
No recent wiki edits to this page.
A mysterious island is usually an uncharted piece of land located in some ocean (usually pacific) and that holds a dark secret. It usually has all the defining characteristics of a regular island: lush jungles, beaches, mountains... When on a mysterious island, you're usually stranded with no contact with the outside world. You also usually discover that you are not alone: evil cult, monster, scientists... You never know what to expect which is what makes a mysterious island so mysterious. | <urn:uuid:3e066dea-145a-464a-9e7c-43bef5b26b45> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.giantbomb.com/mysterious-island/3035-1196/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.948094 | 107 | 1.976563 | 2 |
Treasury is Committed to Open Government. Implementation of the Open Government Directive is a major step in creating a culture of transparency, participation, and collaboration in government operations, opening new lines of communication and cooperation between the government and the American people. Read more.
As part of a commitment to increase transparency in government and maintain accountability of taxpayer dollars, the Department of the Treasury released its Open Government Plan detailing how Treasury will take immediate, specific steps to open their operations to the public.
Evaluate our progress and read the summary self-assessment regarding how our Open Government Plan rates against the Open Government Directive.
Treasury is participating in the White House National Action Plan for Open Government's U.S. Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative. Click here for more information.
Reducing Regulatory Burden; Retrospective Review Under E.O. 13563 – The Department of the Treasury, in its effort to improve Treasury regulations consistent with Executive Order 13563 (“Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review”), invites interested members of the public to submit comments on its plan to review retrospectively its regulations and to submit suggestions as to which Treasury regulations should be modified, expanded, streamlined, or repealed. This status report shows the progress Treasury has made to date in updating its regulations pursuant to the plan. (02/19/2013)
Department of the Treasury's Open Government HIghlights from 2010
Open Government Officials
Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Privacy, Transparency, and Records
1500 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20220
Senior Accountable Official for Data Quality:
Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Management, Chief Financial Officer, and Chief Performance Officer
Click here for a list of Treasury datasets available on data.gov | <urn:uuid:3664b88a-0d0d-4d09-a1a9-e432d7d1eeb5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.treasury.gov/open/Pages/default.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00039-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.901669 | 355 | 1.757813 | 2 |
Top 5 Password Managers
2012 is the year of password theft, according to SecurityCoverage. The security software company says that in the first six months of 2012, online password breaches increased 300% over the same period in 2011.
Maybe you've done okay so far using the same passwords for years, or using the same password for multiple sites so you don't have to keep track of lots of different ones. Maybe you hope that password theft is so rampant that your password will slip past thieves unnoticed. But the time of hoping and crossing your fingers is over if, like many people, you've started storing corporate data in the cloud.
Until companies figure out a better way to protect their data in the cloud, the best solution is to enforce higher security with password managers, said Amber Gott, marketing associate and online community builder at LastPass. Awareness that the tools exist is the first step. "We still find there are plenty of people who aren't even aware that password managers exist," she said. "[But now ] ... we're seeing it cross over to your more average Internet user."
Password managers provide tools to encrypt text files that can store all your passwords that are not Web based, such as Windows and Outlook passwords, Lotus Notes passwords, administration passwords including local and domain accounts, BIOS passwords, encrypted hard drive passwords, cell phone and voicemail passwords, iPad and iPhone passwords, and so on.
Password managers promise greater security while improving the user experience. People get most excited about password managers' convenience, said Gott. "The security for a lot of people is an added benefit," she said.
The best password managers sync to the cloud across all dominant platforms and require multi-factor authentication. Other factors to consider when choosing one are cost, ease use, and extras. Of course, clouds are where much user data is breached. You've probably heard the victims' names: RSA, Sony, eHarmony, LinkedIn. What happens when a cloud-based password manager gets hacked?
LastPass was hacked in March 2011, right around the time Sony was breached. Unfortunately for Sony users, Sony stored passwords in clear text. LastPass, on the other hand, encrypts its passwords and came through relatively unscathed. In other words, the extra protection offered by password managers works. | <urn:uuid:27969d32-6702-4ab9-b5f5-40f5593573fa> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.informationweek.com/byte/personal-tech/mobile-applications/top-5-password-managers/240006395?cid=SBX_byte_related_mostpopular_Mobile_OS_google_drops_f_bomb_on_developers&itc=SBX_byte_related_mostpopular_Mobile_OS_google_drops_f_bomb_on_developers | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.9532 | 467 | 1.578125 | 2 |
Chemical Engineering is the branch of engineering that deals with the fusion of science and mathematics concepts used to aid in the design, building, and operation of chemical processes to convert chemicals into functional products.
Why Seek Chemical Engineering Training?
Chemical Engineers are diverse individuals who are equipped with a rare skill set that makes them marketable to several industries. Whether working directly with chemical compounds or assisting with finding ways to use raw materials and chemicals to solve environmental issues, a chemical engineering education is valuable to many businesses. It is one of the many fields of engineering that can boast many rewards for the people who decide to embark in its direction.
Here at the Engineering Training Center, we offer you the chemical engineering training that you need. We offer detailed chemical engineering courses online, onsite, and in classroom-based formats. We also offer courses tailored to your individual and organizational needs.
Looking for a Chemical Engineering Education or License?
For those looking for licensing, we offer Chemical Engineering training for the FE and PE exams. If you need exam preparation, contact us! We offer chemical engineering exam preparation courses online as well as in many other formats. The EIT or PE designation is a great way to advance your Chemical Engineering education and experience.
Find Chemical Engineering Courses
Listed are some of our most popular Chemical Engineering courses. If you are looking for Chemical Engineering training, either select a course from the list of recommendations below, or select a Chemical Engineering program from the "Professional Devlopment" drop-down listing below.
To find training geared to help you to brush up on your core Chemical Engineering skills, or FE/PE exam preparation, select a course from below.
This information provided is based on state laws and regulations, and is subject to change. While VendorPedia/TrainingCenter makes every effort to make sure this information is current and accurate, it is not engaged in rendering legal or professional advice, and shall not be held responsible for inaccuracies contained herein. | <urn:uuid:4a56ef28-be09-4b8e-981a-4db23ecc40ff> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.theengineeringtrainingcenter.com/Chemical_Engineering.asp | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.939784 | 401 | 2.59375 | 3 |
Milk is only good for so long.
Kanawha County school officials experienced that firsthand last week after Superstorm Sandy caused extended power outages in some facilities.
"At least half of the county lost all milk that was on hand," said Diane Miller, nutrition director for the county.
As county maintenance and facility workers worked to do what they could to help get schools up and running, Miller said she and her staff had to ship old food out and new food in. Most schools receive two food deliveries a week, and Miller said she likes to have a two-day supply of food on hand in every school's freezer just in case.
That created a problem as outages lingered, she said: Schools that never lost power had way too much food, and those that did lose power didn't have enough when the power was restored. Food in freezers lasts longer than food in refrigerators when the power is out, but Miller said as days went by, it was better to be safe than sorry.
"When in doubt, throw it out," Miller said.
She hasn't had time to tabulate invoices from the additional deliveries yet, so she wasn't certain exactly how much was lost.
To Miller's knowledge Kanawha County does not have a policy for what to do with food in the event of an extended power outage. She said she's working on one now and already has enacted several changes she thought would be beneficial.
Food providers now are included in the county's emergency notification system, Miller said. Right now parents and others involved with the system receive a message when there is a school closure. | <urn:uuid:841390ce-7a91-4294-8ba6-5efb84ec636d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.dailymail.com/News/Kanawha/201211070278 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.991271 | 335 | 1.835938 | 2 |
X. Farther Narrative of the War, to the Conclusion
of Peace with the
XI. Renewal of the War with the Araucanians, and succinct Narrative of the History of Chili, from 1655 to 1787,
XII. State of Chili towards the end of the Eighteenth Century,
XIII. Account of the Archipelago of Chiloe,
XIV. Account of the native tribes inhabiting
the southern extremity of
Chap. X. Discovery of Florida, and Account
of several ineffectual
Attempts to Conquer and Settle that Country by the Spaniards,
Sect. I. Discovery of Florida, by Juan Ponce de Leon,
II. Narrative of a Disastrous attempt by Panfilo
de Narvaez to conquer
Florida; together with some account of that Country,
III. Adventures and wonderful escape of Cabeza de Vaca, after the loss of Narvaez,
Sect. IV. Narrative of a new attempt to Conquer Florida, by Ferdinand de Soto,
V. Continuation of the Transactions of Ferdinand de Soto in Florida,
VI. Conclusion of the Expedition to Florida by Ferdinand de Soto,
[Illustration: Viceroyalty of new Granada]
voyages and travels.
* * * * *
* * * * *
CHAPTER VII Continued.
Continuation of the early history of Peru, after the death of Francisco Pizarro, to the defeat of Gonzalo Pizarro, and the re-establishment of Tranquility in the country; written by Augustino Zarate.
Continuation of the Viceroyalty of Blasco Nunnez Vela, to his deposition and expulsion front Peru.
The viceroy received immediate intelligence of the revolt of Puelles, as mentioned in the foregoing section, which; was brought to him by a Peruvian captain named Yllatopa; and, though he considered it as a very unfortunate incident, he took immediate measures to counteract their intentions of joining the enemy, by sending a detachment to occupy the passes of the valley of Jauja, through which they must necessarily march on their way from Guanuco to join Gonzalo. For this purpose, he immediately ordered his brother Vela Nunnez to march in all haste with a detachment of forty light armed cavalry, and thirty musqueteers under the command of Gonzalo Diaz, besides whom ten of the friends and relations of Nunnez went as volunteers on this expedition. | <urn:uuid:30097ab8-aa2b-4dc1-885c-1fa6b63fc022> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bookrags.com/ebooks/14984/2.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00074-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.936269 | 531 | 2.625 | 3 |
Almost a decade after the first detainees accused of terrorism were sent to the prison at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, and almost two years after U.S. President Barack Obama promised to close the prison within a year, more than 170 of Guantánamo's prisoners remain in custody.
Please click here for a list of those we have identified by name as potential confirmed or suspected recidivists.
A total of almost 800 men have been held at Guantánamo at one time or another since it opened in January 2002, and around 600 have been released, according to the New York Times's Guantánamo Docket database. More than half of the ex-detainees have been sent to Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia; 14 percent to Pakistan and Yemen.
There's no question that some of these men have taken up arms since their release. But how many? On the ninth anniversary of Guantánamo's opening, understanding the threat posed by the detainees who have already been released will better inform the debate over what to do with those who remain. Unfortunately, that debate has been hobbled by a lack of transparency on the part of the U.S. government, making it difficult for outside observers to make their own judgments. What follows is an attempt to sort out what is known on the public record.
The U.S. intelligence community claims that the percentage of confirmed released detainees engaging in terrorism or insurgency increased from 5.1 percent of those who were released by March 2009 to 13.5 percent of releases by October 2010, and that the number of those suspected of terrorist or insurgent activity similarly rose from 8.8 percent in March 2009 to 11.5 percent in October 2010.
In other words, the U.S. government now asserts that an astonishing one in four of those released from Guantánamo are either terrorists/insurgents or suspected to be. (The government is careful to point out that detainees who merely engage in anti-U.S. propaganda after their release from Guantánamo are not counted as confirmed or suspected terrorists.)
The vast majority of the 150 men who the U.S. government has now identified as confirmed or suspected terrorists/insurgents were released under President George W. Bush administration, though five were released by the Obama administration. However, a statement from the director of national intelligence dated October 2010 that was released in December predicts that the number of detainees identified as terrorists or insurgents will very likely further increase, as a review of Guantánamo detainees' release dates shows a lag time of about two and a half years before they "reengaged in terrorist or insurgent activity."
The U.S. government is correct that some Guantánamo alumni have gone on to pose a significant danger to American interests following their release. Said al-Shihri, who was returned to his native Saudi Arabia in 2007, has since become a leader of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, which was responsible for the failed attempt to bomb a U.S. airliner over Detroit on Christmas Day 2009, an attack that could have killed at least 300 people.
Similarly, Abdullah Ghulam Rasoul was sent back to Afghanistan in 2007 and was released by the Afghan government. Sometimes going by the name "Mullah Zakir," Rasoul has been named by U.S. military officials as the most important Taliban military leader in southern Afghanistan.
The Pentagon has identified by name only about 20 percent of those 150 men confirmed or believed to have taken up arms since their release from Guantánamo, citing security concerns, and so the government's claim that one in four are believed to be back on the battlefield must be largely taken on trust.
However, our analysis of Pentagon reports, news stories, and other publicly available documents concerning the 600 or so released detainees suggests that when threats to the United States are considered, the true rate for those who have taken up arms or are suspected of doing so is more like 6 percent, or one in 17. This figure represents an increase of 2 percentage points from our previous analysis from July 2009, which indicated that barely 4 percent of those released from the prison in Cuba were confirmed or suspected of engaging in terrorist or insurgent activities against the United States or its interests.
In our investigation of recidivism from Guantánamo, we identified 36 individuals by name who are suspected or confirmed of engaging in anti-American terrorist activities, and 12 who are engaged in alleged terrorism or anti-government insurgent activities somewhere in the world, though these activities are not targeted against the United States or its immediate allies in the current U.S.-led wars -- the governments of Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. (When we had a reasonable suspicion that a former detainee had engaged in both anti-American militant actions and terrorism or insurgent activities against other governments, we included that person in the group of anti-American suspected or confirmed terrorists/insurgents.)
The first group, comprising 6 percent of total releases, records those accused of engaging in anti-American insurgent activities, men like Shihri and Rasoul, along with others like Mohammed Yusif Yaqub and Maulvi Abdul Ghaffar, who joined insurgent operations in Afghanistan and were killed in 2004; and Ibrahim bin Shakaran and Mohammed bin Ahmad Mizouz, who were convicted in Morocco in 2007 of trying to recruit Moroccans to join al Qaeda in Iraq. Another is Abdul Rahim Muslim Dost, who gained attention for his poetry while at Guantánamo and was reportedly traded to the Taliban in 2008 in exchange for Pakistan's ambassador in Afghanistan. Dost is now, according to some sources, a Taliban commander in Pakistan's tribal areas.
Other former Guantánamo detainees have been linked to plots against the West; the Swedish citizen Mehdi Mohammed Ghezali was released from the prison in 2004, only to be arrested with several others in Pakistan in 2009, allegedly on his way to meet with al Qaeda militants in Pakistan's restive North Waziristan.
The second group, which makes up 2 percent of total identified releases, comprises men who are suspected or confirmed of having engaged in terrorism or insurgent activities not against the United States and its immediate allies in the war against al Qaeda but against governments elsewhere in the world. Several insurgents who have attacked Russian interests are included in this category. We do not condone terrorism or militancy in any form; in making this distinction, we are merely pointing out that those in this second category have not been accused or suspected of attacking U.S. interests and in many cases are accused only of the vague charge of "association" with a militant group somewhere in the world.
Because the Pentagon has not released the names of most of the men it claims are suspected or confirmed of engaging in terrorist activities (in the last relevant document, which was released in early 2009, only 29 of the government's 74 alleged confirmed or suspected recidivists were listed by name), there might be some additional former detainees who are suspected or confirmed of engaging in terrorism or insurgent activities who we could not identify in the publicly available sources. However, because al Qaeda and the Taliban consider recruiting former Guantánamo detainees as great propaganda victories and trumpet them in media releases, significant numbers of recidivists are unlikely to have gone unheralded.
Some may argue that even a 1 percent recidivism rate is too high, while others point out that recidivism figures among criminals released from American prisons are in the 60 percent range. Our point is not about what number of detainees "returning to the battlefield" should be deemed acceptable; rather we call on the U.S. government to be more transparent about the alleged terrorist activities of those it considers recidivists who pose a threat to America in order to better inform the debate about how and when to finally close the detention camp at Guantánamo Bay. | <urn:uuid:605a02fa-f7d4-4d45-8979-7cdc55b4b875> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://newamerica.net/publications/articles/2011/how_many_gitmo_alumni_take_up_arms_42737 | 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 | 0.975526 | 1,607 | 2.0625 | 2 |
Canada's Old Banff Cemetery reminds visitors of the price of war and Banff's contributions throughout history, including the contributions of two of its land surveyor residents.
Whyte’s annual cemetery tour recalls heroic service
Posted By By Brett Clark
The Whyte Museum's Remembrance Day tour of the Old Banff Cemetery offers an insight into Banff's contributions to war.
The Old Banff Cemetery at the end of Buffalo Street, reminds visitors of the price of war, and Banff's contributions throughout history.
"This cemetery is unique and the most historic in Canada," said Pam Manning, a historical interpreter for the Whyte Museum. "One in three people found here can also be found in a history book."
Tom Wilson may be one of the more famous individuals inside the cemetery thanks to his ability to be in the right place at the right time. He joined the North West Mounted Police in 1879 at the age of 17 and was one of the officers who kept guard over Sitting Bull when he crossed the medicine line, today's Canada/United States border. Wilson eventually resigned from the NWMP stemming from a disagreement with Sir John A. MacDonald and his government over the starving of Sitting Bull and his people. ... | <urn:uuid:d02067b1-87c7-43d9-96d1-ad97b3e23464> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.pobonline.com/articles/93505-remembering-banff-s-fallen | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00021-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96309 | 252 | 2.828125 | 3 |
As a part of our weather unit, we made watercolor pinwheels. Pinwheels are so easy to make and so beautiful to see in the wind. There are several methods of attaching the pinwheel - the method of I am sharing is from my colleague, Mrs. Flynn. It works!
What you will need:
- copy of the pinwheel pattern on white cardstock
- straight pins with round plastic heads
- masking tape or duck tape
|Click here to download pattern.|
STEP ONE: Watercolor your pinwheel pattern. Watercolor both sides. Let dry.
STEP TWO: (for teachers) Cut the pinwheel out and cut a long black slits.
STEP THREE: Using a straight pin with a plastic ball top, push four alternating corners through the pin. You do not have to be exact. I just gather up those corners on the pin.
Here my corners are gathered!
STEP FOUR: With corners still gathered push pin through the silver part of the pencil. Yup. It will go through with a nice push! Leave enough of the pin on the "pinwheel" side for spinning.
STEP FIVE: Bend the end of the pin down.
STEP SIX: Wrap the silver part of the pencil (with the pin bent) with masking tape or duck tape.
Look how cute it is!
STEP SEVEN: Go outside and watch it spin in the wind! | <urn:uuid:f91b6fc9-df76-4262-8e17-f37e45c93666> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.fairydustteaching.com/2012/03/beautiful-pinwheels.html?showComment=1331988668093 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00053-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.904847 | 298 | 2.578125 | 3 |
Mt Kent Observatory
USQ operates Mt Kent Observatory to support the teaching of astronomy to our students through hands-on observing and the use of robotic and remote-access telescopes accessible over the web. Observatory facilities are also used to do photometry for steller research. The Observatory is located at a dark-sky site outside of Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia
Please note that Mt Kent Observatory operates as a USQ teaching laboratory that is normally not open to the public. If you would like to attend an astronomy field night, see out Astronomy Outreach page.
For further information about the Mt Kent Observatory please email email@example.com. | <urn:uuid:a4f8d2ad-bddf-4bb0-bbeb-b176f4e7c3d2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.usq.edu.au/sciences/biophysci/facilities/mtkent | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00022-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.924435 | 137 | 1.8125 | 2 |
CHARLESTON — In a letter penned Wednesday, Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin urged Congress to include West Virginia in an end-of-year disaster relief package.
With the Mountain State experiencing four natural disasters this year, Tomblin said he wanted to ensure lawmakers include assistance to help families and communities across West Virginia recover.
“2012 has been a rough year for many West Virginia families. We’ve experienced four large storms, and we have families who are still struggling to recover,” Tomblin said. “I want to assure folks, I’m doing everything I can to make sure the federal government provides us with the assistance needed to rebuild our communities and our state.”
In March, tornadoes, strong winds and torrential rains severely damaged a number of communities. Shortly after that, three counties experienced severe flooding. In July, a derecho affected much of the state, leaving many without power for days. Last month, the state experienced blizzard-like conditions, high winds and rainfall as a result of Hurricane Sandy.
Mingo County was severely affected by the natural disasters. The June Derecho, for example, left some areas in the dark without power for more than a week in triple digit heat.
Tomblin was joined by U.S. Rep. Nick Rahall and U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, (both D-W.Va.) in requesting more assistance for families in West Virginia.
At a hearing before Rahall’s Committee Wednesday morning to examine FEMA’s response to Hurricane Sandy, Rahall said that he understood the “tremendous burden FEMA officials are under during such widespread disasters like Sandy,” and was aware that they had been there for West Virginians “time and time again.”
“But our citizens need and deserve timely answers, especially when such disaster assistance is so critically needed,” Rahall said.
Last week, at Rahall’s urging, a Federal disaster declaration was issued for 18 counties in West Virginia, including seven counties in the southern part of the state. A decision on whether Individual Assistance will be made available is still being considered by FEMA.
“Clearly, Sandy is yet another reminder that updates to FEMA guidelines are very much needed in order to ensure more timely and responsive disaster assistance,” Rahall said. “More than a month after the storm, West Virginian families are still waiting for a decision on whether Individual Assistance will be made available to help them repair broken roofs, fix affected businesses, and recoup lost wages.
In response to the June Derecho, the House of Representatives passed legislation at Rahall’s request that encourages greater flexibility and more objective criteria in the guidelines that FEMA uses to assess disaster assistance requests, including losses that result from extended power outages.
Under the legislation, FEMA would have one year to review, update, and revise through rulemaking the factors the Agency considers when measuring the severity, magnitude, and impact of a disaster.
“West Virginians across our state were dealt a double-blow from mother nature in less than six months time,” Rahall said. “Superstorm Sandy wreaked havoc on southern West Virginia following the devastating June Derecho.
After both disasters, power outages were long lasting and widespread; property was destroyed, and lives were seriously disrupted, and even lost. I will keep fighting to expedite Federal assistance and ensure our State’s residents and businesses have every Federal resource available to aid in our recovery.”
In testimony submitted to the Senate Subcommittee on Homeland Security Wednesday, Manchin asked for additional assistance from FEMA to help West Virginians recover from Superstorm Sandy.
“As we all know, Superstorm Sandy caused severe damage in many states on the eastern seaboard. This storm uniquely affected West Virginia with not only heavy winds and rains, but also snow accumulation of 50 inches in the mountains of Northern and Western parts of West Virginia,” Manchin said. “Emergency responders and our National Guard were pushed to the limit by power outages that affected nearly a million of our residents, by the need to vigorously monitor water levels of many affected rivers, and by having to quickly establish emergency shelters all across the state.
“But this is only part of the story of Superstorm Sandy and West Virginia. Our responders also were overwhelmed by dozens of roads that required debris removal, the need for reconnaissance flights to identify downed power lines and substations damaged by fallen trees, and by the urgent requirement to reach individuals across the state who were isolated and in need of such basics as food, water, medicines and shelter.
“Moving forward, FEMA has told us that debris removal remains the biggest issue for our recovery. This storm has left more debris in its wake than any other storm on record, totaling nearly one million cubic yards. Needless to say, with that kind of impact the work to recover is ongoing.” | <urn:uuid:48021a8d-dcf4-49cc-a5e6-2dec06131746> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.williamsondailynews.com/view/full_story/21035584/article-Officials-seek-more-disaster-assistance-for-W-Va- | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964964 | 1,026 | 1.523438 | 2 |
LANSING, Mich. -- For the first time in 11 years, Michigan is expected to add more jobs than it loses in 2011.
Yet there's little reason to toast the new year just yet.
University of Michigan economist George Fulton expects the state to add about 6,300 net jobs next year and 48,000 in 2012, giving the state an average 12.4 percent unemployment rate in 2011 and 11.5 percent in 2012.
The state still has a long way to go, though, to replace the nearly 860,000 jobs it has lost since the economy began sliding in June 2000.
Even a welcome 2-percentage-point drop in the unemployment rate over the past year leaves it with a rate of 12.4 percent.
That puts it behind only Nevada and tied for second place with California. | <urn:uuid:a10ae29b-caf4-4527-bf27-6e1889bad816> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wilx.com/onthejob/headlines/Tips_For_Christmas_Gift_Returns_112469254.html?site=mobile | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00033-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.926707 | 169 | 1.671875 | 2 |
Jo Mora Trust Curator – Peter Hiller
We will continue to honor the memory of Jo Mora at Vaquero Heritage Days in August 2014.
Curator Peter Hiller endeavors to honor the memory and integrity of Monterey Bay Area artist Joseph Jacinto "Jo" Mora (1876 - 1947). Peter is dedicated to exhibiting and educating the public on Jo Mora's artistic accomplishments which include drawing, illustration, cartooning, sculpture, painting, photography, writing and mapmaking.
California vaquero devotees and fine art collectors agree Jo Mora's unique style captured a rare glimpse into early California life. Well known for his "vaquero" concepts, his art actually covered a much broader scope of subject matter. One strong example was his series of maps (or cartes), historically accurate, humorous, collectable prints.
Jo Mora was born in Uruguay in 1876; raised in the U.S. on the east coast; attended art schools in New York; worked as an illustrator and cartoonist in Boston; drifted into the Southwest working many years as a ranch hand, cowboy and friend to the Hopi and Navajo; then moved to the San Francisco Bay area. In 1920 he moved to the Carmel, CA area to work on what became "his masterpiece" - a bronze and travertine sculpture of Father Serra Cenotaph for the Memorial Chapel in El Camelo Mission, completed 1924.
Although Peter was not able to join us in 2012, a selection of Jo Mora's work was offered by Carpe Diem Fine Books at Vaquero Heritage Days 2012. Carpe Diem supports Peter's efforts in promoting and educating the public on the Jo Mora legacy.
On behalf of the Jo Mora Trust, Peter Hiller has graciously authorized a selection of Jo Mora art to be used for Vaquero Heritage Days promotional pieces and limited edition collectable posters - proceeds benefit St. Francis Retreat on Historic Rancho San Justo.
Read more about Jo Mora at www.jomoratrust.com.
(Illustration credit Californios Jo Mora) | <urn:uuid:af4fad4c-4024-4199-b724-6850cc7f785f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.vaqueroheritagedays.com/index.php?page=jo-mora-curator---peter-hiller | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00074-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.945199 | 439 | 1.789063 | 2 |
Be sure to water your backyard garden regularly. Earth that becomes too dry might actually repel normal water. Plants without the need of h2o will in no way endure. Have a set up time of day that you just head out to drinking water, or spend money on an automatic sprinkler system. Your plants and flowers will thank you for it.
Abandon volume plantings to produce your blossom backyard garden more personalized. Size plantings in every single flowerbed are inclined to come up with a scenery appear to be it belongs into a accommodation or perhaps a corporate office establishing. Border vegetation and pockets of related crops will give the exact same outcome of a bulk planting without getting impersonal.
Your house and back garden tend to be the 2 most critical areas you cope with on a daily basis. Of the two, most will say it can be actually harder to keep suitable gardening methods and make up a lovely scene. It could be more difficult for some, but which is only because they are not pursuing these basic terms of suggestions that happen to be discussed on this page.
The optimum time to purchase containers for the indoors backyard garden is at the end of summer time. Most outlets will be having clearances in their summer time stock and which is the greatest enough time to get great bargains on every one of the gardening items you must maintain your indoors backyard wholesome and robust through the winter season.
Develop time tested plants. In the event you develop so many time tested vegetation, your garden works the chance of searching really gloomy, but several properly-put evergreens can offer annually-round framework. Select time tested plants with variegated or lighter in weight eco-friendly leaves, in lieu of sticking to dark colours. They are often employed being a backdrop for early spring and summertime vegetation, and stay the principle appeal within the tumble and winter season.
Take time to herb your roses properly and you’ll enjoy increased achievement later on. Dig an opening larger adequate to easily cater to the roots and enhance it with organic subject. Develop a mound of dirt within the hole and drape the roots over it. Complete 50 percent way and drinking water to remove any air flow bubble, then end filling up the hole.
There are various variations of gardens and they are its not all compatible. Consequently you need to determine the purpose of your garden lengthy before you in fact begin planting issues. If you want a backyard garden basically for splendor you should grow very various things then if you want a backyard for food. | <urn:uuid:4b574d71-0974-4783-b82c-efa6998dc7ea> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://modernhouse.pro/suggestions-to-cause-you-to-a-greater-gardener/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938828 | 511 | 1.921875 | 2 |
I had a good looking crop of sweet potatos for my first big try last summer. But many of them (Beauregards) were long and slim, say 2 1/2 inch diameter and 8 or ten inches. And the casserole I just made had a bit of stringiness (confess I used some little scraggly ones I probably should have not used.
I read this from Aggie Hort
" 3. Q. What causes sweet potato roots to be long and stringy?
A. This condition is caused by high fertility. The edible portion of the sweet potato plant is a storage root. Luxurious growing conditions cause vigorous vine growth and result in poorly-developed stringy roots. Maturity and variety also affect the texture of sweet potatoes. "
I grew my SP in a bed made from half finished leaf compost on top of turf, blocked with newspaper. (Brown leaves, barely helped with anything else) Does this qualify as too rich? I had a hot dry summer, I rarely or never added any fertilizer or extra water. THe vines from nine slips covered an area about twelve by fifteen by end of summer, after flipping the ends back in at times.. | <urn:uuid:5d9c2571-e7a4-4b38-9cab-62c97554684a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1292067/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963046 | 245 | 2 | 2 |
America's ocean fish are one of our most valuable natural resources, providing fresh and delicious seafood, millions of jobs and billions of dollars in income. If sustainably managed, U.S. fish stocks can be an enduring source of national economic security. Overfishing—taking fish from the ocean faster than they can reproduce—must end, so that we can restore and maintain strong economies and healthy ecosystems.
Sound science is critical to managing ocean fish. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) depends on federal funding for fishery data collection and analysis to ensure that managers set catch levels that maximize fishing opportunities without threatening the health of stocks. Congress must invest in funding for NOAA's data collection and analysis programs in the fiscal 2012 budget to provide the facts that managers need to best protect and rebuild America's ocean fish populations.
Everyday Americans, celebrity chefs, commercial and recreational fishermen and 246 independent groups and businesses (PDF) are speaking out to support fisheries science funding. View our slideshow to see just a few of the people who are asking Congress to make this important part of the government's domestic budget a priority. | <urn:uuid:e8b2412b-828f-41f2-8689-7cd45c1e0150> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.pewenvironment.org/news-room/other-resources/make-fisheries-funding-a-us-priority-85899363510 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00028-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.901974 | 226 | 2.8125 | 3 |
Bullying Presentation by Mike Peters and Teran Beuttell
Event Time & Date: October 30, 2012 at 7:00 P.M.
Where: Second Floor meeting room in the Mount Pleasant Public Library and Civic Center
Have you or someone you know been bullied? If so come to the presentation on bullying given by Mike Peters and Teran Beuttell. Mr. Peters is the School Social Worker for the Great Prairie Area Education Agency. Ms Beuttell is a certified Olweus Bullying Prevention trainer and a school psychologist with the Great Prairie Area Education Agency.
They will bring their expertise to give us a background on bullying and touch on such issues as school and cyber bullying. They will also discuss how to prevent bullying and what to do if bullying happens.
Bullying has become a pervasive problem in schools and today’s social media is used to spread the bullying throughout the community. This has resulted in suicide in some instances.
Let’s do everything we can to prevent this from happening in this community…come to the program to learn how to handle bullying. Whether you’re a parent, teacher or student you need to attend.
Reservations recommended. Program is free. Any questions, please contact the library at 385-1490. | <urn:uuid:91dcc13a-5529-471c-a628-99ba08890005> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://kilj.com/2012/10/news/bullying-program-at-the-mt-pleasant-public-library/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00032-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938848 | 262 | 2.75 | 3 |
1. Talk about the wedding. How were the customs then different from weddings today? What seemed familiar to you? Were there things that surprised or confused you—if so, what?
2. Now that Anna and Vronsky have fled to Europe, what do you think of them as a couple? Do you feel Anna has flourished now that she has love in her life? If not, why do you suspect she hasn't?
3. In Part Five, both Vronsky and Levin are described as being "not as happy as they expected to be." From what you know of them, do you think their expectations were realistic?
4. Discuss the way Kitty and Levin fight. How is their way of communicating different from the way Anna and Vronsky or Stiva and Dolly disagree?
5. How do you feel about the custom that would prohibit Kitty from visiting Nikolai Levin because of his relationship with Marya? What is your impression of Marya as a "fallen woman?"
6. Preparations for death play a big role in Part Five. Who do you feel handles Nikolai's final days well and who, if anyone, does not?
7. Talk about Chapter XX, the only chapter in the novel with a title. Why do you think Tolstoy titled this chapter? In what subtle ways do you feel this section is different from the rest of the book? Also, be sure to talk about how the chapter ends.
8. What is your impression of Countess Lydia Ivanovna?
9. We get a glimpse of Seryozha in this section. As a product of Anna and Karenin, in what ways does he seem similar to each?
10. The more you learn of Anna as a mother, what are your thoughts? What do you think about her attitude towards the baby, and how do you feel about her reunion with her son? If you are a parent, can you imagine making the choices Anna has?
More on Anna Karenina... | <urn:uuid:4884cc81-e42d-4c88-beb9-559fe12f1f0a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.oprah.com/oprahsbookclub/Anna-Karenina-Discussion-Questions-for-Part-One/5 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00069-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973534 | 412 | 2 | 2 |
The Division of Cardiovascular Diseases at Mayo Clinic in Arizona offers special disease and condition-related clinics and laboratories. These specialty groups bring together the expertise of numerous specialists.
The Acquired and Congenital Heart Rhythm Channelopathy Clinic staff diagnoses and treats people who have heart rhythm conditions such as long QT syndrome, Brugada syndrome, short QT syndrome and other rare heart rhythm conditions. An integrated team of doctors, nurses, specialists in genetic conditions (geneticists) and specialists in drug therapy (pharmacists) care for people in the clinic.
The Adult Congenital Heart Disease Program staff includes a team of adult and pediatric cardiologists and surgeons working with nurses and other specialists trained in diagnosing and treating congenital heart diseases in adults.
The Anticoagulation Clinic staff monitors and consults people on long-term medications to prevent blood clots (anticoagulation therapy). This clinic also provides consultative services for the perioperative management of anticoagulation.
The Arrhythmia Clinic staff provides a full range of cardiac arrhythmia services for adults, including noninvasive diagnostic testing and analysis, and therapeutic procedures, such as catheter- and surgical-based radiofrequency ablation for atrial fibrillation and a variety of other common and rare arrhythmias. The clinic also provides a full range of services for implantation and follow-up of pacemakers and implantable defibrillators, including telemedicine follow-up of these rhythm management devices. The Arrhythmia Clinic treats thousands of people who have arrhythmias each year. The Cardiac Electrophysiology Laboratory staff performs more than 1,000 invasive procedures per year to treat people who have heart rhythm conditions.
The Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory staff diagnoses and treats people who have cardiovascular conditions. Services include diagnostic right and left heart cardiac catheterization, percutaneous coronary interventions, peripheral artery interventions and other procedures, including atrial septal defect and patent foramen ovale closure.
The Cardiac Rehabilitation Program staff helps people who have heart disease to improve their cardiovascular health through patient education, exercise and nutrition. The program is staffed by doctors, fitness specialists (exercise physiologists), cardiac rehabilitation nurses and nutrition specialists (dietitians).
The cardiology staff diagnoses, monitors and treats people who have common and rare cardiovascular diseases, including coronary artery disease, atrial fibrillation, complicated hypertension, valvular heart diseases and congestive heart failure.
Staff in this clinic conducts enhanced external counterpulsation (EECP), a nonsurgical outpatient treatment of refractory angina and lipopheresis, which is available for people who have severe blockages and who are unable to have bypass surgery or balloon angioplasty. EECP is believed to work by improving heart and blood vessel function in a manner similar to that occurring during exercise. Symptoms are improved through the benefits of a more "efficient" heart and blood vessel system.
The Heart Failure and Heart Transplant Clinic staff diagnoses and treats people who have congestive heart failure. The staff also evaluates people with advanced congestive heart failure to test if they are candidates for heart transplants. The clinic provides many treatment options for people with advanced heart failure, including ventricular assist devices, continuous home-infusion of drugs (inotropes) and complex surgeries (for valvular or coronary artery disease).
In the Heart, Health and Performance Program, staff members assess your current heart health and risk, using analysis of conventional cardiovascular risk factors, your exercise routine and nutrition evaluation. Novel risk stratification tools are also available including CT calcium score and carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT). The Heart, Health and Performance Program provides you with a complete plan, including exercise and diet prescriptions, to reduce your risk of developing cardiovascular disease and help you live a healthy lifestyle.
The Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Clinic staff diagnoses and treats people who have hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a genetic condition which can cause a thickened heart muscle and can lead to serious conditions, including sudden cardiac death. The staff creates personalized treatment plans to meet your needs. An integrated team of specialists from cardiology, cardiac surgery, genetics and other areas works together to provide the most appropriate care for you.
The Pulmonary Hypertension Clinic staff diagnoses and treats people who have pulmonary hypertension creating individualized treatment plans and offering follow-up care. The integrated staff includes cardiologists, pulmonologists (lung disease specialists) and rheumatologists (rheumatic disease specialists) and specialized nurses.
The Vascular Medicine Clinic staff diagnoses and treats people who have vascular diseases, including venous, arterial and lymphatic diseases. The integrated team in the clinic includes cardiologists with training in peripheral vascular diseases, cardiologists with training in catheter-assisted procedures (interventional cardiologists), vascular surgeons and interventional radiologists. The team will tailor an individualized treatment plan treatment that is most appropriate for you. | <urn:uuid:1de304ba-3f14-41b0-b6d1-38d70013f3b3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mayoclinic.org/cardiovascular-disease-sct/specialtygroups.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.916708 | 1,034 | 2.09375 | 2 |
Domain names are not limited to ASCII any longer, and as the web is growing more and more domain names now contain characters from other character sets. Such domain names are called Internationalized domain names (IDN), for example http://ايكيا.com is a domain in Arabic for IKEA. IE7 added support for IDN in Beta 2. We listened to your feedback during Beta 2 and we are changing the principles of IDN to accommodate the way customers want to use international characters on the web.
Preventing IDN spoofing by default in IE7 Beta 2
IE7 beta 2 implementation of IDN feature is such that if a user navigates to an IDN URL and if the scripts that are present in the URL are not part of the user’s configured Accept language, IE7 will convert the URL into Punycode and display it in the address bar. IE7 also displays the information bar saying that the website address contains characters which cannot be displayed using the current language settings.
This design makes IE7 secure by default against any URL spoofing attacks containing non-ASCII characters. In order to view a URL in Unicode format the user must have the language specific to that character script added to the browser’s Accept language.
As discussed previously, another IDN restriction for IE7 Beta 2 was that it did not allow intermixing of scripts for a given label (a label is a segment of a domain name, delimited by dots; www.microsoft.com contains three labels “www”, “microsoft” and “com”) in a URL. Also, for a given label IE did not allow mixing of non-ASCII scripts with ASCII. This step was mainly taken to protect users against homograph-spoofing attacks. Consider the scenario where a user commonly browses sites with Cyrillic URLs. If the user gets a phishing email to visit www.paypal.com where one of the ‘a’s is in ASCII and the other is in Cyrillic, the user might believe they are visiting the real paypal which uses all ASCII characters in their domain name. To protect against this spoof, IE7 will detect the mixed characters and show the URL in Punycode rather than misleading the user.
Improving user experience for some mixed script scenarios for IE7
We heard your feedback about how restrictive the feature was by not allowing mixing of ASCII characters with other scripts. For instance, in some locales it is common to have business names that mix ASCII and characters from local languages.
We looked for a way to allow mixed characters in a fragment without introducing the risk of a spoof. The IE team worked with experts from the Windows Globalization team to investigate which scripts can be mixed safely with ASCII characters.
In the Release Candidate build (post-Beta 3), IE will permit mixing of ASCII with certain scripts and will display the URL in Unicode. However, IE still will not allow intermixing of allowed scripts (list given below) within a label, if they belong to different languages, even though the user has added the language containing the scripts to their Accept Languages.
Consider the following example where a URL label contains Hang and ASCII (website for LG Korea)
IE will now display this URL in Unicode for a user who has added Korean language support, since the non-ASCII script belongs to the Korean language set and is now on the allowed list of scripts. However, IE will show the raw Punycode encoding for a user who has not added Korean language support.
Here is a list of scripts that IE will permit to mix with ASCII
In summary, you told us how you planned to use the feature and we listened. We’re very excited that we were able to make this change to allow richer domain names for international sites!
Thanks,Tariq SharifProgram Manager | <urn:uuid:8d73f613-142f-454c-9a6a-26367e4926ee> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blogs.msdn.com/b/ie/archive/2006/07/31/684337.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.924397 | 801 | 2.3125 | 2 |
Drug Intelligence Center
Domestic Cannabis Cultivation Assessment 2007
Associated Environmental Damage
Outdoor cannabis cultivation, particularly on public lands, is causing increasing environmental damage. Outdoor cannabis cultivation poses significant environmental concerns for law enforcement and other public agencies. Grow site operators often contaminate and alter watersheds; divert natural water courses; clear-cut native vegetation; poach protected wildlife; discard garbage, nonbiodegradable materials, and human waste at deserted sites; and create wildfire hazards. Moreover, the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) reports that while preparing land for cannabis cultivation, growers commonly clear the forest understory, which allows nonnative plants to supplant native ones, adversely affecting the eco-system. They also terrace the land--especially in mountainous areas--which results in rapid erosion. The cost of restoring land damaged by such outdoor cultivation is significant; the National Park Service estimates that for every acre of forest planted with marijuana, 10 acres are damaged, and further, the cost to repair and restore an outdoor cultivation site is approximately $11,000 per acre.
Outdoor cannabis cultivators are diverting streams and creeks for irrigation, sometimes draining natural streams and wetlands. Outdoor cannabis plots typically are irrigated with intricate watering systems. Cultivators often dam up streams and redirect the water through plastic gravity-fed irrigation tubing to supply water to individual plants (see Figure 5). Average size marijuana plots--approximately 1,000 plants--require up to 5,000 gallons of water daily. This high demand for water often strains small streams and damages downstream vegetation that depends on consistent water flow. For example, on October 4, 2006, law enforcement authorities eradicated a 1,200-plant cultivation operation in San Ramon, Contra Costa County after Park Rangers were alerted that water was no longer running in a nearby mountain stream. Cultivators had diverted the stream, building a reservoir for crop irrigation.
End of page. | <urn:uuid:87624697-92ca-428e-bf09-8f431dc016f6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.justice.gov/archive/ndic/pubs22/22486/assoc.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00076-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.918148 | 390 | 2.609375 | 3 |
Currency Collapse May Stimulate Economic Expansion, BIS Says
By Matthew Brown
June 14 (Bloomberg) — Currency collapses tend to spur a resumption of economic growth rather than fueling a decline in gross domestic product, according to the Bank for International Settlements.
Currency collapses are associated with permanent output losses of about 6 percent of GDP, on average, though the drop tends to appear beforehand, the Basel, Switzerland-based BIS said in its quarterly review yesterday.
“This suggests that it may not be the currency collapse that reduces output, but rather the factors that led to the depreciation,” Camilo E. Tovar wrote in the study. “To gain a full understanding of the implications of currency collapses on economic activity it is important to carefully examine the full circle of events surrounding the episode.”
The positive effects of a weaker currency on GDP, including making local products cheaper than imported goods, may outweigh the negative ones, such as rising inflation. Currency collapses occur when the annual exchange rate drops by about 22 percent, according to the BIS, which identified 79 such episodes, “more commonly in Africa than in Asia or Latin America,” since 1960, Tovar said.
“They also occurred under all types of currency regimes, except possible floating-exchange-rate regimes, where there are simply too few observations to obtain meaningful estimates,” the BIS said.
The euro tumbled about 20 percent against the dollar between Nov. 25, 2009, and last week as investor concern over record budget deficits in countries including Greece spurred speculation the 16-nation currency union may split. The European Union in May crafted a 750 billion-euro ($908 billion) rescue package to stem the crisis.
Greece’s economy will contract 3.9 percent this year and 1.2 percent in 2011, after shrinking 2 percent in 2009, according to the median of eight economist estimates compiled by Bloomberg. The euro-region will expand by 1.1 percent this year and 1.5 percent in 2011, after falling 4.1 percent last year, median forecasts show.
Hans-Werner Sinn, president of Germany’s Ifo economic institute, said on June 3 that it would be best for Greece to leave the euro instead of implementing an austerity program to reduce its deficit. Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou pledged budget cuts worth almost 14 percent of GDP to bring the deficit within the EU limit of 3 percent by the end of 2014.
“The real solution for Greece would be to leave the euro followed by a depreciation” of the new currency, Sinn said in an interview at a conference in Interlaken, Switzerland.
Growth May ‘Dominate’
European Central Bank Executive Board member Lorenzo Bini Smaghi said on May 28 that there are “no alternatives” for Greece beyond following the austerity program.
“Before drawing policy conclusions we should emphasise that these results are subject to a number of caveats,” the BIS said in the report. “Most importantly, the analysis does not address the reasons why currency collapses occur in the first place. Our analysis also has little to say about the mechanisms involved after the currency collapse takes place. While we cannot disentangle the various factors, our results do suggest that expansionary mechanisms tend to dominate.” | <urn:uuid:6f4fd193-7aa3-478d-b9bf-2f3425992264> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://revolutionradio.org/?p=1727 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.936319 | 695 | 2.15625 | 2 |
WE HAVE BECOME accustomed to waiting. We wait for public transportation, wait in endless lines of traffic, wait to see physicians and other professionals, and wait at checkout counters. At times, even our most sophisticated electronic systems make us wait.
But in terms of CME, waiting can be a source of confusion, indecision, inactivity, inappropriate action, postponement, and cancellation. A case in point is the long time required to issue the Accreditation Council for CME's final revision of the Standards for Commercial Support, based on comments received several months ago in response to the draft document. Those in CME were given a relatively short window of opportunity to respond to the draft without knowing when to expect the final document. Secrecy has surrounded the processing of comments, and little has been said publicly. Most recently, theCouncil failed to approve the revised Standards for release. It will likely be well into 2004 before the final version of the new Standards for Commercial Support is issued.
We must find a way to condense the review process and make it more open to those most affected by the decisions. The Standards for Commercial Support is the core document in CME, the one that drives program development and funding decisions at several levels. Other CME guidelines and policies defer to the Standards as the centerpiece and are weakened in the presence of lame duck Standards.
Some might argue that it should be business as usual under the guidance of the current Standards. But with legal departments controlling much that happens in supported CME, that approach is unrealistic. Knowing that change is inevitable, legal advisors adopt draft concepts as fact or delay the CME process until regulations are issued. The consequences can be severe.
Consider the directives given by some leading pharmaceutical companies that disqualify fully accredited medical education and communication companies as sources of CME credit because they have relationships withor industry that could be perceived as inappropriate. Certain industry leaders have also stated that they will not do business with organizations that have both educational and promotional operations. The distinction between promotion and education has long been accepted in CME, but such separation should result from policies and procedures as currently defined for accredited providers and should not be the result of misinformed, aggressive, or exaggerated interpretation of draft policy. The inherent danger in the latter approach is that supporting organizations each create customized and often unique CME policy, whether it is based on correct or incorrect extrapolation of draft Standards, and they thereby create confusion among providers, faculty, and participants.
Providers have a difficult enough time understanding and managing the CME process in a world of multiple, ever-changing guidelines. It is a disservice to the process when decisions are reached on the basis of draft policy and in the confusion of varying opinions and interpretation. Let's set policy based on the final ACCME document and work together to find creative means to speed the review process.
Robert F. Orsetti is assistant vice president, continuing education, University of Medicine & Dentistry of New Jersey in Newark. Orsetti, a 24-year CME veteran, is a member of the AMA's National Task Force on CME Provider/Industry Collaboration. Contact him at (973) 972-8377 or send e-mail to firstname.lastname@example.org. For more of his columns, visit mm.meetingsnet.com. | <urn:uuid:c755d488-159e-423c-afa2-9780bceb2364> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://meetingsnet.com/print/medical-meetings/new-standards-cost-waiting | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956854 | 680 | 1.53125 | 2 |
2013: A year for big issues in the courts
updated 9:45 AM EST, Thu December 27, 2012
Chief Justice John Roberts re-administers the oath of office to Barack Obama at the White House on January 21, 2009.
- Jeffrey Toobin: 2013 will see pivotal decisions in several key areas of law
- He says Supreme Court could decide fate of same-sex marriage
- Affirmative action for public college admissions is also on Court's agenda
- Toobin: Newtown massacre put gun control debate back in the forefront
Editor's note: Jeffrey Toobin is a senior legal analyst for CNN and a staff writer at The New Yorker magazine, where he covers legal affairs. He is the author of "The Oath: The Obama White House and the Supreme Court."
(CNN) -- What will we see in 2013?
One thing for sure: The year will begin with Chief Justice John Roberts and President Obama getting two chances to recite the oath correctly.
After that, here are my guesses.
1. Same-sex marriage and the Supreme Court. There are two cases, and there are a Rubik's Cube-worth of possibilities for their outcomes. On one extreme, the court could say that the federal government (in the Defense of Marriage Act) and the states can ban or allow same-sex marriage as they prefer. On the other end, the Court could rule that gay people have a constitutional right to marry in any state in the union. (Or somewhere in between.)
CNN Opinion contributors weigh in on what to expect in 2013. What do you think the year holds in store? Let us know @CNNOpinion
on Twitter and Facebook/CNNOpinion
2. The future of affirmative action. In a case pending before the Supreme Court, the Court could outlaw all affirmative action in admissions at public universities, with major implications for all racial preferences in all school or non-school settings.
3. Gun control returns to the agenda. The Congress (and probably some states) will wrestle with the question of gun control, an issue that had largely fallen off the national agenda before the massacre in Newtown. Expect many invocations (some accurate, some not) of the Second Amendment.
Court same-sex marriage reaction
4. The continued decline of the death penalty. Death sentences and executions continue to decline, and this trend will continue. Fear of mistaken executions (largely caused by DNA exonerations) and the huge cost of the death penalty process will both accelerate the shift.
5. Celebrity sex scandal. There will be one. There will be outrage, shock and amusement. (Celebrity to be identified later.)
Follow @CNNOpinion on Twitter
Join us at Facebook/CNNOpinion
The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Jeffrey Toobin.
Part of complete coverage on
updated 11:36 AM EDT, Mon May 20, 2013
Julian Zelizer says that Obama, like many before him, chose to work within the system to get things done rather than lead transformative change.
updated 11:22 AM EDT, Mon May 20, 2013
Meg Urry says loss of the failing, planet-finding Kepler satellite would be huge for NASA--but one way or another, it's a matter of time before we find signs of life on other worlds
updated 7:32 AM EDT, Mon May 20, 2013
Elizabeth Dunn and Michael Norton write that people pass up opportunities to spend their money to avoid disagreeable tasks
updated 4:22 PM EDT, Sat May 18, 2013
Paul Butler says when President Obama delivers the commencement address at Morehouse, he has explaining to do.
updated 9:45 AM EDT, Sun May 19, 2013
Bob Greene on how 18th century Americans tried to make sense of the day with no sun
updated 8:57 PM EDT, Fri May 17, 2013
With guest Rep. Keith Ellison, John Avlon, Margaret Hoover and Dean Obeidallah discuss the president's scandal trifecta, hope for immigration and what Jolie's revelation means for women.
updated 1:09 PM EDT, Fri May 17, 2013
The press has turned on President Obama with a vengeance, writes Howard Kurtz
updated 2:01 PM EDT, Sat May 18, 2013
Donna Brazile says our democracy is endangered, not by the Russians, North Korea, Iran or even terrorists. To quote Pogo: "We have met the enemy and he is us."
updated 1:59 PM EDT, Sat May 18, 2013
Photographer Arne Svenson defends his show "Neighbors," portraits of the occupants of a building near him taken through their windows.
updated 9:37 AM EDT, Mon May 20, 2013
Theater critic Kevin Williamson was kicked out of a play when he took the phone away from an audience member and threw it. He says it was worth it.
updated 10:25 AM EDT, Sat May 18, 2013
Gil Welch says women must not panic over Angelina Jolie's mastectomies: 99% of women don't carry the BRCA1 gene.
updated 4:52 AM EDT, Sat May 18, 2013
JR's "Inside Out" project brings public spaces alive with giant representations of people
updated 3:22 PM EDT, Fri May 17, 2013
Roger Colinvaux says the IRS scandal is fundamentally about disclosure of donors, not tax-exempt status.
updated 7:49 AM EDT, Fri May 17, 2013
Alex Castellanos says Chris Matthews is wrong; the Washington controversies result from a government that is too big to control
updated 9:32 AM EDT, Mon May 20, 2013
Mike Downey says Los Angeles has well-funded but clueless sports teams.
updated 11:52 AM EDT, Fri May 17, 2013
Grace Liu says It's time for some tiger cubs to approvingly roar for our strict and demanding parents
updated 7:57 AM EDT, Fri May 17, 2013
Sens. Al Franken and Roger Wicker say we need a strong SEC to make sure credit ratings fraud doesn't bring down the economy again.
updated 10:25 AM EDT, Thu May 16, 2013
LZ Granderson says instead of reducing the blood alcohol content threshold, how about enforcing existing laws better?
updated 11:14 AM EDT, Thu May 16, 2013
Maia Goodell says the military should use civil legal remedies on sexual assault cases. | <urn:uuid:946a716a-d2a7-4903-9a68-2c671e645125> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/27/opinion/toobin-law-2013/index.html?hpt=hp_bn7 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00031-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.933675 | 1,328 | 1.835938 | 2 |
BERGSTROM, JEREMY,WILLIAM (2012) Augustine on Marriage and the Subordinating Work of Totus Christus. Doctoral thesis, Durham University.
|Full text not available from this repository.|
Author-imposed embargo until 18 May 2013.
This thesis examines the importance of the sacrament of marriage for Augustine’s ascetical vision. First, he believes the sacrament of marriage (the union of husband and wife as head and body) reveals totus Christus as the pattern upon which all creation has been ordered: corporeal things subject to spiritual things, and all things subject to God, just as the church is subject to Christ her head. Second, Augustine’s understanding of creaturely well-being as participation in this nuptial universal order explains how and why Augustine uses marital language—paradoxically— to describe the Christian ideal of spiritual continence as bodies subject to minds, and minds subject to God. This vision of spiritual continence as participation provides the foundation for bodily continence for both the celibate individual and for continent married couples.
Part One establishes the sacrament of marriage as integral to Augustine’s Christology. In support of this Chapter One provides a survey of both classical and Christian thought on marriage prior to Augustine and then proceeds to demonstrate, in the face of much scholarly confusion over the last thirty years or so, that the magnum sacramentum of marriage refers unambiguously and only to the union of Christ with the church, head and body. The chapter concludes with a close reading of On the Good of Marriage and On Continence, noting how his ingenious application of nuptial language to a spiritual understanding of continence allowed him to reach a moderate position on marriage in the ascetic debates of the late Fourth Century. Building on this foundation Chapter Two locates, for the first time, the sacrament of marriage within Augustine’s Christology and its derivative sacramental theory. There we observe that just as all sacraments are built upon the model of Christ, that is, corporeal things guiding the attention to incorporeal as ordered by providence, marriage reveals and directs our attention to the whole Christ (totus Christus), indivisibly united with and governing his body the church as its head. Chapter Three examines the extensive ramifications of marriage’s signification of Christ united to the church in the light of Augustine’s conviction that totus Christus comprises the divinely-established design and governance (ratio) of the universe. This is illustrated through a close reading of the much-neglected Literal Interpretation of Genesis where, by applying the interpretive criteria Augustine himself provides within this work, one can discern the interpretive principle of totus Christus structuring his figurative understanding of creation. The chapter concludes with a discussion of how Augustine presents the operation of providence according to the interpretive principle of totus Christus and the way in which he presents creaturely well-being as willing participation in it.
Part Two examines Augustine’s paradoxical use of nuptial language to illustrate his vision of spiritual continence. Chapter Four examines the ‘nuptial’ character of human participation in providence through the subordination of our bodies to our minds, and our minds to Christ. Chapter Five returns from focusing on theory to look again at actual married couples and Augustine’s vision of how his nuptial/ascetic scheme guides his understanding of the Christian ideal of continent marriage.
Jeremy W. Bergstrom
University of Durham, Department of Theology and Religion, and
Nashotah House Theological Seminary
|Item Type:||Thesis (Doctoral)|
|Award:||Doctor of Philosophy|
|Keywords:||Augustine, Marriage, Asceticism, Totus Christus|
|Faculty and Department:||Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Theology and Religion, Department of|
|Copyright:||Copyright of this thesis is held by the author|
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SAN DIEGO - A lawsuit seeking constitutional protection for performing orcas that an animal rights group considered enslaved at SeaWorld was dismissed Wednesday by a federal judge.
U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Miller's decision came two days after lawyers met in San Diego to argue their sides.
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) filed the lawsuit on behalf of orcas stating that they were confined to small tanks at SeaWorld. The group asserted that all nonhuman animals should have constitutional rights.
"This historic first case for the orcas’ right to be free under the 13th Amendment is one more step taken toward the inevitable day when all animals will be free from enslavement for human amusement," said Shakira Croce, a PETA representative.
PETA's lawyer Jeffrey Kerr said his organization does not plan to give up their fight to protect orcas. Their next plan of action was not released Wednesday. | <urn:uuid:43c7432c-e6e3-42d7-909b-e8af1be2acaf> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wdbj7.com/topic/kswb-enslaved-whales-lawsuit-dismissed-20120208,0,4656672.story | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00036-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.965151 | 190 | 1.953125 | 2 |
A little spring in your step can be a bad thing
Inform the buying public that using your product would be cheating. That it's banned. Not allowed.
What would seem like a hindrance could actually lead to a break for a budding brand.
In the most famous case, Nike's first pair of Air Jordans was banned by the NBA because of discrepancies with the league's uniform rules. The shoe's namesake, Michael Jordan, wore the red shoes anyway. Nike paid the fines. And sales took off.
But that's exactly what the former attorney and aerospace engineer have done. Their shoes have a patented spring technology that claims to reduce the impact on a runner's feet, which leads to easier recovery and less overall exertion. It's all good for the runner, unless he or she is participating in an event sanctioned by USA Track & Field or the International Association of Athletics Federations.
Because the shoes provide an energy return and use springs, they are specifically banned by those organizations. So any runner in Monday's Boston Marathon crossing the finish line in Spira shoes risks being disqualified.
Given the sheer number of people in the race, thousands who qualified and hundreds more, called bandits, running without a number, it's highly doubtful that anyone other than elite runners would be caught.
"We can't track everything," said Steve Vaitones, referee for the Boston Marathon. "Whether it's a pair of shoes or if it's someone giving a runner a bottle with some banned substance in it."
As long as cheating isn't being done by the elite runners, officials at the Boston Marathon aren't expected to do much about it. All of the elite runners have shoe contracts and the Krafsurs have yet to dare offer an elite runner a sponsorship deal lucrative enough to be worth a disqualification.
The ban has created some buzz for Spira. The shoes recently appeared on the morning shows on ABC, NBC and Fox.
But Andy Krafsur, chief executive of the company, doesn't necessarily want to embrace the outlaw role forever. He's already had conversations with USATF officials, who so far have refused to make any changes to its rules.
"The rule is outdated," Krafsur said. "If you go back and [look through] history, all new technology was banned -- from the oversized tennis racket to the aluminum bat to the metal driver."
Krafsur said his shoes don't make a runner faster since the shoe doesn't provide more energy than a runner puts into each step. The design of the shoes, he said, simply allows the runner to recover more quickly.
Vaitones doesn't buy that. He said Spira shoes are performance enhancers.
"If you recover faster that means you can run more easily, which means that over time you can run faster and farther," Vaitones said. "Steroids don't allow you to see the baseball better, but if you hit it, it might go 20 to 30 feet more, which could be the difference between a home run and an out."
Krafsur contends it's not that cut-and-dry. He points out his company has 20 employees, compared to Nike's 23,000. His company is hoping for $10 million in gross sales, while Nike's will top $10 billion again this year.
"There are politics involved," he said. "If Nike came out with our technology, their shoes would be allowed."
There is, of course, the positive in the negative. The fact that the elite runners aren't permitted to wear Spira shoes at the very least suggests to the general public that there could be an advantage to using them if they can't run sub-five-minute miles for more than two hours.
Darren Rovell, who covers sports business for ESPN.com, can be reached at Darren.firstname.lastname@example.org
MORE OLYMPICS HEADLINES
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- Olympian Raisman, Poland Spring sign deal | <urn:uuid:98da5a1b-099b-4e3d-b458-3c9ee98d1eaa> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/news/story?id=2039579 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00028-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975056 | 854 | 2.046875 | 2 |
Researchers are trying to better understand how each person's unique genetic make-up affects her or his risk of being diagnosed with breast cancer, as well as treatment response.
A study found that breast cancers in women who have specific genetic traits (called subtypes) progress more rapidly than breast cancers in women who don't have these genetic traits. The same genetic traits also seem to influence how the breast cancer responds to chemotherapy.
When doctors better understand how each person's genetic make-up influences breast and other cancers, they hope to discover better ways to prevent and diagnose breast cancer, as well as decide on prognosis. In the future, it's very likely that a woman's genetic profile will help doctors choose a treatment plan based on her profile.
This vision is already a small reality. The MammaPrint test, which has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, analyzes 70 genetic traits of breast cancer cells to predict whether the cancer has a high or low risk of coming back. The MammaPrint test can help women and their doctors make more informed decisions about whether or not chemotherapy should be part of a treatment plan.
Stay tuned to breastcancer.org for the latest news on research on better ways to reduce risk, diagnose, and treat breast cancer. | <urn:uuid:601213d4-3dab-4272-ab65-9cb14ef80522> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.breastcancer.org/research-news/20080401 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959726 | 260 | 3.3125 | 3 |
Here’s another example. Small business owners who engage advertising and design companies to create logos, artwork and even websites for the business may be surprised to learn that the copyright in the design and artwork is almost always retained by the design company that created it, not the business that paid for it to be done. Your written contract would have to have assigned the copyright in the designs, ad copy and artwork to you for you to “own” the copyright. So if you’re concerned, maybe you want that assignment language in the contract you have with your agency.
Likewise, if your company has hired employees to create designs, ad copy or other “works,” your company owns the copyright in their work product, unless of course, they are “contractors” and not employees, in which case, absent a contract that says otherwise, they own the copyright in their work product, not you. So if you’re concerned, you should put something in the contract you have with your workers to formally establish your copyright ownership of work product.
A discussion of copyright must include the issue of moral rights. The creator of a work, even though he or she may have sold copyright of a work, still maintains a moral right to the work, to prevent the work from being distorted, mutilated, or otherwise modified in a way that is prejudicial to the reputation of the work or the creator. The best example of this in Canada is case of artist Michael Snow, who created some flying Canada Geese sculptures in the Toronto Eaton Centre. The mall was forced to remove red Christmas bows from around the geese's necks as they distorted his original work. But copyright assignments often contain a waiver of the artist’s moral rights.
Finally, you should be aware that every country has different laws governing copyright, and the number of years that copyright is protected will differ, depending on the “work” and the country. Countries that have signed an international treaty called the Berne Convention automatically extend to authors from other signatory countries the same copyright protection as they give their own nationals.
Special to the Globe and Mail
Vancouver franchise lawyer Tony Wilson is the author of Buying A Franchise In Canada – Understanding and Negotiating Your Franchise Agreement and he is ranked as a leading Canadian franchise lawyer by LEXPERT. He is head of the Franchise Law Group at Boughton Law Corp. in Vancouver and acts for both franchisors and franchisees across Canada, many of whom are in the food services and hospitality industry. He is a registered Trademark Agent, an Adjunct Professor at Simon Fraser University and he also writes for Bartalk and Canadian Lawyer magazines. | <urn:uuid:8e612232-ca51-44c5-a37f-b8aab5b0249c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/small-business/sb-growth/day-to-day/copyright-issues-that-can-affect-your-business/article626825/?page=3 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00070-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970792 | 550 | 1.734375 | 2 |
The Towns Vote For Change, Again
The stunning victory of Republican Scott Brown required the dramatic political turnabout by voters in a wide sweep of towns that had delivered large margins of victory to Barack Obama and Deval Patrick in the last two state-wide elections. We visited one of those towns.
At Sophia’s Restaurant in Hudson, you can have any table you want. You can dance across the whole dining area at lunchtime. There’s no one here, even today, when Santino Sonny Parente feels like celebrating the Republican victory. The restaurant, like the Main Street, is a lonely place.
“Look at the Main Street, there’s nobody on the street anymore,” Sonny says. “Our main problem in downtown for the last 15 years was parking.”
Not anymore. The recession has solved that. There’s plenty of parking. In front of empty storefronts that alternate with places doing slow business. The Aubuchon Hardware just closed here after 70 years. Premier Kitchens in Granite closed last year.
“People are hanging on by a small thread,” Sonny says.
He’s walking the streets he knows well, as a small businessman, a selectman and an unsuccessful Republican candidate for state representative in the 2008 election, who sees Tuesday’s victory as a reaction to what’s happening on many Main Streets.
At Lando’s Pizza, Tory Lando, who’s been here for over 20 years, says Main Street mirrors his clientele. They’re both hurting.
“It’s definitely not like it used to be,” he says. “Everyone’s feeling it. Working more, making less.”
At the takeout counter, Tory has a terse takeaway from the election. “I think people in Massachusetts are pissed off and they’re tired of the liberal antics and the policies,” he says. “And getting tired of the 30 years of the Kennedy days, and they got to change.”
Lando votes Republican with regularity, but in this town once dominated by shoe factories, people walk both sides of the political street. In the last two elections, Hudson gave large majorities to Democratic candidates for governor and president.
In 2006, Deval Patrick carried 56 percent of the vote in Hudson; in 2008, Barack Obama carried 59 percent. But Tuesday night, the numbers flipped and Scott Brown the Republican won 57 percent.
Over at the Horse Shoe Restaurant and Pub, owner Al Pizamento says the vote is simple.
“It suggests we’re tired of the people who are in there. And we’re looking for change,” he says. “With all respect to Sen. Brown, it could have been me or you, because the people in there aren’t doing their job.”
He voted for Obama, he voted for Patrick, but he turned on Coakley as if she were the incumbent. His approach is the same as if he were hiring a cook: “If he does his job, I want to keep him. If he doesn’t do his job, I don’t care what suit he wears — a donkey or an elephant — he’s out.”
Up the street, Albert Souza climbs out of a truck that says “Albert Souza Services.” Services, he says, which include “a lot of ploughing, a lot of sanding, a lot of stuff.”
His business, which once included construction work, has gone from revenues of $7 million to revenues of $300,000 in just two years. “I’ve got 25 people unemployed; I’ve got 25 people collecting right now,” he says. “I’m one of the statistics of small business.”
He says he can’t believe his candidate, Martha Coakley, lost the election. On the other hand, he can’t believe all the economic problems have to do with George Bush either.
Over at the bank, Anne Marie Lourens also voted for Coakley, and she thinks the president should be pushing for a health care bill, but she’s troubled how much it might cost. She too points to the economy.
“My husband and I are directors of the local food pantry, so we see people who used to volunteer now coming in,” Anne Marie says. “Its very difficult.”
Lee Dinner, the jeweler on Main Street, says customers are surprised he’s still there. He voted for Obama because he wanted some change. And yesterday he voted for Brown. Why? “Change,” he says.
When it’s suggested that by voting for change on Tuesday, he’s not exactly helping the president whom he still likes, and whom he voted for on the change ticket last year, he says no.
Lee says he’s just sending the president a message that the president needs to hear. It’s the message he says the rest of Hudson delivered. Message to the president: You have to do something different. Change. | <urn:uuid:2d5585f3-fa4f-48e0-a46e-d9db699711ed> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wbur.org/2010/01/21/demographics | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00021-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968816 | 1,104 | 1.585938 | 2 |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
UTRECHT, The Netherlands - May 7, 2008 - The NLGD today announced that The Netherlands games industry has become a nearly 1 billion Euro industry as it continues to grow within the 30 billion Euro worldwide game development sector. In 2007, the Dutch games industry exceeded the revenue of the Dutch film industry for the first time. The growth of the games industry is enormous in the Netherlands with the sector growing 50% faster than any other industry in the region.
The number of people in the Netherlands working in game development is estimated at 1,500 and more than 100 companies earn money through video game development and production.
According to the NLGD, a significant part of the revenues in the Netherlands are from serious games, a part of the industry in which the Dutch are a significant player.
"The remarkable success of the Dutch game industry can be attributed to the significant interest in game-related research, education and science in the Netherlands," said Seth van der Meer, Chairman of the NLGD Foundation.
For 2008, van der Meer expects Dutch revenues in this industry to grow to 1.2 billion Euros and the number of jobs to increase to 1,800, a 20 percent increase in revenue and workers. Furthermore, he believes at least 10 Dutch-created games for the major platforms (Wii, PlayStation and Xbox) to hit store shelves worldwide.
To support the growing game industry and provide a forum for leadership and discussion, the NLGD foundation has organized the Festival of Games, June 14-22. Those interested in finding out more about this exciting and expanding field are invited to attend.
For more information on the Festival of Games check: www.nlgd.nl
About NLGD Foundation
The NLGD Foundation is a European cross-disciplinary platform, the European hub to synergy, vision and inspiration in the games industry. The main goal of the NLGD Foundation is to stimulate the Dutch games industry and to position this industry internationally. In order to accomplish this, the NLGD Foundation offers room to all disciplines within the games industry that work either directly or indirectly with serious- or entertainment games. Included herein are publishers, developer, but also research organizations, educational institutions and trade and industry. Another goal of the NLGD Foundation is therefore to bring together various perspectives on games. With its activities the NLGD Foundation attracts visitors from all over the world.
About Festival of Games
The Festival of Games is one of the largest professional game festivals in Europe; it sets the stage for the fast growing European game market.
The Festival of Games consists of a main thought leader conference, workshops, a professional expo with a career fair and a serious connection. The event is a platform and a meeting point for the European games community. The festival harnesses Europe's creative power and gives an insight in the unique European approach. Industry, academic and business leaders share and combine their opinions and visions.
The NLGD Festival of Games takes place from June 14-22, 2008, in Utrecht, The Netherlands. For more information, visit the NLGD website at: www.nlgd.nl
Alessandra van Otterlo
+31 6 12 42 6884 | <urn:uuid:bd57cba0-0a51-4d78-b2df-936397e38826> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mcvuk.com/press-releases/read/the-netherlands-announces-its-growing-role-in-the-global-games-industry/062283 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00030-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.932065 | 651 | 1.523438 | 2 |
Albert Einstein once said, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.” We, the people of the United States of America, appear to have gone insane by allowing the Federal Reserve to bail out businesses here and abroad.
The Fed, itself a private banking cartel, has shown a complete disregard and contempt for the members of Congress who are supposed to be monitoring its activities. It has consistently resisted calls for transparency in its policy formation and its execution of monetary control. The chairman of the Federal Reserve may take a call from the president, but the president cannot tell the Fed what it will and will not do. The president may appoint the chairman of the Federal Reserve System and its Board of Governors, but he does so from a predetermined list of candidates given to him by the Fed itself. Frankenstein’s monster is not only alive but very much in control!
The Federal Reserve was created to prevent banking panics and wide swings in the economy by holding inflation in check and protecting the value of our currency. It was given autonomy to protect it from political influence so politicians couldn’t give away economic perks just to get reelected. The Fed has strongly resisted any effort to apply any kind of oversight to its activities by claiming they are attempts to politicize the Fed, but let’s examine the record.
Nearly every Fed chairman in the past 60 years has manipulated interest rates to brighten the economic outlook for incumbent presidents or newly elected presidents who won by large margins. The purchasing power of the U.S. dollar has fallen 94 percent in the past 100 years. The only way you can create inflation is by creating more money that is backed by the same reserve assets; the Fed is the only entity that can create more money. Ben Bernanke’s quantitative easing (QE) programs have pumped billions of unfunded dollars into the economy, thereby setting us up for massive inflation in the very near future. If this isn’t a form of financial terrorism, it is incompetence of the highest order.
It causes one to wonder what Albert Einstein would think about the “solutions” rolled out to fix our debt problem. Would he find it insane that total credit market debt has actually risen to an all-time high of $53.8 trillion, up $533 billion from the previous 2008 peak? Our leaders have added $6.1 trillion to our National Debt in the last four years, a mere 66% increase.
Would Einstein find it insane that the governing elite would encourage the 4 biggest banks, that were the main culprits in creating a worldwide financial collapse, to actually get bigger? The largest banks in the U.S. now control 72% of all the deposits in the country versus 68.5% in 2008. The Too Big To Fail are now Too Bigger To Fail. Rather than liquidating the bad debts, breaking up the insolvent banks, selling off the good assets to well run banks, firing the executives, and wiping out the shareholders & bondholders foolish enough to invest in these badly run casinos, the powers that be chose to protect their fellow .01% brethren and throw the 99% under the bus. The Fed’s latest actions in cooperating with foreign central banks to undertake liquidity swaps of dollars for foreign currencies is another reason why Congress needs enhanced power to oversee and audit the Fed.
It is a fool’s fantasy to think we can live in a globally connected economy and never have a situation arise where the government prudently steps in to prevent a failure that might lead to catastrophic ramifications. In most cases, I believe it would be much better to let bailed-out companies fail when they have mismanaged themselves, rather than waste taxpayer money propping up greedy idiots who are trying to salvage their own bonuses.
The wiser course would be to penalize the CEO or board of directors who drove the company to the brink of failure. The most obvious punishment would be the elimination of any “golden parachutes” or bonuses for the executive and seizure of all company-derived assets, including any attempts to hide company assets in the spouse’s name. When C-level executives come to the realization that managing a company is not a game and that there are serious consequences for their actions, we will see fewer instances of requests for bailouts.
The system can recover from bankruptcies, as it has done throughout history. Would the world really have come to an end had AIG gone into bankruptcy or Goldman Sachs been forced to liquidate and close its doors?
Bankruptcy cleans out the system. What’s wrong with that? South Korea went through this in the late 1990s. They didn’t have anyone to bail them out, and they had to go through the pain. Sweden did it in the early 1990s. Mexico did it. Russia did it. The list goes on and on. Competent people take over the assets from incompetent people and rebuild from a solid base. Business has always been survival of the fittest and Darwinism at its best.
Isn’t this what capitalism is all about?
Fired IRS Commissioner: I Promoted Sarah Ingram To Head Obamacare: "We Provided Horrible Customer Service" | Greg Hengler
Acting IRS Commissioner Doesn't Know Who's Responsible, Objects to "Targeting" as "Pejorative" Term | Guy Benson | <urn:uuid:88e5d697-3dcb-4dfe-bb5f-3915f476666c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://townhall.com/columnists/ziadabdelnour/2012/02/22/bailouts__reality_vs_fiction/page/full/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00050-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.965416 | 1,107 | 1.664063 | 2 |
Roxanne Hathway-Baxter was good enough to review Ottawa poet Marilyn Irwin’s first chapbook, for when you pick daisies (above/ground press, 2010) in Broken Pencil #54 (winter 2012 issue). Thanks, Roxanne! There are a few copies of Irwin’s chapbook available, here. Also, Irwin has a more recent broadsheet poem still available (and posted here), and new work in the eighth issue of ottawater. We eagerly await a second chapbook manuscript, and possibly more…
He loves me, he loves me not. Many ladies who were once little girls remember this old chant from childhood. Simple, and yet, in the eyes of a child, so very telling. Somehow, as the years pile on and relationships grow and falter, love becomes much more complex and unable to be explained in such few words. For when you pick daisies tackles the idea of love (and other subjects) in a more adult and expressive way.
This zine of poetry is simply bound, with a lovely illustration of a half-plucked daisy adorning the cover. Inside, the reader finds 16 short poems covering a range of topics, but often they seem to focus on love.
Sometimes the obscurity of the language in the poems makes the subject matter hard to decipher. Words seem to be thrown together, which makes finding meaning in each poem like finding a needle in a syllabic haystack.
You might not discover how to unravel the complexity of the work in the first read of this zine, but out of this complexity grows linguistic beauty. Some lovely mental images are painted and emotions are inspired by the simple pairing of words.
The poems of for when you pick daisies may sometimes feel confusing and unclear, but also beautiful. They mirror the consciousness felt by someone mired in the mess of love, who understands both its sweetness and its sting. | <urn:uuid:01f33281-5440-4fa3-ba20-a8668d873847> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://abovegroundpress.blogspot.ca/2012_01_01_archive.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00074-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957328 | 397 | 1.664063 | 2 |
Kid #1, as readers of this blog know well, has long had an infatuation with Roman emperors. At one time I worried because he seemed drawn to the most unsavory of them (Nero, Caligula). And I've always suspected that his pretending to be Brutus and stabbing an unexpecting Julius Caesar (yours truly) has something Oedipal underneath it. But his most recent classical hero is Augustus Caesar, and it is hard not to approve -- even if "Emperor" has now become this child's career goal.
Nonetheless I did promise Kid #1 that if he did a good job impersonating Augustus for the Third Grade Wax Museum, then I would publish his little essay on this blog. So here it is.
One note: my son attends a "Community of Caring" school. That means little details that he would have liked to have included had to be left out -- like the fact that Augustus had Caesarion (Julius Caesar's child by Cleopatra) slain in Egypt because he considered the guy a potential rival. Personally I think murdering your rivals demonstrates determination and possibly enthusiasm -- and those qualities are certainly part of a Community of Caring. But that's just me.
by Kid #1
I chose Augustus Caesar, the famous first emperor of Rome. He is famous because he kept the longest peace known for the Roman empire. I chose him because I think there should be more world peace.
He was born as Gaius Octavius on September 23, 63 B.C. in Rome. His mother was the niece of Julius Caesar and Caesar adopted him because he didn't have any children of his own. Octavius was only 19 when Julius Caesar was assassinated.
After Julius Caesar was killed in the Senate, Octavius fought 5 civil wars to kill all the assassins. When he conquered Egypt, he made his enemy Marc Antony commit suicide. He was always challenged by rivals. It was probably hard to rule the vast Roman empire, too.
Augustus was famous for forty years of civil peace and growth of wealth. He made many temples and buildings, and made laws forbidding robberies. He gave money to poets and artists. Romans loved him for keeping peace and giving them food and entertainment. Octavius changed his name to Caesar in memory of Julius Caesar. He was called "Augustus" by the Senate because it meant the exalted.
Augustus died when he was 76 in Rome in A.D. 14. After his death he was made a god.
Augustus was peace loving. He showed perseverance by not giving up when he destroyed the assassins of Julius Caesar. Also, he had discipline because he fought in wars and ruled a very big empire. He wasn't greedy for power because he refused many powerful jobs when he was young. He believed in justice because he made laws, kept peace, made many temples and was the first and best Roman emperor. All the other emperors didn't keep the empire in peace so long.
Augustus inspires me because he is great and I don't find many politicians who are as good at changing the world as he was. He served his people. Augustus was honest, trustworthy, and determined. | <urn:uuid:0179816f-c288-462a-bedc-2102636287e8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.inthemedievalmiddle.com/2006/06/augustus-caesar_05.html?showComment=1150108500000 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.988445 | 659 | 2.28125 | 2 |
Imagine you live in a small village in Africa. You and your family cultivate a small plot of land, graze livestock on village land and collect fire wood from a nearby forest – just as your grandparents and great grandparents did. Then, one day, everything changes. A big car arrives in the village with company officials and the chief district officer. You are told that the company and the government have signed a lease that gives the company a large area of land – including your plot, rangeland and forest. The visiting officials are upbeat – there will be jobs, a village school and a clinic as result. But you have heard promises before, and you were let down. You stand to lose all that you have – the land that feeds your family and that you belong to. All for an uncertain future. You rightly ask: “Will the jobs materialise? Will I get one? Why should I give up my farm to work on somebody else’s plantation?”
After six years of being a subsidiary of IIED, the Foundation for International Law and Development (FIELD) has re-established itself as an independent NGO. FIELD works with local partners, NGOs and institutions and has a worldwide reputation for expertise in the development and application of international environmental law and for siding with the disadvantaged. | <urn:uuid:f3dc1cf9-694e-4cc9-b2f1-b650d379dddb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.iied.org/tag/international-law | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00044-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969521 | 264 | 2.125 | 2 |
Writers Talk About Writing
Pens and Pencils Down: New York City's "Banned Words" Controversy
Last week, the New York City Department of Education stirred up controversy by issuing a Request for Proposals (RFP) listing fifty words to avoid on the standardized tests used by the city's schools. These were not the dirty words that the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that George Carlin could not say on the air, but innocuous ones like dinosaurs, birthdays, aliens from outer space, rap, and rock 'n' roll. A school spokesman told the New York Post that the words could "evoke unpleasant emotions in the students."
I am a product of the New York City schools, and I even taught in them for a couple of years. So I'm well aware of the unpleasant emotions inspired by the standardized tests I had to take as a student at P.S. 150 and by the trips I had to make to the Board of Education headquarters at 110 Livingston Street as a school employee (there they tested, interrogated, even fingerprinted me before I could get my teaching license). I was glad to hear that the city was finally trying to do something to make school more pleasant.
The RFP did not explain what unpleasant emotions might be inspired by dinosaurs, space aliens, or birthdays. In elementary school we often took class trips to see the dinosaurs at the Museum of Natural History, and I don't remember anybody crying on those trips or being frightened by shows about life on other worlds at the Planetarium next door. Of course this was the 1950s, and in our school we were all Jewish or Catholic, except for an occasional Lutheran—I guess the creationists who might object to dinosaurs and ET had yet to evolve. We were always being told that we behaved so poorly on the trip that no class would ever be allowed to go to the museum again, and I guess a ban on dinosaurs would have made that official. As for birthdays, which were to be banned ostensibly because Jehovah's Witnesses don't celebrate them, I do remember the unpleasant emotion of choking on a birthday cupcake at a class party in second grade. I wouldn't have missed school birthdays, but what about Washington's Birthday and Lincoln's Birthday? Or is that why we now have Presidents Day?
There were also plans for a partial ban on computers, and a total ban on rock 'n' roll. The schools in New York are big on computers, but tests weren't supposed to mention home computers because students who don't have them will feel left out. I imagine, though, that seeing computers in their classrooms more strongly reminds students who don't have one at home that they don't have one at home, leading to more unpleasant emotions. Plus, the official position of many school principals in the 1950s was that rock 'n' roll was highly unpleasant, if not downright immoral, so we were never going to be tested on that.
Critics noted that education involves not suppressing unpleasant emotions, but leading students out of their comfort zone and challenging them to think critically about everything. Commentators also ridiculed the Department of Education's list of banned words as a case of political correctness gone out of control. And there did seem to be an element of the absurd in attempting to ban the mention of foods that "persons of some religions or cultures may not indulge in," which could exclude mentioning not just pork and shellfish but just about everything edible except tofu and sprouts (and don't forget the children who are allergic to peanuts). But since the list also would have forbidden any mention of bodily functions, that suggested a blanket test ban on any kind of eating or digestion. Might as well play it safe and ban all tests dealing with any aspect of biology.
But if the goal of the word ban was to prevent unpleasant emotions that could impact student test performance, then I for one would have liked to see the list of banned words expanded. Words like hypotenuse and logarithm ought to go, along with atomic number, specific gravity, and adsorption. Banned as well: synecdoche, dactylic hexameter, and ablative absolute. In fact, to really reduce unpleasant emotions, schools should stop giving standardized tests altogether. Standardized tests produce high levels of anxiety, which is definitely an unpleasant emotion, and they don't measure anything except students' ability to take standardized tests. Think how pleasant school could be if tests, not words, were banned, and students never had to hear that unpleasantly emotive phrase, "pens and pencils down," again.
Finally, after a week of merciless ridicule from the media, New York's Department of Education ditched its banned word list. The DoE's Chief Academic Officer, Shael Polakow-Suransky, announced:
After reconsidering our message to test publishers and the reaction from parents, we will revise our guidance and eliminate the list of words to avoid on tests.
The City indicated it would still ask test developers to consider student sensitivities as they created tests, but I still think it would be better to permit the words but ban the tests. | <urn:uuid:a63dfa51-193a-4105-a1d7-15e466bbbcbd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.visualthesaurus.com/cm/wc/pens-and-pencils-down-new-york-citys-banned-words-controversy/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00069-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.980914 | 1,054 | 1.59375 | 2 |
Representing seven environmental groups, Earthjustice asked Judge James Singleton for a preliminary injunction to block the lease sale until the court could review the groups' challenge. The groups contend that the Bureau of Land Management broke the law when it failed to thoroughly analyze the effects of drilling on wildlife and habitat and when it refused to consider a balanced development alternative. The portions of the reserve at risk provide habitat to globally significant migratory bird populations, two important caribou herds, marine mammals, and threatened Steller's and spectacled eiders, as well as the rare yellow-billed loon.
Although Earthjustice and its clients had hoped the court would stop the lease sale altogether, Earthjustice attorney Deirdre McDonnell was pleased with the judge's order. "We're happy that Judge Singleton recognizes that there are serious legal issues raised by our challenge."
The National Audubon Society, one of the plaintiffs in the case, identified a number of critical bird and wildlife habitat areas in the reserve and recommended an alternative to the administration that would balance protection of key habitat with oil leasing. Audubon estimates that if the administration implemented all of Audubon's recommendations, 65 percent of the "high oil potential" lands would still be available for leasing. But the Bush administration has ignored Audubon's findings as well as other scientific data regarding sensitive parts of the reserve and instead is proceeding with plans to make the entire northwest section available for oil leasing.
"Before the agency gives oil companies the right to drill, it needs to look at the full impacts of oil development and consider reasonable alternatives," said McDonnell. "Here the Interior Department did neither, but decided to lease 100 percent of the 8.8 million acre planning area. We're asking the court to tell the agency to try again and consider a more balanced approach."
Beyond these efforts to offer leases throughout the reserve, since 2001 the Bush administration has pushed relentlessly to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil development, and has opened nearly 100 percent of the Beaufort Sea to offshore drilling. A March 2003 report by the National Academy of Sciences found that drilling on the North Slope at Prudhoe Bay has damaged the air, water, land, wildlife, and people in America's Arctic. | <urn:uuid:cddd429f-6482-434b-a331-2416031183a7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://earthjustice.org/news/press/2004/western-arctic-drilling-put-on-hold | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00023-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956886 | 455 | 2.34375 | 2 |
From here till nano-eternity: The biggest little word-maker
Mark Peters, the genius behind the blog Wordlustitude in addition to being a Contributing Editor for Verbatim: The Language Quarterly, and a language columnist for Babble, and the author of Yada, Yada, Doh!: 111 TV Words That Made the Leap from the Screen to Society is our guest blogger this week. Check out his past OUPblog posts here. In the post below Peters explores the word “nano”.
Ever been called a nano-brained nitwit who knows nano-squat about nano-something-or-other?
Probably not, but even if the only nano you know is your iPod, very little training is required to coin or understand words like nano-squat, nano-brained, and nano-something-or-other.
But before we get to such nano-tomfoolery, a little nano-history: Literally, nano means one thousand-millionth. The OED traces this meaning back to nanophanerophyte and nanoplankton—loan words from French and German spotted in 1907 and 1912 respectively. Since the forties, nano has been producing plenty o’ new words, including the OED-recorded nanoamp, nanoequivalent, nanodevice, nanowatt, nanotube, and nanohenry (that’s a tiny measurement, not a tiny Hank, for readers about as science-savvy as yours clueless). Recent news stories have featured nano-catalytic, nano-cavities, nano-fabrication, nano-needles, nano-optics, nano-sensor, and nano-silica. How many nanobots can build robo-condos on the head of a pin is yet to be determined, but there’s definitely a scientific nano-word for every one of them.
Likewise, nano has been a busy little prefix in the colloquial regions of the language, meaning either 1) The inverse of a metric bazillion-load or 2) shorthand for nanotechnology. Though the slangification of nano goes back to at least 1966 and a New Scientist article that mentioned a nanoskirt, the use of nano as a slangy prefix is still uncommon enough to feel fresh and minty, yet common enough for me to squeeze an article out of it. Plus, nano-slang encompasses a positively robust bunch of words—including indefinite words, fanciful neologisms, insults, and exaggerations—and those words deserve more than a tiny paragraph at the end of the OED’s nano entry.
Indefinite words—such as thingamajig and hickeymadoodle—are evidence that us talking apes will never stop talking, no matter how little we know about the object of our words. Indefinite nano-words tend to play on the mysteriousness of nano-technology to Joe and Josephine Average. These include nanoanything, nanoblahblah, nanodoohickey, nanomajig, nanosomethingorother, and nano-whatsit. My favorite comes from a Bionic Woman thread on Television Without Pity: “And in what universe would the girlfriend of one of the scientists ever be a candidate for nano-bionic-Whateverization?”
Nano-bionic-whateverization—which just might make my top-ten-favorite-words-ever list, against a competitive field—is also part of the next category: fanciful word coined for humorous purposes, especially silly contrivances imagined by bloggers and other web-wordsters. Even in Battlestar Galactica’s fraked-up world of Cylons, a nano-cylo-std is imaginary— that’s short for nano-Cylon-sexually transmitted disease, for the innocent of hard drive. I also haven’t been able to locate a nano-douche-bot or nano-destructo-mat at Wal-Mart yet, though perhaps it’s my shopping skills that are to blame. Similar examples include nano-ooze, nano-puddle, nano-slime, nano-werewolf, and nano death ray blower upper thingy —not to be confused with the equally practical nano death ray of doom. Also just in time for Christmas is the green-glowing-nano-slime-ammo-pack, which could prove a useful addition to anyone’s utility belt.
Then there are nano-insults, a category close to my 12-year-old heart. The OED lists a lovely one from a 1983 Verbatim article—“a microcephalic, nanocerebral ninnyhammer”— a favorite epithet of the late lexicographer Laurence Urdang. Erin McKean recalls Urdang’s words in paraphrased form in a Facebook update on Sept. 4, 2008, as his “habit of describing people as ‘cretinous, nanocerebral, gormless ninnyhammers.’” At lunch with Erin recently, she remember the insult as nanocephalic, providing even more ammo for wordsmiths at the technical journals and playgrounds.
As with Urdang’s examples, most nano-insults diminish body parts or qualities, especially those that opinion polls suggest should be massive and ginornous enough to properly shine glory on America: nano-balled, nanoboobs, nano-brained, nano-mannered, nano-minded, nano-schlong, nano-souled, nano-testicles, and nano-wand of love fit this pattern. There’s plenty of room for mixed meanings, and the different senses of nano can be hard to parse. Nano-minded can mean small-minded, or it could mean overly obsessed with the iPod nano, which clearly boosted the stock of the word nano as well as the company Apple. Then there NaNoWriMo—National Novel Writing Month, which is popular enough to inspire insults such as nanofailure and nano-lame-o. I’ve tried to keep these senses of nano out of my carpet and this article, but I’ve probably misjudged one or two.
Along with insulting and soccer, exaggerating is a popular sport worldwide, and nano has been a solid exaggeration-maker for years, particularly in the common word nanosecond, which was first used hyperbolically back in 1965, in a W.H. Auden poem: “Translated in a nano-second / To a c.c. of poisonous nothing / In a giga-death”. Some writers take nano-second a step further with nano-minute, nano-moment, nano-inch, and nano-ounce, while others have coined nano-intestines, nano-jot, nano-qualm, and nano-sleaze.
Occasionally, exaggerations do a quadruple backflip off the diving board of language and land in deeper waters, where unlimber minds reach haplessly for a floatie of meaning. I’m thinking of a word that’s so delightful it makes my toes quiver a little: nano-eternity. Here are a few uses of this oxymoron for the ages, this restaurant-quality Zen koan:
Each second became a nano-eternity. He visualized all the faces. All the lies. All the broken hearts.
(Aug. 6, 2004, Literotica Discussion Board,)
Plus It would give me something to look at while I’m waiting a nano-eternity for a the Brooks Bros logo to load…
(Nov. 1, 2007, Dealbreaker,)
Her eyes met his and for a nano-eternity her entire being, her self, was eaten by her son’s blank, black, depthless eyes.
(2008, Ten Nails the E-Book,)
Christ on a crouton, what a word! What a concept.
I’m no eternity-ologist, but I would think that one thousand-millionth of eternity would be… eternity, right? So is a nano-eternity short or long? Is it full of pain or pleasure? Paper or plastic? Am I a dude dreaming I’m a goliath bird-eating spider, or am I a goliath bird-eating spider dreaming I’m a dude?
Nano-eternity… Now that’s a word, folks. I could ponder it for a nano-eon or two, and I hope you’ll sprinkle it liberally in your tasteful erotica, Italian sonnets, and campaign speeches. | <urn:uuid:8a2a721e-4816-419d-a8e7-5862b52fd90a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.oup.com/2008/09/nano/ | 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 | 0.910727 | 1,847 | 1.867188 | 2 |
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A custom-built environment allows faculty and students to work collaboratively at a new academic center in the Bronx.
Doban Architecture has a longstanding history with Monroe College. In 2009, the Brooklyn-based firm founded by Susan Doban completed a modular pod design for the Bronx school’s loft-style dormitories at 565 Main Street, a building for which they had also worked on an award-winning facade restoration. Last fall, the firm completed a renovation of the school’s 2,360-square-foot academic center with a scheme that allows students and faculty to interact in a collaborative environment. Neither of these projects would have been possible without Think Fabricate, the firm’s sister company. Co-founded by Doban and Jason Gorsline in November 2009, the design studio handles design projects across a range of disciplines—furniture, product, graphic, and industrial—in addition to operating its own fabrication shop in a shared East Williamsburg workspace.
The academic center’s mission of tutoring students in English and math challenged Think Fabricate to design furnishings that would create a functional environment for students and teachers, some of whom would have an office there. “The student body has a lot of adult learners and people taking classes in the evening,” said Doban. “The college wanted the academic center to be really appealing to students, and they wanted faculty to be drawn to the space as well.”
Oriented in storefront spaces off the Main Hall’s corridor, the academic center is distinguished by dark colors and a new security and reception desk, while glass in a range of transparencies lets students see in and out. In the main workspace, laminate tables allow two students and a teacher to share a sliding white board or computer, for which each individual has his own keyboard. Group meeting tables are similarly designed for collaboration with a “headless” shape, where anyone can be seen as the table’s leader. Built-in maple and laminate seating nooks further encourage students to congregate and share ideas.
Nearby, five prefabricated offices function as cubicles for faculty. “The appeal is that they don’t look like cubicles,” said Doban. Designed as one-on-one meeting spaces, each office has a built-in workstation and four walls, one of which is a sliding door mounted on Haefele hardware hidden in the header of the office system. The panelized walls are a combination of maple, chosen for appearance, price, and durability and milled with CNC equipment, and pre-laminated Panel-Lam sheets. As in its dormitory project, Think Fabricate opted to work with Panel-Lam because of its range of colors and textures coupled with its relatively low cost and durability. Because the material is slightly brittle, the approximately 4-foot-square, ¾-inch-thick sheets are cut with a table saw. “We try to minimize material waste so we weren’t really considerate of the grain directions at all times,” said Gorsline, whose background is in furniture design and fabrication. “It became another detail of the system.”
Wall panels were prefabricated in the workshop, then attached with screws to wooden frames. Save for the corner office, the cubes are 6 by 8 feet, providing enough room for a student and teacher to sit comfortably. Hall-facing panels have windows to ensure the rooms are never fully closed off, and if the offices ever need to be moved or reconfigured, the system can easily be broken down and relocated. Doban and Gorsline see the prefabricated offices as a prototype design that could work in a range of settings; they plan to explore mass and limited production options in the future. In the meantime, they are perfecting the design by hand.
3 Responses to “Doban Architecture′s Academic Center: Think Fabricate”
Post new comment | <urn:uuid:18f310fb-dc5c-46a9-bc71-b9676b76d1a3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.archpaper.com/wordpress/archives/15005/comment-page-1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00074-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962431 | 838 | 1.8125 | 2 |
|By PR Newswire||
|January 3, 2013 12:30 AM EST||
NEW YORK, Jan. 3, 2013 /PRNewswire-iReach/ -- Educate Girls Globally (EGG), a world leader in promoting community empowerment to effect transformational changes in girls' education, has officially signed on as a member of the Global Partnerships Forum (GPF), leaders from the organizations announced today.
"GPF convenes the greatest minds and the most effective organizations to tackle the world's significant problems – to be able to share ideas with such an extraordinary group of individuals and organizations is an honor and a privilege," said A. Lawrence Chickering, Founder and President of Educate Girls Globally, which has successfully implemented community-based education-reform models in two states of India, Rajasthan and Uttarakhand, and served more than 300,000 girls.
In joining GPF, an organization that brings together public and private entities to address the greatest of global challenges, EGG will share its experiences of empowering communities to take informal ownership of government schools while learning best practices from organizations all over the world.
"EGG's focus on improving the quality of education, especially for girls, in developing countries by working with governments and civil society organizations to create a sense of ownership and empowerment, serves as a great model for others," said Amir A. Dossal, Founder and chairman Global Partnerships Forum. "Mobilizing communities -- including parents, teachers, government departments and, more importantly, children -- to be part of the inner-core education circle, creates a sense of true ownership, and recipe for sustainable development."
Just more than two months ago, EGG expanded from Asia to the African continent, by signing a two-year partnership with Africare to plan and ultimately implement a community empowerment model for education reform in African schools. In India, EGG's programs increased community involvement, engaged girls as active participants in promoting change, empowered and trained teachers, and fostered practical plans to help schools reach and teach disadvantaged girls.
"I couldn't think of a better match than these two organizations," said Joelle Wyser-Pratte, a board member of Educate Girls Globally who is also a member of GPF's Advisory Board. "With so much intelligence, drive and determination among members of both groups, there is nothing they can't accomplish.
Educated Girls Globally works towards improving girls' enrollment, retention and academic performance in government schools by leveraging existing community and government resources. For more information visit www.educategirls.org
Global Partnerships Forum brings together leaders from the public and private sectors to address global challenges, through mutually beneficial partnerships. For more information of about the Global Partnerships Forum, visit www.partnerships.org/
Media Contact: Michael Francis PR Media Solutions, 800-484-3901, email@example.com
News distributed by PR Newswire iReach: https://ireach.prnewswire.com
SOURCE Educate Girls Globally
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- UK Targeted for Trojan Attacks | <urn:uuid:f5f4e738-f9f3-4a0a-b58d-fa9ea12f5f03> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://uk.sys-con.com/node/2498804 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00027-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.935315 | 807 | 1.59375 | 2 |
Iron Age Warriors Uncovered By Danish Archaeologists
Posted on: 2012-07-08 03:59:27
Danish archaeologists have re-opened a mass grave of scores of slaughtered Iron Age warriors to find new clues about their fate and the bloody practices of Germanic tribes on the edge of the Roman Empire.
Bones of around 200 soldiers have already been found preserved in a peat bog near the village of Alken on Denmark's Jutland peninsula.
Experts started digging again on Monday, saying they expected to find more bodies dating back 2,000 years to around the time of Christ.
Aarhus University archaeologist Mads Kahler Holst said: 'I guess we will end up with a scale that is much larger than the 200 that we have at present.' | <urn:uuid:7282d21e-05af-468f-a23b-47917271b292> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.natallnews.com/printer.php?id=10309 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.946156 | 161 | 2.5 | 2 |
Hard to believe it’s barely been two months since we launched SpanglishBaby. In such a short time we’ve connected with amazing people and read inspiring stories about your own bilingual journey that so many of you have shared in the comments, thru emails and as guest posts. We truly feel this community is growing strong.
We’ve learned that one of your favorite categories (and ours as well!) is Ask an Expert. We feel privileged to have gathered such a professional and caring panel of bilingual experts to help us answer your many questions about raising bilingual and bicultural children. Please, keep the questions coming!
This week we welcome back our very first expert, Simona Montanari. She’s an expert on early multilingual development and Assistant Professor of Child and Family Studies at California State University in Los Angeles. You can read more about her here.
Is it too late to start with the One-Parent-One-Language method?
This week’s question was sent by Neyzza Martinez, mamá to an 18-month old boy.
“I live six months in Puerto Rico and six in the U.S. At first I talked to my son in English and my husband talked to him in Spanish. I stopped doing it when he was 18 months because a neighbor told me he could get confused and that I should only introduce one language and later the second one when he was fluent in the first one. He is two and a half now and some of his words are in Spanish and some in English. I want to know if I can start talking again to him in only English and my husband in Spanish because it’s very important to me that he speaks both. Please let me know if it won’t harm his speech, and if it is safe to do that. Thanks.”
Of course it is safe for you to speak English to your child and for your husband to use Spanish with him! Thousands of families around the world have been successful in raising bilingual children just by doing that, each parent using their own language with the children. This approach, called the “one-parent-one-language” method, has been widely researched and it has been shown to be one of the most successful methods for raising bilingual children.
For children who hear, from birth, one language from one parent and another language from the other parent, learning two languages is just the most natural outcome since this is what they have been taught to do. So, by hearing you use English and your husband Spanish, your child learns naturally that English is what he should speak with mommy and Spanish what he should use with daddy.
In addition, I can reassure you that children who hear two languages from birth do not get confused: decades of research have shown that children’s brains have all the capacities necessary to cope with and fully master two or more languages if they are given the opportunity to hear and practice these languages on an everyday basis. The idea of confusion in bilingual children is really a myth, an old belief prevalent in monolingual countries that has almost become political.
So, explain to your neighbor or anybody else that has something to say about your language practices with your child that plenty of research shows that children who hear two or more languages from birth don’t get confused; in fact, this is the perfect time for children to acquire languages. Although children can also learn a second language after one has already been established, the best method remains, to my opinion, exposing the child to those languages from birth. When learning a second language in childhood, children do not follow the same “unconscious” strategies that they follow when learning two languages from birth; learning might be more explicit, it might produce more errors, and the course of development follows a somewhat different path. So, as long as you can provide your child with sufficient Spanish and English on a daily basis, use those languages with your child consistently from day 1.
Also, make sure that you remain consistent in your use of English and your husband’s use of Spanish over time. In other words, don’t fall in the same “trap” you have ended up in. Children whose parents mix languages or use both languages with them (as in your case using English first and then Spanish) might end up preferring the language that they hear more or that is supported in the community. If your child feels a better connection to Spanish, hears more Spanish overall, or sees that the community uses Spanish, he might decide to just learn and use Spanish, the language that he considers most important.
However, if you socialize your child into ALWAYS using English with you, then that will be less of an issue. My own children think it is extremely awkward to use English with me (and never do it) because I always stuck to my native Italian when talking to them. This is true even if we live in Los Angeles and the majority of people out there don’t speak Italian. The fact that you live six months in Puerto Rico and six months in the US will really help you raise a truly bilingual child. Keep the hard work up and good luck!
Simona Montanari, Ph.D., is located in the Los Angeles area. For more information or to schedule a phone/in person consultation contact her at email@example.com.
Do you have a question for our experts? Remember no question is too big or too simple. So, to send us your question, please click here or leave a comment below. Thank you! | <urn:uuid:e87152bb-5c41-4d5d-9bc0-b001d1bee669> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://spanglishbaby.com/ask-an-expert/ask-an-expert-one-parent-one-language-from-birth/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964977 | 1,148 | 1.90625 | 2 |
Bank Street College offers many opportunities for educators to increase their ability to meet STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) requirements. Graduate Programs and on-going opportunities are listed to the Right. STEM-related courses and workshops are listed below.
In addition, Bank Street is ready to help with your professional development needs. Our expert staff specialize in building programs to fit the needs of your staff and school. For more information or to schedule a consultation, contact Joy Lundeen Ellebbane at 212-875-4707 or email@example.com.
The following courses are open to all educators. Click on the course titles for more details or register.
CPS courses and workshops
- Mathematics and the Young Child (online)
- Building Computational Fluencey: Multiplication and Division
- Fractions, Decimals, and Percents
- Early Number, Addition and Subtraction
Curriculum Design, Learning & Technology in the Elementary Years
November 1 - 29 (with a break for Thanksgiving)
- Differentiated Math Instruction
November 30 and December 1
- Teaching Big Math Concepts in the Early Primary Grades (online)
- Minds in Motion: Bringing Science to Life Through Creative Movement
- The Youngest Scientist: Hands-on Adventures
November 9 and 10
- Math Place Online: Alegebra
February 28 - April 25 (No session March 28)
- Integrating Scence, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics into the Elementary Classroom
In person session: April 6
Online follow up: April 8 – 26
- Making Math More Meaningful
March 1 and 2
- Minds in Motion: Bringing Science to Life through Creative Movement
- Plant-based Learning: Gardening Projects in the Classroom
March 8 and 9
- The Youngest Scientists: Hands-on Adventures
April 12 and 13
Bank Street specializes in developing programs to fulfil your goals. We can develop programs based on current courses, or on the topic of your choice. For a consultation, contact Joy Lundeen Ellebbane, Director. 212-875-4707.
Current work includes
- Mathematics curriculum development in a Nursery through Eighth Grade Independent School in Manhattan,
- Support in mapping curriculum for an independent school in Brooklyn, as they grow to a K-5 program. The curriculum developed infused the major tenets of Reggio, basing project work in Social Studies and building an intentional community, while challenging the children academically.
- A two-day conference introducing the Bank Street Philosophy to members of a national early chilhood association. Through discussion, group activities, and classroom observations, participants explored how theory meets practice in the classroom curriculum.
- Bank Street, in collaboration with PA Virtual Charer School, created a Parent Educator Certificate, consisting of five online classes taught by Bank Street faculty to enhance the collaboration between teachers and parent-educators and providing an educational foundation for parents. | <urn:uuid:decdcfbc-cfd0-442a-ab6f-e4b96035079b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://bankstreet.edu/professional-development-office/stem-opportunities/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00072-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.903794 | 611 | 2.1875 | 2 |
HISD students' experiment heading to space
HOUSTON (KTRK) -- We're counting down to another launch to the International Space Station. And while the launch will be a sight to see, the rocket's cargo is equally impressive. Along with supplies for the ISS, the rocket will carry some experiments created by local students that could lead the way to some major medical advancements.
One of the most impressive things here is the age of these HISD students involved. They are just 14, now freshman in high school. These are winners of a national initiative to inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers.
After successfully proving the Falcon 9 and Dragon capsule in May, SpaceX is set to launch cargo and science experiments again to the International Space Station.
Former Pershing Middle School students Allie Burns and her classmates will watch the launch knowing the payload this time includes one of their experiments.
"I think it's kind of crazy. I'm still in shock and in disbelief about the thought of something that I did going up into space," Burns said.
Theirs was chosen from over 1,100 submitted nationwide for 23 spots on board the capsule.
"We put a lot of time into it and a lot of work, and it was just a group effort that got us in," student Ivan Arizpe said.
"If you put effort into your work, big things can happen," student Austin Abbott said.
Their experiment will measure how bacteria reacts to an antibiotic in zero gravity.
"Is there any difference to their susceptibility or resistance to antibiotics in space?" teacher Susan Broz said.
This is the second mission for the student space flight experiments program. Fourteen-year-old Emily Soice had an experiment on the first one and gets to send it up again because of a testing snafu last time. Her experiment may show whether pig liver cells can be grown in space and one day if human organs can be cultivated without gravity weighing the cells down.
"We can use those organs as our own," Soice said.
Both experiments have potentially big payoffs for all of us right back here on Earth.
The SpaceX launch is set for Sunday evening from Kennedy Space Center. The experiments will spend about six weeks aboard the space station before being returned home to be compared to an Earth-bound control.
houston isd, local, kevin quinn
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- Video: GRAPHIC: Deputy shot during traffic stop in... | <urn:uuid:e9ad7619-4f8b-4e60-a666-871b9077cb00> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=8834525 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00049-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944308 | 665 | 3.046875 | 3 |
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Exercise has its benefits, as well as helping you feel refreshed, it will help keep you calm during stressful periods such as exams. It’s good for your body and mind, and doesn’t have to cost anything.
Fitting activity into your daily routine can be as easy as walking instead of catching the bus.
If you fancy meeting new people, or just want to try something new, whatever your past experience or abiltiy, their is something for everyone at the University:
The Any-Body Club is inclusive for all students and staff . It’s perfect for ‘anybody’ who doesn’t want to play competitive sports, but wants to get fit and have fun. Activities, including yoga, tai chi, jogging and aqua fit.
The Any Buddy Scheme is for people who want someone to play sport or get fit with. We want to get more people active and enjoying sport at the University- this provides you with the perfect opportunity!
Your Students' Union Athletic Union has one of the largest ranges of sports and intramural leagues in the country. You don't have to compete; you can choose to join in with training to have fun and keep fit instead.
Physical activity is something that everyone can do. You don't need to run a marathon or spend hours at the gym. Look for simple ways to be physically active every day, such as:
Nu2 Sport is a project focused on providing sport for all students and staff in a fun and sociable environment.
Activities, include football, touch rugby, dodgeball and badminton.
For those of you who enjoy a good gym workout or taking a dip in the pool, take advantage of the University sports and gym facilities available on all three campuses. There are three sports membership options, Bronze, Silver and Gold.
Swimming is a good way to get fit, it's also relaxing. It's great as a non-impact, cardiovascular workout whilst toning muscles at the same time. Have a go at the swim for gold programme giving you a good workout every time you go for a swim.
The University of Nottingham is committed to sustainable transport. A Sustrans cycling project working at the university aims to make cycling accessible to and enjoyable for all! Bikes are available to loan for the academic year for a minimal cost.
Slogging it out in the gym on the treadmill not your thing? Take advantage of the University campuses. Have a look at the campus maps and see how easily you could work different routes into your daily routine. Perhaps walk a longer way to your lectures next time!
From pilates and boxercise to urban funk and zumba - these are just a few of the exercise classes available at the University Park Sports Centre. Beginner, expert or just want to try something new; browse the exercise class timetable to see what suits you
Nottingham, NG7 2RD
telephone: +44 (0) 115 951 5151
fax: +44 (0) 115 951 3666 | <urn:uuid:0bbcdcc0-508c-43a3-b407-89d68e45478d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://nottingham.ac.uk/currentstudents/healthyu/keepingactive.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00031-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956586 | 637 | 1.59375 | 2 |
All the transformations in our analogy — self-adjoint and unitary (or orthogonal), and even anti-self-adjoint (antisymmetric and “skew-Hermitian”) transformations satisfying — all satisfy one slightly subtle but very interesting property: they all commute with their adjoints. Self-adjoint and anti-self-adjoint transformations do because any transformation commutes with itself and also with its negative, since negation is just scalar multiplication. Orthogonal and unitary transformations do because every transformation commutes with its own inverse.
Now in general most pairs of transformations do not commute, so there’s no reason to expect this to happen commonly. Still, if we have a transformation so that , we call it a “normal” transformation.
Let’s bang out an equivalent characterization of normal operators while we’re at it, so we can get an idea of what they look like geometrically. Take any vector , hit it with , and calculate its squared-length (I’m not specifying real or complex, since the notation is the same either way). We get
On the other hand, we could do the same thing but using instead of .
But if is normal, then and are the same, and thus for all vectors
Conversely, if for all vectors , then we can use the polarization identities to conclude that .
So normal transformations are exactly those that the length of a vector is the same whether we use the transformation or its adjoint. For self-adjoint and anti-self-adjoint transformations this is pretty obvious since they’re (almost) the same thing anyway. For orthogonal and unitary transformations, they don’t change the lengths of vectors at all, so this makes sense.
Just to be clear, though, there are matrices that are normal, but which aren’t any of the special kinds we’ve talked about so far. For example, the transformation represented by the matrix
has its adjoint represented by
which is neither the original transformation nor its negative, so it’s neither self-adjoint nor anti-self-adjoint. We can calculate their product in either order to get
since we get the same answer, the transformation is normal, but it’s clearly not unitary because if it were we’d get the identity matrix here. | <urn:uuid:3fef8e9e-1e9e-4d0e-b1ef-0f9fab0ef67c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://unapologetic.wordpress.com/2009/08/05/normal-transformations/?like=1&source=post_flair&_wpnonce=7b62a7b6bf | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00022-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.906003 | 505 | 2.65625 | 3 |
What is naturopathy?
Naturopathic medicine, an American health care profession, is over 100 years old. There are more than 3,600 licensed naturopathic health care providers in the United States and five accredited naturopathic medical schools that have active research departments.
Though diagnostically naturopathy is a lot like standard or conventional medicine, the difference lies in the types of treatment. Naturopathic health care providers do not use drugs, medical technology, or major surgery to treat a patient. Instead, these health care providers use natural therapeutics, such as nutritional supplements, herbal remedies, homeopathy, and acupuncture as treatments.
Naturopathy's main goal is to use the natural healing power of the body to fight disease. Diagnosis is made through X-rays, laboratory tests, and medical exams, much like the standard or conventional diagnostic methods. Almost any illness is treated by naturopathic health care providers.
Naturopathic therapies may include:
Often, however, naturopathic health care providers will refer more complicated medical cases to standard or conventional doctors for treatment. | <urn:uuid:f18a3247-843c-49b0-bf03-8971dca2bba1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.urmc.rochester.edu/encyclopedia/content.aspx?ContentTypeID=85&ContentID=P00187 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.923932 | 223 | 3.25 | 3 |
Hi Matt. If we add more than one links from page A to page B, do we pass more PageRank juice and additional anchor text info? Also can you tell us if links from A to A count?
STOP PRESS – All-round nice guy and official representative for Google published a a video recently telling us how Google USED to work according to the original Pagerank formula! :)
I suppose there’s a good attempt at explaining Pagerank in simple terms with fingers for those new to seo. Or at least, how it used to work. :) Let’s face it – Google Pagerank works differently than it used to.
He mentioned something like he ‘wasn’t going to get into anchor text flow’ (or as some call First Link Priority) – in this scenario, which is, actually, a much more interesting discussion.
But the silence on anchor text and priority – or what counts and what doesn’t, is, perhaps, confirmation that Google has some sort of ‘link priority’ when spidering multiple links to a page from the same page and assigning relevance or ranking scores.
I’m pretty sure, from plenty of observations I’ve made in the past, that this is indeed the case. I have seen a few examples where I *thought* might contradict my own findings, but on closer examination, most could not be verified. It’s a lot harder today to isolate this sort of thing – but Google is designed that way.
I think, as the years go by – we’re supposed to forget how Google works under the hood of all that fancy GUI, BTW.
Simple answer, for me is, expect ONE link – the first link – out of multiple links on a single page pointing at one other page – to pass anchor text value. Follow that advice with your most important key phrases in at least the first link when creating multiple links and you don’t need to know about first link priority.
A quick seo test I did a long time ago throws up some interesting questions today – but the changes over the years at Google since I did my test will have an impact what is shown – and the fact is – the test environment was polluted long before now.
I still think about first link priority when creating links on a page.
It is possibly, a powerful good practice when inter-linking your pages.
I had hoped watching this video MC answered that point about anchor text. Maybe next time.
Do let me know if you have a view on ‘first link priority’ – if you consider it – or if you think differently. If you have heard of MC talking about the flow of anchor text in this fashion – let me know – as I havent seen it…. I might even give this a test again.
If you don’t know, there are lots more of these videos for noobs at:
Want to know more about first link priority theories? It’s an interesting and sometimes hotly debated discussion – well, it used to be. Perhaps it is the case, the first link priority is not a short answer for MC to give, and by answering it, it opens a can of worms for him. The rule ITSELF probably has nuances, when nofollow is added to the mix, for instance, etc etc.
Interesting seo geek stuff anyway…. | <urn:uuid:f0ec5723-deb5-4bbc-bd0c-1a83d76a9781> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.hobo-web.co.uk/first-link-priority/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00059-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.941548 | 708 | 1.523438 | 2 |
About Star Wars The Old Republic
More than 3,500 years before the events of the Star Wars movie there existed a universe with relative peace between the Galactic Republic and the Sith Empire. Star Wars the Old Republic takes players into a fictitious universe that creates a brand new experience for fans of the franchise. The game is a MMORPG, or massively multiplayer online role-playing game, that was developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts and LucasArts. Gamers can take on the role of the Galactic Republic or as members of the Sith Empire. Players can advance by completing a mission, exploring new territory, or killing enemies. As a new level is acquired, new skills are taught to the player, which will aid them in their future missions. Several historic quests are also available that require cooperation between several players in the online world. A wide range of species is available for gamers to choose from such as Human, Twi’lek, Zabrak and Cyborg among others. Several different classes are also available which include Sith Warrior, Bounty Hunter, Jedi Knight, Trooper, and Imperial Agent among others. Each of the glasses gets their own starship with different weapons systems and maneuverability capabilities. The game offers a crafting system called Crew Skills that lets gamers choose five mates to accompany them on tasks in the realm. A monthly subscription is required to play the game. Following the launch of the game there were over 1.7 million subscribers, but as numbers decreased, EA launched a free to play option. A book describing the creation of the game was released in November of 2011, which also includes conceptual art and interviews with the team that developed the game. | <urn:uuid:e096b933-e5c2-4028-88b8-b743613f0836> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ebay.com.au/bhp/star-wars-the-old-republic | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00075-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970648 | 333 | 1.804688 | 2 |
ANCA-Associated Vasculitis: What is it?
Barry I. Freedman, MD, chief of Nephrology, is a clinician researcher who focuses on genetic factors in kidney disease.
A condition called ANCA-associated vasculitis made headlines when Wake Forest University student-athlete Kevin Jordan suffered from the disease and needed a kidney transplant. Wake Forest's head baseball coach Tom Walter donated one of his kidneys on Feb. 7, 2011 in a successful surgery at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta.
As Dr. Freedman explains, ANCA vasculitis (named for Anti-Neutrophil Cytoplasmic Antibody) is an example of an autoimmune disease that can affect blood vessels throughout the body. “The kidney is effectively composed of blood vessels and they can be severely affected by this disorder,” he said.
Normal antibodies are produced by the immune system and circulate in the blood stream to fight infection. However, abnormal autoantibodies, like ANCA, can attack a person’s own cells and tissues, specifically white blood cells which are called neutrophils. These neutrophils damage the walls of small blood vessels in different organs, a syndrome called "vasculitis" or blood vessel inflammation. When this occurs in the kidneys, it causes blood and protein to leak into the urine, and can lead to kidney failure.
“If you don’t aggressively treat ANCA vasculitis early on, it often progresses to end-stage kidney disease requiring dialysis or a kidney transplant,” Freedman said. | <urn:uuid:781d47be-f5c9-4799-99de-1f6cda689aae> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wakehealth.edu/Health-Central/ANCA-Associated-Vasculitis/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00039-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943109 | 326 | 3 | 3 |
Tasty Clams. And a Delicious Clamshell Container.
With a hat tip to Grist, Fast Company brings us news of food packaging that will never clog a landfill: WikiCells, edible food packaging so delicious it might even become part of the seasoning of the food. The WikiCells project is the brainchild of Dr. David Edwards, a Harvard biomedical engineering professor and founding faculty member of the university’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering.
Here’s the recipe, in Edwards’ words: "The notion [of Wikicells] is that you are englobing liquid, foam, or something else in a soft membrane held together by food particles that are being connected by electrostatic charges to each other and to a small amount of natural polymer."
Okay, that doesn’t sound so tasty. Imagine that soft membrane, Fast Company suggests, in the form of “a tomato and basil membrane that houses gazpacho, a chocolate membrane holding hot chocolate, or an orange membrane containing orange juice.” And Edwards continues with his own mouth-watering menu choices: "You can imagine that the yogurt will have a fruity kind of membrane. It could be raspberry, cherry, blueberry. We make something that looks like mozzarella cheese, but when you cut it with a spoon it’s all yogurt inside.”
--Reed McManus / Photo by iStockphoto/Debbi Smirnoff | <urn:uuid:76446bf7-7ff4-42d4-ae20-00bbc6d5d330> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://sierraclub.typepad.com/sierradaily/2012/03/tasty-clamsand-a-delicious-clamshell-container.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00044-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.915343 | 310 | 2.234375 | 2 |
Shri Venkateswara (Balaji) Temple of UK in Tividale, claimed to be the Europe’s biggest Hindu temple, is reportedly planning to raise an about $750,000 yaggyashala.
Reports suggest that incorporating latest technology and ecosystems, this yaggyashala will draw heat from underground and use solar panels. This Temple, a Registered Charity on a 21.5 acres site, conducts daily poojas.
Meanwhile, Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, applauded efforts of temple leaders and area community to realize this yaggyashala project.
Rajan Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, further said that it was important to pass on Hindu spirituality, concepts and traditions to coming generations amidst so many distractions in the consumerist society and hoped that this temple complex would focus in this direction. Zed stressed that instead of running after materialism; we should focus on inner search and realization of Self and work towards achieving moksh (liberation), which was the goal of Hinduism. | <urn:uuid:b4ae3391-328c-425c-b757-6a649ca87959> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.eurasiareview.com/08032013-europes-biggest-hindu-temple-to-add-750000-yaggyashala/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00020-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.945095 | 226 | 2.0625 | 2 |
This post is in response to the article by Donald Gilliland which appeared in The Patriot-News: UGI’s ‘Commonwealth Pipeline’ would spread shale wealth through Pennsylvania
The planned Commonwealth Pipeline, recently announced, would bring natural gas from Lycoming County through central Pennsylvania to the Baltimore and Washington markets. It would also bring the threat of eminent domain to property owners in central Pennsylvania. Land agents for oil and gas companies recognize that they have an obligation to negotiate with property owners, but do not have any obligation of good faith negotiations. Property owners would be wise to be wary of negotiators on behalf of company designated to build and operate the pipeline – Inergy Mid-stream. That company recently proceeded with eminent domain actions against property owners in the path of the 39-mile MARC1 pipeline in northern Pennsylvania. The company used documentation of appraisals of the strips of land in negotiations and Sullivan County court filings. Those efforts and documents are in conflict with the Pennsylvania Eminent Domain Code protections whereby property owners are protected by the property damage calculation defined as the entire property interest before the taking as compared to the entire property interest after the taking. That approach will need to be considered for the property owners to adequately protect themselves and their constitutional right to just compensation. | <urn:uuid:018510c9-d1f5-499d-83d2-2fdc6850545c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.eminentdomainpa.com/tag/lycoming-county/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959076 | 255 | 1.609375 | 2 |