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True stories and fascinating experiments that reveal the telepathic connection between twins
ONE SPRING DAY in 2009, 15-year-old Gemma Houghton was suddenly struck with the strong feeling that her twin sister Leanne was in trouble. Gemma hurried to the bathroom, where she knew Leanne was taking a bath and found her sister submerged, unconscious and turning blue. Leanna is an epileptic and had suffered a seizure in the tub. Gemma pulled her sister from the tub, administered CPR and revived her, saving her life. "I got this sudden feeling to check on her. It was like a voice telling me 'your sister needs you'," Gemma later told reporters. "She was under the water. At first I thought she was washing her hair or playing a trick, but when I lifted her head out I saw she had turned blue. I knew she'd had a fit." Had Gemma not been compelled by that feeling to check on her sister, Leanne almost certainly would have drowned.
This story of the telepathic Houghton twins made news in March, 2009, and it's one more anecdotal account of the psychic connection that is said to exist between many twins, especially identical twins. The Houghton sisters happen to be fraternal twins, but their mother says they are "inseparable and share an uncanny bond." A survey conducted by Dr. Lynne Cherkas, a genetic analyst at the department for twin research at King's College London, showed that one in five identical twins said they had experience some form of telepathy, and one in ten fraternal twins reported the phenomenon.
Although a telepathic connection between twins is not universal, as Dr. Cherkas' survey reveals, it is common enough to serve as some of the best evidence for the reality of telepathy among humans, and has provided researchers with a good way to study the phenomenon.
Guy Lyon Playfair has done extensive research in the field of twin telepathy, and has much of his work in his book Twin Telepathy: The Psychic Connection. In an article for Paranormalia, Playfair comments that the Houghton event is certainly not the first time that twin telepathy may have saved a life. "I know of at least three other examples, one of which I investigated at first-hand," he says. "This would suggest that the scientific community should take rather more interest in it than it yet has."
STORIES OF TWIN TELEPATHY AND PSYCHIC CONNECTION
Much of the information we have about twin telepathy comes from the spontaneous experiences reported by the twins themselves. The article Twin Telepathy provides these anecdotes:
- Two male twins had different areas of interest: one played soccer and the other took guitar lessons. After a few months, however, the soccer-playing twin could play the guitar nearly as well as his brother without ever having taken a lesson. A study of the boys also said that they had had "limited interaction" with each other during the time they were pursuing these interests.
- While shopping, a man in Texas was forced to sit down due to a stabbing pain in his chest. He later learned that his twin brother in New York was having a heart attack at the same time.
- A young girl had an accident with her bicycle and broke her ankle. Her twin sister developed swelling in the same uninjured ankle.
In some cases, one twin will know about something that happened to the other twin when such knowledge was clearly impossible.
- Paula Wombwell, a teacher and mother of identical twin girls recounts an unexplained event when they were about four years old. One twin, Heather was with Paula in the classroom while the other twin, Catherine was in the gymnasium on another floor. Suddenly, Paula heard Catherine crying downstairs, and Heather declared that it was because a certain person had just run over her with a scooter. There was no way Heather could have seen what happened. Sure enough, when Paula asked Catherine about what had happened she confirmed that that certain person had run over her with a scooter.
- At Twin Connections, a website that celebrates "the mysterious bond between twins" and collects stories from twins, we find this experience: "I am a mother of identical twin boys," writes Aiya. "Gabriel and Ethan just turned 5 this year and are in kindergarten. My twin story happened when they were 4. My mother wanted to spend some time with them, but she was never able to handle both of them at the same time. We decided to let Gabriel go for a visit for three days and then Ethan would go for three days. Ethan and I were driving in the car on our way to make the switch; he was sitting in his car seat as quiet as can be just looking out the window, when he tells me, 'Mom, tell Gabriel to get his clothes on.' I looked at him and told him Gabriel was with grandma and he wasn't here. He told me, 'Just tell him mom. He needs to get his clothes on.' So I called my mom out of curiosity and asked her if she was having a hard time getting Gabriel dressed, and she said yes, they were having an argument because Gabriel didn't want to get dressed because it was too cold and he wanted to stay in his jammies."
Next page: Experiments with Twins
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Passion with the Mexican people
PASSION: According to the Random House College Dictionary it is "any powerful or compelling emotion or feeling." It is further defined as "a strong or extravagant fondness, enthusiasm or desire for anything".
As some readers of this site know well, I have a passion for everyone and everything Mexican. What you may not know, is that I have three brothers whose lives in this world of growing interconnection are shaped increasingly by exposure to Spanish speaking people and their varying cultures. For them, it has not been always a matter of clear intention. Their new lives outside of Canada have drawn them close to the Mexico/America border, the long interface of two very different cultures.
Mi hermano, Bernardo, in the story below works as an international exploratory geologist, exploring high in the Sierra Madres and recently in the High Andes of Peru. He came with his family to visit me and mine this summer. In the course of our own reconnection, he told me this story of one of his first days working in Mexico.
"Be careful what you tell me," I warned him, "I'm an internet writer now looking for stories to tell. I even post pictures to the net!" Being the natural storyteller that he is, he carried on in our grand Irish family tradition of blending our personal experience into the greater world. So meet my hermano in my version of his story of "Passion with the Mexican people."
Pedro Gonzales greeted me as I stepped from the cab of my company truck.
" Bernardo? Bienvenido á México!" He loudly proclaimed as he extended his rough and callused hand in greeting. Pedro stood half a foot below my six-foot frame. We appeared to be both around the same age of forty. I was to be in charge of my mining company's north Mexican exploration project. Pedro, a local man from the Alamos, Sonora region was hired to be my field assistant.
"This way, Bernardo. I will introduce you to the other members of our crew!" Pedro continued.
After the introductions, we jumped back into my truck for a drive to survey the exploration site. As my truck jostled and bumped along the rutted mountain highway, Pedro started to fill me in on the multiple details of the work arrangements. His English was excellent and he was to prove to be my right hand man in the many grueling months that followed.
At one point in our conversation, Pedro suddenly exclaimed, "But Bernardo, you must have PASSION with the Mexican people!" The tone of his voice was exuberant! Since I had only known this man for a few hours, his comment struck me as a little strange. What did he mean by this? So I decided just to let these words pass by. Pedro continued to brief me on all the arrangements that he had been attending to before my arrival.
Twenty minutes later, he exclaimed, "Just remember, Bernardo, you must have PASSION with the Mexican people!" Again I was startled! This was the first day of my working contract in Mexico. What did Pedro expect me to do? My sister, Wendy had taken several long road trips with her family over the past few years throughout Mexico. She had told me that the Mexican people are exceedingly warm and hospitable. What Pedro seemed to suggest sounded positively sizzling! Did this mean that I had to kiss and hug them all of the time? Or was there more?
I don't consider myself a real "touchy-feely" type of guy, especially when complete strangers were involved. This was my first trip ever to Mexico. This Mexican geological project was becoming a little uncomfortable. What exactly did this guy expect from me? I was hesitant to find out. So I squirmed a little in my seat and decided to ignore the comment again. Several more hours passed swiftly by as we drove towards our remote mountain camp. Pedro and I continued to discuss the details of our project.
Again, Pedro asserted, " Always remember this, Bernardo. You must have PASSION with the Mexican people. It was getting dark and I started worrying about the up-coming sleeping arrangements. All his talk about PASSION! So finally, I said, "Pedro, I'm afraid I do not understand your idea of PASSION with the Mexican people. You'd better explain it to me."
Pedro stared at me with a funny look, " Bernardo, how can you not understand " paciencia"? It is so necessary for working with people. Do you not need a great deal of patience when working with new crews in your country? "
" Patience is PACIENCIA?" I exclaimed with a rush of relief. The English word passion and the Spanish word paciencia had sounded exactly the same to my untrained ears. Visions of hugging and kissing Pedro and the whole crew evaporated into the thinning mountain air. "O.K. Pedro. I will try to have much paciencia or passion with the Mexican people!
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There is far more to this world than taught in our schools, shown in the media, or proclaimed by the church and state. Most of mankind lives in a hypnotic trance, taking to be reality what is instead a twisted simulacrum of reality, a collective dream in which values are inverted, lies are taken as truth, and tyranny is accepted as security. They enjoy their ignorance and cling tightly to the misery that gives them identity.
Fortunately, some are born with spiritual immune systems that sooner or later give rejection to the illusory worldview grafted upon them from birth through social conditioning. They begin sensing that something is amiss, and start looking for answers. Inner knowledge and anomalous outer experiences show them a side of reality others are oblivious to, and so begins their journey of awakening. Each step of the journey is made by following the heart instead of following the crowd and by choosing knowledge over ignorance.
Knowledge is the key to unlocking our potential. It gives us the self-determination, responsibility, and power necessary to cast off the chains of covert oppression. Knowledge is therefore the greatest protector, for it also gives us foresight to impeccably handle the challenges of life and, most importantly, to sidestep the traps on the path to awakening. The more you know of higher truths and apply what you know, the more you begin operating under higher laws that transcend the limitations of the lower. -Montalk
Redefine your perceived notion of common sense.
Subjects covered: history, science, evolution, psychology, mysticism, archeology, spirituality, the cosmos, philosophy, occultism, secret societies, UFOs, and ETs.
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Furnham, Adrian and Voracek, Martin and Haubner, Tanja and Voracek, Martin and Swami, Viren (2009) A fair day's wage? Perceptions of public sector pay. Psychological Reports, 105 (3). pp. 957-969. ISSN 0033-2941
Full text not available from this repository.
Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.2466/pr0.105.3.957-969
There is a scarcity of evidence pertaining to the general public's perception of public sector pay. Hence, in the present study, 161 women and 149 men were asked to estimate the wages 35 public sector professions should receive annually in the fictitious nation of Maldoria, based on a comparison value of an annual income of T10,000 for general practitioners. Analysis showed that only pilots were given a higher annual income than general practitioners; miners and local government workers were also provided with relatively high annual incomes. By contrast, newscasters were provided with the lowest annual income. Participants' sex did not affect these evaluations, and other demographic variables and public sector-related information of the participants were poor predictors of their evaluations. The implications of this research on public attitudes toward wage determination are discussed, and avenues for further research highlighted.
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|Deposited On:||14 Sep 2011 11:56|
|Last Modified:||14 Sep 2011 11:56|
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Can the Olympics Bring Affordable Housing to London?
The afterlife of London’s Olympic Park was partially confirmed last week, when officials agreed to plans for the construction of a new neighborhood on part of its site once this summer's games are over.
Called Chobham Manor, the 960-home neighborhood should be ready by autumn 2013, and will cover the current location of the Olympic basketball court (plus, one imagines, a little bit more of the park). It’s just the beginning of plans to cover London’s Lower Lea Valley area with badly needed new housing – four other neighborhoods providing a total of 6,800 homes are also in the pipeline, and by 2031 (yes, they’re giving themselves plenty of time) the former Olympic site should be a dense checkerboard of housing and parkland.
In an area that currently attracts few professionals with children, the new neighborhood aims to be especially family friendly, with four schools included in the blueprints. The plan so far is to have 35 percent of its housing fixed at affordable rents, making some of it suitable for people already living in this lower income area.
In a city where affordable housing is scarce – currently London rent rises are so unchecked that there are calls to introduce “New York Style” rent controls – the project sounds promising. With such a drawn-out delivery schedule, however, there is plenty of time for it to stall or see its goals diluted. This might sound mean spirited, but East London already has many housing plans that have changed or gone awry over time. The area’s Greenwich Peninsula, at the foot of the new Emirates Air Line, was given planning permission for over 1,000 houses back in 2002, but so far nothing has been built. London’s mayor claimed in January that everything would be ready by 2015, but this statement was met with massive skepticism by locals who said they had heard it all before.
Courtesy of Strand East
Likewise, promises to provide affordable housing can fade under scrutiny. The massive IKEA-backed new neighborhood Strand East, just west of the Olympic Park, also appeared on the scene promising a substantial amount of affordable rental property. In 2010, a British newspaper claimed it would contain “around 35 percent” affordable housing. By April this reported ratio seemed to have slipped to 15 percent. Now, Strand East has no publicly declared percentage set aside for affordable housing, though this might change when plans are fully approved later this month. This needn’t suggest any change of agenda by the developers – the press reports could simply have been unfounded – but it does show that grand claims made at the beginning of schemes don’t always hold much weight.
Chobham Manor won’t just be a source of housing, though. It’s also an interesting bit of social engineering. As this map from The Guardian showing local property values demonstrates, the Lower Lea Valley acts as a chasm dividing rich from poor and supposedly hip from humdrum. To its west lie what are currently London’s "hottest" neighborhoods, where formerly rundown districts are increasingly brimming with self-consciously shabby bars and shops selling complicated bread at £4 a loaf. To its east, London’s neighborhoods remain relatively cheap. As Atlantic Cities noted in March, property values actually fell in this area last year, a rarity in London’s still overheated market. By filling in the gap between these two sides of East London, the new Olympic neighborhoods could provide a bridge for the area’s continuing rebirth, halted until now by the underdeveloped dereliction of the ex-industrial Lea. For better or worse, that would certainly be an Olympic legacy that people would recognize and remember.
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How to Find Your Unclaimed Property and Cash
You might have money and not even know it. In some cases, you might have property or cash that has been sitting with a state government, unclaimed. Thousands of people find out that they have unclaimed property, sometimes called missing money, every year. As long as you know what to do about it, you can claim what is already yours, and enjoy a bit of a windfall.
What is Unclaimed Property?
What qualifies as unclaimed property varies according to state. For the most part, insurance companies, investment companies, utilities, banks, and other business (like medical testing businesses), are required to turn over inactive accounts. This property is considered “unclaimed” or “abandoned.” If you can prove you own the property, you can claim it for your own.
Here are some examples of what might be considered unclaimed money or property:
- Uncashed paychecks
- What’s in a safe deposit box
- Savings and checking accounts
- Accounts at failed banks and credit unions
- Payments you are owed from various businesses (such as with pharmaceutical trial participation)
- Positive utility accounts that still contain money after you’ve disconnected
- Unused gift certificates/gift cards (but only in a few states)
Many states use this money to fund various operations. The money is still yours, but states can earn interest on it. Once you prove that you own the money, you can claim it, and the government will turn it over.
Locating Your Unclaimed Money
It’s possible to fairly easily locate your unclaimed property, if you have any. One of the best places to look is MissingMoney.com. This site lists unclaimed property held by states, where the money came from, and how much is available. It’s also possible to use the Treasury Hunt tool at TreasuryDirect.gov to find out if you have unclaimed savings bonds.
The FDIC and NCUA offer tools for finding money at failed financial institutions, and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp also provides information about abandoned defined-benefit plans, and the National Registry of Unclaimed Retirement Benefits offers something similar for 401(k)s. Sometimes, you’ll actually be called in the event of a forgotten account.
Claiming Your Money
In order to claim your money, you will have to prove you are the true owner, through documentation. In some cases, the unclaimed property you find actually belonged to someone who has passed on. In that case, you will need to show a death certificate, and prove that you are an heir, and authorized to collect the money on behalf of the estate. Once you locate your unclaimed property, find out from the agency that has it what you need to show as proof of your right to it.
Realize that you don’t need to pay anyone to claim your property. There are firms that can track down your unclaimed property and help you get it back, but these are completely unnecessary. You can get the information for free, and there is no reason to ever pay anyone to get what’s already rightfully yours. The best step to take is to go to directly to your State Controller’s website. This is the single best source to check and see if any money being held by your state belongs to you. Your state’s site will direct you on the proper steps you need to take to collect your money.
With a few minutes of digging, you can find out if you have unclaimed property waiting for you. It’s not a bad way to spend a little time, and you just might profit from it.
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(What is this all about? All is explained.)
Everyone who knows anything about Bob Dylan knows how much he was inspired by and deliberately fashioned himself after Woody Guthrie. But how many people know how deeply he admired Jimmie Rodgers? I certainly didn’t have any idea before 1997, when Dylan produced “The Songs of Jimmie Rodgers,” a tribute album featuring, among others, Dylan, Alison Krauss, Willie Nelson, Jerry Garcia, Bono and Van Morrison signing Jimmie’s songs.
In the liner notes, Dylan was unusually extravagant with his praise. (And being Dylan, he was also sometimes incomprehensible and sometimes downright bad, as when he said Jimmie’s “message is all between the lines and he delivers it like nectar that can
drill through steel.”)
Here’s what else he had to say:
Jimmie Rodgers of course is one of the guiding lights of the Twentieth Century whose way with song has always been an inspiration to those of us who have followed the path. A blazing star whose sound was and remains the raw essence of individuality in a sea of conformity, par excellence with no equal. Though he is claimed as The Father of Country Music, the title is limiting and deceiving in light of today’s country music and he wouldn’t have understood it. In his time, he was better known as “The Singing Brakeman” or “Blue Yodeler” and hence in some circles, he has come to be known as the “Man Who Started It All” which is more to the truth for he was a performer of force without precedent with a sound as lonesome and mystical as it was dynamic.
Yeah, he kind of liked Jimmie. Here’s a bit more:
The artists on this compilation as diverse as ever, all have one thing in common — all have been amazed, moved and enormously affected by Jimmie like no other. Why? Because Jimmie was alive in a way that others were not and are not. … We love the man and we love what he did in the short time he was here and we know that he rose above insurmountable odds in giving of himself with Herculean effort to achieve it, that he worked against time with a disease that was a quick assignment to the cemetery. … His is the voice in the wilderness of your head…only in turning up the volume can we determine our own destiny.
The funny thing is, the song Dylan chose to sing on that tribute was “My Blue Eyed Jane,” but I had never heard the original version by Jimmie until yesterday, when I finally tracked it down. It’s one of those things; I didn’t have a recording of it and just never thought to give it a listen. The biographer of Jimmie, whose book I’m reading, said it was one of Jimmie’s most sophisticated recordings, with a solid jazz band and an uncommonly good arrangement. Here is Jimmie singing it. Here’s Dylan singing the same song on the tribute album. And I will figure out how to embed videos one of these days.
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Berkeley residents and city departments have vowed to cut carbon dioxide emissions by more than 2 million pounds as part of an Earth Day pledge to help the environment.
But city leaders want residents to do even more.
“There is no reason not to stop,” said Councilmember Linda Maio. “We will continue asking people to take additional steps, over and above what we are doing now, to protect the climate.”
The city, led by the Berkeley Energy Commission and the Community Environmental Advisory Commission, called on residents to pledge to take actions that will reduce negative effects on the environment. Those actions include carpooling or reducing car travel by at least 15 percent, installing low-flow showerheads, using compact fluorescent light bulbs in at least four fixtures, and promising that the next car they purchase will be 30 percent more fuel-efficient than their current vehicle.
When the first tally was made, for Earth Day on April 22, pledges came to 1.6 million pounds of carbon dioxide. By late last week, that figured had passed the 2 million pound mark. So far, 357 households have made pledges. The most popular action was the pledge to make the next vehicle more fuel-efficient.
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, about 6.6 tons of greenhouse gases are released every year, per person – that’s almost 15,000 pounds for each of us. Emissions increased about 3.4 percent between 1990 and 1997, the EPA says. About 82 percent of these emissions come from burning fossil fuels to generate electricity and power cars.
Neal De Snoo, the city’s energy officer, previously told the Daily Planet that city departments have made their own pledges to reduce total emissions by 15 percent. The city’s action plan focuses on four areas: reduced transportation fuels, reduced energy use in city-owned buildings, reduced levels of solid waste materials that generate methane as they decompose, and increased planting of trees.
The city has expanded its fleet of electric vehicles, and has installed a recharging station downtown that can be used by city-owned and private vehicles. The recently adopted Bike Boulevard Plan is another beneficial step, De Snoo said.
Energy-efficient bulbs can reduce the amount of electricity used in homes and business, he said, noting that about 30 major businesses have pledged to reduce energy use in this category.
Methane emissions are worse for the environment than carbon dioxide emissions are, De Snoo said. The decomposition process in landfills is a significant contributor. As a carbon-based material decomposes, it produces methane if there is no oxygen present. That’s why composting is encouraged: The process incorporates oxygen into the mixture of food, dirt and green waste, and the end product can be used in a garden.
Pledges are still being accepted online (www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/housing/energy/pledge.html) or by mail. Call 510-665-3486 for a pledge card, which can then be mailed back to the city.
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Thursday, March 31, 2011
“You learn ten thousand lessons in your life, either ten thousand different lessons or the same one over and over ten thousand times.”
Bike store owner I once knew in Chicago.
After a winter in which I have perfected my impersonation of a hibernating slug, I stepped away from my desk chair and my house Sunday and went looking for sandhill cranes. These tall birds with rusty heads appear in March, usually in pairs, walking their backward-bending walk and clacking like hollow wooden sticks. They come to a woody marsh about thirty miles from where I live, and the window of opportunity for seeing them is brief: warm enough that they’ve returned but still cold enough to walk over the frozen marsh to see them.
I heard them before I saw them, and the whole time I wandered over the ice their clackety clacking helped me spot them, sometimes walking, sometimes taking wing and flapping slowly by.
I came back and put my butt in chair again, and I may never write about the cranes except in this blog. But seeing them has made me glad, and that’s not a bad thing for a writer. In time I’ll probably forget how glad they made me, and I’ll have to learn again that stepping away from my work for a while can actually make me a better writer or at least a less cranky one.
So what lessons about your own writing process have you learned—or relearned and relearned and relearned?
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Every sound in a scene adds to the story. Sounds create setting, mood, character, and can provide tension. Like endowed objects, there can be endowed sounds—a sound that means more than merely what it sounds like.
Keep a list of human nonverbal sounds, and a list of nonhuman sounds that might be heard, and use them in your writing. Here’s a start…
Cry of a baby
Wind through a maple tree in autumn
Now for extra fun—especially if you are writing picture books—try to write the actual sound in words, making them onomatopoeic as possible. Margaret Wise Brown loved to do this in her books The Noisy Book and The Quiet Book. The sound of a truck going over a dirt road: burrippity burrp burrppity. Or the sound of a car siren: Err-u-ahh-err-u-ahh.
Saturday, March 26, 2011
The word has cropped up several times recently in connection with writing, thanks to a letter from a current student, a conversation with a Vermont MFA grad whose first book is about to be published, and an email from a Hamline MFA student researching writers’ work habits for a thesis. So I’ve been thinking about messiness.
Writing is messy. Not just the papers scattered over my desk (anyone else remember the future paperless society we should be living in now?) but also the whole messy process, from diving into the chaos of our lives to find an idea, shaping that idea into some kind of story, and seeing the story differently over and over and over again as we revise. I’ve just finished the umpteenth deep revision of Supertruck. This story now comes in at just under 400 words, and yet perhaps the only constant words in all the revisions are “Supertruck” and “the.”
Writing is anti-entropic, creating order out of the chaos of the universe. Hard as it is to do some days, we need to trust the messiness of the process. I take heart from William Saroyan, who said that writing was the hardest way he knew to earn a living, with the possible exception of wrestling alligators.
Wrestling alligators. Now that’s messy.
Friday, March 25, 2011
I depended on that momentum, on living in the headspace created by working on a book every day; it propelled me through a book. This was how I wrote. To be honest, I'm still figuring out how to write in the real world. I'm a writer precisely so I don't have to deal with the real world.
I think one way to approach it is like approaching revisions--start small, low expectations, just try to get back in the book. So much of writing is finding ways to trick yourself, after all. Take a chapter (or several) that you have done already and type them back into your document--you'll probably start changing things here and there, and you'll get yourself back into the rhythms and voice of the book. If that's not enough, start actually doing broader revisions on the part you have--character, theme, plot--look at all your narrative threads and work on bringing them out. Write a summary of each scene and what it accomplishes, both in terms of plot and in terms of the development of the relationships between the characters and the character growth. Your job is to insert yourself back in the world of the book, to remind yourself where you were so you can go forward.
Of course, these are just ideas. Anyone else?
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Here's a question for you from the Ask the Inkpot mail bag.
"Can you make suggestions and/or offer exercises for help getting back into a story you are working on when it has been put aside for some time?"
And, readers, if you have a question for the Inkpot Bloggers, please email it to firstname.lastname@example.org
Until next time,
Monday, March 21, 2011
The first book on writing craft I encountered was Writing for Story by Jon Franklin, a gift from a good friend and writing colleague Lisa Westberg Peters way back when we were both newly published. Lisa's moved on from writing children's books and is now in school again and also blogging about her SE Minneapolis neighborhood. I'm still struggling with writing novels, however, and yesterday I pulled the Franklin book off the shelf.
Still a lot of gems in the yellowed pages, albeit arguable ones: "All of literature, in short, can be divided into two parts. Focuses are one thing. Transitions are quite another," or, "... there are three kinds of narrative, transitional, preparatory, and climactic."
And in case you don't immediately know what the heck he means, well, neither did I and I've read the book a couple of times. Yet, after some mulling and reading, it sinks in and makes sense.
Students in the Hamline program know I love talking and thinking about structure. I'd not looked at the Franklin book in years--over a decade, I bet--but I'm amused now to see how much he emphasizes structure. Evidently this first encounter with a writing book left a strong imprint.
Friday, March 18, 2011
The other morning I woke up at 4:30am due to some cat-related kerfuffle, and could not fall back asleep. Finally at 6 I got up and thought I'd read a manuscript I had to work on. I made coffee and toast and went back to my room to discover two of the cats sniffing the remains of a dead mouse under my desk.
Now, I can't read a book or watch a movie where anything bad happens to an animal. I can't handle animals suffering. I'm still emotionally scarred by reading Where the Red Fern Grows--not to mention when a babysitter took me and my brother to that nice cartoon called Animal Farm. I don't like nature, and find the whole Circle-of-Life thing deeply suspect. And I do not like dead animals. Nor potentially eviscerated ones. So I did what any right thinking person would do--dropped the coffee and toast, turned and fled the room, then sat on the couch and contemplated burning the house down.
Eventually, I tried to go back in the room but became certain the cats had drawn and quartered the thing and could not go in. This was a problem as I did have to go out later, and should probably not be dressed in my flannel sock monkey jammies when I did so. And my phone was in the bedroom, meaning I could not call my brother, my parents, 911, or the American embassy. Finally, my little boy woke up and I asked him to go into Mommy's room to get the phone, which he did happily. (Yes, this is true. In my defense, I did feel guilty about it.)
I should be tying this to issues of craft. And when I started writing this, I was thinking about empathy and the writer, about how the same thing that allows us to imagine whole characters can make it hard to be in the world sometimes, or at least to keep one's house free of rodentia. But last night I saw one of the cats staring intently under the oven, and so really I'm just hoping someone will volunteer to come in and take care of this for me.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
When I started posting on The Storyteller’s Inkpot, my daughter also started on her trek with Wilderness Classroom, skiing and dog sledding 800 miles through the Northwest Territories from Norman Wells down to Fort Resolution. They’ve covered a lot of ground since they left Norman Wells, roughly 400 miles. Each day they e-mail a check-in through SPOT, whose slogan is “live to tell the tale,” giving their location and a few statistics. Here’s part of today’s email:
I haven’t been keeping statistics of what I’ve done in those same weeks, but I like the idea. My latitude and longitude seldom change, the highs and lows are less important because I have a house with central heating instead of a tent with a wood stove. So what have I done since they started their trek?
Bad poems 26
Maybe good poems 1
Revisions of stories 2
New stories written 0
Blog postings 7
I won’t be keeping a daily log because I know myself well enough to realize how quickly I’d turn against myself. Only 4000 words today? Not even one epic novel in verse? You’re never gonna make it before ice-out. Better write faster.
But it’s good to turn once in a while and look at where I’ve been and what I’ve done. To know I’m still moving and living to tell the tale.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Anita Silvey's blog is always worth checking out. Today's entry is on The Westing Game, a book I did not discover until I was well into adulthood and which I did not finish reading until I was a professional writing teacher and had to read because it was on a required list. By then, I was ready for it.
I have this reading rule for books that I can't finish when I'm told it's a book I will love:Three strikes and...wait a decade then try once more. The Shipping News is due for its final shot soon.
Do any of you have books the world loves and you did not? 'Fess up now. (And yes, my other one is To Kill a Mockingbird, but that's come up before.)
Saturday, March 12, 2011
I have a picture book out this month. It’s my first one in about three years. A lot has changed in that time. Honestly, I feel a bit Rip Van Winkle. Especially with the marketing biz. So I thought I’d share some of my discoveries with you.
First off, I got a trailer made. Cute. (if you want, you can view it here…) Then I hired a marketing company. Two savvy, smart women who used to work in publishing until, like everyone, they were laid off. They started Blue Slip Media. I highly recommend them if you have a book out and want someone to help market it.
One thing Blue Slip does is get the book to mommy bloggers. No, mommy bloggers are not a group of desperate housewives parading around after their babies are snug in the beds, wielding internet daggers and other such implements. They are not out to get you. In fact, they love books. I mean, they LOVE books, almost as much as they love their babies. And they have big followings (mainly all the other zillions of mommy bloggers). And, get this, they BUY books.
Are reviews in literary journals being replaced by moms (and dads)? It’s a word of mouth system. (word of internet?) It used to be an “in” book with librarians equaled sales. Key being, used to. Now, here come the mommy bloggers. Actually, the mommy bloggers are HERE. They are worth paying attention to.
Friday, March 11, 2011
And I’m reading a lot, hard copy and online. Here’s a quote and a link, both of which stirred the juices again. Can a return to the novel-in-progress be far behind? Here’s hoping.
“All really satisfying stories, I believe, can generally be described as spendthrift…. A spendthrift story has a strange way of seeming bigger than the sum of its parts; it is stuffed full; it gives a sense of possessing further information that could be divulged if called for. Even the sparest in style implies a torrent of additional details barely suppressed, bursting through the seams.” --Anne Tyler
Spendthrift? I wouldn't have used that work, but now I like it. A good children's book is certainly bursting through the seams.
And here's an interview with Alice Munro.
Turn your clocks ahead tomorrow night. Spring forth.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Today the oven doesn’t light,
the dryer timer knob is broken,
the car refuses to shift
into first or reverse unless
the engine is turned off,
and my computer will not recharge.
Lucky for me
they put odor in gas,
I’m fine playing dryer roulette,
there’s nowhere I need to go,
and I have not yet given up my stash
of pen and paper.
Clearly the thing at the top of my list
is to write this poem.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
The Writer's Almanac this past Sunday quoted E.L. Doctorow: "Writing is like driving at night in the fog. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way."
Recently I drove (in daylight) four hundred miles through a snowstorm, not a bad one as winter storms go, not enough to close the highways, but enough wind and snow to obscure the other cars at times and to blow snow onto the passing lane so that I clenched my teeth and the steering wheel whenever I passed a semi. But the trip was worth it to get where I was going, and when I wasn't white-knuckling the steering wheel and the snow parted for a few minutes the scenery was stunning.
A good friend and great writer says she asks herself to write for only ten minutes a day. That's enough to get her started but not so much as to feel overwhelming. Once she's started, she almost always writes on beyond those ten minutes, often for hours.
Fog, snow -- it's all tough driving. Don't think four hundred miles, think passing the next semi. Think ten minutes of writing. Think one scene at a time, one word at a time. Then write.
You'll get there, wherever there is. And you'll be glad you made the trip.
Monday, March 7, 2011
Friday, March 4, 2011
I wonder if Jane Yolen, who has published 7,894,322 books, bounces around when she gets the galley to book number 7,894,323. I like to think so. I've heard writers be so restrained about the things that happen along the way--when an agent asks to see your book, when you sign with an agent, when an editor wants to take the book to acquisitions, when your pretty galleys show up on your doorstep. Well, you never know what's going to happen, they say. And this is true. You don't. So you might as well let yourself enjoy this stuff. All these little moments--a nice mention somewhere, an encouraging rejection-- just let yourself be happy--not for what it might be, but for what it is.
So, my shiny books and I enjoyed a quiet afternoon alone together, and then finally my boy came home from school. "Look!" I said, showing him the pretty stack. "It's my book!" He smiled appreciatively. "Oh, it's very nice!" he said. Then he looked up at me and added, "When are you going to write another book, Mommy?"
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
THE SAILOR’S WORD BOOK, a copy of which sits on my shelf, is crammed full of marvelous terms relating to sailing in 1867 when the book was published. Bran, for example, means to lie under a floe edge, in foggy weather, in a boat in Arctic seas, to watch the approach of whales.
Before I read THE SAILOR’S WORD BOOK, I had never heard the word bran outside of discussions of cereal and roughage. Now I yearn to bran.
In writing, too, terms take on meanings specific to our craft. At the last Hamline MFA residency the faculty discussed how we could create succinct definitions of the most frequent, and sometimes confusing, terms that keep cropping up in our conversations about writing. A few weeks ago when Marsha Q asked what words readers thought we’d do well to define, suggestions included psychic distance, emotional life of a character, and texture. Here are some additional terms I jotted down:
Anything else you’d add?
And by the way, if you perchance are planning on branning, I would love to come along.
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UPS ends grants to Boy Scouts over discrimination
ATLANTA (AP) — The philanthropic arm of shipping giant UPS said it will no longer give money to the Boy Scouts of America as long as the group discriminates against gays, the second major corporation to recently strip funding from the scouts.
The UPS Foundation made the change Thursday after an online petition protesting its annual grants to the Boy Scouts attracted more than 80,000 signatures. UPS, based in Atlanta, follows computer chip maker Intel in withdrawing corporate support for the Boy Scouts.
The UPS Foundation gave more than $85,000 to the Boy Scouts in 2011, according to its federal tax return.
Federal tax returns for 2011 for Intel, the world’s largest chip maker, were not immediately available. Some media reported the Santa Clara, Calif.-based company as giving hundreds of thousands of dollars over the years.
UPS spokeswoman Kristen Petrella said groups applying for the foundation grants will have to adhere to the same standards UPS does by not discriminating against anyone based on race, religion, disability or sexual orientation.
“We promote an environment of diversity and inclusion,” Petrella said Monday. “UPS is a company that does the right things for the right reasons.”
The UPS Foundation distributed $45.3 million in grants last year. Petrella said she was not aware of any other current grant recipients who would be affected by the new policy.
Petrella said the company had been concerned about discrimination by the Boy Scouts before the petition drive.
The Boy Scouts said this summer it was sticking with the divisive, long-standing policy of excluding openly gay youth and adults as members and leaders.
Deron Smith, the director of public relations for the Irving, Texas-based Boy Scouts of America, said the group was disappointed about the decision from UPS. Continued...
“These types of contributions go directly to serving young people in local councils and this decision will negatively impact youth,” Smith said. “Through 110,000 units, scouting represents millions of youth and adult members in diverse communities across the nation, each with a variety of beliefs on this topic.”
UPS and Intel changed course after Zach Wahls, an Eagle Scout and founder of the group Scouts for Equality, began online petitions this fall at Change.org calling for corporations to end their financial support of the Boy Scouts. That call has been echoed by such groups as the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, which has highlighted the case of an Ohio mother barred from volunteering with her son’s Cub Scout pack because she is a lesbian.
“Corporate America gets it better than most: policies that discriminate aren’t simply wrong, they’re bad for business and they’re hurting the scouting community,” Wahls said Monday. “You would think that after all the Boy Scouts have lost as a result of this policy, they would understand that.”
The policy of excluding gays has also come under increased scrutiny within the last month, as thousands of confidential files released as part of a lawsuit show top Boy Scout leaders for decades carefully tracked thousands of scoutmasters and volunteers who sexually abused boys in their care but routinely failed to report those individuals to law enforcement.
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Stephen Frye has covered the police beat and courts for The Oakland Press and now serves as online editor for www.theoaklandpress.com.
Informs on and discusses current matters of legal interest to readers of The Oakland Press and to consumers of legal services in the community.
Caren Gittleman likes talking cats. She'll discuss everything about them. Share your stories and ask her questions about your favorite feline.
Roger Beukema shares news from Lansing that impacts sportsmen (this means ladies as well) and talks about things he finds when he goes overseas to visit his children, and adding your comments into the mix.
Join Jonathan Schechter as he shares thoughts on our natural world in Oakland County and beyond.
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Wednesday, 31 October 2012 10:57
Some major big game hunting changes — including splitting Utah into 30 general deer hunting units — have happened in Utah in the past two years.
Hunters 18 years of age or younger would be guaranteed a chance to hunt buck deer in Utah under an archery permit change the DWR is recommending for 2013.
Photo by Dan Thurgood
2013 should be a lot quieter.
The following are the major changes Division of Wildlife Resources biologists are recommending for Utah's 2013 big game hunts:
If young hunters didn't draw an archery, muzzleloader or rifle deer permit in the big game draw, they could buy a youth general archery deer permit, for the unit of their choice, starting in July.
Anis Aoude, big game coordinator for the DWR, says having youth archery permits would not take opportunities away from adult hunters. "The youth permits would be additional permits offered above the regular archery permit cap," he says.
Youth archery permits were not available in 2012. They were available in 2011, though. About 450 youth took advantage of the opportunity and bought a permit that year.
Aoude says neither unit has great elk habitat. And most of the elk on the two areas are found on private land. "For those reasons," he says, "the units don't give hunters the type of hunting experience most of them want on a limited-entry unit."
Learn more, share your ideas
You can see all of the DWR's big game recommendations in the November RAC agenda (PDF).
After you've reviewed the ideas, you can let your Regional Advisory Council members know your thoughts by attending your upcoming RAC meeting or by sending an email to them.
RAC chairmen will share the input they receive with members of the Utah Wildlife Board. The board will meet in Salt Lake City on Dec. 6 to approve rules for Utah's 2013 big game hunts.
Dates, times and locations for the RAC meetings are as follows:
You can also provide your comments to your RAC via email. Email addresses for your RAC members are available online.
The group each RAC member represents (sportsman, non-consumptive, etc.) is listed under each person's email address. You should direct your email to the people on the RAC who represent your interest.
Beavers in Utah
Building guzzlers in Utah's Newfoundland Mountains
Gila monsters — Creatures of legends and misconceptions
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The good news is the Bush administration plans to fight a provision in the FAA reauthorization bill that would not allow air traffic controllers to be outsourced. An OMB spokesman makes the good point that once you exempt one group from outsourcing, you’re just asking for other groups to stand up and demand exemption. The bad news is the Administration insists, again and again, that it has no plans to outsource air traffic controllers.
The OMB said the outsourcing provision, sponsored by Rep. James Oberstar, D-Minn. could derail the $58 billion bill.
And, of course, no air traffic control article is complete without a reference to Reason’s Bob Poole:
Robert Poole, director of transportation studies at the Reason Foundation, a Los-Angeles based think tank, said some Bush officials remain interested in turning air traffic control operations over to a nonprofit entity, or creating a government corporation supported by user fees to handle the work. The Oberstar provision would bar these options, including the government corporation model, which was supported by the Clinton administration, according to Poole.
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Athletic shoes are a type of footwear designed to provide extra support and cushion while performing physical or sporting activities such as basketball, tennis, running, and wallking. athletic shoes are made of soft flexible materials with well cushioned soles, which are generally made of rubber. Due to their comfort and appealing designs, athletic shoes have been recently marketed also as a lifestyle, trendy footwear for casual use.
Now your kids can sport the same cool kicks as
the avid runners in your family! This best seller is a small version of the celebrated 990 heritage running shoe, offering children the same durable comfort with which NB ...
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Our Tanzania Photo Safari was scheduled to coincide with the wildebeest (gnu) migration in the southern Serengeti, and this year we saw more gnus than ever before. Approximately 2 million animals make up the herds that range from Tanzania's Serengeti to Kenya's Masai Mara but it is impossible to know exactly how many animals are present at any one time -- as you are viewing the animals from ground-level. This year, on one day near the Lake Ndutu area, we were in a herd that stretched, quite literally, as far as the eye could see. With my 18X binoculars a distant landmark hilltop, Mtiti, had gnus up to its base, while in the opposite direction gnus extended to the horizon.
I mention this because it is thought that there may have been 50 million bison in our American west, with some authors suggesting that there may have been 200 million. Imagine what a sight that must have been. Imagine the carnage we executed in the 1850's through the 1870's in eliminating those herds. When you are amidst a portion of a herd of 2 million, and animals seem endless, it's a somewhat sad thought to consider.
Normally, in late January through mid-February the gnus are giving birth, a strategy devised so that the vulnerable young flood the plains with so many young that predators are simply overwhelmed. In this way, within hours after birth the young wildebeest that avoided predation have an excellent chance of survival. If babies were available year-round, predators could simply concentrate upon the young, and the survival rate would be far reduced. Gnus have the ability to put off their births by a few weeks if environmental conditions are not perfect, and this year, in the Serengeti, that's exactly what happened. We saw only a dozen or so newborn babies in our 9 days in the southern Serengeti, which would have been disasterous had we not lucked out with the best wildebeest birthing we'd ever filmed ... on the start of our trip, on the first full day on safari, in Ngorongoro Crater.
We'd spotted a female with the tell-tale white hooves of a baby sprouting out her back end, and the bulbous sack of amnionic fluid that resembles a white balloon that's visible from quite a distance. The female was part of a small herd that was grazing along the roadside and, as is typical of gnus in the Ngorongoro Crater, the animals are oblivious to nearby vehicles. Several times over the course of less than two hours the female teased us by appearing to move off -- in the Crater you cannot drive off road, but each time the female resettled and, eventually, lay down within 300-400mm range of the road. As we watched, another female began birthing, and within minutes of one another both gave birth.
Typically gnus birth in one of two ways. Sometimes a female will deliver whileon her feet, spinning in a circle that seems to propel the baby from her body as she moves. Other females are more traditional, birthing while lying down. We had both versions, in short grass, on this first morning, and I can't imagine ever having a better opportunity to photograph a birthing sequence. Day One, our first full day, and our mission -- to photograph the birthing of the wildebeest was accomplished.
As the report headlines indicated, we did extremely well with lions -- having 212 sightings during the two week trip. This number does not represent 212 different lions but 212 different sightings, where we might see the same pride on different days, offering different photo opportunities. Probably the best of these for me was when a small pride, dominated by a beautiful blond-maned male we called 'Lance, the surfer', slunk away from their resting spot in the grasses when some tourists exited their vehicle. As strange as it may seem, lions are often disturbed and frightened when they see people on foot, and this pride showed this behavior as they slipped away. Fortunately, though, after moving off fifty yards or so the pride turned around to inspect the intruders, and their posture, head position, and intensity was just like that which a lion adapts when it is hunting. The looks were intense, and we were directly in front of the cats as they stared. Magnificient shots -- backlighted by a mid-morning sun.
While we had seen plenty of gnu births over the years (although never filming this satisfactorily), we had never seen a Thompson gazelle birth. Thompson gazelles are the most abundant of the grassland antelopes and we've often seen tiny babies, in some cases even just minutes after birth. But we always missed the actual birthing ... until now.
Just along the roadside we spotted a female lying on her side, in just a slightly different pose than normal. We stopped, glassed her, and saw that a baby was just emerging. The female showed no concern and we stopped, within 600mm range, and called in by radio two of our other vehicles. The birth went smoothly, just a simple slide out, and within minutes the baby was attempting to rise to its feet, falling repeatedly as it did so. While we'd wanted to film a birth, and did, the real show was the minutes afterward, when the baby gained its footing and the female groomed and licked and, eventually, nursed the newborn. It was simply wonderful.
One of the most interesting observations of this trip involved a male baboon and a cheetah. The cheetah had been resting in long grass, close to the line of travel of a lone male baboon that had crossed the grasslands. Baboons are bold, powerful animals that have little to fear from cheetahs, but a lone baboon, in high grass, might be ambushed by a leopard, and could easily be killed by a lion. We were surprised to see the animal alone. As it neared a kopji, the granite boulder islands that dot the Serengeti plains, the baboon spotted the cheetah. Repeatedly the baboon would stand upright on its hind legs to watch the cheetah, but it made no effort to get too close. The cheetah stayed low, snarling its displeasure, and the two remained in this standoff for several minutes until the cheetah lost its nerve and turned to slink off. As soon as it broke its stare the baboon charged, and everyone watching was amazed at the incredible speed, and boldness, exhibited as the baboon gave chase. The cheetah ran off, eventually outdistancing the baboon and ending at another kopji perch about 1/2 mile from the encounter. There, with her attention directed at the distant baboon, we had some of our best shooting opportunities of a cheetah on a kopji.
Another great cheetah encounter involved a mother with young cubs that had captured a Thompson baby. Apparently the cubs were well fed because they showed almost no interest in the kill, feeding sporadically but putting on quite a show as they moved about in the grass. In all we had 31 cheetahs on the trip, 3 leopards, and 1 serval.
Because of the lateness of the birthing, our trip ended just as we presumed the birthing was about to erupt en force. But we were wrong. Another photographer friend arrived on the day we were leaving, and not only did the gnus not give birth, but they also moved out of the Ndutu area and were quite scarce for the duration of his safari. When we returned to Nairobi we learned that the gnus had moved to a location where we'd normally expect to find them during June and July, and there the birthings took place. Fortunately, though, we had our gnu birth 'in the can,' so we had been free to concentrate upon other subjects.
As it turned out, the Serengeti became even drier after we left, and Lake Ndutu -- near the site of our camp, was quite low. On our last full day we filmed at ground level the herds of gnus and zebras as they crossed the shoreline of Ndutu. The animals' legs distorted in shimmering waves from heat-disturbed air close to the caked mud surface. Days after we left the lake nearly dried up and temperatures exceeded 100 degrees, so we got out just as the weather, and herds, turned for the worse. Fortunately we departed from the Serengeti before the temperatures really rose, which they subsequently did.
Above, top row: Sunrise on the Serengeti near Ndutu; Common zebras fighting, and a flap-necked chameleon on a stroll. Above, second row: Bull elephant with a 24mm in Ngorongoro Crater, a kori bustard in full breeding display, and a pair of lions in play.
Almost everyone was shooting digital (2 of 12 were not) and most afternoons, if we were in camp, were spent in our charging-downloading tent where we shared images, edited, and recharged. Whatever happened to the days when one could nap during a break, or spend an afternoon reading? Welcome to the age of digital!
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Pharaoh finally sends Bnei Yisrael out of Egypt. With pillars of cloud and fire, G-d leads them toward Eretz Yisrael on a circuitous route, avoiding the Pelishtim (Philistines). Pharaoh regrets the loss of so many slaves and chases the Jews with his army. The Jews are very afraid as the Egyptians draw close, but G-d protects them. Moshe raises his staff and G-d splits the sea, enabling the Jews to cross safely. Pharaoh, his heart hardened by G-d, commands his army to pursue, whereupon the waters crash down upon the Egyptian army. Moshe and Miriam lead the men and women, respectively, in a song of thanks. After three days' travel only to find bitter waters at Marah, the people complain. Moshe miraculously produces potable water. In Marah they receive certain mitzvot. The people complain that they ate better food in Egypt. G-d sends quail for meat and provides manna, a miraculous bread that falls from the sky every day except Shabbat. On Friday a double portion descends to supply the Shabbat needs. No one is able to obtain more than his daily portion, but manna collected on Friday suffices for two days so the Jews can rest on Shabbat. Some manna is set aside as a memorial for future generations. When the Jews again complain about a lack of water, Moshe miraculously produces water from a rock. Then Amalek attacks. Joshua leads the Jews in battle while Moshe prays for their welfare.
Going with the flow
“...and G-d churned Egypt in the midst of the sea” (14:28)
Society has no truer mirror than its advertising.
What motivates people to put their hands in their pockets and pull out their hard-earned cash must appeal to their innermost desires. And what someone wants, what he truly desires — is who he is.
Think for a moment of all those car ads filmed in the desert. There’s no one for fifty miles in any direction. Climb behind the wheel and you can go wherever you want, whenever you want. You can be whatever you want. Think of all those ads for get-away-from-it-all vacations (whatever the dreaded “it” might be). They all express the same ideal: the commitment to being uncommitted, the freedom to do what I want when I want, and to change what I want from one moment to the next.
Society pays lip service to the ideals of commitment, stability and fidelity. Advertising, however, gives the lie to that sanctimony, and reveals that society’s real aspiration is to be free to “go with the flow”.
Unfortunately, modern man finds his flow severely restricted. At every turn he is encumbered by commitments: a home, a wife, children, a mortgage, a second mortgage, a second wife. What he would really like to do is take off and travel the world with a credit card and unlimited credit — to follow any, or all, of a myriad of possibilities. The fact that he tolerates responsibility doesn’t mean that he has accepted a specific form and purpose to his life. He’d really like to be somewhere else, anywhere else, everywhere else. From where does this ideology of irresponsibility come? Is this desire for constant change a new phenomenon, or does it have its roots in something much more ancient?
Everything in this world is a combination of matter and form. By definition, matter has no form. It is capable of assuming an infinite number of forms, of shapes. In a world that is all matter, everything is possible. Nothing is fixed. The epitome of matter is water. Water always takes the form of its container. Itself, it has no shape, no form. For that reason the Hebrew word for “water,” mayim, is a plural noun. There is nothing singular about the shape of water. Water, in the “shape” of the Nile, was both the idolatry of the Egyptians, and in this week’s Torah portion, its ultimate demise — for if ever there was a culture that was dedicated to “going with the flow,” it was Egypt. Egypt was an entire society dedicated to the pursuit of infinite variety and potential. By definition, such a society is incapable of, and scorns, marital fidelity.
At the Friday night meal, welcoming the Shabbat Queen, a Jewish husband sings to his wife, his ‘queen’, the closing verses of King Solomon’s Proverbs, eishet chayil… “a woman of valor…” In direct contrast, Egypt represented the “eishet zenunim” — the unfaithful wife, the antithesis of King Solomon’s eishet chayil. Egypt was the faithless spouse who seeks constantly a new partner, a new form. Inconstant as water, she wants to “go with the flow”.
The Jewish home aspires to the ultimate triumph of matter that is forever faithful. It aspires to be like the eishet chayil, the woman of valor, who is able to concretize incessant potential and give it unchanging stability.
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More New and Used
from Private Sellers
In Stock Usually Ships in 24 Hours.
Usually Ships in 3-5 Business Days
Questions About This Book?
Why should I rent this book?
Renting is easy, fast, and cheap! Renting from eCampus.com can save you hundreds of dollars compared to the cost of new or used books each semester. At the end of the semester, simply ship the book back to us with a free UPS shipping label! No need to worry about selling it back.
How do rental returns work?
Returning books is as easy as possible. As your rental due date approaches, we will email you several courtesy reminders. When you are ready to return, you can print a free UPS shipping label from our website at any time. Then, just return the book to your UPS driver or any staffed UPS location. You can even use the same box we shipped it in!
What version or edition is this?
This is the Reprint edition with a publication date of 4/23/2010.
What is included with this book?
- The New copy of this book will include any supplemental materials advertised. Please check the title of the book to determine if it should include any CDs, lab manuals, study guides, etc.
- The Used copy of this book is not guaranteed to inclue any supplemental materials. Typically, only the book itself is included.
- The Rental copy of this book is not guaranteed to include any supplemental materials. You may receive a brand new copy, but typically, only the book itself.
Winner of the National Book Award for Young People's Literature, "Parrot in the Oven, " tells the story of a Mexican-American boy's coming of age in the face of poverty, abuse, and cultural discrimination. "A rare and consummately believable portrait of barrio life."--"Publisher's Weekly."
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Young Toddlers (1 – 2 Years)
Young toddlers like to explore. They’re active and curious and love to learn new words and phrases. They want to know how everything works. Young toddlers can also understand far more words than they can say – this can make communicating wants and needs frustrating.
Development with Legs
During this time your young toddler will learn to:
- Stand on his/her own.
- Pretend play.
- Walk and run.
- Repeat words and short phrases.
- Follow simple, one step directions.
- String together a few words, such as “All gone.”
- Assert independence by saying “No!”
- Enjoy music and dancing.
How You Can Help
Here are some things you can do to help your young toddler develop early literacy skills:
- Find slightly longer stories to enjoy.
- Point to a simple object in a picture and have your toddler tell you what it is.
- Sing songs, recite action rhymes, and do fingerplays.
- Find a special low place for your toddler’s books that he or she can easily access.
- Frequently let your toddler pick which books to read.
- Read books with simple rhymes or repetitive text.
- Read books of different sizes – from little books your toddler can carry all the way to big books as tall as your toddler.
- Read books about animals, books about saying hello and goodbye and other simple opposites and bedtime books at night.
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CTM.08 – Unpredictable
Festival for Adventurous Music and Related Visual Arts
Generator.x 2.0: Beyond the Screen
24 Jan - 2 Feb 2008, Ballhaus Naunynstrasse / [DAM] Berlin
Workshop / Exhibition / Performance
Leander Herzog: thePhysicalVertexBuffer
Generator.x in collaboration with Club Transmediale and [DAM] presents Generator.x 2.0: Beyond the screen, a workshop and exhibition about digital fabrication and generative systems.
Digital fabrication (also known as “fabbing”) represents the next step in the digital revolution. After years of virtualization, with machines and atoms being replaced by bits and software, we are coming full circle. Digital technologies like rapid prototyping, laser cutting and CNC milling now produce atoms from bits, eliminating many of the limitations of industrial production processes. Once prohibitively expensive, such technologies are becoming increasingly accessible, pointing to a future where mass customization and manufacturing-on-demand may be real alternatives to mass production.
For artists and designers working with generative systems, digital fabrication opens the door to a range of new expressions beyond the limits of virtual space. Parametric models apply computational strategies to the analysis and synthesis of space, producing structures and surfaces of great complexity. Through fabbing these forms may be rendered tangible, even tactile.
"Beyond the screen" explores these new types of spatial constructs in a hands-on workshop, bringing together artists and designers working with code-based strategies for producing physical form. The workshop will feature public presentations bringing the topics of the workshop to a broader audience, culminating in an exhibition of fabbing works at the [DAM] gallery. In a continuation of the Generator.x concert tour, "Beyond the Screen" will also include an evening of concerts, showing the use of generative systems in audiovisual performance.
Jared Tarbell: Spheroids and cubes
We are looking for 15 artists, designers and architects who have an existing practice based on generative systems and custom software, and who are interested in investigating physical formats through digital fabrication. The workshop will be practical in nature, and will produce a selection of works that will be included in the exhibition at [DAM]. Participants will have access to an on-site laser cutter, and an introduction to this technology will be part of the workshop.
The workshop is free of charge, but we will not be able to provide support for travel or accomodation. Participants are expected to have experience with programming software that will allow them to produce work suitable for production, such as Processing, VVVV or any other system capable of producing vector output. Previous experience with laser cutting or digital fabrication technologies is a bonus, but not a requirement.
Applications must be in PDF format and should including a CV and a short statement of intent, describing why you want to participate in the workshop and how fabbing relates to your existing practice. You should include a maximum of 5 images of relevant work, with a total file size of 2 megabytes. Feel free to provide links to web sites containing documentation such as videos or downloadable software, but please don’t send such content by email.
Please submit applications by email to generatorx [at] clubtransmediale.de. The deadline for application is December 21, 2007, accepted participants will be notified at the beginning of January 2008.
Theverymany (Fornes / Tibbits): Tesselated panels
Generator.x is a platform for generative strategies in art and design, founded in 2005 to produce the conference Generator.x: Art from Code at Atelier Nord in Oslo. Other events have included a travelling exhibition as well as a series of audiovisual concerts. The Generator.x blog promotes code-based work of an experimental nature, bringing a critical discourse to the field of generative art.
Club Transmediale 2008 is the 9th edition of this international festival for adventurous music and realted visual arts, and takes place in Berlin under the theme “Unpredictable” concurrently and cooperatively with the transmediale international festival for art and digital culture. It is a prominent festival dedicated to contemporary electronic, digital and experimental music, as well as the diverse range of artistic activities in the context of sound and club culture.
Characterised by the title Unpredictable, the 2008 festival investigates artistic concepts that imply the surprising and unforeseeable, accidents, mistakes and coincidences as a means to alter the dynamics of creative processes and to discover new aesthetic forms.
[DAM] Berlin has since its opening 2003 been a leader in the field of digital art, showing pioneers of new media as well as emerging contemporary artists.
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Pulmuone is one of the world’s leading providers of fresh, natural, food products and is a large exporter to the U.S. Its product range includes noodles, tofu, dumplings, and soups.
Benco Pack, a division of Sacmi, custom designed a solution for the unique requirements of Pulmuone. It culminated in a fully aseptic packaging line that is highly automated and offers increased efficiency, ease of operation, and reduced packaging costs.
The horizontal aseptic machine uses a three-step packaging and filling process. Containers are thermoformed starting from a roll of multi-layer barrier film (PP/EVOH/PP), filled with the soup product, closed by application of a heat-sealed lidding material, and then cut to the desired configuration. The machine produces 6,000 250- or 500-g soup cups/hr and is pre-sterilized and maintained in sterile conditions by steam and hydrogen peroxide sprays. The packaging materials are sterilized and the process occurs inside a tunnel with an overpressure of sterile air.
Due to the aseptic packaging technology, the cups do not need to be distributed via cold chain. The technology has now extended the shelf life of the soup products to 60 days, while stored and distributed at ambient temperature.
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When was the last time you looked at your Downloads folder? More importantly, when was the last time you cleaned it out? Unless you have reconfigured settings in both Mail and Safari, as well as some other applications, any file that you download gets put into the Downloads folder. I recommend that all users regularly review the contents of their Downloads folder. Move files that you want to keep into another folder and delete files you no longer need.
As a Mac consultant, I regularly find Download folders with hundreds and sometimes thousands of files in them. When an email attachment arrives in Mail it is connected to a specific email message. Each time you double-click that file to open it, a new copy is added to your Downloads folder. Thus, I often see 3, 4, 5 or more copies of the same file in a person’s Downloads folder. Many people also get confused when trying to install applications such as Adobe Flash. They manage to download the installer, but they don’t know that they need to go to the Downloads folder, open the installer and follow its prompts to actually install the application. Then, a few days later they are again notified that Flash still needs to be updated and they dutifully download yet another copy of the installer. Consequently, it’s easy to understand how and why the Downloads folder accumulates large numbers of files. (Note: Once an application or application update has been installed then the installer located in the Downloads folder can be deleted.)
I try to keep my Downloads folder or close to empty. I just checked and there are 29 items in it currently, most of those from the past few weeks. So the next time you are procrastinating on an important work project, go clean out your Downloads folder. At least you can feel good about doing that task!
How to find your Downloads folder
- Click on the Finder icon on your Dock. This will open a Finder window.
- On the left-hand Sidebar, the Downloads folder is typically listed, though you could have removed it from the Sidebar.
- If it’s not on your Sidebar then you can click on the Go menu, at the top of your screen, and select Downloads. (You’ll only find Downloads listed in the Go menu if you have Mac OS X 10.6 or higher.)
- This method will work on all Macs running Mac OS X 10.2 or above.
- Click on the Finder icon on your Dock.
- Click on the Go menu, at the top of your screen, and select Go To Folder.
- In the window that appears type in ~/Downloads. Use the picture below as a guide.
Clean Up Guidance
Once you’re in your Downloads folder, here’s some guidance on how to clean it up.
- Click on the View menu and select As List.
- You’ll now see the contents of the Download folder listed with lots of detail.
- Look at the column headers such as Name, Date Modified, Size and Kind. One of these column headers will be shaded blue. (See image below.) This indicates that you’re sorting the Downloads folder by that Column.
- I recommend that you click on the Size column header to find the files taking up the largest amount of space. Save or delete these big files to free up storage space.
- Next, sort the Downloads folder by Kind. Now the files are grouped by type. This allows you to easily select all of the jpeg files, for example, and drag them into iPhoto to add a copy to iPhoto, then delete them from the Downloads folder. Or you could easily review all of your Word and Excel documents and file or delete as needed. Most likely you’ll see many files whose kind is Disk Image. Disk Images are most commonly application installers. If you’ve successfully installed a given application, you can delete its disk image.
- Some people also like to sort the Downloads folder by Name, Date Added, Date Created or Date Modified to help them weed through all of the files.
If your Downloads folder doesn’t list all of the date-related columns, go to the View menu and select View Options to see which are available to you. Apple has added some of these in OS X 10.6 and 10.7, so you may not have all of them.
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The overall objective of the project is to develop new production strategies for the forest-based industry based on industrial high-speed computed tomography (CT) scanning.
The scientific objective is to show that it is possible to extract important and detailed information from a log scanned with a specifically developed industrial high speed CT scanner, and also to utilize this information in a production strategy that creates higher value in the forest-based value chain.
The technological objective is to show that it is possible to CT scan saw logs at high speed, i.e. up to 2 m/s, and thereby generate detailed information of the inner properties of an individual saw log. It is also important to show how this information can be utilized from a forest industry perspective.
The hypothesis is that efficiency, customer adaptation and value creation can be improved by a production strategy that is based on detailed knowledge about the individual saw log. The goal is to develop strategies and tools that give 10% higher value in the wood production chain. This includes an industrial high-speed CT scanner prototype and algorithms for automatic analysis of data from such a scanner. By reaching these goals, the project contributes to a transformation of the forest-based industry from resource intensive to value-added knowledge intensive.
The project is broken down into 11 work packages. The aim is to clarify the different goals and match these goals against the expertise in the partner consortium. Four of the work packages are focused on prototype development (lead by MiCROTEC, SP Trätek and TCN), while five work packages have the goal of developing algorithms and strategies for maximal utilization of the information from an industrial high-speed CT scanner (lead by FVA, LTU and SP Trätek). The two other work packages are focused at project management (SP Trätek) and dissemination (FVA).
The project aims at developing new production strategies based on industrial high-speed CT scanning. The idea is that CT scanning gives detailed information about the properties of the individual saw log. Based on this detailed information it is possible to adapt the production at an early stage to customer requirements, i.e. already in the log yard of a sawmill. It would also be possible to increase the flexibility of the production system by taking the decision in the saw line and thereby decreasing the time from custom order to delivered product. This makes the project highly relevant for forest industry. The project also has an important environmental impact since it focuses on more efficient raw material utilization.
The project consortium includes a leading manufacturer of measurement and process control technology for the wood industry, together with forest industries from both Sweden and Germany. This will make the exploitation of the results a natural step after, and in parallel to, the project. The project consortium includes two sawmill companies from Sweden and Germany and 45 forest products companies, many of them SME:s, that will follow the project through TCN. This network guarantees that project results reach the industry with a minimum delay.
The scientific results from the project will be published in scientific journals, presented at scientific conferences and also be the base for doctoral theses
Adj. Professor Johan Oja
SP Trätek, SP Technical Research Institute of Sweden,
SKERIA 2, 931 77 Skellefteå, Sweden
+46 (0)10 516 6237, firstname.lastname@example.org
Forest Research Institute of Baden-Württemberg, Wonnhaldestr. 4, D-79100, Freiburg, Germany
Luleå University of Technology,
Forskargatan 1, 931 87 Skellefteå, Sweden
MiCROTEC GmbH – srl, J. Durst 98, 39042, Brixen, Italy
Träcentrum Norr, LTU Skellefteå,
931 87 Skellefteå, Sweden
Dold Holzwerke GmbH, Talstraße 9,
D-79256, Buchenbach, Germany
SCA Timber AB,
S-852 34, Sundsvall, Sweden
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Disasters quadruple over last 20 years: Oxfam
LONDON (Reuters) - Weather-related disasters have quadrupled over the last two decades, a leading British charity said in a report published on Sunday.
From an average of 120 disasters a year in the early 1980s, there are now as many as 500, with Oxfam attributing the rise to unpredictable weather conditions cause by global warming.
"This year we have seen floods in South Asia, across the breadth of Africa and Mexico that have affected more than 250 million people," said Oxfam's director Barbara Stocking.
"This is no freak year. It follows a pattern of more frequent, more erratic, more unpredictable and more extreme weather events that are affecting more people.
The number of people affected by disasters has risen by 68 percent, from an average of 174 million a year between 1985 to 1994 to 254 million a year between 1995 to 2004.
"Action is needed now to prepare for more disasters otherwise humanitarian assistance will be overwhelmed and recent advances in human development will go into reverse," Stocking said.
Oxfam wants the UN conference on Climate Change in Bali in December to agree a mandate to negotiate a global deal to provide assistance to developing countries to cope with the impacts of climate change and reduce green house gas emissions.
(Reporting by John Sinnott, Editing by Elizabeth Piper)
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VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – RCMP are facing more complaints of police misconduct, after the release of a report looking at northern BC’s infamous Highway of Tears.
An international human rights watchdog is drawing attention to the issue with its Human Rights Watch report.
The group Justice for Girls set the wheels in motion by alerting Human Rights Watch to what it calls human rights violations against Aboriginal girls in Northern BC. Asia Czapska with Justice for Girls says people fear lodging complaints about police.
“This is why it was very necessary for someone from the outside or a well-respected international organization to come in and try and shed some light on what is going on in British Columbia,” says Czapska.
The result is a series of complaints about police misconduct – everything from abusive policing to physical and sexual abuse.
RCMP are asking for people to come forward. But Samer Muscati with Human Rights Watch says people are afraid.
“Given that there has been such a lack of accountability for police abuse in the past, it makes sense that girls are afraid to speak out because they’re already vulnerable,” he says.
RCMP say they’ve been asking for months to have the complaints be brought forward, with no success.
Opposition looks to Harper for action
The Opposition is demanding an independent probe into the claims of abuse.
New Democrat MP Niki Ashton says the Harper government should act in response to a report from the group Human Rights Watch. “It’s been years since there’s been a national inquiry, and yet again today in the house, even after an international organization’s report is calling for them to do so. They have refuse to take action and implement a national inquiry.”
Prime Minister Stephen Harper has called on Human Rights Watch to share information with police about their allegations.
“In recent times we’ve been very successful investigating cases that have been brought forward. It was really difficult to get a handle on the scope of the problem without having that information,” says Janice Armstrong with the RCMP.
She says there are no plans for a full-scale inquiry.
The report has moved the federal Liberals into action. The party says it will use a rare opportunity in the House of Commons to bring forward a motion tomorrow for an investigation into missing and murdered women across Canada.
The Grits say the Tories have ignored calls for a full public inquiry.
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|
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| 0.960065
| 514
| 1.523438
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"You can't judge a book by it's cover." Well, that's somewhat true. I've always thought that romance novel covers pretty much told the whole story, and I'm more than happy to judge there. But there are times when a cover can be very cleverly deceiving. Sometimes our own covers are pretty yet hide a lot of nothing. I was reminded of this last week when we saw the new movie version of The Great Gatsby, and I can't stop thinking of it. It's probably what makes the story so enduring.
I've always loved F. Scott Fitzgerald's novels, although ironically enough Gatsby is not my personal favorite. The total sadness and emptiness of living for an ideal - often in the moment - though, streams throughout all his books. It's said that authors write what they know. For Fitzgerald, this is sadly true. He and his wife, Zelda, drank their money away - what they had, anyway - and fell into a ruinous relationship and a tragic end.
It's so easy for us today, as back in the jazz age, to keep reaching for the lives we wish we had, even if that means squandering our money, our time, and our health. We may not even realize what we're doing except in rare moments when we come face to face with our reflections and wonder how we got so lost. The characters in Fitzgerald's books - sometimes they knew, and cared. Sometimes they knew and didn't care.
In the jazz age, people chased or drowned their ideals by drinking, spending, and partying, by getting mixed up in the wrong crowds. Today we still chase or drown our ideals by wasting time on social media, by comparing our lives to others, by spending more than we have on something simply because "so and so has it so it must be necessary" (iproducts, anyone?). We all can look pretty on the surface. The '20s were a beautiful moment when art, fashion, music, and architecture collided. It's one of my favorite eras for dress, music, cocktails, art, literature, and architecture. But it was a cover that hid a lot of emptiness.
I'm not saying we should give up on ideals or dreams. I'm not saying we can't admire each other or different eras or beautifully made movies. I'm not saying that the world of art and beauty has no joy or place. I'm saying look deeper, at what fuels you. Where does your time go? What about your energy? Do you spend it making a life that truly reflects who you are and who you want to be? What kind of cover do you have? Does it start to tell the real story? Please don't be a beautiful yet vapid, selfish Daisy, turned here and there by suggestion, and please don't be a handsome, rich, yet lonely, desperate Jay, chasing a dream that everyone else can see is doomed. Be a man or a woman of substance, with dreams tempered in love and reality, with an uplifting story.. Make your cover gorgeous - but only because it's a taste of what lies deeper within.
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Second Chinese shale auction due
More than 70 companies have expressed interest in participating in a Chinese shale gas tender, a third of which are private enterprises, according to reports.
Zhang Dawei, head of oil and gas strategy centre of the Ministry of Land and Resources, Foreign firms will be excluded from the auction, Reuters reported.
China awarded two out of four blocks offered in its first shale gas tender in June last year to China Petroleum & Chemical Corp (Sinopec) and a provincial coal seam gas company.
Shale gas development is still at the early stage in China, where technically recoverable reserves of the unconventional fuel are estimated to be even higher than in the US.
The National Energy Administration, targets to produce 6.5 billion cubic metres (bcm) of shale gas by 2015, or roughly 6 per cent of China's current total gas production.
It intends to dramatically boost output to 60-100 bcm in 2020, a level some experts say is over-ambitious as it faces technological, environmental and regulatory roadblocks.
China, the world's largest energy user, has said it wanted to draw more private investment into its energy sector as part of a plan to fast-track infrastructure investment to shore up economic growth.
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John Keiling (active 1720), Known as 'Blind Jack'; played the flegeolet with his nose
Sitter associated with 1 portrait
After losing his sight John Keiling, known as Blind Jack, ensured his livelihood by learning to play the flageolet. He conceived the notion that by playing on the instrument in a novel way to that generally practised, he should render himself more noticed by the public, and be able to levy larger contributions on their pockets. The manner of Blind Jack's playing the flageolet was by obtruding the mouth-piece of the instrument up one of his nostrils, through practice he could produce as much wind as most others with their lips into the pipe but the continued contortion and gesticulation of his muscles and countenance rendered him an object of derision and disgust, as much as that of charity and commiseration.
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Introduction to Canning
Growing your own fruits and vegetables is one of the most rewarding parts of gardening. However, the “fruits” of your labor can be short-lived if you do not properly preserve your harvest. When the proper methods are used, at-home canning will help preserve your fruits and vegetables for up to one year, allowing you to feed your family nutritious, home-grown fruits and vegetables year-round. Canning also allows you to save a significant amount of money on your yearly groceries. Even if you buy your produce from a farmers market or grocery store rather than growing it yourself, in-season fresh produce will be better quality and less expensive than purchasing the same produce in the off-season.
While methods vary, the basic canning process includes preparing the produce, packing it into cans, closing the cans with a canning lid and ring, and heating the cans for a predetermined amount of time. Canning is an effective method of food preservation because it uses high heat to remove destructive microorganisms and create a vacuum seal. Microorganisms include mold, yeast, and bacteria. The vacuum, once sealed, prevents any of these materials from re-entering the can until it is opened (at which point, microorganisms are re-introduced and the food should be prepared and eaten within a few days). There are three basic principles that must be followed when you preserve fruits and vegetables using home canning.
Basic Principles of Canning
- Start with high quality produce.
- Always follow canning recipes exactly.
- Timing is everything.
Start with high quality produce.
The quality of the food you can will determine its quality when you open the can. Fruits and vegetables should be canned within a day of being harvested. When you are unable to can your produce right away, store it somewhere cool, dry and shaded. Never use fruit or vegetables that have been damaged by bugs, disease, bruising or over-ripening. These factors allow bacteria, mold and yeast that start on the surface to penetrate into the center and multiply, at which point they may not be killed by normal canning methods.
Always follow canning recipes exactly.
The number one concern when canning should be safety. Unlike conventional cooking, canning recipes must be followed exactly to ensure the safety of the food. Canning incorrectly can provide the perfect conditions to produce botulism, a deadly form of food poisoning. For this reason, it is extremely important that you follow canning recipes exactly and do not deviate from them. This means using produce that is in peak condition, slicing, dicing, or peeling the produce according to the recipe, and using the correct canning method (pressure vs. boiling), jar size, and processing time for your altitude.
There are two types of canners: pressure canners and boiling water canners. Boiling water canners can only be used with highly acidic foods. At up to 1,000 feet above sea level, water boils at 212 degrees Fahrenheit, which provides sufficient heat for foods or mixtures that have a pH below 4.6 (acidic foods). For low-acid foods or combinations at or above a pH of 4.6, 212 degrees is not sufficient to kill the bacteria, mold and yeast present. A pressure canner must be used, which will reach a temperature of 240 degrees at a pressure of 10 pounds. Each canning recipe will specify pounds of pressure and time needed.
Since there is less barometric pressure at higher altitudes, water boils at lower temperatures. This is why cooking times are often adjusted for high altitude locations, and why you must incorporate altitude into your canning time calculations. If you live 1,000 feet or less above sea level, standard recipes using a boiling point of 212 degrees Fahrenheit will be correct. If you live more than 1,000 feet above sea level, processing time will be adjusted. The specific adjustments are laid out for you in canning recipes.
The Ball Blue Book® Guide to Preserving (644-3209) is essential to the success of your canning project. It features hundreds of canning, freezing and dehydrating recipes along with tips and practices to make sure your preserving project comes out right every time.
Timing is everything.
When it comes to canning, timing is everything. From when you harvest, to preparing your produce, to heating your canner, to processing each can, timing must be exact and one step must flow seamlessly into the next. For this reason, it is important that you read each recipe carefully before you begin and have all the necessary supplies ready. Only prepare as much produce as you will be able to can at once, and work through a complete canning cycle from start to finish before you start the next cycle.
Now that you know the basics of canning, pick up a copy of the Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving and find out more about the processes you can use to create delicious, nutritious canned fruit and vegetables for your family.
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Sitting quietly on the sparkling gold sand of Bucerias Beach in Mexico, I’m mesmerized by two young men bouncing off and twisting above the water with a small board attached to their bobbing feet while gripping an apparatus connected to a sail above them. The two young men, one fair and one dark, both speaking fluent Spanish, looked to be simultaneously challenging and instructing each other.
It was looked like dancing on water. Graceful and powerful. At the time, I didn’t know the name of the sport, but it was so captivating that I decided to investigate. (Many of you probably already know what it is.)
The sport is called kiteboarding or kitesurfing and it’s an extreme water sport, not for the faint hearted. Basically, this is how it works: A kitesurfer or kiteboarder slips his feet into the bindings or straps of a small surfboard while holding onto grips of a navigation bar attached to a large kite or sail that pushes and pulls the rider across the ocean surface. Skilled kiteboarders do more than just propel across the water, demonstrating jumps and spins to show off their talent.
Kiteboarding Competition (Kitesurfing Race)
On May 21 – 22 2011, a kiteboarding competition was held in Bucerias, Mexico, where some of these talented young athletes were able to show off their techniques and maneuvers. The second annual Wind Festival 2011 (Festival Del Viento) is a freestyle race and tournament aimed to promote kiteboarding and the town of Bucerias as an ideal location for wind sports for its fantastic wind conditions. In windy season, from January through June, it’s common to have excellent kiteboarding conditions up to 5 days a week.
Freestyle is the most common style of kiteboarding so the race and tournament highlights this form although there are a few others. Freestyle uses a standard kite and board, whereas wake-style uses a flatter board with bindings, and wave-riding uses a special board for riding the bigger waves. Variations of these styles have evolved to include freeride, jumping, and cruising.
Kiteboarders – 132 – from across Mexico gathered for this event. The tournament consisted of 3 freestyle categories so all skill levels could participate. One category was called Open Class for intermediate level; another was identified as National Competition for advanced levels; and the third was the Women’s Division for female kiteboarders. For those wanting to participate but not wanting to compete in the freestyle tournament, the event also included downwinder and long distance races.
As a leading kiteboarding destination in Mexico, if kiteboarding is your sport, consider entering next year’s Wind Festival on May 20-23, 2012 . This fun event is a complete sports competition with food, drinks, and a celebratory party for kiteboarders on the last night, so even if you’re not a kiteboarder, this happens to be an exciting spectator sport surrounded by the beautiful beaches of Bucerias!
Ride the winds of Bucerias Kiteboarding in Bucerias, Mexico along the Riviera Nayarit.
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Sam displays cans in 3 triangular stacks. With the same number he
could make one large triangular stack or stack them all in a square
based pyramid. How many cans are there how were they arranged?
Here is a collection of puzzles about Sam's shop sent in by club
members. Perhaps you can make up more puzzles, find formulas or
find general methods.
Triangle numbers can be represented by a triangular array of
squares. What do you notice about the sum of identical triangle
I have forgotten the number of the combination of the lock on my
briefcase. I did have a method for remembering it...
It went as follows:
The number is equal to the sum of the cubes of its own
It is a three digit number less than 500
It is the sum of consecutive factorials.
It is a triangle number.
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Posted: December 8, 2011
Growing houseplants can be an easy proposition if all, or most, requirements are met. Knowing what kind of environment you can offer your plant is a good first step. Before entering a greenhouse, study the areas you wish to grow plants. What kind of sunlight is the area getting? Is it near a window and what direction does that window face – north, south, east or west? Are there any air vents where heat or air conditioning will be blowing? What kind of heat do you have? Is it wood stove, electric, or gas? You need to know the answers to all these questions before selecting your plants.
Note the environment that the plants are now growing. Be aware of the kind of care the plant is getting before you purchase it. For instance, if it is a plant that requires high light conditions, such as a croton, and is living in a low light situation in a store, when you get it home it will probably drop many leaves. You will be nursing it back to health for quite a long while. Likewise, if you take a low-light plant, growing in a florescent light situation, take it home, and put it in a window that is getting all day sun, it will likely have leaf burn and lose those leaves.
Take notice as to the watering conditions of the plant. Too dry too frequently can cause much stress to the plant, allowing insect and disease problems to take over, as well as leaf drop. Too wet can cause rotting of the roots.
After you have taken much care in selecting the healthy plant that is appropriate for your growing conditions, be sure you protect it when leaving the greenhouse or store. Wrap the plant in paper or plastic bags, and be sure to transport it in the front of the car that is heated, not the trunk. Don’t make lots of stops after purchasing your plants. Just short distances in low temperatures can cause severe damage or death to a houseplant.
In my experience, watering has often been the object of blame when it comes to plant fatality. Too much water or too little water can cause stress or even death. It’s best to grow the plant in a container that has good drainage. Place a saucer underneath the container so the water runs through. After 15 minutes, dump the excess water out of the saucer. If the soil medium continues to be wet for a long period of time, the roots of the plants will rot.
Just as important is not allowing the plant to dry out. If the soil medium is dry to the touch, it’s time to water. A good rule of thumb is to check the plants twice a week. If it is dry, water it, if it isn’t, let it alone until next time. It is good to get your watering on a schedule like every Wednesday and Saturday. That way the plant is not forgotten. Plant care then becomes habit.
Humidity is important to a plant’s survival. Dry heat from a wood stove can be deadly to a houseplant. To create more humidity for a houseplant, group plants together or put a humidity tray under them. Misting plants has very little effect. Locate your houseplant in a room that has good ventilation, but not drafty.
During the plant’s active growing time, typically March through September, fertilize every two to four weeks. Use a well-balanced fertilizer. A typical analysis of a fertilizer is 10-10-10 or 20-20-20. The analysis tells you the percentage of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium that is in the fertilizer.
Keep your poinsettia away from cold and drafty places. Hot spots, such as by a fireplace, near a heater, or above appliances are areas that you should avoid. Poinsettias like the sun, so lots of light is a must for the plant's health and survival. Near a window that is not drafty is the best location for your plant.
When purchasing plants around the holidays, often the plants have foil or paper on for festive color. Keep this on for a short period of time. This can provide a location for water to sit, allowing roots to rot. Often used around the holidays are baskets or other containers to set the plant in. These work great for decorative purposes, just be sure you are keeping a close eye on the water that can lay at the bottom of the container.
Keep an eye out for insect infestation. Whiteflies, spider mites, mealy bugs and aphids are common insect problems. Scout the plant frequently, and if any are detected, spray with an insecticidal soap. More than one application is normally necessary to control these insects. Be sure to read the label on the bottle before applying.
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Faculty Highlights - David Kress
It’s the first class after spring break, and Dave Kress is checking in with the undergraduates in his Advanced Fiction Writing class. The conversation drifts from fashion to pizza before shifting gears to a series of quotations from the French director Jean-Luc Godard. For Kress, the study of fiction and creative writing isn’t solely an academic exercise. It gives students a way to respond to today’s world. “I think an understanding of how fiction works is very crucial to surviving today. If everything is scripted, if everything is highly fictionalized, you won’t mistake it for what it isn’t.”
See full story at (http://umaine.edu/las/files/2011/10/CLAS-2011-Capstone.pdf ) page 8 CLAS 2011 Capstone).
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Directing the Uintah Basin Scene
May 1, 2008
In Shakespeare’s “Henry V,” King Henry displays extraordinary resolve once he sets a goal. Using every resource available, Henry creates a remarkable force to help him carry out his objective. Henry was a leader who loved his family and felt he was doing the best he could for his subjects. Enter Robert Behunin.
Behunin serves as assistant to the president of Utah State University, working on economic projects to bolster development in Uintah County. His characteristics and determination reflect the ideals embraced by the hero of his favorite Shakespearean play, “Henry V.”
“Henry was an individual who really rises above himself,” Behunin says. “He realizes that it’s more about the people than it is about him.”
Following that philosophy allows Behunin to work with business and development leaders to create programs intended to strengthen Uintah County. He doesn’t use the term “economic upswing” or “downswing,” choosing instead to call fiscal fluctuations “energy surges.”
Having survived two or three energy surges in recent years, the Vernal area is banking on Behunin to diversify the local economy and bring financial consistency to a region driven by natural resources. “We need to move in different directions. We can’t just focus on oil and gas,” he says. “My job is to connect the dots bringing legislators, educators, businessmen and philanthropists together to meet our needs.”
His first act was to extend an invitation to Utah State University (USU) and the Uintah Basin Applied Technology College (UBATC) to get involved. The strong alliance between the two institutions has pooled educational resources and created a component where future employees for the area can be trained in research, recreation management, education and technology.
“We don’t have to rely on Wasatch Front schools to train our [employees],” Behunin says. “We’re keeping our own people here, and adding to them.”
Uintah County has many selling points: Flaming Gorge Reservoir, Dinosaur National Monument and Ashley National Forest attract thousands of visitors every year, the existing fiber optic network is beneficial for companies moving into the area, and technology businesses are relocating to the region. The spotlight is shining on the Uintah area as other counties wait to see what develops — and Behunin is directing the scene.
Just five years ago, Behunin was teaching Shakespeare and Chaucer to college students at Southern Utah University. His degree in medieval and renaissance literature didn’t get him the job in Vernal but his people skills, ability to network and talent for creating alliances was exactly what was needed for the position.
“I’m really a weird duck,” Behunin says. “I’m a jack-of-all-trades and master of nothing, but I can deliver a line from Shakespeare.”
He and his wife, Sarah, live just outside Vernal in Dry Fork Canyon. Behunin lives in a home surrounded by Ponderosa pines where he raises horses when he’s not trying to bring synergy and excitement to an area on the brink of another energy surge.
“We have real emotion, tangible philosophy and an altruistic vision of what we’re doing here,” Behunin says. “We’re not afraid to get it done.”
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Date: February 6, 2006
After an introduction by SMAST Dean Dr. Brian Rothschild, Nettie Alexander, Science Director for New Bedford Public Schools, told the group of the partners’ mutual interest in “creating a coherent marine science curriculum that invites students to the excitement of science and engineering.” Ocean scientists from SMAST and from NOAA Fisheries then presented their research to the group, while educators offered insights into the process of introducing or enhancing marine science curricula in public education at pre-college levels. After their tour, the teachers proceeded to SeaLab, which will also be involved in the curriculum-building.
Alexander told SMAST that NBPS would work on a marine science curriculum for juniors and seniors with the help of presenters such as Professor Wendell Brown, Chair of SMAST’s Department of Estuarine and Ocean Sciences, and Dr. Carol Carson, who spoke on the Plymouth (Massachusetts) School Oceanography Studies Project. Funding for joint activities will be sought via proposals to local, state, and federal funding agencies. The internship component of the partnership, coordinated at SMAST by Dr. Hyun-Sook Kim, is beginning immediately.
In New Bedford High School’s senior year internship program, students spend a semester working in an area related to their academic interests. The five NBHS students interning at SMAST this semester will “roam” for the first weeks, spending short stints at a number of different SMAST laboratories. After becoming with familiar with the research of several labs, students will each will choose one lab of particular interest in which to spend the rest their internship.
Said Dean Rothschild, "This workshop is a response to the national need for training in sciences and engineering, and a significant step in the continuing development of the strong relationship between SMAST and the New Bedford School Department. We're hoping that our interaction evolves into a long-term program in marine science education ranging from kindergarten to the Ph.D.”
“SMAST is pleased to be involved with the public school system in New Bedford, our host community,” declared Prof. Avijit Gangopadhyay, Associate Dean of SMAST. “We’re eager to engage high school students in the research/training activities of SMAST through the internship program spearheaded by Chancellor Jean MacCormack. Several professors and senior researchers, including Profs. Kevin Stokesbury and Steve Cadrin and Dr. David Schlezinger, are already directly involved with high school interns for spring semester 2006.”
PHOTO CAPTION: SMAST Dean Brian Rothschild addressed New Bedford science teachers last Friday [1/27] as the New Bedford Public Schools and SMAST launched a partnership in marine science education.
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NetWellness is a global, community service providing quality, unbiased health information from our partner university faculty. NetWellness is commercial-free and does not accept advertising.
Friday, May 24, 2013
Smoking and Tobacco
Want to Quit Smoking
I HAD A SEVERE STROKE IN 1997 SINCE MY STROKE I HAVE BEEN DEALING WITH SEVERE SPASISITY AND AM CURRENTLY UNDERGOING INTRATHECAL BACOLFEN THERAPY, MY PROBLEM IS IN ORDER TO DEAL WITH THE SIDE EFFECTS OF THE DRUG MY SMOKING HAS GOTTEN INCREASING WORSE, WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO FIND OUT IS THE BEST WAY OF GOING ABOUT TRYING TO QUIT? I WOULD BE EXTREMELY GRATEFUL FOR YOU ADVISE IN THIS MATTER! BEST REGARDS
This is a very interesting and challenging question. First, my condolences for the ordeals you have been undergoing. It sounds just miserable. But, my suspicion is that your misery is being compounded by your smoking.
As you are doubtless aware, smoking harms your lungs, heart and blood vessels, and may have contributed to your stroke. It certainly increases your risk of another stroke even if the first one was unrelated. More importantly smoking and the rapid changes in nicotine and dopamine that it induces increase long-term, chronic pain even though it may seem to relieve pain in the short run. Many expert references seem to indicate that nicotine and caffeine increase spasticity.
So, how do to quit. First set a quit date at some time in the future and make sure all of your friends and family are on board with your resolve to quit. Once you've done that, it’s time to sit down with your doctor to talk about this exclusively and make a plan. He or she may recommend nicotine replacement therapy or varenicline (Chantix). Bupropion (Wellbutrin or Zyban) may not be a good choice as it might increase your risk of seizures with Baclofen. You should also call 800-QUIT-NOW to get free expert help and advice in planning your attack on this very tough addiction.
Most importantly, be honest with yourself. Try not to make excuses about your use or minimize your addiction. Remind yourself that even one puff once you are off, may lead to full addiction again. That first week you quit is the most critical week. Perhaps put a picture up on your refrigerator that reminds you of the main reason you want to quit (and live).
Good luck. You can do this!
Rob Crane, MD
Clinical Associate Professor of Family Medicine
College of Medicine
The Ohio State University
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In today's medical economic environment, many physicians are attracted to the seeming "comfort" of a large group practice. However, larger groups often fail to react quickly and plan against challenges. In the vast majority of group practices with more than 3 or 4 physicians, they suffer from what we will call "lowest common denominator' or "LCD" planning. LCD planning occurs when the practice will only implement the asset protection, tax-reduction, qualified or non-qualified planning techniques that everyone can agree on. This is not surprising -- as doctors are notoriously independent, intelligent and very busy. There are often too many opinions and distractions for a group of doctors to unanimously agree on anything other than the simplest (and least beneficial) strategies.
We have spoken to thousands of doctors who are frustrated with their practice's LCD planning. The very physicians who want to implement more advanced and beneficial planning ideas are usually the same ones who are doing most of the work and generating most of the revenue for the practice. They are often "caught in the middle" in their practices. Their younger partners are usually busy paying off student loans or paying for a big new house. They can't afford to fund retirement tools that may reduce taxes because they need every dollar they earn. The older doctors have the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" mentality. The problem is that under the new medical economic environment, it is "broke." The old ways cannot continue to be standard operating procedure.
If you are a physician who would like your group to consider more proactive planning, this article is for you. It introduces a few concepts that can be implemented to help you avoid LCD planning and address these significant financial threats. We have seen these techniques work for solo practitioners up to very large groups. If any of these techniques are of interest to you and you would like to know more about how it may work for you, please do not hesitate to contact us for a free consultation.
Use a "Hybrid" Benefit Plan
If you are in a LCD situation, you should consider using a hybrid benefit plan in addition to a traditional qualified plan (401(k), profit-sharing plan, money purchase plan or defined benefit plan). The main attraction of a hybrid benefit plan created under new pension rules is that each physician can choose the amount he or she wants to contribute in the plan formula. This can vary from $150 to $100,000 per year.
This simple plan can be implemented for a one-entity medical group with one, two or even dozens of doctors. Other benefits of this type of plan include:
- Utilization of the plan in addition to a qualified plan like pension, profit-sharing plan/401(k) or SEP IRA;
- Contributions can qualify for current tax deductions;
- The plan acts as an ideal "tax hedge" technique against future income AND capital gains tax increases;
- Balances can grow in a top asset protected environment;
- Employee participation requires a minimal funding outlay; and
- There are no minimum age requirements for withdrawing income (no early withdrawal penalties).
Employ a More Flexible Corporate Structure
The plan above is the only significant plan a practice with a "one entity structure" (P.C., P.A., etc.) can utilize. This one entity structure promotes LCD planning gridlock. A common way to solve this problem is to alter the practice's legal structure so that it allows individual physicians their own planning flexibility, without disrupting their day-to-day operations or requiring new insurance contracts or Medicare provider numbers.
In the typical medical group structure, there is one legal entity - like a corporation, LLC, or professional association (PA). Physicians are either owners of the entity (informally referring to themselves as "partners") or non-owner employees. In all such cases, the physicians have no ability to separate themselves from the central legal entity. If the central entity does not adopt a planning strategy, no individual doctor has any flexibility to adopt beneficial corporate planning strategies for his or her benefit.
If this is the case in your practice, you might consider a superior structure. Doctors can own their share of the practice through their own professional corporations (PCs) or PAs. In this way, the group is paid by the insurers, pays its bills and overhead and then pays the physicians' PCs - best through 1099 independent contractor income. For the physicians who want to implement planning strategies beyond LCD, they may do so through their own individual PCs without any impact to partners' planning or operations. The strategies will be implemented at each doctor's PC level, leaving the central entity and its operations unchanged. We have seen this strategy used successfully in some of the largest medical practices in the United States.
Bring in an Expert
In our interactions with over 1,000 physicians each year, we find the most common hurdle to implementing advanced planning to be planning gridlock. Unfortunately, most find no solution to this dilemma as their practice planning gridlock is what stops them from creating a structure that allows them to avoid gridlock - a Catch-22. Because of practice politics, the doctors who are able to navigate past the gridlock generally have the help of outside experts (with whom none of the partners or other legal or tax advisors have any negative history). Experts in the fields of tax, benefits planning and corporate law have the credibility and expertise that increase the probability that you will be able to convince your partners to "see the light" in a way that fellow physicians cannot. These advisors can often explain the suggested structure from attorney-to-attorney or CPA-to-CPA so that the local advisors are on board, agreeable and involved in the planning. Often, we are asked to play such a role and are honored to be chosen to help physician practices. Whether you contact us or another advisor or firm that specializes in this type of planning, we strongly urge you to consider bringing in an expert to speak to your group to initiate productive discussions.
Conclusion: Push Your Partners Now!
Financial success in the practice of medicine is harder than ever. Even if you are grappling with financial gridlock in group practice, you can explore advanced planning options to address these challenges. Share this article with your partners and order them a free copy of our new book (see below) so they can become aware of the threats and potential solutions. The authors welcome your questions. You can contact them at (877) 656-4362 or through their website www.ojmgroup.com.
SPECIAL OFFER: For a free (plus $10 S&H) copy of the second edition of For Doctors Only: A Guide to Working Less and Building More, please call (877) 656-4362.
Jason O'Dell is a consultant, author of two books for doctors, and principal of the financial consulting firm OJM Group, where Carole Foos works as a CPA and tax consultant. They can be reached at 877-656-4362.
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by NomadNever in American history has there been a more organized and well-funded threat against the democratic process, the health and safety of all Americans and the impartiality of the Supreme Court. The Koch brothers have single handedly managed to corrupt two of the three branches of government and in the 2012, are seeking to make it three for three. Seriously. It makes all of the other threats America has faced small in comparison.
Here are two more posts that I have written about the dangers. The first is an expose of Americans For Prosperity. It was originally written early last year and dedicated reporters have subsequently uncovered more. It is, however, a good start. The AFP fake grassroots movement is closely tied to the Tea Party which no matter what kind of valid points it might have made in its early stages, was quickly made into a tool for the Koch brothers. Wisconsin governor Scott Walker is just one example of this.http://nomadicpolitics.blogspot.com/2012/02/americans-for-prosperity-koch.html
Another post- which takes a slightly snarky view- is this one:
In that post, I point out that the people who are complaining about the problems of "big government" are the same ones who are being battered by weather related disasters like hurricane and tornadoes. The Koch brothers have spent a fortune trying to affect government policy on climate change. They have their reasons too.http://nomadicpolitics.blogspot.com/2012/02/tornadoes-and-koch-industries-elegant.html
Koch Industries, which the brothers own, is one of the top ten polluters in the United States — which perhaps explains why the Kochs have given $60 million to climate denial groups between 1997 and 2010.From flawed science, to phony think-tanks, from Mercatus-infiltration of universities- to supporting politicians that deny the effects of climate change, you name and the Koch brothers are involved knee deep.. The politicians decrying government spending on the poor are now demanding FEMA emergency aid for rescue and rebuilding after disasters. The post offers a solution to the problem by cutting out the middle man.
I am enclosing a playlist for Koch Brothers Exposed - The Film.
According to the creators of this film, the Koch pair are already on the offensive, trying to smear the film. That's predictable, of course, but with the money they are clearly prepared to spend on their mission to undermine the US republic, the only way to stop them is getting the information out and hoping that voters will react accordingly. And if they shrug and let the country be overrun, then let's hope they like how things turn out.
Here's another great link:
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D&C 95; 109; 110 – Why are temples important? What lessons were learned in the construction of the Kirtland Temple? What sacrifices does the Lord require?
Why do we pay tithing? What promises has the Lord made to those who pay tithing? How do we benefit from fasting and how can we help the poor?
D&C 59 – How did the Lord establish the Sabbath? What is its history? How do we keep the Sabbath holy? The Lord will bless us for honoring the Sabbath. Bill Doolittle joins us.
D&C 46 – What are the gifts of the spirit? What purposes do they serve? How can we seek spiritual gifts? How can we cultivate the gifts of the spirit? Patricia Auxier joins us.
What is the Law of Consecration? Is it temporal or spiritual? How can we consecrate ourselves to the Lord? Does the Law of Consecration apply today?
Why was Joseph Smith so vital in the Restoration? What plain and precious truths and ordinances have been restored? Do Mormons worship Joseph Smith?
How does the Lord gather us, spiritually and physically? Where do we gather today? Why do we build the Church in our own land instead of Utah?
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Silvestre de Escalante and Francisco Dominguez, two Spanish Franciscan priests, leave Santa Fe for an epic journey through the Southwest.
Escalante and Dominguez hoped to blaze a trail from New Mexico to Monterey, California, but their main goal was to visit with the native inhabitants and convert as many as possible to the Catholic faith. On this day in 1776, the two priests and seven men left the Spanish frontier town of Santa Fe and headed northwest into what is today the state of Colorado. They continued north, exploring the rugged Great Basin and canyon land country of Utah.
Initially, the priests made good time, and by mid-September, they had reached Utah Lake, just to the south of the Great Salt Lake in northern Utah. There, they found Indians who Dominguez described as "the most docile and affable nation of all that have been known in these regions." They quickly set about preaching the Gospel, reportedly with "such happy results that they are awaiting Spaniards so that they might become Christians."
By early October, winter was approaching. Traveling through high mountain passes, Escalante and Dominguez began to encounter fierce snowstorms. Accustomed to desert living, the priests were unequipped to deal with snow and bitter cold, and they soon ran short of provisions. They abandoned the goal of reaching California and headed back for Santa Fe. During the long journey home, they very nearly starved to death. The men ate their horses first. When the horseflesh was gone, they ate only prickly pear cactus.
On January 2, 1777, the exhausted men staggered into Santa Fe. They had traveled nearly 1,700 miles in just 159 days through some of the roughest country in the southwest, yet all nine members of the party made it home safely. Escalante and Dominguez had failed in their goal of finding a route to Monterey, and to their keen disappointment, the New Mexican missionaries showed little interest in following up their initial proselytizing with the Utah Indians.
Nonetheless, the two intrepid priests were the first to explore extensively the Great Basin country of the Southwest. Escalante's written account of the expedition became an essential guide to future explorers.
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Advanced Solutions for Children
The Children's Program offers Partial Hospital and Intensive Outpatient Services to children ages 6-12 with significant emotional and behavioral problems that interfere with functioning at school and home. The program provides help for children with impulse control problems, depression, and aggressive or self-destructive behavior.
Children can attend the full day program 9:30am - 3:30pm five days per week or the half-day program 12:30pm - 3:30pm three days per week. Program placement is based on each child's individual needs. Transportation is available within defined areas.
- Improve self-control and coping ability
- Positive expression of emotions
- Healthier school and home functioning
- Improved self-esteem
- Comprehensive evaluation and medical management by Board Certified Child Psychiatrist
- Licensed Master's level Clinicians and Registered Nurses
- Age-appropriate therapeutic interventions
- Patient and family-centered treatment approach with family therapy throughout treatment
- Consistent collaboration and communication with schools and other support services
- Two (2) hours of academic instruction by certified teachers (full-day program only)
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John Nance Garner, Franklin D. Roosevelt's vice president for two terms, famously commented that the number two office in the land wasn't "worth a pitcher of warm piss."
So what would Garner make of New York's five borough presidents? This is, after all, a job whose occupants Rebecca Meade likened in the New Yorker to "neutered beasts."
The office does offer the trappings of power -- a lofty title, $135,000 a year salary, a driver and sometimes a palatial office - but without much real authority anymore. Nevertheless, dozens of politicians are raising money, issuing press releases and spending endless hours shaking hands at subway stations in the hopes of capturing the job. As candidates scrambled to meet the July 14 deadline for filing petitions to get on the ballot, 24 candidates were vying for the five jobs.
And this year is less competitive than most. In every borough except Manhattan, a sitting president wants another term. Given the notorious power of incumbency in New York this undoubtedly scared away many potential challengers. It did not, however, keep the campaign donors away. As of July 16, two of the incumbents - Adolfo Carrion of the Bronx and Marty Markowitz of Brooklyn - had raised more than $1 million for races in which, many observers say, they face little credible opposition.
But the real action is in Manhattan. Fourteen candidates are seeking to replace C. Virginia Fields. It is, as one of them said, an open seat -- and those don't come up very often.
|(From left to right)
• Carlos Manzano
• Eva Moskowitz
• Brian Ellner
• Scott Stringer
• Adriano Espaillat
The office of borough president was created at the time of the consolidation of Manhattan, the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island into the City of Greater New York in 1898. (Before that, "New York" was just Manhattan and parts of the Bronx.) The idea of borough president, the charter said, was to preserve "local pride and affection." Brooklyn had just been forced to surrender its status as a separate (and major) American city, and Queens and Staten Island were still largely rural.
Three years later, the borough presidents gained considerable clout in a revision of the city's charter, becoming five of the eight members of the Board of Estimate, which controlled the city budget and had power over building projects.
But the presidents' heyday drew to an end in 1989. Because the borough president of Brooklyn with more than 2 million residents had the same number of votes on the board as the borough president of Staten Island with a population of about 380,000, the United States Supreme Court ruled that arrangement unconstitutional, violating the principle of one person-one vote. To address the ruling, another charter commission eliminated the Board of Estimate and expanded the City Council. But they kept the borough presidents. They did this because of "a feeling by at least some people that there needed to be some level of government between the City Council and the mayor," said John Mollenkopf, director of the Center for Urban Research at the City University of New York Graduate Center. And, he said, the politics of eliminating five high-profile political positions was considered more trouble than it was worth.
Every borough president still got to appoint one member to the powerful central Board of Education. But even that vanished with the advent of mayoral control of the school system -- and the dismantling of the Board of Education -- in 2002. This capped what Mollenkopf called "a long steady decline in the power of borough president since the time Greater New York was fashioned in 1898."
Today, the borough presidents make a few appointments -- to community planning boards, the planning commission and various other agencies and task forces - chair the borough boards, and oversee the delivery of services in their boroughs, though with limited power to fix whatever might be wrong. They can propose legislation in City Council, recommend some capital budget expenditures and dispense some money within their borough.
There have been no loud protests over the diminution of their power. After all, more than a century after consolidation, while some New Yorkers still feel that "pride and affection" for the borough in which they reside, most see themselves, first and foremost, as New Yorkers: Adults cross borough boundaries every day to go to work and children to go to school; congressional and city council districts straddle borough lines; only one daily newspaper (the Staten Island Advance) caters to a specific borough.
"You could do away with the borough presidency and I don't know if the nature of New York City politics and policy would change," said Doug Muzzio of the Baruch College School of Public Affairs.
"The office doesn't do much," admitted Joseph Dobrian, the Libertarian candidate for Manhattan borough president.
"It really doesn't serve any government purpose," said a writer named Ann Noonan, who wrote a paper a few years ago calling on the city to eliminate the office of the borough president, arguing "New York City's budget cannot afford these ceremonial disbursements of roughly $37 million," and presented it to the charter review commission. People praised her proposal, she says now, but it went nowhere.
WHAT THE CANDIDATES SAY
|(From left to right)
• Magarita Lopez
• Bill Perkins
• Stan Michels
• Marty Markowitz
• Helen Marshall
Aside from Dobrian, most candidates for the office argue it does have clout, with influence far beyond the official duties.
"It's a bully pulpit. It's advocacy. You need to be very vocal," said Brian Ellner, a lawyer who is one of the candidates for Manhattan borough president.
The borough presidents serve as cheerleaders for their borough, trying to attract investment and new projects. Staten Island President James Molinaro boasts of creating parks and limiting development, while Helen Marshall of Queens talks up the new Mets stadium planned for her borough and Adolfo Carrion says he has created new jobs.
Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz has become the cheerleader par excellence, such an abashed booster of Brooklyn's food, people and neighborhoods that he was featured in a New Yorker magazine profile. Markowitz also takes the credit - or blame - for persuading developer Bruce Ratner to propose an arena in downtown Brooklyn for the Nets basketball team. "Bruce had no interest, absolutely no interest," Markowitz told the New Yorker. "But I was very persistent with him, and didn't take no for an answer."
Even Marty Markowitz, though, has been known to admit that his main powers extend to handing out certificates of appreciation to Brooklyn citizens and dispensing Junior's cheesecake.
Borough presidencies do indisputably accomplish two things. They provide plum elected office for five politicians and jobs for some of their associates. And they can be a path to higher office. Mayors Robert Wagner and David Dinkins first served as Manhattan borough president, as did mayoral candidates C. Virginia Fields, Andrew Stein and Ruth Messinger. Robert Abrams went from being Bronx borough president to being state attorney general, while another Bronx borough president, Herman Badillo, moved up to U.S. Congress. Today, former Bronx borough president Fernando Ferrer is running for mayor, while his successor, Adolfo Carrion, has already announced his plan to try for Gracie Mansion in 2009.
That, more than anything else, may be why the office of borough president persists. "Politicians want it because it's a stepping stone," Muzzio said. "What else would these people run for?"Â
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Put that line in .bashrc (.profile on Mac), the working directory is on the path. Leave it out, it isn't.
I've noticed that shells with the line have a PYTHONPATH= line in their env output, those without don't, so perhaps that matters. Python also adds the current working directory if PYTHONPATH has some valid directory but begins with a ':' character. (Simply setting PYTHONPATH to some valid directory breaks the working directory inclusion.)
Why is this so? What is best practice for ensuring the current working directory is on sys.path?
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What’s not to love about the over-sized, oversensitive, lovable, cuddly purple dinosaur? I remember when Barney first came onto the screen, singing his famous, “I love you, you love me, we’re a happy family!” song. Every time I listen to it, it still makes me smile. No wonder this show is still on PBS and has been running strong since 1992. Although Barney has been criticized in the past, Yale researchers Dorothy and Jerome Singer have discovered that the shows contain a great deal of age-appropriate material, and have called the program a “model of what preschool television should be.”
In every show, Barney starts out as a stuffed toy, but then comes to life. He teaches kids important lessons about manners, counting, numbers, letters, and imagination. Barney’s friends often visit the show and tell stories to the children or take them on adventures. Other friends that appear on the show include B.J. and Baby Bop. Baby Bop constantly loses her blankie, but Barney always helps her find it. Barney also has a bag of goodies in every episode, which is known as the Barney Bag.
In every episode, Barney loves and wants everyone to have a good time. If you are craving even more Barney interaction, click here for a fun website where you can play some pretty spectacular games. If your child is into Barney, be sure to check out our selection of Barney toys. We have plush dolls, DVDs, party supplies, and more. In the words of Barney himself, “What a super-deeeee-duper idea!”
Have you ever wondered why Curious George is so curious? Or why he has a penchant for mischief, is always getting into trouble, yet somehow seems to narrowly escape disaster time and time again?
The source of inspiration came from the couple who first created the children’s books themselves, H.A. and Margret Reys. The Reys were German Jews that lived in Paris during the time of the Nazi reign. Because they were Jewish, they had to constantly search for safe places to hide from the Germans. Two days before the Germans marched on Paris, they fled on their bicycles carrying drawings that later became the character of Curious George. The theme of escaping disaster just in the nick of time throughout many of the Curious George episodes reflects the Rey’s own experience in life.
The Reys fled from Paris to New York in 1940. While on board the ship, Margaret Rey used to sew miniature sweaters to keep the monkeys warm. However, her efforts proved to be in vain, as none of the monkeys were able to survive the long passage. The Reys also used this time to develop the literature for Curious George.
The original name for George was Fifi. When the Reys finally made it to America, they showed their manuscript to publisher Houghton Mifflin. Houghton Mifflin expressed doubts about the name Fifi, especially for a boy monkey. The Reys proceeded to change the name to George. In England, Curious George is known as ZoZo.
Although the monkeys did not survive in real life, through their literature, stories, and drawings, the Reys were able to create the story of a monkey that survived against all odds. Curious George is a monkey to which many of us aspire. This tried and true monkey may have a lot of flaws, but he has a heart full of gold and always learns his lesson. Please click on the link if you are interested in browsing our selection of Curious George toys. Although we can’t guarantee your invinciblity, we promise that you won’t be disappointed.
What is CGI animation? CGI Animation is a process of combining 2D animation and live-action. It is computer generated using 3D software. Films like Toy Story began to make this type of animation popular. Dinosaur Train is the second show to use CGI animation from the Jim Henson Company, with Sid the Science Kid being the first.
Not only does Dinosaur Train use CGI Animation, but it takes two of the favorite interests of many children, dinosaurs and trains, and places them into one animated series. The main show centers around Buddy, who is a Tyrannosaurus Rex that was adopted into a Pteranodon (think: flying) family. Buddy gathers the majority of his information from riding the magic Dinosaur Train. The Dinosaur Train circles the whole world and can even transcend time by visiting dinosaurs in the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous time periods.
The train cars are customized for every type of dinosaur. That is, the Aquacar accommodates sea-dwelling dinosaurs, windows are available for the long-necked Sauropods, and plenty of headroom was available for the Theropods.
If your child is a fan of Dinosaur Train, look no further than the best online toy store for cool stuff for your kids! Our Dinosaur Train stuff includes clothes, live action figures, playsets, and more. Which kind of children’s shows do you prefer? The newer ones created with CGI animation, or the older ones based upon 2D cartoons?
Science was never my thing in school. In fact, I talked my way out of dissecting a worm in the 3rd grade. The teacher let me do some other tasks that counted in place of the dissection. However, when I watch Sid the Science kid, I am intrigued by the fun and interesting way that they present science. Each episode is loaded with information regarding the scientific experiment and methods for observation and can be categorized according to weeks.
The first week focuses on scientific tools and concepts, including observing, charts, measuring, and estimation. The second week focuses on transformation and change, including decay and growth, melting and freezing, and the effects of heat. The third week focuses on the senses. The fourth week focuses on health. The fifth week focuses on simple machines. The sixth week focuses on science that you can observe in your backyard. The seventh week focuses on the human body. The eighth week focuses on the weather.
All of these episodes are designed to engage the curiosity in your little ones and to help them figure out why things work the way that they do. For even more fun ideas and games, click here. I enjoyed playing “Snow Search” myself, and digging up objects in the snow. Other games include matching up snowflake halves, where kids learn about symmetry. For more cool stuff, see our kid’s online toy store. You can also check Sid’s page and find some cool pajamas (pictured above) which you can also personalize and keep your child warm at the same time!
Scholastic Entertainment has created yet another awesome show that spans across cultures. “Maya and Miguel” does an excellent job of portraying Latino culture. Maya and Miguel Santos are two young fraternal twins that love to have adventures in their community and at school.
For instance, in one episode, Maya encourages her friend Maggie to run for class president. Maggie wanted to place pink puff balls on the tops of pencils and change all of the white paper in the school to pink paper. However, upon further examination of her motives, Maggie realized that she was not good at the things that truly matter, like paying attention to other people’s problems. One she realized this she gladly stopped running for class president and gave the nomination to Simon, a fellow classmate.
The show does an excellent job of teaching about diversity. It also places emphasis on serving the family and community, which is a great message for any child to hear. Click here more fun and interactive games with Maya and Miguel.
For even more cool stuff, why not try kids backpacks? We also have clothing, birthday invitations, and more, all of which you can personalize. In the words of Maya, “¡Éso es!” (That’s it!).
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|Thursday, 13 February 2003|
Please forward your comments to the Editor, Daily News.
Email : email@example.com
Snail mail : Daily News, 35, D.R. Wijewardana Mawatha, Colombo, Sri Lanka.
Telephone : 94 1 429429 / 331181
Fax : 94 1 429210
Towards a caring State
The news that the Vocational Training Authority of Sri Lanka in collaboration with the Bank of Ceylon and some private sector institutions would be launching programs in the North for the enhancement of the job skills of the region's youths, should be warmly welcomed. Among other things, this is evidence that the State is acting in a spirit of caring for the alleviation of the socio-economic pressures of the North, thus continuing to play an important integrationist role in the affairs of the communities.
It is now common knowledge that high youth unemployment in the North-East contributed significantly towards the aggravation of the ethnic conflict. The conduct of the country's administration in principally Sinhala and the inability of many qualified Tamil youths to gain university admission over the years, led to a growing sense of alienation among the minorities.
It is now recognized that these were important turning points in the National Question. They facilitated the emergence of the violent secessionist movement in the North-East. Unemployed youths formed the principal cadres of these militant organizations. The lack of employment opportunities coupled with an acute sense of hopelessness among the North-East Youths constituted an important mainspring of the North-East secessionist movement.
A virtual hands-off position in regard to the North, on the part of successive governments, helped in feeding the insurrectionist movement and the push for separation. The crux of the problem was that the State came to be seen, over the years, as being more concerned with the South rather than being representative of the whole country and all its communities. This perception too helped in fuelling the violent secessionist movement in the North.
An important task for the present and future is to change this image of the State as being mainly Southern-centric, now that an earnest effort is being made to bring peace to the country. In fact, the image of the State as a dispenser of justice to all, would help in defusing the disaffection which has accumulated in the North-East over the decades.
Seen from this point of view, the collaborative venture launched by the Vocational Training Authority of Sri Lanka for the fostering of vocational and employment skills among the Northern youths, is most laudable and welcome. As mentioned before, it would help in establishing the caring nature of the State and emphasize its national character. The project could be counted as an important confidence building measure in the national integration program of the State.
The creation of a multi-ethnic State should be our aim but State intervention for the furthering of the material well-being of the people of the North-East, would help in establishing the ground work for the fostering of multi-ethnicity and national integration.
With the resuscitation of the North-East economy, more and more job opportunities could be expected to materialize in the region. Needless to say, these opportunities could be seized by only those endowed with the relevant job skills. There is bound to be a great demand for small and medium scale entrepreneurs, besides skilled technical hands and mechanics. Those sufficiently qualified to pursue professions demanding higher studies, should also be provided the necessary opportunities to do so.
The State must make up for lost time by going to the assistance of these job seekers of the North-East. They need to feel at home in Sri Lanka.
Produced by Lake House
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|Written by Mark Lineberger|
|Thursday, 02 August 2012 00:00|
The numbers of the American dead from the past 10 years of war may seem low compared to previous wars in the nation’s history, but that belies the fact that life-saving methods and technology have improved to the point where the military can get our nation’s men and women in uniform off the battlefield alive.
They get to come home but thousands of service people still have very real issues that don’t just go away stateside.
That’s where organizations like the Injured Semper Fi Fund come in, raising money for injured Marines and sailors to help with not just treatment, but anything else a returning vet may need.
Ben Maenza knows about the fund and the work it does firsthand.
Maenza, 23, a Marine, was serving in Afghanistan when he lost his legs in October 2010. The Semper Fi fund was there for him, Maenza said.
For the full story, see the Wednesday, Aug. 1, edition of The Camp Verde Journal.
Recent Articles by Mark Lineberger :
- High-tech gates tested in ditch
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- Zipline aims for a June opening
- Rally promotes second amendment
- USGS predicts water shortage
- Pierce promotes cheaper energy
- 25 artists look for a little inspiration on river trip
- Town reviews intersection
- Partnership to discuss water in the Verde Valley
- German swipes Camp Verde mayor's seat from Burnside
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Senator Ritchie secures grant to combat Eurasian Milfoil on Black Lake
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ST. LAWRENCE COUNTY, N.Y. -- As fishermen prepare to launch their boat into the cool waters of St. Lawrence County’s Black Lake, one thing they don’t want to deal with is Eurasian Milfoil.
An invasive non-native weed, it forms dense mats of vegetation that disrupt water flow, water quality and boating. It's estimated that tourists spend about $7 million a year visiting the 20 mile long lake often referred to as “Nature’s Fish Hatchery.”
This is why State Senator Patty Ritchie has secured a $50,000 grant to help combat the encroaching weed. The money will be used by the St. Lawrence County Soil and Water District and the Black Lake Association to combat the Milfoil problem.
“There are people who depend on their livelihoods on the fishermen and tourists who are drawn to Black Lake each year, so this small investment will pay huge dividends in terms of helping to bring tourists in and create jobs,” said Jim Regan, Community Relations Director for Senator Ritchie.
“Sports Afield Magazine” recently rated Black Lake as one of the top 20 “Best of the Best” for bass fishing.
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Whenever chronic nerd-gassers gather to rip into the science of the blockbuster film, Armageddon, the conversation inevitably turns to the topic of how Bruce Willis and his fellow reluctant astronauts couldn't possibly have landed on that killer asteroid making a beeline for Earth — at least not as depicted in the film.
It's not a simple matter to land on a small-ish object hurtling through space at very high speed.
But the European Space Agency's Rosetta spacecraft is going to have to pull off a similar feat to land on its target comet, affectionately known as Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Given the complexity of the task, a few years ago, ESA space scientist Detlef Koschny created a little model of the Rosetta spacecraft out of LEGOs to help everyone visualize the planned flight path during meetings.
Never underestimate the appeal of LEGOs: word spread about the model, and soon everyone wanted their own personal mini-Rosetta made of LEGOS.
And now everyone can have a mini-LEGO Rosetta, because the ESA just announced the release of a LEGO high-fidelity Rosetta Lander Education Kit, based on Koschny's original design — and there are even a few moving parts to help simulate the spacecraft's unique comet landing system that can be controlled by a simple home computer.
The kits were tested earlier this week by engineering and art students at the University of Rome — who learned a bit about comets, Rosetta and the ESA's mission in the process. I'll let Koschny explain the rationale behind the Rosetta mission:
Even though Rosetta launched in 2004, it's a long journey into deep space to intersect the comet's path. That historic meeting between spacecraft and comet is not slated to happen until November 2014. Then comes the hard part: landing on a moving comet.
The Rosetta craft's Philae little refrigerator-sized lab has landing gear designed just for that purpose. First, it will literally "harpoon" the comet. Then, to keep the spacecraft from just bouncing off the comet in low gravity, its legs have been outfitted with "ice screws" (comets are dirty ice balls, or icy dirt balls, depending on which astronomer you ask) capable of drilling into the comet, anchoring the craft in place. A small rocket engine will fire as needed to hold the lander in position while all this is going on.
And then Rosetta can get on with its primary mission: getting up close and personal with Comet 67P, by collecting data on its composition. Hopefully we'll learn more about what little comets are made of — and possibly even gain a bit more insight into Einstein's theory of relativity.
While we're waiting, there are LEGO Rosetta kits for us to play with.
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The recent tension surrounding China and several ASEAN nations, including the Philippines and Vietnam, had been expected to be top of the agenda for the regional forum this week, but regional leaders now appears to be moving quickly in order to form a common consensus ahead of discussions with China.
"Foreign ministers have agreed to have the ASEAN senior officials meet with the senior official from China to discuss the (code of conduct) from now on," said Cambodia’s secretary of state at the foreign ministry Kao Kim Hourn, whose country holds the rotating chairmanship for ASEAN.
Over the last few years, ASEAN members such as Vietnam, the Philippines, Brunei and Malaysia have all claimed territory in the South China Sea, though the Chinese government has repeatedly insisted that the entire body of water rightfully belongs to them.
And while both China and ASEAN signed a Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea nearly a decade ago, which stated that all parties should resolve the situation peacefully, neither side are yet ready to formalise the declaration into a code of conduct.
Subsequently, the U.S. government has also taken an interest into the region, with U.S. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton expected to join the ASEAN regional forum for talks later this week.
Ms Clinton had previously said the US has a "national interest" in open access to the sea, but observers predict a softer stance this week, with Washington likely to downplay friction with China.
Nevertheless, the Chinese response to ASEAN and the U.S. has been fairly negative, with China's foreign ministry spokesman Liu Weimin telling journalists that the Chinese government would only discuss the issue “when conditions are ripe.”
“I want to stress that the COC (code of conduct) is not aimed at resolving disputes, but aimed at building mutual trust and deepening cooperation,” said Liu, as quoted by AFP.
Additionally an editorial published in the state-run People’s Daily on Tuesday appeared to belittle ASEAN’s resolution and warned that “further provocation from Vietnam and the Philippines would mean direct confrontation with China's angry public.”
“ASEAN can only play a role in mediating, and never dictate affairs concerning territorial demarcation. As long as ASEAN remains rational, it will not accept Vietnam and the Philippines' request,” wrote the People’s Daily.
“If ASEAN becomes deeply embroiled and the South China Sea issue tops its agenda, it will mean an evolutionary change in ASEAN's geopolitical role. ASEAN is not ready for it, and no agreement will be reached among its members,” it added.
“China will not sacrifice its territorial interest due to pressure from international opinion. Other big powers won't risk their own national interests to confront China in the South China Sea.”
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I am knitting the frock camisole, and stuck at the FRONT directions, please help!!!
After I bound off for the armholes, the directions state to put back stitches on a holder. Then work the front. The pattern then states to work the pattern as established. What does that mean? Keep binding off 6 stitches for each row, or knit for 3 1/4" in pattern I have been knitting in? I am in hopes someone can help me.
I have myself so confused, that I am hoping some response will get me back on track. Yes, I am a confused beginning knitter! Amy
Hi from Nova Scotia. I'll have to try again. The first time something "hiccuped" before I could press "Post' + it all got lost.
I just downloaded the pattern so I could answer you..it's frustrating waiting for help I know!
The directions want you to continue working for another 3 1/4" in the body pattern as you have it established. Do not continue to bind off 6 sts each row. The original 6 sts each side provide enough space for the armhole. After you knit the 3 1/4", you will work some K2tog's that will gather the top of the body onto the yoke of the camisole. This will help make the armholes a bit wider also.
Hope this is clear enough for you + it helps!?!
Thank you Andrea! My knitting buddy and I struggled over this yesterday. And we both thought this way was correct. I am using 100% bamboo yarn, and was nervous about making a huge mistake; then having to rip out my work. Onward and knitward! Amy
Glad the info helped! Sometimes we tend to "overthink" stuff instead of just thinking about what makes sense for the finished item. Then our brains start spinning !!! I actually like to troubleshoot...probably because I've been knitting long enough to make LOTS of mistakes to learn from. My grandmother taught me to knit @ 6 yrs old + I'l be 51 in August. My stubborness helps too no doubt!!!
The bamboo yarn sounds like a nice choice for the camisole. I've recently made both socks + a lace shawl (still unblocked) from Regia's 4ply sockwt bamboo/wool blend. I like it. Haven't tried pure bamboo yarn but would like to. The camisole should feel georgeous next to your skin.
Happy Knitting, Andrea
It means to continue knitting in the pattern that you have been knitting in. I am assuming that you need to continue to lengthen the front to the neckline where you will shape or bind off the neck. You will have to look carefully at the pattern so that you stay in the established pattern---since you have bound off stitches for the armhole you will have to make adjustments in how the pattern is knit to keep the pattern aligned. good luck
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A new principal with no experience seems an odd choice to turn around a long-failing school. But that’s exactly whom most superintendents around the country end up hiring—largely because no one else applies for what seems like a thankless job. It’s no surprise that most don’t succeed. The obvious solution, concluded Peter Gorman, the school superintendent in Charlotte, N.C., was to persuade skilled educators to take on these rescue missions. But how could he get the district’s most effective principals, already ensconced in successful schools, to agree to transfers to the worst-performing ones? And what about the inevitable howl of protest from the communities they’d have to leave behind?
The answer is an ingenious school-turnaround strategy that is garnering praise from education-reform advocates like U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and the Aspen Institute. It’s also giving the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school district a serious shot at winning the coveted $2 million Broad Prize for Urban Education later this month.
Since the passage of George W. Bush’s No Child Left Behind legislation in 2001, school districts have been under intense pressure to identify and overhaul failing schools. This year the Obama administration raised the stakes by giving states a record $3.5 billion—about seven times the previous amount—to transform the nation’s 5,000 worst schools. In addition, winners of the administration’s Race to the Top school-reform competition—including North Carolina—need to overhaul their bottom 5 percent to secure their full share of the $4.3 billion in prize money. (North Carolina should get $400 million.)
For years, districts have tried to fix their worst schools by pouring more money into them, hiring self-styled turnaround specialists, or “reconstituting” schools by firing the entire staff and starting over. But the results have been more miss than hit. When Gorman arrived in 2006 to take over Charlotte-Mecklenburg’s 176 schools, a state superior-court judge had recently complained that the system was so troubled that four high schools were guilty of “academic genocide.”
Gorman decided he needed a new approach. He considered simply transferring his best principals to his most challenging schools, but Yale economics professor Justine Hastings talked him out of it. “She told me that if I forced people to switch jobs, I would see the performance of some dip, while others would find another job.” So Gorman decided to try a “pull” strategy—a way to entice principals to view these transfers as a desired challenge. Starting in 2008, with great fanfare, Gorman announced a new annual districtwide competition to identify the most effective principals. Winners of the “Strategic Staffing Initiative” would be chosen based on hard data like the growth in their students’ achievement scores rather than how long they’d served or how well their school was regarded.
Before announcing the winners to the TV cameras, however, the persuasive Gorman met privately with the principals and made them an offer he hoped they wouldn’t refuse: what he billed as the “opportunity” to turn around one of the district’s failing schools. As part of the three-year deal, they’d receive a 10 percent raise and more freedom from district rules. They would also get the chance to pick an eight-person transformation team—each of whom would get a raise, too. The winning principals could also “transfer out” up to five teachers from their new school, including obstructionists, underperformers, and leaders of what principals call “the toxic lunchroom.” In exchange, Gorman said, “we expected them to transform the culture of the school to one in which high academic achievement is expected and achieved.”
Amazingly, every winner accepted the challenge. “It turns out people appreciate being recognized as being excellent at what they do,” Gorman says. “The program sold itself.” The results were startling, too. By late spring 2009, a year after the initiative started, student proficiency on the state test had risen in all seven of the original SSI schools, with some school scores rising by more than 20 points, a remarkable achievement. Equally surprising, scores also rose in the second group of SSI schools, which were launched only four months before the tests were administered.
Among the most effective was principal Suzanne Gimenez. After two years at high-poverty Devonshire Elementary, she has boosted the reading score of her Hispanic students by 30 points and her school’s math score by 33 points. Her secrets? Posting a chart to track the performance of every student, plus instilling more accountability and discipline. Years of experience had taught her that “children of poverty perform better with a lot of structure,” she says. “Many of them don’t know where they’re going to get dinner or sleep. School needs to be the same for them every day.”
The $3 million program is now in its third year and operating in 20 schools; so far, no one has turned down Gorman’s “prize.” “It’s quite amazing,” says Ann Clark, the district’s chief academic officer. “We now have principals approach us and ask, ‘Why wasn’t I chosen?’ ” And the district is getting inquiries about the program from reform-minded superintendents all over the country.
What about the parents and kids these principals left behind? The blowback Gorman feared never happened. Families were supportive when Steve Hall, one of the first winners, moved from one of Charlotte’s wealthier schools. “I think they could see that I was excited about this opportunity, that this was where my heart was,” says Hall. “I told them that I considered this to be one of the most moral and ethical things I’d ever done in my life.” And he soon realized that his students saw it the same way. “Some of them stopped by to wish me luck,” he says. “One kid said, ‘I’m proud of you.’ ” To principals like Hall, there is no higher praise.
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Home values for 18 Fairfield County towns tracked by a special program out of the University of Connecticut fell by an average of 4.8 percent in the second quarter, according to new data.
Only five towns in the county—Bridgeport, Darien, Greenwich, Stamford and Trumbull—saw the value of a “mid-tier” home rise from the second quarter of 2011 to 2012, according to the School of Business’s Center for Real Estate and Urban Economic Studies.
Monroe and Newtown saw the steepest drop-offs at more than 20 percent apiece, while Stamford showed the highest increase, at 9.1 percent (see table below).
Each quarter, the UConn center produces “constant quality indices” that track the changing value of homes in Connecticut towns by minimizing variables such as inflation and seasonality, as well as the effect a low-volume sales quarter has on average prices. The center defines a “mid-tier” single family home differently for each town (see attached PDF) and estimates what the value of that home is each quarter.
For a narrative summarizing each town’s Q2 data—and to join a local conversation about that town’s real estate market—click on town name in the table below. Included in each individual article is a searchable database of the UConn center’s data going back to 2000.
Town Q2 rate of change -3.3% Bridgeport 0.2% -1.8% 4.1% -2.0% 4.1% -23.4% -9.4% -21.5% -3.9% -10.1% -7.4% 9.1% -4.1% 2.1% -2.0% -6.1% -10.7%
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Learn something new every day More Info... by email
Drummers who want to find the best drum gloves can profit from understanding how other drummers use these items to play in comfort and to play well. Not everyone may think about getting specific varieties of gloves for optimal drum play, but many experienced drummers know that having the right set of drum gloves can make a big difference. Drummers use gloves for improving grip, to deal with the effects of extended play on the hands, or even for cold weather in outdoor marching bands or drum lines.
One of the first considerations for drum gloves is whether the drummer wants full gloves or fingerless gloves. Some drummers say that fingerless gloves are better for preventing blisters because they don’t brush against the knuckles of the fingers. Other drummers, particularly many of those in marching bands, need to have full gloves, either to protect hands from the cold or to conform to dress codes for a school or university band.
Drum players can also find out which are the best types of drum gloves through trial and error. Drummers often advise each other about which drum glove types feel the best over time. Many drummers prefer not to play with gloves at all, but many of those who do, have found gloves that they feel work better. It’s important to note that not all of these gloves are specifically made for drumming. Some drummers buy biking gloves, batting gloves, or other recreational gloves and claim that they work better than gloves that are specifically created for drumming.
When shopping for drumming gloves, musicians can also look at some of the available designs of gloves that provide more comfort for extended play. For example, drummers can get lambskin gloves that may feel better on the hands as they pound away on a drum kit or an individual percussion instrument. Some particular grip features, like rugged exteriors, can also help with drum play.
Along with features and overall quality, it’s important for buyers to carefully consider the sizing of drum gloves. Some of these products might have vague sizes, and gloves of the wrong size can cause a lot of chafing and pain after extended use. Shoppers should make sure that the drum gloves will fit their hands, either by trying them on before purchase, or, when this is not possible, getting more details about specific sizing. Ie. Length of fingers and glove width.
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Arthur Rimbaud (20 October 1854 – 10 November 1891 / Charleville, Ardennes)
After The Flood
As soon as the idea of the Deluge had subsided,
A hare stopped in the clover and swaying flowerbells,
and said a prayer to the rainbow,
through the spider's web.
Oh! the precious stones that began to hide,--
and the flowers that already looked around.
In the dirty main street, stalls were set up
and boats were hauled toward the sea,
high tiered as in old prints.
Blood flowed at Blue Beard's,--
through slaughterhouses, in circuses,
where the windows were blanched by God's seal.
Blood and milk flowed. Beavers built.
'Mazagrans' smoked in the little bars.
In the big glass house, still dripping,
children in mourning looked
at the marvelous pictures.
A door banged; and in the village square
the little boy waved his arms,
understood by weather vanes
and cocks on steeples everywhere,
in the bursting shower.
Madame *** installed a piano in the Alps.
Mass and first communions were celebrated
at the hundred thousand altars of the cathedral.
Caravans set out. And Hotel Splendid was built
in the chaos of ice and of the polar night.
Ever after the moon heard jackals howling
across the deserts of thyme,
and eclogues in wooden shoes growling in the orchard.
Then in the violet and budding forest,
Eucharis told me it was spring.
Gush, pond,-- Foam, roll on the bridge and over the woods;--
black palls and organs, lightening and thunder, rise and roll;--
waters and sorrows rise and launch the Floods again.
For since they have been dissipated--
oh! the precious stones being buried and the opened flowers!--
it's unbearable! and the Queen, the Witch who lights her fire
in the earthen pot will never tell us what she knows,
and what we do not know.
Comments about this poem (After The Flood by Arthur Rimbaud )
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Close the 17-year loophole
Let’s face it. Our current term limits law needs fixing. It’s two decades old, but our Legislature is still filled with career politicians. Even the author of the law, who envisioned a new type of “citizen legislator,” admits that it’s not working as he intended. Instead, politicians spend most of their time in office looking for their next job, trying to extend their political careers by constantly rotating from one office to another.
Proposition 28 is a simple reform that will help make our Legislature more accountable.
It closes the loophole that allows legislators to serve up to nearly 17 years. It mandates a hard lifetime limit of 12 years, which can be served in the Senate, the Assembly, or a combination of both. No current or former legislator can extend their time in office because of Proposition 28.
That means less time for politics, and more time for legislators to develop expertise and gets things done.
Proposition 28 won’t solve every challenge we face today. But it’s a real step towards making legislators more accountable. That’s good for state government and good for California.
Here’s what you can do:
- Sign up for the latest news and updates.
- Share this website and updates with your friends, co-workers and family.
- Vote “YES” for a Fresh Start for Term Limits on June 5.
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Winning the War Against Allergies-- Paul Enright -- 03/11/04
By Paul Enright
WebMD Live Events Transcript
The official start of spring is right around the corner, but for many allergy sufferers the sneezin' season has already begun. Learn what you can do to reduce allergy attacks from WebMD's own in-house expert, Paul Enright, who joined us to discuss prevention and treatment options for seasonal allergies.
The opinions expressed herein are the guest's alone and have not been reviewed by a WebMD physician. If you have questions about your health, you should consult your personal physician. This event is meant for informational purposes only.
Moderator: Welcome to WebMD Live, Dr. Enright. After a couple of years of big changes in drug treatments for allergies (along with a flood of TV commercials), with the nondrowsy antihistamines becoming widely available, things seem pretty quiet from a health consumer point of view. Are seasonal allergies considered conquered by doctors such as you?
Enright: I am personally very happy to see loratadine now available for $.10 a pill instead of $1 per pill, since I take it every day myself. It certainly is a wonderful opportunity to effectively treat allergic rhinitis without seeing a physician.
Member question: I thought it would be a good thing when Claritin became over the counter, but it's so horribly expensive I can't afford it! Will other brands be coming on the market soon to help drive down the cost?
Enright: Over six months ago generic Claritin became available and you can try Wal-Mart and Sam's Club to find a six-months supply. I paid $20.00 last month.
Member question: Since I get runny nose, watery eyes, and congestion every spring I think I have some allergies. Is it OK for me to just get Claritin OTC on my own or do I have to go to the doctor just to hear I have spring allergies and that I should get the same meds?
Enright: I'm a biased observer in this case. As a physician, I generally recommend that people obtain a diagnosis before they begin treatment, but I understand that many people in the United States without universal health care coverage cannot afford a physician's office visit. The symptoms you describe seem so typically of hay fever that the purchase of at least two weeks' worth of generic Claritin sounds like it's worthwhile, since the side effect rate is very, very low.
Member question: Does the over-the-counter allergy medicine work as well as the prescription medicine? Weren't some over-the-counter meds only available by Rx not so long ago? How do I know what to get?
Enright: Buy loratadine, period. If your symptoms do not resolve within a few days of taking loratadine, then consider seeking a prescription nondrowsy antihistamine, since a few people with hay fever respond well to one antihistamine but not to another.
Member question: I take my Claritin only when symptoms are present yet someone told me that I should take them all the time to build them up in my system is this so?
Enright: Good question. Antihistamines prevent the release of histamine, which causes the itchiness, sneezing, and other hay fever symptoms, so ideally it's taken before the exposure occurs. So I personally recommend to my family and patients that they begin taking Claritin every day during the season when they know they have hay fever symptoms.
Member question: My daughter's only symptom is chronic sneezing; she doesn't seem to have any other trouble. Should I still seek medical advice? I don't like her taking drugs of any sort.
Enright: I agree that medications, both obtained from a health food store and obtained from a physician, should generally be taken only when necessary to treat disease, meaning something that's causing a reduction in your quality of life. So there is no evidence that lack of treatment of hay fever leads to any permanent problems in the subsequent years.
Member question: I am a severe asthmatic. One doctor wants me to try immunotherapy; the other says it's too risky as I also suffer anaphylaxis. Would I likely get any asthma improvement from immunotherapy? Should I stay away from it?
Enright: Please ask that question on the asthma forum on WebMD, where I may give you a more detailed response.
Member question : I recently tested positive for allergies to pollen, dust mites, grasses, etc. My symptoms don't include the running nose, sneezing, etc. that I thought were allergy symptoms. I have fullness in my ears, headaches, sore throat, and some sneezing. I just started taking Zyrtec. Will this work right away or will it take awhile?
Enright: Zyrtec is a prescription non-sedating antihistamine, perhaps stronger than Claritin. You should experience relief of the symptoms of itchy eyes and sneezing within a couple of days of starting Zyrtec. However, your headaches may be due to sinusitis, which is a side effect of severe hay fever, where the drainage tubes from sinuses become clogged up. It may take weeks to months of additional therapy to successfully treat sinusitis once it has become established.
Member question: Do allergies from the seasonal changes increase in severity over time or can they remain a mere nuisance?
Enright: People who have genetic tendency to develop allergies may develop new ones to their environment throughout life. Therefore, new exposures, such as in the workplace or to a new home or a new pet or with new landscaping, may worsen the symptoms compared to previous years. Moving to a new location, on the other hand, may lead to reduced exposures to the allergens to which you have become sensitized in your old location; therefore, you may experience a "honeymoon" period of one to two years in the new location.
Member question: Why is it I've gone through life (I'm in my 40s) allergy-free, only to develop allergies in the past two years? I can tell you exactly when the scotch broom is starting to bloom by the onslaught of symptoms (runny nose, watery eyes, sneezing).
Enright: Adult onset of allergies and/or asthma is unfortunately rather common. It can often be caused by workplace exposures to chemicals and allergens?
Member question: Is there an actual link between allergies and asthma, i.e. does one often lead to the other, or do people with one simply tend to have the other?
Enright: Good question. About half of patients with asthma also have allergic rhinitis, and about one-third of patients with allergic rhinitis (hay fever) have a tendency to develop asthma at some point in their life. The connection is usually a genetic predisposition (a poor choice of parents).
Member question: My husband's asthma is always exacerbated by spring allergies. Any suggestions? He controls his asthma fairly well at other times.
Enright: It's wonderful that you are utilizing your computer to help improve your husband's health. I recommend that he talks with his physician treating his asthma at the beginning of the allergy season, so that his asthma controller medication can be "stepped up" to better control his asthma during this season. There are many different ways to improve asthma control. See the WebMD asthma board and asthma page for more details.
Member question: What allergy medicine can I take that won't make me drowsy? I'm presently on Zyrtec.
Enright: Of the three non-sedating antihistamines, Zyrtec is more likely to cause drowsiness than the other two. Many people starting Zyrtec have fewer side effects, such as drowsiness, after taking the medication for about two weeks (they become tolerant of the side effects.) Have you tried over-the-counter generic Claritin?
Member question: Do you know if they will come out with an OTC Zyrtec?
Enright: Probably not for more than 10 years, because the 17-year patent that the drug company enjoys would have to expire for them to give up such a large profit margin.
Member question: What's your opinion on OTC Vs Rx allergy meds?
Enright: I love the over-the-counter medications and take them myself.
Member question: How can I tell if it's a cold or allergies?
Enright: Allergies tend to recur upon re-exposure, whereas colds are just one time, and stop Also, allergies run in families, and allergies are more likely to cause itchy eyes and itchy throat than a cold.
Member question: How can my doctor tell if I have allergies without running tests? I don't want to get stuck by all those needles!
Enright: Ask the doctor to order specific IGE testing, also called RAST, and then you only get stuck once.
Member question: I always thought that airing out the house in the spring was a good thing. Now I hear that I shouldn't because it lets in the pollen. Advice?
Enright: It depends on which allergens you've become sensitized to. If you respond to outdoor allergens, such as grasses, trees, wheat, and other pollens, then opening your windows to the outside will naturally make your symptoms worse, but if you have become allergic to indoor allergens then opening the doors and windows will tend to dilute those allergens, since they originate inside your house.
Member question: My wife and I love to sleep with the windows open in the spring. Where we live there's such a short time when it's not too hot or too cold! But I have bad spring allergies and I'm sure it makes it worse to let all of that junk blow in on me and my bed. Are there window filters or some other product that can let me sleep with fresh air but without the pollen? What about air purifiers? Would one of those help?
Enright: Yes, there are filters, much like air conditioner filters, that you can place in an open window, available for about $20.00 on an internet sites. However, they dramatically reduce the amount of air that will naturally blow into your bedroom.
Air purifiers will reduce the number of pollens in your bedroom air with the window open, but be sure to purchase a large HEPA unit that is quiet and not an ionic, or "ironic" as I like to call them, breeze unit.
Member question: Are certain times of day worse for pollen?
Enright: Yes. In many communities it's the noon to afternoon when pollens are more readily released with the warmth of the sunlight. Also, after thunderstorms and after any windy periods the pollen counts are more likely to become much higher.
Member question: What's the difference between an allergen and an irritant? And does it really matter when either one makes me miserable? Will it affect my treatment?
Enright: Yes. The difference is the allergens are proteins derived from plants and animals, and the irritants are chemicals, such as sulfuric acid, ammonia, and formaldehyde. The treatment for allergen exposures can include antihistamines and allergy shots, but these are not effective for irritants, which must be avoided. However, nasal corticosteroid sprays are effective for both, but require a prescription from your physician.
Member question: Do you have any recommendations for things other than pills to help with allergy symptom relief?
Enright: Yes. Nasal lavage can be very effective, which is washing your nasal passages with saline solution, which, with the correct concentration of salt, does not cause burning of your nasal passages. See my WebMD message board for details. Also, nasal corticosteroid sprays, such as Flonase and Rhinocort, can be very effective for treating nasal congestion caused by allergens.
Moderator: What about prevention methods, such as nonmedicine preventions for when you are outdoors in the spring, for instance
Enright: Although it may look rather funny, HEPA filter masks are very effective at preventing the inhalation of allergens when exercising outdoors.
Member question: Because of the medicine my son takes for his ADD, he cannot take anything with Sudafed, because it can make him excited and jumpy. Are there antihistamines that don't have the side effect of making him jumpy?
Enright: Yes. There's a big difference between decongestants, such as Sudafed, and antihistamines, such as Claritin. They are an entirely different class of medications with entirely different potential side effects. Antihistamines do not raise the blood pressure and do not cause nervousness or excitement.
Member question: I used to love Asiatic lilies and grew banks of them in my garden. Now I have to have someone dig them out of my garden before they come up. I have a strong reaction to them. Is there any way I can be desensitized to them so I can grow them again?
Enright: That's an excellent question, and I'm clueless. Please consult the best allergist in your community. I'm unaware of allergen immunotherapy for that plant; however, it may be available.
Moderator: We are almost out of time. Do you have any final words for us, Dr. Enright?
Enright: Allergic rhinitis and sinusitis are very common, and the treatments for them are very effective. So don't continue to suffer from them. Seek medical advice and get good ideas from fellow sufferers on the WebMD Message Board.
Moderator: Thanks to Paul Enright, MD, for sharing his expertise with us today
©1996-2005 WebMD Inc. All rights reserved.
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After leaving a message containing all my pertinent contact info, I get a call back from Mountain Area Information Network Director Wally Bowen. He has one question: "Why do you use AOL?"
I fumble through my lame explanation -- it came with my computer, and I've been too lazy to switch Internet service providers. But Bowen's point is clear: Keep your business local. He adds, "People don't understand that [MAIN's account holders] are where a lot of the funding for our programs comes from."
Unlike AOL's home page, MAIN's is all about Western North Carolina. "We're trying to provide a clearing-house of local news, information and resources," Bowen explains. That means offering links to local meetings, weather forecasts, newspapers, pollen counts, business info, classifieds, film and book reviews, and even cartoons.
"MAIN is a nonprofit network," continues Bowen. "Our goal is to power the Internet and use it to build community in WNC."
For Bowen and his staff, building community means reaching out to those who aren't necessarily tech nerds from the word go. "MAIN applied for a $20,000 grant from Rural Internet Access Authority [a state-funded organization put in place to help ensure that all areas of North Carolina have adequate access to evolving Internet technologies]. RIAA deals with digital-literacy issues," reveals Office Manager Tess Johnson. "Each county can apply for up to $20,000 to enhance digital literacy. MAIN applied on behalf of our area to help the Latino population."
As Johnson points out, the average North Carolina resident already struggles to keep up with computer technology -- especially people living in rural areas where Internet access may be harder to come by. Factor in a language barrier and the challenges multiply.
So, this past April, MAIN launched Carolinahoy.org, a Web site aimed at the local Latino population. Log onto the site and you're met with an array of information links -- all in Spanish. If you don't habla espanol, you begin to get a sense of what a Latino immigrant is faced with on a daily basis.
"The norm is that most Latino people watch Spanish-language TV," notes Carolinahoy Program Director Nora Ardila. "There are only two channels in this area, and those two channels focus on the news mainly in Mexico, or maybe big cities like New York. So, the people know nothing about what's happening in their own community."
Now, with Carolinahoy.org up and running, Latinos can log on and get local news and information, as well as leads to services. "The Web site also offers a schedule of classes in many locations throughout the county," Johnson explains. "For example, the Literacy Council works with many English-as-a-second-language clients. While the Web site may not generate all of the classes, it offers a centralized location to find that sort of information."
But what about folks who don't know how to navigate the Web?
Carolinahoy has an answer for that, too. "While the Web site is the central goal, we also offer classes to teach digital literacy," Johnson reveals. "Nora is headquartered in El Centro in Hendersonville, a coalition of agencies and nonprofits geared toward serving the Latino population." Besides the digital-literacy classes, she explains, "there is also the Mountain Microenterprise Fund, GED classes through the University of Tennessee, and other services all housed under one roof."
And for people in rural areas who can't get to a class, she continues, "There's self-guided, online study for free. For example, a person can learn how to do online banking, look for jobs, and get a green card."
Carolinahoy also offers media-literacy training, which helps students use the Internet to best advantage by learning to spot more credible Web sites and how to evaluate and integrate the information found online into their lives.
Since the launch of Carolinahoy.org, Ardila estimates that some 1,860 people have visited the site. Another 50 have attended her classes, which began in January. To get the word out, she explains, "I attend community meetings at El Centro, I attend church meetings, and I contact Latino businesses, especially the Mexican stores. Fliers help, but it's mostly word-of-mouth. I tell the Latino leaders, and they tell others."
Although Ardila is a native Spanish speaker, computer programming is her primary area of expertise. She was teaching computer classes at Blue Ridge Community College and helping the Hendersonville Community Center set up a computer lab when someone suggested she could get a much-needed monitor from MAIN. That's when she found out that Carolinahoy was in the works.
"At the college, I felt like I was helping the community," Ardila explains. "But with this project, I felt like I could take charge and really help meet the needs of the Latino population."
Nine years ago, Ardila herself immigrated to the U.S. (from Mexico). "The language barrier and culture shock affected me," she recalls, "but I had family to guide me. Now there is more of a Latino community. When I first arrived, there were very few Latinos. It was difficult to find someone to talk to, so it was definitely a priority to learn English."
She continues, "I know others come here without people to help them and without the education -- especially English education -- to find things out."
Often, that lack of resources, combined with an immediate need to generate income, leads people to take jobs below their skill level. "It happens all the time," Ardila confirms. "I've seen doctors working in factories."
Rosio Martinez, a recent transplant to Asheville, left a job in a law office in Mexico to move to the U.S. And despite her experience working with computers, she found the software was different in her newly adopted country -- plus, everything was in English.
"I took a class from Nora for maybe two months," she explains. "Nora helped everyone in both languages. She teaches in Spanish, but the computers are in English."
Once Martinez had nailed the computer skills, she landed a job as assistant outreach coordinator at the Mountain Microenterprise Fund in Asheville. These days, she aids Latinos who are planning to start their own businesses. "I enjoy this job -- it's similar to what I did in Mexico, because I can help people," she observes. "Language is the first difficulty. People don't know what they need to start a business, such as a business license or how to pay the taxes. It's all different here."
Martinez feels her involvement with Carolinahoy helped her find a job she enjoys. "I think taking classes in computers is very important for Latino people," she asserts. "When you take the class in your own language, it's better. This class shows you that you can learn the same as in your own country. It gives you some confidence."
She adds: "Every day, I learn. On Wednesdays, we have meetings [at Mountain Microenterprise Fund] for two hours. I hear, hear, hear and I practice, practice, practice."
Martinez's job also offers this additional perk: Even as she hones her English, many of her co-workers are busy learning Spanish.
"I think it's great if both parties take an interest in each other's world and language," Ardila insists. "It makes the relationship stronger."
Of course, not all job applicants fare as well as Martinez. And many of the people who take Ardila's classes are less interested in finding jobs than in gleaning a little technical know-how. "Most of my students are adults with children in school," she explains. "They want to know what their children are doing on the computer. They want to be able to teach their families."
Ardila, meanwhile, has big plans for Carolinahoy.org. "I'd like to expand the Latino business section and add a Web market," she muses.
And then there's MAIN's new radio station, WPVM ("The Progressive Voice of the Mountains"). "We're working on a Spanish-language program, maybe an hour a day," Ardila reveals. "I'd like for the Web page to stream that program."
Bowen, too, has a vision for Carolinahoy. "We hope to develop a dynamic English version, but it's primarily for Spanish speakers" at the moment, he adds.
"I don't think there's anything like [Carolinahoy] in the Carolinas," notes Bowen. "It's just getting started. There's much potential for it developing into something positive for the Latino community in WNC as well as in North and South Carolina."
He continues, "This started out as something regional, but we're getting such good feedback that we're coming to seeing it as a tool for outside the region, too."
To sum it up with a bumper-sticker quote, it all boils down to thinking globally and acting locally -- which I guess means it's time for me to get motivated about changing my Internet service provider.
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Ayu Pramitasari, Septinda (2010) REPRESENTASI LAKI-LAKI DALAM IKLAN DI TELEVISI(Studi Semiotik pada Iklan LMen dan Gatsby Body Lotions). Other thesis, University of Muhammadiyah Malang.
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With a growing feminist movement considered to influence the birth of metrosexual phenomenon. Feminist movement that encourages gender equality has a big contribution to the development of the market (the product of men). Feminist movement fundamentally changed the way men and women interact in an environment that looks and body care is very important. This is what shows the notion of men have had aqual rights with women. Research on women in adveritising is often done. Stereotypes of women in advertising discourse is often linked with body and sexual objects. In this study, the role of man turns fallen prey to advertisers that indicate a shift in gender. Along with femininity movement that seeks to reverse the marginal position of women to gain equality with men. This research was conducted to try to uncover the representation of the men in television ads in the ad that is LMen and Gatsby Body Lotions. Representation is a social process of representing, and the two representations as representing the product of social processes. The first sense refers to a process while the second is a signmaking products that refer to a meaning. Media (the representation) when linked to social reality (real world), allowing a variety of ideological problems in social and cultural life. This question arises when the media referred to as a mirror of reality (the mirror of relity), or the media as a formulator of reality (the mirror of reality) that corresponds to the underlying ideology. Ads in the industrial society that forming tastes and trends of the masses, thus forming public awareness with the public on how to instill the desire false needs. Thus indirectly penetrated ad in the lifestyle industry, which is advertising a desire to be channel (channel of desire) of human discourse and at the same channel (channel of discourse) about consumption and lifestyle. Lifestyle industry is the industry’s most appearances. Media used to describe a negative self image of men and women. Media not only encourages us to measure ourselves with the standard requirement but rather encourage people to see normal body becomes pathology. The research method used in textual analysis and semiotics approach using Roland Barthes’s semiotic techniques to find out the myths in its advertising was followed by Levi’s Staruss semiotic techniques to search for patterns of performance comparison between men and women. While metonymy an ad if there are meanings that contain analogy and asossiation. Focus research on LMen ad (duration 29 seconds) with units of analysis, five scene images and ads Gatsby Body Lotions (duration 32 seconds) with the unit of analysis there are five scenes ofpicture that the meaning representation of men in television advertising. The Study show that the figure of male masculinity that men borrow the codes of femininity that has developed in a society with the emergence of the phenomenon of shifting the metrosexual and the classical concept of masculinity. Men are shown as dandy, a man is shown as charmer of women, and men tend to follow the behavior of women. By doing feminine activities. Men also displayed as sexual objects in which the male body into something enjoyed by women as well as his own man. Men always want to satisfy their need to cover all the flaws in himself. And this leads to costumer habits, about the need to always update themselves and pay attention to the appearance of the body. Result of the above, can be recommended to further research to more open critical discourse again to sharpen the research about the representation of men in television advertising. And recommended to the community as a social criticism that people may be more critical of advertising, because advertising construct social reality, so the ad with its ideology can affect society.
|Item Type:||Thesis (Other)|
|Subjects:||N Fine Arts > NX Arts in general|
|Divisions:||Faculty of Social and Political Science > Department of Communication Sience|
|Depositing User:||Rayi Tegar Pamungkas|
|Date Deposited:||04 Apr 2012 03:31|
|Last Modified:||04 Apr 2012 03:31|
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Social Issues Are Economic Issues, Exhibit 1,463: Michigan’s Dual Agenda Slams Low-Income Women
thenation.com — We’re barely more than a week into 2013, but Michigan has been very busy lately. As a pre-holiday gift to workers, Governor Rick Snyder signed a “right-to-work” bill into law after the Republican-controlled state house passed it 58-51, making the payment of union dues voluntary for most unions and thus severely weakening their power. Just over two weeks later, Snyder signed another bill into law restricting abortion access for the state’s women. Two extreme measures, but ones that aren’t directly related, right? One is clearly about “economic issues,” the other about “social issues.” Yet those who are hurt by both are, as is so often the case, low-income women. Michigan has shone a spotlight on the inextricable link between economic and social issues when it comes to the right-wing agenda. And we can only expect more of this news from statehouses as the year progresses.
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It is when your spirit goes wandering upon the wind,
That you, alone and unguarded, commit a wrong unto others and therefore unto yourself.
And for that wrong committed must you knock and wait a while unheeded at the gate of the blessed.
Like the ocean is your god-self;
It remains for ever undefiled.
And like the ether it lifts but the winged. Even like the sun is your god-self;
It knows not the ways of the mole nor seeks it the holes of the serpent.
But your god-self dwells not alone in your being.
Much in you is still man, and much in you is not yet man,
But a shapeless pigmy that walks asleep in the mist searching for its own awakening.
And of the man in you would I now speak.
For it is he and not your god-self nor the pigmy in the mist, that knows crime and the punishment of crime.
Oftentimes have I heard you speak of one who commits a wrong as though he were not one of you, but a stranger unto you and an intruder upon your world.
But I say that even as the holy and the righteous cannot rise beyond the highest which is in each one of you,
So the wicked and the weak cannot fall lower than the lowest which is in you also.
And as a single leaf turns not yellow but with the silent knowledge of the whole tree,
So the wrong-doer cannot do wrong without the hidden will of you all.
Like a procession you walk together towards your god-self.
You are the way and the wayfarers.
And when one of you falls down he falls for those behind him, a caution against the stumbling stone.
Ay, and he falls for those ahead of him, who though faster and surer of foot, yet removed not the stumbling stone.
And this also, though the word lie heavy upon your hearts:
The murdered is not unaccountable for his own murder,
And the robbed is not blameless in being robbed.
The righteous is not innocent of the deeds of the wicked,
And the white-handed is not clean in the doings of the felon.
Yea, the guilty is oftentimes the victim of the injured,
And still more often the condemned is the burden bearer for the guiltless and unblamed.
You cannot separate the just from the unjust and the good from the wicked;
For they stand together before the face of the sun even as the black thread and the white are woven together.
And when the black thread breaks, the weaver shall look into the whole cloth, and he shall examine the loom also.
If any of you would bring to judgment the unfaithful wife,
Let him also weigh the heart of her husband in scales, and measure his soul with measurements.
And let him who would lash the offender look unto the spirit of the offended.
And if any of you would punish in the name of righteousness and lay the ax unto the evil tree, let him see to its roots;
And verily he will find the roots of the good and the bad, the fruitful and the fruitless, all entwined together in the silent heart of the earth.
And you judges who would be just,
What judgment pronounce you upon him who though honest in the flesh yet is a thief in spirit?
What penalty lay you upon him who slays in the flesh yet is himself slain in the spirit?
And how prosecute you him who in action is a deceiver and an oppressor,
Yet who also is aggrieved and outraged?
And how shall you punish those whose remorse is already greater than their misdeeds?
Is not remorse the justice which is administered by that very law which you would fain serve?
Yet you cannot lay remorse upon the innocent nor lift it from the heart of the guilty.
Unbidden shall it call in the night, that men may wake and gaze upon themselves.
And you who would understand justice, how shall you unless you look upon all deeds in the fullness of light?
Only then shall you know that the erect and the fallen are but one man standing in twilight between the night of his pigmy-self and the day of his god-self,
And that the corner-stone of the temple is not higher than the lowest stone in its foundation.
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The Giant List of Classic Game Programmers
The Source for Video and Computer Game History since 1997.
"I wrote my first (non-vector) game, Cannon Ball, while sitting in my small office at a Model 33 teletype connected to a Motorola MicBug 6800 processor, both of which were connected to simple videogame hardware. I hand-assembled the entire program--it was only 2K, but still took several months--including self-test, saving the code on punched paper tape."
For HawkQuest I'm to be blamed for the planning of a huge project, for its time--which took 3 years part time to complete. (We didn't know how long it would take to complete it.) It's two separate games, interlinked: the main game is a Xevious variant, using a helicopter to bomb ground targets and air missiles for air attacks, the secondary game is similiar to Gauntlet/Shamus where you are roaming around underground fortresses in search of a missing crystal segment, but making use of inventory items along the way. A kind of scavenger hunt, all of it is linked via an interface of choosing which planet would you attack in what order. You can load/save saved games via the interface. So you do a Xevious-like run topside of the planet first, bomb a control mechanism at the end, to access the Secondary Game. The Secondary Game takes place within the planets interior fortress, completion of the secondary game takes you via teleport back to your own spaceship. There are five planets which you can attack, each with its own terrain, each underground fortress is completely different.Sadly, Andrew died in 2001.
The game was programmed on an Atari 800 48K computer. The game is supplied on 2 single density (90K) diskettes in which four sides are used. Therefore the whole HawkQuest took up 360K of data. With the decline of the Atari 8-bit computers and the appearance of the Atari ST and Amiga computers, we knew this would be a last hurrah game for the Atari 800/etc computers. I put some Atari ST references in the planetary landscape and level design layout.
I initially started the list to chronicle the authors of the great games I remembered. Games from Synapse and Sirius and the Atari Program Exchange and so on. In that respect, I've succeeded. The list is huge and fairly complete when it comes to games that were widely distributed and reviewed, plus many, many games that were more obscure. To make the list "complete," would involve hundreds (or thousands) more entries--a tremendous amount of work--for little benefit. I have an email containing author information for all the type-in games from several Apple II magazines, and that information is overwhelmingly long. A majority of these games are what I'd classify as trivial. Though for a different system, consider Bob Polaro's Lemonade. It was a straightforward implementation of a well-known business simulation and was sold through APX. Years later, it appeared as a type-in listing in Antic, where it turned out to be less than a page of BASIC code. In this case, the game is of historical interest because Bob went on to write the Atari 2600 port of Defender. But consider odd little magazine listings for tic-tac-toe and trivia games and Pong. There are hundreds of such games, and they do little more than bulk up the Giant List. The short version is that the list is essentially in maintenance mode at this point.
I have some interesting stories in the queue, and I hope to post them in the coming months.
The little-known 1980 coin-op Space Panic is generally accepted as the first. More people know about the home computer incarnation, Apple Panic (Ben Serki, 1981). Shigeru Miyamoto's Donkey Kong hit that same year, 1981, and yes indeed the DK-inspired games were right on its tail. Cannonball Blitz was an obvious knock-off (Olaf Lubeck, 1982), as was Canyon Climber (Tim Ferris, 1982), except the latter had the "walk over the rivets" screen before the "climb to the top" screen. Bill Hogue's Miner 2049'er pulled out all the stops with ten different screens, only to have the count tripled by Randy Glover's Jumpman the next year. That's ignoring Doug Smith's Lode Runner with 150 screens in 1982, but that game was more of a souped-up Space Panic than a direct Donkey Kong descendant. There are too many climbing games to list completely, but here are just a couple more from 1982: Infiltrate, Ponpoko, Burger Time, Fast Freddie (Mark Turmell), and Apple Cider Spider (Ivan Strand). Arguably the closest thing to an official sequel to Space Panic was Mr. Do's Castle (1983), as both games were coin-ops from Universal.
Al Lowe's entry has been filled-out, thanks to info from Al himself.
Kris Hatlelid's entry has been added. Kris is best known for Frantic Freddie for the C64. He currently works at Microsoft.
There are only a handful of Microbee game authors on the Giant List, and now John Passfield is one of them. John wrote two Microbee games: Chilly Willy (a Pengo-clone) and Halloween Harry. You can see screenshots of both games on his web site.
A notable new entry is that of Robert Weatherby. Robert designed a number of post-classic era Atari Games coin-ops, including Super Sprint. Of special historical interest is that Robert designed Chuck Norris Superkicks (1983, 2600, Xonox), which may be the first martial arts themed fighting game. Karate Champ, Yie Ar Kung Fu, Bruce Lee, and World Championship Karate were all later.
Xybots came from a challenge by Doug Snyder, a hardware engineer at Atari. We wanted to do a multi-player Castle Wolfenstein-like game that had no 'bit map' hardware. So I created an algorithm based on 8 by 8 stamps and he did the hardware.and later:
I started the game as a two-player split-screen Gauntlet III. Partway through, marketing said they wanted something other than Gauntlet. So I changed the characters and enemies to be more like Major Havok. I still regret changing the theme and wish I kept my original concept.
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Want to save this letter now that you've found it?
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My Dear Sir,
I wrote to you on the twenty- fourth of October, and have not since received any of your letters. In that I acknowledged yours of the 22d of June. You will have seen from the public prints the wonderful success of the French arms, arising from the following causes. 1. That the enemy, deceived by the emigrants, counted too lightly on the opposition he was to meet with. 2. That from like misinformation, instead of attacking on the northern frontier, backed by the resources of Flanders, and those which the ocean would supply, they came across the Ardennes to that part of Champaign, nicknamed the lousy, from its barrenness and misery. 3. That in this expedition, where the difficulty of the roads, transportation and communication was the greatest they expected, it so happened that the season, usually dry and fair, (when those bad roads are at the best) was one continued rain for two months, so that at length they were nearly stuck fast, and had as much as they could do to drag back their cannon, &c. through the mud. Lastly, that France brought into the field, and has kept up until very lately, the immense number of six hundred thousand troops. This has been done at an average expense of about five millions sterling per month beyond their resources, and yet they have ordered a like army for the next campaign, and talk boldly of meeting Great Britain also upon her element. What say you to that, Monsieur le Financier? But I will tell you in your ear, that in spite of that blustering, they will do much to avoid a war with Great Britain, if the people will let them, but the truth is, that the populace of Paris influence in a great degree the public councils. I think they will have quite as many men as they can maintain ; but what that may amount to is hard to determine.
The ministers here are most extraordinary people. They make nothing of difficulties, as you shall judge by a single trait of M. Pache, the minister at War. He had sent Beurnonville to occupy the Moselle river down to Coblentz, taking Treves and other places in his way. Now this way lies through a very difficult mountainous country, in which the snow is very deep, therefore Beurnonville, having got a little neck of land between the Saar and the Moselle, puts his troops into winter quarters, pleading their nakedness as an excuse. The minister has sent him a brace of commissioners, who have power to impress in the neighborhood whatever may be needful for the troops, and then (their wants supplied) summon him to obey his orders. T have given to Mr Jefferson a pretty full account of the state of things, so that if you see that account, which I take it is of course, you may measure by the standard now given you all other affairs.
If I may venture to judge from appearances, there is now in the wind a storm not unlike that of the second of September, Whether it will burst or blow over, it is impossible to determine.
It has occurred to me, that I never yet assigned a reason why the completion of payment of six million livres, which at Mr Short's request I had stipulated for with the government lately abolished, appeared to me desirable. In effect, I left this as I do many other things to the sense of the gentle reader, but as readers are sometimes ungentle, it is not amiss to communicate that reason to a friend. I saw that the new government would be hungry, and would urge us for money in the double view of obtaining an acknowledgment of them, as well as of supplying their wants. It was therefore, I thought, right to take a position where we might say there is nothing due. This would leave open a question, which it would be very delicate to answer either way, as things appeared then, and as they are now that appearances have changed. You will have seen the manoeuvres to force me in that intrenchment ; but at last, like your friend General Lee, I was quite at the worst for a retrograde manoeuvre.
But I concluded that supplies of money to support the colony of St Domingo would, in all events, have been considered as a good and effectual payment on our part, and, had my offer of recommending such supplies been accepted, I would on that ground have proposed the measure, which, anticipating the next instalments, would have still kept open the main point as long as you should think proper. And thus my apparent retreat was in effect a mode of more permanent defence, and this is more, I believe, than poor Lee could say for himself. I am truly yours, &ic.
- Gouverneur Morris
- The Life of Gouverneur Morris With Selections from His Correspondence and Miscellaneous Papers Vol. II., Jared Sparks, 1832
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Construction began in 1802 on St. Peter’s Episcopal Church on the Green in Monroe. The Federal-style church, completed in 1807, has been attributed by J. Frederick Kelly to the architect David Hoadley, who designed a number of churches in Connecticut. The Episcopal church building, the oldest in Monroe, was raised for additional space in the 1920s. Read the rest of this entry »
The first meetinghouse in North Milford, now Orange, was constructed on the north end of what is now Orange Center Green in 1792. At that time, residents of Orange were still members of the Milford Congregational Church, but a separate Ecclesiastical Society was eventually formed in 1804. The separate Town of Orange was incorporated in 1822. The current Orange Congregational Church, designed by David Hoadley, was built in 1810-1811.
The oldest church building in Hamden is Grace Episcopal Church, built in 1821 and attributed to the architect builder David Hoadley. The church’s first meeting house was built in 1790, in Mount Carmel, on what is today Whitney Avenue. The current church once had a large steeple, built in 1847 and designed by Henry Austin, which blew down in 1915. The present steeple was built in 1921. The church was moved in 1966 from one side of Dixwell Avenue to the opposite side. In the 1990s, Grace Church merged with St. Peter’s on the Hill, founded in 1958. The united church is now known as Grace & St. Peters Episcopal Church.
The First Church of Christ in Milford was established in New Haven in 1639 by a group of settlers led by Rev. Peter Prudden. They had already acquired land in Wepawaug, where they would shortly settle and establish the new parish and colony of Milford. The first meeting house was built in 1641 and was replaced by a second structure in 1727-1728. The current church, was built in 1824. Designed by David Hoadley, it has similarities to two earlier churches he designed: United Church on the Green in New Haven and Avon Congregational Church. A division in church membership during the Great Awakening in 1741 led to the errection of the Second Church (Plymouth Church). The two churches reunited in 1961 as the First United Church of Christ (Congregational).
In dimensions it was fifty feet by forty, and of suitable height for galleries, without a steeple. In 1759, two years previous to the settlement of Mr. [Ammi Ruhamah] Robbins, [Norfolk's first minister, who also served as an army chaplain during the Revolutionary War] the house was raised and covered. In 1761, the year of his ordination, it was underpinned and the lower floor laid. Such was its condition when he was ordained in it. In 1767 the gallery floor was laid; 1769 the lower part of the house and the pulpit were finished. January 2, 1770, it was, in the words of the time, dignified and seated; that is, the places to be occupied by those of various ages determined, and individuals located in them, as is done now. The next year the galleries were completed, and a cushion for the pulpit procured. The outside was painted the color of a peach blossom.
This meeting house, which was painted white in 1793, was taken down in 1813 and a new meeting house, designed by David Hoadley, was constructed. As Frederic S. Dennis explains, in The Norfolk Village Green (1917):
in 1814 the second Meeting House was finished, 60 by 45 feet in dimensions, and with a steeple and bell. This was built near the site of the original and was erected under the supervision of Michael F. Mills, who was appointed as agent by the society to build the best house he could for $6,000. It is still in existence; but after the death of Rev. Joseph Eldridge [in 1875] the interior was beautifully decorated and painted, a new platform and pulpit erected, electric lights installed, a new organ donated, Munich stained glass windows placed behind the pulpit, all through the great generosity of the Eldridge and Battell families.
The Meeting House as it now stands is a model of colonial church architecture. Its symmetry, its proportions, its graceful steeple, its artistic Sir Christopher Wren spire, its site on the knoll overlooking the Green, its beautiful interior decoration, its magnificent organ, make it one of the most attractive and beautiful in New England. One feature is most unusual to find in a Congregational church, a cross at the apex of the spire. It is “the only Puritan Meeting House whose spire from the first was surmounted by a cross and the same cross still points skyward.” This cross was evidently placed on the steeple in according to dates found in Rev. Thomas Robbins‘s diary.
Nineteenth-century Italianate alterations to the front facade of the Church of Christ Congregational of Norfolk were removed in 1926 and replaced with the current two-story pillared front porch, the gift of Alice Eldridge Bridgman, completed in 1927.
The striking pink, Federal-style Brown-Elton Tavern, located on the Green in Burlington, was built in 1810 as the private home of Giles Griswold, a merchant. It’s design is attributed to builder David Hoadley. By 1820, Griswold had relocated to Georgia and his properties were being foreclosed. The house was soon acquired by Julius Hotchkiss, who died in 1825. His widow, Laura Hotchkiss, later sold the Tavern, which passed through other owners over the years (pdf). The building served as a tavern on the Hartford and Litchfield stage line and later as an inn along the George Washington Turnpike. It was purchased by the Town of Burlington in 1974 and is now home to the Burlington Historical Society, which is restoring the Tavern as a museum.
Cheshire became a seperate parish from Wallingford in 1724. The first meetinghouse was a log cabin on the corner of what is now Lanyon Drive and South Main Street. This was replaced by the second meetinghouse in 1737, on the east side of Cheshire Green (where a Civil War monument stands today). This church was taken down in 1826-1827 and parts were used in the construction of the current church, designed by David Hoadley. The church has a similar design to those of the Congregational churches in Litchfield (1829) and Southington (1830).
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The career flexibility that can be achieved with a communication degree is illustrated by the success of our graduates. Their stories are the real-life examples that illustrate how a communication degree from Ferris can launch a successful career in a variety of fields.
Jeremy E . Grayewski, B.A. Communication, Ferris State University M.A. Communication, Michigan State University
As Most Outstanding Student in Communication in 2000, Jeremy had high hopes for using his communication degree for a meaningful career. He is currently employed at CareerStaff Unlimited and serves as the liaison between the main office and their Physical Therapists and Speech Pathologists who are contracted out to various hospitals and clinics. His responsibilities include contract negotiations, payroll supervision, recruitment and placement.
Ira Childress, B.S. Communication, Ferris State University
"The Applied Speech Communication program enhanced my verbal and written communication skills,while the professors consistently challenged me to apply my classroom experiences to the work force."
Ira currently serves as the Associate Director of Alumni Relations and Executive Director of the Alumni Association for Ferris State University and hosts the "Chill Show" on Muskegon's Sports Radio "The Champ" 97.5. At Ferris, Ira has successfully directed events such as the Ferris Hometown Tour, Ferris Football Frenzy and the 2007 Stanley Cup Celebration.
Marissa Beck, B.S. Communication, Ferris State University
After graduating from Ferris, Marissa has embarked on an exciting career as a Marketing and Special Events Associate with the Cincinnati Bengals.
Mary Latchney Dale, B.S. Communication, Ferris State University
"Everyday is a different day at Kforce and I am always on my toes. Most of the people I work with are CPAs and have been in accounting for years prior to coming to Kforce. Even though I was never a controller or CFO, I find that the skills I learned in my communication and psychology courses have helped me deal with very complex situations and have helped make me a successful recruiter."
Mary received her degree in Communication from Ferris and relocated to Grand Rapids where she began a career at Kforce Professional Staffing. Mary recruits Accounting and Finance Professionals and Office Administrative Professionals for small, medium, and large companies across Western Michigan.
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Adelaide is a city of great visual harmony and classical elegant style, superbly set beside the..Glenelg Information
Glenelg is Adelaide's most popular beach destination. It's always buzzing with people enjoying the..Port Adelaide Information
Port Adelaide ls about a 20 minute drive north west of Adelaide. Still a working port, it is famous..Grange Information
Sink into indulgence. Food, wine and luxury all accented with an ocean view and ambience to match...Hindley Street Information
Hindley Street is one of Adelaide City's most popular destinations for restaurants and bars..Elder Park Information
Elder Park is located between the City of Adelaide and North Adelaide on the banks of the Torrens..North Haven Information
North Haven is situated at the northern end of the Le Fevre Peninsula at the end of Adelaide's..Adelaide Botanic Garden Information
A haven in the heart of the city, the Adelaide Botanic Garden is the most visited scientific and..North Terrace Information
South Australia's history lives on North Terrace. Not just in museums and the Art Gallery, but in..Rundle Street Mall Information
Vibrant Rundle Street lives and breathes historic charm with modern sophistication. You'll find..Tynte St Flowers Information
Tynte Flowers is one of South Australia's most successful florists. The main concept behind Tynte..See all locations in Adelaide
Salisbury is a vibrant community offering a wide range of recreation opportunities including beautiful parks, reserves and wetlands for you to enjoy. It takes in the historic seaside town of St Kilda with its award winning adventure playground.
Explore Salisbury's local trails and wetlands including the Little Para Trails, the Wodliparri Trail at Kaurna Park and Dry Creek Linear Park.
Salisbury is a recognised national leader in a range of industries and takes in Technology Park, where companies deal in the many myriad forms of technology, such as computer systems, robotics and space technology. Salisbury is located 25 kilometres north of Adelaide.
The first people associated with the Salisbury area were the Aboriginal people known as the Kaurna. Recent research indicates that far from living a nomadic life style, groups were settled in campsites along the coast and inland plains of the Adelaide region. Many occupational and sacred sites still exist around the Salisbury area, including the Greenfields Wetlands. In 1839, three years after the founding of South Australia, a Scot named John Harvey migrated to South Australia. In 1847 he bought Section 2191 along the Little Para River and decided to develop a township there.
The township allotments went for sale the following year. John chose to name the township 'Salisbury' as his wife came from near Salisbury (on-the-plain) in England. His wife Ann (nee Pitman) was related to Sir Isaac Pitman of shorthand fame. Many of the streets in Salisbury are named after John and his family.
Most of the early settlers were English, Irish, Scottish and Welsh. There were also German settlers and some French.
Since World War Two Salisbury had grown and changed dramatically due to changes in transport, population growth, technology, immigration and its closest proximity to the city of Adelaide.
Arguably Australia's most commercially important wine region, the Barossa Valley, just an hour's..Adelaide Hills Information
As the oldest wine region in South Australia (the first vines were planted in 1839, just three..Kangaroo Island Information
This large and visually spectacular island is a microcosm of varying landscapes and different..Clare Valley Information
The Clare Valley is just an hour and a half north of Adelaide, but you might as well be a world..Limestone Coast Information
Famed for its red wines, red soils and red rock lobster, the Limestone Coast is located in the..Eyre Peninsula Information
There's 2000 kilometres of coastline to explore on Eyre Peninsula, and rarely will there be another..Fleurieu Peninsula Information
It's little wonder Australia's richest landscape art prize is staged on the Fleurieu..Port Augusta Information
Port Augusta is known as the Crossroads of Australia, where roads from Adelaide, the Flinders..Port Elliot/Horseshoe Bay Information
One of the sweetest beach settings in South Australia, Port Elliot is a popular tourist..See all locations in South Australia
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The Oslo Accords
Israel and the Palestinians pursue peace.
In August 1993, the world learned that secret negotiations had occurred in Oslo, Norway, between the Palestinians and the Israelis.
Even more surprising was the news that the two parties had reached an agreement regarding the possibility of peace. The agreement, deemed “The Declaration of Principles” was signed in Washington in September 1993. The following article examines the Declaration. It is reprinted from A History of Israel: From the Rise of Zionism to Our Times published by Alfred A. Knopf.
The signing ceremony in Washington was designated for September 13, 1993. Like the long, feckless negotiations in the State Department, the event nominally took place under the joint American Russian aegis of the original Madrid conference [The Madrid Peace Conference took place in 1991. This conference, hosted by the government of Spain, and co-sponsored by the United States and the Soviet Union, brought together Israel and her Arab neighbors, including Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, and the Palestinians, for a series of preliminary peace talks]. Gathered in the White House Rose Garden, therefore, the participants included not only PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat, PLO negotiator Abu Ala'a (Ahmed Qurei), Israeli Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin, Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres, U.S. President Bill Clinton, and U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher, but also Russian Foreign Minister Andrei Kozyrev. Indeed, once Peres and Abu Ala'a performed the act of signature, both Christopher and Kozyrev added their own signatures as "witnesses."
The twenty three page "Declaration of Principles on Interim Self Government" consisted of a basic text, four annexes and agreed minutes, and the September 9 10 exchange of letters between Arafat and Rabin. Less than a comprehensive treaty, the document in effect was an agreement to reach agreement, leaving the details to be negotiated between the parties. Nevertheless, under the declaration's collective guidelines, Israel would begin its military withdrawal from Gaza and Jericho as early as December 1993, and by April 1994 leave to a Palestinian authority virtually full self government in these enclaves.
Subsequently, a five year transitional period would commence for the West Bank in its entirety, and early on during that time span the Israeli civil administration would transfer "empowerment" to the Palestinian authority in five carefully delimited spheres: education, health, social welfare, taxation, and tourism. It was understood, too, that the spectrum of self government would rapidly expand into other areas, including the judiciary and water control. The Israeli army similarly would deploy outside the main West Bank population centers, although retaining authority for internal security in the region. From beginning to end, of course, Israel would retain full legal jurisdiction over Jewish settlements in the territories. Two years into interim empowerment for the West Bank, negotiations would commence between Israel, the Palestinians, and Jordan on the final status and borders of the territories, as well as of Jerusalem. The process would be completed in three years. Indeed, the entire five year timetable was based on the original Camp David accord of fifteen years before.
Yet the Declaration of Principles diverged from that earlier, 1978 document in several important respects. For one thing, it resolved the question of whether, as the Palestinians claimed, their interim empowerment would be territorial, covering the entire West Bank and Gaza areas; or whether, as Begin and Shamir had insisted, it should be exclusively personal, covering only the inhabitants of Palestine, but not the territories in which they lived. Here Rabin and Peres had affirmed that Palestinian empowerment would indeed be territorial. Except for the network of Jewish settlements and Israeli military installations, empowerment (initially in the five spheres cited above) would cover the totality of the land on which Arabs traditionally had lived, built their homes, worked, and raised their crops and families.
Of equal significance, the five-year interim period would begin immediately upon elections for a Palestinian Council and the council's formal inauguration. Camp David also had provided: "When the self government authority [administrative council] in the West Bank and Gaza is established and inaugurated, the transitional period of five years will begin." Yet the Camp David format specified that the permanent status negotiations must be conducted between "Egypt, Israel, Jordan and the elected representatives of the inhabitants of the West Bank and Gaza." In practice, then, no agreement ever was reached on the realm of the self governing authority; hence the authority was never "established and inaugurated" -and thus, fifteen years after Camp David, the five year transitional period had not yet begun. This time, the uncertainties of Arab intramural politics would not become a pretext for delay ("I do not believe that democracy can be imposed artificially on another society," Peres commented dryly later). The Declaration of Principles announced an intention to move ahead to Palestinian empowerment forthrightly, vigorously, and extensively -and, in the case at least of Gaza and Jericho, immediately.
So it was, on September 13, 1993, in the bright sunshine of a Washington morning, before an audience that included former United States presidents Jimmy Carter and George Bush, former secretaries of state Henry Kissinger, Cyrus Vance, and James Baker, that Rabin solemnly declaimed:
Let me say to you, the Palestinians, we are destined to live together on the same soil in the same land. We, the soldiers who have returned from battles stained with blood; we who have seen our relatives and friends killed before our eyes; we who have attended their funerals and cannot look into the eyes of their parents; we who have come from a land where parents bury their children; we who have fought against you, the Palestinians, we, say to you today in a loud and clear voice, enough of blood and tears. Enough!
Arafat responded in the same spirit, promising "to implement all aspects of UN Resolutions 242 and 338," and assuring Israel that "the right to [Palestinian] self-determination" would not "violate the rights of their neighbors or infringe on their security." In the flurry of handshakes afterward, the PLO chairman walked over to Rabin, who until that moment had avoided speaking to him or even standing next to him, and offered the Israeli prime minister his hand. After a moment's hesitation, and with a tight smile that onlookers might easily have confused with a grimace, Rabin accepted the hand and gave it two perfunctory shakes. Although no words were exchanged, the media treated the event as one of modern history's decisive watersheds
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Sometimes the hardest tweens to shop for are those who read below grade-level. They long to read the books that their peers are reading but the fact is they have note reached that level yet. And they don’t want to read “baby” books. Below are a few books that my struggling 6th grade readers are really enjoying this year.
- Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Stuart Little by Peggy Gifford- Moxy Maxwell is a procrastinator (much like my students). She was assigned Stuart Little for summer reading, but it is still unread on the last day before the first day of school. Sound familiar? Moxy won’t be allowed to play the eighth daisy petal in the water ballet at the local pool if she hasn’t finished the book by the time Mom returns home. Moxy is trying to read. Or start to read. But things keep getting in the way! First, Moxy’s room must be cleaned, Then the dog has to be trained. She also takes time to ponder the idea of inventing a hammock that automatically stops swinging when the person gets off. She decides to plant a peach orchard). And all of her procrastinations are documented by her brother, a budding photographer. The book has great photos and a lot of white space, perfect for struggling readers! Plus, it’s hysterical.
- Clementine by Sara Pennypacker- Clementine will remind older readers of Ramona and Junie B. Jones. Always getting into scrapes, she only has the best of intentions. For example, who hasn’t cut their friend’s hair in order to get glue out of it? Clementine takes it a step further (and better) by drawing hair back on her friend’s scalp. In flaming red marker! Readers will be laughing out loud while reading this book!
- The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick- Last year’s Caldecott winner, The Invention of Hugo Cabret is a gorgeous and stunning book. It’s also perfect for struggling readers. The story is told in words and pictures. Flipping through the book is almost like watching a movie. The illustrations sometimes go on for 50 pages and if you don’t read the pictures, you won’t understand the story. The perfect cross between a novel and a graphic novel, this 544 page book is just perfect for older readers who struggle with typical novels. And the heavy tome makes them fit right in with their peers.
- Just Grace by Charise Mericle Harper- Just Grace is in class with three other Graces. Hence the “Just Grace” moniker. Her adventures are reminiscent of Ramona and Moxy, with plenty of laughs and scrapes to get into (and out of). This is the beginning of a great series that readers won’t want to put down!
- The Houdini Box by Brian Selznick- Ten-year-old Victor has no success trying to do the same tricks as his hero, Harry Houdini; no matter how hard or often he tries, he just can’t escape from a locked trunk, or hold his breath underwater, or run through walls. Then he meets the magician himself in a crowded train station, and some time later receives a mysterious locked box engraved with the initials “E. W.” Victor can’t figure out who E. W. is and, annoyed, puts the box away without a second thought. Many years later, after he grows up and has a son of his own, he learns that Houdini’s real name was Ehrich Weiss. Remembering the box, he rushes home, opens it, and that night, he locks himself in the trunk–and escapes in less than 20 seconds. The book includes a small biography of Houdini and is perfect for magic-lovers.
Check out all my posts here!
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Ninjas and Pizza
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles tells the story of four turtles, who have mutated into something vaguely human, and trained themselves to be ninjas. They are called Donatello, Raphael, Michelangelo and Leonardo, named after renaissance artists from Florence. Guided by their master and mentor Splinter (a rat), they eat pizza and try to save the world from the evil Shredder.
Shredder is a dreadful character, though I don't remember whether he's human or not. He wears an armor with lots of metal on it, and has some spiky weapons attached to his arms.
The ninja turtles also have a human helper in April O'Neil, a promising and inspiring journalist.
The actual plot of the story is somewhat unclear to me at the moment. I can only remember certain fragments of the movie. What I do remember, however, is that I've only seen the movie once, and that was in a birthday party when I was 11 or 12 years old. It was a great experience. After the movie we went outdoors and pretended to be ninjas!
All Pizza and Ninjas?
Watching the movie again was quite interesting. As it turns out, I didn't recognize any scenes from the movie. My general description wasn't too far off the mark, however. Pizzas and ninjas are central to the story, but deeper relationships and intricacies exists.
Splinter the Rat learned his ninja skills from watching his owner practice. Once Splinter mutated together with the turtles, he grew to become more human, learned to speak, and became wiser. With his new-found abilities, he started the task of teaching the turtles everyting he knew. Having lived a life of watching a ninja master train, all he had to teach them was the art of the ninja.
It turns out that Splinter's master and Shredder had fought over the same girl a long time ago in Japan. Shredder killed Splinter's master, spurring Splinter to seek revenge. At the time of Shredder's killing of Splinter's master, Splinter attacked Shredder and maimed his face, forcing him to wear a mask for the rest of his life.
Alright! That's enough! Show me the deeper meanings!
The Turtles is a classic story of four friends taking the step from irresponsible youths to confident adults. Through their common experiences, they lose their master and split up the group. Through necesity they rejoin the group, and enstrengthened from this, they go after Shredder and reunites with their master.
The story also involves a lot of young kids feeling left out by society. They band together and perform lots of petty crimes, inspired and organised by Shredder. They try to create a new family, since their parents allegedly don't care about them. One of Splinter's lessons for the kids is that all parents care about their children.
The obtuse meaning underneath the storyline is to stay true to your friends and family. A team is stronger than the sum of its parts.
What's in it for me?
Having grown up as the second youngest of four siblings, it's easy to relate to the dynamics in the group. We we're a quite social group, and took part in a lot of common activities where we grew up. By teaming up and cooperating, we were visible and significant, often setting the pace leading the crowd.
My childhood memory shows how the memories and experiences from the youth don't match up with reality. My story focuses on double meanings, opposites and hidden memories. The Turtles is kind of the opposite. It's a straight forward story, with very little hidden beneath the uppermost layer.
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Science subject and location tags
Articles, documents and multimedia from ABC Science
Thursday, 21 March 2013
While children as young as three understand they should share, it's not until they hit seven that they practice what they preach.
Tuesday, 3 July 2012
People who remember being physically punished as children are more likely to be diagnosed with depression, anxiety and personality disorders later in life.
Tuesday, 15 May 2012
Children face a growing risk from 'button' batteries, according to a US study showing a near doubling of emergency room visits in the past two decades.
Tuesday, 28 February 2012
Virtual boxing, tennis and dancing along with video game systems may not be helping children meet daily exercise requirements.
Tuesday, 14 February 2012
Kids never got enough shuteye, even back in grandpa's day.
Friday, 27 January 2012
Children who develop autism already show signs of different brain responses in their first year of life.
Thursday, 21 July 2011
Young children are more likely to share rewards fairly with each other if they have worked together to get them.
Wednesday, 22 June 2011
Women who smoke while pregnant may increase their children's risk of eventual heart attack by up to 20%.
Friday, 3 June 2011
Eating baked goods that contain milk may help children get over milk allergies, according to a study.
Tuesday, 31 May 2011
Study finds sports drinks not necessary for most children and adolescents.
Tuesday, 10 May 2011
A population-wide study of South Korean children suggests more people have autism specturm disorder than previously thought.
Friday, 29 April 2011
Kids who swap out regular dairy products for low-fat varieties consume less saturated fat but don't seem to lose weight, according to Australian researchers.
Tuesday, 17 August 2010
No brothers or sisters? No problem, according to a US study that found growing up without siblings did not diminish teenagers' social skills.
Wednesday, 27 January 2010
No matter where a child sits on the 'sibling ladder', new research suggests character traits and behaviour rub off on one another in the long run.
Tuesday, 15 December 2009 15
In the often high-tech world of modern children's playgrounds, a new study suggests that an old-fashioned solution may be best.
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Birthday of the B-52
April 15, 2002, will mark the golden anniversary of the B-52 Stratofortress. Fifty years earlier, at Boeing Field, Seattle, the YB-52 serial No. 49-0231, took off for the first time. No one, not even pilots A.M. "Tex" Johnston and Guy M. Townsend could have imagined that the eight-engine bomber would serve so well, so long, and in so many roles.
Certainly no one dreamed that the B-52 would be in action over Afghanistan in the fall of 2001. But it was.
The B-52 began projecting global air power with an epic, nonstop round-the-world flight of three aircraft in January 1957, and it continues to do so today. The original B-52 design was a triumph of engineering. Early in its eventful life, the B-52 was given the nickname "BUFF" which most say stands for Big Ugly Fat Fucker. Even the pilots of the BUFF call it that name, lovingly, of course. Despite being a marvel of engineering, its success has depended mostly on the talented individuals who built, flew, maintained and modified it over the decades. (Go Air Force!)
Through the years, the B-52 has proved to be an extremely versatile aircraft. In the early years, the plane was meant to overpower Soviet air defenses through a mix of high altitude (30,000 feet +), high speed (594 mph), and one of the most technologically advanced Electronic Counter Measures packages the world had ever seen. But as the Soviet air defense network grew, it was decided that instead of sending the bombers into Soviet airspace, they would launch the new generation of cruise missles developed in the late 1950's. When the United States committed to the war in Vietnam, the B-52 switched roles yet again. Now the bombers flew from 30,000 feet and provided close air support to troops on the ground. After the war ended, a polling of the North Vietnamese Army and the Viet Cong guerillas showed that the B-52 was the single weapon most feared most by the soldiers. Why you ask? Because of the B-52's payload. The BUFF routinely hauled 50,000 pounds of bombs on missions, and when carpet bombing, it would tear 2 mile by 1 mile scars into the jungle in under a minute with such accuraccy that U.S. troops could call in strikes within half a mile of themselves. The next task for the B-52 came in Desert Storm, when the B-52 dropped small numbers of bombs with an attitude more toward precision than toward Carpet Bombing, a role which it was never intended for, but in which it performed admirably.
Called to combat once again in the War on Terror, the B-52 continues to give front line service in a variety of roles. What’s more, its career is assured for at least 20 more years as the mainstay of the U.S. Air Force's bomber fleet, and will probably survive the Rockwell B-1B Lancer, the aircraft which was designed as a replacement to the B-52.
Having never flown a B-52 myself, it is difficult to speculate how the giant flies, but pilots have nothing but good things to say about it. It pioneered technology that allows its wheels to twist up to 45 degrees for landings in crosswinds. This technology, first invented for the mighty B-52, is now being used again in the development of the commercial Boeing 777. The B-52 also has a two floor crew compartment, with the defensive and offensive systems operators sitting on a floor below the pilots, navigator and, on B-52A,B and C models, the tail gunner. Another oddity only to be found on the B-52 is the way it climbs, with its nose pointed down, as in, toward the ground. The angle of attack of the wings into the wind actually cause the bomber to climb with its nose pointed down. Yet, for all its strange features, and the smell of "50 year old coke and crewman's sweat" reported by the pilots inside the aircraft, it is one aircraft that is truly loved by its crews.
After 50 years and hundreds of thousands of sorties, B-52 crews have flown an airplane that just keeps going on, year after year, decade after decade, always taking on new tasks, and always on the first team.
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In November 2011, West Hollywood, Calif., became the first city in the U.S. to ban the sale of clothing made of animal fur. The ban goes into effect in 2013, and animal rights activists are hopeful that it will lead other cities to adopt similar measures and, ultimately, end the practice of using animal fur entirely.
If history is any indication, even an all-out nationwide ban on animal fur is unlikely to squelch demand. Rather, the likelihood is that it would simply create a black market for such items. After all, many luxury goods have existed for centuries and enjoyed widespread popularity despite official bans, and stiff penalties and long prison sentences for those found trafficking in or purchasing such goods. Clothing with animal fur has always had an image of luxury and sophistication for those who wear it, and banning it would likely do little to change that.
What are some in-demand luxury goods that enjoy worldwide status and popularity despite being banned? Click ahead and find out.
By Daniel Bukszpan
Posted 29 November 2011
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New resource on lobbying and advocacy rules now available
Four major foundations launch free, online training for the philanthropic community
Apr. 19, 2012
Palo Alto, Calif. — The David and Lucile Packard Foundation, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation have jointly launched a free, first-of-its kind online training for program staff at private foundations to help them navigate the rules of advocacy and lobbying.
The interactive resource provides program staff with a legal overview about how to remain within the law when the grants they fund, or activities they do involve advocacy and lobbying. The course takes less than an hour to complete and features “Maya”, a new program officer that leads participants through the training.
“While there are many rules and regulations applicable to our grantmaking, we find the IRS lobbying laws are some of the more important ones for our staff to clearly understand,” said Mary Anne Rodgers, General Counsel for the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. “Since these rules apply to all private foundations, we wanted to share this important resource with the field and make it accessible to program staff across the country.”
The training includes three easy-to-follow modules that cover issues such as:
- An overview of how lobbying laws apply to private foundations and whom and what they can legally fund.
- The types of grants private foundations are allowed to provide and how to fund when advocacy and lobbying are involved.
- Guidelines and tools to help foundation staff engage with grantees and legislators.
Participants can also return to the training at any time for a refresher and click on the individual modules to refer back to specific topics.
The goal of the course is to supplement existing in-person workshops or trainings that legal counsel at foundations already provide to staff and it is intended to be the first in a suite of free training resources for private foundation staff.
“This online training sets a new standard for grantmaker education on lobbying issues. It understands where grantmaking staff are coming from and allows them to customize their experience,” said Lawrence Mendenhall, Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary at Humanity United. “The training’s flexible functionality and use of hard-hitting examples is a potential game-changer for grantmakers and grantees working to change policy while remaining compliant with the IRS rules.”
For more information and to view the training, visit http://www.learnfoundationlaw.org.
# # #
Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, it focuses on improving people’s health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In the United States, it seeks to ensure that all people—especially those with the fewest resources—have access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life.
The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation has been making grants since 1967 to help solve social and environmental problems at home and around the world. The Foundation concentrates its resources on activities in education, the environment, global development and population, performing arts, philanthropy, and makes grants to support disadvantaged communities in the San Francisco Bay Area.
The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, established in 2000, seeks to advance environmental conservation and scientific research around the world and improve the quality of life in the San Francisco Bay Area. The foundation's science program aims to make a significant impact on the development of provocative, transformative scientific research and increase knowledge in emerging fields.
The David and Lucile Packard Foundation is a private family foundation created in 1964 by David Packard (1912–1996), cofounder of the Hewlett-Packard Company, and Lucile Salter Packard (1914–1987). The Foundation provides grants to nonprofit organizations in the following program areas: Conservation and Science; Population and Reproductive Health; and Children, Families, and Communities. Foundation grantmaking includes support for a wide variety of activities including direct services, research and policy development, and public information and education. ###
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I’m currently reading Vortex, the third book in Robert Charles Wilson’s Spin trilogy. In it there is a society who are all networked together at the limbic level, so that they tend to have much greater unity of emotion. The central networking node of this society is called the Coryphaeus.
It took me a moment to recall where I knew that word from. It had been a while since I had studied Greek drama. But a coryphaeus is, in Greek drama, the leader of the chorus.
Now, when I’m talking about a chorus, I’m not talking about a group of singers who stand by the side, and I’m not talking about the supporting company of singers and dancers in a Broadway show – though it’s something rather like the latter. The chorus, in Greek drama, is a group of persons germane to the action – often the play was named after them, as in The Trojan Women or The Libation Bearers or almost any play by Aristophanes (The Birds, The Frogs, The Clouds, The Acharnians). They dance together, sing together, speak together – actually, no, the coryphaeus is their spokesperson.
So clearly coryphaeus is related to chorus, right? There’s just that middle bit… But no, actually, there’s no etymological connection. Remember that our ch in Greek-derived words represents the letter chi χ, which in Greek is like the ch in Scottish loch or German bach – we just don’t use that sound in modern English. The c, on the other hand, is just a kappa κ passed through Latin. So this cor and chor are no more related than tail and sail.
In fact, coryphaeus just means “chief” or “leader” in the original – koruphaios, κορυϕαῖος, which comes from koruphé κορυϕή “head” or “top”. So when it’s used to mean more generally the leader of a group, that’s actually not an extension of the chorus sense; it’s just a use of the broader sense.
Oh, and if you want a word that is related to chorus, that would be choragus – also seen as choregus and choragos. It refers to the honorary leader of the chorus, an Athenian citizen who ponied up the drachmas to pay for the chorus. The coryphaeus was the actual leader of the chorus.
Or should I say the koruphaios was. Oh, heck, we get so many of our Greek words by way of Latin! And the Latin spelling and transliteration practices prevail – and all those os (and ous) endings become us, even when they’re not actually nominal suffixes (as in Oidipous, Latinized as Oedipus). For that matter, I could really render that Greek as korufaios; it’s kind of misleading to use ph for that sound that has come down to us as /f/. But it has a different feel, doesn’t it? Compare our philosophy with the Spanish filosofía. The f’s are slender, sinuous; the ph’s are stuffed, fat – or is that phat. And pompous.
But korufaios is more foreign-looking; it has that hard k and the aio bunch. We’re just not used to seeing such things in refined company. Does it really pass the test for something that, as Peter Shaffer had his Mozart say in the play Amadeus (but not in the movie), is so lofty it shits marble? True, actual Greek choruses were not necessarily so elevated in the original. But does not coryphaeus seem more elegant, crisp, refined, professional, philosophical? The aeus is a Latin bunch, unlike the wild aios; the c and y are suitable for presentation at tea-time, perhaps to your aunt Cory.
It is true that this word can be yours cheap, but doesn’t it look so expensive? The shape, the cypher, give you pause; surely you will pay to score it. Spruce ahoy! But of course if you’re footing the bill, that makes you the choragus, not the coryphaeus…
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At the recently held World Psychiatric Association Thematic Conference on Intersectional Collaboration and 4th European Congress of the International Neuropsychiatric Association in Athens, Greece, Angelos Halaris, MD, PhD, made the case for this new subspecialty, which he believes would forge closer working relationships between psychiatrists and cardiologists, provide the training and expertise needed to detect cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk in psychiatric patients (and vice versa), provide continuing education regarding the safe use of medications for patients with these comorbid disorders, and raise public awareness.Wow. More subspecialty regulation and titles? This is the best we can do?
"The formation of a formal subspecialty is a bit of a pipe dream at this point," Dr. Halaris, professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences at Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine in Maywood, Illinois, told Medscape Medical News.
"But I wanted to put it out there because our colleagues in cardiology as well as in psychiatry need to realize there is a very clear association between emotional/psychiatric/psychological conditions and cardiovascular health."
He noted that 40% to 60% of patients with CVD also have clinical depression. And 30% to 50% who have a diagnosis of depression are at risk of developing CVD.
"Multidisciplinary teams need to forge an alliance because of these comorbidities. This will allow an earlier diagnosis of our patients, vigorous treatment, and the prevention of worse conditions that would happen otherwise," said Dr. Halaris.
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From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
- "What is the good of criticism? What is the good? -- A vast and terrible question mark which seizes the critic by the throat from the very first step in the first chapter he sets down to write," asks French writer Baudelaire in 1846.
- "If there is one boring and tedious task, it is certainly that of art critics, charged annually at the time of the Paris Salon, to repeat their same opinions about the same artists. Critics have, in short, but one volume in their stomachs on the subject, and each one of them is required to periodically repeat this volume by simply changing a few words here and there." -- "Our painters at the Champ de Mars", Émile Zola
Art criticism is the discussion or evaluation of visual art.
The variety of artistic movements has resulted in a division of art criticism into different disciplines, each using vastly different criteria for their judgements. The most common division in the field of criticism is between historical criticism and evaluation, a form of art history, and contemporary criticism of work by living artists.
Despite perceptions that art criticism is a much lower risk activity than making art, opinions of current art are always liable to drastic corrections with the passage of time. Critics of the past are often ridiculed for either favoring artists now derided (like the academic painters of the late 19th Century) or dismissing artists now venerated (like the early work of the Impressionists). Some art movements themselves were named disparagingly by critics, with the name later adopted as a sort of badge of honor by the artists of the style (e.g. Impressionism, Cubism), the original negative meaning forgotten.
Artists have often had an uneasy relationship with their critics. Artists usually need positive opinions from critics for their work to be viewed and purchased; unfortunately for the artists, only later generations may understand it.
Although critiques of art may have its origins in the origins of art itself, art criticism as a genre is credited to have acquired its modern form by the 18th century.
The first writer to acquire an individual reputation as an art critic in 18th C. France was La Font de Saint-Yenne who wrote about the Salon of 1737 and wrote primarily to entertain while including anti-monarchist rhetoric in his prose.
The 18th C. French writer Denis Diderot is usually credited with the invention of the modern medium of art criticism. Diderot's "The Salon of 1765" was one of the first real attempts to capture art in words. According to art historian Thomas E. Crow, "When Diderot took up art criticism it was on the heels of the first generation of professional writers who made it their business to offer descriptions and judgments of contemporary painting and sculpture. The demand for such commentary was a product of the similarly novel institution of regular, free, public exhibitions of the latest art." [Published in Diderot on Art I, p.x]
A dominating figure in 19th century art criticism was French poet Charles Baudelaire, whose first published work was his art review Salon of 1845, which attracted immediate attention for its boldness. Many of his critical opinions were novel in their time, including his championing of Delacroix and Courbet. When Manet's famous Olympia (1865), a portrait of a nude courtesan, provoked a scandal for its blatant realism, Baudelaire worked privately to support his friend.
Pre–World War II
Bloomsbury Group members Roger Fry and Clive Bell were notable English pre-war art critics. Fry introduced post-impressionism to the country, and Bell was one of the founders of the formalist approach to art. Herbert Read championed modern British artists such as Paul Nash, Ben Nicholson, Henry Moore and Barbara Hepworth.
Post–World War II
As in the case of Baudelaire in the 19th century, the poet-as-critic phenomenon appears once again in the 20th, when French poet Apollinaire becomes the champion of cubism. Later, French writer and hero of the Resistance André Malraux writes extensively on art, going well beyond the limits of his native Europe. Interestingly, his conviction that the vanguard in Latin America lay in Mexican Muralism (Orozco, Rivera and Siqueiros) changes after his trip to Buenos Aires in 1958. After visiting the studios of several Argentine artists in the company of the young Director of the Museum of Modern Art of Buenos Aires Rafael Squirru, Malraux declares the new vanguard to lie in Argentina's new artistic movements. Worthy of note is the fact that Squirru, a poet-critic of renown himself who became Cultural Director of the OAS in Washington D.C. during the Sixties, was the last to interview the well-nigh forgotten Edward Hopper before his death, creating a revival which consecrated the American artist once and for all time.
In the 1940s there were not only few galleries (The Art of This Century) but also few critics who were willing to follow the work of the New York Vanguard. There were also a few artists with a literary background, among them Robert Motherwell and Barnett Newman who functioned as critics as well.
As surprising as it may be, while New York and the world were unfamiliar with the New York avant-garde, by the late 1940s most of the artists who have become household names today had their well established patron critics: Clement Greenberg advocated Jackson Pollock and the Color field painters like Clyfford Still, Mark Rothko, Barnett Newman, Adolph Gottlieb and Hans Hofmann. Harold Rosenberg seemed to prefer the action painters like Willem de Kooning and Franz Kline. Thomas B. Hess, the managing editor of Art News, championed Willem de Kooning.
The new critics elevated their proteges by casting other artists as "followers" or ignoring those who did not serve their promotional goal.
As an example, in 1958, Mark Tobey "became the first American painter since Whistler (1895) to win top prize at the Biennale of Venice. New York's two leading art magazines were not interested. Arts mentioned the historic event only in a news column and Art News (Managing editor: Thomas B. Hess) ignored it completely. The New York Times and Life printed feature articles."
Barnett Newman, a late member of the Uptown Group wrote catalogue forewords and reviews and by the late 1940s became an exhibiting artist at Betty Parsons Gallery. His first solo show was in 1948. Soon after his first exhibition, Barnett Newman remarked in one of the Artists' Session at Studio 35: "We are in the process of making the world, to a certain extent, in our own image." Utilizing his writing skills, Newman fought every step of the way to reinforce his newly established image as an artist and to promote his work. An example is his letter on April 9, 1955, "Letter to Sidney Janis: ---It is true that Rothko talks the fighter. He fights, however, to submit to the philistine world. My struggle against bourgeois society has involved the total rejection of it."
Strangely the person thought to have had most to do with the promotion of this style was a New York Trotskyist, Clement Greenberg. As long time art critic for the Partisan Review and The Nation, he became an early and literate proponent of abstract expressionism. Artist Robert Motherwell, well heeled, joined Greenberg in promoting a style that fit the political climate and the intellectual rebelliousness of the era.
Clement Greenberg proclaimed Abstract Expressionism and Jackson Pollock in particular as the epitome of aesthetic value. It supported Pollock's work on formalistic grounds as simply the best painting of its day and the culmination of an art tradition going back via Cubism and Cézanne to Monet, in which painting became ever 'purer' and more concentrated in what was 'essential' to it, the making of marks on a flat surface.
Jackson Pollock's work has always polarised critics. Harold Rosenberg spoke of the transformation of painting into an existential drama in Pollock's work, in which "what was to go on the canvas was not a picture but an event". "The big moment came when it was decided to paint 'just to paint'. The gesture on the canvas was a gesture of liberation from value--political, aesthetic, moral."
One of the most vocal critics of Abstract expressionism at the time was New York Times art critic John Canaday. Meyer Shapiro, and Leo Steinberg were also important art historians of the post-war era who voiced support for Abstract expressionism. During the early to mid sixties younger art critics Michael Fried, Rosalind Krauss and Robert Hughes (critic) added considerable insights into the critical dialectic that continues to grow around Abstract expressionism.
Art critics today work not only in print media-in specialist art magazines as well as newspapers, but also on the internet, on TV and on radio, and in museums and galleries. Many are also employed in universities or as art educators for museums. Art critics curate exhibitions and are frequently employed to write exhibition catalogues. Art critics have their own organisation, a UNESCO non-governmental organisation, called the International Association of Art Critics which has around 76 national sections and a political non-aligned section for refugees and exiles.
Since in the early 21st century, online art critical websites and art blogs have cropped up around the world to add their voices to the art world. Some notable art blogs and art blog writers who have focused on art criticism include Art Fag City, Bad at Sports, Art Critical, James Wagner, Fallon and Rosof, CultureGrrl, Winkleman Blog, Two Coats of Paint, The James Kalm Report, Sharkforum blog, Wooster Collective blog, Brian Sherwin's Myartspace Blog, Hrag Vartanian & Hyperallergic, Tyler Green's Modern Art Notes, Coagula Art Journal and Jerry Saltz. Many of these writers use social media resources like Facebook and Twitter to introduce readers to their opinions about art criticism.
- What Is Art?
- Art blog
- Art theory
- Literary criticism
- Baudelaire's art and literary criticism
- French art criticism
- Denis Diderot's art criticism
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Employees of the Week: Pauline Alvarado, Planning Department Annette Medina, Planning Department Valerie Barela, Police Department Frances Gonzales, Finance & Administrative Services Department
The Special Energy Project team was given an assignment to come up with a sustainability project that would be beneficial to the City of Albuquerque. This project was one of several which were ultimately selected for city-wide implementation.
The team is being honored for their proposal to utilize ‘WattStopper’ devices throughout city buildings and office spaces. At their suggestion, the devices were distributed to the various city departments. These power strips hold up to six different outlets and are powered by a censor that is placed somewhere on an employees desk or work station. If there is more than thirty minutes of inactivity or movement, four of the six outlets turn off and two of the six stay on continuously.
The team accomplished the efficiency project while still maintaining their usual workloads within their own specific departments. Because of their hard work and diligence, the city received a PNM rebate for just over $100,000.
“This project wasn’t only about saving money, though that is an important component. In addition to the savings, the implementation of the proposal that this team came up with allows the city to reduce its energy use and be a responsible steward of our resources. This is a win-win for our community,” said Mayor Berry.
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RCN announces winners of Marjorie Simpson Award 2009
Published: 26 March 2009
Three nursing researchers have been announced as joint winners of the Marjorie Simpson New Researchers' award 2009 at the RCN International Nursing Research Conference in Cardiff.
The winning projects investigate:
- the effectiveness of tea-tree oil in preventing MRSA colonisation - Gillian Thompson, Queen's University, Belfast.
- the effects of mild hyperglycemia in diabetes related complications - Anna Steele, Peninsula Medical School, Universities of Exeter and Plymouth.
- experiences of end-of-life care in a cancer critical care unit - Natalie Pattison, Northumbria University, Newcastle.
RCN Chief Executive & General Secretary, Dr Peter Carter, said:
"This award recognises real talent in nurses new to nursing research. Their work represents some of the very best of the cutting edge research that nurses from across the globe will be presenting at the RCN's International Nursing Research Conference".
The RCN Research Society Marjorie Simpson New Researchers' award is an annual award which recognises excellence in new researchers who are involved in post-graduate research.
To find out more about the RCN Research Society and Marjorie Simpson award, go to: www.rcn.org.uk/development/researchanddevelopment/rs/awards/marjorie.
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(Redirected from Blood clotting
The coagulation of blood is a complex process during which blood forms solid clots. It is an important part of hemostasis whereby a damaged blood vessel wall is covered by a fibrin clot to stop hemorrhage and aid repair of the damaged vessel. Disorders in coagulation can lead to increased hemorrhage and/or thrombosis and embolism.
Coagulation is similar in all mammals, but as most is known about the system in humans, this article focuses about human blood coagulation.
In a normal person coagulation is initiated within seconds after an injury occurs to the blood vessel endothelium; when platelets form a hemostatic plug at the site of injury. This is called primary hemostasis. Secondary hemostasis then follows when plasma components called clotting factors respond (in a complex cascade) to form fibrin strands which strengthen the platelet plug.
The use of adsorbent chemicals, such as zeolite, and other hemostatic agents is also being explored for use in sealing severe injuries quickly.
Primary hemostasis is initiated when platelets adhere, using a specific platelet collagen receptor glycoprotein Ia/IIa, to collagen fibers in the vascular endothelium. This adhesion is mediated by von Willebrand factor (vWF), which forms links between the platelet glycoprotein Ib/IX/X and collagen fibrils.
The platelets are then activated and release the contents of their granules in to the plasma, this in turn activates other platelets and white blood cells. They undergo a change in their shape which exposes a phospholipid surface for those coagulation factors that require it. Fibrinogen links adjacent platelets by forming links via the glycoprotein IIb/IIIa. In addition, thrombin activates platelets.
The coagulation cascade
The coagulation cascade of secondary hemostasis has two pathways, the Contact Activation pathway (formally known as the Intrinsic Pathway) and the Tissue Factor pathway (formally known as the Extrinsic pathway) that lead to fibrin formation. It was previously thought that the coagulation cascade consisted of two pathways of equal importance joined to a common pathway. It is now known that the primary pathway for the initiation of blood coagulation is the Tissue Factor pathway. The pathways are a series of reactions, in which a zymogen of a serine protease and its glycoprotein co-factor are activated to become active components that then catalyze the next reaction in the cascade. Coagulation factors are generally indicated by Roman numerals, with a lowercase a appended to indicate an active form, ultimately resulting in cross-linked fibrin.
The coagulation factors are serine proteases (enzymes) except FVIII and FV which are glycoproteins. The serine proteases act by cleaving other proteins at specific sites. Factor XIII is a transglutaminase. Protein C is also a serine protease.
The coagulation cascade can be summarised as follows: -
- Tissue Factor pathway: the main role of the tissue factor pathway is to generate a "thrombin burst". Thrombin being the single most important constituent of the coagulation cascade in terms of its feedback activation roles. FVIIa circulates in a higher amount than any other activated coagulation factor and following damage to the blood vessel endothelium Tissue Factor (TF) is released, this then forms a complex with FVIIa (TF-FVIIa) this activates FIX and FX. FVII itself is activated by thrombin, FXIa, plasmin, FXII and FXa. The activation of FXa by TF-FVIIa is almost immediately inhibited by tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI). FXa and its co-factor FVa form the prothombinase complex which activates prothrombin to thrombin. Thrombin then activates other components of the coagulation cascade, including FV and FVII (which activates FXI which in turn activates FIX), and activates and releases FVIII from being bound to vWF. FVIIIa is the co-factor of FXIa and together they form the "tenase" complex which activates FX and so the cycle continues.
- Contact Activation pathway: formation of the primary complex on collagen by high molecular weight kininogen (HMWK), prekallikrein and FXII (Hageman factor), prekallikrein is converted to kallikrein and FXII becomes FXIIa. FXIIa converts FXI into FXIa. FXI is also activated by FVIIa. Factor IX is in turn activated by FXIa which with its co-factor FVIIIa form the tenase complex which activates FX to FXa. The minor role that the contact activation pathway has in initiating clot formation can be illustrated by the fact that patients with severe deficiencies of FXII, HMWK and prekallikrein do not have a bleeding disorder.
- Thrombin Thrombin has a large array of functions. Its primary role is the conversion of fibrinogen to fibrin, the building block of a haemostatic plug. In addition, it activates Factors VIII and V and their inhibitor protein C (in the presence of thrombomodulin ), and it activates Factor XIII, which forms covalent bonds that crosslink the fibrin polymers that form from activated monomers.
Following activation by the contact factor or tissue factor pathways the coagulation cascade is maintained in a prothrombotic state by the continued activation of FVIII and FIX to form the tenase complex, until it is down regulated by the anticoagulant pathways.
Cofactors and inhibitors
Various substances are required for the proper functioning of the coagulation cascade:
- Calcium and phospholipid (a cell membrane constituent) are required for the tenase and prothrombinase complexes. Calcium mediates the binding of the complexes via the terminal gamma-carboxy residues on FXa and FIXa to the phospholipid surfaces expressed by platelets. Calcium is also required at other points in the coagulation cascade.
- Vitamin K is an essential factor to a hepatic gamma-glutamyl decarboxylase that adds a second carboxyl group to glutamic acid residues on factors II, VII, IX and X, as well as Protein S, Protein C and Protein Z. Deficiency of vitamin K (e.g. in malabsorption), use of inhibiting anticoagulants (warfarin, acenocoumarol and phenprocoumon ) or disease (cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma) impairs the function of the enzyme and leads to the formation of PIVKA 's (proteins formed in vitamin K absence) this causes partial or non gamma carboxylation and affects the coagulation factors ability to bind to expressed phospholipid.
Three mechanisms keep the coagulation cascade in check. Abnormalities can lead to an increased tendency toward thrombosis:
- Protein C is an important co-factor inhibitor, which degrades the co-factors FVa and FVIIIa. It is activated by thrombin with thrombomodulin and requires its co-enzyme Protein S to function. Quantitative or qualitative deficiency of either may lead to thrombophilia (a tendency to develop thrombosis). Impaired action of Protein C (activated Protein C resistance), for example by Factor V, "Leiden" variant or high levels of FVIII also may lead to a thrombotic tendency.
- Antithrombin is a serine protease inhibitor (serpin) that degrades the serine proteases; thrombin and FXa, as well as FXIIa, and FXIa. It is constantly active, but its adhesion to these factors is increased by the presence of heparan sulfate (a glycosaminoglycan) or the administration of heparins (different heparinoids increase affinity to F Xa, F IIa, or both). Quantitative or qualitative deficiency of antithrombin (inborn or acquired, e.g. in proteinuria) leads to thrombophilia.
- Tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI) inhibits F VIIa-related activation of F IX and F X after its original initiation.
Testing of coagulation
The contact factor pathway is initiated by activation of contact factors of plasma, and can be measured by the activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) test.
The Tissue factor pathway is initiated by exposure of blood to "tissue factor" (a specific cellular lipoprotein), and can be measured by the prothrombin time (PT) test. This is reported as an INR value when used for the dosing of oral anticoagulants such as warfarin.
The quantatative and qualitative screening of fibrinogen is measured by the thrombin time (TCT).
Measurement of the exact amount of fibrinogen present in the blood is generally done using the Clauss method for fibrinogen testing.
If a coagulation factor is part of the contact or tissue factor pathway, a deficiency of that factor will affect only one of the tests: thus hemophilia A, a deficiency of factor VIII, which is part of the contact factor pathway, results in an abnormally prolonged aPTT test but a normal PT test. The exceptions are prothrombin, fibrinogen and some variants of FX which can only be detected by either aPTT or PT.
Deficiencies of fibrinogen (quantitative or qualitative) will affect all screening tests.
Disorders of hemostasis
- disorders of the platelet and vessel wall
- disorders of coagulation and thrombosis
- disorders predisposing to thrombosis
| Coagulation factors and related substances
| Number and/or name || Function
| I (fibrinogen) || forms clot (fibrin)
| II (prothrombin) || activates I, V, VII, XIII, protein C, platelets
| Tissue factor || co-factor of VIIa (formerly known as factor III)
| Calcium || required for coagulation factors to bind to phospholipid (formerly known as factor IV)
| V (proaccelerin, labile factor) || co-factor of X with which it forms the prothrombinase complex
| VI || unassigned - old name of Factor Va
| VII (stable factor) || activates IX, X
| VIII (antihemophilic factor) || co-factor of IX with which it forms the tenase complex
| IX (Christmas factor) || activates X: forms tenase complex with factor VIII
| X (Stuart-Prower factor) || activates II: froms prothrombinase complex with factor V
| XI (plasma thromboplastin antecedent) || activates XII, IX and prekallikrein
| XII (Hageman factor) || activates prekallikrein and fibrinolysis
| XIII (fibrin-stabilizing factor) || crosslinks fibrin
| von Willebrand factor || binds to VIII, mediates platelet adhesion
| prekallikrein || activates XII and prekallikrein; cleaves HMWK
| high molecular weight kininogen (HMWK) || supports reciprocal activation of XII, XI, and prekallikrein
| fibronectin || mediates cell adhesion
| antithrombin III || inhibits IIa, Xa, and other proteases;
| heparin cofactor II || inhibits IIa, cofactor for heparin and dermatan sulfate ("minor antithrombin")
| protein C || inactivates Va and VIIIa
| protein S || cofactor for activated protein C (APC, inactive when bound to C4b-binding protein)
| protein Z || mediates thrombin adhesion to phospholipids and stimulates degradation of factor X by ZPI
| Protein Z-related protease inhibitor (ZPI) || degrades factors X (in presence of protein Z) and XI (independently)
| plasminogen || converts to plasmin, lyses fibrin and other proteins
| alpha 2-antiplasmin || inhibits plasmin
| prourokinase || activates plasminogen
| tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) || activates plasminogen
| plasminogen activator inhibitor I (PAI1) || inactivates tPA
| plasminogen activator inhibitor II (PAI2) || inactivates urokinase
Laboratory tests of coagulation
Common: APTT, INR (PT), TCT
Other: factor assays, mixing test, antiphosholipid antibodies, genetic tests,
dilute Russell viper venom test (dRVVT ), bleeding time
The exact process of coagulation was largely elucidated in the 20th century. At the end of the 19th century, it was presumed that the coagulation system consisted of four factors (Giangrande 2003): thrombokinase/thromboplastin (III, released by damaged tissues) - this reacted with prothrombin (II), which, together with calcium (IV), formed thrombin, which converted fibrinogen into fibrin (I).
A first clue as to the complexity of the system of coagulation was the discovery of proaccelerin (initially and later called Factor V) by Paul Owren (1905-1990) in 1947. He also postulated that its function was the generation of accelerin (Factor VI), which later turned out to be the activated form of V (or Va); hence, VI is not now in active use.
Factor VII (also known as serum prothrombin conversion accelerator or proconvertin, precipitated by barium sulfate) was discovered in a young female patient in 1949 and 1951 by different groups. Factor VIII turned out to be deficient in the clinically recognised but etiologically elusive hemophilia A; it was identified in the 1950s and is alternatively called antihemophilic globulin due to its capability to correct hemophilia A.
Factor IX was discovered in 1952 in a young patient with hemophilia B by the name of Stephen Christmas (1947-1993). His deficiency was described by Dr Rosemary Biggs and Professor R.G. MacFarlane in Oxford, UK. The factor is hence called Christmas Factor or Christmas Eve Factor. Christmas lived in Canada, and campaigned for blood transfusion safety until succumbing to transfusion-related AIDS at age 46. An alternative name for the factor is plasma thromboplastin component, given by an independent group in California.
Hageman factor, now known as factor XII, was identified in 1955 in an asymptomatic patient with a prolonged bleeding time by the name of John Hageman.
Factor X followed, in 1956. This protein was identified in a Ms Audrey Prower of London, who had a lifelong bleeding tendency. In 1957, an American group identified the same factor in a Mr Rufus Stuart. The factor is therefore termed Stuart-Prower factor.
Factors XI and XIII were identified in 1953 and 1961, respectively.
The usage of Roman numerals rather than eponyms or systematic names was agreed during various annual conferences (starting in 1955) of hemostasis experts. This committee evolved into the present-day International Committee on Thrombosis and Hemostasis (ICTH). Assignment of numerals ceased in 1963 after the naming of Factor XIII, but the names Fletcher Factor and Fitzgerald Factor were given to further coagulation-related proteins, namely prekallikrein and high molecular weight kininogen respectively.
Factors III and VI are unassigned, as thromboplastin was never identified and actually turned out to consist of ten further factors and accelerin was simply activated Factor V.
- Giangrande PL. Six characters in search of an author: the history of the nomenclature of coagulation factors. Br J Haematol 2003;121:703-12. PMID 12780784.
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Ever since the Internet became a ubiquitous part of every day life, the way the business game must be played has changed. Everything from customer service to sales and marketing has changed. Here are five common trends of business in the age of Internet.
1. Marketing moving to social media: Although social media does not stack up to a big chunk of marketing just yet, it is emerging as a formidable medium for marketers. Search still dominates marketing, but social media is beginning to mesh into current marketing techniques. This is an exciting trend because social media is a way to market unlike any other. It allows businesses and consumers to exist on the same playing field
2. A Switch to VoIP Calling: There is no reason to waste money on a calling plan when your business can make phone calls through the web. It’s true what they say – you can… Read More
Dropbox offers 2GB free space for its users which is low when compared to other services. It also has great referral programs in which users get 500MB and you also get 16GB for referring people. Drop box sync is a robust web app and allows you to drag and drop files for uploading .Backup is one of my favorite as it has a very good repository and keeps up to thirty days backup of saved files. Another feature of the Dropbox that is really nice is that it simplifies the easy of sharing files.
It offers free space of 5GB which is a step ahead of Dropbox. It is much cheaper than other services Google drive offers such as apps for Android, Windows, and Mac.
Similar to that of Dropbox storage services, Google drive also keeps backup of files for thirty days. It also offers it's users the… Read More
Did you ever notice how you might see ads in an email newsletter which seems to be just what you are looking for? That is no accident. The best of email ad platforms will tailor the ads to go to the advertiser’s perfect customers – those in the company’s target market.
So how does this work? Well, many newsletter publishers – whether they are mom-and-pop businesses, medium-sized companies, or big behemoths – need advertisers to help defray the costs of publishing the newsletters, or to make money off them, if the market is there. And advertisers want more people to know about their products and services. So running ads in the newsletters is a real win-win situation.
How do you find advertisers for your newsletter?
There are a variety of ways to find such advertisers. One is word of mouth – you may hear about possible advertisers from people you know, or even… Read More
Creating a constant flow in internet traffic is a vital element in generating knowledge about particular goods or services your company offers to the public. But how do you achieve this? It can seem like a daunting task no matter where you're trying to bring new customers to. Marketing strategies like SEO will depend on who will benefit most from the services you offer to increase their profits. Take Cornwall county in the UK for example. seo in cornwall can make a huge difference in the amount of traffic their websites can potentially receive and increase profits overall.
Cornwall county has been regarded as one of the poorest counties in all of the United Kingdom. Despite being fairly remote it does have a distinct advantage that could make SEO, otherwise known as search engine optimization, fairly profitable. Cornwall county has one of the world's fastest high-speed transatlantic fiber optic cables… Read More
Over the past five years smart phones have become more popular than ever. They are being used for pretty much everything you use a computer for. In fact the last reason most people use their cellular for is as a phone. If you are looking for a job you can even learn how to create a resume using your smart phone. There are several resume creating apps that you can download to your phone. These applications create professional looking resumes. You can email and submit them directly from your device.
You can connect with prospective employers through social media apps like the ones for LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. You can use your phone to do any research on companies you are interested in as well as connect with employers who are interested in you. This way you can head to one interview while setting up another on the way.… Read More
If you want to make a website using a freelancer, then you need to set a few things into stone before you start the project. It is always hard working with people for the first time, especially if you will be doing it all online over the web. The best thing is to set up milestones to be released at different stages of the project. That will encourage the freelancer to make sure that the project is completed properly and will be handed in on time because many just want to make an honest living and complete the project to the highest possible standard in order to get paid and be able to move onto their next project. This article offers a little advice with regards to the stages you should consider having your site made to.
You should ask the freelancer to make you a banner for the… Read More
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Below are the first 10 and last 10 pages of uncorrected machine-read text (when available) of this chapter, followed by the top 30 algorithmically extracted key phrases from the chapter as a whole.
Intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text on the opening pages of each chapter. Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.
Do not use for reproduction, copying, pasting, or reading; exclusively for search engines.
OCR for page 7
7 the success of the GPRA "depends on strong leadership prac- Conversely, a lack of good information was regarded as a tices that devolve decision-making authority with account- serious problem by large agencies, but not so serious by ability, create incentives, build expertise, and integrate man- small agencies. Large agencies cited the "fish-bowl" envi- agement reforms" (6). ronment of public agencies as a problem and also changing state policies. Other obstacles cited by respondents included: STRATEGIC PLANNING IN PUBLIC-SECTOR · Operating pressures, TRANSPORTATION · A short-term orientation inside and outside the agency In the mid-1980s, the University Research and Training ("fire-fighting"), Program of the Urban Mass Transportation Administration · The annual budget process, and (UMTA) (currently the FTA) funded a project that examined · An inability to enter new markets or alter the agency's strategic planning in small- and medium-size transit agen- external environment. cies (7). The study report included a discussion of strategic planning and its benefits, a survey of 104 transit agencies, The study also found that small agencies in particular have and a case study of a small transit system in Missouri (South- difficulty in regard to strategic planning. In general, these dif- east Missouri Transportation Services, Inc.). ficulties had to do with inadequate resources, including staff, expertise, data, and the money needed to hire outside exper- tise. Three key conclusions emerged from the study: The author observed that the crux of strategic planning is to create a process that answers three basic questions (7, p. 5): 1. The need to reinterpret the concept of strategic planning. 2. The importance of organizational readiness. 1. Where are we? 3. The need to mold strategic planning to the specific 2. Where do we want to go? context of the organization. 3. How can we get there? In regard to the need to reinterpret the concept of strate- In the survey of transit properties, the following percent- gic planning, the study noted that conducting a comprehen- ages of respondents answered that they conduct a formal sive and formal strategic planning process (the "classical" strategic planning process: strategic planning model) may be beyond the capability of most transit agencies. Moreover, it may be more than is nec- · Small systems (fewer than 50 vehicles) 42% essary. Five strategies are suggested in regard to this issue: · Medium systems (5099 vehicles) 68% · Big systems (100500 vehicles) 62% 1. The formality of the process needs to be de-emphasized. · Large systems (more than 500 vehicles) 93% 2. The level of data and analysis should be kept in rea- sonable relationship to the capabilities of the agency. The average for the four sizes was 59%. 3. The cost of the process should be kept in some reason- able relationship with the likely benefits. However, when responses were analyzed more closely, it 4. There needs to be a better understanding that long- was noted that more than half (57%) were actually referring range planning is not the same as strategic planning. to long-range service and capital plans as required by the fed- Long-range planning may be necessary and useful; how- eral UMTA, short-range service plans, or to the annual bud- ever, it does not fulfill the same purposes. geting process. In short, there appeared to be a great deal of 5. Strategic planning might best be performed by seg- confusion as to what actually constitutes strategic planning. menting it. Rather than implementing a single, rigid process, it might be more effective if it is kept more flex- The study identified the following managerial tools used ible and if it uses various tools for specific purposes by transit agencies that might become part of a strategic plan- (e.g., special strategic studies). ning process: The second conclusion was the importance of organiza- · Strategic-type special studies (e.g., performance audits), tional readiness; some organizations may just not be ready to · Performance indicators, undertake strategic planning. Key factors in whether an orga- · Management by objectives, and nization is ready include organizational sophistication and · Strategy retreats. stamina, the flexibility and commitment of management, and the skills and expertise of the participants. It found that there were a number of obstacles to con- ducting strategic planning in agencies, and that these obsta- Finally, in regard to adapting strategic planning to the orga- cles differed according to the size of the agency. For exam- nizational context, management is encouraged to be realistic ple, inadequate staff resources was regarded as a significant about the capabilities of the agency, set priorities and clearly obstacle by small agencies, but much less so by large ones. define objectives for the process, design a process that reflects
OCR for page 8
8 these considerations, and build on what already exists in the · Upper management must be seriously committed to and agency. participate in the strategic planning process. · The development of a mission, goals, and objectives In 1985, an article was published about a case study of the should be based on a careful analysis of the environ- development of a strategic management process in the Penn- ment (both internal and external) and should emphasize sylvania Department of Transportation (8). This study made a marketing perspective. Objectives should be stated in clear the importance of not just developing a strategic plan but ways that are measurable. of also creating a management process to implement and man- · There should be linkages between strategic planning, age the plan. There were several factors that distinguished this program planning, and budgeting, and between achieve- effort from typical strategic planning processes at the time. ment of strategic planning objectives and personnel For example, several key structural changes were made. A appraisals and compensation. strategic management committee made up of the agency's · Indicators should be developed that measure the effi- six top managers was formed to direct and manage the change ciency and effectiveness of transit services. process. Seven substantive subcommittees were also formed · Good communication is a crucial ingredient of an effec- to help manage the effort. Organization-wide planning was tive strategic planning and implementation process. centralized and program and project planning were decentral- · "Strategy champions" with appropriate responsibilities ized. A concept of "business groups" was used to create a new and incentives are needed for successful implementation. way of thinking about the primary products and services pro- · Environmental change should be regularly monitored. vided by the agency (as opposed to the more traditional way · The process should be flexible, iterative, and continuous. of thinking about the functions performed). Four-year plans · Based on the case studies, there are clearly different were developed for each of the agency's operating districts. ways that strategic planning can be conducted in terms Finally, the strategic planning process was tightly linked to of levels of detail and formality, how the process is the budget process to ensure that the agency's resources were organized, who participates, and the degree of analysis and documentation. being aligned with the plans. All of these actions served to institutionalize the strategic planning process throughout the The report ends with a recommended strategic planning agency. framework that includes the following seven steps: In 1988, the same year that Bryson published his book on 1. Organize management team and planning staff. strategic planning in the public sector, the UMTA published 2. Undertake an environmental or situation audit. A Guide to Strategic Planning for Transit Properties (9). 3. Establish mission, goals, and objectives. Considered by some in the transit industry to be a classic text, 4. Develop broad strategies. this report provided an early guide or framework for strate- 5. Establish programs and budgets. gic planning in transit. 6. Monitor program results--measure. 7. Monitor the environment. The authors define strategic planning as "the analysis of environmental change, the formulation of organizational In 1990, the NCHRP published Strategic Planning and objectives, and the establishment of priorities for resource Management Guidelines for Transportation Agencies (10). allocation" (9, p. 1). The report goes on to describe why it is This study looked at the current environment for strategic important to do strategic planning, and presents several case planning and management in a variety of publicly funded studies as examples of how to do it effectively. (The case transportation agencies, provided a definition of strategic man- studies were AlamedaContra Costa Transit, NJ Transit, Port agement and its components, and recommended guidelines for Authority of Allegheny County Transit, Seattle Metro, and successfully institutionalizing strategic management. the Utah Transit Authority.) In addition, the report discusses the following key differences between planning in the public The report distinguished strategic management from other and private sectors (9, pp. 34): traditional management practices by noting that the tradi- tional practices ask "How do we keep doing what we are · The private sector is primarily driven by the financial doing, only do it better?' Strategic management focuses instead bottom line, whereas public agencies generally have on an overall vision of where the organization should be multiple and often ambiguous goals and a variety of key heading, i.e., what it plans to accomplish and how it can get stakeholders. it accomplished. It provides for the involvement of the entire · Public agencies are more often subject to public scrutiny organization in managing its people, processes, and products and political pressures. toward successful accomplishment of its goals and objec- · Mandates in the public sector are often legislated and tives" (10, p. 1). are not up to management prerogative. The report went on to delineate the following minimum Key conclusions of the study were: components of a strategic management process (10, p. 2):
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President Bush dedicated his weekly radio address today to declaring his support for the upcoming Senate vote on a proposed constitutional amendment that would nationally and permanently define civil marriage as between one man and one woman, and he argued that same-sex marriage is an issue for which we should be willing to dismantle the American system of democracy that has served us and functioned as a model for the rest of the world for more than 200 years.
You see, the President feels that the judicial branch of the government, which the Founders intended to be co-equal in power along with the executive and legislative branches, should be hamstrung by popular sentiment, prevented from upholding their obligation to the principles presently enshrined in the Constitution by the majority will. In short, the President seeks to radically redefine essential principles of western democracy in order to legislate hatred.
"Marriage is the most enduring and important human institution, honored and encouraged in all cultures and by every religious faith," said the President, though in his repeated call for preserving his "definition" of marriage he conveniently ignores that many cultures and faiths have marriage traditions quite different than the ones he is promoting, and he also ignores that there are faith communities within our own nation that bless and sanctify same-sex unions.
"The commitment of a husband and wife to love and serve one another promotes the welfare of children and the stability of society." Of course it does; but he, and every other conservative who's ever spoken on the subject, fails to address just how same-sex marriage would weaken those ideals. And how does the government "promote" marriage by denying it?
"In our free society, people have the right to choose how they live their lives," said the President, but clearly he does not believe that. "Every American deserves to be treated with tolerance, respect and dignity," he added. Such empty, empty words coming in the midst of a speech focused on denying fundamental rights to millions of American citizens. As a gay American, I feel neither tolerated nor respected by this President and his supporters. My dignity is not preserved by his efforts to enact federal legislation that says I am not worthy of the institution of marriage, that I am a threat from which other Americans need protection.
The President speaks repeatedly of overwhelming majority opposition to same-sex marriage in America, and yet the amendment he endorses is expected to fall far short of the 60 votes needed to pass, and may not even muster a simple majority. In two states where the high courts are pondering legalizing same-sex marriage, New York and New Jersey, the majority supports it.
A glance at the change in public attitudes toward marriage equality and homosexuality in general shows an accelerating trend toward acceptance. The President, whose own support is no longer anywhere near a majority, should take into consideration that it is not reasonable to expect that public opposition to same-sex marriage will endure.
But he knows that. All the conservatives know that. That's why they're rushing to do this now, while they still have a slim chance of success, and that's why they prefer to rely on the long, slow change in public opinion, rather than the swift justice of the courts.
In closing, the President made this curious remark: "Democracy, not court orders, should decide the future of marriage in America." I hang my head in nauseous shame that the President of the United States of America, who has gone all over the world promoting democracy and even launched a war in its name, thinks that courts are not only not necessary for democracy, they are antithetical.
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Last week room 8 and room 3 went on ski camp to Mt Ruaphehu. All those who were going on camp met at the back of the school by the car park at quarter to eight. At eight o’clock, we were assigned to our cars; after a brief chat by the teachers and adults, we set off.
Two long hours of travel later, we arrived at Taihape to stretch our legs and to do some gumboot throwing. A short drive later, we pulled up at the National Memorial of Tangiwai where on December 24, 1953, one hundred and fifty one people died because of a la har that came down the river, destroying a bridge that trains crossed, causing a train crash. Ohakune was our next stop; we had our lunch and changed into our snow gear.
Excitement was growing in proportion to the mountain as we neared our destination, Turoa ski area. Our vehicles finally arrived at a large, shallow, slushy ice pond – the car park. Once everyone had arrived, we regrouped ourselves and trudged on over to the entrance. As soon as our classes were allowed entry, everyone dashed towards the snow to make snowballs and waged war on each other. After twenty minutes, our principal came back with some sleds. Of course, everyone wanted a ride but there weren’t enough to go around so the rule was that each sled was shared between two people. Screams, yells, and cheers were the main noises that were heard by everyone at the sledding area. After 2 hours, we stopped the sledding, returned the sleds and got back in the cars. We all arrived at the Ski Haus which was at the National Park where our accommodation was. We unpacked our bags and went inside. Inside the Ski Haus there were a number of cabins that were lined up against the wall; the boys cabins were on the left and the girls cabins on the right. It had a pool table, log fire and conversation pit. We devoured our dinner, washed our dishes, changed into our pajamas and went to bed, for we all knew that the next day was going to be an early start.
Having been kitted out with our skis and snowboards, we started our lessons at 9:00 am the next morning at Happy Valley. Our first lesson was about how to clip your boots on and off the snowboard; this took about 10 minutes, then we moved on to balancing and steering. Next, we worked on braking and bringing ourselves to a stop without falling over; this was accomplished by when moving forward, putting pressure on your heels and when moving backward, putting pressure on your toes. Finally, after much anticipation, we were allowed to snowboard down to the bottom and take the chair lift back to the top. We were having a fantastic time going up and down as a group but it was slow movement because some were slow learners so we had to wait around a lot.
Our adrenaline was at its max. We were just waiting for our teacher to say we were free to go and when he did, we zoomed off down the mountain, shouting and yelling with huge enthusiasm. We didn’t make it to the bottom unharmed – half of us landed on our bottoms, the other half landed on our faces but that didn’t stop us. We were on fire! Since we had no teacher now, we had to wait in line for the chair lift at the bottom with everyone else; before, we were able to just jump to the front of the queue and didn’t have to wait. The one advantage of the wait was that it built tension so when we got to the top we would be all psyched up and would bolt down towards the bottom again. How time flies as you’re flying yourself! We had already been there for 4 hours. We had lunch, got ourselves refueled and snowboarded for another 3 hours. Unfortunately, we had to return our gear and go home because the mountain closed at 4:00 pm.
After our visit to the Turangi hot pools, we came home, got dressed and dragged ourselves off to bed for it was extremely late. We all fell asleep content with our day.
Twelve o ‘clock the next day we started our tour at the Waiouru War Museum; the guy who was taking us around was hilarious and knew a tank load of information. He told of the tragic things that had happened during the war and how awful it was. An hour and a half later, we were back on the road packed with new knowledge and facts. In Levin, we made a quick stop at the Adventure Playground; after an hour’s play, we were on the final stretch of road and heading to our school where our parents were waiting to pick us up.
As our cars pulled up outside the school, we were greeted with hugs by our parents. When they asked us how our trip to the mountain was, we all answered in our separate ways, “Fantastic!”
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In a new post to his blog Gonzalo Ayuso looks at the code required to populate a jQuery data grid with the records as pulled from a (MySQL) database.
Today I want to speak about populating datagrid techniques with PHP. At least in my daily work datagrids and tabular data are very common, because of that I want to show two different techniques when populating datagrids with data from our database. Maybe it's obvious, but I want to show the differences.
He uses "old school spaghetti code" rather than a framework to keep things simple and pulls the data from the database with a PDO connection. This information is then manually pushed into an HTML table and the data grid functionality is applied to it. The other method involves a little bit of JSON magic that the data grid library pulls in and populates for you, still appending rows to a table.
He notes that the second method seems faster to the user since the page and table are rendered first, but it also comes at the cost of more than one HTTP request.
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Hallmark pottery dating back to 1900 BC has been recovered during the recent excavations in Ropar (now Rupnagar), Punjab. The Archaeolog-ical Survey of India, which recently started excavating the site after a gap of 56 years, has recovered fragments of “geometrical... [continue reading
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This is a story I must tell with some discretion, for it shows in a bad light the early career of a person who later rose to prominence in the Society. To avoid charges of libel, I shall refer to this person as Lord A. There is no significance to the letter A as the next time I have need to be discrete, I shall refer to that person as Lord or Lady B and so on through the alphabet as needed.
The story of the circumstances that led to the challenge came to me from several sources. It seems that in the early days of the kingdom Lord A made himself valuable to King John the Bearkiller I. The King asked Lord A to name his reward and Lord A asked for carte blanche, which King John gave him.
King John certainly would not have given Lord A carte blanche if he had known how Lord A was going to abuse it. Lord A would commit the most outrageous acts, which would result in his being challenged to defend himself on the field of honor. When that happened, Lord A would pull out his carte blanche and walk away unscathed.
At an Axemoor event, Lord A poured a cup of wine over the head of Oliver de L'Aube, the herald, while he was making an announcement. This was an insult not only to Oliver, but also to Baron Beorn for whom Oliver was making the announcement. Again, Lord A produced his carte blanche and apparently got away with his infamy.
The wrath of the Axemoor fighters was not to be avoided so easily. While they could do nothing immediately, they bided their time and sharpened their swords.
When John the Bearkiller came to the throne the second time, he rescinded the carte blanche because of Lord A's abuse of the privilege. The Axemoor fighters then started stalking Lord A and soon noticed a curious thing. If Lord A got wind that Axemoor fighters were going to be attending an event, he either did not attend or he did not have his armor with him. Lord A managed to avoid his comeuppance in this way for several months until an event in Hammerhold.
There were about six Axemoor fighters who made the journey to Hammerhold. I do not remember who all they were but I am certain that they included Baron Beorn, Squire Esteban, Lord Eachan Tor-Grame, Squire Cedric of Yorke and Oliver. The Axemoorians did not pre-register for the event and stayed off site so as not to alert Lord A to their presence.
His Majesty Sir John was in attendance at the event and he held court that afternoon. The Axemoor boys stole into the back of the hall after court had begun and waited their chance.
Lord A was heralding court that day and when at the end of the scheduled business he asked, "Is there any more business before the court of His Majesty?" Squire Esteban stood up.
"We have no business with the court," Esteban announced, "but we do have business with that man," and pointed at Lord A.
Squire Esteban then illuminated the grievances that the Baron and the fighters of Axemoor had against Lord A. Esteban called for Lord A to defend himself on the field by throwing at Lord A's feet a most unusual challenge.
The challenge was a whole chicken, feathers and all, with its throat cut! Esteban explained that the Axemoor fighters felt that this challenge was uniquely appropriate to Lord A. The chicken had been brought from Axemoor in a Playmate cooler and sneaked into court with the fighters. There were those who were sufficiently peeved at Lord A that they had wished not to have the chicken travel in a cooler and to have Esteban throw it at Lord A, but calmer heads prevailed in the matter.
Lord A at this point imitated the action of the weasel. He first apologized to Oliver and Baron Beorn. He then went on to explain that as he had recently (my guess would be within the previous ten minutes), given up fighting, he could not answer the challenge.
Baron Beorn accepted the apology with the proviso that if Lord A should ever pick up the Sword again, the challenge still stood. Sir Beorn always advised his fighters that when giving challenge, "Always give a rat an out."
So ends the tale of the chicken challenge with one interesting footnote. King John, who is not known as the most genteel of Meridies' knights, is said to have looked on the dead chicken and declared, "That's the grossest thing I've ever seen!"
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David Bowie biography
David Bowie was born in South London on January 8, 1947. His first hit was the song "Space Oddity" in 1969. The original pop chameleon, Bowie became a science fiction character for his breakout Ziggy Stardust album. He later co-wrote "Fame" with John Lennon which became his first American number one single. An accomplished actor, Bowie starred in The Man Who Fell to Earth in 1976. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996.
Known as a musical chameleon for his ever-changing appearance and sound, David Bowie was born David Robert Jones in Brixton, South London, England, on January 8, 1947.
David showed an interest in music from an early age and began playing the saxophone at age 13. He was greatly influenced by brother Terry, who was nine years older and exposed young David to the worlds of rock music and beat literature.
But Terry had his demons, and his mental illness, which forced the family to commit him to an institution, haunted David for a good deal of his life. Terry committed suicide in 1985, a tragedy that became the focal point of Bowie's later song, "Jump They Say."
After graduating from Bromley Technical High School at 16, David started working as a commercial artist. He also continued to play music, hooking up with a number of bands and leading a group himself called Davy Jones and the Lower Third. Several singles came out of this period, but nothing that gave the young performer the kind of commercial traction he needed.
Eventually, Bowie went out on his own. But after recording an unsuccessful solo album, Bowie exited the music world for a temporary period. Like so much of his later life, these few years proved to be incredibly experimental for the young artist. For several weeks in 1967 he lived at a Buddhist monastery in Scotland, and in 1968 he started his own mime troupe called Feathers.
Around this time he also met the American-born Angela Barnett. The two married on March 20, 1970 and had one son together, Zowie, in 1971, before divorcing in 1980.
By early 1969 Bowie had returned full-time to music. He signed a deal with Mercury Records and that summer released the single "Space Oddity." Bowie later said the song came to him after seeing Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. "I went stoned out of my mind to see the movie and it really freaked me out, especially the trip passage."
The song quickly resonated with the public, sparked in large part by the BBC's use of the single during its coverage of the Apollo 11 moon landing. The song enjoyed later success in the U.S., when it was released in 1972 and climbed to Number 15 on the charts.
Bowie's next album, The Man Who Sold the World, further catapulted him to stardom. The record offered up a heavier rock sound than anything Bowie had done before and included the song "All the Madmen," about his institutionalized brother, Terry.
In addition the album also featured two hits: "Hunky Dory," a tribute to Andy Warhol, the Velvet Underground and Bob Dylan; and "Changes," which came to embody Bowie himself.
Meet Ziggy Stardust
As Bowie's celebrity profile increased, so did his desire to keep fans and critics guessing. He claimed he was gay and then introduced the pop world to Ziggy Stardust, Bowie's imagining of a doomed rock star, and his backing group, The Spiders from Mars.
His 1972 album, The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, made him a superstar. Dressed in wild costumes that spoke of some kind of wild future, Bowie, portraying Stardust himself, signaled a new age in rock music, one that seemed to officially announce the end of the 1960s and the Woodstock era.
But just as quickly as Bowie transformed himself into Stardust, he changed again. He leveraged his celebrity and produced albums for Lou Reed and Iggy Pop. In 1973 he disbanded the Spiders, shelved Stardust and announced he was through with live shows.
Around this time he showed his affection for his early days in the English mod scene and released Pin Ups, an album filled with cover songs originally recorded by a host of popular bands, including Pretty Things and Pink Floyd.
By the mid 1970s Bowie had undergone a full-scale makeover. Gone were the outrageous costumes and garish sets. In two short years he released the albums David Live (1974) and Young Americans (1975). The latter album featured backing vocals by a young Luther Vandross and included the song "Fame," co-written with John Lennon, which became Bowie’s first American number one single.
In 1980 Bowie, now living in New York, released Scary Monsters, a much-lauded album that featured the single "Ashes to Ashes," a sort of updated version of his earlier "Space Oddity."
Three years later Bowie, with a new contract with RCA, recorded Let's Dance (1983), an album that contained a bevy of hits such as the title track, "Modern Love" and "China Girl," and featured the guitar work of Stevie Ray Vaughan.
Of course, Bowie's interests didn't just reside with music. His love of film helped land him the title role in The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976), and later The Elephant Man (1980).
Over the next decade, Bowie bounced back and forth between acting and music, with the latter especially suffering. Outside of a couple of modest hits, Bowie's musical career languished. The albums Tin Machine (1989) and Tin Machine II (1991) proved to be flops, while his much-hyped album Black Tie White Noise (1993), which Bowie described as a wedding gift to his new wife, supermodel Iman, also struggled to resonate with record buyers.
Oddly enough, the most popular Bowie creation of late has been Bowie Bonds, financial securities the artist himself backed with royalties from his pre-1990 work. Bowie issued the bonds in 1997 and earned $55 million from the sale. The rights to his back catalog were returned to him when the bonds matured in 2007.
In 2004 Bowie received a major health scare when he suffered a heart attack while onstage in Germany.
He made a full recovery and went on to work with bands such as Arcade Fire and with the actress Scarlett Johansson on her album Anywhere I Lay My Head (2008), a collection of Tom Waits covers.
Bowie, who was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996, was a 2006 recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
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I am by birth a Genevese, and my family is one of the most distinguished of that republic. My ancestors had been for many years counsellors and syndics, and my father had filled several public situations with honour and reputation. He was respected by all who knew him for his integrity and indefatigable attention to public business. He passed his younger days perpetually occupied by the affairs of his country; a variety of circumstances had prevented his marrying early, nor was it until the decline of life that he became a husband and the father of a family.
As the circumstances of his marriage illustrate his character, I cannot refrain from relating them. One of his most intimate friends was a merchant who, from a flourishing state, fell, through numerous mischances, into poverty. This man, whose name was Beaufort, was of a proud and unbending disposition and could not bear to live in poverty and oblivion in the same country where he had formerly been distinguished for his rank and magnificence. Having paid his debts, therefore, in the most honourable manner, he retreated with his daughter to the town of Lucerne, where he lived unknown and in wretchedness. My father loved Beaufort with the truest friendship and was deeply grieved by his retreat in these unfortunate circumstances. He bitterly deplored the false pride which led his friend to a conduct so little worthy of the affection that united them. He lost no time in endeavouring to seek him out, with the hope of persuading him to begin the world again through his credit and assistance. Beaufort had taken effectual measures to conceal himself, and it was ten months before my father discovered his abode. Overjoyed at this discovery, he hastened to the house, which was situated in a mean street near the Reuss. But when he entered, misery and despair alone welcomed him. Beaufort had saved but a very small sum of money from the wreck of his fortunes, but it was sufficient to provide him with sustenance for some months, and in the meantime he hoped to procure some respectable employment in a merchant's house. The interval was, consequently, spent in inaction; his grief only became more deep and rankling when he had leisure for reflection, and at length it took so fast hold of his mind that at the end of three months he lay on a bed of sickness, incapable of any exertion.
His daughter attended him with the greatest tenderness, but she saw with despair that their little fund was rapidly decreasing and that there was no other prospect of support. But Caroline Beaufort possessed a mind of an uncommon mould, and her courage rose to support her in her adversity. She procured plain work; she plaited straw and by various means contrived to earn a pittance scarcely sufficient to support life.
Several months passed in this manner. Her father grew worse; her time was more entirely occupied in attending him; her means of subsistence decreased; and in the tenth month her father died in her arms, leaving her an orphan and a beggar....
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Help for injured vets goes beyond the hospital
- By Doug Dennerline
- May 27, 2008
With Memorial Day on our minds, it is fitting to look at how technology is benefiting our warfighters returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. All veterans - but wounded troops in particular - face a multitude of physical, emotional and professional challenges when returning to civilian life, not the least of which could be unemployment.
New applications are proving to be integral to many veteran rehabilitation programs. For example, there are tools that let troops participate in virtual job training programs and tools to help disabled veterans. But there is still much to be done, in light of the continued challenges veterans face as they re-enter the workforce.Tools of the trade
Warfighters who cannot return to military duty after an injury often need to learn a new skill to compete in the civilian job market. The Defense Department recognizes that and has launched a number of initiatives designed to provide job opportunities through technology training and mentoring during rehabilitation and recovery.
Yet, the Wall Street Journal recently reported on a study conducted by the Veterans Affairs Department that found an alarming 18 percent unemployment rate among Iraq and Afghanistan veterans who were discharged in the past three years, nearly three times the national unemployment rate. Employed veterans, especially young veterans ages 20-24, often earn salaries that are well below the national average.
The report also found that some of the educational assistance programs that VA offers seem to have a marginal impact on a veteran's job placement success rate.
Those statistics are troublesome, and industry can and should help.
For example, the technology industry can provide tools that make job training programs more economical, efficient and ? most importantly ? accessible to veterans. Such tools are facilitating virtual training programs that would have been cost-prohibitive to do with the warfighters in person.
On-demand collaboration is one way to make a difference. For example, Cisco Systems Inc. is working with the Walter Reed Army Medical Center to provide its WebEx collaboration service for veterans who want to participate in virtual training programs for information technology job. The center uses a WebEx online classroom to connect veterans with IT trainers across the country. Because the program is virtual, they can continue their training and certification after hospital discharge, dramatically increasing the completion rate for the program.
Another innovative way rehabilitation programs can use technology is through simulation-based learning that uses 3-D technologies. For example, 3-D software provider EON Reality is part of a consortium that trains disabled veterans in 3-D technologies, such as computer-aided design and advanced visualization, skills that are in high demand in the technology workforce.
As you might guess, the program uses 3-D technologies in its coursework, a technique dubbed simulation-based learning. It allows students to see, touch and interact with lifelike objects, significantly enhancing their learning environment. Tools like simulation-based learning are particularly effective for disabled veterans with motor skills impairments.
Technology is also crucial in helping disabled veterans become productive employees. Many software companies support wounded soldiers with assistive technology products that incorporate accessibility features into their applications, making computers easier to use. From interactive pen displays and stylus-to-screen inputs to voice recognition software and magnification software, these assistive technology tools can make the difference between a career and an unemployment check for disabled veterans.The IT career path
On-demand collaboration, simulation-based learning and assistive technologies are just a few of the tools that can be employed to increase the accessibility, effectiveness and efficiency of job training programs. But the technology industry can provide more than just the tools. We can also provide job opportunities, and many companies are already doing this.
Micron Technology is one of many companies that actively recruit veterans. At Micron, they comprise 16 percent of the company's 23,000 employees.
Last year, the Computer Technology Industry Association launched the Creating Futures program, which is designed to match veterans, people with disabilities and at-risk youth with employers in the IT industry. Creating Futures identifies employers' needs, provides online training for veterans and assists with career placement.
Yet overall, the IT industry is not as active in recruiting veterans as the transportation and telecommunications industries are. Small programs like Creating Futures are breaking new ground by building bridges between veterans and IT that haven't existed in the past.
The technology industry stands to benefit immensely from a more robust relationship with tech-savvy veterans seeking employment. Employers are increasingly recognizing the value of military experience, and the IT industry is no different.
This is a talent pool of highly motivated and dedicated individuals with rich life experiences, a strong work ethic and leadership skills. Given the high-tech nature of the military, many veterans already have considerable experience with technology, but they are unsure how to apply their skills to a career in the private sector.
The challenge we face is to provide U.S. veterans with the training and access needed to launch a successful post-military career in information technology.Doug Dennerline (firstname.lastname@example.org) is a senior vice president in Cisco's collaborative software group and heads the Cisco WebEx organization.
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If you find your knives are too dull after you've tested if they're sharp enough, it's time to hone those blades or use a whetstone. Master Bladesmith Bob Kramer demonstrates how to properly hone and stone your knives—with some clever tricks to get started.
In the video above, he's showing how to hone your knife with steel to straighten out the knife. We've shown you how to do this before, but Kramer's video demonstrates the technique very quickly and he offers two useful tips: find the correct angle to hold your knife by using a matchbook and use a kitchen scale to figure out the right amount of pressure to use.
If after honing, your knife still isn't sharp enough, here's Kramer's instructions on stoning—using a whetstone to form a sharp edge on your blade.
[via The Kitchn]
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By Cassie Chambers
Calls for clarity drowned out the government's message on social care today, as the coalition unveiled its much-anticipated white paper.
The white paper, designed to define ways to salvage a social care system "in crisis", included several major changes to the current arrangements.
Yet debate on the content of the bill was overshadowed by arguments over what it is missing: a concrete funding plan.
"Today's proposals are meaningless without the money to make them a reality," shadow health secretary Andy Burnham said.
"The government is failing to face up to England's care crisis."
Many argue that funding decisions are key to the success of social care reform, as an already strained safety net is set to support an increasing number of people in coming years.
According to the Office of National Statistics (ONS), the next two decades will see a 50% increase in the number of 70+ year olds in the UK.
The three main parties tried to come to an agreement on reform before the last general election, but the Tories walked away from negotiations and attacked Labour for proposing a 'death tax'.
The funding proposal thought by many to be the most promising—a cap on the amount of resources an individual must spend on their own care—was mentioned in a progress report alongside the white paper but was not included in the paper itself.
The suggested cap of £35,000, advocated by the independent Dilnot report last year, has been heavily debated across party lines.
The Dilnot report argued that such a cap would both protect government from astronomical care costs and encourage individuals to take out social care insurance to help cover their contribution.
NHS statistics suggest the average lifetime cost of social care is £30,000, with one in ten individuals facing care of £100,000.
Today, the government laid out some alternative options for funding social care changes—including a fee to opt into the system and higher cap than the initially proposed £35,000.
Speaking to the House of Commons, Andrew Lansley said that although a cap was the "right basis" for reform, the government needed to explore cheaper options for changing the system.
Experts estimate the £35,000 cap would cost the government £1.7 billion per year.
Emphasising the need for clarity about how government will deal with the funding crisis, Michelle Mitchell of Age UK said: "The proposals will not live up to ambition without the solid foundation of a fair and sustainable funding structure.
"We need the government to make it clear how reforms will be funded and set out a clear timetable."
Local Government Association chairman, Sir Merrick Cockell, agreed. "There is an immediate crisis in social care which needs to be urgently addressed now," he said.
"No-one would disagree that care should focus on an individual's needs, but attempts to improve the quality of care are meaningless if there is no money for councils to provide these services."
Although financial reform of the social care system is the most prominent issue to be resolved, the white paper also advocated a variety of other measures.
Recommendations included more consistency in the services provided by local councils and measures to allow individuals control over the type of care they receive.
One controversial proposal in the white paper is for a "universal deferred payment" program. This program would allow those needing care to borrow money to pay for care and put off paying back this loan until after their death.
These "pay when you die" policies currently offered by some councils are designed to decrease the number of the elderly who must sell their homes to pay for nursing home care.
Opponents argue the interest that accumulates on these loans is unfair and deters the elderly from taking advantage of these programs.
Responding to Lansley in the House of Commons, Burnham said he welcomed some of the coalition's recommendations—such as the proposal on deferred payments—but accused to coalition of having a "pick and mix" approach to the Dilnot report.
He argued that the Dilnot report should be implemented as a complete package if it is to work effectively.
Yet despite criticism, Lansley praised the historic nature of the government's proposed reforms, saying: "Our plans will bring the most comprehensive overhaul of social care since 1948."
"It will mean that people get the care and support that they need to be safe and to live well so they don't reach a crisis point."
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Giant Tnuva strikes at Strauss 'gnomes'
Food-cooperative giant Tnuva has, again, declared war on the Gamadim ("gnomes"), a series of dairy desserts for children made by Strauss. This time Tnuva is taking on the highly popular Gamadim by a double-barreled launch of soft white cheese puddings with fruit, each targeting a different age group.
The product for infants will be marketed under the name Yoplait Shtuzim, aiming for the 1-to-5-year-old set. In a month it will be adding Yoplait Zooz, tube-shaped packages (think, plastic drinks bags) of dairy delights for kids aged 5 to 12. Tnuva will invest about NIS 10 million in the two launches.
To date Strauss has ruled the roost in the kiddie crowd. The market of sweet cheese desserts for children turns over about NIS 125 million a year and Strauss commands a 91% market share with Gamadim and Daniela, a similar product. The main difference between Strauss' Gamadim and Tnuva's new offer is that the latter will be fortified with yogurt containing so-called "bio" bacteria.
Yoplait has achieved a leading status in yogurts for adults, which Tnuva hopes to copy into the world of products for children.
Certainly, it knows what doesn't work, from previous launches for kids that flopped.
In 1995 it launched a rival to Gamadim called Teumim - twins. At its peak Teumim achieved a 14% market share. Today it's sold mainly to the ultra-Orthodox community and averages a market share of 6%. In 1998 Tnuva tried its luck with Yummy, a 3% yogurt for children that disappeared once and for all in 2004. Then came YOP in 2003, a yogurt for kids aged 8 to 12. That one lasted a year before vanishing from store shelves.
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Even industrial shipping containers wear out eventually. But rather than scrap them, Starbucks' in-house architects upcycled the containers into a unique drive-through cafe.
The new cargotecture structure is located in Tukwila, Washington. Stacked as they are, the four containers provide about 450 square feet of interior space. It's a cozy fit, sure, but one large enough to accommodate three baristas in roughly the same area that they would occupy in a conventional coffee shop.
The LEED-certified storefront is part of Starbucks' efforts to increase the sustainability of its stores while reducing environmental and operating costs. If it proves successful, expect to see lots of other companies rolling out similarly-built stores across the country as well. [Protein]
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SHARE THIS SHOW:
OTHER SEGMENTS THIS HOUR:
RECENTLY ON TOL:
- A tumblr site dedicated to the people and places that make up Oregon and Southwest Washington.
Proposals Would Regulate And Tax Credit Unions
Right now credit unions are not-for-profit institutions that don't have to pay corporate excise taxes in Oregon. But House Bill 2486 would change that by imposing an excise tax on certain credit unions. Two other bills would increase regulation on those not-for-profit institutions by mandating community lending standards and disclosure of lending practices.
Banks in Oregon argue the tax breaks credit unions enjoy are undeserved when many of them now compare with small banks in membership and capital.
Scott Burgess, CEO/President of Rivermark Credit Union, says credit unions still deserve tax-exempt status because
as credit-unions, we're not-for-profit and member-owned. Our focus is on making sure our members have lower loan rates, and higher deposit rates. Banks' focus may also be on the customer in part, but it's really going to be in enhancing share value."
Do you have money in a small bank or credit union? Would you support the legislation being proposed?
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United States Census 1940Edit This Page
From FamilySearch Wiki
Indexes and Images
The 1940 Census is scheduled for public release on April 2, 2012. For more information see the National Archives. This release will be images only. This is the first census released as digital images as well as in microfilm format. The digital images will be available on the National Archives website.
Microfilm images are available for purchase from the National Archives. The Family History Library is planning to purchase digital copies only.
Indexes will become available as they are completed. For the latest information about completed FamilySearch indexes see the 1940 U.S Census Community Project. On this site learn how you can become part of the community indexing initiative. Also find links to historical and genealogical societies who are involved in indexing the 1940 census.
Until the indexes are completed, other methods can be used to find your ancestors in the 1940 Census. See Wiki articles for help with these various methods:
- What is an Enumeration District?
- Finding your 1940 ancestor using the 1930 Census Enumeration District
- Finding your 1940 ancestor in a rural area
- Finding your 1940 ancestor in a big city
- Using a city directory to find your 1940 ancestor's address
- What can I do now to prepare to find my ancestor in the 1940 Census?
Steve Morse and Joel Weintraub have created tools to help researchers locate individuals in the unindexed 1940 census. For an overview of their site see Which One-Step Census Form Should I Use?
Additional Facts About the 1940 Census
- 4,643 rolls of 35mm microfilm
- Approximately 3.25 million digital images
- 132 million names
- First census to use statistical sampling
The 1940 Census was taken 1 April 1940. For privacy reasons, federal law required a 72-year wair for the census to be released (92 Stat. 915; Public Law 95-416; October 5, 1978).
The 1940 Census gives the same basic information obtained from previous census years: name, age, place of birth, family relationships, location of residence, physical description education, and citizenship.
There were a few new questions asked which would help in genealogical research.
1. Name of informant: (Column 7): An “X” is placed by the name of the person giving the information. This would then allow knowing the credibility of the information given.
2. Individual present or absent (Column 7): Those who usually live in the home but currently not there were to be marked with “Ab” as being absent from the home.
3. Residence as of April 1 1935 (Columns 17-20). These series of questions help to establish a residence of 5 years previous.
4. Education (Columns 13-14): A broader spectrum of level of education is given.
5. Employment (Columns 23-33): Specific questions about employment, unemployment and income give greater insights into the lives of the people.
6. Census Sampling used ( 2 lines from each page, 14 & 29) A few more questions were asked concerning mother tongue, parents place of birth and employment.
7. Besides the Population and Agriculture Census and new census called the “Housing Census” was taken. This separate schedule asked detailed questions about the house, utilities, and mortgage or rent.
- Confirm who was the informant for the census information.
- Establish residency mid-decade with questions about 1935 residency.
- Broader spectrum of questions concerning level of education.
- More specific questions about employment.
- Census sampling used for people on lines 14 and 29, where additional questions were asked. See this list below under the heading Unique Features and Problems.
Unique Features and Problems
1. Census Sampling in the form of addtional questions were asked of persons over 14 years old whose names appeared on lines 14 or 29. These questions were only asked of those persons whose names fell on lines 14 or 29. If the person did not qualify ( too young) the questions were skipped.
These question included: 35. Name
- Place of Birth of Father and Mother
36. Father’s Place of Birth
37. Mother’s Place of Birth
- Mother Tongue:
38. Language spoke in home in earliest childhood
- Veterans - Is this person a veteran or a wife, widow or child under 18 of a veteran?
39. If so, enter yes
40. If child, is the father dead?
41. War or military service
- Social Security
42. Does the person have a Federal Social Security number? (Y or N)
43. Were deductions for Federal Old-Age Insurance or Railroad Retirement taken from this person’s wages or salary in 1939? (Y or N)
44. If so, were deductions made from (1) all, (2) one-half or more, (3) part, but less than half of pages or salary?
- Usual Occupation, Industry, and Class of Worker :What occupation does the person regard as his usually occupation and is physically able to do?
If unable to determine, what occupation has the person worked the longest in the past 10 years and physically able to?
For a person without previous work experience enter “None” on column 45 and skip columns 46 and 47.45. Usual Occupation
46. Usual Industry
47. Usual Class of worker
- For All Women who are or have been married:
48. Has this woman been married more than once (Y or N) 49. Age at first marriage
50. Number of children ever born (do not include stillborn)
2. Place of residence on April 1, 1935, if the person lived in a different place than in 1940. This essentially gave a 5-year census for all persons who changed residence during the decade.
3. Follow up schedules were used for people not home when the enumertor first visited. Until the census is indexed you will will need to check for 3 separate schedules within each enumeration district.
- a. Pages were numbered 1A, 1B, 2A, etc. Person were listed on these pages when they were home on April 1st.
- b. Sheets for revisits to households were numbered beginning on page 61A. The pages between the original enumeration visits and the revisits were intentionally left blank.
- c. Beginning April 8th, people living in hotels, trailer camps, missions, etc., were enumerated beginning on sheet 81A. Again, pages between the original enumeration visits and these visits were intentionally left blank.
- d. Not every ED had a page 61 or 81. You will be able to see that no pages were skipped because all pages were stamped consecutively from the first page.
4. Enumeration Districts were smaller than previous census E.D.'s.
5. For a complete listing of 1940 census headings see the wiki page 1940 Census Form Headings.
State and Territories Covered
- All states, District of Columbia,and the Territories listed below:
- American Samoa
- Panama Canal Zone
- Puerto Rico
- U.S. Virgin Islands
No records are missing from the 1940 Census.
Where to Find the Records
Statistics at the time of the 1940 Census
• U.S. Resident Population: 132,164,569
• Population per square mile of land area: 37.2
• Percent increase of population from 1930 to 1940: 7.3
• Official Enumeration Date: April 1
• Number of States: 48
The 10 Largest Urban Places: Rank/ Place/ Population
• 1 New York City, NY 7,454,995
• 2 Chicago, IL 3,396,808
• 3 Philadelphia, PA 1,931,334
• 4 Detroit, MI 1,623,452
• 5 Los Angeles, CA 1,504,277
• 6 Cleveland, OH 878,336
• 7 Baltimore, MD 859,100
• 8 St. Louis, MO 816,048
• 9 Boston, MA 770,816
• 10 Pittsburgh, PA 671,659
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Will there be an index to the 1940 census? If so, when will it be available?
A. FamilySearch volunteers are working hard to create a complete index of the 1940 census. Indexes for individual states will be made available as they are completed. Learn more and get involved at The 1940 Census
Q. Are there microfilm copies of the 1940 census? Will they be available at the Family History Library?
A. Microfilm copies of the 1940 census do exist. FamilySearch has decided instead to provide digital copies of the records instead of purchasing microfilm.
New to the Research Wiki?
In the FamilySearch Research Wiki, you can learn how to do genealogical research or share your knowledge with others.Learn More
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What makes a News Story?
First, figure out whether you have a newsworthy story to tell. Is it timely?
Significant? Is there a local angle? Is there a human interest or interesting
visual? In short, news is about people and what they do or how current
events/issues affect their lives.
- A news story must also answer the five W’s of journalism: Who, What, When, Where and Why, and more importantly How?
- When deciding what story to pitch to the media, be clear as to why your story is news and why “others” should care.
- Remember reporters report on news that will be of interest to the general public.
If you decide to contact a reporter or news outlet to pitch a story idea:
- Be concise.
- Be able to sum up the news worthiness of your story in two sentences.
You should follow up with facts.
- Make your story relevant; connect it to local/national issues.
- Don’t pitch a story to more than one assignment desk or reporter at the same outlet.
- Be clear as to why your story is news.
When to call a Press Conference
Press conferences take a great deal of time, energy and resources, and the
media doesn’t always respond. Before you opt for a press conference, ask
yourself the following:
- What advantage does the press conference offer reporters who attend?
- Does the press conference offer reporters access to key figures and/or experts that would normally be difficult for a report to reach?
- Can the reporter write the story without attending the press conference?
If your answer to the last question is ‘yes’, you may want to consider an
alternatives to a press conference, such as press releases, reporter round
tables, press tours, one-one meetings with key reporters or editorial boards.
Press conferences are best used to respond to “breaking news” or to provide
journalists with access to information, people and organizations that may not
be easily accessible to reporters.
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Review of Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment Applied to Drinking Water
ISBN: 1 84057 615 4
Quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) has emerged as a tool for deriving estimates of the risk of exposure to pathogenic organisms through specific routes of transmission, that would otherwise be difficult to determine epidemiologically. It is being increasingly applied worldwide as a means of assessing treatment pactice and to judge whether drinking water is of an acceptable quality. This report reviews the developments in QMRA and considers its potential for use in determining the robustness of water company risk assessments, as a tool to support decision making, to evaluate the effectiveness of different control strategies and to assess the impact on water quality from extreme events or changing conditions.
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The response to the detection of coliforms in drinking water requires immediate action to investigate their origin and implement appropriate corrective action. This study, jointly supported by UKWIR and the Drinking Water Ins... More...Price: £400 Add to basket
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The Spinnerstown Hotel has been serving the public since the Summer of 1811, when David Spinner, Jr.
obtained a license to operate a tavern at the crossroads of his family’s property.
He ran the tavern until 1819, when he was appointed Justice of the Peace for the community, a position that was previously held by the elder David
famous potter and craftsman whose creations are today prized as examples of early Pennsylvania
German folk art. Although David Spinner, Jr. remained the owner of the property, which he simply called “The Inn,” until his death in 1866, he rented the tavern to a succession of innkeepers throughout his lifetime, including his son, Edwin Spinner, who, in 1857 was the first to name the
establishment as the “Spinnerstown Hotel.”
The Spinner family, from which the village of Spinnerstown derived its name, first settled in the area in the mid 18
century when Ulrich Spinner obtained a 153 acre tract of the “Great Swamp,” a sprawling 1,000 acre parcel of land owned by a man named Morris Morris.
Mr. Morris received the property in 1720 as a land grant from the estate of William Penn.
From its earliest days as a resting place between Philadelphia and New York in the young America Republic, the Spinnerstown Hotel has retained its charm and position as a community mainstay.
family purchased the
landmark establishment on June 10, 1959 and we are proud to say that we have owned and operated the “Hotel” longer than any of the proprietors that came before us.
We hope to continue to welcome you into our friendly
atmosphere for many years to come by offering traditional and innovative cuisine, spirits and warm hospitality.
Proprietors, The Spinnerstown Hotel
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by Judith Curry
This past week, two climate scientists have presented different perspectives on communicating climate science: Richard Betts and Gavin Schmidt.
At nature.com, Richard Betts has an article entitled “Widening the Climate Conversation.” From the biosketch at the head of the article:
Richard Betts is Head of Climate Impacts at the Met Office Hadley Centre and a visiting Professor at the Universityof Exeter. He was a lead author on the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report with Working Group 1 (Physical Science Basis) responsible for the assessment of radiative forcing due to land cover change. For the Fifth Assessment Report he is a lead author, assessing impacts on terrestrial ecosystems. Richard was also a lead author on the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment.
But climate science is not a single-issue subject. It is not carried out solely to see whether cuts in greenhouse gas emissions are needed or not. A further and increasingly important issue is to understand the changes and variability we are seeing in order to help us live with the ever-changing weather and climate. Also, of course, it is important simply to increase the sum total of human understanding simply as an end in itself. Like art and music, gaining deeper insights into how the world around us actually works can enrich our lives and bring enjoyment.
Unfortunately, these other aspects of climate science are rarely seen outside of the scientific community, giving a skewed impression of the science. Public discussion of the science mostly focuses on the implications for policy, and also increasingly on attacking or defending the integrity of the science rather than on its intellectual content.
The difficulty comes when those responsible for gathering the evidence feel under attack and respond in a defensive manner themselves. If they perceive themselves as opponents of those challenging the evidence whilst being allies of those defending the evidence, and start behaving accordingly, this only reinforces the perception of bias from the opponents, and positive feedback sets in. Climate scientists have consequently become perceived as being part of the debate on a single policy issue, rather than as just scientists seeking to advance knowledge.
This leads to the risk of loss of trust in scientists as objective advisors. If climate science communication remains focussed on a single policy issue then of course the science can be perceived or presented as being part of the policy and not merely informing it. Despite repeated protestations that the science is objective, the constant framing of it within a narrow policy discussion does nothing to back this up.
What to do about this? I think the only solution is to talk about the science as science, in the context of all its implications and also for its own academic interest – and talk about it to everyone irrespective of their position in the policy debate. This includes talking with sceptics, and not in defensive mode but as scientists willing to talk around the issue. It used to be the received wisdom that climate scientists should not engage with “sceptics” beause, it was said, it only wasted time and gave credibility to arguments that had already been countered many times before. In my view this is no longer a helpful strategy, if it ever was.
Importantly, such discussions need to move on from being anchored in the usual one-dimensional policy debate. Scientists need to be willing to discuss uncertainties, controversies and technical challenges (ie: the interesting bits!) rather than just feeling they need to defend themselves against attack. Only by scientists being clearly seen to operate as scientists will trust be maintained – and this means being seen to explore the issues, challenge each other and not worry about how this will be seen or presented in the mitigation policy debate.
He said he believes that telling people about how scientists work is a key to communicating the science of climate change.
Give us a sense of what’s really happening with climate change on our planet right now.
I think it’s far more important that people get a sense of the science as a work in progress, rather than one particular message or piece of content knowledge getting hammered home.
Most of the science news is concerned with stuff at the cutting edge, stuff at the uncertainty bounds, the edge of what we know. Very few of the stories are telling people what we know quite well. They’re always focused on what the uncertainties are. And that’s because that’s where scientists are focused. But it isn’t necessarily where the public sees the need for information.
So there’s a huge need for the context. What was the process that led to these climate change science stories coming out?
What have you found that works in communicating science to non-scientists?
Telling people about scientists, not just about science. People respond very well to narratives, to stories involving people. Science is not just a dry, computational effort. It is, in fact, one of the greatest, most successful human endeavors that we’ve ever embarked upon.
We can spend a lot of time looking at graphs and talking about equations, but people don’t have a visceral response to equations, unless you actually are a scientist (sometimes.) But people do have a visceral response to images of how glaciers have retreated over the last hundred years. They have a visceral response to changes in landscape. They have a visceral response to seeing scientists at work, from the South Pole to the middle of the Pacific to the top of some mountain somewhere. People empathize with that.
I think that one of the roles for science communicators is really to showcase the depth and breadth of experiences and work that’s going on in all parts of the world, from all kinds of different people, but who are all contributing to the body of work that is climate science.
Do you think people today are more informed or less informed about climate change, compared to, say, five years ago?
It depends very much on where you are in the world and what is it you’re trying to convey. In the last few years in the U.S. the discussion about climate change has become more politicized. That’s made it harder to have serious conversations without people taking it to some whole other level very, very quickly in some quarters.
There has been an unfortunate tendency in a segment of the American political landscape to turn away from what the science is saying. But if you talk to the people who are making decisions and formulating policies, you find that people have a much more nuanced understanding of what’s going on than they did five or ten or fifteen years ago. And I think that’s a very positive sign.
JC comments: I agree 100% with Richard Bett’s assessment of the communication problem. I don’t disagree with anything he says regarding the solution to this problem.
I found Gavin’s interview to be rather surprising, I am seeing an evolution in his perspective on communication. My prior view of what he was doing at RC was to set up the site (and themselves) as arbiters of the correct information (with people like me being purveyors of misinformation).
Trying to change the public image of climate scientists and what the do is definitely needed. The image of Machiavellian emailers is not a desirable one; Richard Alley in a parka on a glacier is a much better image. So this is a welcome development.
I found these statements to be telling:
They’re always focused on what the uncertainties are. And that’s because that’s where scientists are focused. But it isn’t necessarily where the public sees the need for information. . . There has been an unfortunate tendency in a segment of the American political landscape to turn away from what the science is saying.
To me, these statements reflect the main problem in science communication, as outlined by Richard Betts.
The emphasis on eliciting a visceral response from the audience seems to reflect Randy Olson’s influence, who discusses the visceral response thing. I am afraid that visceral response is the new buzzword for sounding an alarm.
But overall, I find Gavin’s apparently evolving view of climate communication to be moving in a positive direction, I hope we can look forward to some profiles of scientists in action over at RC.
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Kimberly Kessler Ferzan
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey - School of Law - Camden
Cardozo Law Review, Vol. 28, 2007
There are two competing conceptions of mens rea. The first conception is descriptive. We look to a person's mental state to determine if the mental state element is satisfied. This is a question of fact. Alternatively, there is the normative conception of mens rea. This is the question of whether the defendant is blameworthy. The term, mens rea, or "culpability," can therefore refer to the descriptive usage (did the defendant have the requisite mental state, i.e, purpose or knowledge?) or to the normative usage (is the defendant blameworthy, wicked, indifferent?).
The tension between descriptive and normative terminology was first identified by Professor George Fletcher more than thirty years ago. In this essay, I aim to dissolve it. Descriptive terms are culpability's grammar; normative terms are culpability's meaning. I begin with Professor Fletcher's discussion of the conflict between descriptive and normative mens rea in his new work, The Grammar of Criminal Law, and his clear preference for normative terminology. I then turn to analyze the subject of the debate - an agent's culpable choice, and argue that there are several different aspects of that choice. Next, I argue that in assessing culpability, we do not focus upon one aspect; rather, the grammar gives meaning to the whole. Although I contend that descriptive and normative culpability can be reconciled, I claim there is a more unified conception of culpability, which simplifies, but does not distort, how the parts give meaning to the whole. In the final part of this essay, I discuss negligence, which admittedly cannot be explained by my theory. I argue, however, that liability for negligence presents problems within the grammar of criminal law as Professor Fletcher finds it.
Number of Pages in PDF File: 21
Keywords: criminal law, culpability, mens reaAccepted Paper Series
Date posted: April 5, 2007
© 2013 Social Science Electronic Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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Report an inappropriate comment
Whatever Happened To Antimatter?
Wed Dec 23 18:19:42 GMT 2009 by Slobodan
I agree with you absolutely, there is no theoretical obstacles to achieve antimatter ship's drive and this is important and plausible.
What I wanted to note is that, currently we are at least so far away with technology from antimatter/matter drive as from conversion /extraction of the free vacuum energy as the energy source. Producing antimatter even theoretically is extremely difficult and slow process, expensive as well. Even the Universe is not comfortable enough to be a big factory of antimatter, so we have such imbalance between normal matter and antimatter. Although feasible, it doesn't seem to be probable, in foreseeable future.
Although many think on the first sight that antimatter is ideal source, for a long journey on relativistic speeds above 0.2C-0.7C quantity of matter/ antimatter which should be dragged along is terribly huge.
In the deep shadows of my mind, Tesla's ideas about extracting energy from the free vacuum space is correlating with new ideas and theories about origins of matter and energy, where matter /antimatter is just a quantum vacuum with specific condensation and polarization of energies thus appearing to observer as solid matter..... even the popping up of matter antimatter particles from nothing followed by annihilation into nothing (but energy burst) supports such ideas...
Unfortunately Tesla didn't live long enough to explain and publish his dynamic theory of gravity and his ideas about vacuum energies as power sources, but having in mind what he succeeded in his life, I think that it is worth to continue on serious work on his unpublished theories.
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Learn the fundamentals of the art from Koichi Tohei, one of Aikido’s greatest masters!
We are pleased to announce the launch of an exciting new DVD featuring one of the most famous Aikido teachers of all time: Koichi Tohei, 10th dan. This new production is titled Koichi Tohei: Aikido with Ki, and explores the early phase of Tohei Sensei’s career while he was Chief Instructor of the Aikikai Hombu Dojo in Tokyo. This represents the heyday of postwar Aikido and the period when the art experienced steady growth to assume a prominent role among Japanese martial arts.
Tohei Sensei was known for his unique approach to Aikido based on the principles of ki. He devised an elaborate technical curriculum that included a series of ki development exercises in addition to Aikido techniques. Tohei Sensei’s theories and methodology enjoyed a large following with the Aikikai and abroad, especially in Hawaii and the mainland USA. His many publications in both English and Japanese further enhanced his popularity to the point that, by the late 1960s and early 1970s, his fame eclipsed that of the Founder and the Second Doshu.
Tohei Sensei left the Aikikai organization is 1974 and formed his own school called “Shin Shin Toitsu Aikido,” Aikido with mind and body coordinated. He has followed his own independent path since his departure from the Hombu Dojo. With the passage of time, much of the Aikido world has forgotten the many accomplishments of Koichi Tohei and the huge debt he is owed, both technically and philosophically, for the shaping of modern Aikido. The purpose of this DVD is to revisit Tohei Sensei’s early career and draw attention to his extraordinary contributions among today’s practitioners of the art.
The centerpiece of Koichi Tohei: Aikido with Ki is a newly-discovered 36-minute film of a 1974 seminar conducted by Tohei Sensei in San Francisco. The quality of this film is amazing as it has been digitally remastered through a special process where each film frame is scanned individually at high resolution. This seminar coupled with the documentary written and narrated by Stanley Pranin, the introduction to Tohei Sensei’s technical system, and a collection of exciting demonstrations make for a thoroughly engrossing study of this famous teacher.
- Documentary: a presentation tracing the early life and aikido background of Koichi Tohei through his years as Chief Instructor of the Aikikai Hombu Dojo, through his establishment of Shin Shin Toitsu Aikido in 1974. Many historical photos capture the highlights of Tohei Sensei’s stellar career and explain why his efforts and accomplishments have left such an indelible imprint on modern aikido.
-Warmups and preparatory exercises: this section presents the elaborate warmups and exercises system developed by Tohei Sensei as a prelude to training in aikido techniques. They emphasize stability, relaxation, and the proper use of ki.
-Techniques: a presentation of the technical curriculum taught by Tohei Sensei during the 1950s, 60s, and early 70s, during his tenure at the Aikikai Hombu Dojo. Tohei Sensei demonstrates most of his “50 Arts of Aikido” from a 1967 film.
-Seminar: nearly 40 minutes of rare film footage of a 1974 seminar conducted by Tohei Sensei in San Francisco. Scores of techniques from his curriculum are clearly demonstrated. This historical film has been digitally remastered for the the highest possible image quality.
-Demonstrations: bonus footage of four demonstrations by Tohei Sensei: 1952 demonstration outdoors also featuring Kisshomaru Ueshiba and Tadashi Abe; 1967 All-Japan Aikido Demonstration; 1968 Special Demonstration at Hombu Dojo; 1973 All-Japan Aikido Demonstration.
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|Opening Friday: UNSEEN PEANUTS in Seattle!|
|Written by Eric Reynolds | Filed under Peanuts, Fantagraphics Bookstore, events, classics, Charles M Schulz||20 Nov 2007 7:37 AM|
"It's no stretch at all to say that Charles Schulz was the most popular and successful American artist who ever lived." — Charles McGrath, New York Times
Perhaps no American artist is more closely associated with the holidays than "Peanuts" creator Charles M. Schulz. Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery, in association with the Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center, celebrates the holiday season with "Unseen Peanuts," a display of little known works by this incomparable master of the comic strip medium. The exhibition opens on Friday, November 23 and continues through December 31, 2007.
Charles Schulz, who wrote and drew every single Peanuts strip from its launch in 1950 to shortly before his death in 2000, remains among the most compelling figures in American popular culture. He is the subject of the current American Masters PBS documentary "Good Ol' Charles Schulz" and an acclaimed new biography, Schulz and Peanuts by David Michaelis. Seattle-based Fantagraphics launched the ambitious, best-selling Complete Peanuts project, now in its 8th volume, in early 2004.
For those who wonder how a Peanuts strip might have been "unseen," Kim Thompson, co-editor of the Complete Peanuts series, points out that even though 'Peanuts' is the most-reprinted comic strip in history, several thousand strips had never been collected until The Complete Peanuts project. "Many probably just fell through the editorial cracks," Thompson comments, "but some of these strips were clearly 'lost' as a result of editorial decisions and it's pretty fascinating to try to figure them out."
The "Unseen Peanuts" exhibition showcases nine of these "lost" strips, including two giant Sundays, provided by the Charles M. Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa, CA. These works offer a unique glimpse into the artist's technique and creative process. The show includes a companion 32-page "Unseen Peanuts" comic book catalogue featuring over 150 more of these "lost" strips. This fully annotated publication is available for free with any purchase exclusively at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery. Also, Fantagraphics Books and the Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center have produced a limited-edition silkscreen Peanuts print that will be available exclusively at the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery while supplies last (pictured below).
"Unseen Peanuts" opens with a daylong preview on Friday, November 23 (the day after Thanksgiving) from 11:30 until 8:00 PM, highlighted by an "Unseen Peanuts" slide presentation by Kim Thompson at 6:00 PM. The public of all ages is invited to this free event.
Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery is located at 1201 S. Vale Street in Seattle's historic Georgetown arts community. Now entering its second year, this lively space has firmly established itself as the hub of the Northwest's internationally recognized cartooning and graphic arts milieu. The gallery is open daily 11:30 to 8:00 PM, Sundays until 5:00 PM.
WHAT: "Unseen Peanuts" by Charles M. Schulz
WHEN: November 23 - December 31, 2007
Public preview Friday, November 23, 11:30 - 8:00 PM
"Unseen Peanuts" presentation by Kim Thompson at 6:00 PM
WHERE: Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery
1201 S. Vale Street (at Airport Way S.)
Hours: Open daily 11:30 - 8:00 PM, Sundays until 5:00
PICTURED ABOVE: The limited-edition, silkscreen Peanuts print available exclusively at the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery during the "Unseen Peanuts" exhibition, while supplies last.
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