text:
Okanogan utility awash in red ink
Jennifer Marshall's article published in last week's Chronicle "Utility Rate Hike Proposed" reveals the deep trouble we are in down at the PUD. Steve Houston was shocked by the shortfalls facing the utility, but what excuse could the manager and other two commissioners possibly have?
Residential revenue fell by $1.75 million in 2012. After three years of 6.5 percent rate increases, we all cut back on our energy use through conservation and efficiency, and our reward for saving that energy will apparently be another rate hike.
The proposed $35.2 million to produce power at Enloe Dam will generate only 2 percent of the energy we need, while ruining the scenic and aesthetic beauty of the site, endangering the salmon and steelhead, and ending hopes for the river's recovery long into the future.
Selling bonds on Wall Street will be very popular with the richest 1 percent, fat cats with their millions waiting to make them richer. We are a "captive market." We have no choice but to pay our utility, no matter how high. We are being sold out.
The PUD commissioners and manager seem to believe the bonds sold for power generation at Enloe Dam will solve their problems. Wholesale power has been selling at about $26 per megawatt/hour since 2008 and the PUD estimate for producing power at Enloe Dam is $58 dollars per megawatt/hour, a net loss of $32 dollars for every megawatt/ hour produced.
Who will pay the interest on the bonds with all these shortfalls? Who will own the utility in 10 years? The $64.2 million in bonds could supply the means to harness the Similkameen, march transmission lines across the Methow and pay off some blunders of the past but will do nothing to make our lives better now or in the future.
Joseph Enzensperger
Dog park doesn't make any sense
A dog park on the eastside of Omak? Are you kidding me? I was told it is "A place for responsible dog owners to bring their dogs." I live on the eastside. Responsible dog owners? Please! I am not attacking any breed of dog or any particular person, but all you have to do is drive around Omak and there are always dogs running loose, stories of unwanted dogs being dumped in town and in the woods.
The saying goes, "it's not the dog that is bad; it's the people that have them." If you do not start with a sound sire and dam and breed with no thought of the parents you are just perpetuating the problem, no matter how you raise the puppy you will have genes not in your favor.
I have three dogs that in the short time I have lived here were all found running loose, one with cigarette burns on her. You can bet that having vaccinations were not in their history. You people are asking businesses in town to donate money and materials to the dog park, maybe these businesses need to step back and decide if this dog park is a disaster waiting to happen. Besides dogs in this area guess what else will be there? Small children.
I was a dog 4-H leader for 15 years, belonged to two dog clubs and also rescued Australian shepherds. In that time I only had three litters. All dogs were champions, some with obedience degrees. My dogs had eye exams, hips were OFA certified and vet checks. I am not patting myself on the back, I am just trying to express the importance of sound foundation dogs.
I would love to hear of people putting together obedience classes or other dog clinics in town. This is my opinion only. One of our local vets didn't even know of the dog park.
I am writing this because I don't know how much of the community even knows of the proposed dog park. I realize there all types of parks throughout the state but I think in this instance this is a bad idea.
Eldean Storey
Gun laws won't deter bad people
Fifty some years ago I was hunting groundhogs with some friends when my .22 rifle, that has a tube feed that holds fifteen rounds, jumped out of my hands and assaulted a "No Trespassing" sign. I promptly ran over and grabbed it, unloaded it and took this bad gun home. I keep it in a locked closet so that it cannot go out by itself and do this again.
When I am out hunting with it I hold onto it very tightly so it won't repeat this again. This story should be believed by a lot of people if they believe guns are bad.
There are, however, bad people, if they are mentally disturbed or not. These people will get a gun by any means necessary. Backgrounds checks, magazine restrictions or any other law will not deter these people. Another law will not make a difference. What we should do is during the summer break send a few school employees to police officer training and have them be armed. Our elected officials, celebrities, and a lot of other people have armed guards escorting them. Wouldn't it make sense to have armed guards in our schools? Aren't our children as important as those that have body guards? Disarming and/or making it harder for law abiding citizens to defend themselves is not the answer. Look at the facts, stricter gun laws equals higher crime rates. Just look at Washington, D.C. and Chicago and other big cities.
Bruce Hahn
The issue surrounding I-522 is so important that is certainly not going away. Monsanto, Bayer, and DOW outspent grass root consumer groups 3 to 1 in defeating I-522. Ads were (not so) cleverly crafted to illustrate the ridiculous consequences of providing consumers with information. Merely suggesting Washington consumers would somehow begin to pay an egregious ransom for their groceries was enough to defeat the measure. The false confusion strategy proved to be successful in spite of the fact that nearly every major industrialized country in the world already requires food labeling for biotech content in foods. Most countries already require this. Beyond shareholder arguments for short-term corporate profits there is literally no reason to not provide consumers with information. Imagine if your countries government was held captive by large corporations. And these corporations refused to enact tough laws for repeat violent criminals. Eventually their deliberate inaction would result in violent criminals all migrating towards one of those two countries. Now imagine that the corporations holding the government hostage are giant foreign owned monstrosities that are banking on both the next big thing and a bio engineered crisis. There is today only two markets (two industrialized countries) where these giant foreign owned monstrosities could experiment on actual consumers with impunity. I-522 can still provide voters with a unique, almost foolproof opportunity to learn if their elected representatives work for lobbyists (Monsanto) or their constituents. Simply ask your representative where they stood on I-522. If their answer includes a long explanation (is any longer than I supported I-522), than the representative in question does not work for the people.


text:
Apache OpenMeetings is a multi-language customizable video-conferencing and collaboration system. It supports audio/video and allows you to see the desktop of any participant. It includes a whiteboard, the ability to import a variety of image formats, invitations, a moderation system, backup and language modules, private and public conference rooms, and the ability to record meetings. The project also provides integrations for Asterisk, Jira, Confluence, Moodle, Sakai, and SugarCRM, and connectors for LDAP and ADS.
Mediabird allows students to document and review their study effort using a collaborative notepad. The Web2.0 application allows for taking notes on a personal notepad. A virtual text marker allows the students to highlight their notes and ask questions about the highlighted parts. The sharing feature allows study groups to share and discuss their notes as well as questions they have created. By-and-by, the students collect answers to the questions. Pairs of questions and answers are collected in a card box that allows for memorizing the important facts later on (e.g. for an exam or presentation). The program is also available as a Moodle activity.
BigBlueButton is a Web conferencing system that focuses on usability, modularity, and clean design, both for the user and developer. It implements real-time sharing of voice, Web cams, desktops, slides, and chat messages to provide remote students with a high-quality learning experience. Unlike other conferencing systems, the desktop sharing works on Mac OS X, Unix, and PC computers, and there is no hard-coded limit on the number of simultaneous Web cams.
Freeseer a video capture utility capable of capturing presentations or demos. It can capture USB, firewire, local desktop, and more. It captures video and audio and mixes them together to produce a video, thus enabling you to capture great presentations, demos, or training material easily.
JOOTS is an intelligent tutoring system for learning Java OOP. It is a learning environment that focuses on how to teach the main concepts of modern Object Oriented Programming Languages in an intelligent way, where learners after attending the tutorial are able to get to the most important part of the project, which is generating tricky questions intelligently in such a manner that the body of these questions are randomly and uniquely generated each time. This gives the power of the system as a non-classical learning environment to make the learner think more deeply and differently.
HAL-300 is a system that implements asynchronous communication between teacher and student for distance courses and automates the execution of actions that must be performed by the teacher, enabling the teacher to concentrate on the creative activity of individualization. This improves upon many e-learning systems, which are not prepared to deal with the unique situation of a student seeking distance education, resulting in courses that contain learning activities that are not contextualized to the reality of the learner. This software was created to realize a methodology of distance learning in which the teacher acts as an adviser to the study of each student, understanding their needs from asynchronous dialogs, enabling the creation and selection of content and teaching activities that are contextualized to the reality of the learner.
Chamilo is an e-learning and collaboration platform. Chamilo is currently used by more than 7,000,000 students around the world. Governments, private companies, public and private universities, NGO, and other types of organizations use the Chamilo software suite to manage activities from simple live training to full distant learning, certification, and staff selection.
A simple WebDAV 1.0 server.
An OpenGL library for image-based CSG rendering.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Apps, Maps, Music, Info and more
Smart Access connects you to what's aheadThe Smart Access cloud service platform enables your car to connect to a vast array of services, information and activities, using your smartphone. Since information is constantly updated, you can always have access to the latest and most relevant information available. Content ranging from music to SNS is easily accessible via smartphone, using apps optimised for in-car use.
Smartphone connection
Once in your vehicle, you can access Android™ and iPhone® functions through the large 6.2-inch touch screen. The Smart Access application lets you easily download optimised applications to your smartphone. Then just connect your smartphone and the apps can be used on the touch screen.
* Please see our website for details of compatible Android/iPod/iPhone models:
1. Clarion Smart Access launcher application from the market place
2. Usable apps are shown by the launcher
3. Connect the smartphone to the multimedia unit. Please check the wiring information here.
Superb applications optimised for seamless in-vehicle useSmart Access allows you to easily enjoy the apps you like seamlessly in your car, not just as-is, but optimised for the in-car environment. This contributes to safer driving even while you continue accessing important information such as weather, news, Internet radio, and SNS such as Twitter and Facebook®.
Flick operation makes control more intuitive than everMaster your controls in a matter of seconds, with a touch screen that supports flick operation just like your familiar smartphone screen. Function icons are animated and can be dragged and dropped into different positions. Enjoy a new style of entertainment with this new interface.
Multi-touch operation for intuitive zoom-in and zoom-out
The NX503E touch screen responds to your finger gestures just as your smartphone screen would. In addition to flick operation, the expanded gesture control now includes two-finger pinch zoom. Slide the fingers further apart to zoom in, and slide the fingers closer together to zoom out.
Great for getting a better view of maps, etc.
Bluetooth for hands-free communication and stereo audio streamingBuilt-in Bluetooth provides hands-free voice communication, compatible with a wide variety of mobile phones. A built-in microphone and Phonebook access let you talk and drive at the same time. Play music stored on any Bluetooth device, whether it's a mobile phone or a portable audio player, with wireless connection.
Watch a wide variety of video content with DVD compatibilityIn addition to store-bought and rental DVDs, you can also watch home-burned DivX DVDs. Compatible video files recorded using a camcorder or smartphone can be stored on DVD-R disc and viewed on the source unit. Make your own entertainment!
GPS navigation with rich graphics and superior functionalityNX503E features a built-in car navigation system with simple destination input, turn-by-turn voice prompts, and selectable route guidance - everything you need to reach your destination quickly and efficiently. Pre-loaded with rich points of interest, its database includes national parks, restaurants, petrol stations, and much more.
Map Graphics
Realistic 3D rendered maps, familiar looking 2D maps, and more. The system automatically changes to the style that is most useful in the current situation.
3D Landmarks
Looks similar to a paper road map, offering a familiar feel and giving you a better sense of the distances between locations.
2D Map
Looks similar to a paper road map, offering a familiar feel and giving you a better sense of the distances between locations.
Lane Information and Signposts
This screen shows information about the current route, and the fields displayed on it are continuously updated as you drive. Tapping on any field will show you more details.
Night / Day Mode
The map screen brightness and colour scheme are automatically adjusted to provide maximum visibility without glare or eye strain when you turn the car's lights on or off.
microSD Card Slot for Updates
Navigation map updates can be imported into the system through the microSD Card Slot. Just access the Clarion portal site using your PC, save data to a microSD card and insert it into the card slot on the front of the NX503E.
You're done in no time!
Latest Map Guarantee (LMG)
Owners can download the latest map data from our dedicated web portal. The first download is free of charge, providing it is done within 30 days of the product receiving its first GPS signal.This guarantees that you will be using the most up-to-date map data available for route planning and guidance.
Note: In order to make this download possible, the product must first be registered at https://clarion.naviextras.com/shop/portal
|■ Navigation Menu (29 languages)
|Bulgarian, Catalan, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, Flemish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, Ukrainian
|■ Detailed Coverage
|Albania, Andorra, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Kosovo, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxemburg, Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom (7 digits PC), Vatican
|■ Partial Coverage
|Bulgaria, Croatia, Latvia, Romania, Turkey, Ukraine
|■ Connecting Roads
|Albania, Belarus, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Macedonia, Moldavia, Montenegro, Serbia
|■ Navigation voice guidance (36 languages)
|Bulgarian, Catalan, Chinese (Cantonese/Mandarin), Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English (UK/US), Estonian, Finnish, Flemish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Latvian, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish, Swedish, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian
"Intelligent Tune" Original Sound TechnologyFeaturing originally developed Clarion sound technologies to turn the car interior into an excellent listening environment. Includes Vocal Image Control to move the vocal to a specific seat in the car, Sound Restorer for full quality sound reproduction of compressed audio data, Virtual Bass for powerful bass without subwoofer, and other exciting sound technologies
"Vocal Image Control" reproduces dynamic vocals and real sound staging
When listening to music in your car, you may want to position the vocals in front of the driver's seat or in the middle of the dashboard, depending on personal preference. Vocal Image Control extracts the mid-range frequencies in the centre of the source material, where vocal elements are recorded, and balances the volume to acoustically "move" the sound image of the vocals in any direction, closer or farther, to the left or to the right. Without adversely affecting sound quality or depth of presence, it allows you to adjust the location of vocals the way you like.
"Sound Restorer" restores lost signal elements to compressed audio
During the encoding process of compressed audio data such as MP3 and WMA files, high-frequency sound elements are lost in exchange for reduced data size. Sound Restorer is a technology that restores these high-frequency sound elements to attain results nearly identical to the original before compression, thereby providing richer audio quality during playback.
Small speakers tend to reproduce sound that is lacking in bass performance due to their size constraints.
Virtual Bass is a technology based on acousticopsychology, in which harmonic elements of low bass sound are added to the signal to reinforce the low range the speaker cannot physically reproduce. The listener hears powerful bass almost like a subwoofer has been added, even from just small speakers.
"Graphic EQ" with 6 modes for equalisation to match various tastes in sound
Graphic EQ creates a sound field with amazing depth and presence in your car. If offers six modes - BASS.B / HIGH.B / ACOUSTIC /IMPACT / SMOOTH / FLAT - to enable easy sound taste adjustment to match the genre of music being played. Also equipped with fine sound adjustment capabilities to fine-tune the sound to your liking.
"Volume Smoother" automatically adjusts the volume
As music media and content diversifies and people play files acquired from various sources, they wind up having to frequently adjust the volume to compensate for differences in recording levels. Volume Smoother automatically adjusts to the optimum volume level in a wide range of situations, like when transitioning from one tune to another or from a TV programme to a commercial. There is also a function to adjust volume in accordance with vehicle speed to overcome road noise and relieve the driver from having to adjust it himself,contributing to safer driving.
Sudden change in reproduction volumes when switching sources
2. DVD Video Volume Smoother ON
Optimum reproduction volume is automatically adjusted and kept.
4V / 6-channel audio pre-out makes it easy to expand and upgradeWith 3 sets of RCA outputs, with 2 channels each, you are free to add external power amplifiers to create a more powerful, sophisticated audio system. What's more, the 4-volt output ensures a pure, high quality signal for the entire sound system.
Remote Control (Optional RCB198)


text:
DAVIS, Calif. - Matt Vedo pitched eight innings of one-hit ball on Saturday, combining with Brett Fick for a one-hit shutout as visiting UC Santa Barbara blanked UC Davis for the second game in a row, 1-0.
The Gauchos improve to 23-24 overall, 8-12 in the Big West. The Aggies drop to 16-33 and 8-12.
Vedo carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning. The first Aggie batter of the seventh, Brett Morgan, hit a shot up the middle that seemed destined to become the first hit of the game. Gaucho second baseman Sean Williams ranged deep into the hole, made a backhanded play on the ball and narrowly got Morgan at first base. After Scott Heylman flied out to right field, David Popkins was hit by a pitch and designated hitter Scott Lyman singled cleanly to left field. The inning ended with Eric Johnson flying out to right field.
With one out in the eighth inning, Vedo hit Daniel Cepin with a pitch but pinch hitter C.J. Blom lined out to Williams at second base. Williams quickly threw to Trevor Whyte at first for the double play, ending the inning.
Vedo came out for the ninth inning, but after he hit Justin Andrade with a pitch, he was pulled in favor of Brett Fick. Fick got Morgan to hit a lazy fly ball to right field and then, with the runner going, Heylman grounded out to Williams. With Morgan at second base, the Aggies' top hitter, Popkins, was walked intentionally and Lyman popped out to center field to end the game.
The shutout was the second in a row for UCSB. On Friday, Greg Davis pitched a complete game four-hitter and won 11-0. On Saturday, Gaucho pitchers didn't have the same breathing room.
Santa Barbara scored its only run of the contest in the second inning. Joe Wallace began the inning with a bunt single. The speedy left fielder stole second, where he remained two outs later. CatcherBryce Tafelski, however, brought Wallace home when the stroked a 1-1 pitch from UC Davis ace Anthony Kupbens into left field.
The only other credible threat of the game came in the fifth inning. With two outs, shortstop Steven Moon was safe on an error by Aggie second baseman Ryan Allgrove. Designated hitter Derek Eligioand center fielder Ben Edelstein followed with back-to-back singles, but Moon was thrown out at the plate by the left fielder Popkins.
UCSB finished with seven hits in the game, including two apiece by Tafelski and Williams. All eight hits in the game were singles. Earlier in the season, Vedo (5-6) had a no hitter with two outs in the ninth inning before allowing a base hit. UC Davis' Kupbens (5-6) went the distance on Saturday. For Fick, it was his second save of the season.
The Gauchos and Aggies complete the three game series on Sunday afternoon at 1:00 p.m. at Dobbins Stadium. The game will be broadcast live on AM 1290 KZSB, the Santa Barbara News-Press Radio Station and online at UCSBgauchos.com.
The Gauchos will return home to host Loyola Marymount on Tuesday, May 24 at 3:00 p.m. at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium.


text:
"They reach out and flip the switch and the light comes on. Well, there's not a magic electricity fairy. That electricity comes from a power plant that feeds on coal."
Eugene Mooney, past commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Natural Resources
Coal produces half of America's electricity, according to the Federal Department of Energy. The energy policy currently before Congress identifies coal as a key to America's "energy independence." The Electricity Fairy is a documentary that examines America's national addiction to fossil fuels through the lens of electricity. Appalshop Filmmaker Tom Hansell follows the story of a proposed coal-fired power plant in the mountains of southwest Virginia, connecting the local controversy to the national debate over energy policy. Present day documentary footage is remixed with old educational films, connecting past policy to America's current energy crisis.
Eugene Mooney, past commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Natural Resources


text:
cable and sat don't have the bandwidth for it and that's on the broadcast side.
Maybe 1-2 channels but most cable systems are loaded with sd channels and old mpeg2 HD boxes.
Sat has moved to all mepg 4 HD but stills has lots of SD boxes out there as well.
Its the term used at the production side, and is pretty much the standard for pro video at the high end. And its notorious for being really hard and expensive to work with because its simply taxing for the cameras to output and even more taxing to work through post-production with. Something like a RED or whatever camera will sell themselves on "4K" but generally unless filming for cinema its hardly needed.
With one exception however, when dealing with chromakeying and the like the higher resolution provides more information to key out backgrounds without the telltale green halos around the characters, so even on TV work, 4K cameras are idea for special effects stuff, just to give the post-production work more to work with.
Which is, of course, why those newfangled DSLR cameras might look seriously fantastic for normal footage, but are simply the wrong choice for special effects stuff because whilst the effect of compressing it all down might be acceptable for most video, it removes too much detail for chromakeying without a lot of (expensive) extra work in post production. With that said, for DIY amateur stuff, its not time thats the problem but gear and so people are able to spend more time getting keying right and working with looser tolerances.
One of the big problems with 4k, and even more so with 8k, is that the camera operator can't focus it by eye any more. With that much resolution being even slightly off will be noticeable, so auto-focus is the only option.
I fail to see any point in your ramblnigs. 4K / 8K are clearly future techs intended to be delivered over equally future networks. Your argument is invalid. Get with the programme.
I prefer it, in fact.... it's far easier to account for than bits stored on a disk drive I can't possibly see without an electron microscope.
The biggest grievance I have with 4k is that the devices are too bloody costly.
The CD is over 30 years old, you can still buy CD players.
The same thing happened when the first 1080P screens came out. The market will adapt, there's no problem here.
the problem is that HD is still more than is needed, and a fair amount of programming is still made for SD (and most still broadcast in SD).
broadcast facilities dragged their feet with HD adoption - the single factor that made all facilities HD capable was the move away from hardware to software and masters-on-HDD.
so no... the market didn't adapt in 2005, it didn't adapt in 2010, it hasn't adapted now and it will be a long time before anything other than big budget movies or events like the olympics will get the 4k treatment.
also consider the optimum viewing distance of 2.5 screen heights. if Jobs were still here, he'd stop at 2k and call it "retina television". unless you're doing it well wrong, you're not going to get much benefit. even the jump from SD to HD was marginal - most of the gains were in compression quality (a macroblock is harder to see when it's 1/4 the size, and in h.264 it's impossible to see as it's filtered out by design).
but i suppose 4k will be interesting for perving on individual audience members at sporting events...
consider the optimum viewing distance of 2.5 screen heights
I keep seeing that pop up, and I don't know who came up with it, but they're wrong. If you have to turn your head to see the the action going on the corners, you're too close. If you don't have to turn your head, you're not too close. That point is closer than 2.5 screen heights.
if Jobs were still here, he'd stop at 2k and call it "retina television".
Doubtful, considering the iPad 2048x1536 is only 10" screen.
even the jump from SD to HD was marginal
Holy shit, and this is how you know that you have no idea what you're talking about. The difference of SD to HD was more significant by far than the change from black a
even the jump from SD to HD was marginal
Holy shit, and this is how you know that you have no idea what you're talking about. The difference of SD to HD was more significant by far than the change from black and white to color. It's huge! Do you have a 10" tv that you're watching from 7 ft away when making this comparison or something?
Are you old enough to remember the B&W TV days? I think you're underestimating the scale of the switch from B&W to color. I still remember when my parents got a color TV (we had a B&W set far longer than most people) and the difference was amazing and quite apparent to everyone. It didn't take a side by side comparison to see the difference between B&W and color, and you could see the difference no matter the size of the screen or how close you were.
On my current 37" LCD (capable of 720p, 1080i), I notice only a minimal difference between SD DVD's (480i) and HD Blu-rays. The difference is so minimal that I stopped paying the extra dollar or two for Blu-ray disks from Netflix because I couldn't really tell the difference. Perhaps if I had a bigger 1080p capable set I might notice more of a difference, but at my normal viewing distance (10 - 12 feet) the difference is quite minimal on my current set. I don't think I'd notice any difference at all between 720p and 4K without a much larger TV, or sitting much closer to the TV.
This chart doesn't go up to 4K, but suggests that you'd have to sit closer than 10 feet away from a 100" screen to take advantage of even 1440p:
http://www.engadget.com/2006/12/09/1080p-charted-viewing-distance-to-screen-size/ [engadget.com]
On my current 37" LCD (capable of 720p, 1080i), I notice only a minimal difference between SD DVD's (480i) and HD Blu-rays
In descending order of probability:
1) You are WAY to far away from your TV. THX standard is for the display to fill 40 of your field of view diagonally, or a viewing distance of 1.2x the screen diagonal. A little under 4 feet would be the recommended viewing distance.
2) Your TV is still set to the factory/showroom default profile, and will look like shit whatever you feed it with. Use a calibration disc (e.g. Spears & Munsil) or the basic THX calibration included on many BD (e.g. Disney/Pixar films) t
also consider the optimum viewing distance of 2.5 screen heights. if Jobs were still here, he'd stop at 2k and call it "retina television". unless you're doing it well wrong, you're not going to get much benefit. even the jump from SD to HD was marginal - most of the gains were in compression quality (a macroblock is harder to see when it's 1/4 the size, and in h.264 it's impossible to see as it's filtered out by design).
I thought the jump from SD to HD was great....for a while. Lately most of the free to air TV channels in Australia have been going terribly downhill with overly compressed or badly up-scaled video sources. It's rare now to get HD content that looks like HD - the best thing I've watched lately was a 3 year old doco I had saved on hard drive.
Which then begs the question, why go to 4K when we cant even get 1080p right consistently?
I'm not sure that's true. 1080p had always been the goal of HD, even with the original HD spec developed in Japan in the 80s. No matter what, everyone knew we were going to get there and understood the advantages over NTSC and PAL. Consumers and content creators could see the improvements brought by HD. Most of the people who cared about 1080p just waited until prices dropped and skipped 720p and 1080i. That all occurred as part of the big HD uptake over the past 5 years.
The problems with 4k are twofold. First, it isn't part of the existing HD spec. It is a new standard that doesn't have the imprimatur of governments and cable companies designating it as a target to be achieved. Second, it is a move driven entirely by the consumer electronics industry. There isn't demand from users and there is certainly no interest on the production side.
I work in post production and the data hassles of 3D have been enough to keep our company (and many others) away from it. The substantially larger file sizes associated with 4K are even worse. For a production company like ours, we'd have to move to a petabyte SAN just to manage an equivalent amount of 4K footage to what we do now in HD. Transcoding times would go through the roof, bandwidth would be heavily taxed, even the hardware requirements for decoding a single compressed stream (to say nothing of editors handling MANY simultaneous streams) for playback would be much higher. And for what? The only quality improvements would be in resolution (as opposed to the jump to HD, which brought a massive change to color handling over NTSC). Networks don't want to pay higher budgets for something that won't help make them any more competitive. Satellite providers, who already compress the shit out of their HD signals, don't have spare bandwidth for fatter streams. Cable companies, who are basically in the data business now, don't want to waste their bandwidth on it. Even with SDV it would add a lot to their overhead. Game consoles are still struggling to make the most out of HD, so are nowhere near ready to handle that many additional pixels. You might have videophiles willing to spend a ton of money on ultra-premium gear, but even they would be limited to using specialty playback hardware that would have to download massive files because 4k exceeds the storage capacity of any commercially available blu-ray media.
TV manufacturers are pushing this because the great upgrade is over and 3D has failed to excite consumers. They need something to try and convince consumers to replace a perfectly functional, nearly new 1080p TV. So they're going to run with 4K in 2013.
.. the cable companies would compress the signal as they presently do with "HDTV" to the point that it looks like crap. They have ruined the HDTV quality with this compression and I can only imagine how much they would ruin 4k TV content. The best HDTV experience I have ever had was pulling HDTV signals from the Over The Air broadcasts. The first time I saw this (after spending so much time watching compressed HDTV on Comcast) I couldn't believe how great it looked. If you don't believe me, give it a try. The OTA HDTV signals blow Comcast's HDTV signals out of the water with crispness and detail.
Hopefully the means of getting this type of signal dramatically improves so that compression is not needed and we can watch 4k the way it was meant to be..
.. the cable companies would compress the signal as they presently do with "HDTV" to the point that it looks like crap
Pretty much this.
There is so much artifacting going on with Verizon "hdtv" that I may as well be watching sdtv DVD rips from Pirate Bay, and no, nothing is wrong with the signal. The signal itself is fine without dropouts. It's just crap.
I still have a 1 DVD out at a time along with Netflix streaming because it's better than $5 iTunes rentals for recent stuff (and I can rip DVDs for anything I want to keep), so staying with discs for a while longer is no big deal to me. It is a shame we can get the infrastructure's bandwidth up at a better pace, though.
you rip rentals? that's pretty scummy, dude.
I still have a 1 DVD out at a time along with Netflix streaming because it's better than $5 iTunes rentals for recent stuff (and I can rip DVDs for anything I want to keep),...
you rip rentals? that's pretty scummy, dude.
Well... Technically... As long as he has an active Netflix by/mail account, he's simply being efficient and saving them postage.
What's your point?
I've got him beat - I just download them.
Put movies on cartriges. By the time 4K is ready to become a standard it will make more sense to use solid state drives than optical. They should focus on making flash memory faster and distribute films on jump drives. Kingston has a 1TB key drive in the lab now.
SATA3 already supports 600MB/s. It's only a matter of time before SSD technology will saturate that (if it doesn't already on 'reads').
Here's a proposed solution to the problem. Create a custom SSD standard for the entertainment industry (follow me here..) using SATA3. When a user rents from Redbox or Netflix, a SSD cartridge comes preloaded with the movie in question and labeled on a digital ink window for easy visual identification of the title in question. This cartridge will only work in entertainment d
Thunderbolt goes a bit higher, so a RAID array over thunderbolt might do over 600MB/s...
There's a lot of professional video gear that supports thunderbolt. Probably because a lot of professional video gear targets Mac. That's actually kind of annoying, and the third-party Windows drivers for HFS+ have spotty support. I couldn't get them working with the CF cards recorded on a KiPro Mini, for example. I had to hunt down somebody on-site with a macbook to read the damned things.
Much of the bandwidth/media etc claims are rubbish. 4k has (approximately) 4 time the pixels of standard full HD, so at most a given
format will increase by 4 times, HOWEVER, most lossy compression methods (for example AVC/MPEG4) on real footage scale better
than linear with pixel count, as detail becomes more repeated at higher resolutions, so a more likely estimate for such formats is
2 times, which is not crazy (blueray for example can already delivery that for many movies if needed). newer compression methods are
coming on line that can deliver close to double the compression for equivalent quality, meaning we end up back to normal HD data sizes.
Is it needed? thats a whole different story, with the size of living rooms/available and comfortable wall space for screen, etc it is pretty
marginal, but trying to use raw uncompressed bitrates as a scare tactic is rubbish.
Their raw figures are of course not even right as they seem to be assuming 444/12bit storage, which would be rather rare in real life, 422 10 bit
would be MUCH more common, and most workflows would actually use comrpessed storage (as they do now for HD.).
Or perhaps the 1080 sets will start to be 1152 to make 4K look better than regular HD even with 1080 content.
I'd like to be able to buy the 1600x1200 monitors I bought for many years before 1080 HDTV became popular and forced a lower resolution for PC users.
This means scaling up or down will work very well and people won't be able to tell the difference between this and 1080p.
I don't think pixels work the way you think they do.
That aside, you may not realise that most 1080p TVs, by default, scale up the image by about 5%, and yet that somehow doesn't look "smeared to shit." For any natural image source the difference is marginal at worst, and probably likewise for any digitally originated images, since broadcasters deliberately keep them soft for a variety of reasons.
And yes, I'm claiming industry-wide effort to make 1080 appear visibly better than 720.
You do know that it's also actually better than 720p too, right? The clue is in the numbers.
Not sure if you're trolling or just uninformed. So maybe I'm feeding.
Torrent files don't download sequentially, from start to finish. Clients that follow spec will randomly select a piece to download, possibly influenced by availability or speed of peers with pieces. The larger the file gets, the lower the odds are that you're not missing an early piece. For a movie that has 1000 pieces, the odds of having ALL of the first 250 pieces at any point before you hit the 95% downloaded point are astronomicall
In coming years, 50-inch or 55-inch screens will have become the sort of standard that 40-inch TVs are now. To exploit 4K, you need a larger form factor. Youâ(TM)re just not going to notice enough of a difference on smaller screens.' The same quality/convenience argument leads him to believe that physical media for 4K content will struggle to gain traction among consumers.
I don't get how this person has the foresight to note all these things, but totally gloss over the fact that for many (I may even say most) living rooms, any TV above 46"-47" is simply too large. I will never have a 4K TV in my living room because there is simply nowhere to put a TV that is 55"... it doesn't matter if the manufacturer is selling it, heck it doesn't matter if it is FREE, I have nowhere to put the damn thing. 46" is already way bigger than needed.
4K is so 2007, I have seen 8K broadcast streets (all equipment needed to acquire, store, transmit, compress, scale, playback and display) for years as shown at the international broadcasting conference.
Before anyone comes up with, "but the eyes cannot resolve that kind of details", YOU ARE WRONG!
8K is not even a little comparable to HDTV.
I have also seen 4K being displayed, often scanned from 35mm prints, I doesn't have much impact beyond 2K. But this may be due that this is not captured on a digital camera and the grain (effective resolution) of 35 mm is worse than pixels at 4K. The 8K footage I've seen was captured on a 8K digital camera.
Also 300 fps video is freaking amazing, this was a demo from the BBC, your eyes can track fast moving objects and therefor focus on it razer sharp like when you track a moving object in the real-world. Finally we can actually watch Hollywood action sequences which as 24 fps is just a blurry mess of motion blur, or a vomit inducing slideshow.
If they do crank these out, 4K computer monitors should come down in price. I don't care what happens to the TV market as long as that happens.
Indeed. Better monitors are really the primary advantage I see for typical consumers, with the only other one being large-screen applications, such as projectors and the like.
Otherwise, if we're talking about TVs, 1080p is already sufficient, since I did the math awhile back when I was deciding whether to wait for 4K or not, and at typical viewing distances with the sizes of HDTVs we have today, the individual pixels in a 1080p TV are already far smaller than a person with 20/20 vision is able to discern, m
I have absolutely no issue with physical media. Sure, streaming is convenient. But I can tell you, that physical media saved me from absolute boredom during severe snowstorms, where my only power source was an extension cord, an inverter, and my laptop. For flying, physical media (whether thumb drive or DVD) is a necessity. And for driving, I do not want to be bound by a physical internet connection to enjoy a TV show/movie that I have purchased. I still get DVD's by mail form Netflix, because my month
The important point is that at last, there'll be computer screens with non-stupid resolutions again! They took my 1920x1200 away, and though I would prefer 3840x2400, I can live with 3840x2160.
At least resolutions are going up again.
Remember when Blu Ray came out and a number of people were claiming they couldn't see much difference.
Well this time it will actually be true for almost everyone.
Most people don't even have their TV's close enough to visually discern 1080p.
This kind of TV resolution is irrelevant in a normal home setup.
Precisely. When I was deciding whether or not to wait on 4K a few months back, I did the math and realized that unless you have a ridiculously large TV or are sitting ridiculously close, 1080p is already well past the point where it can be considered a "retina display" (to borrow Apple's term for any display where the pixels are indistinguishable from one another at typical viewing distances to a person with 20/20 vision). 4K provides no additional benefits in those contexts, which is how most people will l
Pity that submitter/editor did not research further into the topic.
There are already standards (JPEG2000 DCI) that allow to compress 4K stream from about 5Gbit/s to 250 Mbit/s, which is much more manageable. There is at least one commercial vendor (intoPIX) that makes such hardware de/compressors.
If you want to stretch your imagination - start thinking about 3D movies in 4K, which is quite an obvious step. This is 12 Gbit/s uncompressed, but 500 Mbit/s in normal transmission.
Oh, by the way - 8K is already being worked on. And 8K 3D (48Gbit/s uncompressed)...
I want it on my monitor. Who watches TV anymore anyway?
OK, not a very good point, but basically, I can absolutely use more pixels. youtube videos will still be crappy, but when I write, code or draw, I'll see much more
I am still bitter about the whole fullHD scam -- for a scam it was: moitor resolutions went down. and in the 21st
In who's mind is 2K good enough for theatres? Speaking as a former motion picture projectionist who ran 35mm and 70mm film for almost 20 years, I can tell you the "quality" you get in a 2K auditorium is significantly inferior to what was delivered by a 35mm print, albeit with no jitter or weave. 4K cinematic presentations are actually quite good, even on a 40 or 50 foot screen but I steadfastly refuse to see anything in a theatre that's shown in the 2K format. What's worse, most exhibitors run their 2k machines with the 3D lenses in place when they're not showing 3D, cutting the available light in half. So what the vast majority of patrons experience in a movie theatre today is a dark, washed-out image with lower overall quality than they were seeing just 5 years ago. The only winners here are the companies who don't have to ship 12,000 feet of film (for a 2 hour movie), which weighs about 40-50 pounds per print, to 2000 screens -- and pay to ship it back again at the end of the run. The exhibitors also win because they got the 2k machines for free from the companies and they don't have to employ skilled projectionists to run them either.
So yeah, I'll take 4K home presentation once the price comes down to the level that mere mortals can afford. I have a 53" Aquos screen now that's OK at 9' viewing distance but a 65" class screen at 4K and using HFR would rock my world once content becomes available.
My bet is that flat panel manufacturers are quickly realizing that 3D in the home is a dud and they'll concentrate their efforts into amping up 4K in the coming years, even though content will be quite minimal for a very long time. Since you'll never see anything more than 1080i or 720p from OTA broadcast (6 MHz channel size ain't changing any time soon), it'll only be a selling point for movies or DVDs of TV series. I don't know about everyone else, but 95% of what I watch is broadcast TV dramas, comedies and sports. I don't see the studios converting to shoot and edit to 4k in the foreseeable future, either.
The only people that are going to care about uncompressed size are those that make movies and movie theaters (I'm assuming theaters use uncompressed files, but I honestly don't know.) And a move-maker or theater won't have any problem with it; a simple drive array is just fine to cope with the bandwidth demands.
Just as few (any?) consumers ever get their hands on uncompressed 1080p, so it will be with 4K.
Unless I did the math wrong, it's only triple the size... hardly an insurmountable problem; not even an
I'm working the Samsung booth at CES this year and I worked it last year. When I saw the engineers (last year) assembling the 4k demo sets, I asked where the content was coming from. The answer was a half-rack of servers behind the wall filled with powerful machines and lots of disks. Clearly not practical for consumers.
This year, the 4k sets are being driven by slightly smaller computers, presumably with compression. Samsung is demoing their compression technology (HEVC) VS h.264. I'm sure the manufacturers know that with the sorry state of networks, 4K video is not possible without more advanced compression algorithms to reduce data rates.
Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL) did a study to evaluate the subjective video quality of HEVC at resolutions higher than HDTV. The study was done with three videos with resolutions of 3840Ã--1744 at 24 fps, 3840Ã--2048 at 30 fps, and 3840Ã--2160 at 30 fps. The five second video sequences showed people on a street, traffic, and a scene from the open source computer animated movie Sintel. The video sequences were encoded at five different bitrates using the HM-6.1.1 HEVC encoder and the JM-18.3 H.264/MPEG-4 AVC encoder. The subjective bit rate reductions were determined based on subjective assessment using mean opinion score values. The study compared HEVC MP with H.264/MPEG-4 AVC HP and showed that for HEVC MP the average bitrate reduction based on PSNR was 44.4% while the average bitrate reduction based on subjective video quality was 66.5%.
High Efficiency Video Coding [wikipedia.org]
Do 4 times the pixels need 4 times the bandwidth? I would think larger blocks of solid colors, simple gradients, etc. would compress much at a much higher ratio than smaller ones. Or do they still encode the same size of pixel blocks as the old standards?
As for digital artifacts, I find that applying a very light noise filter (artificial 'film grain') conceals obvious banding, blockyness, etc. improving perceived (but not actual) quality.
So a repeat of the argument against HDTV. It took the media companies 10 years to catch up, and the same will happen again. Early adopters get what they deserve.
I remember seeing articles about the use of holographic storage medium with 500 GB potential http://www.crn.com/news/storage/217200230/ge-unveils-500-gb-holographic-disc-storage-technology.htm [crn.com] . Don't know if it will ever come around, but it would be a possible physical media source (assuming that the read speeds were fast enough)
The more interesting step to me would be 1920x2160 panels for 1080P passive 3D. Right now passive 3D polarizes alternate lines so at 1080P it is more like 1920x540 per eye. Which probably is perceived by the brain like 1920x700 or something like that. If no one makes a 1920x2160 panel I presume it could be done with a 4K panel.
The last thing one knows in constructing a work is what to put first. -- Blaise Pascal


text:
Are you taking advantage of available rebates and incentives?
Each year, billions of dollars are collected and redistributed by utilities as incentives and rebates to help lower the cost of energy-efficient capital improvements.
For an organization seeking to make best use of its capital and operating dollars, capturing rebates and incentives is an effective way to accelerate the payback on energy-efficient new construction and retrofit projects, which in turn helps fund additional projects and reduces total cost of ownership. Unfortunately, identification and processing of rebates can be challenging, and time-consuming, and with the limitation of resources today companies simply don't have the time to take advantage of them.


text:
... Democrat Obama dominated among Latino Catholics nationally and in key swing states in 2008. He won roughly three out of four Latino Catholics in New Mexico and Nevada, according to exit polls.Wisconsin's Catholics are — as Gilbert puts it — "overwhelmingly white." In 2008, these white Catholics went for Obama by a 4 point margin. But Obama won Wisconsin by 14 points, so the white Catholic vote is more conservative than the state generally. In 2010, white Catholics voted for Scott Walker by an 8 point margin. So influencing this group can be key to flipping Wisconsin one way or the other.
But he narrowly lost white Catholics in the majority of swing states he carried, winning this group in only three battlegrounds with sizable Catholic populations– Wisconsin, Iowa and Michigan. In most cases, the "white Catholic vote" was very similar to the "white vote."
Is contraception the perfect wedge issue for Republicans? How strange! It was only one month ago that Mitt Romney was puzzled that the topic of contraception was even being raised.


text:
byRick Whiting on
Tips To Make Sales Compensation Work For Your Company (II)
* Invest in IT infrastructure to improve compensation visibility.
* Use contests, recognition dinners and other fun things to reinforce the right sales representative behavior. "Salespeople are competitive. They like to have fun," Rogers said.
* Reward salespeople who invest in training and certification.
* Rein in spiffs.
* Use noncompete agreements.


text:
As billions are spent treating obesity related diseases, we take a look at the US food industry lobby.
It costs hundreds of billions of dollars each year and leads to deadly chronic diseases. But who is to blame for the US' obesity epidemic?
In the next 18 years the number of obese people in the US is expected to rise to 42 per cent of the adult population.
VIDEO Harvesting Justice: Transforming the food supply chain in the USAhttp://www.scoop.it/t/agriculture-gmos-pesticides/p/1560354127/video-harvesting-justice-transforming-the-food-supply-chain-in-the-usa


text:
Dead Rising 2: Off the Record is one of those cases of good things coming in unexpected packages. On the surface, it looks like a cash grab from a publisher taking advantage of a series' fanbase. After all, it arrives only a year after the release of the original Dead Rising 2, and appears to essentially be the same game with a new hero. Looks can be deceiving, though. Dead Rising 2: Off the Record may be the best game in the series.
Dead Rising 2: Off the Record is a reimagining of Dead Rising 2, with the primary difference being that Frank West from the original game steps into the lead role. In fact, Off the Record feels like the proper follow-up to Frank's story that players originally expected in a sequel. It picks up the story chronicling Frank West's rise to fame following the events of Dead Rising and an epic fall from grace that leads him to Fortune City.
The structure of the Story Mode remains intact. Players are given 72 hours to complete the main story before the military arrives and effectively ends the game. Time must be managed effectively in order to complete the main cases, while also setting some aside to rescue survivors and gain valuable Prestige Points (PP) used to improve Frank's abilities. Time also has to be made to find Frank his daily dose of Zombrex, without which he will die…well, turn undead. This structure presents the game's core dilemma. There simply isn't enough time to complete side quests, raise cash, and level up. In many cases, I'd force myself to jump right into the story missions and end up woefully outmatched.
This has often been the case for Dead Rising titles, but Off the Record offers a solution. The new Sandbox Mode can be played through any save file and basically puts Frank West in Fortune City without the confines of the 72-hour time limit. It freed me up to go nuts and whack zombies to my heart's content. There are also dozens of challenges available throughout the city, many of which open up after a certain number of zombies have been slaughtered. The best part about sandbox is that all the cash I made and levels I gained here can be transferred right over to story mode . So, anytime I felt outmatched in one of the missions, I simply switched over to sandbox and grinded until I was ready to go.
This solution, though, creates a new problem. The game starts to feel repetitious. Slaughtering zombies mercilessly is fun for a while, but the thrill quickly fades. Dead Rising 2: Off the Record tries to mix things up with ample Combo Cards for turning all sorts of everyday items into fun weapons, like a propane tank and a lawn dart. And I admit to getting some big laughs out of taking down zombies with an amusement park ride. But done over and over, for challenges that involve killing as many zombies as possible in a given amount of time and grinding to level up, the fun gets worn out.
The only real sense of variety I had when playing this game was through the return of the photography feature from the original Dead Rising. Taking pictures was one of my favorite aspects of that game, and the same held true here. There are areas in Fortune City that will award bonus PP when captured on film, which affords a nice alternative way to level up. From my experience, however, there weren't enough of these opportunities.
BOOM video 10678
Even with the return of Frank West and his camera, there's going to be an undeniable sense of déjà vu in Dead Rising 2: Off the Record. The setting is nearly recycled entirely from Dead Rising 2, save for a couple of new areas. The plot, while reimagined, treads familiar territory. And, stop me if you've heard this one before, the game starts off with Frank West inside a shopping mall. Dead Rising 2: Off the Record won't do much to alleviate player concerns of the game lacking creativity.
Dead Rising 2: Off the Record feels like such a mixed bag. On one hand, it features everything that a Dead Rising title should. I cannot emphasize enough how much of a welcomed feature Sandbox Mode is. I also enjoyed seeing Frank West return with his camera in-hand--although fans of Chuck Greene need not worry, as his presence is felt in both the Story Mode and in the game's online co-op, as a second player. To me, DR2: OTR feels like what Dead Rising 2 was meant to be--a continuation of Frank West's story with additional gameplay elements. As a retake on the first run at a sequel from last year, though, Dead Rising 2: Off the Record feels like a "been there, done that" experience. New fans to the series should enjoy this game as a jumping on point, but anyone that's had a full Dead Rising 2 experience prior to this game should weigh whether if they want to take a return trip to Fortune City so soon after the last visit.
[Review is based on a retail copy of the Xbox 360 version of the game, provided by the publisher. Dead Rising 2: Off the Record is also available on PC and PlayStation 3.]


text:
Results 1 to 6 of 6
#1 Jail dog named Allah spells curtains for UK prison officer
- Join Date
- Aug 2005
- Posts
- 22,891
London, May 26 (ANI): Naming his sniffer dog Allah has resulted in in prison officer Chris Langridge, 28, being shifted out of Britains top Belmarsh high-security jail. Though Langridge insisted that his labrador was called Ali, and not Allah, a Muslim inmate filed an official complaint against the the dog handler, and he was promptly shifted. One Belmarsh officer said:
This is political correctness gone mad. Belmarsh houses some of Britains most notorious extremist Muslims, including hook-handed Abu Hamza. It also has the highest proportion of Muslim prisoners of any jail in Britain.
Muslims dont like dogs and it would have been an insult to their religion if the dog had been called Allah, which is sacred to them. It is disgraceful the way the management kow-towed to them despite Chriss denial, The Sun quoted a source, as saying.
Langridge and his dog are now working at the Swaleside jail on the Isle of Sheppey, Kent
|« Previous Thread | Next Thread »


text:
Ellen Robertson Green sits down with film maker Ken Burns for a one-on-one discussion. He goes into fascinating, behind the scenes details of how he chose his career path, his relationship with PBS, his other award winning films, and his newest documentary "The Dust Bowl".
Visit the Website: http://www.kacv.org/dustbowl
Length: 58 minutes


text:
Robert Morris University
NEWS-- The Manchester Bidwell Corporation will screen the RMU-produced documentary What Does Trouble Mean? Nate Smith's Revolution at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 14, in the Manchester Craftsmen's Guild auditorium, 1815 Metropolitan St., Pittsburgh, 15233. The evening will start at 6 p.m. with a reception with light refreshments, and the film will be followed by a Q & A. The event is free and open to the public. In addition to RMU and the Manchester Bidwell Corporation, the event is sponsored by the Falk Foundation.
-- The Center for Global Engagement website now includes the Earth Calendar, which features information each day about religious and national holidays across the globe. Please consider this a resource for learning about diverse religious and cultural celebrations.
-- Remember that the first brown-bag lunch new website information session takes place at noon Tuesday, June 7, in the Ferry Room in Massey Hall.
-- The latest edition of RMU in the News is now online.
PERSONAL MENTION-- Nell Tabor Hartley, professor of management, and graduate assistant Janette Sutphin authored "Don't Dis Our Abilities," which was published in the First Quarter 2011 issue of the Journal of Diversity Management.
-- Yildirim Omurtag, interim head of the Department of Engineering, was invited to serve as the keynote speaker in Phuket, Thailand, at the Ninth Annual Conference of International and National Engineering Education organized by the Council of Engineering Deans of Thailand. Omurtag's speech was titled "Engineering Education in the Early 21st Century: Challenges and Changes" and was attended by more than 300 engineering deans, department heads, and faculty members from Thai engineering schools. Omurtag's visit was arranged by Natha Kuptasthien, director of international programs at Rajamangala University of Technology-Thanyaburi (RMUTT), and hosted by university President Numyoot Songthanapitak. After the conference Omurtag visited the RMUTT campus and the campus of Mahidol University near Bangkok, and he presented seminars to the engineering faculty on engineering education.
-- On Saturday, June 4, Carl Ross, university professor of nursing, will receive the Catalyst for Change Award from the Catalyst for Change Inc. in Delaware. This award recognizes ordinary individuals who are making an extraordinary difference in the lives of young children in the areas of health, education, community service, and international services.
*WELLNESS TIP* Dietary supplements are becoming more popular, but may not be for everybody. Follow an "eat five fruits and vegetables a day" regimen, which should provide the B vitamins, antioxidants, and other vitamins and minerals that will benefit your body. Consult with your doctor before you start to take any supplement.
EVENTSJuly 9, RMU Night at PNC Park


text:
Editor's Note: The investment firms of Robert W. Baird & Co. issued a client newsletter following this week's release of the January retail RV sales report compiled by Statistical Surveys Inc. (SSI). Excerpts from the Baird newsletter follow.
U.S. towable retail up 21% in January. According to data from Statistical Surveys, unit retail sales in major towable categories (travel trailers and fifth-wheels) jumped 21% in January — a solid start to the year after U.S. towable demand grew 10% in 2012. Winnebago U.S. towable demand grew 42% in January (with just 1% market share), pushing growth to 22% through the first two months of its February quarter. Thor already reported results for the January quarter.
January towable demand grew 21% (travel trailers and fifth-wheels). Travel trailer demand increased 21% while fifth-wheel retail sales jumped 23%. The growth is a solid start to the year after U.S. towable demand improved 10% in 2012. The towable market faces more difficult comparisons in February (+17%) and March (+22%).
Thor. Thor U.S. travel trailer and fifth-wheel retail grew 19% in January, bringing United States retail growth to 5% during fiscal Q2. Recall that Thor already reported fiscal Q2 results on March 7, so the January data are not incremental to the story.
Winnebago. Towables represent just 10% of revenue for Winnebago, which entered the towable market in 2011 with under 1% share. Nonetheless, demand for Winnebago units grew 42% in January, bringing Winnebago retail growth to 22% through the first two months of the February quarter. We model Winnebago North American retail growth at 45% for the February quarter — note that given Winnebago's small market position, even a few incremental units can lead to large swings in growth rates. Our above-consensus revenue forecast for Winnebago is unchanged ($182 million vs. $171 million). We model 3% towable shipment growth on a 45% increase in towable retail volume and a 20% jump in dealer inventory. We expect Winnebago to report financial results Thursday, March 28.


text:
Original URL: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/10/06/death_list_credit/
Credit agencies get death lists
Fighting ID fraud with weekly updates
Posted in Policy, 6th October 2008 11:17 GMT
Credit agencies and other organisations will receive a weekly encrypted list of deaths from the official registrar to stop fraudsters using the identities of the recently deceased to apply for credit cards and identity documents.
Information on about 12,000 deaths a week will be sent out by the General Register for England and Wales, and its Scottish and Northern Irish equivalents. The death record file will go to credit-checking companies that request it. It aims to stop people using obituaries to apply for credit, sign up for benefits or engage in other ID fraud.
Home Office minister Meg Hillier told the BBC the move would "not only help to combat identity fraud, but will also reduce the impact on relatives of the deceased forced to deal with the consequence of their loved ones' identities being stolen".
The announcement was made to mark the start of National Identity Fraud Prevention Week, a government-sponsored campaign to raise awareness, fronted by Adrian Chiles. It aims to cut the estimated £1bn a year cost of ID fraud in the UK.
Researchers found 97 per cent of British consumers are not completely confident that the organisations they deal with take adequate steps to protect their data and prevent ID fraud. This finding was reinforced when 92 per cent of employees said their companies failed to keep staff and customer data safe from fraudsters. ®


text:
ROCKWELL CITY - It was a tough night Thursday for the Titan wrestlers of Graettinger-Terril/Ruth-ven-Ayrshire in a quadrangular dual at Rockwell City.
The Titans would fall to Prairie Valley by a 51-30 score, and then lost ot Pocahontas Area by a 48-27 score before South Central ?Calhoun handed GT/RA?a 75-6 loss.
Against Prairie Valley, the titans got a win from 145 pounder Ty Gibson, as he earned a 1:02 win by fall over Zeke Miller.
At 152, Hunter Brown was pinned in :30 and a t160, Matt McGrauth was pinned in 5:06 of his match. Kodi Ferguson was the victim of a 3:13 pin in the 170 pound match , but at 182, Kevin Smith received a win by forfeit.
Kyle long was pinned in :54 of his 195 pound match before the Titans forfeited at 106 and 113 pounds.
Alex Hoffman would receive a win by forfeit at 120, but the Titans forfeited at 126 pounds.
Austin Thompson would lose a 2-1 decision in action at 132 and at 138, Tyler Hoffman received a win by forfeit for the 51-30 final score.
Against the Indians of Pocahontas Area, the Titans' Hunter Brown was pinned in 1:44 to open the dual, while Kodi Ferguson was pinned in 3:02 at 160. Matt McGrauth was pinned in :31 of his 170 pound match and Kevin Smith was pinned in 2:37 of the 182 pound match.
At 195, Kyle Long earned 4:30 win by pin over Jesse O'Tool to give the Titans their first win of the dual.
The Titans forfeited at 220 but at 285, Cody Thompson earned a 4:14 win by Fall over Josh Dahlstein.
The Titans forfeited at 106 and 113 before Alex Hoffman earned a 4-3 decision win over Mitchel Brinkman at 120 pounds. A forfeit at 126 would follow before Austin Thompson earned a 1:29 win by fall over Edgar Ayala in action at 132.
Tyler Hoffman won a 15-9 decision over Kyler Lyon in the 138 pound match before Ty Gibson earned a 9-5 decision win over Tyler Hubrich at 145 for the final 27-48 team score.
In the finale` with South Central Calhoun, Kodi Ferguson was pinned in 1:55 to open the dual at 160 and the Titans forfeited at 170 and 182. Kyle Long was pinned in 2:14 at 195 before GT/RA?forfeited at 220.
Cody Thompson was pinned in :31 in the 285 pound match before GT/RA forfeited at 106, 113, 120 and 126 pounds.
At 132, Austin Thompson was pinned in 2:27 and at 138, Tyler hoffman lost a 5-1 decision.
Ty Gibson would earn a 5:14 win by fall over Taylor Reiss in the 145 pound match, but Hunter Brown was pinned in :57 to end the match with the 75-6 final. score.
"The boys wrestled hard the entire night and gave one hundred percent," noted Titan Head ?Coach Michael Jensen. "We had a couple kids come up short against their opponent that could have changed the outcome of their matches, but all of the kids wrestled with a lot of heart."


text:
Letter From Dr. Stephen I. Katz: The NIAMS Coalition–Partners in Advancing Biomedical Research and Training
Dear Colleagues:
As you well know, almost every household in America is affected in some way by diseases of the bones, joints, muscles and skin, which are under the purview of the NIAMS mission. These conditions change the lives of people of all ages, racial and ethnic populations, and economic strata, and are often chronic in nature.
We cannot connect the research breakthroughs with the people they benefit on our own. That is why we partner with groups such as the NIAMS Coalition. The Coalition is a consortium of more than 70 professional and voluntary organizations concerned with the Institute's programs.
Image: Stephen I. Katz, M.D., Ph.D.
NIAMS Appoints Intramural Clinical Director
Following a nationwide search, the NIAMS has announced the appointment of Richard Siegel, M.D., Ph.D., as the Institute's Clinical Director. In this role, Dr. Siegel will oversee clinical and translational research within the NIAMS Intramural Research Program, and supervise the clinical staff assigned to NIAMS investigators performing clinical and translational research, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Rheumatology Fellowship Training Program and the NIAMS Community Health Center.
Important Updates to the NIAMS Budget Web Pages
Paylines have increased for certain mechanisms in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2012 Funding Plan.
In addition, the NIAMS has posted the Funding Patterns for FY 2011 and FY 2010.
The decision to fund or not to fund a particular application is based on the assessment of scientific merit by a peer review group and on the relevance of the proposed work to the Institute's scientific and health priorities. Peer reviewers' judgments of scientific merit are expressed in "priority scores" and in percentile rankings derived from these priority scores. At any point in a given fiscal year, budgetary projections are based on awarding funds to all applications with rankings better than a certain percentile, sometimes referred to as the "payline." However, applications that address subjects of particular relevance to the Institute's scientific and health priorities may be considered for awards even if their assigned scores and percentile rankings would not qualify for funding under the current payline. Normally, a small portion of each year's budget is reserved for such "discretionary" or "select pay" awards. Projects to be funded on this basis are selected by the NIAMS Director, following staff discussion.
DUX4-Regulated Genes Provide a Roadmap for Facioscapulohumeral Dystrophy Therapies
Analysis of the hundreds of genes regulated by the DUX4 transcription factor reveals a new understanding of the pathology of facioscapulohumeral dystrophy and may lead to tools that accelerate the development of therapies, according to a new study supported by the NIAMS. The study's authors, from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle and other institutions, believe that the results of their research might lead to novel treatment strategies for this inherited disease, which involves progressive weakness and wasting of face, shoulder and upper arm muscles. The work was reported in Developmental Cell.
Post-Injury Response Could Be Key Step in Osteoarthritis Development
Scientists long considered osteoarthritis (OA) a disease of wear and tear. Use the joints long enough, they reasoned, and they are bound to wear out. But research in recent years has suggested that inflammation plays a role in OA, a disease in which joint cartilage breaks down, leaving bone rubbing against bone. A new study, supported in part by the NIAMS, helps confirm that role and points to new targets for treatment, and perhaps prevention, of this common joint disease.
Study Shows Statins Fail To Slow Atherosclerosis Progression in Young Lupus Patients
As earlier diagnosis and improved therapies have greatly increased the life expectancy associated with systemic lupus erythematosus (lupus), people with lupus now must face a longer-term problem: an increased risk of cardiovascular disease.
RNA Interference Silences Cell Signaling That Leads to Excessive Bone Formation in FOP
Scientists supported by the NIAMS have described in a recent issue of Gene Therapy how a gene-silencing process called RNA interference (RNAi) restored normal cell signaling in the cells of people with the bone disorder fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva (FOP). These findings, from cell culture experiments, are the first proof of principle that RNAi has potential as a therapy for FOP.
Baseline Bone Mineral Density Measurements Key to Future Testing Intervals
How often a woman should have bone mineral density (BMD) tests to track bone mass is strongly dependent on the BMD level found in her first measurement, according to new research supported by the NIAMS, the National Institute on Aging and the former National Center for Research Resources. Data from the Study of Osteoporotic Fractures, a long-term investigation of women age 67 or older, indicate that women with low initial BMD levels should receive BMD testing more often than those with normal or slightly low bone mass at first measurement. The research appeared in the New England Journal of Medicine.
NIH Selects 11 Centers of Excellence in Pain Education: NIH Pain Consortium Partners With Selected Health Professional Schools
The NIH Pain Consortium has selected 11 health professional schools as designated Centers of Excellence in Pain Education (CoEPEs). The CoEPEs will act as hubs for the development, evaluation and distribution of pain management curriculum resources for medical, dental, nursing and pharmacy schools to enhance and improve how health care professionals are taught about pain and its treatment. Twenty institutes, centers and offices at the NIH are involved in the consortium.
NIH Medical Research Scholars Program Announces First Class
The NIH has selected a talented pool of 45 medical, dental and veterinary students representing 34 different U.S.-accredited universities for its inaugural class of the Medical Research Scholars Program.
HHS Launches New Web-Based Tool To Track Performance of Nation's Health Care System: Public Can View Data by Age, Income Level, Ethnicity and Other Factors
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced the launch of a new web-based tool that will make it easier for all Americans to monitor and measure how the nation's health care system is performing.
eRA Handy Tips: "LikeThis" Tool Can Help PIs Suggest Likely NIH Institute or Study Section
LikeThis is a new search tool from the Electronic Research Administration (eRA) to aid Principal Investigators in finding and learning about other research projects that have goals and objectives similar to their own. By entering specific scientific terms or accessing their own grant applications or grants and clicking on "LikeThis," investigators will receive a listing of similar funded projects or publications.
Database Is One-Stop Resource on Kids' Medications
When adults are advised by their health care professional to use a medication, they expect to receive information—backed up by data from studies—on the correct and safe dose to take. For drugs used in children, this information may not be available because historically not all products are studied in children.
New Osteoporosis Publication Available From the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
Treatment To Prevent Fractures in Men and Women With Low Bone Density or Osteoporosis: Update of a 2007 Report
This new osteoporosis research review and resource for clinicians and patients includes new information on effectiveness and adverse events on recently approved medications to treat and prevent osteoporosis.
National Center for Health Statistics Data Brief: Osteoporosis or Low Bone Mass at the Femur Neck or Lumbar Spine in Older Adults: United States, 2005–2008
This data brief presents the most recent national data on osteoporosis or low bone mass at either the femur neck or lumbar spine among older adults in the United States. Results are presented by age, sex, and race and ethnicity.
Final Recommendation Statement on the Prevention of Falls in Community-Dwelling Older Adults
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) found significant evidence that exercise or physical therapy can help to prevent falls in older adults and determined that vitamin D supplementation has no benefit in preventing falls. In conjunction with these findings, the USPSTF did not find enough evidence of benefit to recommend that clinicians automatically perform an in-depth exam to assess risk for falls and comprehensive management of identified risks in all older adult patients. The final recommendation and the evidence it is based on is available on the USPSTF website.
June Shorttakes
NIAMS Shorttakes is a compilation of news from the Institute that is published three times a year in conjunction with NIAMS Advisory Council meetings. Just scan these "shorttakes" for information on what's happening at the NIAMS, or access the complete articles for viewing or use in your own newsletter or other publication.
NIH Research Matters
NIH Research Matters is a review of NIH research from the Office of Communications and Public Liaison, Office of the Director, NIH.
Thought-Control Gives Paralyzed People Helping Hand
Paralyzed patients were able to reach and grasp objects by controlling a robotic arm with their thoughts, a new study reports. This advance may help restore some independence and improve quality of life for people who've lost the use of their limbs.
NIH Public Bulletin
Read about the latest public events, activities and health information resources from the NIH in the latest issue of the NIH Public Bulletin.
You can also subscribe to receive an email notification when new issues of the NIH Public Bulletin are available online.
NIH News in Health
Read practical health information in NIH News in Health, which is reviewed by the NIH's medical experts and is based on research conducted either by the NIH's own scientists or by its grantees at universities and medical schools around the country.
Save the Date: Summit on the Science of Eliminating Health Disparities
Integrating Science, Policy and Practice
Building a Healthier Society
October 31–November 3, 2012
Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center
National Harbor, Maryland
NIAMS Announcements
Multiplex Assay Development for Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (SBIR [R43/R44])
Letters of Intent Receipt Date: Not applicable
Application Receipt Dates: Standard dates apply
NIH Common Fund Initiative Announcements
Notice of Intent To Publish Human Heredity and Health in Africa (H3Africa): Ethical, Legal and Societal Issues (ELSI) Research Program FOA
Notice: Human Heredity and Health (H3Africa) Applicant Information Sessions in Africa
Notice of Intent To Publish Human Heredity and Health in Africa (H3Africa): Collaborative Centers FOA
Notice of Intent To Publish Human Heredity and Health in Africa (H3Africa): Research Projects FOA
Notice of Intent To Publish Human Heredity and Health in Africa (H3Africa): Biorepositories FOA
Other Funding Announcements
Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) Funding Announcements
The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute released its first research funding announcements to support comparative clinical effectiveness research based on the PCORI's National Priorities for Research and Research Agenda.
The funding opportunities are in four research areas:
- Assessment of Prevention, Diagnosis and Treatment Options (PDF—702 KB)
- Improving Health Care Systems (PDF—694 KB)
- Communication and Dissemination (PDF—688 KB)
- Addressing Disparities (PDF—690 KB)
Please see the PCORI application guidelines (PDF—1 MB) for application information, and note the following dates:
- Letters of Intent Receipt Date: June 15, 2012
- Application Receipt Date: July 31, 2012
- Awards Announced: December 31, 2012
- Earliest Start Date: January 13, 2013
Research Education Program for Laboratory Animal Medicine Veterinarians (R25)
Letters of Intent Receipt Date: Not applicable
Application Receipt Date: July 18, 2012
Notice of Change in Participation of NIH Institutes and Centers in PAS-12-165 (U24), PAS-12-166 (U01), PAS-12-168 (U10) and PA-12-169 (U54) Limited Competition: Revision Applications To Advance Evidence-Based Research Related to Protections for Human Subjects
The Division of Receipt and Referral Will Use eRA Commons To Communicate With Applicants and Applicant Organizations
Notice of NIH Piloting of Procedures for Special Council Review of Research Applications From PD(s)/PI(s) With More Than $1.5 Million Total Annual NIH Support
Clarification of Position Statements on Implementation of the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals: Eighth Edition
Clarification: Requirement for the Inclusion of a Certification Letter for Eligible Individuals Applying Under PAR-12-050, PAR-12-051 and PAR-12-052
Request for Information (RFI): Input on Proposed Modifications of the Biographical Sketch Used in NIH Grant Applications
Extended Deadline for Request for Information (RFI): Priorities for Outsourcing of Laboratory Procedures
If you would like to review information about funding opportunities more frequently than our monthly updates allow, see the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts, the primary source for information about NIH funding opportunities. You can also request a weekly Table of Contents from the NIH Guide.


text:
THQ has dodged a bullet, keeping its NASDAQ stock market listing due to board approval of a reverse stock split. The Board of Directors agreed last week to a 1-for-10 stock split, which essentially converts every 10 shares of stock into one share of stock. This reduces the total number of shares from 68.5 million to roughly 6.9 million.
This essentially means that each remaining piece of stock gains 10 times its value. Shares had been trading under $1, which led to a delisting notice. The company had to achieve more than $1 per share for 10 consecutive business days, and this move should go a long way towards that.
The company isn't totally out of the woods yet. This will make it much easier for the company to maintain trading at above $1 a share, but it has to achieve that 10-day target. But a 1:10 ratio is the largest one the Board could have approved, given its other choices of 1:3 and 1:5. This gives the company the best chance.


text:
|2011-01-05, 15:41
|Link #241
Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2010
If you want to get technical we were discussing the mystery genre not the overall series. But sure, as you wish. Musoka, if you wish to continue that debate I suppose we would have to do it over at the other thread. I get your points though, just disagree about the whydunit argument. Outside of that, I'm fine with it.
As for discussing episode 8 itself, I think that my biggest problems with it come down to the fact that episode 7 was basically entirely meaningless. Will, Lion and Erika(to a lesser degree) just showing up felt wrong. Yes I know that Erika had an excuse, they consider her part of the game and all. But seriously, all that talk about Lion being Beatrice's chance at a happy ending was just useless.
I did like the Erika scenes though. She felt like a more likable and clever character than before.
|2011-01-05, 15:57
|Link #242
Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2003
I'll respond to your previous message in the general spoilers thread.
EP7 wasn't entirely meaningless in the scope of EP8. The Tea Party of EP7 was entirely meaningless in the scope of EP8.
Think of it this way.
If EP7 had left off with Will and Lion quietly exiting the chapel, content in their knowledge of putting Beatrice to a beautiful, peaceful rest--the kind of rest she had longed for--and then cut to a crying six year old Ange to show that we still had some loose ends to wrap up, there would be absolutely no problem with how EP8 ended up.
Doing things like that allows for the following things that EP8 did:
1. The ending we saw for Will and Lion in EP7 was too cruel. If they had just exited the chapel, there wouldn't have been any sense of lost catharsis in their situation. We would have been able to fully accept them as honorable guests borrowed from another game board without that disconnect between how we were left with them in EP7 and how they're acting in EP8.
2. Bern's attitude. Before the Tea Party, we see Bern as sardonic, but pretty disinterested party. She mocks the entire proceedings, but isn't emotionally invested in it herself. The Tea Party shows how deep her loathing runs and how horrible her vengeance on Beatrice really is. Not only that, but she emerges from that utterly victorious. EP8 never addresses that and thus that's another level in which catharsis isn't reached by the reader.
Allowing her to exit the stage the way she did in EP7 without the Tea Party makes her role in EP8 as a "heartless but ultimately inconsequential" villain make more sense. She's doing these things for her own reason (Featherinne asking her to) and enjoys being mean, but it really is just a story to her.
3. There is a difference between leaving Beatrice dissolved into snow in a beautiful burial ceremony and leaving her on a lonely stage with her guts ripped out. Even if you think Beatrice is no longer around to witness that level of cruelty--and Bern's words do leave that in doubt--we, the readers witnessed all of it and want it to be addressed. There is satisfaction in Battler punching Bern in the face, but it doesn't allow catharsis for this situation, because that's not his motivation for doing it.
It's like watching a movie where the villain stabs a child in the heart and then escapes from the police, only to be hit by a car several weeks later in a completely unrelated incident. We want to see people punished for the crimes they commit, not just punished in general.
|2011-01-05, 16:33
|Link #244
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2003
|2011-01-05, 17:22
|Link #246
a.k.a. Akari_House
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Somewhere near Seattle
Age: 48
Spoiler for The truth of Bern's broken red text in ep. 7 revealed...:
|2011-01-06, 06:56
|Link #247
Komrades of Kitamura Kou
Join Date: Jul 2004
Age: 33
Yeah but I think I'd rather not make that section of the summary more confusing considering the dynamic of their conversation on the rooftop, so since people likely figured it out already in Ep7 I think I'll leave it out.
Also for everyone else I'm taking a breather today from summarizing, since this has been the quickest pace of work I've done since episode 5 and yeah it really is rather mentally taxing. I'll be back to it tomorrow since I get off classes early. Hope you guys understand.
|2011-01-06, 07:55
|Link #248
|2011-01-06, 09:53
|Link #249
a.k.a. Akari_House
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Somewhere near Seattle
Age: 48
|2011-01-06, 13:54
|Link #251
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2003
|2011-01-06, 14:38
|Link #253
Join Date: May 2009
The funniest part of all of this is that the "Battler is the ultimate narcissist and every character is just an aspect of his own ego" is now vaguely supportable by textual evidence. If you can accept nothing else, embrace the joke theory.
|2011-01-07, 05:20
|Link #260
a.k.a. Akari_House
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Somewhere near Seattle
Age: 48
Finished. Has anyone posted the "underwater" scroll (and/or translation) from the scene with Beato and Battler in the boat? I thought I saw it somewhere but heck if I can find it lately.
I think I played the larger chunk of it all day today. I'm pretty happy with it overall and am looking forward to playing Tsubasa later. I'm not sure I'm satisfied with the mystery elements as-is (yeah, still want that peek into the cat-box or need to work it out more), but the conclusion still works for me and certainly was satisfying from the fantasy angle at least from my perspective. It's been a heck of a ride.
Spoiler for random quotes I noted today:
|Thread Tools


text:
A Novel
Vermilion Drift
A Novel
Some nights, Corcoran O'Connor dreams his father's death.
William Kent Krueger's gripping tale of suspense begins with a recurring nightmare, a gun, and a wound in the earth so deep and horrific that it has a name: Vermilion Drift.
When the Department of Energy puts an underground iron mine on its short list of potential sites for storage of nuclear waste, a barrage of protest erupts in Tamarack County, Minnesota, and Cork is hired as a security consultant.
Deep in the mine during his first day on the job, Cork stumbles across a secret room that contains the remains of six murder victims. Five appear to be nearly half a century old—connected to what the media once dubbed "The Vanishings," a series of unsolved disappearances in the summer of 1964, when Cork's father was sheriff in Tamarack County. But the sixth has been dead less than a week. What's worse, two of the bodies—including the most recent victim—were killed using Cork's own gun, one handed down to him from his father.
As Cork searches for answers, he must dig into his own past and that of his father, a well-respected man who harbored a ghastly truth. Time is running out, however. New threats surface, and unless Cork can unravel the tangled thread of clues quickly, more death is sure to come.
Vermilion Drift is a powerful novel, filled with all the mystery and suspense for which Krueger has won so many awards. A poignant portrayal of the complexities of family life, it's also a sobering reminder that even those closest to our hearts can house the darkest—and deadliest—of secrets.
- Atria Books |
- 320 pages |
- September 2010
Browse Related Books
Reading Group Guide
On the Iron Range in northern Minnesota, private investigator Cork O'Connor has his hands full protecting a client's mining company from protesters angry at its plan to store nuclear waste. But then a local socialite disappears and a secret mine tunnel unearths a collection of bodies that have been dead for decades, and things get more complicated. Suddenly O'Connor finds himself involved in a murder investigation that stretches back to a previous generation, which leads to surprising discoveries about his own family history.
Questions and Topics for Discussion
1. The prologue begins with O'Connor's dream of pushing his father to his death. Why did the author begin the story this way? What did this recurring dream foreshadow in the story?
2. see more


text: Red Rooster Jar Item #: 120768 $24.99 $7.97 Qty: Sorry, this item is currently unavailable online. Ship to Home Complete your country kitchen motif with this tall Red Rooster Jar! It might even grab more attention than whatever goodies you keep inside! It makes a great gift too! Jar measures 8L x 4.25W x 18H in. Crafted of ceramic Features red color and distressed paint details Red rooster design Top removes to allow for storage For decorative use only Sorry, this item is currently unavailable online.


text:
Samsung Blurring the Lines In Its Reach For Cool
If Samsung Electronics Co. is looking for edgy, it's found the right guy.
In the Korean technology company's latest ad, uploaded to YouTube earlier this week, singer Robin Thicke uses Samsung's Galaxy Note 3 device to rope three women into his next music video shoot.
It's Samsung's boldest move in its recent advertising push, which in the past few weeks has included a music video cameo alongside pop starlet Demi Lovato and ads starring Miami Heat star Lebron James and a whole bunch of global soccer stars.


text:
Yale Starts Slow, Finishes Strong Against Highlanders
Bridget Hearst and Erica Reetz combined for 25 kills and Kelly Ozurovich added a season-high 27 digs to lead the Yale women's volleyball team to a 3-0 (25-18, 25-16, 25-21) win over the New Jersey Institute of Technology on Friday afternoon in Brooklyn, N.Y., on day one of the Blackbird Invitational. With the victory, Yale improved to 4-0 on the season.
Despite the sweep, the Bulldogs fell behind 12-11 in the first set, but finished off NJIT with a 13-7 spurt. Yale used similar runs in the last two sets to take the match.
"We seemed to start a little slow, but we showed some toughness and battled back," Yale head coach Erin Appleman said.
The Bulldogs scored 10 of the last 15 points of set two. Hearst, who had four kills during the 10-point burst, finished off the second set off a set from Kendall Polan, who had 42 assists in the match.
In the third set, the Bulldogs jumped out to a 17-7 lead. The Highlanders pulled to within 24-21 before Taylor Cramm finished off the match with a kill.
Janet Snell notched a team-best nine kills for NJIT, which fell to 1-6 on the year.
Ozurovich continued her strong defensive play with a match-best amount of digs. Appleman said she continues to be impressed with the senior's play.
"Kelly played great today," Appleman said. "She reads the hitters very well."
The Bulldogs continue play tomorrow with two matches at the Blackbird Invitational. Yale faces Georgetown at 12:30 p.m. and wraps up the weekend against host Long Island University at 5:30 p.m.


text:
Hello all:
I've recently been placed in charge of adjusting the following site:
As you all can see, the previous developer built the site using a customized Wordpress script...and did a fine enough job.
However, I'm interested in putting Javascript on the top of the page (where the photo of Michelle Rodriguez is) so that the images alternate and change between our various cover stories.
Can anyone walk me through the steps on how to install Javascript in Wordpress? Thanks in advance!


text:
Tenure Committee Duties
Makeup of Tenure Committee
According to North Idaho College Policy # 3.02.09, "Tenure Committee Members and alternates of the tenure committee shall be elected by the Executive Committee of the Faculty Assembly from among the tenured members of the faculty. The committee shall consist of five members and three alternates, designated in order. At least three members must be retained from the previous year. It is recommended that voting members be selected from the previous year's alternates."
September 1
Vice President for Instruction or designee, and the Tenure Committee will convene a required meeting for all first-year probationary faculty members, with the purpose of explaining the policies and procedures governing faculty evaluation, tenure, remediation, suspension, termination and faculty appeals.
Tenure Committee will notify each faculty member eligible for tenure application, and invite each to review the contents of his or her permanent personnel file located in the Office of Human Resources.
Tenure Committee will invite new probationary faculty members to nominate their FET members by October 1.
October 15
Tenure Committee will notify each new probationary faculty member of the make up of his or her FET and direct the teams to begin regular observations and conferences.
November 1
Tenure Committee will invite submission of written testimony from administrators, faculty, and students pertaining to probationary faculty members who have applied for initial tenure. This testimony must reach the Tenure Committee by December 15. All testimony must be dated and signed to be considered by the Tenure Committee.
Spring Semester (first day of classes)
Tenure Committee will inform the probationary faculty member and the division chair of the content of any significant statement(s) made against the candidate, regardless of whether the overall recommendations of the division chair are negative or positive.
March 1
The Tenure Committee will notify the probationary faculty member, the division chair, and the Vice President for Instruction in writing of its recommendation regarding tenure conferral. Specific written documentation will accompany a decision to explain a recommendation of denial of tenure.


text:
I ligated a fusion PCR Product (1750 bp) into the pET-Blue Acceptor Vector then transformed it into Nova Blue.
This step had to be repeated around 5 or 6 teams before i got one positive clone.
Then i extracted the plasmid from my positive clone with the Fermentas mini prep kit
then i transformed 1ng of the plasmid into the Tuner (DE3) pLacI cells
I used a positive control along to compare
my positive control gave the expected number of colonies
while my plasmid didn't lead to any colonies. Nothing
The thing is i have added IPTG to the plates, and i was advised not to.
But the positive control did grow on IPTG.
and the thing is the control has the 1000 bp cellulase gene
whereas the new plasmid has the 1000 bp cellulase and a 750bp CBM = 1750bp long gene
given that the CBM has no catalytic activity, its only a scaffold, i doubt it is toxic!
So is there any other explanation why my plasmid of interest wasn't transformed into the cells?
although the protocol is very easy one
and i have been using it for the past year, and it has NEVER ever before not worked
HELP, ideas? advices? please
Edited by Deezoo, 29 October 2009 - 04:15 AM.


text:
Objective: Complete the game using any character.
The Traitor
Objective: Defeat any boss by playing one of his own minions.
Deer Trainer
Objective: Navigate the Abandoned Mill without hitting any obstacles.
Maximum Firepower
Objective: Using a catapult, fling a knight with maximum power.
Animal Handler
Objective: Collect all the animal orbs.
Melee is Best
Objective: Defeat any boss without using magic.
Treasure Hunter
Objective: Find and dig up 10 buried items.
Objective: In a 4 player game, resuscitate each of your fallen comrades at least once.
Social Networker
Objective: Reach 20 hits in a single Volleyball rally.
Kay Eye Ess Ess
Objective: Collect all 4 Princesses' kisses in a multiplayer game.
Conscientious Objector
Objective: Complete the Home Castle through the Barbarian Boss areas without attacking any foes.
Arena Master
Objective: Win 40 Ranked Arena matches
You Are Insane
Objective: Complete Insane mode and become the ultimate Castle Crasher.