text:
Every few months, the Internet erupts in outrage about some new threat to our privacy.
Remember when Mark Zuckerberg made some offhand remarks about the age of privacy being over? Or when Facebook introduced Beacon, which took info about your shopping habits and shared it with advertisers?
Or how about when Google CEO (at the time) Eric Schmidt talked about how you could "just move" if you didn't like your home being filmed for Google StreetView? (He was joking, maybe.) Or when Google Buzz did whatever it did with your Gmail info? Remember that one?
Probably not.
Each time this happens, bloggers and privacy zealots scream and yell and pull their hair out. In some cases, the companies are forced to apologize and cancel the offending feature. Sometimes, a few politicians grandstand so they can look like they're solving real problems and maybe the government gets involved and forces the companies to change a little bit.
But these flaps had exactly zero effect on Facebook's and Google's business. No effect. None. Nada. User growth, engagement, revenue -- all kept going up without a blip.
Normal people don't care.
Now, the cranks and bloggers are up in arms about Path, which was apparently uploading users' iPhone address books to its servers. It provided a great excuse for some very angry people to vent their frustration about completely unrelated topics. (Mat Honan at Gizmodo has a light-hearted summary with links if you haven't been following along but suddenly crave the bitter taste of bile.)
Turns out a bunch of other iPhone apps do it too. Cue the outrage against Apple! (Wait a day or two, it's coming. Update: Between the time I started and finished this post, it came.)
This whole Path thing follows the non-flap a couple weeks ago when Google changed its privacy policies, or rather formalized and consolidated a bunch of policies that were already in place. Microsoft in particular saw a great opportunity to cast aspersions on its rival and took out full-page newspaper ads talking about how its products would always respect your privacy because Microsoft doesn't make its money from advertising, or something.
It's true that some tech companies are often kind of sneaky, taking your personal information without really getting your permission and using it in ways that you might not anticipate. Some even lie about it. Sneaky.
But the level of outrage far outweighs the worst possible consequences.
Nobody ever seems to think through, realistically, what could actually happen with this supposedly valuable and sacred personal information that companies are collecting.
So let's do a thought experiment here.
Say you have a friend who uses Path. Path just uploaded his entire address book. It wasn't encrypted in transit, which means that some bad guy could have intercepted it. (Let's use our very active imaginations to imagine that there are bad guys like this, who sniff wires all day looking for address book information rather than, say, bank account numbers.)
So what are they going to do with that info?
"Well, come on," you sputter. "Now they know where I live!"
Gosh. If you own a house in most places in the U.S., anybody can go down to the county records office and not only find out where you live, but also how much you paid for your house and how much you sold it for 10 years later. It's a matter of public record.
Guess who else knows where you live:
- Any company who employed you while you live where you live now.
- Your bank -- who also knows how much money you spent last month and has a pretty good idea where you spent it.
- Your credit card company -- who also knows what you bought and how much you paid.
- Every magazine you've ever subscribed to, and every catalog and junk mail purveyor they've sold your address to.
- The IRS, DMV, and any other government agency you're forced to interact with.
- Your doctor, lawyer, accountant, dentist, plumber, electrician, and any other professional with whom you have a business relationship.
- Your mom, who's about to pay you a surprise visit and stay for a whole month.
How do you know that these people are all storing your address on a secure server that's locked in a room somewhere? You don't! You have no idea! Your mom might write your address on every Christmas card she sends. Some nutjob at the DMV may be staring at your photo and wondering if he can drive by your house right now. Your dentist just reported you to a collection agency for non-payment of bills.
Unless you've taken extreme measures, your address is pretty close to public information already.
"But these are criminals! They're going to, I don't know, stand outside my home and wait for me to come out and hit me on the head and take all my money."
Actually, the bad guys don't need to go to the trouble of stealing your personal information to mug you. In fact, it's more trouble than it's worth. Much easier to bash somebody in the face and steal their iPhone.
"OK, yeah, fine, but what about stalkers? This could help stalkers!"
If your stalker's somebody you used to know -- an ex-boyfriend, say -- they have lots of other ways of getting that information. Like asking a mutual friend. Or hiring a private investigator, who can probably find you in a few minutes by doing a skip trace.
If you're worried about complete strangers stalking you, you're either famous or criminal -- in which case it's time to get some security -- or hopelessly neurotic.
"Well, that's not all they have. They've also got my phone number!"
So what are they going to do, prank call you? You've got caller ID, right? Don't answer calls from numbers you don't know. Let them leave a voice mail. Just like you do with your mom.
"And, um, my email address."
So you'll get a few more unwanted messages per day. Keep that spam filter on.
"What about dissidents living under oppressive governments?"
Yeah, OK. Got me there. The secret police may find it slightly easier to track down somebody who uses Foursquare to check into a protest than an organization that meets only in secret cells and never speaks its name out loud. Such are the risks of operating in public while living under an oppressive regime. (This is no joking matter and I'm not making light of it. Just pointing out how ridiculous it is to blame a smartphone app for the actions of terrifying secret police forces that enjoy almost unlimited power and have monitoring tools you can't even imagine.)
There is a moral point here that some privacy activists will be quick to make. It doesn't matter what they do with it -- any organization that takes my information without my permission is wrong. The ends never justify the means.
Absolutely spot-on. You are shining beacons of righteousness. Thank you for existing.
But like I said at the beginning of this, normal people don't care.
And -- shocking confession -- I don't care either. Sorry. I just don't. These online "privacy" snafus are going to cause me to lose exactly zero sleep. I'm much more worried about my heating bill or all the movies they watch in my daughter's kindergarten class.
Let's look at how Path is doing in a few months, shall we? I am willing to bet that this will have absolutely no effect on the company's business at all.
But it was great for pageviews.
One more thing: When the press focuses on minor privacy flaps like this, it decreases the impact of stories that actually DO involve gross abuses of power, like when music companies use the federal government to shut down a music site for 9 months without due process of law, and then go to Congress and ask for laws that give them even more power. (You think that's over? Think again.)
And yet one more thing: There's a matter of degree here, and anybody who says there isn't is being obtuse and ridiculous.
Don't confuse privacy with security. Yes, a lot of security threats are overblown by consultants and antivirus firms. But it's important that online banking and e-commerce sites encrypt data sent back and forth during transactions -- theft of that data can lead to direct financial losses (if not for the individual, for the bank who has to cover the losses).
It's important that companies don't take laptops with unencrypted Social Security numbers and leave them in a car where they can get stolen. (Although even in this case, the worst likely outcome is identity theft. And while identity theft is a colossal and expensive pain to resolve -- I've had it happen, with a stolen checkbook used to create a fake ID card -- it's not the end of the world.)
It's important that the law protect my medical records from companies who might use them against me, like potential employers or health insurance companies.
That's not this. This is about companies getting ahold of and keeping relatively minor personal information like your friends' addresses and cell phone numbers, or your browsing history as you travel the Web.
Yawn. Wake me up when it's over.


text:
Thursday, January 31, 2013
skippy's thursday night music club
blogroll amnesty day! les miserables version!
it's coming this weekend! join us!
another late thursday
suing over grades
more americans have been killed in gun deaths than by terrorists
and rip the last surviving andrews sister, patty andrews
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
skippy's wednesday night music club
Labels: gay/lesbian, music, skippy's music club, youtube
jim nabors, the hawaii resident well known for his starring role in the 1960s television sitcom "gomer pyle, usmc," married his longtime male partner early this month, he told hawaii news now tuesday. nabors, 82, said he married his companion of 38 years, stan cadwallader, who's 64, in seattle on jan. 15.- hawaii news now
Labels: gay/lesbian, hawaii, marriage, tv
blogroll amnesty day is coming!!
so if you want four arms, rest assured that blogroll amnesty day is happening this weekend!
if you put up a post celebrating b.a.d. and smaller blogs, be sure to email skippy with a link, and we'll celebrate you as well!
wednesday morning 3 am
why replacing state income tax with bigger sales tax is a bad idea
turn up the bass to scare birds away from planes
10 places to see before they're gone
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
skippy's tuesday night music club
just something curious i noticed
i don't care about mccready or her boyfriend. i'd never heard of her or him before i saw that article. i watched the video because i had seen the meyer talk and wanted to test my lie spotting skills. i think i did pretty well. i have more opinions, but i am curious what others think if they watch both videos. the meyer talk is worth watching regardless.
Going Full Circle from Economics to Sports and Back
Now, a decade later, Bloomberg Television and Radio are making a heavy pitch to be the broadcasters of the Brooklyn Nets.
Sports Bubble, anyone? Arsène Wegner may have had bad timing (not to mention a poor view of history and possibly talent), but when a financial network decides that investing in sports will not dilute its brand, the only reasonable answers are fungibility or bubble.
Maybe Atrios's "dog track" mantra is more accurate than anyone cares to admit.
drunk on a tuesday
rand paul blocks treaties that would help find tax cheats
creationist attacks 17-year-old for brainwashing our youth with science
corporate profits soar under obama
pinball is alive and well in (some parts of) new york city
Monday, January 28, 2013
skippy's monday night music club
permanent monday
the geometry of gun murder
how the food industry is enabling the
obesity epidemic
a gun kept in the home is 43 times more likely to kill than to be used in self-defense a household member
Sunday, January 27, 2013
skippy's sunday night music club
Labels: music, skippy's music club
environmental news stories sunday
carcinogen may have entered human food chain in horsemeat, claims labour. a potentially carcinogenic drug may have entered the human food chain through meat from horses slaughtered in the uk. shadow environment secretary mary creagh told the commons she had evidence that several horses slaughtered in the uk last year tested positive for phenylbutazone. - the guardian
greens hit out at milk contamination. the green party says new zealand should focus on true sustainability in farming rather than setting acceptable levels of chemical residues in milk and food. - new zealand herald
air trap: inversions can spell hell for many in the grand junction area of colorado. since jan. 18, air quality in low-lying areas of grand junction has been worse than denver's. the amount of fine particulates trapped above the valley are more concentrated here than in any other city in colorado - grand junction daily sentinel
tide of plastic devastates marine food chain. marine life in one of scotland's biggest estuaries has been found to be riddled with pollution caused by plastic despite attempts to cut down on the amount entering coastal waters. - edinburgh scotsman
global mercury treaty could make local fish safer. it didn't make many headlines at the time, but delegates from 140 nations earlier this month quietly signed the first-ever global treaty to reduce mercury emissions, a move that could help make Northland fish safer to eat. - duluth news tribune
oil and gas companies pour money into research universities. as many universities face state-funding declines, shell, bp and others have recently poured millions of dollars into colorado state university's research. but given the nation's current oil and gas frenzy, the energy money is raising questions about academic integrity. - high country news
ferocious winter storm set to explode in north atlantic: bombogenesis. some of the most powerful storms on earth form in the north atlantic ocean during wintertime. For the past few days, the meteorologists at the ocean prediction center (opc) in college park, md. been highlighting a treacherous storm event that is taking place in the open ocean, to the south of iceland. - climate central
can two dedicated congressmen make their colleagues care about climate? rep. henry waxman (d-calif.) and sen. sheldon whitehouse (d-ri) announced on thursday that they are forming a joint house-senate climate change task force. the effort will be "dedicated to focusing congressional and public attention on climate change and developing effective policy responses." - mother jones
gretchen bleiler on climate change: do sweat the small stuff. for snowboarder gretchen bleiler, being environmentally conscious is about doing the small things in her daily life. if everyone decided to drink out of reusable water bottles or chose to recycle, it could be enough to deter the long-term impacts of global warming, the olympic medalist said. - aspen daily news
dubious awards presented at davos. only a stone's throw from the davos world economic forum meeting, a group of non-governmental organisations presented the annual public eye awards this week to goldman sachs and royal dutch shell - inter press service
northeast organic farm association of new york discusses genetically modified organisms at conference. hansen has been working on getting the ge food bill, requiring manufacturers to label gmos through legislation for the last 27 years. he recently put the final touches on prop 37 and hopes it will pick up a sponsor in the california legislature this season - troy record
Labels: banksters, climate change, energy, environment, farms, fish, food, food safety, goldman sachs, ireland, mississippi, ocean, oil, olympics, pollution, scotland, weather
sunday afternoon
are you making these 4 credit card mistakes?
west point study on the 'violent right' finds 'dramtic increase' in attacks
Saturday, January 26, 2013
saturday night out
last year the rich got $17 trillion richer
dangerous cult similarities in the mormon church, the branch davidians and jonestown
michael dorn is developing a worf spin-off
Friday, January 25, 2013
friday night
it'stime to impeach george w. bushretroactively
gop women: "we like sex too!"
Thursday, January 24, 2013
Twelve the Hard Way (NSFW)
Don't let us get sickIt's not just that I'd give my eye teeth to have written "Accidentally Like a Martyr" or just the second verse and the descant of "Empty-Handed Heart," or my eyes and teeth for "Ourselves to Know" or the above-quoted "Don't Let Us Get Sick" or the greatest song about Elvis ever written, "Porcelain Monkey," (And those last three are all from the same album. Geez!)
Don't let us get old
Don't let us get stupid, all right?
Just make us be brave
Make us play nice
And let us be together tonight.
And it's not the funny stuff: the live-in-LA recording of "Werewolves of London" or "Bill Lee" or "Even a Dog Can Shake Hands" (which became the theme song for Action) and especially the song with the title they didn't print on the back of the CD, "My Shit's Fucked Up." Or that the best* thing Mitch Albom has ever written happens to be "Hit Me (The Hockey Song)." Or the great reference in season two of Californication:
Warren Zevon could sit down and talk twelve-tone theory with, uh, Stravinsky. Half the cockbags who come through here barely play their fuckin' instruments.Today would have been his 66th. So let's take this clip, which I remember (or maybe misremember) as the final episode ever of a short-lived television talk show featuring a possibly-recognizable Nice Jewish Boy from New Jersey:
"Requiescat in pace, that's all she wrote"
*Some might say "only good," but we are above such calumny.
thursday's child
the nra-backed dems who oppose obama's gun safety plan
what is kniwn - and not known - about your flu medicine
are young evangelicals sick of the culture war?
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
skippy's wednesday night music club
Labels: food, music, skippy's music club, youtube
good for him
waiter praised ror refusing to serve family who insults child with down syndrome - consumerist
Labels: good works, restaurants, workers
one casualty in the wall street fiasco
less than 24 hours after his appearance on pbs' frontline, where he struggled to explain why his office had brought not one single indictment against a high-level wall street executive related to the 2008 financial crisis, assistant attorney general lanny breuer has reportedly decided to step down.- consumerist
Labels: banksters, liars, pbs, wall street
amazing thing to see: dolphin rescued by diver
wednesday morning
notre dame hired a private investigator for the manti te'o imaginary girlfriend case -- but not the lizzy seeberg rape
20% of americans don't believe in god -- so why is congress so religious??
house gop leader blames gun violence on welfare moms
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
cold shower tuesdays
wal-mart plans to hire any veteran that wants a job
outrage without action is just whining
kitty cat outperforms investment brokers picking stocks
Monday, January 21, 2013
That Time of Year Again
This year, it's because cities in Virginia, including Harrisonburg City, have their students in school today—a Federal holiday—but made damned certain the kids were out on Friday for [Robert E.]Lee-[Stonewall]Jackson Day.
If Barack Obama deserves to reign in Hell over one thing alone, it is because he took locally-popular Democrats like Kathleen "I'm incompetent, so I will overrule the scientists" Sibelius and Janet Napolitano and moved them to DC, weakening the strength of his own Party and (worse) having those Governors replaced by people who make life worse for his constituents in Sam Brownback and Jan Brewer.
Jan Brewer probably isn't as bad as Evan Meacham, but that's the best anyone has said. Bob McDonnell at least proclaimed today Martin Luther King, Jr., Day,* even if the kids don't get it off, the way they do for real heroes of his state.
*It would be petty of me to note that McDonnell's proclamation conspicuously leaves the "Dr." off the front of Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr. I guess a Ph.D. from Boston University isn't worth all that much.
cross-posted from AngryBear
abraham, martin and john
remembering dr. king's fight for the right to vote
50 police officers in britain arrested in child porn raids
rape at burning man
Sunday, January 20, 2013
skippy's sunday night music club
sunday afternoon in the park
teen buys illegal gun, accidentally shoots off penis
corporations spread the flu
research shows men and women can't be friends
and it's a sad day for baseball; rip earl weaver and stan 'the man' musial
Saturday, January 19, 2013
skippy's saturday night music club
saturday night on saturn
man upset about his kid's school pledge of allegience, threatens "i have spilled bloood before"
the hoax about 'entitlement reform'
and why not go to a national park on martin luther king day? it's free!
Friday, January 18, 2013
skippy's friday night music club
friday let me down
anti-gay activist lawyer convicted of child pornography
american express to cut 5,400 jobs
artist takes every drug known to man, draws self-portrait while on each one
and rest in peace, 'whacgu talkin' 'bout, willis?' dad conrad bain, and pauline phillips, dear abby
Thursday, January 17, 2013
skippy's thursday night music club
since lance armstrong is coming clean
from 1996 to 2004, the u.s. postal service paid out $40 million in federal funds to sponsor the team. team management, which hired and paid the riders, promised in its contracts not to tolerate doping. the major fraud investigations division of the postal service's office of inspector general is trying to determine if armstrong and others defrauded the government by violating that no-doping clause, a federal prosecutor wrote in a filing last year. - business week
Labels: cheating, lance armstrong, liars, post office
thursday nite goddess
obama creates a new national park
conspiracy theorists who believe that the sandy hook victims were actors hired by the government
notre dame linebacker manti te'o does not have a dead girlfriend
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
wednesday mayday
minnesota union leader says tax the rich and raise welfare grants
the nra had a less-than-1% rate of return for investors in the last election
we all know that comment trolls suck, but now there's scientific proof!
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
don't stiff the staff
"...the staffers are owed a mere $5,000, and that bachmann has more than $2 million in her campaign account, but has refused to pay unless the staffers sign the (nondisclosure) agreement." - daily kosbut, perhaps, one of the staff was....well, you know...
"brett held her captive day after day, speech after speech, etc. in the back of the bus during the 99-county tour. by the end, she was broken emotionally, mentally, and slept in her private cabin in the back of the bus. i do not know if she has ever recovered," waldron said - buzzfeed
skippy's tuesday night music club
Labels: california, music, skippy's music club, weather, youtube
say hello
it's a waste
a new report released by a british engineering society reveals that worldwide, billions of tons of food are squandered each year because of poor agriculture practices, which include inefficient harvesting and inadequate infrastructure and storage—and it's depleting earth's water supply - mother jones
Labels: consumerism, food, water
bobby jindal selling out the poor
louisiana governor bobby jindal (r) recently rolled out a plan to replace his state's personal income and corporate taxes with an increased sales tax. such a move would shift taxes from the rich to the poor, who are disproportionately hit by the sales tax.
according to an analysis by the institute on taxation and economic policy, jindal's plan will raise taxes on the bottom 80 percent of louisianians, while cutting them for the richest 1 percent: - think progress
Labels: 1 percent, governor, jindal, louisiana, two americas
church on tuesday
how the clinton surplus became a $6 trillion deficit
science is partisan
when do low-income americans get their white house meeting?
Monday, January 14, 2013
skippy's monday night music club
Labels: music, santa barbara, skippy's music club, youtube
blast from the past
when temperatures drop
according to the national weather service, many san fernando and san gabriel valley areas recorded temperatures in the low 30s -- and some in the high 20s -- overnight. lancaster and palmdale recorded 16-degree lows. even coastal areas such as long beach had lows in the 30s.
...the cold snap has been a particular concern for citrus farmers across the state, who have been up all night since thursday. there are $1 billion in oranges, lemons, tangerines and grapefruit still on trees in california, the nation's largest producer of fresh citrus. - latte times
Labels: california, food, weather
tweet of the day
Labels: hagel, obama, tweet of the day, twitter
forget area 51
right-wing republicans have somehow come to believe that agenda 21 contains a secret, nefarious plot to destroy american life and society as we know it, birthing a cottage industry devoted to spreading misinformation about the un proposal. the most recent evidence of this movement's reach is a proposal by two indiana lawmakers to ban the implementation of any agenda 21-inspired initiatives in the state. - think progress
Labels: gop, mental health
Bridging a Degree of Separation: The Arts in Life
So I want to talk for a moment about Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time. No, really. It is very strange, but I have been having conversations about A Wrinkle in Time all year long with colleagues and friends. I've even gone back and reread the book. I was motivated partly by all the attention it received this year, the fiftieth anniversary of its publication. I learned only in January of this year, reading an item in the New York Times Sunday Book Review, that L'Engle's heroine, Meg Murry, is something like the patron saint of "bookish girls" everywhere; as Anne Lamott remarked in November of this year, "A Wrinkle in Time saved me because it so captured the grief and sense of isolation I felt as a child." And I realized that when I read it in 1972, I completely missed how anomalous it was that a speculative sci-fi young-adult novel would have as its protagonist an awkward girl who is such a science geek she can recite a good chunk of the periodic table of the elements by memory. I missed that because I identified with Meg Murry; I didn't get the memo that boys weren't supposed to identify with female protagonists, and I shared Meg's sense of social anxiety and science geekdom and general outsiderness just as, a few years earlier, I had shared in Alice's sense of bewilderment and wonder and occasional aggravation at the worlds of Wonderland and the Looking-Glass.
Check out the whole thing.
on a monday
do our brains work better out of doors away from technology?
first antibiotic-resistant gonorrhea detected in north america
christopher tolkein says peter jackson 'eviscerated' his father's work
Sunday, January 13, 2013
skippy's sunday night music club
sunday afternoons
australia's extreme heat is the canary in the global warming coal mine
new law forces health insurance companies to use plain language to explain their policies
almost 100 years ago, the infamous armory show in new york opened -- exposing america to the modern art of duchamp and the dadaists
Saturday, January 12, 2013
saturday night is the loneliest night of the week
"i'm not racist, but..." yes, you are
the sharp, sudden decline of america's middle class
it's a giant rubber ducky in sydney harbor!
Friday, January 11, 2013
skippy's friday night music club
Labels: music, skippy's music club, youtube
on the matter of the debt trilemma
friday i'm in love
arizona's anti-immigration bill is losing the state millions
it pays for states to raise the minimum wage
workers digging subway tunnels have discovered emporer hadrian's poetry and arts amphitheatre under rome
Thursday, January 10, 2013
skippy's thursday night music club
kelly was a lifelong supporter of the democratic party which occasionally created difficulty for him as his period of greatest prominence coincided with the mccarthy era in the u.s. in 1947, he was part of the cfor the first amendment, the hollywood delegation which flew to washington to protest at the first official hearings by the house committee on un-aactivities. his first wife, betsy blair, was suspected of being a communist sympathizer and when mgm, who had offered blair a part in marty (1955), were considering withdrawing her under pressure from the american legion, kelly successfully threatened mgm with a pullout from it's always fair weather unless his wife was restored to the part. - wiki
Labels: hollywood, music, skippy's music club, youtube
thursday night blues
the republicans are losing the debt ceiling fight
silencing the science on gun safety
number of veterans who die waiting for benefits skyrockets
hooray! it's the manhatten museum of mathematics!
Wednesday, January 09, 2013
skippy's wednesday night music club
wednesday lover
amidst record drilling, gas prices hit record highs in 2012
the tea party is in its death throes
which professions have the most psychopaths?
Tuesday, January 08, 2013
happy birthday elvis
radio show host alex jones
....jones said the point of the petition was to bring attention to the fact that united states has a bunch of foreigners bragging about taking away the guns of americans while the gov't amasses more weapons for themselves. he said that the second amendment isn't for "duck-hunting," it's to protect us from "tyrannical government." he raised his voice to declare to morgan, "1776 will commence again if you try to take our firearms!" - mediatehe now is claiming that he is marked for assassination....
"if you don't know that bloomberg is total mafia, you're on another planet," jones said. "they're thugs. i know what they are."
"if something happens to us, or we're killed by crackheads, it was the nypd or mafia they hired," jones added. - mediate
piers morgan has an afterthought -
"he was the best advertisement for gun control you could wish for," morgan told politico
Labels: cnn, gop, mental health, mental illness, tea baggers
get out the crayola weather crayons
as a record-breaking heatwave hovers over many regions and territories (which are in their summer months now), the continent's bureau of meteorology has added two new colors to the weather map to reflect the rising mercury. the map currently shows the weather in orange tones at the top, which indicate temperatures 40 to 48 degrees celsius. but forecasts are predicting off-the-charts weather. as a result, pink and purple will now cover temperatures over 50 degrees celsius—should it climb that high. - yahoo
Labels: aussies, australia, climate change, global warming, weather
c u on tuesday
why the super-rich feel victimized by obama
why means-testing is just plain mean
10 things you may not know about james bond
Monday, January 07, 2013
i've been busy
god speed huell howser
huell howser--a california broadcasting legend for his various shows that have appeared on public broadcasting over the past couple of decades--has died, according to sources who spoke to the weekly on condition of anonymity. - ocweekly
Labels: california, passings, teevee
new moon on monday
6 ways to juice up the labor movement
jews who work for a free palestine
the royal mail (britain's postal service) is releasing a limited edition of doctor who stamps featuring all eleven doctors (and a few monsters, too)!
Sunday, January 06, 2013
skippy's sunday night music club
Labels: music, skippy's music club, youtube
the slow killing of the post office
Labels: bloggers, post office
no wonder the gop hates chuck hagel
"each one of us who has a responsibility of helping lead this country needs to reflect on what we think is in the interests of our country, not the interest of our party or our president."
"i took an oath of office to the constitution, i didn't take an oath of office to my party or my president."
"our relationship with israel is special and historic,... but it need not and cannot be at the expense of our arab and muslim relationships."
re: bush's troop increase in iraq - "the most dangerous foreign policy blunder in this country since vietnam, if it's carried out
describing the bush administration - "the lowest in capacity, in capability, in policy, in consensus—almost every area" of any presidency in the last forty years."
"people say we're not fighting for oil. of course we are. they talk about america's national interest. what the hell do you think they're talking about? we're not there for figs."
environmental news stories sunday
as biofuel demand grows, so do guatemala's hunger pangs. with its corn-based diet and proximity to the united states, central america has long been vulnerable to economic riptides related to the united states' corn policy. now that the united states is using 40 percent of its crop to make biofuel, it is not surprising that tortilla prices have doubled in guatemala, which imports nearly half of its corn - nytimes
fears for missing residents as fire fighting continues. police fear there may have been deaths in the fire-ravaged south-east of tasmania, with a number of people reported missing. since friday, more than 100 homes have been destroyed by a bushfire between forcett and the tasman peninsula, in the state's south-east - australia abc news
thousands flee out of control bushfires in australia. australia's savage bushfire season has arrived with cruel force this weekend, destroying scores of buildings and taking the life of at least one man who died as he tried to save his tasmania home from the flames - times of london
coal in the rich world: the mixed fortunes of a fuel. why is the world's most harmful fossil fuel being burned less in america and more in europe? coal-fired power stations provide two-fifths of the world's electricity, and there are ever more of them. if current trends continue, coal will vie with oil as the world's largest source of primary energy within five years. - economist
ohio's fracking panel is delayed. ohio officials are more than a year behind schedule in setting up a system to allow oil and gas " fracking" in state parks and forests - columbus dispatch
Labels: australia, china, climate change, earthquake, ecology, energy, environment, epa, food supply, fracking, global warming, hurricane, infrastructure, lakes, new jersey, oil spill, pollution, rivers, wildfires
sunday afternoon in the park
the four business gangs that run the u.s.
hannity's ratings fell by 50% after the election
david attenborough first to capture on film rare galapagos pink iguana
Saturday, January 05, 2013
Service Workers Will Never Be Paid for What They Can Produce
The authors don't intend this to mean that the shift from manufacturing to Services means that workers will never get paid their marginal product. But I think it does.
Those at the AEA—er, ASSA—meeting can ask them tomorrow: Jan 06, 2013 8:00 am, Hyatt, Manchester E.
(cross-posted, in slightly different form, at Angry Bear.
saturday night is alright for fighting
more guns, more mass shootings -- coincidence?
oh, frabjous day! callooh callay! it's off to jail for tom delya!
limbaugh mentions anal poisoning 13 times in 2 years
Friday, January 04, 2013
One Good Thing Apparently Came Out of that $3.9T Deficit-Increasing Tax Bill
Parity returns this year, though apparently rather too late for January. (Though parking is still subsidized to excess.)
It's something.
friday face
congress will only get worse from here
there has been an average of 18 gun deaths a day since newtown
amazon spider creates decoys of itself to fool predators
Thursday, January 03, 2013
thursday morning
how to keep organized for tax season
gopsters fighting science have blood on their hands
mark mckinnon, aide to gw bush and john mccain: "the gop is shrinking daily before our eyes
and rip "tennessee waltz" songstress patti page
my friend stole my sweetheart from me
rip patti page
Wednesday, January 02, 2013
skippy's wednesday night music club
currently you can still call me al
al jazeera on wednesday announced a deal to take over current tv, the low-rated cable channel that was founded by al gore, a former vice president, and his business partners seven years ago. al jazeera plans to shut current and start an english-language channel, which will be available in more than 40 million homes, with newscasts emanating from both new york and doha, qatar. - nytimeslet the gop freak out begin.
* updated * apparently, time warner doesn't like this deal and today dropped carrying al altogether.
Labels: gore, multi-millionaire media, teevee, tv
carl sagan was right
the milky way contains at least 100 billion planets, or enough to have one for each of its stars, and many of them are likely to be capable of supporting conditions favorable to life, according to a new estimate from scientists at the california institute of technology in pasadena, california (caltech). - talking points memo
first up in entitlement reform: reform the words "entitlement reform"
social security and medicare, as skippy understood it, were programs that one paid into one's entire working life, and therefore one had earned the right to participate in those programs upon retirement.
therefore, social security is no more an "entitlement" than a paycheck; who would insist that someone who performed work for a contractually-agreed-upon salary was "entitled"? try telling the 1% that their dividends on their investments are "entitlements" and see how far you get.
to use the word "entitlement" to describe something which is expected, due or warranted by convention or legal means dilutes the entire meaning of the word. everything in life that we are not legally enjoined from is an entitlement: all that we need is the air that we are entitled to breath and to love you.
skippy even looked up the word "entitlement" in the dictionary back then, and found the definition to include the concept of inheritance, but nothing about earnings. but this was 7 to 8 years ago.
now if you look up that word, somehow the conventional wisdom has included social security and medicare:
and this word-dance is a thing of beauty. now, who wouldn't want to "reform" (read: cut) "entitlements"? who needs entitlements, anyway? who do those senior middle class retirees think they are, being entitled to money from the government? no, this re-defining of the english language is a move worthy of goebbels, or at least humpty dumpty.
we ourselves wanted to call ss and medicare something more along the lines of "retirement benefits," because, after all, that is more descriptive and less inflammatory. but we admit, that's a bit of a mouthful compared to the succinct and visceral "entitlements."
so we are happy to jump on board the "earned benefits" wagon:
our grandparents, parents and now you and i pay into these programs with every check we receive. pull out your paystub and look. you will see deductions for fica and for medicare. why are these programs being included in conversations surrounding the "fiscal cliff"?
for decades now, right-wing think tanks like the heritage foundation have been telling us we must "replace the culture of entitlements with one of mutual responsibility." but workers have always been responsible. the only irresponsibility here belongs to congress, who started borrowing from our fund beginning in the reagan years…
politicians should be protecting – not sacrificing – these programs that employees have paid into, all these decades.
it is up to all of us as american workers to ensure these programs will be there when we need them. this begins with changing the conversation – and in particular, the wording. social security and medicare are not entitlements but earned benefits. our politicians must understand we will not give up on what is rightfully ours.
-- nh labor news
after all, "entitlements" best describe what the wealthy and their political advocates believe is due them; the "entitlement" to inherit as much money as possible and to make off with as big a slice of america's economic pie as possible. to argue that you deserve to be gluttonously wealthy because your mommy or daddy made a fortune selling short in the stock market, now that's an "entitlement."
but for 99 percent of the citizens in the united states, we work for our retirement income. we earn the benefits of social security; we don't inherit them.
the "ponzi scheme" took place on wall street, not main street.
-- mark karlin, editor of buzzflash
the oligarchy loves the word entitlement because it has largely negative connotations. while one use of the word is of something that is rightly due to a person, that the person is thus entitled to, more often the word is used in the context of people who 'have a sense of entitlement', by which we mean that they feel that the world owes them something that they have not earned and that they are living off the work of others. it is precisely this kind of thinking that lay behind mitt romney's infamous pre-election 47% comments and his and bill o'reilly's equally infamous post-election comments that the people who voted to re-elect president obama did so because he gave them 'gifts' and promised them even more. they see people who get these benefits as moochers.
but as sailor1031 pointed out, social security and medicare are things that people have contributed to all their working lives as part of the social compact that when they can no longer work, it will be there so that they can live the twilight of their lives in dignity. while one can debate the actuarial issues of whether they get more less than they put in, there is no question that it is largely a debt that society is repaying to its elderly, not an act of charity.
i think a much better term than 'entitlements' would be 'earned benefits' and that is what i will use in the future unless someone comes up with something even better.
-- mano singham, free thought blogs
-- mike lofgren, truthout
and, we hope, this will be your resolution as well.
wednesday like a river
conservatives freak out, call for boehner to be fired, and blame obama
doctors call for ban on handguns
wis. state senator: kwanza is a fake holoday
Tuesday, January 01, 2013
all is quiet on new year's day
the geography of gun deaths
cannabis makes pain more bearable
the guys who stole charlie chaplin's corpse
january 1, 2013
Labels: music, new year, skippy's music club, youtube

subset: commoncrawl


text:
10 results have been found.
99. WEEE Directive
Class group Communication technique
Class Accessories for door communication
Function Controlling
Installation technique Bus system
Vimar reserves the right to change at any time and without notice the characteristics of the products reported.Installation should be carried out by qualified staff in compliance with the current regulations regarding the installation of electrical equipment in the country where the products are installed.For the terms of use of the information on the product info sheet see conditions of use.
Your portfolio is empty.Click on the icon in the product list to add a product.
This is not a purchase proposal.Entri con il suo profilo per salvare il portfolio creato.


text:
Article 310 provides the general requirements for conductors, except those that are an integral part of equipment or are part of flexible cords or fixture wires. The most prominent feature of Art. 310 is its collection of ampacity tables. Why are there so many? Why does Table 310.15(B)(17) list the ampacity of 6 THHN as 105A, yet Table 310.15(B)(16) lists the same conductor as having an ampacity of only 75A?
The answers to such questions are in the definition of ampacity [Art. 100], specifically "conditions of use." These tables set a maximum current value at which the conductor insulation shouldn't prematurely fail during normal use, under the conditions described in the tables.
How well conductor insulation can dissipate the heat from current flow depends on several factors; read the table titles to see what these are. Designations such as THHN, THHW, and RHH are insulation types, each of which can withstand only so much heat before failing. Thus, ampacity varies by insulation type.
Article 310 underwent extensive changes with the 2011 revision process. What may be most noticeable are the many changes to section numbering. Other changes include making sizing requirements clearer and improving enforceability.
The 2011 revision adds the "uses permitted" section in 310.10. Section 310.10(H) now includes information previously contained in 310.4 regarding the installation of conductors in parallel. While 310.4 previously stated that paralleling of conductors was allowed for sizes 1/0 AWG and larger, the new wording in 310.10(H) is much more restrictive. The new language now states specifically that conductors for each phase, polarity, neutral, or grounded circuit are permitted to be connected in parallel only in sizes 1/0 and larger.
Another change to this section deals with equipment bonding jumpers. Many times, such as with a transformer secondary, an equipment bonding jumper (not an equipment grounding conductor) is installed alongside ungrounded and grounded conductors in parallel.
Although it seems obvious that these bonding jumpers don't need to meet the minimum size requirements of 310.10(H) (1/0 AWG or larger), the NEC really didn't address the issue. Now 310.10(H)(6) refers to 250.102 for conductor sizing, making this clearer.
Though still widely used by electricians and electrical engineers, the term "derating" has been mostly phased out over the last several NEC cycles. With the 2011 revision, this term is almost gone. The NEC now uses the term "ampacity adjustment" when referring to conductors that are bundled or installed so that there are more than three current-carrying conductors in the same raceway or cable. The Code uses the term "correction" when conductors are subjected to temperatures other than 86°F.
Conductors with insulation temperature ratings higher than the termination temperature rating can be used for conductor ampacity adjustment, correction, or both [110.14(C)]. This means you must base conductor ampacity on the conductor's insulation temperature rating listed in Table 310.15(B)(16), as adjusted for ambient temperature correction factors, conductor bundling adjustment factors, or both [310.15(B)].
The temperature correction and adjustment factors apply to the ampacity for the temperature rating of the conductor, provided the corrected and adjusted ampacity doesn't exceed the ampacity for the temperature rating of the termination per the provisions of 110.14(C). Put another way, this change clarifies that, after applying these adjustments and corrections, the resulting ampacity still can't exceed the temperature limitations of the equipment termination.
The temperature correction factors formerly found at the bottom of (then) Table 310.16 in the 2008 NEC were some of the least user-friendly in the NEC. The fact that they were buried beneath the ampacity table — and the fact that the table itself was broken up into copper, aluminum, Fahrenheit, and Celsius — certainly didn't help. The new replacement table provides a remarkably easier format, resulting in less confusion and making it more conducive to proper application.
An interesting addition to this table borrows from the Canadian Electrical Code — the allowance of smaller conductors when installed in an ambient temperature of less than 70°F. With this allowance, you can use up to 115% of the conductor's ampacity in certain conditions. That can result in a smaller conductor. While previous editions of the NEC recognized colder environments, it allowed only for an increase to 104% of the conductor's ampacity — a value that never really made the math worthwhile.
Previous Code editions used the term "nipple" to describe a raceway that's 24 in. long (or less). This resulted in NEC users debating about the physical characteristics of the raceways, such as whether or not the raceway could contain bends. This change eliminates those debates by replacing the term "nipple(s)" with "raceway(s)." Consequently, you no longer need to guess at the intent of this section. You simply measure the length and determine the appropriate rules.
Previous revisions used the term "bundled" to describe when ampacity adjustment is required. Because the NEC doesn't define this term, many people struggled in their attempts to determine when to apply the adjustment provisions of this section. That term has been replaced with "installed without maintaining spacing," which, oddly enough, is also undefined. But it may be an easier phrase to understand and apply.
New to the 2008 NEC was a rule requiring that all conductors installed in conduits on rooftops have their ampacities adjusted dramatically. The term "conduit," while not defined in Art. 100, doesn't include raceways such as EMT, ENT, and FMT. With the 2011 change, which now uses the term "circular raceways," conductors installed in these raceways will need to have their ampacities adjusted as well. Confused on conduit? Take a few minutes to look at the names of the Chapter 3 Articles, starting with Art. 342.
The ampacity of some conductors in Table 310.15(B)(16) (formerly 310.16) didn't match those found in the Canadian Electrical Code; therefore, they were changed. While no technical evidence was submitted showing insulation failure of the conductors, this proposal passed. The result was a change to the ampacities of:
- Copper conductors: 14 AWG, 12 AWG, 3 AWG, and 1 AWG, and 600kcmil, 1,500kcmil, and 2,000kcmil.
- Aluminum conductors: 12 AWG, 8 AWG, and 6 AWG, and 300kcmil, 700kcmil, and 800kcmil.
Temperature correction factors
When installing conductors in an ambient temperature other than 78°F to 86°F, you must correct the ampacities listed in Table 310.15(B)(16) by using the multipliers listed in Table 310.15(B)(2)(a), as shown in Fig. 1 (click here to see Fig. 1). When correcting conductor ampacity for elevated ambient temperature, use the correction factor [310.15(B)(2)(a)] for THHN/THWN conductors, based on the:
- 90°C rating of the conductor in a dry location.
- 75°C rating of the conductor in a wet location.
- Conductor ampacity listed in Table 310.15(B)(16) [110.14(C)].
When adjusting conductor ampacity, do so based on the temperature insulation rating of the conductor as listed in Table 310.15(B)(16), not the temperature rating of the terminal [110.14(C)].
Ampacity adjustment factors don't apply to conductors within Type AC or Type MC cable under the following conditions (Fig. 2) (click here to see Fig. 2):
- The cables don't have an outer jacket,
- Each cable has no more than three current-carrying conductors,
- The conductors are 12 AWG copper, and
- No more than 20 current-carrying conductors (ten 2-wire cables or six 3-wire cables) are installed without maintaining spacing for a continuous length more than 24 in.
Ampacity adjustment of 60% applies to conductors within Type AC or Type MC cable without an overall outer jacket, if:
- The cable contains more than 20 conductors.
- The conductors are stacked or bundled longer than 24 in. without spacing being maintained.
Ampacity adjustment of conductors installed in circular raceways exposed to direct sunlight on or above rooftops requires adding the ambient temperature adjustment in Table 310.15(B)(3)(c) to the outdoor ambient temperature. The value you get is the applicable ambient temperature to be used for ampacity correction factors by applying Table 310.15(B)(2)(a) or Table 310.15(B)(2)(b). Note that the temperature adders in Table 310.15(B)(3)(c) are based on the results of averaging the ambient temperatures [310.15(B)(3)(c) Note].
Why this rule? The air inside circular raceways in direct sunlight is significantly hotter than the surrounding air. To comply with 310.10, you must account for that additional heat.
For example, a conduit with three 6 THWN-2 conductors with direct sunlight exposure that's ¾ in. above the roof will require you to add 40°F to the correction factors on Table 310.15(B)(2)(a). Assuming an ambient temperature of 90°F, the temperature to use for conductor ampacity correction is 130°F (90°F + 40°F). The 6 THWN-2 conductor ampacity after correction will be 57A (75A 3 0.76), as shown in Fig. 3 (click here to see Fig. 3).
Properly sizing conductors is one of the most difficult aspects of using the NEC. It takes a thorough knowledge of Art. 240 and 310, plus knowledge of individual sections and subsections. For example, Sec. 110.14(C) contains the guidelines on how to size conductors based on the temperature ratings of the terminals of various electrical equipment. The fact that this is so critical is why it's now referred to in the new Informational Note 2 of 310.15(A)(3). As you work through Article 310, don't forget that Chapters 1-4 work together and apply generally to all installations [90.3].


text:
Community support
Using and configuring software can be a complex task. Often instructions or assistance are required in order to know how to achieve what you need to with your computer. Sharing skills and knowledge is central to the Free Software philosophy, and as a result the Free Software support community offers a plethora of resources for meeting user's needs.
User manuals and help guides
Most Free Software applications are accompanied by manuals on how to use them. Manuals are good for finding out how to use the core features of a particular program. When you expect to be able to perform a task, but can't figure out how to do it, reading the manual is often the best first step. Many software projects take great care to produce accurate and extensive user manuals, and reading them is often the shortest route to a solution.
In desktop applications, like Mozilla Firefox or OpenOffice, these can usually be found in the application's 'Help' menu. In text-only terminal applications, these can usually be accessed by typing 'man' (short for manual) followed by the application name. For example, this command would show the manual for the move command:
man mv
Sometimes manuals are installed separately to the application itself, particularly if the manual is very long. In such cases you either need to install the manual separately on your computer, or alternatively view the manual online.
Wikis are websites which allow lots of different people to change the content of their webpages. They provide a platform for groups to work collaboratively on guides and documentation, and update it with their own knowledge and experience. Wikipedia is an example of a wiki which is used for encyclopedic information; wikis about Free Software projects contain only information about the application that they relate to.
Wikis are similar to manuals, but are often broader in scope, and sometimes more up-to-date. Some wikis have many contributors and are excellent compendiums of guides and instructions. Others however are not very well maintained, and may contain information which is out-of-date, or inexhaustive. If you need assistance with a Free Software application that has a wiki then checking to see if your problem is documented there may well be worthwhile.
Wikis are accessed via a web browser. You often need an account in order to add or edit wiki pages. Some wikis als allow you to discuss page content using the wiki software itself, and see past revisions of wiki pages.
Web forums
Forums are a medium of non-real time communication between a large number of different people. With a forum account, visitors can read messages published (or 'posted') by other visitors, and post messages of their own which are visible to other forum users. They are good for many types of questions and support, especially questions which are specific, or may affect the minority of the application's users. They can be searched for messages relating to the problem that you have, and in cases where this doesn't return a solution, they can be used to post new questions. The accuracy of information found in support forums varies, as does the level of moderation, and the average speed of reply. Most forums have their own set of rules designed to facilitate communication, which users must agree to during registration.
Forums are very widely used by Free Software support communities, and can provide an easily accessible database of structured information about other users' experiences, problems and solutions. Forums are accessible via a web browser, and often contain many thousands of messages.
Real time chat (IRC)
Some Free Software projects, particularly larger ones and GNU/Linux distributions, have chat rooms where users meet to communicate in real time. They use a system called Internet Relay Chat (IRC), and channels (chatrooms) vary greatly in size and nature. Some contain thousands of people at any one time, others contain only a few members, or none at all. Quality and speed of assistance can also be unpredictable as moderation of real time communication is harder than non-real time methods (such as forums), and participants may also be chatting in several other rooms simultaneously, causing their responses to be slow. IRC has a long history, and has developed its own customs and etiquette.
When other research has drawn a blank, or you need help with something that's hard to explain and unlikely to be documented anywhere else, support chat rooms can be invaluable. They can be particularly useful for finding different ways of approaching a problem that you're stuck with, and for getting expert technical attention.
Chat rooms can be accessed in a variety of ways. You can connect to IRC using a web browser with web pages which have the room embedded in the page, or using a desktop IRC client. Some channels require that you register with the network before connecting. You will need to know the name of the channel that you want to join, such as #fsfe, and join it by issuing a join command like:
/join #fsfe
Alternatively you may be able to choose the channel from a list inside your IRC client.
Mailing-lists are a simple system for sending emails to groups of people interested in a particular subject. They are very widely used by Free Software projects to coordinate different tasks, though they have been replaced by newer support systems such as forums by many applications. Mailing-lists offer a good way to ask a question to a project's entire support community. Some lists are more heavily moderated than others, and they vary in how active and supportive they are.
Typically mailing-lists allow you to register your email address and then send messages to the list email address, like firstname.lastname@example.com. List members can then reply to your query in the form of another message that will be received as an email by all list members, including you. It's best to observe etiquette and good practice when messaging a list. As a rule, original, well written questions are more likely to get good responses.
User groups
People who user Free Software live all over the world. Many towns, cities, and counties have established groups of local residents who meet online or in person to discuss one or more Free Software projects. Thousands of GNU/Linux user groups (LUGs) meet each month in different locations, for example. User groups vary as much as the people who run and attend them. Some are very focused on supporting and advocating a particular Free Software application of distribution. Others are largely a social meeting, providing an opportunity for people who work or study with particular software to relax together. Some have an affiliation with a university or college.
When seeking support, it is advisable to communicate with a user group before attending an in-person meeting in order to guage how willing and able group members will be to help you with your problem. Most user groups have a mailing-list or chat channel where members can be contacted. User group members may be more willing to help you than people you meet via generic community support systems because of your close proximity to each other. In some cases members may also be willing to provide you with telephone, instant message, or remote access based support.
Often it is possible to find the email addresses of Free Software developers and message them directly. Some developers, particularly of smaller projects, welcome this kind of contact. Others prefer not to be contacted in this way, particularly if the message concerns a request for information that can be found elsewhere. Generally you should only email developers if there is no other support system available for the software concerned, of if your question contains information which may be sensitive (relating to security, for example).
Remote control (VNC)
Virtual network computing (VNC) allows the remote control of one computer's graphical desktop from another over an Internet connection. The host computer is controlled remotely by the client computer, and shows real-time images of the mouse and running applications to the controller on the client computer's screen. VNC can be an efficient way for an expert to fix your computer on your behalf. In such cases you can sit back and watch your computer doing what it was instructed by the person who is remotely controlling it. Due to the degree of control over your machine that VNC entails, it is advisable to only accept support via VNC from somebody who you know well and trust, or from a company from whom you have the protection of a legal contract. Although VNC is a powerful tool for getting technical help, it is not generally unconventional as a community support tool.
The ease of establishing a VNC connection depends on the operating system, and in the case of GNU/Linux, the distribution that you are using. Free cross platform VNC software exists for all major operating systems. Most major GNU/Linux distributions have integrated VNC solutions. If you are using VNC for support, the expert to whom you will hand control may be able to assist you in choosing and configuring VNC software.


text:
Programming Apple ][e BASIC in 6th grade was love at first sight. A couple of years later my parents' "family" Christmas gift was C64 -- I bought the Memory Map later with my few dollars, ref-tab'd and dog-eared it over the next couple of years. Pascal in 11th grade for AP 5 and three wasted semesters at UVa repeating that course's content -- though not wasted for getting to take two classes under the amazing Randy Pausch (RIP), the greatest classroom teacher I ever had by a long mile. After finishing the core curriculum in 3yrs and little else, started working but kept mainframe help-desk job as the transition from the mainframe to the mini took place. X-Windows, RFCs, sockets and the power of the cmd prompt for 7-years, while full-time cranking Commodity Futures algorithms on historical and 9600 baud live data via DOS Extender with my own Window manager, custom Tetris included which via C's trusty rand still managed to not send a straight piece when I needed it.
Blur of years of dbs, front-ends, combos, and a host of companies simultaneously blessed and cursed with the prodigious output of an uncontrollable nerd with a passion for perfection and freedom.
Now, beautiful wife and two beautiful children and maybe my very own official company after somewhere around 28 years of knowing that's what I want. No, I don't want the hassle of all the paperwork, but software sucks too bad not to show people what's possible.
I mean, c'mon people, at least make ALL of your dialogs resizeable (yes, SSIS and Microsoft, I'm looking at you) and if I size it and move it, it had better be right there and that size the next time I open that dang thing, got it? I mean, dang, am I asking too much?
I wish for all human beings to have lasting peace and happiness, knowing that the machinations of this world could be directed to that purpose. Let's engineer happiness, fellow nerd warriors!
Chesapeake, VA
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Sep 20 '11


text:
Exceptionally dry weather conditions have lit the fuse for significant fire activity statewide, and according to fire officials, this is just the beginning.
In recognition of Wildfire Awareness Week, May 5-11, CAL FIRE (California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection) representatives from around the state visited the Siskiyou Golden Fairgrounds on Tuesday to hold a press conference and make their message loud and clear: This promises to be a robust fire season and it is critical for residents to be prepared.
Among those who made presentations at the press conference were CAL FIRE Director Ken Pimlott, CAL FIRE Siskiyou Unit Chief Bernie Paul, CAL FIRE (Northern) Region Assistant Chief Doug Wenham, Siskiyou County Supervisor Marcia Armstrong and Klamath National Forest Fire Staff Chief Ed Guzman.
CAL FIRE representatives are holding a number of press conferences throughout the state this week to urge residents to take extra precautions to prevent wildfires and to establish a solid safety and evacuation plan in the event of a wildfire.
"The conditions right now are what we should be experiencing in June," said Pimlott. "This year's dry winter has resulted in a significant increase in fire activity.
He noted that CAL FIRE firefighters have responded to approximately 1,100 wildfires this year, which is over 500 more than average for May.
According to the state's final snow survey, on May 2, the statewide snowpack water content is only 17 percent of normal. From January through May 2, nearly 23,000 acres have burned in California, which is significantly more than the 1,250 acres that had burned during that same time period last year, stated CAL FIRE officials.
Guzman noted that locally, prescribed burns have already been cut off due to the dry conditions.
Pimlott commented that citizens tend to focus their attention on the southern California wildfires, although he noted that last week a blaze known as the Panther Fire consumed 7,000 acres of vegetation in the Butte and Tehama county areas. "This is something that everybody in the state needs to take seriously whether you live in San Diego County or Siskiyou County," said Pimlott. "Fire knows no boundaries."
CAL FIRE representatives are using the press conferences as an opportunity to spread the word about their "Ready, Set, Go!" campaign – a tool to help residents prepare for wildfires in the area and take action when they strike.
Pimlott urges residents to take advantage of the recent cool, rainy weather to prepare their homes and their families for the flames to come.
Get Ready …
According to the CAL FIRE website, the roof is the most vulnerable part of a home due to drifting embers. Homes with wood or shingle roofs are at high risk of being destroyed during a wildfire. However, metal or tile roofs can halt embers from catching.
"I encourage people who have not already done so to clear vegetation from around their homes," said Armstrong.
The CAL FIRE website states that vegetation and brush within 100 feet of buildings should be cleared to create a defensible space buffer. This halts the progress of an approaching fire.
The website recommends that residents establish a fire safe landscape. This entails the use of rock and mulch flower beds and gardens as ground cover for bare spaces and as effective firebreaks. Choose plant and tree species that resist ignition and create fire-safe zones with stone walls and patios.
Paul warns that it only takes one spark to start a fire, and he asks that residents pay extra attention when embarking on outdoor activities that could produce sparks.
Pimlott added that 94 percent of fires in California are started by people, and therefore, most are preventable.
Get Set …
The CAL FIRE website recommends preparing an emergency supply kit and creating a wildfire action plan.
The action plan should include an emergency meeting location for family members, several different escape routes from the residence and community, and an evacuation procedure for pets and livestock. A family communication plan that designates an out-of-area friend or relative as a point of contact to act as a single source of communication among family members in case of separation is highly recommended.
The website asserts that residents should have fire extinguishers on hand; ensure family members know where the gas, electric and water main shut-off controls are located to safely shut them down during an emergency; and keep an emergency contact list near the phone and in the emergency supply kit.
When an evacuation is anticipated, the website suggests shutting all windows and doors and leaving them unlocked for firefighter access if necessary.
Residents should remove flammable window shades and curtains and close metal shutters. Move flammable furniture to the center of the room away from windows and doors. Shut off the gas, turn off pilot lights and shut off air conditioning, states the website. Leave exterior lights on so firefighters can identify the house under smoky conditions.
Turn off propane tanks and remove propane appliances and flammable items from the exterior of the home and bring them inside.
The website urges residents to avoid leaving sprinklers or water running, as this could affect the area's water pressure. Rather, connect garden hoses to outside water valves or spigots for use by firefighters. Fill water buckets and place them outside the house and leave a ladder at the corner of the house for firefighters to quickly access the roof.
Leave as soon as evacuation is recommended by fire officials, stated the website. Do not wait to be ordered to leave by authorities. Evacuating early helps firefighters keep roads clear of congestion.
Law enforcement will coordinate evacuation procedures and officials will determine areas to be evacuated and escape routes.
For more information about fire prevention and safety, visit readyforwildfire.org.
"Being extra diligent this year will be very much appreciated," said Guzman. "This season is going to be a marathon for firefighters."


text: Nokia President and CEO Stephen Elop introduces the Lumia 900 smartphone during a CES news conference in Las Vegas. Julie Jacobson/AP hide caption toggle caption Julie Jacobson/AP All Tech Considered Can Two Smartphone Also-Rans Rescue Each Other? January 10, 2012 Both Nokia and Microsoft have been left behind in the race to capture a piece of the fast-growing smartphone pie. Now Nokia, with Microsoft's help, is trying to force its way back into the North American smartphone market, announcing a new 4G phone for AT&T.


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This limited edition special series of just 599 is the new pinnacle of Prancing Horse sportiness and has benefited to an enormous degree from technological transfers from the track. Many of the cutting-edge solutions sported by the 599 GTO are also the product of the Maranello engineers' experience in the development of the 599XX, the prototype experimental car of which, as its legendary moniker suggests, the 599 GTO is the road-homologated version.
One of the most significant innovations on the 599 GTO is the close correlation between the chassis set-up, which is close to the handling limit, and the input from the electronic controls which are developed to increase overall levels of performance.
Since the very earliest states of the two cars' development, Maranello's engineers worked to ensure that these two areas of the car would be seamlessly integrated thus pushing responsiveness to the limit. The result is, of course, superlative driving involvement as well as faster lap times.
Apart from new springs and a stiffer rear anti-roll bar, the car also features a second generation magnetorheological suspension control system (SCM2). The suspension works in tandem with the VDC (Vehicle Dynamic Control) and latest-generation F1-Trac traction control. This makes the car extremely responsive to driver inputs – thanks in part to the adoption of a very direct steering ratio – but also very stable under braking, sharper on turn-in, more precise in cornering and quicker out of corners.
The 599 GTO's aerodynamics have benefited significantly from Ferrari engineers' experience in F1 and with the 599XX which allowed downforce to be greatly increased without impacting on drag. Thanks to solutions transferred from the track car to the road-going version, the GTO generates downforce of 144 kg at 200 km/h. The entire car was honed, including the front, the sides, the flat underbody and cooling flows. In the latter instance, the GTO can count on improved ducting to the brake discs and pads, and the adoption of wheel doughnuts – a disc positioned outside the brake disc that ensure that hot air exiting the wheelarch stays as close to the body of the car as possible to reduce drag.Read more
Work on the nose of the car was aimed at reducing the width of the wake generated by the front and thus reduce drag. The front spoiler incorporates a separate lower wing that increases downforce at the front of the car and increases the flow of cooling air to the oil radiator. On the flanks there's a new sill design with a more pronounced leading edge that improves the efficiency of the central section of the underbody. The underbody itself incorporates a new, lower front section with diffusers ahead of the front wheels to optimise downforce, and a new double-curve rear diffuser.
The 599 GTO inherits much of the development work – using the same principles as employed in F1 – that went into making the 599XX such an extreme performance car. Reducing weight was a vital objective and the result was the widespread use of composites and components manufactured with technologies more akin to racing specifications.
The areas involved include the bodywork and greenhouse (with thinner gauge aluminium and thinner glass), the brakes, transmission and exhaust system. The result is a dry weight of 1495 kg and a weight-to-power ratio of just 2.23 kg/hp, a very significant figure that underlines the GTO's performance potential.
|Overall length
|185,4 in
|Overall width
|77.2 in
|52,2 in
|108,3 in
|Front track
|67,0 in
|Rear track
|63,7 in
|Dry weight*
|3295,9 lb
|Kerb weight*
|3538,4 lb
|Weight distribution
|47% Front - 53% Rear
|Fuel tank capacity
|27.7 US gal (23.1 UK/gal)
|Boot (trunk) capacity
|11,3 cu ft
|Front (winter)
|Rear (winter, can be used w/ chain)
|15.7 x 1.5 in
|14.2 x 1.3 in
|CST with F1-Trac system
|Control for stability and traction
|Tyres Pressure and Temperature Monitoring System
|Bore and stroke
|3.62 x 2.96 in
|Unit displacement
|30.51 cu in
|Total displacement
|366.08 cu in
|Compression ratio
|Maximum power**
|493 kW (670 CV) at 8250 giri/min
|Maximum torque
|620 Nm (457 lbft) at 6500 rpm
|Maximum speed
|over 208 mph
|0-62 mph
|3.35 sec
|0-124 mph
|9.8 sec
|F1; 6 gears + Reverse
|SCM 2 Magnetoreological damping Control
|Combined ECE*
|17,5 l/100 km
|Combined ECE*
|411 g/km
|European market version
|Engine power is expressed in kW, in accordance with the International System of Units (SI) and in CV for reasons of homogeneity. The horse power (hp) can be calculated as follows: 1 kW = 1.34 hp
The extreme V12 berlinetta developed to a specific performance-oriented brief. The 599 GTO is, in fact, the company's fastest ever road car. It is an exclusive limited edition special which, in true Ferrari tradition, is a completely new concept, albeit inspired by a production car. In fact the 599 GTO is based on the 599XX, the advanced experimental track car, and can be considered almost a road-going version.
The 599 GTO is reserved for just 599 clients who seek the maximum expression of high-performance driving. The 599 GTO benefits directly from the technological transfer from racing and set a record lap time at Fiorano in 1'24".


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The KLX140G offers a comfortable fit and a reliable, confidence-inspiring ride with larger wheels that's ideal for off-road adventures. Light overall weight and roomy ergonomics make learning easier, allowing riders to focus on fun, while the dependability and low-maintenance of the KLX140G make it the ultimate companion on the trail.
|4-stroke, Single
|Bore and stroke
|58.0 x 54.4 mm
|Compression ratio
|Valve system
|SOHC, 2 valves, screw type adjusters
|Fuel system
|Keihin PB20 carburetor
|Digital DC-CDI
|Forced lubrication (wet sump)
|Front: type
|Single 220 mm petal disc
|Front: calipers
|Dual-piston caliper
|Rear: type
|Single 190 mm petal disc
|Rear: calipers
|Single-piston caliper
|Overall length
|2,005 mm
|Overall width
|790 mm (31.1 in.)
|Overall height
|1,135 mm
|1,330 mm
|Ground clearance
|315 mm
|Seat height
|860 mm
|Curb mass**
|99 kg
|Fuel capacity
|5.8 litres (1.3 gal.)
|Final drive
|Primary reduction ratio
|2.880 (72/25)
|Gear ratio: 1st
|2.667 (40/15)
|Gear ratio: 2nd
|1.895 (36/19)
|Gear ratio: 3rd
|1.474 (28/19)
|Gear ratio: 4th
|1.182 (26/22)
|Gear ratio: 5th
|1.000 (24/24)
|Final reduction ratio
|4.385 (57/13)
|Wet multi-disc, manual, cable operation
|Box section perimeter, high-tensile steel
|Wheel travel: front
|190 mm
|Tire: front
|Wheel travel: rear
|200 mm
|Tire: rear
|Caster (rake)
|116 mm
|Suspension, front
|33 mm telescopic fork
|Suspension, rear
|Uni-Trak linkage system and single shock with piggyback reservoir, fully adjustable preload and rebound damping
Factory Limited Warranty Owner's Warranty Guide
This model comes with 6 months factory limited warranty.
Kawasaki keeps the good times rolling with unlimited kilometers/hours of usage. We have you covered with our nationwide, Kawasaki dealer network. Visit any authorized Kawasaki dealer (for this product line) throughout Canada and continental USA for factory warranty coverage.
Click "Owner's Warranty Guide" for full details regarding Kawasaki's factory limited warranty coverage.
Kawasaki Protection Plus Learn More
Kawasaki's own Kawasaki Protection Plus (KPP) goes the distance with available two, three, and four years of unlimited kilometers/hours additional coverage on top of the original Kawasaki limited warranty. That's up to seven years total coverage depending on the base warranty term!
Feel secure knowing that Kawasaki Protection Plus repairs are performed only at authorized Kawasaki dealers (for this product line) throughout Canada and continental USA using only Kawasaki genuine parts.
Enjoy additional peace of mind with roadside assistance on street legal motorcycles. Buy early - roadside assistance coverage begins when you buy KPP.
No surprises. There's no deductible fees with KPP for covered repairs.
Click "Learn More" for more details regarding Kawasaki Protection Plus.
Special offers
3.99% Financing 60 Months
Take advantage of our Special Retail Financing offer for as little as 3.99% for 60 months. Visit your local Kawasaki dealer today for complete details and get moving - for less - right now.
Minimum amount to finance of $2,500 after certain conditions apply.
Oil or Race Kit Offer
Keep your new KX bike running at its best with either an Oil Kit or Race Kit.
The Oil Kit helps make sure things run smoothly with 1 case (12 litres) of Kawasaki Racing Oil, 6 Oil Filters, 6 Drain Plug Washers, 2 Bottles of Air Filter Cleaners, and 2 Bottles of Air Filter Oils.(KX450, 250, KLX140 and 110 models)
The Race Kit ensures you have all the parts you need with 1 Piston, 1 Piston Ring, 1 Piston Pin, 1 Bearing, 2 Circlips, 1 Head Gasket, 1 Base Gasket, 1 Air Filter, 1 Bottle of Air Filter Cleaner and 1 Bottle of Air Filter Oil. (KX100, 85, 65)
2018 KX100, 85, and 65 also receive a Matrix R2 Mat
Best kept secret
* The Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price is shown and does not include freight, pre-delivery inspection or applicable taxes. The final price is at the discretion of the dealer. Prices and Specifications are subject to change without prior notice. The amount indicated as "Your price" may include an optional instant Mega Cash credit that is deducted from the manufacturer's suggested retail price before taxes. This promotion is time limited and certain conditions will apply. See your dealer for complete details. Offer not available on financed purchases and cannot be combined with any other special offers. The final price is at the discretion of the dealer. Prices and Specifications are subject to change without prior notice.
** Includes all necessary materials and fluids to operate correctly, full tank of fuel (more than 90% of capacity) and tool kit (if supplied)
‡ Power / Torque figures measured at the crankshaft.
The specifications mentioned here apply to and have been achieved by production models under standard operating conditions. We intend only to give a fair description of the vehicle and its performance capabilities but these specifications may not apply to every machine supplied for sale. Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd. reserves the right to alter specifications without prior notice. Equipment illustrated and specifications may vary to meet individual markets. Available colours may vary by market.


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Past Simple
We use the past simple to talk about actions and states which we see as completed in the past.
We can use it to talk about a specific point in time.
It can also be used to talk about a period of time.
You will often find the past simple used with time expressions such as these:


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MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. – Senior forward Scott Ferguson (Roswell, Ga.) of the Georgia College men's basketball team (3-1) was named Bobcat Athlete of the Week for the week ending Dec. 2.
Ferguson narrowly missed a double-double with 11 points and eight rebounds in the team's lone game this week, a win over Clark Atlanta University. Ferguson picked up his fourth foul with 5:21 left in a seven-point game and his disciplined play helped lead the Bobcats to victory the rest of the way.
The Bobcats are back in action Saturday, Dec. 8 at 4 p.m., traveling to Anderson University.
The Georgia College Department of Athletics, two-time winners of the PBC Commissioner's Cup, sponsors 11 varsity athletic programs at the NCAA Division II level. As a Division II program, Bobcat Athletics prides itself on balancing the life of the student-athlete, evidenced by the teams' multiple appearances in post-season competition as well as documented academic success and community-service involvement. Sign up at www.twitter.com/BobcatSports and www.facebook.com/gcbobcats for up-to-the-minute reports, and visit www.GCBobcats.com for more information, and to nominate your favorite former Bobcats and Colonials to the GC Athletics Hall of Fame.


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Supporting a great new site with cosplayers around the world!! You can learn more about me and my 12+ years of cosplay experience on my FB and personal site www.YayaHan.com. Feel free to keep up with my Twitter for daily cosplay musings :3
- WorldCosplay No.125
- PaísUnited States of America


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EHM is proud to offer our superior Elevation and Relocation services in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. EHM will repair your home and Protect it from Future Storm Damage. Federal funding/reimbursement is available.Learn More
Expert House Movers' experience elevating structures dates back to the early 1950s.
With the most advanced structural lifting and moving technology in world, the largest fleet of unified hydraulic jacking systems and experienced operators, Expert House Movers is indisputably the Leader in Structural Elevations.Learn More


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by Dr. G.F. Haddad
'Abd Allāh ibn Muslim ibn Qutayba, Abū Muh.ammad al-Dīnawarī al-Marwazī (213-276) the h.adīth Master, foremost philologist, linguist, and man of letters. Judgments on Ibn Qutayba differed. Al-Khat.īb, al-Qift.ī, al-Silafī, al-Suyūt.ī, and others declared him a trustworthy and eminent Scholar of knowledge. Al-Bayhaqī considers him one of the Karrāmiyya and his teacher, al-H.ākim, claims the consensus of the Community on declaring him a liar, an extreme exaggeration. Al-Dhahabī in the Mīzān reports from the Rāfid.ī-leaning Sibt. Ibn al-Jawzī's Mir'āt al-Zamān al-Dāraqut.nī's supposed judgment – without chain – that Ibn Qutayba leaned towards anthropomorphism and showed hostility to the Family of the Prophet e while Ibn Taymiyya labels him the spokesman of Ahl al-Sunna. Al-Dhahabī objected: "The man is not an authority in h.adīth." In the latter part of his life Ibn Qutayba regretted his kalām days and wished he had steered completely clear of it.
When some students came asking Ibn Qutayba to narrate to them from Ish.āq ibn Rāhūyah, he said: "I do not narrate. In Baghdād, there are eight hundred muh.addiths, each one of them like my teachers [status]. Therefore, I shall not narrate anything."
Among Ibn Qutayba's teachers are his father; Ah.mad ibn Sa'īd al-Lih.yānī the colleague of Abū 'Ubayd al-Qāsim ibn Sallām; the littérateur and historian of poetry Muh.ammad ibn Sallām al-Jumah.ī; Ish.āq ibn Ibrāhīm ibn Makhlad, known as Ibn Rāhūyah the h.adīth Master; the grammarian Abū Ish.āq Ibrāhīm ibn Sufyān al-Ziyādī; the martyred philologist and historian Abū al-Fad.l al-'Abbās ibn al-Faraj al-Riyāshi al-Bas.rī; the canonist and grammarian Abū H.ātim Sahl ibn Muh.ammad ibn 'Uthmān al-Sijistānī; and al-As.ma'ī's nephew 'Abd al-Rah.mān ibn 'Abd Allāh ibn Qurayb al-Bas.rī.
Among his students: His son the Qād.ī al-qud.āt of Cairo, Abū Ja'far Ah.mad ibn Muslim who narrated all his father's books meticulously; the Mālikī muh.addith and qād.ī Abū Bakr Ah.mad ibn Marwān al-Dīnawarī, author of al-Mujālasa wa Jawāhir al-'Ilm, who transmitted Ta'wīl Mukhtalif al-H.adīth; Abū Bakr Muh.ammad ibn Khalaf ibn al-Marzubān al-Ājurrī (d. 309), the author of al-Sharī'a; Abū al-Qāsim Ibrāhīm ibn Muh.ammad ibn Ayyūb al-S.ā'igh who narrated all Ibn Qutayba's books; the Imām and h.adīth Master of Andalus Abū Muh.ammad Qāsim ibn As.bagh al-Qurt.ubī; and 'Abd Allāh ibn Ja'far ibn Durustūyah al-Fārisī.
In his Tafsīr for the verse [And there is none of the People of the Scripture but he will certainly believe in him before his death, and on the Day of Resurrection he will be a witness against them] (4:159), Ibn al-Jawzī states, concerning the pronoun "his" in before his death:
One explanation is that the pronoun refers to the person who believes... 'Ikrima narrated: The soul of the Kitabee does not leave him except he bears witness to the prophethood of Muh.ammad (s). Another explanation is that the pronoun refers to 'Īsā. Ibn 'Abbās said that at the time he descends there shall not remain on the face of the earth any Kitabee or anyone that worships other than Allāh, all believing in 'Īsā and following him as the spirit from Allāh and His Word, His servant and Messenger. This is the position of Qatāda, Ibn Zayd, and Ibn Qutayba, and Ibn Jarīr al-T.abārī chose it.[1]
The books al-Imāma wal-Siyāsa and Tārīkh al-Khulafā' are spuriously attributed to Ibn Qutayba by the Shī'īs. Ibn Qutayba counts the Shī'īs among the misguided sects and compared Shī'ism to Zoroastrianism.
Among Ibn Qutayba's authentic works:
Adab al-Kitāb.
¨ al-Anwā'.
¨ al-'Arab wa 'Ulūmuhā on Arab intellectual history.
on alcoholic beverages.
Dalā'il al-Nubuwwa
or A'lām al-Nubuwwa on the Proofs of Prophethood.
Fad.l al-'Arab 'alā al-'Ajam
in praise of the Arabs.
¨ Gharīb al-Qur'ān also known as Mushkil al-Qur'ān, on its lexical difficulties.
¨ I'rāb al-Qur'ān, a philological commentary.
al-Ikhtilāf fī al-Lafz.
wa al-Radd 'alā al-Jahmiyya wal-Mushabbiha,
a refutation of both the Allegorizers and the Anthropomorphists. This slim
volume received editions in Egypt.
¨ al-Ishtiqāq.
¨ Is.lāh. Ghalat. Abī 'Ubayd, corrections on al-Qāsim ibn Salām's Gharīb al-H.adīth.
¨ Jāmi' al-Fiqh in jurisprudence, dispraised as unreliable by al-T.abarī and Ibn Surayj, as was Ibn Qutayba's al-Amwāl.
¨ Jāmi' al-Nah.w al-Kabīr and Jāmi' al-Nah.w al-S.aghīr.
¨ al-Jarāthīm in linguistics.
¨ al-Jawābāt al-H.ād.ira.
al-Ma'ānī al-Kabīr.
a slim volume that manages to cover topics from the beginning of creation and
facts about the Jāhiliyya to the names of the Companions and famous jurists and h.adīth
al-Masā'il wal-Ajwiba.
¨ al-Maysar wal-Qidāh. on dice and lots.
¨ al-Na'm wal-Bahā'im on cattle and livestock.
¨ al-Nabāt in botany.
in the canonical readings.
al-Radd 'alā al-Qā'il
bi Khalq al-Qur'ān,
against those who assert the createdness of the Qur'an.
¨ al-Radd 'alā al-Shu'aybiyya, a refutation of a sub-sect of the 'Ajārida 'At.awiyya, itself a sub-sect of the Khawārij.
¨ al-Rah.l wal-Manzil.
¨ al-Shi'r wal-Shu'arā'.
¨ Ta'wīl Mukhtalif al-H.adīth ("The Interpretation of Conflicting Narrations"), one of the earliest books on the subject of the apparent mutual contradiction of proof-texts (ta'ārud. al-adilla) along with Ibn Fūrak's Mushkil al-H.adīth and the foremost Sharh. Mushkil al-Āthār of Imām al-T.ah.āwī. Of the scholars of h.adīth who collect narrations without pausing to understand what they write Ibn Qutayba says: "Some have called them the H.ashwiyya" – a term that literally means "crammers" and is traditionally used for anthropomorphists. He also refutes the enemies of Ahl al-Sunna who used rational arguments in order to disauthenticate the h.adīth or divest it of any real meaning in the manner of modern-day opponents of the Sunna both inside and outside the Muslim Community. For example, he explains the mention of the "baring of the shank" (sāq) in the Qur'ān and Sunna as a metonymy for the travails in which one hitches up one's lower garments, baring one's legs, due to their intensity.[2] Ibn Qutayba also mocks the endless divisions of the proponents of non-Sunnī kalām into sub-sects such as the Abū al-Hudhayl al-'Allāf (d. 230), the chief Mu'tazilī of Bas.ra who disagrees with his colleague al-Naz.z.ām (d. ~220-230); the Mu'tazilī al-Najjār who disagrees with both of them; the Shī'ī anthropomorphist Hishām ibn al-H.akam (d. 148) who disagrees with al-Najjār; the Mu'tazilī Thumāma ibn Ashras who disagrees with Ibn al-H.akam; etc.
on the interpretation of dreams.
¨ Talqīn al-Muta'allim min al-Nah.w in grammar.
¨ 'Uyūn al-Akhbār in history.
¨ 'Uyūn al-Shi'r in poetry.
Main source: al-Dhahabī, Siyar 10:625-628 #2356.


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Bulletin HASKINS & SELLS 55 Hatfield, Henry Rand. Accounting. (New York, D. Appleton and Company, 1927. 548 p.) It would indeed be with regret that one would give up such a friend as Hatfield's Modern Accounting, if it were not for the fact that Accounting, its supplanter, is written by the same author. Modern Accounting, published in 1909, was one of the earliest American contributions to accounting literature presenting the theory of accounts as distinguished from bookkeeping technic. That, eighteen years later, this volume should still maintain its high position in the literature of accounting, is sufficient evidence that the frequent reference to this work as an "accounting classic" is well merited. Accounting is, in some measure, a revision of the author's earlier book. The last two decades, however, have been so fruitful in the progress which has been made that this later volume must be considered something more than an ordinary revision. The author has extended his comments on many of the matters discussed therein and also has introduced new material in two chapters on the consolidated balance sheet and the interpretation of the balance sheet respectively. The introductory chapters on the theory of double entry bookkeeping have been omitted in the present volume. The book is not an elementary one. It does not attempt to treat the mechanics of bookkeeping. The author has presented the problems of current accounting practice in a dispassionate, rather than argu-mentative, manner. In view of the fact that there is no uniformity of opinion upon many questions, the author's purpose is, as quoted from the preface to the earlier publication, " . . . to show the existing variations rather than to attempt to formulate rigid rules. The comparative study of accounting practice will, perhaps, be a greater service to accounting science than a more dogmatic treatise." Professor Hatfield accordingly has drawn freely from current practice for his illustrations. The frequent citation of court decisions, the numerous references to other writers, European and American, and to the legal provisions of the European countries, give one the feeling that nothing has been left undone to make the work a thorough one. The tolerant attitude which Professor Hatfield exhibits toward differences of opinion is soothing when compared with arbitrary statements of others that the only correct procedure in a given instance is thus and so. The theoretical argument, as given on page 162, that depreciation might be considered a function of profits is interesting indeed, especially in the light of the efforts which have been made to eliminate this procedure in practice. As Professor Hatfield later points out, accountants are agreed that to charge off more depreciation in prosperous years and less when profits are less is improper. Chapters X , X I , and XII on profits and dividends are noteworthy indeed. The argument in favor of permitting a corporation operating wasting assets to pay Book Review
Object Description
Book review
Books -- Reviews
Haskins & Sells Bulletin, Vol. 10, no. 07 (1927 July), p. 55-56
|Originally published by: Haskins & Sells
|Deloitte Digital Collection
|Digital Publisher
|University of Mississippi Libraries. Accounting Collection
|Date-Digitally Created
|HS Bulletin 10-p55


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17-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:
Tuesday, August 27, 1912: Brought home my Latin Grammar, all the time thinking I had my Caesar. Didn't want the former at all. Must study some now, so I'll soon be in the midst of my studies this evening.
Guess I will like Mr. Teacher.
Her middle-aged granddaughter's comments 100 years later:
Hmm. . . This is the first time that Grandma's mentioned Latin during the year and a half that I've been posting her diary entries. . . . though she apparently had taken some Latin in previous years because she used the Latin term puella bona (good girl) in a diary entry that I posted a few days ago.
I was amazed to discover that a hundred years ago, most females who went high school learned Latin. According to the August, 1912 issue of Ladies Home Journal, here's what females were studying in high school:
Latin, French, or German: 82 out of every hundred
Algebra and Geometry: 87 out of every hundred
English Literature: 57 out of every hundred
Rhetoric: 57 out of every hundred
History: 55 out of every hundred
Domestic Economy (sewing, cooking, and household economics): 3 out of every hundred
The article was making the point that few females took domestic economy classes—and that maybe more should.


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Leadership in a New Era
A growing body of evidence has highlighted this basic fact: the presence of excellent teaching in excellent schools is always accompanied by excellent leadership – the kind that ensures that effective teaching practices don't remain isolated and unshared in single classrooms, and ineffective ones don't go unnoticed and unremedied. With our national commitment to make every single child a successful learner, the importance of having such a high-quality leader in every school is greater than ever.
Source: Wallace Foundation report Perspective: Leadership for Learning
Building Capacity in Challenging Times
The role of the leader is to enable, facilitate, and cause peers to interact in a focused manner. Peer interaction is the social glue of focus and cohesion.
Source: Motion Leadership: The Skinny on Becoming Change Savvy by Michael Fullan
When studying the specific leadership acts or behaviors rated as most valuable when turning around a school, the following three were seen as most valuable: providing resources; building a learning community or collaborative culture in the school; and ensuring adequate amounts and types of professional development.
Source: Learning about Leadership from School Turnaround Efforts by Kenneth Leithwood and Tiiu Strauss
Leading in Difficult Times: Doing More With Less
Leaders must be knowledgeable of those interventions that can change school culture by: providing community building retreats; focusing on staff morale by recognizing and rewarding those who make a difference; including popular culture in the classroom; and establishing after school and community projects and accelerated summer schools.
Source: Pedro Noguera, Presentation at New Jersey State Conference, 2009
It is of critical importance to create Professional Learning Communities(PLC) as a vehicle for establishing collegial relationships and for building capacity for change within a school when centered on optimal academic outcomes for all students.
Source: Synthesis of information from Dufour, Fullan, Hord, Senge
For the past couple of decades, school improvement has largely been driven by these two levers of change – capacity building and professional development tied to evidence-based practices and incentives.
Source: Investigating the Links to Improved Student Learning by Louis, Leithwood, Wahlstrom and Anderson