text:
$112.99 (check price)
Its one of the classic silhouettes of mid-century design, this Renee Dining Chair with a modern scoop seat supported by sturdy, slim legs. Now you can add this versatile chair to your dining space or breakfast nook, without raiding your retirement account. This chair comes with pine wood legs. Main Material: Plastic Main Material Details: PP plastic Weight Capacity: 330lb.
What is your comfort zone? If you find that everything is OK, but still not as bright. Look for a cushion on your chair or Elle Decor side dining chair Make sure you see incredible changes in the room! If you do not know where to start, why not mix and match? Today we have a pair of cushion set to go together to make the room is not normal! Patterns VS. Pillow This is the most basic, but when the match comes to mind. Choose between colored cushions in the decoration and look at the colors of Elle Decor side dining chair as well. If you choose to use Elle Decor side dining chair cream or white Orange and blue cushions will make you look fresh. Or if you like the mini-black color, it works. Large pattern VS. Cushion pattern Choosing a patterned cushion is no different than choosing a clothes match. Simple Tips Remember to choose not to miss, but choose a similar pattern, but the size is different, such as choosing a dot pattern or a large circle pattern to choose a pattern pattern. Stand by the main color scheme. Think of buying cushions as drawing. Be sure to stand with the main color tone and gradually add other colors. With the same direction. This time you can mix cushions of various shapes and sizes. Go with Keep cushions, flowers or vines well. Should not be used with a large graphic pattern, because it looks too good. If the graphics are small, it also goes together well. Choose a flower cushion to have different patterns. The arrangement of flower cushions together to refresh the home. The important thing is to put it in a different shape, it does not hurt. Be careful not to put on the Elle Decor side dining chair that is patterned because it will make you look aching and uncomfortable. Reverse pattern Sometimes the opposite of the cushions adds to the incredible appeal. But the choice of the different types of extremes are sure to go well with the overall room decor. So, if you buy a different cushion, try to think of what color tone or pattern. Choose from 1 carpets. For a mini-lounge, it can be enhanced without adding color or texture. Just choose the cushion pattern, it makes the Living Room look bright. Sparkling in the winter. During the winter or during the festive season, we can enhance the atmosphere of the house to the festival. Sequin cushions or sparkling decorations are another attractive option without moving furniture. When the season is over, it may change into new patterns. Or favorite stripes The advantages of replacing the cushions often. It is easy to change the atmosphere without having to spend a lot of time. The number of suitable cushions is usually based on the size of Elle Decor side dining chair , but there are not too many rules. But for Elle Decor side dining chair Standard size is 2 people can come from 2 If a Elle Decor side dining chair large, three can be placed up to 5, or if one Elle Decor side dining chair only one seat. The placement position is unlimited.
Cyber Monday is comming soon And with more Americans skipping Black Friday and opting for online shopping, Digital Contributor Caleb Kinchlow stops by with three MUST KNOW tips for safe online Christmas shopping.
The minimalist design of the side dining chair is not something that happens overnight. Although we may see that it is simple. The reality is that setting up a side dining chair in this style requires a knowledge of art and balance! But know that managing your side dining chair as your first mini-style is not hard or expensive! Take a look at these 6 simple tips to make your side dining chair simple and pleasant. Lack of art in a limited time! Living Room selects a set of minimalist side dining chair sets. Traditional Minimax beds are generally large and hard to lay. But if you choose a well-appointed side dining chair set, it's not hard to put everything right. Mostly, this side dining chair set can be re-arranged to your liking. Living Room Choose a mattress thicker than 10 inches. The thinness is not always the answer to the style. And for comfort, you should choose a mattress that is over 10 inches standard. We can reduce the overall hardness of the furniture by using thick sheets and quilts. Living Room may choose to decorate the wall with artistic paintings. Whether to place a single image. Or will be arranged in a series of 3 images, it will help to improve the rhythm of this style side dining chair . Be careful not to over-size the picture, as it will easily lose balance if you place it in a bad place. Living Room Choose a wood or metal accessory. If you like the oriental style furniture with wood texture will help the room look clean and comfortable. If you like Western style, introduce a metal item that gives a raw, slightly fluffy look Living Room . Add a fresh color to a piece. Black and white are going well together. But if you add fresh colors. Another color with yellow mustard. The red color goes well with the monochrome color. Introduce colorful cushions that will not bother you in arranging your Living Room room. Choose a wardrobe and furniture to match the color of the walls. In addition to simple, do not think too much. Also makes the room wider. More importantly, choosing the same color furniture makes shopping of home decor easier and faster!
Healthy is still popular, but eat well then exercise. It should be sleeping with a healthy way to complete the formula is one in three of the people used to sleep with Nina. Everybody should be interested in the quality of sleep, but more than 40% of people around the world still have sleep problems. No matter how snoring sleeps, it is not enough. I wake up and continue to sleep. Some people have regular sleep. But wake up and go back without cause. These problems affect the body, life, skin and brain system to lead to crashes it! 3 Easy Steps to find the right Living Room for a good life. Step 1: Take a test to find out the basics of sleep. Step 2: Consult an expert physician. Step 3: Take the results from the first two steps to experiment on the realLiving Room on the technology. SleepScanning To detect the pressure point. The cause of blood circulation problems by organs. Find the perfect tan for your body and soul. You will get Living Room back to perfect Perfect Sleep every day at your own home. Innovative help! In addition to XXX, Sleeping Mattresses also help to deliver quality sleep with Purecare. To sleep from the United States Celliant's unique properties energize you while sleeping with 13 natural herbs to help with blood circulation. Omniguard is a Protector that protects against dust mites and bacteria. Special features of the FIT fit the edge to tighten the squaredLiving Room Frio pillow with a cool feature to cool the body with the cool of Technical Textile fiber Cooling Fiber 5 times faster cooling for people with heat problems. Of the head and body, Tempsync pillow comes with special features. Adjust the temperature - Cool to balance the state of touch.
I love love love this product. This is a wonderful side dining chair. True to size, comfortable, Very pleased. I got this for my 25 year old daughter for work. She loves it! She ordered two more in different colors.


text:
Kinder Morgan is proposing to build a large, high pressure natural gas pipeline through 45 towns in Massachusetts, including Groton.
More than five month ago, agents of this company entered the town of Groton and began requesting that affected residents sign survey permission forms. They did not disclose the true scope of the pipeline project or that your participation in it might be anything but completely voluntary — since they plan to use eminent domain to take easements from property owners as necessary.
When concerned residents called Groton town officials for an explanation, they were met with silence — the officials had not been informed of any such project. When Kinder Morgan tried this same tactic recently in Andover, they were told to cease-and-desist until such time that Kinder Morgan representatives had presented their plans at a public town meeting.
Why didn't Kinder Morgan approach each of the 45 impacted Mass. towns and request a meeting with town officials to explain their plans? And then request that these officials set up a public town meeting to include all town residents and the Kinder Morgan representatives as soon as it made sense to do so?
Why didn't they fully present their plans in an open and timely manner before they started asking for survey permission? Why the secrecy and why the five-month delay?
And why is all of their decision-making done behind closed doors rather than in an open, public forum that includes the many Mass. residents so greatly impacted by their plans?
The answer is simple. Sunlight is a natural disinfectant — and letting sunlight in exposes all the warts and shortcomings of everything that it touches. Kinder Morgan likes the dark. They would very much prefer that the public not know the details of their pipeline plans. They don't want you questioning the wisdom of their preferred pipeline route and they certainly don't want you questioning whether we in fact need this huge new pipeline at all.
Kinder Morgan prefers "mushrooms" to informed citizens. Do you remember the old line about how to raise mushrooms — keep them in the dark and feed them bull pucky. Don't be a mushroom! They prefer that you be uninformed and uninvolved — but please, don't let that happen. Talk to your friends and neighbors, ask questions and raise concerns — and contact your local, state and federal officials to add your voice to the thousands of others opposing this pipeline.
Visit the Stop The Pipeline website at www.grotonspace.com/pipeline — and bookmark it for later use. We will attempt to keep you up to date on all pipeline news and events.
Nick Miller,
Stop The Pipeline
Coordinating Committee of Groton
(SPCC Groton)

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Choose ADT in Dent, OH for Continuous Security Monitoring that Makes a Difference
Choosing a provider that can effectively deliver all of your monitoring and home security needs is critical. Take advantages of ADT in Dent, OH for the most well-known and reliable security system that the industry has to offer. Don't miss another second of sleep or settle for second best. Call a Semiseek representative today to discuss our budget-friendly packages that have the capability to protect everything you love most.
ADT Home Security is America's #1 Provider
Over 6 million Americans choose ADT because we provide access to secure communications, have powerful equipment and a team of dedicated agents that are committed to protecting your home and family. With ADT home security monitoring, we guarantee high quality service and extremely fast response times. Our monitoring centers have a team of skilled agents working around the clock who are ready to contact you and the appropriate emergency personnel right away.
Arm Your Home or Business with ADT Home Security Monitoring
As a certified dealer of ADT home security systems, we understand the importance of personal safety. We have extensive experience in providing affordable measure to improve home security. Our long-standing record of quality and customer satisfaction sets Semiseek apart from all other home security monitoring providers in Dent, OH. All ADT home security systems include:
- Burglar alarm monitoring
- Fire and smoke monitoring
- Flood detectors
- Carbon monoxide monitoring
- Temperature sensors
Stay Connected Wherever and Whenever with ADT Pulse
Now you can access your home security system from virtually anywhere using the Z-Wave technology of ADT pulse. Depending on your plan, ADT customers can experience access to personal systems using a compatible mobile phone, personal command center, or through our interactive touchscreen security system. With the ADT Pulse package you can:
- Remotely arm and disarm your system
- Control lighting and climate
- Receive E-mail and text notifications
- Lock doors
ADT Home Automation Puts the 'Auto' in Auto-Pilot
ADT Pulse revolutionizes home security. In addition to providing unmatched monitoring, we have also created a more convenient means of operating your household using home automation. Our thermostat and lighting controls literally put money back into your wallet. How many times have you gone on a vacation and forgotten to adjust the thermostat? The automation of ADT Pulse enables you to adjust the temperature of connected systems to limit energy waste.
With ADT in Dent, Ohio, you can also put your home on auto- pilot by setting up recurring events. For example, you can adjust settings for your lights to turn off when your alarm goes on. Or you can disarm your system each week at the same time of day for your housekeeper.
We have truly thought of it all after nearly 140 years of experience in the home security monitoring industry. Our staff of trained professionals delivers award winning service by keeping an eye on the people and things that matter most to you. Call now to get started with an affordable ADT plan that meets and exceeds all of your monitoring needs.
Towns and Cities in the Dent, Ohio 45247 area:
- Brookville, IN
- Milan, IN
- Hamilton, OH
- Laurel, IN
- Middletown, OH
- Bethel, OH
- Butler, KY
- Camden, OH
- Morning View, KY
- Warsaw, KY
- West Harrison, IN
- Metamora, IN
- Aurora, IN
- Oxford, OH
- Dillsboro, IN
- Rising Sun, IN
- Vevay, IN
- Addyston, OH
- Alexandria, KY
- Amelia, OH
- Anderson, OH
- Andersonville, IN
- Arlington Heights, OH
- Atwood, KY
- Avondale, OH
- Batavia, OH
- Bath, IN
- Beaverlick, KY
- Bellbrook, OH
- Belleview, KY
- Bellevue, KY
- Bennington, IN
- Bethany, OH
- Billingsville, IN
- Blue Ash, OH
- Blue Ball, OH
- Blue Creek, IN
- Bond Hill, OH
- Bracht, KY
- Braytown, IN
- Bridgetown, OH
- Bromley, KY
- Brookwood, OH
- Buena Vista, IN
- Bullittsville, KY
- Burlington, KY
- Burnet Woods, OH
- Butlerville, OH
- California, OH
- California, KY
- Camp Dennison, OH
- Camp Ernest, KY
- Camp Washington, OH
- Campsprings, KY
- Carlisle, OH
- Carntown, KY
- Carthage, KY
- Carthage, OH
- Cedar Grove, IN
- Centerville, OH
- Chautauqua, OH
- Cherry Grove, OH
- Cheviot, OH
- Chilo, OH
- Cincinnati, OH
- Cincy amf, OH
- City View Heights, OH
- Claryville, KY
- Cleves, OH
- Clifton, OH
- Cold Sprgs Hi, KY
- Cold Sprgs Highland Hts, KY
- Cold Sprgs-Highland Hts, KY
- Cold Spring, KY
- Cold Spring Highland Heights, KY
- Colerain Township, OH
- Colerain TWP, OH
- Colg Hill Sta, OH
- College Cor, OH
- College Corner, OH
- College Hl, OH
- Collinsville, OH
- Corryville, OH
- Cottagegrove, IN
- Cov, KY
- Covedale, OH
- Covington, KY
- Cozaddale, OH
- Crescent Park, KY
- Crescent Spg, KY
- Crescent Spgs, KY
- Crescent Springs, KY
- Crestview, KY
- Crestview Hills, KY
- Crestview Hls, KY
- Crittenden, KY
- Crosby, OH
- Cross Plains, IN
- Cumminsville, OH
- Darrtown, OH


text:
Birth is undoubtedly one of the great events of our life – a true milestone indeed to be more precise. Hence, birth record is like the foundation of any family history and probably one of the best records worth searching. Typical elements regarding the birth of an individual can be effortlessly unearthed through birth records.
Wyandot Birth Records Search Index now provides instant access to wide array if records and information including name of the family members and family heads, ages, relation status, occupations, spousal details, maiden names of the female members, citizenship status, year of naturalization, dwelling number, property value, children's name and, many more. Get hold of such valuable specifics and information and assess your genealogical research. Thus tracing family records is pretty simple and easy.
Now different types of public and vital records including birth certificate information, death records, marriage data and volume number, military and service records, adoption data, land assessment records, allocation details, census records, immigration and naturalization data, will and estate records, probate database and many certain specifics can be easily reclaimed through Wyandot Records index in Ohio. Hence, plan out the research and procure desired data and information before long.
To obtain the Ohio Wyandot County Records, please provide the information below. When you fill-up the form, make a note : The more fields you fill in, the more detailed result you will get.
Please Provide
I wish to receive updates and additional information from this website.
Our Database is loaded with over 400 million county records which include United States Nationwide Vital Records, Public Record and Information. We offer 24x7x365 Search Expert Support. We are working day and night to collect, authenticate and deliver up-to-date County Records in an easiest way.
Our 24x7 Dedicated
Search Expert Team
Will Search The
Record For you From The
Different Sources in The Web.
- 24x7x365 Dedicate Support Team
- Free Search Expert Support
- Cross verification of individual record.
- 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed.
1. Comprehensive, detailed & updated database of USA Nationwide vital records & public information
2. Multiple vital & public records Search Facility
3. Offers variety of people's records - Anytime, Anywhere
4. Instant access to over millions of public records since 18th century
County Records API | Public Records API | Background Check API
Copyright © 2019 county-record.net . All rights reserved.
By using the website (county-record.net), you are complying with the privacy policies & terms of services. Further using of the website (county-record.net), or database or data please refer to our privacy & terms of service pages..


text:
Important dates and deadlines for grad students.
Download frequently used forms (transfer credit, name/address change, incomplete grade requests, graduate petition, and more)
Looking for an apartment? Details about on- and off-campus living.
Assistantships are opportunities for graduate students to work with faculty and staff and receive a tuition waiver.
Academic advising and using NazNet, for new and returning students.
Can't find what you're looking for? Give us a call, 585-389-2816. We're here to help.
Smyth 2, 585-389-2871
Academic planning, new student orientation, and transfer credit information
Smyth 1, 585-389-2819
Course registration, petitions/exceptions, and name/address change
Admissions House 107, 585-389-2821
Information about graduate assistantships
Smyth 22, 585-389-2885
Tutoring and Learning Labs, Success Resources for Students, Success Resources for Faculty and Staff


text:
Rising Storm is a realistic ww2 game. The site is official and you get the game on steam. It's for limited time.
Link: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/risi ... ent=Banner
Rising Storm Free - Humble Bundle
Use only if your topic doesn't fit into one of the categories above.
2 posts • Page 1 of 1
- Posts: 101
- Joined: 08 Mar 2015, 00:53
Re: Rising Storm Free - Humble Bundle
The base game isn't so great (mainly because the stock maps are poor) but it does have an excellent western front mod, Heroes of the West.
2 posts • Page 1 of 1
Who is online
Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 34 guests


text:
ST. CHARLES – Fox Valley Repertory has selected four playwrights for the Fox Valley Repertory's second annual Collider Project, taking place during the St. Charles Summer Theater Festival in July.
Each of these playwrights from around the country is getting ready to start projects that tie to Fox Valley Rep's goal of "developing new works that help us better understand the universe and who we are while illuminating and celebrating the worlds of art, science and technology."
The four playwrights and their respective plays are Gloria Bond Clunie of Chicago with "Quark," co-playwrights Kevin Kautzman of Texas and Charles Midwinter of Minnesota with "Life Electric", and Monica Byrne of North Carolina with "The Fate of the Universe."
"We're thrilled with the amount of playwrights that showed interest in this new play project, having over quadrupled the amount of submissions we received this year," said John Gawlik, artistic director for Fox Valley Repertory. "Together with the internationally renowned Fermilab, 'Collider 2012' will offer a unique experience for these deserving playwrights to work one-on-one to gain insight from Fermilab scientists and pen a world premiere."
Gloria Bond Clunie's "Quark" em-
braces love, death, and the stars when Dr. Alexandra Seabold, an astrophysicist, and her husband Terry, a kindergarten teacher, wrestle with personal tragedy, commercial space travel, and feeding our starving planet as they struggle with – is "a taste of space" worth it? A highly introspective and very visual play, "Quark" uplifts as it tackles the challenging themes of death and dying, social responsibility, education and scientific literacy, and love and loss.
"As fewer students enter our universities equipped to tackle the rigors of college level science courses, our country is becoming painfully aware that in a technologically complex, global society, scientific decisions critically affect all of our lives – whether or not we are equipped to make them," said Clunie of her developing work.
Clunie is a founding member of the Playwriting Ensemble at Chicago's Regional Tony Award winning Victory Gardens Theater where her plays "North Star," "Living Green" and "Shoes" premiered. She has been recognized by the Children's Theater Foundation of America, the American Alliance for Theatre and Education and honored with a Chicago Jeff, a Scott McPherson, New York's New Professional Theater Award, Chicago Black Theatre Alliance Awards, among others. Currently, as part of Northwestern University's American Music Theatre Project, she is adapting her award winning drama "North Star" into a musical.
The staged reading and talkback for "Quark" is scheduled for 1 p.m. July 7.
'Life Electric'
Co-playwrights Kevin Kautzman and Charles Midwinter's "Life Electric" is inspired by James Delbourgo's "A Most Amazing Scene of Wonders." The play will take place in the world of the 1740s and 50s and tackle issues around electricity, performance and enlightenment at the root of the American character. The play will explore the diminishment of spectacle and wonder around scientific innovation as electricity (or the"electric fire") moves from the hands of a second-class showman and into the hands of Benjamin Franklin, a man who helped shape America as much as any other in the 18th century.
Kautzman is a North Dakota native pursuing his Master of Fine Arts degree with a focus in playwriting and screenwriting as a Michener Fellow at the University of Texas at Austin. He has received commissions from Red Eye and History Theatre, and his work has been performed, read or developed around the globe. He is an alumnus of the University of Minnesota, where he studied history and philosophy, and is a member of the Dramatists Guild, the Playwrights' Center, and Scriptworks.
Midwinter is currently pursuing his Ph.D. in the history of science at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. He has given talks at the American Physical Society, the American Institute of Physics, and the History of Science Society. His work has been supported by grants from the American Institute of Physics, the University of Minnesota, and a fellowship from the Max Planck Institute for History of Science in Berlin, Germany. Charles' short fiction has appeared in Asimov's Magazine of Science Fiction and Fantasy. He holds a bachelor of science degree in physics and an master's of education in science education, both from the University of Minnesota.
The staged reading and talkback for "Life Electric" is scheduled for 1 p.m. July 14.
See COLLIDER, page 26
Continued from page 21
'The Fate of the Universe'
Monica Byrne's "The Fate of the Universe" follows six members of the Caltech astrophysics department as they settle into their annual "The Fate of the Universe" fall retreat at a redwood forest lodge.There, the strongest evidence yet for how the universe will end is presented: in a slow dissipation – the "Big Freeze" – rather than a reunion, or a "Big Crunch." Over bag lunches, the characters discuss this finding. Their reactions range from logical to emotional, and they begin to question how this finding reflects on the nature of existence itself. On the last day, the group takes a hike in the woods, during which they all become separated and lost, leaving them nothing but time to ponder.
"Can intimacy be preserved in such a universe? Should we try?" said Byrne. "After each character reacts emotionally and logically to the idea of the 'Big Freeze,' it's not until they are left in alone in the woods – as death, as liberation, as a trap, as cold scientific fact."
Byrne is a scientist-turned-writer whose plays has been read, developed and produced at several theaters. She is a graduate of the Dirty South Improv Training Program, and in 2011 she was a finalist for an EST/Sloan Commission for her play "Nightwork." She was awarded the Mary Elvira Stevens Fellowship for travel to Ethiopia, India, and the South Pacific for research on her first novel, completed in November. She has also received grants from the Vermont Studio Center, La Muse Artist Retreat, and the Durham Arts Council. She holds degrees in biochemistry from Wellesley College and MIT, and is a member of the Dramatists Guild.
The staged reading and talkback for "The Fate of the Universe" is scheduled for 1 p.m. July 21.
About 'Collider 2012'
"Collider: New Play Project" partners area scientists and Fox Valley Repertory into both playwright and scientists' curiosity and desire for knowledge and human understanding. This collaboration will allow both artist and scientist to share their personal outlook and creativity while ushering in a new play. The final script will be work-shopped with professional directors and actors during the St. Charles Summer Theater Festival from July 7-21.
For this project, $3,999 is needed to support the playwrights, actors and directors for their time, research and talents. The campaign launched June 15 on the national Indiegogo fundraising site to give people the opportunity to support this project.
"We only have five weeks to reach this goal. We are grateful for the donors that instantly stepped up to the plate to support our efforts in bringing new works to our community," said development manager Scott Piner, in the release. "We are 10 percent of the way there, but need 90 percent more in order to keep this project going. Most of this money will go towards compensating these playwrights, who are putting countless hours, energy, and research into making this project a truly remarkable experience for the Fox Valley area."
Interested supporters can visit the online campaign directly at www.indiegogo.com/collider2012 or www.foxvalleyrep.org. Donation rewards include a signed script, a Collider "brainstorming" pad of paper and pen, the opportunity to meet the Collider team after a reading over appetizers and further conversations.
For more information on Fox Valley Repertory, the St. Charles Summer Theater Festival or the Collider New Play Project, visit www.summertheaterfest.org or www.foxvalleyrep.org.


text:
Browsing Working Papers (FI) by Year Published
Now showing items 1-20 of 68Next Page
Gormsen, Niels Joachim Christfort (Frederiksberg, 2018)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: This thesis concerns the empirical relation between risk and return in equities. It studies why the expected return on stocks as a whole varies over time and why there are predictable cross-sectional di↵erences in the return on individual stocks. The thesis consists of three chapters which can be read independently. The first chapter addresses why the expected return on the market portfolio varies over time. The market portfolio is a claim to all future cash flows earned by the firms in the stock market. I study the expected return to these future cash flows individually. I find that the expected return to the distant-future cash flows increases by more in bad times than the expected return to near-future cash flows does. This new stylized fact is important for understanding why the expected return on the market portfolio as a whole varies over time. In addition, it has strong implications for which economic model that drives the return to stocks. Indeed, I find that none of the canonical asset pricing models can explain this new stylized fact while also explaining the previously documented facts about stock returns. The second chapter, called Conditional Risk, studies how the expected return on individual stocks is influenced by the fact that their riskiness varies over time. We introduce a new "conditional-risk factor", which is a simple method for determining how much of the expected return to individual stocks that can be explained by time variation in their market risk, i.e. market betas. Using this new factor, we find that around 20% of the cross-sectional variation in expected stock returns worldwide can be explained by such time variation in market betas. The third chapter studies why stocks with low market betas have high risk-adjusted returns. To shed light on this low-risk e↵ect, we decompose all stocks' market betas into their volatility and their correlation with the market portfolio. We find that both stocks with lower volatility and stocks with lower correlation have higher risk-adjusted returns. The last fact, that stocks with low correlation have high risk-adjusted returns, is particularly important because it helps distinguish between competing theories of the low-risk e↵ect. Indeed, the high risk-adjusted returns to low-correlation stocks are consistent with leverage based theories of the low-risk e↵ect, but it is not immediately implied by competing behavioral theories we consider in the paper. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/9636
Files in this item: 1Niels Gormsen.pdf (5.568Mb)
Effects on Capitalization and Lending Decisions of BanksKragh, Jonas; Rangvid, Jesper (Frederiksberg, 2016)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: Unique and confidential Danish data allow us to identify how changes in disclosure requirements and bank-specific time-varying capital requirements affect banks'lending and capital accumu- lation decisions. We find that banks increase their capital ratios after capital requirements are increased, implying that resilience in the banking system is also increased. The increase in capital ratios is partly due to a modest reduction in lending. Using a policy changes, we show that banks react stronger to changes in capital requirements when these are public. Our results further suggest that the impact of capital requirements di¤er for small and large banks. Large banks raise their capital ratios more, reduce lending less, and accumulate more new capital compared to small banks. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/9314
Files in this item: 1Kragh_Rangvid_May 2016.pdf (284.6Kb)
Lunde, Jens (København, 2008)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: Housing markets in several countries are suffering. The prolonged and strong housing price rises of recent years have turned around. Historical records suggest that housing price drops may happen slowly but be large. Housing prices continue to fall because capital losses have substituted capital gains, housing equities are falling, and housing price expectations have become negative. Household debt had increased to the same degree as housing prices or even more in some countries. Access to mortgage and credit had improved and lenders used "cruise control" when financing still higher housing market prices. Now, housing demand is further weakened because access to credit has been tightened. During a downturn, owner-occupiers' housing price risk is increased and a growing number of owners have negative equity and payment troubles. Under these conditions, arrears and foreclosures will be widespread in owner-occupation. The effects on the wider economy of a housing price downturn are discussed. Not only does the lenders' increased credit risk lead to tightened credit access, losses threaten the banks and can create financial crises. Falling housing prices clearly depress the housing market and housing construction activities and thereby the contribution of residential investments to economic growth, while it is less obvious that average housing consumption and residential investments over the whole cycle are affected. The reduction of non-housing consumption as a result of a wealth effect is a reality for years for depressed owner-occupiers but in the aggregate, the housing wealth effect is more dubious. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/7141
Files in this item: 1wp 2008-1 jens lunde.pdf (199.0Kb)
Disclosed Values of Option-Based Compensation - Incompetence, Deliberate Underreporting or the Use of Expected Time to Maturity?Bechmann, Ken L.; Hjortshøj, Toke L. (København, 2007)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: New accounting standards require ¯rms to expense the costs of option-based compensation (OBC), but the associated valuations o®er many challenges for ¯rms. Earlier research has documented that ¯rms in the U.S. generally underreport the values of OBC by manipulating the inputs used for valuation purposes. This paper examines the values of OBC disclosed by Danish ¯rms. The results suggest that ¯rms experi ence some di±culties in valuing OBC, but interestingly, there is no clear evidence of deliberate underreporting. For example, there is no evidence that ¯rms use manipulated values for the Black-Scholes parameters in their valuations. Furthermore, ¯rms determine the expected time to maturity in a way that is generally consistent with the guidelines provided by the new accounting standards. The ¯ndings di®er from those of the U.S., but is consistent with the more limited use of OBC and the lower level of attention paid to these values in Denmark. However, the di®erences can also be due to the fact that several Danish ¯rms do not provide the information required regarding their OBC, which is clearly a very e®ective way of hiding the true values. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/7143
Files in this item: 12007_25.pdf (347.2Kb)
Model choice and volatility calibrationBajlum, Claus; Tind Larsen, Peter (København, 2007)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: When identifying relative value opportunities across credit and equity markets, the arbitrageur faces two major problems, namely positions based on model misspeci cation and mismeasured inputs. Using credit default swap data, this paper addresses both concerns in a convergence-type trading strategy. In spite of dierences in assumptions governing default and calibration, we nd the exact structural model linking the markets second to timely key inputs. Studying an equally-weighted portfolio of all relative value positions, the excess returns are insigni cant when based on a traditional volatility from historical equity returns. However, relying on an implied volatility from equity options results in a substantial gain in strategy execution and highly signi cant excess returns - even when small gaps are exploited. The gain is largest in the speculative grade segment, and cannot be explained from systematic market risk factors. Although the strategy may seem attractive at an aggregate level, positions on individual obligors can be very risky. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/7196
Files in this item: 1ssrn-id956839.pdf (424.3Kb)
Bajlum, Claus; Tind Larsen, Peter (København, 2007)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: This paper estimates the impact of accounting transparency on the term structure of CDS spreads for a large cross-section of rms. Using a newly developed measure of accounting transparency in Berger, Chen & Li (2006), we nd a downward-sloping term structure of transparency spreads. Estimating the gap between the high and low transparency credit curves at the 1, 3, 5, 7 and 10-year maturity, the transparency spread is insigni cant in the long end but highly signi cant and robust at 20 bps at the 1-year maturity. Furthermore, the eect of accounting transparency on the term structure of CDS spreads is largest for the most risky rms. These results are strongly supportive of the model by Du¢ e & Lando (2001), and add an explanation to the underprediction of short-term credit spreads by traditional structural credit risk models. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/7189
Files in this item: 1ssrn-id1006161.pdf (443.3Kb)
Løchte Jørgensen, Peter (København, 2006)[More information][Less information]
URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/7142
Files in this item: 1f_2006_09.pdf (430.9Kb)
J.M.P., Albin; Bjarne, Astrup Jensen; Anders, Muszta; Martin, Richter (København, 2006)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: This article deals with stochastic differential equations with volatility induced stationarity. We study of theoretical properties of such equations, as well as numerical aspects, together with a detailed study of three examples. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/7167
Files in this item: 1dcaf-wp-10.pdf (811.2Kb)
Lessons from EstoniaKhoury, Sarkis Joseph; Wihlborg, Clas (København, 2005)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: The literature on Currency Boards (CB) stops at the water edge in terms of dealing with the totality of the functions of a central bank. Monetary policy, and banking supervision can be "outsourced" in an open economy with substantial foreign direct investment (FDI) in the banking sector if political nationalism does not trump economic rationality. An orthodox CB renders the central banking function redundant in terms of interest rate and exchange rate determination. FDI in banking could perform the same role for the supervisory function of central banks. We use the case of Estonia to illustrate the feasibility of, and constraints on, outsourcing of central bank functions. A brief discussion of the Argentinian experience is used for contrast. Key words: Currency Board, Foreign Banks, Supervision, Regional Integration,outsourcing. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/7168
Files in this item: 1wplefic032005.pdf (270.1Kb)
Construction and information content of an investor-cost based rating of Danish mutual fundsBechmann, Ken L.; Rangvid, Jesper (København, 2005)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: We develop a new rating of mutual funds: the atpRating. The atpRating assigns crowns to each individual mutual fund based upon the costs an investor pays when investing in the fund in relation to what it would cost to invest in the fund's peers. Within each investment category, the rating assigns five crowns to funds with the lowest costs and one crown to funds with the highest costs. We investigate the ability of the atpRating to predict the future performance of a fund. We find that an investor who has invested in the funds with the lowest costs within an investment category would have obtained an annual risk-adjusted excess return that is approximately 3-4 percentage points higher per annum than if the funds with the highest costs had been invested in. We compare the atpRating with the Morningstar Rating. We show that one reason why the atpRating and the Morningstar Rating contain different information is that the returns Morningstar uses as inputs when rating funds are highly volatile whereas the costs the atpRating uses as inputs when rating funds are highly persistent. In other words, a fund that has low costs one year will most likely also have low costs the following year, whereas the return of a fund in a certain year generally contains only little information about the future return that the fund will generate. Finally, we have information on the investments in different mutual funds made by a small subgroup of investors known to have been exposed to both the atpRating and the Morningstar Rating, i.e. information is provided on how investors use the two ratings. We find that investors have a clear preference for high-rated funds. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/7194
Files in this item: 1endeligt_wp_2005_6.pdf (598.9Kb)
Armerin, Frederik; Björk, Tomas; Astrup Jensen, Bjarne (København, 2005)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: We investigate the possibility of an arbitrage free model for the term structure of interest rates where the yield curve only changes through a parallel shift. We consider HJM type forward rate models driven by a multidimensionalWiener process as well as by a general marked point process. Within this general framework we show that there does indeed exist a large variety of nontrivial parallel shift term structure models, and we also describe these in detail. We also show that there exists no nontrivial flat term structure model. The same analysis is repeated for the similar case, where the yield curve only changes through proportional shifts. Key words: bond market, term structure of interest rates, flat term structures. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/7137
Files in this item: 1
A Useful Way of Burning MoneyBechmann, Ken L.; Raaballe, Johannes (København, 2005)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: Firms pay out cash using both dividends and share repurchases. In many aspects these two means are similar, but one important difference is that dividends are generally taxed more heavily than share repurchases. Nevertheless firms persist in paying out large amounts in dividends. This paper provides an explanation for this dividend puzzle by developing a class of signaling models violating the "single-crossing" property in which information about the quality of the firm is asymmetric between the management and the shareholders. In these models a high-quality firm can always signal its quality by using share repurchases only. However, in certain cases share repurchases become costlier on the margin for a high-quality firm than for a low-quality imitator. In such cases, the high-quality firm signals most cost efficiently by means of a combination of share repurchases and taxable cash dividends financed by the issuance of new shares. Taxable cash dividends financed by the issuance of new shares then can be considered a positive kind of money burning whose role is to signal a firm's high quality. The implications of the models are consistent with several important empirical facts about dividends and share repurchases. Thus, this paper's main contribution is to examine a range of new signaling models that provides a role for taxable cash dividends and share repurchases and to derive their empirical implications. Key words: Dividends, Share Repurchases, Signaling, Single-Crossing Property, Money Burning JEL Classification: G35, D82 URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/7156
Files in this item: 1ken_bechmann_wp_elektronisk_samlet.pdf (203.9Kb)
Does negative equity exist as a permanent feature in the Danish housing market?Lunde, Jens (København, 2005)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: House and flat prices have been through a tremendous bust and boom cycle in Denmark. From 1986 to 1993 real prices for houses and flats dropped by one third on average, foreclosures accounted for around 1/6 of the house and flat turnovers in numbers, and in reality the market for owner-occupied houses and flats was in a crisis. Initiated by a strong interest rate drop and by an expansive finance policy, the market turned. From 1993H1 to 2004H1 real house prices increased 76% and real flat prices 128%. Moreover, Denmark has a leading position in the international household debt race and as in many other countries the fear of the consequences of a strong interest rate increase for the housing market is widespread. Therefore, in order to examine the financial stability among owner-occupiers, a sample of approx. 40,000 owner-occupier families with data at household level has been drawn from the tax statistics for each year from 1987 to 2003. Through the analysis it is shown that the distributions of the owner-occupiers' capital structure, measured by the net liability/housing wealth ratios, have more or less been the same throughout the 16 years, even during the long-lasting steep house and flat price rise. Moreover, since 1994 the median value of the net liability/income ratio has increased by 71% for all owner-occupiers and by 54% for owner-occupiers between 30-39 years of age.Finally, one last, important aspect of the financial stability of owner-occupiers, namely, their capacity to service their debt has been analysed. The owner-occupiers' net interest expenditures/ income ratios before tax have been nearly halved from 1987 to 2003. Most of the drop happened during the years of the "housing market failure". From 1994 on the ratios were more slightly reduced and were in 2003 at 8.8% (median value) for all owner-occupiers and 12.2% for owner-occupiers between 30-39 years of age. However, if the reductions of the tax rates for deducting interest expenditures are taken into account, the 2003 after-tax-ratios are only about 2 percentage points below the 1987 after-tax ratios. At March 2005, a new challenge facing Danish owner-occupiers is that 50% of their mortgages carry interest adjustment. Keywords: house prices, housing wealth, real estate wealth, housing debt, mortgage debt, personal wealth, personal finance, loan-to-value, debt-to-income, interest expenditures, interest-to-income, financial stability. JEL classifications: D 14, E 44, G 21, R 20, R 31. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/7197
Files in this item: 1endeligt_wp_jens_lunde_2005_3.pdf (1.494Mb)
Østrup, Finn (København, 2005)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: The article analyses how government spending is determined under different exchange rate regimes in the context of a small open economy. Assuming nominal wage contracts which last for one period and assuming a benevolent government which determines government spending to optimise a representative individual's utility, it is demonstrated that there are differences between exchange rate regimes with respect to the level of government spending. These differences arise first because a rise in government spending affects macroeconomic variables differently under different exchange rate regimes, and second because the government's inclination to expand government spending is affected by inflation which depends on the exchange rate regime. At low rates of inflation, the government is inclined to set a higher level of government spending under a fixed exchange rate regime than under a floating exchange rate regime in which the monetary authority optimises preferences which include an employment target and an inflation target. As government spending affects the representative individual's utility, the choice of exchange rate regime has an impact on welfare. Keywords: exchange rate regimes; fiscal policy; monetary union; inflation targeting. JEL classicification: E42, E61, E62, F33. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/7140
Files in this item: 1endeligt_wp_2005-1.pdf (290.0Kb)
Fiscal ImplicationsØstrup, Finn (København, 2005)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: The article examines how government spending is determined in a closed economy where the nominal wage is pre-set through contracts and the wage setters have perfect foresight regarding subsequent policy decisions. The monetary regime affects government spending because: (i) with a pre-set nominal wage, a given change in government spending has different effects on employment and inflation under different monetary regimes, and (ii) the authorities' inclination to expand government spending is affected by the inflation rate which depends on the monetary regime. If the costs related to inflation are high, a comparison between monetary regimes suggests that welfare is highest under nominal income targeting where the nominal income target is determined to bring about price stability. Keywords: Monetary regimes; fiscal policy; monetary non-neutrality. JEL classicification: E42, E61, E62. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/7174
Files in this item: 1endeligt_wp_2005-2.pdf (237.6Kb)
Astrup Jensen, Bjarne (København, 2004)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: We describe the background and the basic funding mechanisms for the type of adjustable rate mortgage loans that were introduced in the Danish market in 1996. Each loan is funded separately by tap issuing pass-through mortgage bonds ("strict balance principle"). The novelty is a funding mechanism that uses a roll-over strategy, where long term loans are funded by sequentially issuing short term pass-through bonds, and the first issuer of these loans obtained a patent on the funding principles in 1999. Publicly available descriptions of the principles leave an impression of very complicated numerical algorithms. The algorithms described here show that the essentials can be reduced to a "back of an envelope" complexity. Keywords: Adjustable rate mortgages, balance principle, patent, yield curve riding URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/7173
Files in this item: 1endeligt_wp_2004_11.pdf (244.1Kb)
Lyse Hansen, Thomas; Astrup Jensen, Bjarne (København, 2004)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: It is a delicate matter to trade spot products and financial derivatives in energy markets. Op- posite to bond and stock markets, the underlying assets are real products and a significant part of the demand for them represents a real need for the products, which can only be substituted away with some difficulties or, in some cases, only in a prohibitively costly manner. This is particularly true in the spot market, where the demand is almost always met, but where the spot price processes can be quite different from the spot price processes conventionally used in the pricing of derivatives. This pattern of real demand is also the main reason for the existence of the well-known convenience yield in energy markets. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/7185
Files in this item: 1endeligt_wp__2004_10_.pdf (365.3Kb)
Christensen, Bent Jesper; Raahauge, Peter (København, 2004)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: We consider a random utility extension of the fundamental Lucas (1978) equilibrium asset pricing model. The resulting structural model leads naturally to a likelihood function. We estimate the model using U.S. asset market data from 1871 to 2000, using both dividends and earnings as state variables. We find that current dividends do not forecast future utility shocks, whereas current utility shocks do forecast future dividends. The estimated structural model produces a sequence of predicted utility shocks which provide better forecasts of future long-horizon stock market returns than the classical dividend-price ratio. KEYWORDS: Randomutility, asset pricing, maximumlikelihood, structuralmodel, return predictability URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/7135
Files in this item: 1endeligt_wp_peter_raahauge_2004_7.pdf (270.6Kb)
Lando, David; Mortensen, Allan (København, 2004)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: This paper investigates the pricing of step-up bonds, i.e. corporate bonds with provisions stating that the coupon payments increase as the credit rating level of the issuer declines. To assess the risk-neutral rating transition probabilities necessary to price these bonds, we introduce a new calibration method within the reduced-form rating-based model of Jarrow, Lando, and Turnbull (1997). We also treat split ratings and adjust for rating outlook. Step-up bonds have been issued in large amounts in the European telecom sector, and we find that, through most of the sample, step-up bonds issued by the two largest issuers have traded at a discount relative to comparable fixed-coupon bonds from the same issuers. Our findings cannot be attributed to traditional liquidity factors, and they suggest that issuing step-up bonds increased the cost of capital for the issuers. Keywords: defaultable bonds, step-up coupons, rating-based models JEL classification: G12, G13 URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/7184
Files in this item: 1endeligt_wp_2004-9.pdf (412.0Kb)
Sørensen, Carsten; Trolle, Anders Bjerre (København, 2004)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: We derive an explicit solution to the portfolio problem of a power utility investor with preferences for wealth at a ¯nite investment horizon. The investor can invest in assets with return dynamics described as part of a general multivariate model. The modeling framework encompasses discrete-time VAR-models where some of the state-variables (e.g. expected excess returns) may not be directly observable. A realistic multivariate model is estimated and applied to analyze the portfolio implications of investment horizon and return predictability when real interest rates and expected excess returns on stock and bonds are not directly observed but must be estimated as part of the problem faced by the investor. The solution exhibits small variability in portfolio allocations over time compared to the case when excess returns are assumed observable. JEL Classification: G11 Keywords: Portfolio choice, predictability, VAR, unobserved state-variables, hedging demands URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/7151
Files in this item: 1endeligt_wp_2004_8_030105.pdf (427.9Kb)
Now showing items 1-20 of 68Next Page


text:
pharmjod wrote:The Hoth Wampa set, Freeco Speeder and Plo Koon's ship are all back in stock online as I type this at 10:22 am EST if anyone missed them yesterday.
etcknight wrote:Thanks for the update. IMO, this is the price the Freeco Speeder should have always been.
Telorc wrote:if you live in greater Vancouver let me know i can always tag something extra onto my order as long as you are willing to share shipping costs !
legomason wrote:It's amazing how many companies are using Lego's Collectible Minifig blind bags: Megablok, Playmobil, K'Nex.
Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 4 guests


text:
"I figure that about 80 percent of the boudin purchased in Louisiana is consumed before the purchaser has left the parking lot, and most of the rest is polished off in the car. In other words, Cajun boudin not only doesn't get outside the state; it usually doesn't even get home."
– Calvin Trillin, from his essay, "The Missing Links: In Praise of the Cajun Foodstuff That Doesn't Get Around."
* * *
Food is a tie that binds, a constant, an equalizer, or in the words of James Beard: "Food is our common ground, a universal experience." Food can also function as one of the defining characteristics of regional and cultural identity. Boudin, a unique but simple culinary concoction of pork, rice, onions and various other herbs and spices squeezed in to a sausage casing and served hot, is one of those foods.
Throughout the area defined as Acadiana or Cajun Country, of which Lafayette is the hub, boudin is ubiquitous: Signs and banners signal passersby to stop and grab a link of HOT BOUDIN where it will be pulled from a steamer or slow cooker, weighed, wrapped in butcher paper, and usually handed over along with some napkins or paper towels so it can be eaten right on the spot. Displaced Cajuns frequently fill ice chests with links from their favorite boudin spots and relish the opportunity to share them with the uninitiated in other places. In Acadiana, boudin inspires fond memories of good times with family and friends as well as heartfelt debates about whose recipe is "best." To say that folks in south Louisiana are passionate about their boudin is an understatement. Perhaps obsessive is more appropriate, since in-depth discussions about the crispness of the casing, rice to meat ratio, eating method, appropriate spice, and best texture are all too common when people start talking about their favorite "link."
Although the archival record may never reveal the precise origin of Louisiana's boudin sausage, we do know that it traces its culinary lineage, like the Cajun people trace their ancestry, back to France. The French eat a sausage called "boudin blanc" (white boudin) which is similar to Cajun boudin almost solely through its nomenclature; for French boudin blanc is a highly perishable sausage made with pork, chicken, and/or veal mixed with milk, cognac, and spices. While this is certainly a delightful treat, its flavor bears no resemblance to the link you will sink your teeth into in Louisiana. When the French Acadians (today's Cajuns) made their way out of Nova Scotia, after having been expelled by the British in 1755, they adapted their traditions and culture to their new surroundings. Many made their way to the bayous, prairies, and backwoods of Louisiana where surviving required ingenuity, flexibility, and creativity. So, when they set out to make use of a freshly butchered hog, and to make good use of every single part of that animal, it wouldn't have been such a stretch for them to mix the pork scraps with the seasonings at hand, push it into the hog's intestines and call it what they had always called such a sausage: boudin. The German immigrants who arrived in southwest Louisiana during the 1720s brought with them a talent for sausage-making and certainly also affected the region's boudin traditions. Later, once large-scale rice production began in Louisiana at the end of the nineteenth century, cooks added rice to boudin for filler and flavor. Today in places like St. Martinville, at La Grande Boucherie des Cajuns (a communal hog butchering) held the Sunday before Mardi Gras, the age old practice of making boudin is embraced and the custom and community spirit continues to be passed from one generation to the next.
Regional variations exist from parish to parish and neighborhood to neighborhood, but the best links always come from specialty meat shops, grocery stores, and restaurants that make it in-house. You are as likely to find a true boudin craftsman in a gas station convenience store with an added kitchen as you are in an established meat market. For many, boudin is the essential Cajun fast food, quickly filling the hunger void at any time of the day or night. However, the most common time to eat a link is in the morning, and many Cajuns refer to a cold soft drink and a link of boudin as a "Cajun Breakfast." But this porky pleasure is more versatile yet, including a myriad of variations worth trying. Boudin rouge (red/blood boudin: made with copious quantities of pig's or cow's blood) is hard to come by these days since modern health codes make the process too complex to be profitable for most producers, though we do include a couple of oral histories herein with makers of blood boudin. Some people, particularly transplants from Texas, insist on grilling or smoking their links. Boudin balls are made by rounding the sausage filling into balls and then breading and deep-frying it. A boudin sandwich, primarily made at home, is the filling smeared between two pieces of white bread. Boudinalaya (a twist on jambalaya) is a budding new variation. And many boudin stops tout nouveau fillings: shrimp, crawfish, seafood, chicken, and even alligator. New-fangled creations pop up all the time.
To begin understanding why such a simple food gets so much attention in Acadiana, one must venture out, oftentimes into the countryside, to meat markets and corner grocery stores where boudin craftsmen, or as some call them, boudiniers, employ generations-old recipes to make a product so versatile that it is as properly enjoyed as a meal-on-the-go as it is stuck with toothpicks and served from silver platters at the finest wedding receptions. Still, when it is all said and done, at its best, boudin is about tradition as much as it is about taste: the links shared between a father and son on their way to the duck blind, between buddies as they venture out on an early morning fishing trip, or between friends who set out on a Saturday morning "boudin run" become ritualistic. George Bernard Shaw may not have been referring specifically to boudin when he said, "There is no love sincerer than the love of food," but in south Louisiana he certainly could have been.
– Bob Carriker
Bob Carriker is a history professor, SFA member, and boudin-lover. He is also co-creator of boudinlink.com, a comprehensive taste guide to boudin in south Louisiana.
This project is underwritten by McIlhenny Company, makers of TABASCO®


text:
|Get the Book
Delivered to Your Door!
Automotive Maintenance Merit Badge Requirements
|*NOTE: Access to an automobile or truck (with an owners manual) is needed to meet some of the requirements for this merit badge.
1) Discuss with your counselor the safety equipment, tools, and clothing used while checking or repairing a motor vehicle. Use this equipment, tools, and/or clothing (when needed or called for) in meeting the requirements for this badge.
2) Explain how an internal combustion engine operates and the differences between gasoline and diesel engines.
3) Demonstrate your knowledge of general maintenance. Do the following:
A) Demonstrate how to check the fluid level of the following:
* Brake fluid * Engine Oil * Coolant * Power steering fluid
* Windshield washer fluid * Transmission fluid (automatic & standard)
B) Check battery fluid, if possible, and the condition of battery terminals.
C) Show the location of fuse boxes and the size of fuses, and demonstrate the proper replacement of burned-out fuses.
D) Review the maintenance chart in the owner's manual. Explain the requirements and time limits.
1) Choose a car cleaner and wax product for the vehicle. Explain clear-coat paint and the precautions necessary for care. Clean and wax the vehicle, both inside and out.
2) Use a vinyl and rubber protectant (on vinyl tops, rubber door seals, sidewalls, etc.) and explain the importance of this protectant.
F) Demonstrate how to check the condition and tension of belts and hoses.
G) Demonstrate the following:
1) Check the lighting in the vehicle, including instrument, warning, and exterior bulbs.
2) Check headlight alignment.
H) Demonstrate how to check the vehicle exhaust system.
4) Demonstrate your knowledge of tires. Do the following:
1) Explain the difference between tire and vehicle manufacturer's information specifications and demonstrate where to find those specifications.
2) Demonstrate how to check pressure and properly inflate a tire.
3) Using the manufacturer's jack supplied with the vehicle:
* Demonstrate how to engage the jack correctly on the vehicle.
* Demonstrate how to change a tire correctly.
1) Explain the difference between bias-belted tires and radial-belted tires.
2) Diagram and explain in writing how to rotate bias-belted and radial-belted tires.
3) Using the manufacturer's guidelines, rotate the tires on the vehicle.
1) Explain the caster, camber, and toe-in adjustments on wheel alignment.
2) Explain why wheel alignment is important to the life of a tire.
D) Explain the purpose of the lateral-wear bar indicator.
E) Explain how to dispose of old tires properly.
5) Demonstrate your knowledge of engine lubrication. Do the following:
A) Explain the purpose of motor oil.
B) Explain where to find the recommended type and amount of oil to be used in the vehicle engine.
C) Explain the difference in viscosity (10W/30 versus SAE 30).
D) Perform an oil change and oil filter change on the vehicle.
E) Explain how to dispose of the used oil and filter properly.
6) Cooling system. Do the following:
A) Explain the need for coolant in the cooling system.
B) Flush and change the engine coolant in the vehicle according to the manufacturer's instructions.
C) Explain how to dispose of used coolant properly
Requirements continued on next page
7) Demonstrate your knowledge of a fuel system. Do the following:
A) Explain how the air and fuel system work together.
B) Explain how a carburetor works and how a fuel-injection system works.
C) Explain how an on-board computer works with the fuel injection system. Show where the computer is located.
D) Explain why it is necessary to have an air filter and a fuel filter. Locate them and change them according to the manufacturer's recommendations.
E) Explain what fuel additives are, for both the carburetor and the fuel injection systems.
8) Demonstrate your knowledge of ignition and electrical systems. Do the following:
A) Diagram and explain the parts of the electrical system.
B) Explain the cylinder engine sequence.
C) Explain the spark plug gap and, if practical, change the spark plug. (Use an engine with spark plugs that can be reached without tilting the engine.
D) Demonstrate how to connect jumper cables on your battery properly. Explain how to jump-start a vehicle.
E) Explain the difference between electronic and points ignition systems.
9) Demonstrate your knowledge of a drive train. Do the following:
A) Diagram the drive train and explain the different parts.
B) Explain the difference between automatic and standard transmissions.
C) Explain the types of automatic transmission fluid.
D) Explain the types of lubricants used in a standard transmission and in the differential.
E) Explain the difference between front-wheel, real-wheel, and four-wheel drive.
F) Explain the gear ratio of the differential.
10) Demonstrate your knowledge of a brake system. Do the following:
A) Explain the brake system (including anti-lock systems) and how it operates.
B) Explain the differences between disc and drum systems.
C) Demonstrate checking conditions of a vehicle brake system. After checking the brake system, make recommendations for repairs (if necessary).
11) Explain the purpose, importance, and limitations of passive restraints.
Source: Boy Scout Requirements, 33215, revised 2004


text:
There was a time when the Patriots and Buffalo Bills were engaged in a competitive series. That ended when Bill Belichick arrived in New England in 2000. The Patriots lost on a field goal in overtime in their first meeting that season. Since then, they've won 22 of 24, including 11 straight here.
There was a time when the Patriots and Buffalo Bills were engaged in a competitive series. That ended when Bill Belichick arrived in New England in 2000.
The Patriots lost on a field goal in overtime in their first meeting that season. Since then, they've won 22 of 24, including 11 straight here.
Although 14 of those wins were by double digits, the Bills were frequently in the games — sometimes even leading! — before falling apart and fading away.
That includes a 52-28 setback in Week 4, a game they were up by 14 points in the third quarter before getting trampled by a New England offense that, despite the absence of left guard Logan Mankins and tight end Aaron Hernandez, produced touchdowns on six successive drives.
"We have gotten good leads in games and then our execution just goes out the window," Bills veteran running back Fred Jackson acknowledged. "We can't afford that. We know the great coaching staff over there is able to make adjustments fast and things like that, so we have to counteract that with our play."
The Bills had such high hopes entering the season after an active, vault-emptying offseason. But they haven't played well, losing four of five to drop to 3-5. They have yet to beat a team with a winning record.
While they're a respectable 2-3 on the road, the wins were over Cleveland and, in overtime, Arizona. The losses were to the Jets (20 points), San Francisco (42) and Houston (11).
Inconsistency has defined their play to date, the best examples coming in their two most recent defeats.
Buffalo put up 34 points against Tennessee, but watched the defense surrender 35. Last week, the defense — despite allowing 374 yards — held the mighty Texans to 21 points only to see the offense go 0 for 3 in the red zone and finish with nine points.
"I think the biggest thing for us is going out there and just playing fundamentally sound," defensive end Mario Williams said.
The Bills, who have finished last in the AFC East four years running, will be either a favorite or a slight underdog in their final seven games, five of which are in Buffalo. And they have three division games remaining.
So they believe a playoff berth, something last attained in 1999, is still within reach — provided they win today.
"To get to where we have to be, this is a must win for us," Jackson said. "We get a great chance to go into a great place that we haven't won in a long time and turn this thing around. It's a huge focus for us. We can't lose any more games and expect to do things that we want to get done."
The focus in Buffalo last week was on the lack of touches given to running back C.J. Spiller against Houston.
The third-year pro, by far the Bills' most dynamic offensive performer, rushed six times for 39 yards and caught all five passes he was targeted for, producing 63 yards. That adds up to 11 touches at a healthy average of 9.3 yards.
"Well, I don't know," Belichick responded shrewdly when asked if he was surprised by Spiller's lack of inactivity. "I'm sure he is being used. Even when he doesn't get the ball, he's still a guy you've got to defend."
Strangely enough, the Bills consistently have been content to put the ball in the hands of erratic quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick rather than the explosive Spiller.
Spiller, drafted ninth overall out of Clemson in 2010, is averaging a league-leading 7.2 yards per carry.
"That's unheard of, really, these days, unless the guy has only had like two carries," Belichick said.
But Spiller has the fewest carries among the top 26 rushers in the league even though he ranks 15th with 562 yards.
Add in his contributions to the passing game (24 catches) and he's averaging 6.1 yards a touch. According to ESPN, that ranks third among all running backs behind Tampa Bay's Doug Martin (7.4) and Minnesota's Adrian Peterson (6.4).
Something doesn't add up there. This will be a tough week to rework the numbers, what with the Patriots checking in second in the league in run defense, but the Bills' backs nonetheless have done some lobbying on their own behalf.
"We want to have that weight put on our shoulders," Jackson said. "We want to be guys that carry us to a victory. Hopefully, we get that opportunity, go out, and we are able to make some plays for us."
If so, the game — unlike most in the series over the last decade — could be competitive. For a while, at least.
Rich Garven's predication: Patriots 34, Bills 20


text:
The top ten cities in which to wait until the last minute before filing your tax return.
Another weird Kelly Family song with a video. Not about not pee-peeing the bed anymore.
New Mexico voter fraud by "foreign nationals" under investigation by the State Police.
Electronic books often come with DRM locks. Is "electronic book" an oxymoron?
"Lovely, expensive and about nineteen:" Flapper Dictionary!
Details on the British submariner who shot a couple of his fellow submariners. Did he do it because visiting dignitaries were hogging the head?
In order to keep their economy moving, China just keeps on building. Whole cities. With barely any inhabitants. Strange video.
Yeah, you want elf ears!
Not everyone is still grumbling over the size of their paycheck. Warning: same old story.
Pakistani version of Sesame Street.
Russia: MOON BASE BY 2030!
Gil Robbins, folk musician, actor and father to Tim Robbins is dead.


text:
Impact 3D Block
Impact 3D Flip
Impact C-Push
Impact Pop
Impact Pull
Impact Spin
Impact Spring
Adobe Premiere Pro CC 2020-2014
Windows and Mac
Graphics card supporting OpenGL 3
More info
Premiere Pro Video Transitions:
Final Cut Pro Video Transitions:
Transition Pack 1
Transition Pack 2
Transition Pack 3
Transition Pack 4
Bounce Pack
Motion Tween
FCP FREE Transitions
Installation Guides
Filmimpact.net is a developer of video transitions for Apple Final Cut Pro and Adobe Premiere Pro. Read more about us.
You can download our Final Cut Pro plugins and Premiere Pro Plugins from our plugin page.
Our Terms of Use and Privacy-Policy


text:
- Fujitsu Globally
- About Fujitsu in Australia
- Resource Centre
Fujitsu Australia Limited (Fujitsu) respects your right to privacy and is committed to protecting any personal information you provide to us or is generated by Fujitsu about you. Fujitsu is bound by the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (the Privacy Act) and in particular, the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) contained in the Privacy Act. The APPs govern the way in which Fujitsu collects, uses, discloses, stores, manages and allows access to personal information. A summary of the APPs is set out in Appendix A to this policy.
Generally, Fujitsu considers personal information to be confidential and will only disclose personal information where it is necessary for Fujitsu to perform its day-to-day operations. Where appropriate, Fujitsu will handle personal information in accordance with the employee records exemption and the related bodies corporate exemption in the Privacy Act.
Fujitsu may modify this Privacy Policy from time to time and if it does so, it will post any updated Privacy Policy on this website. We encourage you to check this website regularly to ensure that you are aware of our current Privacy Policy.
This Privacy Policy should be read in conjunction with (and is subject to): (i) any other privacy or collection statement that Fujitsu may provide to you when it collects your personal information or provides a particular product or service; and (ii) the terms and conditions of use which govern your access and use of the Fujitsu website (www.fujitsu.com/au/) or any other website owned or operated by Fujitsu (Website), Fujitsu products and Fujitsu services.
By using our products and services and accessing any of our Websites (whether by mobile phone, PC, tablet or any other means), you are deemed to agree to the provisions of this Privacy Policy.
You may request more information about the way Fujitsu manages the personal information it holds by contacting the Fujitsu Privacy Officer using any of the contact details below.
Fujitsu collects the personal information it needs from customers (and potential customers) to provide them with products, services and information. Fujitsu also collects personal information that is required for its business operations, such as personal information about employees, contractors and suppliers.
Fujitsu generally collects personal information directly from you when you interact with us by telephone, email, facsimile, post and over the internet. However, personal information about third parties may also be provided to us by our customers or affiliates. For example if you are not a Fujitsu customer, one of our customers may provide your name and contact details to us during the customer application process for the purpose of providing us with trade reference information.
The following are examples of the types of personal information collected by Fujitsu, how it is collected and the purposes for which it is collected.
In order to provide you with our products and services and to enable us to fulfil our obligations under any contract with you, we may collect personal information about you including your name, contact information, postal and email address, billing information, transaction and credit or debit card information and any other information that is reasonably required in the circumstances. If you do not provide us the required information, we may not be able to provide our products, services or information to you, or otherwise perform our obligations under any contract with you.
You may also choose to provide us with your name or other contact details when you call us by phone, write to us or email us, so that we can respond to your query and send you information about our products and services. We may also request your personal information through our website, for example, if you apply to become a Fujitsu customer on our Company Details page.
If you are not a Fujitsu customer, your personal information may be provided to us by our customers where we provide products and services in relation to our customers' data and that data contains your personal information.
If you are not a Fujitsu customer, your personal information may also be provided to us by our customers (or potential customers) during the customer application process for the purpose of providing us with trade or credit references. In such cases, where it is practical and reasonable for us to do so, we will provide you with a notice informing you that we have collected your personal information.
If you have agreed or asked, we may use your personal information to provide you with information about products, promotions, special offers and other information which relates to our products or services or which we believe may be of interest to you. We may send you such information by email, telephone, SMS text message and/or any other form of electronic messages, post, fax or smartphone applications, social networking websites or any other method which becomes relevant from time to time.
When you provide us with information about yourself, you will usually be given the option to let us know that you do not want that information to be used for direct marketing purposes. In any case, you can change your mind about your preferences in respect of direct marketing at any time by contacting the Fujitsu Privacy Officer using any of the contact details below.
When you apply for a job or contract with us or otherwise do business with us, we may collect certain information from you, from any recruitment consultant and from your previous employers and others who may be able to provide information to us to assist us in our decision on whether or not to make you an offer of employment or engage you under a contract or to otherwise do business with you. If you are made, and accept, an offer of employment with us, this Privacy Policy will not apply to our acts and practices in relation to employee records about you as a current or former employee to the extent those records are exempt from the operation of the Privacy Act.
Fujitsu also collects personal information in relation to its general business operations and administration. This may include information about individuals who are, or are employed by, our suppliers (including service and content providers), contractors, related companies, agents, advisors, corporate customers and business partners.
Fujitsu collects biometric information from employees and contractors who require unescorted access to facilities which use biometric authentication as a means of access control.
This information is collected to allow the employee or contactor to use biometric authentication systems to access facilities equipped with this means of access control.
The Biometric information collected by Fujitsu for this purpose is not shared with any other organisation.
When an employee or contractor ceases to have a need to access a facility which uses biometrics for access control, their account is disabled and the biometric information stored in the authentication system is deleted.
Fujitsu collects the personal information it needs from customers (and potential customers) to provide them with products, services and information. Fujitsu also collects personal information that is required for its business operations, such as personal information about employees, contractors and suppliers.
In order to perform the functions described above, it may be necessary for Fujitsu to disclose personal information overseas and to third parties. Typically, we may disclose personal information to the following people in the following circumstances:
Some of these people or organisations may be located outside Australia and it is likely that your personal information will be disclosed overseas. Our international offices and partners are located throughout the world making it impractical to list each country here. If you would like further information about the countries where your personal information is likely to be disclosed or stored, please contact the Fujitsu Privacy Officer on the contact details below.
In all cases, by providing your personal information to us, you consent to the disclosure of your personal information outside Australia, and acknowledge and agree that Fujitsu is not required to ensure that the overseas recipient handles your information in compliance with the APPs. However, where practicable in the circumstances, Fujitsu will take reasonable steps to ensure that overseas recipients use and disclose personal information in a manner consistent with this Privacy Policy.
We regard the security of your personal information as a priority and implement a number of physical and electronic measures to protect it and our records generally.
Our electronic records are protected by restricted password access, backed up daily and stored off site. We remind you, however, that the Internet is not a secure environment and although all care is taken, we cannot guarantee the security of information you provide to us via our website or other electronic means.
Our paper records containing personal information are stored in secure cabinets or rooms which are locked after hours or archived offsite at professional offsite archive centres.
As indicated above, personal information may be stored in Australia and overseas. Under those circumstances, Fujitsu takes reasonable steps to impose equivalent physical and logical security measures.
You can request access to your personal information, or request that it is changed or corrected, at any time by contacting the Fujitsu Privacy Officer using the contact details below. Fujitsu will give you access to that information within a reasonable time of your request by allowing you to inspect records or giving you an electronic copy, photocopy, printout or an accurate summary of the information.
Please note, however, that there are a limited number of situations provided by the Privacy Act where Fujitsu is allowed to refuse access to personal information. If Fujitsu refuses you access to your personal information, Fujitsu will provide you with an explanation of the refusal and will give you access to any part of the information which is not exempt from access.
Fujitsu will require evidence of your identity before giving you access to your personal information.
If you become aware that personal information held by Fujitsu or any of its contractors or suppliers may have been lost, or used or disclosed without authorisation, please notify the FAL Privacy Officer (email@example.com) as soon as practicable.
Fujitsu will comply with the Privacy Amendment (Notifiable Data Breaches) Act 2017 in relation to any suspected or actual eligible data breach, including investigating any suspected breach and notifying the relevant individuals and Privacy Commissioner as required.
If you wish to complain about a breach or possible breach of the APPs by Fujitsu concerning its handling of your personal information, please contact Fujitsu's Privacy Officer using the contact details below. Fujitsu will acknowledge receipt of your complaint within 14 days and use its best endeavours to resolve the complaint to your satisfaction.
If you are not happy with Fujitsu's response, you may ask the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner to investigate your complaint further.
If you have any questions about Fujitsu's Privacy Policy or if you would like a copy of this Privacy Policy in another format or a copy of the APPs, please contact:
The Privacy Officer
Fujitsu Australia Limited
118 Talavera Road
Macquarie Park NSW
E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
Share this page


text:
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
I'm a Freakin' Psychic and Al Gore Knows It!
Serendipity? Psychic powers? You be the judge. If Tony -freakin'-Robbins were locked in a room with Al Gore he would pop a gun in his mouth within an hour. Yeah, I know the last sentence has an indeterminate reference and it's on purpose because I really don't know whether Tony would kill Al or himself or do the whole murder-suicide thing.
19 comments:
I somehow don't understand the dilemia. My wife and I are both students, both work part time, and yet we somehow manage to afford quality health care...and I can tell you right now that we don't make more than $25,000 a year. And if you calculate in the cost of living, and the fact that the government already take another 1/3 of or total income, according to most, we are to poor to have health care. I think that some people just have their priorities mixed up.ReplyDelete
dear d-man,ReplyDelete
according to many you do not exist. i therefore must ignore your comment though on the off chance that you might exist, perhaps in a country with government-funded-health-care-as-a-right, i do salute you, or the idea of you anyway. i do wish you were real. either that or you are a hired shill of the evil republicans.
The other thing that really pisses me off is that people in general no longer take personal responsibility. When did everything become a "right" all of the sudden? Forgive me, but I've felt the need to rant this day of all days. I've also always been a firm believer in the least the government interfers, the better we all generally do. Why can't believe give up their right to spend $$ on their smokes, their cable tv, those oh so needed cell phones so everyone can keep in touch with me all day, and every other little thing that is deemed a "neccesity"(and by this I mean a WANT) in life and do themeselves a favor? How can they demand that I pay for their health care when they refuse to take care of themeselves? I know that most of this has been address on other sites, or by you guys, but it just generally feels good to tell someone how much everyone is just really pissing me off these days. Anyways, keep up the good work guys, I do enjoy your blogs. As of right now I am an aspiring Pre-med/Biomedical Engineering student, but that might change if we ever do go to the "ideal" form of health care. I'm sure that they're easy hells to put myself through to provide for my family if that ever comes to be.ReplyDelete
thanks. if you are coming to these realizations while still in undergrad or post-grad then you are far ahead of your peers.
for medicine: i see and do things that very few on the planet see and do and it actually means something a lot of times.
for engineering: everything else, gratification there but not immediate, regular sleep, intellectually demanding.
go with your passion and you will be fine. for me, i'm still working on it.
When the day comes that someone pulls the mask off Gore to reveal that he is a robot programmed by George Soros with help from Rosie (SEE Westworld-great movie concept) I will say I told you so to you idiot lemmings that buy all his bull shit socialist wealth redistribution crap.ReplyDelete
So far this year Gore and Hillary both have opened thier mouth about healthcare and displayed a fundamental (and near total) lack of knowledge about the subject.ReplyDelete
- Anonymous9:15 AM, October 17, 2007
D-MAN: 25k a year, a grad student and you still believe in personal responsibility and that the government should keep the fuck away??? I love you... in a very not-gay way.ReplyDelete
cat: Yul rocks! did you know harvard med school grad Michael Crichton wrote it...
- Anonymous9:18 AM, October 17, 2007
911: I can't see the linked video (firewall shit at work)... what's the tony robbins reference?ReplyDelete
look at the video at home after taking a big dose of smack and some zofran. tony robbins is the most positive person in the world as far as i can tell and gives motivational talks. he has white teeth and is cut like a statue.
click on his link if you need help with maintaining a postitive attitude.
later home-slice
- Anonymous9:40 AM, October 17, 2007
I'll bet Gore never had to worry about paying a doctor bill or anything. Yeah, he claims he wants free healthcare but I doubt that the wealthy (to include Gore)will be sitting in some government health office after a six to twelve month wait to see a physician. I am guessing national healthcare will mean overcrowded clinics with little funding and poor physician retention for the general populous and cash only private physicians for the wealthy.ReplyDelete
There *has* to be a better way to do things
- Anonymous9:55 AM, October 17, 2007
anonymous: you are right: It's called Great Britain.ReplyDelete
I was introduced to a comedian by a friend, who I think, the comedian that is, is pretty funny. His name is Brian Regan. You can find his stuff on youtube.com. I'll try to post it here, put it may not work. Yeah, will it's not letting me embed that particular HTML tag. So if you have some time to kill and perhaps nothing better to do, than take some time to look him up.ReplyDelete
Brian Regan is FUNNY. Listened to his stuff for some time.
didn't know the Westworld reference, but it was one of my favorite movies as a kid. Kind of creeped me out though.
Give me a six pack, some popcorn, and Westworld and Soilent Green, and I can't think of a better way to kill 5 hours.
follow this link for good stuff...ReplyDelete
Hey, what the snot? I can't see the Alpha Gore YouTube...sez the video is no longer available. Did the dems pull it?ReplyDelete
dear lynn,ReplyDelete
youtube ran into a copyright issue with 'current tv'. see new link and brace yourself.
Ooooo my holy liver...this is...horrible. Just horrible. "Let's have universal health care for all; it's our right." Guess I can figure out where hubby's six-figure income is headed - right into the hands of those who don't want to be here legally, get an education, get a good job, you know, like, excel in life. After all, where's the incentive when they can simply pick our pockets? Heck, I can't afford to be a Democrat.ReplyDelete
Al Gore: "To eliminate all this unnecessary paperwork we need government run insurance."ReplyDelete
Now you'll have to excuse me I just got some paperwork from my billing company -- ah yes a 40 page form from medicare requiring me to sign in 17 different places in order to get reimbursed. And don't forget to get it notarized.
Thanks for taking on the former VP; glad to know I'm not the only person who thinks he's a complete idiot. I'd like someone to show me how "universal single payer, government provided ..." healthcare "wouldn't be run by the government"!ReplyDelete
I used to feel sorry for Algore; you know, a Daddy's boy who never could establish his own fame (other than inventing the Internet); now I don't have to, because he can assume his rightful place beside such luminaries as Jimmy Carter and Yasser Arafat.


text:
Our Top Ten Blog Posts by Readership in 2012
Originally published on January 4, 2012
Though I work full-time on social media for the World Bank, my career started in public broadcasting. "Radio is the modern version of oral tradition," a former journalism professor of mine would say, likening radio to the way in which people have communicated for years: using stories, narratives, to connect, to break down complex ideas into concrete pieces. That line resonated with me, summing up the power of radio to connect people using the shared experience of a broadcast.
Radio was – and still is - one of the most intimate forms of media ever created. It comes right into our homes, our cars, our showers (if you are lucky enough to have a shower). I'd wager that in any city in the world, people spend more time with the radio than they do any other form of media.
Unless they're on Facebook. That's different. I can't recall when Facebook started getting more of my time than did the radio. Probably not long after I joined Facebook, in 2007. Four years ago, Facebook had 30 million users.
Contrast that with Monday's news that Facebook has surpassed 600 million users worldwide. And if you're one of the 81% of World Bank Facebook subscribers who are outside the United States, then you'll be happy to know that Facebook's next frontier isn't the developed-world iPad, it's the humble developing-world feature phone. Alluding to the chunky shape of low-tech phones, a WIRED blogger nicely put it: "Got a Candy Bar Phone? There's a Facebook app for that."
There's nothing so personal as one's mobile phone. We carry it everywhere. Lots of us use mobiles as alarm clocks. It's our radio receiver with an audience of one, and we can use it to broadcast back out to others. Mobiles bring us voices of loved ones, news alerts, even our banking (and in a few places, legal help via SMS). Last year, I heard Bharti Airtel CEO Manoj Kohli speak of the unbanked as he explained how India was on track to surpass 560 million mobile connections. "Whether it's Bollywood entertainment or financial inclusion, millions of these people will have their first experience with such services through their wireless device," Kohli said.
Some say Facebook is a threat to open communication, because the company is happy to have open sharing of information as long as it's being shared on their platform. So far, I think Facebook has been a powerful force for good. At the World Bank, it allows us to hear directly from people all over the world, in real-time. It has enriched my personal life, making it easier to stay connected with people I've met around the world.
The internet's history is littered with those who would create charming, walled gardens, though Tim Wu of Columbia University argues in The Master Switch that communication technologies (his book starts with the telegraph vs. telephone) tend to start off as great equalizers of information, and then become controlled by a few powerful interests.
So far, social media has prevailed over attempts to control it. And it may be the case that the ability of individuals to have their voices heard will depend on clashes between powerful interests (governments, service providers). As Alexis Madrigal writes on The Atlantic's blog, Facebook's security team became alarmed when Tunisian government security services began to wholesale steal user passwords and then delete accounts. Facebook fought back by changing its login protocols in Tunisia. From The Inside Story of How Facebook Responded to Tunisian Hacks:
If you need a parable for the potential and pitfalls of a social-media enabled revolution, this is it: the very tool that people are using for their activism becomes the very means by which their identities could be compromised.
Social media isn't good or bad – it's simply a technology, a tool for people to connect to one another. Just as radio was used to give courage to civilians in wartime Britain, it was also used to whip up anti-Semitism in Germany. Same technology, different objectives.
My grandfather worked at Zenith, and in his heyday, it was a radical idea to put a device inside your home that would let other people talk to you. This became a profound way for people to have a shared experience, but it seems quaint in comparison to today's social media reality for so many of us. Let's hope we humans can keep up.
This post originally appeared on Inside the Web
Photo credit: Flickr user ideagirlmedia