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Confession: I am a data junkie. Yes, all scientists are data junkies, but my particular dependency is much worse. I have a Fitbit that monitors every step I take and every flight I climb; my bicycle has a computer to show me every bit of information about how fast and far I'm going; and there have been many other gadgets – smartphone, smartwatch, tablet -- to keep a stream of email and messages and news flowing to my brain. It is ridiculous, I know, but like any junkie, I can't help myself.
Our motorhome is another giant gadget that feeds me a constant stream of data -- road speed, engine speed, fuel level, fuel economy, distance traveled, and my location on a colorful map. Why is that not enough? Because when I'm driving the motorhome, I am always making mental comparisons to driving my car. They both have essentially the same engine – a 3.0-liter turbocharged diesel – and the performance of this clean-burning efficient engine was a key reason why I was excited about having a Sprinter chassis for our new motorhome. But that 5-ton motorhome is twice the curb weight of my car; although that diesel engine has impressive torque, it's clearly working harder, especially on grades and at freeway speeds.
And that started me asking myself: If the engine is working harder, what is the long term wear and tear on the engine components? How much does our overall weight and engine load affect fuel economy? Should I be driving differently to reduce the strain on the engine and improve its efficiency? How is the engine affected by running the air conditioner, by driving up a mountain pass, or by extremes in outdoor temperatures? The answers depend on gathering more data.
That's when I started reading about the ScanGauge, a popular device to monitor the parameters determining how well and how hard the engine is working. It gathers these data from a wired connection to the vehicle's standard OBD II port, which is the on-board diagnostics connector used by service technicians to access diagnostic data from all the onboard computers. The alphanumeric output is displayed on a small illuminated LCD screen, which needs to be mounted somewhere on the dashboard.
I like dedicated devices like this; after all, I have a Fitbit, a bike computer, etc. But although the ScanGauge works well, I am not excited about its user interface. Monitoring dynamically changing data, especially while driving, needs to be fast so as not to be distracting. Analog dials, like the speedometer and tachometer on your dashboard, allow the eye and brain to more easily process real-time information; glancing at the position and movement of a needle is simpler than trying to interpret digits that are rapidly changing.
What I wanted was a better graphic interface for the engine data, and I already had a perfectly positioned large color display: my oversized iPhone 7 Plus is always mounted just to the right of my steering wheel. I decided to exploit this display and have the data stream wirelessly from a transmitter connected to the OBD II data port. For the transmitter, I chose the Carista OBD adapter because it employs Bluetooth LE, a low energy wireless data protocol that is commonly used for smartphone interactions with fitness trackers and smartwatches. The transmitter connects automatically (no passwords) to my iPhone and does not interfere with other Bluetooth operations, such as handsfree calling or music streaming to the vehicle's sound system. The wireless data stream of engine parameters is interpreted and displayed by the OBD Fusion smartphone app, which has a completely customizable graphics interface that is simple to modify.
The most important information I wanted to observe is the calculated engine "load": fuel economy starts to suffer significantly when this rises above 70%, and the Sprinter engine is straining if there is a sustained load above 80%. By monitoring load, you can learn manual downshifting habits that put less wear on the engine components and improve the fuel economy. I customized my iPhone screen to display analog dials for load, fuel rate, turbo boost, acceleration, battery charge level, and coolant temperature. You can even flip between multiple dashboards if you need more information; there are some other readouts I would have liked to have (like oil temperature), but not all are available from the Sprinter's OBD II port.
The result was a nearly instantaneous readout that is easy to interpret at a glance while I'm driving (click on the screenshot to see a short movie of the app in action). There is significant battery drain from the constantly working display, but I typically keep the iPhone Lightning-USB cable plugged in anyway to power music streaming and GPS navigation. The transmitter never had trouble connecting automatically to the phone once the engine was started. The app can run in the background and did not interfere with phone calls (my iPhone uses the AT&T network) or any other phone operation. The transmitter can also be easily unplugged and used in different vehicles, just like its companion smartphone. Portability is especially practical because the transmitter and app can also be used to diagnose trouble codes from dashboard warning lights (like the dreaded and mysterious "Check Engine").
I'm enjoying the displayed data stream as much as any gearhead would, though I still need to see if it meaningfully changes any of my driving habits – modifying when I downshift, how fast I accelerate, my speed on freeways or in hot weather, how I drive at high altitude, etc.). The Carista transmitter plus the OBD Fusion app only cost $50, just 1/3 the price of a ScanGauge II, so this is not an expensive experiment. But it will be interesting to see how long I actually use a real-time monitoring gadget to improve my driving. After all, I used to wear a smartwatch, then decided it was too disruptive; I used to check my Fitbit throughout the day, and now I just look at it in the evening to see if I've earned dessert. The benefit to fuel economy may be obvious sooner rather than later; the benefit to engine lifespan is probably something I will never know.
An updated version of this article was posted in early 2019, after testing a new device/app combination that accesses more onboard diagnostic/performance information, enables faster data sampling with more wireless security, and has an automatic sleep mode to avoid draining the chassis battery.


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Robot Table Wood
Among the technology's growing robot trigger a subsequent furniture design. One of these robots include tables, forms like most table made ??of wood. What distinguishes this table with the rest of the foot attached to the base table using the drive system on the robot leg. as if at the time we looked at this table, we will carry over that this table will walk over to you. Mechanisms still rely on steel legs with a blend of wood.

subset: commoncrawl


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Apple, like many other companies, is infamous for funnelling money through its European headquarters in Ireland and benefiting from a lower tax rate. Well, Italy's had enough of it, and Apple just agreed to pay the boot-shaped country £234 million in back taxes. Tim Cook must be pissed.
Tim Cook must be pissed since earlier this month he called the tax controversy "total political crap." Apple's also been accused of robbing the United States of billions in unpaid taxes, while Cook boldly told Charlie Rose, "Apple pays every tax dollar we owe." The settlement brokered in Italy would suggest otherwise. But hey, when you're the world's most valuable company, you can afford to wash your problems off with cold hard cash.
Image via Getty
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Our Future || A rising tide of environmental uncertainty
In 2018, as Australia's population hit 25 million, Citizenship Minister Alan Tudge stressed the need for new migrants to head to country towns.
The big cities, he claimed, were feeling the pressures of migration while regional areas are crying out for more people.
But is this strategy going to be able to withstand the potentially huge increase in migration caused by the effects of climate change?
This week is Refugee Week, a week dedicated to educating people on the challenges faced by refugees and celebrating their positive contributions to society.
Currently, most newly arrived refugees receive a warm welcome from rural hosts. A three-year study found 68 per cent of refugees surveyed in regional Queensland found it "very easy" or "easy" to make friends in Australia.
But from my experience working in the human rights sector, I have seen the effects that mass migration has on areas not well equipped to take a large influx of people. Scarce food resources and poor living standards become the norm. Not to mention the hardships of finding work in an overpopulated area.
The impacts of climate change are numerous. Natural resources, such as drinking water, are becoming more scarce in drought ravaged regions.
Farmers are struggling during extreme weather patterns. Increasingly, people living in these affected areas are being forcibly displaced.
In 2017, 18.8 million people were internally displaced by natural disasters such as floods.
Most urgently, sea levels are rising. In the Pacific Islands, what might appear a modest sea-level rise - researchers say ocean levels have risen about 19 centimetres in the last century - is actually having a massive impact.
I worry the influx of refugees from this environmental disaster will put pressure on regional towns under-equipped to manage.
Roughly 100 million people live within a metre of current high-tide level and threaten to be displaced by rising sea levels.
Small regional towns will not be able to take on these numbers.
We must put pressure on our government to curb our emissions, or else have proper structures in place to continue our regional town's hospitable welcome to refugees.
It is not fair on either party - the migrants who are being forcibly displaced and the regional towns straining to re-home them - to face this enormous challenge on their own.
Georgia Rowles, Director of Development, Human Rights Arts & Film Festival.


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Soil salinity is one of the critical factors responsible for the ongoing land degradation in the irrigated lowlands of Central Asia, including in the lower reaches of the Amudarya Delta. This land degradation hinders sustainable development and presents a major challenge for the area's rural population, whose livelihood security depends on irrigated agriculture. The factors causing soil salinity are multifaceted and interlinked; recent studies and interventions confirm that no one action alone will deliver a sustainable solution.
Recommendations for alleviating soil salinity should take into account the complex interactions and can be formulated only once the interlinked factors causing soil salinity are understood. In the past, little attention was paid to creeping land degradation, which has resulted from soil salinisation and waterlogging across huge agricultural and even non-agricultural areas.
This case study focuses on the vicious circle of soil salinisation: agriculture's consumption of large amounts of water contributes to shallow groundwater, leading to recurring soil salinity, which in turn demands more water for leaching (flushing the salts out of the rooting zone). The situation is exacerbated when water is not available in sufficient amounts in time and in space. The seemingly stable present water flows in the major water source (the Amudarya River) since the major drought in 2000–01 is being caused by increased (ED: unsustainable) glacier melt in the upstream countries. This water supply in turn diverts attention from the strong need for improved irrigation and cropping practices. Efforts aimed at reducing the amounts of irrigation water use face the problem of the "devilish" vicious circle, which has not only technical but also financial and political dimensions.
Follow Link to read full article in "Food Policy for Developing Countries: Case Studies." 2010
Per Pinstrup-Andersen and Fuzhi Cheng (editors) Click Link to article


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Teens and Emotions: A Time to TalkFiled under Biblical Womanhood | Emotions | Motherhood
If one word captures the priority for our children's emotions in the teen years, it is "conversation." We find this command in Scripture:
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. ~Deuteronomy 6:7
Teaching self-control is not an end in itself. We are fashioning vessels that can receive and retain the gospel truths we pour into their hearts.
Sometimes, parents get it backwards. They talk to their toddler as if he was an adult—explaining, bribing, reasoning, pleading—but fail to provide the emotional training a small child needs most: discipline and self-control.
On the flip side, parents often fail to have fruitful conversations with their teenagers: "Because I said so, that's why!" They can fail to explain what God's Word says about emotions at just the age when their children need to hear it most.
These priorities are not mutually exclusive. A teenager certainly needs discipline and self-control, and we should teach our toddlers using simple language they can understand.
But hopefully, when a child reaches the age where they are beginning to contemplate the world around them and trying to understand the "why" behind the "what," we as parents have provided a strong foundation of self-control. And hopefully we are right there, ready and eager to teach them what God's Word says about their feelings.
The tween and teenage years are a time to talk, a time to listen, and a time to teach. How do we get this conversation started? And what do we teach? More on those questions, to come.
Related Posts:
Reassuring Words for Changing Emotions
Navigating the Emotional Changes of the Teen Years
Teens and Their Emotions: Easily Influenced, Highly Influential


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New satellite broadband for everyone service set to be industry game-changer
Yahsat (http://www.yahsat.ae), the Abu Dhabi, UAE, based satellite operator, is gearing up to launch its innovative YahClick "broadband everyone" satellite service in South Sudan over the coming months. The hotly anticipated service is set to provide wide reaching, high performance, satellite broadband Internet to unserved and underserved locations and communities across the country.
Yahsat selected local based Internet Service Provider RCS-Communication as their Service Partner for South Sudan based on RCS-Communication's in-country experience, proven track record of delivering new and innovative services and a common focus to bring faster and more affordable Internet connectivity to a wide range of users.
Commenting on the upcoming launch, Tareq Abdul Raheem Al Hosani, Yahsat CEO, stated,
"As the world's youngest country, South Sudan is facing multiple infrastructure building priorities. YahClick brings internet connectivity instantly to the population, irrespective of the state of the local telecommunications infrastructure that is within their reach. YahClick therefore fast tracks connectivity to this young country beyond what is humanly possible with the time and expense it takes to expand fixed or wireless internet solutions.
"Providing much needed internet connectivity to a new nation presents YahClick with tremendous opportunity as well as pride in helping address at least one of the many requirements of this young country. Having affordable, reliable and instantly available high performance internet will be a fundamental tool to help new and established businesses and individuals in South Sudan achieve their full potential."
Flippie Odendal, RCS-Communication, Republic of South Sudan, Managing Director stated, "YahClick is the first Ka-band satellite internet service in Africa that offers true broadband speeds at affordable prices. We are proud to bring the service to South Sudan and anticipate a wide interest across the country."
"Based on anticipated growth we will be adding and training VSAT technicians and support staff (with a focus on South Sudanese candidates) to our existing team. Parallel to this process we will be running extensive tests of the new service and processes over the next months to ensure all aspects are working well before the service is made available to clients."
Yahsat believes in providing individuals with a platform to access information no matter their geographical location, thus enabling them, through the power of information to enhance and help change their world in order for them to have a positive economic and societal impact on the world around them.
Al Hosani added, "Our YahClick service aims to bring broadband to everyone and deliver the power of Internet collaboration to individuals and global communities across three continents. We believe it is the right of every individual to have high speed and reliable Internet. Our team is excited about the prospect of helping connect a portion of the world's un-served communities in the Republic of South Sudan and providing them with the tools to aid their own success."
Distributed by the African Press Organization on behalf of Al Yah Satellite Communications Company PrJSC "Yahsat".
For more information on the YahClick service log onto
http://www.yahsat.ae/YahClick or write to firstname.lastname@example.com
About Al Yah Satellite Communications Company PrJSC "Yahsat"
Yahsat (http://www.yahsat.ae) provides multipurpose satellite solutions (commercial and government) for broadband, broadcast, military, and communications use across the Middle East, Africa and South West Asia. Based in Abu Dhabi, UAE and wholly owned by Mubadala Development Company PJSC (http://www.mubadala.ae), the investment vehicle of the Government of Abu Dhabi, Yahsat is the first company in the Middle East and Africa to offer multi-purpose satellite services:
• YahClick – the satellite broadband service
• YahSecure – the government satellite service
• YahLink – the satellite connectivity service
• YahService – end to end managed satellite solutions
• YahCarrier – satellite solutions for telecommunications carriers
Yahsat's first satellite Y1A was successfully launched in April 2011 and its second satellite Y1B was successfully launched in April 2012. YahClick began roll out in July 2012, serving 28 countries across the Middle East, Africa, Central and South West Asia with reliable and cost effective satellite broadband connectivity in urban, rural and remote areas.
Source: APO – Press Release – 22 November 2012


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Improvements to the ferry terminal at Gourock are on schedule ahead of the temporary use of the pier by Rothesay's ferry service in the new year, according to Caledonian MacBrayne.
Bute's principal ferry link will run to and from Gourock for 16 weeks from March 2, 2015, due to the closure of Wemyss Bay for major repairs.
The improvements at Gourock are due to be completed by January 31, enabling the Rothesay ferries to use the pier without disrupting passenger-only sailings to and from Dunoon and Kilcreggan.
"Passengers will notice a difference in the quality of facilities at Gourock long term," said CalMac's port manager, Scott Goodwill.
"We apologise for any inconvenience this temporary closure causes passengers but these improvement will make both ports more resilient and will help make our services more reliable over the long term."
The work taking place at Gourock includes:
* New steps constructed adjacent to the linkspan to accommodate the Kilcreggan ferry service
* Shore works to improve pedestrian and vehicle flow around the terminal
* Demolition of redundant steel and timber structures which currently form the seaward frontage to the linkspan approachway
* New steelwork platforms constructed supported on tubular steel piles
* New tubular steel fender piles and units for ferry berthing.
Public meetings were held in Inverkip and Rothesay on December 16 and 18 to give users of the Wemyss Bay service more information about the work to be carried out over a 16-week period from early March until late June.
Ramsay Muirhead, head of civil engineering at Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL), which owns the pier, said: "The planned works are essential to maintain a safe and reliable service to Rothesay.
"We knew local people who use the service regularly would have questions about the work and alternative travel plans, so the meetings were a great opportunity to address their concerns.
"We considered various options to carry out the work and concluded that a complete closure for a temporary period is the best solution to get the work completed quicker. It will ultimately lead to a better service for passengers and ensure we maintain a modern harbour operation."
The presentation from the public meeting and notes covering a Q and A will be published on the CMAL website in the New Year.
Passengers can contact CalMac's customer care team on 0800 066 5000 for more details about the improvement works and temporary service changes.


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August 30, 2013 at 6pm to July 31, 2014 at 7pm – Theater Resources Unlimited Theater Resources Unlimited (TRU) is accepting applications for the Producer Mentorship and Development Program for 2013-14, a program designed to guide anyone producing a project through the steps o… Organized by Theater Resources Unlimited | Type: mentorship
November 17, 2013 to May 18, 2014 – Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts at Brooklyn College announces its 59th season of diverse, family friendly theater and musical theater performances, including the Off-Broadway holiday hit My M… Organized by Michelle Tabnick PR | Type: theater
December 19, 2013 to April 13, 2014 – Museum of Chinese in America Portraits of New York Chinatown was initiated as an oral history project by artist Tomie Arai and scholar Lena Sze as MOCA prepared to move into its current home in 2009. The project addressed the vi… Organized by a4 - Network Admin | Type: other, visual
December 19, 2013 to March 30, 2014 – Children's Museum of the Arts November 9th - March 30th 10 AM - 5 PM AT CMA SPECIAL EVENT AGES ALL AGES To celebrate the diversity of New York City, we present our sixth annual series of Multicultural Festivals that celebrate th… Organized by a4 - Network Admin | Type: dance, music, performance, theater
January 13, 2014 at 6pm to June 30, 2014 at 8pm – Cameo Studios Carrying Butoh into the 21st century Sundays in January, February, March, April, May, June 2014 6-8pm Butoh class Taught by Vangeline at Clinton Cameo Studios STUDIO A 307 West… Organized by Vangeline Theater | Type: dance
February 3, 2014 at 11am to March 10, 2014 at 6pm – The Jewish Museum Art Spiegelman 's Co-Mix: A Retrospective February 3, 10, 24 | March 3, 10 Organized by The Jewish Museum | Type: other, art
February 5, 2014 at 6pm to March 12, 2014 at 8pm – Spaces at 520 This course will focus on Self Defense and how to react to perilous situations. Students will be exposed to practical techniques that effectively ward off attacks in the home, workplace, or on the st… Organized by Pan Asian Repertory Theatre | Type: theater, stage, other
February 8, 2014 at 6pm to March 30, 2014 at 5pm – Flushing Town Hall SAT, FEB 8 – SUN, MAR 30, 2014 OPENING RECEPTION: SAT, FEB 8, 6 PM Suggested Admission: $5/Members FREE Gallery Hours: Sat & Sun, 12-5 PM Korean folk painting, also called Minhwa, truthfully expr… Organized by Flushing Town Hall | Type: visual
February 8, 2014 at 6pm to March 3, 2014 at 7pm – Online Kickstarter for new CD Organized by East Winds, Inc. | Type: music
February 10, 2014 at 11am to March 21, 2014 at 5pm – A/P/A Institute at NYU Gallery Index of the Disappeared: Secrets Told is a site-specific installation of images, sound, texts, and documents related to leak prosecutions, the surveillance state, and the persistence of the panoptic… Organized by a4 - Network Admin | Type: other, visual
February 10, 2014 at 12pm to May 4, 2014 at 6pm – Asia Society Curator: Adriana Proser Fantastic legends surround the plethora of deities that populate the religions of India. The sources for these images range from religious scriptures to great Indian epics. Dy… Organized by a4 - Network Admin | Type: other, visual
February 10, 2014 at 6:30pm to May 7, 2014 at 9:30pm – CAVE home of LEIMAY February 10-12 (Monday-Wednesday), 6:30-9:30pm March 10-12 (Monday-Wednesday), 6:30-9:30pm April 14-16 (Monday-Wednesday), 6:30-9:30pm May 5-7 (Monday-Wednesday), 6:30-9:30pm One week $80 Whole sess… Organized by LEIMAY | Type: dance, theatre
February 18, 2014 at 7pm to February 23, 2014 at 3pm – La MaMa's Ellen Stewart Theater Using a mix of action-driven storytelling, puppetry, and visual magic, THE WONG KIDS transports its audience into the far reaches of the galaxy. Violet and Bruce Wong just don't fit in with the other… Organized by a4 - Network Admin | Type: theater
February 19, 2014 at 11am to February 23, 2014 at 6pm – Asia Society Monks from the Drigung school of Buddhism will construct a sand mandala over the course of five days, in conjunction with the opening of the Golden Visions of Densatil: A Tibetan Buddhist Monastery e… Organized by a4 - Network Admin | Type: crafts, other, performance, visual
February 19, 2014 at 12pm to May 18, 2014 at 6pm – Asia Society Guest curator Dr. Olaf Czaja withDr. Adriana Proser, John H. Foster Senior Curator of Traditional Asian Art at Asia Society This exhibition will be the first ever to explore the history, iconography,… Organized by a4 - Network Admin | Type: other, visual
February 19, 2014 at 12pm to August 3, 2014 at 6pm – Asia Society Curator: Michelle Yun Nalini Malani was born in 1946 in Karachi before the 1947 Partition of India, and currently lives and works in Mumbai and Amsterdam. She is one of the foremost contemporary arti… Organized by a4 - Network Admin | Type: other, visual
February 23, 2014 from 2pm to 6pm – Ballet Hispanico Tickets: General $20 Student/Senior/Member $15 This Young Talent Showcase of Classical Indian Music features: Students of Shobana Raghavan and Sandhya Nagaraj (South Indian Music) with A.R. Balaskan… Organized by Lotus Music & Dance | Type: music, performance, dance
February 23, 2014 from 6:30pm to 8pm – Flushing Town Hall SUN, FEB 23, 6:30 PM, FREE Celebrate the Lunar New Year with performances by Korean poets and traditional musicians and dancers. Poetry performances will be accompanied by projections from the POEMob… Organized by Flushing Town Hall | Type: performance
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Progress, School, FreebiesFebruary 26th, 2014 at 05:49 am
Well, since I've left my funk behind I've been to the Y seven consecutive days in a row and averaged 3 miles each. I was sick yesterday and limped along with a 9:40 minute mile. I'm going to run a 5K for a charity I like to support on May 18. I am seeing the benefit of having goals and like the sense of feeling of accomplishment.
I am returning to school. I have a Masters in Science of Clinical Psychology which I haven't done much with in the past. I've become involved in a group of survivors of spiritually abusive childhoods, and have decided to move in that direction as far as a specialty. I'm taking three classes the quarter that starts 3/31 (ending 6/6). I'll be taking Intro to Pastoral Care, Pastoral Ethics, and Sexual Ethics and the Family. I'll be at a seminary very close to home.
What this means for my family is: my oldest daughter is getting her license. The kids will be in charge of Mondays, getting homework done, dinner on the table, and then to various activities. Thankfully everything is in a 1 mile radius. It will be an interesting exercise and I'm very anxious to see what doors are opened for me by this move.
Well, since we've got a large family (and I think perceived as being in the modest income range) we always get the left over from parish functions. My husband was a chaperone with the Scouts this weekend at a water park in the Wisconsin Dells. We ended up with 20 snack size bags of chips, 48 water bottles, 30 juice boxes. Then we got a call from our friend (the other chaperone) that we didn't get the deli items. 3# of ham, 1.5# of turkey, and 1.5# of roast beef. Sandwiches are on the menu for the rest of the week.
And I was shopping with my parents yesterday and they bought me a new winter coat (white wool for warmer weather). A $200 Liz Claiborne down to $29.97. I would have purchased it for myself, but my mom said to consider it an Easter gift. I'm doing much better accepting help and gifts.
It is freezing here in the Midwest. With more snow predicted. Tired of this!


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TRENDnet has announced a compact outdoor "bullet" IP camera.
The TV-IP302PI Outdoor Megapixel PoE Day / Night Internet Camera supports up to 720p HD resolution and night vision rated for 15m / 50 ft. It is housed in an IP66 rated aluminum enclosure only 4 inches long and includes a sun visor.
Network connection is via a 10/100 Ethernet port that can also be used to power the camera via an unspecified Power over Ethernet feature.
TRENDnet TV-IP302PI
Other features include I/O ports, audio in/out ports, analog video out, motion detection windows, email alerts and SAMBA client support.
The TV-IP302PI is shipping now at a $329.99 MSRP.
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Randy began playing french horn in the third grade on the recommendation of the band director. He played through high school where he was awarded the John Philip Sousa Award for musicianship and into college where he palyed horn in the symphonic band and in the college horn club. After he put horn down in favor of family and professional obligations, but picked it up again in the mid-1990s first with his church orchestra and then the Zephyr Brass Choir.
Randy is a charter member of Zephyr Instrumental.


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If you consider yourself a true master of the grill and standing outside on a hot summer day, sun on your face, with the warm sizzle of your favorite grilled food filling the air is your idea of heaven, then you have to check out the Barbecue Grill Superstore. With everything the grillmaster could need and want, the Barbecue Grill Superstore is the only place you will ever need to shop for your barbecue supplies.
With literally dozens of brands to choose from, the Barbecue Grill Superstore has an incredible selection. No matter what your grilling preference is -- charcoal, gas, electric, smokers -- they have whatever you need to make your grilling experience perfect every time. The Barbecue Grill Superstore also has a huge selection of all the accessories you need to make your barbecue experience a special one. From tongs to cookbooks, from brushes to rotisseries, they've got it all. Not only will you get the great barbecue supplies you've been looking for, but you are guaranteed to get it at the right price. The Barbecue Grill Superstore offers the best prices around and they back it up with a guarantee to beat any competitors price.
On top of having great products at a great price, the Barbecue Grill Superstore also offers free expert advice and information to help you make your grilling experience the best it can be. So if you're ready for the best from your barbecue, the Barbecue Grill Superstore is the single source grilling specialists you've been looking for.
Order the Barbecue Grill Superstore from www.bbqsinc.com


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Ethereum is a decentralized platform that runs smart contracts: applications that run exactly as programmed without any possibility of downtime, censorship, fraud or third party interference.
BitProfile is a decentralized user namespace system which allows to receive direct payments anonymously.
Private exchange of funds, protects the privacy of the recipient and prevents observers from knowing the user's transaction history. Find more information in the documentation.
Xeth is a free, open-source Ethereum GUI wallet. It implements various useful features, like stealth payments, bitprofile support, secure random key generation, addressbook and much more.
The intuitive and smooth UI brings the best user experience.
For more details see the documentation.
Xeth is an open-source, community based, non-profit project, being developed collaboratively by volunteers.
Any kind of support is highly appreciated. You can help us with the development, financially or just spread the word.


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Opinion Columns & Blogs
The Macon Health Club: A community asset no one can now afford
I have never set foot in the Macon Health Club, yet it grieves me to hear of its closing. My reaction is partly based on a family tie: my husband's great grandfather founded Macon's first Young Man's Christian Association in 1855, and his grandfather served on the board for many years after it was revived following the Civil War. In his youth, Lanier was one of the thousands of boys who spent hundreds of hours at the Cherry Street facilities under the tutelage of the legendary E.G. Searcy, playing ball, swimming, working out, running track; many are the nostalgic memories of those years.
The other, more significant reason for a non-member to grieve the club's loss is an appreciation for the role that it played in Macon's evolution as a good place to live. It had been a shock in 1968 when three young Vietnam vets, recently home after fighting for their country, were denied entrance to the "Y" — because they were black. Even worse, the institution broke its affiliation with both the national YMCA and the local United Way after those entities insisted that it welcome all comers regardless of race. How healing then, when local business leaders, who had begun adding African American employees to their staffs, made it clear to the independent Macon Health Club that the "whites only" era was over. The fact that the club then bred increasing comfort between black and white Maconites, whose opportunities for informal contact had previously been sparse, was even more positive.
A community asset
Old membership records of the organization now housed in Washington Library's Middle Georgia Archives read like a who's who of 20th century white Macon. Manager Bobby Gordon told Ed Grisamore in 1990 that "This place has meant so much to so many people over the years that, late at night when it's all shut down, it seems like it's almost still breathing."
Downtown office workers playing racquetball and swimming on their lunch hour were a constant presence. Before his 1987 death at 100, Searcy told Harley Bowers that he'd taught over 30,000 boys from all parts of the city to swim in its pool. Clearly these programs constituted a valuable community asset. But even as the organization opened its doors to everyone, enabling people of both genders and any ethnicity to improve their physical and psychosocial selves in a historical setting, it was losing money.
A constant struggle
Board minutes from the 1980s reveal a constant struggle to stay afloat, with members (many of whom had been associated with the place since childhood) considering re-affiliating with the national "Y" among other options, amid not-infrequent calls on deep-pocketed donors for bail outs. Downtown firms provided memberships for their employees, and the facilities were well-used, but rarely did income match the expenses incurred.
The very ambiance that makes the structure so beloved is a major part of the problem: the 100-year-old building has all the maintenance issues that come with ancient plumbing and elaborate architectural features. Furthermore, the structure, built as a "Y" with multiple programs, is larger than optimal given present usage, and, being spread over several floors, it is less compact than a modern facility with the same square footage. Actually, once the old dormitory rooms were closed, several floors remained vacant. Making capital repairs, such as a badly needed new roof, were out of the question.
While there was no panacea for these circumstances, the Medical Center of Central Georgia, then pursuing an expanded role in health care after opening its Wellness Center on Northside Drive, came to be seen as offering the best path forward. In March of 1991, just as the power company threatened to turn off the electricity, the club's substantially depreciated physical assets, along with its $123,732 debt, were turned over to the Macon-Bibb Hospital Authority (which owns the hospital). A report on its first six months' management show that the club was still losing money, though hopes were directed toward the $2 million investment that the financially stable Medical Center was about to make.
After a grand re-opening in 1993, losses decreased, but the market could not support charges set according to the expenses of such a high-maintenance facility. The hospital has spent millions more since; an effort to utilize part of the extra space as a downtown eating club eventually closed with a million dollar loss.
New financial realities
Times continued to change, and not in ways beneficial to either the health club or the Medical Center. Beginning with the Balanced Budget Act of 1998, hospital budgets were increasingly squeezed by lowered reimbursement rates, even as downtown offices moved or shrank, and numerous competing facilities drew health club members away, most notably to Mercer University's new center. Membership is now less than half what it was in 1991, and active users are even fewer.
In order to protect the financial integrity that allows it to maintain the state-of-the-art facilities and staffing required of a Level One Trauma Center and other life-saving services that protect the people of Central Georgia, the hospital conducted an institution-wide, months-long employee-directed study of how to cut costs in 2009. Every aspect of operations was scrutinized and numerous difficult decisions were made. It was painful.
Contrary to the community's perception that such a mammoth operation must have plenty of cushion, an item as seemingly minor as drinking water at meetings presented a way to reduce expenses: substituting pitchers of tap water for individual plastic bottles represented a savings of $17,000 per year.
Naturally, the money-losing operation at the Macon Health Club also attracted attention at that time. Given how far maintaining an historic structure, albeit an important downtown amenity, falls from the hospital's core mission, closure was considered, despite the club's obvious civic value. Nevertheless, responding to the fervent desires of members and civic boosters, the Medical Center made another effort at viability, among other things discontinuing — for a savings of $40,000 per year — the club's towel service.
More competition
Yet the trends have worsened. Even more health and fitness facilities have opened across the city, including one downtown in the Dannenburg Building on Third Street. At the same time the hospital took a hit with passage and implementation of the Affordable Care Act: as a safety net serving large numbers of indigent patients, the Medical Center (now the Medical Center-Navicent Health), had relied on infusions of federal funds, disproportionate share monies, to alleviate the losses such services incur.
Because the ACA envisioned shrinking the numbers of those patients via state exchanges and the expansion of Medicaid, "dish" funds were cut. When the state of Georgia failed to expand Medicaid, the Medical Center, like many of the rural hospitals which have closed or face closure, was caught between a rock and a hard place: monies removed by the law have not been replaced by newly insured people able to pay their bills. Its size has allowed the Medical Center to get by so far, but its margins have disappeared. It can no longer afford to be the good citizen this community had come to rely upon; its resources must be plowed into being a good, financially viable hospital.
Naturally, club members are disappointed. Understandably, trust between the entities is at an all time low. Threats were made, in the face of which litigation was initiated in an effort to resolve disputed interpretations of contractual agreements.
Going home
It is a sad time. Pulling this article together connected me with numerous people who relished the health club's time-honored setting and location. None were more wistful than former president, board member, and active participant Cecil Baldwin. At its closing MHC members were offered memberships in Navicent Health's Wellness Center, and Baldwin and some others have taken advantage of those services. They do not fill the gap. It wasn't just the exercise that kept him going to the health club for more than 50 years, Baldwin said, it was the "camaraderie. . . . It was home."
Twenty-seven years earlier, when MHC's instability had led the board to turn it over to the hospital, he had described his concern to Ed Grisamore in nearly identical terms: "Yes, (the health club) has facilities and equipment for exercising, but it's much more than that. There is a cross-section of rich and poor, black and white, and yet there is a feeling of fellowship and harmony. . . . It's been there for so many years that when I go in and see things going all the way back to my childhood, it's a secure feeling. It's a feeling of stability and continuity, sort of like going home."
Clearly, the affection of the club's members has not changed; unfortunately, neither has its financial viability.
Nancy Anderson, author of "Macon, A Pictorial History," is a former Telegraph columnist and a former member, and chair, of the Medical Center of Central Georgia, now the Medical Center- Navicent Health.


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To honor and spotlight the distinguished achievements in the American circus arts, Circus Now together with the Big Apple Circus, in association with Executive Producer and Director Jonathan S. Cerullo, JSC Theatricals, is proud to present the 2nd Annual Celebration of American Circus at the Big Top at Lincoln Center on January 5, 2016 at 8pm. Part ceremony, part performance, the Celebration of American Circus will honor four artists and/or organizations that have been prominent in the circus arts landscape in America, while spotlighting the thriving state of the circus arts across the nation, and will feature Emcee Thom Wall, with performances from a variety of breath-taking acts. Tickets start at $25 and are available online at www.circusnow.org/CELEBRATE2016.
For the second year, the Celebration of American Circus presents a distinguished and impressive roster of honorees, all of which have spent decades furthering the appreciation of circus arts in America. Sabrina Motley, director of the Smithsonian's Folklife Festival, will present the Community Impact Award to Circus Smirkus Founder Rob Mermin and Ed LeClair, Smirkus's Executive Director. Duncan Wall of Circus Now will present the Elevating Circus Award to Dominque Jando, renowned circus historian and author. David Shiner will roast and toast and present the Evolving Circus Award to his fellow clownical artist Bill Irwin. Andthis year we introduce a new award, the Lifetime Achievement Award, will be presented by the legendary Dolly Jacobs (Circus Sarasota) to the legendary Hovey Burgess!
- Evolving Circus Award, presented by David Shiner
This award is given annually to an individual whose personal and/or professional contributions have made a significant and permanent impact on the circus field in America, with specific consideration of how the recipient's work has influenced the perception of the circus arts by the American public and the arts and entertainment industry.
- Irwin and Shiner will appear together next in Old Hats. Called "one of the funniest shows of the past few years" by the New York Post, and selected as a Critics' Pick by The New York Times and Time Out New York, Old Hats will entertain audiences January 26 through March 3, 2016, with a Thursday, February 18 opening night at The Irene Diamond Stage at The Pershing Square Signature Center (480 West 42nd Street between 9th and 10th Avenues). Tickets start at $45. To purchase tickets for all Signature productions, including Incident at Vichy by Arthur Miller and Night is a Room by Naomi Wallace, call Ticket Services at 212-244-7529 (Tues. - Sun., 11am - 6pm) or visit signaturetheatre.org. After an extended, sold out run in 2013, Signature welcomes back Bill Irwin and David Shiner in their award-winning, critically acclaimed production of Old Hats. This production reunites the clowns with original director Tina Landau and introduces their new songstress and comic foil Shaina Taub, hailed as "a young Judy Garland meets grown-up Lisa Simpson" by the San Francisco Chronicle. Using music, technology, and movement, Irwin and Shiner combine their inimitable magic and slapstick to create an unforgettable outing that's fun for the whole family.
- Community Impact Award, presented by Sabrina Lynn Motley, Director of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival
This award is given annually to a circus artist or organization that has succeeded in harnessing and demonstrating the power of the circus arts for community engagement and social good, and in bringing diverse audiences together through quality programming.
Circus Smirkus is Vermont's own award-winning international youth circus. Since 1987, the company has promoted the skills, culture and traditions of the traveling circus, inspiring youth to engage in life-changing adventures in the circus arts.
- Elevating Circus Award, presented by Duncan Wall, Creative Director of Circus Now
This award is given annually to an individual or an organization who has made a lasting contribution to increasing public awareness about the beauty, artistry, creative potential of the circus arts through their body of work, with particular attention paid to interdisciplinary collaboration or expression.
- Lifetime Achievement Award, presented by Dolly Jacobs, Founder & Associate Director of Circus Sarasota
This award is given to an individual artist, troupe, or company whose overall contributions to the field and community are substantial, undeniable and significant.
For more information, please visit:


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Information about Medicare Part B coverage
Find an ADC provider who is accepting new Medicare patients.
Medicare Part B pays in full for:
- Welcome to Medicare visit
- For beneficiaries within their first year of Medicare Part B enrollment
- Annual Wellness visit
- For beneficiaries who have had Medicare Part B for more than one year.
- In order to maintain continuity of care with your ADC doctor, we recommend that you schedule your annual wellness visit with ADC and not with outside resources not affiliated with ADC.
These exams provide a routine evaluation if you are healthy or have stable medical conditions. The treatment of other medical concerns, new or existing, are not included in these visits. You must schedule a separate appointment to address those concerns and be covered by your Medicare benefits.
Medicare Advantage
ADC accepts Humana's Medicare PPO and PFFS plans. New patients covered by these plans can schedule an appointment with ADC providers who accept new Medicare patients.
Previously, ADC provided services to Medicare Advantage patients covered by ERS. That relationship has not changed.