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True Sustenance at Dinnertime
Our mealtime rituals allow us to stop and notice one another in spite of the chaos of our busy days.
by Rabbi Rona Shapiro
The following article was reprinted with permission from Ritualwell.org.
Despite our busy schedules (my husband and I both work and commute more hours than we like), we have dinner as a family almost every night. I am deeply committed to this ritual because it is the one time of day during the week when we are all together and doing nothing else besides being together. It is a time to stop, notice one another, and notice what we are grateful for.
Of course, mealtime, as anyone who has eaten with small children knows, is fraught with difficulty: parents and children have different agendas about appropriate food and how long to stay at the table; meal preparation is often rushed and the one who does the work can feel unappreciated; family members often vie for attention.
Here are a few ground rules that we have established in our family along with some suggestion[s] from other families. I do not mean to suggest, however, that we attain peace and harmony every night, or even most nights. Sometimes there is fighting; sometimes the kids hate the food; sometimes it is mundane. But, like prayer, it is a place we come back to again and again, every day, for sustenance and nourishment. And usually there are moments each day when we find some of what we came for.
Blessings and Gratitude
While I feel strongly that the moment before we eat is an important time to acknowledge God's presence in our lives and our gratitude for our many blessings, we are still figuring out how to do this. Sometimes we say the traditional Jewish blessings over foods – there are distinct blessings for bread, grains, fruit, vegetables and other food so for us city dwellers blessings become an occasion for learning where food comes from. Sometimes, usually at the prompting of our two year old, we all join hands. Often, we go around and say what we are grateful for from that day. Usually everyone also gets a chance to say something about their day.
My husband developed a game when our oldest daughter was about 4 called "truth and pretend." Each person had to say something truthful that happened in their day and something pretend and everyone else had to guess which was which. Sometimes we strove for outlandish "pretends" and sometimes we tried to make the pretends sound "real" so it was hard to guess.
We choose not to have adult conversation at the dinner table and we try to avoid topics which will arouse conflict.
A Family Economy
I believe that it is important that everyone share in the family's labors. While my husband and I generally divide up the cooking and dishwashing, my older daughter (5) helps set the table and clears her own place after the meal. Older children can and should do more.
Food Wars
I was a reluctant eater as a child and my parents believed in the clean plate club. Consequently I was often left alone at the table chewing the same piece of meat while the family had gone off to do other things. I was not interested in recreating this scene with my own children.
The rules in our family are as follows: It is the parent's job to put healthy, nutritious food on the table and it is the children's job to sample everything. No one has to eat everything on their plate or even a requisite amount, but they must give it a try. If you do not like what is being served, you may help yourself to cheese, yogurt, or fruit. No complaining about what is served or "yucky faces."
Candles: One night I decided that we needed more peace and beauty at dinner. I lit candles and put them on the table. This seemed to be just the touch we needed, making meal time more ritual-like and special.
Getting Up: Our children are expected to stay at the table while they are eating (not bounce up and down) and to ask to be excused. We do not answer the phone during dinner nor do we allow other intrusions (definitely no TV!).
Tea for Two: In a lovely book called Mitten Strings for God: Reflections for Mothers in a Hurry, the author, Katrina Kenison, describes how she and her husband share tea at the table after the children have been dismissed and gone off to play. This provides a welcome 10 or 15 minutes for the couple to talk with one another without interruption before the business of dishwashing, baths and bedtime. We have not yet taken this one on, but I would like to.
Although some social critics decry the disappearance of the family dinner table, I think that this ritual, as with all things, has to be adjusted for each particular family. Every family needs time to check in with one another and to be a family. For some families a daily dinner is too much. They may need to settle for a weekly dinner, a night out at their favorite pizzeria or whatever works for them. Family dinners, like family beds, breastfeeding and so many other things cannot be prescribed – they have to be created by each family to suit its unique needs and temperaments. Each family must evolve rituals that work for them.
About the Author
Rabbi Rona Shapiro graduated from Harvard College in 1984 and received rabbinical ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary in 1990. From 1990–2000, she served as the executive director of Berkeley Hillel. From 2000–2007, she worked as a senior associate at Ma'yan: The Jewish Women's Project in New York City where she edited, compiled, and launched the first version of Ritualwell. In 2007, Rona became the spiritual leader of Congregation Bethaynu in Cleveland, Ohio; in 2011, her congregation joined B'nai Jeshurun, a larger Conservative congregation in Cleveland, where she now serves as rabbi. She is the author of numerous articles.
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Military News
Army "VIP culture" led to parachute accident that killed former JBLM officer
He didn't belong on the plane.
The former Joint Base Lewis-McChord officer who died in a September accident was not ready to jump with a new kind of parachute when he attempted his first airborne drill in four years, according to an Army investigation obtained by The News Tribune.
That wasn't the only mistake that contributed to the death of Col. Darron Wright, a popular senior officer who helped lead a JBLM Stryker brigade in combat and held a series of prestigious headquarters assignments at the base south of Tacoma.
Wright's tragic fall from an Air Force C-130 plane flying 1,000 feet above the ground in North Carolina was made possible by a string of administrative oversights, according to the investigation. It was also enabled by a "VIP culture" at Fort Bragg, the Army's largest post, that allowed senior officers to make late demands on their subordinates and skip the basic safety briefings junior soldiers must attend.
"This VIP crap stops now," Lt. Gen. Joseph Anderson, commander of the Army's XVIII Airborne Corps, fumed when he read the report on how one of his highest-ranking officers died in a preventable accident, according to an officer who was present.
Wright, 45, left behind a wife and three children. He's memorialized at JBLM, where a room in the 7th Infantry Division Headquarters is dedicated to him.
Friends and colleagues called him "larger than life." He served three tours in Iraq and wrote a memoir of his war years, called "Iraq Full Circle," so the world would understand what he saw. He was killed only a few months before he was scheduled to deploy to Afghanistan.
He joined the XVIII Airborne Corps in August 2013 as its plans officer, one of the senior soldiers on Anderson's staff. Its headquarters soldiers are now in Kabul, Afghanistan.
The corps is a paratrooper command unit whose members are expected to practice jumping out of airplanes in case they're called for an airborne mission.
Wright, an expert parachutist with more than 60 jumps behind him, was getting back up to speed as an airborne officer when he requested a spot on a Sept. 23 jump. It would be his first airborne training jump since he left the ground-based units at JBLM.
But when two senior officers asked for late changes to the plans for the jump, it set off a chain reaction that eliminated any margin for error.
Four days before the flight, XVIII Airborne's chief of staff, Col. Robert Morschauser, and deputy chief of staff, Col. William Steele, determined they and three others scheduled for the jump should use a steerable parachute instead of the standard variety used by most conventional soldiers at Fort Bragg.
The MC-6 steerable parachute has been in the Army inventory for about five years and is mostly used by Special Operations troops.
The MC-6 also is a standard parachute for general officers. The staff officers who requested the steerable chutes for the Sept. 23 jump had used them before and believed they were expected to do so because they were part of Anderson's command team.
The officers got what they wanted, but the change was not reflected on the official mission plan, according to an investigation conducted by Brig. Gen. Christopher Cavoli and obtained by The News Tribune under the Freedom Information Act..
As a result:
• The plane that dropped Wright and other soldiers that day was not flying at the recommended altitude for the MC-6 parachute. It flew at 1,000 feet – 200 feet too low. The Army officers on board did not tell the pilots that they had to fly at a higher altitude when the Army leaders decided to use the new parachutes.
• The late decision to have Wright and other "VIPs" use the new parachute led to more work for an undermanned parachute-rigging company. Wright's parachute was not packed to the latest standards and had two small flaws. The unit, known as the 11th Quartermaster Company, was known as a sweatshop in the Army. Officials had demanded a restructuring of the company after the 2011 death of another paratrooper Staff Sgt. Jamal Clay. The overhaul never happened, Cavoli wrote.
• Wright attended a paratrooper basic refresher course on Aug. 14 just after he arrived at Fort Bragg. Soldiers are supposed to jump within 30 days of attending that course, meaning Wright's training had expired by the time of his fatal jump. His headquarters did not follow up to check his parachuting records.
• Wright and three other "VIPs" skipped a mandatory morning safety briefing and mock drill for their flight. Their jumpmaster, deferring to the officers' experience, did not go over the drill with them when they arrived two hours late.
Cavoli wrote that Wright "should not have been able to get on the manifest" for the jump because his certification from his refresher courses had expired.
He also found that none of the soldiers should have been able to use the MC-6 parachutes without written permission from a general officer. They did not get it, but no one questioned them.
"It is evident that the existing culture in XVIII Airborne Corps accepts that high-ranking individuals may skip institutionalized procedures with which the rest of the airborne population complies," Cavoli wrote.
His report recommends 25 policy changes that affect planning for airborne missions, medical support at paratrooper drop zones and the organization of the notoriously overworked 11th Quartermaster Company.
Col. Michael Lacey, the corps' top lawyer, wrote in an email to The News Tribune that Lt. Gen. Anderson appointed a lieutenant colonel to make sure that each change is adopted — an unusual step.
"This was the first time I have seen this done in over 15 years of reviewing these types of investigations," Lacey wrote.
Since Cavoli finished the report, Fort Bragg has a new policy letter spelling out standards for use of the MC-6 parachute and an updated system to make sure paratroopers are qualified for their jumps. In addition, the 11th Quartermaster Company received enough soldiers to reach nearly full strength.
Senior officers also received renewed orders emphasizing that they must attend safety briefings. If they don't, they will be scratched from missions by the enlisted jumpmasters, Lacey said.
Lt. Gen. "Anderson emphasized the basic leadership principle that leaders must lead by example," Lacey wrote. "Further, all paratroopers must attend all required training and adhere to airborne (standard operation procedures), regardless of rank or workload."
On the morning of the accident, just one soldier confronted the VIP officers when they arrived late to the flight line. He was Col. Brett Jenkinson, the corps operations officer and the only jumper with the same rank as the staff officers.
Jenkinson remembered glaring at Steele and Wright. "You're late and you put (the jumpmaster team) in a bad position," Jenkinson said.
He looked to Wright and said, "Hope you're trained; dudes get hurt jumping those things."
"I'm good," Wright replied, Jenkinson told investigators.
Wright was the fifth man to leave the plane. Witnesses said the aircraft might have hit some turbulence, and that Wright might have made a weak exit.
He hit the edge of the door and began an uncontrollable somersault. His leg caught the rig, and the parachute would not open correctly. Parachute lines became tangled as he spun in the air.
His peers on the ground and in the air watching the accident unfold shouted to him, "Reserve! Reserve! Reserve!" urging him to pull the cord for his second chute.
He pulled the line for the reserve chute just 40 feet above ground. It was too late.

subset: commoncrawl


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DIY Mercury Glass Most Awesome!
We've all been making our own faux mercury glass for quite a while now, but this one turned out sooooo cool that I had to share!
I like unusually shaped glass containers. I wash, remove labels and save them. They are useful for lots of things like vignettes, tablescapes, vases and of course to store left overs in!
I had bought this balsamic vinegar at Home Goods because I loved the shape of the bottle and the very snug fitting plug. I used the last of it the other day and washed it out as best I could without a bottle brush. I had thought to put flowers in it, but today I had another thought...I do like mercury glass and I had some Krylon Looking Glass spray paint left over from another project.
You are to apply several light coats of the paint. I was surprised that a spray inside only resulted in liquid rolling around this time. I kept turning the bottle to "coat" it, but it just wasn't sticking. Unusual "bubbles" and patterns started appearing as I'd keep it moving to spread the paint, blowing into it occasionally to encourage drying. It was so strange that it wouldn't really stick!
Then it hit me - I had not successfully cleaned all the balsamic vinegar out of it! The film that remained was resisting the paint attaching! It took a lot longer than normal, but I kept spraying some in, moving it and blowing into it occasionally until no liquid moved any more, then spraying again.
Really cool patterns developed. Yeah! After all, the method to make it faux mercury glass and not just a mirror look requires us to do a technique with vinegar on tissue and dabbing. I was not going to be able to do that in this narrow necked container. As it turned out, IT was doing it for me and so much cooler than I would have done!
I opted to stop before it was fully opaque because it looks really cool. Even fully dry all the bubbles and patterns stayed. I wiped a bit of nail polish remover over the opening to easily remove the paint that was on the lip.
I love the end result! And what's the lesson I learned from this project? That NOT getting my dishes clean can be a good thing sometimes! I might just start swishing the thicker balsamic vinegar in my jars, then washing them lightly before making them into mercury glass from now on!
Thanks for stopping by and have a fantastic day!


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Install Drupal using cPanel
If you would like to use Drupal to create your website and manage your online content, you can install it directly through the cPanel application manager.
- Log in to your GoDaddy account.
- Click Web Hosting.
- Next to the cPanel account you want to use, click Manage.
- Click cPanel Admin.
- On the upper toolbar, click Applications.
- In the Apps for Content Management section, click the icon for Drupal.
- Click Install this Application.
- Complete or change any fields, and then click Install.
Once the installation is complete, you can log in to Drupal using the username, password, and domain you chose during the install. Navigate to coolexample.com/admin to log in, where coolexample.com is your domain.


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I hit level 10 yesterday in Elder Scrolls Online, meaning I was now eligible to queue up for their PVP zone, Cyrodiil. The zone lies in the heart of the map, equally accessible by all three factions. Naturally, this means there's lots of war. But, there's also lots of running. And waiting. And wandering. Luckily, the zone boosts your level so you can compete against the higher level players (albeit at a disadvantage). And there's also PVE stuff to do there too! And since it's an entire zone, not just a match or a battleground, you can spend as much time there as you like ... killing, farming, checking out quests ... there's no "MATCH ENDS" waiting for you in 15 minutes.
The Cyrodiil area (known as the Alliance War) is actually pretty amazing. If any of you played WoW back in the Lich King days, it will vaguely remind you of Wintergrasp ... but 50 times larger. There are keeps all over the map that you can capture, as well as resource areas and even Elder Scrolls temples. Own enough Elder Scrolls and you get special bonuses for combat (no clue what they actually do yet) and you can steal enemy Scrolls just to piss them off (and get more stuff). The resource areas (farms, lumbermills, mines) provide bonuses to the keep they surround, making it harder to siege. More keeps you take, the more land you control, the closer you get to the center of the map. If you take the six keeps around the Ruby Throne (the center of the map and the ostensible objective) then hooray! Your alliance has won the Ruby Throne an conquered Tamriel and the player with the highest number of Alliance Points becomes Emperor ... for a time. Until the other two factions get rightly pissed off and smash you to a thousand bits. The player who becomes Emperor gets a special, permanent skill line on his character and, while Emperor, becomes a juggernaut on the field. Think Sauron waving that big-ass mace; that's what it's supposedly like (haven't seen it yet, but folks in Cyrodiil seemed to think that was an apt description).
In the Alliance War, not only can you storm keeps but you can also build siege engines like trebuchets, catapults, and ballistae to take out walls and massacre troops (and they feel tremendous). You can also set fire to opposing siege weapons, which is inordinately fun. Siege weapons are bought with Alliance Points, the PVP currency you earn during the war. I believe you can also substitute regular gold for the PVP points as well, though I don't have conversions on that. I didn't buy any siege weapons, but I did commandeer a couple that had been left behind. Judging from the number of weapons I saw in my battles, I'd have to say they must be fairly inexpensive. You can also use your points to buy Forward Bases (basically spawn points) and repair kits (which heal your siege weapons or repair walls).
The feeling of unrelenting combat is pervasive in the Alliance War. Besieging castles and wiping out the enemy force is a wonderful, visceral rush. Knocking down walls and watching your comrades pour through the gap to kill everything with a red lifebar is amazing. Being stuck behind a wall you know is about to fall, with a horde of viscous Dominion troops on the other side ... that's actually genuinely terrifying. You're looking around at the meager defense force you have, praying wholeheartedly that the reinforcements get to you in time. And when that wall falls and those enemy troops crest like a tide of angry, well-armed ants over the fallen battlements ... well, there's very little out there in the MMO-sphere that can match the absolute feeling of dread you get.
It's not all peaches and handjobs though. The PVP zone features a lot of running. A lot. Sure, there are transitus shrines in every keep that allow you to dart around the map to any keep your alliance currently holds (hence, the capture of keeps becomes vital to reinforcement and advance), but running from keep to keep to start the siege process is actually a fairly lengthy affair. Running into an opposing force moving to siege one of your keeps can be a remarkable experience. Two armies clashing on the open field ... it's a sight to behold. Unfortunately if your army loses that particular battle, you'll respawn at the closest keep. Which was generally the one you were just running from ... which can be frustrating.
Rumor has it that the Zenimax team took the entirety of the map of Cyrodiil from Elder Scrolls: Oblivion and plopped it down in ESO. From the size of the zone, I absolutely believe it. The scale of Cyrodiil is astounding. It's so big that it beggars belief. I can't honestly show you ... it has to be experienced. And to be so big and have virtually no lag? Unheard of. Oh yes, the Alliance War runs butter smooth. I was in an invading force of about 75 players; we besieged the castle, stormed the walls, slaughtered the 25 or so defenders, mounted, and roared off to another castle. With no lag. There wasn't even a stutter, even when the western walls crumbled and we swarmed the hapless Pact defenders, burying them under a tide of iron and hatred.
But, if PVP isn't your thing then there's actually still stuff to do. There are quest hubs dotted around the map with adventures waiting. There are resource nodes so you can farm. There are NPCs ... like the crypt I stumbled across while racing to reinforce our latest attack ... it was full of skeletons and I spent some time there waylaying the undead. Heck, you could get a Nightblade to 10 and spend the entire time in the zone just sneaking around and ogling the scenery (and providing .
In short, Cyrodiil is everything I've ever wanted in a PVP experience. Massive zone, full-scale battles, exploration, and a real sense of the ebb and flow of war in Tamriel. I couldn't be more impressed.


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Take your life on the road with the T-Mobile Shadow Copper from HTC. This Windows Mobile based slider phone has an incredible 5 hours of talk/6 days of standby time. It is also 802.11b/g enabled so you can surf the web at T-Mobile hotspots without using your cell minutes.
Keep in touch with your friends by using AOL, Yahoo!, MSN or ICQ instant messaging services. Or you can send emails and text messages. Or, since it is a quad band phone you can give them a call. The phonebook can store pictures taken with the on-board 2.0 mega pixel camera so you can see who is calling before you answer.
The phone is designed to help keep you safe, and legal. Instead of holding it to your ear you can use a Bluetooth hands free device or the built in speakerphone. Voice-dialing lets you do it all without touching the phone.


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Moderators: Three Stars, dagny, pfim, netwolf
npv708 wrote:It'sagreatdayforhockey! wrote:DelPen wrote:skullman80 wrote:I leave for 30 seconds and miss a goal.,
I went to get a beer and missed it
Heard that was the same excuse Staal had for the OT winner.
Jordan's reaction to that joke:
Users browsing this forum: Wyopen and 50 guests


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- Jena Economic Resea...
- Volume 6
- Cooperation behavio...
- Pictured person
- published
- Mon Jul 9 2012
- Number of discussion paper
- keyword(s)
external knowledge
manufacturing industry
- abstract
Analysing the relationship between firms' openness to external knowledge and their innovation performance is nothing new. What is new is studying how this relationship fares in latecomer economic contexts such as Nigeria, and that is the focus of this paper. Using unique micro-level innovation data, it is shown, as the existing literature suggests, that firms are more likely to innovate when they access external knowledge either through formal or through informal interactions. However, innovative firms that exploit external knowledge do not necessarily enjoy greater innovation benefits than those that do not. Thus, while openness to external knowledge might help firms to become better at innovating, it does not assist them in reaping the benefits derivable from their innovation efforts. Moreover, different innovation types are essentially the same with respect to the effect that network resources have on them. Thus, it makes little sense to engage network partners selectively for certain innovation types at the expense of others.
- article pub. typess JER
- Research article
- article languages JER
- Englisch
- JEL-Classification for JER
- O31 - Innovation and Invention: Processes and Incentives ; L14 - Transactional Relationships; Contracts and Reputation; Networks ; L60 - General


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- About us
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Honeysnap. Primary tool used for extracting and analyzing data from pcap files, including IRC communications. Developed and maintained by Arthur Clune of the UK Chapter.
For more information/questions, please join the mailing list (details on the project home page)


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Andy Gets Cake in the Face on The Office
Poor Andy Bernard. It seems the Nard-Dog is doomed to forever have trouble with the ladies. This time, he went through lots of trouble to give Erin the best Secretary's Day ever... only to have his plans ruined by Michael.
Leave it to Michael Scott to mess everything up: over lunch, he spills the beans about Andy's past relationship (and engagement!) to their co-worker, Angela. When it came time for Erin's party (which happened to be planned by Angela) shit hits the fan. Or in this case, cake hits the face?
I can only hope that it's not the end for Erin and Andy—their weirdness makes them the perfect couple.


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A Publix Service Announcement
Dear Publix Bakery,
My name is john, and we need to talk.
See, I like you. I really do. Your icing? Awesome. Your cheesecake pies? Beyond nummy. And every time I cruise your aisles at my local store there's nary a wreck to be found.
Exhibit A: A few weeks ago, I received a picture of your new "Cinnamon Candy Creme Cake":
AKA, "The Sticky Pustule Bundt of DOOOOM! Now with more Herpes!"
Now don't get me wrong, PB. (Can I call you PB? 'Cuz I'm gonna call you PB.) Every bakery has an off day. But then I got a few more of these Pustule Poppin' pastries, and I started wondering: is this going to be a "thing?"
A nasty, nasty "thing?"
Just to be sure, I went to my local Publix - my own flesh and blood, so to speak - and imagine my horror, PB, when I found this on the featured end cap:
So here's what I propose, PB: You stop making the polyp'ed wonder here, and I'll stop thinking how much it reminds me of my dermatoligist's office posters.
Thanks to Marlissa D. and Amanda G. for reminding to wear sunscreen today. And to always use protection. And to maybe have a salad for lunch.


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Hit the streets in trendy style when you add these heels to your look! Features a lace material with sequin detail, peep toe front, side bow decor, 1.5-inch platform with a 5-inch heel. Finished with a padded insole and slip on style.
You're reviewing: FUCHSIA LACE SEE THROUGH SEQUIN PLATFORM HEELS
© 2017 Lollicouture.com. All Rights Reserved.


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AppNexus has joined Tech:NYC as an inaugural member. Tech:NYC works to ensure that New York is the best place to build a grow a tech company. In part, we do this by increasing engagement of leaders and companies in the New York tech ecosystem, and advocating for policies that will attract tech talent, jobs, and opportunity to NYC. With the support of your company, and by joining this list, we'll let you know when opportunities arise to advocate for policies that:
- Underscore a regulatory environment that supports the growth of technology companies and technology talent in NYC;
- Promote inclusivity and diversity; and
- Ensure access for all New Yorkers to connectivity, technology tools, and training.


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JERUSALEM, March 22 (UPI) -- Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu apologized Friday to Turkey for the 2010 deaths of nine Turkish nationals on a Gaza relief flotilla.
Netanyahu and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan spent about half an hour on the telephone during U.S. President Barack Obama's visit to Israel, U.S. officials said. Obama joined the conversation at one point.
Erdogan accepted the apology, officials said, and Netanyahu's acknowledgement of "operational mistakes" during Israel's stopping of the flotilla in 2010.
Netanyahu made the call from a trailer at the airport shortly before Obama's departure, The Wall Street Journal reported.
"In light of the Israeli investigation into the incident, which pointed out several operational errors, Prime Minister Netanyahu apologized to the Turkish people for any errors that could have led to loss of life and agreed to complete the agreement on compensation," Netanyahu's office said in a statement said.
Turkey has long been one of Israel's few allies in the Middle East but the deaths in 2010 after Israeli forces boarded the boats strained the two countries' relationship.


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India, Ladakh
Use this page to download low resolution images. Drag images to desktop or right click and save. All images are copyright protected and only to be used for placement and previewing. If you require high resolution files, please email me the image and usage requirements and I'll get back to you. Thanks, Alex.


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A 19-year-old man was fatally shot in the South Side's Lake Meadows neighborhood in one of three shootings Monday night on the South and West Sides, officials said.
Torri Stewart, of the 900 block of East 81st Street, was shot in the head about 8:20 p.m. as he sat in a vehicle in the 3100 block of South Rhodes Avenue, authorities said.
He was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 11:41 p.m., according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.
Later, about 9:30 p.m., four teenagers were shot in 5200 block of West Iowa Street, in the West Side's South Austin neighborhood.
The teens had been part of a large group involved in a fight on the street when a light-colored car pulled up and at least one person inside opened fired, Chicago Police Department News Affairs Officer Ron Gaines said.
Two of the injured, a 14-year-old boy with a graze wound and an 18-year-old woman shot in the arm, were taken to Loretto Hospital. A 19-year-old woman shot in the knee and a 17-year-old girl shot in the leg were both taken to Mount Sinai Hospital.
The conditions of all four teens were stabilized, Gaines said.
Also on the West Side, a 34-year old man was grazed in the shoulder in the 300 block of South Western Avenue, Gaines said. The shooting happened about 10:30 p.m. in the Near West Side neighborhood.
The bullet did not penetrate the man's skin, and he was treated and released from John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County.
No suspects are in custody in the three shootings as detectives investigate.


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Help us place our digitised maps
Are you interested in local history and old maps? Would you like to explore historic places across the globe? If so, you can help the British Library. You can quickly create an overlay of historic maps on current mapping and compare the past with the present.
You can join the latest phase of our project, which features over 50,000 more maps from the British Library collections. Help us identify accurate locations for these historic maps! Bear in mind that some places have changed significantly or disappeared completely, creating a puzzle that reveals an exciting contrast.
Your name will be credited, and your efforts will significantly improve public access to these collections. Contributors can see the results of their work, as well as the progress of the pilot and other participants, and the top contributor will be publicly announced.
Let's begin...
- See a video explanation of how it works
- By clicking the orange button above, you will be assigned a map at random. In the application, the historic map will appear on the left; a modern map will appear on the right.
- Zoom into the old map enough to read it, and then find the corresponding location on the modern map. Use the gazetteer at the top if necessary. Click on the "This map" tab for more information.
- Click on one map to assign a point, then assign a point at the same location on the other map.
- Assign as many points as you can over the entire map (minimum of three).
- Define the content area of the map by "clipping" the borders (see video instructions).
- Click the red "Save" button in the upper right when you are finished.
An additional step has been added:
8. Add a title to the map by clicking on the "Add title to this map" link in the lower left corner in the Georeference tab. The title should describe what the map is of, e.g. Map of Copenhagen. Type the title in the box, click on the Set Title button, then Save.
The map will then appear "overlaid" upon the modern landscape.
Detailed instructions can be downloaded here (PDF format).
If you wish to review the Flickr maps, including those in this release, go to the Flickr British Library maps subset. The individual image page in Flickr will indicate that map has been georeferenced, with a link "Go to BL Georeferncer to view this overlaid on to a modern map", OR will invite you to georeference it for the first time (with a link to the application)!
Progress Bar
Maps within 17th, 18th, and 19th-century Books
For questions about the project or help, contact firstname.lastname@example.com.


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Short version: Does Avatar live up to all the hype and expectations? In a word: Yes.
Screen Rant reviews Avatar
So, after endless fanboy hype (and hate) rivaling that of the months leading up to Watchmen, Avatar is finally upon us. The burning question (once again): Is this film worthy of all the hype preceding it?
Well, first let's get to the story...
Sam Worthington plays Jake Sulley, a Marine who lost the use of his legs in battle. He has absolutely nothing to do with the Avatar project until his twin brother is killed (apparently in a senseless mugging). His brother was a scientist who had been working on and preparing for the Avatar project for three years.
This is significant because the bio-engineered Na'vi bodies created for the Avatar project are genetically coded to a specific human - and since Jake is the identical twin of his brother (despite having zero training in the project) the corporation talks him into joining it. Their logic is they can always use a Na'vi Avatar with combat skills on their side. Worthington's character is not only a Na'vi Avatar, but also obviously one for the audience as well... the person who comes onto the scene not knowing anything about what is going on (like the audience) and the film's exposition happens through his point of view for our benefit.
The planet Pandora contains a very rare mineral with extremely valuable properties (that are never explained, no need) called... Unobtainium. Yeah, I know. They only call it that once in the film, thankfully. Anyway, there are pockets of it scattered throughout the planet, but the biggest cache of it happens to be directly beneath the village of the Na'vi we come to know. The goal is to either negotiate with them to get them to move so the bulldozers can come in and mine or to expel them via military force.
Relations with the Na'vi have been shaky at best - it seems that olive branches were extended in the forms of schools, roads and supplies, but the Na'vi are not interested in any of it - and there have been some isolated clashes between them and the military. It's decided that Sully (not being a scientist) would be an ideal mole - he can go in and gain the trust of the locals in order to gather intel that can be used against them should things come to blows. Sully is promised that the expensive surgery which could once again give him use of his legs would be taken care of if he goes along with the plan - which he does. He has three months.
Sigouney Weaver plays Grace, the fairly grizzled, smoking lead scientist on the project who is not happy (to say the least) to see Jake show up to take his brother's place. There's another scientist who was friends with Jake's brother and who comes to resent the fact that after he has put in so much time learning how to be a Na'vi, that a newcomer with no experience comes in and plays a central role in the project. The scientists are determined to find a diplomatic solution (although tasking scientists with this doesn't really make much sense) and are constantly at odds with the military. They relocate their lab far away from central command in hopes that they can function more autonomously, without intervention from the corporation (represented by Giovanni Ribisi as the lead on the project) or the military.
Speaking of the military, Stephen Lang absolutely shines as Colonel Miles Quaritch, a chiseled in stone older soldier with plenty of field experience who is in charge of military operations on Pandora. Scenes with him, Weaver, the sci-fi tech and Cameron at the helm took me back to the most excellent James Cameron film, Aliens. In some ways this almost felt like a continuation of that film - if not in story, then in characters and hardware.
And of course we have Zoe Saldana as Neytiri, who does a fine job as the lead female who is put in charge of teaching (Avatar) Jake the language and culture of the Na'vi. At first she intensely dislikes and mistrusts Jake, but over the course of the film their relationship's development is the focal point as she softens towards him and he comes to respect and understand the Na'vi deeply.
So what's the verdict?
If you've seen the movie and want to talk about it without worrying about spoilers, please head over to our Avatar Spoilers Discussion.
Please don't discuss movie spoilers here in order to not ruin it for people who haven't seen it yet.


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Świeradów Zdrój Snow History
How much snow did Świeradów Zdrój get this ski season and over the last several seasons? Check out the ski resort historical snowfall using the graph, Świeradów Zdrój snow stats—such as Total Snowfall, Max Base Depth, Biggest Snowfall, Total Snowfall Days and Average Base Depth—or the calendar below that shows daily snowfall data for the current ski season. To see how much snow Świeradów Zdrój got last ski season or any ski season dating back to 2009/2010, click the corresponding tab. Click Compare at the top left to see a season-over-season comparison of Świeradów Zdrój snowfall. In addition to snow history, you can also view the mountain's Base Depth by selecting it from the dropdown.
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Easy To Spot Upgrade Of Century-Old Chalet In The Swiss Alps
Located in the Swiss Alps, in the municipality of Gryon, Chalet Noisettes needed an upgrade that would extend the living spaces and bring the century-old log cabin up to date. Swiss architectural studio Lacroix Chessex started renovating the chalet and extending its beautified modern shape to accommodate the inhabitant's needs. This renovation brought a new life to both the cabin and its surroundings, unifying the modern design with the existing one. Natural larch was artificially aged to construct an interesting blend with the old building. Extending the cabin meant more room for the family and guests and a new modern appeal. Colors were slightly adjusted on the exterior, while the interior received a dynamic use of vivid shades in the private zone. The living areas were kept natural and in perfect balance with the natural surrounding colors. The improved Chalet Noisettes now welcomes family and friends with five bedrooms and two bathrooms and a challenging design combining old and new.


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Exclusive: Grey's Anatomy Alum Loretta Devine Joins USA Comedy Sirens
Sep 26, 2013 1:38 PM EDT
Loretta Devine seems to have something for medical professionals. The actress, best known for playing Adele Webber on Grey's Anatomy, has landed a multi-episode arc on USA's new EMT comedy Sirens, TVGuide.com has learned exclusively. Fall TV 2013: Mu… Read more


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JavaOne 2010 was a mess.
Last year a cloud of gloom hung over the three or four San Francisco hotels in which Oracle had sliced, diced and distributed all of the JavaOne sessions. There was a clear and palpable feeling of distrust and uncertainty that permeated the on-goings, and a typical sentiment was 'JavaOne was a lot better when Sun was running it.'
But despite the inclement weather during this first week of October, the cloud hanging over JavaOne appears to have moved on. There is still an ongoing sentiment that things were better when Sun was running the show, but at the same time, there was consensus that things were significantly better than 2010.
"JavaOne is better this year. It's much more lively." Says Vaadin CEO, Joonas Lehtinen, who spent most of his time pressing the flesh and pushing the Vaadin message while manning his company's booth in the exhibition hall. And it was the exhibition hall that perhaps best personified the positive change in mood.
There was significantly more foot traffic in the exhibition hall this year. Last year, you almost felt sorry for the exhibitors who paid for floor space. An article published by TheServerSide before JavaOne 2011 suggested moving the JavaOne exhibit hall into the Moscone Center, where OracleWorld is concurrently hosted, in order to give JavaOne exhibitors the foot traffic they deserve. But this year, foot traffic was significantly heavier than last year, and the quality of the exhibitor booths were significantly higher as well.
Of course, not everything was perfect. Last year's beer tent was replaced with a roped off, open-concept lounging area. That avoided last year's problem of it getting too stuffy inside the plastic walls, but it introduced a new problem when cold winds and rain moved in. Java professionals can get ornery when they can't comfortably sip their free coffee and beer.
And the sentiment that spreading the conference across three or four hotels hurts the social and interactive aspect of the event still prevails. But overall, the feeling was largely positive. Let's hope JavaOne 2012 can enjoy the same year-over-year improvement that the 2011 conference did.


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Beat the Streak leader's run ends at 45
From big league parks to sandlots, fans have long proclaimed that "a walk is as good as a hit."
The adage might be true in real-life baseball, but free passes do nothing to advance players looking to climb the Beat the Streak ladder.
From big league parks to sandlots, fans have long proclaimed that "a walk is as good as a hit."
The adage might be true in real-life baseball, but free passes do nothing to advance players looking to climb the Beat the Streak ladder.
After an incredible run into BTS lore -- 45 straight successful picks -- Sterling Heights, Mich., resident Aaron Brown saw his streak end after one of his hometown team's sluggers recorded an 0-fer on Friday night against the Twins.
The 30-year-old Tigers fan utilized the "Double Down" feature, calling on Detroit first baseman Prince Fielder as well as Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano. Although Cano collected an infield hit in the eighth inning of the Yanks' win over the Rays, Fielder walked twice and ended his evening -- and Brown's pursuit of the $5.6 million BTS grand prize -- with no hits in two at-bats and two walks.
"I couldn't decide between Cano or Fielder," Brown said. "I was going back and forth the whole day and finally decided I was confident in both players to get a hit. … I just felt confident in both matchups and figured why not?"
Despite their lack of contact, Cano and Fielder combined to reach base six times Friday. In addition to the first baseman's free passes and the second baseman's single, Cano walked twice -- once intentionally with first and second occupied -- and was hit by a pitch.
"I was watching both games at the same time thanks to MLB.TV -- and it was horrible," Brown said. "... The worst part was watching Cano get his infield single, while realizing that Prince would not get another at-bat for the night. I just wish [Anibal] Sanchez would have gotten the no-hitter. His performance tonight [in which he had a no-hitter for 8 1/3 innings vs. Minnesota] was amazing. It's great to see the Tigers doing so well."
The end of Brown's streak -- the longest of the 2013 season to date -- warrants accolades for being an all-time great. In the 13-plus years of BTS play, only four Streakers have lasted longer than Brown. The all-time leader, Mike Karatzia, made 49 consecutive correct picks in 2007.
To put Brown's accomplishment into a deeper perspective, never in the history of the National League -- founded in 1876 -- has a player posted a hit in 45 consecutive contests during a single season. The Reds' Pete Rose (1978) and the old Orioles' Willie Keeler (1897) both came within one game of doing so, with Keeler hitting safely in 45 straight from 1896 -- the season finale -- to 1897, the first 44 contests.
Through Beat the Streak, participants try to establish a virtual "hitting streak" by picking one or two big leaguers per day, with their run continuing as long as their selections collect at least one hit in that game. In 13-plus seasons of BTS play, no one has matched Joe DiMaggio's magic number of 56, set in 1941. To win the grand prize, one must top Joe D.'s run by one.
Brown leaned heavily on Fielder -- and the first baseman's teammates -- during his streak. Of his 45 correct picks, Brown called on third baseman Miguel Cabrera a whopping 20 times. Fielder, for his part, kept Brown alive on six occasions before finally falling short. Torii Hunter also chipped in, coming through during his one and only opportunity to assist.
Cabrera -- who won an AL Triple Crown and MVP in 2012 -- finished Friday with one hit in four at-bats and a big league-best .388 average.
"Miguel is on a hot streak, and I should have went with him the past two days," Brown said. "[But] besides [Rays manager] Joe Maddon from Tampa, I feel like [Twins skipper] Ron Gardenhire would be the next closest manager to walking Miguel."
"I still think [Cabrera and Fielder are] the best 3-4 hitters in the league, and I wouldn't change my pick. Prince doesn't get enough credit for his accomplishments in this league. He was batting .353 his previous five games, so why not go with him? He just had some tough at-bats that didn't work for him."
So far this season, only two contestants -- Brown and Michael Ray of Brenham, Texas -- have reached the 40-pick plateau. Ray made 43 straight correct picks before his streak was cut short. Several Streakers, however, have a chance to join the exclusive club in the coming days.
Brown hopes to work his way back into the BTS picture, and he is ready to get right back on the proverbial horse.
"I do expect to start my new streak tomorrow -- and knowing my competitive edge, I'll probably lean more on [Double Down] picks as opposed to single picks just to try and get back to where I left off," Brown said. "Overall, I feel pretty good in having the highest streak for the season. But I do realize how close the guys behind me are for the lead. … I just hope to be coming back in a few months to have a similar situation, but with me reaching 57."
Fans interested in joining the fun can do so free of charge, and participating takes only seconds a day. Not a bad deal considering the millions of reasons to play.
Zachary Finkelstein is a fantasy editor for MLB.com.


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Photo: Priyambada Nath via Flickr
When uncertainty reigns, investors all over the world turn to gold as a safe haven.But some countries are starting to take issue with their residents' preference for storing wealth in gold bars, rather than bank accounts.
Large gold imports can throw off a country's current account balance – the difference between what a country earns and what it spends on foreign trade.
Widespread investments in physical gold also mean that large pots of wealth sit idle, instead of being put to work in the broader economy.
And in countries where gold is a popular investment, those financial institutions which carry large gold deposits, lend cash against gold or offer interest-bearing gold deposit accounts, can pose a risk to the financial system if commodity prices suddenly shift.
Governments in India, the largest gold importer in the world, and Vietnam, a country which imported 95% of its domestic gold consumption in 2011, have taken steps in the past year to discourage savers from hoarding gold. The Indian government doubled import duties on gold bullion to 4 per cent in March and with current account deficits at record highs, recently announced another hike to 6 per cent.
Taxing Their Way Out of Gold?
"It is difficult to establish the impact (of the tax) on CAD," Indian Economic Affairs Secretary Arvind Mayaram said, according to Reuters. "But there will be some moderation in gold demand."
Though Credit Suisse analysts say the higher taxes could weaken import demand by as much as 10 per cent, they believe the health of the Indian economy and rupee strength will probably play a larger role in determining the country's demand for gold this year.
Indian gold imports already appear to have slowed. After several years of acceleration, the Reserve Bank of India reported last month that gold imports between April and October 2012 dropped to 398 tons from 589 tons during the same period in 2011. In a recent note, Credit Suisse analysts predicted that net imports were on track to drop to no more than 800 tons for the whole of last year from 2011's approximately 970 tons.
But analysts also note that it is difficult to know how much of that slowdown can be attributed to tax increases since the rupee also depreciated sharply over the year.
Gold is especially popular among lower-income residents in India and has deep cultural significance, especially as a prized component of wedding celebrations. This year contains more days considered auspicious for a wedding than 2012 and national elections loom in 2014, Tom Kendall, Credit Suisse's Head of Precious Metals Research wrote in a recent note. Those factors could make it more difficult for Indian politicians to impose more tax hikes.
A Sound Investment
A pitch against gold is also hard to make for other reasons. Gold investments in rupees have performed well over the past 10 years, with the value of the yellow metal rising by 477 per cent – more than the 425 per cent rise in India's S&P Nifty 50 stock index over the same period. Low interest rates and easy access make other investments relatively unattractive, Kendall notes.
"For a significant proportion of the (Indian) population, it remains easier to buy gold jewelry than to open a basic bank account," he writes. "It is illustrative, we think, that a recent initiative by the World Gold Council to market 24-carat gold coins to rural communities was launched in partnership with the Indian Post Office rather than a retail bank."
Many Indians use gold to hedge investments against inflation. But a working group convened by India's central bank recently advocated a range of alternative investment products which could be used by the public as an alternative to gold for inflation hedging. Gold-linked savings accounts, bonds and certificates that entitle a holder to physical gold could help reduce demand and quickly move more liquid assets into the country's banking system, the group suggested.
Along with hiking import duties, the Indian government recently announced new rules that make it easier for savers to open gold deposit accounts.
Gold Prices Peak in Vietnam
Vietnam's government is trying to tackle a similar problem through aggressive intervention in the local gold market. More than 31 per cent of Vietnamese households keep some of the shiny stuff on hand, according to a survey by a government finance committee cited in a recent Credit Suisse note. High inflation levels and a weakening Vietnamese currency have made Vietnamese investors even more eager to snap up gold.
The Vietnamese government has intervened to mitigate the resulting spread between local and international gold prices. After temporarily suspending interest-bearing gold deposit accounts and certificates in 2011, the government has told banks and credit facilities to phase out gold deposits and loans for good. The government has also taken over the country's largest gold refinery, and the State Bank of Vietnam is rolling out a new set of licenses allowing traders to buy and sell gold bars only if they meet strict requirements.
In the end, both Vietnam and India walk a tightrope in trying to wean citizens off gold in times of high inflation and economic uncertainty, while also trying to avoid encouraging a black market.
"As with India, the government will be wary of driving more of the gold trade underground," Ric Deverell, Credit Suisse's Head of Commodities Research wrote about Vietnam in a recent research note. "Gold's utility as a highly portable, high-value store of wealth is as relevant today as it has ever been."
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On 28 Jun 2005, at 20:17, Michael Kifer wrote: > > Ian, > > The difference is really between SWRL and everything else, I don't understand what leads you to this bizarre conclusion! (See comments bellow w.r.t. your N3 argument.) > and SWRL should > be developed by a different WG, if there is a need for a rules language > sitting on top of OWL. OK, so you favour option (c) - several working groups developing unrelated rules languages. Interesting plan. Surely we should try to do something better than that. > > N3 is essentially a different syntax for F-logic and its extensions > (but > N3's semantics is defined by use cases ;-). As far as I can tell, with > each > new presentation that I hear N3 is moving in the direction of LP. I think that we should stick to discussing how things actually *are* rather than directions in which you hope/believe they might be moving. Surely N3 is *actually* a different syntax for RDF, plus some rule-like extensions. As we have already agreed, LP is semantically incompatible with RDF, so it does not make sense to say that N3 can be included in LP. And what about the various business rules people that presented at the rules workshop? Are they also "moving in the direction of LP"? Didn't look like it from where I was sitting! Ian > > > --michael > > > Ian Horrocks wrote: >> >> On 23 Jun 2005, at 05:54, Michael Kifer wrote: >> >>> >>> >>> Jim, >>> So, you are saying that LP is at the same stage as DAML+OIL before >>> standardization. What is needed is to work out the details -- >>> typically a >>> job for a working group. Who disagrees with that? >> >> I do not agree that the current situation w.r.t. "rules languages" is >> comparable to the one appertaining w.r.t. "ontology languages" when >> the >> WebOnt working group was chartered. At that time there was a single >> candidate ontology language around which a broad consensus had already >> been built (e.g., through the merging of the OIL and DAML-Ont >> efforts). >> Currently there are several competing rules language proposals, with >> no >> obvious (to me) leading contender. >> >> I also disagree with the suggestion that a Working Group is likely to >> be able to resolve major technical problems - if you look at what went >> in to WebOnt (DAML+OIL) and what came out (OWL), you will see that >> they >> are relatively similar. This is not to minimise the quality or >> quantity >> of the work carried out within WebOnt - it simply illustrates how >> difficult it is to get a large and heterogeneous WG to agree on >> anything, never mind agreeing on significant technical changes, and >> how >> much effort is required to go from a prototype to a finished product. >> >> So, your argument leads me to the conclusion that either (a) one of >> the >> candidates should be (arbitrarily?) chosen for standardisation, (b) a >> WG should be established without any clear indication as to what >> should >> be standardised, or (c) several WG's should be established - one for >> LP, one SWRL, one for N3, etc. Option (a) is hardly likely to promote >> consensus building, option (b) seems to be a recipe for years of >> unproductive argument, and option (c) would be very costly (for both >> the W3C and the semantic web community), and very confusing for those >> considering the adoption of semantic web technology. >> >> A fourth alternative, and one that I think several people in this >> thread have been arguing for, is to continue working (in whatever >> context) towards an architectural framework that provides for a better >> integration between First Order and LP based languages. We should then >> be able to achieve the broad consensus which is, I believe, a >> necessary >> (or at least highly desirable) precursor to the initiation of a >> standardisation activity. >> >> Regards, >> >> Ian >> >> >> >> >>> >>> And you didn't need to defend OWL because nobody was attacking it. >>> Our >>> discussion was about the 1-stack vs. multi-stack architectures. Since >>> in a >>> previous email you said that you are "not against a multi-stack >>> solution" >>> then I don't see what is the point of contention (at least at the >>> high >>> level). I believe that everybody agrees that the more integration -- >>> the >>> better. We just don't believe that integration of the leading useful >>> technologies to the point that only one stack is left is possible. >>> >>> >>> --michael >>> >>> >>>> Mike - I think you're missing the point of the "webbie" nature of >>>> OWL >>>> and the difference from traditional KR, but I have written that up >>>> too many times to do it again here. With LP, the question is how I >>>> can use your rules/program/etc. in part to get a "network effect" >>>> and >>>> to make it so I can link together the logics and logic programs as >>>> easily as I link web pages. It;s not that no one has good research >>>> ideas on how to do that, it's how to bring those to fruition and >>>> greater use that is the key >>>> The ontology stuff in OWL, which is not actually DL (even OWL >>>> DL >>>> departs from traditional DL in some interesting ways, but OWL Full >>>> is >>>> the one I care most about) is based on many years of work in AI, and >>>> was explored on the web long before OWL was done - cf the SHOE work >>>> my group did (still a high hit at Google - so just google "shoe") >>>> and >>>> that was followed by XOL, OIL, and others before the standardization >>>> began. >>>> I think the LP stuff is in similar state - a basic idea has been >>>> fleshed out, some variants are being explored, and there is a govt >>>> interest in pushing for a de facto standard. But going from there >>>> to the finish line is where a lot of the time and blood goes in -- >>>> it's in making the stuff fit with what else is out there in the Web. >>>> We had to do a lot of work to make OWL fit in with RDF and other >>>> languages it needed to interoperate with, and a web rules language >>>> needs to be defined with the other things already in the space it >>>> wants to play in (thus the "stacks" issue - if it wants to be in a >>>> Sem Web stack, it needs to play with other SW stuff; if it wants to >>>> be in the XML stack, it needs to play nice with XML stuff like >>>> Xquery >>>> and Xpath, etc. >>>> And that is the discussion we are having -- but if we can nail >>>> this >>>> stuff, the result is worth it -- OWL is certainly the most used >>>> KR/ontology langauge in the history of AI as best anyone can tell, >>>> and if we want the Web Rules Language to flourish we want it to grow >>>> like the Web does, not like rules languages have -- nothing wrong >>>> with the latter, but there's a whole lot more Web pages out there >>>> than logic programs, and it's a lot more fun to play in the >>>> exponential growth space :-) >>>> anyway, we're all working for same ends, just different means, and >>>> finding the consensus space in the middle is wondefully non-fun, but >>>> worth it in the end >>>> >>>> Ok, end of crap, back to technical issues and Greek symbols... >>>> JH >>>> p.s. please note - I spent many years of my career arguing against >>>> DL >>>> and doing scruffy AI - yet here I am defending OWL - why? because >>>> the design time and fights over the details of a number of use cases >>>> ended up creating something pretty damn useful -- both in the OWL DL >>>> space and in the OWL Full space -- so somehow the process worked... >>>> >>>> >>>> At 20:41 -0400 6/22/05, Michael Kifer wrote: >>>>> Jim Hendler wrote: >>>>>> >>>>>> Mike - I think you misunderstand the stuff about stacks and etc >>>>>> -- >>>>>> I >>>>>> hope my use cases (in email@example.com for those just joining >>>>>> the >>>>>> conversation) would help make it clear that these are not >>>>>> separate >>>>>> and unrelated stacks, nor are they identical things -- the key is >>>>>> figuring out how the stacking works and how things interact -- >>>>>> I'm >>>>>> not against a "multi-stack: solution, but as far as I am >>>>>> concerned >>>>>> the more overlap the better, and I am fairly sure that we can do >>>>>> significantly better than DLP in terms of providing a useful web >>>>>> rules language that interacts well with the existing, and >>>>>> becoming >>>>>> more widely used, ontology spec.* >>>>> >>>>> I think it is not just me, but a number of people who read your >>>>> paper on >>>>> the two stacks may have misunderstood it. At least one way to >>>>> understand >>>>> what is said there is that 1 stack is good and 2 is not. >>>>> If there is another way to understand it (as advocating a >>>>> multi-stack >>>>> architecture) then this second meaning is deeper than I was able to >>>>> dig up. >>>>> >>>>>> Seems to me the key is exploring how to get maximum >>>>>> interoperability >>>>>> between the important work in BOTH areas (and I defy you to go >>>>>> back >>>>>> through this discussion and find any email where I haven't said >>>>>> I'm >>>>>> in favor of a web rules language) >>>>> >>>>> You didn't say this and I didn't say that you said this. I was >>>>> focusing on what I think were technically inaccurate claims in your >>>>> email >>>>> regarding the layering of WRL on top of DLP (where WRL is taken to >>>>> mean the >>>>> particular language under this name and not "a" generic web rules >>>>> language). >>>>> >>>>>> and also how to get the Web rules >>>>>> to join in the growing whole that is the semantic web -- it's not >>>>>> the >>>>>> same as applying LP in the Web area -- I argued for nearly a >>>>>> decade >>>>>> about the difference between Web Ontology and standard AI KR >>>>>> languages, and OWL has some significant differences from >>>>>> traditional >>>>>> AI (see the OWL FAQ [1] and the discussion of KR back in the >>>>>> 2001 >>>>>> Scientific American article [2]) >>>>> >>>>> Not "applying LP in the Web area" but "adapting LP to the Web". >>>>> Technically, OWL is an adaptation of DL to the Web with some >>>>> additional >>>>> research needed to accommodate RDFS. But in the LP area this >>>>> research has >>>>> already been done years ago. >>>>> >>>>>> This latter, btw, explains why URIs >>>>>> are not just some wildassed thing, they're crucial to the >>>>>> Semantic >>>>>> Web in a very deep way - read the Sci Am or any of Tim's >>>>>> discussions >>>>>> of this issue. >>>>> >>>>> Of course URIs are crucial. After all, they are object identifiers, >>>>> so they >>>>> are as crucial as any notion of an Id. >>>>> >>>>> But do they imply/require a new kind of KR? There are interesting >>>>> new >>>>> problems that stem from the architecture, but don't make it sound >>>>> as >>>>> if the >>>>> "old KR" is out of the window and adapting it to the new >>>>> architecture is a >>>>> hard or pointless exercise. The LP paradigm is as applicable to the >>>>> Web as >>>>> DL, if not more. (I, of course, think that it is more :-) >>>>> >>>>> >>>>>> so, I don't see this as in any way being a discussion of rules >>>>>> vs. >>>>>> ontology -- in fact, I cannot think of any dumber way to approach >>>>>> it >>>>>> -- rather it seems to me we're trying to explore where these >>>>>> things >>>>>> can overlap to the benefit of users and of the Web -- that >>>>>> strikes >>>>>> me >>>>>> as a very worthwhile pursuit >>>>> >>>>> The term "rules" is ambiguous in the context of our discussion. If >>>>> you said >>>>> "I don't see this as in any way being a discussion of *LP* vs. >>>>> ontology" >>>>> then this is exactly what I was trying to say. As I remarked above, >>>>> the 2tower paper **appears** to be arguing that LP+OWL in a 2-stack >>>>> architecture is a nonstarter. >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> --michael >>>>> >>>>> >>>>>> -JH >>>>>> >>>>>> >>>>>> [1] http://www.w3.org/2003/08/owlfaq.html >>>>>> [2] >>>>>> >>>>>> http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?articleID=00048144-10D2-1C70 >>>>>> -84A9809EC588EF21 >>>> >>>> -- >>>> Professor James Hendler Director >>>> Joint Institute for Knowledge Discovery 301-405-2696 >>>> UMIACS, Univ of Maryland 301-314-9734 (Fax) >>>> College Park, MD 20742 http://www.cs.umd.edu/users/hendler >>>> >>> >>> >>> >> >> > >Received on Wednesday, 29 June 2005 17:58:18 UTC
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.3.1 : Wednesday, 2 March 2016 11:10:16 UTC


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Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) Secretary Robert Barham announced the following additional closure to recreational and commercial fishing activities in a portion of state inside waters east of Grand Isle effective immediately, today, May 22, 2010.
Inside Waters Closure
The portion of inside waters from the eastern shore of Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals Harvest Area 12 near Lake Grand Ecaille westward to the western shore of the Barataria Waterway as marked by the green buoy line and south of 29 degrees 23 minutes and 50 seconds north latitude.
Precautionary closures of recreational and commercial fishing have been implemented based on the best information the Secretary of the Department receives from field biologists, staff and trajectory models from NOAA.
Once reports of oil are received, LDWF initiates a field survey and immediate seafood testing in the suspected areas. Closures are subsequently made with the intent to be as safe as possible, while not closing any fishing areas unnecessarily. As test results come back clearing the area, effected waters are then reopened.
LDWF continues to work closely with DHH in an effort to assess all opportunities to resume normal fishing activities on Louisiana's coast and guarantee the safety of Louisiana's seafood.
For more information related to the oil spill, visit http://www.emergency.louisiana.gov. Connect with us on www.facebook.com/GOHSEP and on Twitter as @GOHSEP. View photos from the state's response efforts at http ://www.flickr.com/photos/lagohsep.
For more information contact Laura Deslatte at email@example.com or 225-765-2335 or 225-610-2363.


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Ayala's mother mum on residency scandal
BRIDGEPORT -- The woman in the best position, personally and professionally, to clear up confusion over legislator-elect Christina Ayala's residency isn't talking.
"I do not have any comment on anything having to do with the whole situation," Santa "Sandi" Ayala, Christina's mother and Bridgeport's Democratic registrar of voters for eight years, said by phone Thursday.
Elected in November to represent the 128th House District in the General Assembly, Christina is under fire for telling the registrars and state election officials she lives at 604 Noble Ave., although other evidence indicates she resides in the 129th District at 49 Hillside Ave.
The issue arose when Ayala, a Democrat, and her boyfriend were arrested last week for a domestic dispute at the Hillside address and she subsequently sought a protective order listing Hillside as her residence.
The same 49 Hillside Ave. address was also listed on a police report when Ayala was arrested following a hit and run collision in August, 24 hours after winning her primary.
Ayala was recently warned by incoming House Speaker Brendan Sharkey, D-Meriden, that under state law she has until new legislators are sworn in Jan. 9 to rectify her living situation.
But that does not deal with the possibility Ayala, who according to the Secretary of the State's office voted in November's election, may have fraudulently done so in the wrong district. That is the question her mother is in a position to answer, given the registrars office has Christina living at 604 Noble Ave.
"It's pretty easy for this registrar to find out where this voter lives if there is some question," said Av Harris, a spokesman for the Secretary of the State's office, acknowledging the familial relationship.
Christina Ayala has not responded to requests for interviews. Her father, Tito, has not been helpful. And cousin Andres Ayala, who is graduating from representing the 128th District to a state Senate seat, said earlier this week he does not know where Christina lives.
Registrars are required between January and May to canvass voters who have changed their addresses. Bridgeport's next canvass is scheduled for sometime in the late winter or early spring, according to the registrar's office.
Harris said registrars are not precluded from contacting voters on a case-by-case basis when questions arise.
"If they do hear about a particular voter moving they can send what's called a `friendly letter', and it has a form in it for the voter to check off if they have moved and what's the new address ... And that can be done at any time," Harris said.
Harris said the matter of Christina Ayala is in the hands of Bridgeport's independently elected registrars.
"We're not going to tell them what to do. State laws give them the authority to make that determination," Harris said.
Sandi Ayala, according to the registrars office, has been out for the week and staff could not say if she plans to return next week.
Linda Grace, Bridgeport's Republican registrar, during two interviews was not anxious to get involved.
"I would prefer to stay out of this, obviously," she said.
Grace said she has never discussed Christina's living arrangements with Sandi Ayala before.
Does Grace intend to ask Sandi whether her daughter lives on Noble Avenue so the Bridgeport registrars have the correct information?
"At some point," she said.
Asked again, Grace said, "The subject may arise. I don't know how else to answer it."
But she also said Connecticut's voters have a lot of rights and noted Bridgeport is a "transient" city and residents frequently relocate.
Grace said questions over whether Ayala improperly cast a vote in the wrong legislative district in November are an issue for the state Elections Enforcement Commission.
"Now you're getting into something that's a different purview," Grace said. "I don't think that would be up to our office."
Melissa Russell, of Bethlehem, president of the Registrars of Voters Association of Connecticut, declined to say whether Sandi Ayala, as Bridgeport's registrar, has an obligation to settle the question of her daughter's residency.
Russell said generally, registrars offices are not an investigative or enforcement body.
"I can't say what a registrar should or shouldn't do in this situation," Russell said. "If you have somebody, there seems to be a discrepancy, you try to fix it. And if you can't get answers it goes to the enforcement body (the state). We can't levy fines, create penalties."
The state Elections Enforcement Commission has said it is monitoring the situation with Christina Ayala.
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This isn't too bad. Stumbled across this on the web. Un grupo de gringos from Montana pimp up some 4 Runners and south down to Panama. The rides look pretty nice. Good stories, although, they sometimes come across as a little too do-gooder smarmy, and sometimes, incredibly naïve. If you're headed south of the border(s), you'd think they learn more Spanish than just "gracias" and "cerveza." I just wonder who fronted the dinero for the gear, rigs & travel. What I liked the most was the scenery they travel through. Guatemala & Costa Rica look pretty bitchin. El Salvador must mean "hell on earth". ps: I know it doesn't. Quite the opposite, actually. Waddaya think?
Building the rides:
Episode 1:


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The Japan Foundation, Los Angeles
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Media and Technology Charter High School (MATCH)
|School Profile: Selected Variables
|Year First Chartered and Authorizer
|1999, state
|Grades and Enrollment
|9–12 and 185
|Student Ethnicity
|67% African-American
7% Asian American
21% Hispanic
5% white
|Special Education
|Free and Reduced-price Lunch
|Graduation Rate
|Annual Cost per Student
Source: School records data from 2005–06
"Kids don't care how much you know until they know how much you care," explains the principal at MATCH. Preparing inner-city students to make it all the way through college, he believes, means giving them personal attention inside and outside the classroom and making help available 24-7. This is why every MATCH student has a personal tutor all year, someone who forges a strong relationship with the student and relentlessly pursues the students' academic and behavioral growth.
MATCH is the brainchild of Michael Goldstein, who, while studying public policy at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, was staggered to learn that the national rate for college graduation among inner-city students was below 10 percent. Goldstein put together a team of like-minded people who helped create a vision for a school that would engage students in rigorous work preparing all to succeed in college. Goldstein's search for a principal led him to suburban Framingham, Mass., where he met Charles Sposato, a National Board for Professional Teaching Standards-certified teacher. The 30-year veteran educator had no administrative experience and no interest in becoming a principal, but he had an outstanding reputation among students and colleagues. Goldstein recognized immediately that Sposato was the ideal person to run the new school and persuaded him to join the team.
MATCH opened in September 2000 and now serves 185 students, mostly African-American and Hispanic, selected by lottery and entering as ninth-graders. Its mission is "to prepare inner-city Boston students to succeed in college and beyond—including those who have no family history of college attendance." The school sets high academic and behavioral standards in order to reverse underachievement, and it combines innovation and a "no short-cuts" work ethic to help students meet those expectations. Courage, discipline, and perseverance are the school's core values. As the name suggests, MATCH recognizes the importance of media and technology in society. Yet, it integrates them into a solid college preparatory curriculum grounded in the humanities, math, and science. At the same time, the name serves as a metaphor for igniting the imagination of curious teenagers with a passion to learn.
School Operations and Educational Program
The MATCH high school experience starts with a five-week summer academy for all incoming freshmen. Held at MIT, the focus is on reading, math, and building the school culture. Many students enter the school with deficits in basic skills. Together they "straight forwardly approach these deficits," says Goldstein. During the first two years, teaching focuses on remediation, for students who are several grades behind in math and reading to catch up. The junior and senior years focus on preparing students for college. As Goldstein explains, "Everyone feels the crunch—time is their most precious commodity and there isn't enough." Teachers and students all work hard, devoting hours to the mission of preparing for college. Typically students are at school until 6 p.m., and some as late as 8 p.m., working with tutors and teachers.
Graduation requirements include passing four years of math, science, and English (with passing defined as a grade of 70 or higher, although the local district high schools' passing grade is 65), two years of history, plus two years of foreign language, and two freshman humanities classes at Boston University. All seniors take AP classes in one, two, or three subjects (literature, calculus, biology) and all seniors take undergraduate classes at Boston University. Juniors must take AP U.S. history. Any student who fails more than one class must attend MATCH's summer academy. MATCH has the strictest promotion policy of all Boston high schools. There is no hesitation to hold students back until they can demonstrate proficiency. For extracurricular offerings, students can sign up for basketball, chess club, choir, cross-country running, drama club, hip hop dance, lacrosse, martial arts, newspaper, photography club, poetry club, step team, student council, tennis, and yearbook.
A special feature of this school is the MATCH Corps, whose 45 members—all college graduates—serve as tutors and teaching assistants for a year at the school. Every tutor works one-on-one every day with students from different grade levels, reviewing homework and reinforcing lessons to support their learning. Each tutor stays with the same students for the full year to provide continuity. These college graduates, housed at the school, did well in school themselves. The training for MATCH Corps members begins three weeks before school starts when they observe the MIT summer program. They attend workshops introducing them to the public school landscape, engage in role-playing scenarios, listen to guest speakers, discuss education readings that will help them as tutors, and participate in sessions on logistics and school culture with the principal.
Operating a longer school year of 188 days (compared to 180 days in local district schools), MATCH runs regular classes from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday. Fridays are "Corps-driven." While teachers meet for professional development, MATCH Corps members facilitate the school program. Students take a morning assessment to see if they mastered the week's lessons, attending an all-school assembly while the assessments are graded. If students pass all their assessments, they can leave after assembly and have an hour of silent reading. Otherwise, they have individual tutorial sessions.
The fact that MATCH is a small school enables students to form strong friendships across grade levels. "The seniors are role models," one sophomore explains. For some, MATCH provided a fresh start. Others explain they wanted an academic push. When the work gets challenging, says one student, "the tutors keep you going. Here it doesn't pay to give up."
Family Involvement and Partnerships
Parents help plan MATCH events, such as appreciation breakfasts for the tutors and fund-raisers for the school. Both tutors and teachers work to keep parents informed. Parents say that unlike their experience at other schools, MATCH teachers return their phone calls promptly. If students have academic or behavioral issues or are failing two or more classes, parents are contacted for a conference. Parents attend a financial aid night and other sessions to learn more about the college process. The school communicates regularly with families, sending a parent newsletter every two weeks, and tutors and parents typically talk three to four times per week. Teachers also call parents frequently.
Parents also have participated in political lobbying for MATCH, and groups of parents have spoken before the Massachusetts legislature on behalf of charter schools in general. The parent advisory council meets monthly. Parents feel their input is seriously considered at MATCH. On Martin Luther King, Jr. day, one parent was concerned that not enough was being done to recognize the importance of King's contribution, so she wrote a statement about courage, perseverance, and discipline that she read to the entire school. She felt empowered that the school was open and receptive to her efforts.
Boston University is MATCH's major partner, allowing rental of its gym next door three times a week and a hall for graduation, allowing seniors to audit for free two regular college classes per semester, and providing work-study tutors for which the university covers 50 percent of the cost. The university's dean of housing advised MATCH regarding dormitory issues when they were designing the MATCH Corps program, whose members live on-site. Other partnerships include the MIT summer program and a variety of work-study programs at nearby colleges (including MIT, Boston University, Boston College, Harvard, and University of Massachusetts Boston), which provide students to serve as tutors and mentors. Local businesses, such as those in corporate law, technology, and venture capital, and the Red Sox, have hosted work-site visits for MATCH students. One donor sponsored the basketball team, and another paid for students to participate in athletic programs, such as Metro-Lacrosse, a sports-based character education program in the Boston area.
Governing for Accountability
MATCH is run by a leadership team consisting of the executive director, founding principal, the founder qua research director, academic dean and the MATCH Corps director. Goldstein and the school's executive director, Alan Safran, work closely with the school's board of trustees to develop tight relationships between these 14 trustees and the school. Once a month the school leaders meet with other Boston charter school leaders to discuss common concerns among charter high schools, including issues such as teacher retention and neighborhood safety. They are authorized by the state and receive an annual accountability visit. Last year their charter was renewed until 2010.
MATCH teachers engage in continuous learning. Every Friday, instead of teaching, they first hold one-hour department meetings, sharing strategies and discussing teaching, and then participate in grade-level meetings where discussion is student specific, aimed at troubleshooting and planning. Founding principal Sposato promotes the school's culture, acting as motivator for both teachers and students alike, creating a safe, challenging environment where high expectations are explicit. It is a culture of rituals, he says, not routines. Sposato meets with each class five to six times during the year to listen to students' ideas, demonstrating he is interested, enthusiastic, open, and approachable. His priority is to build a climate of trust with the parents and students. He welcomes disagreement because, he says, "it causes me to reflect. I invite parents to push back so we can have open and sincere dialogue."
MATCH receives $10,815 per student from the state and an additional $700 per student from the Title I program. The school then raises approximately $850,000 to support the rest of the school program. Its core academic costs are $11,500 per student, facility costs per student are $1,800, and residential tutoring costs per student are $3,000, totaling $16,000 per student. The school has a director of development who writes grants and organizes fund-raising efforts. One-third of its budget comes from three outside sources: charitable foundations, trustees, and individual annual fund donors.
Alan Safran, Michael Goldstein, and Charlie Sposato each articulate the advantages of being a charter school as allowing them to offer a longer school day, a longer school year, tutoring on evenings and weekends, a summer program, and an innovative schedule for teachers. Safran also points to the benefit of hiring teachers on year-to-year contracts and being able to expect teachers to "do what it takes to get the work done." The small size of the school allows staff to develop personal relationships with students and their families. And there is time to call home to parents and time to provide individualized academic attention.
In 2000, the school received 204 applications for 80 seats. In 2005, applications climbed to 575 for 70 available slots. Sposato attributes the school's success to its culture of discipline and learning, the rigorous academics, the support provided by the MATCH Corps, and the extended academic program provided with tutoring.
|MATCH: Evidence of Closing the Achievement Gap
Before coming to MATCH in 2002, only one of its students had scored in the top two levels, proficient and advanced, on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) math test. After two years at the school, this student and 71 percent of her classmates scored proficient or advanced in math, a higher percentage than that of most suburban districts in Massachusetts.
For three years in a row, all MATCH students have scored as proficient or advanced on the MCAS. In 2005, the school ranked fourth among Massachusetts' 338 high schools in the math section and 18th in the English section for the percentage of students scoring in the top two levels on the MCAS.
By June 2006, MATCH had graduated three classes and every student from the classes of 2004, 2005, and 2006 was accepted for admission by a four-year college or university (an average of three acceptances per student), including Boston College, Brown, Duke, Georgetown, Hofstra, Howard, Northeastern, Spelman College, and Trinity College.


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I mean… That is the point of a degree, right? To get a job? So what does Obama's executive action say about the dismal state of our economy?
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Square Notepad
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