text:
http://www.experts-exchange.com/ [experts-exchange.com]
Maybe the answer is robots.txt; but that is not what you tell a billionaire if he asks you.
Why not? What part of "hey, not only is this completely within your control, it's also easy to handle" would a billionaire not want to hear? Would they prefer to hear that there's nothing they can do or that the problem is incredibly difficult to solve? Please explain this because I don't get it.
A simple answer can't be the right one, because that's not what the person asking the question wants to hear. They will ask questions, but they don't really want an usable answer... they just want to feel as though they are a victim to forces beyond their control.
From fox.com/robots.txt:
User-agent: *
Allow: /
Well obviously Murdoch wants his web pages crawled, otherwise nobody will visit them.
Frankly, what he is demanding is non-sensical; he wants Google to index his news sites, but does NOT want Google to display headlines or partial text when returning results. How the hell is a searcher supposed to know that the link in question has any relevance at all to what they are looking for?
He also seems to have a pretty screwed up view of what fair use is. Fair use is not the exception to copyright, copyright is the exception to fair use. That's why copyright had to be enumerated in the first place. The fair use statutes are there to help clarify what copyright does -not- extend to, but it is intentionally left somewhat vague to make it difficult for copyright to over-step its bounds.
All of this comes from the stated goal of copyright in the copyright goal, which is to enhance the proliferation of creative arts for the betterment of society at large. It's goal is NOT to make content owners rich, that is simply the vehicle to increase the amount of creative art produced for public consumption.
So, when he says he believes fair use doctrine is on its way out, it shows that he has absolutely no understanding of what copyright is for, and that he is also one greedy som'bitch. If he is right in any way, it means our law has really been turned on its head.
> I wonder if Google could argue that by not using robots.txt, Murdoch had
> essentially given permission to have his sites searched and indexed.
I believe that in the US case law has established that Murdoch has given permission to have his sites searched and indexed by making them public. Obeying robots.txt is just a courtesy, but the fact that he has not used it to block Google totally destroys any feeble case he might have had.
The faster Rupert puts himself out of business, the better off everyone will be.
In the early 1990's The Times and The Sunday Times had archive (over a week old articles), which you had to pay to access, there was even a CD-ROM of the updated archive every couple of months, which you had to pay for of course. It was SUCH a great success that the newspaper decided to go for free on the internet, because nobody wanted to pay up for what they could get elsewhere. So now Rupert is going full circle.
If my local paper [theage.com.au] offered a good online subscription I would sign up. What I want to see is:
In fact, pretty much what I can get from
Access to all archives
Good searching (like with a google appliance)
Revision history
Access to raw source material
Access to comment pages on all stories
In fact, pretty much what I can get from
The thing is _they dont have it_, even internally if a reporter wants something old he usually has to go to the archive (read basement) and digg for hours. Obviously its better at big newspapers, but not by a mile (they got dedicated people that do the digging, archives are in photo form, there might even be and index). What they find is usually just a copy of old newspaper, no revision history, no raw sources. Its not like in those cop shows where someone jumps out with big fat file full of pictures and hand written notes for 30 year old case.
Newspapers are SCARED of google, not because google knows how to archive this stuff, but because google is able to monetize it.
even internally if a reporter wants something old he usually has to go to the archive (read basement) and digg for hours.
Someone's been spending too much time online.
What else do you expect from a man in charge of a company that nearly sued itself [guardian.co.uk] over the one show that singlehandedly kept the network from dying an early death?
That was a hoax. Simpsons production team put out a press release the shortly afterward saying Groening was being satirical in his comments.
He wants to make more money by making his headlines not available to the top search engine?
In other news:
Rupert Murdoch has purchased a sig sauer 9mm handgun for personal protection.
"If I ever get attacked, all I have to do is hold this end to my forehead and pull the trigger!" exclaimed an exited Rupert. "That'll show them!"
I think they are trying to separate themselves to state that if you want the news, come to us and do it properly.
Have you ever searched for some information, and Google gave a hit where the surrounding text of the query already answers your question? And then not clicked the website?
I think they are trying to separate themselves to state that if you want the news, come to us and do it properly.
Riiighhht. When I want news done properly, I'll PAY FoxNews to do it properly. Just think about that for a second. The only reason anyone should be remotely concerned about this is because he now controls the WSJ.
Have you ever searched for some information, and Google gave a hit where the surrounding text of the query already answers your question? And then not clicked the website?
No, not for news. Try searching for "2009 election results" or "apple earnings 2009" and see if you can make sense of it (although "who beat rihanna" actually kind of worked). Nobody can use that crap. Even Google News doesn't provide usable news in their largest digest. FoxNews.com charging would
If it was such an easy answer in the first place that it could occur just in the description of the link, of course!
This is like the cheap way local news stations get you to watch the whole 11pm news.
7pm: There's a food that might kill you already sitting in your fridge. Find out tonight at 11!
8pm: There's a food that might kill you already sitting in your fridge. Find out tonight at 11!
9pm: There's a food that might kill you already sitting in your fridge. Find out tonight at 11!
10pm: There's a food that might kill you already sitting in your fridge. Find out tonight at 11!
11pm: There's a food that might kill you already sitting in your fridge. Find out on this show!
11:08pm: And coming up soon, There's a food that might kill you already sitting in your fridge. But first weather.
11:30pm: Coming up after the break, 8pm: There's a food that might kill you already sitting in your fridge. Stick around.
11:59pm: And, if you eat spoiled food at the same time your murdered, you might die!
Roll Credits
You better believe if i can find the information before news outlets decided when I am allowed by all means I will.
Even on a page of search results, the answer to a question found in a link preview STILL is more readable that some of the junk clogged websites many news organizations have.
Usually, no. Not unless I'm looking for a physics formula or something. Otherwise I want to know the _context_ of the statement. I want to know where the information is coming from. For example, there's this really good quote from LEAP (Law Enforcement Against Prohibition) stating that before the Harrison Anti-drug act, 1.3% of the population was addicted to drugs. Before the War on Drugs, 1.3% of the population was addicted to drugs. And today, 1.3% of the population is addicted to drugs. I've been looking for the real source of that for days, still with no luck, and I refuse to use it until I find one. Not because I don't trust LEAP, but simply because they're hardly an unbiased source. I've finally decided to try to contact them about it, and am awaiting a reply. But seriously, I know a _lot_ of people will use facts without bothering to check out anything about it, but personally I refuse to state something as a fact until I know exactly where it's coming from and in what context. Otherwise you're just spreading rumors - and from the small blurb that Google gives you, that's all you can really do. Until google is able to trace the source of whatever it's telling you, those blurbs are only useful for determining which link to click - as they are intended.
Plus, have you ever really searched something with 4 or 5 terms? Google tries to show you the context of as many terms as possible in that 2 or 3 line blurb, so you end up getting 4 or 5 words around each one. Pretty much useless.
I don't see why google just doesn't stop indexing their stuff for a while, and waiting for them to scream about how they're no longer in the serch results.
Then tell Murdoch "How much are you going to pay to be back in?"
Then, no matter how much he offers, say, "Not enough."
When he says "Well, how much would it cost?" reply "In your dreams, fatboy!"
Murdoch would sue. More likely, Fox would sue, whining that Google is discriminating against a conservative viewpoint.
No, what would make more sense is, with each of these articles, publicly respond -- in particular, contact whatever organization published the Murdoch rant. Make two offers:
First, offer to that news organization that a representative will be available for comment every time Murdoch does this. This isn't a big deal, as it'll pretty much be cut and paste.
Second, in this response and in all further comments, make the public offer to do exactly what he is asking for -- stop indexing his stuff. If he says "no", end of story. If he doesn't respond, he's going to look very stupid in future articles like this.
Murdoch would sue. More likely, Fox would sue, whining that Google is discriminating against a conservative viewpoint.
Is that illegal now?
He wants to make more money by making his headlines not available to the top search engine?
Of all the news corporations, Fox News might be able to succesfully pull off a pay-wall.
Their readers/viewers are really loyal.
It has to be political.. there has to be something going on behind the scenes here.
He's not that stupid a person.. and there's no way that someone hasn't explained to him what a robots.txt file is by now..
How has this not happened? Even mainstream media tends to at least try to get a statement from both sides.
I'm sure if the BBC had contacted google.. they would have gotten lots of information on the subject. Or at least a quote they could include.. something along the lines of "google engineer x would like to remind Newscorp that they can _completely_ "block" us (and many others) from "stealing" their content by putting a simple text file on their site.
Unfortunately for Fox News, that would mean that they could not quote anyone or use excerpts from books or speeches without prior approval. He'll find that he can't have it both ways.
Unfortunately for Fox News, that would mean that they could not quote anyone or use excerpts from books or speeches without prior approval.
Yeah, that would be a serious hindrance if Fox News were in the business of reporting facts.
Easy solution for Google.
1. Block any and all direct links to Newscorp owned sites in the search results.
2. Downrank any sites that link to Newscorp owned sites as irrelevant linking. (They have this for counteracting googlebombing.)
3. Systematically provide alternative sources for any search results that would have linked to Newscorp owned sites.
So eventually even a search for "Newscorp" brings up every one of their competitors websites bashing them for being stupid, old, ignorant and irrelevant.
Those are easy solutions to what problem? Google doesn't have a problem they need solving. Fox hasn't done anything except state they want out of the internet business. That doesn't mean Google needs to help them. In fact, Google probably benefits by not helping them.
When someone points a gun at their foot, you don't need to help them point the trigger. You can try to talk them out of it, or ignore it, but if they're someone who makes you money, at worst, you refrain from egging them on with "shoot it! s
1. Block any and all direct links to Newscorp owned sites in the search results.
And Fox would sue because they are being singled out because they are "conservative" or similar (I have already commented on this last time this topic was brought up on
And Fox would sue because they are being singled out because they are "conservative"
It'd never make it. It'd be dismissed pretty much instantly. There's no protected class of "conservative", and being listed on Google isn't a protected right.
it's human readable-you won't believe this shit....
http://www.foxnews.com/robots.txt [foxnews.com]
"User-agent: *
User-agent: gsa-crawler
Sitemap: http://www.foxnews.com/google_search_index.xml [foxnews.com]
Sitemap: http://www.foxnews.com/google_news_index.xml [foxnews.com]"
explicit allows.....
I often find disallows to be the neatest part of some websites.
It has to be political.. there has to be something going on behind the scenes here. He's not that stupid a person.. and there's no way that someone hasn't explained to him what a robots.txt file is by now..
Of course. Merdoch (or his minons) know this. There are probably two things going on: A lame attempt to convince the public that he is being ripped off, and also he is almost certainly in discussions with Google about having Google pay for the content that Google clearly profits from. Neither will work out. And until web content of these "publications" provide a lot more value to the consumer, pay-for-access is a dead idea as well.
Of course there are certain publications, like the WSJ that can pull it off, but most can not, and certainly not local newspapers.
It's not politics, it's p
Actually I think absurdist's post had it, this is all just him repeating the lie enough times that he can get his followers to back him up and then challenge fair use entirely.
Actually I think absurdist's post had it, this is all just him repeating the lie enough times that he can get his followers to back him up and then challenge fair use entirely.
Similar tactics of repeating lies until people believe them worked with the "liberal media conspiracy" and the "fox news is fair and balanced" lines, at least in some circles.
This is all a ploy to negotiate with Google some more beneficial (to Murdoch) terms. I can only see it working if he also manages to get a critical mass of other publications' owners to do the same thing. They don't have to move in lockstep if he does have a coalition going. He can block WSJ.com, claim some victory, show it as a case model, and hope others buy his idea (WSJ does not need Google, but the example would probably not work for many other not-as-self-sustaining sites).
It's not politics, it's purely (an attempt to save a failed) business (model). If Rupert doesn't have a coalition going, there's only so much posturing he can do before actually cutting off his nose to spite his face [wikipedia.org].
Here's what I don't understand about people like Murdoch. He's 78 years old. I don't like him one bit, but I don't wish him ill either (for that would reflect badly on me while saying nothing about him). I hope he lives well into old age (and uses that time to reconsider his priorities -- more on that later). But realistically, he is a mortal being just like me and everyone else.
I'll speak only for myself here. If I were 78 years old, how much time would I have left on the planet? Two or three years? Five? Ten? Wouldn't I be lucky to have that much, since all of those figures exceed the average life expectancy of a male in the USA? If I am that old and already have enough money to guarantee not only my financial security but also that of any children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren, what would be the point of continuing to try to build and maintain a media empire with increasingly aggressive tactics? Every minute I spent doing that would be time I wouldn't get to spend with my family, my friends, appreciating nature and the world around me, and maybe even trying to use my vast resources to make the world a slightly better place. It would be time that I would never get back once it has come and gone.
I really wonder what drives people like this. I want to know what they think they are accomplishing that's so important to them. It's not even a religious cause or a humanitarian effort or anything like that where this kind of devotion is not so unusual. It's just business and he has already acquired a vast personal fortune that is the dream of businessmen everywhere. He has already succeeded many times over yet he continues to play the game. Something here just doesn't add up. How do you explain this kind of dedication? Because as far as I can tell, it's quite pathological though even that doesn't really explain it.
I work for someone who is wealthy enough to just plain stop, right now, and live happily ever after. He easily works 60 hours a week at the office, and probably more if he takes anything home with him. We've talked about the quandary you just presented.
His answer as to why he continues to build and expand: "Because I really enjoy it." And I don't think there's much more to be said about it, except that some folks like playing football, or billiards. Some folks paint pictures for fun. And some folks build empires. It's like playing Risk, but with real assets.
I work for someone who is wealthy enough to just plain stop, right now, and live happily ever after. He easily works 60 hours a week at the office, and probably more if he takes anything home with him. We've talked about the quandary you just presented.
His answer as to why he continues to build and expand: "Because I really enjoy it." And I don't think there's much more to be said about it, except that some folks like playing football, or billiards. Some folks paint pictures for fun. And some folks build empires. It's like playing Risk, but with real assets.
Is this person generally a good or at least decent man? Or is he a despotic, ruthless, Machiavellian type like (in my opinion) Murdoch is? I believe that makes a significant difference. I don't imagine Murdoch truly rejoicing in much of anything to tell you the truth. He probably views his personal enjoyment as something he had to sacrifice to a) get where he is today and b) demonstrate his single-minded dedication. If you have ever encountered the type before, then you know what I mean.
I work for someone who is wealthy enough to just plain stop, right now, and live happily ever after. He easily works 60 hours a week at the office, and probably more if he takes anything home with him. We've talked about the quandary you just presented.
His answer as to why he continues to build and expand: "Because I really enjoy it." And I don't think there's much more to be said about it, except that some folks like playing football, or billiards. Some folks paint pictures for fun. And some folks build empires. It's like playing Risk, but with real assets.
I know I'm replying to you a second time, but I wanted to add something.
I guess I am one of those "oddballs" (at least in this society it would seem so) because I value quality time with people I love and care about much more than any game of Risk that I don't actually need to play. What follows is a rhetorical question. If your boss has a family, how often does he say "I just don't have the time" to his wife and children in order to put in those 60+ hours a week, or if he doesn't have his own family, how many people hear that from him who still care about him very much?
To me this is not about whether working a job that you enjoy has merit. Certainly it does. It's about priorities and whether you have any that mean more to you. It's about the fact that there are only so many hours in one day and only so many days in one lifetime.
One word: sociopath.
Apparently you're unfamiliar with Mr. Murdoch's favored style of "journalism". You simply state what you think *should* be true, and then cite it repeatedly as "some say X", possibly with a side of tits. USians are most familiar with this from Faux News, but it's apparently practiced throughout the media empire.
He knows about robots.txt.
See this story (On one of his own sites): http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,573329,00.html [foxnews.com] where it is mentioned.
Paid subscriptions is his plan.
He has to eliminate search engines because he wants to move news to a subscription basis. But he knows he can never be successful at that as long as anyone else provides advertiser supported free access.
So its all talk. He knows it would be suicidal to make this move alone, and is trying to drum up support among all the big news providers.
But even THAT would not work when local newspapers and TV stations put news on line, because Google would simply index those remaining free providers, which often provide a more complete story anyway.
The world has changed, and Rupert still thinks he's selling newspapers on the corner.
I agree with your take on this, but what I don't get is how Murdoch is able to continue in this campaign.
It seems to me that he is damaging his reputation and the reputation of his companies with all the press this idea is generating. Does he not have advisors that he consults with before making these press releases?
http://www.foxnews.com/google_news_index.xml [foxnews.com]
Murdoch is so intent on blocking Google News that his site automatically generates the feed necessary for the import.
Wait.. I think I missed something.
I just looked at the Fox News site main page and visited all their top news stories accessable from the front page.
So out of their top ten stories, nine are either pure AP stories or edited from AP stories, and one comes from the Discovery News website.
Total identifiable original Murdoch content: one hurricane graphic from a Fox organisation hurricane-tracking site (which Fox News forgot to link to).
No identifiable "Murdoch press" journalistic content.
Completing the list:
#11 was AP, #12 was credited to FoxBusiness.com (a Murdoch journalism hit! Wahey!), #13 was AP, #14 was AP, #15, finally, was a Fox News piece on the Mclaren buggy recall, with a bold FOXNEWS logo and a photo provided by Mclaren. #16 was AP.
So from their "most read" list, Fox News only have one story out of the sixteen that they actually wrote themselves.
Associated Press are a news syndication company (like Reuters), who supply news content to media outlets. This lets news companies supplement the content produced by their own journalists with ready-made stories that they can just slot into place as padding.
Given that the clear majority of FoxNews' top stories on this page (nearly 90%) were actually bought in from AP, and that Google News also subscribe to AP as a content provider to buy stories, it's not surprising that when both sites rank their content by popularity, if Murdoch looks at the Sky News page and compares it to the Google News page, he's going to see a lot of the same top-ranking stories on both sites.
But this doesn't necessarily mean that Google News are stealing stories from Fox News Journalists, or stealing the selection. Both sites are buying content from AP, and the site viewers are dictating the popularities, not the editors.
I don't know whether this means that FoxNews.com don't actually do much journalism themselves, and mainly act as aggregators (like Google News)
Either way, I can see why RM is concerned. Shouting that Google is stealing their stories kinda stops people noticing that, for Fox News, their own site statistics say that most of their most popular stories aren't actually theirs anyway. One out of sixteen?
If I were Google, I'd just cut all his sites off for a month and let them see how far their click-revenue falls off.
No google news, No search results, nothing.
The guy asked for it, so give it to him.
It would be even more effective to block known IP blocks of his businesses from any inbound or outbound access to Google services for a month.
as funny as that would be, i don't want to see google getting into the habit of cutting off *anyone*. as long as the information is indexable, they should display it. let murdoch be a baby and block it from his own end with robots.txt if he wants, but don't play childish games with children. they should just ignore him.
Everyone knows that your customers will go to your websites without any help from search engines!
Considering who actually consumes Murdoch's media, it wouldn't surprise me if they instinctively seek out his biased media by name. Kind of like how most Slashdotters probably don't google stories from Slashdot; they just click the bookmark and read the site.
Worth reading Lauren Weinstein's blog post take on this - trenchantly dead-on, as usual:
Murdoch's Folly: Block Google & Kill Fair Use -- Plus a Nasty Truth
http://lauren.vortex.com/archive/000633.html [vortex.com]
There's a department store. It probably carries a lot of merchandise. But the store owner wants everybody to pay him a fee to walk through the front door. And he wants the local papers to not say what he carries, or what he's got on sale this week. He feels that he should be the only one getting paid for anything that mentions his merchandise.
Would you bother going to his store? Or would you go to the Target or Wal-Mart that's happy to have a flyer in the paper listing everything they've got on sale this week.
Yeah, thought so.
It's your right to be stupid and wrong-headed, Mr. Murdoch. Everyone has that gods-given right. But don't come whining to us when your plan fails to go the way you want it to go. We, after all, never signed any agreement saying we'd only behave the way you want.
Cute analogy - except, it's not even his stuff.
Murdoch does not "create" anything (propaganda aside). He's only "reporting" things that happen. Guess what... other people can do that too. "News" reporting is a dying art and rightly so. Back in the day, no one knew what was happening in Zimbabwe. You had to pay a professional team to fly there (or take a boat, a couple centuries ago). They would "report" the current events and either mail, telegraph, telex or eventually send the "story" in through radio or a satellite TV link. All of this cost money, and news companies had to sell a lot of advertising to cover costs.
But guess what? Times have changed. Now anyone with a cell phone and internet access can provide "breaking news". How often do I see CNN or other "news" channels showing the EXACT same video that was on LiveLeak. Except of course they "blur out" the LiveLeak logo (yeah, you try and do that to THEIR content and see how many lawyers you get on your ass). Frankly there's no value in "syndicated" news anymore. Firstly, they're almost always behind the internet, secondly, their reporting is always biased, and thirdly - I really don't want to watch the damned ads.
FoxNews seems to dominate my personalized headlines at news.google.com, even when the story is highly irrelevant or a tangent to the topic on hand.
I'd love to be able to block Fox News. I'd also like to block all the Sports news that keeps creeping into my newsfeeds, despite my attempts to prevent it. I'm not interested in Sports news.
He's asking Google to pay him to index his site.
Parse it out...
1) They're stealing his headlines
2) Google may or may not have the right to search
3) We'll attack their right to search
4) So if they know what's good for them, pay us to be included in google searches
"Murdoch believes that search engines cannot legally use headlines and paragraphs of news stories as search results.
Indeed, they can't, without Murdoch's permission. Lucky for Google that Murdoch grants them permission in their robots.txt.
'There's a doctrine called "fair use," which we believe to be challenged in the courts and would bar it altogether,'
"We"? As in the "royal we"? Challenged by who? On what grounds?
The only thing that seems to be "challenged" here is Murdoch's intellect and ethics. Well, actually, it's beyond "challenged", it's just rotten.
I had the pleasure of cycling for about 4 hours with on of the editors from a large Murdoch owned newspaper back in 2000.
He asked me where the internet was heading, and how they could leverage it to provide content, and get the readers involved. I also highlighted problems like the sourcing of press releases as articles and the conflicting information they will find in other sources. Opportunities also would present themselves like geolocated and profiled advertising. To their credit, they have persued much of this. The problem is that Google is their competition. I can find anything I want, for free, quicker, crowdsourced, discussed in forums and critiqued. The only service newspapers now offer is a stream of aggregation - and that puts them in direct competition with search engines.
This has been a perfect storm for Murdoch. He has concernrated media, driving variety out of the the market, and opening doors for players of new technology to enter into a niche and then expand to take his business.
His papers will evaporate. Unfortunately, with it will go the newsagencies, delivery routes and old paper advertising industry that went with it. The biggest danger Rupert faces is Apple Tablet - if you can read on that, and it works well - newpapers are in for a world of pain.
In an exclusive interview with one of his employees, Rupert Murdoch announced that it was time to draw a line in the sand in his constant battle to frustrate freeloading consumers by scheduling extensive rhinoplasty [today.com].
As the logical extension of his intent to improve monetization of his global media empire, an aggressive research team, led by his own grubby, questing index finger (itself a semi-autonomous publicly traded subsidiary of ArmCorp) had discovered a hitherto unprofitable branch of Mr Murdoch's own face and immediately set to analysing the potential in the "streaming content" market.
"Thanks to the pervasive and anarchic medium of light and an endemic, unscrupulous approach to photon-consumption," said Mr Murdoch to a camera he owned, "the public have been stealing — we believe it is theft — visible spectra which carry a representation of my nose. When I consent to an interview, a TV appearance or a personal meeting with an individual, we are entering into a contract in which I am licensing access to me, Rupert Murdoch, a highly lucrative and profitable range of properties and services.
"For too long, people have been content to pay only for access to my thoughts, speech or round-the-clock footage of the contents of my bowels — via the Times, Sky and Fox News respectively — while stealing valuable images of my nose, its nostrils and their contents, then rebroadcasting and shamelessly profiteering.
"When a reporter negotiates an interview with me, as well as broadcasting the material he has licensed legitimately, he frequently steals additional content without permission. Telling another reporter down the pub 'I just interviewed that arsehole Murdoch, what a leathery-faced, jowly, big-nosed, offensive wanker he is' is time-shifting and re-disseminating unlicensed intellectual property. Commentary based upon my opinions is legitimate as paid output from the premium outlet of my mouth. Any entertainment derived from the rest of my face is theft, pure and simple. There is no such thing as fair use."
The interview itself took place on Sky Channel 149, a pioneering venture to broadcast 24-hour footage of the view from Mr Murdoch's bathroom cabinet. In line with Mr Murdoch's policy of preferring fewer paying customers and no freeloaders, Sky 149 has precisely one subcriber, with Mr Murdoch himself paying himself hundreds of thousands of dollars each month for access, for the purpose of shaving.
Having successfully franchised out his forehead, jowls and cheeks to a conglomerate representing elephants born without ball-bags, and following a failed attempt to charge a subscription fee to customers prepared to pay to punch Murdoch square in the nose, the decision was eventually made to excise the entire section of the business, rather than allow further illicit exploitation, piracy and copyright terrorism.
When questioned as to what purpose the resulting gap in his cranial portfolio might be turned, Murdoch suggested that he was tentatively considering offers from the adult entertainment market to employ his skull cavity as a giant fucking cunt.
But I'd hazard that he knows just how many eyes google directs to his sites.
Instead, I'd suggest he doesn't like how efficient google's algorithm is. I generally get what I'm after with google. I'm guessing he wants to be able to directly control what a search on his sites turn up, relevant or not.
I was thinking about power law distributions the other night, and ended up reading through some old material on Clay Shirky's blog, where I encountered the term "solidarity good": a good that primarily has value because all your peers also know about it. This is one of the factors which drives power law distributions. I mean, we all know who's the world's wealthiest self-produced amateur porn star, which is only important because we all know it.
I'm interested in another class of good which I might term "ubiquity good": something that has value primarily because you know it's pervasive and easily accessible. In software, we're trained not to succumb to the NIH factor. If you position a line of code as a scarcity good, you'll end up rewriting it every time you change jobs. In order to drive down labour cost, the powers that be have voted in favour of churn.
In our economy, most people function as wage slaves: your income is primarily determined by how many hours you have to sell. Only the ascendant sliver of the power law distribution profits from accrued capital. So you have 10% of the population controlling 90% of the wealth who are intensely invested in scarcity goods, and 90% of the population controlling 10% of the wealth who see a lot more upside in ubiquity goods. Which prevails?
Without laws to the contrary (and big government to enforce them) the answer is obvious. I wonder about this sometimes when I use Google Scholar to add a cite to a woeful Wikipedia article. I dive in, poach someone else's hard won fact/authority, jigger the wording, adjust the context, and make if free for all: a billion termites chewing away on scarcity culture, bite by bite. By comparison, the "analog gap" is a pretty small fish.
In theory, we all aspire to make the leap from the wage slave majority to the leveraged minority. The power law says most of us aren't going to make it: the number of seats at the high table seems to shrinking lately, rather than growing.
The argument boils down to one of two cases: A) we should all support scarcity culture, because we all aspire to ascend the economic ladder to the scarcity-enabled rungs of privilege, or B) we should all invest in ubiquity culture, because few of us will succeed in making the jump (as is the nature of a power law).
Power laws have a fractal structure, but scarcity doesn't seem to: for whatever reason, gated communities tend not to work; a quanta of IP tends to either be scarce or universal. Frequently the market manages to exploit aspiration over reality, but I don't see how that's going to play out in Murdoch's favour in this case. There isn't enough middle ground.
The one example of middle ground that comes to mind is stock market price data where scarcity is a function of timeliness. For the big fish, I think the goal these days is to trade on adverse information in under 4ms. The price information runs a cascade of tiers before emerging 15m later as a universal. Each tier wants to conceal the new information from the next tier down until their own trades complete, and so it goes.
Somehow Disney wants to fire the inverse-bullet-time hog-trough at this and slow the process down to the scale of human lifetimes without tipping greater society toward ubiquity goods. I can only say, good luck with that. Murdoch in the middle isn't going to fare much better.
"There's a doctrine called 'fair use', which we believe to be challenged in the courts and would bar it altogether... But we'll take that slowly."
That's pretty much the definition of FUD. "We can and will destroy you, but we choose not to for now." A.k.a. "bullshit".
Thufir's a Harkonnen now.


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Using Walter Isaacson's best-selling biography as a frame, award-winning author Mari Yamazaki has created a manga version of the life of Apple founder Steve Jobs. It's being serialized in the Japanese comic magazine Kiss, alongside tales of teen love.
So it's not surprising, then, that Jobs is portrayed as "a cute, doe-eyed kid who worries about whether his adoptive parents love him," writes Sam Byford at the Verge. In the first installment, he also grows into a rebellious teenager; the Verge has a shot of the frame in which Jobs reclines on the grass, smoking a joint.
It all starts, though, with the instantly recognizable adult Jobs: black turtleneck, glasses, pensive expression. That's in the present day, when Jobs discusses the biography with Isaacson, and it's rendered in a realistic style, a departure from the manga look.
Will Apple's early days be portrayed in the manga style, with Steve Wozniak and the rest dressed as action heroes? Will the Apple IIc or first generation, jewel-colored iMacs have special powers?
Readers will have to wait and see -- the first serial ends with Jobs and Wozniak meeting.
And one other thing readers will have to do: read Japanese. The rest of us -- well, we can look at the pictures.
Philip Roth gets 'Unmasked' on PBS -- or does he?
Basquiat book in the works to feature unseen archives, art
Oops: Stephen Colbert says Junot Diaz has won the Nobel Prize

subset: commoncrawl


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The Bengals gutted the fourth-ranked Jets defense Sunday at sold-out Paul Brown Stadium when quarterback
Marvin Jones caught three touchdown passes in the first half and secured his first 100-yard day with 116 on six catches on his way to a 122-yard day on eight catches.
It was fitting the Bengals would go to 4-0 at home for the first time since the high-octane 1988 AFC champions with the biggest offensive explosion of the Dalton-
But it was a costly. Middle linebacker
Then early in the second half wide receiver
Marvin Jones tied the receiving record with 16 seconds left in the half on third down from the Jets 14 as the Bengals tried to hurry in a score after
Dalton, virtually untouched in the pocket during the half, had plenty of time on third down from the Bengals 14 and he stepped up when he saw Jones working on safety Dawan Landry in the right corner. Jones made a leaping catch going out of bounds and glided his second foot behind him at the last instant.
The play was originally ruled incomplete but then was overturned.
When Crocker picked off Smith while patrolling the slot to make it 35-6, the idea suddenly was to get to Thursday with no more mayhem.
The outburst was so complete that a Dalton interception and the failure to score a touchdown on fourth-and-one couldn't stop the Bengals after the Jets cut the lead to 14-3 on Nick Folk's 45-yard field goal with 9:09 left in the first half.
At that point Dalton went to two non-Green options. He lofted a perfect 24-yard pass to Sanu over his shoulder down the left sideline beating rookie cornerback Dee Milliner just before he went out of bounds. Then on the same side Dalton drilled a quick out to Marvin Jones and he set sail on a 45-yard play that featured about 35 yards after catch down to the Jets 6 after he made at last three defenders miss with a variety of cutbacks.
From there on third down, Jones repeated what he did on his first touchdown catch and got good enough position near the left pylon and Dalton hit him with a back-shoulder throw to make it 21-3 with 6:13 left in the half.
The Bengals came out briskly and efficiently. Dalton hit eight of his first 10 passes for 94 yards in directing touchdown drives of 80 and 68 yards, much of the snaps coming out of the no-huddle. Dalton targeted six receivers in that first drive and hit four of them with the touchdown coming on that nine-yard back-shoulder throw to Jones on the left pylon. Sanu drew a 34-yard interference call on cornerback Antonio Cromartie on a bomb down the middle at the Jets 9 to set up the score.
Jones, who has had breakout games the last three weeks, set up the second touchdown when he fried Milliner going down the middle and then dragged him for about an extra 10 yards on a 30-yard play. Dalton then found tight end
Milliner, the Jets first-round pick out of Alabama, got benched in the second half as Dalton found seven different receivers.
Meanwhile the Bengals defense made life miserable for the rookie Smith on his first two series that both ended in sacks and the day didn't get any better.
Enter Bengals safety
Then on the next series on an another third-and-seven, Nelson roared in untouched and had a free shot at Smith for the sack.
That one resulted in Dalton's 53-yard bomb to Green running past Cromartie, the first of two 53-yarders for Green as he went over 100 yards for the third straight week with three catches for 115 yards.
Dalton went downtown right away to Green beating Cromartie on the second snap of the game down the left sideline and it would have been a 78-yard touchdown but Cromartie got a hand out at the last minute to tip it away.
Smith finished the half just 9-of-13 for 81 yards with the two sacks and the game 20 of 30 for just 159 yards, the two pick-sixes and a passer rating of51.9
PREGAME NOTES: Bengals rookie defensive end
Also inactive for Sunday were offensive linemen
KEEP AN EYE ON: Bengals special teams coach Darrin Simmons could only shake his head after practice one day last week. He couldn't get away from Josh Cribbs for even a year.
Cribbs, the famed punt and kick returner who kept the Browns on the map for the previous eight seasons, played his first game as a Jet last week, returned both punts and kicks, and is ready to do it again Sunday.
"He's kept me up late many nights and he's doing it again," Simmons said. "Any time you're talking about Josh Cribbs, you have to talk about how physical and how hard he runs and your No. 1 priority has to be getting him on the ground."


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Coldharbour Citizen.
Coldharbour Citizen.
Well, that's it folks, I hope you enjoyed my pictures, my apologies if they came out so-so, I couldn't find my dedicated camera charger in time to get some real nice HQ photos.
But this is how crazy rammed packed the club was until I left at 5:55 am and saw Markus one last outside the club.
The WT episode perfectly captured the atmosphere and I hope these pictures can give you a sense of the insanity that is Club Space.
Markus ended nicely with Johnny the Fox from Thoughts Become Things.
I'm def looking forward to next month as I'll hopefully be with my personal friends and GDJB loyals at Club Dream and Space again.
Coldharbour Citizen.


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Mall name:
3035 Boul. Le Carrefour, Laval, Quebec H7T 1C8
Phone number to Le Carrefour Laval mall
450 687 1360
Hours (mall)
Monday - Friday 10:00 am - 9:00 pm, Saturday 9:00 am - 5:00 pm, Sunday 10:00 am - 5:00 pm.
Driving directions
Other stores in Le Carrefour Laval:
Looking for another location of Davids Tea store?
Go to Davids Tea store locator to see all Davids Tea stores


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Trip to Israel
I will be bringing my family to Israel this summer for our first visit ever. Needless to say we are very excited. We want to have the maximum experience in the 10 days we have available. What would you recommend for us?
The Aish Rabbi Replies:
Thank you for writing. Unfortunately, a mistake many people make when visiting Israel is to spend all their time seeing the "sights" – i.e. mountains, beaches, museums – but they miss out on the real heart of Israel which is the Torah learning which takes place here. As it says: "For out of Zion shall the Torah come forth, and the word of God from Jerusalem." (Isaiah 2:3)
I recommend you set aside time to attend the Discovery seminar, an excellent presentation of Jewish history and philosophy. Modules include: "7 Wonders of Jewish History," "Genesis & the Big Bang" (with MIT nuclear physicist Dr. Gerald Schroeder), and "Computer Bible Codes." The seminar is held on Sundays, from 9:30 am – 6:30 pm, in the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem (info at www.aish.com/dis/). You may be able to drop in for some classes at Aish's Essentials program – http://israel.aish.com/essentials/.
Here are some ideas of what to do in Jerusalem:
Western Wall – Schedule some quiet, meditative time at Judaism's holiest spot. For excitement and sheer beauty, the best time to be at the Wall is just before sunset on Friday, when Shabbat descends upon the holy city, and Jews from all walks of life gather to usher in the holy day.
Western Wall Tunnels – http://english.thekotel.org/
City of David – www.cityofdavid.org.il/hp_eng.asp
Aish Building – see the amazing Chihuly glass sculpture, view a scale model of the Holy Temple, and get a breathtaking rooftop view directly overlooking the Temple Mount. www.aish.com/ai/jb/
Mea She'arim – Walk through the old Orthodox section and see how the Jewish community might have looked in pre-War Europe.
Machane Yehuda outdoor vegetable market – best on Friday morning, when pre-Shabbat shopping is at a frenzy.
Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum – absolutely essential.
Jerusalem Area:
"Dig for a Day" archaeological experience – www.archesem.com
Tank Museum in Latrun – www.davidpride.com/Israeli_Armor/Armor_Main.htm
Mini-Israel – fun for the kids, see all of Israel's sites in miniature www.minisrael.co.il
Rachel's Tomb in Bethlehem
Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron
Tel Aviv area:
Blind Museum - www.d-in-dark.co.il
Palmach Museum – www.palmach.org.il
Dead Sea Area:
Masada – hike up the mountain at sunrise, or ride the cable car
Dead Sea – float in the lowest point of Earth, and enjoy the healing mineral mud.
Ein Gedi Nature Reserve – hike to the waterfalls.
Tzfat – visit the old synagogues, old cemetery, mikveh of the Arizal, and tomb of Rebbe Shimon in Meiron.
Take one afternoon and volunteer:
At a food relief agency – www.yadeliezer.org/volunteer
At an Israeli hospital – www.vfi-usa.org
At a medical services group – www.yadsarah.org/index.asp?id=72


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PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Memorial Day weekend is getting off to a chilly start.
Brief frost and freeze warnings were in effect for much of western Pennsylvania less than two weeks after another unwelcome cold spell had farmers worried about fledgling crops.
The frost warning was in effect for the Pittsburgh area and southwestern counties from 3 to 8 a.m. today. A freeze warning was in effect for the same time period for the Altoona area and northwestern counties. Temperatures will range from 30 to 34 degrees, and outdoor plants could be damaged.
The forecast low temperature overnight Friday into Saturday for Pittsburgh was 35 degrees; the record low for the day, 33, was set in 1925.
Unseasonably low temperatures also blanketed much of the region early last week before warm weather returned. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has said that frost from that cold spell resulted in damage to crops and fruit trees, though the extent of damage was being evaluated.
"Some of the early plantings are beginning to emerge and hopefully were not impacted very much by the frost," the USDA said in its most recent crop and weather report for Pennsylvania, released this week.
Temperatures are expected to rise Saturday afternoon and Sunday, with highs in the 60s and low 70s in western Pennsylvania. Memorial Day is Monday.


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Lee Chung-young ready to make impact with Bolton
Bolton's Lee Chung-young has declared his best is yet to come at the club, after overcoming a horrific leg break.
By Edwin Chong
Last Updated: 17/02/13 1:21pm
The South Korea international was one of the Premier League's most exciting newcomers when he signed for the Trotters in July 2009 and capped his debut season with the club's Player of the Year and Players' Player of the Year awards.
His promising career was put on hold after suffering a broken leg against Newport County in a pre-season friendly and only played in the final two matches of last term.
Since then, the 24 year-old has slowly regained his form and even attracted interest from Premier League clubs in January, although no deal materialised.
He is now confident that he can become even better before the end of the current campaign.
"It feels good to be back and I am really enjoying playing regular football," Lee told The Bolton News.
"When I originally made my first-team return, it took me some time to get up to the speed of the game.
"Now that there is no more pain in my leg from the injury, I feel that I can be getting better and better with every game I play.
"The more games I play, the more confident I feel, and I believe that I can continue to develop and reach higher levels than before my injury."


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A year ago, this was nearly double the capacity of an entire Xbox 360 game, but now Dead Rising 3 players are being forced to download a monstrous 13GB title update just to be able to play online. Containing a few performance tweaks and what is very likely to be DLC content, this outrageous mandatory drop is a stark reminder of what we can expect from this new console generation; the ability to easily deliver content patches resulting in developers wasting our time after the fact and addressing issues that should have been ironed out before release.
However, it's also thrusts one of the Xbox One's most under-rated features into the spotlight... and suggests that things might not be as bad as they first appear.
For the record, Dead Rising 3 is brilliant. Rather than pushing for "1080p 60FPS OMFG!?!1" in a soulless tech demo, Capcom Vancouver converted the Xbox One's horsepower directly into fun and massive numbers of simultaneously-rendered zombies. However, this lead to an irritating degree of texture and detail pop-in alongside other technical issues, which the team have finally decided to tackle post-launch.
We like the idea, but in practice it requires a light touch. The culture of releasing games unfinished before patching them up over time has become commonplace on PC (even leading to the exciting Early Access model), but on consoles, it still feels lazy and wrong. Convenience is still the only major selling point of a console over a gaming PC (barring those tasty digital prices... and variety... and visuals... this isn't the time for that discussion), so developers need to ensure that tweaks and improvements are delivered in small bite-sized patches that let us get back to the action as quickly as possible rather than waiting for a colossal mandatory download. Or, to be blunt, actually make sure that games release without the need for extra downloads and downtime - those all-too-prevalent day one patches included.
Certification exists for a reason. Come on console manufacturers, use it to improve AAA quality rather than grind indies down.
It's certainly annoying. Not just because our time is precious and saving it should be publishers' top priority on consoles, but that hard drive space comes at a premium on Xbox One. 500GB will fill up fast since we have to install every every single game, and we currently can't manually organise our content to free up space. Plus, those on limited data plans can only grit their teeth and wait for the inevitable throttling or extra charges. Surely this state of affairs is absolutely unacceptable?
Not quite.
I was planning on covering this patch yesterday, but as a hack who actually likes to fact-check their material, I held off on the story while waiting to verify the size and installation time of the update myself. Throughout the day I logged onto my Xbox One, fired up Dead Rising 3 and found the game to be playable with no hint of a patch or update anywhere. Us Europeans often get the back of publishers' hands when it comes to new releases, so I assumed that the rollout had been staggered here in the UK.
Nope. What had actually transpired was very different. Without any effort on my part, my Xbox One had automatically grabbed the update, downloaded it and installed it in standby mode the night before, leaving the game ready to play straight away. Better yet, the update actually overwrote most of the game's pre-existing installation, leading to only a net increase of about 2GB in total file size all told.
Microsoft's "Always-On" mantra raised eyebrows last year, but it's great to see that those two much-maligned words have actually translated into meaningful time-saving benefits for us gamers. With our consoles able to conduct busywork while we're asleep or at work, it's clear that being always connected has its perks, and lets us game on our terms. It's something we can look forward to over the coming years, especially if updates are kept small to ensure that they're always hidden behind the scenes. And, erm, if Microsoft gives us more control over the amount of data we're willing to download on strict broadband plans.
Though this might be small comfort to gamers who just wanted to play some Dead Rising 3 with a friend mid-update. Just because you can do something doesn't always mean you should, so now that the rushed-out launch titles are giving way to games with much more time to iron out any creases, we hope that developers do their best to keep the post-launch patching to an absolute minimum. Our time is valuable. Earn it.


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Pleural fluid analysis
Pleural fluid analysis is a test that examines a sample of fluid that has collected in the pleural space. This is the space between the lining of the outside of the lungs (pleura) and the wall of the chest. When fluid collects in the pleural space, the condition is called pleural effusion.
How is the Test Performed?
A procedure called thoracentesis is used to get a sample of pleural fluid. The health care provider examines the sample to look for:
- Cancerous (malignant) cells
- Cellular makeup
- Chemical content
- Tiny organisms (microorganisms) that can cause disease
- Inflammation
Preparation for the Test
No special preparation is needed before the test. A chest x-ray will be performed before and after the test.
Do not cough, breathe deeply, or move during the test to avoid injury to the lung.
Tell your doctor if you take medicines to thin the blood.
How the Test will Feel
For thoracentesis, you sit on the edge of a chair or bed with your head and arms resting on a table. The health care provider cleans the skin around the insertion site. Numbing medicine (anesthetic) is injected into the skin.
A needle is placed through the skin and muscles of the chest wall into the space around the lungs, called the pleural space. As fluid drains into a collection bottle, you may cough a bit. This is because your lung re-expands to fill the space where fluid had been. This sensation lasts for a few hours after the test.
During the test, tell your health care provider if you have sharp chest pain or shortness of breath.
Why is the Test Performed?
The test is performed to determine the cause of a pleural effusion. It is also done to relieve the shortness of breath that a large pleural effusion can cause.
Normal Results for Pleural fluid analysis
Normally the pleural cavity contains less than 20 milliliters (4 teaspoons) of clear, yellowish (serous) fluid.
What Abnormal Results Mean
Abnormal results may indicate possible causes of pleural effusion, such as:
- Cancer
- Cirrhosis
- Heart failure
- Infection
- Severe malnutrition
- Trauma
- Abnormal connections between the pleural space and other organs (for example, the esophagus)
If the health care provider suspects an infection, a culture of the fluid is done to check for bacteria.
The test may also be performed for hemothorax. This is a collection of blood in the pleura.
Pleural fluid analysis Risks
Risks of thoracentesis are:
- Collapsed lung (pneumothorax)
- Excessive loss of blood
- Fluid re-accumulation
- Infection
- Pulmonary edema
- Respiratory distress
Serious complications are uncommon.
Broaddus VC, Light RW. Pleural effusion. In: Mason RJ, Murray JF, Broaddus VC, et al., eds. Murray and Nadel's Textbook of Respiratory Medicine. 5th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Elsevier Saunders; 2010:chap 73.
Karcher DS. McPherson RA. Cerebrospinal, synovial, serous body fluids, and alternative specimens. In: McPherson RA, Pincus MR, eds. Henry's Clinical Diagnosis and Management by Laboratory Methods. 22nd ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Elsevier Saunders; 2011:chap 29.
|Review Date: 12/3/2013
Reviewed By: Denis Hadjiliadis, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine, Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pa. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Bethanne Black, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.
Further information
Always consult your healthcare provider to ensure the information displayed on this page applies to your personal circumstances.
© Copyright 1997- 2018 A.D.A.M., Inc.


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The world's thinnest 8" tablet... the Ramos i8 -- also launches next week, with a stylish and sleek design; along with the durability of an aluminum-nickel frame.
Ramos Technology has partnered with Intel to introduce the Ramos i-Series with 8", 9", 10" and 12" Android tablet models ($199-$299) and all feature Intel's Clovertrail processor and HD-displays.
The new Ramos i8 ($199) from Ramos technology offers the Intel processor and a 7.9-inch HD screen -- Intel's Cloverfield processor with Hyper-Threading technology, runs four threads simultaneously for strong performance and multitasking.
Compared to a 7-inch tablet, the 8" size offers 40% more screen space, which makes quite a difference in viewing content; yet is still compact and easy to carry in one hand.
The site TabletSprint also offers the Ramos series of tablets.


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The Armor of God is based on a scripture found in the New Testament. The Apostle Paul states in Ephesians 6:12-13, "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand."
Paul then describes the individual pieces of armor in verses 14-17. "Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with the truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; and your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." Finally, in verse 18, Paul admonishes us to pray always.
The coin is used by various types of individuals and organizations who consider themselves warriors belonging to the Army of God. The obverse depicts traditional pieces of armor, including the breastplate, shield, sword, and helmet.
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Black Rock Library hosts actor Mills in honor of 50th anniversary of March on Washington
Published 2:49 pm, Tuesday, August 27, 2013
On Aug. 28, 1963, about 250,000 people marched from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial, in what turned out to be the largest demonstration ever seen in the nation's capital -- and one of the first civil rights gatherings to have extensive television coverage.
It became etched in the country's collective memory for its peaceful nature and, arguably, for one of the most famous American speeches ever given.
It was on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech, in which he says he someday hopes to live in a changed America where his children "will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
To mark the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, New York actor, poet and writer David Mills returns to the Black Rock Branch Library in Bridgeport on Thursday, Aug. 29, at 7 p.m. for a dramatic presentation of some of King's most renowned speeches, including "I Have a Dream," "Letter from a Birmingham Jail," "The Vietnam War Speech," "I've Been to the Mountaintop" and "Drum Major Instinct." Mills will conclude with a reading of King's eulogy.
Prior to Mills' one-man show, Carolyn Vermont, past president of the Greater Bridgeport NAACP, will offer her views on the historical significance of the March on Washington and King's famous speech, John D. Soltis, community librarian, has announced.
More InformationBlack Rock Branch Library, 2705 Fairfield Ave., Bridgeport. Thursday, Aug. 29, 7 p.m. Free. 203-576-7025; www.bportlibrary.org/i-have-a-dream/
A professional actor for more than a decade, Mills said in a brief telephone chat last week that the King speeches are just as meaningful, relevant and stirring today as when they were delivered decades ago. He presents the speeches in character, acting as King.
Mills was last in Bridgeport in February 2012 to present another one-man show, on noted African-American poet and playwright Langston Hughes.
On Thursday, Mills said his library presentation will reflect the "poetry and intelligence in King's writing" and underscore King's astute political and economic analyses.
"His speeches move me, and I feel compelled to share that with the world," Mills said.
firstname.lastname@example.com; Twitter: @PhyllisASBoros
Black Rock Branch Library, 2705 Fairfield Ave., Bridgeport. Thursday, Aug. 29, 7 p.m. Free. 203-576-7025, www.bportlibrary.org/i-have-a-dream/


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Supreme slayer is an achievement about "kill an enemy 9 levels above you". It looks horrible, but in fact it is not so hard.
At first, I pick up North Desert which has a boss in low health and a map easy to discover.
Before that,we use a transmuter to open the full map. As we see, there are 3 mana boosters, 3 mana potions, 3 God altars and 5 glyphs. The BRUNDAYRAZ is likely to be found every time. The boss Aequitas has only 159 Hps, and that is what we need. Here is a simple method using Gnome Sorcerer with bare hand.
1.Prepare Glowing Guardian for simple, then you could fight the boss at level 2 to maximum your damage. (In theory, you can run into the dungeon with real bear hand to test your luck.)
2.You can prepare BRUNDAYRAZ too, but you can find it almost every time.
3.Sometimes you will get stuck when discovering the map, then try again.
4.Now count the number of fireballs needed to kill the boss. As a level 2 sorcerer, the burning effect can stack 4 times. So the total of first 4 fireball damage is 38 (8+9+10+11). After that, every fireball will deal 12 damge. 10 more fireballs will deal 120 damage. 159-38-120=1. Now the boss has only 1 Hp left, and you can finish him even you have not enough mana for another fireball. Attack a monster, and let the burning stacks kill the boss.
5.The next task is to calculate the mana points you need. We need to cast 14 fireballs, so we need 84 (14x6) points. Ideally, after discover the whole map, you are at level 2 with 4 mana potions and 5 glyphs. If you are lucky enough to find BLUDTPOWA, you can use it and the health potions to cast 3 or more fireballs. Suppose you have not found it, you still can translate 4 glyphs except BRUNDAYRAZ to get 4 mana potions. So we have 8 mana potions in total and each potion will restore 7 mana points. With the starting 18 mana points, we have 74 (18+7x8) in total. To knock down the boss, we need 10 mana points more, and it is quite easy to be done:(1)buy one mana potion in the shop (2)worship GG, converse health potions and deserver other Gods to get enough piety, then choose protections.
6.In a real game, you may have trouble collecting the whole resource, but do not be disappointed. In general, the map provides more resource to kill the boss.
7.Be careful, you should worship GG after you drink all your mana potions, or you wil get piety penalty.
To sum up:(1)prepare GG or try a few times to get it;(2)level up to 2 while discover the map;(3)converse glyphs for mana potions and cast fireballs 14 times;(4)when lack of mana, buy a mana potions and warship GG; (5)before the last attack, choose humility and return to level 1. Good luck!
My vedio: http://youtu.be/zHaMRP4mri8 Thanks to my friend Zqxinran.He uploaded it for me.


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OC is producing leaders:
School of Business Administration alumnus Shawn Gieger has been promoted to Partner at the Oklahoma City Ernst & Young office.
OC is networking:
In September, the Department of Accounting and Finance hosted the following firms for luncheon sessions with OC students:
- Ernst & Young
- Hogan Taylor
- Eide Baily
- Devon
On Sept. 20-21, the School of Business Administration hosted the Oklahoma Accountancy Board for its September meeting. The events began with a reception on Thursday evening, and concluded with a meeting on Friday. OC accounting students and faculty attended both events.
OC is well read:
On September 14, Dr. Rhonda Morris and student Allison Becker presented a "Table Talk" at the Oklahoma Reading Association Conference: "Bringing Reading into the Digital Age."


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CountryWide Saturday 19 April 2014
People, events and happenings around the country, presented by Damien O'Reilly.
Ella McSweeney hearing from the Irish who are involved in the food business over in New York.And Pat Coleman who runs Food Ireland is keen to hear from any farmers and food producers who have new products - see foodireland.com
Later on today the annual Gigginstown House sale of Angus bulls and heifers will take place at Fennor Farm near Mullingar. The herd is owned by Ryanair chief Michael O'Leary who spoke to us from Madrid yesterday.
Damien speaks to Justin McCarthy the Editor in Chief of the Irish Farmers Journal following the Beef Summit
Louise Denvir reports from Dundalk, with the Dundalk Brass Band
Diarmuid McIntyre of Grey Heron Media at the Ballyhoura Development rally in Cappamore light of the proposed local goverment reforms.
Speech Broadcaster of the Year Damien O'Reilly and the CountryWide team feature the events, people and happenings that bring colour and life to communities, towns and villages across the country.
Presenter: Damien O'Reilly
Producer: Ian Wilson


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Marine Viewing
Event: NestWatch at Nestucca Bay, June 29
Nestucca Bay National Wildlife Refuge participates in the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Project NestWatch Program. Join refuge volunteer Lee Sliman on Saturday, June 29, from 4:30 to 5:45 p.m. while she actively open nest boxes and monitors the progress of the refuge's avian families. Meet in the lower parking lot of Nestucca Bay Refuge. Nestwatch is a citizen science program where volunteers place and care for artificial nest boxes; monitor them; and then record nesting results in a nationwide database. For more information contact the refuge volunteer at 503-392-9047.
Seabird nesting in full swing
From mainland areas that overlook coastal rocks and islands, you can see bald eagles attack nesting common murres. Around 600,000 common murres return to each spring to Oregon's wind-blown islands to raise their single chick.
Bald Eagles regularly fly out to these islands to kill a murre to feed their own chicks creating panic in the common murre colony. As the murres flee to avoid the eagles, ravens, crows and gulls often swoop in to make a meal of murre eggs and chicks.
Great places to view this wildlife spectacle are: Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area – the deck behind the lighthouse; Heceta Head State Park – the viewing area in front of the lighthouse; Cape Meares State Scenic Viewpoint – the north deck by the parking lot, and Ecola State Park – the westernmost viewing platform at Ecola Point overlook.
Peregrine Falcons
You can see nests with peregrine falcon chicks at both the Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area and at Cape Meares State Scenic Viewpoint.
April, May, June, July best time to see Puffins. Best Place is Haystack Rock because it's so close to shore.
Tufted puffins are back on the Oregon Coast to nest for the summer and most of them are found on Three Arch Rocks National Wildlife Refuge. This sanctuary about two miles south of Cape Meares and one-half mile offshore west of Oceanside in Tillamook County. The three large rocks and six smaller ones make up the refuge, which is home to 12 species of seabirds breed here totaling 226,093 birds. This includes 30 percent of the Common murres breeding in Oregon and 21 percent of all common murres breeding in the eastern Pacific south of Alaska. This site also harbors 60 percent of the tufted puffin breeding population in Oregon. More than 800 brown pelicans have been seen here roosting and up to 13 bald eagles have been observed preying on seabirds.
Three Arch Rocks NWR can best be viewed from the mainland at Cape Meares and at Oceanside. To prevent disturbance to extremely sensitive seabirds, Three Arch Rocks National Wildlife Refuge is closed to public entry year-round and waters within 500 feet of the refuge are closed to all watercraft from May 1 through September 15.
There will be minus tides June 5-13 and again June 20-29. A minus tide is an excellent time to visit tide pools and watch the life that was just a few hours ago under as much as 10 feet of water.
Look for green anemones, hermit crabs, sea urchins, small fish, jellyfish, sea stars, pinkish corraline algae, lime green anemone, dark green sea lettuce, barnacles and other animals of the intertidal region.
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A CLASSIC TWIST: Imagine "The Nutcracker" set in Colonial Andover.
That's just what Judith Wombwell did for a production of the classic holiday ballet, presented by the theater and dance department at Phillips Academy in Andover from Friday through next Sunday.
The mice and soldiers become revolutionary war figures, and the party guests celebrate in the Abbot barn, designed and constructed by faculty member Bruce Bacon.
Clara's journey through the Christmas tree into the Land of Sweets remains true to the original ballet, with its timeless story of a child's fantasy.
"The Nutcracker" was last performed at Phillips in 2008. This year's production includes several guest artists and new costumes.
The key role of Clara is shared by seniors Madeline Silva, captain of the Andover Dance Group, and Rochelle Wilbun. The Snow King and Queen are danced by Graham Johns and Marion Kudla, respectively.
The "Grand Pas de Deux'' is performed by two guest artists, Boston Ballet soloists Dalay Parrondo and Brad Schlagheck, in the featured roles of the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier.
Prior to joining the Boston Ballet in 2004, Parrondo was a soloist in the National Ballet of Cuba. Schlagheck has been with the Boston Ballet since 2006, starting as a member of the corps de ballet.
In addition to the principal dancers, this year's production features more than 50 cast members, including Phillips students, faculty members, and children from surrounding communities.
The list of area dancers in the production includes Andover residents Adam Brody, Rebecca Cheng, Sarah Cronin, Emily Field, Claire Glover, Katherine Graber, Catherine Haut, Sophia Landay, Olivia Legaspi, and Erica Nork; Michaela Barczak of Haverhill; North Andover resident Elizabeth McGonagle; North Reading resident Abriana Mayer; and Reading residents Emily Ewing and Ada Li.
New costuming includes a fanciful Mother Ginger, modeled after Marie Antoinette, designed and constructed by faculty member Billy Murray.
Played by faculty member Kevin Graber, Mother Ginger makes a larger-than-life appearance accompanied by six tiny bonbons, performed by local children.
"The Nutcracker" will be performed in the Tang Theatre on the Phillips Academy campus at 8 p.m. Friday; 2:30 and 8 p.m. Saturday; and 2 p.m. next Sunday. Admission is $20, or $10 for members of the Phillips Academy community.
For reservations, call 978-749-4433.
REMEMBERING SULLY: "Sully: The Words, Wit and Wisdom of Paul Sullivan," has been published by the Middlesex Community College Foundation.
The book celebrates the life of the WBZ-AM radio talk show host, political editor, and columnist for the Lowell Sun, and Middlesex faculty member. Sullivan died of cancer in 2007 at age 50.
The commemorative book features a selection of Sullivan's columns, as well as photos and remembrances from family, friends, and co-workers.
Proceeds from book sales support the Paul H. Sullivan Scholarship at Middlesex Community College.
The book is available at the college's bookstores in Lowell and Bedford, as well as online.
IN LOCAL GALLERIES: "Of Mice and Mischief," an
exhibition of whimsical new paintings by Stuart Dunkel , opens at the Walsingham Gallery in Newburyport on Saturday and continues through Dec. 14. A reception from 3 to 7 p.m. Saturday will feature a demonstration by Dunkel, who will be signing copies of his book, "An Artist's Life,'' as well as a raffle of one of his original oil paintings. . . New paintings by Dale Partiss Greene of Ipswich and Maureen Petrie of Topsfield are on display at the Hall-Haskell House in Ipswich from Dec. 4 to 7. The show includes plein air and studio works of landscapes, seascapes, and still lifes . . . "The More I Look, The More I See!", an exhibition of photographs by Suzanne DeGeorge , is at the Provident Bank's Lobby for the Arts in Newburyport through January. A reception with the artist is 5:30-7 p.m. Dec. 6. DeGeorge is inspired by the quiet simplicity of New England, with its rolling hills, ocean, mountains, and changing seasons.Items can be sent to wdkilleen@ gmail.com.


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Ecology of invertebrate predators in a Coastal Plain stream", Freshwater Biol., vol. 28, p. 319-329, 1992., "


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South Africa v New Zealand, Port Elizabeth, August 20
History on New Zealand's side
ESPNscrum Staff
August 15, 2011
All Blacks winger Cory Jane celebrates his try against South Africa in their win on July 30 © Getty Images
New Zealand will target a fifth successive victory over South Africa when they travel to Port Elizabeth to take on their Tri-Nations rivals on Saturday.
The All Blacks' 40-7 victory over the Springboks in Wellington last month hammered home their recent dominance of the fixture and followed a clean sweep in 2010 that included a 29-22 in Johannesburg.
That recent run of success has stretched New Zealand's advantage in the all-time stats with the All Blacks now boasting 46 victories to South Africa's 33 - with the last of the three draws an 18-18 stalemate in 1994. However, South Africa claimed the spoils in the most high-profile of their previous meetings with a 15-12 victory in the 1995 Rugby World Cup Final staged at Ellis Park.
South Africa have never played at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium following its opening in 2009. The British & Irish Lions met the Southern Kings in the stadium's first rugby clash, winning a tense affair 20-8.
All-time record: South Africa won 33, New Zealand 46, drawn 3
Biggest winning margin: SA: 17, 17-0 at Durban, 1928; NZ: 36, 52-16 at Pretoria, 2003
Highest score: SA: 46 (46-40) at Johannesburg, 2000; NZ: 55 (55-35) at Auckland, 1997
Most tries: SA: 6 (46-40) at Johannesburg, 2000 ; NZ: 7 (55-35) at Auckland, 1997
Longest winning sequence: SA: 6 (1937-1949); NZ: 7 (2001-2004)
Most points (individual): SA: Percy Montgomery 106; NZ: Dan Carter 231
Most tries (individual): SA: 6 Joost van der Westhuizen; NZ: 10 Christian Cullen
Most points in a Test: SA: 31 Morne Steyn at Durban, 2009, NZ: 25 Carlos Spencer at Auckland, 1997
© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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Pyramid Club gives Members the opportunity to Dine with the Staff
A couple months ago, when General Manager Ben Baskin and Member Relations Director Megan Anthony were brainstorming about new and original events for the Members at Pyramid Club, they came up with the idea for a "Dinner with the General Manager and Chef" on August 8, 2012.
An exquisite business club in Center City Philadelphia, ClubCorp's Pyramid Club offers its' members a fun-filled calendar full of happy hours, mixers and ballroom dancing. Baskin and Anthony weren't sure how many Members would be able to attend the dinner and both were pleasantly surprised at the event's success.
Executive Chef Scott Dalesandro prepared a limited menu with paired wines and gave a description of and answered questions about each of the four courses as they came out. Dalesandro and Baskin sat at the head of the large square table with the 15 Members in attendance.
Like any quality family dinner, during the two-and-a-half-hour dinner everyone had the opportunity to tell their story, how long they've been with the Club and a little bit about themselves. Baskin bought everyone cocktails, briefed the group on exciting upcoming events and asked for suggestions on how the club could become better. At the end, the dinner party gave Chef Dalesandro and Baskin an appreciative round of applause.
A second Dinner with the Staff at Pyramid Club is in the works for the upcoming months.


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David McClain is a multi-media artist living and working in Houston, Texas. He primarily works with photography, parade floats, archives, painting and text. David earned a BA from Rice University, a JD from the University of Houston Law Center and an MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. He is currently a resident artist at Box 13 Artspace in Houston. His website is quite out of date but can be viewed at www.davidmcclain.com.
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In my opinion, this is the best opportunity to buy gold in several years.
One, it's all about the fundamentals. With interest rates low and heading lower (10-year Treasury is under 2%), this is gold positive. (See this article from December, 2011.) Furthermore, with the global economy in recession, interest rates will likely continue lower as central banks come up with new ways to keep the cost of capital cheap and to keep the "balls in the air". Until proven otherwise, central banks will respond to crisis with money printing.
Two, over the past 10 years the best time to buy gold was when there was dollar strength. But even then and over the past 40 years, the relationship between the Dollar Index and gold hasn't always been inversely correlated. Let others think that a higher dollar is bad for gold prices. That is the prevailing dogma, and like most market dogma, it is wrong. To me, the dollar is a non-factor in the gold equation.
Three, the technicals have turned positive. Three days ago, I am writing about the divergence of price from the fundamental picture, but over the past two days, it appears that gold is putting in a double bottom. See figure 1 a weekly chart of the SPDR Gold Trust (symbol: GLD). Price is currently testing the 153.12 key pivot point. This is support and the dip below this level likely cleared out the weak hands.
Figure 1. GLD/ weekly
Four, this is a low risk set up that is well defined. With support at 153.12, the play is rather simple. A weekly close below the 153.12 level would be reason enough to move to the sidelines.
Guy M. Lerner, MD, has been writing about the markets for over eight years. He is the proprietor of the TheTechnicalTake, a free blog dedicated to independent and original market analysis. He also provides a Premium Content newsletter that focuses on investor sentiment in the equity markets. Lerner is the principal partner in ARL Advisers, LLC, a registered investment advisory in Louisville, Ky.


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World War II was one of the defining events that drove innovation for the hydrocarbon processing industry (HPI). During the 1940s, solutions were needed to resolve shortages of transportation fuels and a lack of natural rubber. From WWII, new refining technologies were developed to process 100-octane fuels. A wave of new refining capacity, funded by the US government, was constructed. Likewise, synthetic rubber (SR) manufacturing received a political push to construct new petrochemical capacity to support SR demand.
Yet, the HPI continues its cycle of overbuilding and flooding the market with too much product while demand declines from economic downturns. HPI companies have continued to follow a consistent quest over the last 90 years: to find new markets, to develop new products and uses for hydrocarbon-based materials, to improve operations, to increase safe operations, and to reduce operating costs.
Continuous improvement is a never-ending task for HPI companies, as demonstrated in the headlines from the past 90 years.
Asian olefins: A new dawn. The Asian olefins industry has endured two onerous years. Yet, there is hope. The aftershocks of September 11, 2001, created many challenges. In particular, Asian economies that are high-tech oriented were more deeply impacted than others. Taiwan and Hong Kong have entered technical recessions. For the olefins industry, the largest effect was a sharp decline in re-export markets for polymer imports to China and the loss of polymer end-product exports from other Asian countries. However, a reversal is expected in 2002.
Polyethylene industry set to recover. The global outlook for the ethylene industry rests on the polyethylene (PE) market. In North America, the PE industry has had difficulties in recovering from the rapid rise in feedstock prices in 2001. The PE industry remains focused on cost reductions. PE processers are consolidating, and inefficient capacity is being rationalized. PE continues to replace traditional packing materials such as glass, paper and metal. The next wave of PE production capacity is estimated to begin in 2005.
Australia considers GTL projects. Australia continues to experience declining crude oil production, while demand for refined crude-oil based products increases. By 2005/06, it is forecast that this nation will not be self-sufficient in transportation-fuel production. Australia is investigating several gas-to-liquids (GTLs) projects to bridge this gap. The Australian government has formed a task to evaluate GTL prospects.
Neste Oils Porvoo, Finland, refinery operates the worlds first stand-alone renewable diesel plant. Hydrocarbon Processing, February 2008.
First multi-plastics recycle facility opened. Union Carbide has opened the first US full-scale multi-plastics recycling facility. This plant is capable of recycling 84% of the plastics found in the average household. In the US, plastics recycling capacity is 925 million lb/yr. If the nation is to meet national targets of recycling 25% of its plastic waste by 1995, it must increase recycling capacity by 575 million lb/yrdouble its present recycling capacity.
Carbon energy tax proposals contested in Europe. The European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC), representing petrochemical and chemical manufacturers, and Europia, representing regional refiners, have filed anti-tax protests on proposed carbon taxes. Both organizations believe that the carbon tax would destroy the competitiveness of European producers in the global market.
Asia-Pacific refining capacity expanding. Present Asian refining capacity is 13.8 million bpd (MMbpd) with 1.5 MMbpd of new supplies to come online by 1995. Overbuilding in this region will be quickly absorbed by new demand growth in the second half of the 1990s. Growing demand is expected with China accounting for 48% of the regional energy demand.
Saudi Arabia focuses on downstream developments outside the Kingdom. By the late 1990s, Saudi Arabia downstream production is expected to reach 1.4 MMbpd to 2 MMbpd with a European facility purchase.
Brazil begins privatization of HPI holdings. The Brazilian government has successfully auctioned a major petrochemical plant located at Copesul, Brazil, for $805 million. The shares were purchased by several buyersno group holds a majority position. The next plan is the breakup of the Petrobras monopoly.
Oil usage declined in OECD industrialized nations during 1981by 6.3% compared to 1980. Net oil imports fell 13.4% according to a new study by the International Energy Agency. Of the 24 OECD nations, crude oil imports declined 708.3 million metric tons while oil production by OECD nations remained the same, approximately 700 million metric tons.
More taxes could threaten growth of energy industry. Members of the Independent Petroleum Association of America warn that proposed energy taxes designed to shrink the US national deficit could trigger larger future deficits. Income tax rates for oil companies have increased from 30% for 19531963 to nearly 50% in recent years. Present US gasoline taxes are 30¢/gallon.
Methanol as a transportation fuel would be expensive and difficult. According to the Synthetic Fuels Association, methanol as a motor fuel is slow to develop due to several reasons: 1) Excess petroleum-based fuels are available at lower prices than methanol; 2) Methanol is incompatible to the existing fueling distribution system; and 3) Lack of infrastructure that is compatible with methanol. Methanol as a motor fuel is used in token amounts. Coal will be used for long-term methanol production by the US and several other countries. Gasoline from methanol could be a future option to switch from petroleum-based fuels.
Thermonuclear fusion possible solution to future energy needs. A $3-million long-range research project will investigate the potential of high-power lasers to produce controlled nuclear fusion. Esso R&E and General Electric will work on the study in collaboration with the University of Rochester, Rochester, New York.
New process claims 99.9% efficiency for sulfur removal. The Alberta Sulphur Research (ASR) has developed a process that is claimed to remove sulfur compounds from natural gas streams at more than 99.9% efficiency. The ASR process has only been demonstrated in the laboratory. It uses an organic sulphoxide as a liquid catalyst to remove hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide from natural gas.
High-octane gasoline converted directly from heavy oils. The Kellogg-Phillips heavy oil cracking (HOC) process can produce high-octane gasoline from either atmospheric residuals (ARs) or vacuum residuals (VRs) without pretreating the heavy feeds. With the HOC process, refiners can eliminate hydrocracking and delayed coking of VR streams. The process acts like a fluid catalytic cracking unit and reacts only the gasoil portion of the VR. The first unit is operating at the Phillips Borger, Texas refinery.
South Korea is building its first refinery. The 30,000-bpd refinery will be constructed at Ulsan, Korea, with startup planned by mid-1964.
New cost-efficient butadiene process unveiled. Shells French affiliate has developed a new butadiene process that is more cost-effective. The company is planning to build a 40,000-ton plant near Marseilles, France. The process uses a butane-dehydrogenation route to yield butadiene.
News for FCC catalyst announced. Sinclair has released a catalyst regeneration process that could reduce refining costs by 50%.
UN sees pressure on international oil market. The United Nations reported that slacking demand for commercial energy in Western Europe and the US during 1961 impacted oil and coal producers the hardest. Energy consumption via oil and coal has steadily fallen. Reasons for the slowdown are linked to the leveling off of industrial production in Western Europe and a lag in the upturn of the US economy, along with a slow recovery for fuel demand.
New computer control system is installed at B. F. Goodrich Chemical Co.s new vinyl chloride unit at Calvert City, Kentucky. The computer will exercise closed-loop control on the vinyl chloride monomer process. Petroleum Refiner, March 1960.
New editor appointed for the Refiner. Dr. John J. McKetta, chairman of the chemical engineering department of the University of Texas, 1949-1951 is leaving his post at the university to take over the expanded editorial staff of the Petroleum Refiner. The expanded staff includes editors to cover process and construction along with several special assignment editors to cover the industry across the US.
New desulfurization announced. The Anglo-Iranian Oil Co. has developed a new catalytic desulfurization process, called Autofining. The process can remove sulfur from natural and straight-run gasolines through naphtha to gasoils. Removed sulfur is converted to hydrogen sulfide.
Shell completes postwar expansion in UK. Shells new fluid catalytic cracking unit at the Stanlow refinery is operational. The $22.4 million project included a new cracker as well as integration builds for the adjacent petrochemical facility, which started operations in July 1949. The expanded Stanlow refinery has an operating capacity of 3.25 million tpy.
New refinery nearing completion on Thames River. Vacuum Oil Co.s new Coryton refinery is forecast to be online in early 1953. The most difficult part of the site construction is complete. The refinery will be eight feet below the level of the Thames River. The refinery will include two crude distillation units, a Thermofor catalytic cracking unit, a thermal reformer and a motor-spirits treating unit. The site will also have a lubrication plant.
A 160-feet high and 300-ton crude splitter is being transported to the Shell Refinery at Stanlow (Cheshire, England). The reactor was moved 27 miles and required a complicated program to reinforce bridges and minimize traffic disruptions to move the splitter to the refinery. Petroleum Refiner, June 1952.
New Houdriflow unit constructed at the Gewerkschaft EroelRaffinerie Emsland refinery in Lingen, Germany. Petroleum Refiner, September 1953.
New catalytic cracking process developed. A new system for catalytic cracking, called the Thermofor Catalytic Cracking (T.C.C.) process, is being offered to US refiners to manufacture high-octane gasoline. The process provides several feed streamsaromatics (including toluene), butane-butylene gases for synthetic rubber, and aviation alkylate. The process uses a continuous, countercurrent moving catalyst bed. A 20,000-bpd unit is under construction at a Texas refinery. The process is being licensed by the Houdry Process Corp., The Lummus Co. and E. B. Badger & Sons Co.
New units designed for rubber production. Humble Oil & Refining Co. and Phillips Petroleum Co. are working on new capacity to provide feedstocks for the synthetic rubber industry at a cost of $400 million. Humble plans to construct butadiene units for the bunatype rubber industry, as well as styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR). Construction has begun for the Neches Butane Production Co. at its Port Neches, Texas, facility. This is the largest unit announced for the SBR program with a construction cost of $60 million.
Side view of a thermal cracking unit from the 1940s. Refiner and Natural Gasoline Manufacturer 1940.
Wide view of the Odessa Butadiene Co.s 50,000-tpy butadiene plant nearing construction completion. The facility was designed and constructed by the Fluor Corp. Petroleum Refiner 1944.
Gulf Refining Co.s new polymerization unit will produce feed for high-octane gasoline. The new unit is part of Gulf Refinings Cincinnati, Ohio refinery and was part of the $15 million expansion. Petroleum Refiner, January 1949.
Economists forecast drop in gasoline demand. A survey conducted by committees from the American Petroleum Institute and the Federal Oil Conservation Board shows that gasoline demand will decline by at least 6% over the next year. Likewise, US gasoline exports are forecast to decline.
Global construction:
Europe. The USRR, at Grozni and Baku, is constructing two 10,000-bpd two-stage atmospheric-vacuum distillation plants and five 6,000-bbl single-stage vacuum distillation unit.
North America. Shell Company of Canada is building a 285,000-bbl storage and distribution facility at Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Plans are continuing for the construction of refinery in the near future.
Cities Services Co. plans to construct a new 3,000-bpd refinery near Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The facility will also include a cracking unit.
South/Latin America. The South American Consolidated Oil Co. is reported to be building a 10,000-bpd refinery in Venezuela.
Imperial Oil Co. is planning a $1 million refinery near Cartagena, Colombia. The project is contingent on tariffs and restrictions regarding oil imports to the US.
Huasteca Petroleum Co. has started construction of a new cracking unit at its Tampico, Mexico, refinery. The unit should be operational by year end.
Lubricants made from vegetable and mineral oil. Castor Oil Products of Houston, Texas, has patented a new process to manufacture lubricants. In the process, castor oil is distilled to remove the acid content. The refined castor oil is then blended with mineral oil under pressure so that the two oils are miscible. The new lubrication was field tested in an automobile, which was driven several hundred miles.
Natural gasoline manufacturers look for better year in 1924. In 1923, natural gasoline manufacturers struggled with low gasoline demand, lower prices for natural gasoline and a glut of product on the market. Crude oil refiners, likewise, increased processing and supplies to the market. All of the conditions have depressed prices, while demand flattened at the same time. A better year is anticipated as crude oil production declined over the second half of 1923. Thus, excess supplies should disappear, and demand for natural gasoline is more optimistic. HP