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Last night on Syfy, Vince McMahon announced that ECW would be canceled in three weeks to make way for the "next evolution of WWE."
Reaction ran rampant from good to bad, and those who still hold the notion that the new incarnation would never be any good because it wasn't "ECW" are probably jumping for joy.
That said, the question remains to be answered whether or not this new venture will be a good or a bad thing.
But if rumors (and trademarks) hold true and the next evolution is more of a developmental showcase, that can only be a good thing. While it may hurt the feelings of some of those involved in the ECW side of WWE over the last four years – many of whom I was personally fond of working with during my time in Stamford – it is, unfortunately, the truth.
For instance, look at the ECW roster on WWE.com. Seven of the 21 "official" ECW Superstars are peripheral players; besides GM Tiffany, you have three announcers (four depending on how you would classify Abraham Washington) and two hangers-on in Rosa Mendes and Tony Atlas.
So that leaves 14 guys to build storylines and/or shows around. Looking at the group, it's a combination of upper mid-card talent with no real direction (Christian, Regal, Kozlov, Benjamin), nostalgia acts like Goldust and The Hurricane and developmental talent looking for a break.
While the former group will be fine and there's always a place for those like Dustin Rhodes and Shane Helms, the problem lies in the latter half of the roster – specifically that they're virtually indistinguishable amongst each other.
Unless you've seen FCW – which most of the WWE audience hasn't – you'd have no idea who these guys are or what their motives are. So as a WWE fan, what is there to help me separate Caylen Croft from Tyler Reks from Vance Archer?
Realistically, outside of those who have personality traits or established gimmicks that separate them from the pack (namely Yoshi Tatsu, Zack Ryder and perhaps Ezekiel Jackson), there's no reason to have any emotional attachment to any newcomers in ECW.
But giving that developmental group their own national showcase – sort of what baseball fans would consider a "4A" league between the minors of FCW/independents and the majors of Raw/SmackDown – would be just the thing to cure that.
Instead of guys like Reks coming up with the same generic look and a goofy gimmick, beating a handful of local talents and never really going anywhere, they'll have a chance to actually develop.
The entire WWE Universe – not just those in Florida – will be able to see these guys as they develop and grow into their gimmicks. Guys like Archer, Reks and Croft will be in a position where they're not presumed to be "over their heads," while those in FCW still waiting for a chance – whether they be second-generation stars like Joe Hennig, Brett DiBiase or the Rotundos or up-and-comers like Heath Slater and Michael Tarver – will have one more step to progress before they make it to the "big time."
Those who succeed will move on and maintain the natural progression of the industry as a whole (Sheamus, Kofi Kingston, Evan Bourne and numerous others who cut their teeth in the new ECW are a testament to that), while others will simply have a national showcase to ply their trade.
In reality, the future has to be now for WWE. While they're all still top stars, guys like Shawn Michaels, Undertaker and even Triple-H won't be around forever – and while it may seem that those like Sheamus, CM Punk, The Miz, Drew McIntyre et al are in a good position to ostensibly replace them, there must be a wave ready to take the spots those men must vacate.
This is a good first step. And besides, no matter how the letters, trademarks or brands may be used, "ECW" as in Extreme Championship Wrestling died in March of 2001. But the next generation of WWE? That has to carry the company into 2011 and beyond.
-Louie Dee
Contributing Writer
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Why the "Death" of ECW is a Good Thing for the future of WWE
5 comments:
Hey. I don't normally leave comments, but I just wanted to say thanks for the great information. I have a blog too, though
I don't write as good as you do, but if you want to check it out here it is. Thanks again and have a great day!
Commercial Carpenter's Tool List
- February 4, 2010 at 12:10 AM
- Ben Simon said...
When NXT replaces ECW, will PWI still list TV ratings for NXT? I suppose the reason why Superstars isn't listed in those is because of the limited national availability of WGN.
Also, what about the wrestler ratings?
- February 8, 2010 at 12:46 AM
Well I to but I think the list inform should secure more info then it has.
- February 8, 2010 at 2:25 AM
- Ben Simon said...
Um, I'm not sure what that means, but thanks?
- February 8, 2010 at 3:16 AM
- Marko50 said...
C'mon, PWI! DiBiase and Hennig are both 3rd generation wrestlers.
- February 8, 2010 at 3:32 AM
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Hilary Rhoda graces the pages and cover of Numéro Tokyo's January-February issue looking seductive in cinematic photos captured by Vincent Peters. Styled by Joanne Blades, the American Victoria's Secret model poses in the designs of Givenchy, Mugler, Gucci and Herve Leger in the motel setting nighttime portraits.
Take a look at the pictures in the gallery above.

subset: commoncrawl


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As autumn approaches so does the leaf raking season. Residents are reminded that leaves must be separated from their household trash. State law prohibits the disposal of leaves and grass in landfills from April 1 through November 30 of each year. Leaves are diverted to the city's Yard Waste Compost Facility near Bluff Road and Highway 77, saving substantial space in Lincoln's landfill.
According to City Recycling Coordinator Gene Hanlon, city residents have four options for handling their leaves:
If you need to have leaves picked up, contact your garbage hauler to subscribe to the separate collection. There is a fee for collecting the leaves.
Mike Niederhaus, President of the Lincoln Solid Waste Management Association, said that about 60 percent of Lincoln households subscribe to the separate leaf collection each fall provided by the members of the association. He said it is important for people to place their leaves in approved containers such as 32-gallon trash containers or 90-gallon carts that may be provided by the refuse hauler. These containers can be supplemented with paper lawn bags that are available at area retailers. City ordinance prohibits the use of plastic bags for leaf collection.
Niederhaus indicated that the waste hauler may leave plastic bags of leaves at the curb because waste haulers could be fined up to $50 if they hauled leaves in plastic bags to the compost facility.
Composting leaves in your backyard is another environmentally friendly and relatively
simple option for Lincoln residents. Information on backyard composting is available
form the City Recycling Office at 441-8215 or the Cooperative Extension Service at
Media Release


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|The Doctor and a showgirl (I think its River) - episode 3
|The Doctor with a gun... self explanatory - episode 3
|Amy with a gun (accidentally fires it..twice!) - episode 3
|The Doctor being thrown out - episode 3
|"Has someone been peeking at my Christmas list..?" - episode 3
|Cool futuristic yellow robots! - episode 2
|The Doctor & Brian with the yellow robots - episode 2
|Now...this is interesting...the Dalek is buried under the snow...
and its eye stalk extends to look out of the snow - episode 1/3 (unknown)
|The Doctor does his 'Im not dead?!' face when looking up
- episode 1/3 (unknown)
|The Dalek eyestalk stares at something...and its covered in snow!
- episode 1/3 (unknown)


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Welcome to the Canterbury Mudfish website
Mudfish are very special – as a species they have an amazing ability to survive dry seasons for several months.
There are 5 species in New Zealand:
- Canterbury mudfish
- Brown mudfish
- Black mudfish
- Northland mudfish
- Chatham Island mudfish
The loss of 85 – 95% of New Zealand's original wetlands were disastrous for mudfish habitats. Now, the Canterbury and Northland mudfish are regarded as acutely threatened (Nationally Endangered) species and the other species are regarded as chronically threatened (Gradual Decline).
This website focuses on the Canterbury mudfish (Neochanna burrowsius) and is designed so that you can learn more about this special species and so that you can either ask for assistance or offer help if you want to help protect this precious species.
There are many other websites with scientific information about all the New Zealand mudfish – a good starting point is www.doc.govt.nz.
You may also wish to read the Department of Conservation's plan for mudfish recovery for the years 2003 - 2013. (Right side of page at top)
Mudfish/kowaro are a taonga species to iwi.


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Ranger 6
Goals: This was America's fourth attempt to photograph the Moon before crashing into the lunar surface. The spacecraft was also a testbed for new technologies such as deployable solar panels that would benefit future missions.
Accomplishments: Ranger 6 made it to the Moon and impacted as planned, but no pictures were returned due to a short in the power supply for the TV camera package. Impact coordinates were 9 degrees, 24' north latitude and 21 degrees, 30' east longitude on the eastern edge of the Sea of Tranquility.


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Mrs. Dash® Sweet Teriyaki Marinade
Mrs. Dash® Sweet Teriyaki Marinade
Salt-Free | No MSG | No High Fructose Corn Syrup
Add Asian flair to any meal with Mrs. Dash® Sweet Teriyaki Marinades. A sweet pineapple taste accentuates the spices without the added salt. Mrs. Dash® has perfected old world flavor and made sure it was good for you too. No salt or MSG, that is the Mrs. Dash® promise.
water, sugar, distilled vinegar, brown sugar, honey, rice vinegar, modified corn starch, maltodextrin, natural flavor, caramel color, ground ginger, sesame seeds, dried garlic, potassium sorbate and potassium benzoate (to preserve freshness), garlic powder, xanthan gum, granulated onion, onion powder, calcium disodium edta (as a preservative), apple juice


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Anything in the 40-60 range is a tossup as far as pWP goes, so I can't predict who will win the popular vote. However, Ohio is strongly leaning in Obama's direction. Romney has to win Ohio and one other swing state, so I would say there is a one in eight chace Romney wins. Again, this is just based on polling data. I have a gut feeling Romney is going to do better than what the polls are suggesting, but I can't quantify that.
Here are a bunch of graphs and tables:
Filed under: Political, pWP | Tagged: Barack Obama, Election, Ohio, President, Romney | Comments Off on Obama pWP: 52%; Ohio pWP: 73%


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Note: This post may contain affiliate links.
Pin It
|Farewell Giveaway
I have a number of paperbacks, most of which are signed, to giveaway. Over the between now (11 Mar 2017) and 31 Mar 2017, every comment on the blog (this post and all other new posts), will be entered to win 1 of these paperbacks. There are also some misc swag items, so there will be a few packs of these to give away as well.
Thank you so much for your support over the last 4 years. Prism will be closing its doors on 1 April 2017. All content will remain available, but no new content will appear after 31 Mar 2017. As such all request forms have been turned off. Again Thank you,
|This post may contain affiliate links.
|Prism Book Alliance® assumes no liability for the ownership of photos or content used in guest posts and interviews. The post author assumes all responsibility and liability for this content.


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USDA has released to Congress a comprehensive report on agricultural transportation in the United States, the first ever of this magnitude.
The report, Study of Rural Transportation Issues, was mandated by the 2008 farm bill and covers the four major modes of transportation commonly used by agriculture in the United States: truck, rail, barge, and ocean vessel.
"Agriculture is the largest user of freight transportation in the United States, with 31 percent of all ton-miles recorded in 2007 being used in the movement of agricultural products," said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. "This report provides policy makers the vital information needed to make strategic infrastructure and policy decisions to meet rural America's transportation needs, now and in the future."
"We need a strong transportation infrastructure for our vast quantities of farm exports to be competitive in world markets," said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. "That is why we devoted more than half of the total funding of our TIGER program (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) to improvements that benefit freight transportation, ports and rural communities. This report is timely, coming as we work to carry out President Obama's National Export Initiative of doubling of U.S. exports within five years."
The report examines some of the major issues facing agricultural transportation, including: the dramatic effect of deregulation on the rail industry, a growing gap for funding the inland waterways and highway systems, availability of containers and ocean vessel capacity, and the infrastructure that may be needed to support a projected increase in biofuel transportation.
The report also discusses the current approach to transportation policy in the United States, in which each mode of transportation is often considered separately without an overarching view of the flow of freight through all the modes.
Study of Rural Transportation Issues may be found on the Agricultural Marketing Service website at http://www.ams.usda.gov/RuralTransportationStudy.


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NOW AVAILABLE IN 140mm
Each of the 12 RGB LEDs, built directly into the fan frame, are fully customizable, unlocking nearly endless customization and lighting effects.
Allows you to cycle through lighting effects, effect speeds, and individual RGB LED colors.
Easily change your fan's speed with any PWM or motherboard controller.
Provides improved performance over standard case fans.
Ultra-thin fan blades ensure less vibration, noise and turbulence.
Hook up Lighting Node PRO and control your fan lighting modes with ease through CORSAIR LINK.
Ignite your creativity with HD Series RGB's individually controlled LEDs or plug and play with vibrant lighting and vivid animation presets. With your choice of brilliant lighting modes and included 3-speed controller, CORSAIR's all-new HD Series fans provide an ultra-vibrant and customizable look for your rig.
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Stunning looks combine with cutting edge technology. HD Series RGB fans feature ultra-thin blades to ensure less vibration, while high static pressure keep you and your rig ultra cool.
Four hub-mounted RGB LEDs for uniform lighting.
Tuned for high performance and ultra quiet cooling.
Do it with the lights on. Pair CORSAIR's RGB LED series fans with Crystal. With tempered glass side panels and vivid illumination, your rig never looked better.


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In 2001 the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) initiated an accelerated program to eradicate scrapie from the nation's sheep flocks and goat herds. This program has reduced the prevalence of scrapie by over 85%, but, to find and eliminate the last few cases, the cooperation of sheep and goat producers everywhere is needed.
The National Scrapie Eradication Program (NSEP) coordinated by the USDA is a joint effort that includes participation by state governments and industry, particularly producers.
Producers can contribute significantly to this program by
The identification requirements for each state are available on this website. If you are unsure whether a particular sheep or goat needs to be identified, tag it.
For information on this fatal degenerative brain disease of sheep and goats, NSEP progress and other aspects of the program, please click on the topics listed in the box in the upper right-hand side of this webpage.
Other excellent sources of information regarding scrapie and the NSEP include
You are also encouraged to call the scrapie toll free number 866-USDA-TAG (866-873-2824 Select option 7 for Epidemiologist officer) to request official ear tags at no cost and/or a flock ID number or for more information.
For additional information regarding scrapie, scrapie program rules and voluntary Scrapie Flock Certification Program (SFCP), please visit the USDA/APHIS/Veterinary Services website:National Scrapie Eradication Program


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DENVER—Another round of snow is ensuring a white Christmas in the Rockies.
Snow was forecast across eastern Utah and parts of Wyoming and Colorado on Monday, growing heavier later in the day.
The Denver area was expected to get between 2 to 4 inches by Christmas Day. Up to 14 inches could fall in Colorado's mountains.
The storm isn't expected to cause significant delays at Denver International Airport.
While snow is common in the mountains this time of year, white Christmases in Denver are less so. The National Weather Service says the chance of a Christmas with at least an inch of snow on the ground in the Mile High City is about 37 percent. If you only count freshly fallen snow, chances drop to 13 percent counting Christmases going back to 1882.


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Gucci Mane (Feat. Freenchie) - Sun Valley
Hood Affairs reports "HOOD AFFAIRS T.V. HOOKS UP WITH GUCCI MANE FOR TRAP-A-HOLIC 2 COOMING SOON"
Please click the "Report" button below if the video on this page is not working properly.
Comments will only be displayed by verified emails. No Spamming or Racism.


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Discussions about eggcorns and related topics
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Registrations are currently closed because of a technical problem. Please send email to
The forum administrator reserves the right to request users to plausibly demonstrate that they are real people with an interest in the topic of eggcorns. Otherwise they may be removed with no further justification. Likewise, accounts that have not been used for posting may be removed.
Thanks for your understanding.
Chris -- 2018-04-11
"Haywall" is probably just an idiom blend, but I couldn't resist posting it. This blidiom is the greatest thing since chopped liver. I chuckle whenever I think of it.
"AWOL," pronounced EHY-wall, is an acronym for "Absent Without Leave." It has a narrow technical meaning in military contexts, but it is widely used in common speech for someone who is unexpectedly missing. It sometimes occurs in the idiom "to go AWOL." "Haywire," probably deriving from the old habit of use baling wire to do makeshift repairs on machinery, refers to something that is confused, erratic or broken. "Haywire" mostly occurs as a component of the idiom "to go haywire."
Over the last century "haywire" has gone from familiar to unfamiliar. On the Western U.S. ranch where I was raised we were still using wire to bale hay in the 1950s. But wire baling was already in decline in that decade, and by the 1980s twine had largely supplanted wire (Baling twine was always an important alternative to wire, but supply problems with sisal kept wire in the mix until cheap polypropylene twine arrived on the market. Today, of course, greenchopping hay into a silage wagon is probably more popular than baling.). At the same time that haywire was on the way out, the word "AWOL" was on the way in. Originally a piece of American miliary slang, "AWOL" has ridden the coattails of the U.S. military to a global presence.
The crossing fortunes of these two words has led to some confusion in modern English. People no longer know what the "haywire" in the idiom "go haywire" is. But "haywire" sounds a bit like the its semantic cousin "AWOL," especially in non-rhotic versions of English, and both are used in idioms that include the word "go." On the net we find almost a hundred unique examples of "haywall," a blend of these two words. Examples:
Game forum posting: "bq. : "But perhaps only test it on a test server first of all as otherwise it would go haywall" (http://forum.travian.com/showthread.php?t=83533)
Discussion of device drivers: "All my colours(im english) have gone haywall and my mouse was disabled! HELP!!!" (http://www.driverforum.com/modem/1800.html)
ipod forum: "my iPod starting going haywall and kept crashing when i tried to play songs." (http://forums.ilounge.com/archive/index … 69920.html)
Blog fiction: "So the concert began, and as soon as Jesse stepped out on that stage everything went haywall." (http://www.quizilla.com/stories/4909684 … 829part-36)
I suppose "haywall" could be an eggcorn. A wall made out of hay would be something that would be flimsy and easy to penetrate, so "going haywall" might be applicable to situations where things were breaking down. It's such an obvious blend, however, and the idea of a "hay wall" is so unfamiliar, that it is hard to make a case for it being an eggcorn. If the idioms had not existed, I doubt that "haywall" would ever have been coined.
Last edited by kem (2008-08-02 19:53:59)
Hatching new language, one eggcorn at a time.
A great one! Clearly a blend, as you see rightly, and, probably, you're also right that eggcorning has had little to do with it.
Mom was going hogwire that day.
and before you go hogwire with "IM NO LONGER A BOFA CUSTOMER!!!!...ask around,ok
I realize pornography offends some people, and I can understand that, but you don't just go hogwire and start tossing everybody into the clink just because
The media went hogwire and the incident ended his campaign.
I meant to ask permission before I went hogwire crazy and read your diary, but dude – I couldn't take the time to get it
Hog-wild + haywire, maybe "being wired" also active in the mix in some cases.
Then, there's going hair-wire, where I think there may be some eggcorning. I'll report it over on the other list.
Last edited by DavidTuggy (2008-08-02 21:14:26)
*If the human mind were simple enough for us to understand,
we would be too simple-minded to understand it* .
I wonder if rhoticity plays into the haywall << haywire examples. The vowels are fairly close, as are the liquids L and R. You would think most English speakers could tell them apart, but second-language speakers, or even native English speakers who have only heard the originals in rapid casual speech might make the error, mightn't they?
Rhoticity also comes into play in hogwire << hog wild, this time added rather than lost. And to close the circle (triangle?) hairwire << haywire has spreading rhoticity.
http://eggcorns.lascribe.net/forum/view … 7281#p7281
Both may also have similar genesis, in that haywire and hog wild each refers to images that would make more sense to 20th century farm dwellers than to 21st century city dwellers.


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12 August 2010
Questions about the INSTR quiz of 11 August (1328)
8 comments:
you have written 'that choice itself is correct as a "self-contained"', unfortunately neither of supposedly correct choices are correct as "self-contained".
Moreover, you have asked not for the "correct" description but for the "accurate" description and latter may be understood as "correct and complete".
It's really a matter of how you interpret this phrase:ReplyDelete
"Which of the following statements correctly describes the impact of passing a negative integer for the POS parameter?"
At first I also (maybe because I'm a non-native English speaker?) interpreted "correctly describes" as meaning "a correct and complete description."
But when I read the answers I concluded that it only made sense if I interpreted it as "which statements are true (but not necessarily complete by themselves.)"
I think the question and answers are OK, as the answers seem to make it obvious how "correctly describes" should be interpreted. But it can be confusing at first.
Also I considered, that if it had been meant that the answers were false due to "incompleteness", that would have been a really tricky question then with no truly accurate answers. There have been devious answers before, but not that tricky ;-) Besides, if an answer had to be absolutely completely complete - it would have to be as long as the relevant section of the manual...
Just my 2 bits...
Hi steven, I remember when reading your book "Programming PL/SQL" you mentioned a special characteristic of INSTR with -ve POS.ReplyDelete
SELECT INSTR('dad went to see his dad','ad',-1,2) FROM DUAL;
This gives 2 as output which searched backward.
If we change it to
SELECT INSTR('dad went to see his dad','ad',-2,1) FROM DUAL;
This won't give 2 as output since it won't search backwords at all in this case but it searches fwd from that location and gives output as 22
So if I take my second example none of the options were correct. But if i take my first example 2 options which were scored correct will be correct.
I too got this ambiguity while answering the quiz but selected the more generic answer and was awarded 100% score. Please do let me know if my understanding is wrong.
When position is negative the search proceeds backwards but comparisons are still performed in the forward direction. In your second case the portion of the string beginning at offset -2 is "ad" which matches the search criteria.
I do agree that if position is negative the search proceeds backwards but that was not always. Thats is what I am trying to say.ReplyDelete
See the optoins:
1. "Oracle searches for the NTH occurrence of the STR2 value backwards through STR1 (towards index position 1)"
2. "The search for STR2 begins from the end of STR1, instead of from the beginning. That is, a value for POS of -1 starts the search from the last character in STR1. A value for POS of -2 starts the search from the second-to-last character in STR1"
Both these options are correct, provided I have taken a string such that it satisfies the above two options like my 1st example in previous post.
What if a novice person tries to check and unfortunately chooses my 2nd kind of example? I am not saying that the optoins are wrong but the options might turn wrong based on the example we are trying to confirm that.
@Kim Berg Hansen:ReplyDelete
Even replicating the sections from the Oracle's documentation may not serve to completely describe a function. For example, the pos argument to instr is specified to be a non-zero integer; however, Oracle does not raise an exception if a 0 is passed, instead instr returns 0. Neither does the documentation specify that NULL is returned if any of the passed arguments is NULL (although such behavior is common to most Oracle supplied functions).
The following code includes "my_instr" which is functionally equivalent to INSTR (at least sufficiently so to demonstrate backward searching using your second case):
FUNCTION my_instr(
str1 VARCHAR2,
str2 VARCHAR2,
pos PLS_INTEGER DEFAULT 1,
nth POSITIVE DEFAULT 1
found_position PLS_INTEGER;
max_position PLS_INTEGER;
occurrence NATURAL := 0;
search_increment PLS_INTEGER := 1;
search_position PLS_INTEGER;
str2_length PLS_INTEGER;
IF str1 IS NULL OR str2 IS NULL OR pos IS NULL OR nth IS NULL THEN
str2_length := LENGTH(str2);
max_position := LENGTH(str1) + 1 - str2_length;
search_increment := SIGN(pos);
search_position :=
CASE search_increment
WHEN -1 THEN LENGTH(str1) + 1 + LEAST(pos, 0 - str2_length)
WHEN 1 THEN pos
-- Value to be returned if search is unsuccessful.
found_position := 0;
WHILE found_position = 0 AND search_position BETWEEN 1 AND max_position LOOP
put_line('search_position: ' || TO_CHAR(search_position, 'TM'));
IF SUBSTR(str1, search_position, str2_length) = str2 THEN
-- An occurrence of str2 has been found in str1.
occurrence := occurrence + 1;
IF occurrence = nth THEN
-- The nth occurrence has been found.
found_position := search_position;
-- Even if the nth occurrence has been found, there are neither logical
-- nor performance reasons not to increment the search_position.
search_position := search_position + search_increment;
END LOOP search;
RETURN found_position;
END my_instr;
sys.DBMS_OUTPUT.put_line('my_instr return: '
|| TO_CHAR(my_instr(
'dad went to see his dad',
Whenever pos is negative, instr searches by moving the position for the start of the comparison backwards until either the nth match is found or all of the candidate positions have been tested. When str2 is a multi-character string, then the end of the comparison may occur after pos.
The values in your second case are insufficient for ascertaining the behavior of instr because the output will be the same regardless of which direction the comparison start position moves during the search (in this specific case it never moves since the value in str2 occurs at pos in str1).
Now I took a look on "Past quizes" and it looks as if I misread the exact wording of the quiz in question - it says "correctly" and by taking quiz I misread it as "accurately".ReplyDelete
Sometimes with potential answers like that, I just think Steven is testing us to ensure unless we have some elite speed readers/thinkers, there should be at least a few seconds delay until the selection of answers ;-)ReplyDelete
Both where accurate - perhaps liken them to the occasional business requirement descriptions that come from different places describing the same request.


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The Volvo 940 series includes several impressive features. Available in a four-door saloon body style or a five-door estate version, the 940 represents one of the last large cars offered by Volvo.
The late 1800s and early 1900s saw a great deal of changes in technology and industry. That evolution led to more efficient manufacturing of all kinds of goods, including new cars. These changes moved all across the world, creating automakers on almost every continent. Volvo is one among many. Like several of the other carmakers, Volvo has its beginnings in the years leading up to World War II. Before the war broke out, the Swedish company enjoyed a great deal of success locally with its line of reliable and safe cars.
Also, like many of the carmakers and industrial companies of the time in Europe, Volvo experienced some setbacks during the war years. While production continued, it saw serious reduction, resulting in the introduction of fewer new models. Following the end of World War II, Volvo made the decision to offer its cars in the U.S. market. Americans received these affordable, well-made cars well, and they quickly made a name for families, professionals, and anyone looking for a reliable car.
The Volvo name continues to sell in the American market. Among the many offerings from Volvo, the 940 provides a popular choice.
Keeping with its tradition, the Swedish carmaker designs the 940 series with plenty of safety features, as well as reliability and durability. Combined, these attributes ensure the 940 series' popularity in the U.S. and overseas. These 940s appeal to older car buyers, as well as companies for fleet vehicles and to families.
In addition to the safety features and reliable nature, the 940 series also shows off an attractive body style. Built on a solid platform, the sedan-styled body feels solid and safe. Very classic in design, the 940's body looks elegant and timeless. Drivers can easily recognize this model as a Volvo.
These cars draw on the 740 series from Volvo. The two series share many similar or identical features, including the dash set up and powertrain options.
All good things must come to an end and the 940 series from Volvo makes no exception. The company discontinued the line after the 1998 model year. The final model remains similar to its earlier incarnations, offering reliability, good looks, and safety to the consumer.
As noted, the 1998 940 series has a great deal in common with the 740 series previously released by Volvo. The 940 utilizes the same A-pillar design, dashboard, and powertrain choices as the 740.
Under the hood, both the sedan and the wagon version of the Volvo 940 come equipped with four-cylinder engines. In most auto industry experts' opinions, these motors are more than adequate as the base of the car's powertrain. Like so many of Volvo's other car designs, the 940 series also uses rear drive, though this marks the last time Volvo offers that feature standard.
Also, much like many of Volvo's other vehicles, the 1998 940 earns a reputation as one of the safest vehicles on the market. It offers never before seen safety features and ranks high in the industry's test drives and safety tests.
The Volvo 940 series debuted in the 1990 model year and replaces the then discontinued 740 series. While the 940 series shares some similarities with the discontinued 740, this car offers unique style, safety, and reliability. This series has a reputation for its innovative safety features, including the three-point seat belt and adjustable head restraint added to the middle of the back seat. This type of safety consideration had never before been seen in a sedan model, especially for the back seat passengers.
These cars, for both sedan and wagon body styles, come equipped with plenty of power. These cars use either a four-cylinder or a six-cylinder turbo diesel engine. The four-cylinder motor runs on gasoline. During the course of the car's production years, Volvo offered a few different transmission options to complement the engines. These include a four-speed manual with overdrive option, a five-speed manual, and a four-speed automatic system available on certain models.
As a used car option, most industry experts feel the Volvo 940 series deserves a look. However, note that finding these cars may present a challenge, since the last model came off the line in 1998.
1995 Volvo 940
Luxury, Sedan, Wagon
Brand new when introduced in 1995, the Volvo 940 is available in Base and Turbo trims for both wagons and sedans.


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In order to effectively sell your app, software package or any other type of product online, you need a website that sparks interest for your product, generates desire, and provides visitors with all the right reasons to become your happy customers. All this can be accomplished with a single usable, well designed page. The Spark Landing Page is the perfect such solution because it distills what is great about your product by giving customers a bird's-eye view of the features and benefits they are getting.
Template Features
- Usable and appealing design to attract attention and maximize conversions
- Easy to modify or add new content
- Two different layouts, one geared towards businesses seeking to promote their mobile apps, the other towards companies selling software or any other type of digital or physical products
- Two color themes – light and dark
- jQuery lightbox overlay for video with customized skins
- jQuery Nivo image slider
- jQuery testimonial rotator
- jQuery smooth page scroll
- Six custom designed icons for the feature area and four more for social media websites
- Awesome, usable contact form using jQuery for validation and animation
- Source .png and .psd files with named layer folders
- Detailed and easy to read documentation
You really should try
- The contact form at the bottom of the page. It is fully functional, complete with real-time validation and animations when sending messages.
- Navigating the page using the buttons at the top right, named "Features" and "Contact". The page scrolls smoothly to the desired location.
- Watching the video. The video comes in the foreground and the rest of the page fades.


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Nashville, Tenn. - After a thrilling upset win over Belmont on Thursday night, the Tennessee State men's basketball team will hit the road for a one-game swing against the Cougars of SIU- Edwardsville.
Against the Bruins, Robert Covington led the Tigers with 25 points on 7-of-9 shooting. He also made 3-of-4 from outside the three-point line and all eight of his free throws. His 25 were his most since Dec. 16 against Lemoyne-Owen
Kellen Thornton (18), Patrick Miller (15) and Jordan Cyphers (10) also scored in double-digits for TSU (15-11, 9-4 OVC).
Thornton also pulled in a game-high ten rebounds for his eighth double-double of the season. Covington added seven boards, helping TSU win the battle on the glass, 35-30.
TSU's victory was its first against Belmont (20-6, 11-2 OVC) since 1987- before the Bruins became members of Division I.
The victory also pushed the Tigers' home record to 10-0 which is the team's best start in a decade. TSU only played 10 home games during the 1992-93 season, so the Tigers could break that mark with a win over Loyola (Md.) on Feb. 23.
Tennessee State also holds the nation's 22nd longest home winning streak.
The Tigers' record at the Gentry Center won't help them, however, when they travel to SIUE on Wednesday.
The Cougars come into the matchup with a 9-14 overall record and a 5-8 mark in conference, but they pulled off 65-60 win over Murray State on Thursday.
SIUE is led by Mark Yelovich (11.3 ppg) and Kris Davis (10.8 ppg). Yelovich also ranks eleventh in the OVC, pulling down an average of 5.8 boards per contest.
Davis has been a catalyst for the offense lately, and has tallied an average of 4.7 assists during the team's last 13 contests and a 2.0 assist-to-turnover ratio.
The Cougars also excel around the three-point line, shooting at a 36.5 clip while holding opponents to a 30.7 percentage.
Tennessee State is 1-0 all-time against SIUE having defeated the Cougars in the team's first OVC season last year, 52-49.
Wednesday's matchup is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. and the contest can be seen on the OVC Digital Network.
--TSU Tigers--


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Premium Quality Afghani Style Heart Shaped Earrings
- Premium Quality Afghani Style Heart Shaped Earrings
- Premium Quality, Stylish Fashion Jewellery Exclusively Available High Quality, Premium Stylish Fashion Jewellery suitable for all occasion likes Office, Daily wear, Party wear. Good & Unique Gift Idea for mother, sister, wife, friend.
- 100% genuine earrings from zarood.com,which are fashionable and come in long and short variations at affordable prices.
- Well suited to complement all your ethnic and trendy outfits. You will find a variety of earrings that are well suited for different occasions like engagements, weddings and birthday gifts etc.
- Perfect accessories for women of all age groups and ideal for gifting to sister, mother, friend, wife.
- Order online with total satisfaction guaranteed . All earrings are handmade by Master Artisans with years of experience. Made from genuine skin safe materials. Ease of maintenance and care. All products are designed to retain their shine for a long time with proper care.
- Artist Name: Zarood


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What is the Whey Protein Isolate?
With an extraordinary concentration of Branch Chained Amino Acids (BCAA'S), the Whey Protein Isolate considered as the best vegetarian protein powder is a completely non-flavored high proteins supplement that is extraordinary easy to digest. It is widely consumed by those who have clear targets for theirs Gym activities as the high concentration of micro-filtered BCAA'S has proven to contribute for an outstanding muscle metabolism.
Since it is flavor free, the whey protein isolate is easy to mix with anything, which makes it possible to you to drink it in your coffee, juice, or tea. Provided that it does not contain artificial sugar you will not see change in your insulin level just by consuming whey protein. One of great characteristic that makes the whey protein isolate powders easy to devour is its propriety of not changing the taste of the food or drink that you combine it with. This characteristic sets the whey protein apart from the majority of protein powders by allowing you to enjoy your much loved drink without repulsive intrusive tastes and makes it very easy to be accustomed.
The Whey Protein Isolate benefits
Thanks to the High Concentrations of Branch Chained Amino Acids (BCAA'S) the whey protein will be helpful for the most efficient muscle metabolism you are going to experience. On the other hand, the superior quality of the Flavor Free Protein Powder defines its proprieties of mixing with almost all edible product without affecting its taste. One of the stimulating benefits the whey protein isolate comports is the absence of artificial sugar which keeps your Insulin level almost intact at same time that your muscles are being developed significantly.
Who can relish the Whey Protein Isolate?
The post Whey Protein Isolate appeared first on Trusted Health Miracle.
Source: http://www.trustedhealthmiracle.com/whey-protein-isolate/


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# File webrick/httpauth.rb, line 21 def _basic_auth(req, res, realm, req_field, res_field, err_type, block) user = pass = nil if /^Basic\s+(.*)/o =~ req[req_field] userpass = $1 user, pass = userpass.unpack("m*")[0].split(":", 2) end if block.call(user, pass) req.user = user return end res[res_field] = "Basic realm=\"#{realm}\"" raise err_type end
# File webrick/httpauth.rb, line 35 def basic_auth(req, res, realm, &block) _basic_auth(req, res, realm, "Authorization", "WWW-Authenticate", HTTPStatus::Unauthorized, block) end
Commenting is here to help enhance the documentation. For example, code samples, or clarification of the documentation.
If you have questions about Ruby or the documentation, please post to one of the Ruby mailing lists. You will get better, faster, help that way.
If you wish to post a correction of the docs, please do so, but also file bug report so that it can be corrected for the next release. Thank you.
If you want to help improve the Ruby documentation, please visit Documenting-ruby.org.


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Koh Kong
Earth : Asia : Southeast Asia : Cambodia : Cardamom and Elephant Mountains : Koh Kong
Koh Kong is a town in the Cardamom and Elephant Mountains region of Cambodia, adjacent to the border with Thailand. It is also the capital of the province with the same name.
Get in
Koh Kong has an airport but it's not currently used for commercial passenger flights. Runway is in a less than desirable shape (May '08) and airtravel will not commence commercially for a while.
From Cambodia
Koh Kong is linked to Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville via Sre Ambel by National Route 4. The road is now completed including all 5 bridges (May 2008). It's a good scenic drive through some of Cambodia's least developed and unspoiled regions - Cardamom mountains. Minibuses and tourist air-con buses leave Koh Kong mainly in the mornings (but some do even in the afternoon, probably depending on number of passengers available). On the way back, they usually leave in the morning and arrive to Koh Kong in the afternoon. The proper price is 25000 riel (6USD).About USD8 or 10 is a price often asked in Sihanoukville travel agencies for the ticket back to Koh Kong).
There is no longer a boat from Koh Kong to Sihanoukville. It stopped in 2009 although some travel agents in Thailand still sell travel tickets for the (non existent) boat.
Currently (Jan 2010), there is a daily bus leaving to Koh Kong from Kep for 20USD. It leaves in the morning at 8:30.
From Thailand
The Thailand border crossing named Cham Yeam is about 10 km (by the road) northwest of the town. Motos (normal price is USD 2 to 2.5), shared taxis and taxis (USD 9 to 10 for the entire car) go between the border post and the town/port, and the drivers of these will attack you while you're waiting for your visa. You may and will be asked for much more (400 baht is quite common) - just bargain a lot, and do not let them to rip off you. Additionally, you'll have to pay toll fee for the bridge, which can be paid in either baht, riels or USD. The ongoing rate will be stated on the toll booths just before the bridge - better pay this on site and do not include in your taxi fare, to avoid a chance of being over- or double-charged. When in town, the driver will offer you to exchange some money to riels - just refuse, the rate would be very poor, USD are accepted universally in Cambodia, and, in Koh Kong, Thai baht are accepted too. If you're continuing on to Cambodia, he'll also try to convince you to buy a bus ticket for an inflated price, USD15-30 or more - just do not agree, or you'll be charged this price on arrival to the agency, and bargain when he drops you there. In the agency, you may be told that the normal price now is USD25 or 30, and, as such, USD15 is a big bargain - this is not true. The proper price to Phnom Penh is 25000 riel (6USD) if you get a ticket for 8USD you are doing well. There is a good friendly bar, Fat Sam's, in the main street where you can get good honest tourist information as well as the best Western food in Koh Kong.
Get around
Around Koh Kong, there are islands, mountains, jungles, rivers, waterfalls, a zoo, casino, and a lot more.
Koh Kong Island (considered one of the best beaches in SE Asia). There are no accommodations on Koh Kong Island as it is military run and therefore illegal to spend the night, however day trips are offered by Koh Kong Divers tour centre and some other operators in Koh Kong.
Along highway 4 (Sihanoukville - Phnom Penh), about 30 km south of Traeng Trayoung, 20 km north of the Koh Kong turn-off, there is on the west side of the road a small turn-off which leads to a nice set of rapids called O'bak Retes. Great place to stop.
Day tours and overnight adventure trips to Koh Kong Island and other Islands in Kong Province, Pream Krasop Mangroves(Asia's Largest), Waterfalls & Trekking in the Cardamom Mountainns are available from Koh Kong Divers travel & tours located next to the waterfront bar & restaurant on riverfront road. Koh Kong island has recently opened its doors to night camping. All the information can be found through Koh Kong Bay hotel, 200m left before the Thai bridge. A soon to be opened bungalow resort is also awaiting (May 2012).
Gecko adventure tours Koh Kong offer overnight camping, night canyoning, trekking to remote waterfalls, experienced guides, all gear supplied.
Fat Sam's bar on the main street in the downtown area is a fabulous place to get an idea about what to do - Fat Sam himself is very helpful and knows the place quite well.
Thmorda Crab House is a Thai seafood restaurant and bar situated right over the water of the Koh Pow river. Delicious food. Amazing scenery. Friendly staff. Great value. Sunset cruises. www.thmordacrabhouse.com. Open from 11:30 til 23:00. Tel. +855 356 901 252
The Blue Gecko Bar
The Aqua Sunset Bar & Resturant has just opened 01/11/09. Riverside bar and restaurant set over the water on the Koh Pow River, pleasant river breeze, popular sunset venue. Full bar facilities, selection of spirits and cocktails, western and thai-khmer food. Also offering a Sunset Cruise every evening.
The Dive Inn. Daily specials from 110 Baht, European, Thai & Khmer cuisine. the largest selection of spirits and cocktails in koh kong
Waterfront Bar & Restaurant. Great pizza's and hamburgers, Traditional Cambodian food and snacks, top place for river and sunset views.
Paddy's Bamboo Pub serves western breakfast and local meals. The pub is next to Rasmey Buntam Guesthouse.
Waterfront Bar & Restaurant – Full bar facilities-Cocktails/Beers/Spirits, Late night opening, good music. Great place to meet other travelers from around the globe and offers great river views and sunsets.
Blue Elephant Bar - Bar and lounge, opens early until late. Offers food, drinks, free WiFi, a nice selection of books in a friendly atmosphere.
There are many guesthouses and small hotels in the central part of town and on the riverside street, partially thanks to Thais who come to Cambodia for gambling (the big casino can be seen on the way from the border). Basic guesthouse room with fan costs USD3-6 (or 100-200 baht). For USD10 and more you'll get an air-con room in a guesthouse or hotel. As often in Asia, the cheapest places and room rates are usually those found "on the spot" on arrival. Motorbike taxi drivers will be happy to deliver you to a guesthouse/hotel of their choice, if you're not sure where to go - just ask them (and notice after while riding there) how far from the center is it and what's the price. Alternatively, just walk around and look for accommodation yourself - the town is quite small. Further south of the town there is a small group of 12 islands called the Koh Sdach archipelago, this area holds untamed beauty with white sandy beaches, crystal clear seas and paradise islands. This is a must for any traveler visiting coastal cambodia. Currently accommodation is only available on two of the islands Koh Sdach and Koh Toteung and room rates go from $10 - $120.
Town Accommodations
Island Accommodations
Get out
Tatai is the next town east, 19 km away. $4 - $5 by motobike, US$10 by tuk tuk.


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Here is a montage of sounds I've dialled up on my 1939 Novachord over the last few days. This 1/4 ton beast returned to the land of the living this week, after spending 200 hours completely rebuilding her PSU chassis and repotting the supply decoupling capacitors in the generator chassis. This is an amazing design for the era featuring two active smoothing, noise cancelling, HT rails and several other conventional ones.
Number 346 has travelled all the way across the Atlantic from Seattle to the UK after Marc Doty gave me the very generous opportunity to take on and restore this amazing beast.
For those who haven't been following my restoration thread, here are her essentials:
World's first commercial polyphonic subtractive analog synth, built in 1939
1069 manufactured between 1939 and 1941
163 electronic vacuum tubes (valves)
Weighs 1/4 ton
Features full 72 note polyphony
Configurable envelope per key giving control over Attack, Decay and Sustain!
Multi stage LC based Resonant low pass "formant" filters
6 channel electromechanical vibrato
12 oscillators
Swell and sustain pedals - with high and low octave split
Cost $1800 in 1939 or as much as 3 family cars or a house!!
Unlike Phil Cirocco's infamous rebuilt Novachord, apart from the PSU chassis, number 346 is currently running with an almost totally unrestored generator chassis containing 146 tubes and over 800 capacitors. At present all but the bottom two octaves are running albeit with some minor calibration and tuning issues - not bad for a 70 year old electronic beast!!
http://www.hollowsun.com/novachord/Nova ... ontage.mp3
Novachord 346:
The Huge Generator Chassis in the "Service Position"


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When fall arrives, many of us look forward to enjoying fresh apple cider and juices. While most people think of juices as healthy foods, since they provide many essential nutrients, certain types of juice could pose a health risk to your family.
Practical information and tips from the experts to help you and your family stay food safe.


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Alternative Names
Cancer and cell phones; Do cell phones cause cancer?
Several major studies show no link between cell phones and cancer at this time. However, since the information available is based on short-term studies, the impact of many years of exposure is not known.
The amount of time people spend on cell phones has increased and will be taken into consideration during current and future studies. Research will continue to investigate whether there is a relationship between slow-growing tumors in the brain or elsewhere with long-term cell phone use.
Cell phones use low levels of radiofrequency energy (RF). Exposures to low levels of RF from cell phones have not been consistently found to cause health problems.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) have developed guidelines that limit the amount of radiofrequency energy that cell phones are allowed to give off.
The RF exposure from cell phones is measured in Specific Absorption Rate (SAR). The SAR measures the amount of energy absorbed by the body. The SAR permitted in the United States is 1.6 watts per kilogram (1.6 W/kg).
According to the FCC, this amount is much lower than the level shown to cause any changes in laboratory animals. Every cell phone manufacturer is required to report the RF exposure of each of its phone models to the FCC.
Generally, cell phone studies have involved adults aged 18 or older. Most children didn't use cell phones until the mid-1990s. This leaves the effects of cell phone use on children unclear.
Other national governments have recommended that children be discouraged from using cell phones. In December 2000, the British government handed out pamphlets that recommended reducing the amount of time children spend on a cell phone. However, there was no scientific evidence confirming or denying a health risk.
Although health problems related to long-term use are thought to be unlikely, you can take some steps to limit your potential risk.
Have lengthy phone conversations on a conventional telephone (landline) instead of your cell phone.
Change to a cell phone that has its antenna outside the vehicle.
Use a headset and place the phone away from your body.
Find out how much SAR energy your cell phone gives off.


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Bob Lorgeree needed a new logo design and created a contest on 99designs.
A winner was selected from 52 designs submitted by 13 freelance designers.
Arizona Delivery & Logistics Association
Newly formed State Delivery Association for companies that provide any type of package delivery in cars trucks or vans.
Transportation companies
Modern and eye catching have no ideas yet. Just created Association.
Find out how a design contest works or learn more about our logo design services.


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Selecting your vehicle's make, model, and year allows us to display only parts and items specific to your car's model and year.
Part# C240697
Be the First to Review
OPGI Price: $25.99
Part Type: (R) = Authentic reproduction of the original GM product
Years: 1960-1969
Sold As: EACH
This is an exact reproduction of the cap used to cover the positive terminal on cars equipped with a side post battery. Each cap is molded to the original dimensions and features bright red coloring, which designates it as the power supply cable.


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General PS3 Discussion
Below you will find a list of discussions in the General PS3 Discussion forum at the PS3 Trophies Forum. Discuss any topics relating to the Sony PlayStation 3. Specific game discussion goes here.
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Skyrim theme is great.
Sounds a bit Russian.
Very very proud.
Can you imagine the choreography for it?
Can you imagine the moves men would do to it?
It's exactly what I consider "epic" or "heroic" or "victorious" type of music.
There are some details I'd like to fix, but in general, yes that would be it.
Reminds me of this:
A bit repetitive but that can be fixed.
The direction is right.


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April 14th, 2014, Taipei, Taiwan – BIOSTAR is releasing three boards with dual Gigabit LAN on-board that are going to make networking and gaming even better with the 6+ Experience. To achieve this, the "Hi-Fi B85S2G", "Hi-Fi A88S2G", and "Hi-Fi B85N 3D" have Gigabit LAN connections on the board that allow simultaneous LAN connections.
The primary advantage is the doubling bandwidth which allows the network bandwidth, it also allows for Full-duplex transmission. Two networks can be simultaneously transmitted to upload and download at the same time. In addition, there is zero packet delay with two high-speed gigabit networks, giving super high data transmission efficiency.
Another major advantage is Load Balancing. This allows users to attach both network adapters to a single network. This can allow for double the network bandwidth of a single connection under certain circumstances. These BIOSTAR motherboards will therefore support the aggregation "teaming" function. Just merge the two connections to support multiple aggregation mode.
For users who are experienced with networking it is also possible to turn the computer into a more sophisticated router. With dual networking adapters the computer can become a software router, as opposed to a hardware one. This will allow for more advanced controls of router settings than a typical home router.
Lastly, with BIOSTAR's dual Gigabit LAN connections you get network insurance. These boards come with two Gigabit Ethernet lightning protection circuits, there are cross-efficient in reducing the probability of damage from lightning or other power surge. So if one connection is disabled the other connection will automatically kick in.
Of course at 6+ Experience boards, users will have the following enhancements in the areas of BIOSTAR expertise: Audio+, Video+, Speed+, Protection+, Durability+ and DIY+.
Audio+ - The audio features from BIOSTAR are extensive with the following audio features: 3D Audio, True Blu-Ray Audio, 3D HiFi Amp and 3D Smart Ear.
Video+ – With AMD's Radeon Graphics and support for Microsoft's DirectX 11.1, 3D powered graphics are delivered with ease. There is support for full HDMI 3D 1080p and and it supports AMD's Eyefinity technology.
Speed+ - With PCI-E 3.0 technology, there is 2 times the bandwidth of PCI-E 2.0 and allows for up to 1GB/s of bandwidth per lane per direction. There is also SmartSpeedLAN which is a free software application that monitors and manages your PC's network behavior. Charger Booster is the fastest and most efficient charger solution for apple devices such as iPads and iPhones.
Protection+ – USB Overcurrent Protection is an onboard dedicated power fuse to help prevent electrical USB port failure. This ESD protection (Electrostatic Discharge), prevents the USB Port from providing overcurrent. In addition, throughout strategic places on the board there are OVER-Current Protection, OVER-Voltage Protection, and OVER-Heat Protection safeguards. These are special circuit designs to detect heat and overvoltage conditions to prevent voltage surges from spreading in real time.
Durability+ – There are several design features that work towards providing a more durable motherboard on which to build a system. Low RdsOn P-Pak MOS is a low resistance design that can significantly reduce the current in energy loss. Durability+ also means the use of a moisture-proof PCB. Computers are often used in humid areas (such as coastal climates). The PCB will oxidize if it can easily absorb moisture. Moisture-proof PCBs meet high density and high reliability requirements for moisture proofing.
DIY+ – Many people love to do it yourself when building PCs and BIOSTAR fully supports the user in many innovative ways such as with BIOS features. UEFI BIOS is a modern and easy-to-use graphical user interface. The UEFI BIOS comes with a colorful easy-understand icons leading users directly into the setup layer. BIO-Remote 2 gives users a better Home Theater environment. Users who own either Android or Apple products are able to access and control the PC remotely. This allows a smart device to become an intelligent and functional remote controller. In addition, the BIO-Remote2 feature also includes both the function of a mouse pad and a power point presentation controller.


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As you can tell, the blog has a new look. Many thanks to Joe DeCaro for his help. There will be some more subtle changes over the next few days with the overhaul complete by Opening Day. The new look has energized me and I'm looking forward to the season more than ever. As they have been for the past few seasons, I know the expectations are low for the Mets. Even so, there's always something about the start of a new season. With Opening Day a little over a week away, the Mets have several questions that must be answered:
Q: Will David Wright be ready?
A: He hopes to play today, but said the odds are 50-50. I don't know if a week is enough time to get ready. He could possibly open the season on the DL. If not, a slow start is almost assured.
Q: Will Johan Santana be ready?
A: It would be just like it for the Mets for Santana to be ready and not Wright. Santana made strong progress this spring and his availability will give the Mets a spring to their step. Santana will start today with a target of 90 pitches.
Q: What about the other injured?
A: Andres Torres, Ruben Tejada, Garret Olson and a few others have nagging injuries. Tim Byrdak will open the season on the DL and that's also a possibility for Scott Hairston. On the plus side, Ike Davis seems fine.
Q: What's going on with Mike Pelfrey?
A: Pelfrey said his ankle is fine and shouldn't be used as an excuse. Too bad. That would mean his awful pitching is because he's awful. I don't believe Pelfrey can turn it on immediately after a lousy spring.
Q: Will Jason Bay find his stroke?
A: He's been looking for several years now and is still struggling to be the player the Mets hoped.


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Angelina Jolie: Coffee House Stop in Berlin!
Angelina Jolie stops off at the Cafe Einstein coffee house with daughter Shiloh, 7, on Wednesday (June 5) in Tiergarten, Berlin, Germany.
The 38-year-old actress' kiddos Vivienne, 4, and Pax, 9, were spotted out at the Bauhaus Archive Museum of Design, which is just around the corner from the coffee shop.
The day before, Angelina celebrated her birthday by going out to dinner with her family – happy belated birthday, Angelina!
Angelina and fiance Brad Pitt are currently on a world tour to promote his film World War Z, which hits theaters on June 21.


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Holm Receives Weekly Conference Awardby Brent Harris • April 19, 2011 Share:
John Holm has been honored by the North Coast Athletic Conference after a record-setting week by the Wabash first baseman. Holm was named the NCAC Baseball Player of the Week after breaking the career home run and RBI records for the Little Giant program.
The junior first baseman and designated hitter belted a solo home run in extra innings on Sunday to give Wabash a 10-9 win over Wittenberg and set the new Little Giant career homer mark at 26. He tied Matt Dodaro for the career record on Wednesday with a solo home run against DePauw. Holm finished that game with three RBI for the 117th of his career, also passing Dodaro on the all-time list.
Holm finished the week hitting 11-of-16 through four games for a .688 batting average. He scored nine runs and collected 11 total RBI. Holm hit a double and a triple in addition to four home runs for the week. He blasted two more long balls against Wittenberg in the second game on Sunday.


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develop an app
Proračun €250-750 EUR
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The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence develops and implements extensive public health and safety programs and utilizes the courts to reduce gun violence. Through our Legal Action Project, we represent victims of gun violence in cases against irresponsible gun sellers and owners. Through our public health and safety programs, we inspire safer attitudes and behaviors around the 300 million guns already in our homes and communities and new gun purchases taking place every day.
The Brady Center is a 501(c)(3) organization. Contributions to the Center are tax deductible.


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Special price on Combo Tickets - see two dance performances!
I Shall die in Florence on 1, 7 and March 10 are sold in packages with noBody a dance piece by Sasha Waltz on the Main Stage (it is also possible to book separate performance days).
Price: noBody SEK 95-410 + I shall die in Florence SEK 60 (normal ticket price 190 SEK)
Dance. Dance piece by Jérôme Delbey. In collaboration with Göteborgs Dans & Teater Festival.
World premiere: 26 February 2012.
The thought of death unites us human beings. It frightens us, awakens us and makes us aware of life's transience. But above all, it reminds us of the value of caring for life and each other. It is the personal meetings that make us who we are. It is said that life passes in review within us when we die. Who are the ones we will meet when we leave this life?
In this emotional and highly personal piece Jérôme Delbey - choreographer and dancer in The Göteborg Ballet - explores our soul's relationship to life, death and life thereafter. With the butterfly as a symbol of metamorphosis, he seeks with the dancers help the answer to one of humanity's oldest questions: What happens to the soul in the moment of death?
Watch a movie clip from I shall die in Florence
Watch photos from the performance.
Watch an interview with choreographer Jérôme Delbey.
Photos from the rehearsal of I shall die in Florence.
Jérôme Delbey, Choreographer.
Jérôme Delbey was born in 1975 in Croix (France). He began his dance training in his hometown at the Ecole nationale de danse in Tourcoing. He also studied three years at the Ecole supérieure d´arts appliqués et du textile in Roubaix and, in 1993, graduated with a degree in applied arts. He then joined the Jeune ballet international in the Ecole supérieure de danse Rosella Hightower in Cannes (France). After 11 years in Germany with the Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe and the Theater Regensburg, Jérôme was engaged in 2006 by The Göteborg Ballet.
In addition to creating several works for workshops and freelance projects he choreographed Mauvais Anges for The Göteborg Ballet in 2007, which was awarded with the Scapino Production Price at the 22nd International Choreography Competition in Hannover (Germany) in 2008 and the 3rd Price at the Cross Connection International Choreography Competition in Copenhagen (Denmark). He is also the choreographer of Skin for the Scapino Ballet Rotterdam, 2009, and Soldat, 2010, with dancer Erik Johansson.
Photo: Mattias Suneson
"When the land subsumes the dead, they become the rich body of earth, the dark matter of creation. As I walk the fields of this farm, beneath my feet shift the bones of incalculable bodies; death is the sculptor of ravishing landscape, the terrible mother, the damp creator of life, by whom we are one day devoured." Sally Mann "What remains" (2003)
Jérôme Delbey's thoughts about the piece.
Why, in my early 20´s, I had foreseen that I shall die in Florence? Future will maybe tell … And why have I always been so fascinated by that dress my mother wore, the one full of butterflies?
In many civilizations the butterfly is a strong symbol of metamorphosis. The chrysalis is the egg which contains the potentiality of the being; the butterfly that comes out of it is a symbol of resurrection. It is, as well, if one prefers, the exit out of the tomb. For others it is the soul freed from its carnal envelope, as for the Aztecs it represents the vital breath escaped from the mouth of the dying.
The Baluba and Lulua from Kasaï (central Zaire) say: "the human being follows from life to death the cycle of the butterfly": a small caterpillar during childhood, a big one during maturity, then become chrysalis in oldness, its tomb is the cocoon from which escapes its soul, flying in the shape of a butterfly; the laying of this butterfly is the expression of its reincarnation.
A popular belief also in the ancient Greece and Rome: the soul leaving the dead body in the shape of a butterfly. At last, it is in modern psychoanalysis a symbol of rebirth.
Death is not an end in itself but death reminds us to cherish, death reminds us to go even further because it is the very condition of progress and life.
What does remain when the body has turned back to dust and ashes? Particles of soul – filled with moments of life – flying light in the air? And which one of these moments defines the soul, preparing it for afterlife?
Does the journey lead to Florence? Will we wash ourselves in the river Arno like Hindus in the Ganges?
Jérôme Delbey


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In late September of 2005, the world was struck with a terrible, virulent plague. In the early days of this plague, it was believed to be well under control. Casualties were few and far between, constrained to indoor quarantine zones, protecting the outside world from the violent malady. These quarantine zones did not last long. Common vermin and pets acted as carriers, delivering this plague out to the greater world.
Men, women and children were all infected. The young died instantly. The old were forced to weather a tortured, wasting existence prior to their death. Innocent bystanders acted as unknowing carriers, delivering the plague from one victim to the next. The death toll rose high enough that major city centers had been almost completely killed off, leaving only piles of corpses to rot in the streets.
We're not talking about the Black Death or a modern pandemic like SARS or H1N1. We're talking about Corrupted Blood, a disastrous plague that struck within the virtual world of Azeroth, hurtling World of Warcraft into the public eye and placing it under scientific scrutiny.


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|View Poll Results: Psycho-Pass - Episode 19 Rating
|Perfect 10
|9 out of 10 : Excellent
|8 out of 10 : Very Good
|7 out of 10 : Good
|6 out of 10 : Average
|5 out of 10 : Below Average
|4 out of 10 : Poor
|3 out of 10 : Bad
|2 out of 10 : Very Bad
|1 out of 10 : Painful
|Voters: 50. You may not vote on this poll
|Thread Tools
|2013-03-06, 23:17
|Link #181
Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Los Angeles, California
Age: 34
2) is a point that gen is trying to get across, mostly as an allegory to Japan and its Xenophobic tendencies. This is the reason why he used the hyper oats as a plot point. Anyone who has taken a biology class (and still remembers it) know about the red queen theory. In which a system that has no to little biological diversity will eventually die. wither from outside influences or inside mutations. Sibil keeps that much needed diversity soo low that it FORCES people like makishima to arise, Makishima is the mutation, only this time, he is waay too strong for them to handle. but they don't know it yet. no matter how you slice it, this show is pretty deep.
Gen is my favorite director/creator in the anime world now, got much respect for him.
By the way, the number of seats in the Japanese house of concilors (the upper house of the two houses of parliament) is 242. . . .
(there used to be 252 seats until 1998.............)
pretty close to 250, I'm not sure is that is a coincidence...
Its like if these people's significant others were raped then given an immediate death penalty by the judge because they are too traumatised. . .and not just any old death, but a death WHERE THEIR GUTS ARE SPLATTERED AND BODIES ARE BLOWN UP, they would be like "sure, that's fine as long as sibil(the Judge Jury and Prosecutor) keeps the peace"
Don't even know why people are still arguing for this unless they just want to argue for the sake of arguing.
Last edited by CJ_Walker; 2013-03-06 at 23:45.
|2013-03-07, 01:53
|Link #182
SIBYL salesman
Join Date: Feb 2011
Spoiler for reason on this:
Dominator set to paralyzer mode.
Akane intervenes causing the victim to panic.
Victim pours petrol over herself.
Dominator set to kill mode.
Akane intervenes and calms the victim down.
Gino paralyzes victim.
Victim recovers.
But watch as I cut out Akane out of episode 1:
Dominator set to paralyzer mode.
Masaoka paralyzes victim.
Victim recovers.
|2013-03-07, 02:05
|Link #183
I disagree with you all.
Join Date: Dec 2005
|2013-03-07, 02:26
|Link #184
SIBYL salesman
Join Date: Feb 2011
I don't know what A, B, C whatever is (is there a proper list somewhere?), but I thought what 4Tran wrote a sequence of events and the outcome is "information/power to fight against system", as in destroy the brains.
I suggested the possibility that the system stays intact (for most part) but Akane takes over (and the brains still exist).
|2013-03-07, 03:28
|Link #185
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2005
I made up the name, so of course there's no actual list.
The most common cyberpunk stories are where the system acts as the antagonist. Story A then would be the ones where the protagonist starts out either an outcast or downtrodden by the system, and story B is where the protagonist starts out integrated and invested in the system. The other story types are where the system doesn't act as the antagonist.
I only described the structure of how the story Bs function; not their outcomes. The outcomes are shaped by the particularities and details of the work in question, and are therefore highly variable. Maybe the protagonists win and overthrow the system, and maybe they all die horribly. To my mind, the outcome isn't all that important for cyberpunk stories anyways.
|2013-03-07, 04:40
|Link #186
Kamen Rider Muppeteer
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Unknown
Age: 34
You people have no sense of scale.
|2013-03-07, 04:49
|Link #187
The Chaotic Dreamer
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: In a cruel yet beautiful world
Age: 27
|2013-03-07, 09:03
|Link #188
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2005
|2013-03-07, 09:32
|Link #189
Kamen Rider Muppeteer
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Unknown
Age: 34
Not even going into the matter of how debatable your examples actually are.
|2013-03-07, 10:44
|Link #190
Senior Member
I definitely think that Psycho-Pass is, in part, arguing against the general lack of diversity in real world Japan. Part of that is in lack of diversity in thinking, but I also think some of it might be a lack of diversity in people (i.e. very little racial or cultural difference).
Sybil tries to regulate the whole of society towards a common denominator. It does so to gain greater peace and security. But in the process, is it stamping out too much diversity? Is it stagnating society, and leaving it overly vulnerable in certain ways? Hyper-oats points to how going with one idealized solution without diversifying your overall approach could actually backfire nastily.
Back in Winter 2011, Kaijo and I defended Kyubey a bit because we felt that discussion was becoming overly narrow with everybody assuming the absolute worst about Kyubey without really taking the time to carefully analyze the narrative as a whole. It was a bit too easy for people to demonize Kyubey, and to just blame him for literally everything, which I think leads to a skewed and narrow understanding of the narrative.
Similarly, I don't think Sibyl should be blamed for everything here. The people of Sibyl Japan bear at least some responsibility themselves for choosing to put up with this form of government; for being too
short-sighted to see the very serious problems that the Sibyl system could bring and does appear to be bringing.
In Star Trek, there's an alien race called Cardassians. In their legal system, the defendant is guilty. Period. The court proceedings are simply a grand show of justice for the Cardassian people. It's to give the defendant a chance to dramatically show remorse over his illegal activities and beg for forgiveness. For us, this would likely seem abhorrent. For the Cardassians, it's the Rule of Law.
In fact, to the Cardassians, human or Federation justice seems ridiculously soft. In Star Trek: DS9, this is something that Gul Dukat mocked at least once or twice. And no doubt from his perspective, it really is ridiculously soft. So much so it might even seem "lawless" to the Cardassians.
And isn't this kind of like what we see here in Psycho-Pass? If your Psycho-Pass reading deems you guilty, then you are guilty. Period. End of story. Just like Cardassians put 100% faith in their law enforcement officers and intelligence agencies always getting it right, the people of Sibyl Japan put 100% faith in Sibyl always getting it right.
|2013-03-09, 17:53
|Link #191
Sensei, aishite imasu
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Hong Kong Shatterdome
There have ALWAYS been people like Makishima in the world. People who have an urge to judge others, and don't understand their place in the world, and because of that they do violent things. You don't need a high tech dystopia to cause people like this to come crawling out of the wood work. They existed prior to the Sybil system being created. And nobody thought they were special, or fundamentally different than the average garden variety mass murderer.
|Thread Tools


text: One of the tricks I use to make sure I get enough grains in my diet is to make a big batch of something on a Sunday, then build dinners around it throughout the week. Lately, I've been in a rut with brown basmati rice. The long, nutty grains are the perfect foundation for everything from simple steamed vegetables and cooked beans to elaborately spiced curries and Mexican sautes.Recipe included with this story: Amaranth Risotto With Portobello and Peas. But there are all sorts of other grains out there, and this summer I'm determined to make quinoa, wheat berries, bulgur and couscous more often, pushing brown rice to the sidelines. And I want to experiment with grains I've never tried cooking with at all, such as amaranth. Amaranth is one of the tiniest grains (actually, it's a seed), and looks like a cream-colored version of poppy seed. But don't let the small size fool you: It's one of the most nutritionally dense grains, loaded with minerals such as calcium and iron. Like quinoa, it contains all of the essential amino acids, so it's a complete source of protein. And it's gluten-free, too. Amaranth also has a rich history. Its cultivation in Central and South America dates back 8,000 years, and it was a dietary staple of the ancient Incan, Mayan and Aztec civilizations. Like many foods, its use spread in the post-Colombian era, and now it can be found around the world. I once thought amaranth was for the birds -- literally. It's sometimes used in birdseed blends, and when I'd had it in baked goods, it retained such a seedy texture that it seemed more appropriate for backyard finches than humans. But amaranth can also be prepared like rice for both sweet and savory dishes. In the morning, add a tablespoon of brown sugar and a few dashes of cinnamon as it cooks, and you've got a creamy, porridgelike breakfast cereal that can be enjoyed with a splash of rice or almond milk. For an earthy grain that goes well with lentils or curried garbanzo beans, prepare it like rice, using 1 1/2 cups water for each cup of amaranth. But it really shines when it's cooked with rich vegetable broth and other vegetables, with the grains absorbing their flavors as well as the liquid. Roland Foods, one of the leading manufacturers of amaranth, has a basic mushroom risotto recipe on the side of the package. The recipe looks solid, but it calls for dried wild mushrooms, which seems criminal when you consider that at this time of year there are wonderful wild mushrooms at the farmers markets. And there are always fresh portobellos at the grocery store. Whenever possible, I'll take fresh over dried. To add some visual appeal and a touch of natural sweetness in each bite, I added a cup of peas. This improved the dish's vitamin C profile, and stretched the number of servings from four to six. Italians might not recognize this atypical risotto, nor would long-ago residents of Machu Picchu probably recognize it as one of their amaranth dishes. But it's a modern twist on an ancient grain that will keep me out of my basmati rut. -- Grant Butler Follow @grantbutler (c)2012 The Oregonian (Portland, Ore.) Visit The Oregonian (Portland, Ore.) at www.oregonian.com


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There's a million bike tools out there, some obscure and are only used in the rarest of circumstances, but some are daily or weekly necessities for anyone who wants to do their own bike maintenance.
Here's our list of the 11 Must-Have Tools for every home mechanic. With the tools on this list and a little know how, 90% of repairs on any bike can be accomplished.
1. Work Stand: A work stand is simply a stand that gets the bike off the floor and holds it in position, making it much easier to work on the bike—especially when servicing the drivetrain or giving your bike a thorough cleaning. Most stands will fold up for easy storage.
2. Hex Wrench Set: Almost every bolt on a bike uses a hex wrench. Having a full set of hex wrenches—including a long handled 10mm wrench—will mean that there's almost nothing you can't adjust on your bike (*note to Campagnolo and SRAM riders: for home maintenance you'll also need a Torx T25 wrench). And make repairs easier on yourself by using a set of full-sized wrenches. Leave the mutlitool in the saddlebag.
3. Torque Wrench: If you have a carbon fiber frame, fork, or seatpost, you'll need a torque wrench. All carbon parts have a maximum torque allowance (how tight the bolts can be tightened). Exceeding the torque recommendation on a seatbolt clamp, stem or derailleur clamp risks damaging the parts or crushing the carbon, while under-tightening can cause the stem, handlebars or seatpost to slip or move while riding. Using a torque wrench will help you safely install the parts. Click here to learn more about installing a seatpost, or here to learn how to install a stem.
4. 10/11-Speed Chain Tool: A chain tool is essential for installing or removing a chain. With the industry move to 11-speed drivetrains, we recommend buying an 11-speed chain tool. 11-speed tools can be used on 8/9/10-speed chains, but not the other way around. This will save you from having to buy a new tool if you upgrade or get a new bike in the future. Click here to learn more about replacing a bike chain.
5. Cable Cutters: Because of how they are made, bike cables and housing shouldn't be cut with just any old wire cutters. Bike-specific cable cutters can cut cable without fraying the ends, and cut housing without crushing it. Frayed cables and crushed housing are a recipe for poor performance and will mean you need to replace your cables more often. Click here to learn more about replacing and installing cables.
6. Pedal Wrench: Some pedal types require a 15mm pedal wrench to install, while others only need an 8mm hex wrench. If your pedals do not have a hex-socket on the end of the spindle, you'll need a pedal wrench to install and remove pedals.
7. Cassette Tool: Cassette tools let you loosen and tighten the lock ring on your cassette. You'll need one of these to install, remove, or clean your cassette. Shimano and SRAM share the same lock ring spline pattern, while Campagnolo uses a different pattern—so make sure you buy the right one for your drivetrain. Click here to learn more about installing a cassette.
8. Chain Whip: To remove a cassette you'll need a chain whip. It simply wraps around the cassette, and stops the freehub from spinning while you loosen the lockring.
9. Tire Levers: Tire levers are an essential tool for installing or removing a clincher tire. We recommend having two sets: one that goes with you on a ride and stays with your gear, and one that you keep at home. That way you'll never forget to bring them along. Click here to learn how to change a bike tube.
10. Pump: A floor pump is a must have for every cyclist. Tires should be re-inflated roughly once every 3-4 days to avoid damaging the tires and wheels. Investing in a quality pump will help you get more enjoyment out of your ride and prolong the life of your equipment. Click on one of the links learn more about finding the right tire pressure for your road bike or mountain bike.
11. Grease and Chain Lube: Grease is your bicycle's best friend. No matter what kind of bolt, no matter where it's going, it will be greased before being installed. That goes for stem bolts, derailleur fixing bolts, pedal spindles, cleat screws, etc… Failing to grease a bolt before installation will result in stuck bolts with rounded out bolt heads– and then you're really in a bind. After every week of regular riding or after pulling your bike out of storage, lubricate your chain to keep your bike running smoothly and happily. And don't cross the streams. Grease is for bolts and alloy seatposts, lube is for chains. Don't try to mix and match, the results will be messy and poor. Click here to learn more about cleaning your bike chain.
What else do you think our list is missing? What are the tools you find yourself using on a regular basis?


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Tribe drops opener against Twins as chances slip
CLEVELAND -- Michael Bourn dropped his bat and did a little hop in the direction of first base after drawing a leadoff walk in the sixth inning Friday night. Two pitches later, the Indians center fielder sprinted for second, collecting a steal to set up a Cleveland rally.
In a game that aligned perfectly for a comeback, the Tribe just could not pull it off.View Full Game Coverage
CLEVELAND -- Michael Bourn dropped his bat and did a little hop in the direction of first base after drawing a leadoff walk in the sixth inning Friday night. Two pitches later, the Indians center fielder sprinted for second, collecting a steal to set up a Cleveland rally.
In a game that aligned perfectly for a comeback, the Tribe just could not pull it off.View Full Game Coverage
The Indians had a strategic breakdown in a critical sixth inning, paving the way for a 5-1 loss to the Twins in the opener of a three-game series at Progressive Field. The missteps by the Cleveland offense made the few mistakes within Ubaldo Jimenez's enigmatic outing all the more glaring, and ultimately cost the Tribe ground in the standings.
"We haven't lost any momentum," Bourn said. "We're still all right. We just lost a game. That's all it was."
After winning six of the past nine games on the road, Cleveland (69-59) returned home and swiftly slipped to six games behind the first-place Tigers in the American League Central. With Oakland also losing to Baltimore on Friday, the Indians remains 2 1/2 games back of the second Wild Card spot, but the Orioles moved ahead of the Tribe by a half-game.
At the time of Bourn's swipe of second base, the Indians trailed the Twins, 2-1. Nick Swisher followed by drawing a walk against Minnesota right-hander Samuel Deduno, who offered the Tribe plenty of chances to swing the momentum in its favor in his six innings of work. The two-on, none-out situation in the sixth was the ideal time for the Indians to make their move.
"We should've been able to score," Bourn said.
With the potential tying run on second base, second baseman Jason Kipnis -- Cleveland's No. 3 hitter -- opted to attempt a bunt. Kipnis misfired on a couple of tries before working back to a 2-2 count against Deduno. The Twins starter then froze Kipnis with a pitch that tailed over the outside corner, notching a crucial strikeout.
"We get first and second and we didn't get the bunt down," Indians manager Terry Francona said. "I had him bunting just because he's had a tough time with Deduno. ... So that would be on me."
Standing at his locker in the wake of the loss, Bourn shouldered the blame for what followed.
With Carlos Santana at the plate, Bourn bolted for third base and Swisher followed his lead, attempting a double steal. Twins catcher Chris Herrmann came up firing, making a perfect throw to nab Bourn as he slid into the base head-first. After Santana drew a walk, Deduno forced Michael Brantley into an inning-ending groundout.
Just like that, a promising inning turned into a disastrous one.
"It kind of killed the inning a little bit," said Bourn, who has 19 stolen bases in 29 attempts this season. "I mean, we still had chances. They ended up walking [Santana] and we had first and second. But, I think right there, if I would've stayed, we would've had bases loaded. That happens. I take blame for it."
Francona did not fault Bourn for rolling the dice.
"We encourage him to run," Francona said. "Every once in a while that's going to happen. ... He had a green light there. He didn't get a real good jump, but I like when he runs."
Minnesota took full advantage, adding three insurance runs against the Indians bullpen over the next two innings to spread the game out. Josh Willingham delivered a two-run double off right-hander Cody Allen in the seventh inning and Wilkin Ramirez used a groundout to bring a run home against Matt Albers in the eighth.
Add it all up, and Jimenez was hung with a loss.
The Twins (57-70) loaded the bases with no outs in the first inning, but Jimenez struck out Willingham, Ryan Doumit and Trevor Plouffe to escape the jam.
Minnesota then broke through in the second, when Clete Thomas sliced a pitch from Jimenez down the left-field line for a leadoff double. Two batters later, Pedro Florimon drove an offering from the right-hander to deep center for another two-base hit, bringing Thomas home to pull the game into a 1-1 tie. Herrmann gave the Twins a 2-1 lead with an RBI single later in the inning.
"The first three hitters get on," Francona said, "and I don't know if [Jimenez] got mad, but he reared back and competed and let it go. I thought tonight was the best stuff he's had all year. Early, he didn't command real well, and he didn't come in, especially to left-handers. They were kind of leaning out over the plate and they hit those doubles.
"But then he started coming in and mixing up his pitches and he was really good."
Jimenez settled down and got locked in, breezing through a string of 11 consecutive Twins batters retired between the second and sixth inning. Jimenez (9-8) departed after logging 114 pitches in six frames and despite the traffic -- he allowed five hits and walked three -- the pitcher dodged harm at a variety of turns, and ended the evening with a season-high 10 strikeouts.
"I felt pretty good," Jimenez said. "After the first couple hitters in the first inning, I was able to get it going."
Bourn did what he could to get the Tribe offense going, too.
He felt responsible for falling short.
"It happens like that sometimes," Bourn said. "That's part of being a basestealer. If I feel like I'm going to get it, I'm going to try to get it. It was me. It was all me. And that [loss] was on me."
Jordan Bastian is a reporter for MLB.com. Read his blog, Major League Bastian, and follow him on Twitter @MLBastian.


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Hepatitis Info Sheet
October 1997
New Dirt on Hepatitis
There is some exciting data about treating Hepatitis B (Hep B) and Hepatitis C (Hep C). These illnesses are similar, but are caused by structurally different viruses. The word hepatitis, like so much medical language, comes from Greek, and means simply "liver inflammation". All hepatitis can cause painful swelling and cirrhosis, liver damage, sometimes bad enough to cause the liver to stop working. We've carried both of the promising drugs, Ribavirin and Thymosin-Alpha-1, for years, so we're happy to see some results.
Hep B and Hep C can be latent(very low level), active (initial infection), or chronic(life-long high level). A doctor will tell how well your liver is working by measuring your liver enzymes. If they're high, your liver is working overtime to deal with your infection. But if you've had hepatitis a long time, and have sever liver damage, your enzymes might be low because the liver can't produce them. This can trick you and your doctors into thinking that everything is really all right. Something new are viral load measurements (PCR) of Hep B DNA and Hep C RNA, which gives you an actual count of viral activity. The count will be high or low depending on how active your Hepatitis virus is. Your doctor might also do a biopsy of your liver to see if the infection has caused cirrhosis, or physical damage to your liver.
Antigen tests for Hep B tell if you have the B virus, and antibody tests tell if you have immune system things to fight the virus. If you have antibodies, but no antigen, your immune system has beaten the infection. There is no Hep C antigen test, but they can find antibodies and do a PCR (a viral load test).
Both Hep B and C are treated with alpha-interferon. It can cause awful flu-like side effects, and has been shown to be only marginally effective. People with specific types of Hep C (genotypes 1a and 1b) seem to have less chance of getting a good response from alpha-interferon. These new studies suggest that Hep B and C are best treated with a combo of drugs, especially after alpha-interferon failure.
The chart above lays out Hep A, B, and C to show their similarities and differences. There's very little information about Hep D, E, F, or G, nor is there much information about how to prevent or treat them. They've been recently discovered and are not well understood.
More on Hepatitis C
A study of the combination of ribavirin and alpha-interferon, conducted in 60 patients in Taiwan who had chronic Hep C infection, but no cirrhosis, showed that the combo was more than twice as effective as interferon alone. At the end of 6 months of treatment, 76 percent of the people on the combo versus 32 percent of the people on interferon alone had complete responses (define as normal liver enzymes and no Hep C by PCR). After 2 years of follow-up (96 weeks of no treatment), 43 percent of the responders still had a complete response. There are US trials of this combination.
Two controlled Hep C studies in the US of ribavirin vs. alpha-interferon showed ribavirin works better. In one study, 25 percent of the participants had normal liver enzymes, and half had improved enzymes. In the other study, 33 percent got normal liver enzymes while on treatment, but their numbers quickly shot up after stopping treatment. These and other studies have showed no change in Hep C viral load levels as measured by PCR.
Two recent studies report favorably on the combination of thymosin-alpha plus alpha-interferon. In a controlled study of 103 people with chronic Hep C, the complete response rates will increase over time and treatment was not stopped at the six month point. A second study of 15 people with severe Hep C, 13 with the infamous 1b genotype, took thymosin-alpha (high loading dose) with alpha-interferon. After a year of treatment, and six months of follow-up, 40 percent had a complete response, defined as a negative Hep C PCR. 39 percent of those with the 1b genotype had a complete sustained response. Like ribavirin, thymosin-alpha-1 is notable for its lack of side effects, and unclear mechanism of action.
Finally, a recent study of 105 people with Hep C it was suggested that one cause of alpha-interferon treatment failure may be low glutathione levels. The author of this study cautiously suggests glutathione replacement and /or taking antioxidants like NAC that replace intracellular glutathione to help treatments work.
More on Hepatitis B
In a study in France, 333 people who had failed alpha-interferon therapy took 500mg Famvir (famcyclovir) 3 times a day. Famvir is approved in the US for herpes. Viral levels of Hep B were reduced and liver enzymes became normal in half of the people after 16 weeks. There were no significant side effects reported. We don't know yet if Hep B and enzymes levels will rebound after you're off the drug, which often happens in hepatitis, or what will happen over the long term, especially in terms of resistance.
Combination studies of thymosin-alpha and alpha-interferon for Hep B continue to tumble in. A randomized study of 33 people in Italy finally had good results, reporting a complete response in 41 percent of the combo arm six months after stopping treatment. Earlier studies have not been statistically significant, with oddly high response rates in the placebo arms.
This article was provided by PWA Health Group.