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Used Car - 2012 Nissan Versa 1.8 SL Hatchback in Richmond, Va
Actual costs may vary.
***CLEAN CAR FAX***, **FULLY SERVICED**, *POWER LOCKS*, *POWER WINDOWS*, *SAFETY*, *VALUE*, and *VERSATILITY*. Radio: AM/FM/CD/MP3 w/Digital Clock and Variably intermittent wipers. ****LOYALTY FOR LIFE**** #ENGINES FOR LIFE #STATE INSPECTIONS FOR LIFE #TOWING FOR LIFE. Nissan has outdone itself with this outstanding-looking 2012 Nissan Versa. It just doesn''''t get any better or more fuel-efficient. This car isn''''t intimidated by lots of gear. Just keep on packing stuff into its hatch area and its cavernous space will just ask for more. This car is being offered exclusively at VA CARS, Your Super Dealer!! FREE VEHICLE HISTORY REPORT AVAILABLE. .JUST CALL US. Check out what our customers are saying about us on our testimonials page on our website. www.vacarsforsale.com We offer the best pre-owned car buying experience in Virginia. Save yourself time and see us first. Yes! We Finance and offer many options for a variety of credit situations. Apply online for easy pre-approval! Our cars are priced right and our service is second to none. We have a state of the art service center on site! We LOVE Trades and will give you the most $$ possible! We are located at 7729 Midlothian Turnpike next to BB&T Bank. RIGHT PRICE RIGHT ON MIDLOTHIAN -- BETWEEN POWHITE & CHIPPENHAM PARKWAY! .Come see us and experience the best car buying experience in VA first hand!
- Abs Brakes
- Air Conditioning
- Am/fm Radio
- Cd Player
- Child Safety Door Locks
- Driver Airbag
- Electronic Brake Assistance
- Front Air Dam
- Front Side Airbag
- Interval Wipers
- Passenger Airbag
- Power Adjustable Exterior Mirror
- Power Door Locks
- Power Windows
- Rear Window Defogger
- Rear Wiper
- Second Row Folding Seat
- Side Head Curtain Airbag
- Steel Wheels
- Tachometer
- Tilt Steering
- Tilt Steering Column
- Tire Pressure Monitor
- Traction Control
- Vehicle Anti-theft
- Vehicle Stability Control System
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2012 Nissan Versa ReviewThis car review is specific to this model, not the actual vehicle for sale.
All-new sedan version easy on the wallet.
The 2012 Nissan Versa lineup features a completely re-engineered version of the Versa sedan. The 2012 Versa is available in sedan and hatchback variants, but while the Versa sedan is all-new, the 2012 Versa hatchback carries over on the previous-generation platform. A new hatchback will be introduced as a 2013 model.
Both Versa body styles offer spacious interiors with decent head- and legroom, making them a good choice for larger drivers. Back-seat passengers will find rear-seat leg room as good as that in larger cars and SUVs, making Versa a usable four-passenger car. The cabin is comfortable and offers a good number of conveniences. In short, the Nissan Versa is a roomy, practical small car.
The 2012 Versa sedan is all-new and therefore a better choice than the hatchback. The new sedan gets better fuel economy than 2012 Versa hatchback.
The 2012 Versa four-door sedan rides on a new platform, dubbed V for versatile, which makes the 2012 Versa sedan 150 pounds lighter than the first-generation sedan (2008-2011 models). This second-generation Versa sedan uses a slightly smaller engine than before, a 1.6-liter four-cylinder good for a modest but effective 109 horsepower and 107 pound-feet of torque. A 5-speed manual transmission is standard on the 2012 Versa sedan, while a continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT) is included on higher trim levels. The 2012 Versa sedan also gets revised steering and suspension, which makes for more responsive handling.
Fuel economy is the name of the game for the new 2012 Versa sedan. Thanks to weight savings and new engine technology including dual fuel injection, the all-new 2012 Versa sedan achieves an EPA-estimated 27/36 mpg City/Highway and 30 mpg Combined with the manual, or an admirable 30/38/33 miles per gallon with the CVT.
The 2012 Versa hatchback, unlike the sedan, carries over unchanged from 2011. The hatchback is essentially the same body style as the first-generation version that launched as a 2008 model. It rides on the previous-generation platform. The hatchback uses a 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine that makes 122 hp and 127 lb-ft of torque. On the base Versa S hatch, a 6-speed manual transmission comes standard, with an optional 4-speed automatic. The hatchback's extra power and weight dings fuel economy, with an EPA rating of 26/31/28 mpg City/Highway/Combined with the manual and 24/32/27 mpg with the automatic. The upper-level Versa SL hatchback comes standard with a CVT, which brings fuel economy up to 28/34/30.
The 2012 Versa sedan beats the fuel economy of the 2012 hatchback by a wide margin, making the new sedan more economical in the long run than the hatch. An all-new 2013 Versa hatchback will introduced in late 2012 or early 2013 as a 2013 model, so look for that.
The Versa subcompact competes with the Honda Fit, Toyota Yaris, Ford Fiesta, Chevrolet Sonic, and Hyundai Accent. Those looking primarily for space might like the Versa's larger dimensions, which are larger than those of the Fit or Yaris. Versa also offers a low price of entry. All in all, the Nissan Versa is good basic transportation with good fuel economy at an affordable price.
The 2012 Nissan Versa is available as a four-door sedan or five-door hatchback.
The 2012 Versa sedan comes in three trim levels: S, SV and SL. Versa S comes standard with a 5-speed manual transmission ($10,990) or an optional CVT ($13,120). Features include air conditioning, manually adjustable driver's seat, a trip computer and a two-speaker sound system with a CD player and auxiliary audio jack. Versa S models ride on 15-inch steel wheels. A Cruise Control package ($350) is available on models with the CVT and includes cruise control, two additional audio speakers and trunk lighting.
Versa SV sedan ($14,980) comes standard with the CVT and the Cruise Control package plus keyless entry, full power accessories, upgraded cloth upholstery and upgraded gauges. The SV Convenience package ($350) adds Bluetooth handsfree phone connectivity and an iPod/USB port.
Versa SL sedan ($15,990) gets everything that comes with the SV Convenience package plus a 60/40-split-folding rear seat, fog lights and 15-inch alloy wheels. The SL Tech package ($700) adds navigation with touchscreen interface and satellite radio capability.
The Versa hatchback is available in two trim levels. Versa S comes standard with a 6-speed manual ($14,670) or an optional 4-speed automatic ($15,870). Features include air conditioning, full power accessories, a 60/40-split-folding rear seat, a four-speaker audio system with a CD player and auxiliary audio jack, plus 15-inch steel wheels. The Plus package ($500) adds keyless entry and cruise control. A Special Edition package ($700) is also available on hatchbacks equipped with the automatic transmission and includes the features found on the Plus package plus a leather-wrapped steering wheel, an upgraded audio system, steering-wheel mounted controls, Bluetooth handsfree phone capability and unique 15-inch alloy wheels, the latter of which are also available a la carte ($470). Versa SL hatchback ($18,590) comes standard with a Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT) and includes all the S model's optional equipment plus keyless ignition/entry, better cloth upholstery, front and rear center armrests, an auto-dimming rearview mirror and a six-speaker audio system. Navigation with a touchscreen interface ($700) is also available.
Safety features on all Versa models include front airbags, supplemental front seat-mounted front side airbags, roof-mounted side curtain airbags, antilock brakes (ABS), traction control, stability control, Electronic Brake Force Distribution (EBD) and brake assist.
The Nissan Versa looks bigger than a subcompact car. The new sedan is slightly more than six inches longer than the old hatchback. The old hatch is nearly an inch taller than the new sedan. The Versa is slightly larger than many of the subcompacts, such as the Ford Fiesta and Chevrolet Sonic, but it's smaller than the compact-class cars such as the Ford Focus and Chevrolet Cruze.
The all-new 2012 Versa sedan is a friendly, approachable little car, without the aggressive, angry lines that many car companies are hooked on these days. The sedan's styling is clean, fluid and well proportioned. It's short on style and personality, however.
In front, the Versa sedan uses Nissan's new signature sedan grille design and jewel-like headlights. Other exterior features include an available chrome-accented grille, chrome door handles and fog lights.
The sedan employs clever design tactics that are not only aesthetic, but also practical. For example, the indented line in the middle of the roofline helps to reduce roof panel vibrations. In back, the shape of the trunk lid offers improved aerodynamics over the previous model, which decreases drag and helps to improve performance and fuel economy.
The 2012 Versa hatchback carries over from 2011. The hatch has a broad, somewhat V-shaped grille flanked by triangular headlights. The Versa SL hatchback, with its front spoiler below the bumper, has a more sporty look. It has an exceptionally short rear overhang, which means very little of the car extends past the rear wheels. In back, the side edges of the tailgate angle sharply inward to clear the cat's-eye taillights. On the SL model, the hatch gets a roof-mounted spoiler.
While the interiors of the Versa sedan and hatchback differ in design, their basic virtues are similar.
The Versa models have remarkably roomy cabins, with a generous amount of headroom along with enough legroom for 6-footers to sit in back.
Versa's fabric-covered front seats are manually adjustable but lack lumbar support, making them comfortable enough during for moderate commutes, but support fades over long drives.
The controls are easy to use and well placed, while features like navigation, Bluetooth and an USB port are welcome touches in this price range. On our test car equipped with navigation, we particularly liked that the 5-inch touchscreen displayed the station name, artist, and song title simultaneously while we jammed to XM satellite radio, a feature that's tough to find, even on much more expensive vehicles. On the downside, when our phone was paired with Versa's Bluetooth connection, we found the incoming call ringtone unpleasant and annoying.
The interior materials are of decent quality for the class, though the new sedan is nicer than the previous-generation hatchback. Three large, conventional knobs operate the climate control system. While nothing is fancy, everything is readily visible and within reach.
The Versa offers lots of legroom and headroom and it's a real standout in terms of hip room. The width and the substantial structure of the front seats makes the Versa a good choice among subcompacts for larger drivers.
Back seat space on sedan and hatchback models is particularly impressive. Even a six-footer shouldn't feel cramped as the rear seat legroom is at or near the top of the class. The Versa Sedan gives up about half an inch of rear-seat headroom to the Hatchback, but that's not all that much.
The Versa sedan boasts an enormous trunk for a subcompact, with 14.8 cubic feet of space. The hatchback nets a generous 17.8 cubic feet of cargo space with the rear seats in place and a maximum of 50.4 cubic feet with the rear seats folded down. While this is quite large, it falls short of the Honda Fit and its flat load floor.
Driving Impression
The Nissan Versa has modest power and is a solid choice for A-to-B transport. Fuel economy depends on the model and powertrain. The sedan with the Continuously Variable Transmission will give you the best bang for your buck with an EPA-estimated 30/38/33 City/Highway/Combined mpg. On the low end of the scale, the Versa hatchback with the 4-speed automatic gets 24/32/27 mpg.
Unless you like rowing through the gears on a manual, we recommend the CVT. It doesn't shift gears like an automatic transmission. Instead, a segmented belt rides up and down on cone-shaped pulleys to vary the speed ratio between the engine and the drivetrain. It's smooth and efficient, and most drivers probably won't notice it's anything other than a regular automatic. Nissan excels at CVT technology.
Because the hatchback uses the larger 1.8-liter engine, it has more oomph than the sedan, though at the expense of gas mileage. We had no problem merging into traffic on a fast free-flowing freeway. On winding roads, we found the hatchback's handling to be perfectly adequate. It's not sporty like a Mini Cooper, nor is it sloppy like budget cars of a few years ago.
With the new sedan, acceleration is perfectly adequate around town and on flat highway roads. But we quickly found the Versa sedan's limits once we hit hilly terrain at freeway speeds. In these situations, we often found ourselves driving with the pedal all the way to the floor.
Models equipped with the CVT behave slightly differently than those with manual or traditional automatic transmissions. For one, there is a sound of the engine revving before the car accelerates, which can be a bit disconcerting at first. And in regular stop-and-go traffic under slow acceleration, there is no sensation other than the car moving forward, with no sound or feel of shifting gears. The continuously variable transmission is a far cry from the clumsy gear shifting once common on small four-cylinder cars with 3- and 4-speed automatics.
Versa is one of the first cars in this price category to feature electric power steering. In the past we have been disappointed in the poor feel of electric steering, but Nissan seems to have designed this system so it feels just as good as any hydraulically powered steering. Sporty drivers might wish for more feedback from the steering and more power, but there's no reason for others to complain.
Braking on the Nissan Versa is decent. Because it uses rear drums, the brakes don't have the crisp bite found on cars that use discs all the way around. In past years ABS and brake assist were optional on the base model, but now all Versas come standard with these safety features.
The Nissan Versa delivers excellent roominess and decent performance in an affordable, fuel-efficient package. The sedan is all new for 2012 and gets significantly better fuel economy than the hatch. A new hatchback is on the way as a 2013 model; the 2012 Versa hatchback is a previous-generation version. By compact standards, Versa excels in terms of headroom and its cabin is roomy enough to seat four in relative comfort.
New Car Test Drive contributor Laura Burstein reported from Los Angeles on the new Versa sedan. John Rettie reported on the hatchback.
Model Lineup
Nissan Versa S Sedan 5-speed manual ($10,990), 4-speed automatic ($13,120); SV Sedan ($14,980); SL Sedan ($15,560); S Hatchback manual ($14,670), automatic ($15,870); SL Hatchback ($18,590).
Assembled In
Aguascalientes, Mexico.
Options As Tested
Tech Package ($700) includes navigation with touchscreen interface and USB port; carpeted floor mats ($170).
Model Tested
Nissan Versa SL sedan ($15,560).The Versa is Nissan's entry-level car with the intention of attracting economy-minded buyers with its mileage, price and larger size than most other vehicles in its class. The Versa is available as a hatchback or sedan, the sedan is powered by a 107-hp 1.6-liter four cylinder engine, while the hatchback gets a 122-hp 1.8-liter. The sedan can be equipped with either a five-speed manual or optional Xtronic CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission), the hatchback buyer has a choice between a six-speed manual, a four-speed automatic or the Xtronic CVT. Safety comes from six standard airbags, tire pressure monitoring, anti-lock brakes with panic assist, front seat belt pretensioners, side impact beams in all doors and electronic stability/traction control. For 2012, the sedan as been redesigned inside and out for increased cargo space, efficiency and feature availability. The hatch remains the same as 2011, but with new packages for the S trim, and new standard equipment on the SL such as 16-inch alloy wheels, Bluetooth, Intelligent Key, auto-dimming mirror and a leather steering wheel with audio controls.
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Killer skills of a neutrophil
Catherine Carver meets the unsung super soldiers in each and every one of us.
I'd like to tell you a secret. I am a superhero. I can devour my enemies whole, release my own chemical weapons and trap and kill my prey in nets spun from my own DNA. And I don't even need to wear my pants on the outside. I am a neutrophil, and several billion of me are made in your bone marrow every day.
Neutrophils are the most abundant white blood cell in the human body. They play a vital role in an ancient, rapid response called the innate immune system – the first line of defence against disease-causing microbes. This system can mount a protective offence within minutes of the body being invaded, before the nature of the attack is known, buying time for it to produce a more tailored response.
The neutrophil is at the heart of the action, a killing machine that destroys unwanted intruders. It has many enemies. Whether a snot-filled toddler, a slobbery dog or a propensity for paper cuts, there will be something that exposes you to infection. Within minutes of infection invading your body the damaged tissue releases a chemical distress signal, attracting neutrophils out of the bloodstream, battle ready.
In their activated state neutrophils have three key strategies. First, they can engulf and devour microbes. This process, phagocytosis, was first described over one hundred years ago by Ilya Mechnikov who won the Nobel Prize for Medicine for the discovery in 1908. The process is directed by molecular tags called opsonins, which stick to microbes. If the microbe were a cookie, opsonins would be a bit like chocolate chips, making it all the more appealing to the hungry neutrophil.
The second strategy is to kill microbes in the local area. Neutrophils do this by releasing packets of enzymes, which attack the outside of the microbe. This is a bit like pouring boiling oil on the invaders: crude but effective, though it can cause collateral damage to the very tissue the neutrophils are meant to protect….
Any damage is limited though because neutrophils are also fearless kamikaze warriors of a sort. They die 24-48 hours after moving into the tissue. You can see this as the bodies accumulate on the battlefield as pus. Yet even in death they have one final weapon: NETs.
NETs (Neutrophil Extracellular Traps) are created once a neutrophil's self-destruct programme has been activated. DNA, proteins and hostile enzymes mingle until a neutrophil bursts open in a final sacrificial act, unleashing a web that traps and kills bacteria. This works against an array of different bacteria, from Shigella, which causes dysentery, to Salmonella, which is responsible for typhoid fever.
Understanding this triad of killer skills is an important area of biomedical research. Neutrophils are designed to be part of a hard-and-fast response. If the battle is drawn out longer than expected or the neutrophils attack too enthusiastically it can cause more harm than good. Campaigns have gone awry leading to autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and emphysema. By understanding how neutrophils cause damage scientists hope to design new anti-inflammatory drugs to help tone down the response and tackle these crippling conditions.
But don't forget: you need neutrophils. Without their skills you couldn't go for a stroll in a park or kiss someone without risking death by infection. This is a reality for people on certain chemotherapy regimes, which decimate neutrophil numbers. You hear a lot about the enemy – superbugs, anthrax, flesh-eating bacteria. You've celebrated pharmacological victories like penicillin. It's time to recognise the remarkable feats happening inside each and every one of you every day.
Catherine Carver
Catherine Carver is a Grants Advisor at the Wellcome Trust and blogs at A Little Grey Cell. This is an edited version of Catherine's original essay. Views expressed are the author's own.
This essay was originally shortlisted for the 2012 Wellcome Trust Science Writing Prize, but withdrawn due to a sudden conflict of interest (Catherine got a job with us!). We still love the essay though, which has also been published on Scientific American's guest blog.
Find out more about the Wellcome Trust Science Writing Prize in association with the Guardian and the Observer and read our 'How I write about science' series of tips for aspiring science writers.
Read the other shortlisted essays from the 2012 and 2011 competitions in our archive.

subset: commoncrawl


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Manny Farber, In Memoriam
First, a big thanks to David Hudson for attentively and patiently gathering links to a variety of Manny Farber tributes this week.
If I might wax personal for a second, Farber happened to provide a turning point for this blog. A little over two years ago, I did a post on termite art and white elephant art. In the process of writing it and in discussing Farber in the comments with others, primarily Zach, I discovered that my film-blogging interests lay not simply in films but in discourse about films: reading, writing, talking about them. For occasioning this turn in the road for the blog, among many other reasons, I'm grateful to Farber and his essay.
Let me offer, as a small homage, ten reasons why I like Manny Farber.
(1) His great gift for describing the surfaces of films. Donald Phelps, in an essential essay on him called "Critic Going Everywhere," wrote that Farber is often trying to convince readers and spectators that the 'depths' of art lie in its surfaces. And Farber's writing is itself composed of surfaces that are one-of-a-kind, thick, and "all-over" as in an abstract expressionist painting.
(2) The Phelps essay is collected in a terrific book by him, now out of print, called Covering Ground (1969). The title might well stand for Farber's own writing practice. Phelps opens his essay like this:
Manny Farber's criticism is an extension of his painting, of his talk. Extension is the theme of his work. The fretful energy which births his virtues and sometimes faults, is an energy through which work covers ground: the terrain existing only to be covered, not occupied, not (for too long a time) staked out. Thus, the work, painting or movie criticism or art criticism, advances horizontally, in all possible directions, never seeming to exist for a simple progress from A to B; and getting away as far as possible from any pivot, any centripetal force.
(3) One of my favorite Jonathan Rosenbaum essays is "They Drive By Night: The Criticism of Manny Farber" (1993). It can be found in his collection Placing Movies, and last week he put it up on his website. I find this piece moving because it tracks, with an acute sense of personal vulnerability, the vicissitudes of Rosenbaum's personal relationship with the volatile Farber. The entire piece is a must-read, but let me excerpt this bit on Farber's prescient mode of viewing:
Discontinuous viewing was his preferred way of watching a movie, a method he shared with Godard; if a movie he really liked such as ORDET was being shown several times in the campus screening room over a given week, he'd turn up each time for a different reel or two—maybe even for the same reels, whatever happened to be on.
(4) I like the deep ambivalence that Farber feels for a certain relentlessly evaluative critical impulse that he describes below. It's ironic that Farber himself was sometimes guilty of exercising this impulse.
It's terrible that a certain language and capacity to make judgments come so easily. It should be hard to write on these films. Whatever the film, we are told endlessly, shot by shot, scene by scene, what's good or bad. It's crazy, totally crazy. I'd like to see that mode of criticism applied to Cezanne or Mozart, saying what does and doesn't work at every step [...] In short, the resistance posed to artistic criticism has vanished; it's turned into a pie that critics quickly slice into pieces.
(5) Farber is rare among critics in attempting to de-emphasize the place of meaning in the criticism of an artwork:
I don't see how or why anyone should be expected to get the meaning of an event in a movie or a painting. That's a place where criticism goes wrong: it keeps trying for a complete solution. I think the point of criticism is to build up the mystery. And the point is to find movies which have a lot of puzzle in them.
(6) Starting in the late '60s, many of Farber's pieces were written in collaboration with Patricia Patterson. It's interesting to contrast the earlier and later Farber essays and speculate about the nature of Patterson's influence. He puts it thus:
Patricia's got a photographic ear; she remembers conversations from a movie. She is a fierce anti-solutions person, against identifying a movie as a single thing, period. She is also an antagonist of value judgments. What does she replace it with? Relating a movie to other sources, getting the plot, the idea behind a movie--getting the abstract idea out of it. She brings that into the writing and takes the assertiveness out.
(7) Bill Krohn, in an another essential piece called "My Budd by Manny Farber," wonderfully characterizes Farber's criticism as being all-inclusive without being systematic:
[I]t's often impossible to tell from the beginning of an essay on a film or a filmmaker where it is going to end up: There is no thesis, no antithesis, no possibility of synthesis, in part because the need to "get it all in" works against the more traditional critical ambition to "say everything" about a work by constructing a microcosmic model that includes by definition, everything that can be said. Farber works against that idea of system by creating a microcosm whose powers of control over the object of its discourse are seriously handicapped by playful gestures which deny its internal coherence.
(8) The expanded (1998) edition of Negative Space concludes with a list by Farber and Patterson of their seven critical precepts. One of them is: "Willingness to put in a great deal of time and discomfort: long drives to see films again and again; nonstop writing sessions." Farber says:
I'm unable to write at all without extraordinary amounts of rewriting. The "Underground Movies" piece took several years to write. An article on bit players was stolen from the car--a funny thing to steal on Second Avenue and Second Street, but it was stored in the lid of an Underwood at about the fifth year of its evolution. I'm not a work-ethic nut, but the surface-tone-composition in everything I do--painting, carpentering, writing, teaching--comes from working and reworking the material.
(9) The carefulness of his observation--not just of a movie's details but more importantly of the world at large--can be a great inspiration to us to open our eyes a little wider and pay a little more attention to the world around us.
It's a silly thing to say, but it's very important to me that people know exactly the way our house looked, and where it was situated; that there was the Lyric Theatre across the street from us, and at what angle, and how dark it was inside, and what kind of candy they sold, that it was next to a pool hall--that's an icon of my memory, that street.
(10) There are a handful of Farber essays, like "White Elephant Art vs. Termite Art" or "Underground Films," that get cited over and over again (and of course, they're great). But one of the relatively lesser-known pieces I like a lot is "Cartooned Hip Acting" (1967). Here's an excerpt from it in an older post; it's on John Boorman's Point Blank.
Notes: In the '60s, Donald Phelps put together a Farber collection for his magazine For Now. It's available here. The Bill Krohn essay first appeared as an afterword in Charles Tatum Jr.'s Ride Lonesome (Belgium: Editions Yellow Now, 1988). All of Manny Farber's own words above are from his interview with Richard Thompson and Patricia Patterson that appears in Negative Space, save his remarks on the evaluative impulse which are from Jean-Pierre Gorin et al.'s essay in Framework's special Manny Farber issue (1999). However, I took this latter quotation not from the Framework issue but from Adrian Martin's Movie Mutations letter exchange with James Naremore. I've searched far and wide but have not been able to lay my hands on this Framework special issue--any tips or help will be hugely appreciated!
And now it's over to you all: Your thoughts and sentiments on anything and everything to do with Manny Farber? Please feel welcome to share.
pic: Delphine Seyrig in Chantal Akerman's Jeanne Dielman, the subject of Farber and Patterson's famous "Kitchen Without Kitsch" essay. Recently I read Jonathan Rosenbaum's piece on his favorite non-region-1 box sets at DVD Beaver, and ordered his #2 pick, the Akerman 5-disc set from the Belgian Cinéart label. It's a beaut.


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U.S. Supreme Court agrees to halt Pennsylvania execution
The U.S. Supreme Court agreed with a federal appeals court on Thursday night to halt Pennsylvania's first execution of a death row inmate since 1999.
State officials had planned to execute a former Cumberland County man, Hubert Lester Michael Jr., 56, by lethal injection at 7 p.m. at SCI Rockview in Centre County. He pleaded guilty to the July 1993 kidnapping and shooting death of Trista Elizabeth Eng, 16, in York County.
Prosecutors filed a motion with the high court to allow the execution to proceed after a federal appeals court decided earlier in the day to send the case back to a U.S. district judge to consider several procedural issues concerning Michael's appeals.
Michael met with spiritual advisers, read the Bible and listened to the radio while awaiting word from the Supreme Court in a cell about 20 feet from the execution chamber, Corrections Department officials said.
"Mr. Michael has suffered from debilitating mental conditions throughout his life," his lawyers said in a written statement after the appeals court ruling. "Mr. Michael has compelling legal claims in his case which have never been reviewed by any court."
At a pardons board hearing on Wednesday, the victim's mother, Suzanne Eng, set the tone for relatives and friends who made emotional pleas to keep the execution on track.
"He kidnapped her, he raped her, and then he executed her," Eng said. "As she begged him not to kill her, he shot her three times."
A spokeswoman for the Corrections Department said Michael's execution will be scheduled as soon as the stay is lifted.
One of Michael's attorneys, Helen Marino, said he "continues to be incredibly remorseful for his crime."
Michael would have been the fourth person executed in the state in the past quarter century and the only one in the past 50 years who had not voluntarily given up on his appeals.
The circuit court panel directed the district court to address, among other things, whether Michael's appeal should be considered a successive petition that is subject to stricter rules, whether "extraordinary circumstances" existed and whether a district court proceeding is needed to consider the merits of Michael's claims.
Michael had abandoned his appeals but later resumed a legal fight, saying he had been confined under circumstances at Graterford State Prison that worsened his mental health problems. Those problems got better after he was transferred to a prison in Greene County, his lawyers have argued.
Prosecutors argued that the appeals court decision was in error.
Adam Brandolph is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 412-391-9027 or firstname.lastname@example.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report.


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The future is looking bright for the Bisons' men's tennis team as they recently earned their highest ever recruiting ranking, according to a national website.
Tennisrecruiting.net, a top resource in the world of college tennis recruiting, ranked Lipscomb's incoming class 15th nationally amongst mid-majors. UC Santa Barbara finished first and no Atlantic Sun teams finished ahead of the Bisons or in the top 25.
The recent ranking may be viewed at: http://www.tennisrecruiting.net/article.asp?id=1204
"The importance of recruiting is vital and I think having a top 15 class like this shows the confidence that other players around the country are having in what we're building here," said Coach Andrew Harris. "To be ranked even in the top 25 at all is a big deal for us. It's never happened before.
"Recruiting in tennis is such a big deal because it's head-to-head. If you don't take elite players, they'll be playing against you. You're not looking for a specific skill set like in other sports, you're just looking for the best players."
Harris said he believes he has found two of those "best players" in signees Daniel Hernandez and Stuart Tierney. Both garnered four-star ratings from tennisrecruiting.net and are considered by the website to be among the top 100 incoming freshman nationally.
Tierney, a native of Hillsboro, Oregon, and Hernandez, of Friendswood, Texas, will join a returning Bisons team that earned a No. 6 seed at the A-Sun Championships in 2010-11.
"Stuart is one of the best one or two players in Oregon," Harris said. "He plays with an all-court style but has the ability to change things up and the flexibility to adapt to the other player, no matter the style.
"Daniel Hernandez will be similar to (returning sophomore) David Salazar. He'll probably be ranked in the top seven or eight players in Texas by the time he gets here and he's a great competitor. His spirit is contagious and he's not afraid to dig in when needed."
Prior to last season, Lipscomb's men's tennis program had been struggling. They are 19-59 in the past four years, but Harris said perception along the recruiting trail has increasingly been that the Bisons are a program on their way up, especially after the team improved to finish in the middle of the conference pack last season.
That, combined with the new Huston-Marsh-Griffith Tennis Center, which opened last year, have really boosted recruiting, Harris said.
"The new facility certainly helps on the recruiting front and it's one of the best in the conference," he said. "The facility and the campus, like in every other sport, is what draw people in. Plus, our top six players from a decent team last year are all returning. Nobody is gone from that team. When we add this new class to what we had, expectations are that we should be improved and there should be healthy competition amongst all the players.
"This is a great incoming class, and now they have to prove themselves. Nothing will be handed to them, but they are good players."
Harris said he and his staff will likely add one more player to this year's class, likely pulling from the international ranks for a January enrollment, he said. However, Harris said he is pleased to have drawn two elite American players with this year's class because domestic recruiting allows coaches to create a recruiting buzz within the national tennis community.
"We want to build the program with American players," he said. "If we can get good players like this we won't have to go international as much. It's easier to sell Lipscomb tennis to top Americans, especially if we can get some momentum."
There is plenty of excitement now, Harris said, as he works to finish off a landmark recruiting class for Lipscomb tennis and tries this year on the court to build on last season's improvement.
"We'll see if we can get one more player," said Harris. "We're working on that right now."
The future is looking bright for the Bisons' men's tennis team as they recently earned their highest ever recruiting ranking, according to a national website.


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I can use star trek to control and enter lucid dreams.
This is not something that happen over night, its something I have worked on within my mind for years and that has progressed to a stage where I can literately enter a hypnotic like state which I can control for sometimes what feels like hours when I am on the verge of going to sleep.
I say lucid dreams but I am not really asleep, at least not when I enter the state, if I fall asleep I often loose all control over what dreams, the secret is to remain between sleep and awake. Sleep to the point where you loose all awareness of your reality (hence of where you really are, laid in bed alone with your eyes closed) but remain conses enough to guide yourself through your dream. This method often works better with the lights on
My imagination starts out been beamed onto the starship voyager in a totally different part of the galaxy, here I am greeted as a friend by anyone I feel like inviting into my dream world, I often used to choose members of the voyager crew, 7of9, Captain Janeway, then my choices in time became more obscure like a random Bajorian crew mate with no character to who I could develop my own characteristics, till eventually anyone from ether my own reality or past, or fictional character could be there to greet me on the transporter, even blank characters that I could create from a picture, there is but one constant rule, to successful enter my lucid universe they would have take on the role of the greeting party at the transporter hence, replacing part of the voyager crew.
This is where my lucid dream state would always start, but not every time I tried would I successfully fall into my character as the guest been greeted on voyager, often I would have to reset my imagination back to this point try and try again till I lost awareness of everything else and begin to live the lucid dream, its hard to describe how you know when you in the right mind set because you become unaware, but need to without falling fully asleep drift away into the dream loosing all awareness of your reality and gain full concussions over your self in the dream, its like walking a path that starts at this set position at some point down the path no telling where or when you loose yourself into the character you have created and continue to live it in a lucid state, if at any point you regain awareness you have to start again the further you go the more intense the dream becomes and the more you begin to take control over your character and the less you become aware of your reality if that makes any sense, yet it just takes a second to span out of it but practice can create longer more reliable sessions.
So here is the path I follow:
I am beamed up onto the transporter room of the starship voyager far far away in another universe, here I am greeted by others I choose to be with in my dream.
The greeting is often long and intense, maybe intense is not the right word but here there is definite exchange of information, we discuss and I learn about them as they learn about me, I am still in control not quite asleep but very lucid, I don't try to force hard on certain aspect of my character or those I choose to be my guides (maybe hosts would be a more accurate description) but instead let the stage set its self from my subconscious, if I don't like it I can start again, I can only guide my subconscious but not overpower and over control I need to stay lucid, often my characters can surprise me with characteristics I did not push for but let naturally develop, these surprises are often nice if not always, guided but not forced characters work best even my own character which can take many forms such as honorable warrior or rouge explorer.
We may often leave the transporter room together and start to look around the ship, I allow them to give me tour of other areas of the ship, without forcing the situation I allow them to almost invite me to look around, they become my guide, plces we may visit include the mess hall (here I often confuse universes and end up at quarks DS9) I often see the bridge or simply stare outside a window looking into endless space from the hallways of voyager, I have shuttle craft at my disposal, hollow decks, I am anywhere in the universe in a world of dreams, I can visit world conceded within my imagining, I can be a warrior, a hunter, a lover, a lost explorer found drifting alone in space, the crew of voyager are always helpful they can allow me to choose to travel or live among them use, there are hollow deck facilities where I can create my own settings, or I can take them to visit my home world visit my own people which can in its own expression be paradise, if your going to visit paradise in your lucid dream I am not taking about some distorted boyhood dream of a sexual nature, paradise is beyond what I ever imagined, very peaceful and commutative together place, there is no control and are no slaves in paradise even of a sexual nature, it is pure freedom and love, beautiful beyond anything you will ever seen in real life, it almost cant be forced, you need to let your dream take you there without forcing it, if you are forcing it then you have too much control and know you are trying to control a dream, and by doing so are not in a state of unawareness lucid enough to experience the true feeling when you reach paradise.
A self entered lucid dream is guided not driven.
How I enter lucid dreams
For general lucid chat - ask questions, share advice, set lucid dream challenges and explore the lucid realm together.
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How I enter lucid dreams
Last edited by StormSharkX on 24 Oct 2014 03:54, edited 5 times in total.
Re: How I enter lucid dreams
Sounds like you have an abnormally strong affinity for Star Trek. Interesting how you have honed your technique to embrace that reality. Sounds like it works well for you so good job.
Is Lucid Dreaming the brains preparation for the next step of human evolution when we can escape the corporeal bond of our bodies?
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Re: How I enter lucid dreams
buildit wrote:Sounds like you have an abnormally strong affinity for Star Trek. Interesting how you have honed your technique to embrace that reality. Sounds like it works well for you so good job.
I have developed a very strong success rate using this guided method of entering sleep, I feel its not lucid in the way many might understand, since I often become a passenger inside the dream guided by the people (characters) I meet at the transporter room where i gain access to the dream, when they start to show me round the ship is often where I loose consciousness of the reality that I am in bed falling a sleep and gain consciousness over the character I undertake in my dream, at which point it begins to seem real, but its this been guided that keeps me from waking up, I am almost certain of this, if I try and push myself towards the hollow decks or towards the shuttle bay then often I end up waking myself up and having to start over again, I need to be guided by my dream hosts but when it clicks right it really works well, the introductions are often important to guide myself in the right direction, if I want to visit paradise then I need to tell them of my home world make them want to visit, make this paradise of my imagination then, for once I am fully emerged its then that my hosts will need to take me there.
Re: How I enter lucid dreams
[quote]I am beamed up onto the transporter room of the starship voyager far far away in another universe, here I am greeted by others I choose to be with in my dream.
I am a Star Trek fan and at present I am near the end of Voyager season 3. I watch one episode about every evening, and I will from now start practicing your method as it makes sense to me. I have a fair vivid dream recall, but could improve being lucid.
Welcome to the World of Lucid Dreaming.
I am a Star Trek fan and at present I am near the end of Voyager season 3. I watch one episode about every evening, and I will from now start practicing your method as it makes sense to me. I have a fair vivid dream recall, but could improve being lucid.
Welcome to the World of Lucid Dreaming.
Re: How I enter lucid dreams
So has Star Trek helped me? Yes it has. Before going to sleep I visit Voyager chatting to people, at the moment it is mainly 7of9,Neelix and Tom Paris. I find my dreams last longer, and also for the first time I can after waking up and going to sleep again continue where I left off in my last dream. Here a much abbreviated sample: I had to fetch a deed of sale, after a long body flight I got back to my home town. End of Dream, putting dream on to my voice recorder. Getting up for a piddle back to bed, thinking of the dream falling asleep." I am standing with the signed deed of sale outside the office, Peter says: Yes Erich can fly that is why he is back already. A person says, I don't believe you. Peter ask: Erich please show them. I oblige and fly up and also do a body flip." (I like to show off and also teach people flying) I have a dream recall most times after my first waking up which is not long after falling to sleep due to a weak bladder, and the last two dreams in the morning before getting up. Focusing on voyager I do seem to have longer dreams and also more vivid. I think I am more receptive to dreams because Star Trek could be seen as a dream. Lets see what the future brings.
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- Joined: 30 Oct 2014 16:01
Re: How I enter lucid dreams
I LOVE Star Trek. Next time you beam up take me with you.
Old Traveler.
Old Traveler.
Re: How I enter lucid dreams
Last evening after posting my findings I called up the next episode which was voyager season 4 episode 13 Waking Moments. To my great and pleasant surprise Waking Moments is about Lucid Dreaming. Commander Chakotay knows how to lucid dream, and his skill is needed in helping to save a dreaming crew. I enjoyed the episode, but judge for yourself.
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WASHINGTON — Arkansas lawmakers were mostly noncommittal Wednesday about how they plan to vote on a deal that would avert a new congressional budget showdown in January.
WASHINGTON — Arkansas lawmakers were mostly noncommittal Wednesday about how they plan to vote on a deal that would avert a new congressional budget showdown in January.
The proposal would nullify about $63 billion in across-the-board sequestration cuts over the next two years. The cuts would be made up for through a combination of other budget savings and fee hikes estimated to be worth $85 billion over 10 years — allowing for an additional $23 billion reduction in the deficit.
Announcing the deal Tuesday, Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, and her House counterpart, Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said it would also bring some normalcy back to the budget process.
"This agreement breaks through the recent dysfunction to prevent another government shutdown," said Murray.
A budget impasse doomed agreement on a budget extension past the Sept. 30 end of the federal fiscal year. The government shutdown began Oct. 1 after Congress failed to agree to legislation needed to keep discretionary programs funded in the new fiscal year. The 16-day shutdown cost the U.S. economy about $24 billion, according to Beth Ann Bovino, an economist at Standard & Poor's.
The House is scheduled to vote on the proposed new budget resolution Thursday, with the Senate to follow.
Rep. Rick Crawford, R-Jonesboro, indicated in a statement that he will not support the resolution.
"Absent some form of permanent spending control, a non-binding budget resolution will only allow for future Congresses to circumvent statutory spending caps when they so desire," he said.
Other Arkansas lawmakers contacted Wednesday said they had not decided whether to support the resolution. They were still reviewing the details.
Rep. Tim Griffin, R-Little Rock, said he expects it will be approved but he is leery of agreeing to increased spending now in exchange for spending cuts in the future. Still, he said, it may be the only realistic option available that would avoid the potential for a government shutdown in January.
"Out of the box I was disappointed. A lot of deals where they call for changes in the short term that are supposed to be funded in the long term are problematic because you can never tell what a future Congress is going to do," Griffin said.
In this case, however, Griffin said that it is more likely the future cuts will remain because they are being made to mandatory spending programs that typically fall outside the annual budget process.
"I want to know more details. The issue for me is one of being confident these are the types of reforms that will stay in place," he said.
The proposed savings over the next decade include:
—$12.6 billion in higher security fees for airline passengers.
—$12 billion reduction in contributions to federal pensions.
—$7.9 billion in higher federal insurance premiums for private pensions.
—$6 billion in reduced payments to student-loan debt collectors.
—$3 billion by not fully refilling strategic petroleum reserves.
—$21.5 billion in other fees and spending cuts that include a small reduction in cost-of-living increases for military retires, caps on contractor salaries and reducing Social Security fraud.
Spokesmen for Reps. Steve Womack, R-Rogers, and Tom Cotton, R-Dardanelle, and Sens. Mark Pryor, D-Ark., and John Boozman, R-Ark., said Wednesday that the budget resolution was still under review.
Boozman's staff indicated he has some concerns about raising the cap on discretionary spending beyond the $967 billion level for 2014 set under a previous budget agreement. The new proposal would raise the cap to $1.012 trillion.
While Arkansas lawmakers are hesitant to comment on the budget deal, others are weighing in early.
President Obama called it a "good first step" toward a balanced budget approach that will help the economy grow.
"This agreement doesn't include everything I'd like," he said. "But it's a good sign that Democrats and Republicans in Congress were able to come together and break the cycle of short-sighted, crisis-driven decision-making to get this done."
The Business Roundtable also sounded a positive note.
"The agreement provides a foundation for tackling issues critical to U.S. economic growth, as well as providing predictability and certainty for federal government funding for two fiscal years," said United Technologies CEO Louis Chenevert, who chairs the Business Roundtable's tax and fiscal policy committee.
Many fiscal conservatives expressed disappointment with the deal and are urging lawmakers to reject it.
"Apparently, there are some Republicans who don't have the stomach for even relatively small spending reductions that are devoid of budgetary smoke and mirrors," said Club for Growth President Chris Chocola. He said Republicans should reject the deal and stick with the guaranteed sequestration cuts.
"Americans deserve better than a compromise that continues excessive spending, adding fees in lieu of taxes," said Amy Kremer, chairman of Tea Party Express.
Griffin said he believes Ryan struck a realistic deal given that Democrats control the Senate and White House.
"My question is what is the alternative? We don't have the votes to pass some of the things they (fiscal conservatives) want to pass," he said.


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From Proteopedia
Structural highlights
[CAH2_HUMAN] Defects in CA2 are the cause of osteopetrosis autosomal recessive type 3 (OPTB3) [MIM:259730]; also known as osteopetrosis with renal tubular acidosis, carbonic anhydrase II deficiency syndrome, Guibaud-Vainsel syndrome or marble brain disease. Osteopetrosis is a rare genetic disease characterized by abnormally dense bone, due to defective resorption of immature bone. The disorder occurs in two forms: a severe autosomal recessive form occurring in utero, infancy, or childhood, and a benign autosomal dominant form occurring in adolescence or adulthood. Autosomal recessive osteopetrosis is usually associated with normal or elevated amount of non-functional osteoclasts. OPTB3 is associated with renal tubular acidosis, cerebral calcification (marble brain disease) and in some cases with mental retardation.[1] [2] [3] [4] [5]
[CAH2_HUMAN] Essential for bone resorption and osteoclast differentiation (By similarity). Reversible hydration of carbon dioxide. Can hydrate cyanamide to urea. Involved in the regulation of fluid secretion into the anterior chamber of the eye.[6] [7]
Evolutionary Conservation
Check, as determined by ConSurfDB. You may read the explanation of the method and the full data available from ConSurf.
Publication Abstract from PubMed
The three-dimensional structures of A65F, A65L, A65H, A65T, A65S, and A65G human carbonic anhydrase II (CAII) variants have been solved by X-ray crystallographic methods to probe the importance of residue 65 and the structural implications of its evolutionary drift in the greater family of carbonic anhydrase isozymes. Structure-activity relationships in this series of CAII variants are correlated with those established for other carbonic anhydrase isozymes. We conclude that a bulky side chain at position 65 hinders the formation of an effective solvent bridge between zinc-bound water and H64 and thereby hinders solvent-mediated proton transfer between these two groups [Jackman, J. E., Merz, K. M., Jr., & Fierke, C. A. (1996) Biochemistry 35, 16421-16428]. Despite the introduction of a polar hydroxyl group at this position, smaller side chains such as serine or threonine substituted for A65 do not perturb the formation of a solvent bridge between H64 and zinc-bound solvent. Thus, the evolution of residue 65 size is one factor affecting the trajectory of catalytic proton transfer.
X-ray crystallographic studies of alanine-65 variants of carbonic anhydrase II reveal the structural basis of compromised proton transfer in catalysis.,Scolnick LR, Christianson DW Biochemistry. 1996 Dec 24;35(51):16429-34. PMID:8987974[8]
From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.
See Also


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I've seen this activity in several places recently {although I feel awful I never bookmarked it, so now I can't remember where it was}. I sketched some simple Halloween shapes onto cardboard, then went over them with hot glue to create a raised surface. Then I showed the kids how to do "sleepy crayon" over the image {my preschooler is already a pro at this, but it was totally a new concept to my toddler}.
At first, Mina just wanted to color the regular way with her crayon.
Then later on I discovered that they had a much better time just coloring in the hot glue images.


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Mick O'Dwyer is back in management and ready to turn the Clare footballers into a force to be reckoned with – at 76 years of age.
The Kerry hero was appointed as Clare's new boss last Friday night and has already got down to business with the beaten Munster finalists.
Having brought success to Wicklow, Laois and Kildare in the recent past, the All-Ireland winning former Kerry manager is keen to develop Clare football.
After agreeing a two-year term in office, O'Dwyer said, "Clare have been knocking on the door for a few years now, but, like Wicklow, my primary goal is to lift the profile of football in the county from underage up.
"Hurling has always been the number one game in Clare, but there's a big football catchment area and I'll be in the heart of it."
Clare legend Francis McInerney, who captained the county in their historic 1992 Munster SFC final win over Kerry, believes O'Dwyer can lift the fortunes of the Banner and doesn't see his age as a problem.
McInerney told the Irish Sun, "If the players don't come out for Mick O'Dwyer, then who will they come out for?
"Nobody knows football in Ireland like O'Dwyer and he seems to be coming into the job full of enthusiasm.
"It was a bit of a surprise when his name was mentioned first of all. But he does seem enthusiastic and his age shouldn't be an issue, all teams have strength and conditioning trainers and so on now, so I don't see that as a problem.
"If Micko can use his experience to get into the minds of the Clare footballers and get all the players involved who might not have been playing, that can only be a good thing."
O'Dwyer has already targeted promotion from Division Four of the National League as his priority, and McInerney says that is essential.
He said, "If Clare want to make progress then they have to get out of Division 4, they have to get up to Division 3, maybe Division 2. It is important to be playing a higher level of league football.
"Micko knows a lot about Division 4. Getting promotion has to be the priority.
"People see the Clare club teams doing well in the Munster club championship, the players are there, they train as hard as anyone else and maybe Micko can just bring that something extra.
"You look at what is needed and if it takes something different, so be it."
Clare county board chairman Michael O'Neill believes O'Dwyer can make a major contribution to football in the county.
O'Neill said, "I'm confident that the appointment will be good, not just for the county's senior team but for football in the entire county."
Sean Og Calls it Quits
TRIBUTES have poured in after Cork hurling legend Sean Og O hAilpin announced his retirement from the county game for the second – and final – time.
The former All-Ireland winning captain confirmed his decision over the weekend after 16 years in the red jersey over two spells as an inter-county star.
In a statement released via the GPA, O hAilpin said, "I wish to announce my retirement from inter-county hurling. This time it's for good.
"I always felt it was premature to end my career in 2010. It was great to get the opportunity this year to re-establish myself in the team and contribute in a meaningful way to Cork.
"As I close this chapter of my life, I look forward with enthusiasm to the new challenges and opportunities I may encounter.
"I would like to thank all the players I played with over my 16 year career. I have always taken immense pride in wearing the Cork jersey and representing the county I love. I wish the Cork team the best of luck and success in their future endeavors.
"I'd like to extend a big thank you to my coaches, managers, medical and backroom teams and all the friends I've made throughout my hurling career on and off the field.
"I would like to thank all of the Cork and GAA supporters around the country for their phenomenal support over the years. Corcaigh abú. Rebels abú!"
Michaela Remembered
AN emotional Mickey Harte paid tribute to the sell-out crowd at Saturday night's tribute game for his late daughter Michaela.
The "Match for Michaela" event at Casement Park in Belfast was an outstanding success as over 14,000 fans raised money for the foundation set up in honor of Harte's daughter, murdered on her honeymoon in Mauritius last year.
Harte told the full house, "It is most uplifting to see the energy in the crowd, how early they came and how excited they are to be here.
"It gives us a sense of hope and a sense of how something good can come out of something horrible."
All-Ireland champions Donegal were beaten 2-12 to 1-12 by an Ulster selection manager by former
Armagh boss Joe Kernan, but Jim McGuiness was none too worried about the result.
The Donegal manager said, "It was truly privilege for everyone involved with the Donegal team to be part of this occasion.
"This game was always on the back of the players' minds after the All-Ireland. It was a fixture that had to be competed.
"When Mickey Harte first asked me to support this event I had no hesitation in saying yes."
Cluxton Stays, Quinn Out
DUBLIN goalkeeper Stephen Cluxton has pledged his future to the Blues under new boss Jim Gavin but veteran forward Tomas Quinn has announced his retirement.
Cluxton will play on for at least another year after ending speculation that he was poised to quit the Leinster champions.
Quinn however is to retire and tweeted, "It's been a childhood dream to play for Dublin for last 10 years, but time to go. It was a great journey and I loved every second#ÁthCliathAbú."
GAA Shorts
DOWN champions Kilcoo are through to the semifinals of the Ulster club championship after a deserved win over Monaghan side Ballybay on Sunday. Tyrone champions Errigal Ciaran are also in the semis after a late Tommy Canavan free earned them a win over Ballinderry . . .
GALWAY hurling goalkeeper James Skehill won't play until next summer at the earliest after surgery on the shoulder injury that derailed his performance in the All-Ireland final replay against Kilkenny . . .
SHANE Nolan scored the crucial goal as Cork champions Castlehaven booked a semifinal place in the Munster SFC with a win against Dromcollogher-Broadford on Sunday . . .
WEXFORD hurling kingpins Oulart-The Ballagh had to survive a late rally from Kilmacud Crokes before winning the Leinster Club SHC quarterfinal on Sunday . . .
NEW Clare boss Mick O'Dwyer was in the crowd as Kerry side Dr. Crokes defeated Kilmurry-Ibrickane in the Munster club SFC quarterfinal . . .
CROKE Park officials are open to the idea of an Ulster representative side playing in the All-Ireland hurling championship . . .
RESPECTED coach Niall Moyna has joined the backroom team with the Down footballers under manager James McCartan . . .
ALL-Ireland winner Ryan McMenamin has brought the curtain down on his 13-year career with the Tyrone footballers . . .
VETERAN Offaly star Brendan Murphy has retired – 12 years after he played in the county's last All-Ireland final . . .
FORMER Waterford star Paul Flynn is to work as a coach with the Down hurlers next season.


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Welcome All Dealers and Public!
Times for All Shows
Saturday: 9:00AM to 5:00PM
Sunday: 10:00AM to 5:00PM
Public Entry Fee
New Bern, Greenville, and Jacksonville $7
Goldsboro and Wilmington $6
FREE Parking
Buy – Sell – Trade
Buy – Sell – Trade at Eastern North Carolina's Best Quality Gun and Knife Shows.
Where the "Dealers" are the friendliest and have the best prices in North Carolina.
Concession will be open with Great Food at Great Prices.


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Advanced Search
Mobile Computing | News
The business school at the University of California, Berkeley will be deploying a new mobile learning platform in its executive MBA program. The Haas School of Business is working with EmpoweredU to develop the software.
EmpoweredU, founded by serial entrepreneur Steve Poizner, has developed a cloud-based learning environment to allow institutional users to deliver their curriculum online in a mobile format — in this case, Apple's iPad. Recently, the program ran a pilot program that let students test the new technology.
The iPad platform lets the instructor stream online content, do course site creation, set up online lectures, perform test administration, and grade assignments. Both instructors and students can do user publishing; perform live chat, messaging, and other forms of peer-to-peer interaction; run discussion forums; and set up student portfolios. The software can run in and outside of a wireless environment.
Students in the executive MBA program are working professionals. Cohorts meet over long weekends every three weeks for 19 months. Haas administrators said they are expecting the new mobile platform to allow their students to stay in touch with each other between sessions and help them juggle their coursework with other life commitments.
"Our executive MBA program will be the first degree program to experience the benefits of this mobile learning experience," said Adam Berman, who heads the Haas School's initiatives in learning technologies. "For senior professionals on the go, having this kind of technology means getting the most out of their MBA experience, using their time most efficiently, and deepening their ties to their classmates."
The new platform will initially be limited to four courses: finance; leading people, marketing, and building trust based on relationship. As semesters unfold, additional courses will be added.
Similar technology is being used by the University of California Los Angeles Extension program.
About the Author
Dian Schaffhauser is a senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal and Campus Technology. She can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com or on Twitter @schaffhauser.
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Tax consequences of importing vehicle into the UKSource: HM Revenue & Customs | | 06/02/2018
The Notification of Vehicle Arrivals (NOVA) is an online notification system for vehicles entering the country for permanent use on UK roads. There is a separate process for personal imports from outside the EU and for the temporary importations of a motor vehicle.
Under the system anyone who brings a vehicle into the UK is required to notify HMRC within 14 days and any VAT due will have to be paid or accounted for. It is sometime possible to claim relief from VAT and duty if you are moving to the UK or returning a vehicle that had been exported from the UK. There are penalties for failing to notify HMRC within the required timeframe.
In order to make a notification to HMRC about a vehicle the following information will be required:
- The make, model, engine size and body type of your vehicle
- The Vehicle Identification Number (VIN)
- The existing registration number of the vehicle (if applicable)
- The value of the vehicle
- Mileage details
Whilst the easiest way to bring a vehicle into the UK will be by submitting the notification online there is also a paper form (VAT NOVA1) that can be used.
Planning note
The application needs to be processed by HMRC before it becomes possible to register or licence a vehicle with the DVLA.
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National Institute of Speech & Hearing
Accredited as Excellent Institution by RCI | ISO 9001:2015 Certified | Accredited by NAAC with A Grade
The Master of Audiology and Speech Language Pathology (MASLP) is a post graduate level programme affiliated to the University of Kerala and recognised by the Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI). The total number of seats is 10. Minimum educational requirement for admission to the programme will be Bachelor of Audiology and Speech Language Pathology (BASLP) from any recognised university with minimum pass percentage as per University norms. The curriculum consists of theory and practical classes in the field of Speech-Language Pathology, Audiology and allied subjects such as Linguistics, Statistics etc. The total duration of this post graduate degree Program consists of four semesters.
The Bachelor of Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology is a graduate level programme affiliated to the University of Kerala and recognized by the Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI). Its main aim is to generate skilled and efficient manpower to work effectively with persons having communication disorders. They have opportunities to work in hospitals, special schools, speech and hearing institutes, hearing instrument manufacturing industry, government and non-government agencies working for the disabled as well as to do independent practice. Excellent opportunities await abroad for higher studies and practice. Successful candidates will be awarded the Bachelor Degree by the University of Kerala.


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Billy Mack of First Coastal, a coastal engineering firm based in Westhampton Beach, went before the East Hampton Town Trustees on Sept. 13 to ask permission to buttress a dune on the ocean beach, just east of the southern end of Wainscott Pond, with a low wall made of sand cubes.
The trustees own and manage the beach there on behalf of the public. The house owned by First Coastal's client sits behind the dune in question, with the pond at its back. Tropical Storm Irene has narrowed the ocean beach there, and Mr. Mack said there was danger of an ocean-to-pond breach during the winter months.
His concern, he said, was based on the current state of a "sand wave" whose trough corresponded to the beach in front of the property. The eroding trough was deepened by Irene. Mr. Mack took aerial photos to illustrate his prognostication.
Waves of sand are the source of this area's most profound beauty, and of an increasing array of challenges. The brouhaha that developed when a resident of Georgica Beach installed fencing to mark the seaward boundary of her property (and claim the only remaining beach) was caused by the trough of another Irene-induced sand wave that swallowed the rest of the beach, less than a mile from First Coastal's Wainscott client.
Elsewhere along the coast, the alternating buildup and disappearance of beach has prompted other private-versus-public-beach debates and lawsuits.
On Tuesday, Mr. Mack and Aram Terchunian, First Coastal's principals, met a reporter at the Princess Diner in Southampton to shed light on the mystery of sand waves, their cause, and what they can and cannot predict.
Over coffee, with aerial photos, a computer, and a sketch pad, the coastal engineers showed how sand waves are formed when the shape of ocean waves, their oscillating design of peaks and troughs, is transferred, actually sculpted by wave energy, into the same physical pattern in beaches and near-shore bottom.
Seen from the air, the south-facing shoreline is a wavy line with peaks and troughs. Sometimes seen from the air is the mirror image of a beach's pattern of peaks and troughs carved into offshore sand bars. On the beach, the trough of a sand wave appears as a shallow cove with an eroded, narrow beach at its most landward point. The peaks of sand waves extend seaward on either side of the trough. The peaks are areas of sand buildup, or accretion.
Mr. Terchunian summoned Google Earth on his computer to bring forth an aerial image of ocean waves caught in the act of breaking, with white water from the broken waves forming the same oscillating design, a line snaking along down the beach.
The pattern is not always visible. During the summer months, it is masked by our predominant southwesterly flow of wind and waves. Wave action is strong enough to transport sand and rebuild beaches, but not strong enough to spur the currents that make the cuts in offshore bars, which, in turn trigger the sand-wave machine.
Mr. Terchunian described how storms with their powerful waves, tidal surges, and currents act as X-rays, or M.R.I.s, that reveal "the bones, the soft skeleton" of the sand-wave phenomenon.
The more easterly, often storm-driven, waves and weather during the winter months are responsible for the east-to-west march of sand waves along the coast. Mr. Terchunian said he first realized the importance of sand waves during the stormy early '90s.
"I had a client at Old Town Pond in Southampton. Their beach was heavily eroded, but Fowler Point nearby was fine. During the big storm, [the wider beach] moved 1,000 feet. I said, how did that happen?"
Mr. Terchunian said he sent before-and-after aerial photos of the event to the late Nicholas Kraus, a native Long Islander and renowned coastal engineer, who in turn passed them on to Michelle Thevenot, a doctoral candidate. Ms. Thevenot wrote her thesis on the sand- wave phenomenon. These days, Mr. Terchunian said, the Army Corps of Engineers charts sand-waves and includes them in their plans when nourishing eroded beaches with sand.
As for using the sand-wave pattern to predict beach vulnerability, Mr. Terchunian and Mr. Mack said it was possible up to a point.
For example, the sand cube project near Wainscott Pond seemed justified, they said, by the beach's configuration. Mr. Mack pointed to an aerial photo that showed how the deep trough of a sand wave threatened the client's property. What's more, it revealed what was not visible underwater just offshore, that being the trough's mirror image — an opening in the sand bar.
Such openings are caused by strong currents moving offshore, the result of waves and storm surge piling up close to the beach and seeking an escape route. The escape currents cut paths through the offshore bars. The openings are the offshore troughs of a sand wave. They permit waves to pass through without the slowing effect of the bar en route to the beach, thus increasing their eroding power.
A strong storm could cut through the already narrow beach and unite the ocean and Wainscott Pond, or at least add to serious flooding that occurred behind the house during Irene. This was the concern that took Mr. Mack before the trustees. He noted that the dune in front of Ronald Lauder's house, just 300 feet away, suffered no loss with the help of sand cubes at the toe.
Mr. Terchunian said photos of the beach just prior to the infamous 1938 Hurricane showed troughs in the sand waves, and narrow beach where storm surge inundated the land during the big storm.
"Sand waves are more important than dune" in determining where breaches and over-topping will occur, Mr. Terchunian said. "Dunes are just levies, the beach is doing all the work." Along the same line, he said downdrift scouring of sand, caused by hard structures such as jetties, was certainly a cause of erosion but was trumped by the grander scale of the sand-wave phenomenon.
He said the jetties at Georgica had, over time, disrupted the "natural balance" of the sand's comings and goings. Even if the jetties were removed, it would take years to regain it, he added.
Both men agreed that predictions based on sand-wave patterns could not extend too far out in time.
They said that sand waves move down the beach year to year, but the speed of their progress depended on so many variables that long-range predictions as to exactly where and when serious erosion will take place were virtually impossible to make.
Mr. Terchunian pointed out that coastal ponds such as Wainscott, Georgica, Sagg, and Hook did, at times, join forces with the trough of sand waves. "There is a fluid connection from pond to ocean," he said. Breaching occurred when pond water under pressure to flow seaward turned the permeable barrier of rock and sand into a fluid mass that met storm surge moving shoreward.
First Coastal has been hired by the Sagaponack Village erosion control district to study the makeup, depth, and back-and-forth flow of sand. "This is all temporary until they come up with a long-term solution," Mr. Terchunian said, referring to the kind of spot-beach nourishing, sandbagging, or sand-cube buttressing of dune the company has been involved in.
Offshore deposits were likely the future source of Sagaponack beach sand, he said. Mining sand at least a mile from shore in water that was at least 30 feet deep would guarantee that it tapped deposits safely beyond the reach of the naturally replenishing sand wave, so as not to starve the system.
"Long Island has such wonderful beaches, sand riches, glacial outwash sand. We are passionate about beaches," Mr. Terchunian concluded.


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The World Bank organized an art competition among school children of grades 6 to 8. The theme for the competition was ''Pakistan of My Dreams" and it was held among the public schools falling in Peshawar, Rawalpindi and Islamabad area. The objective of the art competition was to tap into the artistic imagination and talent among school children. Twelve schools and more than 500 children participated in this competition. Here we are sharing the best thirteen drawings to encourage the youth to further nurture their artistic expression and achieve their dream of a peaceful and prosperous Pakistan.
For more information, check out the Feature Story and Album of the artwork of the winners on Facebook.
Where can we purchase the
Where can we purchase the calendar?
Amazing drawings! Good work!
Amazing drawings! Good work!
Thank you all for your kind comments! Ruby Ray, unfortunately, the calendars are currently not available for sale. Will let you know if they become available.


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At me love, we don't just serve raw fish, we also have an equally extensive selection of rice dishes with a range of toppings, traditional noodle dishes, skewers and many vegetarian food options. Everything is prepared fresh by our experienced sushi chefs, including the fish, which is fresh daily. We still hand roll and create all of the dishes using only the finest ingredients where possible.
We only prepare food once an order has been placed to ensure the best quality and we are proud to support sustainable fish suppliers and continually strive to reduce our environmental impact by introducing more recyclable and biodegradable packaging options.
For catering, dine in or delivery we offer the freshest food direct to your door. Ultimately, we want you to love sushi as much as me love!
Opening Hour: Monday - Friday (5:00 PM - 11:00 PM)
Saturday & Sunday (12:00 PM - 11 PM)


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Welcome Back
In today's post I will be reviewing;
Product Details
- Manufacturer/Brand; Pentel Water Brushes
- Item number
- RRP at time of writing: £15
A set of three mixed tip water brushes. Broad, medium and fine. The barrel of the brush houses water (or colour washes) which is supplied to the fibre brush via a valve. The flow of water is controlled by slight pressure o the barrel when the brush meets the paper. To clean simply apply pressure to the barrel and the dirty water will work its way through the brush. It is also ideal product for the water-colour pencil artist. Using a water filled barrel you create imaginative blends and washes with your watercolour pencils.
Reason For Buying
I had originally tried my husbands set, when we went on holiday as I wanted the option of painting but with as small amount of kit as possible. I really enjoyed using them and now want my own set.
- Lightweight
- Compact
- Reliable
- Easy to use
- Really helpful for newbies to watercolour helps you blend washes together
- A joy to use for sketching trips – no need for extra bottles of water and pots
- I really love the feel of the brush fibres, the form a nice point and the flow of water is perfect
- Good size, comfortable in the hand and in use.
No cons, they are fantastic! A wish list item for the makers if they read this, please can you bring out a flat brush to the range for sky's and larger washes etc?
Build Quality
Excellent, Reliable water flow, no flooding. Comfortable in the hand, well-fitting lids. The brush tips appear to be nylon but perform very well and form a good point. An excellent combination between softness and firmness.
Value for Money
Excellent! They are a very well made reliable product. Using these means I can leave a whole lot of other things at home and will mean I'll take my painting kit out more often now.
Would I buy it Again?
Yes. After only a brief try with these, I knew they were for me. Poor hubby didn't get his back but I'll be buying him another set. I live them so much I'm tempted to get a spare set as I'd hate them to be discontinued!
Summing up
LOVE these brushes. You NEED to try them. Perfect for sketching away from home, no need for loads of brushes, water pots and extra bottles of water. I filled my water brushes before leaving home and completed an A5 water-colour sketch and it barely used any of the water. A full barrel lasts ages.
Ideal if you are new to watercolour painting, they stops you using too much water and getting too washed out colours and also helps with blending.
If I could buy these in bulk I'd be adding Tim Holtz distress re-inker diluted with water in the barrels, for colour washes with them too 😉 Bet they would be great for that.
- Pentel (UK)
- Set of 3 Water brushes; FRH Fine, Medium & Broad
- Check Amazon for great prices on these sets too.
Best wishes and thanks for reading, see you soon
Billie 🙂


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WASHINGTON (AP) — Internal e-mails among senior U.S. military officials reveal that no sailors watched Osama bin Laden's burial at sea from the USS Carl Vinson and traditional Islamic procedures were followed during the ceremony.
The e-mails, obtained by the Associated Press through the Freedom of Information Act, are heavily blacked out. They are the first public disclosure of information about the al-Qaeda's leader's death.
Bin Laden was killed May 1, 2011, by a Navy SEAL team that assaulted his compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan.
One e-mail sent May 2 by a senior Navy officer briefly describes how bin Laden's body was washed, wrapped in a white sheet, then placed in a weighted bag.
According to another message, only a small group of the ship's leadership was informed of the burial.
ref: http://www.usatoday.com


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|Only a small area of spelt remains
Essentially all of the wheat is gone.
Whole plots were flattened earlier and have not recovered. Areas have been trampelled, and much has been devoured right off the stalks.
The ground squirrels have taken much of the crop.
On May 15th, one of them seemed unaware of a visitor, came quite close and demonstrated how he could reach up, pull a wheat plant down, nibble on the seed head and then move on to the next plant.
|Remaining bit of Red Fife
|Red Fife seed heads
A small clump of Red Fife remains, but it is more than two weeks from maturity when it can be harvested for wheat. Unfortunately, it appears the squirrels like wheat berries even before they reach the soft dough stage. So their harvest timing is significantly in advance of ours.
Though Maggie's Farm has not been a successful locale for wheat, it is home to some charming critters