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October 2003
Habitat loss has occurred at devastating rates throughout the world over the past two centuries. Yet these losses are not all equal, and some environments have been affected more than others. Wetland habitat in North America provides one such example. Throughout much of the United States, wetland habitat loss has been substantial:
A wading bird, a Great Blue Heron, in the wetlands of the Myakka River basin. Florida. Photographer: Gary Burdette.
Between 1780's and 1980's, the lower 48 states have lost 53% of the original wetland habitat, or about 104 million acres.1
Twenty-two states have lost 50% or more of their original wetlands, with California losing the largest percentage (91%) and Florida losing the most acreage (9.3 million acres).1
Most recent losses over the past two decades have been primarily due to agriculture and urban development.2
Most recent losses have been in freshwater wetlands (98%), and 95% of the remaining wetlands are freshwater (as opposed to coastal marshes).2
This severe wetland loss is probably not isolated to the United States. For example, in New Zealand only 8% of the original wetlands remain.3 However, for most areas of the world, little information exists on both wetland loss and the current status of wetlands.3
In some ways, this severe habitat loss is not entirely surprising. Public perception of wetlands was historically quite negative, with wetlands perceived as swampy wastelands hardly good for anything.4 This view shaped wetland policy until the early twentieth century when perceptions began to change slowly with the growing concern about declining migratory bird populations.4 Yet we now know that wetlands are key components in ecosystems, providing many services such as:
reducing erosion by potentially decreasing floodwater velocity and volume5
preventing downstream flood attenuation by spreading excess water flow in floodplains and shallow depressions5
improving water quality by removing nutrients and absorbing sediment loads6 (this potential benefit is highly dependent on the amount of time that water is retained within wetlands7)
acting as nutrient sources for fish and other aquatic organisms inhabiting downstream areas in riverine and coastal situations8
providing habitat for a variety of wildlife, such as waterfowl, amphibians, and insects (for example, the wetland landscapes in the Prairie Pothole Region of the Midwestern United States are thought to produce 50-75% of the total continental duck production9)
Fortunately, a variety of recent U.S. federal and state programs (e.g., the Wetland Reserve Program10) have increased wetland protection and provided incentives for habitat restoration. But did this protection come too late?
Patterns and potential causes of wetland bird population trends
Meanwhile, many migratory birds have experienced declines throughout the United States. Evidence for bird declines has been based primarily on the past 40 years; prior to the 1960's little data exist for interpreting long-term trends. Data on wetland birds are particularly sparse, yet some evidence indicates that this group might indeed be experiencing population declines.11,12 What factors are contributing to these declines? And what are the ramifications?
Habitat loss and fragmentation: Both the loss and fragmentation (or "breaking apart") of wetlands can have detrimental impacts on wetland bird populations by influencing habitat use, reproduction, and survival.13
Invasive species: Some non-native plant species have invaded wetlands, causing profound changes in wetland structure, which could make those wetlands unsuitable for some species of birds. For example, Purple Loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria) has invaded many wetlands in the midwestern United States, and avian diversity in Purple Loosestrife dominated wetlands can be lower than diversity in other wetland types.14
Global climate change: Climate can have particularly strong effects on wetland structure if precipitation declines or becomes more variable in the future. Although much disagreement remains in projecting future changes in precipitation, most models project global increases in precipitation along with some regional declines (including predicted declines for the Prairie Pothole Region of the United States) occurring due to poleward shifts in rain belts.15 Precipitation can affect wetland birds by altering water levels and habitat structure within wetlands.16 Also, in times of drought, climate can cause habitat loss because smaller, shallower wetlands will become dry, effectively changing into grassland or open habitat. This climate-caused habitat loss has been correlated with annual variation in some wetland birds, including many waterfowl.9,17
How can habitat loss influence wetland birds?
Habitat loss and fragmentation might be particularly important for bird populations. While evidence has mounted for habitat loss and fragmentation affecting bird populations using other habitats, evidence for effects on wetland birds is limited. Most research in wetlands has been inconclusive because of poor study design.13 However, a few patterns have emerged.
Bird abundance and habitat use: Some species, such as Seaside Sparrows, may not use small wetlands or may occur in lower densities than in larger wetlands.18,19 Other species, such as Black Terns, may be less likely to settle in landscapes with few wetlands.19 Wetlands that are relatively isolated from other wetlands might also contain fewer species.20 Another index of the relative amount of habitat fragmentation is the amount of perimeter (or edge) of wetland relative to its area. In Iowa, one third of the examined species occurred in lower densities in wetlands with more edge relative to its area.21 In addition, wetland loss can make the remaining wetlands in the landscape less suitable for some species. At a larger temporal scale, wetland loss from agricultural expansion was negatively correlated with annual abundances of some waterfowl, including Mallards and Northern Pintails.17
Reproduction: Breeding success for some species can potentially be lower near the perimeters (edges) of wetlands than toward the interior of wetlands because many nest predators cannot access deep water habitats within wetlands.22 These patterns in nest predation not only occur with habitat fragmentation but also with variation in precipitation. During dry periods, wetlands can be more easily accessed by nest predators, potentially resulting in lower breeding success. Although lower breeding success can occur as a function of water depth in wetlands, it remains unknown if and how anthropogenic habitat loss might further reduce breeding success in wetlands.
Survival: Fragmentation and habitat loss could also influence survival of some wetland birds because some predators, such as skunks, tend to forage near the edges of wetlands.16,23 Yet the influence of habitat loss on survival has not been well documented.
Patterns like these illuminate the importance of protecting complexes of wetlands in fragmented landscapes. Yet some of these influences are directly related to changes in habitat structure within wetlands. For example, as wetland size increases, habitat heterogeneity within wetlands tends to increase, leading to potential increases in bird diversity.16 Likewise, the structural changes of habitat near wetland edges probably produce the edge effects observed in some wetland systems. However, other factors influencing wetland birds, such as wetland isolation, are clearly operating at larger scales. Understanding local factors will be important for managing and conserving individual wetlands, but larger-scale perspectives will be critical for understanding and managing populations in fragmented landscapes.
Why worry about wetland birds?
If habitat loss is indeed having detrimental impact on wetland bird populations, what implications might these impacts have? Birds play critical roles in wetland systems by acting as herbivores, predators and prey, and being facilitators for plant dispersal — not to mention providing aesthetic values for bird watchers and other nature enthusiasts.
- Most wetland birds are insectivorous during the breeding season, foraging on aquatic invertebrates for themselves and their young. Birds (including adults as well as eggs, nestlings, and juveniles) act as prey for other vertebrates, such as snakes, skunks, and mink.
- Some wetland birds, such as Canada Geese, are also herbivores, feeding on aboveground plant parts. Herbivory by these species can have potentially strong impacts on habitat structure, plant species composition, and primary productivity in wetlands.7
- Wetland birds could be acting as dispersal agents for many wetland plants that do not use abiotic agents, such as wind, for dispersal into new areas. The importance of birds as dispersal agents will likely increase with loss and fragmentation of remaining wetlands because of the ability of birds to use landscapes at large scales.
- Finally, birds provide great intrinsic value to wetlands and other habitats. Birds play a highly visible role in wetland ecosystems. Observing vast numbers of ducks using wetlands during migration is a magnificent sight, as is hearing the raucous sounds of yellow-headed blackbirds singing to each other during the breeding season.
An answer: habitat restoration?
Habitat restoration is typically considered the alteration of an ecosystem back to its initial or pre-settlement state. Most wetlands are restored by breaking drainage tiles, thus returning hydrology to the system. However, areas are not typically replanted with wetland species.24 A key factor for restoring wetland areas will be determining which plant species are predominantly avian-dispersed and which are predominantly dispersed by other means. Those species that are not dispersed by birds might require more intensive restoration strategies than current practices typically entail. For example, recent comparisons of plant diversity and composition in restored and natural wetlands found that restored wetlands tend to have lower plant diversity than natural wetlands.24 Differences in restored wetlands were consistent with the hypothesis that differences were due to dispersal limitation. Regardless of the dispersal agent required, reducing isolation of wetlands by strategic planning or focusing on wetland complexes will likely improve restoration strategies focused on both plant and bird diversity.21
Restoration practices have undoubtedly produced habitat for some species of wetland-breeding birds. Recent work suggests that bird communities in restored wetlands can be similar to those found in natural wetlands,25 and that bird communities in restored wetlands have higher diversity and abundances than in habitats that were previously restored.12 For example, much of the restoration efforts in the midwestern United States has focused on restoring wetland habitat from agricultural areas. Agricultural areas tend to have lower diversity and abundances of breeding birds than restored wetlands.12 Yet it is still unclear whether populations in restored areas have high enough reproduction to make positive contributions to populations.
Public perceptions of wetlands have come a long way in the past few decades, yet wetlands are still being lost throughout the country. Habitat loss can directly impact birds using these areas by potentially influencing bird abundance and habitat use, reproduction, and survival. Habitat restoration is one of the only potential answers in counteracting wetland loss, but it remains unclear if and how restoration influences population dynamics of wetland birds. In addition, we need a better understanding of the ultimate roles birds play in these ecosystems to effectively address ongoing wetland loss and the strategies focused on mitigating this issue.
© 2003, American Institute of Biological Sciences. Educators have permission to reprint articles for classroom use; other users, please contact email@example.com for reprint permission. See reprint policy.


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MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. – Having been already named to the Peach Belt Conference (PBC) All-Academic Team, Georgia College softball's senior utility Caitlin Duvall (Douglasville, Ga.) added another honor recently, being named Capital One Academic All-District.
Duvall earned an outfield spot on the District 3 list for Division II, including softball players in the PBC, South Atlantic Conference and Conference Carolinas.
Owning a 3.65 GPA in political science with a minor in Spanish, Duvall was a starter in left field for the Bobcats this season, playing in 37 games with 32 starts. Duvall hit .231 with nine runs scored and four RBI. The senior was also 9-for-10 in stolen base attempts.
Duvall now moves on to the national Division II ballot, with Academic All-American winners to be announced later this month. She is just the sixth GC Softball player to earn district honors, the last being Mandy Chandler and Lindsey Swanson in 2009.
The Bobcats showed much improvement in 2012, finishing 25-24 with a 9-11 PBC mark, good for seventh and a PBC playoff spot after holding the top spot in the conference standings early in the season. GC put three players on the all-region teams as Haley Burnett (Columbus, Ga.), Whitney Okvist (Kennesaw, Ga.) and Kelsea Martin (Dacula, Ga.) all took honors.
The Capital One Division II and III Academic AllâAmerica® program is being financially supported by the NCAA Division II and III national governance structures, to assist CoSIDA with handling the awards fulfillment aspects for the 2011â12 DII and DIII Academic AllâAmerica® teams program.
Capital One, an NCAA Corporate Champion, began its affiliation with college sports with the sponsorship of the 2001 Capital One Florida Citrus Bowl (now the Capital One Bowl) and ESPN's Capital One Bowl Week. In 2010, Capital One launched the Capital One Cup, a prestigious new program rewarding NCAA Division I athletics programs for their cumulative onâfield performance across multiple men's and women's sports. In addition, Capital One sponsors the ABC College Football Halftime Report, Capital One Allâ America Mascot Team, all 88 NCAA Championships including the Division I Men's and Women's Basketball Championships, and numerous other collegiate athletics programs.
The Georgia College Department of Athletics, two-time winners of the PBC Commissioner's Cup, sponsors 10 varsity athletic programs at the NCAA Division II level. As a Division II program, Bobcat Athletics prides itself on balancing the life of the student-athlete, evidenced by the teams' multiple appearances in post-season competition as well as documented academic success and community-service involvement. Sign up at www.twitter.com/BobcatSports and www.facebook.com/gcbobcats for up-to-the-minute reports, and visit www.GCBobcats.com for more information.

subset: commoncrawl


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Sophie Theallet Spring 2013 | Runway
Sophie Theallet Spring 2013
Sophie Theallet Spring 2013
The gossamer wings of a dragonfly found themselves as a visual and material motif in Sophie Theallet's light-as-air Spring 2013 collection. The bugs formed prints on everything from simple cardigans to floor-length gowns and even a camisole paired with trim, printed trousers. But the most arresting looks in this very pretty collection were the skirts and dresses — sometimes solid, sometimes printed — covered with organza. The sheer material obscured some of the prints, creating an eye-catching interest as the models moved down the runway. It also helped give other dresses an element of depth and shape they wouldn't have had otherwise.


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To develop a sound Thesis Statement, read the following:
- Your Thesis Statement should summarize the main idea of your paper.
- It is the nut from which your paper grows, the engine that drives your paper.
- Place it as the last sentence in your introductory paragraph.
Functions of the Thesis Statement:
- establishes a boundary around the subject that keeps the writer from wandering from the subject–about this–not about that.
- can chart an orderly course for the paper and make it easier to write–not just about this–but HOW it is –about this.
- gives the reader an idea of what to expect, makes it easier for the reader to follow.
Rules for the thesis statement:
1. The Thesis Statement should commit the writer to a single line of argument.
2. The Thesis Statement should predict major divisions in the structure of the paper.
3. The Thesis Statement should be clear, direct and concise.


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When I need to provision a new Windows desktop for myself, there are certain tools I inevitably turn to first. Here's a look at the first five tools I install on new Windows systems. (I'm not going to cover things like Microsoft Office, which are generally a given.)
Note: If you'd prefer to view this information as a blog post, check out this entry in our Five Apps blog.
Photo credit: Copyright © iStockphoto/ermingut
Full Bio
Since 1994, Scott Lowe has been providing technology solutions to a variety of organizations. After spending 10 years in multiple CIO roles, Scott is now an independent consultant, blogger, author, owner of The 1610 Group, and a Senior IT Executive with CampusWorks, Inc. Scott is available for consulting, writing, and speaking engagements and can be reached at email@example.com.


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I have always felt a little protected in New Hampshire, thinking that the average income and high level of education would preclude this kind of nonsense from happening here. Apparently I was wrong.
I assume these bills will die in subcommittee, as they should, based on their merits. Does anyone have experience with this sort of thing? Where do I start in an attempt to voice my opposition to these bills? What organizations might get involved to help? What can I do?
Views: 221
Another pathetic attempt to justify teaching creationism/ID in school, I think. Hitler was a vegetarian teetotaller so maybe they should be condemned as leading to genocide, by Jerry Bergevin perverted logic. How do these people get elected to public office? Unbe-effing-lievable.
I have no idea what to offer you because I can't even imagine this being real in a modern world. The best I can suggest is to try to locate local science associations/organizations and pledge support.
Find out who your reps are and start writing letters, my friend.
I have such a difficult time understanding why so many people cannot interpret the difference between something that is scientifically supported (and what that entails and means) and a book written in bits and pieces thousands of years ago by numerous different religiously-gripped men, translated however many times since, added to, detracted from, etc. If you were looking to cure cancer in your child, do you want something scientifically established, or something written by a random committee of men with lots of feelings and opinions on the subject?
Thanks. I have been saying for the past 6 years or so that if this nonsense ever happened here, I would actively oppose it. I guess the time is now. What I need is to win the lottery so I didn't have to work, so I could oppose these idiots full-time and with all my energy.
I do need to find something I CAN do. For this to be unopposed would be even more shameful than its existence in the first place.
I, too, had always considered America's New England states to be a beacon of hope towards a a better educated nation and moreover thought that better education would tend to reduce the idiocy I have seen all around me for several decades of my life; I am fast, too fast actually, approaching my seventh decade of existence, and the average Joe or Jane on the streets of America are demonstrating the apparent and obvious opposite to my hopes and aspiration for the nation.
When I lived in Fort Lauderdale from '93 to '03, and where I was very active with the James Randi Education Foundation, I was surrounded by clever and educated people, especially among the largest part of my customer base I was hopeful for America's and by extension the world's better future. I design and build leading edge, high tech, ozone-based water and air treatment systems for very large, 100 to 400-ft, luxury yachts. A great many of the crew members thereof are from many other nations, and seemingly from more enlightened societies that accept and embrace science and tend to eschew religion in any of its many and perverted forms.
I also predicted and deeply felt that the failure of the great "second coming" in 2000, or 2001 certainly, most of the nation, or at least a decent percentage would wake up to the idiocy of religion; instead they doubled down and continue to do so. Its total, freaking bovine fecal matter and with the coming, dare I say rushing, international collision between the two great Abraham-based holy-roller mobs, spurred on my the smaller same idiocy-based mob, there is, sadly, a lot of religion-based trouble and pointless war still to come.
I love Bernie Sanders, but the bowing out of Barnie Franks and his possible replacement by a bible-pounder makes me sad. Now I live in the state that has Governor "Oops" in Austin and in Wise County (oxymoron to be sure) I'm surrounded by bible-pounders and as a very visible and self-outed atheist and heavily-published anti-Tea Party liberal in the Wise County Messenger I feel "The eyes of Texas are upon me". "I ain't skeered"!
Texas, huh? Wow. Kudos to you for not curling up like an armadillo, being surrounded by big-haired ladies and holy-rollers as you must be.
I am disgusted by the state of affairs in America and the world in general. If I could put my head in the sand and keep it there I would. I can't though, so I will, like you, continue to speak up and speak out.
Even though I am sorely disappointed in how conservative New Hampshire has become politically and religiously, it is still the "Live Free or Die" state. It increasingly feels like the "Live Free But Don't Let Anyone Know You Aren't Republican Or Christian" state. Screw 'em! Bring it on, I say! I will be true to myself to the end, no matter how unpopular it is. So far, at least, it is still a free country - whatever that means these days.
I'm a veteran of 7-years in the US Army, '65 - '72, and a 21-Y-O when I received my draft notice for the Vietnam buildup in Aug. of '65. I had decided in '64 to take six-months to a year off from electronics technology school and do some traveling to cool my brain and see some of the world before going back and completing my degree. It didn't take my local draft board very long to call me up when my student deferment went away, so I enlisted and spent my time first as a crypto equipment repairman and then an inspector in electronic intelligence countermeasure systems.
I gave 7-years of the most productive years of my life defending and "upholding" the US Constitution. For me to have to sit and watch the terribly misnamed "Patriot Act" passed in this former "Land of the free and home of the brave" made my head spin. Now a supposed left of center US President actually signed the National Defense Authorization Act, proving he is a closet Repugnican is just toooooo effing much! No American is safe today in our own country from having his or her Constitutional rights trashed.
Benjamin Franklin said it best, "Those who give up essential rights for temporary security deserve neither", and that's where America finds itself today. What has led us to this sorry state? Religion, hateful religion, arrogant religion and myths of invisible friends and pro football players doing the bit at games; makes me sick to think this former bastion of liberty has come to this.
If I had the wherewithal I would move to Australia and tell these shitheads to kiss my ass.
Texas needs to have a jesus enema!
Thank you for your service to the U.S. I'm a military brat, so I know a little bit about military life.
My disillusionment with some of what happens in the U.S, has been slow but profound. I would leave too if I could.
On a more fun note, I have to say that Tebow's Jesus must not have followed him to Foxboro Stadium yesterday, as he was served a tall glass of STFU, New England-style. I really don't care about sports and I'm not even a Pats fan, but Tebow was obnoxious.
Thank you. BE that as it may, Meryl Haggard said it best; "No amount of money could buy from me the memories I have of then, and no amount of money could pay me to go back and live through it again."
On the Tebow debacle, it was bound to happen as on any given day, no matter how big, bad, and one is, there's always someone out there who can and will kick ones ass. That applies to people, sports or nations and the US has been shown the door in SE Asia, and in time America will be shown the door in SW Asia as well, just as happened to Alexander the Great and Genghis Khan were to learn in time. I have been in Iran close to the Afghan border and I studied the Pashtun People as a result of that trip. When they don't have any foreign invader to fight, they fight among themselves just for entertainment!
However, being a North Carolina born and bred Tarheel, I know where Tebow's invisible friend went; NASCAR season is starting and on that Sunday they were testing at Daytona. Everyone, at least in NASCAR knows, with little doubt, that doG loves riding in NASCAR events, and in his omniscience he always rides with the Winner, but one seldom seen a NASCAR driver kneeling at the winner's circle even they give the great "Him" credit. Cars going 200 MPH+ are a hell of a lot more fun than a stupid football game regardless of what Timmy boy thinks.
Concerning sports; when I was a kid and friends or other contemporaries discovered ball games of all shapes, sizes and uses I had discovered mechanical things, cars, engines, and especially radio and electronics, as well as girls (probably in reverse order).
As a result I know zilch about ball sports but am an avid follower of the Formula 1 series and have been since discovering that incredible form of high tech racing in Germany in 1967 and follow it to this day. The best news for me is the new "Circuit of the Americas" Formula 1 track being built in the Hill Country near Austin, TX with the first race Nov. 2012!!!!! I'll be there, in the pits and loving every second! I'm also a volunteer at the track that's only a 5 hour trip from Decatur down I35; CAN HARDLY WAIT!!!!
Road trip! Sounds great. Hell, I don't even like racing and it sounds fun.
HA! "Road trip" to be sure and you are invited to make one with us. My son, who works for CISCO, (if you watch MSNBC you no doubt have seen the "Telepresence by CISCO" when they do live teleconferencing. That's Kevin's product and he's responsible for software development for it) and he has arranged to have CISCO donate the entire telephone network for the track. Of course the track builders are buying a bunch of other equipment, but Kevin met with one of the principles and arranged the high-tech, state-of-the-art telecommunications system for the entire track. He and I, as well as other of his CISCO friends who are devoted race fans will be very well taken care of at the track for the entire event. I may not have friends in high places, but I do have a few high friends in several, LOL.
Ne that as it may, you are personally invited to "Come on down"! I promise no praying in the pits or anywhere for that matter.
It sounds like you are going to have a fantastic time! No wonder you're looking forward to it.
My dad used to take me and my brother to the local stock car races in Connecticut when I was a kid. I loved that. Every so often, between accidents, they'd go around the track a while. Good times...
Although I appreciate the invite to what sounds like a blast, I think I'd implode at a race track now. Give me my kayak and a remote bog in Maine or give me a mountain to climb, and I'm happy.
I might be going to Illinois for a conference in April, but that really doesn't sound very exciting, does it? Good grief.


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SharePoint Saturday Los Angeles "Be a SharePoint Star"
Nedra Allmond and Wahid Saleemi
Saturday, May 18, 2013 from 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM (PDT)
Event Details
SharePoint Saturday Los Angeles (SPSLA) Presents:
"Be A SharePoint Star"
A FREE IT Community Event happening on the Campus of Santa Monica College, Santa Monica, in Los Angeles.
Business leaders in the Greater Los Angeles area looking to expand their networks and exposure should mark their calendars for Saturday, May 18, 2013. The team behind the SharePoint Saturday LA (SPSLA) community are hosting a free, all-day event on the campus of Santa Monica College. Also included are interactive workshops, guest lecturers, and more. The event begins at 8:30am and runs until 5:30pm. This will be a great opportunity to connect with other SharePoint users, admins, developers and architects, to learn from experts and MCM's and MVPs, and to get introduced to various vendors and service companies serving the SharePoint community.
SharePoint Saturday events are quickly gaining popularity across the US and around the world, and we expect attendance to reach over 300 people. 30 sessions will be led by working professionals skilled in a variety of SharePoint disciplines. Coffee and lunch will be served at the venue. Giveaways and prizes will also be provided throughout the day.
Directions: http://sps.la/directions
Note:There will be more details as we approach the event date on the SPSLA website.
Register today so your spot is saved!*
*Register with Eventbrite before choosing a ticket, otherwise you will be unable to cancel your ticket in the event that you cannot attend.
Facebook: Facebook.com/SPSLA
LinkedIn: SharePoint Sat. Los Angeles.
Twitter: #SPSLA
Santa Monica College 1900 Pico Blvd.. Santa Monica, CA 90405 Phone: (310) 434-4000
Nedra Allmond, SPSLA Co-Chair
Wahid Saleemi, SPSLA Co-Chair
When & Where
Santa Monica College
1900 Pico Boulevard
Santa Monica,
Saturday, May 18, 2013 from 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM (PDT)
Add to my calendar


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Take down cellulite with this DIY coffee bean body scrub
While it's next to impossible to completely get rid of cellulite, there are a few things you can do to reduce its appearance. "I'm a huge fan of coffee grounds, and not just for your morning cup, but for your body as well," explains Jessica Kernochan, founder of eco beauty brand LaLicious. "The caffeine can help diminish the appearance of cellulite, and the coconut oil will hydrate and smooth your skin to perfection." In honor of Coffee Day today, why not whip up a batch of this skin-softening scrub?
1 cup coffee grounds
1/2 cup white or brown sugar
1 cup coconut oil
Mix all the ingredients together thoroughly. After you've washed your hair and body, massage the scrub on wet skin and rinse with warm water. Your skin will be soft, hydrated, and ready to be bared in your favorite warm-weather ensembles.
Also, check out 12 New Ways To Use Coffee Grounds from our friends at KitchenDaily!
More from BellaSugar:
3 DIY Kitchen Beauty Recipes You Need to Try This Second
10 Under $10: Beauty Oils from Head to Toe
3 Wavy Hairstyles to Try While Sleeping
Make Your Own Overnight Blemish Treatment


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Sweet potatoes rise in popularity
Staff writer
One of the frequently asked questions at Serendipity Gardens near Hillsboro last week was "when are the sweet potatoes coming in" and owner Jana Dalke' s answer was "sometime next week."
Warm weather and sunny skies stirred the gardening bug in many area residents' lives recently, and judging from garden shop traffic, most were on the hunt for traditional standards like tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers to plant in their gardens.
However, Dalke said she had quite a waiting list this year for sweet potato snips.
"I think with Sharon Boese closing her Garden Center in Hillsboro last fall I just have more people looking for those specialty items," Dalke said. "When they come in, we will have four varieties of sweet potatoes available, but they will probably go fast."
Dalke said she would make a run to Wichita to pick up Beauregard, Jewel, Puerto Rican, and Red Delight snips as soon as she gets the call that they are in this week.
Unlike regular potatoes which are cut and planted with eyes that grow into productive plants, or ornamental sweet potato vines that grow from plants, sweet potato vegetable starts are actually a stem with roots attached, called snips.
"Sweet potato snips grow best when it is warm," Dalke said. "They cannot tolerate the cold and that is why they have been delayed this year."
In the past, sweet potato snips have been available as early as May 1, but those who want to grow them have had to wait a bit longer this year.
"We had the ornamental vines early, but they have already sold out, except for a few dwarf varieties," Dalke said. "People like them for decorative planting because they are very drought tolerant and fill out quickly."
Dalke said ornamental sweet potato vines do produce an occasional tuber, but most people do not eat them.
"They actually are edible, but with ornamentals you have to be careful about what might have been put on them, like pesticides, chemicals, or fertilizer," she said. "They have very pretty leaves, but if you want to eat sweet potatoes it is best to grow the snips."
Sweet potatoes have gained popularity in the general public as a healthier alternative to white potatoes. Sweet potato tots are featured at Sonic restaurants, and many other fast food eateries offer sweet potato fries.
According to Foodreference.com, the sweet potato ranks number one in nutrition of all vegetables. Dalke said she didn't expect sweet potato snips sales to overtake the traditional garden favorites anytime soon, but there did seem to be more of a demand for them this year.
Last modified May 22, 2013


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What a crazy grape harvest 2013 is turning out to be in Oregon's northern Willamette Valley. The short story? Harvest began last week under sunny late summer skies, then picking shut down for days as rain fell intermittently throughout this past week, more picking resumed in the last couple of dryish days, again picking has stopped for an unseasonably wet and windy weekend, and with perhaps 50% of the local grape crop still on the vine, growers and winemakers look at a rainy forecast for clearing and dry days to resume picking.
What does it all mean? First and most importantly, rain isn't bad. People sometimes freak out about rain and down in my native California it seems even the threat of rain brings out the naysayers who write off a vintage before grapes have even been picked. Grapes are tougher than people think, even Pinot noir, and personally I'd rather have lighter more delicate wines from wet harvests than heavy, overripe wines from drought conditions.
That's not to say the wines of 2013 in Oregon will be light. I actually brought in 90% of my grapes last week before any really significant rain, and I'm thrilled with what I have happily fermenting away in the winery as I type. My red wines won't show any affect of the rain we're seeing right now, and that will make for interesting comparisons to wines made from later picked grapes.
This vintage is making me think of a more extreme 2005, where we had a nicely warm summer though not as warm as this year, then an early window to harvest at the earlier ripening sites where grapes were picked without any weather issues. At the end of September 2005, the heavens opened and it rained hard for a couple of days, not unlike this past week. Picking resumed amid up and down conditions, much like we've seen the past few days. Then as the season drew out, some really nice picking windows reemerged and the last of the grapes came in under fair skies. And you know what? 2005 is one of my favorite vintages of the past decade plus.
Who knows how 2013 will turn out, and I sympathize with those who have lots of fruit still out there hanging in this nasty weather. It's easy to say the grapes are tough when you don't really have anything left out there (just a little Pinot blanc to bring in in a week or two). But the truth is, I was afraid of extreme ripeness this fall after the consistently warm but rarely super hot summer we had. Seeing the fruit I brought in last week at sugars in the 22 to 23 range, with pHs in the 3.2 to 3.3 range, wow, that's chemistry I'd like any day. What about the flavors? I thought everything tasted nicely ripe, with the Bjornson fruit reminding me of 2011 with dynamic fruit expression at low sugar and low pH, just what I want and something I never expected given the growing season.
In all, there's no judging a vintage when so many grapes are still on the vine. Given when I've brought in, I'm thrilled for 2013. Given the fruit I've tasted that's still out on the vine, I'm excited so long as we do indeed see some prolonged drying and final ripening time. And before anyone writes things off because of rain, just remember 2005.
September 28, 2013
September 11, 2013
Harvest approaches
|Pinot Noir grapes nearly ready to pick at Crowley Station Vineyard
"I was out in the vines yesterday. Looks like things are getting close!"
"What? I haven't even begun sampling."
"Maybe you should. I'm going to start picking next week."
"No, I don't work with early ripening young vines like you do. I won't even begin to think about picking until the end of the month."
"I want fruit in before all the acidity ripens away."
"That's not a problem with my old vines. The flavors aren't there anyway. You can pick by the numbers. You need to wait for the flavors to develop."
Blah, blah, blah.
The upshot is - no one can agree what grape ripeness really is, much less when to best capture it with the all important decision - when to pick.
I was out in the vines the other day - incidentally, with a playwright friend who's latest script is set in the OR wine country - and found things progressing very fast toward harvest.
I'll just admit it. I'm an early picker. I want fruit that isn't too ripe, with good natural acidity and more focus in the final product than huge, explosive flavors that may impress up front but then fade, leaving you hanging.
|A big sky from the top of the hill at Crowley Station
Normally we might harvest in the last week of September into mid-October. In 2011, we harvested in late October into early-November, ridiculously late compared to the norm. This year, we're looking at a harvest perhaps a week earlier than "normal."
How did things look the other day? Sugars in Pinot Noir grapes ranged from 18 to 21 brix, or percent sugar (essentially). pHs were in the 3.0 to 3.15 range. By the numbers, I'd love brix at 22 to 23, and pH in the 3.3 range, perhaps lower, perhaps a bit higher if necessary to wait for - yes - flavors.
Flavor is more complicated than it might seem. Winemakers always talk about flavors - wanting explosive flavors that they'll capture in their wines. Except I don't really want explosive anything in my wine. And we all know from cooking that if you're going to cook something first, then add it to something else to cook together, you probably don't fully cook the thing at the outset to account for the additional cooking it will see.
Translated to grapes and wine, I want grapes with flavors that are appropriate for wine, not fruit juice. Wine is the product of fermentation, an additional kind of cooking if you will, so I'm looking for flavors that will translate well through that entire process (I haven't even mentioned the curing process of aging wine in barrels). It seems though that many winemakers want flavors in their fruit that, once made into wine, seem to lack energy or complexity, more like a bucket of ribs (delicious as that can be) instead of the more subtle, perhaps more complex flavor of appropriately rare beef.
Ok, enough with the analogies. The other day, the grapes sure looked, tasted and even measured out in ways that suggest harvest is just about here. Once we're through this week of hot summer temps, we'll see a cool down and perhaps some rain showers. Then I think it will be time to pick.
We'll continue to measure sugar and acidity. We'll continue to taste. But like with cooking, sometimes you just know when it's time, when something is ready. My focus right now is on that moment, for each vineyard I work with. It's exciting to know it's getting closer, really close.
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Hiddey Ho Scribblers! J Monkeys here. Sadly, I won't be able to respond to your comments until Monday because I'm at my annual Scrapbooking Retreat this weekend! Yay! Let's just pretend that whole Blizzard thing isn't looming.
I love a good story and to me, no story is more interesting that the story of our lives. I can't tell you how much I wish my grandmother had kept a journal during her life. She was born in 1909, the 7th of 8 children and she died in 2006, just a couple of weeks short of her 95th birthday. She lived through so much of what I view as "history". WWI, The Great Depression, WWII, the really icy bits of the Cold War, the advent of electricity, the phone, the radio, the TV – all of those were things were new at some point in her life time. She used to tell us how when she was a child, the ice-man would drive his horse and buggy to their house in East Hartford, CT to deliver blocks of ice for the ice-box. To her dying day, she called the refrigerator an ice-box.
Now, my grandmother and I had issues. I've probably alluded to them in the past; she wasn't a happy woman and like to be sure that many of the people around her were unhappy, too. But I bet, if she had kept a diary of some kind, I might be able to figure out why she was so unhappy. And that would mean a lot to me. Her siblings weren't unhappy. My aunt Grace (my g-mom's next oldest sibling) was a very upbeat lady, with a ho-ho-ho belly laugh.
When Auntie died (that's what we all called Aunt Grace, now I'm Auntie to a new generation, which is really cool) I helped clean out her house. In her basement, I found an old photo-album. The pictures were likely taken in the 30's or 40's or something. They are glued onto black construction paper-like stuff and the whole thing is tied together with twine. The worst thing is this: there are no notes or captions for the pictures. Clearly, the pictures, people and events were important enough to her to go to the expense and effort of making the book, but she's gone now and those stories can't carry on.
So one of the things that I do when I scrapbook is to write notes of what the picture is about or why I liked it. Those in the Scrapbooking trade (and if you don't know about the scrapbooking trade you are missing out on a billion dollar business!) call that "journaling." I do some journaling, but I'm more of a snarky-caption kind of girl. I think that my boys and even my grandchildren will (hopefully!) realize that those captions say as much about me as they do about the photo.
And one other thing about scrappin' before I leave you and go do it – I don't have any photos of my life before college, which is when I started my very first photo-album. My mom has some albums of my childhood which I'll likely inherit someday, but I don't have anything now, when I think my kids might find them interesting. My mom doesn't have them handy, they're packed away from her last house move before the kids were born. So in addition to making albums for me, I'm making albums for my kids to have when they are older. Each kid has an album. When they get old enough to be interested in doing the crafty part of it, I'll have him or her help me. Yes it means I'm printing 4 copies of a few hundred pictures each year (this year I've printed 4 copies of more than 500 pictures) but I think it's a small price to pay. Pictures are cheap these days. I think I've paid something in the neighbor hood of $125 for all the 2012 pictures. If I hadn't left for the last minute, I probably could have gotten them even cheaper online somewhere.
Today's secret: take the time to print off some of those zillion photos you have on your digital camera and phone. Stick them in an album and write a few notes so that when you are gone, your descendents will be able to know you a little.
Today's question: what do you do with your extra photos? I invariably print more than I use and the extras are sitting in boxes in my office.
Bonus Secret: I almost forgot to tell you what the title of this post has to do with scrapbooking! YIKES. My annual scrap-retreat is down in Westbrook CT. And every year, when I get there a moment or two after the places opens (Papercraft Clubhouse – it's awesome!) on Friday, I go over to the Westbrook Deli and order a sandwich that is good enough to wait a year for: The Mother of all BLTs. It's a grinder with like a pound of bacon on it! YUM. Sadly, they aren't open on the weekend and I won't get one this year because of the stinky blizzard. But there's always next year!


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Minecraft Creator Unaware of Plans for Wii U Version
Despite rumors, there doesn't appear to be any current plans for a Wii U version of Minecraft -- at least, not any that the game's creator, Markus "Notch" Persson, is aware of.
Speaking out on Twitter, Notch said, "I am not aware of any plans to release a Wii U version of Minecraft."
Hear that? That's the sound of Nintendo fans' hearts breaking everywhere. Minecraft originally started as a PC-exclusive, before jumping to Xbox 360 and most recently PlayStation 3. Mojang and console port developer 4J Studios has plans to bring the game to Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and Vita as well. So why no Wii U version?
According to Notch, Mojang is just too busy. "I agree a Wii U version would make sense, [by the way]. The only reason for no current plans is we've got too much work already, he explained, while adding, "I <3 Nintendo."
On the bright side, he used the word "current." Who knows, maybe in a year or two Wii U could get Minecraft.


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Thank you for your interest in becoming a Brain Awareness Week (BAW) partner.Go to Registration Form.What is Brain
Awareness Week?Brain Awareness Week (BAW) is the global campaign to increase public awareness
of the progress and benefits of brain research. Founded in 1996 by the Dana
Alliance for Brain Initiatives, BAW unites the efforts of partner organizations
from around the world in a week-long celebration of the brain every March.
Partners include universities, hospitals, K-12 schools, advocacy groups,
government agencies, outreach organizations, and professional groups.During BAW, partners organize fun and fascinating events in their communities
to educate and excite people of all ages about the brain and the promise of
brain research. Activities are limited only by the organizers' imaginations!The Dana Alliance invites your organization to join the growing ranks of
partners worldwide. Partnership in the campaign is free; programming by
individual partners is undertaken at their own expense. What does it mean to be a BAW Partner?By registering, your organization joins a global partnership committed to
educating the public about the brain and the promise of brain research. BAW partners agree to:
Why join?
BAW provides a wonderful opportunity to place your organization's work in the
public spotlight. By celebrating BAW, you can:
Registered partners have access to:
Watch our video to learn more about the benefits of becoming a BAW partner.
Are you ready to get involved? Click here to register. Registration consists of two steps: 1) completing the "Register for Brain
Awareness Week" section on the left-hand side of the Register/Login page; and
2) completing the registration form. You will receive an email notification
when your registration is approved.
Already a BAW Partner?
Please enter your e-mail address and password
University of Wyoming. Wyoming, USA. BAW 2017.
BAW Campaign Headquarters
The Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives505 Fifth Avenue, Sixth FloorNew York, New York 10017Tel: +1 212 401-1689Email: email@example.com


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Rulings issued by the U.S. Supreme Court in June severely limited the scope of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The Court explicitly conceded that the rulings would place tens of millions of Americans with health conditions, including severe hypertension and diabetes, outside of the protections of the ADA.
Although none of the cases directly involved HIV/AIDS, the rulings could be applied to drastically curtail the ADA's prohibition of HIV-discrimination. The rulings raise questions about the ADA's continued coverage of people with HIV disease who are responding to medications or who are state employees. Coming just one year after Bragdon v. Abbott, in which the Court ruled that people with HIV/AIDS were covered by the ADA, the cases reveal the Court's general lack of sympathy with and understanding of disability rights.
"Correctable" disabilities
In separate cases, the Supreme Court considered whether "corrective measures," such as medications, treatments or medical devices, should be taken into consideration when evaluating whether a person meets the ADA's definition of disability. The Supreme Court ruled that a plaintiff's impairment must be considered in its "corrected" state.
In Sutton v. United Airlines Inc., the Court held that twin sisters who applied to be global airline pilots were not disabled because eyeglasses could correct their vision problems. United Airlines denied the sisters jobs because they both had severe myopia. The Court dismissed their ADA claims by holding they were not disabled because, with eyeglasses, they both had 20/20 vision.
In Murphy v. United States, the Court considered a case brought by a mechanic who was fired by his employer because his severe hypertension caused his blood pressure to exceed the federal Department of Transportation's requirements for drivers of commercial vehicles. The Court held the mechanic was not disabled because, when medicated, his high blood pressure does not substantially limit his ability to work.
In Albertsons Inc. v. Kirkingburg, the Court ruled that an employer could fire a truck driver whose vision did not meet the Department of Transportation's minimum vision requirements. The Court held that although the truck driver was blind in one eye, he was not disabled because his brain was able to compensate for his blindness and enable him to see "normally" out of his functioning eye.
These rulings may mean that people with HIV disease who are responding to medications do not meet the ADA's disability definition. For example, a court could conclude that a person who was on disability benefits but has improved because of drug therapy would not be protected from HIV discrimination during the hiring process or on a new job. Perversely, the ADA would provide no protection for many of those who are able and attempting to return to work, while still providing protection to those who could not.
Due to the reasoning applied by the Supreme Court last year in Bragdon v. Abbott, however, these rulings may not undermine the rights of people with HIV. To be disabled under the ADA, a person must have "a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity." The Supreme Court's recent decisions all considered arguments based on the major life activity of working. In Bragdon, the Court ruled that a woman with HIV disease met the ADA's definition of disability because she was substantially limited in the major life activity of procreation. The Court reached this conclusion due to the risk of infection to the woman's sexual partners and to her potential children.
Using Bragdon's reasoning, in considering whether a person with HIV who was responding to medications was disabled, the Court should not evaluate the person's general health or ability to work, but whether the HIV medications reduced the risk of transmission of the virus to sexual partners or to potential children.
The Court could still overturn Bragdon based on advancements in the prevention of HIV transmission from mother to child due to drug treatments, and the ability to procreate through means other than sex. Consequently, continued protection of people with HIV disease under the ADA may depend on courts finding sexual relations in general, and not just procreation, a "major life activity." Lower courts have reached this decision already.
The Court did make one point in its decisions that may protect some people with HIV disease who are responding to drug therapy. The Court ruled that it will consider all the effects of corrective measures -- positive and negative. This means that courts should take into account the side effects of HIV medications, and could decide that a person is disabled because of those side effects.
"Regarded as" disabled
In Sutton and Murphy, the Supreme Court decided another issue that will restrict the scope of the ADA's coverage. Under the ADA, people are disabled not only if they actually have an impairment that substantially limits a major life activity, but also if they are "regarded as" having such an impairment. This provision is designed, in part, to prohibit discrimination based on an employer's mistaken belief that an employee's actual impairment substantially limits their abilities, when in fact the impairment does not.
In the context of HIV/AIDS, the "regarded as" prong would prohibit an employer from firing an HIV-negative person because the employer mistakenly thought the employee was HIV-positive. It would also prohibit an employer from firing an HIV-positive person who was asymptomatic because the employer mistakenly thought that all people with HIV disease were too ill to work. Since HIV discrimination is usually based on unfounded myths and stereotypes about the risk of infection in the workplace and the employee's likelihood of imminent illness and death, advocates have always assumed that HIV disease fits comfortably within the "regarded as" prong of the ADA's disability definition.
The Court's cramped interpretation in Sutton and Murphy, however, renders the "regarded as" prong all but meaningless. The Court held that for an employee to be "regarded as" substantially limited in the major life activity of working, he or she must be regarded as unable to do a "broad class of jobs" rather than the single type of job he or she has or is applying for.
In order to meet the Court's standard, an employee will have to prove that when an employer fires him or her, the employer was not just thinking that the employee was unqualified for his or her position, but that the employee was unqualified for a broad class of positions. Proving so specifically what is going on in the mind of a discriminating employer will be difficult. It seems likely that most employers are only considering an employee's suitability for his or her job, not contemplating the employee's ability to do a broad class of jobs.
Once employers become educated about the rulings in Sutton and Murphy, it will be easy for them to phrase the grounds for termination in such to avoid liability under the "regarded as" prong of the ADA's disability definition. An employer may be able to avoid liability by writing a termination letter that states: "We feel that HIV-disease makes you unqualified to be a pediatric oncology nurse. We have not considered, and or decision in no way reflects upon, how HIV-disease impacts your ability to perform other nursing or health care jobs." Having received this termination letter, proving that an employer regarded an employee as unable to work in a "broad class of job" would be difficult.
State employees
The Supreme Court also issued an opinion that may strip state employees of ADA protection. In Alden v. Maine, the Court held that employees of the state of Maine could not sue the state for violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act, which sets the national minimum wage and provides for overtime pay. The Court held that because of states' "sovereign immunity," they could not be sued without their consent by private citizens in state court for violation of a federal law. Since the Supreme Court has already held that private citizens could not sue in federal court for violations of the FLSA, the decision, in effect, means that state employees have no rights under the FLSA.
The Court's reasoning in Alden could apply to all federal employment and civil rights law. It could mean that employees of state and local government bodies could not sue their employer for a violation of the ADA. Fortunately, California's disability rights laws are as extensive as the ADA so that state employees won't be stripped of all legal recourse for disability and HIV discrimination.
Brad Sears is director of the HIV Legal Checkup Project.


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100% Organic Turmeric TeaThis is our most popular tea! Turmeric is a wonderful herb and one of the most important spices we have. We made this unique organic tea and combined it with ginger (another fantastic root), lemongrass and mint. Contains 20 tea bags.
Certified Organic tea made from Mint, Lemongrass, Lemon Balm and Roasted Chicory Root. Caffeine free. Helps to defeat your fatigue and worries. Contains 20 teabags.
Certified organic black tea, blended with eucalyptus leaves. Help with colds and flu. Contains 20 tea bags
taste the real blueberry in this delicious tea
Organic Mango TeaOrganic Australian mangoes with organic Australian tea is a beautiful mix. This refreshing taste of Summer is proving to be one of our most popular gourmet teas. Contains 20 tea bags.
Contains rooibos tea, wild yam, astragalus and red clover. Helpful to women of all ages. Contains 20 tea bags.
Made from a blend of organic green tea, mint, ginseng, ginkgo biloba and bacopa. A popular tea for all interested in maintaining good health and benefit healing. Contains 20 teabags.
start the day with pep and zing
Another popular tea for good health and healing. Made with St Mary's thistle, rhubarb root, chicory, burdock and nettle. Contains 20 tea bags.
Restore balance in body and mind. Rooibos tea is low in tannins and caffeine free. Contains 20 teabags.
English Breakfast Organic Tea is popular among our traditional tea drinkers - a fine blend to start the day with. . Read Elle's Tea Talk post on our Teas and English Breakfast.
delicious and healthy green tea, full of antioxidants
Made with lemon grass, lemonbalm, roasted chicory root and mint. Contains 20 tea bags.


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Teacher resources and professional development across the curriculum
Teacher professional development and classroom resources across the curriculum
Evaluating Communication
|Make a Lesson Plan | Summing Up the Session | Final Journal
Use the information you learned in this session to plan and evaluate a lesson with an emphasis on communication for one of your classes. Remember that there are several modes of effective communication in the classroom. Students can work individually, in pairs, in small or large groups, or as a whole class. Communication is sometimes oral, sometimes written, and sometimes enhanced through representations. As you've seen in this session, the use of diagrams, number sentences, and manipulative materials makes ideas visible. Encounters with additional ways of thinking and counter-examples induce students to reflect on their own grasp of a concept, and provide teachers with assessment opportunities.
Finally, the choice of task or problem is critical if all students are to be enticed to communicate in productive ways. You may want to choose a task that relates to an area of mathematics that has already been introduced and explored, or a task related to one from this session.
Use a problem you teach in your subject area, or select one from the Learning Math courses.
After you have created your lesson plan, use the Classroom Checklist (an Adobe PDF document) to evaluate it.
|Teaching Math Home | Grades 3-5 | Communication | Site Map | © |
© Annenberg Foundation 2017. All rights reserved. Legal Policy


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Thank you to the many East Coast dentists & their teams who joined us in Washington, D.C. today for our one-day No… twitter.com/i/web/status/9…
Websites are dormant media. A consumer has to be actively searching for you. With active media, they know you befor… twitter.com/i/web/status/9…
Thank you to all 200 clients & their teams who joined us today for the mini No Limits conference in Denver, Colorad… twitter.com/i/web/status/9…
Dinner with the Sonrie Dental Clinics team in Guatemala just before we left. Wonderful trip & lots of exciting... fb.me/87F4oIb88
John Christensen with the management of Sonrie Dental Clinics in Guatemala. fb.me/6h5iFgbmC
We just got back an exciting trip to get to know our newest clients in Guatemala. Here we are meeting with the... fb.me/1pivmRXzZ
Dr. Bret Shupack, Leslie Leupen & Dr. Nate Schott in beautiful Tel Aviv, Israel, where we went to on-board new... fb.me/3KCq5uE9q
For every 100,000 patients who see these "active" chrisad-managed media stimuli every year...only a comparative... fb.me/1nOHuTAXh
John Christensen lecturing at Tel Aviv University! fb.me/5C0uuuMne
Big thank you to all the dentists, their teams & the wonderful speakers who joined us for the 1-day No Limits... fb.me/3ubPguFoV
Sometimes amazing things can happen in well-lit hotel meeting rooms! Sharing insights for planning your next... fb.me/5Vs9EX03Z
Informed patients = greater treatment acceptance. Share this fun and informative post! fb.me/3HpuzXoRv
During summer break you CAN schedule working patients & students midday, mid-week! Market in May to fill June, July… twitter.com/i/web/status/8…
There's one big chrisad rule we encourage you to break each summer: Scheduling full-time working patients & kids... fb.me/7HP7DfheJ
On our way to Denver, CO for our quarterly Rep meeting. This is where all our experiences from client offices... fb.me/9fpHIaE9Y
Most consumers don't rely on online reviews before choosing a dentist, but even personal referrals move at the... fb.me/2PjooDuKR
Everything you do & say is a marketing message! We can help you make sure you're sending the right one!… twitter.com/i/web/status/8…
Tax refunds = strong March production opportunities. Market now to take advantage of this bump in dental demand!… twitter.com/i/web/status/8…
March is usually a very strong month for chrisad clients, in part because of U.S. patients getting their tax... fb.me/8jmgV44A3
Infographic: A look at U.S. sugary drink consumption fb.me/1PndnkFhW
Going to be in Northern California in 2017? Stop by our main HQ in beautiful Marin County! Get a tour & meet our... fb.me/5Rs4bcFrj
Going to be in Northern California in 2017? Stop by our main HQ in beautiful Marin County! chrisad.com/contact-us/ https://t.co/TtpUq5QX1L
Share a piece of your 2016 success with the needy! Help the CS Foundation expand its health services in rural India… twitter.com/i/web/status/8…
Thank you to FedEx for the delicious mini cupcakes from SusieCakes Bakery! They were gone in minutes flat. And... fb.me/N5yyACt9
Thx to our chrisad team for filling up this donation barrel 3x already! Our lobby is overflowing with the spirit of… twitter.com/i/web/status/8…
We're so amazed at the generosity of our chrisad team for filling up this toy & gift donation barrel THREE TIMES... fb.me/8mlYOdLC8
No Limits XIII is underway at the Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas! We've got a great crowd of dental professionals... fb.me/TNCBbAGL
Happy Halloween from chrisad headquarters! Here are a few of the costumes we spotted around the office.
Learn in precise detail how we grow our clients to $1 million+ per chair, per year. Understand how from great... fb.me/7HeWS6h7u
Learn how we grow clients to $1 million+ per chair, per year, only at No Limits conference in Vegas, on Nov. 4 & 5!… twitter.com/i/web/status/7…
Photos from John's stopover in London this past week where we met with some of the brightest & greatest of the global marketing world.
Don't miss your HUGE future prosperity opportunity! No Limits conference 11/4-11/5 in Vegas! chrisad.com/dental-confere… https://t.co/kpDRKpibpe
Don't miss out on your HUGE future prosperity opportunity! Join us in Las Vegas on November 4 & 5 at the... fb.me/2UBRZPNox
More images of merrymaking & brainstorming from our annual Rep meeting in Denmark!
Photos from our annual Rep meeting in Denmark. Lots of fun to look forward to what's in store for 2017 & beyond! https://t.co/IjTWEn1IJ6
More photos from our annual Rep meeting, this year in Denmark. Lots of fun to look at recent successes & look... fb.me/1nVPQgKSa
The latest photos from our annual Growth Management Representative meeting in Copenhagen, Denmark. What a... fb.me/1o2JpZPvo
Your Best 2017 Investment: We can help guide you to turn your practice into a Golden Goose. chrisad.com/chrisads-best-… https://t.co/IzwiFiU5ea
Your best investment opportunities are right at your fingertips...in the form of your practice. We can help guide... fb.me/5PgM4Dksg
Congratulations to Robert Urban, Creative Services Assistant Manager, for his 10 year work anniversary at chrisad! https://t.co/R3hVxMha81
Congratulations to Robert Urban for his 10 year work anniversary at chrisad! Robert started as a graphic designer... fb.me/3gnJZPU0J
Potential new patients are fragile! What your staff says to them over the phone can either scare them away or... fb.me/52ORCwHsi
Join us at No Limits XIII & change your life & your practice for the better! chrisad.com/dental-confere… https://t.co/65JYxnMZtt
Join us at No Limits XIII & change your life & your practice for the better! fb.me/2pl787QoW
Looking at empty chairs? Counteract the coming "September Slump!" Talk to chrisad today! chrisad.com/contact-us/ https://t.co/g1pwhjkpGh
September is almost here. Kids are back in school, adults are back from vacation, & suddenly your chairs are more... fb.me/7XCvcaxVw
Honored to visit with some of our very first clients, Dr. Allen Baker & manager Cathy of San Fernando Dental Care! https://t.co/6DpDmYp99m
Today we were honored to show some of our very first clients, Dr. Allen Baker & practice manager Cathy of San... fb.me/2l48bmnCG
When patients inevitably ask you whether they should still floss in light of the AP's controversial & sure-to-be... fb.me/4CXMzDTch
The August "Back to School" period will be the most lucrative of the year. Order by 7/29! chrisad.com/dental-brochur… https://t.co/HDLZiDuI2r


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Cultural Landscapes of the Pacific Islands: ICOMOS Thematic Study
This is the first regional thematic study on Cultural Landscapes in the Pacific region. Published by ICOMOS (the International Council on Monuments and Sites), it is an overview of cultural landscapes in the Pacific Islands and the defining characteristics that account for their commonalities as well as their diversity. It also illustrates examples of various types of cultural landscapes found across the region and the geo-cultural characteristics of the Pacific Islands, which make this category of cultural heritage significant to the region.
The document can be downloaded below, or a hard copy can be requested from ICOMOS at http://www.icomos.org


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Home and Garden May 2018
Koh Living was created by two best friends who loved travelling the world and connecting with people, having fun and searching for the meaning of life.
We believe that gifting is all about connecting with others and connection brings meaning and purpose to our lives. Receiving a gift that has meaning to us, makes us feel that we are important and that we belong. And so, our mission is to help people connect through meaningful giftware.


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At a time when GPUs are expensive and in short supply, at a time when Intel is coping with a PR disaster - a new chip that combines Ryzen technology with Vega graphics at a reasonable price should be a real winner. However, it looks as if AMD has shot itself in the head once again.
- Many of the AM4 socketed motherboards that would normally support the new chip require a firmware upgrade to even boot. You may need a Ryzen CPU and a GPU to boot and update the UEFI. Or AMD can loan you an older Bristol Ridge APU to get going.
- You have to be careful to choose the right DDR4 RAM or you will be in trouble. The right RAM is pretty expensive too.
- Once started in Windows, you often get crashes that are not fully understood. Some reviewers went down during benchmarking.
- In Linux even with the latest kernel and bleeding edge graphics stack, the performance is buggy and unstable.
Did I mention it's tough to be an AMD fanboi?


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Richman (Echo) Park
Valentine Av bet. E Tremont Av and E Burnside Ave
Directions via Google Maps
This text is part of Parks' Historical Signs Project and can be found posted within the park.
For almost one hundred years, local residents have called this site Echo Park, after the well-defined echo that can be heard between the two rock masses that dominate its dramatic topography. Its name was changed in 1973 to honor Julius J. Richman (1915-1972), chairman of the Twin Parks Association and the Urban Action Task Force, and Assistant Administrator of the City's Finance Committee.


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by Matt May
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The PDF/UA ("Universal Accessibility") specification, or ISO 14289, published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in August of last year, was a big step forward for authors of the tools we use to create and consume PDF content. But what the spec itself does is a little harder to explain, and there's been a lot of confusion. I even confused myself recently about what PDF/UA does and doesn't specify. So I thought it might help to summarize the spec in some detail for those who are coming to grips with its place in the world of PDF accessibility.
If the PDF/UA specification could be summed up in one sentence, it may go something like this:
"PDF/UA makes certain that the PDF format isn't the source of accessibility problems."
The end result of a document built using the PDF/UA spec is a more reliable, more accessible document that avoids the tricks and traps that PDF can present. PDF authors don't need to know anything specific about what goes on behind the scenes; the tools themselves are responsible for adding and preserving the accessibility of the PDF. That's the value of PDF/UA.
That does not mean that a PDF/UA-compliant document will always be perfectly accessible—issues like poorly-built Word documents or other source material will, of course, carry their accessibility flaws no matter what format they're converted into. No one should claim that PDF/UA conformance means that a given document will pass the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, and organizations shouldn't treat PDF/UA as a WCAG stand-in. But conformance does indicate that the authoring process for a given piece of content retains its accessibility level when it's output as a PDF.
The PDF/UA specification defines conformance for three different aspects of PDF: content, readers, and assistive technology. The authoring tools are intentionally omitted: only the content they produce matters here, and that can only be measured at the individual document level.
We've seen a number of organizations that are specifying PDF/UA-compliant documents, and that's a worthwhile approach, as far as it goes. The revamped accessibility checker in Adobe Acrobat Pro XI bases its tests on PDF/UA and WCAG criteria, but doesn't yet fully test PDF/UA compliance.
The PDF/UA document itself is 23 pages, and thanks to ISO's publishing model, it's about $90 US to purchase a copy. We're sensitive to the cost issue here, but in the interest of full disclosure, Adobe doesn't own this work (it was the product of participants from a number of companies, and its copyright belongs to ISO), so we're not able to simply republish the spec. To those who are planning to implement PDF/UA in their readers and assistive technologies, $90 is not a barrier (and if you promise to implement PDF/UA in an open-source tool, I'll buy you a copy myself, though I'm sure I'd get the better end of that deal).
The material is what we in America call "inside baseball"—it's very technical, requires a solid understanding of PDF internals, and is heavily cross-referenced with ISO 32000-1:2008, the PDF 1.7 specification. For non-technical authors looking to create accessible PDFs, this spec is very technical; you may be better off looking at the PDF Techniques for WCAG 2.0. However, I've taken the liberty of summarizing this spec so that everyone has a chance to understand what conformance entails.
The spec starts by listing what PDF/UA does not do: help with converting paper or electronic documents to PDF/UA; give implementation advice for rendering PDF documents; or tell you how to store PDFs or what OS to use. The rest of the front matter includes normative references to WCAG 2.0, PDF 1.7, PDF/A-2, and PDF/X-1a; defining a handful of terms; and setting a namespace for PDF/UA metadata which goes into every conforming file.
The document then defines conformance at three levels: individual files, PDF readers, and assistive technology.
Conforming files
A conforming file contains features that are valid according to the PDF 1.7 spec, except for features PDF/UA specifically forbids. It has to be marked as a PDF/UA document as described in Section 5, and meet all the requirements in Section 7 below.
Conforming reader
A conforming reader must also be a conforming reader according to PDF 1.7. It will support all the tags, attributes and key values specified for accessibility, and respect when optional content is hidden. It will make the logical reading order available. It will allow AT to inspect artifacts, and its interface must itself be accessible, and not interfere with any AT feature.
There are some repair techniques for headings and tables, rules for handling optional content, attached and embedded files, digital signatures, actions, metadata, navigation, annotations, forms and media.
Conforming assistive technology
A conforming AT supports all of the features of the content and the reader, and should allow navigation by page labels, document structure, or the outline. It should also let the user override default navigation zoom. (A combined reader and AT, perhaps something like TextHelp's PDF Aloud, could be both a conforming reader and a conforming AT.)
File format requirements
This is the meat of the spec, and there's some good advice in here for those of you who are already well-versed in tagging PDFs.
All PDF/UA documents must be tagged PDF. Tags must be semantically appropriate (that is, you can't just mark everything <p> and be done), and in logical reading order. Artifacts (sometimes referred to as "Background" in Acrobat) must not be tagged. If a PDF does anything non-standard with its tags, those tags have to be remapped to standard PDF tags. Standard tags can't be overridden.
Content can't flicker, blink or flash, and it can't be conveyed solely by color, contrast, formatting, layout or sound. Image-only PDFs may be created, but their content must also be tagged.
The document must have a title, and it must be displayed in the title bar.
Text must be Unicode. The document's language, and any changes in language, must be declared.
Graphics must be marked up with the Figure tag, and must have alt text, unless it's presentational, in which case it's an Artifact. Groups of images that represent one thought are to be tagged as a single Figure. Captions that go with figures must be tagged as such.
Headings must be nested sequentially (e.g., H1-H2-H3 is acceptable, but H1-H3 is not). Headings can go as deep as necessary (e.g., H1041 is valid, if you've used the first 1040 levels). Generic "H" headings are acceptable, but can't be used interchangeably with numbered headings.
Tables should have headers ("TH" tags) with a Scope attribute.
Lists must be marked up appropriately.
Math equations must be in a Formula tag, with alt text.
Page headers and footers must be marked up as Pagination artifacts, so they're not read out repeatedly.
Footnotes and endnotes must be marked up with the Note tag.
All optional content configuration dictionaries (a PDF feature which allows content to be hidden conditionally) must be named.
Any embedded files must also be accessible.
Article threads (which allow multicolumn layouts across pages) must retain proper reading order.
Digital signature form fields must be laid out accessibly.
Non-interactive forms have to be tagged with PDF "PrintField" attributes so they will appear as read-only form fields to AT.
Static XFA-based forms are allowed. Dynamic XFA forms are not.
Secured documents must allow AT access.
Documents should have outlines that reflect the reading order and nav hierarchy.
Visible annotations must be represented in the right place in the reading order.
Tab order must be defined.
Links must be tagged, and contain an alternate description.
Metadata tags must be properly set for embedded media.
Actions (i.e., scripting) are allowed. Changes in content or focus must be announced to AT, and cannot set time limits on individual keystrokes.
There are requirements for the implementation of fonts that are well out of scope for an overview, but important for reliable rendering of fonts across operating systems and reader implementations.
So, that's it. We're hoping a little transparency regarding PDF/UA helps everyone understand what it does and doesn't do. In time, we anticipate that PDF/UA will make accessible authoring a more automatic and uniform process across authoring tools, which in turn will make the accessibility of PDFs in the wild a lot better in general.
Thanks for this Matt. I do have one question.
"Static XFA-based forms are allowed. Dynamic XFA forms are not"
We have completed a number of Dynamic XFA forms that are accessible via JAWS and ZT with the current release of Adobe Reader on windows. I am aware that these and static XFA forms are not accessible on iOS devices. Are there other restrictions that we should be aware of?
How much of this, if any, does the Accessibility Checker in Adobe Acrobat Pro XI assess? When can we expect Adobe to come out with a tool to assess and fix files so we can make them PDF/UA compatible?
Many Thanks for this insightful post Matt!
Are there any sample PDF/UA files available to help understand the standard tags appropriately?
Readers of this blog may be interested to know that the PDF Association's Matterhorn Protocol addresses many questions relating to validating conformance with PDF/UA. More information:


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Girl Scout Troop 168 is working on their Silver Award Project. This project is for the cadet's level in girl scouts. The troop has put in 50 hours of work and have chose to do activities that would help benefit the local animal shelter.
The troop has been to several other Girl Scout Troops in Harrison County and made Happy Socks (sock filled with batten rolled in cat nip and tied) for the kittens to play with at the shelter.
10 years ago . . .
Births announced this week are: Amy Dawn Cole, March 20, daughter of Melody Dawn Cole; Dakota Layne Colemire, March 23, son of Lynn and Jessica Colemire; Daniel Stewart Craig, March 21, son of Janna Allynn Weinel and Kevin Stewart Craig; Jeffery Dalton Million, March 21, son of Bethany Lynn Million; Monica Elizabeth Spicer, March 22, daughter of Debbie and Donald Spicer; Zachery Shane Hodge, March 17, son of Christy and Shane Hodge; Sidney Olivia Manion, Feb. 13, daughter of Chris and Ann Manion.
Our current warm, sunny weather has made everyone just delighted and the intoxication of it all may lead us to act impulsively.
I am as anxious as anyone to move some of my houseplants outdoors: My gardenia looks terrible in the dining room and the jasmine down stairs seems to stare into space dreaming of better days.
They are coming, just be slow about the transition from indoors to out.
FFA Big Truck, Tractor Pull
The Harrison County FFA Alumni will sponsor a Big Truck and Tractor Pull on Friday, April 23 and Saturday, April 24 at the Harrison County Fairgrounds. Both events will begin at 7 p.m.
A silent auction will be held Friday night only. For more information contact Steven Prows at 859-298-0025.
Back in 2007 we installed a five acre tall grass prairie with assistance from the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife's Habitat Improvement Program. Each year they assist a number of landowners in various ways that improve habitat, prevent erosion and protect waterways. Basically, you do the work but they supply you with the materials needed to get the job done.
The USDA's Farm Storage Facility Loan (FSFL) program has been amended to allow producers to build cold storage facilities to store their fresh fruits and vegetables.
To be eligible, cold storage facilities must have a useful life of 15 years.
John W. McCauley, State Executive Director of USDA's Kentucky Farm Service Agency (FSA), reminds producers that June 1, 2010 is the deadline for the 2010 Average Crop Revenue Election (ACRE) Program or the traditional Direct and Counter-cyclical Program (DCP). This is a mandatory deadline for all participatants and USDA will not accept any late-file applications.
Births announced this week are: Mersadeez Rowe Dietrich, March 2, daughter of Wally and Christina Dietrich; Hannah Malee Duncan, Feb. 10, daughter of Gary and Teresa Duncan; Ryan Holton Moore, March 25, son of Jason and Amber Moore.
Harrison County is included in the area of Kentucky that will be changing area codes from 606 to 859 on April 1.
Harrison County Middle School council approves standardized student dress code.
The City of Cynthiana donates $7,000 to park rehabilitation projects on Pleasant and Water streets.
* Early in 1994, a small group of people interested in this community and history agreed to establish a museum. I encouraged one of our local historians, the late George Slade, to write a column to promote the museum. George composed, I typed the column for him, named it "Museum Musings," and submitted it to The Cynthiana Democrat for publication. This column first appeared in the paper on March 31, 1994. Thanks to the newspaper staff and to the community for their faithfulness to this column and to the museum. Martha Shropshire Barnes.
•Paisley Renee Hicks
Paisley Renee Hicks was born to Bridget Hill and Patrick Hicks of Cynthiana on Feb. 9, 2010 at Central Baptist Hospital. She weighed 7 lbs.
•Asher Wright Hoskins
Asher Wright Hoskins was born to Crystal and Dewayne Hoskins of Georgetown, Ky., on March 11, 2010 at St. Joseph East in Lexington, Ky. He weighed 10 lbs.
•Emma Klaire Minton
Emma Klaire Minton was born to Nathan and Jacki Minton of Carlisle on March 8, 2010 at Saint Joseph East in Lexington. She weighed 7 lbs. 8 oz.
•Ellie Danielle Ritchie
The Harrison County Extension Office will host a meeting of a group who are interested in traveling to Alaska later this summer. The meeting will be held on Monday, April 5 at 7 p.m. at the Harrison County Extension Office.
During this meeting we will discuss the dates, locations to visit, and the cost of the trip. A presentation will be made showing the areas of travel. The trip is being planned for late July and will last 8-10 days with some additional options.
Births announced this week are: Scottie Gene Darosett Jr., Feb. 24, son of Scottie and Debbie Darosett; Blake Alexander Lovins, March 13, son of Rusty and Annette Lovins; Josie Kayla Poe, March 17, daughter of Ronald and Angela Poe; Zachary Allen Wiglesworth, March 13, son of Ginger and Christopher Wiglesworth; Austin Lee Williams, March 14, son of Gary Williams and Pamela Tolliver.
* Log Cabin, Oct. 13, 1944 -- "Greer W. Smith of Sylacauga, Ala., on Wednesday, assumed the ownership and management of the Dr. Pepper Bottling Co. of Cynthiana, corner of Pike and Poplar streets, owned by Cora Wells, president and Coburn Walls, secretary and manager. Wells told friends here before leaving that he planned to accept a position in the ship yards at Jeffersonville, Ind. Mr. Smith, whose wife and daughter will join him here when he secures a suitable residence, owns an interest in a Dr.
gricultural Development Board approved the Kentucky Forage and Grassland Council for $100,000 in Agricultural Development Funds and $100,000 in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds for the expansion of research related to switchgrass as a renewable energy source. This project is the first award through the Multi-County Energy Initiative Program.
March 9 -- International Potluck Dinner, 6 p.m., Cynthiana Presbyterian Church. Public is invited. Country being spotlighted is Ghana. Stop by the office for recipes.
March 11 -- Vegetable Meeting, "Grow Your Own Vegetables" will be held at 7 p.m. at the Harrison County Extension Office.
March 22 -- Folded Card Workshop, 9 a.m. only. Deadline to register is March 17. Cost is $1. Call the Extension Office at 234-5510 to register.
The Governor's Office of Agricultural Policy (GOAP) will hold its final Regional Workshop for 2010 on Monday, March 29 at the Fayette County Extension Office in Lexington. The workshop begins at 9 a.m. and is one of 11 workshops that GOAP has held to discuss new policy and program changes of the Kentucky Agricultural Development Fund (KADF).
Serenity Skye Sutton
Serenity Skye Sutton was born to Tabitha and Micky Sutton on Feb. 10, 2010 at Georgetown Community Hospital. She weighed 7 lbs. 11 oz.
My friend Dee Dee keeps asking me about the best way to finally eradicate the creeping Charlie that has invaded her back yard. She is reluctant to use synthetic herbicides, or "poisons" as she puts it.
The Ag Development Board announces the beginning of sign-ups for 2010 Phase I programs. The period will begin on Tuesday, March 30 and conclude on Monday, April 19. This will be the only application period.
The application process will include answering questions concerning your farming situation. After all applications are in, each application will be graded based upon a key which is established by the Ag Development Board.
* Log Cabin, Dec. 20, 1912 -- "Public Sale of Commercial Hotel, Saturday, Dec. 28, 1912 at 11 o'clock a.m. on the premises in Cynthiana, Ky., the undersigned as agent for T. A. Garnett will offer for sale to the highest and best bidder the Commercial hotel property. This is the large, three story building, conveniently situated as to depot and business part of city, and is the leading hotel of Cynthiana. Terms easy, and will be known day of sale. This property will positively be sold as stated. For information call on Lark Garnett or write the undersigned at Cynthiana.
Copyright © 2019
The Cynthiana Democrat is your source for local news, sports, events, and information in Cynthiana, KY and the surrounding area.


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Spreading the love of Jesus...the Cowboy Way!
"But I am like an olive tree flourishing in the house of God; I trust in God's unfailing Love for ever and ever." ~Psalm 52:8
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(CNN) -- Cambodia and Thailand failed to resolve a weeklong military standoff over an ancient border temple that sits on disputed land.
Cambodian Buddhist monks walk at Preah Vihear temple on Monday.
An eight-hour meeting on Monday ended with both sides agreeing on only one point: that troops that each country has amassed at the site of the Preah Vihear temple will not fire on each other, the Thai News Agency reported.
Officials will reconvene after Cambodia's general election on July 27. For now, the countries are seeking regional intervention from their Southeast Asian neighbors.
Foreign ministers of the 10 countries that comprise the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are meeting in Singapore this week.
Cambodia has also sent a letter to the United Nations Security Council to call attention to the standoff.
At the heart of the dispute is an 11th century temple to which Cambodia and Thailand lay claim. It sits atop a cliff on Cambodian soil but has its most accessible entrance on the Thai side.
The International Court of Justice awarded the temple to Cambodia in 1962. Thailand claims, however, that the 1.8 square mile (4.6 square km) area around it was never fully demarcated.
Thailand further says that the dispute arose from the fact that the Cambodian government used a map drawn during the French occupation of Cambodia -- a map that places the temple and surrounding area in Cambodian territory.
This month, the United Nations approved Cambodia's application to have the temple listed as a World Heritage Site -- a designation U.N. gives to places it deems of outstanding universal value.
The decision re-ignited tensions, with some in Thailand fearing it will make it difficult for their country to lay claim to disputed land around the temple.
Opposition parties in Thailand used the issue to attack the government, which initially backed the heritage listing.
Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen, who has been in power since the mid-1980s, has portrayed the U.N. recognition as a national triumph in the run-up to the general elections.
The current flare-up began July 15, when Cambodian guards briefly detained three Thais who crossed into the area. Once they were let go, the three refused to leave the territory.
Cambodia claims Thailand sent troops to retrieve the trio and gradually built up their numbers. Thailand denies that, saying its troops are deployed in Thai territory.


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A college-level music experience
Prepare for college auditions.
Honor Choir
Join us on campus for Honor Choir!
A summer choir camp for high school students
July 7-12, 2019
- Improve your sightreading!
- Polish your vocal skills!
- Become a more secure singer!
- Explore your other talents!
- Earn an hour of college credit!
Directed by Dr. Cliff Ganus. Enjoy five days of advanced work in choral music and related fields, including music literature, sight-reading, and group voice instruction.
July 7-12, 2019
Harding University
Searcy, Arkansas
Here's what Honor Choir members say about their experience"Thank you for such an amazing summer memory! The skills and tools I learned about music I will certainly carry throughout high school and the friendships I made will be just as valuable. The repertoire was engaging and unique and the choreography was fun and high energy."
"I can't praise the program enough!I'm really happy that you do Honor Choir. I've been to a different choir camp and it just wasn't personal like Honor Choir was. I really love being there."
"I love Honor Choir and I plan on coming every year until I'm in college! The entire experience has helped me become a better musician and the friendships built and the memories made there are unforgettable."
Space is limited, so apply early!
The cost for the Summer Honor Choir is $395. That amount is reduced to $295 if you are an All-District Singer or to $245 if you are an All-State Singer. Please indicate if you qualify for this scholarship. A deposit of $100 (partially refundable) is required with this application. You may pay the remainder when you arrive. We now can accept credit card payments over the phone. Please call the music office at 501-279-4343 if you would like to pay by credit card. Please include a recent photo with your application.
Transportation from and to the Little Rock airport can be arranged ($20 each way). If you fly, please arrange to arrive on Sunday morning before 11:30.
Please ask your choral director to submit a note of recommendation on your behalf to Dr. Cliff Ganus at email@example.com. If you do not have a director, ask us about special application procedures. Returning Honor Choir members do not need to submit another recommendation.
The Curriculum
Your week at Harding University will give you an opportunity to work intensively in choral music and related fields, simulating a college-level music experience. You'll live in university housing and eat your meals in campus dining facilities. Each day you'll study sight-singing, music literature, and how to present yourself as a performer. And you'll rehearse some great choral literature, preparing for a final concert. There will also be special performances, events, devotionals and recreational activities. Registration is on Sunday afternoon, July 7, between 1:30 and 4:30. The Final Concert will be given on Friday night, July 12, and you may depart after the concert or on Saturday morning. Participants can receive one hour of college credit in Music 131 (Chorus).
To qualify for participation in this experience you must have special interest and ability in choral music, as verified by your choral director's recommendation. You should have completed the ninth grade by the summer of 2019.
In order to receive college credit for Honor Choir, a student should submit the following by July 1, 2019:
- Transcript showing 12 hours in solid subjects with a cumulative GPA of 3.0
- ACT score of 19 or SAT combined 900 - sent directly from ACT, will not accept computer printouts
- Two reference letters (academic and character, one can be the letter from your choral director)
- Verification of two MMR vaccinations - These can be obtained from your high school office.
$395 covers everything—room, board, entertainment and instruction. A deposit of $100 (partially refundable) is required with your application. A scholarship of $150 is offered to All-State Singers, and $100 to All-District or All-Region singers.
The Director and Staff
Cliff Ganus earned the D.M.A. in choral music at the University of Colorado has taught at Harding since 1968. A professor of music and director of choral activities, he directs the Harding Chorus, which has sung in 43 states and 37 countries under his leadership. For 20 years he directed Harding's show choir.
|"Cliff Ganus is a renowned choral conductor/educator with an outstanding reputation. The singers under his direction gain a musical experience that is, for many, life changing. He and his singers bring to the listener a spiritual as well as an emotional dimension." - Eph Ehly
Chuck Hicks was one of eight faculty members to receive a Teacher Achievement Award this year. He teaches guitar and directs the Belles & Beaux and the Good News Singers, traveling all over the country.
Stacey Neely is an adjunct teacher in voice and music education who is very involved with Harding's fall musical and Spring Sing.
Kelly Neill, who holds the D.M.A. in voice from the University of Missouri-Kansas City, as sung professionally with the Kansas City Chorale, Conspirare, and the Santa Fe Desert Chorale. He directs the Harding Concert Choir, Chamber Singers, and Belle Canto and teaches music appreciation and conducting.
Susan Shirel holds the D.A. in Music Education and Vocal Performance from Ball State University and specialties in those areas in her teaching at Harding. She's an inspirational teacher and mentor.
Jenna Thomas, a Harding grad who now teaches drama at Central Arkansas Christian School, has been the camp choreographer for 16 years. She brings a dynamic creativity to the final performance and will teach you more than you ever thought possible in a week.
Jay Walls specializes in composition and holds the Ph.D. in that field from the University of North Texas. He also teaches music appreciation, and you'll enjoy his ability to communicate interesting musical concepts.
About Harding University
Harding University is a private liberal-arts university affiliated with the churches of Christ. Harding's community includes approximately 5,200 students from 50 states and 50 foreign countries. The University is known for its strong academic offerings, for its international programs and for its commitment to spiritual training and involvement.
The school is listed in Peterson's Competitive Colleges and is ranked by U.S. News and World Report as one of the South's best universities.
Photos & Videos
Contact Us
Honor Choir is overseen by Harding Chorus
Mailing address:
Harding University
Honor Choir
Box 10767
Searcy, AR 72149-5615


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