text:
The custom of going on a pilgrimage to the Holy Places is common to all the major religions, although each presents unique features and characteristics.
The origins of this important religious and social phenomenon lie in the search for a more intense and more direct contact with the divine or the sacred, which the believer wishes to experience for a wide variety of reasons: a pilgrimage may be undertaken for a spiritual purpose, or even to fulfil a duty or keep a vow, to obtain material benefit, whether freely without any precise constraints on timing, or on special occasions: in the latter case, pilgrimage sometimes leads to the mass movement of persons, not only with major social repercussions, but also assuming political and economic importance.
The goal of the pilgrimage is usually a place where, by tradition, a special manifestation of the divine had taken place, with or without a temple or a sanctuary, or a series of sacred buildings capable of preserving and transmitting the memory of that holy event. In some cultures, pilgrims wear special clothing and comply with precise rules governing diet and behaviour throughout the pilgrimage, whereas in others the custom tends to resemble a sort of tourism with religious undertones.
Owing to these possible convergences, and - above all - the evident differences, it is worthwhile making a comparison, purely the purpose of dialogue, between cultural and religious sites that are far apart both geographically and historically: it is important to use a diachronic perspective because it allows us to trace the origins of this custom in the world's most ancient civilisations.


text:
Patient Trust
>> Friday, December 12, 2008
Above all, trust in the slow work of God
We are quite naturally impatient in everything
to reach the end without delay.
We should like to skip the intermediate stages.
We are impatient of being on the way to something
unknown, something new.
And yet it is the law of all progress
that it is made by passing through
some stages of instability -
and that it may take a very long time.
And so I think it is with you.
your ideas mature gradually - let them grow,
let them shape themselves, without undue haste.
Don't try to force them on,
as though you could be today what time
(that is to say, grace and circumstances
acting on your own good will)
will make of you tomorrow.
Only God could say what this new spirit
gradually forming within you will be.
Give Our Lord the benefit of believing
that his hand is leading you,
and accept the anxiety of feeling yourself
in suspense and incomplete.
- Pierre Teilhard de Chardin SJ
This is such a very profound prayer by Fr. Pierre. Reflecting on his words, it beckons me to continue to be patient with God and to completely trust that all things will just fall into place in His Time.
Like all living things, we must allow our plans, our experiences, our dreams, our hopes and aspirations to gradually mature and grow within us and lift them up to God. Because in life, there are no shortcuts nor quick detours. Quick fix solutions do not really improve or solve things... they only numb and give temporary relief. Only in God's leading and able hands are we able to feel contentment and satisfaction and the relief that no other worldly thing can ever give.
So trust in Him. And be patient. And in this Christmas season, may the joy and glory and excitement of the advent season remind us how patient Our Father had been with us. All these years, he had been patient with us.
Isn't it about time we put our trust in Him for a change?
God bless you.
Read more...

subset: commoncrawl


text:
LKR47 wrote:I think so as well. This scumbags link has been up for almost 14 hours now no telling how many people have downloaded it at this point
I stay on the forums lol. Also, It doesn't matter HOW LONG the link the is up.. Once it's on the wrong person's harddrive, Its jus gonna get reuploaded and spread around the blackmarket of mxs lol. And I agree with broland, yo when i first got into this game there was SOOO many good creators.. Now its heavily thinning. </3


text:
Virginia ~ Boone County to wit
On this 14th day of
February One Thousand Eight Hundred and fifty one, personally
appeared before me a Justice of the Peace, in and for the county of
Boone and State aforesaid, Alexander Cantley age Fifty-
seven years, a resident of the County of Raleigh, in the State
of Virginia, who being duly sworn according to law, declares
That he was drafted into the service of the United States
as a privet in Captain James R. Nemos Company, of the
fifth Regiment of Militia, commanded by Colonel Francis
Preston, in the War with Great Briton against the United
States; That he did from the county of Monroe, in the State
of Virginia, enterd into the service of the United States, on or
about the first of September One Thousand Eight Hundred
and Thirteen, and continued in actual service for the term
of six months, and was honorable discharged at Norfolk
in the State of Virginia on the 11th day of March, One
Thousand Eight Hundred and fourteen, as will appear
by his discharge herewith [annesit ?], as will also appear
from the Muster Rolls of said Company.
Affiant makes this declar-
ation, for the purpose of obtaining the bounty land to which
he the said Alexander Cantley may be entitled under the
"act granting bounty land to certain officers and soldiers
who may have been engaged in the military service of the
United States," passed 28th of September 1850, and any sup-
plement or amendment thereto Alexander Cantley
Meredith Wills
Jacob Petry
Sworn and Subscribed to before me, the day and year above
written; and I hereby certify that I believe the said Alexander Cantley
to be the identical man who served as aforesaid. That he is a man of truth
and that I suppose him to be a man of the age above stated.
G Stollings J.P.
State of Virginia Conty of Boone { SS
I B. E. Barrett Clerk of the County
Court of said County do hereby Certify that Griffin Stollings
whose name is subscribed to the within certificate is
an acting Justice of the Peace in and for said County duly
Commissioned that full faith and credit is and ought to
be given to all such his official acts accordingly and
that the signature purporting to be his is genuine.
Given under my hand and the
Seal of the said Court at the clerk's office this
26th day of February 1851
B. E. Barrett Clerk
Source: Alexander Cantley (Pvt., Nemmo's Company, 5th Regiment VA Militia, War of 1812), pension file S.O. 28,206, National Archives, Washington, D.C.


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The Fish:
Mackerel is a fast-swimming fish. In the summer it appears in large coastal shoals as well as in the Skagerrak, the North Sea and the South Norwegian Sea.
In European waters, it is managed as one stock—northeast Atlantic mackerel—which is divided into three spawning groups: North Sea mackerel, which spawns in the North Sea and Skagerrak (May to July); western mackerel, which spawns west of Ireland and the British Isles (March to July); and southern mackerel, which spawns off t he coast of Spain and Portugal (February to May). The fish spawn in the surface layers of the sea, and the larvae grow to 8 inches in a few months.
The scope of the spawning stock is calculated by its annual egg production, measured in international, scientific surveys throughout the spawning season (February to July). During this time, the numbers of eggs produced by individual females are also measured.
After spawning, the western and southern mackerel migrate to the Norwegian Sea, and later to the North Sea and Skagerrak where they mix with the North Sea mackerel. The mackerel does not have a swim bladder and has to swim constantly in order not to sink. It can live up to 25 years.
Fishing Equipment:
Fishing takes place during the summer months. Vessel sizes vary from small boats that use nets and trolling lines on the coast, to large, seagoing boats that rely on purse seine nets. Norwegian fishing vessels catch between 140,000 and 160,000 tons of mackerel each year.
Wild Catch:
For Norwegian mackerel, the premium catch period is September to November when the Mackerel swims from the feeding areas in The Norwegian Sea and back to the spawning areas. This is when the fat content is the highest, making the mackerel especially tasty and packed with healthy EPA, DHA and other omega-3 fatty acids. This explains the international popularity of Norwegian mackerel, which is caught when the fish is of the highest quality.
Norway mainly uses purse seine when fishing for mackerel. This distinguishes Norway from other exporters and contributes to the high quality of mackerel from Norway. Trolling line is also used along the coast and pelagic trawl at sea.
Mackerel is especially rich in:
• Protein that builds and maintains every cell in the body
• Omega-3 fatty acids that prevent and reduce the development of cardiovascular diseases, and which are important building blocks in the brain
• Vitamin D, which is necessary to get the right balance of calcium in the body to maintain and strengthen the bones
• Selenium, an important element in an enzyme that fights harmful chemical processes in the body
More nutritional data can be found at www.nifes.no/en/prosjekt/seafood-data


text:
|Director of Athletics
|540-460-4191 (m)
Deidra Dryden is the senior woman athletics administrator, associate athletic director, and Title IX coordinator at Southern Virginia University.
During the 2010-2011 academic year, Dryden served as Southern Virginia's acting athletic director spearheading the university's NCAA Division III exploratory application process and leading the athletics program to its highest combined winning percentage (.566). That year she also led her women's tennis team to a 15-3 record, which marked the best season in the program's six-year history.
Dryden began coaching at Southern Virginia in 1997 when she helped recruit the university's first women's basketball, volleyball and soccer teams.
From 1998-1999, Dryden was the head women's soccer coach leading the team to an impressive 10-2 record in its inaugural season, capped by a NSCAA national championship. That year she was also head women's basketball coach and guided the first-year team to a fourth-place finish at the NSCAA national tournament.
In the spring of 2000, she became head softball coach in the program's second year and took the team to a second-place finish at the NSCAA national tournament.
Dryden's intercollegiate athletic career includes playing tennis at Brigham Young University-Hawaii and playing basketball and tennis at Columbus State University.
Dryden has a B.S. in math education from Columbus State University and a M.Ed in Mathematics from James Madison University.
Deidra and her husband, Dr. Brent Dryden, reside in Buena Vista and have five children.


text:
Showtime shifts 'Dexter' to summer
- %27Dexter%27 starts its eighth%2C and likely final%2C season June 30
- Airing after%3A %27Ray Donovan%2C%27 with Liev Schreiber as an LA %27fixer%27
- %27The Borgias%27 and %27Nurse Jackie%27 return April 14
Showtime is splitting up its two most popular series.
Dexter and Homeland, which aired back to back in fall the past two years, will separate, so the network can use them as launching pads to introduce two new dramas.
Homeland, the Emmy-winning best drama, will remain in the fall, returning for a third season on Sept. 29. But Dexter, the serial-killer series starring Michael C. Hall, will air its eighth and probably final season starting June 30, its first summer run.
It will be followed by Ray Donovan, a new drama starring Liev Schreiber as a Los Angeles "fixer" to the rich and powerful. Jon Voight and Elliott Gould also star.
Homeland's new companion is Masters of Sex, a fictionalized biography of sex researchers William Masters and Virginia Johnson, that stars Michael Sheen and Lizzy Caplan.
Also due: The Borgias and Nurse Jackie return April 14, and The Big C will wrap up its run with four one-hour episodes beginning April 29, reflecting a "subtle change in tone," says entertainment chief David Nevins.
Nevins says the changes are an effort to capitalize on the channel's momentum. With 22 million subscribers, it is slowly gaining on HBO, with about 30 million, and is the "only premium channel to show consistent growth."


text:
Black Hills Passion Play
For 70 years, the BLACK HILLS PASSION PLAY was a main attraction for Spearfish. Performances were every Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday at 8:15 p.m. from June through August. Josef Meier first brought the Passion Play to Spearfish, South Dakota in 1938. The Passion Play ampitheatre was constructed in 1939. The following images provide a glimpse of this wonderful production. Click on any photograph to select a larger version. Thanks to the Spearfish Area Chamber of Commerce for sharing these images.Read More
1 / 17


text:
A Street View World Record
The Street View car seems to have decided to follow Wendy Southgate as she took her dog for a walk in Suffolk, England. Wendy Southgate claims to appear in Google Maps Street View 48 times.
We think this makes Wendy the Street View World Record holder. That is unless you know better ...
Google Street View Roulette
Street View Funny, the Street View Gallery website, has created a fun application that lets you view a random Street View image. To play Street View Roulette just press the 'Random Google Street View' button.
Stig in Street View
To complete this week's full-house of Street View stories; I like this Google Sightseeing post on Stig's desperation to appear in Google Maps Street View and Google's equally desperate attempts to blur him out.


text:
So you've been getting plenty of Rank 1, 2, 3 and 4 Enchantments and Runestones over your character's career, taking up tons of valuable bag space in the process. Wouldn't it be great if you could combine them together and create more powerful Enchantments and Runestones for you to use on your gear while simultaneously freeing up precious bag space? Keep reading to find out how.
"HELP! Where did all my bag space go?"
To fuse your Enchantments or Runestones, you'll need four or more of that level and type of Enchantment or Runestone. For example, here are four Rank 1 Radiant Enchantments:
In order to access the fusion window, either double click on the Enchantments or right click on the Enchantments and click "Fuse into Greater".
You will either have a fusion success or a failure, as shown by the following images:
If you are successful, you will create a single Rank 2 Radiant Enchantment. If you are not successful, you'll lose one of your Rank 1 Enchantments and will have to get another one in order to try again.
Once you have four Rank 2 Enchantments, you'll be able to create one Rank 3 Enchantment. Once you have four Rank 3 Enchantments, you'll be able to create one Rank 4 Enchantment. They will max out at Rank 10.
As you start fusing your Enchantments and Runestones into higher and higher ranks, you may notice that your chance at a successful fusion decreases rapidly with each Enchantment rank increase, so much so that you will eventually have to start using items to help aide in the successful fusion of your Enchantments and Runestones.
In my opinion, you are safe in creating up to Rank 5 Enchantments just by fusing the previous ranks together without using a Preservation Ward or a Coalescent Ward. However, Rank 6 Enchantments only have a 40% success rate. It is at this point I recommend to start using Preservation Wards to protect your Rank 5 fusions from being destroyed in case of a fusion failure.
It's really easy to check to see if it is worth using a Preservation Ward or not. Go to the auction house and look up the current price in Astral Diamonds for Preservation Wards. While the price will vary, the price at the time of this posting was about 4,000 AD for one Preservation Ward.
Now look up the Rank 5 of the type of Enchantment or Runestone you are about to try to fuse. For this example, I'm using the Rank 5 Dark Enchantment. As of this posting, they were going for around 6,000 Astral Diamonds. This means that it's cheaper to lose a Preservation Ward, so it's time to equip those wards on your fusion screen! If the fusion fails, it will protect your Enchantments or Runestones from being destroyed. The Preservation Ward, however, will be destroyed in the process and you'll need to equip another one to protect your Enchantments. To equip one, just click the "Ward" button and select a Preservation Ward from your inventory while on the fusion screen.
When you start to fuse Rank 6's together, you'll see that you only have a 30% chance to get a Rank 7. Now is definitely the time to start using Preservation Wards if you are not already using them as you will fail more than one out of every three fusions. Making a Rank 8 Enchantment you'll only have a 25% chance of success. One out of every four will be a failure. Making a Rank 9 Enchantment you'll only have a 20% chance of success, and finally making a Rank 10 Enchantment will only have a 10% chance of success.
While Preservation Wards may be sufficient to protect your mid-tier ranks, such as Rank 5 and Rank 6, and allow you to progress to Rank 7, getting beyond Rank 7's using just Preservation Wards is going to be a hassle. That is where Coalescent Wards come in. A Coalescent Ward, when paired with 4 of the same rank Enchantment or Runestone, will guarantee a fusion of those Runestones or Enchantments. For example, if you use a Coalescent Ward while trying to fuse four Rank 6 Enchantments, you are guaranteed to get a Rank 7 Enchantment in return. This comes at a cost of course – the Coalescent Ward itself. To equip a Coalescent Ward, equip it the same way you would the Preservation Ward, by clicking the Ward button on the Fusion screen and selecting the Coalescent Ward from your inventory.
Coalescent Wards generally come from two places. One is the Zen Market, but as it stands, it is extremely overpriced there and I do not recommend buying it from there – Save your Zen for something that can benefit your entire account, such as a rare or epic mount. Your second obvious place is going to be the Auction House and you'll find them reasonable anywhere between 100,000 AD to 120,000 AD. Likewise if you are lucky, a player may be selling one for gold. Expect to pay upwards of 100-150 gold per Coalescent Ward if you manage to buy one from another player. There is, however, a third option at gaining Coalescent Wards – saving up your Celestial Coins and buying a Coffer of Wondrous Augmentation from the Celestial Synergy tab at the Vault of Piety.
This is a wise purchase in my opinion as it'll use up your maximum allowance of coins every time (Remember, you can only have a maximum of 7 Celestial Coins on your character at any given time. If you don't use them, you won't get anymore until you buy something from the Celestial Synergy tab in the Vault of Piety). After making your purchase of the Coffer of Wondrous Augmentation, open your inventory and locate it. It'll look like a blue chest. Double click on it or right click on it and click open and click ok on the prompt that appears. The chest will now open and reveal the goodies within. If you are lucky, you'll get a Coalescent Ward on your first try! If not, feel free to save up another 7 coins and try your luck again.
So how common are Coalescent Wards when compared to Preservation Wards when opening the Coffer of Wondrous Augmentation? After a little over 100 total Coffers opened, I've found that the following are fairly accurate odds:
80% Chance of getting a Preservation Ward
20% Chance of getting a Coalescent Ward
This means you should get a Coalescent Ward in one out of every five Coffers you open.
When are Coalescent Wards an absolute must you may ask? When using special Epic Enchantments such as Weapon Enchantments and Armor Enchantments that come in shard form. Unlike with the Rank 1-10 Enchantments, they are not usable while in Shard Form. Like with the Rank 1-10 Enchantments, however, you'll need four of them to fuse together in order to make a usable Enchantment and then an additional four to create more powerful versions of said Epic Enchantments. Coalescent Wards are an absolute must for these Epic Enchantments because they have a successful fusion rate of just 1%! In other words, if you don't use a Coalescent Ward, you are in all likelihood going to lose a Shard.
For example, to create a Lesser Bilethorn Enchantment, you'll need 4 Shards of Bilethorn Enchantment. After gathering the four shards, double click them to open the fusion window. You'll have to equip a Coalescent Ward, which will guarantee a successful fusion – however, this means the Coalescent Ward will be consumed in the process. You will be presented with a shiny Lesser Bilethorn Enchantment for your troubles, however!
In order to create higher ranks of these Epic Enchantments, you'll need to collect more shards, create more of the Lesser Enchantments, and fuse four of the Lesser Enchantments together to create a Normal Enchantment. Four Normal Enchantments creates a Greater Enchantment and Four of those make a Perfect Enchantment which is the maximum level currently for Epic Enchantments.


text:
RIM to Devs: We're Ready for Your BlackBerry 10 Apps
"It'll be BlackBerry 10 on 10-10."
That's how Alec Saunders, Research In Motion's VP of developer relations, announced the date on which the company would begin accepting BlackBerry 10 application submissions. And now that the date has arrived, the company is reviewing apps targeted for its next-generation operating system.
This is obviously an important step for RIM, as the strength of BB10's app ecosystem will be a determining factor in the OS's success. With that in mind, the company is doing all it can to incentivize developers to build apps for its platform. It is promising to review all apps submitted in October and November for preferred placement in BlackBerry App World at launch. And it's reminding devs of its 10k Developer Commitment: A guaranteed $10,000 in earnings for apps that meet certain quality levels and are submitted to App World before the launch of BlackBerry 10-based devices.


text:
District attorney still won't say if Aaron Hernandez was the shooter
- Ernest Wallace%2C 41%2C is charged with being an accessory after the fact in the murder of Odin Lloyd
- Hernandez%2C who has pleaded not guilty to murder and five weapons charges%2C is next due in court on July 24
- Another alleged accomplice%2C Carlos Ortiz%2C will face a judge on Tuesday
ATTLEBORO, Mass. — With most of the case documents sealed by court order until Tuesday afternoon, and attorneys respecting a gag order, prosecutors Monday provided no new details of their murder case against former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez — including whether Hernandez was the trigger man in the slaying.
"All we've done is charge Aaron Hernandez with murder," Bristol Country (Mass.) District Attorney Samuel Sutter said on the courthouse lawn Monday afternoon after the third suspect in the case, Ernest Wallace, was arraigned.
"As far as the specifics about who was the shooter and who might have been a joint venturer, it's too early to say. The investigation is ongoing. There's a probable cause hearing (for Hernandez) scheduled for two weeks, and our case continues to grow."
Prosecutors say they have video from the surveillance cameras at Hernandez's home that show him walking through the house with a gun in his hand minutes after the killing, but they have not said who fired any or all of the five bullets into victim Odin Lloyd, a 27-year-old semipro football player and Hernandez friend who was found dead on June 17.
Lloyd's body was discovered by a jogger in an industrial park roughly a half-mile from Hernandez's home in North Attleborough.
Wallace — who agreed to continue to be held without bail until a July 22 hearing — was in court for roughly three minutes, flanked by high-powered Boston attorney David Meier, a former Suffolk County homicide prosecutor. In the blink-and-it's-over session Monday, assistant district attorney Michael McCauley said Wallace had been charged with accessory after the fact, but McCauley provided no details on Wallace's alleged involvement in the killing.
Six members of the Lloyd family, on hand for the hearing, watched the short proceeding and left with only a comment from Lloyd's aunt, who said as she climbed into a waiting SUV, "We'll wait until this is all over."
As he was escorted out of the courtroom, the short and stocky Wallace mouthed "I love you," to a short-haired female supporter, who returned the gesture, smiled and nodded. She and two other women left the courtroom and drove away without making a comment.
Accused of having "orchestrated" the slaying, Hernandez pleaded not guilty to the murder charge and five accompanying weapons charges. He is being held without bail at the Bristol County House of Detention. His next court date is a probable-cause hearing scheduled for July 24.
On Monday, a judge ordered the warrants for searches executed on Hernandez's home to be released Tuesday at 2 p.m. ET. Prosecutors have argued against their release, but Sutter said his office would "accept the ruling."
Carlos Ortiz, 27, a Bristol, Conn., man prosecutors say also was in the car with Hernandez on the night Lloyd was killed , has pleaded not guilty to a felony weapons charged and is being held without bail.
The lesser charges against Wallace and Ortiz have led some to conclude prosecutors believe Hernandez was the shooter, but Sutter declined to make that assertion. Prosecutors have declined to reveal where Ortiz and Wallace are being held.
At a hearing scheduled for Tuesday in Attleboro (Mass.) District Court, a judge will decide whether Ortiz can be declared dangerous for carrying an illegal firearm and held without bail for up to 90 days. The hearing is part of a new Massachusetts initiative to enable judges to declare dangerous anyone caught with an illegal firearm in public. It would provide additional assurance that Ortiz's bail won't be lowered.
Wallace, 41, who has addresses in Bristol, Conn. and Miramar, Fla., has been held in custody since he surrendered to authorities 10 days ago in Miramar. Held without bail, he waived extradition and was transported to Massachusetts for Monday's arraignment.
Wallace was represented by high-profile Boston attorney David Meier, a former Suffolk County (Mass.) homicide prosecutor. With Wallace being of limited means, it has led to speculation that Hernandez is paying his legal bills. Meier, who did not speak during the proceeding, has not commented on the speculation.
When asked if Wallace and/or Ortiz were cooperating with prosecutors, Sutter said, "It's way too early for me to comment on that." Because Wallace likely can't afford Meier, some have speculated that Hernandez is picking up the tab. That would seem to indicate that Wallace isn't ready to become a witness against Hernandez.
Already mind-boggling, the murder investigation against Hernandez has led police to other violent incidents possibly involving Hernandez — a 2012 drive-by double homicide in Boston in which two men were gunned down in their car, and a civil lawsuit filed by a Florida man who said Hernandez shot him in the face in February and left him for dead in an alley. Alexander Bradley, who filed the lawsuit last month, has been ordered to testify July 17 before a grand jury investigating the Lloyd killing.
While methodically laying out the case against Hernandez at his arraignment on June 26, prosecutors said the former NFL star sent text messages to two men from out of state, later identified as Ortiz and Wallace, summoning them to his North Attleborough, Mass., home to help with the murder.
Using surveillance camera videos that tracked a rental car from Hernandez's home to Boston and back, McCauley presented a tight timeline he insisted places Hernandez, Ortiz and Wallace with Lloyd for roughly an hour the morning he was killed, right up to the minute he was executed in an industrial park roughly a half-mile from Hernandez's home. Prosecutors also used cell-phone pings and text messages to build their case.
According to prosecutors, other evidence collected in the case include crime scene evidence, a shell casing and chewed piece of gum left in a vehicle rented by Hernandez, and items collected in searches of Hernandez's home, an apartment he rented in Franklin, Mass., other vehicles and areas surrounding both residences.
Prosecutors say they have video from the surveillance cameras at Hernandez's home that show him walking through the house with a gun in his hand minutes after the killing, but they have not said who fired any or all of the five bullets into Lloyd.
Hernandez's attorney, Michael Fee, called the case "circumstantial" and "not strong."
Hernandez will escape execution if convicted, because there is no death penalty in Massachusetts. But, at 23 years old, a year after signing a $40 million contract with the Patriots, he is staring at life in prison, a ruined NFL career and tens of millions of dollars in lost wages. He has a fiancée and a 7-month-old daughter.
Hernandez was cut by the Patriots 90 minutes after his arrest, and companies that used him to endorse their products have severed ties. Over the weekend, the Patriots exchanged approximately 1,200 Hernandez jerseys from fans who wanted to dump the gear. The team estimated that 20% of the jerseys were youth sizes.
PHOTOS: The Aaron Hernandez murder case


text:
"I am the first in my family to graduate from college. Wherever I go, I will always stand proud for the Fulfillment Fund and let the world know that they believed in me in the hardest times."Stephanie Diaz-SandovalUCLA Class of 2012, Fulfillment Fund Alumna
"Knowing that I have people who believe in me gives me the motivation to have a strong work ethic so that I may one day achieve my dream of becoming a pediatrician."VictorSociology/Science Major, UC San Diego Class of 2013, Fulfillment Fund Scholar
"Here I am writing to you from Berkeley and I can honestly say if it weren't for the Fulfillment Fund I wouldn't be here."JessicaBusiness/Law Major, UC Berkeley, Class of 2015, Fulfillment Fund Scholar
"Being a mentor is the most fulfilling experience. People think it takes a lot of time and energy, but actually it's the other way around. You gain much more than you give."Addis AregaFulfillment Fund Alumna and Mentor
"The Fulfillment Fund helped me with essays, test-taking skills, managing my time, taking me on a college trip to Northern California, and encouraging me to apply for all kinds of scholarships."LicetzUSC Class of 2015, Fulfillment Fund Scholar
"It leaves such an amazing memory, sharing my student's journey to achieve their college dream."Cassandra YehFulfillment Fund Mentor to Heidi
"It can take so little to push a life one way or the other. The Fulfillment Fund pushed me toward success, and each time I found myself wavering, they pushed me again. I didn't become a statistic."Marcelo BermudezPresident, Figueroa Capital Group, Fulfillment Fund Alumnus
"If it were not for the Fulfillment Fund, I would not have been interested in college. It's changed my life. The Fulfillment Fund steered me into the right direction and showed me the path to success."SamuelPepperdine University, Class of 2015, Fulfillment Fund Scholar
"The Fulfillment Fund believed in my potential. The support from this organization made my college experience possible."Tania GongoraUCLA Class of 2011, Fulfillment Fund Alumna
"The Fulfillment Fund taught me to never give up and that anything is possible."DeniseBiology/Anthropology Major, Whittier College Class of 2014, Fulfillment Fund Scholar
"College always seemed so close when I met with the Fulfillment Fund. No other adults seemed as devoted and dedicated to the progression of disadvantaged yet determined youth as Fulfillment Fund staff members."GladysUC Berkeley Class of 2015, Fulfillment Fund Alumna
"I am a testament that dreams can come true despite the most unfortunate circumstances."Tina McKenzieBarnard College Class of 2011, Fulfillment Fund Alumna
"The Fulfillment Fund is changing the lives of students. I give thanks to the Fulfillment Fund for being there since the beginning of my journey toward college and my dreams."AlexisUC Berkeley Class of 2015, Fulfillment Fund Alumnus
"Mentoring has been one of the most fulfilling experiences of my life. To see a young man earn his opportunity to advance his life through acceptance of college solely due to his hard work and extraordinary effort brings tears of joy to my eyes."Rob EvankoFulfillment Fund Mentor to Andres (UC Santa Cruz Class of 2016)
"In retrospect, all the services and resources the Fulfillment Fund provided - the guidance, oversight and accountability - were without a doubt what I needed as a student to succeed."Robin ParedesFulfillment Fund Alumna and Mentor
"I thought I would be giving a little of my time and knowledge to a student, and instead I received the gift of insight, sincerity, a sense of accomplishment, and a deep and lasting friendship from my mentee, Eduardo."Jerald MedwayFulfillment Fund Mentor to Eduardo (UC Santa Barbara Class of 2013)
"Through the guidance and reinforcement from the Fulfillment Fund staff, I feel motivated to walk in the footsteps of my calling of who I truly am."ElijahAlabama A & M, Class of 2016, Fulfillment Fund Scholar
"With the Fulfillment Fund, my daughter has options. It's broadened her horizons."Jessica HillParent of a Fulfillment Fund Student
"The support of my mentor and everyone at the Fulfillment Fund is too great for me to fail. This encourages me to strive and succeed. I feel lucky and blessed to have the Fulfillment Fund by my side."JavierCal Poly San Luis Obispo Class of 2014, Fulfillment Fund Scholar
"My baby never mentioned college until she was with the Fulfillment Fund. Now college is embedded in her head....the Fulfillment Fund gives kids a mind to be somebody in life."Denise RossParent of a Fulfillment Fund Student
"We have statistics that prove beyond a doubt that what we do makes a difference. We have a model that works, and a model that can be replicated all over the world."Dr. Gary GitnickFounder and Chairman, Fulfillment Fund
"I am so grateful for the overnight college trips because they truly made me aware of what kind of college I want to go to."JessicaUC Santa Cruz, Class of 2017; Fulfillment Fund Scholar
"I first became involved with the Fulfillment Fund in the 8th grade. Truth be told, I had no idea that I had just hit the jackpot and that my life would change forever."Nancy RamirezSmith College, Class of 2006, Fulfillment Fund Alumna
"I can't think of a school in LA Unified that couldn't benefit from the Fulfillment Fund."Gary GarciaPrincipal, Alexander Hamilton High School
"The Fulfillment Fund was the external source I needed to awaken the inner thoughts I held that said, 'I can go to college.'"RhysWesleyan University, Class of 2016, Fulfillment Fund Scholar
"I couldn't begin to explain how instrumental the Fulfillment Fund has been in my life. I can honestly say that I would not be where I am today without their encouragement, support, and guidance."Lisa Eshun-WilsonGrinnell College, Class of 2014, Fulfillment Fund Scholar
"The Fulfillment Fund gave me hope that my life could be different, and that it WOULD be different."Veronica EstradaPrivate Wealth Management, JP Morgan; Fulfillment Fund Alumna
"Beginning in the 9th grade, our students are introduced to the idea that they can and will go to college by following the path laid out to them by our school and the Fulfillment Fund."James WallerPrincipal, Gertz-Ressler High School
"The Fulfillment Fund is what convinced me to go to college. Before I was part of the program, a college career wasn't part of my plans."OswaldoSan Jose State, Class of 2016, Fulfillment Fund Scholar
"In my life, I have yearned for a mentor, a guide to offer advice about the educational and professional goals I have set for myself. The Fulfillment Fund has been that guide and continues to positively influence my life."Sandra ValdovinosUC Santa Barbara, Class of 2004, Fulfillment Fund Alumna
"I am a first-generation college graduate, whose family essentially knew nothing about the college process. Without the Fulfillment Fund, I would have had to navigate the turbulent college process alone."Victor BanuelosUC Santa Cruz Class of 2008, Fulfillment Fund Alumnus
"Mentoring a high school student through the Fulfillment Fund is a great way to be involved in the community of Los Angeles, and to be a positive role model for a young person."Sarah J. LangFulfillment Fund Mentor, Leadership Council Member
Featured Statistic
Nationally, only about half of high school graduates from low-income communities enroll in college. Thanks to the services the Fulfillment Fund provides, 96% of our 2015 high school graduates planned to enroll in college.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics
The Fulfillment Fund is dedicated to making college a reality for students growing up in educationally and economically under-resourced communities.
Welcome to Fulfillment Fund
Friday, March 8, 2019
"It's important to empower each and every woman…"- REAL Participant, 2017More


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We recently introduced LastPass Sentry, a new feature to help LastPass users be more proactive about their online security by alerting them when their email address is included in the latest breaches of online sites and services (think LinkedIn).
We're excited to announce that LastPass Sentry is now also supported as part of the LastPass Security Challenge! The update means that a full check can be performed locally against your entire LastPass vault to look for accounts that may have been affected by a breach, in addition to the ongoing monitoring of your LastPass account email address.
How LastPass Sentry now works:
- Sentry still performs daily checks, with the latest updates to the PwnedList database, to see if LastPass account email addresses are on the list.
- If a match is found, an email notification is sent to the LastPass user, notifying them of the domain that was breached and the potential risk.
- Users can also run the LastPass Security Challenge (from the LastPass Icon's Tools menu) and select the option to look for breaches of their stored accounts.
- If any matches are found between the PwnedList database and the data in your vault, notifications are sent to the affected email addresses with information on the breach and a reminder to update your passwords.
- We then recommend updating the password for any affected accounts, and any other accounts using that password (which the Security Challenge will help you identify), using LastPass to generate a new, strong password.
As we mentioned previously, the feature is available for all free and Premium users, as well as corporate Enterprise users. In the case of Enterprise users, both the Enterprise administrator and the affected employee will receive notifications that a match has been found.
We plan to continue increasing the frequency of our database checks to work towards real-time notifications and further enhance the service to provide ongoing value to our users.
What do you think of the update to LastPass Sentry? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!


text: Armen Enikolopov 1 Report post Posted September 17, 2012 I'm a beginner potter, and I've noticed that throwing pots, especially porcelain it seems, is disastrous for my fingernails. They quickly dry out and chip, fraying at the ends. Being a man, I'm especially unused to anything other than cursory care for my nails, so I'm at a loss as to what may help remedy this situation. Presumably someone here, if not most of you, has experienced this. Is there anything to be done? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites


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UK Identity cards are scrapped
On 21 December 2010, the Identity Documents Bill received Royal Assent. The main purpose of this Identity Cards Act is to abolish identity cards and the National Identity Register; it repeals the Identity Cards Act 2006.
This is therefore the final posting of the LSE Identity Project. However, our work on global identity policies continues and can be found at our new webpage http://identitypolicy.lse.ac.uk/
OUT NOW New book: Global Challenges for Identity Policies by Edgar A. Whitley and Gus Hosein, published by Palgrave, 2010. Reviews of the book are here. Press release is here
General Resources
Recent Updates
LSE Identity Project ReportsThe Identity Project has been organized and sponsored by the LSE Department of Information Systems. Three department members, Simon Davies, Gus Hosein, and Edgar Whitley co-ordinated the production of the reports, overseen by an advisory committee of 16 LSE professors who guided the report. Numerous LSE staff members and an international team of over 60 researchers contributed to, and reviewed, the reports.
Advisory CommitteeProfessor Ian Angell, Information Systems Group, Department of Management, LSE
Professor Chrisanthi Avgerou, Information Systems Group, Department of Management, LSE
Professor Christine Chinkin, Law Department, LSE
Professor Frank Cowell, Economics Department, LSE
Professor Keith Dowding, Government Department, LSE
Professor Patrick Dunleavy, Government Department, LSE
Professor George Gaskell, Director, Methodology Institute, LSE
Professor Christopher Greenwood QC, Convenor of the Law Department, LSE
Professor Christopher Hood, Centre for Analysis of Risk & Regulation, LSE
Professor Mary Kaldor, Centre for the Study of Global Governance, LSE
Professor Frank Land, Department of Information Systems, LSE
Professor Robin Mansell, Department of Media & Communications, LSE
Professor Tim Newburn, Social Policy Department, LSE
Professor David Piachaud, Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion, LSE
Professor Robert Reiner, Law Department, LSE
Professor Leslie Willcocks, Information Systems Group, Department of Management, LSE
Articles in academic and popular press
Recent presentations by members of the LSE Identity Project
LSE Identity Project All-Party Parliamentary BriefingsThe Identity Project has published a number of All-Party Parliamentary Briefings. These are geared specifically to Parliamentarians. The purpose of these briefings is to inform debate on specific topic areas through extracting relevant sections of our reports, analysing prior debates, or generating new findings.
Detailed responses to Home Office Criticisms
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Page last updated
24 December 2010


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Have a walk through The Bioline ISO 13485:2003 manufacturing facility in Germany, with our 360 video.
Viewable through Chrome, and Youtube >> try it with the app. Also available on our Facebook
The success of next-generation sequencing is dependent upon the precise and accurate processing of the input DNA. This requires high quality library preparation from sheared DNA and relies on a coordinated series of standard molecular biology reactions whilst maintaining high yields during the intermediate purification steps.
American Society of Human Genetics 2012 Annual Meeting
Bioline was once again an exhibitor (#Booth 1324-1326) at the American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) annual meeting held in San Francisco in November. The largest human genetics meeting in the world, ASHG 2012 attracted over 7000 delegates to discuss the very latest advances in basic and clinical research.
Sessions included topics such as comparative epigenomics, early exome sequencing in complex traits, large-scale identification of regulators of translation and integrated genetic and functional studies of disease-causing variants.
Bioline USA at ASHG 2012
Bioline unveiled its new format exhibition stand at the conference, where our representatives met with scientists and discussed solutions to their molecular biology challenges. Bioline PCR Specialist, Dr. Sven Bocklandt gave a series of well received and thought-provoking talks on some of our latest products, including SensiFAST™, MyFi™ and MyTaq™ DNA polymerases. Exciting results from both published papers and some unpublished experiments from the Bioline scientific community were presented, including results from the Bioline PCR Challenge.
In keeping with ASHG 2012, this month's Bioline scholar is dedicated to Human Genetics. We are pleased to highlight a selection of recent papers featuring Bioline products, perfectly suited for both small- and large-scale genetic and genomic studies in humans.
Mutations in MTM1 (myotubularin 1) cause X-linked myotubular myopathy that affects 1 in 50,000 males. In neonates or infants, movement and breathing are severely affected. The authors developed a MTM1-specific database of genetic variants, with 474 identified mutations from 472 patients. Next-Gen sequencing (Illumina HiSeq) and cDNA analysis revealed the presence of a novel MTM1/MAMLD1 fusion transcript in one case.
Oliveira, J. et al. (2012). Expanding the MTM1 mutational spectrum: novel variants including the first multi-exonic duplication and development of a locus-specific database. Eur. J. Hum. Genet. doi: 10.1038/ejhg.2012.201
Children with X-linked retinitis pigmentosa (XLRP) often go blind by the second decade of life. A severe form of XLRP, RP23, was previously mapped to a 10.71Mb interval on Xp22.31-22.13, containing 62 genes. Using targeted NGS (Illumina), the authors identified a deep intronic mutation in OFD1 as the most likely cause of RP23. Insertion of a cryptic exon produces an aberrant transcript and reduced levels of correctly spliced transcript. This is predicted to result in a severely truncated protein and decreased levels of normal protein.
Webb, T.R. et al. (2012). Deep intronic mutation in OFD1, identified by targeted genomic next-generation sequencing, causes a severe form of X-linked retinitis pigmentosa (RP23). Hum. Mol. Genet. 21(16):3647-3654.
The genetic basis for susceptibility to malaria in a Vietnamese population was investigated by SNP genotyping by researchers from Oxford University and the MalariaGen consortium. Data from 65 SNPs in 42 malarial candidate genes in 956 severe malaria cases and 2350 controls from Vietnam was reported. Variants in six genes (ICAM1, IL1A, IL17RC, IL13, LTA and TNF) encoding adhesion and pro-inflammatory molecules were associated with severe malaria.
Dunstan, S.J. et al. (2012). Variation in human genes encoding adhesion and proinflammatory molecules are associated with severe malaria in the Vietnamese. Genes Immun. 13(6):503-508.
Facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD), characterized by muscle weakness and wasting, is associated with a shortened telomeric chr 4q35 due to deletions of the D4Z4 tandem repeat (FSHD1) or DNA methylation changes of D4Z4 (FSHD2). Using exome sequencing (Illumina NGS) the authors identified two known pathogenic mutations in CAPN3, indicating a case of limb-girdle muscular dystrophy type 2A (LGMD2A) rather than FSHD2. The authors conclude that 'diagnosis by sequencing' of FSHD may be more commonly adopted in clinical genetics laboratories around the world.
Leidenroth, A. et al. (2012). Diagnosis by sequencing: correction of misdiagnosis from FSHD2 to LGMD2A by whole-exome analysis. Eur. J. Hum. Genet. 20(9):999-1003
An arrayed human genomic library comprising 115,000 PAC clones was constructed. Functional studies with a p53-containing PAC clone in p53-null human osteosarcoma cells showed the utility of individual library members in human cell culture models. The library can be used to validate candidate genes identified by GWAS and for gene therapy in different recessive disorders.
Fuesler, J. et al. (2012). An arrayed human genomic library constructed in the PAC shuttle vector pJCPAC-Mam2 for genome-wide association studies and gene therapy. Gene. 496(2):103-109
Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (CMT) is an inherited disorder of peripheral nerve dysfunction resulting in numbness and weakness. Mutations in four genes encoding an aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase (ARS) have been associated with CMT. This study from the University of Michigan found that the p.Arg329 AARS mutation is a recurrent, loss-of-function mutation that arises due to methylation-mediated deamination of a CpG dinucleotide.
McLaughlin, H.M. et al. (2012). A Recurrent loss-of-function alanyl-tRNA synthetase (AARS) mutation in patients with charcot-marie-tooth disease type 2N (CMT2N) Hum. Mutat. 33(1):244-253
Bioline Scholar - from Bioline: The PCR Company
If you're interested in knowing more about the fields and areas of research in which Bioline products have been used to further knowledge, we've added a Bioline Scholar page to our web site listing the papers and publications in which our molecular biology reagents are featured.
You can search for publications by author, title, topic and product and the archive contains papers from 1994 through to the present. Currently the Bioline Scholar database lists and provides links to publications where the research was conducted using the following Bioline products:
That's it for the Bioline blog in 2012—season's greetings to all our customers and readers alike, from all at Bioline—see you in 2013!


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Hans S. Rheinschild, Ed. S.
Principal of Oak Valley Elementary & Jonata Middle Schools
Dear Students & Families,
On behalf of the faculties of Oak Valley
Elementary School and Jonata Middle School, I would like to welcome you
to the Buellton Union School District. Every new year promises to be a
great one, filled with new learning, friends, and fun...
(please click here to read more)
Tweets by oakvalleyschool
Tweets by jonataprincipal


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News - April 2013 - Academic Services
|April 2013
Browse by category:
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Monday, April 8, 2013
»Mary Vance won the Esther Matthews award from the Oregon Career Development Association in March for leadership and professional commitment to the career development field.
»Suwako Watanabe, World Languages and Literatures faculty, gave the presentation "Developing Advanced-Level Speaking: Application of OPI," at the Spring Conference of American Association of Teachers of Japanese in San Diego, March 21.
»Ken Ruoff authored "Nationalistic Movements to Restore Cultural Symbols of the Monarchy," published in Critical Readings on the Emperors of Japan, Vol. 4, Leiden: Brill.
Monday, April 15, 2013
»Sharon Carstens, Anthropology faculty, presented "The New Generation of Trilingual Chinese Malaysians" at the Annual Meetings of the Association for Asia Studies, San Diego, March 23.
»Jeremy Spoon, Anthropology faculty, presented "Deities Bring Foreigners to See Mount Everest: Tourism, Everyday Buddhism, and Environmental Sustainability in the World's Highest Ecosystem" at the Everyday Religion and Sustainable Environments in the Himal
»Hiro Ito, Economics faculty, co-authored "China and Global Imbalances from a View of Sectorial Reforms," published in Review of International Economics, Vol. 21, Issue 1, February 2013.
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
Monday, April 22, 2013
»Sharon Carstens, Anthropology faculty, authored "New Questions, New Directions in Malaysian Chinese Studies" published in the Proceedings of the First Biennial Conference of Malaysian Chinese Studies, Centre for Malaysian Chinese Studies, Kuala Lumpur, Ma
»Hiro Ito, Economics faculty, presented his paper, "Asian Development Review Conference," at the Asian Development Review Conference in Manila, Philippines, on March 25-26. Asian Development Bank organized the session.
»Junghee Lee, Art and Design faculty, presented a paper titled "Pictorial Tile and Clay Buddhist Sculptures of the Paekche Kingdom, Korea" in the panel "Works in Clay in Early Korean and Japanese Buddhism," which she organized for the Annual Conference of
»Jeremy Spoon, Anthropology faculty, and graduate student Brian Lefler presented "Mountain Homes and Overgrown Gardens: Nuwuvi (Southern Paiute) Perceptions of Fire Suppression on Southern Nevada Public Lands" at the Society for Applied Anthropology Annual
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Monday, April 29, 2013
»Suwako Watanabe, World Languages and Literatures faculty, gave an invited lecture titled "'How Can I Communicate in Japanese Naturally?: A View from a Discourse Perspective" at Soka University, Aliso Viejo, Calif., April 15.
»Sharon Carstens, Anthropology faculty, authored a review of Strangers at Home: History and Subjectivity among the Chinese Communities of West Kalimantan, Indonesia, published in the Journal of Asian Studies, Vol. 72, No. 1.
»Jeremy Spoon, Anthropology faculty, authored "From Yaks to Tourists: Sherpa Livelihood Adaptations in Sagarmatha (Mount Everest) National Park and Buffer Zone, Nepal" published in Continuity and Change in Cultural Adaptation to Mountain Environments, Stud
Tuesday, April 30, 2013


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Out-of-Bounds Campus Drinking<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />
By Rev. Mark H. Creech
In his book "Dying to Drink," Henry Wechsler, director of the Harvard School of Public Health's College Alcohol Study, quoted a law school student: "In the university, we have entire generations that are learning to consume alcohol in an institutional way." Wechsler notes that alcohol is very much a part of the college scene, but it has a very dark side.
In North Carolina, the sale of beer and wine has always been prohibited on the campus or property of a public school or college, except for regional entertainment facilities on school property for non-school functions, and unless the business selling beer or wine is a hotel or nonprofit alumni association with a liquor-by-the-drink permit or a special-occasion permit.
Last year this was amended with the passage of legislation that made an additional exception of the sale of beer and wine on UNC campuses by permitting sales at performing arts centers on property owned or leased by institutions of the university, provided the seating capacity does not exceed 2,000 people.
This year another exception is being considered by lawmakers. At the request of the Board of Governors, the General Assembly is being asked to allow golf courses owned or leased by constituent institutions of the UNC system and that are open to the public to sell beer and wine.
Although these exceptions may seem relatively harmless, they send the wrong message to students at a time when problem drinking on college campuses is prevalent.
According to the Harvard School of Public Health College Alcohol Study, 73 percent of fraternity and 57 percent of sorority members are binge drinkers. Fifty-eight percent of male athletes and 47 percent of female athletes are binge drinkers. Approximately 1,400 college students aged 18 to 24 are killed every year as a result of some alcohol-related incident.
It should also be noted the recent Duke lacrosse fiasco was an alcohol-related incident, and several team members had campus records for alcohol violations.
Eliminating alcohol outlets, not adding them on college property, is a proven, successful strategy for protecting students. The Harvard study also concluded that though alcohol use is high for both colleges and universities that allow and ban alcohol, 21 percent fewer students at "ban" institutions are heavy episodic drinkers. "Students at ban colleges are more likely to abstain from alcohol completely. Three in ten students (29 percent) at ban schools abstain compared to only one in six students (16 percent) at non-ban colleges."
What makes the difference at ban colleges? No doubt it's the leadership offered by the administration -- an acknowledgement that alcohol is a problem for many students and that the best approach is to keep it relatively inaccessible while students should be focused on training and academics.
Interestingly, the General Assembly has in recent years courageously banned smoking in public museums, libraries, prisons and public health centers. A bill is pending that would ban smoking in the legislative building. Rep. Rick Glazier, sponsor of the legislation, argued that lawmakers should lead the public on smoking by refraining from lighting up in the people's buildings.
Glazier is right. But wouldn't lawmakers do just as well to strike a powerful blow for the public's health, and for public education, by reminding the Board of Governors that there is a serious problem with alcohol use and abuse on college campuses? The least UNC could do is to freeze the number of alcohol outlets currently available on its property, not add to them.
Rev. Mark H. Creech (email@example.com) is the executive director of the Christian Action League of North Carolina, Inc.
Worldview Weekend Foundation
Collierville, TN, 38027 USA


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WOW! I'm a bit stunned to have so much traffic so fast! This proves that fans are ACHING for more Twilight. In case you didn't see, Stephenie announced on her website that the first chapter of New Moon will be printed in the paperback version of Twilight this May or June, so we don't have long to wait for more Edward and Bella. Visit her website for more information about New Moon and upcoming book signings.
I got an e-mail from Stephenie explaining the strength aspect of the vampires in a bit more detail. This came from a few unanswered questions we had while trying to write that section of the mythology. I've added Stephenie's response to the end of PC5 in case you would like to read what she said. We will make corrections to the strength section in the next few days.
I've also added the Denali Sisters to the character bio section. They are Tayna, Kate, Irina, Carmen, and Eleazar and were mentioned in PC1. If our author was anxious to get them to us, then I can only imagine they are more important than she is letting on. In case you are wondering, the Cullens lived in Denali before they moved to Forks.
I've also added a few minor snippets to the timeline to include the Denali Sisters as well as Carlisle's stay in Italy. I've also added the information on that visit to Carlisle's bio and will soon have the bios for the three vampires he met there posted as well.
I think that's it for now. We still haven't made a decision on our new staff members. Please check out the "Join the Staff" area for more information. I'm glad everyone seems to be enjoying the site. Would anyone be interested in a message board? I've been tempted to set one up here at the lexicon, and in light of recent traffic, I just might do so. Leave a comment and tell me what you think.


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Learn Git in a Month of Lunches
Praising "Code" by Charles Petzold
Last year (2013), I finished a most remarkable computer book titled Code. It's by Charles Petzold, who wrote the venerable Programming Windows 95, among many others. "Code" takes an esteemed position on my computer bookshelf, next to Soul of a New Machine, and my copy of K&R.
Creating Top-Level Variables With CoffeeScript
A View from a MOOC
I just recently finished taking an online course titled "Functional Programming Principles in Scala". The course was offered by Coursera, and it is an example of an MOOC (massive open online course). This class was conducted entirely online, via video lectures, PDF handouts, online forum discussions, and programming assignments which were graded by computer.
Indie Game: The Movie
"Indie Game: The Movie" is a documentary about independent game developers, and I highly highly recommend it. This beautiful movie follows game developers in various stages of releasing their product. The movie's focus on the personal trials, rather than the technical trials, really elevates the story.
Making Wireless Work on a Dell D600 with Ubuntu
Getting Twitter User IDs with PHP
Getting PHP Debugging with XDebug Working (on Windows)
I've been learning about Drupal Module Development the past few weeks. I'm using the venerable "Definitive Guide to Drupal 7" and a few times in the module development chapters (18, 19, 20), author Ben Melançon mentions running Drupal "in an IDE" to see how Drupal creates its various internal arrays.
Hiding HTML Using Data URIs and base64
I've been spending the past few evenings noodling with the HTML5 <canvas> element. I often bring up the HTML Canvas 2D Context Working Draft specification. The spec shows what functions are available to the canvas' context, and the examples are instructive. However, the spec also introduced me to a method for "hiding" HTML text directly inside another HTML file, using the "data URI" technique.


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Ford said Reagan, who challenged him unsuccessfully for the GOP nomination in 1976, was "a great spokesman for attractive political objectives" such as a balanced budget and defeating communism, "but when it came to implementation, his record never matched his words."He also said Carter -- who challenged him successfully in 1976 -- was "a disaster." Who did he like? Eisenhower. And Nixon wasn't so bad.
Reagan was "probably the least well-informed on the details of running the government of any president I knew," Ford said. In a separate interview, he said Reagan "was just a poor manager, and you can't be president and do a good job unless you manage."
Ford contended his own negotiation of the Helsinki accords on human rights did more to win the Cold War than Reagan's military buildup. Other key factors were the Marshall Plan that helped rebuild Europe after World War II and the establishment of NATO, he said.
January 13, 2007
Ford did more to end the Cold War than did Reagan.
28 comments:
- ShadyCharacter said...
Decent old man to bitter old crank. His legacy would have been better served if he had refrained from venting his spleen to reporters for post-mortem point scoring...
- Joe said...
Reagan's pressure definitely speeded up the demise of the USSR. Carter micromanaged the details of governing and yet may be the worst president of the last century. I question Ford's criteria.
- Fritz said...
Helsinki was essential and Reagan used it like a club. Gorbachev said that he knew the end of the Soviet Union was near when the Polit Beuro was discussing panty hose production, while the White House was discussing the Strategic Defense Initiative.
These revelations are a good reason why the proper protocol of former Presidents not to speak during their successor's Administrations. Too bad the last two Democrats lacking legacies feel the need to comment.
- Rey said...
So now we know that President Ford was delusional. Negotiations in Helsinsky? Who was he kidding? "Yeah, my great negotiating skills ended the cold war. The fact that the Soviet Union didnt actually begin to collapse until years after my brilliant negotiating skills means nothing. Oh yeah, and my speeches captured Saddam, cure rosecia and show promise in curing cancer in lab rats"
If only we had realized the genius that Gerald Ford was! Woe is us!
- Gahrie said...
You must read President Ford's comments with the knowledge that he and President Reagan were bitter rivals, and Ford never forgave Reagan for running against him for the 1980 nomination.
- AllenS said...
Since Ford's death, he's managed to rip both Bush and Reagan. He's become more popular now, than when he was alive.
- KCFleming said...
His conclusion about the fall of the Soviet Union displays a colossal misunderstanding of history.
Reagan may have been overpraised, and Ford underappreciated, but that's no cause for faulty interpretations like this.
- hdhouse said...
Ford is probably quite right. Reagan would not have succeeded unless there was a Gorbachev to lead. Remember that it was 6 years of nothing until he came to the fore.
Reagan wasn't a bad sort but I do remember better than the legend.
- Mark Daniels said...
Reagan is given far too much credit when it comes to ending the Cold War. He was the beneficiary of the policy of containment put in place by Truman and solidified by Eisenhower, who wisely got us out of Korea.
Other reasons for Soviet Communism's demise were its inherent moral bankruptcy and the financial bankruptcy it engendered through decades of guns and butter policies. The Evil Empire simply could not be sustained.
I believe that, except for his shameful insensitivity to the call for civil rights and a few other things, Eisenhower was the best president of the last half of the twentieth century and one of the best ever. The release of his papers a few years ago demonstrate how hands-on he was and how good he was at keeping this nation at peace at the height of the Cold War, no small achievement. So, I think Ford was right in his assessment of Eisenhower.
If he was somewhat bitter as he looked at Reagan, I don't think he was entirely inaccurate either. Presidents with good runs are often the beneficiaries of luck. Reagan was extremely lucky, as Bill Clinton later would be.
And as to Ford's assessment of Reagan--"'a great spokesman for attractive political objectives' such as a balanced budget and defeating communism, 'but when it came to implementation, his record never matched his words'--how can any of that be denied? Reagan allowed unconscionably high deficits to accumulate in spite of his supposed principles? It was for such an insensitivity to the federal debt that Reagan rightly excoriated Democrats for decades. But after he took the oath of office, they became acceptable...and to this day his apologists defend him for this dangerous hypocrisy.
The fact is that when it came to federal spending and the size of the federal government, Ford was a conservative and Ronald Reagan was not. Ford knew the federal budget and what was going on in the government and Reagan clearly did not. Those are facts.
Now, as to whether Ford's negotiations at Helsinki were more significant in bringing about the demise of the Soviet Union and an end to the Cold War than what Reagan did, I disagree.
In fact, beyond the obvious factors for the Soviet Bloc's end mentioned above, I have always believed that the prayers of those within and outside the Soviet sphere were far more significant than any military or political policies. Important as such policies are, I agree with Tennyson, who said, "More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of."
- The Drill SGT said...
ShadyCharacter said...
Decent old man to bitter old crank. His legacy would have been better served if he had refrained from venting his spleen to reporters for post-mortem point scoring...
I have no problem with "oral history" projects done by historians using a format that doesn't provide leading questions. I'm always a bit jaundiced about reporter interviews. After all, they are not interested in the unbiased truth, but rather for salacious quotes that can drive readership.
when were these done? sometime in the last 25 years. well if it was at 69, that is one thing, but the acuity of a 94 y/o might not hold up to a reporter's questioning. I'll give him some slack.
In fact, beyond the obvious factors for the Soviet Bloc's end mentioned above, I have always believed that the prayers of those within and outside the Soviet sphere were far more significant than any military or political policies. Important as such policies are, I agree with Tennyson, who said, "More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of."
Wow, I haven't read a bigger pile of gibberish on this blog in...hell, I don't know when! What, did all those people praying in the early '40's that the Nazis wouldn't come and run them over, did they screw it up somehow? Maybe they shouldn't have prayed to St.Wehrmacht, patron saint of Panzer Divisions! It's absolutely galling to hear people take credit for their sanctimonious blather when things go well, but when they turn sour? Oh, not us, don't hold us responsible! P-tui! P-tui, again! I have to spit the bad taste out of my mouth on this one! Even people who admire prayer should be revulsed by this.
- vbspurs said...
"a disaster."
By all accounts, Gerald and Betty Ford had new best friends in their old age: Jimmy and Rosalind Carter.
Of course, at least he didn't say anything nasty about Jimmeh. It was just an opinion on his presidency, shared by millions.
Since Ford's death, he's managed to rip both Bush and Reagan. He's become more popular now, than when he was alive.
- Fritz said...
Brilliant! You Wrote: Reagan would not have succeeded unless there was a Gorbachev to lead. Remember that it was 6 years of nothing until he came to the fore.
6 years of trying to compete with our military buildup, mounting economic problems for the Soviet Union lead to his accession to leadership. The Soviets gave us someone that would act in good faith. If only your Euro friends would put the same economic screws to Iran & Syria, perhaps they might also bring such a person to the fore.
- vbspurs said...
Mark Daniels wrote:
Reagan was extremely lucky, as Bill Clinton later would be.
And Truman-Kennedy, VERY unlucky ones.
With the exception of Truman, to say the least, these were all very charismatic men.
Sometimes it is no so easy to overcome genuine problems outside our own making.
But a lot can be said about projecting a winning personality, which at least is seen as able to cope and lays the atmosphere for change.
Later historians scoffed at King Edward VII, saying that people who thought he was the mastermind behind one of the greatest political alliances of all time (The Entente Cordiale), were dead wrong.
They were. But King Edward was able, by dint of his personality and mindset ALONE, to project a sea change in tone between England and France.
This is what Reagan did for America, and its foreign policy after the crucially debilitating Vietnam war.
Yes, Ford healed the country by his calm helmsmanship after the Watergate fiasco.
But Reagan's attitudes primed a change in the WORLD.
- Ruth Anne Adams said...
Mark Daniels: Regarding President Eisenhower--would you agree that his "Atoms for Peace" program was a pretty big blot on his tenure? In exporting nuclear technology for power, he gave fissionable material as a biproduct and thus allowed non-superpowers to gain nuclear weapons [India comes to mind]. I might even say that has devastating consequences to us today as rogue states and terrorists have more places to obtain nuclear weapon capabilities.
- Gahrie said...
There wouldn't have been a Gorbachev without Reagan. If we had continued with detente, the Politboro would have chosen another Brezhnev or Andropov.
Mark Daniels:
Those "unconscionably high deficits" that Reagan ran up, were what finally forced the USSR's "financial bankruptcy it engendered through decades of guns and butter policies" to actually take effect. It was the USSR's inability to keep up with Reagan's increased defense spending on weapons and research that forced them to try and reform their economy.
- Fritz said...
...and another thing. The CIA had installed interceptors in a Soviet harbor. When NATO was practicing war games, the posture of the Soviet fleet was shown to be defensive rather than offensive. It indicated that they wanted survival, we could deal with this bunch.
One little known Reagan policy was to take advantage of Soviet theft of our technology. Since we knew they would steal it, we helped them. Giving them some but not all the parts to the puzzle. They would spend billions on flawed projects. One natural gas line flaw resulted in a massive explosion that was so large, that it was first thought of as a nuclear test. When they discovered that they could no longer trust what they were getting, they stopped. These little hidden nuggets, Alger Hiss was a Soviet spy!
- Mark Daniels said...
Gahrie: That is often said of the Reagan deficits, but where's the proof?
Ron: As to my "pile of gibberish," you obviously didn't read the rest of what I wrote or simply ignored it. I acknowledged the role of policy and of course, I feel great gratitude to those--led in Europe by Eisenhower--won World War Two and to others who have gone to battle for freedom.
But to simply ignore the role played by prayer in the end of the Cold War is to ignore some intriguing data.
For years, Saint Peter's Church in Berlin, close to the wall, hosted a Tuesday prayer gathering. They prayed for an end to Soviet dominion. The numbers involved grew and grew, accelerating and growing as the Soviet bloc began to crumble. When the wall crumbled, hundred gathered close to the church, demonstrators holding up signs that said, "Thank you, church." That was reported in the media.
Several years ago, my son, who has degrees in History and Philosophy, did a paper on "Germany as a Pawn in the Cold War." At one place in it, as I recounted on my blog three years ago, he gave a "...description of the Church's role in the collapse of Soviet tyranny in Germany. He'd interviewed a German emigre to this country who had described some of the long-standing weekly prayer gatherings that took place in East Germany during the repressive post-World War Two era. Those prayer gatherings gave hope to people, connecting them to God and acting as conduits by which God's forgiveness, healing, and hope came to a nation which in preceding decades had been the epicenter of so much evil."
I also personally knew a group of junior high kids who, in the mid-1980s, took it on themselves to begin praying daily for the end of the Cold War.
Tennyson, I believe, was right. So was the English archbishop who said that people dismissed his "answered prayers" as coincidence. "But I have found," he said, "that the more I pray, the more coincidences happen."
Back in my atheist days, I thought such things were gibberish. I really did. But I don't think that Reagan or Ford saw evidence of the efficacy of prayer as gibberish, even though their faith was also matched by work. They had a hardnosed commitment to praying as though everything depended on God and working as though everything depended on us. This is the attitude that JFK voiced in the speech he gave at Fort Worth just before he was assassinated in Dallas. He quoted Psalm 127:1: "Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord guards the city, the guard keeps watch in vain."
Mere presidential rhetoric? Maybe. But I believe that it's true.
- The Exalted said...
And as to Ford's assessment of Reagan--"'a great spokesman for attractive political objectives' such as a balanced budget and defeating communism, 'but when it came to implementation, his record never matched his words'--how can any of that be denied?
whoa whoa whoa, this thread is a fact free zone fella. check these at the door. anyone criticizing the Great Leader Reagan is per se delusional/and or insane/liberal.
Hey, Mark, I'm ignoring nothing! I'm saying this line of blather is gibberish! I'm very, very, very aware of the countless times when people invoke their particular spin on how religious commitments of any flavor lead to positive results. And while I also have degrees in History and Philosophy, I've never once seen the devout take any responsiblity for when their intense faith leads to nada! Zip! Negative! Nothing! Sure, site all the happy results you want, hell, Tennyson too! Doesn't mean a thing, not when you take credit for things that happen afterwards! If I was a Greek Orthodox White Russian praying and praying and praying for the Holy Czar to return...well, what about him? Or the good German Catholic who prayed that Adolf Hitler would lead them all to a Blessed Place? (say, didn't the German Synod of Bishops say that, after Jesus, Hitler was "God's man on earth?" )
This has nothing to do with atheism at all; in fact, I would encourage all Christians to dump this embarrassing line of "reasoning," cause it makes you look like posuers and front-runner.
Sorry, Mark, gibberish it is.
- rcocean said...
Reagan allowed unconscionably high deficits to accumulate in spite of his supposed principles? It was for such an insensitivity to the federal debt that Reagan rightly excoriated Democrats for decades. But after he took the oath of office, they became acceptable...and to this day his apologists defend him for this dangerous hypocrisy.
The fact is that when it came to federal spending and the size of the federal government, Ford was a conservative and Ronald Reagan was not. Ford knew the federal budget and what was going on in the government and Reagan clearly did not.
What complete nonsense. Ford with all his so-called knowledge never balanced the budget or even came close to it.
Reagan faced a hostile media and Tip O'Neill. He had to cut taxes to get the economy moving and increase defense spending because of the Soviets. The Democrats refused to cut Domestic Spending. Thats why no budget was balanced.
Ford, OTOH, trusted the Soviets and wanted to continue Detente. He would never would have cut taxes or balanced the budget.
Yes, I'm sure Ford a better "Manager" than Reagan. I'm sure he was hard worker, loved his dog, never told a lie, and knew all the details.
He just was wrong on all the important stuff, like taxes, defense spending, dealing with the Soviets, mobilizing Public opinion, and appointing conservative Judges to the SCOTUS.
- Gahrie said...
Mark Daniels:
Gahrie: That is often said of the Reagan deficits, but where's the proof?
Well the most obvious one is the fact that the USSR doesn't exist any more. After that, I guess we'll just have to rely on all the former Soviet officials who have said so.
- hygate said...
Reagan is given far too much credit when it comes to ending the Cold War. He was the beneficiary of the policy of containment put in place by Truman and solidified by Eisenhower, who wisely got us out of Korea.
I seem to recall being stationed in Korea while in the 80s. There are still around 30,000 US servicemen there today. In what way did Eisenhower get the US "out" of Korea?
- hdhouse said...
Just a point of fact my little silli-can friends.
Never, ever, have tax cuts resulted in a balanced budget. You can blame spending or you can blame the tax cuts and you can blame both but at no time in our history has tax cuts spurred the economy to the extent that it was revenue positive.
Further, you all overlook the trickle down effect that tax cuts have. Under Reagan they shifted services to the States and local communities resulting in (wait for it) higher spending levels to keep services AT THE SAME LEVEL and SECOND, state income tax tables are generally dependent on the federal tax matrix. Cutting national tax revenues automatically cut state revenues.
The silli-cons refuse to remember the crisis Reagan caused at the state and local levels. They refuse to remember voo-doo economics.
Now to the topic:
I doubt many if any of you spent the entire Reagan years inside the Soviet Union. I doubt that any of you worked on US-USSR trade and economic issues from the entraprenuerial level through the trade commissions. Did Reagan's policies play a part in the breakup? Yes. Some. Emphasis on some. If you knew Russians in the 80s and the people's deep and abiding admiration for the United States (governments aside) then you would know that what happened there was inevitable.
- hdhouse said...
ohhhh and rey...its helsinki not helsinkey 'key?
- Mark Daniels said...
I've been busy this evening and so have been unable to respond to some of what's been said here.
As to the Atoms for Peace proposal offered by Eisenhower, it was never accepted by the Soviets. So the dire consequences cited here never ensued. Nuclear proliferation happened as a result of other factors. A proposal which Stephen Ambrose called "the best chance mankind [sic] has had in the nuclear age to slow and redirect the arms race" was only matched for its breathtaking vision by Reagan at Reykjavik. It's sad that Atoms for Peace never was implemented.
I accused no one of turning this into a conversation about atheism. I simply recalled that in my atheist days, I considered all discussions of prayer to be pure hooey. I don't any longer.
Just because the Soviet Union disbanded after Ronald Reagan's term doesn't prove that Reagan was the major instrument of that eventuality. He pursued the policy of containment in his own way--one that was superior to that of say, Lyndon Johnson. He deserves credit, along with every President from Truman to Bush the Elder.
By the way, many analysts believe that the Soviet venture in Afghanistan was the camel that broke the Evil Empire's back. (Reagan was right in pinning that epithet on the Soviet Union, I believe.) The expenditure of money necessitated by the war there was a huge drain on a system that was going nowhere.
As to the deficits under Ford and Reagan, respectively, it is true that a big deficit existed during Ford's tenure. But no President used the veto more to combat deficit spending than Ford did. He was often overridden by a Democratic Congress. Reagan worked with a Democratic Congress to bring an unprecedented explosion to the federal deficit.
As always, I could be wrong in all of this. But those are the facts as I see them.
- The Exalted said...
the afghanistan debacle was a HUGE factor in the USSR's implosion. i recently read a story suggesting that carter's team helped convince the soviets they needed to invade -- stunningly cynical move from mr. peanut!


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Possible Duplicate:
Is it common practice to mix InnoDB and MyISAM tables on same server?
I have a movie clips and photos table in an application; these tables contain a tag column, which allows users to search for the movies/photos by tag; however, the whole database is designed using InnoDB tables specifically for data integrity.
Since the tables are not MyISAM, I cannot use the full-text feature (which sucks). I was thinking of changing those 2 tables into MyISAM tables; however, I read somewhere that combining MyISAM and InnoDB tables is a very bad idea.
I really would want to use the fulltext feature on those tables.
My questions are these:
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Brooch by Victor Syrnev
Victor Syrnev Presents The "emerald"-Project Asia Metamorphosis Brooch
Victor Syrnev, the project leader of the displayed design Award Winning "Emerald" - Project Asia Metamorphosis Brooch explicates, Character and external shape of a subject allow to change new design of an ornament. In the lively nature one period changes to another. Spring follows winter and morning comes after night. The colors also change as well as the atmosphere. This principle of replacement, alternation of the images is brought forward into the adornments of the «Asia Metamorphosis», the collection where two different states, two unconstrained images reflected in one object. Movable elements of the construction make possible to change the character and appearance of the ornament..
Brooch by Victor Syrnev Images:
End of the article, click here to go back to previous page, or alternatively go back to A Design News homepage.


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Summer is nearly here and if a trip to a theme park is in the plans, it might pay to plan ahead — at least as far as meals are concerned.
Both Knott's Berry Farm and Six Flags Magic Mountain have pre-paid meal options that are worth checking out.
Knott's has two different options available to guests. The first is for a single meal. For just $13.99 plus tax, guests can choose from nearly two dozen meals that include an entrée, a side and a 20-ounce fountain drink. The voucher is redeemable at six different eateries in the park and at the adjacent Soak City.
The second option is for an all-day meal pass for $29.99 plus tax. Guests can select from 20 different meals from six locations throughout the park. Guests can use the the pass to redeem a meal every 90 minutes while visiting.
Both plans are available on the park's website, www.knotts.com.
At Six Flags Magic Mountain, guests can choose from single meal deals, family meal deals and season dining passes.
A single meal deal costs $14.39 with options that include chicken strips, cheeseburgers and pizza.
The family meal deal feeds four and runs $39.99 for pizza or chicken strips, and $44.99 for cheeseburgers.
The season dining pass is available for $99.99 for Magic Mountain or $124.99 for both Magic Mountain and Hurricane Harbor.
All passes are available on the park's website: www.sixflags.com/magicmountain.
Back in the Inland Empire, we've been waiting patiently for N7 Creamery to open at Victoria Gardens and it finally did this past weekend.
The N7 in the name refers to the atomic symbol and number for nitrogen, which is used in liquid form in the creation of the eatery's ice creams.
The eatery is kind of a triple threat, featuring not only ice cream, but coffee beverages and delicious pastries as well.
N7 Creamery is at 7880 Kew Ave., Rancho Cucamonga, just north of TGI Fridays in the southeast corner of Victoria Gardens. Hours are 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Speaking of Victoria Gardens, tickets are available now for this year's Tour de Fork.
The event features food tastings and beverage samples from local restaurants. It's also a fundraiser for three charitable organizations: The Rancho Cucamonga Community & Arts Foundation, the Rancho Cucamonga Library Foundation and Rancho Cucamonga Animal Care and Services.
The event is scheduled for 5:30-8 p.m. June 26, along the center's South Mainstreet.
Tickets are $40 from the Rancho Cucamonga Cultural Center box office, $42 if purchased online or $50 the week of the event. Tickets include unlimited food tastings and five beverages.
Head to the Dine 909 blog (www.insidesocal.com/dine909) for a link to ticket purchases.
John Plessel is Systems Editor for the San Bernardino Sun and also blogs for Dine 909. Visit the blog at www.insidesocal.com/dine909 or email Dine 909 at firstname.lastname@example.com.


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Portland State recently became a University Partner Member of the American Association of University Women, which advances equity for women and girls through advocacy, education, philanthropy, and research. By becoming a member of the Portland branch, PSU may partner with AAUW on community programs and take advantage of the association's network and resources. Portland State students may also receive free affiliation by registering on the association's website.
"PSU has had a long tradition of support for diversity and programs for women, and we are pleased to bring the resources of AAUW to faculty, students and staff," said Sally McWilliams, professor and director of PSU Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies, who will serve as AAUW liaison.
AAUW, a nationwide network of more than 100,000 members and donors, 1,000 branches, and 500 college/university institution partners, has been a leading advocate for equity and education for women and girls since 1881. The Portland branch is looking forward to a strong collaborative relationship benefitting the women of PSU and the Portland community, according to branch co-presidents Judy Holt and Maxine McComas. The Portland branch of AAUW has worked with the University in the past, including on the Walk of the Heroine project.
Each year, AAUW provides millions of dollars in fellowships, grants, and awards for outstanding women around the globe and for community action projects. AAUW also funds pioneering research on women, girls, and education. Through AAUW Leadership Programs, women and girls acquire the skills they need to succeed and assume leadership roles in their academic, professional, and personal lives. Programs include Campus Action Projects, the National Conference for College Women Student Leaders in Washington, D.C., the Student Advisory Council, and Elect Her. The AAUW Legal Advocacy Fund (LAF) works to combat sex discrimination in higher education and workplaces through campus outreach programs, an online resource library, and research reports. LAF also provides support to workplace sex discrimination cases that have the potential to make a difference for all women.
University Partners may collaborate with AAUW branches on community programs, receive national visibility, and benefit from the association's network through support and advocacy. Member institutions have access to AAUW's website, including member-only online resources such as research, publications, advocacy and public policy initiatives; scholarship, grant and fellowship notices; conference and workshop notifications; and product discounts. Further, member institutions get free e-student affiliation with AAUW for undergraduate students who register on the AAUW website. This means students receive AAUW announcements regarding scholarship, grants, and fellowship opportunities; Washington updates; conference and workshop announcements; two-minute activist alerts and more. In addition student affiliates receive a free year of membership in AAUW upon graduation.
For more information on AAUW, visit www.aauw.org. For more information on the Portland Branch of AAUW, visit www.aauwpdx.org.


text: Some will say we make crazy suits — others might say we make funny suits. We, however, like to say we make different suits. Suits that are the exact opposite of boring business suits. Our products represent people who don't take themselves too seriously, but still want to maintain a sense of style.


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Applications for mobile devices are commonplace. These small but often sophisticated programs are quite varied and allow for anything from vehicle GPS navigation (Google Maps), taxicab or car pickups in New York City (Uber) or rating wines and restaurants (Zagat). As with most new gadgets and technologies, medicine and healthcare provide many opportunities for expansion and use. When we examine the available applications found at the Apple App Store, it is evident that medical mobile applications continue to be developed at a remarkable pace. In response, the FDA is actively involved in developing strategies for evaluation and approval of new medical related applications as the market continues to rapidly grow and evolve. (And that in itself is a whole separate issue blog about!)
As the medical application industry grows, more disease specific programs have been created. There are already several advanced apps that allow for tracking medications, daily weights, blood pressure and blood sugars–However, some of the more popular applications focus on more basic strategies for improving overall health status. Many of these newly developed general health and fitness applications focus on self help, diet and exercise. As we all know, diet and exercise are key components to making wholesale lifestyle changes and these changes can significantly reduce risk for chronic disease. It stands to reason that many of the new medically relevant applications have focused on tracking dietary habits–calorie counts, food dairies, etc. In particular, dietary applications can make a huge difference in our behaviors. For instance, an application that tracks everything you eat can be quite eye opening. In general, we have no idea as to the calories we take in on a daily basis–combine this with an app that can also track calorie expenditure and you have real time data that can be the impetus for change. Data empowers us all–both doctor and patient.
This week in the New York Times, personal tech author Kit Eaton explores several new applications for iOS and Android that are specifically devoted to diet. These applications provide the user the ability to create a food log and to actually scan labels to obtain exact nutrition information and calorie counts. These applications then can track your exercise habits and estimate your calorie expenditures–some are even able to make suggestions for healthy food choices based on your pattern of intake and output. Most start with the input of basic data such as height, weight and age. Particularly in our current era of cost containment and as we stand in the shadow of the albatross that is Affordable Care Act, we must spend more time on prevention. Preventative care is the single most important thing physicians can do for their patients during this time of reform. We have long known that chronic conditions such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes and hypertension are directly related to obesity. Obesity and obesity related illnesses account for nearly 150$ billion dollars of healthcare costs each year in the US alone. Applications that provide assistance in lifestyle modification and risk factor reduction can have an enormous impact on our ability to successfully change negative habits. As we move forward as physicians, it will be important for us to engage patients and assist them in taking individual responsibility for their own health. Applications are an important way for us to directly involve patients and promote change.
Based in California, an application known as Lift is working to make an impact now. The motto on the Lift home page says it all: "Unlock your potential..change your life". Working with researchers at UC Berkeley, Lift's designers are now studying the effectiveness of individual diet plans on overall health and wellness. Previous studies have compared the effectiveness of one or two diets against each other or a control–however, no one has ever evaluated several diets at one time via a mobile application. The quantified diet project as it is known is likely to provide us with important information about the effectiveness of mobile technology and mobile "coaching" and its role in patient compliance and success. Moreover, it will provide the opportunity to directly compare several popular diet plans all in one large study group.
Mobile applications have the potential to revolutionize preventative care. As we continue to work to engage our patients and motivate them take individual responsibility for their health status, we must take advantage of emerging technologies. Simple applications may result in significant changes. Embrace change. Embrace technology. Advocate for your patients and prescribe an app today! (An APP a day make keep the doctor away!)