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Rutgers Establishes Stem Cell Repository for the Study of Mental Health Disorders
Rutgers University Cell and DNA Repository (RUCDR) has established a stem cell repository for the National Institute of Mental Health that will better enable researchers to study a variety of mental health disorders, including autism, attention deficit disorder, major depression, and schizophrenia, that affect millions of Americans.
"The biology of mental health disorders has been especially difficult to study because brain tissue from affected individuals is seldom available," said principal investigator Jay A. Tischfield, Duncan and Nancy Macmillan Professor and director of the Human Genetics Institute. "With the award of this new grant, we will provide researchers with new biological tools that will greatly enhance our understanding of the biological basis of mental disorders."
The NIMH Repository Supporting Stem Cell Research will be part of the existing NIMH Center for Collaborative Genetic Studies on Mental Disorders which has been based at Rutgers since 1998. The NIMH has awarded Rutgers $96 million since then to establish cell lines, DNA and RNA for the NIMH Genetics Initiative by collecting samples from families with a wide range of mental health disorders. The center's goal – which is being expanded with a $1.2 million stem cell supplement – is to increase the repertoire of resources to researchers around the world.
Tischfield says researchers at the new Rutgers-based NIMH Stem Cell Center will use skin or other cells from people with mental health disorders, such as schizophrenia, to create stem cells within two to three months that can then become brain cells such as neurons.
Until now, research on the causes and treatment of mental health disorders has been hampered by the fact that brain tissue from someone with the mental disorder was seldom available until they died, a time when brain cells are quickly degrading.
The new method to create stem cells – called induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS) – produces human stem cells that are similar to embryonic stem cells, but which do not require embryonic material for their establishment. iPS cells originate from adult body cells that are reprogrammed in the laboratory by inserting foreign genes into the cell, enabling it to become any type of cell in the body. The new stem cells could provide scientists with the necessary clues they need to determine the causes of mental disorder and develop effective drugs to combat them.
"It is amazing that we can take a tiny piece of skin from a person with a particular disease, comprised of cells that were thought of as recently as several years ago as being in a terminal state of differentiation, and turn back the clock to induce those cells to become stem cells that have the potential to become a neuron, or a heart cell, or any of a number of cell types," said Michael Sheldon, assistant research professor in the Department of Genetics and the project's co-director.
The collaboration between Rutgers and the National Institute of Mental Health will provide researchers throughout the world studying causes of mental health and other diseases with iPS cells derived from people with anxiety disorders, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, autism, spectrum disorders, bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder, depression, eating disorders, obsessive compulsive disorder, panic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder and schizophrenia, to better understand how these diseases originate and progress.
The RUCDR is the largest repository in the world and provides DNA, RNA and cell lines to hundreds of research laboratories across the globe studying mental health disorders and drug and alcohol abuse as well as the causes of digestive, liver, and kidney disease, and diabetes.
from http://news.rutgers.edu/medrel/special-content/fall-2011/rutgers-establishes-20111020/medrel_generic_content_type_view


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November 4x4 Come and Try Day
Date: 8 November
Keen to try out your new 4x4 and don't know where to go? Had a 4x4 for years and have run out of new places? Don't have anyone to go with? CT 4x4 Club Come and Try Day allows novice and experienced drivers an area to test their vehicles in a range of terrain including soft sand and rocky outcrops, with the surety of having experienced Four Wheel Drive Queensland members on-hand to assist and guide where required or just for recovery. Located just nine kilometres from Charters Towers central business district, the Millchester Motor Sport and Recreation Facility has it all from winch walls to mud pits that host the NQ Off Road Challenge, participants can come for the weekend and enjoy all that the Towers has to offer. CT 4x4 Club is a family friendly club catering for all 4x4 enthusiasts.
Contact details
Email Enquiries: email@example.com
Primary Phone: 0418 290 387

subset: commoncrawl


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Walter H. Gallaway was an artist of several early newspaper comics. He has created 'Citizen Fixit', that appeared around the turn of the 19th Century in several papers, such as the New York Harald and the Los Angeles Times.
Another newspaper strip by Gallaway is 'Absent-minded Augie', about a very forgetful young man, that ran in the early 20th Century. The artist has also published several color cartoons in Puck magazine.


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To schedule a ride-along with SFCCPD call (415) 239-3200 and ask to
speak to an on-duty Sergeant.
Campus Escort Program
Campus Police can provide escort service to and from your vehicle or
public transit. Escort service is provided seven days a week, from
5:30am - 12:30am. You can request an escort by contacting us.
Lost and Found
Campus Police office is the official location for lost and found
property. Should you loose, or find an item, contact Campus Police
immediately. We can assist you in finding your property or take found
property for safe keeping until the rightful owner is located.
Vehicle Lockout
If you locked your keys inside your vehicle Campus Police might be
able to help you out. Contact us before you call Roadside Assistance
company. It's free of charge. Please have your driver's license / ID
card ready for ownership verification.
Vehicle Battery Jump Start
Left your vehicle's lights on while you were gone and now your battery is dead? Happens all the time, contact us and we'll be able to assist you.


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THE BRAZEN CAREERIST- </span>Novel idea: Can the spin, tell the truth<span class="s1">
What do you do with your ideas? How do you get them traction? It used to be you made a sales pitch.
But today young people are paring the pitch down to its core and parodying the BS that surrounds it. Among young people, there's a general dislike for the classic idea of sales.
"Our company is not a sales-based organization," says Siamak Taghaddos of GotVMail, a virtual phone service. "We educate people. I believe in letting people make their own decision."
Spin doctors on sales teams are out, and authentic communications are in. That's why many companies do not have a sales button on their website, but they do have a blog, a way of getting out information in an authentic, efficient way, which is the best path to acceptance.
The power of authenticity for the new generation cannot be overstated. Guy Kawasaki, founder of Garage Technology Ventures, is a notable voice of authenticity on his blog, Signal Without Noise.
While most people with Kawasaki's experience rely on the power of their reputation to push their ideas, Kawasaki relies on authenticity. He feels obligated to issue real, useful information, information with value.
He initiates conversations rather than issuing one-way declarations. He posts each day knowing his value is the usefulness of the information he provides. The tacit agreement is paying off: in the pool of millions of blogs, his is one of the 50 most popular
What do you do to act on ideas and convey them with authenticity? Consider.
1. Jettison the stupid stuff. "Ninety percent of selling an idea is having a good idea," says Kawasaki. "People think that the difficulty is marketing and sales. But with a good idea you can screw up marketing and sales" and still succeed.
2. Become the anti-salesman. One of young people's complaints about working in big companies is that no one listens to their ideas. Outside a company, entrepreneurs have a good idea and move on it. But inside a company, new products get stalled. "Being an entrepreneur and an 'intrapraneur' are similar," Kawasaki says. "The key for an intrapraneur is not trying to get permission."
3. Start a conversation instead of a canned speech. People want information and don't tolerate fluff. If you want someone to believe in what you're doing, be good on your feet.
4. Find people who need you. Kim Ricketts creates book events at corporations. Bringing authors to companies fills a need– to give employees the chance to hear new thinkers. Ricketts' events show how good ideas gain traction quickly, with little or no marketing, because they answer a customer's problem
5. Focus on information. Often, an in-person sales pitch to a young person is like a blinking IM message to a Boomer: an unwanted interruption. If you've been selling for decades, tone it down, because you sound desperate to a new generation, and also a little dishonest. If you have a good product, the facts speak for themselves.
6. Be your true self. Worry as much about yourself as your product. Be authentic: Lay a foundation for a company and yourself. "If you're how you want people to perceive you," Taghaddos says, "then people will like you and buy your product without any pressure."


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President Barack Obama gave an unexpectedly serious and wide-ranging interview to Jay Leno on Tuesday night, weighing in on a terror threat, U.S. tensions with Russia and even his recent lunch with Hillary Clinton on "The Tonight Show" — a venue where he was more accustomed to light-hearted joking.
Obama used his appearance on the show – his sixth – to give his first public comments on recent warnings of a possible terrorist attack on U.S. interests in the Middle East. The warnings have prompted the State Department to shutter 19 diplomatic posts across the Middle East and North Africa until Saturday.
U.S. & World
"Well, it's significant enough that we're taking every precaution," Obama said to Leno, adding that radical violet extremism "is still out there, we've got to stay on top of it."
The president also reiterated the White House's warning that the threat was significant and urged Americans to act "prudently" when planning travel and checking in with the State Department and embassies to see what precautions they should be taking.
"The general rule is show some common sense and some caution," Obama said, as the first sitting president ever to go on the show, making his fourth appearance since he took office.
He also said that Americans have shined in times of danger and peril, pointing out that people kept going to ball games and went on business as usual after the Boston Marathon bombings in April.
"That's the right reaction. Terrorists depend on the idea that we're going to be terrorized," Obama said.
The president also commented on the case of National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden, plus the secret government data surveillance programs his leaks to the press uncovered.
"We don't have a domestic spying program," Obama said, defending some surveillance as a "critical component to counterterrorism" and saying the information it gathered was "useful."
But NBC News' correspondent Andrea Mitchell told "The Rachel Maddow Show" Tuesday said that he also appeared to express some caution about the surveillance, suggesting some level of discomfort with the NSA's programs.
Obama didn't comment on the legality of Snowden's leaks. Snowden faces espionage charges for them and has been granted temporary asylum in Russia in the face of them.
"We don't know exactly yet what he did," Obama said. "It's important for me not to prejudge something."
The president said he was disappointed by Russia's decision to grant Snowden asylum, but maintained that the U.S relationship with Russia is still intact.
"There's still a lot of business that we can do with them, but there are times when they slip back into Cold War thinking," Obama said.
He confirmed to Leno that he will attend the G-20 summit in St. Petersburg with Russian president President Vladimir Putin — despite some protests that he should not, due to Russia's granting Snowden asylum, and others over Russia's new spate of laws cracking down on gay Russians' civil rights. On Wednesday, however, Obama canceled a meeting with Putin that had been scheduled on the sidelines of the summit.
Leno himself told MSNBC host Lawrence O'Donnell in an interview on his show "The Last Word" Tuesday night, after the Obama taping, that the question of Russia — and of its crackdown on gay rights — was one he had most looked forward to asking Obama. The president said he had no patience for countries that try intimidate or harm gay, lesbian or transgender people and said it was his duty to speak out about basic freedoms.
Another topic Leno had most wanted to ask Obama about: The high-profile case of Trayvon Martin and his fatal shooting by George Zimmerman, who was acquitted of second-degree murder and manslaughter last month.
Leno praised the president's public comments on the case and on the experiences of black men and boys in America and asked him about his remarks.
"I think all of us were troubled by what happened," Obama told Leno. "It doesn't mean Trayvon was a perfect kid. None of us were."
Obama said he thought the attention paid to the Martin shooting was indicative of how badly Americans want a fair and just criminal justice system.
"What I wanted to explain was why this was a particularly sensitive topic for the African-American community," he continued. "The system should work for everyone, and what I'm trying to do is just make sure that we have a conversation."
On "The Last Word" Tuesday night, after taping, Leno said he had been particularly interested in hearing about the comments on the shooting's impact. "He put every American in the shoes of the average black teenage boy," Leno said.
Leno also asked the president about the economy and the constant partisan battles in Congress over whether to boost the economy with infrastructure projects and other spending. And it was also pointed out that the president's health care law goes into full effect on Oct. 1.
The late-night host also took a few swings at the president for becoming a bit closer to his 2008 presidential rival, John McCain, who was recently instrumental in pushing a comprehensive immigration bill through the Senate.
Obama's appearance on Leno's show wasn't all serious, however, and he managed to have at least some fun with the late night host, with the help of some chat about former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, whom he lunched with recently.
"Who invited who to lunch?" Leno asked.
"I invited her, and we had a great time," Obama said. "She had that post-administration glow — you know, when folks leave the White House, and two weeks later they look great."
So was Clinton, a speculated 2016 presidential contender, measuring the Oval Office drapes for a possible future stint there?
"She's been there," Obama said of the former first lady. "She doesn't have to measure them."


text: Healthy Origins is a Pittsburgh based manufacturer of nutritional supplements which has been providing leading "specialty supplements" to the Health Food Industry, including the HPF line of products. Their products will be found at most Health Food Stores throughout the United States. The company's products are developed with their own custom formulations and are manufactured with strict compliance with the U.S. Pharmacopoeia guidelines. The quality control standards exceed those required be any government agency. You are assured of getting the most potent nutritional products available today.


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- Products & Supply
- Atmospheric Gases
- Electronic Gases and Chemicals
- Food Chilling
- Food Freezing
- Food Grade Gases
- Gas Mixtures
- Helium
- Packaged Chemicals
- Refrigerants - landing page
- Welding and Safety Products
- Speciality Gases Overview
- Supply Modes
The CRYOLINE® SI is a nitrogen immersion freezer that conveys the food product through a nitrogen bath for quick IQF freezing.
It is designed for high-volume IQF (individually quick frozen) applications, such as cooked poultry, diced meats and prawns.
Immersion freezers expose the product directly to liquid nitrogen to get a rapid crust freeze to lock in product yield and reduce cooking losses. This ensures that there is little clumping and that only a few product particles stick to each other and the belt.


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Get all the Tonic Punches and the Border System with the Border System & 21 Punches or you can order them separately.
28th b-day page By LeNae Gerig
Designer Tip: Punch the cupcake border from black and line the back with white to make the punch really stand out. Using the Border System makes lining up the punches for a border so easy and fast to do. It took just minutes to make the ribbon border!


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A lot of the teachers I work with are pretty upset that we have to return to work on Monday the 2nd. I must admit I am one of those teachers. The reason for most of us being upset is that the 2nd is considered a business holiday, meaning most businesses are closed INCLUDING day care! Which means not only are most teachers having to pay their monthly day care bill but also pay for a babysitter for the day (defeating the purpose of working for a day when you turn around and give a babysitter your pay).
Which begs the question, What in the world are they (the board) thinking?!?!?! I mean do you not realize that probably 70% (if not more) of your employees have children, let alone children under the age of five that have to be taken care of?!?!? Maybe we should all bring our children to work that day and take a little visit to the main offices of the county. Now looking ahead to next year's calendar New Year's Day is on a Tuesday, and guess what...we go back to work on the 2nd, and the kids come back on that Thursday...two days....really!?!?!?
So here's my survey, when do you go back to school? What are your thoughts about this?


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Wedding Day: August 25, 2012
Her story: Emily Farbman, 25, grew up in Owings Mills. She lives in Canton and is in her fourth year of the audiology doctoral program at Towson University. Her father, Howard Farbman, is president of American Lumber Corp. Her mother, Dana Farbman, is an early intervention nurse at Baltimore County Public Schools Infants & Toddlers Program.
His story: Ross Taylor, 27, grew up in Pikesville. He is general manager at Taylor Property Group and lives in Canton. His father, Dr. Bruce Taylor, is a psychiatrist and CEO of Taylor Service Company. His mother, Dr. Ellen Taylor, is a gynecologist in Pikesville.
Their story: The couple officially met in 2010. But, Emily, had "known" Ross for a bit of time before that.
"We both go to Temple Oheb Shalom [synagogue]," she says. " Both our families are very involved there. And I had actually had my eye on him since I was little. I always had a little crush on him."
On this particular night — the night before Yom Kippur — both were at services when it was Ross who suddenly had his eye on her.
"I watched a beautiful girl walk into services and couldn't take my eyes off her the entire evening," he said.
"I was just sitting there with my family," says Emily. "My mom told me that a boy was staring at me, and that I should give him the look. So, I proceeded to look over to him. Nothing special. Nothing more happened there."
But as soon as services were over, Ross' mom — then president of the temple — took over, much to her son's initial chagrin.
"After services, I was talking with my mom and asked who the beautiful girl was across the synagogue," he said. "In one swift motion — as only a Jewish mother would do — she's already taking steps forward and saying, 'Let's go say hi!' I remember thinking I should reach out to grab my mom and say, 'Mom, I'm 25. I can do this myself.' But, by the time I had that thought, it was too late. She was already halfway across the room. It was one of the most embarrassing introductions of my life. But, I met Emily."
They chatted a bit that evening, and more the next day after Yom Kippur services.
"I remember being nervous and after exchanging phone numbers we were exchanging text messages," Ross says. "And I was thinking, wow, she's actually texting me back." .
Then Ross invited Emily out for sushi.
"I found out on Facebook that her favorite food is sushi, which works out very well," says Ross. "One of my favorite restaurants in Sushi Ya in Pikesville, where I created a roll that has my name on it."
"That was obviously very impressive to me," Emily says.
"I was actually sick that night," Ross says. "I hadn't been feeling well that day. But, I sucked it up, and went to dinner. I barely ate, but she had no idea."
"I was so nervous I couldn't get the miso soup in the spoon," says Emily. "I was shaking so much. But, we couldn't stop talking. The restaurant actually closed. So, we stood out in parking lot and continued talking."
"And then we started talking about going out on the boat that I keep in the harbor," says Ross. "She — being a student — didn't have class the next day. And I — sort of joking — said we should go out on the boat the next morning. I looked at my schedule and figured that my boss/father wouldn't mind and invited her over the next morning. I thought I would cook her breakfast and go out on the boat."
"I came over really early — like 9 in the morning — and just had the most wonderful relaxing, incredible day," Emily says.
"Throughout dinner [the night before] and even before that with our [previous] conversations, I knew she was special," says Ross. "But, by the middle of that day, I knew that she was who I wanted to be with."
If Ross had any doubts, his 2-year-old Doberman Pincher, Dexter, erased them.
"At the end of that second date, I was walking her to her car, and Dexter jumped into her car and sat down in the passenger seat," says Ross. "He fell instantly in love with her."
They talked, texted and saw each other constantly from then on.
"At that time we joked that it felt like we'd already been dating for a year," Emily says. "But, I quickly took him to meet my family within a couple of weeks, and he did the same...A couple weeks into it, he asked, 'When can I call you my girlfriend?' And I said, 'Now.'"
The proposal, October 1, 2011:
"I believe that a proposal shouldn't be a surprise," says Ross. "The future bride should know that it's coming, just not know when or how. So, we picked out the ring together."
"It's based on a Tiffany ring — princess cut diamond with little diamonds around it and on the sides," says Emily.
"I ordered the ring. I didn't tell her when it was coming in and I certainly didn't tell her when I was going to give it to her," says Ross.
So, when the ring did come in, on September 30, 2011, Ross took his mom with him to Radcliffe Jewelers pick it up.
"She asked when I was going to propose and I said I hadn't figured out a date — maybe a week or two weeks," says Ross. "And my mom said, 'What are you waiting for? Why not do it tomorrow?' She gave me necessary nudges."
So Ross got cracking. First, he put his sister-in-law, Cristin Taylor, to work by taking Emily out shopping all the next day, in an attempt to distract her while he spent the day setting the stage for his proposal.
"I booked a room at Marriott Waterfront for [that] evening," he says. "I spent the day buying flowers, filling the hotel room with flowers...I don't even know how many dozens of flowers. There were lots of roses and other flowers and vases and candles as well. I arranged the flower petals and a set up bottle of champagne and [chocolate-covered] strawberries."
Ross also spent that time trying to come up with an excuse — "that was barely believable" — to get her over to the hotel room.
"[It] was that we were going to dinner with my brother in Harbor East," he says. After the day of shopping, Emily got ready for dinner and Ross told her that first they had to stop at the Marriott Waterfront because they had to go look at the finishes in some of the hotel rooms there for an apartment project he was working on.
"We walked up to the room," says Emily. "It was a beautiful suite and there were dozens and dozens and dozens of roses — of every color — all over. He did a heart in petals on the bed. There were chocolate covered strawberries and champagne and our song ["Hallelujah" by Rufus Wainwright, from "Shrek"] - was playing in the background. He just went above and beyond to make it so special. He had worked on it all day. I think I was in shock. I turned around and he was down on his knee."
But, the surprises weren't over. Instead of a restaurant in Harbor East, Ross took her to her favorite restaurant — one in their neighborhood, Blue Hill Tavern.
"We walk up the stairs following the hostess, and there is my whole family, his whole family, my best friends and his best friends," she says. "He had coordinated the whole thing. And that was the best thing because we're both such family people."
The Wedding: About 250 guests will attend the black-tie affair at the Four Seasons Hotel. They say the hotel's catering manager, Katie Shannon, made the planning easy, and kept the stress level low.
The ceremony will be officiated by Rabbi Steven Fink from Temple Oheb Shalom.
"He's known both of us for a very long time," says Emily.
Emily says the Chuppah will be made of intertwining branches for a simple, natural look and in keeping with the "simple elegance" she and Ross want for the event.
Emily will wear a strapless Maggie Sottero gown from Betsy Robinson.
"It's chiffon, and very simple," she says. "I felt like all the other dresses I was trying on were weighing me down. It has a corset back so I like the shape of it." .
She'll be carrying a bouquet of white hydrangeas and roses, with some purple-throated calla lilies mixed in.
That color will tie in with the dark plum gowns — also from Betsy Robinson — being worn by five bridesmaids and Emily's two maids-of-honor; her sisters, Julie, 22, and Annie, 20. All of them will carry all-white bouquets.
All the flowers are being done by J.J. Cummings Floral Co.
Ross will be in a peaked-collar black Ralph Lauren Black Label tuxedo, from the Ralph Lauren store, and a black cummerbund, black bow-tie and small calla-lily boutonniere to match those in Emily's bouquet. And there's something else very important to Emily that he'll have on.
"My grandfather passed away on my birthday two years ago, a month before we met," she says. "And [family members] were able to choose something of his to remember him by. I chose a couple of pairs of his cufflinks. I gave them to Ross a long time ago. And he recently told me he was planning on wearing those during the wedding. They're gold horseshoes. My grandfather owned racehorses. Those [cufflinks] were very special to him."
His best man — brother Marty, 29 — and six groomsmen are each wearing their own tuxedos and will also wear black cummerbunds and bow-ties.
A cocktail hour and seated dinner will follow the ceremony.
The couple is going for elegant, all-white decor. J.J. Cummings is doing two different types of centerpieces for the tables. One type will feature large balls of white flowers atop tall inverted cone-shaped glass vases. The other will be tall glass cylinders with flowers submerged underwater.
Menus will await each guest, so they can choose an entree of tenderloin or halibut.
SugarBakers Cakes is doing an elegant four-tiered white-on-white wedding cake — vanilla cake with raspberry filling and buttercream frosting — decorated with an iridescent "ribbon" of icing and big white flowers. A dessert bar will offer other sweet treats.
There will be a break between each course with music from the Washington Talent Agency band, Spectrum.
"To keep people dancing through the night," explains Emily.
Emily and Ross have chosen their favorite song — "Hallelujah" — for their first dance, and Louis Armstrong's "It's a Wonderful World" for the father-daughter dance.
The couple's monogram also plays a role in the wedding. It was on the invitations, and will be on the aisle to the Chuppa, and in a spotlight on the dance floor.
The honeymoon: "We're going to Bora Bora," says Emily. "We're so excited. We're staying at the Intercontinental."
"We wanted it to be a beach honeymoon," says Ross. " We were looking online and saw the over water bungalows and were sold from there."


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Another election cycle is upon us and we're hearing a lot about focus groups again. A focus group is a form of qualitative research in which a group of people are asked about their attitude towards a product, service, concept, advertisement, idea, or packaging. Today you all will comprise Bullet Hole's very own focus group and I will be seeking your input relating to, er... packaging. Let me explain.
I've blogged before about my Calamity Jayne covers--how much I adore them and how I think the branding is pure genius. I'm spoiled. I admit it. You walk into a bookstore, spot one of these covers, and you know it's a Calamity Jayne book. How totally cool is that?
My May, 2008, release is not a Tressa Jayne Turner mystery. Entitled FIANCÉ AT HER FINGERTIPS, it is a romantic comedy. Sort of. It's one of those books you hear authors refer to as the 'book of my heart.' Often these books never sell. I lucked out. Mine did. It's special to me. Writing this book convinced me that I should be writing comedy.
So, I plan to unveil the cover for this book here at Killer Fiction for the first time. And that's where you come in, focus group of mine. I haven't decided yet exactly how I feel about the cover and I need your input. Here's the set up. I want you to imagine you're walking into a bookstore, Wal-mart, grocery store or drug store and you are searching the shelves for a fun read. And you see this:
Okay, focus group. Focus. Would you pick this book up? Pass it by? Barely even notice it? Snatch it up right away? Blink in rapid succession several times only to discover it's still there? What? Quickly jot down those key first impressions--both positive and negative. Done? Good.
Now let's pretend you've picked the book up and turned it over to read the back cover copy. It reads:
THE SINGLE GIRL'S ALL-IN-ONE SOLUTION TO MATERNAL MEDDLING, FAMILIAL FIDDLING AND FRIENDS' FIX-ME-UPSA romance novel that's out of the box.
"Who are you seeing?"
Debra Daniels thinks she's found the answer to the age-old question women have been plagued with ever since Eve first said "Why not?" when Adam asked her on a stroll through the Garden. In need of a break from her matchmaking mother and a score of hellish blind dates, to Debra the do-it-yourself boyfriend-in-a-box kit is a gift from Above. Fiancé at Your Fingertips: Touted as the single woman's best defense against pitying looks and speculative stares, it comes with everything the single-and-slightly-desperate woman needs to convince friends, family and coworkers that she has indeed found Mr. Right. And "Lawyer Logan" is definitely that. Tall, handsome…and fictitious. Debra is going to have an absolute blast with her faux beau—until he shows up on her doorstep acting as if he has every right to be there, and in her arms. That'll be the start of a romance truly outside of the box, and where the real fun begins.
All right, group, you've read the back blurb, so what do you think now? Does the cover convey the tone of the book? Is it consistent with the summary? Take a few minutes to record your opinion.
Still with me? Okey dokey.
Next, scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on the comment link and post your cover analysis comments: good, bad, or indifferent.
And that's it. Thank you for participating in Bullet Hole's inaugural Focus Group on cover art. I'm really anxious to know what you think of the cover. What? Me? What do I think? Well, naturally I'll wait to decide where I stand until after I've heard what my fabulous focus group has to say...
~Bullet Hole~


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And I'm back.Part Two of FAQ and comments to me on Facebook...Enjoy!
3) "I wish I could go natural, but I have this kind of job… my parents won't like it that… men won't like me…."
Jamie: I've actually have had these kind of conversations.
Being chemical free is a emotional choice. I think its because a lot of women with relaxers literally haven't seen their natural texture in years and it's a scary thought. "How does my hair really look?
I got my first relaxer at nine. I wanted a Jheri Curl but my mom had a juicy, fresh one and she said couldn't afford two Curls. So I got a kiddie perm instead. It wasn't til I was a sophomore in college in 1996 did I see my natural hair in ten years. Remember, this wasn't the age of Natural Hair Shows, Carol's Daughter, Hair Forums, or You Tube Gurus, so it wasn't super popular. My mother hated it, my sorors thought I was nuts, and my friends were not to into it either.
Reverting back to who we were can be scary. Hair is emotional. I suggest before you make any decisions, pray or meditate on what's good for your soul and hair. Can you live without the creamy crack? Are ready to embrace the good and the bad reactions to your decision? It is that DEEP. After you have received your answer and if is to go natural, research options to getting there, whether its 'transitioning' or going all the way and big chopping it all off. I've been natural about four times on and off since 1996, each time for a different reason. This is the only time, right now, I felt like the decision was from my soul and that I love what I did.
As far as parents go, we all have different relationships with them. Some of us care if that they are happy with our appearance and that is okay. I used to be like that but I couldn't' make them happy if I tried. I was wasting my time and MY life living for my parents' visual expectations of me. With my mom, the more she hates something I do with my personal look, the more I want to do it! Lol!
Friends, well, if they are so shallow to not support your decision to go natural, they were not your friends in the first place. Womp. As we grow as people, real relationship will true and genuine people will make you life better.
Job? The best answer I have is that if you is USE YOUR BEST JUDGEMENT. I've always had jobs wear I can wear my hair as a please but some people don't have to that luxury. You are there to get paid and not make a statement no matter where you work, unless its from home. My mother used rant and rave about my hair " You'll never get a job with that 'fro or locks". But she's from a different generation and that's another post. If you like the lifestyle that your job provides you, then do what you gotta do. I'm not a natural hair"nazi", so if staying relaxed because you work at BOA uptown and you are "thousandaire" then do what you got to do to keep your paper, boo-boo.
Last but not least, men. Take it from your girl, I lack of no male attention. I still get male attention with a wig, weave, bald, afro, braids…I guess because I possess a little 'more' than just my hair. There are men, who are gorgeous, who only like women with long hair or real hair. Respectfully, that's their preference. I prefer straight teeth, no exceptions. That's ONE of my preferences. But a real man will want you regardless of your last relaxer. When I wear my hair 'out', I get WAY more attention from genuine men than when I'm wearing a wig. That's a good thing. I like real men.


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Celebrate Fall with our new Autumn Star quilts, made of orange, plum and wine color patches on a beige background of 100% cotton plaid fabrics. It has small triangle patches creating a star design. Four corners are set with autumn leaves. Intricately hand quilted hand made heirloom quality quilt. Tea Dyed for an antique look.
100% Cotton, Handmade, Hand Quilted, Heirloom Quality Quilts.


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On Leonard Cohen
So come, my friends, be not afraid.
We are so lightly here.
It is in love that we are made;
In love we disappear
You tried, in your way, to be free. Thank you. Now go join that great gig in the sky. So I wrote a year ago, when Lenny left us. However, the legend lives on - listen for example to How the Light Gets In.
'We Love Leonard Cohen' celebrated his 81st Birthday, and then, for his 82nd and final birthday, Leonard gave us a present. "You Want It Darker" is the title track to last album, his 14th studio album in his 49-year recording career. (See also Leonard Cohen Makes it Darker.)
"Leonard Cohen offers the possibility of living with grace, dignity, and integrity, without submitting to illusions, without succumbing to indifference, and without indulging in denial of our own failures and flaws, in a world that is too often corrupt and malevolent" - Allan Showalter


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Here is another valuable Management Tip of the Day from Harvard Business Review. To sign up for a free subscription to any/all HBR newsletters, please click here.
Most team leaders know to help their team define goals, but the conversation shouldn't stop there. You also need to agree on the mechanics of how the team will get the work done. Here are four issues that need to be clear on every team:
1. Roles and responsibilities. Every member needs to know their tasks and how their work will contribute to the overall goals.
2. Work processes. You don't need a notebook full of procedures, but agree on how to carry out the basics—such as decision-making or communicating.
3. Rules of engagement. Establish a constructive team culture. Discuss the shared values, norms, and beliefs that will shape the daily give-and-take between team members.
4. Performance metrics. How will you measure progress? Define the measures for meeting the goals, and the consequences for not meeting them.
Today's Management Tip was adapted from "For Your Team's Success, Remember the How" by Linda Hill & Kent Lineback.
To read that article and join the discussion, please click here.
Also, you may wish to check out the new book, Management Tips from Harvard Business Review, by clicking here.


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Retail sales unexpectedly fall in March
Retail sales contracted in March for the second time in three months, a sign the American economy may have stumbled at the end of the first quarter.
Retail sales fell 0.4 percent during the month, the Commerce Department said on Friday. That was below analysts' expectations that sales would be flat.
Continue Reading Below
Readings for retail sales have been volatile so far this year, making it difficult to know whether the weakness in March was due to a tax hike that went into effect at the start of the year or to temporary factors related to the weather.
Retail sales advanced 1 percent in February, according to revised readings from the government.
Stripping out cars, gasoline and building materials, sales fell 0.2 percent in March. This core measure corresponds closely with the consumer spending component of gross domestic product. The government revised lower past core retail sales figures to show a 0.3 percent gain in February and flat sales in January.
Prior reports on retail sales had made consumers look surprisingly resilient despite tax increases that kicked in on January 1. A tax on payrolls climbed for all workers, while income tax rates rose for the nation's most wealthy.
Fiscal policy tightened further in March when the federal government began across-the-board spending cuts, part of Washington's efforts to shrink the budget deficit.
Non-partisan researchers in the U.S. Congress estimate Washington's austerity drive will subtract about 1.5 percentage points from economic growth this year.
Many economists have also noted the loss of economic momentum in many economic indicators for March could have been due to a warm winter which may have led companies and consumers to pull forward spending.
Indicators from retail sales and hiring to factory manager confidence were much stronger in February, and a chilly March may have dulled activity.
It is also plausible that economic reports have not accurately adjusted for the shift in timing for the Easter holiday, which fell in March of this year after falling in April of 2012.
The weakness in March retail sales was broad based, with car sales down 0.6 percent and receipts from electronics and appliance stores down 1.6 percent. Sales at clothing stores rose just 0.1 percent.
(Reporting by Jason Lange; Editing by Neil Stempleman)


text: Ever since 1927, German brand Koziol has been designing, creating and manufacturing high-quality home accessories that stand out for their unique design. All this in a sustainable way. Original and unpredictable, the Koziol collection is designed in partnership with the internal Werkdesign team and with the most prominent designers and Universities across Europe.


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Sunday, September 20, 2009
(There are spoilers below.)
9 is a post-apocalyptic fantasy that suffers from huge huge logic holes and underdeveloped characters. This is a shame, as the film has strong art direction and what Variety would call "solid tech credits."
The story is about a scientist who invents a machine for the betterment of mankind and has it taken away from him and subverted by a military government. The machine is used for war and then turns on humans, wiping them out. Somehow, the scientist ends up being the last man alive. I would think that either he would be drafted to stop the doomsday machine or would be killed by an angry mob, but it appears that he's left alone to build dolls. Why he considers this the appropriate response is never explained. There's a streak of mysticism running through the film, as the scientist imparts a piece of his soul to the nine burlap dolls. After the ninth, the scientist has apparently run out of soul and dies.
I have to assume that numbers one through eight were unsuccessful prototypes, because the scientist leaves instructions explicitly for number 9. Based on the image above, 1 through 8 have specific tasks to perform, but they don't cooperate with each other or know what to do. 9 himself is responsible for a colossal blunder which exists only for the convenience of setting the plot in motion. That blunder is even more convenient in that a device the scientist has invented to save the world also fits perfectly in the doomsday machine, making it even more powerful. Way to go, scientist!
At the end of the film, 9 frees the parts of the scientist's soul that were embedded in five of the dolls. The souls ascend to heaven, causing a rainstorm. The implication is that somehow, the rain will renew the earth and there are hints that the raindrops contain bacteria to start the evolutionary process over again. I can only wonder why the souls of billions of humans who died previously were not capable of causing this rain.
Furthermore, the future for the four remaining dolls is uncertain at best. They seem incapable of reproducing, sexually or otherwise. Will they eventually wear out? Will they perish through accidents? Some dialogue states that the world is now theirs to remake, but the appearance of the bacteria-laden rain implies otherwise.
If the characters were memorable, these questions wouldn't matter quite so much. However, the characters are not well developed. While they have voices by Elijah Wood, Christopher Plummer, Martin Landau and Crispin Glover, the actors have nothing to work with. These characters have no arcs and have less personality, with a few exceptions, than the 7 dwarfs. That's a handicap that the animators can't overcome.
An audience enters a film through the characters. When characters are weak and underdeveloped, the audience has no reason to identify with them or care what happens to them. This reduces the impact of the various action sequences of the film. They are well directed and animated from a technical standpoint, but don't have the effect they should because the audience is not invested in the characters' fates. What makes it worse is that the film is almost all action sequences in order to pad out the slim plot.
The artists who worked on this film have done their jobs well. The film's shortcomings are not in the visuals, which are consistently good. As often happens, the artists have been let down by the script. Good art direction and slick production values are not enough for an audience. If they were, Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow would be considered a classic instead of a film most people have forgotten.
Starz, the Toronto production company responsible for the bulk of this film's visuals, is developing into a first class studio. Because they are a shop for hire, they're stuck with the scripts they are handed and are in no position to demand rewrites. Eventually, they may get lucky and work on a hit, but it's a shame they have to trust to luck. The artists on this film have done work to be proud of, but it can't overcome the script's deficiencies. I hope someday they work on a film worthy of their talents.
7 comments:
- Paul said...
Spot-on commentary. I agree that the art direction was so good that it's a real shame that the story let the artists down. Terribly lacking in character development.
- September 20, 2009 9:17 PM
- Unknown said...
I really saw this coming. People expected too much on this movie just because of the names attached to it.
- September 21, 2009 3:17 AM
- swtcurran said...
i thought the short film was fine, if just bearable. i have no interest in seeing it expanded - because there is nothing to expand. the story is derivative at best - and the ponderous seriousness of a very adolescent plot is enough to make me run away.
cloudy with a chance of meatballs on the other hand is one of the funniest comedies i've seen since "best in show." it is a wonderful rich surprise - and the best CARTOON i've seen in ages.
- September 21, 2009 6:08 PM
- King Marvin Mugabi said...
very insightful review professor.
- September 23, 2009 12:56 AM
- Steve Segal said...
Thanks for your well thought out commentary. I agree about the lack of character development. There was a plot hole that bothered me, early in the film 9 and the older doll (sorry I don't have the number scorecard) are attacked by a beast and are saved by the female. Why did she wait until now to slay it? There seemed no sense of cooperation or even distraction on the part of the beast, it just made for a convenient action moment.
- September 25, 2009 11:04 AM
- jriggity said...
yEAH MAN......I was itchin in my seat with how poor the story was.
I had mid level expectations too....
man..what a dissapointment.
Nice artwork is all its got.
- September 25, 2009 7:47 PM
This did not surprise me either. Trying to expand an idea that worked well as a short into a feature length film usually does not work.
Have to admit I'm getting tired of all these films & games with post-apocalyptic scenarios. It's like reveling in a death wish.
- September 28, 2009 2:21 PM


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IR35 Centre: Personal Service Companies
The legislation known as IR35 is intended to tackle the avoidance of tax and National insurance contributions (NICs) through the use of intermediaries such as service companies or partnerships.
The rules target circumstances where a worker would be treated as an employee of the client, if it were not for the existence of the intermediary. Where this is a limited company, the worker can take money out in the form of dividends instead of salary. Dividends are not liable to NICs so the worker would therefore pay less in NICs than either a conventional employee or a self-employed person.
Scope of the rules
The IR35 rules apply to income earned in respect of work done under contracts which would have been contracts of employment if the worker had been working direct for the client (relevant engagements). They do not introduce any statutory definition of employment or self-employment, so the existing case law will still apply to decide employment status (see: Employed or Self Employed?). The rules catch those employed in a domestic situation - eg nannies - as well as workers in the wider business sense.
Workers with up to 5% share in the intermediary (taking into account the holdings of family and domestic partners) are not subject to the rules, unless they receive payments or benefits which are not taxable under Schedule E.
If you are caught by the IR35 rules, you are treated as receiving a notional salary on the last day of the tax year (5 April) equal to the company's gross income from relevant engagements less certain specified deductions. You will have to pay over PAYE and NICs on this notional salary by 19 April and include it on the year end final FPS return by 5 April. It is evident that there is very little time to process the calculations, and HMRC have indicated that they will not penalise the use of provisional payments and calculations in order to meet the deadlines. A provisional payment must be finalised by 31 January following to avoid penalties.
The deductions cover expenses that would normally be available to direct employees, contributions to registered pension schemes and the actual salary and employers NIC plus the employer's NIC on the deemed salary. A 5% flat rate deduction is allowed to cover the company's running costs. The example below illustrates some of the main features of the computation of the deemed payment.
Where a company has relevant engagements and other business which does not fall within the new rules, allowable expenses will have to be apportioned. Likewise, if a payment for a relevant engagement covers more than one worker, the payment can be apportioned between them on a 'just and reasonable' basis.
Other taxes
Corporation Tax is computed in the normal way, including the deemed salary and associated employers' NICs as allowable expenses. VAT operates regardless of any IR35 adjustments.
Dividends and other payments
Nothing in the legislation prevents a service company from paying money to the worker or others in the form of dividends, or retaining cash in the company. It will simply mean that an extra payment of PAYE tax and NICs will be calculated on 5 April. Dividends which are reclassified as deemed salary are relieved from tax so the PAYE takes priority, thus preventing double taxation of the payment.
Amending contracts
Workers who think they may be caught by IR35 should consider their position carefully, and should seriously think about renegotiating contracts so that they are no longer relevant engagements. Particular items to cover are:
Getting away from payment at hourly rates
Ensuring that the client will accept a capable substitute worker
Creating freedom in the way the work is carried out
It is, of course, essential that the contracts should actually operate within the scope of the written terms.
You should also be aware that if you find work through an agency, that the contract between the agency and their client (your ultimate client) will affect your status for IR35 purposes. Cases have been lost where the contract with the agency satisfies the requirements to be outside IR35, but the contract between the agency and the end user client does not. It is also possible that verbal evidence given by the end user client could undermine terms in your contract which put you outside IR35.
Mr E works through a service company, E Ltd, in which he owns all the shares. The company receives £20,000 during the year for contracts which fall within the IR35 rules (relevant engagements), and £10,000 for contracts which are outside the IR35 rules. E Ltd pays Mr E a salary of £10,000 in the year, in accordance with the normal PAYE rules. E Ltd also pays pension contributions of £2000 to a registered scheme. £500 of travel costs relate to the relevant engagements. The company has £5,000 of other business expenses, all allowable for corporation tax purposes.
At the end of the tax year E Ltd has to calculate the amount of PAYE and NICs due on Mr E's relevant earnings. If they have not actually paid enough PAYE and NICs during the year, then further PAYE and NICs will be payable on a 'deemed payment' on the last day of the tax year.
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LIHEAP IM 2013-3 State Median Income Estimates for Optional Use in FY 2013
Low Income Home Energy Assistance
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Transmittal No. LIHEAP-IM-2013-03 Date: May 22, 2013
SUBJECT: State Median Income Estimates for Optional Use in Federal Fiscal Year 2013 LIHEAP Programs and Mandatory Use in Federal Fiscal Year 2014 LIHEAP Programs.
RELATED (1) The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Act, Title XXVI of the Omnibus Budget
REFERENCES: Reconciliation Act of 1981, Public Law 97-355, as amended;
(2) 45 CFR 96.85 (b), Income Eligibility — Final Rule, published in the Federal Register on March 3, 1988 (53 FR 6827) and amended October 15, 1999 (64 FR 55858); and
(3) Annual Update of the LIHEAP State Median Income estimates, published in the Federal Register on May 15, 2013 (78 FR 28597-28599).
PURPOSE: To provide to LIHEAP grantees the state median income (SMI) estimates for use in LIHEAP programs for Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) 2014.
BACKGROUND: Section 2605(b)(2)(B) of P.L. 97-35 sets the maximum allowed in determining income eligibility for LIHEAP at 60 percent of SMI, except where 150 percent of the Federal Poverty Guidelines (FPG) is higher. LIHEAP grantees may set their programs' income eligibility criteria anywhere between 110 percent of FPG and this maximum.
CONTENT: In this memorandum, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announces that it has updated the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) income-eligibility limits based upon state median income (SMI). These limits make up part of the maximum that LIHEAP grantees may use in setting their programs' income eligibility criteria. LIHEAP grantees may set such criteria anywhere between 110 percent of Federal Poverty Guidelines (FPG) and the greatest of (1) this maximum; and (2) 150 percent of FPG.
HHS calculated these limits from the SMI estimates for a 4-person family developed by the United States Census Bureau (Census Bureau). HHS assimilated the Census Bureau's estimates for a family into the income eligibility criteria for a household because the estimates for a household are not available. HHS calculated 60 percent of such estimates and published the resulting figures in the Federal Register on May 15, 2013. See Attachment 1 for the complete text of this notice.
HHS calculated these limits for households of sizes other than 4 persons under the methodology specified in 45 CFR 96.85. This methodology calls for HHS to multiply the limit for a four-person household by the following: (1) 52 percent for one person; (2) 68 percent for two persons; (3) 84 percent for three persons; (4) 100 percent for four persons; (5) 116 percent for five persons; and (6) 132 percent for six persons. HHS did not calculate the limits for households of sizes greater than six persons; however, those limits are based on that for a four-person family times the sum of 132 percent and 3 percentage points for each household member above six. See Attachment 2 for (1) the 60 percent of SMI figures for households of sizes one through six; and (2) a reiteration of the instructions for calculating 60 percent of SMI for households of sizes greater than six.
Grantees should determine the SMI-based limits on household size, not family size. However, because the figures presented in the Federal Register and here show such limits by family size, grantees should consider the applicable limit for a family, as presented here, to be that for a household in their programs.
Grantees must limit LIHEAP eligibility to 150 percent of the FPG or 60 percent of SMI. Grantees must set LIHEAP income-eligibility at or below the greater of these two levels; however, they may not set LIHEAP income-eligibility below 110 percent of the FPG.
Optional Use
Grantees, insofar as they use SMI to set their programs' income eligibility criteria, may adopt these estimates at any time between May 15, 2013 (the date of publication in the Federal Register) and the later of (1) October 1, 2013 (the beginning of FFY 2014); or (2) the beginning of the grantee's fiscal year.
Mandatory Use
LIHEAP grantees, insofar as they use SMI to set their programs' income eligibility criteria, must adopt these estimates by the later of (1) October 1, 2013 (the beginning of FFY 2014); or (2) the beginning of the grantee's fiscal year.
(1) Federal Register Notice, published on May 15, 2013 (78 FR 28597-28599)
(2) 60 percent of estimated state median income adjusted for family size, by state, FY 2014
INQUIRIES: Peter Edelman, Program Analyst
Division of Energy Assistance
Office of Community Services, ACF, HHS
370 L'Enfant Promenade, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20447
(202) 401-5292
E-mail: email@example.com
Nick St. Angelo
Division of Energy Assistance
Office of Community Services


text:
One of the challenges faced by IT professionals around the world is that we're often not trusted by the people we're meant to serve. There are several reasons why we're not trusted, but the primary one is that we're often perceived as liars — and rightfully so considering our software development track record. I explored this problem two years ago in my July 2009 Agile Update: Lies, Great Lies, and Software Development Plans. The article summarized results from a survey we ran earlier that month that explored how project teams got themselves out of trouble. We discovered that many teams exhibited ethically questionable behavior. I received interesting feedback about this newsletter, particularly because several of the ethically questionable strategies are promoted as best practices within the project management community. So, I decided to repeat this effort with a new survey. I explain the results herewith.
This survey ran in late December 2010 and early January 2011 and had 235 respondents. I wanted to get the most timely information possible, so the survey asked people to describe their most recently completed project. The previous survey had asked about all projects within their organization, which in turn inflated the response rate. The new survey explored scope, schedule, cost, and process-related issues. Respondents were presented with a collection of practices and strategies that their teams might have used at some point in their project to get back on track. Some of the options were good ideas, some questionable, and a few downright dishonest.
For example, when it comes to schedule, a good idea would be to negotiate a variable schedule at the beginning of the project, a bad idea would be to commit to a "firm" end date and then negotiate a change to it late in the lifecycle (in some cases this could border on extortion), and a downright dishonest strategy would be to cook the books at the end of the project to make it look like your original schedule predicted the actual end date even when it hadn't.
After exploring the behaviors and survey results, I discuss preferred alternatives when digging out of a problem project.
Ethically Challenged Behavior
The ideas in this section are straightforward, but for many readers they may be the exact opposite of what you've been taught over the years. The problem is that the survey explored many strategies that are touted as project management best practices. And to be fair, when they're considered in exclusion, they arguably are. The problem is that these practices aren't exclusive, they're part of an overall toolkit that project teams pick and choose from appropriately.
For example, there is a low probability that any given team will try to extort more money out of their stakeholders near what should be the end of their project, so low that we're tempted to accept this indiscretion as "business as usual" when it does occur. The issue is that these probabilities add up, as you'll soon see, until there is a reasonably high probability that the IT project team will purposely deceive stakeholders about one or more of the cost, schedule, scope, or quality of their work. When we continue to do this from project to project to project, it constitutes unethical behavior. We set expectations at the beginning of the project, often because we're asked to by our stakeholders (a flimsy excuse at best), but know full well that we're likely to do something different when the going gets tough. If you were on the receiving end of this behavior, how would you feel?
When it comes to budgetary practices, 15% of respondents indicated that their team had motivated changes to the budget in an ethically questionable manner, even though a flexible budget had not been negotiated for the project. They had done one or more of the following: padding the initial budget (effectively deceiving stakeholders as to the actual expected costs); requesting extra funds at the end of the project even though they'd committed to a fixed budget; or reworked the initial estimate to align with the actual results at the end (effectively "cooking the books"). Analyzing the results by development paradigm, we find that 9% of agile teams, 20% of traditional teams, 22% of iterative teams, and 12% of ad hoc teams followed these questionable strategies. I'm not completely sure why there are such differences. Granted, agile teams are more likely to initially negotiate a variable budget than traditional teams because they recognize that the requirements will evolve over time, but the same should be said of iterative teams as well. Expectations for ad hoc teams are lower, so it's less likely that they'd be asked to provide an initial estimate anyways — or, if they were asked to commit to a budget it might motivate them to move away from ad hoc to begin with. The traditional paradigm assumes that it should be possible to define the budget up front, but in practice this does not work out for a significant percentage of the teams.
A similar rate of questionable behavior occurs when it comes to requirements practices, with 15% of respondents indicating that they descoped at the end of the project even though flexible scope wasn't initially negotiated. By paradigm, the survey found that 17% of agile teams, 11% of traditional teams, 17% of iterative teams, and 15% of ad hoc teams took this strategy. The fact that the results were so close and so low is an indication to me that teams are consistent in their desire to deliver what their stakeholders want regardless of paradigm. Scope management was the only instance in which traditional teams acted in a more ethical manner than agile or iterative teams. This is likely a reflection of the underlying rigidity of the traditional approach to requirements.
The rates of ethically dubious schedule practices were significantly worse, with 31% of respondents indicating that they had done at least one of padding the schedule, extending the schedule at the end, or reworking the original schedule at the end to reflect the actual schedule even though a flexible schedule was not initially negotiated. By paradigm, 21% of agile teams, 42% of traditional teams, 35% of iterative teams, and 32% of ad hoc teams exhibited questionable behavior. Once again, agile teams seemed to work in a more ethical manner than teams following other paradigms, although to be fair agile teams are more likely to negotiate a flexible schedule up front and therefore are less likely to run into trouble.
When it comes to the willingness of teams to compromise quality the good news is that the numbers are fairly low, with 15% of respondents indicating that their teams had done so in order to get themselves "out of trouble." By paradigm, 4% of agile teams, 16% of traditional teams, 17% of iterative, and 24% of ad hoc compromised quality. When it comes to agile I suspect that this is the result of the greater focus on quality that we see in that community, although I'm surprised that iterative and traditional had similar rates because iterative teams tend to test earlier in the lifecycle.
To summarize, based on our reported behaviors, there's a good chance that our stakeholders will perceive that we're lying to them at the start of a project when they're making critical funding decisions. There is a 15% chance that we'll deceive them about the cost of a project, 15% chance of deceiving them about what we're going to deliver, a 31% chance that we're lying about the schedule, and a 15% chance that we'll promise greater quality than we'll actually deliver. The bad news is that there's a 44% chance that we'll do at least one of these things (by paradigm, 32% for agile teams, 53% for traditional teams, 48% for iterative teams, and 50% for ad hoc teams). Looking at it from the point of view of our stakeholders, there's a 44% chance that a given project team will deceive them about one or more important success factors. Doing some simple combinatorics analysis, if your organization is currently running five projects there's a 95% that at least one of the teams has committed an ethically questionable act. Or, if you've been on five projects in your career, there's a 95% chance that you've been involved with such a team. Is it any wonder that business stakeholders consider IT untrustworthy?
Why are these things happening? My experience is that many of these improper IT practices are adopted to protect us from bad business practices, such as the desire of business leaders to have "accurate" cost and schedule estimates early in an IT project. For example, the survey found that we're being asked to give initial estimates on an average range of +/- 12%, which seems reasonable from a business point of view. Yet research by Barry Boehm, based on data from thousands of projects, shows that initial estimates for IT projects should be on a range of -25% to +75%. I believe that this discrepancy between what we're being asked to do and what is actually realistic to do motivates poor practices on the part of IT professionals.
Dysfunctional Behaviors
The survey asked about two requirements practices that I believe to be dysfunctional although not ethically improper. Actually, it really depends on the motivation behind following the practices. The first practice is a strict approach to change management that makes it difficult for stakeholders to change their requirements. This approach is employed by 29% of project teams. Strict change management processes are, in effect, change prevention processes: While they enable a team to deliver to the specification, they ensure that what you're delivering isn't what your stakeholders actually want. This is clearly not good for your stakeholders and isn't a very good career move on your part either.
The second dysfunctional practice is writing a detailed requirement specification at the beginning of the project, followed by 27% of respondents. This is something called "big requirements up front (BRUF)" within the agile community and it is problematic because it results in a significant level of waste on IT projects.
Interestingly, the number of respondents doing at least one of these practices was 44% on average — by paradigm Agile (36%), iterative (54%), traditional (53%), and ad hoc (29%). Not surprising that the ad hoc teams hadn't adopted more formalized strategies for requirements management.


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?? about the yards
MarkWahlberg.com Forum Index
The Yards
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Joined: 12 Oct 1999
Posts: 1025
Location: Jersey Shore*
Posted: Mon Jan 17, 2000 7:40 pm
Post subject: ?? about the yards
What exactly is the yards about?? I havent read pretty much anything about it or even heard that much about it except for a little thing on it at upcomingmovies.com but that didnt help me much...and does mark have the lead role in it?? i think he does but im not really sure...any info you have would be great! thanx!
~*Bye for now!*~
<3 Kim
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Annie M
Joined: 08 Jan 2000
Posts: 1683
Location: Muskogee, OK, USA
Posted: Tue Jan 18, 2000 12:28 am
Post subject:
This is what I copied off the News page on this site for this film. I have read only one synopsis elsewhere, and if I remember right, he plays some sort of subway cop. I will try to find the site I saw the synopsis on and copy it in here. I'll have to look for it tomorrow though. (Annie M.)
"The Yards" stars Mark Wahlberg, Joaquin Phoenix, Charlize Theron and Oscar winners Ellen Burstyn and Faye Dunaway. The film is being shot on location in Lafayette High School in Brooklyn, New York. Costar James Caan calls the pic, written and directed by James Gray, "a brave undertaking, a classical (modern) tragedy."
-- Source: Variety.com
Directed by James Gray (I)
Writing credits: James Gray (I), Matt Reeves
Genre: Crime / Mystery
Credited cast overview:
Ellen Burstyn .... Val Handler
James Caan .... Frank Olchin
Faye Dunaway .... Kitty Olchin
Robert Montano (I) .... Hector Gallardo
Garry Pastore .... Detective Tomassino
Joaquin Phoenix .... Willie Gutierrez
Charlize Theron .... Erica Olchin
Mark Wahlberg .... Leo Handler
Annie M
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Joined: 12 Oct 1999
Posts: 1025
Location: Jersey Shore*
Posted: Mon Feb 07, 2000 4:06 pm
Post subject:
well I did some hunting around the internet and I found some info on the Yards that really helped me understand more on what its going to be about. I got it off of Miramax's website
The Yards Coming Soon
DIRECTORJames Gray
James Gray
Matt Reeves
Paul Webster
Kerry Orent
Nick Wechsler
James Caan
Charlize Theron
Ellen Burstyn
Mark Wahlberg
Joaquin Phoenix
Faye Dunaway
The Yards is a thriller set in the vast New York City subway yards.
After being imprisoned for a crime he didnt commit, Leo Handler (MARK
WAHLBERG) just wants to get his life back on track, so he goes to the
one place he thinks will be safe--home. There Leo takes a new job with
his highly connected and influential Uncle Frank (JAMES CAAN), and is
reunited with his longtime friend, Willie Guitierrez (JOAQUIN PHOENIX),
his cousin, and his girlfriend Erica (CHARLIZE THERON). But in the
legendary yards, a place where his family has toiled for generations and
his uncle now pulls the strings, safe is not how they do business.
Unwittingly, hes drawn into a world of sabotage, high stakes pay-offs
and even murder. And the secret he discovers, will make him the target
of the most ruthless family in the city...his own. Now, in the name of
justice hell have to do everything in his power to take them down.
Directed by JAMES GRAY ("Little Odessa") from a screenplay by Gray and
MATT REEVES (TVs "Felicity"), THE YARDS also stars Academy Award
winners FAYE DUNAWAY and ELLEN BURSTYN.
~*Bye for now!*~
<3 Kim
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Joined: 20 Aug 1999
Posts: 65
Location: Muskogee, OK, USA
Posted: Mon Feb 14, 2000 10:53 pm
Post subject:
Hey, thanks!! It's a great synopsis, and sounds like a really good plot to me. Now I cannot absolutely WAIT to see this film!
Mark will, of course, be BRILLIANT...lol!!...
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Joined: 18 Feb 2000
Posts: 16
Location: Lübben/Germany
Posted: Mon Feb 21, 2000 11:01 am
Post subject:
woh...I`m surprised...he plays with Joaquin Phoenix? that`s the brother of my alltime favourite actor...RIVER PHOENIX...R.I.P.
but Mark is alive and great, too.
when will "The Yards" start ?
Do you know what I hate? in germany all the films start later than in the states and so I can`t talk about the films with you all when the movie is new...
bye sickgirl
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Joined: 04 Jan 2000
Posts: 462
Location: Norway
Posted: Mon Feb 21, 2000 1:51 pm
Post subject:
I know how u feel sickgirl. I live in Norway, so I normally have to wait six months until the movies get here. That really sucks. Anyway I can't wait to see The Yards.(And I'll probably have to wait a year or something)It seems like a really great movie from what I've read. Duh, anything with Mark in it is great, so there is really no doubt about it being so.
I'm a real Markoholic, and I'll never be rehabilitated
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Annie M
Joined: 08 Jan 2000
Posts: 1683
Location: Muskogee, OK, USA
Posted: Mon Feb 21, 2000 7:13 pm
Post subject:
The last I read, THE YARDS is due out in May of this year.
THE PERFECT STORM on June 30th.
METAL GOD sometime in September.
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Joined: 12 Oct 1999
Posts: 1025
Location: Jersey Shore*
Posted: Mon Feb 21, 2000 9:37 pm
Post subject:
I just went to upcomingmovies.com and it said that the yards was pushed back 2 months to June 7th instead of an april release. But I've read in other places that it will come out in May and other places that it will come out in april. I dont know which to believe ?? But if it is coming that soon in april it's really weird b/c I still haven't heard that much about it and the trailer isnt out yet either. I wish I knew what was goin on!!
Mark S. can you help??
~*Bye for now!*~
<3 Kim
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Joined: 29 Jul 1999
Posts: 622
Location: Florida
Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2000 10:49 pm
Post subject:
You know I've seen Charlize Theron on a lot of interviews lately (I guess to promote Reindeer Games) and she hasn't really said anything about The Yards. Don't you all find that strange?
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Annie M
Joined: 08 Jan 2000
Posts: 1683
Location: Muskogee, OK, USA
Posted: Sun Apr 30, 2000 5:10 pm
Post subject:
Yes, and I have been wondering if the film will make it into theaters, or if it will either be a "limited release" film, or go straight to video. I HOPE NOT!, but it has not been advertised or even hinted at, in the entertainment media, as far as I know. However, Lianne has said thea it is on the list for honored films at the Cannes Film Festival in May, and that Mark is going to be there. So perhaps now we will see and hear more about it over the summer!!
Annie M
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Joined: 12 Oct 1999
Posts: 1025
Location: Jersey Shore*
Posted: Sun Apr 30, 2000 5:37 pm
Post subject:
I read at the aint it cool news website that the reason we're not hearing much about it is b/c they've been editing the film for a while and changing things around because the director is a perfectionist(sp?) and he wants everything to be well ... perfect. but the guy at the aint it cool news saw a preview of the movie and said it was a great movie and that mark and joaquin phoenix gave by far their best performances yet! I doubt it will go straight to video.Upcomingmovies.com says it will open sept. 8 in LA and NY then spread to other cities at later dates. i found the 2 links at aint it cool news for more info about the movie.
the second link has all the juicy info
<3 Kim
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Annie M
Joined: 08 Jan 2000
Posts: 1683
Location: Muskogee, OK, USA
Posted: Tue May 16, 2000 11:32 pm
Post subject:
The above link will take you right to the page on the Cannes website which features "The Yards". There is a list of credits, the actors, a synopsis, and even a short dialogue excerpt between Mark's character and Ellen Burstyn's character (Leo and his Mother).
Annie M
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Joined: 01 Jul 2000
Posts: 1
Location: Appleton, WI, USA
Posted: Sat Jul 01, 2000 8:51 am
Post subject:
I went to upcomingmovies.com and I read that the movie won't be out until September 8th. Sorry guys. I'm just as dissapointed as you.
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Joined: 05 Jul 2000
Posts: 46
Location: valencia, CA usa
Posted: Thu Jul 06, 2000 11:20 pm
Post subject:
Wow! This movie looks great! I can't wait to see it! Mark is such a great actor though that he makes any movie good!
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When she passed away, a maternal great aunt, born in 1910, left me three old suitcases as well as a large, beautifully carved wooden trunk. Inside, each, was an Aladdin's cave of wonderful trinkets, clothes, vintage hats, hand embroidered table cloths and table napkins.
|My great Aunt wearing her Wedding Dress.
As I removed each beautifully handcrafted item, I discovered my aunt's wedding dress. From photographs, I knew, this was the wedding dress she had sewn and worn for her second wedding, to Major Alexander Wallace Johnston. The gown is made of gold lace and silk and I simply couldn't resist trying the fabulous dress on ( and it fitted perfectly). My daughters joined me in a colourful journey into the past as we discovered hats, ball gowns, long embroidered gloves, fob watches and costume jewelery. I am certain that each individual item from the trunk and the two suitcases, has a story of its own, however, I can only imagine the tales many of these items could tell if they could talk.
As for the gold wedding dress, I happen to know that it speaks of not only love, but also of betrayal and heartbreak. My great aunt's first husband and the great love of her life, left her for a younger woman with whom he already had two children( the result of an affair). Although her second marriage was a happy one, my aunt, as she lay dying at the age of 91, revealed to me that she had never stopped loving her first husband. She felt the need to confess something to me,that she felt guilty about, before she died. So, my great aunt, nearing the end of her life, told me the following story.
When her husband left her, William Holme Cameron was a man of considerable means. As it turned out, to my great aunt's joy, her spouse had trustingly placed all of his assets in his wife's name( no doubt to avoid taxes). After his act of betrayal and his subsequent desertion, 'Jock' as William was known, returned home to my great aunt to discuss the transfer of his great wealth back to his self, with a generous offer to make some provision for her. My great aunt, both heartbroken and angry, at the time, had closed the door on her ex husband refusing to discuss anything with him. She was unforgiving and kept her husband's wealth for herself, all except for one thing. A cake shop! (Jock, had owned amongst much property, a chain of cake shops). And one cake shop was his reward for cheating on his wife.
My great aunt looked at me sadly,and said with obviously sincere regret, 'I have never told this to anyone but I should have given poor Jock more. I gave him nothing. I feel terrible about that and I have carried this guilt around with me for more than forty years.' Relieved, my great aunt, leaned back against her pillows, silent for a moment. Then, suddenly and unexpectedly, she sat up and exclaimed vehemently, 'No! I'm glad he got nothing. That rotten man didn't deserve a thing!' Well at least that was off her chest! And with that, I had inherited a confession. My great aunts contrition, be it ever so fleeting was entrusted to me. This dying elderly lady, the sister of my grandmother, had handed me with her 40 year old secret. I am therefore, the keeper of my aunt's story, and as such, I have the responsibility of deciding what to do with it.
As the keeper of this secret told to me on a relative's deathbed, I have decided to reveal my great aunt's confession. After all, it makes a good story and I have weighed up the consequences. There is no one alive that this tale will offend and deathbed confessions, I have discovered, can be and often are, very interesting. Regret, guilt, even crime as well as a gamut of other acts and emotions, are the ingredients of confessions from the deathbed. Delving into the lives of ancestors is a journey filled with surprises, but, not all surprises will be pleasant. Family baggage, I call it. Most of our ancestors had some. These are the deeds and stories which our forebears, in all probability, did not want known. They contain secrets that we, as family historians, become the keepers of. Keepers of secrets or tellers. That is our dilemma as family historians. What do we do with the 'family baggage'?
There is some quite fascinating ancestral baggage on the branches of my family tree. In my sometimes murky family background, dwells a wealth of family secrets, lies, confessions and wrongdoings, which, with all good intention, as the family sleuth, I investigate and unravel, until I discover the truth. With each discovery I must decide whether my 'find' is for publishing or not.
There are occasions when I have to wrestle with my conscience, because no matter how interesting the truth is, I need to be aware of any pain it might cause other family members. A recently new found cousin revealed to me that my great grandfather was not, as I had been told, killed by a falling tree branch, whilst walking home from work. According to my cousin's alternate tale of his untimely death, he was involved in a punch up with two drunken sons, one of whom was my grandfather. In the heat of the fight, my great grandfather was knocked to the ground and the story about the branch was told at the hospital to avoid trouble with the law. If this story is the truth, and the branch never fell on my great grandfather's head, then my grandfather and great uncle could have been charged with manslaughter. In all truth I must admit that I preferred 'death by falling branch' as a fitting end to my great grandfather's life, however, I am a fact seeker and so, must deal with the unpleasantness that often partners it. And now, at least I can overcome my fear of standing beneath trees!
As a family historian, I am always searching for the truth, however, sometimes, what is true is not something we wish to hear. When I discover something of a disturbing nature, which might offend or hurt someone living, the choice is simple. The truth sometimes needs to be left hidden. Occasionally, the family historian is required to keep the family secrets. Sometimes we must stow the ancestral baggage where it will be safely secreted away.
I am a story teller but I must choose wisely which family stories to tell. So,I can quite happily reveal that my husband's step great great grandmother Bessie Marchbank White, apologised upon her deathbed (true) for heartlessly placing her husband's two young children by his first wife into foster care. Her contrition came far to late, however, the story still circulates amongst family members, as though it helps mend her actions. I am able to reveal that my great uncle Rex was suspected of being a spy during World War 2 in England. He had no offspring to offend with this story and his only living brother, aged in his nineties is able to laugh at the tale.
Walking into the lives of our ancestors is much like walking into an old dusty attic that hasn't been disturbed for many years. You will find old familiar things you have seen or have heard about. You might possibly be in for some surprises. You might unearth old secrets which have been kept locked away for hundreds of years so before you open the rusty old door to the family attic, be prepared to have to make some tough decisions. Not everything you discover will be pleasant and not everyone in your family is going to want the baggage that you might find in the attic placed on display.


text:
So I just want to take a look at a simple and basic question, but one that is nonetheless very, very important: How well is the SE 2.0 model scaling?
I don't mean scaling on a technical level—that's fine AFAIK. What I mean is—SOFU were all successes in their own right. Are the new sites getting there as well on the community level? More specifically, do we have too many mods?
Currently, SE has 216 mods, and that number is growing. Since each site gets ~3 new mods, and there's no site limit, that number is going to continue to grow and grow and grow. That's a lot of mods.
Stack Overflow currently has 10 moderators and is in the process of electing 4 more, for a total of 14 mods, all of whom together will handle:
- 859k users
- 2.7m visits per day
- 4k questions per day (not posts)
1k flags per day
The most successful sites, depending on various metrics, are Ask Ubuntu and Programmers. The latter is special, so we'll look at AU, which is a more typical SE site.
- 26k users
- 61k visits per day
- 126 questions per day (not posts)
Mathematically, AU is about 3% of SO, yet has 21% the number of mods. If we were to look at this purely by the numbers, either AU only needs 1 mod or SO needs 100 mods.
I don't have AU flag data, but I can say EL&U would find even 30 flags a day to be high.
Obviously, neither is true—no site can survive on 1 mod simply because every individual mod will be away for various lengths of time (sleep, travel, etc.). With three mods, if one is away, the other two are there to deal with issues. As far as SO is concerned, it should be readily apparent that SO doesn't need 100 mods.
But that doesn't mean that we need 216 mods for 71 sites. We shouldn't even have 71 sites—I've posted an answer below to explain why, but it's really a tangent. I suppose the reason why I dislike having too many mods is that we're going to reach a point where every active SE user is a mod on some site, which means we're all policing each other.
Proposal: This isn't fully fleshed out, but why not (from here on out) elect cross-site mods for the smaller SE 2.0 sites? Say 6 mods across 3 related sites—the flag load can be easily handled, mods are on more (a single interface would be nice), mods would be more cognizant of the scope of related sites, and then we don't have this huge number of mods.
I won't specify what a related site is, but Lit + SFF come to mind as being sites that could use cross-mods, maybe even EL&U + Writers. Programmers and Gardening obviously aren't related.
Or is having this many mods not a problem? Or are the logistics going to be a problem (sites don't graduate at the same time)? Or anything else?
N.B. I don't think it's really relevant, but I suppose I should insert a disclaimer that I'm a mod for EL&U.


text:
Our Vision
Our vision for Henderson Country Club is to provide its members,their families and their guests, outstanding social experiences that emphasize friendship, fun and goodwill while enjoying the club's premier golfing, dining and recreational facilities.
About Our Club
HCC is located in West Henderson and is the only private country club in Vance, Granville and Warren counties. The majority of our members come from Henderson and Oxford but some come from as far away as Wake Forest and South Hill, VA . All agree that HCC's fine dining, our clubhouse facilities, tennis courts and pool are second to none. Combined with a friendly and hospitable membership HCC is a warm, family environment that is unparalleled in the area.
Thank you for your interest in our wonderful club. Our club has many great things to offer including excellent golf, fantastic food, great events, an awesome pool, and a friendly social atmosphere.
HCC offers a country club atmosphere that combines tradition, quality, and pride with an eye on the future to ensure every time you visit HCC it will be a remarkable one. Our Clubhouse provides a special place where members can make lasting friends and share the camaraderie traditionally associated with membership in country clubs.
We offer fine dining in both formal and casual atmospheres to suit each member's preference. There are meeting rooms for entertaining friends and business associates.
Click here to view Membership Information


text:
Click on the headings below to learn how we make the prints, and compare different presentation options.
We sell genuine, premium quality photographic prints, produced using only the finest techniques and materials.
The prints begin life as a sheet of Fuji Crystal Archive DP II paper. This top-of-the-range photo paper is known for its vibrant colours and absolute clarity,
and is guaranteed to be colour-fast for at least 75 years.
The image is transferred onto the paper using a Durst Lambda laser exposure system, which ensures incredible edge-to-edge sharpness and no pixelation.
After exposure, the photo is developed using a traditional photochemical process. This combination of modern technology and old-fashioned development turns
each image into a unique gallery print, with a quality and luminosity that can only be found in authentic photography.
Buying a print only is a good option if you want to have complete control over your method of presentation. All prints come with a matt finish and include a
white border to facilitate framing. Simply take your print to a reputable framing company in your area and select a frame or mounting technique of your choice.
To protect the print, we recommend using PH-neutral, archival quality materials throughout the framing process.
Non-framed prints take around two weeks to deliver, and are shipped loosely rolled in a sturdy cardboard tube. Once you have received your print, remove it from
the tube and store it flat to prevent any long-term furling of the image.
These prints arrive finished in an archival-quality frame, ready to hang on the wall.
We begin by mounting the print within a brilliant white, white-core mat, with a surround of 3-4" depending on the size of the print.
The white core means the bevel edge will not discolour over time, while the PH-neutral construction ensures chemicals won't leak into the photo.
We offer two simple frame styles - either 20mm light oak, or 20mm black oak - both of which accentuate the print without detracting attention
from it. Each frame is hand-built to specification, passing through several quality assurance tests to ensure a flawless finish.
The process is completed with a sheet of acrylic glass, which has all the clarity of real glass but will not break during shipping. Acrylic glass can be
lightly dusted with a soft cloth, and gently cleaned with pure water. Never use chemical glass-cleaning products
or rub hard at the surface.
Please allow up to three weeks for delivery of your framed print.
The characteristic texture of canvas gives these photos a tactile, fibrous finish, imbuing them with an almost painterly quality. Often hung without frames,
canvas wraps look warm, simple and modern on the wall.
The production process begins with a 360gsm Berger canvas. The image is set using an Epson Ultra Chrome print system, and 8-colour,
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The canvas also becomes water-resistant after printing, so small spots can be gently wiped off with warm water without damaging the photo.
Canvas prints come with a matt finish, and are wrapped on a solid wood stretcher frame 40mm deep. The frame is ultra stable, thanks to corners that are
triple-reinforced with metal braces. Depending on the image, the print comes with a grey or mirrored edge to the canvas.
Please allow up to three weeks for production and delivery of canvas prints.
To preserve the quality of your print, please avoid hanging it in direct sunlight or above a radiator.
All our images can be produced in custom sizes up to giant 48x96" mural-size, or printed on other materials including wallpaper, aluminium, acrylic and forex. Please contact us for further details.
We ship worldwide for free, using traceable and insured postal services. For more information, see Delivery & Returns.
Click on the headings below to learn more about our workshops.
Preparation for the workshop begins before you arrive, with a questionnaire designed to help Gareth understand your ability as a photographer.
You will also have the opportunity to highlight any issues you'd like to address during your time together, and to send him a selection of your previous
images for critique during the course. Most photography workshops then begin with an indoor welcome session, when you'll discuss the trip itinerary and the key
photographic points you will consider during the course. There will also be an opportunity to address any initial technical issues with camera operation before you head out.
The remainder of the photography workshop will be split between outdoor field trips and indoor instruction sessions. The exact location of
the field trips will be dictated by conditions on the day, and the itineraries have been designed to encompass a range of
interesting environments that provide photo opportunities in all weather conditions. In Ireland, likely locations include dramatic
coastlines, mountain landscapes, scenic heritage sites and natural woodlands. Optional night-time and sunrise and sunset trips - designed to
take maximum advantage of 'magic hour' light - will be included whenever conditions permit.
Indoor sessions generally take place in a communal room within your accommodation. There will be discussions of the theory behind
landscape photography, including composition, lighting considerations, and planning tips to help you optimise your results.
Hands-on instruction seminars include technical tutorials and image analysis. There will also be demonstrations of post-production
editing techniques, including the use of Photoshop, Adobe Camera Raw and Lightroom. The aim throughout is to pass on the skills
and knowledge to help you produce more striking and dramatic photos.
All our photography workshops are restricted to small groups. This allows all participants to receive lots of individual attention from Gareth,
and means it doesn't take long to get to know each other. Learning is more effective in a fun, relaxed environment, and we aim to
develop an overall mood of enjoyment within every workshop. We all learn by sharing experiences with others, and the friendly dynamic
means everybody can progress at their own pace within an atmosphere of mutual support.
TThe small group size means you can spend maximum time talking to Gareth and learning from his experience.
During almost two decades as a full-time, professional landscape photographer, Gareth has got himself into - and out of - a wide
range of photographic situations. Whether it's tips for stopping your batteries freezing at 4000m, websites to help you chase the
northern lights, or advice on publishing your photos for the first time, the odds are Gareth can pass on a few tricks of the trade
to help.
Bring all your camera equipment, including any lenses, tripods and filters. Remember cables for downloading images,
and if you use a laptop for processing, bring that too. Some off-road walking may be required, so we
recommend that you pack your equipment in a small rucksack, and bring good footwear and warm, waterproof clothing to protect
yourself in all weather conditions. Where meals are not included in the workshop, we make stops in cafés and restaurants
to purchase food and snacks along the way.
The exact content of each photography workshop is dictated by the needs of the participants, but general topics include:
Explore one of the wildest photo locations on Ireland's west coast.
A two-day workshop based along the beautiful coastline of Sligo and Mayo.
Guided trips and private instruction designed specially for you.
A 9-day photographic journey around Ireland's remote north west corner.
Sunset reflection of Harpa Concert Hall, Reykjavik, Iceland.
Reflection of Fjallsjokull glacier in Fjallsarlon iceberg lagoon, Sudhurland, Iceland.
View across Heimaey town, Heimaey, Westman Islands, Sudhurland, Iceland.
Visitors admiring the steaming volcanic pools at Hverir, Myvatn, Nordhurland Eystra, Iceland.
Hiker exploring Leirhnjukur lava field, Krafla volcanic area, Myvatn, Nordhurland Eystra, Iceland.
Dawn over Kirkjufell mountain and waterfall, Grundarfjordur, Snaefellsnes Peninsula, Vesturland, Iceland.
Swimmers at Myvatn Nature Baths, Myvatn, Nordhurland Eystra, Iceland.
Sunset over Kirkjufell mountain and waterfall, Grundarfjordur, Snaefellsnes Peninsula, Vesturland, Iceland.
Moss-covered lava field near Hveragerdi, Sudherland, Iceland.
Person beside Fjallsarlon iceberg lagoon, beneath Fjallsjokull glacier, Sudhurland, Iceland.
A turquoise pool fills Viti crater, Krafla volcanic area, Myvatn, Nordhurland Eystra, Iceland.
Fishing boats in Grundarfjordur harbour, Snaefellsnes Peninsula, Vesturland, Iceland.
Person on the lip of Saxholl crater, beneath Snaefellsjokull, Snaefellsnes Peninsula, Vesturland, Iceland.
Evening light on a moss-covered lava field near Hveragerdi, Sudherland, Iceland.
Sunset light over Bjarnarflag geothermal power station, Myvatn, Nordhurland Eystra, Iceland.
Facade of Le Bistro restaurant, Laugavegur, Reykjavik, Iceland.
Swimmer enjoying the hot springs at Landmannalaugar, Sudhurland, Iceland.
Twisted basalt columns at Hljodaklettar, Jokulsargljufur, Nordhurland Eystra, Iceland.
Hellnar church, Snaefellsnes Peninsula, Vesturland, Iceland.
Icebergs in Jokulsarlon lagoon, beneath Breidamerkurjokull glacier, Sudhurland, Iceland.
Snaefellsjokull ice cap, Snaefellsnes Peninsula, Vesturland, Iceland.
Vatnajokull ice cap towers over a mountain ridge in Skaftafell National Park. Sudhurland, south east Iceland.
Steep crevasses in the ice fall of Kviarjokull glacier. Vatnajokull ice cap, Sudhurland, south east Iceland.
People dwarfed beneath the ice fall of Kviarjokulll glacier. Vatnajokull ice cap, Sudhurland, south east Iceland.
Person beneath the ice fall of Kviarjokull glacier. Vatnajokull ice cap, Sudhurland, south east Iceland.
Person beside Kviarjokull glacier and moraine lake. Vatnajokull National Park, Sudhurland, south east Iceland.
Person dwarfed by the ice fall of Kviarjokull glacier. Vatnajokull ice cap, Sudhurland, south east Iceland.
Boat tour amongst the icebergs of Jokulsarlon glacial lagoon, beneath Breidamerkurjokull glacier. Sudhurland, Iceland.
Ice formations in Jokulsarlon glacier lagoon, beneath Breidamerkurjokull glacier. Sudhurland, south east Iceland.
Icebergs in Jokulsarlon glacier lagoon, beneath Breidamerkurjokull glacier. Sudhurland, south east Iceland.
People examining icebergs on Breidamerkursandur black sand beach beneath Jokulsarlon. Sudhurland, south east Iceland.
Person on the shore of Jokulsarlon glacier lagoon, beneath Vatnajokull glacier. Sudhurland, south east Iceland.
Person beside icebergs on Breidamerkursandur black sand beach beneath Jokulsarlon. Sudhurland, south east Iceland.
Laugavegur trail hiking signpost near Landmannalaugar. Central Highlands, Sudhurland, Iceland.
FI hut and campground beneath rhyolite mountains at Landmannalaugar. Laugavegur trail, Central Highlands, Sudhurland, Iceland.
Icebergs on Breidamerkursandur black sand beach beneath Jokulsarlon. Sudhurland, south east Iceland.