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Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Rafael Nadal Is Coming for That Number One Spot
I'm comin' for that number one spot!"--Ludacris, "Number One Spot"
The official computer rankings still say otherwise but Rafael Nadal's 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-7 (8-10), 9-7 victory over Roger Federer in the Wimbledon Final certainly seems to signal a changing of the guard at the top of the tennis world. Nadal became the first male player to win the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year since Bjorn Borg, who incredibly accomplished this feat three years in a row (1978-80). Federer retains his number one overall ranking but no one can really consider him to be the best player in the world now: Nadal not only owns a 12-6 head to head advantage over Federer but Nadal defeated Federer in this year's French Open and Wimbledon Finals. The clay at Roland Garros is Nadal's best surface and he has won four straight titles there, matching Borg's record (1978-81), but Wimbledon's grass had been home turf for Federer, who was seeking to break another Borg record by capturing a sixth straight Wimbledon title.
After Federer beat Nadal in a tough five set match in last year's Wimbledon Final, I predicted that Nadal would flip the script this year: "I think that Nadal is closer to beating Federer on grass than Federer is to beating Nadal on clay and that 2008 could very well be Nadal's opportunity to match another Borg feat: winning the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year." Then, when Nadal destroyed Federer in straight sets in this year's French Open Final, I declared, "For quite some time, people have been trying to anoint Federer as the greatest tennis player of all-time but despite his impressive accomplishments it makes no sense to confer that title on him when it is not even certain that he will be considered the best player of the current era: his main rival Nadal owns an 11-6 head to head record against him and has come much closer to beating him on the grass at Wimbledon than Federer has come to defeating him on the clay at the French Open. Considering that Nadal is almost five years younger than Federer it is entirely possible that he will eclipse what Federer has done; after all, five years ago Federer had just won his first Grand Slam, while Nadal already owns four Grand Slam titles, beating Federer along the way each time."
It is interesting that it takes the combined efforts of the two best players of this era to challenge the marks that Borg set three decades ago; Nadal has been taking aim at Borg's French Open records, while Federer has been pursuing Borg's Wimbledon standards. By winning at both venues this year Nadal has elevated himself above Federer and if Nadal adds some more Wimbledon and French Open trophies to his collection then it will be possible to compare his career to Borg's.
Prior to the Federer-Nadal Wimbledon Final, three-time Wimbledon champion John McEnroe recalled his two Wimbledon battles with Borg. In the 1980 Wimbledon Final, McEnroe won the fourth set tiebreak and seemed poised to end Borg's Wimbledon winning streak at four titles, but Borg bounced back to capture the fifth set and thus earn his fifth Wimbledon crown. McEnroe recalled, "When I won that fourth set breaker, I said, 'This thing is over. I think I'm going to get it done. He's won four in a row. He can't dig that much deeper and want it that much more badly.' He taught me a lesson that true champions--great, great champions--find another gear and find some more willpower. He made me hungrier. I think there is a very similar situation with what happened last year with Federer. He was in the fifth set and Nadal had him on the ropes...I know Nadal thought he should have won the match and I know I thought that I should have won that match in 1980. Federer showed that extra will...(In 2008) Nadal has found another gear and he's gotten quite a bit better." McEnroe's words proved to be very prescient.
McEnroe added, "We should really appreciate this moment for what it is, the magnitude of the occasion for our sport. We do try to build up every Final but in this particular case I think that it is justified. When I played Borg in 1981 and won that match little did I ever think that that would be his final match here at Wimbledon. Who would have thought that (Justine) Henin would quit 10 days before the French Open? I'm not suggesting that's going to happen with Federer...but I think that we should enjoy this for the spectacular occasion that it is."
Nadal jumped on Federer right from the start, taking advantage of three of his first four break point opportunities to claim a two sets to none lead; Federer actually had more break point opportunities during those sets (six) but he only converted one of them. As ESPN commentator Patrick McEnroe put it late in the second set, "Every crucial point somehow Nadal has found a way to win it." While Nadal was making points, Federer was making excuses, visibly upset that gusts of wind affected some of his shots; of course, the same thing happened to Nadal as well and Patrick McEnroe said, "Federer has to get it out of his head because nobody is going to remember that it was windy if he loses this match."
Federer did not convert any of his break point opportunities in the third and fourth sets but he scored "mini breaks" in both tiebreakers to win those sets. Nadal raced to a 5-2 lead in the fourth set tiebreaker and later squandered two match points, including one on his serve. Incredibly, after taking a two sets to none lead Nadal came within three points of losing the match in the fifth set before rallying to win the 14th game. Nadal then broke Federer--the first break by either player since the second set--and held serve to win the match.
Nadal and Federer both played at a very high level in this match and it is doubtful that any other player in the world could have beaten Federer on Sunday. Nevertheless, Federer's candidacy for the hypothetical title of greatest player of all-time has taken a serious beating this year. The lack of a French Open title is a giant hole in Federer's resume, as is the fact that his main rival is much younger than he is and has a dominant score in their head to head encounters; it does not seem likely that Federer will be able to do much to address either situation: if Federer could not win the French Open or have an overall advantage versus Nadal during his prime years then it is not logical to expect him to reverse those trends now.
Even when Federer was at the absolute peak of his powers Nadal still held the head to head advantage, a fact that some people dismissed by noting that the vast majority of Nadal's wins over Federer came on clay--but that is not relevant in a discussion about the greatest player of all-time, because the greatest player of all-time should be able to win on multiple surfaces and should not have a losing record against his main rival. Nadal is just entering his prime years but he already owns four more Grand Slam wins than Federer did at the same age. Just like I thought that it was too soon to call Federer the greatest of all-time two or three years ago, I think that it is too soon to call Nadal the greatest of all-time now--but in many ways Nadal seems to be making a more potent case to claim that title than Federer ever did. Who can say for sure that in four or five years Nadal won't own more career Grand Slam titles than Federer's 12? Nadal has more speed and hits with more power than Federer and Nadal is also in better physical condition; perhaps Federer has a more delicate touch on certain shots but that is not enough to cancel out Nadal's advantages. The closeness of the Wimbledon Final--Nadal scored just five more points than Federer--is a little deceptive because, as Patrick McEnroe noted, Nadal seemed to win all of the big points. Obviously, that is not literally true or else Nadal would have triumphed in straight sets but whatever mystique or aura that Federer has relative to other players simply does not affect Nadal at all.
27 comments:
- madnice said...
I didnt see the whole match. I picked it up at 5-5 in the fifth and the play was so riveting. Nadals shot making was just so precise. He had Federer going the wrong way so many times. I havent watched mens tennis (or tennis for that matter as much as I used to except for when Ana Ivanovic is on...wow) because the players dont have as much heart as the Edbergs, and Lendls and McEnroes I used to enjoy watching.
Right now Nadal is better than Federer, but Nadal needs to show up in Queens in a few months. He needs to at least get to the Finals.
- Thursday, July 10, 2008 8:42:00 AM
- David Friedman said...
It is interesting that you brought up Lendl in the context of "heart," because early in his career he was notorious for tanking certain matches, particularly to end up in the loser's bracket in certain events and thus have an easier path to the Finals. Later in his career he did show a lot of competitive desire, though.
I think that Nadal will have his best run yet at the U.S. Open and would not be surprised to see him win it. I don't see any weaknesses in Nadal's game that would preclude him from winning on any surface now.
- Thursday, July 10, 2008 5:33:00 PM
- madnice said...
You are right about Lendls heart. I mentioned as players I like and attached it with heart. I shouldnt have. I remember the Adrian Dantley like shoulder shrug he used to have when he got it going.
- Friday, July 11, 2008 10:53:00 AM
anymous reggie
i expect roger to come back to form in us open clearly you was right david that nadal has gotten as good if not better on grass and clearly better on clay. but roger lost a little foous and has gotne a little fat on all the winnning he has done in his great career, nadal is more hungry and he beat him in wimbledon nadal is 22 he in his prime i still expect federe to win 20 grand slams he has 12 right now so i think he will still go down as number 1 all time possibly. he is like bjorg where bjorg was dominant from 76-81 he was 2003-2007 now e has to win a grand slam here and there to pull of the 20 i expect.
- Friday, July 11, 2008 4:30:00 PM
- David Friedman said...
I don't think that anyone has won eight more Grand Slams at Federer's age. I will be very surprised if he wins eight more. I am not willing to say that he is done winning Slams--after all, he just made the Finals in the previous two--but it will be all Federer can do to get to 15 to break Sampras' mark by one and I'm not sure that Federer will even do that. If Federer does not win the U.S. Open, next year's Australian or next year's Wimbledon then I will start to believe that he has won his last Slam.
- Saturday, July 12, 2008 3:37:00 AM
Before anointing Nadal or Federer as the greatest player of this period, it is important to appreciate the superior quality of tennis that was displayed. Apart from all the story lines that were leading up to the "most anticipated tennis match ever", the match really had it all. It involved great service games, remarkable returns from points on the court where most players wouldn't have even reached, involved shots made at extremely acute angles. That is just on a tennis level. However, one aspect of the match that really impressed me, and what made this match, atleast in my opinion, the greatest tennis match, is the mental toughness that both players showed. One has to understand that the nature of the sport makes it extremely difficult to come back. In a team sport, such as basketball or football (soccer), you can be coached intermittently during the match, and you can receive advice from teammates. However, in a tennis match, you have no teammates, and the rules don't allow for any coaching in between matches, and hence, tennis is much more mental than most people understand. During this match, both players showed mental toughness. Roger Federer came back from two sets down, and that is very difficult to do because most players play according to the score. It is very difficult to play with the same approach and attitude that you had coming into the match, and when you are down two sets. Granted, the rain delay might have aided Federer in overcoming this hurdle, but one has to hand it to him. Lot of people speak about how Federer is "soft", such as Mats Wilander, but I think that this match proved otherwise. Similarly, Nadal showed mental toughness as well. Losing those critical championship points in the tiebreaker, in the fourth set, would have dented most players' hopes. However, Nadal, as he does time and time again, showed that Federer's so called "invincibility" does not affect him, as you pointed out. The rain delay in the fifth set, must have also helped him in regrouping himself, but the way in which he dealt with the shift in momentum, was instrumental in winning the match. After the match, when Federer was interviewed, he felt that the shift in momentum after winning the fourth set, should have been enough in winning the match, since that was the case in last years Wimbledon finals, and against most players, that would probably have been true, but that goes to show how mentally tough Nadal is.
As to the arguments that you have posed, I agree with some, and disagree with others. Like I said in one of my responses in your previous posts, I do agree that it is too early to give Federer the label as "the greatest player of all time", but as of now, he is still a much more complete player than Nadal. If you compare shot for shot, Federer's game is more complete. Let's go through this exercise right now. Federer has a better service game. Federer has the better forehand. One might disagree with this, but Tennis Magazine released an article on the best shots in the history of the game, and Federer's forehand is chosen as the best forehand in the history of the game. So if this is the case, then his forehand is more superior than Nadal's (Nadal's name was not even on the shortlist of names to chose from). Nadal has the better backhand (which has only happened recently), Federer has better volleys. Federer also has better movement (although, this is a very close call) Federer's movement and footwork was also chosen by Tennis Magazine as the best in the history of the game. I would say that the overhead shot is even. I would also say that the defense of both is even. So after comparing each aspect of the game, Federer leads 4-1. I guess most people are thinking that if Federer has a more complete game than Nadal, then why does he have a losing record against him. The main reason is that Nadal's strength plays onto Federer's weakness. Nadal's top spin forehand is his strength, and it plays directly onto Federer's backhand, which is his glaring weakness. The way Federer grips his racket, it is very difficult to play the top spin shot, which goes away from him and up to his shoulders. And if you have watched Federer play tennis, one can notice that his shot making is based on pure timing, unlike most players who strike the ball with power. This is why most old school players enjoy watching him play tennis, because it is reminiscent to how tennis was played before. Now, the clay court surface reinforces Nadal's strength, and Federer's weakness, since the ball bounces much higher on the clay court than the grass court for example, and since it has lot of top spin, it is very likely to mishit the ball. And since most of the matches between the two have been played on clay court surface, it is easy to understand why Federer has a losing record. David, you said in your post, that this argument doesn't hold. I think it is a fair argument because I doubt that Sampras would have been able to beat Thomas Muster or Gustavo Kuerten on clay court if he had to play them all the time. The fact is that Sampras' game did not translate on the clay court surface, and as a result, could not reach far into the tournament to play these clay court specialists. Federer's complete game is the main reason why he has consistently reached the semifinals for the past 16 grand slams. During the course of Wimbledon, I think it was Federer vs Ancic in the second set, McEnroe (who I think is an excellent commentator) mentioned the importance of this particular fact. I don't remember what he exactly said, but it was along the lines of "People don't realize how amazing this is. Most players on the ATP tour don't even participate in 16 consecutive Grand slams, and yet Federer has consistently reached the semifinals". This is a feat that still eludes Nadal because of injuries that have plagued him year in and year out, and is something that I have pointed out before in responses to your post. McEnroe and Mary Carillo also spoke about this. They talked about how Federer seemed injury free for the past 4-5 years, and the only illness or injury that he had was a mild foot injury and mono earlier this year. On the other hand, Nadal has been hampered by injuries the past two years during the second half of the season, and do you ever see him without any knee braces? A tennis fan posed this question to Jon Wertheim, who is a tennis analyst for Sports Illustrated, and Wertheim responded with this:
"I think this is a huge issue. Any casual fan can see how grueling and physically demanding Nadal's style must be. He pulled out of this week's event with that knee injury and if you chart his career year-by-year, that's par for the course. His body tends to give out on him as the year progresses. Already, he has a lot of miles for 22. You hate even to think in these terms, but realistically, I think it's natural to wonder whether he'll be sufficiently healthy to play at this level for many more years.
As a fan of the sport, I have always been a supporter of good quality tennis, and that is what both Nadal and Federer display on a usual basis. So these injury problems that keep hindering Nadal's ascendancy to the top is obviously not good for the sport, but one has to question whether his game is conducive to a long tennis career or not.
- Saturday, July 12, 2008 5:16:00 PM
anymous reggie
he should win us open and austalian the nect two years there no nadal there. wimbledon will be difficult but sampras won his last major at 31 if he could win 2 year the next 4 why cant he win 20 majors. he 27 now he has peaked but aggasi won at 30 and theres been other examples.
my point is he still is getting to fina he would be at 20 if no nadal he took 5 away from him. he's the only person consistenly beating him right now none else is in grand slam.
- Saturday, July 12, 2008 11:14:00 PM
- David Friedman said...
Yes, Agassi and others won some Slams after age 30 but nobody won eight Slams at those ages. If Federer does not win on his favorite surfaces in the next year/year and a half then he will have trouble passing Sampras, let alone winning 20 Slams. I think that winning 20 Slams is a fantasy and I would be shocked if Federer does that.
The U.S. Open will tell us a lot about Federer and Nadal's futures. If Nadal wins that one, too, then Federer's future may be, to paraphrase the words of George Clinton and P-Funk, "behind him."
- Sunday, July 13, 2008 4:22:00 AM
- David Friedman said...
That is a very well thought out comment and you make several excellent points.
I agree with you completely about the mental toughness displayed by both players. I certainly have never characterized Federer as "soft." He seems very tough to me and I can't imagine how someone could win so many titles without being tough.
I'm not interested in anointing either player as the greatest of all-time yet. My point is that people were premature to put that tag on Federer but if they were going to do that then they simply have to put Nadal in the discussion as well.
I don't think that Federer has a 4-1 lead over Nadal in the skill set areas that you mentioned; he may have had such a lead prior to this year but Nadal has narrowed or simply closed the gap completely this year. For one thing, I don't think that there is any way to say that Federer's movement is better than Nadal's now. Nadal is like an automatic ball returning machine.
Your analysis of why Nadal's game is tailor made to beat Federer--particularly on clay--is spot on but it is significant that Nadal just beat Federer on Federer's best surface. As John McEnroe noted, grass was not Borg's best surface, though Borg became dominant on it; Borg was virtually unbeatable on his best surface (clay), winning the last four French Opens of his career. As I've said, the next year or so will be very telling for both Federer and Nadal. Barring injury, I think that Nadal will have the upper hand from now on versus Federer.
I don't know how significant it is that Nadal wears knee braces. Dr. J wore knee braces and still played 16 seasons at a very high level. I realize that tennis is different than basketball but I think that in the next three years Nadal is going to win a lot of Grand Slams and then we'll see exactly where he stacks up with Federer and Borg. If Nadal ends up with, say, 6 French Opens, three Wimbledons and one or two each at the U.S. Open and Australian then that will be quite a resume, particularly if Federer never wins the French.
- Sunday, July 13, 2008 4:32:00 AM
anymous reggie
if nadal wins us open it's over but if he cant win us open and ausarlian the door still open to win grand slams for federer it shuts when nadl dominates all 3 surfaces. if he only can do too then he will not domiante and roger not done at wimbledon next year nadla could be upset or get injured what federer has done hardly has ever been done to assume nadal will do it might be wishful thinking or it could be done as well i doubt it.
meaning like 12 grand slams in five years federer done and like 17 18 finals. 12 of last 13
- Monday, July 14, 2008 12:55:00 AM
- David Friedman said...
Keep in mind that Novak Djokovic beat Federer in the semis in this year's Australian, so Nadal is not the only guy who can beat Federer.
I've been saying for a while now that Federer is a great player but that it was premature to call him the greatest ever. I've also been ahead of the curve in predicting that Nadal would beat Federer at Wimbledon. It will be very interesting to see what Nadal accomplishes in his prime years.
- Monday, July 14, 2008 5:36:00 AM
- Rob S. said...
David -
I just recently found your blog, and I'm enjoying the tennis articles thoroughly. The Borg/Koufax piece is particularly excellent.
I am not ready to nominate anyone the greatest player of all time (the GOAT, as per Peter Bodo's acronym), but my assessment of it all stems not from raw data, but from Grand Slam dominance. "Dominance" does not necessarily mean winning the thing (though that helps) I'm talking about finals appearances and being "the man to beat". Yes, yes, coming in second doesn't look so hot in sports or politics, but unlike politics, one still amasses money and - in the case of tennis - ranking points for being an also-ran.
To look at the issue of Grand Slam performance, Federer is still dominant. No, there is no French Open title for him, nor will there ever be unless Rafa gets hurt on his way to the final. Nevertheless, since '06, Roger has been there at the final. However, there are no Australian nor US Open titles to be had thus far for Nadal, let alone performances up to the same standard as Federer - his best results being this year's AO with a SF loss to Tsonga and a USO '06 QF loss to Youzhny. If we're going to talk about dominance on diverse surfaces, it seems as if Nadal has yet to master the hard courts. It seems as if there are more players OTHER than Federer who can push Rafa on hard courts as opposed to Rafa being (truly*) the only one who really can push Federer on clay, and recently, on grass. My ultimate point being that Federer is a force to be reckoned with on all Grand Slam surfaces, while Rafa has yet to rise to the same level during the two hard court Slams.
*[I still feel that Fed's '08 AO loss to Djokovic was an anomaly due to Fed's condition]
I won't dispute Borg as perhaps the most dominant player of the Open era thus far, but there's no USO title there. Sampras, for all of his titles - which Fed is chasing - went without an FO trophy. Fed is (and, as stated above, will most likely forever be) in the same boat, even if he surpasses Sampras' 14. It remains to be seen how many Slams Nadal will acquire, but I have a funny feeling that the USO will continue to elude him as it did Bjorn. I'm curious to find out, though, because it practically guarantees some amazing tennis in Flushing this year.
- Wednesday, July 16, 2008 12:35:00 PM
- David Friedman said...
Rob S.:
I'm glad that you like the site and my articles about tennis.
You make some interesting points but there are two unavoidable facts that don't receive enough consideration when Federer and Nadal are compared:
1) Nadal has won more Grand Slams at this age (22) than Federer did--and it is not close: 5-1.
2) Nadal enjoys a significant head to head advantage versus Federer and this year he beat Federer in a Grand Slam Final on Federer's best surface, while Federer has not beaten Nadal on Nadal's best surface. For some reason, people tend to dismiss the head to head numbers because most of the matches have been on clay but I cannot recall another number one player who had this poor of a record against a top player who he played frequently and I think that is very significant.
As for the USO evading Nadal, if he can beat Federer on grass then I believe that he can beat anyone on any surface.
Also, you contradict yourself in your final paragraph when you mention that Borg never won the U.S. Open. What happened to your idea about the importance of making it to the Finals and finishing second? Borg made it to the U.S. Open Finals four times on two different surfaces. Yes, it would enhance Borg's record if he had won a U.S. Open title but Borg had no weak surface: grass was theoretically his worst surface and yet he set Wimbledon records that have not been surpassed three decades later.
- Wednesday, July 16, 2008 11:13:00 PM
James Blake has a winning record against Rafael Nadal. So, maybe that means James Blake is the best tennis player in the world. But...wait...Federer has a winning record against James Blake, so I guess that means Federer is the best in the world after all.
Let's not take away Federer's "Best Ever" status just because, at age 27, he has lost his first grasscourt match in 5 years. And, let's not forget, if Federer wasn't the second best claycourt tennis player by far, he wouldn't have a losing record against Nadal.
That's not to say that Nadal won't take away the "best ever" title from Federer one day. But, let's be serious. He's not there yet. Let's at least see how he does during the upcoming hardcourt season before we decide to crown a new king.
- Thursday, July 17, 2008 10:46:00 AM
- David Friedman said...
How many matches has Blake played against Nadal? How many Grand Slam titles has Blake won?
What I said is that I am not aware of an example of a number one player who has been this thoroughly dominated head to head by the number two player when they have played a significant number of matches. There are of course examples in all sports of a lesser player/team that has a winning record in a small number of games or matches against a superior opponent.
I am not "taking away" Federer's status on the basis of one match. If you read my previous posts on this subject then you know that last year I made the point that Federer should have never received "best ever status" in the first place because he has yet to surpass the multi-surface dominance displayed by Borg, who also has a higher winning percentage in Grand Slam Finals and other winning percentage marks that Federer has yet to match. Federer has yet to equal Borg and Federer has a contemporary who is giving him all he can handle and more so it is very premature to declare Federer to be the best ever. I have been saying that for more than a year now. This year, we are seeing Nadal surpass Federer as the best current player. I don't think that either of them is the best ever but considering Nadal's age and accomplishments he probably has a better chance to legitimately earn that recognition than Federer does. It is very possible that Federer has won his last Grand Slam, particularly if he does not win this year's U.S. Open, next year's Australian or next year's Wimbledon. If he has not won another Slam by this time next year I would give him less than a 50% chance of winning another one.
- Thursday, July 17, 2008 4:45:00 PM
anymous reggie
yeah we have to see what nadal does. djokovic ran his mouth and got beat in first round if it not nadal he has nuthing to worry about and if nadal does not get good on hard court he has nuthing to worry about federere far from over he is not dominant like woods anymore but on hardcourt and grass he a load clearly nadal is number 1 now but he wont win as many grandslams as federer if he cant dominate 3 surfaces he is not going to win 9 stragit french or 5 or 6 straight wimbledon.
- Friday, July 18, 2008 11:13:00 PM
- David Friedman said...
It will be very interesting to see what happens in the U.S. Open. If Nadal wins that tournament then I think he will officially overtake Federer in the rankings and, in any case, he will have established beyond all doubt that he is the best player right now. Frankly, by beating Federer in the French and Wimbledon I think Nadal has already proven that.
How can you say that Nadal won't win more Grand Slams than Federer when Nadal is way ahead of Federer's pace and he just beat Federer on Federer's best surface?
- Saturday, July 19, 2008 12:46:00 AM
anymous reggie
easy david federer was able to win on 3 surfaces where nadal just won on two if nadal could only win on 2 surfaces it will be harder for him to catch federer. now he can get more grand slams assuming he does everyhting federer as done since he was 22 and win on hard court as well federer got 3 out of 5 austrailian 4 striaght us open and had 5 stragiht wimbledon.
and plus he 22 wit 4 striaght french already is he going to win 8 or 9 straight no? so he cant bank on winning the french every year and winning wimbledon every year the next 5 unless you think he could win 8 straight french and 3 more stragiht wimbledon than he would catch federer 12 assumeing federer doesnt win the next 5 years which is highly unlikely i think federer got another 3 or 4 in him at least so it will be difficult for rafa if he doesnt win on hardcourt.
i think he could catch him if he win on hard court as well as wimbledon and french david.
- Saturday, July 19, 2008 8:54:00 PM
- David Friedman said...
My main point for more than a year is that too many people have prematurely called Federer the greatest of all-time. Borg is still the greatest player of the Open Era. Federer has to prove that he is superior to Nadal just to be the greatest player post-Sampras, let alone the greatest player of all-time.
Federer has had a very impressive career but he has a lousy head to head record versus the younger Nadal and Nadal has a 5-1 lead over Federer in Grand Slam wins at a comparable age. There is no logic behind your belief that Federer will win three or four more Slams--previously you said eight more Slams--but that Nadal will not win seven or eight more Slams during his prime years (the next three years). I don't know what will happen, but it is certainly more logical to assume that Nadal will come close to Federer's total than it is to think that Federer will start winning multiple Slams after a younger competitor has beaten him in two Finals in a row.
- Saturday, July 19, 2008 10:54:00 PM
anymous reggie
you feel he can pass federer up even if he doesnt win on hard court that is tall task for him i believe federe r won so many so quick because he was so good on all surfaces. nadal is a clay court specialist who is now good on grass court it is very difficult to keep wininng same tournaments in a row. he already won 4 french in a row he not going to win 8 or 9 maybe he does a bjorg he won 6 french in a row and 5 wimbledon in a row.
you are right it was premature to call federer greatest of all time i was one of those people becasue the way he was winnng from 03-07 look like he would win 20 slams e sloed now and maybe nadal will be better we have to see.
- Sunday, July 20, 2008 11:31:00 PM
anymous reggie
what does open era mean wat years do they count from. you said you thougt bjorg was best in open era from 80 to now im guessing.
- Sunday, July 20, 2008 11:32:00 PM
- David Friedman said...
Maybe I'm missing something but if Nadal can beat Federer on clay and grass then I don't see why Nadal can't beat him on hardcourt. Watching Nadal play I don't see any weaknesses in terms of conditioning, heart, shotmaking or anything else. I think that Nadal is poised to win a lot of Slams in the next few years, barring injury. I don't know how many and I am not going to prematurely call him the greatest the way that others prematurely labeled Federer but I am very impressed with Nadal's growth as a player in the past year.
- Monday, July 21, 2008 12:12:00 AM
- David Friedman said...
That's a good question. The Open Era began in 1968. That is when professional players were allowed to play in most major tournaments. Prior to that, only so-called amateurs could play in the big events, though many of the amateurs were in fact receiving under the table payments. Professionals were banned from the Grand Slam events. Rod Laver, Roy Emerson, Pancho Gonzales and many other players excelled prior to 1968 but it is difficult to compare their accomplishments to the accomplishments of the players from the Open Era. So, although many people have been calling Federer the greatest of all-time, I have concentrated on making the case that he has yet to prove that he is the greatest player of the Open Era. In my opinion, Borg is the greatest player of the Open Era. I would put Sampras second and Federer third. Federer could certainly move up but then so could Nadal.
- Monday, July 21, 2008 12:20:00 AM
I saw the whole match and the announcer said that nadal is now number one and today i was watching a tennis match and it said that nadal is number 2. is he number 1 or number 2?
- Thursday, July 24, 2008 9:02:00 PM
- David Friedman said...
That pretty much sums up a lot of what is wrong with tennis. Federer was still the top ranked player even after losing to Nadal at the French Open and Wimbledon. Now, Federer just lost in the first round at Toronto but at the moment he is still number one, though this loss will probably cost him the top spot, particularly if Nadal wins the Toronto event.
Nadal is the leader by a wide margin over Federer in the 2008 ATP Race, which only includes points from this year's events. So, depending on which point system the announcers were referring to, Nadal is either number one or number two, with Federer occupying the other spot.
- Thursday, July 24, 2008 11:20:00 PM
anymous reggie
nadal has won 29 straight matches he is the best player in world right now he looks good on all surfaces i still just cant fathom federer being as dominat as he has been and then all of a sudden not being able to win anymore this fast lets see what happens at us open.
- Monday, July 28, 2008 2:28:00 PM
- David Friedman said...
I've been saying for more than a year that Federer was prematurely crowned as the greatest player of all-time and now it is becoming crystal clear that I was right about that.
- Monday, July 28, 2008 3:29:00 PM


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Sep 9, 2020
1:00pm - 3:30pm
Antigo, WI
Are you new to Medicare or will be soon?
Come learn the basics of Medicare. Medicare parts A-D, along with supplement policies, and other prescription drug coverage are explained. Class is free but registration is required.
Please call us toll-free, 1-888-486-9545, to reserve your spot.

subset: commoncrawl


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Book Direct with the Owner at Lara Lake Australia with Newcastle Accommodation Agent in Lara Lake, for all your Dining, Dancing and things to do.
Address: Shop / - McLelland Ave, Lara VIC 3212
Address: Shp / - Forest Rd, Lara VIC 3212
Address: Rennie Street, Lara VIC 3212
copyright © 2020 Newcastle Accommodation. All rights reserved.


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Lululemon Is Dropping 4 Workout-Related Beauty Products At Sephora
Starting today, there are four brand-new beauty products that just launched under the Clean at Sephora umbrella: And they come from athleisure giant Lululemon. Lululemon's newest venture is called Selfcare, and each product was formulated to address a specific skin or hair care concern that can accompany sweat sessions.
"Over the years, we've heard the feedback that transitioning from sweat to life isn't always easy. Lululemon has always been in the work of creating solutions for sweaty problems, and our Selfcare line is an extension of that approach," said Sun Choe, chief product officer of the brand.
The initial collection (there's more to come later in the year, we're told) contains a dry shampoo, spray deodorant, moisturizer, and lip balm with prices that range from $14 to $48. First up, the No-Show Dry Shampoo absorbs sweat and oil post-workout, without leaving a white residue. But my favorite part? It's made with a combination of oil-balancing algaes so it's not irritating to your scalp. The hydrating Anti-Stink Deodorant allows for sweat, which is essential for helping you cool down during workouts, sans smell. It does this by including prebiotics that reduce the growth of odor-forming bacteria as well as zinc to absorb smell. It's hydrating thanks to the conditioning coconut oil. The Sweat Reset Face Moisturizer is breathable and helps calm red skin post. Finally, it also includes the Basic Balm Lip Balm to soothe chapped lips with shea butter and jojoba oil, as we tend to breath heavier during workouts.
They'll be sold online, at select stores, and (most exciting for us) as part of the Clean At Sephora collection. To make Sephora's clean list, the products need to be formulated free of sulfates SLS and SLES, parabens, formaldehydes, formaldehyde-releasing agents, phthalates, mineral oil, retinyl palmitate, oxybenzone, coal tar, hydroquinone, triclosan, and triclocarban. And while the products contain a lot of natural ingredients, they do contains (safe) synthetics. The brand also notes that the products are "tested on athletes, not animals" and are Leaping Bunny certified. And if the quality is anywhere close to their leggings and sports bras, I think we're going to be big fans.
Want your passion for wellness to change the world? Become A Functional Nutrition Coach! Enroll today to join live July office hours.


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The only thing more bizarre than Variety's demand that movie studios stop feeding stories to other sites is how matter of fact they are about it.
"We simply said that if you give any of these show business websites the story first, then we'll put the story on the Web -- for the record -- but we won't put it in the print edition," Variety Editor Tim Gray told the Los Angeles Times' Big Picture.
The history of Hollywood journalism is even uglier than it is long, so this shouldn't come as any real surprise. But the revelation highlights how shortsighted people on both sides of the equation are about the current state of things.
U.S. & World
Back in the days of Walter Winchell and "The Sweet Smell of Success," the whole idea of feeding stories in return for favorable coverage made a tragic kind of sense. The power to make or break careers was so concentrated that you had to keep certain people happy.
These days, however, any jerk with a wi-fi connection can --- and will -- gladly transmit casting news, trailers and photos across the globe in the blink of an eye. And as soon as they do, any other jerk with a laptop will rewrite/boost/gank them and to be sped along to millions of more eyes.
But go to any number of movie studio press sites and you'll find yourself asked for a password, one that can only be granted to you by a gatekeeper. To what end? Why on Earth would you stop a prospective consumer from seeing your commercial? Imagine going to Pepsi's website and being told that if you wanted to see their commercials and ads, you had to get permission. It's nonsense.
Eventually the time will come when studios -- and TV networks, for that matter -- get wise and start unleashing this stuff on the Internet on their own. Want the latest news, clips and stills -- not content, mind you, but promotional materials -- from "Justified"? Go to the show's website. Curious about Peter K. Vaughn's script for "The Vault"? Subscribe to his RSS feed. You want this kind of news -- they need for you to have it.
There will always be leaks, spin, exclusive interviews... as there should be. But the days of planting something as mundane as casting news or trailers should draw to a close. It's an unnecessary step that smacks of favoritism, which is never good for journalism, no matter how unimportant and lowbrow it may be.


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for OSR Discussion & Play-by-Post Games
The Wanderer wrote:Novermber 25, 2010. A third printing is published by Brave Halfling and on the same day; a third printing is published by Mythmere Games.
-Note: I think this was around the time when there was some conflict between Brave Halfling, Mythmere and Marv Breig; that caused Brave Halfling to drop WhiteBox and create Delving Deeper and Marv Breig left the game completely. Looking at the second and third printings, it looks like maybe the dust up was caused by the Byline and the Copyright?
And that is basically the end of it. Nothing has changed since November 25, 2010.
The Wanderer wrote:I would like to know what leaving it to the fans means? Was that discussed at all back then?
The Wanderer wrote:Also I wonder if folks would have voted differently if they knew what the final printing would be like.
The Wanderer wrote:I think the updated book, I'll be releasing soon will be the final version that I will do for awhile. Of course I will still do updates to fix errata.
And I confirmed some things today. So I'll go ahead and tell you folks. The name going forward will be:
The White Box: Fantastic Medieval Adventures
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text: Last night on Project Runway: Home visits! There's something so real about the finalists introducing Tim Gunn to where they live and work, and who they love. (Let's not forget that, during season 1, this episode yielded one of the greatest moments in Project Runway history, when Jay McCarroll met Tim out in his lawn wielding a shotgun.) Anyway, much was learned. Christian: Lives in a little apartment; grew up in Baltimore; used to cut hair. Rami: Born in Jerusalem; mother died when he was young. Jillian: Has a Christmas stocking on her door; boyfriend is very proud of her; mother on Long Island relies on advice of psychics. Chris March: Missed Tim dearly; has friends who support Hillary and an unnatural love for rococo furnishings. In addition to getting background on his beloved designers, Tim perused everyone's collections. The lowdown: Rami's looked heavy, Christian's looked voluminous, Jillian's was too "muddy" and, well, Chris used human hair as trim. Clip above.


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Recipe from Danielle Barrom of Escondido, Calif.
Total Time: 2.5 hours
Every pound of meat makes 2-4 servings (depending on appetite).
2.5 pounds of corn beef (uncooked)
Whole head of green cabbage (quartered)
4 organic carrots (halved)
4 white or red medium potatoes (halved)
1 white or yellow onion (quartered)
4 garlic cloves (peeled but left whole)
8-10 ounces Irish beer
24 ounces beef broth
1 packet corn beef seasoning
4-6 sprigs of fresh Italian parsley.
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.
Place meat on baking rack inside a roasting dish.
Evenly situate the vegetables, potatoes, garlic and parsley on the bottom and sides of the baking rack (in baking dish; below and around meat, not on top of meat).
Evenly rub corn beef seasoning on top of corn beef.
Evenly pour the beer and beef broth over meat and vegetables.
Cover dish with foil.
Bake for 2 hours.
Turn oven down to 275 degrees F., remove foil and cook for an additional 10-15 min.
Let cool and serve.
Note - if you do not want to use Irish beer as part of the liquids in the baking dish, simply use more of the beef broth.
Servings: 6-8
Comments: Serve with a Guinness, Smithwick's or Murphy's!
*DISCLAIMER*: The information contained in or provided through this site section is intended for general consumer understanding and education only and is not intended to be and is not a substitute for professional advice. Use of this site section and any information contained on or provided through this site section is at your own risk and any information contained on or provided through this site section is provided on an "as is" basis without any representations or warranties.


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The next meeting of Beverly Grange will be Monday, November 18th at the Hastings House, 12 Oak St., Beverly Farms.
A Potluck (Covered Dish) Supper will be held at 6:00 PM. The program for the evening, the annual Turkey Shoot, is scheduled for 7:00 PM. The Business Meeting will begin at 7:30 PM.
We invite all interested to join us!


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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9yZPdRMcHI width=600]
These days there are plenty of tactile input options for the digital DJ that try to recreate the traditional UI. Most of these are newer devices are vestigial rotary encoders tacked onto purpose-built decks. If you're not a DJ, but would like to recreate the tactile experience of an old phonograph with your digital music device, check out this charming iTurntable iPhone dock from maker Austin Yang. You'll still get the slow set of the swing arm to initiate play, but instead of placing the needle directly on the track, you can use the arm to skip ahead or back up. If this retro technology mashup seems familiar, you'll want to also check out Austin's Mechanical Typewriter Keyboard for iPad I blogged about earlier.


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When: Thrusday, February 21
Where: Bardot in Hollywood
What: Be the Link Campaign and Director / Photographer Andy Tsagaris
By simply being the link to something that changes lives to many around us, it's what it takes to make a difference today.
Together as a powerful link we can stop the HIV epidemic. Fact: every 9½ minutes, someone in the United States is infected with the virus. Imagine in the entire world, or in places where medical support it's very limited. It could be any of us, so getting the HIV facts and getting educated in how to prevent from getting infected, it's a serious matter. Don't let a personal assumption be the reason to fight such a contagious virus.
Be the Link Campaign has a mission: to fund research and education for HIV. We can support this great campaign by donating to Until There's A Cure®, a national organization dedicated to put an end to HIV/AIDS by raising awareness and funds. It has granted $9,000,000 since 1993.
Do you know Andy Tsagaris?
He's a photographer whose style is noted for his unique perspective on the subject and often humorous twist on it. His work is focused on fashion, advertising and humanitarian causes. He has photographed today's most influential figures in business, music, television, comedy, film, fashion, and sports. He is the director of such campaign.
More of Andy Tsagaris www.atsagaris.com
Be the Link brings 250 influential people to become a louder voice by creating awareness, education, and care for people living with HIV/AIDS. This event was a collective understanding on how to help those in need when suffering from the virus and how art and creativity are the most effective ways today to make a difference while having a good time. I'm a visual artist as well, and when it comes to give back or making a difference through my passion, it becomes a bigger deal for me to create a special piece. This cause gives Tsagaris a bigger purpose of showcasing his photographs. He has been exhibiting his images at fundraising events to raise funds for Until There's A Cure, one located in New York City and one in Los Angeles.
Tsagaris compromised his work with this evening to make a difference. He made sure that this invite only black tie gala was full of today's most important figures in the world of business, entertainment, and fashion. So he did, it was an evening filled with influential leaders with a voice to create awareness for HIV AIDS.
Also, the evening was magically tunedby American Idol's Jesaiah Baer, Hannah Taylor, Colette Falla, and Amy Weber featuring DJ Ravi on the drums. As the Winning Model of Project Runway Season 3, it was nice to see many Project Runway designers and models making a difference.
Events like this one are hard to miss. This time I was honored to be wearing one authentic gown from the Academy of Couture Art's (ACA) by Sonia Ete & Katherine Enyart, inspired by Grace Kelly in mesh and silk fabrics. I felt like an ocean goddess. Thank you ACA! Here's a clip of what my gown looked like when walking https://vimeo.com/60511774.
Be the Link Campaign and Director/ Photographer Andy Tsagaris are honored to be sponsored by:
Ventura Limoncello Company, Award-winnig, Handcrafted Artisanal Citrus Liquers from Ventura, California .
The company was awarded a gold medal at the inaugural Spirits of the Americas Competition. James Carling, President of Ventura Limoncello, says, "Being recognized as a Gold Medal winner in the Spirits of the Americas works right into our company mission of being the premier producer of Limoncello liqueur in the United States." Ventura Limoncello has won numerous awards over the last five years including gold medals at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition (2008, 2011), gold medal at the 2011 Microliquor Awards and platinum medal at the 2009 Los Angeles SIP awards.
ZINK Magazine, a Photo-Forward Fashion, Beauty and Lifestyle Magazine that Dares to Challenge the Ordinary.
LA Splash Magazines, Adding Style to Your Life Since 2002 is 21 Online City Lifestyle/Entertainment Magazines.
Tieks by Gavrieli, Comfortable Designer Ballet Flats You Can Fit in Your Purse and Wear All Day, Every Day.
Los Angeles Confidential, Hollywood's Source for Movies Stars and the People Who Love Them: Parties, Styles, Fashion and Events.
Sprinkles Cupcakes, the World's First Cupcake Bakery and the Progenitor of the Gourmet Cupcake Craze.
RealTVfilms, the Social Media for the Entertainment Industry, Filmmaker, Actor and Celebrity Interviews with Brand Integration.
It seems like Hollywood events are more inspired by all the social issues that we are facing today in our every day lifestyle, so we can have fun while making difference. Find a cause and be involved today, and if you have your own it's time to get your friends and family involved too. You become a leader when taking responsibility and the first step.
Ps; when you give back to your community, your life blooms, try it.


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Praise for Strong Mothers, Strong Sons
"Solid, practical advice for women on how to properly nurture their sons."—Kirkus Reviews
Praise for Meg Meeker, M.D.
Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters
"Dr. Meeker's conclusions are timely, relevant, and often deeply moving. No one interested in what girls experience growing up in our culture today—and the impact that parents, especially fathers, have on the experience—can afford to miss reading this book."—Armand M. Nicholi, Jr., M.D., professor of psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
"Reassuring and challenging . . . a helpful road map for concerned fathers [that] tackles difficult issues."—National Review
Boys Should Be Boys
"If you want to raise a boy you'll be proud of, read Boys Should Be Boys."—Dave Ramsey, author of The Total Money Makeover
"Filled with inspirational vignettes, Boys Should Be Boys empowers parents to stay involved and protect their sons' innocence. It's a wonderfully written and eye-opening book—a must-read."—Neil Bernstein, Ph.D., author of There When He Needs You
The 10 Habits of Happy Mothers
"Offers practical ways to help you let go of 'mom guilt' in order to become a happier, healthier woman."—Parent & Child
"Just about any mom, or dad, can find useful wisdom in this book."—Associated Press


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Despite Jenelle Evans and her formerly estranged husband Courtland Rogers being back in love and sharing every minute of it with Twitter, things may get a little rocky for the reality couple.
The Teen Mom 2 star filed assault charges against her husband Courtland back in January, moved in with former boyfriend Gary Head, went to rehab (twice), split with Gary, got back with Courtland – and who knows how many other bumps and changes along the way. We can't keep up, no matter how hard we try.
Things are heating up in the assault case and yesterday Courtland's mom, Holley Rogers, along with Courtland's sister, Carson Rogers, were subpoenaed to court. Our source tells us, "The charges are false and those that are close with the family feel that Jenelle will get in trouble in the end."


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Cochon 555 in Seattle: The (Pork-Filled) View from the Judging Tables
Yesterday at Cedarbrook Lodge, Cochon 555 (now in its fifth year) returned to Seattle as part of its 2013 tour, and I had the opportunity to serve as one of the judges. While the event generally features five chefs (accompanied by five winemakers) who cook five heritage pigs in a wide variety of ways, the luck of St. Patrick's Day brought with it a bonus chef. This year's competitors were Jason Franey from Canlis, Joshua Henderson from the Huxley Wallace Collective, Rachel Yang and Seif Chirchi from Joule and Revel, Jonathan Sundstrom from Lark, Shane Ryan from Matt's in the Market, and Jason Barwikowski from The Woodsman Tavern.
This year there was not a judges' table, per se; instead, the 20 writers, chefs, winemakers and the like on the panel roamed the rooms to taste the plates of six participating chefs. Judging was based on the criteria of presentation, utilization, and flavor, with the results compromising 49% of the event's overall vote. The remaining 51% came from the general public, who would make their choice for best chef by voting for the best bite of the day.
This was true nose-to-tail eating, most prominent in the long-cooking broths with head parts, the ubiquitous use of lardo, the addictive chicharrones, and the appearance of pork in the desserts. Judges sometimes received more "courses" than the general public, giving more to weigh in judging and causing us to weigh more as a result—such that I barely stumbled out to the floor for a "Family Meal" of barbecued pig, as well as another round of swine and sweets for dessert.
My personal favorite bites were Sundstrom's Double Pork Broth with nettles, cilantro, basil, and pork tenderloin, liver and crispy ear; Yang and Chirchi's Squealing Noodles made with pickled pig skin, green curry, and prik; and Franey's Pork Pot de Crème with bacon brittle, cinnamon macaron and green apple espuma. As much as my stomach needs a rest, I'd gladly have a round of those three items for my next meal.
The competition was close, but in the end Jason Franey was crowned the Prince of Pork. (In breaking news, today he advanced as a finalist for a James Beard Award as Best Chef: Northwest.) He'll move on to compete at the Grand Cochon event at the June Food & Wine Classic in Aspen. Check the slideshow above for a complete look at the pig-filled dishes.
All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.


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After the sun set on the Tedeschi Trucks Band's inaugural Sunshine Blues Festival, which featured performances by Dr. John and the Wood Brothers, Atlanta's rootsy rhythm & blues quartet Flannel Church hosted the fest's official after party just down the road at the Funky Biscuit. Drummer Duane Trucks and bassist Kevin Scott settled into a hard-hitting groove early, putting new frontman Marshall Ruffin's vocals on display in songs like "Tailor" and "Make It Rain", before surprise guest Susan Tedeschi joined in on a daunting cover of the Bill Withers classic, "Grandma's Hands" and the old gospel tune, "Wade in the Water." Flannel Church will return to Florida April 18-20 for an encore performance at the Wanee Music Festival hosted by the Spirit of Suwanee Music Park in Live Oak, FL.
For Flannel Church tour date information and studio recordings, visit www.flannelchurch.com.
About Flannel Church: Born from an infectious groove drummer Duane Trucks and bassist Kevin Scott discovered at an impromptu jam session in Atlanta's historic Little Five Points district, Flannel Church's lineup initially came together under the watchful eye of rock legend Col. Bruce Hampton. Fronted by vocalists Marshall Ruffin and Lawson Feltman on lead guitars, Flannel Church brings a hard-hitting gospel stomp to their soulful American blues. From swampy late nights on Frenchmen Street to blazing hot shuffles on the Carolina coast, the group leaves an indelible mark on listeners, ushering in a new generation of Southern roots music.


text:
A career in trucking begins with obtaining your CDL (Commercial Driver's License). In order to do so, you will be required to pass a series of written CDL tests to receive the proper endorsements, based on what type of local truck driving job you are pursuing. Don't waste your time or money by failing the written tests for your CDL permit. Take our Practice Tests before you arrive at Massachusetts DMV facility.
Check out the US CDL Manual. It's FREE.
Not ready for the test yet? Check our list of CDL Schools in Massachusetts.
Before you sign up to take on the Massachusetts required drivers test to earn your commercial license, test your general CDL knowledge with our CDL practice test.General Knowledge Test
Test your knowledge of combination vehicles before you take your combination vehicles certification test at the Massachusetts DMV. Give yourself a passing chance before you take on the required exam.Combination Vehicles Test
Practice your skills and test your knowledge regarding air brakes before you take the Massachusetts certification air brake test.Air Brakes Test
Interested in advancing your career by obtaining a hazmat endorsement? Before you take your Massachusetts hazmat test, make sure you are prepared by answering our practice test questions.HAZMAT Endorsement Test
Looking to earn your tanker endorsement? Don't take the Massachusetts required exam without preparing with our practice test first. Test your current knowledge and identify areas that need improvement.Tanker Endorsement Test
Preparing for the doubles and triples endorsement? Pass our practice test with a 90% or higher and set yourself up for success before taking on the Massachusetts exam at your local DMV.Doubles and Triples Endorsement Test


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1972 Chevy C-10 LS1 Engine Install - More Fun With Fuel Injection
Our '67-72 5.3L LS Install Continues
A few months ago in our March '09 issue, I introduced the 5.3L LS Chevy engine I was planning on dropping in my '72 C-10. For those who missed it (you may need to find a back issue to get up to speed), I went to Dave's Goldenwest Truck, a local Orange County, California, wrecking yard, and picked up a 5.3L engine that was from an '01 Suburban. I took the engine to Turn Key Engine Supply in Oceanside, California, so they could walk us through what it takes to get rid of all the non-important stock pieces. This wound up being quite the striptease, which included the stock EFI harness. Turn Key makes their own neat and compact harness for LS engines that simplifies the whole shootin' match, not to mention their cool layman's version of a fuel system for non-stock applications.
This was all fine and dandy, but I knew I was going to have to hunt down a few more items before pulling the very tired old small-block out of the truck. The stock radiator had seen better days and had started acting up, so I ordered an aluminum Griffin radiator from Southern Rods and Parts along with two 14-inch electric fans that fit perfectly in the width of the radiator core. The Turn Key harness comes with another mini-harness for two electric fans and the fuel pump, so I didn't need anything additional there. Turn Key also provided the LS engine mount adapter plates. These allow the transmission to stay in place and the LS engine to drop onto the stock engine mount location using the old-style rubber mounts. Headers were another "maybe" as far as what I needed, but Sanderson Headers had a late-model LS truck shorty version for me to try out.
For most of you, this would be what's needed for the majority of the initial LS conversion, but of course nothing is easy for me. A few years ago I found out that my C-10 had the engine mounted in the rear of two possible positions, but most `67-72 C-10s I've seen since have their engines in the forward position, 4 inches forward to be exact. I was hoping the LS engine would also fit in the rear location that my 350 was in, but in the back of my mind I knew it wasn't gonna happen--if for no other reason than Murphy's Law, which proved to have the upper hand. So, I went over to Classic Performance Products and got a set of their tubular motor mounts that replace the stock, forward-position, stamped-steel mounts. No, biggie, but this also meant I'd have to move the transmission crossmember, mess with the shift linkage, and get a longer driveshaft.
The other part to the install was getting the LS engine to work with the non-electronic 700-R4 trans already in the truck. I got the transmission from Gear Star a few years ago and have been nothing but pleased with it, thus wanted to keep it in the truck in lieu of going to a modern electronic overdrive automatic like what would have been behind the 5.3L from the factory. This shouldn't be a problem, but there are two things that need to be taken care of: the TV cable and the installation of a spacer between the crank of the LS and the torque converter of the 700-R4. The latter of the two is easy thanks to Turn Key having the adapter that taps into the back of the crank. The matter of the TV cable I'm still working on, but should have it figured out for next month's hopeful LS conversion conclusion, which will also cover the fuel system, exhaust, and final wiring. Hang in there!


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Last week, I had the pleasure of presenting to more than 1200 Unity developers at the 2012 Unite conference in Amsterdam. It was an honor to present on the same stage as the legendary Peter Molyneux!
*Quick jump to my section here*
There's a lot of excitement about the work the Adobe Gaming team is doing with Unity, giving game developers more choice in using their favorite tools to target the Flash Player via Premium Features. At Unite, we showed off previews of Unity games that will be published to Flash Player, including Madfinger's Shadowgun in Facebook and Nickleodeon's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles which you can see in this video. With the announcement of the Unity 4 preview, we expect to see even more Unity games running in Flash and hope to showcase more of these for you later this year.
Are you building a game for Flash Player using Unity? If so, tell us about it on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/flashplatform


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Time lapse stabilization
Time Lapse stabilization
Remember the shaky videos of rockets being launched from the old days?
Did you see the modern NASA videos , where the FRAME bounces around the object being filmed, while the rocket remains perfectly stable in view? Thats' what you'll be able to do after reading this tutorial.
Why and when?
Sometimes you find yourselves with some time on your hand, a nice camera, a nice scene that would look nice in a time lapse movie, but no tripod and/or computer to take shots in exactly the same position in an exact time-sequence.
Just point the camera at what you want in your timelapse, and take shots, at regular intervals, as consistent in time delay and direction as you want/can.
You can play a sequence of jpgs using mplayer with:
mplayer -mf fps=12 mf://\*.jpg
If you put the shots together like this the image will bounce and shake a lot, because you didn't point the camera in exactly the same direction every time.... This is where tripods excel above humans.
So, hugin to the rescue!
preparing the images
First, I reduced the size of all the jpgs by a factor of 4 in each direction. This gave me frames of about video quality, greatly reducing the amount of CPU time required to process the many images.
mkdir small for i in *.jpg; do echo "$i " djpeg $i | pnmscale 0.25 | cjpeg > small/$i done cd small
Two of my images (Scaled to 0.4 of what I worked with):
Steps in hugin
I then started up hugin and loaded all the images.
Now to match all the images I have to do the control points manually, because this is not the "normal" use of hugin. However, for someone intimate with the workings of Hugin and the surrounding tools, it should be quite possible to modify one of the tools to allow doing this automatically in the future.
On the control-points tab, select image 0 on the left, and image 1 on the right. Now match two or three points in the image.
Next, you would normally match image 1 to image 2, and so on. In this case I recommend you match every image to image 0. So next you create several controlpoint matches on images 0 against image 2.
Next, I selected "equirectangular" for both the source images (under the "camera and lens" tab) and the destination (under the "stitcher" tab) (this may acutally not be the best selection, as hugin might also correct for lens distortion on the way. But at least it keeps things simple...)
Current "best practise" suggests that "rectilinear" for both the source ("camera and lens" tab), and the destination ("stitcher" tab), is the best combination. However, the FOV or focal length better not be too far off.
Next, click "optimize now".
Next, I selected "high quality tiff" and "nona" as the stitcher. This triggers the creation of intermediate TIFF files which we're interested in.
Next click: "calculate field of view" in the stitcher tab, and "calculate optimal size".
Next, click "stitch now". In my case, the final enblend step crashed due to an installation error. This is ideal: We don't need it. Consider making the binary not executable for the duration of this project, or putting another program of the same name in your path, or configuring hugin to call some program that doesn't exist.
Actually, it's better to choose "Multiple TIFF files" in currently released hugin version, and "Remapped images" in current trunk - that way only remapped images are created and hugin does not try to run enblend or other programs.
post processing
After entering the name "test.tif" as the output file, you will be left with realigned tiff files called test????.tif! You can then convert these to jpeg with:
for i in test????.tif ; do tifftopnm $i | cjpeg > $i.jpg done
now you can play them with:
mplayer -mf fps=12 mf://\test\*.tif.jpg
The bouncing should be greatly reduced!
Here are two of the resulting images.
Next, you can trim off some of the bouncy edges. I used pnmcut while the files are in PPM format in the last conversion:
for i in test????.tif ; do tifftopnm $i | pnmcut -top 120 -left 50 -right -60 -bot -120 | cjpeg > $i.jpg done
And after trimming:
I then encoded the sequence of frames using:
mencoder -mf fps=12 mf://test\*.tif.jpg -ovc lavc -lavcopts vcodec=mpeg4 -o timelapse_final.avi
And here is the final 160 frame avi file: http://prive.bitwizard.nl/timelapse_final.avi
final words
The inline scripts in this page are written in "bash". If you use tcsh, the syntax is slightly different. If you're on MS Windows, I don't know how you achieve such operations.
This tutoral was written by firstname.lastname@example.com . Feel free to Email me with suggestions or ways to do this easier. As this is a WIKI you could also edit this directly.
In newer versions of hugin, an application "align_image_stack" is available. This is not yet released, but a windows application executable is available. Unix users will have to get and compile from the subversion source.
I tried it, and found that the results of "align_image_stack" are worse than what I started with. My test case had lots of clouds, and it apparently was finding points on the clouds instead of on the mountains that remain stable.


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Well hi there!
Just to get you started, here's a little FYI on what you'll find find around these parts. There's the obligatory About me page where you find out all my deep dark secrets. (Not really, but you do at least find out whether I love milk or dark chocolate. And what my friends think of me.)
Of course, if you're here for the books, you'll get information on When the Stars Go Blue (St. Martin's Griffin/2010), winner of BEST YOUNG ADULT NOVEL: 2011 INTERNATIONAL LATINO BOOK AWARDS, as well as info on my previous novels, Adiós to My Old Life, It's Not About the Accent, and Both Sides Now. Also, in coming weeks, I'll be adding more information about the story to which Publisher's Weekly gave a starred review, calling it a, "lush portrayal of a joyful, painful, complicated life," Between Here and Gone coming from Diversion Books on January 12th, 2016.
I can also be found on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram so there are various and sundry ways with which to keep up with me. So please, give me a holler- I do enjoy connecting with people. In the meantime, look around and feel to comment if the spirit moves.


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$$ Tuition is due on Monday of each week $$
Be Sure to check out our Facebook page!
Tuesday, October 10th We will have Southern SnoBalls. Don't forget your $2.00!
Friday, October 13th St. Jude's Trike-A-Ton! We will be raising money to help St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital. Parents please check your mailbox for more information. Bring your child's bike to school and a helmet if you have one.
Monday, October 16th Hurricane Make-up Day! 3hr VPK will be in session.
Wednesday, October 18th Dr. Verwest representative will be here at 10 am to talk to the children about the importance of taking care of your teeth.
Thursday, October 19th We will be celebrating literacy and join the campaign shared by millions around the country-Read for the Record. Our classrooms will be reading the book "Quackers" by Liz Wong and participating in extension activities.
Tuesday, October 31st Costume Parade! We will be having a costume parade so your child can come dressed in different characters and have a parade around the center. If you would like your child to participate, help them dress up in their favorite character. It could be a character from their favorite book, or someone they want to be when they grow up. After the parade you are welcome to bring in some healthy snacks to share with the class. If you would like to volunteer to pass out treats at each station please let Megan or Jessica know.
Through our play children learn about different roles people play, imitation, make-believe, social skills & interaction.
This past month our community experienced a natural disaster, that created stress and fear in all of us. As we know, young children are most fearful when they don't understand what is happening around them. As parents, it is important to provide guidance and understanding that help restore a sense of security and well-being.
So, what can we do to help children who have experience a disaster or any other tragic event?
From www.savethechildren.org
With young children, power struggles often occur after giving a child a command, or when the child is tired, hungry or stressed. To lessen power struggles slow down your speech and give only one or two commands at a time. Tell your child what you want them to do instead of what not to do. Use pictures or your body to model the desired behavior or action to avoid power struggles. The brain is a pattern seeking-device. The more consistent you are the more effective it will become.
Here is how it works:
1. This month you will find a page of cut outs in your child's family file folder (you will also find extras in the front hallway).
2. Every time you read a book to your child, write his/her name and the name of the book on a cut out and present it to your child's teacher.
3. At the end of the month the classroom with the most cut outs in each age group will win 2 new books for their classroom library and a special treat!
This is a great way to support your child's learning at home!
Children should always go out trick or treating accompanied by a responsible adult. If you have a group of kids going, the parents should choose two or three of them to go along and keep an eye on things.
Instruct your children not to eat any treats until they bring them home to be examined by you. This way you can check for any problem candy and get the pick of the best stuff!
Instruct your child to never go into the home of a stranger or get into their car. Explain why this is not a good idea and what to do if someone approaches them and tries to talk to them.
We would like to thank everyone who supported us after the hurricane. Parents, teachers, neighbors, community leaders, etc.
We also want to let you know that we are here for you and your family. We partner with the United Way and their 2-1-1 program that provides free information and referral to human/social service agencies within Lee, Hendry, Glades and Okeechobee Counties.
"Everything we do improves the lives of children."
Child Care of Southwest Florida 6831 Palisades Park Ct. Suite 6 Fort Myers, Florida 33912 You received this email because your child is enrolled at one of the Child Care Centers of Southwest Florida. Our 6 locations: The Children's Learning Center at FSW | Joseph H. Messina Child Care Center | P.A. Geraci Development Center | The Community Children's Center | Children's Garden of LaBelle | Harlem Academy Update your email preferences to choose the types of emails you receive. Unsubscribe from all future emails


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North American Code Requirements for Plastic Pipes and Fittings
- Overview
- Benefits of Certification
- Why Work with NSF?
- Certification Process
Compliance to NSF/ANSI 14: Plastics Piping System Components and Related Materials is required by all major plumbing codes including the Uniform Plumbing Code, the National Standard Plumbing Code and the International Plumbing and Residential Code.
NSF/ANSI 14 establishes minimum physical, performance, health effects, quality assurance, marking and recordkeeping requirements for plastic piping components and related materials such as:
- Thermoplastic materials
- Thermoset materials
- Non-plastic components
- Piping and tubing
- Fittings and valves
- Appurtenances
- Joining materials and gaskets
- Ingredients of materials
- Special engineered products and materials
NSF International has the qualifications and reputation to help your business meet the needs of the market and get the recognition and acceptance that is critical to your company's success.
Benefits of Certification
Certification to NSF/ANSI 14 ensures your product meets regulatory requirements for plastic pipes and fittings across North America. NSF test data collected can be used to demonstrate product quality and for certification with other agencies, such as ASME, ASSE, ASTM, AWWA, CAS, DIN, IAPMO, ISO and UL.
Why Work with NSF?
In addition to being acknowledged by every plumbing code in North America, NSF is accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI-Accredited Product Certification Body - Accreditation #0216) and the Standards Council of Canada (SCC) for its testing, standards development and certification programs.
NSF certification includes:
- NSF mark recognition, faster market access and expedited regulatory acceptance
- Third-party confirmation, reducing potential liability issues
- Ongoing support related to technical development and regulatory requirements
- Online listing of certified products, including product type, product trade name, manufacturer name and location
Certification Process
While our product evaluations are thorough, our process is simple and efficient. A dedicated NSF project manager serves as your single point of contact from application to approval for a streamlined, efficient certification process.
- Your company submits an application.
- Your company and suppliers provide formulation, design specifications and product end use information.
- We review formulation and engineering specifications.
- We perform a plant audit and sample collection.
- We conduct laboratory testing.
- We grant certification for compliant products.
- Our follow-up program includes unannounced inspections and annual testing.
Our experts can help you reduce your overall costs and expedite your time to market by bundling services and reducing the number of contracted service providers and facility audits.
Annual Legionella Conference Rescheduled to January 2021
- 4 weeks ago
ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Legionella Conference: Prevention of Disease and Injury From Waterborne Pathogens in Health Care originally scheduled for...
Call for Abstracts: Speaker, Research Poster Proposals Accepted for Legionella Conference 2020
- 5 months ago
ANN ARBOR, Mich. – NSF Health Sciences and the National Environmental Health Association (NEHA) are now accepting proposals for expert...
Drinking Water Treatment Units Must Now Meet Stricter Requirements for Lead Reduction Certification
- 5 months ago
ANN ARBOR, Mich. – The joint committee governing the American National Standards for drinking water treatment units recently lowered the...
Webinar: Best Practices for Restarting Your Building's Water System
COVID-19 and Its Effect on Your Building Water Health
Webinar: COVID-19 Updates for NSF International's Water Certification Programs
FAQ on Desk Audits for NSF International's Water Certification Programs
Private Label (ANF) Listings
Plastic Materials Certification
Health Effects of HDPE Pipes and Fittings for Potable Water Applications
Chemical Evaluation to California Proposition 65
How do I know plastic plumbing products are safe for use?
Most state drinking water regulations and local plumbing codes require PE and PEX tubing and fittings conveying drinking water to meet NSF/ANSI Standard 61 to ensure components will not contribute harmful levels of contaminants to drinking water. All U.S. model plumbing codes and 46 of the 50 U.S. states require PVC drinking water system components to meet the requirements of NSF/ANSI Standard 61.
What is NSF/ANSI Standard 61?
NSF/ANSI Standard 61: Drinking Water System Components-Health Effects is the American National Standard for health effects of drinking water system components. It establishes the health effects requirements for the chemical contaminants and impurities that are indirectly imparted to drinking water from products, components and materials used in drinking water systems.
NSF/ANSI Standard 61 is overseen by the NSF Drinking Water Additives Joint Committee comprised of representation from the regulatory community, the manufacturing industry and user groups. The American National Standards Institute accredits NSF standards development procedures to ensure a balanced committee of stakeholders develops the standards in an open process. The NSF Council of Public Health Consultants, a group of 30 representatives from academia and local, state and federal regulatory agencies, provides technical advice on and oversight of the NSF standards.
The NSF Health Advisory Board is a standing task group that consists of toxicologists from the U.S. EPA, Health Canada, state and provincial agencies, industry and private consulting firms. This group is responsible for reviewing and approving all allowable contaminant concentrations that are published in NSF/ANSI Standard 61.
What is NSF/ANSI Standard 14?
NSF/ANSI Standard 14: Plastic Piping System Components and Related Materials is a consensus standard that enables comprehensive assessment of plumbing system products, materials and ingredients. The assessment is for health effects, quality control, quality assurance, marking, material property requirements, long-term strength evaluation and short-term product performance evaluation to various standards such as ASME, ASTM, ASSE, etc.
NSF/ANSI 14 is used to evaluate a product for minimum performance requirements. NSF conducts its own testing, review and facility inspections when certifying products. If the product is to be used with potable water, it is also evaluated to NSF/ANSI Standard 61 to meet the NSF/ANSI Standard 14 potable water requirements. NSF/ANSI Standard 14 addresses health and performance, NSF/ANSI Standard 61 only addresses health effect concerns.
How are plastic pipe, fittings and system components tested?
First, we perform a formulation review of the material to determine what possible contaminants could leach out into drinking water and what type of chemical extraction testing is necessary. Our policy does not allow lead as an ingredient within plastic pipe formulations.
We expose products to formulated exposure waters, and then analyze these exposure waters for contaminants. We use three separate formulated waters during product exposure: pH 5.0 and pH 10.0 (with 2 mg/L available chlorine for PE pipe and fittings) for extraction of metallic contaminants, and pH 8.0 for organic-based contaminants.
PE products are tested at an ambient temperature of 73° F (23° C). PEX tubing samples containing water are heated to 140° F (60° C) for domestic hot water systems or 180° F (82° C) for commercial hot systems.
Products are conditioned by exposure to the formulated waters (with the addition of 2 mg/L available chlorine for PE products) for 14 days, with water being changed on 10 of those days. We then analyze the water collected from the final 16-hour exposure period for contaminants. Any contaminants found must be below EPA or Health Canada levels for regulated contaminants. For non-regulated contaminants found, NSF/ANSI Standard 61 sets health based pass/fail levels based on review of available toxicity data using the risk assessment procedures in annex A of the standard.
What types of analyses are performed on PEX tubing?
Water exposed to PEX tubing and associated fitting systems is tested for the following contaminants as required by NSF/ANSI Standard 61:
- VOCs (Volatile organic compounds)
- Semi-volatile compounds (base neutral acid scan by gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy)
- Phenolics
- Regulated metals including antimony, arsenic, barium, beryllium, cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, mercury, selenium and thallium
- Methanol
- Tertiary butyl alcohol
- MTBE (methyl tertiary butyl ether)
- Any other potential contaminant identified during the formulation review
These test methods are capable of detecting contaminants in water as low as 4 parts per billion (4 ppb) and lower, equivalent to a 0.0000004 percent concentration.
PEX tubing and various fittings, either plastic or metal, are tested together as systems for performance and health effects in accordance with industry standards to ensure product quality and end-user safety.
Both the product manufacturer and independent third parties conduct routine quality control and quality assurance evaluations to ensure the product meets ASTM and NSF/ANSI standards. Compliance with ASTM F 876 and F 877 as well as NSF/ANSI Standard 14 ensures the end user of safety and quality.
What types of analyses are performed on PE pipe and fittings?
Water exposed to PE pipe or fittings is tested for the following contaminants as required by NSF/ANSI 61:
- Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
- Semi-volatile compounds (base/neutral/acid target and scan by GC/MS)
- Regulated metals including antimony, arsenic, barium, beryllium, cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, mercury, selenium and thallium
- Any other potential contaminant identified during the formulation review
What types of analyses are performed on PVC products?
Water exposed to PVC products is tested for volatile organic compounds (VOCs), phenolics, residual chloride monomer (RVCM), antimony, arsenic, barium, beryllium, cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, mercury, selenium, tin, thallium, phthalates (for flexible PVCs) and any other potential contaminant identified during the formulation review.
How do I know if plastic plumbing products meet this requirement?
Plastic pipe, fittings and system components meeting the health effects requirements of NSF/ANSI Standard 61 bear either the NSF-61 mark or the NSF-pw (potable water) mark on the print string. The NSF-pw mark indicates the product meets the health requirements of NSF/ANSI 61 as well as the performance, long-term strength and quality control requirements of NSF/ANSI Standard 14: Plastic Piping Components and Related Materials.
If a PEX product has only an NSF-rfh mark, this indicates the product has only been evaluated for radiant floor heating applications.
If a PVC product has only an NSF-dwv or NSF-sewer mark, the product has only been evaluated for drain, waste and vent applications or for sewer applications, respectively.


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Which of the following is the most frequently consumed fruit in the world?
A. bananas
B. mangoes
C. strawberries
D. apples
E. All of the above
If you picked "E," don't feel bad. Just pour yourself another cup of coffee and try again.
I always thought it was bananas, but it's actually mangoes. If you chose "bananas," I'll give you half credit since they're the most consumed fruit in the United States.
Since bananas are only 19 cents each at Trader Joe's, I always have a huge, happy yellow bunch in my fruit bowl. Since they're only 19 cents each, I also have a lot of brown, speckled bananas in my fruit bowl.
What's not to love about bananas? They're fast, easy, non-messy energy food. At only 100 calories per fruit and no fat, they're also a great source of potassium, Vitamin C, and fiber.
The greatest thing about bananas though is that you never have to throw one away. If it's too ripe to eat out of hand, you can toss it in a smoothie, freeze it for a snack, or, best of all, make banana bread.
Banana bread surfaced in American kitchens in the 1930's, at the same time that baking soda and baking powder were becoming popular leavening agents (instead of yeast) for quick breads. By the 1960's, banana bread's popularity burgeoned, and cookbooks commonly listed multiple recipes for it.
Apparently, we have the Australians to thank for introducing chocolate into banana bread -- I always thought my mom invented that on a particularly inspired baking day in the '80's.
Banana bread is so popular, it even has its own Wiki page. (How else would I have gotten all of this information?)
Even though the blogosphere is teeming with banana bread recipes, this one's too good not to share. Made with aromatic toasted coconut, crunchy almonds, and creamy coconut milk, it's one unforgettably moist, delicious banana bread. So I'm submitting it to the lovely Gretchen Noelle of Canela and Comino, who has selected quick breads for this month's Homegrown Gourmet.
This recipe is adapted from Dorie Greenspan's Lots-of-Ways-Banana Cake, in her cookbook, Baking: From My Home to Yours. Note: You can lighten both calories and cholesterol in this bread by substituting Smart Balance for butter, Egg Beaters for eggs, and light coconut milk for regular. I have made it both ways, and they're both delicious.
Banana Coconut Almond Bread
Print recipe only here.
2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 1/2 sticks (12 Tbsp) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup light brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup canned unsweetened coconut milk
4 very ripe bananas, mashed (about 2 cups)
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut, toasted
3/4 cup coarsely chopped almonds, toasted
Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat two 9 X 2-inch round cake pans, or five 6-by-2 3/4-inch mini-loaf pans with cooking spray.
To toast the coconut, place in a dry skillet over medium heat, and gently stir until aromatic and golden brown, about 2 minutes. Keep your eye on it since it burns quite quickly! Remove from heat and set aside.
To toast the almonds, place in a dry skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until fragrant and lightly toasted, about 5-7 minutes.
In a medium size bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, and cinnamon together.
In a large bowl, beat the butter until creamy. Add the sugars and beat at medium speed for a couple of minutes. Add eggs, and beat well. Add the vanilla and coconut milk, and beat until batter is silky. Lower the speed, add the bananas, and beat briefly.
Add the dry ingredients to the liquid ingredients, and mix until just incorporated. Using a rubber spatula, gently stir in the coconut and almonds. Divide the batter evenly between the pans.
Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until the cakes are a deep golden brown. You'll know they're done when a toothpick or cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean. Transfer the cakes to a rack and let cool for 10 minutes, then unmold and invert onto another rack to cool to room temperature right side up.
You might also like:
Chestnut Pancakes with Pancetta and Creme Fraiche
Coconut Lemonquat Tea Cake
Heart Healthy Date, Fennel, and Pistachio Scones
Olive Oil Cake with Rosemary and Lemon
Some other delicious banana breads:
Banana Maple Pecan Bread from Marisa of Slashfood
Banana and Nutella Cake from Bleeding Espresso
Banana Bread with Chocolate and Cinnamon Sugar from Tinned Tomatoes
Banana Chocolate Walnut Bread from The Wednesday Chef
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MSNBC announced last night that it would shift its prime-time programming away from talk shows after 10 p.m., going instead with two hours of what it was calling "documentary programming" at 10 and 11 p.m.
The moves, which were signaled earlier this week in comments by the president of NBC News, Steve Capus, will displace two of the cable news channel's talk-show hosts.
One talk-show host, Rita Cosby, who was added to the channel's talk-show lineup less than a year ago, will take over as what NBC is calling the anchor of these documentary reports. She will also produce a number of specials for the channel.
At the same time, Tucker Carlson, who had a nightly talk show at 11 p.m., will be moved to a daytime slot at 4 p.m., with a repeat at 6 p.m. Neither Ms. Cosby's nor Mr. Carlson's show was considered a ratings success.
Both hosts were installed by Rick Kaplan, who had been the president of NBC until he left earlier this month. Recently, NBC made the surprise appointment of Dan Abrams, another of its talk-show hosts, as his successor as the day-to-day head of the channel, under the title of general manager of MSNBC.
Yesterday's announcement was made by Mr. Abrams. The shift of Mr. Carlson installs him in the time period that Mr. Abrams vacated when he took the management position.
MSNBC executives said on Monday that they wanted to remake its prime-time lineup around two programs experiencing ratings growth, Keith Olbermann's show at 8 p.m. and "Hardball With Chris Matthews" at 7 p.m. The latter show has suffered sharp ratings slides in the last week, however.
But a move to documentary-style programs had already improved ratings on Fridays, and now MSNBC will try them on a regular basis in prime time.


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Generally speaking, parents want their kids to experience the fullness of the world – the quiet beauty, the dizzying adventure, the discovery of self and others. As much as possible we want to keep hurt and injury at bay but they too are part of the mix with cuts, scrapes and breaks both corporeal and psychological. So how do we go about assessing risk? How do we ensure that our kids aren't enclosed in a cocoon of safety?
I saw this video a couple of nights ago and thought I would play a small role in helping to spread the word. Right now it's at 373 views. After you've watched it, please share with your friends and your broader network.
Thanks to the Alliance for Childhood and KaBOOM! for producing this piece.


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News from the world of Maths
Another postcard from Plus' temporary Cambridge/Boston office!
A quick postcard from Plus' temporary Cambridge/Boston office!
How does Olympic success correlate with a nation's GNP? How does the location of the Olympics affect the chance of record breaking? How can simple statistics help us understand the likelihood of winning streaks and the chance that an innocent athlete will fail a drugs test? What events should an ambitious nation target as the "easiest" in which to win Olympic medals. John D. Barrow will explore these question and more in a free public lecture at Gresham College in London tomorrow, 17th January 2012.
In the corner of the garden between the Centre of Mathematical Sciences and the Isaac Newton Institute in Cambridge, sits a reminder of our ongoing quest to understand gravity: an apple tree that was taken as a cutting from the tree at Newton's birthplace, the tree that is said to have inspired his theory of gravity. Newton's theory was extended to the cosmological scales by Einstein's theory of general relativity – but can supergravity explain how gravity works in the quantum world?
"Astronomers are used to large numbers, but few are as large as the odds I'd have given this celebration today," is how Astronomer Royal Martin Rees started his presentation at Stephen Hawking's birthday symposium yesterday. He was talking about the 1960s when he first met Hawking who was then already suffering motor neurone disease. But Rees' prediction has been proved wrong. Hawking turned 70
yesterday and since the time of their first meeting he has made enormous contributions to cosmology and physics.
It's Stephen Hawking's 70th birthday this week and the University of Cambridge is celebrating with a conference in his honour. If it's going to be as exciting as his 60th birthday, and it definitely looks like it will, then we're in for a treat! We'll be giving you articles and podcasts from the conference soon, but in the meantime, here's what we did for his 60th.
Human reasoning is biased and illogical. At least that's what a huge body of psychological research seems to show. But now a psychological scientist from the University of Toulouse in France has come up with a new theory: that logical and probabilistic thinking is an intuitive part of decision making, only its conclusions often lose out to heuristic considerations.


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Letter from the Editor
These days all enquiries regarding work reach me by email. This might not be the case if I lived in a European or North American meeting metropolis, but living in Asia, my phone is quieter and the answering machine long retired. It's positive that individual interpreters can make themselves more visible on the Internet (e.g. through the AIIC directory), but what to do when the result is a feeler from an unknown source?


text: Ginger Bon Chef Sandstone Straight Sided Bowl, 7 x 20 x 3 inch -- 1 each.The ultimate in space saving presentation. These Straight Sided Bowls are for side by side presentation with out wasting space in between. Each bowl is divisible into each other so you can arrange them into different size groups as pictured above. Sandsto


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The Sheriff of Cook County (that means Chicago) has sued Craigslist claiming that the site is a public nuisance. [Here's the Complaint. ABC News interviewed me this afternoon to get my comments on the case. I enjoyed talking about it for about 20 minutes on camera. As these things usually go, most of my
flashes of insight comments ended up on the proverbial cutting room floor, but one complete sentence made it onto ABC World News tonight. Click here to see the segment.
Professor Goldman has this rundown of the case.