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- Core Enhancements
- Security
- Incompatible Changes
- Deprecations
- Performance Enhancements
- Modules and Pragmata
- Documentation
- Diagnostics
- Internal Changes
- Selected Bug Fixes
- Known Problems
- Acknowledgements
- Reporting Bugs
perldelta - what is new for perl v5.17.7
This document describes differences between the 5.17.6 release and the 5.17.7 release.
If you are upgrading from an earlier release such as 5.17.5, first read perl5176delta, which describes differences between 5.17.5 and 5.17.6.
Core Enhancements
$&, $` and $' are no longer slow
These three infamous variables have been redeemed and no longer slow down your program when used. Hence, the /p regular expression flag now does nothing.
Storable security warning in documentation
The documentation for
Storable now includes a section which warns readers of the danger of accepting Storable documents from untrusted sources. The short version is that deserializing certain types of data can lead to loading modules and other code execution. This is documented behavior and wanted behavior, but this opens an attack vector for malicious entities.
Locale::Maketext allowed code injection via a malicious template
If users could provide a translation string to Locale::Maketext, this could be used to invoke arbitrary Perl subroutines available in the current process.
This has been fixed, but it is still possible to invoke any method provided by
Locale::Maketext itself or a subclass that you are using. One of these methods in turn will invoke the Perl core's
sprintf subroutine.
In summary, allowing users to provide translation strings without auditing them is a bad idea.
This vulnerability is documented in CVE-2012-6329.
Incompatible Changes
readline() with
$/ = \N now reads N characters, not N bytes
Previously, when reading from a stream with I/O layers such as
encoding, the readline() function, otherwise known as the
<> operator, would read N bytes from the top-most layer. [perl #79960]
Now, N characters are read instead.
There is no change in behaviour when reading from streams with no extra layers, since bytes map exactly to characters.
Lexical subroutine warnings have moved
The warning about the use of an experimental feature emitted when lexical subroutines (added in 5.17.4) are used now happens when the subroutine itself is declared, not when the "lexical_subs" feature is activated via
use feature.
This stops
use feature ':all' from warning, but causes
my sub foo; my sub bar to warn twice.
glob is now passed one argument
glob overrides used to be passed a magical undocumented second argument that identified the caller. Nothing on CPAN was using this, and it got in the way of a bug fix, so it was removed. If you really need to identify the caller, see Devel::Callsite on CPAN.
Lexical $_ is now deprecated
Since it was introduced in Perl 5.10, it has caused much confusion with no obvious solution:
Various modules (e.g., List::Util) expect callback routines to use the global $_.
use List::Util 'first'; my $_; first { $_ == 1 } @listdoes not work as one would expect.
my $_declaration earlier in the same file can cause confusing closure warnings.
The "_" subroutine prototype character allows called subroutines to access your lexical $_, so it is not really private after all.
Nevertheless, subroutines with a "(@)" prototype and methods cannot access the caller's lexical $_, unless they are written in XS.
But even XS routines cannot access a lexical $_ declared, not in the calling subroutine, but in an outer scope, iff that subroutine happened not to mention $_ or use any operators that default to $_.
Various XS-callable functions are now deprecated
The following functions will be removed from a future version of Perl, and should not be used. With participating C compilers (e.g., gcc), compiling any file that uses any of these will generate a warning. These were not intended for public use; there are equivalent, faster, macros for most of them. See "Character classes" in perlapi:
to_uni_title_lc, and
Performance Enhancements
Perl has a new copy-on-write mechanism that avoids the need to copy the internal string buffer when assigning from one scalar to another. This makes copying large strings appear much faster. Modifying one of the two (or more) strings after an assignment will force a copy internally. This makes it unnecessary to pass strings by reference for efficiency.
Modules and Pragmata
Updated Modules and Pragmata
File::DosGlob has been upgraded from version 1.08 to 1.09. The internal cache of file names that it keeps for each caller is now freed when that caller is freed. This means
use File::DosGlob 'glob'; eval 'scalar <*>'no longer leaks memory.
File::Glob has been upgraded from version 1.18 to 1.19. File::Glob has had exactly the same fix as File::DosGlob. Since it is what Perl's own
globoperator itself uses (except on VMS), this means
eval 'scalar <*>'no longer leaks.
GDBM_File has been upgraded from version 1.14 to 1.15. The undocumented optional fifth parameter to
TIEHASHhas been removed. This was intended to provide control of the callback used by
gdbm*functions in case of fatal errors (such as filesystem problems), but did not work (and could never have worked). No code on CPAN even attempted to use it. The callback is now always the previous default,
croak. Problems on some platforms with how the
croakfunction is called have also been resolved.
Module::CoreList has been upgraded from version 2.78 to 2.79.
Changes to Existing Documentation
"Character classes" in perlapi
There are quite a few macros callable from XS modules that classify characters into things like alphabetic, punctuation, etc. More of these are now documented, including ones which work on characters whose code points are outside the Latin-1 range.
The following additions or changes have been made to diagnostic output, including warnings and fatal error messages. For the complete list of diagnostic messages, see perldiag.
Changes to Existing Diagnostics
Constant(%s): Call to &{$^H{%s}} did not return a defined value
Constant overloading that returns
undefresults in this error message. For numeric constants, it used to say "Constant(undef)". "undef" has been replaced with the number itself.
Internal Changes
SvUPGRADE() is no longer an expression. Originally this macro (and its underlying function, sv_upgrade()) were documented as boolean, although in reality they always croaked on error and never returned false. In 2005 the documentation was updated to specify a void return value, but SvUPGRADE() was left always returning 1 for backwards compatibility. This has now been removed, and SvUPGRADE() is now a statement with no return value.
So this is now a syntax error:
if (!SvUPGRADE(sv)) { croak(...); }
If you have code like that, simply replace it with
or to to avoid compiler warnings with older perls, possibly
Perl has a new copy-on-write mechanism that allows any SvPOK scalar to be upgraded to a copy-on-write scalar. A reference count on the string buffer is stored in the string buffer itself.
This breaks a few XS modules by allowing copy-on-write scalars to go through code paths that never encountered them before.
This behaviour can still be disabled by running Configure with -Accflags=-DPERL_NO_COW. This option will probably be removed in Perl 5.20.
Copy-on-write no longer uses the SvFAKE and SvREADONLY flags. Hence, SvREADONLY indicates a true read-only SV.
Use the SvIsCOW macro (as before) to identify a copy-on-write scalar.
PL_sawampersandis now a constant. The switch this variable provided (to enable/disable the pre-match copy depending on whether
$&had been seen) has been removed and replaced with copy-on-write, eliminating a few bugs.
The previous behaviour can still be enabled by running Configure with -Accflags=-DPERL_SAWAMPERSAND.
PL_glob_index is gone.
Selected Bug Fixes
sort {undef} ...under fatal warnings no longer crashes. It started crashing in Perl 5.16.
Stashes blessed into each other (
bless \%Foo::, 'Bar'; bless \%Bar::, 'Foo') no longer result in double frees. This bug started happening in Perl 5.16.
Numerous memory leaks have been fixed, mostly involving fatal warnings and syntax errors.
Lexical constants (
my sub answer () { 42 }) no longer cause double frees.
Constant subroutine redefinition warns by default, but lexical constants were accidentally exempt from default warnings. This has been corrected.
Some failed regular expression matches such as
'f' =~ /../gwere not resetting
pos. Also, "match-once" patterns (
m?...?g) failed to reset it, too, when invoked a second time [perl #23180].
$&after a pattern match now works if it had not been seen before the match. I.e., this applies to
no strict) and
eval '$&'. The same applies to
$`[perl #4289].
Several bugs involving
local *ISAand
local *Foo::causing stale MRO caches have been fixed.
Defining a subroutine when its typeglob has been aliased no longer results in stale method caches. This bug was introduced in Perl 5.10.
Localising a typeglob containing a subroutine when the typeglob's package has been deleted from its parent stash no longer produces an error. This bug was introduced in Perl 5.14.
Under some circumstances,
local *method=...would fail to reset method caches upon scope exit.
/[.foo.]/is no longer an error, but produces a warning (as before) and is treated as
/[.fo]/[perl #115818].
goto $tied_varnow calls FETCH before deciding what type of goto (subroutine or label) this is.
Renaming packages through glob assignment (
*Foo:: = *Bar::; *Bar:: = *Baz::) in combination with
resetno longer makes threaded builds crash.
An earlier release in the 5.17.x series could crash if user code prevented _charnames from loading via
A number of bugs related to assigning a list to hash have been fixed. Many of these involve lists with repeated keys like
(1, 1, 1, 1).
- -
The expression
scalar(%h = (1, 1, 1, 1))now returns
4, not
- -
The return value of
%h = (1, 1, 1)in list context was wrong. Previously this would return
(1, undef, 1), now it returns
(1, undef).
- -
Perl now issues the same warning on
($s, %h) = (1, {})as it does for
(%h) = ({}), "Reference found where even-sized list expected".
- -
A number of additional edge cases in list assignment to hashes were corrected. For more details see commit 23b7025ebc.
Known Problems
There may be a failure in the t/op/require_errors.t test if you run the test suite as the root user.
Perl 5.17.7 represents approximately 4 weeks of development since Perl 5.17.6 and contains approximately 30,000 lines of changes across 490 files from 26 authors.
Perl continues to flourish into its third decade thanks to a vibrant community of users and developers. The following people are known to have contributed the improvements that became Perl 5.17.7:
Alexandr Ciornii, Bob Ernst, Brian Carlson, Chris 'BinGOs' Williams, Craig A. Berry, Daniel Dragan, Dave Rolsky, David Mitchell, Father Chrysostomos, Hugo van der Sanden, James E Keenan, Joel Berger, Karl Williamson, Lukas Mai, Martin Hasch, Matthew Horsfall, Nicholas Clark, Ricardo Signes, Ruslan Zakirov, Sergey Alekseev, Steffen Müller, Sullivan Beck, Sven Strickroth, Sébastien Aperghis-Tramoni, Tony Cook, Yves Orton.
The list above is almost certainly incomplete as it is automatically generated from version control history. In particular, it does not include the names of the (very much appreciated) contributors who reported issues to the Perl bug tracker.
Many of the changes included in this version originated in the CPAN modules included in Perl's core. We're grateful to the entire CPAN community for helping Perl to flourish.
For a more complete list of all of Perl's historical contributors, please see the AUTHORS file in the Perl source distribution.
Reporting Bugs
If you find what you think is a bug, you might check the articles recently posted to the comp.lang.perl.misc newsgroup and the perl bug database at http://rt.perl.org/perlbug/ . There may also be information at http://www.perl.org/ , the Perl Home Page.
If you believe you have an unreported bug, please run the perlbug program included with your release. Be sure to trim your bug down to a tiny but sufficient test case. Your bug report, along with the output of
perl -V, will be sent off to email@example.com to be analysed by the Perl porting team.
If the bug you are reporting has security implications, which make it inappropriate to send to a publicly archived mailing list, then please send it to email@example.com. This points to a closed subscription unarchived mailing list, which includes all the core committers, who will be able to help assess the impact of issues, figure out a resolution, and help co-ordinate the release of patches to mitigate or fix the problem across all platforms on which Perl is supported. Please only use this address for security issues in the Perl core, not for modules independently distributed on CPAN.
The Changes file for an explanation of how to view exhaustive details on what changed.
The INSTALL file for how to build Perl.
The README file for general stuff.
The Artistic and Copying files for copyright information.


text:
During a surpise search in a Mexico prison early Monday, authorities found two peacocks, 100 fighting cocks, 19 prostitutes, 100 plasma TVs and two sacks filled with mariujuana.
Police from the Mexican resort city of Acapulco found six women living in the male quarters of the prison, the same area where the peacocks were found, the BBC reports.
The Associated Press reports that Acapulco police also found several bottles of alcohol and knives.
U.S. & World
The day's top national and international news.
Guerrero state spokesman Aruturo Martinez said he had no clue how that women, birds and other banned objects got into the prison.
But "luxury" cells in Mexican prisons aren't completely unheard of. In July, prisoners in Sonora, a northern Mexican state, were caught raffling off a decked-out cell fitted with an air conditioner, refridgerator and DVD player, the BBC reports.

subset: commoncrawl


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You crack me up Mister Palpatine. If you can do a boil-n-pop, then you can do just about anything with customizing. But of course if you don't want to, that's ok too.
Good work Starkid, I like seeing the Fett parts used. Very good match with the Clone parts. Might have to borrow your idea sometime.
YEAH another Starkid Custom, Any chance of getting a closer look Star.
Page created in 0.075 seconds with 19 queries.


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According to an Israeli publication, the popular messaging app, Viber, is up for sale and is currently in talks to be bought by a major Asian competitor. The Calcalist, reports in Hebrew, that the company is reportedly in talks with a 'large Asian' chat company for an acquisition. The truth is that there aren't many different messaging applications out there anymore, especially in Asia. The ones that come to mind are the Japanese, Line, Korean KakaoTalk and the Chinese WeChat.
What makes these talks of acquisition all the more interesting is the fact that there were rumors that Viber was looking for a large investment round, to the tune of $100 million. However, it could be that they may instead just be looking for a buyer as Viber is constantly growing and adding new features and may be looking to cash in on their success. The company itself is technically a Cyprus based company, but the majority of the company's employees and management are Israeli. They also have a development center in Belarus as well, however, that may just be due to the cheapness of labor there.
Because Viber hasn't actually gone through any rounds of investment funding from outside sources, they've pretty much retained control of the company and those involved could stand to make a lot of money. This includes the company's CEO who is currently denying any claims of an acquisition. The truth is that I have used many different messaging applications and I have found that the most of my friends use Viber, and so does my family. While its hard to accurately gauge the success of Viber, the truth is that the application is available on basically any and all platforms available today. Viber's support of Windows, Windows Phone, Android, iOS, Blackberry, Bada and others is really what makes the application to attractive, its a truely cross-platform messaging application.
Some rumors are claiming even higher sale prices of Viber, but the truth is that right now we will have to sit and wait to see who the actual suitor is and what the final price will be. The Calcalist has been pretty accurate in the past in their reporting of rumored acquisitions.


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- 3 cups low-fat milk
- 2 garlic cloves, pressed, divided
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup quick-cooking grits
- 6 slices thick-cut applewood-smoked bacon, cut crosswise into 1/3- to 1/2-inch wide slices
- 1 1/2 pounds deveined peeled uncooked large shrimp
- 1 cup sliced shallots (about 4 large)
- 1 8-ounce bottle clam juice
- 2 5-ounce packages baby spinach
- Hot pepper sauce
- 1 lemon, cut into wedges
Recipe Preparation
Bring milk, 1 garlic clove, and salt to boil in medium saucepan. Gradually whisk in grits. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until grits are very tender, whisking often, about 8 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Meanwhile, cook bacon in large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp, stirring often. Using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towels to drain. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon drippings. Add shrimp to drippings in skillet. Sauté until shrimp are pink, stirring often, about 1 minute. Sprinkle shrimp with salt and pepper. Add shallots and remaining garlic to skillet. Sauté until shallots are translucent and shrimp are cooked through, about 2 minutes. Add clam juice to skillet and bring to boil, scraping up any browned bits. Add spinach to skillet and toss just to wilt. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and hot pepper sauce.
Divide grits among 6 plates. Top with shrimp mixture and sprinkle with bacon. Garnish with lemon wedges for squeezing over and serve.


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"The Mandalorians are all New Yorkers."
Jokes from the actor aside, part one of the three-episode story begins at 9:00pm (Eastern and Pacific) this Friday, January 29th on the Cartoon Network. Actor Jon Favreau voices Pre Vizsla, a Mandalorian in the storyline for episode "The Mandalore Plot."
From the 2010 press release:
[Favreau's] involvement in The Clone Wars came as an indirect result of post-production for the first Iron Man film; he was working with Industrial Light & Magic and Skywalker Sound when his path crossed with [Supervising Director Dave] Filoni's at Lucasfilm's Skywalker Ranch.
"I had mentioned that I would love to do a voice, and that I'd done voices before - and the idea for me to play a Mandalorian came up. I wasn't holding out for a cool character, but I think the Mandalorians are probably the ones that the die-hards are going to be the most curious about," says Favreau.
"I grew up a fan of Star Wars. It was the first time I had ever experienced that really iconic, mythic archetypal storytelling. What's fun about Star Wars is that it still has as much relevance and impact now as it did then. It seems to be a set of characters and a world that is timeless, and every generation seems to embrace. So it's fun to be able to share with my family and my kids the excitement that I had when I was young."
JediMaster.com.bk posted a video on YouTube:
[No longer online as of 2018.]
(Pictures thanks to BigFanBoy.com.)


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LMC Affiliates with Duke for Heart Program
Lexington Medical Center is pleased to announce that it has signed an agreement with Duke to provide a full range of cardiovascular services at Lexington Medical Center. Lexington Medical Center will affiliate with Duke Medicine's internationally recognized heart program, one of the world's leading cardiovascular clinical research programs, to begin procedures including open heart surgery and elective angioplasty at Lexington Medical Center in 2011.
"Our collaboration with Duke will allow our community to receive excellent heart care at Lexington Medical Center," said Mike Biediger, president & CEO of Lexington Medical Center. "We will enhance the delivery of health care and save lives."
Through its affiliation, Lexington Medical Center will benefit from Duke's clinical expertise and services to build a premier, comprehensive heart program. Duke University Hospital, recognized as one of the top ten heart hospitals in the nation by U.S. News and World Report and the only top ten program in the Southeast, will lend its expertise in helping to find the best cardiovascular surgeons and cardiac anesthesiologists in the nation to work at Lexington Medical Center. Duke will assist with the recruitment and training of nurses and staff, design of the open heart surgery operating room, implementation of policies and procedures as well as comprehensive oversight of quality and development for all cardiovascular services at Lexington Medical Center. And, Lexington Medical Center will have access to the latest advances in cardiovascular care.
"We are excited to begin working with Lexington Medical Center to expand cardiovascular services in this community," said Harry R. Phillips, M.D., chief medical officer for Network Services and associate director of the Duke Heart Center for Duke University Health System. "This hospital's commitment to quality and service excellence coupled with the expertise and collegiality of the cardiology practices provides the foundation for us to collaboratively build a cardiac surgical program that will ensure comprehensive cardiac services unparalleled in the region."
The ability to provide a full range of cardiovascular services has been a goal of Lexington Medical Center for years. The hospital operates the second busiest Emergency Department in South Carolina, treating more than 94,000 patients each year. The hospital also operates two busy catheterization labs. Statistics from the Office of Research and Statistics show that 337 people from Lexington County required open heart surgery in 2007. Lexington County is one of the fastest growing counties in South Carolina, and the largest without an open heart surgery program.
The Duke Heart Center is a global leader in advancing the care of people with heart disease. As part of Duke Medicine, which is also home to the Duke Clinical Research Institute and the world's largest and oldest outcomes registry, the Duke Databank for Cardiovascular Disease, its accomplishments in the area of cardiovascular care include medical firsts, innovation, research and education. In fiscal year 2010, the Duke University Health System performed more than 8,500 diagnostic catheterizations and 2,000 angioplasties, along with more than 1,800 open heart surgeries, 100 lung transplants and 64 heart transplants. The Duke Heart Center has extensive experience working with hospitals throughout the Southeast to strengthen and expand cardiac services at the local level while ensuring access to the highly specialized services only available at an academic medical center.
Procedures included in Lexington Medical Center's new cardiovascular program will be open heart surgery and expansion of therapeutic catheterizations to include elective angioplasty.
Lexington Medical Center expects to begin its new cardiac surgical program in 2011, with two heart surgeons and a team of nurses and staff with special training in cardiac care, including intensive post-surgery cardiac and pulmonary monitoring. Duke will assist Lexington Medical Center with development and implementation of this program in conjunction with overall consultative support for all cardiac services.


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For your convenience, we offer our new patient forms online. Feel free to print and fill them out, and then bring them with you to your appointment.
New Patient Forms
You will have several options to choose from when financing your dental procedure. We accept all major credit cards, including:
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5.0 stars from 603 reviews


text:
A sport-stravagant celebration of the larger-than-life spectacle that is professional wrestling (with only some of the wrestling). Philly's top comedic performers pay homage to the flashy trash talking promos, slick video packages, & bitter rivalries of the squared circle. WARNING: Our performers may break your chair over each others' heads.
In place of auditions, this show will be taking online applications from comedians interested in performing. Potential performers will be asked to provide their contact information and a description of the wrestling character they would like to create for the show.
To complete an application for PRO-MANIA! please visit this link
CASTING, REHEARSALS, and SHOWS
Upwards of 20 people will be cast and notified in mid-July that they will perform in the September run, with a meeting of all participants sometime during the same month. Performers will then be paired up for "fights" and expected to rehearse their fight with the commissioners and a fight choreographer. There are three performances scheduled for PRO-MANIA!, on the following dates:
Friday, 9/2 at 11:30 p.m.
Friday, 9/9 at 11:30 p.m.
Friday, 9/16 at 11:30 p.m.
In addition there will be a fight call in the early evening (approx. 5:00 p.m.) before each performance for the wrestlers on that date to rehearse their moves.
1 Comment
"…to rehearse their moves."
So it's not real?! BULLSHIT. This is nothing like actual pro wrestling.


text:
Found a set of photos on Flickr.com featuring a lot of the other scarecrows at the Competition.
The last three rows of thumbnails are the scarecrows in the Quite the Character category. That's where I entered Tin Man.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
The Competition
Found a set of photos on Flickr.com featuring a lot of the other scarecrows at the Competition.
4 comments:
- Darkrose Manor said...
Has the judging commenced as of yet or does that take place later? Would love to hear that you won this year. You absolutely deserve it... especially after seeing the rest of the competition. ;) While many of them were quite creative in their overall concept, you still take the cake as far as we are concerned.
- September 15, 2009 at 3:07 PM
- Rot said...
Appreciate that : )
I think judging is for the first two or three weeks of the display. Then it takes a week to find out who won.
- September 15, 2009 at 3:15 PM
- joy said...
The Tin Man looks awesome!
He kind of stands out in the crowd!! : )
Good Luck!
- September 15, 2009 at 9:28 PM
- JHMDF said...
Hehe, the "pumpkin cycle of life" is a pretty cool... no Tin man, but cool.
- September 16, 2009 at 11:31 PM


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The Hanging Gong is a large, brass gong that can be hung in any location. The oriental design of this gong looks good in any decor and is also functional. The gong can be struck to produce a distinctly brash sound or can be gently tapped to produce a more deeply resonating tone. The gong can be used to begin and end a yoga or meditation session, or to call a meeting to order.
Listen to the Hanging Gong Sound
- Gong Diameter: 10 Inches
- Overall Height: 17 Inches
- Overall Width: 15 Inches
- Weight: about 4 pounds
- Hand-hammered brass gong
- Black finished ash wood
- Mallet included


text:
Xerostomia is a condition in which the mouth is dry because it does
not produce enough saliva. Saliva helps neutralize the acid caused by plaque,
making it harmless to teeth, and it helps flush away sugars that stick to
Xerostomia has many possible causes. But it is most often a side
effect of medicine. Mild or moderate dry mouth can usually be improved by
taking frequent sips of water, chewing gum, or sucking on sugarless hard candy.
More severe dry mouth symptoms may need treatment with medicine.
Mouth lubricants and saliva substitutes can help to moisten the
mouth and throat. People with dry mouth need to be especially attentive to
their dental care.
Last Revised:
June 14, 2011
Healthwise Staff
Medical Review:
Kathleen Romito, MD - Family Medicine & Steven K. Patterson, BS, DDS, MPH - Dentistry
This information does not replace the advice of a doctor. Healthwise, Incorporated disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information. Your use of this information means that you agree to the Terms of Use. How this information was developed to help you make better health decisions.
To learn more visit Healthwise.org
© 1995-2012 Healthwise, Incorporated. Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated.


text:
After a very successful box office opening for the zombie flick World War Z, Paramount has decided to turn to developing a sequel, studio vice-chairman Rob Moore tells The Hollywood Reporter.
The film, based on the Max Brooks novel, was initially envisioned as a trilogy, but those plans were put on hold after the making of the movie experienced notorious production problems.
U.S. & World
The day's top national and international news.
PHOTOS: A look back at Brad Pitt's most memorable film roles
However, with a $111.8 million worldwide debut, the option is reportedly back on the table.
When asked about a possible sequel during the film's London premiere, Pitt told E! News, "We gotta see if this one works first. But there's tons of information to mine from the book, certainly."
Meanwhile, his leading lady, Mireille Enos, spilled the deets and told us that she had signed on for three more World War Z films.
Are you guys excited about this zombie apocalypse pic getting a sequel?! Sound off in the comments!
PHOTOS: World War Z is an all-you-can-eat zombie smorgasbord


text:
How to replace a bike cassette – video
Remove a worn cassette and fit a new one
If the sprockets on your cassette are worn, then the cassette will need replacing. The video below explains how to get the cassette off a road or mountain bike and fit a new one.
If spare sprockets are available, it can often be economic to just replace the more heavily worn sprockets, which are generally the smaller ones. However, if your cassette has already done a few thousand miles it may be cheaper to replace the whole cassette. If you fit a complete new cassette you should also replace the chain, otherwise your new cassette will have a much shorter lifespan. A worn chain will often slip on a new cassette.
Video: How to replace a bike cassette
Here are some step by step written instructions, for those who prefer them to video demos.
- Time: Replacement 15mins
- Difficulty: Easy
- Tools: Chain whip, lockring tool, Allen keys – 1.5mm if dismantling some Shimano cassettes
Before you start
Your cassette must be correctly spaced for your system if all the gears are to index correctly. If you're buying a complete replacement cassette this isn't an issue, but if you're making a custom combination you'll need to keep it in mind. More on this later.
Campagnolo 8-speed cassette sprockets are spaced at 5.0mm, 9-speed at 4.55mm, and 10-speed at 4.12mm.
Shimano 7-speed cassettes are spaced at 5mm, 8-speed at 4.8mm, 9-speed at 4.34mm and 10-speed 3.95mm.
Cassettes which do not group sprockets together on spiders can be customised using either sprockets from other cassettes made by the original manufacturer or from Marchisio. Shifting performance may suffer a little when mixing sprockets from different cassettes, as the shift gates will not necessarily be in the optimum position.
You will need to experiment to see what you are prepared to put up with. As long as you keep the sprocket spacings correct it will normally be acceptable.
Wheels Manufacturing makes spacer kits (around £20) to respace any Shimano or Campagnolo cassettes from 5mm to 4.8mm, 4.55mm and 4.35mm spacing and vice versa, as long as none of the sprockets are mounted on a spider. Sturmey Archer sprocket spacers can also be useful when respacing a cassette.
1 Lockring tool fitting
Undo your brake's quick-release and then remove the rear wheel by opening the wheel's quick-release lever. Remove the wheel's quick-release from the hub by unscrewing the knurled nut on the opposite end to the lever. Slide the correct lockring tool into place and check that it is properly engaged in the splines. Refit the quick-release without its conical springs and tighten sufficiently so that it will keep the lockring tool fully seated in the splines of the lockring.
2 Loosening the lockring
With the wheel vertical, place the chain whip on the left side of one of the larger sprockets. It should be positioned so that its handle is just above the horizontal, make sure that the chain is securely wrapped around the sprockets' teeth and that the short piece of chain on the chain whip is also fully engaged. Put a little pressure on the chain whip's handle to tension the chain. Fit a large adjustable spanner to the lockring tool so that its handle is horizontal, or just above, on the right hand side. Push up on both the chain whip and adjustable spanner firmly. The lockring should loosen easily. Take care not to let the chain whip slip.
3 Removing the cassette
Remove the wheel's quick-release. With the lockring tool, loosen the lockring completely and remove it. Lift off the sprockets and lay out all the sprockets and spacers in the same order as removed on your bench. Even with cassettes where sprockets are grouped together on aluminium carriers or spiders, there will often be spacers between the carriers. It is very important that the spacers are replaced in the correct position.
4 Shimano cassettes
Shimano cassettes come in quite a few different varieties. With almost all seven and eight-speed cassettes, five or six sprockets will be held together by miniature Allen screws – these can be undone with the correct Allen key; sometimes it's a 1.5mm Allen key and occasionally something even smaller. The Allen screw heads can be on the front or rear face of the sprocket group. The cheaper 9-speed cassettes are joined similarily. The more expensive nine and 10-speed cassettes will have sprockets mounted on spiders in groups of two or three together with spacers in between. On some Mavic hubs, spacers will need to be mounted before fitting a Shimano cassette. Spacers are also needed if mounting a 7-speed cassette on an 8/9/10spd hub.
5 Campagnolo cassettes
All current Campagnolo cassettes are 10-speed, though nine-speed cassettes are still available as spares. With Xenon, Mirage and Veloce, the cassettes are composed of single sprockets with spacers in between. With Centaur, Chorus and Record, the sprockets are mounted on aluminium carriers in groups of two or three except for the smallest three sprockets. The sprockets must be mounted so that the size markings face outwards on the freehub body.
6 Marchisio cassettes
These are available to both Campagnolo and Shimano cassette bodies and with spacers to suit 7, 8, 9 or 10-speed systems. There are two varieties – ones using adaptor pieces and ones which mount directly on the freehub body. All sprockets are single and, apart from the smallest sprocket, they are fully interchangeable. This means that you can easily customise the cassette to suit you and your riding. Unlike all the other cassettes, the size markings should face inwards when mounted on the freehub body.
7 Replacing the cassette
With all cassettes, except Marchisio, the size markings should face outwards. With Shimano cassettes, align the triangular mark on top of the cassette body with the widest spline and slide on. With the Campagnolo cassettes with sprockets mounted on aluminium carriers, align the support up with the splines on the freehub body and slide the cassette onto the freehub body. With all cassettes, Shimano or Campagnolo, it is very important to ensure that the spacers and shims all go in their correct position – it is easy to check by eye that all the sprockets are spaced identically apart.
8 Fitting and tightening the lockring
Once all the sprockets are fitted, check that the top gear-sprocket stands slightly proud of the freehub body – if not, you have missed out a spacer or shim. Fit the lockring using the lockring tool, refit the quick-release without its conical springs and tighten the lockring with an adjustable spanner until you hear or feel three or four distinct clicks. Remove the quick-release. Refit the quick-release's conical springs and refit the quick-release to the wheel.
9 Customizing your cassette
With Shimano cassettes where the sprockets are held together by Allen screws, or Campagnolo cassettes with individual sprockets, it is possible to change sprockets to build a cassette with custom ratios. With a vernier calliper, first measure the width between the centreline of the sprockets on your existing cassette. Build your cassette up on the hub, fitting the replacement sprockets where you wish. Try to take into account any differences in spacer or sprocket thickness as you go by using appropriate spacers to keep the inter-sprocket width the same. Once all the sprockets are fitted, check that the top gear-sprocket stands slightly proud of the freehub body. Fit the lockring and tighten as described in step 8.


text:
HOUSTON -- Texans general manager Rick Smith, in an exclusive interview Wednesday afternoon, said he has had "enough conversations to legitimately move" from the first overall pick. Smith did not disclose any potential trade partners or the seriousness of any potential deals to quantify how legitimate things stand on the eve of the draft.
How to watch the NFL draft
Smith added that Houston might not be willing to move the pick because of the players that they've targeted. He added that any deal, as always, comes down to compensation. To move to No. 1, the compensation would be hearty -- which is why there is such infrequent movement to the top spot. That ransom also is why several people with the Texans and personnel evaluators around the league feel Houston will end up using the first overall pick.
The Texans have done a great job of not tipping their potential choice, one personnel official from a team with a Top 10 pick said.
Even so, South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney and Buffalo linebacker Khalil Mack are considered the Texans' likely targets with the first pick. Smith would not identify specific players. He did say, as has coach Bill O'Brien before him, that they will draft a quarterback "at some point" in the draft.


text:
Wyoming Statutes: http://legisweb.state.wy.us/lsoweb/
State Library Association: Wyoming Library Association
Security Breach Notification Law : Wyo. Stat. § 40-12-501 to -502
Data Disposal Law:
Library Records Privacy :
Wyo. Stat. § 16-4-203
§ 16-4-203. Right of inspection; grounds for denial; access of news media; order permitting or restricting disclosure; exception
(a) The custodian of any public records shall allow any person the right of inspection of the records or any portion thereof except on one (1) or more of the following grounds or as provided in subsection (b) or (d) of this section:
(i) The inspection would be contrary to any state statute;
(ii) The inspection would be contrary to any federal statute or regulation issued thereunder having the force and effect of law; or
(iii) The inspection is prohibited by rules promulgated by the supreme court or by the order of any court of record.
(b) The custodian may deny the right of inspection of the following records, unless otherwise provided by law, on the ground that disclosure to the applicant would be contrary to the public interest:
(i) Records of investigations conducted by, or of intelligence information or security procedures of, any sheriff, county attorney, city attorney, the attorney general, the state auditor, police department or any investigatory files compiled for any other law enforcement or prosecution purposes;
(ii) Test questions, scoring keys and other examination data pertaining to administration of a licensing examination and examination for employment or academic examination. Written promotional examinations and the scores or results thereof shall be available for inspection, but not copying or reproduction, by the person in interest after the examination has been conducted and graded;
(iii) The specific details of bona fide research projects being conducted by a state institution;
(iv) Except as otherwise provided by Wyoming statutes or for the owner of the property, the contents of real estate appraisals made for the state or a political subdivision thereof, relative to the acquisition of property or any interest in property for public use, until such time as title of the property or property interest has passed to the state or political subdivision. The contents of the appraisal shall be available to the owner of the property or property interest at any time;
(v) Interagency or intraagency memoranda or letters which would not be available by law to a private party in litigation with the agency.
(c) If the right of inspection of any record falling within any of the classifications listed in this section is allowed to any officer or employee of any newspaper, radio station, television station or other person or agency in the business of public dissemination of news or current events, it may be allowed to all news media.
(d) The custodian shall deny the right of inspection of the following records, unless otherwise provided by law:
(ix) Library circulation and registration records except as required for administration of the library or except as requested by a custodial parent or guardian to inspect the records of his minor child.
(e) If the custodian denies access to any public record, the applicant may request a written statement of the grounds for the denial. The statement shall cite the law or regulation under which access is denied and shall be furnished to the applicant.
(f) Any person denied the right to inspect any record covered by this act may apply to the district court of the district wherein the record is found for any order directing the custodian of the record to show cause why he should not permit the inspection of the record.
(g) If, in the opinion of the official custodian of any public record, disclosure of the contents of the record would do substantial injury to the public interest, notwithstanding the fact that the record might otherwise be available to public inspection, he may apply to the district court of the district in which the record is located for an order permitting him to restrict disclosure. After hearing, the court may issue an order upon a finding that disclosure would cause substantial injury to the public interest. The person seeking permission to examine the record shall have notice of the hearing served upon him in the manner provided for service of process by the Wyoming Rules of Civil Procedure and has the right to appear and be heard.
(h) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the following applies to the Wyoming natural diversity database located at the University of Wyoming and any report prepared by the custodian from that database:
(i) The custodian may charge a reasonable fee for searching the database and preparing a report from that database information. The interpretation of the database in a report shall not contain recommendations for restrictions on any public or private land use;
(ii) The custodian shall allow the inspection of all records in the database at a level of spatial precision equal to the township, but at no more precise level;
(iii) Research reports prepared by the custodian funded completely from nonstate sources are subject to paragraph (b)(iii) of this section;
(iv) Any record contained in the database pertaining to private land shall not be released by the University of Wyoming without the prior written consent of the landowner. Nothing in this paragraph prohibits the release of any information which would otherwise be available from any other information source available to the public if the original source is cited.


text:
Outfit Details:
trench - c/o Queen's Wardrobe (last year - also worn here and here)
dress - c/o AY Not Dead (also worn here)
I can't believe I never posted these pictures; they're from when Tessa and Ally came to visit. Cheech - as we call Tessa
hahah well of course Miku deserves some photographic attention!
That dress is beautiful! I love the colors! So bright and fun!
Very cute! Miku is adorable! :D
love this!! the placement of the last 2 photos next to each other is totally dizzying to me, though! hahha
Pretty sure I've said this before but I love those bow flats!ReplyDelete
Ha, that's funny :) those bow flats are great, and I love your smile.ReplyDelete
Nicolette: Whoa, that IS weird!ReplyDelete
The trench looks amazingly chic with the Foley + Corrina bag. Love the gold buttons. =)
Need it? Want it? Crave it? Satisfy Your Cravings For Celebrity Style and All Things Stylish and Sweet
Super cute outfit!! Love the coat! XoReplyDelete
I like your shoes :)ReplyDelete
You look so happy!! What a fun outfit..and your dog is adorable!!..he even looks like he has a big ole grin :)ReplyDelete
So Cute!The dress adds a pop of color to the ensemble! Perfectly put together!
And Miku, as usual, looks perfect! :)
Im loving the trench coat!!!so versatile!ReplyDelete
Wow I LOVE that trench! :D
Love the dress! So colorful and I love the print!
xx Allie
beautiful, beautiful jacket, but of course, an even more beautiful little puppy!ReplyDelete
Love you and your style!!
I've got a new blog and I'd like you to visit it! For sure you're gonna like it!!
I almost always include photos with my dog in my photos- he really IS cooler than whatever i'm wearing.
Printed dresses are my favorite and I also enjoy this whole outfit!ReplyDelete
SO adorable, as always.
I love this color combination, It looks great on you. You need to be like a professional model :)
LOVE the trench! it's very cute and chic! it goes very well with the dress too!!!
such a cute puppy!!!! :3
Follow my blog ^_^
cuuuuuhuhuhuhuuuute puppy. love dog smiles. that trench is such a unique shape and style too! very cool for all seasons!ReplyDelete
love your outfit dear :D
Great outfit and SUCH a cute pup!!ReplyDelete
That dress is absolutely darling! The array of colors is so playful. And Miku is such a cutie.
♥, Jamie
Can I just say I am IN LOVE with your RayBans? Maybe even too much...hehe I actually bought myself a new pair of glasses too, and I just realized the cat eye shape is similar to yours! Gotta love the classy look it has. :)
I love your coat, very nice!ReplyDelete
What an adorable little fluffy doggie you have!ReplyDelete
Just wondering, did you ever post the winner of the giveaway for that fabulous bag?ReplyDelete
You look adorable! I love that dress, and those super cute flats<3
Take a look see if you'd like:]
Ha! That's why I no longer allow my dog to come outside with us when we take outfit photos - my husband always takes pictures of the dog because he's so much funnier than I am!
Gray Skies
loove the way you dress!ReplyDelete
I just adore this entire outfit! All the different things you've got going on, they all work so well together! I especially love that extra pop of color from your bag. Of course, Miku is precious as always :)
xo Sarah Willow
Looks like so much fun!
So in love with that trench..it's perfect!
Hi Keiko,
good outfit idea!!! I'd wear it myself! :)
love the outfit & photos :)
new post: color-block dress
That bag is one of my faves of yours.ReplyDelete
Adore your flats......would love to find them here!
Like the colours of your dress, looks like fun :) xxx Jasmin
What an amazing outfit! I totally adore the whole thing! ^^ xReplyDelete
Miku's gigantic smile and the summer print of your dress are seriously happymaking!
Keiko, I LOVE this trench coat. Perfect for fall... It's so beautiful! Hope you're doing alright.
I Can Be Many Things
That trench is almost as adorable as Miku... almost!
love your dress
I never get tired of that bag:)
I'm thrilled to see a smile on your face, regardless of when this was taken.
I hope you're doing better and found comfort in happy, lovely things.
Mae Lu @ thereafterish.!
You have such a lovely smile!
& I love that trench ♥
That trench is super adorable!ReplyDelete
Love the trench.....You look fabulous like always.... :)ReplyDelete
I want this dress! I am all about purple and orange this summer :DReplyDelete
obsessed with that dress! perfect for spring and summer and fall!
Love everything about your style, the buttons are super cool on this coat!
Please check out my new blog!
lovely outfit, love the colours! and the lipstick is such a beautiful colour xReplyDelete
Love the laceup front of your dress =). And your dog, naturally! Both are super cute <3.
Miku is so cute, I can understand her for giving her all the attention ^^ anyway I love this outfit!That trench coat is amazing, you look stunning.
Great jacket, absolutely adore it! FAB dress as well :) Happy friday! XO Rebecca
I adore your style.ReplyDelete
Great combination...I would've never thought to put a trench over a dress like that.
If you ever have time please check out my blog! It's not about fashion, but maybe it'll entertain you.
Loving your outfit - especially the trench! Perfect for between seasons.
Little Miku is so stinkin' cute! What a photo superstar!
chloe ** flowerponychloe.blogspot.com
This comment has been removed by the author.ReplyDelete
Nice look, Keiko!! I am from Brazil and a big fan of your looks. :DReplyDelete
Pretty bright colors! And Miku is adorable :-)
Love this outfit! the trench is adorable, and I love the color of your F&C mid City tote!ReplyDelete
I love the dog <3ReplyDelete
That trench is superior. Simply superior.ReplyDelete
I absolutely love the colors in your dress! These photos are adorable!ReplyDelete
love the color of the dress and the bag as well :)ReplyDelete
awww... Miku is the most charming pup (after my doggies for sure))). You look almost as good as Miku
Inside and Outsde Blog
I love the trench coat!
Shasie of Live Life in Style
love your styleReplyDelete
cutest jacket!ReplyDelete
Hello my name is Jules from http://meandhome.blogspot.com I am ten years old and enjoy reading your blog. I love you purse and jacket in this post. Thanks
Aww Miku is so cute- she's a mini American Eskimo right? I have one too, her name's Roxy :) Love your printed dress and the red bag- and the coat's great too!ReplyDelete


text:
Glyphosate, the active ingredient of Monsanto's RoundUp, is the most commonly used pesticide active ingredient in the U.S. From the product's beginnings back in the 1970s, it's been touted as a relatively safe, non-toxic chemical.
But the use of glyphosate has surged dramatically since the 1990s, when genetically engineered (GE) "RoundUp Ready" corn and soybean crops were introduced. This intensive usage raises an important and increasingly urgent question: have the human health and environmental impacts of glyphosate been carefully and exhaustively evaluated? What do we know and what don't we?
I've heard a few of our community partners quoting neighbors or others assuring them that glyphosate is completely harmless. The product's familiar presence in home garden centers seems to lull people into thinking that it must be safe — so safe that some say "you could drink the stuff!"
What do we know?
We know this herbicide is in our air and water. A 2011 U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) study documented glyphosate and its breakdown product in the air and rain of agricultural areas in Mississippi and Iowa over two growing seasons. Preliminary data was also collected in Indiana. Overall, glyphosate was detected in 60-100% of the samples taken.
Another 2011 USGS study tested for the presence of glyphosate and its breakdown product in the surface water of four agricultural basins, and concluded that where glyphosate is used, it will be detected in surface water. So we know it is in our environment.
What do we know about glyphosate's potential for impacts on human health? I'll unpack this further in future blogs, but there's a growing body of evidence examining links to human health effects that raises some concern. Many of these impacts are not yet fully understood — but signal to me as a scientist that we should be paying very careful attention.
Here are a few nitty gritty details from recent studies:
- Evidence suggests that glyphosate can activate the estrogen receptor in a breast cancer cell line, which means it may be able to mimic the function of the key sex hormone estrogen.
- Researchers documented oxidative stress and other subchronic impacts on liver enzymes in rodent models. Oxidative stress can lead to production of compounds toxic to cells, and/or decrease the body's ability to detoxify biologically active and damaging compounds.
- A range of other health impacts from nonmammalian models such as: retardation of larval development in oysters, adverse developmental effects affecting head formation in frog and chicken embryos and altered gene activity in fish livers suggesting potential for damage.
We know that glyphosate doesn't pose the same immediate threat to human health that neurotoxic organophosphate insecticides like chlorpyrifos do. But given the ubiquitous nature of glyphosate in our environment — and the concerns raised by some of the studies I've been looking at — I'd vote for knowing more about potential health and environmental harms. And I'd definitely vote against drinking it.
More questions
A few "big picture" questions come to mind too. What happens to our agricultural system when we continue to rely so heavily on pesticides like glyphosate as our solution?
Source - Impacts of Genetically Engineered, Crops on Pesticide Use in the United States: The First Thirteen Years, by Charles Benbrook, November 2009.
In 2011, the increase in overall pesticide use in GE crops was 77.9 million pounds from the previous year. Glyphosate-resistant crops comprise the "overwhelming majority" of the herbicide-tolerant varieties so widely used today.
Also in 2011, an estimated 94% of soybean and 72% of corn area planted was devoted to herbicide resistant varieties. The dominance of herbicide-resistant crops in our agricultural system (take a look at this graphic on seed companies owned by the Big 6) tells me that the agricultural system is heading down a path that leaves precious few options for farmers who are interested in reducing their reliance on pesticides.
Then there's the uptick in glyphosate resistant weeds, which tells us that herbicides as a solution don't work in the long term, and may even end up negatively impacting agricultural productivity.
Will there be a tipping point at which the chemical inputs into our environment stress so many aspects of the ecosystem that we see unwanted and/or permanent changes? How will this, in the longterm, impact both human health and the environment?
I'd like to see Monsanto and the other pesticide companies answer that question truthfully. Meanwhile, stay tuned for more updates and analysis on the emerging science of glyphosate and other pesticides.
Photo Credit: efwp/Flickr
Great piece. I wish writers would mention that glyphosate is used on millions of acres in Colombia for the drug war in a futile attempt to eradicate coca bushes. The effects on human, food crops and environment is horrifying. Please see Shoveling Water for background on herbicide spraying and Plan Colombia: http://vimeo.com/3869895
Great article! As one of the toxically injured, and a "canary" I'd like to share my experience this spray season. Pioneer contracted 3 of my near neighbors to grow "Roundup Ready Corn" this season. My environmental specialist stated I need a mile clearance ground, 2 air., from all pesticide applications. These plots were right along my fences, starting 500-600 ft, and continuing to 1/4 mile from my house. Somebody was spraying glyphosate every week. I evacuated in my decontaminated RV to a mile and a half. It wasn't far enough. After applications of glyphosate I went through a period of regurgitating both solids and liquids that went on for 2 weeks, with regurgitation every 3-5 min, 24/7. I had to completely leave the area to prevent severe episodes. After returning in 4-5 days the episodes were less severe, though still present. Here's what we determined: the condition I suffered is called "achalasia." It is normally considered idiopathic, however research notes it can be caused by toxins. It is a failure of the LES (Lower Esophageal Sphincter - the muscle between the esophagus and stomach) to relax. It spasms shut, due to acetylcholinesterase metabolism dysfunction, and doesn't allow food and/or liquids to pass. Two classes of chemicals interfere with acetalcholine/acetalcholinesterase: OPs and glyphosate. My neighbors ceased applying glyphosate in July, when we determined it was causing the episodes. I'm still struggling with the condition. I lost over 40 lbs this summer due to forced starvation, and struggled with dehydration. If not for IV fluids, I would not have survived. One of the preliminary symptoms is a feeling like your food is stuck in your throat. In 1998, 1 in 100,000 had this rare condition. Research from 2006 showed 1 in 10,000. With the increase in use of glyphosate for Round up Ready crops, I'm wondering what the current numbers are? I was unable to locate more recent data.
I am very thankful for PAN and all your work. We hear so much about corn, soy and canola, but I would love to see it written that sugar is now almost all gmo too. The roundup ready sugar beet by Monsanto is the ONLY sugar grown in the US, except for a small amount of cane sugar. I find that this is something no one knows about. How about an article?
Una Greenaway
Thanks for this clear and concise article.
I'm having some difficulty convincing San Francisco City Officials that it's a bad idea to use Glyphosate in natural areas in Golden Gate Park. These areas are adjacent to wells which will be tapped in the near future for supplemental drinking water for the City of San Francisco. Any suggestions to help the "Greenest City" in the US to maintain its status as such?
Thanks for your comment. I'm wondering if some of the practices used at the SF Botanical Garden might be applicable somehow to the natural areas you refer to... I read a brief blog about the IPM practices for weed control utilized by the SF Botanical Garden from the Pesticide Research Institute: http://www.pesticideresearch.com/site/?p=9394


text:
Pornchai Kittiwongsakul / AFP - Getty Images
Thai couple Ekkachai and Laksana Tiranarat make a new world record for longest continuous kiss at 58 hours, 35 minutes, and 58 seconds during an event n Pattaya, southeastern Thailand on Feb. 14.
Narong Sangnak / EPA
Ekkachai Tiranarat kisses his wife Laksana during an attempt to break the Guinness World Record time for longest continuous kiss in Thailand on Valentine's Day. The Laksanas were eventually successful by beating nine other married couples with a time of 58:35:58.
Narong Sangnak / EPA
Ekkachai Tiranarat and his wife Laksana cry after they achieved the new world record for the longest continuous kiss.
After 58 hours, 35 minutes and 58 seconds, Ekkachai and Laksana Tiranarat of Thailand were the last couple still kissing -- beating the competition and holding the new Guinness World Record for world's longest continuous kiss.
The competition which began Tuesday in Pattaya, Thailand, pitted nine married couples in a contest worth more than $9,000 in cash and prizes.
The milestone must still be verified by officials from Guinness World Records.
Related links:
- Slideshow: Guinness World Records 2013
- Earlier in PhotoBlog: Thai couples attempt to break world record for longest kiss
Majdi Fathi / Corbis
From San Francisco to Sri Lanka, China to Cuba, love and romance know no boundaries. See the many ways Cupid's favorite holiday is celebrated across the globe.


text:
The Ring: It's the denouement, stupid
The denouement is the scene or the moment at the end of a mystery where everything is explained and with luck the loose ends are tied up. No one who saw The Sixth Sense or The Others is likely to forget their denouements, which can be summarized in one sentence if you want to spoil the movie for someone who hasn't seen it.
I could write pages about the denouement of The Ring without spoiling anything for you. You wouldn't understand it because I didn't understand a lot of it. Until that point– or those points; it doesn't end when you first think it's going to–- it's an engrossing chiller you're going to go away praising if they don't screw it up.
Maybe they don't screw it up, but they don't tie it up with a ribbon and leave you completely satisfied either.
Mulholland Dr. fans will be interested because The Ring is Naomi Watts' follow-up picture. Everyone else will have to be drawn to the story, not the star. That worked in Japan because the concept had already been successful in book form, so the film went on to become one of that country's top grosser, but here it's an unknown quantity.
The American version was written by Ehren Kruger (Arlington Road, Reindeer Games) and directed by Gore Verbinski (Mouse Hunt, The Mexican). A cheesy opening sequence suggests you're in for another Scream or Urban Legend as two teenage girls (Amber Tamblyn, Rachael Bella) discuss a videotape that supposedly kills its viewers a week later. You watch it. You get a phone call: "In seven days you will die." Then in seven days you die.
The girls talk about it, joke about it; then one of them dies. After the credits we get into the main story, which is considerably less cheesy. Watts plays Rachel, an investigative reporter for a Seattle daily (though from what we see of her skills, she'd be lucky to cover the police blotter for the Podunk Gazette). She's the aunt of the dead girl, who was very close to Rachel's young son, Aidan (David Dorfman, who is probably getting daily calls from M. Night Shyamalan).
Rachel hears about the tape, then finds it and watches it. The phone rings. Yadda yadda. She seeks help from her ex, Noah (Martin Henderson), who knows something about electronics. He watches it. The phone rings. They start investigating. Aidan watches the tape. The phone rings.
Most of the story takes place during the seven days after Rachel views the tape– which, by the way, looks like outtakes from Eraserhead. The clues– a lighthouse, a fly, a dark-haired woman and, of course, a ring– lead to an island and a farm where the horses all committed suicide.
A major subplot involves Rachel and Noah getting back together as the investigation brings them closer. We're concerned for them but we're also concerned for ourselves because we've watched the damned thing too and if this isn't resolved we could be in big trouble. (There's some consolation in knowing DreamWorks wouldn't want to kill off potential repeat business.)
If I've only got six days, 21 hours, and 15 minutes left, I'm going to devote that time to something more interesting than The Ring.


text:
MOSCOW (Reuters) - Angry and intimidating, Russian President Vladimir Putin sat alone at the head of a long table this week scolding his government for failing to carry out his orders.
Ministers squirmed in their seats on each side of the table as Putin humiliated them one-by-one in images shown repeatedly by state television. One dared to answer back. The next day he was out of a job.
The tactic of showing television footage of Putin ruthlessly in command is typical of his long rule, intended to burnish his image as the ultimate arbiter. But Wednesday's dismissal of Deputy Prime Minister Vladislav Surkov, once a trusted aide, has underlined how isolated Putin is a year into his third term.
Surkov was, until December 2011, a member of Putin's inner circle, the architect of the political system that concentrated power in the president's hands.
He was demoted from the Kremlin to the government when anti-Putin protests challenged the very foundations of the structure he had created. He had become more distant from Putin, often speaking out of turn.
Since Surkov's departure from the presidential staff, veterans of the spy and security agencies and other conservatives known as the "siloviki", or men of power, have gained the upper hand in shaping Putin's thinking and are behind what the opposition sees as a Soviet-style clampdown on dissent.
Putin has in the past two years been abandoned by, forced out or become distant from the more liberal thinkers who once influenced him, leaving him politically isolated as his popularity wanes and the economy slides towards recession.
"I won't say that power is slipping from his hands but he is not as strong as he was," said a source once close to the Kremlin and the government. "At the start of the 2000s, he was a unifying figure. He is no longer that."
Surkov's initial fall from grace as the top Kremlin strategist was a result of the emergence of a protest movement, born out of anger over alleged electoral fraud, which Putin initially appeared poorly prepared for.
His replacement by a less sophisticated operator, Vyacheslav Volodin, heralded a shift in policy towards anti-Western rhetoric and tougher tactics against the protesters.
It is a trend that has continued as Putin sought to tighten his grip on power by rebalancing the forces around him after a drop in support, although the drop was not dramatic enough to prevent him winning a presidential election in March last year.
The choice of Dmitry Medvedev to replace Putin as president in 2008, when constitutional term limits forced the former KGB spy to step aside temporarily, had appeared to secure a role for the relatively liberal reformers.
But the man Medvedev saw off in 2008, ex-KGB former defense minister Sergei Ivanov, is now in the ascendancy as head of Putin's Kremlin administration.
Alexander Bastrykin, the head the government's powerful Investigative Committee, which is sometimes likened to the FBI is another influential figure.
Igor Sechin, another ex-KGB conservative aide who has long been at Putin's side, also has Putin's ear as head of state oil major Rosneft, which has grown under his tutelage into the world's largest publicly listed energy company by output.
More liberal reformers, such as Putin's finance minister until September 2011, have been sidelined. Although Kudrin, a darling of the West, is widely believed to still have an informal line to the Kremlin, he has proved reluctant to rejoin a team he portrays as taking Russia in the wrong direction.
Other economic liberals who featured prominently in Putin's first spell as president, from 2000 until 2008, but are now gone include economic aide Andrei Illarionov and Mikhail Kasyanov, his first prime minister who is now in the opposition.
German Gref, the architect of liberal market reforms during Putin's first term, no longer has a direct control over policy although his position as head of state-controlled Sberbank means he has not entirely left the fold.
Medvedev himself has watched meekly as the more liberal of his reforms as president have been reversed by Putin and his own position is in danger as prime minister.
The more hawkish forces in the Kremlin have been repeatedly undermined him and his team, and Putin could make his long-term ally the ultimate scapegoat if the economic slowdown that has taken growth from 5 percent in early 2012 to just 1 percent in the first quarter of this year continues.
The clearest sign of the shift towards the more conservative forces has been the increasingly tough approach towards the protest movement, mainly led by middle-class residents of Rusisa's biggest cities.
In the 12 months since Putin has been back in the Kremlin, parliament has passed a series of laws which his opponents say are repressive and meant to silence them. Several opposition leaders, including anti-corruption blogger Alexei Navalny, face the threat of jail over what they say are trumped-up charges.
The protests have dwindled but at a price to Putin's image.
"I remember the times of (Soviet dictator Josef) Stalin very well. I should say our current leaders are returning to those times by putting pressure on any sign of civil activity," said Lyudmila Alexeyeva, a veteran human rights campaigner.
Putin denies taking Russia back towards Stalinism but said in his annual television question-and-answer session last month that the country needed order and discipline - words often used by Stalin's admirers in Russia.
Like this week's choreographed dressing down of the government, the televised phone-in, which this year lasted a record 4 hours and 47 minutes, looked outdated, critics said.
Although Putin has often used the format to show his command of facts and figures and his readiness to address Russians' everyday problems, there are signs that it is no longer enough to keep people happy.
To regain popularity, Putin has shifted towards patriotism, to appeal to the blue-collar workers in the provinces who are his traditional support base, and to populist economic measures.
Now 60, he issued a series of decrees on taking office as president a year ago which promised more kindergartens, housing and other potentially costly measures to the budget.
But they have not been carried out by the cash-strapped government - it was Surkov's role to oversee their implementation - and dissatisfaction is starting to grow, pollsters say.
Putin has talked often about the need to reduce Russia's heavy reliance on exports of energy and other natural resources, leaving it vulnerable to a drop in the price of oil, but has avoided doing so because of the risk to his popularity, potentially hitting voters in the pocket.
"There are great reserves of patience in Russia," Lev Gudkov, head of the Levada Center, an independent polling group that says Putin's ratings are now much lower than at their peak before the 2008-09 financial crash, said this week.
In a recent Levada poll, 41 percent did not want Putin to run again for president in 2018, against 28 percent who did.
"People are dissatisfied ... you can campaign, try to convince and make promises, but they feel the decline in living standards," Gudkov said. "Regardless of the propaganda, and the populist statements, Putin's social (support) base is falling."
Putin's first presidential term from 2000 until 2004 was marked by the consolidation of power by reining in rebellious regions such as Chechnya and clipping the wings of super-rich businessmen who had amassed power as well as money.
His second term until 2008 saw an oil-fuelled economic boom and a tightening of his political control, including the dismembering of the huge Yukos oil firm and its transfer into mostly state hands after the jailing of its owner, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who had clashed with Putin.
Putin's spell as prime minister until last year was largely spent dealing with the recovery from the 2008-09 economic crisis and continuing to pull the strings as prime minister, to smooth the way for his return to the Kremlin.
The fourth stage of his domination of Russia has, critics say, been marked by political and economic stagnation.
Putin has sought to win over voters by promising to get tough on corruption and taking steps to force government officials and members of parliament to keep their money in Russia rather than abroad.
He sacked Defence Minister Pavel Serdyukov, a long-term ally, last November after an investigation into the illegal sale of ministry property.
Polls regularly show corruption is the problem which Russians most want Putin to resolve, but also indicate they have little confidence that he will be able or willing to do so. Some see him as one of the creators and beneficiaries of the political system, as part of the problem.
His efforts to ensure Russians keep their money in Russia has also started to unsettle the wealthy businessmen on whom he depends. The risk of tightening legislation to limit the transfer of money abroad is that he discourages businessmen from keeping it in the country in the first place.
Capital flight has continued and some tycoons, such as telecoms-to-banking oligarch Mikhail Fridman, are threatening to diversify abroad, basing their companies outside Russia and taking their money with them.
Many Russia analysts regard the threat posed to Putin by the potential loss of support from the wealthy tycoons known as oligarchs as much bigger than the dangers he faces from the political opposition, which is easier for him to control.
Most observers expect Putin to serve out his presidency but also say his ability to secure another six-year term in 2018 will recede unless he starts pulling Russia out of stagnation.
Additional reporting by Douglas Busvine, Maria Tsvetkova, Polina Devitt, Alexei Anishchuk, Darya Korsunskaya and Jason Bush; editing by Philippa Fletcher


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Bushmanland is a remote region in the north-east of Namibia.
Latest Bushmanland safari reviewsWildest of the wild.
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BushmanlandEast of Etosha, four hours' drive by saloon car from the outpost town of Grootfontein, there's a remote region of the northern Kalahari known as Bushmanland. (This is an old name, which we use here for clarity; it remains what most people call the area.) Drive east towards Tsumkwe, and you're driving straight into the Kalahari. However, on their first trip here, people are often struck by just how green and vegetated it is, generally in contrast to their mental image of a 'desert'. In fact, the Kalahari isn't a classic desert at all; it's a fossil desert. It is an immense sandsheet which was once a desert, but now gets far too much rainfall to be classed as a desert.
Look around you and you'll realise that most of the Kalahari is covered in a thin, mixed bush with a fairly low canopy height, dotted with occasional larger trees. Beneath this is a fairly sparse ground-covering of smaller bushes, grasses and herbs. There are no spectacular sand dunes; you need to return west to the Namib for those!
The people: the San or Bushmen villagersHere, amidst vegetated, fossil dunes, the Ju/'hoansi !Kung Bushman (sometimes simply called the 'Kung') live, scattered around in small villages. These are Bushmen of the Kalahari, also known as the San Bushmen.
The conventional view is that less than a century ago these people's ancestors were a traditional hunter-gatherer society using Stone Age technology. Yet they possessed a knowledge of their environment that we are only just beginning to understand.
Because their understanding of their natural environment is amazing to witness, and their survival skills are beyond belief for many Westerners, tourism is increasingly seen as a vital source of revenue for these people. In placing a high value on traditional skills and knowledge, it is hoped that it will help to stem the erosion of their cultural heritage.
Wildlife in BushmanlandThe wildlife is a major attraction – centred largely, but not exclusively, on Khaudom National Park (see below). During the late dry season, around September and October, game gathers in small herds around the pans. During and after the rains, from January to March, the place comes alive with greenery and water. Birds and noisy bullfrogs abound, and travel becomes even more difficult than usual, as whole areas turn into impassable floodplains. From April the land begins to dry, and during July and August the daytime temperatures are at their most moderate and the nights cold. But whenever you come, don't expect to see vast herds like those in Etosha or you will be disappointed.
Sights to see in BushmanlandVisiting Bushmanland is usually less about any specific places or sights, and more about meeting and spending time with the Bushmen. However, a few places do stand out as worth a mention:
Nyae Nyae PanAside from coming to Bushmanland out of a general curiosity about the area's wildlife and culture, one area stands out: the Nyae Nyae Pan. This is a large complex of beautiful salt pans, about 18km south of Tsumkwe. During good rains it fills with water and attracts flamingos to breed, as well as dozens of other waterbirds including avocets, pygmy geese, grebes, various pipers and numerous plovers. Forty-six different species of waterbirds have been recorded here when the pan was full.
Towards the end of the dry season you can normally expect game drinking here, and the regulars include kudu, gemsbok, steenbok, duiker and elephant. Meanwhile black-backed jackals patrol, and the grass grows to 60cm tall around the pan, with a belt of tall trees beyond that.
Aha HillsSoutheast of Tsumkwe are an isolated group of hills straddling the border between Botswana and Namibia: the Aha Hills. Named, it's claimed, after the onomatopoeic call of the barking geckos that are so common in the area, these are remote enough to have a certain mystique about them – like their counterparts in Botswana, the Tsodilo Hills.
However, there the similarity ends. The Aha Hills are much lower and more flattened. Their rock structure is totally different: a series of sharp, angular boulders quite unlike the smooth, solid massifs of Tsodilo. So they are quite tricky to climb, and have no known rock art or convenient natural springs. All of this means that though they're interesting, and worth a visit if you're in the area – they do not have the attraction of Botswana's Tsodilo Hills.


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Publication date: June 5, 2009
Palo Alto Weekly Photo Contest Winners: An Eye on the World
Weekly Photo Contest winners capture images from near and far
by Nick Veronin
The Peninsula is an eclectic place, filled with bright young minds and sagely understanding wits. Here we find travelers of all ages. Some were born in the United States and thirst to know more about the world beyond this country's borders. Others were born elsewhere and have come to this flourishing corner of America seeking opportunity.
However, what all of the following people, winners of the 2009 Palo Alto Weekly Photo Contest, have in common is a keen eye for the visual aesthetic.
Tim Aiken and Jack Simon, both of whom have lived in Palo Alto for the majority of their lives, bring us striking images from abroad -- the former from the tropical waters of the Philippines and the latter from the Land of the Rising Sun. Conversely it is a native Russian, Leon Brauer, who brings us a breathtaking vista from our own backyard.
All of this year's winners celebrate photography's capacity to capture the little moments -- moments that individually may seem mundane but which in sum form the magnificent fabric of our lives.
This year's Photo Contest sponsors include University Art, Palo Alto Art Center, Jungle Digital and Bear Images Photographic Inc.
In recognition of their artistry, first-place adult winners received $250 cash, a $100 gift certificate to University Art and a one-year membership to the Palo Alto Art Center. Second-place adult winners received $200 and a $100 gift certificate to Jungle Digital. Third-place winners received $100 and a $100 gift certificate to Bear Images.
Youth first-place winners received $100. Second-place youth winners received a $50 gift certificate to University Art, and third-place youth winners received a $25 gift certificate to University Art.
To watch a video of the judging process, featuring art photographer and teacher Brigitte Carnochan, photographer and teacher Angela Buenning Filo, landscape photographer David Hibbard and Weekly photographer Veronica Weber, go to www.PaloAltoOnline.com.
Photos that were chosen for exhibition
Past Photo Contest Winners2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005
2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 |1997
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'Zombies' infest Yale social network account
- Yale has over 140%2C000 followers on the Twitter-like Sina Weibo
- Yale spokesman%3A %27Spam is inherent on the Internet%27
- Some U.S. schools are using Sina Weibo to reach Chinese students
BEIJING (AP) — U.S. universities have responded to China's exploding demand for American higher education with branch campuses and aggressive recruiting. Now, some are trying to boost their brands by casting photos and other snippets of campus life out into the confounding sea of Chinese social media.
How confounding? Consider the mystery of the Chinese Yale zombies.
That's "zombies" as in "zombie followers" on Sina Weibo — the hugely popular "weibo," or microblogging, site that's roughly akin to Twitter and has attracted more than 500 million followers since debuting in 2009. A common feature on Chinese social media, these zombie accounts could represent actual users who lurk inactively online. But often they're fake, mass-produced accounts that mindlessly follow (hence the name "zombie") and artificially boost another account's follower numbers — and thus prestige.
Since its debut in December, Yale's new Sina Weibo account — sharing photos and other assorted items from its Ivy-covered Connecticut campus — has exploded in popularity, apparently far faster than any other U.S. institution's.
While other prominent universities have patiently accumulated at most a few thousand followers in more than a year of operation, Yale's been adding nearly that many daily, and has passed 140,000. The only other foreign university even remotely close to that figure is, oddly, Peoples' Friendship University of Russia. Yale's Weibo account is ranked 30th in popularity among educational institutions overall, better even than several well-known domestic institutions like Nanjing and Zhejiang universities.
True, Ivy League Yale does have a famous name, longtime ties to China (it graduated the first Chinese person to earn a degree from a U.S. college in 1854) and 1,000-plus Chinese students and scholars currently on campus. That likely explains some of the growth. But Yale also appears to have attracted a mysteriously large battalion of walking dead accounts, with pages and pages of followers that rarely if ever post themselves and have few if any followers. Analytic software also points to some geographic oddities that could also raise suspicions of fake accounts, and many followers have disabled the feature allowing them to receive private messages.
Whence these zombie Yalies? After inquiries from The Associated Press, a Yale spokesman acknowledged some of the followers could be fake, but says that's not Yale's doing. He says the university isn't buying followers, which can be purchased for a few cents each online.
"We don't do it, we don't promote it, we don't encourage it, we don't like it," university spokesman Michael Morand said, adding: "Not to be cheeky about it, but it's sort of like 'Newsflash: Spam is inherent on the Internet."
Zinch, the marketing company that works with hundreds of overseas institutions in China and runs Yale's Sina Weibo feed, also denies purchasing followers. It too says it's mystified by Yale's growth.
Sina, the company that operates Sina Weibo, has promoted Yale on its campus page and recommended it to new users, spokesman Mao Taotao said. But that wouldn't explain why Yale has so many inactive followers. And he denied Sina adds followers to any account.
"To provide netizens with a clean online environment, Sina Weibo eliminates rubbish users in a timely manner," he said in a written statement.
Another possibility: Companies that specialize in selling zombie followers may be signing their zombies up to follow Yale and other accounts to make them appear more real, said Cao Di, an analyst for the Shanghai-based Internet consulting firm iResearch.
In short, the bottom of the zombie Yalie mystery may be unreachable. And the whole matter could fairly be called a harmless curiosity.
Still, it offers a glimpse of just how swampy the new landscape of Chinese social media can be, and highlights some risks for overseas universities and companies. Accusations of inflated Twitter accounts have embarrassed politicians and corporations. In academia, concerns have been raised on many campuses — including Yale — about the dangers as universities expand their reach into foreign cultures.
Yale could lose face in China if it's believed to be artificially inflating its numbers there, said Jason Lane, a University of Albany expert on internationalization efforts by U.S. universities. But more broadly, he said, the issue highlights how U.S. universities risk losing control of their brands and reputations in unfamiliar environments. Those risks are compounded by outsourcing the communications work to companies like Zinch or other local experts due to language barriers.
"Given the criticality of the Chinese market to the international dimensions of these institutions, I think it's even more alarming that you're releasing control of this aspect of your brand," Lane said. "Part of oversight is knowing what they're saying but it's also a cultural issue of not really knowing how it's playing."
"This is part of the learning curve," he added. "There are bound to be some hiccups along the way."
There are nearly 200,000 Chinese students on U.S. campuses — up 25 percent just since last year, and the most of any foreign country, according to the Institute of International Education. But Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and other sites are banned in China. So U.S. institutions are gravitating to Sina Weibo to communicate with prospective students, alumni and even donors. An estimated 80 percent of Chinese university and high school students have accounts.
"We're talking about a large audience of prospective students and alumni who aren't necessarily able to interact with us the same way their counterparts in other countries are," said Laura Brinn, Duke's director of global communications.
Overall, U.S. universities are moving more cautiously into China than in the past, following setbacks. A planned campus by Duke encountered some faculty skepticism and construction delays, while Yale's partnership with the National University of Singapore has been a major point of contention on campus.
That caution is reflected in social media experiments. Survey data from the University of Durham in the United Kingdom suggest schools in that country are further along than those in the United States. Some well-known U.S. names, like Harvard and Stanford, are still on the sidelines. Those in the game say they're just experimenting, trying to figure out what works.
Duke, for instance, has discovered popular topics include its basketball team and research by faculty, particularly with a Chinese connection. Michigan creates its own specialized content in-house for Sina Weibo rather than just translating material from other feeds like Facebook. Many of its followers turned out to be Chinese students on its own campus, so Michigan's using its feed to reach them. But it's had some surprising "hits" in China, too, like the obituary of a Michigan faculty member who was an expert in medical drawings.
Yale reports that photos of its famous architecture — like a recent one of its arresting Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library that Sina retweeted — are popular and deserve credit for at least some of the Yale account's rapid growth.
"People are just going to put a lot of different stuff up and see what sticks," said Nick Pearce, a University of Durham sociologist who has been studying how universities use Chinese social media.
Duke has around 3,000 followers; Michigan recently passed 6,000. The University of California-Berkeley had about 11,000 but it hasn't posted anything since last March 21, and a handful of U.K. institutions have passed 25,000.
Then there are two outliers: Peoples' Friendship University of Russia, with more than 170,000 followers, and Yale with about 140,000.
Publicly available software that analyzes Sina Weibo accounts indicates about 95 percent of those following Yale have fewer than 100 followers themselves, and more than 93 percent have made 10 posts or fewer. More than one-third have never posted anything. By comparison, the figures for Zhejiang University, a well-known Chinese institution with a comparable number of followers to Yale, were much lower: only 26 percent have posted 10 times or fewer, and 6 percent have never posted. A recent analysis comparing Yale with Michigan found fewer than 2 percent of Yale's followers post at least once a day on average; at Michigan the figure is nearly one-third.
Experts caution such software may be unreliable, and indeed results varied somewhat. But it also reveals some geographical oddities — though those too are hard to interpret. For instance, it shows roughly 20 percent of Yale's registered from Hunan, a rural province known for its rice farming and chili pepper cooking style, and Yale gets high numbers in other rural areas. But only about 2 percent and 4 percent, respectively, of Yale's followers appear to come from Beijing and Shanghai.
That looks very different from other universities, who typically have heavy concentrations of followers in cities, and a relative handful in places like Hunan (Michigan, for instance, gets more than a quarter of its Sina Weibo traffic from those two cities alone).
"If it is coming from one small (place) that is not likely to have high demand for higher education, something suspicious is going on there," Lane said .
The AP attempted to reach 20 users from a random page of Yale followers. Sixteen of them were not set up to accept private messages, which is unusual on Sina Weibo. Of the remaining four, one had never posted, and two others have not updated since early 2011. The fourth did respond to the AP's attempt to verify the follower's authenticity.
Still, the software suggests some other non-university accounts also have surprisingly large numbers of followers from places like Hunan. Sina's promotion of Yale likely has helped attract real followers. And an analysis performed for the AP by the Beijing-based new media information provider 36Kr.com found Yale had a respectable level of apparently real engagement, with many of its posts attracting comments and reposted by genuine followers.
Morand, the Yale spokesman, and Sid Krommenhoek, who leads Zinch's global business development team, said Yale's reputation at least partly explains the numbers. But both also insisted big numbers aren't the goal.
"It's the big name. It runs deep," Krommenhoek said of Yale. "You kind of expect some schools to grow. It's like, why Yale receives so many applications. But that's not the important thing. The important thing is to find a good fit, to be engaging, and to have a real conversation."
Still, Krommenhoek admits he's flummoxed.
"No one sees this type of growth," he said. "There are a lot of factors. We are very interested."
U.S. universities say Sina Weibo is just a small part of a much larger, long-term strategy to connect with a huge and important country. But one lesson is clear: success can't be judged by sheer numbers.
"In the whole industry, people don't believe in that number anymore," said King-wa Fu, assistant professor of journalism and media studies center at University of Hong Kong.
Pearce, the University of Durham expert, agreed that what matters is quality engagements, not quantity.
"If I was told 'we need 100,000 followers and you'll get a bonus,' I could probably get them 100,000 followers but that wouldn't be real engagement," he said.
Still, Lane, the Albany expert on internationalization by U.S., universities, said the Yale Sina Weibo mystery underscores the risk of the unknown.
"You don't know what you're getting into when you get into other countries," he said. "But when you cross into weibo, it's a world unto itself."


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Ming Doyle, Tak Toyoshima, Chi-Yun Lau, and Keith Chow sign on Wednesday, April 6, 2011 at 6:00pm.
Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center
38 Ash Street, 5th Floor, Boston, MA
(Follow this link to RSVP at BCNC's Facebook account.)
Come and meet: Keith Chow (editor) and Tak Toyoshima, Ming Doyle, and Chi-Yun Lau (artists)
As an undergraduate at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, Keith Chow founded the still-thriving Asian Pacific American Student Union (APASU) and was named Multicultural Student Services' Innovator of the Year in 2000. College was also the first time Keith's knowledge of comics paid off when his poem A Lonely Night in Gotham City earned the school's Sigma Tau Delta prize for poetry in 1996. His poetry has also appeared in the Asian Pacific American Journal and the Powhatan Review.
Tak Toyoshima is the creative director at the post-alternative newsweekly Boston's Weekly Dig. He is the creator of the nationally-syndicated comic strip "Secret Asian Man." Learn more at SecretAsianMan.com.
Ming Doyle is a local professional artist who earned a BFA from Cornell University in 2007 with a dual concentration in painting and drawing. Visit her at MingDoyle.com.
Chi-Yun Lau has been featured in national and local publications and has received awards for his illustrations from both Communication Arts and Applied Arts magazines. Currently, he works for Cambridge Interactive Development Corp. producing graphics and animation and designing online games. Find out more at Chi-Yun.com.