text:
Media art and culture
The term media art is useful and used for artistic projects bringing up the technological, aesthetical, social, cultural, legal and political issues that come along with the emergence of new media. Since 1990s the new media have included internet, web, mobiles, wireless, GPS, and others. Media culture in this regard uses and is used by new media.
Media art includes projects exploring technological and aeshetical of emerging tools and standards, such as video, computer, mobile devices, internet, software, code, computer games, streaming, GPS, sound production devices, or robotics. These projects usually focus on the manuevre limitations, stereotypes of perception, or aesthetics of these tools.
Looking at the media art and culture mailing lists, conferences and festivals, the current discussions are held on various topics, such as public domain and accessibility of data, software, and devices, democratisation of electromagnetic spectrum (open spectrum), social web (or web 2.0), protection of personal data and identity, and human rights. Projects dealing with these social, cultural, legal and political issues stemmed from media art field and still can be considered as a part of it.
- 1 Definitions
- 1.1 Wilson: Information Arts (2003)
- 1.2 Manovich: New Media (2001)
- 1.3 Penny (1993)
- 1.4 Medosch: Media Art (2005)
- 1.5 Fuller: Media Ecologies
- 1.6 Lovink: New Media (2005)
- 1.7 Gere: Art and Realtime Systems (2006)
- 1.8 Snow: Two Cultures (1959)
- 1.9 Lyotard: New materials (1979)
- 1.10 Grau: Media Art (2007)
- 1.11 Grau: Virtual Art (2003)
- 1.12 Frieling and Daniels: Media Art (2005)
- 1.13 Weibel: Digital Image (1984)
- 1.14 Ascott (2003)
- 1.15 Tribe and Jana: New Media Art (2006)
- 1.16 Paul: Digital Art (2003)
- 1.17 Murin: New Media (2000)
- 1.18 Rišková: New Media Art (2008)
- 1.19 Kera: New Media
- 1.20 national histories
- 2 More writings
- 3 References
- 4 Resources
Wilson: Information Arts (2003)
Stephen Wilson v Information Arts[1] klasifikuje prace na zaklade
pouzitych technologii (v knihe spred 6 rokov ich naratal vyse 80).
Wilson integrates art and techno-scientific research with critical theory into "art as research".
Also: Boundary_objects_between_arthistory,_history_of_technology,_and_sociology#Stephen_Wilson.2C_Information_Arts_.282003.29
Manovich: New Media (2001)
Lev Manovich v The Language of New Media[2] postupuje od materialnych
zakladov novych medii k ich formam.
In section Media and Computation I show that new media represents a convergence of two separate historical trajectories: computing and media technologies. Both begin in the 1830's with Babbage's Analytical Engine and Daguerre's daguerreotype. Eventually, in the middle of the twentieth century, a modern digital computer is developed to perform calculations on numerical data more efficiently; it takes over from numerous mechanical tabulators and calculators already widely employed by companies and governments since the turn of the century. In parallel, we witness the rise of modern media technologies which allow the storage of images, image sequences, sounds and text using different material forms: a photographic plate, a film stock, a gramophone record, etc. The synthesis of these two histories? The translation of all existing media into numerical data accessible for computers. The result is new media: graphics, moving images, sounds, shapes, spaces and text which become computable, i.e. simply another set of computer data. In Principles of New Media I look at the key consequences of this new status of media. Rather than focusing on familiar categories such as interactivity or hypermedia, I suggest a different list. This list reduces all principles of new media to five: numerical representation, modularity, automation, variability and cultural transcoding. In the section, What New Media is Not, I address other principles which are often attributed to new media [digitally encoded media is discrete in contrast to analog, different media types are displayable using one machine, random access, digitization inolves loss of information, endless copying w/o degradation of media, interactivity]. I show that these principles can already be found at work in older cultural forms and media technologies such as cinema, and therefore they are by themselves are not sufficient to distinguish new media from the old.
- Response
- Medosch: The history of media as told by Manovich appears to contain only unbroken continuity. For him, the Jacquard loom is a kind of predecessor of the computer because it could be 'programmed' to produce different ornaments using punctured strips. In typical technological deterministic thinking the logic of progress is at work, while human actors are sidelined. Lewis Mumford sees the Jacquard loom in a different light. According to Mumford aesthetic demands motivated the invention of the 'programmable' Jacquard loom - it were the complex patterns fashionable at the time which necessitated its invention (Trögemann and Viehoff 2005). Where Mumford sees human motivation, Manovich sees a 'logic' at work: from Daguerreotype and the Differential Engine (Babbage) to cinematograph, radar, television and computer, with the side-streams of the Hollerith machine, telegraphy, radio waves and wireless telegraphy. Yet Manovich never looses a word about where all those inventions come from. There is always a 'logic', a 'trajectory', some intrinsic reasons at work, why technology progresses in this or that way. Thus, technological progress becomes naturalised. Taking this to its final consequence, technological progress would be motivated by a teleology of which computer based (new) media appear as the provisional end point. [..]
Lev Manovich claims that the aesthetic principles at work in new media culture have been developed by Russian and German avant-garde film makers in the 1920s.
A hundred years after cinema's birth, cinematic ways of seeing the world, of structuring time, of narrating a story, of linking one experience to the next, have become the basic means by which computer users access and interact with all cultural data. (Manovich 2001, 78 -79)
In particular Dziga Vertov's film The Man with a Movie Camera (1929) can be used as the guide to the understanding of the language of new media. In order to give the aesthetics of cinema such a privileged role in its influence on new media, he has to neutralise the key counter-argument, namely that computers are interactive. According to Manovich it is a non-statement to say that computers are interactive - they are so by their very nature (Manovich 2001, 55). He says that he would offer only qualified notions of interactivity, and that in principle all art forms are interactive (ibid., 56). With this conceptualisation he basically kills interactivity as a category specific to media art. In order to cement his key thesis that computer based media can be seen through the lens of 1920s avant-garde movies he introduces an extensive genealogy of the screen.
VR, telepresence, and interactivity are made possible by the recent technology of the digital computer. However, they are made real by a much older technology, the screen. (Manovich 2001, 94).
Only by dismissing interactivity and by making the screen the central component of new media art, he can say that Russian avant-garde cinema has laid the foundations for media art. Thus, a seemingly progressive position is turned into a conservative one. Manovich appears to suggest that aesthetic innovation ended 80 years ago whereas we now move forward in making more perfect technically what Vertov et al have achieved then. The revolutionary methods (in the 1920s) of montage, of zooms and pans, of the liberated and accelerated kino-eye have become menu functions in Photoshop. American software engineers are providing the public with drop-down menu access to the aesthetic innovations of the 1920s. [1]
- Medosch about Batchen's critique. Geoffrey Batchen criticises Manovich for using cinema as the key conceptual lens through which to address the language of new media, ignoring the histories of photography and telegraphy (Batchen 2004). The use of 35mm discarded movie film by Zuse, the German inventor of the computer, is evidence enough for Manovich to see "all existing media translated into numerical data accessible for the computer."
But the plausibility of this particular historical metaphor depends on two particular claims: 1. that computing and photo-media have no interaction until the 1930s, and 2. that cinema is the key to any understanding of the forms and development of new media.
In his own account Batchen shows how closely the histories of the computer, photography and telegraphy were interwoven, partly because inventors such as William Fox Henry Talbot and Charles Babbage on one hand, and Samuel Morse and Louis Daguerre were in close contact with each other. According to Batchen four "inter-related technologies and their conceptual apparatuses - photography, mechanical weaving, computing and photo-mechanical printing" were first conceived around 1800 and need to be understood in the context of modernity, which means "capitalism, industrialisation, colonialism, patriarchy." It is important to note that Babbage and his assistant Ada Lovelace saw the computer as "a cultural artefact that enabled nature (and therefore God) to represent itself in the form of mathematical equations".
That means that Babbage's calculating machines were seen as proof of the existence of God. Batchen concludes that any single 'conceptual lens' is inadequate and therefore also any linear chronology. He demands "a more complex rendition of the relations of past and present," "a threedimensional network of connections," a history "thick" with unpredictability which faces up to the "political challenge" about the way how history is written.[2]
- Cubitt: is new media, are new media, unified by an intrinsic quality or field of qualities? Or is it perhaps their very modularity, variability, transcoding, that marks them out as a loose aggregation without a single defining presence? [3]
- Holmes: what always irritated me in Manovich's writing was a kind of smug insistence that the new media were essentially defined by a certain kind of rhythm, a certain multiplication of screens, a certain connection to databases, etc. - in other words, that new media were essentially defined by the dominant trends of contemporary capitalist society. For me this seemed like a total abdication of criticism itself, and it also seemed to be a sort of cheerful, "I'm on the winning side" version of the dark technological determinism and philosophical doomsaying promoted by the post-Leftist thinkers in the wake of Baudrillard. What I missed was the very question of autonomy, and some recognition of its quasi-infinite complexities as they've been ceaselessly developing from the Neolithic to now, in the long and discontinuous series of messages passed from human world to human world. Imho, the poverty of new media art - its "crisis" - has intrinsically to do with poverty of media critique tout court. [4]
Penny (1993)
Simon Penny v texte "Consumer Culture and the Technological Imperative: The Artist in Dataspace"[3] hovori o digitalnom, pocitacovom a elektronickom
umeni (pouziva ich ako synonyma) ako o spojnici troch historickych
prudov: techniky (engineering), transnacionalneho komoditneho
kapitalizmu, a tradicneho vytvarneho umenia. kedy digitalni
medialni umelci pracuju s estetikou technologii, ktore su
v kulture technologiami moci.
In many discussions of computer arts, the conversation has focused upon a dialectic between the sciences and the arts, a recapitulation of C. P. Snow's somewhat dated dualism. I want to insert a third term, without which such a discussion can have only limited relevance to contemporary culture: consumer commodity economics. [..] In this discussion, the terms "computer artists," "electronic media artists," and "artists who use technology" are used interchangeably, as I know of no useful and brief blanket term. There will be some specific reference to interactive media artpractice.
- Response
- Medosch k Pennyho trom prudom pridava este dva: kulturny priemysel (frankfurtska skola) a socio-politicke hnutia (aktivizmus). Pojem "media art" chape ako stresny pojem, analogicky k vyssie spominanym pojmom.
To this list of Simon Penny (above) I would add two fields: the culture industry (Adorno 1991), now re-branded as the creative industry, and socio-political movements. The field of media art cannot be understood without asking which connections media art has with other fields in society. As Penny's choice of words suggests those 'forces' do have a strong influence on the field and sometimes it looks as if the combined power of those influences is so overwhelming that a core of media art is hard to identify. My personal position in this regard is that it is important to acknowledge those contextual links, yet to insist that media art is not reducible to the contextual relations it has. The field has historically always struggled to define its boundaries. Those boundary struggles are very revealing about the differentiation process of the field in relation to the art system, the overall political economy, the computer and telecommunications industry, the creative industries and political activism. Any more extensive mapping of the field would have to consider those relationships instead of trying to define an 'essence' of media art.[5] [6]
Medosch: Media Art (2005)
Medosch talks about media art being justified by its institutional context[4].
It is not a diffuse 'essence' of media art which justifies it to speak of it as a separate field but the existence of a system of institutions which are more or less exclusively concerned with it. Institutionally media art is characterised by the existence of two types of institutions. On one hand there are large festivals, such as Ars Electronica, since 1979 held in Linz, Austria, and large brickand-mortar institutions such as the ZKM in Karlsruhe, which attract major funding, organise big exhibitions and produce heavy catalogues. On the other hand there are many small institutions, sometimes called 'self-institutions' - so called media labs or hack labs - which have been thriving over the last 10 years, forming an alternative or 'unstable' field (Druckrey 2005) with increasingly world-wide connections and a more decentralised and networked approach. Whereas the large institutions face typical pressures for legitimisation such as demands to be instrumental in regional development, the world-wide network of small institutions often lives on shoe-string budgets mostly provided by state funding agencies. Some activities are not funded at all or are rather selffunded - made possible by the energy and work of participants. According to Bourdieu this area could be called a field of restricted production. Economically it is insignificant but discursively it is important. I am not trying to construct a binary opposition between two types of institutions and acknowledge the existence of many medium sized institutions and a lively transfer between the fields. However, it is important to state that there is an institutionalised field and that it is not homogenous but heterogeneous. [7]
The thesis is, in short, that certain founding fathers have succeeded in establishing media art institutionally but it was a pyrrhic victory. the language and 'philosophy' they have employed was about a fetishized notion of disembodied information and an equally fetishized notion of interactivity. Thus, they have failed to build solid theoretic and terminological foundations. Because of the internet being openend up their discoursive relevancy was over by 1995-96. Although some good things came afterwards this sort of foundational mistake has blighted the field and subsequently lead to the confusion and misunderstandings we find ourselves in now. [8]
Fuller: Media Ecologies
Lovink: New Media (2005)
Gere: Art and Realtime Systems (2006)
Charlie Gere in Art, Time and Technology[6]: This book is concerned with the question of the role of art in the age of real-time systems. (By 'art' in this instance I generally refer to visual art, rather than literature, music or film for example.) The term 'real-time systems' refers to the information, telecommunication and (multi)media technologies that have come to play an increasingly important part in our lives, at least in the so-called 'developed' countries. [..] Real-time computing underpins the whole apparatus of communication and data processing by which our contemporary techno-culture operates. [..] 'Real time' can also stand for the more general trend toward instantaneity in contemporary culture, involving increasing demand for instant feedback and response, one result of which is that technologies themselves are beginning to evolve ever faster. [..] since the 1960s, artists have engaged seriously in the possibilities of realtime technologies for the making of art under various banners, including computer art, art and technology, new media art, and, most recently, net.art and internet art. [..] Another title for this book could be 'the work of art in the age of realtime systems'.
Snow: Two Cultures (1959)
Lecture by C.P.Snow[7]
Lyotard: New materials (1979)
Lyotard in book La Condition Postmoderne (1979), in which he prophesised the end of the grand narratives, the end of man's control over being (Descartes), the end of the humanist tradition. In Les Immatériaux exhibition he curated he made the visitor realise that the existence of new materials (new technologies, computerized spaces, internet) would alter man's relationship with the world even more extremely. These 'new materials' would force him to recognize that the old Cartesian programme of mastering and posses¬sing nature was history. These 'new materials' were not, as Lyotard explained, materials that are new, but materials that 'work' or 'talk' themselves and thus question the idea of Man being the only one who works, talks, plans and remembers. Goods, images and signs themselves generate new processes, resulting in ever new goods, images, signs and meanings. The sphere of influence of these processes extend far beyond the conscious intentions and interpretations of those who make and absorb it. This is the most fascinating proof of the ability of 'a work' to work and to affect its own operations. It has a 'life' of its own.
Grau: Media Art (2007)
Oliver Grau in MediaArtHistories - ? [8]
- Response
Grau: Virtual Art (2003)
Oliver Grau in Virtual Art[9]: Media art, that is, video, computer graphics and animation, Net-art, interactive art in its most advanced form of virtual art with its subgenres of telepresence art and genetic art, is beginning to dominate theories of the image and art. [..] Media artists represent a new type of artist, who not only sounds out the aesthetic potential of advanced methods of creating images and formulates new options of perception and artistic positions in this media revolution, but also specifically researches innovative forms of interaction and interface design, thus contributing to the development of the medium in key areas, both as artists and as scientists. [..] However, a central argument of this book is that the idea of installing an observer in a hermetically closed-off image space of illusion did not make its first appearance with the technical invention of computer-aided virtual realities. On the contrary, virtual reality forms part of the core of the relationship of humans to images. It is grounded in art traditions, which have received scant attention up to now, that, in the course of history, suffered ruptures and discontinuities, were subject to the specific media of their epoch, and used to transport content of a highly disparate nature. Yet the idea goes back at least as far as the classical world, and it now reappears in the immersion strategies of present-day virtual art. Further, it is the intention of this book to trace the aesthetic conception of virtual image spaces, their historical genesis, including breaks, through various stages of Western art history. It begins with the broad, primarily European tradition of image spaces of illusion, which was found mainly in private country villas and town houses, like the cult frescoes of the Villa dei Misteri in Pompeii, the garden frescoes in the Villa Livia near Primaporta (ca. 20 b.c.), the Gothic fresco room, the Chambre du Cerf, and the many examples of Renaissance illusion spaces, such as the Sala delle Prospettive. [..] [After demise of the panorama,] technology was applied in the attempt to integrate the image and the observer: stereoscope, Cine´orama, stereoptic television, Sensorama, Expanded Cinema, 3-D, Omnimax, and IMAX cinema, as well as the head-mounted display with its military origins. [..] attention [of this book] centers on 360-degree images, such as the fresco rooms, the panorama, circular cinema, and computer art in the CAVE: media that are the means whereby the eye is addressed with a totality of images. This book engages with media in the history of art that concentrate on immersive image spaces. [..] The image spaces and media discussed here are the subject of many treatises, but never before have they been examined in the context of an art-historical analysis of the concept of immersion. So far, there has been no historically comparative or systematic theoretical approach to virtual realities.
Frieling and Daniels: Media Art (2005)
Rudolf Frieling and Dieter Daniels: media art is "by definition multimedia, time-based or process-oriented"[10]
We pointed out the special qualities of media art reception in the introduction to Media Art Net 1. This applies both to direct knowledge of the artworks and also their technological and theoretical context; we would like to sum this up succinctly in the following three theses:
- 1. Media art must be conveyed multimedially so that its time-based, processual and interactive aspects can be understood.
- 2. Media art needs a special theory that combines competencies from art theory, media science and media technology.
- 3. Multimedia presentation and special theory are mutually dependent; they have to relate to each other and be published on a joint platform.
To these we can now add a fourth thesis as the sum of our past experiences:
- 4. Contexts can be created and presented only through the Net: the idea of networking the competencies of curators, academics, mediators and institutions met with a great deal of willingness to cooperate. So finally, thanks to these many collaborators, it was possible to finance a large number of additional themes, projects and materials. Here the bandwidth of the approaches, which were often very heterogenous in terms of method, first reflects existing divergencies of theory and practice. But at the same time the joint, collectively filled data pool, starting from the work, makes it possible to respond to these works and to make them productive in this way. Cross-links between the text were built in editorially. This led to an intensification process that we often found remarkable; it crystallized out from multiple references to a whole series of older, but also more recent artistic positions.
Weibel: Digital Image (1984)
Peter Weibel[11] claims "Futurism, Cubism, Cubofuturism, Suprematism, Dadaism, Surrealism, etc." to be conceptual precursors of media art. New art forms emerging after WW2 such as "action painting, Fluxus, Happening, Pop Art, Kinetism, Op-Art, Ambiente, Arte Povera, actions, performances, etc.," are enlisted to the cause of preparing the ground for the 'liberated' digital image.
Ascott (2003)
Roy Ascott in Telematic Embrace - ? [12]
Tribe and Jana: New Media Art (2006)
Mark Tribe and Reena Jana in New Media Art[13]: New Media art and older categorical names like "Digital art," "Computer art," "Multimedia art," and "Interactive art" are often used interchangeably, but for the purposes of this book we use the term New Media art to describe projects that make use of emerging media technologies and are concerned with the cultural, political, and aesthetic possibilities of these tools. We locate New Media art as a subset of two broader categories: Art and Technology and Media art. Art and Technology refers to practices, such as Electronic art, Robotic art, and Genomic art, that involve technologies which are new but not necessarily media-related. Media art includes Video art, Transmission art, and Experimental Film -- art forms that incorporate media technologies which by the 1990s were no longer new. New Media art is thus the intersection of these two domains. We chose to limit the scope of this book to work that was made after the term New Media art was broadly adopted in 1994, and to focus on works that are particularly influential, that exemplify an important domain of New Media art practice, and that display an exceptional degree of conceptual sophistication, technological innovation, or social relevance. Deciding what counts as media technology is a difficult task. The Internet, which is central to many New Media art projects, is itself composed of a heterogeneous and constantly changing assortment of computer hardware and software?servers, routers, personal computers, database applications, scripts, and files?all governed by arcane protocols, such as HTTP, TCP/IP, and DNS. Other technologies that play a significant role in New Media art include video and computer games, surveillance cameras, wireless phones, hand-held computers, and Global Positioning System (GPS) devices. But New Media art is not defined by the technologies discussed here; on the contrary, by deploying these technologies for critical or experimental purposes, New Media artists redefine them as art media. In the hands of Radical Software Group (RSG), for example, data surveillance software, similar to that used by the United States' Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), becomes a tool for artistic data visualization. In addition to exploring the creative possibilities of this software, RSG develops a critique of surveillance technology and its uses. According to the authors, contemporary new media art pieces tend to deal with themes such as collaboration, identity, appropriation and open sourcing, telepresence and surveillance, corporate parody, as well as intervention and hactivism.
Paul: Digital Art (2003)
Christiane Paul v Digital Art[14] rozlisuje medzi umenim, ktore pouziva digitalne technologie ako nastroje pre tvorbu tradicnych umeleckych objektov (fotografia, tlac, socha, hudba) a umenim, pre ktore su tieto technologie jeho vlastnym mediom, v ktorom je produkovane, zaznamenavane a prezentovane a ktoreho interaktivne a participativne vlastnosti taketo umenie vyuziva.
- Response
- Medosch: I would tentatively add to Christiane Paul's definition that many works of media art contain an element of self-referentiality; that they are not just 'using' a medium but also questioning and challenging its boundaries; that they try to make implicit or explicit statements about properties of media technologies and thereby raise questions about the intersections of science, technology and culture. Such a definition points to a qualitative difference in the understanding of media art. The medium in this definition of media art is not just a carrier of content but formative for the creation of meaning. Technology and culture are not seen as categorically separated but understood to be intricately linked. However, such a definition of media art can not be assumed to be universally shared. [12]
Murin: New Media (2000)
Rišková: New Media Art (2008)
Mária Rišková in [16]: "Uznanie umenia nových médií ako relevantnej súčasti inštitucionalizovaných dejín vizuálneho umenia sa naplnilo, keď sa rozšíril termín media art (umenie médií, mediálne umenie), ktorý jasnejšie vytýčil pravidlá hry a uspokojil zástupcov konvenčných dejín umenia:
- prepojil súčasné nové médiá s historickým vývojom = nové médiá sú pokračovateľom experimentov niektorých avantgárd (ktoré už dosiahli akceptáciu v akademických kruhoch)
- akceptoval zaradenie autorov nepochádzajúcich z akademickej umeleckej scény do oblasti umenia
- odstránil sporné adjektívum "nový" a zhrnul pod "médiá" už prediskutované pojmy multimediálneho a intermediálneho umenia = spolupôsobenie zvuku – obrazu – pohybu – času – procesu – priestoru...
- prijal fenomény, ktorú už nemohol nikto v súčasnej kultúre prehliadať = interaktivita, úloha publika atď."
Kera: New Media
national histories
- Books
- Katarína Rusnáková História a teória mediálneho umenia na Slovensku (Bratislava: AFAD Press, 2006), with DVD (Slovak)
- Lanterna magika: nouvelles technologies dans l'art tchèque du XXe siècle = New technologies in Czech art of the 20th century, Praha: KANT, 2002. — 261 p. — ISBN 8086217361. Includes timeline on media arts in the Czech Republic since 1920.
- Liesbeth Huybrechts (ed.), CROSS-over, een overzicht rond kunst, media en technologie in Vlaanderen, BAM and Lannoo, 2008 [13]
- Lucy Kimbell (ed.). New Media Art: Practice and Context in the UK, 1994-2004. Art's Council and Cornerhouse: London and Manchester, 2004. [14] ISBN: 0-94879-788-6
- Dimitrina Sevova (ed.), Communication Front Book, Crossing Points East-West. 2002. http://www.cfront.org/cf00book/en/index.html
- Rudolf Frieling and Dieter Daniels (eds.), Media Art Action – The 1960s and 1970s in Germany, commissioned by Goethe-Institut and ZKM Center for Art and Media, Springer Vienna/New York 1997, Text: German/English, hard cover plus CD-ROM, ISBN:3-211-82996-2
- Rudolf Frieling and Dieter Daniels (eds.), Media Art Interaction – The 1980s and 1990s in Germany, commissioned by Goethe-Institut and ZKM Center for Art and Media, Springer Vienna/New York 2000, Text: German/English, hard cover plus CD-ROM, ISBN: 3-211-83422-2
- Articles
- Klaudio Štefanović, "New Media Art in Croatia", 2007 [15]
- Darko Fritz, "Media Arts in Croatia" [16]
- ;Response
- Ana Peraica, "HR - A remark on art & technology research in regard to the place of origin taken as the state, place of living, as well as only a domain" [17]
- Marko Brumen: Intermedia arts in Slovenia - Timeline; Support infrastructure and funding; artists; producers; festivals; training and research; sources and bibliography, http://www.culturalprofiles.org.uk/slovenia/Directories/Slovenia_Cultural_Profile/-7645.html
- Dominique Moulon, "Digital Art in Belgium", 2008 [18]
- Pauline van Mourik Broekman. Waste Net, Want Not: Art and new media in 90s Britain. [19]
- Steve Dietz. British New Media Art. April 2004. [20]
- Leonardo, Vol. 27, No. 5, 1994. Prometheus: Art, Science and Technology in the Former Soviet Union: Special Issue. [21]
- Media Art in Russia. ISEA Newsletter #95, January-February 2004. [22], [23]
- Nina Czegledy "Media Art: The Hungarian Model" CIAC's Electronic Art Magazine 12 (2001) [24]
- George Sabau, "Contextual history of Kinema Ikon" (2005) [25]
- Katya Stukalova. Ukrajinské mediální umění - V očekávání (Czech). 2005. [26]
- Renata Sukaityte, New Media Art in Lithuania, 2007, http://184.108.40.206/dspace/handle/10002/410
- Geert Lovink, "Media Art in Albania, First Steps. An Interview with Eduard Muka (Tirana)" (1996) [27]
- New media art in Norway - Overview
More writings
- Má pojem nová média dnes ještě co říci? 2007 [28]
- ↑ Stephen Wilson, Information Arts: intersections of art, science, and technology, MIT Press, 2003, (online), (full book), (google books)
- ↑ Lev Manovich, The Language of New Media, Cambridge: MIT Press, 2001, (online), (full book), (google books), (excerpt)
- ↑ Simon Penny, "Consumer Culture and the Technological Imperative: The Artist in Dataspace", 1993 (full article), in: Simon Penny (ed.), Critical issues in electronic media, SUNY Press, 1995, (google books)
- ↑ Armin Medosch, "Technological Determinism in Media Art", 2005, (full text), (excerpt)
- ↑ Geert Lovink "New Media, Art and Science: Explorations beyond the Official Discourse", 2005, (full text)
- ↑ Charlie Gere, Art, Time and Technology, Berg, 2006, (full book)
- ↑ C.P.Snow, "The Two Cultures", 1959, (full text) wikipedia
- ↑ Oliver Grau (ed.), MediaArtHistories, Cambridge: The MIT Press, 2007
- ↑ Oliver Grau, Virtual Art: From Illusion to Immersion, Cambridge: The MIT Press, 2003, (full book)
- ↑ Rudolf Frieling, Dieter Daniels (eds.), Media art net 2: Thematische Schwerpunkte/Key Topics, Springer, 2005, (online), (google books)
- ↑ Peter Weibel, "On the History and Aesthetics of the Digital Image", 1984, (full text), (excerpt)
- ↑ Roy Ascott, Telematic Embrace: Visionary Theories of Art, Technology, and Consciousness, Berkeley: University of California Press, 2003, [http://burundi.sk/monoskop/log/?p=64 (full book)
- ↑ Mark Tribe and Reena Jena, New Media Art, Taschen/Brown, 2006, (full text)
- ↑ Christiane Paul, Digital Art (World of Art series), London: Thames and Hudson, 2003, (online), (commentary)
- ↑ Michal Murin, "Nové médiá", in: Profil 4 (2000) pp. 4-5 (Slovak), (full text) (Slovak)
- ↑ Mária Rišková, "Agónia a extáza umenia nových médií", in: Flash Art Fall (2008) (Slovak)
- ↑ Denisa Kera, "Nová média", (full text) (Czech)
- http://userwww.sfsu.edu/~infoarts/links/wilson.artlinks2.html
- http://www.netzwissenschaft.de/mob.htm
- http://www.mediaartnet.org/
- REDIRECT Template:Artists cultures


text:
Click on left for ship menu
Celebrity Summit Penthouse Suite Stateroom
Celebrity Summit
Cabin 6148 video
If video is not available click here for cache copy
(135 m2)
(103 m2)
Click for Virtual Tour
The following is a listing of all the cabins we have pictures or videos for on this ship and also on the sister ships. Click on any highlighted link to view pictures and/or videos ( = video available). Links for cabins pictures are a membership feature and are limited on the public site. Click here to join!
Cabin: 6147 Ship: Celebrity Infinity
Cabin: 6147 Ship: Celebrity Millennium
Cabin: 6147 Ship: Celebrity Constellation
Cabin: 6147 Ship: Celebrity Summit
Cabin: 6148 Ship: Celebrity Infinity
Cabin: 6148 Ship: Celebrity Millennium
Cabin: 6148 Ship: Celebrity Constellation
Cabin: 6148 Ship: Celebrity Summit
Celebrity Summit Penthouse Suite Stateroom
Our membership site is loaded with pictures that you can click to zoom in on. All our stateroom pictures are indexed by ship, cabin category and cabin number. With one click you can jump to sister ships (ships that have the same layout). With one click you jump to a different category. With one click you filter the pictures down to a specific cabin. If you love cruising, then you will love our membership site. Click here to join!

subset: commoncrawl


text:
The East Coast is bracing for Hurricane Sandy--and yes, that includes celebrities.
President Barack Obama has declared a state of emergency for New York and surrounding areas, but Lindsay Lohan saw no real reason for concern.
"WHY is everyone in SUCH a panic about hurricane (i'm calling it Sally)..?" she tweeted. "Stop projecting negativity! Think positive and pray for peace."
U.S. & World
LiLo then proceeded to nickname the approaching storm "Hurricane Sassy."
RuPaul also had some humor about the situation, tweeting: "FrankenStorm NYC: People in very long line at grocery store are drunk on hysteria. I decided to buy chocolate at deli instead."
When one snarky tweeter suggested that the storm "made a turn for the South Jersey Shore heading directly for @snooki" and wondered, "how can this NOT be a sign from God?," Snooki herself replied, "Lol u wish."
The "Jersey Shore" starlet wrote that she was preparing for "Lorenzo's first storm! Holding him tight." The new mom also said she was "Waiting for the storm" and having a "slumber party with my boys."
Bravo's Andy Cohen opted to prepare for the storm in New York City by "revisiting" pals in Dillon, Texas. He tweeted Sunday, "In preparation for #Sandy I am downloading 10 more episodes of #FridayNightLights"
Bethenny Frankel admitted she was "nervous" about the storm, tweeting: "People say sandy is worse than Irene. We're on the water in the hamptons &near it in the city. Both will be evacuated...Everyone be safe rather than stupid. We're figuring out where we're going to stay."
Bette Midler tweeted that she was "baking macaroons for the duration [of Sandy]. Hope it's over before Hulaween!!!"
We do, too! Sandy's already disrupted her fair share of events, causing cancellations on Broadway and numerous productions in the area to shut down.
Stacy Keibler hosted a Halloween bash in Las Vegas
Kim Kardashian, who hosted Midori Green's Halloween party Saturday night in New York City, made her way south before the storm hit.
"Back in Miami now," she tweeted. "Missed the storm. I'm praying for everyone on the East Coast. I hope everyone is safe!"
Ditto. Everyone, please stay safe during Hurricane Sandy.
Worried about the storm? Distract yourself by looking through Kim's sexiest Halloween costumes!


text: as in bricks you can see the packing of those kernals produces hexagons. I did some work in the past on an infinite field array of hexagons that I called a hexametric field. Sounds like a curse. One of the things I found was a copy of the feild inside itself. I'm putting this up because I think of Maia as a hexametric feild.


text:
Sorted by
- List View
- Map View
- Grid View
$159,0000 Beds, 0 Bathlot 6.80 acMLS 481480630 Days on Market
$349,9002 Beds, 2 Baths1,614 sqft lot 28.92 acMLS 46428051,140 Days on Market
Copyright 2020 New England Real Estate Network, Inc. All rights reserved.
This information is deemed reliable, but not guaranteed
The data relating to real estate displayed on this web site comes in part from the IDX Program of NEREN. The information being provided is for consumers' personal, non-commercial use and may not be used for any purpose other than to identify prospective properties consumers may be interested in purchasing.
Data last updated 8/4/20 5:39 AM PDT
This IDX Software is (c) Diverse Solutions 2020. Privacy | Terms & Conditions
Save favorite listings, searches, and get the latest alerts
Sign in to, or create an account using your existing social account:
Save your favorite listings, searches, and receive the latest listing alerts
Sign in to, or create an account using your existing social account:


text:
The subject of this article or section is part of Midsummer Fire Festival, a seasonal event that lasts two weeks. Once the event has run its course, this will no longer be available until next year, but there are no guarantees.
- Were you looking for Quest:Torch Tossing (Horde)?
Win the torch tossing game, then speak with the Master Fire Eater.
- Hit 8 braziers.
- [Practice Torches] (provided)
So you want to be a fire juggler? Do you have what it takes? The dexterity? The reflexes? ...the courage? If you think so, then let's give you a little practice!
Take these torches and run near the bonfire. You'll see braziers with markers flashing above them. Toss a torch at a marked brazier. Be quick! Do it before the mark fades if you want credit for the toss!
Hit enough marked braziers before the time limit, then come back here... for your next lesson.
Quick! There's no time to waste!
Well done! You'll be a fire juggler faster than the fuse on a ground flower! Now gird yourself! The next test is when things really heat up...
You will receive: [Burning Blossom] x5 and 4 40.
- ?? XP (or 7 59 at level 70))
This is a timed quest! Players have roughly 40 seconds to hit 8 braziers. Stand near the bonfire while attempting the quest.
Set the torch on a hotkey so you don't have to drag it, you only use the cursor to drop it.
If you're running late hitting where the arrows are, wait for the next arrow so that the cooldown can complete before the arrow moves again.
Quest progression
- [70] Torch Tossing
- [70] Torch Catching
- [70 Daily] More Torch Tossing
- [70 Daily] More Torch Catching


text:
No fun: Gamers take another hit
For more than two decades, starting with the 1981 founding of Kesmai, which is widely credited with being the first online game company in the world, Charlottesville has been a hotbed of computer game development. Now, the last such major company has been dealt a near-fatal blow by the very same corporation that spawned it.
And more than just the end of one company with a large workforce of creative people, the demise may signal the end of an era.
Two years ago, the future looked brighter. In 2001, Sony approached former Kesmai employee and online game development expert Lorin Jameson with a proposal.
"[They] told me if I could pull the people together, they would fund me," says Jameson.
After a few months of whirlwind recruiting, Jameson had assembled a team of five. Sony came through with a 20-month contract to create a game called Driving Force, in which players "drive around in well-armed cars," says Jameson. Like some other online games, Driving Force was considered a "massively multi-player game" because it allows hundreds, even thousands, of players around the world to interact online during play.
It never hit the screens. Just over a year into the contract, Sony put the breaks on Driving Force. But all was not lost for Lodestone. Sony requested assistance completing another game, Planetside, in which players align with one of three factions in a never-ending war.
Jameson says the possibilities of the new project softened the disappointment of losing Driving Force. "Sony promised us," he says, "a new game, a new contract after we finished off Planetside."
In anticipation of the new contract, Jameson added five employees. The contract– for a fantasy role-playing game similar to "Diablo," which Jameson describes as "one of the most popular [online] games in the world"– was inked this past March.
Though still unsure at that time of the long-term fate of his company– gaming contracts generally contain a clause allowing for cancellation at any time– Jameson says he was put at ease when Sony issued a worldwide press release announcing Lodestone's contract.
"I thought, 'Oh, good, finally,'" he recalls. "'Now I can tell they're serious.'"
His relief was short-lived.
"Within a month of that press release," he says, "they canceled." A Sony representative did not return The Hook's calls by press time.
Faced with a monthly payroll of approximately $100,000 for 15 employees many of whom had left other positions to join Lodestone Jameson says his options were limited. He shopped around, looking for a new contract, and even considered selling the company "to keep the team together." To no avail.
As of Friday, November 14, Jameson will be alone in his 4,000 square-foot offices at the corner of Ridge and Main streets. And Jameson (husband of Hook proofer Lynn Jameson) fears it's an omen about the future of online gaming in Charlottesville.
"It's the first time since the mid-'80s that there hasn't been a [gaming] company here with a substantial number of employees," says Jameson, citing Kesmai, which was eventually purchased by Electronic Arts (EA).
After a series of brutal layoffs in 2001, EA abandoned Virginia altogether and consolidated its operations in Austin and Los Angeles. Now, with the fall of Lodestone, Jameson fears that the local industry will not be able to recover.
"The likelihood of another game company forming here is pretty small," says Jameson. "Most of my guys will be leaving town."
Jeremy Dale, a 3-D artist at Lodestone, moved from California to Charlottesville in June to join the company. Less than six months later, he's out of a job. Surprisingly, he says he'd do it again.
"I don't regret it at all," he says. "I do regret that I bought a house instead of renting."
He says he's interviewing with companies in D.C. and in Massachusetts, but wouldn't rule out California or Texas, the country's biggest gaming meccas.
Dale wishes things had worked out differently. "I don't look forward to leaving," he says.
Not all of Lodestone's workforce plans to move, however.
Christian DeBaun, Lodestone's program manager, says he plans to stay in town, though he's not sure what he'll be doing. Losing Lodestone, he says, has been hard for the employees.
"This was the best gaming experience I've ever had," says DeBaun, "because of Lorin."
He also feels it's a loss for the city. "It's a shame for the Charlottesville community," he says. "Had we been successful," he adds, "we would have continued to draw people in from the community."
And he agrees with Jameson that this may signal the end of the gaming industry in Charlottesville. "We were just about the last high-tech entertainment firm in town," he says.
But not everyone sees Lodestone as Charlottesville's online game industry's last gasp.
When asked, "Is it the end?" Kesmai founder Kelton Flinn has a quick reply: "I hope not."
Flinn, who co-founded online game development business Castle Hill in October 2001, says, "We're poised on the brink of something," mentioning two potential contracts that are in the works.
But though Flinn has hope for the local industry, even he acknowledges it may never thrive the way it once did.
"It's not going to be like the glory days," he says, "at least not soon. But we're hoping to keep gaming going."
Jameson hasn't given up all hope either. Though he's downsizing the Lodestone space, going from the spacious 4,000 square feet of the current office to "closer to 200"square feet, he plans to keep the Lodestone name and run it as a one-man operation for the time being.
"I love it," he says of the work, "but I've had nothing but frustration. I haven't released a title in six years."
Working only for himself, he thinks, may provide a bit more security: "Chances are," he laughs, "I'm not going to cancel my own game."
Lorin Jameson's gunning for games.


text:
The Mainichi Daily News is running a three part series on online game addiction.
Most of it seems like scare mongering — students who start playing Maple Story and suddenly became poor students. There's even worse with one mother saying this about her game addicted child, "Sometimes, he'll throw the remote control at the TV, overturn the dining table, bite my hand, or try to strangle me. It's enough to get me wondering if he'll kill me."
Sounds like there are deeper issues here than online gaming...
Game Addicts: What's a parent to do? [Mainichi]


text:
Join us here as we talk about the game, live as it happens! Help us cheer on the STEELERS as they take on the conference rival Patriots! This is a HUGE game for both teams and the Steelers need to take the Pats out! After getting beat by the Browns, the Patriots will be out to redeem themselves. The Steelers are finally back home after a 3 game road stretch, and after the Ravens lost on Thursday, the Steelers are in a prime position to take over sole possession of first place in the AFC North
Heinz Field
Pittsburgh, PA
Sunday Night Football on NBC, 8:30pm EST
The Steelers Talk section will be closed just before kickoff and will reopen immediately following the game.


text:
Oman Air Cargo
The Oman Air Cargo was launched in March 2009 and is in the process of being defined as a brand. A key driver for the immediate success of our cargo sales was the decision to work with professional General Sales & Service Agents to market our product.
Cargo Services
- Air
- Road
- Courier


text:
Viral Video: The Creepy Alien Movie From the "Twilight" Lady
It's called "The Host," and it's all depressing sci-fi future, with the usual aliens occupying human bodies and taking over the whole world. You know who's been snatched if they have glowing eyes.
More importantly, it is the movie of the book that came after Stephenie Meyer's hugely popular "Twilight" series about vampire love.
This one's also got an alien-human love story going, but it looks less earnestly earnest.


text:
The restaurant has a long open kitchen which gives us a chance to meet Head Chef and Morena co-owner, Alejandro Saravia. A Peruvian native, Alejandro tells us he wanted to open a restaurant showcasing Latin American food in a more fine-dining setting (which is quite popular in Peru), rather than focusing on street-food which is what many of us associate Latin American cuisine with. Sounds good to me!
We're here for a six-course degusation that starts off with an Amuse Bouche of Yellow Chilli Granita with Orange - it's punchy and spicy, yet coolly refreshing at the same time, and certainly wakes up those taste buds. This is followed by a Bread Roll with Chilli that actually has quite a sweet flavour and soft texture (it reminds me of the buttermilk bread roll I had from Denny's in Hawaii - sacrilegious to compare the two I know).
Our first entree is the Solterito Salad - a delicate plate of Andean homemade cheese, dry olives, white corn, poached cherry tomatoes with an an aji amarillo dressing. It's a beautiful dish, quite light and "summery".
Chef Alejandro kindly sends out a complimentary Peruvian Ceviche for The BFF and I to try. Our waiter proudly tells us this is the "national dish" of Peru and it's known to cure all sorts of ills (including a hangover). In Peru it's often drunk with the popular soft drink known as Inca Cola. The Ceviche is FANTASTIC - plump pieces of pink snapper served with cancha (toasted corn - which is DELICIOUS) and caramelised sweet potato. It has a little bit of a chilli kick to it which I love. We also get to try the Vegetarian Ceviche (which is part of the degustation) which is a medley of white funghi shimeji mushrooms, baby artichoke hearts and baby radish. We both really like this dish, but agree the "regular" ceviche is the pick of the two - it makes out mouths come alive with some much texture and flavour.
Seeing as I've tried the national dish of Peru it seems only fitting to give the national drink a go as well. The Pisco Sour ($17.00) looks like a frothy little milkshake but it packs of of a punch for this "one glass wonder". The drink is a mix Santiago Queirolo Pisco (brandy), lime juice, gomme syrup and an egg white and is shaken vigorously to give it its "frothiness" and served with a dash of bitters.


text:
- BEST-IN-BUSINESS IMPACT AWARD™ - Heritage Financial Services, LLC
- PACESETTER IMPACT AWARD™ - Gurtin Municipal Bond Management
- TRAILBLAZER IMPACT AWARD™ - Mainstay Capital Management, LLC
- BEST-IN-RETIREMENT BUSINESS AWARD™ - ABG Retirement Plan Services
Public Company Information:
CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Schwab Advisor Services today announced the recipients of the 12th annual IMPACT Awards® for independent investment advisor firms. The IMPACT Awards recognize independent advisor firms that have advanced the industry through exemplary business practices. The winning firms are: Heritage Financial Services, LLC, Gurtin Municipal Bond Management, Mainstay Capital Management, LLC, and ABG Retirement Plan Services. Each was recognized on the main stage today at Schwab IMPACT®, the largest and longest-running annual gathering of independent advisors in the nation.
"These four firms represent what the independent advice industry stands for: an unwavering focus on serving in the best interests of their clients," said Jonathan Beatty, senior vice president, sales and relationship management, Schwab Advisor Services. Their entrepreneurship, business savvy and innovation makes them important parts of our communities as well as of our industry."
Schwab honors each of the four firms by donating $15,000 to a charity of their choice. Since the debut of the IMPACT Awards in 2006, Schwab has donated over half a million dollars on behalf of the winning firms.
BEST-IN-BUSINESS IMPACT AWARD: Heritage Financial Services, LLC
Awarded to a firm that has been in business for at least 10 years, has a track record of growth and excellence, and uses technology solutions to help expand market reach, responsiveness, and operational efficiencies.
Founded in 1995, Heritage Financial is a Westwood, Massachusetts-based wealth manager with a team of 30 professionals who provide personal wealth management services. The firm's assets under management (AUM) have grown more than 80 percent over the past five years to more than $1.3 billion. The AUM growth is supported by the addition of over 180 new-to-firm households over the past five years and a 99-percent client retention rate.
The firm's technology and operations strategy supports client experience and growth goals through security, integration, cloud-based solutions to enable consistent client service, and centralized operations that enable scale and efficiency.
Among the firm's core values is a client-first approach to building cost-effective, sophisticated portfolios prepared with detailed financial planning strategies. According to Heritage, several factors will drive its continued success, including:
- Delivering comprehensive wealth management through a holistic standard of client evaluation with the goal of transforming clients' financial lives from isolated parts into an integrated whole.
- Commitment to the education and professional development of employees and a forward-looking talent acquisition model to help the firm stay ahead of growth initiatives and provide best-in-class service to clients.
Schwab will make a donation to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society: Greater New England on behalf of Heritage Financial Services, LLC.
PACESETTER IMPACT AWARD: Gurtin Municipal Bond Management
Pays tribute to a firm in business 10 years or less that has shown initiative, growth and promise, as well as a focused use of technology to extend its reach.
Since 2008, Gurtin Municipal Bond Management has been dedicated to serving high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clients by providing specialized municipal bond management, including custom portfolios, and more recently, mutual funds. Based in Solana Beach, California, and approaching its 10-year anniversary, Gurtin has grown to include 72 employees and $14 billion in AUM.
The firm's reputation as an innovative leader in the municipal bond management industry drives a deep level of confidence among its clients. Among its latest innovations is a Municipal Social Advancement strategy, which lets investors advance social or environmental goals through municipal investments.
Gurtin uses technology to drive high-touch client service as well as business development. For example:
- The firm's technology team represents 20 percent of total headcount. The team has helped the firm create a broad range of differentiated municipal bond strategies and increase efficiency without losing the personal touch in its client service model.
- A custom database, created and managed by internal independent credit research analysts, allows the firm to access extensive credit research and perform custom portfolio reviews for prospective clients who are considering a portfolio transition.
Schwab will make a donation to Feeding America on behalf of Gurtin Municipal Bond Management.
TRAILBLAZER IMPACT AWARD: Mainstay Capital Management, LLC
Recognizes a firm that is forging new ground in the independent advice space by combining entrepreneurial spirit with a drive to advance the industry's interests.
Since its founding in 2000, Mainstay Capital Management of Grand Blanc, Michigan, has built a team of 21 professionals who oversee more than $2 billion in AUM. In addition to being a full-service wealth manager providing financial planning and portfolio management for workplace savings accounts, IRAs, and non-retirement accounts for individuals, Mainstay also promotes financial literacy through its MoneyMatters webinar series.
Mainstay also supports the next generation of financial advisors through the following initiatives:
- Founded by Mainstay's CEO, David Kudla, the ENGAGE® Undergraduate Investment Conference is an annual student stock pitch competition and conference that focuses on the next generation of financial professionals and emphasizes experiential learning.
- As Co-Program Director of the Global Asset Management Education Forum, an annual college student-managed portfolio competition and conference that brings together current and future leaders from the financial services industry for experiential learning and career development.
- Establishing student-run investment portfolios at three universities, each in excess of $1 million.
Schwab will make a donation to Habitat for Humanity on behalf of Mainstay Capital Management.
BEST-IN-RETIREMENT BUSINESS AWARD: ABG Retirement Plan Services
The Best-in-Retirement Business Award honors an independent record keeper or advisor that focuses on retirement plans, understands the unique needs of plan sponsors and/or participants, and has developed an innovative approach to serving them.
For more than 40 years, ABG Retirement Plan Services in Peoria, Illinois, has served retirement plan participants and health savings account holders and currently oversees more than $3 billion in retirement plan assets. The firm is fueled by a drive to help Americans prepare for retirement and grow their savings. As such, its services for advisors and participants are centered around retirement outcomes and financial wellness and include:
- The 401(k) Sales Champion Workshop©, an advisor enrichment program that provides business-building workshops and retirement plan education courses that train advisors in retirement best practices and general education and sales tools that help them develop their group retirement business.
- A report system that helps plan members project their progress toward retirement readiness and review suggestions for improvement. Plan members can personalize the projections further, frequently with help from the plan's advisor.
- An online Financial Fitness Center for plan participants that opens with a Financial Wellness Test and emails out personalized reports. These reports are subsequently complemented by an array of financial education tools, including webcasts, podcasts, videos, and "workout" items.
Schwab will make a donation to The Salvation Army - Heartland Division and Peoria Public Schools Foundation on behalf of ABG Retirement Plan Services.
About the IMPACT Awards
Independent registered investment advisors have fundamentally changed the financial services landscape by providing independent investment advice to high-net-worth investors. Established by Schwab in 2006, the IMPACT Awards recognize these contributions by honoring advisors and firms that have advanced the industry through their visionary leadership, operational excellence, and technology innovation.
Winning firms were selected by a panel of prominent leaders from both the business world and the financial services industry. Schwab donates $1,000 to nonprofit organizations selected by each of the judges in appreciation of their efforts.
This year's distinguished panel of judges included:
- Blaine F. Aikin, Executive Chairman, fi360
- Julie Littlechild, President, AbsoluteEngagement.com
- Kevin R. Keller, CEO, CFP Board of Standards, Inc.
- Thomas R. Robinson, President and CEO, AACSB International
- Sean R. Walters, Executive Director and CEO, Investment Management Consultants Association
In addition to the IMPACT Awards, Schwab engages in a range of efforts to advance the independent advisory industry. Initiatives include supporting nonprofit organizations and universities as well as amplifying the voice of independent advisors in Washington, D.C. on regulatory and public affairs issues. Schwab Advisor Services also maintains Find Your Independent Advisor, a national TV, print, and digital advertising campaign that aims to increase awareness of the independent advisory model among high-net-worth investors.
For more information about the IMPACT Awards program, visit impact.schwab.com/awards.
About Charles Schwab
At Charles Schwab we believe in the power of investing to help individuals create a better tomorrow. We have a history of challenging the status quo in our industry, innovating in ways that benefit investors and the advisors and employers who serve them, and championing our clients' goals with passion and integrity. More information is available at www.aboutschwab.com. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn.
Through its operating subsidiaries, The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE: SCHW) provides a full range of securities brokerage, banking, money management and financial advisory services to individual investors and independent investment advisors. Its broker-dealer subsidiary, Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (member SIPC, www.sipc.org), and affiliates offer a complete range of investment services and products including an extensive selection of mutual funds; financial planning and investment advice; retirement plan and equity compensation plan services; compliance and trade monitoring solutions; referrals to independent fee-based investment advisors; and custodial, operational and trading support for independent, fee-based investment advisors through Schwab Advisor Services. Its banking subsidiary, Charles Schwab Bank (member FDIC and an Equal Housing Lender), provides banking and lending services and products. More information is available at www.schwab.com and www.aboutschwab.com.
Brokerage Products: Not FDIC Insured • No Bank Guarantee • May Lose Value
Schwab Advisor Services™ serves independent investment advisors and includes the custody, trading, and support of Schwab.
The firms and their employees are independent of and are not employees or agents of Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. ("Schwab"). Schwab does not prepare, verify or endorse information distributed by these firms. The awards listed are a part of Schwab's IMPACT Awards® program, and are not a referral to, endorsement or recommendation of, or testimonial for the advisor with respect to its investment advisory or other services.
For informational purposes only.
Schwab Corporate Public Relations
Meredith Richard 646-343-7419
The Neibart Group
Mayrav Weiss, 914-500-5874


text:
I just love this engagement shoot that Kelty from Steep Street Photography shot in NYC a few weeks ago…she managed to turn a gloomy day into one special session!
ps. totally unrelated, but a little reminder that I'm still looking for awesomely cool Save the Dates for STD week! yikes, i hate how that sounds…STD week.
[images from Steep Street Photography]


text:
Noor Arfa Senyuman Kebahagiaanmu
+60 19-959-3700
Username or email address *
Password *
Remember Me
Log in
New client Register ?
No products in the wishlist.
Out of stock
There are no reviews yet.
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked
Your review *
Name *
Email *
1 in stock
2 in stock


text:
Custom Search
American Civil War:
The uniforms of the Civil War helped distinguish between the Union soldiers of the North, and the Confederate soldiers from the south. But early in the war, uniforms were provided by states, towns and wealthy individuals. This resulted in a confusing variety of styles and colors on both sides. Over time, blue became the official color for the North and gray for the Confederate uniforms.
On this page:
|Copyright © 1998-2012 Kidport


text:
- 2 Beds
- 1 Full Baths
Property TypeResidential – Single Family
Listing Date01/12/20
Year Built1888
AreaOut of County
Lot Size0.31 Acres (13,504 SqFt)
Property Description
Large in-town home on almost 4 lots with amazing mountain views! Wake up to postcard views of Leadville and Mt. Massive. Sip coffee in this bright, updated kitchen with an entire wall of windows. After a day exploring the mountains, sit under the stars by the fire pit in the huge yard that sits on a hill overlooking town. While listed as a 2 bedroom home, it is currently set up with 5 beds, and could easily be reconfigured into a 3+ bedroom home. Owner has lovingly maintained this home.
Presented By
- In Town
- Mountains
- Cross Country Trails
- Golf-Public
- Hiking/Pedestrian Trail
- Wired for Cable
- Cable TV
- District Sewer
- District Water
- Electricity Avail.
- Natural Gas Avail.
- Satellite
- Snow Removal
- Trash Pickup
- Forced Air
- Natural Gas
- Dryer - Electric
- Washer
Financial Information
3 Beds 2 Baths
We get asked this question a lot. Below is a tool that gives you the ability to see what the market is like in your community. Find out what homes like your own are selling for right in your back yard. Simply enter in your address, choose the proximity of the search and find out market data for other homes that are selling near you.
While we'll provide you with plenty of information, this is a snapshot of your market data and there are real people behind the high-tech and automated tools. If you would like more detailed information or help in understanding the results we are here to help.
Until then, enjoy the tools!
The data relating to the real estate for sale on this website comes in part from the Internet Data Exchange program of the Vail Multi-List Service, Inc.
Copyright © 2020 Vail Multi List, Inc. (VMLS). The information displayed herein was derived from sources believed to be accurate, but has not been verified by VMLS. Buyers are cautioned to verify all information to their own satisfaction. This information is exclusively for viewers' personal, non- commercial use. Any republication or reproduction of the information herein without the express permission of the VMLS is strictly prohibited.
Listing courtesy of Independence Realty & Property


text:
An avid writer since childhood, Carol Weston published her first article in Seventeen magazine at age 19, when she was a student at Yale. A decade later, she wrote Girltalk: All the Stuff Your Sister Never Told You (Harper & Row, 1985), which has been published in 12 languages and is currently in its fourth edition. Since 1994 Weston has penned the "Dear Carol" advice column for Girls' Life magazine, and wrote several additional nonfiction books for girls before delving into fiction with The Diary of Melanie Martin (Knopf, 2000). Three subsequent Melanie Martin books followed, and now the author introduces two new heroines in Ava and Pip (Sourcebooks, Mar.), a middle-grade novel about an outgoing, wordplay-loving girl and her painfully shy older sister. Manhattan resident Weston spoke with PW about this latest chapter in her diverse writing career.
What was it that inspired you to begin writing – and publishing – at a young age?
I'd say I was sort of a natural writer as a kid. I come from a very warm family of word nerds – and I mean that in the best possible way. My mother was the gardening editor of House & Garden and my dad wrote documentaries for TV. I always kept a diary, and though I loved reading all kinds of books, at bedtime I was more likely to write in my diary than read. I remember writing about everything – even what I had for lunch that day in school.
At what point did you decide to try your hand at fiction?
I love writing my advice column and nonfiction books for girls, but I'd always wanted to write a novel. I was a little bit intimidated by the thought of trying fiction, though – I didn't know what I would write about. So I decided I had to give myself some advice and give it a try, and that's when Melanie Martin was born.
And now you've given life to Ava and Pip. What inspired these characters?
Well, they definitely come from someone who's had a long career as an advice columnist. I hear from girls in crisis – girls who are dealing with issues like cutting and anorexia – but I also hear from many girls who have issues like Ava's and Pip's. Ava feels as though her mother isn't paying enough attention to her and focusing all her attention on Pip. Ava feels sorry for her very shy sister, but also gets mad that Pip is sucking up all the family energy. That can really take a toll on siblings. My fictional world is realistic, and this is a very real issue. I wanted Ava to find her way and no longer feel invisible.
You have daughters in their mid 20s. Did their relationship as adolescents influence Ava and Pip's dynamic?
Not really. My kids have had typical sibling rivalry over the years, but they are definitely not Ava and Pip. I had two older brothers, and as the competent third child, I didn't get as much attention as they did, and I got a little bruised thinking that no one was paying attention to me. When kids are overlooked, they sometimes have to ask for what they want. I didn't learn that early on, but Ava does, and reaches out to her father for help. I want this novel to speak to those kids who want to feel more visible.
And of course Ava and Pip tackles another issue that affects many adolescents: extreme shyness.
I've known shy young women, and my heart goes out to them. They just aren't able to speak up, and that can be a real social disability. I've had many, many girls write to me about this problem, and I give them the same advice that Ava gives Pip about how to initiate a conversation: give someone a compliment. If you give a compliment, that person will be nice back.
That's good advice for anyone, shy or not.
Yes, it is. With my novels, I set out to write wonderful fiction and not a message book or a book of pointers. But I do want to write a book that's helpful as well, and I hope shy kids find this novel. I would love it if a shy girl wrote to me and said she followed the advice Ava gives Pip and it worked. That would be wonderful. Mostly, I hope that readers have fun reading Ava and Pip – that in itself is a victory for me. I don't need them to take away much more than that, except the importance of being kind and thinking about the potential impact of their words.
Both the Melanie Martin series and Ava and Pip are written in diary format. What do you like about this technique?
Since I was a young diary keeper, I think it's a bit more comfortable for me to write in diary form. The words flow a little more easily. For readers, it's appealing to be invited right into the character's head, and not just into the character's world. I like making inside jokes, like having a protagonist write, "I'm so glad no one else is going to see this – I'd be so embarrassed!" It's me winking at the reader.
At the beginning of the novel, Ava realizes that the names of everyone in her family – Mom, Dad, Ava Elle, and Pip Hannah – are palindromic. Does that sort of wordplay especially strike your fancy?
Well, my husband, Rob Ackerman, is a playwright and also writes for Saturday Night Live, and we both like to use wordplay. My youngest daughter's name is Emme, and years ago, when a friend of mine first met her, she remarked that Emme's name is a palindrome. I think maybe that's when the seed for the story was first planted. Then as I was writing the novel, it was sort of a breakthrough moment when I knew that Ava was into palindromes. I let her run with it, with a bit of reigning in.
Will we see more of Ava and Pip?
Yes, I just finished a second book, Ava and the Taco Cat – Taco Cat being a palindrome, obviously! I don't yet have a plot for a third book, but I am hoping to have the opportunity to write one. I'd love to keep following Ava and Pip around and seeing what they're up to. I really do enjoy their company.
Ava and Pip by Carol Weston. Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, $15.99 Mar. ISBN 978-1-4022-8870-8


text:
Beat the Streak Report: Aug. 25
Today's Recommended Picks
- .414 AVG (12-for-29) since '04 vs. Tigers starter Jarrod Washburn
- .538 AVG (7-for-13) lifetime vs. Mariners starter Ryan Rowland-Smith
- .391 AVG (9-for-23) lifetime vs. Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright
BTS all-time leader: Michael Karatzia, 49
MLB all-time leader: Joe DiMaggio, 56
Yesterday's results
The three fans at the top of the BTS standings were aligned in their thinking Monday, as buhtter, diamondmike and jagzrule each went with Ichiro. However, since baseball's single-season hit king was scratched from the lineup with a sore calf muscle, all three competitors held onto their 34-game streaks.
The same went for thatsawinner, whose streak remained at 33 games after picking Ichiro.
Heading into Tuesday's action, thatsawinner stands alone in second place as rbier2000 saw his run come to an end in unlucky fashion when Carl Crawford exited Monday's game vs. the Blue Jays after two hitless at-bats in the third inning.
Yesterday's Top 5 most selected players
1. Ichiro Suzuki (SEA): 23.1%, 0-for-0
2. Joe Mauer (MIN): 8.1%, 0-for-4
3. Carlos Guillen (DET): 5.1%, 2-for-4
4. Vladimir Guerrero (LAA): 4.3%, 1-for-4
5. Shin-Soo Choo (CLE): 4.3%, 3-for-5
16 Comments
lcfrancisco – Carl Crawford 1-4 v. Cecil of Jays. Cecil is a lefty and Crawford is a lefty. I hate lefty – lefty matchups.
Cecil has been hittable recently – Crawford 0 – 2 last night and previous games has been getting one hit per night which is all you really need.
I'm going with Hanley Ramirez – Figueroa of NYMets looks very hittable with big ERA in August is 7.00. Righties are hitting .379 against him. Righties are batting .375 against him.
Ramirez is hitting .381 v. righties and .432 during month of August. Ramirez and FLA had no game on Monday, on Sunday Ramirez had 3 hits. This is a home game for Marlins too.
Good Luck!
dragbunt, funny you say that because after I posted my last comment I decided to change my pick from Crawford to Hanley Ramirez. Looks like great minds think alike! Good luck to us both…go Hanley!
I also went with Hanley tonight as he is red hot right now and I believe he is still on his hitting streak. I have to check.
lcfanscisco – Let's keep in touch on the comment board.
These are the kinds of posts that make thing interesting and helpful for everyone. I always post only the guy who I picked.
vinny1979 and lcfrancisco – Time to put our thoughts together for a Wed. Pick.
FIRST – A big tip of my Cub cap to the "King" for now listing by each pitcher of the day's stats the fact that he throws right or left. Nice to have this info.
Derek Jeter – 4 – 4 v. Holland(L) TX at TX
Miguel Cabrera – hitting .541 during his hit streak – 3 -8 v. Saunders(L) LAA at LA
Joe Mauer – 1-3 v. Guthrie(R) Orioles at MN
Tori Hunter – LAA v. Edwin Jackson – Jackson is too tough to take Hunter here who is on a 10 game hit streak and batting .378
Michael Young – .278 v. Pettit(L) – on a 11 game hit streak, batting .444 – game is at TX
Aaron Hill v. Kazmir(L) TB – He is 10 – 30 v. Kazmir – thats alot of at bats – he is on a 9 game hit streak but is batting .316 within the streak.
I'm leaning toward Jeter………
Please weigh in with your thoughts.
Wed. 8/26
TX v. NYY is in New York
This is making Jeter look better for me – What do you think guys?
For anyone who picked Crawford today, he is not in the starting lineup. He went 0-for-2 last night before leaving the game with back stiffness. If you're reading this, you might still have time to change your pick.
Going with Jason Bartlett (.343) today, who is leading off for the Rays and is a righty hitter going against lefty Brett Cecil (.296 BAA).
I'm going with Figgins for Wednesday against Edwin Jackson. I'm an Angels fan and Figgy is the recommended Burger King pick so all the starts seem aligned.
Here's a strategy I've been thinking about but haven't really considered using yet. Tell me what you think. Picking a top-of-the-order hitter for the visiting team. This ensures the maximum number of at-bats since if the home team has the lead then they don't bat in the bottom of the 9th. The visiting team always bats in the 9th, regardless if they're winning or losing.
Hanley Ramirez just singled! Woohoooo!!!
King's peaks are totally useless as usual. Why would you pick Pence who is in a major rut?
I was surprised to see how Hanley wasn't the top pick today. This is freebie as it gets for BTS. Absolutely dreadful pitcher against hottest hitter who happens to kill righties. Right up there with Ichie during the day.
How the hell did many people get to first 2 pages of the leader's board not doing any research as to Ichie won't be in the line-up tonight? The manager said Ichie won't be back until Wednesday. Ichie not being in the line-up yesterday should have raised red flags.
lcfrancisco – Your thought process is very logical with picking a visiting team top of the order hitter. The home hitters can bat once less — but —- they are at home and it usually is true that hitters hit better at home than on the road. So you have the ying and yang of the situation. I consider this a "push" you could go either way here. Some players do hit better on the road than at home though! The home teams bats in bottom of 9th if they are tied or behind.
Don't you like this game for all of this stuff!
Hanley got his hit – btsplayer – thanks for your input too.
Jason Bartlett – 2 – 3 already tonight – great advice from ohwow. Bartlett is a guy to watch for all of us.
I'm going with Derek Jeter for Wed 8/26 – Holland(L) for TX has been doing well lately —-but—-Jeter is 4 for 4 against him and is batting .379 in August. Also, Jeter is hitting .434 v. lefties and the game is in NY. I was considering Joe Mauer too.
Here we go again! In HR BTS Game – You can not pick a pitcher as a HR hitter – Cubs "slugging" pitcher Carlos Zambrano hit another HR tonight. His 4th of the season. I took Derek Lee of Cubs in HR BTS game and he is 0 – 2 so far. When your HR streak is at zero why not take a wild shot and pick a guy like Zambrano – come on "King" give us pitchers to pick from too.
Migeul Cabrera is on fire – going with him and not Jeter – Holland(L) of TX has been doing very well this month.
My new theory is to stay away from hot hitter v. hot pitcher.
good luck today!
The 5 hitters that I'm considering today are Jeter, LaRoche of the Braves, Pedroia, Markakis, and Braun. I'm going with Jeter to get me to 12.


text:
Can you explain why there has been no scientific evolutionary experiments in the history of science?
Just to get the ball rolling, while many evolutionists claim there have been hundreds of thousands of such experiments not one actually qualifies s evolutionary.
I guess AHR is ignorant because he can't logically and rationally reply to the above statement.


text:
Charlotte chatter: Long, green-flag runs lead to frustration
CONCORD, N.C. -- In a race with no multi-car accidents, drivers were pretty much mad at themselves, their teams or their cars Saturday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
But that still led to some interesting talking on the scanner and then on Twitter afterward.
MORE: Charlotte winners and losers | Results | Chase standings
Here is some of the best chatter during and after the Bank of America 500:
Dale Earnhardt Jr. on having trash on his grille: "It's not coming off."
Crew chief Steve Letarte: "260 (degrees)?"
Earnhardt: "Way over."
Letarte: "Pit. Pit this time!"
Earnhardt: "All right. I think I got it -- it came off right there."
Letarte: "Good call. Get back in your rhythm."
Kevin Harvick to crew chief Gil Martin: "It's (expletive) terrible. It gets worse every lap. Gil, freaking square off the wall down to the bottom and then it gets tight."
Crew chief Kenny Francis to Kasey Kahne when Brad Keselowski had his jack stuck to car: "I heard there was some debris out there like a jack, so keep your eyes open."
Kahne: "Okay"
Spotter Kevin Hamlin: "There might be a jack on the racetrack somewhere, I'm not exactly sure where it's at."
Francis: "Chad (Knaus) told Jimmie (Johnson). I'm not sure where it's at. If there is one."
Kahne: "I don't see it. ... What did you say about Jimmie?"
Francis: "That's what Chad told Jimmie. He said there's a jack out there he thought."
Hamlin: "It was wedged under the 2 car."
Martin Truex Jr. on Greg Biffle: "Can you tell the 16 drove into the (expletive) side of my car?"
And then about his car: "I have no idea. Really loose in, really tight in the center and I don't what the (expletive) it's going to do on each lap."
Jeff Gordon on his car: "I'm getting smoked getting into the center. I can't carry any speed and expect it to turn. I have to really stop it. ... Absolutely plowing, guys. We're in big trouble."
Kyle Busch on trying to lap Danica Patrick: "I swear, every time I get behind her she turns into a (expletive) race-car driver."
Spotter Tony Hirschman: "She's racing Kyle Busch!"
Busch: "I ain't (expletive) if I ain't leading."
Spotter Rick Carelli to Kurt Busch: "The car is obviously way too loose, correct?"
Kurt Busch: "Like somebody put banana peels all over the track just for us because we're (expletive) sideways everywhere."
Kyle Busch on engine: "I'm stumbling"
Crew chief Dave Rogers: "I know bud. We're talking about it. I can't figure it out."
Busch: "It never ceases to amaze me."
Crew chief Chad Knaus after final pit stop where Johnson came out third but thought he was second: "All right man, how do you like them apples, here, pal."
Brad Keselowski after win: "Awesome."
Roger Penske: "Great job there, bud, great job Paul."
Crew chief Paul Wolfe: "Yeah buddy. It's been a tough year, man. I appreciate you hanging in there. Everybody on this team has been working hard. I feel we've turned the corner here."
Keselowski: "Thank you buddy. Thank you guys. Thank you everybody."
Spotter Joey Meier: "They want you to go to victory lane because you won the freakin' race buddy."
Keselowski: "Hell yeah, Joey. Hell yeah."
Kasey Kahne (@KaseyKahne): "5 team was so good tonight. Thanks for the awesome car guys."
Kevin Harvick (@KevinHarvick): "Holy cow that was a long night. Everyone kept their heads in it & we avoided a disaster. @Jimmyjohns"
Steve Letarte (@SteveLetarte): "Very disappointing finish. Good car to start. Crazy tight for last third of race. No idea why. No adjustments helped. Found nothin post race ... The Red Sox being shut out at Fenway basically sums up my night."
Denny Hamlin (@DennyHamlin): "Baby steps"


text:
You've successfully registered on Marisa Bridals!
Now you can manage your favorite styles, place and process orders.
When you'll feel like it, please fill free to complete your profile
Please enter email address, so we can let you back in the event of logout. You'll be able to complete your profile, set up password, etc, later:
Error text
Please enter your email address so we can select login method:
Error text
You haven't set password to your account yet. To log in, please click here and we will send you email contains temporary login link.
Please enter password:
We are unable to find this email in our database. Please check your spelling or sign up, using form above or one of our social network buttons below


text:
'Much hope' as Bartlett native revamps schools in Kenya
Had Toni Maraviglia bothered to show up at Berkeley to get that MBA, she might not have time to talk these days, what with all her high-powered business meetings with movers and shakers. But that's not why the 29-year-old Bartlett native is hard to reach.
"Sorry, I was out in the bush," Maraviglia says by telephone over the din of colorful birds outside a hotel in Nairobi. She apologizes for not having access to email the last several days spent in rural villages of Kenya where she works on the innovative education initiative she's launched.
Africa is where she belongs and, while her brain must focus on business matters as co-founder and CEO of MPrep, "I will ALWAYS consider myself a teacher at heart," Maraviglia says.
After graduating summa cum laude from UCLA, the political science major moved to New York in 2005 and taught with Teach For America in a public school in Harlem, eventually taking a job with that agency managing teachers in the South Bronx. She spent 2008 and 2009 helping to start a successful education program in rural Kenya, before returning to teach writing at a charter school in Harlem.
In 2011, she was accepted into the prestigious Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley.
"I had already put down a deposit and had an apartment," recalls Maraviglia. But she craved a summer vacation to Kenya to see her old friends before starting business school.
And that's when she got hooked on the idea of using cellphones to help teach children living in rural Kenya, where class sizes typically are more than 60 students per teacher and traditional learning supplies are scarce.
"Seeing a huge opportunity to reach remote areas like my 'dala,' (the Luo tribal language word for "home") I decided to drop out of business school and pursue the idea," says Maraviglia, who notes that she felt at home in rural Muhuru Bay, Kenya. "OK. Let's just see where this goes for the next two months."
Now she's the CEO of MPrep, which has enjoyed widespread success using old cellphones to let students take quizzes and study tutorials through text messages. The program now is used by more than 10,000 students and has agreements with many key educational groups across Kenya. "I feel like I fell into something great," Maraviglia says. "I feel really fortunate and lucky. The stars aligned."
Others have noticed.
"We were really impressed with Toni, her passion and her understanding of the complexities," says Banks Benitez, vice president of partnerships for the Unreasonable Institute, a visionary business group that brings entrepreneurs, mentors and investors together for a six-week session to work on "world-changing ventures." The name comes from a George Bernard Shaw's observation that "all progress depends on the unreasonable man."
Competing with 237 applicants from 47 nations, MPrep earned one of 14 spots at this year's Unreasonable Institute in Colorado but must raise $16,500 by midnight Wednesday to pay the tuition and other costs for Maraviglia and co-founder Kago Kagichiri.
Most of the people involved in the group are in their 20s and use social media and new methods to approach problems that plagued earlier generations. MPrep is collecting donations online at marketplace.unreasonableinstitute.org/campaign/detail/829 by using a crowdfunding program called Launcht.com, where CEO Freeman White of Vermont connected with Maraviglia and supports her social cause.
In its first three years, the Unreasonable Institute has worked with 70 ventures in 36 countries, helped raise $26.7 million and has a success rate of 71 percent, says Benitez, who is 25.
Maraviglia says her success so far wouldn't be possible without the support of her family (mom Leigh Aumiller of Plainfield and dad Jim Maraviglia of San Luis Obispo, Calif.) and her upbringing in Bartlett. She still keeps in touch (when she has access) with Shawn McCusker, her anthropology teacher at Bartlett High School, where Maraviglia was a member of the poms dance team.
In Africa, she's lived in places with no electricity and plenty of prostitution. She's seen people get sick from malaria, typhoid, AIDS and cholera. When she lived in a hut near a lake, people had to fetch their water in jugs.
"We'd say, 'Look, our running water,' and it would be the donkey running with the water," Maraviglia says with a laugh. At times, her new home seems far way from suburbia.
"I miss little things like the ice cream trucks. I miss the big, beautiful lawns and green grass," says Maraviglia. Rural Kenya, with its chaotic, dusty dirt roads, "looks like 1849 California with cars and cellphones," she says. That "Wild West" atmosphere means she has to watch her valuables and be smart, she adds, saying that a laptop containing many of her photographs was stolen last year.
She also tells of great friendships and peaceful visits to scenic places such as Lake Naivasha, where she learned that baby hippos sometimes stand on their mamas' backs. "It basically looks like 'The Lion King,'" she says.
But education, whether in Bartlett, Harlem or Kenya, has the same goals and issues, she says.
"If parents feel like a school has given up on them, then they disengage," Maraviglia says. Kids need to see how an education can help them in life. Communication is key.
Even in Kenya's remote villages, almost every family has access to a cellphone, and MPrep now can show that kids who use those phones for part of their education do better in schools. Maraviglia is hoping to find ideas and funding through the Unreasonable Institute to keep MPrep growing.
"In rural Africa, there is so much hope. People want to learn and educate themselves," Maraviglia says. "Sometimes I feel as if I see decades of growth in a few months. Kenyans are so creative and entrepreneurial. I love it. I feel like I thrive in that."


text:
Good Bread: Free Bread's Gluten-Free Rolls and Loaves
Stories about the loaves we love.
People seem to shun gluten for a number of reasons. A doctor may diagnose them with celiac disease and tells them to avoid all proteins deriving from wheat and similar grains. Some may not have a full-blown disease but suffer from intolerances or allergies. Some are looking to cut out or down on refined carbs. And some are heeding the siren call of self-proclaimed nutrition experts telling them that gluten is the root of all evil and that cutting it out will cure everything from cancer to mental illness. In all cases, they have to make a choice: Suffer a World Without Bread, or buy the gluten-free alternatives. After Karen Freer was diagnosed with celiac in 2007, she found the former unthinkable, but the latter wasn't exactly attractive either:
"I was bummed out, because I missed bread. I didn't like the gluten-free breads out there, so I started making my own bread. My friends said they'd buy it, gluten-free or not. That's when I started Free Bread."
Karen bought an oven and a mixer, got a gluten-free certificate, and began to get her products into stores. In 2012, she teamed up with Sarah Black, an industry veteran who was a founder of Tom Cat Bakery and had just left her job as head baker at Fairway Markets. They found space in a Long Island City food incubator and began to expand and perfect their line of loaves. Like all gluten-free bakers, they faced the challenge of making a product that had the taste and texture of real bread with a list of ingredients that had very different properties than traditional grains. Today, they sell their rolls in Whole Foods and other markets, and also to fill breadbaskets at restaurants like Le Bernardin and Telepan.
What's New On Serious Eats
The flagship of the Free Bread line is its Moxy roll, the name derived from millet, oats, and flax seed. Karen developed it to fill her craving for "hearty, whole grain bread, something with a little tooth in it." Like all gluten-free products, the list of its ingredients is long, including various kinds of rice flour, tapioca and arrowroot flours, olive oil, egg, molasses, agave nectar, xanthan gum, yeast, and salt, in addition to millet, oats, and flax. The bread has nutty, wheaty aroma and a satisfying density to the chew, very similar to those German whole-grain health breads. For a newbie, the only drawback is the price—$8.49 for a pack of three large rolls at Whole Foods. Welcome to the world of gluten-free, where loaves cost a lot more because their ingredients are lot more expensive than simple flour, water, salt, and yeast. (Free Bread will soon be selling more reasonably priced packs of sliced Moxy Pullman loaves.)
In addition to being gluten-free, Free Bread products are also nut-free, so they couldn't make their version of a traditional dried fruit and walnut loaf—unless they got rid of the nuts. Voila the Cranny Pep ($8.49 for three rolls). Even denser than the Moxy, this dark, slightly sweet bread is made from a half dozen exotic flours (garbanzo bean, teff, arrowroot, tapioca, coconut, and sorghum), dried cranberries, sunflower and pumpkin seeds, spices, molasses, agave nectar, eggs, olive oil, xanthan gum, yeast, and salt. With its chewy texture and cranberry-spice flavor, the Cranny Pep makes a great breakfast bread and probably would be a good base for cheese as well.
Finally, Free Bread's Jalaa! ($8.49 for three rolls) fills the gluten-free cheese bread niche. The cheese is a sharp cheddar given an added zing from a liberal dose of jalapeno peppers added to the dough. This is the lightest and fluffiest of Free Bread's products. I suppose you could top it with even more cheese, but I prefer to toast it and cover it with a liberal spread of good butter.
All of Free Bread's loaves are made without chemical mold inhibitors and other preservatives. (I generally don't advise freezing breads, but at gluten-free prices I give you absolution.) They're available at Whole Foods and many area health food and gourmet markets and in an increasing number of restaurants.
Free Bread
All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.


text:
States Struggle to Pay Unemployment Trust Fund Debt
The more than $26 billion in lingering debt has gained little notice, but forced states to scale back unemployment benefits, raise taxes, tap general funds and even turn to the private bond market.
More than $26 billion in lingering debt and billions in mounting interest have forced a number of states to scale back unemployment benefits, raise taxes, tap general funds and even turn to the private bond market as they look to shore up unemployment insurance trust funds that plunged into the red during the Great Recession.
And now, years removed from the depth of the crisis, there's concern that some of funds are being refilled so slowly -- if at all -- that certain states could be in an even worse position when the next downturn comes, compounding a problem that's plagued them for years.
On Sept. 30, 18 states and the Virgin Islands paid about $2 billion in interest to the federal government to cover debts remaining from tens of billions in loans taken during the worst of the Great Recession to cover shortfalls in trust funds.
The payment, and the debts themselves, have gained little notice outside a certain circle of analysts, state officials and federal actuaries. But the fact is that states still have $26 billion in debts, and some say the longer the red ink remains, the harder it will be for them to climb back into solvency.
"The states have a fundamental problem: They're not funding these trust funds appropriately," Mike Evangelist, of the National Employment Law Project, says. "You just keep digging the hole deeper, you keep losing more. It is a compounding problem."
Designed to cover unemployment benefits in states, the trust funds ebb and flow with the economy. The funds comprise taxes on both employers and wages, and ideally would remain flush during a strong economy and be drawn down when unemployment spikes.
But that didn't happen before the Great Recession, or downturns before it. As the National Employment Law Project has found, 31 states cut unemployment insurance taxes by at least a fifth from 1995 to 2005. Making matters worse, the average contribution to funds hit historical lows from 2000 to 2009.
All told, states borrowed nearly $50 billion from Washington during the recession to cover jobless benefits. That figure's been halved in the years that followed, but many still have significant debt, and many are still borrowing. And as the economy continues to grow slowly, with the threat of another dip into recession always present, some are sounding the alarm that this is just the latest example in a long trend of mismanagement.
Still, some states weathered the Great Recession's toll on their funds with stimulus-backed, interest-free federal loans. But those ended in 2010, and a year later states still owed nearly $40 billion. And today, many big states still have substantial debts. California, for example, has nearly $10 billion, while New York has $3.1 billion. North Carolina stands at nearly $2.5 billion, while Ohio and Indiana are carrying more than $1.7 billion each.
Historically low interest rates have kept costs manageable. But as Stateline has reported, many states have automatic business tax hikes that go into effect if states fail to pay back their debts.
Others have slashed benefits: Florida linked benefits to the state's unemployment rate in an effort to cut costs, reduce benefits and replenish its fund. That's meant some of the most restrictive unemployment benefits in the country, but it's also helped to reduce its debt by more than $1 billion since August 2011.
"They're imposing sacrifices on claimants because of the debts," Wayne Vroman of the Urban Institute, who has studied unemployment trust funds, says of states' actions. "States are being quite slow in paying things off, and in some cases they're putting off their payments."
An increasing number of states have also turned to a relatively novel -- and controversial --approach to cover their debts: the private bond market. So far, six states have issued bonds for their debt, totaling nearly $10 billion, on top of the $26 billion owed to the federal government.
More are expected to take that approach. The hope is that they'll get better terms from private investors, and so far, credit rating agencies have viewed the bonds favorably. But some say the private market simply offers a false sense of fiscal security.
"Bonding is not the panacea that most departments of Labor are selling it as," the NELP's Evangelist says. "They pretend like they bond and these debts go away."
The Urban Institute's Vroman agrees, calling the number of states turning to the private market "unprecedented."
"Basically they've swapped one form of debt for another," he says. "The problem is what the states are doing to their own funds."
And that remains the problem. Just as insufficient reserves cost states ahead of the Great Recession, some are now in an even weaker position should another downturn take hold.
"The fact is that there's going to be another recession in the near future, and we'll be right back where we were," Evangelist says. "You just keep moving backward."
The news hasn't been uniformly dire, particularly for those states that have reduced their debts. New Hampshire, for example, was facing a nearly insolvent fund during the recession and instituted an emergency surcharge to close the gap, a measure that was repealed this week. Others managed to avoid borrowing entirely.
But it seems for every recovering state, there's one still drowning in debt. As the recession has focused attention on unemployment insurance, calls for the federal government to step in are growing. But there's no consensus on what Washington should do to help the states. And even if there were, some say, there's even less political will to do it.
"The big question is what part does the federal government play in this? Clearly left to their own devices, the states are not capable of financing this responsibly," Evangelist says. "But no one really talks about this. It's hard to get people interested in financing unemployment insurance."
We invite you to discuss and comment on this article using social media.