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Luhmann and Systems Theory
Mathias Albert
The German sociologist Niklas Luhmann has provided one of the most elaborate theories of society available, as well as numerous works on specific aspects of society. Commonly labeled as "systems theory," this is but a shorthand description of Luhmann's theory. In fact, the theory rests on at least three main theoretical pillars. In addition to systems theory, a theory of social evolution and a theory of social differentiation play important roles. The present article introduces these three pillars and describes Luhmann's theory of politics in this context. It outlines the crucial difference between a theory of politics as part of a theory of society on the one hand, and political theory as a reflective theory within the political system on the other hand. More specifically, it introduces Luhmann's accounts of the notions of "political power," "differentiation," "the state," "political steering," and "the self-description of the political system." The contribution concludes with some observations on the fact that Luhmann's theory has tended to overlook the dimension of international politics, but that his theory provides opportunities to account for it in innovative ways.
Political Representation: From Classical Research Traditions to Comparative Perspectives
Jean-Pascal Daloz
The literature on political representation is split between research traditions that have remained largely separate: a philosophical normative strand, a behavioralist one focusing mainly on the roles held by representatives, and a third, more distinctly sociological one concerned primarily with issues of representativeness. These classical perspectives have been extended through the introduction of new dimensions into the analysis. The normative tradition has thus been able to formulate novel questions by considering, for instance, issues relating to the representation of nonhuman species or of future generations. Present-day writings on political representation also depart from accepted premises by integrating additional infra-institutional forms of representation. Similarly, a postmodern vein of thought has drawn increased attention to the fluidity of the processes involved and a rather hybrid literature has emerged that combines empirical and normative ambitions. Despite claims by some analysts to have renewed approaches on the topic, there are not so much major theoretical innovations as developments relating to the dynamics of political representation itself in the contemporary era. It is important to realize that much of the analysis of political representation has been couched in very general terms and that the field itself suffers from a lack of serious comparative work. In this respect, more inductive explorations are needed into the perceptions of representation (too often reduced to mere constructivist mechanisms), the concrete logics of accountability, and the "theatrical" dimension of the relationship—in all of which there has been underinvestment by political scientists.
Social Structure and Voting Choice
Oddbjørn Knutsen
The linkage between voters and political parties is to some degree based on stable social cleavages. Such cleavages express important and lasting societal divisions, allow parties and voters to establish long-term ties, and provide incumbents with clear representative and policy-making tasks against which they can be evaluated. Most research on cleavages has been based on the classic cleavages that were outlined in the Lipset-Rokkan model for social cleavages in industrial societies. These are:
(1) the center–periphery cleavage, which is anchored in geographical regions and related to different ethnic and linguistic groups as well as religious minorities; (2) the religious conflict between the Church and the State, which pitted the secular state against the historical privileges of the churches; this cleavage has more recently polarized the religious section against the secular section of the population; (3) the class conflict in the labor market, which involved owners and employers versus tenants, laborers, and workers; and (4) the conflict in the commodity market between buyers and sellers of agricultural products, or more generally, between the urban and the rural population.
Other social cleavages, such as gender, educational differences, and new divisions within the large new middle class, have been focused upon during the last decades. The new divisions within the new middle class are "horizontal" conflicts and can be conceptualized as a basic conflict between public and private employees, and as an alternative way of conceptualization, between those who work within technical, organizational, or interpersonal service environments.
Some of the cleavages have declined in importance over time, while others have increased. Some cleavages have changed character such as the class cleavage where part of the new middle class has voted for the New Left and part of the working class has voted for the New Right in the last decades. Changes in the impact and character of different cleavages have resulted in strategic reconsideration of important policies and changing location of the parties in the political space.
What is Political Participation?
Jan W. van Deth
Vibrant democracies are characterized by a continuous expansion of the available forms of participation. This expansion has confronted many researchers with the dilemma of using either a dated conceptualization of participation excluding many new modes of political action or stretching their concept to cover almost everything. Demarcation problems are especially evident for many newer, "creative," "personalized," and "individualized" modes of participation such as political consumption, street parties, or guerrilla gardening, which basically concern nonpolitical activities used for political purposes. Moreover, the use of Internet-based technologies for these activities ("connective action") makes it almost impossible to recognize political participation at first sight. Because social, societal, and political developments in democratic societies have made the search for a single encompassing definition of political participation obsolete, an alternative approach is to integrate the core features of political participation in a conceptual map. Five modes cover the whole range of political participation systematically and efficiently, based on the locus (polity), targeting (government area or community problems), and circumstance (context or motivations) of these activities. While the rise of expressive modes of participation especially requires the inclusion of contextual information or the aims and goals of participants, attention is paid to the (dis)advantages of including these aspects as defining criteria for political participation. In this way, the map offers a comprehensive answer to the question "what is political participation" without excluding future participatory innovations that are the hallmark of a vibrant democracy.


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(The dates prefixed to the plays are those of first performance)
Before 1623. The Duke of Millaine. A Tragedie. As it hath beene often acted by his Majesties servants, at the blacke Friers. 1623.
Before 1623. The Unnaturall Combat. A Tragedie. The Scaena Marsellis. Written by Philip Massinger. As it was presented by the Kings Majesties Servants at the Globe. 1639.
1623. The Bond Man: An Ancient Storie. As it hath been often Acted with good allowance, at the Cock-pit in Drury-lane: by the most excellent Princesse, the lady Elizabeth her Servants. 1624. Rptd. 1719 with a second title Love and Liberty.
1624. The Renegado, A Tragaecomedie. As it hath beene often acted by the Queenes Majesties servants, at the private Play-house in Drurye-Lane. 1630.
1624. The Parliament of Love. A Comedy. Licensed for the stage on 3 June, 1624, and acted 3 November, 1624, at the Cockpit, Drury Lane. First ptd. by Gifford in 1805 from a MS. belonging to Malone.
Before 1626. A New Way To Pay Old Debts. A Comoedie. As it hath beene often acted at the Phoenix in Drury-Lane, by the Queenes Majesties servants. 1633.
1626. The Roman Actor. A Tragoedie. As it hath divers times beene, with good allowance Acted, at the private Play-house in the Black-Friers, by the Kings Majesties Servants. 1629.
The Maid of Honour. As it hath beene often presented with good allowance at the Phoenix in Drurie-Lane, by the Queenes Majesties Servants. 1632.
1627. The Great Duke of Florence. A Comicale Historie. As it hath beene often presented with good allowance by her Ma[char] Servants at the Phoenix in Drurie-Lane. 1636.
1629. The Picture. A Tragecomedie, As it was often presented with good allowance, at the Globe, and Blacke-Friers Play-houses, by the Kings Majesties servants. 1630.
1631. The Emperour Of The East. A Tragae-Comoedie. The Scaena Constantinople. As it hath bene divers times acted, at the Black-friers, and Globe Play-houses, by the Kings Majesties Servants. 1632.
1631. Believe as you list. A Comedy. Entered on the Stationers books 9 September, 1653, and, again, 29 June, 1660, but not printed. First ptd. in 1849 (see Sec. II B post).
1632. The City Madam, A Comedie. As it was acted at the private House in Black Friers with great applause. 1658.
1633. The Guardian, a Comical History. As it hath been acted by the Kings players at the Private-house in Black-fryers. 1655. [This and the two plays following were published in one volume for Humphrey Moseley under the title: Three New Playes.]
1634. A Very Woman. A Tragi-Comedy. As it hath been often Acted at the Private-House in Black-Friers, by his late Majesties Servants, with great Applause. 1655.
1636. The Bashful Lover. A Tragi-Comedy. As it hath been often Acted at the Private-House in Black-Friers, by his late Majesties Servants, with great Applause. 1655.
(With Dekker.) Lic. 1620. The Virgin Martir, A Tragedie, As it hath bin divers times publickely Acted with great Applause, By the servants of his Majesties Revels. Written by Philip Messenger and Thomas Deker. 1622. Other editions.
(With Nathaniel Field.) The Fatall Dowry: A Tragedy. As it hath been often Acted at the Private House in Blackefryers by his Majesties Servants. Written by P. M. and N. F. 1632.
As to the plays in which Massinger co-operated with Fletcher, see Appendix and bibliography to Chap. V, ante (Beaumont and Fletcher).
As to The Old Law, ptd. in 1656 as by Massinger, Middleton and William Rowley, see bibliography to Chap. III, ante (Middleton and Rowley).
A. Collected Works
Works. Ed. Coxeter, T. 4 vols. 1759. Re-issued 1761, with an introduction by Davies, T.
Dramatic Works. Ed. Mason, T. M. 4 vols. 1779.
Plays. Ed. Gifford, W. 4 vols. 1805, 1813, 1850. [The Standard edition.]
Plays. From the Text of Wm. Gifford. With the Addition of Believe as you List. Ed. Cunningham, F. 1870.
B. Selections and Single Plays
Philip Massinger. Ed. Symons, A. (Mermaid Series.) 2 vols. 18879, 1904. [Contains: The Duke of Milan; A New Way to pay Old Debts; The Great Duke of Florence; The Maid of Honour; The City Madam; The Roman Actor; The Fatal Dowry; The Guardian; The Virgin Martyr; Believe as you list.]
Believe as you List. Now first printed. Ed. Croker, T. Crofton. Percy Soc. Publ., vol. XXVII. 1849.
Sir John van Olden Barnavelt [by Massinger and Fletcher]. Bullens Old English Plays, vol. II, pp. 201 ff.
C. Non-Dramatic Poems
Grosart, A. B. Literary Finds in Trinity College, Dublin, and elsewhere. Engl. Stud., vol. XXVI, pp. I ff. [Contains: The Copy of a Letter written upon occasion to the Earl of Pembroke, Lord Chamberlain; A New Years gift presented to Lady Katherine Stanhope, now Countess of Chesterfield, and the lines to J. S. (James Smith).]
The Poems ptd. in vol. IV of Giffords ed. consist of the lines to Shirley on his comedy The Gratefull Servant, the lines To his Son, J. S. (James Smith) upon his Minerva, and the elegy addressed to Philip earl of Pembroke, on the death of his son Charles, lord Herbert.
Beck, C. Philip Massinger, The Fatall Dowry. Einleitung zu einer neuen Ausgabe. Baireuth, 1906.
Boyle, R. Beaumont, Fletcher and Massinger. Engl. Stud., vol. v, p. 47; vol. VII, p. 66; vol. VIII, p. 39; vol. IX, p. 209; vol. X, p. 383.
Casserley, A. L. A Note on Massinger. Westminster Review, vol. CLII. Oct., 1899.
Gardiner, S. R. The Political Element in Massinger. The Contemporary Review, August, 1876, vol. XXVIII, pp. 495 ff.; rptd. in N. Shaksp. Soc. Trans., 18756, pp. 314 ff.
Gaspary, A. Allgemeine Aussprüche in den Dramen Philip Massingers. Marburg, 1890.
Gerhardt, E. Massingers The Duke of Milan und seine Quellen. Halle, 1905.
Grack, W. Studien über die dramatische Behandlung der Geschichte von Herodes und Mariamne in der englischen und deutschen Literatur. Königsberg, 1904.
Heckmann, T. Massingers The Renegado und seine spanischen Quellen. Halle, 1905.
Koeppel, E. Quellenstudien zu den Dramen George Chapmans, Philip Massingers und John Fords. Quellen und Forschungen zur Sprach- und Culturgeschichte der germanischen Völker, vol. LXXXII. Strassburg, 1897.
Merle, A. Massingers The Picture und Painter. Vol. II, nov. 28. Halle, 1905.
Morris, E. C. On the Date and Composition of The Old Law. Publications of the Modern Language Association of America, vol. XVII, p. I. 1902.
Oliphant, E. H. The Works of Beaumont and Fletcher. Engl. Stud., vol. XIV, pp. 53 ff.
Phelan, J. Philip Massinger. Anglia, vol. II, p. I. 1879. Cf. Furnivall, ibid., p. 504.
Raebel, K. Massingers Drama, The Maid of Honour, in seinem Verhältniss zu Painters Palace of Pleasure, vol. II, nov. 32, unter Berücksichtigung der übrigen Quellen. Halle, 1901.
Shands, H. A. Massingers The Great Duke of Florence, und seine Quellen. Halle, 1902.
Stephen, Sir L. Philip Massinger. The Cornhill Magazine, October, 1877; rptd. in Hours in a Library, 3rd ed., vol. II, 1899.
Swinburne, A. C. Philip Massinger. The Fortnightly Review, July, 1889, New Series, vol. XLVI, pp. I ff.
Tréverret, A. de. étude sur Massinger. Revue de l'enseignement des langues vivantes, December, 1886, and January, 1887.
Wurzbach, W. von. Philip Massinger. Shakesp. Jahrb., vol. XXXV, p. 214; vol. XXXVI, p. 128
Cf. also Fleays Chronicle of the Stage, vol. I, pp. 164 ff.; Robert Boyle in Dict. of Nat. Biogr., vol. XXXVII, pp. 10 ff.; Ward, vol. III, pp. I ff.; Courthope, vol. IV, pp. 348 ff.
Cf. also Fleays Chronicle of the Stage, vol. I, pp. 164 ff.; Robert Boyle in Dict. of Nat. Biogr., vol. XXXVII, pp. 10 ff.; Ward, vol. III, pp. I ff.; Courthope, vol. IV, pp. 348 ff.

subset: commoncrawl


text: Crowds of excited people have poured into Washington for Barack Obama's second inauguration at President of the USA. Mr Obama raised his right hand and placed his left on Bibles once owned by Martin Luther King and Abraham Lincoln and swear the oath of office. The 44th US president launched his second term with a private swearing-in ceremony on Sunday, before basking in the full pomp of his office with public celebrations on Monday.Picture: Alex Wong/Getty Images


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Struggling Sounders hit the road to face RSL
Sandy, UT – Seattle Sounders FC have matched their poorest start to a season since the club's MLS inception in 2009, and the team hits the road to face Real Salt Lake on Saturday in hopes of ending its slide.
A 1-0 defeat against the San Jose Earthquakes last weekend was the club's fourth successive setback against the 'Quakes, and leaves the Sounders with just one goal scored in three games.
Despite the poor start to the campaign, Seattle head coach Sigi Schmid feels his team just needs a win to help restore confidence.
"It's just you need a result to help your team get confidence," Schmid said. "We've got guys who are pretty ambitious and driven, and when they don't get results, they get a little ornery. We've got to continue to have that hunger and turn that hunger into wins."
The Sounders will host Santos in the first leg of their CONCACAF Champions League semifinal on Tuesday, but first the club would love to get three points on the board in the league to kick start its season.
In Salt Lake, Seattle will be facing a familiar foe since the two sides have met in the postseason each of the last two years.
The Sounders emerged as 1-0 winners over the course of two legs last term, and that result continued a trend of scoring being at a premium.
Both games in the regular season last year between RSL and Seattle ended 0-0, and with both teams struggling to find offense this year, it may take just one goal for the winner.
The Sounders will get a number of key offensive players back this weekend after international duty as Obafemi Martins, Eddie Johnson and Mario Martinez should all be available, while veteran players Brad Evans and Shalrie Joseph are also close to returning after injury.
Reinforcements are on the way for Seattle, but Salt Lake will be a dramatically different side this weekend as well after head coach Jason Kreis was missing 11 players due to injury and international duty last time out in a 2-0 defeat to FC Dallas.
"We absolutely miss those guys. But, I have to say, I'm impressed with how well the rest of the guys did," Kreis said. "I thought Lovel [Palmer], Cole [Grossman] and Josh Saunders all had solid games. We made a lot of shifts and I thought the team took it quite well. I'm really happy about the effort. I'm disappointed in the result but I am pretty pleased with the guys' fight tonight."
After opening the season with a 2-0 win, RSL has scored one goal and earned one point from its last three matches.


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Always felt fascinated by the beauty of Argentine Tango?
Now is the time to take advantage of a fantastic offer and start learning from a native, passionate and worldly experienced tango dancer and teacher!
Start your tango experience with a 5-class beginner's pass for only $50 (value of $100)*
In these classes, you will learn the fundamentals of Argentine Tango. We start with exercises developing balance, coordination and body posture as a warm-up. We then continue with tango walking, lead and follow communication, navigation on the dance floor, musicality and basic "figures" or "steps". After 5 classes, you will know basic steps, understand better tango musicality and gained an improved confidence working with dance partners. Classes are always a lot of fun so come along and start your tango journey with Victoria Tango now!
What to wear
Please wear comfortable clothes and dancing shoes if possible. If you don't have dancing shoes, you could wear shoes that are secured around your foot and allow you to pivot. Otherwise, just wear a pair of socks!
This is an ongoing class run on a weekly basis. There are no fixed terms. Anyone is welcome to join at anytime.
A little more about the teacher
Leonel is an Argentine born Tango dancer who has had a long trajectory of Tango dancing, teaching and DJ-ing in Buenos Aires, Canada and Sydney. Prior to Melbourne becoming his 'home', Leonel studied Tango in Buenos Aries with a string of profound Tango dancers and Maestros, developing his traditional Tango style, and teaching at one of the most traditional Milongas in Buenos Aires, 'La Confiteria Ideal'. Leonel actively continues to develop and refine his Tango based on the traditional Tango technique while pushing boundaries with his own creative flare. He is a dedicated and attentive teacher, openly sharing his love of Tango and developing his students into refined and stylish dancers. In 2012 he was placed in the top 100 of the Tango World Cup Championship on the category 'Tango de Pista' in Buenos Aries, Argentina.
*Beginner's pass are valid for 6 weeks after date of purchase.


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Michel Penneman: Mid-Century Style with an Edge
We discovered Belgian interior designer Michel Penneman through his work on the Pantone Hotel, then re-discovered him through the new Tenbosch House, a gorgeous B&B in Brussels that combines 60s Scandinavian furniture with 19th century architectural details. These are two examples of standout hotels and retail interiors in Michel's portfolio — although his style varies by project, Mid-Century furnishings appear frequently in contrast with traditional references.
For instance, the Vintage Hotel in Brussels combines elaborate molding and French doors with contemporary lighting and Mid-C furnishings like Saarinen and Eames chairs. At the White Hotel, a Componibili (designed in the 60s by Anna Castelli Ferrieri) shares lobby space with a custom bentwood counter and futuristic recessed lighting. In all his interiors, Penneman mixes eras and styles but keeps things simple, letting the architecture and the quality of the furnishings speak for themselves.
• 1-2 The Vintage Hotel, Brussels
• 3-4 Tenbosch House, Brussels
• 5 Art Collector's Apartment, Brussels
• 6 Be Fair, Brussels
• 7-8 15 M2 Sutdio, Brussels
• 9-10 The White Hotel, Brussels
Photos: The Vintage Hotel (1-2), Serge Anton | Tenbosch House (3-4), Michel Penneman (5-10)


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News Release
Joslin Study Shows Durability of Insulin Pump Therapy for Adolescents and Identifies Factors to Help Them Overcome Barriers to Success
BOSTON — October 31, 2006 — In spite of its many advantages, there are many challenges to using an insulin pump to treat type 1 diabetes. Despite these challenges, however, more and more youngsters are choosing pump therapy, even though important questions remain about the pump's effectiveness for this age group: With all its risks and demands, is it a method of treatment that children and teens can maintain? What causes adolescents to go off of pump therapy and how often does this occur? Is it possible to identify those youth unable to meet the demands of pump therapy and to find interventions that will help them succeed?
Now, in the first long-term investigation conducted among pediatric patients who chose to go on pump therapy (rather than using it as part of a clinical trial), a new study in the November issue of Diabetes Care by researchers in the Pediatric, Adolescent, and Young Adult Section at Joslin Diabetes Center, is providing answers. Following a group of 161 children and adolescents, ages 4-21, for an average of four years, the researchers have shown that with proper training and follow-up, for the great majority of patients—more than 80 percent of the children in this study—insulin pump therapy provides a lasting and effective mode of treatment. They also identified several factors that put patients at risk for failure in adapting to pump use.
"More than 130 patients were able to use the pump effectively," says senior author, Lori Laffel, M.D., M.P.H. , Chief of Joslin's Pediatric, Adolescent and Young Adult Section, an Investigator in the Genetics and Epidemiology Section and Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School. "By looking at differences between the patients who remained on pump therapy and those who returned to injected insulin, we were able to identify factors present even at the start of pump therapy that were predictive of failure. For example, patients who resumed injection therapy checked their blood glucose levels less often from the start. Healthcare providers can use this information to provide more education, more psychosocial support, and more frequent visits directed at increasing blood glucose monitoring from the start of pump therapy to help kids to succeed."
"The fact that such a high percentage of patients succeeded proves that pump therapy is a viable mode of treatment for children and teens with type 1 diabetes," says the paper's lead author, Jamie Wood, M.D., Staff Physician and Research Associate at Joslin and Instructor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School. "Our job now is to overcome the barriers to pump therapy, so more patients can benefit from its advantages."
Starting on an insulin pump requires considerable training. Before beginning pump therapy, patients in the study and their families met with their healthcare team that included a pediatric endocrinologist, a nurse educator and a registered dietitian. The team taught them the mechanics of using and maintaining the pump, how to count carbohydrates, calibrate their insulin requirements and treat risks associated with pump therapy, such as site infections, diabetic ketoacidosis and hypoglycemia (low blood glucose levels). A mental health clinician also met with the children and their families to ensure they were ready to meet any challenges and to help them set up realistic expectations for ongoing diabetes management with the pump.
At three points during the study—the clinical visit just before starting on the pump, one year after initiation, and then at the study's close in January 2005—researchers gathered data on A1C levels (a measurement that indicates the average blood glucose over the past 2 to 3 months), rate of daily blood glucose monitoring and growth parameters (height, weight and body-mass index). These data also were monitored at the time of discontinuation for patients who stopped using the pump.
Examining the data associated with success and failure, the researchers observed several significant differences between the two groups of patients, one of which was present at the initiation of pump therapy. "We found that patients who were successful measured their blood glucose levels four or more times a day before they began pump therapy, while those who discontinued pump therapy measured them less," says Dr. Wood.
They also discovered that the patients who stayed on the pump had achieved better glycemic control than the patients who discontinued pump therapy. After the first year on pump therapy, the A1C levels of the group that succeeded dropped significantly. Although these levels subsequently rose to near the levels they were at the start of pump therapy, the group still was able to avoid the deterioration of blood glucose control that happens frequently among adolescents. Caused by such factors as increases in growth and puberty hormones, or the declining adherence to good health practices that occurs as they become more independent from their parents, deteriorating glucose control puts youth at greater risk for developing serious complications later in life. The youth in the group that succeeded also experienced decreased rates of hypoglycemia with pump therapy.
The patients who later resumed injection therapy, however, experienced rising blood glucose levels while they were on the pump. Furthermore, while the rate of severe hypoglycemia before beginning pump therapy was similar between the two groups, in the year following the start of pump therapy the patients who discontinued pump therapy experienced a significantly higher rate of severe hypoglycemic episodes.
"Our research suggests several approaches for improving success rates with pump therapy," says Dr. Wood. "When you evaluate if a person is ready to begin pump therapy, and you can see he or she is monitoring blood glucose levels only two or three times a day, you can suggest that the patient take some extra time to increase monitoring frequency before starting the pump. Or if you have a patient who doesn't show improvement in glycemic control in the first six months of pump therapy, you can try to find out what is interfering with success and help overcome any barriers. Our goal is not to determine which patients should be denied pump therapy, but to make it possible for more people to succeed with this remarkable tool."
Also participating in the study were Britta M. Svoren, M.D., Deborah A. Butler, M.S.W., L.I.C.S.W., and Lisa K. Volkening of Joslin, and Elaine C. Moreland, M.D., previously at Joslin and now at the University of Alabama and Children's Hospital, in Birmingham. The study was funded in part by the Katherine Adler Astrove Youth Education Fund, the Maria Griffin Drury Pediatric Endowment Fund and grants from the National Institutes of Health.


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Saltburn By the Sea Paintball Site's Listing
Paintball Teesside11
20 minute drive from Saltburn By the Sea
Teesside is the closest Paintball site to Saltburn By the Sea
100 FREE Paintballs on Full Day Pay as You Play.
Set against the backdrop of the sweeping North Yorkshire Moors, the excellent Teesside paintball park is 15 acres of private woodland dedicated to electrifying combat action.
The venue boasts 8 incredible game zones, each with its own game rules and team objectives. You are a soldier, charged with a variety of missions. You'll defend the Alamo, conquer Hamburger Hill and cross A Bridge Over The River Kwai. All in a day's paintballing fun.
Teesside paintball is just to the south of Middlesbrough on the A171 between Nunthorpe and Guisborough. Middlesbrough, Hartlepool, Darlignton, Durham and Northallerton are all within easy striking distance of the site.
Full travel details provided on booking.
Alternative Venues Near Saltburn By the Sea
Paintball Yarm
Yarm is the closest Paintball site to Saltburn By the Sea
33 minute drive from Saltburn By the Sea
A brilliant outdoor site featuring a wide selection of excellently designed game zones, which throw up lots of challenges and explosive action. Get stuck into thrilling environments like The Bridge, The Castle, The Train and The Galleon.
100 FREE Paintballs!
Indoor Paintball Billingham, Teesside
34 minute drive from Saltburn By the Sea
Submerge yourself in an intense, competitive and authentic military experience as you battle your way through over 17,000 sq feet of custom-built war-zone!
100 FREE Paintballs!
Paintball Sedgefield
41 minute drive from Saltburn By the Sea
A huge woodland paintball arena with 9 terrific game zones to tackle. Get stuck into thrilling games like Rebel Forts, Vietnam Village, Dooley's Fortress and Black Hawk Down.
100 FREE Paintballs!
Paintball Darlington
50 minute drive from Saltburn By the Sea
A ten acre, mixed terrain facility on the site of a former WWII air base. This state of the art venue features exciting and detailed game zones like Trench Paintball, Alamo Paintball, Beach Landings and Sup'Air Paintball.
100 FREE Paintballs!
Paintball Scotch Corner
59 minute drive from Saltburn By the Sea
A superb site with a variety of game zones including The Village, Fort Petite, Netting Maze and Ma Baker's. You'll play a series of scenarios, there really is no better way to spend your birthday do, stag do, hen do, works do or any do for that matter. Get your session booked today.
100 FREE Paintballs!
Laser Combat Bishop Auckland
62 minute drive from Saltburn By the Sea
For an unrelenting and breathtaking laser combat experience, you really need look no further than our superb GoBallistic Bishop Auckland Laser Combat Centre that has some of the most rip-roaring action in the region! You and your mates will go head to head in an unforgettable laser scrap that will simply blow you away with its invigorating action! A brilliant woodland warzone, top class facilities and world class equipment combine to make our stunning venue one that you simply cannot afford to miss!
Paintball Scarborough, North Yorkshire
69 minute drive from Saltburn By the Sea
Boasting multiple man-made game zones, as well as top-of-the-range equipment, this epic outdoor arena on the outskirts of Scarborough has all the right ingredients for an unforgettable day of paintball!
100 FREE Paintballs!
Paintball Newcastle
99 minute drive from Saltburn By the Sea
Even Arnie couldn't handle the madcap action at our Newcastle site. It's a 200 acre paint-fest, full of bunkers, barricades and blistering missions like Grab The Bunker, Speedball and Free For All.
100 FREE Paintballs!
Paintball Hexham
114 minute drive from Saltburn By the Sea
A 20 acre battleground with 6 brilliant zones, mixing the natural woodland terrain with man made barricades and throwing in an abundance of action and fun. Venture into the zones with an army of your mates and complete a series of missions but watch out because the enemy are in there too and they're out to eliminate you.
Distances and drive times have been collated using third party software.
They are approximate and meant only as a guide.


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Brown Or PurpleBrown Or Purple (2006) - Purple And Brown Cartoon Episode Guide
This page has been viewed 38 times this month, and 1977 times total.
- Purple And Brown Cartoon Episode GuideEpisode GuideTelevisionSeriesCartoon
- Aardman Animations, NickToons
- Distributed by: Nickelodeon
- Cartoon Characters: Purple, Brown.
- Voice Actors: Richard Webber.
- Directed By Richard Webber.
- Produced By Ben Lock, Jacqueline White, Howard Litton, Miles Bullough, Peter Lord, David Sproxton.
- Written By Richard Webber.
- Awards: Nominee, BAFTA Children's Award, Short Form, Ben Lock and Rich Webber, 2006.
- Editor: Mike Percival.
- First Aired about 2006.
- Originally Aired on Nickelodeon (UK), Nicktoons (USA).
- Running Time: 1:41 minute.
- Color
- United Kingdom
Cartoon Summary:
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Cartoon Production Information:
Stop-motion clay animation.
An interstitial series aired irregularly.
Cartoon Video:
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Media Contact: Joanna Norris, Associate Director
Department of Public Relations
(904) 620-2102
The Coggin College of Business at the University of North Florida has been named an outstanding business school, according to The Princeton Review. The company features UNF's Coggin College in the new 2013 edition of its annual guidebook, "The Best 296 Business Schools." This is the sixth consecutive year Coggin College has earned this recognition.
"I am delighted that, once again, Princeton Review has recognized the excellent quality and value of our academic programs," said Dr. Ajay Samant, UNF Coggin College of Business dean. "We take pride in providing current, state-of-the-art knowledge complemented with a portfolio of enriching learning experiences."
"The Best 296 Business Schools" has two-page profiles of the schools with write-ups on academics, career and placement, student life and environment, and admissions, plus ratings for academic experience, admissions selectivity and career services. In the profile on UNF, the Princeton Review editors say "
MBA students laud the small classes" at Coggin College. The profile also says that inside the classroom, "professors are eager to facilitate learning."
"We consider UNF's Coggin College of Business as one of the best institutions a student could attend to earn an MBA," said Robert Franek, Princeton Review's senior vice president and publisher. "We selected the schools we profile in this book—280 of which are in the U.S. and 16 are international—based on our high regard for their academic programs and our reviews of institutional data we collect from the schools."
The Princeton Review's survey asked 19,000 students at the 296 schools their opinions of their school's academics, student body and campus life, as well as about themselves and their career plans. The student surveys analyzed for this edition were all completed online and conducted during the 2011-12, 2010-11 and 2009-10 academic years.
The Princeton Review doesn't rank the business schools in the book on a single hierarchical list from 1 to 296, or name one business school best overall.
Instead, the book has 11 ranking lists of the top 10 business schools in various categories. Ten lists are based entirely or partly on The Princeton Review's surveys of students attending the schools profiled in the book.
The Princeton Review,
, is known for its guides to colleges and to standardized tests, its classroom and online test-prep courses, tutoring and other education services.
In May 2006, Coggin College had two of its programs—Transportation and Logistics and International Business—selected as UNF flagship programs. Both business programs were selected because they are of the highest caliber and each has the potential to draw talented students from around the world, tackle cutting-edge research projects and help solve problems facing today's businesses. This recognition of excellence allows these business programs to grow and expand.
With more than 3,800 students, the Coggin College's mission is to educate and develop business professionals through rigorous, relevant accredited degree programs offered by faculty devoted to student learning and engaged in scholarly activities.
Since 1976, the Coggin College of Business has been accredited by AACSB—only one in five business schools are awarded the accreditation, which honors the best business schools in the world. The AACSB is the world leader in accreditation for business education.
This latest recognition comes on the heels of UNF receiving 17 other national designations, including Kiplinger's Personal Finance's List of 100 Best Values in Public Colleges for 2011-12; No. 19 Best Buy College, Best College in America (2012 and 2011) and Best College in the South, all by Forbes Magazine; 2012 Best Value Public College, Best College in the Southeast (2012 and 2013), 2012 President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, 2011 Best Value Public College and a top "Green" College by Princeton Review in 2011 and 2012; Best Regional University by U.S. News & World Report (2012 and 2011), Military Friendly School (2009-2012) and among the100 "Coolest Schools" by Sierra magazine.
UNF, a
nationally ranked
university located on an environmentally beautiful campus, offers students who are dedicated to enriching the lives of others the opportunity to build their own futures through a well-rounded education.


text: Jem Posted September 5, 2005 Stephenie LaGrossa Date Of Birth: December 6, 1979. Hometown: Philadelphia, PA Occupation: Pharmaceutical sales representative Marital Status: Single Biography One of five siblings born to Stephen and Marguerite, Stephenie LaGrossa is the youngest and only girl of the family to grow up in Briarcliff, Glenolden, a suburb of Pennsylvania. She graduated from Archbishop Prendergast High School, where she played varsity lacrosse, field hockey and swimming. After graduating, she attended Temple University in Philadelphia before transferring to Monmouth University in Long Branch, New Jersey. She played Division One Lacrosse at both universities and was a four-year starter. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in business administration with concentrations in marketing and management. She currently works as a territory sales representative for a pharmaceutical sales company and bartends part-time. LaGrossa enjoys yoga, Pilates, water sports and going to the beach. She describes herself as relentless, persuasive, extremely competitive, dramatic and friendly. She is most proud of being offered athletic and academic scholarships to two different universities and purchasing her own home when she was 23 years old. An avid lacrosse player in college, LaGrossa won many awards signifying her outstanding athleticism and leadership. At Monmouth University, she was the team captain her senior year, made the NEC Academic Honor Roll and the Dean's List. In addition, LaGrossa was a three-time NEC All-Conference selection, NEC Scholar/Athlete Award recipient and Female Athlete of the Year Nominee. LaGrossa is currently an active member of the Monmouth University Blue and White Club and continually involves herself with local high schools and Monmouth University to help coach local clinics. LaGrossa has been dating her boyfriend, Michael, for six years. She lives in Tom's River, New Jersey. Source Share this post Link to post Share on other sites


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Jessie J on Lesbian Rumors: 'Just Another Boring Untrue Story'
Pop diva Jessie J may have admitted her bisexuality last year, but the singer wants to clarify one thing. She is not a lesbian. A new unauthorized biography of the raven-haired British starlet purports that she was advised to conceal her sexual orientation in order to keep her record deal and so she wouldn't alienate or lose fans. Uh, no way, says JJ!
The tome, titled 'Jessie J: Who's Laughing Now,' was penned by Chloe Govan, who, according to WENN, alleged, "Jessie might have been with boys in the past – but she is 100 percent gay. Jessie was openly lesbian and didn't hide it. She was advised not to come out though. Certain people thought being bi was trendy, exotic and a fashion statement. It would increase her allure. Being gay would alienate people."
That's a controversial claim and something tells us that Jessie J could slap the book publisher with quite the lawsuit.
The 'Domino' singer took to Twitter to address the allegations. She offered the following message, dismissing all allegations, chalking it up to typical media misinformation.
She posted: "Its funny how many people I've datedslept with that I've never even met according to the tabloids. BUT what's that?! *whispers because its a secret* I'm really a lesbian?! Ha! Thanks for writing yet another boring untrue story. I thought I was still dating Tinie, NO Ellie G, NO Mark Wright….bla bla bla! #cantkeepup #noneofitstrue"
No matter gay, straight or bi, or lesbian, and no matter who she dates or doesn't, we love Jessie J all the same!


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Interview date: 08/05/2008/
Run date: 08/18/2008
Movies Home / Entertainment Channel / Bullz-Eye Home
After surviving the it-seemed-like-a-good-idea-at-the-time series that was ABC's "Big Shots," we would've forgiven Michael Vartan if he was currently camping outside J.J. Abrams' door, clutching a pitch for "Alias: The Next Generation," but we're even happier to announce that he's still out there, fighting the good fight as a film actor. As of this writing, he's only a few weeks away from shooting a comedy with David Cross ("Demoted"), but Bullz-Eye had a chance to speak with Vartan about a film of his which recently – and, it must be said, unjustly – went straight to video: "Rogue," an Australian-set horror flick about a giant crocodile, written and directed by "Wolf Creek" auteur Greg McLean. (Trust us, it's better than it sounds; the film contains gorgeous shots of the Australian wildlife and landscape which could fit easily into a Discovery Channel program.) Vartan spoke of his work on "Rogue," his excitement about "Demoted," regaled us with a few theories about why "Big Shots" didn't work, and let us in on the one plot twist he could never convince Abrams to do with Vaughn on "Alias."
Bullz-Eye: Hello?
Michael Vartan: Hey, is this Will?
BE: It is.
MV: Hey, man, it's Michael Vartan? How're you doing?
BE: I'm good…and I totally still need to get my digital recorder hooked up, so if you can give me just a second…?
MV: Oh, sure, man, sure. Modern technology, huh? Wonderful thing. So much for the days of the shorthand writer!
BE: And good for that, since I don't know the first thing about shorthand. If it wasn't for this recorder, you'd be listening to me typing frantically in the background while not really paying attention to anything that you're saying. Into the ear, onto the page, and on to the next question.
MV: (Laughs) I hear ya.
BE: Okay, we're good…and let me just start by saying that, man, "Rogue" was great! I was really pleasantly surprised! And I mean that in the best possible way. I just deal with so many straight-to-video horror movies that are so awful, but this was fantastic.
MV: Well, thank you! I appreciate that! We certainly like it. We certainly enjoyed doing it, and we were very disappointed at the way it was released in commercial life. But, hey, those are things that, as an actor, you really have no control over. So, y'know, moving on, moving forward. But, yeah, it's a movie that has a special place in my heart because of the shooting experience I had making it. But it's a really good movie! Y'know, I just like the way it's made, and I'm so happy that the guy doesn't get the girl in that awkward scene where they're about to be eaten by the croc! You know what I mean?
BE: (Laughs) Absolutely!
MV: In every movie, there's that scene. "Are you kidding? You're about to be devoured by a 24-foot animal, and you've got time to kiss and make out…? What is wrong with you people?" But, anyway. That was my favorite part in the script, by the way.
BE: Oh, really?
MV: Yeah, I called Greg, and I said, "They don't make out! This is awesome! You're the best!" Finally, a movie that's kind of real!
BE: Lord knows you don't see enough of those in the horror genre.
MV: And they're always falling down at the wrong moment, y'know? It's, like, the guy's been running for fifteen years, he's never slipped and tripped, but if a T. Rex is chasing him, you know he's going down!
BE: It was just gorgeous to look at, too. I presume it was equally gorgeous just to be there.
MV: It was absolutely jaw-dropping. We very, very early on got a sense that the landscape was one of the big stars of the movie. It's really hard to explain how beautiful the Northern territory is. It's the only place I've ever been to in my life where you actually get a sense of pre-history. It's remained unchanged for millions of years, and we were shooting in sacred Aboriginal ground – we were lucky enough to get a permit from the local tribe leaders – and these are places that arguably very, very few white people have ever seen, and it's absolutely breathtaking! And it's majestic, and it's just…it's wild, and it's scary, and it's beautiful, all at the same time. And to be there and to be shooting, surrounded by these real saltwater crocs…a little scary element was that if something happened to one of us, whether crew or cast or whatever, we were literally three hours from any hospital! (Laughs) But it was just a completely wild experience, and, yeah, the landscape was just breathtaking. It was just…well-captured, I think, in the film, especially in the opening sequence. It's just mesmerizing.
BE: What was your knowledge of Greg McLean prior to the film? Had you seen "Wolf Creek"? Were you aware of it?
MV: I saw it before…yeah, before I decided to do "Rogue," I went to see "Wolf Creek," just to see what this lunatic was all about. (Laughs) And that was one of the most disturbing and scariest movies I've seen in a very long time, and I was thrilled by that, of course. And he promised to give me a lot of those behind-the-back recorder shots that are so spooky, because you can totally tell what's going on with the character, and you don't need to have close-ups in every Hollywood movie, you know what I mean? (Laughs) But I'd just seen "Wolf Creek," and we had an hour or two long conversation on the phone, and he's the most easygoing, nicest, most ego-free guy. It was like talking to an old friend, and I thought, "Wow, it could be such a fun experience." I'd never been to Australia, so it was kind of a no-brainer for me.
BE: Yeah, actually, I was going to ask if you'd been there before.
MV: No, I hadn't. It's actually funny. The way my agent originally presented the project was not all that flattering. They said, "How do you feel about going to the Outback for four months and doing a giant crocodile movie?" And I said, "Well, I'd rather have needles in my eyes, frankly." (Laughs) But then, of course, I learned more about it. I read the script, which I loved, and I saw "Wolf Creek" and I got to speak to Greg, so that all changed very quickly, obviously.
BE: My wife's biggest suspension of disbelief that was required was that you had packed your laptop in your luggage. "Nobody does that," she said.
MV: (Laughs) Well, I am a travel writer, and I was writing an article on the Australian Outback, and of course they lost my bags at the airport.
BE: Right, true, but I think her thought was that, as a travel writer, you would've had your laptop on the plane with you.
MV: Oh, I see. Yeah, that's true. He probably wouldn't put it in his bag. Well, you'll need to talk to Greg on that one!
BE: I'll be sure to ring him up after we wrap up here. So I wanted to ask you about "Big Shots."
MV: Yeah?
BE: Actually, I was at the panel for the show at last summer's TCA tour.
MV: Oh, at the Beverly Hilton?
BE: Exactly. In fact, I was the one who caused one of your co-stars to jump up frantically and start yelling at me. (Writer's note: For the story, click here and scroll down to where I speak of the Panelist Who Found Me the Least Helpful.)
MV: (Deadpan) I cannot imagine which one of them that would be.
BE: I'm sure you cannot. (Laughs) And, yet, it was ironic, because all I was doing was following up on a comment he'd made in an interview I'd done with him, where he mentioned that he hadn't really liked "Big Shots" for the title of the show, and that there had been other suggestions out there.
MV: Oh, yeah. None of us liked it.
BE: But when I brought that up, he thought I was ragging on him when I really wasn't.
MV: Oh, I see. Well, y'know, I'm not going to say anything bad about it, because now it's in the past, but that certainly wasn't a highlight of my career. So we'll leave it at that. It was a great group of people to work with, but it just wasn't coming together, and you've got to know when to cut your losses. And we did. But… (lowering his voice) …you could kind of blame it on the writer's strike, which is what we did!
BE: (Laughs) Which is actually what I figured you'd do!
MV: No, no. Listen, we're in…this business is crazy. It's such a weird business. We're not curing cancer, we're not feeding kids, and everyone takes it so seriously. I think sometimes the truth needs to be told. It's what it is. It just wasn't a good show, end of story. It's no one's fault, particularly. I think sometimes things just don't come together, and you've got to move on. It's not an accusation or a blame. It's just the way it is. And I'm shocked at the amount of people who come up to me and say, "I loved the show!" And I say, "What were you smoking when you watched it?"
BE: (Laughs) Well, I liked the pilot, and I thought there was a lot of potential for chemistry there.
MV: There was a lot…a lot…of potential, and we fought for it for a very, very long time, and then finally realized that it wasn't going to happen, and we gave up. But one of the key things for me, for instance, is that…this is a show about four guys, and not once did we talk about sports. Not once. Guys talk about sports! Not once did we talk about other things… (Sighs) Whatever. I'm not going to get into it. But you're right, I think there was an opportunity there to have a lot of great chemistry, and for one reason or another, it just slipped through our fingers. And now I'm out of work. So isn't that great? (Laughs)
BE: On a possibly related note, what were your thoughts about the later seasons of "Alias" and the way the show came to a conclusion?
MV: You know, I think they did an amazing job, because talk about a tough show to wrap up! Where do you even start? There were so many loose ends, there were so many ways and different paths they could've gone down, and I think the writers and obviously J.J. did a great job at just finding and sort of picking a couple and just sticking to it and saying, "This is the way it's going to end." I mean, it's one of those shows where, y'know, talk about suspending your disbelief! That was 90% of the appeal of it, that you were going on this fairytale ride every week. I mean, c'mon, Jennifer, I know she's a tough girl, and she does kung fu and tai chi, but she beat up a guy who's 6'7" and 280, for Christ's sake! That would never happen! And he's supposed to be a terrorist martial artist, on top of it! But that was what was so great about "Alias" when it first came out. There was no character like that on television. I think she was one of the first intelligent, kick-ass, just really hot girl who was the lead of a show. There really wasn't anything like that. But, yeah, I think they did a good job. I'm glad I was back for the final season…or for half of it, I think.
BE: Well, what did you think about all of the developments that happened to your character over the course of time? I mean, was there any point when you were, like, "Oh, come on! Really?"
MV: No! Y'know, the only thing I fought for…I think it was during the fourth year, and J.J., rightly so, told me, "That's never gonna happen, dude"…was that I wanted my character to go bad. Just for a couple of episodes! C'mon, let me be a bad guy! Let me be cloned or something! And he very astutely pointed out that, since the beginning, I'm arguably the one character on that entire show that could not be bad. I mean, even Sydney could have an evil twin, but Vaughn…? No. He was apple pie and baseball all the way. So I let go of that fight, because you have to know which ones to pick and choose. (Laughs)
BE: Have you started work on "Demoted" yet?
MV: I think we start on September 2nd, so I'm gonna head up to Michigan in probably mid to late August. I'm looking forward to that. That should be fun. I've never done such a broad comedy before, and I'm just excited play such a… (Laughs) …such a weird character!
BE: Can you tell me a little bit about it? Because I've really only heard bits and pieces.
MV: Yeah, it's basically these two hotshot tire salesman in the Midwest that are…they're not assholes, but they just don't treat their co-workers very well. And their boss dies, and we were our boss's golden child…or children, or whatever…and the next guy in seniority hates our guts, and we hate him, and he becomes the boss of the company. And instead of firing us, he demotes us to secretaries. And, so, now we have to go around carrying everyone's coffee, and not only that, but we have to hang out with all of the secretaries whose lives we made a living nightmare for the last ten years, so they're just giving it back. It's so funny. When I read the script and heard I had an offer, I immediately called my agent and said, "Is this a joke?" Because I never get offered funny stuff. People always see me as the Ken doll who stands in the corner with a smile! And I was just, like, "Omigod, is this a joke? It's not April 1st!" So I'm really excited. We'll see what happens, but the director (James B. Rogers) is great, and, to me, it's got the potential to be sort of a "Napoleon Dynamite" or a "Dumb and Dumber." It's in that vein. The dialogue is very, very smart and very rude and crude but very funny, and all of the comedy comes out of natural and organic… (Pauses) Oh, God. I just used the word "organic."
BE: Oh, dear.
MV: Oh, God, what's happened to me? I need to go back to the farm. "Organic"? Omigod, what a loser! (Takes a deep breath) Okay, so, uh, how about those Mets?
BE: (Laughs) So I've heard David Cross has also been cast in the film. Are you a fan of his work?
MV: Yeah, absolutely. He's incredibly talented…and he's playing the bad guy, which is great, because I can just see him being such an evil little bastard! (Laughs) It's gonna be so cool! He's such a funny guy. At first, I thought he was cast as the other guy, because there are the three main characters, but then I found out that he was cast as the villain, and I thought, "Oh, that's so interesting!" It's gonna be so cool.
BE: So who is the other guy?
MV: I don't think we know yet.
BE: Oh, okay, so it's still wait-and-see.
MV: Yeah, this is the other weird part about our business: here I am doing this movie, and I have no idea who else is gonna be in it! It could be anyone from…I mean, who knows who it could be? It could be the nicest guy in the world or the biggest asshole that I'm gonna have to work with for six weeks, and I have no say in the matter! (Laughs) It's a very strange business.
BE: Now I'm really excited to see who it's going to be!
MV: Well, me, too! Because, in the real world, if you work with a bunch of jerks, you can quit. But if I quit here, it's, uh, not too good for the career. (Laughs)
BE: Last question: what's your favorite project that you've worked on that didn't get the love it deserved, and why does it deserve that love?
MV: Well, I think, actually, that it's kind of a tie for Season 1 of "Alias" and "Rogue." I mean, I know "Alias" was considered a hit, but our ratings were really, really not that good. I just wish more people had seen that first year. I thought that first season of "Alias" was as good as TV gets for that genre, for that action-spy stuff. And "Rogue," I just…I'm incredibly disappointed with the way the Weinstein Company completely dropped the movie and decided not to release it in theaters here. Those are things, again, that we have no control over, but that was very disappointing, because I think that, as an action-monster-thriller movie, it's a good one, and it has a lot of elements to it that most Hollywood movies of that nature don't have. And that's what makes it different and fresh and kind of "oh, that's nice that it unfolded that way," as opposed to, ten minutes into the movie, you know exactly what's going to happen. So, yeah, obviously, I wish more people had seen it, but, hey, what can you do?
BE: There's a perfect closing line right there.
MV: (Laughs) Kind of applies for everything in life, doesn't it?
BE: Heavy. Very heavy.
MV: Yep.
BE: Well, it's been a pleasure talking to you, man.MV: Well, thank you, Will. Hopefully, I'll see you at some TCA event down the road! (Laughs) Talk to you later!
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By Rob Stein
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, May 11, 2010; A01
Beginning Friday, shoppers in search of toothpaste, deodorant and laxatives at more than 6,000 drugstores across the nation will be able to pick up something new: a test to scan their genes for a propensity for Alzheimer's disease, breast cancer, diabetes and other ailments.
The test also claims to offer a window into the chances of becoming obese, developing psoriasis and going blind. For those thinking of starting a family, it could alert them to their risk of having a baby with cystic fibrosis, Tay-Sachs and other genetic disorders. The test also promises users insights into how caffeine, cholesterol-lowering drugs and blood thinners might affect them.
The over-the-counter test marks the first foray of personalized genomic medicine into the corner drugstore. The move is being welcomed by those who hope that deciphering the genetic code will launch a new era in biomedical science.
But it's being feared by those who worry it will open a Pandora's box of confusion, privacy violations, genetic discrimination and other issues.
The new test comes as federal regulators, bioethicists, geneticists, doctors and patients have been increasingly struggling with how to use, interpret, regulate and guard against abuse from the flood of genetic information, tests and technologies being developed because of the massive, government-sponsored Human Genome Project.
For years, companies have been hawking tests on the Internet that can analyze genes for a person's risk of some diseases, and genetic tests for paternity and ancestry have been widely available in stores.
But the plan being announced Tuesday by Pathway Genomics of San Diego to sell its Insight test at about 6,000 of Walgreens' 7,500 stores represents the boldest move yet to bring the power of modern molecular medicine to the mass market.
"It's the first widespread retail availability of genetic tests that are directed specifically at health issues," said Joan A. Scott, director of the Genetics and Public Policy Center at Johns Hopkins University.
The Food and Drug Administration questioned Monday whether the test will be sold legally because it does not have the agency's approval. Critics have said that results will be too vague to provide much useful guidance because so little is known about how to interpret genetic markers.
"It doesn't seem like a good use of resources or something people should be spending their money on yet," said Sharon F. Terry, who heads the Genetic Alliance, a Washington-based coalition of patient groups, researchers, private companies, government agencies and public policy organizations.
Others have said that the test is irresponsible and could give many buyers a dangerous false sense of security or, conversely, needlessly alarm them.
"It is reckless," said Hank Greely, director of Stanford University's Center for Law and the Biosciences. "Information is powerful, but misunderstood information can be powerfully bad."
The breast cancer test, for example, will screen for only a few of the genetic mutations associated with the malignancy, so it won't exclude the possibility of getting the disease because of other mutations or nongenetic reasons. Misunderstanding this, women whose results sound reassuring might forgo mammograms. On the other hand, a result suggesting an increased risk could prompt some to seek unnecessary follow-up tests and treatments.
The pregnancy planning test could prompt couples to decide not to get married or have children when their risk of having a baby with a disorder could be small. Or it could lead those who decide to proceed to seek genetic testing of the fetus, which could lead to more abortions.
"There's a cascade effect, potentially," said Colleen McBride, chief of the social and behavioral research branch at the National Human Genome Research Institute. "Some of these we may be able to anticipate, and some we may not."
In response to a query from The Washington Post, an FDA official said that the agency planned to investigate the test.
"We think this would be an illegally marketed device if they proceed," said Alberto Gutierrez, director of the FDA's office of in-vitro diagnostics. "They are making medical claims. We don't know whether the test works and whether patients are taking actions that could put them in jeopardy based on the test."
Company officials said the test does not require the agency's approval because the analysis will be done at the company's lab.
"Our understanding under the current regulation is, this test does not have to have FDA approval per se," said David Becker, Pathway's chief science officer. "And we do not claim that is does."
Gutierrez said the fact that the test involves sending kits to consumers for them to collect their own DNA samples raises questions about whether it requires FDA validation. He said the agency was evaluating similar tests.
Pathway officials said the test would help more people get access to potentially invaluable genetic information.
"We believe the market is ready for this," said Jim Woodman, vice president of corporate strategy. "We think there's more awareness of genetics these days."
With a $20 to $30 kit, customers will spit into a plastic vial to provide a DNA sample for analysis and ship the package to the company.
For $79, customers can get their DNA tested for how their bodies are likely to respond to 10 substances, including caffeine, cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins, the blood thinner warfarin and the breast cancer drug tamoxifen.
For $179, prospective parents can be tested to see whether they carry 23 genetic conditions, including the blood disorder beta thalassemia, diabetes and polycystic kidney disease. For the same price, they can be tested for their own risk for 23 conditions, including heart attack, high blood pressure, leukemia, lung cancer and multiple sclerosis.
For $249, they can get all of the tests.
The results, although not definitive, could encourage people to adopt more healthful lifestyles if they find they might be at increased risk for heart attack or certain forms of cancer, company officials said.
Officials said that the company has strict procedures to protect confidentiality and that it offers genetic counseling by phone, both before and after getting the test results, to make sure customers interpret them properly.
"I think there is some underestimation of the ability of the American public to understand this kind of information," Becker said. "They may not understand the exact specifics, but they do understand that these are propensities."


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2016.6.12 - Jackie & Nicole's Grad Party - It's A Photo Booth
2016.6.12 - Jackie & Nicole's Grad Party
itsaphotobooth.com - We had a blast celebrating with everyone. Congratulations Jackie and Nicole on surviving high school!
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Habari is a modern application framework, architected from the beginning to embrace best practices.
Everything about Habari is geared for speed, and a small footprint. You won't find the kitchen sink here.
Today's internet is spread across multiple screens and platforms. Habari looks great on any screen.
Habari is a vibrant open source project that embraces the concept of Meritocracy. In a nutshell, if you are a positive force in the community you are given more authority. This applies to people from all walks of life, not just developers. We are always looking for help in one of the following areas.


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BISD revisits surrendered funds pursuit
At least two governmental agencies are looking at ways to collect money from Beaumont Independent School District (BISD) electrical contractor of record, Walker's Electric Company, including BISD and the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR).
Show me the money
In December 2011, Walker's Electric owner Calvin Walker, 51, positioned himself in the defendant's seat in a federal trial alleging the electrician bilked BISD by overcharging in the millions for work performed at the district's campuses. Walker was indicted on 37 counts of wire and mail fraud, fraud perpetrated against an entity receiving federal funds and money laundering – but the jury was ultimately deadlocked by the trial's conclusion. A re-trial was set for July 2012, but instead of repeating the process, Walker agreed to a plea arrangement with the U.S. Attorney's Office a week before the encore proceedings were to commence. In exchange for forfeiting $3.2 million in annuities and admitting to a single misdemeanor, Walker was free from further prosecution.
U.S. Attorney Bob Rawls for the Eastern District of Texas asserted that Walker defrauded taxpayers by falsifying invoices and requests for payment submitted to the Beaumont Independent School District for payment.
"This … is about greed," Rawls said. "It is a violation of the public trust and theft of public funds."
Days after the plea arrangement was made, BISD elected to extend Walker's contract with the district as the electrical contractor of record.
Although sentencing still hasn't been handed down on Walker for his admitted actions, the plea agreement stipulates that Walker will forfeit $3.2 million in annuities to be used for paying off the electrician's tax debt and settling the books with BISD. The tax bill and any assessed fine will be determined at sentencing. Any funds left over after taxes and fines may be used to pay restitution to BISD, U.S. Attorney's Office spokeswoman Davilyn Walston said. Additionally, Walker is set to get back other assets seized by the government in anticipation of the 2011 trial including checks totaling more than $519,000, a 2010 Mercedes Benz, and roughly $200,000 worth of non-forfeited annuities.
Funds from the forfeited money not used for BISD's restitution will be placed into a national fund for victims' compensation. Still, immediately after learning of the forfeited funds up for the taking, the BISD Board of Trustees elected not to pursue the money.
Trustee Tom Neild said he was not satisfied with the school's board's earlier decision and has requested the issue be put on the board's Oct. 18 meeting agenda. "The whole intent is for us to take action — for the U.S. Attorney's Office to come in and let us know what our options are and how we can go about getting back our funds," Neild said. "The last time it was presented, the board elected not to do anything about it."
According to Neild, "We need to take a vote, and anyone who doesn't want to seek the restitution needs to explain why they don't want to seek those funds. They need to explain why to the taxpayers."
"We need to recover as much as we can for the taxpayers of Beaumont."
Like father, like son
Texas Education Agency correspondence in 2011 stated that auditors identified concerns regarding the validity of Walker's Electric Company's license to do electrical work.
"Although Walker's Electric claimed that the company had a valid master electrician's license, there is still a question as to whether the master electrician's license was valid," the agency's report contended. "The district should consult its legal counsel concerning the construction activities completed by Walker's Electric Company in light of recent concerns raised relating to the validity of the company's license issued by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation."
The TEA audit came after complaints were filed with the agency, and after the Better Business Bureau of Southeast Texas revoked the Walker's Electric BBB accreditation.
"The BBB Accreditation revocation for Walker's Electric Company of Beaumont was due to the businesses failure to comply with the BBB Code of Business Practices Standards for Accreditation," according to BBB correspondence. "The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation posted on their website final orders listing that Calvin Gary Walker, owner of Walker's Electric Company, was assessed an administrative penalty in the amount of $5,000 and his master electrician license 75738 was hereby surrendered. Basis for (the order) stated that Mr. Walker falsified information on his application."
Additional information from the BBB asserts that Walker failed to "establish and maintain a positive track record in the marketplace and honestly represent products and services," "be free from government action that demonstrates a significant failure to support BBB ethical principles in marketplace transactions," and "honestly represent products and services, including clear and adequate disclosures of all material terms by making known all material facts in both written and verbal representations, remembering that misrepresentation may result not only from direct statements but by omitting or obscuring relevant facts."
On the heels of the TEA audit, Calvin Walker II, Calvin Gary Walker's son, also sparked an investigation by the TDLR pertaining to work he performed on BISD's West Brook High School campus without proper licensing.
The West Brook offense, according to a final report issued from the TDLR dated Aug. 6, 2012, was brought on by electrical work Walker II performed without a license even though he lied to investigators and said he did, in fact, have a license to do the work. Walker II was assessed a fine of $3,000 and is now licensed as an electrical apprentice.
According to Susan Stanford from TDLR, this wasn't Walker II's first offense, either. Detailed reports on any previous offenses, however, were unavailable as of press time.
For Trustee Neild, the unlicensed work and fines levied against the district's electrical contractor don't bode well.
"We should have licensed, qualified people to do the work we need done," Neild said. "We ought to give other tax-paying companies an opportunity to bid on the work, but BISD is trying not to allow that to happen."
Jennifer Johnson can be reached at (409) 832-1400, ext. 231, or by e-mail at jennifer [at] theexaminer [dot] com.


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The amended complaint reiterates the patent claims, but also goes into more detail about the copyright infringement part of the lawsuit. Oracle trots out some code comparisons of the 'PolicyNodeImpl.java' class library, and compares Oracle's version with that of Android - the parts look identical (but might not be - more below). Interestingly enough, this isn't really Google's code; it's code from Apache's Harmony project.
"In at least several instances, Android computer program code also was directly copied from copyrighted Oracle America code," Oracle states in the amended complaint, "For example, as may be readily seen in Exhibit J, the source code in Android's 'PolicyNodeImpl.java' class is nearly identical to 'PolicyNodeImpl.java' in Oracle America's Java, not just in name, but in the source code on a line-for-line basis."
Since this code comes from the Harmony project, which is part of Apache, I'm really wondering just how much merit Oracle's complaint has. Oracle is being disingenuous by claiming Google copied code from Oracle, while it's quite clear the code has actually been taken from Harmony. Of course, if Harmony has no right to use this code, then Google is also liable. However, the reverse is also true - if Google is found to have violated Oracle's copyright with this piece of code, then so did the Harmony project.
It gets weirder, though. While the code in the Android source tree states it's Harmony code, this class can actually not be found in the current Harmony source.
Then there's the fact that this piece of code actually seems to be testing code, as in, code that doesn't actually ship on devices (can anyone please confirm this?), which, I think, is also an important distinction, as Oracle claims we're talking about code shipped to customers on devices.
But there's more. The code indeed looks copied, but is it, really? Carlo Daffara generated a diff of the two files, which paints a slightly different picture. According to a comment over at Groklaw (I know, I know, but he makes a good point), any similarities can easily be explained by "using the same naming convention for variables and the widespread use of automatic code generation in the Java community".
This is not as clear-cut a matter as it seems, but I'm sure the usual suspects will rail on Google anyway. Surely more to follow.


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Governor Jack Markell signed House Bill 160 today to permit shellfish aquaculture in Delaware's Inland Bays.
Governor Jack Markell signed House Bill 160 today to permit shellfish aquaculture in Delaware's Inland Bays.
House Bill 160, authorizes DNREC to direct and control the shellfish aquaculture activities within the Inland Bays and to set criteria for the approval of lease sites and applications for leasing. In 2011, the shellfish aquaculture industry on the East Coast was valued at $119 million, with 10 percent annual growth.
House Speaker Pete Schwartzkopf sponsored the legislation following a review of the impact of shellfish aquaculture on the state. Center for Inland Bays (CIB) led a 14-month effort by a committee of experts and stakeholders to explore the potential shellfish aquaculture and address the challenges of the project.
"Due to the hard work of Speaker Schwartzkopf, Center for Inland Bays and its partners, DNREC, and the Department of Agriculture, we are establishing shellfish aquaculture in a responsible and beneficial way that respects the other activities in our bays," said Markell at the Center for Inland Bays office on the Indian River Inlet where he was joined by members of CIB's team. "Supporting this industry represents another example of how we can enact policies that boost our economy and generate millions of dollars for our state, while also better protecting our environment."
"The Center is very pleased to have coordinated the work of the committee that laid the scientific and educational groundwork for this bill," said CIB Executive Director Chris Bason. "Convening stakeholders to work together is central to our mission. I am grateful for all of the community participation and I think the bill truly reflects the hard work and careful deliberations of everyone on the team."


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What is digital transformation?
Digital transformation describes the dramatic ways in which businesses are adapting to meet the requirements of today's digital era—one in which we are facing profound and far-reaching changes in the way digital technology is created, managed, analyzed, and consumed.
Digital business transformation is a paradigm shift. As organizations race to digitize more and more of the services they provide, we enter the age of "more"—more people, using more technology, from more locations, on more devices, for more of the time.
What is driving digital transformation?
Businesses are at a critical juncture: adopt and adapt technology to meet the 24x7, anytime, anywhere demands of customers, employees, partners, and IT departments—or risk becoming obsolete. One of the primary shifts in responding to such demands is the creation and delivery of digital services: mobile-first applications that are intuitive and intelligent, bringing contextual information to people based on who they are, where they are, and what they are trying to do. They provide automated self-service, crowd-sourced collaboration, and are continuously refined at high speed.
With new demands on business, more moving parts than before, and the need for speed of delivery without sacrificing quality and security, the old ways of managing technology only get you so far. A new approach is needed—one that's real-time, intuitive, automated, secure, and open.
To stay competitive, traditional businesses must transform into digital enterprises to meet the changing needs of their customers, employees, partners, and IT departments. A digital enterprise is an organization that has a digital-first mindset for new services, and is actively working to convert and automate internal and customer-facing services.
The role of IT in digital business transformation
IT professionals are witnessing the impact of digital transformation from a unique perspective. The proliferation of technology means there's more complexity to manage, and the elevated role of technology in businesses means the impact and outcome of the services IT provides have never been more visible or more valued. For example:
- Mobile devices and the apps they run are fueling new expectations from employees
- Cloud computing has redrawn traditional boundaries with new models of procurement, deployment, support, and management
- Business infrastructure and machinery, not traditionally considered information technology, are becoming smarter, network enabled, and part of an ever-expanding Internet of Things.
As a result, priorities in IT are shifting and a balance between new methods and traditional approaches needs to be struck to manage the sheer scale of the digital transformation challenge.
Creating a digital transformation strategy
IT is pivotal to the success of an effective digital transformation program. With so much dependence on technology for the future success of the business, IT finds itself in the position of needing to excel in every dimension. Innovative services that give the business a competitive edge also need to be rock-solid, cost-efficient, and secure. They should also be simple to audit, provide business insights, and continuously improve to meet business goals.
For many, this introduces a tension between the need to transform the business through innovation, and the less glamorous work of "keeping the lights on" and having an effective operating platform. It's necessary to define a foundation for digital transformation that allows IT to manage the current and future complexities that digital transformation presents.
Ensuring a successful transformation
BMC offers a structured approach to digital transformation that helps businesses respond swiftly and effectively to digital disruption. BMC's Digital Enterprise Management solutions enable continuous innovation and improvement by managing and optimizing technology, processes and policies in real time. Digital Enterprise Management gives companies a framework to deliver what their customers want with the best experience at the lowest cost, which enables them to drive digital transformation, productivity, and growth.
For a deeper understanding of the scale and scope of the challenges organizations face in navigating digital transformation and strategies to succeed, download our e-book: Digital Transformation for Competitive Advantage
Unleash growth in the new economy
Download your complimentary copy:
Harvard Business Review on digital transformation
Rapid shifts in technology and information delivery are transforming how companies will compete.
Harvard Business Review: Delivering on the Promise of Digital Transformation


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DailyDirt: Edible Clothing
from the urls-we-dig-up dept
Generally, people try to keep food from dropping on their clothes and making a mess. But some fashion designers can't seem to keep from trying to make food items into something wearable. Here are just a few kinda nutty examples.
- The fad of molecular gastronomy has been crossed with handmade fashion accessories -- creating some wearable items that aren't too far from looking like marshmallow Peeps. These creations will be excellent garnish recipes for the "To Serve Man" cookbooks. [url]
- Denim isn't actually too easy to digest for most people, but scratch-and-sniff jeans could make some folks want to try a bite. The scent-filled denim could be fruit-flavored -- or possibly made to smell like Teen Spirit/bodysprays/etc. [url]
- Making clothes from edible pastry wrappers isn't just for kinky lingerie. Wearing fruit roll-ups doesn't sound too appealing for many situations, though... [url]
- To discover more food-related links, check out what's floating around in StumbleUpon. [url]