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|Richie Shaffer, future Dodger? Kevin Goldstein says no.
Happy MLB Draft day!
The Dodgers choose at No. 18 an No. 51 today, and expect them to choose at least one pitcher with their first two picks.
It's anyone's guess as to who the Dodgers will take. Chad Moriyama has a quick draft preview on his site. The consensus is the Dodgers will nab a high school player with their first pick -- most likely a pitcher.
The name that has been bandied about for the last couple weeks is Ty Hensely. Hensley is a right-hander out of Santa Fe High School in Oklahoma. Jim Callis, Keith Law and Jonathan Mayo all have the Dodgers tabbing Hensley the pick.
Jared Massey said in the most recent episode of 'Dugout Blues' Hensley reminds him of Chad Billingsley (not physically, but the way he pitches).
Hensely has a good low-90s fastball and a power curveball -- the same beginning repertoire as Billingsley, Clayton Kershaw, Chris Withrow and Ethan Martin.
Hensley would be a solid pick and is definitely on my big board.
I probably sound like a broken record, but the Dodgers just need to choose the best player available. If Hensley is that guy, sobeit.
Without further adieu, here's my Dodgers' big board. Take note: I'm including guys who have a shot to be there at No. 18, so players like Mark Appel and Byron Buxton won't be on this list.
My Dodgers' 2012 MLB Draft Big Board
- 3B Richie Shaffer, Clemson University
- SS Addison Russell, Pace High School (Florida)
- 3B Corey Seager, Northwest Carrabus High School (South Carolina)
- RHP Ty Hensley, Santa Fe High School (Oklahoma)
- RHP Michael Wacha, Texas A&M
- 3B/OF Stephen Piscotty, Stanford
- C/OF/3B Stryker Trahan, Acadiana High School (Louisiana)
- LHP Matt Smoral, Solon High School (Ohio)
- RHP Lucas Sims, Brookwood High School (Georgia)
- 3B/1B/RHP Joey Gallo, Bishop Gorman High School (Nevada)
- I'm obviously leaning position player, but I won't be upset one bit if the Dodgers come away with a good SP prospect.
- Russell is a bat-first prospect, but has shown he might be able to stick at shortstop. Shortstop has evolved from an all-glove/no-hit position to a position that values offense. If he doesn't pan out at short, he should be able to make the move to the hot corner. Would be a high-ceiling pick in my eyes.
- Wacha is viewed as a potential Top 12 prospect, but FanGraphs and Kevin Goldstein had him slipping to the Dodgers at No. 18.
- Gallo is a big-time power prospect, but he has a lot of swing-and-miss in his swing. Teams view him as a power-hitting third baseman or flamethrowing right-handed pitcher. Sounds like Martin, no?
Giolito might have the highest ceiling of any player in this draft. However, injury concerns (sprained UCL, might ultimately need Tommy John) have dropped him on many teams' draft boards. If he's there at No. 18, I could definitely see Logan White pulling the trigger on him.
The latest from Mayo:
"Lucas Giolito remains a huge wild card. There's been a lot of conjecture about him going somewhere in the middle of the first round, but I don't have a firm feel from anyone where he's going to go. One team that picks in the middle of the round said that Giolito priced himself out from their slot. The assigned values on picks 11-20 start at $2.625 million for No. 11 and go down to $1.85 million at No. 20. So someone would have to get creative."Yeah, that's another thing. Giolito has a commitment to UCLA and could easily go there if he doesn't get the kind of bonus he's looking for if a team in the teens drafts him. I've seen him mocked to Toronto a lot, which holds the No. 17 pick.
If Giolito is there at No. 18, despite what I said in the podcast about the Dodgers not necessarily having the luxury of taking a chance on a guy like this, I'd like to see him be the pick ... if they can get him signed.
If the Dodgers end up with any of the 11 names mentioned above, I'd be happy. And so should Dodger fans, even if they select another prep pitcher.
Some names to keep an eye on at No. 51
- RHP J.O. Berrios, Papa Juan XIII High School (Puerto Rico)
- 3B/RHP Carson Kelly, Westview High School (Oregon)
- C Peter O'Brien, University of Miami (FL)
- RHP Duane Underwood, Pope High School (Georgia)
- LHP Hunter Virant, Camarillo High School (California)
- RHP Walker Weickel, Olympia High School (Florida)
- OF Jesse Winker*, Olympia High School (Florida)
Roster moves
Juan Rivera was activated from the disabled list today and Scott Van Slyke was optioned back to Triple-A Albuquerque.
At least Van Slyke will get consistent playing time. He's been slumping since hitting that mammoth pinch-hit home run against St. Louis a couple weeks ago.
This just in (12:40 p.m.): Shawn Tolleson was promoted from Triple-A Albuquerque to replace Javy Guerra. Guerra went on the 15-day disabled list with right knee inflamation.
To make room for Tolleson on the 40-man roster, Matt Guerrier was transferred to the 60-day DL.
Oh happy day.
News from the front office
From the good news department, and Ken Rosenthal's latest column:
"Dodgers scouts are telling their rival counterparts that new club president Stan Kasten told his front office, 'Get what you need and send me the bill.'Kevin Youkilis, anyone?
Kasten said he wouldn't go that far, but added, 'If that's the word on the street, I kind of like that. I want fans to understand we're going to be aggressive – aggressive, but not reckless.'"
Seeing the Quakes live, again
I'll be in attendance on Tuesday and Wednesday for the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes' annual visit to Stockton to play the Ports. Jon Michael Redding and Zach Lee (!) are scheduled to pitch (by my account), so that'll be cool.
Follow me on Twitter for updates and photos from the game. I'll definitely have some posts about it, too.
Photo credit: Courtesy of Clemson University Sports Information


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Bobby 'Wayne' Whitehead, 70
Bobby "Wayne" Whitehead, 70, of Blackfoot slipped out of his room at the Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center in Idaho Falls on Sunday, Jan. 20, 2013 and headed out early for his camping spot in the sky, to prepare for his family to follow.
Wayne was born May 19, 1942 in Big Springs, Texas, the ninth of 12 children born to Edward Erastus (Jack) Whitehead and Lomesia Thomas. Wayne attended school in Texas and California and grew up with siblings as they followed the crops throughout the countryat harvest time on the back of a flatbed truck.
In 1958 Wayne was working in the potatoes when he spotted the love of his life, Linda Durrant, in Blackfootand he knew then his traveling with the crops was over. Linda and Wayne were married on March 26, 1960 in Blackfoot and later their marriage was solemnized in the Idaho Falls LDS Temple in 2001.
Wayne worked as a truck driver for Matsuura Farms, D&D Trucking, Goodwin Construction and others in the construction industry, and for a few years as an independent trucker. He and his wife were presently cleaning Bingham Coop.
Wayne was an elder in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and served many years in Bingham County Search and Rescue.
Wayne's life was all about family. Wayne and Linda were blessed with two children, Dennis, the pride of his life and Vickie, the pride of his heart.
Wayne loved the outdoors and spent many days with his family, fishing, hunting and camping along with hauling wood for the winter (he taught his family how to work) building many wonderful memories along the way. Wayne was always busy, and if not working, you could always find him at the local restaurant or grocery store visiting with old and new friends.
Wayne is survived by his wife, Linda of Blackfoot; son, Dennis Wayne (Chris) Whitehead of Idaho Falls; daughter, Vickie Lynn (Tate) Capson of Blackfoot; eight grandchildren; 12 great- grandchildren; brothers, Don (Brenda) Whitehead of Queen Creek, Ariz., and Carl (Anita) Whitehead of Bakersfield, Calif.; and sisters, Patricia (John) Harris of Browning, Texas, and Martha Kate Kyles of Boise.
He was preceded in death by his parents; brothers, Edward, Tommie, Clarence (Tiny), Charles (Mack) and Alvin Ray; and sisters, Thelma and Mattie.
A funeral service will be conducted at 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013 at Blackfoot 11th Ward LDS Chapel, 520 N. Shilling Ave. Blackfoot. The family will meet with friends on Friday from 6-8 p.m. at Hawker Funeral Home, 132 S. Shilling Ave. and for one hour prior to the service at the church. Interment will be in the Grove City Cemetery.
Condolences may be sent to the family at firstname.lastname@example.com.

subset: commoncrawl


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Not a Member? Join OSA
April 12, 2012
Guoguang Mu, an OSA Fellow who was one of the early pioneers of optics, applied optics, and optical instrumentation in China, died on 12 April 2012 in Tianjin, China. He was 81.
Professor Mu was the founder and Director of Nankai University's Institute of Modern Optics (IMO), the first higher education institution in China that can confer Ph.D. degrees in both Optics (science) and Optical engineering programs. He served as president of Tianjin-based Nankai University from 1985-1995.
Mu was born in Jinxi (now Hu Lu Dao City), Liao Ning Province, in 1931. He graduated from the Physics Department of Nankai University in 1952. During his career, Mu made distinguished contributions to white light information processing and designed many novel optical instruments. He also introduced important concepts and technologies in pattern recognition, color image coding and decoding, and color photography. In 1983, he succeeded in using black and white film to refract color images. He was also well known as the author (with Yuan Lin Zhan) of the book "Optics," the first classical fundamental book for optical physics and one of the most widely used optics textbooks in China.
Mu published more than 100 scientific research papers in internationally renowned optical journals and held two patents. He served as President of the Chinese Optical Society (COS) from 1993-2005, and as Vice President of the International Commission for Optics (ICO). An OSA member since 1981, Mu was named a Fellow Member of The Optical Society in 1990; he was also a Fellow of SPIE. In 1991, Mu was elected a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), and in 1994 he was elected as a fellow of the Academy of Sciences for the Developing World. He received three national scientific and technological prizes and the Ho Leung Ho Lee Prize for exceptional Chinese scientists.
A farewell ceremony was held in Tianjin, China on 16 April 2012.
If you would like to make a memorial donation to the OSA Foundation in honor of Guoguang Mu, please visit www.osa-foundation.org/give.


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Navigating a lung cancer diagnosis
Until recently, the "one-size-fits-all" approach was the standard way to treat lung cancer patients. However, there are several different types of the disease, and the treatment approach for some patients may be determined by the underlying genetic makeup of his or her tumor.
"By working with my doctor and asking questions, we were able to create a treatment plan that corresponded to my needs as an individual patient, not as a disease," says Jill Feldman, a 43-year-old lung cancer patient. Feldman is involved with Lung Cancer Profiles (www.lungcancerprofiles.com), -a national campaign developed by six lung cancer advocacy groups and Pfizer Oncology, which aims to reduce the stigma attached to lung cancer and raise awareness of molecular testing.
Dr. Shane Dormady, Valley Medical Oncology Consultants, is a leading expert in the field and has been working with lung cancer patients for more than 10 years. He has witnessed how stressful it can be for patients when they are diagnosed with lung cancer, and he understands the multitude of questions that might be running through their minds at that time.
"It's important to research your options and get answers to three important questions early on in your lung cancer diagnosis," says Dr. Dormady. "Patients should first ask their doctor what type of lung cancer they have and then second ask whether a molecular test can help determine the genetic makeup of their tumor."Dr. Dormady lastly goes on to emphasize patients should find out if there are treatments available to them based on the genetic makeup of their tumor. The treatment landscape is constantly evolving, and it's crucial to get the answers to these questions to determine the best path forward in your cancer care. There are a variety of options available, including chemotherapy, radiation, biomarker driven therapy and enrollment in a clinical trial.
Consult with your doctor to find out if testing is right for you.


text: Though I was immediately offered a 10% discount on the $100/night rate (8-26-12) for riding a bike, my budget had not included a room for this night, anticipating staying with a friend. However, after going up the road and seeing what was available for $60/night, I turned around and went back! Nolan was pleasant and welcoming, though I had now... More


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Coyotes visit Sharks hoping to solve red-hot Niemi
For at least one period, the Phoenix Coyotes put their recent scoring troubles behind them.
Staying hot on the offensive side of things may be tough on Saturday night as the Coyotes visit the San Jose Sharks and red-hot goaltender Antti Niemi.
The Coyotes snapped a seven-game slide (0-5-2) on Thursday with a 7-4 win over the Nashville Predators. Six of Phoenix's goals came in the opening period, including two by Radim Vrbata.
Rostislav Klesla set a franchise single-period record with four assists in the opening frame, while Matthew Lombardi, Keith Yandle, Martin Hanzal and David Moss scored in the first. Hanzal added two assists and Antoine Vermette scored in the second period.
"We haven't had much luck around the net and pucks seemed to be going in from all over the place tonight," said Coyotes coach Dave Tippett. "It's funny, we talked before the game about what we had to do to win. I asked a couple of guys and not one of them said we're going to score six in the first period and walk away with it. That's the way it's gone lately -- there's crazy games. Fortunately, we got on top of this one."
Stepping in for an injured Mike Smith for a third straight start, Jason LaBarbera made 34 saves and the Coyotes were outshot by the Predators 38-29.
Phoenix, though, still registered its highest single-game goal total of the season and had scored just eight times over its losing streak, a span that began with three straight shutout losses.
Phoenix is three points behind the St. Louis Blues for eighth place in the Western Conference.
San Jose, meanwhile, is two points ahead of the Blues in seventh and trails Detroit by just a point in the standings after shutting out the Red Wings 2-0 on Thursday.
Niemi made 27 saves to post his second shutout in as many nights after having made 22 saves in a 4-0 win over Anaheim on Wednesday. He became the first netminder in Sharks history to post shutouts on consecutive nights.
"I felt good after last night," Niemi said. "I thought I was able to be real patient and wait for the pucks and then react. I wasn't cheating or expecting anything else. I was just reading the play."
Joe Pavelski and Brent Burns each scored once for the Sharks, who have won three straight and four of their last five. The three-game winning streak is the longest for San Jose since it began the season with seven consecutive wins.
Niemi logged his 22nd career shutout in the second contest of a seven-game homestand and third this season. The other came in a 1-0 shootout loss to the visiting Coyotes on Feb. 9.
Niemi stopped 21 shots, but yielded the shootout goals to Mikkel Boedker and Vrbata.
Smith made 33 saves and stopped both skaters he faced in the breakaway session. His effort helped the Coyotes beat the Sharks for the fifth time in the past seven meetings but for only the second time in the last 10 played in San Jose.


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Zebrafish Model Helps Identify Drug Compound That Reverses Lethal Form of Cardiomyopathy
High-throughput screen of large chemical library leads to discovery of new drug compound with potential to prevent sudden death in cases of genetic heart disease
Article ID: 619122
Released: 11-Jun-2014 10:00 AM EDT
Source Newsroom: Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Available for logged-in reporters only
Science Translational Medicine
Newswise — BOSTON -- Using a zebrafish model, investigators have identified a drug compound that appears to reverse arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy (ACM), a hereditary disease and leading cause of sudden death in young people. The findings, led by investigators at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and Brigham and Women's Hospital, provide a key first step in developing new therapies for this dangerous condition, for which there is currently no preventive treatment.
The study appears in the June 11 issue of Science Translational Medicine.
"For some individuals, ACM has no symptoms or warning signs, meaning that the first and only manifestation of disease is sudden death," explains corresponding author Jeffrey E. Saffitz, MD, PhD, Chairman of the Department of Pathology at BIDMC and Mallinckrodt Professor of Pathology at Harvard Medical School. The condition affects approximately 1 in 5,000 individuals worldwide, often striking patients under age 35.
ACM damages the muscle of the heart's ventricles (the pumping chambers) so that, over time, muscle cells or myocytes, become replaced by fatty deposits and fibrosis, leaving patients especially susceptible to arrhythmias. Once an arrhythmia develops, the heartbeat becomes rapid and erratic causing the victim to grow dizzy or collapse – and in the most serious cases to suffer sudden cardiac death.
"There are currently no drugs available that can reliably prevent arrhythmias and sudden death in ACM," explains Saffitz. Patients who exhibit frequent arrhythmias or experience repeated fainting spells are considered to be at risk for sudden death, and often undergo implantation of an automatic cardiac defibrillator (ICD) which continuously monitors the heart rhythm and delivers a shock to the heart if it detects a potentially lethal rhythm abnormality.
"While ICDs can be life-saving, they are expensive and can create a serious psychological burden for the patient," adds Saffitz. "Waiting for a life-threatening arrhythmia to develop and then relying on a device to stop it by delivering a painful shock is not the ideal way to manage this condition. We have to find drugs that can prevent the arrhythmia from occurring in the first place."
To identify the mechanisms underlying this dangerous disease and to find potential drugs to prevent its onset, co-senior author Calum A. MacRae, MD, PhD, a geneticist in the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital created a screenable zebrafish model of ACM with cardiac myocyte-specific expression of a human mutation in the gene encoding plakoglobin, which is known to cause ACM in humans. By working with zebrafish, which develop rapidly and can be produced in large quantities, the investigators could see clear evidence of heart disease after only 48 hours of embryonic development.
They then conducted a high-throughput screen to test 4,800 chemicals to identify a suppressor of the disease phenotype. One chemical in particular, SB216763, showed a remarkable ability to prevent or reverse the disease in fish. Armed with this new information, the investigators confirmed their findings through studies of both mammalian models of ACM and human heart muscle cells derived from adult stem cells from ACM patients.
"We found that a single small molecule [SB216763] could reverse both the muscle cell injury and the arrhythmia components of ACM," says Saffitz. These new findings provide strong evidence that these complex disease processes are linked to a common mechanism, which appears to involve a defect in forward trafficking of key proteins to the intercalated disc, sites of cell-cell adhesion.
"It also appears that we have discovered a new mechanism-based anti-arrhythmic drug that can prevent or reverse major abnormalities of cellular electrophysiology in the heart in cases of ACM," says Saffitz. "This work shows that it is possible to model a complex human disease in fish and use high-throughput screens of large chemical libraries for the discovery of effective new drugs and could help provide the foundation for future chemical biology efforts to bring such drugs to clinical use."
In addition to Saffitz and MacRae, coauthors include BIDMC investigators André G. Kléber (co-senior author), and Angeliki Asimaki and Sudhir Kapoor (co-first authors); BWH investigators Eva Plovie (co-first author), Anne Karin Arndt, Edward Adams, and ZhenZhen Liu; Johns Hopkins University investigators Cynthia A. James, Daniel P. Judge and Hugh Calkins; and Jared Churko and Joseph C. Wu of Stanford University School of Medicine.
This work was supported by the following grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH): RO1 HL 102361; RO1 HL 109264; RO1 HL113006; UO1 HL099776; R24 HL117756; and RCHL100110, as well as support from the American Heart Association, the Leducq Foundation and the Harvard Stem Cell Institute.
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center is a patient care, teaching and research affiliate of Harvard Medical School, and currently ranks third in National Institutes of Health funding among independent hospitals nationwide.
The BIDMC health care team includes Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital-Milton, Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital-Needham, Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital-Plymouth, Anna Jaques Hospital, Cambridge Health Alliance, Lawrence General Hospital, Signature Health Care, Commonwealth Hematology-Oncology, Beth Israel Deaconess HealthCare, Community Care Alliance, and Atrius Health. BIDMC is also clinically affiliated with the Joslin Diabetes Center and Hebrew Senior Life and is a research partner of Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center. BIDMC is the official hospital of the Boston Red Sox. For more information, visit www.bidmc.org.


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A piece of writing made the rounds on my Facebook feed this morning which was written by a mom wondering why on earth she should pay someone the exorbitant rate of $60/hr to teach her musically mediocre children to play the piano. It's safe to say that this elicited some rather passionate reactions from my musician friends. I'm not going to engage here in the argument for arts education (which is long, involved, has been covered better elsewhere) and will just focus on the economics of the issue here. After all, perhaps there are parents out there who are wondering why they are paying so much money for their kids' music lessons and financing the lifestyle of the rich and famous that most teaching musicians must live.
The writer's argument focuses primarily on the issue of hourly rate, and brings up the hourly rates of several other professions such as loggers and college physicists by comparison. Leaving aside for a moment factors like education and whether an employee is paid hourly or salaried from this odd collection, please show me the logger who spends time uncompensated by his employer researching trees, cutting and roping techniques, or attending tree-cutting conferences (his union might have a problem with him being asked to). Please show me the college physicist who is responsible for paying out of pocket for all of their research materials and texts. Please show me the hospital psychologist who has to front the cost for all of his or her own marketing in order to get clients.
Those things? Music teachers do all of those things on their own, uncompensated, out of their own pockets. When we aren't teaching Johnny to play chopsticks, we're attending conferences with peers, thinking about, researching, and sometimes even purchasing repertoire for your child, getting our piano tuned, engaging in musical endeavors of our own that add to our knowledge, or doing countless other uncompensated things that directly affect how we teach. My teacher in school came to my school performances and talked to me about them afterward, arranged recitals complete with accompanists all paid for by her, talked to me on the phone about my concerns for free, filled out my college recommendations and helped me research schools, and even had me over for lunch on occasion. She also had an entire library of scores containing everything from show tunes to art songs to entire operas, and she would loan them out to me to look at any time I liked. At an average cost of $15-$30 depending on the size of the score, that's a pretty substantial investment. That dollar-an-hour of hers just kept stretching and stretching. So much for that "low overhead" the writer claims teachers have.
Here's another reason we can't make that mythical $120,000 a year teaching 40 hours: in spite of the assumption that we're all out-of-work musicians, every teacher I know is also a performer. There's not some mythical divide between those who do and those who don't and teach. All of us combine teaching, performing, and other odd jobs to pay the bills. Why, when we could just make bank teaching for a dollar an hour? For one thing, there aren't 40 students a week to teach, and those students who do want lessons usually have similar demands on their time like going to school until three in the afternoon and going to bed at a reasonable hour. And remember that list up there in that other paragraph? That list doesn't just take money, it takes time. Time we wouldn't have if we had back-to-back students for seven hours a day, even if they were available.
The writer concedes grudgingly that we do have educations to do what we do. When it comes to the nebulous value of education, perhaps another hourly rate comparison would be easier here. My husband is a lawyer. Here's the deal with being a lawyer: because he reports billable hours, he is compensated by fractions of hours for every single minute he spends working on your case. Unless he voluntarily writes down your bill, if you have a phone conversation with him, ask him to attend your bail hearing, or call in the middle of the night for legal advice, that crap goes in the billing system and is sent to you to pay for. He and I both have a four year degree from a prestigious school. We also had to compete with other qualified people for admittance to graduate school, where we completed our education and received applied experience in our fields and a degree that reflected that accomplishment. We both have substantial educational loans we're still paying off for our degrees. When he started working, the average hourly rate in our area was $150-200, higher for bigger firms. That's per hour he spends on your case, no outside time. My per-hour rate of $45 (yes, it's less than $60) keeps shrinking based on all the factors I mentioned above. Same time spent in school, same financial commitment to our educations. Let's just say that one of us is more responsible for paying the bills than the other.
If the writer still wants to shrug all of this off and take her kid to some stranger on the Red Line to teach them for $20/hr, that's her perogative. But keep this in mind. You may know when your lawyer doesn't win your case, or when your tree lands on your house, or when your kid's college lab blows up and sucks her into a black hole because you hired someone to do the job who wasn't properly trained. You won't know when your kid develops vocal nodes or repetitive stress injuries from how they get taught, and by the time you find out you're going to be playing a lot more for physical therapy (I hope maybe she'll at least get someone qualified for that). After all, I'm assuming there's a reason she's are going to someone who cuts her hair for an arm and a leg instead of Great Clips, right?
Look, maybe this writer genuinely experienced sticker shock when lesson shopping for her daughter. The reality, though, is that the market will bear what people are willing to pay for something, and people in her area are obviously willing to pay $60 an hour for quality piano lessons. Perhaps she might consider that parents see the value and sense of all the things I have mentioned above when making the decision about who should teach their children, instead of questioning the integrity and motivation of teaching musicians.
And perhaps if she ever sees that mythical rich teacher park her Benz in the school parking lot, she can take a picture so that all the musicians I know can be insanely jealous.


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Contact Information
To learn more about volunteering @ your library, contact Muffy Walker, Volunteer Coordinator, at 707-784-1506.
Library Volunteers
Make a difference @ your library
County Library offers you the satisfaction of giving back to your local community. Volunteer at your local library and you will be among people who love to serve people.
List of Opportunities
Volunteer Application (pdf)
Teen Volunteer Program
"I hated school. It's embarrassing when your peer would correct your spelling paper and you had practically nothing...The literacy program has really helped me by encouraging me. I never got that when I was a kid."
- Ron
Listen to Ron's Story
At the Library
Community Services


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This is done by normal select or query calls where the selections list names one or more columns that are of a LOB type. The LOB types are BLOB, CLOB, NCLOB, BFILE and CFILE.
The returned value is a LOB locator: an opaque Lisp object on which the
APIs (that is, those functions with names beginning with "ora-lob-") can be used. This LOB locator contains a pointer to an Oracle descriptor of type OCILobLocator*. Note that there can be multiple LOB locator objects associated with the same LOB in the server, but a LOB locator uniquely identifies a LOB object.
It is possible to specify that the result object should be a stream either for input or output. Then the resulting stream (which will be of type
LispWorks User Guide and Reference Manual - 21 Dec 2011


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posted by Thom Holwerda on Wed 13th Jul 2011 07:29 UTC, submitted by Gregory
The Hurd is still doing its thing. "Jeremie Koenig started working on his Google Summer of Code project: bringing not only Java to the Hurd, but also fixing or adding missing parts in the Hurd's components along the way. For example, he already contributed a set of signal handling improvements. Samuel Thibault created the first Debian GNU/Hurd CD set with a graphical installer. You can dowload it at the usual place for Debian CD images."


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Prometheus wrote:I did notice, though, in the PDF version of the Smith text in Textkit, that there's also supposed to be a reader, "Initia Graeca, Part II, A Reading Book", that goes along with the grammar (listed in "Continuations of This Volume" on the second page). That might make Smith easier to digest.
Has anyone seen this reading book, or know if it's available?


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Event: The event held to launch Sanjay Chopra's book 'Talespin' was graced by Bollywood celebs like Gul Panag, Boman Irani, Arshad Warsi, Maria Goretti, Tisca Chopra, Kabir Khan, Mini Mathur, Simone Singh, Suchitra Pillai Malik, Perizaad Zorabian, Sandhya Mridul and many other.
Guest List: Sanjay Chopra, Gul Panag, Boman, Arshad Warsi, Tisca Chopra, Kabir Khan, Mini Mathur, Simone Singh, Suchitra Pillai, Perizaad Zorabian
Bollywood celeb Aamir Khan along with wife Kiran Rao were spotted at PVR.
Bollywood producers-directors Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Krishan Kumar, Ravi Bahl, Divya Khosla Kumar, Sajid Nadiadwala, Wardha Nadiadwala celebrate diwali with Bhushan Kumar
Bollywood celebs Kareena Kapoor Khan, Malaika Arora, Sonali Bendre, Nimrat Kaur among others were snapped by paparazzi.Bebo looked super cool in a casual look. She wore a white t-shirt with yoga pants...
Bollywood actress Shama Sikander celebrated Diwali festival at her residence.
Bollywood celebs Aamir Khan, Zaira Wasim, Fatima Sana Shaikh, Sanya Malhotra, Anil Kapoor, Nitesh Tiwari, Aparshakti Khurrana, Bhushan Kumar, Javed Akhtar, Shabana Azmi, Sachin Tendulkar, Rajkumar Hir...


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I confess that, last week, I curled my eyelashes for the first time in my life. I'm still partly convinced that the eyelash curler was first created as a form of medieval torture, but I do like the improvement in my lashes.
|image source
I confess that I've gotten my kids to nap at the same time THREE days this week and that makes me feel like Wonder Woman. Of course, I spend most of that hour of both kids being asleep on Pinterest, but, hey, Wonder Woman's gotta do what WonderWoman's gotta do. And Wonder Woman's gotta pin.
I confess that I am having a lot of fun getting rid of 50 things, but that I refuse to touch my craft supplies as part of the dejunking process.
I confess that the universe is working against me -- as I get rid of things, new things keep showing up. First my recently retired dad handed down a bunch of neckties to my husband, and then this showed up:
It's a corner shelf (the bottom part of this piece by Ana White) that the young men from our church built for us as part of their scouting program. Now I just have to decide how to finish it. What do you think -- wood stain or paint?
I confess that all of these things showing up would bother me more if I didn't love getting new things... :)
Have a great weekend!


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James R. Streight, 89
James R. Streight, 89, of Bellefontiane, formerly of Wapakoneta, died Monday morning, Sept. 19, 2011, at his daughter's home in Bellefontaine.
He was born Dec. 26, 1922, in Wapakoneta, the son of Edna (Koch) and Marcy Streight, who preceded him in death.
Surviving are three sons, Richard (Tina) Streight, of Canton, Kan., Tom Streight, of St. Marys, and Dennis (Jenne) Streight, of St. Marys; a daughter, Sandy Gehrlich, of Bellefontaine; 11 grandchildren; six great- grandchildren; two sisters, Annabelle (Bob) Roth, of Troy, and Patty Urich, of Colorado; and a brother, Robert (Carol) Streight, of Whitehouse.
He was preceded in death by a great-grandson, Petey Grabor.
He retired in 1987 after 28 years service with Crown Control in New Bremen. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II as a Boatswain's Mate, 2/c. His memberships included, a life member of the Fraternal Order of the Eagles, Aerie 767 in St. Marys, a life member of the Wapakoneta VFW Post 8445, and the Fraternal Order of the Eagles, Aerie 691 in Wapakoneta. He enjoyed NASCAR, football, and vacations with his sisters and brother. Asked about his experiences during World War II, his favorite story to tell was of coming close to being killed by a falling coconut. He loved people and always had a smile for his visitors. He will be sadly missed by his family and friends.
Services are at 10:30 a.m. Friday at the Bayliff & Eley Funeral Home in Wapakoneta. Burial will follow in the Greenlawn Cemetery in Wapakoneta, with military rites conducted by the Wapakoneta VFW.
Friends may call 4 to 8 p.m., Thursday and 9:30 to 10:30 p.m. Friday at the funeral home.
Contributions may be directed to the charity of the donor's choice. Condolences may be sent to bayliffandeleyfh.com.


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Gail Simmons gets sassy with her JJ coasters at the Food Network South Beach Wind & Food Festival last month in Miami, Fla.
The Top Chef judge and host of Top Chef: Just Desserts, kicked back and talked about what TV show she'd like to guest star on, what her last meal would be and why she'd want Gossip Girl's Blake Lively to be on the show!
Be sure to check out the finale of Top Chef: All-Stars TONIGHT on Bravo! See Mike Isabella and Richard Blais duke it out for the top spot!
Click inside for Just Jared's exclusive interview with the charming Gail Simmons… More Here! »


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Joined: 07 Mar 1999
Posts: 11172
Location: Berkeley, California
Posted: Mon Sep 24, 2012 3:46 pm
Post subject:
Boggsy--the capture of the GOP by the nut cases is actually a very sad story. Too many from the far right will attribute the election to Romney being a weak candidate, rather than to having to live with a party that represents only a small portion of the political spectrum--and that disparages all the rest. So I think it is 50:50 that they will say a true conservative would have done better, and insist on a true believer like Ryan. While they have impressive discipline, their inability to read the changing demographics, and consider the implications of their hatred of Hispanics and the poor, means that the far right will have a harder time in the general elections each four year cycle going forward.
The moderate Republican Party had a sensible message about fiscal responsibility (without actually practicing it) and respect for business--without pandering to the neanderthals like the Koch's. But most of the moderate Republicans I know in California don't recognize the party any more.
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Joined: 24 Jun 2002
Posts: 6626
Location: at a computer
Posted: Tue Sep 25, 2012 10:47 am
Post subject:
The right's favorite Union busting tough guy Scott Walker tosses out a little tweet supporting a different Union:
After catching a few hours of sleep, the #Packers game is still just as painful. #Returntherealrefs
@GovWalker via HootSuite
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Joined: 10 Jul 2005
Posts: 3598
Posted: Tue Sep 25, 2012 12:01 pm
Post subject:
Were any conservatives out there about to tell us that the GOP clearly represents real conservative ideas and practices them in 2012?
Or have you been abandoned like me and my friends?
Not asking if YOU support conservative ideas for real.
Asking if Trump, Palin,Gingrich, Bachman are the leaders who you are proud to follow?
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Joined: 07 Mar 1999
Posts: 11172
Location: Berkeley, California
Posted: Thu Sep 27, 2012 2:39 pm
Post subject:
Today's Oakland Tribune had a story about the possible decertification of the AIM charter school in Oakland because of conflicts of interest. This school, run by a controversial principal, had some apparently astonishing gains in test scores, and became the darling of libertarians with praise such as this:
U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan recently claimed: "Districts around the country have literally been cutting for five, six, seven years in a row. And, many of them, you know, are through, you know, fat, through flesh and into bone ... ."
Really? They cut spending five to seven consecutive years?
Give me a break!
Andrew Coulson, director of the Cato Institute's Center for Educational Freedom, writes that out of 14,000 school districts in the United States, just seven have cut their budgets seven years in a row. How about five years in a row? Just 87. That's a fraction of 1 percent in each case.
Duncan may be pandering to his constituency, or he may actually be fooled by how school districts (and other government agencies) talk about budget cuts. When normal people hear about a budget cut, we assume the amount of money to be spent is less than the previous year's allocation. But that's not what bureaucrats mean.
"They are not comparing current year spending to the previous year's spending," Coulson writes. "What they're doing is comparing the approved current year budget to the budget that they initially dreamed about having."
So if a district got more money than last year but less than it asked for, the administrators consider it a cut. "Back in the real world, a K-12 public education costs four times as much as it did in 1970, adjusting for inflation: $150,000 versus the $38,000 it cost four decades ago (in constant 2009 dollars)," Coulson says.
Taxpayers need to understand this sort thing just to protect themselves from greedy government officials and teachers unions.
It was on the basis of this fear and ignorance that President Obama got Congress to pass a "stimulus" bill this summer that included $10 billion for school districts. The money is needed desperately to save teachers from layoffs, the bill's advocates said. We must do it for the children!
When you look at the facts, the scam is clear.
"Over the past 40 years," Coulson writes, "public school employment has risen 10 times faster than enrollment. There are 9 percent more students today, but nearly twice as many public school employees."
But isn't it just common sense that schools would be better if they had more money? As a wise man said, it's not what we don't know that gets us into trouble; it's what we know that isn't so.
Consider the American Indian Public Charter School in Oakland, Calif. It was once a failing school, but now it's one of the best in California. Ben Chavis turned it around without any additional money. His book, "Crazy Like a Fox," tells how.
Chavis' experience exposes the school establishment's lies for what they are. Nearly all of Chavis' students are considered economically disadvantaged (98 percent qualify for free lunches), yet they have the fourth-highest test scores of any school in the state.
"In Oakland this year, on the AP (advanced placement) exam, we had 100 percent of all the blacks and Mexicans in the city of Oakland who passed AP calculus," Chavis said. "There are four high schools, and we're the only ones who had anyone pass AP calc."
Yet Chavis accomplishes this without the "certified" teachers so revered by the educational establishment. His classes are as big as, and sometimes bigger than, public school classes, but only a quarter of his teachers are certified by the state.
Money, he insists, is not the answer. "My buildings are shacks compared to their schools, but my schools are clean, and we'll kick all their asses."
He scoffs at the establishment's solutions to the education problem, such as teacher evaluations.
"I don't do no teacher evaluations. All I do is go into a class, and if the kids ain't working, your ass is fired. (Most principals) sit for hours and say, 'Is he meeting this goal, is he meeting' -- I just go to class, and if the kids are not working ..."
It's time we threw out the "experts" and exposed the schools to real competition by people with common sense.
in the Patriot Post.
Now I don't know if Chavez is a miracle worker or a crook. I do know that sometimes we have to dig a little deeper to find the truth.
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Joined: 07 Mar 1999
Posts: 11172
Location: Berkeley, California
Posted: Sat Oct 06, 2012 1:05 pm
Post subject:
There are some on the forum that don't understand that Randy Newman was being ironic when he said "It's money that matters." They think that testing and economic rewards will upgrade the quality of teaching. Or perhaps...
Ex-Texas school official sent to prison
Associated Press
Updated 10:26 p.m., Friday, October 5, 2012
El Paso, Texas -- A federal judge sentenced the former superintendent of El Paso Independent School District to more than three years in prison Friday for his participation in a conspiracy to improve the district's high-stakes tests scores by removing low-performing students from classrooms.
Lorenzo Garcia's scheme to prevent hundreds of sophomores from taking the accountability tests fooled authorities into believing that academic standards had improved in his West Texas district - resulting in a boost in federal funds and
personal bonuses totaling at least $56,000.
Garcia pleaded guilty to two fraud counts in June; one in the testing scandal and another in which he
misled the school board so that his lover would receive a $450,000 no-bid contract to produce school materials
On Friday, the judge sentenced him to 3 1/2 years in prison on each fraud count, to be served at the same time. Garcia also was fined $56,500 - the exact amount of money he took as a bonus from the district for its success on test scores.
"As superintendent, I am responsible for everything that went on in my district," Garcia said before the sentence was read to him by federal judge David Briones.
Court documents indicate at least six other people helped Garcia organize the testing scheme. An FBI investigation continues.
Garcia, who was hired in 2006, implemented a plan with several other administrators that allowed for the pre-testing of 10th-graders to identify those who were likely to fail the standardized tests. He had one employee photograph students crossing the border so they could be forced out on the grounds that they were living in Mexico rather than within the school district. The whole idea, said former state Sen. Eliot Shapleigh, was to make those students "disappear" so they would not be counted among the students who were tested.
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Of course this approach is official Republican policy, when all of the research shows that making the curriculum tougher is the best way to improve student achievement. Could it have anything to do with businessmen wanting to get the contracts for producing school materials? Is anyone surprised that this happened in Texas?
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The Eastside Leadership Center (ELC) is part of the University of Washington Bothell's School of Business. Located in Bellevue, WA, the ELC is home to the University of Washington Bothell Leadership MBA program, the MS Accounting program and the BA in Business program. The UW Bothell School of Business also holds its executive education programs at this fully equipped campus building that has high-tech classrooms, student lounges, conference facility and faculty offices.
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Education Commissioner Brenda Cassellius has informed district superintendents and charter school directors that the decision about school cancellations for Tuesday is up to individual school districts. School superintendents are monitoring temperatures and local conditions closely, and are prepared to communicate with families so they can plan accordingly.
The message shared with districts follows:
"Dear Superintendents and Charter School Directors,
Tomorrow morning's temperatures are forecasted to be in the double digits below zero again, with continued windchill advisories for the entire state until afternoon.
"Governor Dayton is leaving the decision about school cancellations for Tuesday to individual school districts. We believe school superintendents are monitoring the temperatures closely and are prepared to communicate with families so they can plan accordingly.
"We encourage you, as always, to be mindful about the dangers of even brief exposure to these dangerously low temperatures as you make your decisions.
"I am grateful for your efforts on behalf of Minnesota children, not only during this challenging week, but every day.
Brenda Cassellius"


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Lack of a policy gave Wanamaker freedom for high-priced habits
Timothy E. Wanamaker lived the good life on the taxpayers' dime – and not just in the days after attending out-of-state conferences.
There were beachfront hotels, valet parking, laundry service, room service and spa service while the conferences were going on as well as after they ended.
And once back in Buffalo, there were flowers for sick employees, meals at the Buffalo Chophouse and the Empire Grill, and a high-end laptop directly from the Walden Galleria.
All paid for with federal anti-poverty funds.
Wanamaker got himself in hot water – resulting in a federal felony conviction – by pushing the outside of the envelope, remaining at his conference destinations after the sessions ended, then continuing to bill a federally funded city development agency for his personal expenses.
But more often than not, a Buffalo News review of Wanamaker expense records found, Wanamaker's lavish spending of anti-poverty money also was occurring legally, during the time Wanamaker was actually attending conferences on behalf of the city.
Wanamaker was able to get away with his high-priced habits, The News found, because the Buffalo Economic Renaissance Corp. that funded his travel and related spending had no policy setting spending limits on travel expenses and because the city's nebulous travel approval process ended with one of Wanamaker's subordinates apparently being the only person who ever saw the bills.
The News filed Freedom of Information requests with the city and the federal government to learn more about Wanamaker's spending and who approved it. The FOI requests were filed after Wanamaker pleaded guilty in federal court in November 2011 to illegally charging about $30,000 in personal expenses on his BERC credit card.
The city and its development agency failed to release any documents, but the U.S. Department of Housing Urban Development's Office of Inspector General released 367 pages detailing Wanamaker's spending while traveling outside of Buffalo, and while back in the city.
The documents don't disclose who approved Wanamaker's spending. But The News learned that in the Brown administration, former Economic Development Commissioner Richard M. Tobe – who is now deputy Erie County executive – reviewed most of the requests Wanamaker made to travel, then forwarded those he recommended for approval to the Mayor's Office for final OK, typically to Deputy Mayor Steven M. Casey. The travel requests, based on one viewed by The News, included preliminary cost estimates, but the figures weren't necessarily complete or accurate.
Tobe said Wanamaker – who was president of BERC and executive director of Mayor Byron W. Brown's Office of Strategic Planning – technically reported to the mayor, who was BERC chairman. But Tobe said that he was asked in mid-2006 to review aspects of Wanamaker's travel for BERC. Prior to that, Tobe said, Wanamaker's travel requests went directly to the Mayor's Office.
"The actual approval was done by Steve Casey or the mayor," Tobe said. "It was my duty to ensure that there was a public purpose for the trip." Casey, however, described Tobe as Wanamaker's direct supervisor, who, as such, approved Wanamaker's travel. He described the role of the Mayor's Office in the approval process as almost pro forma or perfunctory.
"Recommended requests for travel are forwarded by commissioners to the mayor's office to verify funding source and to ensure no scheduling conflicts," Casey responded by email to The News. "… Mr. Wanamaker at that time reported directly to Commissioner Tobe on all economic matters," Casey said.
Regardless of how the pre-approval process unfolded, neither Tobe nor Casey saw actual expense reports or credit card bills. Neither did the mayor. Apparently the only one who saw Wanamaker's actual bills and spending records was BERC's chief finance officer, John Riccione, who worked for Wanamaker and authorized payments.
Riccione was forced out of his job in 2008 by the Brown administration. He has not responded to repeated requests for comment from The News.
Here's some of what can be gleaned from those HUD documents:
The Las Vegas trip
In the retail world, the International Council of Shopping Centers is a big deal. Its national conferences offer business and government officials a chance to network with industry bigwigs.
The annual spring ICSC convention in Las Vegas is "the biggest retail real estate convention in the world," said spokesman Jesse Tron. "About 50 percent of deals are consummated or conceived at the convention."
Wanamaker had attended the regional ICSC conferences in Los Angeles and New York City in November and December 2006, and suggested Brown and Casey accompany him to the national convention in Las Vegas in May 2007. The top official from Bass Pro Shops would be there, and Wanamaker wanted the mayor and deputy mayor to get some face time with him, Casey has previously said. At the time, Bass Pro was still considering coming to Buffalo's waterfront.
Also at the conference were executives from Kohl's department store.
Brown and Casey went. Wanamaker and two members of Wanamaker's staff also attended.
Planning for the May 20-23 conference took months. A travel approval form was submitted to the Mayor's Office in early April. It stated the travel was for nine nights, from May 18 to 27.
Tobe recommended that the Las Vegas trip be approved but said that he doesn't recall any reference to nine days of travel.
Casey said the Mayor's Office granted the approval based on Tobe's recommendation. Casey didn't directly respond when asked about the nine days.
Two from the Buffalo group – presumably Brown and Casey – arrived on the 20th, stayed three nights at Caesar's Palace, and left on the 23rd, documents indicate. The cost of their rooms was not provided in the documents released.
Another room – believed to be for Wanamaker's two staff members – was booked for five nights at The Mirage, from May 18 to 23, costing about $1,763, or about $350 a night.
Wanamaker also arrived in Las Vegas on May 18, picking up a Hertz rental car – a Lincoln MKX-Prestige Luxury Crossover or similar, according to his itinerary – at about 10:30 that Friday night, then heading to his hotel, The Treasure Island.
Wanamaker was booked in a "Tower Suite" for two guests, according to the hotel confirmation. The basic room cost with tax was $392 per night, plus another $12 a day for Internet access, bringing the daily room rate to $404.
On that first night, there was also room service, the HUD documents show. The food bill came to $95.95.
Other Treasure Island hotel charges during the conference included $22 for spa service and $20.50 for laundry. By the end of the conference, Wanamaker's total hotel bill alone had reached about $2,700 for the six nights.
But Wanamaker's spending didn't stop when the conference ended. Brown, Casey, and Wanamaker's two staff members were gone, but Wanamaker remained in his $404-a-night Treasure Island suite. He kept the rental car. He continued charging food to his BERC credit card.
It was those last three nights and four days of spending – $1,750 – after the ICSC's Las Vegas conference that got him in trouble with federal investigators.
The Miami trip
The Buffalo temperature was just about freezing – 34 degrees – on Dec. 11, 2007, when Wanamaker took a $550 flight to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., then rented a car to his hotel in Miami Beach.
The occasion was the 2007 Opportunity Finance Network Conference, which promised "professional development and networking for … community development specialists that are interested in aligning capital with social, economic, and political justice," a brochure promoting the conference promised.
While the four-day event focused on improving the lives of the poor, Wanamaker's accommodations were more befitting the lives of the well-to-do.
Wanamaker was the only city representative at the conference, according to BERC records. Throughout the event, he had a "deluxe" room at the Loew's Miami Beach, a beachfront hotel costing about $500 a night – a total of $1,556 for the three-night stay.
The morning after the conference ended, when Wanamaker no longer had a legitimate business reason to be in Miami, Buffalo's economic-development czar left the Loew's Miami Beach hotel.
He checked into the nearby Ritz-Carlton South Beach. It was pricier than the Loew's. A two-night stay was $1,289.
In addition, there was a $49.54 breakfast tab at the hotel and $320 in bills from four other restaurants. All charged to BERC, using anti-poverty money.
When Wanamaker left Florida on the 16th, he returned his rental car, which cost BERC $1,067 for six days.
It was the approximately $2,000 billed to BERC after the Florida conference ended that was illegal, federal officials said.
38 trips over two years
Wanamaker was a frequent traveler during much of his five-year tenure as Buffalo's economic development czar. He took 38 trips at BERC expense from June 1, 2006, to May 2008, with over half – 22 of them – to Washington, D.C., often to meet with HUD officials or lawmakers, city records show. The remaining trips were to 14 different cities from one end of the country to the other.
Brown attended four of the Washington meetings with Wanamaker, as well as an Urban League conference in Atlanta, and shopping center conferences in New York City and Las Vegas, city records show.
Wanamaker's frequent travel attracted attention in City Hall, but the Brown administration defended the trips, which it said brought new ideas and additional money and investment to Buffalo, and strengthened the city's relationships and networks with key people in Washington and elsewhere.
The Las Vegas trip, for example, resulted in Kohl's coming to Buffalo and gave Brown a chance to talk with Bass Pro executives, Casey and Tobe said.
Tobe added that while BERC asked him in mid-2006 to begin reviewing Wanamaker's travel requests to determine their benefit to Buffalo, he also looked at preliminary cost estimates included in the requests.
None seemed out of line, and nothing about the travel plans or estimates seemed illegal, Tobe said. In addition, Tobe said, he is confident that Wanamaker attended and participated in the conferences he was sent to. Nonetheless, Tobe said, he told Wanamaker at one point that he was traveling too much. "I told him to cut back," Tobe said.
But in November 2011, more than three years after Wanamaker left city government, he was arrested and eventually pleaded guilty in federal court to stealing government anti-poverty funds. Federal investigators said they identified about a dozen and a half instances where Wanamaker remained at meetings and conference destinations after his business was completed, and used his BERC credit card for personal stays in those cities.
Investigators made no mention of the money Wanamaker spent legally while at conventions, or the work-related expenses charged to his BERC credit card while in Buffalo.
Documents show, for example, that Wanamaker used the credit card to buy a $90 bouquet accompanying a get-well card for one employee, and a $95 basket for another whose mother died. The credit card was used for an $80 order at Dough Bois Pizzeria, a $164 bill at the Empire Grill and a $225 bill at the Buffalo Chophouse.
Other local credit card purchases included a $2,900 Mac Pro laptop purchased from the Apple Store in the Galleria.
Wanamaker, now 48, was sentenced to three years of probation in December 2012. He declined to comment for this article through his Buffalo attorney, James P. Harrington. Brown also declined to comment. Casey responded to one email but declined to comment further.
Meanwhile, BERC, the economic-development agency Wanamaker once headed, is being phased out, with some of its responsibilities shifted to the Buffalo Urban Renewal Agency. According to BURA, a travel policy was adopted last month that prohibits extending a stay at a convention site for personal reasons.
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Where given room dimensions are maximums, ± 50mm, and include any fitted wardrobes or similar features.
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Easymover is available here, which means you could reserve a new Taylor Wimpey home at this development - even if you haven't sold your existing property.
And that's not all. With easymover, we'll make your house move as stress free as possible. We'll liaise with your estate agent on your behalf, we'll pay their fees and we'll manage the whole house selling process - making your life so much easier! Take a look at our easymover page for more information.
Terms and conditions apply to the Easymover scheme.
Why not consider Part Exchanging your existing property for a brand new Taylor Wimpey home? With our Part Exchange scheme, you could move into a new Taylor Wimpey home without the hassle of selling your old one.
We'll buy your existing property at 100% of its market value. You'll avoid all the stress of putting your house on the market, managing and paying for estate agents, and worrying about house buying chains! Interested? Find out more about Part Exchange.
Terms and conditions apply to the Part Exchange scheme.
Looking for an armed forces discount? At this development, members of the armed forces could get a discount of up to £500 for every £25,000 spent on a new home. If you think you could be eligible, why not find out more about our armed forces discount today?
This development is managed by the East Scotland Taylor Wimpey regional office


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Featured News - Current News - Archived News - News Categories
Rajinder Pal Singh Bajwa, M.D., is joining the medical staff at Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center. His appointment was announced Friday by Vice President and Chief Medical Officer Vijay Bojedla, M.D.
A primary care physician and infectious disease specialist, Bajwa will provide care to patients in both the inpatient and outpatient settings and will serve as an infectious disease consultant to Memorial's physicians and nurses.
Bajwa is a graduate of Government Medical College in Patiala, India. His post-graduate training includes a residency in radio-diagnosis at Dayanand Medical College & Hospital, Ludhiana, India, and a residency in internal medicine at Allegheny General Hospital, Pittsburgh.
He will begin his work at Memorial later this year upon after completing an infectious diseases fellowship at the University at Buffalo and Buffalo VA Medical Center.
Bajwa is board certified in internal medicine and holds professional membership in the American College of Physicians, Infectious Disease Society of America, Society of Healthcare Epidemiology of America, American Society for Microbiology and the Medical Council of India. His research has been published in several peer reviewed journals.


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More Than Bumblebees & Rap Songs: Black & Yellow
For many months now I have heard the song "Black and Yellow" by Wiz Khalifa played daily on speakers at various locations, and inside my head at all other times. Even though it's about football, I'm afraid the only way to make it stop is to do a thorough exploration of black and yellow rooms, so please enjoy and try not to catch it.
Surprisingly, none of these black and yellow rooms scream "bumblebee" at first glance, because healthy doses of white are mixed in to balance out the stronger colors. The combination creates visual energy through its contrast and saturation. Even in a traditional space like the first picture, the bright yellow of the chairs feels like a modern addition and keeps the composition from feeling too stuffy. In a larger setting like the hotel library room, yellow is applied to all soft surfaces for a contemporary look.
Could you live with black and yellow?
1. Elle Decor
2. Kelley Proxmire
3. From the Right Bank
4. Angie Hranowsky
5. AphroChic
6. DwellStudio
7. David Jimenez
8-9. Kelly Wearstler
10. Domino
Images: As credited above.


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Chicago-Kent College of Law provides limited accommodation for non-US law students who are studying in English for the first time, whether they are studying as LL.M. students or as Exchange students. The accommodation consists of the following measures:
a) Extra time on exams, but only if the student did not take their first law degree in English. LL.M. and Exchange students will have their exams rescheduled for 8:30 am each morning unless you hold a law degree that was taught in English, in which case you will take your exams with the J.D. students.
Please log-in to Web for Students (icon is located in the bottom of your Webmail) to view your updated exam schedule.
We will assume that you intend to take your exams on your own laptop. If you prefer to handwrite your exams, you may change the method by logging into your Webmail account, click on the Web for Students icon, and navigate to the Exam Method Registration form. The form will be available beginning Wednesday, November 3; the deadline for submitting an exam method request is Friday, November 12, at 5:00 pm.
If you prefer to take one or more exams on a lab computer, you will need to notify Hilary Waldron no later than Friday, November 12, at 5:00 pm. Please be specific in your email to Hilary and tell her exactly what you prefer and give her the exam title and scheduled time. Please remember that if you choose to take an exam on a lab computer, you will NOT receive any extra time.
Wednesday, Nov. 24 7:15 am - 10:30 pm
Thursday, Nov. 25 CLOSED
Friday, Nov. 26 CLOSED
Saturday, Nov. 27 8:00 am - 6:00 pm
Wednesday, Nov. 24 8:00 am - 6:00 pm
Thursday, Nov. 25 CLOSED
Friday, Nov. 26 CLOSED
Saturday, Nov. 27 9:00 am - 5:00 pm
Regular Fall building hours and library hours will be in effect from SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 28, thru FRIDAY, DECEMBER 3.
Beginning SATURDAY, DECEMBER 4 thru MONDAY, DECEMBER 20, the library and building hours will be extended to accommodate students during the exam period. The hours are as follows:
Each year the International Center at the Illinois Institute of Technology matches international students with IIT faculty, staff, and student families to host Thanksgiving dinner.
If you're interested in this program, please sign-up on the following links below:
IIT Thanksgiving Dinner "Student" Sign-up.
IIT Thanksgiving Dinner "Host" Sign-up.
To find out more about the Thanksgiving holiday, please click on the following link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thanksgiving
For any questions, please contact International Center, firstname.lastname@example.com or 312-567-3680.
Reminder: The International Center has advising hours at the Downtown Campus on Thursdays from 9:00am to 4pm in room 656. Please call 312-567-3680 by Wednesday at 4:30 pm to make an appointment.
If you are planning to travel outside of the U.S., you are required by SEVIS to have a travel signature. To obtain a travel signature on your I-20, please bring it to the International Center. The International Center recommends that you bring your I-20 to them at least one week in advance. We advise that you get your travel signature well in advance. A travel signature is valid for 12 months; however, we strongly advise that you obtain a new signature if the previous travel signature is more than 6 months old. For more information on travel, please see: http://www.iit.edu/~internat/forms/Travel_Handout_F1.pdf.
Main Chicago-Kent event
Academic calendar
CLE calendar
Alumni event calendar
Admissions calendar


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12 Nov 2013 11:36:11 AM
The 12 Greatest Ring Girls in UFC History, Ranked
(Edith and Arianny on the job, back when the phrase "GOD'S STREET SOLDIER" used to mean something. / Photo via CombatLifestyle.com)
When ranking the greatest UFC ring girls of all time, four criteria must be considered: looks, personality, longevity, and whether or not they ever posed nude for Playboy. (That last one is probably the most important.) So in honor of the UFC's 20th anniversary, we decided to pay tribute to the unsung heroines of the Octagon, who bravely circle the cage in booty-shorts to remind drunken fans what round it is. Disagree with our list? Then let us know in the comments section, tough guy.
#12 & #11 (tie): Chrissy Blair and Vanessa Hanson
Chrissy and Vanessa both made their UFC ring girl debuts in 2011 after winning contests put on by Transworld, and were officially added to the Octagon Girl rotation earlier this year following a stint in Strikeforce. They're kind of a package deal, and we can't decide which one is more attractive, so we'll let them share the leadoff spots on this list. (Honestly, the Betty and Veronica thing will never go out of style.) Chrissy and Vanessa were most recently seen earlier this month, supporting the troops.
For further viewing:
- Golden goddess
- The artsy black and white shot
- Long tall Chrissy
- She really ties the room together
- Coming undone
- A woman in uniform
- Strikeforce's dynamic duo
#10: Jessica CambensyRead More DIGG THIS


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Reveillon Dinners
New Orleans is the kind of town that never passes up a chance to celebrate something. Mardi Gras is the tip of the iceberg, and below the water line is an assortment of annual bashes that no city in America, and maybe the world, can match.
While Mardi Gras is widely considered New Orleans' latter-day take on Sodom and Gomorrah, the city's much more typical celebration is likely to invite as much controversy as your average state fair. New Orleanians have acquired the habit of taking almost every quirky or cultural phenomenon at their disposal and attaching to it the word "festival." The inspirations range from jazz to Creole tomatoes, and from Tennessee Williams' plays to the Sicilian custom of honoring St. Joseph by piling food onto special altars.
Events like these reflect a one-of-a-kind culture that thrives on its own legendary music and food, as well as a history filled with fascinating characters and legends. These feed a festival calendar that also generates a large amount of income for the New Orleans tourism industry, whose members are always on the lookout for another drawing card.
One of the more recent tourism-driven lures is réveillon dinners. These are prolonged feasts, traditionally beginning around midnight, on the eves of Christmas and New Year's by families in France. During the 1800s, we're told, New Orleans' Creole families also indulged in the réveillon. (The word is a form of the French word réveiller, which means, among other things, "to remain awake." Think of reveille, the term the U.S. Army borrowed from the French to denote an early-morning bugle call.)
Some 25 years ago, French Quarter Festivals, a city agency promoting tourism, convinced a group of New Orleans restaurateurs to revive the old dinner-at-midnight tradition by serving specially priced holiday menus each December during their normal service hours. Réveillon dinners had most of the earmarks of a successful New Orleans tourism promotion; that is, they began as a 19th century custom, their origin is French, they involve food and, at most of the restaurants taking part in the event, they're offered at bargain prices.
Once again this year, from December 1 through New Year's Eve, some 28 of the city's restaurants are participating, each with its own menu, serving schedule, and price level. The list includes such well known places as Commander's Palace, Arnaud's, Dickie Brennan's Steakhouse, the Rib Room and Palace Café. Fixed-price menus are the norm. The vast majority are three or four courses costing between $30 and $50, plus taxes, tip and beverages. Most of the menus provide numerous choices for each course.*
The more traditional Christmas Eve réveillon has Catholic roots. Typically, the dinner followed a family's attendance at a Mass held around midnight. Near the end of the meal, the gathered families and friends might exchange gifts. As for New Year's Eve, the custom is simply to eat, drink and party into the wee hours. When the clock strikes twelve, glasses are raised in the usual toast, with kisses, hugs and wishes for a bonne année exchanged all around.
Meanwhile, the Creoles' cousins in France were feasting somewhat higher on the hog. Truffles, lobster and foie gras (followed by sips of champagne) are often mentioned in the literature on the réveillon tradition. Oysters, especially if they 're raw, also are near the top of the list of favorites. The customary meat, usually roasted, might be seasonal game, lamb, goose or turkey, these last two often stuffed with chestnuts. Snails probably make the cut, too. As for dessert, a chestnut pudding wouldn't be out of line, but a bûche de noël—the old-fashioned cake that's a relative of the Yule log, shaped and decorated to resemble a tree branch—would be the piece de résistance.
A perusal of this year's New Orleans' réveillon menus reveals that quite a few are honoring the old French traditions to one degree or another. Oysters and foie gras (the livers of specially fattened ducks) show up in various forms. Among the meats, lamb makes fairly frequent appearances. The Hunt Room Grill in the Monteleone Hotel prepares not only lamb, duck and foie gras, but also roasted goose with red cabbage. Palace Café stuffs its roasted turkeys with chestnuts. And fans of game can indulge in either venison at Mat & Naddie's or elk at Muriel's Jackson Square.
A preference for seafood should be no problem. Every restaurant on the réveillon list includes at least one fish dish, and shellfish are fairly common, too. As for desserts, Marigny Brasserie trumps its competitors with the only bûche de noël in town. At other restaurants, custardy concoctions rule. On the 28-or-so dessert lists, there are eight variations on the bread pudding theme, with crème brûlée running a very close second.
New Orleans, with its often balmy Decembers, may not provide the ideal backdrop for a traditional Christmas dinner. But in recent years many French Quarter residents and businesses have been festooning their iron-lace balconies with holiday wreaths and garlands, giving the old historic district a seasonal splash of red and green.
But you'll probably still have to bring your own snow.
*More detailed information is provided at French Quarter Festivals Inc.'s Website at www.fqfi.com.


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Computer & Electrical Engineering
Program Description
The Associate in Science Transfer (AS-T) degree is designed to prepare students entrance into a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) program in Computer Engineering or Electrical Engineering. This AS-T degree is a Major Related Program detailing university requirements in the sciences, mathematics, computer science, communications and engineering so students will be ready for junior standing. Students will be required to take additional courses after transfer to fulfill general university requirements. Computer and Electrical Engineering is also an excellent major for graduate studies in Computer Science, Engineering, Law, Business and Education.
Computer and Electrical Engineering—What is it?
Computer and Electrical Engineering are intrinsically intertwined. While Computer
Engineers focus specifically on the design, implementation and operation of computer
hardware and software systems, Electrical Engineers design, develop and test all devices
and systems that use electrical and electromagnetic energy. Both majors build on a
solid foundation of math, science, computer science, engineering design and communications.
Areas of Study in Computer and Electrical Engineering:
Electrical Circuits, Linear Systems, Thermodynamics, Engineering Problem Solving and Design, Data Structures, Microprocessors, Digital Operations and Computation, Electromagnetic Waves, Wireless Communication, Computer Programming, Operating Systems and Networks.
Career Opportunities
What can I do with a Bachelor's Degree in Computer & Electrical Engineering?
In addition to strong technical, scientific and problem solving skills, engineers often rely on team work and clear communications to manage projects effectively. These skills apply to a wide range of careers in such areas as hardware research and design, software and electrical engineering, management, teaching, sales and consulting.
Potential employers include:
Engineering Firms, Manufacturing Firms, Semi Conductor Companies, Computer Software and Hardware Companies, Wireless Communication Companies, Government Agencies, Colleges and Universities. For more, please visit Career Counseling.
Transfer Possibilities—Where can I transfer?
The AS-T makes it possible for students to transfer to a number of public and private colleges and universities in the U.S. with junior standing.
Program Faculty Advisors
Eric Basham
Room 2809
(206) 546-4625
Alison Armstrong
Room 2810
(206) 546-4698
Stephanie Diemel
Room 5356
Joyce Fagel
Room 2814
Program Description
Completion Award: A.S.-T Degree


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Richard Devine: Electro-Renaissance Man
Artist/producer/remixer/sound designer Richard Devine stays so far ahead of the curve that he gives even the most "innovative" artists a run for their money. Devine has made a name for himself as a highly-respected electronic musician—releasing four artist albums in just four years and touring the world over—and as a go-to guy for all manner of remixing, sound design, film scoring, programming and even software and instrument development. With such a diverse range of talents, it's no wonder that Devine has worked with everyone from BT and Trent Reznor to Apple and Audi—using a wealth of M-Audio gear including the Oxygen 8 v2 keyboard controller, Octane preamp, Solaris microphone and more.
What sets Devine apart from most electronic musicians is his approach to composition and his steadfast desire to stay outside of the traditional realm of electronic music. Instead of constructing tracks in a normal, linear fashion, Devine uses his collection of custom sounds, samples, and ambiences to piece together his compositions. "I usually approach songwriting and composition from a sound designer's perspective," he explains. "I consider myself to be more of a sound designer and collage artist. I piece together fragments of sounds and process them into something new and unique. I have always tried to push the boundaries of what could be considered electronic music, and take that to a new dimension. My philosophy is simple. I keep everything detailed and non-traditional. Hopefully the listener will experience something new and profound after hearing my work."
While the ultimate result of his efforts may resemble a sonic journey though an alternate reality, items like M-Audio audio interfaces, MIDI controllers and software titles like Pro Tools and Ableton Live are key to the creation of Devine's otherworldly sounds. "I use several M-Audio devices in my studio setup. The first piece is the Delta 1010 sound card. I have used this interface since day one. It has always been rock solid on my PC workstation. I usually use it as a recording interface with my Windows machine. The 1010 has really nice A/D converters and logical audio routing, making it easy to do sessions with. It has proven itself as a workhorse interface that I still use on many sessions for film and TV work.
"I use Pro Tools 7 and Ableton Live 5 all the time for my music production and sound design," Devine continues. "Ableton Live is one of the most revolutionary software applications to come out in recent years. I love how easy it is to piece together ideas and construct loops with Live. It has totally helped me work in new ways that I never thought would be possible. I have done several collaborations this year using Live. The time stretching/compressing algorithms have been extremely helpful in throwing any material together and working it into something new."
Fits in the Overhead Compartment
With a hectic touring schedule and an always-lengthy list of A-list clients making demands on his time, Devine travels with an impressive array of M-Audio products that allow him to write, record and perform wherever he is. And by utilizing both laptop-based production and performance rigs, Devine never has to worry about how he's going to get his equipment to and from a gig—as everything can be easily carried on a plane. "I just worked with BT on a new film called Surveillance ," Devine explains. "And I used the new Oxygen 8 v2 as the main keyboard controller for all my sound design and composing needs. It was portable enough to work anywhere—back at the hotel or at the studio. We also used the M-Audio MicroTrack 24/96 recorder to record all the outside source material. These little recording rigs are genius. I was really impressed with how well they held up, and the sound quality was amazing. Earlier this year I was working on Mike Patton's new solo album, Peeping Tom , where I used the Ozonic keyboard as my main interface and sound card. It proved to be the best solution for my traveling needs on the road.
"For live shows I always use the UC-33e and X-Session in conjunction with my laptop computer," Devine continues. "I also use the Ozonic as an audio interface and controller, and I have a first-generation Oxygen8 keyboard that I also use for note triggering and extra control for my PowerBook. I have actually used M-Audio equipment for every show I have done for the last four years. I simply couldn't function without it. I never use typical MIDI keyboard controllers anymore. They have all been replaced by M-Audio controllers. I work primarily with laptop computers, so I need MIDI controllers that are portable and easy to use."
Recipe for Success
When not working as a musical "jack-of-all-trades," Devine also takes an active role in the design and testing of new software instruments. In addition to the custom software and computer creations he has built for his own use, he recently assisted with both Way Out Ware TimewARP 2600 and Ableton Operator. "I worked with Jim Heintz on the TimewARP 2600, and I use it all the time," says Devine. "I would say it is one of the most accurate replications of an older analog synthesizer. I also love the GForce and iZotope plug-ins, especially the Trash and Spectron plugs by iZotope. They are truly unique in comparison to other plug-ins I have used. I use the Trash plug-in on all my drum sounds, and love the nasty layer of evilness it adds.
"Another project I worked on last year was the Operator synthesizer in Ableton 5. I designed many of the factory patches for this synthesizer," he continues. "It is an extremely flexible FM synth that I have used on countless tracks. I also love Beat Repeater and the Grain Delay plug-ins in Live. Beat Repeater is simply awesome for chopping up beats in real-time. I have gotten so many interesting things just by using several instances of Beat Repeater on different DSP-processed sounds. I love taking completely chaotic sounds into Beat Repeater and repeating specific sections in real-time, running on multiple different channels and creating this controlled chaos."
A Dose of Reality
While the casual listener might assume that Devine never leaves the world of software applications and instruments, just the opposite is true. Devine is an experienced studio engineer who often finds himself recording acoustic instruments in both stereo and surround for film and video game applications. "I have just started to use the M-Audio 8-channel Octane preamp," he explains. "I have been using it on all my 5.1 surround recordings. It has proven to be a wonderful front end to my digital recording system. I have been using that in conjunction with the Solaris microphone, which has been really incredible for recording ethnic drums and stringed instruments. The detail that you can capture is unreal. There are so many positive things I could say about M-Audio hardware and software that I could be here for days talking about this.
"I have used M-Audio products on every single project that I have worked on, whether it was sound design for other audio companies, TV commercials, video games or sound tracks," Devine concludes. "It's been the workhorse gear that keeps on going and going."


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It Hurts (1368 views)
A guy dies whilst making love to his wife. A few days later the undertaker calls her and says, "Your husband still has a hard-on, what shall I do with it?" The wife replies, "Cut it off and shove it up his arse!" The undertaker does as he is told. On the day of the funeral the wife visits her husband for the last time and sees a tear rolling down his face, so she whispers in his ear, "It fucking hurts doesn't it!"
Random Jokes
Jokes of the day


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Database Slideshow: Bad Customer Data is Common, Costly
There's a lot of bad data out there when it comes to valuable customer-contact information. Maybe it's a database in which 23 percent of the home addresses aren't valid anymore. Or one with outdated area codes. And, of course, let's not forget good, old-fashioned data-entry errors caused when busy call-center employees input typos. Whatever the source of data dysfunction, it often falls to you and your IT team to fix it. A new survey from Experian QAS reveals that organizations realize that data problems exist, and are taking systemic steps to take corrective action. Still, given the economy, progress is sometimes stalled. "While contact-data quality is becoming a priority as businesses focus on customer loyalty and retention, stakeholders are finding difficulty implementing projects due to cost constraints," says Joel Curry, chief operating officer, Experian QAS. "To overcome this obstacle, organizations should review common-quality issues with data and prioritize projects based on their positive return on investment." An estimated 300 organizations participated in the Experian QAS Data Quality survey, with CIOs, IT managers/directors and other top executives taking part.


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Saturday, November 10, 2007
Banana Pancakes (can be vegan, dairy free, etc, and obviously are already gluten-free)
So this morning I made pancakes. They were quick (mixed and cooked in 15 minutes) and can be made vegan/dairy free. I ate them with Nutella, as pancake sandwiches, on the way to go pick up the car. Yum.
Banana Pancakes
1 c rice flour
2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
1 T sugar
a pinch of nutmeg and a bigger pinch of cinnamon
1 T veg oil
1 c milk or soymilk or water
1 overripe banana
Mix all the dry ingredients. Mash the banana with the milk and oil, then add to flour mix. stir well to combine, and let sit about 5 minutes while you heat up your griddle (or cast iron pan, or pan, or whatever). Cook as you would pancakes, dropping about 1/4 c at a time and wiggling the pan to spread. Cook on each side, then spread with Nutella (or peanut butter, or syrup, or anything) and eat hot.
20 comments:
just white rice flour! yum! yum yum yum! these are FAST!ReplyDelete
Hello, this morning I discovered that I was out of white flour, so I did a google search for vegan gluten-free pancakes and yours turned up. I don't have Celiacs, but I still try to limit my gluten, so I have many gluten-free flours. Your recipe is amazing and I'm fairly certain that my pancake cravings will now be switched to gluten-free pancake cravings. Thanks for this yummy recipe!ReplyDelete
- Anonymous10:55 AM
I tried a variation on this recipe:ReplyDelete
1 cup brown rice flour
1 tsp almond flour
1 tsp potato flour
1 tsp tapioca flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp egg replacer
3/4 cup water
2 tsp oil
mixed all dry ingredients, then mixed in the wet, a pinch of cinnamon and half a small banana, and fried on a pan with oil. Turned out pretty good. Tomorrow I am going to try almond milk to replace the water.
- Anonymous12:50 AM
They are really good. I just made them and i ate 4 of them. I also didn't have all the ingredientes and other I just wanted to use but at the end honestly the best pancakes I've had.ReplyDelete
I added to the recipe 1/2 cup of quinoa flour (made it myself on the coffee grinder). Then I just added 1/2 more of everything else. I was able to make 12 good sized pancakes.
I also added frozen wild blueberries... yummy! and 1/4 cup of chopped pecans, don't like cinammon or nutmeg so I used ground coriander and ginger...
I'll definately pass on your recipe! THANKS!
Probably sorghum? I've only ever made these with rice flour. Experiment!ReplyDelete
- gisela12:55 PM
I have to say I was pretty skeptical about using only rice flour but figured it was a quick enough recipe that if it sucked, I would just trash it & make something else. I was pleasantly surprised--these were delicious! I only had 1/2 of a banana so I added 1 flax "egg" to help bind ingredients together. I also added some vegan chocolate chips which made them extra yummy!!! Thank you for such a great GF recipe!ReplyDelete


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Michael, thanks for this new forum.Fike,> This new category of compact systems cameras will proliferate as the high-quality but diminutive sibling to full frame.I suggest 'sibling to mirror-cameras', as I do hope that mirrorless cameras will soon become full frame! Well there is the Leica M240 already, but the digital loupe can not be moved around, so it's useless for tripod work. Not to mention the price
I hope that Sony will read this thread with their eyes and minds W*I*D*E open! and soon come up with a full frame NEX
I have been under the impression that full frame compact (mirrorless compact) cameras are hard to do because of the required distance required between the sensor and the optics. ... I think all the full-frame, compact, cameras to date have had fixed-focal-length lenses that were not removable and were in the wide end of the normal range (I am guessing from memory here, but I think around 35mm). My guess is that this is because around the 35mm focal length a lens can still project a wide enough image circle while remaining small and high quality.
@ BJL:> So long as the attraction of "compact system cameras" is based in good part on compactness, then the lenses need to be compact too, and scaling up to 35mm format ruins that, unless one sacrifices the advantages in low light performance and shallow DOF that are so often given as reasons for using a bigger format.What if the attraction is not the shallow DOF and the max aperture of the lens? Look at the size and weight of ff rangefinder wide angles as compared to DSLR wide angles ...
Just out of interest, would this be the natural home for the Leica M 240?
... how would you define a "rangefinder?" My thought is that a rangefinder is a camera with manual focus that works by bringing duplicate images into registration.
... I am having trouble seeing how this would apply to a digital camera.
...What if the attraction is not the shallow DOF and the max aperture of the lens? Look at the size and weight of ff rangefinder wide angles as compared to DSLR wide angles, e.g. Zeiss' ZM line. As a landscaper, I'd be happy with f/5.6 as the max aperture. ...


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CIU Adds Women's Soccer
Columbia International University (CIU) is adding women's soccer to its roster of intercollegiate sports beginning in fall 2015. In preparation, CIU has announced the hiring of Kara Farnsworth as head coach who will begin to organize the program July 15.
Farnsworth is coming from Colorado Christian University in Lakewood, Colorado where she served as an assistant to the women's soccer team under Head Coach Renee Lopez. Farnsworth played collegiate soccer at Roberts Wesleyan College in Rochester, New York where she was a four-year starter. She also served the team as captain for one year and as the chaplain for two years.
Farnsworth also volunteers and coaches at the Renee Lopez Academy and the Broomfield Soccer Club, both in Colorado, as well as with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA).
CIU Athletics Director Kim Abbott says hiring the first coach for a new program is a critical decision.
"This is Kara's first head coaching opportunity, and with that comes her energy, excitement, and God-focused objective, all a perfect fit," Abbott said. "Most of all, we want people at CIU who feel God's affirming hand in their decision, and Kara is that person for us."
As for Farnsworth, she says she is "thrilled" to be called on to build the women's soccer program at CIU.
"I am incredibly thankful and blessed to be joining the CIU family where a women's soccer program can be built that is both competitive and honoring to God," Farnsworth said.
The CIU Rams play in the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA). The CIU athletics program began in 2012 and includes men's soccer, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's cross country and men's and women's track.
For more on CIU athletics go to: http://www.ciuathletics.com/.