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We know a lot about how babies learn to talk, and youngsters learn to read. Now scientists are unraveling the earliest building blocks of math — and what children know about numbers as they begin first grade seems to play a big role in how well they do everyday calculations later on.
The findings have specialists considering steps that parents might take to spur math abilities, just like they do to try to raise a good reader.
This isn't only about trying to improve the nation's math scores and attract kids to become engineers. It's far more basic.
Consider: How rapidly can you calculate a tip? Do the fractions to double a recipe? Know how many quarters and dimes the cashier should hand back as your change?
About 1 in 5 adults in the U.S. lacks the math competence expected of a middle-schooler, meaning they have trouble with those ordinary tasks and aren't qualified for many of today's jobs.
"It's not just, can you do well in school? It's how well can you do in your life," says Dr. Kathy Mann Koepke of the National Institutes of Health, which is funding much of this research into math cognition. "We are in the midst of math all the time."
A new study shows trouble can start early.
University of Missouri researchers tested 180 seventh-graders. Those who lagged behind their peers in a test of core math skills needed to function as adults were the same kids who'd had the least number sense or fluency way back when they started first grade.
"The gap they started with, they don't close it," says Dr. David Geary, a cognitive psychologist who leads the study that is tracking children from kindergarten to high school in the Columbia, Mo., school system. "They're not catching up" to the kids who started ahead.
If first grade sounds pretty young to be predicting math ability, well, no one expects tots to be scribbling sums. But this number sense, or what Geary more precisely terms "number system knowledge," turns out to be a fundamental skill that students continually build on, much more than the simple ability to count.
What's involved? Understanding that numbers represent different quantities — that three dots is the same as the numeral "3" or the word "three." Grasping magnitude — that 23 is bigger than 17. Getting the concept that numbers can be broken into parts — that 5 is the same as 2 and 3, or 4 and 1. Showing on a number line that the difference between 10 and 12 is the same as the difference between 20 and 22.
Factors such as IQ and attention span didn't explain why some first-graders did better than others. Now Geary is studying if something that youngsters learn in preschool offers an advantage.
There's other evidence that math matters early in life. Numerous studies with young babies and a variety of animals show that a related ability — to estimate numbers without counting — is intuitive, sort of hard-wired in the brain, says Mann Koepke, of NIH's National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. That's the ability that lets you choose the shortest grocery check-out line at a glance, or that guides a bird to the bush with the most berries.
Number system knowledge is more sophisticated, and the Missouri study shows children who start elementary school without those concepts "seem to struggle enormously," says Mann Koepke, who wasn't part of that research.
While schools tend to focus on math problems around third grade, and math learning disabilities often are diagnosed by fifth grade, the new findings suggest "the need to intervene is much earlier than we ever used to think," she adds.
Exactly how to intervene still is being studied, sure to be a topic when NIH brings experts together this spring to assess what's known about math cognition.
But Geary sees a strong parallel with reading. Scientists have long known that preschoolers who know the names of letters and can better distinguish what sounds those letters make go on to read more easily. So parents today are advised to read to their children from birth, and many youngsters' books use rhyming to focus on sounds.
Likewise for math, "kids need to know number words" early on, he says.
NIH's Mann Koepke agrees, and offers some tips:
• Don't teach your toddler to count solely by reciting numbers. Attach numbers to a noun — "Here are five crayons: One crayon, two crayons…" or say "I need to buy two yogurts" as you pick them from the store shelf — so they'll absorb the quantity concept.
• Talk about distance: How many steps to your ball? The swing is farther away; it takes more steps.
• Describe shapes: The ellipse is round like a circle but flatter.
• As they grow, show children how math is part of daily life, as you make change, or measure ingredients, or decide how soon to leave for a destination 10 miles away.
"We should be talking to our children about magnitude, numbers, distance, shapes as soon as they're born," she contends. "More than likely, this is a positive influence on their brain function."
By Lauran Neergaard
Source: Seacoastonline.com – http://goo.gl/3Pgvj


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What do you get when you put 30 enthusiastic, gorgeous and passionate girls together with a challenge and a blog?
A lot of raving, ranting, chitter, chatter, venting and in some cases hyperventilating!
The challenge, which was picked by Brilynn, was not the easiest. A chocolate crepe cake as created by Martha Stewart. It has always been Brilynn's dream to make this cake and so she decided to get the entire Daring Bakers team to share the dream.
The Daring Bakers blog (a private blog only for the privileged LOL!) was alive with lively chatter. Tom's birthday was earlier this month so I had the perfect occasion to experiment with the cake. I think I was one of the first to give the challenge a try.
I was a bit intimidated by the challenge. It was my first after all and I really did not want to let any of my team mates down. The challenge as set by Bri, was to make the crepes and the glazing but the filling and the toppings could be changed as desired. Well at first I thought to use Nutella for my filling, but my thoughts did not let me rest.
It must have been a sign from the Cake God - the doorbell rang and the mailman brought my copy of Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé written by Dorie Greenspan. As I opened it, the first recipe that I saw was for a wonderful, rich chocolate pastry cream. It took me a millisecond to decide. This was my crepe cake filling.
However, it did not rest there. I just could not help myself and I had to tweak with the Holy Meister of Desserts' recipe too. I dared to make a slight change to this - I am a Daring Baker after all!
The recipe below is the one of my tweaks and changes. In some cases I was forced to make a few minor changes to avoid catastrophe!
For the chocolate crepes:
200g all-purpose flour
150g semisweet chocolate - finely chopped
50g fine sugar
170g cold unsalted butter - cut into pieces, plus melted for pan
620 ml whole milk - room temperature
6 large eggs - room temperature
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
For the chocolate orange pastry cream:
adapted from Pierre Hermé's Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé
500 ml whole milk
4 large egg yolks
75g sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch - sifted
200g bittersweet chocolate - melted. I used Sarotti's No. 1 with orange peel
40g unsalted butter - room temperature
For the chocolate glaze
295 ml heavy cream
250g semisweet chocolate - finely chopped
30g unsalted butter - cut into pieces
For the candied orange peel
470 ml filtered water
380g sugar - some for rolling the peels in
1 medium sized orange
For the chocolate crepes:
In a small saucepan bring approx. 60 ml water to a rolling boil over medium-high heat. Add butter, 1 piece at a time, whisking to combine after each addition. Remove from heat; stir in chocolate until completely melted. Set aside.
Mix together the flour, sugar, and salt in a medium bowl. Whisk the milk, vanilla and eggs together in another medium bowl. Using an electric whisk/blender, gradually add milk mixture to flour mixture, whisking until smooth. Finally add chocolate-butter mixture and whisk until it has incorporated - do not overmix. Pour through a fine sieve into a pitcher or a container with a pouring spout (I used my lemonade glass pitcher) and rap the pitcher on the counter to burst any air bubbles. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.
When you are ready to make the crepes, whisk the batter gently just to re-blend the ingredients. The batter should have a consistency of heavy cream. If it is too thick add some more milk, just a tiny drizzle at a time.
Lightly coat a crepe pan or nonstick pan with melted butter. I used a small 19 cm non-stick pan for this. Place the pan on a medium heat until just starting to smoke. As soon as the pan is hot, lift from heat and pour about 3-4 tablespoons batter into pan, swirling to cover bottom. Reduce the heat to medium-low and return pan to heat. Cook for approx. 30 seconds. Run a icing spatula around the edges of the crepe and check the underside - it should be golden. If you are happy with the coloring flip it over - yes, I used my fingers - and cook the other side till golden. This side will cook faster than the first one so make sure it does not get too dark.
Although crepes are supposed to be paper thin I quickly discovered that this was not going to work that way. The original recipe from Martha asks us to use 2 tablespoons of batter to make the crepes. However, this caused me two problems:
- My first 5 or 6 crepes ripped easily
- When spreading the pastry cream on the first one caused the crepe also to rip
So, I needed a new plan of action and decided to make them a bit thicker. This worked really well and I had no trouble flipping the crepes.
Slide the crepes onto a plate, stacking them on top of each other in stacks of 5 or 6 and separating each one with a sheet of baking paper to avoid them sticking to each other. Repeat the process with the remaining batter, coating pan with butter as needed. You should yield about 25 crepes.
Storing tip:
When packed airtight you can refrigerate them for a day or frozen for a month.
For the chocolate pastry cream:
adapted from Pierre Hermé's Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé
Fill a metal bowl with ice cubes and cold water. Set aside a smaller bowl that fits into the ice bath and will eventually hold the pastry cream. Set aside a fine meshed strainer too.
Bring the milk to a boil in a small saucepan. In a heavy-bottomed medium sized saucepan whisk the yolks, sugar and cornstarch together. Whisking all the time, slowly drizzle a quarter of the hot milk into the yolks. Still whisking, pour the rest of the milk in a steady stream into the tempered yolks.
Strain the mixture into the saucepan. Place the pan over a medium heat and continuously whisking, bring the mixture to a boil. Keep the mixture at the boil - whisking vigorously - for 1-2 minutes. Still over the heat, stir in the chocolate, then remove pan form heat. Scrape pastry cream into the small bowl set aside.
Place the bowl in the ice-water bath. Stirring frequently, to keep the mixture smooth, cool the pastry cream to 60 degrees Celsius. Remove the cream from the ice-water bath and stir in the butter in 3 or 4 additions. Return the cream to the ice-water bath, set aside, stirring occasionally until it has completely cooled.
Storing tip:
Cover tightly in plastic wrap, pressing the plastic against the cream's surface to create an airtight seal, the cream can be refrigerated for 2 days.
For the chocolate glaze
Bring the cream to a boil in a medium saucepan over a medium heat. Remove from heat and add the chocolate. Swirling the pan around allow the chocolate to melt. Add the butter and allow to melt mixing occasionally. Let stand for 5 minutes. Stir until smooth.
For the candied orange peel
For once I followed instructions of a recipe!! eHow is a fantastic website that shows you how to do 1001 things. This includes making candied orange peel.
Assembling the cake
Place a crepe on a wire rack or a large wooden board. Using a spatula spread about 2-3 tablespoons of pastry cream on the crepe. Cover with another crepe. Spread another 2-3 tablespoons of pastry cream, then cover with a crepe. Repeat this process until the pastry cream and crepes have been used up. In my case I ran out of cream on about the 18th crepe.
Spoon the glaze on top of the crepe cake and spread across so that it is evened and smooth. Allow the glaze to run down the sides of the cake, smoothing and evening with the spatula.
Decorate with the orange peel and if desired some hazelnut brittle. Allow the cake to set then move to a serving platter an refrigerate for a few hours.
Storing tip:
When covered loosely in plastic wrap the cake can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
If you would like to try out the original recipe from Martha Stewart you will find it here. A helpful visual step by step of the cake can be found here.
Whichever version you do try - I wish you all the very best of luck. Make sure you cut out a big piece for yourself - after all that effort you deserve it.
I was expecting the crepes to be a bit rubbery as I made them slightly thicker. But they were not they were smooth and fluffy. I made this cake for Tom's birthday and although it was not enjoyed on the very same day, we dug into big pieces the next day for dessert. It is a very filling cake but the delicate flavor of orange really zests this cake up adding a slight zing to the cake. All that chocolate makes it a chocolate lover's dream come true. I preferred the idea of the light pastry cream to the filling hazelnut cream of the original recipe. It was just perfect for this type of cake.
To see the other Daring Bakers' experiments simply click here and work your way down the list.
Have fun!
If you like my work, stories and recipes, please take a moment to vote for me in the category you see fit. Vote here. Thanks for your support!
Technorati Tags: chocolate crepe cake, chocolate, Martha Stewart, Pierre Hermé, Daring Bakers, cake, recipe, food, food blog, photography, dessert, nikon d70s
All photographs and written content on What's For Lunch, Honey? © 2006-2007 Meeta Albrecht unless otherwise indicated. | All rights reserved | Please Ask First

subset: commoncrawl


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My husband has been away on a business trip for nine days, and while I surrendered early on to the fact that peanut butter sandwiches and cereal would be my new meals, that's not been the case at all. I've had dinner with neighbors, gone out with friends, and cooked plenty for myself. It's just that lately, there are a LOT more leftovers and no help doing dishes. Le sigh.
One thing that I've made sure to do, though, has been comfort myself with a warm homemade meal. This bowl of mashed potatoes and broccoli with asiago cheese made a super delicious side dish to some grilled chicken. The flavor of the fresh broccoli and creamy, slightly smoky asiago added another dimension to plain old mashed potatoes! To kick up the flavor even more, I added in some garlic powder, heavy cream and butter, but for a lower-calorie option you could replace the fats with 1/3 cup chicken broth.
This delicious side dish is about as versatile as it gets, and is also a great way to get kids to scarf down some veggies! Make it some weeknight and hopefully you and your family will enjoy it as much as I did.
Asiago Mashed Potatoes and Broccoli
- 2 medium potatoes, peeled, if you prefer
- 1 cup broccoli florets, fresh or frozen
- 2 Tbsp. butter
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. pepper
- 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
- 1/4 cup freshly grated asiago
- Bring slightly salted water to a boil in a medium pot.
- Peel potatoes or leave skins on, and cut into 1/2-inch chunks. Chop off the broccoli stems if using fresh, and roughly chop the broccoli into small chunks. Boil potatoes and broccoli together for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Drain the potatoes and broccoli into a colander or sieve, then return them to the pot and add the butter, cream, salt, pepper and garlic powder. Use an electric mixer or potato masher, blend the ingredients until smooth.
- Add asiago cheese. Season to taste, and serve warm.
- Enjoy!


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Rightmove is an AIPP member
The Association of International Property Professionals (AIPP) is the industry body promoting professional practice and safety for consumers in the sale and marketing of overseas property.
Members of the AIPP voluntarily agree to follow a professional Code of Conduct and abide by disciplinary procedures.
Read the AIPP's Safe Buying Overseas Tips.


text:
Food Waste Disposal Unit
(a)Deliveries are made between Saturday and Thursday and will be undertaken by a third party appointed by Virgin for and on behalf of Virgin. Virgin makes every effort to dispatch Products on time. If the ordered Products are not delivered within the time period Virgin specified in the confirmation email, please contact Virgin's Customer Services quoting the order reference contained in your order confirmation email.
(b) Delivery occurs when the ordered Products are delivered to the delivery address you specified when placing your order. At this point, responsibility for loss, breakage and damage passes to you. Ownership of Products purchased passes to you when payment is received by Virgin in full. You will be asked to sign for acceptance of the Products which will note that the Products are correct and have been received in good condition.
(c) If you are not at the delivery address, Virgin will assume that any adults that are present at the delivery address are authorized by you to take delivery of the Products that you have ordered. If above criteria are not met or if there is no one at the delivery address, Virgin will not leave the Products at the delivery address. Virgin will contact you to arrange an alternative delivery time.
(d) Please note that the delivery people will only deliver the Products to your front door.


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Recommending books
From Library Success: A Best Practices Wiki
- 1 Fiction
- 2 Nonfiction
- 3 Poetry
- 4 Young Adult/Teen Booklists
- 5 Lists of Books
- 6 Search Engines for Finding Book Reviews
- 7 Librarians' Personal Lists of Best Books
- 8 Overlooked Books that People Might Like
- 9 Blogs/Websites to Watch
- 10 Specific Blog Posts/Articles to Check Out
- 11 Wikis for Readers Advisory
- Urban Fiction/Street Lit/Hip Hop Fiction Resources for Librarians
- Author Read-A-Likes at Downers Grove Public Library 48 popular author lists
- Author & Book Readalikes and general author information wiki
- Three non-fiction Readers' Advisory resources ("Sure bet narrative nonfiction writers", " Narrative nonfiction genre appeal factors" and " Regional Mysteries Bibliography") at the ALA-RUSA Reader's Advisory Committee page.
- Lists of Schools of Poetry - Wikipedia entry that names like poets and links to other entries about groups of poets
- Poetry Read-a-likes
- Poetry Anthologies with Many Contemporary Poets
Young Adult/Teen Booklists
Lists of Books
- Current New York Times Best Sellers
- Ebony Magazine Bookshelf
- Reading Rants for Teens
- Fiction-L Listserv archives and book lists
Recommendations by Nancy Pearl (the queen of readers' advisory):
- Pearl's Picks Twice a month Nancy recommends books.
- Book Lust Thousands of books organised by theme and mood
- More Book Lust
- Now Read This A Guide to Mainstream Fiction, 1978-1998 (Genreflecting Advisory)
Books by readers' advisory expert Joyce Saricks:
- Readers' Advisory Service in the Public Library 2005 edition - an interview with the author
- The Readers' Advisory Guide to Genre Fiction 2001 - a review of the guide
Guides to Genre Fiction
- Genreflecting: A Guide to Popular Reading Interests - a review
Guides to Nonfiction
- Thematic Guide to Popular Nonfiction
- The Real Story (Genreflecting series) edited by Sarah Statz Cords
- The Readers' Advisory Guide to Non-fiction by Neal Wyatt
New just for YA:
- The Teen Reader's Advisor
Search Engines for Finding Book Reviews
- Librarian's Book Revoogle
Librarians' Personal Lists of Best Books
- Mishareads
- ricklibrarian's Best Books Ever
- ricklibrarian's Books That Matter 2007
Overlooked Books that People Might Like
Blogs/Websites to Watch
- Anobii --Free personal book collection site
- Book Club Girl
- Books on the Nightstand
- Bookslut
- Deliberate Reader
- Denver Public Library: We Recommend - Staff Recommendations
- Denver Public Library: Customer Reviews
- Discussions: All Aboard » Library Services » Reader's Advisory - a Readers Advisory discussion list on WebJunction
- Furthermore...Where the Headlines Take You - Nonfiction book recommendations from Multnomah County Library
- GoodReads - Book recommendations come from your friends as well as other users
- Guys Read - a web-based literacy program designed to help boys find books they'd like to read.
- It's All About the Book
- LibraryThing- a service for people to catalog their books online and also provides a service to libraries called LibraryThing for Libraries to assist readers in self discovery right in the catalog using web 2.0 technology
- MADreads Reviews from the Madison Public Library
- Maggie Reads - Make Mississippi Read
- Monsterlibrarian - horror book reviews written by librarians for libraries.
- Nonfiction Readers Anonymous
- Pop Goes Fiction
- Reader's Club Reviews from Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County
- ricklibrarian
- Shelfari
- The Book Wheel
- A Comic Book Blog News and reviews of comic books and graphic novels.
- Fiction Folio Young adult book reviews, author interviews and news.
Specific Blog Posts/Articles to Check Out
- A Question About Poetry Readers' Advisory
- Improving the Model for Interactive Readers' Advisory Service by Neil Hollands - Thoughts about a report in Reference & User Services Quarterly
- Pushing Books Successfully
- Establishing and Promoting Readers' Advisory in Small and Medium-sized Libraries
- Author Read-A-Likes at Downers Grove Public Library
- A Look at 63 Years of ALA Notable Books
- Dear Miss Breed - Children's librarian Clara Breed not only recommended books, she sent them to Japanese-Americans in internment camps.
- He Reads She Reads: The Booklist Adult Books Readers Advisory Forum
- Nancy Pearl on Book Crush
- Readers' Advisory Toolkit III
Wikis for Readers Advisory
- Booktalk Wiki at http://booktalk.pbwiki.com -- Users are welcome to request access to discuss books. It's easy. Help get this wiki skyrocketing with good read suggestions.
- Check out this relatively new wiki! JMRL Reads: A Wiki for Sharing Information about Books for Readers of all Ages
- Readers Advisory Wiki is an Australian wiki to help library staff develop their skills.


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UPDATE (4:17 p.m.): NFL bans EPO. Here's what I always wonder when a league bans a new PED-like substance: How many players are going "Ruh-roh!"
Because you have to figure, and this is very important: If it's effective enough that it's worth banning now -- but it hadn't been banned before -- then EVERYONE is currently using it.
It's like andro before andro was banned by MLB. And certainly like amphetamines before greenies were banned by MLB. Can you imagine how many NFL players were using a previously LEGAL substance if it works so well that the NFL felt like it had to be banned?
(The flip side is that PED use in the NFL is so much more sophisticated than -- pfft! -- EPO that no self-respecting player was on the stuff anyway. That's one reason the union would be so amenable to banning it: Players are so far beyond it that it's an easy giveaway.)
Cowboys Coaching Search: As we all might have expected, the Cowboys coaching search is packed with rumor- and speculation-filled drama.
The Titans say: Forget about Jeff Fisher. (I wonder how Fisher feels about that?)
Remember when the Cowboys grabbed a successful
Perhaps that's what's driving the rumor that the Cowboys want
Then there's the other intriguing rumor: That the Cowboys will make a play for Bears coach – sorry: Super Bowl coach – Lovie Smith, who is due for a HUGE pay-raise from the Bears.
If I was continuing my old "Quickie Vocab" series, I might call that "Lovierage," meaning "leverage over a current, thrifty employer thanks to interest from another, flashy employer."
Meanwhile, between Lane Kiffin (31 y.o.) and Mike Tomlin (34 y.o.), not to mention all the 30-something executives in MLB, how the hell can THIS 30-something not have a job helping to run a sports-media company? (Any takers? There's my email in the right-hand corner. Wait: You want bonafides? Well, there's this, if you missed it late yesterday.)
State of the Union meets Mutombo: Given Bush's low approval ratings, Dikembe picked the wrong SOTU to be a part of. Of course, Tom Brady pimped himself out for the obligatory "sports star" cameo before, so why not Deke?
Suns plaster Wizards: OK, so the "Game of the Year" in the NBA turned out to be a waxing. I know the Wiz play no D, but damn the Suns can score. But if PHX (14 straight wins) is truly the best team in the West right now, the Wiz still could easily still emerge as the best team in the East.
T'wolves fire Dwane Casey: McHale called it "inconsistency" – if "inconsistency" means "one of the Top 5 least intriguing teams in the NBA." (Want to jack up the intrigue, Kevin? Trade KG and re-boot the team under the Run-n-Suns model.)
Sixers win! Sixers win?! Apparently, the Sixers are going to make the second half of the season about ruining their chances to draft either Greg Oden or Kevin Durant. They're off to a great start, beating the Hornets last night behind Korver and Miller.
I'm glad Andre is working out for Philly and all, but they've got to think about the long term. A few wins now costs them many, many wins later. Philly fans: Are you with me on this or am I wrong here? If you're not a contender (or at least on the way up), this is NOT the draft year to overachieve your way out of the Top 2 picks.
SB XLI Watch: Wait, will Tank Johnson have to wear an ankle bracelet when he plays? And will it have a Super Bowl XLI logo on it and sold in
The Eagles say that the alleged rift between Donovan McNabb and the team is overblown. Of course they said that. The truth is definitely in between, and the proof will come this August in training camp.
Falcons say Vick won't be traded: No, he'll simply be benched for Matt Schaub, then become the most expensive backup QB in league history. Maybe Vick can become the Tim Tebow to Schaub's Chris Leak.
Sean Salisbury Scandal: (Yes, it's buried down here.) Yes, he said "Jew." Yes, it was a slur -- and I don't know what would be worse: If he used it knowingly or subconsciously? ESPN has a small problem, because they've already staked out the position that he said "Chew," which is clearly not the case. (Have you listened to the audio? Try Deadspin or ProFootballTalk for the clip.)
College Hoops Parity Watch: Unranked
MLB: All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium in '08. That'll be the announcement next week. If nothing else, it will be a navel-gazing spectacle. Particularly when Yankees ace Roger Clemens is starting for the A.L.
NHL All-Star Game: If Rory's not in it, I'm boycotting. How many of you have a favorite NHL team or player that you actively follow? How many of you consider yourselves avid NHL fans? What's your take on the decline of the league? Or are you happy that the fan base has been pared down to the die-hards?
(For the record, I'm nominally a Caps fan -- I actually went to a game or two every season as a kid in the Langway/Gartner Era. One of my distinct youth-fan memories is listening in bed on the radio to that classic billion-OT playoff game with the... was it the Islanders? So I guess I have some tenuous claim to jump on the Ovechkin bandwagon, but it's not like I'm buying a sweater. Maybe if they went back to the old Caps unis...)
Is Zidane the next Beckham? Rumors are flying in
Sneaker-hoops impresario Sonny Vaccaro has retired from the shoe/hoops ("shoops?") game to jump in the ring on this "basketball academy" thing that David Stern seems to think will save his league that doesn't need saving. Vaccaro is probably one of the Top 10 most influential people in basketball in the last 25 years.


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Rick Santorum won two Southern state GOP presidential primaries Tuesday, embarrassing Mitt Romney who had predicted he'd take one.
Second-place finisher Newt Gingrich vowed to fight on to Tampa, tag-teaming Romney along with Santorum. The "three-way dynamic," as he put it, is a winner for Gingrich and, perhaps, his dream of deal-making at the convention, and for Romney, too, whose Southern result could have been much worse if he'd been posting up against Santorum alone.
As it stands, with the tight top-three finish in both states, and with Romney winning Tuesday's contests in Hawaii and American Samoa, and the delegates doled out proportionally, he'll remain comfortably ahead in that important count.
But let's take a look at some of the starker realities that emerged Tuesday for delegate front-runner Romney, and the contours of a race still taking shape — despite efforts by the elites and the establishment, in Gingrich world — to coronate the former Massachusetts governor.
Money Can Buy ... Something
Exit polls continue to show that Republican voters, even those in conservative strongholds like Mississippi and Alabama where eight in 10 identified themselves as evangelical, view Romney as having the best shot at defeating Obama in the fall. And he scores high on how voters think he'll handle their top issue, the economy.
But that, as well as Romney's overwhelming money advantage, and the slew of endorsements he picked up before Tuesday's primaries, still weren't enough to temper the perception, according to the exit polls, that he's not conservative enough, and lacks empathy.
Consider this: Restore Our Future, the pro-Romney superPAC, spent more than $2 million in advertising in Mississippi and Alabama. Exit polls found that an overwhelming majority of voters in both states said advertising played an important role in their decision. But in Mississippi, for example, 35 percent of those voters went with Romney, and 33 percent with Santorum.
The Red, White and Blue Fund, a pro-Santorum superPAC, spent just under $380,000 in the Southern states.
Santorum's Opportunity, and Limits
Santorum echoed Gingrich's dismissal of Romney the Inevitable.
"He spent a whole lot of money against me," he said at his election night rally, "for being inevitable."
An electorate stocked with white, evangelical Christians is Santorum's sweet spot, and in both states a wide majority told exit pollsters that they believe abortion should be illegal.
But it's Santorum's strength among those voters — and Republican voters through the Midwest — that may begin to fade as the contests move to states like Illinois, which holds its primary next week, and Maryland, Wisconsin and even his home state of Pennsylvania.
A recent Chicago Tribune GOP primary poll had Romney at 35 percent, Santorum at 31 percent and Gingrich a distant third in Illinois.
Illinois may present Santorum a real head-to-head with Romney, and with a more urban electorate where Romney has consistently performed better, where the advertising market is more expensive, and where his superPAC has already committed to spending nearly a million dollars. Romney's Mormonism may not be the sleeper issue there that it may have been in the evangelical South.
Still In Flux
As Tuesday night wore on, and before the final tallies were in, some pundits were suggesting that it might be time for Republicans to start hoisting themselves on the Romney bandwagon.
By night's end, that conversation had changed. With Gingrich appearing to be all in despite GOP pundit predictions that the "party guy" won't stay in the race as a spoiler, Santorum gaining momentum from the South if not a big delegate win, and Romney's common-person connection difficulties again on display, the slog continues.
Copyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.