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Making the robots robotic
The AAVSO's network of automated telescopes, AAVSOnet, has been a challenging system to set up. From an engineering standpoint, all of the people dealing with hardware (especially Arne Henden, Tom Krajci, Tom Smith, and John Gross) have put in an enormous amount of work to get these systems up and running, and a lot goes on behind the scenes that the average user of AAVSOnet probably doesn't see -- which is in itself a testament to how well the system works. From a software standpoint, a lot has gone on as well. Many of you are probably familiar with Geir Klingenberg's wonderful VPhot site where you can analyze your images. That also took a lot of work to get it to where it is right now, and it's a wonderful tool for the community, amateur and professional alike.
One aspect of AAVSOnet that I've been working on with the staff at Headquarters has been the pipeline that glues everything together and gets data from the telescopes to you. The processing package for all of our telescopes has grown in stages, from Arne's original IRAF and FORTRAN programs -- originally all run by hand by Arne -- to the current system where all of the processing is now done automatically via cron jobs on our computation server. It's been a fun project to work on with our Astronomical Technologist, Doc Kinne and Technical Assistant, Sara Beck, and I'm pleased with how everything has come together. We've got a great system that greatly reduces the amount of human intervention that goes into AAVSOnet data processing, and greatly increases the speed at which you get your data.
There's a lot that happens behind the scenes to get you your AAVSOnet data. The local Telescope Operators have to transmit the data to us every night via ftp, and then we take over for the rest of the processing. When there's raw data available to process, we set in motion a script that does all of the work, getting the results to the staff for review and to you for your own use. We use a Perl-based master script to control the processing and move files around the network, and to trigger automated versions of Arne's IRAF and FORTRAN programs to do the processing work. We also create logs of all the data processed in MySQL, and Sara Beck's Java-based Remark-o-matic image review tool greatly increases the speed and efficiency with which staff can review data every night. What used to be a task that took Arne several hours of time per day to do on his own is now done automatically by our servers, and our staff only take about 15-30 minutes per day to do a quality check of the data.
Doc Kinne and I reached a milestone in AAVSOnet processing this week by setting up the entire system to run autonomously via a UNIX cron job. On July 6, we had our first night of fully automated processing on one of the telescopes, the Wright 28. The staff here used to launch the nightly processing script manually, but we finally got all of the bugs worked out to the point where we felt the server could do everything on its own. Everything seems to check out ok, and so we're now ready to say we're "fully automated". We'll probably hold off on switching all of the telescopes over to the automated system until after the monsoon season in the southwestern United States, but by September of 2011 I expect that all of AAVSOnet will be fully automated between the telescopes themselves and the data's final destination on VPhot or the AAVSO ftp site. The system is such that it will also be easy to add new telescopes to AAVSOnet as they're set up.
We certainly have some other things we can automate, and also some ideas for how to improve the system, but we're a long, long way from where we were a few years ago as AAVSOnet was just getting started. Most importantly, we've lowered the time required from Arne and the rest of the staff to get AAVSOnet data to the users. That gets you your data faster, and makes it easier for staff to work with AAVSOnet and do the many other tasks that it takes to keep AAVSO Headquarters going.
It's been a fun project, and although my main concern has always been to automate and improve the efficiency of the system, it's been a pleasure to do some hacking and create something new and useful. I do a lot of scripting and coding for fun during my off hours, and there's been plenty of that for Doc and I over the past 2-3 years. But the best part is seeing that all the hard work that's been put into AAVSOnet over the past several years by so many people is working together so smoothly. We have a few more advances that we plan to roll out in once the monsoon season ends in the southwestern United States. Stay tuned for those -- we hope you'll appreciate them!
I won't say that AAVSOnet is quite at the level of "plug and play", but we're getting there!
- Matthew Templeton's blog
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The behind the scenes look at AAVSONet development and progress was really very interesting. I was one of the early users of the AAVSONet telescopes, working mostly with John Gross and Tom Krajci. My experiences were almost all "stellar" and I am glad to see the faster pipeline processing and turnaround time from image to data. VPhot is a great tool (another shout out to Gier!), but I like to get reductions straight from HQ rather than download images - I find it's much faster, and it frees up my time to do the analysis, which is what really interests me. Since I only have about three hours a day to work on that, every hour counts, and Arne and his crew have been great about feeding my hunger for data!
All of the planned improvements to the AAVSONet software and scripting are really quite exciting, and I wish all the best in continuin to improve on what I find to be one of the most remarkable achievements among many that the AAVSO has accomplished! Much whistling and clapping from Arizona!
Best wishes,
Thom Gandet (GTN)
An obvious question arises, why not allow all (many, pre-certified?) observers to ftp their images into the system? Not looking to go around VPhot but if its good enough for HQ, how about the rest of us?
Jim Roe [ROE]
Your experience of robotic telescopes is very interesting; I've started it 4 years ago with two remote instruments in a telescope farm. Now, I try to find very easy solution for a small "go-to" telescope with DSLR camera. Many amateur astronomers have this setup and their telescope spend most of the time to do nothing. Perhaps the moon or the light pollution in the town is the most important reason of this situation. Using instruments in these bad conditions should be interesting for bright stars monitoring and for many amateur, it should be another alternative of making astronomic pictures of planet or moon.
Etienne MORELLE
Sirene observatory
Very good idea Etienne! At this time I am designing a very similar instrument as you propose capable to be operated remotely, or locally in automatised mode. I think it must been composed from inexpensive hardware, as it is interesting it would be accesible to low budget amateurs. I've selected the following hardware: an EQ-5 style mount with a goto motors and computerization kit, a short focal optical tube, refractor or newtonian, from 3 to 5 inches in diameter, an "inexpensive" astronomical cooled-ccd camera (I prefer this to DSLR, and prices are similar, depending on model; but if observers would like to make photometric profit from their DSLR they are welcome), and one V Johnson filter if possible. Total price if bought new components around 2000 euro (more or less 2500$, may vary largely depending on chosen components). This design may benefit from used parts, so costs could be drastically reduced. Running in Maximdl and CCDCommander may work finely in automated operation. Remote operation adds a lot of technical challenges. I hope to start remote use of a similar telescope as I describe above in a friend's home, mainly for experimental purposes.. I share your interest for bright star monitoring because I think this is a nice way to do useful astronomy under polluted skies. Regards Miguel Rodríguez


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Programs that use HPSA designations - Some of these programs may no longer be active.
More Programs that use HPSA designations - This list is from the Negotiated Rule Making Committee's report dated 10-31-2011.
Maps (click on the underlined headings below to view a map)
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Fact Sheet on HPSAs - This is a four page fact sheet from the Center for Medicaid and Medicare Services
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Event Search Results
76 – 90 of 131 Search Results:
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Best of Friends Reunion
Daily - From Friday, June 7, 2013 - Saturday, August 10, 2013
Venue: Celebrations Dinner Theatre
Neighbourhood: Centre
Glenwood Community Centre
Daily - From Friday, October 26, 2012 - Friday, October 25, 2013
offers: social bridge every Friday, 12:30 p.m. sharp. Information: Sylvia 256-9779 or Audrie 414-0205. Smart( seniors maintaining active rolls together) program Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m. Seniors badminton starts Tuesdays and Thursdays, 253-2542.
Venue: Glenwood Community Centre
Neighbourhood: Winnipeg
Mark Freed & Radovan Radulovicz
Friday, June 28, 2013
Venue: Prairie Ink McNally Robinson
Neighbourhood: Centre
Marc Labossiere
Daily - From Thursday, June 27, 2013 - Saturday, June 29, 2013
Venue: Palomino
Neighbourhood: Centre
Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra Summer Concert Series: Kenora Harbourfront
7:30 PM on Friday, June 28, 2013
Watch the great Canadian sun set over Kenora as the WSO plays a variety of pieces! Admission is by donation for this concert, and seats are limited.
Venue: Kenora Harbourfront
Girls Only
Daily - From Thursday, June 13, 2013 - Sunday, June 30, 2013
tickets at
Venue: RMTC Tom Hendry Theatre (Warehouse)
Neighbourhood: Centre
Bargain Basement/Rummage Sale
5:00 PM on Friday, June 28, 2013
Assiniboia Christian Centre, 3390 Portage Ave. It is our last sale for the summer so come out for some great bargains and buys. Clothing for all ages:- women, men,children; jewellery, toys, books, kitchen wares, shoes, household items and much more good stuff.
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Neighbourhood: St. James-Assiniboia
Volunteer Drivers Wanted
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Neighbourhood: Winnipeg , River Heights
Wildlife: A Tribute to Clarence Tillenius
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Greg MacPherson
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with Stranded and DJ Robert
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Free Ride
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Far Country by Sue Gordon
Daily at 9:00 AM - From Friday, June 7, 2013 - Friday, June 28, 2013
Drawn to the horizon, encaustic artist Sue Gordon perceives it as a metaphor for longing – a thin band of light on the edge of the prairie. "The older I get, my ability to hope and the things that I long for have changed. Many of the horizons I now paint are obscured, as I feel I am unable to see
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Neighbourhood: Centre


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Continental mum on options after pipeline plans fall through
Also ...
remains mum
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Oklahoma City-based Continental Resources Inc. is the largest player in the Bakken field in North Dakota and Montana, where Tulsa-based ONEOK Partners had proposed a crude oil pipeline.
Continental has lobbied for additional infrastructure throughout the area.
ONEOK Partners said Tuesday it has scrapped plans for its proposed Bakken Crude Express Pipeline, citing a lack of sufficient long-tern transportation commitments during its open season.
A Continental spokeswoman declined to comment Tuesday.
Continental previously has said it successfully pushed for an entry port for the Bakken on the proposed Keystone XL pipeline.
"The Keystone XL pipeline is what we hoped would be the relief valve for us," Jeff Hume, Continental's vice chairman of strategic growth initiatives said at the Southern States Energy Board meeting in September.
"We embraced that early and worked with Trans-Canada to get a tap onto that pipeline. That has been blocked by our federal government at this time, but it will come to fruition."
For now, Continental has developed rail agreements to move the oil to refineries on the east and west coasts.


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Violence Against Afghan Women "More Extreme"
|Institute for War and Peace Reporting
|Mina Habib
|Publication Date
|29 November 2012
|Citation / Document Symbol
|ARR Issue 444
|Cite as
|Institute for War and Peace Reporting, Violence Against Afghan Women "More Extreme", 29 November 2012, ARR Issue 444, available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/50b8c7fb2.html [accessed 31 May 2016]
|This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.
Following a spate of particularly brutal murders, Afghanistan's minister for women has said attacks on women are becoming more extreme in nature.
This week, two men were arrested in the northern Kunduz province for beheading a 14-year-old girl, apparently because one of them had his marriage proposal turned down. The case came a month after the beheading of a 25-year-old woman in the western Herat province, and the mutilation and murder of a 30-year-old in the same province earlier in October.
Speaking on November 25, at an event to mark International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, Afghan women's affairs minister Husn Banu Ghazanfar said a higher incidence of "extreme or brutal violence" had been recorded in recent months.
At the same time, Ghazanfar said the 3,600 cases of all kinds of violence against women recorded between April and July represented a fall on the same period in 2011.
"We have recorded some very tragic cases this year, though the numbers are lower than last year," she said. "We are concerned."
Afghanistan's Independent Human Rights Commission, AIHRC, disagrees that the total numbers are down. Commission member Soraya Sobhrang has told the media that her institution recorded 4,000 incidents in April-October, 1,000 more than in the same period last year.
Violence against women often relates to matters of "honour" – perceived offences against a family's reputation, often arising out of baseless rumour.
Kamela, a young woman from the eastern Nangarhar province, is now trapped in a marriage to a man about five times older than her, after suffering a cycle of violence.
When she was just 14, her father married her off to a 35-year-old man. On their wedding night, the husband discovered she had suffered sexual abuse from a cousin two months before – she had never said anything before because the man had threatened to kill her. Kamala's husband beat and kicked her until she passed out, and sent her back home on the grounds that she was "immoral".
Because father felt his honour impugned, he too beat her to a point where the family thought she was dead. Then she was confined in a barn with the livestock for four months until her husband divorced her.
After that, her father accepted 30,000 US dollars from a 78-year-old man who agreed to marry her.
"People are usually aggrieved with other people, but I am aggrieved at God. It would have been better if He hadn't created me in the first place if I was fated to live with so much suffering," she said. "Is there anything other than death that can help me?"
In theory, the Elimination of Violence Against Women Law, passed in 2009, should offer Kamela protection and redress. It covers the various things that have happened to her, outlawing a range of abuses from assault and rape to marriages that are coercive, involve minors or amount to a transaction between the families concerned.
Ghazanfar says translating this legislation into practice needs coordination between all government agencies, not just the women's affairs ministry.
"There's a long way to go to implement the law," she conceded.
Qodsia Niazi, who heads the prosecution service department that deals with violence against women, says obstacles to making the law work include traditional values and attitudes, the general security situation, the impunity of the rich and powerful, and a shortage of female staff in Afghanistan's legal and judicial institutions.
However, Niazi said, some prosecutions have been successful.
"We have dealt with 1,320 cases of violence against women since last year [ending March 2012], mostly concerning assault, harassment, coercion to prostitution, sexual abuse and mutilation," she said.
She argues that fair, well-publicised trials will serve an exemplary purpose.
"People have welcomed two public trials, one a case where a father sexually abused his daughter, and the other involving a man who assaulted and mutilated his wife before imprisoning her in a toilet for six months," she said. "Such trials are very effective in reducing violence against women."
Others are less upbeat about the prospects for change.
"Has anyone who murdered a woman ever been executed?" asked Samira, a university student in the capital Kabul. "That makes it obvious that the government has no intention of protecting women's rights. Nor can these so-called institutions do anything, either."
Samira says years of talking about rights for women, and the proliferation of institutions dedicated to this aim, have resulted in very little.
"For the whole of a decade, the so-called women's rights defence institutions have pocketed hundreds of millions of dollars, particularly the Ministry of Women's Affairs. Women's rights have become lucrative," she said, "Yet rights for women have not been assured, and the violence has gone up rather than down. All these conferences and slogans are purely symbolic. Everyone has started up an NGO in the name of women and is making money."
One of the arguments often made in the campaign against violence is that many Afghans mistakenly conflate local ultra-conservative traditions with Islam.
Daiulhaq, the deputy minister for the Hajj and religious affairs, says his institution is working hard to dispel such perceptions, with new departments focusing on gender issues and on Islamic teachings on women's rights. In addition, he said, mosque prayer leaders were being asked to devote part of their weekly sermons to women's rights and the evils of violence against them.
Despite this, Parwin Rahimi, head of the AIHRC's women's rights support and development department, accuses the religious affairs ministry of shirking its responsibilities.
"I am sure religious scholars do not ignore the truth, but certain people whose own interests could be at risk are blocking cooperation," she said.
Specifically, she said, the ministry had raised objections to the law on eradicating violence against women on the grounds that it conflicted with Islamic precepts.
Keramatullah Sediqi, director of Islamic research at the ministry, said the anti-violence legislation had deficiencies that needed to be addressed, such as the penalties which courts could impose, and the need for the law to set out "penalties if a woman commits violence against men".


text:
I am new to zimbra, but have successfully installed it three times now. This time I wanted to add another domain.
I added the domain.
I added a virtual host for the domain.
use internal gal, use internal ldap
I can go to the virtual host and the login page comes up.
but I can't login with either the user name/password or with firstname.lastname@example.com/password.
It keeps telling me the username or password is incorrect.
Any idea of what to check/debug.


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Great Park expenses: Board members indulged in a few luxuries
How much did it all really cost, and was it worth it?
As the Great Park board toured Barcelona, Spain, Paris and New York, they stayed in five-star hotels.
"I was a little surprised because it was five-star hotel," said board member Christina Shea as the delegation checked into the Grand Marina hotel in Barcelona.
The rationales given for the high-end hotels varied. Staff members said that with such a large delegation, they could find large blocks of rooms only at the five-star resorts selected.
"We either had to go with the low end or the high end," is what Shea said she was told.
The speed of the trip's organization didn't leave board members much time to debate the schedule or accommodations, Shea said.
Lunches and dinners for the delegation during the trip varied.
On some days, - in Paris, for example - there were no lunch breaks, with the delegation scrambling to park concessions for a quick sandwich. On other days, such as the one at the Santa Caterina market in Barcelona, the meals featured wine and at least a six-course meal.
Keeping track of expenses got trickier as the trip went along. The delegation paid for hotels, but in many instances the hosts paid for buses, taxis, metro rides and meals.
In New York, board members were treated to a private, upscale lunch at the Boat House restaurant in Central Park. Menus had the Great Park's name on them.
Great Park CEO Wally Kreutzen said any costs paid upfront by the design firms would be reimbursed later, and a full accounting of costs would be available when the delegation returned to Orange County.
Contact the writer: (714)-285-2862 or firstname.lastname@example.com
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15 September 2012
Photo: Marcelo RuschelTeam Brazil
SAO JOSE DO RIO PRETO, BRAZIL: After a nine-year wait Brazil finally returned to the Davis Cup by BNP Paribas World Group. The result was sealed with a 75 62 76(7) win by Bruno Soares and Marcelo Melo over the Russians Alex Bogomolov Jr and Teymuraz Gabashvili in Sao Jose do Rio Preto this Saturday.
Brazilian tennis fans set up a late carnival party to celebrate something that has not happened since 2003, when three-time Roland Garros champion Gustavo Kuerten was still part of the team - on Saturday, once again, he was at the arena supporting the home team.
"We are living a very special moment. We had deserved for a long time to be back to the World Group and we got it at home with this amazing support of the crowd. We are very emotional because we had faced some really difficult moments, tough losses on the last day. Now that is all over", said Soares.
It was payback time for Brazil after last year when both teams faced each other in the same stage of competition and the Europeans won 3-2 after the South Americans had two match points to seal the tie during Mikhail Youzhny v Thomaz Bellucci, the fourth rubber.
"I really think we were ready to get to the World Group last year. Not many people believed us but we went there and almost won. We were just a point away. Just a point, nothing else. Now our time has come", said Soares. "Last years were so frustrating for us at the Davis Cup but now I think we live the best moment of our careers", Melo completed.
Since the tie's very beginning, a Brazilian doubles win was largely expected. And after the home team opened a 2-0 lead during day one, Brazil was ready to celebrate as soon as rubber 3 finished. Nevertheless that took a little longer then expected, 2 hours and 34 minutes.
Soares and Melo broke the Russians' serve twice right at the start of the match to open a 5-1 lead in the first set. They tried to show this time they were determined not to leave room for their opponent's an opportunity back into the match after losing close Davis Cup play-off ties the last six years. But the Russian doubles fought back and tied 5-5 before Bogomolov lost serve and wasted all their hard work.
"We are used of playing when the ties are 1-1 and I guess this was the first time we played having the opportunity of closing the tie. I guess we felt the pressure when he had to serve to close the first set but then things went fine. We were really expecting a tough match so it is normal to face situations like that", said Soares.
Thereafter, things did not get better for Bogomolov and Gabashvili, who had never formed a doubles partnership before and lost the second set after making 10 unforced errors and only hitting four winners.
The third set was checkmate for the Russians. It was a matter of winning or going home. Under pressure, Gabashvili and Bogomolov fought until the very last point, but they could not fight anymore in the tiebreak, and Gabashvili, who was not supposed to play doubles and came in for Stanislav Vovk, missed a volley.
"I cannot even think this moment. We did everything wrong. We did not take our chances as we should. We made too many errors. We cannot do it if we wanted to win. It is a shame", said Bogomolov.
That was the end of the road for the visitors. Now Russia heads back to Group I just like in 1992, the last year this long-established team did not play in the Davis Cup World Group.
"It is normal to have some ups and downs. Australia is playing Group I right now and they have a traditional thing. So it is something our generation will have to face. Let's try to get back to the World Group next year", explained Gabashvili.
Follow this tie as it happens: Live scores or Watch Live
Bruno Soares (BRA) - 15/09/2012
Captain Joao Zwetsch (BRA) - 15/09/2012
13 Sep 2012
Brazil's No. 1 Thomaz Bellucci has been drawn to play Russia's Teymuraz Gabashvili on the first day in Sao Jose do Rio Preto as the hosts bid to avenge their 2011 defeat
14 Sep 2012
Thomaz Bellucci gives the hosts the perfect start to their World Group play-off as he edges past Teymuraz Gabashvili and puts them within sight of victory
14 Sep 2012 - 16 Sep 2012
View details
Thomaz BELLUCCI (BRA)
Alex BOGOMOLOV JR. (RUS)
Rogerio DUTRA SILVA (BRA)
Igor ANDREEV (RUS)
Marcelo MELO (BRA)
Evgeny DONSKOY (RUS)
Bruno SOARES (BRA)
Andrey KUZNETSOV (RUS)
Harmonia Tenis Clube, Sao Jose do Rio Preto, Brazil
Full details
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The lighting industry is in a state of upheaval, but in such disorder lies significant opportunity. In the US, incandescent luminaire, including light bulbs, are scheduled for phase-out by 2014, and Europe and Australia have banned them outright. The lighting industry is fracturing and realigning, driven by a number of new factors: digital controls, more adaptive luminaires, solid state lighting (LEDs), lighting retrofit and the booming energy efficiency market. Together, these factors are enabling drastic cuts in energy costs for buildings and area lighting.
However, building owners, municipalities and lighting specifiers are still slow to adopt new technologies. Many major gaps and hurdles exist in the value chain from luminaire product developer to end user, including new sales channels, higher upfront cost of advanced lighting solutions, installation and performance issues and competing communication platforms. The future of the lighting industry is up for grabs.
Infocasts inaugural Smart Lighting Value Chain Summit provides a comprehensive map to this fast-changing competitive landscape. By bringing together participants from across the value chain, including LEDs, smart grid, lighting controls, energy efficiency and smart energy end users and influencers, this smart lighting networking conference will create a robust environment for identifying new opportunities, relationship building & deal making for the future lighting industry.
A half-day Future of Smart Lighting Symposium will precede the Value Chain Summit.


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Key things you need to know aboutDr. Alvarez:
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For my story, I want to create a coat-of-arms dominated by the figure of a swan. I've been snooping around google images looking for a heraldic displayed swan that looks impressive and imposing enough to be a symbol for a vast Imperial state.
The best I could find was this:
Which isn't particularly impressive at all. Would anyone know how to go about growing parts of him? Removing the ridiculous looking feet? Drawing a completely new one that looks halfway impressive? I just need ideas, I'm sure I could draw it myself; any ideas would be appreciated!


text: GoldenBearSports.com Cal Baseball Tops Baylor, 5-3 Cal baseball (7-2) faces San Diego in second game today By Cal Athletics on Mon, March 03, 2014 Related Links Cal Baseball Foundation Cal Baseball Facebook Cal-Baylor Box Score 3-3-14 SAN DIEGO - The Cal baseball team won the first of two games scheduled today, topping Baylor, 5-3, Monday at Fowler Field in San Diego. The Golden Bears will next play host San Diego, beginning at 3 p.m. With the win over Baylor, Cal improves to 7-2 overall and have now won five straight games. Versus the Baylor Bears, the Golden Bears were led by junior second baseman Brenden Farney and sophomore catcher Mitchell Kranson with two RBI apiece, while junior third baseman Chris Paul (two doubles) and sophomore first baseman Nick Halamandaris had two hits apiece. On the mound, sophomore right-hander Ryan Mason picked up his second win in relief, coming in in the sixth inning and throwing 2.0 innings with four hits, one run, no walks and a strikeout. Senior right-hander Trevor Hildenberger earned his third save of the year, pitching the final 1.1 innings with one hit, no runs and one strikeout. Freshman Alex Martinez also threw well for the Bears, replacing freshman starter Alex Schick and pitching 3.1 innings with two hits, one run, no walks and three strikeouts. More info to come... RECOMMENDED STORIES < Cal Closes Pac-12 Play With Esquer's 500th Win Bears Make Their Case With Win Bears Drop Opener At Washington State > OFFICIAL ONLINE STORE < Men's Nike Gray Cal Bears Team Stripe T-Shirt $25.95 Buy Now > Cal Bears Nike Navy Blue Medium Training Duffle Bag $60.00 Buy Now > > Left Promo SHOP NOW > Right Promo MORE INFO > Bears On Pac-12 Networks Full TV Schedule Get Pac-12 Networks


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Author(s): Philippe, Beneton; Archambault, Paul
ISBN: 9781587314155 / Hardcover / 11/20/2011
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Riparian plant recovery with restoration
Eliza Maher Hasselquist, one of the ecology PhD students on the RESTORE project, has published her first article: "Time for recovery of riparian plants in restored northern Swedish streams: a chronosequence study" in Ecological Applications, http://dx.doi.org/10.1890/14-1102.1. The article is co-authored with 4 other RESTORE project participants and 1 additional colleague.
A lack of ecological responses in stream restoration projects has been prevalent throughout recent literature with many studies reporting insufficient time for recovery. We assessed the relative importance of time, site variables, and landscape setting for understanding how plant species richness and understory productivity recover over time in riparian zones of northern Swedish streams. We used a space-for-time substitution consisting of 13 stream reaches restored 5 to 25 years ago as well as five unrestored channelized reference reaches. We inventoried the riparian zone for all vascular plant species along 60-m study reaches and quantified cover and biomass in plots. We found that while species richness increased with time, understory biomass decreased. Forbs made up the majority of the species added, while the biomass of graminoids decreased the most over time, suggesting that the reduced dominance of graminoids favored less productive forbs. Species richness and density patterns could be attributed to dispersal limitation, with anemochorous species being more associated with time after restoration than hydrochorous, zoochorous or vegetatively reproducing species. Using multiple linear regression, we found that time along with riparian slope and riparian buffer width (e.g., distance to logging activities) explained the most variability in species richness, but that variability in total understory biomass was explained primarily by time. The plant community composition of restored reaches differed from that of channelized references, but the difference did not increase over time. Rather, different time categories had different successional trajectories that seemed to converge on a unique climax community for that time period. Given our results, timelines for achieving species richness objectives should be extended to 25 years or longer if recovery is defined as a saturation of the accumulation of species over time. Other recommendations include making riparian slopes as gentle as possible given the landscape context and expanding riparian buffer width for restoration to have as much impact as possible.
The article is available at http://www.esajournals.org/doi/abs/10.1890/14-1102.1 (with subscription)
January 28, 2015 No Comments
New publication on 'naturalness' and restoration
Anders Steinwall has published an article 'Naturalness or biodiversity: Negotiating the dilemma of intervention in Swedish protected area management' in Environmental Values.
This article analyses a discursive struggle around the management of protected forest areas in Sweden against the backdrop of debates within ecological restoration, protected area management and environmental ethics about intervention in nature. The Swedish case displays a shift from a preservationist discourse centred on maintaining areas as 'untouched' as possible toward a more interventionist discourse centred on adaptive management for biodiversity, although the debate is not settled and 'naturalness' remains a bridging notion, allowing an articulation with both discourses. The implications of the discursive struggle are discussed, concluding by pointing to a need to critically examine not only the older preservationist discourse and 'naturalness', but also the ascending interventionist discourse and 'biodiversity'.
Final published version available with journal subscription.
September 4, 2014 No Comments
New publication on Swedish restoration policy
In a new article, Anna Zachrisson and Katarina Eckerberg explore aspects of complexity in the formulation process in an examination of ecological restoration policy (ER), using Sweden as an empirical illustration. In Sweden there is of yet no particular Act directing ER, but elements of ER are found in several Acts and Bills which are included in this analysis. Nevertheless, ER activities are already taking place, often as projects within the context of a public funding programme aiming at ecological sustainability or nature conservation (in agriculture, water environments, forests and so on).
The analysis looks into the top-down element in policy formulation through taking departure in textual analyses of key policy documents, from the government and from the relevant central authorities. Evidence is also drawn from a data base that comprises Swedish central government-funded ER projects over the last ten year period. Specifically, it is analysed how the concept of ER is articulated and documented in government policy from the late 1980s until recently, and how the policy has been translated into implementation. This analysis comprises the policy objectives across levels, sectors and actors, as well as which policy instruments are emphasized and how they play out on the ground.
A non-dogmatic perspective is adopted that sees the policy stages as interlinked rather than necessarily following a chronological order. With the programmatic result of the policy as contrast to the articulated policy goals, the authors discuss the relationship between the formulation and the implementation of ER policy in Sweden, and draw conclusions that go beyond the formulated policy as such.
Citation: Zachrisson, Anna & Katarina Eckerberg, 2014. "Defining ecological restoration policy in Sweden", in Michael Hill (ed) Studying Public Policy: An International Approach, Policy Press/ Social Studies, pp. 149-166.
April 10, 2014 No Comments
Publication: Potential and actual geomorphic complexity
Three RESTORE members working on stream restoration have published a joint article in Geomorphology. The article, "Potential and actual geomorphic complexity of restored headwater streams in northern Sweden" authored by Lina Polvi, Christer Nilsson, and Eliza Hasselquist, uses 29 metrics to create a complexity gradient and concludes that large scale controls (slope and median grain size) determine potential complexity. The team believes such complexity analyses can benefit restoration design and comparison with biodiversity.
Citation: Polvi LE, Nilsson C, Hasselquist EM. Potential and actual geomorphic complexity of restored headwater streams in northern Sweden. Geomorphology. Available online as accepted manuscript 3 Jan 2014. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2013.12.025
Stream restoration usually relies on ecological theories presuming that increased habitat heterogeneity leads to higher biodiversity. However, to test this hypothesis a quantitative metric of overall geomorphic complexity is needed. We quantified geomorphic complexity using 29 metrics over five dimensions (sediment distribution, longitudinal profile, cross section, planform, and instream wood) of headwater streams in northern Sweden. We examined reaches with four different restoration statuses after a century of timber floating (channelized, restored, demonstration restored, and unimpacted) to determine (1) whether restoration increases complexity in all dimensions, (2) whether the complexity gradient can be quantified and which metrics can serve as proxies for the gradient, and (3) levels of potential complexity based on large-scale controls (drainage area, glacial legacy sediment, valley slope, valley confinement, old-growth forest/buffer zone, and beaver activity). We found a significantly higher complexity in unimpacted and demonstration restoration sites than in channelized sites in all five dimensions except the cross section (based on the two metrics quantifying variability in the cross section). Multivariate analyses were able to elucidate an apparent complexity gradient driven by three complexity metrics: longitudinal roughness, sediment sorting, and cross section chain and tape ratio. The large-scale factors of valley and channel gradient as well as median grain size, along with restoration status, drive differences in complexity composition. Restoring a reach to its potential complexity is beneficial in regions without reference systems or sufficient data to model flow and sediment processes. Unimpacted and demonstration restoration reaches displayed not only more intrareach variability than channelized reaches but also greater interreach heterogeneity in complexity composition, which supports a focus on reach-scale controls on potential complexity and a landscape-scale view on restoration.
January 14, 2014 No Comments
Publication: Policy Language in Restoration Ecology
A majority of the RESTORE team have jointly co-authored a new publication: Policy Language in Restoration Ecology, Restoration Ecology 22.1 (2014): 1-4. The final version is available online. The authors are D Jørgensen, C Nilsson, AR Hof, EM Hasselquist, S Baker, FS Chapin, K Eckerberg, J Hjältén, L Polvi, and LA Meyerson.
Relating restoration ecology to policy is one of the aims of the Society for Ecological Restoration and its journal Restoration Ecology. As an interdisciplinary team of researchers in both ecological science and political science, we have struggled with how policy-relevant language is and could be deployed in restoration ecology. Using language in scientific publications that resonates with overarching policy questions may facilitate linkages between researcher investigations and decision-makers' concerns on all levels. Climate change is the most important environmental problem of our time and to provide policymakers with new relevant knowledge on this problem is of outmost importance. To determine whether or not policy-specific language was being included in restoration ecology science, we surveyed the field of restoration ecology from 2008 to 2010, identifying 1,029 articles, which we further examined for the inclusion of climate change as a key element of the research. We found that of the 58 articles with "climate change" or "global warming" in the abstract, only 3 identified specific policies relevant to the research results. We believe that restoration ecologists are failing to include themselves in policy formation and implementation of issues such as climate change within journals focused on restoration ecology. We suggest that more explicit reference to policies and terminology recognizable to policymakers might enhance the impact of restoration ecology on decision-making processes.
January 7, 2014 No Comments
Publication: Political science and ecological restoration
Susan Baker, Katarina Eckerberg and Anna Zachrisson have published an article titled "Political Science and Restoration" in Environmental Politics from their work on the RESTORE project.
Ecological restoration has taken on a new significance in the face of climate change and biodiversity loss. Despite its growing policy salience, however, the social and political sciences have paid limited attention to the study of ecological restoration policy and practice. By drawing upon the political science study of multilevel governance, institutions, power relations, and place-based politics, a flavour is given of what a political science engagement might contribute to the rich tapestry of analysis that has already been produced by other disciplines on ecological restoration. As the use of restoration grows, it is increasingly likely that it will give rise to social dispute and be brought into conflict with a variety of environmental, cultural, economic, and community interests. Restoration policy and projects encounter professional and institutional norms as well as place-specific interests and values. There is urgent need to investigate how and in what ways some interests become winners and others losers in these activities, and how this in turn can influence ecological restoration outcomes. A political science lens could help build new criteria for evaluating the success of ecological restoration, ones that combine both process- and product-driven considerations.
January 7, 2014 No Comments
Publication on ecological restoration in the Convention on Biological Diversity
RESTORE researcher Dolly Jørgensen has published "Ecological restoration in the Convention on Biological Diversity targets" in Biodiversity and Conservation (2013) DOI: 10.1007/s10531-013-0550-0. The article is on early view via Springer. The unformatted final text is also available without a subscription.
Abstract: Ecological restoration has been incorporated into several Multilateral Environmental Agreements, including the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Target 15 of the Aichi Targets for 2020 sets a numerical goal of restoration of 15 percent of degraded ecosystems; however, the CBD has not established a clear statement defining restoration within this context. Without such a definition, the CBD will be unable to measure progress against the goal. The adopted definition of ecological restoration would have to allow for measurement against the numerical target, or the target should be modified to match the chosen definition.
September 2, 2013 No Comments
PhD student visiting COIL
Eliza Hasselquist, a PhD student on the RESTORE project in the Umeå University Landscape Ecology group, is visiting the Cornell University Stable Isotope Laboratory during May 2013.
Here's what Eliza has to say about why she is spending time at COIL:
During my first field season in 2011, I focused on describing how riparian plant communities developed during the time-since-restoration. I am now interested in determining why there are differences by evaluating the underlying processes that are responsible. In 2012, I collected soil, leaf, and fine root samples of a perennial forb, Filipendula ulmaria or "meadowsweet", common to riparian zones in Northern Sweden to ask questions about the ecosystem processes of the restored streams. I'm working at the Cornell University Stable Isotope Laboratory (COIL) with Associate Professor Jed Sparks to analyze these samples for stable isotopes of δ15N to determine if N cycling in riparian zones changes with time-since-restoration. These results will help me better understand the effects of river restoration on N cycling.
The grant that made this opportunity possible is NSF award #1137336, Inter-university Training in Continental-scale Ecology.
May 20, 2013 No Comments
Special feature of Ecology and Society articles
RESTORE project leader Christer Nilsson is one of the co-editors of a special feature on Ecological Restoration in the Northern Regions in the journal Ecology and Society. The special feature includes two contributions by RESTORE team members that are now available online:
Jørgensen, D. and B. Malm Renöfält. 2012. Damned If You Do, Dammed If You Don't: Debates on Dam Removal in the Swedish Media. Ecology and Society 18(1): 18. [online] URL: http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol18/iss1/art18/
Baker, S., and K. Eckerberg. 2013. A policy analysis perspective on ecological restoration. Ecology and Society 18(2): 17. [online] URL: http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol18/iss2/art17/
May 17, 2013 No Comments
RESTORE meeting in Uppsala
The RESTORE team had a productive and enjoyable 3 day meeting in Uppsala, 6-8 May 2013. The Umeå team members were joined by international guests, Rebecca Lave (USA), Þórunn Pétursdóttir (Iceland), and David Finger (Switzerland), and a guest from Umeå University, Lovisa Lind.
The scientific program focused on oral presentations given by the team members and guests about their own research. The presentations covered a wide range of topics included in the RESTORE project: river restoration challenges (Lina Polvi, Eliza Hasselquist, Lovisa Lind, and Rebecca Lave); forestry restoration practices and policy (Joakim Hjältén, Anouschka Hof, David Bell, and Katarina Eckerberg); soil conservation (Þórunn Pétursdóttir); and restoration policy formulation and implementation (Anna Zachrisson, Christer Nilsson, Anders Steinwall, and Dolly Jørgensen).
The meeting included a full day excursion to see restoration efforts connected with the white-backed woodpecker conservation program. We were led during the site visits by Kristoffer Stighall of Naturskyddsförening, who has worked with restoration of white-backed woodpecker habitat and bird releases for many years. We were also joined by stakeholder representatives Pär-Ole Borgestig from Länsstyrelsen i Uppsala län and Samuel Ståhl from the forestry company Stora Enso.
The restoration program in the Båtfors Nature Reserve includes selective cutting of evergreens to make space for deciduous trees, the creation of dead wood to increase food sources for beetles that are woodpecker prey, selective burning to open up the landscape and provide high standing deadwood for nests, and captive-bred juvenile bird releases. Our researchers working specifically on the white-backed woodpecker restoration, David Bell and Anouschka Hof, presented some of their preliminary results during our stop at Söderfors Herrgård between visits to different restoration sites in the area.
On the final day of the meeting, we also had the chance to visit the Linnaeus Museum and Gardens in Uppsala, in many ways the home of our modern taxonomic system, for a group tour and enjoy the fine spring weather.
May 16, 2013 No Comments


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I spent much of my time hanging and grooving at the Pulse Business Partner Summit in Vegas today because, hey, I love Business Partners!. The Summit started off with a luncheon reception for IBM Business Partners. à See video I met some pretty cool people...
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I'm at the IBM Social Media Marketing Summit in Yorktown Heights today. The hashtag for this event is #smm09. You can follow along with the tweets by watching the Twazzup results . I drove to the summit from Manhattan with Josh Hilliker, from Intel. I...
If you're an IBM Tivoli Business Partner why attend Pulse? Community Blog
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Hello, I'm Lisa Jensen, an IBM Worldwide Channel Sales Manager for Tivoli. I'm happy to join the IBM Tivoli Software Blog team and will be providing regular posts on IBM Business Partner topics. One of the hottest topics in the Business Partner community right...
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In response to: If you're an IBM Tivoli Business Partner why attend Pulse? Lisa, welcome to the blogging team. Great post on the Tivoli Pulse Business Partner Summit. I'm posting this to our Pulse blog too so others can find it.
Cooler Planet Crusader-In-Chief Community Blog
Jennifer Dennis firstname.lastname@example.com Tags: gore planet ibm climate tivoli pulse crisis rational global service our websphere choice vegas warming smarter copenhagen management summit las al mgm 4 Comments 5,308 Visits
So. We picked a guest speaker for Pulse, one of IBM's flagship conferences. And this time it's not a sports hero. This time we picked someone more renowned for his serious passion to save the world. For real. Our dude is busting his rump to save us from the...
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In response to: Cooler Planet Crusader-In-Chief I agree that the guest speaker selection makes a lot of sense with regards to building a smarter planet. It will be interesting to hear what Al Gore has to say.
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In response to: zPartners: Need-to-know info about the Business Partner Summit at Pulse in 2010 - see you there! Welcome to the Tivoli blogging team, Melissa! You're off to a great start. Looking forward to hearing more for Tivoli z Business Partners.
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IBM Business Partners Turn Out in Record Numbers at IMPACT
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This week's IBM Impact 2010 conference got off to a rousing start with Business Partner Summit Day on Sunday May 2nd. We thank all our Business Partners who attended the conference, and those who were not able to join us in Las Vegas last week. This year ...
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IBM had the honor of being a Platinum Sponsor of the UC Summit 2010 , held at the simply beautiful La Estancia Hotel and Spa, La Jolla CA. There's already been a few reviews of the event -- in addition to the ones linked from the UC Summit website, there's...
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Impact 2011 begins Sunday, April 10 with Business Partner Summit
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Impact 2011 Daily Newsletter for Monday, April 11 Download the PDF to read it now! Business Partners Recognized During the Business Partner Summit, IBM announced the winners of the fifth annual Impact Business Partner Awards. This...
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About Contact Join Donate
November 12, 2013, at 3:36 PM
By Adam Wilson |
Ave Maria University announced that it will open its campus to host the Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS) annual training beginning in May 2014. FOCUS held its training week at Ave Maria earlier this year as well.
FOCUS missionaries work on campuses around the country to help young people form strong spiritual lives while at college. The group's annual training draws approximately 500 missionaries.
In its 15-year existence, FOCUS has expanded its work to include 83 college campuses across the United States. In 2011, FOCUS expanded its outreach to include two more Catholic universities, Ave Maria University and University of Mary, both of which are recommended in The Newman Guide for strong Catholic identity.
Ave Maria president Jim Towey expressed his enthusiasm about holding another FOCUS training session on campus next summer.
"We are very pleased that these passionate and dedicated young men and women will again be on our campus," he said. "Their prayerful presence on our campus is a special addition to our AMU community."
Next summer's training session will be held from May 27 through July 6, 2014. The university expects that many of the missionaries will stay on campus after training for a silent retreat, which lasts until July 13, 2014.
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JJ's Bakery and Cafe is exactly what the name suggests. You can pop in and buy a loaf of bread, or wander on past the display case and take a seat and enjoy a wood-fired pizza and a glass of wine.
JJ's is in Longford, Tasmania, around 20-30 minutes outside of Launceston, and is very popular with locals and tourists alike.
It was our lunch destination after spending the morning at the beautiful Liffey Falls.
We were seated between the display cases and the pizza oven.
The staff are very relaxed and friendly and happy to have a chat and discuss the menu.
J had a beer and mum, dad and myself had a glass of chardonnay.
Mum and dad didn't even look at the menu, they knew what they wanted, the lifestyle bruschetta (avocada, bacon rasher, roasted tomatoes, asparagus, bocconcini, rocket, coriander lime chilli mayo).
J had the pie of the day, which I think was filled with scallops…
He also had a sausage roll on the side, which I may have helped him with..
I had originally ordered a focaccia but when I saw pizzas coming out to other tables I asked the waitress if I could change my mind. I had chicken pizza with capsicum, sweet potato chips, bacon and a honey mustard dressing. As I had changed my mind I had to wait a bit longer to get my food but that wasn't an issue.
Everyone polished off their main courses and was feeling very satisfied by simple food with fresh produce.
On the way out J and I couldn't resist the sweet treats. J got a lamington and I got a mud cake muffin topped with M&Ms. It was divine.
I would definitely recommend JJ's for a casual bite to eat, and I would also recommend going out to Liffey Falls, it is worth the drive, and we saw a platypus!


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May 27, 2016
Check out these two videos of GoPro cameras falling from airplanes and somehow surviving their crash landings.
The first video shows a camera being dropped out of a plane and landing in a pig pen. The description of the video on YouTube says the camera was found 8 months after its fall and the surprising video was found. Stick around for the end to see a pigs reaction to finding the camera.
In the second video, a camera can be seen falling out of its housing shortly after the skydiver made his jump from the plane. The amazing thing was how the camera lands facing skyward and the skydivers making their descent can be seen in the distance.
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Baltimore County News
Jim Lathe
Baltimore County Chief of Highways
Everybody's curious about the price tag. How much does it cost to plow the roads and keep them open every winter?
In Baltimore County, when there's a hint of snow – when the weather person says there's a chance for precip tomorrow – we, in the Bureau of Highways, Department of Public Works, begin looking very carefully at the bottom line. Because as soon as the word goes out that we've got snow duty – that we're on the clock – we're on the meter too.
This year we expect that plowing snow (that's with a staff of 400 employees manning three hundred trucks working from 11 shops) will cost more than $37,000 per hour. And when we put down salt, that price goes up to $108,000 per hour. That's because salt costs more than $50 a ton and we stock about 50,000 tons at 14 locations across the county.
Sunday's storm cost the County $1.4 million. We're still tabulating the expenses related yesterday's snow and will post the total shortly.
It's expensive, of course, but the total cost to keep the streets clear and safe varies wildly from year to year. Last year was an economical year for us. Baltimore County spent a little under $4 million to call out crews, to salt and to plow for 13 storms – many of them just dustings. But "Snowmageddon" back in 2010 was more than five times as expensive. The bills came to $20 million. Snow accumulation that winter was estimated at seven feet!
For a complete picture, take a look at our website for a listing of storm costs since Fiscal Year 2001.
During the past 13 years the cost has gone from a low of $2 million (when accumulation was a mere six inches in 2002) to the colossal winter four years ago. The average is about $7 million. But whatever the cost, you can rest assured that Baltimore County's Highway crews will give it our all to keep the streets open this year.
Revised April 6, 2016


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Sake Bottle
- Manufacturer: Sur La Table
- Material: Stoneware
- Care: Dishwasher safe
- Capacity: 8 oz.
- Made in China
- Microwave safe; oven safe to 350°F
Companion Products
New Perfect for sipping sake either cold or heated, this stoneware cup features a minimal aesthetic and smooth finish that feels great in the hand. Pair with...See product page for full details »
Customer Reviews
Questions & Answers


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Out of Stock
Item # NIN0001
Don't worry though, we have a lot more Wheel Small Parts in stock than that.View Similar Products
Industry Nine Rear Hub Conversion Kit $0.00
Industry Nine Rear hubs are known for ultra-quick engagement, a signature freewheeling sound, and their diesel-proof toughness. But they'll also accommodate a variety of axle options. So you can use the same super-cool rear wheel in just about any bike, no matter the axle type. The Industry Nine Rear Hub Conversion Kit will provide the necessary parts to make the conversion.
Industry Nine's Rear Hub Conversion Kits are available for standard quick release, 10 x 135mm thru-bolts, 12 x 135mm thru-axles, and 12 x 142mm (X12) thru-axle systems. Each of the conversion kits supply an appropriate axle and a left side axle end cap.
Tech Specs
View more Wheel Small Parts
Reviews & Community
Super Easy to Install
- Familiarity: I've put it through the wringer
Ordered this to convert my i9 XC rear wheel from a standard QR 10x135 to a 12x142mm thru-axle. SUPER easy to install and works perfectly. I'm thrilled to have a wheelset with hubs that are so easy to convert. Just another satisfied i9 customer here ;)
Will this work for the torch hubs?
Will this work for the torch hubs?
This is not needed for the new Torch hubs. The Torch hubs simply require different end caps the change form 10x135 and 12x142 axle standards.
is this product for coverting a cone and...
is this product for coverting a cone and ball hub to sealed bearing setup?
This is for use on I9s older style classic, XC, and Enduro hubs and only changes the axle from the stock 10x135 standard to the newer 12x142 axle standard. The classic, XC, and Enduro hubs were stocked with sealed bearings, and this axle will not work with other manufacturers hubs using a cone and ball interface.


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Thanks for coming by day after day, I'd write this either way but it is pretty cool to have actual humans read my writing. I've always wanted to write, always have written but never had the guts to do it AND let people read it. I guess the anonymity of the internet helps calm the nerves. Plus I just love to write.
Oh before the awards get handed out I want to ask/beg/plead/demand that everyone come by on Monday and link up a new or old post for my new Monday link up "Just Another Meatless Monday" I am going meatless maybe 2-4 times a week as way to eat healthier, curb my dependency on factory meat and save a bit of money on more expensive honest meats. I love it but feel I may be getting in a rut, then I thought maybe other people were feeling this way too. Maybe we can all inspire each other with some new ideas, yes? The post can be a new or old one, as long as you wrote it. Once you have linked it up you can't link that particular recipe up again for a month but after a month it's fair game because who knows who you might inspire by reposting it. I am working on a button to make linking easy, bear with me I am tech challenged. I hope you'll join me!
From Spices Bites I received the Beautiful Blogger Award!
She must have seen that charming picture of me munching down on DimSum in Chinatown, heehee.
To pass on the Beautiful Blogger Award I have to list 7 interesting facts about me, oh I have to limit myself to 7? I'm so interesting and beautiful ok I'll stick with 7...
#1 I just discovered a charming but alarming gray streak in my hair, it's over my right eye and would show if I ever parted my hair there-this makes my head look HUGE on one side thanks to insane hair, so the chances of a me with a cool mod gray streak looking savvy at the coffee shop are slim to none, Bride of Frankenstein though? I can do that!
#2 I have a wild dream to grow all of our own food, I'd better do it quick before the other 2 boys become teenagers though
#3 my blog is going through a metamorphosis, I am still loving writing about feeding my family real food, raising vegetable eaters, and organic gardening, I have been adding a bit more of our creative side and my upcycling/thrifting side-two major components in my life- I would love to hear any feedback you may have on those posts-even a yay or nay is cool
#4 I love to watch the sunrise and sunset
#5 I have atrocious hand writing, I often write and leave big spaces bet w een le tter s that aren't meant to be there-once I wrote a quick note to myself to clean the Stanky BR(clean the the stinky bathroom) my ex
#6 I love old things rusty crusty dusty stuff
#7 I always wanted to be cute and little, um no I'm an Amazon-some day I'll accept that
Now I have to pass it on to 7 bloggers
#1 Amy at Keeping up with the Schultz Family-Alyce's mommy! and a loyal reader
#2 Christina at Dinner at Christina's-make sure you stop by on Friday for her First Fridays link up!
#3 Sweet&Savory-fantastic new blog
#4 Angel in the Kitchen-I am making carmelitas I SWEAR!!!
#5 Michelle at Honest and Truly-Michelle reads the fine print and then tells you what it says in PLAIN ENGLISH
#6 Susan at Sticky Gooey Creamy Chewy-everything this woman makes is dreamy, plus? we are hitting Chinatown for DimSum again this year during BlogHer Food'10!!
#7 Amanda of Two Boos Who Eat- I had the pleasure of meeting her and her husband during the foodbuzz festival briefly-lovely couple
Christina of Dinner at Christina's gave me the Sunshine Award, isn't it pretty? I should really pass it on but I have to give it back to Christina first. When I fist 'met' Christina I felt like we hit it off right away. She is so sweet and real, I felt like I had known her forever. I can't wait to hang out with someday soon in real life.
Now I'm passing this to someone who completely inspires me! Her blog is new to me and may be new to many of you. It's Meg of Sew Liberated, she is a teacher, pattern designer, seamstress and mother to the cutest baby, Finn. While she doesn't know I exist she makes me feel like I can do anything!
I was tagged for a meme too Sweet & Savory a blogger out of Iowa (woot for the home state!!)who I really enjoy tagged me for 5 foodie fun facts-and while I do tend to rage against the foodie mentality I do enjoy spouting off
#1 When did you discover your love for cooking/baking? mmmmm I've always loved it as far back as I can remember, I cooked complete dinners for my family when I was an early teen, when I was younger I would make cakes in my easy bake and anytime I was alone in the kitchen I pretended to be on a cooking show
#2 Favorite food to make? gosh I'm stumped I love to make everything, usually from scratch-right now today I'd have to say appetizers, small, quick and fun
#3 Top eat of all time?my all time favorite meal is a green salad, grilled steak, steamed broccoli and fresh bread-dining out? I had a buffalo blue cheese salad that was to die for
#4 Most disliked food? organ meats, blarf
#5 Food you still haven't tried to make but want to ohhh that's a tough one-I'd love to make my dear husband some Ethiopian food some day, I'll need to special order the spices I'm sure but it will be worth it
If you like food and want to play along then I tag you, anyone and everyone gets to play along, I can't wait to see your answers, wonder how many of you dislike organ meats too?
Wow, what a long post. And it matches my week. My husband has a deadline coming up for a new program he is writing/developing?/whatever and he has been working at least 16 hour days since last week. He is only coming home for dinner or lunch, we hardly get to see him. Seriously I am not complaining, it's his job and we are blessed that he has one so close to home AND that I can stay home and
Peace and Love,


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My application needs to convert double values to char* to write to a pipe that accepts only characters. The usual ways of doing this are using the sprintf() function or using ostringstream from iomanip.h header file.
Turns out, both of these have really bad performance. And my application needs to do this conversion so often that it becomes the primary bottleneck.
Is there any other function I could use? What logic can I use to write an efficient conversion function? The only thing I have managed to come up with so far is to get each individual digit out using division and mod operations, and append these digits to a char* to get the entire double value. This doesn't seem like a good approach though, and will likely have bad performance itself.
Thanks in advance for your thoughts.
EDIT: There is some confusion over how the char* will be used. The char* will be an argument to the fwrite function which writes to a pipe.


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It's a big, long weekend for Big Sky Conference basketball players, fans and families.
Missoula's hosting the men's and women's conference tournaments, and people are already packing hotel rooms.
It's the third time ever and the first time since 2000 that both the Griz and Lady Griz have hosted together at home.
NBC Montana talked with several hotel mangers and they're booked! With a dozen teams between the men's bracket and the women's bracket coming from out of town, its set up to be a busy weekend in Missoula.
It's exciting for the players.
"We get along with the guys and I think both of us are super excited and proud of each team for hosting," said the Lady Griz player Torry Hill.
"You know that just makes it even more special to go out there and support the girls and have them come support us as well," said Griz point guard Will Cherry.
And huge for the school.
"To bring this many people on to the campus at the University of Montana and showcase really what we do here," said UM Athletic Director Kent Haslam.
But hosting two tournaments in a matter of four days is big for Missoula too.
"We're just excited to bring this many people to Missoula," Haslam said.
Hotels around town are full. A college basketball team needs at least 20 rooms. With 12 out of town teams, that's 240. And that doesn't' even include family and fans.
"Every room is rented and we even had a waiting list," said Missoula's Wingate Hotel General Manager Alicia Jones.
Jones said she even had to turn away college basketball teams. "Weber State called us to look for rooms and unfortunately I had to call them back and tell them we were full."
Fans that didn't plan ahead could be out of luck. But Griz and Lady Griz players aren't worried. They're anxious to show off their school, their skills and their city.
"When they come out and support us they give us a little extra juice and we know they're going to get it rocking, so we're excited for it," said Griz Junior Kareem Jamar.
The women's tournament started Wednesday and the men will tip off Thursday. Click here for a full schedule of both tournaments.


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What You Should Know
Click Here To See Our Highest Rated Review
Flor Essence is a tea that is designed to cleanse the body from the inside out to promote a higher level of health and wellness. The tea is sold on the product website and comes in powder and liquid form. Brewing instructions are included for each. Flor Essence claims to cleanse and detoxify the body at the cellular level, reduce the risk of some health conditions and support the immune system. The product website claims that Americans have a hard time keeping their bodies in top condition due to the poor diet, pollution and sedentary lifestyles we have adopted over the years.
Flor Essence combats these many unhealthy influences to create a more robust immune system with antioxidants and many other healthy ingredients. It has even been suggested that this product can be an effective component in treating some types of cancer. However, nothing is stated on the product website about the benefits of Flor Essence in terms of weight loss. Flor Essence products can be found through the product website and through a variety of online retailers. If consumers purchase directly from the product website, there is a 30-day money back guarantee available.
We are pleased to find that the product website provides a list of the ingredients included in Flor Essence, although we had to surf through the articles on the site to find the information. According to the product website, the ingredients in Flor Essence include burdock root, sheep sorrel, slippery elm bark, Turkish rhubarb, red clover, blessed thistle, kelp and watercress. In addition to providing the names of the ingredients, this website also goes on to list the benefits of each. From the ingredient list, we can see that the primary functions of Flor Essence are to cleanse the digestive system, boost immune function and increase energy levels.
Product Features
While there is nothing harmful in the Flor Essence teas, we do not find anything particularly helpful in terms of weight loss. For this purpose, we usually prefer to see a proven fat burner like green tea combined with an effective appetite suppressant for best results. The tea doesn't include either one.
The tea sells on the product website for $28.79 for either the powder mix or the liquid formula – a rather high price tag for a tea drink mix. Purchases made on the product website do come with a 30-day money back guarantee.
- Flor Essence tea comes with a long list of health benefits.
- The product comes with a money back guarantee.
- The tea does not contain any sort of appetite suppressant.
- A proven thermogenic ingredient is not included.
- The tea is rather expensive.
There are many healthy reasons to try Flor Essence tea. However, weight loss probably isn't one of them. With no appetite suppressant or proven fat burner in the mix, we believe dieters will be better off looking elsewhere for their weight loss needs.


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Canada's Top 10 selected in Technology, Cleantech, and Life Sciences
Canada's Top 10 is Canada's premier investment oriented competition focused on selecting the best potential investments in Canada for investors and providing high value added services to companies to increase their chances of success, both as they source investment and as they grow and compete in the global environment. Since its inception, competition alumni have secured more than $600M in venture capital financing.
Today organizers announced that the 2010 winners of the annual Canada's Top 10 Competition have been selected across three categories: Technology, Cleantech, and Life Sciences.
- Aeryon Labs Inc. (Ontario)
- AFORE Solutions Inc. (Ontario)
- Benbria (Ontario)
- CellWand Communications (Ontario)
- DataGardens Inc. (Alberta)
- Jostle Corporation (British Columbia)
- Optessa Inc. (Alberta)
- Teldio Corporation (Ontario)
- Telepin Software Corp (Ontario)
- YOUiLabs Inc. (Ontario)
- Calisolar (Ontario)
- ENBALA Power Networks (Ontario)
- exro technologies (British Columbia)
- Morgan Solar Inc. (Ontario)
- Nexterra Systems Corp (British Columbia)
- Plasco Energy Group (Ontario)
- REGEN Energy (Ontario)
- Sixtron Advanced Materials (Quebec)
- Skymeter Corp (Ontario)
- Vive Nano Inc. (Ontario)
Life Science
- Biolithic Corporation (Alberta)
- CogniSens Inc. (Quebec)
- iCo Therapeutics Inc. (British Columbia)
- Kane Biotech Inc. (Manitoba)
- Mitomics Inc. (Ontario)
- NeurAxon Inc. (Ontario)
- Origin BioMed Inc. (Nova Scotia)
- PlantForm Corporation (Ontario)
- Spartan Bioscience Inc. (Ontario)
- Targeted Biotherapeutics (Ontario)
Competition winners participate in a series of investment forums in select cities across the United States.
Developed together with key sponsors, partners and the Canadian consulates in each city, The forums expose the Top 10 companies to an exclusive opportunity to present to top tier U.S. and Canadian venture capitalists, licensing executives and potential strategic partners in a series of invitation only events.


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- A Major Step In Civil Aviation
- Memories Awakened By A Book Of Poetry
- Full Poınts For Turkish Airlines From Washington D.C.
- Award To Turkish Airlines From Great Britain
- Turkish Airlines' Sponsorship Initiative In Thailand
- Turkish Airlines At World's Largest Cargo Fair
- Turkish Airlines' Sponsorship For Valencia
- Norway's Crown family In Istanbul
- TUI In Istanbul
There Is No 2011!
Istanbul's 2010 European Capital of Culture year is drawing to a close, and people are starting to ask about 2011 and 2012 and the year after that.
But the answer is clear: There is no 2011 and after.
Finally or unfortunately... 2010 is ending. Along with Istanbul's year as 2010 European Capital of Culture, which kicked off with a spectacular fireworks display on the Golden Horn. Şekip Avdagiç, Chairman of the Istanbul 2010 European Capital of Culture Agency, answered our questions as the year winds down.
What was the most outstanding and impressive project of all?
Categorizing is something we prefer not to do. All our projects were important in their own right.
Which of our projects are sustainable? In other words, what are we going to remember in 2020 as something that started in 2010?
We converted an old entrepôt at Salı Pazarı into a public art venue called 'Sanat Limanı' (Art Port). It has become a very impressive exhibition area. Several of our younger colleagues were the go-betweens for that initiative. We supplied the infrastructure. The rest is up to our young artists.
Might we say the same of the festivals?
Of course. We pioneered in launching festivals like the opera, dance and poetry festivals. We laid the groundwork and developed the infrastructure. Those festivals will continue with the backing of sponsors from here on out.
What were some events you personally enjoyed?
I liked them all. I tried to follow all the genres and disciplines closely. I wouldn't single out any particular one of them.
Let me put it this way: What did I miss?
If you missed the 'Ten Thousand Years of Iran's Civilization and Two Thousand Years of Joint Heritage' exhibition at Topkapı Palace and the 'Moscow Kremlin Palace Treasures at Topkapı Palace' that would be a shame. It's unfortunate too if you missed 'Legendary Istanbul: From Byzantion to Istanbul - 8,000 Years of a Capital' at Sakıp Sabancı Museum. And if you didn't see the 'Istanbul 1910-2010 City, Built Environment and Architectural Culture' exhibition at Santralistanbul, then again you certainly missed out on something important.
On what projects were most of the funds spent?
The budgets for the construction of restoration projects were very large. We spent our major resources on restorations at the Hagia Sophia and Topkapı Palace.
What's going to happen as of January 2011?
There is no 2011, 2012, 2013 for us. We are an organization confined to 2010. Our activities will be finished at the end of this year. The events will come to an end. Following a six-month wrap-up of reports and bureaucratic procedures, our work will be concluded in June 2011.
The 2002 European Capital of Culture in Bruges (Belgium) took 2002 as a start and preserved the organization and went on with the events independently. Wouldn't this be possible in Istanbul as well?
Many cities that have been European Capital of Culture have turned the project into a long-term proposition. Bruges and Lille, for example. In Istanbul, the European Capital of Culture was executed in the allotted period and completed. There is no 2011. That's the way things stand as of now.
Do you have any regrets? Like, we were late in doing this, or we didn't think of that, or if only we'd done such and such?
Our biggest regret is the Ataturk Culture Center. We expended enormous effort to complete the renovation of the building. But we encountered obstacles in the preparation of the projects, in the contracts… We brought the parties together to try to surmount those obstacles - it was a prolonged process - but unfortunately the parties were unable to reach agreement. For reasons beyond our control, we were unable to renovate Ataturk Culture Center, and it remains a big problem for Istanbul.
What else?
We don't have a lot of regrets. There weren't that many projects that didn't come off. Anyway, we didn't take on projects we couldn't carry through on.
There was a lot of criticism. Especially about ineffectiveness, superficiality. What do you say to that?
It's extremely unrealistic to assess a situation while sitting in a cafe drinking coffee or tea. We brought 600 projects to life in a year and a half. Istanbul has a number of prestigious organizations. How many of them have ever realized so many projects in such a short space of time, and in so many different areas to boot? None! It's not a possibility either. I don't find those criticisms deserved, realistic or nice.
Is there anything that was deserving of criticism? Anything of which you would say people were right to criticize it?
We are our own worst critics. There was this, for example: We were wrong to create a mechanism in which we were bombarded by so many project applications. Having to process such a large number of applications slowed down our operations. The agency would have worked far more efficiently if we had limited the application process from the start.
Finally, and briefly, what has Istanbul's being 2010 European Capital of Culture contributed to the city and its people?
Over a hundred restoration projects were carried out in the city. It also gained a number of new venues such as the 'Museum of the Princes' Islands' and 'Sanat Limanı'. This is a project that embraced all of Istanbul for the first time, from Tuzla to Küçükçekmece, from Beykoz to Şile. In one way or another we came together with the whole city and all its residents. Students, artists and culture managers all worked together. We afforded everyone an opportunity to create a project. A serious approach to preparing and presenting projects has developed as a result. Some 75 young people worked at the agency, and they will continue to play an active role in Istanbul's art and culture.


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"Music is censored as it is: You can't say "shit" or "piss" or "fuck" or "cock-a-doodle dipshit" on your records if you want them on the radio and in Wal-Mart. It's not allowed. And if you want your video on TV, you can't wear certain clothes and you can't have images or body bags. Is music THAT dangerous? More dangerous than the death, murder, suicide, and rape I see on TV and in the movies...
Hey! How are you?
Just wanted to drop by and let you know that the fans are putting together a birthday video for Jacoby! Here's the link so you can check it out and be a part of it!
Spread the word to your friends! Thanks, and hope you have a good day/night!


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Part 11: Thai Airways Royal First BKK-FRA B77W, LH C FRA-DUS
Welcome to the eleventh part of my spring trip to Asia! (Have I broken a record for the most parts yet?)
The entire map (courtesy of GC mapper):
This report's map (courtesy of GC mapper):
Previous flights in this series:
easyJet London Luton-Barcelona (LTN-BCN)
Singapore Airlines Barcelona-Singapore (BCN-SIN), Business Class on the 77W
Valuair/Jetstar Asia Singapore-Medan
Garuda Indonesia Medan-Banda Aceh
Sriwijiaya Airlines B734 Banda Aceh-Medan-Jakarta with a fuel "expulsion"
Lion Air Boeing 737-900ER Jakarta-Singapore
Singapore Airlines A330 Business Class Singapore-Calcutta
SpiceJet B739 Calcutta-Bagdogra
Jet Konnect B738 Bagdogra-Calcutta
Biman Bangladesh DC10 Calcutta-Dhaka
United Airways ATR Dhaka-Cox's Bazar
Regent Airways Dash Chittagong-Dhaka
Biman Bangladesh A310 Dhaka-Kathmandu
Yeti Airlines "Everest Express" on the J41
THAI Airways Kathmandu-Bangkok, B772 Business Class
Flights to come:
Sun-Air (British Airways) Dusseldorf-Billund (DUS-BLL)
Sun-Air (British Airways) Billund-Manchester (BLL-MAN)
British Airways Manchester-London Heathrow (MAN-LHR)
*** Just to warn you, this section has even more photos than normal. Enjoy! ***
Picking up where I left off, I safety arrived at Bangkok Hotel #1. Bangkok is probably the best place in the world to enjoy bargain accommodation. The Thai Baht isn't terribly strong right now, and the country is excellent value anyway. Combined with a rash of newly built hotels, and a very competitive and high quality market, you'd have to be blind not to find some great hotel deals. For various reasons I ended up staying in 4 hotels over my 5 nights. I know, quite ridiculous, but there we go. (Honestly, there were good reasons for such extensive hotel changing!)
Bangkok Hotel #1, Furama Xclusive Silom. GBP 27/night including breakfast.
Trip Advisor, #151 of 674 hotels in Bangkok
Bangkok Hotel #2, Le Meridien. GBP 83/night
Trip Advisor, #10 of 674 hotels in Bangkok
Nice lobby table
Tasty chocolate in the room
Wonderful views
Bangkok Hotel #3, Feung Nakorn Rooms. GBP 28/night including breakfast
Trip Advisor, #20 of 674 hotels in Bangkok
Bangkok Hotel #4, Baan K residence by Blison. GBP 40/night including breakfast
Trip Advisor, #6 of 674 hotels in Bangkok
After my cycles in Kathmandu and Cox's Bazar, I was in the mood for a bit more cycling. I was originally planning on doing a 1 night trip out into the country, but in the end settled for 2 day trips (well, a day trip and a night trip). For the night cycle around Chinatown/Royal Palace I used Co Van Kessel Tours. There was just one other person on the tour, a Dutch girl. She was on her second ever night in Asia – I couldn't imagine being so new to Asia…I did envy her I must say, it must be so amazing your first time out here with all the sights and sounds and smells and food and shopping….(have I sold it to anyone who hasn't been yet??!)
The other tour was run by Spice Roads, and was a day trip to the Bangkok Jungle (aka Bang Kachao). I had no idea there was a massive swampy green undeveloped area in central Bangkok. It really felt like we were miles from the city. Magical!
We stopped at the floating market too, which had some tasty snacks
Of course there's more to Bangkok that hotel hopping and cycling. There's shopping:
Hunting for elephant cushion covers
And eating:
Dodgy clubs:
And some culture in the form of the Reclining Buddha
And not forgetting the tuk tuks
I was also lucky enough to meet up with A.net member Win1290 for a very nice lunch before his flight back to London. Was great to meet you Win!
A few nights before my flight back to Europe, I logged onto the TG wesbite to select my "Book the Cook" for the first meal service. There was an impressive range of some 40 dishes, complete with pictures. Here's a selection:
Lobster Thermidor
Phad Thai with lobster
Duck with noodles
Stir fried beef in black pepper sauce
I had initally selected the duck with noodles (which was reccomened by thaia345), but in the end went with the lobster on the premise that I normally eat duck about five times a year versus my "few times a decade" with lobster. I also wanted compare the SQ and TGs versions.
Please check your spelling (press "Check Spelling" above)
©Copyright 2016 Demand Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved


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Tech Week Europe: Open Source Collaboration Is A Top-Down Decision
The open-source Linux ecosystem is one of the most successful examples of collaborative software development. In a report released at the Linux Collaboration Summit, the Linux Foundation tried to quantify how organisations today are embracing the collaborative development model.
The study surveyed 700 business managers and software developers, 91 percent of whom said that collaborative software development is important to their businesses. The study also found that 77 percent of business managers were able to achieve a faster time to market by using collaborative software development methods.
Read more at Tech Week Europe.