text:
Dragon (spacecraft)
Placing humans and cargo into Low Earth orbit (commercial use)[1]
ISS resupply (governmental use)
None (cargo variant)
7 (Dragon V2 variant)
|Launch vehicle
Falcon 9 v1.0
(Dragon C5–)[2]
|Maiden flight
8 December 2010 (launch of first orbital flight)[3]
22 May 2012 (launch of first cargo delivery flight to the ISS)[4]
|6.1 meters (20 feet)[5]
|3.7 meters (12.1 feet)[5]
|Sidewall angle
|15 degrees
10 m3 (350 cu ft) pressurized[6]
14 m3 (490 cu ft) unpressurized[6]
34 m3 (1,200 cu ft) unpressurized with extended trunk[6]
|Dry mass
|4,200 kg (9,300 lb)[5]
|to ISS 3,310 kg (7,300 lb), which can be all pressurized, all unpressurized or anywhere in between. It can return to Earth 3,310 kg (7,300 lb), which can be all unpressurized disposal mass or up to 2,500 kg (5,500 lb) of return pressurized cargo[7]
|1 week to 2 years[6]
|Re-entry at
|3.5 Gs[8][9]
Dragon is a partially reusable spacecraft developed by SpaceX, an American private space transportation company based in Hawthorne, California. Dragon is launched into space by the SpaceX Falcon 9 two-stage-to-orbit launch vehicle, and SpaceX is developing a crewed version called the Dragon V2.
During its maiden flight in December 2010, Dragon became the first commercially-built and operated spacecraft to be recovered successfully from orbit.[3] On 25 May 2012, a cargo variant of Dragon became the first commercial spacecraft to successfully rendezvous with and be attached to the International Space Station (ISS).[11][12][13] SpaceX is contracted to deliver cargo to the ISS under NASA's Commercial Resupply Services program, and Dragon began regular cargo flights in October 2012.[14][15][16][17]
SpaceX is additionally developing a crewed variant of the Dragon called Dragon V2. Dragon V2 will be able to carry up to seven astronauts, or some combination of crew and cargo, to and from low Earth orbit. SpaceX has received several U.S. Government contracts to develop its crewed variant, including a Commercial Crew Development 2 (CCDev 2)-funded Space Act Agreement in April 2011, and a Commercial Crew integrated Capability (CCiCap)-funded space act agreement in August 2012. The spacecraft's heat shield is furthermore designed to withstand Earth re-entry velocities from potential Lunar and Martian spaceflights.[18]
The version 1 Dragon spacecraft consists of a nose-cone cap that jettisons after launch, a conventional blunt-cone ballistic capsule, and an unpressurized cargo-carrier trunk equipped with two solar arrays.[19] The capsule uses a PICA-X heat shield – based on a proprietary variant of NASA's phenolic impregnated carbon ablator (PICA) material – designed to protect the capsule during Earth atmospheric reentry, even at high return velocities from Lunar and Martian missions.[18][20][21] The Dragon capsule is re-usable, and can be flown on multiple missions.[19] The trunk is not recoverable; it separates from the capsule before re-entry and burns up in Earth's atmosphere.[22]
The spacecraft is launched atop a Falcon 9 booster.[23] The Dragon capsule is equipped with 18 Draco thrusters, dual-redundant in all axes: any two can fail without compromising the vehicle's control over its pitch, yaw, roll and translation.[20] During its initial cargo and crew flights, the Dragon capsule will land in the Pacific Ocean and be returned to the shore by ship.[24] SpaceX plans to eventually install deployable landing gear and use eight upgraded SuperDraco thrusters to perform a solid earth propulsive landing.[25][26][27]
The trunk section, which carries the spacecraft's solar panels and allows the transport of unpressurized cargo to the ISS, was first used for cargo on the SpaceX CRS-2 mission.
- 1 Name
- 2 Production
- 3 History
- 4 Development funding
- 5 Design
- 6 List of Dragon missions
- 7 Specifications
- 8 See also
- 9 References
- 10 External links
SpaceX's CEO, Elon Musk, named the spacecraft after the 1963 song "Puff, the Magic Dragon" by Peter, Paul and Mary, reportedly as a response to critics who considered his spaceflight projects impossible.[28]
In December 2010, the SpaceX production line was reported to be manufacturing one new Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket every three months. Elon Musk stated in a 2010 interview that he planned to increase production turnover to one Dragon every six weeks by 2012.[29] Composite materials are extensively used in the spacecraft's manufacture to reduce weight and improve structural strength.[30]
By September 2013, SpaceX total manufacturing space had increased to nearly 1,000,000 square feet (93,000 m2) and the factory had six Dragons in various stages of production. SpaceX published a photograph showing the six, including the next four NASA Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) mission Dragons (CRS-3, CRS-4, CRS-5, CRS-6) plus the drop-test Dragon, and the pad-abort Dragon weldment for commercial crew.[31]
SpaceX began developing the Dragon spacecraft in late 2004.[32] In 2006, SpaceX won a contract to use the Dragon spacecraft for commercially supplied resupply services to the International Space Station for the American federal space agency, NASA.[33]
NASA ISS resupply contract
In 2005, NASA solicited proposals for a commercial ISS resupply cargo vehicle to replace the then-soon-to-be-retired Space Shuttle, through its Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) development program. The Dragon spacecraft was a part of SpaceX's proposal, submitted to NASA in March 2006. SpaceX's COTS proposal was issued as part of a team, which also included MD Robotics, the Canadian company that had built the ISS's Canadarm2.
On 18 August 2006, NASA announced that SpaceX had been chosen, along with Kistler Aerospace, to develop cargo launch services for the ISS.[33] The initial plan called for three demonstration flights of SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft to be conducted between 2008 and 2010.[34][35] SpaceX and Kistler were to receive up to $278 million and $207 million respectively,[35] if they met all NASA milestones, but Kistler failed to meet its obligations, and its contract was terminated in 2007.[36] NASA later re-awarded Kistler's contract to Orbital Sciences.[36][37]
On 23 December 2008, NASA awarded a $1.6 billion Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contract to SpaceX, with contract options that could potentially increase the maximum contract value to $3.1 billion.[38] The contract called for 12 flights to the ISS, with a minimum of 20,000 kg (44,000 lb) of cargo carried to the ISS.[38]
On 23 February 2009, SpaceX announced that its chosen heat shield material, PICA-X, had passed heat stress tests in preparation for Dragon's maiden launch.[39] PICA-X is reportedly ten times cheaper to manufacture than NASA's PICA heat shield material.[40]
The primary proximity-operations sensor for the Dragon spacecraft, the DragonEye, was tested in early 2009 during the STS-127 mission, when it was mounted near the docking port of the Space Shuttle Endeavour and used while the Shuttle approached the International Space Station. The DragonEye's LIDAR and thermal imaging capabilities were both tested successfully.[41][42] The COTS UHF Communication Unit (CUCU) and Crew Command Panel (CCP) were delivered to the ISS during the late 2009 STS-129 mission.[43] The CUCU allows the ISS to communicate with Dragon and the CCP allows ISS crew members to issue basic commands to Dragon.[43] In summer 2009, SpaceX hired former NASA astronaut Ken Bowersox as vice president of their new Astronaut Safety and Mission Assurance Department, in preparation for crews using the spacecraft.[44]
As a condition of the NASA CRS contract, SpaceX analyzed the orbital radiation environment on all Dragon systems, and how the spacecraft would respond to spurious radiation events. That analysis and the Dragon design – which uses an overall fault-tolerant triple-redundant computer architecture, rather than individual radiation hardening of each computer processor – was reviewed by independent experts before being approved by NASA for the cargo flights.[45]
Demonstration flights
The first flight of the Falcon 9, a private flight, occurred in June 2010 and launched a stripped-down version of the Dragon capsule. This Dragon Spacecraft Qualification Unit had initially been used as a ground test bed to validate several of the capsule's systems. During the flight, the unit's primary mission was to relay aerodynamic data captured during the ascent.[46][47] It was not designed to survive re-entry, and did not.
NASA contracted for three test flights from SpaceX, but later reduced that number to two. The first Dragon spacecraft launched on its first mission – contracted to NASA as COTS Demo Flight 1 – on 8 December 2010, and was successfully recovered following reentry to Earth's atmosphere; the mission furthermore marked the second flight of the Falcon 9 launch vehicle.[48] The DragonEye sensor flew again on STS-133 in February 2011 for further on-orbit testing.[49] In November 2010, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) had issued a reentry license for the Dragon capsule, the first such license ever awarded to a commercial vehicle.[50]
The second Dragon flight, also contracted to NASA as a demonstration mission, launched successfully on 22 May 2012, after NASA had approved SpaceX's proposal to combine the COTS 2 and 3 mission objectives into a single Falcon 9/Dragon flight, renamed COTS 2+.[4][51] Dragon conducted orbital tests of its navigation systems and abort procedures, before being grappled by the ISS' Canadarm2 and successfully berthing with the station on 25 May to offload its cargo.[11][52][53][54][55] Dragon returned to Earth on 31 May 2012, landing as scheduled in the Pacific Ocean, and was again successfully recovered.[56][57]
On 23 August 2012, NASA Administrator Charles Bolden announced that SpaceX had completed all required milestones under the COTS contract, and was cleared to begin operational re-supply missions to the ISS.[58]
Operational flights
Dragon was launched on its first operational CRS-contract mission on 8 October 2012,[14] and completed the mission successfully on 28 October.[59]
SpaceX CRS-2, the second CRS mission from SpaceX, was successfully launched on March 1, 2013. SpaceX CRS-3, SpaceX's third CRS mission, was launched on April 18, 2014 and was berthed with the ISS from April 20, 2014 through May 18, 2014.[60] SpaceX CRS-4 successfully launched on Sunday, September 21, 2014 and berthed with the ISS on Tuesday, September 23. It splashed down in the Pacific Ocean carrying 3,276 pounds of cargo and science samples.[61]
Crewed development program
In 2006, Elon Musk stated that SpaceX had built "a prototype flight crew capsule, including a thoroughly tested 30-man-day life-support system".[32] A video simulation of this escape system's operation was released in January 2011.[26] Musk stated in 2010 that the developmental cost of a crewed Dragon and Falcon 9 would be between $800 million and $1 billion.[62] In 2009 and 2010, Musk suggested on several occasions that plans for a crewed variant of the Dragon were proceeding and had a two-to-three-year timeline to completion.[63][64] SpaceX submitted a bid for the third phase of CCDev, CCiCap.[65][66]
NASA Commercial Crew Development program
SpaceX was not awarded funding during the first phase of NASA's Commercial Crew Development (CCDev) milestone-based program. However, the company was selected on 18 April 2011, during the second phase of the program, to receive an award valued at $75 million to help develop its crew system.[67][68]
Their CCDev2 milestones involved the further advancement of the Falcon 9/Dragon crew transportation design, the advancement of the Launch Abort System propulsion design, completion of two crew accommodations demos, full-duration test firings of the launch abort engines, and demonstrations of their throttle capability.[69]
SpaceX's launch abort system received preliminary design approval from NASA in October 2011.[70] In December 2011, SpaceX performed its first crew accommodations test; the second such test is expected to involve spacesuit simulators and a higher-fidelity crewed Dragon mock-up.[71][72] In January 2012, SpaceX successfully conducted full-duration tests of its SuperDraco landing/escape rocket engine at its Rocket Development Facility in McGregor, Texas.[73]
On 3 August 2012, NASA announced the award of $440 million to SpaceX for the continuation of work on the Dragon under CCiCap.[74] As part of an optional milestone of CCiCap, the first crewed Dragon flight would occur no sooner than mid-2015.[75] This orbital flight would see Dragon being launched into a 200-nautical-mile (370-km) orbit. The first crewed mission is planned to last at least three days and be performed with a crew of three non-NASA personnel.[75] As part of another optional milestone, the first crewed Dragon flight to the ISS is planned to be launched no sooner than December 2015; this mission will also carry a non-NASA crew.[75]
In July 2013, SpaceX stated that a pad abort test is planned to occur no sooner than December 2013.[76] During this test, the Dragon capsule will use its abort engines to launch away from a test stand at Launch Complex 40.[77][78] It will travel to an altitude of 5,000 feet (1,500 m), deploy its parachutes, splashdown into the ocean and be recovered.[77][78] An in-flight abort is planned for no sooner than April 2015, which would see Dragon using its launch abort engines to escape from a Falcon 9 that is already in flight.[77][75] This test would occur at the point of worst-case dynamic loads, which is also when Dragon has the smallest performance margin for separation from its launch vehicle.[75]
On 20 December 2013, SpaceX completed a parachute drop test in order to validate the new parachute design.[79] This involved carrying a 12,000 pounds (5,400 kg) Dragon test article by helicopter to an altitude of 8,000 feet (2,400 m) above the Pacific ocean.[80] The test article was released and intentionally forced into a tumble.[80] Dragon then released its two drogue parachutes, followed by its three main parachutes and splashed down into the ocean.[80] The test article was then retrieved by helicopter and returned to shore.[80]
Red Dragon
Red Dragon is a concept for a low-cost uncrewed Mars lander that would utilize a SpaceX Falcon Heavy launch vehicle and a modified Dragon capsule to enter the Martian atmosphere. The concept will be proposed for funding in 2013 as a NASA Discovery mission, for launch in 2018.[81][82] The mission would search for the biosignatures of past or present life on Mars. Red Dragon would drill about 1 meter (3.3 ft) underground in an effort to sample reservoirs of water ice known to exist in the shallow Martian subsurface.[81][82]
A Dragon capsule is capable of performing all the entry, descent and landing (EDL) functions required to deliver payloads of 1 tonne (2,200 lb) or more to the Martian surface without using a parachute. Preliminary analysis shows that the capsule's atmospheric drag will slow it sufficiently for the final stage of its descent to be within the capabilities of its SuperDraco retro-propulsion thrusters.[81][82]
Mars One Dragon
The private Mars One colonization project developed an initial concept of using a 5-meter (16 ft)-diameter variant of Dragon, launched on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket, to transport crew and cargo to the Martian surface.
According to the Mars One 2014 timetable, the first launch would need to occur in July 2022, in preparation for the projected arrival of human colonists in 2025.[83] As of May 2013, they had no relationship with SpaceX,[84] and SpaceX has made no comment on any early Mars mission for any customers.
Development funding
In 2014, SpaceX released the total combined development costs for both the Falcon 9 launch vehicle and the Dragon capsule. NASA provided US$396 million while SpaceX provided over US$450 million to fund both development efforts.[85]
Dragon CRS
For the ISS Dragon cargo flights, the ISS's Canadarm2 grapples its Flight-Releasable Grapple Fixture and berths Dragon to the station's US Orbital Segment using a Common Berthing Mechanism.[86] The CRS Dragon does not have an independent means of maintaining a breathable atmosphere for astronauts and instead circulates in fresh air from the ISS.[87] For typical missions, Dragon is planned to remain berthed to the ISS for about 30 days.[88]
The CRS Dragon's capsule can transport 3,310 kg (7,300 lb) of cargo, which can be all pressurized, all unpressurized or anywhere in between. It can return to Earth 3,310 kg (7,300 lb), which can be all unpressurized disposal mass or up to 2,500 kg of return pressurized cargo, driven by parachute limitations. There is a volume constraint of 14 m3 (490 cu ft) trunk unpressurized cargo and 11.2 m3 (400 cu ft) of pressurized cargo (up or down).[7] The trunk was first used operationally on the Dragon's CRS-2 mission in March 2013.[89] Its solar arrays produce a peak power of 4 kW.[10]
The CRS Dragon design was modified beginning with the fifth Dragon flight on the SpaceX CRS-3 mission to the ISS in March 2014. While the outer mold line of the Dragon was unchanged, the avionics and cargo racks were redesigned in order to supply substantially more electrical power to powered cargo devices, including the GLACIER and MERLIN freezer modules for transporting critical science payloads.[90]
When used for non-NASA, non-ISS commercial flights, the uncrewed version of the Dragon spacecraft is called DragonLab.[19] It is reusable, free-flying, and capable of carrying both pressurized and unpressurized payloads. Its subsystems include propulsion, power, thermal and environmental control, avionics, communications, thermal protection, flight software, guidance and navigation systems, and entry, descent, landing, and recovery gear.[6] It has a total combined upmass of 6,000 kilograms (13,000 lb) upon launch, and a maximum downmass of 3,000 kilograms (6,600 lb) when returning to Earth.[6] As of April 2014, there are two DragonLab missions listed on the SpaceX launch manifest: one in 2016 and another in 2018.[91] The same two missions were listed on the SpaceX manifest in November 2011.[92] The American Biosatellites once performed similar uncrewed payload-delivery functions, and the Russian Bion satellites still continue to do so.
Dragon V2
List of Dragon missionsList includes only completed or currently manifested missions. All NASA CRS missions are currently scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 40. Launch dates are listed in UTC.
|Mission name
|Launch date (UTC)
|SpX-C1 (COTS 1)
|8 December 2010[93]
|First Dragon mission, second Falcon 9 launch
|SpX-C2+ (COTS 2)
|22 May 2012[4]
|First Dragon mission with complete spacecraft, first rendezvous mission, first berthing with ISS
|SpaceX CRS-1
|8 October 2012[15][16][94]
|First Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) mission for NASA, first non-demo mission. Falcon 9 rocket suffered a partial engine failure during launch but was able to deliver Dragon into orbit.[14] However, a secondary payload did not reach its correct orbit.[95]
|Mission success; launch anomaly[59]
|SpaceX CRS-2
|1 March 2013[96][97]
|First launch of Dragon using trunk section to carry cargo.[89] Launch was successful, but anomalies occurred with the spacecraft's thrusters shortly after liftoff. Thruster function was later restored and orbit corrections were made,[96] but the spacecraft's rendezvous with the ISS was delayed from its planned date of 2 March until 3 March, when it was successfully berthed with the Harmony module.[98][99] Dragon splashed down safely in the Pacific Ocean on 26 March.[100]
|Mission success; spacecraft anomaly[96]
|SpaceX CRS-3
|18 April 2014[101][102]
|First launch of the redesigned Dragon: same outer mold line with the avionics and cargo racks redesigned in order to supply substantially more electrical power to powered cargo devices, including additional cargo freezers for transporting critical science payloads.[90] Launch rescheduled for 18 April due to a helium leak.
|Mission success[103]
|SpaceX CRS-4
|21 September 2014[104]
|First launch of a Dragon with living payload, in the form of 20 mice which are part of a NASA experiment to study the physiological effects of long-duration spaceflight.[105]
|Success [106]
|DragonV2 abort test
|November 2014[107]
|Pad abort test, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida
|SpaceX CRS-5
|16 December 2014[104]
|DragonV2 abort test
|January 2015[107]
|In-flight abort test, Vandenberg Air Force Base, California[75]
|SpaceX CRS-6
|4 February 2015[104]
|SpaceX CRS-7
|SpaceX CRS-8
|As of January 2013, will deliver the Bigelow BEAM module in the unpressurized cargo trunk.[109]
|SpaceX CRS-9
|SpaceX CRS-10
|DragonV2 CC-1
|SpaceX CRS-11
|SpaceX CRS-12
|DragonLab Mission 1
|DragonLab Mission 2
|DragonV2 CC-2
The following specifications are published by SpaceX for the non-NASA, non-ISS commercial flights of the refurbished Dragon capsules, listed as "DragonLab" flights on the SpaceX manifest. The specifications for the NASA-contracted Dragon Cargo were not included in the 2009 DragonLab datasheet.[6]
- Pressure vessel
- 10 m3 (350 cu ft) interior pressurized, environmentally controlled, payload volume.[6]
- Onboard environment: 10–46 °C (50–115 °F); relative humidity 25~75%; 13.9~14.9 psia air pressure (958.4~1027 hPa).[6]
- Unpressurized sensor bay (recoverable payload)
- 0.1 m3 (4 cu ft) unpressurized payload volume.
- Sensor bay hatch opens after orbital insertion to allow full sensor access to the space environment, and closes prior to reentry to Earth's atmosphere.[6]
- Unpressurized trunk (non-recoverable)
- 14 m3 (490 cu ft) payload volume in the 2.3 m (7 ft 7 in) trunk, aft of the pressure vessel heat shield, with optional trunk extension to 4.3 m (14 ft 1 in) total length, payload volume increases to 34 m3 (1,200 cu ft).[6]
- Supports sensors and space apertures up to 3.5 m (11 ft 6 in) in diameter.[6]
- Power, communication and command systems
- Power: twin solar panels providing 1,500 W average, 4,000 W peak, at 28 and 120 VDC.[6]
- Spacecraft communications: commercial standard RS-422 and military standard 1553 serial I/O, plus Ethernet communications for IP-addressable standard payload service.
- Command uplink: 300 kbps.[6]
- Telemetry/data downlink: 300 Mbit/s standard, fault-tolerant S-band telemetry and video transmitters.[6]
Radiation tolerance
Dragon uses a "radiation-tolerant" design in the electronic hardware and software that make up its flight computers. The system uses three pairs of computers, each constantly checking on the others, to instantiate a fault-tolerant design. In the event of a radiation upset or soft error, one of the computer pairs will perform a soft reboot.[45] Including the six computers that make up the main flight computers, Dragon employs a total of 18 triple-processor computers.[45]
See also
- Comparison of space station cargo vehicles
- List of human spaceflight programs
- Space Shuttle successors
- Comparable vehicles
- Automated Transfer Vehicle – a single-use, expendable cargo vehicle currently in use by the ESA
- Cygnus spacecraft – a single-use, expendable cargo vehicle under development by Orbital Sciences Corporation
- H-II Transfer Vehicle – an expendable cargo vehicle currently in use by JAXA
- Progress spacecraft – an expendable cargo vehicle currently in use by the Russian Federal Space Agency
Crew Tranport
- Blue Origin orbital spacecraft – an American private biconic nose cone design vehicle
- CST-100 – a spacecraft being developed by Boeing, in collaboration with Bigelow Aerospace
- Dream Chaser – a spaceplane being developed by Sierra Nevada Corporation
- Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle – a beyond-low-Earth-orbit spacecraft being developed by Lockheed Martin for NASA
- Prospective Piloted Transport System – a reusable manned spacecraft under development by the Russian Federal Space Agency
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- ^ Paur, Jason (27 October 2011). "SpaceX Launch Abort System Receives Preliminary Approval". Wired (San Francisco). Archived from the original on 18 December 2011. Retrieved 28 October 2011.
- ^ "CCDev 2 Milestone Schedule". NASA. 16 February 2012. Retrieved 14 April 2012.
- ^ "ISS Update: SpaceX Space Act Agreement Status". NASA. 23 March 2012. Retrieved 14 April 2012.
- ^ "SpaceX Tests New 'Super' Rocket Engines". Wired. 1 February 2012.
- ^ "Boeing, SpaceX and Sierra Nevada Win CCiCAP Awards". Spacenews.com. 3 August 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f "Space Act Agreement NO. NNK12MSO2S between NASA and SpaceX For CCiCap". NASA/SpaceX. 24 July 2012. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ Norris, Guy (1 July 2013). "Boeing, SpaceX Detail Capsule Test Plans". Aviation Week. Retrieved 4 July 2013.
- ^ a b c Halvorson, Todd (3 July 2013). "SpaceX presses ahead on crew testing at Cape Canaveral". Florida Today. Retrieved 4 July 2013.
- ^ a b "NASA Commercial Crew Partner SpaceX Completes Two Human-Critical Reviews". NASA. 2 July 2013. Retrieved 4 July 2013.
- ^ Messier, Doug (17 January 2014). "NASA Commercial Crew Partner SpaceX Tests Dragon Parachute System". Parabolic Arc. Retrieved 21 January 2014.
- ^ a b c d "NASA Commercial Crew Partner SpaceX Tests Dragon Parachute System". NASA. 17 January 2014. Retrieved 21 January 2014.
- ^ a b c Wall, Mike (31 July 2011). Red Dragon' Mission Mulled as Cheap Search for Mars Life"'". Space.com. Retrieved 1 May 2012.
- ^ a b c "NASA ADVISORY COUNCIL (NAC) – Science Committee Report" (PDF). NASA Ames Research Center. 1 November 2011. Retrieved 1 May 2012.
- ^ "Roadmap". Mars One. Retrieved 14 January 2014.
- ^ Shubber, Kadhim (13 May 2013). "Mars One will take you to the Red Planet, if it can raise the cash". Wired.co.uk. Retrieved 4 June 2013.
^ Shotwell, Gwynne (June 4, 2014). Discussion with Gwynne Shotwell, President and COO, SpaceX. Atlantic Council. Event occurs at 12:20–13:10. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
NASA ultimately gave us about $396 million; SpaceX put in over $450 million ... [for an] EELV-class launch vehcle ... as well as a capsule
- ^ Bergin, Chris (12 April 2012). "ISS translates robotic assets in preparation to greet SpaceX's Dragon". NASASpaceflight.com. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
- ^ Brenda J. Hernandez, Siarhei Piatrovich, Mauro Prina (2011). "SpaceX Dragon Air Circulation System" (PDF). SpaceX / American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
- ^ "NASA Advisory Council Space Operations Committee" (PDF). NASA. July 2010. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
^ a b Bergin, Chris (19 October 2012). "Dragon enjoying ISS stay, despite minor issues – Falcon 9 investigation begins". NASASpaceflight.com. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
CRS-2 will debut the use of Dragon's Trunk section, capable of delivering unpressurized cargo, prior to the payload being removed by the ISS' robotic assets after berthing.
^ a b Gwynne Shotwell (2014-03-21). Broadcast 2212: Special Edition, interview with Gwynne Shotwell (mp3) (audio file). The Space Show. Event occurs at 18:35–19:10. 2212. Archived from the original on 22 March 2014. Retrieved 22 March 2014.
looks the same on the outside ... new avionics system, new software, and new cargo racking system
- ^ a b c "Launch Manifest". SpaceX. 3 November 2012. Retrieved 3 November 2012.
- ^ "Launch Manifest". Hawthorne, California: SpaceX. 2011. Archived from the original on 18 December 2011. Retrieved 25 November 2011.
- ^ "SpaceX Launches Success with Falcon 9/Dragon Flight". NASA. 9 December 2010. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
- ^ "Private Spacecraft to Launch Space Station Cargo On Oct. 7". LiveScience. 25 September 2012.
- ^ "Falcon 9 Drops Orbcomm Satellite in Wrong Orbit".
- ^ a b c "Dragon Spacecraft Glitch Was 'Frightening,' SpaceX Chief Elon Musk Says". Space.com. 1 March 2013. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
- ^ "Dragon Mission Report". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
- ^ "NASA says SpaceX Dragon is safe to dock with the International Space Station on Sunday". The Verge. 2 March 2013. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
- ^ "SpaceX hits snag; Dragon capsule won't dock with space station on schedule". WKMG TV. 1 March 2013. Retrieved 1 March 2013.
- ^ "SpaceX Dragon cargo ship splashes into Pacific". Boston Globe. 26 March 2013. Retrieved 28 March 2013.
- ^ "Range Realigns – SpaceX CRS-3 mission targets April 14". NASASpaceflight.com. 4 April 2014. Retrieved 4 April 2014.
- ^ "CRS-3 Update". http://new.livestream.com.
- ^ "[SpaceX] Launch of SpaceX's Dragon CRS-3 Spacecraft on Falcon 9v1.1 Rocket". SpaceVids.tv. 18 April 2014. Retrieved 18 April 2014.
- ^ a b c "Spaceflight Now Tracking Station". spaceflightnow.com. Retrieved 8 August 2014.
- ^ "SpaceX Dragon Flying Mice in Space & More for NASA". Space.com. 18 September 2014. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
- ^ "Space X Dragon capsule returns to Earth - CRS-4 Mission ends with a splash!".
- ^ a b "SpaceX Sets November, January Dates for Launch Abort Tests of Crew-capable Dragon". SpaceNews.com. Retrieved 8 August 2014.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Launch Manifest". spacex.com. Retrieved 8 August 2014.
- ^ Lindsey, Clark (16 January 2013). "NASA and Bigelow release details of expandable module for ISS". NewSpace Watch. Retrieved 24 January 2013. (subscription required (help)).
External links
- Dragon Spacecraft overview on SpaceX official website
- SpaceX CCDev2 Agreement with NASA
- SpaceX CCDev2 bi-monthly progress reports
- Dragon cargo delivery to ISS (COTS 2 highlight reel)
- Dragon crew transport to ISS (CG rendering)
- "SpaceX Reveals Its New Dragon Space Capsule". Slate. 30 May 2014.
- Use dmy dates from November 2012
- WorldHeritage articles in need of updating from December 2014
- All WorldHeritage articles in need of updating
- All articles with unsourced statements
- Articles with unsourced statements from January 2014
- Articles containing potentially dated statements from May 2013
- All articles containing potentially dated statements
- Articles containing potentially dated statements from April 2014
- Articles containing potentially dated statements from January 2013
- CS1 errors: dates
- Pages containing links to subscription-only content
- Commons category without a link on Wikidata
- Commercial spaceflight
- SpaceX
- Supply vehicles for the International Space Station
- 2012 introductions
- Dragon (spacecraft)


text:
Object #1006372 from MS-Papers-0032-0582
3 pages written by William Mein Smith to Sir Donald McLean
From: Inward letters - Surnames, Smi - Spe, Reference Number MS-Papers-0032-0582 (23 digitised items). Correspondents:William Bowles Smith, Poverty Bay, undated (1 letter); William Mein Smith, Wairarapa, 1853 & undated (2 letters); W W Smyth, HMS Iris, undated (2 letters); Edmund L Snee, Omahu & Wairarapa Bush, 1863 (2 letters); W J Snodgrass, Mohaka, Napier & Motuotaraia, 1854-1860 (7 letters); J C Soall, Auckland, 1871 (1 letter); K T [?] Solomon, Auckland, 1856 (1 letter); Janet Speed, Picton, 1872 (1 letter); James Speedy, Mauku, 1860 (5 letters)
Download alow-resolution PDF or high-resolution PDF
Part of:
Inward letters - Surnames, Smi - Spe, Reference Number MS-Papers-0032-0582 (23 digitised items)
Series 1 Inward letters (English), Reference Number Series 1 Inward letters (English) (14501 digitised items)
McLean Papers, Reference Number MS-Group-1551 (30238 digitised items)
Usage: You can search, browse, print and download items from this website for research and personal study. You are welcome to reproduce the above image(s) on your blog or another website, but please maintain the integrity of the image (i.e. don't crop, recolour or overprint it), reproduce the image's caption information and link back to here (http://mp.natlib.govt.nz/detail/?id=1006372). If you would like to use the above image(s) in a different way (e.g. in a print publication), or use the transcription or translation, permission must be obtained. More information about copyright and usage can be found on the Copyright and Usage page of the NLNZ web site.
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
sjshah necesitaba un nuevo diseño de impreso o envases y lanzó un concurso de diseño en 99designs.
Un ganador ha sido elegido entre 30 diseños de 4 diseñadores freelance.
Amari Medical
We are a medical weight loss center that helps patients lose weight. We require them to keep a journal of the food that the doctor prescribes for them (a medical nutrition plan), as well as their emotions each day.
We work with the patients to develop long term habits to help them keep the weight off once they have lost it.
We are targeting our existing patient base, which is a combination of men and women.
8.5 by 5.5" Journal in AI and PDF format for print.
We want a nice full color cover that will say "Daily Success Journal" and incorporate our logo and the attached image. The back will be similar to the attached AI folder file and will list our website and leave a place for a bar code to be placed. Full Bleed on the cover and back.
The inside of the book will be similar to the attached word document with respect to content. It will be:
1) Black and White
2) Very neat and clean designed
3) Page numbered
4) Easy to read, and fun to input the information.
5) leave about 1/4 inch for the spiral binding on the binding side of the page.
Make a few template designs of the pages before we go ahead and make the entire book. I am including the information in the attached word 2007 Document.
Feel free to be creative, surf the web/amazon.com for other journals for ideas, but we want something unique, clean, and neat. Not boring like the attached document.
One of the pages ask to record water.....make these glasses of water for them to check off.
Fat Loss indicators are strips that they dip in body fluids....so make have a strip icon.
Pedometer icon.......


text:
Friday, November 18, 2005
At a Mexican market
I have been back from Mexico for over a month now, but still have lots of pictures and stories to share (so there is more to come). I have already posted a story about shopping for exotic fruit in Tepostlán. Here are pictures from one of the numerous travelling food markets in Mexico City. This one makes an appearance literally outside my hosts' window every Monday morning. It was a maze of colours, smells and unusual fruit.
On the above banner you can see red bananas on the right - I had never encountered these before. They had brownish-red skin, and the flesh was slightly pinkish. Tastewise they were a bit sweeter than 'normal' bananas (though not as sweet as the little 'dominican' mini bananas I've managed to leave out of the picture).
As it doesn't happen every day that an exotic food market camps outside my house, I went to buy some fruit and vegetables with my host Ada and kids. Poor vendors, they must have been very confused about this shy Estonian trying to take sneak pictures of them or their produce. Although this pulse&rice seller started arranging his hair in order to look nicer:)
Here are lots of different chilli peppers:
The dark brown ones on the left are ancho peppers, which are called poblano peppers when fresh and dark, almost purply green. As these are comparatively mild chillies, they are the most popular ones for stuffing:
Nicely arranged citrus fruit. My host Ada explained to me the difference between Mexican limes - which are tart, but mild & sweet enough to eat as they are - and the sour lime known as lime elsewhere..
Here are tuna-fruits or cactus fruits. They can be either red:
with this gorgeously red flesh:
or they can be green:
This is cherimoya, which has huge black seeds in it and very juicy and tasty pale flesh:
And here is dragon fruit, also known as pitahaya or strawberry pear. I didn't think it had a particularly interesting flavour, as it was bordering on watery. But it does look beautiful:
Some tiny citrus fruits:
And finally, a happy vegetable family, the Chayotes or the Christophenes:) Here is the hairy father:
the glossy mother:
all together now, with the little one as well:
4 comments:
- ilva said...
So many interesting type of fruit-great post Pille! I wish I could try them all!
- 10:06 am, November 19, 2005
- angelika said...
Hi Pille, thank you for sharing those wonderful photos ! Just as Ilva has written I also would like to taste them all. You know my job has to to with "running" pics and I must admit that also for filming such markets - regarding people in action, colurs, sound, atmosphere - always are a wonderland, and they tell so much about how people live in this very country. The only thing you can never have in pics, whether running or still, is the fragrance, what a pity...(mostly ;-) Have a nice Sunday, angelika
- 2:04 pm, November 20, 2005
- Paz said...
What incredible sounding market. I'd LOVE for one to appear under my window, I wouldn't have far to go shopping then! Wonderful photos! Thanks!
- 4:20 am, November 21, 2005
- Pille said...
Ilva - I was impressed with the choice of fruit and vegetables in Mexico. And everything I tasted was deliciously ripe and juicy. Lovely..
Angelika - you're welcome! It's a pity that smells and fragrances cannot be transferred via the computer screen indeed, but then something has to remain for the imagination as well:)
Paz - the market was amazing. I thought it was funny how it just suddenly appeared there on Monday morning. And was gone again by the evening..
- 6:00 pm, November 28, 2005


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Our purpose
Our purpose is to innovate technology for good. When technology is simple to deploy and easy to adopt, it is more likely to scale and thus bring positive change.
- Börje Ekholm, President and CEO, Ericsson
Our purpose
We have always driven our technology development with the intention to improve people's lives and contribute to the betterment of society. Whether it was enabling the first phone call, leading the industry on digital infrastructure and IoT, or innovating the AI systems of the future, we take active measures to ensure that we are a responsible driver of positive change with humanity at the core.
Our promise
Ericsson are on the quest for easy, creating game-changing technology that's easy to use, adopt and scale. It comes from our DNA - we have always seen the role of technology as making the complex simple, and enabling people to communicate easily with each other no matter where they are in the world. Today our philosophy is no different, and as our society faces ever more complex challenges it is more important than ever to create – and help others create – technologies designed to make the world easier.


text:
Stephen McFall
Class of 2016
Stephen is from Smethport, PA. He began working in the GIS Lab in the summer of 2012 and has worked on the ECI Project, building a 3D Model of the Eastern Correctional Institution in Google SketchUp, Adding textures in Autodesk 3DS Max, and importing the model into Unity to create a virtual version of the prison. This will be a visual way for the prison guards to organize and access important information about the prison.
Read about Stephen's job at GIS!
Student Spotlight: Stephen McFall
Classroom to Town: Youngest in Class Tackles Projects for Future Use


text:
Will Hauser necesitaba un nuevo diseño de logotipo y lanzó un concurso de diseño en 99designs.
Un ganador ha sido elegido entre 942 diseños de 207 diseñadores freelance.
Two Degrees
We are a social enterprise committed to fighting childhood hunger. For every snack bar that we sell in the U.S, we give a nutrient-rich treatment bar to a hungry child in the developing world. The snack bars that we sell are all-natural, simple, and healthy. The treatment bars that we give away are formulated to nourish hungry children; we will be distributing them through our non-profit partners (e.g. Partners In Health). Our mission is to empower people to help hungry children by making easy, everyday purchases. Our plan is to grow our social enterprise beyond bars to additional categories.
Our target market is millenials (18-24) with a specific focus on college students. Our market is socially conscious, discerning, wants to be part of a bigger movement, and is increasingly making purchases with consciousness. They are drawn to the tangibility of our approach (one-for-one) and they have a certain amount of cynicism about the proliferation of cause marketing by big companies. They will be inclined to spread the word to their peers to truly create a movement.
We want a logo for Two Degrees that integrates the following elements:
- Brings to life the theme of human connection as the name describes
- Shows the interaction/connection between two people
- Simple and uncluttered - less is more
- Positive and empowering (versus evoking pity)
- Iconic and memorable - a logo people are proud to be seen with
- Highlights the gesture of giving
- Should be able to be used across categories beyond bars
- We are open to whether or not the logo is integrated with the name
- We are flexible on using the number "2" versus the word "Two"
Descubre cómo funciona un concurso de diseño u obtén más información sobre nuestros servicios de diseño de logo.


text:
We feature hundreds of themes from which to choose, so finding the perfect Christmas party invitations for you and your gathering is delightfully easy. From formal dinners and cocktail parties to casual family get-togethers, we have the Christmas party invitations and the holiday party invitations to fit the corporate bill. Choose from whimsical and casual invitations to bold and formal invitations. Whatever your holiday hankering, we have the Christmas invitations to accommodate your special holiday event. Exciting contrast colors and equally exciting exclusive designs are all available from a variety of talented designers.
The holidays are a special time that many of us share with family and friends, so make this year's holiday party extra special with beautifully designed Christmas party invitations and holiday party invitations!
Many of our specialty cards feature foil-stamped details, and all of our cards feature quality paper that is both acid and lignin-free. Best of all, all of our Christmas party invitations and holiday party invitations are reasonably priced, thereby allowing you to send out the best invitations – while leaving plenty of money for stocking stuffers!
All of our Christmas party invitations are laser and inkjet printer compatible, so you may also choose to print your cards and save even more money. In addition, we offer bulk discounts and custom printing for all your Christmas party invitations need. From a business affair to a small intimate gathering with close friends, don't settle for ordinary holiday party invitations. Set your sights high and impress your honored guests with beautiful Christmas party invitations!


text:
A range of revolutionary stereo microscopes without eyepieces,
provide superb imaging without fatigue.
Conventional eyepiece systems offer quality and high value.
Illuminated industrial bench magnifiers offers outstanding performance, for manufacturing,
assembly and inspection tasks.
Quality glass lens bench magnifiers providing perfect balance and flexibility for efficient working.
Unlock the power of digital imaging...
Leading video inspection and digital microscopes provide stunning full-HD imaging for any task requiring precision magnification.
Exceptional Dynascope™ optical measuring microscopes allow you to see
what you want to measure - more details, more clarity.
Range of video measuring machines provide high accuracy
non-contact measurement of complex manufactured
components and materials.
Vision Engineering's dedicated upright metallurgical microscopes are ideal for a wide range of light microscopy applications, from metallurgical and material analysis.
Vision Engineering's software solutions include image capture and documentation
software, as well as a suite of powerful dimensioning and measurement solutions.
Custom optical components and coatings provide a highly competitive alternative to standard off-the-shelf components.
From lenses to prisms, filters, beamsplitters and more....our optical design experts will ensure you get high quality optical components to meet your needs.
A simple, 2 minute introduction to the patented Mantis Elite stereo microscope from Vision Engineering.
Vision Engineering manufactures stereo inspection microscopes as well as a full range of non-contact optical / video measurement systems.
The Mantis Elite provides superb stereo imaging, with a range of stand mounts. The system has fixed magnification options from 2x up to 20x and also has a range of accessories including image capture.
The big difference you will notice from a conventional stereo microscope to the Mantis Elite is the single optical viewing lens.
Why not try before you buy?
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text:
Barbara Slee
Barbara Slee has been working for IFAW since February 2008 and started as the Political and Campaign Officer for the seal campaign and marine mammal issues. Together with the IFAW seal team, she managed to secure an amazing victory when the European Parliament voted overwhelmingly in favour of the EU seal trade ban after intensive campaigning against commercial seal hunting.
Barbara is currently the EU political lead on marine mammal issues (mostly seals and whales); she is involved with the defense of the EU seal trade ban at WTO level, and follows trade and accession negotiations, making sure that accession candidates and (potential) trade partners respect and fully implement EU legislation on wildlife conservation.
Prior to working for IFAW, she worked consecutively as a researcher at Leiden University (The Netherlands) and attended international conferences as an expert on indigenous affairs and conservation of biodiversity as part of the Foreign Affairs delegation of The Netherlands, as a Parliamentary Officer for a Dutch Member of the European Parliament and as EU Operations Manager for a non-governmental peace building organisation in Brussels.
Barbara has a Law degree with a specialisation in European and International law, as well as an Anthropology degree with a specialisation in environmental studies. She finalised both studies with a research project during several months in the tropical forest in Ecuador and wrote her final thesis on 'The Protection of Traditional Knowledge related to the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biodiversity'. Her thesis was later included as a chapter in a publication of Tropenbos Instituut titled 'The position of Indigenous Peoples in the Management of Tropical Forests' and she wrote other articles on related subjects.


text:
Detail Images
Current Color
Temporarily Out Of Stock
Don't get too bummed. This item is on the way and will be available for purchase as soon as it rolls into the warehouse.
Can't wait? Consider one of the other Backpacking Packs we have in stock.View Similar Products
5 Reviews
Stash everything you need to get out in the wilderness for a weekend of adventure.
- Water-resistant taping prevents lingering moisture from seeping through to your gear
- Top-loading design and front zipper provide multiple access points
- Compartment divider, hip-belt pockets, side pockets, and additional front and internal pockets keep you organized
- Hydration-compatible so you don't go thirsty on mileage-heavy trips
- Dedicated straps for trekking poles and sleeping pad
- Item #BLD1374
Tech Specs
Gearhead Help
Tech Specs
- Reviews
What do you think about this product?
Have questions about this product?
Arrived missing a critical part
This was shipped to me without the bolt/washer that connects the hip belt to the pack. I reached out to the Backcountry and Black Diamond and was sent a bolt, but there is supposed to be a washer as well and none was included. I can't get anyone to respond to my emails requesting the bolt WITH washer. I may just have to return the pack, which is ridiculous because I never even had a chance to try it on. BACKCOUNTRY PLEASE DO BETTER AND SHIP THINGS WITH ALL THE PARTS. I'm not buying anything from this website again-- the price was too good to be true.
Black Diamond Onyx
Cool concept, poor execution
- Familiarity: I've put it through the wringer
I convinced my girlfriend (now Fiance) to buy this pack for backpacking and her 2 month trip around the world. I like BD a lot (I'm a climber) and I have a BD pack and love it. I thought the design was cool and innovative... and it was purple (her favorite color).
We went though it and all of the features seemed awesome and we were both stoked on the purchase. We used it to travel to Zion (no backpacking though), and it fared well. However when she left for her world trip, that's when things went south. By her second stop the hip belt came off in customs. There was no mention to having to keep tightening the swivel joint and for the life of her she couldn't find the allen key it came with. She managed to fix it, but confidence was broken. After that the zippers would not close. The taping seems awesome because it will keep water out, but they wont help if you can't close them. Other noted items were, the bottom of the bag (sleeping bag storage) is really narrow. Its has trouble fitting a very small 20 degree down sleeping bag. If she had a synthetic, it would most likely not fit. Also, the material does rip easy on the bottom. One last item, the outside of the pack is totally bare. This is great for traveling, but for backpacking, it's pretty hopeless.
Now on to the things we liked. Color is awesome. The "C" zip that opens to the main compartment is a great feature. The little inner pockets are very handy for organization. The hood is huge and great for putting important things in. When the bag is working and packed well, the swivel system is really great, and comfortable to hike with. I've used this pack for a bit myself and I can totally agree. When it's properly adjusted, it's very nice. The handle on the zippers are nice and big and sturdy (but you do need them to be to over come the zipper its self).
All in all, we wanted to love it, but if she could do it again, she would have gotten a Gregory or Osprey (Jade 70 or Xena 70). Unfortunately not worth it.
Best Fitting backpack I have ever owned.
- Familiarity: I've used it once or twice and have initial impressions
I am 5'3" woman with scoliosis, this pack is amazing. The ball joint on the hip belt allows for the hips to move and the pack to compensate allowing a good weight balance with hip moment that normally can be challenging on wide hips. The shoulders are comfortable on my chest, not super tight or constricting- it actually sits on my shoulders unlike other bags that just pinched my shoulders without actually sitting on them. You do have to tighten the ball joint more than I would like to- before and after each hike is a good idea or after each day if doing a multi day- comes with an allen wrench. I've done 35lbs over 8 miles with this pack- most comfortable for my frame. The zippers are ok, not like an Osprey at all in that respect, and the fabric I am not convinced is going to last if the pack is treated ruggedly- which I'm not happy about but I will take a well fitting pack over a poorly fitting one any day. The water hose cutout is also small- I would like that to be bigger, but it works. I would also add straps to tighten the pack down from the bottom & an access point from the bottom. Zippers on the hips are awesome. Giving this a high rating b/c of the fit, however it needs better material and zippers.
Bad quality material, bad zippers
- Familiarity: I've put it through the wringer
I've bought this pack in Spring to use on mountaineering and backcountry skiing trips. While the fit is pretty good, the quality of the pack is bad. The zippers are very hard to open and close and get stuck all the time. After only a couple of trips, the zippers started to break. A few more trips in, the fabric started to deteriorate and my pack got little holes on the front and bottom. For a pack at that price, I expect that the material lasts much longer than that. I really wanted to keep the pack since it's hard for me to find a mountaineering pack that fits well, but I'm not ok with it falling apart after only one season.
Not a good fit
I liked a lot of the features on this pack: the ability to carry a large water bladder, the comfort of the hip-belt, the pockets of the hip-belt, the waterproof zippers, and the trekking pole loops. But I could not get this pack to fit right. I measured my torso length based on Black Diamond's guidelines and ordered the correct size but no matter how I adjusted the straps or the hip-belt height a lot of the weight rested on my shoulders. The shoulder straps were not comfortable, either, which was surprising because I thought the hip-belt was the most comfortable of any I've never tried. I loved a lot of the features and I adored the purple sage color, but I'm sending it back because it wasn't a comfortable fit.


text:
144 members8 Likes
659 members13 Likes
Karen Rowe has not received any gifts yet
Hi Karen, how are you? Just wanted to say hi and see if you wanted to play tennis one day. I'm free in the weekends and afternoons after 5. Hope to hear from you! - Carlos
Hi Karen,
Do you want to meet and play a couple of games together? I know you like to play in the morning...just give a day and time and we can play in your complex courts. If you can give me at least 1 week head notice that would be appreciated.
Hope to here from you soon,
hi karen, can you play tennis tomorrow morning,wed. jun 8 ? may be around 7 am ?
If not, then what about on coming weekend ?
ok , tomorrow at 10am , let's meet at parking lot, that is beside courts, at Connally High.
It would be good to exchange cell no. mine is 512-963-9058
Can i have your's cell no.
I called school to ask. So their classes starts at 2:30pm. So we can play in mornings there at Conally High.
What day is good for you. I can play tomorrow,wednesday 12th. or what other day.
Hi Karen
I would love to play as well. My cell number is 906-9343 and my email direct is email@example.com.
karen, during weekdays, it gets hot for me during afternoon. How early can you play in mornings, like , will 7:45am be ok for you ? If not , then we will play later, in afternoon.
There are courts at i-35 and Wells branch pkwy, will this be ok for you to play at ?
© 2019 Created by Mark / The Mayor. Powered by


text:
Chad and Rene discuss iPad pre-orders, GDC 2010, iPhone 4.0 rumors, Google vs. Apple, Windows Phone 7 series, and all the week's news. Listen in!
Thanks to the the iPhone Blog Store for sponsoring the podcast, and to everyone who showed up for the live chat!
Our music comes from the following sources:


text:
While the HTC 8S Windows Phone recently passed through the FCC with support for both AT&T and T-Mobile bands, word from HTC is that the 8S won't be heading to the U.S. Market any time soon.
HTC puts it all in a brief statement.
"The Windows Phone 8X by HTC is our signature Windows Phone available at AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon Wireless in the U.S. With our focus on the Windows Phone 8X by HTC, the Windows Phone 8S is not currently planned for distribution in the U.S. market."
While the 8S wasn't expected to set the world on fire, it was expected to be an entry level Windows Phone option for those not wanting to invest as much as they would with the HTC 8X. All may not be lost though. We may still see the 8S pop up as an unlocked option through retailers such as Expansys. Plus, "not currently planned" doesn't really slam the door closed on the 8S.
Source: Engadget


text:
Hearder necesitaba un nuevo diseño de página web y lanzó un concurso de diseño en 99designs.
Un ganador ha sido elegido entre 24 diseños de 8 diseñadores freelance.
My client is an Aussie beach holiday resort looking to get a more modern website design.
Rainbow Getaway
Rainbow Getaway Holiday Apartments provide quality, self contained holiday apartments for couples and families. They are not an exotic "cocktails by the pool" type of resort. The image of the website should be about fun filled, tropical beach holidays. The resort is located on Rainbow Beach Queensland - known as the Gateway to Fraser Island.
They don't have a logo (and don't think they need one) so there is no limitation in colors - but obviously beach related imagery is required.
Images that can be used are located on http://www.pbwtest.com/rainbow. This site includes some text for the front page, some images of the resort and also some large stock images that can be used in the design.
- We want a front page design and a header that can be used on internal pages - they may or may not be the same header.
- Designed for a CMS - so large areas of white space for content.
- Left column menu with the following pages:
About the area
Fraser Island
Contact Us
- "Book Now" button
- Area for Specials
- Newsletter sign-up box with fields: Name; email; Submit button
- Not lots of small boxy areas for text
- I only want to pay by Paypal so please don't apply if you live somewhere that doesn't have Paypal.


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International Center Passports
Applying for a Passport for the first time:
First, collect the following:
- Your real birth certificate (not a copy) usually available from the Health Department or Clerk's Office in the county where you were born. It will be returned.
- Fill out the online passport application for a book style passport (not a card). Print the application (do not sign yet).
- A money order or check for $110 to the US Department of State and $25 cash.
- Photo ID: driver's license and/or Wabash ID.
- Two good quality color photographs, white background, 2" x 2."
To apply, go to the Montgomery County Courthouse, 2nd Floor, Clerk's Office.
As soon as possible, students and other international travelers should apply for a passport. This is true for many reasons, but primarily because it will cost less if one does not need to expedite the application, and because if a visa is required, the visa usually is placed inside the passport so you need the passport first. Often, visa processing takes several weeks or months, often requiring personal visits to a distant consulate. Parents can help by supplying to their student with an original birth certificate.
The Five (5) items listed above should be taken to the Clerk's Office, 2nd Floor in the Courthouse in Crawfordsville, or to any other courthouse or US Post Office that processes passports. Do not sign the application until the person receiving the application tells you to sign.
It is possible to expedite passports by paying extra charges; same day is also available in certain centers in the USA; please see the State Department's web site.
- Application Form and conditions If your current passport meets these conditions, you may apply by mail (PLEASE USE TRACKABLE EXPRESS MAIL - FEDEX, DHL, US Postal Service). Address supplied at the end of the form. (Philadelphia Passport Agency)
- $110 money order or check to the US Department of State (no further cost).
- Two photographs (see specifications above).
- Current passport (it should be returned to you with new one).
QUESTIONS? Call the Clerk's Office (765) 364-6430 ext. 2 Crawfordsville, IN


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The Central Connecticut swimming and diving team finished second at the 2012 Northeast Conference Championships, but the Blue Devils one point defeat did not keep the team from being recognized as one of the top mid-major programs by CollegeSwimming.com.
Head coach Bill Ball's squad fell just short of the CollegeSwimming.com Mid-Major Top-25 in the final poll of 2012. The Blue Devil swimmers and divers received 226.33 points from the poll's voters, a number that put Central outside of the top-25 by just 20 points.
The Blue Devils rank 41st in the poll, which is the highest finish for an NEC team this season. Wagner (220.15), St. Francis (PA) (201.8), Mount St. Mary's (200.44) and Bryant (196.34) were also recognized in the voting.
Ohio University claimed the top spot in the poll, followed by James Madison and Buffalo. Harvard and San Jose State completed the top-5 and Miami (OH), Towson, Princeton, North Texas and Denver filled the top-10.
CollegeSwimming.com Mid-Major Poll
The Blue Devils posted an impressive 10 All-NEC selections in 2012. With seniors Madison Vestergaard and Alex Czaplicki each earning a pair of first team selections and junior Taylor Friedmann earning a single position.
Vestergaard anchored the Blue Devil diving staff by sweeping the one and three-meter boards at the NEC Championships. For her performance she was named Outstanding Diver of the Meet and her coach, Dave Malier, earned NEC Diving Coach of the Year honors.


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adjective; satisfied, contented, happy, pleased.
Due to a family emergency we will not be able to process your orders from our site for the foreseeable future. We sincerely apologise for this inconvenience.
New item
Leather wallet with two inside compartments (one with zip), patch pocket on the flap and magnetic closure made from unlined handcrafted leather, plus inside credit card compartments also.
Size: H11 x W20 x D2cm
Our stock levels are very low on this item
Classic large leather rucksack with drawstring closure, covered zip on front flap, adjustable stra...
This leather shoulder bag with inside zip pocket, zip closure and buckle strap with adjustable bra...
All website content & copy: Bodlon 2012. Copying any part of the site or its content is strictly prohibited.
Contact us Bodlon Shop & Coffee Shop, 12 Park Road, Whitchurch, Cardiff CF14 7BQ Email: email@example.com | Telephone: 02920 650 564 | 07825 444 233


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TEWKSBURY -- Despite efforts to preserve the building, the historic Ames Castle is now history itself, as a demolition crew finished tearing down the estate Tuesday.
"It's all gone now," said Community Development Director Steve Sadwick.
Developer Marc Ginsburg purchased the property last month for $360,000, with an eye toward preserving the former home of Civil War Gen. Adelbert Ames.
But as bulldozers worked behind him Tuesday afternoon at the Catamount Road estate, Ginsburg said the neighborhood's residential zoning prohibited him from breaking up the three-story, 17-room home into apartments.
"The zoning just wouldn't allow it," said Ginsburg, who also owns the Tewksbury Country Club. "And it just doesn't make sense to have a 12,000-square-foot, single-family home."
Instead, after talking with neighbors and town officials, Ginsburg decided to knock down the structure, most likely in favor of putting up three smaller single-family homes.
It's not a total loss for local history buffs, though, as Ginsburg said he's salvaging the building's unique architectural elements.
"There wasn't a lot that was still original, but what there was, we're preserving," he said.
Ginsburg said that the features he will store for future use include doors, railings and a large mirror that had hung in the house. The stones making up the exterior walls will also be saved.
"They may pop up again somewhere in town," Ginsburg said.
Built in 1906, the Ames Castle was converted to a nursing home in the 1960s, and the 700-acre estate was divided into smaller plots of land. According to papers filed with the North Middlesex Registry of Deeds, the lot as Ginsburg purchased it from developer John D. Sullivan on Nov. 2 consisted of 3.7 acres.
Sullivan bought the land in 1986 for $400,000, a sum $40,000 less than what he sold it to Ginsburg for this year. The town most recently valued the property at $762,400, according to assessor's records.
Sullivan could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
In 2010, a town review found that the house had been illegally divided into apartments despite its single-family zoning. That same year, Sullivan put forward a bid to convert the castle into an affordable-housing development for residents 55 and older. This controversial proposal was decried by neighbors and town officials and ultimately scrapped.
As part of a 2011 settlement with the town over the zoning violations, Sullivan was required to vacate the property of all its tenants within a year.
After Sullivan filed for a demolition permit in March of this year, the Historical Commission voted to grant "preferably preserved" status to the castle, temporarily preventing it from being torn down.
During the next nine months, the commission explored development alternatives that would save the building, including using Community Preservation Act funds to have the town buy the land from Sullivan.
Sadwick said the commission ultimately found its options exhausted and removed the demolition delay at their Nov. 19 meeting, a week before the hold was set to expire. Ginsburg met with the commission to discuss his plans after buying the land.
Although he intends to divide the property into three lots, Ginsburg said he has not yet decided if he'll put them all up for sale and is focusing right now on getting the land cleared.
"It's a beautiful view," he said, smiling, as he gestured beyond the piles of rocks and over the hill where the estate used to sit. "I may move up here someday. Who knows?"
Follow Katie Lannan on Twitter @katielannan.


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Featured News - Current News - Archived News - News Categories
40 Years Ago, Jan. 3, 1973
Violence and tragedy mar year's ending
After a safe and quiet Christmas holiday, the Island community erupted Saturday evening Dec. 30 when a 19-year-old, newly returned serviceman positioned himself at the south Grand Island Bridge and fired indiscriminately at passing automobiles.
David E. Burke of 2132 East River Road has been charged with second-degree assault (a felony) and was remanded to Meyer Memorial Hospital, Buffalo, for observation.
One of his shots wounded Daniel Sexton of Grand Island, and Mr. Sexton's female companion was injured, from a spray of glass fragments. Both were treated at Kenmore Mercy Hospital.
It took local sheriff's deputies and the Rev. Richard Graber of St. Stephen Church more than an hour to talk the young Burke into giving up his weapon and turning himself over to authorities. ...
30 Years Ago, Dec 31, 1982
Shuttle bus to start operation Monday
It's been a long time since Islanders had the convenience of a shuttle bus service. Not since 1958 has been a bus been available to meet metro vehicles that cross the town on Grand Island Boulevard.
But all that will change about 6:45 a.m. Monday when Bradson Charter Service will put into operation a 44-passenger bus, planned to cover a majority of Island roads. ...
A grand opening ceremony will be held at 10:30 a.m. this morning in front of the Town Hall. Participants will include Brad Bradson Sr. and his son, owner of the charter service; town officials; Legislator Charles M. Swanick, and members of the Chamber of Commerce, Jaycees ... as well as NFTA Chairman Raymond F. Gallagher.
Legislator Swanick, who has been assisting Bradson Service in getting the transportation under way, said, "Hopefully it will encourage residents to utilize mass transportation.
"In linking up with the Metro Bus service, the shuttle bus will also provide transportation to shopping centers and the newly renovated Fantasy Island," he said.
20 Years Ago, Jan. 8, 1993
Exact fare lanes offered on Island bridges
Islanders crossing the bridges north and south were pleasantly surprised recently by a new exact fare lane offered to help speed them through the toll process.
Designed to ease traffic congestion, the new lanes were put in place in response to complaints the Thruway Authority has received about the excessive traffic congestion across the bridges.
Thruway Authority Chairman John H. Shafer expects problems on the bridges to be further alleviated in 1993 when the new electronic toll collection (ETC) is installed. The ETC permits electronically tagged vehicles to go through the tollbooths without paying money or presenting tickets. The lanes will read antennas and deduct the proper amount from motorists' prepaid accounts.
In the meantime, Islanders and other travelers are encouraged to go through the exact fare lanes with their commuter books or exact change equaling 50 cents to speed up travel time and cut down on traffic congestion.
10 Years Ago, Jan. 3, 2003
Sesquicentennial year officially ends with burial of time capsule
The biggest and brightest celebration the Town of Grand Island has possibly ever seen reached its conclusion early Tuesday morning when elected officials, county and state politicians and sesquicentennial committee members officially buried an assortment of sesquicentennial items including newspaper articles, sesquicentennial programs and photos to name a few.
Including the aforementioned officials, approximately 40 people gathered outside of Town Hall to listen to a short press conference, and then watch as the gigantic gold and black time capsule was lowered into the ground and covered with dirt. ...


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Dividend-paying stocks have outperformed the market over time. That's a fact -- and it's the reason I write a dividend-oriented newsletter. But so many investors forget this important lesson.
Countless individual investors who were burned in the bubble of the late '90s once again find themselves holding stocks that make promises instead of paying dividends. Folks are welcome to take their chances on non-dividend-paying Chinese Internet stocks in ultracompetitive industries, such as Sohu.com
Getting to know you, getting to know all about you
Dividend stocks are most likely to make real products and provide real services that create real cash flow. They then pay some of this real cash flow out to real shareholders in the form of real dollars. You can then choose to reinvest those dollars into additional shares of real company stock, or take them down to the grocery store to buy a carton of eggs and make yourself a real omelet, or go on a vacation and get yourself a real sunburn.
Much of that could explain why dividend-paying stocks have performed so well over the long term. But because dividend-paying stocks are often viewed as safer investments, the common perception is that they tend to underperform non-payers in heated markets. While this was true during the Internet-driven craze of the late '90s, it hasn't held true for other periods.
The S&P 500 index jumped from about 100 points to 1,250 points -- more than a 1,000% increase -- from 1980 through 2005. That's a hefty bull market. And during that time, dividend payers outperformed non-payers by more than 2.6 percentage points per year. While that may not sound like much, if you'd invested $10,000 in dividend-paying stocks in 1980, today you'd have nearly $300,000 -- which is $120,000 more than your dividend-shunning neighbor.
Getting to hope you like me
So how can you find great dividend stocks yourself? It's not based on yield alone. If that were the case, we'd all be hoping businesses in tough spots like General Motors wouldn't cut their payouts. A high yield is not always a good yield. Indeed, some of the highest yields exist only because the companies' stock prices have dropped through the floor.
To throw those out, we've got to do our homework. When you hit the books, keep in mind that the best place to start is cash. After all, that's what we seek as dividend investors: companies that generate extremely large free cash flows (FCF).
Fortunately, there's a lot of cash out there in today's market. U.S. corporate earnings have been on a tear since pulling out of their nosedive three years ago. The result is that companies have reloaded, and they're ready to fire at share buybacks, mergers and acquisitions, and -- you guessed it -- higher dividend payouts.
After you check out the cash situation, make sure your company isn't paying out more than it can handle. The metric for that is the payout ratio, and you want to look for different numbers depending on the class of investment.
For instance, to maintain their tax-advantaged status, real estate investment trusts (REITs) such as Host Hotels & Resorts
Then there are the generous dividend payers in the banking and utility arenas. Wachovia
There's no magic payout ratio appropriate for all companies, but here's the rule of thumb I use to find market-beating investments for subscribers to my Motley Fool Income Investor service:
- REITs with a funds from operations (FFO) payout ratio below 85%
- Higher-growth common stocks that pay out less than 50% of FCF
- Banks that pay out less than 60% of FCF
- Regulated utilities that pay out less than 80% of FCF
The Foolish bottom line
Of course, there are many other criteria I use to screen the selections that make it into Income Investor -- such as exactly where the company's cash is coming from (e.g., operations or borrowings), the quality of its management team, a material yield, and a reliable dividend track record. To date, I've used these criteria to identify more than 50 superior stocks, and you can click here to try the service free for 30 days.
This article was originally published on Feb. 7, 2005. It has been updated.
In addition to picking winning dividend stocks for Motley Fool Income Investor, Mathew Emmert can whistle half the songs in The King and I, and he can hum the other half. He does not own shares of any company mentioned. UPS is an Income Investor pick. Intel is a Motley Fool Inside Value recommendation. The Fool has adisclosure policy.


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OK, I knew there had to be some other vetting round after tonight's top 100 was cut down, so the surprise that Ryan promised us wasn't totally surprising, but we'll get to that later. More urgently, we heard all three judges sing tonight! Shouldn't we get a free ice cream cone for that or something?
Tonight, the performers had one last chance (or second-to-last) chance to thrill the judges. We saw Haley Reinhart, who screwed up her lyrics on group night but belted the shit out of "God Bless the Child." She was a really strong singer, but I didn't like how she growled while she sang or adopted the "I'm pooping on the stage" pose. Steven liked her so much, though, that he sang backup to her, and Jennifer proclaimed her performance "redemption." (By the way, I thought Jennifer looked great tonight. Like a raccoon or magpie I am drawn to shiny things like her gold shoes, sparkly black short shorts, and glitzy huge jewelry.) In comparison, I preferred Ashthon Jones (from Ashley Sullivan's group last night), who did "And I Am Telling You" with confidence that wasn't overbearing. I also continue to be a fan of Thea Megia, who seems way too self-possessed for a 15 year old, although I hated her Cosby-esque sweater.
The contestants had the option of performing with the band and backup singers but some couldn't get the hang of it, a few of them actually accusing the band when they screwed up. Poor Frances Coontz had the bad luck to be named what she is and then sing in a totally different key than the band, but we actually got to hear Randy sing as he tried to get her back in key.
A lot of singers chose to perform "Georgia On My Mind," including Clint Jun Gamboa, who I think I'm over. I prefer singers who seem confident in their instrument and save the big notes only for special occasions, and a lot of the singers tonight, Clint included, seemed to have it cranked up to 11 for their entire performances.
Both Chris Medina and Carson Higgins made the mistake of thinking they were original for taking on "My Prerogative." (Anoop Desai, never forget.) Carson went big with the band, and Chris went acoustic just like Andrew Garcia. I enjoy Carson Higgins' personality onstage up to a point, but I could see him going a little too much over-the-top, you know, like when the drag queens on RuPaul's Drag Race prematurely rip off their wigs when they lipsynch for their lives. Carson was really pumped after his performance, Chris, not as much.
The contestants were allowed to play instruments tonight, and I liked Julie Zorrilla more after seeing her play piano to "Love Song." Robbie Rosen took on the keyboard, and I had a feeling he'd easily make the top 50 based on how much airtime he's gotten the last few days. I find his stage presence on the edge of corny, but the judges adore him, and he can sing, that's for sure. Casey Abrams toted out an upright bass. I waffle on him: He's obviously quite a talented guy and seems pretty funny ("Am I like Neil Armstrong?" he asked Ryan when Ryan said he was the first guy to bring a bass on the show), and while he maybe needs some styling help, at least he's not wearing Ed Hardy. But sometimes, he just gets all Soul Patrol, and I can't deal with it. But the band seemed to like him a lot, and that says something.
Chelsee Oaks was sad because Jacqueline got sick and dropped out of the competition, and somehow, Jacqueline is now her "best friend in the entire world." I thought her audition tonight was pretty forgettable.
Jacob Lusk, the guy who had the memorable solo last night in group night, sang "God Bless the Child," evoking the same unique persona only much… more. I kind of thought Norman Gentle did that same schtick in Season 8 and did it with a sense of humor. The judges were very complimentary toward him, though (especially Jennifer: She's not too proud to give props), and then Jacob collapsed into his family's arms in extravagantly hysterical sobs.
Remember John Wayne Shulz? Well he's still there, along with his lime green shirt. Snark aside, his version of "Landslide" on acoustic guitar was very nice and understated, and this time Jennifer actually sang along with him.
Ryan Seacrest (who has been much more behind the scenes this season, no?) referred to Ashley Sullivan as an "emotional time bomb," so it was no surprise when she broke down bigtime after forgetting the words to her song. (By the way, I feel bad for saying that her boyfriend looked "meth-y," when it turns out he was a soldier in Iraq, which doesn't necessarily preclude potential methiness, but still.) Anyway, her performance was a bit of a trainwreck, although the judges were remarkably nice about it. She collapsed into her boyfriend's arms afterwards, yelling "You're a liar!" when he told her she did well. It must be exhausting to date her.
So you know how Scotty McCreery has only sung that one song about locking the door and shutting off the lights? It turns out that apparently that's the only song he knows, so he tried "I Hope You Dance" and muffed the lyrics. I enjoyed the show's subtitles for his singing ("Zone zoo talk and nuts of wonder"), along with Tatynisa Wilson's ("May you never take advantage of this broken"). Scotty was pretty down on himself and felt like he deserved to be cut.
After their auditions, the contestants were then arranged by rooms. The first contained Ashley Sullivan, Brett Loewenstern, Jacee Badeaux, Jacob Lusk, Robbie Rosen, James Durbin, Casey Abrams, Lauren Alaina, and Clint Gamboa, and of course, they all made it through.
Room two contained a bunch of people we didn't see that much of throughout the competition, so it was no surprise when they got cut. Jennifer comforted one of the distraught singers, and Steven commiserated with them by saying that he lost out on auditions "so many fucking times." The kids in the next room didn't make it either, which contained the other Gutierrez brother and Chelsee Oaks.
Finally, the last room also made it through. It contained Carson Higgins, Julie Zorrilla, Rachel Zevia and Scotty McCreery. At least the judges only had one fakeout as they delivered the news, Steven saying, "I can't do this… Jennifer?" The judges seemed to enjoy delivering the good news (and they really seemed to enjoy the audition process, which turned out to be a nice surprise) and danced around together.
So it turns out there is one more level of competition after this: The remaining competitors apparently all sing Beatles songs on the Love stage, where they have 24 hours to learn their songs. It seems like it will be some sort of in-between audition phase that's not quite Hollywood week but not quite the competition level. I anticipate some great performances and some moments that will truly fill me with rage. Can't wait!


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New Gear Set Break In: Break In Or Break DownPosted in How To: Transmission Drivetrain on July 1, 2012
Grenaded ring-and-pinion gears aren't only expensive, but they can leave you stranded, complicating an already frustrating breakdown. Regearing a 4x4 typically costs in excess of $1,200, yet we see people making the same mistakes all the time when it comes to breaking them in. The longevity of your gearset is directly proportional to the care taken to break them in, so here is how to do it right.
The first 100 miles are critical. New gears need several heat cycles in them before they are ready for primetime. One of the biggest mistakes we see is guys who pick up their newly regeared 4x4 from the shop and immediately hit the freeway for the ride home. We know, because we've done it too and understand that it is sometimes unavoidable.
If you do have to travel by highway, make sure you vary your speeds and don't exceed 60 mph. After 20-30 minutes, pull over and take a break. Be sure the vehicle is parked and the gears are allowed to cool down to the point when you can hold your hand on the diff cover for a while. This cycle should be repeated a couple of times, and a complete cool-down of the gears overnight is welcomed.
The next milestone is at 500 miles, and before you reach it, care should be taken to avoid hard starts, high shock loads, sustained high speeds, and any towing. As soon as the 500-mile mark is met, the differential should be drained, the diff cover removed, and the gears inspected for any abnormal wear or chipping. If everything looks good, you can reinstall the cover and fill up the differential with fresh fluid. At this point you are ready to resume normal use.
It is important to note that a bad break-in doesn't always manifest itself immediately, which is why a cover-off inspection is important. Ignoring this break-in procedure could mean a flatbed ride back to the shop when you least expect it, as well as a corresponding lightening of your wallet.
Once the gears are broken in, it is easy for them to be forgotten, but differentials need regular service too. It is important to replace the gear oil after a water crossing deeper than your hubs. At minimum once a year, change the oil and perform a cover-off inspection. These steps will ensure that your bearings will have a long, happy life and that your gears will provide you with years of service.


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Irish whiskey. The stick. A good hard case. And women. These are some affinities in the life of Jimmy McNulty. A failed marriage, drunkenness, philandering, disturbing co-workers in the middle of the night, insubordination and backdooring aside, McNulty is good police - both in skill and heart - driven by a propensity for solving cases.
Having instigated the Baltimore Police Department's investigation of the Barksdale organisation, McNulty defied anyone he had to for the sake of the case. Breaking the chain-of-command, he was sent to a no-hope detail with the Baltimore Harbor Patrol. At least he met Beadie Russell there. He also encountered another case worth building: 14 bodies in a shipment container landing him back in the detail. Closure in that case focused his attention back on the Barksdales and a war with a new westside rival. McNulty almost squeezed out a tear when Stringer was killed subverting his efforts on the case. It had become personal. He still managed to find some satisfaction when he handed Avon an arrest warrant citing Stringer as the named source of information. Accepting the victory he was given, McNulty settled into a patrol job in the Western - and a relationship with Officer Beatrice "Beadie" Russell - and started to put his life in order. But, when his collegial street adversary Preston "Bodie" Broadus dies under Marlo Stanfield's order, McNulty returns to Major Crimes and the turmoil that comes with it.


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Reader Haider Ajina has spoken with his family in Iraq and writes us from his home in California:
I just finished my phone call to my Father in Baghdad, Iraq. He voted, my 84-year-old Grandmother voted, my uncles and aunties voted, my cousins voted. They were elated, happy, energized, empowered and grateful.
To all the men and women who have served and serving in Iraq, to all the families of those who have paid the ultimate price to all those who have suffered during their service in Iraq, my family


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Just post a line what you think about the day or a current event.
May you see something and think "I want this" post it here! Or you found this really great song, post it. Or you watched a football match and don't like the results, post it here
So I start:
I saw this freely flying jet in this movie and now I want to have my own jet :3


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Ah, so much for the liberal's beloved Buffett Rule: Last week the vote was blocked in the Senate. Alas, now the very wealthy (top 10 percent earners) will continue to pay for only 70 percent of all our taxes - and not a penny more. And, the bottom 46 percent earners will continue to pay not a penny. It's all so unfair.
The fact is there aren't too many folks that would shed a single tear if million-dollar wage earners had to cough up more in taxes. And the extra revenue generated could be used to help pay down our outrageous federal debt. Those big bucks would provide relief all right, to the tune of .3 percent of what we owe. Yep - less than one third of one percent. Since our national debt climbs almost $5 billion every day, this is a tug on Superman's cape that wouldn't even be noticed. Fly on, man of steel.
So, if this amounts to squat-diddly why in the world are President Obama, Harry Reid, Chuck Schumer and the lot of Democrats touting it as some big deal solution? Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain - this is nothing more than pure political theater, a slight of hand meant to dazzle and elicit oohs and aahs of delight. Rest assured the magicians all know the trick and are counting on low light and a distracted audience to make it work. But the lights are suddenly coming up, Toto isn't fooled and the audience is starting to see the reality of it all. There comes a point when mirrors and flash powder can no longer deceive, and suddenly, the magic is gone.
GSA Scandal. Secret Service Scandal. Solyndra Scandal. Fast and Furious Scandal. Like a mold spreading along a grout line, the tentacles of hubris among the agencies of this administration can no longer be ignored. It is a cultural thing, a tone that is set from the top of the organization and expected to permeate throughout. If a man is defined by the company he keeps, Obama must be characterized by his appointments and their complete dereliction of the public trust. And disregard for the law.
Million-dollar junkets for civil servants with family and personal friends along for the ride. Private parties for presidential security personnel, complete with a bevy of prostitutes. "Green" company start-ups seeded with a half-billion-dollars despite all warnings of imminent failure. Covert, illegal gun-running schemes with spurious denials and claims of ignorance. Sweetheart construction deals awarded to organized labor unions, by-passing the fair bidding process.
From agency to agency the larks are piling up, those in authority tolerating and even encouraging the dismissal of honor. There is no shame in reveling at taxpayer expense, no sense of abandonment of responsibility, for there is no mentor to countermand the egregious behavior. The mind-set of elitists doesn't allow for regret but, to the contrary, justifies the advantages and excesses they believe should rightfully come with the territory.
With such a culture of corruption it is no wonder they must trump up charges against the opposition: Republicans have a 'war' on women; they seek to destroy Medicare and Social Security; they protect the wealthy and ignore middle class Americans. Yet many are wising up - and with every passing scandal the wizard is being exposed for the charlatan he is.
Columnist Michael Raymond can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com.


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HESPERIA – A 32-year-old Hesperia man was killed Friday evening when he and his disabled pickup truck were struck by a passing vehicle and thrown over an embankment, San Bernardino County coroner's officials said.
Thomas Milton Turner was standing outside his disabled Ford F250 along the northbound lane of Summit Valley Road near Telephone Line Road shortly before 8 p.m., authorities said.
A driver in a Toyota Tacoma traveling north on Summit Valley Road struck the Ford pickup as well as Turner, sending both men and vehicles over the embankment.
San Bernardino County fire personnel declared Turner dead at the scene.
The driver of the Tacoma was not seriously injured, authorities said.


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Group Sessions
Group therapy is free of charge and enrolled students may attend as many sessions as they would like. The group sessions are confidential. You, other members, and the group leaders are bound ethically and legally not to disclose the contents of the group sessions.
Why does it work?
During group therapy, people begin to see that they are not alone. Many times people feel they are unique in their problems, and it is encouraging to hear that other people have similar difficulties. In the climate of trust provided by the group, people feel free to care about and help each other.
What types of groups are there?
Psychoeducational groups: This group is structured like a class and a specific learning objective will be met in each session. Group members are expected to apply the skills learned in group to their everyday life. All of our groups are psychoeducational.
Self-help group/Support group: In this type of group, all members share a common problem, such as addiction, and the focus is to provide mutual support. The group is facilitated by members; a therapist or other professional is not involved. The South Loop Young People's Club is a self-help group. Although Counseling Services advertises the group on its web site, staff is not involved in the organization or facilitation of this group.
(This text was developed by Jack Corazzini, Virginia Commonwealth University)