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Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Trudging our way through today's Dick Griffin Wednesday Mailbag Happy Time!, it occurs to us: just who are these sycophantic Griffin fans? How did they get out of their straight jackets long enough to scrawl crayon notes of effusive praise to Toronto's laziest and most self-aggrandizing baseball writer?
Today's reader mail featured classic nuggets like "Love your column" from Phil Rossel of Barrie, and "Love the Column, can't wait for Wednesdays" from Ricky B of Markham, or "I enjoy your column; especially memories of your days with Les Expos" from J. Reaves of Toronto.
(BTW, did you know that Richard Griffin used to work in the Expos' PR department? Because he only mentions it a couple of hundred times per season.)
We don't want to insinuate that these Griffin acolytes are maybe a figment of someone's imagination (or the product of someone needing to fill electronic column inches once a week.) We'd never suggest he's faking his mail bag entries...that's for two-bit punks like Marty York.
But we would say that if those letters came from actual living breathing Jays fans, then maybe Dick could see fit to edit out the flattering puffery, and get directly into the softball questions. Unless, of course, he feels a burning need to demonstrate to his employer that readers really really really like him.
Reading these complements is like having a friend foist their kid's report card on you, to prove how smart their little ankle-biter is, even though you can see that the kid over in the corner mining for nose nuggets and wiping them on the wall. (Hey, in a few years, maybe that kid will write for the Star him/herself!)
4 comments:
- Jack said...
I've wondered the same thing about the kudos to Griffin. Maybe he inserts the comments into each email.
- August 15, 2007 at 4:02 PM
- Jack said...
Ah, I see I should've read the entire post before offering my comment. Guess I was too impatient to vent about Dick Griffin.
- August 15, 2007 at 4:27 PM
- stoeten said...
Hahaha!!! That photo still cracks me up. I was practically on the floor when I found it. Thanks for the nod. I think my feelings on Griffin have been well documented.
- August 15, 2007 at 10:48 PM
- Jonathan said...
I wouldn't be surprised if he wrote the question about Glaus...same insight and fact-checking skills.
"In fact with RISP (runners in scoring position) and RISP with two out the O-dog has more homers over the last two years than Glaus"
Not that anyone cares about scoring position when you hit a bomb, but Hudson has a higher % of solo shots and wayyyy fewer with RISP over the last 2 years.
- August 16, 2007 at 2:56 AM


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ERT Announces the Appointment of Eric Schwartz as Chief Legal Officer
Feb 22, 2011, 08:00 ET
PHILADELPHIA, Feb. 22, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- eResearchTechnology, Inc. (ERT or the Company), (Nasdaq: ERES), a global technology-driven provider of clinical services and customizable medical devices to biopharmaceutical and healthcare organizations, announced today the appointment of Eric Ian Schwartz as Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer effective February 22, 2011.
Mr. Schwartz joins ERT with over 15 years of legal and executive management experience with high growth companies in the healthcare and technology industries. Most recently, Mr. Schwartz was Assistant General Counsel at Johnson & Johnson, where he served on the senior management teams of several of the fastest growing companies within Johnson & Johnson's medical device and consumer products businesses. Previously, he was Vice President and General Counsel of Animas Corporation, a public medical devices company, manufacturing and distributing insulin delivery systems for people with diabetes. Animas was acquired by Johnson & Johnson in 2006. Mr. Schwartz also held several positions of increasing responsibility with Cable & Wireless Internet Services, Inc., and its predecessor, Digital Island, Inc. During his career, he has been responsible for a variety of legal, business development, and general management functions. Mr. Schwartz holds a B.A. and J.D. from the University of Virginia, as well as an MBA from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania.
Joel Morganroth, M.D., Chairman and Interim CEO, commented: "We are all pleased that Eric will be joining the executive management team at ERT. In his position as Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer, he will be responsible for legal affairs, quality assurance, and regulatory compliance, contracts and proposals, and human resources for the Company. The increased complexity of ERT as a multi-service global company with plans to extend its products and services into adjacent markets makes the addition of a Chief Legal Officer particularly important in achieving the Company's business plans."
About eResearchTechnology, Inc.
ERT (www.ert.com) is a global technology-driven provider of clinical services and customizable medical devices to biopharmaceutical and healthcare organizations. It is the market leader for centralized cardiac safety and respiratory efficacy services in drug development and also collects, analyzes and distributes electronic Patient Reported Outcomes (ePRO) in multiple modalities across all phases of clinical research.
This release may include forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that reflect our current views as to future events and financial performance with respect to our operations. These statements can be identified by the fact that they do not relate strictly to historical or current facts. They use words such as "aim," "anticipate," "are confident," "estimate," "expect," "will be," "will continue," "will likely result," "project," "intend," "plan," "believe," "look to" and other words and terms of similar meaning in conjunction with a discussion of future operating or financial performance.
These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such a difference include: unfavorable economic conditions; our ability to obtain new contracts and accurately estimate net revenues, our positive outlook for future bookings, variability in size, scope and duration of projects and internal issues at the sponsoring client; our ability to successfully integrate the RS or any future acquisitions; competitive factors in the market for our centralized services; changes in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device industries to which we sell our solutions; technological development; and market demand. There is no guarantee that the amounts in our backlog will ever convert to revenue. Should the economic conditions deteriorate, the cancellation rates that we have historically experienced could increase. Further information on potential factors that could affect the Company's financial results can be found in ERT's Reports on Form 10-K and 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Guidance is based on management's good faith expectations given current market conditions but that continued or further deterioration of general economic conditions, in addition to other factors cited elsewhere, could result in ERT not achieving the revenue and net income per diluted share guidance provided.
Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date made. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, including prior forward-looking statements, to reflect the events or circumstances arising after the date as of which they were made. As a result of these risks and uncertainties, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements included in this release or that may be made in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission or elsewhere from time to time by, or on behalf of, us.
Media Contacts:
Keith Schneck
Robert East
eResearchTechnology, Inc.
Westwicke Partners, LLC

subset: commoncrawl


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Rod Stewart appears to have confirmed speculation his daughter Kimberly is dating One Direction star Harry Styles by letting slip about their relationship during a U.K. TV interview.
It was reported last month that the pop hunk, 19, had struck up a romance with the 33 year old, who shares a young daughter with actor Benicio del Toro.
Neither star has commented on the rumors, but the "Maggie May" hitmaker addressed the gossip during an appearance on British talk show "Alan Carr: Chatty Man" on Friday night.
When asked if Styles had stayed at his house, Stewart coyly replied, "Oh, that would be telling, I can't tell you that", before adding: "His car was there in the morning, let's put it that way. But he may have just come round to pick something up. She's allowed to do whatever she wants so I stay out of it. It's her life. He's a lovely fella."
He then exclaimed, "B**locks, I've let the cat out of the bag now! He was actually round for dinner last night, he's lovely… he couldn't be kinder, a funny guy. He's brilliant."


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text: Tell Me More Brian Isn't Leaving South Africa February 27, 2009 I'm a 35-year-old white male in the movie industry, specifically handling online stuff for a national entertainment company. I've never been out of South Africa. ... I have no great desire to emigrate, although I do intend to travel.


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The Rev. Timothy Cargal, Ph.D., serves as Assistant Stated Clerk for Preparation for Ministry in Mid Council Ministries of the Office of the General Assembly.
"... the Land that I Will Show You" is the blog of the Office of Preparation for Ministry of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). This blog is designed to serve as a resource for those discerning and preparing for a call to the ministry of Word and Sacrament as ordained teaching elders of the church. It will also provide a place for reflecting on and dialoging about the changing context of pastoral ministry in the early 21st century.
For quick announcements about changes or developments in the preparation process, dates related to exams or other key events, discussion boards, surveys, etc., you can follow us on Facebook at "Preparing for Presbyterian Ministry."
As I work with presbyteries across the church one of the questions I am often asked is about training opportunities to support preparation for ministry committee leaders and members. Well, this year will mark the fifth biennial Healthy Ministry Conference, the primary national training event in this area. It is part of Big Tent that will be held in Louisville, Kentucky from August 1-3.
The Healthy Ministry Conference addresses a broad range of issues related to mid council work with candidates, teaching elders and congregations, so in this blog I want to highlight some of the workshops that focus on ...


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Process art can trace its origins back a century, to the time when Marcel Duchamp dropped three pieces of string on the ground and took the shapes they assumed as a guide to cut three sheets of wood. In this way, he introduced thought, time and accident into the equation of art making. But despite its long history, process art has really only become a major current in contemporary work in the past twenty years or so.
Today's conceptual artists — who are creating art that is as much about thinking as it is about looking — are the heirs of Duchamp, but their work is more relevant to those who took it up in the 1960s and '70s.
Another tendency that has gained traction recently is the combination of high- and lowbrow sensibilities. These ideas can also be traced back to Duchamp and his bar stool and bicycle wheel, or his inverted urinal. But this kind of neo-modern work owes more of a debt to the combination of pop art (as pushed through a Murakami sieve) and the comix.
Adam Milner
Through October 17 at Emmanuel Gallery, 1205 10th Street Mall on the Auraria campus, 303-556-8337, emmanuelgallery.org.Extended through October 11 at Gildar Gallery, 82 South Broadway, 303-993-4474, gildargallery.com.
I bring up these two factors — conceptual process art and neo-modernism — to set the stage for two shows currently on display.
The first is Adam Milner: Wave so I know you're real, at Emmanuel Gallery on the Auraria campus. The title refers to something that happens during webcam chats, in which one person asks the other to wave in order to establish that the other person is real and not some kind of bot. In a way, the issue of reality as it relates both to the individual and to humanity is the core of this ambitious, difficult and intriguing show. There's also a leitmotif that's dedicated to modern society's relationship — or, more specifically, Milner's — to the Internet.
Milner made a big splash two summers ago when his work became ubiquitous in the local exhibition scene; the Colorado Photographic Arts Center, MCA Denver and other venues showcased his imaginative and thought-provoking efforts. On one level, his work, which is always, in some way, about himself, functions as one big psychosexual autobiography; on another, Milner tried to use these self-portraits and self-references as a way to cast himself as the everyman, acting as a symbol of the individual.
The show at Emmanuel, which was organized by director Shannon Corrigan, is the latest in a series of exhibits featuring Colorado-connected artists and dedicated to what used to be called cutting-edge art. Based on Wave, it's a successful formula. The overall impact of the show, as you enter the gallery, is very subtle. The main-level space has two rows of tables with objects on them, and there are piles of cushions on the floor, while the walls have unframed drawings lining them, along with a video on a tiny screen. The effect is more like a study room in an archive or library than an exhibit, and this was Milner's intention. The loft space is more emphatically visual, owing to the greater density of the installation and the fact that most of the works upstairs are done in color; although there are color works on the first level — the Polaroid photos and the mannequin hands, for example — the overall impression is of a white world with small, dark intervals.
This whiteness is reinforced by the grids of drawings on white paper. One set of these works, "Captcha Drawings," comprises meticulous copies of those wavy sets of letters and numbers that you need to type in order to log in to certain websites. For Milner, drawing is the most personal kind of art, and another set of drawings is the result of his falling asleep with a pen in his hand, poised over a small sheet of paper. These works are a key to understanding his oeuvre, which is simultaneously minimal and expressive. Also contributing to the character of the main part of the show are the white-painted library tables covered with books, photos and other objects. One table is dedicated to "Memories Trapped in Objects, Removed From My Bedroom Due to Heartbreak," in which Milner has instinctively arranged an array of objects that remind him of lost relationships. Upstairs, "A Selection of Related Objects" is similarly arranged; here, Milner has associated various things in some unknown way, with the viewer invited to interpret them.
The show has some sexual content. For instance, there is a video made of screen captures of people (mostly men) masturbating. But the images go by so quickly that there's no sense of vulgarity to them. The same is true of a video of Milner's face with his mouth open to "catch" the gleaming light that comes off the chrome pipes of urinals; it's charged with X-rated content that is essentially left unseen in the piece.
Milner has thought a lot about who he is and how he relates to the world, and about the dynamic of real versus virtual.
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Shifting gears, the other show I'm reviewing is The Everyday Circus: Hollis + Lana, at Gildar Gallery, which is mostly made up of neo-modern abstract paintings and sculptures. Put together by director Adam Gildar, the show is strikingly beautiful. The paintings, done by the husband-and-wife team of Conor Hollis and Amorette Lana — known collectively as Hollis + Lana — are automatist compositions that have been fleshed out into imaginary forms. It's impossible to tell that there are two hands behind each of these paintings, because they are so seamlessly resolved into unified wholes.
The paintings are essentially non-objective, but representational images do appear here and there, like menacing-looking teeth and shapes and colors that suggest internal organs. But these are ambiguous enough that they don't come off as visceral.
The paintings are a setup for the sculptures, which are similar in sensibility. There are two small ones that fall into that creepy kids'-toy movement so popular in the lowbrow street-art scene. But the big one, "Alterity," which means "otherness," clearly represents a breakthrough, since it's so much better than the small ones, having an unexpected monumentality despite its lyrical colors and whimsical forms.
"Alterity" is made of expanding acrylic foam that's been injected into a mold; when it sets, it becomes as hard as fiberglass. Hollis + Lana have picked out the details and shapes in paint and toned down the finish with varnish. It's a tour de force, and surely the start of something great for the couple.


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When I was a kid, salads only meant one thing: iceberg lettuce torn into shreds, chopped-up tomatoes, croutons from a Marie Callender's bag, and a glug of dressing from a bottle. Mostly, we liked ranch dressing, but sometimes there was a bottle of Italian dressing with viscous bits floating in it. A few times, there was overly sweet French dressing.
(I know folks who grew up in Italy and France. They must have been so confused to come to the States for the first time and find these plastic bottles ascribing these abominations to their countries.)
I don't blame my parents. That's what everyone ate as salads in Southern California in the 70s and 80s. As soon as I write that, I know it's not true. There must have been some families eating artichoke hearts, butter lettuce, and homemade vinaigrette. My dear friend Sharon, who grew up in South Dakota, ate curries and unusual casseroles, thanks to the recipes her mom ripped out of the pages of Gourmet. So I know that quite a few people must have been eating interesting salads in the 1970s. It just wasn't me.
For years I had this feeling of obligation about salads, based on the paltry selections offered me and the lack of taste in those pale tomatoes and watery lettuce. Salads are healthy. Salads are what you eat when you want to lose weight. Sharon and I used to convince ourselves, in our late teens, that bowls of lettuce without any dressing actually tasted good. We were lying to ourselves. We ate those salads out of desperation to change our bodies by denying ourselves flavor.
Thankfully, I'm not in my late teens anymore. Flavor is my first consideration when it comes to food now. And I eat a salad for lunch nearly every day.
What I didn't know thirty years ago is that "salad" can mean warm brown rice, sauteed chard, sunflower seeds, goat cheese, and green goddess dressing made with yogurt and fresh herbs. Salad can also mean tomatoes so ripe they yield to the fork easily and ooze juice you must sop up with bread. Salad can be endive, radicchio, and sliced pears, tumbled on top of roasted sweet potato. Salad can mean burrata or buckwheat groats or red leaf lettuce or roasted chickpeas or collard greens or pickled ginger or mustard greens or warm tahini or dollops of yogurt or bright red pomegranate seeds.
I certainly didn't know, until I met Danny, that a salad could be warm quinoa, slices of hard-boiled eggs, ribbons of kale, pine nuts, and carrot-coriander vinaigrette.
I'm so glad I know more now than I did in 1972.
When we ran out of the tahini dressing we had been living on for weeks, Danny disappeared into the kitchen. I heard the sound of our juicer splaying out juice. I walked in to see him pushing carrots through the juicer. "Something for us to drink?" I asked him.
"Nope," he said, pushing down another carrot. "Vinaigrette."
Danny first made this carrot vinaigrette at a restaurant in Colorado, where they served this with butter lettuce, fried carrots, blue cheese croutons and fried goat cheese. Turns out it's delicious. (Of course.) By reducing the carrot juice, Danny created something with an intense carrot taste, cut by the bite of coriander. Adding champagne vinegar and a bit of fruity olive oil, he made a dressing we wanted to spoon onto everything that week. We put it over yellow rice, roasted chicken, wilted kale, and even in cheese quesadillas. This one's a keeper.
2 teaspoons coriander seeds
2 cups fresh carrot juice
1 medium shallot, peeled and sliced thin
1/4 cup champagne vinegar
3/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
salt and pepper
Toasting the coriander seeds. Set a small pot on medium heat. Add the coriander seeds. Toast the seeds, tossing them around in the pot frequently, until the smell of the coriander releases itself, about 5 minutes.
Reducing the carrot juice. Pour in the carrot juice and the shallot. Cook until the carrot juice is reduced down to about 1/4 cup, about 15 to 20 minutes. (You might want to brush the sides of the pot with a pastry brush once in awhile, to prevent the sugars in the carrot juice from burning.) Add the champagne vinegar to the carrot juice and give it a stir.
Finishing the vinaigrette. Pour the liquid in the pot into a blender. Blend on medium speed. Slowly, drizzle in the olive oil until the oil is fully incorporated into the dressing, about 2 minutes. Add the cilantro and blend until it's mixed into the dressing. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Makes about 1 1/4 cups carrot vinaigrette.
This should keep in a jar in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Use it on all the salads you make and it will disappear before you have to worry about it.


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"Glee" fans were stunned Sunday morning with the tragic news that star Cory Monteith died Saturday in his Vancouver hotel room. The 31-year-old actor has played jock-turned-singer Finn Hudson ever since the musical dramedy debuted in 2009. In his honor, here is a look at 10 of his best "Glee" performances, many with his real-life girlfriend Lea Michele, who played his onscreen love Rachel Barry.
"Don't Stop Believin'" (Season 1)
"Just the Way You Are" (Season 2)
"I'll Stand By You" (Season 1)
"Jessie's Girl" (Season 1)
"Can't Fight This Feeling" (Season 1)
"The Scientist" (Season 4)
"Faithfully" (Season 1)
"Fight for your Right (to Party)" (Season 4)
"I Gotta Be Me" (Season 2)
"We've Got Tonight" (Season 4)
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The Quest question-and-answer Bible Notes are like no other: study Bible notes that assists your journey to the meaning and heart of the Scriptures with notes that answer the questions you've always had about the Bible.
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Act Now to Save Pink Dolphins!
Petition: Support designating large marine park and rerouting ferry traffic to save pink dolphins!
Petition: Support designating large marine park and rerouting ferry traffic to save pink dolphins!
Dear Ms Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor,
I urge government to designate a large marine park and reroute the ferry traffic to save our local dolphins.
According to the latest figure released by the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD), the number of Chinese White Dolphins (CWD) has reached a historical low in Hong Kong waters in the past decade. As a concerned citizen of Hong Kong, I have grave concerns about the future of CWD inhabiting our local waters.
Recently, the government unveiled the Sustainable Lantau Blueprint and I am deeply disappointed with the insufficient measures to conserve the CWD in Hong Kong for the long term, specifically:
1. The proposed marine parks for the HKIA Three-Runway System Project and the Integrated Waste Management Facilities (IWMF) Phase 1 Project are simply compensation measures under the statutory EIA requirements for these infrastructure projects but not new conservation initiative under the blueprint. Moreover, a painful lesson has been learnt recently from the Brothers Marine Park (BMP) as the compensation measure for another infrastructure project --- the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge. The BMP was to provide protection to favourable habitat to attract the dolphins to return after reclamation works, but thus far no dolphin usage of the BMP has been recorded in the past two years, and it is unlikely to fulfill its original goal in the foreseeable future. In fact, more reclamation projects have been proposed near this marine park, which will further hamper any chance for dolphins to return and utilize this marine park. Therefore, we have serious doubts about the effectiveness of this marine park, and the establishment of similar marine parks as a compensation measure for other infrastructure projects such as the HKIA third runway expansion.
2. Another two proposed marine parks, namely the Southwest Lantau Marine Park (SWLMP) and the Soko Islands Marine Park (SIMP), are not connected and so will have limited value in conserving dolphins because of the small sizes of these parks. The justification for the establishments of these two marine parks is related to the importance as marine habitats for CWD, but the area between the two parks, serving as a critical traveling corridor to move from one to another, remains unprotected. Without protecting the waters between these two proposed marine parks, the integrity of dolphin habitat and full benefits of the marine parks to the dolphins will never be realized.
3. In the Sustainable Lantau Blueprint, the only suggested conservation measure for CWD is to establish marine parks, which are already under planning. Therefore, in reality no new measures have been offered to address the threats CWD are facing, including the development projects in North Lantau waters proposed in the blueprint. Previous studies have shown that intense high-speed ferry traffic has seriously hampered the CWD usage of South Lantau waters as a result of acoustic disturbance and increased risk of vessel collision, and therefore such threats should be removed as soon as possible to create an opportunity for linking up the SWLMP and SIMP for long-term conservation of CWD.
Below are some suggestions for the government to consider:
1. As Chinese White Dolphins are losing a large area of marine habitat in the North Lantau waters, more high quality habitats in other areas in HK, including West and South Lantau waters, need to be secured for their conservation.
2. Rerouting the high speed ferry traffic away from South Lantau waters will secure a safe and high quality habitat for CWD to offset the huge loss of dolphin habitat in North Lantau waters, and should be a high priority for action to reverse the alarming downward trend in dolphin numbers.
3. Connecting the proposed SWLMP and SIMP without any fragmentation between them will create a larger and more coherent marine protected area with proper measures and enforcement. If done properly, the ecological value in South Lantau will be greatly enhanced for the dolphins, and they can utilize both marine parks more efficiently and safely.
4. In the long term, a large marine protected area in the western waters of Hong Kong should be established to connect the existing Sha Chau and Lung Kwu Chau Marine Park, Tai O, Yi O, and the proposed SWLMP and SIMP. A marine protected area of this scale is the only way to ensure the long term survival of CWD in Hong Kong waters.
I sincerely hope that the new administration you are leading will be a responsible one for the environment and protection of our Handover Mascot, and will implement the suggestions I have made above as soon as possible.
**your signature**
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A new report highlights the biodiversity business case for the financial sector - the next big challenge after climate change?
The financial sector cannot afford to ignore the risks associated with biodiversity. That is the message from a new report "Biodiversity, the Next Challenge for Financial Institutions", published this week by the World Conservation Union (IUCN).
The report's author, Ivo Mulder, surveyed 26 commercial and investment banks, NGOs and other stakeholders – more than two-thirds believe the financial sector is exposed to significant reputational risk if it invests in companies which have a detrimental impact on ecosystems.
"Continuous decline of global species diversity is not only leading to more concerned conservationists – the private sector is also starting to feel the implications," Ivo Mulder said. "Financial institutions, such as banks and insurance companies, need to be able to determine which of their client companies are at greatest risk, in order to avoid taking on the same risks themselves through their lending, investment and insurance activities."
Increased pressure from NGOs, more regulations from governments keen to protect the natural environment and rising consumer expectations all mean that financial institutions must take more heed of biodiversity, the study found.
One example is the recent EU Environmental Liability Directive, which came into force on April 30. The new legislation holds companies liable for damage to flora and fauna, water resources and natural habitats and obliges them to pay for damages that cannot be avoided. The potential financial implications are significant not only for companies using these resources, but also the banks and insurance companies that service them.
The report also cites the example of Associated British Ports, which suffered a 10 per cent decline in its share price in April 2004, after the UK government rejected plans for a new container terminal on the South coast. One of the major factors behind the government's refusal was the potential impact of the terminal on local wildlife.
A few banks already consider biodiversity risks when deciding which companies to invest in. In February 2007, Rabobank established ten guiding principles for its risk analysts – these include environmental pollution, depletion of natural resources and cruelty against animals.
But it is not all about risk, the report reassures. There are growing biodiversity business opportunities for financial institutions, such as sustainable biofuels, along with markets for ethically-certified commodities like fish, timber and organic food.
"There needs to be a big effort to make the financial sector more aware of biodiversity issues," said Ivo Mulder. "Perhaps a Stern-like review of the economic costs of biodiversity loss and the financial benefits of conservation could be one trigger."
Notes to editors
For more information or to set up interviews, please contact:
Carolin Wahnbaeck, IUCN Media Relations Officer, Tel: +41 22 999 0127; Fax: +41 22 999 0020; [email protected]; Web: www.iucn.org
Sarah Halls, IUCN Media Relations Officer, Tel: +41 22 999 0127; Fax: +41 22 999 0020; [email protected]; Web: www.iucn.org
For photos please contact Sarah Halls at [email protected]
Link to the executive summary and the full report:
"Biodiversity, the Next Challenge for Financial Institutions" by I. Mulder. The World Conservation Union (IUCN); Switzerland 2007
About the World Conservation Union (IUCN)
Created in 1948, the World Conservation Union (IUCN) brings together 84 States, 108 government agencies, 800 plus NGOs, and some 10,000 scientists and experts from 181 countries in a unique worldwide partnership. The Union's mission is to influence, encourage and assist societies throughout the world to conserve the integrity and diversity of nature and to ensure that any use of natural resources is equitable and ecologically sustainable.
The Union is the world's largest environmental knowledge network and has helped over 75 countries to prepare and implement national conservation and biodiversity strategies. The Union is a multicultural, multilingual organization with 1,000 staff located in 62 countries. Its headquarters are in Gland, Switzerland.
More information can be found at www.iucn.org


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trying to use new PointerType (from intuition/pointerclass.h) freezes my system as soon as I use the new pointers.
freeze :
SetWindowPointer(window, WA_PointerType, POINTERTYPE_ROTATE, TAG_DONE);
works when using a "old" pointertype:
SetWindowPointer(window, WA_PointerType, POINTERTYPE_HAND, TAG_DONE);
Are these new pointers exist really on FE ?
#define POINTERTYPE_PEN 35
#define POINTERTYPE_ROTATE 36
#define POINTERTYPE_RUBBER 37
#define POINTERTYPE_SELECT 38
#define POINTERTYPE_SMUDGE 39
thank you


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The new online health insurance marketplaces, brought to you courtesy of the Affordable Care Act, were a mess on Tuesday. Many people labored for hours to get a look at the products available, and some never succeeded at all.
This is great news, but not for the folks who want to derail the Obamacare "train wreck." What it shows is a pent-up demand from people seeking affordable insurance.
In Kentucky, which designed its own exchange and has actively promoted it, the KyNet website had received 24,000 visitors and processed 1,000 applications before the site crashed around 8:30 a.m., according to the Louisville Courier-Journal.
In Washington, which also has its own exchange, officials reported that 3,356 customers had created accounts to shop for a plan by 3 p.m., and 398 had completed their applications.
States that designed their own marketplaces seemed to fare better than those, like Missouri and Kansas, that opted to let the Department of Health and Human Services set up their exchanges. Most people trying to take a look at the products in Missouri and Kansas were thwarted by technical difficulties.
The refusal of Republican officials in both those states to create their own exchanges is definitely turning into a liability. Missourians, in particular, have been given very little information about the process. That's because state officials are handcuffed by a law forbidding them to take any steps establishing or promoting an exchange without the permission of the legislature. In Kansas, Gov. Sam Brownback returned a $31.5 million grant to the federal government that would have been used to design a marketplace unique to Kansas.
Last week, in Missouri, a legislative committee was discussing ways to "transform" Medicaid, possibly by having recipients purchase insurance on the statewide exchange. That approach is drawing a lot of attention to Arkansas. But, as experts told lawmakers, Arkansas has its own exchange, which makes it easier to be innovative than using the federal template.
Former Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, who is now the secretary of Health and Human Services, told reporters she hoped the insurance exchanges would receive the same leeway that consumers grant Apple when it rolls out a new product.
Here's a report from UPI.com: "Sebelius observed that iPhone users don't ordinarily consider such glitchy rollouts as the end of the world, or the failure of the iPhone. "Everyone just assumes 'well there's a problem, they'll fix it,'" she said.
"We're building a complicated piece of technology, and hopefully you'll give us the same slack you give Apple." Not a chance, Madam Secretary.
On Twitter, U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt of Missouri was calling the rollout - you guessed it - a train wreck. "Today's poor rollout of #ObamaCare exchanges proves this law is not ready for prime time," Blunt tweeted.
But Sebelius is right. The glitches are expected and they will be fixed over time. But it's going to get harder and harder for Republicans to claim that Americans don't want anything to do with the Affordable Care Act.
Barbara Shelly is a columnist for the Kansas City Star.
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ringerslev necesitaba un nuevo diseño de logotipo y lanzó un concurso de diseño en 99designs.
Un ganador ha sido elegido entre 367 diseños de 59 diseñadores freelance.
fresh fitness
fresh fitness is a new low cost health club group. The clubs will appear modern/stylish (Nordic minimalism), will be kept clean at all times and will offer the best quality of equipment and group exercise - BUT it is no-frills health clubs with the lowest prices on memberships in the market. We want to give potential members "same for less".
Women 60% men 40%. 75% of all members in the age group 25 to 35, but a wide spread on the remaining members.
The logo must appeal strongly to women withour scaring men away.
We have not desided if we want an icon or not - I WOULD LIKE TO SEE TEXT ONLY ENTRIES (TWEAKED - UNIQUE STYLE) - neither have we decided in which way we will combine uppercase and lowercase letters, meaning this is up to designers discretion.
We will be using Calibri as the font in our texts - but this does not have to be the font in the logo.
We will use the below colors in the club design of which red also has to be in the logo. Feel free to also use the green and/or grey - or any additional/alternative color(s) than red in the logo.
Green: 00FF33 - PRIMARY
Red: FF0000
Grey: 414141
• What should come to a customers mind when they see your logo?
Friendly environment
• Is there anything you would not like to see in your logo?
No hand weights or big muscles!
Cannot look "medical"
•How will the logo be used?
Will be used in ways a logo is generally used;
Signage (indoor and outdoor)
Embroided on clothes
Descubre cómo funciona un concurso de diseño u obtén más información sobre nuestros servicios de diseño de logo.


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AMERICUS - The Georgia Southwestern baseball team held No. 3 USC Aiken to a season-low four hits for the second-straight game but ended the season with a 5-2 loss on Saturday at Hurricane Stadium.
Southwestern finishes 2013 with a 15-31 overall record and 5-22 mark in the Peach Belt Conference. The Pacers move on to the PBC Tournament at 41-9 overall and 24-6 in conference play.
USCA entered the weekend batting .348 as a team but was held to a .203 average in the three-game series against GSW.
Nevertheless, the Pacers left town with a sweep of the Hurricanes.
A Tyler Moore single in the opening frame sandwiched between a pair of walks loaded the bases for USCA's Bill Gerstenslager who brought home the first run of the game with a sacrifice fly to left field.
The Pacers added a run in the fourth and another in the fifth behind aggressive base running with five stolen bases over the two innings. J.J. Loker singled home a run in the fourth and Moore brought home the run in the fifth with a chopper to the shortstop.
A pair of GSW errors in the seventh paved the way for USCA to open a 4-0 lead and the Pacers pushed across their final run in the eighth when Gerstenslager, who tripled to open the inning, scored on a Ty Barkell sacrifice fly.
It was only fitting that on "Senior Day" it a pair of GSW seniors who made every effort to keep the game going in the ninth inning with back-to-back two-out hits. John Duran singled through the left side of the infield and scored moments later when Randall Sheffield drilled a triple into the left-center field gap. Sheffield scored the Hurricanes final run of the season on a a wild pitch.
Kevin Manos was the lone GSW batter to collect multiple hits in the finale as he went 2-for-3.
For the second-straight game, USCA did not have a multi-hit performer.
GSW senior pitcher Justin Lott (1-3) rounded out his collegiate career with a quality start, going seven innings and holding USCA to three hits. He walked five and struck out four. Fellow senior Bray Bishop tossed the final two frames and surrendered one run on one hit.
USCA starter Ryan Milewski (6-3) kept Hurricane batters in check all afternoon. Milewski threw eight scoreless innings, allowed four hits, did not walk a batter and struck out three. Kevin Gifford pitched the ninth.
In a pregame ceremony, the Hurricanes recognized the eight seniors on their roster: Duran, Sheffield, Lott, Bishop, Blane Parker, Michel Coffey, Chase Young and Frank Ambrosino.


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I live in New York, and I was thinking about the lagoon in Central Park, down near Central Park South. I was wondering if it would be frozen over when I got home, and if it was, where did the ducks go. I was wondering where the ducks went when the lagoon got all icy and frozen over. I wondered if some guy came in a truck and took them away to a zoo or something. Or if they just flew away.
-Holden Caulfield in The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
Desi, my one-year-old son (who will never wonder where the ducks go in winter), and I had a good time on Monday watching the ducks and the tourists and just hanging out at the southern end of Central Park, one of the greatest urban parks in the world. This despite the fact that we are in the depths of winter and at times we would have been better off if his stroller was equipped with runners instead of wheels. Desi loves ducks except when they take off from right next to him, which only happens when less thoughtful folks walk their dogs right up to the ducks. Who does that, especially when to get to the ducks you have to go out of your way? Goddam phonies…
Anyway, I hope you like this pair of Anas platyrhynchos as much as Desi liked the whole flock of Mallards.* You can click either image for a bigger version.
And, for the record, should all the fresh water in Central Park freeze over the ducks would fly away and look for open water elsewhere…
*I would be remiss if I didn't also point out that Desi's favorite duck is currently the fourth duck in this video.
What is it with Mallards and dogs? It's the bill of the drakes, man, their bill! Sharon Birdchick had a link to the dog faces on ducks once. Awesomness!!
Showing youtube videos to Desi?
Try "little mole" or alternatively "der kleine maulwurf" (I think the German version has more videos and they aren't talking anyway) / little red traktor / unser sandmännchen
Those are Erik's favourites.
And those two photos are very good!
Oh geez. We went through a period where we had to watch that damn Elmo duck video about a dozen times a day. Though thankfully he's mostly over it now and on to Big Bird, which I think bodes well.
What gorgeous shots of the mallards' faces and the lovely plumage. No wonder Desi likes these ducks! He is very fortunate to have a father who shares the important things in life with him! BTW, I just love Central Park!
It's not just New Yorkers and dogs chasing ducks. I can't tell you the number of times I've been at a local lake or pond and someone lets their dog loose to chase the ducks. I've even seen people do it while others are trying to photographs the ducks or geese. It's just so rude.
nice cool to see a bird in central park eh. lukey you.
Very cool close-ups. You can really see the dog-face on the drake's bill in that shot. Sesame Street didn't have that baby-talk Elmo character when I was kid. Have you introduced Desi to Bert "doing the pigeon" (its a dance folks, get your minds out of the gutter!)
Very Manhattan: in your face. The tens of thousands of Greater scaup off Gravesend Bay, on the other hand, are outer borough standoff-ish.
Magnificent pix.
@Corey: the story is about the "Little King" who had washed his favourite shirt and pants and didn't realize they had shrunk in the process. He was absolutely convinced that he had turned "big" over night and was now a grown-up. So the narrator tries to convince him and he always "proves" that he is big, in e.g. being bigger than his horse (which is lying on the ground) or picking up a tiny apple (which is a plum). Then he points out his HUGE shadow until the narrator tells him that everyone has a huge shadow at sunset, and finally the Little King is convinced. Then he goes to change clothes and returns jokingly telling his horse that "something terrible has happened – I have shrunk! – Just kidding!".
© 2013 10,000 Birds. All words, images, and opinions are the property of their respective authors unless stated otherwise.


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One-of-a-kind Forest Creature Petal Pixie Doll.
This Petal Pixie has a mix of yellow yarn hair and is wearing a lovely detailed dress, flower crown, and felt boots. She is approximately 10" tall.
She is made up of cotton, wool/rayon felt, and stuffed with recycled pollyfill. Her hair is a combination of wool, mohair, and acrylic yarn. Her arms are string-jointed. Each doll is lovingly hand-stitched in western North Carolina.
These dolls are not intended for children under 3. They are best suited for snuggling, tea parties, road trip adventures and less for hard play... and not at all suited for tug of war. If any FC doll suffers injury in the line of duty please email Joti and she'll be happy to fix them back up.
Spot clean as needed.


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The onset of tendon disease has previously been associated with exercise. However new research published today in the journal Molecular Cell Research shows that doing moderate exercise could help guard against and treat the painful and often debilitating condition.
The research team showed that moving around decreases a group of enzymes (metalloproteinases) that degrade tendon tissue and increase tendon protein.
Tendon disease is caused by damage to a tendon at cellular level. Symptoms include chronic pain, inflammation, stiffness and reduced function.
Lead researcher Dr Eleanor Jones, from UEA's school of Biological Sciences, said: "The onset of tendon disease has always been associated with exercise, however this association has not been fully understood. We have shown that moderate exercise has a positive effect on tendons."
The team used human Achilles tendon cells which were seeded in rat tail collagen gels. These were then subjected to levels of strain experienced by human tendons to simulate moderate exercise.
"In this study we talk about moderately high exercise and we would consider running to be moderately high. But it's important to remember that our research was carried out in the lab so to confirm this we would need to complete further clinical studies."
The new findings also reveal how genes are regulated by the activation of the protein TGF-β (transforming growth factor beta). By investigating this pathway, researchers hope to find out more about how exercise is associated with tendon disease.
'Cyclical strain modulates metalloprotease and matrix gene expression in human tenocytes via activation of TGFβ' by Eleanor R. Jones*, Gavin C. Jones, Kirsten Legerlotz and Graham P. Riley (all UEA) is published in the journal Molecular Cell Research on August 7 2013.
University of East Anglia – Communications Office
Tel: (+44) (0) 1603 593496 Fax: (+44) (0) 1603 259883


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Hi Ladies! I really need to catch up here!
Mellow: Marlo is absolutely gorgeous! We had some trouble with Will's reflux and switched to the Similac Sensitive for Spit Up. It has the lime green label. There is rice starch in it which has helped him alot and it is still milk based. Their teething kind of threw them off too. It only lasted about 2 1/2 weeks, they are now sleeping through the night again.
Lou: Chloe is so beautiful! Don't switch to a Soy based formula unless there is an allergy to the milk/lactose. Signs like projectile vomiting usually give it away. I had a 3 mo. old pt. in our office who was switched to a soy formula that didn't need it and ended up with internal bleeding (rare case). Has Chloe been constipated? Babies can go a week to 10 days without a bowel movement and it's considered normal. We've done 4 oz. warm water and 1/2 tsp. of brown sugar. It's a nice stool softener/laxative. I know you also mentioned the eczema but that is totally normal in the winter. We run a cool mist humidifier in the boys room at night and use Eucerin wash and cream to help calm it down.
My little twinkies are growing like crazy. Rolling all over the place and having fun! We go next week for their 9 month check ups but at their last Synagis visit they were 18 lbs and 16.10 lbs. Will seems to never stop eating and Wyatt still struggles at times. He is still on Neo Sure(preemie formula) since everytime we take him off his weight gain slows down. Our next adventure will be helmets for their misshapened heads. We thought only Will needed one as the back of his head is pretty much flat but then had Wyatt's scanned while we were there and found out he could use one too. At least we can have designs put on them so we can't mix them up. Here's a picture of my little men, how are they 9 months already?!?! Take care!!


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A Royal Marine and a woman soldier have died from injuries received while on patrol in Afghanistan.
The Royal Marine, from 40 Commando and the soldier, from 3 Medical Regiment, were on patrol in the Nahr-e Saraj district of Helmand province when they were killed yesterday, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) said. Their families have been informed.
The soldier is a 25-year-old woman from Comber in Co Down, Northern Ireland, the Belfast Telegraph said, though the MoD was unable to confirm this.
The pair are thought to have been killed by insurgents, though the BBC said an Afghan source claimed the deaths were from a "green on blue" attack - where coalition troops are killed by their Afghan allies.
A source said last night it understood the Taliban had issued a statement in Afghanistan suggesting the incident was a green on blue attack.
But the source said the details of the incident were still unclear because the people who knew what happened were not in a "state" to write down witness statements or explain what they saw.
The source said the Marine and soldier appeared to have been killed by gunshot wounds by insurgents, but the details had not yet been confirmed.
Major Laurence Roche, spokesman for Task Force Helmand, said: "I am extremely sorry to announce the deaths of a Royal Marine from 40 Commando and a soldier from 3 Medical Regiment serving with Task Force Helmand.
"This is dreadful news for all of us serving in Afghanistan. Our sincere condolences go to their families, friends and colleagues at this time of grief."
Their deaths take the total number of UK service members to have died since operations in Afghanistan began in October 2001 to 435.


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It's never too early for maths sequence riddles. Veritasium's Derek Muller offered a selection of strangers a simple sequence of three numbers — 2, 4, 8 — and asked them to determine the rule governing the sequence. It's not what you think.
Actually, it is what you think, meaning the problem Muller presents here is meant to challenge how you approach problems. There is a standard way to work out the sequence, but how do people react when the standard way fails?
Can You Solve This? [YouTube via VVV]


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Ironically, my Pseudo-Arachnid Empire, whose drider-like Worker caste would be ones serving as ambassadors, are the only army I'd have that would be open for negations.SnakeMittens wrote:Don't include the Ilun Taldea. Their murderous tendencies might have bad consequences... Plus they're twice as tall as a normal minifig.
The Tairin's are too arrogant to deal with any organisation without strong female minifig leadership while Briktoid Automata is too absorbed in their vidagames and would see any interuptions of their playtime as a capital offense.


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Responding to Subtle Racial Harassment
Posted by The Situationist Staff on February 19, 2011
Pat Chew recently posted his article, "Seeing Subtle Racism" (Stanford Journal of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, Vol. 6, p. 183, 2010) on SSRN. Here's the abstract.
* * *
Traditional employment discrimination law does not offer remedies for subtle bias in the workplace. For instance, in empirical studies of racial harassment cases, plaintiffs are much more likely to be successful if they claim egregious and blatant racist incidents rather than more subtle examples of racial intimidation, humiliation, or exclusion. But some groundbreaking jurists are cognizant of the reality and harm of subtle bias – and are acknowledging them in their analysis in racial harassment cases. While not yet widely recognized, the jurists are nonetheless creating important precedents for a re-interpretation of racial harassment jurisprudence, and by extension, employment discrimination jurisprudence more broadly. This article traces the development of racial harassment jurisprudence, explaining the development of the traditional model, which does not recognize subtle bias. It concludes with an analysis of an alternative jurisprudential model that "sees" subtle racism.
* * *
Download the article for free here.
Related Situationist posts:
- "What Are the Legal Implications of Implicit Biases?,"
- "Confronting the Backlash against Implicit Bias," and
- "The Situation of Situation in Employment Discrimination Law – Abstract."
One Response to "Responding to Subtle Racial Harassment"
March 10, 2011 at 12:02 am
[…] Responding to Subtle Racial Harassment […]


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Help Monkey Kick Furball to the hills and beyond! How far can you get?
Jump straight into a sugary world. Eat all sort of pies and other players to get stronger and bigger!
But look out and don't get covered in jam! The flying drones are after you and will drop jam bombs relentlessly! You do not want to become a free meal for other players! Try the team mode to play cooperatively with other players all around the world, capture the flags and rush to the vending machine to get your lunchbox and gold!
We have many different skins for players of all ages to enjoy. Give it a go as pie.ai is the only strawberry jam-filled multiplayer .IO game in the World, yummy!
There are no awards for this game!


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What do you need help on? Cancel X
Professor Lexis just finished his greatest and most energy-efficient machine yet. However, the moment he flipped the switch for the first official test, the machine exploded and sprayed all of the professor's new multicolored fuel everywhere. He now needs your help to collect the precious fuel and repair the damage before the worldwide energy symposium begins. Twist your Wii Remote controller to place wooden planks, funnels and particle transportation portals to guide the fluids back to the correct collection channels and repair the damage in 30 warped levels. The professor will even have you tackling the dangerous task of mixing fluids to create new fuel colors. Just be sure to contain the spill before you cause an overflow.


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ASBMB Releases Position Statement on Embryonic Stem Cell Research
The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology this week called for passage of federal legislation to establish a uniform regulatory landscape for the derivation and use of human embryonic stem cells.
Calling existing legislation "ambiguous" and citing and "the constant specter of judicial challenges" that researchers face, the society representing thousands of biomedical researchers insisted that the promises of embryonic stem cell research are in peril and the development of much-needed therapies and cures is being delayed.
The statement said the lack "of a cogent, unified federal policy … has resulted in a discouraging and obstructionist research environment that has dissuaded many scientists from entering the field while driving others to work abroad."
Benjamin Corb, Director of Public Affairs for the society, emphasized that a recent poll by the advocacy group Research!America showed that almost 70 percent of Americans approve of embryonic stem cellresearch.
Also, he said, there have been two bipartisan congressional efforts in the past decade advancing legislation to boost federal funding for embryonic stem cell research, which paved the way for the Obama administration to issue a 2009 executive order increasing the number of stem cell lines eligible for federal
ASBMB also recommended nullifying what is known as the Dickey-Wicker amendment, saying: "This onerous law, which prohibits federal funding for any research 'in which a human embryo or embryos are destroyed,' places ambiguous and unreasonable restrictions on human embryonic stem cell research, stifling progress and delaying the development of cures and treatments."
To read the full statement from ASBMB, click here.
For more information about ASBMB's advocacy efforts, contact Corb at firstname.lastname@example.com or 240-283-6625.


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Right directions: Townhouse downtown and upscale
ADDRESS: 501 Second Street
NEIGHBORHOOD: North Downtown
SIZE: 1,904 fin. sq. ft., 731 unfin.
LAND: 0.06 acres
CURB APPEAL: 8 out of 10
LISTED BY: Tim Michel of McLean Faulconer Inc. 980-5869
Word comes that the new Walker Square apartments across the tracks from Starr Hill and the Riverbend apartments behind Rose's on Pantops have been sold and are about to transmogrify into condominiums. Add those combined 350 units to a market already bloated with Belmont Lofts, The Eight-Twenty Condominiums, Lewis & Clark, and the upcoming "Holsinger," and you realize what a market there is for people who are willing to trade the hassle of upkeep and maintenance for hefty monthly condo fees and the convenience of downtown.
People in the second category but not the first– that is, folks who want to be downtown but don't mind throwing some kitty-litter on the icy sidewalk or seeing that the gutters aren't clogged– may want to take a look at this house on Second street. It has some advantages of a condo– common walls to maximize heat retention, and modest patios and tiny garden spots for minimal yard maintenance– but none of the bother of association meetings or dues.
We here at On the Block were interested in touring houses even back in 1981 when these identical four brick townhouses were brand new and on the market for the then-stunning price of $130,000. During the open house for this one, we heard a blue-haired grand dame remark, "This is a great place– except that people who can run up and down three flights can't afford it, and people who can afford it can't run up and down three flights." While the meaning of "afford it" has obviously changed over the years, the sentiment may still resonate.
The houses are vertical, with a large dry storage basement under three stories rising high above the street. This is an end unit, with the advantage of views from three sides, and from the third story they're nice views, sort of like being in the top bucket of a Ferris wheel. That third and the second level are almost identical, with large master suites with bedroom and full bath.
The second-level suite has a large dressing area, and on this floor there's a second full bath and a second bedroom that's currently being used as an office with built-in bookshelves and big windows with views to the walled patio in back.
The first floor consists of living room with a bay window and gas fireplace surrounded by bookshelves. A short hall leads to a half bath and a family room or den at the back of the house with a wall of windows and a glass door to the small patio. Lots of light despite overhanging trees.
In the middle of these two rooms, the compact kitchen has been completely taken uptown, with stainless appliances and granite counters, all new last year. Softening the industrial vibe of the big Wolf and Fisher Paykel appliances (these names are said to send shivers of ecstasy through those in the know), a whimsical row of wooden armadillos marches behind the counters instead of a backsplash. Clever.
Buttery maple cabinets contribute light to the small space, and a built-in miniature table curves out of the wall to amplify the armadillos' charm. A new trend in cabinets seems to be roll-up fronts like the ones on old oak desks, and using those in a small space like this makes sense. They're fun, too.
The house has been redone in the last year– coats of fleshy pink and rose paint throughout, a new HVAC system, and strange little bidet attachments on each toilet. It seems that nothing remains for new owners to do except move in and begin to enjoy the convenience of the location, the freedom from big yard maintenance and gas bills (a heat pump will keep the place warm this winter), and the beauty of interior brick walls and shiny hardwood floors.
They might even consider setting up a treadmill and weight machine in the big basement to stay in shape so that scampering up and down those three flights is no problem at all.


text:
(shortest possible Dhamma domain name, spells Dhamma including the extension)
TheDhamma.com, TheDhamma.org, BuddhasLists.com, BuddhasBible.com
Reviews & Praise for the book
Table of Contents
Excerpt -- Chapter 1
Ordering info
Dharma Groups
Who's Who in Buddhism
Buddhist pilgrimage
Buddhists in the World
Links to other cool sites
About Vipassana Foundation
Definition of a Buddhist
Anguttara Nikaya
The Dhamma Encyclopedia
The Dhamma Wheel
Quiz: Are you a Buddhist?
Who's Who of Buddhism
See also:
for the bios of these teachers and many others.
19 male and 19 female significant and influential Buddhist figures from antiquity to present day listed below.
The Buddha (563 B.C. - 483 B.C.) The fully enlightened Buddha, the Buddha of our time. Historically, the founder of Buddhism, but to Buddhists he is considered the person who rediscovered the teachings after they had died out. Photo above is from Bodh Gaya, India, 80 foot (24 meter) high statue.
Other types of fully enlightened people are as follows:
Sama-sam-buddha = One who rediscovers the teachings and teaches the masses as the historical Buddha did (Siddhattha Gotama).
Paccekabuddha = A silent buddha. One who attains full enlightenment, but does not teach others.
Arahant = Fully enlightened person, who might teach others, but not as the one who rediscovered the teachings, just as one who learned it from a current dispensation.
All three types of buddha listed above are attained by study, meditation, morality, concentration, tranquility, hard work, and wisdom and all are fully enlightened saints who attain nibbana (nirvana).
Statues of the Buddha are in many different postures, but a popular choice for altars is that of the earth witness where the Buddha is seen with one hand reaching for the ground as the earth was witness to his enlightenment in 528 B.C.
Hotei (830 A.D. - 902 A.D.) A Chinese monk from the Chan (precursor to Zen) school. Many people confuse him as THE Buddha, when in fact he was a Buddhist monk. He may have been a buddha, such as an arahant (enlightened), but not THE Buddha of our time. A common statue at Chinese restaurants and temples so that many have confused him as the founder of Buddhism, which is not the case. He is always shown with a big belly as he is said to have enjoyed candy and also passed candy out to children.
Medicine Buddha is a semi-legendary buddha who represents the healing nature of the Buddha's teachings. In some schools of Mahayana Buddhism, an actual person who at death passed into a heavenly realm and presides over one of the heavens as a healer who can be called upon. In Tibetan Buddhism, it is believed that meditation on the Medicine Buddha can help decrease physical and mental illness and suffering.
Amitabha Buddha is a semi-legendary buddha who presides over the Western Pure Land according to some schools of Mahayana Buddhism. Devotees call upon his name for entrance to this heavenly realm, where once there enlightenment will be easier to attain. Statues of Amitabha appear very similar to statues of Buddha, with the main difference being that the hands form two circles in the lap of Amitabha.
Kwan Yin is the most important female figure in many Buddhist traditions. She is the goddess of compassion. In Buddhism gods are impermanent higher beings who are still subject to rebirth, they are not absolute power deities or creators, as in the western use of the term God. Kwan Yin is a rebirth of the bodhisattva Avolikiteshvara, a monk from a previous eon who was reborn in a heavenly realm and filled with compassion for all living beings. One legend states that Avolikiteshvara chose to be reborn as a beautiful woman to marry a famous king and convince him to become a Buddhist.
Maya devi is the mother of the Buddha. She died 7 days after giving birth to Buddha. She was reborn to a heavenly realm and the Buddha went to that realm after enlightenment to teach her higher psychological-scientific teachings (Abhidhamma).
Tara is a goddess in the Mahayana tradition and is especially venerated in vajrayana (Tibetan) Buddhism. She is the mother of liberation, and represents the virtues of success in work and achievements.
Sariputta (Sariputra) was the first chief male disciple of the Buddha. He was known for his caring, humility, patience, and especially his wisdom. He learned the higher teachings from the Buddha and was foremost in explaining it.
Moggallana was the second of the foremost monk disciples of the Buddha. He was known for his ease at supernormal abilities including reading the mind of others, using the mind to reach heavenly realms, speaking to gods and ghosts, walking through walls, walking on water, and traveling at the speed of light. According to the Buddhist scriptures, he had a very dark complexion (
and in
Buddhism A to Z
by Dhammika).
King Ashoka (304 BC - 232 BC) reigned over all of South Asia and beyond due to many military invasions led by him. He controlled all of present day India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iran. His kingdom was vast. He renounced all violence after becoming a Buddhist. He was a vegetarian and erected many edicts praising the Buddha's teachings which also gave further archeological proof of the Buddha's life and other historical information found in the Buddhist discourses (canon or scriptures).
Sujata is the woman who offered food (rice cooked in milk) to the Buddha when he was performing his ascetic practices (long fasts) before enlightenment. The Buddha was near death as this was before he realized and practiced the middle way. Later after enlightenment, a heavy storm came and a large cobra snake protected the Buddha. It is interesting to note that in the Judeo-Christian bible the Fall of man is blamed on a woman and a snake, but in Buddhism the world is saved (by helping the Buddha from death) by a woman and a snake. Sujata would later become a bhikkhuni (Buddhist nun).
Maha Pajapati Gotami was the aunt and step-mother of the Buddha. She became the first nun in Buddhism and became fully enlightened (arahant).
Khema was one of the wives of King Bimbisara and was very beautiful. One day the Buddha explained to her impermanence in a way to show her that the beauty would not last. Khema practiced and became enlightened and then decided to become a nun. She penetrated to the truth very quickly and was the chief nun during the time of Buddha.
Dhammadinna was the wife of a merchant. She and her husband became Buddhists and she decided to ordain as a bhikkhuni (nun). Shortly thereafter she became enlightened (arahant). Her husband progressed well, but to the stage of non-returner, which is not yet enlightened. She surpassed her husband, which became one of many examples of where women exceeded either their husbands or their teachers in spiritual progress, once again showing the gender equality in the teachings of the Buddha. On one occasion Ven. Dhammadinna was giving a Dhamma talk and the Buddha sat silently and listened. After the talk, the Buddha said that he could not have said (the teachings) it any better and praised her vigorously.
Sanghamitta was the daughter of King Ashoka. She was a nun who spread the Order to Sri Lanka and brought with her a sapling from the original Bodhi tree at Bodh Gaya. This marked one of the key moments in the spread of Buddhism outside of India.
Nagarjuna (150 AD - 250 AD) was an Indian philosopher and founder of the Madhyamaka school (middle path). His major contributions were the doctrine of emptiness which further explained the no-self teaching of Buddha and the two-truths doctrine of ultimate truth and conventional truth. Nagarjuna explained that all phenomena are without any own-nature or self-nature, and thus without any underlying essence, they are empty of being independent. Modern scientists would concur with this and have noticed the parallels in their findings and this teaching. Nagarjuna is especially venerated in the Mahayana, but since he did not teach on the bodhisattva ideal, many scholars now feel that he may have been a Theravadin.
Caroline Augusta Foley Rhys Davids, M.A., D.Litt. (1857-1942) was born a Christian in England and decided to learn Pali and the teachings of Buddha in an attempt to disprove Buddhism. She then decided to become a Buddhist after discovering the profound teachings of Buddha. She dedicated her life to translating the discourses of the Buddha from the original Pali to English. She was the second president of the Pali Text Society. Her husband, Thomas Rhys Davids was also a Buddhist scholar and translator. Their contributions were significant because they paved the way for future translators. By making the teachings more accessible, Buddhism has spread to many western nations.
Anagarika Dharmapala (1864-1933) was born in Colombo, Sri Lanka and received a Christian education through college. He was the translator for the first Theosophists, Madame Blavatsky and Colonel Olcott. He learned Buddhism from them and became very devoted as an 8 precept semi-monastic. He visited Bodh Gaya, India in 1891 and saw the dilapidated condition of the Mahabodhi temple and cried. He set up the Maha Bodhi Society to preserve and restore the temple and grounds. Today it is renovated and beautiful and attracts pilgrims from around the globe. He ordained as a bhikkhu (monk) in 1933 and died shortly thereafter in Sarnath, India.
If you notice from this list and from your own investigation of Buddhist history, you will find that from about the year 900 AD up until almost the year 1900 there was little activity in Buddhism as the religion and philosophy almost died out. During this time there was no bhikkhuni (nuns) Order and also the Mahabodhi temple complex was left in virtually ruins type condition. After the efforts of Anagarika Dharmapala and the restoration of the temple, it seems Buddhism started to once again flourish in the world. In the year 1900 there may have been about 1,000 western born Buddhists at best. Today there are over 10 million.
Dipa Ma (1911-1989) taught vipassana from her humble small home in India. She mastered the jhanas of Theravada meditation and taught at major retreat centers as well in India, Europe, and the U.S. She taught Sharon Salzberg, Joseph Goldstein, and Jack Kornfield, all of whom became one of the first western born teachers of Buddhism in America.
Ajahn Chah (1918-1992) was from Thailand and was the most famous meditation master in the Thai forest tradition of Theravada Buddhism. He had many students who went on to become famous in their own right and included many westerners, such as Ajahn Sumedho in England and Jack Kornfield, Ph.D. in the U.S. There are currently several hundred monasteries around the world affiliated with Ajahn Chah's teachings.
Ayya Khema (1923-1997) was born in Germany to Jewish parents. She was one of the first western born women to receive full ordination as a bhikkhuni, reviving the Buddhist Order of nuns. She has lived in Germany, China, the U.S., Australia, South America, and Sri Lanka. She wrote several bestselling books and opened monasteries in Australia, Sri Lanka, and Europe.
Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, Ph.D., J.D., D.Sc. (1891-1956) was a scholar, jurist, and father of the Indian Constitution. He was the first leader of the Dalit Buddhist Movement, which calls for an end to the caste system of India and for untouchables to convert to Buddhism. Dr. Ambedkar was born into this lowest caste, but rejected this and converted to Buddhism. He was one of the first untouchables to earn a college education and he went on to earn several doctorate degrees.
S. N. Goenka (1924- ) is perhaps the most famous lay Buddhist in modern times. He was born a Hindu in Burma (of Indian descent) and learned vipassana from U Ba Khin after suffering many migraine headaches and other ailments. He was healed through his meditation practice and went on to be the founder of a worldwide vipassana retreat organization centered around a 10 day vipassana technique that now has courses on every continent except Antarctica.
Thich Nhat Hanh (1926- ) was born in Vietnam and trained in the Zen tradition. He has written over 100 Dharma books and has opened monasteries around the world. He started the Order of Interbeing which has a special emphasis on social engagement work (charities, environmentalism, anti-war). His tradition blends Zen with Theravada mindfulness and western psychology. He was nominated for the Noble Peace Prize by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., for his work against wars.
Bhante Henepola Gunaratana, Ph.D. (1927- ) was born in Sri Lanka and ordained at the age of 12. He attended colleges and universities in Sri Lanka and the U.S., culminating in a Ph.D. degree. He is the founder and abbot of Bhavana Society in West Virginia, USA. He is one the leaders in Buddhism pushing for bhikkhuni reinstatement and he has personally ordained many women with the full ordination. He has written many bestselling Dhamma books and leads retreats around the world.
Ruth Denison (1922- ) studied in Burma in the early 1960's with the meditation master Sayagi U Ba Khin (also the teacher of Goenka). She has been teaching since 1973 and is founder of Dhamma Dena, a desert retreat center in Joshua Tree, California, and The Center for Buddhism in the West in Germany. She is known for her energy and unorthodox way of teaching Vipassana meditation. She uses movement, music, rhythm, chanting, and sound as supportive meditation patterns for the practice.
Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, (Geshe, equivalent to Ph.D. in Buddhist Studies) the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet (1935- ) is the religious, spiritual, and political leader of Tibet, currently in exile, living primarily in McLeod Ganj, India. He was awarded the Noble Peace Prize in 1989 and the U.S. Congressional Gold Medal in 2007.
Bhante Madewela Punnaji is from Sri Lanka and is a scholar of the Pali Canon and also has extensive studies in science, medicine, and western psychology. He wrote the Foreword to
Buddha's Lists
and has written and presented several other articles around the globe as well.
Bhikkhu Bodhi, Ph.D. (1944- ) was born named Jeffrey Block in Brooklyn, New York. He earned a Ph.D. in philosophy from Clairemont Graduate School in 1972. He was the editor and president of the Buddhist Publication Society in Sri Lanka where he lived for most of his early years as a Theravada monk. He has translated most of the Nikayas of the Pali Canon and has improved the quality of previous translations for the modern reader. He has given keynote addresses to the United Nations and to the International Buddhist Women's Conference. He supports the full ordinations of women as bhikkhunis (nuns).
Bhikkhuni Dhammananda, Ph.D. (1945- ), born Chatsumarn Kabilsingh is a Thai woman who received full bhikkhuni (nun) ordination in Sri Lanka. She was a professor of Buddhist philosophy and currently is abbot of the only temple in Thailand where there are fully ordained nuns.
Aung San Suu Kyi, Ph.D. (1945- ) was born in Burma and has led the struggle for democracy in Burma for most of her life. She earned a Ph.D. from the University of London in 1985 and was elected prime minister of Burma by a landslide in 1990. The military nullified the election and placed her in house arrest where she remains today. She has advocated nonviolence and earned the Noble Peace Prize in 1991. She is a devout Buddhist and once addressed a half-million people at a mass rally in front of the famous Shwedagon Pagoda.
Ven. Karuna Dharma, D.Dh. (1940- ) was born in Wisconsin, USA and is the abbess of IBMC in Los Angeles. She earned two M.A. degrees from UCLA (Education and Comparative Religion) and a doctorate in Buddhist Studies from the University of Oriental Studies. She runs a unique temple that has monastics from Theravada, Zen, Vajrayana, and Mahayana. She has been a leader in the ordination of women as fully ordained bhikkhunis and has ordained about 50 women to date. The services at her temple include all traditions and practitioners from all traditions attend. She has been a past president of the American Buddhist Congress and vice-pres. of the College of Buddhist Studies.
Jan Willis, Ph.D. was born in Alabama, USA and is one of the first western born scholar-practitioners of Tibetan Buddhism. She earned a Ph.D. in Indic and Buddhist Studies from Columbia University. She was also one of the first western born translators of key Tibetan discourses, making the teachings accessible to westerners. Dr. Willis is Professor of Religion at Wesleyan University.
Bhikkhuni Kusuma, Ph.D. is a fully ordained bhikkhuni from Sri Lanka who has pioneered the re-establishment the Theravada female Buddhist Order in Sri Lanka, 1000 years after the Order died out. She has taken upon herself the task of carrying on the efforts of her mentor, Sister Ayya Khema, in establishing the Ayya Khema International Buddhist Mandir in Sri Lanka.
Maha Upasika Bongkot is a lay woman who has a very large retreat center in Shravasti, India and another one in Thailand. Her centers are run by 8 precept, semi-monastic men and women who do socially engaged work and are vegetarian. She has earned numerous awards including an Outstanding Women of Buddhism award in 2004.
Bhikkhu Buddharakkhita was born in Uganda (East Africa). He has learned from various masters in India, Burma, and the US and was ordained by the late Burmese monk Sayadaw U Silananda in 2002. In 2005, he founded the Uganda Buddhist Center in Kampala, Uganda, the first Buddhist Center in Uganda. He has been a resident monk at the Bhavana Society in West Virginia. He is the first African monk to open a temple in the continent of Africa. Previously there have been temples in Africa, but all opened by Asian, European, or American masters or teachers.
Shravasti Dhammika (1951- ) was born in Australia and ordained as a Theravada monk in India. He has written over 30 books, many of which are available to read completely online at no cost (see Links page). He currently resides mostly in Sri Lanka or Singapore. He has written several excellent books for beginners such as
Good Question, Good Answer
Buddhism A to Z
and also books on pilgrimage to Buddhist sites. Bhante Dhammika has a keen insight into progressing Dhamma for the modern world, calling for a "Buddhayana" Buddhism where all traditions are valued and literalist views of scriptures are avoided.
Dr. Gotami (Prem Suskawat, M.D.) was born in America of Thai heritage. She has shown how Buddhist teachings can be integrated with Western psychotherapy to treat social ills. She ordained as a bhikkhuni in India. She studied psychiatry at Harvard Medical School in Cambridge, Massachusetts. There, she works with immigrants from Southeast Asian countries, offering counseling on a wide range of issues. She has established a Buddhist temple in Massachusetts.
Vipassana Foundation is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization.
©2008 Vipassana Foundation


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Taking optimization from strategy to execution
I'm often asked how did we get ramped up to doing 3–5 tests a week. I have to admit, I'm impressed that we've gotten this far, but we still have room to grow.
In short, it comes down to 3 things to get you there:
Aligning your optimization strategies with your business goals
Establishing the right framework and processes
I'll break it down.
1. Align your optimization strategies with your business goals
It may seem obvious, but there's often the impulse to just start testing everything everywhere. You're enthusiastic and want to show ROI immediately, but you need a strategy. What are your company's goals? Most often there are revenue goals you're looking to meet and there are business strategies you need to tap into to help get you there. Is there messaging you can experiment with to support the business strategies? Creative expression? Layout? Functionality? Answering these questions can help guide you.
2. Establish the right framework and processes
It's no question that if your company isn't doing testing yet, it's going to take a little time to shift the mindset; it's a culture change. Depending on how open teams are to change and taking your business to the next level, will determine how quickly you can implement a program. You'll need:
Operating model alignment: You'll have to get buy in across your organization. It might mean asking other teams to support your efforts or ask permission to take on some other tasks like designing pages.
Process design: It's going to depend on your organization how you want to work. I'll elaborate more in the following paragraph.
Change impact and readiness: How does adding testing affect other teams?
Organizational design: Do you keep it all in one group or do you share responsibilities with other teams?
End user training: Does the team have the skills they need?
If you're doing it all yourself, you don't have to work about processes as much. However, if you're working across divisions or departments it's best to have roles, responsibilities, and processes established and agreed upon. You'll need to secure:
Web strategist
Optimization manager
Campaign enablement
Analytics support
Web production
Project management
Web development (for more sophisticated testing)
Demand and media generation (to drive traffic to your site)
Creative development
User experience expertise
Platform architecture
3. Execute your tests
Now you have your strategies, a slew of test ideas which support your strategies and business goals, you have your team in place, now you have to execute. How do you know what to test first? The first rule of thumb is analyze which pages on your site yield the highest conversion, have the highest volume of traffic, or demonstrate the biggest area of opportunity. We've set up scoring models to help us with prioritization. As the team grows, you have to manage lots of tests getting ready to launch. Potentially all at the same time.
Our scoring model is simple. What type of test is it: Content, layout, functionality, or creative? What's the level of effort: Low, medium, or high? What is the potential revenue lift: Low, medium, or high? The test type score is based on previous quarter's successes. Have an analyst help you with that. The level of effort is judged by the person doing the enablement of the test which might include development. And the potential revenue impact is also evaluated by an analyst.
The optimization manager should develop their strategy and then come up with individual tests to support those strategies. Then methodically develop test charters or plans which outline the goals of the test, justification, what page(s) the test should be run on. It's good to have a hypothesis, but be cautious on including that in your test charter because it might sway you to want certain results.
Set up your test using a solution like Adobe Target, run it 3–5 weeks (depending on traffic and conversion rates), and evaluate the success through the reports in the tool or if you want to dig deeper, use something like Adobe Analtyics. Use what you learn to feed your next test idea and keep iterating.
Watch your conversions increase
The more comfortable you get with testing, the quicker you can iterate on tests and reap the rewards of increased conversions. Happy testing!
Provide feedback on how you operate your optimization program.