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Who uses Physical or Rehabilitative Therapy?
Those who benefit most from Physical Therapy are inpiduals who are in need of restoring injured body parts, increasing flexibility, or building strength. We also help improve posture, which if left uncorrected can cause damaging musculoskeletal conditions. Additionally, we help patients who have undergone surgeries and who are in need of therapy to regain optimal physical functionality.
What should I bring with me to my first appointment?
Please bring any records from your previous doctor, a list of your medications, allergies and a list of prior doctors. We also recommend bringing in a list of any questions or concerns you may have. Please make sure that you arrive at least 15 minutes before your scheduled appointment so that you can provide us the necessary paperwork and insurance information to put you in our system. To save time, you can also print the Intake Forms located on our forms page, and bring them completed to your appointment.
What should I wear?
We highly recommend you bring comfortable, nonrestrictive clothing or athletic wear to our physical rehab clinic because oftentimes we will be stretching or exercising you. Your clothes should also allow us to evaluate your area of injury, so please dress accordingly. As for footwear, we suggest comfortable, closed-toe shoes, preferably sneakers. If you have any questions, please contact us prior to your first appointment.
How long does each visit take?
The initial visit takes a little longer than the subsequent visits due to the paperwork that you need to fill out, in addition to the completion of the assessment process. Normally, appointments are usually between 30 and 60 minutes.
How long will I need physical therapy?
You will need to attend physical therapy sessions until you and your therapist decide that you have reached your desired level of function or that further therapy would not be beneficial. Often therapy will also be monitored by your physician.
When should I start seeing improvement?
Again that depends on the same factors associated with how long treatment will take. We make a treatment plan for you, which includes follow up and regular maintenance visits to our physical rehab clinic. If at any point you feel like you are not progressing at a satisfactory rate, we will collaborate with you and modify your treatment plan. We will always keep you informed as well about your progress.
What is the difference between a Physical Therapy and Occupational Therapy?
Physical Therapy (PT) works in restoring function of the legs, back, neck, and torso along with the shoulder region. PT treatment also helps patients with rehabilitation after accidents and surgery along with wound care. Occupational Therapy (OT) primarily enables people to participate in the activities of everyday life. They use careful analysis of physical, environmental, social, mental, and other factors to identify barriers to occupation. An OT therapist is involved in both cognitive and physical training to assist patients with everyday living. PT and OT both work to help patients with their needs for both physical rehabilitation and general everyday life activities.
Will you keep in contact with my doctor?
After your initial evaluation we will send a copy of the examination to your doctor along with progress notes at regular intervals.
Will I see the same physical therapist every time?
We will make every attempt to schedule you with the therapist you desire to see. However, there may be times when another physical therapist will treat you to accommodate your schedule. All of our physical therapists are fully-licensed and enjoy delivering high-quality care.
Will my insurance pay for therapy?
Generally, most insurance companies pay for physical and occupational therapy. Some companies only offer limited coverage or do not cover occupational therapy. We recommend that you call the benefit number listed on your insurance card to check on your insurance benefits before you start therapy.
Do I need a physician's referral for physical therapy?
Most insurance companies will require that you get a physician's referral for physical therapy, which you need to bring on your first appointment. Medicare requires the patient to be seen every 30 days by their physician to continue with therapy.


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Thursday, November 4, 2010
Why expensive wines taste better: Psychology 101
What it is useful for is understanding some basic underpinnings of behavior, such as why critics don't like your favorite wine, and how wineries get away with charging $500 a bottle.
Have you ever noticed that no fans ever complain about lousy music concerts, yet critics frequently give them poor reviews? Are critics just curmudgeons?
Maybe, but there's a psychological principal at work that's also in effect every single time you buy even a glass of wine.
It's called "cognitive dissonance." I'll try to explain it the way I remember it from my undergraduate days.
There was an experiment in which college freshmen were asked to spend two hours doing a very boring task; putting round pegs in round holes, if I recall correctly.
They were divided into three groups. Some people were paid $20 (this was a lot of money back then). Some were paid $1. And some were not paid at all, but were told they were volunteers. All were told their payment (or non-payment) before they started pegging.
Afterwards, everyone was asked to rate the enjoyment of the task.
Which group do you think said it was the most fun?
I suppose I should make you scroll down or something, to delay the surprise.
OK, here's the answer: The group that was paid $1 found the task most pleasurable. And the group that found it the most boring were the people paid $20.
Why? The answer is "cognitive dissonance," which is the tension of holding two irreconcilable thoughts at the same time.
The task was, objectively, boring. People who were paid $20 could easily explain to themselves why they did it: they wanted $20. They rated the task as the most boring. People who were volunteers could tell themselves they did it to advance science. They found it less boring than the $20 group, but still somewhat boring.
But people who were paid only $1 couldn't explain to themselves why they spent two hours putting round pegs in round holes. Their brain held two dissonant thoughts: "This task is dull" and "I'm only getting $1 for it." The second statement could not be changed. So the brain modified its belief about the first. People decided they were having fun; otherwise they would be fools for agreeing to do it.
You can probably already see how this applies to wine appreciation. But I'll spell it out.
If you're paying for wine -- or food, or concert tickets, or a Caribbean cruise -- your brain knows the price. And you know you're not stupid. So if M.I.A. sounds off-key, your brain can change its evaluation to "charmingly spontaneous."
But the critic sitting in the back row didn't pay for the tickets. He's there to do a job, and his brain knows that. If the concert is bad, that doesn't make him a fool for going.
Think about this: How often do you like the warmup act at a concert? Much less often than the main act, right? Maybe the warmup acts really are much less good -- but also, your brain knows this band is not the reason you paid $60 for these tickets.
I get a lot of free wine, and I pay for wine frequently also. Even though I'm aware of cognitive dissonance, I still think I'm more likely to give the benefit of the doubt to a so-so wine I order by the glass in a restaurant over a wine I taste in a professional setting. I'm paying for it, I'm no fool, it can't be THAT bad.
There are several implications here:
1) Why do fans of a wine (Kendall-Jackson Vintners Reserve Chardonnay, for example) like it more than critics? Simple: they're paying for it.
2) The more money the wine costs, the more powerful the effect of cognitive dissonance. You can freely diss Two Buck Chuck, but that overripe $60 Syrah? It must have some good points. Many Napa Valley vintners understand the implication of this: Charge more, and while the wine might be difficult to sell, people who do buy it will like it more.
3) Why does Robert Parker give higher scores to wines than other critics? To his credit, he is well-known for paying for a lot more wines than any other critic. He chooses what to pay for, he doesn't taste blind, and I submit that even for a man whose palate is as consistent as anyone in the business, cognitive dissonance is at work.
4) Why does wine taste better in the tasting room? There are other factors at work as well, but consider this potential dissonance: "I drove out of my way to get here and chose this winery over its neighbors. Plus I paid a $10 tasting fee." Cognitive dissonance is a good motivator for every tasting room to charge a modest fee. (Sorry, consumers.)
5) Why don't professional critics rush to embrace funky, expressive wines, especially those in niche categories? We don't have to; we don't have the cognitive dissonance of "I paid $12.99 for this no-added-sulfite 'organic wine' and it smells like feet." Mmm, feet.
6) How do the Bordeaux first growths get away with those outrageous release prices -- over $500 a bottle for some? In Hong Kong, people are thinking in Cantonese, "I paid $900 for this wine. And I am no fool. This is so worth it." Cognitive dissonance knows no language barrier.
One last point: You've been reading my blog now for maybe 3 minutes, instead of drinking wine or looking at online porn or calling your loved ones or eating dark chocolate. Think of all the great ways you could have spent that 3 minutes.
Isn't this the most interesting blog you've ever read? Tell your friends. They're no fools either.
32 comments:
- Cabfrancophile said...
Great read, love this take on the psychology of paying for wine. Sounds like a slightly different way of looking at "anchoring" by price point.
One conclusion I'm not sure I agree with, though, is critics receiving samples being capable of greater objectivity. It really depends on the person. Some folks might feel beholden to the winery. Others who pay might say, this is $X, I can't be stupid to buy this. And still another group might think, this is $X, it better effin' perform up to a certain standard.
Your 2nd bullet point is a great example of why, even blind, cheaper and more expensive wines should be tasted in the same flight. I know that if a flight has all cheap wines, I'll have a certain expectation. Ditto for expensive flights. - November 4, 2010 at 7:08 AM
- W. Blake Gray said...
Very good points, Cabfranc. Wine competitions struggle with whether to lump all price points together. Makers of expensive wines hate it when they do, because they don't want their $150 Cab to lose to a $9 wine. But those are the most eye-opening results from blind tastings.
- November 4, 2010 at 8:26 AM
- Kent Benson said...
Perhaps you can help me understand the psychology of my tendencies. I conduct a lot of private wine tastings for small groups. Invariably, the wines taste better to me when I am leading a tasting for a group, than any other time. If it helps, I get paid $50 per hour and I select the wines, which are usually $10-$25. Any thoughts?
- November 4, 2010 at 9:18 AM
- W. Blake Gray said...
Kent: That's cognitive dissonance at work. If you had a mediocre wine, your brain would have two thoughts: "this wine is mediocre," and "I chose this wine for this group and I am a wine expert." Only the first can change.
(FYI, I know well the sinking feeling when something I chose for a group is not as wonderful as I hoped.) - November 4, 2010 at 9:42 AM
- WCVR said...
Great article. I minored in Psych, and love the way you've applied the principle of Cognitive Dissonance to wine evaluation.
I think we have a reverse effect that happens on us. We buy 95% of the wine we review and when we have a David vs Goliath price competition, we're happy to see the underdog win. What is the explanation for that?
It's our own money we're spending, and we'd prefer to see our "expensive tastes" validated. Is that overtaken by a desire to see value wines pushed to the forefront over wines that are based on PR & hype?
Perhaps we just love skewering some sacred cows. - November 4, 2010 at 10:02 AM
- W. Blake Gray said...
WCVR: Do you taste blind? If not, you may be running into another psychological principle, "confirmation bias." But I suggest you might be somehow skewing the competition, probably unwittingly, for the underdogs to win because that's what you want to happen.
Speaking from San Francisco after the World Series, gotta say there's nothing wrong with rooting for the underdog. - November 4, 2010 at 10:54 AM
- WCVR said...
We do taste blind, although since there's only two of us, we'll likely know the region/variety being tasted, and also the price range. It's a conscious decision on both our parts to blind review three Washington State Cabs out of our cellar, so that's the facts we'll know, although we both have a good idea of what's in our cellar.
Another factor for us is that living in Vancouver, BC, wine is exorbitantly expensive after our 123% Government import taxes. So, we have a lot of locally produced wine that is over-priced as import price points are high to begin with.
I'd venture that our sensitivity to pricing, both locally and for imports, is what makes us happy to see a value wine win. - November 4, 2010 at 11:30 AM
- Portland Charcuterie Project said...
Now I'm sad... you just reminded me that I could be looking at porn instead of your blog... unfortunately, I'm at work today, so you're a sad substitute for midgets doing naughty things with lime jello.
- November 4, 2010 at 12:59 PM
- Mark Cochard said...
We have an old saying, it is called the Arthur Johnson rule. At wine dinners or offlines it is always asked which was your WOTN. Invarialby each person votes for the wine that they brought. They paid for it, cellared and developed an emotional attachment to the wine. So they can't bear to admit that their's was not the best. What you say makes perfect sense and the Arthur Johnson rule reinforces it.
- November 4, 2010 at 12:59 PM
That made for very interesting reading. Certainly gives us thought regarding what we charge for with certain things, eg cellardoor tastings. I may be misreading, but from our perspective, it seems better for us to be charging that not to as this encourages people to spend more on the wines, be more positive regarding the whole experience and rave about the wines to others.
- November 4, 2010 at 4:24 PM
- W. Blake Gray said...
Mark: I'll bite, who's Arthur Johnson?
Mountford: You're reading it right. It pains me a little to say that, because I like to think of myself as a consumer advocate.
Try an experiment in the tasting room -- try telling some people a wine is $15, then others $25. Control the conditions as best you can and see what happens.
I'm so sorry, consumers. I suck.
Pig-parts guy: I guess it depends on your preference. There are some who prefer me to Jell-O (TM). I'm going to stay away from the differently heighted in this comment. - November 4, 2010 at 5:01 PM
Thanks for the interesting read
jo6pac - November 5, 2010 at 7:53 AM
- Maryellen said...
All the points in the article make perfect sense, except for one. And that is about the tasting fee.
I am completely opposed to being charged a tasting fee. I visit select wineries to find new and interesting wines. My expectation is that the winery will appreciate my visit and engage in thoughtful conversation in order to make me a customer. The cost of the wine I taste is what other industries call "sales & marketing expense". I am very happy to taste the wine but don't expect me to pay for the experience.
Last trip my wife and I visited Lamborn Winery over on Howell Mtn. Mike and Terry Lamborn spent several hours with us talking and tasting wine. Their friendliness made the experience, and the wine (cognitive dissonance?) very enjoyable. Needless to say, we bought several cases and do so every year.
Contrast that to an unnamed winery in Sonoma. My wife and I were the only people in the tasting room and the woman doing the pouring was a misery. She showed no interest in us and did not even try to make the wine or the experience enjoyable. Yes, I paid a tasting fee but will never buy their wine - ever.
So, for my wife and I, paying a tasting fee results in a negative experience right off the bat. Let's just say the fee leaves a bad taste in my mouth. - November 5, 2010 at 8:42 AM
I know you didn't bring it up, but there was the famous study where several wine tasters were given three Cabernet samples - they were told the first wine was $8 a bottle, the 2nd wine was $18 a bottle; and the third wine was $75 a bottle. The tasters overwhelmingly preferred the $75 bottle of wine. Problem was, it was all the same wine from the same bottle. Now, that is real cognitive dissonance!
And disclaimer here, as a producer of some wine now and again (very small production), I think when people come to the tasting room, they have "an expectation" that they are going to like or dislike the wine - it depends on so many perceptions - did they like the drive up; are they on a tour bus; or a private wine tour; has the tour operator/private driver built up their expectations (i.e., you will love this wine). So, not only is cognitive dissonance at work, there is enough psychology involved to keep a team of pshrinks busy... In most cases the expectation is positive so a tasting room really has to be an awful experience for the tasters not to like the wine (and that is another subject entirely).
But thanks, great post!
PS: Not attempting to be anonymous, but Google was being difficult and wouldn't let me log in! - November 5, 2010 at 9:03 AM
I think that a slightly different explanation for the phenomenon of preferring expensive wine is that you often appreciate a wine to a degree proportionate to the attention you devote to it. When you have some reason to expect a wine to be special (e.g., bottle age, highly recommended, price, etc.), you probe it more thoroughly and usually turn up some subtleties that you would have missed in a more cursory evaluation of something like KJ chard. It may be that you conjure those subtleties in an effort to minimize cognitive dissonance in the way you describe. But it is also possible that those qualities actually exist in the wine, and heightened attention springing from heightened expectations led to their revelation.
- November 5, 2010 at 9:17 AM
- W. Blake Gray said...
Rich: I remember the Cab test. That's confirmation bias (hmm, another post?) Per awful experiences in tasting room -- it happens a lot more than it should; read Edmaryellen's comment.
Edmaryellen: Your experience is important but not really a test of cognitive dissonance; other factors are at work. Plus, some people are more attuned to actual experience than others. Many people will defend a bad movie they paid to see, but others will call it like they saw it (easier to do when you've spent $11 than $111.)
Please tell everyone the winery in Sonoma County that gave you a bad experience. You will save others from the same problem.
Several years ago I was assigned to writing tasting-room reviews. I went to one place that was arrogant and had an awful time. I visited twice -- giving them a second chance -- and the experience was the same. So I trashed them in the newspaper.
Eventually the parent company thanked me because they weren't aware of what a bad job their tasting room was doing. Most people who came there, like you, probably just stopped buying their wine and never told anyone.
Moral of the story: Please either tell me and my readers which tasting room it is, or quietly send the owner of the company (NOT the tasting room manager) an email. He/she might not thank you right away, but a good business person will eventually. You'd be doing them a favor.
I'd name mine again, but this was several years ago and the company has since been sold, so hopefully the experience there is entirely different. Ironically, though, I will still probably never go back; negative associations die hard.
Jo6pac: You're welcome, as always. - November 5, 2010 at 9:40 AM
- Mark Cochard said...
Blake, Arthur Johnson is a long time geek from the Philly Area.
He has had this web page for a long time.
http://wine-people.com/maincontents.htm - November 5, 2010 at 9:57 AM
- rhit said...
Nice post.
It seems like the concept of cognitive dissonance, at least in this context, has everything to do with ego. People tend to default to positive self-judgement. "I'm no fool" says it all. - November 5, 2010 at 10:48 AM
- Maryellen said...
The winery where we had a less-than-positve experience was Lambert Bridge.
- November 5, 2010 at 11:07 AM
- John Logan said...
I was reading your article while enjoying a 2005 Napa cab and a piece of Belgian chocolate with a "Coeds Need Cash" video played on an adjacent window, and I was thinking, I should really be doing something more productive than be reading articles by wine bloggers.
So I went back to viewing the porn. - November 5, 2010 at 11:41 AM
- W. Blake Gray said...
Thanks for sharing.
"Coeds Need Cash"? So THAT'S the end result of internships becoming unpaid. - November 5, 2010 at 12:38 PM
Thanks for another stimulating post. No doubt cognitive dissonance is at play, but I believe the phenomenon another reader pointed out which you described as confirmation bias is a far larger factor in wine tasting and buying (it is also known as the brand effect).
One quibble, however: I think, rather than any psychological factor, the occasional gap between critic scores and commercial success (e.g. KJ Chard) is due, in part, to biological taste preference. That is, people who are drawn to the profession of wine-tasting have unusual palates. For example, they tend to enjoy tannins. Many consumers (average or perhaps, in a different segment) have difference taste perceptions and experience the wine differently. This biological effect changes very little over time, so for many well-off, experienced wine drinkers, they still prefer (on a blind basis) wines not typically rated highly by critics. - November 5, 2010 at 12:40 PM
- Wilf G.K said...
Not only did I spent three minutes reading your blog, now I am spending more time leaving a comment. I got your point though. I never have and never will spend $500 on a bottle of wine. I worked to hard to earn that $500. Besides I know its not really worth that much. But then some people have more money than brains and it gives them bragging rights to show that $500 bottle to their 'friends'.
- November 5, 2010 at 1:11 PM
- W. Blake Gray said...
MediumRare: It's fair to say that critics of anything -- wine, theater, automobiles -- have a number of factors that separate their taste preferences from "civilians." Cognitive dissonance is probably the largest, though, especially for critics of expensive products.
Wilf: Thought experiment for you. If you won $200 million in the lottery tomorrow, would you start drinking $500 wines? Because that's how much money some of these people have.
I don't know how many $500 wines I would drink under the circumstances, but I do know that consumption of tete-de-cuvee Champagne would spike upward sharply in the Gray household. - November 5, 2010 at 2:54 PM
- Dani Fake Webb said...
That last sentence made the whole article worth it. Awesome. (It would have been worth it anyway....but my out loud belly laugh that woke my dogs made it even better...)
- November 5, 2010 at 3:25 PM
- Ice Cream Fellow said...
Great post. For more on this check out Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely (http://danariely.com/). He is an MIT behavioral economist who does a similar experiment with beer. His book offers wonderful insights into how humans think and how we defy logic, even when we think we don't.
- November 6, 2010 at 11:55 AM
To W. Blake Gray,
We as yet don't have an offical tasting room, and unless people are having a small food match to wine, or it's a huge busload that wants to taste but don't buy anything, we generally don't charge.
To Edmaryellen,
If it was just a couple that came up to taste the wine, (as you mentioned that you do) you wouldn't be charged, as in that situation we would assume that you were up to buy, in which case what you taste is part of that expense.
What interests us is the fact that it seems to, in some instances, be better to charge more. We certainly don't charge $500 a bottle, and are in the lucky position to not have our wines harshly criticised so it's not a case of trying to manipulate people to sell bad wine to them. But at the end of the day, the more we can encourage people to buy wine, the easier it is for us to make the wine. - November 7, 2010 at 12:25 PM
Even though I alternated between your post and a window with porn on it, I still thought your post interesting and worthwhile.
I, too, have a Psych BA and a wine blog! Are we the only two?
http://pauljkiernan.wordpress.com/about_paul/ - November 8, 2010 at 1:09 PM
- Anatoli Levine said...
Great post!
I want to comment only on the cost of tasting the wines (talking about the whole "wine taste" phenomena will convert a comment into a blog post :)): if your general focus is on the value wines (those which have great QPR), the more you have to pay for the tasting room access, the more detrimental it gets. I don't believe paying more for the tasting represents value, and I would think that other value-minded wine lovers will have the same take on it... - November 9, 2010 at 5:51 AM
- W. Blake Gray said...
Anatoli: We're not talking about rational valuation.
Wineries won't say it publicly, but they're not all that interested in having tasting-room visitors looking to buy $10 wines.
And if you insist on seeing it only from the consumers' point of view, and not the wineries', consider this -- visiting a tasting room to buy $10 wines is terrible value, regardless of whether or not there's a tasting fee. You can buy $10 wines at your local market without the time and expense of driving -- or flying and driving -- all the way to a winery. - November 9, 2010 at 7:34 AM
- Anatoli Levine said...
well, few points, if I may:
1. There may be a lot of reasons to visit the winery, same as for the wine tasting - the idea is to experience the wines and extend your understanding of what you like and what you don't. Buying wine at the winery is not necessarily the end goal. Having lazy lunch with friends with the wine you like - might be.
2. I live in Connecticut - and I use every opportunity to visit as many wineries as possible when I'm in the right area. I don't know about wineries, but visiting 5 or 6 of them and paying $10 for tasting versus $25 makes a difference to me.
3. If I find the wine I like, and if it is reasonably priced, I usually buy it by the case. $120 makes more sense than $10.
4. I can find something drinkable for $10 in the store, but if you can point me to the winery where I can find a good wine for $10, I will be very grateful. - November 9, 2010 at 11:17 AM
- W. Blake Gray said...
Anatoli: I don't want to extend this. But do consider that the wineries have a point of view and a business to run.
The reason they have a tasting room is not for people to have a pleasant picnic lunch on their site. And while they will never publicly say this, it's not to enhance your knowledge of wine either (though it's a worthwhile secondary goal). That would be charity; tasting rooms are for-profit.
No one who reads my blog regularly could consider me an industry shill; I'm extremely pro-consumer. But there are two sides to every transaction, and both sides get to ask, "What's in it for me?" - November 9, 2010 at 1:25 PM

subset: commoncrawl


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A brownie is a flat, baked square or bar made from chocolate or cocoa powder. The brownie is a cross between a cake and a cookie in texture. Brownies come in a variety of forms. They are either fudgy or cakey, depending on their density, and they may include nuts, frosting, whipped cream, chocolate chips, or other ingredients. Brownies are developed in the United States and popular in both the U.S. and Canada.
Categories and tags of the game : Babyhazel, Cooking


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Sweet Orange - Tough iPhone® Case
Carry around your favorite Parima art with a premium iPhone case. This colorful case will keep your phone safe from accidental drops and everyday mishaps with its dual-layer protection and soft-touch matte finish.
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Available in the US, Canada, Europe, the UK, Australia, and New Zealand only.
Note: Please ensure all shipping information is correct before placing your order. Changes to the delivery address cannot be made once the order is placed.
I know that framing can feel a little daunting, but here are some tips to help you make framing your Parima print a breeze.
Local Frame for Large Prints
I always recommend starting with your local frame shop, and if your print is over 24"x36" then it might be your only option. Independent framers can be surprisingly affordable and incredibly knowledgeable in helping you find the perfect frame style that fits your decor while properly protecting your Parima print's longevity. Additionally, they often deliver the final piece right to your home, either for free or for a small fee. They also may offer installation services, which is really handy when you're dealing with a giant 60"x40" frame!
If an independent local framer doesn't exist in your area places like Michaels, Aaron Brothers, and Hobby Lobby offer custom framing.
Pre-made Frames from Big Box Stores
The prints all are made to fit standard sizes. You'll be able to find pre-made frames up to 24x36 from West Elm, Target, and Ikea. However, they are not made with archival materials and may cause your print to fade or yellow over time.
Online Full Framing Service
Using an online framing service such as FrameBridge for prints 24"x36" and under, or SimplyFramed for prints up to 60"x40" is a convenient way to get prints framed without the hassle of going to a framer.
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If you're a DIYer, custom-made frames from Frame Destination (my favorite is Nielsen style 117 in gold) and Highland Hardware are an excellent choice. See "Final Tips" for help on choosing the right type of glazing and mat options.
Final Tips:
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text:
Untitled Migrant Ship Re-creation Project, 2009 – present, (in progress)
An ongoing archive of material generated from this in-progress project, including sketches, 3D renders, work documentation, installation views, research, and other related ephemera.
In 2009, the artist began a re-creation of a press image depicting the arrival of the Sri Lankan migrant ship, the MV Ocean Lady at the west coast of Canada. This work was realized in many different forms, but most notably as a 3D re-creation and 3D printed models. In addition to photographs, drawings, paintings and other works, there is a web archive of this project.
It is with this project that the artist began looking at how migration has been depicted in media and in history. This subject concerns the complexities and challenges of immigration and its history in Canada, some of which were experienced directly by the artist's family and friends.
At the moment, numerous people from Africa and the Middle East are attempting to reach Europe by sea. Many Europeans view this as problematic, leading to a strong rise in nationalism and anti-immigration rhetoric and policy. These attitudes also exist closer to home: in 2009 and 2010, two ships arrived at the coast of BC carrying Tamil asylum-seekers from Sri Lanka. Canadian authorities seized these ships and detained their crew and passengers. There has been massive public debate and speculation over the legality of their refugee claims and the practice of human smuggling, and a climate of xenophobia has developed amidst accusations of immigration "queue-jumping" and fears of terrorism. This has been echoed many times in Canada's history by the arrival of: Fujianese migrants in 1999, Jewish Europeans on the MS St. Louis in 1939 and Sikhs on the SS Komagata Maru in 1914. And it is difficult to separate this history from that of slavery and colonialization.


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(a cause of persistent cough, mild fever and feeding difficulties in infants) Advice for parents and carers of children younger than 1 year old
If your child has any of the following:
go to the nearest Hospital Emergency (A&E) Department or phone 999
Please ring your GP surgery or call NHS 111 - dial 111
If none of the features in the red or amber boxes above are present.
Using the advice overleaf you can look after your child at home
If you would like help to give up smoking you can get information / advice from your local GP surgery or by calling the National Stop Smoking Helpline Tel: 0800 169 0 169 from 7am to 11pm every day.
Bronchiolitis is an infection that causes the tiniest airways in your child's lungs to become swollen. This can make it more difficult for your child to breathe:
This guidance is written by healthcare professionals from across Hampshire, Dorset and the Isle of Wight


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Butterfly Conservation is inviting you to Plant Pots for Pollinators again this year – proving you can help butterflies, bees and other pollinating insects even without a garden at all!
The annual campaign began as an attempt to help reverse the worrying decline in pollinator numbers, encouraging gardeners to plant up a container or three with flowers chosen with pollinators in mind. You can also map your pot's location online at www.butterfly -conservation.org to find out how pollinator-friendly your neighbourhood is.
It's inexpensive and fun – you'll find all you need, from plants to pots and compost, right here in the garden centre at Hemlington and Middlesbrough.
Start by putting your pot in the place you want it to be – once filled with compost, water and plants it will be very heavy to move. A sunny spot is best as it will encourage more flowers – and pollinating insects prefer to bask in sunshine too!
Fill two-thirds of the container with compost, and arrange your plants on top, trying different combinations until you're satisfied.
Once you've decided on their final positions, gently tip each plant out of its pot and settle it into the container, working more compost around the sides until the container is full. Finally, water the whole thing in thoroughly.
Ten pollinator-friendly plants which are perfectly happy in pots to get you started:
- Perennial sage (Salvia nemorosa)
- Cosmos (Cosmos bipinnatus)
- Catmint (Nepeta)
- Cranesbill (Geranium)
- Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)
- Shasta daisy (Leucanthemum x superbum)
- Gayfeather (Liatris spicata)
- Hyssop (Agastache)
- Lamb's ears (Stachys byzantina)
- Marjoram (Origanum vulgare)
All these are available now from the garden centre along with loads of other nectar-rich, pollinator-friendly plants, so pop in today and ask us for our recommendations. Pack your pots, then sit back and enjoy a summer-long display of flowers and scent that will do you as much good as it does the butterflies!


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Version 84 (modified by 13 years ago) ( diff ) | ,
Welcome to Project-Builder Wiki
Project-Builder.org aims to provide support to the "Continuous Packaging" approach. The mantra is "Package early, package often".
Project-Builder.org is a tool that helps you build packages for your application (provided as tar file, or through a configuration management system such as CVS, Subversion, Mercurial, or Git). It is able to generate build package skeleton for your project, and with simple configuration files to generate for up to 50 different tuples of distributions (name, version, architecture), including Fedora, Mandriva, OpenSuSE, Debian, Ubuntu, Gentoo, Slackware.
It provides a macro system to help you keep common what needs to stay common between distributions, and helps you build Virtual Machines (VMs) (QEMU, KVM) or Virtual environments (VEs) (chroot, rinse) easily to create native packages for the distributions you want to support.
Design Ideas around the project-builder.org project
Since 2005 that I took over the maintenance of the MondoRescue project, I have passed time developing code at the periphery of the project to allow me to easily build packages from Subversion, deliver them, manage them, ...
I met a lot of Open Source project which are suffering from the same barrier for their adoption as MondoRescue suffered in the past: without native packaging for your distribution you have much less people testing your software, trying it, less chance to be integrated in distributions, ...
Then I wanted to also work on another project called dploy.org which uses the great LinuxCOE. However that LinuxCOE project had exactly the same issue as previously mentioned, no packaging, only installs from CVS or tarballs, so smaller community. And in order for me to put something on a production server, I want it packaged :-)
So I decided it could be a good idea to reuse the scripts made for mondo to package LinuxCOE. However, they were too specific, even if the ideas could be reused (that was my 3rd generation of build scripts, so ideas were more advanced than the code). And thus was project-builder.org born !
Technical ideas around the project-builder.org (aka pb) project
- use perl. It makes coding so much more efficient, powerful and also fun
- make it independant from the CMS (flat, CVS, SVN, Mercurial, more to come), the VM (QEMU, more to come) or chroot (rpmbootstrap, mock, rinse, pbuilder), the type of OS (Linux being RPM based, deb based, ebuild based, Solaris pkg...)
- Reuse other Open Source Projects to help create a fully integrated build system, tacking in account building in parallel on various types of systems (virtual, physical, ...)
Getting Project-Builder.org
- Latest versions are available at ftp://ftp.project-builder.org/src/project-builder-0.11.3.tar.gz, ftp://ftp.project-builder.org/src/ProjectBuilder-0.11.3.tar.gz and ftp://ftp.project-builder.org/src/rpmbootstrap-0.11.3.tar.gz Packages are also available for multiple distributions from ftp://ftp.project-builder.org/
- Latest version are also available from CPAN via PAUSE upload.
- Latest development version is availble from the Subversion repository by doing svn co svn://svn.project-builder.org/pb
Generic docs
- Documentation
- The latest presentation of the project is available at http://trac.project-builder.org/browser/devel/pb-doc/pb-presentation.odp
- Porting on Open Solaris
- Porting on HP-UX
- Generating LSB compliant packages
Examples of Project-Builder usage
- The Project-Builder Lab: Experience yourself project-builder.org by following those Lab instructions ! Should provide you with at least 2 hours of fun discovering the tool with detailed explanations. This Lab has been developed for an internal HP Open Source and Linux Event I contributed to organize (TES 2009). Highly receommended to have a good tour of the features.
- NetPerfExample: Simple example with netperf (pb 0.9.7.1). Also Cf: http://trac.project-builder.org/browser/projects/netperf
- BufferExample: Another example with the buffer project (pb 0.9.5). Also Cf: http://trac.project-builder.org/browser/projects/buffer
- LinuxCoeExample: More complex example with LinuxCOE using CVS (pb 0.9.5). Also Cf: http://trac.project-builder.org/browser/projects/linuxcoe
- MondoRescueExample: More complex example with MondoRescue using SVN. lso Cf: http://trac.project-builder.org/browser/projects/mondorescue
- Bootstrapping: How do I get started.
Other pages of interest
- Communications around Project-Builder
- The VCS-Pkg initiative
- Package format comparison by the [EDOS] project
- dar-perl: python script to generate .spec file for perl modules
- rinse: installing minimal copies of RPM-based distributions.
- schroot: securely enter a chroot environment (Example for CentOS).
- createrepo: tool to create a yum repository
- LSB chroot compliant download.
- BitBake a tool for executing tasks and managing metadata.
- 0publish format from the 0install project
- PackageKit
- Semantic Versioning
Packaging format references
- Microsoft CoApp windows packaging initiative
- Winpkg windows packaging initiative
- RPM Web site and the Maximum RPM document
- Debian Policy Manual and Ubuntu Packaging Guide
- Solaris packages
- HP-UX SD packages is coming soon
Concerning trac
- TracGuide -- Built-in Documentation
- The Trac project -- Trac Open Source Project
- Trac FAQ -- Frequently Asked Questions
- TracSupport -- Trac Support
For a complete list of local wiki pages, see TitleIndex.
Trac is brought to you by Edgewall Software, providing professional Linux and software development services to clients worldwide. Visit http://www.edgewall.com/ for more information.


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Lawn Fertilization in Boca Raton
Make the change and go green with John And Floyd Lawn Care Services, Inc. We provide the premier organic lawn care in Boca Raton. If you want the safe and responsible approach to maintaining an eye-catching lawn, our team of lawn care experts is the right choice for you.
Our organic lawn care services are the eco-friendly alternative you can count on for a beautiful lawn free of harsh chemicals and materials. We'll get your grass on track to being healthier, stronger and greener with our organic approach to lawn treatment.
Lawn Treatments Tailored to Boca Raton
We designed our organic program to promote fuller, more vibrant grass with the use of all-natural fertilizers that protect the environment of your home. During each lawn treatment, we apply a balanced organic fertilizer that's safe and effective.
Fertilizers are adjusted depending on weather conditions in Boca Raton. For best results, we recommend watering your grass after each application of fertilizer.
You can keep your lawn weed-free with our natural lawn treatments. Organic fertilizers don't use harsh weed chemicals, and over time, the thickening of your turf eliminates the growth of weeds.
Organic Grass Fertilizer
Organic fertilizers provide the soil with the nutrients it naturally craves – organic materials promote the growth of organic matter and microorganisms, leading you to a greener, more resilient lawn that's able to hold up over time.
Chemical pesticides only help your lawn superficially. But below the grass line, these products are breaking down healthy soil, polluting groundwater and causing serious harm to our local families and communities.
Control Pests with Organic Lawn Treatments by John And Floyd Lawn Care Services, Inc
Chemical pesticides kill off healthy organisms that fight for a greener world below the grass line. Pests find chemically-saturated lawns appealing and thrive in uneven ecosystems.
The best way to eradicate pests from your lawn is to make the environment unattractive to them. By creating a healthy, ecological buildup of soil, your lawn will hold on to the healthy microorganisms it needs.
Insects and plants will keep your lawn healthy, all while discouraging any unrest from pests.
Save Money with Organic Lawn Treatments
At John And Floyd Lawn Care Services, Inc, we've got a proven treatment program for bringing chemically-saturated ecosystems back to life. We wean your lawn off the drugs it depends on, move to a full detox from all pesticides and inorganic fertilizers, and then begin to build your grass up stronger than ever.
Through the regular routine of our organic lawn practices, your soil will eventually acquire the endurance to heal itself and sustain natural growth.
With organic lawn care, you'll be able to stop spending money on chemical quick-fixes. Once your soil is healthy, it will take control of its own ecosystem and become much cheaper to maintain going forward.
Save Time and Let John And Floyd Lawn Care Services, Inc Take Care of Your Lawn Care
We understand that keeping an attractive lawn is an important part of the pride you have in your home. When you want careful, thorough, seasonally-planned treatment to make your grass stay strong, we've got you covered.
So call us today – our lawn care experts make sure your soil has the appropriate nutrients and oxygenation that allows grass to thrive.


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Legalizing Online Gambling - Different Attitudes
Whether to legalize online gambling or not has certainly been in the news in recent months.
While some countries are banning or restricting online gambling, others are looking for a way to regulate and legalize the much loved pastime.
Concerns in the online casino Malaysia have centered on making sure that issues such as gambling addiction will not get worse as a result of legalizing online gambling,
as well as issues such as underage gambling via the Internet.
In the Malaysia, the main reason that there have been objections to liberalizing the online gambling market throughout the country has been because member states have been concerned about the competition against their state-owned online gambling monopolies. They have been clear that there are concerns that if online gambling is run along the same guidelines as the free market that operates throughout the Malaysia, then individual states will lose some much-needed income that is generated via their online gambling monopolies. But is the difference so great? In the Malaysia, there are already some forms of online betting malaysia such as as horseracing and
malaysia 4d lottery, and even where these games are legal, there is often a move towards blocking online gambling, because the gambling is actually not legal to some religion in Malaysia. It seems fairly clear that the state government is not particularly concerned about underage gambling and gambling addiction if they allow bets on horse races to take place in their state. There are definitely those who are opposed to online gambling because they fear it will lead to social problems for some, however, it is difficult to be sure nowadays if the real objection that is being made is because the objectors do not want their current forms of gambling to have competition, or whether they are seriously concerned for the welfare of others. There seems to be no doubt that many states who had first objected to regulating and legalizing online gambling realized that their residents were gambling online anyway, and they were simply missing out on the taxes that they could have been collecting. That, added to the recent worldwide financial crisis has definitely made many lawmakers take notice of the difference it can make to the state or country's coffers if they would legalize online gambling. Along with that also comes the realization that if their residents are playing anyway, they can be protected by regulating the industry, and that their tax money can stay inside the state and can be put to good use.
da ma cai
singapore pools


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July 9, 2014
Doctor cleared after complaint over
Orthodox Jewish practice of sucking
blood from baby's penis at circumcision
by Tristin HopperA Toronto doctor who employs the traditional Jewish practice of orally sucking blood from a baby's penis following circumcision has been cleared by Ontario's physician review board after an anti-circumcision activist filed an official complaint accusing him of religious bias and "sexual motive."
The ritual of orally suctioning blood from a circumcision wound, sometimes through a plastic tube, is known as metzitzah b'peh and is practised almost exclusively among Orthodox and ultra-Orthodox Jewish circles.
"There is no information to support the … contention that there was a sexual motive to the method by which the [doctor] performed ritual circumcisions," reads a decision document published Tuesday by the Health Professions Appeal and Review Board.
The Board ultimately concluded that the original complaint, which was linked to a Seattle-based anti-circumcision group, was obviously meant as "a broadsided attack on the practice of circumcision."
"I'm pleased with the decision, but I'm not going to comment," Dr. Aaron Jesin, a family practitioner who has performed more than 10,000 circumcisions, told the National Post by phone on Wednesday.
Metzitzah b'peh has become the subject of heightened controversy in recent years after it was linked to numerous cases of herpes infection in New York City.
According to New York City health officials, the ritual practice infected 11 boys with neonatal herpes between 2004 and 2011, with fatal implications for two of them.
As the operator of the Jesin Circumcision Clinic, Dr. Jesis performs ritual circumcisions upon request, but told investigators he has a "strong personal stance" against performing metzitzah b'peh with direct oral contact, and said he prevents the risk of infection by using a sterilized plastic tube to suction the blood.
Reviewers later concluded that this provided "adequate protection" against infection.
In a 2012 edition of the Canadian Jewish News, Dr. Jesin was quoted in an article about oral suction.
"If you believe metzitzah b'peh is … [Jewish law]" he told a reporter, "then you will feel very strongly that it's the only way." [And the relevance of this to the practice of medicine is...?]
'It was obvious that he and the Applicant were using the complaint procedure to launch a broadsided attack on the practice of circumcision, whether ritual or non-ritual'
Within four months, the article caught the eye of a complainant identified only as "D.S." In a letter to the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario, he alleged that Dr. Jesin was no longer fit to practise medicine "due to personal bias surrounding his religious beliefs."
The letter added "although it might be presumptive for me to say so, I will say to you that given the nature of this breach, one cannot rule out sexual motive."
In follow-up letters, D.S. would go even further, calling for a full-scale inquiry into Ontario's "ritual amputation activities," and claiming that the practice was counter to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
A further submission by D.S.'s lawyer claimed that no certified medical doctor should be allowed to engage in the "unnecessary amputation of healthy genital tissue from a child who cannot consent to the procedure itself, let alone consent to a sub-standard version."
Although the letter-writer is never named, his lawyer identified himself as the executive director of the group Doctors Opposing Circumcision, a position long occupied by Seattle lawyer John V. Geisheker.
A detailed review by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario — as well as its provincial watchdog — ultimately dismissed the complaints against Dr. Jesin outright, claiming the whole process had been meant as a kind of political protest.
"It was obvious to the Board that he and the Applicant were using the complaint procedure to launch a broadsided attack on the practice of circumcision, whether ritual or non-ritual," read Tuesday's decision document.
[So? Would a complaint about cruelty to animals be ruled out because it came from a vergetarian group?]
The College, in particular, wrote "this is not the proper forum for addressing the issue of male circumcision." [Then what is?]
Earlier story


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Intel announced yesterday that the introduction of its next-generation chips, codenamed Broadwell, will be delayed. The company demoed the 14nm processors at IDF last month, and claims that the new chip can cut power consumption a further 30% below the reductions we saw with Haswell thanks to the move to 14nm process technology, down from 22nm. Broadwell is also set to be significantly smaller than Haswell -- small enough to fit into tablets and form factors without requiring a fan, and supposedly incorporating a GPU that pushes performance up a further 40% over the current generation.
During its Q3 conference call, Intel CEO Brian Krzanich noted that the issues facing Broadwell are technical (as opposed to marketing related), saying "It was simply a defect density issue." The chip will begin production in the first quarter of the year. Intel claims that it's "comfortable" with yields, but is still baking in fixes and changes to the core to better improve its standing. This is unsurprising -- but what Intel dismisses as "just a defect density" issue is, in fact, profoundly at the heart of the problems facing modern semiconductor manufacturing.How defect densities wreck cost curves
As semiconductor nodes shrink, the difficulty of building ever-smaller transistor layouts becomes increasingly acute. The shift to double-patterning can increase defect densities on its own, the fundamental limitations of 192nm lithography are a constant pressure, and the need to ensure ever-higher levels of control over dopant distribution and voltage characteristics are slamming up against the fundamental limits of physical laws. Defect density is a metric that refers to how many defects are likely to be present per wafer of CPUs.
It's important to understand that defects aren't binary. Chips don't just work or not work. A chip may work perfectly but consume more power than intended. Imperfect dopant distribution or nanometer-size errors in transistor placement can cause issues related to frequency scaling. The problem with low-power, low-cost cores is that the manufacturer needs to tightly control both binary work/don't work defects and smaller problems that don't destroy the processor, but prevent it from hitting power targets.One way of lowering the impact of defects is to build redundant circuit paths within the processor itself. All manufacturers build in a degree of redundancy, but when manufacturing tolerances are being tightly squeezed, adding redundant circuits also pushes up complexity. A balance must be carefully struck to ensure that the evaluation and duplicate structures don't end up exacerbating the problem.
Consider the impact of defects that cumulatively increase CPU TDP by 50%. A 50W-75W desktop chip now has a TDP of 75W-112W -- well within the cooling capabilities of a modern tower. A 17W laptop chip at +50% TDP can fit into any chassis capable of handling a 25W TDP. But a tablet chip, already borderline at 5W, may be pushed out of the space altogether if it hits the 7.5W mark. With Intel fighting hard to shake the perception of x86 chips as too power-hungry to fit into ARM-competitive form factors, it's imperative that each generation of x86 processor deliver dividends on this front, even if it costs top-end performance, as it did with Haswell.
All the goals make sense, but the chips have to be yielding optimally to drop them into place.
Expect similar announcements in years to come
Intel's troubles in this area should be considered a bellwether for the industry. It's not that companies will stop advancing, but that the rate of next-generation ramps is going to slow as manufacturers struggle to ramp products through an increasingly uncooperative chain. From extreme ultraviolet lithography to the 450mm wafer transition, some of the best engineers on the planet are trying to build equipment that can continue scaling, even as the cost per square millimeter of silicon increases at 20nm for the first time, ever.
With GlobalFoundries and TSMC still ramping 20nm, Intel's 14nm delay shouldn't impact the company's roadmaps or the lead its opened up over its competitors. TSMC is working to ramp 20nm and 16nm FinFETs simultaneously, with the former debuting in 2014 and the latter launching in the 2016 time frame. GlobalFoundries, Samsung, and IBM are pushing ahead with plans for a hybrid 14-20nm process, in which chips would marry 14nm front-end manufacturing with 20nm interconnects. The result (if it works), would be a chip with 14nm-style power consumption and performance, but 20nm size.
GlobalFoundries hasn't issued firm guidance on when it expects to start ramping 20nm, but 2014 is the generally accepted date, with the 14nm technology coming along 1-2 years thereafter as well. In both cases, slowdowns and delays could impact customers or the foundries themselves -- not because of any inherent flaw, but because the scaling has become so difficult. Moore's law's long-term prognosis may be gloomy, but there are still options for boosting enthusiast performance.
Now read: Wax cooling can massively speed up processors for short bursts


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Tag League Referee Code of Conduct
- Apply the Laws of the Game fairly and impartially.
- On the field, be consistent, objective and respectful.
- Place the safety and welfare of the players above all else.
- Show appropriate caution and concern for injured players.
- Be pro-active to avoid situations of dangerous, unfair or foul play.
- Promptly deal with any demonstration of un-sportsman-like, foul or unfair play (enforce the "Spirit of the Game").
- Encourage and enforce the philosophies of "Everyone Plays", "Positive Coaching" and "Good Sportsmanship".
- Acknowledge good play.
- Be accountable for your actions and decisions. Remain calm at all times.
- Acknowledge that you are a role model and behave accordingly by:
o Setting a good example by the way you dress (uniform), speak and act towards players, coaches, officials and spectators.
o Not inciting spectators to criticise the referee.
o Not disparaging a referees' performance to players while acting as an assistant referee or being a spectator.
o Not discussing play, or players within the presence of players, coaches or others.
o Not behaving in a manner contrary to community standards and expectations.
o Avoiding any level of verbal contact with spectators, coaches during play.
o Demonstrating the highest standard of behaviour at the ground (whether present as an official or as a spectator).
- Treat fellow referees, players, officials and spectators with respect and courtesy.
- Maintain an appropriate level of fitness to keep up with the play.
- Maintain a personal commitment to have a thorough knowledge of the Laws of the Game and keep abreast of any changes.
- Always be punctual.
- Honour and accept assigned games and perform to your best ability at all times.


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Changes in Education
It's the end of your child's first semester of high school and you are expecting the usual report card. Instead, he brings home a portfolio of work which exemplifies his progress towards achieving a series of educational goals established by the district. What's a parent to think?
Or perhaps you have just found out that your first grader will be attending a multi-aged classroom next year which utilizes a cooperative education format and a whole language, interdisciplinary curriculum. What should a parent do?
How about finding out that your fifth-grade daughter attends a school that endorses mastery learning, site-based management, and an effective schools administrative plan? Is it time to panic?
In such circumstances, what is the proper course of action? Should you pull your children out and home school them? Or, should you enroll them in a private school?
Educational reform, which seems to be never ending, often places Christians in a difficult position. Frequently it's hard to know which reforms are hostile to Christian truth, which are merely poorly conceived ideas, and which are actually worthwhile changes in the way we educate children? Many Americans, Christian or otherwise, are becoming cynical regarding educational reform. Every new innovation promises to revolutionize the classroom, and yet things seem to get progressively worse. The last decade has brought more sweeping reform to our schools than ever before, yet few seem to be convinced that our elementary and secondary schools are performing as we would like them to.
In this essay we will evaluate the notion of educational reform in America's public schools. First, we will consider how one might evaluate reforms in general and then look at specific reforms that are currently being debated. These debates often center on five concerns, or what some call crises, in our schools. They are the crisis of authority, the crisis of content, the crisis of methodology, the crisis of values, and the crisis of funding. The term crisis is used here to connotate "a turning point" rather than "collapse or abandonment." Although your local school district may not be embroiled in all five of these concerns, each are widespread throughout the country.
Never have so many Americans been so unsure of their public schools, and many of these people are looking for answers, any answers that will solve the problems that they feel are destroying the effectiveness of education in America. This time of crisis coincides with a split in our society over some very basic notions of what America should be and on what intellectual and moral foundations its institutions should rest. This makes our response to these crises as Christians even more significant. It is also a time of opportunity to have considerable impact on the way our schools operate.
Although the terminology surrounding these crises can be esoteric, they are anything but ivory tower issues. Not only is a great deal of money involved, literally billions of tax dollars, but how our children or perhaps our neighbor's children will be educated will be determined by the resolution of these issues.
Each crisis also represents an opportunity for the Christian community to be salt and light. In order to act as a preservative we must be a discerning people. Too often the Christian community responds to societal change with anger or passivity, when neither are appropriate. Once we gain an understanding of what is happening to our schools we need to respond in a biblically informed manner that seeks the best for both our children and those of our community.
How to Evaluate Reform
Your local school district has just announced that it is installing a new grade school curriculum based on the most recent innovations from brain research. The staff touts the program as widely implemented and research based. As a parent you have yet to take a position on the program, waiting until you have more information, but you feel at a loss as to what type of questions might be appropriate to ask in order to begin your evaluation.
The first step is to understand what is meant by a research- based innovation. For a school program to be truly research-based, an incredible amount of effort must be invested. Unfortunately, few educational reforms are based on such foundations. Two professors of education, Arthur Ellis and Jeffrey Fouts at Seattle Pacific University, have written a book titled Research on Educational Innovations that offers some realistic guidelines for evaluation. The first step in evaluating any reform is to realize that "Theories of human behavior have real, lasting consequences when we try them out on human beings." For that reason alone we should be careful when applying theory to our classrooms.
There are actually three levels of research that need to be finished before proponents of a theory can claim that their curriculum or innovation is truly "research-based." The first level is what might be called "pure research." This often consists of medical or psychological discoveries from clinical experimentation. This kind of research is most effective when specific in focus and highly controlled in methodology, but it might be also be the result of philosophical inquiry. The thinking and writing of Jean Piaget on the development of the intellect is an example of a theoretical source for educational reform that was derived from both observation and philosophical speculation. Unfortunately, this is where the research support of many programs ends, but in order to be called research-based much more needs to be done.
The second level of research involves testing and measuring a theory's implications for actual learning. Here, the theory discovered in the laboratory or minds of philosophers must be implemented in a classroom setting. With the help of carefully controlled groups, researchers can determine whether or not the innovation actually aids in achieving stated educational goals– that kids really do learn more. A third level of research requires educators to discern if this innovation can be applied successfully school-wide and in diverse settings.
To complete research on an innovation at these three levels takes time, money, and tenacity, three things that are often found lacking in our schools. With the incredible political and social pressures to fix our system, educators often turn to programs that make dramatic promises yet lack the necessary testing and trial periods to substantiate the claims of their promoters.
For the Christian parent, establishing whether or not an educational reform is adequately researched is just the beginning of the evaluation process. Even if a program works in the sense that it achieves its stated goals, not all goals are equally desirable. Every reform must be weighed against biblical truth, because they often make assumptions about human nature, about morality, and the way we should answer some of the other big questions of life. Christian parents can never sit idly on the sidelines regarding their children's educational experiences, because education, in all its many facets, helps to shape our children's view of what is real and important in life.
Current Reforms
Outcome-based educational reform is causing some very heated debates throughout the country. At its core OBE is a fairly simple framework around which a curriculum may be organized. It shifts schools away from the current focus on inputs to outcomes, from time units to measured abilities. It assumes all kids can learn, but not at the same speed. Instead of having all students take U.S. history for two semesters of sixteen weeks each, students would be given credit when they master a list of expected behavioral and cognitive outcomes. Not all students will complete the objectives at the same time. The focus is on the tasks to be accomplished, not the time it takes to accomplish them.
OBE would not qualify as a research-based innovation. It claims little or no research at the basic or primary level. At the classroom level, much of the associated research has been done on the concept of mastery learning. There has been considerable amount of work done on this teaching method, and many think that it is a good thing. Others, like Robert Slavin, argue that mastery learning produces short-term or limited results. This still leaves much of the OBE system without a research base. Level three research which seeks to determine if a reform innovation actually works at the district or school level is mostly anecdotal. Stories of how districts have been turned around by OBE are rarely published in journals for critical review.
This doesn't mean that OBE is without merit; the point is, we really don't know. What most people get upset about is how many in the educational bureaucracy have used OBE to establish a somewhat politically correct agenda as educational outcomes, often dealing more with feelings and attitudes than with knowledge and skills.
Another reform which creates conflict is the implementation of thinking skills programs. The idea is to formulate content neutral classroom exercises that will enhance thinking skills across the curriculum. This assumes that there are skills that can be isolated from content and be taught to students. Unfortunately, there isn't an agreed upon list of skills that should be included. Brain research, cognitive science, and information processing theories are possible sources for such a list, but according to Ellis and Fouts in their book Research on Educational Innovations, these have not been tied to basic research programs yet. Since there are ambiguities at the basic level, little level two research has been done to decide if learning can indeed be effected. One study done in 1985 (Norris) concluded that we don't know much about critical thinking and that what we do know suggests that it tends to be context sensitive which strongly argues against the entire notion of thinking skills courses.
School or district wide analysis of these programs tends to consist of "success stories" with little analysis. Again, at this point there is very little evidence that thinking skills can be taught independently of content.
Both outcome-based reform and higher reasoning skills programs are examples of ideas that have found great favor among educators, but little support among Christian parents. This often reflects the imposition of naturalistic or pantheistic assumptions via these reforms by some educators, rather than a critical evaluation of the reforms methods themselves. Unfortunately, some Christians have resorted to personal attacks on the reformers motives, rather than a careful study of the innovation or methodology itself.
Some school reforms are questionable from the beginning– comprehensive sex education being one that comes to mind. But others may contain helpful attributes and yet be poorly implemented or grow into a dogma that drives out other good or necessary parts of the curriculum. Cooperative education and whole language programs can often fit this description.
The two methodologies are different in that cooperative education has a well established research base supporting it, while whole language lacks much beyond the level one or basic research. Christians have generally been against both concepts, but for different reasons. Let's first describe the innovations themselves.
Cooperative education grew out of Kurt Lewin's research in the 1930s on group dynamics and social interaction. One description, offered by an advocate states, "cooperative learning methods share the idea that students work together to learn and are responsible for one another's learning as well as their own." The idea is to use group motivation to get individuals to excel and grow. Most models of cooperative learning programs stress:
- interdependence of learners
- student interaction and communication
- individual accountability
- instruction on social skills
- group processing of goal achievement.
Advocates of cooperative learning have been charged by some Christians with wanting to do away with personal excellence and using group pressure to get children to conform to secular moral norms. I am sure that both of these complaints have justification, but this doesn't have to be the case. In fact, many advocates of cooperative learning don't want to do away with the competitive aspect of schooling, they just want to moderate it and to help students to develop the skill of working in groups. Working in groups does not conflict with Christian thinking. In fact, Christian schools and seminaries make use of similar techniques all the time.
A problem occurs when over-zealous promoters of cooperative learning declare all competitive learning to be dangerous, or offer cooperative learning as a schooling panacea equivalent to a cure for cancer. Some teachers fail to hold students accountable for their work which can lead to unequal effort and unjust rewards for individuals. This lesson damages student motivation and the integrity of the teacher.
Whole language has much less research to support its claims, most of which is at the theoretical or basic level. Whole language theorists argue that language is acquired by actually using it rather than by learning its parts. It rejects a technical approach to language which encouraged learning phonics and grammar rules rather than the simple joy of reading and writing. Unfortunately, there is little evidence that this approach teaches students to read and write well. A large study done in 1989 by Stahl and Miller concluded (1) that there is no evidence whole language instruction produces positive effects, and (2) that it may well produce negative ones.
This is not to say that some whole language ideas might not be implemented beneficially with the more traditional phonics, spelling, and grammar instruction. Its emphasis on reading actual literature, not basal readers, is a positive step, as is encouraging students to write often on diverse topics.
There are a number of problems from a theoretical viewpoint that I have with what is promoted as whole language theory, but my response as a Christian should be to work with the teacher and school my child attends, or to find a setting that teaches in a manner that satisfies my expectations. In any case, a Christlike humility should pervade my contact with the teacher and school.
Educators vs. The Public
In spite of the fact that most Americans see the need for improving our public schools, there has been tremendous resistance to reform, both from parents and many teachers. Information found in a recent study titled First Things First: What Americans Expect From the Public Schools, published by the Public Agenda Foundation might give us some reasons why.
Focusing on parents of public school children, and particularly on Christian and African-American families, the report found that these groups support most of the same solutions to our school's problems. Both groups want higher educational standards and clear guidelines for what students should know and what teachers should teach. They reject social promotions and overwhelmingly feel that high school students should not graduate without writing and speaking English well. African-American parents were even more dissatisfied with their schools than others, and more concerned with low expectations on the part of educators.
A second finding was that school reform was viewed in fundamentally different ways by educators and the public. Most educators believe that schools are doing relatively well while the public feels that much improvement is needed. In Connecticut, 68% of educators felt the schools are better now than when they were in school. Only 16% of the public agreed. Educators and parents differ radically in their explanations for our school's problems. Educators blame public complacency, taxpayer selfishness and racism. Although the public supports integration and equal opportunity, it rejects the notion that more money will automatically fix our schools.
Parents' chief concerns are safe, orderly, and focused schools. Nine of ten Americans believe that dependability and discipline will help our students learn better than reforms in test taking or assessments in general. Three out of four parents support permanently removing students caught with guns or drugs from our schools and temporarily removing those who misbehave. Unfortunately, educators rarely make these issues the center of reform proposals. Other findings include the belief that stable families are a more decisive factor for determining student success than a particular school setting is and a perception that educators are often pushing untested experimental methods at the expense of the basics.
Educators and parents were far apart on a number of classroom methods as well. Parents find nothing wrong with having kids memorize the 50 state capitals and where they are located, or to learn to perform math functions without the aid of a calculator. Educators are much more likely to stress higher-order reasoning skills and early use of calculators. Parents in general are less preoccupied with the need for sex ed, AIDS education, multicultural experiences, and even school prayer. They tend to want schools to be safe, orderly, and academically sound.
There seems to be much common ground that the vast majority of parents, and other taxpayers, agree on. As Christians, we probably would be much happier with our schools if they were safe, orderly, and academically sound. Most Christian parents understand and accept the fact that their public schools will not be overtly Christian. On the other hand, they feel that the Christian faith and its presuppositions should receive fair treatment when reforms are instituted. In recent years many Christian parents have seen their schools initiate programs that both challenge and ridicule their beliefs. This isn't necessary, and it has alienated the very people who must fund and support the schools if they are to be successful.
©1995 Probe Ministries


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text: London-based collectors Claire and James Hyman have donated 125 photographs to the Yale Center for British Art, gifting key works by leading figures in British photographic history – including Bill Brandt, Bert Hardy, Roger Mayne, Tony Ray-Jones, Martin Parr, Chris Killip and Anna Fox – to the 44-year-old institution in New Haven in the US. It's a move that could be interpreted as a damning indictment of UK institutions' commitment to collecting British photography – particularly as, the last time BJP caught up with James Hyman (our May 2015 issue), he said building such collections has been "left to private individuals, and it shouldn't have been". In the same interview Hyman also singled out Birmingham Library and its curator of photography collections Peter James for praise – yet in the intervening time, both the photography archive and James' job have fallen victim to funding cuts. But Hyman says the donation should be viewed in a positive light as evidence of the growing interest in British photography abroad – an interest which may spark more commitment in the UK.


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What are your requirements?
What do you imagine?
Here are some questions to consider:
- How much space do you need?
- Do you need a home office?
- Is there suitable parking?
- If you have a pet, do you need a small yard?
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- What do you consider your ideal location?
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New or used?
A new home is one that was recently built and has never been lived in. Advantages include:
- Up-to-date materials
- Energy-efficient features
- Lower maintenance costs because everything is new
- 10 year home warranty
A resale, or used home, can offer additional value in terms of possibly a larger lot or a more established neighbourhood but usually has higher maintenance costs or may even need refurbishing.
Forms of Ownership
A freehold property is owned outright; there is no co-owned space or shared common areas with other home owners. Freehold owners can alter their property to suit themselves and do not require permission where the changes are allowed under municipal law. Houses and duplexes are usually freehold ownership.
A condominium is freehold ownership of a single unit in a building or development and co-ownership of common areas and land the development is on. Condo owners manage the development through a condo council. Condos are usually high-rise apartments, townhouses, and factory-built home developments.
Types of homes
Single-family Detached
This is a fully detached, single family home that sits on its own lot.
This is commonly called a duplex and its predominate feature is an shared wall between the two living spaces. These are often less expensive that single family homes but they require a degree of cooperation with the co-owner. Duplexes can be side-by-side or up-and-down.
These are single family residences forming a row with common walls separating the units. They can be freehold or condominiums. They usually have a small yard or outdoor space that is for the exclusive use of the owners.
Modular Home
A modular home is also a factory-built, single-family home. The home is typically shipped in large sections, or modules, bolted together and placed on a permanent foundation at the building site. Increasingly, modular homes are indestinguishable from site-built homes.
Manufactured Home
A manufactured home is a single-family home built on a steel frame for transportation purposes. It may be single or double-wide and may have drywall or vinyl paneling. These are often referred to as "park model†homes and are placed on foundations.
Mobile Home
Mobile homes are similar to manufactured homes except they retain the ability to be moved and will accept wheels on their steel frames.
This is a self-contained living unit in a building with other units of a similar nature. It features kitchen, bathroom, and other rooms as designed.