text:
Anglican and Roman Catholic Churches in UK Issue Defense of Traditional Marriage
Anglican and Roman Catholic authorities in Britain issued on Tuesday official declarations stating their firm opposition to government plans to change the legal definition of marriage, saying that despite reassurances claiming otherwise, clergy may very well be forced to perform same-sex marriages.
"The uniqueness of the institution of marriage is based on the fact that the human person exists as both male and female and that their union for the purpose of procreation, mutual support and love has, over the centuries of human history, formed a stable unit which we call the family," said the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales in a statement.
The U.K. government has been deliberating whether to change the traditional definition of marriage to include same-sex couples by 2015, a proposal backed by British Prime Minister David Cameron. Same-sex civil partnerships have been legal in England since 2005.
"Conservatives believe in the ties that bind us; that society is stronger when we make vows to each other and support each other. So I don't support gay marriage despite being a Conservative. I support gay marriage because I'm a Conservative," Cameron said back in Oct. 2011 during a Conservative party conference.
"To change the nature of marriage for everyone will be divisive and deliver no obvious legal gain given the rights already conferred by civil partnerships," said the Church of England, Mother Church of the Anglican Communion. "We believe that imposing for essentially ideological reasons a new meaning on a term as familiar and fundamental as marriage would be deeply unwise."
The U.K government has said that it will allow exemptions for churches that do not wish to marry same-sex couples -- "We won't be asking anybody to do anything that goes against their conscience," Home Secretary Theresa May, whose department is leading the consultation, previously remarked.
But the Church of England reportedly has expressed fears that such plans are "unlikely to survive legal challenges in domestic and European courts," meaning that clergy might have to perform such ceremonies anyway, or risk breaking the law.
Tory, or conservative, Member of Parliament Crispin Blunt told the BBC that the government's plan to "to protect, indeed proscribe, religious organizations from performing same-sex marriages" may be "problematic legally."
Human rights lawyer Lucy Scott-Moncrieff, vice president of the Law Society, said in another interview with the BBC that it was unlikely the European Court of Justice will force religious institutions to perform marriages against their will, "but what it might say is that religious organizations should be allowed to if they want to," she argued.
Some pro-gay organizations have accused the church of focusing less on real important issues and diverting most of its attention to same-sex marriage.
"Many bishops in the Church of England today will be rather pleased because once again they are not talking about global poverty or the HIV pandemic, they are talking about the subject that obsesses them, and that is sex," responded Ben Summerskill, chief executive of the gay rights organization Stonewall.
The Catholic Church in England and Wales is further asking believers to sign a petition the Coalition for Marriage website, which has so far gathered over 500,000 signatures opposing the government's plans to change the definition of marriage.
"Throughout history and in virtually all human societies marriage has always been the union of a man and a woman. Marriage reflects the complementary natures of men and women. Although death and divorce may prevent it, the evidence shows that children do best with a married mother and a father," the Coalition for Marriage argues.


text:
REVIEW: Disney's "Oz The Great and Powerful" is a visual wonder with a few snags.
By James A. Molnar
TGK Editor
Follow the yellow brick road.
It's been almost 75 years since MGM's "The Wizard of Oz" captivated audiences on the big screen. Its prequel, "Oz The Great and Powerful," hits theaters today. This film, like the original, recreates the world from the 1900 novel by L. Frank Baum. Audiences learn more about the wizard, the man behind the curtain.
This new film is a visual wonder filled with sweeping vistas, colorful production design (thanks to two-time Oscar winner Robert Stromberg) and that famous route to the Emerald City. The Land of Oz is really something to behold.
The 3-D is enchanting as director Sam Raimi, of "Evil Dead" and the original "Spider-Man" trilogy, takes us to the merry old land. From flying monkeys to a porcelain young girl, the animated characters look and feel real.
Filmed in 2011 at Michigan Motion Pictures Studios, a 675,000-square-foot sound stage facility in Pontiac, Mich., Raimi had the entire production on the facility's seven sound stages. It was the first project to be shot there. All of the sets for the film were built indoors with every frame shot on the stages.
Michelle Williams is magnificent as Gilda, the good witch. James Franco as Oz is not quite as good, but manages a memorable character.
The story is very Disney — believe in yourself and your dreams will come true. Fans of the studio will enjoy this film, but they will also be able to see each part of the classic formula.
The first half of "Oz" really works, especially the black-and-white opening. With the Emerald City at its center, the story comes to colorful life when Oz drops into Oz. The visuals help the story, but they can only go so far.
As the film winds down, "Oz" could have used more wow and could have been more compelling.
Maybe expectations were too high, but there was a lack of charisma at times. The emotional connection was sometimes missing in action.
Compared to another visual wonder, "Oz" is similar to Disney's 2010 "Alice in Wonderful" but it's missing the eccentricity of director Tim Burton and Johnny Depp's Mad Hatter.
The visuals of "Oz," however, do make the journey back exciting, even if some of the characters are not as compelling.
/ 5
Official trailer:
Rated PG for sequences of action and scary images, and brief mild language.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 21, 2014
A'PEXi Racing- FORMULA DRIFT 2014 – ROUND 1-LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA RACE REPORT
ORANGE, CA – The 2014 Formula Drift season kicks off a new season with a new beginning for the A'PEXi Racing team with seasoned D1GP driver, Kuniaki Takahashi behind the wheel of the Lexus SC430. During this offseason, the crew was at work making changes to the SC430 machine that were geared towards Takahashi-san's vehicle settings, including converting the vehicle to right-hand drive to assure the driver acclimation process to be as efficient as possible. Takahashi is known for his aggressive "all out" driving style driving Toyota chassis' such as the JZX100/ Mark II and his current vehicle in the D1GP series, a Toyota Mark X, he is no stranger to the Lexus SC430.
The twin-turbocharged Lexus SC430 on Yokohama ADVAN Neova AD08-R tires put down a couple of practice runs during practice, but unfortunately ran into mechanical issues during the session, and the crew hustled to get the machine back out on track in time for qualifying sessions, however, the limited seat time was not enough to result in a Top 32 qualifying score out of an estimated field of 60 cars. On the following weekend, the team was back out for the Motegi Racing Super Drift Challenge during the Long Beach Grand Prix weekend, Qualifying in the 11th position, and faced up against 2013 Formula Drift Champion and Yokohama Tire teammate, Michael Essa in his turbocharged BMW 3-series. Though, not able to advance into the Top 8 competition bracket, the potential of the vehicle with Kuniaki Takahashi behind the wheel was witnessed immediately during the tandem Top 16 round, and the team is anticipating a successful 2014 season.
During the back to back competition race weekends we were proud to introduce this year's team and partners: A'PEXi Racing x Up Garage x Yokohama Tire with Kunny'z, rest assured that the team is hard at work preparing the SC430 to be the dependable and competitive machine that it has lived up to be the past few seasons. In addition, to developing and dialing in the vehicle to Takahashi's specifications.
We would like to thank all of our 2014 partners for their continued support as the team gears up and prepares for the upcoming Formula Drift Round 2: Road to the Championship event hosted by Road Atlanta in Braselton, GA on May 9-10, 2014.


text:
Video: The Transhumanist Paradox – Deciding between technological utopias in a liberal state
Speaker Xavier Flory, a researcher in political sciences at Sciences Po offers a very enlightening talk about liberalism and the liberal state and the transforming of this state and its basic principles by millions of individual choices, thus erroding the foundations of our democracies. Flory:
"Liberal states protect individual liberty, but are oblivious that technology is radically transforming the environment in which we exercise this liberty."
Flory explains, these days individuals constantly make decisions about technology and its use, altering the common ground of our society, shaping its future. This is different from what we used to know, Flory says, because usually:
"Politics is the means by which humans can make collective choices about their future."
Here the paradox comes in:
"Liberalism is the political doctrine that refuses to endorse or enact substantive collective visions of the future."
So to speak, liberalism ignores the power of individual decisions shaping the collective future, rendering the power of constitution to some obscure, intransparent algorithms and its developers enacting the digital age. But we should not stop to reclaim the power to shape that future:
"The liberty to choose what to do in a specific situation is nothing without the liberty to deliberate upon and choose our common future."


text:
Retro Nick and Nora Cocktail Glass
With an elegant design, the retro Nick & Nora Glass brings sophistication to any serve. Made from lead-free crystal, this cocktail glass features brilliant transparency to accentuate the contents in a minimal drink presentation. This high level of clarity in the material is paired with an elegantly delicate stem, contrasting with the comparatively large bowl on top.
Inspired by vintage 1930s design, this cocktail glass emerged from classic detective film, The Thin Man. Taking its name from the cocktail loving lead characters, Nick & Nora Charles, this crystal stem glass is the perfect embodiment of prohibition era style.
Offering a solution to spill-prone wide rimmed martini glasses, the Nick & Nora cocktail glass has tall walls. This reduces the chance of spillage, ensuring the drinker can enjoy the fruits of your mixology.
Product Features
- 6 oz
- Small cocktail stem glass inspired by classic 1930s movie "The Thin Man"
- Elegant Prohibition era aesthetic
- Tall walls offer spill-proof alternative to the classic martini glass
- Lead-free crystal – FDA approved glass with no toxic additives
- Delicate thin stem
- Thin walled bowl gives lightweight finish to drinkers
- High transparency – lasts up to 1500 industrial glasswasher cycles
- Thermal shock resistance
- Elegant seamless pulled stem adds beauty and strength
- Laser treated rim for resistance to chipping
- Dishwasher safe


text:
Wellbeing Services
Welcome to the Wellbeing Team
The Wellbeing Service offers psychological help and practical support for people experiencing a wide range of very common mental health problems such as worry, low mood, insomnia and stress. We also provide support for carers and people who are struggling with the reality of living with long term physical health conditions. Our service can provide help too if you are experiencing anxiety or low mood during or after pregnancy.
Many of the options that we offer are based on cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) which has shown through research to be a highly effective psychological therapy for people experiencing anxiety or depression. CBT involves looking at the way you think and your ways of coping in order to identify changes that you can make that may help you to feel better.
We deliver treatment in a variety of ways to ensure we can support those needing help as flexibly as possible. Interventions include guided self-help using self-help materials, facilitated Computerised CBT programs, skills based workshops and individual sessions.
If you feel that you would benefit from the service, you are over 16 years and are registered with a GP in Hertfordshire, please make a self-referral by calling the team on 0300 777 0707 or completing a referral form online at http://www.hpft.nhs.uk/wellbeing-service
Alternatively you can discuss this further with your GP.
Once you a make contact with the team we aim to be in contact within a few days to book your initial assessment appointment. At this assessment appointment you will be able to discuss your problems in more detail and reach a decision about which form of treatment may be most suitable for you.


text:
NASA's Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) successfully launched from California at 9:02 a.m. EDT on Sept. 15, embarking on its mission to measure the ice of Earth's frozen reaches with unprecedented accuracy.
ICESat-2 lifted off from Space Launch Complex-2 at Vandenberg Air Force Base on United Launch Alliance's final Delta II rocket. Ground stations in Svalbard, Norway, acquired signals from the spacecraft about 75 minutes after launch.
It's performing as expected and orbiting the globe, from pole to pole, at 17,069 mph from an average altitude of 290 miles.
"With this mission we continue humankind's exploration of the remote polar regions of our planet and advance our understanding of how ongoing changes of Earth's ice cover at the poles and elsewhere will affect lives around the world, now and in the future," says Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator of NASA's Science Mission Directorate.
ICESat-2 carries a single instrument, the Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System (ATLAS). ATLAS will be activated approximately two weeks after the mission operations team completes initial testing of the spacecraft. Then ICESat-2 will begin work on its science objective, gathering enough data to estimate the annual height change of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets to within four millimeters — the width of a pencil.
"While the launch today was incredibly exciting, for us scientists the most anticipated part of the mission starts when we switch on the laser and get our first data," says Thorsten Markus, ICESat-2 project scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.
"We are really looking forward to making those data available to the science community as quickly as possible so we can begin to explore what ICESat-2 can tell us about our complex home planet."
The high-resolution data will document changes in the Earth's polar ice caps, improve forecasts of sea level rise bolstered by ice sheet melt in Greenland and Antarctica, and help scientists understand the mechanisms that are decreasing floating ice and assess how that sea ice loss affects the ocean and atmosphere.
ICESat-2 continues the record of ice height measurements started by NASA's original ICESat mission, which operated from 2003 to 2009, that were continued by the agency's annual Operation IceBridge airborne flights over the Arctic and Antarctic, which began in 2009.
Data from ICESat-2 will be available to the public through the National Snow and Ice Data Center.
Goddard built and tested the ATLAS instrument, and manages the ICESat-2 mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate. Northrop Grumman designed and built the spacecraft bus, installed the instrument, and tested the completed satellite.
NASA's Launch Services Program, based at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, is responsible for launch service acquisition, integration, analysis, and launch management.
Source: NASA


text:
Thank you for using a Calleigh's Clips original pattern. I have done my best to keep my patterns simple and easy to understand. If at any time you need assistance, please feel free to contact me using the contact tab.
Please remember that there may be a slight variance in sizing due to different tensions of each individual and materials used.
All patterns are copyright protected, but you are welcome to sell finished products made from my patterns. I do ask, however, that you mention my company name along with my web shop address as follows:
Calleigh's Clips & Crochet Creations by Elisabeth Spivey
Do not use images for any use! If you sell items made from this pattern please make and photograph your own work! Thank you! ~Elisabeth
Skill Level: Easy
Materials : Super Bulky Yarn #6 - Like Hometown USA (shown in Black)
or Three Strands of worsted weight yarn (like Vanna's Choice or I Love This Yarn)
(shown in Green)
N - 10 mm hook, Tapestry Needle
Gauge - not required
Thick & Quick Chain Scarf
*I try to make sure the chain doesn't twist when joining but it's not entirely necessary for this pattern.
*Be sure not to sl st to tightly because you will be working into those stitches.
*Round 1 measures about 50 inches
*Other options - If you want it shorter or longer just decrease or increase the amount of chains each row. I separated each row by decreasing 5 stitches. You cold even make it all the same length. Round 1 is a good length if you want to wrap your scarf/cowl around your neck twice for a different look.
Round 1: Ch 100, join with a sl st to 1st ch, sl st in the next 4 chs
Round 2: Ch 95, join with a sl st to 1st sl st of row 1, sl st in next 4 sts
Round 3: Ch 90, join with a sl st to 1st sl st of row 2, sl st in next 4 sts
Round 4: Ch 85, join with a sl st to 1st sl st of row 3, sl st in next 4 sts
Round 5: Ch 80, join with a sl st to 1st sl st of row 4, sl st in next 4 sts
Round 6: Ch 75, join with a sl st to 1st sl st of row 5, sl st in next 4 sts
Round 7: Ch 70, join with a sl st to 1st sl st of row 6, fasten off but leave about 12 inches for sewing.
*Looking at the area of the 5 sl st stitches, fold round 1 to round 7 and sew together to form a tube. (see pictures below for example) Fasten off and weave in ends.
See how easy that was! Here is another great idea! My mom made the one below with three strands of impeccable by Michaels and then added a pin to the sl st 5 area. You could easily add pins make a crochet bow or embellish it in lots of other fun ways! Be creative and have fun!
If you make one I'd love to see! You can link up project on Raverly (link coming soon) or just share it on my Facebook page!


text:
HotorNot.com is a site where you can post a photograph of yourself (or someone else) and have visitors to the hotornot.com website rank the photo. The question that is posed - Hot or Not? Think what you may, this site has been around a while and continues to be popular. This Google Maps mashup (link now dead) has taken the site a step further by plotting the locations of those in the photos on a Google Maps overlay. As a footnote, HotorNot actually has an API and developer wiki which this person used to create this mashup.
Here's (link now dead) a Google Maps mashup which has combined the 'Wiki' page publishing concept with Google Maps. "Maps can be created, edited, saved in a Wiki fashion". The creator is eager for feedback.
Google Maps and the TTC (Toronto Transit Commission) - I'm not sure if I already posted this overlay or not. If not, here is the Toronto subway network (known as the TTC) overlaid onto Google Maps. So much more could be done with the captions for this hack. Station information, accessibility info, photos etc. I'm sure more detail will be added to this or an enhanced mashup.
Monday, July 18, 2005
Saturday, July 16, 2005
Google Map interface now includes a scale!
Since any good map includes a scale, Google Maps is no longer an exception. If you check Google Maps today you'll notice at the bottom left of the map tool, there is now a handy scale to judge distance. For Canadians and other countries using the metric system, it is displayed in kilometres as well as miles!
(Thanks to the good folks at Google Sightseeing and Sightseeing with Google Maps for the tip!)
(Thanks to the good folks at Google Sightseeing and Sightseeing with Google Maps for the tip!)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)


text:
*Sold Individually*
Engineered to perform under the most extreme of conditions our cylinder head gaskets are rated for use up to and over 600BHP.
Unlike most conventional cylinder head gaskets, our gaskets use what is most commonly known as a "folded stopper level". This revolutionary design dramatically reduces the chances of any pressure leakage from the cylinders. An increased thickness in the gasket is introduced around vital sealing areas and the design of this extra layer forms a much stronger barrier to prevent gasses / pressure / water and oil escaping from its designated area. The layer acts as a very reliable defence and is highly recommended for any Subaru, specifically those running above the standard factory torque / horsepower figures.
In conjunction with this new technology our gaskets also feature a unique nitrile rubber coating. This coating is designed to act as a cushion in which to fill / take up any areas of imperfection found in either the cylinder head or block faces, to ensure you have the very best combustion chamber armour!
Finally our cylinder head gaskets are all stamped from dies as appose to laser cut. With die stamping you can process a large amount of material at once which means that variations in the quality of each individual gasket is far less compared to laser cutting (in which each gasket section is cut separately to one another). With Die Cutting the finished edges are also far superior, leaving a much smoother, neater edge to the gasket as appose to laser cut steel which leaves a sharper edge behind.
For the ultimate seal all our gaskets are manufactured and designed to accept the larger 12mm and 14mm cylinder head studs also available from our online store. The standard cylinder head bolt (the component that joins the cylinder head to the block and offers force to seal your cylinder head gasket in place) is 11mm thick and uses a relatively fine thread. It is important to remember this bolt was developed for use on a mainstream engine producing no more than 320Bhp, Subaru did not manufacture this bolt for use with anything above this power and as such it is important to consider stronger and more suitable replacements. Here at RCM we manufacture both a 12mm and 14mm replacement head stud and nut kits. The studs are naturally stronger due to their extra thickness and superior material quality but they also benefit from a much coarser rolled thread (meaning you can tighten them far more than the standard bolt which in turn will offer a much higher clamping load between both the cylinder head and block faces where you head gasket is situated.)
Reliability is key to any engine rebuild, whether done for higher horsepower applications or just a simple repair / refresh its important to choose your components wisely so that you don't end up repeating the process later down the line.
Custom build engines utilizing the EJ22 cylinder block with EJ25 2006+ cylinder head castings.


text:
Free information event of the torso-Verlag to a free information event with the theme of PANTONE Textile system – aspects of industrial communication of color the torso-Verlag invites on 23 January 2014 in its premises. Mrs Ingrid Holacsek refers to three issues of color. The first lecture begins at 10:30 and deals with the opportunities and risks in the modern color management. This involves also the technically correct implementation of the colors in the entire workflow, from design to production. After the lunch break, the lecture on color strategies for global markets worldwide illuminated the importance of color in the brand communication. Discussed technical aspects are aspect and the psychological impact, the question about the trend of color on the purchasing behavior of customers.
The third lecture by 2015 offers exciting views of the color trends of the coming season with understanding development and importance. The lectures are complemented by an exhibition with the work equipment of the PANTONE Textile systems. That provides a good opportunity for interested intensively to be aware of the PANTONE colors and their application in production and design. In an open discussion after the presentations Mrs Holacsek is for questions to the PANTONE color palettes available. Guests also have the opportunity, find out about other industry-relevant color systems and color collections, such as PANTONE plus series, NCS, CLASSIC, discuss colors and the colors in the CMYK color space to inform and to to the main working ways RAL DESIGN, Munsell, HKS RAL. In the exhibition space for standard light, different color test lamps with different light types can be tested.
Also, the two-stage color vision test for determination of color vision and color discrimination ability to the qualification of employees can be performed. Participants of the eyesight tests receive a certificate upon request. Note of the Organizer: the info day training and information for professionals the motto and is not a sales event. For participation in the info day, there is a confirmation of participation.


text:
A schoolgirl falls to the ground, her face turning red as she struggles to take a breath. The growing panic in her eyes mirrors the shock in the crowd that encircles her. By the end of the day she'll have endured, and survived, three of these life-threatening asthma attacks.
Luckily for Ella, the attacks weren't real. She was acting as part of Emergency! at this year's Big Bang science fair. I was at the opening day of the event in March, with James Moore, to video and photograph this public engagement initiative headed up by Professor Roger Kneebone and Dr Fernando Bello.
Real paramedics, doctors, nurses and surgeons teamed up to put on hyper realistic simulations of emergency medicine. Using genuine equipment and procedures that both save lives and train new medical staff, the team treated the Big Bang audience to 'performances' of emergency heart and brain surgery, in addition to the asthma attacks.
"Our aim here is to give children and their teachers and parents a sense of what's involved when someone is taken ill, and how they need to be taken care of by a whole team of people" said Professor Kneebone. "And particularly how they shouldn't be frightened; that they should be excited, not only about the care that people give, but the science that goes alongside it, and how they could get involved in a scientific or medical career themselves. That's what we're trying to achieve."
After an unfortunately brief visit, we headed back to the office to create a short trailer, with the aim of encouraging more people to visit Emergency! over the weekend. We were delighted that the video trailer (below) featured on the front page of the Health section of the new Imperial News site, and are confident we achieved our aim.
Visitors to the fair also had to contend with a zombie epidemic, as the MRC Centre for Outbreak Analysis and Modelling introduced their work at their Bacterial Games stand.
We're now working with Roger and Fernando to set up a blog for their future public engagement work, to provide a space for them to sound out ideas, to talk about future events and to invite feedback from others. A more in-depth film of Emergency! will hopefully feature there soon.
Are you (a Faculty of Medicine academic) involved in public engagement activities? Do have a story that you think needs to be told? As your Digital Communications team, James and I are here to help. Whether it's assistance in getting going on social media, setting up your website or you'd like us to help you capture something on camera, get in touch!


text:
Clown N Around Childrens Entertainment
Website: http://www.clownNaround.com
Phone: 240-705-5319
Serving areas: All of Dc, Baltimore, Maryland, and Virginia.
Voted #1 in Kids Entertainment! Specializing in clowns, face painting, balloon twisting, costumed characters, puppet shows, magic shows, storytelling, concession rentals, moonbounces and more. We are a one stop shop for your event needs. Our (CEO) Oh! Day enjoys featuring all of his shows at birhtday parties, church events, family reunions, festivals and more!
Tags: Baltimore Party Clown, Birthday Clown MD, Birthday Entertainment VA, Childrens Party DC, Clown N Around, Clown N Around Childrens Entertainment VA, clowns, Clowns in Maryland, DC area Childrens Entertainer, DC Kids Party, DC Kids Party Clown, DC Party Clown, Hire a Party Clown in DC, Hire a party Clown in Maryland, Kids Parties MD, MD Clown for Hire, Oh Day the Clown, VA Kids Party Clown
Posted in District of Columbia Clowns, Maryland Clowns, Virginia Clowns |