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Loudoun elementary schools may have an average of 22 students to a class, but this year's actual classroom size ranges from as few as eight children in a room to as many as 28.
"That literally is the range, even starting out," said Sharon Ackerman, assistant superintendent for instruction.
Project STAR, a national report on classroom size, established that smaller classes in kindergarten through third grade produced substantial improvement in early learning. The effect on achievement among minority children nearly doubled. Student skills at the economically poorest schools rose from well below average to above average in reading and mathematics. The students' progress continued after returning to average-size classrooms.
Ackerman said the STAR research showed improvement only when the classes had 15 students. "Somewhere between 18 and 25, they could not find a real impact on student achievement," she said. "What is less easy to measure is how does the smaller class size allow the teacher to get to know the students and their parents on a personal level.
"Any teacher will tell you it feels better to have a smaller number of students, because you can give more attention to each student. I think that's equally important."
She said research supports that opinion.
MEETING THE OPTIMUM size of 15, however, would be costly. Loudoun would need to hire additional teachers and build more classrooms, she said. Ackerman provides the School Board with estimates on classroom size reductions, but not as low as 15, she said.
She provided reasons for the disparity in classroom size after reviewing enrollment figures from the first week of school, which started Sept. 7. She declined to make the enrollment numbers public, because they are expected to change by the end of the month. They said the Sept. 30 tally would more accurately reflect the school's projection of 44,715 students for the 2004-2005 school year.
The School Board has set the average elementary classroom size at 22, the middle school at 21, and the high school at 26.1. The board lowered the middle school average from 22 to 21 and the high school average from 26.6 to 26.1 this year. Chairman John Andrews (Potomac) and member Bob Ohneiser (Broad Run) voted against the budget, because they wanted to reduce the high school class size even further.
Andrews said keeping the class size closer to the averages set by the board would allow the teachers to provide more individual instruction. "When you start getting up to 28, especially with the younger children, that's a lot of children to manage," he said.
Ohneiser expressed frustration with the disparity. "I think it's a losing argument, because the only small classroom sizes are in the rural parts of the county," he said.
Ackerman said schools in the western, rural region of the county are likely to have lower numbers than the eastern, urban side. The Middleburg Elementary School has a class size of eight this fall. Last year, the school had one class with eight students and another with nine, according to a chart entitled, "Elementary Class Sizes, December 8, 2003." Emerick Elementary School in Purceville had two classes of six students and one of seven.
Ackerman said some of the older schools are small and only have one class per grade. "The second grade or third grade students in those attendance areas don't come in nice neat packs of 20," she said.
Andrews said a number of factors contribute to student achievement, but the small class sizes in the west has made a difference. "If you look at Aldie, they always have some of the top test scores," he said. "It's a small group of children who are getting more of a direct education."
School Board member Priscilla Godfrey (Blue Ridge) countered that environment, home life, and support or non-support from parents also enter into the equation.
School Board member Warren Geurin (Sterling) said the issue is not east versus west in regard to class size. "If we are to maintain neighborhood schools, especially in the rural, less densely populated areas, we will probably always have lower class sizes in those schools."
OHNEISER COMPLAINED that the county's resources are not evenly distributed. Schools in his district have a high number of students in the classroom. "The rural parts of the county have a private school environment, given the ratio of students to teachers," he said.
Loudoun needs to continue building new schools to prevent overcrowding, he said. "They are on the edge now."
He said he fears classroom sizes in Ashburn will reach as high as 33, harming the quality of education.
Ackerman said the school district combines two classes when one grade is in the single digits and the next grade has 17 to 19 students. "We do it … to be close to being equitable in staffing across the county. We have some large schools using combination classes for the same reason," she said.
Last year, three of the 41 elementary schools had combination classes: Middleburg, Mill Run and Waterford. A combined class of second and third graders, for example, made up a classroom size of 29 students in Waterford.
Godfrey said she has seen the benefits of using combination classes, because her children attended Middleburg Elementary School. A combined class provides an opportunity for a second grader who has the ability to do third grade math, and remediation for a third grader who writes at a second grade level.
LAST YEAR, many elementary schools had class sizes exceeding 22 without combining classes. On the other hand, there were 12 students per class in Aldie and Lucketts elementary schools, 13 in Rolling Ridge in Sterling, and 15 in Guilford Elementary School in Sterling, and none of them were combined with other grades. The latter two are in eastern Loudoun.
She said the School Board will reset the boundaries to route more students to certain schools to ensure class sizes are closer to the average. The board would not make changes, though, if it resulted in children having to ride the bus for more than an hour, she said.
Ackerman provided another reason for the disparity in classroom sizes. The school district purposely limits the number of students in a class when it has children who are not proficient in English, who qualify for free or reduced lunch or who receive special education services, she said.
Geurin said five Sterling Park schools and two Sugarland Run schools fall in this category. "Despite opposition from some, our budget has provided for increased numbers of teachers so that we could lower class sizes at Rolling Ridge, Sterling, Forest Grove, Guilford, Sully, Sugarland and Meadowland elementary schools." The latter two are in the Sugarland section of Sterling. The others are in Sterling Park.
He said he is grateful that the School Board has recognized the problems associated with having a large percentage of children whom are not proficient in speaking English. Those seven elementary schools have the highest number of English as a Second Language students in the school system.
"Just as one size does not fit all, not every school has a student population that comes to school with the same preparation. When a school classroom has an overwhelming number of children who do not speak English as a native language … our teachers face different challenges than teachers do in some of our wealthier, better educated neighboring communities," he said.
Ackerman said students with limited proficiency in English require extra help beyond the two or three years they are enrolled in English as a Second Language (ESL) classes. "We know it takes seven years to become proficient in a language," she said. "We don't carry them in the ESL program for the full seven years, but they need additional monitoring."
Thomas Reed, vice-chairman of the School Board, said the board is committed to not just closing — but eliminating — the achievement gap between disadvantaged and other students.
Ohneiser said providing smaller classroom sizes for these students is a good approach within limits. "Again, the limit is based on 'It's OK to provide an extra benefit in one place as long as it doesn't affect another.' Otherwise you are hurting one child to help another," he said.
ACKERMAN ATTRIBUTED a number of the larger class sizes to neighborhoods that have outgrown their schools. "We run out of space. Routinely, you'll see an increase in class size just before a new school opens," she said. "Logic says you need to relieve one of the schools.
"We're not going to be able to keep one or more schools in an area at this comfortable 22 average unless we open a new school."
Ohneiser cited the student populations at Broad Run and Stone Bridge high schools in Ashburn as examples of buildings that already are beyond capacity.
The Dec. 8 data shows Cedar Lane Elementary School in Ashburn had a class with 27 students last year. Mill Run Elementary School in Ashburn had 13 combination classes with 25 students in each. It also had four classes of 25 students that did not represent a combination of two grades.
Belmont Ridge Elementary School opened this fall to alleviate overcrowding at Cedar Lane.
Mercer Middle School in Aldie and Smart's Mill Middle School in Leesburg also opened this fall, bringing to 23 the total number of new schools in the past five years. Another 16 schools are planned in the next six years.
Ackerman said middle and high school classroom sizes also vary, but the range is more likely to exceed 28. "If the average is 26.1, you're going to have a class of 30, which we all agree is too high," she said.
It's difficult to "define" actual class sizes in middle and high schools, she said. An Advanced Placement Course, for example, might have few or many students, depending on the number interested in taking the class for college credit.
Reducing the class size average, particularly in high school, gives principals the flexibility to offer as many courses as possible, she said.
"The principals in the secondary schools have to decide how they want to deploy the resources," she said. "It's not as clean as elementary schools."


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Tripp Lite 48-Port Cat5e Network Patch Panel
Sales price $84.28
Discount $-114.72
Price / COM_VIRTUEMART_UNIT_SYMBOL_: $84.28
- Tripp Lite's Enhanced Category 5 Patch Panels offer you all the functionality and compatibility as any name brand. Each panel comes with 110-type termination, while meeting and exceeding EIA/TIA TSB-40 Cat5e connecting hardware specifications. Color coded for both EIA/TIA 568A & 568B installations. 48 ports ensure a wide range of plug-n-play options. The clear numbering on both the front and back of each panel gives you a quick and easy way to identify cable runs and the high density 19in panel design will save you valuable space in on the rack. Tripp Lite warrants this product to be free from defects in materials and workmanship for life.
- Product Type: Network Patch Panel
- Interfaces/Ports: 48 x RJ-45 Female
- Package Contents: N052-048 Cat5e Network Patch Panel, Cat5e Patch Panel 568B-48 Por
Units in box: 1

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Listings in Portable Restrooms, Auction Companies, Children & Youth, Unique, List Services and Furniture
Database USA
Your Source for Email Marketing, Sales Leads, Mailing Lists, Telemarketing Lists, Data Enhancements, Business Lists, and Much More! Get your 500 FREE Names today!
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San Francisco, CA
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78200 Miles Avenue
Indian Wells, CA


text:
Despite high expectations by fans for Starbreeze Studios' reboot of the venerable Syndicate franchise as a first person shooter, the game has been denied release in Australia.
The game, to be published by Electronic Arts, has been Refused Classification (RC) due to its depiction of excessive violence.
As a result of the ruling, Electronic Arts will not be releasing Syndicate in Australia citing the lack of an R18+ rating for video games.
"It's regrettable that government policy in Australia is denying adults the right to play Syndicate", Electronic Arts A/NZ PR manager, Snezana Stojanovska, said.
"The game will be not be available in Australia despite its enthusiastic response from fans".
While Stojanovska admits that Electronic Arts is "encouraged" by the government's recent agreement to adopt an 18+ age rating for games, delays are resulting in an "arcane censorship" on games and cuts that would "never be imposed" on books or movies.
"We urge policy makers to take swift action to implement an updated policy that reflects today's market and gives its millions of adult consumers the right to make their own content choices", Stojanovska added.
According to Stojanovska, Electronic Arts will not be appealing the RC decision as Syndicate is a game "made for a mature audience" and any changes to would "significantly affect" its quality and appeal.
Grow Up Australia founder, Aaron J. Percival, whose group has been lobbying the Australian government for an R18+ rating, sees the banning of Syndicate as another reason why the rating system desperately needs the additional classification category.
"It's disappointing that Australia continues to lag behind the rest of the world by being the only developed nation without an 18+ classification for video games", he said.
Percival expects that mature games such as Syndicate will continue to be Refused Classification until the government implements changes to the current classification guidelines.
"The Federal Government released a set of amended guidelines in November, but last month's cabinet reshuffle saw Brendan O'Connor replaced by Jason Clare as Minister of Home Affairs, which could mean further delays in what has already been an incredibly drawn out process", he added.
The New Zealand release of Syndicate will remain on schedule for 24 February, with a confirmed R18 rating and no changes to the content.


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To the Editor:
The passing of the Lyme Disease Testing Awareness Act by Governor McDonnell really hit home for me. Because I didn't see a tick or have the bulls-eye rash, my Lyme disease diagnosis was not an easy one. I had to go to three different medical practices before some took my symptoms and suspicions of Lyme disease seriously. The first doctor ordered an Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) test, which came back negative. The next two tests I had done were called the Western Blot, which is considered a very sensitive testing method. My test results showed only two bands and the Center for Disease Control requires three bands for a positive diagnosis of Lyme disease.
The blood sample test works most effectively when your anti-bodies begin mounting a response to the infection. It is essential to know that it takes several weeks from the time when an infected tick releases the infection into one's body for an anti-body to react in that way. So even with the most advanced testing methods, awareness of the test's shortcoming are important for each patient to understand. I
have many friends with Lyme disease and they too had issues with their initial diagnosis, which delayed their proper treatment during a critical time period.
I want to applaud my Delegate Barbara Comstock for taking on this issue on behalf of our Great Falls community. The new legislation will provide others the opportunity for a complete understanding of the test's shortcomings, and hopefully lead to more accurate and early diagnosis from re-testing.
Laurel A. Gainor
Great Falls


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Evernote is "a suite of software and services designed for notetaking and archiving." The corporation is described as a "Creator of a multi platform note taking application for mobile devices. The site include product information, a company blog, and support services."
I am a great note–taker: to-do notes, checklists, reminders, dashed-out thoughts and drafts for that Great American Novel. As I use different machines for different locations and tasks, finding where I put that note is not always that easy. Yes, I do file syncs, but not every day. I also use (and thoroughly recommend) the indispensable Dropbox for Cloud file syncs across multiple devices and locations.
But I've wanted to get away from that text file syndrome for a long time. Individual text file notes are under-the-hood equivalents of Post-It Notes on the refrigerator. Notepads and note organizers have long been a dime a dozen. I even wrote a crude one in C once. Apps come and go so fast I went back to huge folders of text files back in the 1990's.
I hope Evernote sticks around. I found it by accident in the Apple App Store, while looking for something compatible with the Notes app that comes on the iPad. I found Evernote instead, which is much, much more robust. It's available for Mac, PC and mobile devices: iPad, iPhone, Blackberry and DROID. I now have it on all my computers. Best of all, they all talk to one another via the Cloud. No more file syncs, no more lost notes. This isn't a full review, but …
I'm already awarding it Summitlake's Five Stars.
As I wrote a nephew,
[quote]This app is VERY cool. Free. Check it out!
I have it installed on iMac, Mac, PC, and iPad. Everything autosyncs on their private Cloud. You can also access your notes on a secure web page. No more file transfers. Notes, pictures, even audio I think. Creditable text editor. Reminders, lists, Great American Novel. Not recommended for bank and credit account numbers 🙂 Organize by multiple Notebooks.[/quote]
And I hope you'll check it out too. Below is a screen shot of my app (Grabbed on the iMac) with my starter set of my own notes. A place for everything at last, and everything in its place. You can subcategorize your notes by Notebooks, and you can create as many of then as you want. You can access the same notes in the same format anywhere on any machine or platform, and you can also access your notes on the Web. You can export backups of your notebooks to the local hard drive.
Users are even assigned a free individual email address which will post directly to your free Evernote account. And so you will still find it on any one of your Evernote machine or device installations next time you open Evernote. Not bad for a free app. This app (and the services behind it) are certainly worth a bona fide retail price. I can't even find where I might send a PayPal donation. I think the implementation of this idea is pure genius. Cheers!
962 total views, 2 views today


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Open ReSource was originally intended as an information resource for the Open Source community. And, indeed, it may eventually step back into that role. At present, however, it serves to provide access to some of Rich Morin's mechanized documentation activities (most of which concentrate on, and use, Open Source software).
Here you will find information on:
Meta is an exploration into integrating system metadata and documentation for "eclectic systems" (e.g., *BSD, Linux, Unix). Although it leverages many existing efforts, Meta's goals go substantially further than the current state of the art.
These pages present an integrated approach to semi-automated documentation of large systems. I have coined the term "Model-based Documentation" for this approach, because a model of the system under study guides the process and unifies the results.
Morinfo is a (prototype) tool for displaying man pages, file system information, etc. It also serves as a testbed for certain aspects of Spotlight, Apple's file system search facility, but the implementation should be portable to any Unixish operating system.
Ontiki is an experimental effort to create an ontology-aware wiki. It is being developed as a tool for Model-based Documentation.


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For most of us, the term "DLL Hell" is a Windows throwback from the '90s that we never thought we'd hear again. But not only has DLL Hell come back on the Windows programming scene, it has done so with a vengence: In the 1990s, your application sometimes crashed due to use of the incorect DLL version. In 2010, your application may not run at all.
DLLs were introduced with the first releases of Windows, mainly for the following of reasons:
- It's a fundamental part of the operating system. Most system parts are provided by DLLs, so that many programs can use them at the same time (i.e. to draw text).
- To save disk space and RAM (disks as well as RAM were very expensive and of limited size at the time).
- To make system parts serviceable by replacing DLLs by a newer version with fixes and improvements and make these updates available to all programs instantly.
DLLs were not only introduced for the core OS, but made available for programs as well. Microsoft frameworks such as MFC, .NET, ATL, GdiPlus, etc. as well as for the C (CRT) and C++ runtime libraries made use of DLLs. But in the process, a complex mechanism was exposed: Parts of programs (Microsoft's DLLs) became maintainable without notice to (or even a chance to intervene by) the program.
Since an OS is a "living thing" with new hardware, drivers, and viruses showing every day, it is a good idea to have the capability to handle new problems without installing a entire new OS. This is a different story for programs, however. While programs should be maintained and possibly update themselves frequently, like the OS they should do so consistently. If we update some parts of a program, the program itself might be confronted with modified behavior that it is not prepared for. Which leads us to the original problem that DLLs introduced: What is part of the OS, and what belongs to a program?
Everything would have been okay if the implementation of DLLs would have been clean and non-ambiguous. Unfortunately that wasn't the case, as Microsoft and others began releasing different versions of the same (system and non-system) DLLs that had no proper versioning. Installers of programs overwrote existing versions of DLLs, leading to the first iteration of DLL-Hell: Installing an application could possibly break other applications (because they were build for a different "version" of the DLL). And even worse, uninstalling an application could remove some DLLs that other applications depended on. Most applications installed their DLLs in the system directory (and many still do) in hope to share them with other programs but there was no way to keep two different versions of a DLL in the system folder as the file name usually remained unchanged.
Many steps were taken to stop DLL-Hell. Some helped, but all of them introduced new problems -- file protection, version resources, the system keeping a usage count for each DLL (installers asking you on unistallation to confirm the removal of a specific DLL). Ron Burks wrote a delicious article entitledA Brief History of Windows Programming Revolutions in which he detailed the process.
The most recent approach to get rid of these problems is the side-by-side manager introduced with Windows XP. According to Microsoft online documentation:
Side-by-side assemblies are used by the operating system as fundamental units of naming, binding, versioning, deployment, and configuration. Every side-by-side assembly has a unique identity. One of the attributes of the assembly identity is its version....
Starting with Windows XP, multiple versions of side-by-side assemblies can be used by applications running at the same time. Manifests, and the assembly version number, are used by the loader to determine the correct binding of assembly versions to applications.
Let's start by defining a couple of terms:
- Assembly: A number of DLLs boundled together with a manifest file.
- Manifest: An XML-File containing a unique ID for the assembly as well as the exact version number (the same which is included in the VERSIONINFO resource of each DLL) and information about the assemblies update policy.
Correct versioning of software is a critical. A version number is a unique ID of a software package. You can think of it like a person's fingerprint. Which makes it surprising how little care vendors sometimes take care with it. A common denominator of version numbers may be:
- The first and the second part of the version number specifies a products release. Different releases usually have different functionality and other major differences.
- The next one (or if existent the next two) part of the number specify the bug fix (also called "maintenance") and/or build number. Different versions of those parts should not have modified functionality, higher numbers should indicate more stable releases. Of course, in practice sometimes bug fixes introduce unwanted modification of existing behavior. Sometimes without notice to the manufacturer notwithstanding thorough testing. Sometimes accepted as a welcome improvement. Sometimes introducing problems.
Keeping versions properly distinct is easy. Some manufacturers just use the whole version String in the filename of the DLL. Another approach is based on the version info resource etc. As a general rule no two released binaries never shall have identical version numbers.


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Universities and organizations plan a nationwide car wash and bake sale to create public awareness about budget cuts to NASA's planetary exploration program.
Bake sales and car washes are staples of cheerleading squads and marching bands. Can these fundraising pastimes also save NASA's planetary exploration program from budget cuts?
Probably not.
But a group of nine universities and organizations are each planning a car wash and bake sale in a larger effort to bring attention to the financial condition of the space agency's planetary exploration program. The events will take place June 9, and the participants are hoping to raise a little money for NASA along the way.
The fundraisers likely won't come close to bridging the gap left by President Barack Obama's fiscal year 2013 budget request, which cuts NASA's planetary exploration program by approximately $300 million, a 20 percent decrease to the program's overall budget for one year. NASA's Planetary Science Division budget would decrease in fiscal 2013 to $1.2 billion from a current $1.5 billion, according to the American Astronomical Society.
"These cuts will force NASA to cancel its plans for its most ambitious exploration missions, cancel collaborations with the European Space Agency (ESA) on the 2016 Mars Trace Gas Orbiter and the 2018 ExoMars rover, slash the Mars Exploration Program, cancel the Lunar Quest Program, delay the very successful Discovery and New Frontiers competitive programs, and force cuts in mission operations and data analysis for several current missions, reducing the science return on an investment already made by the taxpayers," according to the Division for Planetary Sciences of the American Astronomical Society.
Alan Stern, the former associate administrator who ran NASA's science program, is leading the fundraiser to create public awareness. Stern also serves as the associate vice president for research and development at the Southwest Research Institute's Space Science and Engineering Division, an organization participating in the fundraiser.
Faculty, students and employees from the participating groups ultimately will decide how much to charge customers at their car washes and bake sales, Stern said. The bigger goal is for the universities and organizations to send the money they raise to their state's congressmen to show that NASA's planetary exploration program needs to be restored.
"The cut was several hundred million dollars; car washes aren't going to pay for that," Stern said about the event planned for June 9. "And so our goal is to attract attention to the problem."
Laura Seward, a doctoral student at the University of Central Florida (UCF) (one of the nine participating organizations), said the university depends on NASA's planetary exploration program. NASA's ongoing work directly and indirectly sustains planetary science research conducted at UFC. Budget cuts at NASA could reduce the number of university students hired to do NASA's research.
"The planetary science budget cuts that were proposed for the fiscal year '13 budget that were just put out a month or so ago would really devastate all of planetary science," Seward said. "The entire community is behind gathering around and trying to rally for the return of all or at least some of the budget that planetary science has had in the past at NASA."
Seward said doctoral students like herself from UCF would have less of a chance of getting hired by NASA after graduating.
UCF isn't alone in its concern. At the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), students and researchers will experience similar problems if NASA's budget is slashed, said Michaela Shopland, a science outreach coordinator at the university who is helping UCLA participate in the fundraiser. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is located near UCLA and is closely affiliated with the school.
"NASA planetary science has a big impact on us here at UCLA," Shopland said. "We're close to JPL so we have strong ties with them. Many of the people who graduate here and do planetary science Ph.D.s will end up working at JPL, and there's a lot of back and forth between the researchers there and the researchers here. But just within UCLA, we have a number of people who are involved directly with NASA missions."
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A pair of panthers – one of carved black onyx, the other of polished sterling silver -- bypass each other atop this purring statement ring. The band features filigree and 18K yellow gold embraced™ accents on the surface and an intricate cut-out undergallery on the inside. Purr-fection!
Check out the Ring Sizing Guide to find your ring size.
All weights pertaining to gemstones, including diamonds, are minimum weights. Additionally, please note that many gemstones are treated to enhance their beauty. View Gemstone Enhancements and Special Care Requirements for important information.
Vermeil Plating:
Pronounced "vermay," vermeil is an electroplating process in which 14K gold or higher is coated over sterling silver. Officially designated by the jewelry industry, items may only be sold as vermeil if they have a minimum thickness of 100 millionths of an inch (2.5 microns) of gold over the silver. Regular gold plating is less than 2.5 microns.
The "vermeil" technique of plating sterling silver with gold originated in France in the 1750s. It differs from "gold filled" or "gold plated" in terms of the thickness or thinness of the microns over sterling silver. "Gold filled" pieces have a much thicker layer, between 15 and 45 microns, which is mechanically bonded to the base metal with heat and pressure. Vermeil is a more expensive version of "gold plated". It does not wear off as quickly as gold plating does. However, over time, vermeil wears off and therefore will require re-plating.
Gold/Platinum Embraced Silver or Bronze:
Our platinum and gold embraced collections feature layers of platinum or gold over sterling silver or bronze for a lustrous, radiant finish everywhere you look and touch.
To care for your plated jewelry items:
Onyx is a variety of chalcedony quartz that features a fine texture with a smooth black color. Some onyx can display white bands or ribbons against black or brown backgrounds. The bands that move through the stone run parallel and onyx is therefore sometimes known as zebra agate. Mined in Brazil, India, California and Uruguay, most onyx today is color-enhanced to increase its depth of color. It ranks a 6.5 on the Mohs Scale and is an ideal stone for carving. In fact, it is a favorite material of lapidary artists.
Onyx was very popular with the ancient Greeks and Romans. The name comes from the Greek word "onux" which means fingernail. Legend says that one day frisky Cupid cut the divine fingernails of Venus with an arrowhead while she was sleeping. He left the clippings scattered on the sand and the fates turned them into stone so that no part of her heavenly body would ever perish. In Greek times, almost all colors of chalcedony were called onyx. Later, the Romans narrowed the term to refer to only the black and dark brown colors, while the reddish brown and white onyx became known as sardonyx. Highly valued in Rome, sardonyx was especially used for seals because it was said to never stick to the wax. Roman General Publius Cornelius Scipio was famous for wearing sardonyx.
Worn during mourning in the Victorian age, onyx is now traditionally given as a 7th wedding anniversary gift. It is thought to increase happiness, self-control, courage, intuition and instincts. The stone is also believed to cool the yearnings of love and decrease sexual desire.
A selection of our jewelry is made of sterling palladium alloy. Palladium is a member of the platinum group of precious metals. By replacing a portion of the copper content used in standard sterling silver with palladium, this proprietary formula renders a precious metal with superior performance attributes. Sterling palladium is five times more tarnish-resistant than standard sterling silver and has strength similar to that of 14K gold.
Palladium has been used as a precious metal in jewelry since 1939, originally as an alternative to platinum for making white gold. Its naturally white color requires no rhodium plating. Additionally, palladium is proportionally much lighter than platinum and is ideal for use in heavier gemstone jewelry. It is a more expensive alloy than nickel, but it seldom causes the allergic reactions that nickel alloy can.
To care for your plated jewelry items:
About the Collection
Fall in love with Gems en Vogue jewelry - a ShopHQ Live-exclusive collection featuring vintage, European design in every hand-set genuine gemstone piece.
Crafted by a select team of designers, this collection is deeply inspired by influential art movements from Art Deco to the French Renaissance, resulting in a gorgeous blend of historic and modern style. Each signature piece is intricately designed with rare, exotic or select genuine gemstones and masterfully set in sterling palladium alloy with rich 18K Gold Embraced™ accents.
Always at the forefront of innovation, the proprietary formula of Gems en Vogue's sterling palladium alloy jewelry provides increased tarnish resistance and strength at affordable sterling silver prices.
Discover the luxury of statement gemstone jewelry with Gems en Vogue.
About the Guest
Michael Valitutti is a graduate gemologist having worked more than 30 years in the jewelry business. He is a die hard gem enthusiast specializing in gemstone sourcing and design.
In 1998, Michael joined ShopHQ Live and has been traveling the world in search of exciting, premium gemstones for the Gems en Vogue collection ever since. From the rare and exotic to the precious and semi-precious, he has featured over one hundred gemstone varieties from over fifteen different countries.
With a passion for shine and talent for design, Guest Michael Valitutti G.G. (GIA), winner of two design competitions, was born to bring to you a stunning collection unlike any other.


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As the name suggests, the name raspberry leaf refers to the leaf of the red raspberry plant. High in potassium, magnesium, iron and b- vitamins, these leaves are highly nutritious, especially when used in making tea. Red raspberry leaf tea which is made by infusing dried or fresh leaves of the plant in hot water is known to protect both men and women against a variety of disease and health conditions. Take a look at some of the amazing heath benefits of red raspberry leaf tea listed below in this guide.
Red Raspberry Leaf Tea Health Benefits
Pregnancy Benefits of red raspberry leaf tea: Drinking tea made from red raspberry leaves is one of the safest and most beneficial herbal remedies for pregnant women. Containing an alkaloid known as fragrine, this herbal tea when consumed during pregnancy helps strengthen the pelvic area as well the uterus of pregnant women, helping shorten labor and make labor easier. Additionally, drinking this herbal tea regularly will not only help a pregnant woman prevent morning sickness and promote lactation, but also ensure healthy development in the fetus as well. Check out organic raspberry leaf tea for fertility.
Cancer Prevention
Red Raspberry leaf tea for Cancer protection: The leaves of red raspberry contain a significant amount of potent anti – cancer compound known as ellagic acid. This powerful compound is known to destroy cancerous cells, neutralize carcinogens and help boost the immune system. Drinking this caffeine free herbal infusion can help provide protection in certain kinds of cancers namely, lung skin, breast, colon and tongue cancer.
Antioxidant Properties
Strong Anti- Oxidant Properties: The strong anti – antioxidant properties present in this herbal brew help soothe the mucus lining if the bodily tissues. In addition, consuming this herbal infusion regularly helps protect the system from the invasion of bacteria and fungi, reducing irritable bowel syndrome and outbreaks of vaginal infection.
Gastrointestinal Aid
Red Raspberry leaf tea to treat Diarrhea: The tannins in red raspberry leaf helps give the leaf its astringent qualities beneficial for healing diarrhea and dysentery. Additionally, drinking a strong red raspberry tea will not only help soothe rashes, eczema and sunburn, but will also help alleviate symptoms of gum disease or gingivitis when swished in the mouth.
Anti-Inflammatory Properties
Due to the presence of anthocyanins (a chemical that gives the leaves its red color), drinking this herbal infusion can be highly beneficial in reducing inflammation and easing pain associated with arthritis and gout. Drinking red raspberry leaf tea three times a day regularly will help reduce your anti- inflammatory medication intake required for relieving pain in these conditions. Find out where to buy organic red raspberry leaf tea.
Easy to prepare, red raspberry leaf tea is a great herbal brew that can help provide relief to different ailments in a simple, effective and natural way. Including the tea in your daily routine can help provide you with great health benefits and help you stay fit and healthy naturally.
Video on Red Raspberry Leaf Tea and Pregnancy
The post Amazing Benefits from Drinking Red Raspberry Leaf Tea appeared first on Red Raspberry Leaf Tea Blog.


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I have been playing a lot of Diablo the past few weeks. I continue to enjoy the game, and I am having a good deal of fun with it. I have a barbarian that is part way through act three (normal), patiently waiting for a friend to have a some free time to smash faces with him; and then I have my "main" a level 60 witch doctor. I haven't had a lot of time outside of those two characters (yet!) to play much else, but I do intend to try them all.
On Cooperative Play
Before I go much further, I wanted to take a quick minute to talk about cooperative play in Diablo. When the game first released, had you asked me, I would have told you that there was no way in hell I would participate in the cooperative play function. And, in fact, through my very first play through on normal, I did everything by myself and politely refused any offers for group play. However, once I hit nightmare Brade and I started to group together and I haven't looked back. They play experience with a group has been something that has been pleasantly surprising to me. But not only that, it's an enhancement of the game that I think I feel safe saying that if you haven't tried it out, you are missing out on some of what the game offers.
As an example of that statement, I had my cake decorating class Friday night. When I got home, I found Brade reading (or passed out…maybe) on the couch. I was a little surprised by this, as he's got a Hell level wizard that he's been playing solo when I'm doing other things. But when I commented that I was surprised not to see him at the computer, he commented that he played his wizard a little bit, but really just found he had more fun playing the cooperative games with me. Now, ya'll, as a complete nerd couple, this is almost akin to walking into a surprise candle lit dinner. But I think also speaks a lot to how much fun the cooperative play can be.
In short, if you haven't given cooperative play a try yet, you should.
On the Witch Doctor
I'm going to talk a little more about my Witch Doctor. This weekend I hit level 60, finished Hell and started Inferno. I am still utilizing this spec for her, however if my Nephalem Valor (more on that in a bit) is reset tonight when I log in, I think I might try dropping Spiritual Attunement for Pierce the Veil and see how that plays out. I have made a minor tweak here or there, but for the most part this is the spec that I ran all of Hell with, and the first parts of Inferno with, and it has served me quite well. I do not know how it would fare as a solo spec, but it works very well for a group spec. It has strong single target damage, strong AE, decent CC and multiple magic schools. Plus, the range on darts is just obscene, I can't even tell you!
As far as Hell went, I think that the hardest thing we encountered was Belial. I don't know if this is just a Brade and I thing (as in we both just suck at the fight), or if the boss is really just that tricky, but I almost feel as if Belial is the hardest boss in the game. I think it took us three or four efforts on him, whereas Azmodan basically feel over and handed us loot, and Diablo (aside from being owed by my shade's bear) was only marginally harder. Perhaps there are some other factors, like being level 60 for the latter, that played into it, but I will tell you that I'm cringing at the thought of getting to Belial in Inferno.
As for Inferno, we are about half way through the first act, and while we may find death a few more times, it doesn't seem too bad (famous last words, I know!). I've heard that Act 2 is where you really start to feel it, so I will have to wait and reserve judgment until we get there. I imagine that we will be partaking in some Act 1 farming after having our asses handed to us by that first wasp pack. I did want to comment, though, that I feel that the difficulty of these levels isn't really felt in the bosses as much as they are in the elite packs leading up to them. For example, we laughed at the skeleton king and that spider boss, but had our asses well and thoroughly handed to us by the event in the woods on top of the mound.
Did you know that some of those elite packs have an enrage timer? Or perhaps it was proximity enrage. I don't know. But they can enrage. Did you know that when you die and are "corpse camping" a pack, that each time you die your rez timer increases? It can get up to over 30 seconds! I think that this particular pack is the worst one that we've come across. The elite had fast, minions, illusion and molten. I think. Regardless, we spent probably 15 minutes killing them. It included having to go repair in town because they'd killed us so much our gear broke! Good times were had by all.
On the Best Advice I Can Give For Late Hell/Early Inferno
There are a few pieces of advice that I feel comfortable giving for those who are finishing up Hell and starting Inferno. The first one is: Be Patient and Expect to Die. I cannot stress this one enough. I hear a lot of stories from people who have "quit" the game because they died a lot (I'll touch on my advice on this in a minute). However, by the time you reach Diablo in Hell or are getting ready to start Inferno, you've entered into the part of the game specifically designed to challenge you as a player. You are saying "I want to do this in the hardest way possible" and you are going to be faced with crazy (and maybe impossible) challenges. I know that there are some class issues, and some melee/range issues that may cause additional frustrations, but as a whole at this level of the game you should expect to die, a lot. Figuring out how not to die is part of the challenge! Also be patient. You should not expect to clear Inferno with the same swiftness you cleared the other levels. It's just not designed that way. Enjoy the ride and laugh at your misfortunes (they will be plentiful)!
The second piece of advice that I can give is: spend some gold on your gear when you hit 60. The number one thing you should make an investment in is a level 60 weapon. In fact, even before 60 I upgraded my weapons with some regularity. You don't have to spend a TON on it (you should be able to find a significant upgrade in the 50k – 100k range), but making the investment in a level 60 weapon of blue quality (and OH if needed), will be like night and day at the end of Hell and the start of Inferno. Additionally, buy yourself some level 60 gear, and make sure it has Vitality on it. Again, don't spend a TON on it, but going into these levels with more than 15k life is crucial to your survival and the ease in which you can succeed. For me, I didn't buy anything over 5k gold (outside of a weapon) because I hit level 60 with something like 89k gold, and was able to find upgrades with both Intellect and Vitality for a good number of my gear slots (minus rings and amulets). By the time I killed Diablo and started Inferno I was over 30k life, and I can honestly say that even just the weapon upgrades at the end of Hell likely had so much impact on the ease in which we cleared Act 4.
The final piece of advice that I can give is: explore everything and expect to farm. By the time you hit level 60, your only increases in power are going to come directly from your gear. Don't expect to rush from objective A to objective B straight to the finish line. Just like any other game, you have to spend time to grow in power (how many of you farmed levels in a Final Fantasy game? Same principle!). If you don't take the time to "hunt" out elite packs for Nephalem Valor and loot upgrades, you are only going to find frustration the further into the game you go. You will likely have to repeat levels, specifically for the purpose of grinding out gear. Also, don't neglect the auction house! Quality level 60 items will sell very well, which in turn means that you will have more gold to spend on quality items for yourself!
On Nephalem Valor
One of the perks that you get at level 60 is a buff called Nephalem Valor. It stacks up to five times, and each stack will increase your gold and magic find by 15%, up to a total of 75% (if you have five stacks). The way that you gain Nephalem Valor is by killing elite packs. Each time to kill a pack, you gain a stack. The buff lasts thirty minutes, and refreshes each time to kill a new elite pack. It will survive death; but leaving the game, changing your spec, and changing a rune will remove your stacks. Additionally, if you accidentally pull a button off of your bar, you will also lose your stacks (as Brade learned the hard way).
I rather like Nephalem Valor. I think it's a cool way to spice up farming, and ease gaining gold. We specifically farm out packs to gain the buff, and try to hurry to a boss before the buff drops if we are close so we can kill the boss with the buff. Plus, seeing like 15 items drop from a boss is also kind of fun!
I'm sure that I will continue to have thoughts on Diablo as I continue through Inferno, but I'm curious your thoughts! Are you still enjoying the game? Do you find Inferno fun or infuriating?


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Creator says 'Flappy Bird' making comeback
It appears Flappy Bird will take flight once again on mobile app stores.
According to an exchange on Twitter, creator Dong Nguyen was asked whether he planned to bring Flappy Bird back to the "App Store." His response: "Yes, but not soon."
Nguyen's change of heart surrounding his hit mobile game follows an interview with Rolling Stone earlier this month, when he hinted that Flappy Bird might make a return.
Last month, Nguyen surprised players by pulling the game down at the height of its popularity, saying people were becoming too addicted. The game for iOS and Android devices features a small bird that players navigate between a series of pipes.
"Flappy Bird has unexpected effects," said Nguyen in an interview with USA TODAY after removing the game from app stores. "It causes addiction (in) people. I think it is an unexpected problem ... and I have to remove it."
Flappy Bird surged in popularity earlier this year, topping Apple's App Store and Google Play charts, raising questions about whether Nguyen artificially inflated rankings. Nguyen denies doing anything to boost rankings. "I am sure I didn't cheat anything, and I don't have to do that." Nguyen said last month.
During the Rolling Stone interview, Nguyen said he's also working on three more games: a cowboy-themed shooter, a flying game titled Kitty Jetpack and an "action-chess" game launching later this month.
Follow Brett Molina on Twitter: @bam923.


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November 21, 2017


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Gardasil is the HPV vaccine, touted to fight cervical cancer. What they are not telling you is that thousands of girls are having adverse reactions to the HPV Vaccines, some have even died -at last count, over one hundred lives have been lost. We have got to dosomething about this. These girls need our help! These girls are having reactions such as; seizures, strokes, dizziness, fatigue, weakness, headaches, stomach pains, muscle pain and weakness, joint pain, auto-immune problems, chest pains, hair loss, appetite loss, personality changes, insomnia, hand/leg tremors, arm/leg weakness, shortness of breath, heart problems, paralysis, itching, rashes, swelling, aching muscles, menstrual cycle changes, fainting, swollen lymph nodes, night sweats, nausea, temporary vision/hearing loss just to name some of them!
There is no known treatment to help these girls, as they suffer in silence. The doctors, if they even admit the connection, have no idea how to help them. So they spend their days going from appointment to appointment, from specialist to specialist trying to find someone to help them. Many of these families have started looking for help outside of mainstream medicine, which in some cases, may bring minor relief. However, most insurance plans do not cover this type of treatment, and as a result, this route is out of reach for many girls.
As you look at the faces on this page, remember that these are just some of the thousands of girls whose lives have been affected by Gardasil. Sadly, one of the girls pictured above, Jessie Ericzon, passed away just two days after her third gardasil injection.
If you or someone you know is experiencing any side effects or you would just like to contact us, you can do so at firstname.lastname@example.com or you can log into our Gardasil forum to tell your story.


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Seal - Amazing (Live Victorias Secret Fashion Show 2007)
Seal performing Amazing on The 2007 Victorias Secret Fashion Show. Karolina and Heidi are just so amazing.
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- Zeitschriftenartikel (1) (entfernen)
- Cristobalite form (1) (entfernen)
Organisationseinheit der BAM
Nanocrystalline and stacking-disordered beta-cristobalite AlPO4: the now deciphered main constituent of a municipal sewage sludge ash from a full-scale incineration facility (2015)
For the first time evidence is provided that a nanocrystalline and stacking-disordered, chemically stabilized β-cristobalite form of AlPO4 occurs in a sewage sludge ash (SSA). This proof is based on a combined X-ray powder diffraction and X-ray fluorescence investigation of an SSA produced at a large-scale fluidized bed incineration facility serving a catching area with a population of 2 million. The structural and chemical characterization was carried out on 'as received' SSA samples as well as on solid residues remaining after leaching this SSA in sodium hydroxide solution. Thus, it was ascertained that the observed nanocrystalline and stacking-disordered cristobalite-like component belongs to the aluminum phosphate component of this SSA, rather than to its silicon dioxide component. In addition, a direct proof is presented that the chemically stabilized β-cristobalite form of AlPO4 does crystallize from X-ray amorphous precursors under conditions that mimic the huge heating rate and short retention time (just seconds at T ≈ 850°C), typical for fluidized bed incinerators.


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"Not everything buried is actually dead. For many, the past is alive."
My plan was to read the Inspector Gamache crime series in order but I had to jump to #6 instead of #3 because of a book club assignment. I don't think it really matters to read them out of order. The others will just feel like flashbacks when I get to them. I loved the Agatha Christie style living room assembly at the end, actually there are two in this novel running simultaneously. All of the suspects are gathered in one room together, one of them is the culprit and they are about to discover who it is. Cue the scary music.
As always it was fun to enjoy the benefits of a series–knowing the characters and the setting before you even start! Penny writes literary crime, this one also eloquently dealing with themes of tragic guilt, learning to live with your history, and finding a way to heal through the grief–to 'bury your dead.' Not sure if burying your dead emotionally is possible and perhaps even undesirable, but at any rate that is where the title comes from. This instalment is set in Quebec City as well as Three Pines, and the old city gave the novel a wonderful historically atmospheric feel. And there were some mouth watering descriptions of food–the Inspector likes his flaky croissants and bowl of coffee! Fun fact: if you spend time in Quebec City and have read this book, you should take advantage of the Bury Your Dead Tour. Yes, there really is such a thing! Apparently it visits the places where the novel took place. My neighbour is going on the tour this week, and I am wondering how she finds it!
I loved Gamache's four sentences that lead to wisdom:
I am sorry. I was wrong. I need help. I don't know.
Our world might be a better place if we all used these words more often.


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Now is the Time to Winterize Your Deck
(Family Features) As the leaves begin to fall and change color and cooler weather begins to take over, it's time to start thinking about winterizing your outdoor space. While your deck receives a lot of use during the summer with foot traffic, summer storms, scorching heat and high humidity, fall and winter bring in a whole other slew of wearing elements.
With snow, ice and wet slush that sits on the wood until it melts and a lack of sunlight that increases drying time, your deck is going to need some pampering and now is the perfect time to get started.
With these simple yet effective tips from the experts at Wood. It's Real., you can have your deck ready for the harsh winter elements in no time:
- Pack it up. Now is the time to do some seasonal de-cluttering. Store items such as planters, which can cause decay and discoloration to your decking if they sit out all winter. Also put away furniture and cushions you don't expect to use until warmer weather returns.
- Clean it. Use a power washer to remove accumulated dirt and any signs of staining or damage, such as mildew. Remember that cleaning isn't just about appearance, it's also about protecting the woodwork, so be sure to wash both the top and bottom of the deck.
- Inspect and repair it. Inspect your deck for signs of wear and tear from the warmer months and make any necessary repairs or upgrades. If your deck falls into disrepair, replace boards or the entire deck using Southern Yellow Pine, which is cost-effective, high-quality and environmentally friendly. Southern Yellow Pine resists the aging process better than most wood and has a slightly porous surface that eagerly accepts any color of stain you want to apply.
- Protect it. You can easily test whether it's time to add a protective coating to your deck by checking whether water beads or soaks into the wood. You may be able to spot treat with waterproofing or stain by sanding the affected areas and reapplying. However, if the problem area is widespread or you can't remember the last time you stained or waterproofed the entire deck, it's probably time to do it again.
- Maintain it. Shovel snow regularly using a plastic shovel; metal shovels can ding and gouge wood. Use sand rather than salt or ice melt products that can harm the surface of your deck and be sure to brush of any excess when the weather clears.
Find more tips to help get your deck winter-ready at wooditsreal.com.
Photo courtesy of Getty Images


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"If you can't feed a hundred people, Then Feed Just One"
"This is fantastic and it's good experience," said Aaron Hutchison. "It feels good to save lives."
Poverty and hunger are real and Palo Alto County residents made a difference last Saturday at a Packing Event for "Then Feed Just One." Volunteers gathered at the Palo Alto County Fairgrounds to pack meals to help fight world hunger.
Volunteers from the second hour and a half shift are pictured at left.
"We will be doing this again next year," said Lois Stanley, one of the organizers of the Palo Alto County event.
"We had a tremendous turnout that exceeded our expectations," she added. "In fact, we were so successful at packing the meals, we need to raise more funds."
In less than five hours, an estimated 500 volunteers packaged 119.016 meals.
"Then Feed Just One" comes from a quote by Mother Teresa:?"If you can't feed a hundred people, Then Feed Just One." TFJO operates in conjunction with Mission Honduras in LeMars. Al Vonnahme is President.
Each year TFJO ships four to five containers of food. But this could not happen without volunteers.
Palo Alto County volunteers measured fortified chicken-flavored casserole mix with seven dried vegetables and over 20 vitamins and minerals. Each 13.8 ounce package contains six one-cup meals.
The volunteers scooped measured amounts of food, weighed and sealed the bags, packed the bags into boxes and put the boxes on pallets.
At most tables, people rotated jobs so that everyone could experience each part of the process. Team Lenny, a table of students with an adult volunteer, claimed to have the most fun.
Sandy and Gerta were working at the same table.
"I'm overwhelmed by the love, when given a chance," said Sandy Currans.
"We're all working for a very worthwhile cause," added Gerta Luhman.
Sandy expressed the thought of many, "I?think I'd like to try the soup."
Here's the math of the day's work:
Six meals per bag and 36 bags per box which equals 216 meals per box.
66 boxes are loaded on a pallet, so that equals 14,256 meals per pallet
20 pallets (Dole Co. Container) equals 285,120 meals per container
At 16-cents per meal, that comes to $45,619.20 per container.
Where do all these packages of food go from Emmetsburg?
The semi that was parked at the Palo Alto County Fairgrounds goes to LeMars and then on to Gulfport, MS. Richard Seivert explained the route:
Pallets of meals are loaded on Dole Container Ships and transported into Puerto Cortes, Honduras. Then they go to Cerro de Plata Foundation in Tegueigalpa.
From there the food is distributed to 24-25 children's homes and orphanages, including Mother Teresa's Don de Maria.
Then Feed Just One "relieves hunger and saves lives in all:?MAM?(moderately acute malnourishment) and SAM?(severe acute malnourishment).
Would Saturday's volunteers do it again??It was a resounding "yes."


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Nothing can stop these little guys. Panasonic's Evolta battery-powered robots were already pretty impressive, but now they're going for a hat trick of endurance-testing awesomeness by taking on Hawaii's Ironman Triathlon later this Fall.
The triathlon entails surviving three courses: one for swimming; one for biking; and one for running. Above-normal humans are expected to run the 138.6-mile course in a single day. These robots will get a week, with breaks only to recharge their batteries.
Their next trial? Take down a family of bears with their bare plastic hands. That's what I want to see, anyway. [Engadget]


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Experience seamless COBRA CONNECT™ embedded sensor technology and automatic shot tracking Powered by Arccos®. All Cobra Connect clubs pair with the Arccos Caddie® app for full bag shot tracking and the KING SZ Drivers pair with the Arccos Driver® app for driver shot tracking. Download the appropriate app from the Apple App Store or Google Play and get connected.
Track on-course performance data for every club in your bag and critical strokes gained analysis on Driving, Approach, Chipping, Sand and Putting. You will have an understanding of your game like never before.
Make data driven decisions about your equipment, where you spend your practice time and ultimately how you play on course. You will improve your game through the power of data.
Players using the Arccos Caddie shot tracking system for at least 15 rounds have seen an average improvement of almost 4 strokes over the course of one year. This chart shows the average improvement by handicap range. Find your skill level and see how big your improvement could be through Cobra Connect Powered by Arccos.
Compare your club yardages to Rickie's. Warning, he is a Tour Player, your numbers may appear smaller.
Rickie is pretty solid in every facet of his game.
COBRA CONNECT powered by the Arccos Caddie A.I. application is a fully connected 14-club automatic shot tracking system with advanced tour analytics, allowing golfers to go beyond guesswork and shoot lower scores by making smarter, data-driven decisions on the course.
COBRA CONNECT powered by the Arccos Driver app delivers automatic driver shot tracking with real-time analysis of tee shot distances, fairways hit and more, allowing golfers to improve their driving through the power of data.


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Though Alltel's Samsung Hue II is an update to the original Samsung Hue, the two phones share few characteristics beyond their flip designs. While the first Hue had a vertical external display with red bands on either side, the Hue II features a standard external display with dedicated music controls. The design change made no difference to us, but we liked the higher resolution camera and the improved navigation controls. Call quality was decent, though that may change following Alltel's merger with Verizon Wireless. The Hue II is just $19.99 with a service plan and a $50 mail-in rebate, but it will cost you as much as $239 if you pay full price.
The Hue II has a fairly standard flip phone design. It's not quite as boxy as the original Hue, but it's a bit bigger and heavier at 3.8 inches tall by 1.9 inches wide by 0.7 inch deep and weighing 3.4 ounces. Even with the added girth, it slips comfortably into a pocket and has a solid feeling in the hand. Yet, we couldn't help but notice that the hinge feels rather loose. The blue faceplate and battery cover are removable, though the replaceable gray plates that come in the box are pretty boring.
The external display is rather small--just 1 inch diagonally--but it manages to cram in all the information you'll need, including the date, time, battery life, signal strength, and numeric caller ID. The 65,000-color (96x96 pixels) display also supports photo caller ID and it works as a viewfinder for the camera lens, which is located just above.
Below the Hue II's display are dedicated controls for the integrated music player. Pressing the play/pause button will start the player automatically and you can use the skip/rewind controls and the external display to move through your playlist without opening the phone. The left spine holds the volume rocker and proprietary headset charger port. A 3.5mm headset jack (nice!), a camera shutter, and the microSD card slot sit on the right spine. You'll find a large speaker on the back of the phone.
The Hue II has a large, 2.2-inch internal display that supports 262,000 colors (220x176 pixels). The screen is both bright and colorful and it offers sharp graphics and animations. You can choose between list- and icon-based menu designs, both of which are easy to use. You can also alter the backlight time, the dialing font size, and the contrast of the front display.
Fortunately, the Hue II's navigation array and keypad are improved from its predecessor. While the first Hue had flat, slippery controls, the Hue II's buttons have a sturdier feel. They're also flat with the surface of the phone, but the spacious design limits misdials. The backlighting is a tad dim, but it's not a big deal. The array consists of a square toggle with a central OK button, two soft keys, dedicated speakerphone, music player buttons, the Talk and End/power buttons, and a back key.
The phone book holds 500 contacts, with room in each entry for five phone numbers and two e-mail addresses. You can save callers to groups and you can pair them with a photo and one of 14 polyphonic ringtones. Other essentials on the Hue II include a vibrate mode, text and multimedia messaging, a calendar, a memo pad, an alarm clock, a world clock, a calculator, a stopwatch, a currency and unit converter, and a tip calculator.
The Hue II offers a few extra features beyond the basics. Inside you'll find Bluetooth, voice commands, instant messaging, Web-based POP3 e-mail, and GPS with support for turn-by-turn directions from Alltel Navigation and Telenav. Support for XM radio is included as well, but you'll need to download the app to the phone.
The MP3 player is fairly basic; features are limited to playlists and repeat and shuffle modes. Yet, it supports album art, an equalizer-style graphic, and it can even display lyrics for certain songs. Transferring songs to the phone is pretty easy with a microSD card; just keep in mind that you must insert a card to use the player. You also can use Alltel's Music Connect to purchase tunes from eMusic and transfer them from your PC to the Hue II.


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I've been listening to the new Jeremy Camp Christmas Album, Christmas: God with Us, in my car this past week. He does one of my all time favorite Christmas songs: O Come O Come Emmanuel. Of course he does an awesome rendition. My son was with me in the car the other day when it was playing and he said, "I love the way he sings 'Israel.'"
On a side note, my son and I were on our way to a Winter Orchestra Concert at his high school when he said this. I wasn't thrilled about going because I didn't expect any Christmas music at all. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I enjoyed the whole show and they played some good old traditional Christmas songs, like Silent Night and God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, as well as two songs from my favorite Charlie Brown Christmas (which I still need to watch this year). The reason was that the orchestra students were told to form small ensembles and to choose whatever they wanted to play. It was such a blessing to see so many of the kids choose some of my favorite Christmas songs.
Anyway, I thought I would share with you Jeremy Camp's rendition of O Come O Come Emmanuel to get you in the Christmas spirit if you aren't already. Enjoy, and Merry Christmas!


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Cameron to end 'postcode lottery' of postcodes
The coalition government has pledged to end the 'postcode lottery' of postcode allocation by allowing communities to choose their own postcodes. 'No longer will people be disadvantaged, or their house prices affected, by the state imposing an alpha-numeric suffix that shows where they live,' said the Prime Minister yesterday. [read...]


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Wisconsin to take on South Carolina in Capital One Bowl
Wisconsin will play South Carolina in the Capital One Bowl Jan. 1 in Orlando.
The No. 19 Badgers (9-3) are playing in a non-BCS bowl for the first time in three seasons following three consecutive appearances in the Rose Bowl.
Wisconsin lost those games, though, and will be looking for its first bowl win under coach Gary Andersen.
South Carolina (10-2) won its final five games of the season, including double-overtime win over then unbeaten Missouri.
The Gamecocks are making their second Capital One Bowl appearance in three seasons, having beaten Nebraska in the 2012 edition of the game.
It would be easy for both No. 8 South Carolina and No. 19 Wisconsin to dwell on the missteps this season that cost them both spots in the BCS standings.
Instead, Gamecocks coach Steve Spurrier and the Badgers' Gary Andersen are embracing what they believe could be one of the better non-BCS pairings when they matchup for the Jan. 1 in Orlando.
"I think we all strived at beginning of the year to get to BCS game, (but) it's very difficult to do and we won nine football games," Andersen said. "It's a tremendous matchup for both teams I think...This is a great bowl game for us for so many reasons."
The game will mark the first-ever meeting between the two programs.
The Badgers will be appearing in their 12th-consecutive bowl game, a streak that includes a 3-1 record in four Orlando bowl games.
They climbed as high as No. 15 in the BCS standings, but had their season stunted by early-season losses to Arizona State and Ohio State and loss to Penn State in their regular-season finale.
Andersen said though he doesn't know Spurrier personally, he is well aware of what kind of opponent to expect when they meet up with the Gamecocks.
"From afar really, I understand what coach has done and the career he's had. He's meant a lot to college football for a number of years. He's had unbelievably successful teams and does again this season," Andersen said. "It will be special. I don't think anybody can tell you you're gonna line up against coach Spurrier and it won't be a special experience for all of us who are involved."
South Carolina (10-2) won its final five games of the season, including double-overtime win over then unbeaten Missouri. It helped salvage a season that was beset by a loss to Georgia and loss to Tennessee in a game that saw quarterback Connor Shaw go down with an injury.
The Gamecocks are making their second Capital One Bowl appearance in three seasons, having beaten Nebraska in the 2012 edition of the game.
South Carolina has a 6-12 bowl record, but has won two-straight bowl games over Big Ten opposition, defeating Nebraska in 2012 and Michigan in 2013.
The Badgers are 11-13 all time in bowl games and 2-0 in the Capital One Bowl, defeating Auburn in 2006 and Arkansas in 2007.
South Carolina is also the only team to beat Fiesta Bowl-bound UCF, rallying in the final three quarters to claim a three-point victory. They also have a win over Clemson, which is playing Ohio State in the Orange Bowl.
Spurrier said he takes little consolation in beating teams that made to the BCS, though.
"Nobody said it's supposed to be fair, you know that college football isn't all that fair," Spurrier told reporters at news conference in Columbia. "But really, a BCS bowl game or the Capital One Bowl what's the difference, a little bit more money goes to the school and to the conference. Going to a major bowl, a BCS bowl I guess there's some status in it.
"We've beaten two teams that are going to BCS bowls but they've earned it and they deserve to go and that's just the way our system works."


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In 2004, when a call came in to Macon County Georgia Extension Coordinator Jeremy Kichler, it seemed routine enough — a farmer had problems controlling pigweed in his cotton. What that call has led to is a firestorm of questions about the extent of Palmer amaranth pigweed resistance to glyphosate in the Southeast and what to do about it.
Kichler didn't have the answer to his grower's pigweed problems, so like a good Extension agent should do, he sought help in solving the problem. He called Steve "Weedy" Brown, an Extension weed scientist at the University of Georgia's Tifton campus. Brown didn't have the full answer either, but knowing the grower's reputation as a top producer, he also recognized something was different about these pigweeds.
Brown enlisted the help of Stanley Culpepper, an Extension weed scientist and protégé of Alan York, one of the top authorities worldwide in weed control in cotton. Culpepper took the suspect pigweed back to the lab, planted seed from the female plants, grew the plants in the greenhouse, zapped them with high rates of glyphosate, and unfortunately they survived these greenhouse treatments. In the spring of 2005, he went to the same field where the original call came to Kichler to conduct numerous studies in an effort to confirm his greenhouse results.
The 2005 results were more shocking than he expected, there was a high level of resistance in the field.
Though weed scientists throughout the Southeast have put together herbicide resistance management programs, little progress has been made at the grower level in dealing with either existing or potential problems.
Jennifer Ralston, Monsanto Roundup technical manager, makes the following recommendations for growers in areas with glyphosate-resistant Palmer amaranth.
"Start clean with a burndown herbicide program or tillage, then apply a pre-emergence residual herbicide labeled for control of Palmer amaranth such as pendimethalin and fluometuron (Cotoran). For the in-crop application tank-mix Roundup WeatherMax at 22 ounces per acre with metolachlor before Palmer amaranth emerges. Use Roundup WeatherMax in-crop as needed at a minimum rate of 22 ounces per acre to control other weeds," Ralston explains.
"To prevent additional flushes of Palmer amaranth, make a post-directed application of Roundup WeatherMax tank-mixed with a residual such as diuron (Direx) or flumioxazin (Valor)."
In other areas where farmers do not face glyphosate resistant weeds, Ralston says Monsanto recommends cotton growers planting Roundup Ready and Roundup Ready Flex varieties apply a residual herbicide according to recommended label rates and timing as part of the weed control program. The residual herbicide can be applied pre-emergence or early post. "This recommendation reduces the risk of glyphosate resistant weeds developing and enhances early season weed control," Ralston says.
Farmers can get more information on managing glyphosate-resistant weeds in Roundup Ready and Roundup Ready crops at www.weedresistancemanagement.com.
Being the tip of the arrow in glyphosate resistance has been both exhilarating and exasperating for Culpepper. He and his team often spend seven days a week, planting, spraying, counting, and measuring cotton and weeds in their more than 12-acres of small plots located near Garden Valley in which resistant Palmer amaranth was first found in 2004. His intense research program is looking at a wide range of problems that widespread resistance to glyphosate and other popular herbicides would cause for farmers in the Southeast.
The son of a North Carolina farmer, Culpepper fully understands the need for an applied, practical approach to understanding the scope of the problem and for developing the most economically feasible solution.
Perhaps the most telling of Culpepper's test plots are end-to-end plots. In one plot, glyphosate was sprayed on resistant pigweed three times — at an unbelievable 88 ounces per acre. The results are shocking, or better said, the lack of results are shocking. The Palmer pigweed that received 264 ounces of glyphosate is alive and healthy. The drought-plagued cotton plants are dwarfed by the glyphosate resistant weeds.
In the adjacent plot, a Cadillac treatment of Prowl plus Reflex, applied pre-emergence, followed by glyphosate plus Dual Magnum or glyphosate plus Staple, followed by diuron plus MSMA or diuron plus glyphosate produced a nearly perfect plot of cotton — at least from a weed standpoint. The catch is that the herbicides were carefully timed and placed and in the real world would cost farmers in the neighborhood of $35 per acre — not counting the $10-12 per acre technology fee.
In each of the different test plots weed and grass pressure was minimal, except for Palmer pigweed, which dwarfed the drought-stressed cotton plants in all but the Cadillac treatments.
Pigweed in general is very competitive, and Palmer amaranth, or Palmer pigweed in particular is highly competitive. On a level playing field pigweed will outgrow cotton. Give pigweed a little advantage, and it will be a one-sided game.
Growers who try to control resistant pigweed with more and more glyphosate are actually making the problem much worse. They are taking out all the natural weed and grass competition, but more importantly they are taking out all the pigweed that remain sensitive to glyphosate. The result is a perfect environment for resistant pigweed to grow and reproduce.
In a drought situation, such as conditions that still plague most of the lower Southeast, Palmer pigweed are much more efficient than cotton, or most any other plant outside a cactus. Even with irrigation, growers have not been able to provide adequate moisture to offset long days with temperatures staying above 85 degrees and topping 95 during the day, with 110-112 degree heat indexes. In these conditions many herbicides break down over time, but Palmer pigweed keeps on trucking.
Even with the Cadillac treatment, growers with herbicide resistant pigweed are way out on the edge, according to Culpepper. "If for any one of a thousand reasons, like drought, the soil-applied residual herbicides don't work, you are in trouble," the Georgia Extension specialist says matter of factly.
To control resistant pigweed that emerge through the soil-applied herbicides, timing is key, he says. In irrigated cotton, or in fields with good rainfall, Palmer pigweed can grow from 2 inches to five inches in three days or less. That three days can be the difference in good control or no control with alternative postemergence herbicides such as Staple on non-ALS resistant pigweed or with Ignite on pigweed in Liberty Link cotton.
"Most people just don't understand how big a problem this is, but if they get in a situation like this 12 acre test field, and have to spend hundreds of dollars an acre hoeing pigweed or mowing it down, they will be faced with some tough questions," Culpepper contends.
"All this is brand new — we didn't really know for sure that we had a problem until 2005, and we are still in the early stages of sorting all this out. This has been a near record drought year in the Southeast, and our final results may be somewhat different. Despite the growing conditions and the effects of irrigation, the best treatment for cotton in fields where glyphosate resistance is a problem may end up being at least $30 per acre, but it will never be $15-16 per acre again — those days are gone," he concludes.
Resistance to glyphosate doesn't stop at the cotton field, it has wide-ranging effects on other crops and other production practices. A great fear shared by researchers and Extension workers throughout the Southeast is that growers will break their dependence on glyphosate by over-using other chemicals.
In areas that are dominated by peanuts and cotton, the overuse of ALS chemicals is already creating some concern that pigweed and other weed pests may be developing some resistance to Cadre, StrongArm and other popular herbicides that come from the same family of chemistry.
Kichler, himself the son of a farmer in Baldwin County, Ala., fully understands the implications of losing both glyphosate and ALS chemistry in Macon County, Ga. "Macon County is a diverse agricultural county, with dairies, peaches, vegetables and row crops. However, losing our two best systems for weed control would be tough for farmers," he concludes.
On a broader scale, North Carolina State University Professor and Weed Scientist Alan York says,
"I have worked with cotton at NCSU for 28 years and nothing I have seen to date compares with the seriousness of glyhosate-resistant Palmer pigweed. I think it is every bit as serious as the boll weevil, and probably worse."
York says, "there is more glyphosate resistance to Palmer amaranth than previously thought at this time last year, and I expect it to spread like wildfire unless growers get a lot more serious about it than I anticipate. It will cause a lot of growers to change their management systems, and it will put some out of the cotton business. It will increase input costs and management requirements for those that hang in there," York adds.
North Carolina scientists first picked up resistance in the summer of 2005, but most growers don't realize they have a problem until a fairly heavy infestation has built up. "We think it was present two, and probably three, years before we detected it in 2005," York says.
"We already have glyphosate-resistant horseweed in North Carolina, which was first detected in 2003, and it seems to have spread quite a bit across the eastern part of the State. With seed being dispersed by wind, we expect it to continue to spread quickly. To date, we have not detected any in the western half of the state. So far, I have encountered only a few fields with a "disaster" situation. However, it is easy to find scattered spots across a lot of fields. We expect it to get worse," York says.
While glyphosate-resistant horseweed is, or will become, a serious problem, it is a Sunday school picnic compared to glyhosate-resistant Palmer amaranth. We can handle the horseweed; growers just have to be willing to do so. We also are looking into a couple other weeds also. One is definitely resistant to glyphosate, but we are unsure of the second species at this time," York concludes.
In 2005 North Carolina researchers collected Palmer amaranth seed from about 280 fields from the Virginia border to the South Carolina border in the fall of 2005. They are screening those seed in the greenhouse for resistance and are almost done with the first run. It appears that most of the problem is in the south, central part of the state (Hoke, Robeson, Scotland, Cumberland, Duplin, Wayne, Lenoir, and Johnston counties). However, there is one population in the northeastern part of the state that York says is highly suspect. And there are probably others that have not been brought to the attention of North Carolina State Extension and research personnel, he says.
The resistant Palmer pigweed is in both cotton and soybeans. In corn atrazine and other herbicides apparently hold it in check. "I was riding through the areas mentioned above the second week in July, and the problem appears to be rampant. It is easy to see where glyphosate has been used, and it is easy to see from a few to thousands of survivors in field after field. Though just a wild guess, I expect we have 100,000 acres with some level of infestation," York says.
"I don't think we will "lose" glyphosate. I anticipate growers continuing to use Roundup Ready technology. The big impact will be that it will no longer be a stand alone treatment. Growers will have to integrate other chemistry into their management systems, which means more money spent. The days of glyphosate-only systems are over," he says.
"We tried hard in all our various meetings last winter to impress upon growers just how serious this problem is. I think we raised the level of awareness and did cause a few growers to make a few changes in their practices. But, from what I am seeing this summer, growers must take this problem much more seriously and implement resistance management strategies now if we have any chance of getting a handle on it. Some are moving in that direction; most are not. Those that are not will be the ones calling me in a year or two and demanding that I do something," the North Carolina weed scientist says.
Cultivation can be an important component of a resistance management strategy. However, about 50 percent of North Carolina cotton is no-till or strip-till. And, among growers planting conventionally, almost none are cultivating. The reason is fuel, equipment, and labor costs. It is going to be very hard to convince growers to start cultivating cotton even though that would likely help with the Palmer situation, according to York.
What growers have left to work with is basically use of multiple modes of action (i.e, other herbicides in place of or in addition to glyphosate). In conservation-tillage systems, that means something other than just glyphosate for burn down. It means pre-emergence herbicides. It means tank-mixes with glyphosate over-the-top. And, it means tank-mixes with glyphosate or non-glyphosate programs for layby, he adds.
Crop rotation will become more important than ever. There are good options to control Palmer in corn. Unfortunately, Palmer is commonly found on land that is better suited for pine trees than for corn. But, there are some good options in soybeans. The big issue here is that management (i.e., timeliness) becomes critical if growers control Palmer with non-glyphosate programs in soybeans. Many growers have become so spoiled by Roundup Ready soybeans that they will have to re-learn the importance of timely application.
Among the questions researchers are trying to document related to glyphosate resistant pigweed is how many weeds per foot of row cause problems with quality and harvesting of cotton. Even if fully grown Palmer pigweed are dessicated by using defoliants, one 2-3 inch diameter stalk could knock the head off a picker. Likewise, one healthy, green Palmer pigweed every few feet of row could cause significant staining and subsequent quality loss.
Another critical concern is the impact on no-till and other conservation practices. Many farmers are enrolled in long-term programs and going back to conventional-tillage to control pigweed would be costly at best, and in many cases, impossible for farmers who lack the equipment and labor to go back to conventional methods.
Culpepper, who grew up on a conservation-tillage farm in North Carolina and remains a staunch supporter of conservation-till cover crops and other soil conservation practices, says he first thought losing glyphosate would mean the end to conservation farming in cotton.
However, his 2006 tests at the Garden Valley sight offer good hope for coping with the problem in conservation-tillage systems.
The key, he says, is to get enough cover to suppress weeds without preventing pre-emergence or at planting herbicides from getting to the ground. In test plots at the Garden Valley sight, the same Cadillac treatment that worked in conventional-tillage has so far kept test plots clean in no-till plots planted into wheat stubble.
He points out that the area of the 12-acre test sight where no-till cotton was planted does not have as high percentage (40-45 percent) of resistant pigweed as the field with conventional-tillage systems, which is over 75 percent glyphosate resistant weeds. No-till farming without glyphosate is possible, but it greatly increases the risk, he points out.
As is the case with so many of the parameters being tested in Georgia, more will be known after the 2006 crop is harvested and analyzed, but suffice to say Culpepper, Kichler, York and others working with glyphosate resistant pigweed are certain it will be a big problem in the future.
"I knew it was bad, but I didn't think it would be this bad," Culpepper laments. Right now we only know for sure that we have glyphosate resistance in three counties, but we strongly suspect we have it in fields hours of driving time away from the Garden Valley fields, he says.
Kichler adds that resistance had likely been in the Garden Valley area for some time prior to its discovery in 2004, but had not been diagnosed. In any area, where large acreages of cotton are grown and in which there is high, if not total, dependence on glyphosate for weed control, he says there is a good chance growers have some degree of resistance.
Culpepper says that up to 30-35 percent resistance in spots throughout a field likely goes unnoticed by most farmers. They know there is a problem, but there are thousands of other reasons unrelated to resistance that allow pigweed to escape control.
York has called Palmer amaranth the biggest, baddest plant in the field. Female Palmer pigweed can produce 500,000 seed — resistant or not resistant. Researchers are not sure exactly how resistance spreads. If it spreads solely by seed dispersion, spread of the problem may be relatively slow. If it spreads on pollen, on the other hand, it could spread miles at a time.
Montezuma, Ga., grower Johnny Sanders grows 3,000 acres of cotton and 1,000 acres of peanuts scant miles from Culpepper's Garden Valley test site. How resistance spreads is a critical issue for him.
Recognized as one of the top growers in the area, Sanders never bought into the idea of total use of glyphosate. He has regularly used pre-emergence herbicides and non-glyphosate directed sprays in cotton and alternates use of ALS herbicides on peanuts. He is as confident as he can be, being only a few miles from documented cases of resistance, that he doesn't have glyphosate resistant pigweed on his farm.
Despite doing everything right, if researchers determine that resistance can be spread via pollen, he could inherit the problem from not-so-nearby farmers who haven't been so diligent in breaking up the glyphosate monoculture that is so common throughout the Southeast.
"We can't just 'not' grow peanuts or cotton because of pigweed resistance. We have too much money invested in these crops and too much time invested in learning how to grow them effectively. We have tried canola and other specialty crops and the more popular row crops, but cotton and peanuts is the best fit for our soil and our operation," he says.
Fortunately, farmers do have a number of good alternative tools to manage pigweeds, glyphosate resistant or not. Though glyphosate has dominated the herbicide market, most companies have maintained label clearance for pre-Roundup Ready products. These products will become the primary tools for growers who either want to avoid resistance problems or who want to manage fields in which resistant pigweed are known to occur.
Chuck Foresman, herbicide resistance manager for Syngenta, says his company has followed a strategy of continuing to invest in development of their line of cotton herbicides, based on resistance research from around the world. These fields in which glyphosate resistance has been documented are just a mess — something that every cotton farmer should see. It's sad to see, but it makes me glad our company and other herbicide-manufacturing companies maintained the herbicide products that were largely displaced by Roundup Ready technology, he adds
It is encouraging to see for myself that cotton can be grown in fields with glyphosate resistance. And, hopefully farmers will heed the warning of Culpepper, York and others involved in finding solutions to this problem, Foresman concludes.
Paraquat, sold under many trade names, including Gramoxone, is an old herbicide that may be a key player in growing glyphosate resistant cotton in no-till systems. Using paraquat, to burn down winter cover crops will provide some break in the use of glyphosates.
Liberty Link cotton is another option, though current varieties have not been as competitive yield-wise with Roundup Ready varieties. The chemistry is different from glyphosate, and if new, higher yielding varieties become available, this would be an obvious option for cotton growers.
Though the original problem with glyphosate resistance was documented in cotton, it is likewise a problem in soybean production systems that are heavily dependent on the use of these herbicides for weed and grass control.
Considering a vast majority of cotton, some experts contend in excess of 95 percent, grown in the Southeast being Roundup Ready varieties, the potential scope of the resistance problem is enormous — just for cotton. Add in 2.5 million acres, or so, of soybeans, albeit with a lower percentage being Roundup Ready varieties, and there is a recipe for disaster for Southern row crops.
The reality is that Roundup Ready technology probably kept a lot of farmers in business. It lowered overall weed management costs by billions of dollars, and eased the fear of some environmentalists by dramatically reducing the total volume of herbicide used in the Southeast. It is one of a handful of technical developments in the past half century that has helped U.S. farmers become the most productive in the World.
Despite its many advantages, the overuse of glyphosate on Roundup Ready cotton and soybeans will likely take some farmers out of business. Unless the warning of scientists like York and Culpepper are heeded, the loss of control of one weed could have a devastating effect on Southern row crop culture.
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Friday, June 7, 2013
paul segers' stealth pavilion 2013 mimics F-117 nighthawk....referencing the stealth technology of the lockheed martin F-117 nighthawk, dutch artist paul segers has created 'stealth pavilion 2013' at fort ruigenhoek in groenekan, the netherlands. the work is part of for KAAP's exhibition curated by frank koolenat and organized by the storm foundation. the installation's form is modeled after the geometric surfaces calculated by 1970s computers, which allows fighter jets to operate hidden from radio tracking. segers also integrates utopian ideals of freedom and heterotopian concepts of space defined by relationships and awareness. common materials such as wood, and steel are transformed into a low-tech composition of platforms around a fireplace. the aluminum canopy shaped to deflect radar signals, is suspended from adjacent trees indicating the communal meeting place where users can exist undetected.
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EUSTIS, Fla. (Gray News) – Neyzha Nicole couldn't believe what she was hearing at a central Florida fast-food restaurant and pulled out her phone to record it.
Two women were chastising a Burger King manager for speaking Spanish to an employee over the weekend.
"Speak your Mexican at home," one of the women told Ricardo Castillo, the restaurant's general manager. "You're in America, you should speak American English."
The conversation intensified.
"Go back to Mexico if you want to keep speaking Spanish," the woman said.
That's when Castillo exploded.
"Guess what, ma'am. I'm not Mexican, but you're very prejudiced and I want you out of my restaurant right now," he said, pointing toward the door.
The women got up and left.
The five-minute video from the community about 30 miles northwest of Orlando has more than 65,000 views on Facebook.
Burger King released a statement on the incident to WOFL.
"There is no place for discrimination in our restaurants. We expect employees and guests to treat each other with respect. This incident took place at a franchised restaurant and the owner is looking into the matter."
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