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Home › Classroom Resources › Calendar Activities
Calendar Activities See All Calendar Activities
Not your everyday calendar, here you can find important events in literary history, authors' birthdays, and a variety of holidays, all with related activities and resources that make them more relevant to students. View by day, by week, or by month.
September 11, 2020
Patriot Day is celebrated today on the anniversary of the terrorist attacks of 2001.
Students write about the name "Patriot Day" and how it marks the anniversary of a huge disaster. An alternative assignment could be to ask students to record their reflections about 9/11.
Grades 5 – 12
Types of Calendar Activities
Authors & Texts
Birthdays, publication dates, and more
Historical Figures & Events
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Second annual 'Rt. 66 Reinterpreted' Art Project now seeking entries
Send a link to a friend
[January 14, 2014]
ATLANTA — In celebration of
Route 66 and all it stands for, Atlanta, Ill., — located on the
Mother Road, midway between Chicago and St. Louis — announces the
second annual "Rt. 66 Reinterpreted" Art Project.
Participating artists will be provided a blank, 2-by-2-foot
wooden cutout of the Rt. 66 highway shield, painted white, which
will then become their personal canvas. The only requirement in
creating a reinterpreted shield is to incorporate the text "Illinois
U.S. 66" somewhere on the face of the shield, in whatever size,
shape or color the artist desires. Everything else about the design,
style, background and color of the reinterpreted shield is left to
each artist's imagination and creativity.
The Atlanta Betterment Fund sponsors the Rt. 66 Reinterpreted Art
The project is open to anyone 16 years old and above. Up to 50
entries will be accepted in this year's project, as determined by
the date applications are received.
The board of directors of the Atlanta Betterment Fund will select
10 shields out of the 50 entries as finalists. Shields selected as
finalists will be judged on originality of design, overall concept
and quality of execution. All decisions regarding judging are final.
Finalists will be notified by April 30.
All 50 entries will be displayed outside along Route 66 in
downtown Atlanta from May 1 to Aug. 31. Voting will then take place
May 1-Aug. 31 to select the top five shield designs as winners of
the 2014 project. Anyone, anywhere may vote: either in person at
selected Rt. 66 attractions in Atlanta or online via Atlanta's
website at
www.atlantaillinois.org. The top five vote-getters will be the
winners of this year's Rt. 66 Reinterpreted Art Project. Entries
selected as one of the top five winning designs will be notified by
Sept. 8 and will be showcased at the International Mother Road
Festival in Springfield Sept. 26-28. At the conclusion of the
project, the five winning shields, along with the names of the
artists who created them, will be displayed on a permanent basis in
the Atlanta Rt. 66 Park.
[to top of second column]
Artists wishing to enter the Rt. 66 Reinterpreted Art Project must
submit a completed application form, along with a $25 entry fee.
Completed applications are due by or before Feb. 15. Applications
received after Feb. 15 will not be accepted.
Completed Rt. 66 Reinterpreted shields should be carefully
packaged and returned to: The Atlanta Betterment Fund, 114 SW Arch
St., Atlanta, IL 61723. Shields should be submitted between March 1
and April 4. Shields received after April 4 will not be accepted.
Click on the "Rt.
66 Art Project" logo at:
for more information, including project guidelines and an
application form to enter the Rt. 66 Reinterpreted Art Project. Or
William Thomas
Atlanta Betterment Fund
114 SW Arch Street
Atlanta, IL 61723
Application for Rt. 66
Reinterpreted Art Project (PDF)
Project guidelines
[Text from news
release received from Bill Thomas]
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I have a Lenovo ThinkPad T61p laptop that came with XP and Vista Ultimate restore disks. To do a system restore requires 2-3 hours, after which I have to go on an expedition to cull all of the "extras" that Lenovo loads on these things, and they have everything including the kitchen sink. Even after this I have to run CCleaner a few times to clean up the registry. On a typical Vista install I run a 50% chance of the restore hitting the wall before SP2 gets applied.
I use the laptop for BibleWorks and Logos and not much else. I'm kind of hung up on whether to get the 32 bit or 64 bit version of Windows 7. The laptop has 4gb of ram and a T9300 Core 2 Duo processor.
What would you recommend getting - 32 bits or 64 bits?


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Entry-Level Automotive Technician
- Employer
- Goodyear
- Location
- Mclean, VA
- Posted
- Nov 09, 2018
- Closes
- Nov 12, 2018
- Function
- Automotive Repair and Mechanic
- Industry
- Automotive, Specialty Trades
- Career Level
- Experienced (Non-Manager)
- Hours
- Full Time
Goodyear owns and operates more than 600 tire and auto service centers nationwide. We offer a fun, fast pace work environment, with competitive base pay. Our comprehensive benefit package includes medical plans, 401k, certification reimbursement and paid vacations. At Goodyear we invest in you and your future by providing excellent training for our technician, sales team and management positions. We offer fast track career advancement opportunities for hard working, team players who can deliver results. If you are looking for more than a job, apply today and begin your career with the tire and auto service innovation leader!The Entry-Level Technician must have a mechanical aptitude and is able to perform basic automotive services including mounting and balancing tires, tire repairs, oil changes, vehicle inspections and other less technical services while delivering an excellent customer experience. Responsible also to maintain clean and safe work areas in the tire and service department. This store is located at 6820 Old Dominion Drive, McLean, VA.


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When the United States take on Poland on Oct. 9 and Colombia on Oct. 12, it will mark the genuine beginning of Bob Bradley's second tenure as the US national team's head coach.
The European leagues will be on a break, meaning he can call on his regulars across the Pond – although expect elder statesmen Carlos Bocanegra, Clint Dempsey and Steve Cherundolo to stay with their clubs. Also, even though it's not quite time for Conor Doyle or Mikkel Diskerud to make their senior debut, some new faces will join the proceedings.
The MLS season will be in full swing, so the Red Bulls' Tim Ream will likely miss out, but Bradley can call some players from teams already eliminated from playoff contention.
Here's how we think Bob Bradley's 23-man roster will look for the friendlies:
[inline_node:316138]Goalkeepers (3)
Tim Howard - Everton are struggling, but the American No. 1 will still make the trip back to the US.
Brad Guzan - The Aston Villa backup deserves a start if for no other reason than it will help him impress European club managers.
Sean Johnson - Marcus Hahnemann can stay in Europe while the Chicago Fire rookie gets his first taste of the national team (assuming his club side won't make the playoffs).
Defenders (8)
Omar Gonzalez - The Los Angeles Galaxy don't play during this international break, which gives Gonzalez a prime opportunity to build on his start against Brazil.
Jay DeMerit - The former Watford captain still needs a team, but the Nats will do for now.
Oguchi Onyewu - There's a chance the big center back will stay in Italy and try to break through at AC Milan, but he needs the game reps Bradley will give him.
Clarence Goodson - With Ream unavailable, the IK Start center back gets the call.
Jonathan Bornstein - While Chivas USA won't make the playoffs, the versatile Californian can take solace in another opportunity to impress Bradley (and win over his critics).
Eric Lichaj - The flanker of the future gets his first genuine camp invite.
Jonathan Spector - The fullback can't find the field at West Ham but should still earn a spot in the 23.
Kevin Alston - It has been a lost season for the New England Revolution, but the speedy right back deserves to be in camp.
[inline_node:307079]Midfielders (9)
Benny Feilhaber - Will his torrid streak with Aarhus earn him a start in what could be a new formation for the US?
Jermaine Jones - Schalke 04's skilled enforcer finally makes an appearance with the Red, White and Blue.
José Francisco Torres - The creative midfielder is another player who could benefit if Bradley installs a 4-2-3-1.
Stuart Holden - The Texan's play at Bolton makes a strong case he should be starting for the U.\S.
Michael Bradley - The Stars and Stripes' most indispensable outfielder?
Maurice Edu - Although he's looked strong at Rangers, Edu could be the odd man out in the center of the pitch.
Alejandro Bedoya - The former Boston College Eagle continues to shine in Scandinavia and will look to win a job out wide.
Sacha Klejstan - Anderlecht's new man will get the call if he's healthy. If not, Geoff Cameron should take his spot.
Landon Donovan - He might deserve a break, but he won't get one (nor will he ever admit he needs a rest).
[inline_node:317068]Forwards (3)
Jozy Altidore - Can Altidore continue the improvement he showed in South Africa?
Hérculez Gómez - The Pachuca striker opened his scoring account over the weekend.
Eddie Johnson - He's been solid, if not spectacular, at Fulham and will get another chance to prove he can score against quality competition.


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Waldron's effort to employ a code officer came to an end July 8 when council members voted to void the contract.
Council voted in October 2007 to hire Morenci police officer Don Thompson on a part-time basis to occasionally visit the village to check for code violations, such as lawn maintenance issues, junk cars and loose dogs.
Thompson's work with the village never got into full swing, clerk Ruth Hotchkiss said, and the contract was nullified. Only council member Roy Hall voted against the motion.
Thompson was hired on a six-month trial contract to spend a minimum of three hours in the village whenever he made a visit. He was also to be deputized by the Hillsdale County Sheriff's Department and serve as a police officer when he was in the village.
Council will review the code officer plan with the village attorney, Hotchkiss said, and if approved, advertise again for an officer.
Several letters need to be mailed to property owners about tall grass and weeds. It was noted at the June meeting that only one warning letter is to be mailed. If the situation isn't corrected, a village employee will mow the lawn and the cost will be added to the property owner's tax bill.
MOWER—Council voted to spend $1,911 to buy a new motor for the village lawn mower from Chad Smig. Three estimates were received.
HANDBOOK—Information will be collected about the duties of village employees and turned over to the Ordinance and Legal Committee for review.
WINDMILL—The new windmill aerator at the park pond is not operating properly. A chemical will be purchased to deal with an algae problem.
SALARY—At the June 10 meeting, council members approved a pay increase to $7.65 an hour for part-time employee Dennis Hopkins.
Motions to increase his pay to $8 an hour and to $7.55 an hour both failed on 3-4 votes, but the $7.65 motion went through by a 6-1 vote, with Jeff Bernath voting against it.
SOIL—A pile of topsoil will be placed near the village maintenance building for residents to use.
MILLAGE—Council voted unanimously to leave the millage rate of 10.9812 unchanged for the 2008-09 fiscal year.
DRAINS—All storm drains will be located and recorded so an accurate list will be available in the village office. Cleaning of drains is needed.
BANK BUILDING—Arrangements are still being worked out for the sale of the former Bank of Lenawee building to the village for a nominal $1 fee. The Waldron branch of the bank was closed when the Bank of Lenawee was sold to First Federal Bank.
Hotchkiss said as of now there are no firm plans for how the building will be used.


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This super-simple cream pie has rich chocolate flavor with hazelnut tones enhanced with a shot of Frangelico (hazelnut liqueur). Rather than an Oreo crumb crust, you can use a blind-baked paté brisee crust. For a really decadent dessert, top with whipped cream and fresh raspberries.
Nutella, chocolate hazelnut spread, has been on the market since 1963 though the actual Ferrero recipe, from Italy, has been around since the 1940s. The American Nutella is hazelnut/cocoa flavored sugar, not a quality product, but still okay for Nutella nuts … enthusiasts. I'm a purist about some things and chocolate hazelnut spread (more of a butter) is one of them.
The recipe follows for making your own Nutella. It is very simple and you can adjust the sugar content to personal preference. There is no milk, wheat or other fillers in this recipe, just roasted hazelnuts, cocoa powder and sugar. It's important to roast the hazelnuts before grinding because any water left in them will produce a mush rather than a butter. Roasting also helps to remove the skins of the nuts. No need to add vegetable oil because the hazelnuts will make their own oil when processed. It's just like making peanut butter. Hazelnut oil is fragile and will breakdown at room temperature within a couple months so its best to refrigerate as soon as made (will keep up to 6 months refrigerated). You may substitute melted bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate chips for the cocoa powder. Start with 1/4 cup melted chocolate and add more if needed. For more information just Google: Freddy Guys Hazelnut Farm of Willamette Valley, Oregon. This recipe is adapted from a recipe of Barb Foulke's, owner of Freddy Guys.


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Founded by Congressional Charter.
To meet the government's urgent need for an independent adviser on scientific matters, President Lincoln signed a congressional charter forming the National Academy of Sciences in 1863 to "investigate, examine, experiment, and report upon any subject of science." As science began to play an ever-increasing role in national priorities and public life, the National Academy of Sciences eventually expanded to include the National Research Council in 1916, the National Academy of Engineering in 1964, and the Institute of Medicine in 1970.
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine are private, nonprofit institutions that provide expert advice on some of the most pressing challenges facing the nation and the world. Known collectively as the National Academies, they produce groundbreaking reports that have helped shape sound policies, inform public opinion, and advance the pursuit of science, engineering, and medicine. Read or download thousands of reports online at the National Academies Press.


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TDK DVD-R4.7 Branded 50pk Shrinkwrap16X 20356
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DVD-R4.7 Branded 50pk Shrinkwrap16X#20356*While Supplies Last
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Thank you.


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Madison man sentenced to prison for dealing crack cocaine
Moore sentenced to 5 years in federal prison
MADISON, Wis. — A Madison man was sentenced Wednesday for distributing of crack cocaine.
Milton L. Moore, 22, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Barbara B. Crabb to five years in federal prison.
Moore pleaded guilty to the distribution of crack cocaine charge on Nov. 28, 2012.
On July 29, 2012, an undercover officer purchased 23 grams of crack cocaine from Moore. On two other occasions in July 2012, the undercover officer purchased heroin from Moore.
At the time of these offenses, Moore was on extended supervision in Dane County Circuit Court for robbery.
The judge ordered Moore's five-year sentence to run consecutive to his three-year sentence for violating the terms of his extended supervision in the robbery case.
Co-defendant Damien Smith is scheduled to plead guilty before Judge Crabb on Friday. Co-defendant Kordarow Moore pleaded guilty on Feb. 1 and is scheduled for sentencing before Judge Crabb on April 1.


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Never overlook the importance of your baseball or softball helmet. Players of all ages and skill levels should wear this critical piece of equipment every time they step up to the plate.
The latest generation of batting helmets come with a variety of technology-inspired features and materials. Expect your helmet to be engineered for both safety and comfort. Shop styles for adults or kids' baseball helmets.
Most helmets are approved by the National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment, which regulates safety requirements for sports helmets. Get the color, material and technology you need to play with confidence.
Shop industry-leading helmet brands, including Rawlings®, Easton®, adidas® and Under Armour®.
Expert Advice
Your batting helmet should never get in the way of your game. Look for a helmet designed with a lightweight yet protective design.
A high-impact ABS shell provides the ultimate in shock absorption. Built-in ventilation holes allow for natural air-flow as you play. Many of today's baseball helmets come with a moisture-wicking liner, designed to transport perspiration away from skin to keep you feeling fresh. Antimicrobial technology ensures the longevity of your helmet's inner liner. Look for dual-density or EVA padding in your batting helmet, which provides a more customized fit.
Consider whether you would like to wear a facemask with your helmet. Some helmets come with a built-in mask for face protection, while others can be added to a helmet for a more customized headpiece.
Baseball helmets are available in a variety of colors, designs and finishes, so choose one that fits your game.
Remember, it's critical for your batting helmet to fit snugly and securely. If a helmet is loose it will not absorb the impact of a ball. Measure the circumference of a player's head at its widest point. Brands typically use inches to determine helmet size.
Helmet sizes can vary greatly from brand to brand, so always consult product guidelines before purchasing. Large helmets typically range from 22 ½ to 24 ½ inches. Small helmets are generally less than 21 ½ inches. Some helmets are available as one-size fits all.
Ear protection is a critical feature on your helmet. Right-handed batters need an ear guard on the left side, while left-handed batters require a guard on their right ear. Many modern helmets are available with ear protection on both sides.
Looking for more? Shop the entire collection of baseball equipment right here at DICK'S Sporting Goods.
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New Oliver Peoples Talya BNS Brownstone w/Gold/ Spice Brown Gradient Sunglasses
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Nylon parrot
Click to enlarge
Nylon parrot
Design details
Designs to inspire you - nylon parrot.
Project materials
Design idea
The design featured is copyrighted. The design is provided for inspiration.
You can use the materials that we have listed, or you can use different colours and materials, to make your own variation of this design.


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Last week's Garden Theme:
Top Row: String cheese "Tree" (made by The Muffin); Chocolate Frog (from her stash).
Middle Row: Grated cheddar (for sprinkling on the pasta); Dried apricot and spinach leaf Butterfly.
Bottom Row: Pasta with (home-made) tomato-based sauce; Tinned pineapple.
She ate it all.
No-theme Tin From A Few Weeks Ago:
Top Row: "Ants on a Log"; Grapes; Macaron Turtle.
Bottom Row: Pasta; Slice of apple & dried cranberries; Pasta.
The macaron turtle was a bit of a disaster. I was trying out a new macaron recipe, and it didn't work for me at all. They tasted all right, but they were cracked and browned and Uuuuuuuuuuuugly! The Muffin thought her turtle was cute anyway!
The Muffin ate everything except the Ants on a Log (which she specifically wanted in her tin, having made it in class that day at school, but then didn't touch). This did not surprise me at all - she doesn't like celery OR cream cheese!
And finally, This Week - Spotty Theme!
Top Row: Two lollies from her lolly bag stash; Carrot Spots; Pumpkin slice cut out with a small circle cutter.
Bottom Row: Pomegranate Spots; Spotty yoghurt; Pumpkin slice cut out with a medium circle cutter.
The After Shot:
You may notice that the small piece of pumpkin slice has magically transformed into carrot & apple salad. The Muffin spotted her Daddy having some of this salad during dinner and requested some. So although she didn't eat too many of her carrots, the salad she ate compensated for them - hurrah!
Sorry about the marathon post! If you can cope with seeing even more muffin tins, why not check out The Muffin Tin Mom's blog? Have a great week!


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There's no one quite like Cher. And there's nothing quite as spectacular as a Cher show.
The ageless diva descended from a column onto the stage Monday night at Toyota Center, all multicolored plumes and sparkle, to the throbbing grooves of "Woman's World" and "Strong Enough." It was expectedly over-the-top and all-out fabulous, like the last days of an Egyptian disco.
Then, she removed the headgear and talked to the sellout crowd. It's that contrast, larger-than-life diva and chatty girlfriend, that makes her so appealing.
"Well. Here we are. Again," she said. "This is actually my farewell-farewell tour." (Cue a ferocious chorus of boos.)
Cher, still gorgeous at 67 years old, told the audience she was "sobbing" over clothes and choreography during Saturday's tour kickoff in Phoenix. She mentioned Kim Kardashian's behind. ("That used to be called fat. Now it's like a style tool.") She admitted to getting toilet paper stuck on her fingernails.
The Houston show is only the second date on a three-month tour (that's likely to be extended). It wasn't without its glitches. A sign outside Toyota Center apologized "for the delay." An announcer told the crowd there were "some technical issues." Cher herself boomed over the speakers just before taking the stage.
"I'll be out in a minute," she said just before 10 p.m. "God, I hope it's good.
"The first couple of shows are difficult. I make stuff up as I go along. I'm really happy you're here."
By the time she took the stage, any signs of distress were long gone. (She tweeted after the show that the "show is so big" that the crew had trouble during load-in.) The sets were detailed and dazzling. The dancers hit their marks. And Cher, often underrated as a singer, was in terrific voice. Every moment of the show was an eye-popping extravaganza.
She twirled on a chandelier during "Dressed to Kill." She wore a red minidress and boots during "The Beat Goes On" and reunited with Sonny Bono (via video) for "I Got You Babe." She strutted around a parade of traveling carnival acts in a loose red wig during "Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves" and "Dark Lady."
Longtime collaborator Bob Mackie declined the costuming job because of a busy schedule. (Cher has publicly tweeted that it broke her heart.) But there was plenty of sparkle. The Indian headdress and nude bodystocking that accompanied "Half Breed" made for a jaw-dropping visual. She emerged from a giant gilded horse during recent club hit "Take It Like A Man," sporting a cascade of blonde curls and gladiator armor. It was pure Helen of Troy realness.
A highlight reel of Cher's films ("Silkwood," "Mask," "Moonstruck," "Mermaids," "Tea With Mussolini") preceded an ode to "Burlesque" and proved one of the show's strongest segments. Cher and her dancers recreated the film's opening number (which itself riffs on "All That Jazz" from the musical "Chicago") down to the costumes. And though she admitted some hesitation to tackling power ballad "You Haven't Seen the Last of Me," it was a stunning vocal showcase that earned her one of many standing ovations.
She offered up a few gems for the "die hard Cher fans," including "Walking in Memphis," "Just Like Jesse James" and "Heart of Stone" before hitting the show's final, feverish stretch. She skipped across the stage in a recreation of her infamous outfit – you know the one – during fist-pumping renditions of "I Found Someone" and "If I Could Turn Back Time." An army of neon dancers, in neon costumes that looked like Rainbow Brite leftovers, swarmed around her for "Believe." Cher thankfully ditched a similar outfit she wore during the first show in favor of a sexier getup: silver spangles, pasties and another blonde wig.
Cher's appeal was encapsulated in her final number. She was strapped into a harness for wistful ballad "I Hope You Find It," lifted up and slowly around the arena amid a flood of sparkling lights. Her beige gown and circular, gold headpiece evoked the Virgin Mary. (For large, breathless pockets of the crowd, it indeed seemed a religious experience.) It was also very, very Cher: a grand, glowing gesture that somehow also managed to feel sentimental and sweet.
Opener Pat Benatar promised "more singing, less talking" during her hourlong opening set. But her between-song banter offered charming insight. She introduced "Promises in the Dark" as the first song she co-wrote with husband and guitarist Neil Giraldo about their relationship. And she dubbed "We Belong" a karaoke favorite.
That phrase could have described most any song in the set. Every word — from "All Fired Up" to "Shadows of the Night" to "Invincible" — incited an enthusiastic singalong. Benatar's best material has an ageless, anthemic quality that still erupts onstage.
She was backed by a ferocious band, including Giraldo, that seemed much bigger and louder than a modest four-piece. By the time Benatar charges through signature hits "Hit Me With Your Best Shot," "Love Is A Battlefield" and "Heartbreaker" (cleverly laced with Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire"), much of the crowd was on its feet.


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Briefs from around Illinois.
Cat workers return to work after fire in EP plant EAST PEORIA -- Caterpillar employees returned to work on Sunday morning, a day after a fire broke out in a furnace in Building KK in the Transmission Business Unit at the East Peoria plant. Four workers in the facility were injured, said Caterpillar spokeswoman Kate Kenny in a news release. Three were initially taken to OSF Saint Francis Medical Center in Peoria and were later transferred to the burn unit at Memorial Medical Center in Springfield. One worker was released Sunday, and the other two are listed in stable condition and are expected to be released later this week. The worker who remained at St. Francis was treated for smoke inhalation and released Saturday night. The names of the workers have not been released. About 400 other employees were immediately evacuated from the building after the fire. Kenny said everyone on the scene took the appropriate actions and followed the proper procedures, and only minor damage to the furnace area has been reported. The furnace, used to harden gears and shafts manufactured in the building, is expected to resume operations later this week. Kenny said Caterpillar safety officials immediately contacted the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and a preliminary investigation began Sunday. The cause of the fire and a damage estimate has not yet been determined. An official of United Auto Workers Local 974, who asked not to be identified, said a UAW safety representative was denied entry Sunday to the building where the fire broke out. - Journal Star, Peoria Man arrested for walking into wrong house BURNT PRAIRIE -- Juan Medina, 62, of rural Burnt Prairie was arrested about 5:56 a.m. Sunday after he allegedly walked into Wayne and Connie Allen's rural Burnt Prairie residence. White County Sheriff Doug Maier told The Times it appeared Medina was extremely intoxicated and apparently unaware he had walked into the wrong residence. Maier further alleged that Medina had not only walked into the wrong residence but was preparing to go to bed as if he was in his own residence, unaware he was in the bedroom of the Allens' 9-year-old daughter. Medina was booked at the City-County Jail in Carmi on a preliminary charge of criminal trespass to a residence pending $100 cash bail. - The Carmi Times White squirrels on the rise OLNEY -- The 29th year of counting gray and albino squirrels in Olney showed a large increase in the number of white squirrels. The count was headed by Chris Mathews, biology instructor at Olney Central College, and Olney City Clerk Belinda Henton. During the three weeks of the count, there were about 60 volunteers counting squirrels and cats, consisting of students from Olney Central College, Bridgeport Science Club and volunteers from the community. The annual squirrel count was held at 7:30 a.m. October 13, 20 and 27. Upon averaging data from the three counting dates, there were 872 gray squirrels, 141 albino squirrels, 18 fox squirrels and 93 cats. Compared to 2006, the gray squirrels increased 17.73 percent; the albino squirrels increased 47.38 percent; and the cats decreased by 2.11 percent. The gray to albino ratio in 2006 was 7.77 to 1; the gray to albino ratio in 2007 of 6.21 to 1 was an encouraging improvement. Of the three weeks counted, the highest count for gray and white squirrels and cats was October 20. It was a sunny day with a temperature of 52 degrees at the beginning of the count. - Olney Daily Mail Man charged with sex abuse at mental health facility DOWNERS GROVE -- A Downers Grove man was charged with sexually abusing three women at a Lombard mental health facility where he volunteered. John McCain, 62, 424 Valley View Drive, was indicted by a grand jury Dec. 13 for three counts of criminal sexual assault and five counts of criminal sexual abuse. All of the women were residents of the Ray Graham Association for People with Disabilities learning center. "We were devastated by what happened," said Cathy Terrill, Ray Graham CEO. "The women are all safe. We appreciate the cooperation of the Lombard Police Department and the state's attorney's office." McCain had volunteered at the center for years, giving guitar lessons to adults with disabilities. The alleged incidents took place between May and October. He was arrested and charged in October and posted bond, said Paul Darrah, spokesman for the DuPage County state's attorney. McCain's volunteer service has since been terminated. "We do background checks on all of our volunteers; our volunteers go through training," Terrill said. "We have followed the protocol that has been set out by the state, and we will continue to follow that protocol." All of the victims have received services from Ray Graham for many years and are continuing to receive services there, Terrill said. Criminal sexual assault is a class one felony carrying a sentence of four to 15 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections, Darrah said. Criminal sexual abuse is a class four felony with a term of between one and three years, he added. McCain is scheduled to appear in DuPage County Circuit Court for a status hearing Feb. 11. - Downers Grove Reporter Man tries, fails to rob Citizens Credit Union ROCKFORD -- Police have arrested a man who they say tried unsuccessfully to rob a credit union this morning. Dave C. Ball, 44, was arrested and is awaiting charges, police officials said. The attempted robbery happened about 11:15 a.m. at the Citizens Credit Union, 4227 Maray Drive, when a man entered the store, displayed a handgun and demanded money. When credit union clerks told him they didn't have any cash, he turned around and left, officials said. An armed security guard who was working a neighboring credit union learned of the robbery attempt and held the man at bay until police could take him into custody. Citizens Credit Union is next door to Credit Union 1, which was held up once in August and again October. Police are investigating the possibility that all three robberies are linked. - Rockford Register Star Rockford Police search for armed suspect in hotel robbery ROCKFORD -- Police are looking for a man who, they say, put a hotel clerk in a closet while he took cash from the register at the Alpine Inn early this morning. Officials say the man is 6 feet tall and 200 pounds, and was wearing dark glasses, a dark baseball cap and a Cubs jacket about 12:30 a.m. when he fled the hotel, 4404 E. State St. The lower part of his face was covered, police said. A clerk told police he was wearing pillow cases over his hands and implied he had a handgun but never displayed it. No one was hurt. Anyone with information on the robbery should call Rockford Police at 815-987-5824 or Crime Stoppers at 815-963-7867. - Rockford Register Star


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Sun 24 Mar 2013
Doing Food Security Differently – Theme 3: Create exit points
Posted by Ed under Adaptation, Climate Change, development, Development Institutions, Food Security, globalization, Livelihoods, policy, research, Uncategorized
[4] Comments
In the world of food security and agricultural development there is a tendency to see market integration as a panacea for problems of hunger (see Theme 2, point 4). There is ample evidence that market integration creates opportunities for farmers by connecting them to the vast sums of money at play in the global food markets. But there is equally ample evidence pointing to the fact that markets are never just a solution – negotiating global markets from the position of a small producer presents significant challenges such as the management of commodity price instability (without meaningful market leverage). The academic side, and much of the implementation side, of the food security world already recognizes this issue, driven by (repeated) studies/experiences of food insecurity and famine showing that markets are nearly always the most important driver of this stress on the global poor. Planning for the benefits of market integration without serious thought about how to manage the potential downsides of markets is a recipe for disaster.
For example, simplifying one's farm to focus on only a few key crops for which there is "comparative advantage", and then using the proceeds to buy food, clothing, shelter and other necessities, works great when the market for those crops is strong. But what happens when the food you need to buy becomes more dear than the crops you are growing, for example through food price spikes or a shift in markets that leave one's farm worth only a fraction of what is needed to feed and clothe one's family? In the world's poorest countries, where most food security and agricultural development work takes place, there is little capacity to provide safety nets to vulnerable citizens that might address such outcomes.
This is not a call for the provision of these safety nets (microinsurance is very interesting, but a long way from implementation). While useful and, in some contexts, critical, they are, in the end, band-aids for a larger conceptual problem – the framing of market engagement as a panacea for the problems of agricultural development and food security. Often, such programs also presume a lack of existing safety nets at the community or household level – a sort of "we can't make things worse" mentality that marks much development thought. However, farmers in these countries have long operated without a state-level safety net. They hedge against all kinds of uncertainties, from the weather to markets. For example, one form of hedging I have seen in my own work is an emphasis on growing a mix of crops that can be sold or eaten, depending on market and weather conditions. If, in coastal Ghana, you are growing maize and cassava as your principal crops, you can sell both in years where the market is good, and you can eat both in years where the market turns on you. I have referred to opting out of markets as temporary deglobalization, where people opt in and out of markets as they gauge their risks and opportunities.
Forcing farmers away from this model, toward one that focuses on enhancing the economic efficiency of agricultural production by reducing the focus of a country and its farmers to a few crops that are their "comparative advantage", and which they should sell to purchase the rest of their dietary needs, removes the option of turning away from markets and eating the crops in conditions of years where the markets are not favorable. This is even more true when some of that newly reduced crop mix only takes value from sale on global markets (i.e. cocoa) and/or which cannot be eaten (i.e. cotton). In short, such restructuring in the name of economic efficiency makes people dependent on the political structures of the state that govern the markets in which they participate. Most of our work takes place in the Global South, where the state rarely has the capacity to step in and help in times of crisis. It is pretty easy to do the math here: done wrong, food security programs principally framed around ideas of economic efficiency can enhance state capacity to extract value from farmers without a comparable improvement in the delivery of services or safety nets. This is an acceptable outcome if you are trying to compel people to submit to the state and the markets the state regulates, which is one way to boost measurable GDP and state revenue. However, it is really bad if you are actually trying to improve people's food security.
The key points and principals here:
1) Are you addressing food insecurity or strengthening the state's capacity to raise revenue and measure economic activity? These are not the same thing – generally, they are at odds with one another, as making agricultural practice easier to see and measure only serves to improve the capacity to extract revenues from farmers, without any guarantee of improved services proceeding from those revenues.
2) Economic efficiency is a desirable characteristic of agricultural livelihoods, but in the absence of safety nets cannot be the organizing principal of food security interventions. All else being equal, it is better when farmers use their scarce resources as efficiently as possible. However, the measurement of efficiency must take place within an assessment of the various risks currently managed through "inefficiencies" – as many such inefficiencies are in fact parts of robust, community- and household-level safety nets.
3) Food security programming should be able to identify the difference between an inefficiency and a critical part of a community- or household-level safety net. Regardless of the consequences for economic efficiency, programs and projects should not destabilize these until such time as new, reliable safety nets exist to take their place.
4) Opting out is OK. Farmers should be allowed to structure their farms such that they can opt out of markets if things turn bad, even if this limits their total incomes in "good"/optimal years. This should not be assessed in terms of the average outcome, when best and worst cases are averaged. Your best case is some more money. Your worst case is severe deprivation and death. These are not equal. Averting the latter is more important than achieving the former.


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About Thyroid Nodules
A thyroid nodule is a lump in or on the thyroid gland. Thyroid nodules are common, but are usually not diagnosed. They are detected in about six percent of women and one to two percent of men. They are 10 times as common in older individuals than in younger ones. Sometimes several nodules will develop in the same person. Any time a lump is discovered in thyroid tissue, the possibility of malignancy (cancer) must be considered. Fortunately, the vast majority of thyroid nodules are benign (not cancerous).
What causes a thyroid nodule?
Nodules can be caused by a simple overgrowth of "normal" thyroid tissue, fluid-filled cysts, inflammation (thyroiditis), or a tumor (either benign or cancerous).
What are the signs and symptoms of a thyroid nodule?
Most patients with thyroid nodules have no symptoms whatsoever. Many are found by chance to have a lump in the thyroid gland on a routine physical exam or an imaging study of the neck done for unrelated reasons (for example, a CT or MRI scan of the spine or chest, a carotid ultrasound, etc.). In addition, a substantial number of nodules are first noticed by patients or those they know who see a lump in the front portion of the neck, which may or may not cause symptoms, such as a vague pressure sensation or discomfort when swallowing.
Obviously, finding a lump in the neck should be brought to the attention of your physician, even in the absence of symptoms.
How is a thyroid nodule diagnosed?
THYROID SCAN: A thyroid scan is a picture of the thyroid gland taken after a small dose of a radioactive isotope normally concentrated by thyroid cells has been injected or swallowed. The scan tells whether the nodule is hyperfunctioning (a "hot" nodule), or taking up more radioactivity than normal thyroid tissue does; taking up the same amount as normal tissue (a "warm" nodule); or taking up less (a "cold" nodule). Because cancer is rarely found in hot nodules, a scan showing a hot nodule eliminates the need for fine needle biopsy. If a hot nodule causes hyperthyroidism, it can be treated with radioiodine or surgery.
THYROID NEEDLE BIOPSY: A thyroid fine needle biopsy employs a very thin needle, usually smaller than one used to draw blood and is a simple procedure that can be performed in the physician's office. Many physicians numb the skin over the nodule prior to the biopsy, but it is not necessary to be put to sleep, and patients can usually return to work or home afterward with no ill effects. This test provides specific information about a particular patient's nodule, information that no other test can offer short of surgery. Although the test is not perfect, a thyroid needle biopsy will provide sufficient information on which to base a treatment decision more than 75 percent of the time, eliminating the need for additional diagnostic studies.
Use of fine needle biopsy has drastically reduced the number of patients who have undergone unnecessary operations for benign nodules. However, about 10 to 20 percent of biopsy specimens are interpreted as inconclusive or inadequate; that is, the pathologist cannot be certain whether the nodule is cancerous or benign. This situation is particularly common with cystic (fluid-filled) nodules, which contain very few thyroid cells to examine, and with those nodules composed of clusters of thyroid or follicular cells that cannot be conclusively determined to be either benign or malignant. In such cases, a physician who is experienced with thyroid disease can use other criteria to make a decision about whether or not to operate. The fine needle biopsy can be repeated in those patients whose initial attempt failed to yield enough material to make a diagnosis. Many physicians use thyroid ultrasonography (ultrasound) to guide the needle's placement.
THYROID ULTRASONOGRAPHY: Thyroid ultrasonography is a procedure for obtaining pictures of the thyroid gland by using high-frequency sound waves that pass through the skin and are reflected back to the machine to create detailed images of the thyroid. It can visualize nodules as small as two to three millimeters. Ultrasound distinguishes thyroid cysts (fluid-filled nodules) from solid nodules. Many nodules have both solid and cystic components, and very few purely cystic nodules occur. Recent advances in ultrasonography help physicians identify nodules that are more likely to be cancerous.
Thyroid ultrasonography is also utilized for guidance of a fine needle for aspirating thyroid nodules. Ultrasound guidance enables physicians to biopsy the nodule to obtain an adequate amount of material for interpretation. Such guidance allows the biopsy sample to be obtained from the solid portion of those nodules that are both solid and cystic, and it avoids getting a specimen from the surrounding normal thyroid tissue if the nodule is small. Even when a thyroid biopsy sample is reported as benign, the size of the nodule should be monitored. A thyroid ultrasound examination provides an objective and precise method for detection of a change in the size of the nodule. A nodule with a benign biopsy that is stable or decreasing in size is unlikely to be malignant or require surgical treatment.
How is a thyroid nodule treated?
Your endocrinologist will use the tests mentioned above to arrive at a recommendation for optimal management of your nodule. Most patients who appear to have benign nodules require no specific treatment and can simply be followed by their physician. Some physicians prescribe levothyroxine with hopes of preventing nodule growth or reducing the size of cold nodules, while radioiodine may be used to treat hot nodules.
If cancer is suspected, surgical treatment will be recommended. The primary goal of therapy is to remove all thyroid nodules that are cancerous and, if malignancy is confirmed, remove the rest of the thyroid gland along with any abnormal lymph nodes. If surgery is not recommended, it is important to have regular follow-up of the nodule by a physician experienced in such an evaluation.


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Mastro Auctions secured Ken Griffey Jr.'s 600th home run ball last week. But the company's upcoming live auction is heavy on vintage–and likely expensive– material.
Last Friday, we reported on the fate of Ken Griffey Jr.'s 600th home run ball, but that modern day item will be just one of a number of historic pieces in Mastro Auctions' second Live Sports Auction on Friday, August 1. The auction will take place at the ESPN Sports Zone in Chicago while collectors gather in Chicago for the National Sports Collectors Convention.
The live sale will include more than 90 pieces of current and vintage sports memorabilia including several that have never before been available to the public.
Doug Allen, president of Mastro Auctions expects that the bidding on a number of the auction lots will go well into the six-figure range. Allen anticipates that the average selling price per lot will approach the $50,000 mark, ten times the average per lot price experienced in other premier sports auction events.
In addition to the Griffey ball, a PSA 5 'holy grail' T206 Honus Wagner card will draw significant attention, perhaps selling for $500,000 or more.
A few of the other items available include:
• A Lou Gehrig 1938 New York Yankees road jersey from his last season;
• A Babe Ruth 1920 H&B signed game used bat personally obtained by Buck Weaver;
• Wilt Chamberlain's 1959/60 Rookie season NBA MVP Award – The President's Trophy;
• A 1960 Topps Baseball complete set – #2 on the PSA Set Registry;
• An 1888 N321 S.F. Hess California League SGC-graded near set (39/40);
• A Lou Gehrig 1938 H&B small signature game used bat from his last full season;
• A Hank Aaron 1974 Atlanta Braves home uniform;
• A 1903 World Series program at Boston;
• A Babe Ruth single signed baseball – PSA/DNA NM-MT+ 8.5 ;
Other baseball items include:
• A Lefty Grove 1931 H&B game used bat;
• A Tris Speaker 1925-28 H&B side-written game used bat;
• A Miller Huggins 1905-1910 game used bat – earliest known example;
• A Jim Bottomley 1921-31 side-written H&B game used bat;
• A Grover Cleveland Alexander 1922 H&B side-written game used bat;
• A Mickey Mantle 1961 H&B World Series game used bat;
• A Hank Greenberg 1930-1931 H&B game used bat – earliest known example;
• A Bill Mazeroski 1960 All-Star Adirondack signed game used bat;
• A Buck Weaver 1911-1915 J.F. Hillerich & Son side-written game used bat – only known example;
• A 1960 Hank Aaron All-Star H&B signed game used bat;
• A 1945-47 Mel Ott H&B game used bat – rarest of 500 Home Run Club bats;
• A "Black Betsy" 1916-17 H&B Pro Model game used bat attributed to Joe Jackson;
• A 1947 Ted Williams "Triple Crown" season H&B game used bat.
Baseballs – Signed and Multi-Signed
• A Lou Gehrig single signed ball – PSA/DNA EX-MT+ 6.5;
• A Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig signed ball;
• A Babe Ruth circa 1918 single signed ball – one of earliest Ruth single signed balls;
• An inscribed ball from Don Larsen's 1956 World Series Perfect Game signed that day by the last victim Dale Mitchell;
• A Ruth, Gehrig, Huggins signed baseball.
Baseball Jerseys/Uniforms/Game Gear
• A Roberto Clemente 1958 Pittsburgh Pirates game worn road jersey – great unrestored condition;
• An Eddie Matthews 1966 Atlanta Braves game worn road jersey – from inaugural season;
• A Stan Musial 1956 St. Louis Cardinals game worn road jersey – rare one season style;
• A matched pair of late 1870s/early 1880s fingerless baseball gloves (both hands);
• A Reggie Jackson 1977 New York Yankees signed game worn road jersey – from his "Mr. October" season;
Baseball Cards & Sets
• A 1915 E145-2 Cracker Jack #103 Joe Jackson – PSA NM 7;
• A 1923 Walter Mails Playing Card complete set (57) with box and instructions – #1 on the PSA Set Registry;
• A 1908 E102 "Set of 25" Ty Cobb from the Lionel Carter Collection – SGC 80 EX/MT 6;
• A 1917 E135 Collins-McCarthy #147 Babe Ruth – SGC 88 NM/MT 8 "1 of 1";
• A 1914 H813 Boston Garter (Color) Tris Speaker – SGC Authentic;
• A 1933 Goudey Sports Kings complete uncut sheet (24 cards) featuring Ruth, Cobb, Thorpe and Grange;
• A 1962 Gehl's Ice Cream Roger Maris "Gold Mine Pal" complete set;
• A 1950-51 "Toleteros" Josh Gibson – SGC 80 EX/NM 6;
• A 1933 Goudey complete uncut sheet (24 cards) featuring five Hall of Famers;
• A 1911 E137 Zeenut PCL Buck Weaver Rookie card – SGC 88 NM/MT 8 "1 of 1";
• Collection of 1902-11 W600 Sporitng Life New York Yankees cabinets (16 different) including Chesbro, Keeler, Griffith and Chase;
• A 1911 D310 Pacific Coast Biscuit Buck Weaver Rookie card – SGC 60 EX 5 "1 of 1";
• A 1952 Topps #261 Willie Mays – SGC 96 MINT 9 "1 of 1";
• A 1953 Topps #82 Mickey Mantle – SGC 92 NM/MT+ 8.5;
• A 1933/34 Goudey #106 Napoleon Lajoie – PSA EX-MT 6;
• A 1937 O-Pee-Chee #118 Joe DiMaggio – PSA NM-MT 8;
• A 1910 D322 Tip Top Bread Honus Wagner – SGC 70 EX+ 5.5 "1 of 2";
• A 1909-11 T206 White Border Ty Cobb, red portrait with "Ty Cobb" reverse – SGC 30 GD 2;
• A 1910 E90-2 American Caramel Pittsburgh Pirates – SGC-graded complete set (11);
• A 1911 T205 Gold Border R. Hoblitzell "No Stats" variation – PSA EX-MT 6 "1 of 3";
• A 1909-11 T206 White Border framed near set (521) including "Magie" variation;
• A 1910 E125 American Caramel Die-Cuts Honus Wagner throwing – PSA EX-MT 6 "1 of 1";
• A high grade 1953-1969 Topps baseball unopened wax packs run (17 different) – all GAI graded.
Baseball Photographs
• A Joe Jackson circa 1915 original Charles Conlon photo – one of the earliest known photos of "Shoeless Joe" Jackson in a White Sox uniform;
• A 1909 "Washington Park" Brooklyn baseball field panoramic photograph – from the estate of Nap Rucker;
• A Walter Johnson oversized photograph – hung in Griffith Stadium;
• Babe Ruth original "The Sporting News" portrait cover art for "Daguerreotypes of Great Stars of Baseball" by Jack Havey;
• A 1912 New York Giants N.L. Champions team panoramic photograph.
Baseball Autographs
• A copy of Christy Mathewson's 1911 signed "Won in the Ninth" Limited Edition hardcover book – PSA NM-MT 8;
• Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig signed Christmas cards;
• A John McGraw signed letter protesting a game in 1911;
• A Honus Wagner 1930s handwritten signed letter
• A 1939 Hall of Fame "Inaugural Class" cut signatures (11 signatures) display;
• A Babe Ruth 1926 triple signed questionnaire given to Christy Walsh after the birth of Walsh's son;
• A Lou Gehrig signed 1938 News Service photograph – autograph grade PSA/DNA 8;
• A Ned Hanlon 1876 signed photograph – earliest known image;
• A Babe Ruth 1931 signed and inscribed studio photo;
• A June 27, 1930 Babe Ruth signed New York Yankees payroll check – autograph grade 8 PSA/DNA;
• A Joe Tinker letter to the Hall of Fame thanking them for his plaque;
• A Joe Kelley 1915 signed New York Yankees contract
Baseball Memorabilia
• A 1921 New York Yankees World Series pennant;
• Christy Mathewson's favorite trophy from his best season – 1908;
• Christy Mathewson's 1911 New York Giants Championship trophy;
• A 1925 Hilldale Daisies vs. Kansas City Monarchs complete Game 6 World Series ticket;
• A 1939 New York Yankees World Series Championship ring – awarded to Coach John Schulte;
• A Bob Gibson 1972 Gold Glove award;
• A Boston Red Sox 2004 World Series trophy;
• A 1998 New York Yankees World Champions Commissioner's trophy;
• A 1916 Ferguson Bakery BF2 "Photo Prize" premium pennant – Miller Huggins;
• One of the earliest known Trophy Bats – 1868 "Creeper Tournament" in Groton, New York
• A 1930s Babe Ruth tri-fold "Old Gold Cigarettes" advertising display;
• An 1899 Cincinnati Reds Sterling Silver season pass;
• A 1960 Williams "Official Baseball" pinball machine.
Other sports items:
• A 2001 New England Patriots Super Bowl XXXVI front office Championship ring – awarded to Bob Denham;
• A 2004 New England Patriots Super Bowl XXXIX player's Championship ring – awarded to Cedric Cobbs;
• The very first football card – 1888 N162 Goodwin "Champions" Ed Beecher, Yale – PSA NM-MT 8;
• A 1900 Cope Bros. & Co. "Golfers" complete set (50) – #3 on the PSA Set Registry;
• The finest collection of Jesse Owens 1936 Berlin Olympics memorabilia ever presented at public auction;
• An 1887 N28 Allen & Ginter "World's Champions – 1st Series" complete set;
• Historic fully executed and signed 1976 "Fight Agreements" for the Ali vs. Norton third World Championship (2 complete 11 page contracts).
In addition, proceeds from a portion of the auction will benefit the 1st Touch Foundation, a charity founded by Chicago Cubs' first baseman, Derrek Lee. A main focus of Lee's Foundation is to assist those affected by Lebers Congenital Amaurosis (LCA) an extremely rare disease which causes severe vision loss and blindness. Lee has donated several game used items to the auction.
Lee began 1st Touch because he wanted to help the community in his hometown of Sacramento, CA by building a youth center and providing an environment that fosters learning. In addition to its educational efforts, 1st Touch also supports Project 3000, a national effort to identify and offer genetic testing to every person affected by Lebers Congenital Amaurosis (LCA). LCA is an extremely rare disease that causes severe vision loss and blindness. In 2006, Lee's daughter, Jada, was diagnosed with the disorder but because there is still a lot unknown about LCA, doctors are looking at other causes for her visual impairment. Information gathered through Project 3000 continues to minimize the ambiguity surrounding LCA, and aids scientists in their search for a cure.
One hundred percent of the proceeds from this portion of the auction as well as 100% of the $100 Live Sports Auction entrance fee will be donated to the 1st Touch Foundation. Mastro Auctions is underwriting the entire event so that all admission fees and prices realized for the Derrek Lee items will directly benefit the 1st Touch Foundation.
Lee is enthusiastic about the charitable contribution and awareness the auction will generate for the 1st Touch Foundation. "We are thrilled to be working with Mastro Auctions and grateful for all the good our combined efforts will generate," Lee said. "We appreciate the extra mile that Mastro Auctions is willing to go for us," added Heather Scherber, Director of Outreach for the 1st Touch Foundation. "We are certain the auction will be a resounding success and feel honored to be part of such a prestigious sports auction event."
Allen is confident the 1st Touch Foundations donation will reach at least $20,000. "Our bidders have always responded generously for items earmarked for charity," says Allen. "The fact that Derrek Lee is such a popular player is an added plus."
Prior to the auction on the evening of Friday, August 1, all items to be auctioned will be on display at the Mastro Auctions booth at the National Sports Convention at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL. For more information or to purchase the advance charity admission to the event, call Mastro Auctions at 630-472-1200 or go to http://www.mastroauctions.com/ for additional details.


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feudalismfyo͞o´dəlĭzəm [key], form of political and social organization typical of Western Europe from the dissolution of Charlemagne's empire to the rise of the absolute monarchies. The term feudalism is derived from the Latin feodum, for
fief,and ultimately from a Germanic word meaning
cow,generalized to denote valuable movable property. Although analogous social systems have appeared in other civilizations, the feudalism of Europe in the Middle Ages remains the common model of feudal society.
Sections in this article:
- Introduction
- History of Feudalism in Europe
- Other Feudal Systems
- Characteristics of European Feudalism
- Bibliography
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2012, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
See more Encyclopedia articles on: Ancient History, Middle Ages and Feudalism


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If you thought proponents of birth control were taking a back seat in the wake of a Supreme Court ruling that allows for-profit companies to refuse coverage of contraception for religious reasons, think again.
In the most creative, delightfully shady and crafty way, women who are deemed less human than corporations (and their supporters) have taken to Hobby Lobby's own crafting material to send a clear message.
It started with the picture above, one simple message designed with letter blocks at a Hobby Lobby Maryland branch by Policy Mic's Adam Peck.
"It just seemed like a perfect opportunity to stage a kind of a silent protest, and the chance to use Hobby Lobby's own products to do it was just too serendipitous to pass up," Peck told Policy Mic. "I certainly don't want to encourage other people to ransack their local…
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Elections Matter
You've seen school budgets slashed and educators' rights trampled across the country. Your students are counting on you to make a difference in what happens next.
Photo by Daniel Peck
Ohio high school teacher Courtney Johnson admits it. She didn't realize how much elections mattered until this year.
The high school English teacher learned that lesson as she watched her state's newly elected conservative legislature and governor wage a coordinated war on public school educators and other public workers. Her and her colleagues' rights as workers and the funding they needed to do their jobs were suddenly just chips in a political game for conservatives.
Johnson got mad. And then she got active.
Since January, she has lobbied state lawmakers about the damage they are wreaking in their public schools with legislation targeting public workers' right to collectively bargain and a $3 billion cut in education spending, as the newly elected conservative governor proposed. One week she was flying to Washington, D.C., to testify before the U.S. Congress about workers' rights, another week she was knocking on doors, collecting hundreds of signatures on a petition to overturn devastating legislation.
Johnson wasn't born a political activist. Energetic and committed, yes. But it took the past year to help her see that defending public education doesn't start and stop in the voting booth on Election Day. She realized she needed to get active long before that.
"In the last year, I have just become obsessed with getting the right people in office," says Johnson.
The Assault on Workers' Rights and Education Funding
For Johnson and for you and your students and families, elections matter. Your ongoing involvement in them matters even more. Need proof? Let's take a look at what's happened to public educators' and other public workers' rights since the November 2010 election:
- Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker takes office and immediately launches a big-business-funded assault on the rights of educators and other public workers. (With the help of the state senate and general assembly, which also flipped from Democratic to Republican control.) Walker's tactics were so drastic and unfair that even some fellow Republican governors publicly differed with his union-bashing measures. In June, Walker signed into law a budget cutting $800 million in education funding. That was on the heels of an earlier law that gutted collective bargaining rights. Emboldened by Walker's actions, conservative governors across the country launch similar attacks targeting public workers.
- New Florida Gov. Rick Scott quickly passes legislation that ties teacher pay to student test scores, denies educators even minimal pay raises unless they accept weakened collective bargaining agreements, and begins mass educator layoffs. His state budget signed this spring contained an 8 percent cut to per-student funding. More than 3,000 teachers received layoff notices in just three counties. Scott cut public university expenses by $140 million, leading to a 15 percent tuition increase at one state university and the loss of 50 faculty positions at another.
- Ohio Gov. John Kasich, also newly elected, follows his Wisconsin and Florida counterparts by ramming through Senate Bill 5, which drastically undercuts the rights of the state's educators and public servants. It is so loathed by the state's citizens that more than 1 million sign petitions and successfully land it on this November's ballot for an overturn vote. The governor refuses federal stimulus funds, leading to a nearly 12 percent decrease in 2012 public school funding and a roughly 5 percent drop in 2013.
- Alabama's state legislature in December rescinds the right of public school educators and other workers to deduct union dues from their paychecks, dramatically threatening the viability of unions in the state. In New Hampshire, lawmakers pass a measure giving public employers the right to arbitrarily implement work conditions once a collective bargaining agreement expires. State legislatures in Tennessee, Texas, Idaho, North Carolina, New Jersey, and elsewhere launch their own attacks on the rights of workers, education funding, and the role of quality educators in the classroom.
NEA and state affiliates are actively involved in several lawsuits to stop these offensive state laws.
"Those elected last November who opposed public education and public workers launched an immediate and coordinated attack and we can't afford to see that happen again this year," says NEA Political Director Karen M. White. "There's too much at stake for educators to sit this one out. Our passion for creating great public schools for all students means we must get involved in this fight. We have to do more than just show up on Election Day."
Getting Involved
Your students need you to be involved in this fight for public education. The working conditions that you campaign for are their learning conditions. When the Idaho state school superintendent wanted to replace educators with laptops this past year, many of Idaho's public education activists focused on the real outrage — that students would be shortchanged under the plan.
"The attacks on teachers are bad, but the fact that my students miss out on a well-rounded, engaging education is worse," says Massachusetts elementary teacher Rebecca Cusick, who has written letters to the editor of local papers, worked for candidates, signed petitions, and emailed and called Congress to voice her opinion that "All kids deserve better!"
Draw a circle around Nov. 6, 2012. You have one year to make a difference in the lives of your public school students, their families, and your own. We'll show you how, in three steps.
Step 1: Head to Educationvotes.org and Sign NEA's Standing Strong Petition
It sounds simple, but with this first, important step of signing the Standing Strong petition on NEA's activism website, EducationVotes.org, you're showing that you're not willing to let the anti-public education candidates elected last year have the last word. You'll be committing to standing strong for students, educators, and public schools.
For the more than 85,000 people who have already signed the Standing Strong petition that means pledging to fight efforts in every state that undermine collective bargaining, weaken support for working families, and strengthen the grip of powerful corporate interests. They've committed to working to elect candidates at the local, state, and national level in 2012, who will stand strong for public schools.
By signing the petition you'll also be among the first to hear about rallies and other events in your state and to learn about opportunities for volunteerism.
Step 2: Use NEA's Legislative Action Center to remind elected leaders that they got there thanks to voters
You're powerful — because you live and vote in your legislator's district, and it's his or her job to represent you. At NEA's online Legislative Action Center you can communicate directly with your members of Congress on the issues that make a difference in your classroom. You can get tips for writing your legislators and writing letters to the editor of your local newspaper, and learn the 10 golden rules of lobbying a legislator.
You can also become a regular, active participant in policymaking by signing up to become a cyber-lobbyist. As a cyber-lobbyist, you'll get NEA's weekly EdInsider email, alerting you to urgent calls to action on behalf of public education. In the past year, NEA's cyber-lobbyists have played a crucial role in saving 300,000 educators' jobs when Congress was about to slash funding, and in putting a stop to damaging voucher legislation that would have unfairly siphoned money from public schools.
"There is a direct link between holding elected lawmakers accountable for their actions and ensuring that quality, pro-public education candidates seek office each year," says Mary Kusler, NEA's manager of federal advocacy. "They need to know that we are watching and want them making policy that is right for our students and our public school educators."
Step 3: Become a Campaign Volunteer
You've signed the petition, attended a rally, and lobbied your elected officials. Now what? One of the most important roles you can play in the upcoming year is that of volunteer for a candidate who supports the work you are doing and who wants to protect the middle class. Educators are a trusted voice in the community and voters need to hear from you about which candidates truly support public schools.
Volunteers may be asked to phonebank or to knock on doors to educate people about candidates. They hang doortags for recommended candidates, mobilize colleagues and friends to attend rallies, and remind folks to vote on Election Day. NEA members have played a crucial role in past campaigns as volunteers and that will never be more necessary than in the year ahead. Sign up to volunteer on EducationVotes.org.
Need proof that your activism matters? In the past two years, NEA activists played a key role in saving 300,000 educators' jobs (some of them their own!) when they lobbied, called and wrote Congress. Activists in Wisconsin helped defeat two conservative, anti-worker members of the state senate in recall elections there. In Ohio, they gathered more than 1 million signatures to land the unpopular Senate Bill 5 on the ballot this fall. And in Missouri, NEA activists fought back nearly every piece of anti-worker, anti-public school legislation offered by state lawmakers. The phone calls, the door knocking, the emails? They matter!
We know it can seem daunting to take these steps. The first door knocked on, or the first phone call to a congressional office, is the hardest. Take it from Courtney Johnson. She's been there.
"There's a lot of fear. One of the things the other side likes to say is that the public school teachers are afraid of change. It's not that we're afraid of change, but we are afraid of the terrible decisions being made at the state and national level."
Her personal political activism goal for the months leading up to the 2012 elections? "I want to flip that statehouse," Johnson says of her now anti-worker, conservative-dominated Ohio statehouse, her voice sounding more determined than ever.
What's your election-year goal? It matters.
"I have had conversations with my family, my friends, fellow NEA members, and state and federal legislators about all of the issues that we are facing as a profession. I don't let a teachable moment pass me by. When a legislator uses the word tenure in a conversation, I ask them what they mean by it, then I tell them what it means in reality for Illinois educators. When my friends complain that they don't have a pension, I explain that I don't receive Social Security and that nearly 10 percent of my salary goes towards my pension. Information is key -- accurate information. In today's world of texting and tweeting, Facebooking and Googleing, inaccurate information spreads faster than ever."
"A fellow teacher asked me to go to lobby day this year at our statehouse. I wasn't very good at saying no, and went even though I was not sure that I was very interested. The more I learned, the more enthusiastic I became about being involved. I tell colleagues and friends that they need to speak up. When someone starts talking about how ridiculous (NCLB) is, I point out that they need to contact their elected officials. They have to ensure that every child have access to great public schools."
"I've spent afternoons standing along Highway 84 holding a sign asking drivers to honk to support public education and oppose our state superintendent's damaging plans. It is bad enough to not get paid what the work is worth. But to have our voice and experience pushed aside is demeaning. It's not dignified."
"I coordinated getting several bus loads of retired teachers and active teachers to attend a political rally organized by the Tennessee Education Association. Also, I recently spoke to the retired teachers at a picnic about the need to be united and stand strong for public education, as well as the importance of being a member and being actively involved within our retired associations."
"This year is the first time I've ever felt disrespected as a teacher. And I attended my first rally this year. You can't ask someone to help raise your kids if you don't respect them."
"I have called my lawmakers, signed petitions, donated to NEA's Fund, emailed."
"I have not been in involved in politics because it is something that I am drawn to, but because I know, like it or not, politics will always be tied to my classroom. By joining with other members, I have phone-banked, attended meetings, sent emails, lobbied lawmakers, collected petition signatures and whatever else I could think of. How soon we reach the light at the end of the tunnel will be determined by the active involvement of those of us who care and through ongoing dialogue with all politicians."
"I have sent many emails and made several phone calls to the governor of Hawaii. I started a petition on asking the governor to stop paycuts, keep his promise to support teachers and collective bargaining, etc."
"I ran for local union president and won, attended a national public school march, and will not get out of politics until the politicians get out of my classroom."
"I went to Tallahassee and lobbied against bills like Senate Bill 6 (which undercut collective bargaining) and others. I attended rallies, sent emails, signed petitions, and urged friends, family and co-workers to do the same. I used Facebook often as a platform as well. I am now a building rep for my local union. We must continue to be vocal and active in this fight."
"My New Year's resolution in 2010 was to start speaking up--to find ways to express and support my opinions. I am a part of the generation of teachers who demanded and got professional negotiations, and now I am seeing everything we worked for cast aside. The disastrous 2010 elections strengthened my resolve. I started with letters to the editor and emails to my representatives; I have moved on to cyber-petitions and organizing on Facebook. I will not sit silently by while these arrogant anti-intellectuals ruin the future for my students."
"I send tons of emails. I'm really into social media so I post constantly to Twitter and Facebook about political action. I also try to send what little money I can afford to send to the NEA Fund."
Make your voice heard! Become a cyber-lobbyist and subscribe to our weekly e-mail newsletter
Visit our Education Votes site to share your story and read about other actions you can take to make sure your voice is heard on the issues that matter the most.


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BEIRUT -- Syrian warplanes pounded opposition strongholds around Damascus and in the north Wednesday, as President Bashar Assad's forces intensified airstrikes against rebels seeking to topple him, activists said.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which gathers reports from a network of activists on the ground, said government jets carried out five strikes in the eastern Ghouta district, a rebel stronghold close to the capital.
Three airstrikes also hit the rebel-held city of Maaret al-Numan that straddles a key supply route from Damascus to Aleppo, Syria's largest city and a main front in the civil war. Maaret al-Numan has been under constant bombardment since it fell to rebels on Oct. 10.
No casualties were reported in Wednesday's strikes, the Observatory said. However, at least 185 people were killed nationwide in airstrikes and artillery shelling the day before, pushing the total death toll from the relentless fighting in Syria to over 36,000 since March 2011, said Rami Abdul-Rahman, the activist group's president.
At least 47 soldiers were also killed Tuesday, according to the Observatory.
Syria's crisis began as a peaceful uprising against Assad's regime inspired by the Arab Spring but quickly morphed into a bloody civil war.
The international community remains at a loss about how to stop the war and a U.N.-proposed truce last week for a major Muslim holiday failed to take hold. More than 500 people were killed in fighting during what was supposed to be a four-day cease-fire ending Monday.
In China, the U.N.-Arab League envoy to Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi, met on Wednesday with China's foreign minister to solicit Beijing's support for international efforts to stop the bloodshed.
The U.S. and other Western and Arab nations have called on Assad to step down, while Russia, China and Iran continue to back him.
In the past weeks, the regime has intensified airstrikes on rebel positions and strongholds. Activists speculate that the government's heavy reliance on air power reflects its inability to roll back rebel gains, especially in the north of the country near the border with Turkey, where rebels have control of swathes of territory.
"The Syrian regime can't do anything on the ground, and that's why they use airstrikes," Abdul-Rahman said.


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Space Flight
The HPL has been working with NASA since 1994 to understand how the body adapts to the microgravity environment of space, and the role that exercise can play in offsetting the negative effects. These studies have examined astronauts following a 17-day mission aboard the Space Shuttle (LMS), astronauts and cosmonauts onboard the International Space Station (ISS) for 6 months, and continues today with crewmembers currently onboard ISS. The main focus of this research has been to conduct whole muscle and single muscle fiber contractile function measurements to better understand how muscle deteriorates in the microgravity environment and the specific exercise paradigm that could serve as a countermeasure to preserve human skeletal muscle mass and function for long duration space exploration.
Bed Rest and Ground-Based Investigations
In conjunction with our space flight studies, we have completed numerous studies using ground-based models of space flight, namely bed rest and unilateral lower limb suspension. These studies have followed volunteers during simulated space flight durations of 3, 12, 17, 21, 35, 60, and 90 days and have been completed in the HPL, NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) facilities in California, ESA (European Space Agency) and CNES (French Space Agency) facilities in Toulouse, France, and in Stockholm, Sweden. The focus of this research is to complement our space flight studies and extend our understanding the muscle responses to disuse at the whole muscle and myofiber level, and the impact of specific exercise countermeasures. These studies continue today in conjunction with the NASA exercise countermeasures team at Johnson Space Center, with a long duration bed rest study examining the next generation exercise prescription that is being implemented on the ISS.
Both the space flight and ground-based research has the potential to contribute significantly to humans on Earth who become bed ridden due to injury or illness and the expanding aging population that is challenged with muscle weakness and late-life disability.


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Click through for the top 20 Android apps ranked by usage, as identified by Nielsen.
Nielsen, a leading global provider of information and analytics around what consumers buy and watch, recently released the first mobile media rankings based on audience measurement data from the company's new Nielsen Smartphone Analytics. This new service uses metered data from thousands of Android and iOS smartphones in the United States to report actual consumer behavior.
According to the first mobile audience measurement data from metered smartphone usage, after the Android Market app itself, apps for Facebook, maps and mail had the highest active reach among U.S. Android users above the age of 18. ("Active reach" is defined as the percentage of Android owners who used an app within the past 30 days.")
While many of the top 20 apps showed similar active usage by both male and female Android smartphone owners, there were notable differences in active reach for social apps. Facebook's mobile app saw an active reach of 81 percent for women Android smartphone owners compared to just 69 percent for male Android smartphone owners. Twitter also reached more women (16.5 percent) than men (13.4 percent). However, Google+, the newest social network, had more than twice the active reach among men (15.8 percent) than women (7.2 percent).
Outside of social media, apps like Kindle and Words With Friends had higher active reach among women, while Quickoffice Pro and the Amazon App store had higher active reach among men. Google Maps had a higher active reach among men, too: 77 percent active reach among men compared to 71.8 percent among women.
Seven Remote Access Management 'Must-haves' Key criteria that can be used as a benchmark when choosing a remote access solution.
Ten USB Drive Security Best Practices Ten security practices all organizations should adopt and practice.
Ten Tips for Retaining Top Talent Tips on addressing potential mismatches between the talent you have in your organization and how you use it.
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The Concert Hall is here to Stay!
Sony Online Entertainment LLC (SOE) today announced that its annual community fan event, SOE Live, will take place at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas on August 1 – August 4, 2013. An annual SOE-sponsored event, SOE Live is set to be the ultimate gathering for the SOE community, and provides players an opportunity to celebrate their favorite free-to-play SOE games, including: DC Universe™ Online, Dragon's Prophet™, EverQuest®, EverQuest II, Free Realms®, PlanetSide®2, PoxNora®, Star Wars®: Clone Wars Adventures™, Vanguard: Saga of Heroes®, and a first look at the next game in the EverQuest franchise. "Every year at SOE Live, our goal is to extend the gaming experience for attending players and the entire Community with the best and most exciting activities, news and updates," said Laura Naviaux, Senior Vice President of Global Sales & Marketing, Sony Online Entertainment. "In addition to holding meet and greets with the Development teams, tournaments and other annual activities that fans have come to love and enjoy over the years, this year's event will expand to include new titles from our growing free-to-play games portfolio, including Dragon's Prophet and the next highly-anticipated chapter of the EverQuest game franchise."SOE Live echoes the core belief that all SOE players are part of one extended family and presents an opportunity for fans of all ages to meet the talented people behind some of the online world's most successful games. In addition to a slew of social events, SOE will also host developer panel discussions and game-themed live events, giving attendees a chance to voice their opinions of current and upcoming game content. SOE Live will also feature access to new announcements and beta programs, tournaments, premium swag, and more. Additional information will be announced in the upcoming months


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Speaker: The Freeviewer Diaries (2)
15 Responses
Re: some channels not being available
Pauline: Are you saying you had 3 and Prime recording, but you could not watch 1 or 2, but TVNZ 7 was OK?
This seems wierd.
Freeview broadcasts its channels via 3 transmission streams known as MUXes,
TVNZ have one with 1,2,6,7,sports extra on it,
While TV3 have one with 3,4 and 3+1, while the other channels Maori, Prime, Stratos, Chinese etc, all reside on the Kordia MUX,
Recording off 3 and Prime, would mean tapping 2 of the MUXes, I would expect that you should not be able to get anything off the TVNZ one, but are you saying you could get 7, but not 1 or 2?
Sounds spooky...
This is EXACTLY what happened. I was recording Prime and TV3 and and TV1 and TV2 were unavailable and yet I was watching the Back Benches on TV7
Hmm, the only thing I could see as a conflict could be the HD decoding capacity, both TV3 and TV1/2 are HD, 1080i and 720 respectively, while all the others are plain SD.
As an aside have you been able to record/watch TV1 while recording TV3 and TV2 or vice-versa?
I have discovered that occasionally when the news tapes, it shows up as TV3 Plus 1 in the playlist, but I'm unsure if that's maybe something my flatmates have done. Likewise, occasionally programmes that I expect to have taped aren't there.
Yeah - this is one odd thing. I switch over to 3 - find myself half-way through some programme I decide I'd like to see, so go to the EPG and tell it to start recording it on 3+1 when it starts there in half-an-hour. Instead, it starts taping on 3, and I get half the show. If I want it, I have to manually start recording 3+1 at the appointed time.
Similar problems arise with TVNZ7 - see some doco I'm interested in watching, so tell it to tape the repeat the following morning. It starts recording the current showing instead.
Also, that thing where it doesn't record shows you really want it to (and told it to, and expect it to) bugs the hell out of me. Expedition Guyana episode two, where are you? I got episodes one and three, but what happened in the middle?
Also, that thing where it doesn't record shows you really want it to (and told it to, and expect it to) bugs the hell out of me. Expedition Guyana episode two, where are you? I got episodes one and three, but what happened in the middle?
Clearly, this PVR thing isn't quite sorted out yet. MySky's favourite trick is unexpectedly losing its series linking, so you find out that you don't have this week's episode of that programme you'd told it you wanted every episode of.
Burglars don't recognise its value so they leave it behind when they cart off my other geek necessities
Seriously? Bugger. I know it doesn't make it better, but I hope the insurance train pays a helpful visit.
A friend recently told me an unsual story about a burglary where the theives knicked the digital camera and computer, but actually took the time to leave the memory card and backup hard drive. Ethical burglary perhaps?
My workmate would have appreciated that approach last year when his computer got pinched, along with all the childhood photos of his kids...
Steve Mills is still alive (um, spoiler alert...)
Wait, WTF, Steve died? Why did I not know this already? Ok, I'm going to have to take a moment here.
RIP Nurse Steve Mills - 196? - 199?
You will never be forgotten.
Gary - I can't recall but I think I have watched TV1 while recording 2 & 3. I'll give it a go tonight though to confirm
RIP Nurse Steve Mills - 196? - 199?
The worst was when Carmen dropped dead. I cried. And I haven't watched it since, actually...
MySky's favourite trick is unexpectedly losing its series linking
I've tried to work out why it does this, and I think it *might* cancel the series link if you watch the episode and delete it before it's had time to scan ahead to the next week. Which means you have to leave the watched episode sitting there for a while. But we never have enough room to do that. (Also, why does it not understand that series links can be daily rather than weekly? I want *every episode of The Daily Show*, Tuesday to Friday. I do not want to series link it separately on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.)
On the other hand, it's up there with the top five purchases of my entire life, so I can't bitch too much.
Also, why does it not understand that series links can be daily rather than weekly?
Umm, bad programming.
It sounds like mysky might be best run through google calendar, which does all of these things fine.
(Also, why does it not understand that series links can be daily rather than weekly? I want *every episode of The Daily Show*, Tuesday to Friday. I do not want to series link it separately on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.)
I'll have to doublecheck but I'm pretty sure that my Freeview is doing very well at getting the Daily Show each day with just one touch recording, AND I think it's doing okay when it sometimes starts a bit later after the Wednesday '80s movie, which a manually programmed thing wouldn't do.
Re all the muxes and things, I have just found i can now get prime on my zinwell which is great, its on the EPG and all but it wont let me record any of it?????????
The zinwell is great, we are in a crap analogue coverage area (hillsborough) but get brilliant pictures on freeview over the old analogue (yup that was the excuse for the 42" flat screen),
I do miss the timeslip and 30sec jump facilities on the old panasonic HD recorder. Also the HD recorder had a system where you could set it to overwrite a program when the next one was recorded which I still use for getting the news daily without filling up the Hard drive.
Noob question.
With these freeview PVRs are you able to take downloaded movies/shows etc from your computer/friend and load them into the PVR and play them? Even just plugging in a usb and playing it from that would be fine.
Currently we have to lug our PC out to the TV to play them.
Email Web
Hmm, the only thing I could see as a conflict could be the HD decoding capacity, both TV3 and TV1/2 are HD, 1080i and 720 respectively, while all the others are plain SD.
It's not doing decoding when it's recording - more likely it's a disk bandwidth issue - it's tough to stream 2 HD streams to cheap disks and be able to guarantee that the user can still play back a third (it gets worse if you plug in a random USB disk and try and use that).
When I designed PVRs for a living explaining physical limitations to users was hard - what you can and can't do me be limited by disk bandwidth, number of tuners, what else has been scheduled, who else is doing what (we built multi-headed PVRs that serviced more than one room).
Explaining in simple enough terms to a user why they can't do something is really really hard in some circumstances - often the reason is some combination of 4 different things - for example a dialog box: "this show is starting to record just as it ends, but this other thing is recording now and Joe in the other room is doing this other thing and for 30 seconds the disk will be maxed out - I could let you look at it live but you can't push the pause button in the last 30 seconds of the show you want to watch" wont fit on the screen .... but "scheduling conflict" will and saying you have to cancel some other show to make it work is more acceptable than the marketing dept worried about how people will accept that 30 second if we don't warn them about it.
I did once build a 4 tuner satellite box just for the hell of it (SD only in those days) - the first time we got a 5-way scheduling conflict the UI crashed trying to present something that could never have a hope of fitting on the screen. On the other hand the family wasn't happy when we went back to a 2 tuner box (what do you mean we can't record The Simpsons, Sex in the City, and the Sopranos on a Sat night?
Finaly a note about "Series Link" that functionality is hard to get right - allowing someone to just record "The Simpsons" can be disastrous - as we discovered when my kids did that the weekend of a channel's Simsons Marathon - you try and delete 200 shows manually (we added a series delete to the UI as a result) - alternately you can just record it if it plays at a particular time each week then you miss it if the time changes for a while.
Often series link sort of functionality is filtered by episode title - that's probably why when I last tried to record Media7 I got 5 copies each week - shows that don't have a title all get recorded
Another complaint :-)
Prime TV and Daylight savings ... programmes that were series-linked on Prime TV prior to daylight savings commencing were recording an hour late after the change-over. They had to be cancelled an re-linked before they taped right.
I missed like three episodes of Letterman before I worked out what was going on. And more importantly, I missed most of the second episode of Apparitions. That's like 15% of all the episodes, ever :-)
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