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| 8.5°C Belfast
Usage of electronic cigarettes has tripled over the past two years, with more than two million adults now regularly smoking them, a survey has revealed.
Figures released by health charity ASH show that the number of adults in Britain using the devices has risen from an estimated 700,000 in 2012 to 2.1 million this year.
Nearly two-thirds of users said they also smoked regular cigarettes, with the other third being ex-smokers, an increase in the proportion of former smokers compared to previous years.
Just 1% of those asked who never smoked said they had tried electronic cigarettes.
The YouGov survey found that more than half of ex-smokers (51.7%) say that they have tried electronic cigarettes, compared with just 8.2% in 2010.
It showed there has been a consistent rise in the number of current or former smokers who use electronic cigarettes on a regular basis - up from 2.7% in 2010 to 17.7% this year.
Just over a third (35%) of British adults believe that electronic cigarettes are good for public health while just under a quarter (22%) disagree, the survey said.
The main reason given by ex-smokers for using electronic cigarettes were "to help me stop smoking entirely" (71%) and "to help me keep off tobacco" (48%).
And the biggest reason for current smokers was to "help me reduce the amount of tobacco I smoke, but not stop completely" (48%) followed by "to save money compared with smoking tobacco" (37%) and "to help me stop smoking entirely" (36%).
For the first time, the Ash YouGov survey also asked about the type of electronic cigarette commonly used, with just under half (47%) using rechargeable e-cigarettes with pre-filled cartridges and 41% using rechargeable devices with a separate tank. Just 8% said they most often use disposable e-cigarettes.
Deborah Arnott, chief executive of Ash said: "The dramatic rise in use of electronic cigarettes over the past four years suggests that smokers are increasingly turning to these devices to help them cut down or quit smoking. Significantly, usage among non-smokers remains negligible.
"While it is important to control the advertising of electronic cigarettes to make sure children and non-smokers are not being targeted, there is no evidence from our research that e-cigarettes are acting as a gateway into smoking."
The YouGov survey questioned 12,269 adults online last month.
A separate ongoing survey - the Smoking Toolkit Study carried out in England - has also found that smokers are increasingly using electronic cigarettes as an aid to quitting, overtaking use of medicinal nicotine products such as patches and gum.
The proportion of smokers who have quit in the last year has increased and smoking rates in England are continuing to fall.
Professor Robert West, who led the study, said: "Despite claims that use of electronic cigarettes risks renormalising smoking, we found no evidence to support this view. On the contrary, electronic cigarettes may be helping to reduce smoking as more people use them as an aid to quitting."
Charles Hamshaw-Thomas, legal and corporate affairs director of e-cigarette company E-Lites, said: "Study after study is showing that scaremongering that e-cigarettes are luring people into tobacco is baseless nonsense. The reverse is going on - smokers are switching into e-cigarettes as the way to reduce the harm from tobacco.
"As a result tobacco sales are falling in the UK. And so too are sales of nicotine replacement products (gum and patches) which, as academic research shows, have had limited success."
He added: "The phenomenal growth of e-cigarettes as the most popular alternative to smoking is accelerating the delivery of government targets on reducing tobacco consumption.
"The big e-cigarette companies like E-Lites are keen to work together with government to draw up codes on advertising, bans on sales to children, product quality and safety and continuing research."


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November 29, 2009
(rt) Illustration: Edgy ads, clean vectors, and more
- "Nothing Really Mattress…" Creative, often edgy ads from around the world. [Via]
- Eastern Bloc:
- Cyrillic lettering Яocks. More cool Russian posters. (Just don't try to match drinks with this guy.)
- Abduzeedo hosts a fun collection of modern Constructivist-style posters & illustrations.
- Artists interpret literary figures at Hey Oscar Wilde. (Love the Chekov, Lord of the Flies pieces.)
- Simplicity:
- I dig the flat, clean illustrations of Katie Kirk. [Via]
- Nice, simple vector/raster animal art from Ty Wilkins. ("'Vector/raster' = Illustrator/Photoshop," he notes in reply.) [Via]
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subset: commoncrawl


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Behind the Scenes at D@CES Event and Party (Including a Geek Chat With Punky Brewster!)
Here's a lovely video BoomTown did behind the scenes at our interview event and after-party at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last Friday.
While there, the crack All Things Digital team interviewed and reported on sessions with Palm (PALM) CEO Jon Rubinstein, Netflix (NFLX) CEO Reed Hastings and Google (GOOG) Android guru Andy Rubin.
But we also prepared and then partied. Here is video proof, including interviews with Cisco (CSCO) Flip unit head Jonathan Kaplan, BillShrink's Peter Pham, Consumer Electronics Association head Gary Shapiro and–drum roll–former child star Soleil Moon Frye, who was there for Kodak (EK).
Frye has actually gone the digital mom route, although she remains well known for her role as cute-as-a-button Punky Brewster on the 1980s television series.
Yippie! Grossaroo! Holy Macanoli! Punky Power!
She uttered none of these classic lines, of course, but here's the video anyway:
(You can see all our full CES coverage here.)


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Chicago police shot and killed a man at an 'L' station Sunday night when they said he pointed two pistols at officers.
A spokesman for the Fraternal Order of Police said it appeared the gunman may have committed "suicide by cop."
The dead man was identified this morning by the Cook County medical examinerr's office as Frank Steponaitis, 55, of the 2000 block of South Blue Island Avenue.
The incident began with officers responding to calls of a man with a gun at the Western/Cermak Pink Line station in the 2000 block of South Western Avenue at about 8 p.m., according to police and FOP spokesman Pat Camden.
When officers from the Monroe District arrived, they found Steponaitis holding a gun to his own head, Camden said. The officers tried calming him and getting him to drop the weapon and end the standoff. But Steponaitis then pulled a second handgun and pointed both at officers, Camden said.
The officers, put in a "defensive posture," fired their weapons, striking Steponaitis. He was later pronounced dead, Camden said.
No officers were injured during the incident.
Latest Breaking News
In a formal statement, Chicago police confirmed that officers tried to calm the gunman and that he pointed his weapon at officers, though they only mentioned a single weapon.
Camden said it appeared that the gunman may have intentionally provoked officers into shooting him in a phenomenon commonly called suicide by cop.
Legal experts said statistics are hard to gather on how often suicide by cop occurs because of the diffculty in determining whether an offender is merely aggressive or suicidal.
"Police may confront shootings motivated by suicidal subjects more often than reports
indicate," according to an article in the FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin.
Police didn't comment on Steponaitis' mental state, but court records show that following a 1994 conviction for unlawful use of a weapon by a felon, he was sentenced to undergo 30 months of inpatient alcoholism treatment and intensive outpatient psychiatric treatment. His completion of the programs were "satisfactory," court records show.
Camden, meanwhile, said he hoped armed offenders "find another way" to resolve their problems instead of pulling guns on cops -- something he said could leave emotional scars on the officers.
The shooting is being investigated by the Independent Police Review Authority, which investigates all police-involved shootings.
Twitter: @MidNoirCowboy


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"The game of chicken between two great superpowers is about to begin"
Paul Joseph Watson
December 9, 2013
Japanese media outlets have been feverishly dreaming up scenarios of war with China as soon as next year in response to Beijing's imposition of an air defense zone over the disputed Senkaku Islands.
As the Japan Times notes, "Five out of nine weekly magazines that went on sale last Monday and Tuesday contained scenarios that raised the possibility of a shooting war."
The Sunday Mainichi ran an article entitled Sino-Japanese war to break out in January, which speculated that a worsening Chinese economy and a real estate crash may provoke Beijing to stage an incident "accidentally on purpose," which could take the form of a civilian airliner being forced to land and the passengers held hostage.
Another scenario revolves around China targeting oil supertankers bound for Japan. "If China were to target them, nothing could be worse to contemplate," wrote author author Osamu Eya.
Shukan Gendai, a weekly magazine sold by the largest publishing house in Japan, even speculated that Chinese President Xi Jinping could order the shoot down of a Japanese civilian airliner, prompting a response from the United States that could lead to a fighter jet battle.
"Unlike Japan, the U.S. military would immediately respond to a radar lock-on threat by shooting down the Chinese planes," asserts military analyst Mitsuhiro Sera. "It would naturally regard an aircraft flying overhead as hostile. They would shoot at it even if that were to risk discrediting the Obama administration."
According to Saburo Takai, writing for Flash, China is intent on reclaiming the Senkaku Islands, by force if necessary, but still fears a military confrontation with the United States, a concern emphasized by Beijing's failure to respond to America's provocative B-52 bomber incursion of the "air defense zone" last month.
"The game of chicken between two great superpowers is about to begin," concludes the Japan Times.
As we have also highlighted, Beijing's cheerleading for its military advances has become noticeably more bellicose in recent weeks, with state media outlets bragging of how China plans to turn the moon into a "Death Star" from which missiles could be launched towards any target on Earth.
The official news website of the People's Liberation Army also recently touted the prowess of China's newly formed aircraft carrier combat task force, boasting that it is close to rivaling the U.S. Navy.
In October, Chinese state-run media also released a map showing the locations of major U.S. cities and how they would be impacted by a nuclear attack launched from the PLA's strategic submarine force.
Although a shooting war between China and Japan remains unlikely, respected observers like Ambrose Evans-Pritchard have warned that the escalating crisis represents a "watershed moment for the world" and means "Asia is on the cusp of a full-blown arms race."
A full blown arms race between two major superpowers who are on the verge of conflict over a fiercely fought territorial dispute. That's somewhat more weighty than the assassination of a relatively obscure Austrian Archduke….and we all know what that led to.
Facebook @ https://www.facebook.com/paul.j.watson.71
FOLLOW Paul Joseph Watson @ https://twitter.com/PrisonPlanet
Paul Joseph Watson is the editor and writer for Infowars.com and Prison Planet.com. He is the author of Order Out Of Chaos. Watson is also a host for Infowars Nightly News.
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The phrase "style over substance" generally denotes empty flash, but it takes on a slightly different meaning in Blindness, an adaptation of Jóse Saramago's acclaimed allegorical novel about a mass epidemic of sightlessness. Here, style and substance are both ample. They're just at odds with one another, as director Fernando Meirelles piles on a host of visual gimmicks, no doubt intending to suggest the intense disorientation of those newly inflected with "white blindness." But the effect of his aggressive language—the extremely shallow focus, the heavenly whites and blurry blacks, the jagged editorial ellipses—are a major distraction from what might have been a timely and politically loaded tale of society on the brink. There's a good movie here, but we get it in pieces that are sometimes hard to decipher.
The opening scenes neatly capture the spread of the mysterious disease: In a traffic jam in an unnamed city, a man suddenly loses his sight. A good Samaritan helps escort him home, but then he goes blind, too. As does the man's wife and then his optometrist, played by Mark Ruffalo, and also some of the patients in his waiting room. Faced with this extraordinary outbreak, the government rounds up the first wave of victims and puts them in quarantine in an abandoned hospital. Among the inmates is Ruffalo's wife Julianne Moore, who hides the fact that she can see in order to stay close to her husband. With the unaffected naturally keeping their distance and guards with itchy trigger-fingers penning them in, the blind are left leading the blind, and the situation rapidly deteriorates into a Lord Of The Flies-like scenario.
In order for Blindness to work, this big unraveling needs to be revealed with inexorable logic, as a mini-society of ordinary, decent people are broken down into savages—violent, lusty, and territorial. And that's where Meirelles' distracting flourishes do the most damage, because it's never clear enough how one step down the ladder leads naturally to another. It's questionable whether Meirelles even needed to illustrate "white blindness" visually—though a similar ploy worked for The Diving Bell And The Butterfly—but the style acts like a screen between the audience and the movie that's difficult to circumvent. In that sense, maybe Meirelles gets the blind person's experience right after all.


text: ASUS ROG Matrix R9 290X delivers 6% faster game performance than reference design DirectCU II with 10mm heatpipe: 20% cooler performance and 3X quieter acoustics compared to reference CoolTech Fan technology: Hybrid design for multi-directional cooling DIGI+ VRM with black metallic capacitors and 14-phase Super Alloy Power: 30%-less power noise and 5X-greater durability Memory Defroster: Instant defrost. Say goodbye to cold bugs LN2 mode / STD mode Jumper Switch: Unleash maximum GPU power Safe Mode: One-press VBIOS restore ROG Color-coded Load Indicator: At-a-glance GPU load level GPU Tweak: Modify clock speeds, voltages, fan performance and more, all via an intuitive interface GPU Tweak Streaming: Share on-screen action in real time – so others can watch live as games are played Shop Modal header Watch the video Ultimate Performance Ultimate Cooling Ultimate Overclocking Gamer-friendly Style & UI I Rule My Game – Record Breaking Performance ROG Matrix graphics cards are designed by overclockers for overclockers. Pre-loaded with a variety of ROG exclusive tools for instant and safe overclocking, ROG Matrix revolutionized how overclocking is done and continues to innovate and shatter world records. For serious gamers Matrix's renowned and highly-trusted legacy as the coolest, quietest and smoothest graphics cards available create the perfect balance between spectacular power and out-of-the-box simplicity. Treat yourself to the winning edge — all dressed up in the seductive ROG wardrobe. LN2 mode/ STD mode jumper switch Aluminum back plate DisplayPort, HDMI, 2xDVI-D CoolTech fan MOS heatsink DIGI+ VRM with black metallic capacitors Safe mode Memory defroster DirectCU II with 10mm heatpipe Color-coded load indicator Ultimate Performance Assassin's Creed® IV: Black Flag™ Resolution: 1920*1080 Setting: High, 4xMSAA, FXAA enabled Matrix R9 290X Reference R9 290X Frame per second Battlefield 4™ Resolution: 1920*1080 Setting: Ultra, 4xMSAA Matrix R9 290X Reference R9 290X Frame per second Metro Last Light Resolution: 1920*1080 Setting: Very High Matrix R9 290X Reference R9 290X Frame per second DirectCU II with 10mm Heatpipe 20% cooler. 3X quieter. An exclusive and award-winning cooling technology that puts industry-leading highly-conductive 10mm copper cooling pipes in direct contact with your Matrix card's graphics-processing unit (GPU), dissipating heat with extreme efficiency. Along with high-performance CoolTech fan technology, DirectCU II keeps Matrix up to 20% cooler and three times (3X) quieter than reference designs — and that means faster, distraction-free gaming for you! CoolTech Fan Technology Hybrid design for multi-directional cooling CoolTech is an exclusive hybrid and dust-proof fan technology that accelerates heat removal to ensure top-notch graphics performance that's highly stable. The hybrid blade and bearing design, with inner radial blower and outer flower-type blades, provides multi-directional airflow. Every detail has been expertly engineered, including the curvature of the fins, to ensure super-efficient cooling that's whisper-quiet — even when the fan ramps up! Memory Defroster Instant defrost. Say goodbye to cold bugs. A brand-new ASUS-exclusive technology that'll seriously excite your extreme-overclocking ambitions. This clever feature instantly defrosts your Matrix card's memory during subzero overclocking to ensure sustained stability. With a flip of a switch you can wave goodbye to cold bugs — so you can take subzero overclocking even further! Defroster OFF Defroster ON LN2 Mode / STD Mode Jumper Switch Unleash maximum GPU power Designed by overclockers for overclockers, your Matrix card's liquid-nitrogen (LN2) jumper switch unlocks restrictions on power target, voltage and overcurrent protection — so you can unleash maximum power from the GPU! Safe Mode One-press VBIOS reload You can overclock with confidence thanks to Safe Mode. One tap of the Clear VBIOS button restores your Matrix's graphics card's default frequencies and voltages, so you can be as experimental as you dare! DIGI+ VRM with Black Metallic Capacitors and 14-phase Super Alloy Power 30%-less power noise and 5X-greater durability Acclaimed DIGI+ voltage-regulator module (VRM) technology delivers 14-phase power and digital voltage regulation, while Super Alloy Power's Japanese-made 10K black-metallic capacitors, concrete-core chokes and hardened MOSFETs all withstand much greater stress and heat. The result is an ultra-stable graphics card that's forged for extreme overclocking. You benefit from loads of headroom for experimental performance tuning without generating distracting whines and buzzes. ROG Color-coded Load Indicator At-a-glance GPU load level Matrix is equipped with a gorgeous color-coded LED that changes shade to reflect the GPU's load level. Shining brightly through four resplendent color gradients, it provides a real-time visual guide to performance — and an awesome internal glow! Safe Mode Heavy Loading Light Loading Medium Loading ROG Edition GPU Tweak Real-time intuitive graphics tuning The ultimate graphics card-tuning utility, offering incredibly precise control over GPU clock frequency, pulse-width modulation (PWM), VRM and even fans. With GPU Tweak you get maximum overclocking potential with great safety and simplicity – an enthusiast's dream comes true! GPU Tweak Streaming Stream online instantly! GPU Tweak Streaming tool allows you to share on-screen action in real-time. Add scrolling text, pictures, and webcam images to the streaming window easily. ASUS GPUTWEAK STREAMING on LIVE Picture Scrolling text Gameplay image Webcam image Back top


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Spring is in the air! We have three state-of-the-art headphones for PC World readers this month.
So you can enjoy the sunshine while listening to your favourite music or podcast. Thanks to Sennheiser. Enter today.
The Telstra Frontier 4G is the first 4G smartphone in Australia to be sold on prepaid. It offers a largely standard UI and decent battery life, but the competitive price comes with a few drawbacks including a highly reflective screen and an often sluggish user experience.
4G smartphones are still in their relative infancy in Australia and are usually reserved for high end models. Telstra is aiming to provide a lower cost option with its new Frontier 4G smartphone, the first 4G smartphone in Australia to be sold on prepaid. The price comes with a few drawbacks though, including a highly reflective screen and an often sluggish user experience.
The design of the Frontier 4G is about what you'd expect from a phone at this price point.
The Frontier 4G is a Telstra branded device that's manufactured by Chinese OEM ZTE. The company has produced various smartphones for Telstra in the past, including the Smart-Touch 2 and the original Smart-Touch. ZTE also manufacturers Telstra's own branded, 4G-capable Android tablet, the Telstra 4G Tablet.
The design of the Frontier 4G is about what you'd expect from a phone at this price point. It's constructed largely from plastic and features a black, soft touch finish on the back and a glossy, faux-chrome finish on the sides. A gloss black bezel surrounds the screen with touch-sensitive back, home and menu keys sitting below. These keys are relatively responsive but we wish they were backlit as they can often be hard to see in the dark.
One nice addition is an external antenna port that allows users to boost the mobile signal.
The Frontier 4G isn't the most stylish phone on the market but its design is straightforward and provides reasonable ergonomics. The 149g weight helps provide a solid feel but the device is rather thick at 11mm. All ports and buttons are in expected places, including the top mounted power button and headphone jack, and left mounted volume rocker and micro-USB ports.
One nice addition is an external antenna port that allows users to boost the mobile signal if required. Combined with a Blue Tick rating that denotes recommended coverage in rural and regional areas of Australia, the Frontier 4G is clearly well targeted to customers who live in the bush.
Sadly, the Frontier 4G's 4in screen is one of the most reflective we've come across. The TFT panel is reasonably bright but offers poor viewing angles and is almost impossible to read in direct sunlight. The 480x800 pixel resolution also means that the screen can't render text as well as higher resolution rivals, though that's to be expected at this price point.
The Telstra Frontier runs the 4.0 'Ice Cream Sandwich' version of Google's Android operating system which is surprisingly very close to a "vanilla" UI. Many previous Telstra smartphones were heavily customised and often bloated with pre-loaded apps and services, but the Frontier 4G is a welcome change. It uses the standard Google icons and topography, so the user experience is similar to a stock Android device like the Google Nexus 4. Motorola's new RAZR HD and RAZR M smartphones received similar treatment, so it's good to see Telstra scaling back on custom skins.
The Frontier 4G stutters during basic tasks such as locking and unlocking the screen and swiping through home screens.
The TelstraOne app and a range of widgets come pre-loaded on the Frontier 4G, along with a file manager, an FM radio, a notepad, a sound recorder, a world time app, the X-Office suite and a TouchPal keyboard. Thankfully, the latter is optional so you can revert to Google's standard Android keyboard. The most notable customisation is a lock screen called Mi-EasyAccess. This enables you to unlock directly into six apps of your choice, in addition to holding the icon to unlock into the home screen. However, the long press required is too slow and the unlock animation quickly becomes annoying.
The Telstra Frontier 4G is quite sluggish during day-to-day use. While we weren't expecting hugely impressive performance at this price point, the Frontier 4G stutters during basic tasks such as locking and unlocking the screen, swiping through home screens, opening and closing apps and even opening and closing the app drawer. First smartphone buyers may not notice this slowdown too much but if you've used a moderately fast Android phone in the past, you'll be left disappointed with the speed of the Frontier 4G.
Telstra has assured us the phone will be upgradeable to the latest 4.1 "Jelly Bean" version of Android in the coming months, so this may provide a welcome speed boost. The telco says the update is "in the works" and that it has "worked very closely with ZTE" to deliver the latest Android software, but has not confirmed an availability date.
The rear camera takes average quality photos with high levels of image noise.
The Telstra Frontier 4G has a 5-megapixel rear camera and a VGA front-camera for video calls. The rear camera takes average quality photos with high levels of image noise and a lack of clarity marring most of our test shots. Colour reproduction is reasonable, however, and detail levels aren't the worst we've seen on a camera phone.
The best feature of the Telstra Frontier 4G is obviously the fact that it connects to Telstra's excellent 4G network in Australia. The speeds you manage to achieve on Telstra's 4G network will depend on a number of factors including congestion, location and time but we managed to achieve download speeds of up to 26 megabits per second (Mbps) and upload speeds of over 20Mbps on the Frontier 4G. The phone is also compatible with HD Voice, though you'll obviously need to to be talking with another compatible phone on the Telstra network to reap its benefits.
The Frontier 4G comes with a 1785 mAh battery which lasted almost a full day during our review period. Less intensive users may be able to squeeze a full day of use out of the Frontier 4G before needing a recharge but like most 4G phones, making use of those faster data speeds quickly drains the battery.
The Telstra Frontier 4G is available now for $299 and can be paired with a range of Telstra prepaid plans.
• Our brand strong enough to sell 4G smartphones: Telstra
• Telstra plays nicely with Android app purchases
• Telstra 4G Tablet review
• Telstra: 4G will serve 66 per cent of Australia by mid-2013
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Dynabook Portégé X30L-G
Ultimately this laptop has achieved everything I would hope for in a laptop for work, while fitting that into a form factor and weight that is remarkable.
This smart laptop was enjoyable to use and great to work on – creating content was super simple.
It really doesn't get more "gaming laptop" than this.
As the Maserati or BMW of laptops, it would fit perfectly in the hands of a professional needing firepower under the hood, sophistication and class on the surface, and gaming prowess (sports mode if you will) in between.
The MSI PS63 is an amazing laptop and I would definitely consider buying one in the future.
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This small mobile printer is exactly what I need for invoicing and other jobs such as sending fellow tradesman details or step-by-step instructions that I can easily print off from my phone or the Web.


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From Southeast Asia come the Rasboras, members of the Cyprinid family of Carps and Minnows. In this post, I'll demystify keeping members of this beautiful family of fishes.
First, Rasboras are schooling fish, and that is how they are best kept. Though some just form loose aggregations, the majority are happiest and live best in large schools. Rasboras come from heavily vegetated creeks and streams rift with species of Cryptocorynes, thus it stands to reason to furnish the foreground and sides of their tanks with these plants.
Like all Carp, Rasboras have no teeth in their jaws, but they prefer small, soft pellets. Live food like Daphnia, chopped or halved White Worms, Brine Shrimp and insects like wingless Dropsilia species fruit flies given three or four times a week is very beneficial and is key to breeding these fish.
They do best in well-planted aquariums in bright, clear waters with a pH between 6.5 and 7.0 and moderately soft, say a general hardness under 10 degrees. They like temperatures in the mid to upper 70's to 80. Properly kept, all are long-lived, with over 5 years not uncommon.
The word 'Rasbora' was what the fish were called in India. When species were exported from there to the West in the early 20th century, science erected the Rasbora Genus in honor of that native name.
Now some species
Synonymous when the word Rasbora is used is the Harlequin Rasbora, (Trigonostigma heteromorpha).
A native of Sumatra, Thailand and the Malay Peninsula, the Harlequin Rasbora is perhaps the most popular of the family. A golden, silvery fish, adult specimens can have a blush of deep red on its unpaired fins. A deep, black chevron mark covers the posterior half of the fish. Reaching a length of 1 3/4 inches, adult fish have a golden line on the top edge of the mark. The golden mark is visually brighter on the male.
This fish does best in soft and acid water, say pH 6.5 to 6.8 and hardness under 6 ppm. Tanks planted with some well-established, broad-leaved Cryptocorynes are perfect for it, as they lay eggs under the leaves, and the young hide in the exposed roots of Crypts. Floating plants make them feel secure. En masse, a large school of Harlequins is very impressive with their red-golden bodies with that deep black mark.
A similar species is T. espei, which is more slender and can have deeper colors than heteromorpha.
My personal favorite is Rasbora pauciperforata, the Red Line Rasbora.
The common name describes the character of this fish; a brilliant red line, edged with gold and black, bisects it, and divides an olive back from a silvery white belly. The fins are all clear, and the fish is partially transparent.
Reaching a hair over 2 inches, Red Lines prefer to be in large groups in thickly planted tanks. There is occasional play among members, but thus far I haven't spawned these fishes. Otherwise, they are beautiful, quiet fishes; in a dark background and substrated tank equipped with a few floating plants, they are nothing short of stunning.
Like all Rasboras, they will not tolerate excess Nitrate, much less any Ammonia or Nitrite. In a well-planted and established tank with clear, clean water, they are quite hardy. They prefer temps in the mid-70's to 80.
Perhaps the most common Rasbora in shops these days is the Brilliant Rasbora, R. borapetensis.
An electric-yellow borders a black line that divides the fish. In happy surroundings, a blush of deep red colors the tail fin.
A hardy, lively little fish with fins smartly spread, a good-sized group in the planted tank is lovely. Like all Rasboras, Brilliants should be kept with calm tank mates, as they are easily bullied. They very much like to school together in the aquarium.
A lovely fish, and hardy enough for the new Rasbora keeper. I highly recommend them.
A tiny schooler for the planted nano tank is R. maculata of the Malay Peninsula.
Reaching an inch long, Maculata, sometimes known as the Dwarf Rasbora, has a peachy-pink body with an dark black spot surrounded by electric pink. Black and red are at the base of the unpaired fins.
Though they are tiny, they are deceptively hardy. With fins well spread, the fish carries itself with an assurance as if it thinks its much larger than it is. Food, both live and prepared, must be quite small. Like all Rasboras, they should be fed between three and five times a day with small meals, no more than they can consume in under a minute.
As it is so small, tankmates must be chosen with care lest it be eaten.
They breed under Cryptocoryne leaves like Harlequins, but the fry are very, very tiny, and must be fed Infusoria and the smallest of Rotifers when they are free swimming. It will be some time, occasionally up to two weeks, before they can manage baby brine shrimp.
A fish not seen much in shops any more is R. dorsiocellata, the High Spot or Spotted Rasbora.
Simply a bright silver with a metallic silver eye, it is the spot in its dorsal fin that lends to its common name. The spot, at the base of the dorsal fin, is deep black, bordered on the bottom by enameled, somewhat metallic, white. The scales are lightly edged in black. Reaching 1 3/4 inches, the fish can have silver and black on the bottom of the tail fin.
Sexes are told in mature fish by the female's slightly larger size and girth than the males.
A very restful, glittering little fish, quite lovely as a large group in a planted 20 gallon with a dark background planted with darker-leaved plants. Calm tank mates are a must with this species.
Called Scissor-Tails, Rasbora trilineata is the largest common Rasbora and winds up our list.
Reaching an impressive eight inches, trilineata earns its common name by its habit of flexing its tail scissor-like. The look is accentuated by orange and black at the tips of the tail. In healthy specimens, Two thin black lines are the back half of the fish, one in the middle, the other on the bottom of it.
Left alone as the only fish in a suitable-sized planted tank, they will constantly breed, and eat neither eggs nor fry. I kept them in a 75 gallon planted tank that in the mid 70's in temperature, fed them a couple times a day, and basically ignored them. They tank was soon full of adult and juvenile Scissor-Tails, easily seen by their flexing tails.
If not for their size a group of Scissor-Tails would be ideal in a good-sized planted tank. Kept in pairs or trios, however, they are not to be trusted with smaller, easily bullied fish. Keeping Scissors in schools diffuses this aggression.
There are a few species that occasionally turn up in shops, but all can be kept as above. I encourage you to research and seek out these fish, as a properly set up Rasbora tank is a rare thing these days, but can be lovely.


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Become a Pearl Expert
The Ultimate Guide
We show you how to grade and select pearls like a professional buyer. Learn the truth about the pearl industry and how to avoid paying retail prices.
A brand new offering by PurePearls.com, the Untreated, Natural Color Japanese Hanadama Akoya Pearls feature some of the most brilliant, luminous Akoya luster we've ever seen.
Natural Color Hanadama Akoya pearls are simply washed and polished, and skip the traditional after harvest processing treatments such as bleaching and pinking, altogether. The pearls are quite lovely, with a pronounced Orient iridescent "soap bubble" effect, and a very cool-hued Silver Overtone range. Graduating from 7.5-8.0mm, this 18-inch necklace is by far and away one of our most popular sizes.
Each Hanadama Collection necklace arrives with it's own numbered Pearl Science Laboratory certificate from Tokyo, Japan, detailing the necklace's surface quality, nacre thickness and x-ray results. The necklace will be individually double-knotted on matching white silk and finished with a 14K Gold clasp of your choice. Each pearl purchase comes nestled in our Signature Little Black Gift Box and is accompanied with a GIA Graduate Prepared Retail Appraisal and Pearl Care Instructions.
Discover all of our pearl necklaces, matching pearl bracelets, or pearl earrings.
|Pearl Color
|White - Natural Color, Untreated
|Pearl Type
|Akoya Pearls
|Pearl Quality
|Gem Quality
|Pearl Size
|Pearl Shape
|Perfectly Round
|Overall Length
|18-Inches / Princess Length
|Mollusk Type
|Pinctada fucata martensii, saltwater oyster
|Area of Origin
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This Friday and Saturday San Antonio Symphony Principal Bassoonist Sharon Kuster will be the featured soloist in the Mozart Bassoon Concerto. She obtained her Bachelor of Music degree from the University of California. Prior to joining the SA Symphony, Sharon was with La Orquesta Sinfonica de Veracruz in México.
In addition to performing with the San Antonio Symphony, Sharon has played in several summer festivals including the Breckenridge Music Institute in Colorado, the Sunriver Music Festival in Oregon, the Cactus Pear Music Festival in San Antonio, the Masterworks Festival in Indiana, and she is in her 19th summer with the Grand Teton Music Festival in Wyoming. Sharon also plays with the Olmos Ensemble, a chamber music group in San Antonio, and teaches privately.
This afternoon, before her rehearsal with guest conductor Julian Kuerti, I sat down with Sharon and asked her about her career as a bassoonist.
For more information about bassoons visit http://www.bassoonresource.org/. You may find the section on reed making especially interesting. (Bassoonists and Oboists make their own reeds.)
Jack Fishman
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Web: www.sasymphony.org
Twitter @SASym
Facebook: San Antonio Symphony
For more blogs by Jack Fishman visit: www.sasymphony.org/blog


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Highlights & Replays
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Q: What internet browser will I need to use to access 360 streaming?
A: StreamIt360 is compatible with Internet Explorer 10 or later, Google Chrome, Apple Safari, Mozilla Firefox Version 2 or later and your smart phone's default browser.
Q: Do I need any third party software to use StreamIt360?
A: Depending on your device, you may need to install VLC player or a similar streaming video player.
Q: What is the quality of the live broadcast streaming transmission?
A: All our footage is filmed in High Definition. However, the video will be adapted for your device and may be limited by your connection speed.
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A: Buffering occurs when the video loads slower than it plays, so if you have a slow connection, the video would have to load in advance before playing a section. In those cases, the video will buffer.
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Streaming does however use more data than regular internet browsing, so we encourage the use of WIFI hotspots and uncapped data packages.
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A Palestinian from East Jerusalem was shot and killed near Damascus Gate Saturday morning after allegedly stabbing two ultra-Orthodox Jewish men.
Israel Police Foreign Press Spokesman, Micky Rosenfeld, confirmed that the attacker, who is yet to be identified, was 16 years old.
The Times of Israel reports that of the two Jewish men, aged 62 and 65, one was lightly wounded and the other moderately wounded. Both are in a stable condition.
According to Ma'an News Agency, Israeli forces used tear gas and sound grenades to disperse a crowd of Palestinians who had gathered at the scene following the attack.
The attack is the thirteenth knife attack carried out by Palestinians against Israelis across Israel and the West Bank since last Saturday.
One apparent revenge attack was carried out in Dimona Friday, in which three Palestinians and one Bedouin were injured after being stabbed by a Jewish assailant.
Overnight Friday, Palestinian Ahmad Salah, 24, was shot dead by Israeli forces during clashes in Shufat Refugee Camp in East Jerusalem.
The killing of Salah comes one day after Israeli forces shot dead Wissam Faraj, 20, during clashes in Shufat on Thursday.
Seventeen Palestinians and four Israelis have now been killed, and more than 1000 Palestinians have been injured, across Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories since Oct. 1.
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Justice brought closer to home
In 2010, 70-year old Rwankumbiri Théodomir from Huye District, South-Western Rwanda, sought help from UNDP supported Maison d'Accès à la Justice (MAJ), the access to justice office in order to reclaim his 99 year-old mother-in-law's land in Ngoma District.
His family had fled the 1959 Tutsi killings, leaving everything behind. Upon return to the country after the 1994 genocide, they learnt that a family had illegally occupied their land. Théodomir then decided to turn to the justice system to settle his claim.
"Given the High Court had to resolve my case, I was challenged by the fact that I was defending the case alone against the lawyer of the defendants, who understood the law better than I did. I was lucky to learn about the existence of MAJ in Huye, and I decided to consult it" explained Théodomir.
- Beneficiaries testify to the benefits of a decentralized justice system to improve access to justice in Rwanda
- With the support of UNDP, Maison d'Accès à la Justice (MAJ) has been scaled up to become part of the justice system to address people's claims and grievances
He approached the MAJ in Huye to help him understand how to present his case successfully. MAJ studied his case and transferred it to the High Court and within one year the case was settled in Théodomir's favor.
According to Théodomir, if MAJ had not intervened in his case, it might have taken even longer and he probably would have lost, as he did not have enough money to pay for a lawyer. Today, he is only waiting for the permanent title deed and is already farming the land to feed his wife and four children.
Ms. Claudine Umuhire, the Legal Officer of Huye's MAJ, explained that the office was opened in July 2010. Ms. Umuhire said that for 2 years since opening, they have dealt with more than 2800 cases, and in 2012 alone, they received more than 1000 cases. "Initially, people were reluctant to approach us for advice, but over the years, the office has become popular as more people understand what we do and hear about the efficiency of MAJ" Ms Umuhire explained.
Currently, Rwanda has a low advocate to population ratio such that the decentralized justice system of the MAJ was created to ensure universal access to legal advice and assistance. The government's main strategy for decentralizing justice has been the establishment of these offices in every district throughout the country. MAJ is therefore an example of how the decentralization process of the Justice Sector in Rwanda has been a success. Since the establishment of the pilot MAJ in 2008, UNDP Rwanda has provided financial and technical support to the establishment of 5 bureaus. Due its success, the Government of Rwanda scaled up the project resulting in the MAJ being present in each of the 30 districts.
The MAJ aims to improve access to legal advice and assistance; to train mediators at local level nationwide; to act as the link between the Ministry of Justice, Local Governments and the mediators; as well as to disseminate laws to the local communities.


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LIVE REVIEW: Suicide Silence in Sayreville, New Jersey
Suicide Silence, who have just released their new album You Can't Stop Me with vocalist Eddie Hermida, are currently touring with Cannibal Corpse and Wretched. I caught up with their Summer 2014 tour at the famous Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, New Jersey to watch some face-shredding death metal. Please follow and like us:Read More


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Listings in Process Automation and Consulting Services in Johnstown
in Process Services, Process Automation, Information Governance, Document Management, Content Services, Content Integration and Migration, Collaboration
We are enterprise content integration and migration experts providing in-depth solutions to securely connect, sync, or migrate data across on-premise or cloud-based ECM systems with external business applications.
5255 Ronald Reagan Blvd.
Suite 100
Johnstown, Colorado 80534
United States


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March 1, 2011 -- The FDA has approved a new treatment for people with worsening symptoms of severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a lung disorder that makes breathing difficult.
The drug, roflumilast -- carrying the trade name Daliresp -- will be sold in pill form, unlike some other medications for COPD, which are inhaled.
The FDA says roflumilast, a new drug class for COPD treatment, is an inhibitor of an enzyme called phosphodiesterase type 4 (PDE-4).
The pill is recommended for people with severe COPD associated with chronic bronchitis who have had flares. Roflumilast has been shown to reduce the risk of COPD flares in this group. It is not intended to treat another form of COPD, which involves primary emphysema.
The FDA approval of roflumilast requires a medication guide informing patients of the potential risks of mental health problems, including changes in mood, thinking, or behavior, as well as unexplained weight loss.
COPD Symptoms
Symptoms of COPD include breathlessness, chronic cough, and excessive phlegm.
An exacerbation (flare) can last up to several weeks and result in a decline in lung function and increased risk of death, and it may be associated with severe anxiety, the FDA says.
Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of COPD.
"COPD is a serious disease that gets worse over time," Curtis Rosebraugh, MD, MPH, of FDA, says in a news release.
"New treatment options that reduce frequency of flare-ups or exacerbations are important in helping patients with COPD associated with chronic bronchitis and a history of exacerbations in managing this debilitating disease," says Rosebraugh, director of the office of drug evaluation in the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.
Side Effects
The FDA says in a news release that the safety and effectiveness of roflumilast was demonstrated in two phase III clinical trials that included more than 1,500 patients 40 and older.
The federal agency says that those treated had a history of COPD associated with chronic bronchitis and had experienced an exacerbation of the disease during the 12 months prior to beginning treatment.
The FDA says roflumilast should not be used to treat sudden breathing problems and is not recommended for people younger than 18.
The most common side effects include diarrhea, nausea, headache, insomnia, back pain, decreased appetite, and dizziness.
The medication is marketed by St. Louis-based Forest Pharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of Forest Laboratories.


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A conversation with B-movie uber-producer/director Roger Corman is almost like one of his films: fast-paced, efficient and wildly entertaining.
On the occasion of the honorary doctorate recently bestowed on him by the Academy of Art in San Francisco, the legendary filmmaker got a chance to look back on a filmography that includes over 300 movies as producer and more than 50 as a director.
Even Corman himself, 85, concedes "One of the things that surprises me is that I've made so many films."
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Indeed, the Corman canon includes 1960s "Little Shop of Horrors" (legendarily shot in under three days and featuring superstar-to-be Jack Nicholson); his acclaimed Edgar Allan Poe-derived series of films, typically in collaboration with screenwriter Richard Matheson and star Vincent Price (with extra shooting days on 1963's "The Raven," he conceived and shot "The Terror" before the sets were struck); the pioneering 60s psychedelic/biker films "Wild Angels" and "Trip" (Nicholson's screenwriting debut); and a bountiful collection of Bs from the 70s and 80s including "Death Race 2000," "Rock 'n' Roll High School," "Children of the Corn," "Battle Beyond the Stars" and the original "Piranha."
"It's always gratifying to get any honor," Corman tells PopcornBiz, having only received a smattering of accolades until recently, now that his cult film aesthetic has been celebrated by cutting-edge cinema auteurs like Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez. "I'm a little surprised that I'm getting these honors as I am, somewhat late in my career. I did get an honorary doctorate from the American Film Institute a number of years ago, but last year I got an Oscar and this year a second honorary doctorate. It means that I'm having a pleasant old age."
His early career required considerably more struggle – less for respect and more to simply get films in the can as he mastered his make-'em-quick-and-cost-effective methodolgy. "When I made my very first film, it was so difficult that I thought about the best that you could do was that if you could make a picture a year that's really a lot of work," Corman remembers. "At the peak, there I was making ten or 12 pictures a year, and at the beginning I never would've dreamed that anybody could do that because the work was just so difficult. After a while, as I became accustomed to it, I guess I fell into a groove. I found a way to work that enabled me to work more efficiently."
Over the decades, Corman's stable served as an early incubator for some of cinema's most acclaimed talents as they found their place in Hollywood, including Francis Ford Coppola, Martin Scorsese, James Cameron, Gale Anne Hurd, Ron Howard, Jonathan Demme, Peter Bogdanovich, Irvin Kirshner, Curtis Hanson, John Sayles, Nicolas Roeg and Joe Dante. But Corman himself never benefitted from a crucial apprenticeship.
"That was the problem – I had no key mentor!" he says. "I had never gone to a film school. There were very few film schools that existed at that time, and my education was as an engineering major. I simply had to teach myself as I went along. So what I did was that I simply looked at films that I thought were good films. I'd go to the theater a couple of times to study those films and try to incorporate what I learned from that into my own films. I didn't have the luxury of having a mentor as such or any training whatsoever. My training was on-the-job training."
He also remembers his amazement when he first began to see the effect of what was called "The Corman Film School" on Hollywood blockbusters, beginning with Steven Spielberg's "Jaws" in 1975 when film critic Vincent Canby opined "What is "Jaws", but a big budget Roger Corman film?"
"He was partially right in that it was, to a certain extent: a big budget Roger Corman film," says Corman. "But what was more important was that it was better. First 'Jaws' and then 'Star Wars' were similar to pictures that I had made, but they were bigger and they were better. I talked to George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, who simply said that they had seen the types of films that I and my compatriots had made when they were young, and when they got the chance they made bigger and better versions of them. All I can do is say that this is the way that film industry has gone. As a matter of fact, one of our 'graduates,' Jim Cameron, is probably the leading light of that."
Though he hasn't helmed a theatrical film himself since 1990 ("The years have piled up," he says. "I wouldn't rule out directing again, but it would have to be something, at my age, I really personally wanted to do"), Corman the producer remains active with a series of hit TV-movies on SyFy.
"Our last picture 'Sharktopus' did very well, and we've just finished shooting a follow up picture called 'Piranhaconda,'" he reveals. "Strangely enough, we're still editing 'Piranhaconda,' but during the basketball March Madness SyFy had 'March Monster Madness.' They picked 16 of their top films and had playoffs going down to the final two – and the final two were both our pictures. 'Sharktopus' ran number one and 'Piranhaconda' – which isn't even finished – ran number two. So I can assume that title has some power."
Through it all he's remained clear-eyed about his place in the cinematic firmament. "The way that I make films, and the way that 99% percent of other people make films, is that we are skilled craftsmen. If occasionally something rises to the level of art, that's wonderful, but that we really should look upon ourselves as skilled craftsmen trying to do the best job that we can at our craft."
And is there a legacy to be found in those efforts? "The legacy is going to be footnote in film history," says Corman. "I have no illusions that it's going to be a major legacy, but I would hope that it would be that I'd be known simply as a filmmaker, that I made films myself and that I mentored or taught other filmmakers. It's a sort of two-part legacy."


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Two of the greatest films of all-time get the Blu-ray treatment, an overlooked indie gem, a pair of odd docs and the boy wizard are eager for you to take them home.
"Agora" (2010)
Rachel Weisz stars as Hypatia, a mathematician and philosopher in ancient Roman Egypt, who tries to fight the rise of Christianity that threatens the wisdom of the old world. Sounds exciting. Now on DVD, watch the trailer
"Apocalypse Now" (Two-Disc Special Edition or three-disc Full Disclosure Edition) (1979)
Just one of Francis Ford Coppola's masterpieces, this one starring Martin Sheen, Laurence Fishburne, Dennis Hopper and Marlon Brando in a retelling of Joseph Conrad's' "Heart of Darkness," but set in Vietnam. Now package with "Apocalypse Now Redux," the director's cut featuring an extra 49 minutes, or with both "Redux" and "Hearts of Darkness," the documentary about the making of the film. Now available on Blu-ray, watch the trailer for the original film
"Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" (2004) & "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" (2005)
Chapters 3 & 4 of one of the most popular book and film franchises of all time are now available in three-disc editions loaded with special features and other goodies. Now available on Blu-ray
"Moulin Rouge" (2001)
Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor star in Baz Luhrmann's brilliant musical romance about a young writer who falls for a beautiful actress/prostitute when the two meet whle putting on a show at the famed Moulin Rouge Cabaret in Paris in the late 1800s. Now available on Blu-ray, watch the trailer
"Oceans" (2010)
French filmmaker Jacques Perrin ("Microcosmos," "Winged Migration") spent four years with his lens turned toward the deep blue, with Pierce Brosnan narrating the kid-friendly, largely apolitical action. Now available on Blu-ray and DVD, watch the trailer
"Please Give" (2010)
Catherine Keener and Oliver Platt star as a married couple waiting for their elderly neighbor to die so that they can take possession of her apartment. Rebecca Hall and Amanda Peet also star in this overlooked comedy about guilt and death from writer-director Nicole Holofcener. Now available on Blu-ray and DVD, read our review and watch the trailer
"Predators" (2010)
Adrien Brody, Topher Grace and Danny Trejo star in this film about a group of Earth's deadliest killers getting plucked from their lives and dropped into a game preserve to be hunted by a race of alien monsters. Now available on Blu-ray and DVD, watch the trailer
"Psycho" (50th Anniversary Edition) (1960)
Alfred Hitchcock's brilliant thriller about a boy who loves his mother, starring Anthony Hopkins in the role of a lifetime. This new version has a newly created 5.1 audio track and bonus features. If you haven;t yet seen this film it's really time to get your priorities straight. Now available on Blu-ray, watch the trailer
"Smash His Camera" (2010)
This documentary of trailblazing paparazzo Ron Galella takes it's name from orders that Jackie Onassis once barked to her bodyguard while Galella was trying to photograph her. Now available on DVD, watch the trailer
"Until the Light Takes Us" (2009)
A documentary look at black metal and its rise to worldwide notoriety in the mid-nineties when a rash of suicides, murders, and church burnings accompanied the explosive artistic growth and output of a music scene that would forever redefine what heavy metal is and what it stands for to other musicians, artists and music fans world-wide. Now available on Blu-ray and DVD, watch the trailer


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Dame Dash Speaks On Why Hes Not Getting Involved With The Jay-Z & Jim Jones Beef! "Jay Put Me In A Position Where I Cant Protect Him No More"
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Putting the Holy in Hollywood
New acting studio wants to 'plant a cross' in film capital.
There's a new Hollywood arrival whose goal is far different than seeking fame and fortune.
Holy Wood Acting Studio's aim is to form top-notch actors who will become a moral center in the movie industry.
"Acting is more than just a career — it's a calling," says Max Espinosa, Holy Wood Acting Studio's co-founder and director of operations. "Why? Because it affects people. Art has the power to change people's lives. Hollywood goes around the world and reaches the masses. It all starts with the actors. So we want to create actors to influence Hollywood in a positive way."
The name choice of Holy Wood Acting Studio is more than a play on words.
"We strongly believe we came here for a reason," Espinosa says. "We're here to plant a cross in the middle of Hollywood."
This is the shared vision of all three Espinosa co-founders: Max, his father Carlos, the studio's CEO, and Max's sister Karla. For three years Max was personal manager to actor Eduardo Verastegui, star of Bella, and Karla marketed and promoted that film.
Their experience prompted the idea for Holy Wood. Max Espinosa describes how, after interacting with a lot of well-known people during three years in the industry, he realized the real need to help future actors balance their lives.
"They have all the success and the fame," he mused, "but what's the purpose of gaining the whole world if you're going to lose your soul?"
The answer: Start a school not only to train actors professionally, but to help form them morally.
"We build on the 'four pillars,'" says Espinosa. "Besides acting, there are three more 'courses': personal growth and development, leadership, health and fitness."
Under well-known acting coach Mark Atteberry, the same acting techniques will be taught as in the major schools, but without asking actors to compromise values or morals.
The school has hired teachers and acting coaches with excellent credentials in the industry who "all are passionate about God, about our Lord Jesus Christ." Most are Catholic.
Simultaneously, the personal growth and development pillar will help future actors realize the moral meaning of their lives, while the leadership pillar's full name is "The Catholic Vision for Leading like Jesus." That is also the title of a book by Catholic teacher and writer Owen Phelps. Phelps, who received the papal honor of Knight of St. Gregory the Great, developed this program and has now adapted it for actors.
The fourth pillar of health and fitness utilizes the teachings of Blessed John Paul II's theology of the body. Actors will not only learn to eat healthy and exercise properly, but that God created their bodies as temples of the Holy Spirit.
"These four pillars," Espinosa emphasizes, "will help actors not only come out as great actors, but as people of integrity."
Holy Cross Father Willy Raymond, president of Family Theater Productions, highlights the real need in Hollywood to train actors who want to remain faithful to their Catholic faith. He applauds the Espinosas as a devout family fervent in their faith for willing to take this challenge on and put their own time, energy and resources into the project.
Father Raymond points out that in mainstream acting (and acting schools), actors are often asked to do things that are immoral or compromise their beliefs, values and faith in different ways, and he is pleased this school offers an alternative.
"For the Holy Wood Acting Studio to come on the scene and be a haven where you really will learn the discipline required for acting and also strengthen personal faith rather than compromise it is a very important step for them to take," he explains. "A lot of young people who are committed to the faith — and their families — will be reassured by that commitment Holy Wood Acting Studio has to build up and support the faith while these young people are in training to become actors."
Being asked to do "questionable things" in the mainstream acting studios is one reason aspiring actress Sequoia Sierra of West Covina, Calif., is excited to begin the initial summer session to learn the same Meisner Acting Technique major secular studios teach "in an environment that isn't going to ask me to compromise my morals."
She also looks forward to classes on the other three topics, because "they're forming the whole person." The school "incorporates your Catholic faith into everything in such a way it's part of every facet of what you do."
"We realize our art is to glorify God," she says. "Our talent is given by God and for God's glory. So they promote you to be the best in the industry. That's the only way we as Catholics can make a mark on the industry."
She realizes actors need to be leaders to influence change for the better.
"John Paul II wrote and talked a lot about the media being involved," says Joseph Griffin, who will teach the leadership course.
"If we're to bring about a significant change, we have to be the leaders and have the courage and the understanding of our mission. We can influence and create a different narrative in Hollywood when we have these leaders. That's what's lacking. There's talent, but such an abuse of things and the agendas that go on in Hollywood. We're trying to give these young men and women the courage to go through these things."
A father of 11 children, Griffin is an actor with many credits on and off-screen. He and Max Espinosa got together for this project through a mutual friend, an Opus Dei priest.
Griffin, who noted top people need to be the school's teachers and facilitators, wants the school to "produce real actors who have an understanding of their faith and their own mission in life, if God is calling them to be actors."
"I tried to keep myself open to how the Holy Spirit was able to direct me," Griffin says of his role in the school. He explains the leadership aspect of the curriculum — "Leading Like Jesus" — is "a Catholic vision. We use Jesus as the role model of great leadership." Griffin also can bring in his personal experience leading his family.
With this course among the unique aspects that sets it apart, the school wants to develop "leaders that are attractive, courageous, knowledgeable and professional, and with a profound understanding of what God is calling them to," he says. "God calls us to be great, not just okay."
This path is a way to impact the film industry, Griffin explains: "Hollywood is Hollywood. You can't reinvent it, but you can affect and transform it through your own actions."
The grand opening of the school's Culver City facility outside of Los Angeles, minutes from major studios, was purposely slated for March 25, the Annunciation, a feast of our Blessed Mother.
Fifty people joined in prayers and Benediction led by Father Raymond, who then, as part of the blessing, consecrated Holy Wood to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
The year-long school session will begin on Sept. 8, the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin. "We don't do anything," says Max, "without our Blessed Mother's blessing."
On the day doors officially open for the first class — June 12, Pentecost Sunday — there will be a Mass. "We did it on purpose," Max says, "so the Holy Spirit can come to our students the first class." The Espinosas always seek a "special blessing from God."
Through every step, Holy Wood wants to teach actors "how to be a light in the darkness," Espinosa asserts. "Instead of being led by the industry, they will lead the industry."
Register staff writer Joseph Pronechen is based in Trumbull, Connecticut.
Visit HolyWoodActingStudio.com
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- May 22-June 4, 2011


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Police look for 2nd suspect in hotel manager murder | News
OXON HILL, Md. (WUSA9) -- Prince George's County detectives now say that the robbery turned murder may not have been the act of one man.
They believe the killer may have had an accomplice and there may have been a second person in the car that drove off.
Investigators are working around the clock on this case that took the life of a hotel restaurant manager. The surveillance video is clear.
A driver pulls into the parking lot of the Clarion Hotel in Oxon Hill Monday night. The gunman is seen walking in, then jumps over the counter, pointing a gun at a 22-year-old pregnant woman, demanding money. She hands over the cash. At the same time 27-year-old Jesse Chavez hears the cries for help from his co-worker. Chavez reaches the gunman as he's running out the door. There's a confrontation and then Chavez is shot in the upper body.
The gunman and whoever else maybe in that car is seen speeding out of the parking lot.
Chavez's family is left reeling from his death, with only memories of the man who played Santa for school kids, loved the Redskins and worked his way up as a food and beverage manager at the hotel where he died.
Police have also revealed the black car they're looking for is a Toyota sedan, possibly a Camry or Avalon.
Detectives desperately want to catch this killer because he's dangerous and is capable of anything, if anyone gets in his way.
There is up to a $25K reward for any information leading to an arrest. You can remain anonymous. Call the Crime Solvers hotline at 1-866-411-8477 (TIPS)


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You can just imagine my glee when I flipped through this week's Newsweek to find an essay headlined "Who You Callin' A Lady?. The deck read "The soft bigotry of high expectations."
Holy jumpin' Undecided, Batman! Isn't this what we've been talking about in this space for months?
Enter the buzzkill. I realized that the essay, written by Kathleen Deveny, was just one more knee-jerk apologia for University of New Mexico soccer player Elizabeth Lambert's reprehensible behavior in a game against BYU.
Unless you've been hiding under a rock for the last month, you know that Lambert was suspended from her team for what might generously be called dirty playing (check the ESPN video below): She tripped players. She threw punches. She took players out with no ball in sight. Ugliest of all, she threw an opponent to the ground by yanking her by the ponytail and snapping her head back.
Let me back up. Both my daughters played soccer, at various levels. They attended a high school where women's soccer was a feeder for top level university programs across the country. For years, members of the women's soccer team at the university where I teach have made their way onto the rosters of the national team and the Olympic team. I've never played in a soccer game, but I've watched probably hundreds of them: Lambert goes way beyond dirty. Don't want to take my word for it? Listen to former Olympian Julie Foudy.
Which is why I am so dismayed to see Lambert thrown up as a feminist icon, with her behavior a symbol of how society's high expectations for women hold them back. The issue is real, but when you use Lambert as the poster girl, well, suddenly, the argument starts to disintegrate.
In fairness, Deveny makes some good points. When she gets past comparing Lambert's suspension — and the media storm that surrounded it — to the reinstatement of football player Michael Vick, she gets onto less shaky ground:
The difference is that we expect bad behavior from men—on the field and off. (In some ways, men justify our low opinion of them: they are 10 times more likely to murder, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics.) But we expect better from women. We didn't fight this hard to be involved in organized sports just so we could act like a bunch of dumb jocks, right? We want women to be honest, compassionate, and nice—you know, like our moms.
So what's the harm in expecting the fairer sex to play fairer? It's what George W. Bush might call the soft bigotry of high expectations. If we insist on holding women and girls to higher standards than men, we set them up to disappoint us. It makes me worry about my 9-year-old daughter, and not because I hope she will someday pull hair with the best of them. I think she is sometimes held to stricter behavior standards than her boys-will-be-boys classmates. Those higher expectations follow us onto the job, where women are allegedly not only better behaved and more honest but cheaper—you only have to pay us 80 cents on the dollar! So why aren't we represented at the highest levels of business? One problem is that women aren't supposed to be aggressive or self-promoting—that's nasty male behavior—even though it's often rewarded. And yet if professional women are too nice and cuddly, they don't seem decisive or tough enough to be leaders. "The 'women are wonderful' effect does have a terrible downside," says Alice H. Eagly, a psychology professor and coauthor of Through the Labyrinth: The Truth About How Women Become Leaders. "If you're too nice, you're seen as not really appropriate for high-level positions."
Good points. (Except that bit about Mom. Since when is Mom a synonym for soft?) But maybe we need to start thinking beyond her message. If it is true that women are held to different, and higher standards, maybe it's not the expectations that do us in, but rather the institutional structures that support them. Playing like the boys for the past several decades really hasn't gotten us that far. Could it be that what needs to be changed are the structures — not the women?
A few months ago, in a post on the differences between men and women and how we need to embrace them, Shannon quoted a speech by Omega Women's Institute founder, Elizabeth Lesser:
We've had centuries of power and leadership where men have been at the helm. There's some real serious gaps in representation in the world. And also the world's in trouble. What would happen if women became empowered and could lead from their core basic values? Not just let's put women into a structure that is about up-down power, like I have power over you. But what if women could actually influence the way power was wielded in the world, from a core feminine place. … The conversation we need to have now is no longer about women assuming positions of leadership within the existing power structure, it's about the power structures themselves, it's about how to go about assuming power, how to change the structures.
Which is why this whole l'affaire Lambert has me so dismayed. It's not that she was castigated for playing like the boys — it's that she was playing like the very worst of them.


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Pity poor Joan Juliet Buck, Vogue stalwart and roving editor, who has come under intense scrutiny following her now infamous Vogue article on Asma Assad, wife of Syrian dictator Bashar al Assad. Written and published shortly before civil war broke out, Buck's glowing profile, entitled "A Rose in the Desert," now looks impossibly ill judged. History will remember Asma as the consort of a ruthless dictator, and Vogue as being on the wrong side of the story.
But now Buck is fighting back. Sick and tired of having her name ridiculed as the author of the ultimate PR puff piece, she has broken her silence and given her version of how the article came about. It seems her editors at Vogue misinterpreted the Arab spring as a storm in a teacup, as did the rest of the world. Buck's explanation makes compelling reading. Published on The DailyBeast with an accompanying broadcast interview, Buck portrays herself as a writer uneasy with what she has been tasked to do but who went on regardless.
The blame, it seems, lies in equal parts. Buck is very clear that politics and foreign relations were not her area of expertise. She writes that she visited Syria "and understood nothing." Though not entirely seduced by her hosts and wary of phone taps and hacks into her laptop, she was more concerned with filing her story than exploring simmering discontent. Buck paid the price, with Vogue severing relations with her after more than twenty years.
The PR Verdict: "B" (Good Show) to Joan Juliet Buck for an insightful and fascinating read. She lets the facts speak for themselves. No one is covered in glory.
The PR Takeaway: In matters of setting the record straight, focus less on blame and more on letting facts speak for themselves. Buck has endured substantial personal and professional ridicule since her article was published. Her version of events is a thrilling read. She portions little blame but makes the point that it's easy to be wise after the event. The Assads were visited by Nancy Pelosi, John Kerry, Sting, Angelina and Brad, and Francis Ford Coppola during their PR push. Hindsight is a wonderful thing; Buck's reputation may not be so damaged after all.


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Transmedia Storytelling Series: Lucile Chaufour
HASTAC 2013 conference, April 25-28th York University, Toronto, Canada
Monday, 26 November 2012 from 2:30 PM to 5:30 PM
Event Details
The transmedia Storytelling Series will introduce three extraordinary transmedia artists from France to Toronto audiences.
Initiated by the Consulate General of France in Toronto (cultural services), and in partnership with the Film Dept., York University, the Transmedia Storytelling series seeks to establish a dialogue between France and the Toronto sector in digital innovation by studying interactive cross-platform storytelling techniques through the examples of French creatives' works. Over the last decade, there have been dramatic changes for on-screen content as a result of the digital revolution and the emergence of new platforms. Both French and Canadian artists have experienced this evolution and developed new approaches in this field. We warmly welcome students, transmedia practitioners and the general public interested in transmedia storytelling practices to join us at these free events!
Please join us for our second exciting speaker!
Lucile Chaufour, Monday, November 26, 2:30-5:30 York University, Acolade East, rm. 004
Rosa is a new transmedia project by Lucile Chaufour. She will focus on representations of femininity and explore the history of computing by expanding the narrative of her film on several vectors: a feature-length science fiction film, an exhibition, several websites and a series of short films...
Our final speaker of the series is Eric Viennot who will present at the end of January, 2013. M. Viennot is with Lexis Numérique Studios, and is the creator of the transmedia video games In Memoriam and Alt-Minds
Further details TBA.
Event Archive:
The first speaker in our series was Bruno Masi, who spoke in October.
Bruno Masi, the co-creator, along with photographer Guillaume Herbaut, of the transmedia project La Zone, dedicated to life around Chernobyl, tells about the journey of this project that is at the crossroads of journalism, publishing, and contemporary art, by way of an installation at La Gaîté lyrique in Paris. "La Zone" won top honours at the third annual FRANCE 24-RFI web documentary competition in Paris.
Please note that your current ticket is for Lucile Chaufour only. Please be sure to order tickets for our other speakers as these become available. All events are free, but pre-registration is required.
When & Where
York University
Ontario M3J1P3
Monday, 26 November 2012 from 2:30 PM to 5:30 PM
Add to my calendar
HASTAC 2013 conference, April 25-28th York University, Toronto, Canada
HASTAC 2013 — The Decennial
The Storm of Progress: New Horizons, New Narratives, New Codes
April 25-28, 2013 York University, Toronto, Canada
HASTAC ("haystack") is a network of individuals and institutions inspired by the possibilities that new technologies offer us for shaping how we learn, teach, communicate, create, and organize our local and global communities. We are motivated by the conviction that the digital era provides rich opportunities for informal and formal learning and for collaborative, networked research that extends across traditional disciplines, across the boundaries of academe and community, across the "two cultures" of humanism and technology, across the divide of thinking versus making, and across social strata and national borders.
conference website: www.hastac2013.org
main organization website: hastac.org
follow the conference on twitter! @hastac2013


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Idaho Medicaid is a medical insurance program that serves as a safety net for people who have low incomes, have a disability, or are elderly.
Idaho offers four different plans to meet the individual needs of participants.
Standard – Provides only federally mandated benefits. All participants have the option to select this Standard Plan.
Basic – Benefits include preventive as well as medical, dental, and vision services for participants who meet income standards.
Enhanced – Benefits include Basic Plan benefits plus long-term, developmental disability, and mental health services and supports for participants who are eligible due to disabilities or have special health needs.
Medicare-Medicaid Coordinated – For participants who are eligible and enrolled in both Medicare and Medicaid. This plan includes the same benefits identified in the Enhanced Plan but include an option to receive services through a Medicare Advantage Plan of their choice.
Effective June 7, 2010, Idaho Medicaid contracted with DXC Technology, formally known as Molina Medicaid Solutions to be the MMIS claims processing center as well as provide provider training, billing, and operational support for all Medicaid providers.
Magellan Medicaid Administration is providing these services for the pharmacy program.
For more information on the Idaho Medicaid Program visit the Medicaid home page.
Idaho Medicaid Provider Exclusion List
Medicaid Provider Self Report Form


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This professionally remanufactured Canon CL31 Color inkjet cartridge is an original Canon CL31 Color ink-jet cartridge which has been through one cycle of service and has been remanufactured using both OEM and non-OEM parts. The CL31 Color ink cartridge has been thoroughly cleaned along with the printhead nozzles. Then the original CL31 was inspected for any possible shell leakage, tested on the operation of all electrical circuitry and finally ran through an actual print test. If the inkjet cartridge passes our rigid standards, it is a remanufactured CL-31 for your Canon printer! Compatible with the Canon Pixma printers.
We offer a 100% Quality Satisfaction Guarantee on our Remanufactured CL31.
Please be aware that due to changes in printer programming the ink levels for this particular cartridge might appear to be low or empty. It is indeed full and will print a full yield.
Remanufactured using both OEM and non-OEM parts.
|Ink Cartridge
|Moderate Yield
|8.69 cents
|12-18 months


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Powerful and cost-effective
State-of-the-art headlights with cost-efficient H4 bulbs give you a superior view of the road ahead. And the V-shaped LEDs ensure other road users see you coming.
High brightness. Low wattage
The LEDs are powerful, but have a low working wattage and use less power. They're also tough and long lasting. And their distinctive V-shaped design shows the truck is every inch a Volvo.
Light adds safety
The Volvo FL's headlights produce a beam with high brightness that increases night-time visibility and provides better right-shoulder visibility. By using effective headlamps with High Intensity Discharge (HID) bulbs we obtain effective lighting that resembles daylight, which is more comfortable on your eyes.


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Many of us in the working world understand what it's like to put aside some of your earnings each month for retirement. The most popular form is the 401(k), which diverts pre-tax earnings into a separate savings account. Earnings diverted to this account are matched — dollar for dollar, up to a certain amount — by employers.
However, if you're a parent (or plan on being one), you probably have another savings account into which you're pouring post-tax earnings to help pay for your children's education. This savings account is not buoyed by contributions of any sort, unless you have empathetic relatives who want to donate various sums each holiday.
That's all about to change with EdAhead®.
- With EdAhead, employers select a 529 savings plan for their employees and agree to match employee contributions up to a certain limit.
- You can use your 529 plan to fund higher education for yourself, your children, or even your relatives' children.
- And the kicker: Employers also add up all the contributions they made to their employee funds each year and donate the total amount to the local public school where the business (or office) operates!
Want to send your child — or a relative's child? — to college? Want to go yourself? Start investing in your future, or children's futures, now.
Education is everybody's business®, so request your employer join us! Together we can help turn around the educational crisis in our country.


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Never Mind: Spitzer abandons plan to issue licenses to illegal immigrants
"I have concluded that New York cannot successfully address this problem on its own," the governor said. "It does not take a stethoscope to hear the pulse of New Yorkers on this topic."
A politician as skillful as Spitzer should have been able to conclude that long before he announced the licensing plan two months ago.
Spitzer is not alone, however, when it comes to stumbling on illegal immigration. Washington has failed to control the borders, failed to enforce immigration laws in the nation's interior and failed to adopt legislation that will address the status of the millions of illegal immigrants who are living and working in the United States.
Those federal failures have forced states to handle the problems caused by illegal immigration.
While Spitzer's proposal ran into a hornet's nest of opposition, New York would not have been alone in allowing illegal immigrants to legally obtain licenses.
Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah and Washington state issue licenses without requiring drivers to prove their legal status. North Carolina and Tennessee followed the same practice until last year.
Why have some states decided to issue licenses to illegal immigrants? They say it allows them to identify who is driving on public roads and require drivers to carry insurance. In addition, the licenses help police identify drivers and passengers when a vehicle is stopped.
There's another reason, of course. States aren't equipped to verify a driver's immigration status, and federal databanks are not always current on an immigrant's legal status.
It's all very logical, but decisions on how to issue licenses can't be made in a vacuum. Today, in the absence of a national identification card, a driver's license is used for everything from cashing checks and hospital admissions to buying airplane tickets and voting.
In 2005, Congress passed and President Bush signed the "Real ID" law, which becomes fully effective in 2013. The law sets up what is essentially a national ID card, tightening the requirements for a driver's license.
Most states are protesting the law and 17 are legally challenging it. Washington put the financial and administrative burden of the Real ID on the states -- including the identification of illegal immigrants. In addition, the federal law requires that states put their information on drivers in a federal database, raising alarms about identity theft.
If Washington wants a national ID card, Washington should take financial and administrative responsibility for it. But as they have done on illegal immigration, Congress and the president have shifted the burden on ID cards to the states.
As Spitzer now sees, these are issues that must be solved nationally.


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PDF: Tony Mack Criminal Complaint
Trenton Mayor Tony Mack, his brother, Ralphiel, and convicted sex offender Joseph Giorgianni, a Mack supporter who owns a Trenton sandwich shop, were accused of conspiring to obstruct, delay and affect interstate commerce by extortion under color of official right.
Federal prosecutors alleged Mack agreed to use his influence in connection with a proposed parking garage project in the city. The garage was made up - just a devise created by investigators to try to capture Mack, who has financial problems and attracted legal scrutiny since he took office.
Federal agents began investigating Mack and the others in September 2010. Mack had become mayor in July.
The defendants received $54,000 and anticipated accepting another $65,000 from a cooperating witness who purported to be a developer, according to court documents that laid out the sting and the alleged wrongdoing.
The criminal complaint portrays Giorgianni as a boastful man who did most of the talking with two FBI informants - one who was cooperating to get a better deal in his own criminal case, another who was paid.
The sting was similar to the massive "Bid Rig" sting that resulted criminal charges against 46 people - many of them local New Jersey officials - in 2009. Then, bribes were attached to fictitious development projects. Prosecutors have had mixed success in winning convictions.
Giorgianni complains at one point that Mack cannot take bribes because he's being watched so closely. "It's sickening," he told one of the informants, according to the court papers.
"I like to make money for my friends," he said at another point, according to the papers. "I like to do it like the Boss Tweed way. You know Boss Tweed ran Tammany Hall?"
He was also caught on tape telling one of the informants, "One thing about the Mack administration - when I say that, it's me and Mack - we're not greedy. We're corruptible. We want anybody to make a buck," and "I'm there to buffer the thing where, you know, take the weight... going to jail's my business. It ain't his."
By contrast, when Mack was recorded, it was mostly just to say he'd meet someone or exchanging pleasantries. But in April, he was recorded at a meeting with Giorgianni and one of the informants saying, "I really appreciate what you guys have done for us. I appreciate your support and, like before, I support you and I'll keep on supporting you."
Authorities say, though, that Mack, whom Giorgianni referred to as "Napoleon" was involved in the scheme. One piece of evidence they offer is that Giorgianni referred to money by code - calling it "Uncle Remus" - when he spoke with Mack, and that Mack seemed to know what he was saying.
The complaint also said that $2,500 in $100 bills with the serial numbers of those given to Giorgianni were found in a search of Ralphiel Mack's home in July.
Tony Mack was taken to an FBI office in Hamilton for processing.
Mack's administration has been in turmoil from Day 1, staggering from one crisis to another. A housecleaning of staff at City Hall opened the door for Mack's own appointees, who quickly turned it into a revolving door.
Under an agreement reached last year, the Democrat can hire department heads only from a pool of applicants the state offers or he risks losing $6 million in state aid.
One of his early backers was Giorgianni. The businessman went to prison in the 1980s on charges of carnally abusing and debauching the morals of a 14-year-old girl in the back of his sandwich shop. The case gained notoriety because of weight-related health problems that got Giorgianni, a steakhouse owner who once claimed to tip the scale at over 500 pounds, released and led a prosecutor to charge he "ate his way out of jail."
The U.S. Attorney's Office has scheduled a press conference for 12:00 p.m. today to discuss details of the arrests.


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Combination Crabber Christened
The 114-foot crab/combination vessel F/V Victory was christened in late January at Fred Wahl Marine Construction, Inc., in Reedsport, Oregon. The Victory is an all-steel, aft house design with a free-standing mast. Phil Goetschalckx, Fred Wahl's Shipyard Supervisor, says the new boat is based on the F/V Vixen, designed and built by Fred Wahl in 1998. While the yard has been building fishing boats for clients for years, the Vixen was the first of the Fred Wahl Fisheries fleet of boats, which the company builds and then fishes. "We'll build a boat for a permit, then fish it until someone buys it from us, either with the permit or without," says Phil. "If they don't buy the permit, we'll build another boat to fish it."
Where the Vixen is 98 feet by 27 feet, the new boat has a beam of 31 feet. The extra length and breadth of the Victory increase the hold capacity from 4,500 cubic feet to roughly 6,600 cubic feet and an added 2,000 cubic feet of bait freezer.
"We took some original drawings of the Vixen, and then added to her for this boat," says Goetschalckx.
The new vessel will follow in her footsteps, with options for pot fishing for red king crab, snow crab and Pacific cod, longline pot fishing for sablefish and brown king crab and tendering for salmon and herring.
Where the 1998-built Vixen is powered by a 500-HP Cummins main engine, the new boat has almost twice the power, with two Caterpillar C18 main engines providing 480 HP each through ZF 650 4.5 to 1 reduction gears and turning a pair of 5-bladed fixed-pitch bronze propellers.
A pair of Caterpillar 215-kW gensets and a Cat 99-kW unit provide all the hotel and machinery electrical power the boat will need.
The pilothouse in the new boat is fully equipped, with a wrap-around electronics console and a 6-camera, vessel-wide monitoring system, as well as a day bunk. Full accommodations below provide space for 10, including a stateroom with 6 berths and two staterooms with two berths each, all served by two heads, one with a shower. A galley with mess area, all finished in cherry with maroon vinyl seats completes the crew quarters, while an adjacent wet room is finished in fiberglass with gel coat.
The Victory's deck equipment includes two stainless steel bait choppers and a double bait tub, an aluminum articulating sorting table and crab davit with hydraulic ram. A pot launcher, stainless steel coiler and 24-inch crab block, and two cranes, 38 feet and 28 feet, complete the deck package. The boat's three 2,200-cubic-foot holds are served by a pair of 40-HP RSW systems.
The stability test was completed last month, and the Victory is currently undergoing sea trials for an expected delivery date in late April. Meanwhile the yard is building a pair of 58-foot by 26-foot boats for clients and third, 58 feet by 22.5 feet, for the Fred Wahl fleet.


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Problem: describe classes of automorphism for the following collection of graphs.
Let $\mathbb{F}$ be a finite field of order $q$; then the vertex set V is defined as $V = \{(x,y) : x\in\mathbb{F},y\in\mathbb{F}\}$; adjacency is defined as follows: there is an arc from $(x_1,x_2)$ to $(y_1,y_2)$ iff $x_2 + y_2 = x_1^m y_1^n$, where $1\le m,n\le q-1$.
Clearly, $|V|=q^2$, and the number of arcs is about $q^3$. Even for $q=17$ the problem of sorting all $(q-1)^2$ graphs corresponding to possible values of $m$ and $n$ becomes computationally hard. I've managed to obtain explicit formulas for the number of 2- and 3-cycles. So I first sort these graphs out by these parameters: this is done immediately. Then, by their diameter, then by their characteristic polynomial, then by the number of 4-cycles (this is done by brute-force). Only after that I'm checking them directly for isomorphism.
Are there any other invariants that are easy to compute, so that I could separate the $(q-1)^2$ as close to isomorphic classes as possible before actually starting to check them for isomorphism directly. Would the Laplacian spectrum or something like this be "cheap" to compute?