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From heritage-listed pubs to remnants of abandoned gold mining towns, the Isaac Region's mining corridor offers a fascinating treasure-trove of historical destinations.
Head inland on the Peak Downs Highway, where the vivid red soil of the outback contrasts with the 'black gold' extracted from the region's coal mines. The Mining Trail provides an insight into one of Australia's main export industries while also showcasing some surprisingly scenic vistas.
|12 Hours
|350 Kilometres
Mackay to Mt Britton: Visit the abandoned mining town of Mt Britton, a 35 minute drive north-east of Nebo. Only remnants are left of what was once a thriving gold mining town. The Isaac Regional Council maintains markers on the original streets, and displays historic photographs on information boards to give you a glimpse of the town in the 1880s.
Mt Britton to Lake Elphinstone: Explore further along the Suttor Development Road to Lake Elphinstone, a popular destination for camping, fishing and water sports.
Head back to the Peak Downs Highway and make your way to the historic town of Nebo.
The heritage-listed pub next to Nebo Creek is the ideal location to spend a night or stop for a meal. A walking trail alongside the creek displays information boards to give insight into Nebo's colourful past. The Nebo Museum is also well worth a visit.
|Route Details
|Mode of Travel
|Car, Four Wheel Drive, Motorcycle
|Route Type
|One Way
As you follow the Peak Downs Highway to Moranbah, stop at the small mining town of Coppabella. Recognised for its large mining monument at the entrance of the town, Coppabella was designed to service the junction of two railway lines, one from Goonyella Mine and the other from Saraji Mine.
As you arrive in Moranbah, follow the one-kilometer Federation Walk at the town's entrance, near the distinguishable monument, the Big Red Rhino Bucket, a representation of Moranbah's mining heritage.
Moranbah is a well-established town with an attractive town square and an abundance of accommodation and dining options.
|Route Details
|Mode of Travel
|Route Type
|One Way
As you drive toward Clermont, Peak Range National Park is ruggedly beautiful and one of the best locations to witness an intense golden sunset.
Wolfang Peak, at 572 metres, is one of the most popular peaks of the range and takes approximately one hour to summit.
Gold was discovered in Clermont in 1861, and ever since, the town has found prosperity in precious metals, coal and agriculture. However it has also suffered from its fair share of tragedy, including devastating floods.
Visit the Clermont Historical Centre, located two kilometres north of Clermont. It displays more than 8000 artefacts reflecting the dramatic history of the town, from tragedy to prosperity.
Gold fossickers require a Queensland fossicking license and a GPA fossicking kit.
After learning about Clermont's turbulent history, visit the memorial that marks the height of the 1916 floodwaters on the corner of Capricorn and Drummond Street as well as the iconic 'piano in a tree' across the road from the memorial marker.
20 kilometres south-west of Clermont, discover the oasis in the dessert of Theresa Creek Dam. An angler's paradise; golden perch, jewfish, barramundi and red claw can all be found. Camping is permitted here for a small fee.
|Route Details
|Mode of Travel
|Route Type
|One Way
Note: Information on listed products and services are provided by the operator and were correct at the time of publishing. Rates are indicative based on the minimum and maximum available prices of products and services. Please visit the operator's website for further information. All prices quoted are in Australian dollars (AUD).


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2019 Lexus Es Inventory - The 2019 Lexus ES 350 and ES 300h is going to be obtainable in four trim levels : Standard, Premium, Luxury and Ultra Luxury. The 2019 Lexus ES combines striking design with world-class luxury, plus the choice of an exceptionally efficient hybrid powertrain. Explore the Lexus ES. View all technical specifications for the 2019 Lexus ES and ES Hybrid , and discover what the ES line needs to offer.
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subset: commoncrawl


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22-Aug-2007, 13:53
I'm using a Heliopan 3x center filter on a 90mm/f4.5 Nikkor for 5x7. Have any of you used a B&W extra wide filter with this combo? Was there any vignetting? I emailed B&H Photo and they said, "Its NOT recommended to add any filter over the Heliopan 82mm Center Filter." What do you folks think? Thanks in advance for your expertise.
Tony Jones
Tony Jones


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starting early
This is a far cry from my last post but stay with me.
My husband, Jeremiah, and I grew up in the art community-more him than me though.
We have spent most of our lives in art classes and I've taken everything from drawing & ceramics to Art History (yawn!).
We secretly, and not so secretly, hope that Israel grows up to have a passion for art and creating like his mum & dad do.
He's only 4 mos old but I bought these modeling waxes and crayon ring for him.
Of course we won't live vicariously through him but it doesn't hurt to try!
Other Stories
8 comments:
When he grows up to be a great artist, when interviewed he will say: It all started when I was 4 months old!ReplyDelete
Have a great weekend!
I love the crayon ring! My little guys likes to colour too!ReplyDelete
love the crayon ring also. our son is 1 and they just don't make crayons big enough! thanks so much for sharing this.ReplyDelete
I really think it's a great idea... can't wait to see some of his drawing..ReplyDelete
wonderful! i love this. thanks so much for posting! how about those cupcake crayons for later, too?ReplyDelete
ohhh i have the same little wish for all my children!!!!ReplyDelete
ha love it! That crayon is too cute!ReplyDelete
- AnonymousFebruary 06, 2010
So glad you posted this! I am going to order a ring for my 17-month old little boy!ReplyDelete
Thank you for your comments, I love hearing from you!
Questions, comments or sponsorship inquires, please contact me via the 'contact' link.


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ShareParis Climate Change Conference (Paris CCC). Paris CCC experts are telling us to stop eating meat. Becoming vegetarian will help save the planet! Too much methane gas is produced when cattle are reared for beef and dairy products. This industry is 14.5 % responsible for annual greenhouse gas emissions. If we need to alter our lifestyle, our diets and eat …Read More »
Home / Tag Archives: shopping malls


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We noted that some critics have pointed to the federalism problem. For example, the Texas chief state school officer describes the Common Core national standards as
an effort "by the U. S. Department of Education" to impose "a national curriculum and testing system" and "a step toward a federal takeover" of public schools across the nation.
But Ze'ev Wurman and I focused on the the problems of process and content.
In terms of process, we pointed to the longtime secrecy about who was doing what and the secrecy about the drafts of the standards themselves. We pointed to the tight timeline and asked whether it allowed enough time for public comment.
We argued that although the process had been flawed, the situation is, unfortunately, even more troubling on the content side.
The proposed English-Language Arts "college and career readiness" standards (which we are told are not high school graduation standards) are largely a list of content-free generic skills. Rather than focusing on what English teachers are trained to teach (quality literature), the drafters seem to expect English teachers to teach reading strategies presumed to help students to cope with biology or economics textbooks.
In mathematics, the standards are perhaps even worse. While essentially all four-year state colleges require at least three years of high school mathematics, including Algebra 1, Algebra 2, and Geometry or above, CCSSI's standards require only Algebra 1 and few bits and pieces from Algebra 2 and Geometry. In other words, students who graduate from high school having taken only math coursework addressing those standards (and presumably having passed a test based on them) will be inadmissible to any four-year college around the country.
The remedy we proposed was an alternative consortium of states.
That consortium would be composed of states whose standards have been highly rated by academic experts– like California or Massachusetts — together with states like Texas and Alaska whose reluctance to jump on the Common Core bandwagon has been clearly vindicated.


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I've already done a few problems such as this, other problems where I'm supposed to find the number of combinations or permutations, subject to certain restrictions. Here's been my basic strategy:
- Find $A$ = the number of total solutions (combinations) were there no restrictions.
- Find $B$ = the number of illegal solutions (solutions that violate the restriction)
- Give $A-B$ as the answer.
That may or may not be the best general strategy - it certainly produces some ugly messes of equations sometimes, but I think it's basically sound. The problem occurs when there are large inequalities (i.e., "where $x_3<10$" or something), where you have to then count every single case that satisfies that restriction, or alternatively every single case that violates it, necessitating a big stream of inelegant calculation. That alone, while annoying, is OK as long as I'm sure I'm right.
The thing is, in this case I'm not sure if I can apply it here - or at least I'm not sure if I'm applying it correctly. Here's the specific problem:
Find the number of non-negative solutions to the equation $$x_1 + x_2 + x_3 + x_4 + x_5 = 21$$ with the restriction that $0\leq x_i\leq 10$ for each $x_i$.
Now, I know that the total number of solutions to an (unrestricted) equation of this form is $\binom{n+k-1}{k-1} = \binom{21+5-1}{5-1} = \binom{25}{4}$. But how do I count violations? I suppose the largest a given $x_i$ could be is 21. Would I then count the number of solutions where a given $x_i$ is 11, then 12, then 13... up to 21? How then would I proceed to when more than one $x$ is greater than 10? Enumerating each combination among up to 5 $x$s at 11 different values each seems to be a nightmarish prospect. Is there some simpler way of looking at the problem that I'm not seeing? Maybe a good general strategy for how to apply a set of restrictions to counting a number of combinations?


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I missed it all as well. Weird, though. Is he getting paid or is he just a troll?
I missed it all as well. Weird, though. Is he getting paid or is he just a troll?
'What kind of a fucked up tour is this?'
Picasso Moon, I think steve goes back, way back, at least 7 years. If it is the steve I'm thinking about, he and Dennis from Oregon used to fight a bit, and then make up like best buddies, and brag about climbing Mt. Everest or some such eye-rolling thing. I once had some guy pm me a postulate, around 5 years ago, that steve and dfo were the same, but I knew they weren't. The logic and grammar and general content were significantly different between the two. He has refined his techniques over the years, if you call going from 200 grit sandpaper to 300 grit sandpaper refined.
Pretty persistent for an unpaid troll, though such people who get their jollies from correcting perceived fallacies with fanatical volunteerism certainly exist.
Could be worse, though. Could be chesire. chesire currently hangs out at llamedos. I doubt he'd get far here without Emeline and Redreamer calling him out for, well, being chesire.
Were/are any of these paid government trolls? I doubt it. Usually, government trolls would get promoted to the level of their incompetence in that kind of time period, eh? So I'll vote for fanatic (missionary personality type), knowing that voting is a sucky method of deciding things.
The only other person I have put on ignore is Ches. He says the most racist, misogynistic shit and no one calls him out because "he's joking" or "that's just our good old Ches." I was over it years ago.
You talking to me, ash? Missed this party till just now. NJD banned? Yeah. "Steve" also went by Crimson Clown, McDoom, LaShay ("a chick"), Bruce and other pseudonyms. He got down and dirty about this time of year in 2010 at TOA, really pushing fracking, and going after me. After he went ballistic on Guy in recent days, i recognized the "Steve" style, mentioned it, Shad mentioned the Steve IP connection, got a bit of flack for it, but persisted, glad he did. He deserves some credit too.Picasso Moon, I think steve goes back, way back, at least 7 years.
Just to be clear... members cannot see IP addresses. Only admins :-)
"The party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command."
Well, it was a timely question.
Bruce was Steve? Huh...
Totally revealed himself.


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I have been off Arimidex (anastrozole) for almost two months, and most, if not all, the symptoms have disappeared. The joint pain is barely noticeable, but the weight gain is still there. Guess I have to stop blaming "hormonal therapy" for that. Anyway, I met with the doctor that works with my regular oncologist yesterday and we decided that I would go back on tamoxifen (Nolvadex). This is not the optimum prescribed treatment. We know that aromatase inhibitors like Arimidex and Femara (letrozole) have proven more effective in reducing the risk of reoccurrence when therapy was switched from tamoxifen after two years in postmenopausal women. We also know that it is the better recommendation for postmenopausal women. What we don't know are the long term side effects for bone loss or other diseases that could occur years after therapy ends. Tamoxifen has been around for over 20 years, and no mysterious illnesses have surfaced, the side effects, although only accountable in small percentages, can be acutely severe; endometrial, uterine cancers and blood clots. The bone loss is not an issue.
I dug into a July 25, 2002 webcast at HealthTalk that deals with this subject. It provided clear information on hormonal therapy and the differences between Arimidex and tamoxifen. Although it confirmed my feelings the doctors made it clear that there is not one answer for all women. Your hormonal therapy needs to be discussed with your oncologist and cancer team. In addition, I need to acknowledge that in the medical world, 2002 was a long time ago and tests underway then still confirm today the benefits of Arimidex over tamoxifen in postmenopausal women. (Arimidex is not prescribed for premenopausal women).
Tamoxifen interferes with the estrogen in the body thus preventing disease. This drug clearly reduces the risk of breast cancer in high-risk women. Arimidex, or Femara works by interfering with estrogen production in the body; the adrenal gland produces steroids that are converted to estrogen by the enzyme known as aramatase, the drug eliminates estrogen from this other source. Therefore, it is most effective in postmenopausal women who no longer produce estrogen from the usual source.
So here I go taking charge of my own treatment again. Every time I go to my oncologist and meet with a new assistant or doctor, they go over the fact that I declined radiation therapy like it's a disclaimer. The bottom line though is that I am in charge and 20 years from now I have only me to answer to. I can say that because my 15-year-old son will be fully grown and out of the house and have better things to do than challenge his mother. That is another topic and one that induces the need for much therapy and a support group for mothers of teens. Do you know a good one?
Take care of yourself.
Important: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and not Everyday Health.


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Devin Peterson named a CFAES Dean's Chair
science; is faculty director of the Foods for Health Discovery Theme; is director of the Flavor Research ... and Education Center; and is co-director of the Nutrient & Phytochemical Analytic Shared ... pictured with colleagues Ken Riedl, left, and Steven Clinton of the Nutrient & Phytochemical Analytic ...
University/industry partnership takes field scouting to the next level
Caren Ag Center farm manager Nate Douridas and his team have been conducting various research projects ... field a step further. "We have increased our soil sampling density from a full field all the way down to ... refine high-definition soil sampling practices over the past few years, but this takes things out in the ...
Take a Break! Email Wellness Challenge
six weeks of tips, research, and resources to help take more breaks and make the most of them. In ...
Ohio State soil scientist awarded World Food Prize
Alayna DeMartini COLUMBUS, Ohio—A soil scientist at The Ohio State University whose research spans ... work on management and conservation of agriculture's most cherished natural resource, the soil, set him ... control soil erosion, and enrich soil by managing a critical element in the soil: organic carbon. His ...
CFAES scientists part of effort to study COVID-19 in first responders
CFAES scientists Linda Saif and Anastasia Vlasova, both of the Food Animal Health Research ... officer for the Wexner Medical Center and vice dean for research for the College of Medicine. Read the ...
Leading from Wherever You Are
Influence is a skill that allows us to reach our greatest success. Influence allows us to make an ...
Learning together safely: virtual Farm Science Review a success
CFAES' virtual Farm Science Review was a success, manager Nick Zachrich reported. Initial ...
Go outdoors, but watch for ticks
Environmental Sciences (CFAES) and Veterinary Medicine at The Ohio State University. Pesapane researches ticks ... ticks, u.osu.edu/bite/. If you'd like to help with research on Ohio ticks, please send ticks you find ...
Farm Science Review draws virtual visitors
the farm, and operating new technology to better manage their crops. This was the 58th annual Farm ... a success, FSR manager Nick Zachrich said. The FSR website recorded 40,000 visits, initial statistics show. ... interested in seeing what is new in agriculture from our exhibitors or wanting to view one of the educational ...
Chow line: Juice or whole fruit?
nutrient found in whole fruit, writes Dan Remley, an educator in family and consumer sciences for Ohio ... opposed to drinking fruit juice is that the pulp and skin are loaded with many vitamins and nutrients. For ... Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences and its outreach and research arms, Ohio State University ...


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Experience the great power of a 14X zoom range and enjoy an amazing 2-in-1 zoom. Tamron's high-power 18-250mm zoom is a photographer's dream come true - a single lens capable of shooting both wide angle and ultra telephoto scenes. Conventional 35mm film cameras always required two lenses to handle the 28-400mm range. But Tamron's high-power zoom - at 13.9x, the world's most powerful zoom - delivers all the photographic freedom of this enormous range in a single, compact lens. The life of a digital photographer has never been better with this take-it-anywhere all-in-one lens, the ultimate high-power zoom for seamless shooting.
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Jono Bacon is a number of things in the open source community and is possibly one of the most well known faces associated with open source. He's been a public figure staying in the limelight ever since he got involved in the free software movement way back in the late 90s. From successful podcasts, albums, coding, writing books and being Canonical's community manager, Mr Bacon has certainly fried it all. (Ha!)
I first talked to Jono earlier this year when I started the Ubuntu Manual Project. Him and I had a few long skype calls in the early days when I was finding my way around the community. One of the coolest things about Jono is that he's super approachable and is always willing to listen.
When I got to the Ubuntu Developer Summit in Brussels last May, I met Jono for the first time in person. I distinctly remember hanging out with MPT in the lobby of the hotel when Ivanka Majic and Jono wandered over and I got a big man hug from Jono. I won't forget that, it's a great sign of how awesome this community and Ubuntu really is!
I sat down with Jono and had a chat about open source, future plans for Ubuntu, his hobbies, interests and his opinion about OMG! Ubuntu.
So Jono, you've been involved in open source for a few years now, had a fairly successful podcast with LugRadio, then more recently Shot of Jaq. You've written a couple of books and made some creative commons music, and been the Ubuntu community manager for Canonical for a couple of years too. What do you like about open source, do you enjoy it because it's better, or because it's free, do you enjoy giving like Robbie Williamson or is it just an interest that turned into a job?
Open Source and Free Software really appeals to a bunch of different needs and interests I have. Firstly, I have always wanted to spend my working life contributing to a mission and ethos. When I was younger and I was getting those ultra-dull lectures at school about "the world of work" and what options I had available, the concept of just working for another company that just makes another product scared the life out of me; I feared having to feign interest in a product that has limited human benefits for the world.
I have always wanted to spend my working life contributing to a mission and ethos.
When I first discovered Open Source and collaborative community (when I installed Slackware on my computer back in 1998), the ethos absolutely captivated me. My interest was not inspired by career opportunities, that didn't even cross my mind, but I instead felt empowered that with my computer I could help change the world. That feeling was incredibly addictive to me, but it was a tough ride as back then Linux was incredibly technically demanding (I am technical, but not edit-my-text-with-edlin technical), but I was more interested in the "people power" aspect as opposed to the "programming power" aspect.
I feel incredibly blessed that I have been able to turn my passion for community and Free Software into my career, but what fundamentally drives me is a feeling that Ubuntu is one of many projects and communities that is doing something really right for people. Ubuntu is an enabler that has helped unlock computing and technology for so many people, and I get a huge smile on my face when I get some of the wonderful emails of people sharing their stories of how Ubuntu and Open Source in general has changed their lives. Sure, I get paid, and now I am married will be starting a family soon, money is always a pressing consideration, but it is the ethos and opportunity of helping people that is stuck between my teeth, not the financial rewards; anyone can make money in a million different places, but few are afforded the privilege of being paid to pursue their passion, a passion that contributes towards changing people's lives.
In your role as community manager, you've had to deal with some interesting (and often loud) people. How do you maintain a cool head when handling issues like the recent "tribal war" (to use Mark's terminology)?
I think much of it has just been learning about how different people approach different challenges. I think when conflict occurs, the participants feel that they lack empowerment and that an element of their ethos has been compromised. In these situations these folks are typically (a) crying out for support and understanding for their views and (b) often emotionally resistant to opposing views and criticism. If these factors are ignored conflict turns into a ping-pong game, often getting more and more heated, and with some people the debate steps away from the topic and becomes personalized, and that is incredibly dangerous for community.
I have always tried to take a calm approach to these situations; I just feel that a relaxed demeanor that is focused on solutions is better than taking part in the ping pong game. No one likes fighting and conflict, so I am a firm believer that the goal should be to try and find solutions to problems or just agree to disagree and move on and have fun in our community.
Where would you like to see Ubuntu at the end of 2011?
I would like to see continued growth; we are teetering on the edge of the chasm, with everything to play for to become a really mainstream Operating System and bring Free Software and Open Source to the masses. We are going to face some significant challenges in getting over that chasm – satisfying the plethora of needs that consumers require from us, but I am confident our incredible community will live up to the challenge.
I am really excited by the work going on in Ayatana and with Unity.
From a functionality perspective, I am really excited by the work going on in Ayatana and with Unity, and I am excited to see that developing and maturing. I am also really excited to see all the great work going on in GNOME and KDE; we are seeing some incredible innovation happening, and I really want Ubuntu to be the best place to consume that innovation. Exciting times! :-)
Martin Owens recently suggested to me that if Earth was the Ubuntu community, then OMG! Ubuntu! would be Pluto. We don't even register as a planet. Do you think OMG! Ubuntu! represents a small, cold and lifeless moon or are these sort of news websites important for bringing Ubuntu to the mainstream?
I think OMG!Ubuntu has been playing an increasing role in getting information and news about Ubuntu and our community out to the wider end-user community. OMG! Ubuntu! is not a small, cold and lifeless moon but instead a bright shining orange star!
We all know that as soon as we touch Ubuntu we're sucked in and working with Ubuntu seems to age us all quicker. When you're not managing the community, you're working on your creative commons music project, Severed Fifth, and have written a book. What other hobbies do you have, and how the hell do you keep so motivated?
LOL! I like to be creative, but I need different types of creative stimulation. I remember when I first got into Linux I went through a bit of an internal battle. When I was at school I was always told by my teachers that "you need to get a proper job and not waste your life playing music". My parents were always incredibly supportive, but this repeated message from my teachers made me feel a constant conflict back then about whether I wanted to be a musician or be interested in computers. I was incredibly indecisive about it and I remember constantly running up and down the stairs switching from jamming on my guitar in my bedroom or dorking out in the office on my computer, compiling kernels and suchlike.
After a few years of this I thought "sod it, I am going to do both". I have naturally gravitated towards technology as my career, but the music has been a constant. What really excited me about Severed Fifth (http://www.severedfifth.com) is that it really bridges my passion for Free Culture and music and I think it offers a really huge opportunity both for the music and for the wider Free Culture community. I want Severed Fifth to be a great example of how a band really can define success with a Free Culture approach.
As for other things to do, my favorite past-time is spending time with my wife, family and friends, socializing, exploring new places to visit, having dinner on a warm evening and having a few drinks with all of the above.
Thanks for the interview, Benjamin, keep up the rocking work!
You can catch Jono Bacon on IRC with the nick jono, follow him on Twitter @jonobacon or visit his website, http://jonobacon.org
Huge thanks to Jono for taking the time out of his busy life to be interviewed. Look out for more interviews throughout the rest of the month.


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By building call centers domestically – and in non-metropolitan areas – we've significantly reduced our overall attrition, providing our Partners with a more stable workforce, allowing them to become true "program champions." Our Partners are able to take advantage of more mature and seasoned agents, more community support and a stronger work ethic.
We place a tremendous amount of emphasis on ensuring that our near-shore agents have exceptional English dialect along with clear, crisp and articulate voices. Our near-shore and offshore facilities are chosen for their cultural affinity to the United States, and our agent selection is very stringent to ensure they can provide the voices of our Partners no matter where they are located.


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Beatrice L. Weiss - Lincoln
Beatrice L. Weiss - Lincoln
Beatrice L. Weiss of Lincoln died Monday, Nov. 11 at Landmark Medical Center. She was the wife of the late Marcel J. Weiss.
Born in Pawtucket, she was a daughter of the late Rene P. and Florence (Laporte) Tougas. She was a graduate of the former Notre Dame High School.
She lived in Attleboro, Mass., and worked for many years at Texas Instruments before moving to Woonsocket, where she made her home for 45 years. She was a retiree of A.T. Cross Mfg. Co. of Lincoln.
She is survived by her daughter, Denise Harris of Lincoln; her son, Russell Weiss of Lincoln; her brother, Leon Tougas of Brockton, Mass.; five grandchildren and a great-granddaughter; and several nieces and nephews. She was the sister of the late Florence Duquette, Grace Brochu, Evelyn Cournoyer, Alcide Tougas, Rene Tougas and Raymond Tougas.
Her funeral and burial were private. For guestbook, please visit www.LincolnFuneralHome.org


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Jonathan Lister·
15 Posts
Discussion Starter • #1 •
Hey y'all! I had a couple of questions. First off, I have a 99 GMC Sierra 2500 w/ the 5.3. I'm fixin to change my tranny filter and was wondering if ne one knows if I got the shallow pan or deep pan. Second question, ima eventually level her out, does ne one know whats the biggest size tires I mite be able to run? Thanks yall!


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Revival: God In Our Midst
And He said, "My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest." Then he said to Him, "If Your Presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here." –Exodus 33:14-15
In what I have to say I may not be joined by any ground swell of public opinion, but I have a charge to make against the church. We are not consciously aware of God in our midst. We do not seem to sense the tragedy of having almost completely lost the awareness of His presence….
Revival and blessing come to the church when we stop looking at a picture of God and look at God Himself. Revival comes when, no longer satisfied just to know about a God in history, we meet the conditions of finding Him in living, personal experience….
Modern mankind can go everywhere, do everything and be completely curious about the universe. But only a rare person now and then is curious enough to want to know God. Men Who Met God, 121-122,127.
"Oh Lord, show me Your glory. I don't want to be satisfied with just a second-hand picture of You; I want to sense Your living presence with me today. I long to know You. Amen."
Reprinted from Tozer on Christian Leadership by A.W. Tozer, copyright © 2001 by Zur Ltd. Used by permission of WingSpread Publishers, a division of Zur Ltd.
Tozer on Christian Leadership is protected by copyright and may not be copied, reproduced, republished, uploaded, posted, translated, transmitted or distributed in any way.
Tozer on Christian Leadership was compiled by Ron Eggert.


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After being upgraded, modded, and expanded, the games of the Command and Conquer universe have withstood many of the tests of time. For years, gamers have bickered over which game was truly the best. Now, you can have a bit of each. The CnC: All Stars mod for Zero Hour features a uniquely combined array of units and structures from every Command & Conquer title. This modification loosely relates various C&C titles for the sole purpose of creating an interesting, unique, and fun experience on the battlefield. The mod has been released, and was downloaded more than 20000 times in its first two weeks.
experienced team seeks another 3d artist c&c labs mod development team anywhere artists
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voice actors c&c labs mod development team anywhere audio/music
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Every country needs an anthem -- even a dystopian republic like the Hunger Games' Panem. And while there's a veritable cornucopia of reasons why we're thankful Panem doesn't actually exist (reality TV is fun and all, but we draw the line at watching live-to-air slaughter), Suzanne Collins' sci-fi state is arguably cooler than most. Panem's national anthem, for instance, is written by the Arcade Fire.
The song, "Abraham's Daughter," premiered today via Entertainment Weekly, weeks ahead of the Hunger Games Soundtrack's March 20 release. Propelled by the marching beat of a military snare, the Montreal band's Regine Chassagne takes the lead vocal, eerily singing about an even eerier topic: the biblical story of Abraham and Isaac (albeit with a female, Hunger Games-appropriate twist).
Arcade Fire's Win Butler spoke to Entertainment Weekly about the creation of the song. "Our whole approach was to get into the world and try to create something that serves the story and the film," he said. "There's something in the story of Abraham and Isaac that I think resonates with the themes in the film, like sacrificing children. So we made a weird, alternate-universe version of that, where it's as if Abraham had a daughter -- kind of a metaphor for Katniss," he continued, referring to the Hunger Games' heroine, Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence), a teenage girl who volunteers to take her younger sister's place in the Hunger Games, an annual tournament that pits teens from Panem's 12 districts against each other in a fight to the death.
"We were interested in making music that would be more integral in the movie, just as a mental exercise," Butler told EW. "And there's an anthem that runs throughout the books, the national anthem of the fascist Capitol. So as a thought experiment, we tried to write what that might sound like. It's like the Capitol's idea of itself, basically.
"It's not a pop song or anything," he continued. "More of an anthem that could be playing at a big sporting event like the Games. So we did a structure for that, and then James Newton Howard made a movie-score version of it that happens in several places in the film."
That said, Butler explained that "Abraham's Daughter" will appear during the film's end credits. "I tried to put myself in the headspace of how excited I'd be if this film was coming out when I was 15. I still remember hearing Radiohead's 'Exit Music (for a Film)' in [Baz Luhrmann's] Romeo + Juliet when I was that age," he said.
As previously reported, Arcade Fire will contribute two songs to the Hunger Games Soundtrack, "Abraham's Daughter" and an orchestral piece called "Horn of Plenty." Other artists featured on the soundtrack include Miranda Lambert, The Decemberists and Taylor Swift, whose soundtrack single "Safe and Sound" features in a just-released preview of the upcoming sci-fi flick.
The Hunger Games arrives in theaters March 23.
Listen to "Abraham's Daughter" below:
What's On Tonight for


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280: You Can't Judge a Game By Its Trailer
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You Can't Judge a Game By Its Trailer
Learning the truth about how a game plays based solely on its trailer or screen shots often requires mental abilities that border on the psychic.
I personally gave up on gaming trailers mainly because they are basically cutscenes and don't really tell you how the game actually is (like stated in the article). It doesn't give a feel for how the game actually plays or how it will actually look since most trailers are rendered in HD, and so can lead to a disappointment when you expect something great and find out that it basically isn't. I do agree that demo's are a good way to give an idea of the game however, most times they don't give you everything available or will do something that won't be in the actual game, (being nit-picky now) but my main example is in the Star Wars Battlefront demo where as the sniper you could put on a disguise as a stormtrooper but not shoot and basically get by the NPCs, but in the game it was nowhere to be seen. I also have to disagree a little with the fact that demo's aren't around as much, because I don't know about other consoles but on Xbox live I see a lot game demo's available for download, that is how I found out about some games.
Simple rebuttal, you can.
Long rebuttal, you can. . . but.
A trailer(even video reviews which are practicality the same but show more game and game play) if it even bothers to show game play can show you the direction of game play and some basic things about it. Turok showed how fluid the QTEs where. Bioshocks stuff showed off its atmosphere and action a shame it did not show off how utterly shallow it was......
I suppose you don't know the depth of the waters till you jump in but you can still tell some things without getting ankle deep.
DX:HR is going in a bland modern shooter direction using a "cover regeneration" system or just cover and regen is old bland and tired...of course they would have to work more on level layouts if they didn't use it so they have to use it these days. But still what we don;t really know about DX:HR is AI and how you interact with it and the game world. BS had deaf and blind AI it had decent to good level layouts if you can forgive the 2 or 4 invisible walls but everything else was unbalanced, how balanced will DX:HR be how intricate will it be, is it just another corridor shooter like Halo ep 3 or is it trying something more?
We won't really know till we are flooded with video previews by sites and even then not till its out.
Demos are not really standard these days.
It's normal to be hyped up seeing a game trailer because most gamers do. But pretty much these days, trailers look like they are for a movie, not a game. But the biggest let down of trailers is that the trailers look really good and after playing the game, it's awful.
Demos also helps the game developers. Should the gaming population not happy by the demo, they can fix those problems. I wonder why developers don't give out shareware these days.
Most game trailers do not appeal to me. I must not fall into their target demographic or something. And they lie. O, how they lie.
When the Dragon Age: Origins "Sacred Ashes" trailer came out, I hated it. I had never played a BioWare game before, and everything I'd heard of them had been second- or third-hand, but I thought about picking up DA:O since I hadn't played a good WRPG in almost a decade. The trailer nearly ruined it for me. That trailer (which was third-party produced and did not feature any direct gameplay) showed some of the characters looking weird and acting like completely confident badasses, and doing things more in line with JRPG/anime characters than serious western epic fantasy (ie, Matrix-style acrobatics). Even when the frakkin' dragon shows up in the trailer, the characters just shrug and act like hyperconfident badasses for whom this is a daily occurrence. I thought, "if these characters act brazen and confident when a dragon shows up, how can their story be fulfilling or epic? They don't have to really struggle to accomplish anything."
But the game was well-reviewed and there was a great Christmas sale, so I picked it up. And the characters were the opposite as portrayed in that bloody trailer: flawed, vulnerable, struggling to make a difference in their own lives or for a better world. And combat could be tough--you couldn't just plow your way through the tougher fights without some tactics. This game (when including expansions and DLC) has proceeded to consume well over 200 hours of my life, when I've rarely played a game more than 20 hours. I'm eagerly awaiting the sequel. And all because I ignored everything that useless trailer told me.
We can read trailers, especially gameplay trailers, in the same way we read movie trailers... We do it to see if the setting, story and gameplay is something interesting for us.
Demos help, but they are not all that good. Demos are very succinct versions of the gameplay, and can only be useful if they are made to represent the actual game. Demos like Brutal Legend misslead more people that it helped, even if its existance helped improve sales by creating awareness.
Could not agree more with the Brutal Legend demo. Wish you got more of the same gameplay once you got beyond the demo...but alas, it seemed it was drive around, listen to some tunes and every now and then kill something...horrible game that suckered me in by the demo.
@ ZippyDSMlee
I knew enough about the game to know what I was getting into, so there were no surprises there. But I can totally see why you or other people might got confused from the demo, and its a prime example of a demo being missleading.
Totally agree, but:
And with trailers you can? And they are free? Don't cost any money to make?
For a demo, "all" you need is a presentable segment of your game, which you should have either way if the game's any good.
In both cases, the textures, objects, setpieces and environments already exist.
So, the point stands: Trailers cost more than demos, and either impact on sales is impossible to determine. So why the trailers?
Because if you release demos, your consumers can actually judge the game before buying, and would likely ditch the buggy games with bad tech before the companies see a single cent.
Yeah, there's a similar number on Steam too, I think that would back up the claim that only 1/4 of games (or less) have a demo. Consider that there will be multiple demos for a few games, that those demos could be anywhere between brand-new and 5 years old, and that this is covering all 360 releases - physical release and downloadable games. >300 doesn't really seem like all that much to me.
Personally the lack of a demo is the primary reason why I haven't taken the plunge with a few games. If a game sounds interesting but is ouside my comfort zone and/or has mixed reviews, doesn't have a demo, and has a double-figure price-tag, it's really unlikely I'll pick it up without strong recommendations from friends. A demo can push me into buying as even if it isn't representative of the entire game, I can at least have more confidence that I find some portion of the gameplay enjoyable enough that I won't be wasting my money.
it might be a quarter of games out but what about games being released? how many games get released a year? im pretty sure its not that many compared to amount of demos available, some of the demos might be for old games but i saw plenty of demos for new games still to be released
I bought the game off the Darksiders demo and I wouldn't have touched it before then. The reviews said that it was a Zelda clone, but it didn't look like one - that's exactly what it feels like though. I wouldn't have believed how much fun it was without the demo.
I think trailers sole purpose is to introduce what the title is and hopefully leave a good impression. That's great for movies since all you do is do what you do with the trailer. You just watch it. But with games, you got to think another thing that trailers don't give you. How does is the game play? And if it is a sequel or prequel, you got to wonder if what they improved on or added if any, on game play. So game trailers don't do anything for me. They are nice to look at, but previews, interviews with the creators with that game giving you some insight on what they are doing to the game, demos, etc. are more important to me, anyways, than trailers for video games.
And look, I am at a gaming website which should tell you I am here for information on games.
so, article aside, did u say a good or a bad thing about Dark City? i re read a bunch of times and im still not sure.
The dearth of demos is one of the reasons I see the rise of streaming services like OnLive and Gaikai as such a good thing - sure, their ostensible function is to be a full-blown content delivery system that exists alongside traditional digital distribution and retail channels, but some of the things you can do with those services has tremendous potential for how we look at demos.
Picture an applet on a blog that shows "[Author of blog] is currently playing [Game X]", that, if you click on it, will not only launch the game in question via your web browser, but actually drop you into the game with the author (presuming it's a multiplayer title where that sort of thing is possible of course). That's something Gaikai is capable of, along with embedding links in Twitter feeds, at the end of reviews for the game in question, you name it - if a title is on such a service, you can fire it up and play it for a set amount of time just by clicking on a widget/hyperlink; word of mouth advertising and other existing channels for disseminating information to your customers can be seriously augmented in such a fashion.
As for the usual barriers that arise to halt demo development (cost, time spent focusing on a demo in lieu of the product itself, etc) - none of that would even need to apply, as you wouldn't have to gin together a tailored "glimpse" of your gameplay, customers could/can simply sit down with your actual game and play it for an hour or whatever. Without needing to download and install anything. How cool is that?
Of course, the problems that make those streaming game services 'not quite ready for prime-time' still exist, most notably that the network infrastructure simply isn't as advanced or ubiquitous as it needs to be, but the possibilities technologies like these hold for the future are quite exciting.
I like that style of demos. Instead of cutting the actual single-player experience, the levels are deliberately designed to give most of everything available in the game by first impression. Since demos are there to impress, inform, and incite consumers to buy the game the customer will turn off the TV/monitor having had extra content.
Starcraft and Half-Life both had demos that were stand-alone missions and I really enjoyed the work in them and extra content. Nowadays, those stand alone demos would cost 10 bucks on Xbox Live.
There are bad demos, sure. I can think of a handful of demos off the top of my head that carved out a piece of the game that wasn't representative enough of the whole. The demo for Brutal Legend should have included some of the RTS combat from later in the game. You get bad movie trailers, too, though. I'd rather have a mediocre demo for a game than no demo at all.
Trailers get made because they're an easy way to get the game in front of buyers' eyeballs. They can also be cut easily into television commercials and into ads that play on video streaming sites like Hulu and Gametrailers. It's not unreasonable that they're automatically included in a game's advertising budget.
The problem right now is that demos are often seen as an extra, a little something to give the game a boost with potential buyers, when they should be just as much of a gimme as trailers are.
Wikipedia has 856 games listed as released in 2009 alone. Keep in mind that that number includes games on all platforms: 360, PS3, DS, PSP, Wii, and PC. The list of games released this October that I linked to in the article lists around 80 games, depending on how you count them. There are a lot more games released in a year than just the major titles. Even then, only a fraction of the big releases in a year get demos.
The demos you saw for the 360 cover 300 or so of the roughly 800 games available on that console. That includes Xbox Live Arcade games for which demos are mandatory.
I think Dark City is a visually stunning movie. I'm a fan.
DISCLAIMER: Please don't kill me. Just playing devils advocate here to show both sides of the story.
I can understand both sides of the issue for having and not having a demo to go with the all-to-common trailer. As the article pointed out, what if only a quarter of the summer movies had any advertising. Film mavins would have missed out of the majority of summer flicks due to lack of advertising more than anything. That just makes for bad bussines. If nobody knows about your games, your going to have a terrible market turn out. On the smae lines of comparison, movie trailers lie to us all the time. Based off the trailers, I though Devil was going to be good. (I forgot about the whole M. Night Shamalan stigma.) It is sort of accepted as the norm. That yo9u watch the trailers to be willingly lied to then go and take your chances. Games are the same way. Nobody seriously belives that the box art is going to be representitive of the gameplay itself, do they? I'm looking at you, Atari 2600. In the same way, I've never seen a game trailer that has "sold" me on a game, it's just served as some visual candy to make me aware of the exsistance of the game and then leave me to drool a puddle on the carpet while I wait for the release.
That said, demos take time away from creation, since they need their own marketing and release coordination, and they themselves aren't always very representitve of the final game. How many demos have their been that are just as deceptive as the trailers? The true final measure of the game is how it is received by the player-base.
TL;DR version: Trailers may be a marketing lie, but at least it lets you know about the game.
The whole article falls on its head not taking into account that while you can see a scene from a movie - which you will actually see in a movie, or read a sample from a book which is actually a part of the book - the game developing process is compartmentalized and the final product results from the convergence of all of the finished aspects.
It would be like expecting to see a portrait-painting, half-way done: just a snippet - you say - but what if its still in the process of adjusting luminescence and adding the first layers of the paint, up to a point that no face can be even made out of it.
Truth is, most the people that are really worried about their value for money usually obtain a version of the game through illegal means, and maybe buy it later.
This gets mentioned almost as an aside about halfway into the article and then taken for granted from there (as the article veers into a discussion of how more games need demos), but not much effort is really spent arguing the point, and I'm still left thoroughly unconvinced about this core premise.
Certainly a demo is the best option we as players generally have for getting a feel for what a game's really like to play, far better than screenshots or trailers (whether mood or gameplay). But it's the other side of the equivalency that I'm skeptical of - who ever said that the purpose of a movie trailer was to give you the best feel for that the movie's like? The movie trailer's job, plain and simple, is to get you to go to the movie. It's certainly not to convey the plot of the movie, or to suggest similar movies, or to tell you about the movie's acting or cinematography. That's not to say that it won't occasionally do those things, but they're secondary to the trailer's purpose.
I would argue that the game demo's closest comparison on the movie side is the review or the synopsis - both designed to give you a more detailed impression of what you're in for when you go to the film. The typical movie trailer/TV ad, I'd say, corresponds to the gameplay trailer: both give you enough detail to make a reasonably informed decision without giving too much away. And the game world's cinematic trailer corresponds to the classic 'teaser trailer', be it logo or otherwise: just enough information to whet your appetite about the goings-on.
Can gameplay trailers be deceptive? Absolutely, as can 'atmospheric' trailers (though arguably those aren't deceiving because they're not even trying to tell you what playing the game is like), and as can demos themselves - people have pointed out Brutal Legend already, but I'll also point out that a number of reviewers chided Flower when it came out for getting much darker than the previews they'd played had led them to believe. But cinematic trailers can be at least as deceptive; in fact, I'd claim that cinematic trailers are more often cut to be actively deceptive, presenting movies as something they're not in order to draw more viewers; think of the parody trailers for The Shining, or for a more real-world example the atmospheric trailers for Cloverfield or The Happening that completely omitted those films' doofy villains. But the point still holds that if you go into a movie having only seen ads and trailers, you're at least as likely - if not more so! - to be going in with a mistaken impression of what you're getting than if you pick up a game having only seen gameplay trailers and screenshots. This isn't even unique to movies; heck, even this article's trailer could be considered deceptive - I was promised a discussion of why trailers aren't enough and how to try and judge a game using minimal public info, and wound up with a mini-rant on how more games need demos!
So why do we care so much? Why do we demand demos for games but not, say, extended samples of movies (say, the first 15 minutes or so)? I think there are a couple of factors at play. One, you could make the argument that a 3-minute trailer at least holds a greater percentage of the screen time of a 90-minute movie than the 2-minute gameplay trailer for a 25-hour game does, and that the demo lets you see a comparable proportion of the game's content. But again, movie trailers aren't trying to represent the movie's content; they're 3 minutes of non-spoiling high points, carefully selected to try and make the movie as appetizing as possible - and I don't know of many demos that are constructed that way, any more than I know of any movie trailers that are just the first 3m of the movie. (Unless there was a Superman trailer I'm forgetting...)
More to the point, though, the reason that games have demos is because the stakes are that much higher. If you get deceived into watching a Cloverfield because you're expecting a spooky psychological drama, you've wasted ten bucks and two hours of your life. If you get deceived into buying a Brutal Legend by its trailers (or even by its demo!), you're out sixty bucks, and probably 3-5 hours by the time you realize that you're not getting what you expected. We demand game demos because we put an investment into games - both financial, temporal, and arguably even emotional - that we just don't have to lay out for movies.
Well, to be Frank... the hole thing is bias. Even the blurbs written on the back of the game package. Most likely because, they got bribbed. Take a recent 'hit' COD black ops. Its best to buy games from specialists, due to they have a time trail for the game. So if you think its a piece of dog shit (MOH) ,you can swap it for something less shitty (New Vegas). Though Deus Ex has square enix making the cutscences, hope they don't fuck it up?
I believe that many game companies don't create demos for several reasons, such as for some games they wouldn't influence sales much or at all. For example, MW2 broke records for selling the most copies at launch and earning the most of any video game EVER, so if I was Activision/Treyarch, I'd probably think a demo is a waste of time and effort, as pretty much everyone will buy it anyways. If a demo is supposed to entice people to buy the game and increase sales, there isn't really much point releasing one for a very popular game that will likely have a lot of sales anyways. As well, a demo may reveal a shallow game for what it is, while a trailer can add fluff and make a game seem deeper and more interesting than it really is. There's also the sometimes related problem of gamers playing the demo than becoming disinterested in the game, which doesn't even always happen due to a game being shallow. If I have to replay a whole section of a game I played in a demo, it can seem pretty monotonous the second time through. As well, people are lazy and may feel like they've experienced everything in a game just from the demo.
So unless companies want to drastically alter demos to be misrepresenting in order not to spoil the gaming experience for one reason or another, they run into a problem in releasing demos. Though innovative games like Audiosurf or Minecraft do benefit a lot from releasing demos, they can introduce the concept of the game to players while still leaving them wanting more.
Trailers in the industry are a joke. Most the time these trailers don't even showcase actual game footage but some cinematic construct created by the marketing team and some artists which may not even be something done in house. Then you have my "favorite" trailers, which are the cross platform trailers that will show footage from the 360 for a PS3 commercial. This is just another reason "the" industry needs to clean itself up.
Yeah, gonna go against your article for this one. Saying that a movie trailer is a good vehicle to explain what a movie is about because both are cinematic media would mean that a good vehicle to promote a book would be to show the writer's grocery list. They are both written, right?
That's a silly concept that you build your entire article on. A movie trailer is completely different from a movie. As some dude above me (huh) said its point is not to tell the movie story, but to get you to watch it. A movie trailer does not have any narrative or character development or cohesive action scenes or suspense or anything that a real movie might have. It's not much closer to the movie than the posters.
I agree that demos are important, but you don't need to be psychic to tell how a game works from the trailers, as long as you look at gameplay trailers from events such as E3 and from reviews, or even on Youtube videos. (Buying games on release day is a foolish, indefensable thing that I cannot understand how it's come to become so ingrained in our little subculture. Once in a while? Kay. Every time a modestly hyped game comes out? Bugger off.) By looking at those videos I can see if a character has trouble connecting with a melee attack, of if the game drastically autocorrects for him. I can see how easy it is to navigate the map. I can see how bullet spread works. It's a preview, which is all I need.
Although frankly I live on without any of this as long as I got Susan Arendt's and Ben Yahtzee's scoop on the game. With those two opinions what else do you need to know?
speak for yourself Adam Greenbrier, you can tell a lot about a game from it's trailer, Unless you've never seen one or can't pick out themes in a product. Saying that a game to trailers is movies to posters is rediculous: "hmmm... the expendables, looks like a toy story knockoff."
Lessee...I think I said something similar awhile ago... *digdigdigdig* AH! Here it is:
I realise that this would cost money, as everything does. But trailers cost money too, and as you said, a demo is better than a trailer.
*Thinks of Dragon Age's trailer*....
Well... I won't be buying any game without a demo or good reviews(not really required) + friend recommendation
Spelling mistake, last paragraph: Should be "pore over", not "pour over". Otherwise a good article.
I agree with many of the points in this article, but you have to remember that demos can also often convince people NOT to buy a game. More often than not, I find that demos are very poorly made, too short, too limited in their scope, or just plain bad. Sometimes it's difficult to discern whether this was because of the game itself, or simply a poorly-made demo.
I think a lot of publishers might not have enough confidence in their games to release demos. With trailers you just see the best parts of cinematics and gameplay stitched together with dramatic music. This wins everyone over. While there will certainly be nay-sayers, I'm sure they have market research showing that enough people run out and impulse-buy based on that flashy showing.
Personally I tend to wait a while after release to read lots of reviews and see player commentary before deciding on a purchase, so even without demos I can be dissuaded from a purchase of a game with even the best of trailers. I don't feel like a majority of the game buyers out there operate this way though.
Anyways, my most recent recollection of when a demo turned me away from a game was with Dark Void. I was all hyped up for the game with the trailers and pre-release rumors and hype. Then I played the demo. I was so thoroughly disgusted with the game from the demo that I said there's no way in hell I'm buying it.
Bullshit. I'm sure there are a bunch of ways to track this data. Like Sony can't track who installs what game & what demo with all the mandatory PSN integration they use. Maybe they just don't want to release that info to the publishers, but I'm sure they have it.
The firs thing I will say is that you really can't judge anything but its Trailer // Like most things good games come from their story non of which can be shown in detail during a 30second trailer(althou the best, most recent, example of this would be the trailer for the new expansion of WoW)
But is there a risk of giving too much away?
Sure, players could get a better understanding of the game, but if all the mechanics are revealed, where's the surprise?
Maybe I just worry too much, but there must be a balance between showing trailers and 90min demos.
Demo discs were the bob-omb for me back in the day!
Sony was lying to everyone by advertising with amazingly rendered cinematic trailers. They made consumers believe that the whole game, not just cut scenes, where that brilliantly graphical. I know this because I had friends who argued at length that FFVII had the best graphics of any game, ergo, it had the best gaming experience. However, they failed to notice that the good graphics were pre-rendered in-game movies, the good graphics duing gameplay (where the environment was concerened) was a pre-rendered background with no depth to it giving the player the illusion of great environmental graphics, and finally, the sprites themselves looked like lego-blocked boxes of schite.
So, enter the Dreamcast and Dreamcast magazines that came complete, every month, with a demo disc. It was an all-in=one advertisement stategy ( one that the playstation was also using during the time). You got your $12 magazine and demo disc with 10 (I think...) demos of which there was usually a 50-50 split between playable demos and game trailers. With these demo the consumer was able to absorb a lot of information about all sorts of games and make a very informed decision on where to spend the money. And if you were short on cash, having previous first hand knowledge of a game took the guess work out of renting titles.
It was a very good marketing strategy back in the early 2000s, but nowadays with more focus on the internet, playermade walk-throughs and downloadable contents it really seems like putting out a demo disc is a little wastful to the producers. I for one would love to a return of the demo discs as a means to pre-view many games without having to rely on 2md=hand opinions.
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The Rabbit on the Face of the Moon: Mythology in the Mesoamerican Tradition
University of Utah Press, 1996 - Social Science - 157 pages
Eighteen essays provide an accessible, entertaining look into a system of millennia-old legends and beliefs.
Mythology is one of the great creations of humankind. It forms the core of sacred books and reflects the deepest preoccupations of human beings, their most intimate secrets, their glories, and their infamies.
In 1990, Alfredo L¾pez Austin, one of the foremost scholars of ancient Mesoamerican thought, began a series of essays about mythology in the Mesoamerican tradition, published in Mķxico IndĒgena. Although his articles were written for general readers, they were also intended to engage specialists. They span a divers subject matter: myths and names, eclipses, stars, left and right, Mķxican origins, Aztec incantations, animals, and the incorporation of Christian elements into the living mythologies of Mexico. The title essay relates the Mesoamerican myth explaining why there is a rabbit o the moon's face to a Buddhist image and suggests the importance of the profound mythical concepts presented by each image.
The eighteen essays in this volume are unified by their basis in Mesoamerican tradition and provide an accessible, entertaining look into a system of millennia-old legends and beliefs.
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Most people are familiar with the Japanese folklore of Tsuki no Usagi (especially fans of the show Sailor Moon, in which the protagonist's name is "Tsukino Usagi"). This mythic creature is also called ... Read full review
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One of the great things about the switch from film to digital photography is that it has allowed camera makers to produce models that are slim enough to fit in a pocket but still take excellent pictures and come packed with features. Chips and sensors take up much less room than rolls of film.
But there are limitations imposed by small, slim camera bodies that even digital wizardry hasn't been able to overcome. These mainly involve the lenses. Lenses with better-than-average telescopic and wide-angle capabilities tend to be too bulky to fit on a pocket-sized camera body.
Now, Eastman Kodak has come up with a concept that promises to make more versatile lenses available on the slimmest digital cameras. The company has introduced a pocket-sized camera with two lenses, each designed for different kinds of shots.
The company's new EasyShare V570 camera couples a fairly standard lens — the 3x optical zoom that is typical on slim digital cameras — with a second, specialized lens for taking ultrawide-angle shots. Together, these all-glass lenses have a 5x optical zooming capability, unusual in a small camera. A single lens with the combined range of the V570's two lenses (the equivalent of 23 millimeters to 117 millimeters) would be too large for the camera's body. But by splitting the work between two physically smaller lenses, Kodak has made it fit.
The camera doesn't zoom in any better on distant objects than most others in its class. But it does do a much better job of capturing all of a group of people — or a building or a landscape — in a single shot, without requiring you to move ridiculously far back.
Better yet, the user doesn't need to manually switch between the lenses, or even to be conscious of them. The camera's processor merges them into one virtual lens, and the zooming button on the back automatically switches lenses as you move from the widest to the most telescopic setting. An indicator on the screen tells you if you have switched lenses and are using the ultrawide-angle one.
Kodak's EasyShare V570 camera
Kodak has placed both lenses entirely within the camera's body. Even when the main lens zooms, it never protrudes from the camera. Both are protected by a single built-in lens cover that opens instantly, with a satisfying snap.
The $399 V570, which has a resolution of 5 megapixels, isn't a one-shot deal. Kodak plans more small cameras with multiple lenses that employ digital technology to make the lenses work smoothly together. While the V570's twin lenses add capabilities at the wide end of the zooming range, future models might use multiple lenses to bolster a camera's telephoto capability. Or one lens might be devoted to still pictures, while a second might be optimized for video.
I've been testing the V570, and I like it, despite a couple of drawbacks. In my tests, I compared it with the Kodak EasyShare V550, my favorite pocket-sized digital camera. Like the V550, which costs $349, the new V570 has a handsome black design. But the V570, which is just 4 inches wide by 2 inches high by 0.8 inch thick and weighs 4.5 ounces, is actually thinner and lighter than the single-lens V550.
In my tests, I took numerous shots of people, buildings and street scenes with the two cameras. In every case, using the ultrawide-angle lens, the new V570 allowed me to pack in much more of a given scene from the same distance. I just pressed the zoom button all the way to "W."
For instance, a picture of a room on the single-lens camera captured only some of the furniture and walls. With the V570, nearly everything got into the shot. Standing on my driveway taking a picture of my house with the V550, the attached family room was cut off. But from the same spot, the V570 picture included both structures. Where the V550 might get three people in a shot, the V570 could get five or six.
Telephoto shots came out the same on both cameras. Picture quality, both on a computer screen and in printouts, was the same as on the V550, which is very good.
The zooming experience between the V570's two lenses isn't perfectly smooth. There's a gap between the two lenses that's experienced as a brief, but abrupt, jump in the image on the camera's screen. But I didn't find this to be a problem.
The 2.5-inch LCD screen on the back of the camera was sharp and vivid indoors, though it washed out some in direct sunlight.
But the V570 is missing a couple of valuable features the V550 includes. First, it has no optical viewfinder, which allows steadier shooting and is better for framing shots in situations in which sunlight washes out the screen. Unfortunately, camera makers are well on their way to omitting optical viewfinders from most consumer cameras, claiming that the space they occupy is better used for bigger screens and that younger shooters never use them anyway.
Secondly, the V570 has no port for directly connecting to a computer with the included USB cable. To connect the camera to a computer, you are forced to use the included dock, which is a real pain.
Still, if you want a camera with strong wide-angle capabilities, while preserving small size and normal telescopic zooming, the V570 might be just the ticket.
- Email me at firstname.lastname@example.com.


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University of Florida student Michael Joseph Silecchia was wandering around campus apartments when Gainesville police responded to a reports of a suspicious person.
When police arrived, Silecchia took his clothes off and said he was "God" and "straight," according to The Independent Florida Alligator. The student told officers, "Don't cut my penis off," then changed his mind and said, "Cut my penis off," according to the police report.
Officers say he also yelled that he had taken acid, the hallucinogenic drug LSD, though police haven't confirmed if Silecchia was under the influence at the time.
Silecchia was told several times to dress himself, but refused.. He tried to walk away from police and was physically restrained, prompting a struggle. Silecchia was wrestled to the ground, but rose up to punch a female officer in the head, according to the report.
Officers used a taser on Silecchia six times with "no effect," according to the report. Silecchia was later taken to Shands hospital at UF, where he police say he spat at a hospital employee.
Silecchia faces charges of resisting arrest and two counts of battery on an officer or medical personnel, according to a GPD arrest report.


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Article Images
KABUL (Pajhwok): The Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development (MRRD) on Saturday signed the contracts of 10 uplift projects worth of 428 million Afghanis with private companies. Speaking to reporters here, rural rehabilitation minister,... read more
KABUL (Pajhwok): Eid-ul-Fitr is a festival for many after one month of fasting, worship and prayers but orphan and homeless children are far to enjoy the celebration of these important religious days. Reyazuddin, 12, hailing from Badakhshan... read more
KABUL (Pajhwok): The Kabul municipality on Sunday said it had failed to collect more than 80 million afghanis in billboard tax, with a lawmaker's firm owing more than half of the charges. Rahila Khoistani, head of cultural services at Kabul... read more
KABUL (Pajhwok): A number of political experts say acting foreign minister, Salahuddin Rabbani, has clearly violated the law while serving the interest of his Jamiat-I-Islami Afghanistan (JIA) party instead of the government. Three days back,... read more
KABUL (Pajhwok): In addition to causing heavy casualties, Wednesday's deadly truck bombing in capital Kabul also inflicted huge financial losses on residents. The attack destroyed walls, doors and windowpanes of several nearby government,... read more
KABUL (Pajhwok): Afghanistan as a consumer country imports most of essential daily used items, but a significant amount of expired and poor quality products make their way to local markets as people pay little heed to expiry date. The expiry or... read more
KABUL (Pajhwok): Saudi Arabia has handed over 32 ambulances worth $1 million to the Ministry of Public health. Public Health Minister Ferozuddin Feroz at the handover ceremony said the vehicles would be dispatched in areas of insecurity in... read more
KABUL (Pajhwok): Hundreds of tonnes of ironware is daily smuggled to neighboring Pakistan, the Afghanistan Industrial Association (AIA) said on Monday, claiming strongmen backed by some government officials were complicit in the roaring business... read more
KABUL (Pajhwok): For the first time ever, an American organisation arranged a two-day technology competition in Afghanistan to help local youth hone their skills. The AngelHack Global Hackathon Series in Kabul featured 35 Afghan youth, including... read more
KABUL (Pajhwok): Some individuals are involved in making fake 12th grade certificates, with the lengthy procedure for the document's release from the concerned government body paving the ground for corruption and kickbacks, Pajhwok Afghan News has... read more
- 13828 reads


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Amazon.com, Bill Clinton, Breitbart.com, Brett R Smith, Chuck Dixon, Clinton Cash (book and film), Clinton Cash: A Graphic Novel, Clinton Foundation, Fox & Friends, graphic novels, Hillary Clinton, millenials, New York Times, Peter Schweizer, Regency Press, Secretary of State, U.S. State Department
'Clinton Cash: A Graphic Novel' Sells Out in a Single Day; #5 on Amazon Bestsellers List
The graphic novel inspired by the New York Times bestselling investigative blockbuster Clinton Cash has entered a second printing just 24 hours after its official launch and now stands at #5 on the Amazon bestsellers list.
Clinton Cash author and Breitbart Senior Editor-at-Large Peter Schweizer told Fox & Friends that the graphic novel conveys the fact-based reporting in his book "in a way that makes it accessible to people who don't have time to sit down and read a serious nonfiction book."
Like the New York Times bestselling book and documentary film it's based on, Clinton Cash: A Graphic Novel, adapted by Chuck Dixon and Brett R. Smith, follows the shady connections and dealings between the Clinton Foundation donors, paid speeches given by Bill Clinton, and actions approved by the U.S. State Department while Hillary Clinton was Secretary of State.
"I think millennials love this sort of approach because it's humorous. They put in humor. It's a lot of great visual images," Schweizer said of the book.
"Stunningly illustrated, hilariously retold, and inspired by the blockbuster book that reshaped the contours of the presidential election, Clinton Cash: A Graphic Novel brings to life Hillary and Bill's brazen plot to fleece the planet for maximum profit," publisher Regency said in a release.
Clinton Cash: A Graphic Novel is available online for purchase in hardcover and as an e-book.


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Related Items
Honda Shadow VTX 1800 2002-2007, Slash Cut Staggered Duals
Exhaust System Features are:
- High Performance Drag Pipes
- Access to Oil Filter and Drain Plug
- Ground Clearance
- Light Weight
- True Double Walled Head Pipes
- Baffles welded in place, Non-Removable
Here at MAC we are Dedicated to building Products that meet Strict Quality Standards. We follow exacting guidelines during manufacturing in order to insure that you receive a quality, reliable product every time.
Installation of a MAC Exhaust System May Change your Motorcycles Fuel-to-Air Mixture requirements. Please contact us directly with questions regarding any modifications that may need to be made during, or after installing the Exhaust System.
Exhaust Gaskets (not supplied with kit) will be needed when installing a MAC Exhaust System. You can order your gaskets at your local Motor Cycle Dealer. Carburetor Re-Jetting may be desired for Best Performance
Exhaust Discoloration (Blueing) is caused by engine conditions such as Cam Timing, Fuel-to-Air Mixture, Operating Temperature, etc. It is not a result of defective manufacturing, therefore it is not covered by any warranty.
MAC Part # 001-1814 fits the following:
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8 gram (8 x 1 g) 2016 Maplegram8 Sheet of Gold Coins
The Maplegram8 is a new release celebrating Canada's Chinese community and its culture. It features custom packaging with red and gold symbolizing prosperity and luck, as well as a simplified Chinese character that is a translation of "Maplegram8".
The MapleGram8 by the Royal Canadian Mint offers an exceptional investment value as well as a practical one. Each 8 gram MapleGram8 is part of a divisible blister pack of eight one gram coins and comes wrapped in an elegant sleeve. Each coin has a distinct serial number on the blister pack which when broken down into singles acts as an individual MapleGram Certicard with the weight and purity written on it. The sleeve that holds the blister pack contains the assay certificate to verify weight and purity written right on it.
Each coin is a 1 g Canadian Gold Maple Leaf and comes sealed in a tamper evident display card with a unique serial number and the weight and purity. New for the Maplegram8, all coins feature the same radial lines as larger gold maple leaf coins as a security feature.
Each coin features all the quality and recognition of a gold Maple Leaf, and the divisibility that the market has been looking for. These 8 gram blister packs offer superior security features, solid investment potential and worldwide recognition.
|Royal Canadian Mint
|Lightly Used
|Susanna Blunt Effigy of Queen Elizabeth II and the words "Elizabeth II 50 Cents 2016" and the artist's initials
|A Maple Leaf in fine detail with the words "Canada Fine Gold 1 g OR Pur 9999"
|Susanna Blunt (obverse)


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Flashy: Paramount gets a new marquee
In preparation for a new paint job, workers applied a primer coat to the marquee of the Paramount Theater July 6, as the 1931 Main Street landmark enters its final stages of renovation into a $14 million performing arts center.
The marquee work comes just a dozen years after the last marquee repairs. In June 1992, the City dipped into its Historic Preservation Fund and handed out $35,700 for rebuilding the Paramount Theater's marquee the last time.
The current work, says the Paramount's director, Chad Hershner, will restore not only the original paint colors but also the fancy flickers of hundreds of bulbs.
"It would chase and flash and blink, and I think it originally had something like 29 settings," says Hershner. "It'll do that again."
The Theater closed since 1974 is set to re-open in November.


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The following products and promotions allow consumers to support Make-A-Wish® through purchases or participation in cause-corporate programs.
ALEX AND ANI will donate 20% of the purchase price from each True Wish Charm sold, with a minimum donation of $25,000 through December 2018. Visit alexandani.com to learn more.
Allegiant donates $1 from every Wingz Kid Snack Pack sold inflight to support our efforts to grant life-changing wishes to courageous children across the country. Visit allegiantair.com to learn more.
BioTrust Nutrition is giving its customers the opportunity to donate $1, $5, or $10 at checkout. Learn more at biotrust.com.
Chi Omega, the largest women's fraternal organization in the world, raises money and awareness for Make-A-Wish throughout the year through a variety of events and fundraising activities. Chi Omega collegiate and alumnae chapters have raised over $20 million for our wish kids since 2001. For more information about how to participate at a school near you, please click here.
Claire's will donate $5 for every qualified ear-piercing kit sold year-round. Find a store near you and learn more about our partnership with Claire's at here.
#ChooseToChange promotion, Lokai customers can choose to donate to Make-A-Wish when they purchase the "Black and White" or "Metallic" Lokai bead bracelets. Learn more at lokai.com.
For each monthly featured dessert ordered, Maggiano's will donate $1 year-round. Visit the Maggiano's website to find a restaurant near you. maggianos.com
NCAA Division II student athletes across the country raise money and awareness for Make-A-Wish throughout the year. Division II institutions use a variety of fundraising opportunities to increase donations for children with critical illnesses. For more information about how to join the efforts at an institution near you, please click ncaadii.wish.org.
Things Remembered Make-A-Wish holiday collectibles are available for purchase at a local Things Remembered location or online. Two dollars per Make-A-Wish ornament and five dollars per Make-A-Wish snow globe sold donated to Make-A-Wish. Things Remembered will also feature a Jim Shore snow globe where $10 of each purchase will go back to Make-A-Wish. Visit thingsremembered.com for more information.
Between January 1 – 31, 2020, Watertree Health, a leading provider of free prescription discount cards, will donate $2 for every script discounted using a card benefitting Make-A-Wish. To request a card or learn more, visit https://www.watertreehealthcard.com/make-a-wish/.
April 30, 2021
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You hold the ticket to a child's wish!
Donate your airline miles today.


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Quote of the Day - We know from 13 years of experience that being ready, willing and able to defend our products and people, even in judicial 'hellholes,' is the most effective way to control litigation costs.
Jury Awards $4.5 Million Punitive Damages Against Company With Negative Net Worth
A Jury Run Amuck Or A Well-reasoned Punishment? Don't Jump To A Conclusion Until You Read Further...
How could a jury be so insensitive? Certainly this jury is from one of those Judicial Hellholes! This is exactly why we need tort reform ... runaway juries ... just like that McDonald's spilled coffee cup case.
You would expect to hear those comments after reading the first headline. But there's a clue in the subheadline that may cause you to pause for a moment and think that there just might be more than the first headline communicates.
You'd be right. And you'd be one of those critical thinkers who realizes that the sound bite does a disservice to "the rest of the story," as Paul Harvey would have said.
So here's the set up of Bankhead v. ArvinMeritor. Now I could spin these facts for you to put you in the mood for the ultimate outcome, but rather than do that, let's let the Court of Appeal tell you what the facts were as they saw it (omitting footnotes):
So there you have it. In the 1960's the company knew that it was exposing its workers to asbestos fibers, but did not warn its employees of the danger until 1987. The jury found ArvinMeritor liable for Gordon Bankhead's exposure to asbestos as the cause of his mesothelioma. After the liability and damages portion of the trial was completed, the Court asked the jury about punitive damages.
Here's where it gets tricky. ArvinMeritor submitted financial statements that showed the company had a negative net worth. Despite that "upside down" financial statement, however, the jury awarded Gordon Bankhead $4.5 million in punitive damages.
How could that possibly be, you ask?
Well, before you get your knickers in a twist, read on and then decide (the following directly quotes the Court of Appeals):
Don't believe it? Judge for yourself with ArvinMeritor's financial statements. ArvinMeritor still exists as Meritor, and was a spinoff of Rockwell.
Now that you've read why the jury awarded what it did, does the headline accurately tell the rest of the story?
Guess you'll have to keep a cynical eye on those headllines.


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Is Tesla's downshift for real?April 15, 2014: 3:49 PM ET
The break lights are finally coming on for investors' favorite auto stock.
Shares of Tesla Motors (TSLA) fell over 2% Tuesday after reports surfaced that Arizona failed to pass a bill to allow the company to sell cars directly to consumers.
It marks the fourth straight day of losses for Tesla's stock.
It's unclear what effect the Arizona bill actually had today. The automaker has long sought to bypass dealerships because it says they wouldn't do a good enough job of explaining the advantages of electric cars.
Related: Tesla to raise $1.6 billion for 'Gigafactory'
Instead, there appears to be a broader market souring on Tesla. The stock has tanked roughly 17% in the past month.
That's notable for a company that Wall Street and individual investors alike have been head over heels for. After all, Tesla won CNNMoney's fourth annual March Stock Mania.
While the stock began to falter early along with the rest of the Nasdaq, investors began worrying that the costs of building Tesla into the next great auto company could eat into sales more than previously forecast, said Brian Sozzi of Belus Capital Advisors.
"The market is questioning the fundamental outlook for the first time in a while," he said.
The decline comes amid a broader sell-off in so-called momentum stocks, which until recently seemingly could do no harm.
Netflix (NFLX) is down 23% in the last month, while Twitter (TWTR) has fallen 14%.
Telsa is still up almost 350% in the last year, and its rapid rise has outpaced other the other high-fliers.
But for Tesla and many momentum stocks, sometimes there's not an obvious reason for big price swings, said Scott Wren, Senior Equity Strategist for Wells Fargo Advisors.
"When the thing cracks, weak hands start to fold," he said. "There's a snowball effect, a get-me-out mentality."
Related: Investors aren't bringing sexy back
Wren said Tesla is an interesting stock for traders, but for long-term investors, its high valuation relative to its earnings is hard to justify.
"If a client's portfolio has over 5% momentum stocks, that's too much," he said.
And an argument can be made that after such a big run, a pullback is considered healthy. The stock is trading at 112 times 2014 earnings, after all.


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The Fitness Trail: Maintaining and choosing resitive tubing
Grand Lake, CO Colorado
The other day at a client's home, we were assessing what equipment they owned that was usable for safe and effective muscular strength training. We came across their resistive tubing which I think they had owned for decades. It was brittle, nicked and was ready to make the journey to file 13! Resistive tubing is an essential tool in your fitness tool box, but it, like any other tool, needs to be cleaned, maintained and replaced when it has become unusable. Additionally, the tubing you choose for each exercise needs to be of the appropriate length and gauge to be an effective means of external resistance.
Check out the tips this week which will help you to know when it is time to throw away your tubing and replace it as well as how to choose the appropriate tubing for each exercise. As always, prior to beginning any exercise program, please consult your physician.
Maintaining Tips
-First, always follow the manufacturer's instructions for use and care as this usually provides you with valuable guidelines.
-Beyond those guidelines, regularly clean your tubing with warm soapy water, rinse and then dry it thoroughly.
-Store tubing from a hanging position if possible. Avoid throwing the tubing into a box as this may lead to nicks in the tubing and leads to the tubing sticking together. And, the old "baby powder" in the tubing box to prevent the tubing from sticking, makes a huge mess, so avoid it-hang it instead.
-Check the tubing prior to each use to see if there are any nicks or tears in the tubing which occurs over time. If there are, throw it away and replace it.
-Avoid placing the tubing onto sharp or abrasive objects which may tear the tubing leading to breakage.
Choosing Tips
-Regardless of whether it is tubing or any other external form of resistance, choosing the appropriate level of resistance for each exercise and body part is essential to ensure safety and effectiveness.
-Remember that every manufacturer has their own unique increment progression and usually chooses colors to delineate the level of resistance. Therefore, avoid assuming that all green tubing will be light resistance-it may or may not be depending upon the manufacturer. Check out the length of the tubing and the thickness. In general, the longer/thinner the tubing, the lighter the resistance and the thicker/shorter the tubing the heavier the resistance.
-For smaller muscle groups, such as the deltoids (i.e. shoulders), you will probably choose a longer/lighter gauge tubing. Smaller muscles are generally not as strong as their bigger counterparts which means that the resistance level will need to be lighter.
-An example would be a lateral raise, which requires the client to abduct the arm (lift it) out to the side of the body to shoulder height. Due to the necessary range of motion to perform the exercise correctly and the fact that the muscle group is relatively small, necessitates the longer/lighter gauge tubing.
-Conversely, for a lat row, the client will use shorter/thicker gauge tubing as the lats are bigger and stronger by comparison to the deltoids and consequently, these muscles will require more resistance to effectively strengthen and fatigue the muscle.
Jackie Wright is the owner/manager of Never Summer Fitness, LLC located in Grand Lake, Colorado. She may be reached at her website at neversummerfitness.com. , her email at email@example.com, her blog at skyhidailynews.com and her Facebook page at Never Summer Fitness.
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