text:
Dude, that's our joke onnational television !
We know, Cartman.
♪ Nya-nya nya-nyanyaaa nya ♪
♪ We are comedy writers
♪ and youguys aren't ♪
♪ Ha-ha ha-hahaaaa-ha ♪
Jimmy, I'vebeen thinking.
We've got to patentthe fishsticks joke.
Patent ?Yeah, dude.
There's lots of peopleout there using our joke
on their shows.
We should begetting compensated.
Well Eric, that's reallynot how jokes work.
I mean, you know
we should just be happythat the joke is so popular
and made a lotof people laugh.
Dude, fuck that !
Maybe you were writing jokesfor people's amusement
but I don't work for free.
I'm gonnatalk to a lawyer
so we get what'scoming to us.
Jimmy, exactly what partof the fishdicks joke
did Cartman write ?
Well... He didn't actuallywrite any of it...
He just uh...
Let me guess-you wrote the joke
and Cartman just laid onthe couch eating Twizzlers.
Actually itwas potato chips.
I knew it !
Don't let that fat turdwalk all over you, Jimmy !
Stand up for yourself !
Well I mean,he was in the room.
Then justgive him half.
What ?
I like you, Jimmy.
But you're notgonna win this.
Consider yourself luckyhe's only asking for half.
Craig, if Cartmandidn't do anything
then he doesn't deserveany of the credit.
And and if I had wheels,I'd be a wagon.
No dude, screw that !
Jimmy, if Cartman didn'twrite the joke
then definitely don't signany patent papers with him !
Just say 'Cartman,
'you didn't have anythingto do with this joke,
and you know it !'
Just give him half.
Actually, It Was Potato Chips
Fishsticks s13e05
While Cartman tries to cash in on the joke's popularity, his authorship comes into question.


text: Show Hide image Culture 23 August 2012 Parade's End: smitten by Benedict Cumberbatch's amazing mouth Rachel Cooke reviews Tom Stoppard's adaptation of the novels by Ford Madox Ford. Sign-up People say that Ford Madox Ford is now more studied than read – and who am I to disagree? On the other hand, a friend of mine once asked my husband to remove himself from his dining table when they disagreed about the relative merits of Ford's 1915 novel, The Good Soldier (and having written that sentence, I will now remove myself directly to Pseuds Corner). The old boy does have his fans. Tom Stoppard, who has adapted the four-novel cycle Parade's End for the BBC, has said that it took him only 200 pages to grasp that it was a masterpiece. Not that this stopped him being scared of it. "You have to trot to keep up," he said recently. "Often you don't know where you are in the time schemes and you're off balance about whether you're sympathising with a character or not." Will the series lead to a sales spike for Ford? I doubt it. Parade's End (Fridays, 9pm) feels unexpectedly weightless on screen. Difficult books – by which I mean those that nod approvingly in the general direction of modernism – tend to be too light on plot for television. The necessity for concision, moreover, means that what is rich on the page sometimes seems only baffling when it tumbles from the mouths of actors. Not the best advertisement, then. I don't wish to sound ungrateful. For all that I share the suspicion that the BBC will pull pretty much anything off the shelf if it will get actors into spats and plus fours, long gloves and fox furs (how the success of ITV's awful Downton Abbey – so wet, you could shoot snipe off it – must rankle), I can't help but love it for going with this one. What other TV company in the world would commission an adaptation of Ford, trail it halfway to death, feed stories about it even to the Sun and screen it at 9pm on a Friday night? Answer: there is none. "For a gentleman," says Christopher Tietjens (Benedict Cumberbatch) to his friend Mac - master (Stephen Graham), "there is something . . . Call it a parade." Macmaster has just asked him if he will take back his horrid, unfaithful wife, Sylvia (Rebecca Hall) and what Tietjens means is that for men of his class, appearance is all. However, this parade will shortly cease to matter. The war is coming. Even now, change is in the air. By the end of part one, Tietjens – a Tory Yorkshire squire – was in love with a young suffragette, Valentine Wannop (Adelaide Clemens) and she with him. While Sylvia thinks of her husband as an emotionless plank, Valentine sees him as noble and true. After all, when she ruined his game of golf by shouting "Votes for women" – one of the more pathetic suffragette "outrages", one feels – he helped her evade the copper his friends had called. Actually, this was pretty much all that happened in episode one. Then again, no one, least of all me, is watching Parade's End for its action. We are tuning in for the silly names – Sylvia has a lover called Potty Perowne – and for the cut-glass vowels. "Ripping!" people say, when they are happy. When they're unhappy, as Tietjens is when his wife decides to return to him, they says things like: "I shan't keep a house; anything beyond a flat looks like impudence in a man who can't keep his wife." And we're watching for the performances, which are mostly great (though the jury's still out on Hall). Cumberbatch, in particular, is brilliant, which is helpful, since he is the heart of this. The things he can do with his mouth are quite amazing; it seems almost to inflate with emotion, sometimes with the result that he looks like an exotic fish. He has given Tietjens a voice with a "shush" in it – Winston Churchill-lite – and it is perfect. The viewer roots for him instinctively. I can't say too much, yet, about Stoppard's adaptation – only time will tell – but it is already clear that he has resisted the temptation, what with the trenches on the horizon, only to deliver mud and solemnity. There is wit here and breezy lust. When Sylvia told her mother of the "sex vapour" emanating from her set "like the steam coming off the water in the crocodile house at the zoo", I felt suddenly less at sea. The next few Friday nights, I thought, just might be rather fun. Rachel Cooke trained as a reporter on The Sunday Times. She is now a writer at The Observer. In the 2006 British Press Awards, she was named Interviewer of the Year. Subscribe For more great writing from our award-winning journalists subscribe for just £1 per month! This article first appeared in the 27 August 2012 issue of the New Statesman, The end of the political cartoon? SUBSCRIBE More

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Hi all,
I have a piece of lab equpiment that uses the network for communicating. I need to write a program to control this deivce along with a few other pieces of equipment.
I have a manual that has all the commands that I can use. But thats about it, just about no info on what I need to send for proper operation. Is there a program that will monitor the network connection so that I can see what commands are being sent while the manufacturers program is running? Thanks


text:
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|Allergen - Latex
|Instructions Included
|Youngest Recommended Age
|3 years
Reviewed by 3 customers
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Comments about Bullseye Sponge Target Mat:
We are using this for Awana Pie in the Eye Night where we throw whipped cream pies at the end of the year at certain chosen leaders. It is an incentive for kids. Up to this year I had just had the leaders wear a raincoat type poncho for protection. This is definitely more appealing! And we can hose it down and reuse it next year!
Best Uses
Comments about Bullseye Sponge Target Mat:
Grownups and children loved this one! It was a hit at our Harvest Festival!
Best Uses
Comments about Bullseye Sponge Target Mat:
Bought this for a school carnival - it was a huge hit! Easy to use! Make sure you put a drop cloth under to save the sponges from getting dirty!
Displaying reviews 1-3
Customer Service: [email protected]
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Monday through Friday, 8:00am to 7:00pm, EST
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text:
Zend Technologies has released a public beta of public beta of Zend Server 5.0, a new version of the company's Web application server. Zend Server 5.0 includes a new feature called "Code Tracing" that lets developers quickly pinpoint the root cause of a problem in production by viewing a "digital documentary" of the execution of their application, similar to a black box flight recorder in an airplane.
In addition to Code Tracing, Zend Server 5.0 includes features to maximize the performance and reliability of PHP Web applications, such as Job Queues. Zend says that Job Queues increases application performance and responsiveness by allowing jobs (tasks) to be performed asynchronously or at recurring intervals, offloading long-running tasks from Web servers to back-end servers. End users experience prompt responses in their Web browser while long-running jobs like credit-card processing, shipping and other activities proceed in the background. In addition, maintenance tasks such as database cleanup and RSS feed pulls can be run at specific times or at recurring intervals. The Job Queue feature is fully integrated into the Zend Server monitoring system and Web console, giving developers and other IT staff one place to monitor the overall execution of their application.
Zend Server, which supports IBM i, Linux, and Windows, includes support for PHP 5.3. Zend Server is fully integrated with Zend's Studio PHP IDE, Zend Framework. The Code Tracing feature in Zend Server 5.0 captures the full execution of an application in real-time, so IT staff can quickly find the root cause of a problem without having to reproduce it. Code Tracing can be turned on and off by Zend Server's Event Monitoring capability so that real-time PHP code execution is captured only during specified events, such as those triggered by performance degradation or other error conditions. The trace is displayed in the Zend Server Web console to enable staff to view the complete execution history of an application and definitively pinpoint a problem's root cause. Zend claims that Zend Server Code Tracing can cut problem identification and resolution time by up to 50 percent.
A public beta version of Zend Server 5.0 is available now, while a production release will be available by the end of the year.


text:
With recent fiscal calamities close in the nation's rearview and others approaching fast, the U.S. finds itself inside the eye of a self-generated budgetary tornado. What's more, congressional disagreement has done nothing but provide unnecessary headwinds to short-run economic growth.
At the eleventh hour, Congress addressed the tax increases and sequestration, narrowly averting the so-called fiscal cliff. Income and capital gains taxes on the top earners increased and automatic cuts to defense and discretionary federal programs were delayed until March 1.
Moreover, the White House and Congress have dealt momentarily with the debt ceiling debacle, the second in as many years, by suspending the limit until May 18.
Many people have conjectured rather forcefully that the high degree of uncertainty that such congressional dysfunction imposes on business and household decisions impedes economic progress. Although there is merit to this view, there is a sharp distinction between how firms and individuals feel about the future and the economic decisions they actually pursue.
Indeed, the whirlwind surrounding the election and subsequent budgetary challenges did impact consumer and business sentiment. For instance, the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index in the fourth quarter dropped to lows not seen since the 2008-09 financial crisis.
The mood among big business painted a similarly pessimistic picture: Expected sales, capital spending and hiring into 2013 were dramatically depressed.
Those feelings about the future, however, did not translate to the actual economic activity witnessed in the fourth quarter. The private sector added 675,000 jobs, and business spending and sales rose at an annualized rate of 12.4 and 4.2 percent, respectively.
What's more, financial markets are near pre-recession highs: the Standard and Poor's 500 Composite Index returned over 5 percent in January alone. If the remaining 11 months of 2013 are consistent with January, investors will experience over 80 percent returns for the year!
Even though the economy reportedly contracted by 0.1 percent in the fourth quarter (which will likely be revised away at the end of February), its explanation is clear: The defense department, in accordance with the fiscal cliff agreement, decreased expenditures by 22 percent, and other federal agencies cut back in anticipation of the automatic across-the-board cuts to education, state and local safety, and scientific research (among many other programs) set to take effect on March 1.
The impact of Hurricane Sandy served as another transitory factor hindering economic growth at the end of 2012.
The fact of the matter is the economy appears to be in an ongoing battle with Capitol Hill. Congress continues to shock the system with waves of uncertainty, but so far the uncertainty bomb has not been dropped in full. That certain members of congress continue to cry wolf in the form of threats (think government shutdowns) that never seem to materialize is precarious and seemingly mindless.
Sure, the rhetoric is sensational, but it's also misleading and unfair to the constituents.
I implore the recently sworn in 113th Congress to make much needed improvements on the behavior of its predecessor. With the bar set so low, I am cautiously optimistic. Let's not forget that congressional ineptness brought upon the debt ceiling and fiscal cliff issues in the first place.
As it stands today, the doomsters were wrong. The U.S. economy, business activity and financial markets have all showed resilience and fortitude in the face of Capitol Hill "armageddonists" squawking at the perils of uncertainty. Alas, the economy's ability to withstand further mindless budgetary folly may not last.
Dr. Nicholas J. Mangee is an assistant professor of economics at Armstrong Atlantic State University and can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com.


text:
Dr. Jeff Johnson of the Hope College chemistry faculty has received a major award through the "Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program" of the National Science Foundation (NSF).
Johnson's award will support not only his on-going research but development of an introductory First-Year Seminar in "green chemistry" and sustainability, and connections with Hope College TRIO Upward Bound to help encourage the program's high school students in their science and mathematics studies. Totaling $400,000 across five years, the grant will become active beginning in September.
The CAREER awards are for new faculty members pursuing academic careers involving both research and education. The NSF's goal is to enhance science education in the United States by supporting the early development of outstanding beginning professors in the sciences, mathematics and engineering.
"Jeff represents one of the finest teacher-scholars at Hope to give our students the best education possible. With a success rate of 15 percent, receiving an NSF CAREER award on the first attempt is truly extraordinary, and that pretty well exemplifies Jeff as a professor," said Dr. Moses Lee, who is dean for the natural and applied sciences and a professor of chemistry. "He is extraordinary in the classroom, in the laboratory, and in mentoring students. We are very proud of Jeff. Just this year, he and his students published two seminal papers in the leading chemistry journal, the 'Journal of the American Chemistry Society.'"
"One of the goals of the natural and applied sciences division is for all our faculty members to become nationally recognized in his/her area of expertise," Lee said. "Jeff has now reached this level and I look forward to seeing his career skyrocket in the near future."
Johnson's research, on which he works collaboratively with Hope students during both the school year and summer, is on developing new organic reactivity catalyzed by transition metals. Through the CAREER award, he and his student team will continue to study reactions that break carbon-carbon bonds, a transformation that is extremely difficult to achieve using traditional organic chemistry. From better understanding the process he hopes to develop new reaction methodologies that could greatly streamline the production of existing pharmaceuticals, allow the ready preparation of new biologically active molecules, or lead to new methods of creating organic starting materials currently derived from petroleum and related byproducts.
Johnson will develop the course in green chemistry and sustainability in conjunction with the college's on-going First-Year Seminar program, in which all incoming freshmen enroll in one of a variety of interdisciplinary courses designed to assist them in the intellectual transition to the college's liberal arts curriculum. Johnson's course will emphasize scientific literacy and the challenges involved in communicating science through an emphasis on themes such as catalysis, recycling and alternative energy.
Also through the award, Johnson will be spearheading efforts to develop additional connections between the department of chemistry and Hope College TRIO Upward Bound to support the students in their coursework in the sciences and encourage them in considering careers in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics)-related careers. Plans include involving his research students as lesson leaders during Upward Bound's summer session and increased involvement of Hope students majoring in chemistry or active in research as tutors during the school year.
A member of the Hope faculty since 2007, Johnson has received more than $1 million in external support since coming to the college. His grants have included an Undergraduate New Investigator Grant from the American Chemical Society's Petroleum Research Fund (ACS-PRF), a five-year Camille and Henry Dreyfus Faculty Start-Up Award, a Research Corporation Cottrell College Science Award and a National Science Foundation - Major Research Instrumentation award for a remotely accessible 400 MHz NMR spectrometer. In addition, the college named him a Towsley Research Scholar in January of 2010, providing additional institutional support for his research program for four years.
Prior to coming to Hope, Johnson served as a National Institutes of Health Postdoctoral Fellow at Colorado State University. He previously completed his doctorate in chemistry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2004.
He mentored undergraduate students while engaged in research at both Colorado State University and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He also participated in undergraduate research himself as a student at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minn., from which he earned his bachelor's degree in chemistry in 2000.


text:
Amalgamated Sugar produces pure sugar in various forms including granulated sugar, powdered sugar, and liquid sucrose. Our sugar is produced according to tight specifications on a large scale to meet the needs of customers in the food, beverage, and pharmaceutical manufacturing industries.
How Our Sugar is Grown
- Seeds are planted in March and April
- Seedlings emerge in approximately 10 days
- Leaves develop & grow in pairs
- Photosynthesis creates sugar
- Sugar collects in the root of the plant
- Sugarbeets are ready for harvest in October and November


text:
Entity Framework Tips and Tricks
In this show, Robert is joined by Julie Lerman, the author of several highly acclaimed Entity Framework books. Julie shares a number of Entity Framework tips and tricks including:
- Overriding the DBContext SaveChanges method [02:00]
- EntityFramework Power Tools [19:00]
- Configuring 1:1 Relationships [27:00]
- How to Avoid Accidentally Adding Data [34:30]
- Debugging [47:15]
While taping this, Robert's microphone malfunctioned. Fortunately, Julie's microphone picked him up. That is why his sound is not up to the normal quality and level.
Right click or Alt+Enter to download this episode
- Low Quality MP4 (323.6 MB)
- Mid Quality WMV (135.9 MB)
- High Quality MP4 (687.7 MB)
- Mid Quality MP4 (486.4 MB)
- High Quality WMV (219.0 MB)
The Discussion
WOW!! Robert you delivered an awesome DIAMOND!!! Julie Lerman has made my learning curve of Entity Framework SO MUCH SHORTER!! Thank you Julie and please come often!!! LOVE YOUR PLURALSIGHT COURSES!!
haha Alex! Can I hire you as my publicist?
Anytime! I am super affordable...all I ask for is 5 Entity Framework answers to any future problems I may come across in 1 year.
I have asked julie why didn't use virtual keyword on navigation properties in her example and she replied me the keyword "virtual" must be used on navigation properties only if dbcontext is available for lazy loading. Thanks for your answer julie!
Thanks Kemal! It was nice meeting you on twitter! Just to clarify for newbies: lazy loading is optional with EF. It requires a combination of telling the DbContext instance that you want to enable lazy loading (DbContext.Configuration.LazyLoadingEnabled) which you can do as needed or even in the constructor of the context) PLUS any navigation properties that should take advantage of lazy loading need to be marked virtual. So if the property is marked virtual, but you don't have LL enabled, it won't work. (and the other way around). Since I had no need for lazy loading, I didn't bother with "virtual" in my examples. (P.S. in VB that's Overridable )
It is my pleasure to help people =] I have couple of questions again. I will be glad if you enlighten me
1- I'm agree with improving EF performance by using AsNoTracking as well as setting ProxyCreationEnabled = false. As you know with EF5 there is a lot performance improvements and its more of that on EF6 with SQL query optimization (I voted on it btw ). I think you are alike using lazy-loading and using AsNoTracking while retrieving lists or something . Doesn't it reduce performance if you have like 1.000.000 rows? Because it will retrieve all the objects and cache in memory unless dbcontext is disposed.
2- Relating with the first question, assume we return no tracked objects, isn't it problematic for their navigation properties if our business logic is based on parallel transactions? Or do you think that it is up to design?
3- What if there is a nested TransactionScope in a method? Does it reduce perfomance or wrap into a one big TransactionScope?
Hey Kemal,
re #1, I can't get past "1million rows". I would never dream about pulling that much data across teh wire into an application. The point of using notracking is to use EF to retrieve data that is read-only. No need to waste resources asking EF to track that data. I recall some unexecpted (to me) but expected to EF behavior where it can lazy load from objects that were queried with no tracking. I cannot remember...I'd have to go look in one of my books (yes, I have to do taht) or just try it again.
re#2: dependent on what that behavior is about notracked and lazy or possibly exlicitly loaded objects that I just mentioned.
re 3... Acch...that one I cannot answer off the top of my head. It would take some experimenting to answer. That's how I have to learn. If you have some time to do some testing on that one, I'd be interested in your discoveries. Sorry I just had a brief moment to stop by and those last two questions take a lot more thought.
EntityFramework Power Tools [19:00]
I work different. I use an empty EDMX file, reverse engineer the DB into the model and use a Fluent API T4 template to generate the DbContext and POCOs (all in different projects) so that the POCOs have no reference to EF. Here I can change something in the Designer and let the T4 template generate the updated files for me. The only really nice feature of the Power Tools is to generate the views for faster queries.
Great post, not nearly enough good ratings and comments. Keep it up guys.
Hi julielerman,
Good explanation and very good presentation. I would like to know suppose if we have a table with large data would all the data be loaded into the memory. Using LINQ and selecting the data based on the query criteria would it load only the relevant data into the memory.
Good job!
very good tips. And did not know about Plural Sight. Going to that right now.
Priceless books, I have them all.
Great respect for this lady. I have benefited from her courses and articles too much.
Conversation locked
This conversation has been locked by the site admins. No new comments can be made.


text:
Our thanks to Mathias Maehlum from Energy Informative for providing GBE readers with a series of informative articles on solar energy technologies like BIPV. His next two articles, "Zero-Down Solar Leasing for New Homes," and "NREL Sets New World Record with Two-Junction Solar Cell," will be published this week.
Some homeowners are turned off by how solar panels affect the appearances of their homes. Building-integrated photovoltaics – basically solar panels incorporated into the construction of new buildings – can eliminate the negative visual impact of traditional solar panels; improve appearance and boost resale value.
The installed capacity of building-integrated photovoltaics is expected to boom over the next couple of years. A report by Pike Research, projects that the capacity will grow from 400 MW in 2012 to 2.25 GW in 2017[1] – roughly a five-fold increase worldwide.
There are many different categories of BIPV today. Here are the most common ones:
- Thin-film solar panels integrated with a flexible polymer roofing membrane.
- Flexible thin-film solar panels integrated into roof shingles/tiles.
- Thin-film or crystalline-based solar panels mounted on the façade of a building.
- Semi-transparent solar panels that replace windows and skylights.
Read our in-depth article Which Solar Panel Type is Best? Mono-, Polycrystalline or Thin Film? to find out which of the various solar panel technologies is best in your situation.
Generally, BIPV systems are less efficient and more expensive compared to traditional solar panels. However, if you want to seamlessly integrate solar panels with your home, and have the extra money that is required, building-integrated photovoltaics can be a great solution.
Are you eligible for extra incentives? In some places, additional incentives are available for BIPV-systems in addition to the standard feed-in tariff/net metering, rebates and grants. Search DSIRE (Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency) to see which incentives apply where you live.
Although implementing building-integrated photovoltaics in the construction phase of a home makes more sense from a cost perspective, these systems can also be retrofitted into existing buildings.
Author: Mathias Maehlum, Energy Informative
References: [1] Business Wire.
Image credit: US Tile. The SOLÉ Solar Power Tile.


text: Knollwood Townhouse Apartments offers a variety of student housing options to meet your needs! At Knollwood Townhouse Apartments, you'll find quality living at affordable student rates. We offer special options to all technical school, college and university students. Our communities are convenient to Elon University and offer some of the best student choices, as described in the school pages below. To see our all of our affordable student options, visit our floor plans page, select "Apply Online Now" and choose "Yes! I am a student".


text:
Feeding Regimen For Our Dogs
When and how to feed our pets. We get asked on a daily basis questions regarding when and how to feed a dog or cat. Evidently there is a lot of misguidance regarding this topic so I thought it might
When and how to feed our pets.
We get asked on a daily basis questions regarding when and how to feed a dog or cat. Evidently there is a lot of misguidance regarding this topic so I thought it might be worth discussing.
There are basically three different methods of feeding. Free choice, time-controlled, or portion-controlled feeding. With each method there are advantages and disadvantages.
Obviously a dry kibble would be the best choice for free feeding. Allowing a pet to consume whatever he/she wants opens the door for over consumption and obesity. This method relies upon the animals ability to self regulate food intake. Free feeding requires the least amount of work and knowledge for the owner.
Similar to a free choice feeding regimen, time-controlled feeding relies on the pet's ability to regulate its daily energy intake. In this method the animal is exposed to food and allowed to eat for a predetermined amount of time. It is suggested that two meal feedings are preferred to eliminate hunger between meals. This can also eliminate begging and stealing food.
Portion controlled feeding is our feeding method of choice in most situations. This method allows the owner the greatest amount of control over the pet's diet. The one or several meals are presented in a premeasured amount to meet the pet's caloric requirement and nutrient needs. Providing this measured amount twice a day is again the preferred method. Portion -controlled feeding enables the owner to carefully monitor the pet's food consumption and immediately observe any changes in food intake or eating behavior. The pet's growth and weight can be strictly controlled with this method of feeding. The disadvantage of feeding this way is the time commitment and knowledge required on the part of the owner. We find that most of our raw feeding customers will be most satisfied using this method of feeding however, and they coordinate their meals with their own meals.
posted by Rob Mueller
What is BARF?
"BARF®" is our acronym that means Biologically Appropriate Raw Food. It is a complete and carefully balanced blend of raw meat, fruits, vegetables and bone. Our formula mimics what nature has designed our pet's to thrive on in the wild. The result is a pet free of allergies, digestive problems, and full of life!


text:
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Tountinna: Return of the Leinstermen
Summit Comment
a day ago
Having driven up to the summit of the Tountinna in poor weather conditions I felt compelled to come back on a fine day and follow the route mentioned by oldsoldier up by the Graves of the Leinster...
Coomura Mountain: Coomlougha Lough and Lough Reagh Aiguilles
Summit Comment
a day ago
A short video of this fantastic landscape:https://vimeo.com/user124043226/review/462430791/4e37cfef09
Cycle: Circuit of Carlingford Lough
Track 4379
2 weeks ago
Distance was 58k of which 4k was on a ferry - actual cycling time around 3 hours .... sometimes walking is too slow... cycle, Len: 2.8km, Climb: 197m, Area: Cooley/Gullion (Ireland) ||
Knockanore: An easy summit bag
Summit Comment
2 days ago
Having visited the only other summit in the North Kerry group, Maulin we then tackled the highest which is 265m tall and must be the easiest summit to bag!. Following the directions given in earli...
Mullaghcarn walk cancelled - apologies
Forum: General
2 days ago
Today's guided walk to Mullaghcarn as part of Feile Pheadair Joe 2020 has had to be cancelled because I am sick with a tummy bug and unfit to drive or walk. As it was intended as a place-names the...
Maulin Mountain: North Kerry panorama
Summit Comment
2 days ago
Having decided to visit all the summits in the North Kerry area listed in Mountainviews (yes-there are only 2!) on a fine late September day we started with the lower summit of Maulin at 217m. App...
Kirikee and Carriglineen, excellent viewpoints.
Track 4382
2 weeks ago
This is a fairly short walk starting from Glenmalure Lodge and taking in Kirikee and Carriglineen. Both of these ... walk, Len: 10.1km, Climb: 478m, Area: Kirikee Mountain, Dublin/Wicklow (Irelan|...
Nowen Hill SW Top: Sometimes the pain is worth the gain.
Summit Comment
3 days ago
It's not the most pleasant hike from Nowen Hill to here but it's a small price to pay for a great view.
Brockagh Mountain: Handy access to a good ridge walk
Summit Comment
3 days ago
Walked Brockagh ridge today with Tonelagee SE Top added. Parked at Glendalough and initially followed The Wicklow Way then forest tracks to a gate at T121 977. Through gate and ignored good track ...
The Hill of Uisneach
Track 4378
3 weeks ago
Photo of Information board located at visitor centre On 5th September 2020 I had the good luck and good sense to spe... walk, Len: 3.4km, Climb: 112m, Area: Uisneach, North Midlands (Ireland) Uisne||
An Ráth: Not as simple as the map suggests !
Summit Comment
6 days ago
Parked at the west at V 532570 there than followed a long struggle through bracken, brambles, gorse, elephant grass and holes in the ground until you get to the upper levels where the grass is sho...
Near Glencappul Top, Mangerton (Ireland)
Track 4377
3 weeks ago
walk, Len: 21.7km, Climb: 1680m, Area: Glencappul Top, Mangerton (Ireland) Glen...
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Video display
Mourne Mountains
More detail
Place count in area: 58,
OSI/LPS Maps: 20, 29
Highest place:
Slieve Donard, 849m
Maximum height for area: 849 metres,
Maximum prominence for area: 821 metres,
Places in area Mourne Mountains:
Ben Crom 526m
Butter Mountain 500m
Carn Mountain 585.2m
Carn Mountain North Top 553.7m
Chimney Rock Mountain 656m
Cock Mountain 504m
Cove Mountain 654.8m
Crenville 460m
Crossone 540m
Crotlieve Mountain 347m
Doan 592.6m
Eagle Mountain 638m
Finlieve 578m
Gruggandoo 382m
Hen Mountain 354m
Knockchree 306m
Knockiveagh 235m
Millstone Mountain 460m
Ott Mountain 526.8m
Pigeon Rock Mountain 534m
Pigeon Rock Mountain South Top 530m
Rocky Mountain 404m
Rocky Mountain 524m
Shanlieve 626m
Slieve Bearnagh 739m
Slieve Bearnagh North Tor 680m
Slieve Beg 595.9m
Slieve Binnian 745.9m
Slieve Binnian East Top 630m
Slieve Binnian North Top 678m
Slieve Binnian North Tor 670m
Slieve Commedagh 767m
Slieve Corragh 640m
Slieve Donard 849m
Slieve Loughshannagh 617m
Slieve Meelbeg 701.9m
Slieve Meelmore 687m
Slieve Muck 670.4m
Slieveacarnane 296m
Slievegarran 391m
Slievelamagan 702.2m
Slievemartin 485m
Slievemeel 420m
Slievemeen 472m
Slievemoughanmore 560m
Slievenaboley 324m
Slievenaglogh 586m
Slievenaglogh 445m
Slievenaglogh East Top 575m
Slievenalargy 280m
Slievenamiskan 444m
Slievenaslat 272m
Tievedockaragh 473m
Wee Binnian 460m
Wee Slievemoughan 428m
Slieve Croob:
Cratlieve 429m
Slieve Croob 534m
Slievenisky 446m
Note: this list of places includes island features such as summits, but not islands as such.
Centre on map.
Slieve Meelmore
Sliabh Míol Mór
A name in Irish
(Ir. Sliabh Míol Mór [PNNI], 'big mountain of the ants')
and in
, in
Arderin, Vandeleur-Lynam, Irish Highest Hundred
, Granite granophyre
OS 1:50k
Mapsheet: 29
Grid Reference:
Place visited by
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More detail
Longitude: -6.000668, Latitude: 54.189586
, Easting: 330594, Northing: 328702
Prominence: 109m
, Isolation: 0.8km
, GPS IDs, 6 char: SlvMlm, 10 char: SlvMlmr
Bedrock type: Granite granophyre, (Mourne Mountains granite)
A substantial tower has been built on the summit. The spot height is given as 704m on the 1:25,000 map, but this does not square with the contours, which only go up to 680m. Spellack (speilic, 'a splintery rock', probably ultimately derived from Latin spelunca, 'cave, den') is a spur on Slieve Meelmore. Slieve Meelmore is the 131st highest place in Ireland.
Linkback: https://mountainviews.ie/summit/138/
COMMENTS for Slieve Meelmore
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Picture from group : Slieves Meelbeg, Meelmore and Bearnagh from Doan
Slieves Meelbeg, Meelmore and Bearnagh from Doan
The impostor among the Seven Sevens
Short Summary created by Peter Walker 6 Sep 2017
The lower of the Meelmore/Meelbeg pairing, Slieve Meelmore has historically been one of the Seven Sevens based on the height listed on older maps. In the present day it is a steep-sided whaleback crossed by the Mourne Wall with some substantial crags overlooking the hollow of Pollaphuca on its eastern flank.
The most commonly used ascent is via the Trassey Track, starting from the road near the substantial car park at (
), following the track up to the dramatic col between Slieve Bearnagh and Meelmore. From here the summit is gained by a straightforward and steep ascent alongside the Mourne Wall.
One can also start from the picnic site further up the road (
), from here a path can be followed up the stream valley falling from the Meelmore/Meelbeg col. The stream guides the way once the path fades although the ground is rough and boggy, and the summit is easily gained following the wall from the col.
The views are unsurprisingly extensive, with the most dramatic feature being the adjacent monstrous peak of Slieve Bearnagh.
Linkback: https://mountainviews.ie/summit/138/comment/4898/
Picture from Bleck Cra
Meelmore Highs
Bleck Cra
3 Sep 2014
Meelmore is an odd critter. To all intents and purposes, she is fairly dull, although she can surprise you with postcard views along the ridge to Donard and in the winter, her Eastern flank is a glistening must. She is a big hill and so, inspired, the cartographer entitled her, "Meelmore". She is neighbour to the more ostentatious Bearnagh and sibling of her smaller sister - yup you got it: "Meelbeg".
Shall I relate a tale of explicitness from the outset? Of course I shall. Some balmy summers ago, I and the bumblebees were exploring this big warm earth mother. Atop Meelmore, there is (as on Donard) a somethingorother at the elbow of the wall, a stone structure with a roof and the smell of a bad pub. I was skirting this folly, enroute to Spellack, when I noticed that she, naked as God made her (and he certainly did) had him (pale, thin and nervous), pinned to said edifIce. As her, he was birthday bare other than his ankles, whose modesty was covered by his kecks. When he saw me, he drew said kecks up so hard they nearly came off over his head and then stood catatonic, with them up to his armpits, which as we all know only makes matters worse. She, was doing a kind of female Lee Evans: right no left no right no …. and so she stopped, like a child sprayed with freezing water: arms out and fingers flapping like skylark wings. Dull old Meelmore ……. and she addressed me through a meteor shower of giggles, squeals and snorts, "you should have bells on your feet". Clucked I in true Ulster disapproval "and you girl, should have bells on your toes." And so the shaky beginnings of the Meelmore High Club.
Linkback: https://mountainviews.ie/summit/138/comment/1327/
Your Score: Very useful <<
Picture from paulocon : Meelmore from Meelbeg
Meelmore from Meelbeg
A strange beast
14 May 2010
From some angles, it really is a strange beast.. kind of like a beached whale or the back of an elephant. Whatever it is, it had loads of people scurrying up, down and around it! For summit baggers, there are huge gains to be made with Carn, Loughshannagh, Meelbeg, Meelmore and Bearnagh so close to each other and the walking (with the exception of that climb up Bearnagh) pretty easy going.
As for that climb up Bearnagh! From Meelmore it looks impossibly steep, ridiculous even! Even glancing across at it was causing my legs to cramp so I decided to cross the wall and take a dander up to the summit proper of Meelmore to take my mind off the task ahead. That summit lies a hundred metres or so away from the watch-tower (what exactly was 'watched' from these towers?) and is marked with a cairn. My 'quiet time' at the top was interrupted by that rarest of creatures, a fell runner, and before I had time to raise my hand to salute him, he was off round the corner and was descending towards Bearnagh in what I can only describe as an uncontrolled and impossibly fast stumble.
I decided to stick to what I know best and slowly picked my way down across the rocks to the gap between Meelmore and Bearnagh before heading off up the ridiculous gradient..
Linkback: https://mountainviews.ie/summit/138/comment/4731/
Your Score: Very useful <<
The Seventh Seven?
23 Aug 2010
I have climbed Slieve Meelmore quite a few times now, including twice as part of the mis-named Mourne Seven Sevens event which takes place every summer. A Mourne Seven is any summit in the Mourne Mountains which is higher than 700m. There has clearly been some confusion about the height of this summit, and I'd like to clarify things once and for all. Some previous editions of the old OSNI 1:25,000 Mourne Country Outdoor Pursuits Map show a spot height of 704m at the stone tower located at the corner of the Mourne Wall which crosses the summit. Contours are shown on the map at 10m intervals and the highest contour on Slieve Meelmore has a value of 680m - there is neither a 690m nor a 700m contour shown on this summit. The stone tower is no more than four or five metres tall, therefore the top of the tower can't possibly be any higher than 695m. The actual summit of Slieve Meelmore is located at a cairn beside the wall about 200m south of the tower - still below the 690m contour. It is quite clear that the 704m spot level was a typo which appeared in one of the earlier editions of the Mourne map and escaped correction for a few years. The Mourne Country Outdoor Pursuits Map has since been replaced by the Mourne Activity Map, which shows a more accurate spot height of 687m at the summit cairn - the highest contour on Slieve Meelmore remains to be the 680m. I have also taken a GPS elevation reading of 685m at the summit with an accuracy of 6m. When the Mourne Seven Sevens event was first organised, the map showed seven summits - including Slieve Meelmore - with heights of more than 700m. To this day, the organisers still state that all heights are taken from the 1990 edition of the map - despite the fact that a corrected version has since become available. Unfortunately, this summit doesn't qualify as the Mournes Seventh Seven - there are only six Sevens - however it does offer great views and is well worth a visit. Also, although the summit of Slieve Meelmore is lower than that of Slieve Meelbeg, the name refers to its larger volume.
Linkback: https://mountainviews.ie/summit/138/comment/6044/
Your Score: Very useful <<
Picture from fatredline
short hike but amazing
7 Jul 2014
Bypassed Newcastle for this one headed toward tullymore forest park then the mourne high scenic route which is on the left further on up the road there's a car park near fofanny dam its on the mourne activity map my new found bible I think the route goes through some private land but its easily enough navigated just walk your way up to the mourne wall you can see it from the car park near enough and follow left once u get near the top there's some great views of Ben Crom reservoir there is also some tough gradients to the summit very rocky but totally worth the view into the mournes from the east got caught out in a hail and thunder on the way down was my first experience of a mountain storm.
Linkback: https://mountainviews.ie/summit/138/comment/17541/
Your Score: Very useful <<
Happy Valley Hike
22 Aug 2010
I climbed this mountain today for the 4th time, but decided to approach it from different angle. Started off from the Happy Valley car park (
) and followed the path, beside a lovely stream up to the Mourne wall at the saddle between Slieve Meelmore and Meelbeg. Before the saddle, the wall from the Happy Valley car park turns sharply left. It is possible to climb the mountain by following the wall. However, the gradient is quite steep and, more importantly, one does not get the decent view towards Ben Crom, Binnian and Lamagan instantly. So, upon reaching the wall, we crossed the stile and turned left towards Meelmore. For anyone thinking about this route for the first time, don't forget to turn around and enjoy the views towards Doan, Silent Valley and Knockchree. Upon reaching the summit nice views were to be had towards Slieve Bernagh, Brandy pad, Commedagh and Donard. Above all, the view towards Lough Island Reavy Reservoir is stunning from Slieve Meelmore. I think Slieve Meelmore is probably the best mountain in the Mournes to study the reservoir from. Returned back the way we came. 5km walk in total.
Linkback: https://mountainviews.ie/summit/138/comment/6041/
Your Score: Very useful <<
COMMENTS for Slieve Meelmore
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(End of comment section for Slieve Meelmore.)
Some mapping:
Open Street Map
(Various variations used.)
British summit data courtesy:
Database of British & Irish Hills
(Creative Commons Licence)
MountainViews.ie, a Hill-walking Website for the island of Ireland. 2100 Summiteers, 1400 Contributors, Monthly Newsletter since 2007


text:
Several years back, I had a different, older account that got banned. On the ban page, it had a link to email for any questions. So, I emailed several times. Upon having all of the emails returned due to the address being dead, I thought nothing else of it and left the game.
Fast forward to this year. I downloaded TMNF from Steam, and having a few questions about the game, I returned to this site. My old account is still banned, and the email address is still dead.
Is there any way to get ahold of a site administrator to try and resolve the issues that got my old account banned?
Administrator help
Any problem ? Don't panic! We have the solution !
Moderator: TM-Patrol
Post Reply
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- CarlTheSmokingCrab
- highway camper
- Posts: 1
- Joined: 05 May 2017 22:20
- Owned TM-games: TMNF
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text:
Did you know that you can visit an underground museum in Athens with replicas of the famous sculptures of Parthenon, Athenian amphoras, ancient toys, funeral monuments and parts of one of the oldest bridges found in Attica? The exhibition of antiquities found in the Athens metro rail area is open to the public and free of charge. In order to visit it, simply board the next train and make a quick stop at the following stations:
Syntagma (blue line)
You can start your journey by taking a good look at the stratigraphy of Athens, covering a period from the early 5th century B.C. till the Ottoman times, which is exhibited at Syntagma Station. You will also see the skeleton of a young lady who lived in the 4th century B.C. lying in her tomb between layers of soil. In addition, there are displays with pipes of the ancient water supply and sanitation system of Athens, lamps, funerary monuments and a small part of a mosaic floor in an ancient house found next to the metro station.
Monastiraki (blue line)
At Monastiraki station, the huge photograph of an underground tunnel full of pottery fragments will give you a picture of the archaeological treasures found during the metro underground digging works. If you are travelling towards Kifissia, don't miss the riverbed of Iridanos. Iridanos is one of the three ancient rivers of Attica, with a continuous flow through the Attican basin to the present day. According to the myth, this is where Phaethon, the son of god Helios [Sun], fell when he was struck off his father's chariot, by Zeus' lightning.
Elaionas (blue line)
Make a quick stop in order to admire the remains of the oldest bridge found in Attica. The three pillars of the ancient bridge of Kifissos river date from as far back as the 5th and 6th century B.C.
Aigaleo (blue line)
Walking around the metro corridors, you will discover ancient objects of everyday use, such as pottery, lamps, figurines, loom weights and offerings which were placed by the dead on their final journey. The model of a horse's skeleton stands out, and the position of its head reveals a desperate attempt to be saved from the flooded Kifissos River. In addition, you can visit the remaining parts of the sacred path of Iera Odos and of a nearby cemetery.
Acropoli (red line)
Walking along the metro platforms you will admire the replicas of the Parthenon frieze created by the great sculptor Pheidias. The main subject of the frieze is the procession of Panathinaea, the city's most important festival in honour of the goddess Athena. Young riders proceeding at a galloping pace or preparing themselves for the grand procession will keep you company while you are waiting for the next train.
Up the escalators, on your way out of the station, take some time to visit the small exhibition of items of everyday use. You will see ancient toys for children, amphoras for the transportation and storage of olive oil and wine, a model of a vertical greek loom and fragments of pottery, which include an Athenian amphora given as a prize to one of the winners of the Panathenaic Games.
Finally, heading towards the exit, you will see replicas of the sculptures of the east pediment of the Parthenon which represent the birth of Athena out of the head of Zeus. You can see god Helios on his chariot rising from the waves, god Dionysus, Demeter with her daughter Persephone and the beautiful Hebe or Artemis.
Other stations
You can see parts of the Athens water system built by Peisistratos at Evangelismos station (blue line). The remains of some rural settlements are on display in Dafni station (red line) and tomb findings can be seen at Panepistimio station (red line).
Tip: The biggest excavation programme ever accomplished in Greece was during the construction of Athens metropolitan railway (1993-2000). More than 50.000 findings came to light during the metro underground digging works.
Looking for the metro plan? Just a click away
Visitgreece.gr is the official tourism web site for Greece, run by the Greek National Tourism Organisation, where you'll find information on the main tourist destinations, such as cities, beaches, as well as activities, events and much more!
All content included on this site consists intellectual property of GNTO and you are not allowed to reproduce the whole or part of this work in any way.
For information please contact: email@example.com. All Rights Reserved. GNTO © 2020.


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VIDEO DOWNLOAD - Danny Doring Shoot Interview
Everyone at RF VIDEO is excited to announce a brand new shoot interview that was more fun and entertaining than anything that we had expected! This person has never done a shoot interview and promised us that he would hold absolutely nothing back and come out firing with both guns blazing. He was one half of the final ECW Tag Team Champions. A graduate of the legendary ECW House of Hardcore. Part of both the original ECW and the WWE-run version. We are talking about none other than Danny Doring!!
Trained by Taz, Bubba Ray Dudley and Perry Saturn, Doring earned his stripes at the House of Hardcore and quickly made his way to the main ECW roster in 97. Dorings original gimmick was that of a wrestler who used extremely non-exciting holds and refused to do high flying moves due to vertigo. An instant heat magnate, Doring convinced himself and his cult fanbase that when the chorus of boring went throughout the arena everyone was really chanting Doring!
Dorings most famous gimmick was that of a womanizer and tag team partner of fellow House of Hardcore graduate Roadkill. The two were wrestlings original Odd Couple and were originally managed by Miss Congeniality until she went on to later fame in WWE as Lita. Roadkill and Doring quickly became one of ECWs most talked about tag teams and ended up as the last tag team champions the company ever had. In fact, history will note that Doring and Roadkill were permitted to keep their title belts in lieu of the fees they were owed during ECWs bankruptcy. Only in wrestling folks!
After ECW, Doring went onto the indy scene, worked Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, and then went back to ECW when McMahon introduced v2.0. Our THREE HOUR interview with Danny was beyond amazing and we got so many wonderful backstage stories. Doring gave his uncensored view of Paul Heyman and why he believed Heyman hated him to the point of working against Doring in WWEs version of ECW. We got the rat stories you all love. Crazy drug stories. Hilarious rib stories. You will get an inside look at the old ECW locker room like you never have before. A guy that has traveled with Raven and Sandman along with partying with all the big names in ECW has seen and done it all, and lived to tell about it! You will hear about all the wrestlers who had heat with Doring and Nova, including an especially interesting story that involves Jasmine St. Claire and the Blue Meanie which went all the way to the ECW One Night Stand PPV.
From putting up the ring to working all the big shows, Doring has had his hands in every part of the original ECW and gave us tons of info that was just incredible. If you liked Forever Hardcore or the Rise and Fall of ECW, then this is a video for you as Doring gives an even greater depth and appreciation to a company that literally changed wrestling forever. This is yet another RF VIDEO exclusive that you will not want to miss!
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About HKTDC | Media Room | Contact HKTDC | Register Now | MyHKTDC | Fair Site Map | Login Logout 繁體|简体
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Come visit the HKTDC SME Centre located at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.
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text:
Boy faces murder charge in neo-Nazi dad's death
RIVERSIDE, Calif. (AP) -- Nearly two years after a neo-Nazi leader was gunned down at point-blank while sleeping on his sofa, his son -- who was 10 at the time of the killing -- is going on trial for murder.
Prosecutors want a judge hearing opening statements Tuesday to rule after the proceedings that the boy, now 12, murdered Jeff Hall, an out-of-work plumber who as regional leader of the National Socialist Movement headed rallies at a synagogue and a day labor site.
The boy told police he pulled a .357-Magnum from a closet and aimed it at Hall's ear and pulled the trigger before running upstairs and hiding the weapon, according to court papers.
"He decided, as he put it, it was time to end the father-son thing," said Michael Soccio, chief deputy district attorney. "This child started at five years old being expelled from school for violence. ... His violence started way before his dad ever joined any Nazi party."
Soccio, citing a history of violent behavior including choking a teacher with a telephone cord, wants to keep him locked up as long as possible. If held responsible, the boy would become the youngest person currently in the custody of the state's corrections department.
The boy's public defender, Matthew Hardy, did not immediately return calls for comment.
Hardy told the New York Times his client has neurological and psychological problems and was exposed to neo-Nazi "conditioning" at home.
"He's been conditioned to violence," Hardy told the newspaper. "You have to ask yourself: Did this kid really know that this act was wrong based on all those things?"
The Associated Press is not identifying the boy -- who is not charged as an adult -- because of his age.
Hall, 32, who said he believed in a white breakaway nation, ran for a seat on the local water board in 2010 in a move that disturbed many residents in the recession-battered suburbs southeast of Los Angeles. The day before his death, he held a meeting of the neo-Nazi group at his home.
Hall had previously taken the boy -- his oldest of five children -- on a U.S.-Mexico border patrol trip and showed him how to use a gun, according to papers filed by police against the boy's stepmother alleging child endangerment and criminal storage of a gun.
Last year, the boy told investigators he went downstairs and shot his father before returning upstairs and hiding the gun under his bed, according to court documents. He told authorities he thought his father was going to leave his stepmother, and he didn't want the family to split up, Soccio said.
The boy's stepmother told authorities that Hall had hit, kicked and yelled at his son for being too loud or getting in the way. Hall and the boy's biological mother had previously slugged through a divorce and custody dispute in which each had accused the other of child abuse.
Kathleen M. Heide, a professor at the University of South Florida in Tampa who wrote "Why Kids Kill Parents," said children 10 and under rarely kill their parents and that only 16 such cases were documented between 1996 and 2007. Heide also said parenting and home life would undoubtedly play a role in the case.
"It would be inaccurate to say who the child's parents are is superfluous," she said. "That is going to have an effect on how the child grows up, on the values that child learns, on problem solving abilities, so all of that is relevant."
If a judge finds the boy murdered Hall, he could be held in state custody until he is 23 years old, said Bill Sessa, spokesman for California's Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
The state currently houses fewer than 900 juveniles.
"We don't have anybody that young," Sessa said. "We have had 12-year-olds in the past, but it's rare."


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FAQ Publisher Guide
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FAQ Index | Beginner's Reference Guide | Admin | Interface | Technical | ShopWindow | ShopWindow Coding FAQ | WikiWindow FAQ
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A merchant (retailer) is an online company who sell their products and/or services through an Affiliate Network. The merchant will pay a percentage/set amount once a transaction has completed. To find out more information on what merchants will pay - please visit the Join Merchants in your Affiliate Account.
What is an affiliate?
An affiliate (also known as a publisher or advertiser) is somebody whose purpose is to drive traffic to a merchant. They can do this by featuring the banners, text links or products of a merchant on their site.
How do Affiliates make money
If a user is browsing on an affiliates site, sees a product they like and clicks on the link (which takes them through to the merchant page) the affiliate will not be paid.
If however, the user then purchases this product, the affiliate will be paid as they have provided the merchant with a customer.
What Kind of Affiliate am I?
True Content
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Blogs are usually online diaries. They vary in content and will usually put links to products that they are 'blogging' about.
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E-mail marketing affiliates collect e-mail addresses that are interested in a particular area and send them details of offers/deals they think the database of users will be interested in.
Price Comparison
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Social network affiliates are primarily used for socialising with friends but sometimes they have banners or applications that encourage users to shop.
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PPC affiliates promote merchants via search engines such as google. PPC stands for Pay Per Click, so a PPC affiliate pays the search engine each time a user clicks on their link.
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Where to ask questions


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Nebraska students compete in State Robotics Championship
More than 100 teams compete at Omaha North High Magnet School
The Nebraska State Robotics Championship drew hundreds of middle and high school students to Omaha North High Magnet School.
Taking on missions such as getting as many rubber balls into a score zone as possible, more than 100 teams competed.
Maddie Sutula, a junior at Omaha North High Magnet School, and her team have been training for months. She won the state tournament last year and even went to the world championship.
"It's an amazing feeling to be able to work with a group of people like this and actually build and design our own robots," Sutula said. "It's an incredible opportunity."
Sutula was one of only a few girls competing in the tournament.
"I feel like we're almost pioneers in the field with robotics because we're showing this is something anyone can do. You don't have to be a guy to do this," she said.
The science of computer coding and robotics takes trial and error. Neil Runyon, a volunteer referee, said he has seen the students' talent and hard work shine.
"I've seen teams out here that are doing the math behind the programming, doing the math behind the angles they want," Runyon said.
Students built their robots to work like a human body with a central processing unit that works like a brain.
"You want to learn tactics and strategies, and learn from other people who have been out there doing it longer than me, maybe," said Rashaan Yapp, a sixth-grader from St. Cecilia at his first state championship.
Yapp's teammate is in eighth grade and has experience.
"I've learned a lot from last year, so we want to turn it on to the next generation, Rashaan, because I'm not going to be here next year. I'm going to be at prep," Gabe Schlaebitz said.
The competitors share a love for engineering, math and science, as well as learning about teamwork and creativity.
Winners will go to April's world championship in Anaheim, Calif.
Some of the awards also include scholarships.


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On Thursday, our kids table will be filled with four young ladies. Three of the girls are our good friends and neighbors. The fourth is my 19 month old daughter. Since they all are VIP's in my world, I wanted to do something fun for their Thanksgiving table.
At first, I couldn't get these adorable owls from Rock Scissor Paper out of my head.
Then, I saw these cute turkey shirts from my friend Christy Wing. They are available through her store, the Shining Wings Boutique.
Of course! Turkey. It is Thanksgiving after all. With those two images in mind, I made turkey placemats using each one of the girl's favorite colors.
The youngest is Pretty in Pink.
The middle daughter's favorite color is purple. She even has purple glasses which I must tell you, are fabulous.
The oldest daughter loves blue.
And my daughter doesn't have a favorite color yet, so I picked her pattens in yellow and green.
I used clear glass plates so you could still see the turkey faces. (I may rethink the grape juice with the white tablecloth!)
Each girl will have a different deck of cards to keep them entertained.
The full place setting looks like this. Ready for mashed potatoes!
I added a centerpiece with walnuts and a flag in each color.
The final table ended up looking like this. I hope the girls enjoy it!
How is your Thanksgiving planning going? Are you packing up for a trip? Vacuuming the guest room? Today I'll be trying to beat the crowds at the grocery store. Let's hope there's a nice bird waiting for me.


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These Jet Black Czech Crystal Ball Beads come 2 crystal beads to a package, and are 12 mm in size. Czech Beads add an unique presence to chains, bead strands, earrings, and more. Crystal Ball Beads can be used with Glass Beads, or Metal Beads, or any other beads, to create multiple beaded craft projects.
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i joined the team today. hope my week four scores don't hurt too much. i went with a sally boot in all my pools.
This is one of the reasons I dropped out of this game last time Rudy , I guess no bonus points this week ..well thats if the game ever even unlocks. :cocky:
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Local plan on Grand Island vets home criticized
Gov. Dave Heineman says a local proposal to renovate the Grand Island Veterans Home rather than build a replacement home in Kearney could jeopardize federal funding.
The governor told a meeting of Buffalo County Republicans on Monday that he feared the proposal could create confusion at the federal level.
Nebraska officials have awarded the $121 million veterans home project to Kearney to replace the outdated Grand Island facility. But some Grand Island and Hall County officials and residents have criticized the bidding process and decried the relocation of the veterans.
The local proposal sent Sep. 26 to Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki in Washington suggests a $75 million renovation of the Grand Island campus.
The governor says Grand Island officials favored building a replacement until they didn't win the bidding.


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My motorcycle kit has:
2 packs of quick-clot
3' of surgical tubing (powdered, in a Ziploc, so it doesn't stick to itself)
1 small roll of gauze
1 roll of tape
3 chemical light sticks
1 large plastic trash bag
1 single-edge razor blade
1 mylar "space blanket"
I also carry a flashlight all the time, so it's technically not part of the kit.
The contents of the kit were decided on after extensive thought about the situations I might encounter. Spurting blood - quick clot, then the tourniquet if it comes down to that. Gauze to cover an eye socket or for "feel-good" over cuts. Trash bag and tape to cover a sucking chest wound or exposed intestines. Razor blade to cut away clothing and cut tape or plastic.
Space blanket to help deal with shock, cold weather, coverage from rain, and visibility to find the injured person again.
Light sticks - one for the injured person, two to mark the crash site so I and/or an ambulance can find it.
For a motorcycle crash, my thought is that other than stanching spurting blood, or a sucking chest wound, there's not a whole lot I can do. So the plan is to deal with that to keep them alive, then (worst case, I'm the only person available) I mark the site and ride off for help. Cold, dark, and rain are also likely factors.
Dressings and gauze aren't very useful; any wounds are probably going to be dirty to start with, and the EMTs will cut them off as soon as they arrive. The only reason I have the small roll of gauze is that people tend to pick at things that are hanging out that shouldn't be; covering them can prevent additional damage.
With the incidence of contagious diseases being so high nowadays, you'd better hope someone else shows up who knows CPR, because I ain't gonna. I'll do the obsolete style that depended entirely on chest compressions if I need to.
The last time I was at a crash there was no phone service, so I had to stop motorists and send them off for help. I wound up staying with the guy who wrecked. (he lost a leg to a road sign) Send three or four people, preferably in different directions. If there are no people around, you'll have to do the best you can and then go off for help on your own.
Snakebite isn't something you normally have to worry about on a motorcycle, but if you're in the woods it would be important to have a snakebite kit. If you're going to be out for days you'll probably want tools to remove splinters or objects left in puncture wounds, and maybe a needle and thread to sew up gaping wounds.


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Oil Market Update (January 22, 2013)
A brief overview of oil price developments, supply and demand and significant market movers.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) confirmed that price pressures on the international oil market have suddenly tightened, mainly as a result of unexpectedly strong demand data in the US and China in the fourth quarter of 2012, Arab News reported.
"[P]olitical risk writ large, and not just in Syria, Iran, Iraq, Libya or Venezuela," is now a dominant factor in the global energy market, the IEA also noted.
In addition, the agency raised its forecast for global oil demand this year from its estimate last month. It now predicts demand of 90.8 million barrels per day — 1 percent more than in 2012.
By early afternoon on Monday, West Texas Intermediate crude for February delivery was down 14 cents, at $95.42 a barrel, in trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Brent crude fell 14 cents, hitting $111.75 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange in London.
Energy trade group American Petroleum Institute (API) is forecasting a mixed bag for the nation's oil economy as while production is surging, the overall economy is putting a drag on demand. It stated in a press release that petroleum deliveries were down 2 percent in 2012 compared to 2011 and noted that year-on-year declines in deliveries were seen in every month last year except May.
The API also stated that oil production in the US reached a 15-year high in 2012 — an average of 6.4 million barrels per day. It said the 13.8-percent increase in oil production, when compared to 2011, is the highest annual increase in more than 150 years.
Meanwhile, API's chief economist, John Felmy, said 2012 was a mixed year for oil markets.
"The production bright spot reflects an industry investing and hiring at high rates, which significantly contributed to rising U.S. employment," he commented. "Yet, demand was worse in 2012 than when the economy bottomed out in the recession."
Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall and 10 US governors sent a joint letter to President Barack Obama urging him to approve the Keystone XL Pipeline project.
In the letter, sent to the president on the eve of his inauguration, the premier and governors note that the pipeline is "fundamentally important to the future economic prosperity of both the United States and Canada."
"We need greater pipeline capacity to move the oil – Canadian and American – that is vital to our shared goal of North American energy security," said Wall in a press release.
The president is expected to rule on a revised application by TransCanada (TSX:TRP,NYSE:TRP) in the first quarter of 2013.
A report from Israeli news agency Haaretz states that Israel has made a deal with South Sudan to purchase oil.
South Sudan's petroleum and mining minister, Dhieu Dau, announced the deal last week after returning from Israel, where he met with government officials.
Reports have not yet outlined which, if any, Israeli companies may be involved in developing oil projects, and there has not been any indication of how oil will be transported to Israel. South Sudan is landlocked, with the majority of oil exports going through a pipeline at Port Sudan. It is not clear if Sudan will allow tankers bound for Israel to dock at the port.
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Pfizer to seek demolition permit for building it is trying to sell
Groton — Pfizer Inc.'s announcement Wednesday that it will apply for permits to pave the way for demolishing its original research headquarters off Eastern Point Road left some officials scratching their heads about whether the company is serious about marketing its property.
"It potentially sends a very wrong message," Town Manager Mark Oefinger said. "I don't believe this is a fait accompli (an irreversible decision), but it is going to be interpreted by some people that it is a fait accompli."
The New York-based pharmaceutical giant told employees in Groton Wednesday that it has started the process of applying for permits to demolish the 750,000-square-foot Building 118 complex, but officials said they still hope to market the property.
"Pfizer continues to work toward investing in science by reducing its operating costs, including consolidating its global footprint," the company said in a statement released Wednesday. "Pfizer continues to aggressively market the space, and plans to make a decision regarding the future of the 118 Complex by the end of 2012."
Taking Pfizer's first local R&D headquarters off the town's tax rolls would cost Groton about $2.15 million. Oefinger said the demolition of the seven-building complex would result in roughly a half-mill tax increase for property owners.
"There is a lot of work going on behind the scenes to see if there is a potential reuse for these buildings," Oefinger said.
Last month, Catherine Smith, commissioner of the Department of Economic and Community Development, met with various parties at the Mystic Marriott to see whether they could come up with a plan to reuse any of the four buildings Pfizer currently has on the market for sale or lease. Pfizer already has demolished one building on its campus that was on the market for nearly a year.
Oefinger said he doesn't believe Pfizer has invested in any sort of analysis of what kinds of changes in Building 118 could attract another company. Industry downsizing and the resulting glut of lab space around the world has made marketing the building as it is currently configured difficult, he said.
"These buildings have to be worth something," Oefinger said. "It would cost a small fortune to duplicate."
No specific time line was given for a final decision on the demolition of Building 118, an architecturally significant laboratory and office building highlighted by a glass atrium. The building at one time accommodated about 400 employees, but has been largely vacated by Pfizer in a cost-cutting move as the company completed over the past year and a half a workforce reduction locally of about 1,100.
Groton City Mayor Marian Galbraith said Pfizer was pulling the permits now to avoid a delay if and when it makes a final decision to demolish Building 118, but officials are still working with the company to market the property.
"We understand this is a fallback for them," Galbraith said.
Oefinger said he expressed his opinions about the timing of the announcement to Pfizer officials Wednesday morning during a regular weekly conference call. He added that the decision to prepare for demolition may be just good planning, but the public announcement would seem to negate any marketing efforts for the property.
"What I don't understand is how this could be received by the general population out in the community," he said. "It probably quickens our step, but it also gives us a little bit of pause about how we explain this to people."
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John's Note: The following is a guest post by Mark Segal talking about the recently announced ACO program and it's relationship to EHR, meaningful use, and healthcare IT. I also love the insider look at rule making.
The long-awaited proposed rule on Medicare's Shared Savings Program (SSP)/Accountable Care Organization (ACO) program is out. These 429 pages outline how the Administration plans to transform U.S. health care delivery from fee-for-service to a value-based emphasis on accountability for quality and efficiency of care provided for populations. Following a final rule later this year, the program is to start January 1, 2012, with additional January 1 annual starts by ACOs, and a special optional start possible for July 1, 2012 given the tight timing this year.
CMS solicits comments on program design areas. The final rule will certainly track the proposed rule in key aspects, but there could be important changes based on comments – although revisions must be within the scope of proposed rule options because CMS cannot add new concepts in the final rule.
Care coordination, patient centeredness and evidence-based medicine are major priorities. As expected, therefore, health information technology (HIT) and electronic health records (EHRs) will be central to ACO success. In some cases, HIT is cited explicitly; for example at least 50 percent of ACO primary care physicians must be meaningful users of EHRs in an ACO's second year.
In other cases, CMS, focusing on patient engagement, care coordination, and care transitions, highlights HIT capabilities an ACO should address in its SSP application. For example, CMS calls out using EHRs and health information exchange (HIE) to send care summaries at care transitions. In addition, CMS flags HIT areas like telehealth and remote monitoring, evidence-based medicine, and measuring physician performance across practices and using measurements to improve care and service. Also, HIT will be central to the need to report on and achieve desired levels (after year one) of many of the 65 quality measures. For example, HIT could help reduce levels of healthcare-acquired conditions.
CMS's HIT approach is non-prescriptive. An ACO must address, in its application, how it would address such requirements as care coordination (including use of HIT) but CMS does not dictate technology tools or specific features. Fundamentally, CMS is outcomes-focused, looking at up-front plans and then focusing on ACO ability to meet quality metrics and overall efficiency goals. Such flexibility contrasts with meaningful use, which is highly prescriptive. ACOs will have flexibility to design and deploy their HIT strategies. Overall, such flexibility should also be considered as the HIT Policy Committee, ONC and CMS consider requirements for Stage 2 of meaningful use, especially for newer areas of HIT use.
Finally, of concern, and relevant also to the need for multi-year meaningful use roadmaps, CMS reserves the right to annually change the SSP during three-year ACO agreements. Although CMS excludes some areas from such annual changes, this uncertainty is worrisome given the substantial investments and organizational changes that must be made by ACOs. Three years is a blink of the eye in care transformation; ACOs need regulatory stability and predictability to plan and invest with confidence and to succeed at the change management that will underlie ACO success.
So read carefully and submit timely comments!
Mark Segal is the vice president of government and industry affairs at GE Healthcare IT.


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Reports of sexual assaults at the Naval Academy doubled last year, the fourth straight year the number has increased, according to the Defense Department.
But do the findings of the Pentagon report on sexual harassment and assaults mean that such incidents are on the rise in Annapolis? Or do they show that midshipmen have grown more aware of sexual assault and are more likely to report it to authorities?
Academy officials and critics alike hope it's the latter — but say it is impossible to know for certain.
The report released recently by the Defense Department's Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office underscores a key difficulty confronting officials as they tackle a problem that has long vexed the service academies and the military as a whole.
While studies and surveys on sexual violence within the ranks have contributed to a growing body of information, neither critics nor officials believe they capture all of the incidents taking place.
Twenty-two assaults were reported at the Naval Academy during the 2010-2011 academic year, double the 11 reported the year before.
But the number of midshipmen subjected to unwanted sexual contact — defined as ranging from unwelcome touching of "sexually related areas of the body" to attempted or completed intercourse — is believed to be much higher.
The Defense Manpower Data Center estimated last year that 271 midshipmen had experienced such contact in 2009-2010, the last year for which data were available.
While the new Pentagon report does not give details of the 22 assaults, the time period it covers would include the case of Patrick Edmond, the second-year midshipman who was found guilty in September of raping a female midshipman in her dorm room in October 2010 and lying to military officials.
Edmond was dismissed from the Navy and sentenced to six months in a military prison. His was the first court-martial for sexual assault at the academy since 2008.
Cmdr. Lynn Acheson took over sexual assault education and response efforts at the academy last year as the number of assaults reported there was doubling. She cannot say whether the actual number of attacks there is increasing or declining.
"I have no way of knowing, because if somebody doesn't come forward and tell me, for whatever reason — and there are probably lots of them — I don't know, because they're not saying anything."
Acheson sees a couple of factors leading to increased reports. First, she says, the midshipmen "understand much better now what constitutes unwanted sexual contact and sexual harassment."
"Two," she adds, "I think they've seen the system work. And they feel comfortable coming into my office knowing that we're going to, to the absolute extent possible, maintain their privacy and the confidentiality and get them the help they need to work through this."
The number of sexual assaults reported within the 4,600-member Brigade of Midshipmen has climbed in each of the past four years. After a recent low of five reports in 2006-2007, there were six in 2007-2008, eight in 2008-2009, 11 in 2009-2010 and 22 in 2010-2011.
The number of midshipmen estimated to have experienced unwanted sexual contact also is growing. The 271 estimated in the Defense Manpower Data Center's 2010 Service Academy Gender Relations Survey was up from 155 in 2007-08, which was up from 113 in 2005-2006.
More than 16 percent of female midshipmen said they had experienced such contact in 2009-2010. Of those, 99 percent said the offender was male, and 90 percent said the offender was a fellow midshipman.
Only 8 percent of the women said they had reported the incident to a military authority or organization.
The report says they gave several reasons for keeping the incident to themselves: feelings of discomfort, shame and embarrassment; doubts that their report would be kept confidential; fears of gossip and damage to their reputations; and concerns about the impact a report would have on their careers.
At least one critic suggests another reason. Greg Jacobs, policy director for the New York-based Service Women's Action Network, says punishments for sexual assault at the academy are insufficient.
Of the seven cases described in the Pentagon report, four ended with some sort of sanction.
The case of a fourth-year midshipman accused of raping a female classmate on academy grounds ended with his dismissal from the academy. A first-year midshipman accused of aggravated sexual assault of a second-year female midshipman was allowed to withdraw from the academy voluntarily.
A prospective applicant who was accused of aggravated sexual assault of a first-year female midshipman on academy grounds was not considered for admission. An ensign accused of aggravated sexual assault of a third-year female midshipman was found guilty of conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman and issued a letter of reprimand.
"So here you have people that have perpetrated crimes, they've been arrested, they've gone through a judicial process and they come out the other end just simply either being kicked out of the school or giving them bad paper," Jacobs said.
Academy spokeswoman Deborah Goode said in a statement that the academy is "very aggressive" in prosecuting sexual assaults — "even more so than civilian authorities," she said, "because of the impact of this crime on unit cohesion, discipline and mission effectiveness.
"In the civilian court system," Goode said, "most of those cases would never have gone to trial and would have been dismissed with no punishment whatsoever, so the sheer number of cases is evidence of our serious commitment to deterring criminal activity."
The academy established the Sexual Harassment and Assault Prevention Education program, or SHAPE, amid a rash of high-profile cases in the mid-2000s. Starting with Plebe Summer, midshipmen receive briefings, guest speakers and peer-led sessions tied to the academy's leadership, ethics and law curriculum, which continues throughout their four years in Annapolis.
"We teach them to be on the lookout, what are the danger signals you might see from somebody that might be a sexual predator," said Acheson, who heads a five-person office as the academy's sexual assault response coordinator. "Help them identify risky behavior and how to go out in a group with friends, keep an eye on, be an active bystander, if you see somebody you know, or even don't know, that looks like they might be getting in trouble."
Acheson, who came to the academy straight from commanding the guided missile destroyer USS Gonzalez, said the effort is aimed not only at reducing incidents at Annapolis, but at preparing midshipmen for their careers as Navy and Marine Corps officers.
"When they get out in the fleet, they may have to deal with something like this right away," she said. "They report on board that ship or that squadron and a young seaman or somebody who works for them comes up and says, 'Ma'am or sir, I need to talk to you,' they have some idea of what's going on and are able to deal with this correctly."
The Pentagon report found the academy to be in compliance with three Defense Department priorities — institutionalizing prevention strategies, increasing victim confidence in reporting and improving accountability — and in partial compliance with a fourth: improving response to sexual assault.
On the last priority, the report's authors described the academy's sexual assault prevention and response staff as "dynamic" and "well-organized," and said the academy had developed a "careful, considerate approach to victim support."
But they said staff with the Midshipman Development Center, which provides clinical services to the brigade, needed to be made aware of their duty to report sexual assaults disclosed during treatment. And they said the academy should improve the "challenging and time-consuming process" for obtaining sexual assault forensic examinations.
They described the experience of a midshipman who was made to wait at a local hospital for four hours before being told that no one was available to conduct the examination. Earlier reports documented waits of nine hours and visits to multiple locations to obtain an examination.
"Given recent budget cuts in the civilian community," they write, the academy "must identify a solution for reliable, expedient" examinations.
Lisae Jordan read the passage with interest.
"That's an important issue that we need to address, but I don't think it's exclusive to the Naval Academy — I think that's in Maryland generally," said Jordan, general counsel of the Maryland Coalition Against Sexual Assault.
The coalition is the umbrella organization of the state's rape crisis centers, which offer services to midshipmen and other military members as well as civilians. Jordan says the organization gets occasional referrals and questions from the Naval Academy — "and we can also reach out to them when we have questions."
Jordan said her reaction to the report was mixed.
"On the one hand they have started some interesting programs, they're involving peers, they're doing prevention training, and they certainly have some expert staff and expert consultants," she said. "At the same time, it's an enormous increase … in the number of reported sexual assaults."
Acheson said she is reviewing the report. She said much of it meshes with her own review of the program as she found it when she arrived, and that her office has been working on the challenges the authors identified.
"I'm always looking for new ways to get the message across to the midshipmen," she said. "Try out new ideas and just make the program better than it already is. ... I don't want to get stale here."