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In the latest update of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ published on 19 June, France ranks 5th in the world for hosting the largest number of endangered plant and animal species. Most of these species are located in the French overseas territories. With 983 globally threatened species, France has a major responsibility at global and European level to fight against biodiversity loss.
The main threats to species are degradation of natural habitats, overfishing, invasive species, pollution and climate change. France comes after Ecuador, Malaysia, USA and Indonesia, and ahead of Mexico, India, China, Australia and Brazil.
It is mainly the French overseas territory, leading with New Caledonia and French Polynesia, which put France so high in the rankings. In fact, almost all of the French overseas territories are located in global biodiversity hotspots – areas rich in species but also highly threatened: the Caribbean Islands, the Indian Ocean islands, Polynesia -Micronesia, New Caledonia. Many endangered species are also present in French Guiana.
On its European territory, France is directly concerned as well: 215 globally threatened species have been identified. These species live in the wide range of natural habitats found on mainland France and in the Mediterranean area – another global biodiversity hotspot.
To refine the global IUCN inventory, the IUCN French National Committee and the National Museum of Natural History have since 2007 coordinated the development of the Red List of Threatened Species in France. On the basis of IUCN criteria, the objective is to assess the risk of extinction of each species on the French territory, both mainland and overseas. The numerous species groups which have already been assessed confirm that species are facing high level threats which has led to identify priorities for action to stop their extinction.
In order to raise awareness about biodiversity in France, the Department of Seine-Saint-Denis in collaboration with the National Museum of Natural History has recently organized for the third time "24 hours for Biodiversity". The initiative aimed to show the natural forests and parks in the department and to educate about the discovery and identification of species of flora and fauna. Information about the Natura 2000 network was also part of the initiative, as this site is the only Natura 2000 site in Europe to be entirely located in the city – evidence of the rich biodiversity of the parks and forests of Seine-Saint-Denis.


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subset: commoncrawl


text:
Amelio shoots straight with Apple shareholders
Related Articles
- Late news. // Advertising Age;09/23/96, Vol. 67 Issue 39, p1
Informs that Apple Computer will cut its advertising budget between 10 and 20 percent starting September 28, 1996. Estimated advertising budget for 1996; Desired efficiencies in several areas.
- Apple Computer finds role in military. // Aviation Week & Space Technology;8/28/1989, Vol. 131 Issue 9, p61
Reports that Apple Computer, Inc., will supply Macintosh 2 personal computers to the US Air Force for the Worldwide Military Command and Control System. It will be Apple's first major entry into the military market.
- Falling apple's `next' strategy: Restore loyalty. Sneider, Daniel // Christian Science Monitor;1/9/97, Vol. 89 Issue 31, p1
Focuses on the introduction of a plan by Apple Computer Incorporated which the company hopes will re-create consumer interest in the Mackintosh computer. Reinstatement of co-founder Steve Jobs; Appearance of Forbes at an annual convention in San Francisco; Purchase of the company, Next Software...
- Cloning around at Macworld San Francisco. Patz, Debby // Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management;3/1/95, Vol. 24 Issue 4, p27
Reports on the Macworld Exposition in San Francisco, California. Increase in number of visitors despite fewer exhibitors; Apple Computer's decision to license its PowerPC operating system Mac/OS and the hardware on which it depends; X-Rite Inc.'s Digital Swatchbook; Macromedia's acquisition of...
- Apple intros CD-ROM platform. Doyle, Audrey V. // Computer Graphics World;Feb95, Vol. 18 Issue 2, p10
Reports that Apple Computer has announced a new platform, called Pippin, for multimedia players that it says will provide consumers with affordable CD-ROM-based systems for education and entertainment.
- Apple jacks in. // Restaurant Business;12/10/96, Vol. 95 Issue 18, p27
Reports on Apple Computer Inc.'s licensing of its name to a new chain of computer-based entertainment parlors.
- Apple speeds up AppleShare servers. // Seybold Report on Desktop Publishing;5/8/95, Vol. 9 Issue 9, p2
Reports on Apple Computer Inc.'s introduction of a trio of AppleShare servers with faster processors and improved operating-system code. Target market; Product features; Speed enhancements; Description of each of the three models; Retail prices.
- Computer trends. Hastings, John // Westchester County Business Journal;5/20/96, Vol. 35 Issue 21, p49
Reports on developments related to Apple Computer Inc. Licensing of the Macintosh operating system to Motorola Inc. Production of Macintosh notebook computers by International Business Machines Corp.
- Is Apple turning into its own worst enemy? // Seybold Report on Internet Publishing;Oct97, Vol. 2 Issue 2, p30
Focuses on Apple Computer's decision not to license its operating system and naming of Steve Jobs interim chief executive officer of the company. Background information on the company; Impact on licensing vendors; Jobs' job responsibilities and career history.


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Lisbon motorcycle rental - rental rates. Cheap prices for motorcycle rental in Lisbon. Rent a motorcycle in Lisbon.
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Intern Spotlights
The following students participated in the Internship Program. Read on for more information about their experience. To get involved in the Internship Program, review the information available on this website and complete an appropriate information session to get started right away!
Ashley Merritt
Art and Performance
PI Advertising
"I worked as a production assistant for the locally based production company PI Advertising, which is in association with Miramar Pictures in Los Angeles..."
Read more....
Edgar Chimal
MIS and Marketing
Box Command (QBOS Inc.)
"I'm the system administrator for Box Command and I work in the implementation department. My duties include the following..."
Read more....
Carrie Lackey
Emerging Media and Communication
CBS Radio ("The Indie-Verse")
"Sitting at home all summer would have driven me nuts. So when a professor approached me with the offer of this internship, I jumped on it."
Read more....
Kajin Ibrahim
Texas Muslim Women's Foundation (TMWF)
"My greatest accomplishment has to be doing one-on -one interview intakes with victims of domestic violence. This made [me] more comfortable and also helped me not be so emotional."
Read more....
Ryan McBride
Frisco Area Listening and Learning Center
"Take any opportunity you can to expand your knowledge, especially if it seems out of your area. I've never known what I want to do so I've taken every opportunity for new experiences. Sometimes it doesn't work out, but even then, as long as I learn something from it, it isn't wasted..."
Read more....
Cheryl Blok
Public Affairs
The Exchange (US Army and Air Force Exchange Service)
"This position has allowed me to facilitate discussions with my classmates about my internship experiences..."
Read more....
Ashwinikumar Kulkarni
Science, Molecular & Cell Biology
UT Southwestern Medical Center
"... got an opportunity to learn many new things like corporate environment, corporate culture, and values of the organization."
Read more....
Jennifer Morawetz
The Dallas Historical Society
"This position has strengthened my desire to know more about the non-academic realm of history and history education."
Read more....


text: tyme 0 Report post Posted November 8, 2006 Release Highlights * Added initial support for GLX_EXT_texture_from_pixmap. * Added new "Display Configuration" page in nvidia-settings. * Improved workstation OpenGL performance in Xinerama. * Added support for NVIDIA Quadro Plex. * Added support for Quad SLI. * Improved X driver error recovery. * Improved workstation overlay performance. * Added SMBus functionality to the Linux/i2c interface. * Fixed DFP scaling support. * Added support for OpenGL 2.1. * Added new "TwinViewXineramaInfoOrder" X configuration option to control the order of display devices when in TwinView. * Fixed some problems related to TV Out. * Added new NVIDIA logo artwork to nvidia-settings and X driver splashscreen; the X driver splashscreen can now be configured with the new "LogoPath" X configuration option. Get it here. It's a much-needed updated. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites


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Empower your Arduino with IoT !
Note : this document is valid from version 4 of the Akeru library.
- Changelog -
Important changes compared to version 3 of the library, valid for every sketch including v4 :
- No need to include SoftwareSerial library in your sketch
- RX/TX definition happens in the sketch instead of the .cpp file (that way it's easier to adapt the code for an Akene or a TD1208 breakout)
- The payload is a String object instead of a structure struct
- Data must be converted in hexadecimal prior to sending, with toHex()
- No need to insert delays or call isReady() to manage the timing between two messages, sendPayload() already does it.
- Description
- Organization
Akeru.cpp : Definition of the global object Akeru and its associated methods
/examples : Folder containing examples of use
- DemoTest : complete demonstration of the library, requests every available parameter and sends a message on the network
- downlinkDemo : how to receive data from the network
- sendMultipleValues : how to send multiple variables in a single message
- sendSingleValues : how to send values from a single sensor
- Use
To use the Akeru library, you need to include it in your sketch :
- Code: Tout sélectionner
#include <Akeru.h>
Then declare the Akeru object from which you'll call the methods you need. For example :
- Code: Tout sélectionner
Akeru akeru (RX, TX);
The RX/TX values depend on the device you're using :
- Akeru : RX=D5 ; TX=D4
- Akene : RX=D4 ; TX=D5
- Breakout TD1208 : up to your wiring.
- Code: Tout sélectionner
void setup()
- Available methods -
Note : every function described here, except toHex(), echoOn() and echoOff() returns 1 if everything went alright, 0 otherwise.
Prints AT commands and TD1208's answers on the serial monitor. Inactive by default.
Disables AT commands & answers echo. Active by default.
To be used in the setup() of your sketch.
Indicates if the modem is ready to send a new message (more precisely if enough time passed between 2 messages, so you don't send too many). Its use may be redundant since this function is called each time a message or a downlink request is sent.
Sends a simple AT command.
sendPayload(const String payload)
Sends data on the Sigfox network. Prior to sending, data must be formatted in hexadecimal with toHex().
getTemperature(int *temperature)
Gets the modem temperature.
getID(String *id)
Gets the modem's ID (equal to the ID on the modem's sticker)
getVoltage(float *voltage)
Gets the modem's power supply voltage.
getHardware(String *hardware)
Get the modem's hardware revision number.
getFirmware(String *firmware)
Get the modem's firmware revision number.
getPower(int *power)
Gets the modem's power level (in dBm).
setPower(int power)
Sets the modem's power level (in dBm).
toHex(int i) | toHex(unsigned int ui) | toHex(long l) | toHex(unsigned long ul) | toHex(float f) | toHex(double d) | toHex(char c)
Converts a variable in hexadecimal. Returns a String containing the data to be sent.
toHex(char *c, int length)
Converts a string in hexadecimal. The array's size must be known (use sizeof). Returns a String containing the data to be sent.
receive(String *data)
Enables downlink, waits for an answer from the network. Received data is hexadecimal.
- Sending multiple values -
When you need to send several values on the Sigfox network in a single message, you need to put all the data in the same payload. You can do this easily with the concatenation operators from the String library :
- Code: Tout sélectionner
int integer = 42;
float floating = 3.141592;
String i = akeru.toHex(integer);
String f = akeru.toHex(floating);
String msg = i + f;


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Dear Seo Panel Users,
We are really happy to inform every one that Seo Panel version is 3.3.0 is released. Please upgrade your Seo Panel to latest version and enjoy full features.
Change log of Seo Panel 3.3.0
1) Theme Integration - Now you can change theme of seo panel and also you can develop your own themes for seo panel and distribute it to community.
2) User Interface - We have changed the user interface of seo panel using CSS3 and also added one more theme to change the user interface.
3) Performance - Improved performance of seo panel by decreasing number of database connections. This will improve the performance of cron job and report generation.
4) Bugs - Fixed all issues with keyword position checker, Site Auditor, Backlink checker and Search engine saturation checker
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Simply use Softaculous / Installatron / Webuzo / AMPPS to install and upgrade SEO Panel or Please download latest version from http://www.seopanel.in/download/
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text:
Posted by Editoress on 03/7/12
Monique Sullivan and Travis Smith, both from Calgary, Alberta, each won medals at the 2012 UCI Pan-American Championships in Mar Del Plata, Argentina, while Heather Moyse of Summerside, PEI rode to the fifth place of the women's sprint, capping an extraordinary day for Canadians at the velodrome.
The women's sprint event started Monday, but with the extended rain delays affecting the outdoor velodrome, the final set of races were held Tuesday. Sullivan posted the fastest qualifying time at 11.486 seconds, and continued her fast and winning ways on the second day of competition, all the way to the gold medal race. In the featured race, Sullivan defeated her rival, Cuban rider Lisandra Guerra, who had the second fastest qualifying time. In the gold medal race, Guerra took the win in the first heat, but Sullivan came right back and won the second heat to push the race to a third and decisive heat, to decide the winner and Pan-American Champion.
"This was my first real international win, my first time hearing the Canadian national anthem while standing on the top step of the podium. I am really happy, Lisandra is a great competitor and this is my first time beating her head-to-head in a sprint. In the final, she won the first ride by an inch. In the second ride, I changed my tactic and won the round, pushing it to the third ride. I am extra pleased to have come back from being down in the first ride," said Sullivan, the current Canadian Champion in the event.
Added Sullivan: "This is very special for me. There was a lot of pressure to perform here, and I knew I could do it, but to actually execute what I knew I could do, that's special. This is very good for my Olympic qualification in the sprints, but nothing is confirmed until after the World Championships. Tomorrow I have the opportunity to qualify for a second event, the Keirin."
"I really want to thank everyone on the team (riders and staff) who have helped me improve over the past few years and also my sponsor PCL Construction who makes all the traveling possible," concluded Sullivan.
Heather Moyse, an Olympic Gold medallist in the sport of bobsleigh, and competitive rugby player, who raced her career second cycling race at the Pan Ams, qualified ninth with a time of 12.246 seconds, and went on to win her first match sprint. In the second round, she went on to face her Canadian teammate, Monique Sullivan. But Sullivan's experience and momentum proved to be the determining factor, with the national champion taking the victory. Moyse then contested the ride-off for fifth to eighth places, a race she went to win to take the fifth place in the overall standings.
Tuesday also featured the men's Keirin race. Canada had Joseph Veloce of Fonthill, Ontario, and Travis Smith entered in the race. Veloce won his opening race to earn his way to the semi-finals, while Smith failed to qualify and was relegated to the repechage round. Smith won the repechage rounds, and made it through the semi-finals.
In the final race of the day, Smith crossed the finish line in third place after leading most of the race, and took the bronze medal.
"Head coach Richard [Wooles] and I decided yesterday [Monday] that I should ride the Keirin today. The original plan was for the other two sprinters here to ride. As soon as we decided, I was nervous! I wanted to have a good ride to secure Olympic spot and get the points," said Smith after the race.
"It started off slow for me, as my legs felt a little flat and I was passed at the line of the first heat. This meant I was sent to the repechage rounds, to fight my way back into the rounds. I won my Rep and was back into the semi finals later in the day.
"When I got back to the track, I found that I was in the first heat with a world class set of riders. I took the front and led for almost two laps to win the heat and advance to the finals. In the Finals I drew the #6 rider [position] and was at the back. When the bike pulled off I went to the front, as I didn't want to be in the mess of all the riders. Leading into a lap and a half, one of the Venezuelan riders passed on the apron and took us all high. So I went from first to last, just like that! I kept fighting all the way to the line and ended up finishing third, and getting good Olympics qualifying points. I'm really excited how the races went; I felt like I could have won the race, but this is racing and stuff happens. Next for me is the UCI Track World Championships in Australia, where my teammates and I will get to race the best in the world."
Report courtesy CCA
|Return to Canadian Cyclist homepage | Back to Top


text:
10% of the purchase price* of all Rainbow Sale items donated to NHS Charities Together (*excluding VAT).
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You will need to be knowledgeable on the subject of Bee Hive Removal in Los Gatos, CA. We will make sure you know exactly what can be expected. You won't confront any sort of surprises whenever you work with Bee Hive Removal Guys. Begin by contacting 888-216-8164 to go over your work. With this phone call, you get your concerns responded to, and we are going to establish a time to commence services. We work together with you all through the whole process, and our company can show up promptly and organized.
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text:
firstname.lastname@example.com via ng4-ip2.bullet.mail.bf1.yahoo.com
to JasperJottings.
Dear User,
Unfortunately, the time has come to say goodbye to Yahoo! Groups Labs Applications (beta) and Groups Chat. We thank all the users that were a part of this program. We intend to use this learning to enhance Yahoo! Groups further with new features.
On July 04, 2012, we will shut down the Yahoo! Groups Labs Applications (beta) and Groups Chat. We request you to backup any data that you might have created using the applications.
This closure will not affect your other services on Yahoo! Groups.
We look forward to continue having you as our customer.
The Yahoo! Groups Team
# – # – #
You can't depend on Cloud apps not changing on you. Free is just a hook up. If you're not paying for it, then you have zero assurance.
# – # – # – # – #


text:
Count Beth Callans as one entrepreneur who appreciates the business axiom that says a recession is a good time to grow market share.
Her condo- and homeowners- association management company, Longboat Key-based Beth Callans Management Corp., just turned 10 years old last year. Callans partially celebrated the milestone by investing in her own management consultant, because she realized that her $7.8 million firm was becoming too big for her to make all the decisions, all the time.
That yearlong reorganization effort ended late last year, right about the time the economic downturn was heating up. But to Callans, whose company holds contracts for about 55 of the 75 condo- and homeowners associations on Longboat Key, the slump is simply an opportunity — both to open new offices and hire new people.
Says Callans: "There are a lot of really talented property managers out there on the street right now looking for a good job."
In addition to hiring a few people who are out of work due to the recession, Callans says she is considering opening new offices in 2009. Possible locations include Port Charlotte or Venice, to recruit business in Boca Grande and Charlotte Harbor. A satellite location in the Tampa area is also a possibility.
The company, with about 200 employees and $7.8 million in 2008 revenues, is concentrated mostly on Longboat Key, with a few contracts as far north as Palmetto and as far south as Venice. Its core business is in providing property management for high-end properties, from maintenance upkeep to advising condo boards.
"Many people look at management companies as accounting firms," Callans says. "But we are much more than that."
The company's growth rate has slowed in lockstep with the housing-market slump. Revenues grew 2.7% in 2008, from $7.57 million in 2007 to $7.776 million. But revenues grew 25% in 2007.
A native of Indiana, Callans founded the firm in 1998 out of an office in the Northern Trust Bank building on Longboat Key with just two other employees. She had worked for other property-management firms in the area for about 10 years before launching her own business.
Now, the first key to Callans' recession-driven optimism is the management consultant she hired in 2007.
"Everyone was still coming to me with everything," she says. "I had to start delegating or I would go crazy."
Callans says as a result of the consultant she began to place more trust in some of her top employees.
She also created a detailed manual of policies and procedures that every employee in the company could turn to when in doubt about a particular issue.
The manual is an especially important detail of the growth plan, because the company's employees are spread out across 80 properties. Callans has 17 licensed community-association managers to oversee the work.
The company also sticks to a strict schedule of property inspections; two employees spend a bulk of their time checking out each property on a monthly basis, from checking for road imperfections to lawn care.
"They go there with a critical eye," Callans says. "They are there to report back what's wrong."
Count Beth Callans as one entrepreneur who appreciates the business axiom that says a recession is a good time to grow market share.


text:
Fred The Godson x Take Money - Take Money [In Studio][User Submitted]
"In studio with TakeMoney's Yung JB & Fred the Godson cooking up heat for the streets & the clubs | Recorded by Remo the Hit Maker | Shot x edited by GEOHVISION twitter@takemoneyjb twitter@takemoneyko "
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When John C. Bogle, the founding father of index funds, takes time to interrupt summering in Lake Placid to talk with Research about exchange-traded funds, it isn't because he has nothing to say.
"ETFs have become a marketing and promotional game. Those kinds of things are great for marketers but bad for investors," says Bogle, in an August telephone interview, on vacation in the Adirondack Mountains.
Bogle created the first stock index mutual fund in 1975, a year after he founded the Vanguard Group, where he served as chair-CEO for 22 years and senior chair until 2000. Today, at 83, Bogle—who has appeared on Time magazine's list of the world's "100 most influential people"—is president of the Bogle Financial Markets Research Center, on the Vanguard grounds in Malvern, Pa.
He has long been a critic of exchange-traded funds but seems to be warming to them, provided they are used in accord with his specs. Still, Bogle is far from ETFs' No. 1 fan.
Indeed, the funds do not suffer from a lack of fans. They are in the thick of a spectacular growth phase, boasting 2011 estimated net asset flow totaling over $120 billion, according to Morningstar. As of August 2012, there were 1,471 ETFs on the market versus 1,369 at the end of 2011. Traditional mutual funds have been losing market share to ETFs; consequently, mutual fund families are offering them too. Some funds even use ETFs to equitize cash in their own portfolios.
ETFs have become a phenomenon because of their low expenses, tax efficiency, excellence as a prudent diversification tool and last—but certainly not least—because, like stocks and bonds, they can be traded throughout the day.
The ETF is "the most successful marketing idea of the modern age in the securities business. Whether it proves to be the most successful investment idea of the age, however, remains to be seen. I have my doubts," Bogle writes in his new book The Clash of the Cultures: Investment vs. Speculation (Wiley).
Twenty years ago, before the first exchange-traded fund was introduced, Bogle was pitched the ETF concept. But the staunch buy-and-hold, stay-the-course advocate refused to be sold. He worried that the product's extra liquidity would invite excessive trading and therefore speculation. Now, he is all but saying: I told you so.
"The ETF has become a heavily traded vehicle used for speculation, often on indexes without much claim to fame except that they have new ideas some marketers want to test on unsuspecting investors," Bogle says. The proliferation of "fringe element ETFs" has resulted in "a quagmire of choices—everybody's trying to be more creative than the next guy. So there are ETFs of dubious credit quality, leveraged ETFs, people creating their own investment ideas, their own indexes. All that has led to speculation."
Many ETFs are indeed exotic funds tracking extremely narrow market niches. A substantial number have proven to be of questionable, if not poor, quality.
Notes Edward Jones principal Matt Embleton, who heads mutual fund and ETF research, and is based in St. Louis: "Every day I get a notice that a new ETF has come out. I'm not sure how many are going to survive and be around for the long term."
Russell Investments in fact announced in August that it was closing all its U.S. passively managed ETFs. The niche funds had failed to generate much interest, possibly because investors needed to drill down deeply to understand them.
Even financial advisors who pioneered ETF investing and remain enamored are quick to point out that the sheer number of ETFs has become troubling.
"There are a lot of ETFs in the smorgasbord of options that are not good. You have to beware of the traps," says Shelley Bergman, a managing director and senior portfolio manager at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney in New York City, an ETF investor since 2006. The Bergman Group manages assets of $3 billion, about $250 million of which are in ETFs. "As the ETF world grows larger and larger," says the FA, "there's mass confusion as to what the underlying securities are."
Bogle's advice to advisors: "Be very wary of narrow segments because the narrower you get, the more risk you expose your clients to. Stay out of lunacy."
He gives ETFs his blessing only when the right funds are used—and used for investing, not speculation. Advisors "should be very selective about ETFs and rely primarily on broad-based-market ETFs. Buy and hold the right ones. Don't buy and hold a fund that's giving you triple leverage. That's a foolish thing to do. It's rank speculation."
While many FAs like ETFs because they consider the low-cost funds to run on "autopilot," others insist they should be watched carefully.
"The average advisor thinks this is a 'set it-forget it' strategy. But they are sorely mistaken, especially in the macro environment we're in," Bergman says. "There are dangers. We constantly monitor the portfolio. We're meeting with a lot of wholesalers. It's a full-time job."
Bogle, of course, still favors traditional index funds over ETFs. "I don't think there's any great magic to ETFs except for low cost and diversification, though you can get that, and do every bit as well, through a garden variety S&P 500 index fund or total stock market index fund, emerging market index fund or international market index fund."
But he adds: "Anybody who wants to buy a Vanguard S&P 500 ETF and not trade it and hold it forever, more power to them!"
To the extent that ETFs are index funds, Bogle is positive. It is the trading aspect that he claims had led to speculation with which he mainly takes issue.
The ETF marketplace has turned into a chaotic arena dominated by institutional trading, says Bogle, who estimates that 75% of all ETFs are held by institutional investors and that roughly less than 10% of ETF assets are with long-term investors.
According to the Investment Company Institute, "over the past five years … institutional investors have found ETFs a convenient vehicle for participating in, or hedging against, broad movements in the stock market."
Notes Bogle: "ETFs probably have a turnover rate of 700% per year. That is staggeringly high by any measure," he says. "The mutual fund industry, in general, has a turnover rate among shareholders of 30% to 35%, a three-year average holding—which I myself think is amazingly short."
Bogle is not alone in charging that ETFs played a major role in the stock market "flash crash" on May 6, 2010.
"Sixty percent to 70% of securities that were suspended were ETFs," he says. "Of course it can happen again! With high frequency trading, we have a system that seems out of control. We've created a kind of Frankenstein's monster."
Many investors are drawn to ETFs, Bogle suggests, because "they are worried there'll be a big crisis and that [with ETFs] they'll be able to get out of the market before the end of the day. But when that bad event happens and you want to get out, you're probably right at the bottom. So you're apt to decide at exactly the wrong time."
FAs enjoying significant success with ETFs choose funds with high trading volumes "so there won't be a shortage of buyers when we sell," notes Lawrence Grabenstein, a Raymond James Financial Services branch manager and president of Potomac Financial Group in Calverton, Md.
"The biggest pitfall," Grabenstein says, is choosing the hot sector—getting into an area that has performed well only to see it disappoint. And many ETFs have special risks, such as commodity ETFs or leveraged ones."
Edward Jones won't even permit its clients to purchase leveraged ETFs. Other industry participants are leery of these as well.
"With leveraged ETFs, the ups and downs are magnified," says Michael Iachini, managing director, ETF research at Charles Schwab Investment Advisory, in Englewood, Colo. "There is basic market risk and also risk because they reset their leverage daily to deliver twice or three times the daily return of whatever index they track. Over six months to a year, the compound effect of that tends to erode returns…. So you set yourself up for failure every time the market reverses direction."
One of the most controversial issues on the ETF landscape is the introduction of actively managed funds, now available from about 10 providers. Fifty-four such funds have been launched as of August 2012, Morningstar says. For example, last March Pimco unveiled an ETF version of its huge Total Return mutual fund; and Fidelity Investments, among others, have filed with the SEC to also introduce actively managed ETFs.
However, financial advisors aren't jumping up and down about actively managed ETFs because the funds, they say, are largely unproven. And, as Bergman points out, "they violate the two main advantages of ETFs: low cost and tax efficiency."
Adds Grabenstein: "If we're looking for actively managed, we'll use either a mutual fund or a separately managed account. We're going to let somebody else be a beta test."
For his part, Bogle fiercely opposes actively managed ETFs.
"It's a bad joke," he says. "People are trying to capitalize on the ETF fad by bringing in these funds at very high cost. I don't see any merit to them except marketing or promotional merit."
He continues: "Actively managed ETFs are basically casino-type things, leveraging three to one. I call that a lunatic strategy. You're not only gambling about whether the market is going up in [the next half hour], you're gambling that in that tiny half hour, your manager is going to do better or worse than the market. How does that comport even remotely with any kind of common sense? It's flagrant stupidity. Do I make myself clear? Active management is a loser's game."
The 401(k) plan that is comprised of ETFs is another new wrinkle—which could become a trend. Schwab, among others, is set to offer, in the second half of next year, an all-ETF version of its Schwab Index Advantage retirement solution, which it debuted last January.
"We're doing this to create better outcomes for employees. We're looking at the next generation of 401(k) plans," says Steve Anderson, senior vice president, national head of Schwab Retirement Plan Services, based in Cleveland. "We're not going into esoteric categories. The real magic is the third-party advice we'll be providing. We see minimal risk in terms of trading."
Thumbs-down, unequivocally, to ETFs in 401(k) plans, Bogle stresses.
"It's very, very foolish. Telling employees that they need investments 'you can trade all day long in real time' is nuts. It's totally counterproductive investment behavior. My impression from working with individual investors over 61 years," he says, "is that they don't need any encouragement to trade—they need encouragement to stay the course."
But ETFs aren't the only encouragement to what Bogle sees as today's rampant speculation. "What's the point of all this trading? Instead of being a vehicle for owning shares in a corporation, the stock market has turned out to be this casino in which people buy shares because they think they can sell them to somebody at a higher price. That's speculation."
In his book, the financial services innovator opines that ETFs, "in general, have not served their investors well" because "picking an ETF"—which are tracking more than a thousand indexes—"is just like picking a stock, with all the attendant risks."
In the interview, though, he notes that ETFs "are less speculative than owning an individual stock. ETFs are a safer approach. I'd rather own a technology ETF than a combination of Microsoft and Apple, say. I don't know which one will do the best, but the ETF will give me the technology sector's return."
Right now, ETFs are in robust growth mode. Once this phase ends, the space will have reached maturity.
"Ultimately," Bogle forecasts, "the market will clean itself out of the ETFs that don't work and that run at high cost. They'll just go away."
But that doesn't mean the visionary envisions ETFs becoming "the Holy Grail of Investing," Bogle writes.
"Once the dust settles," he tells Research, "I don't see ETFs ever taking over the industry."
Vanguard's ETF Path
Two decades ago, the American Stock Exchange's head of product development pitched John C. Bogle, then CEO of the Vanguard Group, his brand-new idea of an exchange-traded mutual fund. Bogle, concerned that the extra liquidity would become a magnet for speculation, gave the would-be product a pass.
Nine years later, when Bogle no longer helmed the firm he founded, Vanguard introduced its first exchange-traded fund. Had Bogle still been head, would he have launched an ETF?
"Maybe yes, maybe no. I don't know which way I would have decided," he says. "I've been profoundly skeptical about ETFs. And I've also found in my long, long, long career that when I did something for marketing reasons, it usually turned out to be a mistake."
Since Vanguard debuted its first exchange-traded fund in 2001, ETFs have driven about 25% of the Group's total growth, according to Bogle.
"What Vanguard is trying to do is get into the business in a sounder way than somebody else, and we have done that. There is no reason," he says, "that a Vanguard S&P 500 ETF, for instance, can't go on for a long, long time—and it will."
A Vanguard research study, published in July 2012, examined the trading behavior of the company's mutual fund and ETF individual investors from 2007 through 2011. Looking at 3.2 million transactions, it concluded that though ETF investors were more active than those in traditional mutual funds, this was because "investors who are inclined to trade, choose ETFs—not that investors who choose ETFs, are induced to trade."
The study, Bogle says, showed that "Vanguard individual investors traded ETFs significantly more than holders of our regular funds, but that it wasn't outrageous." — J.W.R.


text:
Flat Deck Trailer Rentals in Falher, AB
Smoky River Equipment Sales & Rentals
Flatdeck Lowboy Trailer 18ft
Great for construction jobs or for hauling a car. This 18 foot flat deck typically comes with (2) 6000 lb axles.
$90.00 / Day
$450.00 / Week
Our flatbed trailer rental units are heavy duty and designed to withstand the toughest of loads and roads. They vary in sizes and capacities from 10' utility trailers to 30' gooseneck trailers. Each type of trailer has different applications. We have tilt flat decks, flat decks with slide in ramps, beavertail flat decks and drop down decks. Our car haulers will be equipped with either two 6000lb axles, two 7000lb axles or three 7000lb axles and vary in length from 16' to 24'. The width between the fender wells will be 82.5" and on the deck over trailers the width is 7'. Our gooseneck flat deck trailers will have two 7000lb tandem dual axles, three 7000lb axles or two 10000lb dual axles. Most of the gooseneck trailers are 7' wide and can be fitted with RV style pin or ball style pin.
* Products vary by dealer and may not be exactly as shown.


text:
Hey everyone,
So over on Eurobricks, Sandy, has been hard at work making a Heroica RPG. From reading the rules over once it seems pretty interesting, and a lot like Dungeons and Dragons.
Anyway, head on over if you're interested in playing. There's already about 6 pages of discussion going on, but I don't think the actual game has started.
EDIT: The game has started here. And applications are on the same thread from I can tell.
Or, I was possibly thinking that we might ask for permission to do our own mini-version here if we get enough interest. The place hosting the CCRPG ran out this July (although, I was never apart of it), so I'd thought I'd throw out the idea. I'm pretty sure Eurobricks is 18+ (I here they let it younger users on occasion) and I don't really want to sign up for another forum, soooooo...yeah (I think I might have to anyway!)!
Anyway! There you go, what do you guys think? I haven't posted on the Heroica thread yet, but I find the Games quite entertaining, especially for younger kids (they say 8+, but my 6 yr. old brother can play it no problem), and the RPG game seems like a pretty good adaptation. The Rules I'll probably have to re-read, but I bet it will do fairly well!
See ya around!


text:
8990B Peak Power Analyzer
|Product Status:
|Discontinued | Currently Supported
No replacement found for this product.
Key Features & Specifications
- 160 MHz video bandwidth
- 100 MSa/ sec continuous sampling with >1500 readings/ sec
- Frequency range of 50 MHz to 40 GHz (sensor dependent)
- Fast System Rise/ Fall time of 5nsec
Measurement Type
- 15 measurement parameters: Rise time, fall time, pulse width, duty cycle, PRI, PRF, Peak, average, peak-to-average ratio, CCDF and etc.
- Automated delay measurement, automated droop measurement, pulse spacing measurement
- Multi-pulse analysis (with option 8990B-1FP or N6903A)
- Power-added efficiency (PAE) measurement
- Internal Zeroing and Calibration
Accurate and more detailed pulse measurements, faster
The 8990B peak power analyzer is a high performance RF peak power meter specializing in the measurement and analysis of RF pulses. The 8990B achieves 5 ns rise/fall time (with the N1923A/N1924A wideband power sensor), the fastest overall rise/fall time in the peak power measurement market, allowing R&D engineers and technicians to capture shorter pulse measurements with high accuracy during the module design, verification and troubleshooting process.
The 8990B comes with two RF channels and two video channels and measures the dynamic or time-dependent aspects of RF and microwave power. With the 8990B's sampling rate of 100 MSa/s, R&D engineers get the high resolution they need to detect abnormalities in a signal trace for design improvement.
Easy to use, easy to trigger and easy to measure
The 8990B peak power analyzer is equipped with a 15 inch XGA color touchscreen display that is capable of simultaneously displaying four channel results for more image detail. The 8990B provides internal and external trigger functions, and comes with 15 pulse parameter measurements and markers measurements including rise time, fall time, pulse droop, pulse width and time delay.
The 8990B achieves the best performance for peak power measurement when used with the N1923A (50 MHz to 18 GHz) and N1924A (50 MHz to 40 GHz) wideband power sensors.
For Faster Measurement Speed and Greater Measurement Accuracy
Multi-pulse measurement
View, measure and analyze continuous pulse trains from power amplifier modules or transmitters. The multi-pulse measurement feature allows continuously trigger and capture up to 512 pulses. This feature also adds pulse-to-pulse measurement and histogram distribution graph capabilities to the 8990B, which are crucial for testing RF and the pulse-to-pulse stability of power amplifiers and transmitters. Additionally, users can use the multi-pulse measurement feature to analyze short pulse with long off time or amplitude droop across the pulse train, or monitor the stability of the pulse shape (via the histogram graph functionality).
Power-Added Efficiency math function
Calculate the Power-Added Efficiency (PAE) of power amplifiers and display instant PAE traces onscreen with the 8990B. Power-Added Efficiency, a typical power analyzer measurement, is a measure of the power conversion efficiency – the percentage of DC power converted to RF power in the power amplifier of power amplifiers. Reduce test costs and the number of test equipment needed with the 8990B; the peak power analyzer measures RF power, voltage and current in a single solution box. The 8990B's two RF input channels allow users to measure the RF power gain from the power amplifier; using a DC current probe, scope probe or differential probe, they can also measure the power amplifier's voltage and current through the analog video input channels. The 8890B's PAE math function then uses the measurements from the RF and analog video input channels to easily determine the PAE of the power amplifier.
Adjustable ETS threshold for wider bandwidth measurement
Measure peak and peak-to-average of 802.11ac wide bandwidth signal accurately with the 8990B's 160 MHz video bandwidth capability. The peak power analyzer can execute power vs. time (PvT) measurements on an 80 MHz or 160 MHz 802.11ac signal by adjusting the ETS threshold according to the burst length. Users can also use the zoom function to analyze and measure the preamble power of the 802.11ac burst signal.
For more information about Power Meter and Power Sensor, please visit Power Meter & Power Sensor


text:
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Old Republic - Havoc Squad Republic Trooper
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postmortem01 ()
Joined: 12 Jun 2009
Posts: 69
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Posted: Fri Oct 05, 2012 11:13 pm
Post subject: Old Republic - Havoc Squad Republic Trooper
Hello. This is going to be my first rebel costume and weapons. Stormleader and myself just started this project a couple weeks ago. The modeling is being done by Stormleader. We are CNCing the parts from a rigid tooling foam and mastering the parts. These will be molded, vacuum formed and some parts will be cast in plastic and/or rubber.
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Jedi_Boyer (Michel Boyer)
Legion Costume Judge
Joined: 04 Aug 2008
Posts: 1193
Location: Morgantown, WV
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Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2012 1:28 am
Post subject:
Excellent work. Keep us updated on your progress.
"My Loyalties lie with My Legion and the betterment of My legion."
Ixam Let'si
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Balgosa ()
Rebel Legion Reserve
Joined: 09 Dec 2011
Posts: 91
Location: Baltimore, MD
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Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2012 4:14 am
Post subject:
I'd totally be interested in getting that visor detachable viewfinder thing if you end up making it seperate
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postmortem01 ()
Joined: 12 Jun 2009
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Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2012 2:52 pm
Post subject:
It will be separate as some of the troopers in the trailer do not have that component.
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postmortem01 ()
Joined: 12 Jun 2009
Posts: 69
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Posted: Tue Oct 09, 2012 5:18 pm
Post subject:
We pulled the visor out of the 3D printer this weekend and did a quick test fit. Bam!
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DarthGM (Phil Maiewski)
Active Legion Member
Joined: 30 Jan 2007
Posts: 365
Location: A Galaxy Far, Far Away
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Posted: Tue Oct 09, 2012 7:42 pm
Post subject:
Bam, indeed!
Looks amazing!
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Balgosa ()
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Posts: 91
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Posted: Tue Oct 09, 2012 8:17 pm
Post subject:
yah looks awesome!
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Sentry02 (Bradley Graham)
Rebel Legion Reserve
Joined: 04 Dec 2011
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Posted: Fri Oct 12, 2012 2:24 am
Post subject:
Yep, sign me up for a viewfinder as well as a visor if that is ever sold separately.
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Stormleader ()
Joined: 15 Oct 2012
Posts: 7
Location: Los Angeles, CA
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Posted: Wed Oct 17, 2012 4:47 am
Post subject:
Good golly those are some big pics!
We'll be making the macros availiable, but no guarantees they'll fit other helmets.
We haven't even seen any other Havoc helmets in person yet- though I only know of the TZA one being out there at the moment.
"Never again suffer through the bread part of your sandwich!"
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Sentry02 (Bradley Graham)
Rebel Legion Reserve
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Posts: 31
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Posted: Sun Oct 21, 2012 3:01 pm
Post subject:
Kevin Brice out of the NCG also has a Trooper bucket. Even if they're not a perfect fit, that is why I have my friend Mr. Bondo.
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Balgosa ()
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Posted: Sun Oct 21, 2012 6:32 pm
Post subject:
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postmortem01 ()
Joined: 12 Jun 2009
Posts: 69
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Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2012 3:54 pm
Post subject:
Those look awesome. Our helmet is almost ready to go into the mold. I was hoping to have it completed by last weekend but that damn work thing got in the way.
I've been sanding, filling and sharpening the details and we're very close now. Getting very excited to see this thing wearable.
We've also started the armor parts. This is the shoulder pad that supports the shoulder bell armor. We will be casting these in a fairly lightweight rubber.
This is the shoulder bell armor placed on the shoulder pad.
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postmortem01 ()
Joined: 12 Jun 2009
Posts: 69
Medals: None
Posted: Mon Oct 29, 2012 12:49 am
Post subject:
Finally has a chance to work on the helmet this weekend as well as some other parts. The helmet is in final primer state and will be lightly sanded, painted then molded twice. One mold will be for rotocast and the other for fiberglass.
We also had a chance to do a quick test pull of the bicep. We are going to shallow the detail on the sides to help with pulling. The armor will be mostly vacuum formed in either 1/8" styrene or .090" ABS smooth-smooth. Other parts will be rotocast or cast in rubber.
This is just a test pull. We will not be pulling over foam masters. The seam will be gone and we will be pulling over a non-shrinking material master.
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slave1pilot ()
Joined: 29 Oct 2012
Posts: 1
Location: United States
Medals: None
Posted: Mon Oct 29, 2012 3:27 pm
Post subject:
I saw these myself over the weekend.
Phenomenal work doesn't even describe it.
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Q (Markus Zimmerman)
Detachment CO
Joined: 02 Mar 2003
Posts: 1838
Medals: None
Posted: Mon Oct 29, 2012 5:11 pm
Post subject:
Great work troopers!!! It'll be nice to fill the ranks with some Old Republic gear! We've got one already
Former Clonetrooper/Pilot Legion Costume Judge
Former Clonetrooper Detachment (COR) CO
Swamp Rats Squad Founder
Phoenix 10
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by Tom Utescher
More than two-thirds of the way through last Wednesday's Inter-Ac League wrestling opener, host Chestnut Hill Academy led the visiting Churchmen of Episcopal Academy, 33-21. At that point, though, the Blue Devils literally ran out of wrestlers, forfeiting the final four matches, and the visitors acquired six team points for each of those no-shows to emerge with a 45-33 victory.
Episcopal improved to 3-0 in dual meets, while CHA evened out at 2-2. A week earlier, both squads participated at the annual Ralph Wetzel Classic at Hatboro-Horsham High School, which was won by their Inter-Ac colleague Malvern Prep. Episcopal placed 14th and CHA, with just three entries in the varsity brackets, finished 22nd. Germantown Friends School came in 20th at the same tournament.
Chestnut Hill has had trouble filling the lighter weight classes with grapplers ready to face varsity competition – not an uncommon problem for the Devils. With the random start procedure selecting 135 lbs. as the beginning weight for last week's league opener, CHA was bound to give up a lot of points late in the contest.
The meet started out with a forfeit by the hosts, as well, with no one to oppose Episcopal's 135-pounder, senior Will Deasey. CHA would recover those six team points in the 140 lb. bout, where junior Matt Klauder emerged from a 2-2 tie at the end of the second period to pin EA freshman Jack Keffer with one minute and 22 seconds remaining in the third round.
At 145, a takedown off of a neutral start in the second period gave CHA sophomore George Kunkel a 4-3 edge, but visiting senior Ben Chung reversed Kunkel onto his back and pinned him later in the same segment.
It was CHA which had the age advantage at 152, where senior Connor Small employed his experience to pin Episcopal freshman James Konopka in the middle of the second period, tying the meet score at 12-12.
Up into the higher weight classes, the teams continued to match one another point for point. At 160 lbs., Episcopal freshman Anthony Feliziani won a 5-2 decision over CHA senior co-captain Matt Rubin, but the Devils got payback from their other senior captain, 171-pound Dan Gallagher, who prevailed 7-1 over EA upperclassman Carl Lampe.
The junior 189 for the visitors, Marco Testauiti, built up an 8-0 lead over CHA freshman Andrew Reid before pinning him with 46 ticks to go in the second round. The Blue Devils tied the team tally at 21-all in the 215 lb. contest, where their eighth-grade prodigy, Desmond Johnson, matted Episcopal freshman Cody Johnson with nine seconds remaining in the second round.
Chestnut Hill heavyweight Tyler Hightower, a junior who went 2-2 against tough competition at the Wetzel tournament, pinned up senior rival Adam DiSalvo in the middle of the first round, and for the first time the Blue Devils moved ahead in the team score, 27-21.
The match order then cycled back to the light end of the spectrum, where sophomore Jordan Wang accepted an Episcopal forfeit at 103 lbs., giving the home team a 33-21 lead.
That would be the Devils' last hurrah. Four consecutive forfeits by Chestnut Hill allowed Episcopal to draw even and then forge ahead to win. Collecting those pivotal two-dozen points for the Churchmen were freshman Julio DelPeon (112 lbs.), sophomore Luke Brooman (119), and seniors Matt Lasensky (125) and Rudy Celli (130).


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Chinese language study at Agnes Scott enables students to understand and speak the language, learn the history, social practices and values of Chinese culture. An understanding of the history, culture and language of China will increase your career opportunities as well as your knowledge of the country. Studying Chinese is also one of the ways to complete the Asian Studies minor.
What will I study?
The study of Chinese at Agnes Scott takes many forms, from in-class speaking to lessons on the history and culture of China. The Chinese faculty at Agnes Scott encourage students to practice speaking in the classroom, as well as to explore the culture through the use of videos, literature, magazines, newspapers and Web sites. Students can take advanced courses in Chinese language and literature through cross-registration as part of the Atlanta Regional Council for Higher Education.
Why should I study Chinese at Agnes Scott?
- International Education Opportunities
As part of the Global Awareness program, Agnes Scott faculty led a group of 20 students to China in 2009. In the summer of 2007, a group of nine Agnes Scott faculty members participated in a Faculty Development Seminar in China. They visited more than five Chinese cities, exchanged ideas with scholars of different disciplines in China and built strong connections with several Chinese universities. In the summer of 2007, two students received Agnes Scott College's Asia Abroad Summer Scholarship to study in China. Through study abroad in China, students immerse themselves in Chinese language, enrich their knowledge of Chinese culture and history and broaden their learning experience. In addition to study abroad, students can choose to conduct independent research projects with faculty who specialize in China.
- Campus Involvement
Many students in the Chinese program are members of the Asian Cultural Awareness Student Association (ACASA). Students who study Chinese have the opportunity to practice their Chinese in the weekly Chinese table, and engage in campus celebrations of Chinese holidays such as the Chinese New Year, Moon Festival and the Dragon Boat competition. As part of their learning experience, Agnes Scott faculty members lead field trips to local Chinese shops and restaurants for students to understand the social and cultural fabrics of Chinese in America.
What can I do with knowledge in Chinese?
You will develop reading and listening skills, as well as conversational fluency in writing and speaking. As a graduate, you can:
- Work in international business
- Live or study abroad
- Broaden your cultural awareness
- Participate in programs designed for college graduates to teach English in China


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Photo: Christopher Boffoli
Here's a Halloween postcard from the strange world of Big Appetites, a book that made its author, Christopher Boffoli, a finalist for a James Beard Award.
Boffoli has shared a collection of his best candy-themed shots, in honor of the year's sweetest and scariest holiday. Just be glad you don't have to fix the peanut butter cup.


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What can I expect each week in a vegetable share?
Produce varies by the growing seasons and conditions. Leffler Family Farms grows over 35 different vegetables, a dozen different types of herbs and an assortment of flowers. They harvest from April through November. Each week you'll receive a diverse mix of those crops that are in season.
Here are some typical highlights:
April - June: Lettuce, spinach, baby greens, peas, ruby red radishes.
July: Beets, baby carrots, cucumbers, summer squash, green beans, herbs, garlic.
August: Peppers, eggplant, onions, sweet corn, edamame, in addition to aforementioned produce.
September: Lettuce and greens are back, sweet corn, root crops.
October: Kale, rainbow chard, lettuces, dry beans, pumpkins, gourds, winter squash.


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Little by little, advances in technology have started chipping away at the distinction between luxury cars and cars that…well, let's say cars that people who write about tech for a living can afford.
Don't feel like paying an extra US$3,000 for the package that puts a navigation system in your dashboard? Hey, a standalone GPS unit -- or better yet, the free app that comes bundled on your smartphone -- can do just as well (and probably better.) Don't want to pay a hefty subscription fee for satellite radio? Apps like Pandora, Spotify and now iTunes Radio arguably are at least as good. Even Siri or Google Now can go a long way towards replacing the voice recognition system in that high end car you've been eyeing.
A new product called Automatic is doing its part to close the gap even further. It consists of a device called "Automatic Link" and a companion app called -- you guessed it -- "Automatic App." The Link is a salt shaker-sized device that plugs into your car's OBD-II port. (Don't know if you have one? If your car was built after 1996, don't worry, it's there.)
Once plugged in, Automatic has access to your car's telematics -- giving it real time information about things like speed, gas consumption and performance. That lets you collect all sorts of information about your driving habits and engine health. It's a little bit like an airplane's "Black Box," but for your car.
A Look Under the Hood
In addition to getting in touch with your car's inner self, Automatic Link has a built-in GPS chip and accelerometer, so it can keep track of your car's outer self too: where you drive, where you park, and motions like rapid acceleration and sudden stops. It can even detect really sudden stops -- like those usually followed by loud crashing sounds. Automatic's built-in speaker can provide feedback on those events, and it uses Bluetooth to communicate with your phone to record information on your driving and even call for help on your behalf in the event of one of those aforementioned most sudden of stops.
Setting up Automatic is almost, well, automatic. Plug in the Link, pair it to your phone, register and you're all set. Automatic Link communicates to its companion iPhone app. An iPhone 4s or newer is required, and an Android version is on the way. The company says Automatic uses Bluetooth 4.0 Low Energy, meaning battery drain is almost imperceptible -- a claim supported in our testing. You can also select contacts that Automatic will try to alert if it senses you've had an accident and may be unable to call for help on your own. More on that later.
While you're driving, the app provides no feedback other than to acknowledge that you are driving -- a smart move in a world that sees enough distracted drivers already. Automatic does provide audio feedback, however, via a trio of different chirps to alert you of rapid acceleration, sudden stops and driving over 70 mph. Happily, any or all of those audio alerts can be disabled.
Once you've reached your destination, Automatic will even remember where you parked, using its built-in GPS chip to indicate your last position with a pin on an embedded map. At that point, the app will also provide you with an analysis of your last trip, complete with gas mileage, distance traveled, time elapsed and even an estimate of how much you spent in fuel. It also provides a score measuring how eco-friendly your driving was, listing how many hard brakes/accelerations you made and how many minutes you spent driving above 70 mph. Automatic calls this "inefficient driving;" in New Jersey, we just call it "driving."
Like a Little Old Lady from Pasadena
As its makers admit, the driving habits Automatic measures are designed to help you develop skills that will boost your fuel economy, and aren't necessarily an indication of your driving ability. For instance, I'll take the points off for a hard brake over hitting a deer any day. That said, let's just come right out and state for the record that Automatic and I have a serious difference of opinion about what constitutes sudden acceleration.
Automatic also uses the OBD-II port for its main intended purpose: diagnosing engine health. The company says it will read the codes that turn on your "Check Engine" light and tell you what's wrong. You can even use the app to reset the light. We were unable to successfully test this feature, possibly because the Check Engine light on our test car was faulty, rather than an actual problem with the car itself.
Another feature we were glad to be unable to test is Automatic's "Crash Alert" feature currently listed as being in Beta. If the device senses a sudden stop and suspects you were in an accident, it sends a text message to up to three phone numbers you've previously chosen. (When you first enter them in the app, Automatic sends a text message to them to let them know you've selected them.) Automatic's call center is also alerted; they'll report the crash to local authorities based on your location. The device sends out a tone before sending the messages, so you can cancel them in case of a false alarm. And although we didn't get to test that feature in the field, our contacts all got their confirmation messages promptly.
What Automatic does using a port that's almost 20 years old is remarkable, and remarkably handy. By listening to Automatic's alerts (OK, other than the one telling me I was going over 70 mph), I was able to make significant improvements in my driving scores, and more importantly, I noticed my trips to the gas station grew further apart.
For Type A personalities, you can use Automatic's Social features to share your scores and compete with friends. I definitely found myself adjusting my "starts off the line" and braking to avoid triggering the audio alerts. And while I don't typically find myself scratching my head wondering "where did I park?" Automatic had the information at the ready if I wanted it.
It's well worth noting that the Automatic app is a delight to use -- intuitive and gracefully designed. Even the product's packaging was a thing of beauty on par with something created by Apple.
Still No Flying Cars
Automatic does everything it promises to do so flawlessly and seemingly effortlessly it made me slightly disappointed that it didn't do other things too: Things it certainly never promised and indeed, things it couldn't possibly do. For instance, I irrationally wanted Automatic to remotely unlock and start my car, despite these being things that are impossible with the technology it uses. (I'm not alone: Automatic's online community is full of people asking for these things. The company confirmed that they're not possible using Bluetooth -- a short distance technology.)
But the feeling that Automatic could do even more is persistent and goes beyond tasks it can't be expected to handle: The ability to add notes to a trip, search for nearby gas prices or track your car's maintenance would all extend Automatic's usefulness — and appeal.
In a weird way, those nits add up to a big compliment about what Automatic has accomplished. More than either a hardware accessory or an app, it's an enhancement to your car -- something that feels like it should always have been there. Starting there, it's easy to add more features that also "should be there" to the list.
A Slight Case of Sticker Shock
Should you ever need it, Automatic's "Call for Help" safety feature alone could be worth the device's one-time $100 price tag; but somehow, the whole doesn't quite live up to the sum of its parts. We were much more enthusiastic about Automatic when it was offered at the company's now-expired $70 introductory price. Still, if you consider the savings you could get as you allow it to fine-tune your driving, Automatic could pay for itself in relatively short order.


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**Extended comments highlighted in blue.
Trying to make sense of the dairy farm bill debate is like trying to sort out the numbers in a presidential debate over health care or the federal budget deficit.
Both sides are throwing numbers around so fast and furiously, it's hard to discern who is right. At the risk of upsetting both sides, I'll try.
In a press release issued during World Dairy Expo last month, the Wisconsin Dairy Business Association (DBA) produced a chart that showed what monthly milk income would have been in August under the Dairy Security Act in the Senate bill and under the Goodlatte-Scott amendment still floating around the House of Representatives.
A 500-cow dairy in Wisconsin would have produced about 900,000 lb. of milk and would have received nearly $183,000 in revenue based on a Wisconsin All-Milk price of $20.30. Because the Dairy Security Act would have required the dairy to either curtail milk production by 4.7% in August or forfeit that amount of revenue, DBA says farm revenue would have been $174,000.
So the claim is that the Dairy Security Act, because of the market stabilization program, would lower that dairy's revenues by some $8,500.
The National Milk Producers Federation begs to differ, of course. Jerry Kozak, the organization's CEO, points to an analysis done by the University of Wisconsin that shows milk prices would be lower without market stabilization.
That's because farmers would still receive insurance indemnity payments under the Goodlatte-Scott amendment if income-over-feed-cost margins reach triggering levels. As a result of those payments, they'll likely produce more milk, leading to overall lower milk prices.
The Wisconsin analysis, done by dairy economist Mark Stephenson, suggests that All-Milk prices would be 10¢ per cwt. less with 30% participation, 18¢ per cwt. less with 50% participation, and 50¢ per cwt. less with 80% participation.
If that's true, the $8,500 production penalty would have been reduced by $900, $1,500 or $4,500, depending on the level of participation.
But there are other differences as well. For one, the Dairy Security Act covers 90% of a producer's base milk production. For another, there is no charge for base level coverage. For a third, producers can sign up annually for supplemental insurance. And finally, the base period for the supplemental insurance is based on the previous year's milk production.
Under Goodlatte-Scott, the coverage level is set at 80% of production, there's a one-time sign-up, the base is set and only the first 4 million pounds of a producer's milk base is covered at no charge under the basic program.
All those differences add up, according to Stephenson. The net revenue from the Dairy Security Act for a 500-cow herd covered at 25% of production at $6.50 is about $10,600 per year. Under Goodlatte-Scott, it's $4,600. That's $12 per cow, but over the five-year life of a farm bill, it adds up to a $30,000 difference.
Another point of contention is what government costs would be under the two programs. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack argues that supply management will be required. "Every time we get good prices, farmers increase production and we create greater stocks on the supply side," he says.
But the Wisconsin analysis suggests otherwise. Yes, producers will make more milk under Goodlatte-Scott because they are assured of slightly better prices and indemnity payments during low periods. "But because low prices are not as low, you don't have as many producers falling out of business during the trough," Stephenson says. "As a result, the following highs are not as high because you have more milk production during recovery."
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO), which scored the programs, pretty much agrees. Under current programs (dairy price supports, Milk Income Loss Contract payments), the CBO budget score is $248 million over five years. CBO scored the Dairy Security Act at $107 million and Goodlatte-Scott at $60 million.
So here's what it boils down to:
- The Dairy Security Act offers higher milk prices, higher net returns, greater volatility, higher government costs and lower exports.
- The Goodlatte-Scott amendment offers lower prices and lower returns, lower government costs, higher exports but no intrusive market stabilization program.
The choice is yours.