text:
|Foxwarrior (talk)
|Date Created:
|Please feel free to edit constructively!
Wordcasting BasicsEdit
Wordcasting is a spellcasting method that works by stringing words together, and then succeeding on the wordcasting check. Each word has it's own properties, and combined they describe a spell. The categories of words are shape words, effect words, and modifier words. The shortest spell consists of an shape word describing how an effect word is applied. Ayl (one target) Pyr (fire damage) is a two word spell. There is no upper limit on how long a spell might be, but longer spells take more time, and have higher wordcasting checks.
Wordcasting Frequently Important Facts (FIFs)Edit
Shape Words: These describe the shape of the spell's effect. Since a spell cannot be multiple shapes at once, only one shape word can have effect in a spell. If a spell is cast with multiple shape words, it automatically fizzles.
Effect Words: These describe the effect of the spell. These are additive, and, where relevant, take effect in the order that they are said (for instance, "Ayl Pyr Kol" would set people on fire then ice the ground, rather than "Ayl Kol Pyr" causing people to trip, then burning them and melting the ice with heat).
Modifier Words: Modifier words are optional, and affect everything in the spell after the modifier (thus they often come before the shape word). Modifier words are very diverse, some modifying the shape, some modifying the effect of the spell, some creating triggers, etc.
Saves: When a wordcasting spell effects a target, the target immediately makes any required saves. All saves of the same time are lumped together (Reflex, Will, Fortitude). The saves occur before any effects take place. The save DC for a Wordcasting spell specific to the wordcasting class in question, but generally follows the pattern of 10 + (Number of Words used)/3 + the class's relevant stat.
Wordcaster: A character whose class or classes give her the potential to wordcast. Current wordcasting classes include: Wordmaster, Word Warrior, and Word Wizard base classes, along with the Inanomancer, Scriptwriter, Wordsman, Word of Lies, Word of Life, and Word of Undeath prestige classes.
Wordcasting spell level: A wordcasting spell counts as a spell of level equal to one third the number of words in the spell (rounded down).
Wordcasting Level: A caster's Wordcasting level is the sum of classes levels that can do wordcasting.
Wordcasting Check: To cast a spell with wordcasting, the caster must succeed against a wordcasting DC determined by the words used. Each word adds a specified amount to the check (starting at 0). The roll is 1d20 + (the caster's wordcasting level). As the caster's wordcasting level increases, she gains multipliers on the d20 roll: A x2 at level seven which increases to x3 at level 14, and so forth every 7 levels (21, 28, etc.). A natural 1 is an automatic fail. (See chart).
Wordcasting Check Results: On a success, the spell is cast, and any unpaid word costs are spent (Word Wizards spend words during spell preparation). On a failure, the spell fizzles, and half the words invested in the spell are wasted, and the other half are retained/regained by the caster.
Casting Time: The time used by a wordcaster to cast a spell is based on how many words are in the spell. As an immediate action, a word caster can cast a spell with 2 words. 3 words can be cast as a swift action, 10 words as a standard action, and 20 words as a full round action. For every 20 words after that, starting with 21 words, add on another consecutive full round action. The number of words castable in any given action is doubled by the Tungtwist modifier word, and also by accelerating pronouns. (See chart).
Attacks of Opportunity: Any spell the wordcaster casts that takes a standard action or longer to cast provokes an attack of opportunity.
Spell Resistance: Spell resistance affects any targeted wordcast spell that does not specify otherwise. Some words (like Orb) grant exceptions.
Components and Foci: All wordcasting uses Verbal components unless specified otherwise. Any spell that uses a shape word (other than Hand requires non-verbal target designation, and thus a Somatic component (this causes arcane spell failure to be a problem for most wordcasters). The Tungtwist modifier word requires a book of tongue-twisters as a focus. The Gilt modifier word uses any item costing a specific amount as a component. (See chart).
Arcane Spell Failure: Wordcasting suffers from arcane spell failure chance for any spell with a somatic component - by default, this is all wordcasting spells with a shape word.
Wordcasting ListsEdit
Shape Words ListEdit
|Shape Words List
|Effect Summary
|Medium range, Single target
|120 foot line
|Ignores SR but needs a ranged touch attack
|Medium range, 20 foot spread
|Melee touch attack, no somatic component.
|15 foot burst, only hits targets you want it to
|30 foot cone
|Hit three targets in a Close range chain
|30 foot wall
|10 foot-radius sphere around you
Effect Words ListEdit
|Effect Words List
|Effect Summary
|1d6 fire, burn things
|1d6 electricity
|1d4 force
|1d4 sonic, deafen things
|1d4 acid, 1d4 acid over time
|Ice the ground
|1d6 negative energy, raise skeletons
|Read minds somewhat
|Turn things invisible
|1d6 positive energy, raise people
|+2/+1 per 4 Armor bonus
|Spell immunity
|Boost skills, saves, and attack rolls
|Spell resistance
|Grant targets the opportunity to teleport
|Make Port more precise
|Throw things around
|Dispel magical effects
|Provide the power of flight
|Suppress magical effects
|Make illusions (Word of Lies only)
Modifier Words ListEdit
|Modifier Words List
|Effect Summary
|Watch something
|Give the spell a trigger
|Make a Del spell trap-like
|Add more range
|Affect a larger area
|Reduce casting time
|Add a spell component
|Double the spell's power
|Cast from scrying
|Cast over obstacles
|Puts Del spells into objects (Scriptwriter only)
|Del spell recharges faster/cheaper than Tra (Scriptwriter only)
Wordcasting DescriptionsEdit
Shape Word DescriptionsEdit
- Ayl: A small flying sphere contains the spell. It has Medium range (100 ft + 10 ft/caster level).
- Spyn: The spell is beam of energy. It hits everything in a 120 ft line. Spyn adds 3 to the DC to cast this spell.
- Orb: The spell is an orb of conjured energies. It has a Medium range (100 ft + 10 ft/caster level). A ranged touch attack is required in order to hit, but Spell Resistance does not apply.
- Bang: The spell is a tiny dot, which rapidly explodes when it hits the targeted point. It has a Medium range (100 ft + 10 ft/caster level), and has a 20 foot spread. Bang adds 3 to the DC to cast this spell.
- Hand: The spell requires a melee touch attack. Hand reduces the DC of the spell by 2.
- Burs: The spell has a 15 foot burst, centered on you. It hits only those targets within this spread that you want it to hit. Burs increases the DC of the spell by 2.
- Con: The spell is a 30 foot cone. Con increases the DC of the spell by 2.
- Chen: The spell is a bolt that hits three different targets. The first target must be within Close range (25 ft + 5 ft/2 caster levels). The second must be within Close range of the first, and the third must be within Close range of the second. You must have line of sight to all three targets, but line of effect is drawn from each target to the next. Chen increases the DC of the spell by 2.
- Wal: The spell is a 30 foot long, 10 foot tall, infinitesimally thin wall that you may summon at up to Close range (25 ft +5 ft/2 caster levels). Anybody in a square where the wall is summoned may make a Reflex save to move 5' to one side of the wall (They choose which side). The wall can be passed through by anything, however anything that passes through the wall is hit by the spell's effects. Anybody who fails their reflex save is also hit by the spell's effects. The wall lasts for one round per caster level.
- Sfir: The spell is a infinitesimally thin sphere that you summon around you with a 10' radius. Anybody in a square where the sphere is summoned may make a Reflex save to move 5' to one side of the sphere (They choose which side). The sphere can be passed through by anything, however anything that passes through the sphere is hit by the spell's effects. Anybody who fails their reflex save is also hit by the spell's effects. The sphere lasts for one round per caster level. The sphere does not move when you move.
Effect Word DescriptionsEdit
- Pyr: The spell deals an additional 1d6 points of fire damage (Reflex half) to each target. It has the capacity to light things on fire and gains the [Fire] descriptor.
- Lek: The spell deals an additional 1d6 points of electricity damage (Reflex half) to each target. It gains the [Electricity] descriptor.
- Forch: The spell deals an additional 1d4 points of force damage to each target. It gains the [Force] descriptor.
- Saun: The spell deals an additional 1d4 points of sonic damage (Fortitude half) to each target. Victims become deafened for 1 round for every 3 points of sonic damage they took if they failed the Fortitude save. The spell gains the [Sonic] descriptor.
- Aci: The spell deals an additional 1d4 points of acid damage (Reflex half) to each target. Anyone who fails their save takes another 1d4 acid damage on their next turn. Additional instances of Aci increase the number of rounds that this 1d4 acid damage repeats for (by one per instance). The spell gains the [Acid] descriptor.
- Kol (Area of effect shapes only): The spell covers the ground with ice for 1 round per caster level. Anybody attempting to enter an iced square must make a DC 15 Balance check or fall prone and take 1 cold damage. Additional instances of Kol increase the DC of the balance check by 2 and increase the cold damage dealt by 1. The spell gains the [Cold] descriptor.
- Deth: The spell deals an additional 1d6 points of negative energy damage (Fortitude negates) to each target. Creatures killed by this spell who have a number of Hit Dice not greater than twice the number of instances of Deth in the spell are immediately animated into skeletons as though by the Animate Dead spell. You can control a number of HD of skeletons equal to 4 times your caster level. The skeletons are permanent. The spell gains the [Evil] descriptor.
- Min: Each target is dazzled unless they pass a Will save. If they have one-third as many hit dice or fewer as instances of Min, they are dazzled even if they pass a Will save; if they fail, they are dazed instead. If they have one-quarter as many hit dice or fewer as instance of Min, they are confused or stunned instead of dazed when they fail their Will save (your choice as you cast the spell). This lasts for 2 rounds. The spell gains the [Mind-Affecting] descriptor.
- Terr: Each target without more hit dice than the number of instances of Terr is shaken unless they pass a Will save. If they have one-third as many hit dice or fewer as instances of Terr, they are frightened instead. If they have one-quarter as many hit dice or fewer as instance of Terr, they are panicked instead (your choice as you cast the spell. This lasts for 2 rounds. The spell gains the [Fear] descriptor.
- Path: You can detect the surface thoughts of the target and sense what it senses for 1 minute/caster level while it is within 1 mile (Will negates (harmless)). You must concentrate on a target in order to do either of those things.
- Avis: You turn the targeted object or character somewhat invisible, giving concealment for 1 minute/caster level. Any character or object that attacks or casts a spell loses this invisibility. With three instances of Avis, the target becomes completely invisible. With seven instances, the character can attack and cast spells during the first 1 round/caster level of the effect without losing invisibility. Each instance of Avis increases the spell's DC by 2.
- Lyf: The spell deals an additional 1d6 points of positive energy damage (Fortitude negates (harmless)) to each target. Any corpses that were dealt at least 100 points of positive energy damage are raised as though by the Raise Dead spell, with the exception that it only works on characters who were dead for no more than a number of minutes per caster level instead of days. The spell gains the [Good] descriptor.
- Arm: The spell grants each target a +2 Armor Bonus for 1 hour/caster level. Every 4 additional instances of Arm increases the amount of Armor Bonus granted in this way by 1. The spell gains the [Force] descriptor.
- Inv: The spell makes each target immune to level 0 spells for 1 minute/caster level. For every three additional instances of Inv, the highest level of spell that the targets become immune to increases by one.
- Excel: The spell grants each target a +1 insight bonus to all skills, saves, and attack rolls for 3 rounds. Each additional instance of Excel increases the insight bonus to skills by 1, and every three additional instances increases the insight bonus to saves and attack rolls by 1. The spell gains the [Mind-Affecting] descriptor.
- Sir: The spell grants each target Spell Resistance equal to your caster level for 1 round per instance of Sir.
- Port: Each target may teleport up to Long range (400 feet + 40'/caster level), bringing up to their maximum load with them. The targets choose the direction and distance of their teleport. Mindless objects are not targeted by this effect. All teleportation granted by this spell misses by 1d100% of the distance traveled. If it is possible to miss in such a way that the creature ends up on a suitable surface in an open space, it does so. If the creature still arrives in a place that is already occupied by a solid body, that creature takes 2d6 damage and is shunted to the open space above a suitable surface which is the closest to where it would otherwise teleport. With two instances of Port, the range increases to 1 mile/caster level. With three, the range is 10 miles/caster level. With four, it's 100 miles/caster level. With five, it's anywhere on the same plane. With six, it's anywhere on any plane. The first instance of Port increases the DC of the spell by 15. Each additional instance increases the DC by 2. The spell gains the [Teleportation] descriptor.
- Al: You can only learn this word if you already know Port, and you may only add this word to a spell with Port in it. The distance by which the spell misses is reduced to 1d20%. A second instance of Al reduces the distance by which it misses to 1d12%, the third to 1d8%, the fourth to 1d6%, the fifth to 1d4%, the sixth to 1%, and the seventh means it arrives precisely where the creature asks to go.
- Thro: Anybody hit by this spell falls prone (Reflex negates). For each additional instance of Thro, you may fling each target hit by this spell 10 feet (Will negates). You cannot throw more than a total of 50 pounds per caster level. You must succeed on attack rolls (one per creature or object thrown) to hit whatever you're trying to hit with the items, using your base attack bonus + your Intelligence modifier (if a word wizard or other Intelligence-based class) or Charisma modifier (if a wordmaster or other Charisma-based class). Weapons cause standard damage (with no Strength bonus; note that arrows or bolts deal damage as daggers of their size when used in this manner). Other objects cause damage ranging from 1 point per 25 pounds (for less dangerous objects) to 1d6 points of damage per 25 pounds (for hard, dense objects). No more than one object per instance of Thro can be used to deal damage.
- Disp: For every spell effect or item that is on any of the targets or is within this spell's effect might be dispelled or suppressed. Each effect's caster must make a caster level check (In the case of magic items, use the magic item's caster level) opposed by your roll to cast this spell. Any nonpermanent effect that has its caster level check fail is dispelled. Permanent effects and magic items have their properties suppressed for 1d4 rounds. With six instances of Disp, permanent effects and magic items are dispelled if they fail on their caster level checks by 10 or more. The first instance of Disp increases the DC by 10, and each additional instance increases the DC by 2.
- Lift: Anybody hit by this spell gains a fly speed for 1 round per caster level. With one instance of Lift, the target gets a fly speed of 10' (Clumsy). For every additional instance of Lift, the fly speed increases by 10'. For every four additional instances of Lift, the maneuverability of the target improves by one step. The first instance of Lift increases the DC by 37, but each additional instance only increases the DC by 1.
- Ant (Area of effect spells only): The space within the area of effect of this spell is functions much like an Antimagic Field. However, it only prevents the functioning of spells, magic items, and summoned creatures with a caster level equal to or lower than the number of instances of Ant used in this spell.
- Ilus (Area of effect shapes only): You can create images or sounds within the area of effect of the spell (Will disbelief). You must concentrate on the images or sounds to make them move or change. Spot and listen checks to discover that it's an illusion are opposed by your Bluff check. The illusion lasts for 1 round/caster level. With two instances of Ilus, it lasts for 1 minute/caster level. With three, it lasts for 10 minutes/caster level. With four, it lasts for 1 hour/caster level. With five, it lasts for 1 day/caster level. With six, it lasts for 1 week/caster level. With seven, it lasts for 1 year/caster level. With eight, it's permanent. The spell gains the [Figment] descriptor. (Word of Lies Special)
Modifier Word DescriptionsEdit
- Scri: You can see and hear from the viewpoint of the center of the spell's area (if it has an area), or from the position of the target (If it targets a single creature or object), it follows that creature or object for three minutes. For every additional time you add Scri to the spell, increase the duration of your observation by three minutes or add an additional sense. Scri adds 2 to the DC to cast this spell.
- Del: When you cast the spell, you specify a trigger condition. The spell does not take affect until the trigger condition occurs. The presence of such a spell can be detected with a DC 10 spot or search check. When triggered, the spell casts from the location you cast it at, with the range of the spell, etc. Spells with a Del trigger last one day per instance of Del. Each additional instance of Del adds 3 to the DC to cast this spell.
- Tra: You can only learn this word if you already know Del, and you may only add this word to a spell with Del in it. The spell can only be detected with a DC 21 Search check (it qualifies as a magical trap). For every additional time you add Tra to the spell, the DC for the Search check increases by 3. By spending an amount of experience equal to 25 x (Wordcasting Check DC), you can cause the Del triggered spell to become permanent until discharged. By spending an amount of experience equal to 100 x (Wordcasting Check DC), you can cause the Del triggered spell to become permanent, taking 24 hours to recharge. Tra adds 2 to the DC to cast this spell.
- Long: Increase the spell's range from Medium to Long, from Close to Medium, or from Touch to Close. Long adds 3 to the DC to cast the spell the first time it's applied to that spell, 4 the second time, and 5 the third time.
- Wyd: Double the length of any cone or line, and the radius of any spread or burst involved in the spell. For targeted shapes like Ayl and Chen, it doubles the number of targets. Two instances of Wyd triples the length instead, and so on. Wyd adds 5 to the DC to cast this spell.
- Tungtwist: The spell now requires a focus of a book of tongue twisters, and the Wordmaster must make a Speak Language check equal to the DC to cast the spell to cast it (in addition to the caster level check.) However, the spell is cast twice as quickly (The time it takes to cast is based on it having half as many words in it). You cannot add more than one instance of Tungtwist to a spell.
- Gilt: The spell requires a material component, although only the price of the component matters. The effect of the material component on the DC is described on this chart. Gilt does not increase the DC of the spell. You cannot add more than one instance of Gilt to a spell.
- Charg: When the Wordmaster finishes casting the spell, they are dazed for one round as they cackle maniacally or grin with anticipation. During that time, energy boils up from the ground and down from the sky towards the Wordmaster (A noticeable effect for miles around). The spell only takes affect after this period of time. The save DC of the spell is determined as though there were twice as many words in it. Also, the spell takes effect as though each effect word had been applied twice. Each additional instance of Charg increases the length of being dazed by one round, and triples (quadruples with three instances, etc.) the word length for save DCs and the effect of effect words. Charg increases the DC of the spell by 10.
- Vudu: Vudu always increases the casting time of any spell it is applied to by one full-round action. It may now be cast from any position you can see from (not merely any position you can see). Any creature directly effected by the spell gets a clear mental image of your current location, distance, and direction from them. Vudu increases the DC of the spell by 4.
- Lob: Lob can only be applied to a spell with an area of effect that is not centered on you. You do not need line of sight or line of effect in order to cast this spell, but you must be able to describe an arc going from you to a targeted square. Lob increases the DC of the spell by 2.
- Prop: This word may only be applied to a spell that already has Del in it. The spell itself is now applied to an object, and rules for determining its targets must be determined when you cast the spell. The spell now originates from the item instead of from your casting location. Prop adds 5 to the DC to cast the spell, and the spell requires an additional material component consisting of 100 gp of fine wire or strong thread. (Scriptwriter Special)
- Rech: This word may only be applied to a spell that already has Del in it. 24 hours divided by the number of instances of Rech after the spell takes effect, it recharges and is able to take effect again. Rech adds 2 to the DC to cast the spell, and the spell requires an additional material component consisting of 100 gp of potions for every point in its DC. (Scriptwriter Special)
Wordcasting Miscellaneous ChartsEdit
|Casting Times Table
|Casting Time
|Tungtwist or Accelerating Pronouns
|Tungtwist and Accelerating Pronouns
|Immediate Action
|Swift Action
|Standard Action
|Full Round Action
|+1 Full Round Action
|Wordcasting Check Table
|Caster Level
|Levels 1 through 6
|1d20 + Caster Level
|Levels 7 through 13
|1d20x2 + Caster Level
|Levels 14 through 20
|1d20x3 + Caster Level
|Levels 21 through 27
|1d20x4 + Caster Level
|+7 levels
|1d20x(+1 from above) + Caster Level
|Gilt Prices and Effects Table
|Component Cost is at least:
|DC reduction is:
|1 gold piece
|5 gp
|25 gp
|125 gp
|500 gp
|500 gp
|2500 gp
|5000 gp
|10000 gp
|+10000 gp
|Subtract the largest.
Back to Main Page → 3.5e Homebrew → Variant Rules


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Age 3 years +
Great for pretend and imaginative play, this 14 piece Pet Hospital play set will bring hours of open ended play.
Simply stack your Pet Hospital together.
Designed in Australia by Toyslink.
Made from wood, safe non-toxic paints.
Packaged in a boix ready for gift giving.
Size of Police Station: 30cm (H) x 10cm (W) x 45cm (L)

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Another month, another chart. Here is a KORS update - it appears poised for a little run and the opportunity to exit the position as I do not see much upside in the near term above $65. After wave 5 concludes around the target price, expect a correction to around the top of wave 1 area (around $55). Wave 5 will probably be around the same duration as wave 1 - around a month or a little more.
KORS 2013-03-04.jpg


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In this article I show you the 5 best kept secrets to set up a successful business. Keep them in mind, absorb them and you will see the success will come after you!
Many roads lead to Rome. Let's make that clear at first. There is no book or person who can tell you: If you do it this way, you will always succeed. It's hard to tell, why some people do and why some people do not get success. When I started doing business, the success stayed away for a long time. I was desperate at times. Why am I not successful? I kept wondering. I work so hard, my product is good and I am not an uncomfortable person to do business with. Jealous I looked at the people who were successful and tried to find the reason. Why them and not me? This way of thinking, I continued for two years. Until I realized that this way of thinking will not bring me any step further. I started to look more at myself and stopped trying to search for the reason of success of others. I adjudged them their success and focussed on myself. This brings me to the first secret to set up a successful business.
* Think and stay positive
Especially when you occur setbacks, put yourself over it and move on. Be positive about yourself, to others and adjudge everyone their success. Negative thoughts should immediately be removed. Focus on your own success and stay to it!
Well, that's easy. Think positive and now what?
This brings me two secret number 2.
* Enjoy doing business
Make sure that there is time for making fun. It makes no sense keep on swimming against the tide very hard. Turn around and see what it will bring you. Trust, that it is okay, to let go sometimes, think positive and see what happens. It will really surprise you. Do not feel guilty if you do have that extra cup of coffee while enjoying the sun. Enjoy the fact that you are an entrepreneur and you can determine your own time schedule.
Enjoying your work, is not so hard to do, is it? What is next?
* Live healthy
As an entrepreneur you have to work hard for your success. That's okay, but you should be capable to do that. I sleep six to seven hours a night. I do not need more hours. The reason for this, is because I'm fit. I eat healthy, sport a lot and have relatively little stress. It is okay to sleep less hours when I am thinking of great new ideas while I am laying in my bed. Those lack of sleeping hours belong to my way of living. The next day I will be fully focused again and I am never sick.
it all seems so obvious isn't it? Well let's continue.
Maybe one of the most important secrets is the next one.
* Accept the success and amaze others
Gradually I got the success that I worked so hard for, but somehow I dared not to accept it. I thought it was strange that I had success and found it a little bit scary. People suddenly want something from you, will I not disappoint them? Do I really want this? Yes!! This is what you have strived for, otherwise you would not have never started it. Just accept it, enjoy it, take your responsibility and overwhelm other people in all their expectations. In fact, amaze them with your product or service. Always give that little extra, which they don't expect. Even though you may not get back. Especially in these times of crisis, this is the way to distinguish yourself from the rest. People are going to talk about you and this will lead to the desired snowball effect.
Ho, stop what is going on here? People take it easy! This could be a summary of your thoughts, which includes the last secret.
* Be true to yourself, respect where you came from and respect others who are still there
You get busier and busier. And you notice that more and more people want something from you. Now you need to keep in mind where you came from. In the beginning, you were disappointed too when people didn't answer your emails. You had to call people yourself, to persuade them to do business with you. Respect others who are now at that stage. So treat them like you wanted to be treated back in the days. Answer all emails, never be arrogant or set yourself above other people. Do not think you are better than anyone else. Make sure you still be the nice person to do business with. No matter, who the other person is. So, do not make the same mistake as many others do. They became cocky simultaneously with the success. It will work against you and even the cocky people will notice that once. Although they might be too proud to admit it.
With these 5 secrets in mind I am convinced that at least you will be on the right track to success and mostly stay on that track.
I wish you all the best!


text:
Now showing items 1-4 of 4
Sinus Node Dysfunction Is Associated With Higher Symptom Burden and Increased Comorbid Illness: Results From the ORBIT-AF Registry.
(Clin Cardiol, 2016-02)
BACKGROUND: Patients with sinus node dysfunction (SND) have increased risk of atrial tachyarrhythmias, including atrial fibrillation (AF). To date, treatment patterns and outcomes of patients with SND and AF have not been ...
Use and outcomes associated with bridging during anticoagulation interruptions in patients with atrial fibrillation: findings from the Outcomes Registry for Better Informed Treatment of Atrial Fibrillation (ORBIT-AF).
(Circulation, 2015-02-03)
BACKGROUND: Temporary interruption of oral anticoagulation for procedures is often required, and some propose using bridging anticoagulation. However, the use and outcomes of bridging during oral anticoagulation interruptions ...
The ORBIT bleeding score: a simple bedside score to assess bleeding risk in atrial fibrillation.
(Eur Heart J, 2015-12-07)
BACKGROUND: Therapeutic decisions in atrial fibrillation (AF) are often influenced by assessment of bleeding risk. However, existing bleeding risk scores have limitations. OBJECTIVES: We sought to develop and validate a ...
Increased Heart Rate Is Associated With Higher Mortality in Patients With Atrial Fibrillation (AF): Results From the Outcomes Registry for Better Informed Treatment of AF (ORBIT-AF).
(J Am Heart Assoc, 2015-09-14)
BACKGROUND: Most patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) require rate control; however, the optimal target heart rate remains under debate. We aimed to assess rate control and subsequent outcomes among patients with permanent ...


text:
Little Mix Discuss Plans for 'Spice World'-Like Movie
Could Little Mix be following in the footsteps of the Spice Girls and heading to the big screen a la 'Spice World'?
According to member Leigh-Anne Pinnock, it's a definite possibility! The British singer revealed that a movie is the band's "ultimate dream."
"But I think the good thing about it is we wouldn't just do a documentary," she explained to OK! Magazine. "We'd do, like, you know, the Spice Girls movie, 'Spice World'? It's like a story. I think the movie would be, like, us in different situations. Just something cool that hasn't been done before."
They've got other items on their list of dreams, too; namely, selling out the iconic venue Madison Square Garden. "That's the ultimate goal," she said. "We don't care how long it takes, we just want to do it. It's a huge thing for us."
The girls are working hard to prepare for their first headlining tour in the U.S., set to kick off in September. "We love the American crowd and we just finished our U.K. tour, so we're bringing that show over to America and will make it bigger and better," Leigh-Anne explained.
Bigger, better and more like Beyonce. Leigh-Anne cited Queen Bey as the girl group's biggest tour inspiration. "She's in a class of her own, but we definitely look up to Beyonce and everything that she does and the passion that she has."
Maybe Bey could even make a cameo in the future Little Mix movie!


text:
Improved Airhead for Better Efficiency
Click here for more information
Centrally located in Michigan, Advanced Farm Equipment is the proud manufacturer of Lenco Potato and Lenco Pickle Harvesting Equipment. Advanced Farm Equipment manufacturers 3, 4 & 6 Row Self Propelled Potato Harvesters, 6 Row Self Propelled Pickle Harvesters, 4 & 6 Row Pull Type Potato Windrowers, 4, 6 & 8 Row Self Propelled Potato Windrowers, and 4 Row Pull Type Air Head Harvesters.
All of our Lenco Self Propelled Harvesters and Windrowers and Pull Type Harvesters and Windrowers are hydraulically driven and controlled from the comfort of the cab. Our harvesters and windrowers maneuver in adverse harvesting conditions, and are custom built to meet customer specifications
Advanced Farm Equipment offers a large selection of wear parts and on site service for our Lenco Potato Harvesting and Pickle Harvesting equipment.
Advanced Farm Equipment is an Authorized Spudnik Dealer.
Advanced Farm Equipment, LLC5773 Crystal Rd.Vestaburg, MI 48891989-268-5711 or Toll Free: firstname.lastname@example.com
[Home] [Airhead Harvester] [Pull Type Harvester] [Straight Thru Harvester] [Windrowers] [Pickle Harvesters] [Other Equipment] [Used Equipment] [Special Parts & Tools] [Dealers]


text:
Small Round Coffee Table 340H
Small Round Maple Coffee Table Trumpet Base
Materials: Maple Table Top, Steel Base
Colour: Maple, Silver
Measurements: 650D x 340H mm
Commercial Grade
Best suited to compact office spaces or living rooms. This little round table can be used as a coffee table or a side table in waiting rooms next to a sofa.
Covid-19 Update:
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Got a good idea, and are looking for the perfect audience to present it to? This year there are a lot of choices in North America. This list isn't complete, but is just a taste of the speaking opportunities available.
Note: many have proposal deadlines this month, even though the events are 6 months away. So get cracking now…
- Linux Foundation Collaboration Summit, April 8-10 in San Francisco, CA. Proposals due Feb 15.
- Linux Symposium, July 13-17 in Montreal, Canada. Call for Papers due Feb 28.
- OSCON, July 20-24 in San Jose, California. Call for Participation due Feb 3.
- OpenSourceWorld (formerly LinuxWorldExpo), August 10-13 in San Francisco, CA. Call for Papers due Feb 20.
- Red Hat Summit, September 1-4 in Chicago, IL. Call For Papers due March 9.
- Linux Foundation LinuxCon 2009, September 21-25 in Portland, OR. Call for Papers due April 15. I have the pleasure of serving on the program committee for this one.
- Linux Plumbers Conference 2009, September 23-25 in Portland OR. This shares a venue with LinuxCon.


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Berta's Testimony
The testimony of our Pastor's wife,
Berta Dickerson.
"Say goodbye to your mother," Daddy said as he threw a suitcase into the backseat of our Corvair. Crying quietly, Mommy seemed unable to walk without his constant prodding. Then they were gone. We didn't think we would ever see Mommy again.
A few weeks after Mommy left, Daddy molested me. I was eleven. I soon learned he had molested my older sister too.
Daddy married our stepmother, Mary—and her four kids—four years later. My sisters and I did all the cooking, cleaning and child rearing.
In 1974, Mary claimed her dead grandmother told her we had to move to the bottoms along McGee Creek to be safe from what was happening in the world. Daddy quit his job, bought an old school bus, and converted it into a camper. We drove a quarter of a mile down a steep muddy trail to a level edge on the side of a hill and set up our home. We carried water from the creek and cooked over open fires. We hunted and fished, and ate a lot of white beans and potato soup.
I enlisted in the Navy at seventeen and became a hospital corpsman. When I reported to my duty station, the Navy hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, I learned my family had moved to Kansas without telling me.
I spent a lot time at the base stables working with the horses and the rodeo team. While out drinking with the cowboys one night I met James. We married a year later and spent all our time and money in bars. We both received our discharge papers in 1979.
We moved to San Diego, California, and our daughter, Kari, was born. Soon after that, Daddy and Mary moved to San Diego with the remaining five kids.
Once again, Mary's dead grandmother told her "we" were to move, James, Kari and me included. This time it was northern Louisiana where she had family who lived an Amish lifestyle. With a promise of a simple life, James fell for it and we left our comfortable home and jobs. We sold everything we could, and bought tents and sleeping bags. We camped in state parks from San Diego, California, to Spearsville, Louisiana.
There were no Amish-style relatives though there were relatives. They were quite wealthy with big houses and expensive cars. We rented an old farmhouse that didn't have running water. While living in Louisiana, I attended LPN school and after graduating, I told James I was going back to Memphis. We all ended up there within a year and old habits claimed James and he spent every possible minute in the bars. Having Kari to care for decreased my bar-time, but I eventually found a baby-sitter that would keep her overnight.
I hated my life and decided to leave James. He told me I would never make it on my own; that I'd be back in two weeks or I'd be dead. Unemployed, I left Kari with him hoping she would be better off without me. I thought I'd rather die than continue to live the way were. We never had enough money to eat well, we couldn't pay our bills and yet James wouldn't stay home. Our babysitter kept Kari for days and promised me she would watch over Kari. Within a month, I got a job at the Methodist Hospital in Memphis.
My lifestyle didn't change much. I was still going to bars. I just didn't know anything else. When I wasn't drinking, I was self-conscious and intimidated in every situation except my job. I was a good nurse.
I met Earl the next summer. The first time I saw him I told the nurse I was working with that I'd like to go out with him. When I found out he was the chaplain for our floor I certainly wasn't interested in a "preacher."
Earl and I became friends despite our differences. We spent a lot of time together but only at the hospital. We talked about everything. I told him things I'd never told anyone before. After a year, he asked me out on a date. "No!" Is he crazy? He knows how I live.
Well, I did finally go out with him, and when he proposed I didn't hesitate to say, "Yes." I decided to be baptized because a preacher's wife should be. We married on December 29, 1985.
The next June, Kari came to live with us as we went to our first Church appointment in Benton, Kentucky. The thought of attending Sunday school or Bible study frightened me. There I was, a pastors' wife who knew nothing about the Bible and had a very colorful history. Won't they judge me?
Four years into my marriage, I was still struggling with my past. I went on a Christian retreat where I felt like the woman at the well: I met a man who told me all I had ever done. (John 4:29). I accepted God's forgiveness that weekend and started reading Christian fiction, then nonfiction. Soon I was reading the Bible and attending every church service I could.
Talking with my cousin, Bob Wiley, one evening I told him I believed God was calling me to a healing ministry and I was afraid. "I don't know the Bible. I can't pray well enough."
Bob said, "You have to be healed before you can heal."
I didn't understand. "But Bob, I'm not sick."
While on vacation over the Christmas holidays, I had a dream about Bob. He would be involved in an accident on January 1, 1991, on Highway 80. Earl called him and Bob said he would stay home that day.
On New Year's Day, Kari and I were on our way to meet with my prayer group. We were talking and I missed my turn. I decided to take the next road even though I wasn't familiar with it. Driving along, we topped a hill and there was a stop sign, and Hwy 80.
My eyes opened to bright lights and sounds I couldn't quite identify.
"Hi, Berta." Earl was standing next to me. Where am I? A hospital bed! What happened?
Kari and I had gone through the intersection and under the trailer of a semi that dragged us one hundred and sixty-five yards before throwing us out on the other side.
The car was so flat that the first people on the scene didn't check for survivors. My cousin, Bob, came and checked. We were both alive. Kari had a several cuts on her head and Bob's wife took her out of the car. I knew my neck was broken and my breathing labored. Bob asked me what he could do and I told him to pray. He cradled my head in his hands and prayed with me for the forty-five minutes it took the paramedics to cut the car away from us.
Earl was at a theater watching "Home Alone." The staff turned the movie off and the lights on and Earl said he knew they wanted him. After hearing about the accident and that one of us was seriously injured, he drove to the hospital. As he passed the accident site God told him that I was hurt and that he would see me and talk to me before I died.
He prayed that he could accept God's will but he couldn't. He prayed, "God, I'll take her any way You choose to give her to me as long as she's Berta. In his heart, God told him, "Remember your promise." That was when Earl knew about my paralysis.
When he arrived at Western Baptist Hospital in Paducah, I was in x-ray having a cervical CT scan done. He asked Bob how I was but Bob wouldn't say. Earl kept pressing for an answer then asked, "Is she paralyzed?" When Bob admitted that I was, Earl calmed down. God was in charge.
Kari was treated and released from the hospital within a few hours. As for me, the CT revealed that my fifth cervical vertebra was shattered. That meant my spinal cord was injured and probably severed. A chest x-ray showed that a broken rib had punctured my right lung and I needed a chest tube.
In surgery, they put two screws in my skull, one behind each ear. Weights applied traction to the screws by Crutchfield Tongs to straighten my neck. I developed pneumonia and needed a ventilator so they did a tracheotomy. In yet another surgery, they put in two more screws, this time in my forehead. Four upright bars connected a metal ring attached to the screws, to a leather vest to immobilize my neck and allow the broken bones to fuse.
Our Christian family gathered around us daily. They visited us at the hospital. They took care of Kari. They also supported my youngest sister, Bobbi, who had come to care for Kari. But most of all they prayed for me and with me.
One morning I heard Bobbi crying softly in the corner of my room. Don't cry Bobbi. It'll be OK. I'll walk again. God said He would heal me when I'm 34. (I was 33.)
I didn't want Kari to see me because I thought it would scare her to see all the tubes and wires attached to me. Earl said he had already told her about everything and when I finally agreed to see her, she wasn't bothered at all. Earl held her over me, she gave me a kiss and said, "I love you Mommy." All I could do was cry.
Earl persistently asked my neurosurgeon to transfer me. He said, "She can get just as good of care here as anywhere else." Then one day he started telling Earl that if I lived I would be brain damaged, ventilator dependent, and bedridden for life. A vegetable. He told Earl, "You're too young to be stuck with something like that." He then offered some simple things that could be "not done" so that I would die, quickly but comfortably. In that moment, God replayed in Earl's mind the oath he had taken on our wedding day. In the voice of Reverend John Jones, the pastor who performed our service of marriage, he heard, ". . . in sickness and in health, forsaking all others, keeping thee only unto her, so long as you both shall live." Without hesitating, Earl said in his spirit, "I do." Earl understood that God alone decides the time limits of a marriage covenant.
The next day, I heard the pulmonologist say that I would never get off the ventilator and I made up my mind that I would. I'd been off it for a few minutes at a time so I knew I could breathe without it. Two days later, I was off it, although I still needed oxygen.
When I looked up all I could see were the two screws and the black circle the brace formed around my forehead. I called it my "crown of thorns." I couldn't feel anything below my neck. I had a trach and was on oxygen. I had a triple lumen IV in my chest and was on a cardiac monitor. I had a feeding tube in my stomach and an indwelling urinary catheter. Physical therapy wouldn't touch me if I'd had a bowel movement and I had constant diarrhea from the tube feeding. I had pressure sores on both heels and on the back of my head.
Despite the doctor's prognosis, Earl arranged for my transfer to Shepherd Spinal Center in Atlanta, Georgia.
As I settled in to Shepherd's Intensive Care Unit a respiratory therapist swabbed my trach to culture for infections. It grew out methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus, MRSA. (That hard to kill superbug called mer-sa) The staff moved me into isolation.
I stayed in ICU for ten days before transferring to an isolation room on the second floor. Earl pinned all my Christian "get well" cards and a banner that read,"He who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it in the day of Christ Jesus," (Phil 1:6), to the walls. Every time I looked at that banner, I thought, "What good can come of this broken paralyzed body." And, "How do you get well from a spinal cord injury?"
Earl and Bobbi, along with Kari, alternated visiting. Earl would stay for ten days then Bobbi and Kari would come for a weekend. We did devotions together each evening. Earl read both The Upper Room and Our Daily Bread aloud. When Bobbi was there, I had her read them to me. She hated reading aloud, but every time she did, there was a strange coincidence between the devotions and her day. (She accepted Christ and was baptized in October, 1991.)
As I built up strength to sit up, the therapists brought in a power wheelchair. They thought I would need a "sip and puff" chair. [Like the one Christopher Reeve had several years later.] Earl insisted that I could drive with my right arm. I could—sort of.
I spent most of those isolation days laid back in my chair either sleeping or staring out the window. Just outside my window were several trees. I watched as tender new shoots and tiny red buds appeared that spring. All but one. It was dead, useless and ugly. I wished someone would cut it down. One morning, I looked out my window and the tree had buds on it. I cried. What I had said about that tree was what the doctors had said about me. It was God's way of telling me that my life wasn't over. He is faithful.
The doctor took my crown of thorns off on Good Friday, the traditional day Jesus' Crown of Thorns pierced His brow. I wore a cervical collar for four weeks. After three months of external support, my neck muscles were too weak to hold up my head. I had to lie back in my chair and let the headrest support it.
On Easter Sunday, a young couple led a brief worship service in the classroom at the Center. I couldn't sing or raise my hands in praise, but I sang in my heart and thanked God for my life as tears rolled down my cheeks.
Once I was no longer MRSA positive, I had a regular routine. Monday through Friday a nurse got me up in my wheelchair and fed me breakfast. Then I slowly wheeled my way to the gym for therapy. Physical and Occupational Therapies were done twice a day. Splints stabilized both of my wrists. I slowly regained control of my right bicep and with that return, came attempts to do activities of daily living. This included brushing my teeth, washing my face, and feeding myself. It was messy and frustrating.
Group therapy, led by a psychologist and a chaplain, took place once a week. Another psychologist met with me privately. I took an oral cognitive test to determine my post-injury ability to reason, and scored very high. No brain damage. There were classes every day on what to do, how to do it, things to know for daily care and in an emergency.
Not only did I have a lot to learn, so did Earl. Our training included range-of-motion exercises, assisted coughing, bowel and bladder care, skin care, nail care, body positioning, clothing and shoes, preventing illness, sexual issues, medications, adaptive devices, etc. Earl learned about wheelchair lift van options. We learned how to make our house "wheelchair friendly" and how to maintain my wheelchair.
After passing the training exercises, we were encouraged to go on outings to experience the public. We shopped at malls and ate out at restaurants. We even went to church.
One thing Shepherd couldn't do was give me a Christian community. I knew there were people at home praying for my recovery and for my healing. I received cards every day. Still, I needed to be at home. I desperately needed my family, my Church, and my friends. And my family needed me as much as I needed them.
My physician was reluctant to let me go so soon. I hadn't made much progress. I still couldn't hold my head up, so much of the therapy time I spent laying back in my chair. He had me evaluated by each of the therapists assigned to my case as well as the psychologists and the chaplain. In the end, he agreed to let me go if I promised not to quit. I promised.
Shepherd wouldn't discharge me until Earl had performed each aspect of my care in front the staff nurses. I had surgery to close my trach. Then we had to make a weekend visit home to see if the modifications to the house were adequate and if we could manage everything. We made the trip home and back over Memorial weekend. I was exhausted, even though I had laid down both ways, and I was hurting worse than I did right after the accident.
My discharge date arrived. June 9, 1991. Once at home life was unstructured. If we weren't actively doing something, I was sleeping. Earl took me everywhere he went: Church, preacher's meetings, pastor's conferences, hospital visits. But mostly I took my pain pills and slept.
On the first anniversary of my injury, we went back to Shepherd for a follow-up visit. X-rays showed that the bones in my neck had not fused. My doctor recommended surgery but said the neurosurgeons there wouldn't risk doing it.
Earl did some research and he chose a surgeon whose office was on Aldersgate Road in Cleveland, Ohio, because John Wesley's heart was "strangely warmed" on Aldersgate Road in London, England on May 24, 1738.
We contacted the surgeon and he accepted my case. We began the preoperative process in Paducah. As part of that process, I had a cervical MRI done. A friend worked in the department, and she let Earl and I watch the computer screen as she printed out the films. That's when we saw my spinal cord for the first time. It was intact and slightly swollen at the injury site. I cried with joy at the possibility of being able to walk again.
On April 12, 1992, I was the matron of honor and Kari was the bridesmaid at Bobbi's wedding. She and Tim had come to Benton to get married by Earl in the Church where Bobbi had come to know the Lord. Three days later, I underwent surgery in Cleveland.
The procedure was a Late Anterior and Posterior Cervical Decompression. Basically the surgeon cut across my neck, removed the loose pieces of bone, turned me over and cut a ten-inch incision down my neck, took out more broken bone, put in bone grafts from my hip, and wired it all together.
After ten hours in surgery, I woke up in intensive care intubated and on a ventilator. "Angry" is not a strong enough word to describe what I felt. I hadn't thought about being on a ventilator again. I spent two days on it in the unit and three days later, we were on our way home.
I wore a neck brace that was similar to the halo but without the screws. It held my head up for two months, and then I wore a cervical collar for two months, then nothing. Still very weak, I continued to lie back to rest my neck muscles. In late August, we went back to Cleveland for a postoperative visit with the doctor. As he had me raise my arms, testing them for function, he asked, "Are you doing that?"
"Yes." I thought he was angry.
When he pricked my skin in several places to determine what I could feel, he asked, "Can you really feel that?"
I didn't understand why he thought I was faking my responses.
He released me, and recommended I go to outpatient therapy.
After a year of outpatient therapy, I asked my doctor if she would write an order for me to do an inpatient rehabilitation period at a local rehab center. The therapies strengthened me quickly and I gained more control of my shoulders and biceps. I was able to hold my head up longer and I left there with a new outlook on my ability to function in life.
At home, I had nothing to do and felt useless. Without a structured day, I slept all the time. I hated company because I was embarrassed to be an "invalid." Any noise that interrupted my sleep (or feigned sleep) made me angry. I was rude to adults because they talked about me while I was right there. Kari's friends would knock on the door and I'd holler at her for letting them disturb me.
Earl gave me a laptop computer and encouraged me to keep a journal. Writing caused me to think and that led to an active mind. Earl was always so patient with my tantrums and as I got stronger, he encouraged me to do things for myself. I kept all of my medications on my computer and was responsible for ordering refills and getting orders for the expired prescriptions. I had a medical history page where I charted every test, treatment, and supply pertinent to my care. I made all my appointments and scheduled all of my nurse and nurse's aide visits.
An invitation to teach a Sunday school class required study and preparation. As I read the Word of God, I learned how much He loved me, and what He had planned for my life. I developed a telephone ministry with the older women in our Church. Encouraging and praying for others was helping me stay alert and heal.
I returned to Shepherd nine years after the accident. The doctors and staff responded to my health, strength and independence with, "You could write the manual."
People say that I am an inspiration. I say, "It's Jesus." I want every person I meet to see Him and know the joy He brings.
My arms are functional and I wear a splint on my right wrist that enables me to use a touchtone speaker telephone, type on a computer keyboard, turn pages in books and feed myself. I have help in the mornings to get up and Earl puts me in bed in the evenings.
I spend most of my days alone studying God's word, writing, preparing for the many ministries I'm involved in. I'm a pastor's wife, an adult Sunday school teacher, a women's Bible study leader and a small group facilitator. I am an author and a speaker.
We pray and give thanks to God every day for my healing. I pray this testimony has touched and encouraged you in Christ. You can read more about me on my website below.
In Christian Love,
Berta Dickerson


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I've been using IFL 2.74 since that version came out for my Laptop running Windows 7 and my desktop running Windows Vista. I never upgraded to later versions because all they seemed to do was add additional features that I didn't need, and 2.74 worked perfectly for my purposes.
I'm now replacing my laptop with a Dell XPS with Windows 10 and an SSD Drive. Since all I want to do is take an image of the SSD drive and save it to an external drive for later restoration to the SSD drive in case the need arises, can I still use the IFL 2.74 or will I need to upgrade to a later version? If a later version is required, which one is recommended? Any other information I need to be aware of to image an SSD drive running Windows 10?
Jack Greenberg


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This is InDesign template for Blue And Green Squares A4 brochure.
Format of brochure is A4 and there are 2 different color styles in package.
Subtle light background makes it suitable for all kinds of business.
Fonts used in designing are all free. Margins and bleeds are included so catalogue is ready for editing and print.
Package contains InDesign files for Indesign CS4 & CS5.
Images are not included in package.
If you have any questions feel free to contact me


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Tales of the Cocktail: New Orleans' Super Bowl of the Spirits World
Every July, New Orleans hosts thousands of fans of good cocktails and great food who come together for an event called Tales of the Cocktail--the Super Bowl, World Series, and World Cup of the spirits world, all wrapped up in one event. Now in its sixth year from July 16 to 20, Tales of the Cocktail is poised to have its biggest showing ever: the five days of sessions, dinners, and parties are expected to draw thousands of people to the city, and its opening session this afternoon will celebrate the recent selection of the Sazerac as the official cocktail of New Orleans.
A lot of people wilt when I tell them I'm spending a week in New Orleans in July, but this will be my third year at Tales, and I've been looking forward to it ever since I came home from last year's event. And while it's certainly hot as hell, spending a few summer days in the Big Easy is a great way to come to a deeper appreciation of ceiling fans, mint juleps, and the art of the slow saunter.
If you're coming to the event, please stop by and say hello—I'm moderating sessions on absinthe cocktails and making your own cocktail ingredients (the former with co-moderator Gwydion Stone, founder of the Wormwood Society), as well as co-hosting a dinner at Palace Café with Jim Meehan from PDT in New York, who created cocktails to complement a menu developed by chef de cuisine Ben Thibodeaux. But even if you can't make it, you can get a contact buzz by following the exploits of myself and more than 30 other spirits-and-cocktail bloggers who are coordinating our efforts on a special group site, Blogging Tales of the Cocktail.
While I've been to New Orleans many times, I'm always discovering new places to eat and visit. Have you been to New Orleans recently (or do you live there now)? What are your favorite places?
All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.


text: My name is Christopher Moore. I come from PEI Canada I have been painting for about 10 years now and it is something I absolutely love and something I love to share with people.As an artist I work hard to develop paintings that speak both to me and to others about the beauty that exists all around us and in everyday life and the emotions that we struggle to understand and get a grasp of. Part of my process is to think about how people interpret things and as such I study a lot of psychology and how colors affect us and the trigger that this can have and the feelings that they can invoke. I have never merely wanted to capture an image on canvas with my brushes, but rather with careful, colorful strokes i want to give people the feeling of something more when they look into the painting and possibly into self realization and make them feel joy and happiness.I have always loved working with different mediums, my drawings are something i love doing and have had requests for and are a great way for me to destress. My photography is something i have just recently started doing trying to capture emotion with my use of color and texture and focal point and shadow to remind us to enjoy the things we have around us.


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|Posted: Jul 02, 2014
Overcoming light scattering: New optical system sees deeper inside tissue
|(Nanowerk News) Optical imaging methods are rapidly becoming essential tools in biomedical science because theyre noninvasive, fast, cost-efficient and pose no health risks since they don't use ionizing radiation. These methods could become even more valuable if researchers could find a way for optical light to penetrate all the way through the body's tissues. With todays technology, even passing through a fraction of an inch of skin is enough to scatter the light and scramble the image.
|Now a team of researchers from Spains Jaume I University (UJI) and the University of València has developed a single-pixel optical system based on compressive sensing that can overcome the fundamental limitations imposed by this scattering. The work was published today in The Optical Societys (OSA) open-access journal Optics Express ("Image transmission through dynamic scattering media by single-pixel photodetection").
|Researchers placed an image of the Cheshire Cat behind a layer of material that hides the object. A standard multi-pixel camera cannot see the cat because the material in front scatters the light (a). However, by using a single-pixel optical system based on compressive sensing, the researchers could overcome the imaging limitations traditionally imposed by scattering to recover fine details about the hidden object (b). (©: Optics Express)
|In the diagnostic realm within the past few years, weve witnessed the way optical imaging has helped clinicians detect and evaluate suspicious lesions," said Jesús Lancis, the papers co-author and a researcher in the Photonics Research Group at UJI. "The elephant in the room, however, is the question of the short penetration depth of light within tissue compared to ultrasound or x-ray technologies. Current knowledge is insufficient for early detection of small lesions located deeper than a millimeter beneath the surface of the mucosa."
|"Our goal is to see deeper inside tissue, he added.
|To achieve this, the team used an off-the-shelf digital micromirror array from a commercial video projector to create a set of microstructured light patterns that are sequentially superimposed onto a sample. They then measure the transmitted energy with a photodetector that can sense the presence or absence of light, but has no spatial resolution. Then they apply a signal processing technique called compressive sensing, which is used to compress large data files as they are measured. This allows them to reconstruct the image.
|One of the most surprising aspects of the teams work is that they use essentially a single-pixel sensor to capture the images. While most people think that more pixels result in better image quality, there are some cases where this isn't true, Lancis said. In low-light imaging, for instance, it's better to integrate all available light into a single sensor. If the light is split into millions of pixels, each sensor receives a tiny fraction of light, creating noise and destroying the image.
|Something similar happens when you try to transmit images through scattering media, Lancis said. When we use a conventional digital camera to get an image, we only see the familiar noisy pattern known as speckle. In compressive imaging, since we arent using pixelated sensors, it should be less sensitive to light scrambling and enable transmission of images through scattering.
|Also notable, the teams technique could operate through dynamic scattering. Most scattering media of interest, like biological tissue, are dynamic in the sense that the scatter centers continuously change their positions with time -- meaning that the speckle patterns are in motion. This is ideal for some applications because monitoring the changes of the speckle can reveal information about the sample, but the drawback is that its a major nuisance to transmit or get images, Lancis pointed out. Our technique, however, requires no calibration of the medium, and its fluctuations during the sensing stage dont limit imaging ability.
|Whats ahead for the team? Our next goal is to break the barriers of light penetration depth inside a scattering medium with the state-of-the-art megapixel-programmable spatial light modulators used in consumer electronics, Lancis says. To do this, theyll need to demonstrate that their technique works even when the sample is embedded inside the tissue.
|Source: Optical Society
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Councils and police will continue to pass around sensitive data obtained using spying powers in the clear, after the government rejected calls to impose encryption.
The proposal was made in response to a Home Office consultation on the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA), which allows hundreds of public bodies to obtain phone and internet records.
Such data were accessed by authorities using RIPA powers 504,073 times last year. They are seen as a very powerful investigative tool, likely to record who a person has been in contact with and where they have been. Personal information such as phone numbers email addresses are included.
A single individual within each public body empowered by RIPA is responsible for obtaining the data from communications providers, which they then pass on to investigating officers. According to Duncan Campbell, who acts as an expert witness on communications data, it is usually delivered and forwarded without encryption.
"The almost invariable practice is to sent data, unencrypted, as CSV or XLS files. From [communications provider] to [public body], and then on to everyone else. Only one [communications provider] routinely provides some encryption when downloading data, but this is not preserved at the next stage," he wrote on the UKCrypto mailing list.
"As you might expect, the idea of generating and sending hashes or another form of digital signature to certify the integrity of the data has not found any hold."
Responding last week to suggestions "there should be a mandatory requirement for all RIPA applications, authorisations and material obtained to be encrypted", the Home Office said increased security is not feasible.
"It would be impractical to require all material obtained through the use of RIPA to be encrypted," it said.
"However, it is perfectly reasonable for members of the public to want reassurance that all appropriate steps are taken to protect material obtained through the use of techniques under RIPA.
"All relevant public authorities have in place a variety of security measures, including physical security measures, security procedures, staff vetting and training, to ensure that material is protected from improper disclosure."
Despite the assurances, concern over the security of communications data obtained under RIPA is likely to increase with its increased use, and increased capture. New police guidelines require detectives to consider obtaining phone or internet records during every single investigation and the forthcoming Interception Modernisation Programme will involve terabytes of data storage for communications providers.
Of course, some public bodies using RIPA powers use encryption as a matter of in-house policy. Many RIPA requests for communications data are made by the intelligence agencies, for example, who use only secure networks. ®


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The Bethenny Ever After stars won't be getting their happy ending after all. Earlier this week, Bethenny Frankel filed for divorce from Jason Hoppy, TMZ reports.
RIP Jelena and TomKat! Check out the most shocking celebrity splitsAfter two years of marriage, Frankel announced the couple's separation over the holidays.Since meeting in late 2008, Frankel and Hoppy's romance had been well-documented on Frankel's various Bravo reality series, including Bethenny Getting Married, which chronicled their journey down the aisle.Frankel and Hoppy have a 2-year-old daughter, Bryn.


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Any runners out there?I've been running fairly regularly over the last few months (only 1-2 times a week though). I've done a couple of 10ks but try to run 3-4 miles on training runs at fairly leisurely pace (around 6.5mph). I find that my bpm is around 158-160 at comfortable running but can go up to 178 when running uphill or if running anything up to 8.5mph. In order to keep it around 150 bpm which is at the very top end of my supposed optimum (220-age-60%) I'd need to be barely running/fast walking. What's the best way to get the bpm down? I've heard of interval training but know little about it. At the minute I'm nowhere near breaking the 50min barrier for a 10k with my best at 55m. Any help welcome.
Any runners out there?
Lads I'm able fairly comfortably to run for 30 minutes in the gym covering about 4/5 km and then doing 5/6 on the bike in 15/20 minutes ,however I can't sprint for shite with out being seriously out of breath . Any idea's why or how to improve this?
I have started running 6/7 miles 4 or 5 times a week and wearing a heart rate monitor. My bpm seem to be way above what it should be. For my entire run it seems to be between 160-210. Should I be worried?


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Charlotte's Web or Goodnight Moon? Which one is the greatest children's book of all time?
A team of literacy experts, mom bloggers and book editors agonized over this question when creating a list of the 100 great books for kids, released this month by Scholastic's Parent & Child Magazine.
Nick Friedman, editor-in-chief of the magazine, told USA Today that the toughest choice was deciding on a book for that number-one spot.
The prize ultimately went to…drum roll…E.B. White's classic about a pig named Wilbur who becomes famous with the help of a clever spider and a compassionate farm girl. Margaret Wise Brown's beloved 1947 bedtime story fell into the number-two slot.
Madeleine L'Engle's Newbery-winning fantasy favorite A Wrinkle in Time came in third, and A Snowy Day, Ezra Jack Keats' pioneering 1962 portrayal of an African-American child, in fourth.
Shocked? Outraged? Do you entirely disagree?
Friedman says the list is meant to spark discourse—and spur book lovers to talk about the most memorable literature from their childhoods (so please share your favorites in the comments).
The list is actually a brilliant collection of books for kids of all ages, featuring everything from the simplest board books (remember Pat the Bunny?) to award-winning chapter books, both old and new, from The Secret Garden to Bridge to Terabithia to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Suzanne Collins' best seller The Hunger Games is one of the newest titles that made the cut.
The choices are also diverse, touching on a wide array of cultures. There's Dear Juno, the lovely story of a boy whose grandmother speaks Korean, a language he doesn't know, and so he draws her a message. And Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, the Chinese folk-inspired tale of a girl who's determined to change her family's fortune.
The top-100 list is a great resource for parents to find reading material for their kids, and it's also fun to browse if you were one of those children who always had your nose in a book. (How many books on the list have you read?)
But as you look through the choices, it's hard to not notice that many favorites are missing. Where's Little House on the Prairie? My daughter has read that at least 10 times—we drove two hours out of our way once so we could step inside the "little house in the big woods." And what about my son's favorite picture book Miss Nelson Is Missing? And my daughter's favorite Miss Rumphius? And how could they forget The Wizard of Oz?
And you might not agree with all the rankings. C.S. Lewis's The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe at number 43 after Diary of a Wimpy Kid—huh?
Now it's your turn to be the judge and look over the list. Here are the top 30 books and for the full rundown of 100, visit the Scholastic website. Please share your favorite children's books in the comments and we'll put together an SFGate list.
(Note: Scholastic publishes both books and magazines, but the judges were specifically instructed to not be partial to the publisher and only 14 Scholastic titles made it on the final list.)


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FYI: I've rearranged the "Battle" page on the wiki so some of your contributions are now in the "interface and controls" section. I figured it was best to keep the rules part as clean and short as possible. I've also plugged in your pictures.
Nice improvements! Wow: you joined Wikidot even before I did!
Visit the unofficial IRC channel! irc://quakenet #stoicstudio


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Angels drop 2 coaches; Mike Scioscia, GM staying
- Jim Eppard and Rob Picciolo will not return to the Angels next season
- Manager Mike Scioscia and general manager Jerry Dipoto will return
- Los Angeles finished 78-84%2C its lowest win total in a decade
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Manager Mike Scioscia and general manager Jerry Dipoto are getting another chance with the Los Angeles Angels.
Scioscia and Dipoto confirmed Tuesday night they will be back with the Angels next year despite the club's worst season in a decade.
Hitting coach Jim Eppard and bench coach Rob Picciolo will not return in 2014, but Scioscia and Dipoto have been retained by owner Arte Moreno, who made no formal announcement of his decision. The Angels missed the playoffs for the fourth straight season at 78-84, producing their lowest win total since 2003 despite one of the majors' highest payrolls.
"This is where I want to be, and I want to get things going in the direction they should be," said Scioscia, the longest-tenured active manager in baseball. "I'm happy to get another opportunity to do that."
Scioscia has spent 14 seasons in charge of the Angels, and he still has five years and about $27 million left on the richest managerial contract in the sport. Dipoto, the former major league pitcher and Arizona assistant GM, is only under contract through next season — and he said his deal hasn't changed.
"You know we had a very difficult season," Dipoto said. "We had issues to deal with both on and off the field. ... As a whole, we're looking to improve in all areas, and one of the things we're trying to do is implement the same on-field excellence the Angels had from 2002 to 2009."
Scioscia and Dipoto both took yet another opportunity to dismiss rumors they've struggled to work together, insisting they're sticking to a unified plan to get Los Angeles back into World Series contention.
"There absolutely is no philosophical gap that is real," Scioscia said. "There's a lot of chatter out there, and it's just not accurate."
The Angels turned into a high-priced mess this season when a slow start essentially eliminated them from playoff contention in July. They were never above .500 after opening day, eventually finishing third in the AL West behind Oakland and Texas.
A lineup featuring MVP candidate Mike Trout, three-time NL MVP Albert Pujols, former AL MVP Josh Hamilton, slugger Mark Trumbo and a solid supporting cast couldn't overcompensate for a pitching staff that performed poorly and struggled with injuries for much of the Angels' fourth straight season out of the playoffs.
Scioscia and Dipoto both agree the Angels need changes, but the Angels' enormous financial commitments to 30-something sluggers Pujols and Hamilton will limit their roster flexibility for years. So Los Angeles will attempt to bolster Dipoto's offseason moves by changing faces on Scioscia's coaching staff.
Picciolo had been the Angels' bench coach for three seasons, but Scioscia said third base coach Dino Ebel will be promoted to the role next season. The Angels haven't decided on a new hitting coach or third base coach, and Dipoto said they're likely to add one or two additional assistants to Scioscia's staff.
"We feel like a different voice in some areas can be helpful," Dipoto said. "We've spent a lot of time talking over the last couple of weeks about how we can improve, and unfortunately good people sometimes have to suffer for the good of the whole, and that's probably the case here."
Scioscia and Dipoto effusively praised Eppard, who became the Angels' hitting coach early in the 2012 season when Dipoto fired Mickey Hatcher, Scioscia's longtime assistant. The move opened a rift between Scioscia and Dipoto, but both men have repeatedly said they're past it.
"When Mickey was let go, we moved on from that," Scioscia said. "There's nothing but us wanting to work as a team and get better, and that's what we're going to look to do. There's a lot of great ideas floating around our organization the last couple of years. We're going to continue to enact these ideas and harvest them and hopefully make ourselves better."
Scioscia said he hopes Eppard will stay with the Angels organization in some capacity.
Dipoto and Scioscia deflected questions about whether Moreno has issued any ultimatums about their performance next season with the Angels, who haven't been in the postseason since reaching the ALCS in 2009. Dipoto is headed for the Angels' organizational meetings in Tempe, Ariz., this week as he works on a plan to get the team back in contention.
"Arte is as frustrated as we are with where we were and where we ended up, and where we've been," Scioscia said. "He's frustrated, but very supportive and understanding that he has confidence in us that we're going to turn it around and get to reach our goal."


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I have always been a big proponent of breast feeding. Children who are breastfed are found to have higher IQs and a better overall health status. The benefits that Mother Nature packs into mother's milk has not been successfully mimicked by any man-made product. Far from it in fact –the formulas on the market are quite atrocious when it comes to nutritional standards for health.
Does breast feeding reduce your child's chances of developing celiac disease?
It turns out that the risk of developing celiac disease was shown to decrease by a whopping 63% for children breast fed for more than two months compared to those children breast fed for less than two months. I will admit that I would have lost that bet – I would have assumed that two months wasn't long enough to make that large a difference. But apparently a little goes a long way when it comes to the value of breast milk.
Another study looked at children fed breast milk for three months or more and found an even better result. These children were five times less likely to develop celiac disease as compared to those babies who fell within the less than three month mark.
We used to think that celiac disease was a yes or no proposition, with no gray areas. In other words it was believed that you were born with the disease or you were not. That is incorrect and recent research has proven that celiac disease can develop in those who have the genetic predisposition at any time during their life. In fact the incidence of celiac disease in the general population is known to increase from 1% to 4% (or 5%, depending on the research you look at) with age.
This tells us that the presence of genes for celiac disease and the ingestion of gluten in the diet, are not sufficient to cause the disease to manifest itself. What's the third factor? The health of the GI tract is the final link. A healthy GI tract will have adequate healthy probiotics to keep the celiac disease genes turned off, thereby preventing the disease from expressing itself. The unhealthy GI tract no longer has robust good bacteria and their weakening numbers makes them incapable of keeping bad genes turned off. The result is the 'turning on' of the celiac genes.
Getting back to breastfeeding, it is known that breast milk is a wonderful colonizer of healthy probiotic organisms within the gut. The colostrum mothers produce helps their baby's immune system mature, thereby preventing disease, especially digestive infections that could create a leaky gut and increased predisposition to gluten intolerance as well as other food reactions.
What about the timing of introducing gluten to children?
Two major studies confirm that timing may be quite critical. In one it was found that infants who were receiving breast milk at the time of gluten introduction had a 52% reduced risk of developing celiac disease as compared with those babies who were not receiving breast milk when gluten was introduced into their diet.
The second study was a landmark study conducted in Sweden, unbeknownst to anyone at the time it occurred. In other words, only retrospectively, was it understood what happened. Here's the story: In the 1980s a change of guidelines occurred as regards when gluten should be introduced into the diet of an infant. Prior it had been maintained that gluten should be introduced while a child was receiving breast milk. In the 1980s the new guideline recommended that gluten be introduced after weaning had occurred.
The result was a dramatic spike in the incidence of celiac disease in the country of Sweden. After much research, the guideline was reversed and the incidence of celiac disease was restored to its prior level.
Can Gluten in Mom's Diet by found in Breast Milk?
I was very happy to find this study passed along by the Gluten Intolerance Group that confirmed something I've seen clinically for years, but heretofore had not seen any research support.
When babies would come in with colic or constipation or vomiting or rashes or a host of other ailments, the first thing we would do with a breastfeeding mom is change HER diet. We saw, that when Mom was no longer ingesting gluten or dairy (or whatever the offending food was found to be) baby's symptoms resolved. Obviously that points to the fact that these foods traveled in to the breast milk in a form that could bother baby.
Yet many researchers have stated that the gluten protein was not found in breast milk and there was no indication that a mother consuming gluten could affect her child's health through her breast milk. When research does not agree with my clinical evidence working with patients, I have learned that clinical experience usually wins out. And so it was in this case. The study cited by GIG referenced that indeed gliadin (the protein found in gluten) was found in high levels in the milk samples of 54 out of 80 healthy mothers on a normal, unrestricted diet. While the presence of gliadin would be fine with a child having no tendency toward intolerance, it obviously is a big problem for those little ones that are already expressing a reaction.
In summary, breastfeeding is very important and healthy for baby. The only caveat is perhaps needing to alter what Mom is eating to prevent certain sensitive foods from entering into the milk. This is not difficult however and a happy baby is well worth the effort.
I hope you found this informative and please pass it along to the mothers and future mothers whom you know.
Need Help? We're Here for You!
If you felt as if I was describing you above, you are not alone. As I mentioned earlier, adrenal fatigue/exhaustion is almost epidemic. If you would like assistance and don't have a clinician whom you feel can assist you, consider contacting us for a FREE Health Analysis. We are a Destination Clinic and treat patients from across the country and internationally. We would be delighted to help you as we have been doing so for over two decades.
Visit us at www.RootCauseMedicalClinic.com. If you have questions or need any help, I'm here for you! Call 408-733-0400.
I look forward to hearing from you.
To your good health,
Dr Vikki Petersen, DC, CCN, CFMP
IFM Certified Practitioner
Founder of Root Cause Medical Clinic
Co-author of "The Gluten Effect"
Author of the eBook: "Gluten Intolerance – What You Don't Know May Be Killing You!"
Founder of Root Cause Medical Clinic
Co-author of "The Gluten Effect"
Author of the eBook: "Gluten Intolerance – What You Don't Know May Be Killing You!"


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Filed under: 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup, Uncategorized | Tags: A, Abby Wambach, Ali Krieger, Argentina, Aya Miyama, Ayumi Kahori, Azusa Iwashimizu, BC Place, Becky Sauerbrunn, Canada, Carin Jennings, Carli Lloyd, China, Colombia, CONCACAF Gold Cup, ESPN, ESPN the Magazine, FIFA Women's World Cup, Fox, Germany, Golden Ball, Golden Glove, Hope Solo, Italy, Japan, Jill Ellis, Julie Johnston, Lauren Holiday, Megan Rapinoe, Meghan Klingenberg, Mexico, Nadeshiko, Nigeria, Portugal, Sports Illustrated, Telemundo, Time, Tobin Heath, United States, Vancouver, Yuki Ogimi
The United States overwhelmed defending champion Japan with four goals in the first 16 minutes to cruise to an impressive 5-2 victory in the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup final before a pro-American crowd of 53,341 at Vancouver's BC Place and become the first nation to capture three women's world titles.
The Americans, winners of the inaugural Women's World Cup in 1991 in China and again on home soil in 1999, had lost to the Japanese on penalty kicks in the last final four years ago in Germany, but a first-half hat trick by attacking midfielder Carli Lloyd buried the Nadeshiko.
Lloyd, the Golden Ball winner as the tournament's MVP, gave the U.S. a shock 2-0 lead with goals in the third and fifth minutes. Both came on grounded crosses from the right, the first a corner kick by Megan Rapinoe and the second a free kick by Lauren Holiday that was flicked on by defender Julie Johnston. In the 14th minute, Holiday allowed her side some breathing room with a volleyed goal after defender Azusa Iwashimizu's poor header couldn't stop a U.S. counterattack. But Lloyd's third goal, two minutes later, applied the dagger.
Spotting Japan goalkeeper Ayumi Kaihori far off her line, Lloyd launched a 54-yard bomb from just inside the Japan half. The backpedaling Kaihori got a hand on the ball, but it banked in off her right post for a 4-0 lead. It was the fastest World Cup hat trick–men or women–in history. The only other player to score three goals in a World Cup final was England's Geoff Hurst in 1966.
Japan pulled one back in the 27th minute when striker Yuki Ogimi scored on a brilliant turn that left Johnston sprawled at the top of the penalty area. And the Japanese gave the Americans cause for concern seven minutes into the second half when Johnston headed a long diagonal free kick from the left by midfielder Aya Miyama into her own net.
Midfielder Tobin Heath, however, restored the three-goal lead two minutes later from four yards out on a pass across the Japan goalmouth by Morgan Brian off a corner kick by Holiday.
Lloyd, whose six goals tied her with Germany's Celia Sasic for most in the tournament, was awarded the Golden Ball. She joined Carin Jennings (1991) as the only Americans to win a World Cup MVP award. Hope Solo, whose off-the-field misadventures were well-chronicled in the weeks leading up to Canada '15, won the Golden Glove award as best goalkeeper, her second straight. Supported by the young but air-tight back line of Ali Krieger, Johnston, Becky Sauerbrunn and Meghan Klingenberg, Solo allowed only three goals and posted five shutouts. The triumph, meanwhile, came as something of redemption for coach Jill Ellis, whose moves drew heavy criticism until she moved 22-year-old Brian to holding midfielder mid-tournament, thus freeing Lloyd to join the attack, and the USA's service and finishing went from disappointing to–in the final–overwhelming. [July 5]
Comment I: So the United States becomes the first women's national team to plant a third star above the crest on their jerseys. Among the men, whose first World Cup was played in 1930, only Brazil, with five, and Germany and Italy, with four apiece, have more. The real winner in Canada, however, was American soccer.
Americans, it is said, will watch an international tiddlywinks championship if they think an American will win. And the U.S. team marched into this World Cup with a winning legacy, recognizable standout players, and a wholesome, likable aura.
But Ellis' women transcended all that. Nearly 27 million U.S. viewers watched the final (25.4 on Fox, 1.27 on Spanish-language Telemundo), making it the most-watched soccer match in U.S. history. Better than the 18.2 million who saw the U.S. men held to a tie by Portugal on ESPN at last summer's men's World Cup. Better than the 17.9 million who saw the U.S. beat China on PKs in the 1999 women's World Cup. Better by 41 percent than the U.S.-Japan final four years ago (13.5 million). As for the 2014 World Cup final between Germany and Argentina, those guys attracted 26.5 million American viewers.
That's a lot of Americans tuned in to a soccer match, and many were soccer fans to begin with. But many were not. And what they saw was a tremendous advertisement for the sport. The good guys–er, women–won. But what they demonstrated in the final against Japan was the very best of the sport. Fitness. Athleticism. Skill. Invention. Fearlessness. Teamwork combined with improvisation.
Most important, they demonstrated little of the gamesmanship that plagues the men's game. Fortunately, there was no overriding need for a U.S. or Japanese player to dive in the penalty area during the final–nothing turns an American off to soccer like a dive, or "simulation," or, as they call it in basketball, a flop. And if there had been a dive, it would've been somewhat jarring after 29 days of relatively clean play.
So it's now on to the CONCACAF Gold Cup. And if we're treated to a U.S.-Mexico finale, as the organizers are hoping for, we'll get a reminder of business-as-usual soccer, with rolling bodies and chippy fouls and all kinds of nonsense. Fortunately, many of the innocent Americans who enjoyed U.S.-Japan will never tune in to such a match–for now–and remain blissfully ignorant of the game's ugly macho side.
Comment II: Despite appearing on the cover of both Sports Illustrated and ESPN the Magazine pre-tournament, that month in Canada was a relatively quiet one for 35-year-old U.S. striker Abby Wambach, who came into the tournament with a world-record 182 career goals, including 13 in three previous World Cups. She played only 297 total minutes over seven matches (three starts), including the last 11 minutes of the final, when Lloyd handed her the captain's armband, which Wambach has worn so long and so well. She scored one goal, against Nigeria in the first round, and missed a penalty kick against Colombia in the second round when she curiously chose to use her less-favored left foot.
However, she came up with the quote of the tournament, albeit six months earlier in an interview with Time magazine. It illustrated what drove her during her limited time on the field and, no doubt, drove her teammates, especially the ones who were part of the 2011 team:
"'All the hardships, the sacrifice, the blood, the sweat, the broken bones, the broken relationships will make more sense if we can bring home the trophy," said Wambach. And if the U.S. falls short? "I'm sure I'll be fine. But I'll be pissed off the rest of my life."
Smile, Abby.
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Georgetown, Grand Cayman, October 21 2013 - CONCACAF'S landmark Sports Summit 2013 'Transformation through Partnership' got under way on Monday with a gala dinner and welcome from President Jeffrey Webb and key guest speakers.
"The beautiful game delights people of all creeds and backgrounds," said President Webb in his welcome speech to guests. "Football builds character, it unites nations, it instills a sense of life-long friendship, it provides discipline and team work. It induces national pride, a sense of accomplishment and generates global exposure. In its utmost complexity, it can be perceived both as an art form and as a road to hope," added Webb.
The central theme of transformation was superbly captured by the dinner's keynote speaker from South Africa, Tokyo Sexwale.
Sexwale told of his time as a political prisoner in an isolation cell on Robben Island, where he was held along with Nelson Mandela and other leading figures in the struggle against the country's apartheid regime.
Sexwale recounted how he and other prisoners kept their spirits up by playing football inside the notorious jail and even formed their own football association, "it was one of the key activities that kept us together, body and soul," he said.
"It enabled us to transcend political barriers amongst prisoners including cultural, linguistic, regional, ethnic differences that we had. We could all come together and forget our differences," said Sexwale who encouraged Webb in his role as chairman of FIFA's Anti-Racism and Discrimination Task Force.
The CONCACAF President has already begun to make an impact in the field of social advocacy and the importance of his role was given a prestigious acknowledgment by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).
At the dinner, it was announced by UNAIDS Senior Adviser, Dr. Djibril Diallo, that President Webb has been handed the 2013 UNAIDS "Protect the Goal" Special Award for the Diaspora.
Also present at the dinner was FIFA President Joseph Blatter, who on Tuesday will deliver one of the keynote speeches looking at 'The Power of Football'.
A wide range of themes will be addressed in speeches and panel discussions with a session on 'Football's Positive Impact on Society' looking at success stories where the game has been used as a tool for positive change and 'Football in Your Economy" looking at the commercial benefits the game can bring.
A key element of the summit is the involvement of governments from across the CONCACAF region and The Most Honorable Portia Simpson-Miller, Prime Minister of Jamaica, will address delegates about 'Sport and Country'.
CONCACAF's federations will also get in an insight into the workings of two of the most successful professional leagues with Nic Coward, General Secretary of the English Premier League and Don Garber, Commissioner of Major League Soccer both offering their insights.
The women's game is essential to CONCACAF's plans for growth and development and Victor Montagliani, President of the Canadian Soccer Association, will be outlining exciting plans for the FIFA Women's World Cup, which will be held in Canada in 2015.
The 2022 men's World Cup, which will be held in Qatar, is also represented on the agenda with Hassan Abdullah Al-Thawadi, Secretary General of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee, looking ahead to hosting the game's biggest event, for the first time in the Middle East.
Former players from the region will also give their perspectives – ex-Manchester United and Trinidad and Tobago striker Dwight Yorke and former United States national team forward Cobi Jones are among the players contributing to a panel discussion.