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Leisure Centre Memberships
Details of the various Leisure and Wellbeing centre memberships we offer
We have a range of different types of membership available to suit your needs, or you can simply pay and play for a number of activities. To help you choose a membership we have provided some essential information on each type, please see below.
Certain membership types can be applied for online and you can use the above buttons to apply. For our 'Your Choice' direct debit memberships including the corporate and employee scheme, please visit your local leisure/wellbeing centre to apply.
If you apply for a membership online by using one of the buttons above, you will be issued with a temporary number by email. You need to take this and ID with you to your nearest leisure/wellbeing centre and you will be issued with your appropriate leisure card.
Please contact your local centre of more information or contact the memberships team at firstname.lastname@example.com
- Leisure Card
The leisure card is available to everyone free of charge.
If you would like to use the gym, you need a leisure card and you will need to book an induction to show you how to use the equipment correctly. A leisure card is a customer loyalty, access and membership card and it allows you to collect points which can be redeemed against leisure activities. On payment of an additional fee, you can upgrade your card to allow you to book 8 days in advance without payment at the time of booking
The leisure card allows you to earn 1 point for every pound spent on certain activities at leisure centres, which you can redeem against certain activities.
You can apply online and collect your card at your nearest leisure centre. Once you have submitted your online application you will be advised of what proof of identification you need to take with you when you collect your card.
Enrolment onto instructed courses
If you would like to enrol a child onto any of the instructed courses they will need a valid Leisure Card. Instructed courses include:
- Passport to Leisure Card
Please be aware that there will be changes to the Passport to Leisure scheme as from 1st January 2014. Please see the attached PDF's at the bottom of the page for more details
The Passport to Leisure (PTL) Card provides savings on leisure activities for a wide range of concessionary groups.
If you are in one of the following categories then you can apply for a PTL Card:
- Aged 60 or over
- Full-time student
- An asylum seeker
- A carer
- Receiving certain benefits (ask at your local leisure centre)
- Looked after children
- People with a disability who receive benefit
- Groups of people with special needs who require assistance
(for use at one centre only – ask at your local leisure centre)
Please note that the PTL can only be issued at the following sites: Handsworth Wellbeing Centre, Kingstanding Wellbeing Centre, Nechells Wellbeing Centre,Newtown Pool, Saltley Wellbeing Centre, Shard End Wellbeing Centre, Small Heath Wellbeing Centre.
How much does it cost?
Residents of Birmingham (you pay your Council Tax to Birmingham City Council):
- £6.00 if you are aged 69 or under
- Free if you are aged 70 and over
All cards are valid for 12 months, cardholders must remember to renew their card when it expires.
Benefits of a PTL
- Discounts are available on most activities every day of the week with a maximum of 30% Monday - Friday until 5.00pm and after 1.00pm on Saturday and Sunday
- Most sites will also offer 10% discount after 5.00pm Monday to Friday and until 1.00pm Saturday and Sunday
- Swimmers can get 30% reduction during general swimming sessions all day, every day
- Some sites offer the maximum discount at all times, but you will need to check this with your local leisure centre as discounts will differ
- There is a 25% discount available on selected instructed courses across the city, which includes swimming, gymnastics, golf, football, trampolining and martial arts
The following organisations accept Passport to Leisure or offer concessions on full ticket prices. The discount varies and is at the organisation's discretion. Please contact the venue direct for details of their offer.
- Birmingham Museums & Art Gallery 303 1996
Concessions on any exhibitions with an admission price.
- Nature Centre 472 7775
- Aston Villa Football Club 327 5353
£1 for Kids with a full paying adult. Valid at Villa Value games.
- Botanical Gardens 454 1860
- Birmingham Hippodrome 0844 338 5000
£3 discount on top 3 prices for performances in more than 24 hours in advance
24 hours standby - lowest standard price applies for best available tickets
All discounts are subject to availability and are applied at the sales manager's discretion.
Calls charged from 5p per minute
- Midlands Arts Centre 446 3232
- NIA Community Hall 644 7134
National Indoor Arena (Gym Members)
- Symphony Hall 780 3333
CBSO Concerts only, no other concerts or events.
- Birmingham Rep
Tickets from £5 after 1pm on the day of the performance. Terms and conditions apply, visit www.birminghamrep.co.uk for more information.
How to apply for a PTL Card
PTL forms are available to complete from a Birmingham Wellbeing Centre. Complete a PTL application form and provide proof of your name, address and eligibility. We accept the following as proof of name and address:
- Council Tax Bill
- Bank Statement
- Medical Card
- Gas/Electric/Landline Telephone Bill
Please Note: If your benefit is a joint claim and your partner's surname is different then you must show evidence of sharing the same address.
You can complete the application form at your local leisure centre or online.
How to renew a PTL Card
Complete a PTL Renewal Form at your local wellbeing centre.
If you are over 60 and are re-applying, you do not need to show proof of age again until you reach 70 years, when the card becomes free to Birmingham residents.
You will need to show proof of address.
- Your Choice Direct Debit Scheme
If you want to work out regularly, swim, use the gym or take part in group fitness classes the Your Choice Membership scheme could save you money, when you pay by monthly direct debit.
Being more active can improve health, confidence and quality of life for everyone, whatever their age or fitness level.
Students, people over 60, or those on low income and in receipt of benefits can enjoy extra discounts by applying for our Passport to Leisure scheme.
Health Benefits
A more active lifestyle can improve your health and wellbeing and can help with:
- Better balance, strength, suppleness and mobility
- Better mood and higher morale
- Reduced stress
- Improved sleep
- Better concentration
- Reaching and maintaining a healthy weight and improved body shape
- A sense of achievement
Your Choice Membership
- Premier Choice
£35.50 per month / Passport to Leisure Members £26.50
* Unlimited access to swimming, fitness classes, aqua classes, gyms, saunas and the Turkish Suite
- Fitness Choice
£31.00 per month / Passport to Leisure Members £23.00
* Unlimited access to fitness classes, aqua classes and gyms
- Aqua Choice
£25.00per month / Passport to Leisure Members £12.50
* Unlimited access to swimming
*subject to individual centre programme and timetable
How to Join
Contact any leisure centre to book a tour of facilities. The centre will go through the joining process with you and answer any questions you may have.
To join and pay by direct debit you will need to take your bank details, including account number, sort code and bank address. You will be asked to pay an initial fee to cover the period until the first direct debit payment is due. The Your Choice Membership package will be valid immediately. The minimum contract period is three months. Terms & Conditions apply.
Premier Choice and Fitness Choice Members will need to book a free induction with one of our fully-qualified fitness instructors, before using the gym. You will be shown how to use the equipment safely and given advice on getting the best from your workout.
Your Choice Corporate Fitness Membership is now available
- Corporate Fitness Membership Scheme
A Fantastic Opportunity to join Birmingham City Council's Corporate Membership Scheme
Why not recognise the benefits of an active and healthy workforce by joining our corporate membership scheme. Being more active can improve health, confidence and quality of life.
Birmingham City Council offers a Corporate membership package to businesses with ten or more employees joining - a 20% discount off standard Your Choice monthly membership prices applies.
For a list of leisure centres: www.birmingham.gov.uk/leisurecentres
For queries regarding the scheme, please contact: email@example.com
- Be Active
Our partnership with the NHS now offers all *Birmingham residents free swimming, group exercise classes and gym sessions.
*Birmingham residents pay council tax to Birmingham City Council.
The scheme is currently ongoing
What's Included?
- Group fitness classes
- Fitness Gym Introductions
- Fitness Gyms*
- Swimming
- Led running and walking sessions
- ICE Youth Gyms**
* Except Cardio and ICE Youth Gyms at Northfield Pool and Fitness Centre
** 8 - 16 Year olds only
What's NOT Included?
- PowerPoint gyms (free weights) and sports hall hire
- Sauna and steam rooms
- Sunbeds
- Powerplate studios
- The cardio gym at Northfield Pool & Fitness Centre
- Facilities hire
- Instruction programmes (Strikes, Strokes, tennis, coaching etc)
- Play schemes / holiday programmes
- Personal training
- Golf
How to join the Be Active Scheme
You will need to apply for a Leisure Card at your local leisure centre. You will be required to bring with you two different proofs of identification with the same name and address.
We will accept any of the following, one of which must be: Council Tax bill
- Utility bill
- Tenancy agreement
- Driving licence
- Bank statement
- Benefits statement
- Medical card
For more information please contact your local leisure centre
- 8 Day Booking Card
A Booking card allows you to book certain activities 8 days in advance either online or in person at the leisure centre without having to make a payment before the booking is confirmed. Payment will be taken when you arrive at the leisure centre for your booking.
Bookings are available from 8am.
How to apply for a 8 day advance booking card
You will need to complete a Leisure card application if you are not already a member.
You will then be asked to complete the 8 Day Advanced Booking Card Application Form.
The card costs £15.00 per 12 months.
Applications can be made online by pressing the Apply for Membership button above, by calling the leisure centre direct or in person at your local leisure centre.
If you only have a Leisure Card, you can book up to 7 days in advance and you need to pay for the facility at the time of booking.
- Employee Benefit Scheme
A Fantastic Opportunity to join Birmingham City Council's Employee Membership Scheme
Why not recognise the benefits of an active and healthy lifestyle by joining the Employee Membership Scheme. Being more active can improve health, confidence and quality of life.
What's Included
With no joining fees or hidden extras, the scheme offers great savings on a range of fitness activities:
- choice of 3 membership options to suit individual needs
- access to 25 gyms and 15 pools
- over 500 fitness classes a week across our centres
- free induction, if you use our gyms
- access to saunas at certain centres
- regular reviews
- fully-qualified staff
For a list of leisure centres visit www.birmingham.gov.uk/leisurecentres
For queries, please contact the Memberships Team on 464 0252 or email firstname.lastname@example.com
For those not signed up to the employee membership, we also offer a 10% discount off a range of pay and play activities at our leisure centres and swimming pools.
To get your discount, you'll need a Leisure Card. Simply take a recent payslip to your local leisure centre or pool to get your free card.
Your discount will be deducted automatically every time you use your card.
- When I join can I use facilities at other leisure centres?
Yes, you can use facilities at all Birmingham City Council operated and managed leisure centres.
- How do I update my bank details or personal information once I have joined?
You will need to do this in person. Please drop in to your leisure centre.
- How do you decide who is a Birmingham resident?
Anyone who lives in a property that pays Council Tax to Birmingham City Council is classed as a Birmingham resident.
- What are off-peak hours?
Off-peak hours are before 5pm Monday to Friday and after 1pm weekends.
- How does the loyalty point system work?
The Standard Leisure Card allows you to earn 1 point for every pound spent on certain activities at leisure centres, which can then be redeemed against certain activities.
- Can't find what you're looking for?
Please contact the leisure centre direct, if you haven't been able to find the information that you need.


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I would like to know, in your opinion, what is harder to produce: wine or beer. I mean, including all the steps: planting grapes or barley, taking care of them, collecting, making, etc... the whole process :)
closed as not a real question by hobodave Oct 18 '11 at 17:56
It's difficult to tell what is being asked here. This question is ambiguous, vague, incomplete, overly broad, or rhetorical and cannot be reasonably answered in its current form. For help clarifying this question so that it can be reopened, visit the help center.If this question can be reworded to fit the rules in the help center, please edit the question.
I haven't done it myself, but I guess making beer is more difficult for one good reason: safety!
Grapes will ferment by themselves and will produce either wine or vinegar. The fermentation process is violent, so there's no risk. Added meat will be fermented as well!
Beer needs to be sterilized before a yeast is added and there's a risk for butulism.
Now, making a good wine is something else. I guess that making a good wine is far more complicated then making a decent beer, once you overcome the safety issues, as there are a great number of steps involved in making good wine. For instance: aging in oak.
Commercial wines start by sterilizing the grapes and afterwards adding a certain yeast strain, but hey...

subset: commoncrawl


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Should My Young Daughter Get the HPV Vaccination?
In This Article:
The final and perhaps most vocalized concern about Gardasil is that it will lead more young people to have sex too early. This is the same concern that has continually been voiced about making condoms and other prophylactics available to young people. The fear is that protecting a teenage girl against the most dangerous strains of HPV via Gardasil will make her more likely to have sex outside of marriage or before she is mature enough, because she won't have to fear the possible consequences. To help you decide whether this argument should carry any weight in your decision-making, consider these points:
- Will the danger of contracting HPV prevent my daughter from having sex? The National Center for Health Statistics reports that in 2002, 46% of never-married women between the ages of 15 and 19 had had sex. At that time, Gardasil was not available, and therefore all of those women were at risk for contracting HPV. So for 46% of teenage women, fear of HPV and other STDs was not enough of a deterrent to prevent them from having premarital sex. Still, it is possible that even more teenage girls would have had sex if Gardasil had been available and they didn't need to fear infection.
- If your daughter does decide not to have premarital sex, could she still be at risk for contracting HPV and, in turn, cervical cancer? The possibility exists that she might be forced to have sexual contact against her will. The CDC reports that one out of every six adult women has been a victim of rape. If your daughter is raped or otherwise sexually assaulted, she could contract cervical-cancer-causing HPV from her attacker.
- A woman can also contract HPV from her husband, because there is currently no HPV test to determine whether a man is infected. Most infected men don't even show symptoms of HPV, though they can still pass on the infection. To date the FDA has not licensed the administration of Gardasil to women over the age of 26, since it has not been sufficiently tested beyond that age range. Although some physicians will administer the vaccine to older women if asked, once your daughter is older than 26, it will be harder for her to get vaccinated.
For more information on HPV and the Gardasil vaccine, see the CDC's publications.


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Pring lets you stay in touch with people and stuff you care about. Get SMS updates from Farhan
via SMS by sending
FOLLOW honeyr to
best urdu potrey kay liye follow honeyr
Please enter your password in order to log in to the account of honeyr
Thank you for taking the time to report. Pring looks into every case reported by the community and take action after an investigation. Please note that a false report will impair your ability to report in the future.


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Register Office - Genealogy
Why use Birmingham Register Office?
Certificates obtained from the General Register Office are prepared from copies written and sent by the Registrar, Vicar or Authorised Person, therefore they do not show original signatures.
We aim to post all requests for single certificates within 3 days, it will take us a little longer if you request more certificates.
If you provide the year, quarter and reference details from the General Register Office Index, we will search for that specific entry.
If you do not specify an entry, we will do a five year search of our records, two years either side of the year you give. If we are unable to find the entry we will not be able to search for it again unless you provide additional information such as a GRO reference.
If we are unable to find an entry in our registers, we will refund your certificate fee.
If we find a probable match in our registers, where only some of the information corresponds with the information supplied, we will contact you and obtain your agreement before issuing a certificate.
If you apply for more than one certificate and information from one is to be used to confirm that others are correct we will issue the first certificate to ensure you are satisfied before issuing others, this ensures you only purchase certificates relevant to your research. Obtaining Certificates
NB. John Yates our resident genealogist has decided to retire, as a result we are unable to provide extended genealogical research. We will still provide certificates for family history please see our page Obtaining Certificates
If you require a search for more than five years, this is called a General Search, for which there are additional charges.
Follow the links below to find out how to make the best use of our resources.
Birmingham Registration Districts
Important Dates in Civil Registration


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Pink All-in-1 Retro Kitchen
- Overview
We've combined all the well-loved elements from our individual Retro Kitchen pieces into one multifunction play center. A little cook's dream come true, it's a stove, oven and refrigerator all in one with tons of interactive opportunities – knobs turn, doors open and the sink is watertight for real cleanup.
- Expertly crafted of solid birch and MDF with a stainless steel sink.
- Two burners on top for play value.
- Knobs on front control panel make a clicking sound when turned.
- Features a pot rack with three hooks.
- WARNING: CHOKING HAZARD – Click for details.
- A bright finish on all sides resists chipping or fading.
- Assembly required.
- Ages 3 and up.
- Dimensions & Care
- Built to last of MDF with metal and plastic details.
- Finished with glossy paint and sealed with lacquer for moisture resistance.
- Overall: 33.5" wide x 12" deep x 35.75" high
- Fridge Section (top cubby): 10" wide x 11" deep x 17.5" high
- Fridge Section (bottom cubby): 10" wide x 11" deep x 14" high
- Stove Section: 12.5" wide x 11" deep x 14" high
- Sink Section (top cubby): 8" wide x 11" deep 6" high
- Sink Section (bottom cubby): 8" wide x 11" deep x 8" high
- Dust often using a clean, soft, dry lint-free cloth.
- Blot spills immediately, and wipe with a clean, damp, cloth.
- We do not recommend the use of chemical cleansers, abrasives, or furniture polish on our lacquered finish.
- Get tips on how to measure for furniture.
WARNING: CHOKING HAZARD–Oven contains small parts. Not for children under 3 yrs.
- Shipping & Return Info
This is a general shipping item.
View Our Shipping Information
Return Policy
At Pottery Barn Kids, we take great pride in the quality and craftsmanship of our products. Attention to design, materials, safety and construction is our priority. We carefully inspect your order prior to shipment; upon receipt, please inspect your purchase and notify us of any damage. We will arrange for a prompt replacement. If, within 7 days for Quick Ship upholstery and 30 days for all other products, you are dissatisfied for any reason, you may return your purchase for a refund of the merchandise value.
If your return for Merchandise Credit Cards is greater than $10,000, we will issue $10,000 in Merchandise Credit Cards to you that day, and then mail additional Merchandise Credit Card(s) for the amount in excess of $10,000 to you.
We cannot accept returns on monogrammed, personalized, special-order items, or on items damaged through normal wear and tear. We also cannot accept returns of final-sale items, which are identified by a price that ends in $0.99.
For returns of items purchased from your Pottery Barn Kids registry, we will gladly provide a refund or exchange for the merchandise within 90 days of your event or within 90 days of purchase, whichever date is later.
For assistance, please contact Customer Service at 800.993.4923, 7 days a week, 5:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m. PST.
International Returns: Online returns are available only for items that were shipped to the United States. If you would like to return items that were shipped outside the US, please see International Returns and Exceptions.
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Soft Breakfast Set
- Free Shipping


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I am trying to create a logging solution that involves multiple processes on multiple machines. I planned on using the UDPAppender to send all log messages to a single machine that would manage them. I have a few questions about patternstrings vs patternlayouts.
Because I need to know both which machine and which process that log message came from, I want to include that in the log as well. I found %property{log4net:HostName} for hostname, and that works great. However, I don't see anything for process id in PatternLayouts. I do, of course, see something like that in the PatternString. From the FAQ:
<appender name="LogFileAppender" type="log4net.Appender.FileAppender">
<file type="log4net.Util.PatternString" value="log-file-[%processid].txt" />
<layout type="log4net.Layout.PatternLayout" value="%date [%thread] %-5level %logger - %message%newline" />
But I am not sure if or how to mix and match the two (or even if this is the canonical way to do so).
So, my questions are:
What is the difference between PatternString and PatternLayout? Why have both?
I see the %processid in PatternString, how do I get the same in PatternLayout? Here is my test layout:
<layout type="log4net.Layout.PatternLayout"> <conversionPattern value="%date [%thread] [%property{log4net:HostName}] %-5level %logger - %message%newline" /> </layout>
Finally, it makes sense to use the XML layout for the UDP appender. It looks like the XmlLayoutSchemaLog4j already adds the HostNameProperty to the XML message. If I wan't to add this new Process ID (and maybe Process Name) to the XML message, what is the best way to do this? Should I just copy src\Layouts\XmlLayoutSchemaLog4j.cs, modify it, and let log4net know that I created this new Layout (like the SampleLayoutsApp)?
Thanks for your help


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Our Publications
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Home › Scene › Winter Catwalk ›
Winter Catwalk
Nanette Lepore debuted her latest collection at Saks Fifth Avenue Tysons Galleria with a little help from her famous friends: Finola Hughes and Ian Buchanan of General Hospital and Maks Chmerkovskiy of Dancing With the Stars.
Fans got the chance for a photo op with their fave stars. (Check out Maks making one of his fans swoon with a Dancing With the Stars dip!)
The star-studded show was all in the name of a good cause. Proceeds from the fashion-focused event—an impressive $50,000—went to Childhelp, a nonprofit dedicated to helping victims of child abuse and neglect. –Photogrpahy by AJ Khetarpal and Moshe Zusman


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William Blair offers 22 different mutual funds in strategies ranging from domestic equity to global, international, emerging, fixed income, and multi-asset
Learn more
Price, performance, rating and rankings information on our Funds
William Blair appreciates your interest in our Funds. This section provides important information to read prior to investing in the Funds, as well as account applications and account access.
Learn more
This section is for the exclusive use of financial advisors and investment professionals. It provides access to a number of special services for advisors, as well as a wealth of additional in-depth information about our Funds.
Learn more
Please carefully consider the Funds' investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses before investing.
This and other information is contained in the Funds' prospectus, which you may obtain by calling 1-800-742-7272.
Read it carefully before you invest or send money.
Distributed by William Blair & Company, L.L.C., member FINRA/SIPC
Copyright � 2016 William Blair & Company, L.L.C. "William Blair" is a registered trademark of William Blair & Company, L.L.C. No part of this material may be reproduced in any
form, or referred to in any other publication, without express written consent.
For the convenience of our clients, below we provide links to order execution data and routing information as required by the Securities and Exchange Commission rules and regulations.
NMS Rule 605 - Order Execution Information
William Blair & Company presents this order execution information pursuant to NMS Rule 605. Access our William Blair Rule 605 Data files.
The data that you will find by following the link above will provide you with an indication of the type of execution you will receive for stocks in which William Blair is a market maker. However, please be aware that the majority of the order flow executed by William Blair & Company is not covered by NMS Rule 605 due to special handling requests by customers. The execution results from this order flow will not appear in the data and may differ substantially from the results.
NMS Rule 606 - Order Routing Information
William Blair & Company presents this order routing information pursuant to NMS Rule 606. View William Blair Rule 606 Data (PDF).
William Blair takes into consideration many factors when determining where to route customers' orders. These include opportunities for price improvement, speed of execution, market depth and order size, cost of execution and the reputation of a particular venue. William Blair actively monitors the execution quality provided by the different market makers and exchanges, and routes orders to venues that have provided consistent, high-quality executions over time.
FINRA Rule 4370 requires that members and member firms establish and maintain business continuity and contingency plans relating to an emergency or significant business disruption.
Click to view William Blair & Company's Business Continuity Plan Summary (PDF).
William Blair International, Ltd - Financial Reporting Council's UK Stewardship Code Disclosure
Under Rule 2.2.3R of the Financial Conduct Authority's (FCA) Conduct of Business Sourcebook, William Blair International ("WBI") is required to include a disclosure about the nature of its commitment to the UK Financial Reporting Council's Stewardship Code (the "Code") or, where it does not commit to the Code, its alternative investment strategy. The Code is a voluntary code and sets out a number of principles relating to engagement by investors with UK equity issuers. Investors that commit to the Code can either comply with it in full or choose not to comply with aspects of the Code, in which case they are required to explain their non compliance. We have detailed below the reasons why WBI has chosen not to commit to the Code.
WBI pursues a long only global equity strategy that involves it investing in global equities, including UK equities. The Code is therefore relevant to some aspects of WBI's trading. While WBI generally supports the objectives that underlie the Code, WBI has chosen not to commit to the Code. WBI invests in a variety of asset classes and in a variety of jurisdictions globally. The policies of the WBI in relation to engagement with issuers and their management are determined globally. WBI takes a consistent global approach to engagement with issuers and their management in all of the jurisdictions in which it invests and, consequently, does not consider it appropriate to commit to any particular voluntary code of practice relating to any individual jurisdiction.
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visit our website. This policy explains how we use cookies and may be amended, from time to time, without notice.
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I came across the term "Block Testing" in the book "How We Test At Microsoft". I can't really see how this should be applied, should you do this instead of statement testing? From what I understand if you do statement testing then you essentially have done block testing.
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The difference between statement coverage and block coverage is in the math. Take this example:
In that example, there are two blocks of code (the true side of the statement and the false side). If the first statement (DoThis();) of the true block executes, then the following two lines will execute (assuming no exceptions).
The math behind block coverage (for those who care about that sort of thing) is concerned with how many blocks have executed. There are two blocks in this code sample, so testing one block (e.g. the true side of the if condition) would give you 50% block coverage.
The math behind statement coverage is concerned with how many of the total statements have been covered. The true side of the if condition has 3 of the 4 statements in this excerpt, so writing one test that covers the true case has 75% statement coverage.
In the end, the math doesn't really matter. The reason to measure coverage isn't to produce a number - it's to help you discover what areas of the code are not covered by your testing so you can determine if more testing is needed. In other words, coverage testing is a method of discovering new tests.


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Why didn't anyone predict Bergoglio?
In his media briefing after the conclave that elected Pope Francis, Australian Cardinal George Pell couldnt help tweaking his regular sparring partners in the press by confessing that in my weakness I've taken considerable pleasure in the fact that he (Cardinal Bergoglio) was scarcely on any of the lists of papal contenders.Bergoglio was in fact not much on the medias radar, and some might wonder why it is that reporters never seem to predict the winner of the conclave. After all, if the choice of Ratzinger in 2005 made sense in hindsight, at the time few thought he would be the top choice.So what happened? Did the finely-tuned antennae of the worlds best Vaticanisti go haywire at the crucial moment?Herewith, for what they are worth, are a few thoughts to help explain why Bergoglio didnt emerge as a front-runner ahead of time with two notable exceptions, who I credit below and what that all may say about the way the Church elects the Bishop of Rome:
First, even journalists arent crazy enough to try to predict the unpredictable with any degree of certainty, and Vaticanisti know this better than anyone. They make up lists, hedge them with all sorts of caveats, and then pray that they (well, we, since I play this game at times) wont look too foolish.Perversely, at the same time we are trying to read the tea leaves about why someone could or should be elected, or how they might be elected, there is also an understandable desire to play up the long shots. I mean, who doesnt love that 50-1 Kentucky Derby stunner? In conclave prognostications, such an outcome would make us look a bit foolish since we mainly like to figure out the odds-on fave. But underdogs are such great stories that we cant resist highlighting them; if elected, a dark horse would ensure more coverage even after the election, and beforehand, writing about such unexpected possibilities just makes for a good story. But long shots are long shots for a reason: they rarely win horse races, or conclaves.Temptation is hard to resist, however, and a few brave (foolish?) souls did go out on a limb. I secretly admire their chutzpah even if I wouldnt want to be them now. The estimable Mark Gray at CARA, for example, had an excellent pre-conclave post on the buzzworthy papabile, and at the end he gamely went for it with a trifecta of picks: Cardinal Schnborn, Cardinal OMalley and Cardinal Sandri (hey right country, wrong cardinal). Robert Royal went out on a different limb and went with just one pick, Cardinal Ouellet. Give those men an A for effort. An F for results. Alas.Another reason why it was so hard to predict a frontrunner is that this really was a wide open conclave. The cardinals said so, and the media reported it, and it was true. Thats why the Associated Press and John Allen at NCR and many other outlets were busy profiling up to 20 candidates and everyone was still feeling anxious that one of the other 115 electors would walk out on that balcony! (Untold numbers of laboriously-researched and crafted new pope profiles went into the digital dustbin when Bergoglio walked out on that balcony.)In 2005 the outcome was also pretty unpredictable, and if Cardinal Ratzinger had stalled short of the two-thirds threshold (which he apparently narrowly surpassed) no one excepting the Holy Spirit knows what might have happened. The conclave dynamic in modern times tends to follow a version of the bandwagon effect (as I wrote here) or the movement of the Holy Spirit if you prefer: in either case, the frontrunner can attain an aura of inevitability fairly quickly. But inevitability is not invincibility, and if the frontrunner falters, he generally does not make a comeback and all bets are off; the electors start looking for someone else to rally around.With the cardinals still in shock in 2005 over the death and global mourning for John Paul II, and with almost none of them having any conclave experience (it had been 26 years since the last elections), and with many of the cardinals from outside Italy virtually cut off from the Italian-dominated deliberations before the conclave, it was natural that they rallied around Ratzinger. He was running everything, he seemed like he could run the papacy, too, and everyone knew him. None of them knew anyone else nearly that well. Done deal.This time around, however, there was no pope to bury, no period of mourning to manage, and there were many electors who had been through this before, and many who did not want to see the Roman party run the table on them again. The reform party, as those from outside Italy and outside the Curia were often called, was not terribly well organized but they werent going to be rushed into anything. They wanted a real conclave, which meant genuine deliberations in the General Congregation meetings ahead of the conclave and in the murmuratio around those meetings that lead up to the Sistine voting. Thats what they got (well, the GCs were fairly dreary but worked enough). But it also meant more uncertainty than ever.Last time there was a figure with real weight, three or four times more so than the rest of the cardinals. Were talking about Joseph Ratzinger, Cardinal Philippe Barbarin of France said on the Sunday before the conclave began, on Tuesday Its not like that now. Therefore, the choice has to be made among one, two, three, four a dozen candidates. Right now we dont know anything, we have to wait for the results of the first ballot.With anything possible, many scenarios emerged. Even the American option!But the Italian media still dominated the horse race coverage (and actively tried to influence the process), simply because they are the home town reporters. The Italians gained another advantage once the American cardinals were shut down from commenting publicly. That left the Italian prelates free to leak to their Italian media contacts, who spun it all out. Hence the intense focus on candidates like Scola of Milan, who apparently generated some votes (and an embarrassing preliminary note of congratulations on his election) but never had much more than press puffery supporting his campaign. That can be significant in getting an all important initial boost, and may even have been a semi-accurate gauge in the days when an Italian was expected to be elected. Not now.This brings me to another point, which is that, pace Cardinal Pell, the cardinal-electors didnt necessarily expect Bergoglio either. Many said publicly, and many others said privately, that they wanted a younger pope with more energy and verve 70 years old was said to be the upper limit, with mid-60s the sweet spot. Thats a decade younger than Bergoglio, who is 76. The cardinals were also reading the newspapers and checking Google, and there are indications they were following the coverage the same way the rest of us were. Picking a pope is hard for the men doing it, as Cardinal Pell knows; its that much harder for the media horde following it second hand.As Cardinal George later told the Chicago Tribune, Bergoglios election surprised him because his name was not out there among the cardinals before the conclave. I think it all came together in an extraordinary fashion," George said. "I wouldn't have expected it to happen either this fast or even the way it developed in terms of the choices available to us. I believe the Holy Spirit makes clear which way we should go. And we went that way very quickly."In short, in the first shakeout votes Bergoglios name emerged and that made him a candidate, a reality, someone the reform camp could finally rally around, which they did, apparently consistently, until he won after 24 hours and five ballots.In retrospect, there were some hints of a Bergoglio candidacy. All the early buzz around appealingly novel papabile like Cardinal Turkson of Ghana or Cardinal Tagle of the Philippines diminished to almost zilch as it became clear the cardinals did not want to do anything too radical, like picking an African or an Asian no Obama moment this time. They wanted something out of the box (a phrase that kept coming up in private conversations) but someone who would be familiar enough to perhaps win over some Roman votes like Bergoglio, who was born of Italian parents, spoke Italian, and came from a very European country in Latin America.Moreover, Bergoglio did enjoy a last minute bump from his intervention at the General Congregation, which drew the attention of some electors at the time. In the conclave his talk became even more important to those on the fence.Now credit where credit is due: the only Vaticanista to pick up on the Bergoglio momentum before the conclave was John Thavis, the longtime CNS Vatican bureau chief and author of a new bestseller about his time in Rome, The Vatican Diaries. In an insightful blog post (one of many he wrote during the conclave) on Monday, March 11, John wrote:
In the last few days, some serious voices have mentioned Cardinal Bergoglio as a contender in the coming conclave. Not simply because he came in second the last time around, but because he impressed cardinals when he took the floor in the pre-conclave meetings that began last week.His words left the impression that even at age 76, Bergoglio had the energy and the inclination to do some house-cleaning in the Roman Curia This conclave has multiple contenders but no real front-runner, and its quite possible that if early voting produces a stall, the College of Cardinals could once again turn to Cardinal Bergoglio as someone who would bring key changes but without an extra-long reign.
On March 13, Johns words proved prophetic as Bergoglio emerged as Pope Francis.Frankly, the papal election appears destined to be a roll of the dice. After all, the Holy Spirit blows where it will. But in a College of Cardinals that is increasingly international and offers little opportunity for the cardinals to get to know each other well and with no open politicking or primaries or even background checks to winnow down the candidates uncertainty is the rule, for the electors and the media and the public.That makes for good drama, to be sure, and its good that the cardinals and the church are presented with so many different and real options for the papacy. That beats papal politics in many past eras. Yet as I have said before, and as was especially clear during this conclave, the bishop of a small Midwestern diocese gets closer vetting than the Bishop of Rome. That is a bit unnerving, and potentially perilous.Good pre-conclave reporting can help, a lot. I cant recall how many cardinals said they were using the Internet to research potential candidates. But it was a chief means for getting intel on the men who could be pope. (Even the Vatican was caught copying from Wikipedia to supply the official bios of the cardinals at a consistory in 2012. Nice that they are using the Internet, which apparently didnt work when they rehabilitated the SSPX bishops in 2009. But still, Id like to think the Holy See could do better than a high schooler on deadline when it comes to researching its own top churchmen.)On the other hand, maybe they should have listened to the one guy who DID pick the pope, even if it was pretty much a shot in the dark: Way back on Feb. 17, just days after Benedict announced he would resign, James Salt of Catholics United was asked on CNN who he thought would or should be elected. His answer? Im looking at Jorge Bergoglio of Argentina, he said.Check it out at the 4:25 mark of the clip below, and get that man a cigar!
About the Author
David Gibson is a national reporter for Religion News Service and author of The Coming Catholic Church (HarperOne) and The Rule of Benedict (HarperOne). He blogs at dotCommonweal.
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David, it seems we journalists are just not too good at predicting the future, whether in papal politics, presidential politics, the world of business or even sports. We do much better in the past tense. I would like to add one footnote to your very interesting post, which is that Bob Keeler wrote a March 8 column in Newsday suggesting that the next pope take the name Francis. Last paragraph said:Finally, wouldn't it be inspiring if the new pope looked at today's church and realized that it is as much in need of restoration as it was in the time of St. Francis of Assisi, who heard Jesus tell him: "Repair my church." The new leader of a billion Catholics could even signal a roll-up-the-sleeves attitude by naming himself Pope Francis I. When the Spirit breathes, you never know.Rest is at http://www.newsday.com/opinion/oped/keeler-catholic-church-needs-a-pope-...
Journalists are incapable of self-criticism. Jorge Bergoglio was the only name to resist Joseph Ratzingers at the 2005 conclave, with 10, 35, 40, 26 votes reportedly going to him in the four ballots. It is said that at a lunch break between ballots he urged his supporters to desist, as he felt unprepared for the job. Due to his age, 76, the journalistic and clerical commentariat had left him on the fringes of their speculation. But the clues were all there. The media are misleading the world again with their almost infantile coverage of the new pontificate. What is striking is that vast amounts of money are spent on "coverage" but like Hollywood the media seem to make a scanty investment in thought.
It seems like Bergoglio's election happened, in part, by process of elimination. This analogy strains under the weight of vast cultural differences but I'll give it a shot anyway: Not unlike Lincoln winning the 1860s Republican presidential nomination. Aside from a handful of delegates (most from Illinois), Lincoln was nobody's first choice. But, partly for reasons beyond his control, he ended up as the preferred second choice for most delegates. When it was clear that no faction had enough votes to elect its first choice, they turned (fairly quickly, if I recall correctly) to Lincoln.
Luke - here is what is interesting about the analogy: Lincoln's team went into that convention with a very aggressive intention to make their man the nominee, and wheeled and dealed massively to make it happen. In fact, a number of his rivals for the nomination ended up in his cabinet as a result of that deal-cutting. It would be interesting to know if that sort of thing happens in papal conclaves.
Good article. I recall reading John Allen's layout on Bergoglio and thinking he'd be very good but also that they'd never elect a Jesuit. More fool me. More and more I appreciate the radicalness of Benedict's move was in stepping down when he did, rather than dying in office. Since he would presumably be even older at that point, the idea of a Cardinal in the mid-'60's age range might have had stronger backing, and the conclave results might have been very different. It was a bold thing Ratzinger did, and he's not usually thought of as bold. His stepping down may have been the beginning of the saving of the church. In that sense maybe Ratzinger is a saint, after all.
Thanks for this, David: very interesting. I was amused by how quickly after the election the commentators on television started saying, "Well, of course, Bergoglio was the runner-up last time," as though they had known that all along. When even the commentators on EWTN, which I had on when the announcement was made, seemed not to recognize the name at first. I'm just reading Thavis's book now (P.S. Tom Reese's review is here!), and I've been appreciating his frankness about how reporters approach the uncertainty of a conclave. Describing the evening that Ratzinger's election was announced, he says: "I had just finished prewriting two stories: one saying Cardinal Ratzinger was the new pope and the other, much shorter, saying Italian Cardinal Dionigi Tettamanzi had been elected." Another one for the digital dustbin!
Entra in conclave un papa, esce un cardinale! [Go into the conclave a pope, come out a cardinal.]It occurred to me that for much like Republican presidential candidates, you first have to stand in line.
A close relative of mine works for the New York Times. She told me that they had 6 bios of cardinals in the can ready to go at the announcement of the new pope. None of them was Bergoglio.When I watched the announcement on TV, the only word I could make out was Francisco. I jumped out of my seat: "OMG, it's O'Malley.
On the morning of the election I spoke to a researcher from NPR. They were going to do a story on why a new pope changes his name. I told her the history of the custom and then added that it was strange that no pope had chosen the name "Francis" but added that such a name mght set a standard too high (nomen omen) so it was quite a shock when I learned of the new pope and his chosen name while sitting in a detan office getting my teeth cleaned.
The first step in changing the traditional papacy election routine was Benedict's retirement. We have not yet taken the next full step, which would be electing relatively young popes who will retire before they get too old for the job. But is now easier for Francis to retire before he feels too old to cary on.
There was a Pope Francis in a novel by Walter Murphy.


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3rd Annual JE Pistons NMCA West Coast ShootoutWritten by on October 14, 2013 Muscle Cars In Pomona
A weekend of bracket racing, car shows, and swap meets sounds like something any gearhead would go nuts for. When the 3rd annual JE Pistons NMCA WEST Coast Shootout, presented by Lucas Oil, came to the Pomona, California, Auto Club Raceway in mid-May, the CC staff was attracted like bees to honey.
The event was packed with muscle lining up to compete in 10 classes, ranging from the Hedman Hedders Nostalgia Street Car (NSC), the Mustang Madness (MM), Pro Comp, Open Comp, Super Quick, and Quick Street. The fastest speed on the track for the Nostalgia class was a 1967 Camaro driven by Frank Coscarelli of Rosemead, California, who ran 8.518 at 159.89 mph. Justen Spencer of Las Vegas, Nevada, and his 2000 Mustang took home the fastest e.t. for the Mustang Madness class running a 9.648 at 131.27 mph. The overall winners for both classes were Gary Guerrero and his 1979 Capri in the MM class running a consistent 11.023 at 117.73 mph, and Josh Edwards of Glendale, Arizona, with a 1970 Nova running a steady 10.50 at 113.98 mph. The Auto Club Raceway of Pomona is located on the grounds of the L.A. County Fairgrounds. The historic track was home to NHRA's first official race in 1953 and currently hosts the NHRA's season opener, the Kragen O'Reilly NHRA Winternationals, and the season closer, the Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals. The NMCA West Coast Shootout was a weekend of nicely built American muscle stuffed with plenty of horsepower—certainly a good day out of the office.
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Check David Dodd of Lemoore, California, getting some serious traction in this '70 Duster equipped with a 360ci small-block that ran an 11.03 at 119.33 mph.Those who live in Los Angeles have quite a drive to the nearest quarter-mile track; it's refreshing to peer down the long stretch of pavement between runs.


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Back and Fourth They Go
For much of boxing history, multiple meetings between contenders were common fare. Jake La Motta and Sugar Ray Robinson fought each other six times, enough for La Motta to crack, "I fought Sugar so often he almost gave me diabetes." Israel Vazquez and Rafael Marquez, Joey Giardello and Dick Tiger, Ezzard Charles and Jersey Joe Walcott, among others, fought four times.
Today major fights are less frequent and the promotional lead-ins much longer, so fistic trilogies and tetralogies are very rare. Nonetheless, as HBO analyst Larry Merchant observed, "Sometimes too much of a good thing is a good thing."
Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez, two of the best boxers of their generation, will exchange punches again Saturday at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. They've already had three grueling bouts. This will be their fourth.
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The Pacquiao vs. Marquez saga has been a good thing both for boxing fans and the box office. According to Bob Arum, CEO of Top Rank Promotions, the last battle between these two diminutive giants garnered 1.3 million pay-per-view buys.
In their 2004 fight, Marquez (54-6-1, 39 knockouts) visited the canvas three times in the first round but the ever-resilient "El Dinamita" regrouped and managed a draw. Pacquiao (54-4-2, 38 knockouts) eeked out controversial split decisions in their 2008, and 2011 meetings. Marquez vehemently insists, "I won all three fights."
Marquez's resolve to beat Pacquiao verges on an obsession. Recently, the Mexican icon emphasized that getting a win over his rival is "very, very important. I have this opportunity and the victory will be mine on Dec. 8 and I will be able to retire with a victory over Manny Pacquiao."
When they met in 2004 it was at 126 pounds, but this collision will be take place at the welterweight limit of 147 pounds. At bottom, the principals in this bout are Pacquiao's uniquely concussive left hand and Marquez's counter-right. At various times, Pacquiao has come close to turning Marquez's lights out with his bullet of a left. Neverthless, Marquez has always had more success than anyone in answering Pacquiao's power shot with own punishing straight right, which he sometimes manages to chase with a left hook or uppercut.
When pressed as to how he will avoid the counter right this Saturday, Pacquiao's trainer, Freddie Roach responds, "By being aggressive and keeping Marquez backing up." Roach continued, "When we go back and look at the tape at what worked and what didn't, it is clear that Manny did his best when he was dictating the pace and keeping busy, using his speed."
Longtime pound-for-pound stalwart, Roy Jones Jr. concurs: "Manny has to attack, get Marquez to counter and then counter his counter." But with a sharp shooter like Marquez "aggressive and busy" are easier to talk about in press conferences than to execute in the squared circle.
For all the aggression that these two talk of conjouring, both are gun-shy of boxing judges. Pacquiao and his team were appalled by a split-decision loss to Timothy Bradley in June, in which Pacquiao landed more blows and did more damage despite looking noticeably slower. Moreover, there is a perception that the Pacman got a gift in his last fight with Marquez, so Freddie Roach is plain: "Manny needs a knockout to win this one."
True to Roach's prescription, Pacquiao is bringing the heavy leather in training. Roach said, "Manny has knocked his sparring partners down three or four times already. He hasn't done that since the Cotto camp." Ray Beltran, Pacquiao's sparring mate for almost a decade, remarked, "Manny always hits hard but this time around when we are sparring, he doesn't take any breaks. There is no laying on the ropes."
Convinced that he has been thrice robbed in his bouts with Pacquiao, Marquez believes that his victory would have to be decisive. He, no less than Pacquiao, is promising an uptake in fury. "I am going to be aggressive in this fight," said Marquez. "I won't go for the knockout right away, but if I get the opportunity for the knockout I will go for one."


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Introducing Oracle Retail Mobile Point-of-Service
By Sarah E Taylor-Oracle on Nov 02, 2012
Oracle recently announced the introduction of Oracle Retail Mobile Point-of-Service, a mobile extension to the Oracle Retail Point-of-Service (POS) used by many retailers internationally. Oracle Retail Mobile POS offers wide ranging cost and efficiency benefits by allowing staff resource to be used more effectively whilst also reducing spend associated with fixed POS solutions.
For retailers utilising Oracle Retail Stores Solutions, additional benefits can be realised. Oracle Retail Mobile POS works with these solutions to allow store personnel to check in-store inventory, access product information and specifications, and perform tasks such as the printing or emailing of receipts and the activation of gift cards.
As Oracle Retail Mobile POS is an extension of Oracle Retail Point-of-Service, retailers can benefit from seamless integration with existing systems, simple upgrade procedures and seamless delivery across the business. However, the solution's scalable and flexible architecture also supports multiple mobile operators and systems, so retailers are not locked into particular vendors.
As well as being popular with retailers, Mobile POS has also proved to be well liked by consumers as it facilitates improved customer service levels. Retail staff are able to spend more time with consumers on the shop floor, access requested inventory information, and perform tasks that would traditionally have needed to be completed at a fixed cash register.
Additional information can be accessed on Oracle
Retail Point-of-Service or read the press announcement Oracle Introduces Mobile Point-of-Service for Retailers.


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This is a very elementary question I'm a little confused about.
Can any subset of $\mathbb{R}^2$ be expressed in form $A\times B$, where $A$ and $B$ are subsets of $\mathbb{R}$?
I'm thinking that it might not necessarily be so. For instance, if we consider the intervals $[0,2]$ and $[3,5]$ in $\mathbb{R}$, and throw out a single point, say $(1,4)$, out of $[0,2]\times [3,5]$ then there do not exist subsets $A$ and $B$ of $\mathbb{R}$ such that $A\times B = ([0,2]\times [3,5]) \setminus \{(1,4)\}$. Because if they were equal, surely $A$ would be equal to $[0,2]$ and $B$ would be equal to $[3,5]$. But as there is no way to put the constraint that $1$ cannot pair up with $4$, $A\times B$ will always be $[0,2]\times [3,5]$.
Am I thinking in the right direction? Thanks.


text: Rachel Carson Middle School Places First at the We the People National Invitational Rachel Carson Middle School of Herndon, Virginia, placed first in the Fourth Annual We the People National Invitational. Brown County Junior High School of Nashville, Indiana, placed second and Bob Graham Education Center of Miami Lakes, Florida, placed third. Congratulations to all competitors! Full results.


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If you need an article, chapter, book, dissertation, or any other published item, we will provide it to you from our own collection or through our world-wide network. Service is available to affiliated patrons and patrons from the general public who are residents of the State of Colorado. Some service fees may apply.
*NEWS: Beginning July 1, 2015, most CU-Anschutz Medical Campus Faculty and Staff will now receive FREE ILL! This includes paid University faculty and staff of CU Anschutz, faculty paid by affiliates, volunteer clinical/faculty, retired CU Anschutz faculty, CU Anschutz fellows, CU Anschutz visiting scholars and visiting students, and UPI employees. CU Anschutz students and residents will continue to receive no-cost ILL as well. Some affiliated users will still be charged services fees ($8/filled request, $18/rush). This includes CU Anschutz alumni who live in Colorado, CU Anschutz volunteer staff, UCH paid staff, UCH volunteers, other CU faculty, staff, and students, CCML members, and residents paid by other health organizations. *Please be advised: this is a 2-year pilot program, 2015-2017. The library will assess costs of the free program year to year to determine whether it is sustainable.
- Policy guidelines for no-cost ILL services to students paying the ASAC fee.
- Policy guidelines for no-cost ILL services to faculty & staff.
- Order an item
- Fees, services & turn around times
- Policies
- Libraries wanting to borrow from us - Lending Policies
Contact Information
Email: email@example.com
Phone: 303-724-2111
Fax: 303-724-2150
Mailing Address:
Interlibrary Loan/Doc Del
Mail Stop A003, Health Sciences Library
12950 E. Montview Blvd., Room 1105
Aurora, CO 80045
Hours: Monday - Friday, 8:00 am - 4:30 pm
We are closed most Colorado state holidays.


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I am an avid web surfer and I surf a lot of websites. I also have my accounts on numerous sites. The problem is when I need to sign in to some websites, I have to search my two mailboxes for username. And also sometimes its very hard to remember the email ID I used at the time of singing up. I am looking a for solution which saves my time and also organizes a list of websites.
Note: Actually I forgot to mention that it will be better if there is an app which helps in storing and generating passwords too. I don't have that much of a problem in remembering passwords. The only thing which confuses me is what emailID I used at the time of signing up and also, sometimes, what openID did I used.


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Men's Air Jordan Retro 7 Basketball Shoes
Product not available for In-Store Pick Up
THIS STYLE IS INELIGIBLE FOR ANY DISCOUNTS OR PROMOTIONS. LIMIT 5 PAIR PER CUSTOMER. The Jordan Retro VII Olympic Men's Basketball Shoes are a must-have for the summer. The fresh shoes represent one of the best Olympic Teams in the world! The colors match the Olympic jersey, and the shoes even feature the number 9 on the back. Pick up your pair of Retro VII's that MJ wore on the Dream Team in Barcelona. The clean white leather sits below stylish silver accents while red offers a little contrast. And you can't miss the pops of gold on the branding as well as on parts of the midsole.


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Craft offered for children
WELLSBURG - The Brooke CEOS will be presenting a craft class at the Brooke County Public Library on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. for children age 8 and up. Children will learn how to make duct tape Silly Birds. Call (304) 737-1551 to register for the free program.
Veterans sought for survey
CHARLESTON - West Virginia veterans and current military members of all eras, ages and branches are asked to complete the 2012 West Virginia Military Survey sponsored by the state Legislature.
From the survey, the Legislature hopes to learn how veterans and military members are faring in the areas of work, education, family, retirement, health, and access to veterans benefits.
Responses are confidential, and the information will not be published or released in any form that would identify an individual participant, said coordinators. The deadline is Nov. 30 for the survey, which may be completed online at www.wvmilitarysurvey.com or by calling (855) 299-6605 for an interview. Survey participants will be entered into a drawing for one $500 VISA gift card, five $100 VISA gift cards, and 30 VISA $50 gift cards. The military or veteran status of all gift card winners must be verified before they are awarded.
More than 8,000 postcard invitations to participate in the survey were mailed in late September. But the 2010 census reported there are more than 200,000 current or former service members in the state.
Volunteers sought for tax assistance
WEIRTON - C.H.A.N.G.E. Inc., a Weirton-based community action agency, seeks volunteers to assist area residents with low to moderate incomes in completing their income tax returns through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program.
The volunteers will receive free training this month and should call (304) 797-7733 for information.
Volunteers also are needed to assist in other ways, including organizing tax sites, scheduling tax preparers and setting appointments.


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Endurance exercise and metabolism are linked to transcriptional activation of human telomeres, researchers propose.
Poor Little Devils
November 1, 2014|
See the devastating infectious cancer that may drive the Tasmanian Devil to extinction.
Video, Slideshows, Infographics
November 1, 2014|
See the devastating infectious cancer that may drive the Tasmanian Devil to extinction.
August 1, 2014|
Capsule reviewed author Ian Leslie sets up his latest book, Curious, about the human propensity to wonder and learn.
May 1, 2014|
An organization hopes to restore natural ecological processes by reintroducing large herbivores to the continent.
June 1, 2013|
Yale University evolutionary biologist Steven Brady studies the evolutionary impacts of roads on the amphibians.
April 2, 2013|
Intrepid Norwegian explorers discovered the Antarctic icefish, a marvel of evolution, while venturing to an island at the bottom of the Earth in 1927.
March 2, 2013|
The method to the dengue virus's maddening infectiousness.
February 1, 2013|
A handful of species have learned how to survive in freezing climates. To do so, the animals must counteract the damaging effects of ice crystal formation, or keep from freezing altogether. Here are a few ways they do it.
February 1, 2013|
Animals and plants come in a dizzying array of colors. Current research is cracking into the remarkable structures behind nature's artistic display.
February 1, 2013|
Some of these insidious viruses expertly subvert the host immune system, allowing their unhindered proliferation.
December 12, 2012|
Fat cells behave differently in obese individuals, causing inflammation and insulin resitance.