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The National Coalition for Sexual Freedom (NCSF) believes that the most important issue facing the BDSM/Leather/Fetish communities today is the consistent practice of courts and law enforcement officials to prosecute BDSM as criminal assault, with no defense of consent permitted. We know that BDSM is not assault, but rather is pleasurable, loving adult erotic activity, as long as it is mutually consensual.NCSF is leading a major national campaign – Consent Counts – to change the laws and police practices that our communities now endure, and to establish that consent is available as a defense in criminal BDSM prosecutions.
Best Practices in the BDSM/Leather/Fetish Communities
The practice of BDSM (Bondage, Discipline, SM) consists of intimate mutually pleasurable erotic activity within the scope of informed consent. The following "best practices" have been developed by our communities to ensure that the standard of "safe, sane and consensual" is met by all BDSM participants:
Guiding Principles
All participants are knowledgeable about the techniques and safety concerns involved in what they are doing, and all act in accordance with that knowledge.
Knowing the difference between fantasy and reality, and acting in accordance with that knowledge.
All participants understand the nature of the activity in which they will be engaged, and the limits imposed by each participant, and respect such limits at all times.
Best Practices
Each participant should fully understand both the desires and the limits of each other participant. Such understanding may be based on long familiarity with the other participant(s) or, where participants are new to each other, on a full discussion in advance of the BDSM activity.
Established in 1997, theNational Coalition for Sexual Freedom (NCSF) is committed to creating a political, legal and social environment in the US that advances equal rights for consenting adults who engage in alternative sexual and relationship expressions. NCSF aims to advance the rights of, and advocate for consenting adults in the BDSM-Leather-Fetish, Swing, and Polyamory Communities. We pursue our vision through direct services, education, advocacy, and outreach, in conjunction with our partners, to directly benefit these communities.
In 2007, NCSF organized a leather leadership round table at the Creating Change conference to discuss the goals of the BDSM-leather-fetish communities. The number one priority was determined to be the decriminalization of BDSM.
A subsequent town hall meeting at LLC was held to further discuss this goal and to establish an outline for a working plan for this 10-15 year project. This is a community-wide project with participation by national groups as well as activists to help determine the plan to accomplish this goal.
Earlier this year, it was determined that it would be in the best interest of this project for NCSF to take a leadership role. Since NCSF had already established the DSM project as a major area of focus, it made sense to also add the CONSENT COUNTS project as a major focus.
Federal lawsuit filed yesterday! Check out the Atlanta Eagle Raid website
NCSF is actively involved in supporting the Atlanta Eagle and the plaintiffs in this suit.. In the case filed by Lambda Legal, Southern Center for Human Rights, and Dan Grossman as representation For the plaintiffs a federal law suit alleging multiple civil rights violations was filed 24 November 2009.
In speaking with Leigha Fleming NCSF Board Chair, Wednesday afternoon, attorney Dan Grossman said, "NCSF's publicity and support is very welcome and needed in this effort."
Said Ms. Fleming, "We need everyone in the Alanta community getting involved in this. There's a mayoral election coming up. Ask your candidates their opinions of the police action at the Eagle and whether or not they support the kind of bigotry and discrimination exhibited. Blog about it. Talk about it. All the various Eagle's around the country should link to this. Support this suit and support NCSF" Said Grossman, "The police believed that they could violate the rights of these men precisely because they were in a gay _leather_ bar."
NCSF is committed to creating a political, legal and social environment in the US that advances equal rights for consenting adults who engage in alternative sexual and relationship expressions. The NCSF aims to advance the rights of, and advocate for consenting adults in the BDSM-Leather-Fetish, Swing, and Polyamory Communities. We pursue our vision through direct services, education, advocacy, and outreach, in conjunction with our partners, to directly benefit these communities. Donate to NCSF now.
NCSF 822 Guilford Ave #127
Baltimore, MD 21202
Kinky is NOT a Diagnosis
Help make history by signing the DSM Revision Petition now! The diagnoses in the DSM-IV-TR still subject people who practice BDSM, fetishes and cross-dressing to bias, discrimination and social sanctions without any scientific basis.
We need 3,000 signatures, but we only have 2,200 now. If you don't speak up and call on the American Psychiatric Association to adhere to empirical research when revising the diagnoses in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM V), then the Sexual and Gender Identity Disorders Work Group won't make a meaningful change.
To sign, go to: www.thepetitionsite.com/1/DSMrevisionpetition
You can make your signature anonymous on this secure petition site so it doesn't appear on the Internet or when the petition is delivered to the APA.
"We, the undersigned, support the American Psychiatric Association's (APA) own goal of making its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) a scientific document, based on empirical research and devoid of cultural bias. A diagnosis of a mental disorder can have a severe adverse impact on employment opportunities, child custody determinations, an individual's well-being, and other areas of functioning. Therefore we urge the APA to remove all diagnoses that are not based upon peer-reviewed, empirical research, demonstrating distress or dysfunction, from the DSM. The APA specifically should not promote current social norms or values as a basis for clinical judgments."
To find out more about the DSM and the Paraphilias section, read the NCSF & ITCR: The Foundation for www.thepetitionsite.com/1/DSMrevisionpetition's "White Paper on the DSM Revision" at www.ncsfreedom.org
October 15, 2009
A detailed look at this effective technique to get your point across to the media.
Usually there is no graceful way to segue into a sound bite. That's fine, reporters are used to nonsensical conversations when they give interviews. Whatever the question, respond with one of your sound bites. Repeat these sound bites over and over. Out of a 1/2 long interview, you will be on the air for about 10 seconds, which is usually one or two of your sound bites. Or you get one quote in an article. So don't ad lib. Keep repeating these sound bites below, as well as any sound bites you and your organization agree to provide to the media on local issues.
You don't have to get all these in, sometimes it's best to pick a few and keep repeating them in different ways.
Safe, Sane and Consensual
This is a must! Say it over and over and over like a mantra. "Over fifteen years ago, a community-wide ethic was established known as "safe, sane and consensual". This credo has permeated SM literature and lore far beyond the subculture of the organized community." Or "We constantly discuss issues of consent, which are the basis of safe, sane and consensual sexual education."
If They Want Specific Definitions:
The Need for Educational and Social SM Gatherings
It's important to emphasize the contributions our educational and social groups make to society. We teach people how to do SM safely and consensually, and that takes hands-on instruction and community discussion. Say, "Our group has existed for 10 years as an educational and social group, teaching people how to do SM safely and consensually." Say, "Our group is only one of over 500 educational and social organizations that exist in America for SM-Leather-Fetish practitioners." Or "Like the gay and lesbian community in the 1960's, the people in our community feel very alone and isolated. We provide a place for them where they can get the support of their peers, where they don't have to be ashamed or afraid of who they are."
Safe Words
Say, "Safewords are key to consensual sexual activities." "The participants can stop what's happening at any time with a pre-arranged word, or by saying safeword."
Communication and Negotiation
Say, "We negotiate before engaging in SM or fetish practices to make sure that what we do is fun for both of us." Or "People who play together must learn how to communicate exactly what we want"
Sensual, Loving Sexual Expression
Emphasize that SM is done between loving, communicative partners. It is mutually pleasurable for all involved. SM is stimulation that is often perceived in a sexual way. Stimulation is a great word to use--it is clear and non-threatening unlike "flogging" or "spanking" etc.
Defining SM, Dominance & Submission and Bondage
Stay away from going into an SM 101 and don't give any lessons on technique. The most effective soundbites talk about issues of discrimination and injustice against our communities. If they ask, what exactly is SM? You say, "SM is sensory stimulation, either physical or mental, that is interpreted as pleasure." Please try to get the reporter to write SM, not S&M - that evokes the old stereotypes and we are trying to get around that. S&M stands for sadism & masochism while SM stands for sadomasochism; inherent in the word is the mutual necessity for both as well as the consent involved.
Statistics of Practitioners
According to the 1990 Kinsey Institute New Report on Sex, released by St. Martin's Press:
"Researchers estimate that 5 percent to 10 percent of the U.S. population engages in diverse sexual practices for sexual pleasure on at least an occasional basis, with most incidents being either mild or staged activities involving no real pain or violence." That would bring the number of practitioners into the millions, with many, many more who do things like love bites or holding their lover's hands down. Say "Most are just like your neighbors, doctor, bus driver, even your sister or uncle. There are probably 1 in 10 people in your office who practice SM as a loving form of sexual expression."
Combat Stereotypes
Say, "Contrary to stereotypes, there are many women who enjoy being sexually dominant, and many more people who enjoy switching roles." Or, "People can roleplay with roles and experience things they normally wouldn't get to do in their real life."
Discrimination and Violence
This one is also extremely important because most people don't realize how much we are attacked and closeted because of our sexual expression. "Discrimination and violence happens every day to people like you and me just because they engage in diverse sexual practices such as SM or fetishes. Discrimination ranges from family pressures, to job loss, to loss of child custody." Or "The NCSF Violence & Discrimination Survey 1998 found that 1/3 of over 1000 people surveyed suffered some form of discrimination or persecution--losing their job or even their children because of the myths and stereotypes of SM. Another 36% suffered violence--were physically attacked--because of the stereotypes about SM." Or "According to the NCSF survey, 4/5ths of the people surveyed are closeted to the rest of the world out of fear of serious repercussions."
SM Practitioners Are Not Sick
In 1994, the American Psychiatric Association changed its medical definition of SM in the Diagnostic and Statistic Manual (DSM 4) so that it is no longer automatically defined as a mental illness. Say "As long as a person's SM practices don't interfere with their day-to-day life, it's considered to be a healthy form of sexual expression."
You don't have to answer the interviewer's exact question.
The NCSF Incident Reporting & Response (IRR) program provides assistance to individuals and groups within the alternative sexual expression communities who become victimized because of SM, leather, fetish, or swing practices.
Request For Assistance Form
Emergency Number: (917) 848-6544
Copyright 2012-2015 - National Coalition for Sexual Freedom - NCSFreedom.org
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text: The Weirton U10 girls softball all-star team won its second tournament in a row, capturing the Natrona Heights, Pa., championship. Team members are, from left, front row, Alexis Adams, Casey Yacos, batgirl Nina Daugherty, Chesney Tice, Sophia Aperfine, Isabella Aperfine and batgirl Paisley Tice; middle, batgirl Lexus Melnyk, Madalena Daugherty, Landry Bone, Sophia Mikula, Sarah Bodrog, Jazzlyn Melnyk, Michaela Battista and Halle Johnson; back, coaches Jeff Bodrog, Mike Adams, Pete Melnyk, Joe Aperfine, Julie Daugherty, Crystal Tice and Dave Mikula. -- Contributed

subset: commoncrawl


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Annual Meeting, Friends of the Bluffton Library
Location:Bluffton Branch
Date & Time:Sunday, November 11, 2012 - 2:00pm – 4:00pm
The public is welcome and encouraged to attend this annual meeting of the Friends of the Bluffton Library. The Annual Meeting will enable people to communicate, meet all of our new and current Friends of the Bluffton Library Board members, and enjoy refreshments. Marge Agin, author of Bluffton: Changing Tides, will be the keynote speaker. She will share her experiences learning about the May River and meeting many folks in Bluffton. Everyone is welcome!


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Constantia vineyards
The elegant suburb of Constantia is situated in the Cape's oldest winelands and is home to renowned wine estates and numerous award-winning restaurants.
Lined with oak trees and gabled Cape Dutch homesteads, Constantia is a pretty suburb situated on the lower slopes of
Table Mountain. The winelands began in 1685 on the farm of the governor of the Cape Colony at the time, Simon van der Stel.
Having chosen an enormous tract of farmland for himself and his family, Van der Stel named his estate Constantia after his daughter. Today, Constantia is one of Cape Town's most prestigious suburbs. After Van der Stel's death in 1712, his estate was divided and sold off as the wine estates which still exist today.
Eight producers make up the Constantia Wine Valley. They are Groot Constantia, High Constantia, Constantia Uitsig, Steenberg Vineyards, Klein Constantia, Buitenverwachting, Constantia Glen and Eagle's Nest Wines.
Groot Constantia (+27 21 794 5128; www.grootconstantia.co.za) is the largest estate in Constantia and consists of many of Van der Stel's original buildings, including the famous manor house. It's known as "the birthplace of South African wine". A visit to the Groot Constantia Museum (+27 21 795 5140/9; www.iziko.org.za) will give you an idea of life in the Cape of Good Hope during the 18th and 19th centuries. There are cellar tours and wine tastings open to the general public. Don't miss out on a visit to either of the two excellent restaurants, Simon's Restaurant and Jonkershuis. They are both very popular so you will need to book.
High Constantia (+27 21 794 7171; www.highconstantia.co.za) is a boutique winery situated just before the gates of Groot Constantia. The energetic and dynamic wine maker, David Van Niekerk, is restoring a small corner of land to its former wine-making glory. Don't miss out on tasting some of the sparkling wine, touted by some as the best in the country.
Nearby is the excellent Constantia Uitsig estate (www.constantia-uitsig.com which is home to a winery, superb hotel, three fabulous restaurants, a safari camp and spa. One of the restaurants, La Colombe, is generally considered one of South Africa's top restaurants and is a must visit for any foodie. (+ 27 21 794 2390)
Steenberg Vineyards (+27 21 713-2211, Steenberg Hotel) boasts a state-of-the-art cellar, completed in 1996, with the capacity to produce around 70 000 cases per year. Steenberg's flagship wines include Magna Carta, a white Bordeaux-style blend, Sauvignon Blanc, and Semillon. In addition, Steenberg Estate is host to the five star Steenberg Hotel, a luxury spa, two restaurants and a superb 18-hole gof course.
The beautiful estate of Klein Constantia (+27 21 794 5188) also produces excellent wines – and you can enjoy a free tasting in a lovely setting.
Close by, you'll find the estate of Buitenverwachting (+27 21 794 5190), also renowned for its world-class wines. Spoil yourself and book a space at Buitenverwachting's award-winning restaurant. For a less formal occasion, organise a picnic lunch and enjoy a feast out on the lawns.
Constantia Glen (+27 21 795 6100), which lies between the slopes of the Constantiaberg overlooking False Bay, is a pristine 60ha rural landscape that has evolved from forested hills, to a cattle stud and back to wine production.
Eagle's Nest Wines (+27 21 794 4095) is hidden high in a secluded valley on the slopes of the Constantiaberg. The farm dates back to 1836, when it was used as a refreshment station. Viognier, Merlot and Shiraz are some of the superior wines created on the farm's unique terroir.
There are numerous farm stalls, delis and restaurants throughout the Constantia suburb and the area is renowned for its gourmet offerings. Request a free wine and food map from any of Cape Town Tourism's Visitor Information Centres or ask us for details on the best food and wine experiences in the area. Call +27 21 787 9140 for the best local advice or email firstname.lastname@example.com.
If you're feeling energetic, the Constantia greenbelt offers a variety of scenic walks on the slopes of Table Mountain (+27 21 701 8692; www.sanparks.org). Constantia Nek is the starting point for many of these walks. For bird-watchers, Cecelia Forest is a good place to twitch.
Ask a friendly Cape Town Tourism consultant to assist you with more local information.
- Phone: +27 21 762 0687
Cango Caves
29km from Oudtshoorn, at the head of the picturesque Cango Valley, lies the spectacular underground wonder of the Klein Karoo - the Cango Caves. Situated in a limestone ridge parallel to the well-known Swartberg Mountains, you will find the finest dripstone caverns, with their vast halls and towering formations.
Southern Suburbs
The Southern Suburbs are a tourist's delight. The area, which stretches from the slopes of the Table Mountain range to the False Bay coast, offers natural attractions and a vibrant nightlife.
St James
Just a little further on from Cape Town's well-known Muizenberg beach is St James. Home to a cluster of well-known and oft-photographed bathing boxes on the beach, St James is a picturesque area that offers beachgoers respite from the westerly wind.
Llandudno and Sandy Bay
Only 18km from the Cape Town city centre, an arc of fine white sand gives away the secluded location of one of Cape Town's most beautiful beaches, Llandudno.
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CNN -Days after the Colorado movie theater massacre, President Barack Obama on Wednesday forcefully spoke out against gun violence, making perhaps some of his strongest comments yet as president on the issue.
While the president said he stands by the Second Amendment and recognizes the traditions of hunting and gun ownership in the country, he told a crowd at a gathering for the National Urban League in New Orleans that there is work left to be done in tackling the problem.
"I also believe that a lot of gun owners would agree that AK-47s belong in the hands of soldiers, not in the hands of criminals," Obama said. "That they belong on the battlefield of war, not on the streets of our cities."
The president has largely steered away from talking about gun laws. While he visited the families of victims in Aurora, Colorado on Sunday, he did not wade into the political debate over gun legislation that dominated national dialogue over the weekend.
Talk of gun rights was also largely absent from Obama's speech in the aftermath of the Fort Hood shooting in 2009 and after then-Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and others were shot in Tucson, Arizona, last year. The president mentioned gun safety only in passing after the Tucson shootings to describe the polarizing nature of the issue.
Two months later, he wrote an op-ed outlining a plan that included enforcing existing laws and rewarding states that provide the best data about gun owners. But until Wednesday, he had mostly refrained from making public comments about the issue.
On Wednesday, however, Obama emphasized a need for background checks and the prevention of "mentally unbalanced" individuals from obtaining guns. He faulted opposition in Congress for lack of progress made in reducing violence.
"These steps shouldn't controversial. They should be common sense," Obama said, though without elaborating too specifically on measures of enforcement.
"We should leave no stone unturned and recognize that we have no greater mission as a country than keeping our young people safe," he added.
Speaking aboard Air Force One as the president flew Sunday to meet with families of those killed, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said Obama did not have plans to push for new legislation in light of the Colorado shooting.
"The president's view is that we can take steps to keep guns out of the hands of people who should not have them under existing law. And that's his focus right now," Carney said, adding it was too early to determine how the issue would play in the election.
Obama's silence on gun rights in the days after Aurora caused some critics to question the president's position on the issue. New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Sunday pointed to Obama's 2008 campaign promise to reinstate a federal ban on assault weapons.
"The president has spent the last three years trying to avoid the issue, or if he's facing it, I don't know anybody that's seen him face it," Bloomberg said on CBS News, also calling on Mitt Romney to lay out his vision to reduce gun violence.
The presumptive Republican presidential nominee said Monday that he also saw no need for new laws and reiterated those comments on Wednesday, saying a change in legislation won't stop those who truly want to do harm.
"I don't know that I'm going be able to find a way to prevent people who want to provide harm from being able to purchase things that can carry out that harm. What I want to do is find the people that represent a danger to America and find them and keep them from having the capacity to use or buy things that can harm or hurt other people," Romney said in an interview with NBC News.
Obama on Wednesday, echoing similar refrains, said that government can only do so much in terms of preventing violence.
"Even as we debate government's role, we have to understand that when a child opens fire on another child, there's a hole in that child's heart that government alone can't fill," the president said Wednesday, stressing the role of families, teachers and community leaders in the upbringing of children.


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Man stabbed during girlfriend's birthday celebration
Next video starts in : 7 Play
Man stabbed during girlfriend's birthday celebration
Unconventional Diaries: A DNC volunteer's view on the celebration in Philadelphia
2:18Now watching Up next
Man stabbed during girlfriend's birthday celebration
Jeff Pegues reports from South Richmond Hill.
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Unconventional Diaries: A DNC volunteer's view on the celebration in Philadelphia
Tracy Russo, digital communications strategist and a DNC volunteer, captured the celebration after Hillary Clinton's speech at the Democratic National Convention
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Clinton Speech Stirs Emotions in Audience
Some members of the crowd became emotional during Hillary Clinton's acceptance speech Thursday night at the Democratic National Convention. (July 29)
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Unconventional: Clinton to Trump: You don't represent the real America. I do.
When we look back at the 2016 conventions, this is probably the thing we will remember. The press has spent the past two weeks obsessing over the intraparty differences on display in Cleveland and Philadelphia. But pull the camera back. Take the 35,000-foot view. The whole spectacle really boiled down to one simple question: What does it mean to be an American?
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Young Refugees in US Inspired by Olympic Team
The plight of refugees will be on the world stage next month when the first-ever all refugee team competes at the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. The team is inspiring other refugees around the world, including in the U.S. (July 29)
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Huge, Toothy Fish Seen as Weapon vs. Asian Carp
Biologists are reintroducing a toothy monster to waterways throughout the middle of the country, hoping the alligator gar _ a giant fish once driven to extinction in much of its historic range _ can help control invasive Asian carp. (July 29)
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Scandal's Tony Goldwyn talks American history in a DNC video
On the final night of the Democratic National Convention, in a video, Tony Goldwyn gives an American history lesson as he walks around the Assembly room in Independence Hall.
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Unconventional live: Recapping and reacting to the Democratic National Convention
On Thursday, July 28, 2016, Yahoo Global News Anchor Katie Couric, Yahoo National Political Columnist Matt Bai, and Yahoo Chief Washington Correspondent Olivier Knox analyze Hillary Clinton's keynote speech on the final night of the Democratic National Convention. They also look back on major moments of this historic DNC and offer their thoughts as to where the party goes from here.
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I believe that in the sentence
Ich danke 'du/dir/dich'
- ich = subject
- danke = verb
- du = direct object.
Wouldn't that mean that it would be "Ich danke dich"? I hear people say "Ich danke dir" frequently and it's a little confusing.
I believe that in the sentence
Wouldn't that mean that it would be "Ich danke dich"? I hear people say "Ich danke dir" frequently and it's a little confusing.
is the only correct version. Danken takes the dative case. You will never hear otherwise.
I would recommend to forget about the concept of direct and indirect object; or better, you should realize that the definitions of direct and indirect object in German and English are not identical. Neither is the use. So just because some verb takes a direct object in English doesn't mean that that is the case in German.
Emanuel already mentioned that Ich danke dir is the correct way of saying I thank you.
I just want to tell you how you can simply answer such a question with help of some online tools. Unfortunately, only a few sources mention the necessary information explicitly and, if they do, this information is sometimes a little hidden.
Starting with Duden, you'll find the following example to the entry to danken:
In this sentence no object is given and since the hint tells you that the dative object is missing, you can guess that the usual object following danken is dative.
On Wiktionary (and Duden, too) you'll find this information:
With a little knowledge of German, you know that the ending -m in jemandem hints that the object is dative. Accusative would be jemanden as in jemanden verfolgen.
Having a look on the entries to dir in Duden or du in Wiktionary, you'll find out that dir is dative:
Finally, I need to mention that danken can be followed by dative, accusative and even genitive objects.
"Ich danke dir" = "I give thanks to you", not "I thank you". Maybe danke is acting like the accusative and the verb and dir is the dative.
"Helfen Sie mir" = "You give help to me", not "You help me". Likewise, maybe helfen is acting like the accusative and the verb and mir is the dative.
Ich = nominative
More information about German Dative Verbs on about.com.


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I'm looking for a FREE C# class, library or set of functions that will allow me to generate a geodesic linestring (or array of vertices, whatever) from two decimal degree points.
I've found javascript functions that do what I want, but no luck with C# ones.
I suppose I could translate it from the above javascript. But I'd prefer to use something tried and tested.
Anyone know of such functions, classes or libraries?


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Well, this is an awkward question and I don't know if it is mathematical enough for MO (I'm sorry if not) but I'll try it: What observations in the coordinate system centered in my fixed position on earth are necessary to conclude that the earth (and the planets) move (approximately) in ellipses around the sun and that earth is rotating around itself?
You can use a Foucault pendulum to determine that you are on a rotating planet. If you set it up on the North or South pole it will complete one rotation in one day.
Take a look at Terence Tao's pdf slides (4.3 Mb), http://terrytao.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/cosmic-distance-ladder2.pdf. Kepler makes an appearance and there's much more besides.
I think that you can write down the motion of planets in any coordinate system you like. Since prehistoric times, astronomers have recorded the motion of planets, and before Kepler everybody used the coordinate system where the earth is fixed. I don't know if they ever wrote down equations of the planets' motion, but they could certainly predict it.
Of course, the equations of motion in this coordinate system would be very messy and inconvenient. The reason that we say that "planets move around the sun" is, IMHO, the fact that in the coordinate system centered at the sun, the equations become so simple and easy to understand.
The one "specific observation" that, to my mind, shows how confusing and inconvenient to calculate the motion of planets is from an Earth-centered system, is the retrograde motion of planets. When viewed from the earth, planets usually move in one direction in the sky (when viewed at the same time but on different days). Sometimes, however, planets like Mars move backwards in the sky. I think this has to do with the angular velocity of the Earth moving around the sun being greater than that of Mars (anybody has a better explanation?).
Evidence that the Earth is spinning about its axis: the Coriolis effect. The coordinate system fixed to a specific spot on the Earth's surface is not inertial, that is, Newton's first law does not hold.
Evidence that the Earth and other planets are moving about the Sun in elliptical orbits: agreement of the projected elliptical motions with observations in the night sky.
There is no fundamental reason to choose the Sun as the center of the solar system coordinates. Any point will do, including the Earth or any other planet. However, as noted by such luminaries as Copernicus, Galileo, Kepler and other MO respondents, choosing the Sun as the center simplifies things quite a bit.
I find the parallax effect parallax effect especially convincing evidence. Parallax is the shifting of lines of sight due to translation, eg by waiting half an earth year at which point theory tells we have moved about 16 light minutes around the sun from where we were.
Regarding retrograde motions: as Ilya said,
Kepler's 2nd law closer
planets move faster. Now draw two circles
centered at 'Sun' with a point 'Earth' moving on the inner circle
and another point 'Mars' moving more slowly but in the same sense, say counterclockwise
on the outer circle. Drow a line between the two moving points. That line
indicates how Mars looks, viewed from earth, relative to the distant stars.
Finally, the explanation of elliptical versus circular motion
is more of an Occam's razor business. Originally we had
An interesting (and very old) argument in favour of heliocentrism is based on estimates of the relative sizes of the Earth and Sun.
Actually, Aristarchus of Samos estimated that the Sun is six to seven times wider than the Earth (and therefore over 200 times more voluminous). These calculations arguably led him to conclude that it made more sense for the Earth to be moving than for the huge Sun to be moving around it.
Stellar aberration, the change in the apparent positions of more or less most of the night sky with the seasons, directly due to the velocity of the earth in its orbit. Note - aberration, which is related to the idea that raindrops appear to fall slanted in a moving vehicle, is not the same as parallax, e.g. has no relation to the distance of the stellar source, etc. :-)
Isn't the whole idea why we accept the 'fact' that the Earth revolves around the sum based on how science works?
You have a theory about how something works, do some experiments, and if you don't get a contradiction, you do not reject the theory. I think that if you investigated any of the theories that placed the Earth at the center of the Universe, you would eventually find a contradiction. When you place the Sun at the center of the Solar System, no contradictions develop ( except for the thing about the behavior of Mercury - ask Eddington and Einstein).
Actually, when you listen to phyicists about why they accept quantum mechanics, they will say that it is a theory that has never encountered a contradiction over the past eighty years. However, they are still looking to a theory to unit it with general relativity, but that is another story.


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I have a wordpress site that has had a large number of blog posts removed. How can i ask google to remove all these 404 page not founds, but leave the active blog posts. I see the removal tool in google webmasters but it doesnt say if it will just remove the 404s. I understand 404s naturally are removed from the index, but i want to expedite this.
You don't really have any options other then using the removal tool or waiting for them to naturally fall out of the index. If you're concerned about users following those links in Google's search results and seeing 404 errors, redirect them to a related page or another page that explains the post no longer exists and invite them to explore other pages. That way you can still take advantage of the traffic Google has to offer you.
You can custom-handle the 404s to either redirect back to the root or make it a landing page so they are invited to explore the rest of the page.
Or, if possible, try to re-locate them to the same article in an archive (though it sounds like they were plain deleted and not archived).


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"All That" Cast Reunites 22 Years Later -- Talk Least Favorite Skits, Death Hoaxes
Heidi Montag & Spencer Pratt Talks "Hills" Regrets, While Lauren Conrad Teases New Tell-All
The First Trailer for "Gilmore Girls" Revival Is Here!
"One Tree Hill" Cast Reunites and Sings the Theme Song!
Missy Elliot Video Girl Alyson Stoner Reveals Must-Haves for "Girls Night In" Tour
Cosmopolitan Ultimate Woman of the Year Awards


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I'm guessing you progress at different levels for different exercise, but as a (very) general rule of thumb, would it be reasonable to add 10lbs a month with bench presses, and maybe more like 20 with squats?
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I would suggest the rule of thumb here is a dangerous guide.
Why, because it may work for one or two iterations, but by the third iteration if you have added 60lbs to your squats in 3 months it may be way too much.
This is something you need to listen to what your body is telling you and also a trainer.


text: I just started King of Thorns and I'm having problems remembering the latter half of Prince of Thorns. Anyone know of a summary or could anyone summarize it in a few bullet points? I wish all books in series would start each one with a summary of the last one.


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I'll be at Intervention7 this September!
We STILL seem to have a RANDOM ARCHIVE GLITCH where clicking on the next comic will take you to the next comic page, but oddly display a comic from a totally different date. Hitting Refresh sometimes helps.
Comic for Monday 09/19/05
Comic for Tuesday 09/20/05
Hiya gang! I was a teeny bit confused by "big-time" on panel 3, so I asked Pete about it. A few of you might be similarly confused so I figured it's best to post the explanation here.
When Shanklin says Bun-bun is on big-time, what he means is that bun-bun's got plenty of people, securing his timeline, and is in no danger of freezing in timeless space. I'd thought that perhaps Big-Time was the original name of the ship that is now called the Bloody Bun, but that's not the case at all. Stupid Thyla.


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I just received my poles and Quick Mount Mini Adapters. Everything looks lovely and very well made.
However, Im having a problem with the anti-twist screws on the Mini Adapter. I need them for stability with the NN3 to RD8 connection, but they interfere with the connection of NN3 to Pole.
I need advice on how best to solve the problem shown in this photo.


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How gay marriage supporters won this year: By changing their ad strategy
The surprise sweep for marriage equality efforts at the polls in 2012 came after a dramatic shift in the television ads their backers ran — a change that came about after a year-long research effort to crack the code of previously successful ads run by marriage equality opponents that focused on "gay marriage" being taught in schools.
Among the key changes: A shift away from talk of "rights" to a focus on committed relationships; a decision to address "values" directly as being learned at home; and an attempt to give voters "permission" to change their minds, according to elements of the research shared with BuzzFeed. …
The research was sponsored by Third Way — a centrist Democratic think tank — that conducted an extended round of surveys beginning in September 2010 "aimed at answering a single question: how do we most effectively persuade people in the middle to support relationship recognition for gay and lesbian couples, including marriage?" …
Faith and, particularly in Maryland, black communities were engaged directly. Fund-raising and field operations were systematic and far outpaced past efforts of marriage equality supporters and this year's efforts by opponents. President Obama and the Democratic Party, along with prominent Republicans and straight sports stars, were speaking out in support of marriage equality. And, it was the fifth federal election held in the country since some of its residents were legally able to marry someone of the same sex.
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Airport facilities
Money and communications:
There are three ATMs located on the arrivals floor, and five ATMs on the Terminal 2 departures floor. Four Travelex offices can be found in Terminal 2: one on the service floor and three on the departure floor.
Eating and drinking:
There are plenty of restaurants, cafes and bars in both terminals, including a 24-hour fast-food restaurant. Shopping: There are numerous shops at the airport, with more to open in Terminal 1, late 2009.
Other facilities: Tourist information is on the arrivals floor of Terminal 2, and there are airport information desks at arrivals in both terminals. Three children's playrooms are available at gate area. A pharmacy is in arrivals of Terminal 2. Wireless internet Access is available throughout theairport and there are six internet kiosks. A new spa, including sauna, opened in 2010.


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Custom Motion Control & Assemblies for Aerospace
Product Announcement from Precipart Corporation
COMPLEX COMPONENTS THAT CIRCLE THE GLOBE-- As a critical motion control and component developer to aerospace industry OEMs for decades, Precipart supports major commercial, private, and military aircraft manufacturers for their specialized geared requirements. That is why our custom-designed actuators, motion control components, precision mechanical assemblies and custom precision gears can be found on aircraft around the world. Designed for long life and extreme environments, some of our complex component controls have ventured into space as part of programs for the Hubble telescope, Mars Rovers and mission specific satellites.
• Cabin pressure indicators • Vector and cockpit controls • Cabin door actuators • Landing light controls • Wing flap controls • Nose wheel positioning • Windshield wiper controls • Satellite antenna positioning systems
|Get More Info on Supplier's Site


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The Kentucky Young Farmer Program is a vital part of the total program of Agriculture Education in Kentucky.
Young farmers are those individuals who are out of high school, who have or want to become successfully established in farming or employed in an agricultural occupation or business.
The Kentucky Young Farmer Program (KYFA) is a leadership development organization of those students enrolled in Young Farmer Educational Classes provided through the Kentucky Community and Technical College System. KY YFA offers opportunities for members and spouses to participate in leadership development, competitive contests, and social and recreational activities.


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- What actual physical stores carry them?
- Is there anywhere online that I could buy then return without problems if they didn't fit my foot? I have heard Zappos is good about it.
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closed as too localized by Matt Chan♦ Apr 11 '12 at 18:45
This question is unlikely to help any future visitors; it is only relevant to a small geographic area, a specific moment in time, or an extraordinarily narrow situation that is not generally applicable to the worldwide audience of the internet. For help making this question more broadly applicable, visit the help center.If this question can be reworded to fit the rules in the help center, please edit the question.
REI has Vibram Five Fingers and the Merrell Barefoot/Bareform series, if you live in the US.
I'd imagine MEC has them if you live in Canada, but I haven't been north of the border for a long time.
Elsewhere in the world I don't know.
Find a specialized shop. Online is great and all, but not for this kind of stuff.
Also at some shops you'll be able to test the shoes on a treadmill at least.
I'd recommend you go to a physical store to try them on before you buy. You'll end up trying on several sizes. I know for the Virbram's that you have to have an extremely precise fit or else it will rub against your foot when you where them. You want them to feel snug but not tight; if it is loose at all, try on a smaller pair.
Here in the southeast part of the US, Abbadabbas carries them. I got mine from there.


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Light up your business with high-quality and stylish Sign Lighting from Barn Light Electric Co.®. Select any of our American made or imported Sign Lights to highlight both commercial and residential spaces.
We offer numerous sizes, styles and finishes of Angle Shade Gooseneck Lights and Emblem Shades to showcase your office building or storefront for both aesthetic and security purposes. Sign Lights can also be used within home settings to accent artwork, hallways, or family photo walls. A great example is the Williams' family photo featured in ABC's Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.
The Angle Shade Gooseneck Light is based on the design of the Original™ Warehouse Shade and is reminiscent of the gas station lights of the early 20th century. Emblem Shades feature a more rounded shape and are handcrafted to highlight your space in a classic style. Consider mounting on commercial buildings, in art galleries, or to accent a hostess stand or interior mantle.
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Our Discount Sign Lights are rugged utilitarian fixtures that feature our most popular gooseneck combinations. Without sacrificing style or quality, these wall-mounted goosenecks provide a wide spread of focused light over awnings and on building facades to create attractive architectural lighting.
To see examples of how Sign Lights are used on storefront settings, read some of our blog posts! Angle Shade Lighting Plays Integral Role in Exterior Design and Security and Angle Shades for a Kitchen Renovation


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After hundreds of shows, what will work in stores?
Posted at: 09/12/2013 8:35 PM
By SAMANTHA CRITCHELL
(AP) NEW YORK - Now that we've seen hundreds, maybe thousands, of outfits on the New York Fashion Week runways, what's going to stay in our collective memory?
And we speak of the big, giant WE. Fashion editors, stylists and retailers fill the seats at shows but the looks are beamed everywhere _ and pretty much instantly. You'll start seeing consumers copying them sooner _ and maybe more inclined to shop, said Sally Singer, creative digital director at Vogue.
But she still thinks spenders like direction from insiders.
"Ultimately, retailers pick trends. They decide what people will buy because it's what they believe in to put into stores," she said. "Things that work at retail are things that might not be from this season's runway."
Hello, cropped tops?
But there are some trends that do work, she said: The great menswear-inspired button-down shirts, for example, from the placket-front nightshirt to the crispest collared shirt, the flashes of sheerness, the fuller skirts and even palazzo pants for evening.
Jay Fielden, editor-in-chief of Town & Country magazine, said he focuses more on muses, or general inspirations, that leave a lasting impression than single items.
"From a man's point of view, there were a few women who came out of the shows: the super-sexy girl showing her goods, the very refined elegant look that's more of a throwback to a real woman, the tomboy, and the girl who has brains and doesn't wear things aimed at a man, although I'm a guy who can like that."
Oscar de la Renta and Carolina Herrera's modern twist on an old-school sophisticate is "the way any man would like his wife to dress _ effortless perfection," Fielden said.
Some designers offered true moments of fashion "direction," said Singer, including Proenza Schouler's show, which featured long pleated metallic skirts. "That's a show that will transcend the week."
Other top picks from Singer included Michael Kors, for "modern pretty clothes," and Narcisco Rodriguez, for a cut that fit like a glove.
There wasn't, however, a huge, groundbreaking swing from aggressive tough girl to a hippie chick, for example _ and don't expect that to happen again soon. You'll notice the evolution of a tight, nipped shoulder to a rounder, softer one, or skinny jeans to wide-leg pants instead, Singer said.
"You realize it has shifted when you feel like you are in the wrong thing," she added.
Don't start the shopping list just yet, though. While the New York previews ended Thursday night with Marc Jacobs, there are still weeks to go in London, Milan and Paris.
Jacobs closed eight days of spring previews with a memorable show, for sure. He put on a stifling parade of dripping hot models against a decaying beach backdrop in an armory that felt like a billion degrees.
Catwalkers, including Cara Delevingne, wore high-necked wool and lace numbers decorated with tassels and beads on a boardwalk above black sand strewn with garbage and an abandoned bus.
The lucky models wore Hawaiian print Bermuda shorts and sequin tourist sandals, the flat Velcro-close ones that grandma might wear with socks.
That floral print, though, turned into some fabulous eveningwear that wasn't as exaggerated as some of the opening dresses, but with the same drama. Which front-row celebrities _ Drew Barrymore, Winona Ryder, Julianne Hough or Hailee Steinfeld _ will wear them first?
Jackets with puffy sleeves and wide shoulders seemed most likely to land on the must-have list of Jacobs fans or the coolest marching band player you know.
The name on the label still reads Calvin Klein, but the women's collection is clearly Francisco Costa's now.
It's been 10 years since Klein picked the Brazilian-born designer as his successor, and Costa presented his anniversary collection this time around.
"I hope it's a little out of the box," Costa said. "It's urban but it's a mix of cultures."
Costa said the mix of looks reflected all the sights and textures of New York when he first arrived here in the 1980s. "I was inspired by a lot of energy," he said.
"Sometimes we forget as we get older what New York is. We think New York isn't the same, but it is the same _ we've changed," he said.
He covered a lot of ground. The opening sand-colored wrap tank top and wrap skirt were signature minimalism, save the flash of pink lining, but over the next 35 outfits Costa offered a luxe, refined snakeskin tank and skirt; twill painter's pants with exaggerated pockets, cuff and rear; and a black woven leather jacket with multicolored thread fringe.
It wasn't a coincidence that so many fashion watchers at Zoe's show were snapping photos of the models' feet each time a particularly comfortable-looking shoe _ a glittery metallic Birkenstock-style sandal _ came by. Anyone who's been wearing stilettos all week is now blistered and bandaged.
The shoe epitomized what Zoe seemed to be going for in her clothes, too: Outfits that you can travel far and wide in. Either on safari, or just out on the streets.
The designer "takes the modern jet set girl on a safari," according to her publicity material. "A traveling muse wearing her femininity with effortless confidence."
In the clothes, that translated to a mix of trendy and classic items. Leather was prominent.
One suit, in a luscious chocolate brown, had a belted safari-style jacket over short shorts. There was an appealing belted leather mini-dress. There were up-to-there miniskirts but also long, lacy dresses. There were slouchy satin pants, and comfy sweaters. And there was a good deal of denim _ distressed, in short shorts or baggy pants, and not distressed, as in a suit with a denim coat and high-waisted pants.
Model Coco Rocha appreciated the versatility of the designer's work. "Rachel definitely has pieces that you can go grocery shopping (in) as well as go out for the night in one piece."
A good percentage of the collection was black and white: low-slung patent-leather minis paired with printed floral trenches, a black knit dress with a sharp white menswear-style collar, a perfectly tailored white pantsuit with a black mock-neck top.
Even the round-toe, chunky-heel pumps made a statement different from the other scores of designers who either preferred delicate pointy-toe stilettos, aggressive booties or flat sandals.
Lauren saturated a handful of looks in bright lime, orange, red and yellow in both daytime ribbed dresses and leather coats, as well as eveningwear. The gowns would be surefire favorites for red-carpet cameras.
"I love the color. The color was great, it was different for Ralph," said Jessica Alba, a seasoned Lauren front-row guest.
Krakoff used a lot of light, ethereal colors and garments. He seemed to signal his intentions with the first look: a flowing chiffon dress in the color of lobster bisque. He stayed with bisque for much of the show, throwing in white, nude, and, for those who can't live without it, some black at the end.
"I was playing with the idea of weightlessness, and overt femininity," Krakoff explained in an interview after the show. "And combining it with some classic attributes of the brand," as in more sculptured, tailored pieces.
The duality resulted in some fascinating combinations. One of the better ones: A white grain leather top, to provide weight and structure, paired with a filmy white chiffon and cotton voile skirt. And to cap it off: A square-toe pump with a pedestal heel in hi-liter yellow.
In her quiet sort of way, Sui has started a rebellion.
She said her spring looks, inspired by the romantic English pre-Raphaelite painters, was her way of bringing a little beauty back to the catwalk _ and the closet. "It's a reaction against the world right now. I want to bring back poetry to the way we dress."
Sui also infused a little bit of the 1960s, seemingly her favorite fashion era, to her new romantic vision. There were shifts and vests, tapestry bags, gladiator sandals and Balinese headdresses.
She always has a youthful style, but this time, she didn't go too young. The blousoned chiffon styles, lovely crochet lace sweaters and vests, and dresses with a touch of mesh, were a little more adult.
"I guess I'm a little more grown-up now," Sui said.
Known for elaborate eveningwear, this up-and-comer's runner was most notable for chic daywear.
"Even in the daytime, you can mix in some fancy things. That's my DNA," Mohapatra said.
Black trousers had an unexpected and flattering colored pleat down the leg, and the pleats of a bright yellow dance dress formed a geometric pattern. Flowers bloomed in the pleats of his floral skirts as models made their way to the photographers.
Of course, there were gowns, too, including a coral-colored floral with a scarf halter top and tightly folded pleats.
"Yes, four different kinds of pleats," he said. "Some of them were hand done and took hours!"
Fashion designers love to talk about timeless classics, but even the best looks can use a little makeover to freshen up. Tahari's spring collection celebrates 40 years of his company and its defining style, but, he said, he had to make the clothes fit the new context.
"When I look back it was always a `lady' behind the things I liked best. Sometimes we were caught in trends I'd rather not repeat," Tahari said.
He tweaked his plunging V jumpsuit to add a silicone insert on the chest, and a biker jacket now has mesh inserts. The leap between those styles and brand new ones, such as an overcoat with perforated leather, was seamless.
Follow Samantha Critchell at http://twitter.com/ap_fashion and http://twitter.com/sam_critchell
AP writers Jocelyn Noveck and Nicole Evatt contributed to this report.
(Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)


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Having a baby is usually one of the happiest times in a parrents life. But for mothers that give birth while addicted to meth that's not always the case.
Dr. Melissa Dennison says she's seen a growing number of meth-addicted mothers.
Dennison says, "They just think about when they're going to get that drug. They'll steal, they'll lie, they'll do anything. Having a baby is just an annoyance to a lot of them."
It's a scenario this woman, we'll call her "Lisa", lived through.
Lisa says, "I was addicted to methamphetamine . And I learned how to make it and that got me into lots of trouble and I started running from the cops."
Lisa was arrested three times and immediately went back to the drug. But her fourth arrest changed her life forever.
Lisa says, "The first couple of weeks I was pregnant I was still getting high. But as soon as I found out... I kind of consider it a blessing from God because I got arrested and the next day I found out I was pregnant."
Her doctor says she was lucky she quit using meth when she did.
Lisa says, "I talked to him when I first found out I was pregnant. He said if I didn't have a miscarriage by the time I was two to three months along then anything from drugs would not effect him."
Research shows meth use during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriages. If the baby survives birth, there are numerous other problems that can result from the meth use as well.
Dr. Dennison says, "There's all types of birth defects. A lot of times they may have problems with their heart. There have been some skeletal abnormalities. They say there's increased incident of club feet."
Dennison also says they are hyper-irritable babies. Light bothers them and they are inconsolable. Sometimes they go 24 hours without ever sleeping.
That's one of the perks Lisa says she misses most. "I don't get urges to get high, hardly ever, but sometimes I miss the feeling. I miss being able to stay awake and do, get as much stuff done as I needed to do without getting tired," says Lisa.
Lisa has been living in a recovery house for women and children since her arrest. She says if she hasn't found out she was pregnant she might still be using today.
Lisa says, "I'd either probably murdered somebody by now. Or I'd be in prison, or worse, be dead."
For her, finding out she was pregnant and coming clean is the best thing that's ever happened.
Lisa says, "Now, I didn't plan on getting pregnant, but I'm glad it happened because it straightened my life out. And now I feel like I have something else to live for."
if a doctor reports that a mother is using meth during her pregnancy and the baby is born, the Cabinet for Family Services will step in and make a decision whether or not the mother gets to keep the child. Usually counseling and treatment are recommended, like in Lisa's situation. Sometimes, however, those children are taken into custody. The Cabinet for family Services tells WBKO the increase in meth use is a major contributor for the number of children in state provided care.


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The Do You Know Lacy? Training is a 5-track community-model training designed to build a collaborative response. Together, with leaders in your community, you will learn about the national issue of domestic minor sex trafficking, hear the personal account of a survivor, better understand the conditions that increase a child's vulnerability to trafficking, and learn the methods of pimp control that prevent victims from fleeing.
© 2016 National Sexual Violence Resource Center – Founded by the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape
This site is supported by Grant/ Cooperative Agreement No. 1UF2CE002359-03 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.


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MEXIA (November 14, 2012)--Grab your youngins and head out to the Gibbs Memorial Library for cowboys and Indians storytelling.
Starting at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, the night will be filled with interesting stories that will keep the children engaged.
Poetry about cowboys and Indians will be read and storytelling will get underway as part of the Bluebonnet Scops Storytelling Guild Tellabration.
The library is located on East Rusk Street.


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MANHATTAN, Kan. -- The Manhattan Area Chamber of Commerce will host a non-partisan Candidate Forum on Monday, October 8th from 5:00 – 9:00pm at the Manhattan Arts Center. The forum is free to attend and open to the public. All candidates running for Riley County Commission and area State races have been invited to attend and will all have the opportunity to answer questions from the moderator and public. Participants will include candidates running for the following races: Riley County Commission Districts 2 & 3; Kansas House of Representatives Districts 51, 64, 66 & 67 and Kansas Senate District 22. Additional elected Riley County officials not involved in a campaign will also be in attendance.
"Candidate forums are an excellent opportunity to become more familiar with the people who are running for area offices", said Lyle Butler, President/CEO of the Manhattan Area Chamber of Commerce. "I encourage everyone to attend and become better informed about the candidates and their views on issues affecting the Manhattan and Riley County communities."
The forum will be broken into three sections, with the County, House and Senate races each having a specific time frame. People interested in attending may stay for the entire event, or chose to come only for the race(s) they are interested in learning more about. The event will begin at 5:00 with a meet and greet session including all candidates running in the above mentioned races.
Forum Schedule (times subject to change)
5:00 Meet & Greet opportunity for attendees with all candidates
6:00 Riley County Commission Candidates (Districts 2 & 3)
7:00 Kansas House of Representatives Candidates (Districts 51, 64, 66 & 67)
8:30 Kansas Senate Candidates (District 22)
For additional information and comments, contact Lyle Butler, Chamber President/CEO, at 785-776-8829 or email@example.com. The Manhattan Area Chamber of Commerce is a non-partisan organization dedicated to fostering a changing environment for business success that enhances the quality of life in our region.


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Maker Faire 2010
Noisebridge booth
Maker Faire is May 22 and 23 at the San Mateo County Expo Center. We will have a 10x10 booth, with an additional 10x10 booth adjacent for SpaceBridge. If you'd like to help set up/run the booth this year, please add your contact info below.
- Next Maker Faire Meeting at NB:
Planned Transport Cars
Projects/Items Displayed in the Booth
"If you'd like to bring something to show in the Noisebridge booth, please list it here and/or contact Alex"
- SpaceBridge (they may have additional space provided for them by maker faire, increasing our booth size)
- LED Sign
- Pay Phone
- SenseBridge
- NB Recurring Schedule (poster sized)
- Fashion Show garments
- A piece of art by Jonathan Foote (TBD)
- Whiteboard on easel(for maker faire related announcements, etc.)
- Mooninite LED sign
- Sudo Pop
- Capacitor Explosion demo?
Other Items to Bring
- NB flyers - Alex
- NB stickers - zedd
- NB t-shirts? - zedd
- easel - rachel
- whiteboard -Eri
- trashbags Eri
- snacks for booth - Eri
- 1 or 2 camp chairs that can be folded up when booth is crowded
If you want to help out at the NB booth this year, please sign up on dates you are available. Include contact info so we can coordinate schedules.
Setup Friday May 21st
If you have a car that can transport projects please state so.
Event Saturday May 22nd
Event Saturday May 23rd
Take down Saturday May 23rd
"If you have a car that can transport projects, please state so."
Information current as of Maker Faire meeting Tuesday April 13, 2010
Members with Booths at Maker Faire
"Going to Maker Faire with another group? Let us know where you'll be!"
- Xander Hudson - Monkeylectric


text: More from SI Jason Spezza's no-trade list has 12 teams Jason Spezza's no-trade list has 12 teams Arena Wars Stanley Cup Final edition: L.A.'s Staples... Arena Wars Stanley Cup Final edition: L.A.'s Staples... Edmonton to break ground on new oil drop-styled arena i... Edmonton to break ground on new oil drop-styled arena i... Edmonton to break ground on new oil drop-styled arena i... Edmonton to break ground on new oil drop-styled arena i... Taking the NHL Outside: The making of stadium hockey Taking the NHL Outside: The making of stadium hockey Close Tweet0 Share0 Comment0 Share0 Share0 Stumble It0 Print0 More Home Ice Getting To Know An NHL Prospect: Penguins' Beau Bennett by amuir29 Email Posted: Thu Jan. 24, 2013 Beau Bennett, now in his first AHL season, could be called up to the Penguins if one of their top six forwards goes down. (Harry How/Getty Images)By Allan MuirHe may have horrific fashion sense away from the rink, but Beau Bennett is all kinds of flashy once he steps on the ice. Taken 20th overall in 2010 by the Penguins, he's emerged as the franchise's top prospect after two standout seasons with the University of Denver. Now a rookie with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the AHL, he was chosen to play in that league's All-Star Game on Jan. 28 but sat out with a lower body injury.UPDATE: Bennett was called up by the Penguins on Feb. 14 and slated to make his NHL debut in Winnipeg the following night, skating on a line with Brandon Sutter and Tyler Kennedy.Coach's take: "Beau's a real pleasure to coach and he's done a real nice job of making the transition from college to the AHL. He's a high-compete-level, high-talent player. He has great vision and when you give him time and space, he make can make high-end plays. He has a solid assessment of the areas where he needs to get better. He's working on making plays under pressure. He's finding that balance between making simple, smart plays when there's pressure and then using his creativity when he has time and space. He's a great young talent."-- John Hynes, assistant coach, WBS PenguinsBennett spoke to SI.com on Jan. 24 after practice with the Baby Pens.SI.com: You started as a roller hockey player in Southern California.Beau Bennett: My older brother would play roller hockey at local park. It wasn't much. There were no boards, just little bumpers. I would go and push around a puck, until I was old enough to really play when I was five. I didn't get on the ice until I was nine, and it really wasn't too serious until 14 or 15. You'd practice once or twice a week, have a game on Sunday. It was nice and relaxed. I still think roller hockey is my best sport.How did starting on concrete help you once you switched to ice?BB: Roller hockey is more of a thinking game. There's no offside, no icing, no hitting. You use the whole sheet and you have to beat guys clean, so I think it really helped develop my hockey sense.SI.com: Describe your game.BB: I play creative, I like to work down low, try to develop plays out of the corner and find the open guy. I'm more of a playmaker than a shooter, but I'm trying to develop both skills.SI.com: So your childhood hero was...Ray Ferraro?BB: I was a Kings fan, so he was my guy. Good goal scorer, played a gritty game. Now I kind of look at guys like Pavel Datsyuk and Teddy Purcell. Purcell isn't the flashiest guy playing on a team with Stamkos and St. Louis, but he's a guy you can really appreciate when you watch him every game. He thinks the game at a different level, he's always one step ahead. He's not the fastest, but he still beats guys because he's always doing the right thing.SI.com: Scouts say you've done a nice job elevating your game from college to the AHL. That's a tough transition for a lot of players. BB: The biggest thing was learning the system. It's a big change from [the University of] Denver. It's a fast up-and-down game and you've got to be responsible in all three zones. And the speed and strength of the guys here was a big difference, but I got used to it after the first 10 games or so.You were drafted at 6-1, 173 pounds and the consensus at the time was that you needed to work on your strength. How's that going?BB: I focused on my diet pretty good and I worked out hard over the summer to give myself the best opportunity coming into camp. It's something that I have to keep working it. I'm still thin. I'll probably never be the big, bulky guy. But I want to get stronger, get more stability on my legs. I committed to it [in the off-season], Monday to Saturday, 6 AM every day. It was a bit of culture shock getting up that early, but it was worth it. I focused on my legs four times a week. I want to get faster, more explosive. It's a process. It's going better since college, but I was so far behind I'm playing catch up now. I got up to 205 in the summer, but it's a real difference playing at that weight, so I focused on getting down to 190-195 for the season.Pretty early on in camp they had you skating on a line with Evgeni Malkin and James Neal. That says a lot about how you're perceived, but it's a lot of pressure, right?BB: You just want to play your game. You don't want to think too much, don't over-analyze or that's when you start making mistakes. You want to do the things that got you in that position and keep it simple. But it was a lot of fun. Those guys make it easy on you. I mean, it's not as comfortable as everyday shinny with your buddies, but they talked to me and kept things loose.I've heard from several people who say you made a great impression in camp and it came down to the last minute before you were cut. What did management tell you before sending you back?BB: They said they were happy, they said I'd come a long way since Day 1. But I mean, I didn't view it as being cut. I was happy to be invited [to camp]. I went in wanting to learn, and I accomplished that. I learned about what it takes to prepare at that level, and I want to build on that.You earned a spot in next week's AHL All-Star Game. That's not a bad consolation prize.BB: It's a big honor. We've been playing well lately and there are a lot of guys on our team who could have gone, so it's an honor. It should be a good experience. And I get to see some of my sons from Denver. Drew Shore, Matt Donovan, Jason Zucker. And Emerson Etem just got added. He's one of my best friends. He was with me for those training sessions in the summer.So was it the scoring touch or the hair that got you mistaken for Abby Wambach? BB: Oh man...it's the hair. It's always changing, but I put up a couple pics and I heard about it. I don't blame the guys. It's a tough realization, but I'll take it. More Home Ice


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I have found a statement on one of Russian sites:
They (photographs) often shoot in RAW, and it, in turn, removes various small spots in the form of dust on the lens when converting.
Is it true? If yes, how to do this (what converter does this)?
That statement from the Russian site is misleading. Shooting in raw format doesn't have any relevance to spot removal. You can remove dust spots just as easily with any other format of image.
There are multiple ways of clearing dust spots:
Basically it's just a cloning/healing procedure. But the best fix for dust spots is to clean your sensor.
Lightroom can do that. I am sure other applications have similar features. Here is a tutorial how to do that. Also please note that, as written in the linked article, you will have to go and check on the result yourself and improve on it. It is not 100% foolproof.
Some camera's have dust removal built into the JPEG conversion engine. They map the found dust on the sensor, and digitally remove it in the JPEG conversion. I don't know of a camera that preserves this information in a RAW file, but if it did, it would require specialized software to read and convert such information.
RAW by itself does not remove dust digitally.


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Overstuffed: Clutter, consumption and the study that shows how possessions shape us
Countless studies look at how people buy stuff. We know why they buy. We know how often they buy and how much money they spend. But we know almost nothing about what happens after people take those bags of stuff into their homes and close the doors.
Nobody really had quantified how people really live in their homes with their stuff.
Until now.
A massive project took place from 2001 to 2005 involving social archaeologists, anthropologists, consumer experts, sociologists and economists. These experts with UCLA's Center on Everyday Lives of Families examined 32 modern middle-class families in Los Angeles with the same exacting detail that Jane Goodall used to examine the social habits of wild chimpanzees.
Although the data extraction and compiling ended in 2010, the results are just now beginning to come out — such as the new book "Life at Home in the Twenty-First Century: 32 Families Open Their Doors." It provides both a snapshot of how people live and a somewhat uncomfortable mirror on the values of the contemporary American society.
Apparently, people love clutter.
Anthony P. Graesch is an assistant professor in the department of anthropology at Connecticut College and is an archaeologist and a co-author of the book.
Archaeologists usually study the material culture left behind by people and try to determine the human behavior that created that material culture.
"This was an opportunity to look at material culture and a household with people interacting with their stuff," he says.
Graesch meticulously mapped every square inch of the homes — making a blueprint marking every object's location.
"This is a really fascinating period of human history," Graesch says. "This is the age of capitalism. We've just never been here before. Human society we've never had as much stuff in a single family's home as we do now. In part it is related to this most intense consumer society in which we live."
Reality TV
A major component of the study was to videotape middle-class, dual-income families with kids from sunup to sundown. One of those homes was "Family 27."
"This was before reality TV," Family 27's mother, Lyn Repath-Martos, says. "Nowadays we are used to 'Big Brother,' 'Amazing Race' and 'Survivor,' but it was quite novel and different back then."
The team of experts spent a week in 2004 studying Lyn Repath-Martos (then age 41), her husband, Antonio Martos (then age 43), and their children, Isabel (then age 8) and Lucas (then age 5).
Repath-Martos admits she slightly cleaned up her home before the team from UCLA arrived. She stuffed things into cabinets and closets. "I didn't realize they were going to open the cabinets and closets to take pictures," she says with a laugh.
The two videographers came into the home on a Sunday and recorded everything from getting up to eating dinner and the kids going to bed. Everyone in the family had a microphone. Spit samples were taken to measure stress hormones.
Hundreds of photographs peeked into every nook and cranny.
The study found that families are drowning in stuff.
Consumption sickness
"I don't think we are hoarders," Repath-Martos says, "but if you ask our friends they'd say we have a lot of stuff."
And she is not alone.
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Titular services.
ROME--With the conclave just two days away, a quiet has settled over Rome. Today's main events: the cardinals fanned out across the area to say morning Mass at their various titular churches. Reports on the newsmaking cardinals are starting to trickle in. Journalists swarmed Cardinal Timothy Dolan's titular church, Nostra Signora di Guadalupe in Monte Mario, where, it seems, the cardinal was in not-so-rare form. Michael Paulsen reports:
Where are my St. Louis people? he asked, before chatting with the visitors about the Cardinals. Hows your Uncle Ralph? he said to another. And, to the WCBS-AM radio reporter, Rich Lamb! You are like a Roman monument! To see Rich Lamb in Rome!
His most explicit reference to the conclave was a joke about the meals the cardinals will be served once they moved into the Casa Santa Marta, a Vatican residence where they will be housed until from the start of the conclave until a new pope is chosen. Thanking the worshipers for giving him a large woven basket filled with Italian biscuits, cookies, tuna, and chickpeas, he said, maybe I can take a small candy bar into the conclave. I hear that the food is not good.
Read Dolan's homily (in English) right here. John Thavis was in attendance for Cardinal Sean O'Malley's Mass at Santa Maria della Vittoria, where the cardinal continued to impress his latest bloc of supporters: the Italians.
The rector of the church, Father Stefano Guernelli, welcomed Cardinal OMalley with a talk that stopped just short of being a campaign speech. He recalled telling a reporter about OMalleys qualities as a lovable, humble but decisive man, whose only defect was that he was a Capuchin friar a remark made in jest, but reflecting the fact that its been ages since a member of a Franciscan order was elected pope.
In his homily at todays Mass, OMalley spoke in decent enough Italian (though he mispronounced the Italian word "conclave"), reflecting on the Gospel parable of the prodigal son, and the need for the church to reach out with mercy to people who have grown distant from the faith.He spoke briefly about the conclave, which begins on Tuesday, asking for prayers so that the cardinals will choose a new pope who will confirm us in our faith and make more visible the love of the Good Shepherd, who seeks out the lost sheep, who heals the sick and who embraces the prodigal son."One can leave the house of the father, the church, for various reasons: ignorance, a poor welcome, negative experiences, scandals and spiritual mediocrity," he said.
As Thavis reports, Corriera della Serra's latest reader survey has O'Malley leading Cardinal Scola of Milan by a 2-1 margin.
(I'm in Rome this week covering the papal transition for NET, the Diocese of Brooklyn's television station. I'll file periodic updates at dotCommonweal, and you can follow me on Twitter here.)
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I wish the Vatileaks reporters would break into the residences of the Cardinals to report on what books they have brought with them."It happens that Cardinal Dolan has been reading since Christmas the new book, 'The First Thousand Years: A Global History of Christianity,' by Robert Louis Wilken, the eminent Church historian at the University of Virginia."http://www.cny.org/stories/Flight-of-the-Spirit,8965?content_source=&cat... would be a refreshing change from the quoting of anonymous sources about the need for openness and transparency.
How can this be?http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/mar/10/new-pope-curia-secret-report... Observer says Herranz of Opus Dei has refused to reveal to his fellow cardinals what's in the binders. From the article:"In the Relatio are the findings of three cardinal-detectives, appointed last year by ex-pope Benedict XVI to investigate the leaking of documents from his study. The cardinals, headed by a Spanish member of the Opus Dei fellowship, Cardinal Julin Herranz, discovered the main source of the leaks the pope's butler, Paolo Gabriele."But they found a great deal else and some of it is reportedly extremely compromising. According to one unconfirmed report, they stumbled on a gay sex ring in the Vatican, some of whose members had been blackmailed."... "On the first day of last week's pre-conclave discussions, known as general congregations, three cardinals demanded that Herranz circulate the Relatio. For Massimo Franco, author of a recently published book on the protracted crisis rocking the Vatican, this was more than just prurient curiosity. 'The cardinals must vote with a clear view of the situation in the Vatican,' he said. 'Otherwise, they could be voting for a pope who is accused of wrongdoing in the report. If that comes out afterwards, it would cause mayhem.'"
The Romans got their way 8 years ago, and since then we've had a chance to see how wise their choice was, and what an advantage it is for the pope to be an insider in order to handle management issues (or not). Now that they have had their turn, perhaps they will step back and let the cardinals from the rest of the world have a go at it. That would only be polite.
My man is tied for first place (and he's not the Canadian):http://www.religionnews.com/2013/03/10/sweet-sistine-update-the-final-tw... there and vote. This is the ONLY PLACE that you, a lowly non elderly cosseted courtier of the ancien regime, CAN vote.
Rather than Romans and Barbarians, how about Tea Partiers and Rockefeller Republicans?There would, of course, be NO Democrats, big or small "d".
"This is the ONLY PLACE that you, a lowly non elderly cosseted courtier of the ancien regime, CAN vote."Not quite. Corriere della Sera is also running a poll. So far, Cardinl O'Malley has twice as many votes as anyone else. Cast your vote here:http://www.corriere.it/appsSondaggi/pages/corriere/d_11910.jspSee voting reslts here:http://www.corriere.it/appsSondaggi/votazioneDispatch.do?method=risultat...
I will go against Snap on this one and approve O'Malley. He is most likely a good choice to clean up the Vatican Bank which seemed to annoy Ratzinger as much as the leaks.
Supposing after three days the cardinals have not reached a decision and, according to the rules, they take off next day, Saturday, March 16th, for prayer. (Apparently, canonists say the third day would be Friday but the Vatican says Saturday.)Then on Sunday, March 17th, they elect a pope with Irish heritage. Not so fast, it may not be O'Malley or Dolan. Cardinal Shnborn's great-great-great grandmother was Irish.Paddypower has 12/1 odds on Shnborn.
Question: When in the conclave is not actually voting, may the cardinals discuss matters amonst each other? Especially in the time between the two morning votes and the time between the two evening ones, will politicking be allowed in the Chapel?
Ann Olivier:Yes, to the first. No, to the second.
John Page:The Sistine chapel is secured against bugging devices but is Casa Santa Marta?Prediction: There WILL be leaks.
Helen:Yes, the Casa Santa Marta is secured against leaks.Re-constructions of the voting, numbers of ballots and the votes each cardinal received, always seem to emerge over time, usually fairly quickly. There may be disputes about some particulars, but the general lines of how things went usually hold up.La Repubblica has a site that shows how many ballots were needed to elect each of the last nine popes, Pius X to Benedict XVI.
O'Malley for pope
I either read or heard somewhere that Pope Benedict instituted (or re-instituted) a voting rule for the conclave that the vote must be 2/3 majority rather than simple majority. Is this correct?
JP2 had changed the rules so that after 30+ unsuccessful ballots, election could be by absolute majority instead of 2/3 majority. That means one faction could simply hold on for two weeks to get their candidate elected.Benedict changed the rules back, so that election would be by 2/3 majority, forcing it to be a consensus candidate, though they are forced to choose among the top two choices in the previous election.No one expects the elections to go that long; these rules affect earlier balloting. In 2005, once Ratzinger had a majority supporting him, there was no longer any reason to contest the election since that majority could elect him eventually, so support switched immediately to him.JP's system gave an immediate winner, since one of the two candidates would get a majority of the votes. Benedict's allows for a longer deadlock, though anything longer than a few days will be most extraordinary.
If you want some light relief on this subject, go read P.G. Wodehouse's "The Great Sermon Handicap" in his The Inimitable Jeeves. It's about some charming but useless young men with time on their hands in an English country house, who decide to make book on the the length of the sermons in the neighboring parish churches, and it's very funny and very foolish. Rather like this sort of thing.
John Page ==Thanks, but I don't understand your answer. I was asking about what goes on in the Sistine Chapel when the voting is not actually going on. During this "free time" may the cardinals confer?
Ann Olivier:As I understand it, the voting is a very ritualized process. The cardinals stay seated in their places till it is the turn of each one to approach the altar with his ballot. They then wait in their places for the calling out of the votes. If the vote is inconclusive, they proceed immediately to the second ballot of the morning or afternoon. There is no caucusing in the Sistine Chapel. Outside the voting sessions, small group meetings are certainly possible.
I'm still holding out for John Onaiyekan of Nigeria. A true dark horse in multiple senses of the word. Thank goodness that Turkson is no longer considered a possible. He would be a total disaster ... even worse than Sodano, Bertone or Dolan.I'll accept all congratulations when they are appropriate.
Have you seen the March 11 Washington Post story about the three Donilin brothers from Rhode Island? Tom is a national security advisor to President Obama. Terry is communications director for Cardinal O'Malley. While Tom is expected to step down this year, there is a third brother, Michael A., who is a longtime political aide to Vice President Biden.More support for arguments against an American pope.http://www.washingtonpost.com/regional
Jim McC. ==Cardinal Oneiyekan is one of my two favorites. Most impressive youngish man. The other is Ravasi who listens to everyone. But it looks like Scola (full of stereotypes of women and gays) will win. Sigh.OK, everybody: Who do you like best? Who do you think will win??
John Page --Thanks for the info.In the 2005 conclave there were 117 electors, so I assume that in this conclave each round of balloting will take about the same length of time. I've read that the results of the morning voting should be available around noon Rome time. Because U. S. Eastern time is 5 hours earlier than Rome time, New York should probably get those results around 7 a.m. In other words, no morning winner yields black smoke in Rome at noon, and New York gets the results at 7 a.m. While Central time would get the noon Roman results around 6 a.m. Is this right?(As to the afternoon votes, I'll think about that tomorrow.)This is some horse race, isn't it?