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Lamoille in the News
Merger of Johnson, Lyndon colleges proposed
Clarina Center says goodbye to director
By Caleigh Cross
Morrisville's Clarina Howard Nichols Center, which combats sexual and domestic violence and abuse, will say goodbye to its longtime leader next month.
Executive Director Jane Ralph will step down Aug. 18.
"I wanted to move closer to family," she said.
She's headed to Great Barrington, Mass., and an organization called Construct, which works to provide affordable housing for people who face eviction or lack resources to maintain their homes.
In the last year, Construct sheltered 48 homeless adults and granted $42,000 in immediate financial aid to prevent homelessness.
Ralph feels her work with Construct will dovetail neatly with the work she's done with Clarina.
"Addressing that need is important to survivors," Ralph said, explaining that Clarina's transitional housing program provides homes for victims.
Ralph will take the reins at Construct on Sept. 1.
Ralph didn't expect to find another opportunity this quickly, but feels good about how Clarina's doing.
"The organization is in a really healthy place," Ralph said. "We're well-respected for the work we do. We're seen as a good resource for innovative practice."
Ralph says one of the biggest strides the Clarina Howard Nichols Center made under her leadership was its 2014 decision to accept victims' pets at the shelter, joining a nationwide initiative called Sheltering Animals and Families Together.
The fate of a beloved pet is "something that holds people back from leaving" abusive relationships, Ralph said.
The decision to accept pets is part of a larger cultural shift around the topic of domestic and sexual violence. Ralph says that, during her eight years with Clarina, she's seen it move from a reactive approach, helping women and children who had already been abused, to a proactive approach, looking to start conversations about preventing violence in the first place.
Clarina's commitment to providing transitional housing for victims who escape their situations showcases that approach, Ralph said.
"We're focused on a need for social change," Ralph said. "It's a shift in movement. We want to end violence."
Ralph said that, by removing the incentive for violence — controlling the behavior of others — the organization and others like it nationwide can better fight what's called a culture of abuse.
"What's most important is that, until we get the whole community involved and see that we all benefit when domestic violence ends, it will continue," she said.
Ralph said a social stigma against survivors makes it more difficult for them to seek help. Clarina believes that destroying that stigma will loosen the grip of domestic violence.
Leaving, Ralph said, won't be easy: "It's really bittersweet. We have great staff and great volunteers. It's a crazy time to leave."
"We wish Jane well. She leaves Clarina Howard Nichols Center a much stronger organization than when she started eight years ago," said Tina Springer-Miller, who's on the Clarina board and is a member of the committee that will hunt for Ralph's replacement.
Springer-Miller said Ralph "has built a team of skilled and dedicated advocates for victims of sexual and domestic violence, worked tirelessly to promote Clarina Howard Nichols Center's mission within Lamoille County and beyond, and grown the services offered to survivors and the community at large. She has transitioned the organization's culture from 'rule-based' to 'survivor-based,'" ensuring that the needs and values of the people helped by the Clarina Howard Nichols Center will guide the organization's decisions and services.
Springer-Miller said new leadership should build on Ralph's accomplishments while ensuring that the organization has a strong financial base through fundraising and grants. Those skills will top the wish list for Ralph's successor.
"It is a challenging job to raise awareness of sexual and domestic violence, its impact on all members of a community and the ways in which a community can come together to help end violence," Springer-Miller said. "The new executive director for Clarina Howard Nichols Center will need to be a strong and vibrant voice with survivors, community partners and the community at large."
The job is being advertised now on sites such as Indeed, craigslist and the Vermont Job Board.
Elmore catches a tax break
by Andrew Martin
No more projections or hypotheticals. After four merger votes, dozens of meetings and one approved budget, residents of the Elmore-Morristown school district are now seeing the concrete financial results of the merger they approved last winter. In Elmore, the local homestead property-tax rate dropped 37 cents from last year, to $1.366 per $100 of property value. Last year's rate was $1.74 rate. That's a savings of $374 on a house valued at $100,000.
As expected, Morristown tax rate went up slightly — by two cents, to $1.39. That adds $23 to the tax bill for a house valued at $100,000.
Elmore voters rejected the merger in November, but approved it in a December revote. Morristown voters said yes in the first go-round, then reaffirmed that decision in a January revote.
The new district's $15,966,750 budget was resoundingly approved at its first annual meeting, held in May.
The arrival of July means that the budget passed in May is now in effect, and it appears that predictions about how the merger would affect local taxes were quite accurate.
"I'm pleased we were able to provide reliable projections to citizens to help inform their decision-making process," said Tracy Wrend, the school superintendent. "I'm happy those savings were realized while we were still able to maintain high-quality learning opportunities for our students."
School officials projected that, had Elmore not merged, its tax rate would have shot up to $1.89 per $100 of value for the current year. Instead, it's at $1.36, a $500 difference on the tax bill for a $100,000 house.
The common level of appraisal, which measures how closely a town's appraisals match actual market value, accounts for the difference in the tax rates in each town.
According to Wrend, the slight increase in Morristown's tax rate is due more to changes in the statewide school-funding formula than to any increase in local spending.
What the future holds
Elmore's tax benefits could ebb in the coming years.
A one-time incentive grant of $150,000 that the new district received for merging will not be available next year.
And, Elmore's annual small school grant of $40,000 will be phased out over the next three years.
Wrend isn't overly concerned, though, because expenditures should be going down. Six Elmore students who were attending schools outside Morristown when the merger was approved, and were allowed to continue at those schools, will graduate next year, and their tuition fees will come off the books.
"The expected savings in tuition should offset the phasing out of those revenue sources," Wrend said.
Since Elmore had no middle or high school of its own, it offered choice to its students. Most went to Peoples Academy in Morrisville, but others went to places such as Stowe High School and St. Johnsbury Academy.
Going forward, only Elmore students already in grades 7-12 when the merger occurred will continue to have school choice. Other than this fall's seniors, no Elmore class has more than four students opting for school choice.
Younger students, and succeeding classes, will go to Peoples Academy for middle and high school.
Big turnout to confront local drug problems
Rail trail already aids local businesses
by Andrew Martin
Sure, the local 17-mile stretch of the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail is a great recreational path.
But it's already showing it can be much more than that.
"I certainly believe it's going to be a great economic benefit for the region," said Duncan Hastings, the Johnson town manager. Hastings bikes the trail a great deal himself and says the number of people using it is growing steadily.
"It seems to be getting busier and busier," he said.
The local section of trail, which opened officially in ceremonies last month, runs from Tenney Bridge in Morrisville through Hyde Park and Johnson to Cambridge Junction.
Businesses in all four towns report the people using the trail are also patronizing local stores and restaurants.
At PowerPlay Sports in Morrisville, people have been stopping in to buy bike accessories or get a quick tuneup.
"People will take out their old bikes on the trail and realize they need something like a new, comfier seat," said Robert Coates, a PowerPlay employee.
Hank Glowiak at Chuck's Bikes in Morrisville is doing a lot of repairs to older bikes. People are bringing in their old bikes, many of which haven't been ridden in years, because they want to take them along the trail.
The same thing was happening last year, Glowiak said, even though the trail wasn't officially open yet. People couldn't wait to get out there.
Bike rentals have spiked at both businesses, even though neither has boosted rental advertising.
"We literally didn't have any more bikes to rent out on Sunday," Coates said. PowerPlay owner Caleb Magoon has a dozen bikes available for rent, up from prior years, but all 12 were out on the trail most of the weekend.
"We must have had 15 people call over the weekend asking if we rented bikes," Coates said.
The trail has also sparked a new business: Lamoille Valley Bike Tours. The mobile business, whose route includes Cambridge, Johnson and Morrisville, rents electric bikes to trail-goers looking for a tour of the Lamoille Valley who'd like a little help powering the pedals.
Lost Nation Brewery says it has been a hot destination for bikers and hikers using the trail. The brewery, which has an indoor restaurant and taproom as well as a beer garden, sits right on the trail in Morrisville. People started trickling in last year and that trickle has turned into a river.
"We get a lot of bike groups during the week and then a lot of families on the weekends," said Meg Loscomb, the manager at the brewery.
Most of the people stopping at local businesses are from other parts of Vermont and came to this area to enjoy the trail. Some out-of-staters are checking in as well.
The economic benefits of the trail should be just beginning. According to John Mandeville, executive director of the Lamoille Economic Development Corp., studies show the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail should bring in about $2 million per year from tourists once things really get rolling and word of the trail starts to spread.
Attracting visitors
Local governments and organizations are looking for ways to bring rail trail users into downtowns and villages.
The Lamoille Economic Development Corp. has helped fund publication of maps and brochures that will be available at trailheads and businesses in Cambridge, Hyde Park, Johnson and Morrisville.
Trailheads are already operating in three of the towns and Hyde Park is pursuing a permit for one there.
Several revitalization efforts in Hyde Park Village are tied to the rail trail. A new sidewalk between Depot Street Extension, where the trailhead's located, and Main Street was completed a few years ago. The town and village are working together on general pedestrian improvements, and just finished a study on what it will take to link the rail trail and village to Lamoille Union High School.
All four towns have either already installed or plan to install signs that will direct people from the village to the trail and vice versa.
" We are pretty excited," Hastings said. The trail is already helping to boost the local economy, and he expects much more when the full trail route is completed between Swanton and St. Johnsbury, all the way across the top of Vermont.
"Once it's all connected, 93 miles, I think that's when we will really start to see some benefits," he said. "I think it will be pretty staggering in terms of how many people are going to use it."
Rail trail opens; boon for tourism
17.4-mile link in a route stretching 93 miles
by Andrew Martin
It's here! After 20 years of waiting, the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail is open.
One of the open sections is right here in Lamoille County — 17.42 miles between Tenney Bridge in Morrisville and Cambridge Junction.
"It's better than anything we could have imagined," said state Sen. Rich Westman, R-Cambridge.
Westman has already made the trip from Cambridge to Lost Nation Brewery in Morrisville three times this year on his bicycle.
Bicyclists on the local stretch of the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail
cross a former railroad bridge in Johnson.
It's hard not to feel some excitement — or maybe relief — that the trail is becoming a reality after nearly two decades of planning, searching for funds, and question upon question.
Ceremonial ribbon-cuttings were held last Thursday at trailheads in Morrisville, Hyde Park, Johnson and Cambridge.
Actually, both local residents and tourists jumped the gun. People were already using the local section of rail-trail last year, while work was still going on, and it opened for public use this spring.
Earlier, a 15.35-mile stretch between Danville and St. Johnsbury had opened.
"We are very excited to see these two sections, which are about one-third of the entire trail, done and open," said Cindy Locke, executive director of the Vermont Association of Snow Travelers. Locke's organization is overseeing work on the trail, which in winter is used by snowmobilers, cross-country skiers, snowshoers and dog mushers.
Right now, it's being used by bicyclists, walkers, horseback riders — lots of uses that don't involve motors.
Rail trails are great ways to get into unseen country. The trail, built on a former railroad line, runs along stretches of the Lamoille River, through forests, on the edges of towns — and it's really flat, with a fine-gravel surface, so any bicyclist can go for miles.
The route involves more than 50 bridges and runs through more than 900 wetland areas, great places to see birds and other wildlife.
Eventually, the rail trail will stretch 93 miles across the top of Vermont, from St. Johnsbury to Swanton, running through 18 towns in five counties.
It will be the longest rail trail in New England, and is expected to be a great boon for recreation — and for tourists.
"Everyone is struck by the number of users" on the Danville-St. Johnsbury stretch, evidence of how popular the trail is likely to be, said Jane Kitchel, a state senator from Caledonia County.
Communities along the trail are mobilizing to cater to the tourists who are expected to come.
The trail follows the route of the Lamoille Valley Rail Road, founded in 1877 and shut down in 1994. It was a scenic train ride, dubbed "The Covered Bridge Line," and leaf-peeper excursions for fall foliage viewing ran into the 1970s.
The state government saw the potential value of transforming the former rail line into a year-round recreation trail, and in 1997 VAST stepped forward to lead the effort. The railroad tracks have long since been ripped up.
While years went into planning, the actual work of making the trail a real thing began in 2014 and has moved along faster than expected.
There were a few troublesome spots — mostly the bridges, cattle passes and old stone box culverts on the trail. Over the last 150 years, those structures have been replaced at different times with different materials and techniques, and "some of them required more work than was initially anticipated," said Shane Prisby, rail trail project manager.
Another setback occurred just east of Morrisville: A section of completed trail was washed out by a landslide. However, workers were able to make repairs quickly and take steps to prevent similar problems in the future.
One of the next big projects involves the Cambridge Junction railroad bridge across the Lamoille River. Repairs had been planned on the bridge, then an ice floe this winter damaged one of the piers. The Vermont Agency of Transportation took emergency action to keep the bridge from falling into the river, and VAST plans to repair the bridge and replace the wooden piers with steel ones.
All that work should be done this year. It's likely to chew up all the remaining federal money earmarked for the trail, but other funding is available.
U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., helped to land $5.2 million in federal money for the rail trail. Part of his pitch was that the rail trail will create jobs in a part of Vermont that badly needs them.
VAST has promised to cover 20 percent of the rail trail's cost, and persuaded the federal government to allow in-kind donation — volunteer labor and materials, for instance — to count as local contributions to the project.
Sens. Westman and Kitchel worked together on a bill passed last month that will provide up to $1.4 million in matching money from the state for trail work.
That money will help finish the Cambridge Junction Bridge project and to work on an 11-mile stretch from Sheldon west to Swanton. In Swanton, a 1-mile stretch of the trail has been open for about three years — a tantalizing taste of what's to come.
Fund drive
VAST is about to launch a fund drive to raise the money needed to match the $1.4 million state allocation. How fast the rest of the rail trail is completed depends on how quickly permits can be obtained and how well fundraising goes.
"The only way this project will be successful is with the support of the community," Prisby said. "Please donate to this amazing trail."
Other segments of the trail in Lamoille County run from Tenney Bridge east into Wolcott, and from Cambridge Junction west toward Sheldon. Another phase, in East Hardwick and Greensboro Bend, will link the eastern and western portions of the trail.
Locke estimates it will take between $10 million and $12 million more to complete the 93-mile trail. VAST is working on state and federal sources of money, as well as private donations.
VAST is also looking for volunteers to maintain trail sections that have already been completed. The Friends of the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail has volunteered for some of that work. Volunteers can do small things, such as pick up trash along the trail, or bigger things, such as joining organized workdays.
"There are many opportunities to help out at different levels of commitment to fit into anyone's busy schedule," Prisby said. Anyone interested in volunteering or donating can contact Prisby at firstname.lastname@example.com.
This Week's Photos
Women teach women to shoot
Vermont in the vanguard; no pushback from violence
By Kayla Friedrich
All across Vermont, women are dressing up and going out — for a day at the shooting range.
Last Saturday, six women participated in a ladies-only firearms clinic at the Lamoille Valley Fish & Game Club in Morrisville.
Women on Target clinics have been sponsored by the National Rifle Association across the country since 2000. The premise: Women teaching women how to handle different types of firearms.
Leah Stewart, an instructor at the Women on Target clinic held last Saturday,
demonstrates the proper stance and grip for shooting a 9mm handgun. The
ladies-only clinic was held at the Lamoille Valley Fish & Game Club in Morrisville.
However, most of the courses have been taught by a combination of men and women, for lack of female instructors.
Now, Vermont is leading the charge; it has the only program taught and run entirely by women.
Diane Danielson, National Women on Target coordinator and creator of the program, was so impressed by the Vermont instructors that she flew out for a visit during last week's clinic. Before she leaves July 2, all instructors will be NRA-certified to teach four categories: rifle, pistol, and personal protection inside and outside the home.
"This is my first trip to Vermont, and I am thrilled to be here," Danielson said. "A few other states have groups of women instructors, but not as put-together as this one."
For the last four years, Clint Gray, a retired Vermont State Police lieutenant, had been teaching the ladies-only shooting clinics in the Green Mountain State alongside his wife, Mary. They were the program's only instructors in Vermont, and traveled all over the state to teach the course.
This year, though, the Grays turned the reins over to Marsha Thompson, a retired U.S. Army master sergeant, and her team of five assistant instructors — Ellen Jareckie, Joyce Hottenstein, Leah Stewart, Shauna McIsaac-Healey and her mother, Kay McIsaac-Healey.
In her 39 years in the Army, Thompson spent 10 as the only female marksmanship instructor for Vermont. After she retired two years ago, Thompson wanted to continue to teach the sport. Now, she's recruiting more women to become instructors.
"Eventually, I want to have four groups of female trainers to cover different locations throughout the state so we all don't have to travel every weekend," Thompson said.
The program teaches the basics of grip, safe handling, stance, aiming and shooting. Each course varies in the types of guns being taught.
Last Saturday, the women started with .22 caliber long rifles, then moved on to shoot .22 cowboy-action and double-action revolvers, semiautomatic .22 pistols, semiautomatic 9mm pistols and .38 special revolvers.
The Women on Target clinic also had AR-15s and .223 caliber rifles on site, but there wasn't enough time left to shoot them.
Even after the Orlando shooting June 12, when a gunman used a Sig Sauer MCX .223 caliber rifle to kill 49 people and wound more than 50, the women haven't heard any criticism about teaching these semiautomatic weapons.
"Often we teach women how to handle the AR-15s or the .223s as well," Stewart said. "And we haven't had any pushback. There is nothing wrong with AR-15s or .223s. It's all in the shooter's mindset, and how you use it. I think it's good for people to know how to use these guns properly."
"The only difference between these guns and other rifles is caliber," Thompson said. "Any semiautomatic rifle can hold a clip with the same amount of rounds as an AR. So if the AR is going to be considered an assault rifle because of magazine size, a regular rifle technically would be too. If someone wanted to, they could even outfit a regular rifle with a drum mag."
Stewart said that pushing more gun control is a copout. The politicians want to blame the firearm, rather than looking at the larger issue of mental illness.
"Banning a certain gun because it was used in a shooting is like killing all alligators because one killed a child," she said.
All guns used in the clinic are on loan from the Vermont Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs. At the end of the summer, all guns will be cleaned and returned to the federation. The NRA supplies the ammo, targets, and eye and ear protection.
Any woman can take the course as many times as she wants, but right now, each course is going to cover the same information, so Danielson encourages women to bring their friends.
"If you want to continue, bring friends, and help us grow the program," Danielson said. "Or you can also join us as an instructor and take the instructors' course."
Eventually, the clinic would like to offer courses to teach the next step. Once women learn to shoot, they should be taught how to fit the right gun to them, methods of concealed carry and how to clean their own guns, so they can be self-sufficient in the sport of shooting as well as in home protection.
For a full list of courses being taught this summer, visit the "Women on Target by Vermont Women" Facebook page.
Petition forces revote on school plan
by Andrew Martin
It's official: There will be a revote on a $9.8 million school project that Hyde Park residents approved by just five votes, 261-256, on June 7.
Speculation about a revote began as soon as the votes were counted.
The project involves extensive repairs and renovations, and some outright replacement, of Hyde Park Elementary School.
A petition for a revote was taken out soon after the June vote, and a group of residents began an aggressive campaign to collect the signatures needed to force a new vote. Volunteers manned a station outside the town offices after work on weekdays to collect signatures, numerous social media posts were made, and Michael Ryan, who circulated the petition, wrote a News & Citizen column explaining why he thinks the school project can be done for millions fewer dollars.
The petition needed the signatures of 204 registered voters in Hyde Park, 10 percent of the voter checklist.
When the petition was turned in Monday to Town Clerk Kimberly Moulton, it had 312 signatures.
The Hyde Park School Board must now select a date for a revote. No board members were available before press time to comment, but Moulton is recommending a revote on Tuesday, Aug. 9 — the date of the Vermont primary election to narrow the field of candidates for governor, lieutenant governor, the Legislature and other major offices.
First, it's far cheaper to hold one election, rather than two. Second, holding the school revote in conjunction with the primary election likely means many more voters will participate in the decision than if the school issue were the only question on the ballot.
Finances the focus in Democratic debate
Morristown, planners working out differences
By Tommy Gardner
At a largely tension-free annual meeting last week, the Lamoille County Planning Commission quickly moved through its business before honoring community members both living and dearly-departed.
With tensions between Morristown and the regional planning body still simmering — town officials think the commission is interfering in town business — an otherwise rote election removed the town's water and light department manager from the LCPC board, and sent town officials to their social media pages.
It appears a week later, however, that both sides are going to try and find some middle ground.
"Frankly, I've had it with copies of tweets and emails. It's a bunch of hurt feelings," selectman Eric Dodge said this week.
Craig Myotte, previously one of the at-large county directors, didn't make the cut this time, as eight people vied for five open seats. Two other county directors from Morristown decided against running again.
"The Lamoille County Regional Planning Commission Board just voted the general manager of our regional utility (MW&L) off the board #VT," Todd Thomas, Morristown's zoning director, Tweeted right after the meeting.
Tricia Follert later took to Twitter, too, calling the outcome a "huge mistake."
New county directors
Lamoille County Planning Commission has 18 members assigned by its member towns, with larger towns getting more members.
It also has five at-large county directors, and eight people came to last Tuesday's annual meeting hoping to get one of them.
Hyde Park resident Caleb Magoon, the current vice chairman of the board, was re-elected as a county director, as was fellow Hyde Parker Valerie Valcour. Newly elected directors are Ralph Monticello of Eden, Howard Romero of Johnson and Linda Martin of Wolcott.
Joining Myotte as also-rans were Roy Marble of Morristown and Brian Albarelli of Cambridge; both have previously been board members.
Martin, the Wolcott town clerk and a longtime member of the Vermont House, spoke ahead of the vote of the importance of regional planning. It's so important to Wolcott that she sponsored a bill that gives more power to regional commissions to help smaller towns.
"Our small towns are important to the region, too," Martin said.
Romero, a freelance industrial designer and photographer, is a past Jim Marvin Award winner (see related story) for designing the Springer Miller building in Stowe. Romero said he likes how Lamoille County Planning Commission gets done, as opposed to some select boards that "sit on issues" for years.
"I don't put up with obstructionists very well," he said.
Olive branch?
Monday at the Morristown Select Board meeting, both sides vowed to put aside "hurt feelings" for the greater good of the county.
Chairman Bob Beeman proposed hiring a mediator to help communication between the commission staff and the town officials.
But Dodge said that would be a waste of money.
"I think we have adults that work here for the town, and LCPC has a fine staff," he said. "We are all professionals, and I think we need to come together at a meeting and begin to move forward through this."
The board ultimately assigned town administrator Dan Lindley to meet one-on-one with Tasha Wallis, executive director of the planning commission, hoping they can figure out some middle ground.
"There's a role for the town and a role for us. Maybe we need to review that and establish what those are for each body and individual," Wallis said.
Lindley agreed, saying, "We all have our roles, and everyone understanding what those are and what the boundaries are would be a tremendous help to everybody involved."
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Hot answers tagged technique
I've found that if you push the tip of the caulk gun forward along the line rather than drag it behind you can often make a very neat bead of caulk that needs little or no smoothing afterwards.
First of all, buy a good drip free caulking gun. Make sure you cut the tip of the caulk on an angle. If you want a perfectly straight line on each side, put painters tape on each side of the area you want to caulk. Then just pull it up before the caulk dries. If you do not want to use your finger to smooth it, the little squeegie like tools that you can ...
Buy a $5 drywall dimpler, the bit will slip off the screw head when the screw is at the appropriate depth.
You can't. The tempered glass will completely shatter if this is even attempted. If you absolutely must have tempered glass with a hole in it, the hole or any other shaping must be done before the tempering process.
You can go at it with a sledgehammer (or a smaller hand sledge) and a star drill, and then drive wedges into the holes (or if you are patient, fill the holes with water and let them freeze in the winter.) There are special wedges designed for use in round holes for splitting rock (feathers and wedges seems to find them). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
There is a lot to know. Shortest answer: you should let experts handle anything you're not sure of. You need to comply with local building codes (This also means you need to know what those are. Inspectors don't accept ignorance as an excuse.) The design needs to be approved by an architect or structural engineer. There are strict requirements on footings,...
Nylon mesh tape has some pros and good applications. It is best used on joints that may have more tendency to crack, seams with wider gaps, boards that don't fit real flush to each other. It is much stronger than paper tape, but more difficult to cover using straight tools.(as opposed to beveled or bow trowels) It saves time as you do not need a base mud ...
To prevent the messiness when smoothing it out with your finger, have a moist sponge handy. Smooth out a couple feet of calk, then wipe your finger on the sponge to get the excess caulk off and keep your finger moist.
It sounds to me like the area you are caulking is not clean. Especially for tile, you need to make sure to really clean the area you will be caulking, as dust and soap scum will make it tough for the caulk to stick. Also, make sure you are using the correct kind of caulk for the job.
Metal landscape edging (the kind that's held in with stakes) should work fairly well. You could either just leave it there or cover it in plastic and remove it after the concrete sets (personally, I'd leave it).
When hanging, there's the day laborer way, which is to put the drywall up over the box and then roto-zip the box, and there's the pro way, which is to cut the hole ahead of time because you've got the skill to measure and mark it. When mudding as in the above picture, the guys will often get a big chunk of mud into the box (It's hard not to... especially ...
"Why is this happening?" The drywall mud was applied too thick "what should I do about it?" Either apply additional thin coats (sanding between each), or scrape it down and start over, this time using several thinner applications and sanding between each
This can be done using Bender Board. You should be able to find it in both wood and recycled plastic. When using it to form concrete make sure you use enough stakes to hold the weight of the concrete.
As requested, here is my comment as an answer: I thought "caulk" was called "gap filler" internationally (a white substance like wet plaster). But your description sounds like silicone (and silicone-based sealants). If so, the magic trick for mess free edges isn't painter's tape, it's apply the silicone, then spraying the area with all-purpose cleaner ("...
I'm surprised that the switch controls the entire outlet -- generally in that setup (in North America at least), the switch only controls one plug, and the other plug is constant power. In that case of course, the answer is to use a power bar. It may even be worth checking in the plug to see if there is constant power available. You may be able to fix the ...
You certainly can put different types of mud on top of each other without any problems. Generally it's done the opposite way though - using the quick drying mud for the first/second coats and the pre-mix for the final coats. As for sandability, pre-mix is going to be the easiest to sand. The quick drying mud can still be sanded without much trouble though,...
In addition to the things @Steve Jackson mentioned in his comment, the quick-drying mud (called setting compound) is also much harder to sand than the slower drying-type compound, which makes it not such a great choice for your final coats where you're going to be doing the most sanding. Pros use it because they're able to apply it so well that it requires ...
Certainly you will get better with practice. Also, as drywall (plasterboard in the UK) is quite soft you'd have to have the clutch on a low setting anyway. I find that if I don't get the screw at quite the right depth the first go I can usually just add an extra couple of twists by hand to get it bedded in to my satisfaction. Just make sure you get a ...
It sounds to me that you cut your tip to far down. Try cutting it closer to the top so the hole is smaller. A good caulk gun will help too and they aren't too expensive (about $12 at lowes or home depot).
IMHO this is sloppy mudding, pure and simple. If it were my project, it would be the responsibility of the dry waller, but I am not a contractor.
I am a general contractor and I'm having a house redone right now after the electrician and plumber roughed in. I tape off the plumbing and stuff newspaper in the electric boxes and light fixture boxes. When the mudding is done and they do the finish, I'll go around and remove the newspaper and clean up the boxes. This takes about an hour total time and ...
There exist expanding compounds like this one: Ecobust, which are poured into predrilled holes and expand as they dry, splitting the stone (or concrete). It does require a power tool, unless there are already some cracks in your boulder, but a cordless hammer drill should be sufficient.
The Dimpler® attachment is a good idea if you're doing a small area. If you're doing a whole room or more either rent or buy a screw gun. It'll make life a lot easier.
They are still working in compression - the only difference is the extra weight of the base, which hopefully is negligible compared to the load you are lifting. Edit: Assuming you have a dual acting system - where hydraulic fluid pushes against either side of the piston (rather than just an air jack where atmospheric pressure pushes it back) then there is ...
I just got an answer by email from the owner of a company in France that specializes in artisanal plaster work. He recognizes it as a very thin lime-plaster that was applied with a bundle of leaves like these: with a whipping motion. He calls this type of finish an enduit fouetté which translates as whipped lime-plaster. He suggests that we mix a very ...
One way is to take a long level (the longer the better : 6 and 8' levels work well). Hold one end of the level on the higher point, and then once the level is level, measure the gap between the other end and the floor using a measuring tape. This will give you your height over your run (length of level), for that particular spot in the floor anyways.
If it is a nice looking rock or has a particular shape, place it on Craig's list as a free item. I listed four 5" Blue Spruce trees I needed to remove to make way for a garage. Gone over the weekend and I didn't have to lift a hand.
You're doing it just right. The biggest mistake you can make when screwing in drywall is to drive the screw too deeply, tearing the paper outer layer. The paper is what's holding the plaster inside together enough to be screwed down in the first place, so keeping it intact is the key to a secure connection. You want the screw head to be just below the ...
Use a upside down 5 gallon bucket, paint can, or anything that is deep enough to not get buried in the concrete. They use several old 5 gallon buckets leftover from construction in our basement.
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Conclusions for EU banks and ING in particular:-the EU Comitte to save the banks should take a look at TARP. Copy the main ideas and adapt to the special features of EU bank crisis. TARP was highly critized at the start, but in the end it was really successful to stabilise the banks, and was profitable for taxpayers. Do not try all other unproven methods first, and at last turn to the already proven, successful method. -the Eu banking system just started to get stabilised when PIIGS debt crisis hit. All the efforts since 1.5 years, first reluctantly, are focused to stabilize and keep financing the debtor states, while they further try to spend and blackmail those who help them. Stop this immediately. -I do not see much reason to try to pour more money into those EU state's coffers, whose politicians have already proved their irresponsibility in the last 5 years by overburden their people with debt, and now are reluctant to stop spending. Just consider the Greek idea on referendum to accept the rescue package, or Italy to start strikes against minor austerity measures. Stabilize the banking system with EU's TARP package first, and support the banks to negotiate PIIGS states into strict austerity measures combined with selling state assets for cash, with IMF leadership.-ING is punished by investors for two main reasons. First, ING has the most complicated business structure of the 10 large banks in Eu, with very low transparency. Today it seems nobody wants to invest in a web of complicated bank and insurance conglomerate (see the similarity to BAC and C). The current ING efforts to separate bank and insurance, and sell noncore businesses will improve the investor's confidence. But the adverse IPO environment, plus low trust in ING 's management's past performance history does not help investor's confidence in successful execution. -Second, ING has to show much higher earnings predictability and stability. ING's earnings fluctuated more rapidly and widely than at other banks in the crisis years, and repeatedly have shown negative surprises. The last quarter has also disappointed, albeit not the net result, but the earnings quality and stability. Break with ING's worst tradition of this erratic behavoir. Focus, perform confident and stable. Nonperforming business sector's managers must resign. (PIIGS' prime ministers had to resign no matter who failed or bankrupted their country) Bring in new talent. No sacred cows, take a hard look at nonperforming departments. Give absolutely clear guidance and execute reliably. -There are clear hints what the market expects. In 2012 pay down Dutch debt, and start to pay 3% dividend. Show progress on IPO. Account their performance separately and transparently to help generate market confidence in them before trying to sell. -ING share price will most probably recover slower than others, just like the similar US peers has done. This is acceptable as long as progress is lagging behind others by less than a year. ING's valuation must improve to the current Eu bank's average in a year. in 2012 ING must show at least $2.3 earnings and sport a PE=7, and hit $16 share price. Anything less must bring mandatory top management change. Period.


text:
Michigan, one of only about seven states without significant graduation requirements, soon will begin debating whether to adopt strict standards, which include requiring students to take four years of math and three years of science. If passed and signed into law, the new standards could affect next fall's freshman class.
Full Story:The Detroit News


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I just played a weird/terrible/crazy game here (10 min blitz) and won.
I'm not particulary proud of this game(although I played nice in the end), but I do think it's incredible how me and my opponent missed a queen on prise for like 12 moves each !
I mean, I'm not a giant of chess, but I'd call myself an experienced player, my blitz chess rating is generally arround 1600, my opponent was also a 1600 player.
Still, we managed to play like 24 moves, without either of us noticing a queen on prise!
I annotated the game with some (or a lot) of my thoughts.
By the way, I'm playing during nightshifts, that's my excuse ! Don't know about my opponent though.
That was easily the most twisted game i have ever seen..
It can happen.....
This is maybe because both of you are fairly strong players so you don't expect each other to blunder your queen so putting her majesty in take simply escaped your eyes. It happens to everyone. For example, see this GM game, it's even more crazy :) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Ix69sCFahw&feature=BFa&list=FLzey7hVJUIQV7T4qKZQ4SWw
Now that's what I call hang time!
3...Nc6?? is already a game losing blunder!! Reuben Fine fell into this trap in his younger days. 5.d5! Nxe5 6.c5 Nbc4 7.f4! e6 8.Qd4! (8.fxe5 Qh4+) Qh4+ 9.Qf2 Qh6 10.Nc3! and wins
Hey! That picture in fouadeds column looks like puppethead on a binger
I just hit between those two little white boxes (thinking it was gonna play like a video).
@ JMB, yeah 3 ..Nc6 is indeed also a blunder, d6 needs to be played first. I learned this in the meantime as well.
that was amazing
It is natural in time limit chess.
very weired:)
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I loved my game.
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7/29/2016 - Methodical Victory
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My Blitz match against GM Joey
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What is the difference between Proof, Brilliant Uncirculated and Bullion coins?
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|Publication number
|Publication type
|Publication date
|Sep 28, 1971
|Filing date
|Sep 22, 1969
|Priority date
|Oct 1, 1968
|Also published as
|Publication number
|Bernard Andre Laboue
|Original Assignee
|Bull General Electric
|Export Citation
|BiBTeX, EndNote, RefMan
|Referenced by (27), Classifications (18)
|External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, Espacenet
References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 6/1929 Coldwell ...339/176 MP UX ...339/176 MP UX .....339/17 LM UX 3/1965 James..,........................339/17 LM UX 339/l76 MP UX 1,718,529 2,857,577 10/1958 Vanderpool... 3,129,990 4/1964 Rice et al....... 3,173,732
FOREIGN PATENTS 1,001,569 8/1965 Great Britain.............
Primary Examiner-David Smith, Jr. Att0rneyBaldwin, Wight & Brown ABSTRACT: An arrangement for connecting circuits of printed-circuit cards to circuits of a connection panel, comprising connectors fixed in parallel relationship to one another on said connection panel, each connector being provided with contact blades of which one end is soldered to a conductive surface of the connection panel and each of which is arranged to be pressed against a contact surface on a card inserted between two connector elements, under the action of an insulating push member pushed by a spring independent of the contact blade.
1102b 1/02, H05k 1/04 317/101 17 LC, 17 M Bernard Andre Laboue Goussainville, France Appl. No. 859,748 [22] Filed Sept. 22, 1969 Patented Sept. 28, 1971 Assignee Societe Industriclle Bull-General Electric,
(Societe Anonyme) Paris, France Oct. 1, 1968 France 168305 [54] CONNECTORS FOR PRINTED-CIRCUIT CARDS 7 Claims, 8 Drawing Figs.
DH, 101, 101 CC; 339/176 MP, 17 LM United States Patent [72] Inventor [32] Priority [50] FieldofSearch...,.......................................,
PATENTEDSEP28|971 SHEET 1 BF 3 C $711. a l
V Ga v- Hill nu I] I MIM I l/I /KP I l t I III b Mafia PATEHTEH SEP28 sum 3 OF 3 CONNECTORS FOR PRINTED-CIRCUIT CARDS The presentinvention relates to improvements in connectors for printed-circuit cards and concerns an arrangement which is more particularly adapted for electrically connecting the conductors of printed-circuit cards to conductors of a connection panel also comprising printed circuits. These electrical connections are made by means of connectors, regarding which a major problem exists at present, namely to minimize the length of the conductors introduced by the said connector into the circuits in order not to insert into the said circuits conductors having electrical characteristics which are likely to modify substantially the electrical characteristics of the connected circuits, sometimes with the introduction of inductive couplings or stray capacitances between the circuits.
The techniques at present employed for the production of compact circuits make it possible to reduce considerably the overall dimensions of the greater part of the electrical circuits present in information-processing and other equipment. These compact circuits are often made in the form of so-called printed circuits," which are sometimes assembled in a number of layers in detachable cards and in connection panels designed to support connectors and to make the connections between the circuits of different cards. Connecting devices are necessarily employed for establishing the electrical connections between the circuits of the cards and the circuits of the vpanels. In these connectors, a very large number of contact members are assembled within a very small space. Many connector systems are known in which the contact members by which the electrical connections are made are formed of relatively long flexible conductive blades or rods which are often bent over on themselves and which are adapted to supply by their own resilience a sufficient bearing force on the contact surfaces. When connectors are employed to connect together circuits through which there pass electric pulses having components of very high frequency, those parts of the connectors through which these pulses pass often have the disadvantage that they introduce discontinuity of impedance matching and the looped forms of some of the parts of these circuits often give rise to stray inductive couplings between circuits. The present invention has for its object to obviate these disadvantages and relates to an arrangement in which electrical connections are made by means of connectors in which the conductive parts by which circuits are connected are of remarkably small length and in which the conductive surfaces by which the said contacts are made are each subjected at a number of points to a mechanical pressure which is exerted on these surfaces by means of mechanical members independent of the electrical circuits. In the case envisaged in which the conductors of the printed circuits of the detachable cards and of the connection panel are comparable to portions of transmission lines whose characteristic impedance is predetermined, another object of the invention is to provide a connector, as defined above, in which the length of a conductive member capable of locally exhibiting a different characteristic impedance is so small that the resultant disadvantages are negligible or zero.
The invention concerns an arrangement for connecting circuits of printed-circuit cards to circuits of a printed-circuit connection panel which supports a plurality of connectors disposed in parallel relationship to one another at such a distance as to enable a card to be inserted between two consecutive connectors and to enable it to be maintained perpendicularly to the said panel, wherein each connector is characterized in that it comprises at least on one side corresponding to one face of a card provided with contact surfaces, a row of conductive and flexible contact blades, one portion of each of which is soldered to a conductive surface on the connection panel, while another portion thereof is situated against a contact surface on the card, a row of push members, each of which is arranged to be slidable in a recess situated opposite a contact blade, and a row of springs, each of which is arranged to urge a push member against a contact blade and to urge the latter against a corresponding contact surface on the card.
An arrangement comprising such connectors makes it possible to produce an assembly of extremely compact circuits in which the contacts between circuits are made with maximum reliability, with the introduction of minimum disturbance into the electrical characteristics of the circuits.
Further advantages and features of the invention will become more readily apparent in the course of the following description, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a part of an arrangement of connectors according to a first embodiment of the invention, this section being taken along the line 1-1 of FIG. 2,
FIG. 2 is a plan view of a part of the same arrangement as seen along the line 22 of H6. 1,
FIG. 3 is a plan view of a portion of a connection panel as seen along the line 3-3 of FIG. 1,
FIG. 4 illustrates a second form of construction of an arrangement of connectors as seen along the line 44 of FIG. 5.
FIG. 5 is a view in section along the line 5-5 of FIG. 4,
HO. 6 is an external view of a portion of a printed-circuit card as seen in the direction 6 of FlG. 1, showing an arrangement of the contact surfaces on the card,
F IG. 7 is a fragmentary sectional view constituting a variant of FIG. 4, and
FlG. 8 is a view in perspective of various parts of a connector of the type illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5.
FIG. 1 shows a portion of an arrangement in which three connectors A, B and C respectively are mounted on a printedcircuit connection panel ll, the said three connectors being shown in section along the line 1-1 of FIG. 2. The connectors of one assembly are identical in principle and the connectors A and C of FIG. 1 are only partly shown. A printed-circuit card CA] is shown inserted between the connectors A and B and a second card CA2 is shown in the preparatory position for insertion, in which it is only engaged in guide means 12 arranged in known manner at the ends of the connectors (see also HO. 8) in order to ensure correct engagement of the cards between the connectors. The connectors A, B and C are fixedly mounted on the connection panel H, for example by means of pins 14 situated at intervals along each connector so as to secure the latter on the connection panel in parallel relationship to other connectors and to maintain them at a distance X (FIGS. 1 and 4) which is determined in accordance with the thickness of the cards which are to be inserted between the said connectors. A connector of like form may be employed in assemblies designed to receive cards of different thicknesses, in accordance with the distance X between the points at which the connectors are secured to the connection panel. in the arrangement illustrated in fragmentary form in FlGS. l and 2, each connector comprises an insulating body 15 provided with a base 16, a central partition 17 and lefthand and right-hand lateral walls 18 and 19 respectively, which are connected to a central partition by ribs 20 disposed on either side of the said partition. The lateral walls are formed with left-hand and right-hand recesses 22 and 21 respectively, which are each situated between two ribs and each adapted to receive a push member 23 consisting of insulating material, which is freely slidable in a recess. Each push member is provided, towards the exterior of the connector, with two bosses 24 and 25 and provided within the connector with two shoulders 26 and 27 arranged to prevent the push member from leaving the connector. The push members disposed on one side of a connector may be connected together by means of a flexible strip 28 adapted to permit relative independence of the displacements of each push member in its recess. These strips, which merely have the object of facilitating the positioning of the push members on one side of a connector, are not absolutely necessary for the correct operation of the device. A spring element comprises a metal strip 29, which bears against the central partition 17 and is provided, on each side, with flexible blades 30 and 3| on the left-hand and right-hand sides respectively, which are adapted to form leaf springs and are each engaged between two ribs on the insulating body of the connector, that is to say, opposite a corresponding push member, in order to push the latter towards the outside of the connector. The metal strip 29 is maintained in position between the central partition of the connector and a cover 32 of flexible plastics. The said cover is maintained in position on the body of the connector by means of two longitudinal strips 33 and 34 adapted to engage in grooves 35 and 36 extending along the lateral walls 18 and 19 of the body of the connector. The connection panel 11 may, like the printed-circuit cards, comprise a number of layers of printed circuits assembled in the thickness of one panel, which is provided (FIG. 3) on its upper face with conductive surfaces situated in rows 37 and 38 to the left and to the right respectively, for each connector and connected to electrical circuits of the panel. These conductive surfaces are positioned so that they may each receive by soldering, by an appropriate method, the lower end of a conductive blade 40 to the left or 41 to the right, of which the other end is engaged in a slot 42 or 43 in the upper part of each of the lateral walls and in which it is retained by a barlike portion 44 adapted to engage in the said slot. Provided on each side of the slots are bosses 45-46 which are arranged to center the cover 32 on the connector.
Each contact blade extends past the bosses 24-25 of a push member.
In order to facilitate the fitting of the contact blades on one side of a connector, these blades may be connected together, before fitting, at their upper end by means of a strip of insulating plastics (not shown). In FIG. 1, a contact blade 41A belonging to the right-hand row of the connector B is soldered at its lower end to a conductive surface 38A of the row 38 (FIG, 3) of the connection panel. The said blade extends past the bosses 24 and of a push member 23 and the upper end of this blade is retained in one of the slots 43 in the partition 19. When no card has been inserted between two connectors (for example B and C in FIG. 1), the contact blades ofone row and the blades which are in the connector disposed opposite thereto are tensioned under the action of the springs and 31 of each connector, acting on the push members, this tension being limited by virtue of the fact that the shoulders 26 and 27 of the push members abut (FIG. 1) the inside face ofa lateral wall of the connector. In addition, the contact blades to the left of the connector B (FIGS. 1 and 2) are urged towards the connector by the card CA1 which has been inserted between the connectors A and B. In this case, each contact blade of the same row is urged by its push member against a corresponding contact surface of the card CA1. Thus, all the contact blades 41 situated in the right-hand row of the connector A are also applied under the same conditions against the contact surfaces of the card CA1. FIG. 6 shows the form and the relative arrangement of the contact surfaces 51 on a portion of the printed-circuit card CA2 as seen in the direction of the arrow 6 of FIG. 1. When the printed-circuit card CA1 is introduced between the connectors A and B, the contact blades and the corresponding push members are pushed towards the inside of the bodies of the connectors and the contact blades may be carried slightly downwards by the friction of the introduced card, but the said blades are retained in the upper part of each connector by the blade portion which is engaged in a slot. Each push member receives the thrust of its corresponding spring at a point situated substantially on the axis of the said push member. This thrust is transmitted by the two bosses of the push member at two points of the contact blade, which are situated symmetrically about the said axis. Consequently, the thrust exerted by the spring is substantially equally distributed among the bosses of the push member at two points of the contact blade bearing on a contact surface of a card, whereby perfect electrical contact is ensured at least at these two points. It is known that the friction of the contact surfaces on the contact blades of the connectors when a card is introduced contributes to cleaning the contact surfaces and to improving the electrical contacts.
FIGS. 4, 5 and 8 show another embodiment of the invention in an arrangement illustrated in section in FIGS. 4 and 5,
which show three connectors D, E and F mounted on a connection panel 11 similar to that of FIG. 1 by means of pins fitted on the one hand into the connectors and on the other hand into the said connection panel. Each connector comprises an insulating body having a central partition 62 extending along the length of the connector, an upper partition 63 and lateral walls 64 and 65 to the left and to the right respectively, which are connected to the central partition by ribs 66 and 67 and formed with recesses 68 and 69 to the left and to the right respectively for push members 70 similar to the push members 23 of FIGS. 1 and 2. The push members are subject to the action of springs 72 and 73, which are also connected to a central strip 74. It will be noted that in this case the arrangement of the insulating body of the connectors D, E and F corresponds to an inverted arrangement of the connectors A, B and C. In the connectors D, E and F, the contact blades are either formed of thin metal strips 75 and 76 disposed in parallel relationship and adhesively bonded by an appropriate method to the outside face of a thin insulating support sheet 77, or formed by deposition of conductive metal layers in the form of parallel bands. The insulating strip provided with conductive bands is appropriately positioned on the upper face of the connection panel, whereafter the horizontal portions of the contact blades are welded by any appropriate method to the corresponding conductive surfaces of the connection panel. Thereafter, the body of the connector provided with its push members and springs is positioned on the said panel and held in position thereon by pins 60. The two edges of the support sheet 77 are thereafter raised and bent down on to the body of the connector, on which they are maintained when a plate 78 is thereafter secured by pins 79 extending through holes appropriately positioned in the plate 78, in the two edges of the insulating sheet 77 and in the body of the connector. By reason of the depression formed in the partition 63, a slight tension is obtained in the insulating sheet, this tension being sufficient to cause the latter to adapt itself to the bosses of the push members, without the latter being moved into their recesses. In FIG. 4, a printed-circuit card CA3 is provided on its two faces with components 54-55 which may form functional units such as amplifier devices, switching circuit or the like, of which the maximum overall dimensions are indicated by a dash-dotted line 58. A similar arrangement may be provided on the cards CA l-CAZ which are employed with connectors A, B and C, in FIGS. 1 and 2. In most cases, the connectors are provided at their ends with plates 80-81 formed with guide grooves 12 and 13 (FIGS. 1, 4 and 8) which are adapted to guide the cards on their insertion into the conncc tors.
In the examples illustrated in FIG. 1 to 5, the distance X between the axes of two neighboring connectors is about 18 millimeters in the cases described. On the other hand, the spacing between the contact blades may be equal to or less than 2.54 mm. Assuming in the least favorable case, that a correct electrical contact is ensured, between a contact blade and the corresponding contact surface of a card, only at the level of the upper boss of the push member acting on this blade, the contact blade length which will be comprised between this contact point and the soldering point of the said contact blade on a conductive surface of the connection panel, i.e. the contact blade length constituting a discontinuity in the impedance matching, will not exceed 8 mm., which is a remarkably short length as compared with the length introduced by the majority of known connectors.
FIG. 7 illustrates a cutoff portion of a connector G similar to those shown in FIGS. 4, 5 and 8, but specially designed to introduce no interruption of impedance matching between the connected printed circuits. The construction is generally similar to the preceding one, but in this embodiment a flexible insulating sheet is provided on its outside face with contact blades 91 adhesively secured or formed as already stated by a thin conductive metallic deposit, but in addition the insulating sheet is provided on its inside face with a conductive deposit 49 forming an earth surface and connected to an earth conductor of the connection panel 11. This connection may be obtained by means of one or more pins 94 also serving to secure the connector to the connection panel.
With due regard to the dielectric constant of the material of the insulating sheet, to its thickness and to the dimensions of the contact blades, it is possible to arrange that the characteristic impedance of the transmission line formed by each contact blade is equal to the characteristic impedance adopted for the printed circuits of the detachable cards and of the connection panel. There is therefore no longer any mismatch caused by the members of the connector.
It will be noted that in FIG. 6 the contact surfaces on the opposite faces of one and the same card are alternately arranged, that is to say, the contact surfaces of one face are offset by one-half spacing in relation to the contact areas of the opposite face of the card. Consequently, those contact blades of the faces of two connectors which are provided for the two faces of one and the same card are necessarily (FIGS. 2 and 5) arranged alternately for these two faces. In the examples described in the foregoing, the contact blades are alternately arranged on either side of the axis of each connector and the contact surfaces 37 and 38 are alternately positioned on the connection panel 11 to receive the contact blades of one connector. This staggering of the contact blades of the opposite rows of a connector is not the only possible arrangement, because a similar result can be obtained with connectors of symmetrical construction by longitudinally staggering by a half-pitch in relation to one another the neighboring connectors on the connection panel.
It is obvious that the embodiments and adaptations which have been described to illustrate the invention have no limiting character and that any modifications and adaptations may be made to the arrangements described in accordance with the circumstances and the applications without departing from the invention.
l. A connecting system for detachably connecting conductive surfaces aligned on the faces ofa number N of printed-circuit cards with a conductive surfaces on a printed-circuit panel, said system comprising:
a number Nj-l of connector elements fixed parallel to said panel in order to permit the insertion of an edge of one of said cards between two adjacent connector elements, each of said elements comprising:
an elongated body of insulating material having two lateral walls, each lateral wall being formed with a plurality of recesses a push member slidably disposed in each of said recesses, said push member consisting of insulating material and being provided with bosses,
a spring element fixed in said body and provided with two sets of spring blades, each of said spring blades being disposed to urge one of said push members through the corresponding recess in order that the bosses of said push member may project outside of the associated lateral wall, and
two series of elongated contact blades, each of said blades having one end thereof bonded to a conductive surface on said panel between the latter and an opposed connector body and having a central portion disposed opposite to an associated one of said push members whereby said central portion is urged towards a conductive surface on a printed-circuit card when the latter is inserted between and the corresponding connector bod and has its two edges turned down one upon the other and ixed on said connector body.
4. A connecting system according to claim 3, wherein each of said sheets consists of a material resistant to the tin-soldering temperature, such as polyethylene terephthalate.
5. A connecting arrangement for detachably connecting a plurality of conductive surfaces, disposed on at least one face of a circuit board and spaced apart along one edge of said face, to conductive surfaces disposed on one face of a connection panel, said connecting arrangement being provided with at least one connector element comprising:
an elongated connector body of insulating material mounted on said one face of said connection panel, the elongated dimension of said body being oriented parallel to the plane of said one face of said connection panel and a lateral wall of said body extending along the length thereof being tangent to a plane perpendicular to the plane of said one face of said connection panel, said wall being provided with a plurality of apertures extending therethrough,
a push member slidably disposed in each of said apertures.
a spring member mounted in said body for each of said push members, each of said spring members being disposed to urge the associated push member through the corresponding aperture to project outwardly from said lateral wall, and
a plurality of elongated contact strips spaced apart along the length of said lateral wall and oriented transversely to the length of said lateral wall, each of said strips having one end thereof bonded to one of said conductive surfaces disposed on said one face of said connection panel between said panel and said connector body, having a central portion thereof disposed opposite to a respective one of said push members to provide for said control portion to be urged away from said wall by the corresponding push member, and having the other end thereof affixed to said body near the edge of said lateral wall remote from said panel.
6. The arrangement of claim 5 provided with a plurality of said connector elements, the respective connector bodies of said connector elements being oriented mutually parallel and spaced apart to admit the edge of one of said circuit boards between adjacent pairs of said bodies.
7. The arrangement of claim 5 for detachably connecting a plurality of said conductive surfaces'disposed on both faces of a circuit board to conductive surfaces on said panel and provided with a pair of said connector elements, the respective connector bodies of said connector elements being oriented mutually parallel and with the respective lateral walls of said bodies facing each other, said connector bodies being spaced apart to admit the edge of one of said circuit boards between said facing lateral walls.
|Citing Patent
|Filing date
|Publication date
|Nov 9, 1971
|Nov 7, 1972
|Teradyne Inc
|Low-force printed circuit male connection apparatus
|Feb 22, 1974
|Feb 4, 1975
|John M Cutchaw
|Electrical connector
|Sep 6, 1974
|Nov 25, 1975
|Amp Inc
|Printed circuit electrical connector
|Jul 22, 1974
|Jan 27, 1976
|Amp Incorporated
|Electrical connector
|Nov 19, 1974
|May 11, 1976
|Compagnie Honeywell Bull (Societe Anonyme)
|Aug 11, 1975
|Feb 22, 1977
|International Telephone And Telegraph Corporation
|Electrical connector
|Dec 13, 1976
|Feb 7, 1978
|Ncr Corporation
|Electric power distributing apparatus
|Dec 8, 1982
|Oct 9, 1984
|Amp Incorporated
|Bussing system for stacked array of panel boards
|Aug 10, 1983
|May 21, 1985
|Lockheed Corporation
|Zero-insertion-force housing for circuit boards
|May 4, 1984
|Apr 15, 1986
|Amp Incorporated
|Overmolded shielded connector
|Apr 9, 1984
|May 6, 1986
|Amp Incorporated
|High density mother/daughter circuit board connector
|Oct 7, 1985
|Dec 2, 1986
|Amp Incorporated
|Card edge connector
|Oct 9, 1984
|Dec 16, 1986
|Amp Incorporated
|Zero insertion force card edge connector with flexible film circuitry
|Sep 19, 1985
|May 12, 1987
|C W Industries
|Printed circuit board connector
|Feb 27, 1987
|Jul 5, 1988
|United Technologies Corporation
|Electronic circuit module
|Nov 9, 1987
|Apr 4, 1989
|Bell Communications Research, Inc.
|Electrical interconnection device using elastomeric strips
|Jun 3, 1987
|May 30, 1989
|Harris Corporation
|Flexible zero insertion force interconnector between circuit boards
|Nov 6, 1991
|Dec 15, 1992
|Amp Incorporated
|High density backplane connector
|Feb 1, 1993
|May 3, 1994
|The Whitaker Corporation
|ZIF card edge connector utilizing flexible film circuitry
|May 24, 1994
|Oct 15, 1996
|The Whitaker Corporation.
|Card edge connector using flexible film circuitry
|Jan 13, 1995
|Jan 21, 1997
|Teradyne, Inc.
|Printed circuit board connectors
|Jul 6, 1995
|Oct 14, 1997
|The Whitaker Corporation
|Zero insertion force (ZIF) electrical connector
|Apr 17, 1995
|Jan 6, 1998
|Teradyne, Inc.
|High speed high density connector for electronic signals
|Jun 9, 2004
|Jan 13, 2005
|Harting Electro-Optics Gmbh & Co. Kg
|Connector for connecting printed circuit boards
|May 17, 1990
|Mar 9, 1993
|Rogers Corporation
|Connector arrangement
|Nov 10, 1989
|Jun 27, 1990
|International Business Machines Corporation
|Electric connector utilizing flexible electrical circuitry
|May 17, 1995
|Mar 12, 1997
|Beta Phase, Inc.
|Connector assembly for electrically interconnecting two printed circuit board like members
|U.S. Classification
|361/787, 439/61, 439/55, 439/65, 439/67, 361/784
|International Classification
|Cooperative Classification
|European Classification


text:
10 Year Old Girl Shot and Killed in Denver
Posted: 11/27/2007 - Denver police are looking for at least one suspect in connection with a late-night shooting that left a young girl dead.
Posted: 11/27/2007 - Denver police are looking for at least one suspect in connection with a late-night shooting that left a young girl dead.
Updated: 11/27/2007 - A video that's gone viral over the Internet showing a baby paddling its way out of danger in a pool has parents around the country clamoring to know more. In Colorado, the need is great, with drowning among the top 5 causes of accidental deaths for kids.
Updated: 11/27/2007 - Thanksgiving is bittersweet for one Colorado Springs family with 11 children. They welcomed a new baby sister into their lives, but their mother suddenly died.
Posted: 11/26/2007 - Back Row, Colorado College's all-male a cappella group, will perform its annual winter concert Thursday, November 29 and Friday, November 30.
Updated: 11/27/2007 - Health officials in Pueblo spoke today about their local Tuberculosis investigation, and the TB risk in Pueblo.
Updated: 11/27/2007 - It may soon be easier to get to your favorite downtown businesses in Colorado Springs. The Downtown Partnership has presented City Council with a plan to change Tejon Street to a two-way road.
Updated: 11/27/2007 - Every year people find themselves stressing out over the holidays.
Updated: 11/26/2007 - The season for holiday shopping is in full swing and that holiday cheer is already translating into cold hard cash for retailers.
Posted: 11/25/2007 - Devin Hester returns two kicks for touchdowns to sink Denver
Updated: 11/26/2007 - When the Broncos score, one Colorado Springs man makes sure his neighbors know about it.
Posted: 11/25/2007 - The Colorado Bureau of Investigation is investigating a dead body found near Hugo on Thanksgiving day.
Updated: 11/26/2007 - California firefighters are hoping to have a fast-moving wildfire contained by Tuesday.
Posted: 11/25/2007 - Colorado Springs Police are hunting for a man who robbed the front desk of a Howard Johnson Express hotel.
Posted: 11/25/2007 - The State Patrol says a 15-year-old Strasburg girl driving a car near Byers was killed when the car rolled.
Posted: 11/25/2007 - Fifteen Pueblo police officers have filed casualty reports after the arrest of a 71-year-old man with active pulmonary tuberculosis.
Posted: 11/25/2007 - A toy recalled because it contained a dangerous chemical is appearing for sale in circulars distributed in Sunday newspapers.
Updated: 11/25/2007 - $16.4 billion dollar two day tally for retailers.
Posted: 11/25/2007 - In Aspen some locals are praying to the Norse ski god Ullr in hopes of bringing some of the white stuff.
Updated: 11/26/2007 - Christmas Tree cutting permits go on sale Monday.
Posted: 11/25/2007 - An effort to tinker with New Mexico's image in a new advertising campaign has sparked debate among tourism officials.
Posted: 11/24/2007 - Aurora police say a 16-year-old driver who crashed into an apartment building will be held on charges of felony eluding and second-degree motor vehicle theft.
Posted: 11/24/2007 - A man was arrested earlier today and faces several charges after allegedly ramming a car driven by an off-duty police officer.
Updated: 11/24/2007 - Almost a decade ago, a 14 year old girl walking to school was run over by a car. But on Saturday, that girl, now 23 years old, reached out and said 'thank you' to the people who helped save her life.
Posted: 11/24/2007 - Former astronaut Robert Stewart says the U.S. space program is in a rut, and needs some kind of goal like getting to Mars to revive itself. He said the space agency is going in the wrong direction.
Posted: 11/24/2007 - Balmy and dry fall weather could snap the Colorado ski industry's two-year string of record snowrider numbers. Last year, despite getting less snow than the season before, numbers were still up 6.7 percent.


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In our previous paper (2000), a Bayesian software reliability model with stochastically decreasing hazard rate was presented. Within any given failure time interval, the hazard rate is a function of both total testing time as well as number of encountered encountered failures. In this paper, to improve the predictive performance of our previously proposed model, a pseudo-failure is inserted whenever there is a period of failure-free execution equals (1-α)th percentile of the predictive distribution for time until the next failure has passed. We apply the enhanced model with pseudo-failures inserted to actual software failure data and show it gives better results under the sum of square errors criteria compared to previous Bayesian models and other existing times between failures models
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Here's mine:
Pianoteq's dynamic sound and rich resonance make this beautiful piece a joy to play.
2015 Video contest results
Thanks to all participants
Read the contest rules in the Pianoteq forum.
Here's mine:
Greetings to all,
Here I am talking and demonstrating the differences of 5 pianos types from Pianoteq 5. To show this differences I am playing excerpts from a variety of composers and at the end I played the entire piece by Villa-Lobos: Polichinelo.
I choose some specific instrument that fits better for each composition. It is just a great feature of Pianoteq and the playability is wonderful.
For Bach - K2/ for Beethoven - Broadwood / for Chopin - Pleyel / for Blüthner model 1 - Rachmaninoff and Brahms / for the Steinway D4 - more Chopin and Debussy.
At the end with Villa-Lobos I change between two piano (Steinway D4 and Blüthner model 1), so you can figure out what is better.
I just downloaded a demo version, but a friend rendered the midi files for me, so we can listen all the notes.
Hope you enjoy!
Best Regards
I've got some time by my self tonight and what to do if not a Pianoteq video?
I must admit that this was fun to do... I hope You will enjoy watching it as much as I did doing it!
Hi everybody,
Mario's hardly playing with his gloves :
All videos on my YouTube channel are performed on Pianoteq 5 !
I am using some other instruments alongside Pianoteq (bass, french horn, trumpet, flute and drums), keeping focus on how excellent Ptq works especially with wind instruments, and trying to get beautiful harmony, with Ptq purposely in the foreground. Got ideas from Jordan Rudess "Harmony explored". For me, Ptq is the best thing anyone has done when making pianosound. Thank you for listening.
F. Chopin — Valse Op. 64. No. 1
F. Chopin — Nocturne Op. 48 No. 2
F. Chopin — Etude Op. 25. No. 9
Performed by Andrei Kuznetsov
Hello Pianoteq Users and/or world,
This is my entry for the Video Contest for 2015! I am using the Pleyel Model, which was Chopin's favorite Piano Brand :) I hope you like it.
Greetings from Lima -Peru
my goodness, how do I even dare compete with lo134's post above… one of my favourite tunes from one of my favourite movies performed so passionately… that really threw me off posting my own effort! Maybe I can hope for 2nd or 3rd place lol… would love to get that Bluthner add-on!
Anyway, I've been trying to do the Youtube thing since around the middle of the year - always using Pianoteq of course - and only recently got the hang of syncing up my video and audio recordings… this is my favourite of my latest session, I hope you like :)
А. Скрябин. Этюд op.2, №1.(Kawai vpc1 - Pianoteq 5.4.2)
Another version of Scriabin etude))
I use pianoteq for all my projects and performances.
This is a live performance and it was recorded on 22 October while I was broadcasting live from my studio.
I hope you like it.
Pianoteq is an incredible piece of software that has made it possible for me to musically connect intimately with an electric piano for the first time. I'm very happy to add my modest contribution to the large body of evidence already present on youtube.
This improvisational piece in Eb Major is rather uniform but it shows how amazingly well Pianoteq handles a piece with lots of pedal. Perhaps one of you might even listen to the very end :-).
Haken Continuum meets Pianoteq Concert Harp
This is my video performing A Comme Amour.
I am new here and this is my first post. And also this is my first composition made with Pianoteq - I used the demo version.
I like very much old pianos and specific old pianos and Pianoteq has a lot of them - my favourites are Bechstein and Pleyel. I hope Pianoteq will introduce more old pianos like Gaveau, Brüder Mikula etc.
I tried to obtain the sound of a concrete old piano from my school that I remember very well and will tell you more about it in one of my subsequent posts - I think I was almost there except a somewhat more wooden nuance that I still don't know how to produce with Pianoteq.
Please consider both the composition and the animation as a sketch and as an interpretation. I hope you will like both.
No virtuoso stuff from me, but this is how (just started to) use pianoteq...
(by the way: I love the idea of this contest.)
Hello There,
Well I purchased PIanoteq Stage a few months ago and I am genuinely amazed by the performance and the quality.
As I was messing about with the CP80 and the effects, I thought about this great tune form Portishead (Glory Box) sampled from the great Isaac Hayes !
Then I got a bit carried away and put together a quick piece. Hope you'll enjoy it.
I purchased pianoteq 5 stage and a Kawai keyboard last week.
My mom played this song for me.
I love this song which reminds me hope and love.
I will practice piano and wanted to be a pianist like her.
Hope you enjoy and feel happiness.
She agreed to be in this contest.
A piano arrangement for the song "And When She Danced" by David Foster. I hope you enjoy it! Thank you.
Decided to submit a recent live online concert video of mine that did not have too many mistakes :) . Been using Pianoteq 5 for about six months with a Yamaha Grantouch ca. 2000.
Here is my video for the contest, just for the fun, I am not a high level pianist and only play for my pleasure.
There is just a mistake, the sound is Bluthner model one BA and not AB ;)
My entry for the contest. Sorry about the lame video, my camera died on me :S.
Here is my contribution. Pianoteq 5 trial version, D4 classical recording BA. Controller is M-Audio Keystation p88 pro.
i use the retuning functionality of Pianoteq, namely a subset of 17-equal. 17-equal tuning supports neutral seconds and thirds, making it possible to play approximations of oriental scales. A few of these appear in the piece.
Hello cracks,
here's my contribution to the annual pianoteq-contest.
I'm not after winning any price, I almost comprehend it as a good old tradition.
Hope, you'll like it.
Hi, here's my video for the competition !
The music is Chopin Etude op.25 n.2
I'm using the D4 Daily Practice with Clean Studio effect on a Roland FP-4
Hope you'll enjoy !
Hello everyone. For my entry, I recorded Rachmaninoff's Prelude in G minor, Op. 23, No. 5. I hope you like it. Thanks!
Here´s a new Beethoven Moonlight Sonata Improvisation with Pianoteq Rhodes and Blüthner emulations in a melange of pop, jazz and classic styles.
Saludos from Mexico.
Hello, as the last years my entry 2 hours before the end of the contest :)
Etude N°12 Opus 10 "Revolutionary" Frédéric Chopin.
Hello Pianoteq users,
this is my entry for the video contest 2015. Just a little late-night improvisation on a well-known harmony which really was fun with Pianoteq 5.
I am using a customized version of the "D4 Jazz Recording AB" preset. The impulse response used for the convolution reverb is the St. Nicolaes Church.
Hopefully some of you like it. :-)
Here is my video for the contest.
I wrote this song recently and made an effort to put in some variation. Jazz parts in swing rhythm are mixed with more ballad style parts.
I used the "D4 Jazz" setting in Pianoteq 5, and recorded the audio in Logic.
I hope you enjoy it! Cheers. /Thomas
And here is mine:
A year a go I bought this piano and PIANOTEQ. In april I also bought a guitar. I know I'm just a beginner but I just want to share the pleasure of playing music.
This piece is based on the folksong Saint James Infirmary Blues. First I play the sheet paper of Gerald Martin and then I take my first steps in improvisation.


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Top Definition
Unlike the word edible, which means can be consumed, eatible means it will be consumed.
Sure, canned bacon is edible. But that doesn't make it eatible.
ayon kay Something915 ika-17 ng Marso, 2009
Trending Now
Ang mga sulat are galing sa email@example.com. Kailanma'y hindi kami magpapadala ng spam sa inyo.×


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[Hammacher Schlemmer via Coolest Gadgets]
Here's The Saddest Batman Utility Belt Ever
Trending Stories Right Now
Why The Metric System Is So Important
Video. Myanmar, Liberia and the United States of America. Those are the only three countries left in the world that don't use the metric system. Ted-Ed traces the history of the metric system (thank you French Revolution) to show how important it is to have one universal measurement system for the world, what can happen when conversions go wrong (NASA crashing an orbiter into Mars), and what the future of the metric system will be (basing it off universal constants like the speed of light).
This Guy Fell Off A Waterslide And Down A Rocky Cliff But He's Fine, Everything Is Fine
Video. It's basically every water slider's worst nightmare. You don't want to fall off. But you couldn't fall off, right? The people who design waterslides wouldn't let that happen. Right? Well, one guy from Dallas learned the hard way that you can't trust anybody these days. Especially waterslide designers.


text:
Creative ZiiSound Dx Series speakers hands-onPocket-lint
Building on the success of its D5 Bluetooth speaker, launched in 2010, Creative has introduced the updated ZiiSound Dx wireless speaker system and we were lucky enough to get a sneak preview.
The wireless modular speaker system comprises the ZiiSound D5x one-piece speaker, the ZiiSound D3x speaker and the ZiiSound DSx wireless subwoofer. The aim is to "challenge the traditional audio system" by offering a flexible sound system that will play off pretty much any Bluetooth-enabled device including the iPhone and Android and Blackberry handsets, as well as a wide range of tablets. Although the speakers are wireless, in that they don't have to be wired up to each other or to the music source, there is a still a power cable present.
All of the products feature apt-X Bluetooth technology for CD quality playback and you can choose the set-up that you want. For example, if cash is tight then you might opt for one of the two standalone speakers (the D5x and the D3x). If you want to add some extra bass, then you can invest in one of the DSx sub-woofers. If you want a 2.1 system, then simply add an extra D5x or D3x speaker and you can also set yourself up with a 3.1 system by adding one more. And if you really want to push the boat out, then you can invest in a second sub-woofer (the system will in fact supports up to four sub-woofers - that's a hell of a lot of bass).
The fact that the system is flexible means that you can have as several different speaker set-ups in various rooms around the house - you can just pick and mix whichever components are most suitable, so while a one-piece speaker might be ok for bedroom listening, you can kit yourself out with a 3.1 system for your living room.
Although the system will work with most Bluetooth products, Creative offers the BT-D5 Bluetooth trasmitter for iDevices, which is equipped with the same apt-X technology as the speakers and will also charge your iPod or iPhone during playback.
The new DX series has clearly taken its design cues from the D5 speaker - with the D5x looking pretty much identical to its predecessor. All of the components are very compact, so even if you opt for a full 3.2 system, they shouldn't take up too much room. There's aren't any controls on the speakers, so all the track changing is done directly from the iPod (or whatever you're using).
Although the speakers were already set up for our demo, we were assured that this is a very simple process, as once powered up, the base speaker will automatically search for other Bluetooth devices to hook up to.
The audio quality was certainly impressive, both on vocals and intrumental tracks. The sound was warm and clear, although it did sound as though a certain amount of clarity would be lost if you were to turn the volume up too high. The low-frequency response from the subwoofers was very strong and even made the windows rattle. Our first impressions of the new speaker series were good - but we'll get them in for a more in-depth review as soon as we can.
The ZiiSound D5x will hit the shops in June, priced at £279.99. The ZiiSound DSx sub-woofer will launch at the same time for £139.99, but you'll have to wait until August for the ZiiSound D3x, which will come with a price tag of £139.99.
The future of sound: KOAR Bone Conduction Bluetooth headset delivers audio to your inner ear
Harman Kardon Go + Play review: Post-retro design, powerful audio
Plex now lets you play music on any Sonos device from the Sonos app
Audio-Technica ATH-MSR7NC headphones review: Make some noise
- The future of sound: KOAR Bone Conduction Bluetooth headset delivers audio to your inner ear
- Harman Kardon Go + Play review: Post-retro design, powerful audio
- Plex now lets you play music on any Sonos device from the Sonos app
- Audio-Technica ATH-MSR7NC headphones review: Make some noise
- Deezer launches in the US: How does the music-streaming service work?
- Zemi Aria speaker review: Majors and minors
- Magnetic Bluetooth 4.1 Wireless Sport headphones deliver 5 hours of clear music and podcasts (37 per cent off)
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- Best Galaxy S7 and S7 edge cases: Protect your new Samsung device


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Updated: 11/03/2014 9:11 PM |
Created: 10/10/2013 10:33 PM
By: Chris Ramirez, KOB Eyewitness News 4
Reporter's Notebook: Problems, concerns, and dysfunction in New Mexico come across a reporter's desk every day. We often make decisions about how to cover these stories with initially very little information.
When the story about Tierra Blanca Ranch hit my desk, all I knew at the time was that a teenaged boy, Bruce, had died in a truck rollover on the ranch land. My News Director asked that I look into Tierra Blanca Ranch to see if there is anything more to the story…and I'm so glad I listened.
Within hours of taking the assignment, I had built case files with hundreds of pages of documents of allegations in police reports and state documents that showed a pattern of complaints alleging rampant abuse at Tierra Blanca Ranch. At least a dozen boys interviewed at different times by different investigators said they were forced into child slavery by tending the 30,000 acre ranch owned by Scott Chandler. They told stories of working outside for up to 15 hours a day in grueling conditions, sometimes in extreme temperatures. They said they were punished by excessive exercises, food deprivation, threats of castration, and brutal beatings. In a police report, one teen described being forced by a staff member to put rocks and sand in a sock and beat his friend. The boys also described what they called a "firewall." When a teen is "firewalled," he's not allowed to talk to other people or be spoken to, which as you can imagine creates a very lonely existence.
It's important that we question why a man who admits he and his staff have no professional training to work with at-risk kids is taking in dozens of teens with serious behavioral health issues. It's also important that we question what our state agencies have done about these allegations.
The story of Tierra Blanca Ranch represents why investigative journalism is so important. This story gives a voice to teens who once thought nobody would listen to them. Investigative journalism allows us to expose wrongdoing and hold those who we entrust with protecting our children accountable.
I know there are parents and perhaps former or current teens who will contact me and profess Tierra Blanca Ranch sincerely helped them through troubled times. These same people may chastise me for aggressively getting answers about what's going on here. Let me be clear about something. When children claim they were abused while in the care of someone else, I will ask every question necessary to understand the full scope of the truth. To ignore something like that not only goes against the ethics I hold as a journalist, but goes against every part of my soul.
The pressure is on the New Mexico State Police and the NM Children's Youth and Families Department to carefully investigate these claims and take appropriate action based on what they find. The 4 On Your Side team will be carefully watching each step these state agencies make in the days and weeks to come and we'll report back to you—our viewer.
KOB welcomes a lively and courteous discussion as long as you follow the rules of conduct set forth in our Terms of Use. Comments are not pre-screened before they post. You agree that anything you post may be used, along with your name and profile picture, in accordance with our Privacy Policy and the license you have granted pursuant to our Terms of Use.
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Under pressure from influential investors many of the American corporate are spinning off their businesses and this time it's Xerox.
Reportedly, Xerox, the name synonymous to office copiers, decided to spin off its services business from the legacy hardware section. The process is expected to be completed by this year's end.
According to sources, a major part of the spinoff will include Affiliated Computer Services, an outsourcing company which was bought by Xerox in 2010 in a $6.4 billion deal. Rest of the company will maintain its focus on what it is best known for, that's its key office supply products like copiers, fax machines and scanners.
Behind this spinoff plan there is Carl C. Icahn, the activist investor who succeeded in campaigning for spinning off PayPal from eBay in 2015.
It's expected that the plan will be made public on Friday when Xerox is scheduled to report its fourth-quarter financial report.
With the spinoff in the cards, Xerox will join the list of many other companied that have faced investor pressure and separated their businesses. In September, Alcoa announced it would split its commodities business from the metal products business. In 2014, Hewlett- Packard also decided to split.
Canada News
- Fire threatens entire city in Alberta
- Authorities order evacuation of entire city in Alberta due to wildfire
- Mitel Networks Corp of Canada to Buy Polycom Inc for Almost $2 Billion
- Reportedly Bombardier Inc. is Nearing a Deal with Delta for C Series Jetliners
- Review shows alcohol has no net health benefits