text:
This page explains the image syntax when editing the wiki. You or another user must usually upload an image before you can use it on a page.
Images that are stored on a MediaWiki server are usually rendered by using the
File: namespace prefix (but the legacy
Image: namespace prefix is still supported as a synonym) as the target of a MediaWiki link. The alternate
Media: namespace prefix is also usable to reference the original media file content (for rendering or downloading it separately, out of any MediaWiki page).
Supported media types for images
The following file formats are supported by default:
- .jpg or .jpeg : bitmap image compressed in the standard JPEG format (this lossy format is most suitable for photographs).
- .png : bitmap image in the Portable Network Graphics format (specified by the W3 Consortium).
- .gif : bitmap image in the legacy Graphics Interchange Format.
Other formats used on Wikimedia, and commonly enabled elsewhere (these may require extra set-up beyond what is enabled by default):
- .svg : scalable image in the Scalable Vector Graphics format (specified by the W3 Consortium).
- .tiff : Tagged image format. Often used for high-resolution archival photographs. Often used with the PagedTiffHandler extension..
- .ogg, .oga, .ogv : Ogg multimedia (audio or video) Not an image format, but treated similarly. Often used with the OggHandler extension
- .pdf : multipaged documents in the Portable Document Format (initially specified by Adobe). Often used in conjunction with PdfHandler extension.
- .djvu : multipaged bitmap documents in the DejaVu format (most often, scans of books).
- Only a single page of a .pdf or .djvu file is shown at one time.
Other media types may be supported, but it may not be possible to display them inline.
Rendering a single image
The full syntax for displaying an image is:
where options can be zero or more of the following, separated by pipes (|):
- Format option: one of border and/or frameless, frame, thumb (or thumbnail);
- Controls how the rendered image is formatted and embedded in the rest of the page.
- Resizing option: one of
- {width}px — Resizes the image to fit within the given maximum width in pixels, without restricting its height;
- x{height}px — Resizes the image to fit within the given maximum height in pixels, without restricting its width;
- {width}x{height}px — Resizes the image to fit within the given width and height in pixels;
- upright — Resizes an image to fit within reasonable dimensions, according to user preferences (suitable for images whose height is larger than width).
- Note that the image will always retain its aspect ratio, and can only be reduced (not increased) in size unless it's in a scalable media type (bitmap images cannot be scaled up).
- The default maximum size depends on the format and the internal image dimensions (according to its media type).
- Horizontal alignment option: one of left, right, center, none;
- Controls the horizontal alignment (and inline/block or floating styles) of the image within a text (no default value).
- Vertical alignment option: one of baseline, sub, super, top, text-top, middle, bottom, text-bottom;
- Controls the vertical alignment of a non-floating inline image with the text before or after the image, and in the same block (the default vertical alignment is middle).
- Link option: one of
- link={target} — Allows to change the target (to an arbitrary page title, or URL) of the generated link, activable on the rendered image surface; e.g.
[[File:Example.jpg|20px|link=http://www.wikipedia.org]]renders as (external link), or
[[File:Example.jpg|20px|link=MediaWiki]]renders as (internal link).
- link= (with an empty value) — (MediaWiki 1.14+) Displays an image without any activable link; e.g.
[[File:Example.jpg|20px|link=]]renders as .
- ! If you set
|link=|(empty), then no
titlewill be rendered. (see bugzilla:21454)
- ! If you set
- link={target} — Allows to change the target (to an arbitrary page title, or URL) of the generated link, activable on the rendered image surface; e.g.
- Other specific options:
- alt={alternative text} — (MediaWiki 1.14+) Defines the alternative text (maps to the HTML attribute
alt="..."of the generated
element) of an image that will be rendered if either the referenced image cannot be downloaded and embedded, or if the support media must use the alternative description text (e.g. when using a Braille reader or with accessibility options set by the user in its browser).
- page={number} — Renders the specified page number (currently only applicable when showing a .djvu or .pdf file).
- class={html class} — (MediaWiki 1.20+) Defines classes (maps to the HTML attribute
class="..."of the generated
element)
- lang={language code} — (MediaWiki 1.22+) For SVG files containing <switch> statements varying on a systemLanguage attribute, selects what language to render the file in. The default is always English, even on non-English wikis.
- alt={alternative text} — (MediaWiki 1.14+) Defines the alternative text (maps to the HTML attribute
If a parameter does not match any of the other possibilities, it is assumed to be the caption text. Caption text only shows below the image in thumb and frame formats. Caption text displayed in the thumb and frame formats may contain wiki links and other formatting. Note that MediaWiki extensions can add additional options.
If 'alt' is not specified and a caption is provided, the alternative text will be created automatically from the caption, stripped of formatting.
The following table shows the effect of all available formats.
|You type
|You get
|no format specified
Rendered as a floating block: no
Rendered inline: yes
Rendered caption: no
... text text text [[File:example.jpg|caption]] text text text ...
|... text text text
|border results in a very small gray border
Rendered as a floating block: no
Rendered inline: yes
Rendered caption: no
... text text text [[File:example.jpg|border|caption]] text text text ...
|... text text text
|frameless, like thumbnail, respect user preferences for image width, but without border and no right float
Rendered as a floating block: no
Rendered inline: yes
Rendered caption: no
... text text text [[File:example.jpg|frameless|caption]] text text text ...
|... text text text
|frameless and border
Rendered as a floating block: no
Rendered inline: yes
Rendered caption: no
... text text text [[File:example.jpg|frameless|border|caption]] text text text ...
|... text text text
Rendered as a floating block: yes
Rendered inline: no
Rendered caption: yes
... text text text [[File:example.jpg|frame|caption]] text text text ...
|... text text text
text text text ...
|thumb or thumbnail
Rendered as a floating block: yes
Rendered inline: no
Rendered caption: yes
... text text text [[File:example.jpg|thumb|caption]] text text text ...
|... text text text
text text text ...
When the height of an image in thumbnail is bigger than its width (i.e. in portrait orientation rather than landscape) and you find it too large, you may try the option
upright, which will try to adjust its size to a more desirable size by reducing the height instead of the width. The alternative is to specify the desired maximum height (in pixels) explicitly.
Note that by writing
thumb={filename}, you can use a different image for the thumbnail.
Size and frame
Among different formats, the effect of the size parameter may be different, as shown below.
- For how it appears when its size is not specified, see Format section above.
- When the format is not specified, or only
bordered, the size can be both reduced and enlarged to any specified size.
- In the examples below, the original size of the image is 400 × 267 pixels.
- An image with
framealways ignores the size specification, the original image will be reduced if it exceeds the maximum size defined in user preferences.
- The size of an image with
thumbcan be reduced, but can not be enlarged beyond the original size of the image.
|(not specified)
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample|50px]]
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample||50px]]
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample|500px]]
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample||500px]]
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample|border|50px]]
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample|border|50px]]
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample|border|500px]]
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample|border|500px]]
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample|frame|50px]]
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample|frame|50px]]
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample|frame|500px]]
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample|frame|500px]]
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample|thumb|50px]]
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample|thumb|50px]]
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample|thumb|500px]]
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample|thumb|500px]]
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample|frameless|50px]]
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample|frameless|50px]]
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample|frameless|500px]]
[[File:MediaWiki:Image sample|frameless|500px]]
Horizontal alignment
Note that when using the
frame or
thumb[nail] formats, the default horizontal alignment will be
|You type
|You get
|no horizontal alignment specified, or default alignment
Rendered as a floating block: no
Rendered inline: yes
... text text text [[File:example.jpg|100px|caption]] text text text ...
|... text text text
|specify horizontal alignment as: none
Rendered as a floating block: no
Rendered inline: no
... text text text [[File:example.jpg|none|100px|caption]] text text text ...
|... text text text
text text text ...
|specify horizontal alignment as: center
Rendered as a floating block: no
Rendered inline: no
... text text text [[File:example.jpg|center|100px|caption]] text text text ...
|... text text text
text text text ...
|specify horizontal alignment as: left
Rendered as a floating block: yes
Rendered inline: no
... text text text [[File:example.jpg|left|100px|caption]] text text text ...
|... text text text
text text text ...
|specify horizontal alignment as: right
Rendered as a floating block: yes
Rendered inline: no
... text text text [[File:example.jpg|right|100px|caption]] text text text ...
|... text text text
text text text ...
Vertical alignment
The vertical alignment options take effect only if the image is rendered as an inline element and is not floating. They alter the way the inlined image will be vertically aligned with the text present in the same block before and/or after this image on the same rendered row.
Note that the rendered line of text where inline images are inserted (and the lines of text rendered after the current one) may be moved down (this will increase the line-height conditionally by additional line spacing, just as it may occur with spans of text with variable font sizes, or with superscripts and subscripts) to allow the image height to be fully displayed with this alignment constraint.

text
'''top:''' [[File:Example.jpg|20px|top]] [[File:Example.jpg|40px|top]] [[File:Example.jpg|100px|top]]

text
'''text-top:''' [[File:Example.jpg|20px|text-top]] [[File:Example.jpg|40px|text-top]] [[File:Example.jpg|100px|text-top]]

text
super: [[File:Example.jpg|20px|super]] [[File:Example.jpg|40px|super]] [[File:Example.jpg|100px|super]]

text
'''baseline:''' [[File:Example.jpg|20px|baseline]] [[File:Example.jpg|40px|baseline]] [[File:Example.jpg|100px|baseline]]

text
'''sub:''' [[File:Example.jpg|20px|sub]] [[File:Example.jpg|40px|sub]] [[File:Example.jpg|100px|sub]]

text
'''default:''' [[File:Example.jpg|20px]][[File:Example.jpg|40px]] [[File:Example.jpg|100px]]

text
'''middle:''' [[File:Example.jpg|20px|middle]] [[File:Example.jpg|40px|middle]] [[File:Example.jpg|100px|middle]]

text
'''text-bottom:''' [[File:Example.jpg|20px|text-bottom]] [[File:Example.jpg|40px|text-bottom]] [[File:Example.jpg|100px|text-bottom]]

text
'''bottom:'' [[File:Example.jpg|20px|bottom]] [[File:Example.jpg|40px|bottom]] [[File:Example.jpg|100px|bottom]]
To show the alignment result more clearly, the text spans are overlined and underlined, the font-size is increased to 200%, and the paragraph block is outlined with a thin border; additionally images of different sizes are aligned:
- The "middle" vertical alignment position of the image (which is also the default) usually refers to the middle between the x-height and the baseline of the text (on which the vertical middle of the image will be aligned, and on which usually the text may be overstroke), but not to the middle of the line-height of the font-height that refers to the space between the "text-top" and "text-bottom" positions ; the font-height excludes:
- the additional line separation spacing normally divided equally into two line-margins (here 0.5em, according to line-height set to 200%) above and below the font-height).
- the additional line spacing which may be added by superscripts and subscripts.
- However, if the image height causes its top or bottom position to go above or below the normal full line-height of text, the middle position will be adjusted after the increasing the top and/or bottom line-margins so that the image can fit and align properly, and all images (including those with smaller heights) will be vertically centered on the adjusted middle position (for computing the effective line-height, the text of each rendered row with the larger font-height will be considered).
- The "text-top" and "text-bottom" alignment positions also excludes the extra line spacing added by superscripts and subscripts, but not the additional line-spacing defined by the line-height.
- The "top" and "bottom" alignment positions take into account all these extra line spacings (including superscripts and subscripts, if they are present in a rendered line span). When the image alignment constrains the image to grow above or below the normal line-spacing, and the image is not absolutely positioned, the image will cause the "top" and "bottom" positions to be adjusted (just like superscripts and subscripts), so the effective line-height between rendered lines of text will be higher.
- The "underline", "overline" and "overstrike" text-decoration positions should be somewhere within these two limits and may depend on the type and height of fonts used (the superscript and subscript styles may be taken into account in some browsers, but usually these styles are ignored and the position of these decorations may not be adjusted); so these decorations normally don't affect the vertical position of images, relatively to the text.
Stopping the text flow
On occasion it is desirable to stop text (or other inline non-floating images) from flowing around a floating image. Depending on the web browser's screen resolution and such, text flow on the right side of an image may cause a section header (for instance, == My Header ==) to appear to the right of the image, instead of below it, as a user may expect. The text flow can be stopped by placing
 (or if you prefer,

) before the text that should start below the floating image. (This may also be done without an empty line by wrapping the section with the floating images with
…
, which clears all floats inside the
div element.)
All images rendered as blocks (including non-floating centered images, left- or right-floating images, as well as framed or thumbnailed floating images) are implicitly breaking the surrounding lines of text (terminating the current block of text before the image, and creating a new paragraph for the text after them). They will then stack vertically along their left or right alignment margin (or along the center line between these margins for centered images).
Altering the default link target
The following table shows how to alter the link target (whose default is the image description page) or how to remove it. Changing the link does not alter the format described in the previous sections.
|You type
|You get
|internal link
... text text text [[File:example.jpg|link=Main Page|caption]] text text text ...
|... text text text
|external link
... text text text [[File:example.jpg|link=http://wikipedia.org/wiki/Test|caption]] text text text ...
|... text text text
|no link (external or file page)
... text text text [[File:example.jpg|link=|caption]] text text text ...
|... text text text
text text text ...
- The licencing requirements on your wiki may not allow you to remove all links to the description page that displays the required authors attributions, the copyrights statements, the applicable licencing terms, or a more complete description of the rendered image (including its history of modifications).
- If you change or remove the target link of an image, you will then have to provide somewhere else on your page an explicit link to this description page, or to display the copyright and author statement and a link to the applicable licence, if they are different from the elements applicable to the embedding page itself.
- Your wiki policy may restrict the use of the alternate link parameter, or may even enforce a prohibition of alternate link parameters for embedded media files (in which case, the link parameter will be ignored), or may only accept them after validation by authorized users or administrators.
Rendering a gallery of images
Gallery syntax
It's easy to make a gallery of thumbnails with the
<gallery> tag. The syntax is:
<gallery> File:file_name.ext|caption|alt=alt language File:file_name.ext|caption|alt=alt language {...} </gallery>
Note that the image code is not enclosed in brackets when enclosed in gallery tags.
Captions are optional, and may contain wiki links or other formatting. Some of the parameters controlling thumb output can also be used here, specifically the one's that modify the file (as opposed to one's that control where in the page the image falls). For example, with multi-paged media like pdfs, you can use code like
File: prefix can be omitted.
for example:
<gallery> File:Example.jpg|Item 1 File:Example.jpg|a link to [[Help:Contents]] File:Example.jpg File:Example.jpg|alt=An example image. It has flowers File:Example.jpg| ''italic caption'' File:Example.jpg|on page "{{PAGENAME}}" </gallery>
is formatted as:
a link to Help:Contents
mode parameter
|MediaWiki version:
|≥ 1.22
Starting in 1.22 we have experimental mode parameter, taking options traditional, nolines, packed, packed-overlay, and packed-hover. Traditional is the original gallery type used by MediaWiki. Nolines is like traditional, but with less borders. packed causes images to have the same height, but different widths, with little space between the images. "packed-overlay" allows the caption to be overlaid on top of the image. Last of all "packed-hover" is like "packed-overlay", but with the caption only showing up on hover.
For example:
<gallery mode="packed-hover"> Image:Astronotus_ocellatus.jpg|''[[commons:Astronotus ocellatus|Astronotus ocellatus]]'' (Oscar) Image:Salmonlarvakils.jpg|''[[commons:Salmo salar|Salmo salar]]'' (Salmon Larva) Image:Georgia Aquarium - Giant Grouper.jpg|''[[commons:Epinephelus lanceolatus|Epinephelus lanceolatus]]'' (Giant grouper) Image:Pterois volitans Manado-e.jpg|''[[commons:Pterois volitans|Pterois volitans]]'' (Red Lionfish) Image:Macropodus opercularis - front (aka).jpg|''[[commons:Macropodus opercularis|Macropodus opercularis]]'' (Paradise fish) Image:Canthigaster valentini 1.jpg|''[[commons:Canthigaster valentini|Canthigaster valentini]]'' (Valentinni's sharpnose puffer) Image:Flughahn.jpg|[[Image:POTY ribbon 2007.svg|25px]] ''[[commons:Dactylopterus volitans|Dactylopterus volitans]]'' (Flying gurnard) Image:Fishmarket 01.jpg|''[[commons:Semicossyphus pulcher|Semicossyphus pulcher]]'' (California Sheephead) Image:Pseudorasbora parva(edited version).jpg|''[[commons:Category:Pseudorasbora parva|Pseudorasbora parva]]'' (Topmouth gudgeon) Image:MC Rotfeuerfisch.jpg|''[[commons:Category:Pterois antennata|Pterois antennata]]'' (Antennata Lionfish) Image:Cleaning station konan.jpg|''[[commons:Novaculichthys taeniourus|Novaculichthys taeniourus]]'' Image:Synchiropus splendidus 2 Luc Viatour.jpg|''[[commons:Synchiropus splendidus|Synchiropus splendidus]]'' (Mandarin fish) File:Psetta maxima Luc Viatour.jpg|''[[commons:Psetta maxima|Psetta maxima]]'' (Turbot) File:Australian blenny.jpg|''[[commons:Category:Ecsenius|Ecsenius axelrodi]]'' </gallery>
Gives (mode: packed-hover):
Examples of the other modes:
Optional gallery attributes
The gallery tag itself takes several additional parameters, specified as attribute name-value pairs:
<gallery {parameters}> {images} </gallery>
caption="{caption}": (caption text between double quotes for more than a word) sets a caption centered atop the gallery.
widths={width}px: sets the widths of the images, default 120px. Note the plural, widths
heights={heights}px: sets the (max) heights of the images.
perrow={integer}: sets the number of images per row. 0 means automatically adjust based on width of screen
showfilename={anything}: Show the filenames of the images in the individual captions for each image (1.17+)
mode={traditional|nolines|packed|packed-hover|packed-overlay}: See section above (1.22+)
<gallery widths=60px heights=60px perrow=7 caption="sunflowers are groovy"> File:Example.jpg File:Example.jpg File:Example.jpg File:Example.jpg File:Example.jpg File:Example.jpg File:Example.jpg File:Example.jpg File:Example.jpg File:Example.jpg </gallery>
Link behavior
By default an image links to its file description page. The "link=" option modifies this behavior to link to another page or website, or to turn off the image's linking behavior. Alternatively, you can create a text link to an image's description page or to the image itself.
Text link to image's file description page
Use a colon (
:) before
File: to link to image's file description page:
[[:File:MediaWiki:Image sample]]
[[:File:MediaWiki:Image sample]]
[[:File:MediaWiki:Image sample|Sunflowers]]
[[:File:MediaWiki:Image sample|Sunflowers]]
Text link to actual image
Use pseudo-namespace "Media" for a text link to the actual image:
[[Media:MediaWiki:Image sample]]
[[Media:MediaWiki:Image sample]]
[[Media:MediaWiki:Image sample|Sunflowers]]
[[Media:MediaWiki:Image sample|Sunflowers]]
(If above gets you instead a text link to the image's file description, not a link to the actual image, perhaps your wiki's namespaces are configured out of compliance with this feature?)
Display image, link it to another page or website
Use "link=" option to link image to another page or website:
Clicking on the below image will take you to MediaWiki:
Clicking on the below image will take you to example.com:
Display image, turn off link
Use "link=" option with no value assigned to turn link off entirely; the below image is not a link:
Before using images in your page, the system administrator of your wiki must have enabled file uploads and a user has to upload the file. System administrators may also set the wiki to accept files from foreign repositories, such as the Wikimedia Commons. For server side image resizing it is necessary to have a scaler configured (such as GD2, ImageMagick, etc.).
Files at other websites
You can link to an external file available online using the same syntax used for linking to an external web page. With these syntaxes, the image will not be rendered, but only the text of the link to this image will be displayed.
Or with a different displayed text:
[http://url.for/some/image.png link text here]
Additional MediaWiki markup or HTML/CSS formatting (for inline elements) is permitted in this displayed text (with the exception of embedded links that would break the surrounding link):
[http://www.example.com/some/image.png Example '''rich''' ''link text'' here.]
which renders as: Example
rich here.
If it is enabled on your wiki (see Manual:$wgAllowExternalImages), you can also embed external images. To do that, simply insert the image's url:
Currently, embedded images cannot be resized, but they may be formatted by surrounding MediaWiki markup or HTML/CSS code.
If this wiki option is not enabled, the image will not be embedded but rendered as a textual link to the external site, just like above.
Displaying a web site screenshot thumbnail
For displaying a web site screenshot thumbnail with MediaWiki, you have to write the full external link image (ending with ".jpg") provided by www.robothumb.com.
You have to set true in your LocalSettings Manual:$wgAllowExternalImages too.
The syntax is simple :
where [url] is the url of the page to be displayed, example : http://www.example.com
available sizes for the parameter [size] are :
- 100x75
- 120x90
- 160x120
- 180x135
- 240x180
- 320x240
- 560x420
- 640x480
- 800x600
Example :
Including an external link :
[http://example.com http://www.robothumb.com/src/http://firstname.lastname@example.com]
Note the mandatory space after the first http://example.com.
You can see examples here.


text:
Filters: Author is Fei Li [Clear All Filters]
Constraining CMIP6 Projections of an Ice-Free Arctic Using a Weighting Scheme. Earth's Future 10, (2022).
Strengthened linkage between midlatitudes and Arctic in boreal winter. Climate Dynamics 53, (2019).
Oceanic forcing of the global warming slowdown in multi-model simulations. International Journal of Climatology (2020).doi:10.1002/joc.6548
Atlantic multidecadal oscillation modulates the impacts of Arctic sea ice decline. Geophysical Research Letters 45, (2018).
Modulation of Aleutian Low and Antarctic Oscillation co-variability by ENSO. Climate Dynamics 44, (2015).
Stratospheric precursor of non-uniform variation in early spring surface temperature over Eurasia. Journal of Meteorological Research 31, (2017).
Arctic sea-ice loss intensifies aerosol transport to the Tibetan Plateau. Nature Climate Change 10, (2020).
Modulation of Aleutian Low and Antarctic Oscillation co-variability by ENSO. Climate Dynamics (2014).doi:10.1007/s00382-014-2134-4
The projected Siberian High in CMIP5 models. Atmospheric and Oceanic Science Letters 8, (2015).
The change in sea ice cover is responsible for non-uniform variation in winter temperature over East Asia. Atmospheric and Oceanic Science Letters 8, (2015).
Extratropical ocean warming and winter arctic sea ice cover since the 1990s. Journal of Climate 28, (2015).
Impact of snow initialization in subseasonal-to-seasonal winter forecasts with the Norwegian Climate Prediction Model. Journal of Geophysical Research (JGR): Atmospheres 124, (2019). Abstract
Teleconnection between sea ice in the Barents Sea in June and the Silk Road, Pacific–Japan and East Asian rainfall patterns in August. Advances in Atmospheric Sciences 35, (2018). Abstract
Influence of solar wind energy flux on the interannual variability of ENSO in the subsequent year. Atmospheric and Oceanic Science Letters 11, (2018).
Recent intensified impact of December Arctic Oscillation on subsequent January temperature in Eurasia and North Africa. Climate Dynamics (2018).doi:10.1007/s00382-018-4182-7
Impacts of the extratropical North Pacific on boreal summer Arctic circulation. Atmospheric and Oceanic Science Letters (2023).doi:10.1016/j.aosl.2023.100405
Arctic sea ice and Eurasian climate: A review. Advances in Atmospheric Sciences 32, (2014). Download: gao_etal_2015_arctic_sea_ice_and_eurasian_climate_a_review.pdf (4.59 MB)

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Event photography is mostly about people, their lives, their efforts and in corporate circles often the standouts are the main attraction. The number of awards to this lady, her business, all their work was simply amazing, all in one night!
Weddings are perhaps the most beautiful and memorable times of our lives -- they are our favorite, all the energy and excitement, we enjoy every moment. From the first visit, we listen to you, your preferences, and how you hope to cherish the day. Our approach is simple and personal, our commitment is to exceed your expectations. We know the bride may add and change plans along the way, so we are ready to assist with suggestions. We are creative and stylish, using contemporary wedding ideas and a touch that feels like you.
Some of your day is spontaneous and unfolding all around you, where we use a photojournalist style capturing moments that will be suspended in time forever. Normally you'll want more traditional pictures too, so we'll set aside time for composed photos of you two, family, friends, flowers, the setting, and "all-the-rest-that-matters." Many brides have specific poses in mind, so we add your ideas with the images we normally provide so your day, the ceremony, and all the celebrations can be part of your wedding album. In all that we do, we like to find a warmth, and at times flare, that takes you back and beyond the memories of the day.
If you are looking for a personal touch, with images that are unique, you, and priceless, regardless of the size of your wedding, or where you may choose to celebrate it, we would love to help you capture it -- hope to hear from you!


text:
The U.S. government itself has come out against Microsoft in a Supreme Court case that may decide the way patents are protected. The U.S. solicitor general, which represents the federal government in the highest court, on Friday filed an amicus brief in support of i4i.
The U.S. government itself has come out against Microsoft in a Supreme Court case that may decide the way patents are protected.
The U.S. solicitor general, which represents the federal government in the highest court, on Friday filed an amicus brief in support of i4i, saying that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office should not be second-guessed by a jury.
Indeed, i4i, which won a $290 million patent judgment against Microsoft, has now accrued 22 amicus briefs in its corner, which represent more than 100 companies, organizations and individuals, including the U.S. government, individuals from the military, and venture capitalists. Compare that to Microsoft's 20 amicus briefs, which represent about 60 companies and individuals, including Google, Apple, Cisco, Intel, Red Hat, the Electronic Frontier Foundation and 37 law and economics professors.
STRANGE BEDFELLOWS: Red Hat defends Microsoft in i4i patent dispute
Additionally, IBM and five others have weighed in with opinions on the case via amicus briefs but have not offered support for either party in this case, offering opinions for the Supreme Court to consider before it rules. That ruling is expected in June, with oral arguments slated to begin on April 18.
The Microsoft vs. i4i patent case has become the new rallying point among those that want to see software patent reform, including open source advocates. The technology industry is generally lining up in favor of Microsoft (making for some strange bedfellows defending Microsoft, such as Red Hat). In i4i's corner are representatives from an impressive array of other fields particularly from science, university research, military and the government -- even the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office itself.
Ideally, it should be Congress that tackles the issue of a software patent system run amok, but session after session passes with no real fix. Those wanting software patent reform claim the USPTO frequently issues so-called "bad" patents for software, meaning patents for software "business processes" that don't meet the statutory standard for a patent. Because a software patent can cover a wide variety of how the business process is implemented, discovering all the appropriate existing patents when applying for new ones (known as "prior art") is difficult, expensive and inconclusive.
At issue in Microsoft v. i4i Limited Partnership, according to the Supreme Court blog, is how much proof someone must come up with to prove that a patent is invalid. "Someone charged with violating a patent can avoid liability by showing that the patent is invalid (meaning that the invention does not meet the statutory criteria for obtaining a patent). The question is whether that invalidity must be proven by clear and convincing evidence," the blog states.
Microsoft and its supporters are arguing that the "clear and convincing" standard inordinately raises the burden of proof to invalidate a "bad" patent. They are advocating a standard known as a "preponderance of the evidence" which could ask the jury to consider more heavily evidence of prior art that the USPTO did not consider when granting the original patent.
David Howard, Microsoft's corporate vice president and deputy general counsel for litigation, explains:
"This case can be summed up in one word -- balance. The current approach taken by the Court of Appeals improperly tilts the scales to reward invalid patents. That approach needs to be corrected in favor of a system that ensures the process for obtaining and defending patents is clear, reasonable and doesn't unduly burden the system or innovation. When a patent issues, despite the fact that the Patent Office never had an opportunity to review the relevant prior technology, it enables the holders of those dubious patents to attack innovative companies with costly lawsuits. We believe a better balance will benefit all patent holders and innovators."
i4i's supporters say if that standard is not upheld, it lowers the burden of proof to invalidate a "good" patent. i4i obtained a big feather in its cap when the federal government officially came down in favor of the i4i argument. The amicus brief from the U.S. solicitor general says that the USPTO can be trusted to be the expert, over a jury:
"The clear-and-convincing-evidence standard also furthers the reliance interests created by a patent grant by affording the patent holder enhanced protection against an erroneous jury finding of invalidity. By allowing a lay jury to second-guess the PTO's judgment even in close cases, the preponderance standard would diminish the expected value of patents and would reduce future inventors' incentives to innovate and to disclose their inventions to the public."
This counters arguments made on behalf of Microsoft such as this one from the amicus brief filed by the Computer and Communications Industry Association:
"By making questionable patents hard to invalidate, the clear-and-convincing standard creates an artificial incentive to apply for patents. It induces more applications and more patents, especially weak, marginal, and invalid patents." [PDF]
MORE MICROSOFT NEWS, BLOGS: Microsoft Subnet
It has been almost two years since i4i won its $290 million judgment against Microsoft. i4i claimed that Word's custom XML feature violated i4i's patent on the technology. But more important than the money, the ruling took the almost unheard-of step of issuing a permanent injunction that stopped Microsoft from selling copies of Word that used the disputed XML technology. This affected Word 2007, Word 2003 and Word for Mac 2008. That injunction took effect on Jan. 11, 2010, and all legal attempts to get it overturned failed. Microsoft has since removed the disputed XML technology from affected editions of Word that are still available for sale (Word 2007). In November, the Supreme Court agreed to hear the case.
i4i is not a so-called patent troll, meaning that the company didn't buy the patent in order to shake down others for infringing on it. The company's current CEO, Michel Vulpe, and Stephen Owens filed for the patent in 1994 and it was awarded in 1998 (patent No. 5,787,449). It covers a process that makes it possible for computer users to use regular word processors as XML/SGML editors. On the other hand, just because i4i came by this patent in earnest, doesn't mean it isn't the kind of "bad" software patent that has turned software patents into a mockery.
Microsoft has tried various methods of getting i4i's patent invalidated, to no avail. Microsoft has twice sought an administrative reexamination by the USPTO of the patent, and the USPTO upheld its validity both times.
Hope that the Supreme Court would end the software patent problem had previously been put on the Bilski case, which could have all but eliminated the problem if the Supreme Court had issued a ruling that made "business process" patents difficult or impossible to obtain. Most software patents fall into the "business process" category. The Supreme Court's ruling on Bilski, however, managed to sidestep that issue and create more confusion, not less.
Julie Bort writes the Microsoft Update and Source Seeker blogs for Network World's Microsoft Subnet and Open Source Subnet community sites. Follow Bort on Twitter @Julie188.


text:
I installed the Ergon Grips for gripshifts on the Xootr Swift, I figured that the bar ends will help me climb better since the bike's wheelbase is rather compact. I rode my 20 mile commute and I was very impressed by these grips. I do own a pair of Specialized Ergo Grips, but they are not as comfortable as the Ergon Grips.
The bar ends gave me another position to rest my hands, eliminating that tingly and numbing feeling that I get from time to time. They also helped me climb that dreaded 5 fwy over pass with ease and confidence.
I will keep riding with the Ergon grips, stay tuned for my upcoming review.


text:
Introduction to Christian Theology
Published July 2002
This book helps beginning theological students grasp the basics of Christian theology. Consciously avoiding the perspective of one school of thought or confessional tradition, the authors provide the reader with a brief, broad overview of the questions and contents of theological study. Their accessible use of language, clear organization, and careful explanation will prove of invaluable aid to those who are getting their theological feet wet for the first time.
"In the words of its authors, this book offers an introduction 'to the fuller spectrum of Christian theology as it has developed through the centuries.' Few writers address the historical development of the classic doctrines and the contemporary resonance as adroitly as Gonzalez and Perez. The chapter on Jesus Christ, for example, presents concise summaries of the treatments of Christ's person leading up to Chalcedon, while suggesting a need for a multiplicity of images in understanding the work of Christ that liberates the whole person and restores all creation. Beginning students, as a result, are invited into a living theological conversation, where the contested claims of the past have continued relevance in a contemporary era beset by its undervaluing of the body and creation. Broadly ecumenical in tenor, with reference to theologians from nearly every century, the work should appeal to both a popular readership and introductory students in college and seminary. One disappointing aspect of the book is an absence of Latino/a, feminist, and liberation perspectives. For a work that argues for the contextuality of all theology, and from authors whose previous work has been monumental in Hispanic theological education, this lack is surprising."---David H. Jensen, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, in Religious Studies Review, Volume 29 Number 3, July 2003.


text:
Sandwiched between its iconic four-sided clock and the newly opened Apple store, New Yorkers with dynastic surnames like Kennedy, Vanderbilt, and Bloomberg gathered in Grand Central Terminal (GCT) Friday to celebrate the historic building's 100th birthday. Designed by Reed & Stern, in association with Warren and Wetmore, the terminal opened its doors in February 1913, quickly becoming an emblem of a particularly prosperous time in New York. Fittingly, the Grand Central Centennial Committee staged the day-long 100th birthday event in a small roped-off area in the middle of the soaring main concourse, allowing the din of rushing commuters to accompany the ceremony.
Citing the 750,000 passengers that move through the terminal each day and the torrent of real estate pressures that have threatened it in the past, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg quipped, "it's not easy to last a hundred years in a city of change," concluding that GCT is "the best looking centenarian around."
Not only is the fact of its age an impressive enough marker, the 100-year milestone was made all the more poignant because it very nearly didn't happen. Through the 1960s and '70s, the terminal was embroiled in a pitched battle over whether to raze or preserve the Beaux Arts structure, a fight that would ultimately reach the U.S. Supreme Court in 1978. Were it not for the 1963 destruction of nearby Pennsylvania Station, which energized the historic preservation movement, GCT may very well have been dispatched in the same way.
Friday's celebration, then, was as much a birthday party as it was a victory lap for preservationists, which was evidenced by list of speakers that included Robert Tierney, chair of NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission, and Rose Harvey, commissioner of the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation. Neglected for decades during the mid-20th century, GCT had deteriorated from its Gilded Age–glory. "The terminal was in great disrepair; it was broken in every sense of the word," remembered Centennial Committee chair Peter Stangl. "The first impression that a lot of people had of New York City was rather dismal," Stangl added, referring both to the regional travelers arriving by train and the swaths of tourists who visit the terminal early in the NYC itinerary.
Caroline Kennedy—whose mother, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, championed the GCT's preservationist cause—participated in Friday's celebration as the honorary chair of the GCT Centennial Committee. She read from a letter that Onassis had sent to then-New York City Mayor Abe Beam, urging him to save GCT, "so that we won't all end up in a uniform world of steel-and-glass boxes." Citing her mother's unyielding determination, Kennedy joked that "Mayor Bloomberg is probably happy she's not around."
And for those who missed the festivities, a new exhibition organized by the New York Transit Museum, "Grand by Design," is installed in GCT's Vanderbilt Hall through March 15, and documents the architectural and engineering history of the terminal. This is accompanied by the new book Grand Central Terminal: 100 Years of a New York Landmark. Thoughtfully researched, the two presentations provide a robust survey of important historical markers.
While the roster of speakers at the official celebration lavished attention on the many architectural marvels of the original building—and on the results of its later preservation—Bloomberg, a results-oriented mayor, underscored its enduring functionality as a particularly impressive measure of success. "This is a commuter train station," he reminded the audience. This was a theme picked up by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's deputy secretary for transportation, Karen Rae. "For all the beauty of the building," she said, "it is remarkable for what it truly is: a transportation hub."


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Exchanging contact information is an important process in networking whether for business or personal obligations; write a number on a cocktail napkin or exchange a business card for future reference. Well now, technology has taken exchanging contact information to the savviest level and I am quite jealous.
Last night, I was reading my newest edition of Entrepreneur
magazine to find an app that caught my attention – it is called "Bumping". Tres cool! It is a bump application available on the iphone. As Michael Dinan from TMCNET.com puts it, "One Pow at a Time".
The 'bump' app, developed by Bump Technologies LLC, uses location-based technology and WiFi to exchange contanct information between two iPhones. You open up the app and 'bump' with the person with whom you want to exchange contact information. It's a virtual business card transferred into your phone within seconds… maybe even miliseconds. With my Type A personality this would be a great app to have for exchanging contact info with potential business or personal contacts.
But, I own the Blackberry Curve. Now don't get me wrong, I love my phone for its Ãœbertwitter and Facebook App. But I don't have a 'bump' app, I have a Barcode that needs to be scanned. Tis not as fun sounding.
The process is similar in that you open up the Instant Messenger 5.0 contact list to Invite and scan. Again, the contact information is transferred within seconds.
Do I leave my provider to transfer to another provider who offers the iPhone? Do I pay an expensive termination fee to gain the fun app called, 'bumping'? *sigh*
Wait! I found a solution: Verizon Wireless (my provider) now offers the Motorola DROID
with Google's Android 2.0. And you know what? I can download & use the Bump Application. I'm in Love.


text:
The LCDA15C-6 has been specifically designed to protect sensitive components which are connected to data and transmission lines from over voltages caused by electrostatic discharge (ESD), electrical fast transients (EFT), and lightning.
- 15 V operating voltage
- Protects six I/O lines
- Transient protection for high-speed data lines to
- IEC 61000-4-2 (ESD) ± 15 kV (air), ± 8 kV (contact)
- IEC 61000-4-4 (EFT) 40 A (5/50 ns)
- IEC 61000-4-5 (Lightning) 0.5 kV, 12 A (8/20 µs)
- Low capacitance for high-speed interfaces
- High surge capability
- Low clamping voltage
- Solid-state silicon-avalanche technology
- Multi-mode transceiver protection
- WAN equipment:
- Multiplexers
- Routers
- ISP equipment
- Customer premise equipment
- Protection for any of the following interfaces:
- Lead-free, RoHS and WEEE compliant, 500 pcs. Tape & Reel
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Semtech Releases New Surge Protection Product to…Targeted for industrial, datacenter and telecommunications applications, the Semtech Protection… READ NOW
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The Internet of Things (IoT) is a network of physical devices embedded with sensors, software, and other technologies to connect and exchange data with other devices and systems over the Internet. It shares the data with a Cloud server or a gateway to analyze and take corresponding actions (Figure 1). One noteworthy application of IoT is in agriculture. The amount and time of water irrigation are decided based on IoT sensors that gather information on soil moisture content, nutrients, fertilizer amount, and weather information—helping farmers make smart decisions to prevent wasting resources. IoT applications have also become very popular in manufacturing and industrial automation, from factory floors to department stores, tracking machine performance, measuring product quality, and asset tracking to real-time location systems. In smart home automation, IoT-based systems have made our homes safer and easily maintainable.
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The Importance of Keyboard ESD Protection
Since the dawn of computers, the keyboard has been the primary communication mechanism between human and machines. Over the years, many technologies and interfaces have changed, but the keyboard has barely changed in both form and function. Recently, I bought an exclusive wireless keyboard. Initially, it communicated with the computer via Bluetooth without any issues. However, after a month or so, it suddenly stopped. When I opened the internal circuit, I was surprised that the keys had no electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection. Any electronic device's keypad, side keys or push buttons are vulnerable to ESD due to constant human interaction with them. Adding ESD protection devices in a keyboard/keypad/side keys can avoid disastrous situations such as the failure of my keyboard. Let us discuss ESD in general and how we can protect our electronic devices from it.
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Whether you are watching an action replay of a baseball game on a giant screen at a stadium, a movie on your large-screen TV or streaming a video on your laptop computer, a high-quality audiovisual (AV) experience is always expected. Ultra-High-Definition Serial Digital Interface (UHD-SDI) and High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) are two standards for digital AV transmission. UHD-SDI standardizes the transmission of uncompressed and unencrypted digital AV signals over coaxial or fiber optic cables. HDMI is a digital interface for transmitting high-definition, high-speed digital multi-track audio and uncompressed video signals from HDMI-compliant sources to AV displays. Even though they both can transport ultra-high-definition AV signals from a source to a display, HDMI is preferred to connect consumer gadgets such as computers, gaming consoles, Blu-ray/DVD players, televisions, projectors, etc. UHD-SDI is preferred for high-end applications such as professional indoor/outdoor video production and television broadcasts because it supports long-range transmission and a rugged connection with the help of a physical lock mechanism at each end of the cable. UHD-SDI coaxial cable can transfer signals up to 300 feet, whereas HDMI cables struggle with excessive signal degradation even within 50 feet. These two interfaces can be used together via an HDMI-SDI or SDI-HDMI converter. For example, as shown in figure 1, an HDMI display would be used for confidence monitoring of an SDI stream to avoid the need to use specially calibrated SDI-specific displays.
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Not too long ago, my only fitness tracker was a pedometer in my pocket to measure my daily step count. Things have since changed very quickly. I now have a smartwatch on my wrist to track my daily activities, including steps completed, distance covered, calories burned, heart rate, and breathing pattern. I also receive alerts for messages, take calls, listen to my favorite podcast, and check the weather via my smartwatch. These are all in addition to seeing the accurate time of the day. Due to all these innovative features, wearing a smartwatch and using it as a fitness tracker is the trend for the health-conscious population worldwide. While these wearables help people remain fit, extra care needs to be taken by the manufacturers to protect these wearables from electrical overstress (EOS) and electrostatic discharge (ESD) generated from the body of the person wearing these devices.
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The semiconductor industry is producing leadless packages of integrated circuits (ICs) to make room for the enormous number of electronic components and meet modern-day vehicles' safety and reliability requirements. A big challenge is the lack of visibility of the solder joints on the printed circuit boards (PCBs) during the post package assembly process. The connections are beneath the package and are not visible from the top and the side. So you cannot say for sure if the IC is adequately bonded to the PCB or not. Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) have been using X-ray machines to detect unreliable solder joints. It is expensive and time-consuming to do so.
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text:
VICTORIA – Winners of next November's local elections will serve four years on councils and school boards.
Minister of Community, Sport and Cultural Development Coralee Oakes said Tuesday she will introduce legislation shortly to extend local government terms from three years to four. The change is to take effect in time for elections next fall.
Oakes said the change comes after the Union of B.C. Municipalities supported it at their convention last September. The issue has been debated many times and has been divisive over the years, with some rural politicians arguing against extending the commitment for jobs with little pay.
Oakes, who served two terms on Quesnel city council before being elected to the B.C. legislature last year, said she had her own doubts about it when it was debated during that time. But she has made up her mind.
"The reason why provinces across Canada have moved to four years is it provides greater certainty in communities to move those very important projects forward, things such as infrastructure improvements," Oakes said. "It provides opportunities for local government officials to understand their projects and to carry them through."
The change would mean the next municipal election would be held in 2018, on a schedule that follows provincial elections by one year. Oakes said there was no intent to avoid having both elections at the same time, and she is acting in response to the UBCM's vote to go ahead.
Asked if the legislation would include a "Rob Ford clause" to remove politicians who misbehave while in office, Oakes said the ministry is examining changes to the oath of office to "provide more tools" to deal with such situations.


text: Artist: Grand Puba Album: 2000 Song: Don't Waste My Time Typed by: OHHLA Webmaster DJ Flash [Puba] Yeah, uhh Alamo Productions proudly presents a head-banger, check Chorus: repeat 2X Look at that sexy mama She sho' likes to grind Look at that sexy lady Please don't waste my time [Puba] I'ma tell you now that girls just ain't right Let me tell you bout this episode I had last night I takes me a shower then I grabs a quick bite Then I called Doogie Love to find out the kronkite, dig it Somethin's goin on -- an industry party downtown I'm comin to get ya nigga so, listen for the horn Before we hit the location, gotta pick up Alamo and get a bag of situation, now we downtown four blocks from the spot, time to park the car Honies outside, knowin who to give ? But you know how niggaz from the projects are Free drinks til ten, yo money, where's the fuckin bar? Honies all creamed out types and all lookin cute Me and Doogie same ol low-top baggy jeans and boots Body bangin, tits hangin, while we profilin Me and Ali' mad geeked off Long Island Uhh! Picture that, but then it dawned on me black honey set them traps, that's why Tyson was where he was at They want you for your name and fame, quick to get buttnaked When you play em out, they run and said you tried to take it That's why I don't talk to those, who like to pose in videos with no clothes, and groupies at shows Cause I know what's goin on, you won't catch me in the wrong Don't even try it baby, dig it Chorus [Puba] Well times is gettin drastic, time to pack the plastic Slide up in the wrong one, you'll end up in the casket No not me, I'm more careful see I make sho' I can't catch that old HIV But I tell you entertainment is some shit These groupie girls are sick Do most anything so they can get picked to come to your, room, smoke a little, boom Hear a little tune, after that, zoom zoom! No thanks, I'm only here for the bank And I'ma tell you point blank, won't let my dick walk the plank I hate to bust your bubble, so be out, on the double Cause I know how you groupies are, and I don't want no trouble So give me my cash and I'll pass on that ass When it comes to hittin ass, on the road, I'll just fast But don't you talk about skins all the time? Baby not ALL the time, but, when I do talk about skins, they mine I refuse to go out, like Magic Johnson; have to retire cause I touched a live wire, now my shit's on fire I travel in the name of Allah Won't be a fallin star for no hooker in a bra, that's dead You won't, roll me out, on a stretcher cause my second head, led my first head into bed So baby gets to steppin, be gone 'Fore you nigga make a move like that just make sure you put a rubber on Chorus


text:
The age-old war between farmers and weeds is escalating. Crop- strangling plants are rapidly becoming immune to the most widely used agricultural herbicide, glyphosate, commonly known as Roundup. An estimated 10 million of the 178 million acres of U.S. farmland growing corn, cotton, and soybeans are now infested with weeds that are invulnerable to the chemical. Herbicide resistance could cost nearly $1 billion per year—and may force farmers to reexamine older practices that modern chemicals were supposed to replace.
In the 1990s, when agrotech giant Monsanto introduced genetically modified crops that can withstand glyphosate, many farmers turned to Roundup as their sole herbicide. Initially, that made farming simpler and more efficient. But reliance on a single substance naturally breeds resistance, since the few weeds that survive pass their hardiness to the next generation. "The population quickly shifts from one that is sensitive to the herbicide to one that is largely resistant," says Micheal Owen, a weed scientist at Iowa State University. At least 12 U.S. weed species no longer respond to glyphosate, and since some seeds are windborne, resistance moves easily from one farm to another. Monsanto and other agricultural chemical companies plan to introduce crops that can withstand other herbicides, which could encourage farmers to add more variety to their treatment regimens.
Working with scientists from five other states, Owen is comparing different weed-control practices on about 150 fields throughout the South and Midwest. Preliminary results from the five-year study (funded by Monsanto) suggest that new strategies, such as combining multiple chemicals and applying herbicides both before and after weeds emerge, can improve crop yields compared with the typical glyphosate-heavy approach, while slowing the emergence of resistance. A larger chemical arsenal alone will not solve the problem, but in combination with traditional weed management, such as tilling and crop rotation, it should make it harder for unwanted plants to evolve resistance.
Although many farmers have not yet been affected, Owen stresses the importance of preventive action. "In fields that don't yet have problems, now is the time to make changes," he says.


text:
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. >> A nearly 50 percent increase in vegetable prices that has sent shoppers reeling in the produce aisle should ease in the coming weeks as farmers send grocers more tomatoes, lettuce and other crops.
Vegetable prices shot up last month after cold weather in the southern U.S. and Mexico destroyed much of the winter vegetable supply, the Commerce Department said. From tomatoes in Florida to lettuce in Arizona, fruit and vegetables became frostbitten, and prices rose for the produce farmers could save.
Costs should be coming down soon, though, as crops farmers planted after the winter freezes start to reach stores, said growers, grocers and analysts. Grocers also typically switch this time of year to crops planted for spring, said Jody Shee, an analyst for the market research firm Mintel.
"Unless there are any other weather issues, the prices should bounce back pretty soon," she said.
The Iowa-based Hy-Vee supermarket chain, which has more than 230 stores in the Midwest, already is seeing cheaper prices for lettuce, broccoli and other vegetables, spokeswoman Ruth Comer said. But tomatoes and cucumbers, which were hit hard by cold weather in Mexico, could remain high for one more month, she said.
Vegetables imported from Mexico often offset losses in the U.S. during winter freezes, but that wasn't the case this year because the cold stretched further south than usual, said Gary Lucier, an agricultural economist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Economic Research Service.
The result was the biggest one-month increase in overall food prices Americans have seen since 1974 and the steepest rise in U.S. inflation in nearly two years.
"I've been paying more on everything," said Anne Schwartz, 63, who lives west of Chicago in Winfield, Ill. "You used to be able to walk in there and get three avocados for a dollar."
Now, avocados cost $1 each at her local grocery, she said.
Although shoppers are paying more, farmers in the Sun Belt say they haven't been getting rich. Most lost at least some of their crops, and they said the higher prices have just been helping make up for it.
Bob Spencer, co-owner of West Coast Tomato in Palmetto, Fla., said two freezes in December left him with about 30 to 40 percent of the crop he usually gets on the 4,000 acres he planted this year. But with tomatoes selling for more than $30 for a 25-pound box in some cases, at least double what farmers usually get, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the loss hasn't been devastating.
"As long as you had some product through this winter period, you're going to be able to come through and make money," Spencer said.
And, for many tomato farmers who "overplant" their crop, a freeze can prevent the price drops — and loss of profits — that a strong harvest can cause, he said.
That was a problem last year, when a bad freeze caused similar jumps in tomato prices, but then farmers flooded the market with a second crop and prices plummeted.
"We left a lot of money in the field last year," said Reggie Brown, executive vice president of the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange in Maitland, Fla. "The industry went into this year, to characterize it, with a limp."
In Yuma, Ariz., where much of the nation's winter lettuce is grown, Steve Alameda said two days of temperatures below 20 degrees froze his Romaine and Iceberg plants.
"The lettuce actually blisters," Alameda said. "When you start to harvest, you have to cut all that out. Your yields were basically cut in half."
But greens grow relatively quickly, and Alameda said production of some lettuce and other crops grown in his region are already starting to pick up.
"We'll do better on account of (the circumstances) than we would have without it," Alameda said, referring to the jump in prices. "There'll be some who will, some who won't."
Prices for a handful of crops, like melons, that take longer to grow could take a longer to drop, said John McClung, president of the Texas Produce Association, a group of produce shippers and growers in the Rio Grande Valley in deep south Texas.
"It takes in some cases a season," he said. But farmers in his area, too, have had a decent winter financially with higher prices making up for losses caused by an unusual spell of cold weather.
"In agriculture," he said, "the rule is that there are always winners and losers every season."
Merchant reported from Chicago.


text:
Dear Ones,
I was just tuning in to the highest frequencies in this Voyager recording of the sounds of the planet Neptune …
Here is the reference to the above video … Video: "NASA – Voyager Space Sounds – Neptune," by Hugo Champion, 4 October 2012 … https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZOAaZ0K9rc … public domain …
While listening to the beautiful harmonics of the highest frequencies of Neptune, I channeled a wise, compassionate, elder voice which explained that the slight auric insufficiency I have been feeling at the top left side of my head for the last 20 years reflects the same in Earth's magnetosphere.
As the Neptunian gently touched that spot in my electromagnetic field with his thought, he said: That is how they get in.
I thought by that he might mean the animals in the air, the Army of the Night … the Demon Horde that causes astral Interference and weaves the Dark Network that counterbalances the Grid of Light on Earth. That was just a guess, though.
I asked why there was that weakness at the top left of the electromagnetic field of Earth and her beings?
The Neptunian said that energy imbalance could not be fixed, as it has to do with the icebergs at one of the poles (the one that equates to the electromagnetic field at the top of my head, I suppose). Whether he means by that the icebergs at the North Pole or at the South Pole I do not know. That may vary depending on Earth's magnetic reversals.
I asked: Can anything be done about it?
In a calm and stately voice, the Neptunian said: Maybe this will help.
As the words were uttered, I felt a thickening and a very slight twisting in the air above my head.
I asked: What was that you did?
The Neptunian said: I strengthened it there. I hope it will help.
I said: I hope it will help too. Will it be all right? [as I gingerly felt into Earth's electromagnetic field]
He said: I think so.
I asked his name; he said: Argon is what I am known as.
I note there may be Argon on Triton, at less than 2 percent of the atmosphere, most likely. I looked up an image of Argon, which is quite beautiful; Argon is known as the 'noble gas'. It could be, then, that the beings of Neptune are gaseous in nature …
Image: "Vial of glowing ultrapure argon," by Jurii, 23 July 2009, in Wikimedia Commons … https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Argon-glow.jpg … CC BY-SA 3.0 … COMMENT: Argon is known as the noble gas.
The Neptunian with whom I spoke said that they, the beings of Neptune, are the Elder Race and the Ancient Ones, inferring that the Martian bacterial colonists of the human colon are not that.
The Neptunian then carried on a conversation, first with the Martians in my own energy field, and then continued the conversation with the warlike Martian extremophiles on the planet Mars. There was bite and bluster in the voice of the Neptunian. He said: You know you are not that. Why did you call yourselves that?
After that I heard the Martians of Mars apologize in a tone somewhat abashed, by my lights.
The tone of voice the Neptunian used there reminded me of a line in a Wordsworth poem I learned from my high school Latin teacher (who made us recite the poem at the beginning of every class). I wondered if I might be at last be hearing "old Triton blow his wreathèd horn" …
Link: "The World Is Too Much With Us," by William Wordsworth, 1770-1850 … https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/45564/the-world-is-too-much-with-us ..
On lookup, I see that Triton is Neptune's largest moon. "Triton is thought to have been a dwarf planet captured from the Kuiper belt." –from Link: "Triton (moon)," in Wikipedia … https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triton_(moon) … CC BY-SA 3.0 unported
I note that the orbit of Triton is retrograde, and also gather from online that Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, and Pluto are retrograde today …
Link: "The Planets Today" … https://www.theplanetstoday.com/astrology.html ..
The improbability of this astrological configuration torqued my mind about a bit. I have to wonder what it means. For instance, is Neptune always able to communicate with us Earthlings, or is this a special time, astrologically speaking?
I am hoping the former may be the case, as I like this Neptunian very much; it seems to me his measured cadence tempers the hotheadness of some of the energy threads in our noosphere.
Here is a statue of Neptune, with Triton beneath him blowing the horn mentioned by Wordsworth. Might that mean that communications from the planet Neptune are sent out from the moon Triton, I wonder? …
Image: "Neptune and Triton Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini at Victoria and Albert Museum," by Yair Haklai, 21 August 2009, in Wikipedia … https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Giovanni_Lorenzo_Bernini-Neptune_and_Triton-Victoria_and_Albert_Museum.jpg … CC BY-SA 3.0 unported
Neptune looks quite lordly in the above statue. Its dominance in our Council of Nine is borne out by another statue, from which I gather that Neptune may be charged with maintaining order amongst the planets of our Solar System …
Image: "Neptune Calming the Waves," a marble sculpture by French artist Augustin Pajou, 1767, in the Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon, in Wikipedia … https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neptune_(Pajou)#/media/File:Neptune_-_Pajou-Augustin_(droit).jpg … CC BY-SA 3.0
For those drawn to the gentle guidance of our elder planet Neptune, I suggest listening to the above video, while placing Awareness on the highest harmonic, the beautiful high-pitched sound in the video.
In love, light and joy,
Alice B. Clagett
I Am of the Stars
Written and published on 26 June 2020
Except where otherwise noted, this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Council of Nine, Neptune, Neptunians, Earth EMF, human EMF, icebergs, harmony, unity, Mars, Martians, astrogeophysics, Pluto, Demon Horde, animals in the air, Interference, Dark Network, Grid of Light, Orion crusaders, culture, art appreciation, poetry appreciation, NASA, Voyager, space exploration, Team Dark, my favorites,


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Another of NBC's new Summer series, The Philanthropist, got off to a moderately successful start in the ratings but has been losing steam quickly. Should NBC show some charity and keep it around or should they just cancel it already?
The Philanthropist tells the story of Teddy Rist (James Purefoy), a billionaire playboy who is haunted by the death of his only child. After rescuing a young boy from a hurricane, Rist begins using his wealth to help those in need. The show also features the talents of Jesse L. Martin, Neve Campbell, Michael K. Williams, Lindy Booth, Bonnie Henna, Dominique McElligott, and James Albrecht.
The drama premiered on June 24th and attracted an average of 7.41 million viewers and a 2/6 rating/share of the 18-49 demographic. For a Summer series, that looks like pretty decent performance on the surface but less so when you look at the specifics.
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The show lost 35% of the audience from the last half hour of the successful America's Got Talent lead-in. What's more, many viewers tuned out before the premiere of Philanthropist was over. That's not a good sign and a sure indication that those viewers probably won't be back the following week.
The second week, the Philanthropist ratings dropped significantly to 5.69 million viewers and a 1.4/4 rating/share in the demo. Week three fell further and by week four, Philanthropist fell to 4.28 million and a dismal 1.1/4. Last week's viewer numbers perked up a little to 4.74 million but the all-important demo remained dismally the same.
With numbers like these, there's not much hope that NBC will feel charitable and renew the series for a second year. On the positive side, with just three episodes left to air, the network will surely let the short season play out.
What do you think? Is the show worth saving or should NBC have cut their losses and cancelled it already?
Image courtesy NBC.