text:
Journal of In-vitro In-vivo In-silico Journal
ISSN: Coming Soon
Article Processing Charges
Article Processing Charges are to be paid upon acceptance of your manuscript. Since we solely depend on these charges and any other sources like advertising are not encouraged by us for maintaining the luxury of peaceful reading. Hence this "charge" is our basic sustenance for maintaining this journal as complete "Open Access".
The charge levied for each manuscript of any type upon acceptance is $ 720 USD. This is a flat charge and no other extra charges are applicable.
We publish articles of type - Research, Review, Thesis, Editorial, Case report, Literature review, Short communication, Letter, Conference proceedings.
FAQ on APC:
What is the disclosure and visibility policy of APC details?
Editors and reviewers have no access to these details, and hence an inability to pay will not influence the decision to publish a paper.
From when are these Prices valid and up to when?
These prices have been updated on 10th Oct, 2017 and are valid up to the next announcement of price update which is generally 10th of Oct, 2017. Manuscripts submitted prior to 10th Oct 2017 follow the previous APC. Only Submissions made on or after 10th Oct, 2017 shall follow this renewed APC.
Why is Article Processing Charges (APC) collected?
Publishing process is definitely not free of cost, but in open access the research articles are available for free of charge. This implies that we need to incur some amount of fee to keep our process going. It's the reason we collect open access charges which helps us to cover the processing expenses for various activities like review process handling, indexing, cross reference, manpower, technical team, communication support, basic office expenditure, etc.,. In spite of all our expenses we tend to keep our fee balanced both for our users and the publishing house. Also please note that this charge will be levied only for the accepted manuscripts, there are no submission charges
Is there any withdrawal charge?
Withdrawal of manuscripts after the first round decision is made incurs minimum charge of $150. Kindly make note of this before you submit your manuscript. However withdrawal before an editor agrees to handle your manuscript does not incur any charges. You may not submit elsewhere without official withdrawal of manuscript and it will be considered ethical misconduct if you do so and will be dealt accordingly.


text:
Electronic Reporting (ER) format configuration can't be successfully executed due to throwing at run-time exception when the ER running format contains at least one element of the xml attribute type to which the enabling condition has been defined as an expression (not fixed constant).
The changes in the hotfix contain the code modification that allows to execute ER format configurations that contain format elements of the xml attribute type with the enabling condition defined as either an expression or a constant. It includes the earlier published hotfix KB4015861.
More information
Note This is a "FAST PUBLISH" article created directly from within the Microsoft support organization. The information contained here in is provided as-is in response to emerging issues. As a result of the speed in making it available, the materials may include typographical errors and may be revised at any time without notice. See Terms of Use for other considerations.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
[23-02-18] madisson_x record cam show from Chaturbate.com
- This video duration: 1:25:55
- Date Added: 23.02.2018 16:21
- Watch other madisson_x
Do not miss novices in the webcam game, maybe one of them will be your new chosen one! There are models like madisson_x for every predilection - boys, men, women, girls, transes, old people and milfs, choose what you like! In each clip there is something very wonderful - they suck off, fuck, fuck someone, does butt fuck, and so on. Just sign up and get unlimited access to this world of desire! Being whole #naked and you can play with my pussy, kisses to all
New [23-02-18] madisson_x record cam show from Chaturbate.com - 1:25:55 - watch online with free unlimited access. This is one of the best naked madisson_x xxx video record of Chaturbate cam private show. Enjoy new records by madisson_x daily and have fun with blowjob, nude, ohmibod play videos from Chaturbate.com - Watch [23-02-18] madisson_x record cam show from Chaturbate.com in HD QUALITY? Search for something new and interesting with nude or toys girl [23.02.2018 16:21] madisson_x record video with dildo cam blowjob records online? Find all Chaturbate females, males, couples and trans webcam models on RECORDER 2018 largest online platform and watch them for free without any limits now! We records this model every day and upload videos to our service.
Watch other new chaturbate madisson_x records from our large archive. We record more than 59.999 videos every day from more than 400.000 Chaturbate webcam Girls, Boys, Couples and Trans broadcusters. We have madisson_x video records with ohmibod play, dildo toying, blowjob and a lot of fuck shows in private records. [23-02-18] madisson_x record cam show from Chaturbate.com (stefany) from secret / borned 1995-07-29 is just one of 60.000+ Chaturbate models that we record last 24 hours! Chaturbate Cam 2 Cam club - most popular cams records library with free and unlimited worldwide access for all out members.


text:
ROCKFORD � Mid-size Illinois cities are banding together to form an alliance at the state Capitol, hoping to exert more influence in political action in Springfield.
Industrial cities such as Rockford, Peoria, Aurora and Danville will lobby for interests more specific to their communities, The Rockford Register Star reported.
�Anytime you go down to Springfield, you�re stronger as a group with an aggregate number of people with mayors supporting than you are just trying to go down there as your community all alone,� Peoria Mayor Jim Ardis said.
Each of these cities already belongs to the Illinois Municipal League, an organization that focuses on legislative issues for communities across the state. Organizers of the new alliance hope to bring attention to 10 to 12 mid-size Illinois communities that share common ground, though they may not have the same issues across the board.
�We feel like a lot of the cities that are outside of Chicago need to make sure that we�re not just lumped together either with the small cities or the biggest city,� said Rockford Mayor Larry Morrissey. �We�ve got our own needs that we want to see addressed.�
Morrissey said the cities share similar problems in areas of education, poverty, public housing and environmental concerns because they all have backgrounds in industry and manufacturing.
The group hasn�t hired a lobbyist yet, but they say they could eventually represent up to 1 million people.
But Ardis is skeptical that they�ll make any significant moves this legislative session because it�s an election year, saying he only hopes to start discussions with lawmakers.
�We understand this isn�t going to be, necessarily, a process that�s going to happen overnight,� Ardis said. �But everybody has acknowledged that we have to do something and speaking as a unified voice on a lot of these issues is going to give us more recognition.�


text:
January in the Kentucky countryside
This is a winter photo. I took it today, January 14. Look how green the grass is from the rains we've been getting. It's much greener now, in the middle of winter, than it was last summer during the drought!
There are a few hints of winter in the photo. The trees and the sprigs of trumpet vine on the post have no leaves. The dead blades of grass in the fence row are left from last summer. But it would only take a week or two of warmish weather to transform this landscape into spring.
Later this week, overnight temperatures are supposed to drop into the low 20s. One night is supposed to be down to 13°. Along with the cold air, we're supposed to get some snow flurries. It's a good thing because, otherwise, the daffodils might start blooming.


text:
7:00 pm
Doc Martin "Born with a Shotgun" Tempers flare as sleepless nights take their toll on Martin and Louisa, trying to comfort their wailing baby. Aunt Ruth is dealing with a thief who has stolen the hub caps from her car. A patient tells Martin she believes her son is trying to poison her.G
8:00 pm
Outdoor Idaho "Adventure Racing" The Funtastics Adventure Racing Team of Coeur d'Alene joins fellow adrenaline-seekers who take part in Adventure Sports Week at Farragut State Park. The two-day competition offers 63 miles of biking, 22 miles of running, 19 miles of kayaking, and a swim across a bay on Lake Pend Oreille.G
8:30 pm
This American Land "Whitewater, Wading Birds, Wildlife Brigades" The show heads to Colorado, and one of the most breathtaking places most people have never heard of.G
9:00 pm
Midsomer Murders "Worm in the Bud, Part 1" When the body of a farmer's wife is discovered in Setwale Wood, villagers assume she committed suicide due to her inability to have a child. But when Barnaby discovers the timestamp on her suicide is from seven hours after her death, the case morphs into a hunt for a killer. Part 1 of 2G
10:00 pm
Death In Paradise When a British cop is found murdered in a locked room on the tiny paradise island of Saint-Marie, Detective Inspector Richard Poole is sent from England to investigate. He's the perfect man to solve the case - if only he didn't just hate sun, sea and sand.G
11:00 pm
Charlie Rose NULL


text:
About Us
What is Think Haus?
Our current vision of the Think Haus Space goes something like this:
We want to create a place for:
- meeting up with people that have an interest in the "Maker" culture
- sharing tools and knowledge
- working together on projects that are bigger than one person
- reaching out into our community and showing people there is another option besides the "do as you're told" consumer culture
- teaching
- learning
- applied engineering
- being social
For people who:
- are Hackers, Makers, Crafters and Artists
- "get" the Make Magazine idea
- think 1950's Popular Mechanics was awesome
- prefer to take things apart and put them back together better
- like to meddle with gizmos and blinkylights
- consider themselves hackers in the MIT and Berkeley traditions
- thought "Real Genius" was awesome
- want to play with lasers
- can't afford / aren't allowed a work space of their own
- want to share what they know
This is by no means a complete list of what we hope to achieve, but it's certainly a good start.
Think about how the history of Hamilton is intertwined in the "make it happen" ethos of the DIY mechanic, the basement engineer, the warranty violator, the patent ignorer.
Hamilton was once known as "The Ambitious City".
Come and be ambitious with us.
Because it's going to be a heck of a good time.
Join us at our Weekly Open Meeting – Tuesdays at 7pm
Tons of information on our haus-wiki.
Send us an e-mail, or join our mailing list — Mailing List Web Page
Find us on IRC — irc.freenode.net #hamiltonhackerspace
Hackerspaces.org — http://hackerspaces.org/wiki/Think_haus


text:
|Staple the Label tank dress, 2 baia vista sandals, Le Specs 'Runaways' sunglasses, Alexander Wang 'Rafael' bag
Sickeningly simply outfit post today (Friday, yay!), mainly because it is so ridiculously hot
in Brisbane at the moment, and also so I can show you my lovely new Alexander Wang
Rafael Bag in all its understated glory. Bought on sale from CULTSTATUS and from what I
can gather may well have been the last one available. I mean the last one. Anywhere, ever. Not
that I relish this actually because I always enjoy directing you guys to pieces I have purchased
and loved. In any case, I am absolutely smitten with its pebbled heather grey leather, oversized
silver zips and perfectly boxy structure. It is absolutely delightfully beautiful without being too
pretty: just how I like my accessories to be. Especially loving that I can wear a painfully
simple outfit and pop it over the top to freshen the whole look up instantly. Also eyeing its
black and very sporty counterpart here, meanwhile. Not that I am going totally Alexander
Wang-crazy at the moment or anything. Shall mull that one over I think.
Follow me on Bloglovin' / Twitter


text:
A Risk and Control Self-Assessment (RCSA) can help provide an enterprise view of operational risk, and help keep the company on course for achieving high performance.
Accenture identifies six leading practices from the financial services industry that may be used more generally.
Integrate RCSA programs into all operational risk initiatives. The RCSA program should act as the crossroads for all risk initiatives. Indeed, many organizations are also adopting standard risk language or taxonomies.
A complete view of risks and controls is necessary. This will enable the later performance of value-added analysis.
Establish a clear methodology for trend analysis. A RCSA program should identify undue concentration of risk or potential control failures.
Establish a method for identifying non-financial risks. The impact of non-financial risks may, at times, far exceed the dollar cost.
Think outside the box. RCSA can provide organizations with a new opportunity to identify and plan for unexpected or emerging risks.
Use RCSA data to support strategic budgeting. The framework can be used to paint a clear picture of why expenditures and resources are being deployed to targeted problem areas within the company.
RCSA is a framework that can be used by a firm to analyze its operational risk profile. Since operational risks are inherently embedded into each function or process, an RCSA program can be useful in generating an enterprise view of the firm's operational risk profile, provided there is comprehensive participation by each business unit throughout the organizational structure.
The RCSA is used by many financial institutions for performing operational risk assessments as required by Basel II and many local regulatory bodies. In those institutions, the annual RCSA exercise is typically undertaken to comply with regulatory requirements calling for a firm-wide, self-analysis of operational risks. In its most general format, an RCSA requires the documentation of risks, identifying the levels of risk (derived from an estimate of frequency and impact), and controls associated with each process conducted by the organization.
To simplify the output and better organize the assessment approach, the exercise is generally conducted at the business-unit level. For regulatory purposes, each business unit assessment is typically collected and presented as a comprehensive repository of assessed operational risks.
There is a spectrum of how organizations can approach their RCSA program. Some treat it as a "check the box" activity and invest minimally in both time and resources—just enough to satisfy regulatory obligations. On the other hand, some view the RCSA as a value-added risk management tool and invest accordingly. Investments in technology, reporting capabilities and personnel are necessary to meet even basic regulatory requirements; however, unless the RCSA is appropriately structured, minimal investment may beget minimal value.
Chris Thompson is an Accenture executive director, Risk Management, Banking and Capital Markets in North America. Specializing in complex, large-scale finance and risk programs, he works with some of the world's leading retail, commercial and investment banks. Thompson brings his nearly 20 years of broad-based experience in financial architecture, risk management, performance management and trading to organizations determined to become high-performance businesses.
Meera Kakad Gondha is an Accenture senior manager, Risk Management. Based in Charlotte, North Carolina, and with 10 years of industry and consulting experience with a focus on operational risk, Gondha works with banking and capital markets clients to help them define, implement, and monitor their operational risk programs.


text:
Residents of Easton and Raynham are preparing for years of disruption and permanent changes to their towns' landscapes as the South Coast Rail project gathers steam.
A $2 billion plan to connect Fall River and New Bedford to Boston by train is being hailed by those cities as a surefire boost to their economies. But in the suburbs through which the trains will run, the plan is largely seen as more of a bane than a boon. Residents and town officials in Easton and Raynham are far from pleased at the prospect of years of disruption and permanent changes to their landscapes.
"It's almost as if we're a casualty of the governor's plan," Raynham Selectman Joseph Pacheco said.
But after years fighting it, the two towns are now resigned to what increasingly looks like an inevitability. A picture of what the project will mean for the people living in the path of the new commuter line is slowly emerging.
Gov. Deval Patrick is pushing a plan to rebuild tracks that have been dormant since 1959, from Stoughton through Easton, Raynham and Taunton into Berkley and Lakeville, where the tracks will split into two branches, one ending in Fall River and the other in New Bedford.
The project "involves 56 miles of track, more than 50 bridges, 43 grade crossings and extensive signal and communications systems," according to Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, an engineering firm hired by the state to review the project.
The South Coast line has been talked about for decades but is now on the governor's front burner.
"I've been at this project for more than 20 years, and this is the closest we've gotten to reality," said Steve Smith, executive director of the Southeastern Regional Planning & Economic Development District.
The project will involve years of construction work – the latest timeline has it taking eight years to complete – and billions of dollars. A trestle bridge through three miles of Hockomock Swamp, which is home to endangered species including the blue-spotted salamander and the Blanding's turtle, is expected to cost at least $50 million alone.
The plan includes laying new track over I-495 and Route 138 and through two swamps, the Pine Swamp in Raynham being the other. The new line will require that the state buy some homes in the two towns, and erect sound barriers in the neighborhoods it will skirt, including Monticello Circle, Partridge Way and Wedgewood Drive in Easton.
In Raynham, tracks will cross over Route 138, one of the town's two main roads.
One of the major expected benefits of the new commuter rail line is that it will take traffic off of Route 24. But Pacheco said Raynham and the other towns where new train stops will be open will likely see more car traffic.
Easton is slated to get two stops, one in North Easton behind the Roche Brothers Plaza and the other in Easton Village.
Several grade-level crossings, including at least one in the center of town, are also in the plan, said Stephanie Danielson, Easton's land use planner and the town's representative for the Southeastern Massachusetts Commuter Rail task force.
"Certainly, there will be some implications to ensuring that traffic continues to flow well," she said.
The South Coast Rail would connect the abandoned Old Colony rail line from Stoughton to Taunton with what's called the southern triangle, which are CSX freight lines from Taunton to Fall River and New Bedford. The state bought them in 2010 as part of a $100 million deal.
Also in 2010, the state received $20 million in federal grants to refurbish three old railroad bridges in New Bedford.
Today, the two biggest hurdles to the new line are financing and a final environmental review due out in the spring.
Gov. Patrick is proposing spending $10 billion on transportation during the next decade. He wants to raise the income tax rate from 5.25 to 6.25 percent, while rolling back the sales tax from 6.25 to 4.5 percent, plus eliminate several tax exemptions, to help pay his plans.
If financing is approved and federal regulators sign off on the South Coast project, permitting and design could begin as early as this summer.
Amy Carboneau may be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com, or follow her on Twitter @amycarboneau.
READ MORE about this project.


text:
Hard to imagine two women who have less in common
It is hard to imagine two women who have less in common.
United States Rep. Barbara Jordan (D-Tex) who served for three terms in the mid-1970s was the first black woman elected to Congress in Texas. She was considered as a running mate for Jimmy Carter in 1976 and delivered an incredible keynote address at the 1976 Democratic National Convention. Before her untimely death brought on by multiple sclerosis and leukemia in 1996, she delivered another keynote address at the 1992 convention.
Until her obituary, only those who knew her privately knew that her "long-time partner" was a woman. She kept her sexual orientation very private.
Sarah Palin was the youngest and first female governor in Alaska history. She is called one of the most influential women in the history of the Republican Party and Jim DeMint said her endorsement is the most important on the right side of the aisle.
In fact, it was pointed out at the Western Conservative Summit that at Palin's current age (50), Ronald Reagan wasn't even a Republican yet.
But as different as these women are, there is one word that has brought them into the same conversation. Forty years apart, both women called for the impeachment of a President. Jordan delivered a stirring speech to the House Judiciary Committee outlining the crimes that ultimately led to the resignation of Richard Nixon. Palin has used her FOX News platform, social media and speaking engagements to call for impeachment of President Barack Obama despite the fact that most Republican Congressional leaders fear the procedure would end in political disaster just like the successful Bill Clinton impeachment proceedings did more than 15 years ago. Clinton was impeached in the House of Representatives for perjury and obstruction of justice in 1998 after the Monica Lewinsky scandal.
Clinton's approval ratings jumped to an all-time high soon after that vote and then he was acquitted by the Senate.
Unaffected by the lessons of history or persistence of facts, Palin still told the Western Conservative Summit "if Obama's not impeachable, no one is."
Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-OH) wants nothing to do with impeachment proceedings that could blow up in his party's face just in time for mid-term elections.
The chair of the House Judiciary Committee also distanced his group from the action.
"The Constitution is very clear as to what constitutes grounds for impeachment of the President of the United States," Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), said last week. "He (Obama) has not committed the kind of criminal acts that call for that."
In 1974, Jordan – who won a national championship in debate while in college at Texas State University – delivered a knockout blow to the Nixon presidency.
After outlining all of the offenses Nixon committed and helped plan that other committed, Jordan – a lawyer who taught law and had a private practice before her political career began - concluded her speech with, "Has the President committed offenses, and planned, and directed, and acquiesced in a course of conduct which the Constitution will not tolerate? That's the question. We know that. We know the question. We should now forthwith proceed to answer the question. It is reason, and not passion, which must guide our deliberations, guide our debate, and guide our decision."
Palin, whose education included stints in two Hawaiian universities, and an Alaskan institute of higher learning before graduating with a Communications degree from the University of Idaho, said she doesn't need a law degree to know Obama should be impeached.
It's funny. Most people with law degrees disagree.
Palin and Jordan show the differences in 40 years of politics and society. First, Jordan could never keep her sexual preferences private now. However, one would like to believe that the substance of her thoughts and intelligence would still allow her to be successful politically. But we all know that in the current climate, a homosexual black woman in Texas would have a tough time.
Palin is proof that style over substance is the name of the game today.
Her rise to fame and ability to continue to exist in that rarified air has everything to do with colloquialism and cuteness. Wisdom is lacking in the platitudes she preaches.
It may seem like an unattainable dream to have someone speak without passion or pretense in politics today. A return to Jordan's call for reason and not passion to guide deliberations and debate is unlikely today.
Reasoned voices are drowned out by the carnival barkers begging for attention.
Kent Bush is the publisher of the Butler County Times Gazette and can be reached at: email@example.com


text:
I've used a number of operating systems over the years and it's obvious that some systems get usability right more than others. It's also obvious that you need usability people on your team if you want to get it right, I've never seen a programmer driven OS (volunteer or paid) produce usability to the same level as companies with usability people.
Usability is paradoxically, not an easy subject. It doesn't have the mathematical background of computing, so there is no one correct or incorrect way to do it. It strikes me as something between art and science, about putting the right things in the right place, not over complicating things, simplifying where necessary and moving more complex or less used options out of the casual users way.
The people developing a system often have very different requirements and preferences from those who will be using it. Developers are a different kind of people from normal users, they like technical stuff, they like to be in control and have many as many configuration options as possible to allow optimisation, they will often have very good memories for detail.
Users tend to be be pretty much the complete opposite of this, but that is not to say they are any less intelligent, that "user" may be performing brain surgery on you one day. However due to these differences software developers do not generally make good usability people, they can make software usable for themselves but that may mean it's completely unusable for casual users.
"Programmers do their work but once, while users are saddled with it ever thereafter." - Jef Raskin
There is no "perfect" usability as not everyone works the same way. Trying to force a method of working on users is likely to backfire. Witness the outcry some users made about Gnome when they switched to a spatial nautilus. A spatial browser does not work well with a deep file system hierarchy, unfortunately many users have exactly that and consequently had problems with the system.
All users -even developers- get used to ways of operating, even if something new is better, the fact they are used to the old way means there will always be resistance to change, a chunk of the complaints about the recent changes in Gnome will be for this reason and this reason alone.
Of course the advantage of creating a new platform is that there are no existing users to complain when things change. Of course this means migrating users from another platform will have difficulties but this is only the case if that's what you want to do, what is the point of building a new platform to do the same as all the others?
More or less options
One approach to usability is to simplifying everything by removing options, this strategy assumes users are idiots and in my opinion is more likely to annoy users due to lack of options than help usability. Just because someone doesn't know about the inner workings of an computer does not mean they are an idiot. Usability is not about "dumbing down".
Removing options or flexibility for the sake of it may make things easier to use, but it also makes for an inferior product. On the other hand adding too many options is only likely to confuse users.
Gnome and KDE respectively are taking these approaches, the end result being Gnome is annoying some advanced users (to the point that the spin off project GoneME has started) while KDE is confusing for casual users (or at least the control panel is).
OS X has plenty of options but they are not thrown at you all at once, many are hidden behind "advanced options" buttons and such like, it manages to be both powerful and easy to use. Different companies and projects have been copying the Mac for years simply because it looks so good, nobody seems to have ever matched it's usability though.
Sometimes adding complexity actually helps usability. Try editing a sound on a early 90's synthesiser, then try the same on a 70's synth. The 90's synths used a minimalist approach with only a few buttons to navigate a wide variety of different controls, consequently they were a compete pain to use. The 70's machines put all the controls on the front panel and allow direct access. Initially these were frighteningly complex just to look at but once learned were very easy to operate. Today modern "virtual" synthesisers have gone back to allowing the same 70's method of operation.
- "Building The Next Generation, Page 1/4"
- "Building The Next Generation, Page 2/4"
- "Building The Next Generation, Page 3/4"
- "Building The Next Generation, Page 4/4"


text:
FORT HOOD, Texas — A military judge has refused a three-month trial delay for the Army psychiatrist charged in the deadly 2009 Fort Hood shooting rampage.
Maj. Nidal Hasan made the request after the judge allowed him to represent himself at the court-martial. Hasan said he needed more time to prepare for his defense strategy.
Last week the judge barred Hasan from telling jurors that he shot U.S. troops because they posed an immediate threat to Taliban leaders in Afghanistan.
Today, Hasan told the judge that he no longer needed more time to prepare.
Col. Tara Osborn, the judge, is expected to set a trial date later today.
Hasan faces the death penalty or life in prison without parole if convicted in the attack that left 13 dead on the Texas Army post.


text:
I had moved in with a daughter after each of us had been widowed. One day I was home alone and decided to boil some eggs. I put about a half-dozen in a pan over a gas flame in "plenty" of water. I promptly got "sidetracked" and forgot them. Soon, I heard some cracking and popping and rushed over to turn the flame off. Oh my! That pan was a goner!
I was sorely tempted to bury it in the trash so Ruth wouldn't see it. Just as quickly, I repented and left it in the sink.
Ruth came home and without a word of reprimand took it outside and saturated it with WD-40 spray and let it soak a bit. That pan cleaned up with a paper towel!
I'm glad I repented in time! It was her favorite!
Ileen Harris
– La Sal, Utah


text:
If you're participating on Cyber Monday while at work — who doesn't, except me of course, boss — you'll likely be using your credit card.
Andrea Woroch, a money-saving expert with Kinoli Inc., offers these tips:
Expect heavy online traffic. Have all your account information on hand.
Check out FreeShipping.org for offers geared for Cyber Monday. On this day, Woroch says, retailers aren't going to steer you directly to coupons.
Keep on watch for last minute specials.
Follow your favorite brands on Facebook or Twitter to learn about deals.
Make sure you read the return policies of each retailer in case you regret a purchase later.
And for safety reasons, avoid shopping on public networks at libraries or coffee shops, where con artists can steal your information.


text:
Bloc 28%
Conservatives 27%
Liberals 20%
NDP 17% here or 18% here
Greens 9% here or, you guessed it 7% here
The Liberals occupy a distant fourth with francophones, a full 5% behind the NDP. In the Quebec region, the Liberal numbers have reached a new low at 10%. However, if you look at the regional breakdowns, the Liberals are still in position to maintain their seat totals, still the possibility for pickups.
Both the Bloc and Conservatives are down 2 points since the last survey, the Liberals unmoved, the NDP up 3 or 4 depending on the source (strange that). As James notes, the erosion of the Bloc and Cons seems to benefit the NDP, but unlike him, I think Liberals should take little comfort in that dynamic. What that situation really tells us, voters are bypassing the Liberals as a second choice, a viable alternative. I would also argue that this dynamic might be the reason why Conservative numbers remain high, as voters don't see much choice, apart from the unproven NDP. That said, the Conservatives are clearly in position to pickup seats.
The NDP has ever right to be gleeful at these numbers, if they were to hold, then the Quebec caucus would surely grow, a beach head established, piercing through the most important hurdle- the perception of viability. The only caution, these numbers are softer than the Maple Leafs defence, a long way to go before they translate to the voter booth.
From the Liberal perspective, I would take these findings as opportunity. The Bloc are clearly on the wane, the appetite for seperation at a very low ebb. The Conservatives have established a base of support, but I suspect their policies still keep people at arms length. There is clearly a void here, and rather than the NDP winning "hearts and minds", I see the surge as more voter "fishing" than fundamental breakthrough. Whether that flirtation translates to concrete results is still largely a function of the Liberal reaction.
The Liberals desperately need to update their language in the province, present a progressive policy vision that appeals to mainstream Quebec, and above all, make Dion relevant to the discussion (Charest's astounding turn around does offer some hope, both are known quantities). Right now, it would appear as though voters, outside of the last bastions, don't even consider the Liberals, a distasteful afterthought. If the Liberals do take a pass on a spring election (the horror!), then I expect Dion to live in Quebec for the entire summer, all energy focused on this albatross, some innovative ideas, confronting his image in a forceful and focused way (unlike the quick hits, here and there, with no sense of gameplan, that we have seen to date), anything less than urgency denotes delusion.


text:
Tom Rice looks out at the barren parking lot of the Fairfield Marriott. He's not seeing asphalt and a couple of cars, brutal sun glinting off bumpers. He's not listening to car sounds of the nearby freeway.
Rice has a vision. He holds up a picture of an elaborate outdoor stage. He's talking ice ramps for drinks, DJs, foam, fog and lights. He waves his arms in a gesture that encompasses all three stories of the Fairfield's facade, which will be covered in LEDs, he says. He holds all of the pieces in his head, down to the rainbow umbrellas that will shield people from the sun after a trip to the fajita bar.
Tribal Pride, a three-day party, will be the first of its kind in Albuquerque. Rice has helped out at various pride celebrations in the past, he says, "and sometimes I was given just hours." He's the CEO of Spectrum Enterprises, and along with a crew, he's been planning the event since last fall. The event will range all over the Fairfield, the entirety of which has been rented for the weekend.
"It's a secured zone. You can dress like you want and be how you want."
Tom Rice
For plenty of revelers, the gay pride party doesn't stop once the parade and event at the fairgrounds are over on Saturday. Attendees come from near and far for that day. Several of the bars that usually host post-Pride events, like Pulse, AMC and Foxes, closed down last year. Plus, an event like this that urges people to live in the party should help prevent DWI, Rice says. In line with that goal, he's had Tribal Pride's noise permit extended until 2 a.m. "I didn't want to have a party where at 12 a.m., people get in the car and go Downtown."
The Fairfield, at University and Menaul, is easy to access but also somewhat isolated. Rice chose it by looking at Albuquerque via Google Earth. "Where in the city can you go and not bother anybody?" he asked. Upon entering the party, guests will find two pools and a courtyard surrounded by hotel rooms occupied fellow merrymakers. "It's a secured zone," says Rice. "You can dress like you want and be how you want." A red carpet will provide plenty of opportunity to glam it up. Pool parties, ample food and drink, shuttles to O'Niell's Pub and the Expo NM fairgrounds—all of the fine detail lends the party the air of a big-city experience, Rice says. "You'll get a sense of feeling safe. There's lots of places to explore, but it's all with your family."


text:
Office Space Before & After
Andrew, our reader from Bogota, Colombia sent us photos of his office space Before & After. With his admiration of white uncluttered spaces he did a wonderful job transforming the home office.
We like the new window treatments. Diffused natural light fills the room without being overwhelming. Our own style would call for more color, but we can appreciate the simple and uncluttered decor. The plants add a little bit of green to this minimal color scheme.
(Images: Andrew Rodriguez)


text:
ROCKFORD — Before the Winnebago County Board tackled any government business Tuesday, board member Joe Hoffman bowed his head and thanked God for the privilege of allowing them to meet.
The district 10 Democrat led his fellow County Board members in a prayer for county employees and for the safety of military members before concluding: "In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen." A chorus of "amen" from both elected officials and other attendees followed.
"It's a beautiful thing," Steve Stark of Rockford told the board that night.
Stark, who was there to hear his 105-year-old father honored with a proclamation, didn't know prayer was a routine start to County Board meetings.
"I was pleasantly surprised," Stark said. "The whole concept of God in government is becoming a subject that is more and more loaded. It's more and more volatile."
That volatility landed a case involving prayer in government before the U.S. Supreme Court in November. The high court took up a case involving Christian invocations held at the start of a New York town's council meetings. An appeals court had ruled that overtly Christian prayers equated to an endorsement of one religion over others.
A third of municipal and county government boards in Winnebago and Boone counties open their meetings with a prayer, the vast majority are Christian. Each handles it differently. In Rockford, a police chaplain leads the City Council. In Machesney Park, a different local preacher leads the prayer each meeting and in Winnebago County, board members rotate the responsibility of leading the invocation.
The topic often sparks debate about the role of religion in government and the separation of church and state.
"I think it is generally a bad idea for public officials to be leading prayers at official functions. It appears to put an official stamp of approval on the praying that would otherwise not be there," said Bob Peterson of Machesney Park.
"It does not offend me a lot though. For one thing, I have never been to one of these meetings. And for another, if I cannot ignore a short prayer maybe I should just grow up and get over myself," he said.
Peterson suggested prayer be handled the same way as any other form of public speech. Members of the public could sign up to comment as they currently do and be given their allotted time to say what they want.
"If they want to pray, let them," he said.
Supreme Court justices are expected to hand down a decision by June 2014 on whether Greece, N.Y., violated the Constitution because almost every prayer in an 11-year span was Christian. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the practice of holding consistently Christian prayers amounted to the town's endorsement of Christianity.
It's the first time in 30 years that the Supreme Court has taken a case on prayer at government meetings. The court ruled in 1983 that the Nebraska Legislature didn't violate the First Amendment when it had a chaplain open each session with a prayer. The Nebraska case held that prayer is deeply embedded in the nation's history and tradition.
That tradition has been slowly lost since the Supreme Court decided in 1947 that government-endorsed prayer in public schools is unconstitutional, said Rockford attorney Bernard P. Reese, who wrote an amicus brief in support of prayer in the Greece, N.Y., case.
God "has been gradually eradicated from our public life beginning after World War II, and where are we on a moral basis in this nation today? We're in big trouble," Reese said.
Rockford, Harlem and Belvidere school boards do not pray before their meetings, but the Rockford board holds a regular moment of silence before it tackles its agenda.
The nation's founders had prayer and Bible study as they crafted the Declaration of Independence, Reese states in his brief to the Supreme Court. Members of Congress still pray before each session. It would violate the Declaration of Independence and Constitution if government or the courts were to interfere with prayer at meetings, Reese argues.
The thing to look for in the pending Greece, N.Y., case isn't so much the opinion itself, but who writes it and how it's written, said J. Mitchell Pickerill, an associate professor of political science at Northern Illinois University.
If Chief Justice John Roberts writes the opinion he may say "this is tradition, we've always allowed this, it doesn't mean you have to have it," Pickerill said. "Then it's up to the community to decide whether they want it or not. Then it's a political question."
Conservative justices Clarence Thomas and Antonin Scalia could use it as an opportunity to signal to other litigants that they're willing to entertain this topic in other contexts, Pickerill said.
"If someone like Justice Thomas (writes the opinion), then you have to look for whether he uses this case as a vehicle to further tear down that separation" between church and state, Pickerill said.
Local government boards that don't pray before meetings typically aren't omitting it for any political reasons, or fear of mixing church and state. Leaders of most local boards that don't pray said they were simply running the meeting the way their predecessors did.
"I'm not opposed to it. I don't know how the rest of the board members feel," said Capron Village President Ken Grzybowski.
Roscoe Village President Dave Krienke has also followed past practice of getting straight to government business, but he's open to praying first.
"It would probably be good to start up with something positive," he said.
Rockford Ald. Frank Beach, R-10, said prayer is an appropriate start to government meetings and is pleased the City Council does so.
"We bow our head to simply say 'Lord, we are here to represent these people and we ask for your wisdom and common sense,'" Beach said.
Separation of church and state, Beach said, was meant to prevent government from demanding people belong to a particular church. It was not intended to take God out of government.
"Scripture instructs us to pray for those in authority over us," Beach said. "If there's no other reason to do it, that might be a fairly compelling one."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Kevin Haas: 815-987-1410; firstname.lastname@example.com; @KevinMHaas


text:
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Officer K. Kong
Around the same time I bought a security guard uniform at a thrift store. Walking around as an Ape-Cop gave me a little authority in my run-down neighborhood.
I joined the Fourth of July parade as an ape on a unicycle. I also rode that way around the campus of the University of California at Berkeley, where I was an anthropology major.
The gorilla mask proved useful during the final exam of my primate social behavior class. All through the semester, the professor had made a big point of proving that gorillas are really gentle, intelligent creatures, not aggressive monsters.
I arrived on day of the final exam day carrying the head and hands of the gorilla concealed in a paper bag. I sat in the back row.
Somehow I finished the test about 20 minutes early. I quietly pulled on the mask and gloves. I stood up and started down the aisle gripping my papers. With a growl and a little table-pounding in the front of the room, I handed in my exam to the professor.
Then I turned to the class, put my fists in the air and hit my chest a few times and marched out the door.
It must have taken a few minutes for the class to refocus.
18 comments:
- jeff jordan said...
The Final Exam is an apocryphal JG story. Nice mask! It's great to see some photos and hear it from the Ape's side. Thanks for sharing the photos, and happy 4th, Jim!
- July 4, 2010 at 9:35 AM
- draigstudio said...
As a professor I would have completely loved that!
- July 4, 2010 at 10:54 AM
- Beth said...
That is all just *so* funny! Wonderful!
- July 4, 2010 at 11:46 AM
- Steve said...
Wonderful story and pictures!
"When I was in college I made a gorilla mask out of cast latex." Can you say a little more about that for those of us who haven't done it? Somehow, you had access to a gorilla head to use as a form, yes?
- July 4, 2010 at 12:59 PM
- Roberto said...
Jimmy G., yew da Gorilla mah dreemz!
Happy Birthday America!! (and don't forget to clean-up the mess when the party's over)-RQ
- July 4, 2010 at 1:02 PM
- brownbird said...
With that security guard uniform, you look like one of the characters in the final scene of the "Planet of the Apes" 2001 remake (except those characters were heavier - do gorillas eat donuts?? =:o)
- July 4, 2010 at 1:26 PM
- goat89 said...
HAHA! Awesome story! The bygone days of youth... :D
- July 4, 2010 at 2:01 PM
- By Scott Flanders said...
- This comment has been removed by the author.
- July 4, 2010 at 2:12 PM
- Claire said...
Bwahahahahahaha!!!! :D
Have a happy 4th!
- July 4, 2010 at 3:43 PM
- Marianne said...
He he great story!
- July 4, 2010 at 5:00 PM
- Blake said...
Very awesome. Always entertaining when people dress up in costumes to interrupt the flow of things. I'm also guilty of this behavior.
- July 4, 2010 at 5:19 PM
- nana said...
I love you! (In a very decent and respectful way!)
The most devious thing I did in an exam was to draw on the test paper...
- July 4, 2010 at 6:26 PM
Ahahahaha! Excellent.
You were quite the rebel.
- July 4, 2010 at 8:03 PM
- China Blue Rockett said...
Every time you post anything, you get a million times more awesome. Especially in this case.
I might never have known that you rock at maskmaking and unicycling.
That would have been very sad.
- July 4, 2010 at 8:32 PM
- Erik Bongers said...
I fail to see the relavance of this post.
There is nothing abnormal about this behaviour.
- July 5, 2010 at 5:39 AM
- Les said...
My favorite aspect to this post is that James doesn't take himself too seriously. Being able to publicly poke gentle fun at yourself says great things about you. FWIW.
- July 5, 2010 at 6:00 AM
- James Gurney said...
Draig, my professors got a good laugh, too, thank goodness. They could easily have given me a zero for disrupting the class.
Steve, I didn't have any information on how to make a realistic mask, so I probably did it the hard way:
1. Life mask with plaster soaked bandages.
2. Fiberclass cast of my head.
3. Clay sculpt of gorilla face.
4. Plaster piece mold.
5. Cast in latex, reinforced with stockings.
6. Fake fur and hair inserted hair by hair.
7. Jaws made separately.
All in all, a lot of time, when I really should have been studying!
- July 6, 2010 at 12:09 PM
- Matthew Meyer said...
Oh wow, this is one of the greatest stories I've ever heard! Thank you! :)
- July 7, 2010 at 10:59 AM


text:
|Thread Tools
|Display Modes
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: 39.7392° N, 104.9903° W
Casino cash: $9008
Ouch: PFW Evaluates Geno, Barkley
Sorry if Q
Posted April 01, 2013 @ 2:32 p.m. ET
By Nolan Nawrocki
The following scouting reports were taken from Pro Football Weekly's 2013 Draft Preview book, which is now on sale. You can order it today through the PFW Store, or by calling 1-800-FOOTBALL (Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. CT).
QB Matt Barkley, #7
PFW Grade: 6.03
Ht: 6-21/2 | Wt: 227 | Sp: 4.95e | Arm: 305/8 | Hand: 101/8
Notes: His father, Les, was an All-American water polo player at USC (1976-79) and brother, Sam, is a hurdler on the USC track team. A four-year starter who threw for 9,487 yards and 78 touchdowns as a California prep. Suffered a broken collarbone in his first year of high school, when he was allowed to call his own plays. Became the first junior to be named Gatorade National Player of the Year in 2007 after throwing for 3,576 yards and 35 touchdowns. Enrolled at USC in time for spring practice in '09 and was named the starter in the fall as a true freshman. In 12 starts, he completed 211-of-352 pass attempts (59.9 percent) for 2,735 yards with 15 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. Became the first USC true freshman ever to start an opener and the first true freshman to start an opener at QB for an AP Top Five team since Michigan's Rick Leach in 1975. Missed the Washington game with a bruised right shoulder. Had surgery on his right wrist to relieve stiffness and inflammation prior to '10 spring practice. In the fall, threw for 236-377-2,791-26-12 (62.6) in 12 starts. Was sidelined for second half of the Oregon State game and against Notre Dame with a high ankle sprain. Had a record-setting '11 campaign with 308-446-3,528-39-7 (69.1) in 12 starts. Set the Pac-12 record for touchdown passes and broke the school mark for completion percentage. Became the top signalcaller in USC history in '12 after hitting 246-387-3,273-36-15 (63.6) in 11 starts. Suffered a sprained AC joint (type III) in his throwing (right) shoulder on a hit against UCLA and missed the final two games of his collegiate career. Finished with 20 USC career, season and game marks with 10 also being Pac-12 records. Was the winner of the Wuerffel Trophy, awarded for exemplary community service with athletic and academic achievement. Was USC's first-ever three-time captain and had a 34-13 record in 47 career starts. Did not work out at the Combine to rest his throwing shoulder.
Positives: Thickly built. Experienced four-year starter in a pro-style offense with progression NFL reads. Terrific football intelligence. Good decision-maker — knows when and where to go with the ball. Throws on balance with a smooth, fluid delivery. Good enough arm strength to connect deep — can drop it in a bucket and showed improved deep accuracy as a senior. Good short-to-intermediate accuracy and overall anticipation. Tough and will deliver with pressure barreling down — good poise and on-field demeanor. Can sidestep the rush and manipulate coverage with his eyes. Outstanding intangibles and leadership traits — commands respect from teammates. Rallied comeback wins throughout his career, from the time he was the first freshman to start for a top-5-ranked team since 1975 against Ohio State, to Oregon (2011) and Utah (2012). Very intelligent with an engaging personality. Team tempo-setter. Can elevate a locker room, uplift an organization and represent a franchise with integrity. Very strong support structure. Is a pro's pro and football is very important to him. Highly determined.
Negatives: Has short arms and average grip strength (student manager was fired for deflating balls). Does not snap it quickly and spiral is not tight. Heavy-footed and cannot improvise or create with his feet. Cannot easily manipulate his arm and throwing platform under duress and the ball dies when he can't step into it. Does not drive the ball down the field with high RPMs. Not quick-eyed — many throws are pre-determined at the line, and he will hold the ball too long on some progressions. Can be streaky (see Washington). Never beat Stanford's pro-style defense in four years.
Summary: A cool, confident, rhythm passer who suffered as a senior behind a leaky, injured offensive line that left little time to throw. Looked much more comfortable as a junior with an elite left tackle. Is slow-footed and could be more prone to injury in the pros and take some time to adapt to live NFL bullets. Leadership traits, strength of character and football IQ will allow to operate at a high level in a play-action passing game with a clean pocket and a talented cast of receivers. Can become a very solid NFL starter and thrive with a strong supporting cast. A cross between Drew Brees and Colt McCoy.
NFL projection: First-round pick.
QB Geno Smith, #12
West Virginia
PFW Grade: 5.39
Ht: 6-23/8 | Wt: 218 | Sp: 4.59 | Arm: 321/2 | Hand: 91/4
Notes: His cousin, Melvin Bratton, was a star running back for the Miami Hurricanes in the late 1980s. The Florida prep was a Parade All-American selection after throwing for over 3,000 yards and 32 touchdowns. Saw limited action in five games as a true freshman in 2009, completing 32-of-49 passes for 309 yards (65.3 percent) with one touchdown and one interception while playing through a broken fifth metatarsal in his left foot for part of the season. Took over as the starter in '10 and tossed 241-372-2,763-24-7 (64.8) in 13 starts. Was the first West Virginia QB in 12 years to throw for over 2,500 yards in a season. Garnered heavy recognition for '11 season, setting the Big East Conference and school mark for passing yards with 346-526-4,385-31-7 (65.8), in addition to becoming the first Mountaineer QB in history and only the second Big East player to surpass 4,000 yards in a season in 13 starts. Named Orange Bowl MVP after throwing for 407 yards and six touchdowns against Clemson. Set the school record and led the Big 12 Conference in touchdown passes in '12 after tossing 369-518-4,205-42-6 (a conference-leading 71.2) in 13 starts. Threw for 656 yards and eight touchdowns in a 70-63 shootout victory against Baylor. Had a 26-13 record in 39 career starts.
Positives: Has a strong arm and can rifle the ball with good velocity into tight windows. Can throw with accuracy on the move and layer the deep ball. Good overall accuracy, ball placement and touch, especially on the fade route. Throws a very catchable ball — spins it tightly. Good escapability — can sidestep the rush, find an open throwing window and extend plays with his feet when needed. Outstanding straight-line speed — clocked the best 40-yard time (4.56 seconds) and broad jump (10-foot-4) of any quarterback at the Combine. Very durable, experienced, three-year starter — overcame an average offensive line, has never missed any time to injury and will play through pain.
Negatives: Operated an offense where he received adjustments from the sidelines and was often out of sync with receivers. Average field vision and coverage recognition — forces throws and does not work through progressions. Takes unnecessary sacks and does not feel pressure well. Not an elusive scrambler. Shaky lower-body mechanics — does not stand tall in the pocket (crouches, hops, dances and elevates to his toes when he throws). Has pin legs and bad pocket posture. Operated almost exclusively from the gun. Not a student of the game. Nonchalant field presence — does not command respect from teammates and cannot inspire. Mild practice demeanor — no urgency. Not committed or focused — marginal work ethic. Interviewed poorly at the Combine and did not show an understanding of concepts on the white board. Opted not to compete at the Senior Bowl and has approached offseason training as if he has already arrived and it shows in his body with minimal muscle definition or strength. Has small hands and glaring ball security issues (32 career fumbles). Really struggled handling the snow in Pinstripe Bowl (took two safeties) and will be troubled by the elements. Needed to be coddled in college — cannot handle hard coaching.
Summary: Started the season red-hot with the help of two playmaking receivers and created a national stir generating a lot of overexcitement in the scouting community. Quickly came down to earth after Kansas State disguised coverages and brought pressure he could not handle and he finished dropping six of his final eight games. A cross between Akili Smith and Aaron Brooks, Smith is a gimmick, overhyped product of the system lacking the football savvy, work habits and focus to cement a starting job and could drain energy from a QB room. Will be overdrafted and struggle to produce against NFL defensive complexities.
NFL projection: Top-50 pick
Posts: 2,068
A huge dick
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Where the hell is SNR
Casino cash: $55849
I liked Bruce Irvin a lot and thought he'd go in the middle of the 2nd or so. I did not in the least anticipate him to go in the middle 1st, though.
Posts: 73,898
Join Date: Feb 2013
Casino cash: $33940
Per Jim Corbett
Geno Smith will visit Buffalo Bills next after Wednesday spent with Chip Kelly's Philadelphia Eagles following a very good visit with K.C. Chiefs
Posts: 16,409
Join Date: Sep 2011
Casino cash: $21574
But still, horrible value to draft a competent pass rusher at 14. Horrible value.
Posts: 18,285
The Lede
Join Date: Aug 2007
Casino cash: $26691
One wonders what sources the writer could have to accurately arrive at some scathing and oddly personal conclusions. Let Nawrocki put a name to such claims. Then we have news –
Moreover, keep in mind if this blogger had any journalistic integrity he would have said, "Numerous sources …." This way he takes it out of his hands as being the writer who has an extreme view of a player's personality - Just keep in mind, Pro Football Weekly has to sell draft publications.
J.C. what a rip job.
Posts: 33,610
Join Date: Feb 2013
Casino cash: $33940
Geno Smith will visit Buffalo Bills next after Wednesday spent with Chip Kelly's Philadelphia Eagles following a very good visit with K.C. Chiefs
Posts: 16,409
The 23rd Pillar
Join Date: Sep 2002
Casino cash: $19337
Boy, you all want power. God, I hope you never get it. - Lindsay Graham
Posts: 97,705
The 23rd Pillar
Join Date: Sep 2002
Casino cash: $19337
Boy, you all want power. God, I hope you never get it. - Lindsay Graham
Posts: 97,705
In Search of a Life
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: San Antonio Tx.
Casino cash: $34554
Peter Kings take
I think around this time of year, everyone has an opinion, and for an analyst like Pro Football Weekly's Nolan Nawrocki to be highly critical of Geno Smith ("Not a student of the game, not committed or focused") is not surprising. Understand one thing: People like Nawrocki are not making this up. NFL scouts talk to people studying the draft, and they have opinions, and they understand that the analysts are going to put the opinions in their own words. Now, is Smith a bad student, or not focused? Not from what I have heard. But I probably haven't spoken to the same people Nawrocki has.
I've heard Smith is a bit reserved, not a great leader and an average decision-maker. But I've also heard he's a good worker, a smart player who puts in the time, fast, with a very good arm. Understand this: No NFL scout is going to take what Nolan Nawrocki thinks or writes to the bank. Could the team choosing him go back and do some extra homework on him after reading that? Maybe. But let's say Buffalo is considering Smith at No. 8. Do you think GM Buddy Nix is taking shortcuts on the eighth pick in the draft, and do you think coach Doug Marrone would take Smith, upon whose shoulders his future as an NFL head coach will depend, without doing full due diligence?
Read More: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/nfl...#ixzz2Pt2iMwVm
Mayocks take on Geno:
"He has no awareness of the rush surrounding him. So his pocket awareness ... 30, 32 fumbles in his career ... five sacks in the first half against Texas, three of them he could have gotten rid of the football easily and one of them he was stripped of the football in the end zone for a touchdown. There is no internal clock, there is no feel. Deep ball accuracy, I've put reel together of six to eight throws that should have been touchdowns; wide-open vertical guys that he overthrew or underthrew.
The more tape I watch -- and this is common of a lot of talented, big-arm quarterbacks -- he stares down receivers and he throws the football late. So there is a lack of anticipation and timing. Now, having said all of those things, I recognize the big arm, the athletic ability; he's a great athlete, he's a natural thrower of the football. I just don't see it enough on tape. I couldn't take him in the top 10, I don't think I could take him in the top 20. This entire quarterback class on tape frustrates me."
-- Mike Mayock, the NFL Network analyst, on West Virginia quarterback Geno Smith.
Read More: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/nfl...#ixzz2Pt2tOpap
Originally Posted by Cassel's Reckoning:
Matt once made a very nice play in Seattle where he spun away from a pass rusher and hit Bowe off his back foot for a first down.
One of the best plays Matt has ever made.
Posts: 58,132
We ain't stopping! Bury 'em.
Join Date: Dec 2006
Casino cash: $54114
Mayock: I see four quarterbacks with first-round ability but I have not figured them out yet. I need a lot more work on Ryan Mallett. He makes too many mistakes in the pocket. Cam Newton is just this awesome talent who is further along from a mechanical perspective than Tim Tebow or Vince Young, but I don't know if he is a top-10 pick right now. I've seen four of his game tapes. I need to see six more game tapes and figure the kid out. What kind of work ethic does he have? Will he be the first one in the building?
Blaine Gabbert might be most gifted quarterback in this draft. He might be the next Sam Bradford. On the other hand, he might be the next Alex Smith. At this point, I caution people. I gave out my top-five list, but this week is when I'll review all the Senior Bowl tape and more junior tape. These lists will change and get updated. Ultimately, when we get through the combine and these players get taken off boards because the teams have told me something, then my board starts to mean something. Right now, it is like a crossword puzzle. I'm mixing pieces in and out.
Posts: 67,098
In Search of a Life
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: San Antonio Tx.
Casino cash: $34554
Originally Posted by Cassel's Reckoning:
Matt once made a very nice play in Seattle where he spun away from a pass rusher and hit Bowe off his back foot for a first down.
One of the best plays Matt has ever made.
Posts: 58,132
The 23rd Pillar
Join Date: Sep 2002
Casino cash: $19337
Boy, you all want power. God, I hope you never get it. - Lindsay Graham
Posts: 97,705
MVPiMp II
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: ABQNM
Casino cash: $5000
Yeah, I,m gonna' trust what I see, and **** these guys altogether. Thx!
Posted via Mobile Device
Posts: 69,250
In Search of a Life
Join Date: Feb 2009
Casino cash: $30624
Posts: 26,850
|Thread Tools
|Display Modes
Linear Mode


text:
Better informed and technologically empowered consumers are transforming health care, a trend that will reward companies most adaptive to this change in the era of the Affordable Care Act, a Johnson and Johnson executive told gathers at a New Jersey Technology Council breakfast today.
Roberto De O. Marques, group chairman of Johnson & Johnson, said the trend reflects the unsustainable pace of health cost increases coupled with technological advances –
mainly search engines and mobile applications – that make it easier for consumers to demand more personal service.
"Through blogs and social media, the consumer is taking charge," Marques told a gathering of about 60 business people and attorneys at the Lawrencville office of Fox Rothschild LLP. "They want to be treated on their own terms."
Marques said the changes are being driven partly by the Affordable Care Act, which puts added emphasis on patient-centric care through wellness and prevention, though broader trends have been underway for years.
"It's not just the ACA, it's not just the United States; it's a global phenomenon," Marques said.
Johnson & Johnson, like many companies, has been running a digital health coaching program for its workforce online aimed at preventing health problems. Employees input personal information and receive recommendations on health matters including weight management, nutrition, physical activity, sleeping and smoking cessation.
Marques said participants reported getting 32 minutes more sleep a night, while 58 reported weight loss and 89 percent reported they are better communicating with their doctor.
Prevention of problems at earlier stages is economically critical, Marques said, because consumers often become more engaged in their health care upon being diagnosed with a condition, such as diabetes, after which treatment becomes much more expensive.
The company is also in dialogue for ideas with companies such as Nike, which an electronic sensor that tracks activity including calories burned, weight and sleep, and communicates with a companion mobile app. Marques said Johnson & Johnson plans to introduce mobile apps supporting over-the-counter and prescription medicines to improve compliance.
With these trends comes increased regulation as well demands to protect consumer privacy. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has begun to regulate health care apps for safety. Marques said the FDA also now expects companies to report interactions with customers via social media.


text:
Oversight of California High Speed Rail
Transcript of Hearing
Opening Statements
(Remarks as Prepared)
First, let me thank the Madera Community College for hosting the Subcommittee this morning, and everyone here for helping coordinate this very important hearing. Second, I would like to welcome our guests to lovely Madera County and thank them for agreeing to testify today.
This hearing is an oversight hearing on the California High Speed Rail project. And I have several concerns I look forward to exploring with the witnesses.
In 2008, the voters of California approved $9.95 billion ballot measure, Proposition 1A, for this project. I was serving in the State Senate at the time and voted in favor of the proposition. What we sold to voters was a $33 billion project that would receive in equal parts financing from the State, Federal Government, and Private Investors.
We told voters that we would use existing rail corridors and rights of way so that we wouldn't destroy family farms, communities, and agriculture production in the valley. The entire track was to be electrified, and the project was to be built in segments that would be profitable and usable individually.
The project has changed significantly since 2008. So much so that it is unclear if it conforms to the requirements of Proposition 1A.
The first construction package will not be electrified, will not be a useable segment, may not meet the time requirements for passenger trips, and uses money designated for high-speed rail on conventional train upgrades.
Moreover, at the time of Proposition 1A, the project was estimated to cost $33 billion and be completed by 2020. Since then the project has undergone significant fluctuations in cost and completion date to a high in 2011 of $98 billion with a completion date of 2033, and now back down to $68.4 billion with a completion date of 2028.
My concerns about these cost fluctuations were confirmed last year when I asked Secretary LaHood at our hearing about whether the current cost was the final cost for the project, and he said "It's going to be expensive to build the high speed rail. If that's the figure today, that's the figure today. It'll be different tomorrow."
Sec. LaHood, in my view, spoke more truth than he may have realized, as the GAO recently found that "we could not determine whether the [cost] estimates were unbiased" because the California High Speed Rail Authority did not conduct a risk and uncertainty analysis, which not only protects against bias, but also ensures contingencies are accounted for in the costs.
Simply put, this is a key factor in ensuring cost estimates are as accurate as possible.
While the costs will likely continue to fluctuate, the project has not established any funding sources beyond the $3.8 billion in federal tax dollars and the Proposition 1A money.
Of the $68.4 billion cost, the Authority assumes $55 billion will come from public funds, of which $42 billion will be federal taxpayer dollars.
Therefore, the Authority expects an average of more than $2.5 billion a year from the federal government to complete this project. This annual amount is more than Amtrak's annual appropriations for its entire system, nationwide.
Both the GAO's recent study of the project and the Peer Review Group's review of the 2012 Business Plan have expressed concerns with the uncertainty of such future funding given the current budgetary climate.
Even the State's back-up funding plan, to use the cap-and-trade program, has been recognized as having its own set of challenges, leading GAO to conclude the funding is uncertain.
Furthermore, in 2008, we the voters of California were promised private sector investment in the project. Now, in 2012, with the project nearly doubled in cost, there is no private money at the table.
Instead the 2012 Business Plan assumes $13 billion in private sector investment, but not until 2022 when the initial operating segment is complete. The plan assumes once the IOS is complete, it will turn a profit in year one, and so much so that the Authority will be able to sell an operating concession to raise private funds.
These are assumptions that are based upon highly speculative estimates, which have been criticized in almost every official review of this project.
The Peer Review Group, created by Prop 1A, has noted that "[t]he existing model is relatively simple and does not reflect the relationship between costs and the level of operations as well as it could. …and the overall results of the model appear optimistic, and if the Authority's model is optimistic, the private sector will be less able to augment public investment."
Furthermore, while the funding sources are each uncertain at best, the Authority also promised in 2008 that the project would follow existing transportation and utility corridors to the greatest extent possible.
Instead, the first construction package will traverse prime agricultural land.
This land is valued at a range of $28,000 to $33,000 per acre. I am not sure if this is the amount the Authority budgeted for, but if it is not and they do not pay such valuations, it could lead to further delay through contentious eminent domain proceedings.
What's more, the Authority has failed to disclose precisely where the track will be laid. Roughly a month from when the Authority intends to break ground and no right of way has been acquired, no agreement is in place with freight rail regarding its assets, and landowners still don't know if train tracks will be coming straight into their living room.
I want to conclude my statement by reiterating that I support the concept of high speed rail.
I voted for Proposition 1A when it was presented to voters.
What we have here today in no way reflects the promise I made to voters in 2008.
The Authority has failed to produce a $33 billion project, failed to reach agreement on utilizing existing transportation corridors, will not deliver fully electrified high speed rail infrastructure, and has still not settled on a precise route, five years after Prop 1A was passed.
The Authority is asking the federal taxpayer to pick up a $42 billion tab, on a project that was approved by California taxpayers.
Given the dire economic situation that this country is in, and the massive trillion dollar deficits and debt the country continues to pile up, do we think it wise to spend this money at this time on a project with no clear end in sight and no certainty of success?
Why must the federal taxpayer pay for the mistakes the Authority has made?
How will we replace the century old farms that will be destroyed, or compensate the families who have lived in these communities for generations who will be displaced by a train that will simply pass them by?
The Authority and its supporters often make note that this project was approved by California voters. But the project has skyrocketed in cost and the Authority is asking the federal taxpayer, who did not vote for Prop 1A, to pick up the difference.
Given the dramatic changes to the project, is it not our responsibility to go back to the voters and ask them if they are willing to pay for it?
These are just a few of the concerns I have, and concerns that others have raised. To be frank, as Chairman of the Subcommittee on Railroads, it is my duty to ensure these taxpayer dollars are spent wisely.
I look forward to hearing from our witnesses on these topics.
# # #
Mr. Dan Richard, Chairman of the Board, California High Speed Rail Authority | Written Testimony
Mr. Kole Upton, Vice President, Preserve Our Heritage | Written Testimony
Mr. Doug Verboon, Chairman, Kings County Board of Supervisors | Written Testimony
Ms. Anja Raudabaugh, Executive Director, Madera County Farm Bureau | Written Testimony
Mr. Louis S. Thompson, Chairman, Peer Review Group for the California High-Speed Rail Project | Written Testimony
Mr. Al Smith, President and CEO, Fresno Chamber of Commerce | Written Testimony


text:
QPR goalkeeper Julio Cesar says he feels "guilty" about Mark Hughes' sacking from the club and believes the players must take some of the blame for the club's poor form.
Hughes was sacked last month after overseeing a run of 12 games without a win with former Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp brought in to replace the Welshman.
Whilst QPR are still without a win and remain bottom of the Premier League table after 15 games, they have picked up points in their last two fixtures with draws against Sunderland and Aston Villa.
However, Cesar says he feels guilty about the way his former boss departed Loftus Road but adds that results dictated he would have to leave the club.
"Mark is a good person and I'm so sad about the situation which has happened to him," the Brazilian told Sky Sports.
|QPR are 11/10 to avoid relegation with Paddy Power
"When the team don't win and results aren't right the coach is the first person to pay but I feel guilty about this.
"The players go on the pitch and everybody has a percentage of fault. It was not a big surprise that Mark Hughes got sacked, it was normal.
"If you go 13 games without a win it's very difficult for a coach to stay.
"He was a good coach with good ideas. But what happened to him has happened to many coaches throughout the world."


text:
Information by Country
Global Section:
International Day of the Girl Child 2013: Call for Innovative Approaches and Solutions
Innovation can broadly be described as a novel solution to a social problem that is more effective, efficient, sustainable and equitable than existing solutions. In the context of IDGC, it is important to look at innovations that have demonstrably advanced girls education over time, but also those that are emerging and promising and have the potential to promote girls education.
We need your help in identifying novel and creative approaches from around the world! Please share any innovative stories related to girls' education with us by September 6th and send it to pphumtim[a]unicef.org. Below are more details of what we are looking for:
Tell us the story (no more than 500-600 words)
- What was the barrier to girls education/learning that was being addressed?
- What was the innovative solution/approach?
- Who was involved in implementing it (e.g. organization)?
- How long has it been in operation?
- If available, please report some of the key results that have been achieved (e.g. qualitative/quantitative or anecdotal evidence indicating improvements).
- Please send JPGs or GIFs, or video links with proper credits.
For more information about what we mean by innovation, please click here.
Help us spread the word, just like our friends at the Himalayan Times have done. Thank you!


text:
Cancer Tumor Development
Studying mice with skin cancer, researchers at the Swiss Institute for Experimental Cancer Research (ISREC) and EPFL (Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne) have identified a three-way signaling pathway directly involved in tumor development. Their research, published in the August 1, 2006 issue of Genes and Development, pins down a process that could potentially be manipulated to inhibit the growth of existing carcinomas.
Genetic mutations in our cells accumulate as we age, and carcinomas are associated with alterations in certain key genes, known as tumor suppressor genes and oncogenes. The overexpression of oncogenes disrupts complex cellular signaling pathways and leads to tumor development. However, most oncogenes also play a variety of essential roles in the normal function of a cell. It is extremely difficult to pinpoint the interplay of genetic and cellular events that goes awry when a cell becomes cancerous.
To better understand the intertwined roles of three genes known to be implicated in skin cancer, Professor Andreas Trumpp and PhD student Thordur Oskarsson studied mice that carried a mutated form of one of them, the oncogene Ras. They then genetically engineered mice whose skin cells also lacked another oncogene, c-myc. The c-myc gene is known to be a master regulator in the cell, responsible for controlling several hundred other genes.
Their first surprise was that the mice without the c-myc gene in their skin cells didn't suffer any adverse effects. Unexpectedly, epidermal cells do not require c-myc for survival, normal differentiation or cellular division. However, even more surprising was that these same mice were completely resistant to developing skin cancer, even though they carried the mutated Ras gene, known to drive tumor development. As expected, mice in the control group carrying a normal copy of the c-myc gene developed cancer.
A piece of the puzzle was clearly missing. The researchers found this in a tumor-suppressing gene known as p21. Mutated Ras drastically increases the level of p21 in the cell, and in this way the tumor-causing effects of Ras are held in check, because p21 inhibits uncontrolled proliferation. However, mutated Ras is a vicious oncogene and has found a way to remove the tumor-suppressing effect of p21. It does this by simultaneously driving increased c-myc activity, which in turn eliminates p21. Thus, epidermis with mutated Ras but no c-myc cannot form tumors as p21 remains highly expressed. Trumpp and his colleagues proved the newly uncovered relationship of this cancer threesome by engineering mice lacking both the c-myc and the p21 genes. As predicted, these mice became sensitive to mutated Ras again and developed extensive skin tumors.
"This work is in vivo proof-of-concept of a key pathway in epithelial tumors," remarks Trumpp. "The gene that is truly critical and protects the cells from oncogenic activity is p21. Inhibiting the c-myc pathway was always thought to be unreasonable because this gene is thought to be implicated in so many cellular functions. However, this might prove to be promising avenue for treating existing carcinomas, because it would only affect tumors and not normal skin cells."


text:
What better way to warm up on a very chilly Saturday morning than to enjoy a fresh bowl of Stone Soup while browsing the Hub City Farmers' Market?
What better way to warm up on a very chilly Saturday morning than to enjoy a fresh bowl of Stone Soup while browsing the Hub City Farmers' Market?
Trick question: There is no better way.
I totally took advantage of the end-of-season produce and made a great big pot of hot goodness for the shoppers at the final Saturday Hub City Farmers' Market for this year. It was a bright day, and with our hats and mittens we faced the cold and had a great time.
The story of Stone Soup is meant to remind us that "with everyone working together and contributing what they can, a greater good is achieved," and that it was.
Local farmers threw in a few ingredients, from cabbage, zucchini and greens to Thicketty Moutain Farm's chicken bones for the stock.
All the ingredients came together to make a hearty soup worthy of the last market on a chilly Saturday morning.
Don't forget to visit the special Thanksgiving market from 5 to 8 p.m. on Friday at Morgan Square.
Be sure to feature as many local ingredients as possible in your holiday meal to show thanks to your friendly neighborhood farmers.
Olive oil
1 to 2 onions, peeled and diced
1 to 2 tablespoons dried herbs, such as thyme, basil, oregano and parsley
1 celery stalk, diced
3 carrots, scrubbed and diced
1 tomato, cut in half across the equator and seeds removed; diced
2 to 3 red potatoes, scrubbed and diced
1 bay leaf
4 to 6 quarts chicken stock (or equal parts chicken, beef and vegetable stock)
1 to 2 zucchini or yellow summer squash, diced
1 cup shredded green cabbage, collard greens, bok choy or kale
Kosher salt and pepper to taste
Lemon juice, to taste
Small pasta shapes, cooked to al dente (firm but not hard)
Optional vegetables to include
Add with the onion:
-- 1 turnip, scrubbed, trimmed and diced
-- 1 leek, cleaned and thinly sliced (add with or instead of the onion)
-- 8 ounces mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
Add toward the end of cooking:
-- Fresh green beans, trimmed
-- 1 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels
-- 1 cup cooked lima beans, crowder peas or other beans
-- 1 cup okra, sliced into large chunks (don't overcook)
-- Fresh herbs, such as parsley or chives
-- Shredded cooked chicken or turkey
-- Cooked lentils
-- Small can of V8 juice
Heat a large pot over mediumhigh heat. Add enough olive oil to lightly coat the bottom of the pot. Add onions, garlic and a generous pinch of salt; stir occasionally, sweating the vegetables until soft, about 2 to 3 minutes.
Add turnips, and cook for about 5 minutes.
Add carrots and celery, cook for another 5 minutes. Add tomatoes and dried herbs; stir to coat all vegetables. Add stock, potatoes and bay leaf; bring to a simmer. Cook until the potatoes are tender, about 10-15 minutes.
Add remaining ingredients such as corn kernels, okra, cabbage or greens and fresh herbs, and cook just long enough to heat through, about 2 minutes. Season to taste with kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper and lemon juice until perfect.
To serve, divide some ingredients, such as fresh herbs, shredded chicken, lentils and cooked pasta shapes to the bottom of each bowl to ensure equal distribution. Ladle hot soup on top.
4 to 6 pounds bone-in chicken, cut up
2 onions, peeled and quartered
1 celery stalk, cut into chunks
1 carrot, cut into chunks
2 cloves of garlic, cut in half
1 tablespoon of whole black peppercorns
1 bay leaf
2 to 3 sprigs fresh thyme
2 to 3 fresh parsley stems
3 to 4 quarts cold water
In a large, tall pot, combine all ingredients and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil, lower to a gentle simmer, and cook for 4-6 hours. Skim throughout the cooking process, removing fat and scum. All ingredients can also be simmered overnight in a slow cooker.
Strain stock through a colander lined with cheesecloth.
Cool as quickly as possible: fill gallon-size freezer bags with the strained stock, seal and submerge in a sink full of ice water. Use immediately, or freeze in individual zip-top bags or in ice cube trays for easy access.
-- If using frozen meat or bones, first cover in water, bring to a boil and drain off water. Add remaining ingredients and fresh water; make stock as usual.
-- Do not stir or cover the stock while cooking; this can release impurities and bitterness.
-- Chicken and vegetables can also be roasted before stockmaking for deeper color and flavor. Toss chicken pieces with a little oil. Roast in a 425 degree oven in a baking dish for about 15 minutes. Add vegetables and continue roasting for another 30 minutes.


text:
CLEVELAND (AP) – The man who famously put down his Big Mac to help rescue three women held captive for a decade in an Ohio house will never have to pay for another burger in his hometown.
Charles Ramsey has been promised free burgers for life at more than a dozen Cleveland-area restaurants.
The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer reports that the restaurant where Ramsey worked as a dishwasher initially created a special burger in his honor, but eateries in the city decided a larger tribute was due.
Ramsey was called a hero after helping Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight break out of the house May 6. Ariel Castro is now facing charges.
The newspaper says Ramsey was traveling and would get his "Chuck Card" when he returns.
(Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)


text:
Experts "Rebuild" Bach's Face
The face of Johann Sebastian Bach has been recreated by experts at Dundee University more than 250 years after the German composer's death. It is believed that only one portrait he sat for still exists.
However, forensic artists at the university built up a picture of his appearance using a bronze cast of his skull and documents from the time.
The face will go on display at the Bachhaus museum in Bach's hometown of Eisenach next month.
Read more about this at the BBC website:


text:
Ben Hartsock
Sponsored By
Extra Week Of Rest Allows Panthers To Be Very Healthy For 49ersThe Carolina Panthers were thrilled to get the first-round bye in the NFL playoffs because it meant one less game between them and the Super Bowl. They were also very grateful for it because it allowed a number of players to fully heal up.
Carolina Panthers Focused, Intimidating For First Playoff Game In YearsThe Carolina Panthers have had an extra week off to prepare for their first playoff game in years, but they haven't taken the time off from preparing. They have been focusing on whichever team they may face and they are looking to be a team that is not only good, but one that is feared.


text:
by Sandi Rosner
Many knitters are puzzled when they come across this sentence at the end of a pattern: "Block to finished measurements." Do you really have to block your work? Should you block before or after assembling the pieces? What is blocking anyway, and how should you go about it? In this article, we'll take a look at the transformative process, using examples from this issue.
The Basics
Yarn has a memory. It remembers being wound in a ball, and it remembers being wrapped around your needles. Blocking is the process of re-setting that memory with a little help from water, a flat padded surface, and a few sturdy pins. Water wipes the memory clean, and a new memory is formed as the piece dries.
As your knitting comes off the needles, the yarn is confused by the memory of being in a ball or skein and wants to revert to that former state. Ribbing and cable patterns vigorously contract. Stockinette stitch looks uneven. Lace patterns are rumpled and nearly unrecognizable.
Blocking relaxes the yarn and allows it to settle into its new configuration, be it a sweater or a pair of mittens. The surface of the piece smoothes out and small irregularities in tension disappear. Depending on the fiber you're using, the yarn may "bloom," developing a soft halo. Each stitch finds its place and the individual strands of yarn come together to create a cohesive fabric.
To make your knitting look its best, blocking is a necessary final step. Still not convinced? Take a look at these before and after photos.
Since water resets the yarn's memory, it follows that your normal blocking process should be no more elaborate than what you'll do when you launder the finished project. Whatever you do in blocking will be un-done by subsequent washing. If you're making an easy-care cotton pullover or superwash wool throw that you intend to machine wash and dry, then blocking will be no different than doing a load of laundry. For a delicate shawl or cashmere-blend sweater that you'll carefully hand wash, blocking is a bit more involved.
Case Study
Let's use Hawser, my sweater design in this issue, to demonstrate the blocking process. You can employ the same method with pretty much any other knit project with a few exceptions—we'll discuss those later on. Hawser is knit without seams, so blocking is carried out on the finished sweater. (Other designs might require blocking to be done before the project is seamed together, more on that later.) The yarn is a blend of merino wool and silk.
Block Hawser using the same method you would use for simply hand-washing a sweater. Follow the steps below (shown with Lyssium). Start by filling a large basin with warm water and a couple of drops of a no-rinse wool wash. Put the sweater in the basin and push it below the surface of the water, gently working the suds through the sweater and making sure the entire piece is saturated. Then leave to soak for about 20 minutes.
The next step is to remove the excess water from the piece. Use one hand to press the sweater up against the side of the basin while the water drains out. Use both hands to lift the sweater in a mass and gently squeeze until it stops dripping. In your own blocking adventures, take care to prevent stretching at this point—wet yarn can be both heavy and vulnerable, so don't pull the sweater from the water by the end of one sleeve. Use both hands to support the entire piece.
Next, spread the sweater out on a dry towel, roll the towel up around the sweater like a jelly roll, put the roll on the floor, and walk on it. The objective is to move as much water as possible out of the sweater and into the towel. For a particularly thick design, I'll repeat this process with a second dry towel. Your goal is to end up with a damp sweater and a wet towel.
Now it's time to move on to a flat blocking surface. You can purchase a padded board specifically designed for blocking, but all you really need is a smooth, clean surface into which you can stick pins. I spread an old polyester tablecloth over a spare bed. (I've also blocked on a carpeted floor.) Some knitters prefer to block on a towel, but I find that a towel holds moisture, slowing down the drying. Place the sweater flat on the blocking surface, patting and smoothing it into shape. This is the opportunity to mold the new memory the yarn will retain. For Hawser, I pinched the cables a bit so they wouldn't flatten out. Using a yardstick to check key measurements (use the schematics for your sweater as a guide), I gently pushed and tugged the damp sweater until it was the size and shape I wanted, and then left it alone to dry overnight. Since it was summer in California when I blocked the sweater, drying time was not an issue. In cold or humid weather, I'll turn on a fan to ensure good airflow over the piece.
The following morning, the sweater will dry and ready to go. Follow the same process when you hand wash a sweater.
A Word About Lace
The process for blocking a piece of lace is a bit different. Most openwork patterns look best when they are stretched, opening up the holes and revealing the flow of the design. A good blocking changes lace so much, it's almost magic.
To block a shawl like Henna Markkanen's Periphery you'll need long blocking wires (these come in both rigid and flexible styles) and pins. Make sure the latter are long and rust-proof with large heads that won't get lost in the knitting. I use inexpensive T-pins.
Begin by washing and towel drying the shawl just as you would a sweater. Be sure your blocking surface is large enough to allow you to fully stretch the piece in all directions.
Thread rigid blocking wires through the straight top edge of the shawl, weaving the wires in and out through every third stitch or so. It may take more than one wire to cover the entire distance. Lay the wire(s) on your surface in a straight line and secure with a pin at the center top of the shawl. Work your way down one wing, stretching the knitting down the wire and placing just enough pins to keep the wire straight. Finish with a pin at the corner of the shawl. Repeat on the other wing.
Now stretch out the bottom point of the shawl, making sure the center line is at right angles to the top edge. Pin the point. Work your way along the sides of the shawl, stretching, shaping and pinning the points along the scalloped edge. Have lots of pins on hand; you'll want a pin for each point.
Don't be afraid to stretch the piece. Unless you are working with a particularly fragile yarn, it can take a lot of pulling. In general, the more you stretch, the better the lace will look.
Use a yardstick to check your measurements. You want the shawl to be symmetrical, with the same measurements on either side of the center line. Adjust pins as needed until you are happy with the shape you've made. This shape will be imprinted in your shawl's memory as it dries, so take the time to get it right.
It shouldn't take long for your piece to be thoroughly moisture free; lace dries fast. When you remove the pins, you'll find the yarn no longer tries to spring back to its pre-blocked formation. Every point and scallop will stay in sharp relief.
Assembly Required
What about sweaters that are knit in pieces? Should they be blocked before they are sewn together?
Opinions vary. Some knitters find that the curling edge of their unblocked knitting makes it difficult to sew a tidy seam. Others feel that the pieces go together more easily if they are carefully blocked to the schematic measurements in advance.
I prefer to block after the pieces are sewn together. I don't have any trouble sewing up curly edges, and the pieces fit together just fine if I've knit them correctly. I like blocking the sweater to shape as a whole.
I will block before assembly if I need to pick up stitches along the edge of a lace panel. Holli Yeoh's Peking, from our Spring 2013 issue, is one such example. For a design like this, picking up stitches for the side panels is easier and more accurate if the lace panels are blocked first.
Try both ways and decide for yourself. It is your knitting, and you can do whatever produces a result that makes you happy.
What About Pressing, Steaming or Dry Cleaning?
I've seen blocking instructions that involve a damp press cloth, a tailor's ham, and an iron. Remembering that every time you wash the sweater you'll erase whatever blocking you've done before, I really don't see the sense in this. You can't see what you're doing through a pressing cloth. And will you repeat this process every time your sweater needs a bath?
I do steam block, particularly if I want to get a good gauge measurement on a swatch without taking time for the whole wash and dry process. I lay the piece out on my blocking surface, hold my iron so it hovers over the piece without touching, and pump out lots of steam. The steam should thoroughly infuse the knitting. You'll often see the swatch visibly relax as the steam does its work. Then I use my hands to pat and smooth the surface of the piece until it is cool.
If you are working with cotton or linen and feel like a light pressing will improve the appearance of the piece, feel free to iron your knitting. Just take care not to flatten any textural elements like cables or bobbles. I avoid letting an iron touch the surface of other fibers.
If you intend to dry clean your sweater, give it an initial blocking following the instructions for hand washing given earlier in this article. Your cleaner should be able to restore the sweater to this shape after each cleaning. Personally, I don't dry clean my handknits. I briefly worked at a dry cleaner many years ago, so perhaps I just know too much. I can't bear the thought of my sweaters tumbling around in a vat of chemicals with other people's dirty clothes. But it's your sweater. Do what works best for you.
Blocking is like running a brush through your hair before you head out to face the world. It is the finishing touch that makes your sweater look great. After all the hours you've invested in the knitting, don't skimp on this final step. It can be the difference between a sweater that looks homemade and one that looks handmade.
Sandi Rosner is a knitter who wears many hats: designer, technical editor, writer and teacher. She loves the little details that elevate a knitting project from homemade to handmade. Follow Sandi's blog at http://www.knittinginwinecountry.blogspot.com.


text:
The last time the Florida Gators played in Auburn Arena they scored only 45 total points. By halftime on Saturday the Gators had already scored 47, and that was almost all they needed as they routed the Auburn Tigers 83-52.
Playing against a severely overmatched team, the Gators did exactly what championship contenders should when their opponents aren't up to snuff. Build a big early lead, and keep it going throughout the game.
By the 16-minute mark, the Gators were up 10-3. At the 12-minute mark, they were up 28-12. At halftime, the writing was already on the wall.
Redshirt senior Mike Rosario was undoubtedly the Gators' most enigmatic player entering this season. Rosario was unreliable both on and off the court during his first two years in Gainesville. However, as of late, Rosario has looked like arguably the Gators' best all-around player, and showed such with his 18-point first half performance.
Rosario scored the Gators' first basket of the game on a short jumper and that proved to be an auspicious sign of things to come. By the time the Gators jogged into the locker room Rosario had already hit seven shots from the field. Kenny Boynton chipped in 10 first half points as the two players combined for more than half of UF's scoring output.
The Auburn Arena crowd was focused on an upset heading into Saturday, but after the first half it was clear which direction the game was going. Facing a significantly less enthusiastic crowd in the second half, the Gators continued to coast as more players joined in on the fun.
Freshman Michael Frazier had a quiet first half as it seemed the Auburn game plan had alerted the Tigers players about the Tampa-native's three-point prowess. After Rosario and Boynton got off to hot starts, the Tigers' focus on Frazier appeared to wane as he knocked down 6 three-point shots en route to a 18 point night.
As the afternoon wore on, the Gators' lead eventually swelled to over 30 points as it became increasingly clear that the SEC is certainly the weakest it's been in a while.
Rosario ended the day with 22 points on 9-14 shooting, Kenny Boyton ended with 16 points on 5-11 shooting and Erik Murphy had 11 points 4-6 shooting.
The Gators will look to be to challenged in the upcoming week as they face a healthy Missouri squad on the road on Tuesday. Florida will also be looking to avenge their lone SEC-loss of the season this week as the Arkansas Razorbacks visit Gainesville next Saturday.