text:
1. Message and Context SerializationDavid Ward Mar 10, 2011 12:41 PM (in response to David Ward)
Hmmm... Looks like I missed this updated graph:
I'm now quickly checking out protostuff, which might iron out the wrinkles of protobuf.
2. Message and Context SerializationDavid Ward Mar 10, 2011 1:24 PM (in response to David Ward)
Yeah, Kyro is still looking better. More dynamic.
Aside, I'm proposing we have a org.switchyard.io package in both switchyard-api (for interfaces) and switchyard-runtime (for implementations). Agreed?
3. Message and Context SerializationKeith Babo Mar 11, 2011 7:20 AM (in response to David Ward)
Are we still planning on using JavaBeans as the serialization contract with a pluggable implementation underneath? I thought this was the direction we were headed based on input from you and Kevin at the F2F. So the contract would be such that all Message payloads must be JavaBean-compatible. If they are not, a user-supplied class is required to map to/from a JavaBeans representation. IIRC, the format we discussed for serialization was JSON based on it's wide adoption and avoidance of relying on serialized Java classes which can blow up between incompatible versions.
4. Message and Context SerializationDavid Ward Mar 11, 2011 10:45 AM (in response to Keith Babo)
We wouldn't need JavaBeans as the serialization contract since this can handle private fields.
The direction we were headed toward at the F2F was with minimal information to chew on.
JSON serializers are slower, and the representation bigger than this.
The above would not rely on serialized Java classes. It has a compatibility mechanism.
5. Message and Context SerializationKeith Babo Mar 11, 2011 11:12 AM (in response to David Ward)
The advantage that I see with the JavaBeans approach is that there is an established standard behind it. So if we say "all content on the message must be a JavaBean or be capable of being represented as a JavaBean", there is a wealth of information and a standard behind how that works. I'm thinking about this more at the contract level and not at the serialization level.
At the serialization level, I imagine that JSON would be slower and bigger, so I don't have an issue with using a binary representation assuming that it's independent of the class definition (specifically, a given version of a class).
I'm guessing we are more or less on the same page here, but figured I would check.
6. Message and Context SerializationDavid Ward Mar 11, 2011 11:15 AM (in response to Keith Babo)
I get what you're saying. Contract requirement vs. serialization format. Ok.
7. Message and Context SerializationTom Fennelly Mar 11, 2011 11:45 AM (in response to Keith Babo)
I think one advantage of something like JSON for us is that it's "readable" (vs a binary rep). If the receiver is at first not able to make sense of JSON, at least they can see what they need to do in order to make it consumable on its side of the exchange. If it's a binary format... it's hosed because it can't get at the data easily.
I'd go for a clear contract + readable representation as the default (e.g. Javabean + JSON). If we make it pluggable, then people can sub in something else where performance is a big issue.
8. Message and Context SerializationDavid Ward Mar 11, 2011 11:49 AM (in response to Tom Fennelly)
Shouldn't be too hard to have a couple different implementations. However, I would prefer the higher-performance one to be the default, and if they need to debug something, they can configure the slower, but readable, format.
9. Message and Context SerializationTom Fennelly Mar 11, 2011 11:54 AM (in response to David Ward)
Problem with that approach is... the user needs more knowledge to get out of trouble when they find themselves in trouble What I mean is... they hit a problem... stress levels rise a bit... they can't see the data... stress rises another bit... then they figure out they need make low level to configurations to switchyard just to get to see the data... stress levels hit the roof I know I'd start throwing things out the window at that point !!
10. Re: Message and Context SerializationDavid Ward Mar 11, 2011 11:59 AM (in response to Tom Fennelly)
I wouldn't expect that much stress, as long as there is adequate documentation. I lean toward the better performing one so that we do well in 1) out-of-the-box performance comparisons, and 2) less configuration to be done to stand-up a production-ready system.
11. Message and Context SerializationKeith Babo Mar 14, 2011 9:54 AM (in response to David Ward)
I'm good with the binary serialization as a default. I agree with Tom's point on a human parseable serialization for debugging purposes, but I think that can be configured in when required.
If you want to see the actual details of a message as it moves to and from on the bus (i.e. a trace/audit log), then you can configure your service and/or domain to enable an audit policy. The policy details can include a specific instruction for the serialization format requested. In test/development environments, we just need to make it simple to set that policy at a domain level.
12. Message and Context SerializationMichael Cowgill Mar 22, 2011 8:23 AM (in response to Keith Babo)
Thanks for pointing me to this thread.
I won't be labor any points here, but I think GPB is actually the middle ground between Kyro and XML.
GPB is human readable (every message can be printed becuase they are traversable see TextFormat.java).
GPB is binary and uses varint encoding so it will greatly outperform XML
GPB is flexible - and you don't HAVE to write proto files, but it performs faster with them. You'll have to follow their descriptor classes to see how to dynamically construct a message (FileDescriptorSet -> FileDescriptor -> FieldDescriptor [repeated]...). In addition you can change a message structure dynamically or via the actual .proto and not break any legacy devices (Kyro may struggle with this). You might also want to look at extensions as well. I could see a very good use defining a standard .proto and letting users configure on the fly to hot deploy services.
GPB issues - lack of a java proto compiler and proto parser make runtime compilation a little cludgey (but do-able). Kenton (GPB lead) may be working to create one of these. There may be a very large message performance issue - I can't remember if this was solved.
Overall if performance is your main criteria I can not argue with the Kryo choice. With GPB wide range of language libraries, traversability and readability the only reason I will use XML again is because another application forces me -- which will continue to happen.
If you guys want to continue to discuss GPB in more detail I can, but I figure reading posts isn't your favorite part of the job.
I'd also be interested in understanding how this code fits into the core. I am still learning about how ESB's and other SOA infra's are really built.
13. Message and Context SerializationKeith Babo Mar 22, 2011 10:33 AM (in response to Michael Cowgill)
Hey Michael,
Your feedback and insight is very useful, so please keep it coming!
What I would really like to see is that we use our existing Transform support to provide serialization. That way, there's a well-defined and pluggable mechanism available to try out different serialization implementations. Ideally, we would have multiple options and users would be able to declare the serialization strategy as part of their runtime configuration.
David is working on pulling together an initial design around the serialization piece, so that's the next bit to look out for. From there, we can talk about how GPB might integrate with that.
BTW, I like the idea of introducing a GPB transformer. I added a JIRA for it.
14. Message and Context SerializationMichael Cowgill Apr 4, 2011 10:29 AM (in response to Keith Babo)
Ok so I am not sure if this warrants a new thread or not, you guys can tell me that. GPB is looking at a significant change/enhancement and the language reminds me of Smooks. However, I have not had time to chase this trail. Also the solution is not ready yet, so I don't know if that matters to this group. Regardless here it the thread on their community forum. I realize this isn't quite at the internal level you guys are currently focused and does lay one layer on top of that.


text:
Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a serious intestinal illness in babies.
Although NEC may develop in low-risk newborns, most cases occur in premature babies. NEC is more common in babies weighing less than 1,500 grams (3 pounds, 4 ounces).
It is not clear exactly what causes NEC. It is thought that the intestinal tissues are somehow weakened by too little oxygen or blood flow. When feedings are started and the food moves into the weakened area of the intestinal tract, bacteria from the food can damage the intestinal tissues. The tissues may be severely damaged and die, which can cause a hole to develop in the intestine. This can lead to severe infection in the abdomen.
Damage to the intestinal tissues can lead to perforation (a hole) in the intestines. This allows the bacteria normally present in the intestinal tract to leak out into the abdomen and cause infection. The damage may only exist in a small area or it may progress to large areas of the intestine. The disease can progress very quickly. Infection in the intestines can be overwhelming to a baby and, even with treatment, there may be serious complications. Problems from NEC may include the following:
The following are the most common signs of necrotizing enterocolitis. However, each child may experience symptoms differently. Symptoms usually develop in the first 2 weeks and may include the following:
The symptoms of necrotizing enterocolitis may resemble other digestive conditions or medical problems. Always consult your child's physician for a diagnosis.
NEC is diagnosed by examining the baby for the signs listed above. An x-ray of the abdomen may show a bubbly appearance in the intestine and signs of air or gas in the large veins of the liver. Air may also be outside the intestines in the abdomen. A needle may be inserted into the abdominal cavity. Withdrawing intestinal fluid from the abdomen is often a sign of a hole in the intestines.
Specific treatment for necrotizing enterocolitis will be determined by your baby's physician based on the following:
Treatment may include the following:
Severe cases of NEC may require:
Because the exact causes of NEC are unclear, prevention is often difficult. Studies have found that breast milk (rather than formula) may reduce the incidence of NEC. Also, starting feedings after a baby is stable and slowly increasing feeding amounts have been recommended.

subset: commoncrawl


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MOSCOW (AP) — Some of the Russian children caught in limbo by their country's ban on adoptions by Americans have left for the United States with their new parents, the U.S. Embassy in Moscow said Wednesday.
The confirmation to The Associated Press from press attaché Joseph Kruzich was the first official word that any of the 46 children had been allowed to leave Russia. Kruzich did not say exactly how many of the children had already left, but it was clear that all of these adoptions could now go forward, bringing huge relief to the children's would-be parents in America.
The ban on adoptions by Americans was rushed through Russia's parliament and signed by President Vladimir Putin in December in retaliation for a U.S. law that sanctions Russians said to have violated human rights.
But the hasty enactment left many questions unresolved, including the fates of the 46 children whose adoptions had just been approved by Russian courts. The court approval of the adoptions had to be followed by a 30-day waiting period, but that period wasn't over before the ban went into effect Jan. 1, leaving the children in legal limbo.
Many of the adoptive parents came to Russia last week hoping to take home children with whom they had already bonded during two or more previous trips to Russia as part of the lengthy adoption process. But some of the Americans were left hanging when officials refused to turn over the children, citing uncertainty over the new law. Others had more luck, but kept low profiles, unwilling to jeopardize adoptions that still seemed shaky.
Russia's Supreme Court was asked to establish a legal framework for resolving the dilemma and it issued its ruling on Tuesday, stating firmly that all adoptions approved by courts by Jan. 1, even if they had not gone into effect, would be allowed to proceed. The same assurances had been given last Thursday by Russia's ombudsman for children's rights, but his words carried no legal weight.
The embassy press attaché confirmed that some of the American families had managed to get their new children even before the Supreme Court ruling.
"Following up on recent statements by Russian authorities, the embassy can confirm that several adoptions have been finalized under Russian law," Kruzich told the AP. "The embassy in Moscow has processed the applications of these adopting parents in accordance with standard procedures. We will continue processing those cases that are approved by Russian courts."
The first children left Russia on Friday and Saturday, a day after their applications were processed by the embassy.
Hundreds more families — perhaps 1,500 in all — were in some earlier phase of pursuing an adoption from Russia. The Supreme Court ruling appears to put an end to their hopes.
Russia has more than 654,000 children not in parental custody, and 128,000 of them are eligible for adoption, most of them now living in orphanages. Russia has been trying to increase domestic adoptions, and 18,000 Russians are on the waiting list to adopt a child.
Americans adopted nearly 1,000 Russian children in 2011, about 10 percent of them classified as disabled.
While the immediate purpose of Russia's ban was to retaliate for the new U.S. law targeting Russians, the ban also reflects resentment over the 60,000 Russian children who have been adopted by Americans in the past two decades, 19 of whom have died.
But many Russians have been angered by the adoption ban, which they see as sacrificing children to make a political point. A protest in Moscow this month to denounce the law and those who enacted it drew tens of thousands of demonstrators.


text: Why you should post on Saturdays and other fun facts By Paul Gillin. Published on January 09, 2013. Spending on content is expected to explode this year as marketers recognize the growing influence of search engines and the value of peer recommendations. However, many are still stuck in a print-era mindset that ignores the speed at which information spreads—and dies—in this caffeinated age of social networking. Simply stated, people have less time and patience to read, and more sources from which to choose. The content that gets noticed is eye-catching, easy to understand and simple to share. That doesn't mean the 10,000-word white paper is dead, but its role in the information ecosystem has changed. Here are some interesting factoids that I recently bookmarked. Why am I telling you this? Because if you're ignoring these trends, you're wasting your content marketing investment. • The best days to generate Facebook interaction in the advertising, automotive, financial and telecommunications industries are Saturday and Sunday, according to LinchpinSEO. However, the retail, sports and technology industries get more responses when posting on Monday and Tuesday. • Facebook posts that are published between 8 p.m. and 7 a.m.—overnight, in other words—get 14% higher interaction than those posted during daytime. Yet the majority of brands post content mainly during the workday. • Wednesday is the best day of the week for interaction on a single Facebook post, reported Mike Lewis, author of "Stand Out Social Marketing" (McGraw-Hill Cos., 2012), based on an analysis of millions of posts by customers of Awareness Inc. However, most business posts happen on Friday, which is one of the least responsive days. Lewis also reported that nearly all Facebook and Twitter responses occur during the first 10 days after a message appears. In contrast, only 7% of engagement with a blog post occurs during that time, and only 34% of engagement with a YouTube video. • Socialbakers found that one-third of the reach of a Facebook post occurs within the first 10 minutes, and 60% within the first hour. In contrast, only about 24% of email opens occur within 60 minutes. • HubSpot evaluated nearly 9,000 Facebook posts in October and reported that those with photos got 53% more "likes" and 104% more comments than those without photos. However, 60% of the photo-bearing posts in the sample didn't include a link, which means the authors missed an opportunity. • E-singles (short books that sell for a couple of dollars) are one of the fastest-growing segments of the otherwise moribund book industry, according to paidContent. Increasingly, long-form content should be housed in places where search engines can index it. Meanwhile, factoids, infographics, tweetable quotes and summary videos are the stuff that get people talking. Marketers need to think of content modularly and approach publishing as a sequence of events whose lifespans may range from minutes to months. Paul Gillin (gillin.com) is an Internet marketing consultant and the author of three books about social media. He also writes the New Channels column in BtoB. He can be reached at [email protected] Most Popular In this article: BtoB


text:
While Tory Burch is a relatively new brand, its popularity has soared to international levels. To date, there are more than 120 freestanding Tory Burch stores with brand presence in more than 3,000 department and specialty stores.
The History of Tory Burch
Founded in 2004, Tory Burch has skyrocketed to international popularity in the past 11 years. Today there are more than 120 freestanding Tory Burch stores across the world, with plans to open many more. Tory Burch also has a major presence in department stores and specialty stores worldwide.


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|2012-09-29, 05:41
|Link #41
Knight Errant
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Dublin, Ireland
Age: 30
As for Rowling, I'm on the fence. I think where she goes from here will have a big effect on whether she becomes a classic. A mark against her is that she's largely read for entertainment rather then artistic reasons. But then, that didn't hold back Sherlock Holmes, did it?
|2012-09-29, 11:09
|Link #42
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Dai Korai Teikoku
I'm not sure what Rowling has done for her genre.
|2012-09-29, 11:51
|Link #44
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Dai Korai Teikoku
From the OP:
|2012-09-29, 12:05
|Link #45
books-eater youkai
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Betweem wisdom and insanity
@ Aegir I could simply say than Sumeragi is right but maybe I shuld developemore my thought; the idea for this thread was to talk about author and book than might ''might pass the test of time'', or if you prefer, to become a classique. Your two examle are already classique so there's no room to question if they will be classique, they are already.
|2012-09-29, 12:12
|Link #46
Not Enough Sleep
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: R'lyeh
Age: 42
Agatha Christie novels are already consider classic and secondary several have been turn into movies. With the lack of creative talent in the movie biz, it won't be long till someone remake those.
|2012-09-29, 12:34
|Link #47
Join Date: Feb 2006
Age: 35
Re: Rowling -- I think she'll have a place in history. My rationale? Some may dislike the comparison, but she reminds me of Tolkein. Her vivid imagination has created a vast "world" and "system" that has resonated with a large number of people. It doesn't hurt that her writing is actually good too. I first read Tolkein when I was .. 9/10 years old? Even picking up to this day .. I'm not sure I'd say his writing was the best, but I don't think anyone would argue about his amazing imagination/creativity and that he's the father of the medieval fantasy genre..
Re: Sherlock Holmes / ACD -- If we say that .. my thought naturally goes to fiction by Tom Clancy or Robert Ludlum. Would we category these as thrillers/suspense/mysteries and move on or do they have their own categories? They've pretty much defined the modern military/spy thriller.
|2012-09-29, 12:46
|Link #48
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Dai Korai Teikoku
Robert Ludlum: The American Spy Thriller
One thought on Tom Clancy is that he isn't really much of a military fiction writer, despite his expertise. Yes, Red Storm Rising was a definite classic in being the first to portray post-Cold War military situations, but in terms of actually portraying battles themselves, I would rather read Arc Light (Eric L. Harry's best work with all others being "slightly" insane) or Korean military thrillers.
|2012-09-29, 12:46
|Link #49
Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2007
Now is Agatha Christie a great literary genius, of course not. But there is something to be said about writing great genre fiction too.
Also as a fan of the Sherlock Holmes and Christie's works I will say they both have their strengths and weaknesses. Doyle and Christie have both written bad and great stories.
For me Doyle's work has stronger characters. Sherlock and Watson are way more memorable than any of Christie's characters. But as far as mysteries go, as a reader I find Christie's works more fun & engaging because I have a chance of figuring them out even with her crazy ending. It's pretty impossible to figure out the mysteries in the Holmes books, because Holmes always has knowledge we as readers don't get.
I also think Harry Potter will stay relevant. Not necessarily because of its literary importance but because of its pop culture importance. It's like the Star Wars of books.
edit: Also about Holmes vs Christie novels being made into movies...well these things are cyclical. But I would argue Conan Doyle's writing lend themselves to films more.
If you think about it, it's the characters of Holmes & Watson (not necessarily Doyle's stories) that keep getting made into films/adaptions. Of course there are straight adaptions of Doyle's works, but more often than not it's iconic characters that Doyle created that get placed into new stories & situations.
Agatha Christie's characters are not as iconic. Sure we can film the same story over & over again, but it's not really necessary. The films of her works that I've seen, didn't always capture the books either (the only one I really loved was Wilder's Witness for the Prosecution).
Last edited by Kirarakim; 2012-09-29 at 13:07.
|2012-09-29, 13:20
|Link #50
Exitus Acta Probat
Graphic Designer
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Permanent retirement from raws-hunting
Age: 32
Rather, what really singles him out in a crowd is his particularly thought-inducing (or controversial, in some cases) set of ideas; one of his last works, State of Fear, stirred a lot of attention (both good and bad, approving and disapproving) in the Climate Change landscape, as he was questioning a lot of the data and reasoning (IMHO he was not so much set against CC than he was against certain emergent -and potentially dangerous- ideological/intellectual trends). Of course, you don't have to always agree with him, but the amount of trouble he goes through to make his point (in SoF he even dumps a truckload of real life literary references for the reader to read and judge) is certainly admirable.
That, IMHO, is what garnered him a lot of fame - the idea of salvaging fossilized DNA and tinkering with it to revive dinosaurs (in JP, he almost subverts some potential criticisms about dinosaurs not being exactly the way he portrays them by suggesting that the dinosaurs are actually already genetically modified for the park's convenience), eco-terrorism and the climate change turning into an industry of sorts, politicized science, chaos theory predicting that Man cannot control Nature and that ecosystems are highly unpredictable, quantum mechanics showing that funky stuff can happen with certain particles, etc, etc. A lot of that was groundbreaking, cutting edge science or stuff we were uncomfortable talking about.
The problem is that those ideas are tied with current trends, technology and themes that might disappear, become common/boring or fade in the background in the decades to come (in State of Fear he even discusses an ironically similar topic, where he likens ideas to trends, which by nature rise and fall, become popular then get quickly forgotten when they fall out of context).
Books like 1984, have themes that can remain valid even decades into the future because the bottom line, the message deep beneath can transcend time. But, let's imagine, 50 years from now: will people still be highly concerned/fascinated about tampering with DNA of long-lost species? Climate change? Uncontrolled artificial intelligences and nanomachines? I can't say - because as MC said it himself in one of his books (either SoF or Timeline), people have absolutely no idea about what the future is made of.
General fears and passions, however, need not worry about that. They can remain pertinent no matter which decade or century they're applied to.
|2012-09-29, 14:30
|Link #51
books-eater youkai
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Betweem wisdom and insanity
As for Robert Ludlum, I would say than it would bebetter if they would stop to slap his name on book years after his death. I would say if it were book than he wouldn't had finished himself but another author endded but it'S not the case.
|2012-09-29, 15:02
|Link #52
Knight Errant
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Dublin, Ireland
Age: 30
Come 2075, I'm fairly sure that Agatha Christie will only be known for her Wikipedia entry saying she's the most prolific mystery author of all time.
Conan Doyle had a lot of original ideas. Christie only had one, and made a career out of flogging it over and over again. Classic that does not make.
If you want to talk about classics, the works that tend to become classics are not genre fiction. To give an example, if we look at the 1500-1600 one of the most well known books was Amadis de Gaul, along with Don Quixote, it's parody. Don Quixote transcended genre, and wasn't written to any strict formula. Amadis de Gaul, while well written, was strictly formula for chivalric literature. Don Quixote is read to this day. As for Amadis? It's only known because it's explicitly mentioned by name in Don Quixote. Agatha Christie will go the way of Amadis de Gaul.
|2012-09-29, 17:05
|Link #53
Also a Lolicon
Join Date: Apr 2010
The article argues that Harry Potter is an anomaly in an age where people are reading less and less fiction. Anomalies tend to get remembered.
Of course, that said, I'm not certain that VN's at that time will have much in common other than the format to VN's today, since VN's today are a very niche artform, made by and for a very small group of people, that is gradually getting smaller and smaller.
|2012-09-29, 17:40
|Link #54
Knight Errant
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Dublin, Ireland
Age: 30
I think Starcraft will be the classic, because it's so refined, and is likely the best made RTS ever. Dune 2 is simply too crude, and Starcraft was just as innovative, in that it featured asymmetric but balanced factions.
If we look at the popular literature of other centuries, most of it, like today, was genre fiction, not "high fiction". I don't think our culture has regressed, but I think people read more in different ways.
Though I have to confess, I do find a lot of "dramatic" non-genre fiction to be rather dull. A lot of it is basically plots about some prostitute dying on the streets of Bohemia, or some lingering meditation on middle class mediocrity and sexual desire. I can only take so much of things trying to be profound.
I think the best literature has the light touch of genre fiction, while still having a cohesive artistic edge.
Last edited by DonQuigleone; 2012-09-29 at 17:56.
|2012-09-29, 18:18
|Link #55
Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2007
Most of Christie's best known novels were published before WWII. Yes she wrote books for many years, that just shows how long her career was.
If she stopped writing in lets say the 1950's would that mean we can measure her career?
Christie might have been well known to my parents, but she was also well known to my grandparents and probably my great grand parents as well. Her career itself spanned generations.
She also wasn't just prolific, but best selling!
Did Christie write literary masterpieces, absolutely not. But I would argue she is important to the mystery genre.
The thing is Sherlock Holmes is definitely popular genre fiction too. Yes Doyle should get credit for the creation of Holmes (a new kind of detective) but we don't often study "Holmes" as literature either.
|2012-09-29, 18:21
|Link #56
Join Date: Oct 2004
Age: 38
The Andromeda Strain is comparable to The War of the Worlds, Circhton admits that he based Eaters Of The Dead on Beowulf mixed with true accounts of an early Arab Embassy to the Vikings, Congo is a 20th century version of King Solomon's Mines and AFAIK everything in The Great Train Robbery is basically true and he paints Victorian England more vivid and colourfully than say Doyle. (Crichton even included quite a long passage involving a character with a 12-year-old child prostitute in that one, something that is true but most author today will shy way from mention.)
Last edited by MakubeX2; 2012-09-29 at 18:55.
|2012-09-29, 18:52
|Link #57
books-eater youkai
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Betweem wisdom and insanity
For the kind of detective Holme was; no. It's good to remember than Holmes got his influence from Edgar Allan Poe.
|2012-09-29, 19:02
|Link #58
Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2007
I wouldn't mind being more enlightened though.
|2012-09-29, 19:10
|Link #59
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2009
Location: classified
I'll cover the ones that I view as the most likely candidates of SF, Fantasy, and Horror, that--in my humble opinion--will stand the test of time from 1950 onwards.
You'll note that I don't have Stephen King on this list because I don't think his books will last as horror novels. Methinks he'll be relegated to the contemporary drama/fiction category.
Heinlein (most of his catalog, but Star Ship Troopers has the most sticking power)
Asimov (Foundation, I may hate the story because of its horrible dialogue and 1 dimensional characters, but it was a major work of hard SF and that is undeniable)
Clarke (2001, and Rendevous with Rama)
Ursula Le Guin
Poul Anderson
Michael Moorecock
Larry Niven (ringworld has been imortalized by Bungie's Halo)
Alfred Bester (The Stars My Destination)
Philip K. Dick (specifically "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep")
William Gibson (Neuromancer)
Clive Barker (hellraiser, Imagica)
J.R.R. Tolkien
Ann Rice (Interview With the Vampire)
Craig Spector
Dean Koontz
L. Ron Hubbard (Yeah I know...don't even say it , but unfortunately he'll be remembered for years to come)
Fred Saberhagen
Ian Douglas
Tad Williams (Swords of Shenara are practically classics now)
Stephen R. Donaldson (Chronicles of Thomas Covenant)
Frank Herbert (Dune mostly)
|Thread Tools


text:
Wish I Was Here
Zach Braff is a funny guy. He can sell a joke (or, even more triumphantly, a reactionary take) with genuine comic chops. That's what makes the first half of Wish I Was Here so watchable - pleasant to the point that we might even expect it to carry forth successfully into the later acts. But beyond Braff's dry rejoinders and quirky stammers is something deliberately less impressive: his stab at the dramatic.
Braff falters in the realm of the serious not as an actor - at least not predominantly - but as a writer and director. Wish I Was Here sets up a story loaded with the potential for sharp pangs. Braff plays Aiden Bloom, a man with an unhappy wife (Kate Hudson), a dying father (Mandy Patinkin), a lonesome daughter (Joey King), a disgruntled manchild brother (Josh Gad), and a crumbling dream (acting). Each construct is set up with relative validity, but none really hits home in a way that rings remotely authentic.
The reason for this is, ultimately, because Wish I Was Here doesn't seem particularly concerned with what it says. It tosses around emotional maxims to tie father to son and wife to husband when convenient, digging up contrivances about ice cream, swear jars, and surfing memories that have no real bearing beyond the benefits of a momentary poetic aesthetic. More worried about how it sounds and looks than any of the messages it propagates, Wish I Was Here tends to contradict itself - Braff and Hudson both seek happiness, but only the former is granted a real relationship (or any screentime) with their children - or fall short of painting its picture. While brother Noah (Gad) is sold as a major piece of the Bloom family's fractured puzzle, we never get the chance to learn anything about him beyond a few points of biographical trivia.
Still, the movie isn't entirely unbearable. As said, Braff can handle a comedic moment with aplomb. His daughter, played by King, is masterfully charming. The saving grace of Wish I Was Here is that the vast majority of its attention is on these two and their relationship. But when we stray elsewhere, it's as if the movie is doing everything it can to pad its runtime with ostensibly deep ideas. Ideas about childhood fantasies, science-fiction, paternal disappointment, Jewish scripture, punching people, and Comic-Con. None of it packs anything beneath the surface, so we can't help but groan and wonder why it was put there in the first place. Just get back to Braff and King bickering comedically.


text:
There was a 32 percent increase in the number of documented vulnerabilities for mobile operating systems in 2012 and, not surprisingly, a 58 percent increase in mobile malware, according the most recent annual Internet Security Threat Report from Symantec.
But it isn't the number of bugs in your OS that makes your phone vulnerable. Some vulnerabilities are more attractive than others.
"We saw a huge shift in malware aimed at the Android platform," said Paul Wood, Symantec's manager of cybersecurity intelligence.
Android, with only 13 vulnerabilities reported last year, leads all mobile operating systems in malware being written. Apple's iOS, on the other hand, accounted for the lion's share of vulnerabilities during the year but was targeted by only one family of malware.
"Today, mobile vulnerabilities have little or no correlation to mobile malware," the report concluded.
This could be bad news for government users of mobile devices. Although Android's penetration in agencies is not yet near the 72 percent overall market share reported by Gartner, it now has about 25 percent of the government market, edging out the iPhone's 23 percent.
The Symantec report looks at the number of discrete "families" of malware for different platforms, rather than the number of variants within each family.
The reasons for this lopsided distribution are not surprising. "Android's market share, the openness of the platform and the multiple distribution methods available to applications embedded with malware make it the go-to platform of malware authors," the report said.
Apple has tightly integrated the hardware and operating system for iOS, and the Apple App Store has a tighter rein on third-party apps developed for its devices. Although malicious apps are not unheard of in the company store, Apple is able to do a better job of policing the software and blocking bad actors when they show up. Owners of iOS devices have to "jail break" them to install unauthorized apps.
Google's Android OS is available on multiple handsets, each of which might tweak the software a little differently, making it more difficult to fix vulnerabilities or block exploits once they appear. And although Google has its own Google Play official store for apps, Android users are free to load anything on their devices they want to. And they do.
The result: Android has become a playground for mobile users and malware writers alike.
About the Author
William Jackson is a Maryland-based freelance writer.
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Has anyone considered it is Apple paying someone off to hack into Androids just to upset the competition. Competition is rough out there and as much as we want to think that it is all clean, it is not. The same programmers that develop the apps sometimes are the same programmers that install the malware, why because someone else is paying them too. But I guess that just makes to much sense, I mean common sense. Why not try investigating each other and see what you come up with.
Phones running Android 4.2 and later that have Google Play installed have the option of using Google as an application verifier. If the app is harmful, Google will warn you not to install it, or it may block the installation completely. For more details of the on how users are protected, see http://googlemobile.blogspot.com/2012/02/android-and-security.html
The Georgia Institute of Technology conducted a recent detailed cyber security report (as opposed to a company releasing a report that is trying to sell yousoftware). Their conclusion, "Largely, it appears that the mechanisms in place appear to be working," said Patrick Traynor, Assistant Professor
with Georgia Tech's School of Computer Science. "Even though malware does get into the market, people don't
seem to be downloading those apps." Full report here. http://gtsecuritysummit.com/pdf/2013ThreatsReport.pdf
So I disagree a bit with the statement: "Android users are free to load anything on their devices they want to". While it is true that you can go outside of the Play store to download and install items there is still a need to "root" devices in order to force certain applications on an Android device. Try getting your 70 year old grand mother to do that. I think the statement should have read "Android users are able to download and install programs outside of the forced monitored and policed Apple store. I mean...Play store".. Sorry, all sarcasim aside these short and shallow articles really get me fired up. There's no depth here. Who's the target market here in this article anyway? A mid level manager without a clue?
Vulnerabilities that are rapidly patched are not the problem - malicious exploits are the problem and Android is the malicious exploit and malware capital of the world.
There are 500 million active iOS devices versus 750 million Android devices around the world and yet it is Android that had 65,227 different pieces of malware infecting 32.8 million Android phones in 2012 while zero (non-jailbroken) iOS devices were maliciously infected according to NQ Mobile.
"Why is Android is the most attacked?"
Because hackers like a challenge rather than doing something that is easy. They would rather spend many hours breaking into Android (which gets much less Internet usage, and much less advertising revenues, and much less app sales.
Why would they ever want to break into iOS which is much easier, and has a greater Internet usage and higher advertising and sales dollars involved?
If you haven't figured it out, I was being facetious!
In reality (remember what reality is?), according to McAfee, in 2012 Android had 36,699 forms of malware attacking it... iOS has ZERO!!!
According to the "logic" of this article, malware writers are spending all of their time writing malware for Android (which is "hard" to break into, and less profit motive), while not bothering AT ALL breaking into iOS (which is "easy" to break into, and is much more profitable).
Yup, that makes total sense... if you live in Bizarro World ;-)
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OSCEOLA, Ind., June 16 (UPI) -- An Indiana woman died Sunday after hitting her head while hanging out of a moving car window to vomit, police said.
Amanda Ezra, 24, died around 4:40 a.m. in Osceola in what police said was a freak accident compounded by suspected drunk driving.
The mother of three was riding in a minivan with four other people, sitting on the lap of a front seat passenger. She had her head out of the window to vomit and hit her head on something outside the vehicle.
Tim Spencer, of St. Joseph County Fatal Alcohol Crash Team, said Ezra had been drinking before she died.
The driver of the vehicle was charged with operating while intoxicated causing serious bodily injury and leaving the scene.


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Undergraduate Catalog
2011 – 2012
Office of Admissions
Emil H. Messikomer Hall
100 W. Rosedale Avenue
West Chester, PA 19383
Phone: 610-436-3411
Fax: 610-436-2907
Revised September 2011
201 Carter Drive
Michael Weiss, Chairperson
PROFESSORS: Gunter, Weiss
ASSOCIATE PROFESSORS: Koenig, Means
ASSISTANT PROFESSORS: Grillo, Swasey-Washington
INSTRUCTOR: Curtin
The Department of Communicative Disorders offers a program leading to a B.A. in communicative disorders. It is a preprofessional program that provides students with basic knowledge of human communication and communication disorders in preparation for graduate study in audiology, speech-language pathology, speech and hearing science, or related health science or communication fields.
Students will be provided with the opportunity to complete the undergraduate preparation that is applicable to fulfilling the requirements for the Certificate of Clinical Competence (CCC) from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA).
The department operates a Speech and Hearing Clinic that serves as a teaching and training facility for the academic program. The clinic provides diagnostic and therapeutic services for children and adults with speech, language, and hearing problems. These services are available to individuals from the University as well as from the surrounding communities.
To remain in the major or to transfer into the major, students must complete the following prerequisite courses with a cumulative GPA of at least a 3.0 and a minimum grade of C or better in each course: ENG 230/LIN 230; any 100-level MAT; SPP 101, 106, 203, 207; WRT 120; and any 200-level WRT. The restrictive major requirement began with the 2008 fall semester for freshmen and new transfer students.
120 semester hours
101 Introduction to Communicative Disorders (3) An introductory survey of normal processes and disorders of speech, language, and hearing. Suitable for nonmajors.
106 Anatomy of Speech and Hearing Mechanisms (3) A study of embryology, normal development, neurology, and physiology of anatomical structures of the speech and hearing mechanisms. PREREQ: SPP 101. Writing emphasis course.
110 American Sign Language I (3) Students in this course will develop a fundamental vocabulary and understanding of American Sign Language. In addition, information will be provided about deaf culture, general impact, barriers, and opportunities related to hearing loss.
111 American Language 2 (3) Students in this course will develop conversational skills of American Sign Language. They also continue to expand their knowledge of deaf culture. PREREQ: SPP 110.
163 Seminar I in Communicative Disorders (.5) The seminar is designed to help integrate experiential and theoretical information. The seminar will focus on career/professional awareness, orientation to the department, and individual studies. Suitable for nonmajors. Should be taken concurrently with SPP 101.
166 Seminar II in Communicative Disorders (.5) The seminar is designed to help integrate experiential and theoretical information. The seminar will focus on personal adjustment, assertiveness, and active listening.
203 Speech and Hearing Science (3) This course presents students with the fundamental knowledge of acoustics related to speech production and speech perception. It also provides an opportunity for students to engage in laboratory experiences related to acoustic and psychoacoustic measurement. PREREQ: SPP 101 or linguistics minor.
204 Speech and Language Development (3) Examination of normal communication development: biological, cognitive, social, and ecological bases of language. Developmental milestones from prelinguistic communication to oral language and literacy. Normal variations in development associated with cultural diversity and bilingualism. PREREQ: ENG/LIN 230, SPP 101. Writing emphasis course.
207 Introduction to Phonetics (3) Introduction to the International Phonetic Alphabet and its use in transcribing normal and disordered speech. Emphasis is placed on broad and narrow transcription skills. PREREQ: SPP 101 or linguistics minor.
208 Neurology of Speech and Hearing (3) A study of neuroanatomy and neurophysiology of the speech and hearing mechanism. PREREQ: SPP 101, 106.
240 Development and Disorders of Language (3) An examination of normal language development and its psycholinguistic, neurological, and social dimensions. Special education considerations for children with language disorders. Suitable for nonmajors.
266 Seminar III in Communicative Disorders (.5) The seminar is designed to help integrate experiential and theoretical information. The seminar will focus on implications of disabilities and on cultural diversity.
329 Speech and Voice Disorders (3) The symptomatology, etiology, assessment, and treatment of communicative disorders associated with speech and voice. PREREQ: SPP 101, 106, 203, 204, 207.
333 Language Disorders (3) Clinical management issues associated with developmental and acquired language disorders in children and adults. Linguistic patterns observed in the performance of individuals with various etiological conditions (e.g., mental retardation, autism, hearing loss, neurological impairment, craniofacial anomalies, learning disability). Factors indicating risk for and maintenance of language disorders. Protocols for evaluation and treatment indicated by developmental theories, processing models, and sensitivity to normal variations among culturally diverse populations. PREREQ: SPP 204.
346 Hearing Disorders (3) An introduction to audiology and its relationship to other medical and educational fields concerned with hearing impairments. Developmental, medical, social, physical, and psychological properties of hearing and sound are explored. Evaluative techniques are introduced with opportunity for limited practical experience. PREREQ: SPP 106 and 203.
348 Hearing Disorders Laboratory (1) Laboratory experience to become familiar with most common hearing testing and remediation equipment. Taken concurrently with SPP 346.
350 Clinical Principles in Communicative Disorders (3) A study of evaluative and therapeutic materials and methods applicable to the professional setting. PREREQ: SPP 329 and 333. Writing emphasis course.
363 Seminar IV in Communicative Disorders (.5) The seminar is designed to help integrate experiential and theoretical information, focusing on principles and applications of counseling.
366 Seminar V in Communicative Disorders (.5) The seminar is designed to help integrate experiential and theoretical information, focusing on professional resources and the legal, ethical, and political responsibilities of the professional.
410 Independent Study (1-3) Research, creative projects, reports, and readings in speech pathology and audiology. Application must be made to advisers by students one semester in advance of registration. Open to juniors and seniors only. PREREQ: Approval of department chairperson. Offered on demand.
This course may be taken again for credit.
451 Clinical Practicum in Communicative Disorders (3) Supervised practice in the Speech and Hearing Clinic. Designed to prepare students to evaluate and provide therapy for children and adults who have communication problems. PREREQ: Overall GPA of 2.75 and major GPA of 3.0; permission of the department.
463 Seminar VI in Communicative Disorders (.5) The seminar is designed to help integrate experiential and theoretical information, focusing on employment opportunities and graduate education.
469 Clinical Instrumentation (3) Evaluation, selection, use, and maintenance of electronic aids for the speech and hearing clinician. Emphasis on demonstrations and practical experience. Open to communicative disorders students with senior standing. Also offered as SPP 569 for graduate credit.
498 Workshop in Communicative Disorders (3)
This course may be taken again for credit.


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(Reuters) - The body of a South Dakota teenager who drowned when she jumped into an icy river to save her 6-year-old brother has been recovered, an emergency official told Reuters on Saturday.
Recovery crews pulled 16-year-old Madison Leigh Wallace's body from the Big Sioux River late on Friday, Michael Koopman with Sioux Falls Fire Rescue said .
Investigators believe the girl jumped into the river when her younger brother, Garrett Martin Wallace, fell into the water on Thursday night.
The 6-year-old boy was able to get out and was not injured, Koopman said.
Authorities are still searching for the body of Lyle Francis Eagletail, 28, a passerby who jumped into the river to try to help the drowning teen and was apparently swept away with her, Koopman said.
(Reporting by James B. Kelleher; Editing by Vicki Allen)


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Seborrheic dermatitis is a chronic skin condition that causes a red, scaly, itchy rash. It can appear as a mild, white scaling or a yellowish greasy or reddish scaly rash. Most commonly affected areas are along the hairline, in and behind the ears, on the eyebrows, around the nose, and on the chest.
Dandruff is a type of seborrheic dermatitis where there is a scaling of the skin on the scalp. The area can be dry or oily and is sometimes itchy.
The exact cause of seborrheic dermatitis is unknown. Common skin yeast organisms may play a role in some people.
Risk Factors
Risk factors include having:
- Oily skin or hair
- Family members who have seborrheic dermatitis
- Chronic conditions, including disorders of the immune system such as HIV infection
- Neurological conditions, such as Parkinson disease or, less commonly, stroke
The symptoms can vary from mild to severe. They include:
- Dry or greasy scaling of the scalp
- Itchy scalp
- Itchy, scaly rash with small pimples—may also be present on nasal folds, eyebrows, anterior chest, upper back, arm pits, or genitals
- Thickened, flaking skin
- Reddened skin over the forehead and on either side of the nose
In babies less than 1 month old, seborrheic dermatitis may cause a thick, yellow, crusted scalp rash known as cradle cap.
You will be asked about your symptoms and medical history. A physical exam will be done. The diagnosis is made by the appearance of the rash.You may be referred to a doctor who specializes in skin disorders (a dermatologist).
Treatments for seborrheic dermatitis are usually applied directly to the skin in the form of shampoo or lotion. Treatment depends on the severity of your symptoms. Seborrheic dermatitis in infants will usually resolve on its own.
Medicated Products
Baby shampoo, mineral oil, and topical anti-fungal shampoos may be used for seborrheic dermatitis in infants
A variety of treatments are used for seborrheic dermatitis in children and adults, such as:
Prescription or over-the-counter shampoos containing 1 or more of the following ingredients:
- Zinc pyrithione
- Hydrocortisone or other cortisone (steroid) preparations
- Selenium sulfide
- Salicylic acid
- Coal tar
- Antifungal medications
Prescription or over-the-counter creams or lotions containing:
- Hydrocortisone or other cortisone (steroid) preparations
- Antifungal medications
- Antibiotic medication
- Pimecrolimus
- Nonsteroidal creams that are anti-inflammatory and antifungal
- Calcineurin inhibitor
- Lithium salt
Treatment can take several weeks or months and may need to be repeated if the condition returns.
There are no guidelines for preventing seborrheic dermatitis because the cause is unknown.
Revision Information
- Reviewer: EBSCO Medical Review Board Michael Woods, MD, FAAP
- Review Date: 02/2017 -
- Update Date: 06/17/2014 -


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Reynolds' RBI grounder in 9th lifts Indians
Reynolds' RBI grounder in 9th lifts Indians
May. 18, 2013
CLEVELAND (AP) — The Cleveland Indians are finding ways to win these days even when something goes wrong.
Jason Kipnis scored the winning run in the ninth inning when Brendan Ryan's throw pulled catcher Jesus Montero off the plate, sending the Indians to a 5-4 victory over the Seattle Mariners on Saturday.
Cleveland pulled out the win after closer Chris Perez allowed two-out solo homers to Raul Ibanez and Justin Smoak that tied the score in the top of the ninth.
"We made it more exciting than it needed to be, but there is something to be said for being resilient," Indians manager Terry Francona said. "Rather than feeling sorry for yourself when you get punched in the gut, we came back to win."
Kipnis, who won Friday's game with a three-run homer in the 10th, sparked the winning rally with a leadoff single against Oliver Perez (1-1). He moved to third on Asdrubal Cabrera's double and Nick Swisher was walked intentionally to load the bases.
Mark Reynolds then hit a sharp ground ball that forced Ryan to make a diving stop, and he was unable to get the forceout at home.
"That was a very uneventful walkoff, but a win is a win," Reynolds said. "I just tried to put the ball in play somewhere. When I hit it I said to myself, 'please get through,' then it was 'please make a bad throw,' and Then 'please get there.' "
Reynolds hit his 12th homer and finished with three RBIs as the Indians won for the 16th time in their last 20 games.
"That's baseball," Reynolds said. "We were like, 'Oh well, let's go win it in the ninth. If not, we've got a good bullpen."
After Kipnis scampered home to end the game, Mariners manager Eric Wedge came on the field to discuss the call with home plate umpire Mike Winters. He quickly went back to the dugout.
"The throw beat him, but Monty came off the plate early," Wedge said. "You have to stand on the plate. You have to, but he came out a little bit early. We got the ground ball we wanted — Ryno made a great play — but we didn't get it done."
Chris Perez (2-0) retired the first two hitters before Ibanez homered to right, cutting the lead to 4-3. Smoak then homered to center on a 1-1 pitch.
"The one to Ibanez was a mistake," Perez said. "I missed my spot terribly. The one to Smoak, I was trying to throw it on the corner but I missed high. It's frustrating, but it's not one of the worst games I've ever had."
It was Perez's second blown save in eight chances this season and wasted a strong start by Zach McAllister, who allowed two runs and six hits in 7 1-3 innings.
Reynolds singled in a run in the first against Joe Saunders and drove a 3-2 pitch over the 19-foot high wall in left field in the fifth. Reynolds, signed as a free agent in December, is tied for the AL lead in home runs.
Michael Bourn and Kipnis each singled in a run in the sixth, but Ryan belted a two-run homer in the eighth to keep Seattle in the game.
Saunders allowed four runs and 11 hits in 5 1-3 innings, continuing his road woes. The left-hander is 0-4 with an 11.25 ERA in five starts away from Safeco Field this season, compared to 3-0 with an 0.94 ERA in four home starts.
Asked about his problems pitching away from home, Saunders said, "I'm gonna sacrifice a chicken before my next road start. ... This is just kind of a fluky thing."
The Indians and Mariners exchanged baserunning blunders in the middle innings.
Montero hit a leadoff single in the third and moved to second on Ryan's base hit with no outs. But Montero strayed too far from second when Endy Chavez took a strike while squaring around for a bunt attempt. He was tagged out in a rundown and McAllister retired the next two hitters.
Cabrera committed his own baserunning mistake after he led off the fifth with a single. Ibanez caught Swisher's high fly ball in front of the wall in left. Cabrera, thinking the ball was going to be for extra bases, was doubled off first.
The Indians chased Saunders in the sixth. Mike Aviles started the inning with a double and remained at second when Yan Gomes singled through the left side. After a sacrifice and with the infield playing in, Ryan fielded Bourn's ground ball behind the mound but his throw home was too late to get Aviles. Kipnis then blooped a single to left that scored Gomes.
Smoak led off the eighth with a double and scored when Ryan connected for his first homer of the season. Rich Hill recorded the final two outs of the eighth for Cleveland.
NOTES: Mariners RHP Felix Hernandez (5-2) takes on RHP Justin Masterson (6-2) in a matchup of aces Sunday. Hernandez was forced to leave his start against the New York Yankees on Tuesday with back stiffness. ... Indians OF Michael Brantley, hitless in his last seven at-bats, wasn't in the lineup. Aviles started in left field. Brantley came in as a defensive replacement in the eighth. ... Mariners OF Michael Morse returned after missing Friday's game with irritation in his eye and was hitless in four at-bats. ... Mariners RHP Aaron Harang (lower back stiffness) played catch before the game and will throw a bullpen session Sunday. Harang was a late scratch Thursday against the Yankees, but is scheduled to make his next start Tuesday at the Angels. ... Cleveland Browns coach Rob Chudzinski threw out the first pitch and also exchanged uniforms with Indians manager Terry Francona.


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By Steve Olafson
OKLAHOMA CITY (Reuters) - Planned Parenthood asked a federal judge on Tuesday to stop Oklahoma from blocking it from participating in a federally funded nutrition program that helps poor women and children at three clinics in the Tulsa area.
The request, filed in federal court in Oklahoma City, appeared aimed at combating a move similar to those taken by conservative Republicans in more than a dozen states over the past two years to eliminate funding for health services provided by Planned Parenthood.
The non-profit women's health organization has administered a federal program called Women, Infants & Children for 18 tears in Oklahoma's Tulsa County, but the state health department said in September it would let other clinics provide the services, blocking Planned Parenthood from taking part.
That decision followed a failed attempt in the Republican-controlled Oklahoma legislature in May to prohibit WIC benefits from being administered by Planned Parenthood because it provides abortion referrals.
The state health department has denied its decision was tied to Planned Parenthood's position on abortion, citing decreasing caseloads, high costs and billing questions with the Planned Parenthood clinics as reasons for its decision. State health officials were not immediately available for comment.
The Oklahoma Policy Institute, a nonprofit organization that examines public policy, has called the health department's reasons inaccurate.
Planned Parenthood attorney Tamya Cox said the group was seeking the injunction to protect access to nutritional services for about 3,000 women and children that used the three clinics in September.
The group's request said that other clinics in Tulsa County can't absorb the caseload that the Planned Parenthood clinics handled and that there was a three-month waiting list to make an appointment at the other clinics.
"Politics should never interfere with a woman's access to health services - or food for her children," Cox said.
(Editing by Cynthia Johnston and Eric Walsh)


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The Delaware House of Representatives passes Senate Bill 16, requiring the reporting of lost or stolen firearms.
The Delaware House of Representatives has passed Senate Bill 16, requiring the reporting of lost or stolen firearms.
With the passage of SB 16, Delaware becomes the eighth state to require the reporting of lost or stolen firearms.
The District of Columbia also requires such reporting, as do numerous cities and towns.
Senate Bill 16 will require gun owners to report the loss or theft of their firearm to police within seven days of discovering the weapon is missing. Violators will be subject to a fine of $75-$100 for a first offense and a fine of $100-$250 for a second offense. A third offense is a class G felony.
"Law enforcement tells us straw purchasers have two main excuses when the gun they purchased ends up at a crime scene: 'I lost that weapon" or 'That weapon was stolen.'" Markell said. "By requiring individuals to report their gun lost or stolen, this bill helps eliminate those excuses once and for all.
"I want to thank Sen. [Margaret Rose] Henry, Rep.[Michael] Barbieri, and other members of the General Assembly for providing law enforcement with this important tool to reduce straw purchases."
The bill passed the Delaware Senate on May 2. Markell has said he intends to sign the bill in the near future.


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robertachavez on Family Tree Circles
view: full | list
Journals and Posts
chavez family entered thru el paso...originates and settles in el paso, texas in the socorro area, and may have come from Guadalupe, Mexico (jose chavez and maria ruiz) and were married in chihuahua, mexico...
we are listed in this website: My heritage.com and these are all the most of the names listed: alexandro,samuel,jesus(jess),jose(joe),lucia,rosa,alexandro jr.,eleanor(nora),samuel jr(sam/cookie),ricardo(richard),edward(eddie),patricia(qua qua),marylou,linda margaret,theresa(teresa),roberta,jesus jr(jesse),david laurence,betty,grace,marlene,charlene,yvette(kids-andrew and amaya garcia,theresa's kids=bobe danny e. gutierrez,jesse garcia,gilbert,gracie,natalie,richard garcia's...roberta's kids=micki brandi chavira (kids-julissa karina harper and silhouette love reyes),brock pierson crandall, twins=darren spencer crandall and candace falon crandall and there are many others. hyders, gil(gill)disputes on how it was spelled therefore records show both, harpers,reyes,piseno (not sure of spelling), armendiaz,nunez,married into the chavez families are: gil (gill), delgado, toni chavira who married ernie chavira as a 2nd partner but her 1st partner was a hyder who married a pia chavez....small world toni's 2nd husband is directly related to micki chavira (above)...no incest though..only thru marriage. i was introduced to julie hyder as my ex's cousin...only to find out 7 years later at a funeral we both attended that her grandmother(pia) and my(roberta) father(jesus) were cousins. so infact she was only their cousin by marriage only and my blood cousin...what a small world.
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Drake University is a private and independent major university located in an urban setting in Des Moines, the capital of Iowa and its largest city. Enrollment is selective and size is limited.
Preprofessional programs in the College of Arts and Sciences meet requirements for admission to schools of church vocations, dentistry, engineering, law, medical technology, medicine, physical therapy and social work.
Drake University also offers master's degrees in accounting, business administration, education, communication leadership, financial management and public administration, as well as the Doctor of Pharmacy, Doctor of Jurisprudence and Doctor of Education degrees. The following joint degrees are also offered: MBA/JD, MBA/PharmD, MPA/PharmD, and MPA/JD.
Drake University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools. A list of college, school and program accreditations is posted at /academics/accreditatioins.php
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Low doses of arginine, at 500 mg three times a day, have not been found to be effective. A double-blind, placebo controlled trial of 50 men with erectile dysfunction tested arginine at a dose of 5 grams per day for six weeks. About a third of the participants who received arginine showed improvement, but that improvement was greater than the 10% improvement seen in the placebo group.
Arginine has been studied in combination with other nutrients as a treatment for sexual dysfunction in women. A small trial found some improvement with a combination treatment (ArginMax for Women) providing a daily dose of 2,500 mg of Arginine, as well as ginseng, ginkgo, and damiana. In a four-week, double-blind study, 77 women with decreased libido were given either the combination product or placebo. Those taking the product showed statistically greater improvement such as increased reported sexual desire in 71% of participants given the treatment versus 42% in the placebo group. Other improvements were relative satisfaction with sex life and improved clitoral sensation. No significant side effects were seen in either group.
A study done at the University of Texas at Austin examined the effects of arginine combined with yohimbine on sexual arousal in postmenopausal women. Twenty-four women participated in three treatment sessions in which sexual responses to erotic stimuli were measured following treatment with either arginine glutamate (6 g) plus yohimbine (6 mg), yohimbine alone (6 mg), or placebo, using a randomized, double-blind design. Sexual responses were measured at one hour after taking the supplements. Compared to placebo, the combined oral administration of arginine and yohimbine substantially increased vaginal pulse amplitude responses to the erotic film
Interestingly, a similar study using the same combination was tested at the Hopital Foch, Suresnes, in France. But this time, the study was done with men who had erectile dysfunction (ED). Forty-five patients were included in this study. During each of the 2-week, crossover periods, the supplements were administered orally, two hours before intended sexual intercourse. This pilot study showed that the oral administration of the arginine and yohimbine combination is effective in improving ED.
Additional Potential Benefits
A Japanese study shows arginine supplementation improves renal function in patients with chronic heart failure. Polish researchers have found that arginine supplementation increases exercise tolerance in stable coronary artery disease patients.
Arginine has also been tested in those with hypertension. This amino acid is able to dilate vessels and lower blood pressure, but it appears that the effects are not long lasting. The proper therapy of hypertension requires that a nutrient or medicine have a long lasting effect.
Mechanism of Action
The most likely explanation for the modest effectiveness of arginine is its conversion into nitric oxide. Nitric oxide is converted into cGMP, which becomes the secondary messenger that causes smooth muscle relaxation, resulting in more blood going into organs and tissues. However, nitric oxide is metabolized quite rapidly, which may explain why taking arginine does not lead to consistent or prolonged erections.
Potential Side Effects
The most common side effect noted is a mild feeling of flushing that comes on within the first hour of intake.
Dosage and Availability
Arginine is an amino acid available over the counter usually in capsules ranging from 500 to 1000 mg, and also as a powder. If you plan to take arginine frequently, the powder is likely to be cheaper and more convenient. Arginine is best taken on an empty stomach with a small amount of water or juice. Since no one knows how a person reacts to a particular supplement, it would be preferable for your first dose to be no more than 2 g. If you can tolerate 2 grams, then you may gradually increase it to 5 grams. Consult your health care provider if you plan to take higher doses. The effects, although mild, are noticed in about one hour or two.
Arginine appears to offer a slight benefit for sexual dysfunction in women, and men with ED. The required dosages are quite high, most likely ranging from 5 to 10 grams, or more. Arginine by itself is a weak sex booster and is better suited combined with other herbs and nutrients, particularly yohimbe.
This amino acid may potentially be helpful in other conditions but much more research is needed.


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More affecting still is the anxious, considerate way that my hosts greet me, sometimes even at the airport, with a large bottle of Johnnie Walker Black Label. It's almost as if they feel that they must propitiate the demon that I bring along with me. Interviewers arriving at my apartment frequently do the same, as if appeasing the insatiable. I don't want to say anything that will put even a small dent into this happy practice, but I do feel that I owe a few words. There was a time when I could reckon to outperform all but the most hardened imbibers, but I now drink relatively carefully. This ought to be obvious by induction: on average I produce at least a thousand words of printable copy every day, and sometimes more. I have never missed a deadline. I give a class or a lecture or a seminar perhaps four times a month and have never been late for an engagement or shown up the worse for wear. My boyish visage and my mellifluous tones are fairly regularly to be seen and heard on TV and radio, and nothing will amplify the slightest slur more than the studio microphone. (I think I did once appear on the BBC when fractionally whiffled, but those who asked me about it later were not sure whether I was not, a few days after September 11, a bit angry as well as a bit tired.) Anyway, it should be obvious that I couldn't do all of this if I was what the English so bluntly call a "piss-artist."
It's the professional deformation of many writers, and has ruined not a few. (I remember Kingsley Amis, himself no slouch, saying that he could tell on what page of the novel Paul Scott had reached for the bottle and thrown caution to the winds.) I work at home, where there is indeed a bar-room, and can suit myself. But I don't. At about half past midday, a decent slug of Mr. Walker's amber restorative, cut with Perrier water (an ideal delivery system) and no ice. At luncheon, perhaps half a bottle of red wine: not always more but never less. Then back to the desk, and ready to repeat the treatment at the evening meal. No "after dinner drinks"—most especially nothing sweet and never, ever any brandy. "Nightcaps" depend on how well the day went, but always the mixture as before. No mixing: no messing around with a gin here and a vodka there.
Alcohol makes other people less tedious, and food less bland, and can help provide what the Greeks called entheos, or the slight buzz of inspiration when reading or writing. The only worthwhile miracle in the New Testament—the transmutation of water into wine during the wedding at Cana—is a tribute to the persistence of Hellenism in an otherwise austere Judaea. The same applies to the Seder at Passover, which is obviously modeled on the Platonic symposium: questions are asked (especially of the young) while wine is circulated. No better form of sodality has ever been devised: at Oxford one was positively expected to take wine during tutorials. The tongue must be untied. It's not a coincidence that Omar Khayyam, rebuking and ridiculing the stone-faced Iranian mullahs of his time, pointed to the value of the grape as a mockery of their joyless and sterile regime. Visiting today's Iran, I was delighted to find that citizens made a point of defying the clerical ban on booze, keeping it in their homes for visitors even if they didn't particularly take to it themselves, and bootlegging it with great brio and ingenuity. These small revolutions affirm the human.
At the wild Saturnalia that climaxes John Steinbeck's Tortilla Flat, the charismatic Danny manages to lay so many women that, afterward, even the females who didn't receive his attentions prefer to claim, rather than appear to have been overlooked, that they were included, too. I can't make any comparable boast but quite often I get second-hand reports about people who claim to have spent evenings in my company that belong to song, story, and legend when it comes to the Dionysian. I once paid a visit to the grotesque holding-pen that the United States government maintains at Guantánamo Bay in Cuba. There wasn't an unsupervised moment on the whole trip, and the main meal we ate—a heavily calorific affair that was supposed to demonstrate how well-nourished the detainees were—was made even more inedible by the way that water (with the option of a can of Sprite) flowed like wine. Yet a few days later I ran into a friend at the White House who told me half-admiringly: "Way to go at Guantánamo: they say you managed to get your own bottle and open it down on the beach and have a party." This would have been utterly unfeasible in that bizarre Cuban enclave, half-madrassa and half-stockade, but it was still completely and willingly believed. Publicity means that actions are judged by reputations and not the other way about: I never wonder how it happens that mythical figures in religious history come to have fantastic rumors credited to their names.
"Hitch: making rules about drinking can be the sign of an alcoholic," as Martin Amis once teasingly said to me. (Adorno would have savored that, as well.) Of course, watching the clock for the start-time is probably a bad sign, but here are some simple pieces of advice for the young. Don't drink on an empty stomach: the main point of the refreshment is the enhancement of food. Don't drink if you have the blues: it's a junk cure. Drink when you are in a good mood. Cheap booze is a false economy. It's not true that you shouldn't drink alone: these can be the happiest glasses you ever drain. Hangovers are another bad sign, and you should not expect to be believed if you take refuge in saying you can't properly remember last night. (If you really don't remember, that's an even worse sign.) Avoid all narcotics: these make you more boring rather than less and are not designed—as are the grape and the grain—to enliven company. Be careful about up-grading too far to single malt Scotch: when you are voyaging in rough countries it won't be easily available. Never even think about driving a car if you have taken a drop. It's much worse to see a woman drunk than a man: I don't know quite why this is true but it just is. Don't ever be responsible for it.
Buy Hitch-22.
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text:
A Canadian father was arrested and strip-searched Wednesday after his 4-year-old daughter drew a picture of a gun in her kindergarten class.
Ontario dad Jesse Sansone told the Toronto Sun his little girl's drawing was supposed to be him, getting monsters and bad guys. Her teacher apparently thought differently, and the school contacted child protective services. When Sansone arrived to pick his daughter up, three police officers were waiting to take him into custody.
"I'm picking up my kids and then, next thing you know, I'm locked up," he told the Waterloo Region Record. "I was in shock. This is completely insane."
Police questioned Sansone's daughter and his other children, who gave a "detailed description" of a firearm supposedly located in the house and easily accessible to them, Inspector Kevin Thaler of the Waterloo Regional Police said, according to the Calgary Herald.
"The kids were scared," Thaler. "It is a 4-year-old that we're taking the information from, but the fact is that this disclosure was very descriptive and very alarming to the officers investigating this."
He said the arrest was made "because it was the end of the school day" and officers felt they needed to "secure and locate the firearm."
When Sansone got to the school, he was told only that he was being arrested for possession of a firearm and given no additional details. At the police station, he was forced to remove his clothes for a full strip search. While he sat in a jail cell, police even brought his pregnant wife to the station for more questioning.
The "gun" his children told police about? A toy pistol that shoots foam darts, which police discovered during a search of his house.
"The child had every belief it was real," Thaler said. "The indication from the kids was that it was dad's [gun]."
Sansone was finally released after four hours. He said he's furious and that his name has been slandered.
"So many people dealt with this situation in the wrong way," he told the Sun. "I know the principal really well, how could he judge my character in this way? I drop off and pick the kids up every day, I always say hello, I sign every report card, I go to every parent teacher meeting, I am an active parent at that school."
But the school, police and child welfare officials all stand by their actions, according to the Record.
"From a public safety point of view, any child drawing a picture of guns and saying there's guns in a home would warrant some further conversation with the parents and child," said Alison Scott, executive director of Family and Children's Services.
The Sansone family is looking for a new school for their children to attend.
"The first thing my daughter said when I saw her was, 'Daddy are you mad at me?'" Sansone said. "That sums it up to me."


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Prayer vs. Reality (Why praying to a "God" is not for everyone)
Prayer vs. Reality (Why praying to a "God" is not for everyone)
I'm considering Atheism because I get tired of having to have a "God " guide me through everything. Many problems are out of our control that have nothing to do with how hard we pray. Like for example I remember in Second Grade in this bible study club this guy was talking about how Disney wanted to buy his radio and how he knew "God" didn't want him to allow Disney to buy his Christian radio. That God is more powerful and stuff ! Guess what happened Disney bought it!
Look at shopping malls. Stores out buy each other all the time and it has nothing to do with a biblical force!
Also my church is telling me again a similiar story of how we should pray that God keeps the school district from buying the church, but yet again that's life! It's nothing changing us.
Many issue's are out of our control and it has nothing what so ever to do with prayer. If you feel praying helps you solve things you can't figure out on your own, but if it doesn't for people like myself don't stress about it.
Here's an example my English teacher had us pull up these "This I believe" essays and I started reading some on Atheism. I could relate to one of themes brought up on this one article about how one day in her Catholic Church she had to submit these sins to God yet she really didn't feel she had anything that needed forgiveness. So she lied about sins she commited just to fit in.
This is how I was beginning to feel in the back of my mind. I don't need "God" guiding me through every step! To me it has just put more pressure on me numerous times in church trying to think of something to add to the discussion of these youth group meetings. I really felt half of my problems just needed to work out on their own.
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RE: Prayer vs. Reality (Why praying to a "God" is not for everyone)
Atheism is going back to your default natural state prior to being indoctrinated and told what to believe. You should at least cast off the man made cult called Christianity that you were infected with. You can then decide if you find that you have a belief in any deities. Once you have a clear head you can see the absurdities you were forced to believe in as a child.
To argue with a person who has renounced the use of reason is like administering medicine to the dead. – Thomas Paine
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RE: Prayer vs. Reality (Why praying to a "God" is not for everyone)
The whole concept of praying highlights the absurdity of fundamentalist beliefs (not all religion involves prayer though). It is essentially an admission of helplessness when it comes to influencing the effects of an event. The kicker is that most fundamentalist believers are praying to a supposedly omnipotent deity that set the course of all events in motion from the beginning of the universe, and they are asking for him to potentially completely mess up his cosmic plan for the benefit of the petitioner.
For one thing, that comes across as extremely egotistical and selfish. For another, it is logically contradictory. If things are already predetermined, how is praying to the deity going to change anything? Either the result you desired was already included in the plan or it wasn't. They are also committing the fallacy of correlation≠causation and are exaggerating the hits and downplaying the misses. If the misses are severe enough, many will rationalize it by invoking the mysterious nature of God's plan. When analyzed in an honest manner, the whole conceptual foundation of prayer makes absolutely no sense.
The reason it happens though is because for many fundamentalists, the deity they believe in is actually little more than an extension of their ego, and they are unaware of this due to a series of ingrained psychological traps. So it becomes a placebo effect for them, which is understandable in situations where they have simply no others ways to cope (such as a loved one suffering from a terminal illness).
The problem is, it can just as easily led to codependency if the system is abused, which it often is, rather than encouraging self-sufficiency. Because of this, a fundamentalist might actually prematurely assume a situation to be out of their control since their first instinct will be to pray to god. Inversely, however, they might also delude themselves into believing they can influence the outcome of an event they truly have no way of actually manipulating. The latter is merely wishful thinking, the former can be extremely damaging.
So at its core, prayer is ALWAYS an admission of helplessness, regardless of whether the petitioner is aware that this is the case. Yet the individual who is praying can just as easily convince themselves of actually making a difference where they in reality have no input to give, or they do actually have input to give, but there is not GUARANTEE that it will go the way they want it to, and the likelihood that it will is solely related to their own efforts. The reason the concept is so contradictory is because it is not based upon principles of logic, but is instead entirely couched within psychological phenomena.
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RE: Prayer vs. Reality (Why praying to a "God" is not for everyone)
You are intelligent and have figured out that there is generally a very human explanation for things, such as the school district deal.
I really love the 12-steppers surrendering to the higher power god as you understand him. Apparently you can't overcome addiction without it/him. I quit smoking over 24 years ago, no god necessary. Thoughts of future lung cancer or emphysema were motivation enough for me. Other motivators included the expense of smoking, peer pressure not to smoke, support of family and friends for the first month when I was not pleasant to be during nicotine withdrawal, and the sense of accomplishment when I passed that initial fun.
Godless in the Magnolia State
RE: Prayer vs. Reality (Why praying to a "God" is not for everyone)
Prayer is an interesting coping mechanism, isn't it?
It exists as self-reinforcement; Pray to god to reinforce the illusion that a god is there.
Funny thing is, you can achieve to exact same result as praying to a deity by praying to a jug of milk.
The people closely associated with the namesake of female canines are suffering from a nondescript form of lunacy.
"Anti-environmentalism is like standing in front of a forest and going 'quick kill them they're coming right for us!'" - Jake Farr-Wharton, The Imaginary Friend Show.
02-02-2013, 06:38 PM (This post was last modified: 02-02-2013 06:41 PM by Logisch.)
RE: Prayer vs. Reality (Why praying to a "God" is not for everyone)
One does not simply "consider" atheism. Perhaps your understanding of what it means is perhaps misunderstood. It is a lack of belief in a god or gods. You either believe in a god or gods or you don't. You either know for certain or you don't or can't.
There are a few simple ways of breaking this down.
You're gnostic (you know)
You're agnostic (you don't know, or can't know)
You're a theist (believer)
You're an atheist (non-believer)
There is gnostic theism and gnostic atheism (you "know" there is a god or you "know" there isn't a god)...
There is agnosticm theism and agnostic atheism (You don't know there is a god or can't for certain know and believe in one, or you don't know there is a god and don't believe in one or can't know and don't believe in one).
It has everything to do with your level of knowledge. It can be broken down that simply.
So do you believe in a god or do you not believe in a god?
Do you know for certain or do you not know for certain?
Do you have justification for your belief or lack of belief?
Is it based on knowledge and things that are empirical? Or are they based on faith alone?
Then you have your stance on the subject. So when someone says "I'm considering atheism" it sounds weird because it is almost like saying, "I am considering a potential lack of believe in something I'm uncertain or can't know about" or "I'm considering not believing in something and I know for certain it doesn't exist."
I hope that makes sense
Prayer thus far appears to be a placebo and nothing more nothing less. There's been studies that show that people who have placebo effects in many areas do marginally better than people with no placebo. That goes for medicine, mental state, etc etc... so is there a placebo advantage to people who think something is guiding them or helping them? Possibly. Does it mean there is? No reason to believe so, unless you have a justification or evidence for it. "It's all in your head"...
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Justin Bieber is not giving up on Selena Gomez.
Since the news surfaced that the two were no longer a couple, Bieber has been in a solemn mood.
In an interview with the Open House Party radio show on Saturday, Bieber was at a loss for words.
"I don't know what to say," he said, neither confirming nor denying the news.
"I don't know what's going on in my life. To even assess that it doesn't make sense 'cause I have not made any comment."
While Bieber is continuing to sulk, even singing an acoustic version of Justin Timberlake's famous breakup song "Cry Me a River" at his concert in Boston on Saturday, a source close to the former couple told TMZ that a reconciliation is not out of the question.
Allegedly Bieber believes there is a good chance the two will get back together.
On Friday, E! Online revealed that the couple had split a week ago with Gomez being the one who ultimately decided to end things.
"Because of their crazy schedules, it was getting harder and harder to maintain a relationship," the source told the entertainment site.
Rumors about the breakup started flying over the past two weeks, especially after Bieber was spotted in public with Victoria's Secret model Barbara Palvin, 19, who went with him to see "The Lion King" on Broadway.
The 20-year-old Gomez and Bieber, 18, went public with their romance in February 2011, when they attended the Vanity Fair party together after the Oscars ceremony.
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Antico Borgo
Antico Borgo offers guests every kind of comfort within our small hotel. It has been designed to give for superior hospitality. You will will have the opportunity to spend unforgettable moments in complete relaxation enjoying all that the country and the surroundings have to offer.
We are situated close to the Castle of Lauria, the Byzantine Cuba, Etna with the ski slopes and pristine forests, gorges with the Alcantara river park, and Taormina its artistic beauty and more!
Shuttle service to all locations and ski slopes on request.
Please note:
Check-in: from 11:30 am
Check-out: 10.00 am
Credit Cards accepted and also Paypal
Breakfast included
Groups not accepted
Availability & RatesTo view availability and prices please select dates and click 'Update Dates'
Hotel Facilities & Policies
- Air Conditioning
- Airport Transfers
- Free Breakfast
- Internet Access
- Outdoor Terrace
Cancellation PolicyThis property has a 1 day cancellation policy. Failure to cancel within this time will result in a cancellation charge equal to the first night of your stay.
Must-Read Hotel InfoThis property has specific Terms & Conditions.
Please note:
Check-in: from 11:30 am
Check-out: 10.00 am
Credit Cards accepted and also Paypal
Breakfast included
Groups not accepted
DirectionsShow MapHide Map
via Regina Margherita 91,
Castiglione di Sicilia
From the Catania-Messina highway exit Fiumefreddo and follow the signs for Castiglione di Sicilia.
Castiglione di Sicilia lies near the following three highways. The highway 114 connecting Siracusa to Messina, the highway 120 connecting Cerda (Pa) to railway station of Fiumefreddo (Ct) and the highway 185 connecting S. Biagio (Me) - Giardini Naxos.
Located Near
Country that enjoys a unique landscape of the Alcantara Valley and Etna and where everything seems to exalt the power of nature and human ingenuity;


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"To your advantage, Libra, you have an ethereal quality that is sometimes described as 'out of this world' or evolved. You're a seeker or light and a believer in true love and you have the potential to create the most beautiful and harmonious art, music, and relationships. You also have a greater ability than most to achieve a balance among all the areas of your life. Where some signs go overboard focusing on just the physical or just the mental part of life, you understand that all areas of your life run most smoothly when they're in balance with each other."
—Athena Starwoman, Zodiac: Athena's Sunsigns
Element: Air
Planetary ruler: Venus
Symbol: The Scales
Quality: Cardinal (activity)
Colors: Blue and turquoise
Gem: Diamonds and opals
Strongest virtues: Eye for design, social charm, and diplomacy
Characteristics: Active, affectionate, artistic, balanced, easygoing, generous, gentle, just, peaceable, polished
This puzzle is almost a reflection of itself down the middle—it's very balanced and artistic, just like Libra.
The bright blue and turquoise, plus the sheek design, will draw in the Libra.
The simple shapes and patterns of this portrayed balance of the Glacier Bay ecosystem is right up Libra's alley.
Libra's sign is the scales—they're sticklers for justice, just like the famed knights of old tales.
Balance and with shocks of turquoise. It's the Libra's dream puzzle!
For even more zodiac-related puzzles, check out these creative miniature puzzles made by Pintoo, made for each sign of zodiac.


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Disturbing nightmares, clammy palms, thumping head and heart: these familiar feelings strike when it's time to present to the board or a customer.
Will the PowerPoint work? Has my computer got enough battery life? Did I prepare the right material? Will I be able to answer all their questions?
All these worries go round and round in your mind beforehand – and the last thing you need is distraction from preparing and in a worst-case scenario, distraction whilst delivering your presentation.
There is no magic formula for giving the perfect presentation, but the key to confidence and control is preparation, preparation, preparation. So here are some top tips for the ingredients for the perfect presentation.
Even while you're preparing, there are ways that technology can help you make the best use of your time and prepare the perfect presentation. For technophobes and the time poor, the Kensington Dual Monitor Adapter helps you to extend your workspace by adding a second screen to your laptop. It's a plug and play USB device that allows you to connect a second screen. You can also use it to connect to the projector, so that there is no need to fiddle and toggle with function F8 button to kick start it, as the protector will be treated a second screen. It means the audience can see one view while you refer to notes on another.
For a truly professional feel, you need to step away from the PC and communicate directly with your audience, instead of your screen. The audience wants to hear from you, not read your PowerPoint slides. You are there to bring information to life – the slides are your visual aid, not vice-versa.
Think about using a wireless presenter to keep control of your content while focusing on your audience. The Kensington Wireless Presenter, for example, gives users the ability to connect to both Macs and PCs and its smart power function prevents accidental power consumption, helping to safeguard embarrassing battery life issues during presentations. It also enables you to hide a presentation at the touch of a button, to focus an audience on what you are saying or go 'off plan' for a moment. Above all, its simple design fits in the hand, providing a channel for nervous energy, rather than wringing your hands or moving around nervously.
For some a laser pointer is a perfect way of highlighting a key point. Others will still need a mouse to control their PowerPoint. Kensington Presenter Mice do both, so that you have the ability to control a cursor and your slides but also the freedom to work the stage, moving away from a podium or desk during their presentation.
Once you have the right device for controlling your presentation, take a moment to think about what's supporting the computer. Will you have access to power during your presentation? To avoid scrabbling around for plugs or carrying multiple cables and adapters, Kensington has a range of power adapters allowing you to both power and charge your notebook from a traditional wall plug, or in the car or aeroplane.
If you need to connect to the Internet, do you have the right cables or a way to find out if there's WiFi in the room? If you are leaving your computer for any length of time, will it be secure? The nightmare scenario is someone swiping your laptop moments before the presentation, so do make sure that this risk is reduced by using a laptop lock.
Prepare: Research carefully and know what you need to communicate during the presentation
Practise: Stand up and run through what you are going to say, as this will improve your confidence, help you speak clearly and show you any areas of your 'script' that don't make sense
Proficiency: remember that you have been invited to present for a reason – you are the expert here, so tell them what you know!
There's nothing worse than failing equipment or freezing PowerPoint slides, so as well as preparing, practising and projecting expertise with your content, apply the same principles to your kit: know what you're going to use, check it works and rehearse with the same tools you'll be using on the day. It will improve your confidence and enable you to appear professional.
Are you an extrovert who is confident with humour? Then don't be afraid to make your audience laugh. Would you feel more confident on a conference call than in person? Then don't try too hard and pretend to be something you're not – the audience will feel uncomfortable if that's how you seem. Be yourself and be natural – you'll connect with your audience much more easily that way.
Before you even start, ensure you know your audience and their expectations for the meeting. What do they need to hear? What will help them make a decision? What kind of people are they and what will make them feel comfortable? By aligning your content and presentation style to their expectations, they will be on your side from the start.
It is not just the audience's expectations you need to meet: what is your objective from the presentation? If you need a response, ask for it. If you need to communicate bad news, don't shy away from it. If the news is good, do it justice and present it positively, with a smile on your face. All your preparation will be put to waste if you don't get the results you need, so keep this in mind from the outset.
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