text:
GPSOLO January/February 2010
The face of the man sitting across from me in the visiting room of central booking is a face I have never seen before, yet I have known this person for nearly 25 years. He's my friend, neighbor, and fellow soccer coach—I've talked to this guy every week for almost half of my life. When the phone call came that he was arrested, I was shocked. When the voice on the other end of the phone told me he was arrested while attempting to meet a 15-year-old girl he had been chatting up on the Internet, I was floored.
As I raced to the courthouse, I prepared myself for the various disasters I was walking into: the press, my devastated client, his distraught family, a very confident assistant district attorney who will more than likely be seeking jail, a skeptical judge who may feel the client is despicable, and a potentially astronomical bail. I also prepared myself for the emotional damage. Unlike almost any other crime, an Internet sex crime is as much a psychodrama as it is a legal matter. Lawyers undertaking such a case must prepare to understand a lot of things that were not taught in law school—or anywhere else they have been.
This case did not involve an actual minor using the Internet. Instead, the local press had set up with the police to "catch a predator." According to my client, they only caught a guy in a midlife crisis who's not as tech-savvy as he thought. Apparently he went into an "adult" chat room on a well-known Internet service provider and had a conversation with a cop pretending to be a teenager. My friend claims that he didn't want to have sex with a kid—he wanted to engage in his fantasy of having sex with one of his high school students. He thought (he says) he was speaking to a female teacher who was playing the role of an ingenue from his lit class. He insists the woman he was speaking to was an adult. She acted like an adult, she identified herself as an adult, and they were role-playing in an "adults-only" chat room. The police say they identified themselves as a 15-year-old, they never said they were an adult, and my client is a sex fiend.
Entering this case without an arsenal of knowledge is a very dangerous pursuit. The lawyer must understand the vagaries of computer hardware and software, the phenomena that is "social networking," what a chat room is and how it works, the psychology of the pedophile, how to use and not be used by the press, and, of course, basic family and client counseling. If hand-holding is not your strong point, you can expect to have a very rough go of it: These cases usually require as much hand-holding as they do lawyering. And they require a lot of lawyering.
Intake and Interview
Your first job is understanding who your client is. He isn't usually a guy hanging around parks and schools looking to give candy to kids and lure them to his underground lair. Despite what every newspaper and television newscast says, those guys aren't looking for kids in adult chat rooms. Those guys are looking for kids where they will find them: in teenage chat rooms. They are lying about their ages and trying to throw the kid off track. They also seem to know when the person they are talking to is a cop or an adult playing the role of a kid to entice them into a game of cat and mouse.
The average defendant in an Internet sex sting case is male (99 percent), white (92 percent), and older than 25 (86 percent). Few are violent in any manner. Some 97 percent acted alone in the crimes of which they are accused. Only 10 percent had prior arrests for sexually offending against minors. They rarely lie online about who they are or their age. They claim there were not trying to "trick" a "mark," and, if indeed they were not seeking prepubesent children, they would not be classified psychologically as pedophiles. They are often married, and many are happily married. They have some knowledge of the Internet but not as much as they are alleged in the media to know. Most have never been involved in a crime before.
In interviewing the client, you must be ready to face the issues posed by the client's mental condition and legal position. Often clients accused of sex crimes are reluctant to speak to anyone honestly about what they have done or, more importantly, why they have done the things they have done. The client in an Internet sex sting may tell the lawyer that he was only chatting in a chat room. He thought only adults could be there because the room was "moderated," and if he was arrested on the way to a rendezvous with the target of his affections, he only wanted to meet her—if she had turned out to be underage, he would have reported her to the police or her parents. He will claim that his true interest is often either playing out his fantasy or allowing his cyber-partners to play out their fantasy.
Now before shaking your head in disbelief, understand that the client may have had good cause to know his chat-room buddy was an adult—after all, the person your client was chatting with was, in fact, a police officer. Maybe the police officer "dropped character" in the chat at some point and used idioms or references that a minor would be too young to know about, or claimed to have done something that a minor couldn't have done (e.g., "I remember how scared I was when I saw the shark in Jaws on the big screen").
Be prepared to explain to your client why the police activity that set him up was likely not entrapment. Nearly every client will claim to have been entrapped. Most, however, were merely enticed and do not have the entrapment defense available to them. An officer can entice one otherwise disposed to commit a crime to commit the crime. That is different from entrapment, defined as an officer overcoming the will of an otherwise unwilling person to commit a crime. Assuming that the officer did not initiate contact with the defendant and didn't initiate the sexual discussions nor do anything that caused the defendant to do something he wouldn't have done if he had not been tricked or coerced, the actions are likely legal. Investigation into these types of police behavior is important, however, and hence should be pursued.
It is important that you answer the client's questions head-on and prepare him for what he is about to undergo. Chances are he has already been in a "perp walk" in front of the press. He will very likely be in the papers and in many cases on TV. He will be suspended or fired from his job in all likelihood, especially if he works for the government or a school.
It would be wise to determine if there is an employee handbook and if his workplace has mental health or addiction leave. If so, immediately inform the supervisors that, if released, he is going to take a leave of absence and will be going to in-patient treatment if possible. The employer will likely not fire him if he does this, and you or his civil attorney will have time to work out a procedure for him to quietly retire before he loses valuable pension benefits. Remember, in cases like this, the charge is enough; conviction is not required before the employer takes steps to "protect the public." Even if your client is ultimately acquitted, he can still be relieved of his employment. Employers likely need to see only a preponderance of evidence—not "evidence beyond a reasonable doubt"—to remove your client from their employ.
Your client will have questions about how his wife and family are taking this. More than likely they are in a state of disbelief and shock. I try to encourage the entire family to get into counseling so that the arguments that are surely to come can take place in a safe environment. It would be a good thing for the lawyer to know of professionals in this area of family counseling that can be contacted by the family.
Prepare the family and friends of the accused to be ready for a stiff bail even if it is a first offense. This accusation is like a scarlet letter, and judges are loath to set a bail that is low, especially when they have little information before them. They are unlikely to take into account that this is a first offender or that the defendant is an otherwise upstanding citizen.
After the bail hearing the case will likely go before a grand jury. You will have to work with your client to decide if it is wise for him to testify before such a body. He will have to give up his privilege against self-incrimination should he testify. On the other hand, if your client can be properly prepared, such testimony can keep him from ever going to a trial. A grand jury is secret. People do not have to go back before friends and neighbors and explain their decision to indict or not to indict the way petit jurors do; hence, you have a better chance than you may imagine to win the case without a trial.
Case Investigation
Investigations into Internet sex sting cases can be very difficult, often because the government has seized the computer of the client as well as his cell phone. Getting the hard drive cloned prior to a grand jury presentment is a key to the investigation. E-mail can be obtained by accessing the client's e-mail account from a different computer (so long as the client hasn't erased the files from his e-mail provider's storage). Images, saved e-mail not on the provider's storage, text messages, and the like will be hard to get without cooperation from opposing counsel or the court. A letter requesting this type of discovery should go out as soon as the client has retained you on the case. If the prosecutor will not turn over that evidence, you must consider going to the court with a motion to compel discovery and seeking a stay of any grand jury presentment. Remember this will probably entail waiving your client's right to a speedy trial while you are putting this together. Because it works to his benefit, he should not object, but if he is sitting in jail, it needs to be explained to him.
Another type of investigation is a "counter-investigation" into the nature of the sting. According to the 2003 Department of Justice report "Internet Sex Crimes Against Minors: The Response of Law Enforcement" ( www.unh.edu/ccrc/pdf/CV70.pdf), in a properly organized sting operation:
[a] law-enforcement investigator posts a profile on the Internet or goes into a chat room posing as a girl or boy, usually in the age range of 13 to 15 and waits to be contacted by an adult seeking a young adolescent for a sexual encounter. The investigator responds to a conversation initiated by an offender and allows the offender to develop a relationship that culminates in a face-to-face meeting, where the offender is arrested. The investigator is careful not to initiate conversations about sexual topics or propose sexual activity. The agent uses investigative resources to track down the identity of the offender and keeps logs of all online interactions, which constitute evidence of the crime. The offender is charged with attempted sexual assault and, in some jurisdictions, illegal use of a computer to solicit a minor. In some cases other crimes, like distribution of child pornography, are committed. The legal decisions pertaining to entrapment in undercover drug operations apply to Internet undercover operations. Investigators may not improperly induce a person to commit a criminal act. These cases are often referred to as "pro-active" because they allow law enforcement to act without waiting for an offender to commit a crime against a juvenile victim.Defense counsel may want to sign up for a MySpace or Facebook page and "friend" the police officer's online persona. This will allow you to see his other "friends" and help you to identify other potential targets. An investigator must then be retained to speak to them about the police officer's technique: Did the police officer use chat rooms or instant messages only to attract targets? Did the officer try to shame targets into speaking to him/her after the target had cut off the relationship? After initial conversations about sexuality, did the officer keep going back to the topic or raise it thereafter? Did the officer bring up the topic of meeting? Did the officer ever allow that he/she was seeking to role play or was into the other witness's fantasy?
The language used by the police in the "enticement" of the client is an important area of investigation. For this the attorney will want to use a forensic linguist. Pioneering work in the area of forensic linguistics by Dr. Roger Shuy and Dr. John Olsson examined how police and others in the criminal justice framework may use and misuse language to fool defendants and juries. They may overlap conversations, switch subjects after getting what they want said to be uttered, and purposefully use language to disguise their motives. They may take innocuous words and give them incriminating meanings.
Another area ripe for investigation is the use of words by the target (now defendant). In New York the statute (PL 235.20) that makes it a crime to disseminate indecent materials to a minor outlaws any language that is "harmful to minors," defined as any description or representation, in whatever form, of nudity, sexual conduct, sexual excitement, or sadomasochistic abuse, when it:
(a) considered as a whole, appeals to the prurient interest in sex of minors;
(b) is patently offensive to prevailing standards in the adult community as a whole with respect to what is suitable material for minors; and
(c) considered as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, and scientific value for minors.
Hence the language, at least in New York, must be more than just a solicitation to meet and kiss. If the client was not initially explicit when describing his desires, chances are you will find that the police officer asked him to elaborate more and more on what he intended to do during the meeting and that the officer sought more and more prurient language. If this is the case, it is quite possible an entrapment defense may be raised. This is especially true when the target was reticent to talk about what types of acts he has in mind until the police officer threatened to cut off the chat because he was not taking "her" seriously or is hurting "her" feelings.
Because the motive of your client can become an issue, you should consult a psychologist who has a background in dealing with fantasy chats and sexual predators. If your client is a fetishist and not a predator, his behavior and expectations become part of his defense, and an expert who can explain the various phenomena can be utilized at trial (See United States v. Joseph, ____ F.3d _____ (2d Cir. 2008) [Slip Opinion No. 06-5911-CR]).
Motion Practice
The myriad motions available in most criminal cases are available in Internet sex sting cases, too. Counsel should, however, consider asking the court to dismiss if the language of the defendant was not prurient enough (see statute cited above). Counsel may also want to seek dismissal in the interest of justice if the target of the investigation is young enough to have been able to have sex with the victim legally under a "Romeo and Juliet" statute. Under such a statute, there is no crime in having sex with an underage partner if the adult partner is only a few years older (usually fewer than four years older). If the two parties could have sex with one another legally, it would be ridiculous to prosecute one of them for talking about it on the Internet or in a text message.
Motions in limine should include a request that the prosecution not be allowed to present a dramatic "reading of the chat" (a technique whereby the prosecution publishes the chat to the jury and then reads it aloud to them). Failing this, do not let the prosecutor use a female to read aloud the chat written by a male police officer posing as a girl. It should be read by the original police officer himself, as the words are his.
To convey the allegation that the target knew he was speaking to a child and not an adult as part of a fantasy chat, prosecutors will review a variety of evidence: the transcripts of instant messages (IMs), Twitter direct messages (tweet DMs), chat use of emoticons (typed symbols used to communicate a feeling), and even the names that undercover officers adopt as their aliases. For example, one officer took the name "CuteCindy11994" as his AOL alias; when read aloud by the officer to the jury, the officer read the name as "CuteCindy, Eleven, Nine, Ninety-four" as opposed to "Cute Cindy, One, One, Nine, Nine, Four." The former reading makes it sound like a date of birth that would reveal the detective's character to be 14 at the time of the crime; the latter makes it sound like a zip code giving no concept of the character's age. You should therefore request that screen names with numbers in them be read in the singular unless originally spelled out in words or typed in such a way that would clearly denote numbers above nine.
Further, during the reading be careful to object to the use of intonation that gives the language a meaning that favors the prosecution. I would also urge you to demand that the reading be recorded so that it is preserved for an appeal on the grounds that the "dramatic" effect caused the jury to look at the evidence differently than it appears on the page.
Motions should also include a request for all communications between the detective and his or her superiors and district attorney about the nature and funding of the sting. Often, "true crime" television producers will pay for the sting house (the place where the meetings will take place) and buy equipment for the police department for the privilege of taping the arrests and being allowed to "interview" the defendant even before he is Mirandized. This could lead to a ripe motion to suppress any statement given to the media if it can be shown that they are actually part of the operation.
Another perk sometimes stemming from the police-media relationship is a "wrap party." Demand the prosecution produce all photography from the shoot and any such parties, including private pictures taken by police. I had one case in which the then-current Miss America was one of the active participants in the sting operation. After a day spent taking down men who came to see her 15-year-old persona, there was a party where she took pictures with the police as they ate, drank, and partied with the cast and crew of America's Most Wanted. The producers of that television show provided the food and drink, not to mention the sting house, camera equipment, and other facilities used in the operation. In exchange, the police allowed John Walsh, the show's host, to question my client as he was arrested and brought to a waiting squad car for transport to booking. These pictures and facts made for some interesting cross-examination.
Counsel should also make a motion to present linguistic forensic evidence and may want to seek permission to call a psychologist who can describe the difference in mens rea between someone engaged in a fantasy and someone who is a predator. In the Joseph case referenced above, the Second Circuit reversed a conviction and allowed for an expert witness to testify about fantasy role play on the Internet and in Internet chat rooms. It even allowed expert testimony about a meeting between the parties being part of the "game" (the meeting was referred to as a "de-masking"). This testimony can be especially helpful if the defendant decides to testify on his own behalf as it will support his defense that he thought he was dealing with an adult.
Final Suggestions
These cases are very difficult. The results of losing them can mean far more than a conviction and jail. It opens the client up to being listed on the sex offender registry for life and could in some cases expose the client to the risk of life in a mental institution after he is released from prison. Less than 1 percent of these cases are won by the defense at trial, and fewer than 12 percent are even brought to trial. Counsel must provide a hearty defense while at the same time working to negotiate a reasonable way out of the matter without the case coming to trial. If that is not possible, it will take all of counsel's resources to secure victory in these cases. Major hurdles for trial lawyers include careful jury selection and the correct and comfortable use in the courtroom of language related to sex. Failure to strongly pursue a defense will spell disaster for the client. Lawyers not steeped in forensics and computer jargon and usage should consider taking on an attorney who can help with these technologies and, if necessary, act as second seat or even lead counsel should the case need to go to trial.
Anthony J. Colleluori is a New York and Long Island trial and appellate lawyer who focuses his practice on criminal law, First Amendment, constitutional law and civil rights, civil RICO, and Federal False Claims Act cases. He may be reached at email@example.com.


text:
WWF-Indonesia report on illegal palm oil sourcing in Sumatra makes waves
The report revealed that Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) members Wilmar and Asian Agri had not screened their Fresh Fruit Bunch (FFB) supplies and that some of the fruits were sourced from plantations inside the park—one of the last safe havens for critically endangered Sumatran elephants and Sumatran tigers.
The report spurred a quick reaction from both companies, which have since ceased sourcing from suppliers inside the park. It has also brought under fire buyers of palm oil, such as Kellogg's (which buys palm oil from Wilmar but has also entered into a joint venture with Wilmar in China). Kelloggs is the subject of a petition urging it to end its collaboration with Wilmar.
The response of Wilmar and Asian Agri is an encouraging development, however tangible efforts are required to confirm that both companies are no longer contributing to deforestation and that they adhere to the RSPO Principles & Criteria – not just in Tesso Nilo but everywhere they are operating.
RSPO has welcomed WWF's report and is forming a task force to develop a new policy and tools to help members ensure that all of the FFB they source comes from identified, legal and responsible sources.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
by Mark Laita. Abrams, 2011
See sea horses, stingrays, octopuses, nudibranchs and other marine creatures as you have never seen them before. Photographer Mark Laita borrowed a veritable ark of specimens to shoot in the black aquarium he built in his studio in Los Angeles. The result is a mesmerizing series of portraits of those enigmatic denizens of the deep.
The Wandering Gene and the Indian Princess
by Jeff Wheelwright. W. W. Norton, 2012
In 1999 a Hispano woman named Shonnie Medina died at the age of 28 after refusing surgery for breast cancer. Medina had been found to carry a dangerous breast cancer mutation called BRCA1 185delAG that is associated with Jewish ancestry. Journalist Jeff Wheelwright tells the story of this gene and how the Medinas—previously unaware of their background—came to inherit it.
A Universe from Nothing: Why There Is Something Rather Than Nothing
by Lawrence M. Krauss. Free Press, 2012
Theoretical physicist Lawrence M. Krauss skewers the notion that creation requires a creator. Mounting evidence from cosmology, particle theory and gravitation, he asserts, indicates that not only could our universe have arisen from nothing but that nothingness might have been required for its origin. Krauss discusses the possible implications of these findings for predicting what the future holds.
Dirty Minds: How Our Brains Influence Love, Sex and Relationships
by Kayt Sukel. Free Press, 2012
Journalist Kayt Sukel delves into the latest neurobiological research to explore what, exactly, love is and why it makes us do crazy things. This is no self-help book, however. In exploring such topics as monogamy, the parent-child bond, pheromones, and male and female responses to pornography, Sukel reveals just how complex and mysterious our brains really are.
The Sounding of the Whale,
by D. Graham Burnett. University of Chicago Press, 2012
The Infinity Puzzle: Quantum Field Theory and the Hunt for an Orderly Universe,
by Frank Close. Basic Books, 2011
Memory: Fragments of a Modern History,
by Alison Winter. University of Chicago Press, 2011
The Life of Super-Earths: How the Hunt for Alien Worlds and Artificial Cells Will Revolutionize Life on Our Planet,
by Dimitar Sasselov. Basic Books, 2012
Evolution's Witness: How Eyes Evolved,
by Ivan R. Schwab. Oxford University Press, 2011
Time Travel and Warp Drives,
by Allen Everett and Thomas Roman. University of Chicago Press, 2011
Deep History: The Architecture of Past and Present,
by Andrew Shryock and Daniel Lord Smail. University of California Press, 2011
Incomplete Nature: How Mind Emerged from Matter,
by Terrence W. Deacon. W. W. Norton, 2011
Swift Explorer.
NASA's Swift mission team, 2011 (gratis).
For iPad/iPhone
Mammals of North America.
Princeton University Press, 2011
For iPhone/iPad/Android


text:
State Parks teams with Senator Ted Gaines, free community open house at Ed Zand#8217;berg Sugar Pine State Park
August 6, 2012
TAHOE, Calif. and#8212; The public is invited to a free community open house at Ed Zand#8217;berg Sugar Pine State Park on Sunday, Aug. 12, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. to learn about what is new at the park and the venues now available to rent for private events. Venues include outdoor wedding and reception sites, the newly included foyer of the Hellman-Ehrman Mansion and the private front lawn of the Childrenand#8217;s House to include a preparation kitchen. and#8220;We are thrilled to offer the public the opportunity to have their special occasion events within the historic zone of the park, enabling them to experience the exceptional qualities that have brought generations of families to this area,and#8221; notes Parks spokesperson Heidi Doyle.
Senator Gaines will attend the event to lend his support to State Parks for creating venues that will generate revenue for the parks, enabling the continued operation and maintenance of Lake Tahoe treasures. Funds generated return to the local park units. The Senator will greet visitors at the Childrenand#8217;s House between 11 a.m. and noon.
In addition to Senator Gaines, the Sierra Parks Foundation will be on hand to share their vision for keeping our local parks open and provide an overview of the current restoration efforts that are in progress on the property.
Park entrance fees will be waived for the duration of this event as well as tour fees for the historic Hellman-Ehrman Mansion for the 10 a.m., 11 a.m. and 12 p.m. tours. For information about special event venues at Ed Zand#8217;berg Sugar Pine Point State Park, and other parks in the Lake Tahoe/Truckee area, contact the special event office at 530-525-5060 or email@example.com.


text:
For the first time, on the occasion of the 2010 edition, Moleskine customized notebooks for the BlogFest , the event which brings together every year in Italy everything revolves around online communities, blogs, Facebook, Twitter, chats and forums and any other form of "Social communication".
Besides the special edition, here you can download the full agenda in msk format, printable and attachable into your notebook.
Moreover, who will join the BarCamps will find other surprises. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter to discover them.
Download the BlogFest agenda in msk format.
BlogFest 2010 - Riva del Garda, September 24-26 2010


text:
Taylor World Outreach
With opportunities to take a Lighthouse or Spring Break trip, serve through local ministries, or get involved as a student leader on campus, Taylor encourages students to participate in outreach.
At Taylor, you have the opportunity to deepen your faith and broaden your understanding of what it means to live a purposeful, passionate life for Christ. Taylor World Outreach (TWO) offers students a variety of opportunities to show God's love to the lost in our community, across the country, and around the globe. We don't see this mission mindset as separate from what goes on in the classroom, but rather a natural result of the integration of faith and learning.
TWO gives you the opportunity to show God's love to others and, in turn, grow in your own faith. God doesn't just work in the lives of those you serve, but will also work in your heart, challenging your beliefs and strengthening your convictions. Whether you serve as a volunteer through local ministries, take a Lighthouse or Spring Break Trip, or become more involved as a student leader, the experience you gain will equip you for a lifetime of service.


text:
Castor fiber
|Scope: Global
Language: English
|Scientific Name:
|Castor fiber Linnaeus, 1758
|Regional Assessments:
Common Name(s):
|Red List Category & Criteria:
|Least Concern ver 3.1
|Year Published:
|Date Assessed:
|Batbold, J, Batsaikhan, N., Shar, S., Hutterer, R., Kryštufek, B., Yigit, N., Mitsain, G. & Palomo, L.
|Amori, G.
The Eurasian Beaver has shown good recovery across much of its range, as a result of conservation programmes. The highest numbers are found within Europe. Conservation measures are ongoing to prevent the population declining again and as long as these continue, there is no reason to continue to assess the species as threatened or Near Threatened. Now Least Concern. However, the Asian populations remain very small and under serious threat, and these populations urgently need conservation measures.
|Previously published Red List assessments:
|Range Description:
|The Eurasian beaver Castor fiber was once widespread in Europe and Asia. However, by the beginning of the 20th century, over-hunting had drastically reduced both the numbers and range of the species. In Europe, only a few isolated sites remained: parts of the Rhone (France) and Elbe (Germany), southern Norway, the Neman River and Dnepr Basin (Belarus) and Voronezh (Russia). A series of management measures and reintroductions have enabled the beaver to return to much of its former range, and there are now a number of rapidly expanding populations extending from Spain and France across central and eastern Europe to European Russia, and in Scandinavia and parts of western Finland.
Free-living populations of beavers are now established or establishing in most regions of their former European range, the main exceptions to date being Portugal, Italy, the south Balkans and Great Britain (Halley and Rosell 2002, Ceña et al. 2004). Detailed information on the status and distribution of the Eurasian beaver in each range state can be found in Halley and Rosell (2002), and information on the population that was translocated to Spain in 2003 can be found in Ceña et al. (2004). It is generally a lowland species, but occurs up to 850 m in Europe (Halley pers. comm. 2006).
In Mongolia, a small population exists along the Bulgan River in northern Dzungarian Govi Desert, in the south-western corner of Mongolia. Mongolian-German Biological Expeditions carried out conservation introductions along Hovd River in Mongol Altai Mountain Range in 1974, 1975, and 1978, and along Tes River in northern Hangai Mountain Range in 1985, 1988 and 2002. In all cases Mongolian beavers from the Bulgan River were used in order to protect the gene pool in the central Asiatic hydro-geographic basin (Stubbe and Dawaa, 1982; Stubbe et al., 2005a). A separate attempt to reintroduce beavers from Voronezh Reserve (Russian Federation) was unsuccessful (M. Stubbe pers. comm).
|Countries occurrence:
Native:Belarus; China; France; Germany; Kazakhstan; Luxembourg; Mongolia; Norway; Russian Federation
Regionally extinct:Moldova; Portugal; Turkey; United Kingdom
Reintroduced:Austria; Belgium; Croatia; Czech Republic; Denmark; Estonia; Finland; Hungary; Italy; Latvia; Liechtenstein; Lithuania; Montenegro; Netherlands; Poland; Romania; Serbia; Slovakia; Slovenia; Spain; Sweden; Switzerland; Ukraine
Present - origin uncertain:Bulgaria
|Additional data:
|Range Map:
|Click here to open the map viewer and explore range.
|By the beginning of the 20th century, the global population had been reduced to eight populations, totalling approximately 1,200 individuals (Halley and Rosell 2002). Protection (beginning with a hunting ban implemented in Norway in 1845), natural spread and reintroductions have resulted in a rapid recovery in numbers and range, particularly in Europe. In 1998, the global population was estimated at 430,000 (Nolet and Rosell 1998), by 2002 it had reached at least 593,000 (Halley and Rosell 2002), and in 2006 the minimum estimate was 639,000 (D. Halley pers. comm. 2006). This is almost certainly a considerable underestimate, as both population and range are in rapid expansion (Halley and Rosell 2002, 2003; D. Halley pers. comm. 2006). Considerable further expansion in range and population, especially in western Europe and the lower Danube basin, can be expected. If current trends continue, the Eurasian Beaver will be a fairly common mammal in much of Europe within the next few decades.
However, populations in Asia are still considered small. In Mongolia, reintroductions have been successful and the population has reached 150, and in China the population is about 700 (Halley and Rosell 2002, EMA Workshop 2006, Smith and Xie in press).
In Mongolia in 1964, the population size was estimated to consist of 100-150 individuals (Stubbe and Chotolchu, 1968), rising to 200 individuals by 1973 (Zevegmid and Dawaa, 1973). In 1991, surveys estimated there to be approximately 300 individuals along Bulgan and Hovd rivers (Stubbe et al., 1991). The most recent population assessment was conducted in 2004, which recorded 40 lodges along Hovd River and estimated the population to consist of 130-150 individuals (Shar, 2005). Ten beaver settlements were recorded in the Tuvan section of Tes River in 2005 (A. Saveljev pers. comm.), and the Mongolian section of this river is believed to contain a similar beaver population (M. Stubbe pers. comm).
The Chinese subspecies of the Eurasian Beaver (C. f. birulai) is one of the rarest and least known aquatic mammals in China. In the 1970s it was believed that only 100 animals remained in fewer than 20 family groups. Currently, only one substantial population is known, at the Buergan River Beaver Reserve along the Xinjiang-Mongolian border - a narrow strip 50 km long and only 500 m wide. Here the population is estimated to be only 500 animals, and only 700 may live in all of China.
|Current Population Trend:
|Additional data:
|Habitat and Ecology:
|Beavers are adapted for a semi-aquatic life, using a variety of freshwater systems, including rivers, streams, irrigation ditches, lakes, and swamps. They generally prefer freshwater habitats surrounded by woodland, but may occur in agricultural land or even suburban and urban areas (Tattersall 1999, Halley and Rosell 2002). In northern Scandinavia, beavers may be found right up to the limit of the willow zone in the mountains, where knee-high willow bushes are the only woody vegetation and it is iced over for 8 months of the year. This is not preferred habitat, but they can survive there. In many places, beavers live both on the valley floor, and on the mountain plateau above (where it is wooded), with a break in distribution where streams flow down the steep valley sides. In general beavers should be able to live in almost any freshwater habitat where there are trees or shrubs and the gradient is not precipitous. However, patterns of recolonisation demonstrate a clear preference for still or slow, laminar water flow if it is available (Nowak 1999, Halley and Rosell 2002, Halley pers. comm. 2006).
|Terrestrial; Freshwater
|Generation Length (years):
|Use and Trade:
|It is hunted for food and clothing.
|Major Threat(s):
The Eurasian Beaver's historic decline was caused by over-hunting for fur, meat and castoreum (a secretion from the scent glands), combined with loss of wetland habitats. Beaver populations were severely reduced in most countries by mediæval times, but the species clung on in marshes and other inaccessible places until the advent of efficient steel traps and accurate firearms in the 17th century; and then through to the 19th century there was a rash of final extinctions for these reasons combined with drainage of many of the large marshland areas in which the species clung on (all of the European refugia where the species survived, except in Norway, are extensive marshlands).
Today, beaver populations in Europe are expanding rapidly, and there are no major threats (e.g. threats of a magnitude likely to cause decline at the regional level). Competitive exclusion of the native Eurasian Beaver C. fiber by its American cousin C. canadensis may be a threat in parts of Finland and north-west Russia, but it is not a major threat regionally. In Europe North American beavers are now confined entirely to Finland and north-west Russia, where populations are increasing only slowly (due to heavy harvesting). The former population at a reservoir near Paris has been removed, and populations introduced to Poland and Austria have apparently gone extinct in competition with C. fiber, the opposite of what has tended to happen in Finland and north-west Russia (it has been suggested that, due to differences in the life history of the two species, Eurasian beavers may have a competitive advantage at more southerly latitudes, whilst North American beavers may be more successful further north: D. Halley pers. comm. 2006). There are no serious prospects of further introductions (Halley and Rosell 2002, D. Halley pers. comm. 2006). The two species do not interbreed (Tattersall 1999). Road kill is an important source of mortality for some populations (Tattersall 1999). Rapidly expanding beaver populations may come into conflict with humans in some areas, as they do some damage to forestry and crops. Such damages should be put into perspective: they tend to be less severe than those caused by other species such as deer and voles, but are noticed because beavers are a new and unfamiliar species in areas where they have been recently introduced (Halley and Rosell 2002).
In Mongolia, illegal hunting for skins, meat and castoreum still occurs in some areas such as the Tes River. Habitat loss through selective clear-cutting of willow, upon which this species relies for food and shelter is also a threat; this is known to be occurring along the Bulgan River and is leading to isolation of small populations and inbreeding. Pollution of water systems is also a threat. A hydroelectric dam in the Chinese section of the Bulgan River prevents migrations in this area (M. Stubbe pers. comm).
In China, firewood gathering has depleted much of the forest on which the beavers need to subsist; additionally heavy grazing pressure has further reduced vegetation needed by beavers.
|Conservation Actions:
A number of conservation measures have contributed to the species' recovery in Europe, including reintroductions and translocations, hunting restrictions, and habitat protection. It is listed under the Bern Convention (Appendix III) and the EU Habitats and Species Directive (Annex V for the Swedish and Finnish populations, Annex II and IV for all others). In Finland, C. canadensis populations are controlled to prevent them spreading into the west where C. fiber occurs. Halley and Rosell (2002) recommend regulated hunting as the optimal management regime in managed landscapes with healthy beaver populations. Management of beaver populations should be at the watershed scale, except where large human-made dams form significant barriers to spread. Early provision of interpretation and public viewing opportunities is also recommended, as this provides a benefit to the local economy through wildlife tourism, and helps foster positive attitudes to beavers (Halley and Rosell 2002). This has been a successful feature of several recent reintroductions. Reintroduction to Italy has been recommended in a European Union/Bern Convention Nature and Environment Series document (Nolet 1996). Considerable efforts have been made to develop a beaver reintroduction programme in Scotland, and a full public consultation showed strong support for such a scheme among the general public, including in rural areas where beavers were likely to be released (Halley and Rosell 2002).
In Mongolia, C. f. birulai is protected as Very Rare under part 7.1 of the Law of the Mongolian Animal Kingdom (2000), and is included as Rare in both the 1987 and 1997 Mongolian Red Books (Shagdarsuren et al., 1987; MNE, 1997). This subspecies is also listed as Very Rare under the 1995 Mongolian Hunting Law (MNE, 1996). Approximately 11% of the species' range in Mongolia occurs within protected areas.
Conservation measures in place in Mongolia:
1) Bulgan Gol Nature Reserve was established along the Bulgan River in 1965 to conserve this species.
2) Many translocations and conservation introductions have taken place over the past 50 years to enhance the Mongolian population.
The species is considered Endangered (EN A1bcd) in the Chinese Red List.
|Errata reason:
|This errata assessment has been created because the map was accidentally left out of the version published previously.
|Batbold, J, Batsaikhan, N., Shar, S., Hutterer, R., Kryštufek, B., Yigit, N., Mitsain, G. & Palomo, L. 2016. Castor fiber (errata version published in 2017). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016: e.T4007A115067136. . Downloaded on 18 September 2018.
|To make use of this information, please check the <Terms of Use>.
|If you see any errors or have any questions or suggestions on what is shown on this page, please provide us with feedback so that we can correct or extend the information provided


text:
*** (out of four)
By the time you get to the end of "Clique," the new single from G.O.O.D Music's upcoming album "Cruel Summer," it's hard to remember that Big Sean is even on the track.
While the song's texture is relatively thin, the stilted drums and ominous accents make for a beat that sounds ready to bubble over--only more like a pot of molten gold than a pot of boiling rice. That is to say, it's the perfect platform for the braggadocio of Jay-Z and Kanye. Big Sean simply can't stand up, boasting about being up for nine days and stumbling over a double-time flow. (Really, he's just here for the hook.)
Hova has been on cruise control thus far in 2012, but his verses now are so refined and coherent that they're eminently better than anyone else he hops on a track with: "Your money too short, you can't be talking to me/ Yeah I'm talking LeBron, we balling our family tree/ G.O.O.D Music drug dealing cousin, ain't nothing [bleepin'] with we, me."
Meanwhile, Jay's former protege continues to improve as a rapper. "Clique" allows the best and worst of Kanye to shine through, including: "Ate breakfast at Gucci/ My girl a superstar all from a home movie" and "I rather buy 80 gold chains and go ig'nant/ I know Spike Lee gone kill me but let me finish." Based on the obvious Kim K. reference, Kris Jenner also would not approve.
Want more? Discuss this article and others on RedEye's Facebook page.


text:
Hi, I'm kind of panicked, I have a homework assignment due later today, but I have no idea what I need to do. The requirement is to design a form that will prompt customers to enter their names, and to choose whether to rent a full size car, medium size car, or small size car. The form should also prompt users to enter the number of days to rent the car. Add a button (submit) to help send the forms data to a server-side script and another button (reset) to clear the forms data.
Accept the forms data using a JSP file with the following criteria to calculate the total cost of renting the car:
If a user chooses to rent a full size car, the charge is going to be $54.99 per day.
If a medium size car is chosen, the charge for it should be $45.99 per day.
Small size cars cost $36.99 per day to rent.
The following data should also be displayed: customer name, car size, days of renting, cost per day, total cost.
Here is what I have so far, even though I am probably no where close to being on the right track, so any help would be appreciated.
and for the javascript file which it feeds into:Code:

Car Rental
 <form method="post" action="car.jsp"> What is your name? <input type="text" name="pname" size=""/>
 Length of Rental: <input type="text" name="time" size=""/>
 Days Choose: <select name="car"> <option value="small">Small </option> <option value="medium">Medium</option> <option value="full">Full</option> </select>
 <input type="submit" value="Submit" /> <input type="reset" value="Clear" /> </form>

Code: <% // Receiving data from the client String size = request.getParameter("car"); boolean length= Double.parseDouble(request.getParameter("time")); boolean vehicle= 0.0; //assign the chosen convertion if (size.equals("small")) { vehicle = (car) + ; out.print(car + "" + + ""); } else if (size.equals("medium")) { vehicle = (car) /; out.print(car + "" + + ""); } else if (size.equals("full")) { vehicle = (car) /; out.print(car + "" + + ""); } %>


text:
Catholic Social Teaching
Seven Themes of Catholic Social Teaching
- Life and Dignity of the Human Person
- Call to Family, Community and Participation
- Rights and Responsibilities
- Option for the Poor and Vulnerable
- Dignity of Work and the Rights of Workers
- Solidarity
- Care for God's Creation
Catholic social teaching, sometimes referred to as the social doctrine of the Church, is a body of official Church teachings on the social order, composed of papal statements and conciliar or synodal documents. These social teachings originated with Pope Leo XIII and continue to the present.
The Catholic social tradition, however, is much older than this body of teachings, and is rooted in the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures as well as in the patristic writings, which go back as far as the fifth century. This tradition provides a framework and an intellectual legacy from which the more recent (dating from the nineteenth century) social teachings draw. This tradition is a point of reference against which the social teachings are tested, even as the latter develop beyond the tradition by applying it to new issues and questions.
Catholic social teaching is rooted in the dignity of the human person as created in the image of God, and the human rights and duties that protect and enhance this dignity. Catholic social teaching is also concerned with the social nature of the human person, the concept of the common good, the relationship between society and the state, the theory of justice, an "option for the poor," and the concepts of subsidiarity and solidarity.


text:
Christian County Business Success Story
Nixa's Paragon Business Solutions Inc. expanded its horizons with assistance from the Missouri Procurement Technical Assistance Center, which is affiliated with University of Missouri Extension.
Burglaries can be beneficial. Just ask Alice Beechner Reeves.
In a roundabout way a crime led to the start of Paragon Business Solutions Inc., the firm Reeves co-founded with partner Karen Hamilton in 1997.
"It's kind of a crazy story," admits Reeves, a professional engineer with a Ph.D. from the University of Missouri-Rolla.
As Reeves neared completion of her doctorate, thieves broke in to her Kansas City home one weekend while she was gone. Among the items stolen was her computer, which contained all her painstaking dissertation work. The burglars even stole her backup disk.
During the ensuing six months, Reeves concentrated on rebuilding her dissertation while simultaneously working as a technical consultant for her longtime KC-area employer, Midland Grau.
The whole experience led to an entrepreneurial epiphany.
Share This
About this Story
Campus: System
Key words: Innovation, Technology, UM System,
County: Christian


text:
County receives list of safety violations
Commissioners vow to make fixes right away.
LEXINGTON—When Dan Schomer of EMC Insurance plopped a thick report book in front of each member of the Dawson County board last week, commissioners' eyes got big.
The inch-thick booklet provides details for a long list of safety infractions—complete with photos—that Schomer found throughout county-owned buildings when he toured them on March 17.
"The easy ones you can take care of right away," Schomer said of such things as electrical cords across walk areas or missing exit signs. "Some others may take additional scheduling and planning."
Schomer's safety audit was done not only for insurance purposes but also to give the county a starting point for forming a safety committee of volunteers from across the county's offices.
"This identifies infractions," Schomer said of the report, "and it also give you a little more detail than you might get from the fire marshal or OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) or ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) officials."
Should OSHA inspect the buildings and find such safety violations, Schomer said the county could face large fines.
Brian Woldt, coordinator for the county's buildings, said some of the items listed in Schomer's report have already been addressed.
"In my 12 years on the board, I'm not sure anything like this has ever been done," said board chairman Bill Stewart of Lexington. "I think we can get right on this."
A representative from each county office has been asked to serve on a safety committee which will have regular meetings to address any issues.
In other action, commissioners accepted a bid for a 10-mile resurfacing project on the old highway from Lexington to Overton, also known as the 13th Street project.
The county asked for bids on both an in-place recycling process and new 3-inch overlay.
The low bid commissioners accepted came from Paulsen, Inc. of Cozad for new overlay at a cost of $1,655,182.
Commissioners said they were surprised the new overlay bids were cheaper than recycling.
Other bidders for the new overlay were Werner Construction of Hastings—$1,791,381; Vontz Construction of Hastings—$2,091,078; and Western Engineering of North Platte—$2,220,283.
The lowest recycle process bid was $1,666,039 by Werner.
Work will begin in late July with completion set for September.
In other business, county commissioners:
- listened to a presentation by Eric Templin and Joe Long of Hays Company of Denver, a health insurance brokerage firm.
- heard the monthly crime report from sheriff Gary Reiber. There were 1,397 dispatch calls, 1,125 calls for service, 216 new bookings at the jail and an average daily jail population of 110 inmates. Gothenburg commissioner Dean Kugler commended Reiber and his staff for meeting or exceeding all criteria for compliance review by the jail standards board.
- accepted the single bid from Nebraska Machinery for a fork lift to be used by the roads department. The bid for $84,649 is less than the $85,000 budgeted to replace the 30-year-old machine used now.
- approved a bid by Platte Valley Auto Mart of Lexington for two 2010 Ford Explorers to be used by the sheriff's department. Chief deputy Gary Norseen said the two vehicles will replace a pair of sport utility vehicles in the three-year lease cycle. A third will be kept as a back-up. The only other bid received was from Pony Express Chevrolet of Gothenburg for Chevy Traverses. Two new vehicles were bid at $54,665 and program cars were bid by Pony Express at $53,000.
- learned from Cozad Development Corporation director Robyn Geiser that an Economic Development Administration grant application will be submitted by the April 20 deadline. The grant, if awarded, would help the county recoup some of the jobs lost by the closure of Cozad's Tenneco plant by renovating an existing building in Cozad for an industry that could employ approximately 50 people. Geiser said plans changed from the previous intent to apply for money for all three of the largest communities because a more concrete plan in one town makes the application more competitive. The award should be made by June 1.
- voted to vacate Road 756 between Roads 423 and 425 as well as an old unused road near Road 444 as previously requested.
- approved an application by Dawson County Transit for $54,549 in federal funds and $26,274 in state money for operation of the county handibus. The remaining one-quarter of the budget will be covered by the county. Commissioners also learned from handibus director Barb Hollenbeck that the Federal Transportation Association is requiring the county to pay the assessed value for the new bus barn. Officials negotiated to pay $127,000 for a building at the intersection of Van Buren and Plum Creek Parkway in Lexington. Stimulus grant funds totaling $200,000 are to pay for the building purchase and renovation. Now FTA officials require the county to pay the $133,500 assessed value for the building.
- approved a special designated liquor license for Lake Shore Marina to serve alcohol outdoors in a tent during a fishing tournament at Johnson Lake June 4-6.
- learned through a letter to the board from county assessor John Moore that value on agricultural land in the county could rise as much as 15% in the coming year to meet state mandates.
Receive the entire issue of the Gothenburg Times on-line in PDF format each Wednesday for only $25 per year. Call 308-537-3636 to subscribe.
Latest Headlines
- Gothenburg native releases first novel
- We all need help from a friend
- Monsanto hosts 6th annual Safety Day program
- Brady places champ and runner-up at State FCCLA
- Swedes continue conference domination
- Dancing With The Stars changes venues
- Middle-of-the-Pack Finishes For Swede Boys and Girls
- Girls Show Support for Teacher's Cancer Fight


text:
Conference Tools for 2017 TMS Annual Meeting & Exhibition
Register as a New User
Submit An Abstract
Propose A Symposium
Presenter/Author Tools
Organizer/Editor Tools
About this Abstract
2017 TMS Annual Meeting & Exhibition
Computational Materials Discovery and Optimization – From Bulk to Materials Interfaces and 2D Materials
Presentation Title
Study of Aluminum-Silicon in the Liquid State
Tara Power, Sumanth Shankar, Jeffrey Hoyt
On-Site Speaker (Planned)
Tara Power
Abstract Scope
Aluminum-Silicon (Al-Si) alloys have been vastly modified through minute additions of Strontium, transforming the morphology from coarse and plate-like to fine and fibrous; though the mechanisms involved still elude scientists today. Understanding the liquid structure of a material is key to uncovering the mechanisms behind the changing morphology. This project is a first principal study into the liquid state of Al-Si, through Density Functional Theory, using the Vienna Ab-initio Simulation Package (VASP). A solution to the many-bodied Schrödinger equation is computed, from which structural information can be uncovered and compared with experimental results found through neutron and synchrotron diffraction. Through an understanding of the fundamental nature of Aluminum-Silicon alloys captured through experimentation as well as computational modelling, a better grasp of solidification characteristics that influence the morphology can be achieved. Such knowledge is useful for refinement of mechanical properties for use in industry.
Proceedings Inclusion?
Definite: None Selected
A Minimal Continuum Dislocation Dynamics Model for Slip in bcc Metals
A New Class of Hyperuniform Heterogeneous Material with Superior Mechanical Properties via Stochastic Optimization
A Study on the Effects of Temperature and Composition on the Templated Two-Phase Growth of a Thin Film by the Means of Computer Simulation
A Tetrahedron Tiling Method for Crystal Structure Prediction
A Theoretical Study of Interfaces between Transition Metals and a-C:H
A Three-Dimensional Phase-Field Crystal Model for 2D Materials Using Multiple-Point Correlation Functions
A Tree Search Approach to Designing Kinematically Active Molecular Materials
Ab-initio Description of Oxides in an Electrochemical Environment
An Unsupervised Pattern Recognition Approach for Local Structural Analysis of Condensed Matter
Automation and Database of First Principles Phonon Calculations
Band Gap Opening in 2D Bi-layered Silicon Film
Benchmarking and Validation of Density Functional Theory for Solids
Bridging Semi-classical and Ab Initio Descriptions of Electronic Transport in Semiconductors
Cluster Expansion Statistical Models to Resolve the Thermochemistry of Ti Alloys
Compliant Substrate Epitaxy: Au on MoS
Computational Discovery of Highly Active Catalysts to Enhance Electrochemical Reactions in Li-O2 Batteries
Computational Materials Discovery: From Reduced Pt Catalysts to Lightweight Alloys
Design of Experiments Approach to Optimizing Complex Bond Order and Reactive Potentials
Development of Numerical Methods for the Thermal Characterization of Materials
Dislocation Core Structures in FCC Ni and L1
Al Computed Using Density Functional Theory Based Flexible Boundary Condition Approach
Effects of Rarefied Atmospheres on Freezing and Sublimation
Efficient Ab initio Modeling of Random Multicomponent Alloys
Efficient Multi-step Optimization for Materials Design and Discovery
Efficient Screening for High Strength, Superelastic Alloys
Elucidating Ordering and Decomposition Processes in Alloys from First-principles
Exploration of Amorphous Silica Glass Using Molecular Dynamics
First-Principles Computation Design of CoPt and FePt Nanoparticles with Desired Magnetic Properties through Tailoring Surface Segregation
First-principles Statistical Mechanics as Applied to High Temperature Ni-superalloys
First Principle Investigation of Electrical Conductivity and Phase Stability of Al-Zn-Ni Alloy for Precipitation Hardening
Free Energy Calculation of Austenite Phase in PtTi and NiTi
Graph Spectra and Grain Boundary Network Design
Guided Discovery in Multi-phase, Multi-component Thermodynamic Spaces as Solution to a Constraint Satisfaction Problem
High-throughput Screening on Relationship between Selectivity and Working Capacity of Porous Materials for Propylene/Propane Adsorptive Separation
ICME-tailored Sensitivity Analysis of a Prescriptive Precipitation Framework
Invariant Representations for Robust Materials Prediction
Machine Learning the Atomistic "Building Blocks" of Grain Boundary Systems
Magnetic-Field Tunability of Thermal Conduction in Non-Magnetic Materials
Metal-Organic Frameworks for Gas Capture and Storage: Computational Discovery and Experimental Validation
Microstructure Evolution in Ni materials: Annealing-Detwinning due to Thermal Fluctuation of Incoherent Twin Boundary
Modeling Deformation and Recrystallization Textures Using Viscoplastic Self-consistent Polycrystal Plasticity
Modeling the Hydroforming of Large Grain Niobium Tube
Modelling of Ni Nanohoneycomb Actuation in Water
Neural Networks Assisted Tomographic Reconstruction of Electrostatic Potential
On the Fly Materials Design Using Efficient Global Optimization Techniques
Opening Electronic Band Gaps in 2D Materials by Deformation Twins
Optimization of Buffer Layer Alloy Materials for CIGS Thin-Film Solar Cells
Phase Field Crystal Modeling of Grain Boundaries in Two-dimensional Binary Materials
Polyphony in B Flat -- Is the Two-dimensional Boron Truly Emerging?
Predicting Novel Spinels Using Density Functional Theory Assisted Machine Learning
Predicting Raman Spectrum of Boron Carbide Polymorphs Using Density Functional Theory
Restraining Electron-hole Recombination in W-N Codoped Titania: First-principles Study
Solute Transport in Mg: Beyond the 8-frequency Model
Structural and Vibrational Properties of Transition Metal Dichalcogenide Polymorphs
Study of Aluminum-Silicon in the Liquid State
Tailoring Properties of 2D Transition Metal Dichalcogenides: Looking Beyond Graphene
The Electrostatic Double Layer of Pt/Water Interfaces from First Principles Molecular Dynamics
The Evolution of θ′ Precipitates in an Al-Cu Alloy Investigated with Phase Field Theory
Topology-Scaling Identification of Layered Compounds and Stable Exfoliated 2D Materials
Topology Optimization for Composite Wear
Two-Dimensional Materials-by-Design for Electronic and Energy Conversion Applications
Two-Dimensional Multiferroics for Novel Multifunctional Mechano-Opto-Electronic Devices
Using First Principle Approaches to Optimize Materials for Next Generation Non-volatile Memory
Van der Waals Interactions in Nanoscale Materials: A Solved Problem ?
Questions about ProgramMaster? Contact


text:
Associates Needed! - Earn Extra Income Classified Ads in Williamsport
Earn $80-560$ + per week.
Must have a computer with internet access or smartphone.
Flexible schedule. All work is done at or around your home.
No experience needed. Training is provided.
Dental vision and medical benefits provided.
Accidental life insurance provided.
Pay is every Friday by direct deposit.
We are a legitimate company.
You will be required to fill out a W-9.
Must be 18 years or older and a U.S. citizen.
For more information go to https://motorclubcompany.com/associate/27724/ Go to bottom of page or email me personally at firstname.lastname@example.com
Business Spotlight
Appliance Repair La Habra CA


text:
Each week, RedEye's prognosticating pooch, Whizzer, goes toe to toe (paw to paw?) with Rob Cressy's miniature schnauzer, Callie, to see who picks NFL games more accurately.
Whizzer was impressive in Week 2, going 5-0, while Callie was just 2-3. Overall, Whizzer is 7-3 and Callie is 5-5. Loooooong way to go folks.
Denver at N.Y. Giants: Giants (wrong)
Pittsburgh at Cincinnati: Bengals
Washington at Green Bay: Redskins (wrong)
San Francisco at Seattle: 49ers (wrong)
Bears vs. Minnesota: Bears
Denver at N.Y. Giants: Broncos
Pittsburgh at Cincinnati: Bengals
Washington at Green Bay: Packers
San Francisco at Seattle: Seahawks
Bears vs. Minnesota: Bears
Want more? Discuss this article and others on RedEye Sports' Facebook page.


text:
Herbal Supplements and Blends
Effective and versatile herbal combination that can be used in disorders such as stomach ulcer, dyspepsia, inflammatory bowel disorders and auto-immune disordersRead More
Well known for its Antioxidant and detoxifying properties. It has been used for many years as a remedy for various conditions. Read More
Primarily used for cold, wet and mucusy' conditions of the lungs. Pippali encourages vasodilation and therefore increases circulation, specifically to the lungs. Used with honey in asthma, bronchitis, pneumonia and compromised immunity in the respiratory system. Read More
Improves liver and gall bladder function, increases bile flow (thereby aiding digestion). Aids liver function when the liver is toxic or under stress. A potent anti-bacterial and anti-viral herb.Read More
Keela Nelli a world-renowned botanical, is very effective in treating viral infection of the liver, specifically hepatitis B. Useful in the treatment of kidney and gallbladder stones (active stones and as a preventative) also proven effective in other liver diseases like jaundice and liver cancer. .Read More
Broad spectrum effect on all systems of the body, with the emphasis on antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. Maintains energy. Aids digestion, liver and circulation. An extremely useful adjunct to the superfoods, such as Chlorella and Seagreens. Read More
Extremely effective in overcoming asthma and bronchitis. The developer reports 95% success with children and 80% with adults. It is believed that the 20% failure in adults is due to systemic Candida infection.Read More
A master formulation to help your heart and circulation. Possibly the best herbal blend for circulatory health, with both a preventative and remedial role. Wild crafted herbs that help to normalise your circulation, blood vessels and heart function.Read More
Contains Kalawalla & Liquorice, two of the world's best herbs for correcting immune system imbalance. Kalawalla is to regulate the immune system, Liquorice to restore the functioning of the adrenal output. Read More
A sacred plant to the Druids. Traditional medicinal uses includes helping to normalize circulation & blood pressure, for nervous and endocrine systems (incl. pancreas), chronic fatigue, and metabolic, menopausal and period problems. Read More
20% active ingredient Oleuropein (most products contain just 6%) A natural, yet effective, alternative to antibiotics with none of the side effects. Olive Leaf is a great infection fighter with powerful healing properties. Safe & non-toxic.Read More
Normalises the entire hormonal system and has powerful energising properties. Seen as a safe, natural alternative to HRT. Maca is a nutritional powerhouse especially rich in iodine. Contains significant amounts of amino acids, vitamins & minerals.. Read More
Complete, food state, nutrient profile. Nature's answer to virtually every malady known. Possibly the finest nourishment in existence. Amino acids, enzymes, and minerals, all known vitamins, antibiotic substances and natural steroids. Promotes vitality and longevity Read More
Nigella Sativa, a complex synergy of over 100 natural chemicals. Enhances and strengthens the immune system in a way no other singular, naturally occurring, substance has ever been known to do. Thousands of years recorded use.Read More
This hotter version is grown and cultivated in Bengal. Contains extra essential oils not found in the original Egyptian version. Additional uses include stubborn sinus problems, all recurring ear, nose and throat conditions and for some cases of allergic asthma.Read More
Rene Caisse�s ESSIAC formula in a concentrated liquid extract. It�s use was first propagated in 1923 for the treatment of cancer patients. Since that time much scientific study has conferred great benefit to Essiac.Read More
The strongest of the capsicum family. It is the number one circulatory herb, being extremely effective and totally harmless. Has a total effect on the circulation and performs all the main actions required of a natural circulatory remedy.Read More
Effective and versatile. For stomach ulcer, dyspepsia, inflammatory bowel disorders, Crohn's disease and Ulcerative Colitis, also helpful for IBS and auto-immune disorders. Stomach and duodenal ulcers usually eliminated in 5 weeks.Read More
Kalawalla regulates the immune system. Scientific studies and clinical trials with various autoimmune disorders have shown it's effectiveness in this regard. Resolves disease states due to normalisation of the immune system. Read More
Lobelia is the most relaxing of all herbs. It is probably the best herb on the planet for opening the bronchial airways and clearing mucous from the lungs.Read More
It is said that Milk Thistle (Carduus Marianus) is the best liver protector of the herbal kingdom. Useful for toxic liver damage and as a supportive treatment for chronic inflammatory liver disease and hepatic cirrhosis. Read More
Freeze dried 20x concentrate of Noni fruit means the equivalent of 9.3g of fruit per capsule. recommended usage is 2 capsules daily, 6 days per week.Read More
Immune system enhancer, protector and healer. A significant aid to circulatory health, partly due to the presence of bioflavenoids (incl.OPCs). A fully balanced, raw Propolis in the optimum dose for health and healing. Read More
An exceptional Chinese mushroom that has long been highly regarded in traditional Chinese medicine. Used in the treatment of a variety of disorders. Promotes health and longevity and boosts the immune system. Read More
Broad potential range of action with a unique character, differentiating it from other super-foods. Supplies nutrients, which rapidly enable our endocrine glands to produce a complex array of hormones. Beneficial for weak nervous systems.Read More
Artemisia Absinthium. Extremely potent against Candida infection which, unchecked, can lead to more serious illness as the result of a compromised immune system. Anti-parasitic action, which includes effective use in many types of worm infestation. Read More
Further Reading...
Medicinal herbs have been used safely and effectively throughout recorded history. Herbs can offer the body nutrients and specific 'phyto-stimulants' to correct function of organs, glands and bodily systems. They can also provide harmless substances to aid in the elimination of many types of acute and chronic infections be they fungal, bacterial, viral or parasitical.
Need Advice?
We understand there can be a lot to take in at first! If you would like personal advice on the best supplements to suit you, please contact us.
Our experienced, friendly staff would love to help you on your journey to better health.
Remember, Regenerative Nutrition:
|Include Worldwide Delivery
We tell you about the shipping cost directly on the order page, no waiting until checkout to find out your total item cost
|Offer Tax Free Shopping
We carefully size our products, and products are offered in the maximum number of capsules that we can provide whilst keeping the item value below £15.00 and so making it not liable for VAT (UK - Citizens of other countries should check the value permitted for imports before VAT/Tax is applied in their country)
|Give Personal Support and Advice
We're here to help you every step of the way - contact us


text:
- Award of High Honor (1)
- Award of Honor (20)
- Award of Merit (23)
- Citation Award (20)
Filter by Award Type
- PG&E Territory (30)
- SCE Territory (23)
- SDG&E Territory (7)
- SMUD Territory (3)
Filter by Region
- Commercial (6)
- Institutional (11)
- School / University (21)
- Office (13)
- Government / Civic (8)
- Church (1)
- Community (15)
- Museum (2)
- Retail (3)
- Grocery (1)
- Mixed-Use (14)
- Adaptive Reuse / Renovation (4)
- Other (11)
Filter by Market Segment
Energy Efficiency Integration Awards (EEIA)
Energy Efficiency Integration Awards
Each year, the Energy Efficiency Integration Awards program acknowledges the extra time and effort it takes to successfully integrate architectural excellence and energy efficiency. This annual recognition program is sponsored by Pacific Gas and Electric Company, Sacramento Municipal Utility District, San Diego Gas & Electric, Southern California Edison, Southern California Gas Company and Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.
Resource efficiency, responsibility for the environment, human productivity, quality of life -- the well-designed building demonstrates how we can live within our environmental means. The Savings By Design Energy Efficiency Integration Awards (EEIA) annually recognizes professionals who take a holistic approach to designing the environment: one that meets the needs of the people using it while balancing architectural elegance with sustainability. By going beyond minimum energy performance codes, these design teams have realized benefits, not only for their clients, but also for the building occupants and the public:
• For the building owners – lower operating costs and higher property values
• For the occupants – greater comfort, health, and productivity
• For the public – cleaner air due to reduced power plant emissions
Of the design professionals entrusted with creating significant spaces, the EEIA winners achieve a rare combination of superlative design and creativity, environmental sensitivity, and innovative energy efficiency solutions. Learn more from our EEIA winners below…


text:
YourVersion brings you the latest news, blogs, tweets, and videos on the topics that matter to you, all in one place.
Bookmarking pages is a snap with YourVersion. Plus, you can import your Delicious bookmarks.
YourVersion automatically organizes your bookmarks by topic for you. Other sites make you do all the work, we do it for you!
YourVersion can send you a personalized email with your top stories for the week. All the news you like, without the work.
YourVersion's browser tools make it easy to share and bookmark pages as you browse the web with Firefox, Chrome, Safari or any other browser.
Share interesting stories via email, Facebook, and Twitter, with automatic link-shortening. You can import your contacts from Gmail, Yahoo, and Hotmail.


text:
Rupert Grint Talks Deathly Hallows Epilogue and Script
Mar 08, 2009
The new issue of Total Film has a one page interview with actor Rupert Grint, where he briefly discussed his role as Ron Weasley in the upcoming Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. The interview was conducted shortly before filming began last month, and Rupert noted he only had the Part One script to Deathly Hallows ("so far, it's looking really cool".) Rupert also went on to discuss the epilogue to the final Harry Potter novel by J.K. Rowling, and said he was surprised at the outcome of the trio. Quotage:
"I really liked it, it was a good ending. It was not what I expected, actually. For some reason, I thought at least one of me, Dan, Emma was going to not make it. But I think it's going to be cool, the whole 20 years later thing. It should be fun. They'll age us up."
You can see a scan of the article here.
Thanks ICM and Ivana for mailing!


text:
CONYERS, Ga. (AP) — A 6-year-old boy playing with a lighter started a blaze in Georgia that killed four of his siblings and left his mother badly burned, authorities said Friday.
A fire Tuesday night tore through a duplex in Conyers — east of Atlanta — killing 8-month-old Deon Glass, 3-year-old Armoni Roberts, 7-year-old Dar'Shawn Glass and 9-year-old Ah'Dariya Glass. The unidentified 6-year-old boy was thrown from a second-story window to safety and survived the blaze, as did the children's unidentified grandmother. Rockdale County fire and rescue officials said the boy was taken to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston for non-life threatening injuries.
Reeba Glass, the children's mother, was hospitalized in serious condition with burns throughout her body at Grady Memorial Hospital, officials said.
Interviews and an examination of evidence led investigators to determine that the boy set the fire, said Daniel Morgan, Rockdale County's fire and rescue chief. Investigators said no accelerants were found inside the house and all other accidental causes have been ruled out.
The home's two bedrooms were located on the second floor, and investigators say the fire started near a second-floor bathroom and hallway. There was one smoke detector in the house, but fire officials have said there were no batteries in it at the time of the blaze.
Associates at a local funeral home are arranging free services for the four children who died in the fire, but representatives say the date depends on when the children's mother is discharged from the hospital.
A pastor at Macedonia Baptist Church in Conyers is working to collect donated household and clothing items to offer the survivors, and Morgan said officials are working to ensure the 6-year-old boy receives counseling from the division of family services.


text:
What Are Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum's Secret Service Code Names?
On the NBC drama 'The West Wing,' the Secret Service code name given to staffer CJ Cregg was "Flamingo." And while she wasn't all that happy about it, it made sense — the character was played by statuesque actress Allison Janney.
But many are scratching their heads about the current code names being used by GOP presidential candidates Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum.
Unlike the fictional CJ, most people under Secret Service protection get to choose their own code names, and it's recently been revealed that Romney opted for "Javelin" and Santorum went with "Petrus."
Lest you think we're revealing confidential information, we're not. The tradition of code names began before Secret Service communications were encrypted, and even though the names are no longer necessary, old habits die hard. The only rules are the names chosen can't be similar to anyone else's, and they must be clearly understood during radio conversations between agents.
So why did Romney and Santorum go with "Javelin" and "Petrus"? No one's entirely sure, but some speculate "Javelin" might be a reference to the 1960s-era muscle car manufactured by American Motors Corporation, the company once run by Mitt's father, George.
As for "Petrus," the devoutly-religious Santorum could've based it on the Bible — it's associated with the first pope of the Catholic Church, Saint Peter. And since "Petrus" is also derived from the Greek word for rock, it might also refer to Santorum's principles — steady, solid and unmoving.


text:
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The truck-stop company owned by Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam has agreed to pay back the trucking companies that were cheated out of fuel rebates, according to a settlement given preliminary approval Tuesday.
Under the agreement approved by a federal judge in Arkansas, Pilot Flying J would pay the companies what they are owed with interest.
Federal agents raided the Knoxville headquarters of Pilot Flying J earlier this year after an employee claimed the nation's largest diesel retailer was systematically cheating its clients. Five employees have since pleaded guilty to federal charges.
Jimmy Halsam is the brother of Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam, who has an undisclosed ownership share in the company. Both have denied any wrongdoing, and there was no mention of wrongdoing in the settlement.
Under the terms of the preliminary settlement, Pilot Flying J would pay all legal fees and other expenses. That includes the cost of auditing the accounts and then auditing the auditors.
The lawsuit names eight plaintiffs. Other companies that participated in either the rebate program or the discount program will be sent a notice informing them of the class-action settlement. If they choose to opt out of the settlement, they could still sue separately.
"The advantage to them, if they choose to accept this, is that they get all their money back. They pay no legal fees and no administrative fees," Pilot Flying J attorney Aubrey Harwell said. "It's in keeping with what Jimmy Haslam committed to all along. He said, 'We're going to do this right. They're going to be paid quickly and fairly.'"
Jimmy Haslam said in a statement that the company is working to make things right with its customers.
"This is an unfortunate time for our customers and our company, but we remain committed to making things 100 percent right with our customers, to put systems in place to help ensure this does not happen again, and to re-earn our customers' trust," he said.
The lead attorney for the trucking companies, Don Barrett, said he expects the other companies to be "pleased to death" with the settlement because so many of them don't know whether they are owed money or not. With the settlement, they will find out what they are owed and get that money back with 6 percent interest accrued "from the minute they sent the check and it was less than it should have been," Barrett said.
Barrett said the settlement offers customers the most complete relief he has seen in more than 40 years of practicing law, and he said much of that was due to Jimmy Halsam, "who stepped up to the plate and did the right thing."
In a July 12 letter made public Monday, Haslam said Pilot had sent checks to trucking companies shorted on rebates. He didn't say how large the checks were or how many were being distributed.
Haslam said during a speech in May at an annual conference of truckers in Indianapolis that as many as 250 trucking companies might be owed money.


text:
STOCKTON - One of Stockton's 10 most wanted fugitives is in custody, according to the U.S. Marshal's Pacific Southwest Regional Fugitive Task Force.
STOCKTON - One of Stockton's 10 most wanted fugitives is in custody, according to the U.S. Marshal's Pacific Southwest Regional Fugitive Task Force.
Dwight Welch, 33, was found near East Worth and Beighle streets about 4 p.m. Friday as Stockton police and task force members were responding to an anonymous tip, said Officer Joe Silva, a spokesman for the Stockton Police Department.
Police say Welch shot his 32-year-old ex-girlfriend on March 8 at Fleetwood Way and Eaglepoint Lane.
Silva said Welch was on the department's top 10 list because the shooting took place in a busy residential area and the attempted homicide was motivated by domestic violence.
STOCKTON - A man and a woman sustained moderate injuries after a car they were sitting in Friday night was peppered with high-caliber gunfire, police reported.
San Joaquin County sheriff's deputies responded to Eighth and Scribner streets about 9 p.m. and found the two injured victims, Lt. Mike Alagna said. A motive for the attack has not been established, and no suspect information was available. The victims are believed to be in their 20s, according to authorities.
More than a dozen shell casings littered the street, and two cars were struck by gunfire.
FRENCH CAMP - Authorities have identified the man whose body was found in the bed of a truck during a traffic stop earlier this week.
The San Joaquin County Coroner's Office said Joaquin Lopez Perez, 25, is the person whose body was found in a sleeping bag after police made a traffic stop Wednesday afternoon in Tracy.
The San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office said Perez's body showed no visible signs of trauma. A cause of death has not been established, but authorities say it will be released after a toxicology report is prepared.
A driver and passenger in the pickup in which Perez's body was found at East Highway 132 and South Welty Road were questioned the day of the traffic stop.


text:
Adam WeberFree Agent
Ht: 6.3 | Wt: 221
News | Stats | Stat vs. Team | Targets | Injury | Depth Chart | Roster
|Pass Comp
|Pass Att
|Comp Pct
|Pass Yds
|Pass TD
|Pass Int
|Rush Yds
|Rush TD
|Fum Lost
|Bears | Worked out Adam Weber
Mon, 07 Apr 2014 14:19:38 -0700
The Chicago Bears worked out free-agent QB Adam Weber (Buccaneers) Monday, April 7.
|Comment (0)
|| Share:
|| Source: CBSSports.com - Jason La Canfora
|Buccaneers | Adam Weber cut
Sun, 25 Aug 2013 09:00:43 -0700
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have released QB Adam Weber.
|Comment (0)
|| Share:
|| Source: NationalFootballPost.com - Aaron Wilson
|Buccaneers | Eight signed to futures contracts
Wed, 02 Jan 2013 11:25:10 -0800
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have signed QB Adam Weber, TE Drake Dunsmore, OT Mike Remmers, DE Ernest Owusu, LB Joe Holland, CB James Rogers, FS Sean Baker and FS Nick Saenz to futures contracts. Terms of the contracts were not disclosed.
|Comment (0)
|| Share:
|| Source: The Tampa Tribune - Roy Cummings
|Buccaneers | Eight added to practice squad
Mon, 03 Sep 2012 07:27:35 -0700
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers announced Monday, Sept. 3, they have signed OT Bradley Sowell, LB Jacob Cutrera, TE Drake Dunsmore, WR Dale Moss, WR Bert Reed, LB J.K. Schaffer, QB Adam Weber and DE Markus White to their practice squad.
|Comment (0)
|| Share:
|| Source: KFFL.com
|Buccaneers | Adam Weber plucked for PS
Sat, 01 Sep 2012 19:52:37 -0700
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers signed QB Adam Weber (Broncos) to the practice squad Saturday, Sept. 1.
|Comment (0)
|| Share:
|| Source: The Denver Post - Lindsay Jones
|Broncos | 19 released
Fri, 31 Aug 2012 17:18:19 -0700
The Denver Broncos released DE Jamie Blatnick, FS Rafael Bush, CB Drayton Florence, LB Jerry Franklin, DT Ben Garland, OG Adam Grant, OT Ryan Harris, WR Jason Hill, OG Tony Hills, SS Duke Ihenacho, TE Cornelius Ingram, RB Jeremiah Johnson, LB Mike Mohamed, WR Greg Orton, WR Gerell Robinson, DT Sealver Siliga, CB Syd'Quan Thompson, OG Wayne Tribue and QB Adam Weber Friday, Aug. 31.
|Comment (0)
|| Share:
|| Source: KFFL.com
|Broncos | Adam Weber worked as No. 2 QB
Fri, 15 Jun 2012 11:32:25 -0700
Denver Broncos QB Adam Weber worked as the No. 2 quarterback during minicamp this week. It is not known if Weber received those reps because he knows the playbook better than QBs Caleb Hanie and Brock Osweiler or if he will compete for the job during training camp.
|Comment (0)
|| Share:
|| Source: The Denver Post - Mike Klis
|Broncos | Adam Weber moved to active roster
Wed, 23 Nov 2011 22:31:04 -0800
Updating a previous report, the Denver Broncos have promoted QB Adam Weber from the practice squad to the active roster Wednesday, Nov. 23. He'll serve as the No. 3 QB behind starter QB Tim Tebow and backup QB Brady Quinn.
|Comment (0)
|| Share:
|| Source: NFL.com
|Broncos | Adam Weber could be promoted
Wed, 23 Nov 2011 06:09:50 -0800
Denver Broncos QB Adam Weber could be promoted to the active roster from the practice squad after the team decided to waive QB Kyle Orton.
|Comment (0)
|| Share:
|| Source: CBSSports.com
|Broncos | Practice squad filled out
Sun, 04 Sep 2011 18:47:11 -0700
The Denver Broncos signed DL Jeremy Beal, WR D'Andre Goodwin, OT Adam Grant, RB Jeremiah Johnson, S Kyle McCarthy, WR Eron Riley, FB Austin Sylvester and QB Adam Weber to the practice squad Sunday, Sept. 4.
|Comment (0)
|| Share:
|| Source: KFFL.com
Also see


text: Vision Developing engaged and ethical world-changing leaders Mission We seek to inspire and equip UCCS students with leadership character and skills to become impactful leaders on campus and community shapers upon graduation Pursue creativity, dream big, and seek solutions to complex issues. Engagement Actively participate and establish a meaningful connection to real world leadership experiences. Integrity Be honest and trustworthy; guided by strong moral principles as you positively impact others. Innovation Pursue creativity, dream big, and seek solutions to complex issues. Commitment Dedicate yourself entirely to leading with purpose and excellence. Calendar Facebook


text:
The Medicare-Isn't-Government Meme, Part 3
GOP Chairman Michael Steele loves Medicare but hates government.
Click here for a guide to following the health care reform story online.
The emerging Republican strategy to kill health reform is slightly less brazen than supply-side economist Arthur Laffer's initial tactic of pretending that Medicare was not a government program (see "The Medicare-Isn't-Government Meme"). Increasingly, the trick is to acknowledge (as backhandedly as possible) that Medicare is a government program but then to talk about it as if it weren't. Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck were early adapters (see "The Medicare-Isn't-Government Meme, Part 2"), and now GOP Chairman Michael Steele has taken it to the next level with a "Health Care Bill of Rights" for senior citizens.
"As the president frequently, and correctly, points out, Medicare will go deep into the red in less than a decade," Steele wrote in an Aug. 24 Washington Post op-ed. This was a formalistic nod to Republicans' past complaints about the growing cost of the government's social-welfare programs in general and of Medicare in particular. (Steele himself called for Medicare cuts as recently as 2006.) "But he and congressional Democrats," Steele continued, "are planning to raid, not aid, Medicare by cutting $500 billion from the program to fund his health-care experiment." This statement suggests that the GOP disagrees with the White House and congressional Democrats not over the need for Medicare cuts but merely over the amount. Sure, Medicare costs are out of control, but cutting $500 billion is way too much!
But as the liberal Web site Think Progress has pointed out, Steele's own Republican National Committee took to the airwaves in 1996 to support a resolution in the Republican-controlled Congress mandating $270 billion in Medicare cuts over seven years. That works out to $39 billion in cuts per year, which (factoring in inflation) would be equivalent in 2009 dollars to $53 billion in cuts per year. The $500 billion in Medicare cuts projected in the House health reform bill would occur over 10 years. That works out to $50 billion in cuts per year. The GOP is therefore sounding the alarm over Medicare cuts that, on an annual basis, are smaller than cuts the GOP itself has called for in the past.
Steele next drew an implicit (and entirely specious) rhetorical distinction between "Medicare" (which is good) and "government" (which is bad):
[W]e need to prohibit government from getting between seniors and their doctors. The government-run health-care experiment that Obama and the Democrats propose will give seniors less power to control their own medical decisions and create government boards that would decide what treatments would or would not be funded. Republicans oppose any new government entity overruling a doctor's decision about how to treat his or her patient.
Simply put, we believe that health-care reform must be centered on patients, not government. [Italics mine here and below.]
Steele went on to oppose comparative effectiveness research (i.e., the collection of data to find out which medical procedures work and which don't) on the grounds that it "could actually lead to government boards rationing treatments based on age." (Memo to Mr. Steele: The government, simply by virtue of there being a Medicare program, already rations treatments based on age. It will pay for your treatment if you're older than 65 but not if you're any younger.) Steele also wrote that "we need to prevent government from dictating the terms of end-of-life care":
Obama's government-run health "reform" would pay for seniors' meetings with a doctor to discuss end-of-life care. While nonthreatening at first, something that is quite normal for a family to do becomes troublesome when the government gets involved. Seniors know that government programs that seem benign at first can become anything but. The government should simply butt out of conversations about end-of-life care and leave them to seniors, their families and their doctors.
You want to know who's behind those death panels? The government! Not Medicare. Medicarewould never do anything so thoughtless and mean.
The greatest irony of the GOP's new Claude Pepper-ism is that, by promoting a seniors' "Health Care Bill of Rights," the Republicans are endorsing a view of government-funded health care that Democrats have shied away from for fear of sounding too left-wing. Democrats dare not declare that anyone has a right to demand that their government give them health care. Instead, the Democrats suggest meekly that subsidizing health insurance for those who can't afford it would be kind of a nice thing to do. But the GOP is willing to pronounce that senior citizens have a God-given right to government-funded health care. Too bad that right exists solely as a club to preventanyone else from getting medical treatment, even as a favor.
Update, 10:15 p.m.: On Fox News today Steele abandoned the Medicare-good, government-bad distinction and admitted that he just can't stand Medicare:
The reality of it is, this single-payer program known as Medicare is a very good example of what we should not have happen with all of our health care. The reality of it is, how many times have we been at the trough of bankruptcy and no money for the Medicare program, where Congress is running around like chickens with their head cut off, trying to figure out how to fix a program that they've already mismanaged? So now you want to do that, Congressman, on a larger scale? You want to include all of us. You're talking about taking our senior population, and expanding it to all of the population? Government cannot run a health care system. they've already shown that. Trust the private markets to do it the right way.
To summarize: Medicare is a terrible government program. It should therefore be inviolate.
Update, Aug. 28: You have to wonder whether Steele is starting to wish he'd never brought this subject up. In an Aug. 27 interview with National Public Radio's Steve Inskeep, Steele tied himself into knots trying to explain his true feelings about Medicare:
Q: It sounds like you don't like Medicare very much at all. ...
A: No, I'm not saying that. No, Medicare—
Q: But you write in this op-ed that you want to protect Medicare because it's politically popular. People like Medicare.
A: No, no, no, no, no. Please, don't—
Q: That's why you're writing to protect Medicare.
A: Well, people may like Medicare, and liking a program and having it run efficiently is sometimes two different things. And the reality of it is simply this: I'm not saying I like or dislike Medicare. It is what it is.
Eventually the interview degenerated into a Marx Brothers routine, with Inskeep playing Groucho and Steele playing Margaret Dumont:
A: [S]ure, there are issues in the insurance market that we can regulate a little bit better and that we can control better to maximize the benefits to the consumers. That's something that, yeah, we can rightly reform and fix. If the—
Q: Wait a minute, wait, wait. You would trust the government to look into that?
A: No. I'm talking about the—I'm talking about private—I'm talking about—
Q: Who is—
A: Citizens. I'm talking about—
Q: You said that's something that should be looked into. Who is it that should look into that?
A: I'm talking about those who—well, who regulates the insurance markets?
Q: That would be the government, I believe.
It's well worth listening to the whole thing.


text:
Drug company begins layoffs in Lincoln
Drug company begins layoffs in Lincoln
LINCOLN, Neb. —
Drug company Novartis has begun laying off workers at its plant east of Lincoln.
The Lincoln Journal Star reports Thursday that the Swiss drugmaker says in a statement it had notified 72 people that their positions have been eliminated. The company also won't fill 41 positions that had been open.
The positions are in technical operations, engineering and quality.
The job cuts are part of a plan Novartis announced last month to cut 300 jobs from its workforce of 750 in Lincoln. More layoffs are planned in early 2014 and a final round will occur in 2015.
The layoffs follow inspections by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that found problems with quality control and complaint resolution at the plant.


text:
PH and Thromboembolic Disease
|Chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) is a form of PH caused by blood clots in the lungs (pulmonary embolism).
In most patients who have suffered a blood clot, blood thinners are enough to restore blood flow and prevent the development of pulmonary hypertension. However, a minority of patients will not respond adequately to blood thinners and may develop CTEPH. Patients may even develop CTEPH without a known history of blood clots.
Explore our resources to learn about diagnosis, treatment options, CTEPH doctors, PTE surgery and more and to connect with others who are living with CTEPH…


text:
The Information Services department is here to help you reach your full potential in researching various topics for your academic studies. Our staff of highly trained research librarians are always happy to assist you in any way possible.
To get research help, visit us at the information desk on the second floor, send us an email, give us a call, or use some of the resources we've provided on this page.
Did you know that the library offers a half-semester credit course that teaches students how to best use library resources as well as strategies for effective research?
Learn more >>


text:
Morning Five: 11.03.11 EditionPosted by rtmsf on November 3rd, 2011
- It's a precipitous drop down the face of a monolith like El Capitan to go from the national championship game to losing to a D-II school at home, but Butler found itself in just that situation Wednesday night. The Northern State (SD) Wolves entered one of the most historic and difficult arenas in the nation in which to play — Hinkle Fieldhouse — and walked out with a 53-50 exhibition win after NSU's Alex Thomas nailed a three at the buzzer to cap off a late 12-0 run. An image of the final shot can be found here (h/t @ryan_hilgemann), but nobody on the north side of Indy should go apoplectic just yet. After having lost three star players in the previous two seasons, the easy storyline is that Butler is going through a transition year, but the truth is that last season was a transition year too — all the way up until around March 15 when the Brad Stevens magic kicked back in. Butler is definitely going to have some growing pains as they figure out some things, but write off the Bulldogs at your own peril.
- Connecticut freshman guard and dunking machine Ryan Boatright is facing eligibility issues with the NCAA reportedly as a result of an issue involving his AAU team in his hometown of Chicago. Without knowing what the issue might be, it's difficult to say how long this might drag out. But what we do know is that Boatright is expected to provide a backup role for starting point guard Shabazz Napier this season, and if he's unable to do so, the Husky attack suddenly becomes much more tenuous. At that point, the depth chart moves into walk-on territory with freshman Brendan Allen next in line, although Jeremy Lamb would most likely be called upon to slide over from the shooting guard position and run the team — not an ideal situation, but one the Huskies may have to face.
- While on the subject of eligibility, Maryland freshman center Alex Len received a ruling from the NCAA on Wednesday that will allow him to resume practice immediately but will force him to miss the team's first ten regular season games as penance for playing with an overseas club team. The seven-foot Ukranian will be eligible to rejoin the Terps' seven other healthy scholarship players on December 28 against Albany, but Mark Turgeon's team will have to tread water with limited personnel for the first few weeks of the season against a tough nonconference schedule that includes Alabama, Wichita State (possibly), Illinois and Notre Dame.
- Now this is the kind of news we like to read and put into the M5. Last week it appeared that Louisville freshman wing Wayne Blackshear was likely to miss the entire season due to a shoulder injury. Rick Pitino said on his radio show this week that surgeons found a better-than-expected situation when they opened him up, and with proper rehabilitation and a little luck, the star rookie could be back in action in as soon as 6-8 weeks. In case you're doing the math, that's right around the time that the Cards will make their biennial trip 60 miles east to play a certain game in Lexington. Welcome to college basketball, kid?
- Finally, Matt Norlander over at CBS Sports has put together a fairly interesting analysis prospectively looking at strength of schedule metrics for the upcoming season. As he says in the article, the gold is in the graphic that shows every power conference team (+ eight others, including Xavier, Memphis, Butler and Gonzaga) and how its 2011-12 schedule rates on a number of criteria. Long Beach State, for example is off the charts, playing a nonconference slate that features six true road games and a set of opponents who collectively averaged 26.2 wins a year ago. DePaul's opponents, on the other hand, averaged 12.8 wins last year. It would have been interesting to take another step with this data set and accounted for the personnel losses and incoming talent of the opponents (as Dan Hanner has done in the past), but there are still some interesting takeaways available here.