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Marlins must decide on out-of-option players
By Joe Frisaro / MLB.com
JUPITER, Fla. -- The business of baseball will eventually factor into several roster decisions that must be made by the Marlins.
The club has four big league-tested players -- Gorkys Hernandez, Justin Ruggiano, Mike Dunn and Wade LeBlanc -- who are out of options, meaning they can't be sent to the Minor Leagues without the risk that the organization will lose them.
All four have a very strong chance of being with the club on Opening Day. Ruggiano is the front-runner to start in center field, and Hernandez is competing for an outfield spot. LeBlanc, a left-hander, is in the mix to be the fifth starter, and he offers versatility because he can also pitch out of the bullpen. Dunn projects to be the primary lefty reliever.
If the four don't appear to be in Miami's plans, they will become candidates to be traded.
Brantly out to prove he can be an everyday catcher
JUPITER, Fla. -- Although he is a familiar face from a year ago, Rob Brantly remains a rookie as he enters his first Spring Training with the Marlins.
The 23-year-old, who became the team's regular catcher late last season, has 31 games of big league experience under his facemask, yet he is being asked to step up on a daily basis and prove that he can be a quality everyday player.
"We've got a lot of new guys," Brantly said. "A lot of guys are trying to prove themselves here. I think that only makes us hungrier to work harder, play better, and try to go out there and play well."
The Marlins acquired the left-handed-hitting Brantly from the Tigers last July as part of the trade that sent Anibal Sanchez and Omar Infante to Detroit.
Brantly remains a work in progress defensively, and manager Mike Redmond, himself a former catcher, looks forward to working with him.
"I've watched a lot of video on him," Redmond said. "You try to think of ways to tighten him up a little bit, mechanically, with his throwing and stuff like that. Right now, I'm a spectator. I'm watching him, what he does, day to day. His footwork. His mechanics. His blocking. The way he receives, just to see where he is. It's not something where in one day you go, 'I've got it.' It takes time."
Having spent a couple of months in the big leagues has given Brantly a taste of what to expect.
"It helps," Brantly said, "going in and getting my first bite in the big leagues; coming in here and getting the butterflies out. I'm glad we have a fresh start here."
Brantly is a promising offensive player, having hit .290 with a .372 on-base percentage in 100 at-bats last year.
"We have a lot we're fighting for," Brantly said. "As much as we're all fighting for a spot, we are all on the same team. We're all fighting to prove we're all competitors here, and we're fighting to get ready to compete during the regular season and win some baseball games in the regular season as well."
Underdog role suits Webb just fine
JUPITER, Fla. -- Playing the underdog role is perfectly fine with Ryan Webb, whose youthful team started Spring Training on Tuesday with low expectations.
"A lot of people are writing us off early and stuff like that," said Webb, a candidate to earn a spot as a right-handed setup man. "That's great. We've got a talented group of guys. When you go out there and people don't expect much from you, you tend to perform better and surprise a bunch of people. I think that's what we're kind of looking at this year. That's kind of exciting."
Webb appeared in 65 games a year ago, going 4-3 with a 4.03 ERA in 60 1/3 innings, and will factor into the back of the bullpen.
"It's definitely exciting when we've got a bunch of talented young guys together," Webb said. "You take the pressure off, and that's when guys do big things. I think you can definitely expect to see some people step up and do some really exciting things this year."
Worth noting
• Craig Tatum, a 29-year-old non-roster invitee catcher, told the team he was retiring. The timing of the news stunned the Marlins.
Tatum has played in 100 big league games, but none since 2011. Miami now has six catchers in camp, and 73 players overall.
• All is well on the injury front for the Marlins. None of the pitchers are being held back.
• Wednesday's workouts begin around 10 a.m. at the Roger Dean Stadium complex. Full-squad workouts get under way on Friday.
Joe Frisaro is a reporter for MLB.com. He writes a blog, called The Fish Pond. Follow him on Twitter @JoeFrisaro. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


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Dr. Cargill H. Alleyne, Jr. was taking his family to Disney World four years ago when he had an idea for a children's book.
"It was a long drive, and my kids started asking questions about the brain," Alleyne said. So the Neurosurgery Chief at Georgia Health Sciences Medical Center began to share his scientific knowledge about the brain with his son and daughter.
"I started droning on and on about the brain, and I think they started to fall asleep. So, I began making up limericks about the brain instead – how it looks and how it functions. I had to stop and scribble things down a few times so I wouldn't forget. But by the end of the trip, I basically had the book written."
"Ned's Head" was published in July 2012 through Create Space self-publishing. It is a light-hearted, rhyming book that examines what's inside a little boy's head. The boy's name is Ned, and while getting ready for bed one night, he wonders what's inside his head.
Readers are taken on a ride through the inside of Ned's brain, getting acquainted with all of the nerves and parts of the brain that help answer questions many kids have, such as "How do I smile or frown? How do my eyes move around? How do I taste?" and "How do I stick out my tongue?"
In addition to the facts presented in "Ned's Head," there is a glossary at the end of the book that provides definitions and pronunciations of the medical terms. A real "brain teaser" in the book is that the illustrators included small hidden brains in each of the illustrations for readers to find.
Those illustrators are Michael A. Jensen and Karen G. Bradley. Jensen is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Medical Illustration in the GHSU College of Allied Health. Besides medical drawings and artwork, Jensen has illustrated 12 Curious George children's books.
Bradley, who received her degree in medical illustration from GHSU, is an award-winning medical illustrator and founder of KB Illustrations.
"When I first thought of the book, I wasn't even thinking of the actual character," said Alleyne, who holds the Marshall Allen Distinguished Chair in the Department of Neurosurgery at GHSU's Medical College of Georgia. "It was actually Jensen who came up with Ned's character as an African-American boy. And, I thought, 'That's great, because I think it would be a good way to interest a group of kids who may not be thinking about doing neurology or neurosurgery.' "
Dr. Alleyne's goal is to have a wide spectrum of these books with diverse topics and characters. "I've already written the text for Bart's Heart, Joan's Bones, Nelly's Belly and Malachi's Eye," he said. Other books would likely be about Russell's muscles, and Keith's teeth.
Besides promoting reading, Alleyne says the children's book series is a way of introducing kids to medicine at an early age.
"I think that kids are smarter and smarter these days, and if you lead them in the right direction, they may get turned onto something. It's a neat way to introduce them to their own body and what's going on. We may get a new crop of physicians down the road."
"Ned's Head" received an honorable mention at the 2012 Fall Royal Dragonfly Book Awards. It is available for purchase on Amazon for about $12.

subset: commoncrawl


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Sheila Walsh
About the Author
Sheila Walsh is the host of Children of Faith, a spin-off of the popular Women of Faith conferences. She is also a world renowned recording artist, keynote speaker for Women of Faith, former co-host of The 700 Club, and the author or coauthor of numerous books for grown-ups, including Honestly, Bring Back the Joy, and Living Fearlessly. Sheila and her husband, Barry, live with their son, Christian, in Nashville, Tennessee.
ILLUSTRATORBIO: Deborah Maze's evocative illustrations grace the pages of numerous greeting cards and picture books, including The Chronicles of Narnia picture book editions. Deborah resides in Capistrano Beach, California, with her husband, John, and their two children.


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Heyy! I love reading and writing fan fiction (obiously). I have a couple of stories up my sleeve that still need to be polished off. I just got published and I'm so excited. So check out my story!
My favorite book in the series is Deathly Hallows. My least favortie is Chamber of Secrets. Goblet of Fire is my favorite movie and not only becuase Dan and Rupert look really hot with long and shaggy hair but because it follows the movie really well.
I'm currently working on a Harry/Ginny AND Ron/Hermione Romance called Just For Fun. And I'll try to update as fast as possible, so far I have three chapters written.
But I have a couple other stories up my sleeve.
-Sirius Black Must Die is a Marauder Era version of the Muggle movie John Tucker Must Die. It's mainly Lily/James, Sirius/OC and a touch of Remus/OC and Peter/OC.
My other work in progress doesn't have a name, but it's a Lily Potter/Scorpius Malfoy in the form of Lily's diary.
So far I have a story for 3 generations of Potter women. Cool, eh? Check out Just For Fun, and please review! Thanks!


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Obama Reflects on Biggest Mistake of His Presidency Thus Far
In an interview for CBS This Morning, Charlie Rose asked President Obama what the biggest mistake of his presidency has been. It's a tough question for any president to answer — especially when he's campaigning for reelection — but Obama's answer was fairly straightforward.
In focusing so much on policy, Obama said that he had failed to inspire the nation.
When I think about what we've done well and what we haven't done well, the mistake of my first term — couple of years — was thinking that this job was just about getting the policy right. And that's important. But the nature of this office is also to tell a story to the American people that gives them a sense of unity and purpose and optimism, especially during tough times.
Then again, Obama was criticized in the past by opponents for telling a story (or at least grandiose speeches) instead of focusing on the specifics of his policy.
But for those who supported him, Obama's approach was perceived as no-nonsense — and that was a good thing. Now some argue it may be a mark against him. As Jonathan Wong puts it, the positive designation "No Drama" Obama has become "cold and disconnected" Obama to some of his critics.
This falls in line with Obama's clarification to Rose, who asked if he meant he should have better explained his policies to the American people. Obama countered with, "Explaining — but also inspiring." First Lady Michelle Obama chimed in with, "Because hope is still there." The concepts of hope and change were, of course, central to the 2008 election.
Naturally, Mitt Romney went on the attack following news of Obama's interview. The Republican candidate released a statement that said, "Being president is not about telling stories. Being president is about leading, and President Obama has failed to lead."
The interview, which was taped on Thursday at the White House, will air on CBS Sunday morning.
[Image via AP]


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Discussion in 'Doctor Who' started by Atticus, Apr 2, 2013.
The Whistleblower has posted what he claims is the Anniversary Special plot.
I could buy that.
Well now I know who "Whistleblower" is. He's a dillusional poster on GB that goes by the name of R.E.D, who's been trying to push his frankly ridiculous theories about what's "really" happening in the series (including The Doctor being dead since The Big Bang) on people at every possible opportunity.
Cool. I thought that held together narratively better than Moffat's usual work.
YEAH, cause it's not like he's got other things that need to get done first, or knew exactly who would be availible to be in the special.
:sarcasm right back at ya:
Right. NOR does it HAVE to include ANY of the classic Doctors.
And besides, if you chose only one, you would have the fanboys raging that Moffat didn't pick THEIR Doctor. "How DARE you not include Tom Baker! DUDE, you just insulted McGann fans!!"
I'm beginning to think there is NO way for Moffat to get it right with fans.
Beginning to think?!?!?
The impossibility of that is as plain as the chin on Matt Smith's face.
Yeah the second I saw Omega mentioned in there I knew it was a fake. Fans have been talking about his supposed return for years (along with the Rani and Valeyard), even though it is something that Moffat clearly has no interest in.
Like what? Making one series in two years?
And if only they had some sort of Casting Director who could ring up people's Agents to find out if they'd be interested in appearing.
I'm really looking forward to seven months of Moffat fans telling us that David Tennant, Billie Piper and Tom Baker's scarf are all you need to represent 50 years of history.
Sherlock? TinTin?
He dropped out of 'Tin-Tin' before he started Producing Doctor Who. 'Sherlock' is three episodes every 18 months co-produced with Mark Gatiss.
The idea that with only half as many episodes of the TV series to make there simply wouldn't have been enough time to develop a good story with appearances by Original Series Doctors is just nuts.
ring, ring.
Casting Director: Hi, I'm just calling to see if your client would like to appear in the 50th?
Agent: Sure, maybe, can he see the script?
Casting Director: Nope. There isn't one yet.
Agent: What about the story? What's the story? Will my client have a big part?
Casting Director: No story yet. Just seeing who is around and interested.
Agent: Um. Ok. Sure. Why don't you get back to us when there's like... a script or a story?
Casting Director: Will do.
I'm so glad that your knowledge of TV production isn't getting in the way of your nerd rage.
In just a couple of years, we here in Indianapolis will celebrate the 100th running of the Indianapolis 500.
And guess what? They won't be running cars in this anniversary race from this great race's long history, even though the vast majority of the past winning cars have been preserved and are in operable condition.
Oh sure, there may be one or two cars that are recent enough to still be active on the circuit, but none of the greats from the past. Those bastards! How dare they call it an anniversary race unless each and every of the surviving 99 winning cars take part in the race itself?
They may as well admit that all they're really celebrating, is the anniversary of the last few years.
Get it?
Or to more directly answer the question of what some of the "many more ways to pay respect to the history of the show than by just trotting out the original actors" might be...
I can honestly see how they could fully and satisfyingly honor the entire span of the show, and celebrate the spirit of all his past 'incarnations', through dialog alone (in the right context of course), by having the current Doctor simply reminisce fondly of his past.
A shame. I think Omega would be ideal for A Matt Smith regeneration story.
I'm also desperate to see the valeyard again, although I think he'd work better as a 12th doctor enemy. Although I hate the Rani in what I've seen her in, I think she could adapt well on screen if done properly and modernised.
I think the Dream Lord is as close to the Valeyard as we are going to get in this version of Doctor Who. Which I am VERY happy with.
Agreed. It's a shame he was considered as a recurring villain, because I think he's one of the best the new series ever came up with.
Certainly better than Simm's Master, at least.
Off topic: It's Tintin! Not TinTin, Tin-Tin, or any other crazy way to spell it! [/rant]
Now that I have that off my chest, I have to express my disappointment that none of the classic Doctors (to include Paul McGann) are not returning. I'm disillusioned enough to grasp straws in the belief that DWM is misleading the fans (or themselves being misled) out of hope they'll make a brief, surprise in appearance, but I know it's highly unlikely.
That being said, I'm not going to prejudge the special. We already know of a lot of great things that will be in the special, and while they're not the original actors, I'm excited about their inclusion. Only time will tell how good this special actually is.
If you go by the equation space/trek=doctors/anny,
and set both numerators near zero,
what do you get?
p=pefrormance issues
Keep up the good work proving my point for me!
I will be genuinely surprised if they don't take advantage of having the sets and actors from An Adventure in Time and Space available. If they were going to bring any of the Doctors back to celebrate an anniversary, the first seems the most obvious choice.
My personal hope was for 9, 10 & 11 to be somehow drawn back to the time war where they would foil some evil Timelordy plot and set 8 on his path to using the moment, followed by 11 making a farewell tour of his previous incarnations culminating in his nudging the first Doctor towards the TARDIS with a "just imagine everything out there" monologue and a wink as he gets in his own and wooshes away.
Probably about as much as I'm looking forward to seven months of hearing how bad the anniversary special is going to be before anybody even sees it and how Moffat has ruined Doctor Who, hates the classic series and kicked Tom Baker's dog.
I only started watching in 2005 so I have a very limited knowledge of classic villains, but I have to admit that I was underwhelmed when I read that "Whistleblower" synopsis. I hope it's fake.
As for Matt Smith's regeneration, the way Eleven has been talking and acting since "The Snowmen" has me thinking that he will buy it at some point saving Clara's life. He already blames himself for her Victorian version's death and Oswin saved his life in "Asylum"....he'll give up his life before she dies again. I'm sure of it.
Separate names with a comma.


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="http://www.behindthemasks.com/dawnatello/harrypotter/quiz" target="_blank">
Which Harry Potter Marauder Are You?
Which HP Kid Are You?
Which Hogwarts house will you be sorted into?
...and which lesser Harry Potter character are you?
10 1/2 inches, cedar and floo powder, a strange Gregorovitch combination indeed! You've been bitten bad by the travel bug, and change is the name of your game. A true wanderer, you can't stay long in one place and wish to travel the world.
Harry Potter...you're brave and all but you are kind of boring...lol.
div style="width:300px;_height:250px; min-height:250px; background-color:rgb(216,233,237); text-align:center;">
!!! The Ultimate Harry Potter Character Quiz !!!
Harry Potter...you're brave and all but you are kind of boring...lol. Take this quiz!
Quizilla |
| Make A Quiz | More Quizzes | Grab Code


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Hershey, Pennsylvania is the land of opportunity, chocolate, and Washington Capitals prospects. They have fan support like nobody else, with Bears jerseys littering Ricoh Coliseum despite the distance away. It was an important game for the Toronto Marlies, who continue to struggle out of the post-lockout gate. New emergency addition Drew MacIntyre made an unexpected debut, but peformed spectacular in it, leading the Marlies to their first win in three games.
The first period saw an opening goal from an unexpected player in Andrew Crescenzi. The Thornhill native probably wasn't expecting the puck beat Dany Sabourin, launching weak and low off his stick, but sometimes the intention is more important than the result, squeaking by to give Toronto an early lead. A trio of powerplays, two in Hersheys favour shook things up throughout the opening twenty, but both penalty killing nuts rose to the occasion.
In the middle frame, the Bears were quick to equalize the game, as Casey Wellman scored his eighth of the season, as Tim Conolly sat in the box for the second time fo the season. However, the still NHL-quality centre was quick to redeem himself, scoring his 4th goal in ten games to restore the lead just five minutes later. Mike Zigomanis took a penalty for goaltender interference in the closing minutes, but to no damage.
The third period was a slow and steady one. Toronto was taking shots more to keep the pressure out of their zone, than to risk going for a bigger lead. It was a smart effort, as Hershey, needing a goal, only had three shots of their own. Other than a very early Marlies powerplay, the third period was more existant than it was exciting, but it what Toronto needed to open the weekend with a 2-1 victory.
Other Notes
Drew MacIntyre debuting today is interesting. I'm not sure how much confidence that puts in Mark Owuya's hands, but with that said, the newest member of the team, black pads and all, looked very strong, stopping 17 of 18 shots, many of them impressive.
That said, just eighteen shots against? That's a spectacular defensive effort by everybody involved. It shows in Toronto's total that they were playing defensively , taking just 22 of their own.
Jake Gardiner's name is being glared at as people await his return to the Leafs, and he had a very unnoticable game. This is good from a defensive standpoint, as it means he didn't make any mistakes. Beyond that, he was a +1 and took a single shot.
Tim Connolly's goal is his first since his opening tear. Would be nice to see more production out of him.
The "weak shot" isn't a knock on Crescenzi's game – overall, that was his best effort yet. Just it gets an exclaimation point by a goal Sabourin is probably kicking himself for.
Five penalties against is an undisciplined effort, but killing four of them is solid. The powerplay lacked the needed spark, though, and was unsuccessful at all three attempts.
Dallas Eakins confirmed today that Brad Ross is not a healthy scratch, rather having a broken bone in his wrist.
Attendance tonight was 5814, pretty solid with the Leafs playing down the street and the weather being a mess.
The Marlies play their next game at home on Monday at 1PM, against the Houston Aeros. Lunchbags will be given out to fans as a promo item.


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Pukaraj Babulal Porwal
Apmc Yard, Karnataka - 586101, India


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LA Galaxy goalkeeper Jaime Penedo has been called up to Panama's squad for their World Cup qualifiers against Jamaica on Sept. 6 in Panama City and Sept. 10 against Honduras in Tegucigalpa, the Panamanian Federation announced on Sunday.
Penedo will be vital to Panama's hopes to qualify for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil and is expected to start both matches, but he will miss out on LA's Sept. 7 match against the Colorado Rapids.
The matches are vital ones for Los Canaleros as they look to qualify for the World Cup for the first time in the nation's history. Currently, Panama is in fifth place in the Hexagonal just one point behind fourth place Honduras and a berth in the playoff against Oceania champion New Zealand. Honduras isn't the only team in reach, however, as Panama is just two points behind third-place Mexico for CONCACAF's last automatic qualifying spot.The local contingent of head coach Julio Dely Valdés' squad has already convened in preparation for the matches and are expected to be joined by their compatriots playing in Mexico and MLS after this weekend's matches.
The complete list is below…
GOALKEEPERS: Jaime Penedo - L.A. Galaxy (USA), Luis Mejía - Fénix (URU), Alex Rodríguez - Sporting SM (PAN)
DEFENDERS: Luis Henríquez - Lech Poznan (POL), Felipe Baloy - Santos Laguna (MEX), Román Torres - Millonarios (COL), Roberto Chen - Málaga CF (ESP), Carlos Rodríguez - Chepo FC (PAN), Richard Dixon - Sporting SM (PAN), Harold Cummings - árabe Unido (PAN), Jean Carlo Cedeño - Alianza FC (PAN)
MIDFIELDERS: Alberto Quintero - Lobos BUAP (MEX), Amílcar Henríquez - Dep. Ind. Medellín (COL), Jairo Jiménez - Elche Ilicitano (ESP), Aníbal Godoy - Chepo FC (PAN), Juan de Dios Pérez - Tauro FC (PAN), Marcos Sánchez - Tauro FC (PAN), Eybir Bonaga - San Francisco FC (PAN), Gabriel Gómez - San Francisco FC (PAN)
FORWARDS: Cecilio Waterman - Fénix (URU), Blas Pérez - FC Dallas (USA), Gabriel Torres - Colorado Rapids (USA), Alcibiades Rojas - Sporting SM (PAN)


text:
ZoneAlarm Security Suite version 8.0.298.035
TrueVector security engine version 8.0.298.035
Driver version 8.0.298.035
Anti-virus engine version 188.8.131.528, DAT file version 997853591
Anti-spyware engine version 126.96.36.199, DAT file version 01.200912.6975
AntiSpam version 220.127.116.119
I have anti-virus, anti-spyware settings set to update every 3 hours, however, I only run a scan 2 or 3 times per week. After an update and scan yesterday I was presented with a spyware detection citing file:
That file had the same modified date as other files in the directory (i.e. 3/31/2009 5:18 PM).
The trojan noted is: Win32.Worm.IrcBot.60416.6
I have quarantined the file. ZA required me to reboot. ZA seems to be working okay, but I have not - of course - exercised every feature. Could I please obtain confirmation whether this hit is indeed a false positive? There is another recent thread entitled: "hoax or threat". The guru responding seems to indicate this is a false positive, but I would like to receive clear and unambiguous confirmation that it is indeed a false positive. And if it is a false positive, when can we expect spyware definitions to be updated to eliminate this false positive?


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Jikan wrote:Seems to me that Wonhyo advocated a ninth consciousness on the basis of the Vajrasamadhi sutra (published as Cultivating Original Enlightenment). I know that Wonhyo himself was likely the compiler of that text. I bring it up because I'd like to know if this concept took hold in Korean Buddhism following Wonhyo, or if it was forgotten.
This sutra is well established to be a Korean composition.


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Dr. Galang Named Chief Information Officer
Home » About Us » News » 2008 News » Dr. Galang Named Chief Information Officer
September 22, 2008
Catholic Health has selected a physician to lead the healthcare organization's Information Technology (IT) department. Michael F. Galang, D.O., a family practice physician has been named Chief Information Officer (CIO) and will assume his new responsibilities effective November 1, 2008. Dr. Galang will be closing his private practice in Orchard Park, NY as he assumes his full time post with Catholic Health.
"The integration of complex clinical information systems into the practice of medicine is increasing technology's impact on clinical quality. We are extremely fortunate to have a physician with the unique combination of clinical, administrative and technical expertise to lead our strategic technology initiatives," said Joseph M. McDonald, President and Chief Executive Officer.
Dr. Galang served most recently as the Chief Medical Information Officer for Catholic Health's Equinox initiative, a post he will maintain as he assumes responsibility for all of Catholic Health's IT. Dr. Galang also holds a key leadership role in Catholic Health's membership in the WNY Clinical Information Exchange (HEALTHeLINK) and serves as chair for the organization's Clinical Information Technology Advisory Committee (CITAC).
A recognized leader in the application of technology in clinical practice, Dr. Galang was recently appointed to a national post as a member of the Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology (CCHIT) as a member of the Personal Health Records Work Group.
Prior to Catholic Health, he was the Medical Director of Clinical Quality at Promedicus Health Group, a multi-specialty physician group. Dr. Galang also served as the Medical Director of a 25 physician, primary care group, Buffalo Family Practice.
Dr. Galang holds a master's degree in health care management from Harvard University and is completing a master's degree in medical informatics at Northwestern University. He received his medical degree from the Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine and his family medicine residency from the Stanford University Family Practice Residency Program at the San Jose Medical Center. He completed undergraduate studies at the University of California, San Diego where he received degrees in Biology and Drama.
"With the many opportunities and challenges that lay before us as a healthcare system, we recognize the importance of IT in helping us achieve our overall system strategies. With that in mind, we are very pleased that Dr. Galang has agreed to become a permanent full-time member of the Catholic Health senior leadership team in his new role as CIO," said Jim Dunlop, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.
A California native, Dr. Galang has made Western New York his home since 1990.


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Solving Kansas City's playoff riddle
Without uptick in offensive production, Royals unlikely to reach postseason
By Phil Rogers / MLB.com
CHICAGO -- His arms tightly crossed across his chest, sunglasses hiding his eyes, Ned Yost talked about how the Kansas City Royals' hitters need to relax.
He looked anything but relaxed.
Yost seemed tense upon arrival at U.S. Cellular Field, no doubt the result of a weekend sweep at Fenway Park in which the Royals lost two winnable games before Jon Lester blew them away in the series finale. He had closed the clubhouse door after that 6-0 loss on Sunday, holding a brief meeting that spelled out the urgency of the situation.
So much for coming back fresh from the All-Star break.
In first place in the American League Central on June 18, having won 10 games in a row to climb to seven games over .500, Kansas City has since gone 9-18, falling eight games behind Detroit and into sixth place in the AL's Wild Card race. A season that has been almost a decade in the making, one that was designed to get the Royals into the playoffs for the first time since 1985, could slip away if players don't put on their hitting shoes in a hurry.
Yost was asked how he finds the words to help them do it.
"That's the hard part," said Yost, who is in his fifth season as the Royals' manager. "They're the ones that have to do it. You can't yell and scream. Nobody reacts well to being yelled and screamed at. You try to point out things to get them refocused."
There is an edginess to the Royals these days. It hangs in the air around them, and there is only one tonic and everyone knows what it is. It is the ageless remedy. They have to start winning, and that challenge only increases if hitters press. But how can you not press when the All-Star Game is behind you and a forest of contenders is in front of you?
Kansas City has a lot riding on solving that riddle.
Having patiently constructed a lineup through scouting and player development, general manager Dayton Moore pushed his chips into the center of the table before the 2013 season. He traded top prospect Wil Myers for the Rays' James Shields, who was then two years from free agency.
Moore could cut his losses by trading Shields elsewhere in the next 10 days but that would signal he's giving up on the 2014 season, and the reality is that the Royals remain one good stretch away from being right back in the battle for the league's second Wild Card spot, currently the tenuous property of the Mariners.
The Royals have too much good pitching, too much excellent fielding to abandon hope. But Yost describes the team's hitting as "consistently inconsistent," and he's right. It didn't help on Monday that first baseman Eric Hosmer, who is in the midst of a 16-game hitting streak, was scratched with a bruised right hand when All-Star catcher Salvador Perez returned after missing Sunday's game with a strained groin.
Kansas City is 12th in the AL with an average of 4.0 runs per game and last in the league with 55 home runs. You hear a lot about the pitcher-friendly dimensions of Kauffman Stadium, but the Royals also have hit the fewest road homers in the league.
It's safe to say Yost expected more power than what he has gotten from the guys that Moore built the order around -- Billy Butler (three homers), Mike Moustakas (10 homers, along with a .186 average), Alex Gordon (nine homers) and Hosmer (six homers).
"I think we have guys who definitely can hit for power," Yost said. "You don't believe me, just watch batting practice. We pound balls out of the ballpark. But I've yet to get the opposing manager to use our BP pitcher as their pitcher for that day."
As if to illustrate that point, the White Sox started three-time All-Star Chris Sale in the opener of a three-game series -- not exactly who you'd want to see after being shut out by Lester.
Kansas City made Sale work, collecting seven hits in his seven innings, but the telling moment in the 3-1 loss to the White Sox came in the fourth inning. Third-base coach Mike Jirschele did what you are supposed to do with two outs and your team slumping. He challenged the arm of left fielder Alejandro De Aza, trying to score Danny Valencia from first base on a double into the corner by Alcides Escobar, and Alexei Ramirez perfectly handled the relay from De Aza to cut down Valencia.
Welcome to the Royals' world.
"If you break it all down, if we hit, we're going to win," Yost said. "It's that simple. If we can score some runs, we're going to win ballgames."
He's right. The Royals are 41-9 when they score four runs or more; they're 7-41 when they don't.
Isn't Alfonso Soriano a free agent? Why not sign him or make a play for the Phillies' Marlon Byrd? Those guys added a lot down the stretch a year ago, even if Yost isn't looking for the cavalry to come riding over the hill.
"Basically, I think we're going to pretty much have to fix what we've got," Yost said. "We liked this team coming in. We made some great additions, we thought, at the beginning of the year. But the majority of our guys are pretty much homegrown guys, guys we have a lot of faith in. They have track records and you know they're going to be productive. It's just waiting it out. Hopefully the sooner, the better."
That's not now or never. But it is starting to feel like it.
Phil Rogers is a columnist for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


text:
by Stephen Vladeck, Professor of Law and Associate Dean for Scholarship, Washington College of Law, American University
The more that I grapple with the so-called "white paper" prepared by the Department of Justice to provide at least some overview of the legal rationale behind the targeted killing of U.S. citizen terrorism suspects such as Anwar al-Awlaki, the more I'm reminded of Justice Robert Jackson's dissenting opinion in the Mezei case -- decided in March 1953 at the height of the Cold War. As Jackson there explained:
Only the untaught layman or the charlatan lawyer can answer that procedures matter not. Procedural fairness and regularity are of the indispensable essence of liberty. Severe substantive laws can be endured if they are fairly and impartially applied. Indeed, if put to the choice, one might well prefer to live under Soviet substantive law applied in good faith by our common-law procedures than under our substantive law enforced by Soviet procedural practices.
Although Jackson lost in Mezei, his understanding of due process eventually became hard-wired into the Supreme Court's due process jurisprudence, culminating in a number of decisions in the 1970s in which the Court recognized that the heart of the Due Process Clause was an individual's entitlement to a hearing before a neutral decision maker.


text:
1 Like
The black sandy seashore at the city of Vik, the southernmost part of Iceland.
The sand is black - just like the sand in the Canary Island - because of the black volcanic rocks are transformed into sand by the erosion.
In the distance the Three Sisters rock formation is seen.


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Bill De Blasio hires 'Perez Notes' reporter
Public Advocate Bill de Blasio has a new deputy chief of staff: Roberto Perez, who has hosted a popular local radio show and recently began writing about politics for El Diario.
De Blasio, a likely candidate for mayor next year, said he was impressed with Perez's work. "He is going to be a tremendous asset for our office," de Blasio said.
Story Continued Below
De Blasio has hired a number of people for his public advocate's office who, potentially, could help the Park Slope-based lawmaker expand his appeal citywide. He hired Avi Fink, a top aide to former Rep. Anthony Weiner; and Lydon Sleeper, who worked with City Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley. Both Weiner and Crowley represented middle-class, outer-borough constituencies, the kind of voters de Blasio will need in next year's mayor's race.
Perez announced his departure in a blog item this morning.
Perez, who is from Queens, said in a statement that he has been looking to make the move from reporter to political operative for some time, and that he will discontinue his column and radio show. For followers of New York politics, that's a bit of a loss.
Perez operated his radio show from the basement of LaGuardia Community College and recently began traveling throughout the city, conducting interviews with a hand-held camera, giving a raw, unpolished and unedited look at New York politics.
He focused on lawmakers and political operatives who sometimes got crowded out of the daily press coverage. Others, perhaps eased by the ability to speak at length for minutes at a time without interruption, simply said too much.
In addition to interviewing de Blasio, Perez had memorable interviews with Rep. Charlie Rangel, then-Councilmna Simcha Felder, Hank Sheinkopf, Hiram Monserrate, and many others.


text:
First Tech Touts Rollout of First CU Native Windows Phone App
The $5.6 billion First Tech Credit Union in Mountain View, Calif., has rolled out what it says is the first native Windows Phone mobile banking app integrated with mobile check deposit and bill pay.
The 358,000 member First Tech said it developed the app in house and plans to debut it on Tuesday in a gathering at the Redmond, Wash., headquarters of one of the credit union's major SEGs: Microsoft.
The new app joins the Android and Apple apps the credit union launched last August and also includes balances, transaction histories, transfers and branch and fee-free ATM locators.
"We're proud to be the first credit union in the country to offer a native mobile app for smart phones powered by Microsoft," said Greg Mitchell, First Tech president/ CEO, in the credit union's announcement.
"As Microsoft's credit union, it's very important for us to serve our members and demonstrate our support of the Windows 8 mobile platform," Mitchell said.
First Tech's other SEGs include such major technology employers as HP, Agilent, Intel, CISCO, Amazon, Nike, CH2M HILL, Intuit and Google.


text:
Read the full story here Web Link posted Friday, September 13, 2013, 4:16 PM
Town Square
National Merit Corp. names semifinalists
Original post made on Sep 13, 2013
Read the full story here Web Link posted Friday, September 13, 2013, 4:16 PM
Comments (68)
a resident of Barron Park
on Sep 13, 2013 at 5:34 pm
Fantastic. Congrats to all!
a resident of Green Acres
on Sep 14, 2013 at 4:31 pm
Last year, 426 graduated from Gunn and 465 from Paly.
Assuming this year's graduates are roughly the same, that means 49/426 or 11.5% at Gunn and 31/465 or 6.67% at Paly qualified for the academic honor.
a resident of Charleston Meadows
on Sep 14, 2013 at 6:17 pm
The number of Gunn students qualifying for national merit semi-finalist status based on their PSAT scores is remarkable. While the district will will to celebrate this as a feather in its cap, it is bad news for many parents -- and here's why:
This is a very crowded pond. The group of students who will be competing for the small number of elite school slots from Gunn is large and it will be hard for any student to sufficiently distinguish him or herself from the large group of high-scorers.
People aren't stupid. They're smart and they can do the math. If over 10% of the class qualify for national merit semifinalists they are all competing against each other for the same 1% of the college admissions.
This competition among Gunn students for slots will lead to an increasing arms race among ambitious and talented students for the small number of prized fat envelopes. This arms race manifests as each family and student trying to create whatever opportunities they can to differentiate themselves from the pack -- this means more tutoring, more APs, more extracurriculars, more "volunteer" and "service" hours, more, more, more.
That "more" raises the temperature at Gunn for every student, not just those top 10% fighting in the Ivy League Death Match. As the top rises due to tutoring, teachers look for ways to raise the bar for those students, and it ends up putting pressure on those in the next 2-3 quintiles as well. Many of those students can't handle that pressure and sense of competition and don't learn effectively.
Students at the top who are competing with each other for slots turn to cheating.
Students in the next quintile feel like failures even though they are very successful by any objective measure.
Students in the middle quintile and below turn to drugs, alcohol, self-harm, eating disorders, depression, and anxiety.
Students in special ed and minority students are cast off into dumping grounds and might be better off there where no one expects much from them. They will be among the 30% of PAUSD students who go to community colleges -- from which many of them will never complete a 4 year degree within 5 years.
What is the correct institutional response to this situation? The spread between the top and the middle is very large. It is very hard for teachers to teach to such a broad range of ability and preparation. Right now the answer is that students outside the top have to lump it and bear the consequences of the fact that their parents mistakenly "moved here for the schools" and then realized that every other smart person with smart children -- including many absolute geniuses -- did the same thing.
This is our particular challenge. We don't have the challenges of other districts, where they have gangs, drugs, violence, and poverty. But we are not challenge-free. Our challenge is to see this highly competitive pool as not a sign of glory but as a challenging situation in which the district must decide how best to ensure a positive learning environment in which every child can feel and be successful.
Unlike districts dealing with gang violence or teenage pregnancy we have a tendency to see our situation as a wonderful gift rather than as a challenge. In the high-stakes testing world in which PAUSD's leaders feel that they are being judged for results, they have somehow landed at the top of the world without expending much or any effort and receive praise and applause. We are rich in the currency of the times. But these tests scores tell a different story than the one the district wants to tell with them and it is high time that parents woke up to that reality -- the reality of tutoring, depression, and excessive pressure and competition.
a resident of Barron Park
on Sep 14, 2013 at 7:38 pm
Wow, talk about seeing the glass half-empty! I think it is great news for the kids who were recognized and the school overall. You are quite wrong in your assumption that these kids "compete against each other" - the number of kids from Gunn and Paly getting into highly selective schools is large overall and small compared to all the grads out there. Individual school admissions swing wildly from year to year (e.g., five or six from Gunn got into Harvard in 2012, two last year). There's room for everyone and for the most part, they all do fine. They do have to compete against the tens of thousands of other striving kids out there, and this certainly helps.
I hope you take a chill pill, and since you are a parent, that you don't pass this negative view of the situation on to your kids. If your kid was honored, good for him/her! If not, no big, they'll shine in other areas. All will be fine.
BTW - there are no more "prized fat envelopes" - the admissions decisions come via email or web site these days.
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Sep 14, 2013 at 9:31 pm
My child was selected as a National Merit Semifinalist and didn't even bother to fill out the paperwork until the counselor called us and asked where our child's paperwork was. I questioned him and he said, "Mom, that's just a "racket" and I don't need that on my resume". We told him that it represented money that we wouldn't have to expend on his education and he agreed to complete the paperwork and send it in.
I am now wondering if the counseling office was so keen on having him return the paperwork was so that the school could have bragging rights. My kids were very humble about all of their achievements and I am beginning to appreciate that even more when I see all the bragging that goes on in this district.
Congrats to all of the students that were nominated!!!
a resident of Charleston Meadows
on Sep 14, 2013 at 11:16 pm
Yeah. I guess you should hurry over and tell all those students and admins at Paly to "take a chill pill" based on this story from the Weekly about the intense competition and feelings of failure by students when they don't get into their first choice colleges. Perhaps the students also need one of your "chill pills" because according to the Campanile seniors feel "alienated and rejected," and according to the class vice president they feel like failures who "weren't good enough" when they don't get in.
Regardless of your assertion that "it will all be fine" the perception among students is to the contrary. They see that their fellow students are all ambitious and many are brilliant and feel that they have to work harder, do more, and be more to have a chance at a competitive admission. You say it's all fine. But of course you have no idea since you have no crystal ball. And so the race is on.
"The term "rejection wall" had some "negative connotations that weren't really appropriate," Senior Class Vice-President John Brunett said.
"This year it's not called a 'rejection wall' but a 'colleges-missing-out wall,'" Brunett said.
"We want to focus on the positive aspects -- that people in a very stressful environment in a very stressful school can see that it's OK to fail and sort of take some pride in that, have a community-life feeling."
Rather than taping up their own rejections, as in the past, Paly students are asked to drop off their rejections, with names blacked out, at the Student Activities Office, and others will handle the posting.
Brunett said the new plan -- as well as the absence of a rejection wall last spring -- represents a "group decision" on the part of student leaders and administrators.
"A common description by students for colleges rejecting them is because they're not good enough, and that's not the case. It's because it didn't work out; they don't have room for that many qualified people."
Web Link
a resident of South of Midtown
on Sep 14, 2013 at 11:34 pm
@Gunn Parent -
You are so right. Palo Alto needs to ban extra work, tutors, any sort of extracurriculars, and especially all hard classes and APs.
All our kids should be equal in their classes, no one is better or gets more. Remember, it takes a village collective to equalize all our kids. We will then have a truly pure egalitarian and stress-free society.
a resident of Barron Park
on Sep 15, 2013 at 1:44 am
@Gunn Parent - having put a couple through Gunn to college, my experience is virtually all the kids seem pretty happy with the outcome, and wonder in retrospect what all the stress was about.
As for the rejection wall - my oldest was more excited about printing out her rejection emails to post than talking about her acceptances; she thought it was a hoot. The whole point is to show that rejection happens to everyone and in volume, and you shouldn't take it personally or be ashamed. We did it for job offers in my college and business school for the same reason, and got a hoot out of it. Anyone who doesn't want to do it can just skip it.
And yes, I am confident "it is all fine." Like you, I've lived a while, and looking around me, I see happy and successful people who had all kinds of college experiences (and sometimes none at all), as well as less happy and successful folks with top schools on their resumes. As I tell my kids (and anyone else who asks), it's not about where you go, it's what you do when you get there.
In the meanwhile, I am very happy for the kids who were honored, and applaud their efforts so far.
a resident of Terman Middle School
on Sep 15, 2013 at 8:31 am
Great news that Gunn has so many students who can ace a paper test and bad news that a Gunn student reported that another Gunn student (just graduated if that helps you sticklers) attempted another in a long string of suicides. The glass is really full and it would be great if Kevin Skelly and his publicity assistant principal could inform us of a complete picture of our school district.
a resident of College Terrace
on Sep 15, 2013 at 9:00 am
" attempted another in a long string of suicides"
And tragically you will find the same in many communities.
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Sep 15, 2013 at 10:02 am
@Gunn parent,
I think it's very impressive what these kids have accomplished.
You make a valid point. Another possible route would be reopening our third high school so that all 3 schools were more optimally sized (the only way to do that is make it a choice school). Your point is one reason I feel bad that those of us who wanted to see Cubberly reopened rather than expanding Gunn (that new building is at least new, but feels very dark and institutional and would have been nicer as a smaller building.) That many more of our high achieving kids could be at the top of the class, be class officers, yearbook, sports, etc (All these things flow together as the city struggles with car and bike traffic on that corridor to Gunn and still gives no thought to having no input on reducing the demand there through decisions made a few years ago that they did not want to influence.)
It's one of the challenges of very large schools. But the decision to take this route was a conscious one - if you want to see different, you have to speak up, early enough.
a resident of Charleston Meadows
on Sep 15, 2013 at 11:10 am
@another parent. You are right that we need a third high school, for many reasons not least the ones you mention. But the reason we don't have one isn't that people didn't try its that in his first act as superintendent Kevin Skelly hijacked the high school task force that was considering a third school and told them that the could not consider a third school and could only make gunn and Paly larger. The committee had no idea what it was then supposed to do and floundered, producing a list of random ideas that were ignored. It was a foreshadowing of Skelly's unilateral leadership and his tone deafness to community needs.
We need smaller high schools and we need to serve all students not just the top 10%. Gunn students deserve equal counseling services and this superintendent and board have refused to provide them.
We need to do more about these issues than post here. Unless gunn parents take action to receive better counseling they will continue to receive far worse counseling than Paly. We need a new direction -- every student having appropriate challenges, good counseling, support, chances to shine, good college prospects. [Portion removed.] We need real reform.
If we have this many kids who are this capable we can reasonably ask whether those at the top are going far enough and those in the middle are getting the attention they need.
a resident of Palo Alto High School
on Sep 15, 2013 at 11:46 am
Gunn Parent/Charleston Meadows tells it like it is, including for PALY.
OF COURSE, "My kid," (some say) did it with his/her hands tied behind his/her back...
The REALITY is uber-powerful parenting/management of youth for competitive purposes.
NOT all these kids are "geniuses." I have witnessed kids forced to do BC Calc AP by junior year and so on, do that with year-round systematic prepping and very careful parental management, and use it only for top college application purposes (such accelerated accomplishments not continuing in university level education, in other words).
Ethical, very high achieving students who do their own work and who have not had the luxury-level outside prepping/handholding are at a disadvantage here. FACT.
New/naïve parents and students, just be aware of the doctoring that goes on and do prepare your paper record although I still entreat people to be honest and do their own work and let their own personalities shine through in the college apps and hopefully some honest students will be rewarded.
a resident of Charleston Gardens
on Sep 15, 2013 at 11:55 am
@Sam: Just wanted to say thank you for making our day with that comment! My friends and I were just scrolling through the comments and holy cow that is possibly the most ridiculously socialist idea that has ever popped up on these Palo Alto threads. We literally LOL'd.
a resident of Downtown North
on Sep 15, 2013 at 1:13 pm
Gunn Parent is so right.
The answer is clear: let's eliminate testing. Grades too, while we're at it, along with any other subversive yardstick to tell whether kids have learned anything, or not.
Very truly yours,
The California Teachers' Association
a resident of Palo Alto High School
on Sep 15, 2013 at 1:36 pm
The 3rd high school option should definitely be addressed again, and again and never dropped.
Before Skelly there was talk but it was dropped by parents saying that they had bought to go to Gunn (or Paly) and they did not want to go to an untried new school which was not known by colleges, etc.
The fact is that many people do think there should be a 3rd high school, but for everyone else's kids rather than their own.
Therefore the possibility of calling a 3rd high school a daughter school of Gunn (or Paly), a Gunn/Paly hybrid, a magnet liberal arts school, or something else rather than a fully functioning, stand alone high school, has been mentioned.
When the high school task force was being invoked, these were the things I understood they would talk about. At the first meeting Skelly told them not to consider any type of 3rd high school, so these things were never discussed. Shame.
a resident of Adobe-Meadow
on Sep 15, 2013 at 2:54 pm
[Post removed.]
a resident of Green Acres
on Sep 15, 2013 at 3:34 pm
Skelly made a decision about expanding Gunn and Paly before he had any understanding of the district and how we use choice schools here. Any decent choice program would be oversubscribed and pretty soon seen as an exclusive option. Under such a scenario, it would be possible to optimize the size of all 3 schools.
Unfortunately, Mr. Skelly's strength is not creative thinking, and as above people point out, he tends to discount parental input.
Well, the die is cast. I hope we will remember to vote for stronger leaders in the next school board elections, not just those who are nice.
Although these numbers are astonishing, didnt we have a much larger percentage a few years ago? Maybe I'm remembering something else.
a resident of Gunn High School
on Sep 15, 2013 at 4:40 pm
[Post removed.]
a resident of Adobe-Meadow
on Sep 15, 2013 at 8:28 pm
[Portion removed.]
Well done HS students, these are awesome results!
a resident of South of Midtown
on Sep 15, 2013 at 10:51 pm
[Portion removed.]
a resident of Downtown North
on Sep 16, 2013 at 1:22 pm
Glad I received my California public education BITD, before the state became test-centric. Saddened by the 75% nonfiction push of the Common Core, that our children are reading less and doing far fewer creative things. But that's what it takes to keep up with Korea and China. And my son sure needs high scores to enter a formerly Humanities-driven, now career-driven university.
a resident of Downtown North
on Sep 16, 2013 at 1:27 pm
You all need to look into how often a sophomore in CA is tested. You would be shocked. Why so many yardsticks? Fewer assessments please. And stop changing up the assessments.
a resident of Old Palo Alto
on Sep 16, 2013 at 5:35 pm
[Post removed.]
a resident of Charleston Meadows
on Sep 17, 2013 at 10:18 am
How many of the kids who did this had private tutoring? I am only pointing out that while this is a great accomplishment and they should be very proud of themselves, the achievement in this area is often not just intelligence but a lot of expensive preparation. I say this as a former Merit semifinalist who prepared only by learning the vocabulary lists we were given as part of English class,studying hard in school, and taking the test without realizing the consequences. The good old days.
a resident of Leland Manor/Garland Drive
on Sep 17, 2013 at 10:32 am
^^ Brag much? Talk about not having enough going on in your life.
a resident of Crescent Park
on Sep 17, 2013 at 10:39 am
@ former Paly parent: your FACT is not a fact without relevant data. I can refute your claim just on the basis of how our own children fared at Paly and beyond. No tutors, no expensive prep classes. They worked hard and they also teamed up with their friends for study sessions. No hand holding either as their course work was beyond what either one of us remembers.
So tired of people blaming others for high performance issues.
a resident of Barron Park
on Sep 17, 2013 at 1:48 pm
It is ridiculous to imply that tutoring is unethical or cheating.
If you hire a baseball/soccer/basketball coach for your kid to help him/her compete better, is that cheating? Of course not.
But when it comes to education, somehow the rules change?
I think some parents just don't like to see competition in education (but are ok with it in every other domain), esp. when their kid is not getting awards.
The implied belief is "Oh, well, my kid could have been a National Merit Semi-Finalist, too, if he/she had prepared more...." Maybe. Maybe not.
Just keep it simple and congratulate kids for their accomplishments.
a resident of Evergreen Park
on Sep 17, 2013 at 3:47 pm
baseball/soccer/basketball isn't the key to social mobility. Education is. Providing private coaching for your kid so that they can excel at a sport is not shifting the odds at a successful life against those who can't afford private coaching. They won't be as good at the sport perhaps but they won't lose out in the ability to be productive citizens.
Education is different. If the system is slanted toward those (and only those) who can afford private tutoring, then the entire purpose of public education is defeated.
Protecting the democratic purpose of public education means questioning the extent to which private tutoring has introduced systematic bias into the PAUSD system. Compassion and decency also require a thoughtful look at the impact of this arms race on our children.
a resident of Barron Park
on Sep 17, 2013 at 4:11 pm
@Mom - you are correct that the purpose of public education is to produce educated citizens. But I can't understand how one kid getting tutoring impacts another kid's ability to be a productive citizen. It just doesn't. There are lots of colleges in the land and one will take your child, regardless of class rank or GPA (the only things that I can think might be effected by others). Once there, your child can put her/his skills to work and achieve his/her full potential.
If the primary purpose of public education were to support social mobility, then I submit that local educational funding, in particular the basic aid model like Palo Alto, would not exist; nor would local educational foundations, or even funding through PTAs. Education is a great leveler, I agree, but some folks have access to better (or at least richer) school than others - that's just the way it is.
Luckily, hard work is far more important in determining life outcome than just dollars, especially since just about all in PAUSD have access to a good set of educational resources. Overlooked in tutoring discussions, I think, is that getting tutored is work - sure there is someone there explaining things to you, but you have to apply your mind to it and actually learn it. If we were talking about hiring someone to do the work, that would be cheating. This is hiring someone (or utilizing a parent, sibling, cousin, Khan Academy, whatever) to help you do the work more effectively - there just cannot be anything wrong with that, and the society that tries to prevent it is on the road to ruin.
In terms of the effect of this on our children - I agree, that is an issue that parents should attend to. My message to my kids is work hard, do as well as you can, and if you did your best, you did well - as my dad always told me, angels can do no more. There's always going to be someone who does better than you, but who cares? The issue is focusing on the things that matter to you and developing yourself as a person and member of society. That approach has worked well for us so far.
a resident of Palo Alto High School
on Sep 17, 2013 at 4:32 pm
This discussion is going round in circles, like many of discussions on education do.
If the purpose is to educate every child to enable them to go to college or to be successful in life at whatever they do, then it really does not matter if one child is achieving more than another.
Education is and should not be a race, however there is the problem that only the best get into the best schools and therefore only the best get the better deal.
We have problems in California in that although the population is growing, and in particular for this discussion, the high school population is growing, we are not getting an increase in the number of places at our UCs to educate those who reach the required level to receive a place.
The UCs started out as a system whereby the reasonably bright California high school graduates had an affordable college for their third level education. This has since become a race for the brightest. Likewise, Stanford started out as an affordable college for California students, and we know where that has gone. But the big difference is that one is public and the other is private, but the UCs are acting pretty much like Stanford and the other privates, taking only the very best. The fact is that so many California high school graduates are reasonably bright and there are not enough places at the UCs. This means that other factors come into play and things like affirmative action, quotas, diversity, and geographic demographics come into play. I don't mean that this shouldn't happen, but it does mean that in a forever dwindling number of UC places, they have to continually find ways of layering down the applicants to make it follow through as a race to get into a UC.
Going back to what I said at the start of my post. Education is not and should not be a race. Unfortunately, the rules have changed and now it is more and more a race and no longer about all students having an equal chance to get to the top.
Of course not every 7 year old starting out in Little League will make the pros, and not every 7 year old will be able to become President of the United States, no matter how hard they try and how much help their parents give them. But, each child should have a fair shot at an education within their own state if they reach the required requirements. Trying to figure out what makes a fair shot is different for each family. To some, paying for extra tutors to gain an edge is part of that fair shot. To others, letting a child do their best with perhaps a poor teacher or other disadvantage, is the fair way to go. Unfortunately, what is fair for one is not necessarily fair for another, and really what is fair anyway?
There is no such thing as a level playing field when it comes to education, no matter how much we would like it to be.
a resident of Adobe-Meadow
on Sep 17, 2013 at 5:03 pm
[Post removed.]
a resident of Embarcadero Oaks/Leland
on Sep 17, 2013 at 5:17 pm
Not sure how a thread about National Merit Scholars disintegrated into comments about tutoring - but congrats to all of you and to all the students who are simply trying their best!
a resident of Barron Park
on Sep 18, 2013 at 8:03 am
@Mom -
Free education is available everywhere on the Internet (CK12.org, Khan Academy, SAT prep apps etc...). So, every kid in every socio-economic class in Palo Alto has the option of learning more and preparing well for standardized tests. The new public education (local school + Internet learning) is 10x better than what we had growing up.
Doing well in school now is a matter of will and desire, not access to expensive resources.
a resident of Evergreen Park
on Sep 18, 2013 at 8:57 am
Yes why aren't those poor kids using the high speed broadband access that Dad casually assumes that they all have? What's wrong with them that they don't go into the family's multimedia room and fire up that iPad. Must just not want to succeed.
a resident of Palo Verde
on Sep 18, 2013 at 9:24 am
All libraries have free internet access. The Paly library (with computers and internet access) is open until 5 each day. Yes, it might be less convenient for some but preparation is available to all.
a resident of Evergreen Park
on Sep 18, 2013 at 8:03 pm
It's not that it's less convenient. it's not equal to equate being able to go to the library from 3-5 and having a private tutor and test prep course. This is not even a point worth making it's so obvious. When teachers rely on the idea that eveyone has access to tutors and teach differently it disadvantages the students who don't have access. In PA that has worked because there are so few poor kids without that access.The fact that they have no power in this city doesn't make it right that we have schools geared to high achievers with access to resources. And it doesn't make it healthy for anyone.
a resident of Adobe-Meadow
on Sep 18, 2013 at 8:53 pm
Mom's solution to inequality is to dumb down the district to the lowest achiever!
a resident of Evergreen Park
on Sep 18, 2013 at 9:02 pm
Here's an idea. You're all about competition, right? Ranking, differences, etc. You like that. Why promote an unfair race? Why allow some of the kids to take performance enhancers in the form of extra help? A fair fight, a fair contest, would be one in which every kid has the same amount of resources and instruction. Otherwise, you're not measuring ability, native intelligence, or potential. You're not measuring hard work. You're not even measuring teacher quality. You're measuring money.
if you are so into "achievement" why wouldn't you want a fair contest to measure achievement? Everyone at the same starting line. Maybe you are afraid of how a fair fight would come out. Take your thumb off the scale.
a resident of Barron Park
on Sep 18, 2013 at 9:21 pm
I thought the point of school tests was to measure how much kids learned - period. Some will learn by hard work, some by effortless ability; some will study alone, some with groups; some will have helpful parents, some will not; some will have jobs, sports, and drama, others will just hit the books; and some will have tutors. But regardless of how they get there, if they learn the material, they earn the grade.
Rather than tear down those with tutors, a better point is that grades aren't the whole story about 17 year old's academic ability or potential (not to mention overall ability or potential). The top schools all say that they fill their classes with valedictorians, but they don't. To the extent that UC's use GPA as a large factor in their decision (do they?), that's a shame - there should be more to it.
a resident of Adobe-Meadow
on Sep 18, 2013 at 9:35 pm
Yeah, makes sense. Let's teach the kids the minimum and let only those with money teach their own kids! That's as dumb as the new approach to summer school: "Let's not teach anyone unless we can teach everyone for free!". You're in great company,
Unfortunately the rest of the world is passing you by.
a resident of Palo Verde
on Sep 18, 2013 at 10:01 pm
This discussion was about standardized testing PSAT and national merit designation. There is help and prep available (on line) for anyone who puts the effort in to prepare for these tests. Yes it might be easier for others but that is life. You change gears and talk about tutors and teachers.
a resident of Duveneck/St. Francis
on Sep 19, 2013 at 12:18 am
I think it's fine for some kids to use tutors, take test prep courses, etc. *IF* they aknowledge doing so. What I don't like is any kind of deception. If kids, as has been alleged, are taking summer-school classes at the JC that cover the same curriculum as a regular school-year class and then repeating the course for an easy A in high school then that should be part of their transcript.
The huge irony of all the test prep and SAT test gaming is that originally the SATs were intended to reveal aptitude. You weren't supposed to even be able to study for them. At this point, they're kind of useless (I'm speaking of the SAT Is not the IIs which used to be achievement tests.)
Recently, I got a flyer from a local tutoring service that featured 70 hours of tutoring over a couple of months for Calculus BC. My feeling is that if your kid needs that much tutoring, he or she has no business being in that class. And if I were a college admissions officer, I'd rather have the kid who gets the B+ in that class on his or her own steam than the kid who's massively tutored into an A-.
And, no, by the way, watching some Youtube videos on a subject is really not the same as having one-on-one tutoring. It's also disingenuous to pretend some kid whose parents are working 14 hour days and don't, themselves, have college educations (or fluency in English) is going to know the college-prep game the way the sophisticated ambitious parents of Palo Alto do.
a resident of Evergreen Park
on Sep 19, 2013 at 1:58 pm
PVP, OE etc: Boo hoo, someone doesn't like the idea of a fair fight. Let's take your overprepped, over scheduled little precious sweetheart who think that the world is full of unicorns pooping rainbows just for her and match her against a poor black kid with a single mom with all the odds in the world against him being raised by his grandparents -- teach them both equally, same teachers, same quality of education, no unfair advantages and tutoring for either -- who will be President?. Maybe Barack Obama got to be President in a fair fight and maybe that's what is so scary.
a resident of Duveneck/St. Francis
on Sep 19, 2013 at 2:14 pm
While I agree with the gist of what you're saying, I don't agree with your characterization of the kids here. I don't think the kids here have a particularly idealized view of the world with an endless sense of entitlement. I think most of them feel highly pressured and have a good dose of self-doubt as well. When you put kids in tons of tutoring and test-prep courses you're sending the message that you don't think their own independent efforts are good enough.
It's funny, we all have so much compared to most people on the planet, but this thread is filled with people who feel somehow inadequate--a bunch of kids doing well on the PSAT translates into a zero-sum game that somehow penalizes *other* kids. Nothing's ever good enough.
You know, life doesn't end when you're not a star. Most of us aren't stars and we're really okay. It's really less important for your kid to get into Harvard than it is for he or she to be capable of being happy and resilient enough to deal with life's ups and downs.
a resident of Duveneck/St. Francis
on Sep 19, 2013 at 2:14 pm
While I agree with the gist of what you're saying, I don't agree with your characterization of the kids here. I don't think the kids here have a particularly idealized view of the world with an endless sense of entitlement. I think most of them feel highly pressured and have a good dose of self-doubt as well. When you put kids in tons of tutoring and test-prep courses you're sending the message that you don't think their own independent efforts are good enough.
It's funny, we all have so much compared to most people on the planet, but this thread is filled with people who feel somehow inadequate--a bunch of kids doing well on the PSAT translates into a zero-sum game that somehow penalizes *other* kids. Nothing's ever good enough.
You know, life doesn't end when you're not a star. Most of us aren't stars and we're really okay. It's really less important for your kid to get into Harvard than it is for he or she to be capable of being happy and resilient enough to deal with life's ups and downs.
a resident of Evergreen Park
on Sep 19, 2013 at 2:26 pm
Your kids must have had different friends than mine -- good for them!
a resident of Duveneck/St. Francis
on Sep 19, 2013 at 2:41 pm
Well, there are thousands of kids, so neither of us is probably getting a statisticallly valid sample . . . I've liked most of the PA teens I've known, but that doesn't mean there aren't obnoxiously entitled ones.
But then, my working theory of PA parents is that 80 percent are fine or great, but the remaining 20 percent can drive you nuts.
a resident of Crescent Park
on Sep 19, 2013 at 4:49 pm
Um, President Obama attended Punahou HS in Honolulu --- a very elite and expensive (private) college prep school. Hardly the life of an underprivileged child.
a resident of Evergreen Park
on Sep 19, 2013 at 7:41 pm
Obama was a scholarship student at Punahou. It's in his memoir. It gave him a chance in life that he otherwise would not have had. He got the same access to excellent teachers that the other students had in a private prep school. In a fair fight in which all students have access to excellent resources, the truly able can rise to the top. In an unfair system in which the rich buy better education for their children, their children do rise to the top but only because of the impact of money.
The same results are being had in many charter schools and academies in which minority achievement results are outstanding. If you give all children access to the same excellent support, then your "merit" test is of "merit." Otherwise the SAT is just a wallet check and nothing else.
I don't think that private school students use tutoring at the same rate than PAUSD students do, and the reason is obvious, which is the subject of my original post -- the number of very bright students at Gunn is so large and the competition among them so intense that they are being pushed through an arms race against one another. The true losers in this race is absolutely everyone. Even those who "win" lost their childhoods doing meaningless homework until 1:00am and attending every manner of tutoring and prep.
a resident of Evergreen Park
on Sep 19, 2013 at 7:42 pm
On Obama's impoverished childhood and being a scholarship student in the white school:
Web Link
a resident of Duveneck/St. Francis
on Sep 19, 2013 at 9:01 pm
I personally know of several kids at private schools who use tutors. The pressure's less to the extent that the schools tend to be smaller and there can be more individualized support, but the demands and expectations at the competitive private schools can be brutal--and, yes, tutors are used. Even at some of the supposedly mellower schools you see plenty of tutoring.
I think the pushing down of the math curriculum is the most idiotic. Two years of calculus in high school seems to have become the "norm" for high achievers, but plenty of otherwise bright kids need tutoring to get through it. The irony is that many STEM fields only require the first year of calculus. We've created a situation where kids are sweating over math they don't even need. I know of one kid who did her two years of calculus in high school with a tutor and now, in college, can no longer do it. And, no, not a PA kid, but a kid who went to a private school.
From what I can see, the huge beneficiaries of this mess aren't the kids or the colleges, but the testing organizations.
a resident of Evergreen Park
on Sep 19, 2013 at 9:10 pm
I agree -- College Board is laughing all the way to the bank.
a resident of Barron Park
on Sep 20, 2013 at 8:22 am
@Mom - the idea that the goal of schools is to provide a level playing field and a "fair race" in life; I'm not sure where that comes from. They provide a basic level of education to all comers - a "floor." Folks are always able to buy more - by going to private schools, tutors, home schooling, charters, or choosing what school district to live in (like many of us did). Which seems fine - some people value education more than others, and some people have greater means than other.
We can talk about how high the "floor" should be, but it is a floor, nothing more. Anyone who wants to do more is welcome to - even encouraged, since education is a semi-public good. I just don't get the idea that public school families who want to do more are viewed to be doing something wrong or unfair. I'm not aware of any public policy doctrine that supports that view. So long as they aren't cheating, those kids/families are just investing in their own education.
a resident of Evergreen Park
on Sep 20, 2013 at 3:40 pm
When teachers and schools adjust curriculum and practice due to the prevalence of tutoring that is a community problem. It's not that any one family is per se doing anything wrong it is that the system itself is misaligned to the needs and abilities of kids who lack resources. In your terms the "floor" is set too high and those without tutors cannot attain it. For example at Paly algebra 1A was a prerequisite to take bio 1. It probably still is though there were parent request to change that. Therefore only advanced Alg students could even take bio 1 as freshmen. That is about unequal resources. It is just one example among many.
a resident of Evergreen Park
on Sep 20, 2013 at 8:21 pm
Here's the Paly course catalog for 2013-14 showing that Algebra 1A is still a prerequisite for Biology 1. That means -- just so that everyone is clear about this -- that you cannot even take the introductory, lowest level of the lowest lane of intro Bio 1 unless you are in advanced math (and you cannot even get into Alg 1A in 9th grade unless you had "superior achievement" (i.e., an A) in 8th grade pre-algebra.
How did we get here and what, if any, is the relationship of tutoring this this problem?
There is an intense competition in elite high schools nationally due to perceived reduced probability of obtaining an elite college admission. This fear, which is based in part on the zeitgeist fear of Asian, particularly Chinese competition, is particularly salient in Silicon Valley due to the high numbers of Chinese immigrants, which make what is currently a national anxiety into a highly visible local paranoia. This leads many parents to participate in an arms race for achievement, which includes tutoring, prepping, parental help, and enrichment -- starting with Baby Einstein and building to a crescendo in high schools with full-monte resume building that includes founding nonprofits, expensive overseas "service" projects, multiple club sports, and other activities in addition to excessive homework and AP coursework.
As parents and students look around and see other parents and students engaged in these activities they feel that their student is at a disadvantage if they do not do it as well. Unwilling to do or not do anything that might harm their child, they are pulled along reluctantly by the tide of prepping.
Teachers feel pressure to differentiate among students. This pressure comes from multiple directions, including from some teachers' own sense that their classes are more "elite" and they are more like "college teachers" if they teach harder and more "rigorous" classes. They notice that many students seem to pass their classes, even advanced and AP classes, very easily, and feel that they cannot give all these students an A. The want to grade on a normal distribution, and so even though many students are meeting the state-mandated course objectives for that level class, the teacher forces the right hand tail into a normal curve, and gives out very few As (this is how we get students who receive 5s on the AP test getting a C in AP classes in PAUSD.
Students who should receive an A because they have met or exceeded the course objectives are receiving Bs or even Cs. They panic because they want to get As. They ask for a tutor. The parent agrees, and is happy the child wants to improve. But everyone else did the same thing. So now the teacher moves the goalpost again in an effort to "up the ante" and make the class even harder in order to preserve the low number of As.
Students run harder and harder toward an ever-receding goal. Parents pay more and more money but students' grades are very hard to improve. Students become demoralized when the returns to effort do not materialize. Teachers begin to fetishize and take pride in having a class so hard no one can get an A except a few brilliant geniuses. They are now almost college teachers in their minds. The district gets to brag about its off the charts test scores.
But. Do those grades, that are lower than predicted by test scores hurt our students? Are our students going less far than they would if they were in a less competitive pool or with teachers who did not constantly raise the bar on them? Most likely.
And, what of students who can't even get in the race? What about the 10-15% of PAUSD students whose parents can't tutor them and can't pay for the private tutoring just to enable them to tread water or to pre-take classes to get ahead? They aren't even in the game. They can "go to jobs or community college."
Tutoring by itself is not a problem. Tutoring, Palo Alto style is destructive.
Palo Alto Weekly should do a cover package on tutoring. The strategic plan survey says that 50% of our students are tutored, some very extensively. Families are paying several hundred dollars a month for tutoring according to the most recent Strategic Plan survey. We need a good journalistic examination of the explosive growth of the tutoring industry in PA, what the effects are on students postive and negative, how test prepping invalidates the results of tests (for example, NY City privates abandon the ERB due to prepping invalidating results) and more. This is a topic that cries out for a full treatment perhaps by Terri Lobdell similar to her excellent reportage on coaching, bullying, homework, and bullying. Hope to see it soon.
begin to increase the difficulty of the coursework.
a resident of Evergreen Park
on Sep 20, 2013 at 8:21 pm
Link to Paly catalog: Web Link
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Sep 21, 2013 at 7:52 am
1. Biology 1.
You say " Algebra 1A is still a prerequisite for Biology 1." Not true. Freshmen in Algebra 1 are "recommended to take ...Biology as sophomores." (Paly Course Catalog)
2. "NY City privates abandon the ERB due to prepping invalidating results" as reason to get rid of SAT tutoring too.
The ERB at issue here is for kindergarteners and measures, among other things, vocabulary and the ability to identify geometric shapes, two things that are easily prep-able.
Studies show that prepping for the SAT – a reasoning test - does NOT move test scores. According to the National Association for College Admission Counseling, "test prep courses have minimal impact in improving SAT scores — about 10-20 points on average in mathematics and 5-10 points in critical reading." Web Link
1. Arms Race.
You say "This leads MANY parents to participate in an arms race for achievement." If I remember correctly, the number of admits to the elite colleges around here holds at a pretty steady 10%. So maybe 20% think that they have a chance at being one of the 10%, but that leaves "many"-to-most - at least 80% - who are not.
2. APs.
"excessive homework and AP coursework."
The number of APs our students take is not off the charts. PAUSD doesn't even let students take APs until their junior year and the average number of APs Paly and Gunn students take is just 2.
3. "Students who should receive an A because they have met or exceeded the course objectives are receiving Bs or even Cs"
This, I agree, is irksome, but from my observations appears to describe, at most, one or two AP classes out of 20 available.
4. "What about the 10-15% of PAUSD students whose parents can't tutor them".
As others have pointed out, there are ample FREE resources available from tutors at school to tutorials with teachers to online lectures to local nonprofit academic support programs .
Intolerance for differences
1. "highly visible local paranoia"
"Paranoia" in your view perhaps, but for many immigrants the path to college scholarships and success in America - and life - is a great education gained by working very hard at school.
Given that the race-blind UCs are now enrolling many immigrants/first generation children, I would say that these students got it right and that others who want the same for their children should emulate them or, at the very least, refrain from disparaging their work ethic, aspirations, and determination.
2. Tutors.
Ever consider that some use tutors because, with 35 in a class, PAUSD classes are more lecture than seminar and students feel that they will understand the material better if, like in college, they have a TA to go to? That is not an arms race. That is turning underfunded public schools into a teaching environment that works for the student.
Unfounded Assumptions
1. "no one can get an A except a few brilliant geniuses".
Unless you have access to every teacher's grade book, there is no way that you can know this.
2. "Are our students going less far than they would if they were in a less competitive pool or with teachers who did not constantly raise the bar on them? Most likely."
Your conclusion is conjecture and speculation.
a resident of Evergreen Park
on Sep 21, 2013 at 9:12 am
Here is the actual language from the Paly course catalog about Bio 1 stating flatly that Alg 1A is a "prerequisite":
Prerequisite: Freshmen in Biology should be enrolled in Algebra 1A or higher math. Freshmen in Algebra 1 are recommended to take Conceptual Physics as freshmen, Biology as sophomores, Chemistry as juniors and an elective science as seniors.
I have no idea why there is a set of people who are determined to defend the district's practices no matter what. Assuming that these defenders are not employees of the district, it is shocking to me that there are parents who defend poor practices, and who will make things up (such as the above claim that Alg 1A is not a prerequisite when the word "PREREQUISITE" is right there in bold letters). Still, someone shot out of the woodwork to spew the whopper that it's "Not True." Any why not just lie about it? After all, this is anonymous, there's no fact checking, anyone can say anything so long as it's civil. One of the biggest problems with the anonymous forum in my mind is that you can lie your face off so long as you do it with civility.
a resident of Adobe-Meadow
on Sep 21, 2013 at 10:20 am
Web Link
"Prerequisite: Freshmen in Biology should be enrolled in Algebra 1A or higher math. Freshmen in Algebra 1 are recommended to take Conceptual Physics as freshmen, Biology as sophomores, Chemistry as juniors and an elective science as seniors."
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Sep 21, 2013 at 10:26 am
Your post shows TWO math paths to Bio at Paly:
- Alg 1A freshman year -> Bio freshman year: "Freshmen in Biology should be enrolled in Algebra 1A or higher math," or
- Alg 1 freshman year -> Bio sophomore year: "Freshmen in Algebra 1 are recommended to take ...Biology as sophomores."
Either Alg course is a prerequisite for Bio so there is no need to call me a liar, tag me as uncaring, or view me as an apologist.
Care to retract: "it is shocking to me that there are parents who defend poor practices, and who will make things up (such as the above claim that Alg 1A is not a prerequisite when the word "PREREQUISITE" is right there in bold letters)"?
Or this: "spew the whopper that it's "Not True." ...you can lie your face off"?
a resident of Evergreen Park
on Sep 21, 2013 at 10:49 am
Algebra 1A is a prerequisite for Bio 1. If you do not have the prerequisite to take the 9th grade science (Bio) you have to take "conceptual physics" instead and wait until you have completed Algebra 1 (with a C+ or better) and are in Geometry before you can take Biology 1, which is the lowest lane of Bio that is offered in PA.
The lowest lane Bio, which is typical 9th grade science in PA requires advanced math. Either you are concurrently enrolled in advanced Algebra or you have to complete lower lane Algebra before you can even take it. Even though Bio does not rely on math in any way.
Get it? The pre-req for Paly's lowest lane 9th grade bio class is advanced math.
I am sorry you do not seem to understand what a prereq is or how to read a course catalog. I take back the accusation that you are lying as it appears you are just not able to understand what a prereq is or how it works.
a resident of Palo Verde
on Sep 21, 2013 at 10:59 am
At many high schools Bio is a soph course. Not all students are ready to take Bio in 9th grade. Paly is not saying students can't take Bio just not recommending it as 9th graders. Conceptual Physics (the course that Alg 1 9th grade students take per the catalog) is a UC approved course. Not sure how this is "poor practice"? Putting students in a situation where they have a better chance of success and completing a UC approved course doesn't sound like poor practice to me! Why does a student have to take Bio in the 9th grade anyway? At Menlo School students take a physics class not bio in the 9th grade.
It seems to me that there is a group of PAUSD haters who are always going to have an issue with the district. This thread was about the achievement of a group of kids why turn it into something else?
a resident of Embarcadero Oaks/Leland
on Sep 21, 2013 at 12:14 pm
Gunn requires ALL freshman to take Bio - are their students just more competent than Paly's?
Web Link
a resident of Crescent Park
on Sep 21, 2013 at 2:59 pm
We have one squeaky wheel on all of this. I think that the greater (silent) majority is pretty happy with the education professionals who run Paly.
a resident of Palo Verde
on Sep 21, 2013 at 3:05 pm
@paly parent This looks like a new pathway for science. When my son was at Gunn there was an intro to science type course for students that were not ready for Bio. This course was not UC approved so I think the new situation is much better. It looks like they just swap the two courses (Conceptual Physics and Bio) at the two schools. One could just as easily ask since Paly students take a physics course as a freshman are they more capable? I think it really doesn't matter the order in which the courses are taken. At the end of Soph year both groups will have 2 years of UC science completed, which is fantastic.
a resident of Embarcadero Oaks/Leland
on Sep 21, 2013 at 3:16 pm
Until last year, Paly freshman that weren't "ready" for Biology, were required to take a Science class that didn't fill a UC requirement AND if sophomores were taking Chem, there wasn't a regular level of Chemistry.
For some reason, the Paly science department deems the Paly students smarter than Gunn?
a resident of Gunn High School
on Feb 9, 2014 at 6:58 pm
In the words of Ron Burgundy, "That escalated quickly".
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text: On Thu, 11 Apr 2002, Stepan Kruglikov wrote: > I solved this problem by increasing memory on each node to 64MB. You can > also get the node up and running with 64MB, setup node partitions, and then > delete ram drive and run with 32mB. Although it works, I recommend doing it > only in case if you are interested in proof of concept cluster. It's possible to trim the cached library list in /etc/beowulf/config and fit into 32MB. But only the most trivial application will run with 32MB and no local disk. -- Donald Becker becker at scyld.com Scyld Computing Corporation http://www.scyld.com 410 Severn Ave. Suite 210 Second Generation Beowulf Clusters Annapolis MD 21403 410-990-9993


text:
The pregnancy rate for women in their early 20s has fallen nearly 18% from 1990 to 2008. Additionally, the abortion rate over the same period of time has dropped by 32 percent, states the National Center for Health Statistics. The government report believes that women are deciding to delay having babies until later and using more effective birth control.
Another report released by the Guttmacher Institute stated that based up on the government statistics, teen abortion rate was down 59% in 2008 when compared to 1988. When compared to 1990 the tean pregnancy had dropped by 42%.
Stephanie Ventura who wrote the report, "Estimated Pregnancy Rates and Rates of Pregnancy Outcomes for the United States, 1990-2008.", for the National Center for Health Statistics stated that abortion rates have dropped across all age groups.
Women in their 20s are waiting to get pregnant. Also, there are better birth control methods and use of condoms. Other methods include contraceptive patches that release the hormones throughout the day.
The report stated that for all age groups in 2008, 65 out of 100 were live births, 18 abortions, and 17 were fetal loss (miscarraige). In comparison to 1990, 61 were live births, 24 abortions, and 15 ended in fetal loss.


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