text:
Preserve history, save water
Published 12:12 pm, Friday, April 19, 2013
A century ago, conserving water likely wasn't a priority for homeowners in the grand homes and cottages of Monte Vista, King William and other thriving neighborhoods in the city. Fast-forward to today's drought-plagued times, and homeowners often feel they must choose between dead lawns or exorbitant water bills.
With the right design and right plants they don't have to choose, but homeowners in the city's 27 historic districts have the added onus of maintaining the character of their surroundings. Rockscapes and artificial turf aren't the best fit. Neither are vast expanses of thirsty grass.
Landscape designer Charles Bartlett, owner of Green Haven Industries, will illustrate how homeowners can balance aesthetics and water use in a presentation at 10 a.m. Saturday at Landa Library. He will follow his talk, "Historic Landscapes Can Be Water Efficient," with a walking tour to point out landscaping features at homes in the blocks near the library.
"Originally, when these houses were built in the '20s and '30s, they did have lawn area. They didn't have a lot of plantings," Bartlett says.
Today, some of the facades are shrouded by an explosion of plants and others have concrete rather than lawns, as illustrated in the "do this, not this" portion of the City of San Antonio Historic Design Guidelines adopted by the City Council in November.
Lifestyle Channel
- Donald Trump Speaks at Anti-Abortion Event March for Life Time
- One year on: America under Trump Euronews
- Birth Control Pills May Help Prevent Some Cancers Time
- ModelFIT's Legs and Butt Workout Health
- What's The Big Deal About Chia? Health
- How to Make Mussels in Spicy Tomato Broth Health
- Couple wakes up to a new view every morning Travel & Leisure
- Dad Finds New Way of Recycling Nespresso Cartridges Storyful
- Trump Administration Protects Medical Offices Opposing Abortion Time
- How to Shop a Korean Supermarket Food & Wine
The guidelines are designed to create consistency in the design review process, not dictate specifics, such as what annuals homeowners can put in their flower beds, says Shanon Miller, director of the Office of Historic Preservation.
"What people do when they plant xeric, they remove the lawn and plant xeric plant material, but they forget about the mature size," Bartlett says. "You can barely see the house."
The guidelines stipulate that traditional lawn areas not be replaced entirely with impervious hardscapes, and they recommend native and drought-tolerant plantings. The document recommends that low-growing plantings be used in historic lawn areas.
"They're asking people to try to hark back to those earlier years and try to retain or continue the original look of the neighborhood rather than try to put modern design elements in," Bartlett says.
He cites as a good example the recent landscape on a vacant lot at West Summit and Belknap. Owners Ed and Priscilla Kohutek wanted to preserve the open space across from their house, so they had the lot converted to a private parklike space. Designer Randy Rogers of Thomas Bradley and Associates echoed Asian jasmine that tumbles down the slope of a neighboring yard and Italian cypresses that tower over the Kohuteks' backyard. He also focused on details, down to the rose-colored concrete on the sidewalks.
"It was very important to us to maintain respect for the history," says Priscilla Kohutek.
Bartlett wants others to do the same.
"My hope is that people will look at their hardscapes and fences and landscaping carefully and see if they can do something to preserve the look of their neighborhood," he says.


text:
I seem to be missing the Option to allow passlock. I know where it should be... well, knew where it was on a much older version, just haven't had a need for it until now... didn't notice it wasn't there.
ZoneAlarm version:7.0.337.000
TrueVector version:7.0.337.000
Driver version:7.0.337.000
Any ideas?
Operating System:
Windows XP Home Edition
Product Name:
ZoneAlarm (Free)
Software Version:
Message Edited by MousieMe on 04-15-200707:58 PM

subset: commoncrawl


text: I have a ghost image of text on the GS home page of the International Results - although not technically "ghost" because I can us the listings as links. I thought it might just go away but it is staying there. ? Is this even a place to post this question of how to get rid of it?


text:
Mets Luck……..Nothing But Mets Luck
By Steve Keane at 22 August, 2013, 10:21 am
As much as the Mets left too many runners in scoring position (again) and especially leaving the bases loaded in the 9th, the loss yesterday was just another case of Mets luck. You know good luck, bad luck and the dreaded Mets luck.
I actually felt sorry for Terry Collins yesterday. Most games I get quite agitated when Collins goes all Tony LaRussa/Sparky Anderson and tries to match reliever for hitter in the late innings of close games. I always imagine hearing Gary Cohen announce "This call to the Mets bullpen is sponsored by Acme Warehouse, the official warehouse of Wily E. Coyotte and Terry Collins", because when Collins goes into his super manger genius mode, it usually blows up for the Mets. But yesterday it nearly worked, in fact it should have worked.
Jon Niese was fantastic especially in the 7th inning when he was running on fumes; he found a way to get out of a jam after a lead off walk and a single put him in a dangerous hole. He reached back and found a little "sumthin' sumthin'" to strikeout Paul Janish and Jordan Schafer to finish his afternoon on an high note.
Tied at 1 after nine innings, the tenth inning was one of those innings we've seen too many time with this Mets team. Scott Atchison got two quick outs then he surrendered a little bullshit single to Andrelton Simmons, that was all for Atchison as Collins called for Scott Rice to face the left-handed hitting Freddie Freeman. As we all know the inning should have been over at this at bat but unfortunately it continued. After an argument that for some reason didn't get Collins thrown out of the game, Collins made another pitching change, his third in the inning, as he called for the freshly recalled Greg Burke to face the leading hitter in the NL Chris Johnson.
At this point I was getting quite perturbed as I felt Collins was over managing again being that Burke was the 5th reliever used leaving just Pedro Feliciano and Friday nights starting pitcher Carlos Torres left in the pen. Then I thought back to Jerry Layne's bad call (I was standing on the first base line on the Field Level for the last three innings of the game it has a great view of the field plus there are TV's over hanging which give you a much better replay than the big video board whose only function it seems is for kiss cam and watching little kids hit wiffleballs) being the reason that Collins had to make the move from Rice to Burke.
It was obvious after the Johnson home run that Collins felt the same way. By the way, it's tough to kill Burke for giving up the 3 run, kick in the balls, home run to Johnson. As you can see here on the Pitch F/X the ball was wayyyyy out of the strike zone. Mets luck strikes again.
I digress, as soon as the ball soared over the left field wall, Collins stormed out of the dugout to go after Jerry Layne again and for some strange reason Collins wasn't thrown out of the game until a couple of minutes into his second tirade when he threw his hat to the ground at Layne's feet. I find it hard to believe that Collins didn't drop one F-bomb in the two confrontations with Layne over the call but a toss of the hat was offensive enough to get bounced.
Anyway just another day of Mets luck, YUCK!
No comments yet.


text: Beat the game. Spoiler: game's ending I thought it was odd that the Connor story didn't climax with the end of the Revolutionary War, it felt a anti-climactic in that sense. Also, I thought the Juno solution was going to require them to launch satellites into orbit? They didn't show that happening just a magical green cloud. I liked that Desmond had to choose which elder god to follow (too bad the player wasn't given the choice). It was a good ending to his story, and I look forward to having to defeat Juno the all powerful!


text:
Year: 1936
Donation: Terry Brandt
Engine: Continental A-40 37HP
Fundamentally similar to the E-2, the J-2 was actually an entirely new airplane. Changes were prompted by customer complaints about the E-2 and included wider (by 16") landing gear, more rounded wingtips and tail, turtledeck (upper part of the fuselage) faired into the trailing edge of the wing for improved aerodynamics and appearance and a "closed" cabin. News about the improved Cub got around and the factory was quickly swamped with orders. The J-2 was ideal for pilot training due to its forgiving flight characteristics. Comments included, "it took a real dumbo to get himself in trouble" and "she wouldn't hurry nowhere."


text:
Bitterroot Mountains > Illinois Peak > Climber's Log
Illinois Peak Climber's Log
[ Sign the Climber's Log ]
|East ridge from Freezout Pass
Date Climbed: Jul 15, 2014
|It was a pretty fun hike.
|Posted Jul 16, 2014 4:31 pm
|West / north ridge from Cascade Pass
Date Climbed: Aug 11, 2011
|A really beautiful day with my parents along the Stateline trail! Great views in all directions! On the way back, since I was in the area, I decided to summit Graves Peak, Gold Crown Peak and Oregon Peak. Illinois Peak can be reached easily on trail from all four directions - Cascade Pass, Freezout Pass, Hoodoo Pass, and St. Joe Lake.
|Posted Aug 15, 2011 11:04 am
|Dennis Poulin
|Freezeout Pass
Date Climbed: Aug 19, 2010
|Hiked with Dean on a lovely day. Nice area.
|Posted Aug 24, 2010 11:17 pm
|Wolves were nearby
Date Climbed: Aug 19, 2010
|Dennis Poulin and I were about 2/3rds up the mountain when we started hearing wolves communicating with each other. It sounded like three or four and when Dennis made a wolf type call, he was answered back immediately. It was weird to hear wolves like that so close but an indication that the wolves are definitely making headway in Montana/Idaho. The hike to the peak was fairly straightforward and the wolves just added to the flavor of the area.
|Posted Aug 21, 2010 7:12 pm
|Cascade Pass
Date Climbed: Jul 27, 2007
|I found this hike using a Montana hiking book (I'm from Ohio and spent the summer in Helena). I do not know what Freezeout Pass is, I parked at Cascade Pass right on the state line at the top of the ridge, part of the Stateline Trail. I went by myself and hiked 2.5 hours to the the summit of Illinois Peak. It was a hot July day, mid-90s as much of the summer was this year. There were still a few snow fields on the side of the mountain though. The only wildlife I saw was a very nice-sized buck on the trail. I made plenty of noise, however, being by myself. While driving to the pass I saw what appeared to be a fisher cross the road, I could be wrong. I was disappointed to find the ledger was not at the summit, but I did see the crosses mentioned. Great views of some alpine lakes. Did not see any other individuals on the trail and the only tracks other than my own were that of some moose. After a nice rest on the summit it took me just 1.5 hours to reach the parking lot. Overall, great, rather easy hike.
|Posted Nov 29, 2007 9:16 pm
|J Fox
|East Ridge
Date Climbed: Jun 6, 1998
|Climbed with my future wife. We camped at St. Joe Lake. We had a long hike into the lake and had to ford a river along the way. It was a great spot to camp though.
|Posted Jun 27, 2007 3:23 am
|East Ridge in snow
Date Climbed: May 27, 2007
|Road blocked by trees and snow. Parked near Gildersleeve Mine. Patches of snow to Freezeout then 2-6 feet of snow the rest of the way except for a short section of the single track that had melted out. I had snowshoes but the snow was hard enough that I didn't have to use them.
Talked to the family that owns the Gildersleeve Mine and they said they welcome drop in visitors (stay away from the shaft!). Lots of historical pictures and they told me the two crosses on the summit are for their relatives.
|Posted May 28, 2007 2:07 pm
|East Ridge from Freezeout Pass
Date Climbed: Sep 21, 2003
|We walked the trail from Freezeout Pass. It was cold and windy that day. We then went down to St. Joe Lake and caught cutthroats non-stop for the couple hours we were there. There were fresh wolf tracks on the ridge just south of the summit.
|Posted Feb 11, 2007 1:56 am
|Bob Bolton
|East Ridge
Date Climbed: Jul 1, 2006
|Duane and I bagged this county highpoint on our way to meet up with saintgrizzly in Missoula for our McDonald Peak effort. Gorgeous day and great views of Idaho and Montana wildness. Fun hike.
|Posted Jul 6, 2006 3:51 pm
|route climbed: east ridge from Freezeout Pass
Date Climbed: Aug 11, 2000
|Hardest part about this hike was finding a Forest Service Road that wasn't closed due to the forest fires. Came up from the Montana side and then northwest to Freezeout Pass. After hiking the peak I drove south into Idaho. Weather was nice. I had the peak all to myself. A few miles southeast of here I got a good closeup view of a helicopter dumping water on a burning tree.
|Posted Apr 6, 2006 6:47 am
|Route Climbed: ID/Montana Trail from HooDoo Pass Date Climbed: June, 2005
|Climbed this summit on a couple occasions over the past three years, including the route following the St. Joe River Trail and up from St. Joe Lake, which incidently has incredible alpine cutthroat fishing. Nothing overly spectacular about this hulking summit, but the wildlife as in most of the Bitteroot Mountain range is ever present. Most I know use this summit as a side trip when fishing the lakes in the region.
|Posted Aug 14, 2005 7:48 pm
|Route Climbed: East Ridge Date Climbed: July 7th, 2004
|Fun, quick climb. Chilly for a July day, with clouds and wind.
|Posted Mar 20, 2005 10:53 pm
|Route Climbed: East Ridge from Freezeout Pass Date Climbed: September 12, 2004
|This was an Idaho county highpoint #2 for the day. The drive East on highway 12 was beautiful.
The weather was cloudy, and a little rainy. Not much to see, but occasional breaks in the clouds. A pretty area with not a soul in sight. Three moose spotted on the road back to I-90.
|Posted Mar 19, 2005 3:37 pm


text:
The Links Center: Leading Innovations for Neighborhoods, Kids and Schools
PI: Marc Atkins, PhD
This center will study models for school-based mental health services for urban low-income children and families that are guided by empirical evidence for schooling as critical for children's social and emotional adjustment, and by evidence for the direct and indirect benefits of academic achievement for children's mental health. A primary goal for this center is that aligning mental health resources to support children's learning will lead to stronger mental health outcomes for children, relative to mental health services as usual. This center is consistent with recent calls for a contextually relevant understanding of children's mental health needs and capacities, and responds to the need for accessible, effective, and sustainable mental health services in impoverished and under-served communities. The goal for this developing center grant is to inform research on the conditions that are necessary to promote the mental health of children living in poverty. The center will address gaps in knowledge related to improving access to effective services for children and families and will examine the implementation of prevention and intervention models that address risk factors for children's mental health difficulties.


text:
For decades, books about John or Robert Kennedy have woven either a shimmering tale of Camelot gallantry or a tawdry story of runaway ambition and reckless personal behavior. But the real story of the Kennedys in the 1960s has long been submerged - until now. In Brothers: The Hidden History of the Kennedy Years, David Talbot sheds a dramatic new light on the tumultuous inner life of the Kennedy presidency and its stunning aftermath. Talbot, the founder of Salon.com, has written a gripping political history that is sure to be one of the most talked-about books of the year.
Brothers begins on the shattering afternoon of November 22, 1963, as a grief-stricken Robert Kennedy urgently demands answers about the assassination of his brother. Bobby's suspicions immediately focus on the nest of CIA spies, gangsters, and Cuban exiles that had long been plotting a violent regime change in Cuba. The Kennedys had struggled to control this swamp of anti-Castro intrigue based in southern Florida, but with little success.
Brothers then shifts back in time, revealing the shadowy conflicts that tore apart the Kennedy administration, pitting the young president and his even younger brother against their own national security apparatus. The Kennedy brothers and a small circle of their most trusted advisors - men like Theodore Sorensen, Robert McNamara, and Kenneth O'Donnell, who were so close the Kennedys regarded them as family - repeatedly thwarted Washington's warrior caste. These hardline generals and spymasters were hell-bent on a showdown with the Communist foe - in Berlin, Laos, Vietnam, and especially Cuba. But the Kennedys continually frustrated their militaristic ambitions, pushing instead for a peaceful resolution to the Cold War. The tensions within the Kennedy administration were heading for an explosive climax, when a burst of gunfire in a sunny Dallas plaza terminated John F. Kennedy's presidency.
Based on interviews with more than 150 people - including many of the Kennedys' aging "band of brothers," whose testimony here might be their final word on this epic political story - as well as newly released government documents, Brothers reveals the compelling, untold story of the Kennedy years, including JFK's heroic efforts to keep the country out of a cataclysmic war and Bobby Kennedy's secret quest to solve his beloved brother's murder. Bobby's subterranean search was a dangerous one and led, in part, to his own quest for power in 1968, in a passion-filled campaign that ended with his own murder. As Talbot reveals here, RFK might have been the victim of the same plotters he suspected of killing his brother. This is historical storytelling at its riveting best - meticulously researched and movingly told.
Brothers is a sprawling narrative about the clash of powerful men and the darker side of the Cold War - a tale of tragic grandeur that is certain to change our understanding of the relentlessly fascinating Kennedy saga.
©2007 David Talbot (P)2012 Brilliance Audio, Inc.
A real joy, very detailed and informative but never dull. Marvellous and highly recommended.
I was initially going to give this book five stars but then realised Marilyn Monroe was not mentioned at all, which seemed a very strange omission because surely she was at least a small part of The Kennedy years at The White House.
"very interesting and well written. "
narrator had good voice inflections and it had a lot of detail. I feel like it reflects both sides of the political divide.
"Great storytelling "
I don't know why I am so interested in the Kennedy's, being a Canadian woman born in the 70's. However, I was drawn to learn more about JFK's presidency and his death. This led me to this book, which satisfied many of my lingering questions. I found many of the quotes from both JFK and Bobby quite compelling. Thank you Mr. Talbot.
"The Defenitive JFK Assasination Book"
The ultimate inside story of the events leading up to the JFK assassination and its aftermath. Reveals that RFK believed that there was indeed a conspiracy to murder his brother. David Talbot interviewed many people who had never come forward before to expose that Bobby planned to reopen the investigation once he himself became President but was murdered before he could do so. A mind-boggling indictment of the government, media, and the establishment in the latter stage of the twentieth century.
"Great book"
One of the best books on the Kennedy assassinations. Narrator did a great job.
"interesting book about the Kennedy brothers lives."
This book covers both death of John and Robert Kennedy and all the associated mystery behind them.
"One of the best."
A fantastic and easy to read history of the Kennedy years. When it comes to the assassinations, the author clearly has his own beliefs, however, instead of trying to convince you of his own beliefs, he encourages you to ask your own questions and seek those answers. The narrators character voices are distracting and at times simply obscure caricatures of various stereotypes, but overall he does a great job.
"Very good"
I liked it a lot, well documented and researched. I would recommend it. thank you
"what we always thought,"
well put together, well researched....we thought these things, now we know them. very unsettling indeed
"Conspiracy Hogwash "
I admit I only listened to the introduction to this book. I was hoping for a thoughtful, interesting story of Robert and JFK. InsteadI felt betrayed in that the author dangles the carrot of conspiracy theory to entice readers. In my case, I decided I did not want to listen to such garbage.
"Just another conspiracy book"
I have listened to a number of books on the Kennedy/Johnson era – and I must say this is by far the worse. From the cover, I thought this book would explore the tight family relationship between these two brothers. Instead what I got was a just another poorly written Kennedy conspiracy book.
The author's thesis is simple – Kennedy and Castro were going to become friends and ensure world peace after the 1964 election, but there were many important people who did not want this to happen. The Cuban exiles, the CIA, the FBI, bigots, maybe even right wing nuts who did not believe in JFK. There is little in the way of hard facts to support this vague thesis, just innuendo and heresy. The author notes that RFK and all of the "Kennedy's men" accepted the findings of the Warren Commission, but he speculates that this was because RFK was planning to take action after he became president.
This is a back-to-Camelot book, for those who are looking for that. The author asserts that JFK was totally without blame for the Bay of Pigs, handled the Cuban Missile Crisis without flaw, and would have accomplished much more during his 1000 days were it not for the special interests in and out of government. I think most of us know better.
There are better books about this era. Berlin 1961, Brilliant Disaster and Passage of Power to name a few.
Report Inappropriate Content
If you find this review inappropriate and think it should be removed from our site, let us know. This report will be reviewed by Audible and we will take appropriate action.


text:
If It seems like its Goalkeeper Week here on Chicago-Fire.com, well maybe it is... Sean Johnson is with the U.S. Men's National Team, meaning Paolo Tornaghi is the starter on Sunday, making way for Alec Kann to officially sign with the club on Tuesday in order to back him up.
I got a lot of quotes from goalkeepers (and their coach) the past few days... It'd be a shame if they went to waste so I've included some of the more interesting ones here...
Chicago FIre goalkeeping coach Aron Hyde
On having two returning goalkeepers for the first time since 2009
"Its never easy in MLS with the salary cap to maintain players year-to-year. In previous years we've looked to experienced guys to guide Sean along in his development and this year we didn't need that. We've got a very young goalkeeping group – its probably the youngest in the league. Sean's not a young goalkeeper anymore –he's at nearly 80 games in his career. We don't have any issues there anymore. Obviously he can get a little more continuity in the group and Paolo is a good goalkeeper and is more than capable of stepping in. He didn't let the side down last year and we're positive and optimistic he'll do the same on Sunday."
On Alec Kann's attitude as the third goalkeeper
"He's coming in willing to learn. He has a good attitude, he works hard – you can't fault him for anything there. He's a good guy to work with. He's been good with the other two and you hope he realizes he's here to push and he wants to play as well. He has to be ready."
Chicago Fire goalkeeper Paolo Tornaghi
On communicating with a changing backline
"Its important when everyone steps on the field to have a positive performance. I thought our defensive line was very good on Saturday. We work together every day so to me it doesn't matter who the first 11 are, all the players train and stay focused to be ready for Sunday."


text:
Good Technology Buys Social Communication Enabler Intercasting
Good Technology has acquired Intercasting, a mobile social networking connectivity company based out of San Diego, CA, for an undisclosed sum. Good, which markets a number of mobility solutions primarily geared towards businesses, is looking to broaden its customer base beyond smartphone users and picks up Intercasting to expand its product line aimed at end consumers. Intercasting Corporation… Read More


text:
I will be directing the 10th annual Farragut Open at North Idaho's premier courses located inside Idaho's best State Park in Athol, Idaho, on 08-08-09. If you have never been to Farragut State Park I encourage you to come and play. Our NORTHSTAR course is 4,994' long. The WRECKREATOR is 5,710 in length, with 8 hole above 300'(4 longer than 400') Both courses are wooded forrest type courses which challenge most all of your shot types.( We even have a third course layout that combines 9 holes from each course to equal a third 18 hole layout.) And don't miss the Family course "The hole 9 yards" across from the parking lot of the big courses that messuares 1,082'. It is a good place to warm up w/a mid range or putter.There's 46 baskets on 4 courses inside one park. Camping is arranged for at a LARGE group field for the event, or you can contact the park directly to get your own camp site at 1-208-683-6743, www.parksandrecreation.idaho.gov (state parks link;Farragut) Please see topic under upcoming events for more info about the tournament. TW
Login or Sign Up
- Log in with Facebook


text:
The new season of American Idol debuted last night and we finally got to see if the fighting between Nicki Minaj and Mariah Carey was everything we thought it would be. While the two divas debated everything from Mean Girls to the accessories they could bring to the taping let's not forget why they're on the show in the first place: to help find America's next star.
American Idol Season 11 contestant Colton Dixon learned the importance of work ethic from JLo, but shared with Radio.com his biggest lesson from his time on the show.
"I think the biggest thing I took away from the whole American Idol experience is always be yourself. Some of us learn that the hard way," he confessed. "It's healthy to challenge yourself, don't get me wrong it's a great thing."
Colton further stressed "you know yourself best."
"So whether it be producers or even other contestants giving you advice you have to know at the end of the day what fits you and you don't need to stray away from it too much," he said. "Like I said, it's good to challenge yourself and to take on different things. It's always smart to stay true to your roots. That's what got you there in the first place. The judges saw that in you. So breaking that up would be a mistake in my opinion."
The fun continues between Nicki and Mariah tonight during the two-day premiere of American Idol on FOX.
-Annie Reuter, Radio.com


text:
Next Level Leadership Institute
Next Level Leadership Institute
Everett Community College's Next Level Leadership Institute equips current and future leaders with knowledge and skills to lead others to the next level of performance, productivity, and profits.
Our leadership courses are taught by leading professionals that translate their real world expertise into meaningful class activities. Classes can be customized and delivered at your location or ours. Learn more about our leadership instructors.
"Instructor does a wonderful job guiding the discussion, encouraging and answering questions. Wonderful!" -- Course Participant
The Next Level Leadership Institute has flexible, stackable leadership development solutions for every career step, from individual contributor to executive.
Participants at any level of an organization learn to:
- Establish credibility as a leader
- Communicate with credibility using value-based leadership best practices
- Utilize proven problem-solving approaches
- Apply high performance tools and techniques for individual and team success
Sign up now for Next Level Leadership - (24 hours) or Supervisor-Team Lead Training (14 hours)
View all Next Level Leadership Institute courses
Related Programs and Certificates
Note to employers: Make the Next Level Leadership Institute part of your talent acquisition, retention, and succession planning strategy.
Questions? Contact our friendly operations team at 425.267.0150 or firstname.lastname@example.com.


text:
This is the electric tri-wheel scooter that carves smooth curves as riders shift their weight. Like a slalom skier leans into turns, riders simply shift their weight in the direction they wish to turn and the nimble scooter responds fluidly without losing speed while keeping all three wheels on the ground. After a push start and a twist of the handlebar throttle, the high-torque motor propels riders at up to 10 mph. The dual foot platforms have a textured no-slip surface�and�are�cambered for enhanced balance and control. The 6" urethane wheels grip the pavement securely. Dual rear brakes, controlled with a hand lever, bring the scooter to a smooth, safe stop. Two rechargeable 12-volt batteries provide up to 40 minutes of continuous riding on a full charge with the included AC adapter. Supports up to 120 lbs. Ages 8 and up. Assembly required. 35 1/2" L x 35" W x 19" D. (32 1/3 lbs.)
Lifetime Guarantee
The Carving Electric Triwheel Scooter comes with The Hammacher Schlemmer Lifetime Guarantee. If this product ever disappoints you, for any reason, you may return your Hammacher Schlemmer purchase for exchange, credit, or refund.
Should you have any questions, we are available seven days a week (8:00 am – midnight EST). Please call 1-800-321-1484 to speak with a specialist or email us at email@example.com to receive a response within three business hours or less.
May we recommend:
COPYRIGHT © 2018 HAMMACHER SCHLEMMER & COMPANY, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. W109147 E. 57th ST • NEW YORK, NY • 10022 • 1-800-_321-1484


text:
Delta-ALA is a protein (amino acid) produced by the liver. A test can be done to measure the amount of this substance in your urine.
Delta-aminolevulinic acid
Your health care provider will instruct you, if necessary, to stop taking drugs that may interfere with the test. A 24-hour urine sample is needed.
Thoroughly wash and rinse the area between the lips of the vagina or the head of the penis. Open the urine collection bag (the plastic bag with an adhesive paper on one end), and place it on your infant. For males, the entire penis can be placed in the bag and the adhesive attached to the skin. For females, the bag is placed over the lips of the vagina.
Place a diaper over the infant (bag and all). The infant should be checked frequently and the bag changed after the infant has urinated into the bag. For active infants, this procedure may take a couple of attempts. Drain the urine into the container for transport to the laboratory. As with adults, the container must be kept refrigerated.
Deliver it to the laboratory or your health care provider as soon as possible upon completion.
Avoid exposure of the urine to direct light.
Your doctor may tell you to temporarily stop taking any drugs that may affect test results. Such drugs include penicillin, barbiturates, birth control pills, and griseofulvin.
The test involves only normal urination and there is no discomfort.
This test looks for increased levels of delta-ALA. It may be used to help diagnose porphyria.
In general, the normal range is 0 to 7 milligrams per 24 hours.
Normal value ranges may vary slightly among different laboratories. Talk to your doctor about the meaning of your specific test results.
The examples above show the common measurements for results for these tests. Some laboratories use different measurements or may test different specimens.
Increased levels of urinary delta-ALA may indicate:
Decreased levels may occur with chronic liver disease.
There are no risks.
Wiley JS, Moore MR. Heme biosynthesis and its disorders: porphyrias and sideroblastic anemias. In: Hoffman R, Benz EJ Jr, Shattil SJ, et al, eds. Hoffman Hematology: Basic Principles and Practice. 5th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Churchill Livingstone Elsevier; 2008:chap 38.
1000 Johnson Ferry Road NE
Atlanta, GA 30342
(404) 851-8000
450 Northside Cherokee Blvd.
Canton, GA 30115
(770) 224-1000
1200 Northside Forsyth Drive
Cumming, GA 30041
(770) 844-3200


text:
most alternative energy advocates and critics focus their attention on
macro-solar power -- vast
fields of panels or collecting dishes -- there has also been a lot of
recent growth in micro-solar power (using solar cells to recharge portable
The U.S. Marines has
just completed a test of new solar-powered gear in the field in Afghanistan.
The new equipment was trialed by India Company, a component of 3rd
Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment. The test lasted three weeks and took the
company through Sangin, one of the deadliest regions in southern Afghanistan.
I. A Deadly Dependency
Today the U.S. military is unmatched in terms of destructive power and killing
efficiency. But the technology involved giving that kind of performance
mandates lengthy (and vulnerable) supply chains and overburdened troops.
Batteries alone take up 20 percent of the 100-pound load the average Marine
carries in the field. And fuel also accounts for a significant amount of
the load. Soldiers use a portable generator to power their laptops and
other electronics in the field. A soldier today uses four times the fuel
they did in the early 1990s.
The high fuel demand from deployed troops requires a constant supply train of
fuel trucks. It is estimated that 30 percent of all fuel transported into
Afghanistan goes to powering the U.S. military. And many of the military
fatalities have arisen from fuel trucks hit by the improvised explosive devices
(IEDs) used by local militants.
Navy Secretary Ray Mabus testified to
Congress last year that a soldier is wounded or killed for every 24 fuel
convoys in Iraq or Afghanistan. Over the years of deployment in Iraq and
Afghanistan, those casualties have added up, not only in a number of dead
soldiers, but also in soldiers returning with debilitating conditions.
II. A Truly Modern Warrior
Secretary Mabus has vowed to improve the situation in the field for his troops.
He has called on Navy scientists to design cutting edge gear for the
armed forces that reduces the reliance on fossil fuel supplies and batteries.
The new gear pack, just tested, includes a roll-up solar panel of thin film
solar cells. The panel provides enough juice under the hot south-Asian
sun to power GPS units, radios, laptops, and other devices.
The results are 10 years in the making.
The armed forces first began considering solar gear in 2001. But interest
picked up when in 2006 Marine Maj. Gen. Richard Zilmer, then commander of the
1st Marine Expeditionary Force, called for solar gear to support forward bases
in the war-torn Anbar province, west of Baghdad, Iraq.
In an interview with The
Wall Street Journal, Gen. Zilmer states, "We used to joke that there
was a generator for every man, woman and child in Iraq. And we did not have any
material solutions to the issues we had out there."
Gen. Zilmer's request fell on deaf ears and more casualties piled up. But
a similar request in 2008 spurred the Navy to
action and this time the Marines came
onboard as well. Col. Bob Charette, a former F-18 pilot, opened the
Marine Expeditionary Energy Office to transfer Navy energy technology to Marine
gear. Col. Charette states, "The Marine commandant made it
clear—he'd rather have an 80% solution today than a 100% solution somewhere
down the road."
III. Mission Success
Like MacGyver, the Navy and Marines worked to do the best with what they had.
Within 9 months they'd created a heavy solar/battery combo pack capable
of being loaded onto Humvees, which included jury-rigged power meters,
purchased from the Home Depot, Inc. (HD). This heavy pack would
power more demanding field gear. Each soldier was also issued a rollable
solar mat to power small electronics.
The first test of the gear just wrapped up and the results appear very
promising. The solar-equipped warriors required dramatically less battery
resupply (typically delivered by helicopters in the field) and fewer fuel
trucks. As they carried less weight, they were able to carry extra ammo
-- potentially life-saving in an intense firefight.
Col. Charette cheered that the trial deployment "has surpassed our
Maj. Sean Sadlier, the Marine expeditionary energy liaison officer at Camp
Leatherneck in Afghanistan says that for platoons at remote outposts, solar
power can be the only source of energy in some cases. The latest test
shows that replacing battery and fuel stocks with solar makes sense even at
marginally suppliable locations.
The next real test will be to develop larger solar rechargers capable of
servicing a large formation, like India Company's parent battalion.
Officers say that device could see completion and deployment by the


text:
BBB - A+ Rating - the best there is
An excerpt from www.HouseOfNames.com archives copyright © 2000 - 2018
Ryan Early Origins
Tipperary (Irish: Thiobraid Árann), established in the 13th century in South-central Ireland, in the province of Munster. According to O'Hart, the family claim descent from the Heremon Kings of Ireland through the MacMorough pedigree, specifically Cormac, brother of Eoghan who was ancestor of O'Righin; anglicized Mulrain, O'Ryan, Ryan and Ryne. [1]CITATION[CLOSE]
O'Hart, John, Irish Pedigrees 5th Edition in 2 Volumes. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1976. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0737-4) However, MacLysaght claims the family claim descent from O Maoilriain located in Owney, formerly called Owney O'Mulryan which forms two modern baronies on the borders of Limerick and Tipperary. [2]CITATION[CLOSE]
MacLysaght, Edward, Irish Families Their Names, Arms and Origins 4th Edition. Dublin: Irish Academic, 1982. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2364-7) As both authorities were Chief Heralds of Ireland in their own time, we must leave the reader to ponder which of the two is more likely.
Ryan Spelling Variations
Ryan Spelling Variations
The Middle Ages saw a great number of spelling variations for surnames common to the Irish landscape. One reason for these variations is the fact that surnames were not rigidly fixed by this period because the general population had to rely on local official's understanding of how their name should be spelt, hence spellings in records often changed through a person's lifetime. The following variations for the name Ryan were encountered in the archives: O'Ryan, Ryan, Mulrian, Mulryan, O'Mulrian and many more.
Ryan Early History
Ryan Early History
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Ryan research. Another 261 words (19 lines of text) covering the years 1694, 1760 and 1709 are included under the topic Early Ryan History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Ryan Early Notables (pre 1700)
Ryan Early Notables (pre 1700)
Another 27 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Ryan Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
The Great Migration
The Great Migration
Ireland became inhospitable for many native Irish families in the 19th centuries. Poverty, lack of opportunities, high rents, and discrimination forced thousands to leave the island for North America. The largest exodus of Irish settlers occurred with the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. For these immigrants the journey to British North America and the United States was long and dangerous and many did not live to see the shores of those new lands. Those who did make it were essential to the development of what would become two of the wealthiest and most powerful nations of the world. These Irish immigrants were not only important for peopling the new settlements and cities, they also provided the manpower needed for the many industrial and agricultural projects so essential to these growing nations. Immigration and passenger lists have documented the arrival of various people bearing the name Ryan to North America:
Ryan Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
Ryan Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
Ryan Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
Ryan Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
Ryan Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
Ryan Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
Ryan Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
Ryan Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
Contemporary Notables of the name Ryan (post 1700)
Contemporary Notables of the name Ryan (post 1700)
Ryan Historic Events
Ryan Historic Events
Empress of Ireland
Halifax Explosion
RMS Lusitania
RMS Titanic
Suggested Readings for the name Ryan
Suggested Readings for the name Ryan
The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.
Motto: Malo mori quam fodari
Motto Translation: I would rather die than be disgraced.
Ryan Family Crest Products
Ryan Family Crest Products
See Also
See Also
Sign Up
BBB - A+ Rating - the best there is


text:
Hi everyone,
I have an issue with OMP which I am recently using so as to incorporate parallel processing in my in house algorithm.
As the title implies I am using Visual Studio 2013 with the latest XE14 Fortran compiler. The language that the software is written in, is Fortran 90.
Given that the number of executable lines is large and also due to the fact that I am new with OMP, I decided to take it step by step and compile the algorithm frequently so as to make sure that the applied changes do not affect the results that derive from the sequential execution of the software, thus solve a benchmark model every time and notice any changes in the results.
Now here is the funy thing about what I experienced so far: I activated the choice within the Project's properties for OMP to generate parallel code (Generate Parallel Code (/Qopenmp)-->Generate Parallel Code) and then added a simple command in order to initialize the threads (which works properly given that I get 4 threads).
!$OMP PARALLEL SHARED (threads)
threads = OMP_GET_NUM_THREADS()
After compiling the code and running for the bench, the results were not the same while the algorithm was diverging (and when running with Disabled OMP, converting the OMP command to a comment, everything is fine again). I tried to debugging line by line so as to allocate the problem but got nothing. One of the observations that I made was that the initialization values of the newlly allocated varaibles were different from those of the sequntial compilation, but given that I use an initialization procedure (setting all newlly varaibles to zero) this should not be an issue. I was wondering if there is a chance that the OMP option tries to apply parallelization by default to loops or other command blocks (even without the presence of the!$OMP command) and some procedures get messed up.
Before doing anything I experimented a lot with simple loop commands by creating small programs that use !$OMP PARALLEL DO and !$OMP PARALLEL sections commands, whereas all went well. I managed to get all 4 cores working 100% at the same time so I verified that the commands were given in the proper manner. Regarding the above issue though I am running out of ideas.
Any suggestions would be highly appreciated.


text:
Statement re Mrs Natasha Jones
19 February 2013
Statement from the IDTA, ISTD and RAD.
Date: 19th February 2013
As three of the world's leading dance education organisations and recognised examinations boards, the International Dance Teachers' Association (IDTA), the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing (ISTD), and the Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) consider every instance of false certification of examinations to be malpractice, and it is therefore taken extremely seriously.
In June 2010, an allegation of fraud was made against Mrs Natasha Jones, the proprietor of "The Ballet Academy" dance school at Clayton-le-Woods, Lancashire (no longer trading). The fraud encompassed money being taken from customers on the basis that they were paying for dance examinations. No such examinations took place and fraudulent certificates were issued by Mrs Jones indicating that children had passed their examinations.
During the investigation, the police identified a total of four counts of fraud using a false instrument and two counts of theft. A protracted series of court appearances ensued with Mrs Jones eventually entering 'guilty' on the trial date, 14th January 2013. Mrs Jones' actions caused a great deal of distress and anxiety to the children concerned, as well as their parents, who have endured various stalls in the criminal justice process.
PC Nicol from Chorley police said: "The result has been a massive relief to all concerned. I cannot praise the parents enough; they have displayed an excellent level of patience, determination and support for their children. I would also like to thank Dr Andrew McBirnie of the Royal Academy of Dance, Cynthia Pease of the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing and Liz Murphy of the International Dance Teachers Association, for their patience and continued support throughout this case."
The IDTA, ISTD and RAD have all worked closely with the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation (Ofqual) and Lancashire Police to help bring this case to its conclusion.
Mrs Jones has not been allowed to enter candidates for RAD examinations since June 2010 and has not been a member of the RAD since January 2011. She is not a member of the IDTA or the ISTD.
As leading awarding bodies whose qualifications are subject to statutory regulation in England, Wales, Northern Ireland and (in the case of the RAD) Scotland, the IDTA, ISTD and RAD take the falsifying of certificates extremely seriously.
We would like to reassure members of the three organisations that we remain committed to safeguarding the standards and reputation of our examinations and teaching, and to protecting our teachers and their students from the consequences of such criminal behaviour. We would like to reassure members that appropriate action will be taken in all cases where there is suspected fraud and malpractice.
Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing (ISTD)
The Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing (ISTD) is one of the leading dance examinations boards in the world. Formed in 1904, today it is a registered educational charity and covers the full spectrum of dance examinations on a truly global scale. ISTD dance teachers are highly experienced in teaching children and adults in a variety of dance styles ranging from Ballet to Ballroom, Modern to Tap, and South Asian Dance to Latin American Dance. 250,000 of their examinations in a variety of dance forms are taken each year. With over 7,500 members in more than 50 countries, the ISTD provides a range of syllabi, courses and events across the globe.
International Dance Teachers' Association (IDTA)
The International Dance Teachers' Association (IDTA) is one of the world's largest examination boards, covering the full spectrum of dance examinations on a global scale, with over 7,000 members in 55 countries. The objectives of the Association are to promote knowledge and foster the art of dance in all its forms, to consult, to maintain and improve teaching standards, to offer a comprehensive range of professional qualifications in all dance genres, and to provide and maintain syllabi and technique in all dance genres to train dance for the profession.
Royal Academy of Dance (RAD)
The Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) is one of the world's most influential ballet education training and assessment organisations. The RAD promotes knowledge, understanding and practice of dance internationally, and seeks to accomplish this through promoting dance, educating and training students and providing examinations to set standards and reward achievement. Their exams are designed to motivate and encourage students of all ages and levels of ability through a systematic measurement of progress and attainment. Last year, over 230,000 young people entered RAD examinations worldwide.


text:
Uh, Has Anyone Seen China's Next Leader?
Nobody would bat an eye if U.S. Vice President Joe Biden went missing for more than a week. We'd all assume he was on an epic ayahuasca trip and he'd be back when he got it out of his system. But when Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping goes missing, people freak out. He's presumed to be the next leader of China, slated to take over as chief of the Communist Party in just a few weeks. But he hasn't been seen in public or heard from since September 1st. *ominous music*
Speculation has grown this week as the 59-year-old Jinping mysteriously missed a series of high-profile meetings with foreign officials, including Hillary Clinton and the prime minister of Denmark. You do not stand up the prime minister of Denmark unless something has gone terribly wrong, right?
Chinese officials say nothing's amiss but refuse to give even a hint of Jinping's whereabouts. (The Chinese foreign ministry spokesman dismissed foreign journalists' queries about whether Jinping was alive with the answer, "I hope you will raise serious questions.")
Inevitably, rumors on Chinese microblogs and in the foreign media have swirled. Including:
- Jinping is recuperating from a minor heart attack.
- Jinping is recuperating after pulling a muscle in his back while swimming or playing soccer.
- Jinping was critically injured in a staged car accident when political enemies tried to assassinate him.
As you can see, explanations range from the banal to the shit-your-pants-in-fear. So if anyone sees Jinping, please tell him millions of Chinese citizens and a good portion of the international community are looking for him.
[Image via Getty]


text:
Performer of the game: Pujols
Slugger sets franchise records while lifting Cards to victory
By Joe Frisaro / MLB.com
The St. Louis slugger made a thunderous statement on Monday night, and he did so in record-setting style.
Pujols went 4-for-5 with a homer, three doubles and five RBIs in the Cardinals' 12-3 victory over the Brewers in Game 2 of the National League Championship Series at Miller Park.
In convincing fashion, the standout first baseman rebounded from a disappointing 1-for-4 performance with a critical double play on Sunday in a 9-6 loss in Game 1.
Spin to Win
As impressive as he was, Pujols said he didn't have any added motivation or adrenaline going in his favor.
"I'm in every game," Pujols said. "I don't take this game for granted. Yesterday was a tough loss. And I had an opportunity to contribute, to help my ballclub.
"This game is not easy. This game is going to raise you high and it's going to bring you down. I've been in that situation before. Just let the game come to you. The guys got on base for me, and I'm glad I contributed."
Short-term struggles against Milwaukee didn't cause Pujols to lose sight of the bigger picture.
After Sunday, he pointed out it was one game in one season.
"That happens every once in a while," Pujols said. "What about my whole career? I've hit Milwaukee."
Cardinals Postseason Homers
|Home Runs
|Albert Pujols
|Jim Edmonds
|Larry Walker
By the time the final out was recorded, Pujols became the franchise playoff leader in home runs (14), RBIs (42) and doubles (16).
Four times in Cardinals' history a player has doubled three times. Pujols has done it twice -- both this year. His other was on Oct. 4 against the Phillies.
And his five RBIs are second most by a Cardinals player in a postseason game, one shy of Reggie Sanders' six against the Padres on Oct. 4, 2005.
Still, there was more.
In his seventh postseason, Pujols has nine League Championship Series homers, which ties him with George Brett and Bernie Williams for second most. Manny Ramirez posted 13.
Cardinals Postseason RBIs
|Albert Pujols
|Jim Edmonds
|Willie McGee
"Any game, he can explode," catcher Yadier Molina said. "He's the best player in the game. You count on that all the time."
It didn't take long in Game 2 for Pujols to show why doubters shouldn't look at small sample sizes.
In the first inning, Pujols belted a two-run homer off Brewers starter Shaun Marcum. The slugger provided a two-run double in the third inning, added an RBI double in the fifth and led off the seventh with a third double.
Pujols crushed a 1-2 Marcum offering in the first-inning shot, giving him 14 in the playoffs. Jim Edmonds had 13. The no-doubt blast also was Pujols' first postseason homer since the 2006 World Series.
The Cardinals have scored in the first inning in five of their seven playoff games, including four in a row.
In the third inning, Pujols laced a liner just over Nyjer Morgan's head in deep center field for a double. With four RBIs in his first two at-bats, Pujols had 41 postseason RBIs to tie Edmonds for the franchise record. The All-Star first baseman also set a franchise record with 22 LCS RBIs, passing Edmonds, who had 20. The RBI double in the fifth gave Pujols sole possession of the franchise postseason RBI record.
Manager Tony La Russa noticed Pujols getting locked in during batting practice.
"He was fine-tuning his stroke," La Russa said. "He really wasn't trying to hit the ball out of the park. He was just thinking about how he could have better at-bats. He's such a pro, so smart."
The breakout game put to rest any doubts that the Brewers had figured out how to silence the slugger.
In 18 regular-season games against the Brewers this season, Pujols had a .250 batting average (17-for-68) with four homers and 12 RBIs.
The tale over his entire career is dramatically different.
During the regular season, the power-hitting first baseman is a .329 lifetime hitter against the Brewers, with 42 homers and 140 RBIs in 174 games.
Before Game 2, La Russa cautioned against writing off Pujols making an impact in the series. In fact, the manager basically predicted a big night from his first baseman.
"I think he could be the hitting star [Monday] and nobody should be surprised," La Russa said.
How true.
"If you get that from our eight-hitter, then we can [be shocked]," Lance Berkman said. "He's been doing it his whole career, and he did it again tonight. He's a great player. Probably one of the greatest ever.
"It's not that I'm underwhelmed by it, it's a great performance. But it's Albert Pujols we're talking about."
Praises were heaped on Pujols all night.
"I've seen Albert like this before," Brewers manager Ron Roenicke said. "I've seen him in years past like this. He's a great offensive player. He's a heads-up defensive player. He's a heads-up baserunner. This is a great baseball player."
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.


text: Harlequin Hare - Counted Cross Stitch Pattern (X-Stitch PDF) Thanks for visiting my store! This cross-stitch pattern was personally and lovingly designed by me! This pattern uses only six colors. Of course, you could substitute any colors you like. This is a good opportunity try one of the many variegated or metallic floss colors. The images above also show several background color fabric options. This piece is part of a series of alphabet animal cross-stitch patterns. I have at least one animal for each letter of the alphabet. My idea is that folks might stitch multiple projects to mount on the wall or for the patches of a child's quilt. All of the patterns are 99-100 stitches (7 inches) at their widest dimension. This means that if you complete multiple projects, they can all be framed in matching square frames. Digital and "Instant Download" items are NOT eligible for returns, refunds, or exchanges due to the nature of digital media. Please read the item description carefully before purchasing one of my patterns. (c) 2014. All of my patterns are copyrighted. You may stitch them yourself and give the finished products as a gift, but please do not share, distribute, or re-sell the pattern. DETAILS: * Difficulty Level: Easy. Appropriate for someone's second or third project. * Back-stitch?: No. * Half Stitches or Other Specialty Stitches?: No. * Number of DMC Colors: 6 * Total Number of DMC Skeins Needed: 6 * Pattern pages should be printed on 8 1/2 x 11 paper. * Included Files: color pattern, b&w pattern, color large-print pattern, b&w large-print pattern. (Large print patterns will use up more printer paper and ink, so they are only recommended for people with poor eyesight or who typically wear reading glasses.) * De-speckling (Confetti) and Minimization of Threads: When I am creating my cross-stitch patterns, I try to group stitches of a particular color together so it's easier to stitch. I know it's annoying to start a new thread just to stitch one speck and then weave back in. As much as possible, I've tried to avoid this. I also try to minimize the number of thread colors required, without sacrificing detail. (Beware of sellers who don't tell you ahead of time how many colors are required to complete a pattern!) * This Listing Includes: A PDF computer file containing the pattern. The pattern will include a color image of the completed project, the pattern itself, and a legend which lists the colors and lengths of the DMC embroidery floss you will need to purchase. * This Listing Does Not Include: Instructions on how to cross-stitch, embroidery floss, cross-stitch fabric or Aida cloth, cross-stitch needles, or a physical print-out of the pattern. This is not a kit or finished piece. Nothing will be mailed. If you have trouble printing the PDF (extremely rare), I cannot troubleshoot your computer, printer, or software. Remember that most office stores offer inexpensive quality printing services in color as well as black and white. THANKS: Thank you very much for your interest in my work. If you'd like to follow my current and upcoming projects, you can find me on Facebook here: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Hornswoggle-Store/1398245240431580. I love it when folks 'like' my store! BASIC SKILLS NECESSARY Cross-Stitch SIZING / FINISHED MEASUREMENTS This pattern can be used with any even-weave / Aida fabric. Remember to purchase enough fabric to allow at least a couple inches margin on the edges. If you will be completing multiple projects in this series, you should assume a stitched area of 100 stitches square (7 inches square if you use 14-count fabric) so that all the projects will match in size. If you are completing only this project, follow these guidelines: Pattern Dimensions: 100 stitches wide by 57 stitches tall For 16 stitches per inch fabric, the finished project measures: 6.3 inches (15.9 cm) wide by 3.6 inches (9 cm) tall For 14 stitches per inch fabric, the finished project measures: 7.1 inches (18.1 cm) wide by 4.1 inches (10.3 cm) tall For 12 stitches per inch fabric, the finished project measures: 8.3 inches (21.2 cm) wide by 4.8 inches (12.1 cm) tall


text:
The World Before 3D ICs
3 comments post a comment
There's still a lot of confusion about 3D ICs. Let's start by considering the way of the world before they existed.
We hear a lot of talk these days about three-dimensional integrated circuits (3D ICs), but there's still a lot of confusion in this area, so who better than yours truly to rip the veils asunder? To set the scene, let's consider the way of the world before 3D ICs.
Lots of small, individually packaged dice
Not so long ago, different functions like high-performance logic, lower-performance logic, memory, and analog/RF were presented as discrete dice in their own chip packages, as illustrated below. (Dice is an accepted plural form of die in the semiconductor industry.)
One advantage of this scenario was that different chip companies could concentrate on creating devices that fell into their realm of expertise. Another benefit was that each die could be implemented at the most appropriate technology node. The high-performance digital logic chip could be created at the latest and greatest (and more expensive) technology node; the lower-performance digital logic device could be created using an earlier (and more affordable) technology node; and so forth. Yet another advantage was that the yield of smaller silicon chips was significantly higher than that for larger dice.
On the downside, the resulting circuit board was relatively large and heavy and consumed a lot of power. Also, every soldered joint on a circuit board was a potential point of failure. Furthermore, it took a relatively long time for signals to propagate across a circuit board from one chip package to another. This hurt the performance of the system as a whole.


text:
The Raps let a winnable game slip away last night against Memphis. They're starting to become the "turnover capital" of the NBA. The monicker T.O. says it all ! (T.O. = Turnover).
I know they're shorthanded right now but come on, there were a lot of stupid, unforced turnovers last night. Drives me nuts !
Ok enought with my rant ! Let's beat the Mavs tonight


text: I swear my mom is enough to drive me up a wall sometimes. Ever since we had Scrappy, Upendi has been afraid of little dogs. I was working on desensitizing her to them and she was doing better. I could take her out to pee without her trying to run in the other direction anytime she saw Fuzznut or Peanut, which was great. They just didn't exist to her. So my mom comes here and brings her dog Scrappy's brother with her and what happened? He just set Upendi back doG only knows how far in her work with little dogs. And why? Because she was too lazy to pick him up for a minute like I asked. So the first thing Upendi was greeted by when she got downstairs was her dog jumping up and repeatedly biting her, while she cowered in fear. And what did my mom do? She sat there and laughed. Oh yes because it's so hilarious that your dog is causing my dog to have fear issues. And what happened when I told her to do something with her dog like I originally asked before I did? She got pissed. At this point, I wish she'd just take her dog and go back to wherever she came from.


text:
ARLINGTON, Texas
Freshman guard Nik Stauskas scored 22 points including six 3-pointers, and Michigan is going to the Final Four for the first time since the Fab Five era after a 79-59 rout of Florida in the South Regional final on Sunday.
The Wolverines (30-7) scored the games first 13 points and maintained a double-digit lead the rest of the game against the SEC regular-season champion Gators (29-8), who lost in a regional final for the third consecutive year.
Stauskas hit all six of his 3-point attempts, including consecutive makes from the left corner for to give Michigan a 41-17 lead.
Sophomore Trey Burke, the Big Ten Player of the Year, added 15 points for Michigan. Mitch McGary, another freshman, had 11 points and nine rebounds. He scored eight in the opening 13-0 run.
Kenny Boynton and Will Yeguette had 13 points each for Florida.
The Wolverines, with a steady rotation of six freshen and a sophomore, are headed to Atlanta to play Syracuse (30-9) in a national semifinal game Saturday.
Michigan hadnt been to the Final Four since consecutive national championship game appearances in 1992 and 1993, the freshman and sophomore seasons of the Fab Five Chris Webber, Jalen Rose, Juwan Howard, Ray Jackson and Jimmy King.
Webber was gone before that teams 1994 regional final loss to Arkansas played in the now-demolished Reunion Arena in Dallas, and Howard followed him to the NBA after that.
With four wins in this NCAA Tournament, the Wolverines already have more tournament victories than their total from the end of the Fab Five era to this season. They had one win in 1998, then didnt even make the field again until 2009.
Despite being the only team to make regional finals each of the last three seasons, the Gators havent been to the Final Four since winning consecutive national titles in 2006 and 2007.
Boynton and Erik Murphy, the four-year seniors who came in not long after those titles, will leave without one of their own. They were part of the only Gators class to win consecutive outright SEC regular-season championships but came up short in the biggest games.
After McGary started the scoring with a layup, Stauskas made a behind-the-back pass to McGary for a slam before making his first 3-pointer less than a half-minute after that.
Burke passed to McGary for a layup before driving for one of his own. McGarys jumper made it 13-0 only 3:05 into the game.
The Gators were able to recover from an early deficit against Florida Gulf Coast for a 62-50 win Friday night on the raised stage at Cowboys Stadium.
Facing Big Blue, it was another story.
Stauskas, who was 2-of-12 from 3-point range the first three games of this NCAA Tournament, couldnt miss against the Gators.
The 6-6 guard from Canada put the Wolverines up by 24 points with 4:08 left in the first half after two consecutive 3s from the left corner in a span of 27 seconds.
Louisville 85, Duke 63
INDIANAPOLIS With tears in their eyes and Kevin Ware in their hearts, there was no way Louisville was losing this game.
Russ Smith scored 23, Gorgui Dieng had 14 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks, and top-seeded Louisville put aside the shock from Wares gruesome leg injury to earn a second consecutive trip to the Final Four.
As the final seconds ticked down, Chane Behanan put Wares jersey on and stood at the end of the Louisville bench, screaming. Cardinals fans chanted Kevin Ware! Kevin Ware!
We won this for him, coach Rick Pitino said. We were all choked up with emotion for him. Well get him back to normal. Weve got great doctors, great trainers. We talked about it every timeout, Get Kevin home.
This was the first time Pitino and Mike Krzyzewski had met in the regional finals since that 1992 classic that ended with Christian Laettners improbable buzzer-beater, a game now considered one of the best in NCAA Tournament history.
This game will be remembered, too, but for a very different and much more somber reason.
With 6:33 left in the first half, Ware, a sophomore who has played a key role in Louisvilles 14-game winning streak, jumped to try and block Tyler Thorntons 3-point shot. When he landed, his right leg snapped midway between his ankle and knee, the bone skewing almost at a right angle. Ware dropped to the floor right in front of the Louisville bench and, almost in unison, his teammates turned away in horror. Thornton grimaced, putting his hand to his mouth as he turned around.
Louisville forward Wayne Blackshear fell to the floor, and Behanan looked as if he was going to be sick on the court, kneeling on his hands and feet. Luke Hancock patted Wares chest as doctors worked on the sophomore, and Smith walked away, pulling his jersey over his eyes.
Pitino had tears in his eyes as he tried to console his players. Dieng draped an arm around the shoulders of Smith, who repeatedly wiped at his eyes and shook his head. The Cardinals gathered at halfcourt to try and regroup before Pitino called them over to the sideline, saying Ware wanted to talk to them before he left.
News of the injury dominated social media. Joe Theismann whose NFL career ended with a horrific broken leg, said on Twitter, Watching Duke/ Louisville my heart goes out to Kevin Ware.
Fans chanted Kevin! Kevin as Ware was loaded onto the stretcher, and Pitino wiped away tears again as Ware was wheeled off the court.
The Cardinals struggled to put the horrific injury behind them, missing four of their next five shots along with two free throws after play resumed. They regrouped after a timeout, with Smiths finger roll sparking a 12-6 run to finish the half that gave them a 35-32 lead.
Smith picked up where he left off at the start of the second half, making all three free throws after being fouled on a 3-point attempt to give Louisville a 38-32 lead, its largest of the game to that point.
But just as he did against Michigan State, Duke star Seth Curry got hot after halftime, making two 3s in the first three minutes. Mason Plumlee dunked to tie the game at 42.
That, however, was all Louisville needed. Clawing for every rebound, diving on the floor for loose balls and cranking the intensity up even higher on their ferocious defense, the Cardinals were not going to lose.
And everyone, Duke included, knew it.
Smith made a layup, Siva made a nice jumper at the top of the key and then followed with a layup. Just like that, the Cardinals were off on a 20-4 run that sealed the victory.


text:
Yosemite National Park > Mount Conness > North Ridge > Climber's Log
North Ridge Climber's Log
[ Sign the Climber's Log ]
|Solo traverse w/ N Peak
Date Climbed: Sep 1, 2008
|Quiet Labor Day outing on Conness... didn't see another person on the mountain. Rapped the 2nd tower, thrilling climbing!
|Posted Sep 7, 2008 6:40 pm
|3 Route Solo Linkup
Date Climbed: Aug 16, 2008
|Soloed with Miguel. Second route of our North Peak NW Ridge -> Conness N Ridge -> Conness W Ridge linkup (all 3 routes in just under 11 hrs car-to-car). First Sierra climbing day!
|Posted Aug 20, 2008 2:43 pm
|Link-up again
Date Climbed: Aug 16, 2008
|Soloed with Will. This time linking it up with the NW Ridge of North Peak first. Took us 2 hrs from North Peak's summit to Conness's summit. Then, went onto solo West Ridge of Conness.
|Posted Aug 18, 2008 3:44 pm
|Fun Solo
Date Climbed: Jul 26, 2008
|Fun solo, linked up with the northwest ridge of North peak. A great day loop. The down climbing wasnt so bad.
|Posted Jul 31, 2008 1:14 am
Date Climbed: Jul 6, 2008
|Climbed this route after doing the NW ridge of North Peak.
We free soloed until the top of the second tower. From there we roped up for the 2 rappels and then simul-climbed to the top trying to stay close to the ridge.
Mosquitos were very agressive on the way down. They were even attacking us while on the ridge.
|Posted Jul 14, 2008 12:14 pm
|once again
Date Climbed: Jun 29, 2008
|Solo with Jascha. Time #3.
|Posted Jun 30, 2008 1:30 am
Date Climbed: Sep 17, 2005
|Super alpine climbing.
|Posted Oct 17, 2007 7:22 pm
|Part of North Ridge/West Ridge linkup
Date Climbed: Sep 15, 2007
|Soloed with Michelle and Deron. Just under 4hrs from Saddlebag to summit.
|Posted Sep 17, 2007 1:54 am
|linkup w/ w ridge
Date Climbed: Sep 15, 2007
|Soloed w/ Deron & Miguel. Short, but fun.
|Posted Sep 17, 2007 12:26 am
|Solo Linkup with West Ridge
Date Climbed: Sep 15, 2007
|Solo'd with fossana and forjan. Amazing sticky granite and awesome weather made this a climb that will be hard to forget. After a snack at the summit, we descended to the base of the west ridge and made the summit a second time.
|Posted Sep 16, 2007 2:42 pm
|Jim Carr
|Excellent Granite
Date Climbed: Aug 17, 2003
|This is an outstanding route. We found ourselves getting passed on the final pitches by several soloists, but we weren't discouraged. This is a high quality climb.
|Posted Jun 15, 2007 3:00 pm
|SC Day 1
Date Climbed: Jul 31, 2004
|Amazing route
Day 1 of the 2004 Sierra Challenge
|Posted Apr 9, 2007 12:47 am
|technical and white-out. 22 hour ascent from a bc nearby. a long hike up the road with all that gear!
|Posted Feb 3, 2007 4:45 pm
|Fun route
Date Climbed: Aug 28, 2006
|Enjoyed the climb with D-Rod and ScottyS, we came over from the NW Ridge of North Peak, which was also a fun scramble. I wish the section after the 2nd tower was longer, that is some enjoyable scrambling.
|Posted Sep 1, 2006 2:08 pm
Date Climbed: Aug 27, 2006
|Solo'd North Ridge with Etsuko after warming up on NW Ridge of North Peak. The downclimb from the 2nd tower was as easy as the first time I did it, even with my sprained ankle. Pavel and Vendula were climbing with us that day. A great day in terrific company!
|Posted Aug 28, 2006 4:26 pm


text:
Hi friends,
I need help with the floating point numbers. Actually, I want all the calculations done involving floats to be done using 2/3 digit precision. For Example... if I enter
a=20.20 and b=30.30 and then say c=b-a
internally a=20.200001 and b=30.299999 and accordingly c is not exactly equal to 10.10.
I need a way out with this.
The answers can be corrected in PRINTF using the format specifier but I dont Use Printf in my programs (low level).
Please help me out with this.
My Email ID: firstname.lastname@example.com


text:
Honolulu Police Choose Mobile VPN For High-Speed Data Link
Edge system from AT&T Wireless will network Oahu''s emergency personnel
|A Honolulu police officer works on his laptop connected to AT&T Wireless Edge network.
Edge is AT&T Wireless'' GPRS upgrade that allows users to transfer data with average speeds of between 100-130 kbps, twice as fast as wired dial-up.
Captain John Thompson of the HPD says officers needed a better means to perform such tasks as running a license plate number while simultaneously sending back field reports to precinct headquarters. "If you''re an officer in a car and you have the ability to run information through before pulling a suspect over, that''s invaluable," Thompson explains.
The existing radio system just wasn''t up to meeting the rapidly evolving needs of the island''s police force. For one thing, police precincts were only able to send simple text messages to officers in the field. "It was a good radio system for when we bought it (in 1990), but the department hadn''t anticipated the data capacity requirements there would be for contemporary applications," says Thompson.
The department needed a system that provided the highest data speeds possible and secure encryption software (due to the highly sensitive information being passed through it.) It also had to be easily upgradeable and provide flexible support and management. Furthermore, Thompson wanted to increase coverage on the Island of Oahu''s northeast shore, the Waianae coast. This remote part of the island had no voice services except for pay phones, and there were stretches without any telephone service whatsoever.
After much searching, the department found its solution with AT&T Wireless. In early September, HPD ordered 1,600 AT&T Wireless Edge mobile data units, the largest single order AT&T has received for this solution to date. Another 150 units are expected to be ordered by year''s end, says Thompson.
The mobile data units will provide every Honolulu police officer bandwidth at speeds not previously seen on the island. So far, five of the eight police districts are fully operational, and Thompson says complete deployment should be completed this month.
Thompson sees clear benefits to the implementation. "One of the advantages of the Edge network is flexibility," Thompson says. "Technology is so dynamic. If you own a technology, you own it for at least 20 years. If you buy a service instead, there''s more potential that you can keep pace with the best technology because there''s not as much initial capital outlay."
Reed Pangborn, AT&T''s application solutions consultant, notes, "With our Edge network, the department was able to leverage their private RF (radio frequency) system for voice-only traffic and carry higher-data bandwidth applications on our network in conjunction with their hotspots throughout the city."
Pangborn, who worked on the Honolulu deployment, adds that the system is versatile. "When you''re talking about throughput higher than 100 kilobits-per-second (kbps), the applications that you can access in the field increase significantly," he says.
Before deciding on AT&T Wireless, the department spent two months in early 2003 testing service from four competing vendors. Department technicians literally drove everywhere on Oahu, focusing on the remote areas usually overlooked for cell-site coverage. At every urban and rural site, technicians did signal testing by sending out requests and downloading files.
"This was the best technology at the time we made our procurement," Thompson says. HPD is subsidizing the Edge deployment with $1.7 million in annual funds received from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
AT&T Wireless brought in several partners that together architected HPD''s high-speed network. In this case, Panasonic and Dell provided the laptop computers, Ecutel, the wireless IP platform and Sony Ericsson, the Edge modems for connectivity to the Edge network.
HPD issues laptops to each individual officer instead of assigning them to each patrol car. With that in mind, every HPD patrol officer can now use the Internet, Intranet and e-mail, as well as access security databases and download archived maps and photographs. Thompson says the department is working on developing its digital technology so patrol cars can be equipped with digital cameras. Crime-scene photos then could be instantaneously sent back to the precinct or a crime scene laboratory.
Upon receiving the contract, AT&T Wireless committed to building a cell site on the Waianae coast, the northeast shore that had no cell coverage prior to deployment. "We [HPD] benefited for public safety data, the carrier was able to add a customer base, and the public will get data and voice service in areas that weren''t covered adequately before," says Thompson.
HPD still is developing interoperability among the fire and ambulance services units, which will begin their Edge rollouts in December. All 4,000 personnel that comprise Honolulu''s police, fire, emergency medical services, civil defense and others should have capability for unit-to-unit e-mail, co-sharing of Computer Aided Dispatch Information, unified command operations, sharing data through Web applications and a unified Intranet. "All first responders will have connectivity with each other on a single network within the first quarter of 2005," Pangborn says.
The city and county of Honolulu, which is home to about 80% of the state''s population, is also looking into tying the network with the outer islands such as Hawaii and Maui.
The technology impementation suffered only a few small glitches. In September, Honolulu was hit by extremely heavy rain, which affected one site in the east Honolulu area. Service was interrupted for a few hours. Thompson says he''s not deterred by such situations.
"We look at it as a very valuable data enhancement. But we''re very conscious of our role as an emergency safety service provider. So if there''s an interruption, we''re fully set up to revert from data to voice as needed," Thompson says."Our whole point is to provide our personnel with the tools to become more effective and efficient. That benefits the general community because we''re trying to take care of them in the best possible way."
Request product info from top Police Wireless Communications companies
Thank You!


text:
Jeter singles in first game since fracturing ankle
By Adam Berry / MLB.com
TAMPA, Fla. -- Yankees captain Derek Jeter returned to the field Saturday for the first time since Game 1 of the American League Championship Series last October, going 1-for-2 as New York's designated hitter in a 2-1 loss to the Braves.
Batting leadoff, Jeter swung at the first pitch he saw from Braves lefty Mike Minor and lined it into left field for a single. He was then forced out at second base on a fielder's choice despite attempting his first slide since fracturing his left ankle last year.
He grounded out to third base in his only other at-bat, running at less than full speed down the first-base line on his surgically repaired ankle. Jeter previously said he would have to be able to run at full speed before returning to Grapefruit League games, but he backed off that stance, pointing out that hardly anyone fully exerts themselves on the basepaths in their first Spring Training games each year.
"It felt good to be back, but my mind's always been at peace," Jeter said. "It just felt good to be out there. But when [Dr. Robert Anderson] said that my ankle was completely healed, what else is there to worry about as opposed to just getting the rest of your body in shape?
"Now it's normal Spring Training. I've played a game, so now it's just continuing to get more and more comfortable, more at-bats, more pitches, more times running around the bases. But now, I can just do it in games."
Jeter hadn't seen much live pitching before Saturday, aside from Friday's simulated game against Yankees lefty Andy Pettitte, but he liked the first pitch he saw from Minor.
"It was right down the middle," Jeter said. "He must've felt sorry for me."
Jeter isn't on the travel roster New York is sending to Dunedin, Fla., to face the Blue Jays on Sunday. He will most likely play one more game as the Yankees' designated hitter -- potentially as soon as Monday at home against the Cardinals -- before playing shortstop for the first time since last season.
"If that's what he feels he's ready to do, then we'll do it," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said.
Bombers bits
• Right-handers Phil Hughes, David Robertson and David Aardsma got back on the bullpen mound Saturday morning and all came out feeling well, a rare occasion amid New York's injury-riddled spring.
"All good news," Girardi said. "Maybe the worm has turned."
• Most notable among that group was Hughes, who's been sidelined by a bulging disk in his upper back. Hughes went through his normal throwing program, then added 10 pitches off the mound -- his first time on the hill since he sustained the injury during fielding drills on Feb. 18. Hughes will likely throw a full side session of 25-30 pitches Monday.
"Everything's good," Hughes said.
• Robertson threw 28 pitches in the bullpen and said he's "fine." Robertson had been dealing with some right shoulder discomfort after sleeping on it wrong, he said, but he was cleared Thursday to pitch. His last Grapefruit League appearance was March 1.
• Girardi has been impressed with the spring performance of right-hander Jose Ramirez, who allowed one hit and struck out four over four shutout innings Saturday. Ramirez, who spent last season with Class A Advanced Tampa, hasn't allowed a run in nine Grapefruit League innings spread over three appearances. He's given up only four hits and one walk while striking out five.
"He's been great. The kid has thrown the ball really well," Girardi said. "He's throwing strikes. He's got an outstanding changeup. His slider's a work in progress. He spots his fastball with velocity. He's had an outstanding spring."
• After Saturday's 2-1 loss to the Braves, right-handers Tom Kahnle and Kelvin Perez were optioned to Minor League camp.
Adam Berry is a reporter for MLB.com. Follow him on Twitter at @adamdberry. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


text:
Reductions in Local TV Newsgathering Efforts Trouble Prof. Jeff McCall '76
October 8, 2013
"Times are both rosy and challenging in the local television news industry," reports New York's Rochester Democrat & Chronicle. "On one hand, it, like traditional media from newspapers to radio, has been battered by a declining audience and advertisers looking elsewhere. Viewership of early-evening newscasts (typically meaning between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m.) is down almost 14 percent over the past five years, according to the State of the News Media 2013 report by the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism ... On the other hand, stations are increasingly lengthening their newscasts or adding additional ones since advertising during newscasts generally is the main source of stations' income, said Jeffrey M. McCall, professor of communication at Indiana's DePauw University."
The story by Matthew Daneman continues, Creating an hour-long newscast at noon or an early morning news show 'is cheaper than trying to get Wheel of Fortune in syndication, for example,' McCall said. 'Once you have your initial investment, it's not an extra huge expense to add an extra half-hour in the morning or late afternoon.' "
The article examines a "news swap" between three Rochester stations, in which one station produces local news shows for another. McCall tells the newspaper, "I'm really disappointed when I see local TV news stations get rid of their newsgathering functions. In the TV news industry, there's already a lot of consonance, where everybody's covering the same thing anyway. When you have a station picking up newscasts from a competitor, you've lost all that extra news judgment."
Access the complete story here.
Jeff McCall is a 1976 graduate of DePauw and faculty adviser to student radio station WGRE. A former journalist, the professor has been quoted in more than 100 newspapers in articles examining media matters, including a nationally syndicated column last week on cable television and sports programming. Dr. McCall authored the book Viewer Discretion Advised: Taking Control of Mass Media Influences and has appeared a dozen times on the Fox News program The O'Reilly Factor.
Source: Rochester (N.Y.) Democrat & ChronicleBack


text:
Summaries of EU Legislation
Summaries of EU legislation: direct access to the main summaries page.
- Archived: true
The future of health care and care for the elderly: guaranteeing accessibility, quality and financial viability
All national health care systems are today faced with three major challenges, as the population of Europe is ageing, health care is increasingly effective but also becoming more expensive, and patients, having become true consumers, are also more demanding. Faced with these three challenges, the Commission has proposed three long-term objectives: access to health care for all, a high level of quality in health care and ensuring the financial viability of health care systems.
Communication from the Commission of 5 December 2001 - The future of health care and care for the elderly: guaranteeing accessibility, quality and financial viability [COM(2001) 723 final - Not published in the Official Journal].
The EU's overall health situation and health care systems are among the best in the world, thanks to the widespread extension of cover against sickness and invalidity, the rise in the standard of living, improved living conditions and better health education.
Total health care spending rose from around 5 % of GDP in 1970 to over 8 % in 1998. Public health care spending followed the same trend of growing faster than GDP in most countries.
The impact of demographic ageing on health care systems and expenditure
The ageing of the population in Europe involves two aspects:
- since 1970, life expectancy at birth has risen by 5.5 years for women and almost 5 years for men. This trend also means higher life expectancy in "good health" and in the absence of disability;
- there are more elderly people. The proportion of the total European population older than 65 is set to increase from 16.1 % in 2000 to 27.5 % by 2050, while the proportion of the population aged over 80 years (3.6 % in 2000) is expected to reach 10 % by 2050.
If Eurostat's basic scenarios are confirmed, public expenditure on health care could increase by between 0.7 and 2.3 GDP points in the period 2000-2050.
The increase in the numbers of elderly people will thus increase the pressure on the public sector for long-term care.
In light of these needs, health care structures, methods of financing and the organisation of services will have to evolve. It will be particularly important to deal with the increased need for skilled manpower, as smaller and more unstable family structures make it increasingly difficult to rely on the support of family networks.
The growth of new technologies and treatments
Developments in medical technology (gene therapies, growing replacement organs, new medicinal substances, etc.) provide benefits for patients, for example by reducing the risks of serious illness by means of preventive treatment. However, these innovations come at a cost, and financing is an issue that must be considered. In the context of prudent budget management, clear, transparent and effective evaluation mechanisms must be developed, as this is the only way to guarantee greater accessibility to these new products and treatments.
The increase in patients' demands
It has been observed for half a century that the demand for health care tends to increase more than proportionally to the per capita income. Demand is determined by standard of living and level of education. This has three main consequences:
- patients are better educated and are able to adopt healthier lifestyles and a prevention-based attitude which in the long run makes it possible to avoid the need for costly care. This is why health care systems are focusing increasingly on education and prevention;
- patients expect ever better quality and efficiency from health care systems. The spread of information technologies gives patients access to more information on services available at European level and allows them to make an increasingly well-informed choice;
- health care consumers feel that they need to be considered as partners and players in health care systems, not only by health professionals but also by the public authorities. They also expect greater transparency on the performance and quality of care services.
While the organisation of health care systems, their funding (ratio of public/private funding) and planning as a function of the needs of the population are a matter for the Member States, this responsibility is exercised increasingly within a general framework on which many Community policies have a bearing (research, public health policy, free movement of persons and services, viability of public funds). This is an argument for strengthening European cooperation.
The Communication identifies three long-term objectives for national systems, which should be pursued in parallel.
Access to health care is a right enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. However, it is often affected by an individual's social status. It is therefore particularly important to ensure that access to health care for disadvantaged groups and for the poorest members of society is guaranteed.
The joint report to evaluate the national action plans for social inclusion proposes three categories of measures:
- measures to develop disease prevention and promote health education (mother and child care, medical care at school and medical care at work);
- providing less expensive and even free care for those in low-income brackets;
- measures aimed at disadvantaged groups, e.g. the mentally ill, migrants, the homeless, alcoholics and drug addicts.
In order to provide quality health care, national governments are required to achieve an optimum balance between the health benefits and the cost of medication and treatment. Ascertaining quality in this way is made complex by:
- the diversity of the structures and levels of health care, which often influence demand for health care and consequently the level of expenditure;
- the different approaches to medical treatment.
Comparative analysis of health care systems and medical treatment should make it possible to identify "best practice" and thus to help improve the quality of health care systems.
Financial viability
A certain level of financing is required to ensure the availability of high-quality health care that is accessible to the population. There is upward pressure on these health care costs, irrespective of the way in which Member States' health care systems are organised. Member States have been undertaking reforms since the early 1990s, based mainly on two methods:
- regulation of demand, by increasing contributions or by ensuring that the final consumer bears an increasingly large share of the costs;
- regulation of supply, by determining budgets or resource envelopes for health care providers, creating a contractual relationship between "buyers" and "providers" of health care.
It is often difficult, however, to distinguish the short-term effects from the more structural effects of these reforms, which allow spending to develop at a sustainable pace. This Communication recommends more exchanges of experience, which would help to keep track of the policies introduced and would be a useful way of comparing health care systems and encouraging progress.
In order to achieve these objectives it is essential that all parties concerned (local authorities, health care professionals, social protection bodies, supplementary insurance companies, consumers) work together to build strong partnerships.
This Communication is a response to the conclusions of the Lisbon European Council of March 2000, which stressed that social protection systems needed to be reformed in order to be able to provide high-quality health care services. It also takes up the request made by the Gothenburg summit (June 2001) to prepare a progress report for the Spring 2002 European Council suggesting guidelines in the field of health and care for the elderly.
Key figures
- life expectancy in 2000: 74.7 for men and 81.1 for women
- life expectancy in 2050 (Eurostat forecast): 79.7 for men and 85.1 for women
- percentage of people aged over 65 in Europe in 2000: 16.1 %
- percentage of people aged over 65 in Europe in 2050: 27.5 %
- percentage of people aged over 80 in Europe in 2000: 3.6 %
- percentage of people aged over 80 in Europe in 2050: 10 %
Communication from the Commission of 20 April 2004 - Modernising social protection for the development of high-quality, accessible and sustainable health care and long-term care: support for the national strategies using the "open method of coordination" [COM(2004) 304 final - Not published in the Official Journal]. This Communication proposes that the "open method of coordination" be extended to the health and long-term care sector. This will allow a framework to be established to promote exchanges of experience and best practices and support the Member States in the reform of health care and long-term care.
Joint report from the Commission and the Council on health care and care for the elderly: Supporting national strategies for ensuring a high level of social protection. The Barcelona European Council (2002) invited the Commission and the Council to examine more thoroughly the questions of access, quality and financial sustainability. A questionnaire was sent to the Member States in 2002 in order to collect information on their approaches to these three objectives. The joint report is based on the responses received.
This joint report was adopted by the "Employment, Social Affairs, Health and Consumer Affairs" Council on 6 March and by the "Economic and Financial Affairs" Council on 7 March as a contribution to the March 2003 European Council.
Last updated: 27.10.2004


text:
Belief in science is great. However, do you see that connecting your love of science to atheism makes it dependent upon theism? After all, atheism means, roughly, belief in no religion. So... it requires religion, in order to exist.
The implication is that, as long as you see yourself as an atheist (devoid of religion), you are ironically inescapably tangled with the thing you despise.
I say you find what you enjoy and pursue it on its own merits, not in reaction to your feelings about religion.
And K4L, God bless him, simply does not heed Jesus' call for not judging others. This also means not positively judging anyone (ourselves) as saved or chosen, because, even by Christian standards, Jesus/God makes clear he is the judge, not mankind. Saying they are chosen arrogantly attempts to usurp God's authority. Saying others are not is the same thing. Man's judgment is weak and self-interested, when compared to the supreme.


text:
Did you tell him "Aslan" was the Turkish word for lion and get him started as a language hacker?
― Stars on 45 Fell on Alabama (James Redd and the Blecchs), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 02:53 (five years ago) Permalink
the worst
― Lamp, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 05:23 (five years ago) Permalink
it's no chillwave the genre
― puff puff post (uh oh I'm having a fantasy), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 08:33 (five years ago) Permalink
wolfe or lewis?
― the late great, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 13:02 (five years ago) Permalink
I'm no kind of book collector -- I mostly have shelves of old paperbacks -- but for whatever reason I was searching around for Book of the New Sun volumes and got seduced by the Easton Press editions. (Leatherbound, but way cheaper than the Centipede Press ones.) I found the first two on ebay and ordered them before I discovered Easton never got around to Autarch -- so the best I can hope for is to have the first three. Oh well. I read them in middle/high school as they were published, and then again in my 20s. I remember the story making way more sense to me the second time through. Looking forward to revisitng.
― something of an astrological coup (tipsy mothra), Saturday, 18 January 2014 18:20 (four years ago) Permalink
― the late great, Saturday, 18 January 2014 23:12 (four years ago) Permalink
please start this up!
gene wolfe's book of the NEWSUN!!!!! reading club
― the late great, Sunday, 19 January 2014 03:32 (four years ago) Permalink


text: I am an avid reader, and possibly the biggest Potter fan. I have been reading Harry Potter since I was a small child and since then have read each and every single book, and not only one but I beleive I have read each one over about 50 times each. :) It is a huge part of my life, without it I would be incomplete. I enjoy reveiwing stories, and have come across a few astounding ones. I am also considering writing a story, being as I am a writer myself. Also, for all you potterfans I host a Potter podcast, check it out at : blogtlakradio.com/PW