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Recent evidence suggests that women with gestational hypertension (GH) have a high rate of sleep disordered breathing (SDB), and treatment for even marginal SDB may improve blood pressure control in women with GH. We assessed whether the application SDB treatment could improve blood pressure in women with GH.
This was a single-center randomized study. Subjects underwent an unattended home-based diagnostic sleep study. The study was then repeated with subjects wearing one of two randomly assigned treatments: auto-titrating continuous positive airway pressure (auto-CPAP) or mandibular advancement device (MAD) + nasal strip. First morning blood pressure and blood for standard GH measures plus inflammatory markers were taken after each study. Subjects completed a series of questionnaires addressing sleep quality and tolerance of assigned therapy.
Twenty-four women completed the protocol—13 in the MAD group and 11 in auto-CPAP. The overall rate of SDB was 38%. Auto-CPAP was more effective at treating SDB than MAD + nasal strip, although the women randomized to MAD + nasal strip reported the greater comfort with therapy. First morning blood pressure was not consistently improved with either therapy. When subjects were stratified according to those whose blood pressure increased or decreased with therapy, an association was suggested between blood pressure improvement and reduced levels of tumour necrosis factor-α.
We demonstrated that 38% of women with GH had concurrent SDB. We did not find an improvement in blood pressure or inflammatory markers with a single night of either the auto-CPAP or MAD + nasal strip interventions. However important lessons from this study may guide future investigations in this area.
Reid J; Taylor-Gjevre R; Gjevre J; Skomro R; Fenton M; Olatunbosun F; Gordon JR; Cotton D. Can gestational hypertension be modified by treating nocturnal airflow limitation? J Clin Sleep Med 2013;9(4):311-317.
Gestational hypertension (GH) complicates nearly 10% of all pregnancies.1 If a patient with GH has evidence of proteinuria (≥ 300 mg/day) or signs of other organ damage, then she is said to have preeclampsia.2 The underlying cause of GH is unknown, but recent evidence suggests that sleep disordered breathing (SDB) may be a contributing factor in the development or exacerbation of GH.3–8 Certainly, GH and SDB share common risk factors and SDB is a recognized cause of hyper-tension in non-pregnant adults.9
Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment is considered a safe treatment in pregnant women with SDB, and small studies have suggested its use may improve blood pressure in women with or at risk for GH. Edwards et al. demonstrated improvements in blood pressure with only a single night of auto-adjusting CPAP (auto-CPAP) in women with severe preeclampsia, as well as a reduction in uric acid levels—a metabolic marker of preeclampsia.6 These results were particularly interesting because although all subjects demonstrated subtle decrements to inspira-tory airflow, none had an AHI ≥ 5, suggesting that perhaps even a mild degree of airway obstruction during sleep interacts negatively with the heightened inflammatory state of GH. If these results could be replicated in more "real world" conditions, it might obviate the need for diagnostic testing and thereby simplify and expedite the treatment of patients for whom time is of the essence.
Current knowledge/Study Rationale: To assess the frequency of SDB in women with GH using a portable monitoring system. Also, to assess the effect of two different SDB treatment strategies on first morning blood pressure and markers of inflammation in these women.
Study Impact: Our findings support the hypothesis that at least mild SDB in common in unselected women with GH. While we failed to achieve our pirmary endpoint, important lessons from this study will be innstuctive for further research in this area.
To date the published literature has focussed solely on CPAP for treatment of SDB in GH.5,6,10 Although mandibular advancement devices (MAD) are an alternative to CPAP therapy for mild to moderate SDB11,12 and are often preferred to CPAP by young patients, MADs have not been evaluated in the context of GH. One reason may be that MADs usually take weeks to months to be properly adjusted. However, temporary MADs can be fitted at home in ten minutes without the assistance of a dental professional. The SomnoGuard AP is one such device that has been shown to improve mild to moderate SDB.13,14 Additionally, nasal strips are widely used to diminish snoring,15,16 but they alone are not effective at treating SDB. As nasal congestion is an extremely common symptom in women with GH,4,7 we postulated that the addition of a nasal strip may prove to be a simple, safe, and inexpensive augmentation to MAD in this population.
There are often only a few weeks or less from the time of GH diagnosis until delivery and if GH progresses to preeclampsia then the expectant mother is routinely admitted to hospital and may be urgently delivered. Patients with GH require the prompt initiation of effective therapies, from which obstetricians expect results within days and sometimes even hours. These circumstances render laboratory-based polysomnography (PSG) impractical, but home-based testing strategies such as nocturnal oximetry and conventional level 3 monitoring are insufficiently sensitive to diagnose the mild degree of SDB usually seen in women with GH—likely explaining the disparate reports in the literature.6,7,17,18
We postulated that by using a portable sleep monitor with EEG capability we would detect a high rate of mild SDB in women with GH and furthermore that most, if not all, subjects would demonstrate inspiratory airflow limitation. We also assessed whether the combination of a MAD + nasal strip would be as effective as auto-CPAP in improving SDB and inspiratory airflow. Finally and most importantly, to assess whether the findings of Edwards et al.6 could be translated to "real world" conditions, we assessed whether either assigned therapy was associated with an improvement in first morning blood pressure, regardless of RDI. This was our primary endpoint. Additionally, as an exploratory assessment, we measured first morning metabolic/inflammatory marker responses to treatment in all our subjects. Although it would have been ideal to evaluate the treatment effect over several weeks, the unpredictable course of late-term complicated pregnancies along with frequent medication changes made this impractical. Additionally, as the clinical arena demands therapies to effectively lower blood pressure within days we felt it appropriate to test our interventions against this standard and therefore focussed our assessment to a single night intervention.
This was a single-center randomized pilot study comparing 2 SDB treatment modalities (auto-CPAP versus MAD + nasal strip) in women with GH (with or without proteinuria). The study comprised 2 parts: part one was a home-based diagnostic evaluation for SDB; in part 2, subjects repeated the home-based sleep study while wearing one of the 2 randomly assigned treatments. After each study, first morning blood pressure was measured by a registered nurse and blood was drawn for inflammatory markers. Subjects also completed a series of questionnaires which assessed sleep quality and tolerance of assigned therapy. The study was approved by the University of Saskatchewan Research Ethics Board and registered with the National Clinical Trials Registry (NCT 00757718).
Women ≥ 18 years of age with singleton pregnancies and the diagnosis of GH (with or without proteinuria) were recruited from the Fetal Assessment Unit and Antepartum ward of Royal University Hospital, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. GH was defined according to standard criteria.2 All potentially eligible women identified were screened for eligibility by chart review and if possible, by interview.
Baseline data were collected for age, height, weight, weight gain in pregnancy, snoring, smoking status, and obstetrical and general medical history. Subjects completed a series of short questionnaires which addressed both sleepiness and common signs or symptoms of SDB. These included the Epworth Sleepiness Score (ESS),19 the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI),20 the Berlin Questionnaire,21 and a visual analogue scale ([VAS] with 0 for worst and 100 for best) of sleep quality (Appendix 1). A full-night unattended portable Sleep Study using the Embletta X100 (Embla, Denver, CO, USA) was then performed either at the subjects' home or hospital bed. Monitoring channels included 2-lead electroencephalogram, 1-lead electrooculogram, submental electromyogram, pulse oximetry, nasal airflow pressure sensor and oronasal thermistor airflow, and snore vibration sensor chest and abdominal movements by Xact Trace inductive plethysmography. Following the study, first morning blood pressure was taken by a registered nurse with experience in high-risk obstetrics. Fasting blood was drawn the morning after the study and tested the same day for CBC, liver enzymes, and highly sensitive C-reactive protein (CRP). A final tube of blood was prepared and stored at −80° centigrade until study completion, at which time all samples were tested as a single batch for interleukin (IL)-2, IL-6, IL-8, and tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α).
Subjects then completed a second sleep study while wearing the randomly assigned treatment: auto-CPAP (Respironics [Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. Amsterdam The Netherlands] REMstar Auto M series with range 5-20 cm H2O and C-Flex set at 2) with heated humidification or a combination of SomnoGuard AP (Tomed Dr. Toussaint GmbH, Bensheim Germany) MAD and Breathe Right nasal strip (GSK, Brentford, Middlesex, UK). The treatment night was conducted as soon as possible after the diagnostic study, usually the subsequent night, and almost always within 72 hours. Treatment allocation was determined by envelope randomization performed at the time of study enrolment and all subjects received a treatment night regardless of the results of the first night diagnostic study. Auto-CPAP subjects were fitted for a mask and instructed on use of the CPAP by a registered sleep technician. All patients assigned to the MAD group had the device fitted by a single investigator (JKR) according to manufacturer's instructions, with the final position of the lower jaw determined by the optimal balance between forward mandibular advancement (mean of 5 mm from resting position, which was 68% of maximum) and subject comfort. The appropriate size of nasal strip (Sm/Med or Large) was assessed by the same investigator, and subjects were instructed on the proper application of both devices. Blood pressure and fasting blood work was repeated in same manner as for the diagnostic study. On the morning following the treatment study, subjects completed a short questionnaire with visual analogue scales (0 for worst and 100 for best, Appendix 2), which evaluated the quality of their sleep with the assigned device, whether it improved their sleep, and whether they would like to continue using this treatment for the remainder of the pregnancy. Our clinical experience has been that many patients initially agree to CPAP therapy but do not follow through with this once at home. We therefore chose visual analogue scales rather than categorical questions because we wanted to appreciate the degree of positive and negative reactions subjects had to their assigned therapies. Although the study evaluation was complete after the single treatment night, women in the Auto-CPAP group were allowed to keep the CPAP unit until the end of pregnancy if they wished. Women in the MAD group kept the MAD for use as they desired and were provide with a supply of nasal strips. Additionally, all subjects were instructed that if they wished to try the therapy not assigned to them, we would provide that for the duration of the pregnancy.
Studies were scored according the American Academy of Sleep Medicine standard criteria22 by a single registered sleep technician who was blinded to clinical data. Respiratory events were categorized as apneas (a decrease in airflow ≥ 90% from baseline for ≥ 10 sec); hypopneas (decrease in airflow ≥ 30% for ≥ 10 sec and followed by a desaturation ≥ 4% from the pre-event baseline); and respiratory event-related arousals (RERAs), defined as a sequence of breaths lasting ≥ 10 sec, associated with flattening of the nasal pressure waveform but not meeting criteria for an apnea or hypopnea, and leading to an arousal from sleep.22 The total number of apneas, hypopneas and RERAs divided by the hours of sleep was expressed as the respiratory disturbance index (RDI).
IL-1, IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-α levels were determined using standard capture ELISA assays, with matched capture and biotinylated specific detection antibodies and recombinant protein standards.23 All samples were run in duplicate, and all assays were sensitive to ≈10 pg/mL of recombinant cytokine
The primary outcome measure was change in morning blood pressure with therapy. Secondary outcomes included changes in RDI and inflammatory cytokine levels with therapy, as well as treatment compliance and subjective perception of improvement in sleep quality. SPSS v.17.0 was employed for data entry and analysis. Descriptive and frequency data was reported. Independent 2-tailed t-tests were used for comparison of continuous data. Comparison of continuous data measures between time points within individuals was performed by paired 2-tailed t-testing. Chi-square testing was employed for categorical data; Fisher exact test was used when cell size was < 5.
The sample size for this study was based on 2-group comparison of the binary outcome of DBP above or below 90 mm Hg. We employed a 2-sided α value of 0.05, a β of 0.2, estimated PA for the CPAP treatment group of 0.85, and PB for the MAD treatment group of 0.30. Utilizing standard sample size calculation formulae provided a requirement for 24 patients in total.24
Study enrolment ran from December 2008 to July 2009, during which time there were 2,712 deliveries, including 101 patients diagnosed with GH (with or without proteinuria). Three-quarters of potentially eligible subjects were identified and approached for study enrollment, with 26 consenting to participate. Twenty-four subjects completed both nights of the study with assigned therapy (11 auto-CPAP and 13 MAD + nasal strip subjects), and these 24 were used for analysis. Seven of the 24 subjects had proteinuria (3 in auto-CPAP and 4 in MAD + nasal strip). Baseline characteristics are presented in Table 1. Despite no subjects having had a prior diagnosis or suspicion of SDB, nasal congestion (19 subjects) and snoring (21 subjects) were commonly reported, and 10 subjects reported nocturnal gasping/choking. There were no significant differences between groups for smoking, nasal congestion, witnessed apneas, snoring, nocturnal gasping or choking, use of antihypertensive medications, gestational diabetes, current or previous preeclampsia. Subjects randomized to MAD + nasal strip did report slightly better sleep at baseline by VAS than the CPAP women (p = 0.034). The treatment study was conducted on the night subsequent to the diagnostic study for 18 of the 24 subjects, and all but one (a 7-day delay in one CPAP subject) were studied within 72 hours. Thirteen subjects had both studies conducted at home, and 8 had both done in the hospital. Three subjects had their diagnostic study in hospital and treatment study at home.
Comparison of baseline characteristics (n = 24)
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On the diagnostic study, most subjects demonstrated substantial inspiratory flow limitation, and 9 subjects had at least mild (RDI ≥ 5) SDB. With a mean pressure of 6.8 ± 1.3 cm H2O, auto-CPAP eliminated inspiratory flow limitation and lowered the RDI (10.73 ± 17.07 to 1.38 ± 2.12; p = 0.075; 95% CI: -1.12, 19.81). Downloaded data from the CPAP units showed average usage of nearly 6.5 h for treatment nights (Table 3). This corresponded to 78% of the subjects' estimated total sleep time and correlated surprisingly closely to their subjective estimate of CPAP usage, which was 84% of the night. MAD subjects estimated that they wore the therapy for 75% of the night, but we had no objective measure for verification. The therapeutic effect of the MAD + nasal strip was inconsistent, with 3 subjects actually having an increased RDI and flow limitation with therapy. We did not find any significant, consistent treatment response within individuals for blood pressure (our primary objective), cytokine levels, or sleep parameters over the 2 study nights in either the auto-CPAP or the MAD + nasal strip treatment groups. Full comparison of the diagnostic and treatment night parameters are presented in Table 2.
Comparison of outcome parameters for diagnostic and treatment studies
As obstetricians consider a diastolic blood pressure (DBP) ≥ 90 mm Hg as the clinically relevant threshold for GH treatment,2 we further compared patients within and between treatment groups based on this dichotomy. In the morning after the diagnostic study, 45.5% (5/11) of CPAP subjects and 53.8% (7/13) MAD subjects had a DBP < 90 mm Hg, compared to post-treatment night percentages of 54.5% (6/11) and 61.5% (8/13), respectively. For CPAP subjects, 18% (2/11) converted to a DBP < 90 mm Hg with treatment, and 9% (1/11) progressed in the opposite direction to a DBP ≥ 90 mm Hg. For the MAD group, 1/13 (7.7%) converted to a DBP < 90 mm Hg, and none converted in the opposite direction. These proportional changes in category between treatment groups were not statistically significant (p = 0.371). Further evaluation of subjects according to DBP response (Table 3) revealed that the TNF-α level significantly decreased in women with blood pressure improvement (Table 3, Figure 1). Similar results were not found for the other cytokine measures.
Comparison of responders vs non-responders, based on diastolic blood pressure (DBP)
Comparison of the change in TNF-α levels, based on diastolic blood pressure response
By using a relatively simple home-based portable sleep monitor with limited EEG capability, we found 38% of participants with GH to have coexistent SDB, and most of those with RDI < 5 demonstrated prolonged periods of inspiratory flow limitation during sleep. This is in agreement with other studies that have utilized more extensive monitoring techniques3,6,7 and further supports the concept of SDB in GH as being primarily due to partial upper airway obstruction with little or no arterial oxygen desaturation. While the pathophysiologic importance of this subtle breathing disturbance in GH needs further elucidation, we feel that future research in this evolving area should not rely on oximetry-based monitoring strategies as most abnormalities will likely be missed.17
Regarding the SDB treatment arms, it is not surprising that the MAD was less effective at lowering the RDI than auto-CPAP. MADs are generally less efficacious therapy than CPAP with results that depend on a constellation of individual characteristics; and even when these are considered, a positive response to therapy can still be difficult to predict.25 Furthermore, in our study the MAD could not be automatically adjusted in response to upper airway resistance as the auto-CPAP could. An important reason for our choice of the SomnoGuard AP was its two-piece design that incorporated a small aperture to allow for oral breathing. However, some of our subjects had profound nasal congestion that was not improved by the nasal strip, and it is possible that for these women the MAD actually increased airflow obstruction at the mouth opening.
Ideally, we would have utilized several nights to optimize compliance and adjust therapy as necessary, but the unpredictable clinical course of GH risked us losing a number of subjects to early delivery with this strategy. Furthermore, the physiologic status and medications of GH patients are subject to rapid changes and time delays between the diagnostic night and therapeutic night studies could have complicated the evaluation of treatment. We had therefore planned to have the treatment night as soon as possible after the diagnostic study. We were interested to see that the MAD subjects indicated a greater desire to continue with therapy (Table 2) as well as trend to greater comfort compared to CPAP. This suggests to us that the MAD + nasal strip may still be a therapy worth exploring as an intervention, but earlier in gestation when sufficient time would be available for appropriate patient selection and device adjustment.
With regard to our primary endpoint of blood pressure improvement with therapy, we failed to demonstrate a significant improvement for either treatment arm. It could be reasonably argued that this was an expected consequence of applying treatment to many subjects who did not satisfy the standard diagnostic criteria for SDB. However, we chose our approach to test the hypothesis that most, if not all, women with GH have at least inspiratory airflow limitation during sleep and that this carries with it hemodynamic and inflammatory consequences.6 We do not believe our negative results justify discarding this hypothesis as null because there remain several other potential reasons for our failure to reproduce the results of Edwards. One such reason is that we included all patients with GH, not only those with severe preeclampsia, which may account for the inconsistent changes in hemodynamic parameters observed. We chose this broad inclusion criteria because our previous work had established that SDB frequency is similar in GH women with or without preeclampsia,7 and also because over a third of women with the initial diagnosis of GH will eventually progress to preeclampsia.2,26 However, for a small study such as ours with only a single night intervention, it may have been better in retrospect to have selected subjects with the greatest likelihood of benefit from therapy (i.e., preeclamptics). Accordingly, we find it interesting that those subjects whose DBP did improve with therapy showed a nonsignificant trend toward having a higher DBP at baseline (p = 0.179, Table 3).
Our study has a number of limitations, first being the aforementioned small sample size. Nonetheless, ours is the largest trial we are aware of in this novel area. We do believe that a large multicenter trial is in order to definitively evaluate whether treatment of SDB can improve the management of GH. Secondly, it may be that only one night of treatment in late third trimester is not enough to influence the inflammatory and hemodynamic perturbations of GH; and intervening earlier in gestation, as considered by Guilleminault et al.10 may hold more promise. Such a strategy could allow sufficient time to optimize treatment and provide longitudinal follow-up of nightly therapy. Since women who develop GH earlier in gestation are more likely to be the ones who progress to preeclampsia,26 intervening earlier in gestation (i.e., < 30 weeks) may target those women who are most likely to benefit from therapy.
Furthermore, although the home-based design of our study allowed for generalization to "real-world" conditions, it also presented some limitations. We did not have the ability to make adjustments to the assigned therapy "on the fly" as we could in a laboratory-based study—potentially limiting both the effectiveness of therapy and subject compliance. Additionally, we could not measure therapeutic compliance for the MAD subjects. We do note that for the CPAP group the subjective estimate of usage closely matched actual usage (data downloaded from the machines) and speculate this may also have been true for the MAD group. Just as importantly, our blood pressure measurement technique differed substantially from Edwards et al., who utilized a Finapres (FMS, Amsterdam, The Netherlands) to continuously monitor pressure by the noninvasive volume-clamp method. We have used similar technology in our lab, but found it to be too cumbersome and unreliable to implement with portable testing. Instead we recorded early morning BP measured by an obstetrical nurse while subjects were awake. We feel this approach was appropriate because these are the measurements on which clinical decisions are made. However, such "real-world" measurements likely introduced additional random error for which our study was underpowered to accommodate.
Our biochemical analyses included standard measures for GH (platelets, uric acid) as well as those not evaluated clinically but which have been shown to be increased in GH and/or disturbances of sleep.27,28 In particular, TNF-α is an inflamma-tory biomarker which has been associated with sleep loss29 and improves with CPAP therapy in non-pregnant OSA patients.30 We therefore find it intriguing that the TNF-α level decreased in those subjects who did experience a blood pressure improvement with treatment. More study will be required to determine the clinical relevance of TNF-α in GH women, if it is impacted by the coexistence of SDB, and if so, if SDB treatment can consistently influence that relationship. We hope that our findings will encourage further research into these interactions.
Through portable testing with EEG capability, we demonstrated a high rate of SDB in women with GH and auto-titrating CPAP provided effective SDB treatment. While the combination of MAD + nasal strip provided inconsistent results, future studies may delineate clinical characteristics that allow the therapy to be better customized to individuals. Although we were unable to demonstrate a consistent relationship between SDB treatment and improvement in blood pressure or inflammatory markers, we believe the information from this pilot study will guide future research in this evolving field.
This was not an industry supported study. The authors have indicated no financial conflicts of interest.
All research was conducted at the Royal University Hospital Sleep Disorders Centre, University of Saskatchewan. The authors thank Maryla Stiles, Xiaobei Zhang, Jennifer Town, Lori Reid, and the staff in the Royal University Hospital Sleep Lab and Antepartum Ward for their assistance. The authors also acknowledge the Saskatoon Health Region for their support. This project was jointly funded by the Royal University Hospital Foundation and The Lung Association of Saskatchewan. The funding agencies had no role in the acquisition, storage or interpretation of the data. Dr. Reid had full access to all the data in the study and takes full responsibility for the integrity of the data and accuracy of the analysis.
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Visual analogue scale of sleep quality
Feedback form for treatment night


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Posted at: 03/30/2014 3:37 PM
Sen. Charles Schumer is asking federal officials to review security at the World Trade Center site after authorities said a series of daredevils sneaked into its signature skyscraper.
Schumer said Sunday the Department of Homeland Security should test surveillance equipment at the site, survey the perimeter for possible illegal entry points and check security guards' performance.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey owns the site. Security chief Joseph Dunne says the agency and a company managing the tower's security "have taken significant steps to address" recent lapses.
In the last two weeks, a teenager was charged with climbing to the top of the 1,776-foot spire of 1 World Trade Center, and three skydiving enthusiasts turned themselves in to face charges in a September jump off the building.

subset: commoncrawl


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I sure am glad this thread popped back up, as I am plannign my route to the BMW RA rally & was planning on traveling Hwy 14. Good excuse to detour through Zion!
I sure am glad this thread popped back up, as I am plannign my route to the BMW RA rally & was planning on traveling Hwy 14. Good excuse to detour through Zion!
Seems like this road in Utah just does not want to stay clear of rocks and boulders!
It was completely repaired this past summer and now that winter weather has set in, scenic items are resting again on the road!
Rock fall damages SR-14 again, but road remains open
December 11, 2012
CEDAR CITY ÔÇö A rock fall on SR-14 temporarily shut down the road Monday night, roughly six months after a much more serious rockslide closed it down for several months.
UDOT spokesperson John Gleason said that changing temperatures and repeated expansion of rocks were likely the cause of the fall near mile post 8.
The rock fall occurred around 5 p.m. Monday, but the road was opened for two way traffic by 9:30 p.m.
Gleason said two large boulders roughly the size of SUVs still remain in the road. UDOT crews intend to use explosives to blow them out at some point Tuesday.
Gleason said that while traffic was moving, removing the boulders would delay traffic about 15 minutes.
UDOT crews will also repair some diverting and cracking in the road caused by the rock fall.
A rock slide in the same area of SR-14 caused much more serious damage and shut down the road from October 2011 to May 2012.
http://www.ksl.com/index.php?page=1&...341585&nid=460 Link to more photos
Larry S
Utah driven
2003 K1200RS (sold), 1988 K100LT (sold)


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NEW YORK (Ticker) - Major League Baseball on Friday handed Chicago Cubs catcher Michael Barrett a 10-game suspension and fined him an undisclosed amount for punching Chicago White Sox counterpart A.J. Pierzynski last Saturday, leading to a bench-clearing incident.
In the second inning of the White Sox's 7-0 victory at U.S. Cellular field, Pierzynski bowled over Barrett in beating a throw to the plate from left fielder Matt Murton. Making sure he was ruled safe on the play, Pierzynski emphatically slapped his hand on the plate. He then bumped into Barrett, who grabbed him and punched him in the jaw.
Barrett then was tackled by Scott Podsednik as both benches spilled onto the field. Amid the flurry, White Sox outfielder Brian Anderson threw a punch at Cubs first baseman John Mabry, who was taken to get X-rays of his ribs after the game.
Anderson was handed a five-game suspension and fined an undisclosed amount for his role in the brawl, while White Sox third base coach Joey Cora was given a two-game suspension and fined an undisclosed amount for his aggressive actions.
Pierzynski was fined an undisclosed amount for his conduct during the incident.
All three suspensions are slated to begin Friday, when the Cubs host Atlanta and the White Sox visit Toronto. Anderson and Barrett may appeal their suspensions.


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2012 Trafficking in Persons Report - Albania
|United States Department of State
|Publication Date
|19 June 2012
|Cite as
|United States Department of State, 2012 Trafficking in Persons Report - Albania, 19 June 2012, available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/4fe30ceac.html [accessed 24 January 2018]
|This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.
ALBANIA (Tier 2)
Albania is primarily a source country for men, women, and children subjected to sex trafficking and forced labor, including the forced begging of children. Albanian women and children continue to be subjected to sex trafficking within the country. Albanian victims are subjected to conditions of forced labor and sex trafficking in Greece, Italy, Macedonia, Kosovo, Serbia, and throughout Western Europe. Authorities reported finding trafficking victims from Greece and Ukraine in Albania during the year. Children were exploited for commercial sex, forced begging, and forced criminality, such as burglary and drug distribution; girls were also subjected to prostitution or forced labor after arranged marriage. There is evidence that Albanian men are subjected to forced labor in agriculture in Greece and other neighboring countries. Re-trafficking of Albanian victims continued to be a problem.
The Government of Albania does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do so. During the year, the government increased its capacity to proactively identify trafficking victims, used its witness protection program to protect a trafficking victim, and provided short-term funding for NGOs to help victims. However, the government's overall lack of sustained funding to anti-trafficking NGOs resulted in temporary closure of a shelter during the year, negatively impacting victim assistance. Moreover, widespread corruption, particularly among the judiciary, continued to hamper overall anti-trafficking efforts.
Recommendations for Albania: Proactively implement the new standard operating procedures on victim identification to increase the scope of victims identified in Albania; ensure adequate funding for NGOs providing critical victim assistance; ensure a victim-centered approach to victim identification by not conditioning victim status on victims' roles in criminal investigations; expand the focus of care to ensure more community-based services for victims' reintegration, and empower survivors and help reduce the stigma associated with trafficking; continue to take steps to increase victim-witness protection for victims who may be willing to cooperate with law enforcement; vigorously pursue cases of trafficking occurring within the country; and proactively investigate trafficking-related complicity of government officials.
The Government of Albania sustained its anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts over the last year, though it convicted fewer trafficking offenders than during the previous year. Albania criminally prohibits sex and labor trafficking through articles 110(a), 128(b), and 114(b) of its criminal code, which prescribe penalties from five to 15 years' imprisonment. These penalties are sufficiently stringent and exceed those prescribed for other serious crimes, such as rape. The Serious Crimes Prosecution division reported investigating 27 human trafficking suspects in 2011, compared with 29 suspects investigated in 2010. During the past year, the Serious Crimes Court prosecuted five suspected trafficking offenders; all five prosecutions resulted in convictions in 2011, compared with 11 convictions in 2010. Penalties imposed on the five convicted offenders ranged from fines to 15 years' imprisonment. The government continued its criminal investigation into a labor trafficking case initiated in 2010, but it has yet to formally charge any suspects. NGOs praised the victim-sensitive response from prosecutors appointed to trafficking cases during the year, including their referral of victims to care. According to a 2011 report on Albania produced by the Council of Europe's Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA), the Albanian government's official recognition of the need to increase the response to internal trafficking has yet to lead to tangible actions. Pervasive corruption in all levels and sectors of Albanian society continued to seriously affect the government's ability to address its human trafficking problem. The government did not report taking any law enforcement action against trafficking-related complicity in 2011.
The Government of Albania made some notable progress in strengthening its capacity to identify and protect victims of trafficking in 2011. The government's lack of sustained funding to NGOs, however, resulted in the temporary closure of one shelter during the reporting period. In the last year, the government reported identifying 84 new trafficking victims via the national referral mechanism, compared with 97 trafficking victims identified in 2010. NGOs reported assisting a total of 132 trafficking victims throughout the year. In July 2011, the government approved victim-centered standard operating procedures (SOPs) in collaboration with civil society to improve identification of trafficking victims and their referral to care. Although the new SOPs separated trafficking victims' status from their willingness to press charges against their traffickers, NGOs noted cases in which police and social workers granted victim status only after the victims agreed to formally participate in proceedings against their traffickers.
For the first time, the Albanian government disbursed funding to NGOs for the provision of shelter services to trafficking victims, providing the equivalent of approximately $9,775 to three NGOs. The government ended its previous policy of requiring government social workers' presence during NGO-conducted victim identification interviews as a precondition for funding. The NGO funding was limited to food expenses; some potential trafficking victims needing this benefit were not entitled to it. Due to lack of sustained funding, one of these NGOs was forced to close its shelter temporarily during the year, diminishing victim assistance in an area of the country with a critical need for services. The government continued, however, to fully fund and operate a reception center that housed both victims of trafficking and undocumented foreign migrants; victims' freedom of movement was often restricted in this center. Furthermore, the center lacked the capacity to provide comprehensive reintegration assistance to victims. Some NGOs reported officials' preference to refer trafficking victims to the reception center rather than NGO shelters; more than half of all newly identified victims in 2011 were assisted in this facility. The government did not penalize identified victims for unlawful acts committed in connection with their being trafficked; however, the Albanian criminal code currently does not prohibit this from occurring. Country experts expressed concern that local police did not recognize child trafficking within the country and instead treated such cases as "exploitation of prostitution" or "child maltreatment." Albania's anti-trafficking law provides immigration relief as an alternative to the removal of foreign victims to countries where they may face hardship or retribution, although the government did not grant this to any foreign victims in 2011. The government encouraged victims to participate in investigations and prosecutions of trafficking offenders. Victims who pursued cases against their traffickers continued to be at risk from retribution, and there was often a need for witness protection after a trial commenced. During the year, 28 trafficking victims assisted law enforcement officials in the investigation stage and two trafficking victims testified during trial; notably, the government enrolled one of these victims in its witness protection program. The government reported it provided five trafficking victims with financial stipends in order to assist with their reintegration after they left a shelter. The government conducted four trainings for law enforcement and other front-line responders on its newly adopted victim identification and referral procedures in 2011.
Albania sustained its efforts to prevent trafficking in persons during the year, although it continued to rely primarily on international donors to fund anti-trafficking awareness campaigns. The government continued to monitor its anti-trafficking efforts via its national anti-trafficking coordinator's office, which helped launch in 2011 a donor-funded national campaign entitled "Childhood is Not Exploitation for Work," which targeted schools and at-risk children to raise awareness about forced labor among the public and teachers. During the year, the national coordinator's office took steps to facilitate the registration of unregistered children, who are especially vulnerable to trafficking in Albania. The government continued to fund the national, toll-free, 24-hour hotline for victims and potential victims of trafficking. The government made no discernible efforts to address demand for commercial sex acts.


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Greetings, -Taburn- & Ace Uchiha
You'll both be fighting each other for the rights to possess your kaguya biographies. Although you might win against the opponent, that doesn't ensure the right to have the bio. That is to be evaluated by the mod who checks and grades this test. This said, remember that the important thing is to showcase your abilities and skill when using the biography and its abilities, not to obliterate your enemy completely without skill.
~ Rules and Regulations according to Rei.
~ You may only use Canon Taijutsu, and Kaguya techniques up to your current Rank.
~ Custom Jutsu's and Elements are not allowed
~ Terrain: A grassy plain with a few dead trees in the area that are 100 yards away from us.
~ As stated before you may only use Taijutsu and Kaguya techniques up to your rank.
~ NB Style Taijutsu is allowed
~ You both will start mid range from each other
~ If you have any questions please ask them via vm.
Please give a link to the biography you are testing for and -Taburn- will be making the first move.
No one other than myself and the participants may post here. If required, administrators/moderators and official senseis can input their opinion as well.
Best of luck to both of you!


text:
Your Thanks
Editor of the Reformer:
The holidays have passed and we would like to reflect on the joys that may often be lost in the "hubbub" of the season. The holidays are always very busy for Joan's Food Pantry in Chesterfield, N.H., but it's a "busy" that we are so grateful for because it involves many acts of kindness that help us make a positive difference in so many lives. United Natural Foods, based in Chesterfield, has been our steadfast contributor for many years, and without them, we would be struggling to stock our shelves. In addition, John & Rita Chakalos' generosity, with their holiday light display, has been instrumental in keeping our pantry stocked through the winter months, and beyond. Other supporters, who contributed greatly this year, were Steve Myre of Gem Graphics in Keene, N.H., who donated a large share of the cost to produce a huge sign for advertising the Holiday Lights display, and also Jeff Michaud from Perkins Lumber in Chesterfield, who, so willingly, loaned us a box truck and driver to pick up bulk food in Keene and transport it back to the pantry for filling Thanksgiving and Christmas food boxes. In addition, the Boy Scouts, local school children, the "Grange Ladies" and hundreds of contributors gave food and monetary donations throughout the year. We operate with an all-volunteer staff, who, week in and week out, continue to give their time and talents in coordinating the pantry and event operations, stocking the shelves, helping our clients with food distribution, loading and unloading trucks of food from our resources, standing in the freezing cold to collect donations, and sorting thousands of donated food items -- all with a smile on their face and love in their hearts for our neighbors who just need a little help. Thanks to each and every volunteer and contributor for caring about our neighbors and giving to Joan's Food Pantry.
Valerie & Jon Starbuck
Volunteers, Joan's Food Pantry
Spofford, N.H., Feb. 4 ***
Editor of the Reformer:
The Brattleboro Museum & Art Center would like to express its warmest gratitude for the incredible outpouring of community support for its Tenth Annual Collegiate A Cappella Concert which took place on Saturday, Feb. 2, at the Latchis Theater. The sold-out event, which featured seven of the Northeast's finest college a cappella groups, is always embraced with great enthusiasm by our community. BMAC would especially like to recognize its sponsors whose generous support helped make this year's concert possible: Brattleboro Savings & Loan, C&S Wholesale Grocers, Business & Tax Consultants, Mary Meyer Corporation, and The Richards Group. We would also like to thank our dedicated BMAC volunteers, the staff and volunteers of the Latchis Theater, the Reformer's Jon Potter and Zach Stephens for their exceptional coverage, and our friends, Brattleboro's own John and Carolyn Wesley and Sean Ryan whose enthusiasm for a cappella was the creative spark that began this concert a decade ago.
We extend special thanks to Dede Cummings who pours her heart and soul into producing this highly anticipated concert and fills it with community spirit. Last (but certainly not least) we would like to thank the fabulous audience members who attended the event. We are so fortunate to be a part of a community where individuals, families, and businesses value and participate in the arts with such enthusiasm.
Danny Lichtenfeld,
Director, BMAC, Feb. 12
Editor of the Reformer:
Last night was the last of four hearings, totaling approximately nine hours over the past five months with the Wilmington Development Review Board for presenting my new Ann Coleman "Ark" Gallery, designed by Linesync Architecture and Steven's Engineering whom I've had the privilege of working with over the last year.
"This project has more documentation than Haystack's project" we were told by the DRB last night. Goes to show, it's not easy doing business in a Historic District in the flood plain.
So much work was tossed in the Lake in a matter of minutes, and so much work left to do to get our town back to full capacity.
I would like to tell each and every member of the Wilmington DRB that I appreciate the time and service you give to this community. I hope you will all find ease and clarity in aligning the town's building & design criteria with this project. I truly feel this building we have proposed will do this town proud for generations to come.
Ann Coleman
Wilmington, Feb. 5
If you'd like to leave a comment (or a tip or a question) about this story with the editors, please email us. We also welcome letters to the editor for publication; you can do that by filling out our letters form and submitting it to the newsroom.


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hi folks,
i have a li'l problem with some piece of code in a programme... i wrote a sort algorithm (i think it's similar to or the same as bubble sort, no idea...) that suddenly stands still when i use more than ~200 elements in the 3 arrays. i have just changed the variable's names so that you can read this piece without having the whole code- pls don't correct me if i made mistakes with the changed names.
while(i++ < number_of_strings)
for(int counter = 0; counter < number_of_strings; counter++)
if(integer_array[counter] < integer_array[counter + 1])
integer_buffer = integer_array[counter + 1];
strcpy(stringbuffer,string_array[counter + 1]);
integer_array[counter + 1] = integer_array[counter];
integer_buffer[counter] = integer_buffer;
integer_buffer = another_int_array[counter + 1];
another_int_array[counter + 1] = another_int_array[counter];
another_int_array[counter] = integer_buffer;
integer_buffer = 0;
strcpy(string_array[counter + 1],string_array[counter]);
printf("%s\n", string_array[counter]);
i use printf to show when the loop stands still.. what do i have to change? how to improve the code so that it works with any number of elements > 200?
secondary, if no one knows the answer, pls explain the usage of qsort() to me ;-). but the most important thing i wanna know is why my code stands still.
thank you!


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Let's say it for what it is.
Brady hasn't said anything outlandish during these last two weeks.
He is definitely arrogant, and a jerk at times.
When Cromartie, one of the mouths on the Jets said "**** Brady, he's an *******!", I didn't hear one person come to the defense of Brady from the Pats' locker room.
That speaks volumes as well. Although he's been "professional" for the most part these last two weeks, he's shown his inner Brady more than once. Great QB. Rock star status. Petty inside.


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Soccer Silicon Valley and Joe Cannon raised over $10,000 for the Independent Peer Socialization Training Program (IPSTP) during a World Cup viewing party hosted by Georgie Huff in San Jose, Calif. Sunday afternoon during the Brazil vs. Ivory Coast match.
The co-sponsored event brought together Earthquakes players, Lars Frederiksen of the band Rancid, Soccer Silicon Valley and various other local dignitaries for a community viewing party to help raise money for kids afflicted by autism.
"I'm just overwhelmed seeing all of my friends here, my teammates and all the support this event received," Cannon said. "Ever since I got back to San Jose, I've wanted to give more to the community. Hopefully we can try to build off of this successful day in years to come. "
Among the many donated items that helped make the event a success, the silent auction included signed Jimmy Conrad, Joe Cannon and Landon Donovan jerseys, an iPod and the chance to drink a pint with Chris Wondolowski and Chris Leitch or Arturo Alvarez and Jason Hernandez.
The day began with a brunch that included eggs, sausage links, fresh fruit, juice, mimosas and an omelet station. Folks in attendance took a chance to mingle prior to kickoff of the Brazil vs. Ivory Coast match at 11:30 a.m., enjoying the beautiful surroundings of the Huff residence.
Two tents were set up with seats and high definition TVs. Toward the back of the crowd, a patio doubled as the bar and staging area for speeches by Cannon and other dignitaries.
At halftime, Agnes Lull, a counselor at Olinder Elementary in San Jose and a native Brazilian, treated the gathering to a samba demonstration. Later, Quakes defender Jason Hernandez livened things up with his own rendition of the samba, stepping along with Lull before bowing out to claps and cheers.
Chants for an encore performance with fellow defender Ike Opara were met by a boyish grin from the rookie. Although Opara skipped on the dancing, he and other Quakes players mingled, signed autographs and posed for photos with Quakes fans in attendance.
"If you missed this event, you're going to be kicking yourself, because it's been fantastic," said Soccer Silicon Valley President Don Gagliardi. "It took a lot of work, but we're really proud of the end product and that money will go a long way for the Independent Peer Socialization Training Program."


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When I first watched this scene, I thought all the drolling and seizuring was acting, until I made a girl do it myself. Made me look at this scene in a different way. I usually don't praise dudes for their work but he piped that shit down.
darn it just got updated that catalina quit porn. o well, this one was my fav of all time from her.
Catalina is something else... shiiiiiit!!!!
you know its good sex when even shes drooling at one point.
Nobody is not fucking her if the offer came up.
so good...
sexy girl. end of.
OMGF, SHE IS HOT!!!!! I love her baby skin...
how do yo download this so i can burn it
how do you do load this
i love the way her eyes roll back in her skull
damn this bitch is fucking fine as hell, ay does anybody know what the name of the song at around 1:10
man she can ride that dick she is so fucking hot i would love to do her in the ass though
1 word....perfection
def. my new fav she put in work!
That booty jiggle is something to behold.
he shoulda shoved it up her ass.
thanks catalina for showing how is done, she's on fire!
instant legend
i dont normally get on the bandwagon but this bitch is bad!
That dude milked the shit out of this scene...i dont blame him...I would too.
I must say this young pussy is really tearing up the porn scene.............,an she is fiiiiiiiiine as wha........great action and my guy just couldn't eat enuff pussy man........GOOD STUFF
20:10 hands shacking lik she got a cesure. but she actuly coming
she is sooooooooo fuckin fine
love this scene!!
she really is perfect
a yo she was really into tht dick yo look how she was shakin in 20:12 the best latino in the game
she def takes the crown as baddest latina..keep em coming Kev
new fAV
This bitch is soooo fuckin' sexy!! perfect bubble ass; luv the way she sucks cock. Just fuckin' awesome shit!! I wish I knew about her a long time ago. Keep her cuming!!
Lol they always rename them. At least they take down all of those nasty trannie and scat vids. That's why I like Spankwire. Catalina is in my top 3 btw thanks for the upload.
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Monday — Center closed.
Tuesday — Chicken strips, mashed potatoes, green beans, wheat roll and fruit cocktail.
Wednesday — Cheeseburger with lettuce, tomato and pickle, potato wedges, calico slaw and cinnamon applesauce.
Thursday — Homemade chili with crackers, broccoli and cauliflower salad, and banana pudding.
Friday — Glazed ham, blackeyed peas, turnip greens, cornbread and spiced fruit compote.
Pope County Senior Activity Center
Monday — Center closed.
Tuesday — Swiss steak over rice, mixed vegetables, biscuit and mandarin oranges.
Wednesday — Chicken or BBQ pork on a bun with lettuce and tomato, steak fries, coleslaw and peanut butter cookies.
Thursday — Meatloaf or tilapia, mashed potatoes, green peas and carrots, wheat roll and strawberries and bananas.
Friday — Hopping John or baked chicken, cabbage and stewed tomatoes, cornbread and peaches.


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Dakota Fanning has already been rumored to be up for a role in the third film in the Twilight franchise, Eclipse, but if she doesn't join Kristen Stewart in that film she has one to fall back on as she is in negotiations to join The Runaways, the biopic of the '70s all-girl band in which Stewart is already signed on to star as Joan Jett.Dakota popping her cherry bomb? Weird.
Fanning would play lead singer Cheri Currie in the film which was written and will be directed by Floria Sigismondi when it begins production in late spring.
Variety tells us at 15, Fanning is the same age Currie was when she made her debut with the Runaways as the lead singer who belted out hard-edged tunes like "Cherry Bomb." Currie became caught up in drugs and a hard-partying lifestyle.
March 5, 2009
Dakota Fanning to Join Kristen Stewart in Runaways as a Hard-Partying Rocker? Hrm.
Ropeofsilicon reports that Dakota Fanning may have yet another opportunity to work with Kristen Stewart in the upcoming Runaways movie:
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In the Garden:
Southwestern Deserts
May, 2008
Regional Report
Artichokes make an intriguing landscape plant.
Catherine de Medici, it is said, saw globe artichokes growing in Florentine gardens and introduced them to French cuisine. Native to Mediterranean areas, these delicacies that we slurp with butter are actually immature flower buds. The center of the flower is the prized artichoke "heart." Some folks love to eat globe artichokes, but the plant is well worth growing for its varied and intriguing characteristics.
Decorative As Well As Delectable
While globe artichokes can be grown in the vegetable garden, they also lend a dramatic sculptural presence to perennial gardens and other areas of the landscape. The sharply divided leaves remind me of prehistoric fern fronds. (Not that I'm old enough to have seen a prehistoric fern.) The silvery green foliage is a soothing color and provides a nice backdrop for bright, flowering plants.
If you can resist harvesting, allow some of the globes to mature on the plant. They turn into fabulous, lavender flowers that resemble giant thistles about 6 inches in diameter. In fact, artichokes are related to thistles, and it's easy to see the connection. The fragrant flowers attract beneficial insects, such as pollinators. The blooms also dry beautifully and retain their color. The flower stays purple and the outer leaves are a pleasing, soft tan color. I've had some dried artichoke flowers for years, and they still look good.
Growing Artichokes
Artichokes do not always produce consistently from seed, so it is easier to buy transplants or propagate from root divisions. Plants grow about 4 feet tall and wide, although they will become larger if conditions are optimum. In the low desert, transplant in fall or late winter for late-spring harvest. They like a rich soil with lots of organic matter.
Artichokes take full sun yet benefit from a bit of protection from afternoon sun as temperatures rise in hot climates. They need consistent soil moisture, so layer several inches of compost or organic mulch around the base of the plants. Artichokes are perennial but are often treated as annuals to avoid nursing them through the heat of summer.
Cut the main flower stalk close to the ground after harvesting. The plant will produce another generation of flower stalks.
Care to share your gardening thoughts, insights, triumphs, or disappointments with your fellow gardening enthusiasts? Join the lively discussions on our FaceBook page and receive free daily tips!


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PlayStation All-Stars Might Just Sell Quite Well
Just an FYI, you will see our review right around the 20th. We're on top of this one, as we've had it for a few weeks already. Kinda fun. ;)
Anyway, one of the most interesting discussions concerning this game is its popularity...or evident lack thereof. It really depends on who you talk to, but I'm starting to think this title has the chance to enjoy solid sales.
At first, I was pretty well convinced the game would be a borderline flop. It's just not enough of a hotly anticipated blockbuster to compete with the likes of Call of Duty: Black Ops II, Halo 4, and Assassin's Creed III this holiday season. On top of which, many gamers might be looking to play catch-up, which means they'll still want to play titles such as Dishonored, Resident Evil 6, Borderlands 2, and maybe one of the fighters from September (Tekken Tag Tournament 2 or Dead or Alive 5). The competition is just crazy stiff (as usual) and I thought Battle Royale would register low on the average gamer's priority list.
Now, however, I'm starting to rethink that position. It really does seem like a fair amount of PS3 owners out there are interested, and the game got a lot of positive feedback over the past few months. The beta tests appeared to go really well and I had fun playing...me, who really has very little interest in such a concept. That says something. On top of which, I think I've been underestimating the draw power of some of the more iconic PlayStation characters. I initially made the argument that not enough people care about Kratos, Drake, Sly, Cole, Ratchet, etc. In direct comparison to the highly recognizable and timeless icons in the Smash Bros. games, the roster doesn't have the same timeless punching power, does it?
Well, it doesn't, but these characters really have stood the test of time and a great many - millions even - really adore members of the PlayStation family. Furthermore, with gaming being more social than ever, there really isn't much else like Battle Royale available this holiday season; it's a potentially fantastic party game. I really think this is more about getting a bunch of friends in the same room, having a blast. Online is always an option, of course, but the main draw could be what I like to call the "living room competition." Yeah, you remember the days when that was the only multiplayer we had, right? Essentially, there's actually a lot in PlayStation All-Stars to like, and so...
This could be a much hotter ticket than I thought.
11/16/2012 Ben Dutka
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Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 10:13:37 AM
Did not care at first, especially since I hardly play Super Smash Bros on my Wii and it's virtually the same kinda concept.
Then the user feedback rolled in, the hands on impressions, the editor opinions, Ben's article.... these all got me thinking:
Perhaps this game is a bigger deal than I first thought?
Now it's on my wishlist. :)
Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 10:59:31 AM
The free addition of Kat and Emmit reinforced it for me (I love GR and enjoyed Starhawk SP more than I anticipated).
As for SSB, even though I grew up with the Nintendo characters since the original NES (and Donkey Kong since my Colecovision!), i find the character roster is MUCH weaker than All-Stars. As iconic as the Ninty characters are, they're actually pretty weaksauce all said...
The games are usually fun but the characters are lame (for Nin).
Last edited by PoopsMcGee on 11/17/2012 11:01:24 AM
Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 1:31:13 PM
Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 7:19:39 PM
Monday, November 19, 2012 @ 10:58:34 AM
Btw, a rep at bestbuy told me that Sony will hold a competition after the game's release only for PSN plus members. Anyone heard anything of the sort??
Last edited by ae86takumi on 11/19/2012 11:01:48 AM
Friday, November 16, 2012 @ 11:25:42 PM
Anyway, I hope it does well for Sony. I think strengthening the identity of their brand of characters is the right idea.... I just don't know if I want to see this idea carried into a Sony All Stars Kart Racing game... Kratos Centurion Kart, Nathan Drake Mayan Golden Kart, Cole's Kart are pieces of metal held together by magnetism, hey, wait this sounds pretty cool =p
Last edited by Temjin001 on 11/16/2012 11:26:08 PM
Friday, November 16, 2012 @ 11:50:42 PM
Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 12:19:24 AM
Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 1:11:49 AM
Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 3:25:34 AM
Last edited by dmiitrie on 11/17/2012 3:26:42 AM
Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 7:23:20 PM
Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 3:04:04 AM
i hope not, im hoping this will flop and $ony will FINALLY get it through their head that their not nintendo!
their fans dont want these crappy kids games, they want franchises they have always delivered!
we want 8 days and the getaway 3, not this kiddy eyepet sh*t!
but, eh, $ony have released so many of these crappy kids games, and every one has flopped big time, so maybe believing they will finally wake up and smell the coffee and stop is wishful thinking.
Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 7:26:19 PM
Sunday, November 18, 2012 @ 9:12:19 AM
point being if $ony was to put HALF the effort and money they have put into trying to be ninty, we would have a hell of allot more awesome games!
Sunday, November 18, 2012 @ 1:58:08 PM
Last edited by sawao_yamanaka on 11/18/2012 1:59:42 PM
Monday, November 19, 2012 @ 6:50:26 AM
Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 4:26:42 AM
Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 6:48:51 AM
But as for the game itself, I have to say I am still not won over by it. I played it at Eurogamer and on the demo. But I just do not like the kill point system.
Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 9:43:59 AM
especially because its not up to $ony, antivision seem to have no interest in licensing him out.
i actually got to interview omar kendall at the EB expo last month and this was the first question i asked him.
he just laughed and said yea thats a question you have to put to the license owners.
we would love to put crash in the game, but we cant until we have the ok from them.
way he said it too made it seem like they have been chasing it for a while but antivision just refuse to allow it.
makes me wonder why, they have not done a crash game since 08 if memory serves me.
so its clear they have no interest in the franchise, so why not sell it off?
or at least allow it elsewhere?
unless their planing a reboot, and they dont want this stealing away from that.......
Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 11:33:50 AM
I understand Activision have Crash buried alive but it's not like they're making a new Crash game here - Even though this would be the perfect opportunity to bring him back in the public eye. It is a real shame he cannot be in it. But like I said, it's not just that, I'm not really fond of what I have played so far anyway.
Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 1:05:52 PM
Sunday, November 18, 2012 @ 9:13:39 AM
Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 1:06:55 PM
It's not a single player game, and as fun as online may be, it does not compare to the fun you can have playing with friends.
To me it's insane that people no longer get together to play games. I can no longer do it multiple times a week like when I was younger. But if I get a chance to play games with my buds two or three times a month, it's worth it.
Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 7:29:08 PM
Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 1:08:13 PM
Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 7:20:59 PM
Saturday, November 17, 2012 @ 8:17:41 PM
karneli lll
Sunday, November 18, 2012 @ 8:30:37 PM
Monday, November 19, 2012 @ 10:52:04 AM
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LaJuan Sukochi Lee:But I question the Vet's thoughts on her breed. There are no black and white yorkies or black and white chahuahuas that I have ever seen.
My SIL had a papered black and white chihuahua.
Did you see the sale on quilting t-shirts?? I think it's on till Monday. I think all the t-shirts are on sale actually for $9.99, not just the quilting ones. :o)
Southwest of San Antonio
Marie, your Peanuts quilt is just beautiful. I love how you did the borders.
Little Emma spends her time alone in a play pen for a baby. It is where she sleeps. Of course, she doesn't even take up 1/4 of 1% of it. She has a dish of water and her potty paper. They get the pad that are put on hospital beds from a firned os DDIL's Mom. We pay a fortune for the ones, for dogs. And, it was a major mistake as Lily will rarily go outside. Grrr.
CC love the Owls. They are just too cute. Do they whoo?
Am I missing something? Where is Thea?? Barbara, where IS Thea?
Marie, I love the Big Peanuts quilt. 'Can't wait to see what you come up with for the little one. :D
Quilters are people who strip so they won't go topless.
Marie, love your peanut quilt, I really don't think i would sash the little one, but that is just my opinon
[Ava, Missouri
CC, i just love your beads
hey, Where IS Barbara?/ Am I loosing my mind, or just my people.
Wendy :My SIL had a papered black and white chihuahua.
I have some friends with a black and white long haired chihuahua.
Chiliwist Valley
Marie, love the peanuts quilt and blocks.
CC, love the beads. I am partial to owls. We have the "Okanogan Wildlife League" here that cares for injured animals, including several owls and then releases them if and when ready to go back to the wild.
My SiL took this a couple years ago. The owlets blew out of their nest in a sicamore next to their porch and found their way onto the porch. Momma owl took care of them there fora few weeks until they were old enough to fly... Drove the cat nuts!
LaJuan Sukochi Lee:I got an new grand furbabiy. She is a 3 month old Teacup Chorkie (chahuahua-yorkie).
Congrats on the new addition.
Carolyn (CarolBeau):Here's my little princess as a baby (black hair) and then as an adult (grey hair).
She's a cutie. Carolyn.
chocake2: I wasted some time this AM getting a few pics of my latest beads.... I think they need a quitled ttree to hang out in.
I love these. I like the idea of a tree for them to hang in.
Nice Heffalump too.


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If you still have a BlackBerry 10 Dev Alpha in your hands and haven't yet sent it off a Limited Edition developer version, some excellent news has just been posted over at BlackBerry Developer Blog. Come January 30th, a new BlackBerry 10 Dev Alpha update will be sent out that includes the BlackBerry Hub, phone, and BlackBerry Maps applications. In addition to that great news, a BlackBerry 10 SDK update will also be made available that day as well. That's some pretty stellar news for developers. If you're looking for the full details on the matter, make sure you hit the source link below.
BlackBerry 10 Dev Alpha OS update coming on January 30th
Reader comments
BlackBerry 10 Dev Alpha OS update coming on January 30th
Ah I have submitted my native apps on 15th Jan and still pending review until now
I guess that 15,000 apps submission is not fake
I hope I can get the LE phone because the Dev alpha is very limited in functionality
That's great news. Thanks
It is assumed that at some point they will "brick" the Dev Alpha's but I always thought that wouldn't be until summer at the earliest one year after launch at the latest considering they are still handing them out and offering them as prizes for the port-a-thon events.
My game plan is set.... update dev alpha and use until I can get my hands on a Rogers Z10... at which point I can send away my dev alpha for the LE device. must make sure I don't go a single day without BB10 awesomeness.
hum ... won't bet on that. Might be a PB BB10 alpha version (as for the Dev Alpha : with limited capabilities = device for dev only) and/or a simulator pretty soon. Might be one of the "surprises" [this is 100% speculation].
I was pretty sure this was coming. I think the version of OS that these dev alphas are going to get will have some expiry date built into them.
So if you were to just keep your dev alpha and use it as a phone, wouldn't it be more "Limited Edition" than the actual Limited Edition? Like more rare?
So if you were to just keep your dev alpha and use it as a phone, wouldn't it be more "Limited Edition" than the actual Limited Edition? Like more rare?
Issues have been found with devAlpha A. It won't compare with LE or final version. Still, it is a pretty good testing device.
This sucks, I already mailed in my dev alpha to RIM. I hope they get the LE devices out FAST!
Awesome. Keeping my dev alpha for a little bit longer (hope my trade-in email comes soon though).
OMG! OMG! I knew they would do this!.. I'm gonna sleep cuddling to my Alpha tonight.. Love you RIM!..
Sending the dev alpha right now doesnt sound a good idea especially when you want testing your app with all the upgrades as the developers certainly don't have the lastest version, rather in april as the availability of the replacing device is announced. 6 to 8 weeks after the launch event.
Literally have my Dev Alpha packed up on my desk ready to drop off. Guess I'll be holding off on that now...
My point is that if the pick-up and return process wasn't as long as it is, all devs could have enjoyed this update on their devices before sending them to RIM for the trade-up program. Now we gotta wait while missing out on this. I know we're speaking of thousands of devices here and it's a lot of work to streamline everything before everyone can receive a LE device, but I was just hypothetically speaking. No offence intended to anyone. Of course everyone has the right to speak for their own.
This. I thought the sdk's were feature complete, but one thing that I've never seen on BB10 are 3rd party app notifications through the HUB and an API would likely be needed to allow apps to hook in.
There are APIs that allow creating notifications (e.g. https://developer.blackberry.com/html5/apis/notification.html for WebWorks). We just couldn't see them except for the blinking LED. We also could use the email composer card but weren't able to test it.
Just because they are updating the OS on the 30th it doesn't mean it won't be there for the public at launch. The update allows for developers to implement there app to the HUB, Map, etc. To think of it in another way, say you make an app but can't get it to connect to BBM because RIM hasn't released the SDK. Does that mean that the phone won't launch? Of course not. It just means that the devs, if they choose to do so, can have their apps, which assuming they have already sent in, connect to the HUB, Map, etc. What does this mean for the consumer? Just a simple app update.
Nope, this means that devs can still develop and test in the closest to final environment, on a free development device. Nothing else. If you're familiar with development, you know that you need a development environment (basically : that you can set up and swipe anytime) and a production one (where you install and run valid apps and test eventual side effects, in a "real usage" situation).
Edit : remember DevAlphas can be returned anytime (before they got locked). 21st wasn't a device return deadline.
Quote (devblog) : "The Limited Edition devices will begin shipping out six to eight weeks after the BlackBerry 10 launch on January 30, 2013"


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ByDeborah Gage
Challenging lessons from leading startups will help Al Campa guide other entrepreneurs as a new partner at Sierra Ventures, he says.
The firm has been reorganizing as it continues to prepare for its $200 million 10th fund, which it has been raising since December, 2011, according to regulatory filings. Sierra has had several changes in personnel since then, including adding Mr. Campa as partner earlier this week.
Partner Vispi Daver, who specializes in consumer, software and Indian seed-stage investments, is no longer listed on the firm's website, which has been redesigned. Former Partner Robert Walker, a specialist in clean technology, left the firm in July, 2012, to head an unnamed startup, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Neither Sierra nor Mr. Daver could be reached for comment. Sierra Managing Director Tim Guleri has declined to discuss the new fund.
Mr. Campa is the former chief marketing officer for talent management software maker Taleo Corp., which sold to Oracle Corp. last year for about $1.9 billion. He's also the founding CEO of business intelligence company JasperSoft and has worked at Actuate Corp., Sybase (now part of SAP AG) and Sun Microsystems (now part of Oracle Corp.).
Most recently Mr. Campa was the CEO of Reachable Inc., a business social network that plans to do for enterprises what LinkedIn does for individuals. He left Reachable in January after the company failed to raise a Series B round and couldn't make payroll. Reachable has since recapitalized and is now employee-owned, but Mr. Campa said he plans to use that experience to help guide entrepreneurs.
"I learned that you need with the cash you have, you really need to figure out how to get to the stage where you have the proof points, product, customers and team to get to the next round. It's getting tougher because of the economics of the [venture] business to get to the next round. There's less money in the game, and the bar is getting higher," Mr. Campa said.
Also, because of their experience with consumer Internet companies, venture capitalists have become less strategic in their investments and more driven by metrics such as web hits or software downloads, he said.
"If you take today's mentality and look at the titans of the industry like Cisco or Intel or Apple, would they ever have gotten funded today? I doubt they would have–the capital requirements are huge. Creating markets from scratch took a lot of time," Mr. Campa said.
Sierra invests in enterprise software, among other areas, and touts its CIO Council—an advisory network of about 70 Fortune 500 chief information officers and IT executives—as a way of teaching entrepreneurs how to sell into big companies and how to build big companies.
The firm's new fund, Sierra Ventures X LP, is about half the size of its $400 million ninth fund, which closed in October 2006 after less than five months of fundraising, according to VentureWire records.
Write to email@example.com. Follow her on Twitter at @deborahgage


text:
|About us | Contact us |Site Map
Detailed structure and explanatory notes
ISIC Rev.3.1 code 50Structure
This Division is divided into the following Groups:
Explanatory note
This division includes:
- all activities (except manufacture and renting) related to motor vehicles and motorcycles, including lorries and trucks:
· wholesale and retail sale of new and second-hand vehicles
· maintenance and repair
· wholesale and retail sale of parts and accessories
· activities of commission agents involved in wholesale or retail sale of vehicles
· washing, polishing and towing of vehicles etc.
This division also includes:
- retail sale of automotive fuel and lubricating or cooling products
This division excludes:
- renting of motor vehicles and motorcycles without driver, see 7111
- renting of private cars with drivers, see 6022
- renting of trucks with driver, see 6023
Would you like to leave some feedback?
(on this code, this classification, the site in general or any other issue)
Then drop us a line at firstname.lastname@example.com.


text:
I'm a college freshman in from New England who aspires to be an author. I'd love to write something timeless, but waste altogether too much time dabbling in fleeting things. But I prefer to dream big and come up short, instead of giving up lofty aspirations and playing in the mud. =)
I have jealously guarded Remus Lupin since fifth grade and turn to fanfiction to soothe the aching wounds inflicted by the last four books. It's what happens when authors and their readers have conflicting opinions.
November 2006
This is my standing thank-you to whoever voted for "Violin Teacher", and to Mind_Over_Matter, invisiblenudnik, and Werewolf_sympathiser who nominated me! Just in case they ever happen to see. =)
(Thanks to Phoenix5225 for the banner!)
AU. Without Harry, Ron, and Hogwarts , who will change Hermione's perspective on mankind and the music of life? Professor Lupin is a Muggle, too, and both play violin. Perhaps this teacher and student pair can influence each other in another world, far from the magic countryside of Scotland. - Complete!


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DETROIT - An Ingham County Circuit Court judge on Thursday ordered all 10 members of the Detroit Financial Review team to appear in court at 10 a.m. March 12 for a show cause hearing.
The judge requests the team members show why they are not in contempt of court for failing to follow his order to meet in the open, in accordance with the Open Meetings Act.
This is concerning the team's subcommittee closed meetings.
A judge ruled earlier this month that the 10-member review team must meet in public to comply with the state's Open Meetings Act.
They met in public for the first time Tuesday.
At the meeting inside the Cadillac Place, the team took public comment from the man who fought in court to get the meeting in the first place – Robert Davis. It was his lawsuit that the judge made his ruling on.
He asked Michigan Treasurer Andy Dillon whether any of the team's previous private meetings would be redone.
He was told they would not.
Dillon created a subcommittee and adjourned the meeting in under 20 minutes.
Copyright 2012 by ClickOnDetroit.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


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:? I had Xubuntu Egdy on my system for a few days but couldn't get the screen resolution right. During that time I found I really liked XFce so I installed MEPIS and grabbed XFce from the repos. Mepis 6.0 does get the screen resolution right for both KDE and Xfce.
My only problem with XFce with MEPIS is that the task bars at the top and bottom of the screen won't work. I can middle click the desktop and can see the minimised apps fine. Right clicking the desktop and clicking on Settings then Panel does nothing so maybe something isn't installed? Since Mepis uses the Ubuntu repos, I should have the same files as XFce in Xubuntu
I did a search on these forums for an answer but didn't see one. Any help will be appreciated.
*BUMP* Oh come on! Someone must know how to get a taskbar to display!
Do you mean a panel? Settings / Panels / Add?
Simon. (^_^)
TIP: Proofread carefully to see if you any words out.
Thanks for responding. No, when I click settings then the panel icon, nothing happens. I am fairly sure I installed all the packages for XFce, but that fuctionality isn't there.
Well I am running Edgy Eft and Feisty Fawn, both install from repository happily.
Can you install the virtual packge xfce4?
Info from that package:
meta-package for xfce4 dependencies
This package is a meta-package; it depends on the core packages of the
Xfce4 desktop environment and recommends some extra Xfce4 packages. If you
intend to use Xfce4 and want the full experience then installing this
package and the packages it Recommends is a great place to start.
If you just want to pick and choose the core components then feel free to
remove this package.
Simon. (^_^)
TIP: Proofread carefully to see if you any words out.
you could be running 4.2 so try running "xftaskbar4"
If that does not work run "xfce4-panel -a" and drag and drop "Task List" to the place you want it to be
Looks like the repos have this, as this is what I installed (From about XFce)
Xfce 4 Desktop Environment
version 184.108.40.206 (Xfce 4.4 BETA1)
I tried xftaskbar4 and got command not found, xfce4-panel -a returns xfce4-panel not running. Sounds like I need to find and install that package.
Edit: No package that is anything like xfce4-panel is in the repos. I see now that Mepis 6 uses Dapper repos, not Edgy repos. I might be going about this the wrong way. The reason I dumped Xubuntu Edgy in the first place is because it doesn't support 1440x990 but Mepis 6 does. I think I'll reinstall xubuntu and try to get that resolution to work for a second time.
Thank you for the help.
This may be too late, but back up your working xorg.conf before installing Xubuntu. Then just overwrite the new one with the back up and you should get the same screen (drivers permitting) as you do now.
Simon. (^_^)
TIP: Proofread carefully to see if you any words out.
I didn't think of that but I will do it. Before I scrapped Xubuntu in favor of Mepis I went so far as to delete every resolution except for the 1440x990 that I added manually. The SR then went to 1600x1200, which didn't exist in the xorg.conf file. :-x
Just for clarification-
My original problem with Xubuntu was no matter what I did to xorg.conf, I could not get my display to do 1440x990. I switched to Mepis 6.0 and it made 1440x990 the default resolution with no tinkering. I installed XFce with some problems (see above) but at least I had the right resolution. I then saved the xorg.conf from the Mepis install and used it when I reinstalled Xubuntu. Thanks to all who helped, especially SimonJ for his idea of using the Mepis created xorg.conf file.
*** I think that XFCE is missing some sort of module or configuration so it will recognise the 1440x990 mode . KDE obviously gets it right. ***
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Army outlines financial, environmental impacts of force restructuring at Fort Drum
By GORDON BLOCK | Watertown Daily Times | Published: January 28, 2013
FORT DRUM — The area could lose hundreds of millions of dollars a year in personal income and economic activity if 8,000 soldier and Army civilian jobs were cut between now and 2020, according to an Army report released last week that assesses the potential impact of defense cuts.
The reduction is one option being considered as the Army plans to reduce its active-duty ranks from 562,000 for fiscal year 2012 to 490,000 by fiscal year 2020. More than 20 installations across the country were researched. The draft Finding of No Significant Impact and Programmatic Environmental Assessment for Army 2020 Force Structure Realignment, which considers various scenarios from severe cuts to modest gains, was issued last week by the Department of the Army.
The Fort Drum Regional Liaison Organization is reviewing the assessment to prepare a formal response to the Army, said Executive Director Carl A. McLaughlin.
"We have to put the best case forward about why it shouldn't be at Fort Drum," he said. "Everybody's going to be putting in their best argument; ... we will be, too."
The first option studied was deactivating multiple brigade combat teams and realigning support units across the service, which could mean a local loss of 8,000 soldiers and civilians, from 19,079 listed in 2011 to a potential 2020 level of 11,079. Including dependent spouses and children, such a reduction would affect 20,144 people connected to the installation.
Under this drastic scenario, the local economy would stand to lose an annual 7.35 to 7.73 percent of sales volume, described as direct and secondary sales, worth $365,808,847 to $384,551,600. From 7.1 to 7.63 percent of income, or $375,977,100 to $406,640,553, would also be lost annually.
Researchers also found the loss of 8,000 defense jobs would kill an additional 10,115 to 10,189 local jobs, or an additional 12.65 percent of the area's employment. Home values and rents, in turn, would be depressed.
"At their extremes, they're very worrisome," Mr. McLaughlin said. "Do I think we'll see the extremes? Probably not."
He added the study was not an indication of the military's final decision about where cuts would be made.
Not all the scenarios the study considered would be harmful to Northern New York.
A second option researched was the impact of deactivating brigade-level forces into restructured units that could actually bring 3,000 soldier and civilian jobs here by 2020, from 19,079 to 22,079. The region then would see an increase of about 4,554 dependents as a result, creating a total population growth of 7,554 people.
Such a move would increase local sales of $137,178,317 to $144,206,800, or 2.76 to 2.9 percent. Incomes would increase about 2.64 to 2.86 percent, or $140,991,400 to $152,490,207, and the region would see about 3,800 jobs created, a boost of about 4.7 percent. The local housing market would see a slight increase in demand, boosting median home values.
A third option listed — that nothing be done — is used as a baseline for such studies. It is not considered likely given the level of desired cuts.
All three scenarios were expected to produce little to no significant environmental impact in most measurement categories.
In the study, researchers praised the post's leadership for its "well-developed range infrastructure," and said the post and Wheeler-Sack Army Airfield were "one of the best training area locations in the Army" and possibly the entire military.
Researchers also noted the impact of the Army Compatible Use Buffer program, which secures land development rights to avoid encroachment into training activity. The post has spent more than $3 million in the past few years to limit development in areas deemed important by the post. Currently, 11 projects covering 2,430 acres have been included in the program, with more projects under discussion.
No details were specified in the studies about how force restructuring would be implemented locally or how it would affect the status of the 10th Mountain Division's 4th Brigade Combat Team, which is stationed at Fort Polk, La.
In addition to Fort Drum, the study calculated the impacts of cuts at Fort Bliss and Fort Hood in Texas; Fort Bragg, N.C.; Fort Campbell and Fort Knox in Kentucky; Fort Carson, Colo.; Fort Gordon, Fort Benning and Fort Stewart in Georgia; Fort Irwin, Calif.; Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson and U.S. Army Garrison-Fort Wainwright in Alaska; Joint Base Langley-Eustis and Fort Lee in Virginia; Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash.; Fort Leonard Wood, Mo.; Fort Polk; Fort Riley, Kan.; Fort Sill, Okla., and U.S. Army Garrison-Hawaii.
The full report can be found at www.aec.army.mil/usaec/nepa/topics00.html.


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I was pulling foundation trenches in Suffolk and from around 1.5m down found the following fossil in very sandy clay. Quite an odd overall shape, stomach shape would be how I would describe it. As you can see on the "front" a main fossil shape, although to the "back" a ribbon/hour glass shape is noticable just above the 6 inches on the ruler. Is the whole piece a fossil or just a stone that ended up in that odd shape? Also if possible what are the names of the fossils within the piece?
Hello David,
This is a fossil sponge preserved in a flint nodule. Because it is in flint it would be of the Late Cretaceous era, 70-90 million years old.
Yep I think UK fossil guy is ' spot on.' Nice piece.