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Call for stronger anti-hunger system / FAO Director General Addresses World Grain Forum in Russia
ROME, Italy, June 8, 2009/African Press Organization (APO)/ — FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf called today for a strengthened global governance system for world food security. Those aspects of the international trade system that have resulted in more hunger and poverty also have to be changed, he said.
"We have to build a more coherent and effective system of governance for world food security; we have to correct the policies and international trade system that have resulted in more hunger and poverty," said Diouf.
He made the call at the opening session of the World Grain Forum that opened today in St Petersburg, the Russian Federation, which is being attended by agriculture ministers and officials from more than 50 countries.
President Dmitry Anatolievitch Medvedev is also attending the important meeting on global food security and the international grain market that was first proposed by the Russian Federation at the G8 summit in Japan last July.
Time for action
"What is important today is to realize that the time of talk has long past," Diouf told the forum. "Now is the time for action. The food crisis has taught us that to defeat hunger, we have to deal with its root causes and not to continue coping with the consequences of past mistakes," he said.
"The increase in food prices began in 2006, it accelerated in 2007, and peaked by June 2008. This meant that within only two years, international prices of basic food commodities rose by about 60 percent while those for grains doubled," Diouf said.
He added, that "it should be noted that average prices of food are still 17 percent higher than in 2006 and 24 percent higher than in 2005. In addition, the "stock-to-use" ratio for cereals in 2007/08, at 20.2 percent, was at its lowest level in 30 years".
115 million more hungry
High food prices caused the number of hungry people in the world to soar by 115 million, according to the FAO.
"Preliminary results of work conducted by FAO show that the financial and economic crisis could drag some 100 million more persons into chronic hunger," said Diouf, noting that one billion people, 15 percent of the global population, now do not get enough food to eat.
Thirty-one countries are as of last month in a situation of food crisis requiring emergency assistance. Twenty of these are in Africa, nine in Asia and the Near East and two in Central America and the Caribbean.
A bigger proportion of development aid for agriculture
"This cannot be acceptable. How can we explain to people of good sense and good faith this dramatic situation in a state of abundance of international resources and when trillions of US dollars are being spent to stimulate the world economy?" he said.
The FAO Director General also called for a bigger proportion of development aid for agriculture so that developing countries can increase their agricultural output by investing in rural infrastructures and ensuring access to modern inputs and assistance of adequate institutions for small farmers.
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)


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CSI Serves Up Elisabeth Shue's "Dream Episode": Tennis Murder!
Jan 22, 2013 10:00 PM EST
When Elisabeth Shue joined CSI last year, she had one request."[Producers] asked me if there were any ideas I had or anything I'd like to do that would be fun, and I said, 'We should do a murder at a tennis tournament and we'll get professional playe… Read more

subset: commoncrawl


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Featured categories
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- Light Fixtures
- Chandeliers & Pendant Fixtures
- Lamps
- Bathroom Lighting
- Lightbulbs
- Security Lighting
- Outdoor Lighting
The lighting options at Sam's Club® make it easy to update a room with beautiful fixtures and brighter bulbs. From bathroom lighting to models designed for outdoor use, you'll find everything you need for adding light wherever you need it.
Home Lighting Fixtures
Lighting fixtures come in styles that match any decorating aesthetic. Add three-light fixtures over bathroom sinks for an updated look that can change the appearance of the space. A single-light, wall-mounted fixture on either side of a mirror increases the amount of light and takes up minimal space in smaller rooms.
Ceiling light fixtures add ambient lighting and increase the overall brightness. A chandelier can act as a centerpiece in large rooms, or ensure there's plenty of light over tables and in entryways. Pendant lights provide an elegant touch over dining tables and islands, and work well for tall ceilings.
Add lamps to end tables and in seating nooks to ensure there's plenty of light for activities. Lamps come in numerous shapes and styles, including contemporary, rustic and vintage designs. Floor lamps work well in corners and beside chairs for increasing light levels in darker areas. Use a desk lamp in the office and reduce the need for relying on large, overhead fixtures.
Security and Outdoor Lighting
Security lights provide bright lighting for dark corners and outdoor areas. Motion-activated security lighting turns on when movement is detected for advanced warning when someone approaches the home. Maximize energy savings with solar-powered motion lights for reliable, bright light after the sun goes down.
Outdoor lighting options let you brighten areas near doors and entryways. String cafe lights along patios and decks for soft ambient lighting that's perfect for parties and enjoying the outdoors. Pathway lights increase safety and make sure visitors find driveways and walkways easily. Look for solar-powered designs or those that use LED light bulbs for energy savings and less frequent changes.


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Ad Posting Jobs Online That Pay Well
Ad posting jobs are extremely desirable to people because they sound so easy and I mean who can't place an ad? But ad posting is not a perfect way to earn money nor is anything else. It takes a lot of sitting down and I get headaches sometimes if I stay too long on my computer.
For many years I used to look for ways to earn money from home and would see these ad posting job advertisements and websites all over. I remember seeing this one company's name everywhere and was always curious about them, but never did anything about it. It wasn't til some years later that I finally gave in and finally joined a similar program to them. You couldn't imagine how worried I was after I did all this work and then waiting to get paid. Luckily I did receive a payment via my paypal account within about 2 weeks of my report I turned in. The waiting was torture. I didn't want to do more than one report, just in case they decided not to pay me. But ever since then I have continued to do work for this particular company called Shortcuts to cash. If you are thinking about taking up ad posting for part time work, you need to know what you are getting yourself into.
Details About Ad Posting
How Much Can You Earn With Ad posting
7 Work Packages Available
- Email list compiler
- Research assistant
- Research email typist
The largest earning packages
- You must be 18 or older
- You must provide proof of identity/drivers license(since you are dealing with money)
- You must have your own home office or office that has a phone and things to provide a franchise business.
Finding an Ad Posting Company
Pro's & Con's About Shortcuts to Cash
How Long Does it Take to Earn Money
What are Their Payout Days
How Much do you Think I can Earn?
This was the last payment I received below
Kelly's Final Verdict


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We where glad to announce yet another tool during our annual workshop in San Francisco. Glaspot is the third version of the web application honeypot Glastopf and it come with some very powerful new features:
In the next three months we are working on even more exciting new features and a much stronger integration into our web thread analysis platform.
Additionally Phani Vadrevu got accepted as a Google Summer of Code student to help us with additional improvements like request classification based on attacker profiling, hardening the internal sandbox and extending the attack surface. Details can be found in his project description: Glastopf Improvements.
How you could integrate the honeypot in a web threat oriented attack analysis framework is described in a recent presentation by Lukas Rist: Feasible Solution for the Web Threat Jigsaw.
As usual code and documentation can be found in our repository.


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FAO, Land and Water Division conducted a one week workshop, November 12 - 16, 2012 in Uruguay aiming at training the national experts and re-inforcing the national capacity to undertake consistent assessment of land cover and land cover changes using FAO methodology and tools. In addition, the GAEZ data portal and AEZ methodology for land evaluation based for land use planning and management. The workshop is organized by FAO regional office / FAO Uruguay and the National Agency for Land Use Planning in the framework of the FAO technical cooperation programe "Strengthening of knowledge and development of instruments for land use planning". The national experts received customized training on the FAO land cover change mapping toolbox as well as on the GAEZ data portal and application of the AEZ methodology for Land Evaluation to support land use planning.
Agro-Ecological Zoning (2002)
Land Resources
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Mary Sheu, M.D.
Medical Director, Johns Hopkins Dermatology & Cosmetic Center, Green Spring Station
Assistant Professor of Dermatology
Expertise: Acne, Botox, Cosmetic Dermatology, Cutaneous Laser Surgery, Dermatologic Surgery, Dermatology, Hyperhidrosis, Laser Therapy, Rosacea, Skin Cancer ...read more
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Johns Hopkins Medicine - Green Spring Station
10755 Falls Road Pavilion I Suite 350 Lutherville, MD 21093
Phone: 410-955-5933 | Fax: 410-847-3766
Dr. Mary Sheu is an assistant professor of dermatology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. She is a board-certified dermatologist and expert in cosmetic and laser procedures to improve the health and appearance of skin.
Dr. Sheu completed medical school at Brown University, internship in internal medicine at Stanford University and dermatology residency at the Oregon Health Science University.
Prior to joining Johns Hopkins in 2007, Dr. Sheu served on the adjunct clinical faculty at Stanford University and practiced dermatology in the San Francisco Bay Area.
She has authored peer-reviewed publications in the dermatology literature and conducted basic science and clinical research in dermatology. Dr. Sheu is an active member of the American Academy of Dermatology, American Society for Dermatologic Surgery.
Dr. Sheu is focused on helping patients achieve healthy, beautiful skin. Procedures offered:
- Injectables including Botox, Dysport, Xeomin
- Fillers including Resylane, Perlane, Juvederm, Juvederm Voluma, Radiesse, Belotero, and Sculptra
- Laser treatments for hair removal, sun spots, vascular lesions, rosacea, tattoo removal, skin rejuvenation and wrinkle treatment, birthmarks, acne scars, traumatic/surgical/burn scars
- Hyperhidrosis treatment including Botox and Miradry
- Sclerotherapy for spider leg veins
- Chemical peels
- Mole removal
- Skin cancer detection and treatment
- General dermatology
Dr. Sheu is currently accepting new patients. Please call 410-955-5933 to schedule an appointment or consultation.
- Medical Director, Johns Hopkins Dermatology & Cosmetic Center, Green Spring Station
- Assistant Professor of Dermatology
Departments / Divisions
Centers & Institutes
- MD, Brown University School of Medicine (2001)
- Oregon Health and Sciences University Hospital / Dermatology (2005)
Board Certifications
- American Board of Dermatology / Dermatology (2005)
Research & Publications
Selected Publications
2000 Peter Elias, MD, DEPARTMENT OF DERMATOLOGY
Investigated the immunomodulatory potential of PPAR-alpha and LXR nuclear receptor ligands on inflammatory skin disorders. Assisted with clinical trials for the treatment of atopic dermatitis.
2000 John Koo, MD, PSORIASIS CENTER, DEPARTMENT OF DERMATOLOGY
Assisted with clinical trials for the treatment for psoriasis and atopic dermatitis.
1997-2000 Timothy Flanigan, MD, DIVISION OF INFECTIOUS DISEASE
Examined risk factors for criminal incarceration among a cohort of HIV+ and high-risk HIV- women.
1997 William Cioffi, MD and Irshad Chaudry, SHOCK AND TRAUMA SURGERY LABORATORY BROWN UNIVERSITY, PROVIDENCE, RI
Investigated the role of the skin in the hemorrhagic shock cytokine response in mice.
1994-1995 Robert Valentini, MD, PhD ARTIFICIAL ORGANS AND BIOMATERIALS LABORATORY
Manufactured a polymer nerve guidance channel drug delivery system to enhance peripheral nerve regeneration in vivo.
1992-1994 Hong Fong Mark, MD, CYTOGENETICS LABORATORY
Developed a fluorescent in situ hybridization assay for detecting chromosomal abnormalities in human sperm cells.
- Marchetti M and Sheu M: The sign of Lesser Trelat: an unusual presentation of male breast cancer. Submitted.
- Sheu M, Simpson E, Sandra Law and Storrs F: Allergic contact dermatitis from a natural deodorant: a report of 4 cases associated with lichen allergy mix. JAAD 2006; 55(2) 332-337.
- Fowler AJ, Sheu M, Schmuth M, Kao J, Fluhr JW, Rhein L, Collins JL, Willson TM, Mangelsdorf DJ, Elias PM, Feingold KR. Liver X receptor activators display anti-inflammatory activity in irritant and allergic contact dermatitis models: liver-X-receptor-specific inhibition of inflammation and primary cytokine production. J Invest Dermatol 2003;120(2): 246-55.
- Sheu M, Hogan J, Allsworth J, Stein M, Vlahov D, Schoenbaum EE, Schuman P, Gardner L, Flanigan T. Continuity of medical care and risk of incarceration in HIV-positive and high-risk HIV-negative women. J Womens Health 2002; 11(8):743-50.
- Chamlin SL, Kao J, Frieden IJ, Sheu MY, Fowler AJ, Fluhr JW, Williams ML, Elias PM. Ceramide-dominant barrier repair lipids alleviate childhood atopic dermatitis: changes in barrier function provide a sensitive indicator of disease activity. JAAD 2002; 47(2):198-208.
- Sheu M, Fauteux G, Chang H, Taylor W, Stopa E, Robinson-Bostom L. Sinus Pericranii: Dermatologic Considerations and Literature Review. JAAD 2002;46(6):934-41.
- Sheu MY, Fowler AJ, Kao J, Schmuth M, Schoonjans K, Auwerx J, Fluhr JW, Man MQ, Elias PM, Feingold KR. Topical peroxisome proliferator activated receptor-alpha activators reduce inflammation in irritant and allergic contact dermatitis models. J Invest Dermatol 2002;118(1): 94-101.
- Chamlin SL, Frieden IJ, Fowler A, Williams M, Kao J, Sheu M, Elias PM. Ceramide-dominant, barrier-repair lipids improve childhood atopic dermatitis. Arch Dermatol 2001;137(8): 1110-2.
- Sheu M, Koo J. Update on the Use of Retinoids in the Chemoprevention and Treatment of Skin Cancer. International Journal of Dermatology. Accepted October 26, 2000.
- Sheu M, Koo J. Corticosteroids and Risk of Rebound and Pustular Conversion in Psoriasis. Psoriasis Forum, Fall 2000.
- Mark HF, Sheu M, Lopes L, Campagnone J, Takezawa K, Santoro K, Sigman M. Towards the development of a fluorescent in situ hybridization based genotoxicologic assay for aneuploidy in sperm. Cytobios 1995;82:171-180.
Activities & Honors
- Preceptorship Award, American Society for Dermatologic Surgery, 2004
- Outstanding Medical Student Ranking, Brown School of Medicine, 2001
- Community Service Leadership Award, 1996
- Program in Liberal Medical Education Research Assistantship Award, 1995
- Program in Liberal Medical Education Research Assistantship Award, 1994
- American Academy of Dermatology
- American Society of Dermatologic Surgery
- Maryland Dermatologic Society
Professional Activities
- Clinical Instructor, Johns Hopkins School od Medicine Department of Dermatology
- Dermatologist, Menlo Medical Clinic
Videos & Media
Recent News Articles and Media Coverage
"Sunscreen is valuable, but different types produce different results," The Washington Post, June 17, 2013
Patient Ratings & Comments
The Patient Rating score is an average of all responses to physician related questions on the national CG-CAHPS Medical Practice patient experience survey through Press Ganey. Responses are measured on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the best score. Comments are also gathered from our CG-CAHPS Medical Practice Survey through Press Ganey and displayed in their entirety. Patients are de-identified for confidentiality and patient privacy.
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2 Piece Slim Fit Black Textured Suit
Additional Information
Perry Ellis Suit Set
- Slim Fit: Our best-selling suit is crafted for guys who want tailored and trim. A closer fit brings a slimmer feel through the chest, waist and sleeves. A straight finish through the hips, thighs, legs and leg openings produces a suit that compliments you well — and receives compliments of its own.
- Suit set includes a jacket and pant with unfinished hem, which allows you to tailor pant to exact length you need
- Measurements: The size of each jacket determines the waist size of the pant, which always includes a 6-size drop
- Example: Size 40 jacket (short, regular or long) includes a 34-inch waist pant
- Size 38 jacket (short, regular or long) includes a 32-inch waist pant
- Height Recommendation: Short (S) = 5'7" and under, Regular = 5'8" to 5'11", Long = 6'0" and over
- 76% Polyester / 24% Rayon
- Dry Clean Only
- Imported
Shipping & Returns
We offer the following convenient delivery options within the United States including Alaska & Hawaii.
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We will issue a refund, excluding any shipping and handling fees, for all unused, undamaged and/or defective products returned within 30 days of purchase. All products must be returned in its original packaging and with all accessories to ensure a full credit.
Full Return Policy >


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If you have ever had a NACADA membership, attended an event, or purchased a NACADA product we have a user account for you in our system. If you do not know your email address, login name, or password that is associated with your NACADA account please click Sign In Help to assist you in getting this information.
If you are experiencing trouble with the Forgot Password process, please call (785.532.5717) or email (email@example.com) NACADA for assistance.
If this is your first involvement with NACADA please proceed with creating a new user account.
Please Complete all fields below to create your New User account.We recommend the password to follow these criteria: at least length = 10, numeric characters = 1, upper case characters = 1, lower case characters = 1.
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Give your landing page design a modern and professional look and feel with our latest landing page designs. Our clean and appealing landing page design will capture your user's attention and convert them into leads.
Check out some of our latest landing page designs below:
Payday loan providers landing page design
Browse our responsive payday loan landing page designs here: https://www.buylandingpagedesign.com/responsive-landing-page-design/payday-loan/


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- Kentucky's Only Off Road Test Track
- Test Jeep's Legendary Capabilities Before You Buy
- 32 Degree Hill Climb
- Offset Ramps for Articulation
- Rock Pile
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One Owner .. NIGHT Package with 20 Inch Black Wheels, Black Grill and Emblems with Painted Trim .. Heated Bucket Seats .. Heated Steering Wheel .. 5.7L Hemi V8 .. 4x4 .. Sport Performance Hood .. LED Bed Lighting .. Tow Pkg .. Running Boards .. Dual Exhaust .. 5 Year 60k mile Warranty ..
New vehicle pricing includes all offers and incentives. Tax, Title and Tags not included in vehicle prices shown and must be paid by the purchaser. While great effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the information on this site, errors do occur so please verify information with a customer service rep. This is easily done by calling us at (866) 747-1624 or by visiting us at the dealership.
**With approved credit. Terms may vary. Monthly payments are only estimates derived from the vehicle price with a 72 month term, 4.9% interest and 20% downpayment.
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Austin Seminary is an innovative and forward-thinking institution dedicated to the advancement of theological education. The Seminary employs great people with great values, and strives to create a nurturing Christian atmosphere for our employees, students, affiliated churches, and our community. Austin Seminary is committed to excellence.
The Seminary is committed to a work environment in which relationships are characterized by dignity, courtesy, respect, and equitable treatment, and in which employees receive support, recognition, and appreciation for jobs well done. In addition, the Seminary offers very generous benefits.
Are you seeking an opportunity to make an impact on the future of ministry? If so, we may have the position for you.
Flexible Spending/Deductible Reimbursement Accounts: The Seminary offers a flexible spending account for employees to set aside money on a pre-tax basis to cover medical and dependent expenses.
The Seminary offers two options: For ordained faculty and staff: ordained clergy may elect medical, long term disability, retirement and death benefits through the "traditional" program of Board of Pensions of the Presbyterian Church (USA). The medical insurance is administered by Highmark Blue Cross/Blue Shield. The prescription/mail order program is administered by Catamaran. Eligibility begins on the 1 day of the month following the employee's initial start date.
Optional Benefits:
For non-ordained or non-Board of Pensions staff: medical benefits are administered by the "Affiliated Benefits" program of the Board of Pensions of the Presbyterian Church (USA). The prescription/mail order program is administered by Catamaran. Eligibility begins on the first day of the month following the employee's initial start date.
Retirement/Supplemental Retirement Accounts: Unless otherwise stated in the employment letter, full-time employees become eligible to enroll in the Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association and/or College Retirement Equities Fund (TIAA/CREF) after one year. Each year, the Seminary's Board of Trustees establishes the Seminary's contribution (as a percentage employee salary) toward employee retirement annuity accounts. Once eligible for retirement benefits, employees may withhold money on a pre-tax basis for a supplemental retirement account.
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erwtenpeller wrote:Come roll horde with me mur. I want to reroll troll druid/herbalist on an RP server, friend of mine is going goblin hunter/engineer... See the stark contrast? It'll be awesome!
Maybe. I love the guild I'm in atm. That's the only problem.
I think I would get as much enjoyment from wow in a casual 10man guild as I do from being in a "High tier" 25man guild though. I just don't know if I could deal with the loss of e-peen.


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Gore Vidal, Novelist, Screenwriter, Bon Vivant, Dead at 86
Gore Vidal, the writer of such novels as 'Myra Breckinridge,' plays such as 'The Best Man,' and screenwriter on such films as 'Suddenly Last Summer' and 'Caligula,' has died from complications from pneumonia. He was 86.
For many Vidal was one of the great pundits/essayists, who – like many witty authors in the 1970′s – found themselves a regular of the talk show circuit, perhaps most famously when ABC News had Vidal and William F. Buckley Jr. on in 1968 to talk about the presidential conventions. Their conversation became so vitriolic, many thought it might result in an actual fist fight.
But Vidal was also an author, either under his real name or under his pseudonym Edgar Box. And like many in the 1950′s, he was drawn in to both Broadway and Hollywood. It was for New York he wrote the play 'The Best Man' (which was later adapted to the big screen), but it was for California that he adapted Tennessee Williams' 'Suddenly Last Summer' for the big screen.
One of Vidal's most famous film credits is still under some contention: He has long said that he worked on 'Ben-Hur' even though he is not one of the credited writers. It was in the 1990′s he spread the story that the antagonistic relationship between Charlton Heston's Ben-Hur and Stephen Boyd's Messala was based in a previous homosexual relationship. Heston denies the story, and Vidal's imput into the film.
Though in some way – even though he contributed to interesting films like 'The Left Handed Gun' and 'Is Paris Burning' – his most famous on-screen credit is for 'Caligula,' which at one point was called 'Gore Vidal's Caligula.' It came in 1979, at the apex of porno chic, and was produced by Penthouse's Bob Guccione, and directed by noted adult-themed director Tinto Brass. The film stars Malcolm McDowell, John Geilgud, Peter O'Toole and Helen Mirren, and was meant to show decadence, but ultimately became known for the hard core pornography inserted into the film to make it of interest.
It was something Vidal had no problem talking about – Vidal rarely had problems talking about anything – though it's failure is only one small part of the man's legacy as a writer, essayist and great American personality. He will be missed.


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The Open Society Foundations began in 1979 when George Soros decided he had enough money. His great success as a hedge fund manager allowed him to pursue his ambition of establishing open societies in place of authoritarian forms of government. "Open society is based on the recognition that our understanding of the world is inherently imperfect," Soros said. "What is imperfect can be improved." He started by supporting scholarships for black students at the University of Cape Town in South Africa and for Eastern European dissidents to study abroad.
Soros set up his first non-U.S. foundation in Hungary in 1984. His signature move was to distribute photocopiers to universities, libraries, and civil society groups, breaking the communist party's grip on information. By the fall of the Berlin Wall, Soros had established two more foundations, in Poland and Russia. As communism collapsed, Soros moved quickly to seize the revolutionary moment and create foundations in countries throughout Eastern Europe and Central Asia. His work contributed to the emergence of democratic governments and substantially more open societies in most countries of the former Soviet empire.
To help train a new generation of political and economic leaders, Soros founded the Central European University in 1991 as a center of research and policy analysis that promotes the principles of open, democratic societies. Support for education programs, from early childhood to university, accounted for as much as half of the Open Society Foundations' annual program expenditures.
Beginning in 1993, the Foundations provided tens of millions of dollars for humanitarian aid and relief efforts during the wars in the countries of the former Yugoslavia, especially in besieged Sarajevo where construction crews braved sniper fire and artillery shells to connect residents to gas lines, electricity, and drinking water.
Aryeh Neier joined the Open Society Foundations in 1993 as president after leading Human Rights Watch and the American Civil Liberties Union. By the following year annual expenditures had reached $300 million, compared to less than $3 million in 1985, and the Foundations became known for the ability to respond rapidly with innovative programs to changing conditions.
Neier began to make the Open Society Foundations into a truly international organization. We provided support for Burmese refugees and dissidents suffering under the repressive military regime in that country; for the construction of low-cost housing and legal, economic, and political reforms in South Africa to help the fledgling majority-black government; and for regional initiatives in Africa and Central Asia.
In 1996, with the launch of our programs in the United States, we made an effort to address some of the flaws of an open society. Early programs focused on improving end-of-life care, reforming drug policies, changing the punitive criminal justice system, and challenging harsh immigration laws and practices. Baltimore was selected for a comprehensive approach to the root causes of poverty and injustice. The Foundations supported projects in Baltimore that helped boost reading and math test scores for public school students, expand after-school programs, double the number of people receiving drug treatment, and increase the state's parole grant rate.
Our geographical reach continued to expand in the first decade of the new millennium. By 2010 we played a role in every region of the world. In a substantial number of countries where we are active, the Foundations are a leading supporter—and sometimes the lone supporter—of efforts to promote democratic governance, respect for the rule of law, protection of the rights of minorities, and civil and political liberties.
In the worldwide struggle for open society, we are in the forefront of many significant global campaigns, including the following:
- Development of international tribunals holding accountable government officials and leaders of antigovernment forces responsible for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. In 2002, the establishment of the International Criminal Court, long supported by the Open Society Foundations, became a reality. The Foundations assisted and promoted efforts to try leaders for war crimes in tribunals for the former Yugoslavia, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, and Cambodia as well as at the ICC.
- Transparency and accountability for the revenues that governments derive from the exploitation of natural resources. In 2001, to curb corruption and ensure that citizens benefit from their nation's natural wealth, we began promoting a campaign for revenue and budget transparency in resource-rich countries. We funded pioneering organizations in this field and established the Revenue Watch Institute in 2006.
- Implementation of national freedom of information laws. At the end of the 1980s, only some 13 countries worldwide had freedom of information laws. By 2010, there were more than 80 countries with such laws and regulations. The Open Society Foundations has been instrumental in the passage and implementation of freedom of information laws.
In 2004, eight Eastern European countries that we helped transform into democracies were accepted into the European Union, with two more joining three years later. With our support, other countries are seeking to become EU candidates.
We have recorded successes on issues such as minority rights, access to health care, and women's rights. From the start, the Open Society Foundations emphasized protecting the rights of minorities and promoting opportunities for them to participate fully in society. We have addressed the problems faced by, among others, drug users, sexual minorities, people living with HIV, people with mental disabilities, Muslims in the United States and Europe, and Roma in Europe.
In 2005, together with the World Bank, we launched the Decade of Roma Inclusion, 2005–2015. Since the early 1990s, we have provided support for an unprecedented effort to improve the lives and advance the human rights of the Roma, Europe's largest and most marginalized ethnic minority.
To curb the spread of HIV and other infections among injecting drug users, the Foundations have worked to switch the focus from criminal penalties to human rights and health services, leading a global movement in support of needle exchange, substation therapy, and demand reduction. Another public health problem that we tackled is the exclusion of people with mental disabilities from education and employment opportunities.
In 2009, in response to the rape of thousands of women by soldiers during the conflicts in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Open Society Foundations established a mobile court for gender crimes that traveled to remote, war-torn regions bringing justice to women. In a major victory in early 2011, a mobile court sentenced a colonel, three junior officers, and five soldiers to sentences ranging from 10 to 20 years for carrying out the rapes of dozens of women, men, and children.
Even as we continued to work on all these issues, we increased our expenditures to provide humanitarian aid in response to the global economic crisis and recent natural disasters. In 2009 we committed hundreds of millions of dollars to help the people hardest hit by the economic downturn in Europe and the United States. In 2010 we committed millions to help alleviate the human suffering caused by flooding in Pakistan and an earthquake in Haiti. The Foundations' expenditures in 2010 amounted to $820 million.
In 2011, among other efforts to strengthen justice and public health, the Open Society Foundations worked to eliminate discrimination and prejudice against Europe's Muslims, many of whom have lived in countries such as France and the United Kingdom for generations; to stop torture in health care, including forced sterilization, denial of pain relief, and detention as treatment; and to improve the situation of young black males in the United States with, among other support, a $30 million grant for educational, employment, and mentoring programs for black and Latino young men in New York City.
Christopher Stone assumed the presidency of the Open Society Foundations in July 2012, replacing founding president Aryeh Neier who stepped down after leading the Foundations for 19 years. Stone, a member of the Open Society Justice Initiative board, was previously the Guggenheim Professor of the Practice of Criminal Justice at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government and director of the Vera Institute of Justice.
With Chris Stone as president, the Open Society Foundations remain committed to the global struggle for open society and to responding quickly to the challenges and opportunities of the future. As George Soros has said, "Our understanding of the world is inherently imperfect. What is imperfect can be improved."


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b) Volcanology & Geophysics Geophysical potential methods are qualified for the detection of volcanite occurrences. Many known maar-diatreme volcanoes and other volcanic deposits are buried by post-genetic sediments. Geophysical methods resulted in their initial discovery and subsequent drilling provided geological samples, which confirmed their origin. Interpretation of a single geophysical data set over a suspected volcanic structure can be ambiguous. When combined, however, with complementary geophysical methods and the existing database over other known occurrences, a more definite assessment can be made. The most notable geophysical signature associated with maar-diatreme volcanoes is a negative gravity anomaly. These gravity lows are generally circular and cover the whole structures. They are due to lithological and physical changes associated with the phreatomagmatic explosion. In well-preserved maar structures, low-density sedimentary infill of the maar lake contributes to the gravity low. In general, magnetic anomalies are more complex than gravity anomalies. Their reason is the very complex setting of volcanic structures and its very different magnetic properties. Also electrical methods are suitable for the exploration of volcanic occurrences. Due to the presence of fluids in explosion-induced fractures and pore spaces the electrical resistivity levels are decreased and that can be mapped effectively. Reflection seismic surveys allow for detailed imaging of some volcanic structures, like maar-diatreme volcanoes. Geophysical well logging methods are very useful for the detailed investigation of drill holes, also in volcanic influenced areas. Contributors have been encouraged to consider these key topics.
Convener Peter Suhr (Freiberg/D) Jan Mrlina (Praha/CZ)


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Edmund Burke PC (12 January 1729 – 9 July 1797) was an Anglo-Irish statesman, author, orator, political theorist, and philosopher who, after relocating to England, served for many years in the House of Commons of Great Britain as a member of the Whig party. He is mainly remembered for his support of the cause of the American Revolutionaries, and for his later opposition to the French Revolution. The latter led to his becoming the leading figure within the conservative faction of the Whig party, which he dubbed the "Old Whigs", in opposition to the pro-French-Revolution "New Whigs," led by Charles James Fox. Burke was praised by both conservatives and liberals in the nineteenth century. Since the twentieth century, he has generally been viewed as the philosophical founder of modern conservatism, as well as a representative of classical liberalism.
Burke was born in Dublin, Ireland to a prosperous solicitor father (Richard; d. 1761) of the Church of Ireland. It is unclear if this is the same Richard Burke who converted from Catholicism. His mother Mary (c. 1702–1770), whose maiden name was Nagle, belonged to the Roman Catholic Church and came from an impoverished but genteel County Cork family. (The name de Búrca, anglicised as Burke, is the Irish language version of the Norman name Burgh or de Burgh, the name of a family that settled in Ireland following the Norman invasion of Ireland by Henry II of England in 1172.) Burke was raised in his father's faith and remained throughout his life a practising Anglican, unlike his sister Juliana who was brought up as and remained a Roman Catholic. His political enemies were later repeatedly to accuse him of having been educated at the Jesuit seminary of St. Omer's and of harbouring secret Catholic sympathies at a time when membership of the Catholic Church would disqualify him from public office (see Penal Laws in Ireland). As Burke told Mrs. Crewe:
Mr. Burke's Enemies often endeavoured to convince the World that he had been bred up in the Catholic Faith, & that his Family were of it, & that he himself had been educated at St. Omer—but this was false, as his father was a regular practitioner of the Law at Dublin, which he could not be unless of the Established Church: & it so happened that though Mr. B— was twice at Paris, he never happened to go through the Town of St. Omer.


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I am beyond excited….not only is fashion week starting tomorrow (helloooo Instagram), but I just got back from an INCREDIBLE weekend in Las Vegas, where I had the ultimate girlfriend experience: an evening partying with our cover girl, the incredible Eva Longoria!! The scene at her new restaurant and club, SHe by Morton's, was a marriage of Las Vegas cutting edge chic and DC cool: influencers like former congresswoman Gabby Giffords dined feet away from rocker Vince Neil and plenty of budding fashionistas. Sitting with Eva as we sampled a plate of savory hand-cut steak tartare and seared brussel sprouts (so delicious), I was almost thrown by how she could be so focused and relaxed at the same time.
Stunning models strutted on the catwalk and DJs and dancers electrified the stage as Eva's friends took turns dancing around the table in her VIP area (including a super-hot muscly guy that turned out to be one of the bachelors on her new show, Ready For Love, oops, I guess I shouldn't have asked him to jump on the pole..hahahaha), but Eva stayed poised and on point as she watched the festivities unfold.
We chatted about politica, bad boyfriends, and beauty out of the box. See our exclusive video below!!!
Also, don't forget to pick up Cosmo For Latinas, on newsstands today!
Some of our issue highlights:
*Empire Girl fashionista Adrienne Bailon chats about growing up Latina, and living in East Harlem
*An investigative reporter reviews the top lifestyle changes to boost your personal happiness
*Is it worth it to date a Latino? The stats reveal the pros and cons
*Juicy confessions on hooking up at work and paying for a happy ending


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Linux at retail has been a hit-and-miss proposition for more than a decade. Consumers have been able to purchase some boxed versions of Linux distros from off store shelves over the years, though for the most part, that's not how most have historically acquired Linux.
Ubuntu has been one such Linux vendor that has had its distribution available at retail. In 2008, Ubuntu was sold for a time at Best Buy locations. Much has changed since then -- owing to a persistently difficult economic climate and a revitalized competitor in the form of Microsoft Windows 7. So what is Ubuntu's strategy for retail in 2010?
In an interview with InternetNews.com, Jane Silber, the new CEO of Ubuntu's lead sponsor, Canonical, shed some light on her company's strategy to get Ubuntu into the mass consumer market.
"On the consumer desktop side, it's a combination of taking some market share from Microsoft as opposed to changes within Linux distributions. And in part, it's about growing the overall size of the pie," Silber told InternetNews.com.
Part of that plan includes driving consumer appeal by including new consumer technology in Ubuntu. One of the new technologies set to be included in the upcoming Ubuntu 10.04 "Lucid Lynx" release is the Ubuntu One Music Store, which will enable users to purchase music. Ubuntu 10.04 Lucid Lynx is currently scheduled for release at the end of April.
"I think we'll continue to see more acceptance of Ubuntu in the mass-market consumer space," Silber said.
From boxed sales to PC pre-installs
As far as how Ubuntu actually ends up in consumers' hands, Silber sees OEM partnerships as being the key to getting Ubuntu on retail shelves.
"Retail is a tricky environment, but we are seeing growth there," Silber said. "I don't expect it in the form of a box set of Ubuntu, but I expect it in the form of Ubuntu pre-installed on machines that consumers are buying in retail environments."
Silber added that she expects that Ubuntu's OEM relationships will be an significant area of growth in the coming year.
"We are finding a growing and thriving ecosystem around Ubuntu with OEMs," Silber said. "It's an interesting and challenging environment; basically, what we're doing is getting in before machines hit the shelves, which traditionally has been the hard part for open source software."
Return to linux news headlines
View Linux News Archive


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text: This excellent website offers information, insight, and analysis on nuclear weapons, nuclear energy, climate change, and biosecurity. Users may access a set of the most recent articles posted through a prominently displayed topic menu. Title links are accompanied by summary sentences. Articles generally present a synthesis of the issue in question and contain internal links to the original news reports or other sources referenced. Columns, editorials, and other documents written by the publication's contributors and other experts are featured, as well as the Bulletin's famous "doomsday clock," which indicates how close humanity is to catastrophic destruction. If a user is registered, he or she may access the site's "premium content," such as articles from the print version of The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. The print version of the Bulletin was first published shortly after World War II, and the publication has been a leader in the discussion of nuclear issues since that time.


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As mentioned in my last post for GMO-Skeptics Forum, one of the major influences in my journey from Dark Green Chicken-Little to pragmatic techno-optimist was Stewart Brand's seminal Whole Earth Discipline.
This makes interesting reading for me four years later, as I was on the cusp of a new understanding on some key environmental issues: I was still in the grip of peak oil paranoia; I had not yet grasped what is really happening with population or even how fundamental the issue has been for environmentalism; and I would also be much more skeptical these days of apocalyptic climate predictions.
In particular, this book started me questioning the assumptions of my environmentalist tribe on GMOs, which I have since learned a lot more about and written many more posts on.
The review comes over to me now as wordy and long-winded, but this reflects partly the inner struggle I was going through as some of my core beliefs began to be re-aligned, so it serves as a testimony to that process as well as a hopefully useful review of a still important book.
From the Archives: First published on Zone5 March 22nd 2010
Book Review:
Whole Earth Discipline -An Ecopragmatist Manifesto
by Stewart Brand
Atlantic Books 2009 316pp
"Civilization is at risk, but civilization is the problem".
Stewart Brand is one of the iconic founders of the environmental movement, an original old hippy whose influence on the boomer generation should not be understated. With his latest book Whole Earth Discipline he takes that same movement to task for rejecting science and getting sidetracked by ideology at the very time when the practical application of science through engineering and technology may be the only way to save ourselves.
I came across an early copy of The Whole Earth Catalog, founded by Brand in 1968, on an early visit to a small "back to the land" commune about 25 years ago. It was a thrilling introduction to the possibilities of the burgeoning "alternative" lifestyle of organic gardening and renewable energy I was joining at the time.
Over the coming years, I read about his early involvement in LSD in The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test and currently have a copy of his 1999 book The Clock of the Long Now on my bookshelf.
In a recent interview, I heard Brand take on the environmental movement's anti-science stance on various issues. I have been grappling with this issue myself for some time now, particularly in the credulous acceptance by most green organisations of "alternative medicine" for which there is no evidence, and the anti-science diatribes that are inevitably summoned up in defense.
More recently I have discovered for myself how little science there is behind the health claims of organic food, and how organisations such as the Soil Association are often pseudo-scientific in their claims and their treatment of evidence.
Whole Earth Discipline challenges the greens on four more holy cows: population, urbanisation, nuclear power and Genetically Engineered crops, and in reading this compelling and fascinating book I have had to do some serious re-thinking around these issues myself.
Of those four issues the one I have been most concerned about myself has been population: what use our hard-won per capita reductions in carbon emissions if this is to be always canceled out by more people? What chance of eco-system restoration if a growing population is constantly increasing the pressure?
In contrast to Brand- who had Population Bomb author Paul Ehrlich as one of his early tutors- I do not see population really as a big environmentalist cause, rather it seems to be the elephant in the room that no-one wants to talk about, perhaps because of connections with oppressive regimes, racism and the sheer intractability of the problem.
Brand claims however that world population will most likely peak within another generation at around 9 billion, far less than was being predicted in the 70s and 80s, and that there is one major reason for this: urbanization. Most of humanity now live in cities and as the rural poor move there they reduce their numbers of offspring, so much so that far from a population crash, we are facing a crisis of an aging population.
Brand paints a very different picture of this process of the move to town than that of the conventional environmentalist. The move to the city Brand claims is liberating on the whole, and especially for women. Rural village life tends to be parochial and oppressive, offering little by way of opportunity. Peasant subsistence agriculture is far from the romantic view of the back-to-the-land movement for most, but back breaking toil subject to the vagaries of the weather with no back-up in case of crop failure.
The mega-slums of the developing world may appear to be hellish and grossly over-crowded polluted and destitute to the affluent western greenie, but Brand argues that in fact they are preferable to squalid farming because they offer opportunities to escape poverty. One way this is happening is by the ubiquitous spread of the cell phone: even the poorest of the poor have one, with incoming calls often free.
Not only that, but growing cities mean an emptying countryside which is good for forest regeneration. The point is made clearly: if you want to be green, than the compact life in the city is for you, while those in wealthy countries who set up their small-holdings in remote rural locations are likely to have a larger footprint, subsidised as they are by car transport and long supply lines. (I would be a classic example of this last category.)
Surprising though Brand's analysis is on cities, his more controversial chapters are likely to be the ones on nuclear and GE crops.
While I attended anti-nuclear demos in my youth- CND was at its height in the late 1970s when I was leaving school- more recently I have been swayed by James Lovelock's position on nuclear, that which ever way you look at it, coal is the real dirty fuel and if your concern is over future generations, addressing climate change by decarbonising the economy is your first priority.
It does indeed seem that fears over the dangers of nuclear waste have been exaggerated. The total per capita waste from a lifetime of using nuclear fuel for one family would fit into a soda can. France runs 80% of its electricity from nuclear, but while many die every day in car crashes, nuclear seems to be very safe these days. Not only that, but there are new generations of nuclear power stations which are relatively small and which can be deployed anywhere. One scheme is to produce small power stations which contain their entire lifetimes worth of fuel, are buried for the duration of the fuel and simply switched off when that is spent, with no waste extracted.
Brand also points out that all the existing nuclear powers developed weapons technology first, which then gave rise to civil energy uses, rather than the other way round; since Iran actually does need nuclear power, the international community would be in a very strong place to insist how this is developed safely. In the west meanwhile, large numbers of nukes are being used as a source of fuel for power generation.
What Brand skips over in his book with barely a mention is peak oil. He clearly thinks new technologies and fuel sources can fill the gap somehow; uranium can be extracted from sea water, and if that runs out, we can use thorium instead.
Peak oil doomers like myself have long argued against nuclear on the grounds that it will take too long to construct, that the carbon footprint is still high once you have counted the embodied energy in construction and decommissioning;that uranium will peak also before too long should we try to run everything from nuclear. While Brand makes a convincing case for the safety of modern reactors and the promise of new technologies, he is clearly under no illusion about the challenge facing us were we to try to replace existing coal and oil with a range of alternatives, including nuclear, before the climate tipping point. Brand is no techno-fantasist, but a pragmatic and practical engineer.
Perhaps even more of a Holy Cow for environmentalists than nuclear is Genetically Engineered crops. (Brand prefers "GE" to the more common "GM".) This seems to go right to the heart of what sees as the problem with the ideological position of "romantic" greens who are motivated by a spurious ideological notions of what is "natural". Tampering with genes, especially crossing the species divide seems unnatural to many and unholy to some.
But scientists are no more concerned about GE technology than they are about plant breeding and loss of diversity from farming in general, because they know as Brand says that genes are extremely fungible in nature: transgenic mutations, especially on the microbial level, are apparently quite normal, indeed we could hardly have evolved without this process. Although the "strawberry with fish genes" is apparently an urban myth, in fact any given gene may be nearly identical in two very different species so splicing genes from one organism into another may not be nearly as "abnormal" as it may appear.
The problem is not this or that particular kind of farming, but farming in general. Unless you advocate a return to hunter-gatherer lifestyles (there are those who do) there is no reason to feel GE crops are uniquely evil or dangerous.
To an ecologist, or to a Gaian for that matter, agriculture is one vast catastrophe. The less of it the better.
Another urban myth which may be partly responsible for the extreme opposition to GE- in common with anti-abortion and anti-vivisection activism, anti-GE sentiment is deemed to justify violence on occasion- is the "terminator gene", designed to produce sterile genes. This does appear to be unjustifiable, interfering as it does with ancient farming practices of seed-saving, until you read the true story: no "terminator" crops were ever actually produced, in part because of protests, but the real reason for their proposed development was to limit the dangers of the new crops running amok in the wild: in other words, terminator technology was part of the checks and balances that Monsanto were proposing to address some of the environmentalists concerns. Without this, preventing contamination may now be harder.
The absurdity of the opposition to these crops is expressed in the quote given by Vandana Shiva, from her book Stolen Harvest: The Hijacking of the Global Food Supply (2000):
The gradual spread of sterility in seeding plants would result in a global catastrophe that would eventually wipe out higher life forms, including humans, from the planet
– a biological impossibility, since terminator plants would be unable to spread by seeds.
Brand gives a shocking account of how ideologically motivated environmental organizations including Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth campaigned extensively against US food aid to Africa during famines in 2001 and 2002 because it contained GE crops, threatening to prevent any African imports to Europe if this badly needed food was accepted. Brand ruefully quotes Brecht: "Grub first, then ethics.
Starvation was treated as a measure of commitment to the cause. In the service of what was thought to be a higher good, the environmental movement went sociopathic in Africa.
That well funded environmental groups in Europe campaigned so vociferously against food aid that was meant for starving people is surely a shocking indictment that there is something seriously wrong with the movement.
Many of the arguments Brand discusses in favour of GE crops are given here;
-after a decade of real life trials, no evidence suggests any human health implications from eating GE food;
-checks and balances are employed far more diligently in GE than in many other areas;
-GE is already becoming decentralised with many smaller companies and NGOs becoming involved in using the technology appropriately to help the poor and the hungry, with many beneficial effects for the environment including less use of pesticides:
"Developing countries are building their own non -corporate GE programs suited to their unique agricultural needs." The democratization of the technology may even have been hampered by anti-GE activism: "Only a few big corporate players have survived a period of consolidation, caused partly by excessive anti-GE regulation that drove out small companies".
And the potential of the technology is impressive: unlike conventional plant breeding, GE can be highly specific and precise in the traits it develops, and has had many successes despite the hampering of environmental protests.
Brand discusses at length how the bogus concept of the "precautionary" principle has been used to scupper development of the technology. In the absence of any clear evidence of danger, the precautionary principle is merely a recipe for social apoplexy. No doubt there were protesters using the same argument when people first discovered fire. In fact there are lots of checks and balances and the scientists who know what they are doing are far more aware of possible dangers than protesters.
Quasi-scientific propaganda against climate change is no different from quasi-scientific propaganda against genetic engineering. Both try to harness science to a political agenda.
In the coming years, GE seems certain to spread and eventually to be accepted: "The fact is that the fastest-moving countries now with GE crops are the developing nations that have the scientific competence and confidence to stand up to excessively cautious environmentalists- China, Brazil, India, South Africa, Argentina, the Philippines. as they go, so goes the world."
As I write this I am getting forwarded emails asking me to sign the Avaaz petition against the recent decision by the European Council to allow GE potatoes to be grown here. I wont be signing, but I know most of my colleagues- many of whom have pulled up GM crops themselves- will.
In the future however, the strategy is likely to be to aim the benefits of the produce at the consumer: if the technology is good enough, people will simply prefer the better product. The proof will be in the pudding.
Brand returns to the issue of the dysfunction of Greens in his next chapter, Romantics, Scientist and Engineers.
Here he suggests that one of the driving forces of green movements has been the romantic notion of decline. As a peak -oiler myself a lot of bells rang as I read through the book and I found myself stopping to question how much of my beliefs about the inevitability of collapse and "the long descent" are ideological rather than based on real evidence.
Clearly the potential for collapse is very real, and perhaps an over-optimistic world view based on "positive thinking" has contributed to the recent financial collapse, as Barbara Ehrenreich has argued in her 2010 book Smile or Die.
Without discussing the ins and outs of the collapse theory- he has already outlined some of the worst scenarios of climate change in the opening chapter- Brand explores the idea that romantic greens are ideologically opposed to finding solutions, whereas engineers believe there must be a solution to everything.
A new set of environmental players is shifting the balance. Engineers are arriving who see environmental problems neither as a romantic tragedy nor as a scientific puzzle but simply as something to fix.
I myself used to buy into the still prevalent myth of the Fall from an idyllic past: for thousands of years, so this particular myth goes- humans lived in harmony with Nature, responsive to Her (usually feminine) deepest energies and understandings.
At a certain unspecified point in our history, we lost our way, separating from Nature and playing God by manipulating natural laws. It is because this myth is still so powerful that anti-GE and anti-nuclear sentiment remains so strong and vitriolic- Thou Shalt Not meddle with the Deeper Law.
In reality, there never was such an idyllic harmonious past; Rousseau's Noble Savage never was.
Nature does not care about us, nor does it have plans or desires; rather, any species that were to evolve the adaptive advantages of opposable thumbs and the neo-cortex would have come to dominate our predators and competitors in the same way we have.
Being close to nature has always meant short life-span, high infant mortality and constant resource wars. It has only ever been our technology- starting with fire- that has allowed us to escape such an existence.
As Brand outlines so succinctly in his opening pages, the fundamental problem of humanity is not separation from nature, but existential: everything we do has a footprint; yet we want our children to survive and prosper.
Brand takes a brief look at how these retro-romantic views have been associated with, and are not incompatible with, Nazism: yearning for a purity in nature not found in culture; and an elitism only possible in the well fed to moralize to the hungry.
But the engineer's approach is very different from any kind of deluded new age pseudo-therapy, rooted as it is in science and practical experience. There is surely no guarantee that we will be able to pull off the kind of techno-fixes Brand describes in his last chapters- which includes such things as giant sunshades in space and the sequestration of carbon through biochar on a massive scale- but the worst aspects of the romantic's world view should not hinder these attempts which may be our last chance.
Every environmentalist should read this life-changing – and maybe even planet-changing book.
The long-evolved Green agenda is suddenly outdated- too negative, too tradition-bound, too specialized, too politically one-sided for the scale of the climate problem. Far from taking a new dominant role, environmentalists risk being marginalized more than ever, with many of their deep goals and well-honed strategies irrelevant to the new tasks. Accustomed to saving natural systems from civilization, Greens now have the unfamiliar task of saving civilization from a natural system- climate dynamics.


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Which Road: Easy or TrueDecember 14th, 2009 by Rob Vandermark
Shaking Up the Collaborative To Challenge Our Assumptions
Someone asked a question regarding why the Collaborative is trying to work with lugs when it seems pretty clear that off-the-shelf options aren't working for this project. Or at least, preexisting lugs didn't work for the Seven Cycles Shop Bike we just built.
Answering this question quickly becomes a circular discussion. In the context of the Collaborative, an example might look something like this. In fact, In order to explain one of the reasons why we're committed to using lugs, and simultaneously frustrated by using lugs, I'll provide a real world example.
But first, remember that one of the elements of the Collab's mission is to work with lugs. I've provided some of the compelling reasons we're dedicated to lugs for this project—and I'll be providing more reasons in the coming weeks.


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Astute Elevage readers will notice a general lack of tasting notes here on Australian wines. One might infer that I'm anti-Australia, in with the "I hate big ass shiraz" crowd. No, not at all. There's so much more to Australia, a place I've visited twice and love dearly.
Sure, some of the larger scaled Aussie reds are way too over the top for me, not to mention overpriced (at least here in the US). Yet there are terrific reds from older producers like Henschke and Tahbilk, and more recent producers like Torbreck.
What I really love about Australia are the lesser known (again, in the US) wines. I'm thinking of the white wines, the rieslings of Clare Valley and semillon of the Hunter, and the stickies.
Ever been to Rutherglen? It's a dusty farm town off the Hume Highway in northern Victoria, a bit closer to Melbourne than Syndey otherwise in the middle of nowhere. It reminds me of what Sonoma might have felt like 50 years ago or more, when you were more likely to see a tractor on main street than a Jaguar.
Rutherglen is also home to some of Australia's most prized and famous wines, namely its dark, rich and intense brown muscats that age seemingly forever. There's history here too -- many of the producers have been around since the 19th century, some with wine stocks going back nearly as far.
On my visits down under, I've managed to stay over in Rutherglen twice. Winery visits included the venerable Chambers, Campbells, All Saints and Morris, the inspiration for tonight's post.
Back in 2002, I brought back a 500ml bottle of NV Morris "Old Premium" Liqueur Muscat, made in the solera style typically used in this region. That's where wines are periodically bottled from partially drained casks, with the casks then filled with young wines, aged, partially drained again for bottling, and filled again. Over time, the casks hold a mix of vintages younger and older, giving wines of great depth, maturity and freshness. Some casks are held longer still, providing blending tools so that younger soleras can be intensified with a bit of an older lot.
The wines themselves are curious in that they aren't fermented very long. Rather, grain alcohol is added early in the fermentation process to kill the yeast and preserve the sweetness, yielding wines with moderate acidity but tremendous residual sugar that apparently provide exceptional ageworthiness.
According to this label, base wines at the time of bottling nearly 10 years ago were more than 25 years old, making this a fairly old wine. The aromas are classic Rutherglen muscat, with floral, raisin, brown sugar and roasted nut notes. The flavors are intense and rich, with raisin, fruit cake and a mild sherry-like nutiness. There's great sweetness but more acidity than you might expect.
These wines are never laser-like with acidic structure. I simply love them for their intensity and uniqueness, with lingering flavors and a delicious taste that I've found in no other wine. Rutherglen muscat is truly original wine, and this Morris bottling from its Mia Mia Vineyard is exceptional. I'll have to go back to Australia and get more. I don't believe this wine makes it to the US, though plenty of others do. Give on a try.


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It was a bumpy ride but Aluna Francis made it to the desert looking as fabulous as ever.
Francis, performing on behalf of the duo AlunaGeorge at this year's Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival in Indio this weekend, rode down to the desert in a luxury bus provided by Microsoft as part of the tech company's latest campaign "Ready When You Are." The marketing blitz during the festival aims to show off the company's new toys, including its Nokia Lumia 1020 that Microsoft gave Francis to replace her antiquated flip phone.
The new phone, which features a 41-megapixel camera phone and HD directional audio, is what Microsoft Senior Product Manager Lucas Westcoast called a "media machine perfect for Coachella," and is just one device at the festival's OneDrive Tent that aims to provide festival-goers an interactive experience with its new gadgets and cloud-based technology.
Francis, who flew in Wednesday from London where her musical partner George Reid is sitting it out during the festival, is making her debut at Coachella and is scheduled to perform at 6:25 p.m. Sunday at Gobi.
While she's excited to hit the stage, Francis admitted she's particularly excited to catch Outkast, Bastille and The Knife — the latter being among the most influential to AlunaGeorge's sound, she said.
But before baring the triple-digit heat and crazy crowds, the intimate bus ride Thursday allowed the London-based singer to kick off her shoes and cozy up in the back of the bus with the Los Angeles News Group to chat about music, fashion and how fans will get an exclusive listen of AlunaGeorge's newest work.
So I love your outfit and know you've worked with designers, and have heard you talk about how important fashion is to you and your work. Can you talk to me about how it contributes to the overall AlunaGeorge experience?
The fashion side of things is a really great extra avenue to express what we do musically. Everything we wear says something and so, of course, I want to make sure I say something right with my look.
For my fans, I'd like to show that you can play with masculinity and femininity in clothing and that your clothing also can be a form of art where you can express a different side to yourself and not just what's cool and fashionable.
And what do you like to say with your music? What's your message to fans musically?
My music is often about empowerment in the face of some kind of personal struggle. There's always a dark and light. … I mean, sometimes there are lyrics that are quite dark but sound happy in the music that accompanies it, so you get that kind of combination of things that I think can speak to the reality of life.
There's a lot of talk about the '90s coming back, which made me think of your cover of Montell Jordan's 1995 hit "This is How We Do It." How did you do guys decide to do that song?
My boyfriend at the time, it was his favorite song and he was like 'Haha, you should totally do it.' Then we were in the studio and were like, 'We should do a cover,' and so I suggested 'This is How We Do It.'… Then I tried to sing/rap or singy rap — I don't even know what you call that. Sing rapping? Srapping?… I was just afraid I was going to start sounding like blalalalala — you know, like I was speaking in tongues… but yea, it started out as a joke.
Will you perform it at Coachella?
Uhm, maybe.
Well, without giving up too much, what can fans expect to see from you at Coachella?
We switched it up quite a bit with some new songs. Actually, this is literally going to be the first time anyone has heard these songs. We're really excited and, at the same time, really scared. It's a bit of a risk, but you have to take risks at Coachella.
After Coachella, do you plan on performing in L.A. anytime soon?
We don't have our tour booked yet, but we're releasing our album in the fall so we're definitely coming back to the area this year.


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Nanostructured materials continue to be the focus of intense research due to their promise of innumerable practical applications as well as advancing the fundamental understanding of these intriguing materials. From physics, to chemistry, to biology, to computer science, across the engineering disciplines and into the imagination of the general event, nanotechnology has become an extremely popular buzzword that represents both hope and hype to many people. This talk will outline and describe the exploding field of nanotechnology, including its potential for promising new applications, and for negative societal implications that cause many to fear it. Recent work in our group in the area of integration of nanoscale structures with silicon will be outlined to show the scope and approaches to building nanoscale architectures; the applications of these frameworks include molecular computing, nanoscale sensing platforms, integration of silicon with biology, and intricate structures with unforeseen properties.


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Subscribe To Sons Of Anarchy's Kurt Sutter Talks About This Week's Brutal Character Death Updates
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Those who watched last night's episode of Sons of Anarchy know that "Laying Pipe" marked the end of the road for one of the main characters on the FX biker drama. Series creator Kurt Sutter spoke with the press today on a conference call to discuss the character death and what it means for the series in general. If you haven't seen Sons of Anarchy's "Laying Pipe" episode yet, stop reading now! Major spoilers ahead!
The death of Opie (Ryan Hurst) was one of the more brutal moments of the series, and this comes just two episodes after we saw a girl being lit on fire and burned to death while her father (Tig) watched and could do nothing to stop it. Sons of Anarchy has a way of redefining the word "brutal," I guess. I shared some of my own reactions to Opie's death last night after "Laying Pipe" aired. And today, Kurt Sutter answered some questions about the episode, including why he decided to to kill off Opie at the beginning of the season. According to Sutter, it all started in Season 3 with Piney's death, which led to him considering Jax and Opie's relationship.
I got to the end of that season and realized that there is this circular dynamic that was happening with Jax and Opie that I felt it was very difficult to get out of in terms of where their arc was going. Of course, Ryan is an extraordinary actor.
One of the things I mentioned last night was hoping that, at the very least, Opie's death wouldn't be in vain. Sutter addressed that very thing, saying that Opie's death would have an emotional impact on the characters that would always be there. "Yes it's incredibly sad but the death of Opie will color the rest of the episodes for the rest of the series," he told us. "It's not a death that will happen in vain."
Opie was a character shrouded in tragedy and sadness, from the death of his wife Donna to his failed marriage with Lyla and then of course, his father Piney's death last season. He'd been through enough to want to walk away from the club. Of course, he came back one last time when he showed up to get arrested with Jax. That in itself seemed like a sacrificial move. But in "Laying Pipe," it looked like he volunteered himself to be the "Son" who was killed. Just as Jax was about to go all in and fight the guards, Opie stopped him and attacked the guard first. Was he offering himself up for the good of the club? Was he throwing in the towel after years of frustration, disappointment and grief? From what Sutter says, it sounds like Opie was in the mindset of serving the club when he made his choice.
I just felt like we had done so much damage to Opie and his family over the course of a few of seasons. It's why I couldn't wrap my brain around bringing him back to the table at the end of last season. That didn't seem right. To me, there is a sense of him having this tremendous loss. Yes, I do believe that some of it was definitely a sense of "Here's an opportunity to go out as doing the right thing. Perhaps this is how I can be of best service to my club." And in a weird way - maybe it's a selfish way - but also to his family.
It's going to be sad not seeing Ryan Hurst in the show anymore or seeing Opie among the guys when the club is together, but it sounds like Sutter has an end game in mind and Opie's death factors into that. With that in mind, it's easier to take the loss of the character as a viewer, I think.
Opie was one of my favorite characters. Another is Juice, whose "secret" has yet to be revealed. We know he was secretly working with Roosevelt last season, and while that issue seems to have been shelved for now, Sutter hasn't forgotten it. It sounds like it will be addressed eventually. "Not to spoil," Sutter said. "but I think that the circumstances that we're laying track to now will ultimately lead us to Juice and his secret." Interesting! As much as I hate the way that "secret" is hanging out there just waiting to exposed, given the loss of Opie, I sort of hope Juice doesn't get called out for it anytime soon.
Read our full episode breakdown of "Laying Pipe" here. And check out the preview for next week's episode below.


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15. Re: Duplicate websession with Seam 2.1.0.BETA1Jay Balunas Sep 10, 2008 3:24 PM (in response to Olivier Thierry)
Could you check your startup ouput and search for websession to see if it says where the second one is from?
Do you define or modify a websession component in the components.xml?
Something must be providing or configuring a second one.
16. Re: Duplicate websession with Seam 2.1.0.BETA1Emil Iakoupov Sep 12, 2008 9:21 PM (in response to Olivier Thierry)
i got the same problem when created seam ear project from eclipse Ganymede, using seam web project the problem was that generator made an entry in MANIFEST.MF of projectName-jar project. I removed it from there, added jboss-seam.jar to classpath. Then it deployed ok.
17. Re: Duplicate websession with Seam 2.1.0.BETA1Stefan Frank Apr 13, 2011 6:08 AM (in response to Olivier Thierry)
Had the very same error, without duplicate seam.jar and of course also without anything defined in the components.xml that only roughly resembles a webSession. Narrowed it down to a version-problem between two independent .wars: The one ran seam2.2.2.EAP, the other one ran 2.0.2.GA: The second one only produces this error when it is deployed after the first (saw this when I rebooted the server and the error suddenly gone). Upgrading the second one two 2.2.2.EAP5 gets rid of the error completely.
Two rules of thumb:
- Never ever upgrade seam, once you got it running.
- If you absolutely have to violate the first rule, make sure that you run the same version in all your apps.
Still totally puzzled why this happened - the apps should have been isolated, but appearantly, they are not...
18. Re: Duplicate websession with Seam 2.1.0.BETA1Leo van den berg Apr 13, 2011 6:16 AM (in response to Olivier Thierry)
Multiple Wars was a problem because some components clash if there are multiple instances.
For multiple war, use Seam 2.2, which solved this problem.
19. Re: Duplicate websession with Seam 2.1.0.BETA1blabno Apr 13, 2011 10:23 AM (in response to Olivier Thierry)
I totally disagree with Stefan Frank. I'm running about 4-5 applications on the same JBoss AS instance every app has different version of seam. There are no problems.
Also I have never had problems with upgrading applications to newer Seam version (within same major version :) ).
20. Re: Duplicate websession with Seam 2.1.0.BETA1Carlos Celis Osorio Apr 13, 2012 12:42 PM (in response to Olivier Thierry)
If you are deploying your project as a EAR project, in Add and Remove menu of JBoss AS in your IDE, don´t add jboss-seam.jar to configure resources. This library is already included in EAR file.
I have solved the problem this way.


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no FM Ronneby IS Fratelli Marcolin; the larger-than-life brothers tried toswitch production to Sardinia Crystal in 1999 but this soon resulted infisticuffs, and business ceased in retirement. Or so I've been told.
I have a Marcolin brochure and have not seen any panel cut somerso ormillefiori glass in there. These are quite specific techniques. So - arethese certain attributions, or did the brothers import from the homeland aswell?
Do you know how many different shapes and colour combinations the companyproduced?
Ivo records the Marcolin Brothers as having their own company from 1961 to1994.
......"the larger-than-life brothers"..........What do you mean?
Quote from: David E on March 18, 2008, 08:55:05 AMDo you know how many different shapes and colour combinations the companyproduced?Good question!I do not have an answer to that question but I know that in 1970 FM Konstglas had 700 combinations available in different sizes, shapes and colours.At http://www.marcolinartcrystal.com/shop/index.php you can get an overviewof the different colour combinations used today by Marcolin Art Crystal.
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Niklas Zennstrom: More Great Startups Everywhere, Not Just Silicon Valley
Niklas Zennstrom knows technology and knows the venture capital business. He co-founded communications powerhouse Skype, which he sold to eBay for $3.1 billion in 2005. Then he was part of a group that reacquired it and sold it again, to Microsoft, for $8.5 billion in 2011. In between those two deals he started a venture firm that has made more than 50 investments.
Despite those credentials, as an investor Zennstrom keeps his distance from the world's technology mecca. Atomico, the firm he founded in 2006, has offices in London, Beijing, São Paulo, Istanbul and Tokyo, and focuses mainly on entrepreneurs outside Silicon Valley.
He has found plenty of places to put his cash, including Finnish gaming company Supercell, which last year was valued at $3 billion; "Angry Birds" company Rovio, also from Finland; and Swedish online payments company Klarna. Atomico closed a $476 million fund in November, mostly from limited partners outside the U.S.
Mr. Zennstrom met with The Wall Street Journal on Thursday to talk about Silicon Valley's startup environment, the growing number of tech companies in the rest of the world, and how he feels about Skype's development under Microsoft. The conversation is edited.
Q: You seem to be investing every place but Silicon Valley.
A: My experience as an entrepreneur in Europe is that it lacked investors--they didn't understand the challenges of building a company--and there was an opportunity to do something there.
Also the thesis we had is that more great companies are starting everywhere. Silicon Valley will continue to be there for as long as we know but it's easier to start companies in other places. If someone wants to become an entrepreneur in Stockholm or Beijing, they have access to the same information.
We wanted to help build the ecosystem, and with Skype I learned that if something works, it's important to expand internationally.
Also it's a big challenge to find the right talent. Here in Silicon Valley you have so much infrastructure already--if you build a company here, there are so many resources—but it's a different playbook outside. Yet when we speak to companies in New York, London, Stockholm, they face similar challenges.
We do have companies invested [in Silicon Valley] historically and could be a good co-investor.
How does the "billion dollar valuation club" fit with your thesis? Many of those companies are here.
The Silicon Valley ecosystem was built over 50 years. There are more people working for great companies, more VCs, more students—you see an exponential curve here. Our thesis is that there's a likelihood of more great companies happening [everywhere]. When Skype was a success it was a very unique northern European company that was a global winner, but today there are multiple companies that are worth billions and are also international success stories. For us it's about seeing an opportunity in Europe and Latin America and Asia to invest in companies. The thesis is there are more and more successful companies, and there is not as much money chasing it.
Are you investing in enterprise companies?
We've not done enterprise so far—our view is from the consumer side—but enterprise is becoming more consumerized.
We like companies that are solving a big problem or disrupting industries. We're quite careful chasing companies that are creating large user bases, so for example different apps—we've seen how hard it is to create a user base and turn it into a revenue stream.
You are from Sweden and have invested in several Swedish startups. What is the entrepreneurial climate like there?
Ten years ago if you said you were going to be an entrepreneur, people would say, "Really? Are you serious?" Now you have had examples like Spotify, Klarna and Skype. Entrepreneurs have become heroes.
What are your thoughts about Skype's development over the years?
I'm a very happy Skype user. The product continues to go very well. There hasn't been a U-turn, and that makes me happy.
Write to Deborah Gage at firstname.lastname@example.com. Follow her on Twitter at @deborahgage
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State Sen. Greg Gregory of Lancaster County is a co-sponsor of a new school choice bill that mirrors a similar bill approved by House Republicans last year, that later died in the Senate.
S.279 is the latest in a series of such bills over the past decade. Supporters say such bills would offer parents more say in their children's educations, though critics maintain the bills would take money away from public education.
"It's a bill that's been around for a number of sessions, but we've never had much success in advancing it,"
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\nHillary Scott, the co–lead singer of Lady Antebellum, has had a hell of a year. First, she and her bandmates won five Grammys for their second album, Need You Now. Then they released a third record, Own the Night, which went platinum within four weeks. And this past November, they won Vocal Group of the Year at the CMA Awards. Not surprisingly, they were nominated for yet another Grammy this year and are currently on a major nationwide tour. Another huge reason Hillary is flying high: Her incredibly cute boyfriend popped the question.
If you weren't a singer, what would you do?
I would be a special-education teacher. Outside of Lady Antebellum, that's where my passion lies.
How did you know your fiancé was The One?
It was when I met his family. His brother is 10 years younger, and when I saw them together, I knew he'd be a great father. I just melted.
Being in a group with two guys must teach you a lot about men. What's surprised you most?
Guys can brawl about something and then just move on. Women don't do that. I've learned that I have to just say "What are you yelling about?"