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Fielding miscue in ninth leads to Twins' loss
DETROIT -- Two crucial fly balls misplayed by Oswaldo Arcia in right field, one he saw and one he didn't, cost the Twins an opportunity to gain ground on the American League Central-leading Tigers on Sunday.
Detroit took the rubber match, 4-3, on J.D. Martinez's walk-off sacrifice fly in the ninth inning.View Full Game Coverage
DETROIT -- Two crucial fly balls misplayed by Oswaldo Arcia in right field, one he saw and one he didn't, cost the Twins an opportunity to gain ground on the American League Central-leading Tigers on Sunday.
Detroit took the rubber match, 4-3, on J.D. Martinez's walk-off sacrifice fly in the ninth inning.View Full Game Coverage
Arcia misjudged a deep fly to the warning track off the bat of Victor Martinez with one out in the ninth, and the drop allowed Torii Hunter, the eventual winning run, to reach third.
"I tried to get back to the wall, but I messed up," Arcia said after the game through his translator, bullpen coach Bobby Cuellar. "I was short of the wall and missed the ball."
It was the most damaging of two crucial mistakes made by Arcia on Sunday.
"I've been there," Hunter said. "Even when I was with the other team, that's the way it was. Even in center field, you get bad jumps."
In the first inning, Minnesota starter Ricky Nolasco ran into a jam with one on and two outs. He appeared to navigate successfully out of it when he induced a fly ball off the bat of Victor Martinez. Arcia never had a chance at the ball, which he lost in the midday Comerica Park sun, giving the Tigers an early lead for the second straight day.
"Arcia didn't see the ball," said Twins manager Ron Gardenhire. "That was obvious. He had no clue where the ball went. It was obviously a tough sun field out there, bright. If you can't see the ball, you can't see the ball."
Nolasco lasted 5 1/3 innings and allowed three runs on nine hits.
"He's a veteran. He can get out of those things, but eventually it's going to get to you," Gardenhire said.
Detroit added a run in the second on a sacrifice fly, but Minnesota scored three in the sixth to take the lead.
Tigers starter Rick Porcello had sat down eight straight before Joe Mauer hit a ground-rule double into the seats down the left-field foul line. Josh Willingham doubled him home before tying the score on a single by Kendrys Morales.
Kurt Suzuki singled in Morales for the third run of the inning when catcher Alex Avila couldn't handle J.D. Martinez's throw from left on a play at the plate.
None of the offense came from Brian Dozier, who was inserted into the lineup for the first time since injuring his back earlier in the week in Toronto. In his lone at-bat after entering as a defensive replacement on Saturday, he hit a ninth-inning homer. Dozier batted third for the first time this season on Sunday.
"We're just trying to figure out how to score runs," Gardenhire said. "Joe [Mauer] had a couple good at-bats in the two-hole. We're just trying to figure out what works. We're just mixing and matching and doing the best we can."
Detroit responded with a run in the bottom of the sixth, taking the wind right out of the Twins' sails following their big inning.
"It's tough once you get a lead like that," Gardenhire said. "You're looking for a shutdown inning, and we didn't get it."
Gardenhire made a bold maneuver later in the sixth inning to try and prevent further damage.
He called for an intentional walk of Avila to get to Detroit's hot rookie, Eugenio Suarez. The decision paid off, as reliever Jared Burton retired Suarez and Ian Kinsler to end the threat.
"Burton did a good job of coming in and holding them down right there," Nolasco said.
Two ninth-inning singles off former Twins closer Joe Nathan went to waste, and Detroit turned right around and won the series in dramatic fashion on the walk-off sacrifice fly. It didn't go unprotested, as the Twins appealed that Hunter left third base before the ball was caught.
"Everybody was screaming out of the dugout," Gardenhire said. "That's a normal thing in baseball. 'You left too early.' It's havoc out there, and who knows what the hell can happen? You might get lucky."
Luck, however, wasn't on the Twins' side on Sunday.
Minnesota won't get another shot at Detroit, which they trail by five games in the division, until late August.
Matt Slovin is an associate reporter for MLB.com.


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Suspect jailed in connection with weekend homicide in PA
An apparent dispute turned fatal early Saturday morning leaving one man dead and another young man staring at a lengthy prison sentence.
Port Arthur police arrested 23-year-old Joshua Thomas of Port Arthur and he's facing a first degree murder charge. He's sitting in the Jefferson County Correctional Facility with a $750,000 bond. The shooting took place at 1048 12 St, where the victim, Michael Walker, 48, was living with his girlfriend, who owns the home. Walker, who hailed from Georgia, was believed to be in the area working at one of the refineries.
According to police, Walker, 48, was shot in the abdomen around 12:30 a.m. following an argument with Thomas. Walker, shot with a .22 caliber handgun, was taken to Christus St. Mary's where he was pronounced dead. According to Port Arthur Police, Walker and his girlfriend had gotten into an argument where Walker is alleged to have left the woman with a black eye. That prompted the dispute between Walker and Thomas, police believe. The investigation into the homicide continues.

subset: commoncrawl


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The number of reports of animals on the loose on Sussex roads hit an all-time high this week, Sussex police report.
The latest Farm Alert bulletin says that the number is up from 24 last week to 162 this week.
This number was made up by 101 sheep, 53 cows, seven horses and a pig.
The bulletin says: "Please carry on checking your roadside hedges and fences daily, this includes those where a railway lines passes by."


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Coffee and Cardamom Flavored Creme Caramel
Crème caramel is one of my favorite desserts. It's basically a rich custard with a layer of soft caramel. I dressed this one up with a little espresso powder and cardamom.
Making these desserts reminded me of my childhood. My mom would tell me every day not to eat anything before dinner, but after coming home from school, I would always make a beeline to the refrigerator when she wasn't looking. I would get one crème caramel, flip it onto a plate, and let the delicious caramel flow in every direction. It didn't last very long; I would inhale the dessert and lick all the caramel off the plate before I got caught. You would think that I wouldn't really have enjoyed the dessert because I ate it so fast, but there was something thrilling (and delicious) about sneaking a bite without anyone knowing. Maybe that's why I named my site Pham Fatale. I've been in the (food) espionage business for a long time!
These covert operations inevitably would make me too full for dinner. I know I was a terrible child! My parents always wondered why I never ate, and have probably been unaware of my antics until now. Sorry Mom!
I think, in America, crème caramel and flan can be used interchangeably.
Yields: 141-1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons water
2-2/3 cups half and half
3/4 tablespoon instant coffee powder
3 egg yolks
3 whole eggs
1/2 teaspoon cardamom extract
1 vanilla bean, slit lengthwise
Preheat the oven to 300°F.
Line up 14 2.75-ounce mini-ramekins. In a small saucepan, gently dissolve a little less than a cup of sugar with water. Bring to a full boil, then lower to medium-low until the caramel becomes golden brown (about 5-6 minutes). As soon as the caramel is the right golden brown color, pour a layer of caramel into each ramekin.
Using a paring knife, scrape and gather all the grains of the vanilla bean. On the stove, pour the half and half into a sauce pan. Dissolve the coffee powder into the half and half and add the grains of vanilla and the vanilla bean. Bring to a boil. Remove from the heat right away. Let the liquid cool a bit. Discard the vanilla bean.
Separately, whisk the egg yolks and whole eggs with the rest of the sugar in a mixing bowl until it becomes pale yellow. Add the cardamom extract. Combine the coffee liquid with the egg mixture by slowly adding a ladle of the coffee mixture at a time to prevent the yolks from curdling.
Strain through a fine mesh. Fill the 14 mini ramekins with the mixture. Place them in a warm water bath in a deep baking pan. The water should go half way up the side of the ramekins. Bake for 10 minutes at 300°F, then lower the heat to 275°F for 45-50 minutes. The texture of the crème caramel should be jiggly but not too liquid.
Let the crèmes cool first, then plastic-wrap each individual ramekin and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
When serving, place a dessert plate onto each ramekin and turn both upside down to unmold crème caramel onto the plate.
Bon appétit!
I added coffee and cardamom to the crème caramel because knowing I'm feeding a crowd of vegetarians, I didn't want them to complain about an eggy taste. Cardamom is a very versatile spice that goes well with both savory and sweet dishes. You can find cardamom extract in Indian stores.
Set aside the egg whites in the refrigerator and save for making tuiles (literally roof tiles in French). I'll post the recipe very soon.
This recipe yields 14 mini-ramekins. You can serve the creme caramels in regular size ramekins but I prefer using the small version for more caramel coating.
When making the caramel, make sure all the sugar is dissolved and there is no sugar on the side of the saucepan. This way no sugar gets burnt and you have an easier clean-up. Prior to placing the saucepan on the stove, I usually slightly dissolve the sugar by creating a swirl in the center of the saucepan with my finger. During the caramelization process, if you see sugar on the side of the saucepan, just brush the side with a wet brush. Believe me, it's so hard to get burnt sugar off a pan!
When making caramel, you have to be very careful. Don't go away from the stove, even if the phone rings or someone's at the door. If you wait too long, the caramel will taste bitter or even worse, it will be burnt. So watch your caramel carefully because it changes color very fast.
As opposed to crème caramels, crème brulées have a hard caramel topping. Check out my other French custard desserts.
If you don't have half and half, just mix 1 part whole milk with 1 part heavy cream.
Flip the crème caramel only when you're ready to serve. If you want to be even more cautious, you can use a paring knife around the crème caramel right before flipping the ramekin.
When it's time to clean up, just boil some water and pour the hot water into the ramekins so the caramel dissolves immediately for an easy clean-up.
Published By: on July 5, 2009.


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The Court Yard Hounds are a new group -- but they're hardly your typical baby act.
The duo is derived from one of music's best-selling bands -- the Dixie Chicks -- and their self-titled debut album is already among the spring's more anticipated releases.
Sisters Martie Maguire and Emily Robison make their stage debut Thursday at the South by Southwest music festival in Austin.
Robison lives in San Antonio. Maguire lives in Austin.
SXSW will mark the first time they will be center stage since the Dixie Chicks took-off more than a decade ago, when it was Lubbock's Natalie Maines singing lead.
Many country stations quit playing the Chicks in 2003 after Maines told a London audience, about then-President George W. Bush: "Just so you know, we're ashamed the president of the United States is from Texas."
Almost overnight, Maines became a lightning rod in the debate over the Iraq war.
On the Net:


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It took seven years and an endless amount of determination, but Keyonne Zaire Session is now an Eagle Scout.
The 18-year-old from Hollis earned the highest rank attainable in the Boy Scouts of America and was recognized in a National Eagle Scout Court of Honor ceremony on August 17 in Glen Cove, Long Island.
"It's probably one of the most prestigious awards I've ever received in my life," he said. "I feel like I'm added into a selective group of individuals."
To gain the coveted title, a scout must earn 21 merit badges as well as organize, lead and complete an extensive service project.
Session — a member of the St. Alban the Martyr Episcopal Church, Troop 267 — created a memorial garden to honor Brian James Hom, a classmate and friend, who died two years ago in a car crash.
The garden is meant for anybody who has lost a loved one to come and reflect, he said.
Session was also the first recipient of the Brian James Hom Scholarship Award, which honors students who lives by Brian's motto of "I am the me I choose to be."
"I do it because I love the feeling that other people get when they realize other people are helping them. That feeling, the happiness they experience, it gives me such a fulfillment in my life," said Session, the troop's fifth Eagle Scout.
His mother, Nicolle, said she admires her son's proactive nature and passion for equality.
"I'm very proud of what he's done," she said. "He's always sticking up for the right thing. When you hear these different things from people, it makes you say as a mother, 'I've done my job. I've done the job I set out to do.'"
Session graduated this year from Friends Academy, where he played on the varsity football team, performed in his school's winter plays and served as treasurer for the Diversity Club.
He will be attending Wesleyan University in Connecticut this fall and studying psychology.
He said he hopes other youngsters will choose to become a Boy Scout.
"It's extremely worth it," Session said. "It's taught me life lessons, like how to be a good person and role model, and the people I've met have been phenomenal."


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Another DH
Well, another postponement on Friday and another doubleheader on Saturday, making it three in the last 10 days.
Phillies won both against the Marlins and then lost both against the Nationals. So, in an eight-day period, three wins, seven losses and two extra inning games.
Doubleheaders tax a pitching staff and can keep offensive players from getting in a groove, something the Phillies don't need right now.
Since clinching, they have lost six games. According to Elias Sports Bureau, that's a first in major league baseball since the World Series era began in 1903.
Now, some good news…Phillies are 46-29 on the road, two wins shy of the club record set in 1976 and tied two years ago. Pitchers have a 3.18 ERA on the road and the offense has scored 318 runs.


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I'm using Geoserver 2.2.4 to support WMS queries. All testing is done via the "Layer Preview" page.
If I send a request with no CQL a map full of points is returned as expected.
If I add a CQL filter the map that is returned has the wrong number of points. That is, I get about 50 points on the map when the underlying SQL query (pulled from the log and executed separately) returns over 1200 points.
In both cases the same style is used. The only difference is the use of a CQL filter.
How can I get all 1200 points displayed on the map?


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(Toy) Gun Control
by Shawn Bean
By banning toy guns from his home, one dad learns that the reaction from his sons and the national gun control debate are eerily similar
We have an arsenal in our home, 16 weapons of varying sizes and calibers. Among them are the N-Strike Rampage, Truvelo Raptor, Vortex Pyragon, Automatic Tommy 20, Raider CS-35, a laser-sighted pistol, a bolt-action rife, a crossbow and a six shooter. There is also a machete, an aluminum foil knife and a grenade launcher fashioned from paper towel tubes.
My two boys, particularly my 8-year-old son Jackson, have taken full advantage of the easy availability of toy guns. Nerf, Airsoft, Buzzy Bee: we have something from all the big gun manufacturers. My sons also have the right to bear arms freely, a liberty Jackson exercises as he protects the perimeter of our yard with a three-foot-long Star Wars blaster that goes beew beew beew! when you pull the trigger.
The recent string of shootings, from the first graders in Newtown, CT, to the movie-goers in Aurora, CO, to the high schoolers in Bakersfield, CA, are affecting the way I view these playthings, even though they're neon orange, fire bullets softer than marshmallows and have bumblebee stickers on the barrel. I'm not alone: many parents are scrambling to take some—any—kind of action. One burgeoning trend has been banning toy guns at home. This, the parents say proudly to themselves, is pulling the problem up by the root.
What a waste of time. What will that accomplish? Let's find out.
Last Saturday, I enacted a new Draconian gun control law at home: I confiscated every toy gun and weapon in our home.
Saturday, 10:15 a.m.: "Why?!" Jackson asks. Because I want to spend a weekend together without playing with guns. He is angry, flabbergasted. His face says it all: From my cold, dead, Cheeto-dusted hands.
I matter-of-factly ask him to help me round up the weapons. We go to the gun cabinet—a laundry basket—and pile them up in our arms. I organize the arsenal on the floor. Hmm. This is more than I remember buying. (Wait… is that a gasmask?) Looking at his cache, Jackson's anger gradually gives way to acceptance and then to pride. "Can you take a picture of it, Dad?" He wants to hang it in his bedroom.
The line between pretend violence and real violence is getting increasingly slim. Death in video games used to mean being eaten by blinking ghosts or falling into a lava pit after missing the floating coins.
Today, it's massively multi-player first-person war games. Check out the most popular toy guns websites, like this one or this one. At first glance, it's hard to tell if they are selling toys or the real deal. Nerf rifles used to have a cartoonish appeal, but as the designs got sleeker and the accoutrements more sophisticated (bipods, high capacity magazines), the line between fantasy and reality has shrunk.
Even the names of the toy guns are becoming more hardcore. In the 1980s, Nerf produced one of its first toy guns: the Blast-A-Ball. Today, the monikers are not so cuddly. In fact, in this story's first paragraph, one of the guns mentioned is actually a South African-made assault rifle (Truvelo Raptor). Could you tell the difference?
Saturday, 5 p.m.: Jackson sits at the kitchen counter, dutifully sketching with one of his Ticonderoga #2s. I ask what he's drawing. "Bounty hunters," he replies.
Last Friday, Vice President Biden met with video game companies to discuss violence in video games. ("That is like meeting with Hot Wheels about car safety," read one Tweet.) Wednesday, President Obama announced 23 executive orders related to gun control, and asked Congress to move forward with its own gun laws and research on the effect violent video games have on our youth. The Entertainment Software Association, which represents video game publishers, released a statement following Obama's announcement. "The same entertainment is enjoyed across all cultures and nations, but tragic levels of gun violence remain unique to our country," said the ESA.
And that's what it comes down to. This is a uniquely American dilemma.
Consider for a moment America's favorite things. Sports cars. Fast food. Contact sports. Guns. Americans love these things, but they can be dangerous when abused or treated too casually. Misuse or excess leads to obesity, injury, health problems and death. We need to teach respect and caution. Children will get that message only if parents fight for that message. McDonalds has boosted the nutritional value of their Happy Meals. The NFL is working to curb head injuries in youth football. What will the gun lobby do?
Sunday, 8:30 p.m.: Jackson and I sit at the kitchen counter; CNN is on in the neighboring living room. "Hey bud, you can have your guns back tomorrow," I say. He sports an overexaggerated grin. So much has happened since the gun ban was enacted: drawing, skateboarding, scootering, a trip to the playground. "I bet you forgot about your guns, didn't you?" I ask. He doesn't miss a beat. "No. It was pretty hard to stay away. Because, man, I just love that tommy gun."
I walk into the living room, where a gun debate is in full swing. A gentleman in a necktie shares his passionate views on preserving our right to bear arms. I look from my son to the gun advocate, and from the gun advocate to my son and it was hard to say which was which.


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Single Player Commands (or SPC) for Minecraft 1.14.4/1.13.2/1.12.2/1.11.2/1.10.2 is a must have modification for every crafter who needs the full control of his/her in-game world. SPC enables a huge list of fully functional SP commands which can be entered for different use. Players can control every aspect of game with them; For e.g. Spawn Creepers, Give Damage to someone, health, worldedit and much much more. This mod comes hand when you're testing something on multiplayer severs or on LAN, it can act like a cheat tool too.
List of Single Player Commands:
How to install Single Player Commands Mod:
- Close Minecraft launcher (if open)
- Navigate to where minecraft is installed (eg: on Windows %appdata%/.minecraft)
- Go to versions and copy the 1.6.2 directory and name it something else (eg: 1.6.2.mods). Alternatively, if you have done this for another mod already backup the Minecraft JAR.
- Open the jar file (using an archive utility, such as 7zip) in the mod directory you created (eg: 1.6.2.jar) and copy all of the files into it except for WorldEdit.jar
- Delete the files in the META-INF directory except for MANIFEST.MF
- Close the jar file
- Copy WorldEdit.jar into .minecraft/bin
- Rename the jar file to the same name as the directory (eg: 1.6.2.mods.jar)
- Rename the json file to the same name as the directory (eg: 1.6.2.mods.json)
- Open the json file in a text editor and the line that contains the id (eg: "id": "1.6.2") change it to the same name as the directory (eg: "id": "1.6.2.mods")
- Save and close the json file.
- Start up the Minecraft launcher
- Create a new profile
- Select the version that you just created (eg: 1.6.2.mods)
- Select the rest of your settings.
- Launch the game.
Download Single Player Commands
For Minecraft 1.9:
Not Release Yet.
For 1.8.8 and 1.7.10
- For 1.8 (SPC Alternate) – MoreCommands-1.8-2.5.jar ( Direct – Size: 467 KB)
- For 1.7.10 – (SPC Alternate)– MoreCommands-1.7.10-1.5.jar ( Direct – Size: 466 KB)
Last Updated on 23rd October 2015
For 1.6.4
- Forge: SPC-1.6.4.Jar (1.06 MB)
Install Minecraft Forge, drop the SPC.jar in .minecraft/mods folder.
Tips and Warnings:
- Please backup your Minecraft directory and saves before the installation of this mod.
- Make sure your Minecraft is closed before install
- Single Player Commands does not support browser version.
- Keep your Java version updated to avoid any unwanted errors.


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Joe Philbin was named coach of the Miami Dolphins on Jan. 20. He made his first moves seven days later, hiring Mike Sherman to coordinate the offense and Kevin Coyle to run the defense.
Joe Philbin was named coach of the Miami Dolphins on Jan. 20. He made his first moves seven days later, hiring Mike Sherman to coordinate the offense and Kevin Coyle to run the defense.
His relationship with both coaches dates back more than 25 years.
Sherman taught Philbin in an English class at Worcester Academy in 1979. Coyle and Philbin worked together at the Holy Cross football camp in the mid-1980s.
"When I was fortunate enough to get this job I knew it was going to be important to get, No. 1, excellent coaches and, No. 2, people I could have total trust and faith in, guys who were loyal," Philbin said yesterday during a conference call in advance of Sunday's game against the Patriots.
"That's the first and foremost thing I'm delighted about with having them as the coordinators. Obviously they have double digit years of experience in the National Football League."
Sherman, an Algonquin Regional graduate, coached the Green Bay Packers from 2000 to '05, compiling a 59-43 record before being fired. He was an assistant with the Houston Texans the following two seasons before coaching Texas A&M for four years.
"Mike is a proven, winning head coach in the National Football League," Philbin said. "He was the head coach for six seasons and had five winning seasons, so I think he knows how to build a winner and he's a great resource to have."
And what's it like to be the boss of your former prep school teacher?
"It's gone well," said Philbin, whose dad is from Worcester and mom is from Clinton. "Mike loves football. He's one of the hardest working guys I've ever been around — might be the hardest I've ever seen.
"He takes everything seriously, takes it to heart. He wants to do a great job for the organization, the players. He's a heck of a coach and it's been a good relationship."
Coyle, an assistant at Holy Cross from 1982 to '90, spent the past 11 seasons in Cincinnati coaching defensive backs.
"Kevin Coyle is a dedicated professional who made a nice contribution during 11 seasons in Cincinnati," Philbin said. "He's an unselfish guy and a real pro. So to have both those guys on the staff, I feel very fortunate."
The Patriots promoted fullback James Develin from the practice squad to the 53-man roster, using the spot available while defensive end Jermaine Cunningham serves a four-game suspension for violating league policy on performance-enhancing substances.
"It means they trust me to do what I'm asked," Develin said. "They've given me this opportunity and now I have my dreams at my fingertips and I just can't squander this opportunity. It's all up to me from here."
The 6-foot-3, 251-pound Develin played defensive end at Brown before moving to running back in the pros, first with Florida in the UFL and then Cincinnati in the NFL. He spent the past two seasons with the Bengals and joined the Patriots on Sept. 1.
"It took me almost three full years on practice squads to develop that knack for playing offense and the nuances of playing fullback," Develin said. "But the process wasn't too bad, the defensive end position is so physical and the mental part of fullback isn't all that crazy. You really just have to run in there and lead with your head and let the heart follow."
Receiver Jeremy Ebert, who was drafted in the seventh round by the Patriots in April and released in August, took Develin's place on the practice squad.
The Dolphins signed offensive lineman Ryan Durand on Nov. 20. However, they released the former Leominster resident and St. Bernard's graduate yesterday.
"The roster is such a fluid thing," Philbin said. "He seems like a quality guy and was only here a brief time, but did everything we asked him to do and, as you guys know, sometimes you make moves for a variety of reasons. But I was very impressed while he was here."
Durand, 27, spent his first two seasons with the Tennessee Titans, who drafted the Syracuse gradate in the seventh round in 2009. He appeared in one game while splitting time between the active roster and practice squad. He was released in early September after reaching an injury settlement with the team.
Offensive linemen Dan Connolly (back), Logan Mankins (ankle/calf), Sebastian Vollmer (back/knee) and Markus Zusevics (illness), tight end Rob Gronkowski (forearm/hip) and defensive end Chandler Jones (ankle) didn't practice. Receiver Julian Edelman, who suffered a concussion against the Jets, was one of 12 players who were limited participants. "I'm feeling pretty good," he said afterward. … Tight end Anthony Fasano (hip) was the only notable Dolphin to miss all or part of practice. … A stat certain to come up again before Sunday: Patriots plus-24 turnover differential, Dolphins minus-10.


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It was no small matter for the ILM Group's executives when they froze the pension plan that has provided retirement security for the firm's employees since 1947.
The financial pressure of maintaining the plan had been mounting on the small insurer for years. But until March, ILM had not given in, even as tens of thousands of other employers did. It held on when the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks rocked the economy, flat-lining the stocks that fund the pension payments. It also kept the plan intact when the Great Recession shrank its holdings by 29 percent.
What finally did the plan in? Rock-bottom interest rates. The very rates, in fact, that helped fuel a stock-market rally and brought ILM double-digit returns on its pension-fund investments in each of the past three years. But because of an accounting twist, the near-zero rates also caused ILM's projected pension obligations — like those of every other private company that still provides a traditional pension — to spike, overwhelming the stock-market gains.
To calculate pension obligations, companies have to factor in the future value of money. Accounting rules peg that value to interest rates on corporate bonds. If bonds have a high interest rate, you can assume a high value for future dollars. But if rates are low, the dollar is low, and it takes more of them to meet future obligations.
So when interest rates go down, the projected obligations go up, requiring the firms to set aside more cash today to pay retirees in the future. For ILM, that meant funneling more than $2 million — roughly 22 percent of its payroll — into its pension fund over the past two years. The expense was too high to keep it up, the company decided.
Its board members had a long, agonizing debate about whether they should hold out a little longer, hoping for interest rates to rise.
"This was a huge decision," ILM President John Wolf said. "This was a fundamental promise to our employees, and we did not want to renege on that. You want your employees to have a good life after they work decades. But with the way things were, we had no choice."
The company sent an e-mail to its 64 employees breaking the bad news.
"You know these people, and you know a decision like this affects their lives," said Susan Knotts, ILM's vice president for human resources. "It's a tough call that affects us, too."
The experience of ILM speaks to a new challenge confronting the old models of retirement security in a turbulent and fast-changing economy. For generations, the unprecedented gains in living standards enjoyed by the nation's retirees were boosted by employers who offered longtime workers a fixed benefit for life once they retired.
But that benefit is increasingly rare. Many private firms stopped offering traditional pensions and switched to 401(k)-type accounts, in large part because government rules aimed at ensuring the financial viability of the traditional plans made it more expensive for employers to provide them.
The financial risk posed by pension plans only increased when a long era of ever-steady stock-market gains ended in 2000, giving way to more volatile returns. Now, meager interest rates are squeezing the fast-dwindling number of traditional pensions still offered by private employers, even as policymakers are searching for ways to bolster retirement savings.
Assets held by pension plans of the firms that make up the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index increased by $113.4 billion in 2012, according to a report by Wilshire Associates, a consulting firm. But largely because of low rates, company liabilities increased even more: by $173.6 billion. That left the median corporation's pension plan 76.9 percent funded, with just over $3 of assets for every $4 of liabilities.
Low interest rates hurt firms that provide pensions in two ways: They are required to set aside more money to pay for future pensions even as the liabilities appearing on their balance sheets grow larger.
"Low interest rates are certainly a significant issue for employers," said Judy A. Miller, director of retirement policy for the American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries. "The lower the interest rates, the higher the value of the benefits you have to provide and the higher the required contributions."
The number of employers offering pensions that pay retirees a fixed benefit for life has been in steady decline for more than three decades. The Pension Benefit Guarantee Corp., the federal agency that insures private-sector pension plans, reports that the number of plans it insures for individual employers plummeted from 112,208 in 1985 to 25,600 in 2011.
Towers Watson, a benefits consultancy, has said that over the past decade most Fortune 100 firms have shifted from offering traditional defined-benefit pensions to offering new hires either 401(k)-type or "cash balance" plans that reduce company liability.
Other firms are moving pension liabilities off their books. Last year, Verizon Communications transferred $7.5 billion in pension obligations — about a quarter of its total — to Prudential Insurance, to limit its liabilities and bolster its financial profile. The move came after General Motors paid Prudential to assume $25 billion of its pension risks.
The decline in traditional pensions has coincided with the erratic stock market, rising health-care costs and a steep drop in housing values to undermine retirement security for a growing number of Americans, according to many analysts.
Eroding retirement security has prompted the Obama administration and other policymakers to search for ways to bolster it. One idea is to establish automatic individual retirement accounts for the roughly half of the workforce not covered by a retirement plan on the job. Others want to bolster tax incentives for low- and moderate-income people to save for retirement. There are also calls for creating a new tier of retirement savings to supplement Social Security.
Congress moved last year to provide relief from the pension damage being caused by low rates by allowing firms to temporarily use a 25-year interest rate average when calculating how much money they had to funnel into funds.
"It phases out over the next five or six years," said Joshua D. Rauh, a Stanford University professor who studies pension plans.
But the relief does not change how pension liabilities appear on a firm's balance sheet. In addition, firms could find that under the new law, their pension-related liabilities could quickly rise after 2013 unless interest rates return to more normal levels. This has dampened the appeal of the change for many companies.
That has left many firms to conclude that it is best to freeze their pension plans, cutting off contributions for current workers and making new employees ineligible for the benefit.
At ILM, which sells commercial insurance to building-supply manufacturers and retailers, the pension plan had been a source of pride in a benevolent company culture developed over 117 years.
"Personally, I think a pension is a tremendous benefit," said Don W. Blackwell, ILM's chief financial officer and treasurer. "This is a very valuable benefit to our employees. We did not want to take it away."
But with the pension plan causing the firm to report a $8 million liability at the end of last year and with no end in sight for low interest rates, "we waved the white flag," Blackwell said. "It was a waiting game and we blinked. We had no idea that interest rates would remain this low."
Once it froze its pension plan, ILM started to contribute 3 percent of each worker's salary to a 401(k) plan. It's something, but nowhere near enough to provide the same level of retirement security that the company's pension did.
Blackwell said an employee with a $40,000 annual salary who received a 3 percent raise each year, set aside 7 percent of his pay for retirement and received a 3 percent company contribution would wind up with roughly a third less money in his retirement fund after 25 years than he would have with the pension plan.
Still, ILM employees are taking the pension fund's demise in stride. "To be honest, I am surprised that the plan was not frozen a while back," said Traci Barber, 42, a service center manager who has been with ILM nearly 13 years. "I was surprised when I took this job that it even offered a pension plan."
Knotts, the firm's vice president for human resources, said that many employees do not seem to understand the security that a pension's guaranteed monthly payments offer in retirement. "When people get hired here," she said, "they are not thinking about that. All of the questions are about salary and paid time off."
She was among the executives who fretted over cutting the pension plan, deciding to back the decision even though she knew it is bad for employees. Keeping it, she said, would be even worse for the company.
Surprisingly, she added, the company seemed to value the plan more than some employees. Only one employee complained, she said. Moreover, when employees leave ILM, she said, they most often choose to take their pension as a lump-sum payment rather than as a monthly payment for life. "I guess it's the lottery effect," she said.
ILM retirees who chose to receive the pension on a monthly basis call it the best decision they could have made. "This was the first job that offered me the comfort of a pension," said Beverly C. Shoemaker, a former secretary who left the company in 2004 after working there 15 years. "I feel blessed to have it. I really do feel for the current employees, because I know how much it means to me."
David J. Riese, who retired as vice president of claims in 1997 after 16 years at ILM, said he values the security provided by his company pension. Current employees, he added, will not have it as good.
"They have to rely on the profitability of a 401(k) and their ability to manage it," he said. "To me that is iffy, at best."


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A bank teller mistakenly identified 14 $100 bills as counterfeit earlier this week, causing the money to be seized for review by federal agents and leaving a local laborer with empty pockets.
Carlos Rivas, 43, of Fisher Street reported to Westboro police Monday he had cashed his paycheck from FIBA Technologies at the Sovereign Bank branch at 70 East Main St., which is the bank that his paycheck is drawn from, and then went to deposit money at his bank, Citizens Bank at 32 Lyman St., only to have the bulk of the cash from Sovereign Bank � about $1,400 in $100 bills � confiscated for fear it was counterfeit. Four other $100 bills were not suspect.
The Westboro Police contacted the Secret Service to assist in the investigation.
It seems that while all money may be green, proving it is real may not be so easy.
The bills in question dated back to the 1970s or 1980s, Police Chief Alan Gordon said.
�When money gets old, the Federal Reserve retires the old bills and reissues new bills with the same serial number, and marks them with a star to indicate it is reissued,� Chief Gordon explained.
It seems that the bills Mr. Rivas took to Citizens Bank were printed about 30 years ago, but lacked the marking that is used on today�s bills to confirm authenticity.
�The teller was being overly cautious,� Chief Gordon said. �In my mind, the teller did nothing wrong.�
Sovereign Bank released a statement saying, �Sovereign Bank is pleased that the situation is resolved for the customer and that the investigation showed that the currency given to Mr. Rivas was in fact legal tender, not counterfeit.�
The Secret Service said it will deposit the money into Mr. Rivas� account at Citizens Bank.
Lauren Digeronimo, a spokeswoman for Citizens Bank, said she could not comment specifically on this situation but said, �When the Secret Service confirms the authenticity of confiscated bills, we return the funds to customers as quickly as possible.�
Meanwhile, the Rivas family is happy the issue has been resolved but frustrated by the ordeal.
�The police said we are going to get our money back, but we want to make sure it�s the right amount,� Leticia Rivas, Mr. Rivas� wife, said. �We don�t want the same thing to happen to another person. We are sorry this happened, but we need our money. We have bills, our son is in college. He has books to buy and they are expensive.�


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Last but not least in our series about IF WE Challenge dreamers, here comes our great winner Geoffrey Cooper. His IF WE Dream was "IF WE designed a rolling tree planting robot, we can send them out to replant forests and restore a deserted land. Let's make it happen!!". Geoffrey is anindustrial designer coming from Canada and lived in Los Angeles at the time of the challenge.
So without further ado, watch the video below to see Geoffrey's brilliant idea illustrated:
Q: Could you let us know where the idea of a rolling tree planting robot came from?
The tree planting robot idea was inspired by my step-brother, who worked as a tree planter in Canada for many years. From him, I learned how difficult it is for people to plant and maintain trees in remote areas, and how important it is to keep our forests alive. That topic lingered in my mind for a long time, and I also looked into the topic of desertification. I discovered that many deserts and plains around the world were once thriving forests, but turned into barren land because of the impact left by man, animals, and climate change.
While I was an Industrial Design student in college, I came up with the idea of designing a rolling tree planting robot that would tackle this problem. Unfortunately I wasn't able to fit the project into my curriculum, but I have thought extensively about it, and would like to pursue it.
Q: More specifically, how would you see the rolling planting robot actually work?
I envision a group of autonomous tree-planting robots sent out into a deforested area, that would work together to achieve the tasks necessary for planting and ensuring the growth of trees. These tasks would include navigating natural terrain with the use of sensors, coordinating with other tree planting robots working nearby, loading saplings from a larger vessel, boring holes into the ground for the saplings, and cutting away the weeds around planted trees to ensure their growth. The robots would also be able to scan the elements in a landscape to determine the most habitable areas for the trees. After several weeks, the robots would return to the same location to maintain and check the status of the young trees.
The robots would be small (maybe the size of a wheelbarrow), would traverse terrain on wheels, and would be powered partially by solar panels on top of the robots. The robots would work alongside a human operator who would oversee a fleet of tree planting robots. The operator would plan out the operation, and could be on-site in case anything goes wrong.
Q: How would you like to see this idea developped?
I am very interested in making this idea a reality, and would be interested in working with Dassault Systèmes on it if possible. I currently work as an Interaction Designer, and have a background in Industrial Design, so I am confident with my abilities to design systems and physical devices that could work cohesively. The area of the robot project that I am not so familiar with is the robotics, programming, and manufacturing of such a robot. As with any project, I believe that strong teamwork creates big changes, and I believe that such a team could be assembled for the tree planting robot project.
Stay tuned to see how we helped Geoffrey get started with his project 🙂


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Valentino Sale at The Outnet
Sneak Peek: Valentino Lands at The Outnet This Week
Sneak Peek: Valentino Lands at The Outnet This Week
Because Valentino is just so incredibly covetable, it's always exciting when it suddenly becomes even a little more accessible. Imagine, then, how our hearts went all aflutter when we heard about this: on Tuesday, Jan. 29, The Outnet will reveal a whole treasure trove of the brand's accessories, shoes, and clothing — all for prices up to 75 percent off. And there are some real gems to choose from, too: sandals adorned with rosettes of lace (originally $965, now $385), a studded wool and leather coat (originally $5,500, now $1,210), and a turquoise and crystal embellished clutch (originally $3,080, now $1,080).
Pieces won't arrive online until 11 a.m. EST, but here's a little sneak peek of what you can expect to find.
Photos courtesy of The Outnet


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Cheat Sheet
Communication Skills For Dummies Cheat Sheet (UK Edition)
If you want to be an outstanding communicator, and engage with others in a way that leads to achieving shared goals in a positive and respectful way, having an insight to communication skills is key. This Cheat Sheet gives you the absolute essentials.
Communicating with Clarity
To communicate in a way that conveys your meaning and demonstrates respect for your listeners, make sure to remind yourself that you have the right to speak and to be heard. Avoid apologies and banish blame. To communicate with clarity, be sure to:
Know your point. Be crystal clear about what you want to achieve as a result of your communication.
Limit yourself to three main points. Any more than that and you confuse your listener. Any fewer, and your message lacks substance.
Focus on the individual's behaviour and avoid making slanderous remarks when offering feedback. The purpose of offering clear feedback is to improve performance, not to make an enemy by decimating the individual's confidence.
Demonstrating Confidence When You Speak
Research consistently proves that you don't have to feel confident in order to act as if you are, and the more you act 'as if' the more confident you feel. Here's how you do it:
Claim your space. Remind yourself that you have the right to be heard.
Move with purpose. Let go of fidgeting and meaningless movements. Steer clear of touching your face, playing with your hair, picking at your finger nails, or adjusting your clothing.
Look others in the eye when you speak, open your chest to fill your space and hold your head still.
Speak as if you mean what you're saying. Grab hold of your consonants to project authority, pronounce your vowels clearly to carry the musicality of your message, and use language your listener can understand without having to refer to a dictionary.
Model the behavior of people who demonstrate confidence. By adjusting your stance, vocal tone and word of choice to match the people who display confidence, you come across as confident yourself.
Validating Your Credibility during a Presentation
Speaking in front of an audience can be daunting, but the good news is that you can prepare for it, so that you come across as confident and credible. Here are a few points to bear in mind when preparing that all important speech or presentation:
Confirm your knowledge of the topic. Let your listeners know that you're an authority. You could have another specialist or expert endorse your expertise and confirm that you know what you're talking about.
Prepare your comments in advance so you come across as knowledgeable and well informed.
Plan for surprises and practise your responses. The more information, experience and expertise you have, the better able you are to show you're on top of the subject.
Demonstrating Respect and Establishing Rapport with Your Communication
To communicate effectively with others, you must respect them as individuals and want to establish understanding between yourselves. Although you don't have to agree with their beliefs, and you don't have to accept what they say as true, you do have to accept their right to their thoughts, feelings and values.
One way of establishing rapport with others is to match their gestures and energy patterns. This means that your gestures become similar to the other person's, but not to the point that you produce exact copies of their movements and expressions.
Observe how the other person breathes and moves and adapt your pattern to match theirs. For example, if the other person moves quickly and you tend to move more slowly, you're movements are at odds and can negatively affect your engagement. Change your pattern to match the other person's by speeding up or slowing down until you both are comfortable with one another.
Once you've established trust between yourselves, you can revert to your preferred pattern and revel in your delight as the other person follows along with you.
Embracing Differences between Yourself and Others for Clear Communication
Instead of seeing different ways of communicating as a barrier, view them as a bridge. When you show that you're receptive to other people's way of communicating, that you value their point of view, and that you recognise that differences can lead to deeper levels of understanding, you're onto a winner.
People feel that you care about them and what's important to them when you leave judgement and criticism at the door. When you focus not only on what they're saying and how they're delivering their message, but on what they're not saying as well – the underlying message behind the words – you show that you're interested in them enough to take the time and make the effort to appreciate their viewpoint.


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Hop Scotch, print in 5x7 and 8x10
Hop Scotch, print in 5x7 and 8x10
from 10.00
An original illustration by Kelly Jackson.
This print can be ordered in 5x7 or 8x10 sizes. This is digitally printed on heavy card stock and packaged with a backing board and flap seal clear bag for safe delivery.


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Comet Impacts
Time-lapse of Comet P/Shoemaker-Levy 9 (210 kb)
This set of images, taken by the Hubble Space Telescope, shows the evolution of the four brightest fragments of P/Shoemaker-Levy 9, from July 1993 to March 1994. The comet had previously broken up near Jupiter, and then after these images were taken collided directly with it, on 1994 July 16. Courtesy, NASA.
Hubble Image of 21 SL-9 Fragments (74 kb)
This is the last Hubble Space Telescope image of the comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 before it impacted Jupiter. Twenty-one fragments of the comet were counted stretching across 1.1 million kilometres of space. Courtesy, NASA.
Image of comet SL-9 impacting Jupiter (16 kb)
This is an amazing image that was taken by the spacecraft Galileo as the comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 (fragment W) was impacting Jupiter on 1994 July 22. Courtesy, NASA.
SL-9 Impact Scar on Jupiter (154 kb)
This is an historic image of an actual impact event on a planet in our solar system. The incredible optics of the Hubble Space Telescope shows clearly the black scar made by the impact of Shoemaker-Levy 9, fragment G, on Jupiter. Courtesy, NASA.
Spacecraft Images
Giotto Image of Halley's Comet (60 kb)
Taken by the spacecraft Giotto, about five minutes before closest approach on 1986 March 14, this image clearly shows the dark nucleus of Comet Halley, and the powerful jets of material streaming off it. Courtesy, NASA.
False-Color Image of Halley's Comet (297 kb)
This false-color image was taken at a distance of just 6500 kilometres from the nucleus of Comet Halley and only 95 seconds before closest approach. Courtesy, NASA.
Images from Earth
Image of Comet Hale-Bopp in March 1997 (118 kb)
Comet Hale-Bopp was one of the brightest comets in history and set an unaided-eye visibility record of 19 months, shattering the previous record of 9 months held by the Great Comet of 1811. This image was taken from Red Canyon Park, California by Loke Kun Tan. Courtesy, NASA.
Image of Comet Hale-Bopp in April 1997 (181 kb)
Comet Hale-Bopp was one of the most amazing comets of the 20th century and the brightest since Comet West in 1976. It was discovered independently by Alan Hale in New Mexico and Thomas Bopp in Arizona. This image was taken by Wally Pacholka from Joshua Tree National Park in California. Courtesy, NASA.
More Images Welcome
This page has been created for RASC members and friends to display their images of comets. If you have one or more images (in JPEG or GIF format) of a comet, that you would like to share with others you are invited to send them to the RASC Observing Committee. with your name and some information about the image. We do not want large files over one megabyte, but we will include a URL to a larger file offsite for those who want to post a higher-resolution image.


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'Basketball Wives' Recap: A Not So Grand Opening
Basketball Wives
Season 5, Episode 6
A week ago, I thought to introduce a drinking game for the Basketball Wives recaps based on the number of times I work in, "Ohmigod, I can't stand most of these women!" However, I quickly realized that would lead to either my death or the deaths of too many of y'all – resulting in me netting some kind of manslaughter charge or something. Rats.
Anyhow, ala episode five, last night's edition of the reality series carried on with the "Girl, what you say about me?" themes of Basketball Wives yore. Another oldie but goodie theme from the show that resurfaced was the "Let's play the new cast member like she ain't s**t!" meme the likes of Kenya Bell found herself subjected to. Case in point, Tasha, who felt played two-fold based on her new friends' behavior at both the grand opening of her new business venture as well as her birthday bash. But you know, I kinda can't blame them, though. Tasha tried it the entire time. —Michael Arceneaux (@youngsinick)
Click through for a breakdown of last night's episode.
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James J. Krolik, SPHR, PhD is an adjunct faculty member with Walsh College. He teaches both graduate and undergraduate level classes at Walsh College in Human Resource Management and Organizational Behavior.
Dr. Krolik's background includes middle management responsibilities at two area health care organizations. His professional background in HR includes staffing; training and development; union relations, and employee relations. In addition, he was Executive Director for an accelerated undergraduate degree completion program and Dean of Graduate Studies at a Detroit area business college. His prior experience also includes assisting graduate students into corporate career positions at the University of Michigan.
Dr. Krolik earned his doctorate from the University of Michigan. His master's and undergraduate degrees were earned at Eastern Michigan University. His special interest is career development in organizations. He has presented workshops on career development at academic and professional conferences.
Dr. Krolik has the SPHR certification from the Society for Human Resource Management. He attends national and state HRM conferences as well as Employment Law and Employee Relations workshops.
Currently, Dr. Krolik is an Instructor in the Management Department at Eastern Michigan University. He teaches undergraduate and graduate level classes in Human Resources and Organizational Behavior.
Dr. Krolik is a member of the society for human resource management, the WorldatWork, and the International Personnel Management Association- HR. He also serves on the Board for Spaulding for Children, an organization for special needs children needing adoption and foster care.
Last updated: October 2013


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We're paying the price of poor nuclear management, says Sussex energy expert
Delays and neglect in remediating the UK's legacy nuclear facilities has led to huge increases in their costs, according to a Government-commissioned report by a University of Sussex energy expert.
According to the report, the expected bill has risen by some £20 billion in the last six years.
Professor Gordon MacKerron, Director of SPRU (Science and Technology Policy Research) at the University of Sussex, was commissioned by the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change to look at the history of managing nuclear wastes and decommissioning. The report is published today (2 March 2012).
Professor MacKerron was assisted in his review by a small team of civil servants and obtained high-level access to the main decision-makers in the public sector, especially the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA), the agency now responsible for cleaning up the legacy.
He says: "The history of managing and funding our nuclear legacy has, until very recently, been dire. Funds collected from consumers for decommissioning and waste management were diverted to other ends. And for decades minimal attention was paid to deteriorating nuclear facilities - and the cost of remediating them is consequently now much higher, probably by several billion pounds, than it would have been had serious work started up to two decades ago. Continuing commitment to separating plutonium from spent fuel, long after any economic justification had ceased, compounded the problem.
"The establishment of the NDA in 2005 was a substantial step forward – for the first time a single body focussed entirely on managing the nuclear legacy. Unsurprisingly this has led to the discovery that the (discounted) costs of managing our nuclear liabilities will be over £20 bn. more as at 2011 than expected in 2005. And there are indications that, when affordable, speeding up the work of remediation may offer good value for money. Government has learned lessons from history and the funding regimes for British Energy's current reactors, as well as any future reactors, are much more robust."
Ed Davey, current Energy and Climate Change Secretary of State, welcomed the report as "a valuable contribution to an important debate. It paints a stark picture of the UK's nuclear history"
The report's conclusions were:
- Delays by governments and public bodies in tackling nuclear liabilities led to a progressive escalation of costs and deterioration in facilities, which has only begun to be addressed in recent years. The problem was compounded by the military and research origins of the nuclear industry.
- Government has learned important lessons from this history: in the creation and funding of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority to deal with the legacy, the Nuclear Liabilities Fund for the reactors run by British Energy and in the legal framework that has been put in place for liabilities resulting from any new nuclear build.
- The military origins of the post-war UK nuclear industry led to the early civilian nuclear programme of gas-cooled reactors inherently more complex and expensive to decommission than light water reactors. The choice of second generation advanced gas-cooled reactors, made on the basis of conflicted advice, compounded the effects and commitment to reprocessing spent fuel added further to costs.
- Little or no thought was given to decommissioning facilities at end of life. The organisations which owned them had other objectives, either the pursuit of research into new nuclear technologies or the pursuit of profitability. Although the prospect of electricity privatisation in the late 1980s focused attention on the costs of the legacy, the opportunity was not taken to address it properly.
- The 2002 White Paper which led to the creation of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) marked a turning point. Government is now committed to long term planning to deal with the nuclear legacy and has put in place structures to do so that are clearly superior to those that came before.
- Spending on nuclear decommissioning, which is ring-fenced within DECC's budget has increased significantly and spending on the highest priorities is protected. But the NDA faces continuing operational and financial challenges.
Notes for editors:
1. The report by Professor Gordon MacKerron is available to read on the DECC web site.
2. Professor Gordon MacKerron is an economist and Director of SPRU (Science and Technology Policy Research) University of Sussex. He has worked in consultancy and Government as well as academia, specialising in economic and political issues of energy, climate change and nuclear power. Between 2003 and 2007 he chaired the Government's independent Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM), responsible for formulating and recommending a new approach to UK policy for the management of higher activity nuclear wastes.
3. The Government legislated in the Energy Act 2008 to ensure that operators of new nuclear power stations will have secure financing arrangements in place to meet the full costs of decommissioning and their full share of waste management and disposal costs. Before construction begins, an operator of a new nuclear power station will have to submit a Funded Decommissioning Programme (FDP) for approval by the Secretary of State.
4. The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) is a non-departmental public body created through the Energy Act 2004. Its purpose is to deliver the decommissioning and clean-up of the UK's civil nuclear legacy in a safe and cost-effective manner, and where possible to accelerate programmes of work that reduce hazard. For more information visit
5. The Government issued a public consultation in January 2011 on its proposals to implement the revised Paris and Brussels Conventions on nuclear third-party liability. Among other aims, the Conventions set out a framework for enabling victims to claim compensation for damage caused after a nuclear incident. The consultation has now closed and we intend to publish the Government response shortly
University of Sussex Press Office: Jacqui Bealing and Maggie Clune, 01273 678888, firstname.lastname@example.com


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Randy Newman
Teller of tales, spinner of yarns and satirist of just about everything.
Randy Newman is a singer-songwriter with bite. Where others of his ilk wrote confessional, autobiographical songs, Newman told tales of invented characters and their hijinks, often to the effect of biting satire.
Cynical romantic, subversive political satirist, social commentator, champion of the underdog and brilliant one-man medicine show, Randy Newman has been one of pop music's secret hidden weapons for more than four decades.
Randy Newman was born on November 28, 1944 in New Orleans. His mother Adele was a secretary, and his father, Irving George was an internist, but his family had strong musical connections. Two of his uncles, Alfred Newman and Lionel Newman, both scored numerous films. The time he spent in New Orleans as a youngster had a profound influence on both his piano style and his songwriting, which in later years skewered Southern stereotypes in an ironic fashion that only an insider could get away with.
Newman's family eventually settled in Los Angeles, and by the time he was 17, Newman was working as a songwriter for a California publishing company. When he was 18, he released his first single, "Golden Gridiron Boy." The record was not a success, and Newman chose to focus on songwriting and arranging. Then the Fleetwoods recorded his song "They Tell Me It's Summer" and released it as the B-side to their hit single "Lovers by Night, Strangers by Day." That success gave Newman great exposure, and several other artists—including Gene Pitney, Jerry Butler, Jackie DeShannon, the O'Jays and Irma Thomas—began recording his songs.
Newman attended UCLA, where he studied music, but he dropped out one semester short of graduation. He was also briefly a member of the band the Tikis, who went on to become Harper's Bizarre. Meanwhile, in the mid-Sixties, Newman began a close working relationship with Lenny Waronker, who was a childhood friend of Newman's and the son of Liberty Records' president. Waronker was hired to produce albums by the Tikis, the Beau Brummels and the Mojo Men, and he brought in Newman to play on the sessions. In 1966 Waronker was hired as an A&R manager for Warner Bros. Records, and Newman would later sign with the label.
Newman released his first album, Randy Newman, in 1968. Though it was a critical success, it did not make the charts. Even so, numerous artists, including Alan Price, Van Dyke Parks, Dave Van Ronk, Judy Collins, the Everly Brothers, Claudine Longet, Dusty Springfield, Nina Simone, Lynn Anderson, Wilson Pickett, Pat Boone and Peggy Lee, covered his songs, and "I Think It's Going to Rain Today" became an early standard.
In 1970 Harry Nilsson did an entire album of Newman's songs called Nilsson Sings Newman. The album was a success, and Newman went on the road, opening for Nilsson. His next album, 1970's 12 Songs, received great reviews but sold poorly. It featured such musicians as Ry Cooder, Clarence White and Gene Parsons, but the focus was on Newman's piano playing. At the end of the Seventies, critic Robert Christgau ranked the album number six on his list of the best albums of the decade. Three Dog Night had a huge hit with their cover of one of the album's songs, "Mama Told Me Not to Come."
Newman followed 12 Songs with Randy Newman Live. It was his first album to make the charts, hitting Number One Hundred Ninety-One on the Billboard album chart. Newman also began moving into film music, writing the song "He Gives Us All His Love" for Norman Lear's 1971 film Cold Turkey.
In 1972 Newman released Sail Away. It was his first commercial success, hitting Number One Hundred Sixty-Three on the Billboard chart. Linda Ronstadt and Ray Charles both covered the title track, and Three Dog Night, Joe Cocker, Etta James, Keb Mo and Tom Jones have all recorded another track from the album: "You Can Leave Your Hat On." The album also included "Burn On," a song about Cleveland's Cuyahoga River catching fire.
From that point, Newman's popularity began to grow. His 1974 album, Good Old Boys, was a concept album about the South. It reached Number Thirty-Six and spent twenty-one weeks on the charts. 1977's Little Criminals contained the hit "Short People" and made its way into the Top 10. His 1979 album, Born Again, featured guest vocals by members of the Eagles, and 1983's Trouble in Paradise included the hit "I Love L.A." That song is still played at home games by the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Kings.
By this time, however, Newman was focusing more of his attention on writing music for films. His soundtrack for the movie Ragtime (1981) earned Newman two Oscar nominations: Best Song and Best Score. He also recorded the soundtrack to the 1984 film The Natural. Two years later Newman co-wrote the film ¡Three Amigos! (1986) with Steve Martin and Lorne Michaels. He also wrote three songs for the film, and he provided the voice for the movie's famous singing bush.
Newman has also worked on a number of Disney/Pixar films. He has scored six of the studio's films, including Toy Story (1995), Toy Story 2 (1999), Toy Story 3 (2010), A Bug's Life (1998), Monsters, Inc. (2001) and Cars (2006). He has won Academy Awards for Best Original Song for two of those films, Monsters, Inc. and Toy Story 3. Newman has also written scores for Avalon (1990), Parenthood (1989), James and the Giant Peach (1996), Seabiscuit (2003), Awakenings (1990), The Paper (1994), Meet the Parents (2000) and its sequel, Meet the Fockers (2004). Overall, Newman has received twenty Oscar nominations.
In addition to film scores, Newman continued his recording career, releasing the albums Land of Dreams (1988), Bad Love (1999), and Harps and Angels (2008). 2011's The Randy Newman Songbook, Vol. 2, featured re-recordings of some of his earlier songs.
In addition to his Oscar Awards, Newman has won five Grammy Awards and was the 2002 recipient of the Recording Academy's Governors' Award. He has also received three Emmys: in 2004 for the title theme to Monk, in 1991 for songs composed for the series Cop Rock and again for Monk in 2010 for Best Original Lyrics and Music for the song "When I'm Gone," which appeared in the series finale. In 2010 Newman received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Inductee: Randy Newman (piano, vocals; born November 28, 1944)


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TryToRemember by Vladimir Borodin
Good memory is a very essential and indispensable component of life. However, to have one, you are to constantly train and improve it. TryToRemember is a unique intellectual simulator, it is created relying on scientific achievements of psychologists focused on memory research. You'll see the result after 15-20 minutes of daily training! TryToRemember develops immediate, short-term and long-term memory, logical thinking and attention; it increases your memory rate. For all its scientific character, the TryToRemember project won't let you be bored, as the creators of this simulator ensured that you'd have a good time with profit to your abilities. TryToRemember is a system of different exercises able to do miracles to your memory. The most important thing is your wish and your will to win.
For estimation of the reached results, in TryToRemember there are three variants of the game for two players, where you can measure strength with your friends.
Train your brain, develop your memory, and improve yourself!
Developer Website: http://iborovdev.narod.ru/


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WikiBooks: Whitney Houston
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|About the Book
Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American R&B/pop singer, actress, and former fashion model. Houston is the most awarded female artist of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 2 Emmy Awards, 6 Grammy Awards, 16 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among a total of 415 career awards as of 2010. Houston is also one of the worlds best-selling music artists, having sold over 170 million albums and singles worldwide. Inspired by several prominent soul singers in her extended family, including her mother Cissy Houston, cousins Dionne Warwick and Dee Dee Warwick, and Godmother Aretha Franklin, Houston began singing at her New Jersey church as a member of a junior gospel choir at age eleven. After she began performing alongside her mother in night clubs in the New York City area, she was discovered by Arista Records label head Clive Davis. Houston has released six studio albums and three movie soundtrack albums throughout her career, all of which have had diamond, multi-platinum, platinum, or gold certification. Houston released her debut album Whitney Houston in 1985, which became the best-selling debut album by a female act at the time of its release. Her second studio album Whitney (1987) became the first album by a female artist to debut at number one on the Billboard 200 albums chart. Houstons crossover appeal on the popular music charts as well as her prominence on MTV, starting with her award-winning video for How Will I Know, enabled several African-American female artists to follow in her success.


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There aren't any open polls.
Do you love the art of photography?
Do you wish to meet others who have the same passion and desire to get together in order to share ideas and learn from one another?
Then the Portrait Photography Group is the right place for you!
All photography skill levels are welcome!!!
Our focus has always been on the art of photographing people, but we have recently expanded to incorporate other forms of portrait art, including food photography, still life, landscapes, and the world of digital manipulations.
Our Meetup group was founded in 2010, and we are now in 7 different cities, with more than 500 events behind us and 1000's of members. The membership base is a strong and connected one, where many friendships have sprouted.
We hope you will join us soon and we are always looking forward to meeting new members at upcoming events.
In the meantime, we have a few on-line communities also where we'd love to have you join us "virtually".
PPG on - Facebook Page & our Private Group
Inspiration, Ideas, and information on - Pinterest
Our new page - Google + Page
PPG tweets on - Twitter
Company Page - LinkedIn
Our group activities include:
Most of our events DO involve "MODELS", however, the word "MODEL" for us does NOT mean a professional model, but rather a subject willing to allow us to practice and learn with. Some of our models are professionals and some are not, some are experienced and some are just babies (literally).
Our goal is to provide our members with the opportunity to photograph and practice with portrait subjects, at an affordable rate. In order to learn everything from client interaction, to posing, and lighting "live" portrait subjects are needed. However, our belief is that having subjects that require little to no directions doesn't allow for us to grow in these areas.
The prices of our meetups are directly related to the the amount of work the organizers must put into creating them:
Generally the fees for our meetups cost between $20 and $80.
Not all of our meetups are structured as classes or workshops. We have many members who just want to get together with a model and practice or "mastermind" with other photographers.
This is why we say all levels are welcome... everyone shares and helps each other along this path. There is no competition within our group so... please leave your egos behind!
There are no great "trade secrets" that we must keep hidden, therefore we encourage supporting one another and being open with your knowledge and photography skills.
Thanks and looking forward to meeting you soon!
Lori Jill
and the organizing team!
2,900 PhotoEnthusiasts
7,771 Members
1,169 Photographers and Models
672 Members
1,142 Members
12,539 GEAM'ers
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By clicking "Sign up" or "Sign up using Facebook", you confirm that you accept our Terms of Service & Privacy Policy


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About SKF
We achieve this by combining hands-on experience in over 40 industries with our knowledge across the SKF technology platforms: bearings and units, seals, mechatronics, services and lubrication systems. Our success is based on this knowledge, our people, and our commitment to SKF Care principles.
The focus of SKF's technology development today is to reduce the environmental impact of an asset during its lifecycle, both in our own and our customers' operations. The SKF BeyondZero product portfolio is the latest example of what SKF has to offer in this area.
Quick Facts
SKF sites:140 in 32 countries
Years in business:110
Technical centres:18 around the world
SKF's dedication to sustainable development
Business Care
Profitable growth without compromising our commitment for the environment and society.
Environmental Care
Integrating environmental lifecycle management into our core business and processes.
Employee Care
To respect and protect the rights of our employees, whilst providing them with equal opportunities for personal and professional growth.
Community Care
Our Community Care programme represents the means for us to actively engage in our communities. We believe when a society grows, SKF grows with it.


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Illinois Lt. Governor Sheila Simon is urging taxpayers to comment at public hearings about funding for state-run programs and services.
The Budgeting for Results Commission will take testimony from the public Wednesday at the Illinois Department of Transportation office in Collinsville. The public can also give its input on Thursday at the Marion regional office building.
Budgeting for results is a method of funding programs and services based on how effective they've been in meeting established goals. Simon, legislators and leaders in education, business and finance make up the bi-partisan commission appointed by Governor Pat Quinn. The group is also gathering input from service providers, advocates and those operating programs for the fiscal 2015 spending plan.


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#MostRequestedLive Ask Anything Chat: Madison Beer Talks 'Hurts Like Hell'
Madison Beer sat down to answer your questions this weekend in the Ask Anything Chat on #MostRequestedLive. Hear what she had to say about her new song "Hurts Like Hell" & so much more!
Watch Madison Beer's Ask Anything Chat below!
Check out the video for Madison Beer's new song "Hurts Like Hell" featuring Offset below.


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Watch Victoria's Secret Angels Lip Sync to Taylor Swift's 'Shake It Off' [VIDEO]by Ali Szubiak | PopCrush
One of our favorite things about the annual Victoria's Secret Fashion Show (other than the entire gallon of ice cream we consume while watching it each year) is when they get the Angels together to lip sync a song from one of the artists performing that night. It does a great job of setting the precedent for the show: Something fun and cute and full of personality.
This year the girls are singing 'Shake It Off' by Taylor Swift — definitely the perfect choice in both artist and song. Not only is Taylor performing at the show, but she's had pretty much the best year ever and 'Shake It Off' is crazy fun. Cue drop-dead gorgeous women singing along to Taylor's vocals and we are totally obsessed.
Our favorite part is seeing Taylor's BFFs Karlie Kloss and Lily Aldridge having an insane amount of fun while they sing along — and, naturally, they know all the words.
Check out the video above to see some of the Angels (including Karlie Kloss, Lily Aldrige, Adriana Lima, Behati Prinsloo, Alessandra Ambrosio, Candice Swanepoel and Doutzen Kroes) sing it! And be sure to tune in for the 2014 Victoria's Secret Show when it airs tonight (Dec. 9) at 10PM on CBS!
See Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande + More at the 2014 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show!


text: Kinesio® Taping is the definitive rehabilitative taping method within the international medical community. This easy-to-learn technique is not only economical, but also reimbursable through many insurance carriers. Kinesio® Tex Tape is completely latex free and made from the highest quality materials meaning it can be used by patients of every age and condition for 3-5 days per application. Kinesio® Kinesiology Tape Rolls


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CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – MIT took an early 1-0 lead over Simmons College before the Sharks struck for two runs in the fourth inning and tacked on three more in the fifth to down the Engineers, 5-1, in non-conference softball action on Tuesday afternoon. The game was the season opener for Tech while Simmons improves to 4-7 with the win.
Freshman Lauren Backhaus (Windson, Conn.) limited the Cardinal and Gray to just two hits and one walk over seven innings while striking out four. MIT starter, senior Jessica Iacobucci (Phoenixville, Pa.), lasted four innings, allowing two runs on three hits with five strikeouts. Freshman Ellie Fodor (Trenton, Mich.) pitched the final three frames, giving up just one earned run on five this with four punch-outs.
Iacobucci started off strong, retiring the side in each of the first three innings while striking out five of the first six batters she faced.
In the bottom of the third, junior Leah Alpert (Needham, Mass.) led off with a base hit to right before Iacobucci sacrificed her over to second. Alpert moved up to third on a passed ball and scored senior Nydia Ruleman's (Germantown, Tenn.) infield grounder. Simmons got out of the inning with a double-play ball induced by Backhaus.
Simmons wasted little time answering back, getting a pair of runs in the top half of the next inning. Ari King (Westford, Mass.) roped a lead-off double over the centerfielder's head and came home on a double by Emily Cunningham (Cotuit, Mass.). Christina Mulcahy (Cambridge, Mass.) drove Cunningham home with her base hit up the middle.
MIT threatened in the home half of the sixth, as Ruleman reached base on a one-out, slap hit and was sacrificed over to second. The rally would end there, however, as freshman Sarah Van Belleghem (Los Gatos, Calif.) grounded out to third.
Simmons struck for three more runs in the seventh, including a pair of two-out, unearned runs, on four hits. With two away and one run already across, the Engineers seemed to be close to getting out of the inning, as Fodor induced a slow roller to third base. Shortstop Angela Ha (Houston, Texas) came over to cover the bag but was ruled off the base when she received the throw from junior Anna Christensen (Vernon Hills, Ill.). Cunningham hit a two-run single to left to push the Simmons advantage to four runs.
Christensen reached on a hit by pitch in the seventh but was retired on a fielder's choice and junior Emily Creedon (Stoneham, Mass.) struck out to close out the game.
The Engineers will be off for the next week and a half before departing for Clermont, Fla. for their annual Spring Break trip. MIT will play 10 games in five days while in Florida. Simmons will open Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play next Friday, March 23 with a road doubleheader against Albertus Magnus.


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Home > Prescription Glasses > Nike > NIKE 5509 (018)
NIKE 5509 is available in 5 additional attractive styles
Size and availability
Free outbound and return shipping
30-day money-back guarantee
Low prices
Free outbound and return shipping
30-day money-back guarantee
Low prices
NIKE 5509/018 Eyewear
With these designer eyeglasses, you are always perfectly dressed. Would another colour not be a better match for your favourite outfit? Check also the other styles of NIKE 5509in our 2018, and 2019 Nike range.
This Nike model is an all-rounder, equally suiting men and women. Full rim frames completely enclose the lenses within the frame. For a convinced eyeglass wearer, any other frame style is ruled out, with very few exceptions. The frame is reminiscent of an inverted trapeze. Because the frame is wider at the top, the side edges narrow downwards, giving a softer look to the face. Plastic frames like these combine durability and are comfortable to wear. The NIKE 5509 is a very snug fit on the ears and nose.
With the help of our digital dispensing optician, your prescription lenses can be configured according to your own requirements. Anti-reflective and cleaning coatings, antistatic and lotus effect are included as standard for plastic lenses.
The next shipment is on its way, so we will have your Nike back in stock very soon. We hope the unbelievably low price will be a consolation for the short wait. And because Edel-Optics is a paradise for bargain hunters, you can get this top model at an incredibly low price. What is labelled as "in the sale" at other online shops, is for us "all-day-everyday" prices.
Don't hesitate to call us at
Buy safely
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Cash on delivery
Bank Transfer


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Another Day, Another Dow Record High
Investors kept their foot on the gas pedal to start the week, driving the Dow Jones Industrial Average toward its seventh straight advance. Jonathan Cheng reports on The News Hub. Photo: Getty Images.
This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.
... the the ... the people of the dial up fifty points the seventh straight ... increase on the tech heavy Nasdaq up a quarter of the science ... and the pick stocks index of about five of the sun to explain what went on ... the will Street gentle thousand change on some stuff ... and indefinite ... some days in a row up to the tax ... rate typically on when you get to a record high like we did last week CCE ... Investors hesitate a little bit with with practically the step up this time include re do it we just keep on going so ... um a good start the week Monday ... until we should point out of it yet another record high in the SB five hundred gets closer to its own record it ... I think just a little more than a percent or two off its all-time high ... so that the stocks in general he could see that the was weakness in the morning ... Apple was down and ... by the end of the day was meant to manage reversed most of that so this is in ... the name on Ian Wright has come to light up my line is this the nervousness ... that we we hear about that as we get into this tight economy is still very weaned and yet that the stock indices continued progress right well if there is any nervousness out there you can really see it in things like the Vicks which is the fear index the Euronext that's right and it felt great to its lowest level since April two thousand and seven so that's six years ... it was in trouble all of that now so he's not to country indicate a piece by mulled wine to contradict the beach and a lot of investors on the sea the next code and in general it's a good thing but it's a good and too far and the concern there is that you have to many people who ... are ignoring ... the potential pitfalls and Spat Stream Trust think about that because ... we get closer to weave we think a lot of the pitfalls but sound but all day every thing every day but ... clearly ... some people left investors found that are not so focused on the train at which you can argue is the reason why we've gone up but the worry is that ... to me and headed to Atlanta to get ... grants to support somebody ... premise is not irrational exuberance by the time the devil will thank you my much Jonathan Cheng mall on maps ... on the vs day don't come


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Staying at A Williamsburg White House enables our guests to park their car in the front of the Inn and walk down the street to Colonial Williamsburg. Merchant Square is located just 6/10th mile down beautiful Jamestown Road. You will walk along side the College of William and Mary campus as you enjoy your stroll to Merchant Square.
Once you arrive in Merchant Square, this is the beginning of the Historic Colonial Williamsburg area. There are numerous shops and dining opportunities available to our guests. Depending on your preference for fine dining, casual dining or quick food, the options are exciting. For that special dinner while you are vacationing in Williamsburg, the Fat Canary is our first choice. This contemporary style fine dining restaurant is small and exquisite. Due to its size, reservations are suggested as early as possible in your vacation planning. Their seasonal menus blend local flavors for outstanding combinations. Prices for their entrees range from approximately $28-38 per person. If you are celebrating a special occasion, make sure to mention it when making your reservation by phone. If you decide to take your chances and go without reservations you can usually enjoy dinner at the Bar or weather permitting, outside on the patio.
Get there early and enjoy a cocktail at the bar while you wait but make sure you save room for desert! You can find all the information you need to make your reservation on their website as well as sample menus. http://www.fatcanarywilliamsburg.com/home.html
If you are staying at our Williamsburg Inn, we will be happy to make those reservations for you, just call us at 866-229-8580


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Are you interested in teaching English? PSU is currently accepting applications from interested students who want to travel to South Korea this summer (July/August) for 5 weeks and teach English at a summer English language camp for children.
PSU students earn 4 credits; airfare, housing, etc., is provided.
For more details, attend an information session on Thursday, Feb. 7 from 12 - 1 p.m. in East Hall 109. More program details can be found online at http://oia.pdx.edu/ea/details/tesol_practicum/.


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Music on a Surface through the Xbox Music Pass
When you first open the Music app on a new Surface, you won't find much but an empty shelf. After all, you haven't had time to copy any music onto it yet.
Even an empty Surface, though, can dish out just about any song you want to hear. Those songs come from an Xbox Music Pass, a service Microsoft entices you with when you open the Music app.
If you have no interest in Microsoft's Xbox Music pass, there are other ways you can simply start playing your own tunes.
But if you're curious as to Microsoft's way of letting you listen to more than 30 million songs for free, follow these steps to sample the Xbox Music Pass.
Load the Music app with a tap of its tile on the Start screen.
You must sign in with a Microsoft account to hear music through the Xbox Music Pass. The Music app, shown in this figure, contains four parts:
My Music: Hidden off to the left, the Music app shows songs or albums you've copied to your Surface.
Now Playing: Shown when you first open the program, this area lists your currently playing song. Tap any of the surrounding buttons to begin hearing free music.
All Music: Shown to the right of the Now Playing section, this area lists popular artists and albums, all ready to listen with a tap.
Top Music: Scroll to the far right to hear something quickly: a list of the latest chart toppers, ready to play with a tap of a finger.
In the Now Playing section, tap the Play an Artist tile, type in your favorite artist's name, and tap the Play button.
Before the music begins to play, however, you're interrupted by Step 3.
Tap the Sign in Now button to sign up with Xbox, and then tap the I Accept button.
Microsoft's Windows division and its Xbox division work out of separate offices. So, even though you've signed up with a Microsoft account, you also need to sign up for an Xbox profile. (It's free.)
Tap OK to approve the process and listen to music by your chosen artist.
Your new Xbox profile gives you a nonsensical "gamer tag," which is simply an Xbox nickname. You can safely forget it, as Xbox Music begins greeting you by that name whenever you log on.
After you've dispensed with the red tape, the Music app slips into its Xbox Music clothes and begins playing songs by the artist you chose in Step 2.
You're now free to listen to millions of songs by thousands of artists, simply by tapping the Play an Artist button and typing in the artist's name. Or, tap an artist or album listed in the All Music or Top Music sections listed in in Step 1. It's just waiting to be played.
Now, a moment for the fine print:
You need an Internet connection to hear the music because that's how Microsoft sends the tunes to your Surface. When you're out of range of a Wi-Fi connection, the music stops streaming.
Microsoft occasionally slips ads in between songs. Sometimes you just hear a voiceover, at other times, the Music app plays a fullscreen video ad. And after six months, Microsoft limits your ad-supported-but-free streaming to ten hours a month, which is about 20 minutes a day.
To bypass the ads and the ten-hour monthly limit, sign up for a free 30-day trial. After 30 days, Microsoft begins automatically charging $10 a month to your credit card.
During that 30-day trial (and if you subscribe to the service), you can play, stream, or download any of the music on your Surface, a Windows Phone, a Windows 8 PC, or an Xbox 360 console (provided you're an Xbox Live Gold member). Those platforms all run Xbox Live, and you can only play the songs through Xbox Live by signing into the service.
If your subscription lapses, you can no longer play your music, including music you've downloaded — unless you've bought the music, that is, which costs extra. After they're purchased, however, those individual songs are yours to copy to CD or play on other PCs and music players.
Xbox Music Pass isn't cheap, and it's filled with fine print. But if you pony up $10 a month for the service, it's very convenient — until you stop paying, that is. Then your music disappears, and you're back to ten hours a month of ad-supported music.


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Microsoft made news Friday with a strategic alliance with Salesforce.com that analysts agreed was a positive move for the software behemoth under Chief Executive Satya Nadella.
But what really had people talking was the deal of sorts by former Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer for the Los Angeles Clippers. (We say of sorts because Ballmer reached his deal with Shelly Sterling and it's still unclear what her estranged husband's position is, according to The Wall Street Journal. That would be Donald Sterling, who has been banned for life by the NBA after making derogatory comments about African-Americans.)
Would Ballmer, who recently retired from Microsoft but still owns substantial stake, have to sell a big chunk of his shares to cover the $2 billion price tag? One analyst said it shouldn't have that big an impact on the stock.
"Stock trades at roughly 30 million shares a day, or about $1.2 billion in dollar volume, so there is ample liquidity if Steve wants to peel back his holding," BGC Partners analyst Colin Gillis told MarketWatch. "Plus he could sell the shares in a private block transaction."
But while the transaction itself, first reported by the Los Angeles Times, may not behind Microsoft's share gains on Friday, the idea of Ballmer as NBA team owner is certainly drawing much attention, especially on Twitter.
One thing that's surprising is how quickly the deal got done. After all, it took months of intense negotiation for a Ballmer-led Microsoft to NOT buy Yahoo just a few years ago. Ballmer launched an unsolicited bid for the Web portal that ended up going nowhere.
Now, Ballmer, who just ended a three-decade career at Microsoft, including 13 years as CEO, looks ready to start an encore career as an NBA team owner -- and paying a record price to do so.
And of course, there were a few digs at Microsoft.
To be sure, Ballmer is expected to be one of the NBA's colorful team owners. After all, Ballmer, once known as the leader of the world's biggest software company, is also famous for trying to rally Microsoft's troops with a quirky dance routine.
And for the corniest tech CEO farewell in history.
-- Ben Pimentel
More must-reads from MarketWatch:
Worst money mistakes you can make at any age
10 countries where people drink the most


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Students » Online Learning – Study on Your Schedule
Online Learning – Study on Your Schedule
Herkimer College's Internet Academy offers the premier two-year SUNY experience — online. For years, we've been a leading provider of outstanding online college programs. Below are just a few benefits our online students enjoy:
- Program variety. We offer more than 150 courses, 20 degrees, and five certificates online, so students have lots of choices when it comes to majors and programs.
- Convenience. Many of our students have very busy lives with full-time jobs and family responsibilities. Commuting to campus for class can be difficult, if not impossible. Completing your studies online lets you complete your education around your schedule.
- Savings. Herkimer College's full-time and part-time tuition and fees are competitively priced and we offer many financial aid options.
- Support services. Our online students have access to all of the great in-person support services our on-campus students are offered, like advisement, tutoring, disabilities services, library services, and technical support.
Future students can check out our FAQs or contact us to find out more about earning college credits online through our Internet Academy. Current students can access forms online.
If you have a question, don't hesitate to call (315) 574-4006, or email us at firstname.lastname@example.com or visit us in JH 204.
Apply Now! Request Information Access Your Course Visit Generals Online (GO) Now


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Brian Urlacher is suddenly a huge question mark for the Chicago Bears.
Relive every game this season online and on-demand with enhanced viewing features, including the "All-22" coaches film. Get NFL Game Rewind.
The veteran linebacker could miss the remainder of the regular season due to the right hamstring injury he suffered Sunday, according to the Chicago Tribune.
Urlacher, an eight-time Pro Bowl selection, reportedly has a Grade 2 hamstring strain. It's possible Urlacher will return for the regular-season finale against the Detroit Lions on Dec. 30, but Urlacher could be sidelined until the playoffs -- assuming the 8-4 Bears advance.
It was reported earlier Tuesday that Chicago signed linebacker Dom DeCicco to the 53-man roster, bringing back DeCicco three months after he was released with an injury settlement.
Though DeCicco played some middle linebacker when Urlacher was sidelined with a knee injury in training camp, he won't fill Urlacher's role going forward. The Bears finished Sunday's game with Nick Roach in the middle and Geno Hayes sliding into Roach's normal spot at strongside linebacker. A similar set up can be expected on Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings.
Urlacher isn't close to the player he was earlier in his career, but he remains a capable performer with obvious leadership abilities. The Bears are 7-15 in games without Urlacher dating back to his rookie season in 2000.
Update: Urlacher told Fox Chicago that he could be out "two to four weeks" but he expected to be back if the Bears make the postseason.
Follow Dan Hanzus on Twitter @DanHanzus.


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"Had it not been for St. Joseph's Indian School I'd still be homeless, being shuffled between family members."
~ St. Joseph's Indian School Student
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