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Yesterday, in the presence of some 300,000 people from all over the Middle East, Pope Benedict XVI formally ended his historic visit to Lebanon with a Mass. The main purpose of the trip was to bring to a conclusion the Special Assembly for the Middle East of the Synod of Bishops, which began in 2010. He drew that synod to a close when he signed and delivered his Apostolic Exhortation on Friday at the Basilica of St. Paul in Harissa. But Sunday was really the high point of the pope's pastoral visit and it fleshed out so much of what this trip was all about.
The importance of this Mass was obvious to the government as well: security was tight and traffic, controlled. As Issam and I traveled to the outdoor venue, we passed thousands of soldiers and many more thousands of police, auxiliary traffic and safety personnel and many thousands of most helpful ushers, guides and crowd control volunteers. To put it mildly, Lebanon did itself extremely proud with the amazing organization and planning that was evidenced each day — especially Sunday.
The site chosen for this Mass was itself an amazing story, as it had previously been a garbage dump that was transformed into a flattened landfill alongside the Mediterranean Sea, offering a perfect setting for this liturgy: the sea to the west and the skyline of a growing downtown Beirut to the east and south. The government, Maronite Patriarch Bechara told me, had paid for this transformation, including the newly completed asphalting of the huge gathering area. And there was a magnificent altar built large enough for all the bishops, clergy and special guests.
The sanctuary was beautifully adorned with flora, Arabic art forms and, in a special way, some cedars of Lebanon. Additionally, there were giant television screens that were place hundreds of yards out into the crowds and elevated speakers all around so everyone could be a part of the action.
When Pope Benedict XVI arrived, he was transferred into the popemobile and began circulating and weaving through the throng to emotional cheers and chants. He had come to be with everyone and even a glimpse of him from far away made the long journey and the blazing sun worth it. The congregation loved the pope!
When he finally came to a stop in front of the altar and popped into open view, the throng went crazy; this is the pope in our presence. The Catholic Church is alive and well in Lebanon and in the Middle East.
I was given a most privileged seat right with the bishops and the Orthodox patriarchs and bishops in full view of His Holiness. I also was able to take some great photos. But, to be honest, photos and video did not do justice to this event. As they often say: "You had to be there."
This liturgy reminded us so completely that this is the unity and oneness that we all want in our church and in our world. Pope Benedict XVI was the celebrant and in a way we were all his concelebrants — celebrating the love that Jesus has for each of us.
In his homily he returned to the oft-mentioned challenge not to be afraid, but to be faithful to the calling of our Christian heritage. He invited especially the young to be vigilant against the culture of drugs, alcohol and violence. He mentioned Syria again and invited everyone to work and pray for peace. He stated very strongly that we Christians in this part of the world do not ask for any special privileges, but the basic right to believe and to freely practice our faith.
I was overwhelmed by the universal character of this Mass: There were Latin hierarchs dressed rather uniformly, Eastern Catholic patriarchs and bishops dressed each in their very colorful and distinctive liturgical robes, Orthodox brother bishops celebrating with us, representatives of government, and most of all, the faithful, mostly Lebanese, but many others who had traveled from Syria, Iraq, Egypt, Jordan, Israel and Palestine, the Arab Peninsula, Turkey, and other countries. There were Catholics, Orthodox, Protestants and Muslims. For this solemn occasion, we were all brothers and sisters who want peace and mutual respect. And one man brought us together.
For the distribution of Holy Communion, a cadre of several hundred priests, accompanied by attendants holding huge white umbrellas over the priests' heads, made their way through the crowds. Each communion station was thus very visible and distribution was most orderly.
At the end of Mass, the Holy Father summarized the points he had been making at each event and he thanked the Lebanese for their overwhelming welcome. He seemed genuinely touched during this pastoral visit.
Given the violence reported in the news these past few days, his visit and his message of peace resonated in the hearts and souls of Christians and all people of good will in the Middle East.
During these days, so many commented that they have renewed hope and confidence in the providence of God. But Pope Benedict XVI, this soft-spoken ambassador of peace, invited us in celebrating our Christian heritage to follow the example of Christ and be messengers of peace.
This whole experience in Lebanon and with the Christian family from all over the Middle East has been memorable. I have been richly blessed in being here and honored to share my humble reflections with you each day. Now I return to New York, departing late Monday night.
Thanks for being such an important member of our CNEWA family. So many bishops from all over the Middle East have expressed their profound thanks to you for your generosity and for your prayerful support. They have all promised to place you in their prayers.
The Holy Father is now back at his residence at Castel Gandolfo, and I hope he gets a well-deserved rest. But he's a busy man, and I wouldn't make any bets on that.
I write this in the midst of the cedars of Lebanon. God bless each of you. God bless Lebanon. God bless the church in the Middle East, and God bless this man of peace, Pope Benedict XVI.
Tags: Lebanon Middle East Pope Benedict XVI Msgr. John E. Kozar
Saturday was a dramatic and long day — all shared with the youth of Lebanon. What an amazing day it was.
Issam Bishara and I arrived well before all the cardinals, patriarchs, bishops and dignitaries. But the venue was already teeming with young people — thousands of them. Part of the treat in arriving early was to have the opportunity to walk around with my camera and to meet so many of these terrific youth. They were so happy that I came from the United States to be with them and with the pope. Many of them wanted to be photographed with me, and I also enjoyed getting photo shots of many of them with their smiling faces and their spirit of joy and high energy in welcoming the pope.
The setting was itself exciting, located in front of the Maronite patriarchate in a large plaza next to a lovely new open-air chapel used for special ceremonies. The patriarch told me there were 13,000 rented chairs, but there were many more people than that present for this epic event.
Eight musical choirs and singing groups entertained and prepared the crowd for the arrival of Pope Benedict XVI. Everyone wore a cap with the papal insignia in the blistering sun. And many wore t-shirts with "Benoit 16" printed on the back — French is perhaps the most widely used Western language among Lebanese Christians.
After "warming up the audience" for more than four hours (and no one seemed to complain), the Holy Father arrived to a thunderous welcome as he approached the stage in his "popemobile." The place went wild and he seemed to love every minute of it.
He was met by the president of the republic, who chose to sit down below the stage with the people, even though a special chair was reserved for him in front of the patriarchs; a nice touch for a man who seems very well thought of by the citizens of Lebanon. He himself is a Maronite Catholic, so this was on his "home turf."
Speaking of patriarchs, they were all there with beaming smiles. Seeing them side by side, with the major Orthodox hierarchs immediately behind, it really presented a remarkable display of unity occasioned by the visit of this messenger of peace, Pope Benedict XVI.
Prior to the pope addressing all the youth assembled, we heard from two young people. One young man gave an impassioned plea to the Holy Father to bring unity to the church. He even offered a practical suggestion to the pope: "Holy Father, as a first step could you please consider having all the churches celebrate Easter on the same date?" He promised for all the youth present and all the Catholic youth of Lebanon that they would work hard to bring peace and unity to the world.
The pope seemed to be touched by his remarks and gave him a hug and held his hand and spoke to him for a minute or so, which is very unusual.
And how about the pope's remarks? Well, he gave a very heartfelt talk to the young people reminding them how they are the future of Lebanon and how their efforts toward peace can have great impact for the entire Middle East. He encouraged the young not to be afraid. He also mentioned Syria and said: "The pope has not forgotten our brothers and sisters in Syria. They are in our hearts and are with us here." We must pray for them and for the Syrian people. He also mentioned working with our Muslim brothers and sisters to make the world a better place. This seemed most timely as there were some ugly acts of violence and destruction on Friday in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli.
An especially beautiful performance followed: A group of about 20 youngsters, all hearing- and speech-challenged kids, did a most expressive dance, using the reverberating beat felt on the stage floor to synchronize their delicate moves. Everyone, including the pope himself, was in awe of these beautiful young people.
I was very fortunate to be given better a better than I deserved, among a group of bishops. Seated next to me was Melkite Greek Catholic Archbishop George Bakhouny from Tyre in southern Lebanon. He had hosted me during my previous visit last December and had himself visited us in our CNEWA office in May of this year. We had much to talk about and he introduced me to many bishops, especially Melkite and Maronite bishops. I also enjoyed some conversations with a number of patriarchs I had met and some Orthodox bishops.
To close the program, a famous Lebanese singer brought the crowd to their feet in a rendition of one of her classic hits. She seemed to be so honored to sing for the Holy Father, and the crowd was thrilled that she had been asked to do so.
It was an exhausting day, but one filled with so much joy and hope. And of course, the call to be peacemakers resounded at every turn.
On the way out of the venue, Issam and I had a huge challenge of navigating the crowd of thousands, all trying to fit into a rather narrow exit conduit. Two young girls insisted on being my "bodyguards," and kept trying to open up the crowds for us, even though we were not in a hurry.
The church in Lebanon is very dynamic, and God rewards it with vocations and very committed youth. We need to pray for them, as they do for us, for we are loved as special friends — CNEWA was on the lips of many bishops and patriarchs. Thanks to all of you for allowing our good works to make a difference in this part of the world.
Tags: Lebanon Pope Benedict XVI Msgr. John E. Kozar Patriarchs
Today is the day that millions of people in Lebanon and the Middle East have been waiting for: The arrival of Pope Benedict XVI. He was scheduled to touch down at 1:45 in the afternoon and the excitement was building. Earlier this morning, there were already many military officials on the highway and at most of the intersections, getting in place for traffic control for the transfers of the pope from the airport to his residence at the nunciature perched high on a hill above Beirut.
I took advantage of the free morning to visit with Issam and CNEWA's Pontifical Mission staff. We had a wonderful two-hour exchange that afforded me a great opportunity to share with them some of what I have experienced in my first year at the helm of CNEWA. They listened intently and offered some great insights and questions.
Since it is a very special time in Lebanon, I invited the staff to join me for lunch at a nearby restaurant — in honor of Pope Benedict XVI. We walked up the street to a nearby lunch place and enjoyed a meal together and continued with our sharing and telling of stories.
But we enjoyed a real bonus: While we were eating, the pope arrived at the airport and it was being broadcast live on a big screen television (in Arabic) on several local television stations. What a treat to eat and watch as his plane inched its way to the specially constructed reviewing stand. There, he was met by the president of Lebanon and his wife, the parliament's speaker and his wife and the prime minister. And of course, the first to welcome the bishop of Rome to Lebanon was his own representative to this country, Archbishop Gabriele Giordano Caccia.
There were plenty of dignitaries representing all the major faiths and all the political parties and office holders. And there were plenty of excited and vocal youth with their colorful yellow and white matching outfits and hats.
The pope made his way along a parade route to his temporary residence high atop a hill overlooking Beirut, passing multitudes of waving and welcoming crowds. There were Catholics, Orthodox, Armenians, Muslims, Druze — it seemed like everyone was on the streets to greet Benedict XVI.
The first major event took place this evening at 6, the formal signing of the Apostolic Exhortation on the Middle East. Issam and I were privileged to be invited to this grand event, which took place at St. Paul Basilica, which is staffed by the Melkite Greek Catholic Paulist Fathers. The Byzantine-style church offered a beautiful and solemn setting for this formal signing of the exhortation. The Holy Father entered amidst a very strong welcome of applause and shouts in Italian of "Viva il Papa"!
He was surrounded by all the Catholic patriarchs of the Middle East, as well as the major archbishops of the Syro-Malabar and Syro-Malankara Catholic churches. Though based in southern India, these two churches of St. Thomas have large numbers of Catholics in the Persian Gulf, and their pastoral needs are considerable. Also prominent were leaders of the Orthodox churches and Druze, Shiite and Sunni Muslim leaders. Also near to the pope were about two-hundred bishops from a number of countries in the Middle East. Yours truly was honored to be here representing all of you for this historic gathering with the Holy Father.
Introducing the Holy Father with a very energetic welcome was His Beatitude, Patriarch Gregory III of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church. This beautiful church did justice to the solemn occasion as it is adorned with gorgeous mosaics with stunning detail and vivid colors.
Issam informed me that 31 years ago he was married at this lovely basilica, even though then it was not yet finished and lacked the luster of these priceless mosaics. So, this was indeed a special setting for him to join the Holy Father.
The pope did not speak long, but he invited those present, especially the church leaders, to put everything into the context of faith in God. More than his words and more than the document was the visible sign of unity by being in the presence of Peter. The vicar of Christ calls all of us to be one with Jesus and to share that love with all others. God is love, as we were reminded.
Given some of the violence during the past few days in Syria, Libya, Egypt and other neighboring countries, his call carries more meaning than ever. And the Catholic Church has much to contribute to the good of humanity. We do not need to think of ourselves as minorities against majorities, but as peacemakers who have much to contribute.
Joining the pope were some friends and great collaborators of CNEWA: Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, prefect of the Congregation for the Eastern churches, Cardinal Kurt Koch, president of the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity, Latin Patriarch Fouad Twal of Jerusalem (who will be visiting us at CNEWA in New York next week) and some other bishops in the region. I had the opportunity to chat with them and Patriarch Gregory after the festivities.
Security is really tight and multilayered. Issam and I have been given the highest level of clearance, but there are still many checkpoints. The Lebanese are doing a wonderful job in all the planning and executing for this visit.
Tomorrow will be a super day for youth. We will gather in the early afternoon for a program by youth and then the pope will join us for the "Big Show" at 6. There will be dramatic music, lighting and lasers, filling the sky and many surprises I am sure — I can't wait for tomorrow.
You are in my prayers, and I tell everyone that you send your love and good wishes to them and pray with them for the pope and for peace in the Middle East.
God bless Lebanon.
Tags: Lebanon Middle East Christians Pope Benedict XVI Interreligious Msgr. John E. Kozar
I arrived at the Beirut Airport yesterday afternoon, where I was warmly welcomed by Issam Bishara, our regional director for Lebanon, Syria and Egypt. It was good to see Issam, and good to be back with my Lebanese family.
Along the route from the airport — which included passing through some obviously Hezbollah-friendly neighborhoods — there were many vivid reminders of Pope Benedict XVI's upcoming visit, which is both pastoral and state, this Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Many papal flags adorn buildings and hang from poles, while huge banners featuring the pope's portrait are seen everywhere. Front-page stories feature him, accompanied by glossy photos of the pope and major religious and political leaders. The press seems excited to welcome this messenger of peace.
And even at my hotel, located some 50 meters from our CNEWA offices in Beirut, I am welcomed and immediately asked as they see my Roman collar: "Are you here to be with Pope Benedict?" At breakfast, several waiters struck up a conversation, eager to hear more about this man of peace; they could not contain their excitement about his visit!
Issam had arranged a morning visit to a health dispensary in Rouweissat Ideidet, run by the Good Shepherd Sisters. This very humble health care clinic is located in a very poor neighborhood, which is a microcosm of Lebanon — it has every religious and political group living in proximity, but not together.
Sister Hanan Youssef, who directs the dispensary, showed us a simple sign above the entrance of this facility that states: "Religion is for God; this facility is for everyone." And that is the warm and loving tone set by these sisters, who care for the more than 100 refugees a day. About half of them are Iraqis. The others are mostly Syrians who have fled the violence there. Some of the Iraqis have been routed and victimized twice: once from their original homeland of Iraq after the persecution of Christians began following the 2003 war in Iraq, and now since the beginning of the uprising in Syria, where many took refuge. They come as exhausted strangers and refugees.
I was very touched by the gentle manner of the two sisters there and a cadre of doctors, 16 in total, who work mostly pro bono. Their priority is to determine those in greatest need and assist those with chronic mental or physical needs. There are also social workers, who specialize in mental health concerns. They help sort out the types of psychological trauma that typically affects many displaced people. There is also special care given to pregnant women and newborns and young children, as they are so vulnerable.
There is also a new wave of refugees coming from Syria. Technically, they are in Lebanon illegally. They have no rights and are even afraid to register. They pay outrageously high rents to live in extremely poor conditions and are not on anyone's radar. So the church offers them a warm welcome and the compassion of Jesus. CNEWA's national office in Canada has recently offered some financial assistance to this clinic, for which the poor are so humbly thankful.
In the early afternoon, Issam and I had a delightful visit and did an interview with some of the Catholic press corps based in Rome. One of the writers is doing some pieces for Our Sunday Visitor and they were both very interested in learning from Issam some of the background leading up to the pope's pastoral visit. They were delighted with his knowledge and insight and were very interested in hearing all about how CNEWA partners with the churches in Lebanon and Syria.
We explained to them how our "extended family" offers us the most reliable conduit for assistance — that is, through the local eparchies (dioceses) and then through local parishes. Issam shared with them how parish priests in Syria, for example, are in the best position to know who are those most in need and how to reach out to help them.
I have just returned from a family visit with the head of the Maronite Catholic Church, Patriarch Bechara. He had invited us to join him and a few archbishops for a delightful dinner. But what a surprise greeted us as we arrived at the patriarchate: hundreds of young people working into the night on construction, sound systems, lighting and rehearsals for the big youth event with the Holy Father on Saturday.
Before visiting with some of these wonderful young people, we enjoyed a meal with His Beatitude. He was in rare form. I told him I was surprised by the scale of the setting for this youth event in his front yard. He said it was like New York, and then let out a hearty laugh.
After dinner, we went outside to get the flavor of excitement from the hundreds of young people working hard in preparation for the pope's visit. I took some photos, and they were honored and were so happy to greet me, especially when they heard I was from New York. Always, the patriarch proudly introduced me as the president of CNEWA and the Pontifical Mission. He holds all of you — members of this family — in highest esteem and is so grateful for your solidarity and generosity.
Before saying goodnight, I gave him a big hug and thanked him for such a warm welcome. I assured him, too, of the prayers of our entire CNEWA family that all will go well over the next three days. As president of the episcopal conference in Lebanon and head of the largest Catholic Eastern church in the Middle East, he is the chair of the organizing committee. It is through the kindness of his invitation that I am here, representing all of you.
I will close for now on the eve of this historic visit by Pope Benedict XVI. Please keep him in your prayers and pray for all in the Middle East. May our Holy Father inspire us to be effective peacemakers and may the Holy Spirit guide us always.
God bless all of you for your generosity to those in need in this part of the world.
Tags: Pope Benedict XVI Msgr. John E. Kozar


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How Microsoft Took Down Rustock
We now know a lot more about the takedown of the Rustock botnet.
The effort was led by the Microsoft Digital Crimes Unit, working with other Microsoft groups, anti-malware company FireEye, the University of Washington, and (surprise!) pharmaceutical firm Pfizer, which manufactures one drug particularly popular with the spamming crowd.
Of course governments were involved in the effort, including the U.S. Marshals Service as well as authorities in the Netherlands. The takedown was authorized by an order of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.
If you read the court order you'll see appendices listing large numbers of domain names, IP addresses, and names of ISPs/hosting services. The order is pursuant to a civil suit filed by Microsoft against the John Doe operators of the botnet for the harm caused to Microsoft and its customers. The names Verisign and Afilias are also listed, likely because these are registry operators who can shut down large numbers of domain names at once.
The actual command and control servers have been taken down through work with the ISPs and some international authorities, including the Dutch High Tech Crime Unit within the Netherlands Police Agency, and CN-CERT (the Chinese Computer Emergency Response Team).
In the immediate aftermath of yesterday's takedown it wasn't clear if this was another of Rustock's periodic vacations, but this looks different. Now the open questions have to do with the impact of the takedown. Researchers seem to disagree on the importance of Rustock. I've seen estimates from 250,000 to over 800,000 bots, but Damballa claims it's much smaller.

subset: commoncrawl


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Subscribe To Wolf Among Us Episode 2 Releasing On PS3 And PC Today Updates
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Telltale Games' episodic adventure game The Wolf Among Us will finally continue today. Episode 2, "Smoke and Mirrors," will debut on PC, Mac and North American PS3's.
Wolf Among Us stars Bigby Wolf, the man who used to be the Big Bad Wolf. Bigby and his fellow fairy tale characters - known as "Fables" - were exiled to our world by an enemy known as the Adversary. Many of the Fables now live in a neighborhood of New York City. Bigby acts as the sheriff of "Fabletown," keeping everyone in line and making sure that they use their magical disguises (glamours) so they don't attract attention from the outside world.
If you've played Telltale's The Walking Dead game, you'll be right at home with Wolf. The gameplay consists mainly of exploration and branching dialogues. The story will change based on how you treat other characters; will you be a merciful officer of the law or will you let your wolf side take over? There's some combat as well, though it's just a string of Quick Time Events.
Point is: if you liked Walking Dead, you should definitely check out Wolf Among Us. I think Wolf is every bit as good as its sister series. Plus, playing Wolf means that you'll have another story-driven game to tackle while you're waiting for the Episode 2 of Walking Dead: Season Two. I'm hoping that Telltale can settle into a two-month turnaround time for new episodes of these games and then alternate their releases. It would be nice to have a new Wolf or Walking Dead available each month.
The first episode began with the mysterious murder of a Fable. After some investigating, the player chose one of two suspects to arrest. Some other stuff probably happened in Episode 1 but it was released way back in October. The memory's starting to slip.
Episode 2 will open with the interrogation. After that, Bigby will head out to new locations including a gentleman's club called Pudding & Pie. Last week's trailer revealed that he'll encounter prominent characters from the Fables comics like Jack and Bluebeard.
Each episode of Wolf costs $4.99 on consoles. PC and Mac users don't have the option of buying individual chapters, though. They'll have to spring for the $24.99 Season Pass.
Wolf Among Us will spread to Xbox 360 and European PSN on February 5th. The game should be available for iOS this week as well.


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Prune shrubs in a formal hedge to resemble a dense, smooth wall. Vigorous, rapidly growing shrubs need more frequent shearing than shrubs that grow more slowly. Dense hedges start with the right pruning techniques at planting time and regular maintenance each year thereafter.
Tools and Materials
Determine your hedge's habit. When you cut the end off a branch, dormant buds below the pruning cut sprout into new twigs. But not all shrubs have dormant buds, and these shrubs won't grow new twigs if pruned too severely. For this reason, it's best to prune evergreens only into the soft, current year's new growth. Many deciduous shrubs-those that shed their leaves in autumn-can tolerate pruning into old wood from previous growing seasons.
Assemble your tools. Use manual hedge shears for small hedges and electric shears for large jobs. If your shears do not have a pruning notch near the base of the blade, you may need hand pruners to cut twigs larger than 1/4 inch in diameter. Use a tarp to collect trimmings or a rake to clean up afterward.
Prune at planting time. When you plant a new hedge, prune vigorous shrubs, such as privet, by reducing the length of the branches and shrub height by one-fourth to one-third. Do not prune the tops of slower and denser-growing evergreens and conifers, such as arborvitae, until they reach their desirable height.
Establish shape. All branches need adequate sunlight for strong growth. As the hedge grows, prune the sides so the bottom is slightly wider than the top to prevent the upper limbs from shading the lower ones. In snowy climates, give hedges rounded or sloped tops to help them shed snow easily.
Prune to maintain shape and fullness. The timing and frequency of pruning depends on the species of shrub and your climate. Prune the new growth of evergreens in late spring and mid- to late summer and avoiding cutting into old wood. Prune deciduous hedges while dormant in late winter and again in summer.
Yew (Taxus species) can tolerate more severe pruning than most evergreens. You can rejuvenate or reduce the size of yew hedges by shearing twigs back into old wood.
Do not allow vigorous shrubs to grow to their final size before pruning them. To form a dense hedge, prune them as they grow. Although it may take years longer to achieve the desired height, the result is more satisfactory.
Photography by Suzanne DeJohn/National Gardening Association


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Today I am proud to be a New Yorker. Coming off an national election cycle with little mention, from either party, of our youngest citizens, it was quite refreshing to hear Governor Cuomo's dedication to our state's pre-k children. I believe the governor understands the scientifically proven developmental and societal benefits of providing high quality early care and learning to our youngest citizens. Expanding Universal Pre-K (UPK) is a first step. The governor would like New York to have a world-class education system, in part by providing more learning time. This begins by making the most of the learning time that happens before kindergarten. Children who arrive at kindergarten having had high quality early care and learning experiences are less likely to need remedial or special education, repeat grades or drop out of high school. Children birth to 5 who have close relationships with caregivers, who are encouraged to explore, who are read and sung to, held and who gets lots of play time in safe and stimulating environments come to school ready to succeed. The governor outlined actions to spur economic growth and create new jobs. We applaud this, and recognize that we cannot talk about bringing new employees to the state without addressing their families' needs, including child care. Child care is an essential part of our economic infrastructure. As we grow, we need to ensure that the child care options are available and attractive enough for young professionals and their families. Parents, too, know the importance of high quality programs. Another part of the governor's plan for economic growth is to better match training programs to meet the skills required in today's workforce. We know that most of a person's personality and intellect are formed in the first three years. We know that skills needed in a 21st century workforce - creativity, problem solving, team work, adaptability, ingenuity - are developed in early childhood. An investment in quality early care and learning nets a much higher return on investment than job training programs that begin in adulthood. As we provide for 4-year-olds today, let us also continue to support our infants and toddlers and 3-year-olds who will be 4 in the blink of an eye! Let's invest now to have a creative innovative workforce two decades from now. We, like the governor, are concerned about public safety. We want our children to grow up feeling secure and want New York to be a place that others want to visit and live. Children who engage in high quality early care and learning are less likely than their peers to be incarcerated. Investments in early childhood are an investment in our security. We applaud the expansion (UPK) time from 2.5 hours to 5 hours, and are hopeful that this will provide thousands of 4 year olds with a good pre-k experience. We know New York's child care resource and referral agencies (CCR&Rs) will be working hard through the transition to help families identify wrap around care that is accessible and affordable. Our network of CCR&Rs will also be particularly interested in how this change affects the children and families in the 60 percent of UPK programs operating in community based programs like Head Start and child care centers. UPK is currently operating in 67 percent of school districts, so the changes to UPK will reach thousands of New York's children. There are hundreds of thousands more in early care and learning programs, ages 6 weeks to 6 years, outside of the UPK system who could benefit from quality improvements. The key to addressing the needs of all of New York's early care and learning programs including pre-k is QUALITYstarsNY. QUALITYstarsNY is New York's quality rating and improvement system for early childhood programs including UPK, Head Start, child care centers, preschools and child care family homes. It is a process that assesses and improves the quality of care available to children while supporting the program and staff through the process. It has been proven to work and is currently in place in select communities. To see an impact across the state, to let all New Yorkers enjoy the many long term benefits of a well cared for generation of children, the state also needs full state wide implementation of QUALITYstarsNY. The Race to the Top (RttT) support in place for the beginning implementation of QUALITYstarsNY shows the State Education Department's support. The recent Education Reform Commission also made high quality programming an essential piece for the future. Governor Cuomo understands that learning begins early to build New York state's future. With everyone focused on high quality programs and services, the expansion of Pre-k begins. The governor has acknowledged, in front of the world, the value of quality early care and learning experiences. I am hopeful. We have just taken the first baby step and in a grand journey towards a state-wide system that supports and values all of our children. It's a beautiful day in New York. Marsha Basloe Executive Director Early Care & Learning Council Albany, NY
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Chapter 7 Financial Flows from the United States to Latin America: Basic Patterns, Causes, and Implications »
Source: Who's Driving Whom? Analyzing External and Intra-Regional Linkages in the Americas
Series: Departmental Papers / Policy Papers
Author(s): Jeronimo Zettelmeyer , Martin Mühleisen , and Shaun Roache
Publisher: INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND
Publication Date: 09 October 2008
Keywords: inflation, bond, commodity prices, spillovers, interest rates
Much research has shown the importance of U.S. financial conditions for the rest of the world (see Chapter 12), but the literature analyzing the causes and impact of U.S. financial flows is much sparser. As...


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Last Updated: 16 July 2018
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|Changes to This Privacy Policy
The types of information we collect
We collect your personal information when you provide it to us. "Personal information" is any information that can be used to identify you or that we can link to you. We may automatically collect certain information when you use, access, or interact with our Digital Services. And we may collect information from other sources, such as social media platforms that may share information about how you interact with our social media content.
Information you provide to us
You generally can use our Digital Services without providing us with personal information.
We collect information that you voluntarily provide to us, including when you communicate with us via email or other channels; when you sign up for or request that we send you newsletters, alerts, or other materials; when you submit an application for a position with us; when you sign up for a webinar or event; and when you respond to our communications or requests for information. The information you provide may include your name, contact information, title, and information about the organization with which you are affiliated. Some of our Digital Services may require that you enter a password or other information in order to access certain features, and we collect such credentials when you enter them.
Information we may collect automatically
We use browser cookies and similar technologies (collectively, "Cookies") to collect and store certain information when you use, access, or interact with our Digital Services. We may, for example, collect information about the type of device you use to access the Digital Services, the operating system and version, your IP address, your general geographic location as indicated by your IP address, your browser type, the content you view and features you access on the Digital Services, the web pages you view immediately before and after you access the Digital Services, whether and how you interact with content available on the Digital Services, and the search terms you enter on the Digital Services. For information about how we use Cookies and the choices you may have, please see our Cookies Policy.
Please note that we do not currently respond to web browser "do not track" signals or other mechanisms that may allow you to opt out of the collection of information across networks of websites and online services as there is no standard for how online services should respond to such signals. As standards develop, we may develop policies for responding to do-not-track signals that we will describe in this Privacy Policy.
Information we collect from other sources
We may receive information about you from other sources, including third parties that help us: update, expand, and analyze our records; identify new customers; or prevent or detect fraud. We may also receive information about you from social media platforms including but not limited to when you interact with us on those platforms or access our social media content. The information we may receive is governed by the privacy settings, policies, and/or procedures of the applicable social media platform, and we encourage you to review them.
Precise location information
When you access the Digital Services via a mobile device, we may collect precise location information if you permit the Digital Services to access such information. We use this information to provide you with content based on your location and your proximity to our offices.
How we use the information we collect
We may use the information we collect:
|To respond to your inquiries;
|To provide you with legal and other services that you request;
|To operate, troubleshoot, and improve the Digital Services;
|To send you newsletters, legal updates, marketing communications, and other information or materials that may interest you;
|To maintain our list of contacts;
|To understand how people use our Digital Services, including by generating and analyzing statistics;
|For Hogan Lovells' business purposes, including data analysis; submitting invoices; detecting, preventing, and responding to actual or potential fraud, illegal activities, or intellectual property infringement;
|To assess the effectiveness of our events, promotional campaigns, and publications;
|To evaluate, recruit, and hire personnel; and
|As we believe reasonably necessary or appropriate to: comply with our legal obligations; respond to legal process or requests for information issued by government authorities or other third parties; or protector your, our, or others' rights.
How we may share the information we collect
Hogan Lovells is a global provider of legal and other services. Our offices and business entities share information with each other for business purposes such as internal administration, billing, promoting our events and services, and providing you or your organization with services.
We do not sell, rent, or otherwise share information that reasonably identifies you or your organization with unaffiliated entities for their independent use except as expressly described in this Privacy Policy or with your prior permission. We may share information that does not reasonably identify you or your organization as permitted by applicable law.
We may also disclose information we collect:
|To our third-party service providers that perform services on our behalf, such as web-hosting companies, mailing vendors, analytics providers, event hosting services, and information technology providers.
|To law enforcement, other government authorities, or third parties (within or outside the jurisdiction in which you reside) as may be permitted or required by the laws of any jurisdiction that may apply to us; as provided for under contract; or as we deem reasonably necessary to provide legal services. In these circumstances, we take reasonable efforts to notify you before we disclose information that may reasonably identify you or your organization, unless prior notice is prohibited by applicable law or is not possible or reasonable in the circumstances.
|To service providers, advisors, potential transactional partners, or other third parties in connection with the consideration, negotiation, or completion of a transaction in which we are acquired by or merged with another company or we sell, liquidate, or transfer all or a portion of our assets.
Grounds for using your personal information
We rely on the following legal grounds to process your personal information, namely:
|Performance of a contract – We may need to collect and use your personal information to enter into a contract you or to perform a contract that you have with us. For example, when you use our Digital Services we will use your personal information to respond to your requests and provide you with such services.
|Consent – We may use precise location information as described in this Privacy Policy subject to your consent. To withdraw your consent to such use, you can contact us via our Contact Us page, or you may be able to disable the sharing of location information in your browser or mobile application settings. Where required by applicable laws, we will rely on your consent for direct marketing and to collect information from your device or computer.
|Legitimate interests – We may use your personal information for our legitimate interests to improve our products and services and the content on our Digital Services. Consistent with our legitimate interests and any choices that we offer or consents that may be required under applicable laws, we may use technical information as described in this Privacy Policy and use personal information for our marketing purposes.
Third-party services and content
Our Digital Services may include integrated content or links to content provided by third parties (such as video materials). This Privacy Policy does not address the privacy, security, or other practices of the third parties that provide such content.
We engage third parties that support the operation of our Digital Services, such as analytics providers. These third parties may use technologies to track your online activities over time and across different websites and online platforms. Please see our Cookies Policy for more information.
Protection and storage of the information we collect
We deploy administrative, technical, and physical safeguards designed to comply with applicable legal requirements and safeguard the information that we collect. This includes, when required or appropriate and feasible, obtaining written assurances from third parties that may access your data that they will protect the data with safeguards designed to provide a level of protection equivalent to that adopted by Hogan Lovells.
However, no information system can be 100% secure. So, we cannot guarantee the absolute security of your information. Moreover, we are not responsible for the security of information you transmit to us over networks that we do not control, including the Internet and wireless networks.
The Digital Services are controlled and operated by Hogan Lovells from the United States. We may store the information we collect in the United States or in other countries where we or our service providers have facilities. We may transfer information to countries outside of your country of residence, including the United States, which may have data protection laws and regulations that differ from those in your country. Any transfers of information from the EU to countries outside the EEA will normally be made on the basis of the model clauses approved by the European Commission for transfers from EU controllers to non-EU controllers, which may be found at the Commission's website at https://ec.europa.eu.
We retain the information we collect no longer than as reasonably necessary to fulfill the purposes for which we collect the information and to comply with our legal obligations.
Your choices and rights
If you no longer wish to receive marketing communications from us, you can let us know by sending us an email via our Contact Us page. And the electronic marketing communications we send you may contain opt-out mechanisms that allow you to register your marketing preferences.
Subject to local law, you may have certain rights regarding information that we have collected and that is related to you. We encourage you to contact us to update or correct your information if it changes or if you believe that any information that we have collected about you is inaccurate. You can also ask us to see what personal information we hold about you, to erase your personal information and you may tell us if you object to our use of your personal information. In some jurisdictions, you may have a right to complain to your local data protection authority. If you would like to discuss or exercise the rights you may have, send us an email via our Contact Us page.
For information about the choices you may have in regard to our use of Cookies, please see our Cookies Policy.
How to contact us
We welcome your inquiries and comments. But please note that if you are not a client, we may not be able to treat the information you send us as confidential or privileged. If you wish to contact us regarding legal or other services, please contact one of our offices near you. You can find a list of our offices on our main website (www.hoganlovells.com).
If you would like to contact us with questions about our privacy or data protection practices, please contact our data protection officer at firstname.lastname@example.com or send us an email via our Contact Us page.
Changes to this privacy policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The effective date of the current Privacy Policy is noted at the top of this page. We encourage you to periodically review this page. If we make any material changes in the way we collect, use, and/or share the personal information that you have provided, we will notify you by posting notice of the changes in a clear and conspicuous manner on the Hogan Lovells website.


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Detroit Speed's new Deep Tub kit lets you pack some seriously wide rubber beneath 1964-70 Mustangs
For years, Mustang guys have had to listen to the Camaro boys go, "Neener-neener, my shoes are bigger than yours." Childish, yes, but with the tactical advantage and confidence that comes with a fat set of rear meats, it's hard not to gloat. While prefabricated mini-tub kits abound for both first- and second-gen F-bodies, Mustang owners seeking serious tire girth have been forced to gawk enviously at the 315mm-plus shoes stuffed into the back of their Pro Touring Camaro counterparts. Thanks to Detroit Speed & Engineering, however, 1964-70 Mustangs needn't feel like outcasts anymore. The company's new Deep Tub kits now make it possible to fit tires as large as 335mm wide into any early Mustang.
…new Deep Tub kits now make it possible to fit tires as large as 335mm wide into any early Mustang.
Undoubtedly, naysayers will quickly point out that you don't need a mini-tub kit to mini-tub a car. All you need is a good chassis guy to build you some custom containers for your back tires. The problem is that good chassis guys aren't exactly a dime a dozen, and if you find one, they might keep your car in chassis shop jail for months before slapping you with a big, fat bill. In contrast, the beauty of the DSE Deep Tub kit is that it transforms a weeklong project into a weekend project for the intrepid DIYer. Even for those blessed with the fabrication chops to build custom tubs from scratch, a turnkey kit like the DSE setup might save you money in the long run anyway once factoring in their measly $400 price tag. The Mustang Deep Tub kit includes a pair of 18-gauge steel wheeltubs, narrowed framerail sections, and reinforcement plates. The payoff is a set of tubs that measure up to 2.5 inches wider than stock, and space to accommodate some monster rear meats. To get a closer look at what's involved with tubbing an early Mustang, we followed along as DSE installed a set of Deep Tubs on its project 1966 Mustang fastback.


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Welcome to our Biblion Bookshop
Second hand books are a great source of pleasure and can be bought at a fraction of the cost of brand new books. You can buy and indeed sell second hand books at book fairs, car boot sales, second hand book shops, charity shops and now increasingly online . Indeed buying second hand books online can be the most cost effective way of buying books as often you merely pay for the cost of postage. Please have a look around and choose the books you want. All books are dispatched by Amazon so there is no problem there.
Free and Quick Registration!
Once you've registered with online book sellers you can start straight away buying and selling second hand books and also, link up with other online members. You will always have a wide choice with books on psychology, education, depression, therapy, crime, anger management, obsessions, shopping, self help, fiction, non fiction, war, the sea, adventure, children's, travel, technical and reference.
There is invariably no minimum order or minimum commitment as you are free to buy as little or many books as you wish.
We have created the number one online Second Hand Books website. Read about Second Hand Books in the media or see our finance pages
Biblion plan to publish a wide range of educational assessment and resource materials, enabling schools to monitor a students' progress through the National Curriculum.
"The UK goal posts may have moved yet again, but we're still on target, providing schools with a completely up to date range of recording, assessment and resource material." Record of Achievement Books: Available in different combinations of levels, each book contains level descriptors and has space for teachers to write comments and provide evidence of attainment. Also available with the Welsh Curriculum
Special Educational Needs
ENABLE is a new piece of software to help teachers monitor pupils' emotional and social development and to help plan for children with special learning needs. Reference Material - The whole national curriculum in one handy A4 folder.
For those schools with special assessment requirements, we are able to provide a fast bespoke service - contact us with your requirements. Biblion is an exciting new not-for-profit project about reading, imagination and the love of books. It's also a project about changing the world.
At Biblion we believe that reading not only transforms the lives and prospects of individuals but that it is the first step to changing society for the better. We can only make a better world if we can, in the first instance, imagine a better world. We have become used to the idea that we need to regenerate the social and economic fabric of our communities but Biblion believes we also need to regenerate the creative and imaginative lives of our communities. So, Biblion is not just about literacy - it is, first and foremost, about the sheer wonderment of reading. It's also not just a project about children and young people because we believe the value of reading is a life-long investment that takes us from the cradle to the grave.
But it is very much a project rooted in ideas of social justice and the engaged and active citizen. In the words of the poet and activist, Jane Evershed:
" To read is to empower
To empower is to write
To write is to influence
To influence is to change
To change is to live. "
Keep In Touch
About Second Hand Books free books online Google Books
Second Hand Books Resources
- Press
- New Books
- Book Marketing
- Ways to sell your book
- Second Chance
- In the press
- Poets
- About Biblion
- Books
Our Philosophy
Welcome to our second hand bookshop. We aim to offer a range of nearly new books to our customers in the near future. All of our titles will fall into the second hand book category
Second Hand Books Association
Booksellers Association of England & Ireland - Used Books - A Brief Overview
When Bob Smallwood and David Heathershaw were asked to take over the Biblion, London Bookfairs was established. The two had been friends and neighbours for many years but it was the love of books that brought them closer together. The Book List was an idea formed after one of their many trips together.
Second Hand Books
The concept of a guide was not new and many of the sellers and fair organisers approached were enthusiastic and gave them support. The result was the 2015 edition featuring a Windsor Castle print on the front page and a hand drawn map on the back.
With over 50,000 books available to choose from, a copy of the new, rare, out-of-print or antiquarian book you require isn't far away. We have a wide range of subjects and invite you to search our book database. You no longer need to create an account to buy books from Biblion.
You enter your delivery and payment information into our secure server, Biblion sends you the book and your information is deleted automatically from our database.


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It's been a long time with lots of fun, educational, spiritual, controversial and outrageous posts over an entire decade. The blog was bound to come to an end as do everything.
I ask Allah to forgive me for anything wrong I have said. I ask anyone who may have been hurt by my blog to forgive me. Anything good that I have written is from Allah. Anything bad is from myself and the whispers of the shaytan.
May Allah take away any suffering from any Muslim. May Allah remove the injustice around the world. May Allah bring peace to war infested lands. May Allah forgive all the wrong doers. May Allah guide all the misguided and continue to guide the guided.
Oh Allah! Forgive the Muslim men and women. Forgive the believing men and women. Those who are alive and those who died. You are indeed the One who listens and accepts all supplications.
Servants of Allah! Indeed Allah orders us to be just and to excel in what we do. Be generous and to take care of our kin and relatives. Never do what is forbidden of all sins and not to transgress. He almighty advises you so you can remember.
Verily, Salah prevents evil deeds and misconduct.
With that said, my last and final post is done.
Asalamualykum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh
May the peace, mercy and blessings of God be upon you
UPDATE (1/2/10): Some of you suggested a I list resources that I usually go to. Here are my sources for news articles:
- Reddit
I'm on reddit on a daily basis. It's basically a community that votes different submissions from around the web. I use this to get the latest news around the world and in America. The politics and world news subreddits are very good.
- Twitter
I find some of the most craziest links on here. You have to really search and follow the right people. @IslamBlog and @muslimvoices are pretty good of aggregating a lot of links around the web regarding Islam and Muslims.
List for Islamic knowledge:
- Halal Tube
The number one reason I made that site was for myself to organize lectures. I basically listen to all my stuff from there. If I find something, I add it. I know there is a submit form for anyone to add, but I've been lazy with that. Hopefully now that MR has come to an end I will be able to work on Halal Tube more often.
- IslamQA.com
I use it to find hadith related to questions I have, not necessarily to find a fatwa.
- SearchTruth
Easy way to find things from the Quran and Hadith.
- Read!
I read books.
Update (1/3/2010):
If people want to continue sharing articles and link, you can start a community on ShoutReel here. I'll be on there adding interesting things I find as well as throughout the ShoutReel site. I'll also still be tweeting.
In other words, I'll still be sharing information online, just not on this blog anymore! So follow me on twitter
and join ShoutReel!
Updated (1/3/2010): The site will remain online, just not updated.
I'll be posting here
Updated (4/9/2011): Just follow me on twitter and listen to lectures on HalalTube or listen to the Qur'an on HalalTunes.


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Although the Cleveland Cavaliers won the series, you can thank the Golden State Warriors for being able to score a free taco on Tuesday.
Taco Bell teamed up with the NBA for a promotion called "Steal a Taco," which gives fans free tacos if a team "steals" a win on the road.
The Warriors won against Cleveland in Game 4, and now fans across the country can get a free Doritos Locos Taco from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. at participating Taco Bell restaurants.
To find a Taco Bell near you, visit tacobell.com/StealATaco.


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Jaipur Junction is located in the Acme Plaza in Hudson. They advertise Northern Indian food. I am not sure of the difference. It is not a very large place, but colorfuly decorated. We both ordered things we typically get, but the menu had lots of other options. I got the lamb Rogan Josh. It was very good, probably the best I have had. The lamb was tender and there was plenty of sauce to soak my rice. I ordered the Medium heat, but either got mild, or it's a very mild medium. I might see if they can do Med-Hot next time. TBG got Lamb Vindaloo in Hot. It was much hotter than mine. It was also very good. We got 2 orders of Naan, which was just enough. We also got a Mango Lassi (mandatory for me to eat all those hot Indian spices). It was so good I almost finished it before my food came! The server was a little different, but the service was quick. It was not busy when we were there but a few people that had ordered ahead came in for pickup. We will definately be back.
Service____ 7 Chipps
Food____8 Chipps
Atmosphere____6 Chipps
Beer List____6 Chipps
Wine List____0 Chipps
Value____7 Chipps


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Speaking of successes and failures, I dislike it when it feels like I care more about an app or service than the developer or platform owner. It sets off huge warning bells and sends me looking for alternatives. Apple is starting to give me that feeling with Game Center. Since Letterpress launched, a game that depends entirely on Apple's Game Center application programming interfaces (APIs) for everything from matchmaking to gameplay, Game Center reliability has taken a nose dive. For several hours this weekend, I once again had more Game Center errors than successful turns. I've also had my iPhone and iPad mini go out of sync, with the iPad mini hours behind the iPad, and games I've simply had to abandon because turns could never be taken again.
The errors are frequent and frustrating enough now that it seems like Game Center has always had a glass jaw and this is simply the first time it's taken hit. Part of the reason for this has to be that Apple literally has no skin in the game. Apple makes not a single app, built-in or App Store, that relies on the Game Center API. Apple has nothing that hammers Game Center, nothing that creates an urgent awareness within the company of how Game Center scales and performs under load.
That means that it will always be developers who find Game Center pain points first, and that break things first, and that's a terrible situation for developers and users alike.
Dogfooding (eating your own dogfood) is a term sometimes applied to companies who intentionally make themselves dependent on their own products so they can make sure they find everything from the major problems to the rough edges before their users do. It's the ultimate form of quality assurance (QA).
I always had the feeling that, with the iPhone, if anything didn't work, Steve Jobs would be down in the labs smashing it on the floor and demanding it be fixed. I never had the feeling Steve Ballmer or Eric Schmidt cared for any Windows Mobile or Android device beyond wanting to have a screen in that space. That explained the relative usability of those two products to me.
And that's the same vibe I'm getting with Game Center. That Apple felt they needed to have it, but that they don't particularly care about it. Nintendo has Mario, Xbox has Halo, Sony Has Grand Turismo, all among many others. Their gaming platforms have first party games that are almost always among the most popular and most ambitious.
It's often said that Apple doesn't get gaming and doesn't get social, so maybe social gaming like Game Center was predestined for birthing pain. But it's also likely exacerbated by Apple not having a single shipping product that depends on Game Center being great.
No company can do everything all at once, and if Apple has to spend resources fixing and improving Game Center, they can't spend those same resources fixing, improving, and creating other things. That's opportunity cost. I get that. But social gaming is a big deal. It deserves attention. It deserves resources.
I'd like to think Phil Schiller or Jony Ive or Craig Federighi or even Tim Cook is as frustrated with Letterpress performance as we are, and is down in the labs throwing an iPad mini on the floor and demanding it be fixed. I'd like to hear that Apple is buying or launching an app that's going to showcase a newer, better, far more reliable Game Center. Something. Anything.
Maps and Siri were both recently given a press release-level hand-off to Eddy Cue. Maybe Game Center isn't as high on the priority list, but I'd like to at least see some sign that it's on the priority list.


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Runway, your way: How to wear the leather trend for fall
Wonder how to work catwalk cool into your own closet? Here's how to translate the trends for real life.
Whether it was a black leather jumpsuit at Reem Acra, a red leather T-shirt at Timo Wieland, an oxblood leather zippered pencil skirt at Band of Outsiders, a purple minidress at Charlotte Ronson, an ivory skirt suit at Helmet Lang, quilted green pants at Rag & Bone, a long fringed coat at Tom Ford, an eggplant cape at Mulberry or countless other takes on the material, adding just a touch of leather – or creating an entire outfit out of it – made its mark on many a fall 2013 runway.
And if early fall collections hitting stores now are any indication, there'll be plenty of women wearing the leather trend for fall in the months ahead. Here's a look at three ways to work it into your wardrobe.
THE RUNWAY: ICB by Prabal Gurung, fall 2013
A flirty miniskirt takes on a cool girl rocker vibe when it's done in leather. Add a wintery sweater, leather gloves, a stole and peep-toe booties for true fall catwalk style.


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Show your support for democracy
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Fridays, 9:30 -10:30 AM
This aerobic dance offering is guaranteed to bust through any blues! Lively, contemporary music gets the energy rocking as you learn a variety of dance moves from various cultures. Take it slow or shake your booty, but join us for this program of fun and fitness!
Drop in, no reservation necessary.
|NeonCRM by Neon One


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Collaborative curriculum: Students develop palliative care scenarios
Georgina De la Garza had only been a student at the Texas A&M Health Science Center (TAMHSC) College of Medicine for a year when she went home in summer 2012 to visit her family in Mexico, but the real world doesn't always stagger challenges as predictably as licensing exams. She arrived home at a moment of familial crisis: Her grandmother was dying, and the medical director at her hospital was a firm believer in aggressive medical treatment, insisting on lifesaving measures even when they could significantly impair a patient's quality of life.
"My grandma was suffering, and she told us she wanted to stop all of it, and go home and rest," De la Garza said. "So we took her home."
Mexico does not have widespread access to hospice care, and in the weeks that followed, the family turned to De la Garza as the expert who could help them navigate the complex and confusing decisions involved in palliative, or "end-of-life," care, when goals shift from fighting off the disease to maximizing the patient's comfort in the last phase of life.
"I was the only one in my family with any medical background," De la Garza said, but her family turned to her to assess each difficult decision. Should they give her IV fluids? A feeding tube? What about a blood transfusion, if her peptic ulcer started bleeding?
"I wanted my grandma to have a dignified death. I wanted her to be comfortable, and I didn't want to prolong her suffering," she said. "But I didn't know what to do. Was withdrawing fluids and food the humane thing to do? Was a narcotic induced coma to relieve the pain ethical? It was all very hard."
Despite a few lectures on palliative care in her first year of medical school, she admitted, "I really didn't know anything about what to do in these cases. My grandma's disease made me realize I needed to learn more…for my own sake and for the sake of my future patients."
The next fall, De la Garza asked Dr. Craig Borchardt, an assistant professor in the medical school's Department of Humanities in Medicine and the head of Hospice Brazos Valley, to mentor her as part of a second-year mentorship opportunity. Dr. Borchardt suggested she work with another student, Charis Santini, who had participated in a summer fellowship program on end-of-life care, to develop palliative care scenarios for students to experience in the TAMHSC's Clinical Learning Resource Center in Bryan, a simulation lab where students were already using sophisticated equipment to simulate medical emergencies and doctor-patient interactions using mechanical and computer simulations and local actors.
Under Dr. Borchardt's guidance, De la Garza and Santini spent time between anatomy labs, lectures and study sessions writing scenarios for a pair of exercises. First- and second-year students would have exercises appropriate for their level of training, and each exercise would require dozens of case studies—each a "character" with his or her own case presentation, complicating factors, and personal and family details to script.
The workload was, as Santini put it, "a bit of a challenge," but also helped reinforce what she was learning in the rest of her classes. "It was a great experience to be able to incorporate everything we had learned in other blocks to develop the cases," she said.
The first- and second-year students, or "M1s" and "M2s," each face two distinct challenges in the new curriculum. For first-year students, one scenario involves visiting with and examining a patient and determining whether the patient is actively dying; in the other, they must have a difficult conversation with a patient to help them develop an advance directive.
Second-year students must assess patients' appropriateness for hospice care, an important distinction for Medicare eligibility and coverage for hospice services. They also face perhaps the most unnerving challenge: Delivering the news to a patient that he or she is dying, or delivering news to a loved one that a patient has died.
Each group also has small-group discussions on separate occasions. For M1s, the focus is on practical topics like pain management, hydration and nutrition, and sedation. M2s discuss ethical issues in palliative and hospice care.
After months of research, writing, reviews by members of the Hospice Brazos Valley team of physicians and nurses, and copious revisions, the students were ready for the next phase of their curricular experiment: Piloting the scenarios with the Bryan-College Station campus' first- and second-year classes.
"Georgina and Charis will leave a significant legacy in advancing our college's mission to train students," Dr. Borchardt said.
All that was left was see if it worked.
Story by Jeremiah McNichols
Interested in this topic? Contact us for more information.


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Matt Leinart, backup quarterback of the Houston Texans, can still make the ladies straddle and swoon, even without the aid of a beer bong. One reader sent us photos of Leinart once again doing his Leinart thing if only to show the world that he's still capable of doing that thing. Yeah, he is.
Mr. Leinart: Sure, sure, what is it that you wanted to tell me? No, of course I'm not checking your rangy friend is giving ecstatic praise. Ms. Blonde: Ohhhh, it's not a people?!
Mr. Leinart: Sure, there's room enough for you both in the Heisman suite. Ms. Blonde: What'd I miss here?!
Mr. Leinart: Nothing. Nothing at all. Now, go ask the camera to give us all a lift home.


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Subscribe To Seth MacFarlane Should Leave TV Behind Updates
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Seth MacFarlane has always been a TV guy. Even before he became one of the biggest names in entertainment with shows like Family Guy, American Dad! and The Cleveland Show, he was part of the team over at Cartoon Network, writing for shows like Dexter's Laboratory, Johnny Bravo, and even Cow and Chicken for a couple of episodes.
But then 2012 came and completely reshaped his entire career. Ted, MacFarlane's directorial debut about an overgrown manchild and his anthropomorphic teddy bear, was nothing short of a blockbuster sensation when it was released last June, making its $50 million budget back in its first weekend and going on to earn over $535 million at the global box office. The success has turned the writer/director into one of the hottest commodities in the film world, with multiple projects now in the works and a gig hosting the 85th Academy Awards this Sunday. The world is his oyster, and deservedly so. Ultimately, all of the success proves one important point: Seth MacFarlane should leave the TV world behind and focus his career on film.
What it boils down to is MacFarlane's style of comedy, which, frankly, is all over the place. All three of his currently-running shows have very similar central premises, following the everyday lives of suburban families, but what keeps them alive and successful are one off jokes and quick gags that regularly allow him to mix things up. The problem with this is that messing around with the same characters over and over again limits scope and possibilities.
This would no longer be an issue if he were to become a full time filmmaker. Without having to worry about starting and ending stories in the exact same place and not being tied down to established characters, MacFarlane would be free to explore every avenue of comedy that he can come up with. Clever ideas would no longer be reduced to 20 minute episodes, but instead could be explored for a full 90 minutes, and, most importantly, once he has explored said ideas to their fullest extents he could freely move on to the next one.
The problem with this idea, of course, is Hollywood's love of franchising. Any movie that's even moderately successful has studios begging for a sequel, and that's a lesson that MacFarlane has already learned. Just a few months after his first film became an international hit NBCUniversal CEO Steve Burke was quoted saying that Ted 2 is now one of the studio's highest priorities, but the writer/director isn't rushing into anything. Rather than immediately getting to work on the sequel, he's instead now developing A Million Ways To Die In The West, a new comedy in the vein of Blazing Saddles that's he's also set to star in alongside Charlize Theron and Amanda Seyfried. It probably won't take long after the completion of that project for him to jump back into the world of Ted, but isn't it encouraging enough that he's showing an inclination towards original storytelling over rehashes?
Television is certainly an amazing medium and a home for many of the most talented people in the entertainment industry, but it's not where MacFarlane should be. It also happens to be a very cushy job, as he is the highest paid writer/producer in TV. Last year, according to The New Yorker, he re-uped his contract with Fox in 2012 and will be making $25 million over the next two years. But when that commitment comes to an end, that should be the time for MacFarlane to graduate. The world of film opens up an infinite number of options for a creative mind like his, and with any luck he'll take full advantage of it.


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Last updated August 15, 2019
As a rule, Steinberg software runs on all standard computers, provided that these satisfy the system requirements printed on the given product's package. Happily, you'll see that today's market offers a computer to suit every application and budget. Affordable computers for smaller projects are readily available, as are highly specialized multiprocessor systems for professional applications in the music and movie industries.
Depending on what you wish to accomplish with the software, your computing demands may entail special requirements. These requirements hinge upon the type of project you intend to work on. Several performance-related factors figure prominently, such as sample rate and bit depth, as well as the number of tracks, plug-ins, instrument voices and effects used in a project. So, if you need a computer to realize elaborate projects, ask yourself this question:
"Which computer is right for my application?"
To answer this, you must first determine what it is you want the computer system to do. Depending on the tasks you have in mind, you may be looking at very different hardware requirements: If you wish to employ many VST instruments, happiness lies in fast hard drives, acres of RAM real estate, and a relatively fast processor. If your focus is on pure audio recording, a fast hard disk with a slightly slower processor can get the job done nicely, contingent upon the number of tracks and format. Be sure to take your working environment into account when weighing the relative merits of systems. By and large, you'll find that the more powerful the system, the higher the noise level. The reason for this is that higher-performance hardware generally necessitates more intense cooling. And if you're aiming to go mobile without mains power to tie you down, be aware that frequently a fast laptop equipped with a gaming-enabled graphics card adversely affects the system run-time because it draws a lot more power from the battery pack. Lesson learned: The fastest system is not always your first choice!
Help is near if you feel that your projects may entail special demands. To assist you in pinpointing the computer system that is right for you, you'll find some vital tips below that complement the information on Steinberg products' individual system requirements as indicated on product pages and packaging. This supplementary info will help you zero in on and choose the right computer system and rise to every challenge a project may pose using Steinberg products.
- Processors
- Chipsets
- Hard Drives
- Random Access Memory
- Audio Cards
- Graphic Cards
- Operating Systems
Steinberg products work excellently with the standard processors found in PC and Mac computers today. When selecting a processor (CPU), speed certainly counts because it has such a tremendous impact on many processes within the computer. This is why Steinberg applications support multiprocessor/multicore systems and enable very high performance. Below you can find an excerpt of current processors/systems that can cope with today's demands and large projects. If you feel the need to upgrade your DAW, take a closer look at the hardware listed below. Nevertheless, it is of course possible to use slightly older systems depending on the environment and workload.
Some things to consider on the processor architecture:
- Processors with faster cores are preferable to a higher core count for real-time audio performance.
- The more cores are available, the more thread synchronization is required. This can lead to a reduced processing power and slow down the system after all.
- A higher core count might require a different RAM configuration (dual channel, quad channel) for optimal performance.
- A higher amount of CPU cache (L2, L3) can have a positive impact on the real-time processing.
| Intel-based Macs
|MacBook Pro (Intel Core i5/i7/i9)
|Mac mini (i3/i5/i7)
|iMac (Intel Core i5/i7)
|iMac Pro (Intel Xeon)
|Mac Pro (Intel Xeon)
| Intel-based Windows systems
|Intel Core i3
|Intel Core i5
|Intel Core i7
|Intel Core i9
|Intel Xeon
|AMD-based Windows systems
|AMD Ryzen
|AMD Ryzen Threadripper
Note: Most processors support Hyper-Threading (Intel) respectively simultaneous multithreading (AMD) . See details...
The chipset used on any motherboard is one of the most crucial components of a DAW (digital audio workstation). It handles all aspects of the communications between system components (e.g. processor, system busses, periphery) including the integration of the audio devices. Especially on the PC Windows platform there are several options available, including chipsets from Intel, AMD, and nVidia. However, we can tell from our own experiences that not all chipsets are equally suitable for demanding audio applications. The need for low latencies and high data transfer rates for hard disks, audio cards and DSP cards can make one specific chipset or motherboard either completely inappropriate or highly recommended for audio production. As this is again a matter of compatibility between all hardware components rather than between our applications and the hardware, we recommend that you contact the manufacturers of the audio and/or DSP cards of your choice. They can provide all the necessary information on compatible and recommended chipsets as well as the chipsets you should avoid. A well configured and compatible hardware is the most important basis for being able to work satisfactorily with our applications!
Hard Drives and Solid State Disks
As a rule, Steinberg products may be employed in connection with every hard disk or Solid State Disk found in contemporary computers. The capacity to enable elaborate projects involving many audio tracks and serve as a delivery medium for sample content destined for VST instruments that work with disk streaming technology hinges upon the following factors:
- Hard Drives
Rotational speed: Some manufacturers equip their laptops with 5,400 RPM (rounds per minute) hard disks, and they deliver acceptable performance in terms of the audio track count. If you're looking for professional-grade performance for audio systems running scores of tracks, you will find what you're seeking in laptops sporting 7,200 RPM hard disks or Solid State Disks (see below). Another option for attaining sufficient hard disk performance is to choose an external hard disk offering good data throughput and connect it via Thunderbolt, FireWire or USB 2.0/3.0.
If you're in the market for a desktop system, avoid hard disks that run slower than 7,200 RPM. Hard disks rated for 7,200 RPM normally deliver the data throughput required to enable elaborate audio projects with many tracks and at the same time furnish sample data to VST instruments. Bear in mind, though, that this is one of those cases were more is indeed better. For example, S-ATA (see below) 10,000 RPM hard disks or SAS hard disks (see below) with up to 15,000 RPM can certainly help prevent throughput bottlenecks. Another strategy for boosting audio data throughput entails using several hard disks. Experience teaches that partitioning makes good sense: Dedicate one hard drive or Solid State Disk to the operating system and installed applications, and the other to audio data. If you wish to make extensive of use of sampler plug-ins, you could even devote a further hard disk exclusively to sample content delivery.
For some time now, so-called hybrid hard disks that utilize additional internal flash memory are an interesting alternative. These devices combine the advantages of an affordable price tag with an improved performance compared to regular hard disks. The flash part of these "SSHDs" shorten the access times to access the disk content by caching often used data. Apple's "Fusion Drives" make use of this combination as well and can be found in many systems at least as an option.
- Solid State Disks (SSD)
Solid State Disks offer the best performance by far. SSDs use flash technology exclusively and thus do not need any mechanical components. They come in different form factors for SATA or PCIe connections. The latter is supported by the SSD M.2 standard and depending on the setup allows for very high transfer rates. The advantages are obvious: the access times are much lower than those of regular hard disks and the data transfer rate is higher which makes them the first choice for sample content streaming. In addition, they are extremely robust and silent. However, SSDs are still rather expensive and most do not offer the same storage capacity as conventional hard disks. When using SSDs, Windows 7 or later should be the preferred operating system as they automatically detect a SSD and make certain optimizations for best performance (e.g. disable defragmentation, support of the TRIM feature ). TRIM support on Mac OS X has been activated with Mac OS X 10.6.8 for Apple's own SSDs. Third party SSDs TRIM support was introduced with Mac OS X 10.10.4.
Cache: Hard drives come with a buffer memory called a cache. It also influences hard disks' access speed. In the main it can be said that the bigger the cache, the better the hard disk's capacity to handle large amounts of data. Large cache sizes have proven very useful for applications in the audio field. If you wish to use the hard disk for streaming sample content, be mindful of its cache size. Along with rotational speed, cache size has an immediate impact on the amount of individual samples you can load at a time, say, while VST instruments (for example HALion) are being played. Currently, hard disks with 32 to 64 MB cache are the most common choice.
Interface: The access protocol for hard disks is particularly important if you want to run an audio workstation tweaked for top-drawer performance. ATA debuted as a parallel protocol, but a serial version (S-ATA) was introduced to replace it. It is the preferred standard used today for Mac and PC systems. S-ATA revision 2.0 and 3.0 are boasting even higher data throughput rates and optimized disk drive addressing (for example NCQ, short for Native Command Queuing, a related technology "borrowed" from the SCSI world).
SAS (Serial Attached SCSI) as the successor of SCSI (Small Computer System Interface) is also a very high-performance solution. However, the components are rather expensive and thus this option should only be considered in very special cases. If you are entertaining this notion, be aware that heat and noise build-up is a factor with such systems. If you intend to set up an ultra-efficient media server for a studio network or carry out epic recording sessions with hundreds of tracks, SAS is certainly a good choice. Alternatively, you can connect several S-ATA hard disks in a RAID system and use it to serve the same purposes.
Random Access Memory
For contemporary Steinberg applications, nothing less than 4 GB RAM will do. However, all up-and-running applications and the operating system access the main memory at the same time, so installing more RAM is highly advisable. You may find that even sizable main memory acreage of 4 GB won't suffice to deliver satisfactory system performance for larger projects. The reason for this is that VST instruments and audio projects load audio samples into the main memory and read them there. If you don't have much RAM installed, less material can be buffered there, and more data must be handled via the slower hard disks. This means access takes longer. Under normal conditions, Windows 32-bit editions can use up to 2 GB RAM whereas Mac OS X and Windows 7/8/10 for 64-bit can address much more than that in connection with Steinberg's current Cubase/Nuendo versions. More RAM definitely does good things for your system's overall performance.
Audio Cards
Audio devices are available on the market today for all leading computer interface
- Firewire 400 (IEEE 1394)
- Firewire 800 (IEEE 1394b)
- PCIe
- Thunderbolt
Now, which of these interfaces should you choose? That depends largely on the type of application and computer system. For example, most of today's systems lack PCI slots. What's important is that ASIO 2.0 (PC) or Core Audio (Mac) compatible drivers are available for whatever audio device you have set your sights on. These drivers serve to achieve very low latency on both platforms and are therefore highly recommended. Particularly when working with VST instruments and auditioning the recording signal via the software, driver-induced delay may not exceed a few milliseconds; anything higher is noticeable and quite annoying. Alongside a well-configured and powerful system, the audio card's driver is one of the most vital components of a good DAW. It takes both to attain latency as low as 1.5 ms.
Graphic Cards
The dark days of incompatible graphics card drivers are for the most part history. All three leading graphics cards manufacturers (AMD, NVIDIA, Intel) today offer solid drivers, so these vendors' products are viable options. However, it is important to install the core drivers only. Additional software components (e.g. GeForce Experience) can have a negative impact on the performance.
Video Engine
For details and requirements please have a look at the dedicated article on the video engine.
Operating systems for Apple computers
We generally recommend the current version of Apple's operating system. Unless noted otherwise in the system requirements of a specific product, this version is best suited for current Steinberg products.
Operating systems for Windows systems
We recommend using Windows 10 for our current product range. Please have a look at the system requirements on our website and on the product boxes for additional information!
Using a 64-bit edition is recommended or even required.


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