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Mondays With Bob Greene: I'm Recharged
Caroline Wozniacki beat Elena Vesnina 6-2 6-4 to win the women's singles at the Pilot Pen in New Haven, Connecticut, USA
Fernando Verdasco beat Sam Querrey 6-4 7-6 (6) to win the Pilot Pen men's singles in New Haven
Tatjana Malek won the EmblemHealth Bronx Open, beating Kristina Barrois 6-1 6-4 in The Bronx, New York, USA
"Now it's my time. It's my turn to win some tournaments. I just feel I've had a great year. I'm so happy that it's my name coming up a lot of times now." – Caroline Wozniacki, after successfully defending her Pilot Pen Tennis women's singles championship.
"I never got a chance to go back there to defend my title in 2006 because I was injured with my left wrist and then pregnant in 2007. So while this does feel like a new beginning, I am looking forward to walking through those gates again for the first time in four years." – Kim Clijsters, who won the US Open in her last appearance at the year's final Grand Slam tournament.
"I am number three in the world, and the number three in the world should have a chance to win, no?" – Rafael Nadal, on his chances to win the US Open.
"I have to take it as a positive that I will have more time to get ready for the Open. It's been a really busy summer for me so I'll just take advantage of these (early losses) and keep training and preparing for the Open." – Venus Williams, talking about early exits from her last two tournaments.
"I'm recharged. I know I can play and move well and compete with the top players as good as I was, if not better. The US Open is my main goal." – Jelena Jankovic.
"With every tournament I feel physically I'm getting better and getting a good sense of the court, but it's still a work in progress. I'd like to forget I was gone for a long time but you have to put things in perspective." – Maria Sharapova, noting her chances of winning the US Open this year are slim.
"This year I equaled my best result in Australia (last 16), did two rounds better than I ever did at the French (quarterfinals) and got further than I have done at Wimbledon (semifinals). So now the slam is the last thing I need to do. I believe that I can do it." – Andy Murray, saying he's one of the favorites to win the US Open.
"Andy's not under the radar anymore and that's probably a good thing. Now that the expectations are there I think he's ready to handle it. He is definitely one of the six guys capable of winning." – Brad Gilbert, speaking about Andy Roddick.
"One of the important things he has over everyone, and he has it more than any other player I've seen since (Jimmy) Connors, is his love for the sport. Real love. He loves to be out there, to be around tennis, everything about it." – John McEnroe, talking about Roger Federer.
"I've never had a normal life, so I don't know what a normal life means." – Fabrice Santoro, who, playing in his 20th season on tour, will retire after the US Open.
"I just look to be prepared for the Open. This is my first important thing for me is to just get there and be prepared for a fight." – Flavia Pennetta.
"I think I've learned, especially in the last year, that it's a lot simpler than I realized, playing professional tennis. There are no secrets. You got to do what you do well and you have to bring that to the table every day." – Rajeev Ram, who won his first ATP Tour title earlier this summer…
"I don't think I am going to do anything special because it is my last Grand Slam. I am not planning it. But you never know what can happen. I know I am not going to win, there is no chance. So we will just see." – Marat Safin, the 2000 US Open champion who will retire at the end of this year.
"For the next year or so I'm not going to put any pressure on myself. I just want to stay healthy and enjoy my tennis." – Katarina Srebotnik, whose US Open appearance is her first tournament in 10 months because of injuries.
"She was just playing with me like a pussy cat, one corner to other corner. In the second set I started to be more aggressive and I started serving a lot better." – Elena Vesnina, after her three-set semifinal win over Amelie Mauresmo in New Haven.
"I elected to go with disaster control and the high powder-puff. Everyone asks did you bounce it. I just threw it over the catcher." – Andy Roddick, talking about throwing out the first pitch at a New York Yankees baseball game.
"I contemplated things like whether I would be able to accept myself for not being on the level that I was in my teens, twenties, and when I was 25; whether I would be able to accept losing, moreover be able to accept a losing streak. I did spend a lot of time contemplating about this. Yet, after I made my decision to be back on court again and challenge myself, I haven't really thought about it." – Kimiko Date Krumm, who returned to the WTA Tour after a 12-year retirement.
"It makes for something special. You sit in the players' lounge and you wait. It doesn't rain so often here so I don't think they should change anything." – Dinara Safina, saying she thinks something might be lost if a roof is installed over Arthur Ashe Stadium and there were no rain delays to sit though.
"I've peeked at the draw and seen where some of the qualifying spots are. I'd love to play a Federer or Nadal or a Roddick. We'll see. I just want to play in there." – Michael Yani, who at age 28 qualified for his first US Open, pointing at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Twice Andre Agassi closed out the US Open by winning the men's singles. This year, he is the headliner on opening day, being honored for "giving back." In 1994, the year he won his first US Open title, Agassi established the Andre Agassi Foundation, which is dedicated to transforming public education in Las Vegas, Nevada. As part of the Opening Night celebration, the USTA is recognizing the 40th anniversary of the National Junior Tennis and Learning (NJTL), which was founded in 1969 by Arthur Ashe, Charlie Pasarell and Sheridan Snyder as a network of community tennis organizations seeking to develop the character of young people through tennis and education. Besides Agassi, others honored on opening night include Mia Hamm, David Robinson and Doug Flutie.
Andre Agassi's autobiography, "Open," will be published in November. The eight-time Grand Slam singles champion writes about his start in tennis, his relationship with his father and his failed marriage to actress Brooke Shields.
There could be a USD one million dollar payday in Sam Querrey's future. By winning the US Open Series, the American has a chance to earn a bonus of between USD $15,000 and $1 million, according to how he finishes in the US Open. Querrey reached the final of the Pilot Pen in New Haven, Connecticut, before falling to Spain's Fernando Verdasco 6-4 7-6 (8).
The US Open wants players and their entourages to be careful about what they post on the social networking site Twitter. Signs at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center warn that Twitter messages could violate the sport's anti-corruption rules. The signs say tweeting is not allowed on court during matches and warns about using Twitter away from the court, saying information about players, weather, court conditions, status, outcome or any other aspect of an event could be determined as the passing of "inside information." The warnings say they apply to players, coaches, agents, family members and tournament staff.
Because of tropical storm Denney, the semifinals of the Pilot Pen tournament in New Haven, Connecticut, were moved indoors. After waiting in vain most of Friday for the steady rain to cease, the women's semis were switched from a 13,000-seat stadium to an indoor college court where only 300 fans were able to be squeezed into the building and leaned over a balcony that overlooked the court or stood on adjacent courts. There, Caroline Wozniacki beat Flavia Pennetta and Elena Vesnina downed Amelie Mauresmo. The men's semis followed suit Saturday morning, with Sam Querrey stopping Jose Acasuso and Fernando Verdasco defeating Igor Andreev. Both finals were played outdoors late Saturday as the storm finally subsided and the hard courts were dried.
Dominika Cibulkova won't be able to match her French Open performance at this year's final Grand Slam tournament. The semifinalist at Roland Garros pulled out of the US Open because of a rib injury. Her withdrawal allowed Alberta Brianti of Italy to move into the main draw, while Agnes Szavay becomes the number 32 seeded player.
Several players are nursing injuries as they begin their US Open run. Marion Bartoli retired from her match at the Pilot Pen in New Haven, Connecticut, because of a left thigh strain. A hand injury forced Agnieszka Radwanska to retire before the third set of her match in New Haven. And Nikolay Davydenko needed a doctor to look at his right wrist midway through his quarterfinal final loss to Sam Querrey in the Pilot Pen men's singles. Davydenko said his wrist became sore from the force of Querrey's serves hitting his racquet. Sabine Lisicki, who has been sidelined with a shoulder injury, will play in the US Open.
India's Sania Mirza received acupuncture treatment on her right wrist before heading to New York and the US Open. The 22-year-old underwent wrist surgery in April 2008, but the problem flared up again at the Beijing Olympics, forcing her to miss the last year's US Open. She had reached the semifinals of a challenger event in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, when she again felt pain in her right wrist. So she flew home to Hyderabad, India, to get treatment. "I'm much better now, but not absolutely pain-free," she said.
Katarina Srebotnik is making her comeback at the US Open. She was ranked as high as number 20 in the world in singles and number four in doubles, and had posted victories over Serena Williams at Roland Garros and Svetlana Kuznetsova at the US Open a year ago. But pain in her Achilles tendon and a shoulder injury forced her off the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour for 10 months. It's called the luck of the draw, and for Srebotnik it's bad luck. Her first-round opponent will be 13th-seeded Nadia Petrova.
Ivo Minar of the Czech Republic has denied deliberating taking a banned substance. The 25-year-old tested positive for a derivative of the banned stimulant pseudo ephedrine following a Davis Cup quarterfinal match against Argentina in July. "I have never consciously taken a banned substance," said Minar, who is ranked 66th in the world. "This is why I rejected the accusation of doping in my reaction sent to the ITF." Minar cited an injury when he withdrew from this year's US Open.
Serena Williams says she is telling all in her autobiography, "Queen of the Court," which is going on sale during the US Open. Serena says it was important for her to give an honest account of her life because she has not been as open as she should have been since the shooting death of her sister, Yetunde Price. She said that while she told the press injuries kept her from playing, she was also beset by depression because of a delayed reaction to Tunde's death. Serena says three things got her out of her depression: seeing a therapist, going to Africa where she began a school, and winning the 2007 Australian Open over Maria Sharapova. "It opened up a lot of doors I left closed to the public and to myself," Serena said of writing the book.
Brydan Klein promises to be on his best behavior after completing a racial sensitivity course. The former Australian Open junior champion was banned for six months and fined USD $10,000 by the ATP after making a racial slur against a black South African player during a tournament in England in June. The 19-year-old Klein has a history of clashes with officials, having been suspended from the Australian Institute of Sport for repeated on-court misbehavior. Ranked 223rd in the world, Klein said he has apologized to fellow player Raven Klaasen for the slur. He also said he cannot afford to slip up again. "I'm definitely on my last warning," he said. "This has been a step back for me and it hasn't been a nice experience."
John McEnroe has always been a big man in New York City, but this is ridiculous. A 100-foot high by 35-foot wide (30.48m by 15.24m) banner of McEnroe hangs on the side of Madison Square Garden promoting prostate cancer screening guidelines. McEnroe's father was diagnosed with the illness in 2006 but is now doing well. Now 50 years old, the younger McEnroe says he knows many men his age are reluctant to get screened for cancer for the same reason they don't like to ask for directions: they may view it as a sign of weakness.
Billie Jean King and actor Alec Baldwin will be the spokespeople for the expanded environmental initiatives at the National Tennis Center named in her honor. The two will join the United States Tennis Association (USTA) in encouraging US Open fans and others to help preserve the environment. Expanded 2009 initiatives will include a site-wide recycling effort placing more than 500 recycling receptacles across the 42 acres of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. There also will be on sale an exclusive organic t-shirt designed by two-time US Open champion Venus Williams.
Venus Williams has been named to the first Power List of O, the Oprah Magazine. Selecting "20 remarkable visionaries who are flexing their muscles in business and finance, politics and justice, science and the arts," the magazine picked Venus Williams as "The Power of Female Strength." Noting her Grand Slam and Olympics medals as well as her voice in the lobbying effort to win equal prize money for female players, the magazine said: "Both on and off the court, Venus Williams embodies a perfect marriage of power and grace. In the singular artistry of her play, we see that beauty and brawn aren't mutually exclusive."
The US Open logo – a flaming tennis ball – accounts for about 42 percent of all sales at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center during the year's final Grand Slam tournament. Sarah Cummins, the USTA's managing director for merchandising, told Bloomberg News that clothing, hats and other gear bearing the US Open logo brought in almost USD $14 million during the two-week tournament last year.
When James Blake debuts his new Fila line of clothes at the US Open, he will be thinking about his father. The logo on Blake's new clothing is "TR," and the line is called Thomas Reynolds, the first and middle names of his late father, who died in 2004. Fila will help capture the lessons instilled in James by his father through print ads and through hang tags on the line. While Blake will be wearing the clothes on a tennis court, there are plans for the Thomas Reynolds brand to be on golf, fitness and leisurewear as well. "I wanted to be part of something that wouldn't necessarily have to always be tied to me and be more about the spirit that father embodied," Blake said.
Following her third hip surgery, Jamea Jackson is retiring from the women's tour and will become assistant tennis coach at Oklahoma State University. The 22-year-old from Lafayette, Louisiana, USA, will also be a student at OSU. Jackson was a member of the United States Fed Cup team.
John Alexander's new game is politics. The former tennis player and commentator has joined the Liberal Party and is running for a seat in the Australian parliament. Alexander is an advocate for preventive health and believes the decline of public tennis courts and other facilities in Australia has contributed to childhood obesity and health problems. He said he joined the Liberal Party at the invitation of a friend, who told him he would be more effective in securing change by trying to be part of a government. Ranked as high as eighth in the world, Alexander was the youngest player to represent Australia in Davis Cup. He played Davis Cup from 1968 to 1980 and has been captain of Australia's Fed Cup team.
The US National Championships, known since 1968 as the US Open Tennis Championships, is the second oldest of the four Grand Slam tournaments and is the only one to have been played each year since its inception in 1881. This is the 129th version of America's premier tennis event and has been played on three different surfaces: grass, clay and hard court. The tournament has been held on hard court at Flushing Meadows since moving from Forest Hills in 1978. The only major sporting event in the United States older than the US Open is the Kentucky Derby, which began in 1875.
New Haven (men): Julian Knowle and Jurgen Melzer beat Bruno Soares and Kevin Ullyett 6-4 7-6 (3)
New Haven (women): Nuria Llagostera Vives and Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez beat Iveta Benesova and Lucie Hradecka 6-2 7-5
The Bronx: Anna-Lena Groenfeld and Vania King beat Julie Coin and Marie-Eve Pelletier 6-0, 6-3
US Open: www.usopen.org
Kim Clijsters: www.kimclijsters.be/
Roger Federer: www.rogerfederer.com/en/index.cfm
Rafael Nadal: www.rafaelnadal.com/nada/en/home
Serena Williams: www.serenawilliams.com/
Venus Williams: www.venuswilliams.com/
Andy Roddick: www.andyroddick.com
Andre Agassi Foundation: www.agassiopen.com/
(All money in USD)
ATP and WTA
US Open (first week), New York, New York, USA, hard
ATP and WTA
US Open (second week), New York, New York, USA, hard
$120,000 Genoa Open Challenger, Genoa, Italy, clay


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Cage materials
Phenolic resin
Cotton fabric reinforced phenolic resin is a lightweight material. Cages made of this material can withstand heavy inertial forces and operating temperatures up to 120 °C (250 °F). The material tends to absorb oil, assisting the lubrication of the cage / rolling element contact and providing a safety margin for run down, should there be an interruption of lubricant supply.
Cotton fabric reinforced phenolic resin is the standard cage material for most super-precision angular contact ball bearings.
Polyamide 66
Polyamide 46
PEEK is the standard cage material for some super-precision angular contact ball and for high-speed design cylindrical roller bearings.
Machined brass cages are used in a number of super-precision double row cylindrical roller bearings and double direction angular contact thrust ball bearings and are standard for large super-precision angular contact ball bearings (d ≥ 300 mm).

subset: commoncrawl


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LOS ANGELES, April 3 (UPI) -- Kobe Bryant notched a triple-double while leading the Los Angeles Lakers to a 101-81 thrashing of the visiting Dallas Mavericks.
Bryant scored 23 points and added 11 assists and an equal number of rebounds in the triumph, which tied the Lakers with Utah in the ongoing battle for the final Western Conference playoff slot.
Bryant hit 8-of-18 shots and did not convert on three tries from 3-point range. He was 7-of-8 from the foul line and also chipped in four steals and two blocked shots in 47 minutes on the court.
It was double-double night at Staples Center. Dwight Howard finished with a double-double of 24 points and 12 rebounds. Earl Clark had 17 points and 12 rebounds. Pau Gasol's stats sheet included 14 points and 10 boards.
Dallas was led by Chris Kaman, who scored 14 points. O.J. Mayo scored 12 points.


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With Baltimore police taking (and accepting) flak recently for failing to track and analyze its officers' use of the controversial stop-and-frisk tactic, another agency has the data and isn't doing much with it, either.
State law requires police agencies to forward a copy of every stop-and-frisk report to the Maryland State Police, which receives them at irregular intervals and does not sort them or enter them into a database. The agency keeps the reports for one year before tossing them, said spokeswoman Elena Wendell-Russo.
The American Civil Liberties Union, which criticized city police for producing data on stop and frisk that appeared to be incomplete and unaudited, said the state police should be doing more with the data they receive.
"The value of that [data collection] seems questionable if state police aren't looking at it and really evaluating what they're getting, not just in terms of what the data shows but whether they're confident that they are actually receiving all of the reports that they're supposed to be receiving," said Sonia Kumar, an ACLU of Maryland staff attorney who is working on the issue.
Wendell-Russo declined to respond to the ACLU's comments, saying state police follow the requirements of the law.
"Stop and frisk" is the term used to describe when police pat down someone based on reasonable suspicion that the person is armed and "presently dangerous." Also known as a "Terry stop" — referring to the U.S. Supreme Court decision that held that such searches were not a violation of the Fourth Amendment — the procedure has become a flash point in places like New York City.
In its response to a Public Information Act request from the ACLU, Baltimore police said officers had stopped citizens more than 120,000 times in 2012.
Of the 90,000 stops that city police had entered into a database for analysis, police said only 494 involved searches and that nine guns were found, which the ACLU said stretches credibility. The agency also withheld the underlying reports, saying they would take weeks to compile and would cost thousands of dollars.
Baltimore police Commissioner Anthony W. Batts said he was in "strong agreement" with the concerns raised by the ACLU and wants to include the civil liberties group in efforts to fix the problem.


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Tidbinbilla Relays - Jo Cullen, yours truly, Bryan Thomas, Mary Ann Busteed
The Cross Country Club in particular, and other groups such as the ABS history project, are very interested these days in collecting and preserving historical information.
Do you have bits of our running history that might be of any value at all? Are there gaps in the information on the Cross Country Club website that you could help fill in?
One set of results we are hunting is the old ABS Fun Runs, up to 1981, a.k.a. Cameron Offices Fun Run and Belconnen Offices Fun Run.
Others seeking out this information include Graeme Small, Colin Bridge, Andrew Sutcliffe.
And I would love ancient photographs to copy and preserve for posterity.
So if you can help out, please contact one of us and tell us what you've got.


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Tell a Friend
Tell a friend about sale-joanie-platform by Unique hand crafted footwear from Harriet Wilde, designer of luxury wedding & bridal shoes. Buy online with *FREE EXPRESS delivery from Arabesque, the UK's leading wedding shoe & accessory retailer.
Fill in the simple form below and your friend will receive an email with a link to Arabesque, you can even add your own message.


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'Sister Wives' Sneak Peek: Kody Brown & His Wives Throw A Co-ed Pool Party For Their Kids In Las Vegas! Watch!
'Sister Wives' is back Sept. 25 on TLC and wait until you see what goes down on the season three premiere episode!
Kody Brown and his wives are back on TLC for the third season of Sister Wives, which premieres Sept. 25 and in this clip from the season opener, Kody lets his kids have a co-ed pool party so the family can meet new people in their new town of Las Vegas.
"We're a pretty conservative family so the fact that we were having a co-ed pool party was a little on the fringe for me," Kody explains. "So we were keeping an eye on the kids."
Are you excited to see how Kody and his wives are adapting now that they moved out of Utah? Sound off below!


text: Luis dropped his busted LG EnV in the mail at the end of last year and tracked its progress as FedEx delivered the package to Verizon. Verizon, apparently unfamiliar with tracking numbers, doesn't believe that Luis ever returned the phone, and insists that they're owed a $320 replacement fee. Luis disputed the charge, but rather than investigate his claim, Verizon decided it would be easier to suspend his service. Now they want Luis—a customer of seven years who pays over $350 across six phone lines each month—to pay another $15 to reconnect the service they should never have disconnected in the first place. He writes:


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Miss Mustard Seed's Milk Paint- Dried Lavender
Milk Paint has been around for hundreds of years and has even been discovered in cave paintings and Egyptian tombs. It's made of milk powder, lime, and pigment, so it's all natural and behaves very different from its more modern counterparts like latex and acrylics. It comes in a powder form and you mix it with warm water prior to use. It provides a beautiful matte finish that shows amazing variances in the color.
$22.00 each
*Disclaimer: Color Swatches Shown On The Right May Vary By Monitor And May Not Match Actual Color
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Despite being a welcome new regulation, more effort is needed to ensure that the EUTR is properly enforced. Throughout the last year Greenpeace offices in Europe have exposed several shipments of suspected illegal timber entering Europe, including in the Czech republic, where a shipment of endangered Wenge wood ended up at a veneer processing facility.
© Ibra Ibrahimovic / Greenpeace
1 - 12 of 5650 results.


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Hi everyone, I have been away to SF and the Catskills and have much to discuss… #1: I "Heart" Radio Disney. I am a Disney fan in general having fallen in love with the theme park when I was 18 and decided my life's ambition was to live in Cinderella's castle. Over the years, I have been fortunate to have worked with different facets of the company including interviewing the creative folks at Disney FamilyFun, developing activity books for Disney Publishing and working with DJ Shal on her Public Affairs show, "Let's Chat" for Radio Disney (in San Francisco / Bay Area). So when I was in the Bay area last month, I visited the show along with my dear friends Liz & Cindy and their adorable boys who joined us on the show. It was the highlight of my trip (besides having a chance to spend a ton of time with Jackson). Thanks DJ Shal for making the day so special.
#2 My fire alarm works! Today I did my regular segment on You & Me this Morning on WCIU TV in Chicago. We made T-shirt totes and s'more truffles among other things. Here's a link to the segment: Click Here to Watch the Segment! Eventually I mastered the art of making caramels but trust me, there was a lot of practice before that happened. As you can see from the above picture, it took a few tries, a few pounds of burnt sugar, a room full of smoke and a melted plastic spoon. RIP dear spoon.
#3 Park A Day Challenge: A neighbor who reads the Pioneer Press recently sent me an email about her Park a Day Challenge. The challenge is sponsored by the non-profit group, KaBOOM! Which is dedicated to "creating great playspaces through the participation and leadership of communities." How can you not love that mission?
Here's a link to Liza's post which details her park adventures! Click here to read!
#4 I am now a double blogger! That's right, a year ago I had no idea what "Twitter" was, thought "Facebook" was a video game and thought blogging was something that happened in the mountains of Minnesota! (Of course there are NO mountains in Minnesota, so it only seems fitting that they would "blog" there!) Anyway, I am thrilled and honored to share my new blog with all of you. Its home is the You & Me this Morning on WCIU website. You & Me this Morning is a morning TV show that is near and dear to my heart since it is super fun, informative and a certain "shoestring mommy" appears on it every other week. Here's a link to the website and my TV page ~ Check it out and if you can, share it with your friends. Click Here to Read and Watch!
Thanks for Reading! Shoestrings and Peace, Beth


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|Columbia, Md.
|High School:
2013: Named the America East Men's Cross Country Scholar-Athlete of the Year… Scored three times for the Retrievers during his junior year, leading the team and the entire field across the line at the America East Pre-Conference Meet at Binghamton on Sept. 7… Won the season-opening meet in Vestal, N.Y. with a time of 25:33.1, the second-fastest time in course history at the time of the meet… Also scored at the Navy Invitational and the Paul Short Run at Lehigh… Recorded a season-best 8k time of 25:11.81 while scoring at the Navy meet in Annapolis, Md. … Named to the America East All-Academic Team… Listed on the America East Honor Roll.
2012: Scored in four of the six races in which he competed, leading the Retrievers across the line for the first time in his career at the Mason Invitational on Sept. 29… Finished 18th overall at Outlands Plantation with a 8K time of 26:26.90… Set a career-best at that distance two weeks later, finishing the Princeton Invitational in 25:02.55, the 10th-fastest time in school history… Took 16th overall at the America East Championships, helping UMBC finish third in the team standings, the program's best finish since 2005… Selected to the America East All-Academic Team… Named to the America East Commissioner's Honor Roll.
2011: Competed at five of the Retrievers' six meets as a freshman, scoring twice for UMBC... Placed 19th with a 5K time of 15:47.58 at the season-opening Mount St. Mary's Duals... Finished in 79th at the America East Championships with an 8K time of 27:25.69... Set a season-best 8K time of 25:36.85 at the Navy Invite on Sept. 17... Named to the America East Commissioner's Honor Roll.
Background: Holds five individual records and helped set three relay records while competing in cross country and track at Reservoir High... Won the 2010 Howard County cross country championship... Helped lead the Gators to the 2010 outdoor track state championship... A member of the National Honor Society.
Personal: Son of Greg and Maureen Schuler... Has two brothers, Brian and Jason... Majoring in computer science and would like to work as a software developer... Born Apr. 24, 1993.


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ENGS 31: Digital Electronics
Identical to COSC 56
This course teaches classical switching theory, including Boolean algebra, logic minimization, algorithmic state machine abstractions, and synchronous system design. This theory is then applied to digital electronic design. Techniques of logic implementation, from small scale integration (SSI) through application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), are encountered. There are weekly laboratory exercises for the first part of the course, followed by a digital design project in which the student designs and builds a large system of his or her choice. In the process, computer-aided design (CAD) and construction techniques for digital systems are learned. Enrollment is limited to 60 students.


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6 Upper Main Street, Rush, Co. Dublin
Experience authentic Indian cuisine for a reasonable price in the heart of County Dublin.
Read more about Indo Kitchen Rush | View Map of Area | Photos


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The little town center was filled with area families and children anxiously awaiting the arrival of Santa to flip the switch and light the huge tree in the middle of town.
Mr. Darcy (and Mike) were very excited. D had to be carried most of the way... all of the kids running around and the general splendor was a little too much for him to handle at times. The problem is that he thinks he is a kid, and when a group of them run by he likes to run after them... which is sometimes scary for the children.
Many of the local churches had groups of carolers singing Christmas songs - might have been my favorite part. For those of you that know my family, we love a good sing-a-long... especially during the holidays.
Mr. enjoying the carols.
Kids all lined up for Santa. Look at the little girls in the elf hats!
More groups singing.
A vintage car started off the parade.
Santa brought up the tail end on the back of a fire truck.
The big moment... lights!


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My father loved to repeat the following ayat to me almost every week or month. I'd thought I'd share them. Basically these ayat were his answer to almost anything happening to Islam, Muslims or the world in the news or in the masjid or in the family. Looking at the ayat now I can see how it gives the simple answer to almost any problem.
"And hold firmly to the rope of Allah (His covenant and the Qur'an) all together and do not become divided."
Quran 3:103
"And indeed this, your nation, is one nation (in having a unified collective way of life and course of conduct), and I am your Lord, so fear Me."
Quran 23:52
"The Believers are but a single Brotherhood. So make peace and reconciliation between contending brothers; and fear Allah that ye may receive Mercy."
Quran 49:10
"O you who believe! Avoid suspicion as much (as possible), for suspicion in some cases is a sin, and spy not on each other, nor speak ill of each other behind their backs. Would any of you like to eat the flesh of his dead brother? Nay, you would abhor it… But fear Allah, for Allah is Oft-Returning, Most Merciful."
Quran 49:12
"O you who believe! Let not some men among you laugh at others for it may be that the (latter) are better then the (former); nor let some women laugh at others for it may be that the (latter) are better than the (former). And don't defame or be sarcastic to each other. And don't call each other by (offensive) nicknames; ill-seeming is a name connoting wickedness (to be used of one) after he has believed. And those who do not desist are (indeed) doing wrong.
Quran 49:11
PS – There are 2 others quotes that were also popular: "Music* is haraam. Pictures** are haraam."
* Including all nasheeds even voice only ones, LOL.
** He never liked taking pictures.


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Home/Handmade Bags/Playa
Playa bag – Diecinueve
$ 120.00
1 in stock
This bag is great for when you need a little more room, especially if you are a mom! It would be perfect to use or gift as a unique diaper bag. Would also make a great pool/beach bag for summer!
Additional Information
|16.5 x 7.5 x 12 in


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Nearly a year after Veronica Mars fans made history raising $5.7 million, the movie is coming out in theaters!
March 14, 2014 is the date!
Executive producer Rob Thomas took to Twitter to announce the news:
Fun Fact #1. The #VeronicaMarsMovie will open on 3/14/14, just one year from when the @kickstarter launched on 3/12/13.
Fun Fact #2. 3/14 is sometimes called pi day. Next year, it will also be P.I. day. #VeronicaMarsMovie
"Veronica Mars": The Cast Plays "I've Never," and it's Awesome
Fun Fact #3. Just 99 more days until the #VeronicaMarsMovie opens.
We'd like to add a Fun Fact #4: We're currently stocking up on tents and sleeping bags for the requisite sidewalk slumber party on March 13, 2014. Come join us?
The movie takes place 10 years after Veronica (Kristen Bell) left her hometown of Neptune, California. She returns to help her former flame Logan (Jason Dohring), who has been accused of murdering his pop star girlfriend. (We're pretty sure it was a Logan and Veronica fan who pulled the trigger, but we haven't gotten that confirmed.) The original cast is back, including Enrico Colantoni as Daddy Mars, Tina Majorino and Percy Daggs III as Veronica's best friends Mac and Wallace, and Veronica's other former love interest Chris Lowell, who plays Piz.
A long time ago, we used to be friends...And now she's coming back! (For you nutjobs who've never seen "VM," that's a reference to the theme song, and also? We just secured your Christmas wish list for you right here.)
PHOTOS: See what the Veronica Mars cast has been up to!


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UBTECH Jimu Robot Meebot Kit
Learn More About Jimu Robot Meebot Kit
Jimu Robot Meebot Kit
Fast pans and quick cuts of details of MeeBot walking and dancing on a perfect white infinity background. Camera pulls back to see full body of MeeBot and graphics come up in synch with VO: Build. Program. Share. Scene closes with a close-up of MeeBot.
Welcome to the world of Jimu Robot, an interactive robotic building block system that lets you build, program and then share your own robots with the Jimu Robot community.
Jimu Robot kits come with everything you need to build your robot including the free Jimu Robot app.
Interlocking pieces snap together without needing any tools and the Jimu Robot app gives you 3-D 360˚ animated instructions that make assembly easy. Your robot's pieces simply snap together by hand, no tools required.
With the MeeBot Kit you can create this adorable robot character. And with the Jimu Robot Animal Add-On Kit you can turn him into 4 different animals: a penguin, a parrot, a walrus or a ferocious T-Rex. Jimu Robot interconnecting parts are interchangeable so you can create just about anything you can imagine and then program it do just about anything you want.
The Jimu Robot app has 3 different ways to make your robot move. You can select a sequence of any of the pre-programmed actions, use the Pose, Record & Playback mode to program custom movements or directly control the action in the Remote Control mode.
The Jimu Robot play pattern is aligned with STEM curriculum and bridges the gap between learning at school and learning at home through a creative and extremely gratifying experience that kids love.
When you've finished building and programming your robotic creation you can share it with other Jimu Robot enthusiasts all over the world by uploading photos or video to the Jimu Robot Community found on the app.
You can visit the Jimu Robot Community often to see what's new and get inspiration for your next robotic invention. Or check out to see how many "likes" your latest creation has received!
Jimu Robot, the fun and easy way to Build, Program & Share your very own robots. The Jimu Robot MeeBot & Animal Add-On Kits can only be found at Apple Stores and on Apple.com.
Jimu Robot, the fun and easy way to Build, Program & Share your very own robots. Make your imagination move.
Create a humanoid robot that's uniquely yours with UBTECH's Jimu Robot Meebot robot kit—and program it with the free Jimu Robot app on your iPhone or iPad. The kit's six robotic servo motors give your robot smooth, life-like movement. And an amazing array of interlocking pieces snap together to build pre-designed animal characters or anything else you can imagine.
Use the easy-to-follow 3D animated instructions on the Jimu Robot free app to build your MeeBot. Then employ the app's intuitive programming function to devise an endless sequence of actions for him. Or you can use Swift to write your own code to configure and control MeeBot. When you're done, you can capture photos or videos of MeeBot in action and share them with the JIMU Robot Community where you can see and "like" other robotic creations from Jimu Robot enthusiasts around the world.
Six robotic servo motors deliver life-like movements
Interlocking pieces snap together without tools to create pre-designed characters or your own designs
App-based 3D building instructions with a 360-spin feature for fast, fun construction of pre-designed characters
Intuitive programming that animates your robotic creation
Use pre-programmed actions or program your own by simply posing, recording, and playing back movements
Upload and share photos or videos of your robot's antics with the Jimu Robot community
Jimu Robot enthusiasts around the world can "like" and be inspired by other robotic creations
Recommended for anyone age eight or older
What's in the Box
Six smooth-motion robotic servo motors
201 snap-together interlocking parts and connectors
Main control box
Long-life, quick-recharging Lithium-ion battery
Recharging power adapter
Free Jimu Robot app
Quick start guide
Tech Specs
Other Features: Batteries Required, Bluetooth
Connections: Wireless
Bluetooth Compatibility: Bluetooth 4.0
Power Source: AC
Batteries: Rechargeable Lithium Ion
Manufacturer Information
Part Number
UPC or EAN No.: 868053000206
Note: Products sold through this website that do not bear the Apple Brand name are serviced and supported exclusively by their manufacturers in accordance with terms and conditions packaged with the products. Apple's Limited Warranty does not apply to products that are not Apple-branded, even if packaged or sold with Apple products. Please contact the manufacturer directly for technical support and customer service. The documentation and packaging for this product is in English.
Not suitable for children under three years
iPhone Models
- iPhone XS
- iPhone XS Max
- iPhone XR
- iPhone X
- iPhone 8
- iPhone 8 Plus
- iPhone 7
- iPhone 7 Plus
- iPhone 6s
- iPhone 6s Plus
- iPhone 6
- iPhone 6 Plus
- iPhone SE
- iPhone 5s
iPad Models
- iPad Air (3rd generation)
- iPad mini (5th generation)
- iPad Pro 11-inch
- iPad Pro 12.9-inch (3rd generation)
- iPad Pro 10.5-inch
- iPad (6th generation)
- iPad (5th generation)
- iPad Pro 12.9-inch (2nd generation)
- iPad Pro 12.9-inch (1st generation)
- iPad Pro 9.7-inch
- iPad mini 4
- iPad mini 3
- iPad mini 2
- iPad Air 2
- iPad Air (1st generation)
iPod Models
- iPod touch (7th generation)
- iPod touch (6th generation)
Answers from the community
Can you use your own music for MeeBot?
- Asked by leah P from westfield
- on 30-Apr-2018
Answer now(Can you use your own music for MeeBot?)No answers yet
Compatibility: Requires iOS 9.0 or later.
Build, control and program Jimu Robots with this app.
With 3D video guide on how to assemble your Jimu Robot and tons of pre-programmed actions for each robot model, you will be able to start playing with your Jimu Robot from the start. You can create custom actions for each robot model, and learn how to program robots with graphical programming interface. You can even view how the graphic ally programing code would look like when converted to Swift.
Feeling creative? Design and create your own Jimu Robot models and share them with other users. Program custom actions and show off your latest robotic creations in both pictures and videos. …
iPad Screenshots


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A mammoth in an Egyptian painting? Surely not—haven't we been told in textbooks that mammoths definitely died out some 9,500 years ago?
It was once held that mammoths and mastodons became extinct 30,000 to 40,000 years ago.
No results found in .
Answers in Genesis is an apologetics ministry, dedicated to helping Christians defend their faith and proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ.


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Great news: multilingual book, tmgmt module, EU fundingSubmitted by Gábor Hojtsy on Wed, 04/25/2012 - 14:30
I've highlighted some great developments around multilingual Drupal in my Denver core conversation talk (see the slides and video for details on where Drupal 8 multilingual improvements are going or check out the interview with me on Modules Unraveled from last week). First of all, there are some great new developments with each, second these got little publicity if anything, so I wanted to broadcast the good news here too.
Drupal 7 Multilingual Sites book is out
The Drupal 7 Multilingual Sites book is out from Packt Publishing! Jose Reyero (Internationalization module maintainer) was a technical reviewer, and I've been involved with the book as a technical reviewer in parallel (without monetary compensation), so even if you might not recognize the name of the author (Kristen Pol), I can assure you that it is a strong book. It starts off from the basics and reaches as far as it comprehensively can in the small size. It goes through some complex topics like tips and tricks for Views, Panels and SEO, and even includes comprehensive tables for which module to use for translating what. Some topics were cut out due to the size boundaries but you can already read one of those as an article on Kristen's blog on Drupal Commerce localization. The book should be a life-saver for anybody starting out building multilingual Drupal 7 sites and even those who already got started but stumbled into some seemingly unsolvable issues. Admittedly as the book goes into some of the more advanced topics, you'll face note boxes more and more as it references issues where fixes for problems are in the works. Help is always welcome.
Ps. Kristen is happy to donate ruffle copies of the book for your events, see https://twitter.com/#!/kristen_pol/status/193752939515490304
New Translation Management Tool module
While there are relatively good tools to translate content, configuration and the user interface in Drupal, larger scale setups will require more complex translation workflows with queues for people working on translations and integration with outside services and subcontractors for translation. Remember the Translation Management module? Well, that was a bit monolithic solution to this problem, did not integrate with common Drupal components such as Views and Rules and was never fully ported to Drupal 7. There was no community behind it and as the developers stopped working on it, there was no solution for people to look to.
Enter Translation Management Tool (tmgmt) a solution along the Drupal way (TM) to the same problems. It is component based, already integrates with more services and is backed by several companies in Europe. It was bootstrapped earlier this year in Europe and is actively developed ever since. For further icing on the cake, a great project to improve and build on the module was accepted for this year's Google Summer of Code, so we are going to see even more awesomeness coming from there!
Drupal as base implementation in European Union multilingual project
Carsten and Carina from Cocomore held a discussion at Drupalcon Denver incorporating their announcement of the EU funded "MultilingualWeb - Language Technologies" (MultilingualWeb-LT) project for the Drupal community. The project is managed by a W3C Working Group and its goal is "to combine several existing technologies and standards to close gaps in the technical localization chain by better integrating localization service providers and translation technologies". It is not just a standards effort, the initial implementation is going to happen based on Drupal! Yes! We hope to work with this project on Drupal 8 improvements if the timeline allows and they certainly plan to make heavy use of the tmgmt module on Drupal 7 which should lead to more improvements and fixes there.


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There are very few acceptable situations - for example, the "wassup nigga" greetings that are quite common between certain teenage groups now.Originally Posted by pasag
Of course, it's only acceptable when there are no black people involved (I've seen white/indian/chinese guys call each other niggas) or when there are only black people involved. Clearly shouldn't be used publicly, but there's no reason to get so anal about it otherwise. If the understanding is already there, using the term isn't such a big deal.
That said, I wouldn't use the term because I wouldn't want it to slip out at the wrong time (even if there was no bad intention, I'd get my ass owned as Pasag just noted).


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Sustainable Preservation Strategies
July 12, 2012
Please find below various resources for the Sustaining Cultural Heritage Collections grant program in NEH's Division of Preservation and Access:
- The agenda, participant biographies, and several presentations from the joint NEH and Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR) of Italy conference held in May 2009, entitled "Sustainable Cultural Heritage"
- An article in AIC News March 2012: Getting Greener and Creating the Optimal: The State of Sustainability Research and the Preservation Environment by Jeremy Linden, Preservation Environment Specialist, Image Permanence Institute. Reprinted with the permission of the American Institute for Conservation of Historic & Artistic Works, 1156 15th Street, NW, Suite 320, Washington, DC 20005, from the March 2012 edition of AIC News, @email, www.conservation-us.org.
- For the Sustaining Cultural Heritage Collections program, we ask grantees with planning and implementation projects that focus on sustainable preservation strategies to create white papers documenting their lessons learned, so that others can benefit from their experience. Click here to read SCHC White Papers.
- NEH & CNR Conference Agenda - May 2009
- NEH & CNR Conference - Participant Biographies - May 2009
- Presentation by Jerry Podany - May 2009
- Presentation by Debra Hess Norris - May 2009
- Presentation by James M. Reilly - May 2009
- Presentation by Michael C. Henry - May 2009
- AIC News March 2012: Getting Greener and Creating the Optimal
- Sustaining Cultural Heritage Collections Awards 2010-2012


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Organizations make decisions every day, and each decision is accompanied by risk. A structured approach to understanding risk and reducing uncertainty can help organizations make better decisions, manage and mitigate risks and maximize profits as they journey toward achieving high performance.
As shown by the 2012 Accenture Risk Analytics Survey, more than half of the 465 companies and 450 risk analytics experts surveyed believe that risk analytics significantly improves decision-making and risk monitoring, and that C-Suite executives make extensive use of their companies' risk analytics capabilities.


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Although antibiotic resistance is not a new problem, its scope now constitutes a major threat to human health. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, at least 2 million Americans fall sick every year with antibiotic-resistant infections—and 23,000 die.
Medical and public health experts agree that addressing antibiotic resistance requires measures that will ensure both the prudent use of existing drugs and a robust pipeline of new drugs.
Pew's antibiotic resistance project supports policies that would:
Episode 15


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Candidates in city elections hold public forum
Candidates for Omaha mayor, City Council District 2 and Omaha School Board subdistricts 1 and 2 participated in a public forum Tuesday night.
The public was invited to the Love's Jazz and Arts Center near North 24th and Lake streets.
Participants included: Mayoral candidates Mayor Jim Suttle and Councilwoman Jean Stothert, District 2 candidates Councilman Ben Gray and candidate Tariq Al-Amin, OPS subdistrict candidates James English and Yolanda Williams, and OPS subdistrict 2 candidate Marque Snow. Niokia Stewart, the other subdistrict 2 candidate was not there.
For the first time since the primary election, Suttle and Stothert took the stage at the 100 Black Men of Omaha forum.
"I will simply continue doing what you have told me I've been doing, getting it done," Suttle said.
"What is important to you is important to me, and I truly believe we can work together and Omaha will have a brighter future," Stothert said.
The mayoral candidates' comments were followed by a heated conversation between two City Council candidates.
"The reason I got in this race is because I was asked by a number of people in the community who felt they were betrayed by its current representative," Al-Amin said.
"I have trust with a whole lot of people in the community and a whole lot of other businesses, so having trust with you doesn't mean a whole lot to me," Gray said.
As questions from the moderator and voters in the audience poured in, answers were clouded by back and forth discussion between Al-Amin and Gray.
"He went one time to an Empowerment Network meeting and said he didn't want to have anything to do with this mess. I heard it come out of his own mouth," said Gray.
"I'm not going to try to rebut some of the things he said because basically I don't believe him, a lot of things he said. He has no credibility with me," said Al-Amin.
Both talked about reducing violence, getting illegal guns off the street and the ongoing internal investigation into recent police conduct.
"I think you should vote for me, and I can show you that I can be the man that you thought he was," Al-Amin said.
"You can see tangibly the things that have been done as a result of my leadership over these last four years, and the next four years are going to be more of the same," Gray said.
The mission of the 100 Black Men of Omaha is to improve the quality of life of the community by helping youth reach their full potential.


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Always Being Made New – The Campaign for the ELCA
Please enter the url to a YouTube video.
Always Being Made New: The Campaign for the ELCA
Approved by the 2013 ELCA Churchwide Assembly in Pittsburgh, this five-year, nearly $200 million campaign will:
- Increase this church's capacity to support congregational renewal and the planting of new congregations
- Form and support new lay, ordained and global leaders for mission
- Encourage and form lay youth and young adult leaders
- Support this church's disability ministry
- Bolster our commitment to walk with global companion churches in shared witness
- Expand our efforts to address poverty and hunger
While the campaign was approved in the 25th anniversary year of the forming of the ELCA, this also is our moment to look toward the next 25 years and boldly respond to the needs of God's creation with a living, daring confidence in God's grace. Always Being Made New: The Campaign for the ELCA — the first of its size and scope in the history of this church — gives each of us the opportunity to make a transformational impact on the ministries of our church. Together, as 4 million members of the ELCA in nearly 10,000 congregations and 65 synods, we are one church with a call to do God's work throughout the world.
Through this campaign, we can expand our mission capacity and achieve things on a scale and scope that we could never do alone. Through this campaign, we can do more. Together, we are called to do more, and in responding to this call, we will continue to live out God's promise of always being made new, and to use our hands — and all that we have been given — to do God's work. See more at the campaign's official website.
Campaign Goals
This campaign — which runs from Feb. 1, 2014, through Jan. 31, 2018 — seeks to raise $198 million in support of new and expanded churchwide ministries above and beyond those supported by your regular weekly offerings.
Accompany and equip 1,000 congregations in their renewal efforts through ELCA synods
Goal for Renewing Congregations–$8 million
Spread the good news far and wide by planting more congregations in the United States and the Caribbean.
Goal for ELCA New Congregations–$4 million
Expand ministries with people living with disabilities.
Goal for Disability Ministries–$4 million
Grow the permanent endowment fund so that, for generations to come, hundreds more of the most promising leaders can respond to the call to serve our congregations.
Goal for ELCA Fund for Leaders–$15 million
Engage young people in the life of this church through expanded ministries to youth and young adults.
Goal for Youth and Young Adults–$4 million
Hunger and Poverty
Support our comprehensive approach in nearly 60 countries and expand support to communities in at least 10 countries, including the United States, as they work to solve challenges that perpetuate hunger and poverty.
Goal for ELCA World Hunger–$115 million
Meet and exceed our 2011 goal of $15 million by 2015 to help overcome malaria in 13 countries in Africa.
Goal for the ELCA Malaria Campaign–$15 million (over $10 million already raised)
Global Church
Initiate new evangelism projects in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
Goal for Global Ministries–$7 million
Equip more than 200 additional women leaders from our global companion churches through increased scholarships and educational opportunities.
Goal for International Leaders-Women–$4 million
Support our missionaries and give 200 additional young adults the opportunity to participate in a year of global service.
Goal for Missionaries and Young Adults in Global Mission–$22 million
Total campaign goal: $198 million


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June 30, 2006
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - After five years of service to the Santa Clara University baseball program, assistant coach Mike Oakland will depart the Mission Campus to join the faculty and coaching staff at Saint Francis High School in Mountain View. In addition to assuming head coach duties of the Lancers' baseball program, Oakland will also teach courses in computer literacy and physical education.
Oakland will bring over 10 years of coaching experience to the Saint Francis program, as prior to joining the Bronco coaching staff in 2002, head coach Mark O'Brien's first season, Oakland served his alma mater, Cal Poly, for five years under head coach Ritch Price. During the summers of 1998 and `99, Oakland guided the Anchorage Bucs of the Alaska Summer Collegiate League to the league title followed by a second-place finish the following season.
"The main decision I faced in making this move was more of a lifestyle decision," Oakland said of leaving Santa Clara for his new position. "Coaching at Saint Francis will allow me to be more accessible to my family and also coach a program with an excellent baseball tradition and a chance to be one of the top teams in the state. In five years at Santa Clara I learned a tremendous amount and made some great friendships that I'll have forever. I'm sad to leave but excited for this new opportunity."
As Santa Clara's hitting coach, he has been instrumental in the rise of the Bronco offense. Under Oakland's tutelage, Joey Gomes raised his batting average from .221 in 2001 to .408 in 2002 and earned All-America honors. In 2003, Scott Dierks bounced back from a season which saw him hit .264 with zero home runs to bat at a .394 clip with 18 homers, one away from the school's single-season record. In each of his first three seasons, the Broncos hit .290 collectively.
At Saint Francis, he will take charge of a Lancers team that finished 18-12-2 (8-8-1 WCAL) in 2006 and reached the quarterfinals of the Central Coast Section playoffs. Oakland will look to guide the Lancers to their first CCS title since 2001 next season.


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PRINCETON, N.J. – UMBC sophomore Mercedes Jackson (Huntingtown, Md./Huntingtown) ran a new career-best and school record time to claim the top honors in the 100m dash at the ECAC/IC4A Championships, Sunday afternoon at Weaver Stadium.
Already holding the record time (11.57) from her performance at the Mason Spring Invitational, Jackson raced past the regional field on Sunday with a time of 11.51. Her run moves her into a tie for 15th in the NCAA East Region as the sophomore standout now prepares for the East Preliminary meet to be held on May 24-25 in Greenville, N.C.
Eight-time America East shot put champion Amanda Deller (Aberdeen, Md./Aberdeen) earned a top-ten finish in the event at Princeton. The senior recorded her best toss of 14.50m (47'7.00") in her first attempt of the finals to claim eighth place.
For the men, junior Yao Adantor (Laurel, Md./Reservoir/Morgan State/Maryland) landed just a foot short of his school-record mark with a heave of 16.29m (53'5.50") to finish 14th.
Junior Jake Albino (Hampton, N.Y./Minisink Valley) took fifth in the 1,500m run with a time of 3:49.67. Albino finished just two seconds behind the race winner, Issac Wendland of Liberty (3:47.32).
In the 4x100 relay, the men's team of junior Pat Balderson (Mount Airy, Md./Linganore), Jenove Blanfort, and seniors Trae Proctor (Brandywine, Md./Thomas Stone) and Dennison Long (Greenbelt, Md./Eleanor Roosevelt/FIU) took eighth with a time of 41.72.
School record holder Vincent Rentzsch (Oranienburg, Germany) finished 13th in the javelin competition with a heave of 59.72m (195'11).


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Venturing into the Darkness of Europe
During the Middle Ages, hardly any Arabs traveled to Europe – the region simply had nothing to offer. Those who did travel north, however, complained about the "raw" and "animal-like" behavior of the "Francs" – and about their lack of culture. By Mona Naggar
"They lack a warm sense of humor; their bodies are large, their character is coarse, their customs rude, their minds dull and their tongues heavy. Their skin color is of such an extreme white that they appear blue. Their skin is thin and their flesh rough. Their eyes, too, are blue and similar to their skin color; their hair is smooth and reddish due to the damp fog. Their religious beliefs are unreliable, which can be traced to the type of coldness and lack of warmth. The further north they reside, the dumber, more vile and primitive they are."
Thus describes Arab historian and geographer Al-Masudi the inhabitants of Europe – more precisely, the Slavs, Francs and their neighbors. Al-Masudi lived during the 10th century. His comments reflect the geographic ideas of his time.
The seven zones of the world
Arab geographers divided the inhabited world into seven zones. This division had nothing to do with geographic reality, but it corresponded to the maps that were circulating in the Arab-Islamic world during the Middle Ages, and amongst the Greeks before that.
About 100 years after Al-Masudi wrote his comprehensive work on the history and geography of the known world, a judge from the Andalusian city of Toledo authored a book about the categories of peoples. For him, the most significant characteristic was intellectual achievements.
Said ibn Ahmad divided peoples into two groups: those that had cultivated science and those who had not. Those belonging to the former group included the Indians, Persians, Chaldaens, Greeks, Byzantines, Egyptians, Arabs and Jews.
In addition, the judge emphasized the achievements of the Chinese and the Turks. He devotes the main section of his study to these ethnic groups. Said ibn Ahamd classifies the rest of humanity as northern or southern Barbarians. He writes the following about the Barbarians of the north:
"The other peoples of this group – those who have not cultivated the sciences – are more like animals than human beings. In the regions furthest to the north, between the last of the seven climates and the frontiers of the inhabited world, the excessive distance from the sun in relation to the zenith line results in cold air and a cloudy sky. For that reason, their character is cool, their humor is primitive, their bellies are fat, their color is pale, their hair is long and straggly. Thus, they lack a sharpness of the mind and clarity of intelligence, and they are overwhelmed by ignorance and apathy, a lacking power of judgment, and stupidity."
The civilized world ends north of Andalusia
The Andalusian judge had almost no information about Europe and its inhabitants. The same can be said of Al-Masudi.
Islamic historiography and geography was indeed wide-ranging, but readers were only offered sparse and unreliable material about Europe.
They provide clues as to the geographic concepts of that age as well as to the level of knowledge current at the time. They also reveal the images that the medieval Muslims had of themselves and of others. For them, the civilized world ended north of Andalusia.
West Europe had nothing to offer
Brisk trade contacts which transcended the borders of religion existed with non-Islamic nations. Muslim, Christian and Jewish merchants from the Orient traveled through Byzantium, Italy, China, Southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.
It is striking that Islamic travel writings from the Middle Ages do not mention Western Europe as a trading partner. There are several reasons for this. The goods that West Europe offered were not very attractive for the Orient. The only products sometimes mentioned in Islamic sources are weapons and slaves, and occasionally English wool.
Another reason why Muslims chose not to travel to Western Europe was the intolerance of its rulers and its population. Word had spread of the fate of Jews in Medieval Europe. And it was known from regions that had been reconquered – Andalusia, for example – that Muslims were forced to choose between conversion, exile or death. Islamic communities were never able to exist for long in Christian Europe.
A man's beauty is in his beard
Nonetheless, a few fearless souls from the Orient did venture into the darkness of Europe. Harun ibn Yahya is one of them. Little is known about his life.
He was held as a prisoner of war by the Byzantines in Constantinople. After being set free, he traveled to Rome. This visit probably took place in the year 886. In this city governed by a king called Bab, i.e. Pope, he is most taken aback by the Roman's habit of shaving their beards:
"I asked them why they shaved their beards and told them that a man's beauty is in his beard. What is your purpose in doing this? They answered that any man who does not shave his beard is not a true Christian. Because when Simon and the apostles came to us, they had neither shoes nor sticks, and were poor and weak, while we were kings, dressed in brocade and seated upon gold. They called us to the Christian religion, but we did not answer them. We arrested them and tortured them and shaved off their hair and beards. Once we had realized the truth of their words, we began to shave our beards to atone for the sin of shaving their beards."
Baghdad, August 1099. The Grand Kadi bu Saad Al-Harawi is standing in the divan of the Abbasidian caliph Al-Mustazhir Billah. The judge of Damascus loudly announces his charges. A few weeks earlier, the holy city of Jerusalem had fallen into the hands of the Crusaders. The Muslims referred to them generally as Francs.
The intruders had massacred the population, plundered houses and ravaged mosques. Thousands of refugees arrived in Damascus. Al-Harawi looked after them and asked the caliph in Baghdad for support.
The caliph expressed his deepest compassion – and that was all. At the beginning of the first Crusade, only a few Arabs were aware of the dimension of the threat from the West.
The Francs in the center of the Islamic world
The age of the Crusades lasted 200 years. Except for the military confrontation, this period represented the chance for a direct contact between the occidental and Islamic worlds previously unheard of.
Until that point, direct contact had usually come about via Spain or Sicily. Now, the Francs reached the center of the Islamic world. The Syrian knight Usama ibn Munqidh (1095-1188) witnessed this period first-hand.
He was a contemporary of Saladdin. He participated in battles against the Crusaders, but also lived through long peaceful phases. Usama used these periods to get to know the Francs better. The Syrian knight collected an abundance of experience and anecdotes in his autobiographical recollections.
Usama repeatedly stresses the "raw" and "animal-like" behavior of the Europeans. Above all, however, he points out their lack of culture. One example is the Franc's medical practices. In disbelief, he describes how one doctor had treated a knight with an abscess on his leg: he had the leg chopped off with an axe. Another example is their treatment of women:
"The Francs have no sense of honor, nor jealousy. It occurs that a Franc will be walking along the street with his wife, and they meet another man who takes his wife aside and converses with her while the husband waits on the side until his wife ends the conversation. If it takes too long, he leaves her with the other man and continues on his way."
Mona Naggar
© Qantara.de 2005
Translation from German: Mark Rossman
Max Baron of Oppenheim
An Encyclopedic Travelogue Free from the Arrogance of the Time
As diplomat and explorer, Max Baron of Oppenheim's knowledge of the Orient was exceptional for the time. His interest in the Arab world was unique as well in that it was free from condescension. A portrait by Andreas Pflitsch
Gertrude Bell's Orient Travels
Escape from the Tight Corset of the Modern Age
Gertrude Bell was one of the few women that in the 19th century travelled the Orient. In trying to escape rigid Victorian conventions, she ended up as an agent for the British Secret Service and as personal advisor to Iraq's King Faisal I
Julius Euting's Arabian Travelogue
Exploring 19th Century Arabia with the Mind of an Accountant
Julius Euting, 19th-century German philosopher and Orientalist, embodied the dry empiricist spirit of his time. On his 1883-1884 journey to the Arabian Peninsula, however, he also made numerous exceptional and curious observations. Andreas Pflitsch reports
An Elegant Pilgrimage
Baron Heinrich von Maltzan in Mecca
The Orientalist, writer and dandy Baron Heinrich von Maltzan was a passionate traveller as well as an attentive observer and a good storyteller. In 1860 he went on a pilgrimage to Mecca. By Andreas Pflitsch
Religious Tourism in the Middle Ages
Bernhard von Breydenbach's Pilgrimage to the Orient
The late Middle Ages gave rise to a kind of religious tourism. The pious and the adventurous headed east to visit holy sites and exotic locations. One of them was Bernhard von Breydenbach, a Deacon of Mainz Cathedral. By Sandra Schmies


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Tour was a blast and was very successful for everyone. I want to extend my most sincere gratitude to the entourage, including our tour manager Joey Lyons for busting his ass to make sure the job got done properly, our bus driver Ringo for keeping us all safe, our guitar tech Jared for keeping a watchful eye on our performers, and our merch girl Jess for being such a sweetheart and always keeping it honest. I also want to thank the members of Pentagram, including Russ Strahan, Mark Ammen, and Gary Isom, and the members of The Gates of Slumber, including Karl Simon, Jason McCash, and Bob Fouts, for being such incredible hard-working musicians and awesome friends to travel with. Additionally, I'd like to thank the establishments the band played at for accommodating the show and our entourage, all of the promoters from the 11 different cities for being so kind to us, and Thunderdome Touring for making it all happen. And last but not least, thank you to all of the fans who came out and showed your support, because it truly means the world to so many people.
Russ killing it.
My husband with a ton of makeup on.
We will be returning home to Philly tomorrow, and I'll be getting my new camera (along with some other exiting things to share), but for now all I can leave you with are these narcissistic mirror photos from a very lovely hotel we stayed in when we were in Cleveland:
I was wearing some Rick Owens here that I didn't have a chance to snap because we were in a rush. The Savoy Brown shirt is pretty boss and is something I scored on eBay a little over a year ago. "Born to Boogie" is a pretty fantastic album. The headband I had to fashion myself last minute because I left my others at home. I used some cut up pieces of a pair of black tights.
Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend!


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The AIG Bonus Scandal
Tonto, the Lone Ranger's companion would always say: "White Man speaks with forked tongue." I would say: Senator Dodd was Tonto speaking of you? Dodd has no idea of what the word truth means. See what just $103,000 can buy? $165 million in unearned and undeserved bonuses.
[Genesis Of The Financial Meltdown]
There appears to be much screaming and gnashing of teeth concerning the $450 million in bonuses paid out to AIG employees, including $165 million in payments that have been guaranteed to the employees who were responsible for the downfall of AIG.
This $165 million is supposedly a "retention bonus" to be paid to 73 employees of AIG's financial-products subsidiary. Usually bonuses are paid to employees of financially profitable corporations; but not here. Unless one concludes that these employees of AIG enabled Goldman Sachs to remain a profitable corporation. It was subsequently revealed that Goldman received $12 billion from AIG, as payment for the credit default swaps which Goldman had purchased. It's the whole credit default debacle that has brought AIG to its knees in the first place.
Wait a minute. Weren't these financial geniuses employed by AIG and not Goldman Sachs? And AIG lost money on these trades. So then why are they being rewarded with "bonuses"? Is there a new definition of bonus that we haven't been told of.
Then we have Senator Christopher Dodd, that oy vey exemplar of moral standards and opacity who is now leading the outcry over these undeserved bonuses. Sen. Dodd has forgotten one important lacuna of information. It was Dodd, that oy vey cheerleader of financial innovation, who permitted the amendment that granted these individuals their retention bonuses to be inserted into the TARP bill.
This provision, the "Dodd Amendment" provides an "exemption for contractually obligated bonuses agreed on before Feb. 11, 2009." This provision specifically exempted AIG employees, a so-called bill of attainder that granted favorable terms to individuals near and dear to the heart of Dodd.
In all fairness the executives receiving $165 million of this bonus retention money were employed by the AIG financial-products subsidiary, which is located in Wilton, Connecticut. Guess which state Dodd represents? You guessed it: Connecticut. So Dodd is merely bringing home the bacon to Connecticut and to his campaign contributors.
Now I do not wish to pull a John Stewart on Dodd, as Stewart did with Jim Cramer on national television, exposing the "Mad Money" host as possible a "Mad Man" deliberately peddling stock scams.
Yet, Dodd was always a cheerleader for "financial innovation"; whether it be accomplished by Fannie Mae or AIG, those paradigms of financial sobriety—oops at the mention of sobriety. AIG was so enamored of Dodd that Dodd received $103,000 in campaign donations during the 2008 campaign cycle from, yes you guessed it, AIG, according to published accounts.
Dodd, who had some mortgage problems of his own with two mortgages from Countrywide, has always praised "financial innovation." As long as the innovators donated to Dodd's treasure; oops, campaign chest.
Dodd was even listed on a "Friends of Angelo List." Angelo Mozilo, who was Chairman of Countrywide, a large manufacturer of subprime loans, which had to be taken over by Bank of America. Dodd was able to refinance his Connecticut home and his Washington home at favorable interest rates.
This group of financial geniuses at the financial products subsidiary have cost the American public a minimum of $170 billion. Dodd probably believed that the employees of AIG deserved the $450 million in bonuses for their financial creativity and ability to manufacture losses. Oh yes, three AIG executives Douglas Poling, James Haas and Jonathan Liebergall donated to Dodd's campaign.
Yet, we're to believe these contributions played no part in Dodd's decision. After all the employees of the financial-products subsidiary managed to bring down one of the largest American corporations; and that took quite a bit of financial creativity.
Aside: Does anyone remember when America could actually manufacture products, which you could drive, see and feel and not ephemeral financial products?
When I was young there was a very popular children's program that could be viewed on television Saturday mornings. The program was the Lone Ranger. The Lone Ranger was always accompanied by Tonto, a Native American.
It is the wisdom of Tonto, which must be quoted at this juncture. Tonto would always say: "White Man speaks with forked tongue."
I would say: Senator Dodd was Tonto speaking of you? Dodd has no idea of what the word truth means.
See what just $103,000 can buy? $165 million in unearned and undeserved bonuses.
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Episode: Imagination Parade
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Show: Imagination Parade
Each week there is a blend of stories and songs of various musical styles. The program is geared to family listening for both the young and the young at heart.
Chilrens music has exploded recently and we search each week for more music. If you have questions about songs you've heard go to the wfdu.fm site and click on playlists. Or you can email me at email@example.com.


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Novgorod Countryside Stay
Escape the bustling city of St Petersburg with an overnight stay in a country house in ancient Novgorod. Your visit begins with a tour of the historic Kremlin (Fortress) grounds and the open air museum of Russian wooden architecture. There's free time to admire Novgorod - listed by UNESCO as one of the top 100 cities of the world which are of great historical and cultural value due to its having over six hundred unique historic, architectural, and cultural monuments. Why not soak up the views from a leisurely walk along the Volkhov river, visit one of the great medieval abbeys, or wander round the quaint shops and bars.
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Syllabus for COS-231
This course provides an introduction to the study of the basic structure and language of machines. Topics include basic concepts of Boolean algebra, number systems, language, addressing techniques, data representation, file organization, symbolic coding and assembly systems, use of macros, batch operations and job handling.
After completing this course, you should be able to:
CO1 Discuss the hardware of the personal computer.
CO2 Describe machine-language code and hexadecimal format.
CO3 Indicate the steps involved in assembling, linking, and executing a program.
CO4 Write programs in assembly language that handle keyboard input and screen output.
CO5 Write programs in assembly language that perform arithmetic calculations and searches.
CO6 Write programs in assembly language that convert between ASCII and binary formats.
CO7 Trace machine execution as an aid to debugging.
CO8 Write macro instructions.
You will need the following materials to do the work of the course. The required textbook is available from the University's textbook supplier, MBS Direct.
Assembly Language is a three-credit online course, consisting of six modules. Modules include learning objectives, study materials, and activities.
For your formal work in the course, you are required to participate in online discussion forums, complete written assignments, and take two proctored online examinations—a midterm and a final. See below for more details.
Consult the Course Calendar for assignment due dates.
One or more of your course activities may utilize a tool designed to promote original work and evaluate your submissions for plagiarism. More information about this tool is available in About SafeAssign.
In addition to posting an introduction to the class you are required to participate in five online discussions, each focusing on a different subject.
Communication with the mentor and among fellow students is a critical component of online learning. Participation in online discussions involves two distinct activities: an initial response to a discussion question and at least two subsequent comments on classmates' responses. Meaningful participation is relevant to the content, adds value, and advances the discussion. Comments such as "I agree" and "ditto" are not considered value-adding participation. Therefore, when you agree or disagree with a classmate, the reading, or your mentor, state and support your agreement or disagreement. You will be evaluated and graded on the quality and quantity of your participation. Responses and comments should be properly proofread and edited, professional, and respectful.
You are required to complete six written assignments. The written assignments consist of specific problems that you are to work on and submit to your mentor. You will find it helpful to read over the assignment question for a module before beginning the reading for the module.
The exercises that make up your written assignments involve programming segments that you will submit to your mentor for a grade. You should submit these programs as document files with screen dumps or resultant runs. All paths of programs must be tested.
Prepare your written assignments using whatever word processing program you have on your computer. Include your name at the top of the paper, as well as the course name and code and the semester and year in which you are enrolled.
Before submitting your first assignment, check with your mentor to determine whether your word processing software is compatible with your mentor's software. If so, you can submit your work as you prepared it. If not, save your assignment as a rich-text (.rtf) file, using the Save As command of your software program. Rich text retains basic formatting and can be read by any other word processing program.
When satisfied that your assignment represents your best work, submit it to your mentor.
You are required to take two proctored online examinations: a midterm exam and a final exam. Both exams require that you use the University's Online Proctor Service (OPS). Please refer to the "Examinations and Proctors" section of the Online Student Handbook (see General Information area of the course Web site) for further information about scheduling and taking online exams and for all exam policies and procedures. You are strongly advised to schedule your exam within the first week of the semester. The Examinations section of the course space contains study guides for the midterm and final exams.
Online exams are administered through the course Web site. Consult the Course Calendar for the official dates of exam weeks.
The midterm is a proctored online exam. It is two hours long and covers material in Modules 1, 2, and 3. It consists of multiple choice questions based on the work you will do for your written assignments. If you have concerns about the format and/or content of the examination, please contact your mentor at least a week in advance of the scheduled test.
The final is a proctored online exam. It is two hours long and covers material in Modules 4, 5, and 6. It consists of multiple choice questions based on the work you will do for your written assignments.
Note: In modules 5 and 6, you will be asked to review material from previous modules in preparation for the final exam.
You will find a sample online examination in the Tests & Quizzes area of this course site. Use this sample exam to familiarize yourself with the online testing setting and format before you take your online exam. Keep in mind the following potential differences between the sample exam and your online exam:
You are on your honor not to cheat during an exam. Cheating means:
If there is evidence that you have cheated or plagiarized in an exam, the exam will be declared invalid, and you will fail the course.
Your grade in the course will be determined as follows:
All activities will receive a numerical grade of 0–100. You will receive a score of 0 for any work not submitted. Your final grade in the course will be a letter grade. Letter grade equivalents for numerical grades are as follows:
Below 60
To receive credit for the course, you must earn a letter grade of C or better (for an area of study course) or D or better (for a course not in your area of study), based on the weighted average of all assigned course work (e.g., exams, assignments, discussion postings, etc.).
To succeed in this course, take the following first steps:
Consider the following study tips for success:
Thomas Edison State University is committed to maintaining academic quality, excellence, and honesty. The University expects all members of its community to share the commitment to academic integrity, an essential component of a quality academic experience.
Students at Thomas Edison State University are expected to exhibit the highest level of academic citizenship. In particular, students are expected to read and follow all policies, procedures, and program information guidelines contained in publications; pursue their learning goals with honesty and integrity; demonstrate that they are progressing satisfactorily and in a timely fashion by meeting course deadlines and following outlined procedures; observe a code of mutual respect in dealing with mentors, staff, and other students; behave in a manner consistent with the standards and codes of the profession in which they are practicing; keep official records updated regarding changes in name, address, telephone number, or e-mail address; and meet financial obligations in a timely manner. Students not practicing good academic citizenship may be subject to disciplinary action including suspension, dismissal, or financial holds on records.
All members of the University community are responsible for reviewing the Academic Code of Conduct Policy in the University Catalog and online at Thomas Edison State University.
Thomas Edison State University expects all of its students to approach their education with academic integrity—the pursuit of scholarly activity free from fraud and deception. All mentors and administrative staff members at the University insist on strict standards of academic honesty in all courses. Academic dishonesty undermines this objective. Academic dishonesty can take the following forms:
Thomas Edison State University is committed to helping students understand the seriousness of plagiarism, which is defined as using the work and ideas of others without proper citation. The University takes a strong stance against plagiarism, and students found to be plagiarizing are subject to discipline under the academic code of conduct policy.
If you copy phrases, sentences, paragraphs, or whole documents word-for-word—or if you paraphrase by changing a word here and there—without identifying the author, or without identifying it as a direct quote, then you are plagiarizing. Please keep in mind that this type of identification applies to Internet sources as well as to print-based sources. Copying and pasting from the Internet, without using quotation marks and without acknowledging sources, constitutes plagiarism. (For information about how to cite Internet sources, see Online Student Handbook > Academic Standards > "Citing Sources.")
Accidentally copying the words and ideas of another writer does not excuse the charge of plagiarism. It is easy to jot down notes and ideas from many sources and then write your own paper without knowing which words are your own and which are someone else's. It is more difficult to keep track of each and every source. However, the conscientious writer who wishes to avoid plagiarizing never fails to keep careful track of sources.
Always be aware that if you write without acknowledging the sources of your ideas, you run the risk of being charged with plagiarism.
Clearly, plagiarism, no matter the degree of intent to deceive, defeats the purpose of education. If you plagiarize deliberately, you are not educating yourself, and you are wasting your time on courses meant to improve your skills. If you plagiarize through carelessness, you are deceiving yourself.
For examples of unintentional plagiarism, advice on when to quote and when to paraphrase, and information about writing assistance, click the links provided below.
Examples of Unintentional Plagiarism
When to Quote and When to Paraphrase
Writing Assistance at Smarthinking
Acts of both intentional and unintentional plagiarism violate the Academic Code of Conduct.
If an incident of plagiarism is an isolated minor oversight or an obvious result of ignorance of proper citation requirements, the mentor may handle the matter as a learning exercise. Appropriate consequences may include the completion of tutorials, assignment rewrites, or any other reasonable learning tool in addition to a lower grade for the assignment or course. The mentor will notify the student and appropriate dean of the consequence by e-mail.
If the plagiarism appears intentional and/or is more than an isolated incident, the mentor will refer the matter to the appropriate dean, who will gather information about the violation(s) from the mentor and student, as necessary. The dean will review the matter and notify the student in writing of the specifics of the charge and the sanction to be imposed.
Possible sanctions include:
Copyright © 2019 by Thomas Edison State University. All rights reserved.


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The different reports I intend to comment on may seem a bit disconnected as you read this; however, I think you will see the common thread.
A little while ago I wrote Money, Medications and Motives, related to this report of a corrupt doctor who strongly promoted prescription of powerful antipsychotic medicines to children while receiving un-declared income of over $1.6 million from drug-makers. That New York Times article goes on to describe other doctors acting similarly and implies a systemic problem in the relationship between practicing physicians, academia and the massive medical industry.
This perspective was published in the New England Journal Of Medicine today (Volume 362:669-671 February 25, 2010 Number 8): Serving Two Masters — Conflicts of Interest in Academic Medicine, by Bernard Lo, M.D.
He comments on the recent introduction by Boston-based Partners HealthCare, which includes some of the nation's leading teaching hospitals, of strict limitations on the level of compensation appropriate for their officials for serving on boards of directors of biomedical companies or similar situations. I must admit, from my perspective, a limit of "$5,000 per day for the time spent at board meetings" seems a trifle loose; it certainly causes one to wonder what the unlimited compensation has been. He includes this comment in his conclusions:
The public grants the medical profession considerable discretion in setting its own standards because it trusts that physicians will place patients' interests ahead of their own or those of third parties. To maintain this trust, AHCs (academic health centers ) should take the lead in addressing conflicts of interest in medicine, rather than merely responding to government requirements and adverse publicity about troubling cases. Taking the initiative will promote a culture of accountability and a commitment to professionalism.
I could not agree more. Unfortunately, I think the gate has been left open too long and the horse has well and truly bolted. It is now time for agencies beyond academia and the medical profession to take a keener interest.
A couple of days ago an article was reported in TheHeart.org about an analysis performed by Dr Mohammed Hassan Murad (Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN) and colleagues of 202 papers or articles authored by medical professionals concerning Avandia. Coincidentally, an article in the UK Guardian newspaper reports that, after a two-year inquiry, the US Senate finance committee concluded that Glaxo Smith Kline knew of the link between Avandia and heart problems in 2004 but intimidated scientists to ensure favourable reports. You might note in that Guardian report "Glaxo firmly rejected the committee's findings, saying that 164 independent clinical trials have failed to find an association between Avandia and heart attacks."
Coincidence is a strange thing. Independently, as far as I can determine, Dr Murad and his colleagues examined the links some authors of papers and reports had with antihyperglycemic agent manufacturers and with rosiglitazone's manufacturer which may have conflicted with an unbiased report on the medication. Please read the full article; I don't wish to infringe copyright so I'll just mention the bare facts.
The analysts found that 107 of 202 papers or reports included a conflict-of-interest statement and 90 (45%) indicated a conflict existed.
Of the authors who concluded that no risk of heart problems are posed by rosiglitazone, 91% had financial relationships with antihyperglycemic agent manufacturers and 86% had relationships with rosiglitazone's manufacturer.
On the other hand, of authors who stated unfavourable opinions, only 25% had financial relationships with antihyperglycemic agent manufacturers and only 18% had relationships with rosiglitazone's manufacturer.
I don't think it takes a statistician to realise those numbers are significant. Who pays the piper calls the tune.
Earlier this month this brief statement appeared in the FDA news Drug Daily BulletinFeb. 2, 2010 Vol. 7 No. 22
Researcher Reaches Plea Agreement on Charge of Fabricating Data
A former influential pain drug researcher has reached a plea agreement with the Justice Department on a charge that he fabricated patient data. Federal prosecutors accused Scott Reuben, former chief of acute pain at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, Mass., of falsifying patient data in trials of painkillers, including Merck's Vioxx (rofecoxib) and Pfizer's Celebrex (celecoxib). Reuben agreed to plead guilty to one count of healthcare fraud.
News reports on that appeared in several places, this is a brief extract from Medpage Today:
A Massachusetts anesthesiologist accused of fabricating data in studies of pain drugs will plead guilty to federal criminal charges under an agreement with prosecutors.
Scott Reuben, MD, a well-known pain researcher at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, Mass., was charged with one count of healthcare fraud.
Early last year, the hospital announced that an internal audit had revealed that Reuben had made up research data out of whole cloth, affecting at least 21 published studies over a 15-year period. (See Special Report: Few Gaps in Analgesic Practice After Reuben Retractions) The criminal charge arose from one of those studies, funded by Pfizer and published in Anesthesia & Analgesia in 2007.
If you refer back to that article of mine on Money, Medications and Motives you will find that Celebrex was not Pfizer's big money maker. This is from 2007 figures:
"Pharmaceutical revenue from Pfizer's U.S. operations decreased last year as competition in the cholesterol market contributed to an 8 percent decline in revenues for the firm's flagship product Lipitor. The company's $48.6 billion 2007 total revenue was 1 percent better than its 2006 revenue of $48.4 billion.
Overall, the company's domestic revenue dropped 11 percent to $21.74 billion in 2007. Lipitor (atorvastatin calcium) had revenue of approximately $7.2 billion in the U.S. last year compared with approximately $7.85 billion in 2006. Worldwide Lipitor revenues were approximately $12.7 billion, a 2 percent decrease from 2006."
There are many countries in the UN that don't have a gross revenue like that. In 2007, if Pfizer was a country and not a manufacturer of pharmaceuticals, $48.4 billion would have positioned Pfizer 72nd out of 190 countries on the world rankings, just below Belarus and just above Luxembourg.
Until the FDA, TGA and other regulatory agencies can be absolutely confident that research studies are not only scientifically sound but are also not fraudulent, it appears to me that there is a case for agencies such as the FBI in the USA and equivalents in other countries to be involved in following the money trail during the process of approval of a medication for prescription by physicians.
There is the possibility that drugs like Lipitor and Celebrex save lives. But there is also the possibility that they kill people. All medications have side effects. Medications scientifically and honestly researched and trialled which provide detailed advice to regulators, physicians and patients of both the benefits and the risks can be a boon to mankind. For example, the risk of type 2 diabetes from Prednisone is well known, but the benefits for patients undergoing chemo are also significant. If a phsyician and patient decide to use that medication when fully aware of the risk, that is acceptable.
However, in my opinion, if a person deliberately falsifies or distorts influential reports on medications which lead to killing people who would not otherwise have died, and if others become aware of that consequence but deliberately falsify or suppress that information to profit from the sales of that medication, that person and those people should be charged with homicide, not just fraud.
Big fines will not cause a blip in the balance sheet of companies with resources like Pfizer. However, the possibility of being charged with murder may cause some second thoughts before repeating or facilitating actions such as the Celebrex scandal.
Resources such as the FBI are limited so their allocation needs to be targeted. An obvious starting point, in my opinion, would be to review ALL of the papers used by the FDA when making their decisions on statins, including Lipitor, Crestor, Zocor and all of othes presently approved.
Follow the money trail...
Cheers, Alan
Everything in Moderation - Except Laughter


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