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Inaccuracy in reporting astronomy and science
Inaccuracy in reporting astronomy and science
Jan 8 2007, 07:15 PM
Post #1
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I have just watched the BBC's report on the newly created 3D map of dark matter using Hubble data; and it made my heart sink.
I applaud the BBC for giving airtime to such discoveries, but for such a respected organisation their research was awful.
It's no wonder the vast majority of people are either bewildered or disinterested the the universe as a whole when the facts they are given are completely wrong.
It's a shame that tonight 60 million or so people in the UK and many other people around the world were told Hubble shone a beam of light out into the depths of the universe and studied how it was bent by the gravity of dark matter billions of light years away!
And this was a report from the BBCs science correspondant!
I remain downhearted that perhaps the most important story of the week was reported in such a shoddy manner.
Does anyone else feel space is being let down by TV coverage?
It's a funny old world - A man's lucky if he gets out of it alive. - W.C. Fields.
Jan 8 2007, 09:09 PM
Post #2
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Yes I do! Don't get me started...
Only programs worth watching are the xmas lectures and The Sky at Night - just caught up with the 650th edition - Fab!
Jan 8 2007, 10:37 PM
Post #3
I saw that report too, without a doubt the worst piece of journalism i've ever seen. Also, I think he said Hubble "fired a beam of light" LOL
Jan 8 2007, 10:51 PM
Post #4
The Poet Dude
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Absolutely appalling and - after yesterday's insulting scheduling of the 650th edition of THE SKY AT NIGHT at 01.55, another sign of BBC TV's disgraceful "dumbing down" of its science content. I was in another room so only heard the "fired a beam of light" line in the background, and was sure I'd misheard, but had it confirmed at my astronomical society's meeting tonight.
COME ON!!!! It's not rocket science... well okay, it is, kind of... but any 9 yr old space mad kid knows that Hubble COLLECTS light, not fires it out of its end like some ***** James Bond villain's laser cannon.
I'm literally baffled how a so-called "science correspondent" could get the story so totally wrong. But then again, this is the same broadcasting company that had Jonathan Cainer on a HORIZON talking about Pluto - the same Jonathan Cainer who wrote in his column today about how Comet McNaught is "a portent" and WILL shine "brighter than anything you've ever seen in the sky before..."
Jan 8 2007, 11:10 PM
Post #5
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The thing that worries me is that there must be many things reported by the media which I might accept, but which are just as badly mangled as those subjects about which I know something. Whether through sheer laziness, inertia, or their own agendas, I don't even trust the 'quality' media any more. I used to work for a TV and newspaper group, and I have to say that my illusions were shattered very early on.
Oh, and in case anyone is interested, HRH The Queen Mother *was* a reptiloid alien. Well, I can certainly attest to the fact that the picture desk guys always had to paint her teeth a different colour before publication - they really were quite, er, green...
One of the joys of the WWW is that at least we have somewhere like UMSF; as for the general space policy issues, well...
Bob Shaw
Remember: Time Flies like the wind - but Fruit Flies like bananas!
Jan 8 2007, 11:49 PM
Post #6
Quite a contrast the BBC online News report about it.
The problem is News networks employ a "science correspondent".... who must cover every aspect of science, which is impossible to do properly. And clearly this one knew absolutely nothing about astronomy/space science.
Jan 9 2007, 12:01 AM
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I just viewed the report myself. A link is at the top right of this page:
Incredible. If it was a live broadcast, then I'd have put it down to a slip-up... but an edited piece which surely must have been reviewed when it was written and put together... Argh!
Jan 9 2007, 01:39 AM
Post #8
Interplanetary Dumpster Diver
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The thing that worries me is that there must be many things reported by the media which I might accept, but which are just as badly mangled as those subjects about which I know something. W
I feel the same way. And not just because of space exploration. Whenever I see a local story covered that involves events I witnessed, or, occasionally, when things I have been involved in have been on the news, it is shocking how wrong reporters get it. I have reached a point in which I don't accept information from television news until I have verified it elsewhere.
The problem, I feel, comes from the fact that news reporters are, by and large, communications majors. In other words, they have been taught how to put together a story that will draw in readers, but they may have no background (and often don't) in the subject they are talking about.
I realized how pathetic the media situation in America has gotten while speaking to a friend of mine, who works for our local NBC affiliate.. She is trained in meteorology, as well as communications. Here in the Knoxville, Tennessee area, we live in a valley, between the Cumberland Plateau and the Smoky Mountains. She was trying to explain why we have had warmer air here in Knoxville than these two regions. She nearly lost her job for using the words "topography" and "altitude." According to NBC management, this was "too sophisticated" for ordinary viewers. This left me speechless.
Jan 9 2007, 01:48 AM
Post #9
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Wow. I have to say that as an American I'm probably even more appalled when hearing this. The BBC is considered the gold standard of English-language broadcast journalism by many of us (we're pretty accustomed to extreme scientific ignorance in our own media ) Well, there goes another fond illusion...
A few will take this knowledge and use this power of a dream realized as a force for change, an impetus for further discovery to make less ancient dreams real.
Jan 9 2007, 02:21 AM
Post #10
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Wow. I have to say that as an American I'm probably even more appalled when hearing this. The BBC is considered the gold standard of English-language broadcast journalism by many of us (we're pretty accustomed to extreme scientific ignorance in our own media ) Well, there goes another fond illusion...
We've got the same feeling in France too and I stongly back Bob and Ted when they say that, as I see how bad they report on what I know, it has to be the same for all subjects.
I just finish "Moondust" which is about how the Moonwalkers "felt down" to Earth and all the meaning of the Apollo program (highly recommendable). To give an exemple of how bad the general puublic understand "space" there is an exemple of somebody telling Denis Tito after he completed his flight to the ISS : so, you went to the Moon?!!!
I can hardly stand such ignorence.
I'll never thank Doug enough to have created UMSF.
Jan 9 2007, 09:48 AM
Post #11
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We've got the same feeling in France too and I stongly back Bob and Ted when they say that, as I see how bad they report on what I know, it has to be the same for all subjects.
Same here, and I'm pretty much convinced it's worldwide and not limited to TV but general media (read newspapers). When I do the every morning scan thru my bookmarks, I always start by UMSF and space related stuff and finish with the local spanish newspapers. Their coverage of space news is simply s*** and I have the feeling that in case I was on the medical business, for instance, I would say the same about med news coverage.
Jan 9 2007, 10:07 AM
Post #12
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The thing that worries me is that there must be many things reported by the media which I might accept, but which are just as badly mangled as those subjects about which I know something. Whether through sheer laziness, inertia, or their own agendas, I don't even trust the 'quality' media any more. I used to work for a TV and newspaper group, and I have to say that my illusions were shattered very early on.
Hehe Bob. You sound just like me a while ago. I don't think there's anything we can do about it, however. Realistically, we are the minority here...
Jan 9 2007, 10:30 AM
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It's not just the news that are incorrect and dumbed down. You see it everyday business. I work as a web designer and with most clients it is difficult to explain some concepts... like server space! It's like someone buying a car and not wanting to know that it as a tank.
I think that this type of thinking is one of the root problems in todays world. Although we live in a technological society were knowledge means power, most people prefer to know as little as possible... Media just adapts to the market :-(
Jan 9 2007, 12:59 PM
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My latest Sunday newspaper included as a gift a Discovery channel VCD documentary about colonizing Mars (of all things !).
Although it was supposed to be © 2005, I soon realized it was much much older, since it talked about plans to send Pathfinder to Mars !
It also mentioned that Cassini would reach Saturn at 2014, and how wonderful it would be that we would have something landing on Titan at the time
(This is as far as I was able to watch, at this point my wife suggested that I should either stop yelling or stop watching )
This was a documentary that reached about 100,000 homes last Sunday
Jan 9 2007, 01:32 PM
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Yes I saw that ridiculous dark matter report on BBC news as well. Has anybody contacted the BBC about it? I've noticed this kind of thing before when they make a brave effort to report a breaking scientific news story. Thery're usually much better when they've had time to digest the information and produce a properly researched documentary. It seems to be within the news team itself that the necessary science background is decidedly patchy. I wonder if anyone in news management actually comprehends how bad the howlers sometimes are?
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Was life created fully formed? Or did it evolve gradually by mutation and natural selection over millions of years? Why should anyone care?
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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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I'm a big fan of Antirez. I've been subscribed to his blog for a while.
I'm also a big fan of shoddy benchmarks. Maybe that makes me biased.
So, the sys/toilet guy writes a post benchmarking Redis vs Memcached and concludes that Memcached is faster and Redis doesn't do so well at setup and teardown.
Antirez responds: (emphasis mine)
Okay, fine. Sys/Toilet guy used some robust language in his post. Antirez has every right to respond in kind.
But the thing is…
I checked the implementation better and found a problem in the query parsing code that resulted in a quadratic algorithm due to a wrong positioned strchr() call.
Hmmm… sounds like the "crappy" benchmark helped. And what's more, there is already a (presumably decent) Redis benchmark that didn't pick up the issue.
So, sys/toilet guy, thanks for making Redis better. I appreciate it.


text:
While the home control networking market is undergoing a significant transition from closed-loop solutions to open, IP-aware solutions, Allied Business Intelligence (ABI), an Oyster-Bay, New York-based company, is reporting on the results. According to its report, "Home Automation Systems and IP-Based Control," the U.S. home automation and controls equipment market is expected to grow from $1.1 billion in 1999 to $3 billion in 2005.
"This market has historically been hurt by the lack of standards, expensive solutions, and industry fragmentation," says Navin Sabharwal, director of residential and networking technologies. "However, the outlook has improved considerably as industry participation extends beyond traditional home control system vendors and service providers."
ABI warns there are obstacles ahead. "The impact of these new and improved technologies will not materially be felt until 2002," says Sabharwal. "Moreover, the industry must still look to coverage on a single standard in the long-run, to enable true interoperability among mainstream-focused solutions."
For more details, visit www.alliedworld.com.


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I'd like to actually dissect the constitution as an end result of four thousand years of political philosophy, because to try to look at it any other way seems to me to be laughable. The Constitution as an idea, and everything we'd consider an enlightened democratic republic is an attempt to redress everything that failed about every government that preceeded it.
Plato understood the basic premise of sociology: People are flawed and will eventually fail at anything they attempt. In view of this, he described a five-step decay of government that ostensible naturally progress from one to the next, from greatest to meanest.
- Aristocracy: In a platonic aristocracy, the ruling class rules because they are best at it. They are rational, cooperative, intelligent, and work together for the common good. Eventually, however, there will arise those who achieve power because they are honored, not because they are wise. This leads to
- Timocracy: In a timocracy, the honored have achieved power without being wise enough to wield it properly. Plato saw this happening as a result of soldiers achieving power and being more concerned with defending personal honor than guiding society. Eventually, a few people rise above the others in an
- Oligarchy: A small group have achieved more power and wield it for their own good. They rose to power by manipulating the timocrats and now they hold it be stamping down everyone except their own little cabal. Soon the masses rise up in anarchy convinced there is a better life under a
- Democracy: Thinking that life will be better if they rule themselves, the unruly mob think they can make good decisions. In reality, though, they're perfect game for one man who raises himself above the rest in a
- Tyranny. He has gained control of the mob and rules solely for his own gain, and even though he may even run a tight ship, it's only for his own gain.
In essence the social contract as an abstract concept is an attempt to stop the degeneration of society into a tyranny. Over the course of history, we've seen that any form of government can be usurped by a single man or a corrupt group. The lines of kings in England get progressively stupider until King John, who was such a terrible ruler that the aristocracy actually manage to force him to sign the Magna Carta.
In the line of French kings, this is even more pronounced. The peasants cut off the head of their government, then descend into six weeks of anarchy and civil unrest that practically destroyed the country. They were eventually able to get a constitution based partly on the American one, but the descent was a long time coming.
Enter the American constitution. Not the Amendments, but the constitution itself. It's a masterpiece of contract work that describes exactly what the various powers belonging to different branches of government are. Each branch is arranged in opposition to the other with overlapping powers so that as power-hungry people rise to government, everyone winds up getting in each other's ways. Until social mores change on a massive, society-wide level, everyone just winds up butting heads to maintain the status quo.
As far as the amendments go, there's an important trend to notice. Of the twenty-seven amendments to the constitution, there are only eight that don't grant or protect the rights of the citizenship, and only one that removes rights from the citizenships. That one was shortly thereafter repealed. None of those eight are of the original ten. Regardless of the arguments over specifics, it's very hard to argue that the bill of rights is intended to do anything other than protect people from abuses of power by the government.
Furthermore, since the government only rules by the consent of the people, (barring a military coup) there's a limited amount of damage that even an insane leader can do. Attempts to seriously damage the rights of the people can be summarily deemed illegal by the judicial branch. Our armed forces are sworn to defend the constitution, not the president. The person of the president is not held sacred by law. As a social contract it seems to be a fairly effective one. Even Dubya was president for less than a decade. The damage he did will fade. It's not like he was king for a generation.
If the US constitution is a source of morality, does that mean the US can deny me the use of weaponary because I'm Dutch? Are those who do not live in the US, and therefore probably don't know what the Constitution is about exactly (like me - I know it's like 'grondwet' we've got here, but not much beyond that) and don't live by it, immoral?
For those who care, the 'grondwet' is basically the constitutional law which limits the power / might of our goverment and consists of the basic rights a dutch citisen has and stuff like that. I dunno what's it called in English.
Interestingly, by a strict reading, no. The constitution never actually limits its protection to citizens only, or even Americans only. In practice, it can't protect those under another regime without essentially declaring war, but it limits what the US government can do to any person, not just Americans.
Of course, this just means the american government is not permitted to limit your freedom of speech or incarcerate you without cause.
The constitution isn't really a moral code, though. It contains no proscriptions for the citizenship, no commandments for everyday life. Only protections against the government.
I think it can be easily viewed as a moral code for governments, or, ostensibly, how a community should interact, without necessarily commenting on how individuals should act with one another. Applying it to individuals is where it gets tricky, and largely depends on the amount of power the individual wields over the masses.
Who says a moral code needs to dictate what duties one should perform on a daily basis? One could be, I suspect, broadly-enough defined to allow for a wide range of variation within, and not fall short of being "a moral code".
I have a harder time seeing it as a moral code for communities in general than for governments. With governments, there's an implied element of asymmetry, that is not always present in communities. While the thought process that led to it's formation could easily be used to come up with a moral code for various different social organizations, but I don't think it works in general without heavy modification.
"Government", in my mind, refers to far more organization than I think large bodies of people necessarily interact. For instance, I think you could easily substitute the term "community" in the first amendment and it stands up fine on its own:
The comunity shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the community for a redress of grievances.


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Frenetic: The Hook's Film Fest Guide-O-Rama
Wasn't it just yesterday that Patricia Kluge started a little film festival in Charlottesville?
Nope, that was 17 years ago, and if past years' Southern or film noir fests still seem fresh in your mind, that's an example of how time flies.
Which segues nicely into this year's Virginia Film Festival theme, "Speed." And we're not just talking fast cars or methamphetamines– although both certainly have a place in this festival.
Look for the speed of life, as well as the speed of light. Look for speed as in slow, what the festival dubs the "cinema of contemplation." Look for Attention Deficit Disorder, with over 60 events, from regional premieres of "important" movies to a Slow Foods brunch, all vying for our limited attention spans.
Then there are the subcategories– the premiere selection, with its "Virginia filmmakers" and "Southern gothic" subsections, and a sub-subcategory trend, the fresh-out-of-prison movies.
How's a beleaguered festival-goer to focus?
By turning to The Hook's Guide-O-Rama, which helps viewers avoid spinning their wheels by thoughtfully stereotyping filmgoers to determine their best bets.
Fasten your seatbelts. It's going to be a bumpy ride.
The traditionalist
Frankly, some of these fast-paced movies with the jerky camera give you a headache. When you want an action movie, you think John Wayne.
Accessory: A big wad of tissues
Motto: "They don't make 'em the way they used to."
Angels- A modern day Scrooge story? Well, you've always loved A Christmas Carol, and who doesn't like angels? In fact, you probably collect them. And with so many locals– Boomie Pedersen, E. Danny Murphy, Theresa Dowell-Vest, and Dave Matthews and Coran Capshaw's ATO Records– involved in this Paul Wagner directed/Karl Ackerman co-written work-in-progress, expect to see your neighbors or their names up on the big screen. (7pm Friday, October 29, Culbreth) [Thank goodness, this is no longer titled Anjlz. –editor]
Mondovino- This Jonathan Nossiter documentary is the real-life Falcon Crest, where traditional winemakers are threatened by globalization and standardization the way Jane Wyman was by unscrupulous relatives and rival winemakers. Crozetian Rick Preve produced Mondovino, which was invited to compete at Cannes. Wine importer Neal Rosenthal, who appears in the film, will be at the Sunday screening. That's followed by a $75 brunch at Mas, with wines picked by Rosenthal and sponsored by Slow Foods, a group that wants to keep making food– and wine– the way they used to. (7:15pm Friday, October 29, Regal 5. The 10:15am Sunday, October 31, show is SOLD OUT)
The Great Escape- Every time you see this 1963 three-hour epic, you keep hoping that this time Steve McQueen will finally jump that fence. The brave fellows who don't make it– the all-star cast includes James Garner, Richard Attenborough, Charles Bronson, Donald Pleasence, and James Coburn– always make you cry, no matter how many times you've seen it. (10am Sunday, October 31, Culbreth)
Speedy- Harold Lloyd, though overshadowed by Chaplin and Keaton, remains one of the silent-film comedy greats. Playing a fired soda jerk-turned cabbie, he drives Babe Ruth– yeah, the real Babe– to Yankee Stadium. They sure don't make horse-drawn trolley chase scenes anymore. You can take your grandchildren to see this 1928 moving picture free of worries about smutty language or inappropriate behavior. Art Wheeler provides live musical accompaniment. (2pm Sunday, October 31, Culbreth)
Paper Clips- A group of non-Jewish middle school children in Whitwell, Tennessee, forego video games and think of someone other than themselves. The kids are moved to collect six million paper clips– one for every person killed in the Holocaust. Inspirational. Producer Bob Johnson attends the area premiere. (1pm Friday, October 29, Regal 4)
Was this festival themed for you or what? You so dig the fact that– with just a digital camera and a credit card– you sidestep the whole Hollywood commercialization dynamic. Although, if they want to distribute your film, that's cool, too.
Accessory: Piercings
Motto: "It's all about art that's not fed through the capitalist death machine."
Adrenaline Film Project- You're probably already in this, but for those who haven't kept up, 13 teams of filmmakers crank out a movie in three days and show the results on Sunday. Jeff Wadlow, winner of the Chrysler Million Dollar Film Competition (and son of the late Emily Couric) leads the charge and screens his latest efforts– Catching Kringle and a trailer from Cry Wolf. (4pm Sunday, October 31, Culbreth)
Jeff Wadlow
Synaesthesiologists- Back at the end of the 19th century, Huysman's hero in the decadent classic A Rebours experimented with "synesthesia," using a "mouth organ" to make music through taste. Modern synaesthesiologists create "visual music," and this collection of films was a smash at this year's New York Video Festival. Audiovisualist David Last is on hand to present the genre Thursday– and DJ Spinoza spins the dance party Friday. (10pm Thursday, October 28, Regal 4; Party 9pm Friday, October 29, Satellite Ballroom)
Extreme Time Program- In Andy Warhol's original version of Empire, he aimed a camera at the Empire State Building for eight hours. Mercifully, it's been cut to a 46-minute excerpt. Michael Snow does a variation on that theme in his 1967 Wavelength, and WVLNT is his 15-minute compression of the same. (10am Saturday, October 30, Vinegar Hill)
Tarnation- Can you say "cine-diary"? Jonathan Caouette goes borderline documentary/avant garde in his home movie about growing up gay with a mentally ill mother. The film's $218 budget only added to its allure at Sundance. (10pm Saturday, October 30, Regal 4)
Spicebush- UVA art prof Kevin Everson [see sidebar] had 10 times Caouette's budget, but that still adds up to only two grand for his experimental collage of narratives using amateur actors. Sundance wants him. (4pm Sunday, October 31, Vinegar Hill)
Action Dude
You like devastating carnage in your cinematic experience. High body count, massive explosions, hundreds of wrecked vehicles? Good times! Large breasts and cleavage? Even better.
Accessory: Nunchuck
Motto: "I ain't going to no chick flick."
Faster- Motorcycles at 200 mph not driven by stunt drivers. Director Mark Neale catches two poised-for-disaster years of Motorcycle Grand Prix. Like NASCAR, only even more dangerous. (7pm Thursday, October 28, Regal 4)
Two-Lane Blacktop- Drag racing across America in a '55 Chevy with James Taylor and Beach Boy Dennis Wilson? Yeah [see sidebar]. Don't be put off by little film buff snots who call this 1971 flick an existential cult classic. You'll see it because "You can never go fast enough." (7:15pm Thursday, October 28, Regal 5)
Speed- The daddy rabbit of all fast bus movies, it's got bombs, it's got a runaway subway, it's got Dennis Hopper. Need we say more? This launched the career of Sandra Bullock and gave Keanu Reeves the action lead chops that led to The Matrix. Hard to believe it's been 10 years since it pulled away from the curb. Screenwriter Graham Yost and producer Mark Gordon will be on hand. (10pm Friday, October 29, Culbreth)
Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!- Three strippers on a murderous rampage in hot cars? You're there. Thanks to the late, great Russ Meyer for those lethal breasts. Sure, these babes are deadly– but you'd do 'em. And just ignore those revisionists now calling this low-budget 1965 flick "feminist." Keep thinking "sexploitation." (10pm Friday, October 29, Newcomb Hall)
Bullitt- Really, has there ever been a better chase scene than Steve McQueen flying through the hills of San Francisco in a Mustang GT? Of course not. That sealed McQueen's claim to "king of cool," the savvy cop who gets Jacqueline Bisset. Long-time McQueen stuntman Loren Janes [see sidebar] will be on hand. (1pm Saturday, October 30, Culbreth)
Indie snob
Fall is your favorite film-going season. You've survived the summer of inane blockbusters; now you can sink your teeth into some serious cinema. This year's Film Fest is even better than usual for getting a jump on upcoming films you'd actually consider seeing.
Accessory: A sneer
Motto: "It got raves at Sundance."
The Woodsman- Charlottesville-raised, NYU film school grad Nicole Kassell made her directorial debut at Sundance and kicks off the Virginia Film Festival. A just-out-of-jail pedophile played by Kevin Bacon tries to put his past behind him and stay away from parks. With Benjamin Bratt, Kyra Sedgwick, and David Alan Grier, The Woodsman is set for release December 24. (8pm Thursday, October 28, Culbreth– SOLD OUT. Additional show 1pm Saturday, October 30, Regal 4)
Pickpocket shot-by-shot- The auteur-ville combo of Robert Bresson and Paul Schrader is enough to make any indie snob swoon. Supposedly based on Crime and Punishment, Bresson's 1959 classic examines the beauty of criminal compulsion– a theme revisited by Schrader in American Gigolo and Light Sleeper. Schrader sits in for Roger Ebert to look more closely at key scenes, and he's joined by film scholar Roger Kolker. (Pickpocket 10am Friday, October 29, Regal 4; Shot-by-shot at 4pm Friday, October 29, Regal 4)
Undertow- Terence Malick protégé David Gordon Green screens his newest film, one of the Southern gothics in this year's festival. Billy Elliott's Jamie Bell along with Dermot Mulroney and Josh Lucas– as the evil, just-out-of-jail uncle– star in this poetic thriller set in Georgia. (10pm Friday, October 29, Regal 4)
Chrystal- Billy Bob Thornton kills his child and cripples his wife, Lisa Blount, in a car wreck. Twenty years later, out of jail and returning to a Southern gothic Arkansas, Thornton mixes it up with director Ray McKinnon, who plays a crank addict in the movie. McKinnon and Blount are on hand for this regional premiere. (7pm Saturday, October 30, Regal 4)
Kinsey- Liam Neeson takes on the role of 1930s sexual research pioneer Alfred Kinsey in Bill Condon's new film that also stars the sublime Laura Linney, the sublime Oliver Platt, his Three Musketeers buddy Chris O'Donnell, and Timothy Hutton. (10pm Saturday, October 30, Culbreth)
Autograph hound
Much as you'd like to take it in stride, you still get flustered when you see John Grisham or Sissy Spacek around town. In your choice of Film Fest events, star power weighs heavily, but you'll consider soon-to-be stars– or even friends of friends of celebs.
Accessory: Autograph book
Motto: "Do you have a pen?"
Miss Congeniality- America's sweetheart, Sandra Bullock, snags the Virginia Film Award just for showing up. And, well, she's a Virginian, too. And she was in Speed– but couldn't get here the night it's screened. As a consolation prize, Bullock brings a clip of her upcoming sequel, Miss Congeniality 2. That will be followed by the 2000 original with Bullock as the snorting FBI agent transformed into a beauty pageant swan. (7pm Saturday, October 30, Culbreth– SOLD OUT)
Light Sleeper- Just for writing the screenplays for Taxi Driver and Raging Bull, Paul Schrader's place in the pantheon of America film is secure. But he directed Richard Gere in American Gigolo and 1992's Light Sleeper, starring Willem Dafoe and Susan Sarnadon as drug dealers. Sarandon's announcement she's leaving the business causes a career crisis for Dafoe. (7pm Friday, October 29, Regal 4)
The Golden Era of NASCAR- Yes, director John Warner [see sidebar] is the son of Senator John Warner, and, yes, his daddy, who was married to Elizabeth Taylor, will be there. But don't ask either Warner about that. Instead, in this second of Warner's racing film trilogy, enjoy watching how stockcar-driving moonshiners cleaned up their acts under the legendary Bill France to become the money machine NASCAR is today. And ask 'em if they know Richard Petty or Number 3. (4pm Saturday, October 30, Culbreth)
Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus- As if we haven't hammered the Southern gothic theme enough, here's one more, a documentary that follows "sad core" musician Jim White driving around the South in a 1970 Chevy Impala with a life-size Jesus hanging out of the trunk. Music is the opiate of the poor Southern masses. (4pm Saturday, October 30, Regal 4; White performs 7pm Saturday at the Gravity Lounge)
The Cruise- Fast-talking Speed Levitch stars as a Gray Line Manhattan tour guide in this award-winning 1998 documentary about his "Cruise philosophy"– life as a freewheeling adventure. Apparently Levitch is known for the "couch surf," relying upon the kindness of strangers– and friends– for places to stay. Whose bed will he end up in? Not a one-city guide, Levitch leads two cruises around the Lawn October 30. (The Cruise 4pm Friday, October 29, Culbreth; walking tours at 12 and 2pm Saturday– SOLD OUT)
COVER SIDEBAR- Venues: Please be seated
Most of the screenings will take place in two theaters of the Regal Downtown 6 this year.
Vinegar Hill, normally a festival stalwart, is being used only for Saturday and Sunday afternoon screenings. By devoting its one screen to the Film Festival, "their film broker said they were damaging their chances of getting good openings," explains festival director Richard Herksowitz
The biggest shows– and stars– go to Culbreth Theatre– the most uncomfortable theater in town for watching movies. Refreshment offerings usually are sketchy, and food and drink are forbidden in the theater, so it's probably best to bring your own snacks and sneak them in– taking your wrappages with you when you leave, of course.
The Virginia Festival kicks off with a swanky gala October 28 at the University Art Museum. Fifty-dollar tickets keep most of the riffraff out.
The town's upstart acoustic venue, the Gravity Lounge, hosts Jim White's October 30 concert.
At Newcomb Hall Theater, UVA students will get their first tastes of Faster, Pussy Cat! Kill! Kill! at 10pm screenings October 29 and 30. Mature elders can catch Control Room , Al-Jazeera's coverage of the war in Iraq, October 31 at 3pm.
The Synaesthesiologist Party takes place Friday night in the hidden Satellite Ballroom behind Plan 9 on the Corner.


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"I really hadn't realized how important it is to put your best face forward – I always figured my career history speaks for itself. Your rewrite pointed out that all I've done is listed the responsibilities I was able to handle, but not what value-added I was able to provide. DUH! I am ecstatic that I invested in a new resume.
Deborah J., Ft. Washington, MD


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Left-Handed Classical & Nylon Guitars
The left handed classical nylon guitar is an instrument with history waiting to be unlocked. With its timeless sound and style, you will love developing your technique on one of these truly special guitars. There was a time when it was difficult for left handed players to find a classical guitar that suited their needs. There was also a time when classical guitar strings were made of catgut. Luckily for everyone, both of those problems are behind us and you can now easily find the nylon stringed classical guitar that is right for you. Buying a new instrument can be a challenging process. It is important to know what you're looking for to ensure you make a wise purchase and enjoy your instrument for years to come. With classical nylon guitars, there are a number of factors to keep in mind before making your purchase. The soundboard, or the top of your guitar, will play an important role in shaping your experience. Simply put, different materials provide you with different results. A classical guitar with a spruce top, such as the Taylor 200 model, offers a crisp sound, where as a cedar top like the Etude QI from La Patrie showcases warmer, dark tones. Knowing the kind of sound you're looking to achieve is crucial when making your purchase. Also important is the size of the neck on your classical guitar. You'll want to make sure it fits comfortably in your hand so you are able to easily make your way around the fret board. You don't want to strain your hand by playing a guitar with a neck that is too big. A general rule is the bigger the guitar, the bigger the neck, so keep that in mind as you make your choice. Body shape should also be considered when purchasing a classical nylon guitar. If you plan on making use of the upper frets, you will want to consider a guitar with a cut away body design such as the Kremona Rondo R65CW. A cut away provides easier access to the fret board, allowing you to explore a more complete range of notes and keys. In the end, the best left handed classical nylon guitar for you is the one that helps you feel a connection to the music you love. Many guitars will sound better with time as they begin to "open up," producing sounds even more beautiful than the ones you created the first time you sat down with it. No matter what style of music you're hoping to play, you can rest assured that there is a left handed classical guitar out there for you.


text: Reveal Radio: Pilot 1 segments by CIR published on 2013-09-25T17:34:14Z Reveal is a new investigative program from the The Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX. In this pilot: an exclusive story about the volume and impact stemming from the VA's over-prescripton of opiates to addicted veterans; the attorney behind many of the worst for-profit charities; bodycams for cops; and how one reporter helped one man prove his brother had been abused at a state mental facility. Hosted by Al Letson from State of the Re:Union and WJCT, Jacksonville. Genre Radio Show


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April 13, 2010
Jill Damion had an idea of what her college experience would be like even before it started. The sister of former Gaucho tennis player Leslie Damion already knew about all UC Santa Barbara had to offer academically and athletically.
The path that seemed so clear ended up being bumpier than expected, and with a few more curves than she anticipated.
The first bump in the road was figurative and literal. Damion was in a bike accident towards the end of her freshman year that left her with a broken wrist.
After giving the broken wrist some time to heal, she began playing tennis again in the fall. The wrist did not feel fully recovered, and Damion needed surgery that caused her to miss a few more months of tennis.
The whole ordeal was just a warm-up for the next injury, which at one point appeared to be a dead end for her tennis career.
About a year ago Damion was experiencing pain in her shoulder, and it escalated to the point that she was no longer able to play tennis. She had previously torn her rotator cuff in high school, but this time the damage was severe enough that doctors warned her that there was a good chance she may never be able to play tennis again after undergoing surgery.
She was told that the best case scenario would require at least six-to-nine months of rehab before she could even consider playing tennis again. Naturally, Damion was on the court about six months later.
"Even though they said I might not play again, I had no doubt in my mind that I would," recalls Damion. "I figured what's another year of pain, I'll just work around it."
Coach Pete Kirkwood recognizes the importance of having Damion on the team for her excellent play as well as for her positive impact on her teammates.
Damion is co-captain of the team, but she has another role that may be equally as important, the "food ring-leader."
She often organizes team dinners, which contribute to the team aspect of a sport based largely on individual performances. "I've learned most of our social gatherings revolve around food," she says.
Kirkwood understands and appreciates having a player of her caliber who also plays a big role in forming the team identity. "You need someone who can make everyone laugh, and she can do that."
While her contributions to the team off the court are undeniable, the way she performs on the court is just as impressive.
As a freshman playing in the number two spot at the Big West tournament, Damion dropped the first set against Cal Poly's Steffi Wong, a player she had never beaten before. That did not stop her from rallying back and winning the next two sets to clinch the match for the Gauchos.
Damion has earned a reputation as a clutch player. Last year, she won a third set tie-breaker to win the deciding match in a 4-3 victory over Dartmouth.
"With her injuries, this is a third chance for her," added Kirkwood. "She really appreciates it, and her enthusiasm rubs off."
The UCSB women's tennis team has benefited from having such a good relationship with a tennis family like the Damions. "I know I'm lucky to get two of them, but I wish more were coming," said Kirkwood.
Damion recently took the time to answer some questions about herself.
1. What are your favorite things to do when you're not playing tennis?
"Relax at home, listen to music and cook/bake."
3. What is your favorite class you've taken at UCSB? Favorite Professor?
"Substance Abuse with Rich Powell."
4. What is your favorite food?
"Anything Italian."
5. What is the best part about waking up in Santa Barbara every day?
"Knowing that I'm surrounded by friends."
6. Where is your favorite place to play tennis?
"Indian Wells."
7. What will you miss the most about life at UCSB after you graduate?
"Having my own apartment and getting to play tennis everyday."
9. What is your favorite thing to do on an off day?
"Enjoy my time off and go shopping with friends."
10. What is your favorite movie?
"All the Harry Potter movies."
11. Who is your favorite musician/band?
"Story of the Year."
12. Who is the best player you've ever played tennis against?
"Taylor Dent."
13. What is your favorite place to eat in Isla Vista?
"Sam's To Go."
14. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?
15. What actress would play you in a movie about your life?
"Sarah Michelle Gellar."
16. What is your favorite sport to watch other than tennis?
"Baseball - but only if the Angels are playing."
17. Who is your favorite author?
"Janet Evanovich."
19. Is there a motto that you live by?
"Follow your bliss. Choose your fate."
20. In one word, how would you describe UCSB tennis?


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About Us | Our Team | Contact Us | Join Our Team
A Division of My Luxury Cruises
(416) 486-4646 | (800) -518-3435
The Wizard of Oasis: One Cruiser's Review of Oasis of the Seas
by Nickyla Marso
Vendor Relations Manager,
Cruise Holidays International
One of my all time favorite movies is "The Wizard of Oz."
The variation of scenes…the non-stop activity…the incredible color schemes all came into play throughout a fascinating story. It truly was a great movie.
I recently sailed on the Oasis of the Seas, and I had another, mind-blowing "Oz" moment. Remember the part in the movie where the house had just touched down after the tornado, and Dorothy stepped into the wonderful world of Munchkinland? That's how I felt when I stepped onboard the Oasis. No, I didn't see lots of little people, but I did see a "land" that was beautiful to behold and jaw-dropping at every turn. I had come across my own Emerald City that offered even more activity and excitement – without the Wicked Witch. This ship had more "yellow brick roads" than you can imagine, each taking you to a different neighborhood with its own special amenities and a wealth of activity.
The accommodations were such that even Glenda the Good Witch would envy, with two-story lofts, whirlpool tubs, flat screen TVs, wrap-around balconies, and views to the best entertainment at sea.
Performers were flying through the air higher and faster than the Wicked Witch could soar, and dived into a shimmering pool – something that the witch certainly shied away from, given her fear of water…That would probably keep her from the two onboard surfing areas as well, even though she would be able to take surfing lessons if she wanted to.
When Dorothy reached for the apple from the apple tree, the tree grabbed the apple and slapped her hand. No fear of that happening onboard when you're reaching for food at any one of the 19 dining venues. In fact, it's difficult to get to them all in one week, so you have to make a point to come back onboard. Anything from sushi to steak to incredible Italian cuisine; and then there are the desserts. Impeccable service is delivered at every turn.
If Dorothy could only have taken advantage of the new Interactive Boards on every deck of the Oasis, she wouldn't have gotten into trouble so many times. The Board gives you information on where you are, where entertainment, activity and dining venues are, where rooms are and will map your course to get you there! It will even give you wait times for any of the dining venues.
The poor, poor Wicked Witch of the West – if only she had tried out the new Vitality Spa and Fitness area, she wouldn't have been so jealous of Dorothy. She could have evened out that disgusting green skin tone, had her hair done so she could ditch the hat, and enjoyed a nice manicure and pedicure. Then she could have gone shopping in one of the many upscale shops, looking for something other than that drab basic black that everyone's already seen her in. And the Tin Man could have consistently been a well-oiled machine.
The night life onboard the Oasis is teeming with great talent – Comedy clubs, jazz clubs, singles spots – speaking of lounges, there are 24 of them onboard. There's the Broadway production of "Hairspray" in the Opal Theatre, and a fabulous ice show as well – no crystal ball needed here to find a fun place to be – it's all over the ship.
The Adventure Club for kids ages 3-17 is teeming with activity to keep anyone from getting bored. Video arcade games, teen lounges, age-specific activities make this area fun for all. Even the winged monkeys would have enjoyed the time away from the Wicked Witch in a place like this.
During the day, people can enjoy the activities in the Sports Neighborhood – The Cowardly Lion might just get up enough courage to try out the first zip line at sea, or the 43 foot high rock walls. For a more sedate adventure, he can challenge someone to miniature golf, or ride on the first Carousel at Sea. Rumor has it, though, that he loves the salon, too.
If you're not into fun in the sun, there's the strategy of black jack or roulette in the Casino Royale, or Trivia games that the Scarecrow would be tops in – he'll probably also want to take in some of the historical publications in the ship's vast library, or e-mail Auntie Em to tell her just what she's missing in the internet café.
Let's not forget about Toto – there's a Pets at Sea program where Dorothy can make a stuffed animal to bring back to him – complete with outfits!
The witch's guards and winged warriors can take some time off and talk war stories while enjoying the rising tide bar – a 32 passenger bar that moves up and down three decks. No sense in chasing Dorothy – where could she go, anyway???
Time to get ready for the big parade at the Royal Promenade – everyone will be there, greeting talented performers in their colorful costumes. Afterward, we'll take a stroll in the Central Park neighborhood and enjoy the thousands of plants in the park. Dorothy, you're definitely not in Kansas anymore...
The next time you want to visit this Wizard, call your Personal Cruise Expert at Cruise Holidays.


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Grey's AnatomyThursdays 8:00 PM on ABC
Sad 'Zona
- Photo Credit:
- Pending
- Show:
- Grey's Anatomy
- Episode:
- Grey's Anatomy Season 6 Episode 2: "Goodbye"
- Related Photos:
- Grey's Anatomy Photos, Grey's Anatomy Season 6 Episode 2 Photos
- Uploaded by:
- Steve Marsi
- Uploaded:
Grey's Anatomy Season 6 Episode 2 Quotes
Lexie: [narrating] Grief may be a thing we all have in common, but it looks different on everyone.
Mark: It isn't just death we have to grieve. It's life. It's loss. It's change.
Alex: And when we wonder why it has to suck so much sometimes, has to hurt so bad. The thing we gotta try to remember is that it can turn on a dime.
Izzie: That's how you stay alive. When it hurts so much you can't breathe, that's how you survive.
Derek: By remembering that one day, somehow, impossibly, you won't feel this way. It won't hurt this much.
Bailey: Grief comes in its own time for everyone, in its own way.
Owen: So the best we can do, the best anyone can do, is try for honesty.
Meredith: The really crappy thing, the very worst part of grief is that you can't control it.
Arizona: The best we can do is try to let ourselves feel it when it comes.
Callie: And let it go when we can.
Meredith: The very worst part is that the minute you think you're past it, it starts all over again.
Cristina: And always, every time, it takes your breath away.
Meredith: There are five stages of grief. They look different on all of us, but there are always five.
Alex: Denial.
Derek: Anger.
Bailey: Bargaining.
Lexie: Depression.
Richard: Acceptance.
- Permalink: Grief may be a thing we all have in common, but it looks differe...
- Added:
The dictionary defines grief as keen mental suffering or distress over affliction or loss; sharp sorrow; painful regret. As surgeons, as scientists, we're taught to learn from and rely on books, on definitions, on definitives. But in life, strict definitions rarely apply. In life, grief can look like a lot of things that bear little resemblance to sharp sorrow.Meredith (narrating)
- Permalink: The dictionary defines grief as keen mental suffering or distres...
- Added:
Grey's Anatomy Season 6 Episode 2 Music
|Today Has Been Ok
|Emiliana Torrini
|Katie Herzig


text:
Olympics-related scams were in full swing as the Games continued, with unsophisticated bulk phishing scams trying to extract hard-earned from punters and search engines dishing up fake Olympic Games domains.
An upgrade of Australia's payment-card security has delivered mixed results, while security executives were warning that mobile apps have become a major new attack vector for cyber criminals. Growing security fears amongst users are destroying user trust in mobile finance, with new 'Shylock' malware replacing the contact phone numbers in online banking sites and the industry reeling from frauds such as a £2.5m deception perpetrated by a Lloyds head of security for online banking.
Even as the Reveton email-based financial malware scam grew, reports suggested surveillance malware was monitoring Middle Eastern banks; it was christened 'Gauss' and has quickly gained notoriety as the latest state-sponsored cyber-espionage tool. Gauss detection tools were soon on offer from two security organisations as discussions and analysis suggested the new Flame variant reflects a boom in malware tools.
Cloud applications could well become a target too, with Apple licking its wounds after a socially-engineered iCloud hack caused problems for journalist Mat Honan and forced Apple to stop password resets over the phone. This notorious hack led Google to push for two-factor authentication as a new survey confirming that around half of companies use cloud-based services to store sensitive data, using a variety of encryption mechanisms.
That could be a worry as statistics show a growing trend towards privacy breaches and regular attacks, with Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak blasting cloud-hosted security. A data breach at the US EPA was part of a 19% increase in privacy breaches from 2010 to 2011, while a survey suggested Web applications are attacked, on average, once every three days. Some executives want to get more proactive in fighting back, while some industry experts argued that IT executives will struggle to enforce security policies without a system of rewards. And CSO wrapped up other conclusions from recent security conferences.
Australia's privacy commissioner confirmed to CSO that he won't be pushing Google to provide Street View 'payload' data that was supposedly destroyed last year, even as the company cops a $US22.5m fine over its circumvention of privacy controls in Apple's Safari browser.
Google was worrying some with the increasing integration of Gmail and Google search, but it wasn't the only offender: a privacy breach by a UK health trust copped a £175,000 ($A260,000) fine, while online games giant Blizzard Entertainment said its internal network had been breached by hackers and Facebook's own privacy settlement got the nod from the US FTC.
Symantec came out warning that hackers have taken a shine to small businesses, while a report suggested US and China-based attacks increased in the first quarter of this year and other criminals are targeting payroll administrators with emailed malware. Even as it patched 14 new Internet Explorer vulnerabilities, Microsoft announced that Windows 8 and its bundled IE10 would include a 'do not track' option, and Google announced that it had built a stronger 'sandbox' for Flash within the Windows version of Chrome.
Security firm Kaspersky is working to tighten security within notoriously-insecure industrial control systems by building a new SCADA operating system. It would counter infrastructure attacks such as those by Flame, Stuxnet and related malware that has targeted Iran's industrial complex – which may itself get a new defence as that country moves to set up a secure intranet that isolates those systems from the outside world.
Nvidia was busy patching a video driver bug that facilitated root access on Linux systems, while Trend Micro expanded its cloud-security infrastructure. And none too soon: new spyware called FinFisher is apparently letting hackers record Skype conversations, log keystrokes and turn on a victim computer's webcam and microphone – and has been found on five continents.
Such behaviour may be a problem on your home or work computer, but it's the core of a new security platform: Microsoft and the New York Police Department debuted a jointly developed counter-terrorism system that helps find suspects with technology like data analytics, smart cameras and license plate readers.
That sort of system may provide eyes on the ground, but the Obama administration is reportedly considering an executive order that would force government agencies and critical infrastructure owners to implement better controls to secure their networks. The US Department of Energy is following suit, pushing for utilities to create 'cybersecurity governance boards' that would boost the priority of cybersecurity in their formal security and data-sharing programs.
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Nerd Lunch: A couple of notes about Burger King…
04 05
23 24 25 26 27 28 31 32 33
A couple of notes about Burger King…
Last fall, we got a pretty decent coupon for Burger King. For one cent less than $10, we got:
1 Whopper
1 Whopper, Jr.
10 piece chicken tenders
3 small fries
3 small drinks
2 pies
Pretty good deal that fed our family quite nicely. After the coupon expired, they brought it back as a regular promotion but changed a few of the items. They dropped the chicken, pies, one of the fries, and one of the drinks and replaced them with a kid's meal. Not horrible bad trade. That would have still worked for us although we might have had to supplement a little bit. And by not getting pies, it would have meant no one fought about pies.
I don't think this promotion is going on right now, but let me belatedly applaud BK for this promotion. Jeeg mentioned on the podcast a few weeks ago about the dwindling fast food deals like this. I like the idea of buying a big sack of food and feeding my entire family for around $10. It's why we go to Taco Bell so often.
The only downside is the fries. While I like Whoppers and their inexplicably good chicken sandwich, I've not ever been a big fan of their fries. BK has changed out their fries recently for a thicker cut. I was hoping this would translate to a new flavor, but it's just a thicker version of the same-tastin' fries. If you're stuck paying full price for a side at BK, I still recommend going with the onion rings.
Perhaps next time I post about Burger King, I will be reviewing what I think of their
delivery service
Burger King
by Carlin Trammel
35 36 37 38


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Never Givin' Up
- 2004 26 Apr
Folks who follow the world of pop music – Christian or otherwise – know that the release of a "greatest hits" album usually signifies the closing of some chapter in the artist's life or career. It may be the last release on that particular label as the artist prepares to sign a new contract with another; or it may be the end of a particular endeavor, such as a band or vocal group.
For über-group Avalon, last year's "Testify to Love: The Very Best of Avalon" did not mark the group's final release for Sparrow Records, neither did it signify the end of the Avalon era. After all, the group's sixth album of new material (and eighth release overall), "The Creed" (Sparrow), hit the shelves in late February. So why should anyone assume there might have been trouble in paradise? Unless, of course, it was true.
It's been said that bad news comes in triplicate; and it's often not that first blow that levels you or even the one-two punch of the second, but it's that unexpected third sucker punch that scores the total knockout.
As original member Janna Long remembers it, "The moment, for me, came last summer. We had already been through so much two years ago and then to have Michael [Passons] leave last summer just basically had me throwing up my hands and saying, "OK, God, I've done this for nine years. It's been great, but maybe it's just time. Maybe this season of my life, this chapter of my life is just over; and I talked with Jody about that. When you've been beaten down, there's always that final blow."
The dark night of the soul for Avalon started in July 2001 with the most unexpected piece of news anyone could imagine. Sparrow Records Vice President of A&R Grant Cunningham, who helped form the group nine years ago and had been an integral part of all of Avalon's recordings, received a serious blow to the head during a soccer match and passed away shortly after falling into a coma due to swelling of the brain. To say the loss was devastating to the foursome was an understatement.
As Jody McBrayer explains it, "I don't think the typical Avalon fan probably knew who Grant Cunningham was, unless they are just the type to really read the credits diligently. Even within the industry, I'm not sure how many knew how deeply this affected us. Grant signed Janna and me to Sparrow; and if [producer] George Martin was the 'fifth Beatle,' Grant was the 'fifth Avalonian.' There wasn't a record that was made or a song that was sung or written that Grant didn't have his fingerprints on. So to be sitting at his funeral was a very surreal time for us; and it just left us with a very hollow feeling, wondering what we were going to do.
"Cherie [Paliotta, now Adams] left shortly after that, which, although she was a newlywed and wanted to give her new life some attention, I do think her departure had a lot to do with the pressure we all were under, the sense of loss we felt. Cherie was a very emotional person, too. She felt things much deeper than most people, which made her fantastic at what she did; but it also sometimes added an extra burden for her."
The loss of Grant and Cherie left Jody, Janna and Michael down but not out. After hiring fellow Truth alumnus Melissa Greene to replace Adams, the group recorded three new songs to accompany its greatest hits album, which released a year ago. It featured 12 former No. 1 songs. (Two of the three new songs climbed to the top of the Christian pop charts.) With the ever-present support of its fans, a fair amount of touring and a live DVD release last year, things were looking up again for Avalon.
But bad news did, indeed, travel in triplicate. As Jody tells it, "We had a meeting at Michael [Passons]'s house one day, and he told us he was going to move on to other things. We sat and cried and felt like the rug had been pulled out from under us. Things had felt great with the new group, and Michael seemed to get along and blend vocally with Melissa really well. But Michael had been with us from the beginning and just felt it was time for him to do something else. It's weird, but, since his departure, it seems everyone is looking for some scandalous thing to have happened there. It makes me just want to say, 'Look, I'm sorry to disappoint you that we don't have some juicy gossip or 'Dynasty' episode happening here.'"
"The fact of the matter is Michael is a songwriter," adds Melissa, "and there were songs Michael brought to Avalon that we turned down because they sounded like personal, solo songs; we don't record songs like that."
"That's why I chose to make my solo record," continues Jody, who released "Who I Am" in September 2002, "There was this group of songs that I had either written or co-written that I knew would not work for Avalon. You can't force your vision on three other people. I think those kinds of issues contributed to Michael's decision to leave the group. But he is going on in a solo ministry, and we wish him the very best."
But best wishes aside, Michael's departure began a season of self-examination for the singers that, quite literally, brought the group to its respective knees. As new member Greg Long (who was only watching from the sidelines at the time as Janna's husband) tells it, "When Michael left Avalon, I can tell you even from a spouse's vantage point – as well as Jody's friend – Avalon almost was not. Melissa had just moved to Nashville and bought a home, and … things almost came to a halt right there."
Season of Their Discontent
With circumstances as difficult as they were, the criticism Avalon continued receiving – and had felt for years – from the Christian industry couldn't be coming at a worse time. As is the case with pop counterparts such as the boy bands and "American Idol" winners, the public may love them to the tune of gold or platinum; but the critics just seem to love to … well, criticize. The same has seemed to be true for Avalon from its inception, according to its members. No matter that the group has now garnered 19 No. 1 songs, 20 Dove nominations and three Dove Awards as well as the American Music Award for its "Contemporary Inspirational Music" category, the fact is that critics – both Christian and mainstream – never seemed to warm up to superb, pop song stylists like these. They do, however, seem to gravitate (sometimes indiscriminately) to even the most mediocre singer/songwriter types.
Says Jody, "I think from day one we've had to live down [the criticism of] being 'manufactured' or put together. The concept of the group was not mine and Janna's; we were approached [and asked] if we would be interested in being part of something like this. For the first three or four years, that was a real cross to bear for us. Most Christian bands formed in college or in the garage or at their church; but, for us, it was really different. Now it's more commonplace; but, even so, we were always seen as the glossy picture and production style artists. That's something that, for us as individuals, is a part of who we are. But we always knew there was so much more."
"The thing I don't understand about the critics is that they seem to disrespect these types of artists from the outset by the way they were discovered," adds Janna. "I mean, if their talent is there, why does it matter how it came to a label's attention? Whether you are discovered by someone hearing you at your college or by your being in a talent search, your talent is the same."
"It's been a difficult thing for us within the industry, in particular," Jody continues. "People who love our music have been extremely supportive of us, but the industry has been quick to write us off for reasons none of us completely understand. For example, we won the American Music Award last year. My wife, who works in the industry, came back to her office after the Awards, all excited to tell her co-workers; and people in her office said, 'Oh, the only reason Avalon won is because they were there.' We just have a hard time understanding why people in the industry seem to want to tear us down when we get such great feedback from our fans.
"All of that leads us to places that make us ask, 'Why are we doing this? Is it to please industry types, our audiences, the Lord or ourselves?' Obviously, we feel this is our calling, our ministry (and a very viable ministry); but we also do a lot of this for ourselves. The kind of music we record is the kind of music most of us would listen to at home. We love R&B/pop music, and we try as best we can to do what we love within the formula we're given."
"The funny thing was," says Janna, "although inside the group we felt very weary and fatigued, it seemed God just continued to do things that were just blowing us away. I remember we had this one show last summer when Greg was filling in after Michael left, where we really felt God's presence in the concert; and people were really responding with their own worship more than what we see normally. It seemed like the harder things got for us, the more things started happening for our ministry. For me, that was even a bigger sign of God's communicating: 'I am not done with you yet.'
"There's this song Jody sings on the new album called 'You Were There' that has a line in it that says, 'You were there when obedience didn't make sense.' For me, it was like a light bulb went off in my head because, even though my world as I knew it was crumbling, falling down, I did not feel a release from this [group]. So, for me, I just resolved that until I felt differently, I would just keep showing up for work."
And show up they did, along with about 15 of the industry's top songwriters, to a "writer's camp" of sorts, put together specifically for Avalon to begin the process of writing for the album that would become "The Creed" (Sparrow).
"The writer's camp was a vision of Grant Cunningham's," explains Jody, "though we had never done it before. We talked about doing it for "Oxygen" but ran out of time. We mentioned it to Brad O'Donnell, our new A&R guy – who's had some big shoes to fill – and he stepped up to the plate on our behalf and let us give this a try. Part of the reason we wanted to try this was because we wanted to invest more into the songs ourselves. Did we feel we wanted to try writing all the songs alone for the first time? I don't think any of us – with the exception of Greg – are really good enough writers to tackle that alone."
"It was a desire in us to nourish that gift," adds Melissa. "I had always wanted to write with Cindy Morgan, so we invited her to come; and we all agreed upon the writers we wanted to be a part of this."
Greg continues, "We were invited to tell this group of writers what we were feeling, the things we wanted to say on this record. A lot of ideas were birthed there but not turned into completed songs. But three songs that made it onto the record came out of that experience. It was really amazing. I have to tell you it was really interesting," Greg continues, "to watch the transformation in Jody alone, who said on the tour bus at one point, 'Maybe this is done. Maybe we're done with this.' Less than three months later, I heard him say, 'I don't care if we've got a record label or not. If we're supposed to keep doing this, we'll make our own records if we have to.' That's a significant transformation."
That transformation is palpable on "The Creed." Produced by the "dream team" of Charlie Peacock, Brown Bannister and Tedd T., the album sports the same perfect, pop music that fans and critics alike have come to expect, but its lyrics dig deeper at times … if not too specifically. When asked why none of the lyrics seemed to address the trials of the last few years by name but rather in broader, more religious language, Jody tried to explain.
"I feel like what we're called to be as a group is sort of an 'all things to all people' kind of thing. I don't think we're called to do deeply introspective songs in Avalon, but I guarantee you that on this new album – more than any we've done – songs like 'Renew Me' represent our real heart's cry right now. 'You Were There,' as Janna said, is deeply meaningful for us. And I think one of the reasons we chose to record (and title the album with) "The Creed" is because even the first verse says, 'I'm broken and battered/And I'm desperately searching for faith to make sense of all of this mess.' We're sort of back to a place of embracing some real fundamental truths and, churchy or not, those lyrics are no less true for us."
"You know what?" Janna interjects. "I can't sing about drug addiction; I can't sing about an abortion; I can't sing about a marriage falling apart. What I can sing about is being a kid who has heard about God all her life and has had those crisis-of-faith moments when I have to ask myself, 'Do I really believe what I say I believe because my parents taught me or because God has shown His presence to me personally?' "
"There's a part of me that abhors 'Christian-ese' language," Jody continues, "because I remember a time when everything in my world just felt really crappy, and my pastor said that morning, 'God will never put more on you than you can bear.' I just thought, 'Forget this.' I think our music is a key that opens the door for us to communicate more fully to our audience in our concerts. In that context, we all really speak our hearts pretty plainly. I tell people we are jacked-up, screwed up idiots who are in constant need of the love of God in our lives."
It seems odd to say that a group as successful as Avalon might just be coming of age, but one senses a new resolve in the foursome to both push the envelope most associated with their genre and accept with deeper grace the "calling to which they have been called." Call it the results of a good mid-life crisis.
"Perhaps you have to go through some of the things we've gone through to reach that level of maturity and say, 'OK, maybe it's not as polished and pretty; and we're not as together as people thought," says Janna. "But coming out of that, we realize what our faith really means and how much we really do need God in our lives. For us, this is who we are; and I can't imagine being anywhere else. This is what we've always wanted to be and do. There is no disappointment here. We get to do what we love and at the same time, we feel like we're making a difference in people's lives."
Jody summarizes, saying, "Avalon always had this slick, polished persona that has been manufactured for us, and with it perhaps has come the idea that we are pop stars and not approachable. Over the past year we reached a point where we decided it's not about the Christian music industry anymore for us. There came a point where we had to say, 'OK, God, we're a ministry. With or without the industry's support, we're going to continue to try and reach people because that's what we are called to do … not as Avalon, but as four people who desire to use their gifts to bless and encourage God's people.'
"We want to be entertaining, and we want to do it with excellence; but, at the same time, we also want to be truly authentic with our audience and tell them who we really are and what we really believe. The only reason we have the right to stand up here and do this is because of what Christ has done for us. That's what Avalon is called to communicate. That's where the rubber meets the road for us."
The Road Behind … The Road Ahead
Most Christian pop music fans know that Greg Long isn't just the "new guy in Avalon" or the "husband of Janna from Avalon." They know, for instance, just how long Mr. Long has been singing "How Long," his first single and first No.1 song from his first solo album, "Cross My Heart," in 1995. It was the first of four solo albums that each delivered at least one No. 1 hit on Christian radio.
But after stepping in to help his wife and friends in Avalon when Michael Passons left the group last summer for a number of already booked dates, the resulting blend of voices and hearts led Greg to agree to join the group permanently. And though the familial aspects of that decision are self-evident, being an 'Avalonian' didn't lessen his desire to create music as a solo artist. In fact, if the songs on his fifth and latest solo album, "Born Again" (Christian Records), are any indicator, it would appear the experience has caused the singer to become more personal than ever before.
The album's title song tells the story of Greg's own baptism at the hands of his father, an itinerant preacher/evangelist who led revivals in various parts of the country. "All my life I was a vagabond," he says, recalling a childhood spent on the road. "My two brothers and I were students at a Christian school but only spent five to 10 days a school year at the facility itself. The rest of the time we were out with the family on a bus being tutored by my mom. And when your friends are back home in South Dakota, you make short-term friends at the churches Dad's ministering at, getting real chummy but knowing by Friday you'd be done.
"My dad had to make a choice between being away from his family most of the time or taking them with him in an RV on the road. I personally am glad he chose the latter because whatever was lost in the sense of rooted-ness in a certain place was more than made up for by being with him. I guess it prepared me for the life I live today."
In college, Greg started a men's trio that traveled every summer and weekends for concerts. After four years, he joined up with a touring evangelist for whom Greg would provide the music ministry and lead worship. As Greg says, chuckling a bit, "Yeah … outside of working in the campus bookstore when I was in college, I've never really had a 9-to-5 kind of job. This is who I am. It's in my blood."
As for the title song, Greg explains, "My parents taught me that Jesus loves me and encouraged me to give my heart to Christ, which I did at 5. But they never forced me into any other religious commitments or service. I sang on the platform when I was a kid, but that's because I asked to do that. It wasn't until I was 12 that I asked to be baptized. We were ministering at a church in Florida on the Gulf of Mexico at the time, and the lyric of the song is literally the story of my baptism. In fact, the video we made for the song [included on the enhanced CD] features actual footage of my baptism that was shot for home movies at the time!
"When I first mentioned the title of the song to Don Koch, who I wrote it with, he balked a bit, saying it sounded like a title of so many songs that had been recorded years before. But I said that it wasn't a song about the need to be born again per se, but it was my testimony, my life, my story; and nobody's testimony is invalid. Having said that, I hope that by the end of the chorus, when the lyric says, 'It's not about what I was/It's about what I am," anyone who has found Christ and been found by Christ should be able to relate to those words. I mean, I believe we are compelled to present Jesus to our culture in a way that is contemporary, and I hope the music does that; but the term 'born again' comes out of the mouth of Jesus himself, and there's no reason to shy away from that."
Another very personal song on the new CD is Greg's updated cover of Dallas Holm's classic anthem, "Rise Again," which he says also has a Florida connection.
"The reason I chose to record 'Rise Again' is because I recommitted my life to Christ when I was 14 at a Dallas Holm concert that was also in Florida. His music really, really ministered to me and impacted me; and, without stretching the truth at all, I can tell you that when he called people forward for commitment that night, it was almost like I couldn't resist. I was drawn so strongly to recommit my heart to Christ, there was really no other decision for me in that moment.
"In looking at that now from a music minister's standpoint, there are times when I think to myself, 'I've got to make these people really want to serve Christ or commit their lives to Christ,' but Dallas Holm didn't make that happen for me that night. That was the Spirit of God moving in that place and in my heart who compelled me to do that."
And Long says it's that same Spirit who he calls upon to take his words and music and make something of it that is more than the sum of its parts.
"I don't want to sound hokey, but I pray that God would really and honestly use my music in people's lives because I experienced the power of this music and message in my life growing up. From Dallas Holm, to Russ Taff, to Andraé Crouch, to Edwin Hawkins, the Imperials, 4Him … these people and their music really did make a difference in my life. I can honestly say I'm honored to do the same kind of work and pray to make the same kind of difference in someone else's life."
© 2004 CCM Magazine. All rights reserved. Used with permission. Click here to subscribe.


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The ASBMB orchestrates several advocacy activities each year. We conduct Capitol Hill Days wherein we bring scientists from around the country to advocate for increases in research funding and improvements in how science is conducted. We help members set up district meetings with their elected representatives. And we conduct a variety of webinars and other events to keep scientists informed of the ever-changing world of science policy.
11200 Rockville Pike, Suite 302, Rockville, MD 20852-3110Phone: (240) 283-6600 • Contact us Privacy Policy© Copyright 2019 American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology


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When :from Wednesday 21 November, 2012 19:30 to Wednesday 21 November, 2012 21:00
Type of event :Специальное мероприятие
Where :UNESCO Headquarters, Room I, 7, place de Fontenoy, 75007, Paris,
UNESCO Director General Irina Bokova will designate the world-renowned tenor Mr Plácido Domingo as a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador during the ceremony to be held at UNESCO HQ on Wednesday, 21 November 2012
Plácido Domingo is a world-renowned, multifaceted artist, recognized not only as one of the finest and most influential singing actors in the history of opera but also as a respected conductor. And as General Director of Los Angeles Opera and Washington National Opera, he is a major force as an opera administrator. He turned seventy in January 2011, but his gifts and energy remain undiminished.

Domingo's vocal repertoire encompasses 140 stage roles – a number unmatched by any other celebrated tenor in history – and he has recently added the title baritone roles of Verdi's Simon Boccanegra and Rigoletto to his list of achievements: in the course of the 2009-10 season he appeared as Boccanegra at the Berlin Staatsoper, La Scala, the Metropolitan Opera, Covent Garden, and Madrid's Teatro Real, and in September 2010 he took the role of Rigoletto in a live telecast from Mantua, Italy, the city in which the opera's story takes place. (He is planning to add three more baritone roles – Athanaël in Thaïs, Francesco Foscari in I Due Foscari and Giorgio Germont in La Traviata – to his repertoire in 2012 and 2013.)

His more than 100 recordings of complete operas, compilations of arias and duets, and crossover discs include Deutsche Grammophon's anthology of the complete Verdi arias for tenor and EMI's albums of Wagnerian roles that he has not sung on stage: Siegfried in both Siegfried and Götterdämmerung, and Tristan in a complete recording of Tristan und Isolde. His extensive work in the recording studio has earned him eleven Grammy Awards and two Latin Grammy Awards, and he has won Emmy awards for the television film "Homage to Seville" and for the Met's "Silver Gala" program. He was the Latin Recording Academy's Person of the Year in 2010. Domingo has also made more than fifty music videos in addition to four feature films of operas: Carmen, La Traviata, Otello and Tosca, with the Mantua Rigoletto forthcoming. He has conducted many opera performances with the Metropolitan Opera, Covent Garden, the Vienna State Opera, and Los Angeles Opera, among many other ensembles, and symphonic concerts with the Chicago Symphony, National Symphony, London Symphony, Berlin Philharmonic, Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, and numerous other orchestras.

In 1990, Domingo and his colleagues José Carreras and the late Luciano Pavarotti spontaneously formed the Three Tenors, which performed from time to time and with enormous success all over the world and attracted many new fans to opera.

Born in Madrid in 1941 to parents who were zarzuela performers, Plácido Domingo was brought to Mexico at the age of eight. He attended Mexico City's Conservatory of Music, where he initially studied piano and conducting, but when his vocal talent was discovered he began to take voice lessons as well. At eighteen, he made his debut in a small role (Borsa in Rigoletto) at Mexico's National Opera, and his first performance as a leading tenor (Alfredo in La Traviata) took place in the city of Monterrey when he was twenty. After having spent three seasons with the Israel National Opera in Tel Aviv, where he sang 280 performances of twelve different roles, he launched his major international career in 1965, and since then he has performed at all of the world's most prestigious opera houses.

In 1993, Domingo founded Operalia, an annual international voice competition, which has helped to start the careers of many singers who have since become major figures on the world's stages. In 2012, Operalia took place in Beijing. Domingo was also the prime mover behind Washington National Opera's Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist program and Los Angeles Opera's Domingo-Thornton Young Artist Program, both of which are designed to nurture and support the careers of opera's future standard-bearers. Domingo is also Artistic Advisor for the Youth Orchestra of the Americas.

In his native Spain, Plácido Domingo has been awarded the Gran Cruz de la Orden de Isabel la Católica, the Medalla de la Orden de las Artes y las Letras de España, and the Premio Prinicipe de Asturias de las Artes; and in Mexico, where he grew up, he received the Aguila Azteca. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in the United States and the titles of Commandant of the Legion of Honor in France, Honorary Knight of the British Empire, and both Grande Ufficiale and Cavaliere di Gran Croce of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic. He has received honorary doctorates from Oxford University and New York University for his lifelong commitment and contribution to music and the arts. In October 2009, King Carl Gustaf of Sweden presented him with the first Birgit Nilsson Prize (at one million dollars, the most generous prize in the world of classical music) for his outstanding achievements in opera; in accepting the award, Domingo said that it would "greatly benefit my annual competition, Operalia." He has raised millions of dollars through benefit concerts to aid the victims of Mexico's devastating 1985 earthquake, of the floods caused by Hurricane Paulina in Guerrero and Yucatán, also in Mexico and in El Salvador, and of the victims of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, where, in 2009, the stage of the Mahalia Jackson Theatre for the Performing Arts was named for him. In 2006, he conducted Verdi's Requiem Mass in Warsaw, to commemorate the first anniversary of Pope John Paul II's passing.

In 2011, Domingo celebrated not only his 70th birthday but also his 50th anniversary as a singer of leading roles and the 40th anniversary of his Covent Garden debut. But there are no signs of slowing down: in 2012 he is scheduled to give over eighty performances, between singing and conducting, in New York, Los Angeles, Valencia, Monte Carlo, Madrid, Berlin, Lisbon, Shanghai, Verona, London, Kiev, Santiago (Chile), Hermosillo (Mexico), Zurich, Salzburg, New Orleans, Seville, Vienna, Bahrain, Stockholm, Malmö, Prague and Acapulco. Although he resigned as General Director of Washington National Opera at the end of the 2010-2011 season, after fifteen years in that position, he continues as General Director of Los Angeles Opera.

Newsweek and other international publications have fittingly described Plácido Domingo as "the King of Opera," "a true renaissance man in music," and "the greatest operatic artist of modern times."


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Developers sell off the plan to entice as many sales commitments as possible to then secure from their lender the finance they need for the build. Because buyers are essentially handing over their deposit for the promise of an apartment they won't see for one to two years (or more), prices are set at current market rates with incentives often offered to entice buyers. This adds to the capital gain potential, but price rises are never guaranteed, as we have seen in past years.
In exchange for your deposit, the developer should provide a contract that outlines the details of your particular purchase, the completion date for the development and the deadline for when a decision must be made as to whether the development will go ahead. That decision usually hinges on whether sufficient finance has been secured. If the developer pulls the pin or passes the decision deadline, you should be entitled to a refund of your deposit, but this depends on the conditions of the sale contract, so it pays to read this document carefully and if required seek financial or legal advice. Full payment for the property is not required until settlement, which is usually one to three months post completion.
While buying off the plan looks great on paper and can reap rewards, getting in on the ground floor of a new development is not always a fast track to making money. Haven looks at how you can make the most of the opportunity and avoid some of the common pitfalls.
One of the biggest advantages of buying off the plan is time. Unlike traditional property purchases with relatively short windows to round up the total finance, you will have at least 12 months, if not longer, to settle. Savvy buyers will take advantage of this extra time to save their pennies and reduce their borrowings.
If you dream of a new home but have nightmares at the thought of building one, an off-the-plan purchase may be the perfect compromise. Although you will not get to design everything as you would with a custom-built home, most off-the-plan developments allow some customisation of finishes and fixtures. Make sure your contract outlines what you can tailor and that you are clear on any additional costs.
Various incentives are still being dangled in front of first-home-buyers, which may add to the appeal of buying off the plan.
Concessions vary across Australia and some have been curbed since January 1, so visit your State or Territory web site for the latest information on grants and exemptions. You can also research your eligibility for stamp duty concessions on new properties at www.stampdutycalculator.com.au
Off-the-plan apartments are often pitched heavily at investors due to the tax* benefits that come with depreciation on new properties and rental guarantees. Tax savings will depend on your individual circumstances, but generally the newer the property, the higher the depreciation allowance for the building and fixtures.
Investors may also be offered attractive rental guarantees for a limited period. Make sure you do your homework on rental returns on similar properties in the area before accepting the developer's terms. Be wary of over-inflated rental guarantees. Builders will sometimes promise a high-rent yield to lure investors, build the cost into the property price and then subsidise any gap themselves for a short period. When the rental guarantee expires, you may find the actual market rent falls well short of what you originally pocketed. If investing, make sure you have the option to manage the property yourself or with your chosen property manager from the time you take possession.
Many buyers get swept up on a wave of rising property prices when they hand over their deposit in exchange for a floor plan. Historically, property is a consistent long-term performer, but property prices can plateau and even wane at the mercy of economic factors.
Buyers also need to be wary of over-supply, which may devalue their property. Queensland's Gold and Sunshine Coasts are carrying a glut of apartments on the back of many years of off-the-plan sales, while the skylines of capitals such as Canberra have real estate commentators urging caution.
Make sure you consider the bigger picture if buying off the plan. Research how many other developments are planned in the area and whether any increase in apartment numbers is justified by new or improved infrastructure, such as transport corridors, business precincts, universities or hospitals.
Make sure you purchase from a reputable builder and take the time to research their previous projects. Do they use quality contractors? Do they deliver projects on time? Make a point of visiting some of their projects so you can assess the finished product first-hand.
Whatever your circumstances, we will look for a loan that's right for you, not the lender. Send through a quick enquiry and we will be in touch.


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The Chargers feared Monday night they had, in a span of seven days, lost two starting wide receivers for the year to the same injury.
An MRI result offered significant relief.
Initial testing shows Malcom Floyd strained his knee in practice Monday afternoon, a team spokesman said. More information could be forthcoming, but it appears the 10th-year veteran avoided sharing the fate of Danario Alexander, whose season ended Aug. 6 upon suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament.
Recovery from a knee strain can take as few as seven to 14 days, said Dr. Daniel Kharrazi, an orthopedic surgeon at Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic in Los Angeles. While having extensive experience with athletes, Kharrazi has not evaluated Floyd personally, and the team has not released a formal timetable for his recovery.
But a strain is good news for the Chargers.
It comes following fear of a torn ACL and after a source close to Floyd called the injury a sprain.
"A strain is a much less imposing injury than a sprain," Kharrazi said in a phone interview. "Don't forget a grade-2 ACL sprain is basically a partially torn ACL. A sprain a lot of times is interchangeable with partial tears in ligaments."
While too early to say definitively whether Floyd will be ready to play Week 1, it is certain that losing both Alexander and Floyd for the season would have been a devastating one-two blow to the Chargers offense. Over the final nine games in 2012, quarterback Rivers completed 87 passes to a wide receiver with 11 touchdowns. Sixty-four and all 11 were to Alexander and Floyd.
Floyd's absence leaves Vincent Brown, Eddie Royal, rookie Keenan Allen and Robert Meachem as the top receivers on the depth chart.
After Monday's practice, the nine remaining healthy wide receivers on the roster stayed about 45 minutes after practice. There were no coaches. It was just them, reviewing the playbook to minimize mistakes that had arisen of late.
The session, planned before Floyd's injury, carried an added sense of gravity.
"We've got to pick it up, not only for the team but him," wide receiver Vincent Brown said. "He's a big part of this team, and he has been for a long time. It's unfortunate to see something like that happen. We hope that it's nothing serious at all, but if need be, we've got to have everybody ready."
There was an eery overlap between the Floyd and Alexander incidents.
Both happened in practice. Both affected the right knee. Both came while cornerback Shareece Wright was in coverage during a 1-on-1 drill.
"It messes with me (mentally) a little bit because I happened to be on both of those guys," Wright said. "I didn't do anything intentionally. We're just trying to get better. ... I can't (change). I've got to continue to practice hard. You just pray things don't happen like that."
By the look things, Floyd's injury appeared more severe than Alexander's.
The crowd at Chargers Park fell silent, coach Mike McCoy waved over head athletic trainer James Collins, and about two dozen players clustered together, kneeling to the ground in prayer after Floyd landed awkwardly and fell to the ground following incidental contact with Wright. After several minutes of evaluation, Floyd was helped up and slowly carted off the field.
Alexander, by comparison, didn't fall to the ground. He didn't leave the field immediately, watching roughly the next hour of practice with his knee iced and wrapped. Before his MRI, Alexander told people that he'd torn his ACL before, and this feeling wasn't it.
Floyd joined the Chargers in 2004 as an undrafted rookie from Wyoming.
While plagued by the occasional injury, he's established himself among the top deep-threat wide receivers in the game. The 31-year-old has averaged 17.1 yards per reception, third among NFL players who've played more than five seasons in that span.


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Walkers-23 Months
Tuesdays, Thursdays
2nd floor, Children's Program Room
How to attend story time:
- Story times occur weekly during September 3-December 7.
- Get your free ticket at the 2nd floor Ask Us desk on the day of the class. Space is limited.
- Park your stroller and gather your valuables. Caregivers attend class with children.
- Story times are created and presented by early literacy experts.
- All story times are designed to be developmentally appropriate for each age.
No story times:
- October 15-19
- November 26-30


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Greenpeace Water Patrol spotlights water pollution and unfurl a banner that reads "We have the right to know what's in our water!" at Tullahan River, one of the dirtiest rivers in Metro Manila. Residents along Tullahan river have noted that multi-colored sudsy effluents have left violet-colored residue in the river water, rocks and banks. Several industries, such as paper, pen and dye factories, are located upstream from the site in this photo. Greenpeace is campaigning for the government to implement effective policies that will curb and eliminate water pollution, starting with a "right to know" policy that will make it mandatory for factories to report the chemical effluents that they discharge into water bodies
© Gigie Cruz-Sy / Greenpeace
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IGNOU BBAR Grade Card – IGNOU University has declared IGNOU BBAR – BBA in Retailing Grade Card for previous Exam of all Courses. We request to all our BBAR Student please get your Grade Card. IGNOUTime has now uploaded Grade Card for all Candidates for their future study. First of all please open below link and follow some steps for getting your BBAR Grade Card.
BBAR Grade Card section required some required details like nine (9)digit Enrollment number which printed on your Exam Hall Ticket and second is your programme. After providing above details, you get your Grade Card on website screen with your Name, Marks, Grades and more. You can print out of BBAR Grade Card for use to your future requirements.
BBAR Grade Card is shown Total marks of Theory, Practical and Assignments of your course. Assignment submission Marks also included in Grade Card of BBAR so assignments also very important to every candidates of IGNOU University.
For any issued in your Grade Card so please inform us by writing comment on "BBAR Grade card" section with your required details so we contact you and solved your problem fast as possible.


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Nothing says "Kentucky" quite like the straight lines and graceful moldings of the polished pewter Kentucky Baby Cup. Engraved, this is an lasting gift for the newborn baby or toddler, as well as the parents. Lead free and food safe, the cup holds five ounces. 2 3/4" tall x 3 5/8" wide. Made in the U.S.A.
- Item #: 4-SA-SCKYB05


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IMF Survey Vol.31, No.19 October 2002
- Rich countries urged to lead by example on trade access
- IMF Economic Forum: Can stronger institutions and better training speed Africa's development?
- Financial globalization poses new challenges for central banks
- Experts meet to hone guide to financial soundness indicators
- With open economy and sound policies, U.A.E. has turned oil "curse" into a blessing
- Is global inequality rising?
- Interview with Surjit Bhalla: Growth, poverty, inequality—getting the facts right
- Stand–By, EFF, and PRGF arrangements as of September 30
- Selected IMF rates
- Members' use of IMF credit
- Available on the web
- Recent publications
Is global inequality rising?
- International Monetary Fund. External Relations Dept.
- Published Date:
- January 2002
Show Summary Details
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