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Middle East : Iran
Iran (Persian: ?????) is a large country in Asia. Located in the Middle East, between the Gulf of Oman, the Persian Gulf, and the Caspian Sea, it is surrounded by Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan's Naxcivan enclave, Armenia, and Azerbaijan to the northwest, Turkmenistan to the northeast, Afghanistan and Pakistan to the east.
Other destinations
Known as Persia until 1935, Iran became an Islamic republic in 1979 after the ruling shah was forced into exile. Conservative clerical forces subsequently crushed westernizing liberal elements. Militant Iranian students seized the US Embassy in Tehran on 4 November 1979 and held it until 20 January 1981. During 1980-88, Iran fought a bloody, indecisive war with Iraq over disputed territory. Key current issues affecting the country include the pace of accepting outside modernizing influences and reconciliation between clerical control of the regime and popular government participation and widespread demands for reform.
Get in
A valid passport and visa are required for travel through Iran. While nationals of Slovenia and Turkey can get a three-month visa at the border, and Japanese citizens can obtain tourist visas with minimal hassle at Iranian embassies abroad, everyone else will have to jump through hoops to satisfy Iranian embassy officials. Although it has become remarkably easier to get a tourist visa in recent years, whether the process takes one day or one month depends largely on your nationality and the staff of the embassy you are applying to. Your best bet is to apply to the Iranian embassy in your own country at least three months before your departure, and women need to make sure they are veiled in their submitted passport-sized photos.
Nationals of Israel are currently barred from entering Iran for any reason. Nationals of The United States of America cannot independently travel in Iran - Visas will only be approved if done through a travel agency (which must have a complete itinerary of your trip into and out of the country, accompany you at all times, and not deviate from it). This policy is not very well advertised on any IRI government websites - not in English, at any rate. Contacting the Interests Section for the Islamic Republic of Iran (http://www.daftar.org/Eng/default.asp?lang=eng) (the closest thing that the US has to an Iranian embassy) by telephone is the best way to verify that this policy is still in place, as even this website does not remain very current.
Chances are your bags won't be searched for salacious material, but if found, it will be confiscated and will complicate your arrival. Don't try to bring in any magazines (including fashion magazines) or books that might offend strict Islamic sensibilities or criticise the government.
By plane
Most overseas travellers from Europe will arrive via Mehrabad airport in Tehran. By now most flights from the Middle east, Central and South Asia operate to and from the new Imam Khomeini International Airport based 37 Km southwest of Tehran.
It is planned to move all the arrival and departure of international flights to this airport within few years. There are 70 smaller regional airports, for example those in Shiraz, Mashhad, and Isfahan have daily flights to many world cities.
Dubai is especially worth considering, as numerous flights for major cities in Iran are scheduled from this Hub : Tehran, Shiraz, Esfahan, Kerman, Lar, Mashhad, Tabriz, Kish Island, Bandar Abbas, Bushher, Zahedan... flights are operated by Emirates (for Tehran), Iran Air, Iran Aseman Airlines, Mahan Air and other iranian companies. Fares are relatively cheap on Iranian carriers, ranging from $100 to $250 for a return trip depending on your destination and time of booking.
Iran Air connects Tehran with most European cities as well as some asian destinations. European companies landing there include BA, Lufthansa, KLM and Air France. So finding a flight to Iran should not be difficult.
There is currently (December, 2005) no direct flight from North America, but you can transit either through Europe or through Dubai (with a spectacular non-stop flight from NY on the new Emirates A340-500).
By rail
International passenger trains for Iran run weekly to/from Istanbul (Turkey) and Damascus (Syria).
By car
By bus
By boat
Get around
What domestic transport in Iran lacks in speed it makes up for in affordability and ubiquity. There are few places dirt-cheap buses don't travel to, the train network is limited but comfortable and reasonably priced and travel by air is laughably cheap, especially by international standards(in fact one of the cheapest in the world).
By plane
For anyone on a tight deadline, affordable domestic air services are a blessing. The major national carrier Iran Air, and its semi-private competitors ( Iran Aseman Airlines - Aseman meaning "sky" in Farsi , Mahan Air, Kish Air, etc.) link Tehran with most regional capitals and offer inter-regional flights for no more than US $30.
Their services are frequent, reliable and safe are definitely worth considering to skip the large, monotonous distances within Iran. Planes are aging, and maintenance and safety procedures are sometimes well below western standards, but it still remains the safest way to get around Iran providing the huge death toll on the roads.
Tupolev Tu-154 and other Russian planes are still used by some carriers (Iran Airtours notably). However, the odds are you will board a Shah-era B727 or some more recent Fokker, ATR or even Airbus A310 if you're lucky. Busy domestic routes are sometimes flown by B747SP, and the extra boarding and run-up time are worth the thrill of flying in one of the last of these shortened Jumbos still operated in the world.
Tickets can be bought at airports or travel agents dotted through the most major cities. Book early during the summer months of August and September since finding seats at short notice is virtually impossible.
You can also find domestic tickets in some Iran Air offices abroad (Dubai for instance), but expect to pay a little more due to the change rate applied. Domestic tickets for other companies must be bought inside Iran.
By bus
The Iranian domestic bus network is expansive and, thanks to the low cost of fuel, very cheap. In fact the only draw back is speed: the government has limited buses to 80 km/h to combat lead-footed bus drivers so long haul trips such as Shiraz to Mashhad can take up to 20 hours.
There is little difference between the various bus companies, and most offer two classes: 'lux' or 'Mercedes' (2nd class) and 'super' or 'Volvo' (1st class). First class buses are air-conditioned and you will be provided with a small snack during your trip, while second class services are more frequent. Given the affordability of first class tickets (for example IR 33,000 from Esfehan to Shiraz), there's little financial incentive to opt for the second class services, espcially in summer.
You can buy tickets from the bus terminals or ticket offices up to a week in advance, but you shouldn't have a problem finding a seat if you turn up to the terminal an hour or so before your intended departure time.
Most cities operate comprehensive local bus services, but given the low cost of taxis and the difficulties of making sense of Persian signs and route numbers, of little use to the casual traveller. If you're cash strapped and brave enough to try, however, remember that the buses are segregated. Men enter via the front or rear door and hand their ticket to the driver before taking a seat in the front half of the bus. Women and children should hand their ticket to the driver via the front doors (without actually getting on) before entering via the rear door to take a seat at the back. Tickets, usually around IR 200, are sold from booths near most bus stops.
By train
Travelling by train through Iran is generally more comfortable and faster than speed-limited buses. Sleeper berths in overnight trains are especially good value as they allow you to get a good night's sleep while saving on a night's accommodation.
The rail network is comprised of three main trunks. The first stretches east to west across the north of the country linking the Turkish and Turkemenistan borders via Tabriz, Tehran and Mashhad. The second and third extend south of Tehran but split at Qom. One line connects to the Persian Gulf via Ahvaz and Arak, while the other traverses the country's centre linking Kashan, Yazd and Kerman.
Tickets can be bought from train stations up to one month before the date of departure, and it is wise to book at least a couple of days in advance during the peak domestic holiday months. First class tickets cost roughly twice the comparable bus fare.
By taxi
Low fuel costs have made inter-city travel by taxi a great value option in Iran. When travelling between cities up to 250 km apart, you may be able to hire one of the shared sav?ri taxis that loiter around bus terminals and train stations. Savari taxis are faster than buses and, unless you get stuck in the front seat in which two people are expected to squeeze, are generally more comfortable. Taxis will only leave when five paying passengers have been found, so if you're in a hurry you can offer to pay for an extra seat.
Official shared local taxis, identifiable by some kind of orange paint marking, also ply the major roads of most cities. Their usually run straight lines between major sqaures and landmarks, and their set rates (between IR 1,000 and IR 5,000) are dictated by the local governments.
Hailing one of these taxis is an art you'll soon master. Stand on the side of the road with traffic flowing in your intended direction and flag down a passing cab. It will slow down fractionally, giving you about one second to shout your destination--pick a major nearby landmark instead of the full address--through the open passenger window. If the driver is intereseted, he'll slow down enough for you to negotiate the details.
If you're in a hurry, you can rent the taxi privately. Just shout the destination followed by the phrase dar bast (literally 'closed door') and the driver will almost be sure to stop. Negotiate the price before departure, but since you are paying for all the empty seats expect to pay five times the normal shared taxi fare.
You can also rent these taxis by the hour to visit a number of sites, but you can expect to pay from IR 10,000 to 20,000 per hour, depending on your bargaining skills.
By car
A large road network and low fuel costs of historically made Iran an attractive country for exploring with your own car. However a recent government fuel tax on foreigners entering Iran by private car has somewhat dimmed the allure.
Foreigners arriving in Iran with their own car will need to have a carnet de passage and a valid international drivers' license. Petrol stations can be found on the outskirts of all cities and towns and in car-filled Iran, a mechanic is never far away.
Do not underestimate the sheer chaos of Iran's traffic, particularly in Tehran. The often ignored road rules state that you must drive on the right unless overtaking and give way to traffic coming on to a roundabout. Drivers frequently top 150 km / hour on intercity highways a new law requiring car occupants to wear seatbelts is laughed at more often than complied with.
Persian (called F?rsi in Persian, ?????) is Iran's national and official language. Azeri is also a widley spoken language in most parts of the Iran. Although written with a modified Arabic alphabet, the two languages are not related and just share words. Persian is an Indo-European language.
Many young Iranians, and almost certainly those working in international travel agents and high-end hotels will speak some English but some basic Persian phrases will come in handy in rural areas.
Road signs are often double signed in English, but few other signs are. As an extra challenge, most Persian signage uses an ornate calligraphic script that bears little resemblance to its typed form. This can make comparing typed words in phrase books--such as 'bank' and 'hotel'--to signs on buildings quite difficult. However it is still worth memorising the Persian script for a few key words such as restaurant, guesthouse, and hotel (see relevant sections below for the script).
The rial (????) is the official currency of Iran, however to save time in a high-inflation economy prices are sometimes quoted in tomans (?????). One toman is equal to ten rials.
As a general guide, written prices are given in rials and prices quoted in conversation are in tomans. To confuse you even further, shopkeepers will often omit the denomination of high prices, so you may be told a jar of coffee costs 2 tomans (meaning 2,000 tomans or IR 20,000) and that a fine rug will cost 3 tomans (meaning 3,000,000 tomans or IR 30,000,000). In conversation, 1 Chomejni denotes IR 10,000.
Most travellers spend the first few days of their trip coming to grips with this mind-boggling system, and money changers on the border will often exploit this confusion to rip you off. Be careful, and if in doubt, always ask a shopkeeper or moneychanger if they are quoting a price in rials or tomans.
Carrying money
Iran is still a cash economy, so bring enough hard currency for the duration of your stay. Trade embargoes mean that banks will not forward cash advances on your foreign cr cards and they are only accepted by select stores for large purchases, such as Persian rugs. Most will be happy to forward you some cash on your cr card at the same time as your purchase. If you are desperate for cash, you can also try asking these shops to extend you the same favour without buying a rug or souvenir, but expect to pay dearly for the luxury.
Travellers' cheques are equally useless in Iran. Although in theory central banks in provincial capitals are able to cash them, the paperwork and time involved make them impractical for tourist use.
ATMs exist in major cities, and there are point-of-sale devices in some larger stores, but only local bank cards are accepted. Bank Tejarat is now providing a prepaid smart-card service for foreign tourists travelling to Iran. Using this service, you can buy a prepaid smart-card with foreign currency which can be used on the domestic ATM and point-of-sale network for withdrawing rials. You can apply for this service at some travel agents, if they support the service, or by visiting the special Tejarat Bank kiosk in Tehran's Mehrabad international airport. Before your departure, the remaining cr on the card can be changed back to foreign currency. Since the domestic ATM network is prone to malfunctions, and point-of-sale devices aren't common in stores, having a cash reserve (either rials or foreign currency) is still recommended.
Money and daily life
There is little point in risking the black market moneychangers who loiter outside of major banks and only offer marginally better rates than the banks. Central banks in most cities will change money for you, but the process can be a drawn out affair requiring signatures from countless officials and a fair deal of running around.
A better compromise are the private exchange offices (sar?fi) scattered around most large cities and major tourist centres. Although their rates are comparable to those of the banks, they are far quicker and, unlike their black market colleagues, they can be traced later on if something goes wrong.
The most widely-accepted currency is the US dollar, but euros and UK pound sterling can also be changed. $100 notes attract the highest prices, and you will be quoted lower rates for any old or ripped notes.
Bargain ruthlessly when buying handcrafts, rugs or big ticket items and modestly when hailing private taxis. In most other aspects of life prices are fixed. Tipping is generally not expected, but locals will generally round up the bill in taxis and add around 10% in classy restaurants. Porters and bellboys will expect IR 2,000 - 3,000. A discreet gift of a few thousand tom?ns may help grease the wheels of Iranian society and serve to thank an extraordinarily helpful local, but bakhsheeh and bribing are not a major part of Iranian life.
You won't be able to escape the government-sanctioned dual pricing system that applies to accommodation and some tourist attactions in Iran; foreigners often pay up to ten times the price quoted to locals. However thanks to the government's recent commendable efforts to eliminate 'foreigner' prices from many tourist attractions, most notably Persepolis, low food and transport costs make Iran a cheap travel destination.
If you are prepared to stay in the cheapest guesthouses, travel only by bus and eat only at fast food outlets or kab?bis, you can get by in Iran on a minimum of around IR 100,000 per day. If you want to eat a decent restaurant meal every now and then and stay in mid-range accommodation, a more realistic budget is around IR 250,000. If you want to eat and sleep in luxury and fly between major sights, you can easily chew through IR 700,000 per day.
The good news for travellers is that Iranian cuisine is superb. A wide range of influences from Central Asia, the Caucasuses, Russia and the Middle East have created a diverse, relatively healthy range of dishes that focus on fresh produce and aromatic herbs. The bad news, however, is that Iranians prefer to eat at home than in restaurants, so decent eateries are scarce and stick to a repetitive selection of dishes (mainly kebabs). An invitation to an Iranian home for dinner will be a definite highlight of your stay.
Traditional cuisine
Fragrant rice (????, berenj) is the staple of Iranian food. Boiled and then steamed, it is often coloured with saffron or flavoured with a variety of spices. When served plain as an accompaniment it is known as chelo (???). The two most common meat / chelo combinations are kebab variations (chelo kab?b, ??? ????) or rotisserie chicken (chelo morgh, ??? ???). Flavoured rice, known as polo, is often served as a main course or as an accompaniment to a meat dish. Examples include shirin polo falvoured with orange zest, young cherries and honey glazed carrots, the broad-bean and herb heavy b?ghli polo and sabzi polo laced with parsley, dill and mint.
You'll be sick of the rice and kebab dish chelo kab?b (??? ????) by the end of your stay. The dish and its half-dozen variations are the most common (and often the only) items on Iranian restaurant menus. A grilled skewer of meat is served on a bed of fluffy rice, and accompanied by an array of condiments. You can add butter, grilled tomatoes and a sour spice known as som?gh to your rice, while some restaurants also provide a raw egg yolk. Raw onion and fresh basil are used to clear your palate between mouthfuls. Variations in kab?b dishes come from the meats they are served with. You will commonly see:
At home people most often eat rice with a thick stew (khoresht, ?????) containing a modest amount of meat. There are dozens of khoresht variations such as the sweet and sour fessenj?n made from ground walnuts and pomegranate syrup, ghormeh-sabzi based on fresh herbs, dired limes and kidney beans, gheimeh flavoured with split-peas and often garnished with French fries, and the sweet sib-?loo which uses apples and plums.
Hearty Iranian soups (?sh, ??) are meals in themselves. The most popular is the vegetarian ?sh reshteh (?? ????) made from herbs, chickpeas and thick noodles, and garnished with yoghurt and fried onions.
Flat bread (n?n, ???) is another pillar of Iranian food. It is served at breakfast with herbs, feta cheese and a variety of jams, or as an accompaniment to meals. Sangak (????) is a dimpled variety cooked on a pebbled oven while lav?sh (????) is a thin and bland staple.
Fast food and snacks
In the absence of restaurants, most food outlets in Iran are either kab?bis or fast food outlets serving a standard fare of burgers, sandwiches, felafels or pizza (?????). A burger and a soft drink at a snack shop will fill you up at lunchtime for around IR 10,000, while pizzas start at IR 15,000.
Many teahouses (see Drink below) also serve traditional snacks and light meals. The most common of these is ?bgusht (??????) a hot pot made from lamb, chickpeas and dried limes that is also known as dizi, also the name of the dish in which its served. You will be given a bowl (the dizi) containing the ?bgusht and another, smaller one. Drain the broth into the smaller bowl and eat it like a soup with the bread provided. Then pound the remaining meat and vegetables into a paste with the pestle provided and eat with even more bread, pieces raw onion and wads of fresh herbs.
Sweets and desserts
The neverending demand for dentists in Iran lies testament to the country's obssession with sweets and pastries, known collectively as shirini (??????).
Iranian baghlava tends to be harder and more crystalline than its Turkish equivalent while the pistachio noughat called gaz (??) is an Esfahan speciality. Sohan is an rich pistachio brittle popular in Qom, and freshly-baked pastries are often taken as gifts to people's houses. Lav?shak fruit leathers are snacks made from a variety of dried fruits, some of which are plums, pomegrantes, apples and sour cherries.
Honey-saffron and pistachio are just two local flavours of ice cream, while f?loodeh (??????) is a deliciously refreshing sorbet made from rosewater and vermicelli noodles served with lashings of lemon juice.
Special needs
Given that most travellers are stuck eating kebabs for much of their trip, vegetarians will have a particularly difficult time in Iran. Most snack shops sell felafels (?????) and garden salads (s?l?d-e-fassl, ????? ???) and greengrocers are common. Most ash varieties are meat-free and filling, as are most variations of kookoo (????), the Iranian take on the frittata. The phrases man giah-khor hastam (I am vegetarian) and bedoon-e goosht (without meat) will come in handy.
It's a safe bet that all food in Muslim Iran is halal, but those seeking a kosher or other diet may have some trouble. If in doubt, stick to vegetables.
Black tea (ch?i, ???) is the national drink of alcohol-free Iran. It is served strong and with crystallised or cubed sugar (ghand, ???) which is held artfully between the teeth while tea is sipped through. You can try asking for milk in your tea, but expect nothing but strange looks in return.
Tea houses (ch?i kh?neh, ??? ????) are favourite local haunt for men (and less commonly families) to drink tea and puff away on a water pipe.
Lovers of coffee (ghahveh, ????) have little to cheer in Iran but their choices have increased recently. Where available, it is served Turkish style, French coffee or espresso. Imported instant coffee (nesc?ffe, ??????) and instant Cappuccino are available also.
A wide variety of fruit juices (?b miveh, ?? ????) and drinks are available from shops and street vendors including cherry cordial (sharbat ?lb?loo, ???? ??????) and banana milkshakes (shir moz, ??? ???).
A very common refreshment is the ZamZam soft drink, an equivalent to Coca Cola still bottled in Mashad. Other popular drinks include non-alcoholic malt beverages that come in many varieties.
Doogh (???) is a sour drink made from yoghurt, salt, and water (sometimes gaseous) and sometimes flavoured with mint or other plants. It takes some getting used to, but will rehydrate you quickly in the heat of Iran's summer.
Drinking alcohol is illegal, and if seen by police may be met with punishment. Of course, you will not find any place in Iran that openly sells alcohol, it is found easily but always on the black market. Drinking is, however, common among some of inreligious or non-muslim people especially during parties and weddings.
Accommodation in Iran ranges from luxurious, if a little weary, five star hotels (???) in major cities to the small, cheap mos?ferkhuneh (?????????) and mehm?npazir (?????????) guesthouses that are littered about most centres. However, staff in mos?ferkhuneh often refuses to provide room for non-iranians, as these facilities have a recommendation from Iran's Government to serve only for citizens.
Stay safe
Iran is still a relatively low crime country, although thefts and muggings have been on the increase in recent years. Keep your wits about you, and take the usual precautions against pickpockets in crowded bazaars and buses.
In particular, the tourist centre of Esfahan has had problems with muggings of foreigners in unlicensed taxis, and fake police making random checks of tourists' passports. Only use official taxis, and never allow 'officials' to make impromptu searches of your belongings.
Female travellers should not encounter any major problems when visiting Iran, but will undoubtedly be the subject of at least some unwanted attention. Perceptions of Western women among some local men, fuelled largely by European satellite television, have led to the assumption that foreign women are "easy." A stern look should be enough to detour the approaches of amorous locals.
Gay and lesbian travellers should err on the side of discretion in Iran; under the strict Sharia law, sodomy is punishable by death and lesbian sex is punishable with lashes. Having said that, public displays of (platonic) affection between members of the same sex--holding hands, arms draped over shoulders and kissing on the cheek--are common, so disguising a homosexual relationship should not be too difficult. The vast majority of Iranians have unfavourable views of same-sex relationships, but this rarely manifests in personal, violent attacks against homosexuals.
Watch out for joobs (???), the open storm water drains that shoulder every road and are easy to miss when walking in the dark.
Ignore the media hype, your chances of facing anti-West sentiment as a traveller are slim. Iranians make a clear distinction between the Western governments they distrust and individual travellers who visit their country. Americans may receive the odd jibe about their government's policies, but nothing more serious than that.
Iranian traffic is horrendous. Drivers typically attack their art with an equal mix of aggressiveness and incompetence and view road rules as mere guidelines. Take care when crossing the roads, and even greater care when driving on them.
Anyone crazy enough to venture within firing distance of the trouble-plagued borders of Iraq and Afghanistan is asking for trouble.
Stay healthy
Apart from being up to date with your usual travel vaccinations (tetanus, polio, etc) no special preparation is needed for travel to Iran.
Tap water is safe to drink in most of the country (and especially the cities), although you may find the chalkiness and taste off-putting in some areas(mainly qom,yazd,hormozgan and boushehr provinces). Bottled mineral water (?b madani) is available everywhere. Also, on frequent streets and sites, public water fridges are installed to provide drinking water - quality comparable to bottled water.
Despite progress in recent years, the pace of liberalisation in Iran remains slow and its legally-enforced Islamic codes of conduct dictate many aspects of public life. Respecting the dozens of unspoken rules and regulations of Iranian life can be a daunting prospect for travellers, but don't be intimidated. As a foreigner you will be given leeway and it doesn't take long to acclimatise yourself.
Perhaps the most visible mark of Iran's Islamic leanings is the conservative dress expected of its citizens. Although normal, Western style clothing is acceptable in private homes, when in public women are required to cover everything but their face, hands and feet.
The most common uniform consists of a head scarf (roo-sari, ?????) to conceal the head and neck, a formless, knee-length coat known as a Mantow (?????) and a long dress or pair of pants. In and around holy sites, you will be expected to dress even more modestly in a ch?dor, a full-length swathe of black cloth designed to cloak everything but your face from view.
The dress code can be daunting during your preparation, but roo-saris, roo-pooshes and ch?dors can be bought cheaply in Iran. Watch or ask friendly Iranian women for guidance and marvel at how young women are pushing the boundaries of modesty with colourful head scarves that cover only a fraction of their hair and figure-hugging roo-pooshes that reveal every curve of their bodies.
Men have a slightly easier time of things. Short-sleeved shirts and t-shirts are acceptable for daily wear, but long sleeved shirts are still required for holy sites and formal occasions. Shorts and three-quarter length pants are only acceptable on the beach.
Iran is a publicly segregated society. Many facilities such as transport and mosques are segregatated and extended social interaction between men and women who are not related or married is eyed with suspicion.
Greet people of the same sex with a handshake, three kisses or both, but avoid physical contact with unrelated people of the opposite sex. Place your hand over your heart and bow slighlty to greet them instead.
You will struggle to find Iranians happy with the current regime, but be careful of initiating political discussions. Although political freedom has increased in recent years, vocal opposition can be more trouble than it's worth.
Visiting holy sites
Although no trip to Iran would be complete without a glimpse at the stunning architecture and sombre environments of its mosques or holy shrines, many travellers are daunted by the prospect of walking into the foreign world of a mosque. Don't let these fears stop you; Iranians are welcoming and will understand any unintended breach of protocol.
Some mosques, and most holy shrines, require women to be wearing a ch?dor before entering the complex. If you don't have one, there are sometimes kiosks by the door that lend or hire ch?dors. It is better for men to wear long-sleeved shirts inside a mosque or shrine, though this is not mandatory.
Shoes are not worn within prayer areas of a mosque or shrine. Busier mosques have free shoe repositories where you trade your shoes for a token. Also try to avoid mosques on the holy day of Friday and don't photograph a mosque while prayers are taking place.
Holy shrines, like those in Mashad and Qom, are usually off limits to non-Muslims, although the surrounding complexes are usually OK. Always ask first before you enter a room you are unsure of.
The number 110 is the police number without any code but you may also access emergencies via this number.
These are the area code for major cities Tehran(021) - Isfahan(0311) - Tabriz(0411) - Mashad(0511) - Shiraz(0711) - Ahvaz(0611) - Babol(0111) - Sari(0151) - Hamedan(0811) - Arak(0861)
Conservative forces within the Iranian government have been wary of connecting their country to the adult content and politically dissident views of the Internet. After a clampdown on unlicensed internet cafes a few years ago, coffee net (???? ??) facilities are popping across all major cities and tourist centres. Some (but not all) are double-signed in English, so you may want to memorise the Persian script. If in doubt, any young Iranian should be able to point you in the direction of the nearest coffee net.
Some websites are blocked based on words appearing in their URL, although savvy coffee net users may be able to show you how to circumvent these restrictions. It also may not be wise to send lengthy anti-regime tirades via insecure email accounts. You can expect to pay between IR 4,000 - IR 9,000 per hour and speeds range from acceptable in major cities, to the infuriatingly slow in small towns and rural areas. More recently, some facilities in major cities use broadband wireless or DSL connections. Most coffee net places will also have a CD burner for downloading photos from digital cameras.
External links


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Researcher improves LCDs with 3-D nanoimaging process
Charles Rosenblatt, professor of physics and macromolecular science at Case Western Reserve University, and his research group have developed a method of 3D optical imaging of anisotropic fluids such as liquid crystals, with volumetric resolution one thousand times smaller than existing techniques. A research paper detailing the team's findings appeared in the advanced online publication of Nature Physics.
The molecules of these fluids, such as liquid crystals and ordered polymers, gels, and emulsion, can be oriented by magnetic or electric fields and thus can control the polarization properties of light. This is how liquid crystal displays in televisions, laptop computers, and other digital devices operate. Designing these and future devices requires a detailed knowledge of the molecular order. Until now much of the available information was based on inference from macroscopic experiments.
Using Rosenblatt's new technique, which provides detailed visual renderings of structures at the level of tens of nanometers, about 1/1000th the diameter of a human hair, we are able to create a much more detailed and nuanced picture of the structure. This will facilitate improvements to existing devices and make entirely new applications possible. Moreover, many fundamental scientific questions that deal with phase transitions or the nature of topological defects can be studied in far more detail than previously possible.
His system builds on existing techniques in near field scanning optical microscopy (NSOM) for 2D imaging. Traditionally, NSOM entails placing a very tiny optical fiber close to the specimen surface, in this case the substrate on which the anisotropic fluid resides. As the substrate is scanned back and forth below the fiber's aperture, a computer records the intensity of the light that emerges from the fiber and interacts with the surface, as well as the position of the fiber. The computer processes the information and produces a 2D optical image of the surface with resolution of several tens of nanometers. To date, NSOM has been used mainly as a surface characterization technique.
Rosenblatt's team adapted traditional NSOM technology by using polarized light, immersing the fiber into the fluid, and collecting images at a series of heights above the substrate. The result is polarized optical nanotomograpy (ONT), a system for 3D mapping of anisotropic fluid on top of a substrate.
The team chose a nematic liquid crystal, whose molecular orientation is controlled by a nanoscopic pattern scribed into the underlying polymer-coated substrate. This material was chosen because its structure can be readily calculated, giving the team an idea of what they should expect to see through the ONT imaging process.
In their ONT experiment the team immersed an optical fiber with a diameter of 60 nanometers (approximately one-tenth the diameter of the wavelength of light) into the liquid crystal to a position just above the substrate. There the fiber was scanned two-dimensionally over the surface and an image was obtained. They then retracted the fiber by approximately 25 nm and obtained a second image. In principle data from the first image could be subtracted from the second, providing information about the molecular orientation profile at 25 nm above the surface. This process was repeated out to a distance of 500 nm above the substrate. Rosenblatt's team demonstrated that the images at each height were completely consistent with the theoretical predictions, and they were able to make the first visualization and direct measurement of the 200 nanometer length over which the molecular orientation homogenizes.
The research was funded by the U.S. Department of Energy's Basic Energy Science program and the Petroleum Research Fund of the American Chemical Society.
Over the summer Rosenblatt received a three year grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) that runs through 2011, marking 25 continuous years of NSF single-investigator funding for his research projects. The money from this grant will be used for liquid crystal interface control and phenomena on more macroscopic scales, and will be performed in collaboration with his former postdoctoral fellows who are now at the University of Calabria, Italy.
The summer of 2008 brought yet another three-year grant, this one for the study of acceleration-driven fluid interface instabilities, the type that occurs in diverse phenomena such as exploding supernovae, inertial confinement for fusion experiments used for energy production and vinegar-and-oil salad dressing. This grant was awarded jointly to Rosenblatt and his colleague Pierre Carles of the Universite Paris 6 and adjunct associate professor of physics at Case Western Reserve by the Partner University Fund administered by the French Foreign Ministry.
Source: Case Western Reserve University
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
Knoxville, TN (PRWEB) October 29, 2013
TravelCenters of America LLC (TravelCenters), operator of the TA® and Petro Stopping Centers® travel center brands, has turned over $286,877.99 in donations to the St. Christopher Truckers Development and Relief Fund (SCF). This is the largest single donation amount the SCF has received to date, and takes the total donations that TravelCenters has helped to raise for the Fund to nearly $1.1 million.
The donation monies were generously given by TA and Petro customers and employees during TravelCenters' fourth annual "Band Together for SCF" campaign, as well as during recent professional driver events, including the TA Walcott Truckers Jamboree, the Great American Trucking Show, and the OOIDA Heart of America Trucking Show.
SCF is a non-profit organization that benefits truck drivers suffering from financial hardship due to medical problems. The 2013 "Band Together for SCF" campaign ran from August 22 – October 6 at all TA and Petro locations. Drivers were asked to donate $1 to help their fellow drivers in need and in turn received a commemorative wristband.
"It's completely amazing to know that our customers and employees have pulled together to donate more than $1 million since November, 2010, when we began the Band Together campaigns to help professional drivers," said Tom O'Brien, President and CEO of TravelCenters. "This level of generosity can't be found just anywhere," he continued. "Professional drivers and those in the trucking industry are some of the most generous people around."
TravelCenters began holding annual fundraisers for the SCF in 2010. Each year, the campaign donations increase, and one hundred percent of all donations collected go to the organization. The 2013 campaign donation is the largest single donation SCF has received. In addition to holding fundraisers for SCF, TravelCenters has also nominated the charity for BP's Fueling Communities Grant in each of the last three years, resulting in BP awarding a total of $90,000 in grant money to the charity.
"I have such great gratitude to all of the TA and Petro customers and employees who have made this possible," said Dr. Donna Kennedy, Executive Director of the SCF. "To date, we have helped more than 800 professional drivers with financial assistance with utility bills, mortgage payments and other monthly bills. In fact, we have paid out more than $40,000 in the last two months. Drivers are becoming more aware of the SCF, which is wonderful. But, it's even more wonderful to have these generous donations that make it possible to help those in need," she added.
Dr. Kennedy and Tom Liutkus, Vice President of Marketing for TravelCenters, will talk about the SCF and the Band Together campaign on Dave Nemo's show on the RoadDog Trucking channel, SiriusXM 128 on Wednesday, October 30, 2013, at 10 a.m. ET. Dave Nemo is one of the founders of SCF.
About TravelCenters of America LLC
TravelCenters of America LLC (TravelCenters), headquartered in Westlake, Ohio, is a leading travel center business in 42 states and Canada operating under the TA® and Petro Stopping Centers® brands. With 247 convenient full-service locations off interstate highway exits, TA and Petro Stopping Centers offer customers diesel and gasoline fueling services, more than 500 full- and quick-service restaurants, 24-hour convenience stores, heavy truck maintenance services, RoadSquad Connect™ (24/7/365 emergency roadside service), Reserve-It™ (truck parking reservations), and many other services – all within large, high traffic facilities. For more information on TravelCenters and TA, please visit http://www.tatravelcenters.com. For more information on Petro Stopping Centers, please visit http://www.petrotruckstops.com.
About St. Christopher Truckers Development and Relief Fund
The St. Christopher Truckers Development and Relief Fund (SCF) is a 501(c)(3), not-for-profit organization that provides assistance to professional truck drivers whose medical problems have led to financial difficulty. SCF also promotes educational and wellness programs that benefit professional drivers and the trucking industry. For more information, please visit http://www.truckersfund.org.
Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/2013/10/prweb11280209.htm.
|Source: PRWeb
Copyright©2012 Vocus, Inc.
All rights reserved


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Find the top rated atv trails in Sun City, whether you're looking for an easy short atv trail or a long atv trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a atv trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
This is truly one of the most picturesque trails that I've found in OC. I'm lucky to live where the trail starts near El Toro and Ridgeline, so I am right on the trail and it's a beautiful and well-kept bikeway where I do my longer runs. I'm so happy I found this one! I'll be doing my long runs here for sure!
I absolutely love walking on the Pacific electric trail. I am on it several times a week.
BUT there are no restroom facilities! The only one is at the trail hub....and that's it! What are we suppose to do? Not drink water while exercise? Pee in a bush on the side of the trail? There absolutely NEEDS to be restroom facilities along the trail.
Nice wide trail with asphalt and gravel I run almost every Saturday morning. Easy access and parking. Sometimes busy with families, dogs, bikes and horses, but the trail is so wide there is always room. I usually carry my own water so adding restrooms would make this a 5-star trail!
This was a really nice ride I went from the coast up and back. It's mostly flat and not too busy. I did this one on a single speed cruiser. Had a lot of fun.
Water and nice views
Rode from Centennial Park to downtown Huntington Beach. Nice trail with lots to see. Trail dumps you right into huntington beach.
Great trail to ride to the beach. I only rode on the 14 mile stretch from Amtrak Anaheim station to the beach but the trail was awesome Great surface to ride, parks and brides along the way many on and off access . but continuing trail with no autos to worry about.
Great beautiful trail to ride It can get difficult if the beach is very busy. You may have to ride around and through crowds but it is part of the fun a bit. Bathrooms and food is available all along the trail. Great scenery and mostly flat.
You can park for free in the lot next to the bus roundabout. If you come in at the north end of the trail (off of Warner) and turn right after the jack in the box you'll see a parking lot on the left. There's no fee to park there! 😉
A friend and I both have new e-Bikes. Both are city urban commuter type bikes and both of us over sixty-five. We used to ride years ago but for various reasons we stopped. Now we're back on the road enjoying a lovely trail with wonderful sights. There are little parks and kiddy play areas along the way. We only managed nearly half this time around with a plan to finish the second half in the near future.
It's been a few years since my wife and I biked this path, but I always think about it this time of year whenever I smell the orange blossoms in my southern California neighborhood.
This is most certainly a slow, easy, ideal ride for a spring day. It's not too hot yet, the narrow path passes by some stately historic homes, and the aroma of the orange blossoms are absolutely intoxicating!
Consider leaving the path on the way back and riding up one of the side streets through the groves.
I suspect this trail is especially popular with the surrounding community. I know if I lived there I'd be cruising down to the beach every day on it! For a couple of out of towners, it was well worth the time we put into exploring it.
After spending the night in Dana Point's bluff hugging Blue Lantern Inn, we parked the car and unloaded the bikes in Dana Point Marina's Baby Beach parking lot so we could enjoy pedaling around the quiet marina streets as well as the San Juan Creek Trail.
After cruising over to Doheny State Beach to the trailhead, we began our trek along the bank of the creek. For the most part it's a nice, fairly quiet ride. On the way up, we took a detour and explored the Trabuco Creek Trail as well as Old Historic San Juan Capistrano.
The San Juan Creek Trail eventually concluded in a somewhat rural area of ranches and equestrian centers. After cruising back down to the trailhead, I must say it's pretty cool to relax on the beach in the cool, salty air and to bask in the sun.
TrailLink is a free service provided by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (a non-profit) and we need your support!


text:
Top Items:
Eric Savitz / Tech Trader Daily:
Yahoo: Collins Stewart Says Fundamentals "Deteriorating" — More trouble lurks ahead for Yahoo (YHOO), Collins Stewart analyst Sandeep Agrawal warned this morning. — "We believe that the fundamentals at YHOO are deteriorating," he writes in a research note.
Discussion: Search Engine Watch
Nathania Johnson / Search Engine Watch: Collins Stewart Analyts Puts YHOO Value at $21
John Timmer / Ars Technica:
Google takes its defense of the Yahoo ad deal to the people — As part of its efforts to avoid being swallowed by Microsoft, Yahoo negotiated an advertising deal with Redmond's worst nightmare: Google. A test run of the program apparently worked well enough that the companies have agreed …
Discussion: Industry Standard, Pulse 2.0 and Valleywag
Cyndy Aleo-Carreira / Industry Standard: Google launches propaganda campaign for Yahoo ad deal
Amit Chowdhry / Pulse 2.0: Google Launches New Site To Discuss Yahoo! Deal Misperceptions
Nicholas Carlson / Valleywag: Kara Swisher vs. Google
Thom Weidlich / Bloomberg:
Apple Won't Face Lawsuit Over Limited Life of IPhone Batteries — Sept. 26 (Bloomberg) — Apple Inc. won't face a lawsuit claiming it didn't immediately tell customers about the limited life of batteries for its iPhone or their $86 replacement cost, including delivery.
Discussion: ZDNet Government, MacRumors, Technology blog, AppleInsider, iLounge, Macworld, GMSV, MacNN, Macsimum News, Gizmodo and textually.org
Jack Schofield / Technology blog: Apple not deceptive over iPhone batteries, says judge
Sam Oliver / AppleInsider: Judge tosses iPhone battery lawsuit
Charles Starrett / iLounge: News: Mix: Battery suit, iTunes accessibility, Marware, Future Shop
Dan Moren / Macworld: Judge dismisses iPhone suit against Apple
John Murrell / GMSV: Apple saved from assault on battery
Dennis Sellers / Macsimum News: Lawsuit over iPhone batteries dismissed
Ina Fried / CNET News:
Ballmer on search: 'I don't like not being No. 1' — SANTA CLARA, Calif.—Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said his company may be the only one with a chance to rival Google in search over the long term, but acknowledged that it will take several more years and a whole lot of money.
Eric Auchard / Reuters: Tech Industry Still Buoyant, Microsoft CEO Says
Arnold Zafra / Search Engine Journal: Balmer Says Search is a Five-Year Task
Stephen E. Arnold / Beyond Search: Microsoft: Oh, to Be Number One
Michael Arrington / TechCrunch: Steve Ballmer Visits Silicon Valley, Talks About Microsoft's Future …
Doug Caverly / WebProNews: Ballmer Calls Search A Five-Year Task
Andy Beal / Andy Beal's Marketing Pilgrim: Microsoft's 5-Year Plan to Catch Google? A DeLorean & 1.21 Gigawatts!
Michael Masnick / Techdirt:
The RIAA's Playbook: No New Business Models Without RIAA Ownership — Mathew Ingram covers the details of Muxtape's run-in with the RIAA. As you may recall, last month the rather useful site that let people create online "mix tapes" that could be streamed to others was shut down thanks to the RIAA.
Discussion: VoIP & Gadgets Blog, mathewingram.com/work, Listening Post and Silicon Alley Insider
Eliot Van Buskirk / Listening Post: Muxtape To Relaunch in New Form After RIAA Backstab
Eric Krangel / Silicon Alley Insider: Muxtape Is Dead. Long Live Muxtape!
Marshall Kirkpatrick / ReadWriteWeb:
FeedBurner May Not Be Hearing Your Pings — Blogging is a fast medium, that's one of its advantages over traditional media. There are bloggers who specialize in reporting fast about breaking news on a wide variety of topics. Most of those bloggers use Google's RSS publishing technology FeedBurner …
Discussion: Venture Chronicles
Charlie Sorrel / Gadget Lab:
IPhone 2.2: Safari Redesign, Possible Cut and Paste — With the iPhone v2.1 software out of the door, Apple is hard at work on v2.2. From this first glimpse it looks like Apple, now that the major bugs have been squashed, is adding some new features. — The screenshot, unearthed by iPhone Atlas, shows a new Safari interface.
Discussion: iPhone Atlas, InformationWeek and Gizmodo
Eric Zeman / InformationWeek: Apple iPhone Firmware 2.2 Shows Its Face
Mark Wilson / Gizmodo: Mobile Safari Redesign Is Subtle, Logical
Larry Dignan / Between the Lines:
Apple cuts iPhone 3G build plan; Suppliers to take a hit — Apple reportedly plans to build 14 million to 15 million iPhone 3Gs from a previous target of 18 million for 2008, according to a report from Pacific Crest. — Citing "supply chain channel checks" Apple's is cutting its iPhone 3G buildout.
Discussion: mocoNews.net and MacNN
Michael Arrington / TechCrunch:
What Is The Deal With This Stupid Lighter iPhone App? — Everyone keeps talking about Smule's virtual lighter iPhone application called Sonic Lighter (iTunes link). — I wasn't impressed: there are no less than ten different virtual lighter apps in iTunes, which is what I'd call a saturated market.
Discussion: Cult of Mac, p2pnet, Google Maps Mania and Boing Boing Gadgets
Giles Turnbull / Cult of Mac: The northernmost recorded iPhone user
Keir Clarke / Google Maps Mania: Light Up the World on Google Maps
Rob Beschizza / Boing Boing Gadgets: What's the deal with all the rubbish at the AppStore?
Dan Frommer / Silicon Alley Insider:
Where Is Microsoft's Smartphone? Everywhere, Says Redmond — The smartphone wars are set for this holiday season: Apple's (AAPL) iPhone 3G versus new BlackBerry gadgets from Research In Motion (RIMM), and now Google's 'G1' Android GPhone. Oh — and dozens of gadgets running Microsoft's Windows Mobile.
Discussion: Engadget and Pocket PC Thoughts.com
Rocco Augusto / Pocket PC Thoughts.com: Microsoft Confirms: No Plans To Build Handsets
Ben Worthen / Business Technology:
Larry Ellison's Brilliant Anti-Cloud Computing Rant — Maybe Larry Ellison can do what the Business Technology Blog can't. — Earlier this week, we wrote that the term "cloud computing" now seems to apply to just about anything even loosely associated with the Internet, making it effectively meaningless.
Discussion: CNET News, Valleywag, Silicon Alley Insider and deal architect
Dan Farber / CNET News: Oracle's Ellison nails cloud computing
Barry Schwartz / Search Engine Roundtable:
Google Messes Up AdSense Exchange For Indian Rupee — A DigitalPoint Forums thread has a three page thread on the topic of Google messing up yet again with the exchange rate given to publishers. This time Google equated one US dollar to one Indian Rupee. The true current exchange rate is $1 US to 46.555 INR.
Discussion: Epicenter, Yahoo! Finance and StartupDunia
Ina Fried / CNET News:
Tellme for iPhone due by June — SANTA CLARA, Calif.—Microsoft is indeed working on an iPhone application. — As I predicted, it is the company's Tellme unit that is actively developing a program for Apple's iPhone. Tellme offers voice-activated search for a variety of phones, including the BlackBerry.
Discussion: VentureBeat and Apple Gazette
Tarmo Virki / Reuters:
Nokia to unveil touch-screen phone Oct 2: sources — HELSINKI (Reuters) - The world's top cellphone maker Nokia (NOK1V.HE: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) will unveil its first touch-screen phone at a media and analyst event in London next week, two industry sources told Reuters on Friday.
Discussion: Electronista, CrunchGear, mocoNews.net, The Toybox, Boing Boing Gadgets and Phone Scoop
Nicholas Deleon / CrunchGear: Nokia to debut its first touchscreen cellphone next week in London
Robert Andrews / mocoNews.net: Nokia To Show Tube, New Interfaces At Next Week's Music Launch?
Andrew Nusca / The Toybox: Nokia to unveil touchscreen phone next week
Rob Beschizza / Boing Boing Gadgets: Nokia "Tube" launches Oct. 2
Eric M. Zeman / Phone Scoop: Report: Nokia to Launch Touch Device Next Week
Matt Marshall / VentureBeat:
Microsoft may buy Yahoo and AOL if the latter two merge — Microsoft is quietly readying a plan to make a purchase of the combined Yahoo-AOL, should Yahoo pull off its plans to acquire the struggling America Online unit, according to sources close to AOL. — Microsoft was rebuffed …
Discussion: Wall Street Journal and BoomTown
Jay Alabaster / Associated Press:
Japan's online social scene isn't so social — TOKYO - Like a lot of 20-year-olds, Kae Takahashi has a page on U.S.-based MySpace, and there is no mistaking it for anyone else's. — It's got pictures of the funky Tokyoite modeling the clothes she designs in her spare time, along with her name …
Discussion: Pulse 2.0
Amit Chowdhry / Pulse 2.0: A Majority of Mixi's 15 Million Users Give False Info
BIZ / Twitter Blog:
Of The People, By The People, For The People — Politweets was one of the first to mix Twitter and politics. Other interesting mash-ups were created by C-SPAN for both the RNC and the DNC. There's also the amazingly cool Perspctv and of course there's Current TV's plan to Hack The Debate.
Discussion: Profy, Feeds, Search Engine Land, TechCrunch, Silicon Alley Insider, SitePoint Blogs, Portfolio, The Social Times, RotorBlog.com, TechBlog, Bits, WebProNews, AppScout, ReadWriteWeb, Lifehacker, Pulse 2.0, Podcasting News, VentureBeat, Valleywag, blogs.telegraph.co.uk …, Epicenter, The Social, The Social Path and The Blog Herald
Svetlana Gladkova / Profy: Twitter Election Site - Amusing Enough to Make the Elections Less Boring
Jennifer Leggio / Feeds: Twitter's Election 2008 - more than a mashup; it's a revenue model
Barry Schwartz / Search Engine Land: Watching The Presidential Debate? …
Don Reisinger / TechCrunch: Why Twitter Needs to Do More — In case you missed the news …
Eric Krangel / Silicon Alley Insider: Twitter's Election Site: Not All That Useful, But The Media Will Love It
Kevin Maney / Portfolio: The Most Entertaining Election-related Site
Nick O'Neill / The Social Times: Politics Gets Social In Time for Debates
Arnold Zafra / RotorBlog.com: Twitter Wants to be More Useful
Saul Hansell / Bits: Politics Never Smelled So Tweet
Mark Hachman / AppScout: Twitter Politics — Just What We Don't Need
Frederic Lardinois / ReadWriteWeb: Twitter's Election Site: A Sign of What's to Come?
Gina Trapani / Lifehacker: Watch Real-time Election Commentary on Twitter
Amit Chowdhry / Pulse 2.0: Track What Twitter Users Are Saying About Election 2008
James Lewin / Podcasting News: Twitter Election 2008 Site Powered By You
MG Siegler / VentureBeat: Twitter to launch election site tonight
Nicholas Carlson / Valleywag: John McCain will debate, Twitter's new site tells us over and over
Claudine Beaumont / blogs.telegraph.co.uk …: Twitter launches US Election microblog
Chris Snyder / Epicenter: Twitter Finally Launches Election Site
Caroline McCarthy / The Social: Election season comes to Twitter
David Griner / The Social Path: Cool Tool of the Week: Election 2008 edition
Thord Daniel Hedengren / The Blog Herald: The US Presidential Election on Twitter
Julian Sanchez / Ars Technica:
Larry Page blasts white space FUD on Capitol Hill — Google co-founder Larry Page says the time for delays has passed: he wants the Federal Communications Commission to open up fallow "white space" in the TV broadcast spectrum for unlicensed use, and to do it before November's presidential election.
Stacey Higginbotham / GigaOM: Why There Won't Be Broadband Competition Anytime Soon
Kristopher Jones / nab.org: GOOGLE PETITION IGNORES TV INTERFERENCE ISSUES
Jacqueline Emigh / BetaNews: Google co-founder blames politics for 'white space' device failures
Maciej Stachowiak / Surfin' Safari:
Discussion: Infinite Loop, TG Daily, AppleInsider and Macsimum News
Chris Foresman / Infinite Loop: Team WebKit claims it's the first to fully pass Acid 3 tests
Christian Zibreg / TG Daily: Safari 4 beta first browser to hit 100% score in Acid3 test
Prince McLean / AppleInsider: WebKit becomes first browser engine to fully pass Acid3 test
Dennis Sellers / Macsimum News: WebKit browser engine passes Acid3 test
Ian Lesnet / Hack a Day:
How-To: Web server on a business card (Part 2) — This mini web server is slightly smaller than a business card. There are a lot of tiny one-board servers out there, but this is probably the smallest you can etch and solder at home. Unlike many embedded web servers …
Discussion: Boing Boing Gadgets, p2pnet, Gizmodo and Slashdot
Rob Beschizza / Boing Boing Gadgets: Business card web server
Kdawson / Slashdot: Web Server On a Business Card
Toshiba Launches 256GB Solid State Drives with MLC — TOKYO—Toshiba Corporation today announced enhancements to its line-up of NAND-flash-based solid state drives (SSD) with the addition of an industry-leading 256-gigabyte (GB) SSD and the launch of a series of small-sized Flash Modules …
Discussion: Liliputing, DailyTech, The Toybox, Engadget, jkOnTheRun, Electronista and TechSpot
Shane McGlaun / DailyTech: Toshiba Announces 256GB MLC SSD, Trio of Flash Modules
Andrew Nusca / The Toybox: Toshiba launches 256GB SSD with MLC
Kevin C. Tofel / jkOnTheRun: Toshiba prepping 256 GB SSD drives
Justin Mann / TechSpot: Toshiba introduces 256GB 2.5" SSD
David Meyer / CNET News:
Skype to be integrated into Asterisk PBXs — The open-source PBX platform Asterisk is to gain Skype functionality, Asterisk's primary developer, Digium, announced on Thursday. — The beta version of Skype For Asterisk, an add-on channel driver module, will make it possible to use …
Charlie Sorrel / Gadget Lab:
Griffin iPod Dock Simplifies Cluttered Desks — Look what Griffin did! It's another iPod dock, but this time it's actually useful. The Simplifi comes in at $70, but for that you get to toss out your media card reader and your USB hub. There's also an AC adapter for juice-sucking …
Discussion: Newlaunches.com, Macworld, CrunchGear, Macsimum News, Ubergizmo, GeekBrief.TV, Obsessable and Gizmodo
Peter Cohen / Macworld: Simplifi combines iPod dock, media card slots, hub
Matt Burns / CrunchGear: Griffin's Simplifi iPod dock simplifies your desk
Dennis Sellers / Macsimum News: Griffin Technology introduces Simplifi desktop hub solution
Martin Conaghan / Obsessable: Griffin unveils Simplifi iPod Dock / multi-format card reader
Jacqui Cheng / Ars Technica:
Report: workers spend 25% of work time goofing around online — If you're reading this while your boss thinks you're hammering away on some code or updating that Excel spreadsheet, then you're likely one of the workers that spend about 25 percent of their work time doing personal stuff online.
Discussion: Digital Daily
Stacey Higginbotham / GigaOM:
Can These Startups Beat Paypal? — Despite the acceptance of credit cards and services like PayPal, the issue of getting money from one person to another online still offers opportunities for innovation. Venture firms are continuing to fund startups that hope to offer better ways to pay online …
Discussion: American Banker, Business Week and Payments News
Steve Bills / American Banker: Mercatus: Handset Payments to Climb
Stacey Higginbotham / Business Week: Moving Money Online Stills Needs Work
Eric Krangel / Silicon Alley Insider:
Wall Street's Blowup Shrinks The Tech Market By Billions. Could Be Worse — The Wall Street collapse is terrible for tech, obviously. But it could be worse. — Forrester Research says the financial sector's troubled firms (Lehman, Merrill, Bear Stearns, AIG, Fannie, Freddie) all together equal about 2% of tech spending.
Discussion: Beet.TV
Sam Diaz / Between the Lines:
Amazon feeling first pinch of holiday economic slump — The uncertainty surrounding the economy is starting to impact brand names that have become synonymous with online holiday shopping - notably Amazon. Lazard Capital analyst Colin Sebastian lowered estimates for Amazon's Q3 …
Arne Hess / the::unwired:
BROWSER: Microsoft's Internet Explorer Mobile 6 aka 6 on 6 is real and shows its face — The next, officially announced, big update for Windows Mobile will be - as Microsoft calls it - "6 on 6", which is Internet Explorer Mobile 6 on Windows Mobile 6.1. The current Internet Explorer Mobile code …
Discussion: Download Squad, Gizmodo, GottaBeMobile and wmpoweruser.com
Jesus Diaz / Gizmodo: Internet Explorer Mobile 6 First Screens
Matt Faulkner / GottaBeMobile: Internet Explorer Mobile 6 Screenshots


text:
WASHINGTON, Dec. 23 (UPI) -- Two U.S. senators Sunday expressed bipartisan support for Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., to be President Obama's next secretary of state.
Kerry, who earned a solid reputation in the foreign affairs arena during his tenure in the Senate, was nominated to replace Hillary Clinton during Obama's second term and appeared Sunday to be getting a favorable response from his Capitol Hill colleagues.
"I have no problem at all with John Kerry," said Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., said on ABC's
"This Week."
"I've served with him for four years on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee," Isakson added. "He's done outstanding work, particularly in the Middle East. He's been a great envoy and a great diplomat for the United States and I think he'll do a great job as secretary of state."
Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., said Kerry had "the ability to get tough things done like the nuclear arms treaty a few years back."
The enthusiasm for Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., to become secretary of defense was more tepid. Hagel has not been formally nominated; however, he has been taking some pre-emptive hits in the media for his supposed lack of support for Israel and its policy toward the Palestinians.
Klobuchar and Isakson both told ABC they would reserve judgment on Hagel until he is actually nominated.


text:
Dream I've been having
I could basically just re-write what I wrote HERE.
Seriously, this dream about my husband marrying a second wife just won't get lost! It always happens when he's neglecting us... Like a couple days ago, he played his game all night and it bothered me the whole night, knowing that he promised he would take care of the kids so I could sleep in for one of the first times since Adam's birth and that he would not be honouring his promise because of his gaming.
Last time I guess it was the store who was the second wife and this time it's back to being his games. I'm a bit sick and tired of being dream-cheated on.


text:
Richard Burns Rally
PlayStation 2
What do you need help on? Cancel X
With unprecedented photo-realistic graphical quality the UK's top rally driver will guide you through your career as a rally driver - teaching you the skills necessary to compete at the highest level. You will need a combination of tactics, intelligence, foresight and perseverance - in addition to speed, aggression and risk taking. Richard Burns Rally is a game that will both challenge and astound any fan of motorsport video games. Marking a significant move forward for the rally genre, Richard Burns Rally pushes the limits of technological capability whilst revising gameplay conventions. The best recreation of real life rallying seen to date, Richard Burns Rally is simulation gaming at its most precise. Featuring Richard Burns winner of the 2001 World Rally Championship and licensed rallies from around the world you are in charge of the most accurately modelled car-handling ever devised in a variety of gameplay modes. Every aspect of modern rallying has been precisely modelled to allow the player to experience life as a top-class rally driver. Richard Burns Rally surpasses its rivals in every area -graphical quality, technical accuracy, car physics, gameplay and unique features.
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Combo Offer Fender CD-60CE Acoustic Guitar, Bag, Picks With Standared Cajon And Bag
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Product Description
Combo Offer Fender CD-60CE Acoustic Guitar, Bag, Picks With Standared Cajon And Bag
- With Guitar, Bag, Picks And Cajon, Bag
- Body Back: Mahogany
- Body Sides: Mahogany
- Body Top: Solid Spruce
- Body Finish: Gloss
- Body Shape: Dreadnought
- Body Binding: Multiple
- Bracing Quartersawn Scalloped "X"
- Rosette: CD Series Pearloid
- Neck Material: Mahogany
- Neck Binding: 1-Ply Black
- Neck Finish: Gloss
- Neck Shape: Fender Easy-to-play shape with rolled fretboard edges
- Scale Length 25.3″ (643 mm)
- Fingerboard: Material Rosewood
- Fingerboard Radius: 12″ (305 mm)
- Number of Frets: 20
- Fret Size: Vintage
- Nut Material: Crème Plastic Nut Width 1.69″ (43 mm)
- Position Inlays: 3mm Pearloid Dot
- Truss Rod: Dual-Action
- Bridge: Rosewood
- Bridge Pins: White with Black Dots
- Hardware Finish: Chrome
- Tuning Machines: Chrome Die-Cast Pickguard: Black
Adding value to your purchase, Austin Bazaar bundles your instrument with necessary accessories. Everything you need to start playing immediately comes in one box. Save yourself the hassle and save some money while you're at it. A hard case is included so you can keep your instrument safely packed away when you're on the go. An easy-to-use clip-on tuner is included so you can keep your instrument in tune. A strap is included so you can practice or better yet perform while standing up. Strings are included so you have extra for later. Picks are included so you can start playing right out of the box. An Austin Bazaar instructional DVD is included so you can pick up some tips while learning your new instrument. An Austin Bazaar polishing cloth is included so you can keep your new instrument in mint condition.
- Quality solid spruce top
- Dreadnought body style
- Mahogany back and sides
- Easy-to-play neck with rolled fingerboard edges
- Responds well to any acoustic playing style
The CD-60S is one of our most popular models and is ideal for players looking for a high-quality affordable dreadnought with great tone and excellent playability. With its quality solid spruce top, easy-to-play neck with rolled fingerboard and mahogany back and sides, the CD60-S is perfect for the couch, the campfire or the coffeehouse — anywhere you want classic Fender playability and sound.
- Dreadnought body style
- Solid spruce top with scalloped "X"-bracing
- Mahogany back and sides
- Easy-to-play neck with rolled fingerboard edgesSOLID SPRUCE TOP
Spruce is the standard modern tonewood for fashioning the tops of acoustic guitars and other acoustic instruments — few woods can beat its strength, brightness and dynamic range, and it responds well to any acoustic playing style, from hard strumming to fast flatpicking to delicate fingerpicking.EASY-TO-PLAY NECK
With it's comfortably rolled fingerboard edges, this intrument's neck creates an incredibly comfortable fret-hand feel that's ideal for beginning players or experienced pros alike.MAHOGANY BACK AND SIDES
Along with its staggering cosmetic vibe, a resonant combination of mahogany back and sides delivers balanced tone with plenty of volume and midrange.
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When it Comes to Data, Less is BetterBy Larry Dignan | Posted 2005-05-03 Print
Minimize the amount of data you keep, and you reduce the chances that lost or stolen information can come back to haunt you.
Polo Ralph Lauren loses the personal information of 180,000 HSBC North America customers. DSW Shoe Warehouse discovers credit card and check data on 1.4 million transactions has been stolen. Bank of America loses backup tapes with the personal information of 1.2 million federal employees.
Why are these security breaches happening?
The answers generally offered by the leaky keepers of data on customers all sound familiar—software glitches, lax security procedures and criminal activity.
Another reason, never offered: Companies are data pack rats, collecting customer information for years without knowing what data is lying around or whether it even holds business value, say security experts such as Alan Brill, senior managing director at Kroll Ontrack.
The fix: Go on a data diet. Reduce the amount of data you keep around, a process called "data minimization."
Such minimization won't end the theft of customer information, but it will limit what data there is to steal (or lose).
Companies often learn the hard way. Polo Ralph Lauren spokeswoman Alex Cohan says the company "had more data on hand than we needed in the point-of-sale system." The company wouldn't comment on what data was stored, but credit card magnetic strips contain items such as account numbers, three-digit verification codes and expiration dates.
Now that Polo Ralph Lauren's system, provided by Micros Systems' Datavantage unit, has been patched, Cohan says only information needed to complete the sale—namely, credit card number and authorization—is collected.
"No one asks whether a company really needs to keep all this information lying around," Brill says. "Is there a reasonable business reason to keep it?"
According to Brill, companies need to go on a "data minimization" quest to cut risks. Go through all your processes and purge data that doesn't serve a business purpose. In a data-minimized world, a retailer, for instance, wouldn't keep credit card numbers on transactions beyond its return policy. Social Security numbers wouldn't be collected at all. Addresses for former customers could be purged after, say, three years. Temporary workers and offshore contractors would only see the data necessary to do a task.
So how did companies get in this pickle?
David Farber, a computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon University, says companies got into it slowly with hopes of marketing better or selling their distribution lists. After all, the penalties for collecting driver's license and Social Security numbers, or any other nugget of customer information, were nil before identity theft became publicized.
"It became easier to keep information than throw it away," Farber says.
Jim Stickley, chief technology officer at TraceSecurity, knows the drill. His credit union, California Coast Credit Union, gave his Social Security number to an unnamed third party marketing firm that lost it.
"It's one thing if the bank needs my Social Security number," Stickley says. "But there's no marketing justification to giving it out."
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Kyocera Revolution 2-Piece Ceramic Knife Set
Easy, hassle-free returns online and in-store for eligible items.Learn More
Earn 5% Back in rewards4 plus free standard shipping3every day when you shop with your Williams Sonoma credit card at Williams Sonoma.Apply Now Learn More
- Summary
These traditional Japanese knives feature a lightweight nonreactive ceramic blade that holds its edge ten times longer than steel.
- Blades are made from zirconium oxide, a state-of-the-art ceramic material that holds a razor-sharp edge ten times longer than steel.
- Designed to slice, mince and dice fresh produce and boneless meats with unrivaled ease and precision.
- Nonreactive blade won't discolor foods or affect flavors.
- Resin handle is contoured for a comfortable grip.
- Set includes 3" paring and 5 1/2" santoku.
- Dimensions & More Info
- 3" paring knife: 3"-long blade; 4 1/2"-long handle; 2.5 oz.
- 5 1/2" Santoku knife: 5 1/2"-long blade; 5"-long handle; 6.9 oz.
- Made in Japan.
- Use & Care
- Always use caution when handling sharp objects.
- Ideal straight cuts of fruits, vegetables and boneless meats.
- Always use with a plastic or wood cutting board. Avoid cutting on marble, stone, glass, ceramic or tile.
- Avoid dropping or scraping knife on hard surface.
- Do not apply force to the side of the knife blade, as you would to crush garlic.
- Hand-wash.
- To remove stubborn discolorations, wash the blade (avoiding the handle) in a mild solution of bleach and water.
- Do not leave knife in sink. Always store knife in a block or tray to prevent accidents.
- Knives may be sharpened by Kyocera. For information, call 1-888-700-7371.
- Shipping
Shipping Information
UPS can deliver most in-stock items within 3–5 business days. UPS is unable to deliver to P.O. boxes.
Shipping Rates
The shipping rate varies depending on your order total and shipping destination. View Shipping Options and Charges.
Next Day Delivery
For an additional charge of $26 per address, we can expedite delivery to most destinations. This service is not available for some oversize items, items shipped directly from the supplier (including perishable and custom-manufactured items), out-of-stock items and items to be shipped outside the contiguous 48 states.
Orders received by 9:00 p.m. ET Monday through Thursday will arrive the next business day; orders placed Friday through Sunday will arrive on the following Tuesday.
Return Policy
At Williams Sonoma, we take great pride in the quality and craftsmanship of our products. Attention to design, materials, safety and construction are our priority. Upon receipt, please inspect your purchase and notify us of any damage; we will arrange for a prompt replacement.
If within 30 days, you are dissatisfied for any reason, you may return your purchase for a refund of the merchandise value. An original receipt or gift receipt is required for all returns and exchanges. Returns with a gift receipt will be refunded in the form of a Merchandise Credit for the amount indicated on the gift receipt. Returns with original receipt will be refunded in the original form of payment, cash and check refunds over $100 will be issued as a company check (may take 14 business days from time of request).
For all cutlery returns (knife sets, single knives, cutting boards, knife sharpeners and knife storage), please contact us at 888.922.4108 to initiate the return.
We cannot accept returns on monogrammed, personalized, special-order items, custom upholstery, food, items shipped direct from the vendor or on items damaged through normal wear and tear. Final sale items ending in .97 or .99 cannot be returned.
Made to Order and Final Sale Furniture items are non-returnable and cannot be cancelled once the order is placed.
For returns of items purchased from your Williams Sonoma Gift Registry, we will gladly provide a refund or exchange for the merchandise within 90 days of your event or within 90 days of purchase, whichever date is later. View Full Returns Policy.
- Free Knife Sharpening in Stores
Working with a sharp knife is safer, more effective and much less tiring than trying to cut and slice with a dull one. To ensure top performance, bring your favorite knife into your local store and one of our cutlery experts will give it a fresh, new edge using our precision equipment. The first knife is free; each additional knife is just $5.
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Williams Sonoma Price Match Guarantee
At Williams Sonoma, we're committed to bringing you the best quality at the best prices.
If you find a lower price on any of our products, we'll match it—guaranteed. Click here for details.
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Rated 5 out of 5 by ralynch820 from Best Knives EVER LOVE LOVE LOVE THESE! I buy them as gifts for all my friends and family members for all occasions. Best knives I've ever used! You can toss a potato in the air and slice it with the knife like cutting through butter! (Becareful when trying this at home! It's fun but can be dangerous!)Date published: 2016-12-12Rated 5 out of 5 by mallock from Best Knives EVER We received these as a wedding gift and they are one of my favorite, most useful gifts we received. We've been married for almost 4 years now and they still slice and dice just as easily as day 1 with no sharpening. We don't live near any of our family so when we travel to visit and I know I'll be cooking, my husband makes fun of me because I pack these with me since I'm too spoiled to mess with other knives now. I hand wash and lay on a drying mat after each use and they generally don't make it back into the drawer before I use them again. Have always used them with a bamboo cutting board.Date published: 2016-07-27Rated 5 out of 5 by katycw from Kyocera Revolution 2-Piece Ceramic Knives I got this set for Christmas, and at this point I have cut up every fruit and vegetable that I can get my hands on!!!! I cut an apple and forgot that I had an appointment to get to.....and returned about 3 hours later it was still beautiful. Love Love Love. I do hand wash and dry after each use, and return to the sleeve. Additionally, I have threatened to quit cooking if anyone in the house touches my knives.Date published: 2014-01-13Rated 5 out of 5 by debee2006 from I love these knives!! These knives are amazing! I had the opportunity to try them out while visiting a friend and fell in love with them! The knives slice through meats with ease and dont bend with I cut through fruits and vegetables. These things are sharp! I have nicked my thumb when slicing tomatoes and onions but its okay. I highly recommend this set for any chef.Date published: 2012-09-03Rated 5 out of 5 by conniec from These Blades Rock I bought this set of knives for my college-age son for Christmas, as he likes to cook as much as I do. I have a set of my own and use them daily. Everyone who tries them, loves them. I have probably sold 15 sets of them to my friends. I treat them respectfully, only using them on wood or bamboo cutting boards, no cutting paper or plastic or anything else. I wash them immediately so they are ready for the next cut. I don't even put them away most of the time. Can't miss purchase.Date published: 2012-03-08


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The answer to the question "why do I need a remote control ball?" seems to be coming in the form of apps that are making Orbotix's Sphero a must-have toy. Including the recently announced MacroLab that lets you choreograph multiple Spheros into elaborate routines.
In addition to letting you program and string together a series of commands as repeatable macros, Orbotix's MacroLab app will also let you control multiple Spheros at the same time. As long as you're using an Android handset, as apparently that functionality isn't iOS-compatible at this point and time.
Not only will the app make for some fantastic videos once it's released this month, but it's also a clever way for Orbotix to convince consumers they need to be buying more than one Sphero at a time. Other than a bleeding-edge juggling routine. [Orbotix]


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There are so many things that I never considered before we became a transracial family. I never thought that when I'd call the black barber for an appointment that I'd be turned away because of my obvious white country hick voice (only to have to explain to the man on the other end of the line that my son isn't white). I never thought that I'd learn how to do things like cornrows and spend a mini fortune on hair and skin products. I never thought I'd say, "Yes, he's black, but he does like to swim and no, he's not a good dancer" to people who want my child to fit into a racial stereotype.
But more than anything, I never thought that I'd constantly have to prove to the general public that, despite the fact that our skin doesn't match, I'm still this child's mother. Dozens of times this little scene has played out:
Miles is a few steps ahead of the grocery cart that I'm pushing through the aisles. A well meaning person looks at him, looks around and assumes that he's lost. They always bend down to him and say, "Oh sweetie. Where's your mommy? Are you lost?" From 5 feet away, I always say, "I'm right here. He's with me." People look confused and then embarrassed and then always say something like, "Oh, he's just precious" to try to redeem themselves. I don't blame them. After all, before our family was multicultural, I'm sure I might have made the same mistakes.
However, that's as far as it's ever gone. Until about a month ago.
Several weeks ago we went to a museum in the deep south USA. We were shuffled through the museum kind of in a line (not one of those museums where you just roam at your leisure) The same people were in front of us and the same people were behind us for most of the tour. We finally got to a room where you could do your own thing. There was some tactile stuff for the kids. Sadie was working a puzzle of the Titanic. Noah and Miles were walking up these ramps that depicted the angle of the Titanic at different stages of sinking. Kamron and I were both roaming between all of the kids and knew exactly where they all were- after all, it wasn't a big room and there weren't a ton of people in it. All of a sudden, the woman who had been behind us in the line on the tour came up to me and said, "The little boy that's with you... they took him!" WHAT!? I looked right over to the ramp where Miles had been 15 seconds earlier and he was gone. I panicked.
The staff at the museum assumed he was lost since there were no black adults in the room and instead of saying, "Is anyone with this little boy?" they just picked him up and took him. I yelled something at Kamron alerting him as to what happened and took off running toward the entrance to the museum. Ahead I saw a worker who had a walkie talkie and told her to radio someone and tell them bring my son back. A million things flashed through my head. I wondered if they'd make me somehow prove that Miles was my son. I wondered if Miles would be terrified. I kept hearing a voice in my brain saying, "Megan, you really should carry around your adoption decree everywhere you go" battled with another voice saying, "Megan, you really shouldn't HAVE to carry something around like that- he's YOUR son!"
Finally, I saw Miles and a big man walk around the corner. Miles saw me and started yelling, "MOMMY!" and ran toward me. I picked him up and walked away. It was no time to educate people that you just don't take a child away without first asking if he belongs to anyone. It wasn't a time to give a speech about how families can all look different. It was just a time to reassure my child. For the rest of the time in the museum, Miles had a death grip on me and Kamron. He wanted to be carried and didn't want his feet to touch the floor. He went mute for the rest of the day. These kinds of things scare the daylights out of our kids who've been hurt and abandoned before.
Miles woke up the next day and seemed to not remember it at all and was back to being his normal chatty, wild self. But for me, it was a wake up call. When we got our ID cards from the state saying that we were foster parents, I put it in my wallet instantly. Even though we wish to live in a world where people recognize that families can have two moms or two dads or be all different colors and abilities- the fact is that to most people, this is still a foreign concept and we need to figure out how we'll deal with these situations should they arise and how we'll "prove" our parentage if it's ever called into question.
I'm curious... has this ever happened to you? How did you deal with it? Do you carry around your adoption decree/ foster parent ID/ judges orders, etc.?
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Why swim with thousands in a big school, when you can be a big fish at Lakeland University?
What does it mean to be a big fish? It means you'll be known around campus as a person, not a number. It means you'll do great things — in the classroom, in your extra-curricular activities and in the community. Simply put, it means you'll be part of a close-knit family.
At Lakeland you'll find:
- Cooperative Education
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- Numerous chances to study abroad
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- Big dorm rooms
- An ocean of opportunities to be a participant and become a leader
- Some of the nicest people you'll ever meet, who care about your academic goals
Want to find out more? Take a virtual tour, better yet plan a visit, apply for admission, or fill out the contact form.
We can't wait to meet you!


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Branstad relaxes strict rules on felon voting
Iowa felons seeking to regain voting rights will no longer have to submit credit histories or pay off all their full restitution to become eligible.
Gov. Terry Branstad on Friday relaxed rules he enacted last year that had made Iowa one of the hardest states in the nation for ex-felons to regain voting rights.
Iowa will still be one of four states where felons who complete prison and parole terms have to apply to restore their rights to vote and hold office.
Under the changes, applicants have to be current on restitution payments instead of having to satisfy judgments entirely.
They also won't have to submit credit histories, which the governor's office had required as a way to check for outstanding court debts.
Critics said that step was a deterrent.


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The health care rollercoaster ride has begun. For decades we have been living in a nation where the cost of care has steadily increased. Now the news is packed with information about some large pieces of health care legislation that are taking effect. In the caregiver support groups I facilitate, confusion abounds and I don't think any of us have a clear understanding of what this means. If you do, or think you do, please leave a comment and help the rest of us.
I have read several summaries of the Affordable Care Act, one from President Obama who signed off on the bill after Congress had worked on it for months. The summaries come from different viewpoints, which is very helpful because an actuary would not tend to have the same concerns as someone facing dementing illness without a long-term care insurance program in place.
Until the many facets of health care reform legislation become reality in our day-to-day lives, I don't believe it will be possible for most of us to understand its impact. Initially I read that there would be an increase in specific funding for research acceleration in some diseases, including Alzheimer's research. The grassroots pressure to increase research funding is what led to major treatments for AIDS and many types of cancers. People with these conditions have benefitted from new research and in many cases, can now live longer and healthier lives. This is an improvement on what people with dementing illnesses have now. I am not a researcher, but I have been a part of a major longitudinal study and I know that while there are many proposed studies and much research planned, the funding has been scant and often through a drug company. I hope that funding through the National Institutes of Health will allow research to move forward without undue pressure from major pharmaceutical companies.
Before I received Medicare, I was one of the many uninsured Americans who lost health insurance after retiring and couldn't afford COBRA. Going for annual physicals was not even considered, as I believed I was in decent health with the exception of my cognitive decline. When I was approved for Medicare, I was told I could receive a "welcome to Medicare" physical. Now that physical is available yearly, along with some other annual screenings, to everyone who currently receives Medicare. One caveat for people living with Alzheimer's: Some of us will opt out of screenings knowing that we would not treat any illnesses that were diagnosed. Health care reform also covers changes in medication costs and coverage, but honestly it's so complicated that I will tackle that in a separate article.
I was very intrigued, and you may well be too, by the offer of long-term care insurance. Having missed out on that option when I was working, this sounded very interesting. However, the program is in its infancy. Funding is just beginning, the program itself won't start for several more years, and analysts are already pointing out its inherent funding flaws — ie, people at higher risk for using the plan are the ones who will opt in, while those who (believe themselves) to be at lower risk will opt out. I saved money in the short term by not opting into long-term health care, but I would recommend that all people of working age find a way to afford a reputable long-term care policy. We do not know the future, and I am not certain this program will survive the funding shortfalls. I hope I'm wrong. Few of us are looking at this seriously because it is not within our benefits right now. If we are hoping for assistance with activities of daily living like cooking, bathing, or housekeeping, we will be relying on community resources, friends, family, or charity because this custodial care is not paid for by Medicare.
Health care delivery has changed drastically since my childhood, when a visit to a physician often meant a family practitioner who saw your entire family. In those days, the doctor was paid in cash, and families only had insurance for major health problems that required hospitalization. It was called major medical. The cost of and perceived need for wellness exams, numerous drugs, and aggressive treatments were different. This legislation is an attempt to address changes that have been building for decades. It is no wonder Congress struggled to create something beneficial and understandable. I only hope, as time unfolds the reality of the Affordable Care Act, that we understand the benefits to outweigh the liabilities.


text: Its not a handle for a knife but atleast a handle. i gave it a try and i think it turned out ok, dont be to hard on me, its after all my first . here comes some WIP pics. since i work with aluminium material i thought i would do one in it. solid aluminium substance diameter 650x30mm Silvertip Badger brush Aluminium Substance has been lathed and redy for drill a hole for a mosaic pin end Mosaic pin on place and lathed spiral motives Brushhead mounted, time for final hand sanding and polishing on the handle. polished and done. /Magnus


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Haven't found anything yet?
The high-quality carpet collection Samoa by Astra satisfies by its modern design and high comfort-level. Choose from 12 different colours and 6 different patterns to individualize your room concept. Because of the carpets production type, the rug is easy to care, tough and durable. Moreover, the carpet is suitable for floor heating.


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I've had these thoughts for a while after reading the book Big Bucks by Ken Blanchard and Sheldon Bowles. While this (great) book is about making lots of money it totally corresponds to young musicians and how to make a career in music. I wish I had heard something like this when I was starting out. Of course I might have not done anything with the information but it would have been nice to have heard it anyway.
Basically the book takes 3 ideas as the way to progress.
1. Don't get into the business of music unless you love playing/teaching music more than anything else in the world.
2. You need to want to make a career (ie make money) more than anything else. This sounds like a contradiction to the first point but what the first point does is give you focus while getting on with the job getting gigs etc. You need this original love of music to keep you going through the hard times trying to get gigs etc – stay the course.
3. Decide your goals. You have to plan your career, work out where you want to be in say – 10 years and then act on it. The metaphor the book uses is like standing at the bottom of the cliff face with no toe holds but as you study the cliff you start to see edges that will give you a lift up. The further you climb the more toe holds (ie options) that come apparent.
An example for a band could be that in 10 years you would like to be performing the major concert halls in the UK. How would you achieve this? Well you might decide that the best way would be to play floor spots at UK folk clubs for 6 months, then move on to your own folk club gigs bringing out a CD. You would market this through various chanels including live gigs, youtube, myspace, facebook etc building up a following and an interest. You would use this interest to get more gigs, festivals, media interest and when you need better contacts and larger gigs you get an agent to help you take the band to the next level and other countries. After another couple of years of working hard with a new CD you think you are ready to move to mid-size concert halls like Edinburgh's Queen's Hall. In order to do this you might have to change to a new agent who works more in this sector. You might also decide that this is the time to release a CD on a major label with great distribution and marketing capabilities. You might also want to release a DVD at this stage. Again working hard with a large mailing list and following with major label finance this might be time get on a decent support tour with a famous band. This momentum can bring you larger audiences allowing you to finally achieve your goal of playing the major concert venues in UK and around the world.
Of course this is a simplified version of a plan but when though out properly and discussed as a band with everyone pulling their weight it can bring cohesion and together to a lineup. Again none of this is easy and the caveat I would add is that if it doesn't work at least you've tried. I always think you can have no regrets if you've given something a go.
Filed under: music, scottish | Tagged: achievement, careers, music, musicians | 2 Comments »


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My pleasure - hope you have a Happy New Year!
Welcome aboard! =) Hope you're doing well - Happy Holidays!!
Welcome, Rhonda! Glad you could join us. :D
Please consider joining a group to meet people and talk about anything that's on your mind, Hang With Friends. Happy HumanLight!
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After being kidnapped by Boko Haram more than two years ago, 21 Nigerian girls were reunited Sunday with their families, NBC News reported.
"I want to thank everyone for this wonderful thing they have done," one of the girls, Rebecca Mallam, told the Voice of America as she rejoined relatives Sunday in Abuja, the capital.
The liberation of the so-called "Chibok girls" — whose abduction triggered the #BringBackOurGirls campaign — came after negotiations between the government and Boko Haram, said Mallam Garba Shehu, a Nigerian government spokesman.
U.S. & World
Shehu didn't say what Boko Haram received in return, but the BBC reported that the government handed over four imprisoned militants as part of the deal.