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Financial Aid Regulations 2019-2020
A. Clarkson University Awarding Policy
Clarkson University bases its Financial Aid Program on two comprehensive criteria:
- Financial need as determined from the results of the FAFSA, and
- Academic achievement.
- Students applying for need based federal, state and institutional aid must file a FAFSA each year.
- Students applying for federal loans and parents applying for the Federal Direct Parent Loan (PLUS) are required to file a FAFSA.
- Students receiving only academic/merit based aid are not required to submit a FAFSA.
Students may only receive federal financial aid (Pell, SEOG and federal loans) for courses that are used to complete degree requirements. Courses taken that are not used to meet degree requirements do not count toward full-time enrollment status for federal aid purposes. To maintain full-time status a student must be enrolled in at least 12 credits that are used toward fulfilling degree requirements.
New York State grants and scholarships (TAP) also require that courses taken are used to complete degree requirements. However, there are special rules that apply to the final two semesters of degree completion.
Institutional aid may be used for courses that do not apply to degree requirements. Full-time enrollment in at least 12 credits is required to receive Clarkson aid. Clarkson aid may not exceed 8 semesters.
Adjustments to offers of Financial Aid may result from the following:
- Retention - Scholarship and grants are retained provided the student maintains Satisfactory Academic Progress for Financial Aid. Some Institutional, Endowed and Sponsored Scholarships have a minimum GPA requirement. Most institutional scholarships are limited to 8 semesters. If a student chooses to graduate early, they may not utilize all 8 semesters of aid.
- Federal, State and Institutional aid is awarded on an annual basis and is based on full-time enrollment (12 credits per semester) in both Fall and Spring semesters. If a student is not enrolled in a semester, all aid will be pro-rated for 1 semester of attendance, i.e. ½ of a scheduled Pell Grant, half of the annual institutional scholarship, 1 semester of TAP etc.
- Verification - Per federal regulations, information on the FAFSA will be compared to the information submitted on the Clarkson Financial Aid Verification Form. Resolution of conflicting information may result in an adjustment to the assistance offered.
- Request for Information - Any requests for information must be responded to by the deadline indicated on the request. Failure to respond with the necessary information may result in an adjustment to the assistance offered.
- Receipt of a final, official high school transcript - No federal, state or institutional financial aid will be disbursed to a student's account without the submission of a final, official high school transcript.
- Necessity of Check-in at the beginning of the semester - No federal, state or institutional financial aid will be disbursed to a student's account until after they have "checked in." Check-in must be completed by the end of the 1st week of the semester. Failure to check-in will result in the cancellation of the financial aid award package.
- Changes in living situation – Financial aid packages will be revised if a student's living situation changes i.e. a student who lives on-campus or off campus and becomes a commuter (living with parents).
- Attendance - Students are required to begin attendance in all courses in which they are enrolled. Failure to begin attendance in a course(s) may require a reduction in the financial aid package. Students who begin attendance and then subsequently stop attending and do not drop or withdraw from one or more courses may also require a revision to the financial aid package for the current and/or future semester.
- Changes in Enrollment - if a student's enrollment drops below full-time during the drop period (first four weeks of the semester), the financial aid offer will be revised for less than full-time status. Pell grants will be pro-rated. Students lose eligibility for TAP and all Clarkson need and non-need based grants, scholarships and loans. Direct Loan eligibility will be re-evaluated.
B. Federal Aid
Federal aid includes the Pell Grant, the Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG), the Federal Direct Student Loan Program, the Federal Direct PLUS Loan, the Federal Perkins Loan and Federal Work-Study. SEOG, Perkins and Federal Work-Study awards are based on the level of funding received annually from the US Department of Education. Awards are made on a first come, first serve basis and amounts may vary from year to year.
In order to be eligible to receive any Title IV financial aid, a matriculated student must meet one of the following criteria:
- Be a high school graduate - a student must submit a final official high school transcript in order to receive federal funds. Aid will not be disbursed to a student's account until this document is received.
- Have earned a recognized General Equivalency Diploma (GED)
NOTE: Students are ineligible for all federal aid if they owe a refund or repayment of any previously received Title IV funds or are in default on a previously received federal student loan.
Enrollment - Full time Undergraduate students must register for at least 12 credit hours per semester. Part-time students must register for at least six (6) hours to be considered a half-time student.
Courses toward degree requirements - Students may only receive Federal aid for courses that are used to fulfill degree requirements.
Students must submit a FAFSA each year they are in school.
C. Clarkson University Grants, Loans and Scholarships
Clarkson University offers various need based and non need (merit) based grants, loans and scholarships.
In order to have eligibility determined for need based grants and loans, students must file the FAFSA form and if selected, complete the verification process each year.
Students must register for at least 12 credits hours each semester and have full-time status at the end of the drop period. Only one course per semester that a student has already passed and received credit for, may be repeated and counted towards full-time enrollment status for financial aid eligibility.
Scholarships are retained each year provided that the student meets Satisfactory Academic Progress for Financial Aid. Some Endowed and Sponsored Scholarships have additional criteria. Most scholarships are limited to 8 semesters.
Institutionally sponsored loans are awarded annually based on a review of individual circumstances. Renewal of these loans is dependent upon funding availability, continued demonstrated financial need and satisfactory academic progress.
D. Satisfactory Academic Progress Standards for Federal and Institutional Financial Aid
The US Department of Education has issued new Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) requirements effective July 1, 2011. These requirements are part of the Program Integrity Final Regulations issued on October 29, 2010.
The Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) policy that follows includes the requirements of the Program Integrity Regulations that were effective at the beginning of the Fall 2011 term. Revisions to this policy were made on March 13, 2020 and are effective with the SAP evaluation that will be conducted at the end of the Spring 2020 semester and moving forward.
Federal regulations require institutions to evaluate Financial Aid SAP at the end of the Fall, Spring and Summer terms. Both full-time and part-time enrollment status must be evaluated as well as periods of enrollment during which the student did not receive financial aid.
All students are encouraged to become familiar with the policy as eligibility for federal and institutional aid may be an important factor in being able to continue one's education at Clarkson.
Students must maintain SAP to retain eligibility for federal and institutional financial aid. SAP is comprised of three areas as required by federal regulations. A student must complete their degree within a specified period, demonstrate PACE by earning a minimum percentage of attempted credit hours and maintain a cumulative GPA that is consistent with meeting graduation requirements. Some institutional scholarships (i.e. Honors, Endowed and Sponsored Scholarships) may require higher academic achievement than the standards outlined in this section. Students with questions regarding specific scholarships are advised to contact their Student Administrative Services (SAS) representative.
Satisfactory Academic Progress Standards for Financial Aid are based on a student's cumulative record and are separate from Academic Standing determinations. A student who is on academic warning, academic probation, or has been approved to continue after separation retains financial aid eligibility provided the Satisfactory Academic Progress Standards for Financial Aid (detailed below) are met.
1. Maximum Time Frame for Degree Completion
Federal regulations specify that a student must complete his/her degree within 150% of the published length of the program. The maximum time frame at Clarkson is measured in attempted hours. A student must earn 120 credits to receive a Bachelor's degree. Therefore, to retain financial aid eligibility, the maximum time frame to complete the program for full time students cannot exceed 180 attempted credit hours, 6 years, or 12 terms, whichever comes first. A part-time student cannot exceed 180 attempted credit hours. A student pursuing a second Bachelor's degree with the first Bachelor's degree must complete the additional required coursework within the 150% time frame period. Effective March 13, 2020 for the SAP evaluation period that will occur at the end of the Spring 2020 semester and going forward, a student may appeal the Maximum Time Frame requirement based on extenuating circumstances.
Credits counted in the maximum time are all attempted credits and include:
- Earned hours – Passed (A-D), Pass (P)
- Repeated Courses – all attempts – refer to the REPEATED COURSE section for detailed information.
- Withdrawal (LW) and (W) - Maximum time frame regulations do not allow for the exclusion of courses in which a student has remained past the drop period and earned a grade of 'W".
- Failure (F)
- Incomplete (I)
- All accepted transfer credits (including consortium agreements & Study-Abroad courses) &test credit (T)
- All courses attempted at Clarkson, even if they are not used to meet degree requirements.
2. PACE Standards
PACE is defined by federal regulations as steady progress towards degree completion within the 150% time frame.
Clarkson is required to measure a student's PACE as a percentage as indicated below:
- Cumulative # of Earned Hours
- Cumulative # of Attempted Hours
Earned credit hours include:
- Grades of A, B, C, D or P (with credit)
- All accepted transfer credits and (including consortium agreements & Study Abroad courses) & test credits (T)
Attempted credit hours include:
- Earned hours – Passed (A-D), Pass (P)
- Repeated Courses – all attempts – refer to the REPEATED COURSE section for detailed information.
- Withdrawal (LW) and (W) - PACE regulations do not allow for the exclusion of courses in which a student has remained past the drop period and earned a grade of 'W'.
- Failure (F)
- Incomplete (I)
- All accepted transfer credits (including consortium agreements & Study Abroad courses) and test credit (T)
- All courses attempted at Clarkson, even if they are not used to meet degree requirements.
The chart below indicates the PACE required to maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress for Financial Aid.
New Transfer students are placed on the chart based on the number of transfer credits that have been accepted by Clarkson.
PACE Chart
|Cumulative Attempted Credit Hours
|PACE - Minimum required percentage of earned credit hours divided by attempted credit hours
3. Qualitative Standards – Cumulative Grade Point Average (GPA)
Federal regulations require the student to meet minimum cumulative GPA standards to retain eligibility for aid. As indicated in the following chart, after 4 semesters a student must maintain a 2.0 cumulative GPA to be eligible for financial aid.
Grades earned in prior attempts of repeated courses are excluded from the GPA calculation.
The chart below indicates the GPA required to maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress for Financial Aid
Transfer students are placed on the GPA chart based on the number of semesters they have attended Clarkson.
GPA Chart
|End of Semester
|Minimum GPA Required at the end of Semester
Warning Term
A student who does not meet both the PACE and GPA standards is not making Satisfactory Academic Progress for Financial Aid. The student is notified by the Financial Aid Office that he/she is on Financial Aid Warning for the subsequent term of attendance. During the Financial Aid Warning Term, the student retains eligibility for both federal and institutional aid.
A student who meets both the PACE and GPA standards at the conclusion of the Financial Aid Warning Term is again meeting Satisfactory Academic Progress for Financial Aid and is eligible for federal and institutional aid for the subsequent term of attendance.
A student who does not meet both the PACE and GPA standards at the conclusion of the Financial Aid Warning Term is notified by the Financial Aid Office that he/she is not making Satisfactory Academic Progress for Financial Aid and is ineligible for federal and institutional aid. The student is also notified of the Appeal Process.
A student may have more than one Financial Aid Warning Term; however they may not be consecutive.
Appeal Process
A student may file an appeal based on catastrophic or extraordinary circumstances "beyond the student's control," such as personal illness or injury, or the death, illness or injury of a family member, relative or close personal friend. A student is allowed to appeal once based on a change of major and once due to severe adjustment issues as a freshman or new transfer student provided that the appeal is needed based on performance after the first two terms of attendance.
There are 3 required elements of an appeal:
- A written statement from the student - Federal regulations require a student who is requesting an appeal to submit a written statement explaining:
- Why the student was not able to meet the satisfactory academic progress standards.
- What has changed that will allow the student to meet the standards at the conclusion of the academic plan (see #3 below).
- Supporting documentation - A student requesting an appeal must submit supporting documentation such as a physician's written statement to substantiate illness or accident, a copy of a death certificate or newspaper obituary, a written statement from clergy, family member(s), or other third party familiar with the student's situation, or a written statement from an academic advisor, professor or counselor.
- Development of an Academic Plan - As part of the appeal, the student must work with a Program Administrator to develop an academic plan. The academic plan is designed to enable the student to meet both PACE and GPA standards at the conclusion of the plan. An academic plan may entail one or more terms and includes specific requirements the student must achieve. Although the student is not making satisfactory academic progress, federal and institutional aid is reinstated for one term.
A student interested in filing an appeal must begin the process by contacting the Dean of Students at least two weeks prior to the beginning of the term he/she wishes to receive financial aid.
A student filing an appeal must authorize the release of pertinent information as part of an investigation of the facts concerning the failure to meet satisfactory academic progress standards.
Each appeal will be investigated and reviewed by the Dean of Students in conjunction with faculty members from the student's program of study as well as other Clarkson University personnel as necessary.
The Dean of Students will make a recommendation to approve or deny the appeal and notify the Office of Financial Aid. The Director of Financial Aid will make the final decision to approve or deny the appeal.
The Office of Financial Aid will notify the student by letter or e-mail of the final decision.
Upon approval of an appeal including an academic plan the student is placed on Financial Aid Probation for the next term of attendance.
At the end of the Financial Aid Probationary term, the student will be evaluated according to the requirements specified in the academic plan. Provided that the student is successfully meeting the conditions of the plan, the student may continue to receive federal and institutional aid for the subsequent term. In cases in which an academic plan includes more than one term, the student will be evaluated at the end of each term. If the student continues to meet the requirements of the plan, the student remains eligible for financial aid.
A student who does not meet the conditions of the academic plan or whose appeal is denied is no longer eligible for federal and institutional aid at Clarkson until both standards are met. A student who is ineligible for aid may regain eligibility by:
- Taking courses at Clarkson without receiving federal or institutional aid that raises their GPA to the minimum standards and/or increases earned hours to the minimum PACE requirements. The student must contact their SAS representative at the end of the term to request an evaluation of their financial aid satisfactory academic progress standing and financial aid eligibility.
- Transferring in course credit - A transferred course must count toward degree requirements. A minimum of a "C" is required for transfer credits.
- Transfer credits are included in both attempted and earned hours. Transfer credits for repeated courses may have an effect on the GPA.
- Transfer credits for non-repeated courses have no effect on the GPA.
SUBSEQUENT APPEALS - Effective March 13, 2020
A student who does not meet the requirements of their academic plan is permitted to submit a subsequent appeal. The appeal must be based on new extenuating circumstances that have occurred during the current semester and are outside of the student's control.
Repeated Courses
Courses in which a grade of F or W is recorded on a student's transcript may be repeated a maximum of 2 times.
- The earned hours are counted once.
- The attempted hours are counted each time and may be used to establish full-time enrollment status.
- The student may receive financial aid for these course repeats.
Courses in which a student has previously earned credit (A, B, C, D):
- Federal regulations allow a student to repeat a course once if the student previously earned credit for the course. The repeated course(s) will be used toward full-time enrollment status and are eligible for financial aid. Courses repeated more than once will not count toward enrollment status and are ineligible for financial aid. More than one course may be repeated per term. This does not apply to students receiving International Scholarships.
- The attempted hours are counted each time.
- The earned hours are counted once.
- The grade from the prior completion(s) is excluded from the GPA calculation.
Academic Grade Changes and Incompletes
For purposes of determining SAP for federal and institutional financial aid, all grade changes including incompletes must be submitted to SAS prior to the 10th day of the subsequent term. This deadline may differ from academic departmental guidelines. The student must contact their SAS representative to request a recalculation of SAP. Any academic grade changes occurring after the 10th day of the term will have no effect on a student's SAP status for that term.
Readmitted Students
A student who has left the University for one or more terms and has been readmitted will have Satisfactory Academic Progress for Financial Aid reviewed at the time of readmission. Transfer credits must be received prior to the 10th day of the term in order to be included in the SAP determination.
- If the student is determined to be meeting SAP, federal and institutional aid will be offered provided the student meets all other eligibility requirements.
- If it is determined that the student is not meeting SAP, the student will be notified by letter of his/her status and the appeal process.
- There is no guarantee that a readmitted student will receive the same type or amount of institutional aid they received during prior terms.
E. Total Withdrawal from the University - Federal Title IV and Institutional Aid Refund Policy
There are occasions when a student may leave the University prior to the completion of a term. If a student officially withdraws from the University, takes a leave of absence, unofficially withdraws or is dismissed during the semester, for the purposes of financial aid both situations are treated as a withdrawal.
A student intending to leave the University must contact Student Administration Services to begin the official withdrawal process.
The law specifies how Clarkson must determine the amount of the Title IV program assistance a student has earned as of the date of withdrawal. The Title IV programs that are covered by this law are: Federal Pell Grants, Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants, Federal Direct Student Loans, PLUS loans, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (FSEOG) and Federal Perkins Loans.
When a student withdraws from the University during the term, the amount of Title IV program assistance that the student has earned up to that point in time is determined by a specific formula. If the student received less assistance than the amount that earned, the student may be able to receive those additional funds. If the student received more assistance than earned, the excess funds must be returned to the US Department of Education.
The amount of assistance that the student has earned is determined on a pro rata basis. The formula is based upon the number of days the student has attended as a percentage of the total number of days in the term. For example, if the student completed 30% of the term, the students earns 30% of the assistance originally awarded. Once the student has completed more than 60% of the term, the student has earned all of the assistance awarded for the term. Federal regulations require this calculation if the student officially or unofficially withdraws, is dismissed or otherwise leaves the University during a term.
Student transcripts are reviewed at the conclusion of each term. If a student received all "F" grades during a term, federal regulations require the Office of Financial Aid to obtain additional information from the Academic Department(s). If the Academic Department(s) determines that the student completed yet failed to meet the course objectives in at least one course, no changes to the student's financial aid for that term is required. If however, the Academic Department(s) determines that the student did not complete all courses (i.e. stopped attending all courses); the student is considered to have unofficially withdrawn from the University. In this case, the last date of an academic related activity (i.e. documented attendance in class, submission of a homework assignment or the taking of an exam) is used to determine the date of the unofficial withdrawal. If the last date of an academic related activity is after the 60% date of the term, no adjustment to a student's financial aid for that term is required. If however, the date occurs prior to the 60% date, a Title IV refund calculation is required and necessary adjustments to a student's financial aid for the term will be made. In absence of a documented last date of an academic related activity, federal regulations require Clarkson to use the midpoint (50%) of the term.
The Federal Title IV Refund Procedure is separate and distinct from the Office of Student Account's refund policy for tuition, fees and other charges at Clarkson. Therefore, a student may still owe funds to cover unpaid institutional charges.
Clarkson scholarships, grants and loans may be reduced based on individual circumstances, the date of withdrawal and the Student Accounts Refund policy,
Satisfactory Academic Progress for students who return to the University for a subsequent term will be reviewed and a determination will be made based on the Maximum Time Frame, PACE and GPA standards as stated above.
F. New York State Aid
New York State aid includes the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP), Veteran Scholarships, STEM, Academic Excellence and other merit based scholarships. Clarkson does not participate in the Enhanced Tuition Award program.
Students must apply for TAP and other state scholarships at www.hesc.com after filing the FAFSA. The amount of the award is determined by the TAP division of the New York State Higher Education Services Corporation (HESC). Students are notified directly by HESC of the amount of their award.
TAP can only be credited toward tuition charges. For students who receive other tuition only scholarships or grants, the total of TAP and the other aid cannot exceed the tuition charge.
TAP and other scholarships require matriculation in a degree program and enrollment in a minimum of 12 credits per semester. Students whose enrollment status is less than full-time at the end of the drop period are ineligible for TAP for that term.
In order to receive TAP and scholarships a student must meet specific academic standards. Evaluations occur at the end of each semester. Good academic standing for TAP involves two components:
Pursuit of Program - HESC regulations require that a student receive a passing or failing grade in a certain percentage of courses each term, depending on the number of state awards the student has received. A completion for TAP includes the grades of A, B, C, D, and F. During the first 2 semesters, a student must complete at least 50% of a full time load, during the 3rd and 4th semesters – 75% and in all subsequent semesters, a student must complete 100% of a full time load. Students who do not meet the pursuit of program requirements will lose good academic standing and are not eligible for an award for the next semester.
Satisfactory Academic Progress - Effective July 1, 2011 New York State enacted revised regulations regarding satisfactory academic progress. The regulations changed the number of credits a student must accumulate and the cumulative grade point average that must be achieved each semester. The chart that pertains to you depends upon the year you received your first TAP award and whether or not you are a HEOP student. Please refer to the charts below:
The following chart must be used by all institutions for students who received their first TAP in 2007-2008 through and including 2009-2010 and HEOP students who received their first award in 2007-2008 and thereafter:
|Calendar: Semester Program: Baccalaureate Program
|Prior to being certified for this payment:
|A student must have accumulated this many credits:
|With at least this GPA:
The following chart must be used by all 4 year institutions for students (excluding HEOP) who received their first TAP award in 2010-2011 and thereafter:
|Calendar: Semester Program: Baccalaureate Program
|Prior to being certified for this payment:
|A student must have accumulated this many credits:
|With at least this GPA:
Reinstatement of Good Academic Standing - students who have lost good academic standing may restore this standing in one of the following ways:
- Make up past academic deficiencies by completing one or more semesters of student without receiving any state grants or scholarships.
- Be readmitted to the school after an absence of at least one calendar year; or be granted a one-time waiver.
- A student may not regain eligibility by changing their program of study.
NOTE: Students who lose good academic standing for failing to achieve a cumulative GPA of a 2.0 can regain eligibility by completing appropriate coursework without state support to achieve a 2.0. Students cannot regain eligibility by remaining out of school for a period of time.
One-time TAP Waiver - regulations permit students to receive a one-time waiver of the good academic standing requirement as an undergraduate. Waivers may be issued for students who have experienced exceptional or extraordinary circumstances "beyond the student's control" that resulted in the failure to satisfy the requirements and where there is a reasonable expectation that the student will meet these requirements in the future. Circumstances may include, but are not limited to, the death of a student's relative or a student's personal illness or injury. A change of major or severe adjustment issues are not acceptable circumstances for a TAP waiver.
- Students who have lost TAP eligibility will be notified by the TAP Certifying Officer. As part of the notification, students will be given information regarding the one-time TAP waiver regulations and requirements.
- Students wishing to go forward with an appeal must complete and submit an Appeal Application with supporting documentation to the Dean of Students.
- Students must authorize the release of pertinent information as part of an investigation of the facts concerning the failure to meet academic progress regulations.
- Appeals will be investigated and reviewed by the Dean of Students in conjunction with faculty members from the student's program of study as well as other University personnel as necessary.
- The Dean of Student will make a recommendation to approve or deny the appeal for a TAP waiver and will notify the Office of Financial Aid of the decision. The Director of Financial Aid will make the final decision to approve or deny the appeal.
- The Office of Financial Aid will notify the student by email or letter of the decision.
- Other Scholarships awarded by HESC may have higher minimum GPA requirements.
Part-Time TAP - NY State Education Law has been amended to create Part-time TAP for students. To be eligible for this program, students must be freshman in the 2006-07 academic year or thereafter, have earned 12 credits or more in each of two-consecutive semesters, and maintain a "C" average.
G. Cooperative Education Students
Students who are participating in the cooperative education program remain matriculated students at Clarkson University. For the semester that they are on COOP, tuition is not charged, no academic credit is earned and no financial aid is offered.
H. Outgoing Study Abroad/Exchange Students
Students participating in the study abroad/exchange program must apply for financial aid and if required, complete verification. Students are charged tuition at Clarkson University. Any credit in the student's account will be refunded to the student for housing costs incurred abroad. Students must enroll in and complete the equivalent of 12 credits at Clarkson. In order to receive financial aid the courses must fulfill degree requirements at Clarkson.
I. Early Admission Students- The Clarkson School
All Early Admission students are required to fill out a Federal Aid Certification Form regarding his/her enrollment in high school. Students who are still enrolled in high school are ineligible for all federal aid.
The term "enrolled in high school" includes, but is not limited to, the concurrent pursuit of a high school diploma while enrolled in The Clarkson School. It also includes (i) a student who has completed the requirement for his/her high school diploma but not yet received it and is taking coursework for which his/her high school will give the student credit or (ii) a student who has not received a high school diploma and is considered by his/her high school to be enrolled, e.g. as a requirement for participation on an interscholastic sports team or in any other curricular or extracurricular activity for which enrollment in the high school is a prerequisite.
J. Drug Conviction Eligibility
If you answered "yes" to Question #23 on the FAFSA - "Have you been convicted for the possession or sale of illegal drugs for an offense that occurred while you were receiving federal student aid?" you will be sent a worksheet by the Department of Education that will determine if your conviction will affect your eligibility for federal aid. If it is determined that you are ineligible for federal aid, you are also ineligible for institutional aid. Students who lose aid under the drug conviction regulations will be notified in writing by the Office of Financial Aid.
You may regain aid eligibility by completing an acceptable drug rehabilitation program or pass two unannounced drug tests administered by an acceptable drug rehabilitation program. Please contact the Office of Financial Aid for the criteria governing an acceptable drug rehabilitation program.
K. Athletic Financial Aid Recipients Code of Conduct
Scholar athletes who receive athletic financial assistance must be aware of their high visibility within the Clarkson community. It is essential that each student athlete exemplify the highest standard of personal conduct. This is especially true for those student athletes who represent Clarkson at the Division I level. To assist all athletes with special emphasis on those who receive athletic financial assistance, the Athletic Administration requires each student to abide by the following Athletic Code of Conduct.
Student athletes must prioritize academics over athletics. To that end class attendance is mandatory. Should the need arise, procedures are available to have faculty notified of absences for legitimate reasons.
Academic achievement levels are prescribed by both Clarkson and the NCAA as requirements for participation. Additionally the coaching staff, based upon feedback from the academic community may require mandatory study halls or other proactive measures designed to enhance student athlete academic performance.
Each student athlete must be aware of the University code of ethics relative to academic integrity. Plagiarism and cheating are considered to be serious offenses, which must be brought before the Academic Integrity Committee.
Student athletes must take great care to avoid all violations of the law, especially the abuse of alcohol and controlled substances. Each student athlete is expected to adhere to regulations governing life in the University residences. These regulations are published annually in the University Regulations. The Athletic Administration and appropriate coaching staff will review disciplinary actions taken by the Dean of Student's Office against student athletes. Serious or repeat offenses may result in a serious misconduct finding against the student athlete.
Honesty, above all else, is expected of each student athlete.
Student athletes are reminded of the regulations relative to their required amateurism to be eligible for inter-collegiate competition. The receipt of athletic financial aid requires that the student athlete maintain their amateur status. Student athletes are reminded that athletic financial aid may be immediately withdrawn based upon serious misconduct, academic ineligibility, falsifying eligibility information, or actions compromising the student's amateur status. In addition, Clarkson Athletics advises student athletes that non-compliance with elements of the Code of Conduct will result in disciplinary actions. Should the offense involve legal sanctions, academic integrity or disciplinary action through normal university processes a finding of serious misconduct may be applied thereby causing cancellation of the student's athletic financial assistance. Should this occur the student, based upon NCAA guidelines, will be given the opportunity to request a hearing regarding the cancellation of their athletic financial assistance.
L. The Financial Appeals Board
The Financial Appeals Board (FAB) is an administrative Committee appointed by the President to resolve student financial difficulties stemming from regulatory non compliance. The mission of the FAB is to provide a mechanism for regulatory discretion (adjustment) based upon individual student circumstances. The Committee is required to determine that "Progress and Pursuit" are being maintained prior to discretionary actions.
- Only students who have exhausted all other remedies would be able to appeal to FAB.
- The FAB could elect at its discretion to hear typical cases involving medical or personal circumstances.
- The FAB would decide individual appeals based on a majority vote with at least three members present.
- Resolutions to a student's financial concerns are at the discretion of FAB and may involve either financial aid or adjustments to student charges.
Referrals to the FAB are to be coordinated through any of the following offices: Academic Affairs, Vice President for Enrollment and Student Advancement, or Student Administrative Services (SAS).


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PEMOUSSA, great war chief of the Fox Indians; d. during the winter of 1716–17 in Montreal.
Pemoussa was one of the leaders of the group of Fox Indians that migrated from Baie des Puants (Green Bay) to Detroit in 1709 or 1710. Lamothe Cadillac [Laumet] had invited them to settle there although a number of other tribes disliked them. According to Rigaud de Vaudreuil, the Foxes had moved simply to be nearer to the Iroquois and the English. After their arrival the Foxes behaved arrogantly. Fearing trouble, Vaudreuil advised them at a meeting in August 1711 to return to their village. This advice was not heeded and war soon followed.
The battle of Detroit in May 1712 marks the start of the Fox war that plagued New France for the next 25 years. Though Renaud Dubuisson, the commander of the fort, blamed Fox restlessness on English intrigue, the fighting had its origin in the animosities between the Mascoutens and the Ottawas who clashed on the St Joseph River early in 1712. The Mascoutens fled to Detroit where they sought the protection of the Foxes. Under the leadership of Saguima* and Makisabi, the Ottawas and Potawatomis, accompanied by several southern tribes, pursued them but feared to attack the Foxes. The insolent Foxes quarrelled with some of the French inhabitants and entering Fort Pontchartrain attempted to assassinate a French man and woman. Dubuisson drove them out and joined the Ottawas and others in attacking the fortified Fox village.
The battle lasted 19 days. During that time two parleys aimed at ending hostilities were held at the request of the Foxes. At the first one, Pemoussa offered a necklace and two slaves to appease the allies, and asked for a two-day truce so that the Fox old men could hold a council. Dubuisson agreed on condition that three Indian women prisoners held by the Foxes were released; on their release Dubuisson went back on his promise. Three or four days later Pemoussa led a larger group of chiefs from both the Foxes and Mascoutens to a second parley. According to Dubuisson's account, their spokesman (perhaps Pemoussa) acknowledged their defeat and signified their readiness to die. They asked only that their women and children be spared and offered the allies six necklaces to signify that they placed themselves in servitude to the victors. This gesture was refused by the allied chiefs. According to the account of Gaspard-Joseph Chaussegros* de Léry, compiled from second-hand reports, it was probably at this parley that a Fox chief (again perhaps Pemoussa) challenged 80 allies to do battle with 20 of his own. The victor would receive the vanquished as slaves. Apparently this offer was also refused.
The Foxes and Mascoutens finally escaped from their fort under cover of a dark, rainy night, only to be pursued and surrounded on a peninsula on Lake St Clair. Except for 150 men who escaped all were either destroyed or enslaved.
In the summer of 1716 Louis de La Porte de Louvigny led an expedition against the Foxes. Having defeated them, he took Pemoussa and others back to Montreal as hostages. Pemoussa died there in the winter of 1716–17 in the smallpox epidemic then sweeping the colony. Apparently he had been favourable to peace between the Foxes and the French: Vaudreuil wrote in 1717 that "it was he [Pemoussa] on whom I relied most to make the Fox Indians carry out all the conditions to which they are bound." His passing may have weakened the peace party among the Foxes.
Kellogg, French régime, 280–2. Michigan Pioneer Coll., XXXIII, 537–52. Wis. State Hist. Soc. Coll., V, 78–80, 81–5; XVI, 293–5. Zoltvany, "New France and the west," 301–22.
© 1969–2023 University of Toronto/Université Laval
Cite This Article
D. H. Corkran, "PEMOUSSA," in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 2, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, accessed October 3, 2023, http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/pemoussa_2E.html.
The citation above shows the format for footnotes and endnotes according to the Chicago manual of style (16th edition). Information to be used in other citation formats:
|Author of Article:
|D. H. Corkran
|Title of Article:
|Publication Name:
|Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 2
|University of Toronto/Université Laval
|Year of publication:
|Year of revision:
|Access Date:
|October 3, 2023

subset: commoncrawl


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This was the coolest thing! A six foot tall Jett Vector stand-up for my display area. A bunch of the guys had their characters made into giant cut-outs as well and our room looked awesome! See below for my area. That's Rob Coughler of Butternut Squash fame looking through my portfolio.
And here's the real Jett Vector. Or at least his hair! This guy was tall and thin and I contemplated asking him to pose with my character...but you never know how someone will react to such a request. As it turns out I saw him again at the Queers in Comics panel later that same day. That'll teach me to just take a chance.
Thanks to those who made it out (sorry that all my American and European friends couldn't make it). I did one Jett Vector drawing the whole weekend...for Edward. Otherwise I was much too busy to sit and draw. Now I feel like sleeping for a week.


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Hey there, unfortunately we don't have the lyrics of this song named "Jared Evan – Slow Rain" yet.
We do try our best to have all the lyrics you want, but sometimes the lyrics are just not submited to us yet.
Do you have the lyrics? Why not submit them!
If you have the lyrics for "Jared Evan – Slow Rain", it would be great if you can submit these. This will help other people find these lyrics instantly!


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The digital Loeb Classical Library extends the founding mission of James Loeb with an interconnected, fully searchable, perpetually growing virtual library of all that is important in Greek and Latin literature. Now with enhanced navigation »
Lucian (ca. 120–190 CE), the satirist from Samosata on the Euphrates, started as an apprentice sculptor, turned to rhetoric and visited Italy and Gaul as a successful travelling lecturer, before settling in Athens and developing his original brand of satire. Late in life he fell on hard times and accepted an official post in Egypt.
Although notable for the Attic purity and elegance of his Greek and his literary versatility, Lucian is chiefly famed for the lively, cynical wit of the humorous dialogues in which he satirizes human folly, superstition, and hypocrisy. His aim was to amuse rather than to instruct. Among his best works are A True Story (the tallest of tall stories, about a voyage to the moon) and The Carousal or Symposium (philosophers misbehave at a party) (both in Loeb Classical Library volume no. 14); Dialogues of the Gods (a reductio ad absurdum of traditional mythology) and Dialogues of the Dead (on the vanity of human wishes) (both in Loeb no. 431); Philosophies for Sale (great philosophers of the past are auctioned off as slaves) and Timon (the problems of being rich) (Loeb no. 54); The Fisherman (the degeneracy of modern philosophers) and Twice Accused (Lucian's defense of his literary career) (Loeb no. 130); and, if by Lucian, The Ass (the amusing adventures of a man who is turned into an ass) (Loeb no. 432).
The Loeb Classical Library edition of Lucian is in eight volumes.


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New research published in the September issue of the Journal of the American College of Surgeons offers important insights into the long-term impact of a major disaster on routine surgical services in a hospital. In the study, researchers at Ochsner Health System, New Orleans, LA, showed that although Hurricane Katrina resulted in a significant loss of surgical staff and an increase in the number of uninsured patients undergoing operations, greater cost efficiencies were achieved.
Hurricane Katrina forced 11 major hospitals in the New Orleans metropolitan area to close. Ochsner Health System was one of the three hospitals that remained functional during the storm. The ripple effects of Hurricane Katrina, which hit New Orleans on August 29, 2005, continue to be experienced today in the hospitals currently serving the area.
"Hurricane Katrina placed enormous burdens on our institution but forced us to learn how to run an operating room with fewer full-time employees, which required staff to cover and share more duties," said William S. Richardson, MD, FACS, department of surgery, Ochsner Health System. "While geographic location is a major determinant of post-disaster success, a sound disaster preparedness plan and the ability to adapt quickly can allow a hospital to function effectively during and after circumstances as extreme as Hurricane Katrina."
Using a prospectively collected database, researchers compared patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) – surgical removal of the gallbladder through a tiny incision in the abdomen – before and after Hurricane Katrina at Ochsner Health System. Because there was little operative activity due to low population in the area initially after the storm, researchers compared patients undergoing LC during the seven months preceding the storm with patients undergoing LC in the seven months after the first three months post-storm, when operative volume was closer to pre-storm level. The researchers said that the establishment of clear lines of communication to displaced employees and providing transportation and housing for evacuated employees were key factors to achieving pre-storm levels of operative volume in a relatively short period of time.
Total cases included 196 pre-storm and 167 post-storm outpatient operations and 62 pre-storm and 64 post-storm inpatient operations. The study did not find a significant change in operative time, length-of-stay or turnover time, despite staffing difficulties in the operative area. The percentage of inpatient cases increased from 39 percent pre-storm to 45 percent post-storm. Post-storm costs decreased for both inpatient and outpatient operations, largely because the hospital was required to perform procedures with fewer staff. Revenue was down for inpatient operations and up slightly for outpatient operations. The change in profit was not significant.
There was a decrease in the number of privately insured patients, with a concomitant increase in Medicare, Medicaid, and noninsured patients for both inpatient and outpatient operations. The largest shift in payer mix was observed in the inpatient group. Reimbursement decreased from 43.7 percent to 41.1 percent.
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Arguably one of the worst parts of being in a committed, long-distance relationship is that sad, lonely time each night before bed. There are ways to get around this, of course: you can call each other on the phone until one of you falls asleep, you can play that specially-curated mix tape filled with loves songs until you hit la-la-land or you can, you know, Skype with each other all night long until it's morning again (not recommended). But now, technology has come up with a new way of doing things: pillows that glow with the beat of your lover's heart.
The brainchild of Scottish designer Joanna Montgomery, "Pillow Talk" is the middle ground between those internet-connected-long-distance-vibrators and actual cuddling. The product, which has just recieved enough funding to take it to the mass-marketed level, works like so:
Each person has a ring sensor they wear to bed at night, and a flat fabric panel which slots inside their pillowcase. The ring wirelessly communicates with the other person's pillow; when one person goes to bed, their lover's pillow begins to glow softly to indicate their presence. Placing your head on the pillow allows you to hear the real-time heartbeat of your loved one.
The result is an intimate interaction between two lovers, regardless of the distance between them.
Obviously, even a super-fancy, high tech pillow that glows along with the heartbeat of the one you love won't replace actually being next to them. That said, it certainly might make for a delightfully romantic gift on the next anniversary of your long distance relationship! We'll keep you posted as to when these things are available for purchase.
[Little Riot via Cup Of Jo]


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Just landed. Everyone knows Google crushed it again. But the stock seems to be priced already for crushing performance, because it did not pop in after hours. In fact, it dipped.
Seeking Alpha has the transcript of the earnings call. It's really worth a read if you want to geek out – esp. Larry and Sergey's comments on search and advertising, and the Q&A from the analysts.


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3rd successful COMENIUS-funded Teacher Training Session - Torun, Poland
- Details
- Category: Global
- Published on Friday, 28 May 2010 02:00
- Written by EuHou Ireland
- Hits: 8482
Despite the Icelandic volcano eruption, 29 teachers from 13 European countries, including two from Ireland, attended the session held at the Institute of Physics in Torun. HOU Staff consisting of 9 trainers were assisted by 12 persons from the Local Organising Committee.
The days consisted of a number of hands-on workshops and talks aimed at showing the educators freely available astronomical resources which can be used in their classrooms back home to help stimulate their pupil's interest and enthusiasm in science.
Lectures included the use of robotic telescopes in the classroom, both optical and radio, how to discover extrasolar planets, the dark matter, radioastronomy at school, open Clusters and the H-R Diagram, scale of quantities in the Universe. A talk allowed the teachers to learn how to use the multilingual SalsaJ software to analyse astronomical data.
In addition, during the visit to Piwnice Radioastronomical-observatory, a lecture about initiation to imaging the sky in radio domain was proposed to teachers.
They were also given the chance to do even more hands-on work, by making some astronomical instruments! Using the Galileoscope telescope kit, a small refractor especially developed for International Year of Astronomy, teachers made working telescopes in an hour! (cost: $30 each plus shipping). No matter where you live, with this telescope, one can see the celestial wonders that Galileo Galilei first glimpsed 400 years ago and that still delight stargazers today. These include lunar craters and mountains, four moons circling Jupiter, the phases of Venus, Saturn's rings, and countless stars invisible to the unaided eye.
Finally, teachers have been offered attempts to reproduce Nicolaus Copernicus experiments.
To see the various exercises carried out during the training session, see the 'Exercises' page on this website.
All in all, a very enjoyable time was had by all attendees of the teacher training workshop, both teachers and trainers alike. The keen and enthusiastic response shown by all the delegates promises to be a great result for spreading their new found knowledge out into schools and to teachers in their home countries.
All the pictures taken during the training session can be downloaded here (huge archive ! 140Mb).


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Have you ever had difficulties making selections and thought there was a better way? Let's review both quick solutions, and on the other side, comprehensive and details techniques for making selections. Each approach has it's place in your workflow. The more methods you know how to use, the faster and more effectively you'll move in Photoshop.
Selection in Photoshop
Photoshop selects pixels based one of the three properties, as shown in the image below:
- Chroma: is the color of the pixel. Color of a pixel is the level of RGB values and color based select tools like the
Magic Wand. Select by color uses the RGB% as a criteria to group pixels based on the set tolerance values.
- Luma: is a selection based on Illumination levels. Illumination levels are whiteness of the image, which is nothing but higher values for all the three R, G and B channels. Photoshop doesn't have a native interface for a Luma based selection, but many existing tools can be hacked to get a similar result.
- Masks: are based on spatial position. Pixels are selected and discarded or masked by a parallel layer bound to corresponding image layer. Masks are grayscale and brightness of the mask is called an Alpha level, which is the degree of opaqueness of the corresponding layer pixel. It's also called the Transparency/Opacity channel as in RGBA etc.
A Note on Masks
In this article, words like Masks and Alpha will be used interchangeably. The process of transferring images to layer masks will be shown once and then used repeatedly without explicitly mentioning thereafter.
Step 1
Open a new image that you want to use as a mask. Double-click the background layer and create a new layer, which is "Layer 0." Make a new layer, which is "Layer 1," on top of it and fill with a uniform color, then hide "Layer 1."
Step 2
Go to "Layer 0" and click Select > Select All (Command + A) to select all pixels. Next, click Edit > Copy (Command + C) to copy all pixels to the clipboard.
Step 3
Go to "Layer 1" and create an empty Layer Mask. Initially an all transparent Layer Mask will be created. Alt-click the layer mask to see it in the canvas.
Step 4
With the Layer Mask visible, paste onto the canvas by clicking Edit > Paste (Command + V). A grayscale version of the copied image will be pasted in as the layer mask.
Step 5
Click on the fill layer thumbnail (not mask) to see the result. Any image can be applied as a Layer Mask to another layer. The opacity of the layer will be controlled by grayscale level of the mask.
More on Masks
The easiest way of creating a Layer Mask is to click the Add Layer Mask button with something selected on the canvas. The selection will be saved as a layer mask attached to the current layer and everything outside the selection marquee will be masked and hidden.
Activate Layer Masks
Alt-clicking on the Layer Mask makes it active for editing. Only activated layer masks can be edited which are represented by a thin white outline around them.
Add Shapes to Layer Masks
Dragging any shape onto the canvas while a layer mask has been activated will draw it on the Mask instead of the layer itself. To draw it again on the layer we need to deactivate the Mask by clicking on the layer thumbnail.
Add Brush Strokes to Layer Masks
The same is true for brush strokes. Anything painted on the canvas with a Layer Mask selected will draw it on the Mask instead of the Layer. We can use this property to select objects with irregular boundaries from backgrounds, by painting everything else black on the Layer Mask. White brush strokes will reveal and blacks will conceal.
Copying a Layer Mask to Another Layer
Finally, we can transfer the Layer Mask to another layers by simply loading it as a selection (Command-click) and unloading as we did in the first step by clicking the Add Layer Mask button. Or by Alt-dragging the mask to another Layer (Not Shown).
Boolean Operations with Selections
This example shows how to Load, Add, Subtract, and Intersect selections between overlapping layers just with quick thumbnail clicks.
Load Pixels to Selections
In "Layer 2" Command-click to load a fill as a selection. Any pixel which is not transparent in "Layer 2" will be loaded as a selection. This is not the same as copying the layer, only its outline. The green fill shows the selected region although you will get only the surrounding Marquee. Let's call this state (with "Layer 2" selected) the initial state.
With the "Layer 2" loaded as a selection, Command + Shift-click on "Layer 1" to add it to the selection. Now non-transparent pixels of both "Layer 1" and "Layer 2" are combined as the new selection. Notice the small plus sign in the Command-Click box.
Revert to the initial state and Command + Alt-click on "Layer 1." This will subtract any overlapping pixel of "Layer 1" from the current selection of "Layer 2." Notice the minus sign.
Revert to initial state and Command + Alt + Shift-click on "Layer 1" to keep only the overlapping pixels as a selection. Notice the X sign. If the layers are not overlapping this action will deselect all.
Garbage Masks
Garbage Masks are created to roughly isolate the 'region of interest' from rest of the image.
Further trimming is carried out inside the Garbage Mask with precision.
Vector and Raster Selections
Draw an outline around the region of interest in the image with any of the Lasso Tools and double-click to complete the selection. A Garbage Mask needs to be saved for further refining, which can be done both as a Layer or Vector Mask. We must choose it depending on complexity of the outline and how we are planning to trim it later on. With the Lasso selection click Add Layer Mask to save it as a Layer Mask.
Alternatively, we can also save the selection as a Vector Mask which can be later refined by working on the shape spline that defines its outline. With the Lasso selection still intact (2), go to the Paths tab (3b) and click Make Working Path from the Selection button at the bottom. This will save the selection outline as a Shape Working Path.
Now load the selection again, and return to Layers tab. Click Add Layer Mask once to create a Layer Mask (Command-click to load again) then click the same button( 6b) once more to Add Vector Mask. Saving selections as Vector Masks or Shapes saves memory.
Selecting with Vector Mask
Click on the Vector Mask to activate it. Or selecting any of the Shape tools will make it active. Vector Masks are modified by adjusting the spline positions (Control Points) and curvature (Tangents). You can disable, delete, or save the Layer Mask with another Layer. The Convert Point tool is most suitable for altering Vector shapes and Paths. Click and drag on the handles, then Command-click on control points to move them.
Once a acceptable outline has been achieved use the Add Points tool to refine and further match the outlines. Delete points when necessary. Dragging handles with Command + Shift will lock their relative slopes. Drag directly on the Control Point to reset handles. Regular curvy shapes are best to be extracted with this process.
This method is also best in situations where boundaries are not clearly visible.
Select by Color Range
Selecting by color is the fastest way to Chroma select. Click Select > Color Range and select a color with the Eyedropper Tool available. Once selected certain shades can be removed selectively with the Minus (-) Eyedropper or again added with the Plus (+) Eyedropper. There is also a preview window that displays the selected region or the original image.
This tool can be used to setup Garbage Masks around the subject and later refine it with editing the Mask. Select by color is not a one-click solution, but does a great job in minimizing manual work.
Chroma from Channels
Color information of each type are stored in as separate channels, which can be viewed in the Channels Tab. We can use the channel wise variations in color intensities for selecting objects in the image. This process is helpful only when background and foreground have separate color distribution in at least one channel.
Advanced Chroma
In the Histogram we can see that the blue channel is predominant in the image and it extends up to the highlights where other channels are very weak. Our subject here is the patch of vegetation in foreground.
Picking the Best Channel
A simple observation of the three channels tell us that the blue channel has the highest contrast between the Sky and Grass. We are going to exploit this property to separate the two. Duplicate (Command + J) the Layer and go to the Blue channel of the Copied layer. Click Image > Adjustments > Curves or Press Command + M to apply curves modification on the current channel.
Applying Curves
Select the point closer to the dark grays of the channel and drag it (2) forward in the x-axis (horizontally) keeping y-axis at 0 (shown by the small circle). This will make the darker pixels uniformly more darker. It shouldn't affect the background, drag it a little back to left if it does.
Next, select another point closer to the White Point, drag it (3) back towards the midtones keeping the y-axis(vertical) at maximum (shown by the small circle). What we are doing is saturating the dragged range of blue up to 100%. Make sure the whole background turns white or almost so, and there is a very high contrast between the Grass and Sky.
Channel as Mask
Command-click on the channel thumbnail to load the channel into the selection. Areas which are predominantly blue will be selected totally and the rest according to respective degrees. Areas which have no blue (the black parts) will be left from the selection. With the selection in place go to the Layers tab and click Add Layer Mask to save the selection as a Mask.
Inverting the Mask
Press Command + I to invert the Layer Mask.
Selecting by Brushing on Masks
Brush based selection is used to extract foregrounds with complex outlines with accuracy. It is also used to refine selections made with other techniques. And it also support transparency (softness).
Erasing is probably the first thing that comes to mind when we talk about brush based selection. But it is not a recommended process at all. Erasing is a destructive process and can permanently damage the original image as recovery is limited only to a number of undo levels we have set.
Brushing with Layer Masks
Here too Layer Masks can be used, to preserve the workflow of Eraser and additional possibility of recovering removed portions if they are needed. Painting on the Layer Mask with a White or Black will reveal or hide the contents respectively. We can brush out backgrounds in the same way as in using the Eraser tool and get it back by painting with White.
No Feedback
When brushing the mask we may sometimes trim off relevant parts accidently and keep focusing on the wrong silhouette only to be discovered later. This is highly probable when foreground background have similar hues and there is no immediate visual feedback.
Immediate Feedback
This problem can be averted by following a simple rule of keeping a multiplied duplicate of the current layer in the background as a guide layer. Multiplied gradient maps will show-up as high contrast versions of the subject outlines if violated.
Luma Select
As already mentioned Luma is the illumination levels of an image. Luma can be used to extract components from the image which have a considerable brightness difference than others.
Simplest Luma Hack
Unlock the background and make a duplicate of it, then hide the original Layer.
Apply Threshold
Apply a Threshold Adjustment Layer on top. You will notice that some parts of the image have been turned instantly black and rest are pure white, and there are no intermediate grayscale levels.
Adjust Threshold
Adjust the Threshold Slider and try to enclose the subject or background (whichever is darker) in black. Hide the Threshold layer and look at the original image for guidance when required.
Merge Layers
Command-click to select the top two layers and Merge them into one. Select the bottom layer, make it visible and create a blank Layer Mask.
Add Layer Mask
Copy the merged image and paste to the Layer Mask, following the process discussed above. We have our Layer Mask ready, but in most cases there will be holes and parts of our background visible. Use the Mask Painting technique discussed above to make it tidy. Invert if necessary.
Luma Select with Transparency
The Threshold technique discussed above is very fast to implement, but is only useful for extracting solid objects as it lacks transparency. The following method can be useful in situations where we need Luma extraction with transparency. Here we are going to remove the ice-water from the rest of the rocks.
Using Luma to Mask with Transparency
Unlock and Create a layer from the background (1). Apply an Adjustment Layer Black and White on top and then a Brightness-Contrast Adjustment Layer above it.
Reduce Brightness
Select Use Legacy mode and slowly move the Brightness slider to left, try to get as many black areas from the rocks as possible. This process will reduce the brightness of the Water too so don't overdo it.
Increase Contrast
Now slowly increase the Contrast slider to the right. With each increase dark-grays will turn to black and lighter grays will glow more brightly. We are going to get the whites as opaque and grays as semi-transparent. Try to get both Whites and Grays where necessary. Over increasing the contrast will make it look like a Threshold Layer, if so there will be no translucency left.
Merge the Layers
When satisfied with the results Merge the top three Layers. Go to the background layer and Add a Layer Mask and copy the merged Layer into the Layer Mask.
Yet Another Possibility
Other than the above two procedures there is also another way of Luma based extraction using the Lab color method.
Lab Color Technique
Open an image and turn it to Lab Color mode by clicking Image> Mode> Lab Color.
Goto Channels Tab and find the lightness channel or press Ctrl+1 to directly select it. This is where the illumination levels of all pixels are indexed in the Lab Color mode. You can play with that channel and try to isolate some element from the background. Don't forget to duplicate the Layer or the Channel before you alter any channel.
And filters that doesn't work on the image in Lab Color mode works on the Lightness channel, and yield almost similar results.
Photoshop has quite a few options when it comes to selection techniques. Try applying some of these solutions in your workflow to increase your productivity and effectiveness.
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The much-rumored Huawei MediaPad 10 FHD got a soft launch at about the same time the company was announcing its Ascend D series of smartphones. Huawei plans to officially unveil the tablet on Monday, the first official day of Mobile World Congress here in Barcelona, but managed to get some hands-on time and details ahead of schedule.
This 10.1-inch tablet takes design cues from its 7-inch MediaPad cousin, also known in the U.S. market as the T-Mobile Springboard. The back is a mix of brushed aluminum, with off-white plastic accents running along the upper-horizontal regions. Also on the back are two speakers, one on the left and right side of the device.
The MediaPad weighs 1.29 pounds, making it a bit heavier than the Apple iPad 2 and the original Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1. At just 0.35 inches thick, the MediaPad is among the thinnest tablets available thus far. In handling the tablet, I found it comfortable to hold, even one-handed.
The tablet will have a quad-core processor, although it was unclear whether that processor will be the same K3V2 CPU that is found in the D Series phones, or if Huawei is using another chip supplier. Of note: A Huawei representative showing off the MediaPad said it had 2GB of RAM, which would set the tablet ahead of the competition by a full gig.
The MediaPad has a 1920 by 1200 pixels display, which makes it the latest tablet to join the unfolding full HD masses–Acer and Asus both introduced high-definition tablets at CES. Huawei says the display density is 226 pixels per inch (ppi), which is considerably higher than the 150ppi that a typical tablet has. The images shown on this higher density screen appeared bright and colorful.
The tablet will come in 8GB, 16GB, and 32GB capacities, with a microSD card slot for adding more storage as needed. The MediaPad will support LTE, and has a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera as well as a 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera.. Multimedia should rock, too; Huawei said that the tablet is equipped with Dolby Mobile 3.0 Plus 5.1-channel surround sound.
Huawei will ship the MediaPad 10 with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS). The ICS build I saw on the unit I handled appeared suitably responsive to touch, but otherwise didn't look any different from standard Android—with the one exception of a customization to the unlock screen that lets you quick-launch directly into an app of your choosing.
The MediaPad 10 FHD is destined for worldwide markets, but at the time of this writing we don't know anything about pricing and availability. We'll bring you more details and update this piece when Huawei makes its official announcement on Monday in Barcelona.
For more blogs, stories, photos, and video from the world's largest mobile show, check out PCWorld's complete coverage of Mobile World Congress 2012.


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Our editors will review what you've submitted and determine whether to revise the article.
- Related Topics:
- philosophy Socratic method
dialectic, also called dialectics, originally a form of logical argumentation but now a philosophical concept of evolution applied to diverse fields including thought, nature, and history.
Among the classical Greek thinkers, the meanings of dialectic ranged from a technique of refutation in debate, through a method for systematic evaluation of definitions, to the investigation and classification of the relationships between specific and general concepts. From the time of the Stoic philosophers until the end of the European Middle Ages, dialectic was more or less closely identified with the discipline of formal logic. More recently, Immanuel Kant denoted by "transcendental dialectic" the endeavour of exposing the illusion involved in attempting to use the categories and principles of the understanding beyond the bounds of phenomena and possible experience. G.W.F. Hegel identified dialectic as the tendency of a notion to pass over into its own negation as the result of conflict between its inherent contradictory aspects. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels adopted Hegel's definition and applied it to social and economic processes. See also dialectical materialism.


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In the months since Houston Baker departed
- Peter Wood, who has gone out of his way to appear to slander his own students;
- Karla Holloway, who has proclaimed that "white innocence means black guilt," while boasting she would sign the Group of 88's statement again "in a heartbeat";
- Wahneema Lubiano, who coordinated the Group of 88's statement.
Lubiano's career provides a glimpse of the kind of professor Duke's humanities and (some) social sciences departments have desired in recent years. Though possessing a Ph.D. in Literature from a quality institution (
Lubiano, who received her Ph.D. in 1987 and is a tenured associate professor at Duke, has edited one book. The volume contained papers from high-profile African-American authors presented at a mid-1990s conference at
In the 19 years since she received her Ph.D., however, she has not published a scholarly monograph. Yet those who relied solely on Lubiano's word for her publication record might have believed otherwise. The Black Cultural Studies webpage states that a Lubiano manuscript entitled Like Being Mugged by a Metaphor: "Deep Cover" and Other "Black" Fictions was forthcoming from Duke University Press—in 1997. Yet the current Duke University Press webpage, nearly a decade after Lubiano listed the book as poised to appear, contains no listing of Like Being Mugged by a Metaphor.
On Lubiano's official Duke webpage, which was "last modified" on November 17, 2006, Like Being Mugged by a Metaphor is listed as forthcoming—in March 2003. (This time, she doesn't reveal the press that allegedly was going to publish the book.) Yet a search through amazon.com, the Library of Congress website, and Duke's own library catalog contains no evidence that the book ever appeared—45 months after Lubiano listed it as forthcoming.
I would have asked Lubiano whether an innocent explanation existed for her having twice listed as "forthcoming" a manuscript that apparently had not even been accepted for publication. But she earlier had instructed me (when I requested evidence for her transparently absurd claim that the Brodhead administration showed favoritism to the lacrosse players), "Do not email me again. I am putting your name and email address in my filter."
Like Being Mugged by a Metaphor isn't the only manuscript for which Lubiano has "flexibly" interpreted "forthcoming," a description usually reserved for manuscripts that a press has accepted for publication. The BSC webpage from 1997 lists a volume called Messing with the Machine: Politics, Form, and African-American Fiction as "forthcoming" (no date supplied) from
On yet a third occasion, Lubiano listed both books as "forthcoming"—in 1999.
In the most charitable interpretation possible, Lubiano has offered misleading claims, which exaggerated the extent of her publishing record.
Some might consider it hypocritical for a professor with such a record to lecture anyone, much less her own institution's students, about the canons of ethical personal behavior.
Lubiano's current record of scholarly publications thus is confined to essays, most of which have appeared as chapters in books edited by others. (In contrast to journal articles, book chapters usually are solicited and do not go through a peer-review process.) Lubiano's essay titles include:
- "Shuckin' Off the African-American Native Other: What's Po-Mo Got to Do with It?";
- "To Take Dancing Seriously Is to Redo Politics";
- "Standing in for the State: Black Nationalism and 'Writing' the Black Subject."
Lubiano has labeled herself a "post-structuralist teacher-critic leftist." Recurring themes from her work include:
Hostility to the Western intellectual tradition. "Western rationality's hegemony," she complained in one essay, "marginalizes other ways of thinking about the world." This tradition includes concern with "the limits of Western science and rationality in accounting for the nexus of pleasure, ritual, history, and political significance." Along these lines, Lubiano has celebrated the Ebonics movement—or the "deconstructive relation to the dominant language whether by using the dialect and syntactical structure of 'black English' or by subverting standard English dialect."
Victimization. Like her African-American Studies colleague Karla Holloway, Lubiano sees herself as a victim. In a 1996 essay, she described herself as "at the mercy of racist, sexist, heterosexist, and global capitalist constructions of the meaning of skin color on a daily basis." As someone who is "attacked by the gemeonic social formation's notions of racial being and the way those notions position me in the world," she is "physically traumatized and psychologically assaulted . . . in the dark of a power that never admits to its own existence." Indeed, she wildly hypothesized, "Many whites . . . might not ever be persuaded by appeals to reason, to what we 'know' and agree to be 'truth'—that all men/women were created equal, for example." I suspect that few people would consider a tenured professor who teaches four courses annually at an elite university to be a victim of society.
"Boundary stretching." Lubiano frequently has boasted that her work and work that she supports offers dramatically new intellectual insights. "There are moments," said she, "of epistemological excitement that recognize changes already ongoing, and then there are moments that at the same time both recognize and generate new ways of knowing. The creation of Black Queer Studies: A Critical Anthology is such a moment." One example of boundary stretching came in her work on black drill teams, which she fantastically described as "an incredibly cathected performance of anti-racist theory, counter-military aesthetics, group creativity, and certain kinds of aesthetic appropriations and reappropriations."
Anti-capitalism. Lubiano has asserted that the
The Manhattan Institute's Heather MacDonald, who attended a conference at which Lubiano spoke, recalled the atmosphere:
The final impression left by the conference had less to do with the substance of the debate about the "academic culture wars," numbingly familiar as it is, than with its style. After hours of being bombarded with impenetrable syntax and utterly predictable slogans, one stumbled out of the conference hall profoundly depressed by the state of academic speech.
Lubiano has an unusual approach to her job as a professor: "University intellectuals," in her words, "work in knowledge factories; that the factories produce engines of dominance; and that, therefore, sabotage has to be the order of the day." She views her job as engaging in "a deliberate attempt on the part of the historically marginalized to reconstitute not simply particular curricula, but the academy itself." Is this what parents who spend more than $40,000 a year to send their children to Duke had in mind?
Lubiano has to teach something, though her course offerings are vague enough to allow a presentist focus where she can spend a term teaching her beliefs—such as her conviction that "once white working class people learn that corporate capitalism is using racism to manipulate them, they will want to join with racially oppressed people against capitalism." In spring 2006, for instance, her two classes were "Introduction to Critical U.S. Studies" and "Teaching Race/Teaching Gender." Syllabi for these offerings are not available on-line; and, of course, Lubiano refused to supply them—but it doesn't take a Ph.D. to figure out what sort of issues the classes address.
Lubiano considers herself entitled to use her job to advance her political agenda. "Whether I'm thinking, teaching, or engaging in politics (including strategizing)," she wrote, "I think that it is part of my privilege, my work, and my pleasure to insist that those three activities are not clearly demarcated." [emphasis added] This approach is justified, she wrote, because "over the past 250 years, university scholars have created and legitimated the knowledge that has justified the particular oppression" she has devoted her career toward exposing.
Lubiano's vision of an ideal university is especially troubling. At a 1990s conference held at
Ideological Crusades
So exactly what "politics" has Lubiano used Duke's dime to promote? Before the lacrosse case, she bounced from one extremist ideological crusade to another—as if intent on providing a caricature of what New York's Kurt Andersen termed the academy's "loopy left."
- She opposed the war in
, urging instead a "just peace" based on "dismantling the unquestioned commonsense of capitalism, and dismantling the unquestioned commonsense of market religiosity." Afghanistan
- She advocated reparations for African-Americans, citing "activity of the state in the aid of theft" of free labor from slaves.
- She walked out of class to protest the war in
. Iraq
- She participated in DRAGnet (Duke Radical Action Group), which, according to the Chronicle, featured professors "running around campus dressed from head to toe like drag queens" performing political skits.
- She opposed increased campus security measures, lest Duke "produce students as the future gated community citizens of the nation and the world."
- She demanded that Duke divest from companies doing business in
. Israel
- She was closing speaker at a 2001 conference called "Black Queer Studies in the Millennium."
- She called for an international tribunal to explore the case of Mumia Abu-Jamal.
- She petitioned
to recognize a graduate student union. New York University
- She deemed the government's failed response to Hurricane Katrina "cover for other forms of class warfare on the part of the powerful and cover for the work of dismantling, one disaster or crisis at a time if necessary," the welfare state.
- She spoke at gatherings of the "Triangle Vegetarian Peace Society."
In many ways, Lubiano resembled Nifong—a rogue in her profession, though a basically harmless figure who escaped notice of the outside world. But then, like Nifong, she couldn't resist exploiting the lacrosse case, even if, by so doing, she risked bringing attention to her somewhat unusual scholarly and ideological background.
- In March, she put together the Group of 88's statement, fully aware, as ESPN reported, that "some would see the ad as a stake through the collective heart of the lacrosse team."
- In April, she deemed the players "almost perfect offenders . . . the exemplars of the upper end of the class hierarchy, the politically dominant race and ethnicity, the dominant gender, the dominant sexuality, and the dominant social group on campus," and promised to press forward "regardless of the 'truth' established in whatever period of time about the incident at the house on N. Buchanan Blvd."
- After the arrests of Reade Seligmann and Collin Finnerty, the N&O reported that Lubiano told them "people can't imagine that the woman could have made a false rape allegation."
- In May, she penned an op-ed for the N&O declaring that Duke needed immediately to begin "targeted teaching" to expose "the structures of racism and the not-so-hidden injuries of class entitlement in place at Duke and everywhere in this country, and without regard to banal and ordinary sexual harassment," since "we don't have to wait for working class or poorer students to be targeted by fraternity 'theme' parties or cross burnings on the quad or in dorm halls, or for sexual assaults to be attested by perfectly placed witnesses and indisputable evidence."
The silence of most Duke professors has allowed Wahneema Lubiano and like-minded colleagues to monopolize the faculty's public response to the lacrosse affair. Such an outcome should embarrass the institution.
Tomorrow: Through what kind of process do professors like Lubiano get hired?


text:
The Breakfast Club was a long-run morning variety show on NBC Blue Network/ABC radio originating in Chicago, Illinois. Hosted by Don McNeill (shown above).The radio program ran from June 23, 1933 through December 27, 1968. McNeill's 35½-year run
as host remains the longest tenure for an emcee of a network entertainment program, surpassing Johnny Carson (29½ years) on The Tonight Show and Bob Barker (34⅔ years) on The Price is Right. For one year, beginning on February 22, 1954, the show
was simulcast on ABC radio and television, ending on February 25, 1955.
Picture of Don McNeill (right) taken during a simulcast of The Breakfast Club


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On openSUSE-12.1 for scanning and OCR I have installed Tesseract-ocr and gImageReader . I like the capability to be able to conduct OCR of French, German and English languages, especially since I am an expatriate living abroad.
I blogged about this before with openSUSE-11.4, and posted about it wrt openSUSE-11.3 and 11.4 in these threads
- openSUSE forums: OCR and Linux and
- obtained help in this thread openSUSE forum help thread: How does one meet a python2-devel dependency requirement on openSUSE-11.3? and
- this blog article (further down in the blog) Blog openSUSE forums: new 64-bit openSUSE-11.4 KDE installation on my main PC (Core i7-920)
This time I thought I would re-organize my notes/post, and make it easier for one to see exactly what commands I sent in order to do this installation.
Program comments
The 'core' program behind the OCR software that I use is Tesseract-ocr, where Tesseract is
Tesseract is a commercial quality OCR engine originally developed at HP between 1985 and 1995. In 1995, this engine was among the top 3 evaluated by UNLV. It was open-sourced by HP and UNLV in 2005. From 2007 it is developed by Google.
I note a packaged version of tesseract-3.00-4.1 is available from here for openSUSE-12.1:
and a tesseract-3.00-5.1 is available from here for openSUSE-12.1:
For a graphic front end to tesseract, I like to use the python package gImageReader. I have read:
gImageReader is a simple PyGtk front-end to tesseract.
Main features:
- Allows the user to select the part of the image they want to be recognized or directly recognize the entire image.
- Supports PDF documents.
- Allows the user to acquire images from scanning devices.
- Recognized text displayed directly next to the image.
- Basic editing of output text, including search/replace and removing line breaks on selected text.
- Spellcheck enabled for the selected language in the output textfield if corresponding dictionary installed (requires GTKSpell).
- User is prompted to install missing spellcheck languages (requires PackageKit or apt-file).
- Easily switch between multiple open files.
- Attempts to automatically detect all necessary programs, otherwise shows a configuration prompt to the user.
I note a packaged version of python-gimagereader-0.9-2.1 for openSUSE-12.1 is available here:
and a very slightly older packaged version of python-gimagereader-0.9-1.1 for openSUSE-12.1 is available here:
**Spell check dictionaries **
In addition various spell check dictionaries are very helpful when running tesseract and gimagereader, to assist in repairing words where the optical character recognition was not ideal. I confess its never been clear to me as to what spell check dictionaries are necessary. I note GTKspell is needed, and I have read reference to ispell, aspell and myspell being needed.
I noted prior to install tesseract and gimagereader, by default on my KDE desktop I had hunspell, hunspell-tools, libaspell15, myspell-american, and ispell installed. YaST also has many additional spell check dictionaries, so I saw no need to add any extra repositories to help install desired packages here (other than the basic OSS repository).
**Commands Used to Install **
In the end I sent the following commands with root permissions (deciding to try deltafox's repository) :
zypper ar http://download.opensuse.org/repositories/home:/deltafox/openSUSE_12.1/ deltafox
zypper in myspell-french myspell-german aspell aspell-de aspell-en aspell-fr ispell-french ispell-german aspell-spell
which picked up as dependencies igerman98-doc, librcc0, librcd0, and rcc-runtime. I was careful not to install aspell-ispell as that conflicts with ispell.
zypper in tesseract tesseract-traineddata-deu tesseract-traineddata-eng tesseract-traineddata-fra python-gimagereader python-imaging
I noted python-imaging picked up the dependencies python-tk, tix, and tk. And I noted that python-gimagereader picked up the dependencies libbonobo, libbonoboui, libgnome, libgnomecanvas-2.0, libgnomeui, libgtkspell0, python-bonobo, python-egg, python-enchant, python-gnome-extras, python-gnomecanvas, python-gtkspell, python-imaging-sane, python-orbit, python-popular.
I had seen reference to other GNU/Linux distributions install leptonica, but as far as I can determine, neither lpetonica-tools nor liblept2 (both packaged for openSUSE) are needed.
I then removed the additional repository that I needed for much of the above.
zypper rr deltafox
This is my standard practise. I keep my respositories, lean and mean, and as soon as the install was complete I removed this respository.
I then typed the command:
and the application ran.
Some Images
Here is an example of the gimagereader GUI, with a French document OCR in progress, where the dictionaries have detected some misspellings
Here is an example of the spell check correction in progress
Here is a look at the language selections
I use this program fairly often.


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What To Look For In A New Home
Buying a house is a bit like planning for your wedding day — there are months packed with excitement, stress, planning, and then, finally, the big payoff. I know because I have 2 exceedingly interesting sisters (a hummus-making social worker and a gluten-free marketing maven) who both committed to the big stuff — husbands and houses — within the last 2 years.
Although I can't help you with happily-ever-after, I can share the insight I gained while helping my sisters on their journeys to homeownership. Here is what to look for in a new home.
1. Recognize a roof in need of repair
Before you ever set foot inside, check out what's happening on top. Does the roof look relatively new or is it caving in? If the roof is eye-catching (as in, "My, look at that gaping hole"), chances are it could end up costing you.
A newer roof, on the other hand, could mean a lower homeowners insurance rate. Likewise, a roof made of an especially sturdy material is better equipped to defend against wind and hail (and can save you from a potential claim).
2. Don't judge a room by its paint job
When you step inside your prospective abode, focus on the structural stuff — aging appliances, loose wires — and tune out any freshly painted walls or upscale decor. The foundation will be there long after the paint has started chipping and you want that to be what lasts.
3. Take its temperature
When you're buying a house, keep in mind: if it looks rickety or old, it probably is. Heating and cooling systems are expensive to fix and replace, and inefficient ones can eat away at your utility bills. Make sure the furnace is up to date and in good repair.
4. Decide on your dealbreakers
Aside from the basics, like quality windows and countertops, think about the purpose of your home and the requirements for your lifestyle, like storage for a large book collection or a big backyard for barbecuing.
It can also be smart to spring for a home with an extra bedroom if you're planning on kids or guests. And if your significant other is a night owl while you're a connoisseur of cat naps, it might be a good idea to look for a house with an entertainment area set far away from the master bedroom.
5. Plumbing: what lies beneath
When you're poking around a new kitchen, don't stop at eye level — get underneath the sink and examine those pipes. Check for leaks, water damage, and mold.
Not only is mold unsightly and foul-smelling, but it can also cause health problems. If you live with a baby, an elderly person, or someone with asthma, you'll want to be especially careful before moving in with mold.
6. Check out the land beforehand
Don't just look at the building — examine the area around it. Is the house in an area prone to flooding or wildfires? Is the driveway shared with another property? If there are fences, have they been built and positioned properly? It's a lot to take in, but when you buy a house, you can't ignore its surroundings.
7. Smell the roses (and more)
Do you smell sewage, gas, or anything equally unpleasant? Sewage systems in older homes can sometimes get clogged or damaged by tree roots. Luckily, some sewer or plumbing companies can send a camera through the pipes to detect any breaks or blockages.
Also worth noting: pet odors, cigarettes, and mildew.
8. Invest in a well-insulated house
Above all else, your home should be comfortable. Check the attic, water pipes, and heating ducts to make sure they're properly insulated. This can reduce heating and cooling costs and keep you comfortable in summer and winter. Double-paned windows can also save you money down the road. Plus, they can help soundproof your place from outside noise.
9. Get your hands on everything
I mean that literally. Turn on every faucet and light switch, open every window and door, flush the toilets, even taste the water. Buying a house is a big step — maybe one of the biggest — and you need to know how everything works firsthand. That way, you can address problem areas and see if there's a cost-effective solution.
10. Have a home inspection done
There's only so much you can do with your own 5 senses. You'll also want to enlist a professional to ensure the foundation is solid and the wiring is up to code. Home inspectors can even check for lead paint and wood-eating pests.
The National Association of Exclusive Buyer Agents suggests that almost every house has a defect. Some will be obvious to you, and the vast majority will be fixable, but it's best to know before you buy. Not only will that help you negotiate a lower price, but it can also prepare you for any necessary repair costs that may arise.
And once you've found your dream abode, make sure you have the right homeowners coverage to keep it protected


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Browsing Fairmount College of Liberal Arts and Sciences by Subject "Undernutrition"
Now showing items 1-1 of 1
The coexistence of hunger and obesity: Examining the binary burden of the nutrition paradox and future implications (Wichita State University. Department of Anthropology, 2009)This paper investigates some of the explanations for the nutrition transition, including examining the changes in diets of people in the United States as well as looking at the Westernization of diets across the world. ...