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Prosecutor Gerrie Nel said he had no further questions after presenting the prosecution's case that Pistorius is lying in his account of mistakenly shooting Reeva Steenkamp through a toilet cubicle door. Nel said the double-amputee runner killed her intentionally after a late night fight.
In the adjournment after his cross-examination, Pistorius rubbed his eyes and briefly sank his head into the shoulder of a man sitting with his family. He took a tissue from his sister Aimee, who squeezed his arm reassuringly. Shortly afterward, he listened attentively as Barry Roux, his chief lawyer, spoke to him in a low voice.
Throughout the grueling questioning, Nel accused Pistorius of "tailoring" evidence and "concocting" a story that he shot out of fear of an intruder in the toilet cubicle in his bathroom in the pre-dawn hours of Feb. 14, 2013.
"Unfortunately I have to put it to you that it's getting more and more improbable," Nel said of the story to Pistorius.
Nel asserted that the couple fought during the night and Steenkamp wanted to leave, then fled to the bathroom screaming before Pistorius shot her through the door with his 9 mm pistol. Pistorius said he never heard Steenkamp scream, or say anything in the minutes before he shot her.
The prosecutor even charged that Pistorius fired the four shots from about three meters (yards) away from Steenkamp as he was talking and arguing with Steenkamp, and changed his aim with later shots to ensure that he hit her as she fell back. Nel's unrelenting questioning and accusations provoked many denials by Pistorius and caused the athlete to break down in sobs on numerous occasions.
Pistorius says that he thought Steenkamp was an intruder about to come out of the toilet to attack him. He faces 25 years to life in prison if convicted of premeditated murder.
Over the past week, Pistorius came under intense pressure from Nel who accused the world-famous disabled runner of lying in the witness box. Pistorius has struggled at times to explain alleged inconsistencies during his testimony.
Nel closed his cross-examination by inviting Pistorius to take the blame for shooting Steenkamp, but he steered away from a direct response, saying only that he opened fire because he believed his life was under threat. That remark drew barbed follow-up questions from the prosecutor.
"We should blame somebody ... Should we blame Reeva?" asked Nel, who has harshly criticized Pistorius as someone who is unwilling to take responsibility.
"No, my lady," Pistorius replied, addressing the judge in line with court custom.
"She never told you she was going to the toilet," Nel said. Then he asked: "Should we blame the government?"
When Pistorius responded with another reference to a perceived attacker in his toilet, Nel asked: "Who should we blame for the Black Talon rounds that ripped through her body?"
He abandoned his line of questioning soon after the judge questioned whether he was asking the same thing in a different way. Nel summed up by saying Pistorius intentionally killed Steenkamp.
Pistorius remained in the witness box while Roux asked him a series of follow-up questions after the recess, with his lawyer attempting to reinforce the account of a mistaken killing. Roux asked Pistorius to describe his thoughts and emotions in the seconds before he shot at the door.
"I was terrified. I feared for my life. I was just scared," Pistorius said. "I was thinking about what could happen to me, to Reeva. I was just extremely fearful."
During cross-examination, Pistorius gave a sometimes muddled account of the shooting, saying he feared for his life but also didn't intentionally shoot at anyone. He also told Roux he didn't consciously pull the trigger on his gun and said it happened "before I could think."
Following Pistorius' testimony, the defense called Roger Dixon, a forensic expert and former policeman.
Dixon said he conducted light tests in Pistorius' bedroom on a "moonless night" - as he said the night of the shooting was - and they showed it was almost completely dark in the bedroom. Dixon also went back to the house on Monday, he testified, and tested for light again with Pistorius' music system and one of its small blue lights on, which Pistorius testified was the case on the night of the shooting.
"With your back to the light I couldn't see into the darker areas of the room," Dixon said, apparently supporting Pistorius' testimony that he could not see Steenkamp leave the bed to go to the bathroom, and so didn't know it was her in the toilet cubicle.
The defense also played recordings in court from noise tests they conducted at a shooting range on a replica door being hit with a bat and being shot at. The sounds were similar. Pistorius' team was attempting to reinforce its argument that neighbors who say Steenkamp screamed before the gunshots confused the gunshots with the sounds of Pistorius hitting the door with a cricket bat, and were actually hearing Pistorius scream as he tried to break the door down to help Steenkamp.


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Hi Everyone,
This is my very first post for The Linux Experiment. The time is ticking before the experiment begins, so I guess it is probably a good time to announce which distribution I will be using.
I've grown up using many different distributions, so it was very difficult to choose a good one that I've never used before. After a lot of thought, I decided that OpenSuSE would be a good distribution to try. I've never used it in the past.
I'm very excited to try it, as it seems to have a good reputation, and an established community.
I should also note that since I do not have a Desktop PC, I will be using it from an external hard drive through my Macbook Pro. This should be interesting…

subset: commoncrawl


text:
- Updated On:
- April 3, 2021
Simply out of this world!
In a very popular location this home will blow you away. In brief this home comprises of an entrance hallway, downstairs cloakroom, study/playroom and an outstanding living room/dining room/ family room with bi-folding doors and opening into a modern kitchen.
Upstairs you'll find 4 bedrooms, two en-suites and a family bathroom. From the main bedroom there is a loft ladder taking you to a loft room which is currently being used as a study.
Outside there is a generous well maintained garden which leads to a single garage.
Property Id : 148574


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Worried about the world collapsing in on itself this Saturday? How about believing in something that'll give you a 300-year grace period on Armageddon instead?
Bad news: you were 297 years premature when you partied like it was 1999. Silver lining: you'll survive the end of days. That's right, if the "Phantom Time Hypothesis" is correct, the above scenario won't take place for another three centuries. Phew.
According to the theory, the years between 614 and 911AD never existed. For this to be true, "the history normally attributed to that time is either a misinterpretation or a deliberate falsification of the evidence." Don't believe it? Like any good conspiracy theory, this one comes with cold hard (you can take those adjectives with a pinch of salt, methinks) facts…
Due to a lack of archeological evidence and historical accounts of this time period, a man called Herman Illig developed the idea in 1990 that most of what we know of the Early Middle Ages had been deliberately falsified. The grounds for his hypothesis also lie in the shift from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar, as well as the unbelievable history of Emperor Charlemagne.
The bases of the hypothesis include:
- The apparent stagnation in the development of architecture, ceramics and thought as well as the lack of substantial documentary evidence–this is why the first part of this period is called the 'Dark Ages'–suggests this period simply didn't exist.
- There is very little archaeological evidence which can be reliably dated to this period; our account is based on a quite limited number of written sources (which could be faked or just wrong).
- The Pope introduced the new Gregorian calendar in 1582 to replace the Julian one, when it was 10 days out of sync. If the error had been building up since the introduction of the Julian calendar in 45 ad, it ought to have been 13 days out–so the intervening period must have been overstated by 300 years. Mainstream historians have a simple explanation, though: the purpose of the change was to bring the calendar into line with the Council of Nicaea in 325 ad, not with 45 ad–which accounts for the discrepancy.
- Architect, astronomer, educator, philologist, folklorist, lawmaker, statesman–the range of achievements credited to Charlemagne is so great that it implies he is a mythical figure.
Dubious it is, though you may be more inclined to believe it now that the world is evidently coming to an end. I'd post the arguments against the theory, but I'd rather remain cheery on this, my final Monday. And to make you even cheerier, start the video below at the 30 minute mark to watch Qi quizmaster Stephen Fry et al make light of an implausible idea.
So, Happy New Year 1715, and hurray for false history lessons!


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Lives in Seattle with her husband and two little ones, she shares few corners of her warm and inviting home with all of us today...
Anuradha describes, 'To me, my home is like a favourite classic book – full of warmth and character. It's a home for my family and a place to hold treasures that have a special place in my heart.'
'The Indian looking candle holders made of printing blocks were a discovery here in Seattle. When lit they give me and my home a warm glow' says Anuradha.
Her style is eclectic with heirlooms passed down from her parents and mementos of travels from around the world and India.
Anuradha has great fondness for antique brass pieces. She bought these pieces in Kolkata and Delhi. The dragon incense holder is her personal favourite.
A special corner where she has her morning chai.
'A touch of oriental decor. These chairs are replicas of chairs used by the bride and groom in a traditional wedding in China. I love the simplicity and elegance of these chairs.' says Anuradha.
She loves entertaining. Here is a Christmas dinner arrangement for her family visiting from India.A bright breakfast nook with her prized photograph of Mt Ranier
A collection of Murano glass from Italy, Czech crystal, pottery from Mexico and Spain, knick knacks from flea markets and antique stores around the globe compliment each other. An Indian ethnic motif ties all of this together.
The living-dining area is minimalistic in style and has furniture with clean lines.
A collection of Murano glass from Italy, Czech crystal, pottery from Mexico and Spain, knick knacks from flea markets and antique stores around the globe compliment each other. An Indian ethnic motif ties all of this together.
The foyer area has a collection of family heirlooms and her own shopping ranging from places like Hawaii to Chandni Chowk. Her Ganesha collection displayed here. Every trip to India has her coming back with her good luck charm~ Lord Ganesha.Diyas lit for Diwali ( The festival of lights)
'I appreciate things that are simple yet elegant. I am always experimenting with new ideas and use my home as a canvas for my thoughts to come to life. I am interested in interiors, photography and love to travel and my home reflects that.' says Anuradha.
Thanks for sharing your lovely home with all of us.
Anuradha is a new blogger and paints her interests in her blog~ My Dream Canvas
P.S~ If you have any questions for Anuradha about her home, please ask in the comments section so she can reply to you.


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Ray Allen resigns with the Celtics
Marc Stein via twitter
Allen and Celts have agreed on two-year deal worth $10 million annually that includes player option in Year 2.Player options always suck for the team, because if the player has a good year they opt out and the only reason they stay for the option year is if their skills are less than their contract value. That said, this is a solid deal and I for one am excited. We still have some work to do if we truly want to give it one more run, but looks like the gang is all back.
Mike Saver's take:
Ray's signing with the Celtics so soon comes as a surprise to me. Since it was reported that Ray was waiting for the decisions of Bosh, Wade and LeBron, I thought a deal wouldn't be struck until atleast friday. Also, both Rivers and Ainge had said that working out a deal could last well into July. That now appears to be false.
Also the deal works out pretty well for the Celtics. It's been reported as either a $10m or $20m deal, either way Ray is coming back at a very low price. And for only two years with a player option the second year - the Celtics aren't tied to an aging player for, say 4 years. This is particularly surprising since Ray could have easily found a much better deal elsewhere, even on a contender like Chicago or perhaps Miami.


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I am trying to install and use VTK on my 32-bit linux machine (EC2 instance on AWS).
I was getting an error which i realized was because I did not have openGL/Mesa installed on my machine.
So i installed Mesa using the following command: sudo apt-get install mesa-common-dev
Now, I dont know where mesa is installed on my machine. There is no folder 'mesa' in /usr/lib/ and there is no libGl.so anywhere.
Can anybody please tell me how to proceed further?
Shripad D


text: FORMKIND breaks spatial conventions. Minimal components provide maximum versatility. The Kivo system serves as a visual and acoustic room divider. A delicate steel skeleton and covers made of thermally shaped felt are combined to craft polygonal structures. The shape and surface are customizable and can be reconfigured at any time. As a temporary solution for trade shows and events and as an integral part of modern office design.


text:
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Computers "Taught" To ID Regulating Gene Sequences - 11/01/2012
Computers "Taught" To ID Regulating Gene Sequences
Release Date: November 1, 2012
The glowing areas in this zebrafish embryo show the activity of one of the brain enhancer sequences identified. The enhancer is directing the activity of a gene in the lower areas of the central nervous system and in the lens of the eye.
G. Burzynski
Johns Hopkins researchers have succeeded in teaching computers how to identify commonalities in DNA sequences known to regulate gene activity, and to then use those commonalities to predict other regulatory regions throughout the genome. The tool is expected to help scientists better understand disease risk and cell development.
The work was reported in two recent papers in Genome Research, published online on July 3 and Sept. 27.
"Our goal is to understand how regulatory information is encrypted and to learn which sequence variations contribute to medical risks," says Andrew McCallion, Ph.D., associate professor of molecular and comparative pathobiology in the Institute for Basic Biomedical Sciences and the Institute of Genetic Medicine at Hopkins. "We give data to a computer and 'teach it' to distinguish between data that has no biological value versus data that has this or that biological value. It then establishes a set of rules, which allows it to look at new sets of data and apply what it learned. We're basically sending our computers to school."
These state-of-the-art "machine learning" techniques were developed by Michael Beer, Ph.D., assistant professor of biomedical engineering at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and by Ivan Ovcharenko, Ph.D., at the National Center for Biotechnology Information. The researchers began both studies by creating "training sets" for their computers to "learn" from. These training sets were lists of DNA sequences taken from regions of the genome, called enhancers, that are known to increase the activity of particular genes in particular cells.
For the first of their studies, McCallion's team created a training set of enhancer sequences specific to a particular region of the brain by compiling a list of 211 published sequences that had been shown, by various studies in mice and zebrafish, to be active in the development or function of that part of the brain.
For a second study, the team generated a training set through experiments of their own. They began with a purified population of mouse melanocytes, which are the skin cells that produce the pigment melanin that gives color to skin and absorbs harmful UV rays from the sun. The researchers used a technique called ChIP-seq (pronounced "chip seek") to collect and sequence all of the pieces of DNA that were bound in those cells by special enhancer-binding proteins, generating a list of about 2,500 presumed melanocyte enhancer sequences.
Once the researchers had these two training sets for their computers, one specific to the brain and another to melanocytes, the computers were able to distinguish the features of the training sequences from the features of all other sequences in the genome, and create rules that defined one set from the other. Applying those rules to the whole genome, the computers were able to discover thousands of probable brain or melanocyte enhancer sequences that fit the features of the training sets.
In the brain study, the computers identified 40,000 probable brain enhancer sequences; for melanocytes, 7,500. Randomly testing a subset of each batch of sequences, the scientists found that more than 85 percent of the predicted enhancer sequences enhanced gene activity in the brain or in melanocytes, as expected, verifying the predictive power of their approach.
The researchers say that, in addition to identifying specific DNA sequences that control the genetic activity of a particular organ or cell type, these studies contribute to our understanding of enhancers in general and have validated an experimental approach that can be applied to many other biological questions as well.
Authors on the brain paper include Grzegorz Burzynski, Xylena Reed, Zachary Stine, Takeshi Matsui and Andrew McCallion from The Johns Hopkins University, and Leila Taher and Ivan Ovcharenko from the National Center for Biotechnology Information.
Authors on the melanocyte paper include David Gorkin, Dongwon Lee, Xylena Reed, Christopher Fletez-Brant, Seneca Bessling, Michael Beer and Andrew McCallion from The Johns Hopkins University, and Stacie Loftus and William Pavan from the National Human Genome Research Institute.
This work was supported by grants from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NS062972), the National Human Genome Research Institute's Intramural Research Program, the National Library of Medicine, the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (GM07814, GM071648), the National Science Foundation and the Searle Scholars Program.
Related Stories:
More "Functional" DNA in Genome than Previously Thought
On the Web:
Links to articles in Genome Research
Brain paper
For the Media
Media Contacts:
Catherine Kolf; 443-287-2251; [email protected]
Vanessa McMains; 410-502-9410; [email protected]


text:
DS1921G-F5 thermochrons
The DS1921G Thermochron® iButton® is a rugged, self-sufficient system that measures temperature and records the result in a protected memory section. The recording is done at a user-defined rate, both as a direct storage of temperature values as well as in the form of a histogram. Up to 2048 temperature values taken at equidistant intervals ranging from 1 to 255 minutes can be stored. The histogram provides 63 data bins with a resolution of 2.0°C. If the temperature leaves a user-programmable range, the DS1921G will also record when this happened, for how long the temperature stayed outside the permitted range,and if the temperature was too high or too low. An additional 512 bytes of read/write NV memory allow storing information pertaining to the object to which the DS1921G is associated. Data is transferred serially via the 1-Wire protocol, which requires only a single data lead and a ground return. Every DS1921G is factory-lasered with a guaranteed unique electrically readable 64-bit registration number that allows for absolute traceability. The durable stainless steel package is highly resistant to environmental hazards such as dirt, moisture, and shock. Accessories permit the DS1921G to be mounted on almost any object, including containers, pallets, and bags.
Key Features
- Digital thermometer measures temperature 0.5°C increments
- Accuracy ±1°C from -40°C to +70°C. See EC table for accuracy specification
- Built-in real-time clock (RTC) and timer has accuracy of ±2 minutes per month per month from 0°C to 45°C
- Automatically wakes up and measures temperature at user-programmable intervals from 1 to 255 minutes
- Logs up to 2048 consecutive temperature measurements in protected nonvolatile (NV) random access memory
- Records a long-term temperature histogram with 2.0°C resolution
- Programmable temperature-high and temperature-low alarm trip points
- Records up to 24 time stamps and durations when temperature leaves the range specified by the trip points
- 512 bytes of general-purpose read/write NV random access memory
- Communicates to host with a single digital signal at 15.4kbits or 125kbits per second using 1-Wire® protocol
Datasheet available here.SKU: hc00030


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Monday, April 20, 2009
A Basic Goal of DMing
(Of course, given how good I am at judging response rates, this is the post that no one will comment on.)
*With defeat defined by the campaign and the group's play style. It could be death at the hands of a growling demon in the lowest level of a dungeon, or the evil archduke's successful ascension to the empire's throne.
34 comments:
- Michael S/Chgowiz said...
Depends on the campaign.
I think 'defeat' in a sandbox would be combat defeat at the hands of the monsters or opponents. Since I play my monsters to their utter maximum ability, I agree in that regards.
In a broader context, since a sandbox is player driven, I guess 'defeat' at a campaign level would be if the players just give up and hate the campaign.
In a sandbox with a story ticking alongside the players (which is probably the best way I can define the campaign I run for my family only) defeat is probably similar to above or only if they get caught up in the bigger events and get involved. Then yes, there has to be a sense that they can 'fail' and I am going to referee the events in a fair way. The world isn't going to make it easy on them, but I'm also not going to cheat the players of a well deserved victory. They're going to have to earn it.
Why do you posit this, though? It seems... I don't know... like saying "the sky is blue"?
- April 20, 2009 at 1:37 PM
- Greg Sanders said...
Given DnD's use of dice, I don't think you can make it such that the result is entirely dependent on choices and abilities. If you work in the effects of dice, then there's the question of whether success assumes average dice rolls or if there's some margin of error for bad luck.
Beyond that, I like some allowance for mistakes and getting to marginal victory.
- April 20, 2009 at 1:38 PM
- Mike Mearls said...
"I guess 'defeat' at a campaign level would be if the players just give up and hate the campaign."
I think that's the campaign where the *DM* loses.
I by no means think this is a thought original to me, but I think it's something that makes RPGs, and D&D, unique. Most games kind of suck if you keep losing, but a DM can always make defeat interesting (you wake up in the duke's dungeons; you assemble a party to avenge the fallen; defeat also doesn't have to mean death - you fail to prevent the demon lord from razing the town, or the priest of Hextor escapes.)
- April 20, 2009 at 1:52 PM
- Mike Mearls said...
Greg - I think that the dice are what make things interesting. They're a shield between the DM and the player. If the players roll 5 crits in a row, that's life, and vice versa. They're really the neutral arbiter in the game, not the DM.
Admittedly, a good DM is as neutral as possible, but there's always a bias. The dice don't have any biases.
- April 20, 2009 at 1:54 PM
- Michael S/Chgowiz said...
That's my point though - in a sandbox campaign, defeat is going to be out of the DM's hand from a strategic perspective since there's no big huge plot/story/battle to lose. So player defeat is more about a smaller level, such as a battle or, in my case, the players facing a monster they can't defeat right now. That troll mage is a marked monster though...
- April 20, 2009 at 1:57 PM
- Unknown said...
I'm not sure it's the "best" thing a DM can do (there are many important aspects of DMing, and I'm not sure which one (if any) is the most important), but it's certainly a necessary thing for really good gaming.
- April 20, 2009 at 2:17 PM
- LesInk said...
A friend of mine and I have talked about what he likes best in a good game. In short, he would say, "Make me feel like my character is going to die, but don't kill him." In short, "push me to the limit" but "let my ingenity pull it back out". The key is that it has to be believable and somehow the GM must not be cheating on the player's behalf -- just helping push the scenario one way or another.
- April 20, 2009 at 2:22 PM
- Robert Conley said...
I agree, however making this happen is another trick altogether.
In 30 years of tabletop and 15 years of Fantasy LARPS (NERO) this is a tough thing to pull off. The best method I found is to feed in a horde of relatively low level creatures. This give you fine control over the difficulty of the encounter.
The problem with the approach that the chance of attacking the party with a horde is not common.
- April 20, 2009 at 4:15 PM
- Unknown said...
It seems like the more I push the players to the "brink" of defeat, and then they succeed, the more they love me.
I don't pull any punches and it seems to make a better game. Of course, I do say "Do you want to see?" after I say "Natural 20."
- April 20, 2009 at 5:07 PM
For most cases of D&D: Yes.
People like a thrill, people like a challenge, and unlike a videogame, it's really wack to try to get everyone together for several hours to do mindless grinding.
On the flip side, though, I'd say the BEST thing a DM can do (and most games, a GM), is find stuff to make the players care.
You care to win because winning is fun, but you REALLY care because you actually don't want to see Winterkeep burn to the ground, along with all the friends you made there.
- April 20, 2009 at 5:34 PM
- buzz said...
I would agree 100%. The DM's job is to play fair, but play hard. And, yeloson, I absolutely think that "playing hard" is inclusive of making the players care. Though, I do think the need for that can depend on the group's overall style. Some people will be happy with just being pushed tactically to the brink, even if they are not pushed there emotionally.
Chgowiz, I don't think sandbox play really makes a difference. If anything, not pulling punches (and player choice) would seem a prerequisite for good sandbox play.
- April 20, 2009 at 7:28 PM
- Michael S/Chgowiz said...
@Buzz - I agree, which was why I was addressing the concept of 'defeat' in a sandbox vs. 'defeat' from a plot-story-driven campaign. I think they are two very different concepts.
What is interesting is my experience that once players get in a 'pull no punches/lethality is very possible' game, they like it opposed to the fudging/no-death campaigns. That's my anecdotal experience, but it's encouraged me to make sure to be fair, roll the dice in front of the players and play hard/have fun with it.
- April 20, 2009 at 7:40 PM
- Jeremy Murphy said...
I'm of mixed mind about this. On the one hand, some of our best gaming moments have occurred when the party was clearly outmatched, and pulled victory from the jaws of defeat. So in that regard, yes, pushing the players to the brink of defeat is good DMing.
OTOH, the very best gaming moments were, as yelosan says, when I made the players care. The death of the family that helped them when they were wounded, the capture of a major ally, being re-united with a lost relative... those didn't have anything to do with being on the "brink of defeat", but looking around at anguished faces or, in one case, tears, were better than any close fight I ever ran.
- April 20, 2009 at 8:01 PM
- Allen G said...
I figure, I don't want to kill my players. I want them to come out of the dungeon, clutching their last hit point like it was the post precious thing on earth. If they die, that sucks. If it's too easy, that sucks too. I want it to be hard enough that they're honestly worried that one too many bad rolls will hose them. (And occasionally it does, but that makes those clutch rolls all the more memorable.)
- April 20, 2009 at 8:10 PM
- Keith S said...
I'd have to agree with yeloson on the caring part. If my players don't care what's going on in my game world, they're not likely to face up to the toughest challenges. That is the ones that truly threaten the world they live in.
Once they care enough to take on the ultimate evil (think Frodo agreeing to take the ring into Mordor) then you let loose the ringwraiths.
- April 20, 2009 at 8:51 PM
- Precocious Apprentice said...
I don't pull punches. I also make my games something that my characters care about. The challenge is creating a game that allows for failure that the players feel as a failure, but makes them want to play more. Making the players care about the outcome is more important than making the characters' lives difficult.
The best GM moment I have had was watching a scoundrel rogue willingly lay down his life for some NPCs that had made him care. This was not a failure. The character had grown from a guy that didn't care about anything but himself to a guy that put it all on the line for some villagers, knowing that he wouldn't return. It was a "What does this campaign mean to you?" moment.
I think that the best thing a DM can do is get his players to have a breathless pause, followed by a "Wow.... that was cool." comment. Bringing a party to the brink of defeat is only one way to accomplish this. It is probably the most basic one, and many of the other ways depend on it, but some of the most powerful ways that this is accomplished are when a player takes a stance that is undefeatable, and defines the nature of his character. I really prefer when this is a hero defining moment, but moments when characters define themselves as rat bastards are pretty cool too. Any time a group of players can be astounded by an outcome, and think that it is great, that is a win for the game, and that is the best thing that a GM can do. Even a seeming defeat can be heroic, and those make the best games in my opinion.
- April 20, 2009 at 9:06 PM
- Kevin Cantrell said...
I think one of the most satisfying things a player can do is something clever - whether that be piecing together the mystery in a story or the tactical use of a combat ability. In order for it to really pay off, the players need to be challenged. They will certainly have no fun in a combat where they know you are fudging the numbers. I think many of the 4E rules (balancing encounters, dying, surges, daily powers, etc.) allow for ALL dice rolls to be made in public. Letting the players watch you roll really adds to the drama.
I do however feel that death (or other forms of complete failure) should only happen when everyone at the table can see why it needs to happen. I really like your point about dealing with failure –
"Most games kind of suck if you keep losing, but a DM can always make defeat interesting"
With that in mind, I'd re-phrase your basic goal and say that it is to always keep things interesting. An interesting obstacle that the players DO overcome is one that is challenging; they were pushed to their limits and only by their wits survived. An interesting obstacle that the players FAIL to overcome is much harder to handle. Good DMs think of clever ways to deal with failed skilled challenges and combats – ways that make things harder for the players, but still keep them engaged.
- April 20, 2009 at 10:17 PM
- Mike said...
I have a hard time pushing my group. In the past few modules, I've only really threatened players a couple of times. One big mistake I make is thinking that Solos can push parties into that direction when they really can't unless they're accompanied by a pile of normal guys too.
Overall, I'm just having a hard time getting a good output of damage from most monsters. Granted, my group has a ton of extra healing (both a paladin and a cleric) and they play really well together. It's hard for me to challenge them.
Advice graciously accepted.
- April 21, 2009 at 4:20 AM
- buzz said...
Kevin Cantrell: "Good DMs think of clever ways to deal with failed skilled challenges and combats – ways that make things harder for the players, but still keep them engaged."
One of the best nuggets of advice from the excellent Spirit of the Century RPG (and found in others, too) is that you should not be calling for a roll unless both outcomes are equally interesting. Rolls then become branching mechanisms rather than roadblocks.
Granted, D&D is somewhat different from SotC in this regard, but I think that the basic sentiment still applies. E.g., if there's nothing desirable or interesting about failing a particular skill challenge, you shouldn't be doing that skill challenge.
Basically, it's kinda "Roll the dice or say yes," but not entirely.
- April 21, 2009 at 6:30 AM
- Jeff Hubbard said...
I concur with the original post. A risk-less fight is boring, impossible situations aren't fun either. Not every single fight needs to be edge-of-death, but the balance of the campaign should feel like it's the players playing that saves the day, not their class, or stats, or items, or the DM's coddling.
I rarely, rarely pull punches, and only if the fun of playing out the encounter is being impeded, not just the danger. I roll in the open, so I typically have to lower defenses or adjust aura ranges if I'm going to fudge. I've had players nearly left behind for dead, at 2 death saves failed and rolling at -2, etc, and one PC that a good roll from Splug in KotS (they loved that little guy from there on out!) but otherwise no actual deaths.
- April 21, 2009 at 9:49 AM
- Mike Mearls said...
Hey Mike,
A good way to push the threat level up is to:
* Rely on more monsters, rather than fewer guys of higher levels.
* Use artillery, and make it hard to get to them.
* If there's a lurker in the encounter, wait until round 2 or 3 before it makes its attack.
* Aid another is your friend. Teamwork is huge for the PCs, and it's just as big for the monsters. If a critter is about to unleash its big, bad attack, have its buddies use aid another to help ensure the hit.
* Splitting up the party is helpful, too. I managed that twice last night, simply by placing enemies just out of reach of the party. One PC dashed ahead while the rest of the group stuck around to finish off the main group of enemies.
- April 21, 2009 at 9:59 AM
- Unknown said...
Just chiming in again. I said before that I though "lethal fights" was good but not the best thing, and the posters that came after reminded me of what the best thing is: making the gamers care.
D&D isn't a competitive game like basketball or chess, or even bloodbowl or Talisman. There's the RP half of RPG, and that means there should be emotional involvement in the story and seeing to it that a certain outcome is achieved.
Quick anecdote from my most recent experience as a PC, which was an Iron Heroes campaign in The Forgotten Realms. There were a lot of tough fights, but occasionally we'd have fights were we cared about not-dying but didn't really care about winning - if we had never fought that fight it just wouldn't have mattered to the larger story. On the other hand, there were several fights that were less dangerous but "better" in the emotional sense.
Probably the best example of how far from "really lethal" you can get and still feel satisfying was when our 7th level group took on a lone 4th level Human Expert (the D&D 3.x NPC class). This guy had been hounding us for months with mercenaries, setting rival gangs on us with planted evidence, political machinations, etc. When we cornered him in his study in his underground lair it was like Superman vs. Lex Luther, but with Superman high as a kite on Red Kryptonite. I didn't even allow him to monologue; in the surprise round I ran directly across the room, one-armed his desk out of the way, and used a Destiny Point to get a second action allowing an attack. I stunted, rolled a hit with my Size-Large Bastard Sword, and got good damage. The others piled on, but I think he was dead before the last guy got to act. Damn that was satisfying - high fives all around.
I feel juiced just writing about it. The fights with the cornered Dire Crocodile or the Aboleth were crazy, but they just didn't feel as good.
- April 21, 2009 at 10:14 AM
- Bart said...
I only started DM-ing again a few months ago, a four of my friends and I finally managed to make some time to play and we started on KoTS. They don't have a defender, which makes it easier to make it hard on them, even without the defender though I still run encounters for for 5 instead of 4. It's a nice way to keep it gritty, they even started a discussion on wether the ranger should reroll to a defender. Luckily the ranger didn't feel like doing that, I had already plans for an intermezzo keyed on his background.
Controlling the pace has proven to be a lot easier for me in this edition than in 3rd. Personally I don't think pushing the party has anything to do with the dices or fudging them. If one encounter ends up being easier because of the roll of the dice, just have reinforcements come in halfway during the fight. If an encounter is turning out tougher than expected find roleplaying reasons for bad tactics or even retreating enemies. Beyond that I sometimes give enemies bonuses or penalties on their tohit to adjust a fight, recharge powers are perfect for this as well, defenses not so much since my players tend to remember which numbers have hit before.
I do think though that pushing only goes so far, they need to have reprieve and plenty of easier encounters for those really tough fights to stand out.
As for a party with an abundance of healing; deny them an extended rest once in a while or give them good reason to push on themselves, eventually they run out of healing surges.I think reinforcements are especially useful here since it doesn't overwhelm the party (and the DM) with too many enemies at once.
Sunday we play again, they're 4 encounters away from Karalel, 2 from reaching lvl 4. They're fresh now after a really hard time with the hobgoblins and I still don't know if i want to let them have an extended rest before facing Karalel.
- April 21, 2009 at 11:19 AM
- W said...
The idea of lethality having anything to do with the success/goals of a campaign is of course stupid - it confuses (dramatic) means and ends.
What's the goal of the referee in a football game? To make sure both teams play fair and to the best of their abilities.
What's the goal of a novelist? To establish an interesting situation and show her characters making interesting choices over time - and to follow through the consequences of those choices. To excite and engage the reader, via whatever means.
So...what's the goal of the DM? To offer the players interesting choices, enforce fair play in the eyes of the players, and match the complexity and intensity of player situations/actions to the ongoing story. (e.g. The Coconut of Quendor isn't guarded by three dozen kobold minions.) Not just complication but intensity - a crucial distinction.
In other words, Mearls's definition is a good one, but 'watch' is certainly the wrong word. One hopes the DM feels she's wiggling out of trouble along with the PCs - putting obstacles in their way for the same reason a writer inflicts punishment upon her characters.
- April 22, 2009 at 7:55 AM
- W said...
Probably the best example of how far from "really lethal" you can get and still feel satisfying was when our 7th level group took on a lone 4th level Human Expert (the D&D 3.x NPC class). This guy had been hounding us for months with mercenaries, setting rival gangs on us with planted evidence, political machinations, etc. When we cornered him in his study in his underground lair it was like Superman vs. Lex Luther, but with Superman high as a kite on Red Kryptonite. I didn't even allow him to monologue; in the surprise round I ran directly across the room, one-armed his desk out of the way, and used a Destiny Point to get a second action allowing an attack. I stunted, rolled a hit with my Size-Large Bastard Sword, and got good damage. The others piled on, but I think he was dead before the last guy got to act. Damn that was satisfying - high fives all around.Quoted for TRUTH and AWESOME. :)
- April 22, 2009 at 7:57 AM
- Michael S/Chgowiz said...
The idea of lethality having anything to do with the success/goals of a campaign is of course stupid - it confuses (dramatic) means and ends.I didn't know I was with stupid - what was *I* thinking?
- April 22, 2009 at 8:06 AM
- Unknown said...
Well, a female gamer needs to have a say here. I agree as well. As stated so well by "Buzz": "The DM's job is to play fair, but play hard... making the players care." Trying to be against the players is totally counterproductive, but if you set them up in a situation where there is extreme emotional value to the characters AND players, a little "defeat" goes a long way. I recently had a DM set my group up in a no-win situation, which ended up being extremely emotionally gripping, and made us, as players, look at the "bad guys" in a new light, as it was our group that had to make those same hard, and damning, choices. Rockin' fun!
- April 22, 2009 at 8:10 AM
- ChattyDM said...
I know I'm 2 days late to the party and I 'commented' on this post by writing one myself... However, comments on my post have brough me to ask a question and I'm posting it back here:
Should a DM correct for player skill and team-work in designing encounters? D&D 4e is truly a team game and once your players "get" that, they are hard to challenge in a balanced way.
And if you do correct, are you just sliding the scale up to bring the PCs to the same level than they'd have if they didn't cooperate in a normal encounter or are you just adjusting the scale to maintain the level of tension at the same point?
I don't know how many other DMs out there have such Synergistic players, but mine is truly a 'performing' team and I'm asking myself how to keep the challenge without punishing the 'phantom' advantage granted by great teamwork.
- April 22, 2009 at 10:33 AM
I agree that some of the best sessions are when the battles are hard fought. On my Monday night game we play in a pub and there is no room for a screen so all my rolls are in the open - I think this makes things more exciting too in some way.
Really like the "aid another" tip!
- April 22, 2009 at 11:37 AM
- buzz said...
ChattyDM: "Should a DM correct for player skill and team-work in designing encounters?"
I think if there's a really obvious trend in your group (they are tactical geniuses, or they are rules-inept), you certainly need to keep it in mind. I'd think odds are often good that you're playing with people roughly on the same page as you in that regard, so it can often be a non-issue.
Not to mention, getting smacked down a few times is how you learn, right?
I think it's somewhat a separate issue from what Mearls was posting about, though. I.e., it presumes a functional group that's basically on the same page with regards to how they play D&D. I don't think you can really address the "play hard" issue if that's not in place.
- April 22, 2009 at 11:38 AM
- Roger said...
I don't know about defeat, but I never hesitate to throw something at my PCs because I think it's too hard. PCs have a way of coming up with ingenious solutions I never thought of. I may not always strive for defeat, but I don't pull my punches.
- April 23, 2009 at 4:21 PM
- Nathan said...
Wally, that's amazing; that's the single best thing I've read in 2 days of reading blogs!
It's totally right that you need to hit the players hard to make them care. If a player is falling asleep at the table, the easiest and often best thing to do is to throw a hard encounter or series of encounters at them, make them really think, and plan, and become engaged. That said, good pacing demands easy patches, or else it'll feel like a grind.
Actually, right now I'm having a tricky time maintaining the difficulty curve in my campaign right now too: I'd like to wear the party down and use attrition against them, except that every extended rest they're good as new. Without that attrition playing a role, there's not much point to a lot of the standard and easier encounters because they take longer to set up than to conclude on a grid, and the characters are usually full or near full hp afterwards anyway. That being the case, being neither challenging nor dangerous, I'm having a hard time making them worthwhile in gameplay-enjoyment/worthiness terms!
Any thoughts? My tentative plan is to use a small number of mostly hard encounters in a session, with some easier ones for contrast and the power-high for the power-gamers.
ps, feel free to look around my new blog!
- May 1, 2009 at 3:48 AM
- buzz said...
I was listening to a great podcast and heard what was basically the following:
A DM's job is to discover what the players are going to do with all the cool stuff she's created. That is the basic goal. The DM has no ending in mind, does not guide the game towards any predetermined outcome, and acts as an impartial, but excited, arbiter.
So, the DM plays around with all the nifty rules for designing adventures and encounters that are in the 4e DMG, and puts into the game world the resulting constructs. Then, they help the players engage with all that stuff in hopes of seeing all the cool and unexpected outcomes that arise from the interaction.
That said, the DM certainly can't *plan* on bringing the characters to the edge of defeat, as that implies some sort of predetermination. But, obviously, the game is going to be more fun when the players are challenged (and, ideally intrigued) by what the DM has prepared.
- May 8, 2009 at 1:58 PM
"I guess 'defeat' at a campaign level would be if the players just give up and hate the campaign."
How come if its a good session, it's said the game system is good. But if it's bad, it's said the GM lost or failed?
Can't that sort of 'defeat' be partly to do with the game system?
- May 14, 2009 at 9:39 PM


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HP, Dell, RIM, and Nokia All Up Huge. What's Gone Wrong With Tech Stocks?
If anyone had suggested that the dogs of technology would start 2013 as the best performers, you would never have believed it. While the reasons, discussed below, differ from stock to stock, the result has been the same: huge advances that have left many wondering how to play not only these stocks, but the sector. Ultimately, each of these stocks should be analyzed separately but give a strong endorsement to the sector as a whole.
Below is a brief discussion of some of the biggest turnaround names of recent months:
Dell : The re-emergence of Michael Dell into the picture has driven shares of the beleaguered PC maker up nearly 31% in the past three months and over 18% in the past five days. Dell and his backers have begun to explore the possibility of a leveraged buyout that would take the company private again. Brian White of Topeka Capital Markets said: "The valuation on this stock is absolutely insulted. Michael Dell wants to change the focus of Dell without having the microscope of a public stock." A 30% premium over the price of the stock when the deal was announced, which is in line with the average premium for these types of transactions over the past several years, places the deal price at about $14.30. This target is the driving catalyst behind the stock's rise, but it should be noted that a deal this large has not been successfully completed since 2007. With that in mind, Dell looks interesting, but definitely speculative.
Hewlett-Packard : Whether the sudden interest in HP's Autonomy and EDS assets is driven by the leveraged buyout talk going on at Dell or not, the attention of various suitors has driven the stock higher. The potential sale is of particular interest to shareholders who have endured $16.8 billion of writedowns related to the shrinking value of EDS and the allegations HP has leveled against Autonomy surrounding financial misrepresentations. Various sources have reported that CEO Meg Whitman has made clear that she is not interested in selling either business unit. Regardless of how H-P handles the situation, however, the outside interest has been a positive catalyst for the stock. All the same, the company has a long way to go to turn the corner back to success.
Research In Motion : With the release of the Blackberry 10 slated for the end of January, RIM is squarely in do-or-die mode. If the new product line from the once-King of smartphones is not successful, it is hard to imagine how the company will survive. Over the last three months, shares have run up nearly 87%, currently hovering just below $15 per share. While early looks at the new OS have been favorable, the biggest challenge for RIM will be getting consumers to consider the device at all. The good news here is that some of the titans that the company is chasing have stumbled lately (you know who I'm talking about). For users like me, only one device away from my most recent BlackBerry, if the initial reviews are really solid, business-focused consumers may consider a BB10 option. Given the stock's recent run, the downside is real, making the stock a speculative risk to be weary of at these levels.
Nokia : Of the four surprise winners on this list, Nokia is the one with which I am most comfortable. The company is not banking on a leveraged buyout or asset sale, and its new products are doing well. At the most recent earnings preview, the company reported that it was achieving better-than-expected results, including Lumia sales of 4.4 million units, up from the 2.9 million sold in the third-quarter. The company's partnership with Microsoft has proven successful thus far, with the Windows OS that drives the Lumia having been reasonably well received. The fact that the company has returned to profitability, and believes it will stay there in each quarter of 2013 and beyond, places it on solid footing moving forward. Overall, while the stock is still a rebound play in progress, it is solid and continues to look attractive.
So with each of these stocks riding strong up-trends, you may be wondering if the technology sector is broken. When the tech titans are struggling and the laggards are outperforming, it's easy to wonder if basic common sense exists in the sector. Ultimately, the technology sector should be one of the strongest performing areas of the market for 2013, as even under challenging economic conditions, innovation rules the day. The above four examples illustrate the strength of the sector by demonstrating how even these beaten-down options can fight back. There is no substitute for careful analysis on a stock-by-stock basis, but these four names provide a strong endorsement for the sector.
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The article HP, Dell, RIM, and Nokia All Up Huge. What's Gone Wrong With Tech Stocks? originally appeared on Fool.com.
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Individuals who keep their personal property on campus must assume the risk of loss. It is the expectation that individuals insure their personal property appropriately, and the university is not responsible for loss of university non-owned property.
There may be exceptions and a review of a claim for loss under unusual circumstances when the departmental unit has approved or relies on the person to use their personal property as a part of their job duties. This should be a rare occasion as departments are required to provide resources for their employees to perform their job functions.
Exceptions are rare and must meet the following criteria for review and potential approval to reimburse for loss of personal property.
Information will be supplied to the Office of Risk Management for consideration and discussion with appropriate university departmental units. Claim information may be reviewed by claim adjusters used by the Office of Risk Management. If the claim is approved for reimbursement, the department unit will be charged the department threshold deductible that applies to university and department owned property.


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Plagues of global proportions might seem biblical, but coronavirus is creating new challenges for faith leaders. Last week in Australia, many churches, mosques and synagogues decided proactively to cancel their normal worship services. These were not easy decisions for groups for whom being a gathered community is central to their identity and practice.
On the weekend, the federal government announced new, stringent measures as part of a "stage 1" lockdown, which means faith communities can no longer gather to worship. In Victoria, funerals and weddings are also banned.
Australia's largest Uniting Church, Newlife, was one of the first in Australia to move services online following the prime minister's call to cancel gatherings over 500. Their lead minister, Stu Cameron, addressed the congregation online and called this "the most loving thing to do". As a church used to multimedia worship, they are well equipped to move online.
Traditional churches such as St John's Anglican Church in Toorak face different challenges. They have cancelled Sunday services but are keeping the historic church and garden open as long as possible for personal prayer and reflection. Their priest, Peter French, is more concerned about how they will continue to care for the dead and grieving as St John's often sees over 1,000 people during the week for funeral services.
Weddings can be postponed, but funerals are another matter. French said: "We're working closely with our local funeral directors and are deeply conscious of the need for love and compassion for the grieving even if we can't physically gather together in the traditional way. Funeral services for the foreseeable will look very different."
Italy has banned funerals of any kind. Bodies are being buried or cremated with only a priest or celebrant present. This leaves grieving loved ones in limbo, waiting until they can hold a proper funeral service.
The PM's announcement on Sunday evening now makes clear that Australian church and religious organisations are also prohibited from holding funeral services. Sitting shiva in the traditional way or gathering in other rituals to mourn the dead will not be possible for the foreseeable future.
Not all faith communities are responding in the same way. The coronavirus pandemic has exposed a long-held tension between science and faith for conservative faith communities. Conservative Christian churches such as Margaret Court's Life Church have said the "blood of Jesus" will protect their communities.
Such claims are rooted in a prosperity theology that naively claims God will protect and bless the faithful (usually financially), coupled with a simultaneous distrust of science. This distrust is because scientific theories, such as evolution, are mutually exclusive to a literal reading of the creation stories in the Bible, particularly Genesis, and are therefore seen as a threat or in conflict with faith.
At the other end of the ecclesial spectrum, the Greek Orthodox Church has thus far continued to serve communion, claiming that one cannot contract an illness from Holy Communion, because bread and wine are the body and blood of Christ. Scientists might disagree.
Worst of all are those seeking to benefit from the fear that such a pandemic evokes. Televangelist and Trump adviser Paula White at first dismissed the seriousness of coronavirus and is now opportunistically asking for cash donations for a hospital for the "soul sick". Citing Psalm 91, a psalm that speaks of God's protection in a time of difficulty, she asks people for donations of $91 as "seed funding" for God's blessing. Others are promising healing through the television. Preying on people's fears in this way is contrary to Christian tradition and theology.
Christians were famous in antiquity for staying to care for the sick and dying during significant plagues. After all, to risk one's life for the sake of another is a very Jesus-like thing to do.
Christians are, of course, not alone in these brave acts of service. This kind of self-sacrificial service is central to many of the world's religions.
But the dynamics of the current pandemic are different. Staying close to others might threaten their life more than one's own. It poses a new kind of problem: how do you "love your neighbour" when you aren't supposed to be near them?
The challenge for all communities is how to foster community and support one another while keeping physical distance. Many faith communities are live-streaming services or sharing pre-recorded sermons. Others are encouraging small groups to meet in homes or meeting in real time via software such as Zoom.
Pastoral care is more complicated. Some faith communities have set up a pastoral care roster of weekly phone calls to check on both the physical and spiritual needs of members. Others are delivering care packages and meals to the doorsteps of elderly members or have a buddy system, asking members to commit to checking in with one another every couple of days or youth to help older folk with technology.
At the heart of any religion is community: people gathering together to worship, pray, caring for one another, and eating together. There is therefore something antithetical about asking members of faith communities to show their love by keeping away from one another. It is a difficult and counter-cultural thing for many to do. Yet, it is what most faith leaders in Australia are asking of their communities as they trust the advice of scientists and experts that this is the best way to show care for the most vulnerable in our community.
In this time of great anxiety, leaders of all faiths have both an opportunity and responsibility to step up with words of comfort and compassion, drawing on the depths of their sacred traditions and texts.
The lasting effect of coronavirus on faith communities remains to be seen. Will people flock back to their synagogues when finally allowed, joyful at being able to be together again? Or will habits be broken and connections lost as people discover other ways to pray and nourish their spiritual lives outside of Sunday church?
Perhaps the creativity these new circumstances demand will lead to a wider range of faith expressions and fundamentally change the nature of faith communities in the 21st century.
Source: Read Full Article


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Today is the first election in American history in which corporations have been allowed to spend their own money to buy political favors. This legalized corruption comes courtesy of the Supreme Court's ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, which injected massive amounts of corporate cash and unprecedented levels of secrecy into American politics.
And all of this crazy corporate spending will not be restricted to elections. That's right. As Jesse Zwick reports for The Washington Independent, two front-groups founded by GOP strategists Karl Rove and Ed Gillespie plan to keep running ads attacking Democrats well after the elections are over.
As Zwick emphasizes, this is actually a way to help keep one of the organizations, known as American Crossroads GPS from breaking the law. Many groups that spend money on elections register as 501(c)(4) organizations, which must devote no more than half of their activity to political operations. In return for limiting their political activity—advocacy or condemnation of specific candidates—they don't have to disclose who their donors are. So groups like American Crossroads GPS plan to run "issue ads" focusing on the budget deficit and immigration reform this fall to balance out the ads directed at specific candidates that they've already run.
Under the Citizens United ruling, so long as corporations or wealthy elites launder their political expenditures through a front-group, they can give as much as they want without ever being held publicly accountable. But the high court's decision also allows these front-groups to keep their actual expenditures secret as well. It's not just that we don't know who is funding them—in many cases, we also don't really know what they're funding.
U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Foreign Dues
The secrecy surrounding anonymous donors may very well extend to foreign corporations. As Harry Hanbury emphasizes in this video for GRITtv, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce—a lobbying front-group for the largest American corporations—is facing heavy scrutiny over is foreign contributions. Nearly $900,000 in annual dues to the Chamber come from foreign firms, and the Chamber aggressively courts foreign donors who might benefit from weak U.S. laws—particularly environmental laws. The Chamber insists that it's playing by the rules, but Hanbury catches them lying twice about the nature of the group's foreign funding.
California's Environmental Laws For Sale
Corporations aren't just targeting federal elections to influence public policy. As Tara Lohan explains for AlterNet, big oil companies have financed a campaign to repeal California's carbon emission reduction law. Two major polluters—Valero and Tesoro—have spent a combined $7 million boosting the repeal, while Koch Industries—a major Tea Party funder—has kicked in about $1 million as well. A full 70 percent of the $10.7 million that has been spent to bolster the anti-environment ballot initiative has come from out-of-state sources.
Even the Tea Party's Worried
When the Tea Party Patriots received an anonymous $1 million donation for get-out-the-vote efforts, left-wing bloggers weren't the only people upset about it. As Stephanie Mencimer reports for Mother Jones, some of the Tea Party Patriots' own members were nervous: Who was funding this operation, and where was the money going?
We'll probably never know, because the Tea Party Patriots aren't legally obligated report their donors or expenses. The group has only disclosed $15,000 worth of expenditures of the $1 million donation, $10,000 of which was re-granted to another organization run by the father of Tea Party Patriots leader Mark Meckler. The remainder is anybody's guess.
But Wait, There's More!
- Writing for In These Times, Sam Ross-Brown highlights a potential legislative solution to some of these campaign finance shenanigans. The Fair Elections Now Act would limit individual campaign contributions to $100, and match them by a factor of four-to-one, increasing the spending power of ordinary citizens and helping to level the distorted playing field created by Citizens United.
- Kate Sheppard of Mother Jones details who got hit the hardest this election season in the final push leading up to Election Day: Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) and Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) got some of the biggest expenditures. This year also smashed previous campaign expenditures, coming in at $443 million.
- Suzy Khimm reports on voter intimidation tactics for Mother Jones from a McDonald's fast food franchise in Ohio's 16th district. Employees were told to vote for Republicans or their wages would go down. McDonald's may have been emboldened by Citizens United even though such tactics are still clearly illegal.
This post features links to the best independent, progressive reporting about the mid-term elections and campaign financing by members of The Media Consortium. It is free to reprint. Visit The Media Consortium for more articles on these issues, or follow us on Twitter. And for the best progressive reporting on critical economy, environment, health care and immigration issues, check out The Audit, The Mulch, The Pulse, and The Diaspora. This is a project of The Media Consortium, a network of leading independent media outlets.
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Bryanna Clark Grogan's Vegan Feast Kitchen/ 21st Century Table: The kitchen journal of a vegan food writer.. I'm on Facebook and Twitter (see links in sidebar at right).
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Homemade vegan pizza-- mmmmmm!
It's been a busy week! Too much writing and not enough cooking, but that's the way it goes sometimes! I just wanted to tell you about a some new products I've tried
You know that I don't write alot about new products, and only if I really like them! Companies send me products to review sometimes, but I don't give bad reviews-- I just don't review them if I don't like them! Recently, I received a big box of products from Lucini Italia.
I was intrigued by the Lucini Italia "Cinque e' Cinque" product, made from chickpea flour, and totally vegan. They sent me 3 different varieties: -- Traditional, Savory Rosemary, and Tuscan Fiery Chili.
"Cinque e' Cinque" is basically a farinata, or chickpea pancake. I had never heard it called by this name before, but evidently that is what they call it in Livorno, in Tuscany. In Liguria, where my paternal grandmother's family originated, they call it fai'na, which is a sort of slurring of farinata. I've always made it quite thin, but the package suggested that you could make a sort of vegan fritatta (which is a baked omelet) by making the farinata quite thick.
I decided to try the Traditional first. The "mix" is chickpea flour (from Canada, I might add-- they grow alot of chickpeas in the Prairie Provinces), to which you add water and salt. (You could add your own seasonings, too.) I made the thicker version, just to see what it was like. The baking technique is quite unique, but it worked!
Here it is right out of the oven, and then cut into wedges:
I served the wedges of hot, creamy Cinque e' Cinque as a main dish, topped with an Italian-style "Salsa Cruda", or raw tomato relish with black olives and basil (with our own homegrown tomatoes and basil!):
Italian Salsa Cruda
Cinque e' Cinque with Italian Salsa Cruda and potatoes sautéed with mushrooms.
It was delicious, and very satisfying! I am going to experiment with adding roasted or grilled vegetables to the thick version-- it would seem more like a real fritatta, I think.
They also sent some lovely balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil and a Fig & Walnut Balsamic Vinaigrette:
I rarely ever buy salad dressing, but this was very tasty!
Some of our homegrown tomatoes with the Fig & Walnut Balsamic Vinaigrette
The next thing I decided to try was the Lucini artisanal Pizza Sauce.
Now, I NEVER buy pizza sauce! It always tastes, well...canned...to me, no matter how expensive, organic, or whatever. But I gave it a try and made some no-knead pizza dough (the Light Whole Wheat Bread dough from "Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day" by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois ) in the morning before we went shopping all day, came home and threw together some of the best pizza I've ever made! I used their Pizza Sauce, my basil, sautéed mushrooms and red peppers, and Daiya mozzarella-style vegan cheese. I drizzled some of their Basil Infused Extra Virgin Olive oil on top before baking. Out of this world! The sauce was so clean and fresh-tasting, I couldn't believe it!
Here are some more shots of the pizza:
Ready for the oven!
Ready to eat!
I can't resist showing you what I made with the rest of the dough during the week--
Italian Prune Plum Focaccia!
Red Grape Focaccia!
So, I still have quite a few of the Lucini Italia products to try and I'm looking forward to it! If the pasta sauces are as good as the pizza sauce, we'll have some yummy quick meals while I'm finishing this book!
You can buy the Lucini Italia products directly from their website, and amazon carries many of them, as you can see from my links. They have a store locator on their website, though it didn't seem to work in Canada. Choices markets in Vancouver carries them, and I'll wager that any good Italian grocery store will have some of their products (some are organic). You can read about them on their website-- they get consistently good reviews!
I'll report back about my experiments and the remaining products I have to try!
5 comments:
- Amey said...
oh my gosh Bryanna!!! Lucini products are just amazing. I've only ever had their tomato sauce with artichokes, but it is gloriously delicious. I see product reviews on blogs pretty frequently, but this is the first time I can remember being totally overwhelmed with envy and desire! A whole shipment of Lucini goodies seems absolutely too good to be true! I guess I just need to write a fabulous vegan Italian cookbook and maybe they'll send me some too! Incidentally, when I lived in Italy we used to go out for cinque e cinque at all hours of the night. I still make it frequently, and it has a special place in my heart.
Buon Appetito!
- Sun Sep 19, 11:16:00 PM PDT
Thanks, Bryanna. I ordered a few of their products - we are moving very soon and I will be way too busy packing to cook much.
Pat Meadows
- Mon Sep 20, 05:31:00 AM PDT
I'm amazed you have time and energy for your many projects B. Nifty to have a cook of your quality so available and willing to share. Thanks for keeping this type of venture going for us. I think bean flours have alot of potential as delicious protein subs when their properties are further explored. Back in August you mentioned doing mushrooms "seviche"; if you're inclined, would you mind elaborating at some point?
- Mon Sep 20, 12:31:00 PM PDT
- spiceislandvegan said...
I looked for this product, the farinata mix and cannot find it. The sauces are available here but not the new items, the mix. Apparently, I have been buying Lucini sauces in the past.
So I made farinata from scratch from your Nonna's recipe and made the salsa cruda, too.
- Mon Sep 27, 04:39:00 PM PDT
This may be off topic here, but I've got, canned in my pantry: Wine-free tomato sauce, spaghetti sauce and pizza sauce, all from Nonna's book. Took a while to make, but saves time now. I like the pasta sauces over polenta as a snack, too. Dat's a good sauce!!
- Thu Sep 30, 11:31:00 AM PDT


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Micron Technology Inc. today plunged headfirst into the nascent solid state drive marketplace with the unveiling of its RealSSD family of storage devices.
The RealSSD portfolio features serial ATA II-enabled 1.8-in. and 2.5-in. solid state drives in 32GB and 64GB capacities. The company early next year will start mass producing the drives, which are currently being "sampled," said Dean Klein, vice president of memory system development at Boise, Idaho-based Micron.
Micron's RealSSD drives, noted Klein, require less than 2 watts of power during active mode and are about 50% lighter than hard disk drives of similar capacities. The devices do not require a SATA bridge chip but rather rely on a single-chip controller (optimized for four-channel control of NAND flash) directly targeting the solid state drive application, he added.
The new RealSSD line also includes the Embedded USB and Module products. The RealSSD Embedded USB can be plugged into a PC or blade server system to provide operating system storage and boot capabilities via an USB 2.0 interface. The RealSSD Module is a SATA-enabled solid state drive for server-based applications that measures 25 millimeters high by 133.5mm long and less than 4mm thick.
Klein acknowledged that adoption of solid state drives for corporate users has been very slow, mostly because of the technology's high price tag. However, he predicted that declining prices of NAND flash technology and the inevitable development of applications for solid state systems will accelerate demand.
"Technology is going to make [solid state] real. The cost of the NAND components will be a large determining factor in terms of acceptance," said Klein. "Even if we could bring speed of light performance to these devices, there's a lot of applications that still won't take them because the cost is too high or the density isn't high enough."
Of the many first-generation solid state drive devices currently available, Klein remarked, "benchmarks have proven them to be fairly lame in terms of performance." Going a step further, he panned BitMicro Networks Inc.'s 1.6TB solid state drive unveiled this month as a "pricey piece of art." Samsung Electronics Co. and SanDisk Corp are considered two established leaders currently providing solid state drive offerings, analysts noted.
Although initially focused on providing solid state drives for the notebook audience -- a natural fit, said Klein, because solid state is lightweight, and offers power savings and a small size -- Micron does have interest in examining larger-capacity solid state products for the desktop and enterprise industry.
Jeff Janukowicz, an analyst at Framingham, Mass.-based IDC, said his IT research firm has forecast that demand for solid state technology will "substantially" increase over the next few years. An IDC report released in July predicted that sales of solid state drives will grow from $373 million in 2006 to a total of $5.4 billion in 2011.
While notebook computing will fuel solid state adoption, Janukowicz said he expects the need for improved performance and specialized applications in servers, blade servers and enterprise storage systems to attract growing solid state interest over time.
Janukowicz said Micron's decision to debut an entire family of solid state products with RealSSD and its established NAND and flash memory expertise could prove to be a key differentiator with OEMs. But much work still needs to be done, he noted.
"Micron needs to work well with PC OEMs that deliver solutions acceptable for the PC market," he said. "The challenge there is [a traditional] usage model of using hard disks in notebook PCs. There is a bit of education process in terms of using solid state disks as primary storage in network computing that needs to take place."


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Photo Courtesy of Tony Dillon
In Aurora, Indiana just south of Lawrenceburg, lies a one-of-a-kind Triple Whipple Bridge. The only known Triple Whipple or Triple Intersection Pratt Truss in existence in the United States has a long history earning it a place on the National Register of Historic Places. The bridge was originally built by the Wrought Iron Bridge Company of Canton, Ohio and was one of the largest bridges at the time of it design. The Trusses stand 40 feet tall and stretch 300 feet across the Laughery Creek. The bridge was built in 1878 on stone abutments from 1867.
Work began in April of 2008 to rehabilitate the bridge. $1.32 million in Transportation Enhancement funding was matched by $329,000 in local funds to address the bridges deficiencies. The project included cleaning and painting the cast and wrought iron truss structure, replacement of pole railing, the clearing of overgrown vegetation, and the repair of the original stone abutments. In addition, parking lots were added at each end of the bridge for visitor parking. The project was completed in the spring of 2009 by the Faulkner Construction company from Louisville, Kentucky.
The National Transportation Alternatives Clearinghouse provides information on the Transportation Alternatives Program funded by FHWA. To be eligible for TA funds, a project must relate to surface transportation and be one of the 10 TA Activities. For more information about the TA program see trade.railstotrails.org. For our licensing policy see our guidelines.
Transportation Alternatives Data Exchange
@ the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy
2121 Ward Court, NW, 5th Floor
Washington, D.C. 20037-1213


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The Clone Wars Basic Figures
Item No.: Asst. 94736 No. 26375
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Number: #CW42
Includes: Hat, two pistols, bag, Cad Bane figure, stand, card, die
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $6.99
Availability: January 2011
Appearances: The Clone Wars
Bio: Cad Bane and Todo 360 sneak inside the Jedi Temple. Bane has a well-deserved reputation as a ruthless bounty hunter. He is hired by Darth Sidious to steal a Jedi holocron. He and his techno-service droid gain access to the building and break into the well-guarded holocron library. (Taken from the figure's packaging.)
Image: Adam Pawlus' former kitchen, on some box. (Spare. No. Expense.)
Commentary: Those with a sense of history may remember that Todo 360 was originally appearing on some online pre-orders when the very first Cad Bane figure came out a couple of years back-- before we really knew who or what a Todo was. It turns out he's basically a robot butler thing, and in the show was yet another source of comic relief as a robot with a less-than-pleasant personality. The action figure captures the look of the robot almost perfectly, but beware: he has one point of articulation. Despite his design being covered in places to hide a joint, Hasbro put only one in-- and that's at his neck, so don't try to bend the other ones or they might snap.
Sold as an accessory to Cad Bane, the figure is actually quite good-- I remember not 20 years ago, Playmates would include a sidekick figure with its Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles line and they were rarely, if ever, given any paint. Todo's paint job rivals most vintage figures, with painted eyes, a little grime, a tampo on his head, and black feet. Even if Hasbro revisits him later, there's very little room to improve on the paint job, and that's always nice to see. I wouldn't mind a joint or two as his large head may make him topple over if you aren't careful. You might want to lean him up against something, just to be safe. As bonus accessories which basically count as figures go, he's one of my favorites. He's also voiced by Seth Green on the TV show, so that's gotta be worth something. (Green voices Ion Papanoida as well.)
Collector's Notes: This figure is still showing up, so if you see it, why not grab it? I figure since there have been multiple Cad Bane figures, this one is probably going to be the best one to pick up since it included a bonus figure. Both Todo and Cad Bane were also repackaged in a battle pack in late 2011.
--Adam Pawlus
Day 1,708: December 30, 2011


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Physicists find God particle! That has become a common headline since the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) near Geneva began turning out data. Researchers have been more cautious and have completely disavowed the ridiculous name used for the Higgs boson, but we agree that the LHC indeed turned up a new particle last summer.
Another common conclusion from the LHC work is that the U.S., the world leader in physics for the past century, has passed the torch to Europe and that U.S. particle physics is doomed to decay. But there is no strong evidence to support this conclusion. The U.S. is still a leader in particle physics, and physicists are determined to keep it that way.
To be sure, the steady stream of updates in the saga of the Higgs boson is based on data from the LHC, which is funded largely by Europe. Even so, the imprimatur of U.S. physicists is indelibly stamped on each scientific paper. The two collaborations producing these results—ATLAS and CMS—are huge, with 6,600 physicists between them, of which 1,700 hail from 96 U.S. universities, national laboratories and other institutions. The U.S. scientific community has not abandoned particle physics research.
Nor should you think that these U.S. scientists are moving to Europe. By and large, these physicists are permanently stationed in the U.S. While we may fly to Switzerland for periods of time, we return to our families and jobs in America. In the heyday of the Fermilab Tevatron, the opposite was true. Scientists from Europe, Asia and other continents came to the American heartland before boarding a plane back home. Particle physics has long been an international endeavor, and scientists will travel to the laboratory that has the equipment they need. A migration of scientists in both directions continues today.
The shift to Europe in particle physics research is mainly economic. Any large installation is expensive, and the host country or region will reap the rewards of having the facility located inside their borders. To run a big accelerator requires engineers, programmers, technicians and a host of businesses to support them. Given the economic impact of such a large operation, it is entirely fitting that the host country foot the lion's share of the bill, as that money is plowed into the local economy. The LHC cost about $10 billion to build over many years. That money went into acquiring and installing the components necessary to do the desired experiments. The U.S. contribution to the construction of both the LHC and the detectors was $531 million, a sizable sum but only 5 percent of the total.
While American physicists work hard at LHC research, they also have exciting experiments in the U.S., some just getting under way. For example, among a broad network of national laboratories that investigate diverse questions of fundamental science, Fermilab's sole mission is to study the big questions of the universe. Between the existence of the LHC and Fermilab's budget decline over the past few years, hope is dwindling for a new accelerator in the U.S. with energy high enough to eclipse the LHC anytime soon. Still, the lab has been pursuing a dynamic research agenda, studying the behavior of neutrinos, probing detailed questions of the behavior of muons, studying dark matter and energy, improving and upgrading existing accelerators, and doing vigorous R&D on future accelerator technologies.
These are not mere placeholder efforts. If the U.S. were not pursuing them, the experiments would be done elsewhere because the questions are crucial to furthering our understanding of the universe. In fact, the laboratory's high-intensity experiments will be able to probe phenomena not accessible at the higher-energy LHC and will draw experimenters from all across the world.
This is not to say that the future of particle physics in the U.S. is rosy. The Department of Energy's budget for particle physics had been dropping for a decade when the economic downturn of 2008 accelerated the downturn, and continuing political turmoil in Washington makes for uncertain times.
The questions physicists ask about the origins of the universe and the nature of reality have puzzled thinkers for ages. In the U.S., we will continue to ask these big questions. And we expect to answer some of them.


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Anze Kopitar's OT goal gives Kings win in Game 1 of Stanley Cup finals
NEWARK, N.J. -- East. West. It doesn't make a difference to the Los Angeles Kings.
All they have done in the playoffs is win and the Eastern Conference champion New Jersey Devils became their latest victim.
Anze Kopitar scored a spectacular goal on a breakaway with 11:47 left in overtime Wednesday night and the Kings beat the Devils 2-1 in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup finals.
"From a series standpoint, it's huge to put them behind us, right off the get-go," Kings captain Dustin Brown said. "It makes it a little more difficult for them to get back into it if we play our game and do the right things."
Kopitar did everything perfectly on his breakaway after taking a great chip pass from Justin Williams. He faked a backhand shot, put the puck on his forehand and beat a prone Martin Brodeur.
"All losses this time of year are really hard to take because your dream is slowly shutting down," Brodeur said. "We lost one game, there's six games left in this series. They need to win three. We need to win four."
Los Angeles has won all nine of its road games in the playoffs, an NHL record. The Kings are now one win shy of tying the NHL record for postseason road victories.
More importantly, they are three wins away from the franchise's first NHL title since entering the league in 1967-68. They have won 11 consecutive road playoff games dating back to last season.
Los Angeles is now 13-2 this postseason.
Kopitar saw Williams battling with Devils defenseman Bryce Salvador and forward Dainius Zubrus along the boards.
"I wanted to make sure I went to the middle," Kopitar said. "I don't know if he heard me or not, but I yelled for the puck and he chipped it. It was perfect, right on my tape. It happened pretty quick and I was able to finish it off."
As soon as he rifled the puck into the net, Kopitar raised his hands and banged himself into the boards, facing the crowd off to Brodeur's right.
"To put it past a goaltender like Marty," Kopitar said, "is a good feeling."
The veteran goaltender dejectedly skated off to the locker room as the rest of the Kings piled on Kopitar.
Williams said his setup was a prayer.
"I just threw an area pass," he said. "I hoped that he was alone and he was. I've played with him a long time. You just kind of feel it. If it wasn't there, it would have went to nobody.
"It was a no-lose situation."
This is the third straight series in which the Devils have lost the first game.
"I think it was probably the worst game in the playoffs for us," said Devils leading scorer Ilya Kovalchuk, who was limited to one shot. "Maybe we were a little too nervous before the game started, but it's all excuses. We've got to make sure we know what we didn't do right, and be a different team next game."
Fourth-line center Colin Fraser scored in the first period for the Kings, the No. 8 seed in the West who beat the top three teams to get to their first Stanley Cup finals since 1993.
Anton Volchenkov tied it late in the second period for New Jersey, the East's sixth seed.
Kings goaltender Jonathan Quick finished with 16 saves in what was a relatively easy night. Brodeur had 23 saves as the Devils lost in overtime for just the second time this postseason; they have won four times. Los Angeles is 3-0 after regulation this spring.
The Devils had two great chances to take the lead early in the third, and for a split second it appeared they went ahead with 16:02 to play in regulation when Zach Parise scored off a wild goal-mouth scramble.
While the horns went off and the fans celebrated, referee Dan O'Halloran quickly waved off the goal.
It was reviewed in Toronto and replay clearly showed Parise swept the puck into the net with his hand.
Defenseman Mark Fayne was probably kicking himself six minutes later when he missed a wide-open net from the edge of the crease in what was the Devils' best period of the night.
"We didn't deserve to win tonight, and we didn't," said Devils veteran Patrik Elias, a member of their Cup-winning teams in 2000 and 2003.
The Kings had their chances, too, with Brodeur making two outstanding saves about 10 seconds apart. He made a stacked-pad save on a one-timer by defenseman Drew Doughty from 30 feet after a drop pass from Mike Richards. A turnover seconds later set up forward Dustin Penner for a shot from the left circle.
The Kings came into the finals after steamrolling Vancouver, St. Louis and Phoenix in just 14 games, and they made the Devils look ordinary in the first 40 minutes, holding them to nine shots.
But a fluke goal by Volchenkov tied the game with 1:12 left in the second.
Volchenkov took a shot from the left point that Quick kicked away in front. The puck went airborne, avoided Elias in front and hit off the shoulder of Kings defenseman Slava Voynov before going into the net.
Until then, Fraser's first career playoff goal was beginning to look like the winner.
It was a typical Kings' goal, created off the forecheck -- by the fourth line, no less.
Jordan Nolan checked New Jersey's Andy Greene behind the Devils' net, outfought him for the puck and found Fraser between the circles for a shot that beat Brodeur 9:56 into the game.
The Kings had chances to extend the lead, but Brodeur, who was the difference in the Devils' victory over the rival Rangers in the conference finals, made three good saves. The best stop by the 40-year-old, three-time Cup winner came on the opening shift of the second, when he blocked Kopitar point blank on the edge of the crease.
Kopitar, of course, would get one past Brodeur much later in the evening.
Brodeur also stopped forward Jeff Carter from in close and made a big pad stop on Penner in the second.
The Devils were held without a shot for more than 14 minutes of the period before Parise was credited with one on a short-handed attempt in which the puck rolled off his stick into the crease.
Quick, who wasn't very busy in the first two periods, made his best save with a glove stop on Zubrus from the left circle after a turnover.
However, New Jersey managed to tie it on Volchenkov's strange goal.
The tally came just after Quick got into a tussle with Parise in the crease and refused to let the Devils' captain get up after he fell as Parise lost his helmet.
"I think we're going to have to find another level," Devils coach Peter DeBoer said. "We were a little tentative, as was expected for a Stanley Cup final. I think we got better as the game went along, but you have to play 60 minutes against that team.
"We have to be better than we were tonight."
Game notes
Less than a minute into the game, the chant of "BEAT L-A" echoed through the arena. ... Doug O'Neill, the trainer of Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner I'll Have Another, was on hand, as was New York Giants offensive lineman Chris Snee and New York Jets coach Rex Ryan. ... Volchenkov's goal was his first in the playoffs since Game 3 of the 2007 Stanley Cup finals when he played for Ottawa against Anaheim. ... Kopitar's goal was his second OT winner in the postseason. The other was in 2010 at Vancouver. He has 12 points in the last nine games, including six goals. ...The was the first Game 1 of the finals that went to overtime since 2002, when the Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Detroit Red Wings 3-2 at Joe Louis Arena on a goal by Ron Francis, just 58 seconds past regulation.
LA leads 1-0
Game Information
- Referees:
- Brad Watson
- Dan O'Halloran
- Linesmen:
- Derek Amell
- Jonny Murray


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Tooth Fillings
We are a mercury-free practice. However, many people still have silver/mercury fillings in their mouths from years past. These fillings are not particularly pleasing to the eye, and we know that by unavoidable design, silver/mercury fillings ultimately result in a weaker tooth structure. Tooth colored composite resin fillings are not only beautiful and unnoticeable but also add strength to weakened teeth. These restorations are esthetically pleasing and very strong thanks to new bonding technologies.
Disadvantages of Silver fillings:
Silver fillings have many drawbacks. The edges of the silver filling can wear down, become weak or break. This resuls in the tooth not being protected and lets cavities get started once again. With age, the metal of a silver filling expands, contracts, and can split the tooth.
Silver fillings contain 50 percent mercury. They can corrode, leak and cause stains on your teeth and gums.
Fortunately, silver fillings can safely be replaced with Tooth-Colored Restorations.


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One of the key deviations from the novels this season is that Robb Stark, played by Scottish actor Richard Madden, will be followed in his journey through the narrative when the book pulled away and kept him in the background.
In past interviews, the executive producers have said a large part of the reason was that they loved Madden and his presence on the show, and they wanted to see more of him. It's difficult not to see their point: handsome, capable of playing stalwart and naive by turns, and charismatic, Madden draws the eye whenever he's on screen portraying Eddard Stark's son, who is now the King in the North.
We had a chance to speak with Madden on the phone while he's in L.A. doing the press thing, and decided to ask him questions (and, in one case, make a proposal) based on what fans submitted to us. See the results below!
I know you're in LA right now, but you were in Miami recently?
I used to live in Miami, actually. How do you like it?
Some Brazilian fans wanted me to thank you for your visit to Rio, actually. Reading some of the reports, it sounded almost like Beatlemania.
How is the experience of getting all that attention?
One of the stories that came out of Northern Ireland at TitanCon—which is happening again this year in September in Belfast, and they wanted me to pass on to you that if your schedule allows they'd love to have you as a guest—
One of the stories was a claim about a dance that you did, involving Diet Coke. Does that ring any bells?
I've read your remarking on how heavy the costumes are.
Part of the story was that your Diet Coke dance was done in part to amuse Oona Chaplin, a new member of the cast. How was it working with her?
I know Talisa is her actual name. Now, I know last season there were a couple of name-changes mid-filming last season, like Rakharo starting as Jhogo. Was she Jeyne at the start of filming, or was her name already changed before cameras started rolling?
Here's another one from a fan: Amy Barrick proposed marriage to you—
She did! She really did, though she had a laugh afterward. But I doubt that's the first or last proposal you're going to get.
Another one several people wondered about is if you have a favorite character (besides Robb).
Speaking of Ned, do you feel that Robb sees himself as being in his father's shadow?
What's been your most challenging scene so far in this series?
Having mentioned revenge, do you feel that's part of his character?
What else do you have on your plate besides Game of Thrones?
Thank you for your time, Richard, and have a good time in Los Angeles!